Menfro, Missouri

Menfro is an unincorporated community in northeastern Perry County, Missouri. It is located eight miles (13 km) northeast of Perryville.

History

Menfro was established on a small portion of Levi Wiggin's land grant #1328. In January 1877, this small plot of land was [[Subdivision (land)|subdivided by the Perry County Surveyor and eventually became known as the Town of Menfro.

In September 1879, Valentine and Margaret Hoehn sold a portion of land grant #1328 to Frederick Moldenhauer. The Moldenhauer family still owns this tract of land which is home to the Moldenhauer Alfalfa Mill.

Menfro began as a stop on the St. Louis, Memphis & South Eastern Railroad, which began construction on 22 September 1902, with the intention of linking Perry County with St. Louis in time for the 1904 World's Fair.

Floods

The Town of Menfro is located on Cinque Hommes Creek, which is usually called "Menfro Creek" by the local population. Menfro Creek empties into the Mississippi River just a mile (1.6k) downstream from the Town of Menfro. When the water level in the Mississippi River rises, the Menfro Creek runs backwards, taking in the rising water from the Mississippi. As such, when the Mississippi River floods, so does Menfro.

Three major floods have affected Menfro (1943, 1973 and 1993). Each time, the Town of Menfro was destroyed. After the 1943 and 1973 floods the town was rebuilt; however, after the 1993 flood the town did not recover.

Further reading

Erzfeld, Patricia L. Menfro: People's Dream, Mother Nature's Plan, Perry County Historical Society, softcover, 161 pages. This book is one of the few compilations on the History of Menfro, written from first and secondary sources. This article was written from the information found in this book.

Coordinates: 37°46′37″N 89°43′24″W / 37.77694°N 89.72333°W / 37.77694; -89.72333