1925: Dexter preacher killed in hit-and-run

The hit-and-run death of a preacher left Dexter enraged and grieving in 1925. A car matching witnesses’ descriptions was stopped after crossing the Mississippi River into Illinois, and its driver faces extradition.

In 1975, Butler County officials also met with the U.S. Coast Guard, and an awkward telephone pole was removed.

No issues available: Feb. 12, 1950.

100 years ago

Feb. 12, 1925

• Southeast Missouri is in uproar after the hit-and-run death of a Dexter pastor. Four suspects were arrested after crossing from Missouri into Illinois.

J.C. Neeb, his wife and child, and two other men were detained by Cairo police based on their car’s description: a Hupmobile with Michigan plates. Three witnesses saw car of that description south of Dexter yesterday afternoon; its driver stopped to quickly wipe blood off the hood and windshield before speeding away. A passerby later found the body of Rev. C.O. Kirkpatrick, 40, down the road. He’d been struck and dragged by an unknown vehicle, apparently while refilling his car’s radiator.

Several arrests were made, the latest being Neeb and his passengers, all of whom are from Michigan. Neeb maintained his innocence to Illinois police. He will likely be extradited to Dexter.

Kirkpatrick was married with family and beloved by the Dexter community. Emotions ran high after his death and some believed officers needed to protect suspects from mob justice.

50 years ago

Feb. 12, 1975

• Farmers, local officials, the Coast Guard, the Corps of Engineers and a state representative bridged a gap in communication. At issue were the incomplete Oglesville and Swift Ditch bridges, a grassroots construction effort to relieve farm traffic on Highway 53 by providing alternate water crossings. Area farmers and citizens conributed about $12,000, but the project was scuttled last year because the county failed to get Coast Guard approval. The Black River is a navigable waterway and falls under USCG jurisdiction.

Yesterday’s meeting was organized by the Coast Guard at the behest of Rep. Bill Burleson. All parties agreed permits would depend on the results of a hydraulic study to ensure the foundations of the roads and bridges didn’t negatively impact levees.

• A telephone pole on the corner of Main and Garfield sticks out like a sore thumb, but not for long. Poplar Bluff widened the intersection last year but couldn’t move Southwestern Bell Telephone Company’s pole, leaving it 2 feet in the road. SBTC has now transferred lines to other poles so this one can be removed.