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 82
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
684
CYCLOPEDIA OF
Among the people who came in 1847 were Jonas Lykins, Father J. B. Hoecken, who established a Catholic mission in Auburn township; a colony of settlers from Indiana, New York and Iowa, which located in Silver Lake township; and a colony which settled in Rossville township. The next year a number of settlers located in Soldier township; Rev. Isaac McCoy and his daughter Elizabeth, Rev. Robert Simerwell and daughter Sarah came to the Baptist mission, which was established that year in Mission township. They opened and taught an Indian school. The government established a trading post in 1848 at the site of Ross- ville, where Thomas N. Stinson, who later figured prominently in the history of Tecumseh, built the first house in March. Two months later a dozen traders located there, and the place was called Uniontown. The next year cholera broke out among the Indians in the neighborhood with terrible violence and the town was deserted except for Stinson, Whitehead and McDonald, who remained with Dr. Gallimore and his wife to help check the disease, of which the doctor and his wife later died.
Of the towns which were founded in this period and later became de- funct none had as great prospects as Tecumseh, founded in 1852 by Thomas N. Stinson. Rochester was founded in 1854 by J. Butler Chap- man; Indianola, by H. D. McMeekin; Mairsville, by Thomas W. Mairs; and Washington, by Capt. E. Allen, in 1855; Kenamo, by Joseph Allen, in 1856; Williamsport, by citizens of Williamsport, Pa., and Carthage, by W. B. Stith, in 1857. Topeka, founded in 1855 by Col. Cyrus K. Hol- liday and others, is the only one of the early towns to survive. In 1854 settlers came into the county by hundreds and a new era in its history began.
The first territorial legislature, which in 1855 defined the boundaries of the county, also organized it, making Tecumseh the county seat and by a ballot elected the following officers: probate judge, William O. Yeager ; board of commissioners, William O. Yeager, Edward Hoagland and William Yocum; sheriff, George W. Berry. In September the fol- lowing officers were appointed to complete the organization: county clerk, John Martin; treasurer, Thomas N. Stinson. County buildings were erected at Tecumseh to be paid for by county and territorial tax. The county was divided into Tecumseh and Yocum townships. In 1857 it was again divided into the townships of Tecumseh, Topeka, Brawn- ville, Burlingame and Wakarusa. In the next decade frequent changes were made, and finally in 1868 the present division into Auburn, Dover, Menoken, Mission, Monmouth, Rossville, Silver Lake, Soldier, Tecum- seh, Topeka and Williamsport, was made. In Oct., 1855, Gov. Shannon appointed John Martin register of deeds and John Horner assessor.
Owing to the fact that Col. Holliday, who had been elected to the leg- islature at an election ordered by Gov. Reeder and held on May 22, 1855, was not seated, and that the candidate elected by the Missourians and pro-slavery men on March 30 was seated in his place, the free-state citizens of Shawnee county did not recognize the acts of the legislature
685
KANSAS HISTORY
which convened at Pawnee that summer, hence they did not consider the county organized. On these grounds they refused to pay taxes and made it so unpleasant for the tax collector that it was impossible to keep the same man in the office for more than a few weeks. The office of sheriff was not a popular one. The whole territory was then in a tur- moil over the slavery question, and late in the fall of 1855 Shawnee county contributed one of the free-state companies which went to the defense of Lawrence, which was then being besieged by border ruffians and Missourians. This company was organized on Nov. 27, with Daniel H. Horne as captain. The next year a company of Shawnee county men was organized under Capt. William F. Creitz for protection against the raiders from Missouri, and aided in securing a food supply which had been cut off from the free-state towns. It also marched to Bull creek to repel Capt. John Reid, a Missourian who was leading a raid on Osawat- omie. Upon the way back to Lawrence Capt. Creitz received word that Col. Cooke had been ordered by Acting-Gov. Woodson to take possession of Topeka, and the company hastened home in time to prevent this from being done. In Sept., 1856, about 50 Shawnee county men went to the assistance of Gen. Lane at Ozawkie and were with him at Hickory Point, later disbanding by order of Gov. Geary.
The first county election was held in Oct., 1857, when the free-state ticket was elected as follows: Member of council, Cyrus K. Holliday ; representative, James A. DeLong; probate judge, Phillip Schuyler ; sheriff, Jehiel Tyler ; treasurer, A. Polley ; register of deeds, F. W. Giles ; surveyor, Joel Huntoon; commissioners, Harvey W. Curtis and Hiram Shields. After the election it was found that under the territorial laws the offices of sheriff, surveyor and register of deeds were appointive instead of elective. At its first meeting in Jan., 1858, the county board made Mr. Giles clerk of the board of commissioners, clerk of the probate judge and register of deeds. Mr. Tyler was commissioned sheriff by the governor. Mr. Huntoon was made surveyor by the commissioners. Ed- ward Hoagland was appointed to the office of probate judge in place of Mr. Schuyler, who declined to serve.
The new free-state officials found county matters in a state of chaos. No schools had been established nor no bridges built; financial matters were in a desperate condition, owing to the building of the court-house at Tecumseh and the failure to collect revenues; there was no jail, and no provision had been made to pay for the board of persons arrested by the sheriff. A bridge costing $900 was built over Deer creek by county bonds issued by the commissioners, and the sheriff was authorized to issue certificates for the advance payment of taxes in order to meet the exegencies of his office. In February the county government was changed by the legislature so that each township had a board of com- missioners, the chairman of each township board being a member of the county board. The first county board under this arrangement was, Jeremiah Murphy, Eli Hopkins, P. T. Hupp, A. H. Hale, and George Bratton. Considering the fact that the greater part of the county indebt-
686
CYCLOPEDIA OF
edness was incurred in building a court-house at Tecumseh, without a vote of the people, and that the organization of the county prior to the election of 1857 was spurious, the new county board repudiated the obligations incurred by the county prior to the first Monday in Oct., 1857.
By act of the legislature ordering the counties to vote on the location of their county seats in Oct., 1858, such an election was held in Shawnee county and resulted in the choice of Topeka. After considerable delay Judge Hoagland announced the vote but declared the election "invalid and void." Inasmuch as the only thing which could invalidate the election was the delay in publishing the vote, the legislature, by special act of Jan. 25, 1859, removed the county seat from Tecumseh to Topeka, in view of the fact that the latter town was the choice of the people. No court-house was built until after the Civil war, and on their removal to Topeka the county offices were scattered all over town.
The first bridge over the Kansas river was built at private expense by a company organized in Topeka. It cost $10,000, was completed on May 1, 1858, and ten weeks later was swept away by high water. The first newspapers in the county were established in 1855. The Kansas Tribune was started at Lawrence in January and moved to Topeka the next De- cember. The Kansas Freeman was started at Topeka on July 4. Both these papers were started as weeklies and later became dailies.
During the Civil war Shawnee county raised several companies for the defense of the Union and of the State of Kansas. The Second Kansas state militia, which was mustered into service in 1864 to repel the Price raid, was almost wholly a Shawnee county regiment. The officers were: George W. Veale, Topeka, colonel; Henry M. Green, Monmouth, lieu- tenant-colonel; Andrew Stark, Topeka, major; Edward P. Kellam, To- peka, adjutant ; Samuel J. Reeder, Indianola, quartermaster ; S. E. Mar- tin, Topeka, surgeon. The officers of companies A and B were Topeka men ; Company C was raised and officered in Tecumseh ; D was from Indianola, E from Topeka, G from Auburn and H from Williamsport. The battery was officered by Topeka men. Of the regiments from Kan- sas mustered into the United States service, Company A of the second infantry and Companies E and H of the Eleventh cavalry were largely composed of Shawnee county men. This county contributed to a num- ber of other regiments, notably the Seventeenth.
After the war, which had arrested the growth of the county, the com- missioners proceeded with the work of establishing schools, building bridges and roads, etc., which had been begun in 1859, and in 1867 the citizens voted to build a court-house and a jail, which was done at a cost of nearly $69,000. The court rooms occupied the second floor, the county offices the main floor, and the jail was in the basement. In 1886 a jail and sheriff's residence were erected at a cost of $40,000. The pres- ent court-house was completed in 1895, the cost of the site and building being $180,000. In 1865 a pontoon bridge over the Kansas river was built, which lasted till 1870. The next year Mortimer Cook built a toll
687
KANSAS HISTORY
bridge, which was purchased jointly by the city and county at a cost of $100,000. In 1895 the county voted $150,000 for a new bridge and the Melan bridge was built. At the time it was commenced it was one of the largest Melan arch bridges which had been built. It withstood a severe test in the flood of 1903, which swept away nearly every other bridge on the river. In 1905 the channel of the river was widened and a new span added to prevent damage by future floods, and in 1911 still another span was built.
In 1874 the Shawnee County Agricultural Society was organized and it held fairs each fall for more than a dozen years at Topeka, bnt finally the county fairs were so overshadowed by the state fairs held on the same grounds that they were discontinued. A state fair association was organized in 1880. Various citizens of Shawnee county subscribed a total amount of $3,600 to the capital stock. A state fair was held the next year on the county fair grounds. The county has always contrib- uted either by public or private subscription to the state fairs. In 1910 Shawnee county voted $50,000 to the new state fair association. (See State Fairs.)
The first schools were organized in 1859. In 1882 there were 81 organ- ized districts, 91 school houses, 133 school rooms, with as many teach- ers,and an average attendance of 4,305 out of a school population of II,496. In 1910 there were 99 organized districts, 338 teachers, 16,994 persons of school age with an average attendance of 8,827 pupils. The value of school property in 1882 was $265,000; in 1910 it was $1,132,800 including the property of the public schools in cities.
The first railroad was the Union Pacific, which was completed through the county in 1866. Work was begun on the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe in the fall of 1868. The Union Pacific enters on the east line and crosses west following the north bank of the Kansas river. A line of this road has recently been built from Topeka northwest to Onaga in Pottawatomie county. The main line of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe from Kansas City enters on the east line, crosses west to Topeka, thence south into Osage county. A branch of this road from Atchison enters in the northeast and crosses southwest to Topeka, where it con- nects with the main line. A branch of the Missouri Pacific from Fort Scott enters in the southast and crosses to Topeka, where it terminates. The Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific runs its trains over the Union Pa- cific tracks from Kansas City to Topeka, thence over its own tracks fol- lowing the south bank of the Kansas river into Wabaunsee county. A line of this road extends north from Topeka into Jackson county.
Owing to more settled financial conditions Shawnee county suffered less from the various depressions than some of the newer counties. Dur- ing the winter following the drought of 1860 this county received 361,165 pounds of provisions. In the hard times of 1874 Shawnee county not only took care of its own but subscribed funds to help the people in other parts of the state. In 1885 there were said to be 3,000 destitute people in the county, 800 of whom were being supported at public expense. A
688
CYCLOPEDIA OF
bad season for crops was the cause of this condition. The assessed valu- ation of property in 1860 was $1,178,994; in 1870 it was $4,696,253; and in 1910 it was $79,863,791. In 1882 there were about 100,000 acres of land under cultivation, most of it planted to corn. In 1910 corn was still the leading crop, the crop of that year being worth $1,453,736, hay, the crop next in value, was worth $524,716. Irish potatoes were worth $107,858. The total value of farm products for the year was $5,429,222, of which various dairy products contributed over $2,000,000.
In 1890 Shawnee county was prominent in the "Original Package" difficulty by reason of the Federal court ordering the county attorney to discontinue actions brought against the violators of the Kansas pro- hibitory law, and the governor ordering the state attorney to appear in the place of the county attorney.
During the Spanish-American war of 1898-99 two full companies and parts of other companies were recruited in Shawnee county. Company A of the famous Twentieth Kansas was almost wholly recruited in Topeka, and the Kansas troops were mobilized at Camp Leedy; Topeka.
One of the principal disasters of late years was the flood of 1903 which destroyed a great deal of property along all the streams in the county, especially the Kansas river and the Shunganunga. Less destructive floods occurred in 1904 and 1908. In 1911 the county built dikes of con- crete at Topeka to prevent a future overflow at that point.
The surface of the county is rolling prairie with a few hills and bluffs along the streams, prominent among which is Burnett's mound, one of the beauty spots of the county, located southwest of Topeka. The bot- tom lands along the Kansas and Wakarusa rivers are from 1 to 3 miles wide and these together with the creek valleys comprise about one- third of the area of the county.
The Kansas river, which is the largest in the state, flows across the county from west to east, just north of the center. Among its trib- utaries are Soldier creek from the north and Mission from the south. The Wakarusa enters on the south line in the west part and flows east across the county into Douglas. Blue and gray limestone is found in the bluffs and along the banks of the streams. Clay for brick is plenti- ful. Coal has been mined to a limited extent. Sand of a superior qual- ity is dredged from the Kansas river and shipped in large quantities. Timber belts along the streams average three-fourths of a mile in width and contain oak, cottonwood, ash, walnut, hickory, hackberry, basswood, elm, mulberry, box-elder, redbud and ironwood. There are two medici- nal springs at Topeka.
The population at various stages in the history of the county has been as follows: In 1860, 3,513 ; in 1865, 3,458; in 1870, 13,121 ; in 1875, 15,417; in 1880, 28,029; in 1890, 49,172; in 1900, 53,727; in 1910, 61,874, showing a steady growth at all periods.
Shawnee Mission .- (See Missions.)
Sheldon, Charles M., clergyman and author, was born at Wellsville, N. Y., Feb. 26, 1857, a son of Stewart and Sarah (Ward) Sheldon. He
689
KANSAS HISTORY
received his A. B. degree from Brown University in 1883; graduated at the Andover Theological Seminary in 1886; was ordained as a Con- gregational minister and became pastor at Waterbury, Vt. In 1889 he came to Kansas and became pastor of the Central Congregational church at Topeka ; in 1891 married Mary Abby Merriam ; in 1898 received D. D. from Temple College in Philadelphia, Pa., and in 1900 received the same degree from Washburn College at Topeka. In 1900 the Topeka Daily Capital was turned over to his management for one week and he edited it as he thought Jesus Christ would. His books are the most widely read of any Kansas author, some of them having been translated into several foreign languages. Among his numerous works are: Richard Bruce (1891), Robert Hardy's Seven Days (1892), The Crucifixion of Philip Strong (1893), John King's Question Class (1894), His Brother's Keeper (1895), In His Steps, or What Would Jesus Do (1896), Malcolm Kirk (1897), Lend a Hand (1897), The Redemption of Freetown (1898), The Miracle at Markham (1898), One of the Two (1898), For Christ and the Church (1899), Born to Serve (1900), Who Killed Joe's Baby (1901), The Wheels of the Machine (1901), The Reformer (1902), The Narrow Gate (1902), The Heart of the World (1905), Paul Douglas (1905), The Good Fight (1905), A Sheldon Year Book (1909), The High Calling (19II). In 1896 he edited a book entitled, "One Hundred and One Poems of the Day."
Sherdahl, a village in Union township, Republic county, is located II miles northwest of Bellville, the county seat, and about 5 miles north of Scandia. The population in 1910 was 24. Mail is received by rural de- livery from Scandia.
Sheridan County, in the northwestern part of the state, is located in the second tier from the north line of the state and is the third county east of Colorado. It is bounded on the north by Decatur; on the east by Graham; on the south by Gove, and on the west by Thomas. It was created in 1873 and named in honor of Gen. Philip H. Sheridan. The boundaries were described as follows: "Commencing where the east line of range 26 intersects the Ist standard parallel; thence south with said range line to the 2d standard parallel; thence west with said standard parallel to the east line of range 31 west; thence north with said range line to the Ist standard parallel; thence east to the place of beginning." The boundaries were redefined in 1879, when the southern line was pushed 6 miles to the north, cutting off a tier of counties, but the original boundaries were restored in 1881.
In 1857 when the Cheyennes were on the war path, and the United States troops were sent into western Kansas to check them, the two forces met on the Solomon river in Sheridan county and a battle was fought which broke up that band of Cheyennes.
The first settlements were made about the middle of the 'zos, but it was not until 1879 that immigration became heavy. In that year, and early in 1880, so many settlers located in the county that there was sufficient population for organziation. The governor appointed George (II-44)
690
CYCLOPEDIA OF
W. Crane and D. E. Barnes census takers. A public meeting was held at Kenneth, an early town which was located about a mile north of the site of Hoxie, and the men who were to be recommended to the governor for temporary officers were elected. They were: County clerk, William Stephens ; commissioners, W. M. Rodgers, K. A. Ellithorpe and W. S. Hausufus. Gov. St. John issued the proclamation on June 2, ap- pointing the officers recommended and naming Kenneth as the tem- porary county seat. The election of Nov., 1880, resulted as follows : County clerk, W. M. Rodgers ; treasurer, G. W. Crane ; register of deeds, A. C. McClurg; sheriff, J. H. Carey ; superintendent of public instruc- tion, E. P. Weida ; probate judge, S. P. Davidson ; surveyor, W. C. Black- stone ; coroner, W. H. Pierce; district clerk, A. W. Stone; commission- ers, W. C. Hausufus, M. M. Scott and M. G. Haskell. Kenneth was made the county seat and remained so until 1886. In that year Hoxie was founded and named for a Mr. Hoxie, who was interested in building a railroad to the new town, but who died before he could accomplish the project. W. P. Price was the leading member of the Hoxie Town com- pany. A special county seat election was held in July, 1886. There were 516 votes cast of which Hoxie received 422 and became the permanent county seat.
The Union Pacific railroad was built in 1888. It runs from east to west through the central part. A line of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific crosses the northwest corner. The county is divided into 13 townships, viz: Adell, Bloomfield, Bow Creek, Kenneth, Logan, Par- nell, Prairie Dog, Saline, Sheridan, Solomon, Spring Brook, Union and Valley. The postoffices are: Angelus, Guy, Hoxie, Lucerne, Seguin, Selden and Studley.
The general surface is a level table-land except along the streams where it is somewhat broken. Bottom lands, which comprise 25 per cent. of the total area, average one mile in width. The north fork of the Solomon river enters in the west, somewhat north of the center and flows northeast into Norton county. The south fork of the same river enters from the west, about 10 miles north of the southwest corner, and flows east into Graham county. The Saline river flows east across the south- ern tier of townships. These streams are fringed with thin belts of tim- ber containing cottonwood, ash, hackberry, elm, box-elder and wild cherry. Magnesian limestone is found in the east and south.
The live stock in 1882 numbered 5,654 head, nearly half of which was sheep. There were 18,444 pounds of butter sold, $12,388 worth of ani- mals for slaughter and $9,783 worth of poultry and eggs. The number of acres under cultivation was about 2,300. In 1910 the number of acres under cultivation was 385,950. The value of the farm products was $1,521,856. Wheat, the leading crop, brought $478,219; corn, $145,556; oats, $62,756; barley $56,001 ; sorghum, $51,791; hay, $268,359; animals sold for slaughter, $252,532; poultry and eggs, $52,687; dairy products, $55,872. The value of live stock on hand was $1,481,437, and the number of head, 31,981, mostly cattle and swine.
.
691
KANSAS HISTORY
The assessed valuation of property in 1882 was $42,185. In 1910 it was $9,962,451. The number of school districts in 1882 was 9 and there was a school population of 360. In 1907 there were 70 organized school dis- tricts, with 1,838 persons of schools age. The population in 1890 was 3,733 ; in 1900 it was 3,819, and in 1910 it was 5,651. The average wealth per capita in 1910 was nearly $1,800.
Sherman, a hamlet in Cherokee county, is located in Sheridan town- ship on the Missouri, Kansas & Texas R. R., 18 miles northwest of Co- lumbus, the county seat. It has two general stores, an alfalfa feed mill. and a money order postoffice. The population in 1910 was 47.
Sherman County, one of the western tier, the second south from Ne- braska, is bounded on the north by Cheyenne county ; on the east by Thomas; on the south by Wallace and Logan, and on the west by the State of Colorado. It was created in 1873 and named for Gen. William T. Sherman. The boundaries were defined as follows: "Commencing where the east line of range 37 west intersects the Ist standard parallel ; thence south with said line to the 2nd standard parallel; thence west with said parallel to the west line of the State of Kansas; thence north on said line to the Ist standard parallel; thence east on said parallel to the place of beginning."
There were no settlers in the county at that time. The first town was laid out at the geographical center of the county about 1880 and was called Inez. It had disappeared, in name at least, before the county organization, which took place in 1886. The first newspaper in the county was the Voltaire Advertiser, founded in Dec., 1885, by Ernest J. Scott. In the spring of 1886 there was such an influx of new settlers that the population was sufficient for county organization. The citizens of Voltaire tried to bring about the organization before the newer settlers in the southwest part of the county were eligible to vote, hoping in this way to have their town made the county seat. In June they secured the appointment of O. T. McCormick as census taker and he was instructed to make all possible haste in the enumeration so that the election to complete the organization could be held not later than the middle of September. He did not make his returns until Aug. 30, and the people of Voltaire, learning that he had been given several lots in the town of Eustis, ascribed the delay to that fact.
The returns showed a population of 2,820, of whom 975 were house- holders. There was taxable property to the amount of $362,960, of which $129,320 was real estate. In order to delay the organization the Eustis men had claimed that there were less than 400 voters in the county. However, their petition to the governor asking that Eustis be made county seat had 2,500 names attached to it. The opponents of Eustis claimed that hundreds of these names were of people living in adjoining counties, but this was not proven and Eustis was made the temporary county seat. The following officers were appointed : county clerk, J. H. Tate; commissioners, L. J. Gandy, O. D. Dickey and R. R. Edwards. The other candidates for county seat were, Itasca, Shermanville and
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.