ozarks
roots H i g story n i v a S the people, places and traditions that make the ozarks home
Photos by Julie Turner-Crawford
By Julie Turner-Crawford
Appleton City Landmarks Restoration, Inc., brings history back to life in St. Clair County, Mo. In Appleton City, Mo., a group of dedicated volunteers are digging deep into their community to make sure their roots remain strong. Former resident Virginia Aydelotte returned to her hometown with her husband J.R. “Bob” Aydelotte in the 1980s. Virginia and Bob had lived around the country and in Spain, but eventually returned to her beloved Appleton City and bought the 1915 Clark Home on North Maple Street. It was across the street from the home where Virginia had grown up. Both Virginia and Bob were active in the community and had the desire to preserve its history. When plans were announced that the old Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad depot in Appleton City, the first depot in St. Clair
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County, was to be torn down, Virginia and Bob took action. “She said, ‘Oh, Bob. We can’t let that happen.’” Susan Rotert said. Virginia and Bob worked to save the depot, which still stands today, and helped give birth to the Appleton City Landmarks Restoration organization in 1986. “We want to preserve our history,” Susan, who is the board secretary, said. “Most of these small towns don’t have museums and history is lost.” The depot was moved and was the first project undertaken by the board. The restoration was completed in 1989, and a caboose was eventually acquired from the railroad. The library built in honor of the town’s namesake, William H. Appleton
– a New York City publisher who came to town shortly after the train made it to town and offered community leaders $300 and 500 books to start a library and name the town, previously known as Arlington, after him – was moved across the street and restored by 1995. Susan and fellow board member Linda Lampkin said the first museum, the Prairie Queen Museum, was once housed in the old Durley Hotel. In 2004, the Aydelotts donated their home, as well as a large lot, to the Landmarks Restoration group. It began a chain reaction that allowed the organization to have a permanent home. It didn’t take long for the Clark House, which is set up as a house museum from the 1900s to the 1940s, to fill up. Ground was
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broken in 2010 for a separate museum on the donated lot. That same year, the 1880 Moore School was offered to the organization. Once again, Appleton City’s citizen stepped up to restore the one-room schoolhouse, which was moved to what is now known as the Appleton City Landmarks Complex. The museum, complete with a research and genealogy library, was finished in 2014. “Oftentimes, people won’t donate or give you things until they see something going on,” Susan said. “Once it got started, people just started donating more and more.” “Things started to escalate from there,” Linda added. “We want to preserve the Appleton City area, not just Appleton City. We take in the small towns in about a 15-mile radius, like Rockville, Montrose SEPTEMBER 21, 2020
