Roach, Missouri

Roach
Unincorporated community
Roach Location of Roach in Missouri
Coordinates: 37°59′38″N 92°50′11″W
Country	United States
State	Missouri
County	Camden
Named for	Roach family

Roach is an unincorporated community in southern Camden County, Missouri, United States. It is located north of U.S. Route 54 on Missouri Route AA, approximately five miles west of Camdenton and 2.5 miles west of the Niangua River arm of the Lake of the Ozarks. The ZIP Code for Roach is 65787.

The community was named after the Roach family of pioneer settlers who were hardy in nature and would not die under very harsh circumstances. There was a post office from 1887-1897, and since 1904.

The Roach family migrated here from Tennessee in 1831 and laid claim to a tract of land near Linn Creek. Littleberry Irving Jackson "Jack" Roach was born on the property in 1837. Orphaned at the age of three, Jack eventually came to live with the Crain family. At age 16, Jack Roach began working as a crewman on Osage River steamboats and by his 24th birthday he had passed the examination for a pilot's certificate on the Osage and lower Missouri Rivers. The Civil War interrupted his career; he served in the Union Army for the duration of the war.

In 1866 Jack married Frances Crain, a daughter in the family that had raised him. Soon after he was elected to a series of county offices, including county clerk, circuit court clerk, probate judge, and sheriff. In 1883 Jack became prosecuting attorney of Camden County. He owned a mercantile store at Gunter's Springs (later called Ha Ha Tonka) and built a substantial residence nearby. He died in 1886. The county history records that L.J. Roach served as sheriff for the county (1868-1870), and as county clerk (1870-1886).

One of Jack Roach's six children, Sidney Crain Roach, attended law school in St. Louis and opened a practice in Linn Creek in 1897. Following in his father's footsteps he served as county prosecutor from 1898 to 1909. He married Edith King; the village Edith is named in her honor. The couple raised four children. In 1909 Sidney was elected as a Republican representative in the Missouri General Assembly. He served in that capacity for four years. Sidney then returned to his law practice while remaining active in party politics. He subsequently was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1920 and served two terms.

Prior to the coming of Lake of the Ozarks, the Roach family cemetery was located near the south end of Old Linn Creek, at the present-day mouth of Possum Fork Cove. Since it would fall well below the lake waters, it was one of sixty cemeteries that had to be relocated on higher grounds. The site chosen for the relocation of the cemetery was on land owned by the family. The area adjacent to this became the village of Roach.