USA > Kansas > Kansas; a cyclopedia of state history, embracing events, institutions, industries, counties, cities, towns, prominent persons, etc. with a supplementary volume devoted to selected personal history and reminiscence, Volume II > Part 75
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 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100 | Part 101 | Part 102 | Part 103 | Part 104 | Part 105 | Part 106 | Part 107 | Part 108 | Part 109 | Part 110 | Part 111 | Part 112 | Part 113 | Part 114
The political campaign of 1880 was opened by the Republican party, which held a state convention on March 31 and selected the following delegates to the national convention: John A. Martin, Perry Hutchin-
(II-40)
626
, CYCLOPEDIA OF
son, George H. Case, S. Motz, S. S. Benedict, B. F. Simpson, B. W. Perkins, Preston B. Plumb, H. P. Wolcott and William Thompson. John Shilling, William A. Peffer, James D. Snoddy, R. W. P. Muse and Henderson Ritchie were nominated for presidential electors, and one of the resolutions adopted declared "That James G. Blaine has the con- fidence of the Republicans of Kansas; that we recognize in him a states- man worthy to lead the national Republican party to victory; that he is the choice of the Republicans of Kansas for president of the United States, and that we pledge him our united support."
On May 26 the Democrats met in state convention and selected as delegates to the national convention of that party Charles W. Blair, R. B. Morris, Edward Carroll, J. B. Chapman, John R. Goodin, Thomas M. Carroll, M. V. B. Bennett, John Martin, Thomas George, and John C. Rogers.
The Republican national convention met at Chicago on June 8 and nominated James A. Garfield for president and Chester A. Arthur for vice-president. The Democratic national convention, which met at Cin- cinnati, Ohio, on June 24, nominated Gen. Winfield Hancock and Wil- liam H. English.
The first nominations for state offices in 1880 were made by the Green- back-Labor convention at Topeka on July 28, when H. P. Vrooman was nominated for governor; H. L. Phillips, for lieutenant-governor; A. B. Cornell, for secretary of state; D. J. Cole, for auditor ; S. A. Marshall, for treasurer; D. B. Hadley, for attorney-general; Charles Smith, for superintendent of public instruction ; L. D. Bailey, for associate justice ; Samuel N. Wood, J. J. McFeeley, Barney O'Driscoll, Henry Bronson and James G. Bayne, for presidential electors. In the platform, the declara- tion of principles adopted by the national convention at Chicago and the nomination of Gen. James B. Weaver and B. J. Chambers for presi- dent and vice-president were indorsed; a state constitutional conven- tion and the employment of convict labor in competition with free labor were opposed; a demand was made for the passage of a law fixing a lower rate of interest; and the last session of the state legislature was condemned for its extravagance. One resolution was as follows: "That the act of the last legislature, in abolishing the one-mill state school tax, which has been levied from our state's existence, merits our unqualified condemnation, from the fact that it was a blow struck at the people's colleges-the common schools of our state-in the interest of cor- porations."
On Aug. 26 the Democratic state convention met at Topeka and nomi- nated the following ticket: For governor, Edmund G. Ross; lieutenant- governor, Thomas George; secretary of state, John M. Giffin; auditor, J. G. Neumueller; treasurer, Theodore Weichselbaum; attorney-gen- eral, A. L. Hereford; superintendent of public instruction, Miss Sarah A. Brown; associate justice, W. R. Wagstaff; presidential electors, Thomas P. Fenlon, A. A. Harris, Thomas Moonlight, J. B. Scroggs and G. C. Rogers. The platform indorsed the action of the national conven-
627
KANSAS HISTORY
tion in nominating Hancock and English; authorized the state central committee to fill vacancies on the ticket, should any occur ; and pledged the party to oppose the constitutional amendment repealing the pro- vision exempting property to the amount of $200 from taxation.
The nomination of Miss Brown for superintendent of public instruc- tion was the first time that a woman had ever been named by any po- litical organization for a state office in Kansas. In accepting the nomi- nation she said: "In making this nomination, the Democratic party of Kansas has yielded to the tendency of the times which demands equal rights and equal opportunities for all the people, and has thus shown itself to be a party of progress. It has placed itself squarely and un- equivocally before the people upon this great and vital question of giv- ing to woman the right to work in any field for which she may be fitted, thus placing our young and glorious state in the foremost rank on this, as well as on the question of reform."
The Republican state convention assembled at Topeka on Sept. I. Gov. St. John was renominated on the first ballot; Secretary Smith, Auditor Bonebrake and Treasurer Francis were also renominated, and the ticket was completed by the selection of D. W. Finney for lieutenant- governor; W. A. Johnston for attorney-general; H. C. Speer for super- intendent of public instruction, and D. M. Valentine for associate jus- tice. In the resolutions adopted a strong indorsement was given to the candidacy of Garfield and Arthur for president and vice-president, re- spectively ; the State of Kansas was congratulated on the progress made under Republican rule and upon the fact "that the resumption of- spe- cie payments has brought in its train general prosperity and universal confidence, and that our currency (coin and paper) has a fixed value and is convertible, secure and equivalent."
On the evening of Sept. 2 an independent convention was held at the Tefft House in the city of Topeka. This was known as "Jack Downing's convention." Dr. F. M. Stringfield was nominated for gover- nor, and at the election in November received 219 votes. Gov. St. John received 121,549; Ross, 63,557; and Vrooman, 19,477. The Republican presidential electors carried the state by over 60,000 plurality, and the three Republican candidates for Congress were all elected, viz: John A. Anderson in the first district; Dudley C. Haskell in the second, and Thomas Ryan in the third. Notwithstanding the intense interest mani- fested during the campaign in the prohibitory amendment, the number of votes cast on this question was nearly 22,000 less than the number cast for governor, and more than 24,000 less than the number cast for presidential electors. It was carried by a vote of 92,302 to 84,304. The amendment to repeal the provision exempting from taxation property to the amount of $200 was overwhelmingly defeated, 38,442 votes being cast in the affirmative and 140,020 in the negative, and the proposition to hold a constitutional convention was defeated by even a larger ma- jority, 22,870 votes being cast in favor of it and 146,279 against it.
Gov. St. John was inaugurated for his second term on Jan. 11, 1881,
628
CYCLOPEDIA OF
when the third biennial session of the legislature was convened, with Lieut .- Gov. Finney presiding in the senate and J. B. Johnson speaker of the house. In his message the governor again reviewed the progress of the state during the preceding ten years, and added: "These are some of the legitimate fruits of a policy that protects the life, property and lawful ballot of all citizens, and makes ample provision for the edu- cation of every child of our state." ,
According to the reports of the state officers, the total receipts for the fiscal year ending on June 30, 1880, were $2,018,065.05, and the dis- bursements for the same period amounted to $1,573,367.29, leaving a bal- ance in the treasury of $444,697.76. The bonded debt of $1,181,975 was all held by the state sinking fund or the state institutions except $370,575.
The census returns for 1880 showed 134 feeble-minded or idotic per- sons in the state, 66 of whom were under 21 years of age. Referring to these persons, the governor said: "Up to the present time, the state has made no provisions for their education or development. The school for feeble-minded children is no longer an experiment. The most sanguine anticipations of the success of what were established as experimental schools for this class of children have been more than real- ized, and thousands have been brought from a state of almost utter hope- lessness to a condition that enables them to care for and sustain them- selves. . While the parents of this class of children are com- pelled to pay their proportion of the common school tax, no portion of this tax can be used for the special instruction of these children. They can only be educated by sending them to institutions provided for that purpose by other states, at such expense as but few are able and none ought to be compelled to pay. I therefore recommend that provision be made for the establishment of a school for the education of feeble-minded children."
By the act of March 12, 1879, the sum of $20,000 was appropriated for the protection of settlers on the frontier against the depredations of the Indian tribes. "In April, 1879," says the governor, "by virtue of this act, I organized and thoroughly equipped a patrol guard of about 40 men, and kept them on the southwestern border patrolling a line from Barbour county west about 100 miles, thus rendering it impossible for any considerable number of hostile Indians to invade the state without notice thereof being promptly conveyed not only to the settlers exposed to such dangers, but to both the state and national authorities, so that a sufficient additional force might be quickly added to the patrol guard to resist successfully any such invasion and furnish ample protection to the lives and property of the citizens."
In addition to this patrol guard, the governor also caused independent companies of both infantry and cavalry to be organized along the fron- tier; furnished these companies with arms and ammunition; completed the organization of two regiments of infantry to be ready for emergen- cies; and kept special scouts in the vicinity of the Indian camps and
629
KANSAS HISTORY
reservations except during the severe winter weather. The men belong- ing to the two regiments of infantry furnished their own uniforms, paid rent for their armories, and incurred considerable expense in other ways to maintain their organization. "If these officers and men," said the governor, "without cost to the state, devote the necessary time required to make their military organizations efficient, I submit, the state should at least defray the expenses thus incurred in providing means for its own defense. The way to secure obedience to and respect for our laws is always to be possessed of the power to enforce them."
On the subject of the prohibitory amendment, he said: "This amend- ment now being a part of the constitution of our state, it devolves upon you to enact such laws as are necessary for its rigid enforcement." (See Prohibition.) The message recommended "a comprehensive and thorough geological survey ;" that provisions be made for the selection and inscription of a suitable memorial stone for the Washington monu- ment ; that the state board of agriculture should "be liberally sustained by the state," and that an appropriation be made to the horticultural society "sufficient to assure its continued usefulness."
The assembly adjourned on March 5. Gov. St. John's recommenda- tion with regard to a school for feeble-minded youth resulted in the pas- sage of an act establishing an institution of that character in the old university building at Lawrence. Other important acts of the session were as follows: Providing for carrying into effect the prohibitory amendment; creating the county of St. John; granting permission to the Topeka Library Association to erect a building on the state-house grounds, the governor, chief justice of the supreme court and the speaker of the house of representatives to be ex-officio directors of the association ; accepting the ornithological collection of Col. N. S. Goss; removing the political disabilities of a number of persons ; providing for the completion of the west wing of the capitol building, and for the regis- tration of voters in county seat elections. The appropriations for the fiscal year ending on June 30, 1881, amounted to $1,032,451.95.
By the United States census of 1880 Kansas was entitled to seven representatives in Congress, but the fact was not known in time for the legislature of 1881 to divide the state into seven districts. To meet this condition all the political parties, in the campaign of 1882, nominated a candidate for representative in each of the three old districts and four for the state at large. The first state convention in that campaign was held by the Republican party at Topeka on June 28. Samuel R. Peters, Edward N. Morrill, B. W. Perkins and Lewis Hanback were nominated for Congressmen at large; John P. St. John was a third time nominated for governor; the lieutenant-governor, secretary of state, attorney-gen- eral and superintendent of public instruction were all renominated, as was David J. Brewer, who had been first elected in 1876, for associate justice. E. P. McCabe, a colored man, was nominated for auditor of state, and Samuel T. Howe for treasurer. The platform adopted declared unqualifiedly for prohibition; demanded the enactment of laws to pre-
630
CYCLOPEDIA OF
vent unjust discrimination by railroad companies and protect the inter- ests of the people ; requested the next legislature to submit to the people an amendment to the constitution giving women the right to suffrage; indorsed President Arthur's veto of the river and harbor bill, and the united action of the Kansas delegation in Congress in sustaining the veto.
On Aug. 30 the Greenback-Labor convention met and nominated the following ticket: For governor, Charles Robinson ; lieutenant-governor, J. G. Bayne ; secretary of state, A. P. Elder ; auditor, W. A. Garretson ; treasurer, J. H. Ludlow ; attorney general, J. D. McBrian ; superintendent of public instruction, J. S. Whitman; associate justice, L. C. Uhl; Con- gressmen at large, H. L. Phillips, John Davis, Allen Williams (colored), and Samuel N. Wood.
A week later the Democratic state convention assembled at Em- poria. John Martin was nominated by acclamation for governor, but he declined and George W. Glick was placed at the head of the ticket.' Frank Bacon was named for lieutenant-governor ; Samuel L. Gilbert, for secretary of state; W. L. Brown, for auditor; Charles A. Gifford, for treasurer ; Sidney Hayden, for attorney-general ; D. E. Lantz, for super- intendent of public instruction ; J. W. Green, for associate justice ; Cyrus A. Leland, John O. Flannigan, M. V. B. Bennett and Samuel N. Wood for Congressmen at large, the last named being placed on the ticket by the state central committee after the adjournment of the convention. The platform adopted was usually long. Its principal features were de- mands for amendments to the Federal constitution providing for the election of president, vice-president and United States senators by direct vote of the people; making the term of president and vice-president six years, with no eligibility for reelection; the election of representatives in Congress for four years instead of two; biennial sessions of Congress, and the election of postmaster by the people. Women suffrage, national banks, and monopolies of every kind were opposed, and the resubmis- sion of the prohibitory amendment was advocated.
In the campaign considerable opposition to Gov. St. John developed, not so much on account of his personality or his official acts as because of the third term sentiment. A minority of the delegates to the state convention which nominated him entered a protest against such action as "a violation of the precedents and customs of the party." It is also possible that he lost some votes because of his vigorous support of prohibition, but it is equally possible that this loss was offset by a cor- responding gain from the other parties of those who believed in prohibi- tion. At any rate he was defeated at the election in November, when he received but 75,158 votes, to 83,237 for Glick, Robinson, the Green- back candidate, receiving 20,933. All the other candidates on the Re- publican state ticket were elected by substantial pluralities, as were the seven Republican candidates for Congress. Gov. St. John was succeeded by Gov. Glick on Jan. 8, 1883.
631
KANSAS HISTORY
St. John's College, located at Winfield, is under the control of the Mis- souri synod of the English Evangelical Lutheran church. Its establish- ment was due in a great measure to the liberality of John P. Baden, a wealthy citizen of Winfield and a prominent member of the Lutheran church. Early in the 'gos he gave $50,000 toward founding the institu- tion, a site was selected in the eastern part of the city, plans were made for a stone building 60 by 100 feet, two stories high, with basement and attic, and the corner-stone was laid in June, 1893. The following Sep- tember the school was opened with a faculty of five members. The col- lege building was not quite completed and temporary quarters for class rooms were secured elsewhere until March 1, 1894, when the building was finished and formally dedicated. The college course embraces three departments-classical, literary and scientific-and the financial manage- ment has been such that no debt has ever been incurred. Mr. Baden died on March 3, 1900, but the school he founded is an enduring monu- ment to his generosity.
St. John's Military Academy, the only military school in Kansas, located at Salina, on a fifty-acre tract of land, was founded on March 14, 1887. It is under the auspices of the Protestant Episcopal church. The routine at St. John's is practically the system provided for cadets at West Point, modified to suit younger boys. St. John's is conducted by a rector, a head-master, a staff of six masters and a commandant. In 1911 the rector was Rt. Rev. S. M. Griswold, bishop of the Episcopal diocese of Salina; the head-master was Rev. William Colton, a clergy- man and experienced teacher. The original building of the school dates back to the '8os, but is still a good specimen of school architecture. In 1904 there was added a three-story annex called the "barracks," which provided quarters for 80 cadets, 2 in a room. The "lower school" dormi- tory, for boys under fourteen years of age, is located in the main build- ing. A gymnasium, 44 by 72 feet, has the usual equipment. Four courses of study are provided, classical, scientific, English and commer- cial. The boys are fitted for business or college, according to the courses they take, and the military drills are work, not play. The uniform stands for duty and responsibility, and while on duty the pupil is regarded as a man, representing law and order. The discipline thus gained by the student gives him better control of himself in affairs after he leaves school.
St. Joseph, a village in Cloud county, is located 15 miles southeast of Concordia, the county seat, and 8 miles south of Clyde, the postoffice from which it receives mail. The population in 1910 was 126.
St. Louis Exposition .- (See Expositions.)
St. Mark, a hamlet in Sedgwick county, is located 13 miles northwest of Wichita, the county seat, and 5 miles north of Goddard on the Atchi- son, Topeka & Santa Fe, and nearest shipping point and the postoffice from which it receives mail by rural route. The population in 1910 was 60.
632
CYCLOPEDIA OF
St. Marys, formerly known as St. Mary's mission, one of the leading incorporated cities of Pottawatomie county, is located in the extreme southeastern part of the county on the Kansas river and the Union Pacific R. R., 25 miles from Westmoreland, the county seat, and 24 miles from Topeka. St. Mary's College, one of the leading Catholic institutions of higher learning, is located here and is the most important institution in the town. There are 2 weekly newspapers and a college monthly, 3 banks, grain elevators, brick, tile and cement works, and a number of well stocked stores. St. Marys is an important shipping point for grain, live stock, fruits and produce. It has express and tele- graph offices and an international money order postoffice with two rural routes. The population in 1910 was 1,397.
St. Marys was the first point in the county to be settled. The Cath- olic missionaries came in 1848 and built a mission for the education and spiritual instruction of the Pottawatomie Indians. The town was not laid out until 1866. B. H. Bertrand was the original promoter. In 1869 Mr. Bertrand, Dr. Luther R. Palmer and Dr. H. C. Linn made an addi- tion to the town and the next year another addition was added by Dr. Palmer, Adelaide Bertrand and John D. Lasley. A third addition was also made in June of that year. St. Marys has been very unfortunate in the matter of fires, having experienced four destructive ones, the first on Dec. 6, 1872, the second in Feb., 1879, in which the main building of the college was burned, the third in Oct., 1884, and the last on Dec. 13, 1884, in which Alva Higby lost his life and $45,000 worth of property was destroyed.
St. Mary's College, located at St. Marys, claims to be the oldest insti- tution of learning in Kansas. In 1846 the government gave the Potta- watomie Indians a reservation along the banks of the Kansas river, in the present counties of Shawnee, Wabaunsee and Pottawatomie. The Jesuits followed and in 1848 opened a school where the present college stands. From 1848 to 1869 the school was one for Indians and first settlers, but on Dec. 24, 1869, it was chartered as a college, empowered to confer degrees and academic honors in all the learned professions. In 1870 a new building was commenced. It was finished in 1872, and was destroyed by fire in Feb., 1879. A few days later classes were re- sumed in the academy building of the Ladies of the Sacred Heart, which building was later purchased. The college started out with new life and vigor. The fourth year the enrollment was 250, and the increasing number of students made new quarters necessary. In 1880 the present north wing of the main building was constructed ; in 1884 another wing was added, and in 1898 still another. In 1882 the class room building was erected ; in 1891 Jumor Hall was built ; in 1907 Loyola Hall, a com- modious dormitory, was thrown open for occupancy ; and in Dec., 1907, the corner-stone of a chapel named "The Immaculata" was laid.
The system of education is substantially the one in use in all the col- leges of the Society of Jesus throughout the world. The purpose of the mental training given by St. Mary's is not proximately to fit the student
633
KANSAS HISTORY
for some special employment or profession, but to give him a general, well rounded development. The course of study is divided into three departments-the college, the academy and the English-commercial de- partment. The courses are not elective but prescribed. St. Mary's has a corps of instructors numbering about 30 and is a Catholic school for boys. It has an enrollment of 450 students.
St. Mary's Mission .- (See Missions.)
St. Paul (formerly Osage Mission), the third largest town in Neosho county, is located in Mission township on the Missouri, Kansas & Texas R. R., about 6 miles southeast of Erie, the county seat. It is an incor- porated city ; has 2 weekly papers (the Journal and the A. H. T. A. News, the latter the organ of the Anti-Horse Thief Association), 2 banks, telegraph and express offices, and an international money order postoffice with three rural routes. The population in 1910 was 927.
In 1866, before the town was founded, two buildings were erected, one by L. P. Foster & Co., in which a store was kept by the "Morgan boys," and a frame structure, built by S. A. Williams, of Fort Scott, in which his son kept store. In Dec., 1867, a town company was formed, composed of George A. Crawford, S. A. Williams, C. W. Blair, Benja- min McDonald and John Nandier, and a town called Osage Mission was platted. Another town called "Catholic Mission" was located adjoining it on the west. Both towns put up buildings and started business enter- prises, but Osage Mission soon absorbed the other.
The first lawyer to locate in town was C. F. Huchings in 1867, and the first doctor was A. F. Neeley. The early growth of the town was rapid. Within eight months from the time it was platted it had over 20 stores and 900 inhabitants. It was the center of three lines of stages, one to Fort Scott, one to Humboldt, and one to Chetopa. For several years this point was a strong rival of Erie for the county seat. The first bank, known as the Neosho County Savings Bank, was established in 1871, by Pierce & Mitchell. The first newspaper, The Neosho County Re- publican, was started in 1880 by F. W. Ward. The first school for white children was taught in 1867 by Anson Gridley.
The town was organized in 1869 as a city of the third class, with John O'Grady as mayor, B. P. Ayres, John Ryan, John Moffit, J. P. Morgan and R. D. Coggswell, councilmen. Prior to that time the town had been governed by a board of trustees, consisting of John Ryan, president ; John Moffit, clerk; B. P. Ayres, T. C. Cory and R. D. Coggswell.
St. Peter, a village of Graham county, is located in Bryant township, 18 miles southwest of Hill City, the county seat, and II miles south of Morland, the nearest shipping point. It has a number of general stores, a hotel, churches, professional men and a money order postoffice. The population in 1910 was 50.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.