Tour Stop

Barry County Courthouse, Cassville, MissouriDirections: The Barry County Courthouse [ Map | Waypoint = N36 40.743 W93 52.116 ] was situated along the Wire Road in what is present day 700 Main Street in Cassville, Missouri 65625. Although this tour stop is not related directly to the Battle of Pea Ridge, there is a historical marker for a Missouri Secession Convention that took place in the fall of 1861 and it is on the tour route.

The quickest way to get to Cassville from the Flat Creek Tour Stop is by the following route:

If you want to continue following the route that Price's Army took in its retreat from Springfield, Missouri along the Wire Road, Hess, Shea, Piston, and Hatcher describe a route following the Wire Road in their Wilson's Creek, Pea Ridge, and Prairie Grove: A Battlefield Guide, with a Section on Wire Road (This Hallowed Ground: Guides to Civil Wa) [Please note that my car was unable to take this route in November 2009 because of washouts and high water]:

Secession Convention at Cassville Historical MarkerDescription: You are standing in front of the Barry County Courthouse. In the northeast corner of the block, you can see an interpretive sign [ Waypoint = N36 40.751 W93 52.092 ] describing the Secession Convention held in Cassville, Missouri between October 29 and November 7, 1861. In the previous week, Missouri Governor Claiborne Fox Jackson had set up a provisional capital in Neosho, Missouri 64850. Although it is doubtful that Jackson had a quorum, the legislators present passed an ordinance of secession that Jackson signed. Confederate President Jefferson Davis readily accepted Missouri into the Confederacy as its 12th State. In order to avoid capture by a Federal Army under the command of Major General John C. Fremont, the assembly had to adjourn and head for Cassville on October 28, 1861. Once in Cassville, the legislators convened in the Barry County Courthouse and continued their work.

 

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