What is in a name?
Throughout the 180-year life of Cassville and the 200-plus year life of Barry County, there have been many names, many people, many families that have contributed to the growth and history of this city and county.
Although Lewis Cass, a former United States Senator and Secretary of War and William Barry, a U.S. Postmaster General from Kentucky never resided in Cassville or Barry County, they did contribute their names to our area. From the Travises, Washburns, Keetses and McDonalds in the early to mid 1800s who helped settle this area to Emery Melton, David Sater, and Scott Fitzpatrick, who have had an influence in Missouri state politics in the last few years, Cassville and Barry County have had their share of leaders and influential people that have made this area to be a great place to be from and a great place in which to live.
This column is about men and families who were involved in mercantile businesses, lumber companies, banking, railroads, newspapers, etc. and local city and county officials. Some of the pioneer families included the Pharises, The Bryans, the Burtons, The LeComptes, the Hudsons, the McConnells (owners of the pre-Civil War McConnell Hotel and early lawmakers), the Felkers, the Mitchells (started the first Cassville telephone company, was in the newspaper business and who helped pay for the C&E Railroad), the Messers (who served as Postmasters), the Stubblefields, the Browns, the Horines, the Marbuts, the Blacks, the Benningtons, the Norcutts, the Rollers, and George Goodnight (who was an early state representative).
But more particularly, this column is about the John Melville Bayless family, the Rufus Salyer family and the Bayless-Salyer House, located at 9th and Townsend in Cassville.
The family of John Bayless came to Barry County from Tennessee after the Civil War and settled in the Keetsville area. John’s dad had a mercantile store and a farm in the Keetsville/Washburn area. After John returned to Tennessee to get a degree, he returned to the area and became a teacher. After teaching school for two years John served as County Collector and opened his own Mercantile shop and Lumber Company in the Cassville area.
He also started the Barry County Bank and built the “brick” Barry Hotel after the devastating fire of 1893. He also got a group of men together who paid for and built the Cassville-Exeter Railroad line. John’s Barry County Bank made money available for people to rebuild after the 1893 fire if they would rebuild with brick. After John’s first wife died, he married a local lady, Miss Mary Stubblefield, and they purchased the lot at 9th and Townsend and built the beautiful 10-plus room “mansion” that is still there today. They lived in the big red beautiful home until 1907, when the family moved to Claremore, Indian Territory.
Rufus G. Salyer purchased the house in 1907. The Salyers were a family of doctors, dentists and pharmacists and provided much needed medical assistance for Cassville. The Salyers added the large wraparound front porch, and some members of the family occupied the home until 1944. In 1945, the house converted to rental units and was used as apartments until 1981, serving as living quarters to such notables as Jim Lassiter, Truman Baker, John Q. Hammons, and my brother and his wife.
After serving as an apartment building, the structure stood empty for over 15 years and was scheduled for demolition when the Barry County Genealogical and Historical Society purchased it to be used as a storage area and as a Historical building to be viewed and appreciated, similar to a museum.
From donations, including $10,000 from Hammons, the Society was able to rehab the house, somewhat, including updating the water and sewer lines, replacing the front porch flatwork and repairing several windows.
Unfortunately, it has been over 20 years since any repairs were made to the building, and now there are many more things that need attention and, of course, that means needing additional money to make these repairs. The repairs needed include replacing the 14 columns on the front porch, replacing part of the flooring in the front porch, redoing several of the window sills, repairing some of the eave work, repairing the guttering, tuck-pointing the brickwork and painting the entire exterior of the building.
The needed “minimal” repairs have been estimated to cost approximately $32,000. Removal and replacement of the columns is estimated at about $1,000 per column.
For a little history of our income and expenses, from membership fees, fundraisers and donations for use of the building and for the selling of literature, the Society has an income of approximately $3,000 a year. For the past several years, our expenses, which are primarily utility bills and printing and mailing our quarterly historical booklet, are about $6,000 per year. As can be seen, volunteer members have had to cover some of these expenses.
To maintain the Bayless-Salyer House as a reminder of the hard work of two families, really several families and actually all of Barry County, we at the Barry County Genealogical and Historical Society feel that it is very important to keep this building open, presentable and safe, and a few people, no matter how dedicated, can’t do it all by themselves.
What the Society has discussed and what we are asking is that Individuals or families donate the price of a column or get together with another family and donate the price of half a column so that we can get these columns replaced. Some of these columns, you can stick your whole hand in. We have to get these columns repaired, or we may have to shut down the use of the front porch.
The Bayless-Salyer House does not belong to just the Society. It belongs to all of Cassville and to all of Barry County. We can’t tell where these Civil War skirmishes were, or where the Butterfield Stage Line relay stations were, or where the Old Wire Road really was.
But, with the Bayless-Salyer House, we can actually see part of the history of our area. Please help us repair it.
For those who donate for a column, there will be a plaque placed upon the column that will have the name of the donor, or the donor can designate a person or family name to memorialize. We have five columns paid for at this time, and we’re in discussion with two more families. We are asking for your assistance for what we feel is a very worthy cause, and any donation would be appreciated.
If you want your family info/story included in one of our quarterlies, please come to one of our meetings and tell your story. We meet the third Saturday of the month at 1 p.m. at the Bayless-Salyer House.
Please contact me at hlhilburn@hotmail.com with any questions, donations or especially “column” donations.
Lynn Hilburn is an officer in the Barry County Genealogical and Historical Society, and invites all to come and join meetings, to provide information about their families or to look up information about their families. Hilburn may be reached at hlhilburn@hotmail.com.
