A river landing that had long been a popular Indian trail and campsite for French fur traders became the site of a settlement begun by Leonard Harold, a follower of Daniel Boone who came from Virginia to Missouri in the late 1700's and settled the riverfront area that later became Augusta. Harold served in the War of 1812 and in 1814 in the Missouri Territory Mounted Militia during the campaign against Miami Indians under Lt. Col. Daniel Morgan Boone. In 1821 he acquired 360 acres, including a licensed boat landing, through a grant for his War of 1812 service, and in 1835 he built a two-story log house on the northwest side of his property. In 1836 Mt. Pleasant was registered as a settlement with St. Charles County, and by 1840 its initial twenty-one lots included the Mindrup Store/Saloon, Wencker-Tiemann Holmann/Jeude House, Baare-Weidner Store, and Baare-Dammann House, while Julius Mallinckrodt was one of the first settlers establishing vineyards. In 1843 Mt. Pleasant was renamed Augusta, and in 1844 Harold set aside three blocks on the western side of his settlement for public use including space for a public school. In 1867 the August Wine Company built a brick Wine Hall on Locust Street, in the 1870's the Missouri River changed course and Augusta no longer had a waterfront, and in 1980 it was named the first U.S. Wine District.
