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Greenfield began in 1841 where the town's site was
selected as the place for Dade County's first
courthouse. A pioneer couple, Matthias and Mary
Ann Allison, gave the county fifty-one acres "in
consideration of the location of the county seat".
A year later the courthouse was finished and
Greenfield's first business had opened all on the new
town's square.
Greenfield, called the "Gate City of the Grotto" in
early history, grew as the emigrants from Kentucky,
Tennessee and the Carolinas, were lured by the wooded
hills, fertile valleys and a wonderful abundance of
water in the streams and springs. Visitors
to Greenfield see the square lined with brick buildings
built in the 1880's - with bricks made in the Greenfield
Brickyard. The Opera House, which opened in 1888,
called the "Jewel of the Square" is still used for the
summer productions of the Dade County Community Theatre.
The Greenfield High School, the oldest high
school in Southwest Missouri, opened in 1889.
Other historic buildings include three churches
built in the late 1800s and early 1900s are
still used for worship.
A Mecca for history buffs and seekers of family
history is the Dade County Library housed in a
historic house. The Library has a large
collection of Missouri history plus the Dade
County Genealogical Society is also housed in
the Library with extensive research materials
available. |
