USA > Iowa > Poweshiek County > History of Poweshiek County, Iowa: a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume 1 > Part 42
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The water itself is clear, and good for family use, although quite hard. It has many of the qualities of Colfax water and is somewhat medicinal. Its use as a drink tends to prevent rheumatism and fevers, and is popular.
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ELECTRIC LIGIIT WORKS.
The Grinnell Electric Light Works were started in 1882, by Professor Wil- lard Kimball, now an instructor in the Nebraska University. The plant was located near Neely's coal office and after Professor Kimball's retirement it was operated by Crain, Still & Austin until about 1892. In 1902 the concern was incorporated by Dick L. Benson and Archibald Cattell as the Grinnell Electric & Heating Company. Its first board of directors were Dick L. Benson, Fred W. Willson and C. C. Jamison. Its first officers were-C. C. Jamison, president ; Dick L. Benson, vice president ; and Thomas A. Meyers, secretary and treasurer.
On August 31, 1904, the control of the company was acquired by O. K. Cole and at the same time the following directors were elected: O. K. Cole, C. M. Lawrence and Howard Cole. O. K. Cole was elected president and treasurer ; and C. M. Lawrence, vice president and secretary.
On October 1, 1909, the entire stock of the company was purchased by John A. Radford, and at a special meeting held October 12, 1909, the following di- rectors were elected : John A. Radford, S. H. Knight, and J. S. Knight. The of- ficers elected were: John A. Radford, president and treasurer ; S. H. Knight, vice president and secretary.
This company furnishes the city of Grinnell with a Tungsten street lighting system. The number of lights supplied are 100 80-candle-power lamps and thir- ty-nine 48-candle-power lamps, all of which burn every night from dark to dawn. In addition to the above there are twenty-eight electrolier posts, with three lamps per post, located on three of the principal business streets. These lamps burn to 10:30 P. M. every night except Saturday, when they are kept lighted until midnight. Distributed over this post lighting are eighteen of the city lamps, which burn all night.
PUBLIC HEATING SYSTEM.
The company supplies steam heating through a system of underground mains, covering the business portion of the city. The total radiation supply is 30,000 square feet to about 105 heating --.
The generating station is located on the southeast corner of Third and Main streets and at the present time the building is a one-story frame. Many changes will have taken place within the next two years in the plant. Among them will be the construction of a modern, fire-proof power house, and installed therein machinery and apparatus of the most modern and approved pattern.
PEOPLE'S LIGHT AND FUEL COMPANY.
This is a new and valuable utility for Grinnell, having been established in 1909, by an incorporated company composed of E. B. Brande, J. W. Keerl, of Mason City, A. L. Child, H. W. Davis, O. B. Matthews. J. W. Keerl is the president ; and O. B. Matthews, secretary and treasurer. The company is capi- talized at $50,000.
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The plant consists of a two-story brick building, double settings of genera- tors, every machine being duplicated, and up to the present time its mains cover a territory of fourteen miles. The product is water gas and the enterprise has proven a success.
FIRE OF 1889.
At noon of June 12, 1889, an alarm of fire was turned in. No one anticipated that fire engines and apparatus would be brought from neighboring towns, or that in spite of all efforts, the major part of the business section of Grinnell would disappear in a few hours. Yet such was the case. Popular opinion cited as the cause of the fire the fall of a spark from a passing engine upon the ele- vator operated by Mr. Dickey. But this opinion was not sustained by a decision in the courts-perhaps from lack of proof.
An "Oklahoma Row" on the west side of the park furnished space for tem- porary stores until new business blocks rose from the ashes of the old, among which there was no frame building.
Before the last timbers were burned all the building material in town was engaged for rebuilding, and the Phoenix like town was better than its predecessor.
POSTOFFICE.
The postoffice at this point is the most important in the county and in the past few years the business of the office has increased to a most flattering ex- tent. As a matter of course, the college has a great deal to do with the affairs of the office, but the factories having grown and enlarged their dealings means that they have contributed not a little to the growing importance of the Grin- nell office.
The establishment of rural free delivery in 1902 is also another factor to be considered. Since that time rural free delivery routes have been extended until now there are seven from Grinnell, four from Brooklyn, Montezuma has four, Malcom three, Searsboro two, Guernsey two and Hartwick one. These routes extend to every part of the county and have materially increased the cir- culation of daily and weekly papers. They have made it possible for the man on the farm to receive his letters and papers daily at his door.
The importance of the Grinnell office has been made manifest to the law- makers at Washington and through the persistent effort of Congressman N. E. Kendall an appropriation of $100,000 was recently made by congress for a fed- eral building and soon Grinnell will have a postoffice building of its own.
When one considers that more than a half century has passed since Grinnell became a distributing point for the mails, but comparatively few men have held the position of postmaster. There has never been a woman appointee of the office.
The first postmaster at Grinnell, as shown by the records at Washington, was A. K. Lowry, who was appointed August 30, 1856. His successor was George W. Crain, appointed February 3, 1857. And then in their order come: A. K. Lowry, September 27, 1857; George E. Holyoke, September 27, 1858;
STEWART LIBRARY, GRINNELL
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Charles G. Adams, December 13, 1858; John Delahoyde, October 22, 1859; L. C. Phelps, April 22, 1861 ; George W. Crain, October 17, 1866; William S. Leisure, February 13, 1867; D. S. Beardsley. July 26, 1886; S. A. Cravath, June 23, 1890; James R. Lewis, August 2, 1894; C. L. Roberts, July 19, 1898; William G. Ray, December 13, 1906; Arthur C. Norris, January 13, 1911.
PUBLIC LIBRARIES.
The first effort to secure a public library in Grinnell was made in 1857, by the superintendent of the public schools. A bookcase was made by a local cab- inet-maker out of oak lumber, moderately seasoned. As the town was only three years old, money was scarce. The hard times of 1857 in the east reached this county in 1858. Some families were willing to donate books from their meager libraries. Some fifty volumes were gathered up and placed under the care of the superintendent in the schoolhouse. The books were neither fresh, nor choice. The doors of the bookcase shrank out of all usefulness; the books were scat- tered, or withdrawn; the effort was suspended.
IOWA COLLEGE LIBRARY.
In 1859 Iowa College was transferred from Davenport to Grinnell, and brought its small library of books given to it mainly by ministers and by men who could spare volumes of least value from their own collections. This library was especially for the college faculty and students, yet it was semi-public, inas- much as its books were loaned freely to those who sought them. Alonzo Steele created quite a flutter of interest in it by the donation of $100 to it,-the first cash donation that is remembered. It meant one hundred dollars worth of new books! The library now numbers over 44,000 volumes and is still semi-public.
The books have been chosen especially for college use, each professor choos- ing for his own department.
Through the beneficence of Andrew Carnegie, who at the suggestion of Dr. Albert Shaw, an alumnus of the college, contributed $50,000 for the purpose, a modern, finely equipped library building has been provided and has been occu- pied since April, 1905. This library has a growing collection of photographs and masterpieces of classic and modern art.
THE STEWART CITY LIBRARY.
The Congregational church passed a resolution, March 31, 1882, to invite general cooperation in creating a town library. The town had other uses for its few dollars, uses, indeed, that seemed more imperative than the call for a library.
The public-school library was made up of reference books and other vol- umes selected especially for the use of students in the public school. When the Stewart Library was well housed and cared for, most of the volumes were trans- ferred to that library from the public school, although some volumes are still
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retained in the school building for the special use of the students, i. e. as ref- erence books.
The Stewart Public Library is so-called because it is sheltered in a building given to the city by one of its philanthropic and public-spirited citizens, the Hon. Joel Stewart, and his wife, Mrs. Anna Stewart. Mr. Stewart furnished the money, made the contract for the building, superintended the work of construc- tion, and turned it over to the city a completed structure, free from all incum- brances and one of the daintiest and most convenient library buildings in this land of culture and refinement. The cost was $15,000, and the lot, reserved for a parsonage, on which the gift stands, is another valuable piece of property now belonging to the public, which was a donation from the authorities of the Con- gregational church. In all, the Stewart Library property is valued at $20,000, and the location, on Broad street, cannot be surpassed in Grinnell.
The origin of the library proper resulted from the effort of church members and their churches, especially the Methodist, Baptist and Congregational. A mass meeting in the Methodist church, August 1, 1894, decided to open a free library and a reading room, and appointed a standing committee, consisting of Mayor E. W. Clark, Professor Jesse Macy, J. C. Vigneaux, A. F. Barnes, Rev. M. Bam- ford, Mrs. T. Brande and Miss Iowa Benson. The committee made E. W. Clark president, M. Bamford vice president and J. C. Vigneaux secretary and treas- urer. Rev. E. M. Vittum was made chairman of a committee to gather books and to care for them. The Priscillas, the Book Club, the Historical Club, the Drum- monds, the Young Men's Christian Association and the Congregational church contributed books promptly and 250 volumes came from Dr. G. F. Magoun's li- brary. The enlarged library was opened to the public before the year closed. Committees from the Christian Endeavor, the Epworth League and the Young People's Union, volunteered to take charge of the reading room. In 1895 they were reminded of Adam's fall, when the treasurer left town without notice and with some one hundred dollars of library funds in his pocket !
The year 1896 opened with 1,200 volumes in the library and financial em- barrassment, and closed with the library as a protege of the city, and its future was assured. In April, 1897, the city took complete control of the library, and the mayor, Hon. H. W. Spaulding, appointed nine trustees as follows: Mrs. Ed. Kemmerer, Mrs. W. S. Roby, Rev. E. M. Vittum, Mrs. A. McIntosh, A. F. Barnes, Dr. E. W. Clark, Mrs. D. W. Norris, C. C. Keister and L. F. Parker. Mr. Vittum was president of the trustees until he left town in 1907, and Mrs. Roby was made secretary, and still holds the office.
Those residing outside of the city can draw books for a small fee. The num- ber of volumes now in the library is 9,000. Additions of books are made con- stantly from taxation and by individuals and societies. The library is highly appreciated, the tax is paid cheerfully and Mr. Stewart, although now a resident of Missouri, takes pleasure in keeping the building in repair.
LIBRARY SUPPORT.
The Stewart Public Library receives its chief maintenance from appropria- tions made by the city each year. Under the law a levy of three mills is per-
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mitted, but that amount does not now seem to be necessary, hence, the levy is made for two mills and this, with fees and fines collected by the librarian, brings the income up to about $2,500 a year, which is expended in meeting expenses and purchasing books, and current literature of various descriptions. And when the reader is apprised of the fact that in the year 1910 from this library were cir- culated among the citizens of Grinnell and of the township 28,000 volumes, an estimate can readily be made of the character and tastes of the people who make this garden spot of Christendom their abiding place.
The librarians have been: The Misses Mary Wheelock, Flora Carr, Edna Sears and Stella Wiley.
ARBOR LAKE.
Through the efforts of a company composed mainly of the Spaulding Manu- facturing Company and Paul Meyer, lakeless Grinnell now has a soft water lake which even possesses a name-Arbor Lake-a body of water which combines the merits of use and beauty. This company which has been since so reorgan- ized that the Messrs. Spaulding and Meyer own about three-fourths of the stock, bought of the Grinnell heirs and of Messrs. Frisbie, Marvin and Price, a tract of land in southwest Grinnell. By damming a creek of modest size, a consider- able body of water was formed which has since been furnished through pipes for the boilers of all the manufacturing plants of the city, for the railroad engines, Hotel Monroe and for several other establishments.
Plans were made for beautifying the vicinity, fulfilled in a liberal planting of trees by benevolent citizens. Though owned by the company, the lake and park are for the use and pleasure of the public. A pavilion built by the Outing Club furnished a center of enjoyment for a time. Boating and skating have been the sports most enjoyed, the latter for various reasons having proved the more popular.
FINANCIAL.
The first banking house in Grinnell was organized by Thomas Holyoke and Charles Spencer, in 1859-a very modest affair. The entire banking business and drug business was conducted by them for the hamlet until 1865, when they concluded that both kinds of business demanded more attention. They began a movement for the First National Bank in Grinnell, under the act of June 3, 1864, and on June 6, 1865, the organization certificate was signed by E. Rogers, an eastern capitalist, by J. B. Grinnell, C. G. Carmichael, Bliss & Cooper, L. C. Phelps, P. P. Raymond of Malcom, George I. King, John Brown, Thomas Hol- yoke, P. G. C. Merrill, D. T. Miller, Quincy A. Gilmore, E. H. Harris, L. J. Chatterton, Erastus Snow, L. C. Rouse, Newton L. Sherman, Scott & Potter and L. F. Parker. It was chartered January 15, 1866, and began business with a capital of $50,000. W. F. Coolbaugh of Chicago and Alonzo Steele of New York, then owned stock in the bank.
The presidents of the bank have been Erastus Snow, Thomas Holyoke, J. B. Grinnell, Alonzo Steele, Charles F. Craver, H. K. Edson and J. P. Lyman.
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Charles H. Spencer served as cashier until 1892, when he was killed in a rail- road accident. His son, Henry, then succeeded him until the bank was closed in 1904.
It had been believed that the bank was prosperous, and that its stock was worth 135 per cent, until the death by drowning, of the cashier, and his assist- ant compelled a careful examination of its assets. Two hundred thousand dollars in fraudulent notes were discovered. The stockholders lost every dollar and the depositors about twenty per cent.
MILLIONS IN THE BANKS.
The inquisitive always has some means of satisfying his curiosity. The writer was desirous of learning the amount of money deposited in the banks of Poweshiek county, but there being no clearing house from which figures might have been obtained, the next resort was one of the intelligent bankers of Grin- nell, who very willingly made a rough estimate and found that in the fifteen banks of the county there is now on deposit the splendid sum of $3,600,000.
The millions of money in the banks of the county speak well and in no un- certain terms of the community. The figures show the people are prosperous, both in the towns and farming sections.
GRINNELL SAVINGS BANK.
This financial establishment was organized in the fall of 1877, by Joel Stewart, J. B. Grinnell, A. R. Heald, C. W. Hobart, M. Snyder, S. H. Herrick, J. P. Lyman, D. G. Frisbie, E. Snow; and the first officials were: E. Snow, presi- dent ; J. P. Lyman, vice president; H. Lawrence, cashier. The capital stock was $50,000. The present officials are : G. L. Miles, president ; D. S. Morrison, vice president : S. J. Pooley, cashier ; George H. Walker, assistant cashier.
The bank is strong in the make-up of its officials and the confidence of the community. The last report showed the following: Capital stock, surplus and undivided profits, $90,000 ; deposits, $383,000 ; loans and discounts, $424,000.
C. W. H. BEYER & COMPANY, BANKERS.
The private banking house of Grinnell, with the title appearing in the cap- tion, is a resultant of the first business arrangements of C. W. H. Beyer, who, in 1877, established a real-estate loan concern here, having as a business asso- ciate A. C. Burnham, of Champaign, Illinois. The firm name was Burnham & Beyer, and continued so until 1882, when the private bank of Cooper & Beyer was founded and made a part of the loan business. This was made possible by the retirement of Mr. Burnham, his interests in the loan business being transferred to James R. Palmer, who sold his interests to the new firm. In 1883, the banking was separated from the real-estate loan business, Colonel Cooper taking charge of the former and eventually starting the Merchants' National Bank, of which he became president.
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The loan business was continued by Mr. Beyer, with Charles R. Morse, of Grinnell, and J. H. Merrill, then president of the Des Moines Citizens National Bank, as an associate, under the firm name of C. W. H. Beyer & Company. In 1896 Mr. Merrill retired, but the name of the firm was not changed.
After Mr. Morse's death, in 1905, Harold L. Beyer and Leonard Walker were admitted to the firm and in June, 1907, a general banking business was in- augurated. Mr. Walker retired in 1910 and the firm is now made up with C. W. H. Beyer and his son, Harold L., as the sole members. The bank is capital- ized at $50,000.
MERCHANTS NATIONAL BANK.
The Merchants National Bank was organized April 28, 1883, by J. H. Mer- rill, S. F. Cooper, C. R. Morse, D. Forbes, D. MacDonald, L. Kimball, C. W. H. Beyer and H. D. Works, all of whom constituted the first board of directors. The first officials were: S. F. Cooper, president ; C. R. Morse, vice president ; G. H. Hamlin, cashier.
The capital stock was placed at $100,000 and has remained at that figure. The present officials are : S. A. Cravath, president ; J. F. Wilson, vice president ; G. H. Hamlin, cashier. Directors: N. W. Cessna, W. O. Willard, George H. Hamlin, J. C. Goodrich, J. C. Manly, S. A. Cravath, W. J. Rapson, J. F. Wil- son, L. F. Parker, H. W. Somers, B. J. Ricker. Capital stock and undivided surplus, $150,000. Deposits, $660,000.
CITIZENS NATIONAL BANK.
The Citizens National Bank was organized in December, 1904, by H. F. Lanphere, H. W. Spaulding, G. H. McMurray, W. F. Vogt, John Goodfellow, D. W. Norris, Alfred Burroughs, John Flook, J. H. McMurray and George Frazer. The first officials were: H. W. Spaulding, president; W. F. Vogt, vice president ; H. F. Lanphere, cashier ; H. M. Harris, assistant cashier.
The officials are the same today. Capital stock, $50,000. Surplus and un- divided profits, $10,000. Deposits, $190,000.
PAVING, SEWERS AND SIDEWALKS.
Grinnell has beautifully paved streets and many of them. As a matter of fact no city of its size in the state of Iowa is its superior in this improvement.
In the year 1909 eight blocks of bitulithic paving, in the business section, was completed and in 1910 much more work of this kind was done, making in all five and one-half miles of paving, including one-quarter mile of brick paving. Of permanent cement walks there are eighteen and one-third miles, and four blocks of alleys are also paved. The sewer system covers an area of thirteen and one-half miles; these are the sanitary sewers. In addition there are three and one-half miles of storm sewers.
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THE COLONIAL THEATRE.
This substantial and very handsome structure, erected for amusement pur- poses, was put up in 1902 by a stock company composed of nearly all the public- spirited citizens of Grinnell, at a cost of $30,000. H. W. Spaulding and sons were the prime movers in the enterprise. The building stands on the corner of Main street and Fifth avenue. Its frontage on Main street is 56 feet, and on Fifth avenue, 105 feet. Both front and sides are of gray pressed brick. The house is heated with steam and lighted with electricity. There are six dress- ing rooms, modern stage, with handsome drop curtains and other paraphernalia. The seating capacity is 900. H. F. Lanphere was manager until the fall of 1911, when he was succeeded by Harry I. Yeager.
SUPERIOR COURT.
Under an act of the legislature, passed in 1876, and at certain times there- after amended, creating superior courts in cities containing 5,000 inhabitants or over, to take the place of police courts, the superior court of Grinnell was es- tablished in the year 1900. Jacob P. Lyman, about fifty years a citizen of the town, was elected by the citizens of Grinnell as judge of this court.
The jurisdiction of the superior court is co-equal to that of the district court, save and except, in criminal cases, and is a court of record. The city clerk is ex-officio clerk of the court, and the marshal acts as bailiff thereof. Since it came into being it has done quite a good deal of business.
INDUSTRIAL GRINNELL.
Grinnell does not pose as a manufacturing center, yet it has within its limits manufacturing concerns of no mean importance. First and foremost is the
SPAULDING MANUFACTURING COMPANY.
The senior member of this firm, H. W. Spaulding, came to Grinnell from Vermont in April. 1876, and commenced business in a very small way in a black- smith shop in which a few vehicles were built. This shop was a small shop lo- cated on Main street north of the present postoffice. The business was contin- ued in this location year by year, and the output gradually increased until in 1882 about 350 vehicles per year were made.
At the time of the cyclone, June 17, 1882, Mr. Spaulding sustained a heavy financial loss and was himself severely injured.
On January 1, 1883, he went into partnership with A. P. Phillips & Son, and the business was conducted under the name of Spaulding, Phillips & Com- pany, and continued until January 1, 1887, when Phillips and Son withdrew and Michael Snyder took their interest for one year, the name of the firm be- ing Spaulding & Snyder. On January 1, 1888, Mr. Snyder withdrew, having sold his interest to Craver, Steele & Austin, and the business was carried on in the
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name of Spaulding & Company. Craver, Steele & Austin, manufacturers of headers and harvesting machines, wishing to push the sale of their headers, re- moved from Grinnell to Harvey, Ill., and Mr. Spaulding continued the business alone during the year 1889. In 1890 M. Snyder and Wm. Miles each bought an interest in the company, and the name was changed to Spaulding Manufacturing Company, and at that time the company gave up its location on Main street and moved to its present site which had formerly been used by Craver, Steele & Austin as their header works. At the end of one year, Mr. Spaulding bought Mr. Snyder's interest, he then owning three-fourths of the business and Mr. Wm. Miles one-fourth. From 1890 to 1900 the business continued under the same management, and continued to grow without interruption except that on March 8. 1893. the company had a disastrous fire which caused a loss of from fifty-five to sixty thousand dollars, less than one-third of which was covered by insurance.
Since January 1, 1900, the firm has been composed of Henry W. Spaulding and his two sons, Frederick E. and Ernest H. Spaulding. The factory buildings have been greatly enlarged and the business of the company has steadily grown until its output at the present time is about 10,000 vehicles per year. From 150 to 200 men are employed in the factory and an equal number in the selling and collecting forces. The company is now the largest manufacturing institution in the county and in this section of the state. The company sells all of its product direct to the consumer, and its business covers practically all of the states west of the Mississippi river.
Within the past few years the company has enlarged its scope by going into the manufacture and sale of automobiles, which bids fair in time to equal, if not surpass, the business of the company in other vehicles.
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