A more finalized map

The final map for the time being with 314 signatures on the petition. Take that! There will be a closed meeting Wednesday at 4:00 with a KCP&L representative, unfortunately I will be on an airplane to Arizona at the time. I will get an update as soon as possible and update what was said, though I am sure that it will be inconclusive until the final decision in February.

Remember that the places that are not marked red were simply not able to be gotten ahold of. Only one person could not sign the petition and that is because he works for KCP&L and did not want to loose his job.

An Updated Map

We have over 280 signatures on the petition now. That's sometimes only the head of the household. 

Map of the Opposed

This map shows all of the citizens of Camden Point who have signed the petition against the KCP&L transmission lines. Everyone has been helping me get the right places colored, hopefully we can make it nearly solid red by the end of the week.

An Essay about this Blog!

Living in Camden Point: an Art Blog

Green Sculpture KCAI:

For Zach Springer

By Alex Asher

Fall 2010

On the surface, this project seems very different from my usual studio practice. I am an animation artist when it comes right down to it. I dabble in many other mediums as well, but animation is my chosen subject of major study at the Kansas City Art Institute. Most of the work that I make has a certain narrative quality to it, and when I look at the overview of my blog, Living in Camden Point, that is what I see: a narrative. It is a specific, non-fiction work, about the people of Camden Point and how we interact with each other in a small town, as well as outside forces.

The art of blogging is a considerably new type of media. It comes from the term, “weblog,” coined by Jorn Barger in 1997, and shortened to “blog,” by Peter Merholz in 1999. Personally I did not know what a blog was until just a few years ago. It was just another obscure term that I had accepted as meaning something that goes on in the Internet and has no concern for me. I was wrong. Blogs affect us all whether we know it or not, someone is writing about the everyday business of their own lives, and others are responding to their prompts. Their lives affect ours, just as the metaphor of a single raindrop affecting the smooth surface of a pond. Recently I found that there are different types of blogs, including art blogs. Art blogs can cover many different topics such as reviews, critiques, gossip, auctions, news, essays, portfolios, interviews, and journals. I think that my own blog, Living in Camden Point, falls under this last category. It is a journal of sorts, covering my own family history, and the history of the town I live in, Camden Point. Though recently it has also become a political blog, as I have been blogging about recent issues that are affecting the residents of Camden Point today. I suppose it has also encompassed gossip from the various people that I visit with. There is always news of new things happening in Camden Point every day, no matter how big or how small.

The blog is a new type of media, just like animation. Animation’s history is very short compared to most other forms of art that have been around since the beginnings of human civilization. The beginnings of animation as we know it started about a hundred years ago. That is quite young in art standards. It still has a hard time being considered art in most circles. Blogs are very much like animation in this way. When a person says that they have started a blog another will likely not assume that it is a fine art project, but a form of personal commentary. I suppose that it is just that, but it can be so much more. Most art is commentary on one subject or another, but I want this to really get people thinking about the world that they live in.

Blogs offer readers the ability to leave their own comments about what I have posted, and from these I am given new perspectives on my work as well. That has been one of my favorite parts of this project. I love finding other’s opinions on what I have to say. They can tell me that they like what I have to say, or they hate what I have been doing. I have found that people will leave comments that they may not have been able to say in person, but have no scruples with leaving hidden on a deep, dark webpage that everyone in the whole world has access to. They even have the option of leaving an anonymous message, to which I will always wonder as to whom they were, and do I know them?

Even though the form of this project purely digital and available to anybody that has access to the World Wide Web anywhere in the world, this project is actually quite site specific. When this project was first introduced I found myself rather worried at the prospect of having to do a semester-long project working in the Kansas City community. I was not thinking outside the box, for although I live and work in Kansas City while attending the Kansas City Art Institute, it is not my community. I have very little ties to the city itself, only to the school and its people. My community is Camden Point. I grew up here; my family is from here; everything that I know and love is right here in Camden Point. Sure, I like to take a vacation every now and then, but this is where I want to grow old. After I realized that Camden Point was an option for this project I jumped on the opportunity and did not let go.

When I started this project I knew that I wanted it to be open to the public, but I also wanted it to be based in my small community. Going online seemed to be the most public place to post my art.[1]  It is an odd place for someone from Camden Point to be posting about Camden Point. Most households out here do not have Internet access, and those who do usually have a hard time getting it to work. Our middle age to older population does not even know how to navigate the Internet, so I decided the Camden Point needed someone to get her people established on the World Wide Web. Young people are on Facebook all the time, even if they have to visit the local library in order to get online. I often post links to my blog on Facebook just to draw people in. It has finally started to work. I get comments from my friends to my friends parents to people I hardly know living on the other side of the state. Camden Point has finally made it to St. Louis! That is only the distance across one state, but that’s pretty good for a small town no one has even heard about in the Kansas City area, being only forty minutes away.

This project is going to be a work in progress for as long as I can keep updating. It has already been a changing, and evolving, concept. When I first started it I figured it would only be about the history of my hometown and how my family ended up living there.  This changed as I quickly ran out of new information and realized that Camden Point has a living history as well as a past. I started my research with genealogy. Genealogy is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history through oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and family records to obtain information about a family. “The pursuit of family history tends to be shaped by several motivations including the desire to carve out a place for one’s family in the larger historical picture, a sense of responsibility to preserve the past for future generation, and a sense of self-satisfaction in accurate storytelling.” I think that my motivation was mostly the self-satisfaction part. I grew up with the need to collect things, and collecting information for a family tree was something too good to pass up. I found many interesting things, but realized that I had been collecting them in my head and not as a hard copy to share with others once I had forgotten all the details. I had more fun telling the stories of exciting lives and deaths of my ancestors, than actually recording them into a form that could be kept for future reference. This was a bit of a problem, and I decided to move on. Besides, I have found that sometimes it is not as much fun to listen to other’s stories of family history as it is to find your own.

Eventually this turned into more of a public, living history project in which I shared anything that was of interest to me that had anything to do with Camden Point. Public history refers to historic preservation, archival science, oral history, museum curatorship, and other related fields. This blog does not quite fit the definition, but I think that being a new type of media used in a new way, it may very well fall under the definition in the future. Another part of this project is the oral history of Camden Point. Oral history is the recording, preservation, and interpretation of information based on personal experience and opinions, offering eyewitness stories of the past. I think that my blog falls under this category quite well. I am recording Camden Point’s history on the Internet. This considerably new tool of documentation will last as long as the website is allowed to exist online.

The Internet is a funny thing. It can bring people together, but it can also push a person so far beyond the social sphere of real life that they never leave their computer screen. I would like my blog to be a window into both worlds. Perhaps it will draw the recluses away from their computers and encourage them to look into their own communities and meet the people who live there, instead of someone else glued to their computer screen on the opposite side of the world whom they have very little chance of ever meeting face to face and having a real relationship with. Those who are still social in the real world might find that they could share their own thoughts and experiences with the world through the highly accessible ways of the blogging.

The National Archives has started a project to record sound bites of interviews and storytellers, recalling the highlights of their lives. These records will be invaluable some day, looking into the everyday life of a person living in the year 2010 and beyond. Perhaps, someday people will look back on my own project once it has grown to its full potential and be able to experience what life was like in Camden Point in the twenty-first century.  The future of this project is, as of yet, unknown to me. I would like to continue with it for as long as I am interested and try to push myself beyond that as well. I would like to keep it personal to my heart, but not get so opinionated that no one else wants to read it.

Other projects such as Bill Hankins’ Landmark People, and Peter Feldstein and Stephen G. Bloom’s The Oxford Project, helped me define my art through their own. Hankins’ book is actually about the local people of Platte County, where Camden Point is located. I have always loved the idea of this book: collecting stories, and the people who experienced them both in and around my hometown. It reminds me of how connected we are up here in a rural community, in contrast to people who live in the city who are so disconnected even with their own neighbors. Feldstein and Bloom’s book reminded me that although we may share a lot in common with each other living in the same basic area, everyone has a different story to tell. I have so many exciting stories to tell about my own life that Camden Point must be exploding with them! “Would you please tell me your story?” I ask.

---

[1] I have started another blog to archive my studio art in animation. It seems to be the best way to make my art public and get new and exciting opinions that I would not get otherwise from simply whipping out the computer and showing those whom are close enough to me that I am comfortable taking up their time in order to ‘show off.’

Another Jokester

I was at an auntie's birthday party a while back, and Grandma Joan was there. She has been like my own Grandmother for longer than I can remember.

We were talking about one of her daughters, being a large animal vet. She works a good ways south of Camden Point in dairy country. All of us girls got to talking about dairy operations, and they ended up teasing me about how I should find myself a good dairy farmer to settle down with.

They started going on about the cows and how a dairy operations works when Grandma Joan pipes up, "Those dairy men, they sure know their tits!" That is what really got the party started. We were trying to be good with our Grandma there, and then she goes and says a thing like that. We laughed all night long. It will be one of my favorite jokes forever.

After the Meeting

After the meeting last night I was pretty stirred up. I went and got a few extra petitions and earned myself 11 signatures, who knows if they will even be considered. I also dropped off some information and a few petitions at our local gas station, KCL. Sign it please!!!

I am working with several people in the area who have been in this type of situation before. Though, I am trying to keep it quite. Things are oddly political and I do not want to split up the people who have joined together in order to push KCP&L back.

If you care about keeping Camden Point the way it is, without giant power lines crossing our land, write a letter to the local newspaper: the Platte County Citizen, the Landmark, the Weston Chronicle, even the Kansas City Star.

Camden Point has a New Problem

KCP&L is proposing a new transmission line from their new power plant in Iatan to Nashua. The line will be a 345 kilovolt electric transmission line connecting the two stations. It will deliver energy from the new plant in Iatan to Nashua, and from there to the the highest bidder (Omaha, Nebraska right now). 

This energy will not even benefit Camden Point, nor will it benefit the landowners in any way. In fact, it could cause great harm to the land it is to be built upon. Pesticides will be used to keep the land clear, killing animals and stunting plant growth. When they build the lines, farmland and natural habitats alike will be ripped up and destroyed. Much of what they propose will go right by people's houses. 


If KCP&L were to get an easement on your property you could not build any permanent structures or plant trees on that property, ever. These lines are permanent. If you do not agree to an easement, KCP&L can acquire your property through eminent domain.


Our lives will be negatively impacted. This will affect our residences, farming, and the natural environment. I have lived here all my life, and KCP&L cannot take that away from me. This would damage our rural environment, we do not want to be made an industrial area. Building these power lines will greatly lower our property values, permanently.


You can check out their side of the story at kcpl.com, but don't believe everything you read there. These people have paid public relations people, but they are a private company and care nothing for the little guy.


There is no advantage to the people of Camden Point having these lines being put on our property. I have been wondering why KCP&L does not just use existing lines to transfer their energy? It would be so much less expensive for both us and them. Anyway, just so long as they stay the hell out of Camden Point. They could also go along major roadways, but everything just has to be so complicated...


If we give them an inch it may be the start of Camden Point falling to eminent domain. I'm kind of scared here, people. For heaven's sake, sign the petition!!! Call me, or come and see me over the next few day. These petitions are due on Sunday at 3:00, don't be afraid to show interest. The next meeting to fight this monster is Sunday at 3:00 at the Camden Point community center.


Oh, and take KCP&L's survey at this survey link. Tell them exactly what you think about this line, so long as you are against it. ; )

God is Like

This was a poem that Grandma copied and wrote down:

God is Like

God is like- Bayers Aspirin,

He works wonders.

God is like- Ford,

He’s got a better idea.

God is like- Dial,

He gives you round the clock protection.

God is like- Coke,

He’s the real thing.

God is like- Pan Am,

He makes the going great.

God is like- Scope,

He makes you feel fresh.

God is like- Hallmark Cards,

He cared enough to send the very best.

She lived in Platte City, Missouri, and I believe this was written in the early ‘70’s based on the slogans.

Death of a Late Ancestor

It's odd when going through family history that a man who died almost a hundred years ago can bring so much emotion and warmth to me. To know that he lived in the same area I do and find stories of his life. Tilman Naylor existed as one of my ancestors. He was a living, breathing person, and this is only a glimpse at his story.

Platte County lost an old and highly honored citizen on Monday June 16^th when Tilman Naylor, after a long illness, was called to his reward, aged 79 years 5 months and 21 days.

He was born in Bath county, Kentucky, but has been a citizen of Platte County by far the greatest portion of his life. His farm, about two miles north of Waldron, is one of the best in eastern Platte County, and this with a comfortable portion of the worlds goods he accumulated through untiring energy, strict honesty, and sterling integrity. He was universally respected, and counted his friends by the hundred, and when called to pay their last respects to their friend and neighbor of so many years, the spacious grounds about his home would hardly accommodate the great throng which came to do him honor.

He was the father of thirteen children, ten of whom survive him to be a comfort and solace to the aged wife who has been confined to her bed for a year past. There are 79 grandchildren and 24 greatgrandchildren.

The funeral services were conducted at the late home of the deceased on Tuesday by Rev. Tucker of Platte City, after which the remains were laid to rest in the Naylor cemetery. The sorrowing family has the sympathy…(unreadable).

Paxton, William M. Annals of Platte County, Missouri: Addendum – July 1897 through July 1916. (Platte City, Missouri: Platte County Historical & Genealogical Society, 2001), 227d.

Unfortunately the end of this obituary is lost, but what is available is a family treasure.

Deer Season!

(I really should have taken my hat of for this picture)

Deer Season started Saturday morning, and for all you city folks who don’t know, it’s a pretty big deal out here. In Platte County getting your first deer is like the transition from boyhood to manhood. Being a tough, country girl, I had to get one too in order to prove myself. Last year I killed a little buck, and it felt pretty good back then. This morning I went out and sat in the cold deer blind for a little over an hour, but I scared them all off walking out there in the first place. Don’t tell Dad, I’m still his little Deer Hunter, though I would rather just be his little Deer Tracker. Don’t get me wrong; I got buck fever tried for a trophy buck this season, but I’m too impatient for that. In the afternoon I went back out and immediately saw four doe grazing in the pasture before I even crossed the fence line. I played a game of stealth with them at first, walking a few steps and then stopping to see if they would flee. I got about half way across the pasture before they finally did run, and that took about fifteen minutes.

After I’d scared them off and set up my blind I only had to wait another twenty minutes for them to show up again. I started counting them on the far hill; first two, then four. The sun was starting to set when I saw my buck walking on my side of the hill toward the doe. At this point I was still waiting for something else to show up. He chased a doe back my way, but she evaded him and he started to run his scent on a tree. I would have taken my shot then, but he blended in so well I could not tell him from the forest he was surrounded by. I watched the does on the far side of the hill for a little while longer, still counting; six, then eight. I was amazed when I could count ten deer all together.

Something scared them my way, and I realized that the group consisted of nine doe, and a single-antlered buck. They came closer, and I started to calculate which one would be the best to bring home. Should I wait until tomorrow and see if something better comes along? Should I wait, because I would have to do all my work in the dark? The light was fading fast. Should I not shoot at all, and let them all survive to enjoy watching them through the long winter? Is that the wrong thing to do for the purposes of over-population? I was unsure, but then I decided. If I didn’t shoot tonight I would come out tomorrow and the same things would be going through my head. I would be disappointed with myself and feel as if I were letting my family down, even though I would only be letting myself down with these thoughts.

They were all headed right into my line of shot. I took aim at the buck, tried to steady my nerves, and took the shot. The rifle sounded as loud as standing next to thunder and for a moment I was dazed. As they say, time slowed down and I watched the buck run into the brush until I couldn’t see him. “Oh, no,” I thought, “I am going to have to track him, and it’s getting dark fast.” 

I was terribly excited, my adrenaline was high, and I wanted to run down the hill and see if my buck was there. First, I looked for my rifle shell that had been ejected when the rifle fired but couldn’t find it in the growing darkness. Then I reloaded the gun incase I had to put the deer out of his misery upon finding him. I turned on the safety and carefully crawled out from the blind. I walked down the hill watching and listening for movement. If he were still alive, he could be very dangerous and attack when I came close. I was ten feet away when I realized he was lying in the weeds, not twenty feet from where I had shot him. It was the perfect shot too. After I had gutted him I found that his heart and lungs had exploded; he had been killed on impact.

Excitedly, I ran back to the top of the hill. Dad was already in the driveway looking for my signal. Did I get one, or was I coming back empty-handed? I howled my pleasure, yelling, “Bring the truck! … And the camera!” I finally had time to find my bullet shell in the last gleaming rays of the sun and ran back down the hill to safely inspect my buck. I carefully approached him, admiring the beauty of an animal created to blend magnificently with the woods. He really was beautiful.

When Dad got there with the truck he took a picture of my buck and me. It was a nice picture, if you don’t consider all the blood. Last years was not nearly as good. For one thing, this deer was a lot bigger than last year’s, and a lot harder to clean. I had gotten better at it, but Dad still had to help me with the hard parts. Don’t you get squeamish now; this has been a part of life for thousands of years.

I called the information into the Conservation Department and soon Mom and I were on our way to Clark’s Custom Meat Co. up in St. Joseph. They are the place to go for meat processing in the area as far as I am concerned. The service is great, and the meat is even better. I always feel welcome there.  It was late on opening night, yet Ms. Clark was still in a pleasant mood. I teased the boys, telling them that I wanted the horn, and asked if I could keep the hide. Ms. Clark told the boy to fold it up so that it would keep its moisture and when he asked how I told him to fold it like a bed-sheet. “I’ve never folded a sheet in my life.” He answered. “Well, maybe you should.” I told him right back, but then gave him several thank yous as he carried it back to my truck. Ms. Clark thought that was pretty funny, telling my Mom that she was glad to see a girl who can take charge. She related to me that large men had come in and didn’t want to have anything to do with touching that deer, acting rather squeamish themselves while she had to handle everything. They must have been city slickers that go to closed hunting ranges where they raise the deer specifically for hunting and then field dress them all ready for the processors. And here I come, asking for the hide so I can go home and tan it myself. Ms. Clark even gave me a contact to call and ask about the tanning process.

On the way home I called the family to tell them the good news. Supper had been put on hold as soon as Dad had heard my shot. I still don’t know how he knew it was me… But as soon as we got home we had deer steaks from the little buck I had shot the year before.

The next day, Deer Season was still in full swing. I went to the gas station out on the Interstate and visited with the old men who go for coffee and camaraderie almost every morning. P.J. and Dennis were there, some of my Grandpa’s good friends. I told them about the three-pointer that should have been a six-pointer that I had gotten the day before, and they told me a few Big Buck stories, themselves.

P.J. told a story of how his sister and her husband hit a twenty-eight point deer on the Interstate. That’s huge!! I have only ever seen ten point deer living and in the wild. He asked if I wanted to see a picture of it and got me really excited. P.J. pulled out his phone and showed me a picture of a black man with dread locks sticking up on top of his head. This is Camden Point humor… And, unfortunately, I laughed.

We also spotted the Conservation Agent pulling into the driveway, following a truck with a camouflage four-wheeler in the back. This was his big weekend. The men came into the station and weren’t bothered, but I bet the agent was walking around checking truck beds for deer without the proper tags. If you are going to hunt, do it legally.

Everybody in northern Platte County goes hunting at some time or another, as I said, it's like a rite of passage. And I passed with flying colors this year.

Saturday in Camden Point

Early in the day I went and visited with Lindy Waldrop. She moved to Camden Point recently, meaning within the last twenty years. We talked about some art projects she is working on such as her ceramic rocking horses and some beautiful paper invitations that she is making for a store is Leavenworth, KS. We talked about our craft and gave each other some new ideas. She had to run some errands in Kansas City, and my next stop was to visit the Barn Artist’s show just west to Camden Point.

The Barn Artist’s show takes place on the property of Bill and Marsha Hankins. They have a beautiful barn that has been renovated into a horse stable/living space. It’s really beautiful. Every few months of late they have been having this show to support local artists in ceramics, painting, photography, metalworking, wood carving, and more. Bill Hankins is a photographer and wrote the book Landmark People, which partly inspired this project. There is a section of the book that is about my Great Grandfather, R. J. Asher, that Bill and I talked about today. He said that Grandpa had many stories to tell and that Bill could have written an entire book on him alone. He and Marsha are really good people, and very gracious hosts. Marsha Hankins:

For more information on some of the artist’s whom participated: http://farmsteadlifestyleevents.blogspot.com/2010/04/more-coming-barn-artists.html

Kathy Truders is one of the Barn Artist’s that I saw at the show. She lives southwest of town and makes raku-fired ceramics, mostly with horse themes. We talked about her process a little and then went upstairs to talk about some of Bill Hankin’s work. She had scene a new piece called Creek Mosaic and just had to show it to me. We looked through the rest of his prints that he had taken here in Platte County and talked about some of the places featured, and what memories they brought to mind.

This is Kathy Truders:

Next to Bill’s photos were Jerry Kuhn’s. He used to work for the local newspaper and was at quite a few of my High School events documenting what we were doing for the entire county to read about. Cathy and I saw that one of his photos was of a veteran’s funeral in Weston that was attacked by the no-good Phelps’s and their crazy followers. Luckily, the good people of Weston realized what was going on and made a blockade between the family and these intruders. Jerry caught a snapshot of three local men holding up their hands in protest and a seven-foot American Flag preventing the Phelps crew from getting near the cemetery. Here is a link to the story on Fox 4 news: http://www.fox4kc.com/wdaf-cjsadell-funeral-westboro-church-protest-110610,0,575122.story

This got us all shook up, but then I recognized a picture of Ralph Shackleford, a veteran of WWII and great friend to all in Platte County. Kathy and I both know Ralph, he taught me how to ride a horse! Ralph is one of the great treasures of Platte County. I’ll have to visit him and write more later. In the mean time, check out this cool website about Ralph: http://connections.smsd.org/veterans/ralph_shackleford.htm

He can still wear this uniform!!

After visiting with the Barn Artist’s I went to another little venue in Camden Point called Willow Bend Designs. Karen Seckel was my Elementary School Principal, and now she is a good friend. She and Charlotte Johnson, an elementary teacher, run a temporary holiday shop out of the Camden Point Community Center. I usually try to find something to get my Mom and Grandma for Christmas while I am there, but just wasn’t in the mood to buy this year. I think that I would rather make something instead, but don’t ruin the surprise!

Charlotte and Karen:

I saw Dorothy Deal when I was coming out of the Camden Point library. She was my Sunday School Teacher growing up at the Camden Point Christian Church, and one of the kindest hearted women I have even known. She says that she is disappointed that there is not much more to Camden Point than the library, bank, and post office. I asked her what she remembered, and she said, “Well, of course the Asher Grocery Store, the hardware store, and the gas station.” Great Grandpa owned the grocery store. As a child I can just barely remember the hardware store. I can remember when they had chicks in a water tub in the spring and Mom would not get any because our border collie, Rip, would eat them. I asked Dorothy about the gas station located in Camden Point. She said that Ray Flemming owned the station when he first moved to Camden Point, and someone else ran it before him.

Stories of Camden Point

Do you have any stories of Camden Point that you would like to share??? If you come across this blog and would like to share anything this is my open invitation. I'll even type it up for you if you just tell me what you want to say.

Jokes from Brocious

At the Halloween parade Brocious told Mary and I a few jokes.

Lizard and Monkey were sitting in a tree in the middle of the jungle sharing a joint. Lizard got thirsty and told Monkey he was going down to the river to get a drink, laughing the whole way. At the river he met Crocodile and told him what a funny sight Monkey was getting high in the tree. Well, Crocodile just had to see this. So Lizard and Crocodile headed back to the tree and Crocodile looked up and said, "Hey!" Monkey nearly fell out of the tree in his surprise and looked down at Crocodile, exclaiming, "How much did you drink!"

He also told us about a few pictures that he had drawn. One was of a bunch of dinosaurs howling at the moon, "Someone had to teach the coyotes how to howl at the moon."

Brocious also told us about a series he had drawn based on old time carnivals, one was of a horse being shot out of a cannon, instead of a man. Another was of a pool of water diving into six inches of man at 50 feet!

Genealogy and Ancestry: Easier than it sounds!

I went to a genealogy workshop a few weekends ago and learned a few things about researching my family history.

Basic Geneology:

1. Prepare- go to your library, take a class, check the house for old family records

2. Gather- interview relatives and take notes, gather family records and photos, and preserve your find

3. Organize- complete a generation chart and a family group sheet, these family trees can be filled out for free on various genealogy websites

4. Research- keep good standard records, check State Vital Records, Federal Census Records, Military Records, Immigration and Naturalization Records

5. Share your information with your family and others who might be a relation you don't even know about!!

Some good websites to check out:
www.familysearch.org
www.rootsweb.com
www.usgenweb.com
www.cyndislist.com
www.mcpl.lib.mo.us.genlh (Mid-Continent Public Library)
sos.mo.gov/archives (Missouri Archives)
archives.gov/genealogy (National Archives)
worldgenweb.org
ancestry.com (free access at most libraries)
ellisisland.org
castlegarden.org

Another great database is the Midwest Genealogy Center, in Independence, MO. (www.midwestgenealogycenter.org)

The First Asher's in Platte County

Here are some interesting tidbits that I pulled from a book written in 1885, called History of Clay and Platte Counties, Missouri. If you had ancestors here back then it is a really good resource. Robert D. is my Great, Great, Great Grandfather. William is his dad.

Since 1823 there was a settlement on the Clay County side near Barry, a trading post. William and his son Robert Asher and their families had houses on the Platte side, called Second Creek, along with 18 others. In 1836 Government authorities issued a peremptory order for them to move out—abandon their claims, farms, houses, everything; troops from Ft. Leavenworth followed up the order by expelling those who were not prompt to go. Robert’s house was one of three houses burned by the soldiers. Less than a year later the land was opened for settlement. (541-2 Hist. Clay & Platte)

Robert D. Asher

(Farmer and Stock-raiser, Post-office, Smithville)

The subject of this sketch is a man well known to the people of this portion of Missouri, for his whole life has been passed within the boundaries of this and Clay counties. He was born in the latter county September 14, 1831, and in early youth worked upon the home farm. His father, William Asher, a Virginian by birth, was born in Culpepper county, October 17, 1771, and in 1815 moved to Madison county, Ky., where he followed the cooperage business. Coming to Clay county, Mo., in 1828, he remained there until 1836, when Platte county became his home. At the time of his death, in 1845, he was farming. His wife, Lucinda Clayton, to whom he was married in 1813, was born in Spottsylvania county, Va., in 1772. The father was a gallant soldier in the War of 1812, and in his farming operations met with average success. His wife was a member of the Christian Church. Robert D. Asher was one of three children, the others being Eliza, who died in infancy, and William C., born December 16, 1816. He went to California in 1849, and engaged in the hotel business. Robert D. grew to manhood here, and on January 18, 1857, was married to Miss Mary E. Russell, a native of Henry county, Ky., born April 15, 1836. He was a member of the Christian Church. Mrs. Asher’s parents are connected with the M. E. Church. She died June 25, 1881, leaving six children living and four deceased. Those living are: William C., in Clay county; James R., in Platte; John R., in Clay; Nan P., born November 7, 1868; Anna V., born April 20, 1872, and Thomas J., born May 15, 1875. Mr. Asher’s second marriage occurred December 15, 1882, to Lydia A. Hinton, of this county, born May 15, 1848. They have two children Willie and Louis E. Mrs. Asher’s father, John Hinton, originally from Fleming county, Ky., moved to Platte county, Mo., in 1844. Shortly before leaving his native place he had been married to Miss Eliza Cox, of that locality. The former was in the Mexican War, and also in the late civil strife on the side of the Union. Mr. Asher is a member of the Christian Church. He commenced in life for himself in 1859, and since that time has been actively and successfully engaged in tilling the soil. He own 120 acres of land, well improved and stocked, and is in a comfortable condition, notwithstanding he has met with reverses. He and his wife are members of the Christian Church. Mrs. Asher’s parent are connected with the M. E. Church. (923 Hist. Platte & Clay)

Weekends in Camden Point

Every weekend I have been trying to do something connected with Camden Point and the people who live there.

October 16^th 17^th: On Saturday, my neighbor and I went to a local art’s festival in Camden Point called Farmstead. I was inspired, and another friend of mine even got me into a workshop where I learned how to use the soldering iron and make my own soldered jewelry.

My best friend’s Nana died. I took it upon myself to help run the funeral on Sunday and be there to support her in any way possible. It’s funny how in a small town you end up going to so many funerals that by the time you are 21 you can practically run one… But, I suppose that I have been to just as many weddings and baby showers, so it kind of evens things out.

On the 18^th: I went out and took photos of Camden Point, including both the old and new cemeteries.

October 23^rd & 24^th: American Royal Livestock Show time. Mom is the Superintendant of the Sheep and Goat shows. With help from her family and friends we are able to support a world-renowned show where local Platte County livestock is shown with the best from across the US.

October 30^th & 31^st: Mom and I went to a geneology workshop and learned a few tips on how to look up our family history. That has helped me a lot with this project.

My neighbor and I went into town on Halloween and watched the children’s costume parade. We talked to some of our other neighbors and enjoyed cookies and hotdogs afterward. During the celebration I listened to my dear friend, Brochius, tell jokes.

November 7^th: I had some friends from my Green Sculpture class at KCAI come up to the farm for a visit. We had a monumental holiday breakfast courtesy of Mom. Then we toured the farm and the town Camden Point. I told them all about it’s history and we had a pretty good time.

Next Weekend: Open Season and the Barn Artists!!

Camden Point History (Dates and Things)

To be a little more familiar with Camden Point here are some dates that might be good to remember:

Prehistory- Cave Dwellers and Mound Builders rule the land

Before the Immigrants from Europe- Missouris- then come the Osages, Sac and Foxes, and Iowas

1836 –Platte Purchase bought from the Iowas, and Sac and Fox Indians for $1500

1837, December 31 –Platte County organized, fastest settled county in the Platte Purchase, largest hemp producing county in the US, Green Municipal Township established (that’s were Camden Point is!)

1839, January 1 –Platte County officially established

1842 –Camden Point Christian Church established, present church built in 1846

1844, October 12 –Camden Point Baptist Church established, 1844 Great Flood, yet good hemp production year

1848 –William Kincaid, the schoolmaster, established the Camden Point post office, and thus the Camden Point

1848 -Female Orphan’s School established, closed in 1928

1857 –Military Academy ran until the Civil War in 1861

1858- Platte County Fair established by the Platte County Agriculture and Mechanical Association

1864, July 13 –Civil War battle just north of Camden Point (Confederates -3 killed, 3 more murdered after being taken prisoner) (Union -4 killed, 11 wounded), Union burning of 20 houses in Camden Point that night, a memorial now stands in honor of the dead Confederates established in 1871

1867, October 12 –Lodge No. 169 of the Ancient and Accepted Mason chartered and still running

1888, December 20 –Camden Point is an incorporated village

1889 –Camden Point Bank established

1899 – town was booming with 26 businesses

1913- the Interurban railroad was established half a mile from Camden Point, it closed in 1933

1920 –Camden Point Public School established

1958- Interstate 29 is built from Fargo, ND to Kansas City, MO

1960 – town became a 4^th class city

Living in Camden Point

This is my new blog, which is all about living in the small town of Camden Point, MO. I have lived here my whole life, and am a fourth generation Camden Point native; not to mention being the sixth generation in Platte County, where Camden Point is located.

This blog is all about Camden Point and how my family came to be here. I hope you enjoy it and are able to learn something from it.

Thanks for reading,

Alex

“(Camden Point) can be justly proud of the high standards of morality and integrity of its people. May there always exist the fine little town of Camden Point.”