USA > Wisconsin > Dodge County > The History of Dodge County, Wisconsin, containing a history of Dodge County, its early settlement, growth, development, resources, etc > Part 59
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FOX LAKE.
There is a conflict of opinion in regard to the newspaper history of Fox Lake. Mr. Hotchkiss, editor of the Representative, in his centennial sketch of that village, says: "The first paper was the Journal, published by Norton & George, in 1855 ; the next was the Times, by Corbett & Golliday; the Gazette, by Swallow & Fitch ; the Record, by George & Stevens ; then the Representative. So far as we can learn, none of these gentlemen retired from their labors to ease and affluence, and the indications are that the present proprietors are not likely to prove an exception. Nevertheless, they have faith in Fox Lake, and came here designing to stay."
Mr. Thomas Hughes, to whom we are indebted for most of the facts contained in this article, in his " History of the Newspaper Enterprises of Dodge County," asserts that the Fox Lake Times was started in December, 1854, by H. C. George & Co., a Mr. Norton being asso- ciated with Mr. George. The Times, he says, was a seven-column quarto, neutral in politics. Messrs. George & Norton published it till the spring of 1855, when J. R. Swallow became their successor, changing its name to the Fox Lake Journal. Either Charles Corbett or Mr. Galloway took it off his hands, and published it till the fall of 1857, when J. V. Fitch secured an interest in it, and changed its name to the Fox Lake Gazette, Republican in politics. Mr. Fitch presided over the destinies of the Gazette until its suspension in 1865. Stevens & George then purchased the effects, and on the 14th of May, 1865, issued. the Fox Lake Record,
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a seven-column paper, with party shackles. Mr. Stevens retired in March, 1866, and in August of the same year, the Record " climbed the golden stair." A few weeks before it suspended publication, it was reduced in size, and, at the same time, espoused the cause of the Demo- cratic party.
The absence of files, and the inability of old residents to remember dates, names and other circumstances connected with the early history of the Fox Lake press, makes pardonable the lack of accurate knowledge in this regard. The Representative, still in existence, may be said to have been founded upon the ruins of the Record. It was established in September, 1866, by John Hotchkiss, and was enlarged from a six to a seven column quarto the first year of its existence. In 1875, H. L. Stafford purchased an interest, and retained it until April, 1879, when the management became and has remained to the present time Hotchkiss & Son. The Representative is a stanch Republican paper, and is in every way deserving of the patronage and respect due the local newspaper from an intelligent community.
HORICON.
In August, 1854, William E. Croft purchased and took to Horicon the material formerly used in the publication of the Ozaukee County Times, and in September following issued the first number of the Horicon Argus, with W. H. Butterfield as editor. It was a seven-column weekly, Democratic in politics. Mr. Croft conducted the Argus until April 3, 1857, when M. M. Pomeroy purchased it, and for the next year and a half attempted to make his strange Democracy understood, failing in which, he turned his attention to the work of belittling the prospective advantages of neighboring villages and cities. Following is a specimen : Concerning Beaver Dam, he said, "Three beavers built a dam there; a horse came along and drank all the water, since which time the inhabitants have been running the mills with a syringe." The Beaver Dam journals naturally resented this vile imputation, and, in doing so, twitted " Brick " of the small population of Horicon ; whereupon the Greenback Achilles replied in his next number, "We have 3,000 inhabitants and 12,000 rakes." The rake-factory being destroyed by fire soon afterward, Pomeroy's population was sadly dimin- ished. The Argus was purchased by B. W. Curtis December 17, 1858, and removed to Beaver Dam. "Brick " Pomeroy is established at La Crosse, and so are his Democrat and Greenback party.
The Horicon Gazette, a Republican paper, was established in Horicon in 1861, by Henry W. and Alta C. Phelps. It continued, however, only about three months, when the office was removed to Berlin, Green Lake County, and merged with the Green Lake Spectator.
MAYVILLE.
The Dodge County Pioneer was established at Mayville in March, 1876, by Henry Spiering, who, for two and a half years, continued its publication, retiring in favor of B. R. Bogisch, the present editor and proprietor. The Pioneer is printed in the German language, and is uncompromisingly Democratic. It is an eight-column folio, subscription price $2 per annum, with a circulation of 1,300 copies, among an intelligent and appreciative class of citizens.
The Mayville Telephone was started by Capt. Charles A. Pettibone and John A. Barney, in July, 1877. It was a six-column quarto, " Democratic in politics, lightning in locals, and as good as an old maid for gossip." The Telephone was designed to fill a long-felt want, and answered the purpose so well that within the first year the names of 1,000 subscribers graced the subscription book. The management remained in the same hands until February, 1879, when Capt. Pettibone purchased Mr. Barney's interest in the paper, and also the interest of Frank Lowth in the Dodge County Democrat, and consolidated the two at Juneau. The name Telephone is suggestive of the little electric instrument over which there was such a furor about the time of Messrs. Pettibone & Barney's newspaper venture.
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WAUPUN.
The first printing material ever brought to Waupun was that on which the Whig had been printed in the village of Fond du Lac, and was bought by Eli Hooker in the winter of 1847-48. Immediately afterward, George Howe came from Angelica, N. Y., with the old Ramage press, on which the first edition of Morgan's "Exposition of Masonry " was printed, and Mr. Hooker entered into partnership with him in the job-printing business. This old press, made of wood, and on which two impressions with a screw were required to print one side of a sheet, was soon after sold to a man in Calumet County, and Mr. Hooker (Mr. Howe having returned to New York) purchased material for another job office, with which he continued in business for several years, with Edward Beeson, of Fond du Lac. Eli Hooker, who still resides in Waupun, is the oldest editor in Fond du Lac County.
The Waupun Times, the oldest paper in Waupun, now in its twenty-third year, is an eight- column folio. The first number was issued September 14, 1857, by J. H. Brinkerhoff (the present Postmaster of the city), editor and proprietor. It was a seven-column folio, and a neat- looking, spicy sheet. The merchants of the place gave him a liberal advertising patronage, and the Times started with a good list of subscribers, many of whom have stuck by it during the nearly twenty-three years it has been published. In his first editorial, Mr. Brinkerhoff says :
We have been induced to commence the publication of the Times, not because we thought it would pay-make us "rich"-but from the conviction that the interests of Waupun demand a paper ; that there is sufficient enterprise among the inhabitants to sustain one, and that we might be our own master ; only hoping that such encouragement, in the way of patronage, might be extended us as shall enable the Times and us to live. Coming among you as we do -relying solely upon our own efforts, and under obligations to no party or man-we shall follow our own inclination in all matters, claim the right to do pretty much as we please and that which we consider most beneficial to the com- munity at large, and shall be independent in everything and of everybody.
We do not claim neutrality in politics or anything else, but we do not intend to enter the political arena further than to acquaint our readers with the prospects and doings of the respective parties. We here assert, however, that, with the exception of an absolute hostility to those principles which would deprive the foreign-born of the right of suffrage, we are unbiased in our political views-have a greater regard for principle and right than for party. The interests of Waupun and " circumjacent vicinage" shall receive our especial attention, and it shall be our endeavor to foster and build up every interest identified with its growth and prosperity. Particular regard will be paid home matters, and, after we get the " hang of the barn," we intend that in local news the Times shall excel.
The promises of its founders the Times has fulfilled and is fulfilling. It is no longer inde- pendent in politics. When the flag of our country was threatened by traitors in 1861, the ยท independent flag was pulled down, and the star-spangled banner placed in its stead at the top of the columns ; and, ever since, the Times has been firm in its allegiance to the principles of the Republican party.
In the first number of the Times appear the business cards of many who are still in Wau- pun. E. Hooker advertises that he will attend to all kinds of legal business; D. W. Moore pre- scribed medicines then as now ; H. L. Butterfield not only administered physics, but sold drugs ; R. W. Wells dealt in drugs, books, paints, oils, etc .; Thomas Stoddart was in the same line of business, and was Postmaster as well; Rank & Manz and John Howard were merchant tailors ; John Taylor and S. Rebbles were among those who kept groceries and dry goods ; B. B. Bald- win had a sash, door, blind and turning establishment; M. J. Althouse made pumps and drilled wells ; John McFarland shod the horses ; the Exchange was the hotel of the village ; William Morgan did all the barbering ; E. Hillyer was Secretary of the Dodge County Mutual Insurance Company ; L. B. Balcom was in the forwarding and commission business ; T. Carpenter made and sold harness ; Phelps Moore kept the Empire Livery Stable ; there were advertised two banks, the Waupun Bank and the Corn Exchange Bank.
Among the contributors to the first number of the Times was George E. Jennings. who still occasionally furnishes articles that are as graceful in thought and diction as then ; W. H. Taylor indulged then as he now sometimes does in a paper on "Waupun, its past, present and future;" for nearly eight years, Mr. Brinkerhoff furnished mental pabulum for the readers of
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the Times, when he sold the office and business to Rev. D. A. Wagner. He became involved in a bitter church quarrel, and made the Times his personal organ. In 1866, a year after he bought the office, he sold it again to Messrs. Eli & Jesse Hooker ; in about three months, Eli Hooker bought out his partner, and for a year conducted the Times very successfully ; he made it pay, but having an extensive law business requiring his attention, he sold out in about a year, Mr. J. R. Decker, his foreman, being the purchaser. He took possession October 1, 1867, and did not allow the business to suffer under his labors.
On October 1, 1868, the present editor and proprietor, Philip M. Pryor, then a young man not out of his teens, took possession, Mr. Decker going to Columbus, Wis. With no capital but energy and a determination to succeed, Mr. Pryor has, for more than eleven years, been con- tinually making improvements in the office, and doing all in his power to increase the influence and standing of his paper. He makes it a rule never, under any circumstances, to allow his paper to become the medium for any one to vent personal spite, believing it to be unjournal- istic ; never to permit any ungentlemanly language or personal attacks to appear in its columns, or to allow anything of a local interest to pass unnoticed. The present flourishing condition of the Times is the result.
Sometime in 1859, William Euen began the publication of a paper called the Item. His office was in the South Ward, or Dodge County side of the village, and the paper, which was a five-column folio, appeared monthly. Mr. Euen was a politician, a manufacturer of Euen's Strengthening Plasters, and a humorous fellow, and his paper was given somewhat to fun. He continued it about one year as a monthly, and then turned it into a weekly, which was continued with varying fortunes, until the beginning of 1861, when it was suspended and never revived.
In 1859, Dr. A. C. . Van Altena brought De Ware Burger from Sheboygan County to Waupun, when it was published in the Holland language until the latter part of 1860, by S. H. Salverda, Dr. Van Altena's son-in-law. It was discontinued for want of patronage, there being but few Hollanders in the county to subscribe for it, and only one or two merchants or business men in the vicinity to furnish advertising patronage.
During the latter part of 1860, a small newspaper called the Little Badger was started in Waupun by S. H. Salverda, which was printed in both the English and Holland languages. It lived a precarious life of a few months and died for the want of patronage, its editor and pro- prietor afterward moving to Milwaukee.
On Tuesday, August 28, 1866, Joseph W. Oliver and Martin C. Short, under the firm name of Oliver & Short, began the publication of the Prison City Leader, an eight-column folio, Republican in politics. The material on which the paper was printed was moved from Dart- ford, Green Lake County, where the same firm published the Green Lake Spectator. The first few issues of the Leader were with "patent inside," after which the entire paper was printed at home. The first number contained nearly eleven columns of home advertisements and about three columns of "foreign ads." The paper started out with a good list of subscribers, and grew at once into popular favor on account of its devotion to local matters and decent tone in treating of all matters. An old " Washington " hand press and a very limited amount of other material constituted the Leader office at the beginning. In 1868, the paper was changed to a five-column quarto, but the experiment proving unsatisfactory, the folio form was again resumed, and the name changed from the Prison City Leader to the Waupun Leader, which title it has since borne. On the 6th of October, 1871, Martin C. Short, who is now editor and publisher
of the Brandon Times, sold his half-interest to R. H. Oliver, and the paper has since been edited and published by Oliver Brothers. J. W. Oliver learned his trade in the old Markesan Journal office before the rebellion, in which he took an active part as a member of the Thirty- second Wisconsin Volunteers, and R. H. Oliver passed his apprenticeship in the Leader office with Oliver & Short. The Leader proprietors were the second in bringing steam presses into Fond du Lac County, and they now have one of the neatest and best-equipped country offices to be found anywhere, with a large amount of material and three large presses of the best makes.
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In February, 1879, the paper was changed to a six-column quarto, and is a handsome, thrifty sheet in make-up and general appearance, and of the utmost cleanliness and respectability in matter. It was begun on the Dodge County side of Waupun, in Amadon's (now Seely's) Block, and was moved to the Fond du Lac County side, into Rank's Block, in 1869, and in August, 1877, to its present quarters in the old female prison building on Prison street near Main. Connected with the office is a lathe for repairing, iron turning and general work, the first successfully used in Wisconsin, and made entirely by J. W. Oliver; a stereotyping machine for jobs, advertisements and other work; a force-pump with 100 feet of hose for fire purposes, and a telephone, made by J. W. Oliver, extends from the office to his house, several blocks away. There is no other printing office in the vicinity, if, indeed, in the State, with all these appliances, and all in such perfect and effective working order. It is a model country printing and publishing office.
RAILROADS.
The history of the two great railway lines that pass through Dodge County, will be found on pages 173 to 178, inclusive, of this work. Portions of three divisions of the Chicago, Mil- waukee & St. Paul Railroad traverse the territory of the county to the extent of about seventy miles, touching the principal points. An unimportant branch of the Chicago & North-Western Railway passes through the county, on an almost direct north and south line, and that portion lying in the county is therefore something like thirty-one miles in length.
The Fond du Lac, Amboy & Peoria Railroad, however, the southern terminus of which is in Dodge County, is of special local interest. Scarcely a railway in Wisconsin has so much history as this, a narrow-gauge railway, extending from Fond du Lac, through the towns of Fond du Lac and Byron, in Fond du Lac County, to Iron Ridge, in Dodge County, a distance of 28 miles, but only a portion of it can properly be written. Alonzo Kinyon, a prominent citizen of Lee County, Ill., who originated the Chicago & Rock River Railroad, and was its President, conceived the plan of con- necting the iron, copper, lumber and manufacturing regions of Wisconsin with the corn and coal regions of Illinois, by a more direct route than any then in existence. He was one of the earliest advocates of the convenience and economy of the narrow-gauge system of railways, and decided to connect, if possible, the two sections of country mentioned by a narrow-gauge railway. Accordingly, on the 30th of May, 1874, at Amboy, Ill., the Articles of Association of the Fond du Lac, Amboy & Peoria Railway Company were signed by Alonzo Kinyon, of Amboy, and Egbert Shaw, of Lee Center, Ill., and W. P. Wolf, of Tipton, Iowa, T. H. Mink and B. A. Mink, of Clarence, Iowa. Soon after, these Articles of Association were recorded in the office of the Secretary of State of Illinois, and in Lee, Bureau, Peoria, Marshal and Ogle Coun- ties of that State.
In December of the same year, the same parties organized under the laws of Wisconsin, for the purpose of building and operating a narrow-gauge railway from Fond du Lac to the line between Illinois and Wisconsin, and connecting with the line projected in the former State. The Wisconsin Division was to extend through the counties of Fond du Lac, Dodge, Jeffer- son, Waukesha, Milwaukee and Walworth or Rock Counties ; and on December 26, 1874, Gov. William R. Taylor issued the necessary patent. Alonzo Kinyon was chosen President of the Illinois, and W. P. Wolf, President of the Wisconsin Division.
The construction of the road was to begin at Fond du Lac, but at the same time, right of way and the lease of several thousand acres of coal-fields were obtained in Marshall, Bureau, and Peoria Counties, Ill. After the preliminary survey had been made, it was found the laws of Wisconsin did not provide for the consolidation of corporations or associations existing in different States. Mr. Kinyon thereupon proceeded to Madison, with a bill obviating this, which the Legislature promptly passed. The towns along the proposed line took active steps to give aid, but the city of Fond du Lac was unable to furnish further railway aid on account of the law limiting municipal indebtedness. The Legislature, therefore, passed a bill allowing municipalities to extend aid to railroads by guaranteeing the interest on the bonds of the
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road to be aided. The passage of the necessary bills to aid in the construction of this road was secured by Senators W. H. Hiner, of Fond du Lac, and J. A. Barney, of Dodge County.
The consolidation of the two companies. was effected March 22, 1875, by the choice of Alonzo Kinyon, President ; the Board of Directors being W. P. Wolf, Egbert Shaw, T. H. Mink, B. A. Mink, Joseph T. Kinyon and Clark Sprague. The various towns in Dodge County voted aid in town bonds, and gave, also, the grade of the old Mayville & Iron Ridge Railroad, while the city of Fond du Lac guaranteed the payment of interest for ten years on $200,000 of the first-mortgage bonds of the Company, $30,000 of which were to be appropri- ated for the erection of railroad-shops in that city. In June, 1875, Mr. Kinyon was authorized to locate the line of the road, and John S. McDonald, of Fond du Lac; I. M. Bean, of Mil- waukee, and Samuel A. White, of Whitewater, were chosen trustees of the mortgage, the amount of bonds being limited to $10,000 per mile. Soon after, the Company contracted with D. E. Davenport & Co. for the construction of the road from Fond du Lac to Milwaukee, by way of Iron Ridge. Through the failure of the contractors to pay their laborers, it was discov-
ered they were not responsible, and could not enlist capital to help them fulfill the contract. They had incurred a large amount of indebtedness, but had liquidated only $365 of it. The Com- pany, therefore, canceled their contract and paid the laborers. W. P. Wolf and Alonzo Kinyon, to save what they had already advanced, raised the balance of the money needed, as suits had been commenced and a Receiver applied for. Mr. Kinyon then resigned the Presidency to take the contract of finishing the road, thinking this would best protect the interests of the Company It was understood, however, that, when finished, he should be re-elected President of the road. The contract provided that the Company should pay, for the construction and equipment of the road, $10,000 per mile, in bonds ; $3,000 per mile in stock and whatever aid could be secured. At this time, S. W. Lamoreux, of Dodge County, and George P. Knowles, of Fond du Lac, were added to the Board of Directors. W. P. Wolf was elected President, and George P. Knowles Assistant Secretary, with the custody of the books and records at the city of Fond du Lac.
H. W. Boardman and A. W. Sherman, of Massachusetts, appeared and offered to enter upon the work of constructing the road under Mr. Kinyon's contract, which provided that the road must be finished and paid for by January 1, 1878. The disaffected stockholders trans- ferred their stock to Messrs. Boardman & Sherman, who had already secured portions of stock from other stockholders to secure themselves for money advanced, or to be advanced in con- structing the road. They, by this means, had a majority of the stock, and demanded Mr. Wolf's resignation of the Presidency. They also began to take and hold right of way and other real estate already paid for by the Company, in the name of George H. Wellman, although the contract said all real property should be taken in the name of the Company. Mr. Wellman, Messrs. Boardman & Sherman having no capital, had received the stock secured by them, and was advancing money to them to construct the road under the contract made by Mr.
Kinyon. Messrs. Wellman, Boardman, Sherman and the disaffected Directors being the holders of a majority of the stock, elected Mr. Boardman President. They obtained control of the books, papers and accounts of the original Company, and sued in the United States Court for what Mr. Wellman had invested, although the contract was only partially fulfilled, the road being only graded to Iron Ridge. This proceeding so far re-united the old Board of Directors that Mr. Boardman was removed as President, and Directors Boardman, Sherman and Watson displaced by E. N. Foster, M. D. Moore and Alexander McDonald, of Fond du Lac. S. W. Lamoreux, being elected Judge of Dodge County, resigned as a Director of the road, and J. A. Barney, of the same county, was chosen to fill his place, after which W. P. Wolf was again elected President of the Company.
The suit of Mr. Wellman against the Company was defended by Messrs. Wolf and Kin- yon, the latter claiming $50,000 damages for the nonfulfillment of the contract to build the road
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to Milwaukee. In the latter part of December, 1877, Mr. Kinyon was given power by the original Board of Directors to take, hold possession of, and, as their Superintendent, operate the road from and after the date named in the contract for its completion. All the employes willingly signed contracts to work under Mr. Kinyon, and, therefore, on the 2d of January, 1878, Messrs. Wellman, Boardman and Sherman found the road had quietly but completely slipped from their grasp into the hands of the original Company. To regain posses- sion of the road, they caused to be issued from the United States Court a writ of attachment, based on the claim of A. W. Sherman against George H. Wellman. Under this writ the Deputy United States Marshal proceeded to levy on the road as though it were the exclusive property of Mr. Wellman. With the Deputy, there were about fifty men who had been procured in Mil- waukee and elsewhere to help take forcible possession of the road and its appurtenances. On the arrival of the narrow-gauge train at the junction of the C., M. & St. P. Railway, the Deputy and his posse put in an appearance. The crowd was stationed between Mr. Kinyon and his train, who, however, signaled the train out of reach. Conductor French, thinking Mr. Kinyon in danger, hastened to Mayville, where his train was quickly loaded with citizens armed with rifles and other firearms. When the train backed down to the junction again, bristling with arms, the Deputy Marshal showed his authority, and was allowed by Mr. Kinyon to take peaceable possession. The original Company, claiming they had been wrongfully dispossessed of the road, commenced suit for $50,000 against the United States Marshal and his Deputy, and also against Messrs. Boardman, Sherman, Watson and Stewart as the responsible parties. The latter were held in $25,000 bail. The Company also filed a cross-bill asking for a receiver, which was granted in the appointment of J. R. Brigham, of Milwaukee. While this suit was pending, in the spring of 1878, Harvey Durand, as Deputy United States Marshal, had the road and its rolling-stock in custody, and ran its trains. The road was in Mr. Brigham's possession several months before it was returned to the original Company.
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