At 825 feet above sea level, Randolph County Missouri is located north of the Missouri River and west of the Mississippi River.  Geographically it is vertically divided in half by the Great Divide.  The county drains water both to the Mississippi and to the Missouri Rivers.  The Bee Trace overlies this high ridge.

Layers of coal and shale can be found throughout the county.  These natural resources were the impetus for the mining and brick industries that shaped the county in the late 1800s and into the twentieth century. The fast forests of oak, elm, walnut, hickory, cottonwood, and sycamore drew settlers to the area. Trees provided the settlers with good sources for protection, materials to build homes, and fuel to warm. The terrain had countless streams for water to support the settlers and the animals they would bring. As Rothwell describes, the soil was yellow loam turning into black soil in the lowlands, which supported corn, hay, wheat, and other grains. These crops were able to support cattle, hogs, and sheep.

The earliest settler in Randolph County came from the area of Fayette and Franklin (Old Franklin today).  Several had migrated from Kentucky, Virginia, and North Carolina to that area around 1818. The land we know as Randolph County was part of the original county of Howard that extended to the Indian Territory (Iowa line). There were only 15 counties in the Territory of Missouri. In 1820, Howard County was split and Chariton County was created.  On January 22, 1829, Randolph was separated from the larger Chariton County, still extending to the Indian Territory or Iowa line. See Tanner’s 1836 map of Missouri at Old Historical City, County and State Maps of Missouri (mapgeeks.org) .Macon County was not established until 1837 and a few changes to the northern county line were made later.  Today, the county is mainly a rectangle, 21 miles wide and 25 miles long (470 square miles), with the southern line angled against the border of Howard County.  The county was named after John Randolph, an orator from Roanoke, Virginia.

Four townships were created in 1829, Salt Springs, Sugar Creek, Siver Creek, and Prairie. Today there are 11. Sugar Creek split to add Union, Cairo, Jackson, and Salt River.  Salt Springs was divided to include Chariton and Clifton.  Moniteau was split from Silver Creek.

Inventors, entrepreneurs, businessman, politicians, and other community leaders have made the county known across the nation.  All of their stories, whether native born or long-time residents, made the community we know as Randolph County, Missouri.

Snippets of the Past