USA > Minnesota > Faribault County > The history of Faribault County, Minnesota : from its first settlement to the close of the year 1879 : the story of the pioneers > Part 71
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
.
1
S. P. CHILD.
673
FARIBAULT COUNTY, MINNESOTA.
appointed deputy register of deeds, of this county, by F. Lent, register, which position he held about a year. In the spring of 1874, he was appointed, by A. B. Davis, sheriff, as his deputy, and this position he held some twenty months. He was twice city recorder of Blue Earth City. In 1876 he was engaged, by Mr. White, auditor, as clerk in the auditor's office, and continued as such until he qualitied as sheriff, in January, 1880. Mr. Cummings appointed, at various times, as deputies, Isaac Kamrar, C. H. Patten, and T. W. Donovan, of Winnebago City, and Joseph Stearnes and W. A. Billings, of Wells, and Wm. Whitfield, A. L. Crandall, and F. D. Yendis, of Blue Earth City.
After retiring from all official positions Mr. Cummings removed to his farm, near Blue Earth City, and engaged in farming for some years, and then retired again to the village above named, where he has since resided.
SECTION THIRTEEN.
THE CORONERS.
The chief duty of the coroner as such, is to "hold an inquest upon, view of the dead body of such persons found in the county, as are supposed to have come to their death by violence." For this purpose he is authorized to summon and empanel a jury.
In cases of a "vacancy in the office of sheriff, the coroner exer- cises the powers and duties of said office, until a sheriff is elected and qualified." The coroner is also authorized "to serve and exe- cute process of every kind, when the sheriff is a party in the action" and when it appears that the sheriff will not, by reason of partiality. prejudice, consanguinity, or interest, perform his duties properly. And "when the sheriff for any cause is committed to the jail of his county, the coroner shall be keeper thereof." By this it appears that the sheriff jails all other rogues, but only the coroner can jail the sheriff! The coroner is required to take an oath of office aud give an official bond. His term of office is two years and he may appoint deputies. He is allowed fees for his services to be paid by the county, or from the parties interested in suits as the case may be. The business and pay of this office have never amounted to much in this county, and it may be observed that no great contests have ever been fought over the office by rival aspirants. It is a bone contain- ing too little meat, and as to the honors of the office, they have never been greatly esteemed by the ambitious. The ambitious poli- tician always looks for offices producing some pay, as well as honors.
Capt. Jeremiah B. Gillit, of Blue Earth City, elected in October, 1857, was the first coroner of this county.
Mr. Gillit was a native of Vermont, where he was born, about the year 1799. By occupation he was a farmer, but also learned, and worked at times at the trades of shoemaker, mason and plasterer.
He married Maranda Clark, at the time a resident of New York state, and they were blessed with a family of six children.
674
HISTORY OF
Mr. Gillit emigrated to Upper Canada at a date not now known. He was one of the insurgents in what is now known as the Insurrection or great rebel- lion, or "patriot war," which occurred in Canada in 1837 and 1838. He soon after removed from Canada to the state of Illinois, where he remained some years. He came to this county, in June, 1856, and located on a farm near Blue Earth City, where he spent his remaining years, engaged in farming, and at which place he died, in July, 1575, aged seventy-six years.
William A. Way, of Blue Earth City, was elected in 1859. Mr. L. C. Taylor, of Dunbar, was elected in 1861, and David Pratt, of Seely, in 1862, but the two last named gentlemen did not qualify as neither desired the office. William A. Way was again elected in No. vembe, 1563, and performed the duties of the office for the term. D. H. McDowell was next elected to the office November, 1865, but the office again becoming vacant, Wmn. A. Way was again elected November. 1866.
William A. Way was born in Connecticut, about the year 1831. He learned the trade of carpenter. He was married in 1852, to Miss Harriett C. Darke, of Carbondale, Pennsylvania, where he resided several years. They were blessed with a family of six children. They came to this county in 1856, and located on a farm. Edwin M. Way, a brother of William, located with his family the next year. Edwin died in 1863. William, after farming some years, removed to Blue Earth City, where he continued to work at his trade. He held the olllce of su- pervisor of Blue Earth City township a number of years, and was also town clerk of the same town. He sold his farm and other property in 1868, and re- moved to California and from thence, after some years, to Texas, where he died in 1883. The family then returned to California, where they have since re- sided.
Aaron J. Rose, of Blue Earth City, elected to the office in No- vember, 1867, was our next coroner. He was re-elected in the years 1869, 1871 and 1873 and attended to the duties of the office during four terms.
Mr. Rose was a native of the Province of Ontario, Canada, where he was born September 5th, 1812. He was married October 30th, 1833, to Miss Catherine Smith and they reared a family of six children (three daughters and three sons). Sometime after his marriage hr engaged in hotel keeping at Trenton, Canada. He left Trenton about the year 1550 and located at Port Perry, towoship of Roach, and engaged as purser on board a steamboat, which ran on Lake Sengog, for several years. Mr. Rose was one of the sympathisers with the Patriots, in the Canadian rebellion in 1836-7, and as a result his property was confiscated by the government, but was subsequently restored to him. Leaving his family in Canada, for the time being, Mr. Rose went to Waterloo, Iowa, in 1856, and remained during the summer and autumn. In January, 1857, he came to this county and engaged in the saw mill business, with his son-in-law, Capt. P B. Davy. He also took a claim near Bhie Earth City, which he afterwards traded for an interest in the saw mill. Having gotten all things ready, his family came on in 1859. Mr. Rose held various town offices from time to time, and was jus- tice of the peace for many years, and coroner, as above stated. Mrs. Catherine Rose died in February, 1875, and Mr. Rose in October of the same year. They both rest In the cemetery at Blue Earth City.
675
FARIBAULT COUNTY, MINNESOTA.
Hubert P. Young, of Blue Earth City, was elected to the office at the election of 1875, but removed from the county in January, 1876, and the county board at their January session of 1876, ap- pointed W. J. C. Robertson to fill the vacancy in the office.
Aaron B. Balcom, of Blue Earth City, was elected to the office in 1876.
Mr. Balcom is a native of Douglass, Mass., where he was born March 16th, 1823. Ile received his early education in the common schools, and at an academy at Uxbridge, Mass. When about eight years old his parents removed from Douglass to Uxbridge. Here he worked in a cotton factory from the time he was ten years old to sixteen, when he went into a store to learn the mercantile business and book-keeping. Here he remained two years and then returned to Douglass. From thence he went to Boston, Mass., and engaged at clerking in a store. Ilis next move was to Millford, Mississippi, where he clerked in a store about two years, and then emigrated to Montgomery, Ala .. where he again engaged as a clerk for some time, and then returned to Massachusetts, on a visit. He next came west and settled at Cincinnati, O., where he bought a half interest in a shoe store and remained about two years, and then sold out and went to St. Louis, Mo., where he remained some two years. He then returned again to Douglass, Mass., and bought out the store, in which he had commenced clerking. Here he remained some ten (10) years, then sold out and emigrated to Chicago, Ill., in the spring of 1856, and went to work in the railroad office of the Illinois Central. Ile remained here awhile, then went, in the fall of the year, to Princeton, Ill., and engaged in buying, packing and shipping eggs. IIere he bought out a stock of goods, which, in the spring of 1857, he shipped to Winona, Minn., where he opened a store. This stock he sold out in January, 1858, and came to this county in February of that year, and settled on a farm in Verona township. In 1859, he rented this farm and removed to La Crosse, Wis., where for three years he engaged in merchandising. In 1862 he returned to the farm, and in 1864 sold the farm and located in Blue Earth City and en- gaged in merchandising until 1869, and then sold out. In 1870 he located on a farm in Rome township and remained a short time, when he returned to Blue Earth City, where he has since resided. Mr. Balcom has always been a republican in politics since the organization of that party. He was the first treasurer of our agricultural society, organized in 1859.
Our next coroner was Chas. S. Kimball, of Winnebago City, who was elected in the autumn of 1878.
Mr. Kimball was born in Troy, New York, September 11th, 1822. His father was a soldier in the war of 1812. When Charles was about five years old, his parents emigrated to the state of Maine. He was taught in the common schools until he was sixteen years old, when he was sent to the Academy at Limerick, Maine. He finished up his school days when about nineteen years old. Ile then went to Great Falls, N. H., and worked some two years in a cot- ton mill and from there he went to Lowell, Mass., where he again worked in a cotton mill. Here he remained about twelve years, and became an overseer of the hands, but his health failing, he had to quit the business.
Mr. Kimball was married at Lowell, Mass., in 1848, to Miss Mary A. Ilayes, of N. II. They had three children. Mrs. Kimball died at Winnebago City, in April, 1884.
Mr. Kimball left Lowell and returned to Maine, and remained four years, and then came west and located in Burns, Wisconsin. Here he remained about two years, and then, after a hard and long drive with an ox team, arrived at Winnebago City, in this county, June 15th, 1858.
676
HISTORY OF
Here Mr. Kimbali engaged in the blacksmith business for some five years, and was the pioneer blacksmith of the place. In 1862 or 1863 he opened a hotel at Winnebago City and this became his principal business for some twenty odd years.
He was out of business for several years and rented his notel buildings. Mr. Kimball was at one time a member of the Freewill Baptist church, but became a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, at Winnebago City. Hle has, during his life, been much interested in Sunday school work. When a young man he was a teacher for some years In the Sunday school. Mr. Kim- ball was in early life a democrat, but left that party in the days of Buchanan, and has been a republican thereafter. He held various local offices at Winneba- go City. He was justice of the peace quite a number of years, and police justice. Ile was also chairman of the board of town supervisors, town and city treasurer, and chairman of the school board, a county commissioner in 1866, and county coroner for a period of eight years.
Mr. Kimball was again married December 25th, 1884, to Miss Sophia Jones, of this county. He died at Winnebago City, in 1889.
SECTION FOURTEEN.
A LITTLE GOSSIP ABOUT LIFE IN THE COUNTY OFFICES.
The following remarks are made in reference to the county official life of this county, as many of them would not be applica- blo to that of many other counties. The remarks also refer to those mainly who have their permanent offices at the court house. The business office, the place of labor of the county officers, is the court house of the county, Here goes on, year after year, the pub- lic business of the people of the county; sometimes performed for years by some of the same officers, but occasionally one or more new hands appear. Some may have grown gray in the work, while others are quite young. Life here, as elsewhere, has its pleasures and pains, its "ups and downs." It is not as some superficial peo- ple have thought, a life of comparative ease, of large pay and little work, a sort of popular ovation, with plenty of money to carry it through.
For every officer who does his duty, there is steady work to do, and much of it requiring care and close attention. It is not play. No one rests "on a bed of roses" by any means, and all have more or less difficult and perplexing labor to perform and respon- sibilities to bear.
Peace and harmony usually prevail among the officers, and while they do not always think alike on all subjects, of politics. science, morals, or religion, and while such questions as the tariff, candidates for office. Calvinism, Armenianism, materialism, the orthodox faith, monopoly, prohibition, Darwinism, etc., are often discussed with great earnestness, if not with far reaching ability. there are seldom any bitter or personal feelings manifested. No
677
FARIBAULT COUNTY, MINNESOTA.
one has ever been known, however, to change his views, as a re- sult of these discussions, and the disputants always, so to speak, "come out of the same hole they went in at." The jokes and good stories of the season also go their rounds, and practical jokes upon each other occur occasionally, but ordinarily there is not much time for these outside matters, and especially not in business hours.
The busiest seasons of the year for the officers, generally, are during the sessions of the district court and board of commis- sioners, in January and June, as many people defer their county business until these times. In the treasurer's office, however, the great rush of the season comes in the latter part of May, when people come to pay their real estate taxes. It is usually a pet ambition with the officers to be "up" with their work to date, and there is, consequently, but little spare time for amusement.
An agreeable feature of official life is that the pay is, in gen- eral, cash, and certain with those who get salaries, and is gener- ally sufficient, though not generally excessive, for the work done. Comfortable quarters in which the labor is done and necessary con- veniences to facilitate business are furnished at the public expense, while the incumbents are usually accommodating, courteous and good natured in their intercourse with each other. There is also a certain degree of honor and consequence in being a county officer, highly pleasing to some minds. And this is a reasonable pride and all well enough when not carried too far, for the incumbent is the chosen and trusted servant of his fellow citizens, in the position which he holds. On the other hand an officer's time is not his own. He cannot come and go when he pleases. He is not exactly his own man. He has engaged to do certain work and to do it well and faith- fully, and it is his duty to be on hand and attend to it, and this fact is usually realized. It is true that he may appoint deputies, and must of necessity do so, in various offices, and while the deputies may be more efficient than the principals, yet it is the officer him- self who, because of some supposed fitness for the place, the peo- ple have chosen to fill the place, and not others simply selected by him, and as a rule, the people like to deal with and have the personal attention of the officer himself.
The performance of official duties, also, in time, became a sort of routine, monotonous, treadmill labor, and is confining and ex- acting, and possesses many perplexing features and serious respon- sibilities. To add to all this, officers are sometimes charged with neglecting duties with which, in fact, they have legally nothing to do, unless their attention is requested to them, and sometimes, while wholly impartial, are charged with favoritism and their motives impugned, without cause. Charges are also made, sometimes, that
678
HISTORY OF
officers of the county are dishonest, when there is not a shadow of evidence of the fact. The instances, in this county, of officers charging illegal fees, or taking advantage of their position to prac- tice any little, gainful frauds on the people, have been exceedingly rare, if they have existed at all, and would soon have been discov- ered. The people are very apt soon to smell out such an officer, and he would not succeed a great while. President Lincoln is credited with the remark, that "such an officer may fool all the people a part of the time, and a part of the people all the time, but he can't fool all the people all the time."
It is a mistaken notion, also, that to hold a county office is a great thing in a financial point of view. As a rule the pay is no more, and often not so much, as would be realized for like work and capacity in other occupations. Then there is always the un- certainty of the tenure of office. If the incumbent could be sure of a long term in office. by frequent re-elections, the holding of a county office might be of more value financially considered. A discharge comes very suddenly and unexpectedly sometimes, and the party never gets a "letter of recommendation," which may help him to get another job.
The fact is that most county officers have gone out of office not much, if any, better off financially, so far as the mere pay of the office was concerned, than they were when they went in, and this is true even of some who received the largest pay, and held office for long periods.
The man who has a permanent, fairly paying, legitimate business, whatever it is, can rarely afford to abandon it for a county office, always of uncertain tenure. for if he is soon relegated to private life again. he must commence business anew. And this matter of anx- iety as to re-election, recurring every two or more years, together with the expense and labor incident thereto, must be deemed one also of the disagreeable features of county official life.
The question is sometimes asked why, if there, is not a good deal in these county offices, do the incumbents usually desire a re- election? They are always candidates for re-election, and "won't let go until choked off." Well, it may be answered, that in addition to the more agreeable features of holding office above set forth, there is this important reason: As a rule those who accept a county office abandon all other business, because the office usually takes their time and attention, perhaps requires a removal to the county seat, if the person elected resided elsewhere, and when the end of the term comes, unless re-elected, which generally seems a fair pros- pect, they find themselves out of business, and must enter upon business life again, perhaps under many disadvantages-but here is work they understand, and can do, and hence a re-election seems
679
FARIBAULT COUNTY, MINNESOTA.
the best thing, under the circumstances, and is generally sought, term after term, until, for some reason, the people squelch out these fond aspirations. Officers who are voted out, invariably think the people have made a great mistake, and that there has been some treachery somewhere.
We, however, have never had an officer who went into and out of office, as a certain jolly Irishman said he did.
He had come to America, and after some years' residence here returned on a visit to the old country, and boasted a good deal of his exploits in America. "Well, Moike," inquired an old friend, "did ye iver git into office over thare?" "Indade I did, Dennis," said Moike, "and was mighty poplar too, I wint into a high office by the unanimous consint of the paple, and begorry, I wint out wid that same."
There is a fact which may be noted here. as an incident to official life not generally known. The county officers holding a somewhat prominent and public position, and having an acquaint- ance with almost every one, and it may be added, being depend- ent on the good will of the people for their positions, and thus deemed under special obligations, are called upon constantly for con- tributions to almost innumerable things, not only local but through- out the county, as the support of the ministry, the building of churches, public enterprises of all kinds, even the making up of the loss of a team, or stock or other property of some unfortunate per- son; special cases of poverty, in fact charities of all kinds, and the whole finished up with the importunities of book agents, picture sellers and venders of various nostrums, as eye-water, catarrh snuff anti-billious pills, and such useful articles as stove-polish, silver wash, etc., make quite an aggregate, and although these things are all right in themselves, and many of them should be and are liber- ally contributed to, or purchased, yet this may be named as absorbing quite a percentage of the salaries every year. But we have said this is one of the incidents of official position, and the officer who does not like this or any other feature of office, may resort to that great and inestimable privilege, provided by law and sanctioned by the people, for all suffering public officers-he may resign. We may add to these rambling remarks several further incidents of life in the county offices. It is understood among the officers that when temporary assistance or information is needed by any one in the transaction of the business of his office, it is the duty of some of the others to render the assistance, or advise about the matter, and this is always done freely as a matter of common courtesy. New officers are entitled to all the assistance and instruction they may need as to the performance of the duties of their offices, until they get familiar with, and can perform them themselves.
-
680
HISTORY OF
People visiting the offices on business, or in quest of informa- tion, are always treated cordially and courteously, whether they be rich or poor, and of whatever nationality, and every effort is made to attend to their business promptly and correctly. The sentiment has always prevailed in the offices, that when an officer forgets that he is the servant of the people, and grows surly and unaccommo- dating, he is in eminent danger of what the boys call "the grand bounce." Should officers in America exhibit the insolence and the exacting and self important ways of officers of like grade in some foreign countries, they would receive from the people, "notice to quit," in a very short time, and properly so.
About election times, which by the way are times when among the officers there is more or less conjecturing and uneasiness, the cry of "court house ring." "county clique" is heard, which means that the county officers are banded together to keep each other in office, or all pull together for the election of some favorite. To this it may be answered with truth, that such a thing as "court house ring" for the purpose above specified, or for any other purpose has never existed in this county. The officers very frequently talk over the elections and with more interest, perhaps, than some other peo- ple. and usually differ considerably in their views. Every officer, has, as a rule, "to scull his own boat," and the writer has never known during the period covered by this history, of a combination among them. as that suggested above.
This history of the offices may now be closed by the record of facts, most creditable to the officers concerned, that during the period of this history, during which many officers have come and gone, the county has been served with fair ability and great faith- fulness. The work has. in the maiu been well done. and bids fair to stand all tests of time and inspection. No one has ever been guilty of mis-feasure, or malfeasance in office-there have been no great mistakes prejudicing people's rights or interests. There have been no embezzlements. no defalcations in office, and all this is largely attested in the fact of the frequent reduction of its officers, or in other words, the long terms of service accorded many of them, rang. ing from six to eighteen and one of twenty years. No other county in the State can boast of so many officers who have held its offices for so many years. May the second quarter of a century of our official history show as good and as honorable a record.
681
FARIBAULT COUNTY, MINNESOTA.
SECTION FIFTEEN.
CONCLUSION.
We have now reached the conclusion of the first volume of our history, embracing the first twenty-five years-the settlement epoch -of our county.
Nothing need be said here, of how well or how imperfectly the work of writing the history has been done. The record must speak for itself. The effort has been to writer, at least, an impartial and truthful history. In looking back over the history of our county, and while remembering some things we could wish had not happened, yet we feel much pride and great satisfaction, because of the much good work done, the great progress made and the high standing of our county, all along, from the beginning and at the close of the quarter century. The early settlers found a wilderness and at the close of the first twenty five years we behold a great community of intelligent, prosperous people, animated by a spirit of progress and improve- ment, cheerful and confident, and enjoying all the blessings of the highest christian civilization. And this was a good deal to accom- plish in so short a time. But many of the earlier settlers and others of the first quarter century have already gone to their long homes. They have gone forever beyond our sight, or companionship on earth, but may we not utter the wish, expressed in the beautiful words-"May the eternal light shine on them, O, Lord forever, for thou art merciful. Grant them O. Lord, eternal rest." Others of that period, are now nearing their journey's end, and are now tread- ing down that last declivity of life, which opens into the valley and shadow of death.
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.