Big Sugar Creek is a 47-mile-long (76 km)[3] waterway in the Ozark Mountains of southwest Missouri.
In addition to being a scenic place to paddle a canoe, kayak or raft, Big Sugar is also noted for its fishing opportunities.
Flowing north for two or three miles (5 km), Big Sugar is joined by White Oak.
From Mountain, Big Sugar flows west for two miles (3 km) where Pine Creek joins.
Further down the creek stands Bee Bluff, known for its high cliffs which tower against the side of the mountain.
The left channel meets Little Sugar Creek, forming Elk River (Oklahoma).
In addition to being a scenic place to paddle a canoe, kayak or raft, Big Sugar is also noted for its fishing opportunities.
[4] The first settlers to this area were supplied with syrup, sugar and a wide variety of trees, fruits and nuts.
Local legend states that Daniel Boone lived along the banks of Big Sugar Creek and led some of the early settlers through the Ozark trails.
[5] From the initial settlement of the area in the 1820s-1840s up until the early 20th century, Big Sugar Creek was home to a large number of mills.
Henry Schell was killed by bushwhackers during the American Civil War and his wife and daughters, as his sons were off fighting for the Confederate States of America, dug his grave and buried him in the yard of the old homestead.
Most of these communities are little more than a name today, but at one time they included mills, general stores, small canning operations, schools, post offices and gas stations.
In some, most traces of previous commercial establishment are all but obliterated, but others still retain recognizable evidence of a time before automobiles, when certain necessities had to be within a few miles.
[5] Jacket — At one time this community included a mill, a general store, a gas station, a post office, a tomato canning plant, a blacksmith, a couple churches and a school.
[6][7] Mountain — This community, which was named for the hilly terrain of the area, included Henry Schell Jr.'s mill, post office (called Schell's Mill), general store, and blacksmith shop, and later a gas station, churches and a school.
This building dates to the 1880s and while the Methodist congregation which initially used it disbanded in the 1950s, it was restored by the Roller Cemetery Association in the 1990s with donations from local residents, including descendants of its original builders.
Albert E. Brumley's best known song, "I'll Fly Away (hymn)" has been recorded by multiple Grammy Award winning musicians and even inspired the name of a television series.
Brumley also started an annual, though now defunct, craft fair and concert in a field next to his house in Powell.
Through the years such celebrities as Minnie Pearl and Grandpa Jones, of Hee Haw fame, performed at the venue.
Camping, hiking, backpacking, horseback riding, fishing, swimming and canoeing are some of the activities available along Big Sugar Creek.