Hickman County

Hickman County was the 71st erected in the state, in 1821, out of parts of Caldwell and Livingston and named in honor of Capt. Paschal Hickman. It is situated in the extreme south west part, on the Mississippi river; is bounded north by Ballard county, east by Graves, south by Fulton, and west by the Mississippi river; embraces 226 square miles; is generally level, or gently undulating; soil a black mold, very rich but based upon sand; corn and tobacco the principal products; timber heavy, and of good quality. The county is finely watered by many mill streams, including Little Obion and Bayou du Chien and their tributaries.

Towns
Clinton, the county seat, incorporated in 1831, is on the Mobile and Ohio railroad, 7 miles from Columbus; population in 1870, 272.
Columbus, on the Mississippi river, 7 miles from Clinton, and 20 miles below Cairo, is the northern terminus of the Mobile and Ohio railroad, which connects by transfer-ferry across the river to Belmont, with the Iron Mountain railroad, thence to St. Louis; contains 6 churches (Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, and two African churches), and 80 business firms whose business exceeds $600,000 per annum; improving rapidly; population in 1870, 1,574, and in February, 1873, about 2,000.
Moscow, 6 miles south of Clinton, incorporated in 1831; population in 1870, 350.
Baltimore, about 14 miles east, incorporated in 1856;
Obion, about 4 miles north east;
Oakville, a station on the railroad; and
Wesley, 20 miles south of Columbus are small villages.

Members of the Legislature from Hickman County

Senate
Thos. James, 1832-48;
George W. Silvertooth, 1855-59;
William Lindsay, 1867-71, resigned, 1870, to be elected judge of the court of appeals.

House of Representatives
Samuel P. McFall, 1832, '36, '38, '39;
Robert N. Lewis, 1835, '41, '42, '43;
Edward George, 1837;
John Shaw, 1840;
Benj. G. Dudley, 1844, '45;
Newton E. Wright, 1846, '47;
George W. Silvertooth, 1850, '53-55, '61-63, (but expelled Dec. 21, 1861, for being "directly or indirectly connected with, or giving aid and comfort to, the Confederate army," and "being a member of the Russellville Convention, which established a Provisional Government in Ky.," etc..) and again, 1869-71;
Edward Crossland, 1857-59;
William D. Lannom, 1859-61;
Elisha Beasly, 1862-63;
F. M. Ray, 1863-65;
Willis R. Bradley, 1865-67;
A. S. Arnold, 1871-73.
From Hickman and Caldwell counties,
Hugh McCracken, 1822.
From Hickman and Fulton counties,
Price Edrington, 1851-53;
Richard B. Alexander, 1855-57.

[For sketch of the Earthquake of 1811, see under Fulton County.]

Capt. Paschal Hickman, in honor of whom this county was named, was a native of Virginia; emigrated to Kentucky, when very young, with his father, Rev. Wm. Hickman, and settled in Franklin County; served in most of the campaigns against the Indians, and was distinguished for his activity, efficiency, and bravery; in 1812, was commissioned a captain, raised a volunteer company, and joined Col. John Allen, who commanded the 1st regiment of Kentucky riflemen. He was in the memorable battle of the river Raisin where he was severely wounded, and like many kindred Kentucky spirits, was inhumanly butchered in cold blood by the savage allies of his Britannic majesty.


Source: History of Kentucky, Volume II, by Lewis Collins, Published by Collins & Company,
Covington, Kentucky, 1874