The area that would become Cooper County was settled in the first two decades of the 19th century. In 1817, Asa Morgan and Charles Lucas platted a town on the Missouri River and named it Boonville after Daniel Boone, early explorer and settler in central Missouri. When Cooper County was established in 1818, Boonville became the county seat.
In 1821, the county built a courthouse and in 1831, remodeled and added to the existing building. In 1838, this building was sold. In 1840, contractors Seltcer and McCollough built a courthouse that served until 1911. In 1848, the county built a jail. Both the courthouse and jail became of interest to Sedalians when the story of John Shane appeared in the Sedalia Democrat in January 1902.
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