USA > Iowa > Calhoun County > Past and present of Calhoun County, Iowa, a record of settlement, organization, progress, and achievement, Volume I > Part 30
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The theory of some writers that prairie fires were started by Indians for the purpose of driving out the game might apply to the fires farther baek in the past, but such a theory is hardly tenable in connection with those in Calhoun County, for the reason that they occurred after the red men had left the country. It is far more probable that the fires of later days were eaused by carelessness. Some pioneer might have tried the experiment of burning off the grass, in order that the ground might be the more easily plowed, and the fire got beyond his control. The dropping of a burning match, the emptying of a tobaeco pipe, or the casting away of the stump of a eigar by some traveler, might start a fire that would destroy thousands of dollars' worth of property.
As the raw prairies were brought under cultivation prairie fires became less frequent, but as late as 1884 the entire population of Rockwell City was called out to combat a fire that started on the prairie north of the town, and it was only by the concerted action of the citizens that the village was saved from destruction.
HISTORIC STORMS
Northwestern Iowa is situated in what might be appropriately termed the "storm belt." Since the first settlements were made in this part of the state a number of violent storms have swept over the country, but, as elaimed by some writers on the subject, the plant- ing of artificial groves, the eultivation of the soil and the exereise of
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other influences have a tendency to modify the climate and destructive storms occur less frequently than in former years. It is not the purpose to attempt to give an account of every storm that has passed over Calhoun County, or some portion of it, but only such as wrought great damage and attracted wide attention. Probably the first storm to arouse general comment after the settlement of Calhoun County was the
BLIZZARD OF 1869
This storm is remembered by old settlers for the reason that it brought to an unhappy end the life of one of Calhoun County's pioneers. Michael O'Donoghue was a native of the State of New York, a college bred man and a civil engineer by profession. In 1863 he went to Rockford, Ill., where he taught in the high school for some time, and in 1866 eame to Calhoun County. He filed upon a homestead about a mile north of South Twin Lake, but at the time of the storm was teaching school at Lake City.
On Friday afternoon, February 26, 1869, he dismissed his pupils a little earlier than usual and started to walk across the prairies to his home to make some preparations for a meeting of the settlers in that part of the county the following Monday. Although the distance was twenty miles, Mr. O'Donoghue was in the prime of vigorous manhood and thought nothing of the undertaking. About dusk he passed through the Gregg Settlement, in what is now Lake Creek Township, having made good time on the first eight miles of his journey. It was beginning to snow and as the remaining twelve miles lay aeross unbroken prairie, where there was not a single human habitation, Tillman Gregg pressed him to remain over night. But Mr. O'Donoghue was anxious to reach home, for the reasons above stated, and declined the urgent hospitality of Mr. Gregg. In the growing dusk he set out across the traekless prairie for his dis- tant homestead, and that was the last seen of him alive.
The blizzard continued with unremitting violence for three days. After it abated and communication among the settlements was re- established, the startling tidings were passed from lip to lip that O'Donoghne was lost in the storm. Searching parties were organ- ized, including every able-bodied settler within reach, and soon these parties were tramping over the prairie in the hope that the unfortu- nate man had contrived to reach some sort of a shelter and that he would be found alive. But so thoroughly had the blizzard obliterated every trace of his trail that all efforts were without avail and the
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search was finally given up. On March 20, 1869, the body was found by Rinaldo Gray, a Ininter, within a mile of Mr. O'Dono- ghue's homestead. He had covered nineteen miles of his journey, buffeted by the storm, only to perish when he was almost within sight of his home. His remains were buried in the old Cottonwood Cemetery on the banks of the Coon River, not far from Lake City, and a large eoneourse of people attended the funeral. For years afterward snow storms were compared with the great blizzard of 1869.
TORNADO OF 1878
On Sunday, April 21, 1878, a whirlwind of terrifie foree passed over Williams Township, destroying the residence of a man named Duhin, whose ribs were broken and his wife and children sustained injuries. The storm then passed west of Pomeroy, erossed the rail- road, demolished the Tenara dwelling, where it killed Charles Pearce and every member of the family was more or less hurt. Some of J. H. Lowrey's outbuildings were wrecked; the house of a Swede named Mareen was demolished; the dwelling of George Wallace was carried about fifty feet and set on end. Mr. Wallaee was in Ohio at the time, but his wife and two children, who were in the house at the time, were badly hurt. Just arross the road from the Wallaee house was the home of Sanmel Gill, which was literally blown to pieces, and several persons were injured more or less severely, Mrs. Gill afterward dying from the effects of her wounds.
A hand ear was sent to Manson for assistance and Doctors Hogg and Young returned to the scene of the disaster. Doetor Carroll. of Pomeroy, also hurried to the relief of the injured and the next morning Doctors Gray and Nicholson eame from Fort Dodge. The same storm did a great deal of damage farther west, in the vicinity of Sioux City, Storm Lake and Wall Lake.
On October 10, 1878, a wind traveling at the rate of sixty miles an hour struck Rockwell City. The Pearson house and the barn, in which was a horse, were carried a distance of about two hundred feet and damaged to the extent of some four hundred dollars. This was the only damage reported.
SEVERE WINTERS
The early autumn of 1880 was about as usual, but on Thursday, October 14th, a fine drizzling rain commenced and continued through-
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out the night. The next morning it turned to snow and a raging blizzard set in and continued until Sunday. Intense cold prevailed through the entire months of October and November and by Decem- ber Ist there was about a foot of snow on the ground. It was with difficulty that the farmers got their eorn out of the fields and the prin- cipal occupation of the people was "sitting by the fire." Heavy snows fell at intervals during the winter, railroad traffie was often impeded. and as late as May 2, 1881, an Illinois Central train got stnek in a drift.
The winter of 1885-86 was one of great severity. At that time the narrow gauge railroad (now the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul) was the only railroad leading into Rockwell City and for six weeks no trains were run, owing to the heavy snows. The people of Rock- well City were threatened with a coal famine and some of them resorted to the eustom of bygone days, driving with a team to the coal banks near Fort Dodge for fuel. This primitive and old-fashioned method was not to the liking of the citizens of the town and an appeal was made to the governor to use his influenee to reopen traffic. The railroad company elaimed that everything possible had been done to keep the road open, but the warning of the governor had the desired effect and Roekwell City was again placed in communication with the outside world.
THE POMEROY TORNADO
But all the storms that ever struek Calhoun County sink into insignificance when compared with the great tornado of July 6, 1893, which is generally referred to as the "Pomeroy tornado," because it wrought the greatest damage in that town and the immediate vieinity.
This awful storm was formed by the junetion of two clouds and two eurrents of air, which met in Rock Township, Cherokee County, about 5 P. M. on Thursday, July 6, 1893. Twenty minutes later it was ravaging the country south of Alta and at 5.30 it struck Storm Lake. From there it followed closely the line of the Illinois Central Railroad to a point almost south of Fonda, where it first entered Calhoun County, and again followed the railroad to Pomeroy. The buildings on the Shirley, Becker, Ferguson, Moody & Davy and Charles Perkins farms were wrecked and about half past six o'eloek the storm struck Pomeroy.
Jacob Foster, then postmaster at Pomeroy, had just entered the office after supper, when the building collapsed under the foree of the wind. Luckily for Mr. Foster the debris piled up around him in Vol. 1-20
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such a way that his life was spared and he escaped serious injury in a manner that was almost miraculous. The district bounded by Second, Geneva, Harrison and Seneca streets was swept elean; the Presbyterian and Methodist Episcopal parsonages and the German Lutheran Church were all wrecked; few buildings in the town were left untouched, and to add to the discomfort of the homeless people the wind was followed by an extremely heavy fall of rain. A report made by the United States Weather Bureau says:
"Near the center of the track in Pomeroy a number of buildings evidently exploded outward from the foree of the expanding air within, the roofs being carried away and the sides and ends of the structures were left lying as they fell, toward the four points of the compass."
Immediately after the storm had passed, Edward Masterson, of the Pomeroy State Bank, started on horseback for Manson to seeure aid for the homeless and injured. When he reached Purgatory Creek he found it swollen by the heavy rainfall and the bridge washed away, except one string piece. His horse refused to enter the water and Masterson dismounted and tried to eross on the remaining timber of the bridge. He lost his balanee and fell into the water, but swam ashore and had hardly reached the bank when he heard the whistle of a train approaching from the east. Flagging the train with his coat. he found that it was a special bearing Vice President J. T. Harahan and Division Superintendent C. K. Dixon, of the Illinois Central Company, who would hardly believe Masterson's story at first, but, upon becoming convinced of the truth of the man's account, ran back to Manson and secured all the physicians in the town, a number of volunteer nurses and sueh supplies as could be hastily col- lected, with which they hastened to Pomeroy. From Pomeroy a tele- gram was sent to Fort Dodge for a special train to bring all the phy- sicians possible and such hospital supplies as the town eould furnish. The special train arrived a few hours later.
In the meantime J. W. MeKeen rode on horseback to Jolley and the first man he met there was Dr. J. R. Thompson, Jolley's only doctor, who hastened to the stricken town. Temporary hospitals were established in the few buildings left standing and all night long relief parties went among the ruins reseuing the injured and carrying them to the improvised hospitals for treatment.
The news spread rapidly and early the next morning relief dele- gations came from Rockwell City, Lake City, Lohrville, Fonda, and other near-by towns. M. D. O'Connell, of Fort Dodge, was placed
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in charge of the relief work and during the day fifty tents were received from the state. About 4 o'clock Friday afternoon Gov. Horace Boies arrived at Pomeroy. After looking over the work of devastation he expressed his regret that in his official eapaeity he was unable to do anything for the sufferers, but through the press he issued the following call for aid:
"To the people of Iowa:
"From a personal examination of the ruin wrought by the storm of last evening I find that forty-two are already dead and upwards of one hundred seriously injured in this town, which had a population of 1.000 souls. The great bulk of the residenee portion of the town is completely destroyed and hundreds of families are homeless and destitute. In at least one town west of here eight or ten are said to have been killed and many injured. The necessity for aid is impera- tive.
"The good people in the towns adjacent to Pomeroy have sup- plied immediate wants for board and elothing, but it is impossible for them to supply all that will be needed in the future. Money, however. is the great necessity of the hour. We must not only help these people to live, but we must also aid them to rebuild their destroyed homes. Permit me to recommend that in every city and town of the state immediate steps should be instituted by the mayors and municipal officers to organize relief committees and promptly proceed to collect and forward aid. This may be directed to the 'Relief Committee of Pomeroy. Iowa.' which will consist of thor- oughly responsible persons of this and other towns, so that aid will be fairly and equally divided to all who are in want.
"Citizens of Iowa! It is no exaggeration for me to say that no more deserving appeal was ever made to you for aid. Be sure that you are both prompt and liberal.
"HORACE BOIES, "Governor of Iowa."
Friday evening, twenty-four hours after the tornado, a meeting was held. at which the following relief committee was appointed : M. F. Stadtmueller, mayor of Pomeroy; J. H. Lowrey, cashier Pom- eroy State Bank: R. C. Brownell, president of the same bank; Thomas Miller, eounty supervisor: R. A. Stewart, manager of the Wiseonsin Lumber Company; C. W. Alexander, manager of the Woodford & Wheeler Lumber Company; C. A. Whittlesey, mayor
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of Manson: E. C. Stevenson, county attorney; J. B. Ballard, mer- ehant of Fonda; E. E. Maek, state senator, of Storm Lake; C. L. Granger, mayor of Fort Dodge.
Companies C and G of the Iowa National Guard were ordered to Pomeroy and remained on duty for the next two weeks, preserving order and protecting property against the depredations of petty looters. T. B. Hotehkiss, editor of the Lake City Graphie, was made general superintendent of relief work, his ready grasp of the situa- tion and executive ability recommending him for the position.
In response to Governor Boies' appeal for assistance, liberal dona- tions flowed in from all parts of the state and help also eame from other states. Besides the sum of $69,761.23 received in money, as reported by the committee, there were seven earloads of lumber, two of flour, a large quantity of clothing, both new and second-hand; queensware, bedding, groceries, provisions and many other artieles. Mrs. John Wyman, of Des Moines, published an appeal in the papers of that eity for volunteer nurses and twenty-three women responded. The superintendent of the Chieago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad furnished free transportation for them and their supplies to Pom- eroy and the women began work on the morning of Wednesday, July 12, 1893, looking after the injured. The Pullman Palace Car Com- pany sent two sleeping coaches for the transfer of the wounded to the hospital at Sioux City, and from all over the state eame expres- sions of sympathy accompanied by substantial donations.
After wrecking the Town of Pomeroy it seems as if the wrath of the storm was appeased, for a little more than a mile from the town the wind spent its force. The path of the tornado, from the point where it started in Cherokee County to where it ended, from eight hundred to one thousand eight hundred feet wide, was covered with debris of wrecked buildings, etc. The relief committee reported the following number of persons killed:
Pomeroy 49
Pocahontas County 4
Buena Vista County 6
Cherokee County 12
--
Total 71
In addition to this death roll. many persons were injured. some of whom recovered and others remained eripples for the remainder
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of their lives, while the property loss could hardly be intelligently estimated. With commendable energy the people of Pomeroy rebuilt their town, but it will be a long time before those living there on July 6. 1893. will forget their terrible experiences. An account of the tornado was published in book form by F. W. Sprague, under the title of "The Story of a Storm," from which many of the above facts are taken.
STORM OF JUNE, 1899
On Saturday, June 17, 1899, the eastern part of Calhoun County was visited by a storm of unusual proportions. After doing con- siderable damage around Barnum, Webster County, the tornado moved westward and first struek Calhoun County almost due east of Manson. There it veered southward. The homes of Isaae Clinks and Gus Johnson, in Greenfield Township, were demolished; Fred Mehring's barn was lifted from its foundation and so badly wrenched that it had to be torn down and rebuilt; west of Farnhamville the barn and outbuildings on the farm of F. C. Hartung were wrecked; Joseph Murphy's barn and C. H. Throckmorton's house near Muddy were both lifted from their foundations and the house was carried about thirty feet; the Douglass schoolhouse was badly damaged; five miles east of Rockwell City the parsonage of the German Lutheran Church was destroyed and the church edifice suffered some damage. Between Farnhamville and Lohrville some freight ears were standing on a siding. The storm broke the couplings and blew ten ears into the diteh. This storm did not last long, but it was extremely busy while it did last and not much that came in its way escaped.
A PECULIAR HAIL STORM
The western part of the county was visited by a hail storm on March 25, 1901. Near Lytton hailstones of great size fell, and it was estimated that some of them would weigh over a pound. They were of a different texture from the ordinary hailstone and burst when they fell. After they melted the ground was covered with a white powder, which resembled soda in appearance and had a strong alkaline taste. It was supposed that this powder had been gathered from some of the alkali plains of the West by the storm elond as it passed over that region. The storm did comparatively little damage.
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TWIN LAKES CYCLONE
About 4.30 P. M. on Saturday, April 11, 1903, a cyelone formed over what is known as the Gunbarrel Slough, a short distance west of South Twin Lake, and moved rapidly eastward. The house, barn and most of the outbuildings on C. H. Clark's farm on the west side of the lake, oeeupied by Preston G. Armour as a tenant, were destroyed and one horse was killed. Mrs. Armour and her five chil- dren sought shelter in a cave when they saw the storm coming and escaped injury. II. C. Maulsby, who was near the lake shore, was caught by the wind and only saved himself from being blown into the water by clinging to a small tree. Several larger trees near him were uprooted. Fortunately the storm was of short duration and it covered only a small territory. The column of cloud could be plainly seen at Roekwell City, about four or five miles distant, and W. H. Yant, a photographer of that place, succeeded in getting a good picture of a eyelone.
THE LAST LYNX HUNT
Although the lynx family was never a numerous one in Calhoun County. it was not an umsual thing in the early days for someone to kill one of these predatory animals. In the fall of 1869 farmers in the southwestern part of the county began to miss pigs, lambs, poultry, ete., and at first attributed their losses to some thief. Then rumors of a strange animal of some sort spread over the neighbor- hood. Its cries had been heard at night and it was said to have its lair somewhere in Lake Creek Grove. A hunting party was organ- ized, the grove was surrounded and the beast brought to bay, when a well directed bullet from the rifle of James B. Scott ended its career. The careass was prepared by a taxidermist and for some time stood on exhibition in the window of John Lumpkin's store at Lake City. This was the last lynx ever killed in the county.
A BANK ROBBERY
An attempt was made to rob the People's Bank at Jolley on the night of December 6, 1904. There were six of the robbers. They took tools from the railroad seetion house and put the hand-ear out on the track ready for a speedy escape if it became necessary, after which they went to Johnson's livery stable and hitched a team to a double-seated vehicle as a further measure of precaution. One of
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the robbers then took up a position behind a barricade of barrels and boxes at the corner of Steele's store, one was stationed near Wood's store, two stood guard directly in front of the bank and the other two went inside to blow open the safe.
Shortly after 2 o'clock on the morning of the 7th, H. C. Eby, a guest at the Hotel Carstedt, heard an explosion and upon looking out of the window of his room noticed a light in the bank. He aroused the landlord, a posse was quickly organized and a fight with the yegg- men followed in which several shots were fired. One of the bullets passed through a window of the hotel and lodged in a piece of furni- ture, but no one was hurt. About 3 o'clock the robbers got into the carriage they had taken from Johnson's stable and started southwest. The team was found near Lavinia the next morning by Frank DeSart.
After abandoning the carriage the robbers went to the farm of William Clark, about a mile east of Yetter, where they buried then- selves in a straw stack. Here they were scented by a dog, who began sniffing and barking around the straw staek. The actions of the dog finally drove three of the robbers to the conclusion that the stack was an unsafe place and they' slipped out and started away. They were soon overhauled, after which those in the straw were advised to come out. or fire would be applied to the stack, so they came out and sur- rendered to the posse that had been hurriedly organized. Twelve special constables from Yetter brought the culprits to Rockwell City, where they waived a preliminary examination before Justice Hunter and were committed to jail in default of bond. In January they were indieted by the grand jury and were afterward tried and sen- teneed to terms of different lengths in prison.
A MYSTERIOUS MURDER
Between the hours of 10 and 11 o'clock on the evening of Sep- tember 27, 1897, Fred Quade, a farmer of Greenfield Township, was shot and killed while sitting asleep in his chair in the dining room of his home. He had been pressing grapes that day for wine and did not come in to supper until nearly 8 o'clock. Soon after supper the other members of the family retired and left him sitting at the table alone, where he dropped off to sleep and never woke again. The weapon was a shotgun and the shot was fired through an open window.
A few days later Mrs. Quade, her daughter Mary and the eldest son, Anton, were arrested and given a preliminary hearing before
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Justiee Nicholson. They employed J. F. Lavender, an attorney of Roekwell City, to look after their interests. The evidence brought out the faets that Fred Quade was somewhat given to drink and when in his eups was inelined to be rough with the members of his family; that he had some trouble with his brother Henry over some money belonging to their mother-in-law, who lived with Henry; and that the paper used as gun wadding exactly fitted a piece found in a trunk in Quade's old house, which stood near the one in which he was killed. indieating that some member of the family was connected with the homieide.
On Saturday, October 9, 1897, Justiee Nicholson bound Mary over to the grand jury, the mother and son being released. At the next session of the grand jury the daughter was dismissed, the jury finding no evidence that would warrant the return of an indietment, and the murderer of Fred Quade has never been apprehended.
A QUAINT CHARACTER
Two or three years after the elose of the Civil war Arthur W. Boyee eame to Calhoun County and purchased a traet of land in Greenfield Township. Upon this land he built a small dwelling and made other improvements. Mr. Boyee was a native of Vermont and had attended college there before coming west. For some time after locating in Calhoun County he took an interest in local affairs and was one of the charter members of the Congregational Church of Manson. He then made a visit baek to his old home, after which his whole nature seemed changed. Instead of associating with others as he had been wont to do during his early residence in Greenfield Township, he lived the life of a reeluise, beeame careless in his dress and appearanee, though he always was honorable and upright in his business transactions.
It was known that while attending college in his native state he beeame engaged to a daughter of one of the professors, and that his principal object in coming west was to build a home for his bride. In time various stories were eireulated eoneerning his love affair. One of these stories was that when he went back to Vermont he found her the wife of another man and that his letters had been answered by his sweetheart's younger brother, "just as a joke." Another story, and quite likely one more nearly the truth, was that when he went baek and saw the surroundings in the refined home of the professor he compared them with the environment in his frontier home. He
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