Template:Wp-Perryville, Missouri-History

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Perryville was selected the county seat of Perry County by Robert T. Brown, Joseph Tucker, and Thomas Riney, who had been appointed to select the seat of justice. In 1821, Bernard Layton deeded to the commissioners in exchange for one town lot. Fifty-three of the 99 town lots were sold for $1,486.25, which was used to build the first courthouse. The current courthouse is the third such structure. It was built in 1904 at a cost of $30,000. Perryville and Perry County were named for Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, Naval hero of the War of 1812.

An early store in Perryville was a log structure built by Jean Ferdinand Rozier on the north side of the square. An extant two-story brick building was built in 1830. The upper story serves as the first town hall. Perryville was first incorporated in 1837, but the incorporation was allowed to lapse.

As both merchandisers and consumers grew in sophistication, so did the types of establishments in the county. Built in 1843, the Hoose Hotel, often called the "white house",^[1] was a prominent structure in early commercial days. The Hoose Hotel served as a hotel, a brewery and an auction block.

In 1856, the town was again incorporated and by 1874 it had its first fire engine. Fourth Class City status was attained in 1879 and the following year Charles A. Weber was elected its first mayor. With the building of the Chester, Perryville and Ste. Genevieve Railway, prosperity came.

Largely because of its role as the seat of county government and because of its central location, Perryville began to develop as the major commercial and service center in Perry County. The population increased from 897 in 1890 to 1275 in 1900. Telephone service started in 1893.

2017 tornado

On February 28, 2017, an EF4 tornado tore through Perryville, causing widespread EF3 and some EF4 damage in and around the city. One person was killed.