USA > Nebraska > Richardson County > History of Richardson County, Nebraska : its people, industries and institutions > Part 23
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The first election in Ohio township was in the fall of 1868 at the Goolsby school house. Twenty-eight Democratic and fifty-six Republican votes were polled.
The first white men to explore the county adjacent to the Great Nemaha river in Richardson county were Jesse Crook, Isaac Crook, John Singleton,
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and W. G. Goolsby. They came over from Missouri and went as far west as the present site of Salem. The visit was made in 1854.
The Maple Grove cemetery in Ohio township, was located in 1859 by John Harkendorff, Amos Frank and S. J. Harris, the occasion being the death of Phelix Misplis, a lad about thirteen years of age.
The first session of the Nebraska state Legislature that met at Lincoln, after the removal of the territorial capitol from Omaha, was convened on January 7, 1869, the four previous sessions having met at Omaha after the adoption of the state Constitution.
E. E. Cunningham had the honor of being the first to represent Richard- son county in the first state Senate to meet at Lincoln, and Isham Reavis was "float" senator for Richardson, Nemaha and Johnson counties at the same time and place.
The village of Archer, which became the county seat for a time, was located in 1855.
David L. Thompson was one of the first white men to enter Richard- son county with the idea of making it a permanent home. He came in the early fifties and located at the county seat, Archer, where he was united in marriage to China M. Miller, a daughter of Judge J. C. Miller, who was the first judge of the county and who at the time of the arrival of Thompson kept a hotel and store in the new town. As soon as Falls City got fairly started as a town he came here and made it his home for many years and served for a time as deputy sheriff.
FIRST FUNERAL.
The first religious service which could have been classed in the nature of a funeral for a white woman in Richardson county, is said to have been held for Mrs. Frank Purkett, who, with her child, froze to death during child-birth. The husband had been drinking heavily and was absent, accord- ing to reports at the time.
EARLY SETTLERS.
Numbered' among the very first settlers of the county was James Stumbo, who came here in 1856 and was prominent at Nemaha Falls, an obsolete town on the banks of the Nemaha river, near the present site of Falls City. He was the father of twelve children, eight sons and four daughters. His death occurred on January 21, 1894.
J. L. Overman, of Stella, took up his residence at first at St. Deroin
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in Nemaha county, coming to that place in March, 1858. In the month of June of that year Joseph Deroin, an Indian chief for whom the place was named, was shot by another Indian by the name of James Bedo. Mr. Overman succeeded in getting many things at a sale of Indian goods, which had been the property of the chief, and still has them.
FIRST MARRIAGES.
The Falls City, Nebraska, Journal, under date of December 22, 1893, had the following to say relative to the early marriages in Richardson county :
"In all probability some marriage contracts were entered into in 1854 and 1855 that were never recorded, and no license was necessary for the performance of a marriage, and even a law requiring the contract to be recorded in the register's office was not passed until the spring of 1855. The contract that appears on the record as of the earliest date is that of Mr. and Mrs. W. M. Maddox, which is given below, although this was the third contract filed.
"Below are given some of the first contracts filed, which will be of inter- est on account of the events of the past that they will bring to the minds of the older settlers.
"Married, November the 29th, In the year A. D. 1855 By Pharagus Pollard, Acting Justice of the Peace, of Richardson county, Nebraska Ter- ritory, Joshua Boyd, of Holt County, Missouri, to Miss Elizabeth Miller, of Richardson County, Nebraska Territory. Pharagus Pollard, J. P."
Territory of Nebraska,)
County of Richardson, ) ss.
I, J. C. Lincoln, Register of Deeds, of said county do hereby certify that the above is a correct copy left on file for record in this office.
Given under my hand and private seal (there being no public seal pro- vided in this county ) at this office January 15th, A. D. 1856. (Seal) J. C. LINCOLN, Register of Deeds.
The second instrument recorded showed that on December 16th, 1855, Pharagus Pollard, acting justice of the peace, united in marriage, Samuel Howard and Miss Mary Gallaher, both of this county, at the home of David Gallaher. This instrument was recorded in the office of register of deeds, January 15th, 1855.
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RICHARDSON COUNTY, NEBRASKA.
The third instrument was recorded on February 2nd, 1856, in the regis- ter of deeds office and read as follows :
"This may certify that on the Fourth day of October, 1855, I, William D. Gage, Minister of the Methodist Episcopal church, did unite in the bonds of matrimony, Mr. W. M. Maddox, of Nebraska City, and Margaret Miller, of Archer, Richardson County, all in the Territory of Nebraska.
WILLIAM D. GAGE, M. M. E. Church.
Territory of Nebraska,)
Richardson County, ) ss.
I, E. S. Sharp, Dept. Register of Deeds, of said county do hereby certify that the above is a true copy left on file in this office for record. Given under my hand and private seal (there being no public seal yet provided for the use of the county). Done at Archer this 2nd day of February, A. D. 1856. (Seal) E. S. SHARP, Dept. Register.
QUAINT MARRIAGE CONTRACT.
The fourth instrument was filed for record on July 7, 1856, and was something of a curiosity. It was recorded by W. H. Mann, deputy register, and read as follows :
"Know All Men By These Presents : That Richard Clinsey and Perilla Adamson have consented together in Holy Wedlock and have wit- nessed the same before me, Joseph Friese, a Justice of the Peace for Rich- ardson County, Nebraska Territory, and thereto have pledged their faith either to the other, and have declared the same by their consent, I do declare that they are Man and Wife forever on and after this Thirteenth day of March, A. D. 1856.
JOSEPH FRIESE, Justice of the Peace.
The fifth instrument was recorded on the same day and was identical in date, phraseology and official signature, except that it proclaimed the marriage of James O. Loughlin and Liddy Adamson.
The sixth instrument was recorded on August 21, 1856, and showed that Justice Pharagus Pollard had united in marriage on June 20, 1856, Marcellus Housner and Polly N. Shelley, both of this county at the house of A. Shelley.
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RICHARDSON COUNTY, NEBRASKA.
OTHER FIRSTS.
The first couple united in marriage in Liberty precinct, was George Miller and Elizabeth Cornell. The happy event occurred on February 16, 1856, Rev. Wingate King officiating.
Dilliard Walker, who for many years resided near Humboldt, entered the county in 1855. His wagon was the third to cross the south fork of the Nemaha in this county. A man named Jemeson and Richard Gird preceded him.
Stephen B. Miles, one of the largest landowners in the county at his death and one of the wealthiest men in the state, was the man who first car- ried United States mail into Richardson county, and it was he who organ- ized the first bank in the county.
The first school in the county was taught by Mrs. Saunders, on what was at that time known as the Kirk Branch, a half mile northwest of Archer. The school was held in the year 1856.
WV. R. Crook assisted in the work of surveying the town of Falls City in 1857.
The Broad Axe, one of the very first newspapers published in the county, was for a time printed at the hotel then standing on the lots now occupied by the Richardson County Bank, and owned by Jesse Crook. It was edited by Edwin Burbank and S. R. Jameson. This was in 1858.
The first court to be held in Richardson county was presided over by a judge at Archer, at that time the county seat.
B. Frank Leechman, now residing on his farm north of Falls City, was the first white child, so far as known, to be born in Richardson county. He still resides on the farm on which he first saw the light of day and is one of the prosperous farmers of the county.
William Level, long since deceased, is deserving of the honor of having built the first log cabin in the county. It was constructed in 1853 on a farm east of the site of Archer, and the first election ever held in the county was held in this same cabin.
Jesse Crook was the first white man to raise a crop of corn in Richard- son county, and the same was grown on land now owned by William Nutter, southwest of Archer in 1855.
FIRST WOMAN MAIL CARRIER.
The honor belongs to Miss Lydia A. Giddings, a daughter of Elder C. W. Giddings, the founder of the town of Table Rock, a town just west of
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Humboldt and in Pawnee county, about thirty miles west of Falls City. Prior to the coming of the Burlington railroad, as it is known today, a mail route was in operation between Falls City and Table Rock, but the stations were very much different from those now on the line of the railroad between the two points, i. e., Falls City and Table Rock, many of them being men- tioned in the story of Defunct Towns of the County in another part of this work. Miss Giddings was one of the carriers on the route. Later, she was united in marriage to a man by the name of Holmes, and again to a Mr. John Gere. When last heard from she was a resident of Honolulu, in the Hawaiian islands, of the mid-Pacific, and her sons, Giles H. and John N. Gere, Jr., held responsible positions with the government.
MILI. AUTHORIZED IN FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP.
An act approved January, 1860, authorized Silas Babcock, his heirs or assigns, to erect a mill dam not to exceed ten feet high across Long Branch creek in Franklin precinct, at any point within four miles of the town of Franklin.
FIRST BABY GIRL BORN.
Julia Turner was the first girl baby born in Richardson county, but a later survey left her birthplace in what is now Pawnee county. When first surveyed Richardson county also included Pawnee county and Cincin- nati was a young and thriving town near the site of the present village of DuBois on the Rock Island railroad. It was near this place that the little lady first saw the light of day.
AN EARLY TOLL BRIDGE ON NEMAHA.
An act of a session of the Territorial Legislature authorized Jacob M. Davis and A. C. Anderson to establish and keep a toll bridge and ferry across the Great Nemaha river in Richardson county, at a point within six miles from its mouth. The rate of tolls or ferriage was limited to fifty cents per team and wagon: footman or stock, ten cents.
RICHARDSON COUNTY MINING COMPANY.
One of the first companies organized and incorporated for the purpose of mining in the county was known as the Richardson County Mining Com- pany, and was incorporated by an act of the Legislature passed and approved on February 12, 1866. Those named in the act incorporating the company were: Peter P. Smith, Charles A. Hergesheimer, William R. Cain, Stephen Belliles, Alexander St. Louis. They proposed to prospect for coal.
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RICHARDSON COUNTY, NEBRASKA.
FIRST HOUSE IN FALLS CITY.
The first houses in Falls City were in most instances built from houses formerly doing service at Archer, Winnebago and Yankton, towns which disappeared from the map. The first hotel, the Union Hotel, occupying the same location as the present "Union House," was constructed from a building removed to Falls City from Yankton, by Jacob Good.
Dilliard Walker, pioneer, assisted in the building of the First house erected in Salem, the same being owned by Thomas Hare. Walker also furnished the lumber and stone for the first church at Salem, known as the Close Communion Baptist.
Barada precinct, in Richardson county, was named for Antoine Barada, a well-known half-breed Indian. It is said of him that he was a man of unusual strength and fine physical proportions, with features that showed his Indian blood most unmistakably.
FIRST COURT HOUSE.
The residence of John C. Miller, known as Judge Miller, located at Archer, was a double log one story and a half high and one of the finest homes of the time in this county. At different times it served as hotel, postoffice and court house.
Isaac H. Jones, for many years a resident of Rulo, settled opposite the Big Nemaha in 1848, removing to Nebraska seventeen years later.
FIRST CHILD BORN IN LIBERTY TOWNSHIP.
From the family record of Stewart Russell, of Salem, it is learned that his son, S. A. Russell, was born in Liberty precinct, Richardson county, February 13, 1858, and from this it is claimed that he was the first white child born in that precinct.
CHAPTER XI.
AGRICULTURE AND STOCKRAISING.
Richardson county originally was covered with a luxuriant growth of prairie grasses, with marginal areas of timber along the streams. The first settlers located along the edges of first bottoms, where there was an abundant supply of fuel.
During the first few years vegetables, corn, and wheat were grown for the subsistence of the family. As claims were permanently located and conditions became more stable, the farmers began to break the prairie land for the more extensive production of corn and wheat, with some oats for stock feed. A wide variety of vegetables was grown. Some hemp was pro- duced, but this crop was soon abandoned. No clover, timothy, or bluegrass was grown while the country was agriculturally new. Up to about 1874 the farmers produced spring wheat and corn as their main cash crops, and some oats, winter wheat, rye, barley, buckwheat, and flax. Very few cattle and hogs were raised. The yields reported by the early settlers were in many cases higher than at present, but with poor methods of farming the yields soon decreased. The prices of crops were very low and as a result the farmers generally were poor.
Wheat and corn continued the important cash crops, but within the last twenty to twenty-five years agricultural conditions have gradually improved and today most of the farmers are thrifty and prosperous. The dairy indus- try, the raising of hogs and cattle. and the feeding of beef cattle have no doubt been important factors in this progress, but the improved conditions are due chiefly to better methods of handling the soil.
In 1879 corn was the most important crop in the county. The 1880 census reports eighty-six thousand seven hundred sixty-six acres in corn and thirty-one thousand five hundred seventy-nine acres in wheat. Oats are reported on about six thousand acres, and barley on something over three thousand acres. Hay was cut from a total of fifteen thousand four hundred ninety-two acres. After 1880 spring wheat declined in importance, as owing to the poor yields of this crop it was found more profitable to grow corn. The chinch bug. the grasshopper, and growing wheat continuously
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RICHARDSON COUNTY, NEBRASKA.
on the same land for many years in succession were the main causes for the poor yields of this crop. Hay was an important crop, and some rye, buck- wheat, and tobacco were grown. The orchard products were valued at nine thousand three hundred twenty-eight dollars, and market-garden crops at fifty-one thousand nine hundred sixty dollars.
By 1890 the area in corn had increased to one hundred fifteen thousand seven hundred eighty-five acres and the area in oats to twenty-one thousand eight hundred twenty-six acres. Wheat is reported in the census of 1890 on only ten thousand two hundred and twenty-three acres. Hay was grown on twenty-seven thousand and twenty-four acres, rye on nearly two thou- sand acres, and barley on less than five hundred acres. Potatoes are reported on nearly one thousand five hundred acres. Market-garden products and small fruits had a total value of only two thousand and seventy-five dollars.
From 1889 to 1899 there was a steady advance in the acreage of all the staple crops. In the 1900 census about one hundred and thirty thousand acres are reported in corn, twenty-nine thousand acres in oats, and twenty thousand acres in wheat. Of the hay crops, wild grasses, reported on about eighteen thousand acres, tame grasses on about ten thousand acres, and alfalfa on nearly one thousand acres were the most important. The acreage in rye, barley, and buckwheat was small. There were about two hundred and fifty thousand apple trees in the county, nearly one hundred thousand grapevines, and about seventy-five thousand peach trees. Of the live-stock products, animals sold and slaughtered were valued at one million one hun- dred sixty-seven thousand four hundred and ninety dollars, dairy products at sixty-five thousand four hundred seventy-four dollars, and poultry at ninety-four thousand eight hundred ninety-six dollars. From 1899 to 1909 there was an increase in the number of acres of wheat and a decrease in the acreage of other crops, especially corn.
At present the production of grain is the chief type of farming in Richardson county, though dairying and the raising of hogs and other live stock are important industries. Corn, oats, wheat, timothy and clover mixed, alfalfa, and wild grasses are the chief general farm crops. The tendency is to grow less corn and more wheat and leguminous crops.
THE PRINCIPAL MONEY CROP.
Corn is by far the most important crop in acreage, and is the principal money crop. The 1910 census reports corn on one hundred and three thousand three hundred eighty-six acres. There are about two acres of corn
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RICHARDSON COUNTY, NEBRASKA.
to every acre of all other cereals combined, even though the acreage has declined considerably in the last decade. About one-half the total area of improved farm land in Richardson county is devoted to the production of corn. The crop is grown on practically all the soil types of the county, but does best on the Marshall silt loam. The average yield for the county is about thirty bushels per acre. Reid's Yellow Dent and Iowa Silver Mine are the most popular varieties. About eighty-five per cent. of the corn is listed, some is check-rowed, and in a few cases the crop is double-listed. Most of the corn is sold, though a large part is fed to hogs and beef cattle. It is the general practice to pasture the corn lands after the ears have been re- moved. There are only a few silos in the county.
Oats rank second in acreage to corn, and the area in this crop seems to be increasing steadily. In 1909 there were twenty-five thousand and ninety-three acres in this crop. Most of the crop is fed to horses and mules : the remainder is sold largely in local markets, though some is shipped to Kansas City. White and Green Russian, Kherson, and Swedish Select are the principal varieties grown.
The third crop in importance is wheat. The census of 1910 reports twenty-one thousand eight hundred seventy-one acres devoted to this crop. About 1895 the state experiment station demonstrated the superior qualities of a variety of Russian winter wheat known as Turkey Red, and this has almost entirely displaced the spring varieties formerly grown, as it produces better yields, can be sown in the fall, a time of the year when it does not interfere with other farm labor, and matures before the season of dry weather and hot winds. Wheat is strictly a cash crop, and most of it is sold directly from the threshing machine to local elevators. Most of it is shipped later to Kansas City. A small proportion of the crop is stored in farm elevators or granaries, and held for higher prices. Scarcely any wheat "is grown for home use, the flour used in the county being shipped in. The value of cereal crops is reported in the 1910 census as two million three hundred forty-six thousand seven hundred eighty-seven dollars, and of other grains and seeds as ten thousand three hundred forty-eight dollars.
Timothy and clover mixed is the most important hay crop. It is reported in the census of 1910 on eleven thousand three hundred twenty- mine acres. During the progress of the survey excellent stands of this crop were seen, though it is reported that in dry years the crop is not nearly as good. In dry seasons considerable difficulty is experienced in obtaining a good seeding of clover. There are reported four thousand seven hundred
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ninety-nine acres in timothy alone, three thousand three hundred and six acres in clover alone, seven thousand seven hundred and three acres in wild grasses, two hundred ninety acres in millet and one hundred sixty-one acres in other tame grasses. Some red-clover seed and timothy seed are produced. Ordinarily clover yields two to four bushels of seed an acre and timothy, four to eight bushels. Practically all the hay is fed to work stock and cattle, with a small part sold in local towns and some hay shipped to outside markets. Large quantities of hay are imported from the West.
ALFALFA PASSES THE EXPERIMENTAL STAGE.
The growing of alfalfa has passed beyond the experimental stage, and this promises to become the principal hay crop of the county. In 1909 there were seven thousand seven hundred twenty-two acres in alfalfa. The crop does well both on the upland and on the well-drained bottom-land soils, three and sometimes four cuttings being obtained each year, with a total yield ranging from three to five tons per acre. Most of the crop is fed to cattle and work stock, and some is used as hog pasturage. Aifalfa hay is not shipped out of the county, except from a few farms where it is the main cash crop. It is sent chiefly to Kansas City and St. Joseph, and sells for twelve dollars to fifteen dollars a ton. The total value of hay and forage crops is reported in the census of 1910 as five hundred thirty-two thousand five hundred nineteen dollars.
The less important crops of Richardson county are potatoes, barley, rye, kafir, sorghum, and buckwheat. Potatoes are reported in the 1910 census on nine hundred forty acres. The production is inadequate to meet the local demand.
Trucking receives but little attention, owing to the distance from large markets. Some vegetables are grown on a commercial scale near the cities and villages of the county. The 1910 census reports the value of vegetables produced in the county in 1909 as eighty-three thousand six hundred eighty- two dollars.
Most of the farmers have small orchards of apple. plum, peach and pear trees. These fruits do well when properly cared for, but owing to lack of care the trees in most orchards are gradually dying and less apples are produced now than ten years ago. There are several commercial orchards in the county, mainly in the vicinity of Falls City and Shubert. Though the bluff zone of the Missouri river is admirably adapted to apples. it has few
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commercial orchards, owing to the fact that it is too far from railroad points. In the vicinity of Shubert the apples are sold through the Central Fruit Growers Association; in other localities they are sold direct by the producer. Most of the apples are shipped to points in western Nebraska, Kansas, and South Dakota.
Apples of the better grades are stored in Omaha for shipment at the time of greatest demand. The culls are made into cider and vinegar, and bring from twenty to thirty cents a hundred pounds. Graded apples sell for an average of two dollars and fifty cents a barrel. The principal varieties of apples grown are the Ben Davis, Winesap, Jonathan, Mammoth Black Twig, Missouri Pippin, Grimes, York Imperial, Gano, Duchess, and Wealthy. There are approximately eight hundred acres in commercial apple orchards. Only a few pears are produced commercially. The value of all orchard products, including small fruits and nuts, is given in the 1910 census as fifty-four thousand two hundred twelve dollars. The number of apple trees is given as one hundred seventy-five thousand one hundred sev- enty-nine, with about sixty-seven thousand peach trees and about thirty- five thousand grapevines.
FIRST COMMERCIAL APPLE ORCHARD.
Elias Beaver, who came to Richardson county in the sixties established the first commercial apple orchard on a farm six miles southwest of Falls City. Mr. Beaver was a skilled orchardist and the success of his orchards fully established the fact that very fine commercial apples could be success- fully grown in this section of Nebraska.
The late Henry W. Shubert was the pioneer orchardist of the northern part of the county and his son, A. G. Shubert, of Falls City, set out the first apple trees in that part of the state in an orchard intended for commer- cial purposes. The success of the Shubert orchards has induced others in that section to plant orchards. Shubert Brothers have continued the work started by their father and now have the largest orchard acreage in the county and probably in the state of Nebraska. Their trees are cared for scientifically and cultivation of the soil with staple crops is continued until the trees are large enough to bear commercial crops of fruit.
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