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LINCOLN COUNTY, KANSAS A Souvenir History OTHER ORGANIZATIONS Page 109 The Soldiers' Union was organized June 28, 1879. The first -officers were: R. S. Wilmarth, post, commander, W. S. Wait having declined to serve; A. T. Biggs, post adjutant; John Medcraft, chaplain; J. D. Gilpin, surgeon; G. W. Cruson, quartermaster; company officers, J. F. Smith, captain; W. F. Limpus, first lieutenant; T. A. Weils, second lieutenant; sergeant, first, W. E. Marsh; second, E. Halcomb; third, Samuel Donley. This union was finally succeeded by the G. A. R. Farmers' clubs of different sorts began very early in this county and by 1893 the county was a perfect network of them, each one a live wire. There was a central Farmers' Alliance with thirty-five thriving locals. Back in the '80s there was a strong Prohibition Club, and in 1888, Rev. Geo. Tenney, Anna C. Wait, and W. S. Wait represented Lincoln County in the State Prohibition Convention. The old settlers are organized for the purpose of preserving county history, and have an annual reunion and barbecue where they feast, smoke the peace pipe, and "swap yarns." Native born citizens or those who have lived in the county twenty years are eligible to membership. The first newspaper was the Lincoln County News, published in Lincoln Center in 1873. The editor was F. H. Barnhart.
April 3, of the first year of its publication, W. C. Buzick bought an interest in it. In December Barnhart sold
his interest to Rev. P. Baker, who assumed editorial management and published it till December 22, 1874. Later
it was passed on to J-W. Newell, who moved it to Stockton in Rooks County. The Western Democrat was started late in 1874, and June 15, 1875, was sold to G. W. Wellman. The name was changed to the Saline Valley Register. It was the county paper till January, 1879, when it was sold to Watson and Kimes. In September of the same year it was sold to Geo. W. Anderson, who was proprietor until 1883. Mr. Anderson sold his plant and in 1884 his successor published a paper called the Lincoln Banner. In 1886 it was changed to the Lincoln Republican. Late in 1879 Ira Lutes began publishing the Argus. It was bought by Hon. Walter S. Wait and his wife, Anna C. Wait in 1880, who assisted by their son, A. H. Wait, published it until the death of W. S. Wait. A. H. Wait continued the publication until the office was burned in 1901. The Beacon was in many ways the most remarkable paper ever published in Lincoln County, and in fact one of the most remarkable county papers it has ever been the write's privilege to peruse. The Waits all had a natural sympathy or the under dog, and provided said dog was in the right, always stayed with him to the end of the battle, no matter how many times they were bitten by opposition. A great deal has already been said about Mr. and Mrs. Wait, so we will only mention in this connection their son, Alfred H. Wait. He was (and still is) a practical printer, having learned the trade in the office of the Junction City Tribune in the early seventies. He was connected with the Beacon during the twenty-one years prior to its total destruction by fire (incendiary). He was always local editor, the last seven years editor-in-chief, and the last five also owner and publisher. The Beacon started as a Republican paper advocating prohibition, anti-monopoly, and woman suffrage. It supported the Republican party nationally until 1888, when it became convinced that the Republicans were beyond reform. That year it supported the Labor Party and the ticket of this party was elected in Lincoln County. In 1892 it became Populist and remained so as long as the paper was published. It never missed an issue. The Sylvan Grove Sentinel, a neutral paper, was founded in 1887. The present Sylvan paper, the Sylvan Grove News, began in 1895 as the Alert. A man by the name of Hower was editor and publisher. May 4, 1900, the name was changed to what it is at present. Since then it has had various owners, St. Clair & Haffer, Smith & Cross, Harder & Poor. Harder bought out Poor and for a time A. J. Graves edited the paper for Harder. Tell Peterson recently became proprietor and editor. The first paper in Barnard was the Barnard Times, published by S. M. Figge, date uncertain. The Barnard Bee was started six years ago by Will DeVinney. This paper is certainly a live wire in every way. It is responsible for some of the unusual prosperity which has come to the town in the last few years. A good paper can help a town, and this editor knows it. It has a good circulation and the subscription list is constantly growing. In politics it is Republican or otherwise. It has convictions and sticks to them. It is estimated by the elevator operators that the wheat yield in Lincoln County this year will run a million and a half bushels. Wheat is eighty cents this year, and is turning out 20 to 100 bushels to the acre. The crop next in importance is corn. We saw some in our rounds which was twelve to fourteen feet high with ears large accordingly. Whoever has a hundred acres of corn in Lincoln County is a rich man. Alfalfa, the Kansas hay crop, is a moneymaker here. The fourth crop is now being harvested, and it is a Trig crop, too. Vast quantities of cream and eggs are shipped daily from every station in the county. Vesper shipped out 55 cans of cream of 100 pounds each and 36,000 dozen eggs, and this was nothing unusual either. Better probably than words or figures would be a look at the county. The farm houses are large and well kept. The sons and daughters of these farm establishments are being educated in the Kansas colleges and abroad. In making our rounds we found that if we happened to mention unemployed or poor people in the city the people would exclaim, "Why don't they come out here. We can give them a job any time." The most up-to-date machinery is used for planting and harvesting crops and to save household labor. The latest thing which we noticed in the way of farm machinery was a corn binder which will probably soon be in general use, solving to a great extent the-problem of harvesting corn and making it possible to raise a larger acreage. In this connection wt-wish to mention Mr. Willard B. Lyon. who is familiar with the re-sources of Lincoln County, and the advan-tages it offers to home seekers, as well as interested in everything in the way of public improvements and progress. Mr. Lyon was born in Chilton, Wis. March 30, 1874. Two years later the family moved to Lincoln County, where they have since made their home. The subject of our sketch attended common and high schools here. He began teaching in 1894, and two years later served on the county examining board.. The next year he went to the State Normal and graduated-from this institution in 1900, as a valadictorian of a class of one hundred and eight members. The same year he was elected county superintendent of schools and served two terms. In 1904 he edited the Sentinel and could always be-counted: on to support the right side of any public problem. The next year he became associated with his father in the land business, and since that time has sold property amounting to three-fourths of a million dollars. This year Mr. Lyon bought out the Star Grocery and Meat Market, and is making a success of this business, as he does-every thing. Mr. Lyon has been a member of the State Text Book Commission since 1905. He is also a member of the Lincoln school board. As a citizen Mr. Lyon is always willing to support in a substantial way everything which will be of benefit to the community. As a real estate dealer he can show you just what you want at the right price. Mr. N. J." Davidson, one of the real estate and loan men of Lin-coin, has beed' in the county twenty one years. He was county clerk for four and one-half years, after which he went into real estate business. His long residence here has made him familiar with the lands all over the county and he can show his customers these lands to good advantage. Mr. Davidson is a member of the National Co-Operatlve Realty Company, and by this means can sell lands in any part of the United States and Canada. He is also a member of the Central Real Estate Dealers' Association, by which he is in cooperation with the real estate dealers all through the West. It will be to the advantage of any one leaving Lincoln County to have a talk with Mr. Davidson, and let him know where they intend to locate, as he can be of assistance to them in buying property in any locality, which they may select. To any person desiring to locate in Lincoln County he can show the best farm and town properties in the market. Mr. Davidson is making a specialty of the loan business. He has an unusually good loan proposition by which he makes loans running from one to five years. These loans are made bearing annual interest and with the privilege of paying back all or part of the loan at the end of any one year without regard to the length of time the loan was supposed to run. In addition to loans and real estate Mr. Davidson has an abstract and an insurance business. .Lincoln County used to be a great grazing section, but the land is now too valuable for agricultural purposes to be used extensively for grazing. The limestone hills, however, are still used for this purpose, and the grass is said to be the best in the world for producing bone and beef. It grows in great abundance in May, June, July, and August. Instead of shipping cattle to pasture for other people for so much per head the Lincoln Coun-ty people buy stock on the Kansas City market, pasture it a season, and sell in the fall. The farthest point of pasturage is not over ten miles from the nearest loading point. When pasture is hired it is generally bought at $3 per head. The gain per steer runs from 350 to 400 pounds for the feeding season. Most of the farmers keep a small herd of native grade cattle, but an increasingly large number have thoroughbred cattle and hogs. The raising of pure-bred animals for the market is a matter of education and the people of Lincoln County are finding out that it pays better to raise them for the ordinary market than to raise the best grade stock obtainable. The stock-breeders find a ready market for their animals at home, but some of them who have taken prizes at the State fairs have filled orders from all parts of the country. Horse-raising is also an important industry in Lincoln County, and there are several men in the west side of the county engaged in this business. The following is a partial list of thoroughbred stock breeders in the county: A. J. Hinkley, Milo, Poland-Chinas. The business methods of pre-historic days consisted mostly in trading and stealing. The Pawnee Indians employed
the latter to a considerable extent, and did it in. a businesslike way. J. R. Mead tells of a party of them being
out on a raid and on running into a party of white men began to swap knives, thereby getting into a quarrel. Their
chief rode up and restored order, saying: "You are out to steal ponies and not to raise quarrels." But these primitive business methods have passed away and so have the people that used them, before the tides of civilization and system. In their place have come new methods which are learned by a thorough scientific training. No one expects to get through the world on native ability alone, or to live on his wits. He knows that in the present highly organized commercial world, he must have a special education to prepare him for filling his place. So he selects an institution which makes a specialty of training men for business life, and one which has years of success behind it to recommend it and justify its methods-the Topeka Business College for instance, whose graduates, thousands in number, go out daily from the school to responsible, well-paying positions all over the United States, many occupying some of the most important positions in large business establishments and receiving salaries which would make a king look like thirty cents. Still others have large business establishments of their own. The graduates of the Topeka Business College who are at work in the Santa Fe offices in Topeka alone number 182. Scores of others have gone to the Santa Fe offices in other cities from Chicago to San Francisco. This is the largest list of students from any school in any one office in the United States and is the highest endorsement for the methods of this school. Not only are all graduates placed in positions but many of the undergraduates have been found capable of performing the most difficult kinds of office work and one hundred and twenty such persons have been placed in good positions during the past year. There are plenty of opportunities for competent young business people in Topeka. There are the general offices of the great Santa Fe system- the headquarters of the Rock Island's Western system, offices of the Union and Missouri. Pacific, the, various United States, State, county, and other offices, besides the commercial establishments of all kinds. There is nothing haphazard about these modern business methods. There are no ifs or ands to your success if you get the right kind of training. It paves the road to wealth. You will be sure to get it at THE TOPEKA BUSINESS COLLEGE. I saw a man the other day who had three ears of corn each as long as his forearm. That's pretty good corn. Back in the '80s a Lincoln County woman living over on Spring Creek used to eat ten that size every day for dinner. When the body of John Lyden was taken from the well after being there three weeks it was taken to the court house. That was the winter after grasshopper year and there was grain and meal piled up which was being doled out to the destitute. The body was placed among these supplies. man, Davis by name, said he thought it ought not to have been put there. Mr. Priest spoke up: "Well, all that ails you is that you're not hungry enough. I've seen the day when 1 would have rolled that fellow over to get meal under him." In the church history, which failed to be included in this book, there is an account of how "Uncle Dan" Day went to church and instead of going in stood on the outside and knocked on the door. Uncle Martin Hendrickson, one of our oldest settlers, has lived through a great deal. Some years ago his wife
gave him some carbolic acid by mistake and he drank a large amount of it. Everybody thought he would die, but Uncle
Mart, having lived through all the terrors incident to pioneer days was not to be killed by such a small thing
as a dose of carbolic acid. He rallied and was much better the next day, and to the surprised remarks of the neighbors
the doctor answered: "You would have to cut Uncle Mart's head off and hide it before he would die." "It ought to be," replied the other. "It was made of the soak-in's of Mr. H.'s molasses pants." There was a scare sent out over the State that the sunflowers were about to be exterminated. Not in Lincoln County. A woman living on the east side of the county planted some climbing oeans beside sunflower stalks. After the beans had begun climbing up the stalks there came a good rain. The next morning "he found that the sunflowers had grown so fast that they had jerked the beans out of the ground and the fresh, moist earth was still clinging to their roots. Many funny things have happened in the Lincoln County courts, some of which are not dignified enough for print even in this book, but here is one which happened in the year 1872 which will past muster. Lawyer: "Did Smith strike Brown with malicious intent?" A few people in Lincoln County have committed suicide, some by drowning, some by hanging, and some by shooting ,but a certain very original man stuck his nose in his ear and blew his head off. We heard a man say the other day that he would believe any kind of a cyclone story. Here is one for him: A cyclone once lifted and carried half a mile a man who was so fat that on ocoming down his shadow killed a full-grown buffalo. |
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