An illustrated history of north Idaho : embracing Nez Perces, Idaho, Latah, Kootenai and Shoshone counties, state of Idaho, Part 248

Author:
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: [S.l.] : Western Historical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1524

USA > Idaho > Kootenai County > An illustrated history of north Idaho : embracing Nez Perces, Idaho, Latah, Kootenai and Shoshone counties, state of Idaho > Part 248
USA > Idaho > Nez Perce County > An illustrated history of north Idaho : embracing Nez Perces, Idaho, Latah, Kootenai and Shoshone counties, state of Idaho > Part 248
USA > Idaho > Shoshone County > An illustrated history of north Idaho : embracing Nez Perces, Idaho, Latah, Kootenai and Shoshone counties, state of Idaho > Part 248
USA > Idaho > Latah County > An illustrated history of north Idaho : embracing Nez Perces, Idaho, Latah, Kootenai and Shoshone counties, state of Idaho > Part 248

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

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HISTORY OF NORTH IDAHO.

gaged in logging. The board has already constructed six miles of this road at an expense of $3,000. An- nual dues of members are $10.

The primary church organization in Wallace is the Episcopalian, the South Methodists coming next, who in turn, were followed by the Methodist Episcopalians. Subsequently the Baptists purchased the building of the South Methodists.

The Congregational church, of which Rev. J. B. Orr is pastor, is a thriving organization of five years' growth. Previous to 1898 Rev. Jonathan Edwards, at that time of Wardner, came occasionally to Wallace and preached to the Congregationalists, as did, also, Rev. Samuel Green, state Sunday school superintend- ent of Washingon. At present the Congregationalists. are holding services in Masonic Temple and other halls, but in August they will occupy a new church building, now in process of crection, corner of Fourth and Cedar streets, costing $3,500, exclusive of the lots. One lot is reserved, adjoining the new church, on which will be erected a gymnasium and bath rooms. The Congregational Sunday school numbers seventy-five pupils. On alternate Sundays Rev. Orr preaches at Kellogg.

Organization of the Methodist Episcopal church dates from September, 1894, when Rev. J. W. Craig, appointed to Wardner. Wallace, and at intervals, to Murray, Kingston, Gem and Burk, held services in this city. Rev. Craig, also, organized the local Ep- worth League. Rev. W. H. Selkirk came in 1895, suc- ceeding Rev. Craig, from Pendleton, Oregon. He was appointed by Bishop Bowman, the annual conference sitting at Spokane. Rev. Selkirk was returned the sec- ond year, and was succeeded by Rev. R. W. Moore, Jr .. and in turn was succeeded by Rev. M. R. Brown, in 1899. The latter remained in the Wallace field until 1902, when Rev. H. M. Hobbs, appointed by Bishop Earl Cranston, arrived in Wallace, September 14, and is the present pastor of the M. E. congregation. The organization has a pretty and commodious church building on the corner of Fourth and Pine streets, one block north from the new Congregational building.

The Catholic church of Wallace, now in charge of Father Becker, assisted by Father Beusman, was dedi- cated by Bishop Glorieux, Sunday, October 20, 1896. This was the second church organization in the county, of that denomination. The present church edifice, cor- ner of Pine and Second streets, was built under di- rection of Father Keyzer, who was the first clergyman in charge. Father Becker, present incumbent, came to Wallace, May 11, 1897. The labors of Fathers Becker and Beusman are not confined to Wallace. They visit the outlying missions of Wardner, Mullan and Burke. The church organization of Wallace comprises fifty families.

The Baptist denomination has a regularly organized church in Wallace, holding services in what was once the Methodist Episcopal church, on Bank street. In 1896 it was in charge of Rev. Lewis Smith, of Spo- kane, assisted by Rev. A. M. Allyn, at that period dis- trict missionary for Washington and northern Idaho.

Rev. George E. Graves, rector of Trinity Epis-

copalian church, Wallace, assumed charge of this pas- torate in May, 1902. This church is the primary or- ganization of the city, having been established in 1890. The predecessor of Rev. Groves was Rev. Freeman Daughters, who was stationed at this point four years. Rev. Groves holds services also in Wardner, Mullan and Burke. The church edifice, corner of Cedar and Fourth street, as well as others throughout the county, were built under direction of Bishop Talbot.

In March, 1901, a new brewery, and the only one at present in Wallace, was thrown open to the public. The three principals buildings were erected in 1900, solid, substantial brick structures, located east of the Carter House, at the termination of the O. R. & N. Company's warehouse tracks. The office is a single- story brick building, 27x62 feet in size. The brewery, a twin building, has a frontage of fifty-six and a depth of eighty-six feet, and is four stories high. It has an annual capacity of 80,000 pounds of malt, rice and hops and, with the adjoining bottling plant, cost $50,000. It is the property of the Sunset Brewing Company ( Incorporated), and under control of the following board: David Holzmann, president, Jacob Lockman, secretary, treasurer and manager, J. Henry Beckman, Freida Lockman and Joseph A. Rubens.

WARDNER.

Since 1892 the prominent mining town of Wardner, one mile south of Kellogg, has been a point of histor- ical interest, and a remarkable feature in the "Winning of the West." The wealth of its surrounding mineral district, its picturesque location in the lower levels of a deep canyon, known as Milo Gulch, the sensational scenes incidental to industrial troubles in the past, have combined to lift Wardner from the realms of the commonplace to a position of national significance.

The second largest town in the Coeur d'Alene dis- trict Wardner ranks next to Wallace. It controls a lucrative trade from Government Gulch, and mines on Pine creek and Grouse Gulch, and is a dis- tributing center for many surrounding mines. Aside from the business prosperity of Wardner, influenced greatly by the Bunker Hill & Sullivan and Empire State mines, the town owes much to adjacent locations of the Wyoming, Black Hawk, O. K., Stewart and other great properties in that vicinity. The census of 1900 accorded Wardner a population of 2,000, but conservative citizens say that the town, at present, contains fully 2,500 inhabitants.

In 1880 the governor of Idaho, in his report to the department at Washington, D. C., said :

"Wardner, in Milo Gulch, about two miles from the South Fork, is the business heart of the great group of working mines which have gradually opened in that district since the first discovery of the famous Bunker Hill & Sullivan. The population is 800. It has schools, societies, fire department and an excellent weekly mining journal and newspaper, the Wardner News. Its population will largely and quickly increase with the advent of railroads."

But the Wardner of 1903 is the "Kentuck" of 1885.

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HISTORY OF NORTH IDAHO.

October 10, 1885, a meeting was held in the cabin of "Dutch Jake," on Milo creek, for the expressed pur- pose of laying out a townsite and naming the same. James Kelly served as chairman and Robert T. Horn as secretary. There were also present, Philip O'Rouke, "Dutch Jake" ( Jacob Goetz), Jack Fitzgerald, Thomas Hanley, L .. F. Robinson and Thomas Irwin. At this meeting the name of Yreka was bestowed upon the district, and "Kentuck," or Kentucky, upon the town, the latter in honor of the owners of the famous Golden Chest mine, at Murray, who were Kentuckians.

Near the Last Chance mine James Kelly built the first cabin in the place, November 1, 1885. A second and third cabin were run up by "Dutch Jake," and Mr. Horn, respectively, and the first store building, a cabin roofed with canvas, was built hastily by Thomas Irwin and Tony Tubbs. During the succeeding holi- days a small stock of general merchandise was ex- posed for sale by them. "Kentuck" grew rapidly. January 1, 1886, it could boast of one hundred inhab- itnats ; by March the number was increased to 300, and by July 4, one thousand people, all residents, could have assisted in celebrating the day. During the Thanksgiving holidays of 1886 Abe Goldstein opened a hotel and lodging house, Paul Herlinger was pro- prietor of the original bakery, and Tom Henly of the first saloon. Thereafter other business men arrived rapidly.

A mass meeting of the citizens of Kentucky was held Sunday afternoon, April 4, 1886, for the purpose of consultation and heart to heart talks concerning the necessity of changing the name of the town. This inove was rendered compulsory by the postal authori- ties at Washington. D. C., who declined to establish an office there named Kentucky. At the meeting the names "Irwin," "Bunker Hill" and "Wardner" were proposed, each finding enthusiastic sponsers, and following a free discussion of the respective merits of each, it was unanimousuly agreed that the town should be known in the future by the name of "Wardner." in honor of James Wardner, a widely known and popular citizen who did much toward advancing the prosperity of the young but ambitious town.

In March, 1886, the editor of the Spokane Review printed in his paper the following impressions of the new location :

Some three-quarters of a mile up the gulch (from Milo) we reached Kentucky, or. as it is more familiarly known among the denizens, "Kentuck." It was the earliest camp in the mountains at the time of our visit, but on every hand men were at work putting up houses, and under the pushing influence of two mines its growth promises to be phenomenal. The nature of the ground would hardly hold out inducements for its selection as a town site, but the presence of mineral would build a town anywhere. The gulch is narrow, broken and covered with fragments of broken rock and a labyrinth of fallen timber. * There are a few log cabins * covered with shakes, but most of the dwellings are tents, or * log walls with tent roofs. Tom Irwin, whose name has been closely associated with the Coeur d'Alenes, keeps the only eat- ing house, and is assisted by Tony Tubbs, the once land prince of Coeur d'Alene City. While Irwin's eating house was the only one in Kentucky at the time of our visit, others were in course of construction, and the town is full of them by this time. The lodging house consisted of a double tent, with

a bar in front The night we stayed there every bed and every floor was covered by lodgers.

Such is a fairly accurate and unbiased account of the municipal status of Wardner in the earlier days of its history. In May, 1886, one hundred and seventy- five buildings had been erected, a "Main" street estab- lished and, in the language of the Murray Sun. "the town was booming right along." Between Wardner and the Mission a telephone line was established by C. B. Hopkins, and the Wardner News had isstied its first number. Thursday, June 24, 1886, was a red letter day, for it was the date of the successful trial of the Bunker Hill concentrator, and this event was the occasion of universal rejoicing and celebration. The Bank of Wardner opened its doors for business in November, 1886. The officers were N. S. Kellogg, president ; J. F. Wardner, vice president ; H.M.Daven- port, secretary and cashier. The directors were A. M. Mason, N. S. Kellogg, J. F. Wardner, E. C. Gove, H. M. Davenport and C. T. Crane. On Novem- ber II, the same year, Wardner polled 462 votes, three less than the town of Murray, and about this time was completed the Wardner water works system. December 25, 1886, a postoffice was established and A. B. Gold- stein appointed postmaster.

March 23, 1887, the Murray Sun claimed Wardner's population 1,500. Undoubtedly this estimate included many residents of the gulch whose habitations were outside the limits of the original townsite. Yet even on this basis it will be seen that the anticipations of the pioneers of Wardner were not too sanguine. Lumber was purchased as quickly as it was available at the mills ; limits of the business portion of the town em- braced five blocks, while between Wardner and Milo, a distance of one mile, cabins lined the roadway. Town lots that a year previous had sold at from $100 to $200, were held at $800 up to $3,000 apiece. Yet it was at this period generally acknowledged that the inflation of prices was due, largely, to a sudden influx of enter- prising and ambitious visitors, and encouraging appear- ance of the adjacent mines. In 1887 the growth of Wardner was, as claimed by the editor of the Murray Sun, "ahead of development of mineral resources."

Aleck Monk and Scott McDonald. in May, 1887, entered into a contract with the town authorities to replace the original water works with a complete new system. The contract was given to J. R. Monk & Co., of Murray, the estimated cost of which was $10,000. The new system was named "Silver Creek Water Works." Of six and five inch mains 2,300 feet were laid, leading from a supply tank of 50,000 gallons ca- pacity. There were five hydrants : the highest pres- sure attained being 250 feet.

January 4, 1890, the most disastrous conflagration that had, at that date, occurred in the Coeur d'Alenes, broke out in Wardner. During a fateful period of four hours the fire raged furiously, and within that time a number of the best business houses and several resi- dences were destroyed. The alarm met with immediate response from hundreds of people, including the fire department, but with the deepest chagrin it was dis-

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HISTORY OF NORTH IDAHO.

covered that no water was available. And then the panic-stricken populace began fighting the flames with snow, which was thrown upon the burning structures. In a laundry, at the rear of the Mint restaurant, the fire originated, and it is claimed that, had there been a water supply the flames could have been checked at this point. Retarded somewhat in their course by the small avalanches of snow heaped upon them, the fire slowly but surely ate its way along the lines of busi- ness houses, destroying the telephone office, the Moore block, and, extending up the street, attacked the main business district of the town. Giant powder was resorted to for the purpose of blowing up the Grand Hotel and buildings lower down the street, but this plan failed of the desired effect, and not until the store of Samuel A. Fischer was destroyed was the progress of the fire checked.

It is a pleasing commentary on the intelligence and good sense of the residents of Wardner that during this trial by fire the best of order was maintained throughout the city. Following is a list of the build- ings destroyed, with approximate losses :

Smith Sisters, building, $1,200; Higby & Boyer, building and stock, $8,000, insurance, $3,000; C. W. Weber & Co., building and stock, $2,000; Holley, Mason, Marks & Co., building and stock, $16,000, insurance, $8,500; Moore block, four buildings, $7,000; Al Page, stock and fixtures, $2,500; Norman's telephone office and fixtures $350; Mrs. Snyder, building, $300; Mrs. Smit!1, laundry, $150; J. A. Maver, Grand Central Hotel, three-story building and furniture, $10,000; Willianı Bolger, club rooms, $1,200; Charles King, restaurant fixtures, $150; D. L. Harley, cigar store, $700; Cos- tello & Sullivan, restaurant, $225; J. A. Currie, two buildings, $2,000; Comer & Parker, building, $2,000 ; James Colligan, saloon fixtures, $200; William Will- iams, building. $1,000; Joseph Stehle, beer hall, $600; B. Flaig, jewelry, $250 : Follett & Harris, two buildings, $1,500; G. M. Spenar, barber shop, $500 ; C. T. Ander- son, tailor, $150; Edward Bolger, sample room, $250; White House building, $7,000.

· The buildings partially destroyed were Jacob Abra- hanı's, loss $500; H. Pressy's, $500; and E. Rupert's, postoffice fixtures, stock, etc., $500.

Among the more enterprising citizens of Wardner an enthusiasm prevailed for more advanced municipal features, and on Monday, April 13, 1891, the commis- sioners of Shoshone county granted a petition, signed by a majority of tax-paying citizens, asking for incor- poration. For the first year Alexander Monks, A. E. Carlson, Charles Sweeny, Al Page and H. Drought were named as trustees.

Agitation in behalf of a street railway was begun in November, 1808, but is was without tangible result. The Wardner-Kellogg Electric Railway Company filed articles of incorporation with the secretary of state, the amount of capital stock being placed at $500,- 000. The board of directors comprised Bartlett Press- ley, and Margaret Pressley, of Kellogg, Lawrence O'Neil, of Murray, B. Flaig, of Wardner, and William Woods, of Wallace. It was the announced purpose of

this company to construct an electric system from Kel- logg, on the South Fork of the Coeur d'Alene river, through Wardner to the Bunker Hill & Sullivan mines, and also from Kellogg to Gevernment Gulch. Owing to insurmountable difficulty in securing a right of way the project was abandoned.

On New Year's Day, 1901, responsible citizens claimed for Wardner a population of 2,000. Through- out the year previous the town had forged ahead won- derfully ; local merchants enjoyed an excellent busi- ness ; many new buildings were erected and an atmos- phere of prosperity prevailed throughout the Yreka mining district. Although a postoffice had been es- tablished at Government Gulch, handling a portion of the business that was formerly controlled by Wardner, the amount of mail received and dispatched increased twenty per cent. For the year 1900 the estimated out- put of the Bunker Hill & Sullivan mine, from figures compiled by the Coeur d' Alene Mining Journal, was 29,717.66 tons of concentrates and crude ore, contain- ing 30,000,000 pounds of lead and 606,000 ounces of silver, valued at $1,750,000. It is only in the contem- plation of such figures that one can appreciate Ward- ner's phenomenal development.

Officers of the present city government of Ward- ner are as follows: Dr. Hugh France, mayor ; W. H. North, city clerk; W. J. Baker, city treasurer : Fred Decker, chief of police. The councilmen from the' three wards in the city are : Al Page, Dr. E. W. Peebles, R. C. Parry, J. H. Collins and Edward Bol- ger. In the two precincts of the city are four justices of the peace, viz .: First precinct, R. S. Kelly, Henry A. Jones ; second precinct, John A. Parsons, Charles H. Wentz. Fred Decker serves as constable in the first and J. A. R. Campbell in the second precinct.

An excellent water system has been provided for Wardner, owned by Alex Monk, at present a resident of Ireland. The system is under the local manage- ment of Edward Bolger.

The pioneer church edifice in Wardner is St. Peter's Episcopal church, located below what is known as the "old town." It was dedicated Saturday eve- ning, November 29, 1895, by Bishop Talbot, assisted by Rev. P. Murphy, rector of St. Mark's church, of Moscow, and Rev. A. J. Holworthy, of Trinity church, Wallace. At present there are four church organiza- tions, the Methodist Episcopal, Congregational, Episcopalian and Catholic, and an Epworth League society. Rev. D. W. Raines is the resident pastor of the M. E. church; Rev. George E. Groves, rector of Trinity church, Rev. J. B. Orr, pastor of the Congre- gational church, and Father Becker, of the Catholic church, all of Wallace, hold service at Wardner on al- ternate Sundays.

The fraternal societies in Wardner are represented by the Wodmen of the World ; Eagles, Aerie No. 170; Masons, Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias, Improved Order of Red Men and Wardner Industrial Union.

PIERCE CITY.

To Pierce City belongs the distinction of being the

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HISTORY OF NORTH IDAHO.

oldest placer mining camp in Idaho. Few places in the northwest possess such an interesting and re- markable history. In this section of the west there are only half a dozen of these historic towns, and around their misty past have been woven many a ro- mance, not infrequently containing more solid truth than fanciful imagination, dealing with the golden days of old, when Dame Fortune was in a most ca- pricious mood. Wonderful tales they are, of fabulous forttines, the exploits of hundreds of desperadoes who ruled the region, the free and strenuous life led by these dauntless gold seekers. One cannot enter the pre- cincts of these old camps, having read and heard of their history, without being somewhat awed by the scenes before him, and when he considers that thou- sands, perhaps tens of thousands of pioneers have trod the ground on which he walks, and that millions ot gold have been washed from the soil beneath his feet is it strange that his emotions should be stirred ?

From the crest of the hill overlooking Pierce City from the southwest one can view the little valley be- neath through which courses Orofino creek. This is the famous stream that drew to its shores the pioneer miners of Idaho. Half a mile down the creek stands the cluster of buildings forming the town of Pierce City. From all sides of the town, except where a narrow meadow lies along the banks of the creek, pine- clad hills and mountains rise and fall gracefully back against the horizon. Here and there can be seen enormous piles of "tailings," debris of fallen timber in a gulch whose sides have been eaten away by the ener- getic toil of the ambitious miner of days gone by, show- ing where a portion of the millions yielded by this dis- trict have been secured. A well constructed bridge crosses the Orofino, the road passing along the bottom lands, and into town. As is usual in small towns located in this section, there is but one street'in Pierce City, on each side of which are a majority of the buildings in the place. Several new, commodious buildings, mostly for business purposes, indicate that Pierce City is growing, and large stocks of goods tes- tify that it enjoys a commercial importance. And yet, on all sides are to be seen many of the picturesque cabins of pioneers, combining to accentuate the fact that this is a historical town. On the eastern side stands the old court house, a substantial, two-story log build- ing, erected in 1862, and which at one time served as the county's official building until 1884. It cost be- tween $3,500 and $4,000; such was the low value placed upon town property after removal of the county seat, in the later year, that this "court house" was sold for less than $50 to Edward Hammond. Financially Mr. Hammond did well by holding the property until the arrival of more prosperous times. The altitude of Pierce City is a little over 3,000 feet ; its normal popu- lation between 150 and 200.

The town has four large general stores, owned re- spectively by T. B. Reed & Co., Samson Snyder, W. H. Dahl and A. M. Roberts ; a grocery presided over by Duck Lee, a Chinaman; a Chinese store, owned by Lune Wah; two excellent hotels, the Pioneer, con- ducted by John Lane, and the City Hotel, A. S. War-

ren, proprietor ; a well stocked drug store, the property of C. Smith ; a meat market, belonging to Saling & King; two blacksmith shops, conducted by J. Barney Richardson and I. D. Cleek; three livery and feed barns, controlled by Col. John Lane, A. S. Warren and William Curry: two lodging houses, kept by William Dahl and Samson Snyder ; a barber shop, the property of E. B. McElwain ; a postoffice and express office, under the care of A. M. Roberts ; a saw mill of 5,000 feet capacity, operated by the American Placer Mining Company, on Canal Gulch, and three saloons. Besides these business institutions we must not over- look the Pierce City Miner, a newsy little paper pub- lished weekly by the Miner Publishing Company. D. M. Nulty edits the journal and manages the property, which is creditable to the camp and an excellent ex- ponent of this section's advantages and resources. All of these concerns are doing a gratifying business and sanguinely looking forward to more prosperous periods than ever before experienced in the later his- tory of the camp. In 1896 was erected a comfortable school house, at a cost of $500, in which nine months' school is maintained. Mrs. Fred Roos is the present instructor. This building, standing on the hillside, occupies the site of the old fort built at the time of the Indian war of 1877. As yet there are no church so- cieties in the town, but the generous, whole-souled hospitality and social qualities of the inhabitants in- dicate a congenial, satisfied and well-purposed com- munity. And in this Pierce City is but typical of all mining towns of Shoshone county.

With the outside world Pierce City is connected with telephone, and also by a passenger and mail stage making six trips a week between Greer and the former place, a distance of twenty-nine miles. The telephone system is a private line installed last year. There is a wagon road between Orofino and Pierce City, a much travelled summer route, though not so popular as the Greer-Weippe road. Four years ago Pierce City suf- fered a severe loss by fire, flames breaking ont in the store of Lee Duck, a Chinese merchant. This re- sulted in the destruction of Lee Duck's emporium, Charles Smith's saloon, Jim Fee's store and two vacant residences, all on the east side of Main street. For- tunately there was considerable snow on the ground, and by keeping William Davis' saloon building wet with snow and water, progress of the fire was stayed and the town saved. The log buildings destroyed were soon replaced by frame structures, and the fire his- tory of more ambitions towns was repeated in Pierce City. None of the losses was covered by insurance. In March, 1903, the store of A. M. Roberts caught fire and a more serious loss than that of 1899 was nar- rowly averted. As early as 1865 a fire company was organized, consisting of between thirty and forty men, equipped with buckets, hooks and ladders, but this primevial department has long since passed away, re- membered only by the earliest pioneers. Another com- pany on more modern lines will, probably, be put in the field at an early date.

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An illustrated history of north Idaho : embracing Nez Perces, Idaho, Latah, Kootenai and Shoshone counties, state of Idaho, Part 248

Author: Publication date: 1903 Publisher: [S.l.] : Western Historical Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1524

Author:
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: [S.l.] : Western Historical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1524