McCalmont Township:

Was named after Jefferson County president judge John S. McCalmont in 1857. Farming served the area until 1900 when the vast deposits of coal were mined. The population jumped from 1000 to 5000 in ten years. When the coal ran out, so did the people and by 1930 the population was back to 1000 again. Entire towns, such as Eleanora, disappeared. Since then, there have been a number of strip mining operations in the area. The town of Anita remains in spite of the mines being gone.

The settlement known as Battle Hollow sounds like it would have an interesting history, perhaps a gun fight with Indians or a family feud, but the story is not what one might think. It seems that the early settlers decided that the area would be a good place for a school. A party of them set out to determine a suitable location. They could not, however, agree which was the best site and a heated argument ensued. The dispute nearly ended in blows. A committee member related this to his wife who then suggested that they should call it "Battle Hollow"...and so it has ever since!

The first church in McCalmont Township was in the town of Shamoka. It was a Cumberland Presbyterian Church built in 1871. A store was opened by George Morrison in 1882. When it came time to open a post office, it was learned that the name Shamoka was already taken. The townsfolk suddenly had to come up with a new name. As time went on, no one could agree on a suitable name; panic set in. Someone in a stroke of genius suggested that since everyone was in a panic, they should call the place Panic; on that they agreed and it has been known by that name ever since!