La Russell

History

The village of La Russell, Missouri was platted and laid out for public use August 18, 1903. La Russell was named in honor of Russell Harding, vice president and general manager of the Missouri-Pacific Railroad at that time and of importance to the town's creation. The French La was added to the original proposed name of Russell in order to prevent confusion with another Missouri town named Russellville. Because of this word change, the name La Russell appears to be unique in the United States. This had been the hunting grounds of the Osage Indians who were known to have camped at nearby Spring River, a short distance north of present-day La Russell. Their lands to the east had been previously purchased by the U.S. Government in 1808 (Treaty of Fort Clark) and other tribes had been moved to this location as well, and then later all were moved again to the Osage Nation areas elsewhere. Arrowheads and other Native American artifacts can still be found in the plowed fields near the river today. Although La Russell itself was founded in 1903 because of the railroad, early settlers at this location were among the first in the county dating back to the 1830s. The first public school in Jasper County was established near the future site of La Russell in 1838. This was the Cave Springs School, also known as Teas School in honor of its first teacher, Samuel Teas. School sessions during the Antebellum Era were split into two periods each school year, with a summer session and a winter session because students were needed at home for spring planting and fall harvest. The Cave Springs School also served as a church and a military headquarters for the Enrolled Missouri Militia (Union) during the Civil War. Following the burning and destruction of the county seat of Carthage in…

Geography

La Russell is located in the valley of the Spring River, adjacent to the Jasper-Lawrence county line. Bowers Mill lies just to the northeast on the river. The Missouri-Pacific Railroad line lies along the river just to the north of the town. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land.

Race & ethnicity