USA > Ohio > Noble County > The county of Noble; a history of Noble County, Ohio, from the earliest days, with special chapter on military affairs, and special attention given to resources. > Part 10
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THE COUNTY OF NOBLE.
drop all negotiations with the old company and form a new one. The work of perfecting the organization of this new company was entrusted to a committee, consisting of Gen. A. J. Warner, of Marietta, E. W. Mathews, of Cambridge, and James S. Foreman, a prominent attor- ney of Caldwell. The committee went to work with commendable zeal, and in the following September the Marietta & Pittsburg Rail- road company was incorporated. In October W. H. Frazier, Will- iam C. Okey, and William W. Glidden, of Caldwell, and R. R. Dawes and William P. Cutler, of Marietta, were authorized to receive stock subscriptions and donations for the construction of the road .* A year later a fund of $175,000 had been subscribed in Noble and Washington counties and it was decided to begin work upon the road at once. A contract was accordingly made with Warner, McArthur & Co. to build the road from Marietta to Caldwell. For doing so they were to receive $5,000 a mile in cash; $4,000 in capital stock, and $8,000 in seven per cent first mortgage bonds. Work was pushed with great vigor and in November, 1871, trains began running between Caldwell and Marietta. The arrival of the first train at Caldwell was hailed with demonstrations of joy. At last Noble county was in direct communication with that great artery of com- merce, the Ohio river.
In 1872 the road was completed to Cambridge, and two years later it was extended to Canal Dover where it forms important connections with the trunk lines running north and east. The road has had a somewhat checkered career. It has several times been in the hands of a receiver. It has been known as the Marietta & Pittsburg, the Marietta, Pittsburg & Cleveland, the Cleveland & Marietta, and is now operated as the Marietta Division of the Pennsylvania System. The stockholders have never accumulated large fortunes from the dividends received, but the road had been an important factor in developing the natural resources of Noble county, nevertheless.
About the time that the Marietta & Pittsburg railroad was com- pleted to Caldwell, agitation was started for the construction of a narrow gauge railroad from Zanesville to Caldwell, and ultimately to some point on the Ohio river. The agitation culminated in the incorporation of the Zanesville, Cumberland & Caldwell railroad com- pany, but the project received but little support from the people of Noble county, owing to the fact that all their energies were at that time being exerted in behalf of the Marietta & Pittsburg road, which was already an assured reality. In 1872 the Bellaire, Woodsfield & Zanesville railroad company was organized. Later the interests of the two companies were consolidated under the name of the Bellaire & Southwestern railroad company, with E. G. Morgan as president, and
* In order to secure the completion of the road to Caldwell, Noble county was required to raise $60,000. Altogether the citizens subscribed about $115,000 to build the road through the county.
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Col. S. L. Mooney as general superintendent. Work was commenced on the road in 1876 and on Thanksgiving day, in 1879, the first train ran over the road from Bellaire to Woodsfield. The opening of the line thus far stimulated the interest in the western end of the proposed road and on December 16 a meeting was held at Summerfield to take the necessary steps to secure the completion of the road to that place, at any rate. Everyone seemed to take a lively interest in the matter and many felt that Summerfield would have a railroad before many months had elapsed. In January, 1880, the work of soliciting sub- scriptions and securing the right of way was begun. Then the com- mittee met the real difficulties of the situation. Quite a number of those who had talked in favor of the road declined to give any sub- stantial aid when called upon to do so. Through the summer the enter- prise languished and for a time it looked as though the whole under- taking was doomed to failure. In December, 1880, the matter was revived by a meeting at Caldwell, at which it was proposed to make that town the western terminus of the road. At that meeting promi- nent representatives of the railroad company were present and pro- posed to furnish and lay the iron rails, and fully equip and operate the road between Woodsfield and Caldwell if the people along the route would pay for grading the road bed, secure the right of way, and furnish the ties. To do this would require a subscription of a little more than $100,000. John W. Tipton, Fulton Caldwell, W. W. Collins, William W. Glidden, R. P. Summers, George A. Smith, and David S. Spriggs were appointed a committee to make a tentative can- vass for subscriptions, and to secure the co-operation of the people of Summerfield, Freedom, Louisville, and Sarahsville in raising the amount. The work proceeded slowly and it was not until the fall of 1881 that the entire sum was subscribed.
In the meantime a company had been formed at Zanesville to build a road from that city to Beverly, to connect with the Bellaire & Southwestern. This company was known as the Zanesville & South- eastern railroad company. In January, 1882, it was consolidated with the Bellaire & Southwestern, under the name of the Bellaire, Zanes- ville & Cincinnati railroad company. Muskingum county donated over $200,000 to the new scheme and work was begun at Zanesville on a line to meet the eastern end. In August, 1883, trains began running between Bellaire and Summerfield. In November of the same year trains began running between Caldwell and Zanesville, and on Decem- ber 3, the first train ran through to Bellaire from Zanesville, and the B. 7. & C. was complete .* The road has passed through the usual
* From Zanesville to Bellaire by the narrow gauge is 112 miles. As the road runs through a hilly country the greater part of the way. and follows the course of the streams much of the distance, numerous curves occur. This has given rise to the nickname of the "Bent, Zigzag & Crooked," a play upon the initials of the terminal stations.
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THE COUNTY OF NOBLE.
trials of local roads. It was twice in the hands of receivers, and was finally re-organized as the Ohio River & Western, under which name it was still operated in 1903. In 1902 the road passed into the hands of the Appleyard Syndicate, owners of a number of interurban traction lines.
The development of the oil industry and the building of railroads led to the establishment of several new towns and villages. Dexter City, in Jefferson township, was laid off on August 5, 1870, by R. W. St. John, Hiram Flanders being the proprietor of the site. Addi- tions were soon afterward made to the original plat by George Bell, John Smithson, J. J. Shriver, and U. J. Cheshire. Some of the lots in these additions lay in Jackson township. The town was named for Dexter W. Sullivan, who erected the first building in the place after the original plat was surveyed. Soon after Sullivan's building was commenced, David McKee began the second one, in which he placed a stock of goods as soon as it was finished, thus becoming the first merchant in the place. Dexter City is located on the line of the Cleveland & Marietta railroad, the road being completed to that point about the time the town was laid off into lots. For some time the town enjoyed a boom, owing to the railroad and the adjacent oil field, after which it settled down to a steady growth, and is today one of the important commercial centers of the county.
Two miles north of Dexter City, on the same railroad, the village of South Olive was laid out in August, 1871. Welton B. Ostrander owned the land and employed David Miller to make the survey, the original plat consisting of thirteen lots. Several additions to the orig- inal have been made by William Kirkbride and others. A railroad station was the first building erected. Soon after it was finished W. D. Guilbert opened a store in it, the first in South Olive. He was soon followed by Rice & Martin, and for a time South Olive was con- sidered an emulator of Dexter City for commercial honors. A thriv- ing trade was soon built up by the local merchants, and considerable business is still done there. One of the early industries was a large tobacco packing business, which was conducted by Gouchenour & Guilbert. In 1880 the warehouse that they had erected was sold to Jacob Purcell, who converted it into a modern grist mill. Three years later the mill was destroyed by fire, and this misfortune, coupled with the waning of the oil excitement about the same time, had a disastrous effect upon the town, from which it never fully recovered. Partial amends were made by the opening of the South Olive Cream- ery Company in 1886 which brought new business to the village.
Another village that sprang up about the same time as South Olive, was that of Dudley, where a flag station was established by the railroad company in 1871. As soon as the railroad station was built a store was opened in the structure by J. P. Arnold. A little village grew up
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THE COUNTY OF NOBLE.
about the station but no official plat of the place was made until 1877. Several residences, a wagon shop, a saw and grist mill, a school house and a Universalist church were built during the next decade, but Dudley never grew to metropolitan proportions.
In April, 1873, William Lowe was employed by Levi Glover to lay out the town of Ava in Noble township, in the northern part of the county. The original survey consisted of twenty-two lots, but the town has been increased by additions to almost five times its original proportions. Ava is on the line of the Cleveland & Marietta rail- road and is one of the principal trading points for the farmers of that section, and is also the center of the coal mining industry opened up in 1903.
In 1872 Benton Thorla opened a store on his farm where Belle Valley now stands. In the same year a postoffice was established there and Mr. Thorla was appointed postmaster. Three years later he employed William Lowe to lay off the town plat. When the Bellaire, Zanesville & Cincinnati railroad was completed this place became a junction of that road and the Cleveland & Marietta, which made it quite an important point. At one time the town of Belle Valley boasted two hotels, a fine grist mill, three general stores, and several other business enterprises ; being only four miles from Caldwell, the growing county seat gradually drew the trade away and Belle Valley merely held its own for two decades, but in 1903 the town took on a new lease of life by the opening of the McKee coal mines, and nearly or quite doubled its population in less than a year.
Between the time that Noble county was organized and the begin- ning of the Civil war the villages of East Union, Moundsville, and Fulda were projected. East Union was laid out in the spring of 1856 by Charles Burlingame for Henry Archer, who had started a store there some years before. The postoffice was established in 1859 with Allen Floyd as the postmaster, a grist mill was erected by a stock company, and for several years a thriving business was done in buy- ing and shipping tobacco. Moundsville was projected by Isaac Davis, who laid off twelve lots there in the spring of 1861. But the war coming on just at that time the growth of the village was no doubt retarded by it. Rufus Hall built a small mill there, and being a vio- linist of more than ordinary ability the place soon became generally known as "Fiddler's Green." After Hall removed from the place the mill fell into disuse and the few straggling houses constituting the vil- lage took the name of "Stringtown." W. D. Guilbert conducted a store there from 1866 until the completion of the C. & M. railroad, when he removed to South Olive. The town of Fulda, in Enoch town- ship, was laid off in June, 1861, by Charles Burlingame for John Brahler and John S. Hohmann. A number of German families had settled in this locality some years before and the town was named for
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THE COUNTY OF NOBLE.
one near their old home in the Fatherland. Some time before the platting of the village a store had been opened there by Heiddles- heimer & Hohmann. Soon after the plat was filed a postoffice was established there with John S. Hohmann as the first postmaster. Fulda is chiefly noted as the site of St. Mary's Catholic church. The parish is one of the oldest and largest in that part of the State, and the church building is one of the most imposing edifices in Noble county.
During the war the town of Caldwell made but little progress. Since that time its growth has been slow but sure. Before the build- ing of the railroad the only means of communication was by means of a hack line from Caldwell to Campbell's Station on what is now the Baltimore & Ohio railroad. The distance is twenty-two miles and the hack made but three trips a week. This hack carried the mails and on the days between its trips there was a mail from McConnelsville thus giving Caldwell a daily mail service. The first school house in the town was built in 1866 at a cost of $2,300, S. B. Pugh being the contractor. Fourteen years later the building had become inadequate to the growing needs of the school population and a more commodious structure was erected at a cost of nearly $10,000. "School House Hill" is the highest point in the town where the building commands an excellent view, and where the best of sanitary conditions can be easily maintained.
Both political parties have been well represented by newspapers in Caldwell, though the Republican papers have received better support, owing to the fact that the party has for many years been in a majority in the county. After the suspension of the Noble County Democrat in 1860, that party was without a local organ until 1863, when some of the Democratic leaders induced Robert Hutchinson to buy the outfit of the old Woodsfield Herald and establish a paper at Caldwell. Accordingly in the summer of 1863 the Democratic News was launched. Nathaniel Capell soon became associated with Hutchinson, but the paper was not a financial success and the publishers sold out to Robert J. Smith, who continued its publication until 1865. The business was then transferred to McGlashan & Clymer. The latter shortly afterward retired from the firm and McGlashan changed the name to the Noble County News, continuing to publish it regularly until 1869, when he sold out to W. A. Wallace. Wallace published it as the Cottage Visitor for about two years when he turned it back to Cyrus McGlashan, who changed the name to The Spectator. A year later John M. Amos and F. W. Moore bought the paper, changed the name to that of the Citizens Press, bought a lot of new type and in many ways improved the appearance of the paper. Mr. Amos soon became the sole proprietor and under his management the paper con- tinued to prosper until 1884, when he sold out to A. P. Jennings &
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THE COUNTY OF NOBLE.
Son, who changed the name to the Caldwell Press. A rival Demo- cratic paper was started in July, 1886, by C. W. Evans. It was called the Noble County Democrat and after about a year was consoli- dated with the Press. In 1887 Jennings & Son sold the paper to L. W. Finley & Son, who continued its publication until 1894, when the plant was sold to J. W. Bigley. In June, 1902, it passed into the hands of William C. Archer, a young man of fine attainments, who has greatly improved the appearance and character of the paper. The Press is the only Democratic paper in Noble county.
The first Republican paper in Caldwell was the Noble County Republican, as mentioned in a former chapter. It was removed from Sarahsville with the county seat by Randall Ross. In 1859 he sold the paper to John L. Shaw, who conducted it until 1866. In March of that year the ownership was transferred to Goodrich & Teters. In July, 1869, John W. Bell and Wallace H. Cooley succeeded Goodrich & Teters, and about a year later Mr. Bell retired from the partner- ship leaving Mr. Cooley in charge. In August, 1883, the first num- ber of the Caldwell Journal made its appearance. Its publication was begun by Frank M. Martin, who had previously been connected with the Noble County Republican and the Woodsfield Gazette. From April to December, 1886, Mr. Martin had a partner in the person of J. F. Knouff, and after this partnership was dissolved the former continued the publication of the paper until May, 1903. In July, 1898, he purchased the Noble County Republican and consolidated the two papers under the name of the Noble County Republican-Journal. In May, 1903, he sold out to Eastman Archer, but remained with the paper until the first of the following July. On May 3, 1899, the first issue of a new Republican paper appeared. It was called the Noble County Leader and was published by J. S. Harris, a newspaper man of wide experience and recognized ability. The Leader is still under the management of Mr. Harris and has a large patronage .* For some time P. F. Yoho was associated with Mr. Harris in the pub- lication of the Leader, but his death left Mr. Harris the sole pro- prietorship.
By an act of the county commissioners, February 4, 1870, the town of Caldwell was incorporated. The resolution was passed by the board in response to a petition signed by nearly every legal voter and taxpayer in the village .. The names attached to the petition were: J. M. Dalzell, W. H. Summers, R. S. Allbritain, S. P. Evans, F. M. McKee, David Gookins, Worthy McKee, Cyrus McGlashan, John Martin, C. A. Foster, D. A. Foster, J. M. Burlingame, John M. Amos, Weedon Headley, S. B. Pugh, A. G. Evans, A. H. Evans, W. P. Evans, W. H. Cooley, John W. Bell, Frank Shafer, John L.
* Mr. Harris also publishes the Summerfield News.
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THE COUNTY OF NOBLE.
Young, W. F. Wiley, W. H. Frazier, H. J. Hinkle, Ira Collins, D. C. Jones, P. Jackson, R. J. Singer, J. C. Bickford, G. W. Fogle, T. W. Morris, Joseph Stillwell, Adolph Michael, J. W. Kraps, F. G. Okey, C. J. Jenne, N. W. Taylor, William Glidden, Hambleton Wiley, T. H. Morris, George Winders, R. Belford, Jabez Belford, Robert McKee, J. W. Caldwell, B. B. Waller, J. D. Wiley, L. H. Davis, George Allen, W. S. Archer, A. Simmons, John Wehr, Taylor Bivens, G. A. Way, W. B. Teters, J. S. Foreman, D. S. Gibbs, E. H. Stillwell, and Irvin Belford.
The first trustees of the town were William H. Frazier, C. A. Fos- ter, and John M. Amos. Mr. Frazier was elected chairman of the board and Mr. Amos clerk and treasurer. In November, 1871, the former resigned and William H. Summers was appointed to the vacancy. The trustees elected in 1872 were Jabez Belford, chairman ; John M. Amos, clerk ; and C. J. Jenne, treasurer. Soon after Cald- well was incorporated a movement was started in favor of making it an incorporated village of the second class, under the laws of the State. The question was submitted to the voters at an election held on April 8, 1872, the vote resulting sixty-one in favor of the measure and four- teen against it, and on May 20, the first election of officers occurred under the new regime. The officers of the town since that time have been as shown by the following list; together with the year of their election.
Mayors: William Chambers, 1872; William W. Ripley, 1876; E. H. Archer, 1880; Milton James, 1884; C. A. Foster, 1886 ; C. M. Watson, 1888; (Watson served as mayor until November, 1891, when he resigned and I. B. Phillips was appointed till the next regular election). C. A. Foster, 1892; (I. B. Phillips was again appointed in September, 1892, to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of Mayor Foster) ; A. C. McKee, 1893; I. B. Phillips, 1894; Ames F. Steen, 1895; C. O. Dye, 1896 ; A. O. Archer, 1898 ; C. O. Dye, 1900; L. B. Frazier, 1902 ;* W. H. Richcreek, 1903.
Clerks : George M. Yarnall, 1872; J. W. Barnes, 1874; W. E. Tipton, 1875 ; M. C. Julien, 1877 ; J. J. McAdams, 1878 ; E. Perry, 1879; A. C. Okey, 1880; J. J. McAdams, 1882; R. W. Summers, 1883; C. M. Watson, 1884; J. H. Mills, 1888; Cyrus McGlashan, 1896; Adolph Michael, Jr., 1898 ; J. F. Raney, 1900; Cyrus McGlas- han, 1901; R. P. Summers, 1902.
The record of the treasurers of Caldwell is not very clear. The first mention of an incumbent of the office, after the village was incor- porated in the second class, is in 1874, when Gilead Ogle was elected to the position. M. C. Julien was elected in 1878; and again in
* Under the Municipal Code, passed by the Ohio legislature. October 22, 1902. the elections are held on the first Monday in April. Mr. Richcreek is the first mayor under the new order.
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1880, but it is not certain whether some one else was treasurer between those dates. L. W. Glidden was elected in 1884; T. H. Morris in 1885 ; J. J. McAdams in 1897 ; and J. T. Young, the present incum- bent, in 1903.
The completion of the railroad in 1871 necessitated improved facil- ities for commercial transactions, and in December of that year the Noble County Bank was organized with a capital stock of $40,000. W. H. Frazier was elected president and E. P. Pierce, cashier. On March 18, 1873, the bank was merged into the Noble County National Bank, which was then organized with a capital stock of $60,000. The president and cashier remained the same and Charles T. Lewis was elected assistant cashier. The number of stockholders was materi- ally increased and a board of directors, consisting of W. H. Frazier, John Lemmax, Henry Large, Ezra McKee, and George A. Smith, was chosen. In 1903 the officers of the bank were: E. J. Hoge, president ; J. E. Smith, vice-president ; W. E. Tipton, cashier ; A. C. Okey, assistant cashier. The board of directors was made up of E. J. Hoge, J. E. Smith, J. M. Maring, John Lemmax, and George E. Large. The capital stock remains at $60,000 but at the close of 1903 the bank had a surplus of $40,000 and undivided profits amounting to $12,000 more.
In September, 1902, the Citizens National Bank of Caldwell was organized and it opened for business on November 3, with O. O. McKee, president ; J. S. Jones, vice-president ; V. E. Harkins, cashier. The capital stock of the bank is $60,000, all of which is held by residents of the county. At the close of the first year's business the bank had a surplus of $4,000. In 1903 the stockholders decided to erect a building on the south side of the public square. The building is three stories high, the bank and a drug store occupying the ground floor, the second story being used for offices, and the third story by the K. of P. Lodge. The cost of the building was about $35,000 and it is considered the finest and best appointed business building in Cald- well .*
In May, 1883, the Caldwell District Fair Association was organ- ized and in the following July it was incorporated with David Miller, president; I. M. Combs, vice-president ; E. H. Archer, secretary ; and G. A. Smith, treasurer. The capital stock was fixed at $6,000, which was later increased to $10,000. Immediately after the association was incorporated a tract of land about a half mile west of Caldwell was secured for a fair ground, a fine half mile track was constructed, and the first fair was held under the auspices of the association in September, 1884. Since that time a number of successful exhibitions
* National banks have also been organized at Batesvil e and Summerfield.
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have been held, the Caldwell fairs ranking among the best in South- eastern Ohio.
Another institution that has been of almost incalculable benefit to Caldwell and the immediate vicinity is the Caldwell Building & Loan Association, which was organized in the spring of 1885. The incor- porators were W. H. Cooley, who was elected the first president ; O. T. Wilde, secretary; W. D. Guilbert, treasurer; Stephen Mills, John Emmons, T. C. Kane, John W. Tipton, Jr., John M. Amos, and A. C. Okey, directors. Some of the finest residences in Caldwell have been built through the agency of this association, which has been honestly and efficiently conducted from its first organization.
On April 14, 1888, the Ohio legislature authorized the municipal authorities to issue bonds to the amount of $5,000 for the purpose of providing fire protection for the property holders of the town. Two years later another act was passed increasing the amount to $15,000, a portion of which was to be used for improving the streets. In 1897 two disastrous fires occurred, the first on May 4, destroying nearly all the buildings on the south side of the public square, and the second on June 1, which destroyed all the buildings, in the square, bounded by four streets, north of the public square. These unfortu- nate events stimulated the demand for better protection against con- flagrations of a like character in future. Steps were accordingly taken to construct a water works system that would not only be an important factor in extinguishing fires, but which would also supply the citizens of the town with water for drinking and domestic pur- poses. On November 10, 1897, the council adopted a resolution awarding the contract for the construction of water works to Davis & Archer, of Bellaire, for $14,000, and at the same time a contract was awarded to the Hughes Steam Pump Co., of Cleveland, for $1,500 for an engine and boiler for the same. The completion of the works gave to the people of Caldwell an abundant supply of good water, established a feeling of security against losses by fire, and enhanced the value of property. In connection with the water works plant is the city electric light plant.
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