Celebration

communities, while 50 years ago the celebration focused more on Jefferson City, Ellinger said.

“We want to put a marker out in each of the communities so folks will remember the bicentennial in those communities without having to come to Jefferson City to see a monument,” Ellinger said.

He also said there was no timeline to place the markers in the seven communities — Centertown, Eugene, Lohman, Russellville, St. Martins, Taos and Wardsville.

Central Bank has agreed to underwrite the costs for two memorials to mark the bicentennial, Ellinger said.

One will be placed on the Cole County Courthouse grounds on High Street in Jefferson City.

Work continues to assemble a time capsule to mark the bicentennial. Ellinger said the plan is to have it opened 50 years from now.

“Obviously, we’ll have to put in items to mark the pandemic, but there’s commemorative items I think we’ll get in, like a bottle of the Cole County 200 Missouri Bourbon Whiskey from Blacksmith Artisanal Spirits of Lohman,” Ellinger said. “There are still logistics to figure out as to where to put it. We don’t want to damage the monument. It could be buried or put in a glass case at the County Courthouse.”

The memorial at the County Courthouse grounds will be dedicated Nov. 7.

The second memorial will be dedicated on the 200th anniversary, Nov. 16, to honor Cole, Boone and Callaway counties, which were formed within a few days of each other. That monument will be placed in an area near the

Katy Trail in North Jefferson City, Ellinger said.

“Looking beyond those dates, our fundraising efforts, from the sale of our coins and other memorabilia, is focused to get the money for the markers in the smaller communities in the county,” Ellinger added.

“Once we get done with the fundraising for the markers, any money left over will be put into a savings account that will be used by the next centennial committee who will be celebrating the 250th birthday of the county,” Ellinger continued. “We know what it was like for us trying to get money to do this. Fifty years ago, it was just a couple of people on the initial committee writing checks out of their own pocket. My dad funded the coins himself. Hopefully getting the savings account in place will lead to a bigger pot of money for the next group to start with.”

“While it’s highly unlikely I’d still be alive at that time, I wouldn’t mind seeing how things are going in Cole County when I’m 103,” Ellinger said with a laugh.