In the late 1830s, a border dispute between the state of Missouri and the Iowa Territory nearly turned into a full-scale military conflict over sweet, sticky loot. The trouble began in 1836 when a surveyor named Joseph Brown re-established Missouri's northern boundary using a flawed interpretation of the 1824 treaty line. His new line shifted the border roughly nine miles north into Iowa Territory, encompassing a valuable 13-mile-wide strip of land rich in timber and wild honeybees.
Tensions reached a boiling point in 1839 when a Missouri tax collector entered the disputed zone to collect taxes from local settlers. The residents, identifying as Iowans, refused to pay and chased the official off. Frustrated, a Missouri man decided to take matters into his own hands by chopping down three hollow trees packed with wild honey to satisfy the debt.
Outraged Iowans declared the act theft, and the local sheriff issued a warrant for the tax collector's arrest. Soon after, Missouri Governor Lilburn Boggs and Iowa Territorial Governor Robert Lucas both called up their respective militias. Over 1,000 men on each side marched to the border armed with makeshift weapons, including pitchforks, sausage stuffers, and old swords.
Thankfully, before any blood could be spilled, cooler heads prevailed. Local officials agreed to suspend hostilities and submit the dispute to the United States Supreme Court. In 1849, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Iowa, establishing the modern boundary and ending the sweet stalemate once and for all.