History of Labette County, Kansas, from the first settlement to the close of 1892, Part 6

Author: Case, Nelson, 1845-1921
Publication date: 1893
Publisher: Topeka, Kan., Crane & Company
Number of Pages: 392


USA > Kansas > Labette County > History of Labette County, Kansas, from the first settlement to the close of 1892 > Part 6


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).


Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38


COUNTY EXPENSES.


The first few years no detailed annual report of the county expenses was made ; there are one or two reports prior to 1871, but it seems evident that the figures there given are incorrect. Reports exist subsequent to 1870, but as to some of them it is probable they do not cover exactly a year, and it is also quite evident that some mistakes have been made by


57


PERMANENT SETTLEMENT.


the party who copied them or by the printer; but it is believed the fol- lowing table shows substantially the amount expended by the county each fiscal year. For a number of years the fiscal year ended with July, but more recently it has closed with October :


1871


$21,125 74


| 1879


$29,713 62


1887


$36,261 62


1872


23,621 81


1880


32,797 62


1888


44,897 14


1873


36,380 92


1881


27,224 96


1889


41,019 93


1874


31,459 45


1882


38,589 13


1890


34,150 48


1875


27.439 71


1883.


40,958 43


1891


31,244 44


1876.


23,814 89


1884


47,760 60


1892


34,834 10


1877


23.895 28


1885


40,657 53


1878


31,789 84


1886


48,296 44


COLORED PEOPLE.


From almost the first settlement of the county there have been a few colored people living in it, a number of whom have been successful and made good homes. Dairy Nero settled upon the S.E. 14 of section 15, adjoining Oswego, in 1866, and entered it at the Government land office, and has ever since made it his home.


On April 4, 1870, the noon stage brought the news of the ratification of the fifteenth amendment, whereupon the colored men then in Oswego were informed of their rights, marched to the polls, the election being then in progress, where they deposited their ballots. Spencer Jones, who was the porter at the Oswego House, was the first colored man in the county, and of course one of the first in the State, to exercise the right of suffrage.


In the fall of 1879 the "exodus" began, and hundreds of colored peo- . ple, principally from Texas and Tennessee, and also many from other parts of the South, arrived in the county. Chetopa, Oswego and Parsons were almost overrun by them. Their coming was unexpected, and no provision for their care and comfort had been made. Buildings for shel- ter could not be procured. They were mostly without means, destitute of everything like comfortable clothing, and in a condition to appeal strongly to the sympathies of charitable people. Rough board sheds were erected and made as comfortable as could be, in which large num- bers were housed for that winter. During the next year or two others came in, until the number of colored people formed quite a large percent- age of the population of the cities named. Quite a number also were scattered over the county, more especially in the river bottom.


A very great improvement has been made in their condition both intel- lectually and financially, and there are now among the colored people many well-to-do families, who are intelligent, industrious, and moral.


58


HISTORY OF LABETTE COUNTY.


Some of course have remained shiftless, trifling, and worthless. From all appearances they are a permanent part of the population.


ATHLETICS.


Almost from the first settlement of the county the lovers of base ball have been organized, and have done what they could toward making the game popular and successful. As early as 1871 clubs were organized at Oswego and Chetopa, and within the next two or three years organiz- ations were had at several other places in the county, and frequent local contests took place. The craze seems to have reached its highest point in 1885, when there was a great strife by the Oswego club to be the champions not only of the county but of southeastern Kansas, and under the leadership of F. C. Wheeler great proficiency was attained. The in- terest in the game has been kept up to a considerable extent, but since the departure of Mr. Wheeler it has never created the excitement it reached at that time.


In the fall of 1885 a ladies' broom brigade was formed, and attained a considerable degree of skill at drilling under the command of Col. True.


The roller-skating craze had perhaps for a season the greatest run of anything in the line of athletics that has been witnessed in the county. The height of its prosperity was witnessed about 1884. Commodious and well-furnished rinks were erected at Parsons and Oswego, and per- haps at other places in the county, and their owners supposed that they had a permanent and well-paying business established ; but the interest died out as suddenly as it arose, and nothing farther was heard of it.


OFFICIAL DELINQUENCIES.


The county has been extremely fortunate since since its organization in having officers who performed their duties satisfactorily and who were true to the trust reposed in them. There have been three or four in- stances in which the county has been required to commence legal pro- ceedings in order to collect from its officers money which they held in their official capacity. When H. C. Bridgman went out of office as treas- urer his accounts were found to be short. A suit against him and his bondsmen was instituted, pending which a settlement was had, in which it was agreed that he was indebted to the county in the sum of $8,750. This was settled by him and his bondsmen as follows: The County Com- missioners took from them the quarter-section of land on which they located the poor-farm, at the agreed price of $4,000. They gave their note for $3,000 and paid $1,750 in cash. By this means the county was saved from any financial loss.


59


RECEPTION TO PRESIDENT HAYES.


When S. B. Abbott, the sheriff, completed the tax sale under the pro- ceedings of 1877, he reported that he had received $1,698.02, and that his charges for fees and services were $2,008.48. These charges were largely in excess of what the law authorized. Suit was brought by the Commissioners to recover from him fees which he illegally held. The matter was finally settled by his paying $302.62.


Under a change of law regulating the fees of county officers, a question arose between the county and one or two of its officers as to what fees they were entitled to, and not agreeing on the construction of the law, the matter was settled in court.


RECEPTION TO PRESIDENT HAYES.


In the evening of September 24, 1879, President Rutherford B. Hayes and wife, General W. T. Sherman, George St. John and wife, and other dignitaries arrived at Parsons on their way to Neosho Falls, where they were to attend the district fair. People from all parts of Labette county went to Parsons, where a reception was tendered the Presidential party. An address of welcome was made by T. C. Cory, which was responded to by President Hayes and General Sherman. In the evening the whole assemblage was presented to the party.


INDUSTRIAL PURSUITS .- COUNTY ORGANIZATIONS.


FIRST WHEAT CROPS .- THRESHING-MACHINES AND GRIST- MILLS.


In the fall of 1866 Charles Wadsack sowed a few acres of wheat, which he harvested the following summer; this was probably the first wheat crop raised in the county. There was no threshing-machine here at the time, and he was compelled to thresh it by a more primitive method, which was by having his horses tread upon it. When he got it to the mill it was so dirty that it would not make flour very palatable ; however, it was the best that could be done, and it furnished him with something in the line of breadstuffs during that year.


Quite a number of farmers had enough ground in cultivation by the fall of 1867 to enable them to put out fairly good crops of wheat, and in 1868 the first machinery for harvesting and threshing was brought to the county. The first threshing-machine was brought into the county by Ed. and George Cubbison. There were so many parties having wheat threshed who were all anxious to get it done early, that some of them had to be disappointed, and occasionally when the machine was through with a job the neighbors would take possession of it and put it at work at the next nearest place instead of allowing it to go out of the neighborhood.


In 1870 Martin Jackson brought on a new reaper and Thomas Phillips a threshing-machine; these were probably the first machines of this kind south of the Hackberry.


The first mill in the county, so far as I have learned, that was prepared to do anything at grinding wheat, was John Hart's mill, on the Labette. In addition to the corn buhrs which he had been using, he put in wheat buhrs in the fall of 1868, and was able to grind wheat for the farmers in that community. It was not until about 1873 that self-binders and steam threshers appeared.


CASTOR BEANS.


It is said that W. W. Robbins, in Pleasant Valley, was the first person in the county to raise a crop of castor beans. This was in 1873. The


(60)


61


INDUSTRIAL PURSUITS, ETC.


yield was so good that the following season many others planted, and since then this has been one of the largest crops raised.


TAME GRASS.


On July 8, 1873, Col. F. Swantick brought a load of timothy to Oswego. which he sold to B. F. Hobart, at $8 per ton. The next day he sold a load of clover to H. C. Draper, at the same price. This was the first tame hay marketed in the county. At that time very few farmers had com- menced to raise tame grass. Since then its production has generally in- creased, until now the crop of tame grass is quite an item in the annual production of the county.


THE COTTON INDUSTRY.


In the spring of 1873 G. W. Everhart procured the seed and distrib- uted it among the farmers along Labette creek, and secured the planting of quite a large acreage of cotton in the vicinity of Parsons. Mr. Ever- hart put in a small cotton-gin that fall, which he continued to operate some two or three years, when it was removed to the Indian Territory. On February 5, 1874, a cotton convention was held at Parsons which resulted in awakening quite an interest in connection with the raising of this product. After 1876 there was nothing done in the way of raising cotton until 1879, when an enterprising colored man from Texas who was living on David Romine's place, a few miles southwest of Oswego, planted several acres of cotton and induced several other colored men living along the Neosho river to also put out a few acres. Mr. Romine assisted in the erection of a cotton-gin at Oswego that fall, and it was found that the crop was large and profitable, considering the small num- ber of acres that had been planted. In 1880, 98 bales were ginned and shipped ; in 1881, 145 bales : in 1882 a very much larger acreage was planted, but the fall was so wet that it cut the crop short, and but 70 bales were ginned. The prospect was good again in 1883 for a large crop, but this year, as the year previous, it was cut short by the wet fall, and but 45 bales were ginned. Two years of partial failure rather dis- couraged those who had been engaged in the business, and very little if any was planted thereafter in this vicinity. In 1889 the Oswego gin was taken to Chetopa, in the vicinity of which a few colored men had raised small crops, but the amount that has been raised the last few years has been inconsiderable.


GRASSHOPPERS.


In the fall of 1866 grasshoppers came in great quantities. Of the little crop that was raised that year most of it was matured so that they did


62


HISTORY OF LABETTE COUNTY.


not damage it, but everything that was green was devoured by them. They stayed until cold weather came. A rain in the fall filled the little brooks, and so washed them down stream that in places wagon-loads of them could be gathered up. The following February was so warm that the eggs hatched, and a hard freeze coming on in March killed the young hoppers ; so they bothered no more at that time. The next visit they made this county was in September, 1874. They came in one day in such myriads that what was green in whole fields of corn was devoured by them in a single day. All the trees were stripped of their leaves, and fruit trees were left bare of all foliage, hanging full of ripe apples. They laid their eggs and disappeared in the fall, so that the wheat crop then sowed was not all destroyed. About the last of March in the fol- lowing spring they commenced hatching, and during April and May ate the young crop about as fast as it came on. Corn had to be planted two or three times; the last planting extending into July. About the last of May they commenced moving, and during the fore part of June they were nearly all gone. In September, 1876, there was another visitation of them, but not to as great an extent as there had been the two years preceding.


In 1875 farmers learned that very much could be done towards destroy- ing the hoppers and saving the crops. Several methods of destruction were used, among others plowing a deep furrow into which the hoppers were driven and then covered, either by refilling it with dirt or by put- ting straw over them and burning them up.


FISH AND GAME.


All of the streams of the county are well supplied with fish. They are more numerous, of course, in the Neosho than in the smaller streams. Many have been taken from the Neosho measuring from four to six feet in length and two and one-half feet in circumference, weighing from 60 to 100 pounds.


On July 5, 1875, a large catfish of about the size just described got into a basin on the riffle at Motter's ford, east of Oswego, and could not get away. Two men who were crossing caught it, and brought it to town.


In the early settlement of the county large numbers of wild animals of various kinds were caught, and added very much to the stock of provi- sions of the early settlers. Deer, antelope, wild geese and turkeys, and prairie chickens, as well as other birds and animals, were found in abun- dance. Coyotes, badgers and other carnivorous animals were here in larger numbers than was desirable to the settlers. As the county became settled they became less numerous.


63


INDUSTRIAL PURSUITS, ETC.


BOUNTY.


On July 11, 1877, the County Commissioners passed an order putting into operation chapter 76 of the Laws of 1877, giving a bounty on scalps of certain wild animals. Under this order, almost an innumerable num- ber of scalps was presented during the years the law was in force, and large sums of money were paid as bounty therefor. The law remained in operation under the above order until January 13, 1885, when the Com- missioners made an order revoking their previous one, since which time no bounty has been paid for scalps of any wild animals.


DEHORNING STOCK.


In January, 1886, G. J. Coleman, of Mound Valley, created something of an excitement in the neighborhood by dehorning his cattle. This was the first instance in which that system of treatment of stock had been practiced in this county. A party who was not friendly with Mr. Cole- man caused his arrest on the charge of cruelty to animals. On the trial he was acquitted, having convinced the jury that his process was one of mercy rather than of cruelty to animals. Ever since that time this sys- tem of treatment has been generally practiced.


TEXAS FEVER.


In 1866, and for several years thereafter, the people frequently became alarmed over the introduction of Texas cattle and the spread of Texas fever among native stock. Several farmers lost quite a number of their cattle from what was supposed to be Texas fever. A number of arrests were made of those who had been instrumental in bringing stock into the county, but it was seldom that a conviction was had. It was a dis- puted question as to whether or not the stock died from the effects of disease contracted from those introduced, and there was a large-enough element in the county interested in bringing cattle in from the south to make quite a sentiment in the minds of the public opposed to such prose- cution. However, the law was finally enforced so vigorously that few parties attempted its violation.


FIELD CROPS.


On the pages following will be found, in tabulated form, a full report of the various field crops of the county, from 1872 to 1892 inclusive, showing acreage, product, and value. For these valuable tables I am indebted to the Reports of the State Board of Agriculture.


.64


HISTORY OF LABETTE COUNTY.


TABLE showing the acres, product and value of field crops in Labette county.


1872.


1873.


CROPS.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Acres.


Product .*


Value .*


Winter wheat.


bu.


23,765


475,300


$712.950


23,765


Spring wheat.


bu.


51


612


612


84


Corn.


bu.


31,486


1,083,915


216,783


34,631


Oats


bu.


11,113


333,390


66,178


10,608


Rye.


bu.


131


1,834


1,375


283


Barley


bu.


12


468


374


16


Buckwheat.


bu.


92


1,380


1,380


49


Irish potatoes


bu.


764


60,356


36,213


1,380


Sweet potatoes


bu.


30


3,090


2,317


64


Sorghum.


gals.


286


16,302


8.151


379


Castor beans.


bu.


186


3,720


5,208


156


Cotton


lbs.


3


996


199


107


Flax


.bu.


1


10


12


41


Tobacco ..


lbs.


4


2,000


400


10


Millet and Hung'n


tons


745


1,762


8,810


576


Timothy meadow.


tons


214


428


4,280


214


Clover meadow.


.tons


205


410


2,460


207


Prairie meadow


tons


16,711


25,066


75,198


8,810


Timothy pasture


34


6


Clover pasture ..


10


10


Blue-grass pasture


462


463


Prairie pasture.


28,068


27,238


Totals.


114,373


109,048


1875.


CROPS.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Winter wheat ..


.bu.


32,402


583,236


$466,588


38,075


761,515


$723,139


Spring wheat.


bu.


36


360


234


12


150


112


Corn.


bu.


37,641


752,820


526,974


44,490


1,868,601


373,720


Oats


bu.


7,836


117,540


58,770


6,391


242,886


48,577


Ry


bu.


262


5,240


3,668


313


7,210


4,326


Barley


.bu.


41


779


662


3


90


108


Buckwheat.


bu.


38


380


570


5


110


123


Irish potatoes.


bu.


1,330


26,600


33,250


1,109


138,731


55,492


Sweet potatoes


.bu.


91


6,825


10,920


99


15,497


11,622


Sorghum.


gals.


485


38,800


25,220


905


113,244


48,128


Castor beans


bu.


800


9.600


12.000


1,564


18,777


18,777


Cotton


lbs.


90


8,100


1,053


101


20,298


2,029


Flax.


.bu.


436


4,360


7,040


2,036


20,362


24,434


Hemp.


lbs.


4


3,000


150


5


4,125


2,681


Tobacco.


lbs.


17


11,900


1,190


12


8.834


66:2


Broom corn.


lbs.


51


37,800


1,753


95


78,994


3,949


Millet and Hung'n.


tons


1,104


2,208


13,248


1,215


3,950


15,800


Timothy meadow.


.tons


343


515


3,090


266


333


1,998


Clover meadow ..


tons


189


378


2,268


63


159


954


Prairie meadow


tons


5,485


5,485


21,940


10,055


15,082


60,328


Timothy pasture.


83


Clover pasture.


25


Blue-grass pasture.


21


Prairie pasture.


24,708


Totals


113,521


106,825


$1,397,264


* There is nothing of record, either in the office of the State Board of Agriculture, or elsewhere, which shows the product and value by counties for 1873 .- [ N. C.


1874.


65


INDUSTRIAL PURSUITS, ETC.


TABLE showing the acres, product and value of field crops in Labette county.


CROPS.


1877.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Acres.


Product.


l'alue.


Winter wheat.


.bu.


40,297


604, 455


$544,009


25,557


255,570


$247,902


Corn.


bu.


47,748


1,909,920


420,182


66,759


bu.


11,861


343.969


85,992


8,579


394,634


59,195


Barley


bu.


8


240


144


77


1.925


577


Irish potatoes.


bu.


1,736


260,512


208,410


1,061


106,100


53.050


Sorghum


gals.


436


17.987


23,993


743


85.445


42.722


Cotton


lbs


61


12,350


1,235


31


5,270


527


Hemp.


1b.s.


74


74,500


4,283


Tobacco.


lbs.


32


25,704


2,570


30


22,200


2. 2.20


Millet and Hung'n


tons


2,178


4,356


30,492


3,140


9.420


37,680


Clover meadow.


tons


152


304


2,133


84


168


840


Timothy pasture.


11,004


18,706


54.249


Clover pasture.


1


28


Prairie pasture


25,585


26,590


Totals


139,784


146,998


CROPS.


1879.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Acres.


Product.


l'alue.


Winter wheat


bu.


33,135


430,755


$279,990


26,389


395,835


$376,043


Corn


.bu.


65,985


2,243,490


426.263


77.549


2,946,862


736,715


Rye


bu.


368


6,992


2,097


289


4,335


1,734


Buckwheat


bu.


154


3,090


2.472


80


1,211


1,090


Sweet potatoes


bu.


95


10,836


7,910


128


8,988


8,988


Castor beans


bu.


1,900


26,607


33,258


6,603


79,242


79,242


Flax


hu.


370


3,705


3,705


575


1,025


4,025


Tobacco.


Ibs.


13


10,278


1,027


23


17.412


1,741


Millet and Hung'n


tons


2.021


6,063


24,252


2,830


8.490


33 960


Clover meadow


tons


209


418


2,092


347


555


2.778


Timothy pasture.


10,376


13,488


39,117


Clover pasture ..


23


30


Prairie pasture


31,831


30,792


Totals


178,258


£1.075,188


177,549


$1.492,438


bu.


19


190


104


4:2


336


285


Oats


bu.


13,376


454,784


72.765


16,746


385.158


100,141


Barley


.bu.


69


2,070


1,035


75


1,350


675


Irish potatoes


bu.


1,312


78.720


45,657


1,001


45,180


38,403


Sorghum.


gals.


688


79.134


39,567


986


113,390


51,025


Cotton


lbs.


1


255


17


2.975


267


Hemp


lbs.


1/4


230


13


Broom corn


lbs.


36


28.904


1,083


130


91,133


3,189


Timothy meadow.


tons


1,139


1,937


9.68%


1,735


2,603


13,016


Prairie meadow


tons


24,783


12,131


122,179


251


167


Blue-grass pasture.


475


10


32


20


17


Rye.


bu.


389


7,780


1,356


200


2.800


840


Buckwheat.


bu.


73


965


868


1.184


947


Sweet potatoes


bu.


120


24,100


19.280


81


12,600


12,600


Castor beans


. bu.


531


6,372


11,894


1,615


22,610


22,610


Flax.


bu.


1,955


17,595


29.325


311


3,454


3,626


Broom corn


lbs.


173


139,000


5,560


166


132,800


4.980


Timothy meadow .. .tons


220


275


1,926


673


1,144


5,720


Prairie meadow.


.tons


5,738


5,738


22,952


212


50


Blue-grass pasture


195


137


Oats


2,670,360


480,664


Spring wheat.


bu.


5


1876.


632


-4


1878.


Spring wheat


6€


HISTORY OF LABETTE COUNTY.


TABLE showing the acres, product and value of field crops in Labette county.


1880.


1881.


CROPS.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Winter wheat.


bu.


35.628


434,420


$412,699


40,518


405,180


$445,698


Spring wheat.


.bu.


13


104


88


11


55


52


Corn


bu.


70,806


2,265,792


566,448


94,061


1,696.098


981.996


Oats


bu.


12,192


426,720


110,947


8,052


249,612


82,371


Rye.


bu.


372


5,580


2.232


436


6,104


4,761


Barley


bu.


52


780


390


8


208


166


Buckwheat


bu.


3:2


384


345


48


576


432


Irish potatoes


bu.


1,297


129,700


110.245


3,097


77,425


116.137


Sweet potatoes


bu.


113


14,736


14.736


184


10,120


15,180


Sorghum


gals.


536


61.709


27,769


506


43,010


20 614


Castor beans.


bu.


6,885


82,620


82,620


8,071


104,923


146,892


Cotton


lbs.


175


29,750


2,677


66,600


6,660


Flax.


bu.


1,092


9,828


9,828


680


5,440


7,616


Hemp.


lbs.


21


25,500


1,530


5


4,200


294


Tobacco


lbs.


6


4,440


444


25


17,500


1.750


Broom corn


lbs.


37


22,650


792


430


279,500


12,577


Rice corn


bu.


20


400


160


9


90


58


Pearl millet


tons


111


445


1,780


463


1,620


8.910


Millet and Hung'n .... .tons


4,049


12,147


48,588


3,719


8,368


62,760


Timothy meadow.


tons


1,056


2.112


10,560


923


1,615


12,112


Clover meadow.


tons


371


619


3,248


614


1,288


9,660


Prairie meadow.


.tons


9,975


14,963


43,392


15,892


22,249


144,618


Timothy pasture


288


509


Clover pasture.


6:2


Blue-grass pasture


808


Other grasses


29,502


39,139


Totals


175,501


$1,451.522


218,350


$2,081,350


CROPS.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Winter wheat


bu.


25,571


562,562


$450,049


34,667


416,004


$353,603


Spring wheat.


bu.


25


300


210


483


4,347


3 042


Corn


bn.


83,125


3,325,000


1,163,750


89,249


4,016,205


1,201,861 156,037


Rye.


bu.


566


10,754


5,914


994


Barley


bu.


41


1,148


516


Buckwheat


bu.


43


344


258


35


315


236


Irish potatoes


bu.


1,030


82,400


57,680


1,632


130,560


78.336


Sweet potatoes


bu.


94


7,050


7,050


140


12,600


12.600


Sorghum


gals.


709


63.810


28,714


754


66,352


27,867


Castor beans


.bu.


12,036


110,754


110,754


2,931


32,241


48,361


Cotton


lbs.


130


24,050


2.405


76


17,100


1,539


Flax.


bu.


2,004


24,048


22,845


1,400


14,000


15,400


Tobacco.


lbs.


16


11,200


1,120


25


20,000


2,000


Broom corn.


lbs.


165


82,500


3,712


215


107,500


3,762


Rice corn


bu.


352


176


56


1,120


392


Pearl millet


tons


196


588


2,352


Millet and Hung'n. .tons


5,579


16,737


100,422


8,941


29,058


101.703


Timothy meadow ..


tons


1,684


3,368


20,208


2,159


4,318


21.590


Clover meadow.


tons


224


560


3.360


672


1,512


7,560


Prairie meadow


tons


25,058


37,587


150,348


1,818


4,091


14,318


Prairie, under fence ... tons


70,200


91,260


273,780


Timothy pasture.


318


Clover pasture


15


Other grasses.


1,118


Prairie pasture


56,934


Totals


229,610


$2.271.242


230.317


$2.326 991


Oats


bu.


12,907


516,280


139.395


13,870


624,150


115


583


Prairie pasture.


1882.


1883.


Other tame grasses.


tons


67


INDUSTRIAL PURSUITS, ETC.


TABLE showing the acres, product and value of field crops in Labette county.


1884.


1885


CROPS. .


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Winter wheat


.bu.


35,404


672,676


$417,059


11,873


142,476


$106,857


Spring wheat. bn.


bu.


95.474


3,914,434


861,175


102,808


2,570.200


771,060


Oats


bu.


13,612


558,092


128,361


16,007


560,245


140,061


Rye ..


bu.


791


15,029


7,514


748


7,480


3,740


Buckwheat


bu.


14


112


34


408


204


Irish potatoes


bu.


1,776


222,000


155,400


1,489


89,340


62,538


Sweet potatoes


.bu.


54


7.020


5,616


81


3,240


2,592


Sorghum.


gals.


385


38,500


15.400


351


11,730


Castor beans.


bu.


2,708


35,204


52,806


6,448


64,480


103,168


Flax


bu.


1,395


16,740


18,414


1,791


10,746


9,671


Tobacco


1bs


1


850


85


4


3,200


320


Broom corn


lbs.


85


46,750


1,636


75


45,000


1,800


Rice corn


bu.


163


3,260


198,231


14,587


43,761


175,044


Timothy


tons


3,025


5,808


37,752


8,709


7


Clover


tons


1,697


3,818


22,908


2,715


30,498


152,490


Blue grass.


tons


2,796


6,990


34,950


781


Prairie, under feuce ... tons


66,916


95,020


403,835


66,676


47,959


167,856


Totals


237,218


$2,362,455


238,275


$1,709,497


CROPS.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Acres.


Product.


Value.


Winter wheat.


bu.


17,812


213,744


$149,621


15,816


316,320


$189.792


Corn


bu. 104,383


1,878,894


657,612


85,063


2,126.575


744,301


Oats


.bu.


20,494


614,820


184,446


23,926


837,410


209,352


Rye.


Du.


749


11,984


5,992


138


2,070


828


Barley


bu.


5


100


30


20


400


160


Buckwheat


.bu.


1,511


90,660


54,396




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