06/09/2026
🚂 The Eldon Town Company Brings the Railroad
As the Civil War ended the drive began to bring a rail line to this area. It was the five men of the Eldon Town Company who succeeded in raising the money to secure land for the right of way for a rail line and to build a depot. A plat for a town with a rail line was filed in March 1882 and the Jefferson City, Lebanon, and Southwest Railroad soon began construction of the line.
Five men held an undivided one-fifth interest in the Eldon Town Company. The five men of the Eldon Town Company were George Weeks, John W. Weeks, John M. Williams, Thomas J. Hart, and Miner Allen. The specifics of the company are documented in an abstract donated to the Museum by Paul and Diane Distler.
The abstract for this land began in November 1837 as Marquis Calmes, a surveyor from Kentucky, obtained 240 acres in the newly formed Miller County for his work plotting the new county seat at Tuscumbia. The pages in an abstract document the history of Miller County. We sincerely appreciate the donation of abstracts. They often include unknown details about the history of the land.
This railroad later became known as the Missouri Pacific Bagnell Branch. To read more about the railroad: https://www.millercountymuseum.org/archives/080407.html
