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Our town was almost named "Vincentville"! In 1860, Wiley Vincent was the first settler to the location now known as Lincoln, Missouri. By 1867, there was one general store, a post office, blacksmith shop, saddle tree shop and one church. After much discussion and debate, it was decided in 1869 to incorporate and name the new town Lincoln in reverence and high regard for President Abraham Lincoln. In 1871, the town of Lincoln was first surveyed by James A. Harvey, the county surveyor. Because of Lincoln's location at the edge of the prairie and the beginning of the Ozarks, it seemed an ideal place to have the best of both worlds . . . very productive grazing land coupled with abundant hunting and fishing. The stage route from Sedalia to Springfield, (Old 65 Ave. located in the west part of town), brought many visitors to Lincoln and many of them decided to stay. Early Lincoln was well noted for the manufacture of saddle trees, the Grist Mills and a weekly newspaper, "The Plain Dealer", was published for many years. Close on the heels of the merchants came the first wave of families. Many Germans, new arrivals from Europe, were the first to settle. At that time, the town was divided into north and south Lincoln, the southern portion being almost entirely German. The first school was built in 1889. It was a one room affair in which a woman was paid $18.00 per month to teach all grades. The town raised $4,000 in a bond drive for a new school in 1917. This building was destroyed by fire and the rest of the school term was finished out in the lodge hall and other buildings in town.
These Lincoln men served our country in the Civil War. Photo taken on October 8, 1923 in front of the Brill & Wisdon Store. Pictured are front left to right: Billy Kullman, August Jaekel, Sr., Fred Brill, Sam Orr, John Eckhoff. Back row left to right: unknown, Bill Herrman, Sr., Mr. Cassidy, unknown, Mr. Miller and Mr. Hayworth. Lincoln didn't need to import or train actors, build a theater or erect a stage for the dramatic scenes that were almost daily enacted, unrehearsed, on Lincoln's history of the early years in the 20th century. When the City Fathers platted the townsite for Lincoln, they unknowingly erected a perfect stage for the daily bits of history so earnestly enacted on Main Street. It coursed due east and west and had most of its background in business establishments and residential homes with half on the north side and half on the south side of the street. The Civil War had ended. The soldiers returned to their homes to begin life anew, the Blue and the Grey living side by side. The children took over the work load as the veterans of the Confederate and Union armies retired from the strenuous duties of their more active years. Leisure time gave them the opportunity to visit with their comrades and recall the memories of their war days. With their spirits and their belief in the justice of their cause on their side, "The Right Side" was rekindled. And so, generally in late morning or early afternoon, the "Old Soldiers" would come up town. The "Rebels" could gather on the south side of Main Street and the "Yankees" on the north side. Some days it was halfway quiet, but some days things would get in high gear. Each side knew the details of each soldier on the other side and how the battles were won or lost, who run first, whose general was the sharpest, when they captured soldiers or guns or food supplies. They knew how to stir up the veterans across the street. From the South, "You sure know how to run, you proved it twice in battles of Bull Run!" From the North, "We chased your General Sterling Price out of Benton County and captured his son at Warsaw!" The South, "We whipped you at Wilson's Creek and Lexington. Robert E. Lee was the best general!" The North, "How come, then, that Grant took Richmond and captured Lee and his army at Appomattox?" A big day could be expected when either or both sides were reinforced by visiting veterans, usually from Warsaw or Cole Camp. But, the biggest day came when the "Old Pensioners" received their pay check. It so happened that the only saloon in Lincoln was on the south side of Main Street towards the rail road depot. That posed a big problem soon solved. Both sides knew that at the Battle of Gettysburg, they mutually agreed to set aside the springs watering holes as neutral grounds. The saloon was quietly and quickly set aside as neutral ground. The only condition attached was that the veterans of the north should cross and re-cross Main Street directly opposite from the saloon. On rainy days, the street could become very muddy. After several rounds of bracers, they would return to their usual positions down the street. Then the word battle would begin and continue until some bolder soul would challenge. But, just as brave a soul would answer the dare and soon they were off the walk and in the middle of the street. On rare occasions, fisticuffs were exchanged and even canes were used. Cooler heads then took over and peace was slowly restored. Soon, one by one or in little groups, they started home to get ready for another meeting . . . tomorrow. The Blue and the Grey are gone. They were true, good and dedicated men. We mourn the passing of each with deep reverence. 
The above photo was taken May 1, 1913. It was the Lincoln switchboard and was located west of the old Boehmer building. The operator seated is Tom Neas. He was the uncle of Mrs. Carl Moor.
Dr. Cuddy and Dr. Bennet had their offices upstairs. During 1950,Martha Hale was the switchboard operator in the telephone office. Any special event in town was advertised by here calling out over the country telephone lines. She was also helpful in giving you the correct time. Persons would leave word where they could be reached if they were expecting a call and had to be away from their telephone. The night the MFA Implement building burned, Martha alerted everyone. If she hadn't, the whole business section of town would have gone up in smoke. It was a frightening night. The late Dorothy Boring remembered, "I especially remember two little boys, one was Keith Estes. His family was temporarily living in the Gill Hotel, located next to the MFA Implement building and they were either fighting the fire or removing their possessions from the hotel. Anyway, he waited in a safe place bout a block down the street. He looked so forlorn. Someone told me they had met him there. He was crying and saying, 'I never did want to live there anyway.' ". The hotel was saved, but the implement building was destroyed. The Gill Hotel, also known as the Lincoln Hotel, was operated by Uncle Ira Gill who was also the Justice of the Peace. You could have room and board for a month for $40. The hotel was also headquarters for traveling salesman and drummers. In later years, the hotel was used as a private residence and doctor's office. After being vacant for several years, the property was sold and the hotel building was razed. The property is now a city park located uptown on Main Street across from the City Hall. Opening of rail traffic with the coming of the Sedalia, Warsaw
and Southwestern Railroad in the late 1880's marked the end of
the riverboat travel on the Osage River. By 1880, much of the
produce moving into markets from Benton County's 1,933 improved
farms was shipped over this railroad. This S.W. & S.R. Railway
served the area for the several years in which railroads played
such an important role in the country's history. Then, like many
other small lines, it folded with the advent of overland truck
travel into the transportation field. Jack Reeves was the Lincoln
Depot Agent for 31 years. One day in 1908, Reeves sold 28 round-trip
tickets to Portland, Oregon. A large number of Lincoln folks
took advantage of a $28 excursion rate. They also took huge baskets
of good with them. During Reeves' hey-dey of railroading in Lincoln,
ticket sales averaged as much as $350 a month. At the time of
his retirement, they were down to about $5 a month. Jack Reeves
was almost as much of a landmark in Lincoln as the Gill Hotel.
When he retired, he and his wife planned considerable travel,
by rail, of course.
On August 31, 1946, some local Lincoln folks took the last train ride before the rail service was discontinued. The train served many purposes for the citizens of Lincoln. It hauled goods, minerals, grains and folks to and from Lincoln. During the State Fair week, the train changed it's schedule to accommodate people from Warsaw and Lincoln so they could go to the fair in the mornings and return in the evenings. Some consider the discontinuation of the train service in Lincoln as a landmark event marking a new beginning of bigger and better transportation. For others, it was a sad event which closed an era of an uncomplicated life. The train serviced the 42 mile route since 1879. Lincoln citizens smile when remembering the General Store once located on the corner of Market St. and Main St. Through the years it was known to many as the following; The Brill and Wisdom Store from 1889 to 1946, The Attwood and Henry Store from 1947 to 1077 and The Old Country Store from 1978 to 1986. 
This Lincoln landmark was so important and special to the Lincoln Community that it was featured on a television show seen on PBS Channel 6 in the early 1990's called "The Good Old Days". After the Old Country Store sat vacant for a few years, the building was vandalized and in need of major repairs. The building became condemned. On April 15, 1993, Elbert and Karen Smith purchased the landmark structure. It was torn down due to its bad condition, but the history lives on in our memories.
There are volumes of fascinating history about Lincoln . .
. way too much to place in the limited space on our website.
However, the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce does have a limited
amount of commemorative books that were published for Lincoln's
125 th year celebration. You can own one of these informative
books by sending $25.00 to:
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Source: Celebrating
Lincoln's 125 years , published by Williams Press
How Lincoln's
Water Tower Came in 1950