Warsaw, Missouri - A Rich History on the Osage River

Warsaw, Missouri - Rich History on the Osage River

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But, for Warsaw, the worst was yet to come. From October 17-21, 1861, Union General Fremont’s troops, perceiving Warsaw as a “treasonous” city, fairly devastated the town, taking over its supplies and homes for their own needs. The next month, on November 22^nd, as Union Army stragglers followed Fremont’s troops, they burned much of what had not already been destroyed.

On February 13, 1862, Major Ed Price, son of Sterling Price, was captured in Warsaw home. A few months later, in April, there were a number of nearby skirmishes fought. Another skirmish was fought in Warsaw in October. Before the war was over, what was left of Warsaw would be burned again on November 7-9, 1863 by Colonel Shelby’s troops as they march through the town on their way to Cole Camp.

Though war-torn and bitter, Warsaw residents would survive and rebuild. Navigation and trading on the Osage River returned and merchants once again began to prosper.

An illustration of General John C. Freemont as it appeared

in Harper's Magazine, July 13, 1861.

This image available for photographic prints and

downloads HERE!

In 1874, Warsaw reported a population of about 500, two churches, a hotel, a school, a bank, 15 retail establishments, two newspapers, a flour mill, and a sawmill.

The first train arrived in Warsaw from Sedalia in November, 1880, which ceased the need for Riverboat traffic on the Osage River. The Homer C. Wright was the last steamer to work on the Osage River. After its years of usefulness were over, it eventually sank during a winter ice storm.

In 1881, the Benton County Courthouse was found to have severe foundation problems and was ordered condemned. Plans for a third and final courthouse were made, but it wouldn’t be until 1886 that it was completed.

That same year, a railroad disaster took place on November 2, 1897, when a narrow-gauge train plunged off its trestle 2 ½ miles northeast of Warsaw, killing engineer, John Minnier.

By the turn of the century, automobiles were quickly replacing horses and buggies, and there was a need for new bridges.

The first suspension bridge in the Lake Area was built in Warsaw in 1895, devised and financed by D.M. Eddy, a Warsaw physician with an interest in bridge design. To offset the financing costs, a toll was charged to cross the bridge. Eddy's construction foreman was Joe Dice, also of Warsaw. Dice, along with another bridge contractor by the name of Charles Bibb, would build the vast majority of the Ozark River bridges in the early 1900’s. Called the Drake Bridge, and later referred to as the “Middle Bridge,” the toll was lifted in 1904, when money was raised to turn it over to the county.

Over the years, the bridge would suffer a number of tragedies, beginning with a collapse in March, 1913, under the weight of a stampeding cattle herd. A replacement suspension bridge was built in 1927, but was condemned due to flooding in 1936. It was repaired and reopened in 1943, only to close once again in 1955, also due to flooding. Condemned once again, the bridge stood silent until 1975, when it was demolished.

The Joe Dice Bridge has been restored today and serves

as a walking bridge in Warsaw.

This image available for photographic prints and

downloads HERE!

Another suspension bridge was built in Warsaw just two years after the first one. Also referred to as the Hackberry Bridge or the Lower Bridge. It; however, was destroyed by fire in 1926 and never rebuilt.

A third bridge was also built in 1904 at cost of $5,500. When opened, it too was a toll bridge. However, in June, 1924, it was destroyed by a tornado. A replacement bridge was then built in 1927 by Joe Dice, the same foreman who had helped construct Warsaw's first bridge. Referred to as the Upper Bridge, the 600 foot pathway across the river continued to serve automotive traffic until 1979, at which time it was closed to vehicles. Today, renamed “The Joe Dice Swinging Bridge,” it is the last of 15 swinging bridges that once crossed the Osage River. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the bridge now serves pedestrians.

In August, 1929, construction on the Lake of the Ozarks began, impounding the Osage River, as well as smaller tributaries, including the Niangua River, Grandglaize Creek, and Gravois Creek. Construction of the 2,543-foot long Bagnell Dam was undertaken by the Union Electric Company of St. Louis, Missouri. Two years later, the dam was completed in April, 1931. The lake that formed was at first referred to as Osage Reservoir or Lake Osage, but everyone always called it the Lake of the Ozarks. At the time of construction, it was one of the largest man-made lakes in the world and the largest in the United States. It quickly became a major Missouri tourist destination. Today, it has a surface area of some 55,000 acres, over 1,150 miles of shoreline, and its main channel stretches 92 miles from end to end. Unlike flood-control lakes constructed by the Corps of Engineers, the vast majority of the shoreline is privately owned.

Located at the headwaters of the lake of the Ozarks, the Warsaw area began to develop resorts and businesses along the shoreline of the channel. Warsaw, as a resort destination, increased when the Harry S. Truman Dam and Reservoir was completed in 1979. Developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the lake’s primary mission is flood control, but also serves power generation, recreation and wildlife management.

Today, cabins and homes dot the roads around Warsaw for miles as visitors and locals enjoy sitting in the very center of two Missouri's two largest lakes. Warsaw has become a popular retirement community, as well as a tourist destination, as visitors enjoy water sports, fishing, and camping, and antique shopping in Warsaw's quaint downtown district. .

Local attractions include the Benton County Museum, Big Bend Equestrian Trail, Truman State Park and Visitor’s Center, the Lost Valley Hatchery, and several annual Warsaw festivals.

Warsaw Swinging Bridge today, Kathy Weiser, May, 2006.

The Truman Dam Visitor's Center sits high atop Kayslinger Bluff, overlooking Truman Lake and the City of Warsaw,

Kathy Weiser, February, 2008.

Note: Warsaw, Missouri is Legends of America's

adopted "Home Away From Home" as we enjoy a small cabin at Ozark North Shores. However, we have plans within the next few years of making it our full-time location. - Kathy Weiser Alexander, February, 2008.

Also See:

Benton County Ghosts

The Slicker War of Benton County

Book your lodging right HERE online!

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