Poplar Bluff, Missouri

Poplar Bluff is a city located in Butler County, Missouri. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 16,651. It is the county seat of Butler County{{GR|6}}. Butler County was organized February 27 1849 from Wayne County.

Related Topics:
Butler County, Missouri - 2000 - County seat - February 27 - 1849 - Wayne County

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Black River Colosseum and the Three Rivers Community College are located in Poplar Bluff.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Poplar Bluff. The city was founded as the county seat in 1849. The city was placed on the bluffs of Black River. It consisted of about 150 acres. The identity of the very first European visitor to the Poplar Bluff area is Hernando DeSoto. DeSoto landed at Tampa Bay in May of 1539. Later he crossed the Mississippi River. He then traveled to a point below the mouth of the St. Francis river, and into Butler County. DeSoto and his men traveled through what is now Ash Hill and passed just outside of Poplar Bluff. Later, the French were the first Europeans who assert any territorial rights over the Poplar Bluff area. The French held the area until 1770, when it was ceeded by treaty to Spain. Spain held the area until 1802 when it was returned to France. Throughout this time, the area of Poplar Bluff as well as all of Butler County, held almost no European settlements up until the year 1819 when twelve year old Solomon Kittrell, a native of Kentucky settled on Cane Creek with his parents, Samuel and Eleanor "Nelly" Shamwell Kittrell, originally of North Carolina, and siblings. Solomon's younger brother, Samuel B. Kittrell, was born shortly thereafter in what was ultimately Butler County, giving this pioneer couple children born in North Carolina, Kentucky and Missouri. As an adult living in the Cane Creek settlement area, Solomon Kittrell took up a large tract of land, built a home, erected a distillery and established a store (or trading post). His supplies were brought in by ox teams from Cape Girardeau. Decades later, Solomon served by appointment of Gov. Austin King as one of the first set of county commissioners, with Jonathan Sandlin and John Stevenson as the other two appointed county commissioners, for the newly organized Butler County in 1849. When this first white settler family moved into the Poplar Bluff area in 1819, it is reported that about 300 Native Americans resided in the area.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~