USA > Iowa > Wapello County > History of Wapello County, Iowa, Volume I > Part 17
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These railroad enterprises operating in Ottumwa give employment to probably one thousand of its citizens, which means a yearly payroll in the neighborhood of one million dollars. The Burlington dispenses yearly to its employes here the approximate sum of $475,000; the Milwaukee. $425,- 000; the Rock Island, $40,000; the Wabash, $20,000. In 1888 the Burlington and Rock Island roads constructed a splendid union depot, at the foot of
UNION DEPOT. OTTUMWA
MESTCHRITILOTTUMWA RAILWAY & LIO
CORTARY
OTTUMWA RAILWAY AND LIGHT COMPANY'S BUILDING, OTTUMWA
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Washington Street. The Milwaukee and Wabash roads have a depot which they jointly use at the foot of Jefferson Street.
STREET RAILWAY
Gen. John M. Hedrick, a leading, energetic and public-spirited citizen of former days, (who was instrumental in securing the Milwaukee road for Ottumwa) founded the city street car system in Ottumwa in 1881. The line was two miles in length, extending from McPherson and Second, east on Second to Market, south on Market to Main, and east on Main to Cherry Street. Two cars drawn by mulcs made up the first rolling stock of the enterprise. The receipts averaged about ten dollars a day. L. E. Gray owned a sanitarium near the east limits of the city. In 1885 he built a horse-car line to connect with the Hedrick line at Cherry Street, about a mile in length. It ran east on Main Street to a point a little beyond the terminus of the present East End line. But one car was operated. Two years later R. T. Shea built a horse-car line connecting South Ottumwa with the north side. This improvement extended from the cemetery on North Court Street to a point near the terminus of the present Ward Street track and was about three miles in length. It was operated on practically the same streets as the Ward Street and Court Hill lines. The Shea Rail- way had cars which were in the way of an innovation in that they were heated by hard coal stoves during the winter months. The Shea Company eventually abandoned their Court Hill line, the franchise of which was secured by the Ottumwa Railway Electric & Steam Company, which was organized, franchised and began operations in 1889. The same corporation secured the franchise and property of the Hedrick and Gray street railway companies and in 1891 purchased the balance of the Shea line, which extended across the river.
In 1884 a company of local capitalists organized the Ottumwa Elec- tric Light Company, operated in a small way for a time, and then passed into the hands of the Ottumwa Railway Electric & Steam Company, which was reorganized in 1892 as the Ottumwa Electric Railway, with a capital of $300,000 stock and $200,000 in bonds. This company went into the hands of a receiver in 1896. It was bid in by the bondholders in 1898 at receiver's sale and reorganized under the name of Ottumwa Electric & Steam Company. The company was again reorganized October 1, 1901, as the Ottumwa Traction & Light Company, which extended its lines the following summer on to Jefferson Street, Sheridan Avenue, and made other desired improvements. A few years thereafter the property east of the power house on Jefferson Street was purchased, the site cleared, and the erection of a new power house began, but while this improvement was under way negotiations were entered into with H. M. Byllesby & Company, of Chicago, for the sale of the plant, which finally took place November
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7, 1905, when a reorganization was formed and the name of the cor- poration became the Ottumwa Railway & Light Company. Under the new management the property was rebuilt and put in first class condition. A new power house and car barns were constructed, old tracks relaid with new, and an extension on Main Street to the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad crossing laid. Five new summer cars and six Brill semi-con- vertible cars were purchased. The power house was equipped with new machinery and the company fitted out offices and waiting rooms in the large brick building on the corner of Second and Market streets. Today the service and equipment of the street railways in Ottumwa have been brought to a high standard and the utility ranks among the foremost in the state. The acting manager is Charles E. Fahrney, who has been con- nected with the Ottumwa Railway & Light Company through every admin- istration from the time it was founded by W. R. Daum.
CHAPTER XVI
RELIGIOUS
The first church organized in Wapello County was the Congregational, under the direction of Rev. B. A. Spaulding, a member of the famous "Iowa Band" of missionaries, sent out into the West from Andover College in the '40s. Rev. Spaulding came to Agency in the fall of 1843, where he found "frail dwellings, beaten trails and newly made graves of the Indians" remaining. In writing of the Indians of this period, he said: "They were often seen passing and repassing, carrying away corn which had been raised in their fields, and sometimes lingering about their old hunting grounds as if unwilling to leave the land which had so long been their home."
It is a mooted question, however, as to who preached the first sermon in Wapello County. Even Judge H. B. Hendershott was in doubt when re- ferring to the subject. Upon one occasion he said: "It may be a matter of interest to know who preached the first sermon in the county. I have sought in vain to ascertain this fact with certainty. The honor lies between J. H. D. Street, Joseph H. Flint, Silas Garrison, T. M. Kirkpatrick, Milton Jamison, B. A. Spaulding and Joel Harrington. I think, however, that the palm must be borne off by T. M. Kirkpatrick, of the Methodist Episcopal Church, who, as I am informed by Seth Ogg, preached on Keokuk Prairie, on the south side of the river just below Ottumwa, in an Indian wigwam made of bark, early in 1843. Just at what time, Mr. Ogg could not inform me. B. A. Spaulding of the Congregational Church was a good citizen, kind neighbor, honest man, able preacher and most exemplary Christian, and preached in 1843 in Agency City and Ottumwa, but at what time I have not ascertained. He, however, preached in a log cabin where the Union Block now stands, and Kirkpatrick preached in an Indian wigwam made of bark. I think the presumption is in favor of the Rev. Mr. Kirkpatrick of the wig- wam." Others have agreed with Judge Hendershott in giving precedence to Mr. Kirkpatrick, and so we will let it go at that.
THE CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
The Congregational Church was the first religious body organized in Ottumwa. On February 15, 1846, Rev. Benjamin A. Spaulding. who had organized a church with six members at Agency in 1844, brought together
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here seven persons and formed a Congregational society, the initial members of which were Bela White, Samuel S. Norris, Anna M. Norris, Julia M. Norris, Ann N. Norris, John Snodgrass and Mrs. D. P. Smith. With this little band of worshippers Rev. Spaulding held services in the old frame courthouse that stood on the corner of Third and Market streets until 1851, when a church edifice was built and completed on Court Street near Second, at a cost of a little over $1,000. This was a frame affair, with an ordinary square tower at the rear, in which was placed a bell. This belfry was afterwards removed and replaced by a neat spire, which, however, was placed on the front part of the building. The bell long remained the only one in town. This church edifice was used for various public purposes until the brick courthouse was built. In it religious services were held, and public meetings, and school was taught there one year, and the spring term of court in 1854 was held within its sacred walls.
The Congregational Church became an incorporated body September 26, 1853. In the fall of 1874 the church property was sold, and lot 82 on East Fourth Street, the gift of Seth Richards, was accepted. On this site a splendid brick structure was erected at a cost of $21,000, and in 1881 all indebtedness of the religious body vanished.
For twenty-two years Rev. B. A. Spaulding was pastor of this church. He was a man of scholarly attainments, an able preacher and a splendid citizen. Resigning the pastorate in 1863, he preached a year at Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and then returned to Ottumwa, when he was elected county superintendent of schools, holding the position at the time of his death, which occurred March 31, 1867. His funeral sermon was preached by Rev. William Salter, of Burlington, a warm personal friend and one of the eleven members of the "Iowa Band."
The names of the pastors of this church follow: Rev. B. A. Spaulding, February, 1846, to June, 1863; Simeon Brown, November, 1864, to August, 1867; Harmon Bross, May, 1867, to September, 1873: J. W. Healy, Octo- ber, 1876, to October, 1878; R. M. Thompson, November, 1878, to Febru- ary, 1880; A. W. Archibald, May, 1880, to June, 1887; A. L. Smalley, October. 1887, to February, 1890; Loren F. Berry, June, 1890, to Sep- tember, 1898; A. W. Mckenzie, November, 1898, to 1899; P. Adelstein Johnson, March, 1900, to September, 1907; Robert J. Locke, November, 1907, to September, 1911; Malcolm Dana, 1911 to the present time.
In February, 1886, a pipe organ was placed in the audience room, and was first used on the occasion of the fortieth anniversary of the organization. February 14, 1896, the semi-centennial of the church was celebrated. Rev. William Salter, D. D., of Burlington, gave the principal address of the evening, and Rev. J. M. McElroy, of Ottumwa, reviewed the history of the churches of this city. Letters were read from former pastors and from absent members, while appropriate addresses were made by representative laymen. A legacy of $3,000 having been left the church in 1891 by the
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late W. T. Major, the money was expended in improving the church edifice. This included the installation of electric lights, refrescoing of the auditorium and laying a hardwood floor.
PLYMOUTH CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
An outgrowth of the First Congregational Church is the Plymouth Church, which was organized in January, 1883, with eighteen members. With the assistance of the parent church, a building was erected at the corner of Vine and Davis streets, at a cost of approximately $20,000, in- cluding the lot. The building was dedicated on Easter Sunday, April 13, 1884. Prior to the occupancy of this building, however, and from the time of its organization, the members of Plymouth Church held services in a building rented by the Ottumwa School Board of J. A. Ruffing. From 1884 until 1903 the church building was occupied by this organization. In May of the year last mentioned the Methodist Protestant Church property at the corner of Ransom Street and Finley Avenue was purchased, and the two religious bodies merging into the Plymouth Congregational Church, the Methodist Church Building has been the meeting place since that time.
Rev. L. S. Hand was the first pastor, coming to the church November I, 1883, and remaining until August 1, 1888. His successors have been Revs. J. G. Aikman, November 18, 1888, to March 6, 1889; W. I. Coburn, March 17, 1889, to June 1, 1890; W. M. Van Vlett, November 29, 1890, to November 1, 1892; Allen Clark, June 1. 1893, to August 15, 1894; J. R. Beard, January 1, 1895, to June 1, 1901 ; D. D. Davies, September 29, 1901, to December 20, 1903; Isaac Cookman, April 3, 1904, to May 1, 1907; F. A. Zickefoose, October I, 1907, to June 3, 1910: W. D. Spiker, August 1. 1910, to the present time.
SWEDISH MISSION CHURCH
The Swedish Mission Congregation or Swedish Congregational Church, held its first service in Ottumwa in the spring of 1869, when an organ- ization was formed through the instrumentality of August Johnson, living some two miles outside of the city. The first members of this congregation consisted of about a half dozen Swedish families, who held religious services as often as a preacher was available. Among the earliest of the clergymen who administered to the spiritual needs of the church may be mentioned Revs. C. J. Wiburg, C. A. Falk, Holmquist, C. Bergren, A. L. Anderson and Prof. K. Erickson.
The Swedish Mission Church was regularly organized about 1880 with eight members, as follows: August Johnson, Andrew Anderson and wife, Aaron Anderson, Charles Hallberg, Andrew Ackerson and Margaret Lind- val. The church was incorporated June 28, 1886, and at the same time a
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site for a church building was purchased on East Main Street, on which a neat and substantial house of worship was erected and used for the purposes intended until 1905, when the congregation took possession of a new building, which was erected at the corner of Jefferson and Second, in the year last mentioned, at a cost of $11,500.
The following ministers have filled the pulpit of this church since its organization: Revs. K. F. Larson, J. B. Edstrom, A. L. Anderson, M. J. Bohlin, E. Pilquist, J. O. Nistrom, K. Festen, E. A. Waldean, C. F. Olson, J. N. Tignell, O. F. Dalberg, H. E. Ek, and Enock H. Skooglund.
ST. MARY'S CATHOLIC CHURCH
The mother church of the different Catholic societies of Wapello County is St. Mary's ; which was founded in Ottumwa in 1849. It was in this year that missionary work was begun by Rev. Father Villars, of Keokuk. Where the priest's residence now stands the corner-stone of the first church build- ing was laid in 1849, but the first resident priest of which there is any record was Rev. Alexander Hattenberger, who came to Ottumwa in 1851 and officiated for a time. Rev. John Kreckel came in the winter of 1853, and for forty-five years, almost half a century, ministered faithfully and well to this parish, his rule and authority only terminating with his death, which occurred in 1899. As a matter of course Father Kreckel had assistants from time to time, among whom were Fathers J. B. Wilhelm, 1887-88; Robert Nolan, 1889-90; Father Bernard Flood, who came as a curate of St. Mary's. He later was made the first assistant of the Sacred Heart Parish, and built the church and residence of the East End Parish. Herman Kempker arrived in 1891, and was instrumental in organizing the boys of the parish into a literary society. He was followed in 1893 by N. Gleason, whose successor was Joseph McCargill, in 1894; M. Nolan, in 1896; Joseph Sueppel, 1899; next came J. F. Kempker. He was succeeded by H. B. Kelly, who died in the pastorate. Dean F. W. Hoppmann took charge in 1902. He came to St. Mary's as irremovable rector of the parish and head of the Ottumwa deanery.
CATHOLIC SCHOOLS
In 1862 Father Kreckel induced the Sisters of Visitation, then at Keokuk, to establish an Academy of Visitation at Ottumwa, the object being to establish orphan asylums, hospitals, schools, and to minister to the sick. A parochial school was opened for boys in Ottumwa, with an attend- ance of about one hundred. This was conducted in the pastor's residence and called St. Joseph's. The Visitation Sisters later departed, and the Sisters of St. Mary, who were then here, took up school work in the convent on Fourth Street.
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ST. JOSEPH'S ACADEMY, OTTUMWA
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They were later installed in a school building on Fourth Street, which cost about $37,000, having accommodation for about one hundred pupils. In August, 1877, Father Kreckel induced the Sisters of Humility of Mary at St. Joseph, Missouri, to locate at Ottumwa. Their success here is best illustrated by the magnificent academy and convent completed early in 1914, at a cost of over two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
ACADEMY AND CONVENT
The new academy and convent erected by the Sisters of Humility of Mary is built on a large tract of 125 acres of land on the outskirts of the beautiful new residence portion of the city, known as Grand View and Vogel Additions. The location is a strikingly beautiful one, and from every viewpoint the new school is an acquisition for Ottumwa that cannot be over-estimated. As a young ladies' academy it is especially happy in its location and environment. As a convent and place of retreat it is all that can be desired. From the top of the stately building, the beautiful sur- rounding country can be viewed without any obstructions. The structure is a massive pile of masonry and built in a style quite unlike anything in this section. Nothing has been spared to make it measure up to the purposes for which it was built. The play grounds, wild woodland stretches and artificial lake, expansive lawns, vineyards, orchards and fields of growing grain are all a part of the extensive scheme of this educational institution. To the courage and tireless energy shown by the Reverend Mother Superior and her sisters must be given credit for one of the largest and most gener- ously attended academies for young ladies and girls in the state. It means much to the business and social interests of Ottumwa.
The opening of the school year of 1912-13 witnessed the occupancy of this handsome academy and seminary for young ladies. The dormitories accommodate 200 with a capacity for many times that number of students.
Sacred Heart School is north of the church building, on the corner of Fifth and Court streets and is taught by the sisters. The present enrollment is 175.
ST. PATRICK'S CATHOLIC CHURCH
When South Ottumwa was known and designated as Pickwick and Richmond, or in 1880, St. Patrick's Church building was erected on the corner of Church and Ward, the lot being purchased of Dr. W. B. Smith of Ann Arbor, Michigan, who was owner of a large tract of land on which the church now stands. At the time the lot was bought it was surrounded by a stake-and-rider rail fence and there were no buildings near it for a considerable distance. The owner of the land generously donated two other lots and in the year mentioned the cornerstone of a structure was laid.
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Ten years after the building was occupied, and during the absence of the pastor, Rev. Francis Ward, who was visiting his old home in Ireland, it was remodeled and a bell was placed in a new spire, which took the place of the former tower.
The first pastor was Rev. Francis Ward. Upon the transfer of Father Ward to a parish in Iowa City, Rev. Father John O'Farrell was sent here and after a comparatively short pastorate died in Ottumwa. He was suc- ceeded by Father John White, and later by Father James Dunnion, who in turn was succeeded by Rev. Father J. W. Bulger, who has been at this charge for the past eight years.
SACRED HEART
Rev. Bernard Flood was dispositioned by Bishop Cosgrove, of Daven- port, to form a new parish in the summer of 1897. The first services of the new congregation were held for about a year in a store room on the corner of College and Main streets, and in the summer of 1898 a house of wor- ship was erected, and dedicated in the month of October. The priest's house was built in 1899 and for one year was the home of Father Flood, who died in August, 1901. His successor was Rev. James Foley, who took charge on October 10, 1901. The church property is situated on East Second, between Ash and Janney streets, and its estimated value is $60,000.
FIRST METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH
The history of Methodism in Ottumwa dates from 1843, when, on the second Sunday in June, Rev. Milton Jamison crossed the Des Moines River in an Indian canoe and preached in Chief Wapello's tepee, the first sermon heard in the "New Purchase." Reverend Jamison located in Ottumwa and built the first frame house there.
The Des Moines Mission was organized as a pioneer field, covering the scattered settlements in Wapello and Mahaska counties, and in the autumn of 1843 Rev. T. M. Kirkpatrick was appointed pastor. He held his first services in a small tavern known as the Ottumwa House, of which David Hall was the boniface, after which meetings were held in the home of Peter Barnett and also in the old frame courthouse which stood on the corner of Third and Market streets.
The church was organized in 1845 by Reverend Kirkpatrick. Heman P. Graves was the first elder. The members then identified with the church were Heman P. Graves and wife, Mrs. Lydia Brandenberg, Washington Williams and wife, Martha Williams, afterwards Mrs. C. C. Warden, Paul C. Jeffries and wife, Mrs. Sarah Lewis, H. B. Hendershott and wife, Peter Barnett and wife, Mrs. Joseph Hayne, Mrs. Sarah Burge, John C. Evans and wife and Sarah Pumroy.
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The Iowa conference had been organized in 1844. The territory above Ottumwa was placed in the Eddyville circuit, while that below Ottumwa, including the county seat, was placed in the Des Moines Mission. Reverend Jamison was presiding elder and B. H. Russell, pastor. Following Reverend Russell came Revs. A. G. Pierce, J. B. Hardy, Joel Harrington, Labin Case and L. T. Rowley.
The Ottumwa district was formed in 1844, with Joseph Brooks as pre- siding elder. He was a man of remarkable ability and afterward became editor of the Central Christian Advocate, published at St. Louis. While in this position he nailed the flag to a window of his office and defied that stronghold of rebeldom. After the Civil war he figured prominently in the reconstruction history of Arkansas.
The Ottumwa district was divided in 1855 into the Albia and Oskaloosa districts, Ottumwa being placed in the latter, and before the end of the year became a station. In 1856 Ottumwa was changed from the Oskaloosa to the Albia district and Rev. A. C. McDonald was appointed pastor. His successors in the pulpit here have been the following: Revs. Anthony Robinson, 1857; F. W. Evans, 1858; J. C. Broderick, 1859; David Worth- ington, 1860; J. A. Spaulding, 1861; J. H. Clark, 1862; W. F. Cowles, 1863-5; E. H. Warring, 1866-8; W. C. Shippens, 1869; T. E. Corkhill, 1870-1; E. H. Winan, 1872; J. T. Simmons, 1873-5; J. W. McDonald, 1876-8; C. B. Clark, 1879-81; W. H. Pillsbury, 1882-4; J. B. Blakney, 1885-6; Dennis Murphy, 1887-9; W. G. Wilson, 1890-4; Doctor Brush, 1895-9; A. E. Craig, 1900-04; H. W. Hargett, 1905-07; Dr. T. W. Jeffrey, 1908, and the present incumbent, Rev. J. H. Cudlipp.
As early as 1851 a lot had been purchased for $85, upon which the con- gregation desired to build, but their plans were not completed until 1857. In 1852 Joseph Caldwell was sent to Red Rock to purchase walnut logs out of which to saw lumber for a building, and a Mr. Vassar and sons were secured to raft the logs to Ottumwa. They got them safely to the foot of Court Street but on account of the low water their progress was stopped. Sometime afterward the river began to rise on a Sunday morning and Harrison Hammond, class leader, formed a company to get the logs over Appanoose rapids to Adams & Baldwin's mill. Among others who worked on this Sunday morning was R. H. Warden, editor of the Courier and postmaster. The raft was soon broken, as well as the Sabbath, and the men were unceremoniously plunged into the water. However, the logs were recovered and sold and from the proceeds stone was secured which entered into the construction of the church. In 1865 the building was enlarged and remodeled under the pastorate of Rev. F. W. Cowles, and the building was rededicated by Thomas Eddy, then celebrated for his pulpit oratory.
The recommendation for a new church building was made at the fourth quarterly conference held July 5, 1880, and a committee was appointed,
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consisting of J. T. Hackworth, George Haw, Sr., D. H. Emery. This body was later enlarged by the addition of W. B. Bonnifield and Charles Law- rence. The new edifice was built and dedicated by Bishop John F. Hurst, in June, 1883. The large addition containing the Sunday school rooms was put up during the pastorate of A. E. Craig, and with other improve- ments cost $18,000. The church has a comfortable parsonage and the membership is about one thousand.
MAIN STREET METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH
This society was organized in the latter part of 1868 by Rev. E. L. Briggs, in Turner Hall, with seventy members, many of whom had come from the First Church. The name assumed was the Second Methodist Episcopal Church and remained so until August 9, 1870, when the society was incorporated under the name of the Main Street Methodist Episcopal Church. The charter members were: Samuel Moore, J. A. Hammond, Annie E. Hammond, J. G. Baker, Mary Hammond, Annie E. Baker, L. C. Clark, Laura G. Clark, George W. Bowen, Angie S. Bowen, W. H. Ham- mond, Eliza Hammond, W. J. Ennis, Mary J. Ennis, Thomas Sampson, Sarah Sampson, J. W. Holden, M. E. Holden, C. H. Henniman, Sarah Holly, L. M. Shreve, Mrs. Moffitt, William Baker, Amanda Baker, S. V. Sampson, S. L. Sampson, W. G. Sampson, H. H. Sampson, W. D. Noble, N. B. Noble, James Hodge, William Kidd, Mary Baker, M. B. Ogden, Helen Daggett, Nancy Beach, J. J. Ury, Lydia Ury, Mrs. Kidd, W. Mack- lin, W. O. Irons, M. A. Irons, J. H. Goldsbury, M. M. Goldsbury, M. McFar- lin, Lydia A. Brandenburg, Emily Clifton, J. B. Baker, M. J. Parker, Martha E. Allen, Frank Ward, L. E. Ward, A. Burns, E. A. Burns, Emma Purnell, W. C. Holden, Lou S. Holden, C. E. Purnell, J. G. Mast, Fannie Mast, John Fernly, Hannah Fernly, Ella Hardy, Jennie Toon, Joseph Lock- wood, Elizabeth Lockwood, Sadie Myers, Stephen Green, Mrs. Green, Rebecca Rudd.
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