Sixty-five acres of land was donated by Jeremiah O’Dell and deeded on April 13, 1839 for the town of Marshall, named for the US Supreme Court Chief Justice, John Marshall. After 2 fires, the current Saline County Courthouse was constructed in January 1882. It is on the National Register of Historic Places. The Sante Fe Trail passed just north of Marshall and is still celebrated with Sante Fe Days.
MARKER SANTE FE TRAIL
1821-1872
Marked by the Daughters of the American Revolution
and the State of Missouri
1909
During the Civil War, Union troops were posted at Marshall. Although strategically unimportant, the town saw 2 Confederate raids and is the site of the Battle of Marshall. It was, however, the culmination of J O Shelby's Confederate raid through Missouri that led to the Confederate loss of the state.
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| World War I "Doughboy" statue at the Court House |
During the 1930s, Marshall was enamored with the abilities of Jim, The Wonder Dog, probably the town's most famous citizen.
Missouri Valley College is a private, 4 year liberal arts college affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. On October 27, 1874, representatives of several Presbyterian synods met to discuss founding the school. Founded in 1889, the school has 27 academic majors and an enrollment close to 1,800 students.
JIM THE WONDER DOG
Marshall is home to Jim the Wonder Dog. During the 1930's, Jim puzzled psychologists from Washington University, St. Louis, and University of Missouri in Columbia with his amazing ability to understand. Dr. A. J. Durant, director of the School of Veterinary Medicine, examined Jim and could find nothing physically abnormal. He was tested by a group of college students and passed each command. Dr Durant concluded that Jim, "possessed an occult power that might never come again to a dog in many generations."
Jim was a Llewellyn Setter born of pureblood champion field stock in Louisiana. His litter mates were selling for $25 each, a considerable sum in 1925, but he was considered lacking the necessary quality to hunt. Sam Van Arsdale purchased him for less than half of the amount of the other pups.
All attempts to field train Jim seemed to fail. He didn't seem to show much interest during training sessions, however, as soon as he was taken to the field he proved to be an outstanding quail dog. On the hunt, he knew where the quail were and refused to hunt where they weren't. Van Arsdale traveled many states hunting and, over the years, kept track of birds shot with Jim at his side. He stopped counting at 5,000, a total no other dog had reached. Outdoor Life Magazine termed him "The Hunting Dog of the Country".
Jim's story says that his amazing abilities were discovered by accident during a hunt, when Van Arsdale told him they should rest under a nearby Hickory tree. A variety of trees to choose from, Jim went to the hickory tree. Amazed, he asked Jim to go to a walnut, then a cedar, a stump, and a tin can, which he did rapidly and without error.
It was as if Jim could not only understand what Van Arsdale was commanding, but soon would exhibit talents "beyond human". His list of abilities included finding a specific car, with a specific license plate number, or a car by color, or from another state. It is reported that he could also pick out, from a crowd, specific people of the community, whether they knew Jim or not.
Van Arsdale also communicated commands to Jim in foreign languages and short hand. After his performance at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, newspaper and magazine writers came to witness Jim and wrote of incredulous things they saw. Jim's fame spread. Featured in Ripley's Believe it or Not, at the height of his talents, Jim had the ability to predict the future. Jim picked the winner of the Kentucky Derby 7 years in a row. He also predicted the Yankee victory in the 1936 World Series and the sex of unborn babies.
Called before a joint session of the Missouri Legislature, Jim was put through one of the biggest tests, a communication method even Van Arsdale didn't understand...Morse Code. Attempting to debunk the dogs amazing abilities, and believing that Van Arsdale was somehow "guiding" the dog, the code was tapped out instructing Jim to go to a specific person, which to the astonishment of the Legislators, he did.
In 1935 Jim performed at the Kemmerer Hotel in Kemmerer, Wyoming. After his successful perfomance, an article was written in the Gazette of Kemmerer on Friday, August 30, 1935, telling of this performance and referring to Jim as "The Wonder Dog".
Over the years, Sam Arsdale kept Jim close by, always worried he would be kidnapped or harmed by gambling interests or others. He refused offers from food companies to use his amazing pet in their advertising.
When Jim died, March 18, 1937, at the age of 12, the Van Arsdales asked that he be buried in Ridge Park Cemetery. The sexton agreed to burial just outside the cemetery fence, "since Jim was smarter than most people in here, anyhow." Over the years, the cemetery eventually expanded around Jim.
Marshall, MO has great affection for Jim. In 1999, Jim the Wonder Dog Memorial Gardens was dedicatedand is located on the site once occupied by the Ruff Hotel where Jim lived with his owner Sam VanArsdale, the hotel manager. Wonder Dog Day is held in Marshall on May 16, and there is a Wonder Dog Museum in town.
All attempts to field train Jim seemed to fail. He didn't seem to show much interest during training sessions, however, as soon as he was taken to the field he proved to be an outstanding quail dog. On the hunt, he knew where the quail were and refused to hunt where they weren't. Van Arsdale traveled many states hunting and, over the years, kept track of birds shot with Jim at his side. He stopped counting at 5,000, a total no other dog had reached. Outdoor Life Magazine termed him "The Hunting Dog of the Country".
Jim's story says that his amazing abilities were discovered by accident during a hunt, when Van Arsdale told him they should rest under a nearby Hickory tree. A variety of trees to choose from, Jim went to the hickory tree. Amazed, he asked Jim to go to a walnut, then a cedar, a stump, and a tin can, which he did rapidly and without error.
It was as if Jim could not only understand what Van Arsdale was commanding, but soon would exhibit talents "beyond human". His list of abilities included finding a specific car, with a specific license plate number, or a car by color, or from another state. It is reported that he could also pick out, from a crowd, specific people of the community, whether they knew Jim or not.
Van Arsdale also communicated commands to Jim in foreign languages and short hand. After his performance at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, newspaper and magazine writers came to witness Jim and wrote of incredulous things they saw. Jim's fame spread. Featured in Ripley's Believe it or Not, at the height of his talents, Jim had the ability to predict the future. Jim picked the winner of the Kentucky Derby 7 years in a row. He also predicted the Yankee victory in the 1936 World Series and the sex of unborn babies.
Called before a joint session of the Missouri Legislature, Jim was put through one of the biggest tests, a communication method even Van Arsdale didn't understand...Morse Code. Attempting to debunk the dogs amazing abilities, and believing that Van Arsdale was somehow "guiding" the dog, the code was tapped out instructing Jim to go to a specific person, which to the astonishment of the Legislators, he did.
In 1935 Jim performed at the Kemmerer Hotel in Kemmerer, Wyoming. After his successful perfomance, an article was written in the Gazette of Kemmerer on Friday, August 30, 1935, telling of this performance and referring to Jim as "The Wonder Dog".
Over the years, Sam Arsdale kept Jim close by, always worried he would be kidnapped or harmed by gambling interests or others. He refused offers from food companies to use his amazing pet in their advertising.
When Jim died, March 18, 1937, at the age of 12, the Van Arsdales asked that he be buried in Ridge Park Cemetery. The sexton agreed to burial just outside the cemetery fence, "since Jim was smarter than most people in here, anyhow." Over the years, the cemetery eventually expanded around Jim.
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