County: Henry County
Location of courthouse: S. Main St. & W. Franklin St., Clinton
Location of county: west-central part of state; crossroads of MO-13, MO-7 & MO-2, MO-18, MO-52
Organized: Dec. 13, 1834
Named after: Patrick Henry
County seat: Clinton
Elevation (highest): 358 meters (1,175 feet)
Population: 21,718 (2017)
"It was in the fall of 1830 that the first settler trod the soil of Henry County. Hunters and trappers had plied their vocations through this, Osage and Grand River County as early as 1826, but no log cabin was built until the year mentioned.
"When this part of Missouri was organized into a county it was, the greater part a dense wilderness and in Henry and St. Clair Counties, no white man, except an occasional hunter and trapper had ever trod its soil. Henry County, when placed under municipal government, was a part of Lillard County, whose boundary lines were, on the north the Missouri River, on the east range line between Ranges 24 & 23, south to the Osage River, its southern line the Osage River, from the above range line on the east to the Kansas State Line, following the middle of the channel of the Missouri River where the state line crosses the river. Thus Lillard County included the present counties of Lafayette, Johnson, Henry, half of St. Clair, about four-fifths of Bates and all of Cass and Jackson.
"It was organized as Lillard County November 16, 1820, and its first county court was held at Mt. Vernon, on the Missouri River, about ten miles below Lexington on the 8th day of December, 1820. The county judges were James Lillard, Sr., John Whitsitt and John Stapp. They received their commissions from governor Alex. McNair, the first governor of Missouri. The first clerk and he was fifteen or sixteen years in office was Young Ewing. This was the first organization of Henry County. . .In 1823 the county seat of Lillard was removed from Mt. Vernon to Lexington and that town was platted the same year." ~ History Of St. Clair County, Goodspeed, pp.83, 84.
"The official history of Henry County may be said to date from the organization act of the legislature, December 1, 1834, yet in reality its actual date should commence on May 14, 1835, for it was on that day that the official recognition of its existence was made...[According to the Office of Secretary of State of Missouri, Henry County was organized December 13, 1834.]
“An act to organize the counties of Johnson and Rives, and to fix the southern boundary of Lafayette County,”of this act sections 7, 8, and 9 refer to the organization of Rives County as follows:
"All that portion of territory included in the following limits is hereby erected into a separate and distinct county, to
be called the County of Rives, in honor of Hon. William C. Rives, of Virginia, to-wit:
"Beginning at the southwest corner of Section 30, Township 44, Rage 28, thence south along the line of Van Buren
and Bates Counties to the northwest corner of St. Clair County; thence east along the northern line of St. Clair County,
to the range line between ranges 23 and 24; thence north to the southeast corner of Johnson County; thence west to
the place of beginning...
Approved December 13, 1834.
"At the same session of the general assembly, the boundary lines of St. Clair County were defined but as the county was not then populous enough to warrant its organization as a distinct municipality, it was attached by special act of the legislature to the County of Rives, for military and civil purposes, until such time as it might of itself become an independent county. The act which made it a part of Rives County was passed February 11, 1835.
"Rives County Boundary Approved March 20, 1835.
“Beginning at the southwest corner of Section 30, Township 44, Range 28; thence south to the line between the Townships 39 and 40; thence east to the line between rages 23 and 24; thence north to the southeast corner of Johnson County; thence west to the beginning.”' ~ History Of Henry & St. Clair Counties, pp.131-132.
"In 1840, the Hon. John C. Rives of Virginia became a Whig in politics, and as Rives County was a strongly Democratic one, and was named after the distinguished Virginian. . . on learning that he had been false to his faith...the people decided to change the name from Rives to Henry in honor of Patrick Henry. In the legislature of 1840, the people secured the passage of the following:
"An Act To Change The Name Of Rives County.
"Be in enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri as follows:
"Section 1. All that portion of county bounded as follows,to-wit:
Beginning at the southwest corner of Section 30, Township 44, of Range 28; thence south to the line between
Townships 39 and 40; thence east to the line between Ranges 23 and 24; thence north to the southeast corner
of Johnson County; thence west to the beginning, shall compose the County of Henry."
"The act further provided that all laws, acts, contracts, etc., in the name of Rives shall be as valid and binding in that county, as if made or done in Henry County. The act was approved February 15, 1841.
"Since Hon. William C. Rives had changed his political affiliation from Democratic to Whigs, likewise the deliberate treachery of Martin Van Buren to General Lewis Cass and the Democratic party, caused the adjoining county of Van Buren to be changed to Cass." ~ History Of Henry County, 1883, Goodspeed, p.146.