USA > Iowa > Warren County > The history of Warren County, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c., a biographical directory of its citizens, war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion, general and local statistics &c > Part 53
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Mr. J. H. Norton, of Belmont township, was the first county deputy, although several granges had been organized by Mr. Orr, of Woodburn, Clark county, who was organizing deputy over a district containing three or four counties.
The total number organized in the county since the beginning of the
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movement is forty-four, and the entire membership somewhere about 1,800 or 2,000. The number of lodges now in actual operation is small, and we have not been able to find out. Mr. J. H. Nemeyer is the present county deputy.
The order made its way into politics quite extensively, and this was the impelling cause of its decline. This departure from its original intentions was unfortunate, yet it did a great work in the reduction of the cost of machinery, and exercised a great influence in squeezing out many un- necessary elements in business.
THE GREAT STORM.
On the night of the 4th of July, 1876, after the Centennial of American Independence had been celebrated by the people or Warren county, they retired to rest, little thinking that, ere many hours were passed, one of the most destructive storms which ever visited the State would pass over them.
The damage in Indianola itself was slight, consisting in the unroofing of one or two buildings, the destruction of Burh's elevator, and other damages of minor importance. We present below a full and graphic ac- count of the storm, written by Mr. Frank B. Taylor, now editor of the Advocate:
The main current traversed the county from west to east in almost a straight line, entering at Bevington, passing just north of Indianola and Sandyville, bearing north abont a mile. It assumed the character of a de- structive hurricane at its entrance into the county, and maintained it in different degrees all the way through. Another current eight miles south of the first, was much less destructive, but by itself would have been called a hurricane. The line of demolition of buildings in the first commences at a mile wide and gradually widens to four miles. Half the dwellings and barns in this strip are blown down, or unroofed and badly shattered, to say nothing of the stables, sheds, etc. Orchards and groves are terribly mangled, and the crops are much damaged. The fences are leveled for a half a mile or more on either side of this; heavy timber is more than half down. In the south strip houses are only unroofed, and other damages in proportion. Where the destruction is so general, it would be impossible to particularize, and it is attempted only in the cases where buildings are damaged.
The elevator at Bevington, the first building to mention, was blown over. East of Bevington, Patrick Brownrig's house was demolished; also Patrick Swift's house completely destroyed, and Mr. Swift's thigh dislocated and his back badly hurt. An old lady in the same house was also seriously injured.
The first death scene was at Mr. Eudaley's, seven miles west of town, and a little north. There were in the house Mr. and Mrs. Eudaley and their children, Mrs. Ogden (Mrs. Eudaley's sister) and her three children. Mrs. Ogden was sleeping in the west room with her children. When the storm commenced she got up and took one of Mr. Eudaley's children to its parents, then stepped through the door into the east room, when the house fell, she being caught under the partition, with most of the roof on top of it. A part of the roof fell on the bed, rolling the bedding half over, " and holding the little girl, seven or eight years old, with her face pressed down into the covers until she was smothered. The baby, two months old,
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was rolled to the foot of the bed without being hurt. Mr. Eudaley tried to lift the sections of roof and wall off of Mrs. Ogden, but only succeeded in making way enough to know that she was certainly dead, and then went for help. None of the Eudaleys were seriously hurt. Mr. Ogden was at Des Moines, and came out on the first train at seven o'clock Wednesday evening. The train was stopped at Lothrop and the river could not be crossed. He went back to Spring Hill, crossed in a skiff, got a team, and met the procession bearing his wife and child to the grave, at Mr. Parr's, Thursday afternoon. This was the first that he knew certainly of their fate. When he recognized his friends he cried out, "(), where are my wife and children ?" and was pointed to the coffin for reply. It was most pitiable, to see the strong man prostrated with anguish, hugging the infant, his only solace left, close to his breast, as the procession moved again on its mournful mission.
Just north and a little east of Eudaley's, the roof was taken off a barn on the old Dr. Ball place, the house left whole. Half a mile east a small house was demolished. A mile due east, James Reddish's large new barn was unroofed. Here the tendency of the wind to throw the debris in swaths or winrows was quite marked. The fragment of timbers, board and shingles are scattered thus for more than a quarter of a mile. Thirty rods from the barn out on the prairie, two by six rafters were driven into the ground as much as four feet, probably more. The same thing occurred at different degrees at all places, and with boards of every description. In all cases the plane of their greatest width is with the wind; and they gen- erally stand at an angle of forty degrees above the horizon, although oc- casionally a piece stands perpendicular, as though let suddenly fall from a great height. Reddish's fine new house was also considerably damaged. The rod shows the effect of the lightning, which shocked several of the family. A mile and one-half sonth, a house on the Buxton farm was moved three feet east, and the edge of it sat upon a wash tub-a qneer sight. No other buildings in the neighborhood were disturbed. The storm continued northeast, taking the school-honse west of Hardin's, and a small honse down by Alexander's mill, belonging to S. I. Cassady. Cassady was away from home, and before he could get back the flood had carried off all his goods. Mr. Hardin's house was a story and a-half high, twenty-six by thirty, native lumber frame and firmly built. It stood upon high ground, about two and a-half miles from the river, and marks the southeastern limit of destruction to buildings at that point, there being several houses just east of it that are not damaged. The house was thrown east in large sections, being first moved bodily six feet north and three feet east, as shown by the position of the lower floor. The upper floor overlaps the lower about half, and was entire until cut away to get at the goods. We have Mr. Hardin's story from his own lips, substantially as follows: There were nine persons in the house. Mr. and Mrs. Hardin, a hired man, sleep- ing up stairs, three boys in a bed room in the northeast corner, and three children in an adjoining room. They went to bed early in the evening, but feeling the air very sultry and oppressive, Mr. H. opened the south window. He noticed the storm in the southeast and was frigtened at its unu- snally threatening appearance. He went down stairs and looked out north and west, when his fears were confirmed. He was depressed, and went into the front room-southeast corner-to think, scarcely knowing why he did so He then went up stairs again, and lay down a moment on the edge of the
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bed. Then the rain began, and seemed to come right through the walls. He got up and commenced moving the bed, when the window came in. Then he tried to go down, but was forced back by the wind and water, which came up the stairway with such force that no man could face it. Then he knew destruction was at hand, and commenced hallooing-perhaps, with the idea of arousing the children to do something for themselves, although he hardly knew why. His wife was standing by him, and the hired man was in in the north room; felt the house go; were beaten down by rain and wind that struck like something solid, and we were under some of the wall. "My wife said, this is fearful close; I managed to lift the wall until she could crawl out, but I didn't see her any more. Then I crawled ont backward and was thrown south by that tree (thirty feet). I tried to hold to the grass, but it was so short I could not get a hold. The rain was suffocating. Then I raised up to get to the apple tree, and was thrown east by where that plow is (fully fifty yards). I crawled down by those posts and held, and I suppose I prayed with all my might for my family. I thought they were all dead; but I called, and called, and my wife and the hired hand answered, but they dare not come to me .. They were sheltered by some of the west wall that was not quite down. We kept calling back and forth until the wind went down, and then they came to me, and I went back with them to the house to look for the children. When we got there my oldest daughter came running to me and said, 'here are the children, all loose, but Charlie.' We came to the north end and found there two girls and one boy. The boy was Harry (four years old), the one who was hurt so seriously. I asked him if he was hurt, and he said he was not. Charlie was fast on the bed, and the ceiling pressed down on him. The hired hand and I lifted the floor off of him, and he came out not much hurt." Here he stopped, and we were obliged to ask him about the dead boy. He was farther east, beyond the protection of the bedstead which had saved the others; and the floor could not be raised to free him until help was sought. His name is John; age eleven years. Harry has his collar bone, and a rib on each side, broken, and his head badly compressed. He is in a hopeful condition, although his recovery at first was thought impossible. The young lady is badly bruised, especially about the face and one side, and one arm is slightly fractured. She is recovering steadily. The exactness with which Mr. Hardin told his story serves to show with what terrible power each thought and incident is stamped upon the mind at such a time. Even the story from his lips made a lasting impress. No stenography was needed to take it down, and but few notes to recall it.
Within two miles northeast of Hardin's were a number of houses com- pletely demolished. S. S. Pulse and wife were carried with the fragments of their house twenty rods, and only saved themselves by clinging to a sill. Mr. Pulse has a bad cut in the calf of his leg, from an ax, that was thrown against him, and his right arm and shoulder badly bruised. William Ken- nedy's house, twenty by twenty-six, was rolled over two or three times, and went to pieces about ten rods from the foundation. There were six persons in the house, who were carried from ten to fifteen rods. The children were picked up here and there, some lodging in the edge of the brush. None seriously hurt. But the baby was missing for some time. It was finally discovered under a piece of the ceiling, nicely protected, between two posts. Mrs. Kennedy was seriously hurt. The
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houses of Mr. M. Studley and D. C. Brand were both demolished. Mr. Brand was blown several rods into the orchard. J. W. Chew's house, J. Brown's barn and wagon-house were unroofed. John Gavin had a barn and wood-house demolished, and an orchard of 150 trees almost destroyed. Two houses just east of Chew's were skipped entirely, while Mr. Grieves' large house and barn, twenty rods southeast of the nearest, are fearful wrecks; and another small, unoccupied house a little further northeast, belonging to the same firm-Grieves & Johnson-is unroofed and wrecked beyond repair. The Grieves house was thrown north, very little east, in large sections, the bulk of the debris extending only a few hundred feet. Most of the goods and furniture were still on the ground Friday, and there were logs fastened under the barn floor. The barn, and the roofs of cribs and tool-house were scattered farther twenty or thirty rods. A sill 8x8, twenty feet long, is fifteen rods from the barn, and by it a section of roof sixteen feet square. Mr. and Mrs. Grieves were, the former seriously, and the latter severely, injured. Mr. Grieves required the closest attention and care to make his recovery possible. His wonnds are bruises, and a deep cut, probably by glass, on one leg.
This is the north destructive limit, and the point at which the storm left the river valley. Over in Spring Hill, only a small barn belonging to Wm. Shackley, and the smoke-stack of Freeman's mill, are down. Sonth along this road, were T. E. McIntyre's honse demolished; A. J. Hutt's house unroofed and barn demolished; the school-house opposite completely demolished; J. M. Coleman's house unrooted; J. S. Ristes' house shat- tered; J. Miller's barn partly unrooted; nothing left whole for nearly two miles. Half a mile east, Einerson Bramhall's house, 24x26 was demol- ished. He had it all nicely corded up, and was fixing a good sized wood and warehouse, which being protected by the main building, was left stand- ing, to live in. His barn is also demolished. Himself, wife, and two small children were in the house at the time of the storm. They reached the cellar with great difficulty after the house was mnoved twenty feet. Were almost suffocated by the rain and wind. Could not speak to each other for ten minutes, and were chilled to numbness. Joseph Hickman's barn was unroofed. Richard Shaffer lost his house entirely, and his goods were scattered far and near, and much damaged. No one was at home. H. J. Shaffer had a log honse demolished; A. J. Shaffer a log house unroofed and a stable squashed. J. E. Badgley's granary was demolished and grain wasted and damaged. James A. Mcintyre's dwelling was moved clear off its foundation, and racked and shattered until it cannot be righted. On the Allen place, a granary was blown fifty yards against the house, shat- tering the granary to splinters, and badly damaging the honse. George Bishop's house was taken off the foundation. At Mr. Hanby's, the walls were broken loose from the sills, and the four occupants of the house left snugly in bed with the floor under them and the clouds above. This house, as in other similar cases, stood close on the ground. Mr. Griffin's house was partly unshingled and the doors and windows blown in. The roof of the Maple Grove school-house is intact, and about sixty feet northeast of the foundation. On the Robert Graham's farm, a new barn 30x40, was demolished and most of the roof taken off the house; grove and orchard riddled. J. Coventry's barn was destroyed, and half his orchard of two hundred trees ruined. Wm. Noble lost a barn 20x26 on the Wm. Graham place. Wm. Paisley had the roof taken off his
Will&Randleman. Post master Carlisle Dowa
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HISTORY OF WARREN COUNTY.
dwelling. Richard Moore's house was moved a little, and about a fourth of the roof taken off. His greatest loss, aside from crops, was twenty. stand of bees. Wm. Noble's barn at home was squashed, burying four head of horses under a mass of timbers and tons of hoy. The horses were saved, but are all injured.
S. B. Lindsey's house was a story and a-half, 16x36, with an L to the north. The main building lies southeast for a hundred yards, in large sec- tions. The L is standing, the whole ground work being moved two feet southeast. Mr. S. A. McElroy's family, Miss Lindsey and two neighbor children, seven in all, were in the house at the time it went. They were left on the floor, and did not know what had happened until they saw by the lightning that they were out of doors. They were protected by the L, but took to the cellar for fear of further destruction. This is the only wreck west of town that is thrown southeast, and the barn roof at the same place is scattered from southwest clear round to northeast. One of the most re- markable wrecks in the whole course of the storm is that of Charley Fla- ger's house, a-half mile west of Martin's. The ground work lies whole and bottom up, eighty feet east of the blocks, while the walls and roof extend, each section overlapping another, back almost to the site. It looks wicked, as though it was thrown to kill. It evidently capsized and flattened ont, the floor sliding violently to the east. We are not informed how the family escaped, which they did, only Mr. Flager being hurt, and he not very seri- ously; but their being alive almost proves that they were not in the house when it fell. The barn on this place, a large one, was turned a third around, moved some twenty feet, and broken in two in the middle, the roof being largely taken off. A good sized smoke-house was also demolished. Mr. I. P. C. Martin's house is the fatal wreck nearest to town, being one and three- fourths miles northwest of the public square. It was a story and a-half house, 16x24, with an L and porch 18x23, and stood on the west slope of the branch called Coal creek. The fragments were scattered a third of a mile northeast, and most of them lodged in the brush. The sills were forty rods from the foundation .. Chairs and pieces of other furniture were hanging on brush and shrubs, and pieces of books shone white all through the weeds and grass. The clothing, bedding, etc., had been gathered up. Not a building of any kind was left standing on this place; and the south wall of the cellar was driven in. When the storm began the family was in bed. Mr. and Mrs. Martin and the little boy, two years old, down stairs, and the others up. The first indication of danger was the blowing in of an up-stairs window, which Jimmie tried to replace. This aroused Mr. Martin, who called to the children to come down. When the crash came they were all standing by their mother's bed, she had risen and started to follow Mr. Mar- tin to the door, erying, with a mother's anguish at the peril of her children, and he was trying to comfort her with the assurance that there was no dan- ger. Mr. Martin says the fatal blast struck the house like a cannon ball, and he was thrown he knows not where. He searched and called for his family in vain, and then ran to Talbott's and Mahan's for help. Mr. Tal- bott, after considerable search, found the children among the shattered walls, about thirty-five feet from the nearest point of the foundation. They .were under a wooden wardrobe, and on top of that were sections of the wall. When these were lifted, they crawled out unhurt. But below them the mother lay pressed into the earth by another piece of wall which rested
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HISTORY OF WARREN COUNTY.
on her, and two or three feet further west, the little boy, both dead. The escape of the five children was almost a miracle. The wardrobe had tipped forward and throwing open its doors like protecting arms, caught them in its hollow breast and sheltered them from the falling walls. How they all were taken in at an opening of less than four feet, to a box twenty inches deep, without being hit by sides or back, is beyond explanation, as two of them are grown, a young woman and young man, and the others from four to twelve years of age. Mr. J. H. Mahan's house, a quarter sonth, although not demolished, exhibits the power of the wind perhaps as much as any other. It is a story and a-half, 24x28, firmly built of heavy native lumber frame, and stood on a stone foundation close to the ground. It was turned a quarter around and set down fifty feet northeast of the foundation. The roof and all the up-stairs goods were scattered for a quarter of a mile through the barn-yard and meadow. The barn, 20x40, was also demolished. Mr. Talbott's house was thrown against some trees, which saved it. M. E. Young's barn was demolished. Alex. Paisley's house was unroofed and his goods scattered. The house and barn on Alf. Keeney's place, half a mile east of Martin's, are bad wrecks. Wm. Taylor occupied the house, and he, his daughter Flora, another child, and Marshal Graham, were in it Tuesday night. The floor was inverted forty feet from the foundation, and Marshal lay under it for some time stunned to unconsciousness. When he came to, he heard Mr. Taylor call, and worked himself ont. Flora Taylor was car- ried fifty yards into the field, over a hedge of maple thirty feet high. She lay under a piece of wall, in a dead-furrow and almost drowned, the water in the furrow covering her all but her face. She was conscious all the time. When rescued, it was found that her right arm was broken above the elbow.
D. H. Van Pelt's barn was only unroofed. The same is true of Capt. Berry's house. John Jones' barn is down, and W. N. Oaks' barn is split north and south, and the east half of the roof off.
From Indianola eastward, the destruction was not so general or com- plete, of buildings, unless it be just north of Sandyville; but the track widens rapidly, making the damage to crops greater. No one was killed in this direction, hence, the details are not so much talked of, though doubtless as remarkable in some cases as any.
Frank Epps lost most of his house and goods; Mrs. Londer's house was scattered. Mr. Simpson's house and barn were destroyed. The John Peck school-house was capsized and squashed. His house, a large brick, was un- roofed, and three gables blown down. Wm. Long's barn was stripped, and most of the frame left standing. A house on his place, occupied by a Mr. Johnson, was wrecked, and Mr. Johnson hurt. John Laverty's house is a complete wreck, and Mr. Evins and his wife were both badly hurt here. John Roger's barn was moved. The widow Wheeler's small barn was scattered across the road toward the school-honse, which latter was thrown off its foundation. Robinson Brown's barn was completely wrecked, and several hogs killed. Clem. Richie had a barn demolished. S. Simons and McDolle had their houses moved. Jessie Faulk's barn was demolished, and his house partly unroofed. A tenant house on Mrs. Wood's place, oc- cupied by Harvey Colter, was squashed, fastening their goods in the ruins. A tenant house on the Perry place, occupied by James Colter, was un- roofed, and the east gables blown off. Mr. Fisk lost the roof off his barn; David Yarnell the same, and the shingles off his house. Dan Lewis' barn was moved. Two patches of siding were torn from the south side of Ed.
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HISTORY OF WARREN COUNTY.
Hickman's new house, and the school-house opposite, turned half around. A house belonging to L. Barnett and occupied by W. Doane, was unroofed, and a side taken out. The three occupants escaping at the door were blown several rods. Jonathan Doane had a small house destroyed. Mr. Kel- lum's house was unroofed. There were five persons in L. Hockett's house when it gave way, four up stairs. They were thrown among the debris, and the old gentleman seriously injured. Mahlon Haworth had his house unroofed and barn blown down. At the younger Malilon Haworth's there were five persons left on the lower floor when the house blew from over them. Geo. D. Haworth had one barn demolished and another unroofed. James Owen had a house blown down: Isaac Starbuck a barn unroofed; George King a house unroofed; Thomas Irion a house nnroofed; M. Mendenhall's house was moved; Scott Barker's house half the roof torn off ; Wm. Haworth's house was carried twenty feet and smashed to pieces; the family escaped a moment before. The only place where horses were killed was at the widow Johns' place, a inile and a-quarter west of Sandyville. George Heiny had the south half of his barn roof blown off, one tenant house demolished, two others off their foundation, and cribs and sheds generally scattered. He had seventy-five acres of for- ward corn that is ruined. The loss is placed at $2,000. There are seven dwellings down or unroofed in sight of his house. John Shuler, Frank Reeves, Mont. McCormick and Hartman had their houses completely de- stroyed. Reeves was worst hurt, although there were six persons McCor- mick's house and it was literally splintered. N. R. Beaman's house was moved clear off the foundation. Sedock Reed's barn was moved and granary demolished. School-house two miles east of Sandyville literally destroyed. W. Williams, three miles north, had his house destroyed. D. C. Pearson's new barn also went. L. G. Edwards had a small barn demol- ished; and Gillespie one unroofed. The south current unroofed buildings on the two ridges west of Squaw and Otter creeks, and tore down the timber about the Hammondsburg bridge fearfully. On the west old Mr. Ran- dolph, Mr. Cashman, and Swan Lucas had barns unroofed; G. Latimer's house was taken off the square; Mel. Park lost chimneys and several apple trees. On the east ridge the Cheshire house, where Mrs. Delay and a hired hand were hurt, was lifted over a small house and broken into fragments. Black's new barn was destroyed and Silcott's barn damaged.
The losses by the storm cannot be estimated with any exactness, as they embrace such a variety of property, affect so many people, and are scattered over so large a scope of country. There were probably not more than three hundred miles of fence down in the country, which could be restored for $10,000.
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