USA > Kansas > Crawford County > A Twentieth century history and biographical record of Crawford County, Kansas > Part 9
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But to return to Edwin. the rival town. Col. Edwin Brown was early interested in the new camp on Carbon creek, which had been named after him. He brought Jack Armel, a railroad contractor, who had been engaged in the construction of the railroad from Girard to Joplin, to Carbon creek with him, and Armel leased the land where Jeff Bed- ford had put down his shaft, and then he sent to Ohio for a couple of young men who have ever since been actively identified with business af- fairs in this county. They were James .\. Patmor and brother Charles. The former is now president of the Pittsburg First State Bank, and the latter is superintendent of the gas and electric light plant.
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The Patmor brothers brought with them from Ohio a steam shovel outfit, and commenced active operations stripping by steam north of Edwin. Charles Patmor opened the first coal pits at Midway about this time. In the meantime an important change had taken place at Pitts- burg. Peter Coyle, the active manager of the Coyle coal business, took sick and died, and his brother, Matt, sold the business to some Oswego, Kansas, capitalists, who had formed the Oswego Coal Company. At the head of this company was B. F. Hobart, who later became promi- nently identified with coal interests in the county, and especially in Pitts- burg, as the head of the Kansas & Texas Coal Company, and large real estate interests in Pittsburg. With Mr. Hobart in the Oswego Coal Company was C. M. Condon, a wealthy capitalist of Oswego.
The Oswego Coal Company acquired the land of the Coyle brothers, and in the spring of 1880 sunk a second shaft, known as No. 2. This shaft was put down on what is now known as the Hull & Dillon farm, northeast of Pittsburg, about three-quarters of a mile this side of Litch- field.
Before this, however, the name of the camp on Carbon creek had been changed from Edwin to Carbon, on account of another postoffice of the name of Edwin being in existence at that time in the state. The Patmor brothers were getting out a large quantity of coal with their steam shovel, and had associated with them in the enterprise Mel Snow, who later became prominent in affairs in Pittsburg, and was one of the town's early mayors. It was just about this time that William Ham- ilton, now at the head of the Hamilton Coal Company, of Weir, bought the old "Brigham Young" slope, and converted it into a shaft, sinking a shaft and putting in a steam hoist.
The Oswego Coal Company commenced extensive operations at Carbon in 1880, and that winter Bill Weaver took a contract to build
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twenty-eight company houses in the camp for the Oswego Coal Com- pany. These were the first "company houses" built there. A. M. Wat- son, now of Pittsburg, aided in constructing the houses. A company store was also built, the first in the county, and T. P. Waskey, now at the head of the Waskey-Kassebaum Commission Company, in Pitts- burg, was, if the writer's information is correct, the first manager of the store. This old company store was the school which graduated many of the prominent business men of Pittsburg. Among the men who were connected with this old store were W. C. Seymour, of the Seymour Dry Goods Company. Ed Nevius, superintendent of the Nevius Coal Com- pany, John Tracey, city clerk of Pittsburg, and other prominent Pitts- burg men were identified with the store as managers,
In 1880 T. R. Jones and David Arnott sunk a gin shaft at Carbon, which Arnott "bossed." Arnott was one of the pioneer coal men of the county, and until recent years was at the head of the Arnott Coal Com- pany. He is now superintendent of the Dickey & Mullholland shaft near Mulberry. This shaft was first known as No. 5, and when steam was used it was later called No. 10.
When the St. Louis & San Francisco Railroad Company acquired the Moffat & Sergeant railroad, the railroad company also acquired the coal property of the Oswego Coal Company, and this was the entrance of the Frisco into the coal industry in this county, and it has ever since been an important factor in the mining industry.
When this change occurred in 1882 the Rogers Coal Company was formed to control the coal interests, the company being named after General Superintendent Rogers, of the railroad. The company soon sunk No. 3 mine near Playter's Lake. About the same time No. 4 mine. a slope, was opened south of the present fine residence of J. B. Smith. The Rogers Coal Company now practically controlled the coal industry
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of the county. The Frisco was the only railroad tapping the coal dis- trict, and every ton of coal shipped by other operators was compelled to pay a high tribute in the way of exorbitant freight rates. Mining operations were practically suspended by independent operators.
In 1882 Charles Wood Davis, or "Cottonwood" Davis, as he was known, who had been superintendent for the Oswego Coal Company, Major Rombauer, who had also been identified with that company, and Charles Patmor purchased the Michilds one hundred and twenty acres, in the south and east part of Pittsburg, the tract now comprising the residence section east of Broadway and south of First street. They formed the Pittsburg Coal Company, and sunk and equipped a first- class shaft, which was located east of the building now called the Southern Hotel. This company experienced the same trouble that the other inde- pendent operators did, not being able to get cars from the Frisco, and finally the independents and other interests of the town arose, and headed by "Cottonwood" Davis succeeded in getting the Gulf road to build down from Minden, through Pittsburg. this being now the Ar- cadia-Cherryvale branch of the Frisco.
This gave the companies an outlet besides the Frisco, and with the opening of this road came a revival of coal operations on the part of the independent operators.
The shaft of the Pittsburg Coal Company was known as shaft "A." It was sunk by the late John R. Braidwood, who at the time of his recent tragie death, was connected with his father-in-law, William Hamilton, in the Hamilton & Braidwood Coal Company. Mr. Braidwood was superintendent of the mine until the winter of 1883, when he left to become underground superintendent for the Rogers Coal Company. John Kilholland was pit boss of the shaft.
In the meantime the Rogers Coal Company had not been idle. The
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company had expanded its territory, and put down three shafts at Weir, Nos. 5, 6 and 7. The next shaft in this county was No. 8, which was put down near No. 4 at the site of the Smith residence at Fairview. Be- fore, this, however, the name of the coal town on Carbon creek had again been changed from Carbon to Litchfield on account of the name conflicting with Carbondale, another Kansas postoffice. The Rogers Company opened up its ninth mine at Litchfield in 1884. near the junction of the Memphis road with the Litchfield spur. Two other shafts, Nos. IO and II, were put down at Litchfield soon after.
In 1885 the Rogers Coal Company again changed its name. The state legislature had passed a law providing that railroad companies should not own coal lands or do a coal business, and in order to evade this law, it is claimed, the Rogers Coal Company was dissolved, and the Kansas & Texas Coal Company was formed. The company was very intimately related to the Frisco railroad, however.
After the Kansas & Texas Coal Company commenced business, it put down seven more mines in this county, all but two of them being sunk in Pittsburg. No. 12 was put down at the foot of Sixth street in the Goff addition, in 1885; No. 13 at what is now about Broadway and Twenty-third street, in 1885; No. 15 at the present site of the Hull & Dillon packing house, in 1886; No. 20 west of Cow creek on the Playter farm, in 1888; and No. 28 near the north smelters, in 1889. All of these mines are now abandoned, and the places where they were located are covered with handsome homes, or business houses. There are barely traces of the old dumps left. Two more shafts were put down about this time at Litchfield, Nos. 17 and 22.
The years 1885 and 1886 marked the beginning of the boom in the coal district. In those two years no less than ten or twelve new coal concerns commenced operations in the district. It was in May, 1885,
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that Colonel Edwin Brown, who had been so prominently identified with the development of the coal district, commenced active operations. He interested the Chick brothers. W. H. and James, of Kansas City, and they, with the late J. T. Morrison, formed the Pittsburg & Midway Coal Company, and commenced stripping operations north of Litchfield, at the place where. in the earlier days of the county, had been located a station on the old stage route, and which had been known in the early days before the war as "Holes-in-the-Prairie." but which had later acquired the name of Midway, being midway between Fort Scott and Baxter Springs, on the stage road. Shortly after they had commenced operations, the Pittsburg Coal Company, after a spell of hard luck, be- came bankrupt. "Cottonwood" Davis got as his share of the wreckage a lawsuit against the Frisco, Patmor got a house, and Major Rombauer got the shaft. Colonel Brown and Mr. Morrison purchased the remains of the coal property, and the company was re-organized as the Pittsburg & Midway Coal Company, and the shaft on South Broadway was moved to Midway and became No. I of the new company. This company soon abandoned the shaft at Pittsburg, and commenced operations exclusively at Midway. Bennett Brown went to Midway with the company, and became the first superintendent of the company. This company is still in existence, and still operates mines at Midway, which has become an important coal camp, but both Colonel Brown and Mr. Morrison are dead, both having passed away without fully realizing the financial benefits of their investments and undertakings. The latter died recently in Pittsburg, comparatively a poor man.
It was about this time, in 1886, that Guss Johnston came to the county from Topeka. He secured the land northwest of Pittsburg on the other side of Cow creek, and there he sunk a shaft, which was called Lone Oak shaft. A small camp was built up around the mine. The
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shaft was not a success, however, not because of poor coal. because the coal was rated as fine as there was in the district, but because of faulty construction of the mine. Pillars had been left too small in opening up the works, and before long the mine commenced to "squeeze." the roof settling in, and work had to be abandoned.
Johnston gave it up and went to Osage county, where he engaged in mining, and he is still located there, being one of the leading operators of the Osage field. Later a man named Beadell endeavored to operate the shaft, but he gave it up soon, and the Hamilton brothers, Matthew and Andrew, then leased the property, and tried to operate the mine. They owned farms near Pittsburg, and the mine nearly cost them their farms, for they became involved in litigation with the Frisco Railroad Company, and the result was that the railroad secured judgments, which cleaned up the brothers. The railroad company then pulled up the switches, and the mine was abandoned, and from that date to this there have been no mining operations at Lone Oak. The houses were gradually moved away, until today the only trace of the old camp is a black spot in the soil where vegetation will not grow, which marks the site of the old dump. The first mine explosion to occur in the county was at the Lone Oak mine. Four miners were caught in the explosion. and two or three of them killed.
In 1885 the Gould interests entered the field, and the Nevada & Minden railroad, now the Missouri Pacific, was constructed into Pitts- burg, and through the county. That same year mining operations were commenced by the Western Coal & Mining Company, which was at that time, as it is now, closely identified with the Missouri Pacific and Gould interests. The first mine was put down in 1885 at Minden. and was called No. I. The mines were numbered in order as they were sunk. Ira Fleming, who is now president of the Fleming Coal Company.
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in Cherokee county, was the first superintendent of the company. In a few months the camp of Fleming was laid out south of Pittsburg, and mine No. 2 was sunk. The camp was named after Superintendent Fleming. In 1887 two more mines were sunk, No. 3 at Fleming, and No. 4 at Yale, another new camp which was laid out north of Litch- field, and which, for some unknown reason, was named after the famous eastern college. Mr. Fleming was succeeded as superintendent soon by Josiah Lane, who came here from Rich Hill, where he had been con- nected with the same company. Mr. Lane is still in the service of the Western Coal & Mining Company as assistant cashier in the Pittsburg offices, and has up to this time been connected with the company for twenty-two years. He was succeeded in 1891 by James Gardner, who had come here in 1890 to be mine foreman at Fleming. Mr. Gardner has been connected with the company in that capacity ever since, and is now general superintendent of the company's interests in this and Chero- kee counties. The company has put down in this county eleven shafts. and is now laying out a twelfth shaft, northwest of Yale, which, how- ever. will be called No. 13. as No. 12 had been sunk in Cherokee county, at Folsom.
In 1886 a number of Topeka capitalists who were interested in the Southern Kansas railroad, which later became the Santa Fe, formed a company which they called the Cherokee & Pittsburg Coal & Mining Company, leased coal land north of Pittsburg. and at once commenced mining operations. Mine No. I was sunk and a camp which was called Frontenac was established. Today Frontenac is a busy mining town of about three thousand population. Robert Craig, of Topeka, came down and was made superintendent of the mine, and later became general manager of the company.
The Southern Kansas railroad, which had been built to Girard
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from Chanute, was extended to the mine and the new camp from Girard. but it was not until later that it was constructed on into Pittsburg. No. 2 mine was sunk in a few months at Frontenac, and shortly after No. 3 was put down east of Frontenac, east of the present No. 9 shaft. Alex Watson, of Pittsburg, set the timbers for the first shafts. The Cherokee & Pittsburg Company soon acquired more coal land south of Pittsburg. and another camp, named Chicopee, was established. and mine No. 4 was sunk there. The railroad was built on to the new camp from Pitts- burg, and that was made the terminus of the railroad, passenger trains from Pittsburg running to Chicopee to carry the miners out. This train service was maintained until the electric railway was built a few years ago. It was at this time that the merchants of Pittsburg raised a fund of $7.000, which was given the company in consideration of their agree- ment not to maintain company stores in Frontenac and Chicopee. This agreement was kept until the successor of the company, the Mount Car- mel Coal Company was formed, when stores were established, and are now operated.
The Mount Carmel Coal Company was formed when C. J. Devlin. formerly a bookkeeper in a coal company office at Spring Valley, Ill .. entered the field. Mr. Devlin had rapidly acquired a fortune by clever manipulation, and he made arrangements with the Santa Fe railroad by which he became the head of the fuel department of that system. and the Mount Carmel Coal Company resulted. Mr. Devlin is now a resident of Topeka, Kansas, and is reputed to be worth several millions of dollars. The Mount Carmel Coal Company has confined its opera- tions in this county to the coal lands around Frontenac and Chicopee. maintaining its headquarters in Frontenac. The company has, how- ever. coal interests in Osage county, and Mr. Craig, former general man- ager of the company, is now superintendent in Osage county. Joseph
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Fletcher has been superintendent of the interests here for several years. The company has opened up nine mines in this county, six at Frontenac and three at Chicopee.
The Kansas & Texas Coal Company enjoyed the height of its prosperity in this county during the ten years following 1882. David Ramsey was local superintendent during this period. Bennett Brown. now arbitration commissioner for the Operators' Association, was under- ground superintendent, and F. E. Doubleday, later general superin- tendent of the company, and at present superintendent of the Central Coal & Coke Company, at Bevier, Missouri, was superintendent of the mines at Litchfield. Labor troubles with its employees which resulted in a prolonged strike weakened the company, and it is believed brought about the decline. The end came about three years ago, when the Central Coal & Coke Company absorbed the old Kansas & Texas Coal Company and supplanted its general officers and superintendents with its own men. This consolidation made the Central the largest and most important coal company in the district and today the Central oper- ates in Crawford county eleven mines, located both north and south of Pittsburg.
In the spring of 1891 Archie Kirkwood. now the general super- intendent of the Wear Coal Company, and Frank Wear. now the presi- dent of that concern, opened the "Sunshine" mine at Minden. About the same time John Anderson opened a gin shaft southeast of Pittsburg. In 1892 Wear and Kirkwood purchased the Anderson shaft below Pitts- burg, and on August I, of that year, commenced operation, calling it No. 2. The camp which was built up was named Kirkwood in honor of Archie Kirkwood. The Wear Coal Company was then organized and commenced operations, and up to the present this company has opened and operated twelve shafts, all around Pittsburg, and work has
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already commenced on three additional large shafts. northwest of Pittsburg.
The history of the coal industry of the county for the past fifteen years is a story of rapid development. Not only has the coal field immediately around Pittsburg been wonderfully developed in that time, but the coal belt has expanded, the "known" territory has been widened, and coal shafts are now in operation on land which as recently as five years ago was declared to be out of the coal belt. There are today in operation in Crawford county forty-four mining concerns, operating sixty-two coal shafts, and which last year ( 1903) employed nearly 7,000 men, and produced over four million tons of coal, or more than four- fifths of the entire output of the state of Kansas.
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CHAPTER V.
BANKS AND BANKERS OF CRAWFORD COUNTY.
Prior to 1871, the banking of this county was transacted at Kansas City and Fort Scott. The pioneer banker of Crawford county is Frank- lin Playter. He was born at Whitechurch, Ontario, Canada, June 30, 1841. Mr. Playter was the son of a farmer, and worked on his father's farm, attending school in winter, until a teacher's certificate was ob- tained. He taught four years in a country school, attended Toronto University, Canada. Left Canada for Kansas in December. 1868. Studied law and was admitted to the bar at Fort Scott, in the spring of 1869, shortly afterward removing to Girard. Formed a partnership with C. G. Hawley in the law, and George H. Richey in the real estate business. Their office was located a few doors south of the southwest corner of the square. In 1871 Mr. Playter bought out the interests of his partners, and fitted up the front room of the office as a banking room. The following is a clipping from the Girard Press of June 8. 1871 :
"Mr. Frank Playter has fitted up his office in regular bank style. He has had it beautifully painted and grained in an elegant manner, and it is furnished with one of Hall's Patent Burglar Proof Safes."
This was a private bank owned and controlled by Mr. Playter. It was called "The Crawford County Savings Bank," but was more gen- erally known as "Playter's Bank." In the fall of 1872, Mr. Playter built a two-story brick building on the south side of the square, and on January 9, 1873, the bank was moved into that building. This was
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the first brick business house built in the county, and has always been used for banking purposes. It is now occupied by the Bank of Girard.
On March 1. 1877. the Crawford County Bank was organized under the banking laws of Kansas, with a capital stock of $50.000. The following constituted the board of directors: Franklin Playter. Loren Brown, Girard: J. H. Playter. Cherokee: F. M. Shaw, Paola. The officers were. president. Franklin Playter; vice-president, F. M. Shaw : cashier. J. H. Playter ; assistant cashier. George E. Howard. August 2. 1877, the Crawford County Bank was re-organized under the name of the Merchants and Farmers Bank. Board of directors were: Franklin Playter, B. P. McDonald, J. E. Raymond, John Tontz. B. C. Redlon. The following officers were elected: President, Franklin Playter : vice- president, B. P. McDonald: secretary. J. E. Raymond: cashier. J. T. Leonard: assistant cashier, J. H. Playter. January 22. 1878, the bank was re-organized, James Hull and John T. Voss becoming stockholders. The following were the directors: James Hull, John T. Voss. H. P. Grund, John Tontz, B. C. Redlon. The officers were: President, James Hull; vice president. B. C. Redlon : cashier, J. T. Leonard. May 23, 1878. at the annual election of directors of the Merchants and Farm- ers Bank, the following were elected : James Hull, John Tontz, Nelson Smith, B. C. Redlon. J. G. Vincent. The officers were : President, James Hull, vice-president and acting cashier, B. C. Redlon.
June 12. 1879, the Bank of Girard, successor to the Merchants and Farmers Bank, opened for business, capital stock, $50,000. The fol- lowing were the officers: President, F. R. Moffet; vice president, Franklin Playter : cashier, J. L. Moffet ; assistant cashier. J. H. Playter. December 9, 1879. J. L. Moffet resigned, and T. C. Molloy was chosen to fill the vacancy. Franklin Playter, having sold his interest in the bank. also resigned and retired from banking business. March 4. 1882.
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E. R. Moffet closed the bank, all creditors being paid in full within thirty days.
July 10. 1882, the banking house of Chapman and Adams was opened in the Bank of Girard building, being owned by E. G. Chapman and H. Adams. October, 1882, the name was changed to Bank of Girard. July, 1884, E. G. Chapman retired, the business continuing with president, H. Adams; cashier, Oscar Schaeffer. October, 1884. H. W. Haldeman purchased an interest. The officers were: Presi- dent. H. Adams; vice-president, H. W. Haldeman; cashier, Oscar Schaeffer. In 1886. H. W. Haldeman purchased the interest of H. Adams, becoming president, and for the past eighteen years there has been no change.
Oscar Schaeffer, cashier of the Bank of Girard, the oldest in point of service of the bankers of Crawford county, was born forty-five years ago, at Lisbon, Linn county, Iowa. Educated in the common schools of Wisconsin, Michigan and Kansas. Moved to Girard in 1872, from Coffeyville. Kansas. A mere boy, he was first employed as office boy and collector by Franklin Playter in his bank, in 1874. Was later with Booth's Bank, and the Merchants and Farmers Bank. Thus, for more than thirty years has Oscar, as he is familiarly called by his friends and associates, been identified and connected with the banking business of this county. To him belongs the distinction of longer service behind the bank counter than any other person in Crawford county.
May 15. 1878, the banking house of James H. Booth was organized, with the following officers : President, James H. Booth, East Saginaw, Michigan ; cashier, E. W. Ross, formerly cashier of Hobart and Con- don's Bank. Oswego, Kansas. February 9, 1882, James H. Booth sold his banking interest to E. H. Brown, H. P. Grund and J. T. Leonard. It was called the Citizens Bank. The following officers were elected :
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President. E. H. Brown; vice-president. H. P. Grund: cashier. J. T. Leonard. November, 1882, J. D. Barker purchased the interest of E. H. Brown, and succeeded him as president. May 8, 1884. the First Na- tional Bank of Girard was organized from the Citizens Bank, and as- sumed the deposits, discounts, etc. The following directors were chosen, June 23, 1884: J. D. Barker, H. P. Grund, J. T. Leonard, J. E. Ray- mond. D. Corning, Thomas Mclaughlin, W. C. McMillan. Officers : President, J. D. Barker; vice president, H. P. Grund: cashier, J. T. Leonard. Capital stock paid up. $50,000. Opened for business July 9. 1884. January, 1891, H. P. Grund was elected president, D. Corning vice president. J. T. Leonard cashier. January. 1899. J. E. Raymond was elected president. W. C. McMillan vice-president, J. T. Leonard cashier. There has been no change in the officers for five years. May 8. 1904, the charter was renewed for a second twenty years. Thus, for more than twenty years, has this bank continued in active business with- out change in the personnel of the board of directors, a fact for which they may well feel proud.
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