Old Jamestown Association

The Old Jamestown Association History Project Committee is continuing to research area history.  Updates will be posted to this web site as they are ready.  If you have suggestions for research resources or topics, please e-mail prautes@aol.com.

For topics discussed at the Old Jamestown Association general meeting November 3, 2011, click here.   Topics include Native Americans & Explorers, Early Settlers, “James Town,” Guy Seeley property & log cabin – later owned by Elizabeth Mullanphy & James Clemens, Jr., Cold Water Cemetery – Patterson Family – Rev. John Clark – Church/s & School, Original Brown School on Old Jamestown, Steamboats and Car of Commerce Chute, Musick’s Ferry and Inn, and Halls Ferry Road.

For links to other historical information and general online research sources, see the menu on the right.

Association History

The Old Jamestown Association was incorporated in 1942 as a benevolent organization by the State of Missouri. The reasons for forming the Association then are essentially the same reasons for its existence today. However, some of the concerns of area residents were quite different then:

...Evaluate the pros and cons of incorporating as a village...The feeding of garbage to the hogs by local farmers...Trash burning along Sinks Road...Building of snow fences and snowplowing the roads (the Association owned its own snowplow)...

The Association continued to operate during the 1950's, often responding to such issues as, the threat of "being gobbled up by Florissant," the proposal to install a marine transmitting station for riverboat communications, and the project by Laclede Gas to store all of the natural gas for the St. Louis metropolitan area in a porous rock formation 1200 feet below the ground surface in the Old Jamestown Area.

The Association became inactive in 1963 and remained so until 1987 when St. Louis County announced the formation of the "New Jamestown" Area Study committee, whose purpose was to "help draft a plan for developing one of the County's few areas that remain largely undeveloped." The concept of a comprehensive plan was generally supported by residents. However, the virtual omission of area residents from the citizens' study committee, among other concerns, was viewed as intentional. Citizen activity over the next several months led to the reactivation of the Association in October 1987. The Association took a contributory role in the Area Study by providing information to the County and keeping residents advised of the progress. The Area Study was complete and submitted to the County Council in April 1988, six months later than originally planned.  A copy of the plan can be seen at http://www.stlouisco.com/Portals/8/docs/Document Library/planning/community planning and revitalization/north county/Old Jamestown Community Area Study.pdf