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 85
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Smith county is in an excellent agricultural section, and is one of the leaders in the acreage of alfalfa, and one of the two leading in swine. The farm produce in 1910 sold for $5,829,000, of which wheat brought $1,100,000; corn, $2,238,000; tame grass, $403,000; animals sold for slaughter, $1,420,000. Poultry, eggs, butter and milk are important products. The population of the county according to the census of 1910 was 15,365. The assessed valuation of property was $28,324,385.
Smoky Hill, a hamlet in Ellis county, is located in the township of the same name, on the Smoky Hill river, 15 miles southwest of Hays, the county seat. It has a postoffice, a good local trade, and the popula- tion in 1910 was 75.
Smoky Hill River .- The Indians supposed this stream to be the Kan- sas river, and by some of the early historians it was so considered. Probably the first mention of it was by the explorer Pike, who encoun- tered it on Sept. 4, 1806, while on his way to the Pawnee village, and called it the main south branch of the Kansas river. The name prob- ably attaches from the hills near Lindsborg known as the Smoky Hills. A map in Schoolcraft's Archives of Aboriginal Knowledge names the stream Smoky Hill fork or Topeka river. The Smoky Hill river has two main branches, both of which rise in Colorado. The north fork enters Kansas near the southwest corner of Sherman county, flows about 25 miles to the east, thence makes a turn to the southeast, cutting across
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the extreme northeast corner of Wallace into Logan county. The south fork is formed by two branches whichi rise in Kit Carson and Cheyenne counties, Col., about 40 and 35 miles respectively from the Kansas line. This branch flows in a general easterly direction, enters Kansas about the center of the west line of Wallace county and flows almost due east through that county to unite with the north branch at a point about 6 miles west of Russell Springs. The course of the main stream from this point is almost due east through the counties of Logan, Gove, Trego, Ellis, Russell and into Ellsworth, where it bears to the southeast, making a turn and entering the northern township of McPherson county. The river here makes a sharp curve to the north and enters Saline county, flowing as far north as the town of Salina and deviating slightly to the north of east, passes through Dickinson and Geary counties, uniting with the Republican to form the Kansas river.
Pike mentioned that the river was navigable in times of flood, but there is no record of its having been navigated other than by the steam- boat Excel for one trip in 1854, and by the Gus Linn in 1859, the latter taking a whole day for a round trip between Fort Riley and Junction City. The estimated length of the river is about 400 miles and the ter- ritory drained is approximately 20,000 square miles. In 1904 the U. S. weather bureau established river gauge stations on the stream at Abilene and Lindsborg.
Smoky Hill Trail .- The Pike's Peak gold excitement and the subse- quent stampede for the new discoveries, caused the opening of a trail up the Smoky Hill valley to the mountains, known as the central or Smoky Hill route to the gold fields of western Kansas. Leavenworth was one of the foremost outfitting points for overland travelers and was the starting point of several roads that ran towards the new "diggings," one of which ran direct to Lawrence, thence west to Brownsville, thence following the divide up the river to Salina. Another ran through Alex- andria, thence in a southwesterly direction, passing near Oskaloosa to Indianola, thence west over the Fort Leavenworth and Fort Riley mil- itary road to Junction City, thence west to Salina where the other road joined it. A third, after leaving Leavenworth, bore north a few miles, curved to the southwest, passed through the village of Ozawkie and in- tersected the military road at Indianola. From Salina the trail ran west up the Smoky Hill river to its head, thence west to Sand creek, follow- ing that stream almost to its headwaters, thence in a westerly direction a little to the north, crossing Beaver, Bijou, Kiowa and several smaller creeks to the scene of the new gold discoveries. During the years 1858 and 1859 there was a continuous throng of gold seekers passing over this road to the mines. Topeka was one of the best interior points for outfitting and in one week in 1859 over 60 wagons left that town for Leavenworth to obtain supplies for equipping pilgrims. The mad rush to the mountains kept up for some time after the boom collapsed. The Central or Smoky Hill trail was surveyed in 1858 and the route was followed very closely by the Butterfield Overland Despatch.
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Smolan, a thriving village of Saline county, is located in Smolan township on the Missouri Pacific R. R., 10 miles southwest of Salina, the county seat. There are telegraph and express offices, and a money order postoffice with two rural routes. The population in 1910 was 175.
Smyth, Bernard B., the curator of the Kansas State Museum and Goss ornithological collection, was born in County Cavan, Ireland, March 8, 1843. When ten years of age he came to the United States, locating first at Howell, Mich. At the outbreak of the Civil war he enlisted in the Twenty-third Illinois infantry, which became a part of "Mullin's Irish Brigade." He was captured by Price's army at Lexington, Mo., in Sept., 1861, but was paroled, sent to St. Louis and discharged in October, but the discharge was declared void and he returned to duty. Instead of returning to his old regiment, he enlisted in the Ninth Michi- gan infantry. In Nov., 1862, he was transferred to the First United States cavalry and served with that regiment until discharged. in Nov., 1865. He was in many of the fiercest battles in Virginia, including the Wilderness, Spottsylvania and Cold Harbor; was wounded at Winches- ter, Sept. 19, 1864, but recovered in time to be present at Lee's surrender at Appomattox. At the close of the war he returned to Howell, Mich., where he finished an apprenticeship at the printer's trade and taught school. In 1870 he graduated at the Michigan state normal school at Ypsilanti, then taught until 1874, when he came to Kansas and set- tled in Barton county. Here he followed teaching and farming until 1880, when he removed to Topeka. In 1888 he was appointed librarian of the Kansas Academy of Science, and later curator of the Goss ornithological collection. Four years later he was appointed curator of the Kansas State Museum. These positions he still holds.
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Snokomo, a hamlet in Wabaunsee county, is located 10 miles east of Alma, the county seat, and 12 miles north of Eskridge, the town from which it receives mail. Vera, on the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific, 6 miles to the north, is the nearest railroad station.
Snow, Francis Huntington, son of Benjamin and Mary B. (Boutelle) Snow, was born in Fitchburg, Mass., June 29, 1840. One of his paternal ancestors, Richard Warren, was a member of the Mayflower company. Mr. Snow attended the Fitchburg high school in preparation for Wil- liams College, where he graduated in 1862, standing first in his class: After teaching one year as principal of the Fitchburg high school he en- tered the Andover Theological Seminary, completing its course of study in 1866. This same year he received his master's degree from Williams. After leaving Andover Seminary he preached for a while, although not regularly installed as pastor. "He served two seasons with the Christian commission at the front of the Union army, being present at Lee's surrender." In 1866 he was elected to the first faculty of the University of Kansas as professor of mathematics and natural sciences. During the first year he spent in Lawrence he preached almost every Sunday in nearby pulpits. He was married on June 8, 1868, to Jane Appleton Aiken. In 1870 Mr. Snow became professor of natural history in the
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University of Kansas, and during the next decade he organized tlie collecting expeditions which have resulted in the natural history mu- seum at the university. In the entomological collection there are more than 200 species of insects discovered by him. He started the first scientific publication of the university, "The Observer of Nature." For some years he was editor of the scientific journal "Psyche." He made frequent contributions to the university bulletins and reports and to the Kansas Academy of Sciences, of which he was a founder and president. Throughout his connection with the university he made and published systematic meteorological reports. In 1881 Mr. Snow received the de- gree of Ph. D. from Williams College, and in 1890 the degree of LL. D. from Princeton. In 1886 the legislature appropriated $50,000 for the erection of a new building which was named Snow Hall of Natural His- tory in his honor. In 1890 the university received a bequest from Dr. Snow's uncle, William B. Spooner, with which Spooner library and the chancellor's residence were erected. Dr. Snow was a member of the College fraternity Delta Upsilon, and of the honorary societies Sigma Xi and Phi Beta Kappa. Aside from his work as instructor and execu- tive of the university he became prominent through the discovery of a fungus fatal to chinch bugs and its propagation and distribution. He died at Delafield, Wis., Sept. 21, 1908, and is survived by his wife and four of his five children.
Social Science Federation .- (See Women's Clubs.)
Society for the Friendless, an organization for the care of discharged prisoners and for the moral and religious education of prisoners within penitentiaries, was first organized in Kansas in 1901 by Rev. E. A. Fredenhagen and Mrs. Fredenhagen, with headquarters at Topeka. Through the untiring efforts of its founders the society soon spread to adjoining states, including Oklahoma, Nebraska, Missouri, Idaho and Washington, and subsequently became national in its scope. In 1908 the central office was moved from Topeka to Kansas City. In Jan., 1910. the first national convention was held at Kansas City. While the so- ciety is interested in many phases of philanthropic service and in reform legislation, its chief work is the care of prisoners who leave the peni- tentiaries and are placed in positions of self-support, the relief of fami- lies of those serving sentences, and in the formation of leagues within prisons for the promotion of Christian life among the prisoners. The territory is divided into districts, each with a district superintendent. A temporary home for men was established at Topeka, but was moved to Kansas City, Kan., in which men are cared for until the employment department finds positions for them. Many of the prominent states- men and philanthropists of the country are connected with the society as directors and supporters of the movement.
Soldier, a village of Jackson county, is located on the Union Pacific R. R. in Soldier township, 12 miles northwest of Holton, the county seat. It has all the main lines of business represented, banking facili- ties, a newspaper (the Clipper), telegraph and express offices, and an in-
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ternational money order postoffice with three rural routes. In 1910 the population was 500. The town was laid out in 1877 by Paul Havens, president of the Kansas Central Town company. The original survey contained 16 acres. Three additions by Logan & Friend laid out in 1895, 1897 and 1900 respectively comprise the north part of town. The residence section has recently been enlarged by Johnson's addition. The first settler on the town site was F. M. Wilson in July, 1877. The post- office was moved from the ranch of William Cline, the name changed from Smithland to Soldier, and Mr. Wilson was the first postmaster. L. H. Thompson was the first station agent. On July 10, 1883, a cy- clone struck soldier about 10 p. m., instantly laying waste the whole town east of Main street. Some sixteen or eighteen buildings were destroyed and four lives lost. The people began to rebuild immediately. The town was incorporated in 1896 and an election held on May 4 of that year. The first officials were: J. T. Holston, mayor; J. W. Flem- ing, police judge; F. M. Denny, C. E. Friend, George Smith, Dr. S. S. Reed and A. L. Fryberger, councilmen, and F. M. Wilson, clerk.
Soldiers' Home, National .- By act of Congress approved March 3, 1865, the National Military and Naval Asylum for the relief of the to- tally disabled officers and men of the volunteer forces of the United States was incorporated. This institution was established at Dayton, Ohio, and only those who had suffered from wounds or injuries re- ceived in the line of duty while in the United States service were eligible for admission. Branches of the national home have since been built at the following places: Eastern branch, Togus, Me .; southern branch, Elizabeth City county, Va .; northwestern branch, Milwaukee, Wis .; Marion branch, Marion, Ind .; western branch, Leavenworth, Kan .; Dan- ville branch, Danville, Ill .; Pacific branch, Santa Monica, Cal .; Mountain branch, Johnson City, Tenn .; and Battle Mountain sanitarium, Hot Springs, S. Dak.
The first move in Kansas to secure a branch of the home originated with the Fort Scott G. A. R. post. The next move. was in Leavenworth by S. F. Neeley, ex-Gov. George T. Anthony, Gen. Charles W. Blair and Hon. Alexander Caldwell. A citizens' meeting was called and a com- mittee appointed consisting of J. B. Johnson, Maj. W. B. Shockley, Thomas Ryan, Charles W. Blair, George T. Anthony and S. F. Neeley. Thesc gentlemen, together with the committees from the other states interested in securing the branch of the home, met and conferred with the Congressional representation at the various places viewed and ex- amined. Five states were actively interested in securing the prize and at times the contest was spirited. The Iowa legislature, then in session, passed an act appropriating $50,000 to secure the home, while the Kan- sas delegation offered $50,000 and a section of land. After careful de- liberation the present site overlooking the Missouri river and the surrounding country was chosen. The Leavenworth branch was es- tablished under act of Congress approved March 7, 1877. The build- ings, some 16 or more, are, for the most part, substantially built of
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brick and stone and cost something over $500,000. They will accom- modate about 3,000 inmates when filled to their utmost capacity, and there is generally close to that number in the home.
Some complaint reached Congress regarding the manner in which the home was being conducted, and a committee composed of Con- gressmen William W. Grout, Charles W. Stone, Vespasian Warner and F. C. Layton, met in Leavenworth on Nov. 19, 1896, to investigate and report the plan, practical workings and management of the home. Nearly 200 witnesses were examined and the testimony, together with the recommendations of the committee, was printed and laid before Congress, making a volume of 1,118 pages. The committee recommended the removal of Gov. Smith, then in charge of the home, as the easiest way out of the difficulty. The first disabled soldier was admitted to the home on Sept. 1, 1885, while in 1901 there was pro- vision made for 2,740 veterans. In the latter '90s and 1900, a portion of the main-traveled road leading to the home was infested with a num- ber of low "groggeries," in which many of the old soldiers spent money received on pension days. After several murders had been committed and numerous assaults made upon veterans, the place was suppressed.
Soldiers' Home, State .- One of the most important acts of the differ- ent state governments has been the establishment of homes for the sol- diers who loyally defended the Union during the war, and who in their old age, or because of injuries received in defense of their country, might need care and support. Early in the 'Sos the representatives and sena- tors from Kansas were urged to work for the passage of an act donating to the state the Fort Hays or Fort Dodge military reservation as a site for a suitable home for "the indigent ex-Union soldiers, sailors and marines of Kansas."
On Aug. 27, 1888, Congress passed an act giving to the State of Kan- sas the Fort Dodge reservation, and the legislature of the following year passed an act creating and providing for the management of the State Soldiers' Home, the act to take effect as soon as the general government turned over the reservation to the state authorities. Within a short time this was done and the home was opened on Jan. 1, 1890.
The act establishing the home provided for a board of three managers, who were to be appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the state senate. The members of the first board were to hold office for one, two and three years respectively, and thereafter one member was to be appointed each year. The first appropriation was for $5,000, with which sum a number of the old fort buildings were repaired. Then a few old soldiers and their families were admitted, and the home be- came a well recognized state institution where indigent soldiers and their families could find refuge in their declining years. All honorably discharged soldiers, sailors and marines disabled by disease, wounds or old age, or otherwise rendered incapable of earning their support, or who would otherwise be dependent upon public or private charity, are eligible for admission to the home. The board of managers set apart
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land for farming purposes, to be cultivated by the inmates, and in some cases a man with a family might have two and a half acres for his use and a cottage built at a cost not to exceed $250. Another appropriation was made in 1890, which enabled the board of directors to erect new buildings. The county commissioners of Ford county gave the home $5,000 to purchase land adjoining the home and to provide irrigation. The grounds were carefully laid out and beautified.
The home resembles a village with a population of several hundred. A large school building occupies one corner of the grounds, and a good dispensary and hospital with a resident physician provides for the sick. The commissary department occupies a large stone building, which is divided into a store room, postoffice and quartermaster's room. All the supplies necessary for a village community are kept and it is an interest- ing sight to see the members of the home come to get their supplies every Saturday morning.
The main buildings are located around the central square. The com- mandant's home, a handsome stone residence, fronts the river. The homes of the old soldiers are neat cottages, of three or four rooms each, and prove an entirely new departure in the idea of a benevolent insti- tution. In 1893 an act was passed providing that all officers at the home, with the exception of the quartermaster, must be honorably discharged ex-Union soldiers, sailors or marines. It also provided that thereafter no soldier's wife should be admitted unless she was 40 years of age, and had been married previous to 1892, unless the soldier was a confirmed invalid and needed constant care.
From year to year as the number of soldiers at the home has increased, more buildings have been added and the appropriations increased. In 1909 the appropriations for support of the home aggregated over $100,000.
In 1897 the 13th department convention of the Woman's Relief Corps accepted from the Grand Army of the Republic the gift of the conven- tion grounds and buildings located near Ellsworth, Kan., for the pur- pose of establishing a home and hospital. The corps, by the sale of the Bickerdyke book, had accumulated a fund and determined to call the institution the Mother Bickerdyke Home, in honor of Mary A. Bicker- dyke. The state legislature appropriated $4,837 for the home. A board of five managers was chosen, to serve five, four, three, two and one year respectively and thereafter one member was to be elected each year.
The first board of managers met at Ellsworth on May 5, 1897. The buildings, containing 15 rooms, were remodeled to make them suitable for use as a modern hospital, and in addition there were 15 three-room cottages. For the partial support of the home each member of the relief corps was asked to contribute 20 cents a year, which would net $1,200 for the home. In 1901 the Grand Army of the Republic and the Woman's Relief Corps turned over the property and buildings of the home to the state as an annex to the State Soldiers' Home, and in 1907 an act was passed providing that any widow, mother or minor child of any honor-
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ably discharged soldier, sailor or marine of the United States army or navy, should be admitted to the home, provided such person had no ade- quate means of support and was incapable of earning her own living.
Soldiers' Monuments .- (See Monuments.)
Soldiers' Orphans' Home .- (See State Orphans' Home.)
Solomon, an incorporated city of the third class in Dickinson county. is located at the confluence of the Solomon and Smoky Hill rivers near the west line of the county, at the junction of the Union Pacific, the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific, and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe railroads, 9 miles west of Abilene, the county seat. It has 2 banks, a flour mill, grain elevators, a weekly newspaper (the Tribune), good hotels, public schools and churches, telegraph and express offices, and an international money order postoffice with three rural routes. It is surrounded by an excellent farming and grazing country, grain, produce and live stock being shipped from this point in large quantities. The population in 1910 was 949.
The town was founded under the name of Solomon City in 1865, by a town company on land belonging to H. Whitney, a member of the company. The site contained 234 acres, part of it lying in Saline county. However, only that lying in Dickinson was included in the town plat. Its early growth was slow. The first store was not opened until 1867, and the first hotel was built in 1868. The Union Pacific reached Solo- mon in the latter year and decided the location of the town. In 1871 there had been sufficient growth to warrant an addition. The town was incorporated that year as a city of the third class, and G. B. Hall was the first mayor. The first grist mill was built in 1872 and the first bank established in 1876. The manufacture of salt was engaged in quite extensively in the '80s.
Solomon Rapids, a station on the Missouri Pacific R. R. in Mitchell county, is located on the Solomon river, in Turkey Creek township, 5 miles west of Beloit, the county seat. It has a money order postoffice, and the population in 1910 was 50. This point was settled early in the history of the county and was at one time a town of considerable im- portance.
Solomon River, once also known as the Nepaholla river, is formed by its two branches-the north and south-both of which rise in Thomas county, Kan., within 10 miles of each other, and for the first Io miles flow almost parallel to each other at a distance of not over 4 or 5 miles. The north branch flows in a northeasterly direction through the county of Thomas, the northwest corner of Sheridan, the extreme southeast corner of Decatur, the southern portion of Norton and Phillips, the southwest corner of Smith and the northeast corner of Osborne and into Mitchell. The south fork flows almost due east through the coun- ties of Thomas, Sheridan, Graham, Rooks and Osborne and unites with the other branch about 2 miles east of the west line of Mitchell county. The main stream then makes a bend to the southeast across Mitchell, the southwest part of Cloud, across Ottawa and the extreme northeast
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corner of Saline, where it unites with the Smoky Hill river near the town of Solomon. Including its branches the Solomon is about 300 miles long, has a number of small affluents and waters one of the pret- tiest sections of the state, approximately 6,000 square miles in extent. The legislature of 1864 declared the river unnavigable, although there is no history of its ever having been considered so. The U. S. weather bureau established a gauge station at Beloit in the year 1904, at which measurements of the stream have since been made. Mrs. Margaret Hill McCarter, in 1911, issued a little volume entitled, "The Peace of the Solomon Valley," which describes early day conditions along that stream.
Somerset, a village of Miami county, is on the Missouri, Kansas & Texas R. R., 8 miles northeast of Paola, the county seat. It was laid out in 1871 by an incorporated town company of people from New Jer- sey. The first store was opened in the fall of the year and a grist and sawmill was started by the company about the same time. A postoffice was established and the town flourished for some years, but was over- shadowed by Paola and Louisburg. It has several general stores, a blacksmith shop, church and school houses, and is surrounded by a rich agricultural community, but had a population of only 60 in 1910.
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