Dent County, Missouri


Dent County is a county in Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,421. The largest city and county seat is Salem. The county was officially organized on February 10, 1851, and is named after state representative Lewis Dent, a pioneer settler who arrived in Missouri from Virginia in 1835.

History

Exploration and settlement

was one of the earliest visitors to the area that would become Dent County, which was then unmapped and unknown. In 1818, Schoolcraft and Levi Pettibone left Potosi, Missouri on an adventure that often left them hungry, lost, lonely and in danger. They first headed west from Potosi on a trail that is now followed by Highway 8, then turned south through southern Dent and Shannon counties, where Schoolcraft found the Current River, "a fine stream with fertile banks and clear, sparkling water.” Today the river attracts tourists who launch canoes by the thousands during the summer to enjoy the fast-moving water of the Current and Jack's Fork Rivers in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways. Schoolcraft traveled to the area of today's Springfield, Missouri, then went east on White River and finally back to Potosi, completing a journey of 89 days.
The White River trail had long been used by Native Americans in Dent County. It later became one of the branches of the Trail of Tears, which saw many Cherokees pass through on their forced trek to Oklahoma. Some stopped in Dent County and many old families take pride in their Cherokee heritage. The "trace" wound from Sligo southwest to the Ephraim Bressie Farm on Spring Creek north of Salem. It left the county about the present town of Maples.
The first white settler was Dominic Walker, who cleared a farm on the Meramec near Short Bend. It was later the site of the Nelson Mill. An abundance of waterpower and difficulty of transportation made mills important in the settling of the new land. Some of the first settlers came in 1829, mostly to the Meramec, Spring Creek and Dry Fork valleys. Land could be purchased for five cents or less an acre. William Thornton, Daniel Troutman and Daniel M. Wooliver were among the 1829 settlers, followed by William Blackwell, Nicholas Berardy, Elisha Nelson, Jerry Potts, Ephraim Bressie, Robert Leonard, Abner Wingfield, Lewis Dent, Wilson Craddock, Thomas Higginbotham, Jack Berry, Silas Hamby, Smith Wofford, Turquill McNeill, Dr. John Hyer, Samuel Hyer and David Lenox.

County formation

In 1851, the Missouri Assembly created Dent County from Crawford, Shannon, and Texas, Texas counties. It was named for early settler Lewis Dent, who served as the first representative. G.D. Breckenridge, Samuel Hyer, Jr., and Jotham Clark were the first elected county officials. Joseph Millsap served as sheriff and David Henderson as clerk. They met at the Bressie Farm.
The first mayor of Salem was appointed or elected just after the Missouri state legislature passed the laws relating to village government in 1860. He was W.P. Williams, often referred to as "Rip" from the positive and often violent expression of his feelings and opinions. He lived in Dent County a long time and was a prominent citizen throughout his long life. He became mayor in 1860, but how long he served is unknown. The American Civil War came about in 1861 and city governments were suspended. After Williams, records show that O.A. Kenemore, a prominent farmer with a home in Salem, became mayor. E.T. Wingo, a lawyer and representative, was next, followed by C.L. Allen, who was also a lawyer but never practiced law. He did, however, serve as Deputy Circuit Clerk and Probate Judge. Allen was succeeded by Samuel Sachs. No dates are available listing terms of office for these mayors, but it is likely they served from 1870 to 1881.

Courthouse

An earlier log courthouse, built around 1851 or 1852, was Dent County's first, on the Wingfield farm northeast of Salem. In 1852-53 a courthouse was built south of the present courthouse. The building measured about 20 by and was built by J.T. Garvin for $800. It was burned during the Civil War. The next courthouse, built in 1864, also fell victim to fire in May 1866. The beautiful Victorian courthouse—which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places—was built in 1870 for $15,500. A.E. Dye came to Dent County to build this courthouse. His son, E.L. Dye, assisted him and was to become the leading builder in the county. W.P. Elmer in his history reports that when the courthouse was finished, pictures of it were published in McClure's Magazine and newspapers in the East to show the development of the West.

Electrification

In 1909, a band of 23 pioneers realized the dream of bringing electric lights to Salem with the formation of the Salem Light & Power Co. The city eventually took over the electric system and produced electricity with two big diesel generators. When the generators could no longer meet the demand and were costly to operate the city contracted with Show-Me-Power Cooperative.
Mrs. Thomas A. Bruce organized the first telephone system. Charlie Jeffries joined the Bruces to install the system around 1900. Homes paid $1 and stores $1.25 per month. Mrs. Bruce suffered agony from her eyes and was blind for 30 years until her death on May 8, 1942. The telephone system was sold to United Telephone, now Sprint.

Industry

Salem led the world in the production and shipping of railroad ties for a time. While the early lumber companies cut the vast Ozark pine forests, timber has remained a major asset, with white oak staves for barrels, oak flooring, pallets, charcoal briquettes and lumber. The Bunker-Cul1er Lumber Co. in Bunker was one of the area's biggest industries, and like the mines which hauled wood for the kilns from a large area, Bunker-Cul1er used rails to bring in logs.
Dent County has had its ups and downs economically, but is proud of its record of having five banks during the Great Depression without a failure. The Great Depression years brought many changes. The Civilian Conservation Corps brought young men to the area, many of whom stayed. There were CCC camps at Boss and Indian Trail. In the of the Indian Trail Conservation Area, crews built most of the area's of access roads. The Conservation Department purchased much of the cut-over land for $2.50/acre.
Dent County's skilled labor force made needlework industries a natural. Ely & Walker's four-story factory was the first. After World War II the Industrial Building Corporation raised funds for the International Shoe Factory. Other factories followed, including Salem Sportswear, Barad Lingerie, Paramount Cap and Hagale. Today, foreign competition has all but wiped out the local needlework industry.
After World War II and through the 1950s, 60s and 70s, Dent County underwent changes. There were 60 one-room schools in 1950 and consolidation reduced this number to five districts/plus high schools in Salem and Bunker. Roads were built and improved. Salem Memorial District Hospital was built and became a major industry and health provider.

Economy

Today's largest employer in Dent County, U.S. Foodservice, is an institutional food business and began in Salem as Craig Distributing. After World War II, Farris Craig started with a panel truck and peanut vending machines. In 1986, the Craigs sold their business to Kraft Foods, which later sold to Alliant, and is now owned by U.S. Foodservice. The Craigs have left their imprint on Salem with Craig Plaza, the Alice Lou Craig Municipal Swimming Pool, the Salem Visitor Center, and the Ozark Natural and Cultural Resource Center.
With guidance from University of Missouri Extension, the county became the Feeder Pig & Calf Capitol of Missouri, with huge sales in spring and fall auctioning large numbers of livestock graded into pens for size and quality. Loss of farm population often due to the aging of farm owners ended these sales.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

Adjacent counties

  • Crawford County
  • Iron County
  • Reynolds County
  • Shannon County
  • Texas County
  • Phelps County

    National protected areas

  • Mark Twain National Forest
  • Ozark National Scenic Riverways

    Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 14,421 and a median age of 45.1 years. 22.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 22.0% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 99.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.9 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 92.3% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.6% from some other race, and 5.7% from two or more races, while Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.9% of the population.
Race / Ethnicity Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020
White alone 14,40613,51314,42015,02113,20399.24%98.62%96.60%95.94%91.55%
Black or African American alone 095555520.00%0.07%0.37%0.35%0.36%
Native American or Alaska Native alone 2160105135610.14%0.44%0.70%0.86%0.42%
Asian alone 17283241540.12%0.20%0.21%0.26%0.37%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone xx277xx0.01%0.04%0.05%
Other race alone 7345470.05%0.02%0.03%0.03%0.33%
Mixed race or Multiracial xx197245726xx1.32%1.56%5.03%
Hispanic or Latino 66891121482710.45%0.65%0.75%0.95%1.88%
Total14,51713,70214,92715,65714,421 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

32.5% of residents lived in urban areas, while 67.5% lived in rural areas.
There were 5,946 households in the county, of which 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 24.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 6,819 housing units, of which 12.8% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 72.8% were owner-occupied and 27.2% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.1%.