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Page: of 68
father was Reuben Strother. Some of the Strothers were
early settlers of California bringing an emigrant train to
this state in 1850 during the gold rush. For further details, see enclosure on the Strother family.
Jesse Hitt Rector was apparently named after his
great-uncle, Jesse Hitt who was born in Fauquier County,
Virginia on February 18, 1757. (19)
With his family, Jesse emigrated from Virginia to
Missouri when he was only twenty-one. Being very industrious and ambitious, he began earning his living splitting
rails and later was employed on a farm. In this way he
accumulated a small capital, and in 1840, the year of his
marriage, he purchased 120 acres of land in Spencer township, Pike County, Missouri. He later increased this farm
acreage to two hundred and also owned four farms in
Ralls County, Missouri, aggregating four hundred and
twenty acres. From 1848 until 1852 he served efficiently
as Justice of the Peace in Pike County, and in 1873 was
appointed Postmaster of Elk Lick Springs. (1) (16)
In 1854 he became interested in Elk Lick Springs,
Pike County, and in 1856 became the proprietor of the
hotel. Elk Lick Springs was a well known resort community and was visited each summer by many people
seeking rest and health. ‘The water at this noted spa was
supposed to possess peculiar health-giving powers, which
made it very desirable for those who were ailing.” (16)
His hostelry contained twenty-six rooms, all said to have
been elegantly furnished, besides two cottages of five
rooms each, which accommodated many visitors.
“Jessie H. Rector was entirely a self-made man and
deserved all the credit due to one who, starting out in life
empty handed works his way upward to success through
honorable business methods.” (1) He was widely known
throughout that section of Missouri as a prominent agriculturist and operated a very profitable stock business.