2022-2023 Focus on Oak Grove City Guide Page 27 Community History City of Oak Grove lies in the Sni-A-Bar township, which also includes Blue Springs and Grain Valley. Township gets its name from a Frenchman named Abar, who traveled the Missouri River. As he detoured onto the area's creek, it was his belief that it would flow back into theMissouri, such as a sni or slough. In 1836, a census worker enumerated Sni-A-Bar and found approximately 150 people living there. ClaiborneWebb was one of OakGrove's earliest known settlers. He and his second bride obtained land near Oak Grove after marrying in Jackson County in 1836. A large number of their descendants live throughout Jackson County. Webb Park was named after this Oak Grove founding father. Early travelers recalled an area lush with oak trees and hills rolling as waves. Before settlers moved into the area, Oak Grove's forestry often succumbed to wildfires that ravaged the area during stormy springs and summers. John McKinney, a Methodist minister, may have been the one to give the town the name it now bears. McKinney obtained a tract of land near the Horseshoe Branch of Sni-A-Bar. A post office, which he named Oak Grove was located in this territory. Photo of Oak Grove courtesy of Louise Shore. In later years, Dr. William E. Frick became postmaster and relocated the office one mile east to a settlement then known as Lickskillet. Frick, who was also Oak Grove's first physician, laid out the town August 22, 1878, on a 40-acre plot. Chicago and Alton Railroad was laid through Oak Grove between 1879-1880. Its presence allowed for greater trade for the town's farming community. In 1880, farmers brought in $4106.50 with exported wheat, corn, rye, oats, cattle and hogs. A petition for township was submitted to the Jackson County clerk on March 25, 1881. Petitioners named include Thomas M. Vermillion, town's first mayor and ex-Confederate soldier; W.H. Perkins, Perkins and Surface Hardware Store; and N.B. Owings, General Store co-owner. Frick Park, which lies on the west side of Oak Grove, is named after the doctor. Frick home, built in 1872, still stands in this area. The doctor and his family evacuated the residence during the Civil War under Order Number 11. The Frick fortune was exhausted during the Great Depression, largely due to a number of free clinics the doctor offered during that time.
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