USA > Iowa > Franklin County > History of Franklin County, Iowa, a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume I > Part 20
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Once A Month was the title of a magazine published at Hamp- ton in 1878 by Charles Wilcox. Its existence was short and unevent- ful.
HAMPTON GLOBE
A number of leading members of the democratic party of Frank- lin county put their hands down into their pockets and contributed to a fund for the establishment of a paper that would voice the senti- ments of the party and assist the democratic organization in its aims and policies. The paper was named the Hampton Globe and was established in the early 'gos, having as its editor-in-chief an able writer by the name of Jones, who remained at its head a short time and then gave way to M. Bilderback, who published for twelve or thirteen years one of Franklin county's best local papers. Mr. Bild- erback sold the paper two or three times and as many times resumed editorial charge. In January, 1913, the paper was sold by A. M. Mott estate to Arthur Salsbury, who in a few months moved the plant to Mystic, a mining town in Appanoose county.
SHEFFIELD PRESS
In the year 1880, Frank P. Morgan issued the first number of the Sheffield Press, a five column folio. It was a neatly printed, ably edited sheet and at once secured generous support. The founder of this paper began at the bottom in a printer's office in Wisconsin and in 1879 came to Hampton and for a few months worked on the
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Recorder. He then started the Dial at Bristow, in Butler county, and on the expiration of three months sold his plant and removed to Sheffield. Mr. Morgan remained as editor of the press until the fall of 1884, when, in company with C. S. Guilford, he purchased the Hampton Chronicle and conducted that paper until 1886, when he sold out and moved to Nebraska. In that state he successively purchased the Lodge Pole Express, the Chappell Register, the Papil- lion Times and the Ogallala News. Mr. Morgan passed away at Ogallala, November 26, 1913, and now lies at rest in the Hampton cemetery.
After Mr. Morgan's retirement from the Sheffield Press he had a number of successors, among them being L. H. Bowen, John R. Bell, Norman L. Hill, Ernest Gillett, John Walford, George R. Miner, Orace F. Spring, Walter Wait and A. L. Salsbury. March 1, 1913, the present editor and proprietor, Chester Yelland, bought the paper of G. B. Tracey. The Press is a six column quarto.
LATIMER STAR
The Latimer Star is a four column quarto and made its first ap- pearance in 1901. Its founder, present editor and proprietor is A. Hanson.
LEVI BEARDSLEY RAYMOND
Following an illness that had its beginning in February, 1908, when he suffered his first paralytic stroke, Col. L. B. Raymond, for a long period of years senior editor of the Recorder and without question Franklin county's best known citizen, passed peacefully to the great beyond on Tuesday morning, April 18, 1911, at 8 o'clock, aged seventy-four years, nine months and fifteen days. In his death his family loses a kind father; his friends, a man who was ever loyal; his soldier comrades, a comrade whose big heart beat in sympathy with theirs; the city of Hampton, a citizen who was pub- lic spirited and always fighting for the welfare of the town and its people.
Levi Beardsley Raymond was born in Potsdam, St. Lawrence county, New York, July 3, 1836. When a mere youth he moved with his parents to Wisconsin, where they lived on a farm near Beloit, in Rock county. At an early age he partially learned the printer's trade in the office of the Beloit Free Press and was a student
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at the college there for several years. In 1861 he was among the first to enlist in the Civil war, serving two years in the Sixth Wisconsin Infantry, one of the regiments comprising the famous Iron Brigade, and after being discharged for injuries received in service, spent a few months in the provost marshal's office at Janesville, Wisconsin.
During the winter of 1863-4 he came to Iowa, settling in Butler county, near Aplington, where he engaged for a time in farming. In the summer of 1865 he came to Hampton and was employed as teacher in a schoolhouse just completed. In 1866 he worked for J. Cheston Whitney as printer and associate editor of the Hampton Record. In the fall of 1867 he was elected county superintendent of schools and the next two years saw him engrossed in the duties of the office into which he entered heart and soul and inaugurated several reforms, the good effects of which are felt to the present day.
In 1869 Mr. Raymond started a second paper here, called the Hampton Free Press, which he sold in 1871 to Mr. Whitney, who consolidated it with the Record, under the name of the Franklin County Recorder. During 1872-3 Mr. Raymond established a string of papers in the northwestern portion of the state, among them being the Cherokee Leader; Lyon County Press, at Doon; Mirror, at Newell; and the Mail, at Sheldon. These properties did not prove profitable and he soon disposed of them and returned to Hampton, where for a year or two he devoted his time to improving some real estate that he owned and doing some surveying. In 1877 he estab- lished a third paper here called the Hampton Leader, which two years later was consolidated with the Recorder and published under the firm name of McCracken & Raymond. On January 1, 1880, Mr. Raymond secured sole control of the property and in 1884 sold a half interest in the business to I. L. Stuart, and this partnership continued until January, 1910-a period of twenty-six years-when on ac- count of failing health he disposed of his interest to Mr. Stuart.
Through the columns of the Recorder, Mr. Raymond for years wielded a wide influence for the benefit of Hampton, Franklin county, and the state at large, for his pen was always devoted to re- forms, improvement and advancement.
He was a life long republican and took an active part in politics. He has been honored with many positions of public trust. For years he was chairman of the republican county central committee. In 1883 he was appointed special examiner for the United States pen- sion office, which position he held four years, his territory being in Wisconsin and northern Michigan. He served as postmaster here
LEVI BEARDSLEY RAYMOND
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from 1889 to 1894; was a member of the state central committee for two years; was chosen a presidential elector several years ago, and has been a delegate to more than forty republican state conventions.
Enthusiastic and active in military affairs, it was but natural that when Mr. Raymond returned from the war to civil life he should retain a fondness for soldiers. He was largely instrumental in organ- izing a company of Iowa National Guards here and was captain of the same for several years. He was elected lieutenant-colonel of the Sixth Iowa National Guard. He was especially devoted to the Grand Army of the Republic and in 1903 was elected commander of the Department of Iowa in that organization. For several years, under the old trustee system for control of state institutions, he was a mem- ber of the board in charge of the soldiers' home at Marshalltown.
For a period of many years Mr. Raymond was secretary of the Soldiers' Relief Commission, and many are the kindly acts and instances of material aid dispensed by him as an official of this com- mission. He was secretary of the Franklin County Old Settlers' Association from its organization up to the time that failing health prevented him from continuing the duties of that office.
It was largely through Mr. Raymond's efforts that Andrew Car- negie was induced to present the city of Hampton with $10,000, for the establishment of our public library, and for years he was presi- dent of the library board. His interest in everything pertaining to the advancement and upbuilding of Hampton was untiring and it can truthfully be said that L. B. Raymond gave largely of his time and talent to the public good.
Mr. Raymond was married at Clinton, Wisconsin, February 14, 1864, to Mary Leverich, who, with five children, three sons and two daughters, survives him. The children are: Louis Harvey, who re- sides at Kennewick, Washington ; Grace, Mrs. May Rule, and Lucius, all of this city; and Levi B., Jr., of Washington, D. C. He is also survived by one sister, Mrs. J. F. Williams, of Chicago, and one brother, J. S. Raymond, of Boston, Massachusetts.
Mr. Raymond was a member of the Masonic Lodge and of J. W. Mckenzie Post, G. A. R.
CHAPTER XV
D. W. DOW, PIONEER LAWYER, BECOMES REMINISCENT-HIS CAMPAIGN IN 1860-EFFICACY OF "CHEWIN' TERBACKER"-HOW HAMPTON LOOKED IN 1859.
Over a half century ago, or to be explicit, in the summer of 1859, D. W. Dow, a young man just admitted to the practice of law and seeking a location where his abilities would be sought and an am- bitious spirit appeased, came to Hampton, the county seat of Frank- lin, then four years old. He found a little settlement of probably seventy-five people and not over twenty houses all told. The outlook was not very flattering to a young and aspiring lawyer; for clients were scarce, the country was new and sparsely settled ; of money there was little. But the intrepid and hopeful new citizen of the growing village made the best of the situation. He remained, became a promi- nent member of the local bar, was elected to an important office, and before retiring from an active, honorable business career was in- trusted with many positions of trust and responsibility. Before lay- ing aside the cares and strifes of the able lawyer and public man, he efficiently and satisfactorily served the county three terms in the State Legislature.
Mr. Dow was born in Washtenaw county, Michigan, in 1836, and the reader can see that this nestor of the bar is now past the biblical allotment to man of years upon earth. But he is still strong mentally, and his memory is almost incredibly keen and accurate. Consenting to an interview, this kindly old gentleman gave the writer the attached details relating to the county, Hampton and certain of the early settlers as he saw them :
"When but a lad I moved with my parents from Washtenaw county, Michigan, to Wisconsin. We located in Prairieville, a town near Milwaukee, and now known as Waukesha, but soon thereafter the family moved to Whiteside county, Illinois, where I was raised. I attended the public schools until sixteen years of age, after which, to obtain means for a more extended education, I worked on farms
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in the summer and with the money paid my way at the academy in Lee Center, Lee county, Illinois. While a student in the academy, another young man and myself read law in our room in a farm house where we kept 'bachelor's hall.' Following this, I was taken into the law office of C. J. Johnson, at Morrison, Illinois, and before the required time for reading had expired, I applied for admission to the bar and passed a successful examination before the supreme court of the state. However, I returned to Johnson's law office and read six months longer. In the spring of 1859, with the other law students, I went to DeWitt, in Clinton county, Iowa, and stood an examination under Judge John Dillon.
"On the 5th day of July, 1859, I arrived in Franklin county. I left Illinois, with others, in a wagon with a team of horses, having with me books and other necessaries. On July 4th we traveled from Sumner to Waverly. It started to rain, and there being no houses between the Wapsipinicon river and Waverly, we traveled straight across the prairie. The rain turned to snow, which fell to a depth of all of four inches, but it melted before we got to Waverly. This was a phenomenon I had never seen before nor since, of a snow of that depth in July. The night of the snow we stayed at Shell Rock and the next day reached Hampton.
"When I arrived at Hampton I found a town of perhaps some seventy-five people, men, women and children, and perhaps fifteen or twenty houses. The latter included the Hampton House, then standing on Fourth street between Reeve and Main streets, on the site of the present Rule Hotel. It was a frame building, a story and a half in height. Doctor Guthrie was the boniface. Just west of this building was a general store, in a frame structure, one story high. The proprietors were T. B. and H. H. Carpenter, of Cedar Falls. There was another general store on Main street, where the Carnegie Library now stands. This was kept by W. G. Beed and James Thompson. Still north of that building was a boot and shoe store and cobbler shop. Here Norman Lisk had a stock of boots and shoes. There was a blacksmith shop standing on the corner of Second and Reeve streets, run by George Thompson. Andy Cannam kept the hotel in a log cabin, with a frame addition, on another corner of Second and Reeve.
"I found the Hampton Reporter already established and being edited by S. M. Jones. The office was in a one-story frame build- ing, unplastered and with one room. It stood on the site now occu- pied by the Baptist church. Stephen M. Jones and M. S. Bowman
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were the proprietors and at that time the paper was known as the Franklin Record. During the Civil war there was not a blacksmith shop and no store in the town. There were a few groceries, however, kept by one Nixon.
"Upon my arrival here I stopped at the old Hampton House on Fourth street, established an office, put in books and held out as a lawyer. My first client was quite a liberal fellow. He paid me for my services in watermelons. His was the only case I had until in the winter, and before I had another client I was compelled to go to work at my old trade-carpentering. I had before coming here taught eight terms of school and in the winter of 1859-60 took the Richards district school at Mayne's Grove. I had two cases that winter, before justices of the peace, one at Allen's Grove before a Scotch justice, and one at Maysville. At the latter place I defended a fellow accused of stealing some gloves, coats and other things. He was convicted and fined, as he should have been. The other case was one of replevin, where the title to a batch of hogs was in ques- tion. It was brought before the Scotchman, referred to above, and the lawyer opposing me was one Jamison, from the grove of that name. Jamison had brought the suit. I had filed my answer to his complaint, when he filed a half dozen motions and demurrers to it. In the trial, which was held in a log house, it got to be along after night, when Jamison became dreadfully abusive; but I had been taught by my preceptors never to permit myself to become angry in the court room, and practiced upon that theory. But when Jamison at last called me some nasty name, I took the statute, banged him over the head with it and knocked him into a corner of the cabin. When he got up, the justice, in his Scotch brogue, said : 'Hit him again; d-n him, he needs it.' But it was not necessary to further chastise my opponent. The justice had reached the limit of his patience, and declared, 'To h-1 with your demurrers and your motions ; I'm going to try this case,' and he did try it in his own way; bringing it to a close in about a half hour.
"After this winter term of school closed, I took my wages for teaching and put the money into a stock of goods with W. G. Beed, and carried on the store for the firm one season. There was no law business to amount to anything. The store was located in the block now occupied by the public library.
"In the fall of 1860 I was candidate for clerk of the district court, which office then carried two other offices with it-that of clerk of the county court and clerk of the board of supervisors. I
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was elected and held the position six years. At the election there were a little over three hundred votes cast and the campaign was much more exciting than at the present day. I procured a horse and saw every voter in the county, soliciting his support not only once but perhaps twice. In Clinton township I didn't get a vote, while there were some thirty votes cast there. In my home town I got fifteen votes, while my opponent, J. D. Leland, secured forty. He lived at Old Chapin. But when the votes were counted in Geneva township, it was found that all were cast for me with the exception of two; in Reeve, which gave one-third of all the votes cast in the county, I got in the neighborhood of one hundred votes, while Leland only received five. It went along about the same way in the other townships, so that I was elected by a large majority.
"I remember one amusing incident in the campaign. S. H. Van Kirk was one of the first school teachers in the county and a man not only of education, but of ability. He was then county surveyor, which was of some importance at that time. I arrived at his home, a log cabin, while it was raining, and found him digging a cellar, a piece of work that should have been done before building the house. He had taken up the boards that constituted the floor and laid them so the family could have space to move on, and the other part he used as a platform upon which to throw the dirt and then shovel it out of doors. Mr. Van Kirk, as were most of the settlers in that day, was addicted to the use of tobacco. I was admitted into this home and standing at the edge of the dismantled floor looking down into the pit, informed Van Kirk of my errand. He was as cross a looking man as I had ever seen, and his wife seemingly was in no better humor, as she was sitting on the little space of floor remaining, like Tam O'Shanter's wife- sullen and sulky. The first thing the pioneer asked me was, 'Have you got any tobacker?' I had provided myself, although not a user of the weed, with an old fashioned Virginia plug, which was probably a foot long and would weigh in the neighborhood of a pound. It was the best chewing tobacco then in use. I handed him out this plug, which had had none taken off from it and from which I meant for him to take a good chew. He did take a very large chew, biting it off ravenously. He then doubled it up and shoved it down in his pocket. There was 75 cents worth of tobacco which I had started out to use for electioneering purposes, gone. Van Kirk brightened up and in- formed me that he would not detain me any longer, for he wanted
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to get his cellar dug, but that he would vote for me and he kept his promise.
"Speaking of the ludicrous incidents of that campaign, I also remember going over on the Iowa river to a place they called Otis- ville, now known as Dows. I went to a man by the name of Osborne, whom I found picking corn, taking two rows and allowing his team to go along the row already picked. Upon accosting Mr. Osborne, he merely grunted 'Good morning,' and kept right on picking his corn. Becoming immediately conscious of the man's attitude, I took the opposite row and picked with him until we got down to the end, a distance of probably forty rods. I was a good hand and think per- haps I could have beaten him if I had been on a wager. He was handicapped by his team, which needed attention, and knowing this, I once in a while would take three or four hills on his row. This seemed to madden him at first. Nothing was said until we got out to the end of the row. Then he looked up and exclaimed: 'Who in h-1 are you?' I then told him I was a candidate for clerk of the district court. He said: 'You git right on that wagon and come up to the corn crib. You can have anything on my farm. Vote for you ?- of course I'll vote for you. I'll vote for any man that can beat me pickin' corn.' That man could neither read nor write, but at every election that was held for years afterwards he would ask his neighbors if that man Dow was running for office, at the same time declaring he was going to vote for him for he could beat him picking corn.
"There was a public house kept at Otisville, now Dows, by a man named Lewis H. Morgan, for whom Morgan township was named. I rode up to his house along toward night and asked if I could put up with him, and he said : 'How high do you want to be put up?' I at once discovered what kind of a man I had to deal with, and knowing he kept a public house, told him to let me know where I could put up my horse and I would take care of it myself. He said : 'All right go and put up your horse,' and I did. It was getting late in the fall and the air was quite chilly. Entering the house I found the room quite cheerful and warm, there being a large fire place, in which was a big back log and plenty of front sticks, blazing merrily. We sat down in front of the fire place, my host and I, and we constituted at the time the family circle. Not a word did I get out of him; neither did I undertake to talk to him till the women folks came in from the kitchen and said: 'Come and eat.' Morgan got up, uttered not a word but started for the dining room.
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I followed him in and was shown a place to sit at the table by one of the women. This table was a long, farmer-like affair, with the bread plate in front of my reticent host. I could hardly have reached it with a fishing pole; therefore, I was compelled to ask him if he would not please pass the bread. He looked up at me and said : 'God! can't you eat once without bread?' I answered: 'If you don't pass that bread, I'll get up and come around and get it myself.' I was helped out of the dilemma by one of the kindly women of the house. This was the character of Morgan's conduct that night but it was only put on for the occasion, as I well knew. The next morning he appeared to me as one of the most congenial fellows I had ever met. He gave to me a great many pointers to assist me in my campaign, and was an intelligent, gentlemanly sort of man. He simply took that way of amusing himself, you might say.
"There was but one term of district court in those days held in the year and that came along in the fore part of June. The first term that I attended was in June, 1860. The night before court I noticed teams coming almost from every direction. There were scarcely any public conveyances at that time but the lawyers from several different adjoining counties arrived here to attend court in Hampton. They mainly traveled on horseback or in buggies, the latter being what we would now call road carts. The judge was one John Porter, who resided at Eldora. The district or prosecut- ing attorney was William Peters Hepburn, who became one of Iowa's noted men, serving the southern district of the state in Con- gress for many years and now living at Clarinda, Iowa. They were present when court was called by John Ward. All sat around a table in the courthouse-a building in the shape of an old fashioned schoolhouse. Here all the officials of the county had their offices, which were only distinguished by the corners in which their desks stood. They were all in one room. As a matter of fact, there was only one room in the building. At that court there were present at the opening some of as distinguished lawyers as there were in the state. There was H. E. J. Boardman, of Marshalltown, as good a law- yer as ever came to Iowa. There was John F. Duncombe, of Fort Dodge, father-in-law of United States Senator Kenyon, who after- ward became a great corporation lawyer. From Webster City there was D. D. Chase; Judge Bagg, of Waterloo; J. B. Powers, A. F. Brown and William McClure, of Cedar Falls. All of these officials became distinguished men at the bar. Franklin county was repre-
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sented by one A. H. Bridgeman, from Maysville. He graduated third in his class at Harvard University and held his certificate to practice law from Albany Law School. There were from Hampton at that time W. N. Davidson, as bright a lawyer as ever was in the county ; and N. B. Chapman, who came to Floyd county in 1856 and was admitted to the bar in 1857. Mr. Chapman located in Hampton in 1859 and became one of its leading lawyers. He was elected county superintendent of schools in 1861, appointed to the same position in 1865 to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of Dr. C. F. West, and remained in office until 1868. He later removed to Iowa City. Mr. Chapman died at Minneapolis, November 23, 1900. I should also include your poor, humble speaker.
"At the term of court just mentioned the clerk of the courts was attended and 'coached' by Dr. J. S. Hurd, who was a graduate of Amherst College, a graduate of Jefferson Law School and of a surgical college at Boston. He had the strongest intellect of any man I ever knew. He was the son of a Presbyterian minister. Dr. Hurd lived in Hampton and became what is called a 'hard drinker.' For all that, he was a good citizen. He enlisted in Company H, Third Iowa Volunteer Infantry, and served his country well. The docket at this term consisted of perhaps thirty cases, which were represented by as many attorneys. These records were engrossed by Dr. Hurd and were the best kept records in the county. It took the court about four days to finish the docket.
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