Local lore and legend tells us that an old tree stood at a junction of the Wilderness Road of the Ozarks. An unknown traveler nailed a gate from an abandoned hog pen upon the tree to which local residents, freighters, and merchants, as well as those who journeyed on the old road would leave messages as we do on bulletin boards today. In that spirit we bring to you, our readers and supporters, news from your fellow travelers on the Wilderness Road.
In June of 2001, we began a project that was way ahead of it’s time, an online magazine, or e-zine titled The Message Tree. The above paragraph which appeared near top of each page springs forth from a very colorful Ozarks Mountain tale, one which is partially true and partially urban legend, but none the less a fun story in itself. A story that sets the scene for this magazine.
Beginning as a newsletter for those interested in the Wilderness Road Association and it’s activities, The Message Tree quickly took on a life of it’s own and became a beloved publication for those who enjoy the history, places, and people of the Central Ozarks. The e-zine was published in monthly installments through July 2004 when time constraints forced us to abandon the project, for a time, with the intent of picking up where we left off at a future date. Days turned to weeks, weeks to months, and months to years, and after four years we finally reached a point where we could once again volunteer time to this project.
Trying to emulate the look and feel of a old time monthly newspaper, The Message Tree was such a success it quickly outgrew the yahoo Geocities hosting service it began on and we migrated it to a service of its own. The original tabloid look going by the wayside.
The current format, is one that makes use of all available Internet technologies, and also provides us with a means to quickly upgrade the site. The old format being one that required about a week to create and which didn’t have the built in “tools” to distribute the ‘zine to a 21st century audience. With this new format we hope to reach a new audience who might like these wonderful old stories from the hills, as well as our returning readers that have complained during the four year hiatus.
The monthly issue format will be gone, but we now have the capability for RSS (really simple syndication) and those with RSS capability will receive the latest updates to the site nearly as fast we we post new articles and stories. Migrating the old articles of past issues will leave the new reader confused as to when the original first appeared but once the migration is finished all articles will be in chronological order beginning with the newest one at the top of the main page.
In the column at left, the categories HISTORY OF HERE and DOWN JOE BALD ROAD archive some of the best columns penned for the Stone County Gazette and other local and national publications by James F. (Jim) Barrett, local historian, published author, and storyteller extraordinaire. Other categories contain articles by other published authors such as Ed & Ann Crabtree, as well as Gary Grey, stories that were loved by The Message Tree readers when they first appeared.
So if you are a returning fan of The Message Tree or one that has recently discovered this publication in it’s reincarnation via a blog format, we are delighted you found us. And we hope that as a fellow traveler on the Wilderness Road, that old road that nobody knows how old, that we might meet you in person someday along the way. Until then, peace be with you, and may God bless you and your’s.
