Crane, Missouri

Crane, Missouri
City
Location of Crane, Missouri Location of Crane, Missouri
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	Missouri
County	Stone
Area
• Total	1.52 sq mi (3.94 km2)
• Land	1.52 sq mi (3.94 km2)
• Water	0 sq mi (0 km2)
Elevation	1,148 ft (350 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	1,462
• Estimate (2012)	1,421
• Density	961.8/sq mi (371.4/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	65633
Area code(s)	417
FIPS code	29-17074
GNIS feature ID	0716460

Crane (formerly Hickory Grove) is a city in Stone County, Missouri, United States. The population was 1,462 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Branson, Missouri Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

The town now known as Crane, Missouri, had its beginning under another name. In the early 1880s the little group of homes, a general store or two, a mill, and a blacksmith shop was known as Hickory Grove. It nestled on the south bank of Crane Creek in the vicinity of the Christian Church, and took its name from a log school located on the ground just north of the church near the Dodge Hollow bridge. The community's children were gathered there under the watchful eye of John C. Hayes, one of the first teachers. The school also served as a meeting house and place of worship when occasional preachers came through and held meetings. A little cemetery was located farther east on what is now part of the Lockhart place. A great flood in the Summer of 1882 washed away wheat shocks in the valley and some of the graves, so the burial place was located back on higher ground. Among the earliest merchants were Tom Fought, who had the first general store, and James T. Moore; O. F. Douglas and a Mr. Rinker also ran stores. John J. "Cotton" Williams had a drugstore near where Raymond Dearing's home now stands. John Brown had the blacksmith shop. The mill was operated at different times by Lee and Wiley, and later by Uncle Ike Long. O. F. Douglas was also one of the community's first school teachers. The medical profession was represented in Dr. Wasson and Dr. Langston, who had come to minister to the little community.

At that time the mail came in on the hack from Marionville on its way to Galena. Among the earliest carriers were Jesse Darrell, Frank J. Taylor, and Tom Crumes. On the way down from Marionville, stops were made at Bradfield, then a post-office, and at Curran, another post office on the Dr. King place. A need for a postoffice was felt and so an application to the Postal Department went forth asking that an office to be known as Hickory Grove be established there. Back came the reply that as there was already a postoffice in Missouri by that name would the citizens please select another name. Someone suggested "Crane," after the little creek which was named for the great number of blue cranes that lived along the stream. In due time came the word that the postoffice should be known as Crane, and Tom Fought was promptly named as the first postmaster as the office was located in his store.

The community grew and prospered. Settlers were moving into the fertile valley and onto the heavily timbered ridges. Granville Gipson owned the land where the present new town is located. Big crops of wheat were cut there by Will Bass and H. G. Parsons who were said to have the first reaper used in the community. Charles F. Smythe claimed that he and his brother Will operated the first binder used on the future townsite. William B. "Uncle Bill" Cox served the County as treasurer and judge at one time, and introduced the first double shovel plow seen in these parts. Another one-time local resident, John L. Cox, was a school teacher and served Stone County as treasurer.

Excitement and interest began to mount when rumors of a railroad began to drift in. Where would it go? Some talk had been heard of running south of Aurora to Scholten, then a thriving community, and on east through Galena and in to Arkansas. It is said that many citizens of Stone County offered to give land for a right-of-way so eager were they for railway service. Rumors became facts in 1903 when grading machinery and gangs of laborers moved in. The Missouri Pacific Railroad reached Crane in December 1904, and made a division terminal there in June 1905. The roundhouse was built in 1906. The Springfield branch was built in 1905 and 1906. J. H. Taylor became the first agent and later built the Hotel Portland.

The new town site was purchased from Lee Hemphill. New businesses were coming in and the old businesses were moving over from across the creek. The streets were laid out to parallel the railroad and thus do not run square with the map.

E. C. Cutbirth moved a store building from Old Town to the site now occupied by the storage building of the Woods Garment Factory. Cotton Williams moved his drugstore business. J. C. Lane and his brother Willis bought out Douglas and Moore and established their business on "Value Corner" where the Myers Drug Store is now located.

Meanwhile, carpenters were busy erecting new homes. Jim Kincaid and Jim Hammonds were among the earliest carpenters. The O. F. Douglas house, located where Roy and Millicent Williams now live, was one of the earliest homes built in New Town, William Gatton moved in from Verona with the railroad and established the Morning Star Restaurant which catered to railroad men, serving meals family style-all you could eat for a quarter. Other new people were making Crane their home and place of business. Among the new doctors were Dr. Huffman, Dr. Baker, Dr. Goodrich, and Dr. R. W. Smart, who established the community's first and only hospital. Later came Dr. Doggett who owned and operated for several years the Doggett's Drug Store which claimed at one time to be Stone County's biggest store. And still later, Dr.

Kerr came who, in addition to a long career as a country doctor, was active in civic affairs and served as president of the State Board of Health at one time. J. William Cook came to Crane in 1906 as attorney for the Missouri Pacific Railroad. Mr. Luscombe built a large store building where the Farmers' Exchange now stands, and caused to be added to Crane the addition known as Luscombe Heights.

The oldest business still operating is The Bank of Crane which was chartered September 10, 1904. The first Board of Directors were William H. Bradford, O. F. Douglas, David M. Huffman, William R. Gillette, and John T. Moore. Other stockholders were R. B. Gillette, C. D. Turner, J. A. Blades, M. P. Brown, and J. F. Strickland.

In May 1905, H. N. Parsons built the Commercial Hotel, now owned by Mrs. Nettie Gossett. There was a building on the corner where the Locker Flant parking lot is now that was occupied by a barbershop. Gene Cameron was the barber. Fred Whitmire operated a hardware store where the McCord building now stands. John Hilton moved his hardware business to Crane from Scholten in 1906. Willis Wiley became his partner in this business, and later John Hilton's son, A. B. Hilton, became a partner in the store. He and Mr. Wiley operated the store together until 1925 when Mr. Hilton bought out Mr. Wiley's interest.

Geography

Crane is located at (36.903813, -93.571128).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.52 square miles (3.94 km²), all of it land.

Crane Creek flows through the city.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1910	1,002		—
1920	1,151		14.9%
1930	1,030		−10.5%
1940	40		−96.1%
1950	113		182.5%
1960	954		744.2%
1970	1,003		5.1%
1980	1,185		18.1%
1990	1,218		2.8%
2000	1,390		14.1%
2010	1,462		5.2%
Est. 2014	1,390		−4.9%
U.S. Decennial Census

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 1,462 people, 558 households, and 347 families residing in the city. The population density was 961.8 inhabitants per square mile (371.4/km²). There were 663 housing units at an average density of 436.2 per square mile (168.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.2% White, 0.1% African American, 0.7% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.4% from other races, and 1.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.2% of the population.

There were 558 households of which 35.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% were married couples living together, 13.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 37.8% were non-families. 33.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 21.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.12.

The median age in the city was 39.9 years. 25.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.2% were from 25 to 44; 22.1% were from 45 to 64; and 21.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.6% male and 53.4% female.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,390 people, 541 households, and 333 families residing in the city. The population density was 944.9 people per square mile (365.1/km²). There were 630 housing units at an average density of 428.3 per square mile (165.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.62% White, 0.07% African American, 0.36% Native American, 0.07% Asian, 0.07% from other races, and 2.81% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.86% of the population.

There were 541 households out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.4% were non-families. 35.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 23.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 3.15.

In the city the population was spread out with 26.7% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 18.6% from 45 to 64, and 21.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 87.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $20,848, and the median income for a family was $31,806. Males had a median income of $26,583 versus $18,750 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,120. About 15.2% of families and 20.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.3% of those under age 18 and 28.0% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

Don Johnson best known for his portrayal of Nash Bridges in the television show of the same name.

External links

• Historic maps of Crane in the Sanborn Maps of Missouri Collection at the University of Missouri