Ok wow! So life has been crazy, hence why I haven't updated in a few months. Back in July, my hubby and I took a Family History Trip for a vacation to celebrate our 20th Wedding Anniversary. We've wanted to take a trip back to western Missouri to do more family history research for years. Specifically, the towns of Independence, Liberty, and Plattsburg. Things finally lined up for us to travel, so we went! Since we've been back I've been trying to go through all the photographs, videos, and research we came back with. The trip was a whirlwind for sure, and I can't wait to share it all with you.
Day 1 - Traveling & Arriving in Independence
The drive to Independence was only going to take about 3 1/2 hours so we planned a few stops along the way. We left around 10:00 am on Saturday to start our journey, but first, coffee. We have a local favorite coffee shop that Mark and I frequent every Sunday morning for some "us" time, so it only made sense to stop and get some coffee. If you are ever in Washington, Missouri, I recommend you stop by The Washington Coffee Shop on the corner of 5th and Jefferson.
The drive from Washington to Warrenton to get on Hwy 44 is beautiful. Full of rolling hills, a few wineries, and some small farm towns. We made some notes of places we would like to visit at some point including the Daniel Boone Burial Site & Monument near Marthasville. Once on Hwy 44, our next destination was only an hour away, putting us right on time for lunch. And we had big plans for lunch. We stopped in Columbia around 12:30 pm. I planned the trip this way because there was a place we had to stop and eat. Some place we hadn't eaten in years: Zaxbys. Oh My Gosh! LOVE this place. They are a cross between Raising Canes and Chick-fil-A, but way better. We used to get food from here when we lived in Tennessee. So anytime we have the opportunity to stop in an area that has one, we eat there.
From there our next stop was about 1 1/2 hours. If we would have had more time, we would have visited many places around the town we were traveling to which is the town of Lexington. The city is full of Confederate history from the Civil War. One interesting site is the Lafayette County Courthouse where there is a Cannon Ball still lodged in the pillar from the Civil War. Fascinating! But we were in town for a different reason. We were there to visit the grave of a Murderer.
Dr. Bennett Clark Hyde
Let me tell you a little story. In 1909, the Swope family started experiencing some horrible circumstances. First, a friend of the family, James Moss Hunton died unexpectedly. Then Col. Thomas Hunton Swope suddenly died. And it wasn't long after that William Chrisman Swope also died. Plus the family all started coming down sick with typhoid and other mysterious illnesses. What was going on? Turns out the doctor who was supposed to be taking care of them was doing the opposite. He was actually causing the illnesses and was responsible for the three deaths in the family! This Doctor was Bennett Clark Hyde, the Nephew-in-law of Col. Thomas Hunton Swope. More will be told later about this and the trial of the century in the next blog. To learn more, watch the first episode of Grave Hunting with Auntie Jen.
Dr. Bennett Clark Hyde is buried in Machpelah Cemetery in Lexington. He is buried in the Hyde family plot with his parents. His dad was with him through all the trials and supported his son until the end. Dr. Hyde was first convicted of First Degree Murder and Attempted Murder in 1910, but the Supreme Court overturned the verdict citing some issues with the evidence. So they attempted to try Dr. Hyde two more times, unsuccessfully. In the end, Dr. Hyde was acquitted of the murder charges. He was a free man.
Dr. Hyde died on August 7, 1934, in Lexington. He was stopped in a local newspaper office to find out the results of an election when he dropped dead right there. At the time of his death, he was not married anymore and his medical practice was all but gone. His ex-wife is not buried with him either. This is a fascinating story with a lot of twists and turns. If you want to learn more about it, I suggest you pick up the book Deaths on Pleasant Street: The Ghastly Enigma of Col. Swope and Dr. Hyde by Giles Folwer.
You may be asking why we took the time to visit Dr. Hyde's grave. Well, believe it or not, my husband Mark is related to the Swope family through his mom. Dr. Hyde is Mark's 2nd Cousin, 3 times removed. Since we are looking up the Swope family on this trip, it only made sense to visit his grave too. We didn't leave flowers for him, but we took some photos. Mark asked if it would be in bad taste to urinate on his grave. I said, "Yes! Very bad taste. You may not like him, but don't do that!" And that led us to create a funny video.
Hey if you can't have fun then life is boring. And Mark and I love to joke around and have fun. He has been making me laugh for 20 years. That was something I always wanted in a spouse. Someone who I can have a good time with and who can make me laugh. More of these funny videos are to come.
So after we visited Machpelah Cemetery, it was time to head on to the Airbnb we were staying at for the next couple of nights. We chose to stay at some Airbnb's to treat ourselves. We were able to find some really nice options right in the areas we were hoping to do research. They were more affordable and more comfortable than hotels.
The first place we stayed at was Mallinson Winery in Sugar Creek, which is just a few miles north of Independence. The winery was just a little place off the beaten path and the place we were staying was on the property. It was beautiful. You could look out the window and see the vines where the grapes were. My full review of the winery is below if you wish to watch it. I definitely recommend this place to stay if you are in Independence.
The Courthouse Exchange
Wow, talk about a busy first day! But we weren't done yet! It was time to celebrate the beginning of our trip with a nice dinner at The Courthouse Exchange in the little square in Independence. Something else we decided to do on this trip was to try new places to eat local to the area. No restaurant chains if we can help it. That's how we came upon The Courthouse Exchange. The business has been around since 1899 serving fine burgers and now down-home cooking in a casual environment.
The main eating area is actually downstairs below street level. Quite the experience. The place is very cozy. I love all the exposed brick and old-time decor they have hanging on the wall. They also have an outside patio on street level where they have live music some nights. At first, we were thinking of eating outside, but it was pretty warm and it was going to be a while before the band was ready to play, so we opted for eating downstairs in the main dining area. The food was decent. Not the best I'd ever had, but still good. We were just excited to get this anniversary trip started.
After dinner, we walked around the square getting a feel for the area. The courthouse building in the center housed the Jackson County Historical Society so that was convenient. Plus a few other places we wanted to stop were right across the street. But we were getting pretty tired after the traveling so we headed back to the Airbnb to rest up. We had a long week planned so we needed as much rest as we could get, especially since I was still recovering from some health issues.
That's it for Day 1! We still have 7 more days to go. You can watch my vlog about the first day of our trip below. Come back soon for Day 2!
