Pastime sketches : scenes and events at "The Mouth of Eel" on the historic Wabash with papers read before the Cass County Indiana, Historical Society at its spring meetings, 1907, Part 10

Author: Wright, W. Swift (Williamson Swift), 1857-1923; Cass County Historical Society (Ind.)
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: [s.l. : s.n.]
Number of Pages: 236


USA > Indiana > Cass County > Pastime sketches : scenes and events at "The Mouth of Eel" on the historic Wabash with papers read before the Cass County Indiana, Historical Society at its spring meetings, 1907 > Part 10


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On the southside of Market from Third to the alley, the buildings were one story. The only occu- pants I can remember were George Parker, barber, Joe Green, shoemaker, and Mart Gridley, jeweler. On a space between the alley and the Mansion House stood the dwelling and garden of George B. Walker. On the northside of Market between the Hanna, McClary & Dart building and the alley, there were two one-story buildings, saloons. From the alley east to Fourth street, there were three two-story frame store buildings. The first was occupied by S. P. Hopkins, dry goods dealer, the second by Spencer & Rice, groceries and provisions, and the third by Jeroloman & Lytle's drug store. The other build- ings were all one story. The corner one where Por- ter's drug store now stands was occupied by Barton R. Keep as a hardware store. Across the street on


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the northeast corner of Fourth and Market, stood the old brick Seminary. It was a one-story building about 20 by 60, with its side to Market street, en- trance door in the middle to a hallway running straight through the building, dividing it into two rooms of equal size.


There were no business houses on Market east of Fourth. The Market street bridge embankment reached nearly to the alley. There were a few cheap two-story dwelling houses on the southside of the street, two of which were occupied by old John Dorsey as a tavern or boarding house.


The Philip Leamy, house, a brick structure, stood on the corner of Fourth and Canal streets, near the present P. C. C. & St. L. depot. Israel Johnson was the only merchant on Fourth street. He lived in a brick house that stood where the Stewart Dry Goods store is now located. His store was a two- story frame building adjoining his dwelling. He was in the grocery and provision business. In ad- dition to this he kept a cafe in a building adjoin- ing his store room. On the east side of Third street, near Market, John Dodd had a restaurant in a brick building, which is still standing. Just opposite this was the office of Dr. G. N. Fitch, the bakery of Coul- son & Clem, and the shoe shop of George P. Dagan. At the northwest corner of Third and Broadway, J. P. Berry kept a little store, adjoining which was the tin shop of A. M. Higgins. Next to this came the office and dwelling of Dr. Uriah Farquhar, and then the office of George Weirick, Esq., justice of the peace. Opposite this, on the east side of the street, W. T. S. Manly and Israel Neal had a furniture and undertaking establishment. On the west side of the street between North and High streets near


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Eel river, the McElhaney Brothers had, I think, a blacksmith shop. The firm of Tipton & Vigus, suc- cessors to Todd & Vigus, was the only business house on Broadway, and was located in a small two-story brick building, standing on the ground now occupied by the Murdock Hotel.


The business of our merchants at this time was quite limited. The canal was not yet completed to the junction of the Ohio canal. No shipments of produce could be made without expensive hauling, and it was expensive getting their goods here. The cheapest way to get them was by steamboat to La- fayette, when the rivers were high, and haul from there. Farmers having considerable surplus were obliged to haul it to Michigan City, the nearest shipping point, and return with salt and other ar- ticles which were necessarily higher here, but it took several days to make the trip, especially when the roads were bad, which was usually the case.


We had no bank and it was very difficult to pro- cure exchange. The currency in circulation was mostly sent out west by eastern banks to get it as far away from home as possible. Our small silver change and gold was largely foreign. Copper cents were not used at all. Nothing was sold for less than a fip, which was 614 cents, and a bit, 1212 cents. Every merchant was obliged to take a monthly Bank Note Detector and a Coin Chart, and keep them hanging very handy for reference. In addi- tion to this there was in circulation canal scrip, paid out to contractors for work on the canal. There were two kinds of this scrip called White Dog and Blue Pup. It was redeemable in canal lands.


Logansport was granted a city charter in 1838 with a population of only about one thousand. Evi-


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dently its citizens had great expectations. The sud- den death of General Tipton, which occurred on the morning of April 5, 1839, after a few hours of unconsciousness, in the meridian of life-his 54th year-cast a gloom of sadness over the city and surrounding country. His funeral on Sunday, April 7, 1839, which I attended, was conducted by his Ma- sonic brethren, and the largest ever before known in this section of country.


At this time there were but two church build- ings or meeting houses. The Methodist Episcopal, a one-story brick building on the east side of Sixth street between Broadway and North, and the Pres- byterian, a one-story frame building on the south side of Broadway between. Fifth and Sixth streets, set back from Broadway so far that the back end reached the alley. This building is still standing. The pastor of this Presbyterian church was Dr. Martin M. Post. There being no Baptist Sunday school, I attended the Presbyterian Sabbath school, of which Nathan Aldrich was then superintendent. The division of the Presbyterian church into two branches, the old and the new school, did not take place until 1840. The new school, represented by Dr. Post retained the church building and property. The first pastor of the old school division was the Rev. James Buchanan. They worshipped in the second story of a two-story frame building which stood on the northwest corner of Broadway and Fourth, where Henry Wiler & Co. are now located.


The courts were first held in the old Seminary building, but that being too small, they were often held in the Presbyterian church. The judges, I remember, were Judge Henry Chase, father of Dud- ley H. Chase, and Associate Judges Solomon Hor-


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ney and H. L. Thomas. The lawyers were W. Z. Stuart, D. D. Pratt, John S. Patterson, John F. Dodds, Horace P. Biddle and A. M. Flory. Justices of the peace were R. F. Groves, George Weirick, George Smith and James W. Dunn.


The jail was constructed of hewn logs. The fol- lowing story is connected with this jail. In 1837 a shoemaker by the name of Harrison, whose shop was near Eel river, committeed a murder. He was arrested, tried, convicted and sentenced to be hung at a certain time. A gallows, constructed of hewn logs, was set up on the commons near Eel river be- tween Ninth and Tenth streets, for the purpose. The date for the hanging was pretty well published and people came from all the country round about, on foot and on horseback, and in all kinds of convey- ances to witness the execution. The night before he was to be executed, he hung himself in the jail. It is said that the people who came to witness the sight were very angry when they learned they had been cheated out of it. The gallows stood there for several years until it rotted down. I have seen his grave in the old cemetery, with his sign placed be- side the mound to designate it.


The newspapers published at this time were the Logansport Telegraph by Hyacinth Laselle and John B. Dillon, the Logansport Herald by J. C. & David Douglass, and the Wabash Gazette by Moses Scott, with H. P. Biddle as editor in chief. In 1842 when the Wabash and Erie canal was completed down the Maumee river to its junction with the Ohio canal, giving us an outlet to Lake Erie, Lo- gansport took a wonderful start, the nearest it ever came to a boom. The country north to the Tippecanoe river and beyond, and for twenty-five or


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thirty miles south became tributary to this point. Produce of all kinds was hauled here, sold to our merchants, and shipped to eastern markets. Our merchants, manufacturers and mechanics all got busy, money became more plentiful, warehouses and store buildings were constructed, and a remark- able spirit of enterprise and prosperity prevailed among all classes. During 1843, 4 and 5, large stone warehouses were constructed by Pollard & Wilson, near the lock; by Jesse Millason at the northeast corner of Market and Fifth ; by the Rod- gers Brothers between Market and Broadway; by Peter Anderson at the southeast corner of Broad- way and Fifth streets; and by Israel Johnson be- tween North and High street. These buildings are all still standing, although the most of them have changed ownership.


In 1843, the following new merchants located here, Henry Martin & Co., M. S. Butler, A. J. Field & Co., Stephen Munson, William Brown & Son, and Saulsbury & Baxter. Heretofore, our only way to travel eastward was either to go by canal to Ft. Wayne, and by perogue down the Maumee river, or by stage to Indianapolis, by Madison and Indian- apolis Railroad to Madison, and by steamboat to Cincinnati.


Now, we could take a packet boat on the canal, and travel night and day at the rate of six miles an hour. The rule was, three horses to a boat chang- ing horses every ten miles. Every boat had a por- ter, and like present porters on our sleeping cars, a part of his perquisite was what he could get for blacking the passengers shoes. I remember once on a trip to Cincinnati when the passengers began to retire to their very narrow contracted berths, one


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man did not remove his shoes and allowed them to be discernable. The porter came along and notic- ing them, remarked, "Just look! that man has gone to bed like a horse, with his shoes on."


Merchants could now, while- navigation was open from six to seven months of the year, get mer- chandise from Cincinnati in three or four days' time, and from New York it took about three weeks, as it came by steamer from New York to Al- bany, by canal from Albany to Buffalo, by steamer from Buffalo to Toledo, and by canal again from Toledo to Logansport.


While our merchants duly appreciated the ad- vantages of water transportation, enabling them to obtain large reductions in freight, they still labored under the great disadvantage of having navigation closed for about half the year. In the fall it was necessary to make large purchases to last until the opening of navigation in the spring. Just contrast that condition of things with the present. Now, our merchants are receiving goods every day in the year, except Sunday. It was customary in those days to purchase goods on six months' time. That was the understanding with manufacturers, jobbers and retailers. The customer was allowed the pre- vailing rate of interest on any payments he might make before the bill became due.


In 1843, at the age of 16, I commenced clerking for the firm of Henry Martin & Co. It was then I first met Mr. John C. Merriam, with whom I was afterward associated in partnership for thirty-five years. He was eight years older than I, and an ex- perienced dry goods merchant. He was from Bran- don, Vermont, on his way west looking for a loca- tion, when he fell in company with Mr. Henry Mar-


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tin, who in connection with a Mr. Bartlett, of New York, had shipped a stock of goods to Fort Wayne, with the intention of locating there. When they reached Fort Wayne, a vacant store room could not be found, and Mr. Martin concluded to forward the goods to Logansport. Mr. Martin then persuaded Mr. Merriam to accompany him here and assist in opening and preparing his goods for sale. The store room on Market street now occupied by An- drew Welch was leased and occupied by the firm as long as it continued in business here, which was about two years. Mr. Merriam was so well pleased with the city and its people that he decided to re- main. Mr. Martin also employed Mr. E. B. Strong, an old resident well acquainted with the people of the city and country. At the expiration of about a year Mr. Bartlett made arrangements with Mr. Mer- riam to establish a store in Monticello, and he went there to take charge of it. During the year 1844 Mr. Bartlett closed up the business of Henry Martin & Co., here, and sold to Mr. Merriam his interest in the store at Monticello. In the summer of 1845 Mr. Merriam employed me to take charge of his store at Monticello, while he took a trip east. Yes, he went east, but he went south first to Kentucky where he married Mrs. Merriam, and together they went to their old home in Vermont to spend their honey- moon. He was gone nearly three months, leaving me entirely alone, in that hamlet, at that time so very uninteresting.


It was during my stay there that a tornado swept over Logansport, unroofing part of the new court house, Knowlton and Dows Foundry and Machine Shop, destroyed the Market House, damaged sev- eral other buildings, and according to the descrip-


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tion of Enion Kendall, carried away the hat of the County Treasurer Howes, containing a lot of "ver- bal orders."


In October following that summer I accepted the position of clerk and bookkeeper for Pollard & Wilson, which I held for seven years from 1845 to 1852. In addition to dry goods and general mer- chandise, the firm dealt in grain and all kinds of country produce, but they had never tried the pack- ing of pork. The season for pork packing in those days was from about the first of December to the middle of January. There was no good market for it at any other time. Now, there is a good market for it all the time. A Mr. Seering from New York used to come our every season and join Israel John- son in packing at his warehouse on the canal, and they found the business profitable. In the year 1847, Pollard & Wilson and Taber & Chase con- cluded to unite and try their luck at the business. Pork was quite low that season, the price running from 1.87 to 2.25 per hundred. The average price of the pork purchased was 2.10. When navigation opened the next spring the price had declined and continued to decline until mid-summer. They fi- nally shipped their mess pork and lard and sold it at a small loss, and to reduce their loss as much as possible, had the hams and shoulders smoked and retailed them out during the summer and fall. By this tedious and troublesome method they reduced their loss to a little less than one thousand dollars. In the summer of 1848 I made a trip on horseback through a part of Howard, Cass and Carroll coun- ties to make the acquaintance of country merchants and persuade them to consign their grain to us. A great many farmers were clearing up their lands


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and raised but little surplus grain, not enough to justify them in hauling it twenty to twenty-five miles. Therefore, they would sell it to their nearby merchants who kept teams to haul it as fast as it ac- cumulated. My business was to induce these mer- chants to send their grain to us. I visited Kokomo, New London, Russiaville, and many small places that have since, no doubt, been converted into corn- fields.


Kokomo had at that time, as I remember, four merchants, occupying the public square. There was but one tavern, a two-story frame building, painted white, and located away from the public square. There was but one two-story brick building, owned and occupied by David Foster, quite a prominent fur trader, and one of our regular customers.


From 1848 to 1855 some new business firms were organized, and quite a number of new merchants lo- cated here. Some of these were Culbertson & Mc- Carty, dry goods, Culbertson afterward going into the hardware business. They were located on the southeast corner of Broadway and Fourth. John T. Musselman was north side of Market between Second and Third, Tanguy & Barnheisel, south side of Broadway between Fourth and Fifth. Business began moving eastward on Market street, Fourth street and Broadway, brick blocks were be- ing erected on Market, Fourth and both sides of Broadway between Fourth and Fifth. Bachman & Puterbaugh located on the north side of Broadway, in general merchandise business. T. C. Mitchell, boots and shoes, north side of Broadway. A. J. Murdock came in 1852. Henry Murdock in 1854. J. W. McCaughey, dry goods, south 'side of Broad- way, W. P. Thompson, dry goods, south side of


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Broadway. Brick blocks were erected on Broad- way by Dolan & McHale and Patterson & Tomlin- son.


. In 1848 J. C. Merriam sold out his interest in his store in Monticello to his partner, Mr. Reynolds, returned here, and purchased the interest of Cyrus Taber in the firm of Taber & Chase, and the firm of Chase, Merriam & Smith was organized. M. S. Butler had purchased a few years before, a lot on the north side of Market street between Fourth and Pearl streets, and erected thereon a brick block, con- taining two store rooms one of which he occupied himself. This was the block recently torn down by Dr. Jordan and replaced with one of four stories. Mr. Butler for some reason sold this building and removed his stock of goods west.


One of these rooms being vacant at this time, it was leased by the new firm of Chase, Merriam & Smith, and they moved their stock of goods into it. In 1852, four years later, the firm of Wilson, Mer- riam & Co., was organized, the company being Mr. M. H. Thomas and myself. This firm purchased the interest of Colonel Philip Pollard in the firm of Pollard & Wilson, and the interest of Chase and Smith in the firm of Chase, Merriam & Smith, com- bining the two stocks. It also purchased the Butler building, removed the partition wall, converting the two rooms into one, and occupied it, together with the two floors above, and the two wings in the rear.


In the years between 1840 and 1850 our mer- chants, while doing a good, safe and flourishing business were greatly handicapped for lack of bank- ing facilities. Exchange was scarce and high. Specie was often at a premium because silver and gold was


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the only money that could be used in entering land. The United States Land Office was located at Win- amac, twenty-five miles away. The roads were in their primitive state, receiving no attention except where bridges and corduroys were absolutely neces- sary to get along at all. The trip was usually made on horseback, the specie being carried in saddle bags. In those days of horseback transportation, a pair of saddle bags was a necessity, and were kept for sale at the saddler shop and some of the stores.


The first railroad to reach our city was the New Castle and Richmond in 1855. It had its terminous on the south side of the Wabash river. The To- ledo, Wabash and Western, now the Wabash Val- ley, reached here in 1856.


With a little incident that occurred in 1865, for- ty-two years ago, I will close. The merchants of Broadway, of whom there were many, on both sides of the street at that time, in their advertise- ments began to branch out into poetry. This was especially true of the firm of Bachman & Puter- baugh. To match them and keep up the reputation of Market street, in a spirit of fun and rivalry, the firm of which I was a member published a column advertisement in rhyme which I have put into a pamphlet for your entertainment.


PAPER OF MR. JOSEPH PATTERSON READ BEFORE THE CASS COUNTY, INDIANA, HISTORICAL SOCIETY, MAY 17, 1907.


The subject of roads, travel and transportation of merchandise is one that has interested the world at large perhaps to greater extent than any other. From the time that Adam and Eve began their


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tramp from the Garden of Eden until the citizens of Logansport undertook to pave North street, the cry of better roads and better means of traffic has agitated the public brain until it seems to have ex- hausted itself as to means by land and water and now is making rapid strides to traverse the unlim- ited space above the earth, which the streets of our city and the highways of our county are perfection, compared with the conditions sixty-three years ago when my observation began. About May 1st, A. D. 1844, my father with his family in a wagon drawn by three horses, started near Miflin, Juniatta county, Pennsylvania, for the classic Wabash and Logans- port, and during the six weeks of continuous travel necessary to reach our goal, the only means of con- veyance we saw aside from stage coach wagons and horseback was a steamboat at Wheeling, W. Va., and one at Zaneville, O. The difference in the condition of the roads from our starting point to Indianapolis and from Indianapolis to Logansport was so great that we were eight days coming from the Capital city to this city via the Michigan road. That road at that time was the style of all the roads in Cass county, bridged nearly continuous with poles or rails. Much labor was lost on the road work because of the transient conditions. They were not permanently located and when a settler sought to establish his lines and corners it was no uncommon occurrence to take in a half mile of old road and the public was obliged to open another, and such conditions prevailed to a large extent un- til in the sixties and enough money and labor had been spent on the roads of Cass county had it been honestly and systematically applied to have every road in the county a substantial pike, and the team-


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ster would not have to stop his work or pay a fine for driving on the public highway which he has a perfect right to do. In 1844 and for many years after, the streets of the city were of original earth and during the springtime as the winter was pass- ing away, the streets in many places were impass- able. I saw a team of two yoke of oxen hauling a load of lumber stall, at the intersection of Sixth and North streets as late as 1853. The only means of conveyance previous to 1854 or 55 was by canal boat, stage coach, wagon and horseback. Farmers, unless they had hauling, always came to town on horseback, and it was an every day occurrence to see the wife or daughter of the farmer ride up to the hitching post, dismount, hitch the horse and go off, do her numerous errands and meet the greetings and smiles of all with whom she met; those were happy days, friendship and joy in health, and help and sympathy in sickness and distress. When a young man wanted to take his best girl to a gath- ering of any kind, he saddled up his horse, spread a sheep-skin back of his saddle, rode along a stump, fence or a log and the young lady would jump to her seat at his back and their trip began. These conditions as to roads prevailed up to about the year 1851, or 1852. About this date the subject of plank roads was introduced and the Michigan road, as it was called, was improved by the covering of the road with two-inch boards twelve feet long. This was done by grading the middle of the road to some degree of uniformity ; three pieces of square timber were laid lengthwise and the two-inch plank were spiked on. This made a very fair road for one or two years, then the plank began to split, break, curl up, rot and get loose, and it went to the bad


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much faster than it could be repaired and the traffic was diverted partly because it was a toll road, and also on account of the rough condition. This road reached to Fulton north and to Deer Creek south, and was tolerated until about 1867-1868, when the subject of gravel roads was introduced and a com- pany was organized both north and south of the city and the work was pushed with considerable vigor until the Michigan road was fairly well sanded ten miles to the north and seven to the south, since which time we are all familiar with the gravel roads of Cass county. The first substantial street im- provement was done in 1854, in which year Third street was ballasted with crushed stone and such improvement has spasmodically continued to the present date. About the year 1880-85 the old canal began to disappear, the high bridges had all been removed and the appearance of the city was much better.


In the year 1854, the first locomotive appeared in our city. It came from the east on a flat canal boat, and was unloaded at what is now the south- west corner of Fifth and Broadway and hauled on a track of square hewed logs, by three yoke of oxen owned and driven by Sam Berryman, down Broad- way to Third and south on Third across the Wa- bash and placed on the track of the first railway built in Logansport, and when completed reached to Kokomo. The only remnant now visible is the pit for the turn-table, a square west of Burlington pike at the creamery, where the station and freight house was also located.


During the summer of 1855 the grading was nearly completed by the Wabash railroad company. Piles were driven by horse power on the island ;


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considerable work was done on abutments for the bridge and about the middle of March, 1856, the first locomotive of the Wabash railroad entered our city and was met by the band which escorted the of- ficials to the Cullen House, corner Second and Mar- ket streets, where they were entertained by a dance that night. During the summer of 1856, this road was completed to Lafayette, then ended the days of the stage coach between our city and Lafayette and also to Indianapolis.




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