THE RAPE OF HOWELL AND HAMBURG, MISSOURI
(AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY)
by Donald K. Muschany
COPYRIGHT © 1978 BY DONALD K.
MUSCHANY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
PART ONE
THE NIGHTMARE
1. INTRODUCTION
What did the villages of Howell and
Hamburg in St. Charles County, Missouri have in common with Germany, Italy and
Japan? All were defeated by the United States of America.
What is the extreme dissimilarity?
Germany, Italy and Japan were given immediate financial aid in rebuilding their
countries and their lives. The communities of Howell and Hamburg disappeared
from the face of the earth and the people therein became displaced persons
without receiving the contractual monies which had been approved by the United
States Government.
Italy came under the Marshall Plan for
reviving the country and for restoring its priceless artifacts and treasures.
Japan and Germany became first-rate financial powers through aid provided by
the United States and became prosperous in a manner that was never seen before
in those countries. In fact both are in serious competition in the universal
market place with their benefactor, the United States of America.
The towns of Howell and Hamburg are merely
a memory since 1940 for many American citizens. The memory is pleasant up to
the date of the Government “takeover” but properly bitter after that time. In
the pages to follow I will reveal the whole debacle in a chronological,
concise, and well-documented order. I will produce copies of letters,
telegrams, writs and opinions which are included for the reader’s scrutiny.
A series of letters written by me to Dr.
Norman K. Muschany is included, as is some correspondence of a much earlier
time, which indicates that Howell and Hamburg existed very happily before the
federal axe fell. The names of the early settlers will surprise the non-Hamburg
and Howellite inasmuch as they are part and parcel of the history of our
country, which fact was totally ignored in the happenings of 1940.
In a democracy you would believe that the
Government’s word would be its bond and, still better, legal contracts that
were signed by and accepted in behalf of the United States Government would be
most valid. At least that is what the people of two small communities thought.
To their surprise they found this to be false.
“To rape” is to seize and take away by
force. I have documented such a seizure and rightfully titled this book
accordingly. Government that cannot stand on its commitments becomes a bad show
with a story line that goes from disappointment to dissent to repression. The
citizens of these Communities were very mature and I assure you they accepted
reality and responsibility, and fought for what they believed in. After four
years they won the fight but, after suffering great hardships, they found
themselves in the irretrievable position of having lost their homes and farms.
It
was bad then and is even worse looking at it in retrospect. We all know of the
charitable reputation our country enjoys throughout the Free World, and yet
this whole travesty occurred within the shadows of metropolitan St. Louis, the
jumping-off place for the Westward Movement just a handful of decades before.
A satirical movie, “The Mouse That
Roared,” dealt with the advantages of a little country fighting a war with the
U.S.A. knowing that it would be lost, and the country would be made immensely
wealthy by so doing. It is not by chance that in some foreign State Departments
our country is called “Uncle Sugar” and “Uncle Sap.”
On December 7, 1941 Japan struck and
bombed Pearl Harbor. President Roosevelt called it a dastardly act. The American
people were infuriated at the Japanese people, but within a few days some
Americans were horrified when the Nisei (Japanese-Americans) were interned for
security reasons. These internees were fed well, housed well, and treated
courteously. This was not true for the citizens of Howell and Hamburg, Missouri
and for the people who lived on some 18,000 acres surrounding these towns. The
Government dispossessed many families from their homes and properties without
payment nor appropriate consideration for their well-being.
In the following pages, you will find the
verbatim minutes of a meeting on Saturday, April 12, 1940, at the Weldon
Springs Church Hall. The meeting was held at the invitation of concerned
landowners and the principal speaker was the Hon. Clarence Cannon, U.S.
Representative for the district involved in the land controversy. This bona
fide report describes the whole problem, with the apparent emotions of the
crowd in attendance.
