Scott City and the Zimmerman Family
Despite the fact that William Zimmerman and his brother Parker, who was my great grandfather, were the first two Zimmermans to call what is now Scott City, MO their hometown, it has become the ancestral home land for my generation of Zimmermans. It was “the country” that we often visited from the big city of St. Louis, MO and its suburbs.
William and Parker Zimmerman grew up in Franklin County and moved to Bollinger County with their father Samuel around the turn of the century. By the 1900 census, all three families were living in Bollinger County. William moved to Fornfelt, MO, where he was a foreman at a manufacturing plant and the long time town marshal.
Parker, Dolly, Harry, and Frank O. Zimmerman in 1913. My grandfather Frank O. is the baby sitting on Dolly’s lap. (Author’s collection)
The story goes that Parker served a single term as town judge. I am imagined there was some good justice handed out in a court, where the judge’s brother was making all the arrests. I can see Parker saying, “Do you have anything to say before I pronounce you guilty of this crime?” Your only hope was that the brothers had an argument over dinner on Sunday and Parker wanted to get even.
When the Thebes Railroad Bridge was completed in 1904, Fornfelt and Illmo were founded. Fornfelt was originally Edna because it was named after Edna Fornfelt. Another Missouri town was already named Edna, so the name was changed to Fornfelt. They were mainly railroad towns. Eventually, the railroad would become less important for local businesses.
Ancell was formed a couple years later in 1906. On March 7, 1960, Scott City was formed with the annexation of both Ancell and Fornfelt In 1980, Illmo was also incorporated into Scott City. You can tell locals and longtime visitors by the number of people, who still refer to the area across the overpass as Illmo.
My dad, Ken Zimmerman Sr., and his sisters and brothers grew up in the house on W. Cherry Street. In the late 1960s, my grandparents moved back to Scott City after living in St. Louis for a couple of years and bought a house on Mary Street. My cousins, sisters, and I spent a lot of time at the house on Mary Street. Grandma sold the house in the late 1980s.
Parker, Dollie, Lonnie, Norman, Francis, and Jimmy at Harry Zimmerman’s Funeral (Author’s Collection)
Eventually, much of the family moved to St. Louis due to work or pursuit of new opportunities but a few of the family remain in the city that has been home to many Zimmermans for most of the Twentieth Century. I have often heard my cousins talk about the strange pull that Scott City has for so many of us.