USA > Indiana > Vanderburgh County > Evansville > History of the city of Evansville and Vanderburg County, Indiana, Volume I > Part 24
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together, it showed that when a heavy strain was put on the water works they were absolutely incompetent to throw streams that would be of any real benefit and the old engines were ordered to be overhauled and put in first-class condition. This was a step in the right direction and one very much needed, as shortly after the steam engines had again been put into commission, there was an awful fire and without the aid of them, there is no telling how much damage might have been done.
Again speaking of old times, when the first three engines that I have named were in commission, what was known as the Bucket Brigade, was always on hand and the women and children then assisted in getting water from their cisterns to the scene of the fire. As many have never seen these, I will describe it. Some two strong, active men jerked off the cis- tern top and the water was rapidly raised by buckets to which ropes were attached. These were emptied into other buckets and the second buckets passed from hand to hand. It was found that much time could be saved in this manner and much more speed gained than if a man took a bucket and ran from the cistern to the burning house. At the same time this gave the women a chance to help and they could easily pass buckets where their skirts would have impeded them had they tried to run. The great fire of 1842 was what caused our citizens to first decide on purchasing an engine, but they didn't get one until 1847. This first engine was called the Union and the name was afterwards changed to Lamasco when it was moved to the lower part of the city. After the introduction of fire engines, this old machine was sold to the town of Tell City and is believed to be doing serv- ice there today. In 1852 there were five engines and the first real head, before Col. Hollingsworth began to take charge, was Joseph Turner. There was no rank of riches in the fire department. The best young men of what were then considered wealthy families, worked side by side with the sons of the very poorest and on their parades they all turned out together, with their red shirts, black pants and helmets. It was not until 1864 that the first steam engine was introduced and in 1867 the hand engines were all sold. When the first steam engine was purchased by the city, the mayor was supposed to be chief of the fire department, but at that time Mayor Baker was in the chair and was physically unfit to serve, so he appointed Philip Klein, a strong husky German, who was then at the head of the little police force of the city. The policemen, by the way, were expected to serve whenever there was a fire. This primitive method continued until the water works were constructed in 1871. Then the old engines were sold and were replaced by a new one, also called the Lamasco at that time William E. Hollingsworth finally consented to become chief and was paid a regular salary. After him came Thomas Hopkins and Ben Neihaus, then William Bedford, Jr. The city then became democratic and Thomas Bullen was appointed chief. Then in 1887 when it became republican again, Philip Klein went back into his old position. Mr. Klein, although he probably attended very few fires, still manages to get to them when he
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can and all citizens should remember that for a quarter of a century he served well and faithfully and there is no man who can question his ability. Charles Becker was also fire chief just after and he retained this position for some years but he was an excitable man and hardly one to take com- mand of a good force during a large fire. It was not until 1888 that a regular pay system began, for prior to that time part of the force worked under what was called the runner's system. In other words, they could attend to their various duties in any part of the city just so they reported when the fire alarm was sounded. There were ten hose houses at that time and as stated, there were three engines which were stowed away. They also at that time had two chemicals, one hook and ladder wagon and truck, six hose reels and two hose wagons and twenty-six well-trained horses Along about that time came the great fire of the Armstrong Furniture Com- pany and the Reitz lumber yard which occurred in August and in the November following the fire which caused the great "burnt district" as it was called, which was an eye-sore on First street, between Sycamore and Vine, until Mr. Mackey, who was then in the full tide of power, rebuilt it. This big fire burned the old National Hall which had been built on the site of John O'Meara's Commercial House and every building clear up to the Clement, White & Baker building, which still stands on the corner of Syca- more and First. There was a little three-story brick occupied as a tobacco house which escaped fire and next to it stands the one vacant lot which is left to mark that most disastrous calamity to the city. The Leich drug store and the Hinkle and Mackey & Nisbet stores would certainly be a credit to any city in the country and it is fortunate that they were built up at the time, or possibly they would still be in the condition of the vacant lot stand- ing next to the Gilbert Block, just across the street. It may possibly be a matter of information to a great many to know exactly how fire horses are trained. In the first place, those who have seen our beautiful fire horses have doubtless wondered how it was that such beautiful specimens of horse flesh were picked up. They are not picked up, but each horse is the result of a great deal of care and a great deal of trying out. To begin with, each one must be of a certain height, must weight about so much and must be absolutely sound in wind and legs. Let a horse be ever so good looking and let him have any kind of a blemish, and he is at once turned down, for the work of the fast runs on the brick and asphalt streets is so trying, that only the very best specimens of horse flesh can stand the work without giving down within a very few years. The fact that we have horses that have been in the department for ten, twelve and fifteen years, and which still are perfect specimens, show how much care is used in their selection. Sometimes trips of hundreds of miles are made to look at certain horses, word of which has been brought to the chief, as he is always on the look- out for horses to replace those that are injured. When the horse to be tried is brought here, he is first inspected thoroughly. Among the firemen are many expert horsemen who can detect at once any blemishes. If the
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horse passes the inspection as to looks and weight, he is hitched with a mate, some old fire horse, to a heavily loaded hose wagon and then driven very rapidly, the point being to find in what condition his wind is, for the wind of a fire horse must always be absolutely perfect. If after a short run he shows any token of what is called short wind, or any defect in his lungs, he is at once turned down, but if he is found to be all right, though per- haps "soft," as it is called, through having been worked in the country and not in the city, he is put through a number of these runs day by day until he hardens up and gets his wind. This is almost the same rule that is fol- lowed by a prize fighter when preparing for a long fight, for the horse, like the prize fighter, must be prepared to go through a great deal of very strenuous work before he is pronounced competent. Those who have stood at the door of an engine house and have noticed how at the tap of the gong the ropes drop, and the horses run directly under their collars ready to be hitched up, wonder how it is done. The "green" horse is al- ways in the next stall to an old well-trained horse. The first time the gong is sounded a fireman who is standing close, runs rapidly with him to his place, while another one switches him in the rear. He is thus taught that the sound of that gong means that he must run out of the stall or get a whipping. Of course the horse is never hurt, as firemen take the best care of their horses of any men in the world. This lesson is repeated day by day until the horse thoroughly understands what is expected of him and so proficient do they become that they will even run their necks under the collars and stand ready for the harness to drop on them. This dropping of the harness is done by a man who climbs up on the engine. He jerks a cord and the harness drops directly over the horses and as there are no buckles on which time may be wasted, but simply a series of snaps, little time is wasted. But even this takes a quick eye and a steady hand as one very serious accident occurred only a few years ago, when a fireman for- got to fasten the snap of the inner side of the bit of one of thehorses in a double team. Of course the driver took it for granted that everything was all right and started out and made his turn and then with full speed, started to make another turn, when he saw at once that he had no control over the horses at all. One of them was thrown down and badly hurt and a por- tion of the engine was wrecked and it is very fortunate that some of the firemen were not hurt, or even killed. This only goes to show how careful these firemen must be about every little detail.
It will be remembered that I have spoken of changing the department from a simple paid department to one working under the Metropolitan police and fire arrangement. In 1889 Edward Grill, who had gone into the army at the age of 15 as a quartermaster sergeant and had served well and faithfully, was appointed chief at the same time U. S. Grant, who is the present chief of the fire department, entered the service as a captain. Edward Grill served until 1895 during which time they had the apparatus last mentioned. In 1895 William Schlavick was appointed, being promoted
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from the ranks. His conduct and his ability as a fireman of rapid and good judgment, caused him this promotion which was quite a good one. At that time the city had ten hose houses and two chemicals. It might be stated that at present the city has only one chemical, as it was decided to drop the other after the new combination hose wagons were put in. In 1897 Charles S. Woods was appointed chief and served until 1901. There was no in- crease in the complement of engines, trucks, chemicals or hose houses. In 1901 Sydnor R. Carter was apointed chief and served until 1903. At this time there was still no change, but in 1903 James L. Dunlevy, a democrat, was appointed and he served for seven years, going out of office in 1910. In the meantime, two new hose houses had been built, one of the chemicals had been dropped, two combination wagons had been added, two trucks which had been in commission for same time were still retained, and the five fire engines had been put in complete order. In fact, two of these en- gines were new engines and the others had been sent back to the factory and had been completely remodeled so that the city today has five first- class engines.
The writer took occasion to have a long talk with the present fire chief Mr. U. S. Grant, who has served 21 years in the department. He has held the four positions, of private, captain, assistant chief and chief, and it is indeed a worthy record for any one man to hold. But as I stated in this same article, men today hold their positions in this department by virtue of their ability and nothing else. A man might attempt to get on the fire de- partment and might be a wonderful aid to whatever administration hap- pened to be in power, but if he failed in his duty when called upon, he would last only a short time. In fact, on either fire or police department of the greater city of Evansville today, workers and not sitters are what are wanted. Chief Grant has several ideas of which he spoke to the writer. One is that there is no necessity for an outlay of money on any more hose houses at present, but that what the city needs are automobile hose wagons and chemicals combined. He has visited several cities and has seen the rapidity with which fires can be reached with means of this kind, and now that the automobile is being so generally used in almost every line of busi- ness, and not only by the man who uses it for his own pleasure but for the business man who uses it for fast and heavy work, it may be only a short time until the fire horse which so long has been the pride of Evansville may be relegated to the past and all of the fire work will be done by auto- mobiles.
Again speaking of the fire horses, and the writer must admit that he always had a warm place in his heart for them, for surely they are the most intelligent and lovable animals and are the pets of the whole depart- ment, mention might be made of old Turk who was in the department for many years and died at the age of 21. Many of our old citizens will re- member the big parade in which the department took part, and how old Turk walked along in his regular place and seemed to enjoy it as much as
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any one who took part. There was also a gray horse which served quite well and faithfully. Since Chief Grant took charge, he has gone carefully over all the stock and found that while the majority of the horses are in good condition, there are many whose legs have given down and are unable to make the long runs. As to their spirit and will power, many of these grand old horses would go until they dropped, but the work on the streets is awful on any horse, as is well known to any man who loves a horse, and he has decided to dispose of quite a number. He has already taken out five which, though unfit for fast runs of the fire department, are amply able to do good work and they have been sent to the country where they are likely to live many a long year, and on the soft ground and with no fast work they will suffer no pain whatever in their legs. This is as it should be, and he deserves credit for this step that he has taken, for what man with any humanity in his heart, can see an old and faithful servant sold to eke out a miserable existence in some old wagon, taken away from the good feed and good treatment that he has always had, and compelled to end his life half-starved and beaten and abused. It is very probable that Chief Grant will apply for a change in the aerial trucks. As it now stands, the smaller one is virtually a light ladder wagon of very little use, while the heavy one is as much too heavy as the other is too light. Again, they are both behind the times and not up with the modern improved trucks, which are now in vogue in all the large cities. His idea is to outfit this department until it will be on a par with that of the cities of its size and larger, all over the country. Again, this larger ladder has to be raised by hand and it sometimes takes as long as two minutes to get it into position and two min- utes at a hot fire means a great deal. There is a compressed air ladder now made which will fill the bill and also one made with a spring which can be manipulated by one man and either of these or both are what the fire department now needs.
At this writing the department consists of 80 firemen and 47 horses. Chief Grant thinks that it would be desirable to have a few more men, but in view of the present condition of the city treasury, he does not hope to get them just at present. He claims, however, that there should be one more man at each of the hose houses, as at the present time there are only four at the single houses, and with a lay-off it virtually causes only three men to be on duty four days during the week. If any more new hose houses are built and the city continues to progress, these changes can prob- ably be made without any trouble.
LAND SHARKS.
It must not be assumed that the first settlers who came here were able to get absolute control of their little farms without some trouble. There seems to be an impression that in the early days of southern Indiana, the land had belonged to the Indians and had ben transferred for a song to
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settlers and then by some means had passed into the hands of the govern- ment and that all the government cared for was to get the land settled up. Many of the old pioneers believed this and consequently they would pick out some spot that struck their fancy and immediately proceed to erect an humble cabin and to clear up and for several years would think nothing of the rights of ownership, but speak of it as their farm and really believed that it belonged to them, when as a matter of fact, they had not paid out a cent for it. They came here before the land had even been surveyed, but it was understood among themselves even with their small knowledge of law, that whenever the land was surveyed and had to be paid for, they would stand by each other and protect each other, and the man who would seek by underhand means to take away a little settlement from another, was looked on as being little better than a horse thief. There were mean men, however, in those days just as there are today, who would not stop to take any advantage they could over their neighbors, and these fellows were generally blessed with enough education to be able to get the better of the more ignorant ones. There was one case where a man had picked out a nice little place, in the northern part of Vanderburg County and had made substantial improvements. After the land was surveyed he went to Vin- cennes to make the proper payment for it and to get the last $50, had sent his wife on a long trip to an uncle who had loaned to the couple. When he got to Vincennes he found that a neighbor that lived only two miles away, had slipped into Vincennes ahead of him and had bought the land, making a claim that the first party had not complied with the law, etc. The man returned home and told the sad news to his wife and to several of his neighbors and they did not hesitate to go to the fellow who had bought the land and tell him that he might take the land if he wanted it away from the poor fellow, but if he did that each time one of them passed the place they would stop and give him, the mean fellow, a good thrashing. At first he took it as a joke and hugged his mean soul over the smooth trick he had played, but he met with quite a surprise. He was very mean and his neighbors all despised him and the surprise was that in a day or two one of these neighbors rode up calmly, hitched his horse to the fence, walked up to the mean fellow who attempted to shake hands with him and turned and gave him a most beautiful thrashing, blackened both of his eyes and blooded his nose in good shape. He then informed him that he thought one of the neighbors would be along the next day and he might as well get in shape for him. It only took this one thrashing to settle this fellow. He went to Vincennes, squared up things and the original man got the farm.
Another case was where two men each wanted a 40-acre tract that lay between them. One of them only had 40 acres while the other had a good farm of 160 acres. The man with the good farm got to Vincennes and had the necessary papers made out and acquired the 40 acres. The second man hurried to Vincennes and met the first one on the road. The first one
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showed that he was not a bad fellow at heart, for after talking the matter over amicably he let him have the 40 acres and loaned him the money to go and buy another 40 acres which lay adjoining his and which he got at a very low price. Thus each had a good farm and became the best or friends. Their children inter-married and today their descendants are among some of our best citizens.
In another place the land speculation of 1832 has been mentioned where an eastern syndicate got hold of a great body of land for a song. They imagined that they could send their representatives out here and proceed to take whatever land they wanted. They sent spies to examine into the lay of the land but they were soon spied by the farmers who in their turn sent their spies out. Finally a syndicate sent a number of men who were to go to work and take the legal steps and take possession. In the meantime, the farmers had put up a beautiful scheme and had dressed up as Indians with war paint and all the necessry things to make a first-class warrior. When the little band of land agents got to a certain place they were surprised to see Indians coming from every direction with blood curdling war whoops. The spy that the farmers had fixed immediately began to yell that they were all going to be murdered, and lying down on his horse, started off at a dead run. The blood thirsty Indians followed them, shooting blank cartridges and still running after them until they threw such a scare into them that it was said afterwards that some of them ran clear into Terre Haute. Un- fortunately this trick was not known except to the farmers who took part and news of an awful bloodthirsty Indian raid soon spread all over the country. The governor at Indianapolis called out the militia and soon word was sent all over the state to repair old forts and build new block houses, and a perfect reign of terror existed for a while, but as the Indians com- pletely vanished from sight, the scare soon died out and became a thing of the past.
There was one little funny incident. A farmer who was out in the woods and who had a wife and seven children saw these Indians and at once lit out for home where he rapidly told his wife to get the children and light out, as there were a thousand Indians coming there and they would not only kill and scalp them both, but all of the children. But his wife had been raised on the Kentucky side of the Ohio and was well used to false alarms about Indians, so when her husband brought the horse and cart to the door to tumble in the children and what things they could hastily get together, she simply asked him to leave the gun and the ammunition with her and that she did not propose to give up her home for any Indian that ever lived and that the first one she saw prowling around there would get a bullet right through the head. The husband, however, still had a yellow streak and bid her an affectionate good-bye, telling her that he would never see her again alive, and that if it was not for the children he would stay and fight with her. He immediately left and was gone for two days, during
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which it is needless to say that he never saw or heard of an Indian. He then started back home and the story goes that he found his wife sitting by a little spinning wheel busy making thread, while with one foot she was rocking the baby which was sound asleep. Looking around the house the brave man saw a fine fat gobbler all dressed and ready for roasting and on the wall hung a big coon skin. He said, "Mandy, what in thunderation have you been using my powder for?" "Never mind, Ebenizer, there is plenty left. If you hear of an Indian crossing the Mississippi you won't need it, because next time you will go clear out of the country."
To show further the bravery of the women of those days, down close to the Ohio river near here, lived a very quiet and inoffensive man who had a wife and two children. It is supposed that a party of men wanted to get hold of his little farm, for he surely had never done anything to injure any- body and did not know that he had an enemy on earth. One morning he found a bundle of switches at the door. This meant, in the old times, "Get out or you will be whipped." But he paid no attention to it and a few days afterwards he found another bundle and with it a crude note, telling him that he had better leave, as they did not want him there. He hardly knew what to do, so as the notice spoke of him only and gave him a certain time to leave, he was very badly worried. But his wife said that the best thing for him to do was to go back to his old home in Ohio and she would stay there, as certainly no man in that section would be low and mean enough to attach a defenseless woman. As soon as he reached his home he sent his wife's sister to live with her. The day before the time limit and after the husband had been some time in Ohio, still another bundle of switches was found at the door and a note threatening to switch and tar and feather the two women if they did not leave by a certain time. They decided, however, to make a fight for it. They had a large and vicious dog that they kept in the house at night and they loaded up a big musket with slugs and kept it on the table and fastened the door. When the last night came that had been stated in the notice, a loud knock was heard. The women told whoever was there to get away, saying that if they came into the house that they would regret it. There were seven or eight men in the party and they took a heavy rail and soon broke in the door. When it fell, the woman was there with the musket and as the men tried to rush in, it was discharged right in their faces. There were loud cries of pain and two men were seen carried away and soon the clatter of horses' feet was heard on the road and there was no more trouble. The strange thing was that two very prominent men were missing out of the section and the word was given out that they had gone down the river to live, for they never re- turned. The man came back from Ohio and was never again molested. He raised a large family of children who were as good and honest as their parents and today the descendants of this very couple who were so threat- ened, own a great amount of territory near where the affair occurred.
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