258 HISTORY OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI which has since been boarded np. jIrs. Wright, who is now ationt 85 years old, has resided in this liouse since 1855. She has a fund of recollections concerning the early his- tory of the town. Abel's failure to build the court house for which he had contracted resulted in the re- moval of the seat of justice, and as we have seen, checked the growtli of Cape Girardeau very greatly. In 1867 there were in the town 27 dry goods stores, 'i hardware stores, and around the town, an account of which appears in the chapter on the Civil war. Prosperity After the War For a time after the war closed the town enjoyed a great degree of prosperity. It had a number of enterprising men who pushed its advantages in every possible way. Those advantages were numerous and very powerful in the upbuilding of the town. In the first place, it enjoyed the immense advantage of Olde.st House in Cape Girardeau 12 grocery stores, 5 drug stores, 5 furniture stores, 12 shoe shops, 7 wagon shops, 11 black- smith shops, 3 tlouring mills, 5 breweries, a distillery, 2 tanneries, 2 cigar shops and one bank, the Sturdivant, organized by Mr. Rob- ert Sturdivant in 1857. During the war Cape Girardeau w.is head- quarters for a considerable Union force. A military prison was established here tu which numbers of southern prisoners were brought. Several important skirmishes were fought in river transportation, which at that time was of the highest importance. Steamboats car- ried the greater part of the commerce of the country, iluch of it for tliis section centered here. It was before the day of railroads. Towns and comnumities away from the river received their supplies from abroad by boat, hauling them in wagons from the nearest and most accessible point. The second great ad- vantage possessed by Cape Girardeau was its relation to much of the other country in
