This is the largest town in Fillmore County, originally surveyed in October, 1871
and has
a population of
about eight hundred. The
history of the town may be said to have commenced about six months before
this,
when the site was selected by the Railroad Town Company, and, being
on Government land, four men
were employed to enter the entire section by
pre-emption claim. As the law required a six months' residence,
these men
built a little house on the center of the section, which they occupied
until they could prove up, which
they then did and deeded the land to the
town company.
After the small house occupied by the original
claimants of the land, the next building was the store of J. E.
Porter,
which he removed from Fillmore City, arriving at Fairmont and beginning
business October 15, 1871.
Before the town was surveyed, there was a post office
on the farm of M. H. Brown, adjoining the town site.
The post office was
called Hesperia, and M. H. Brown was Postmaster; but soon after the town
site was
surveyed, it was removed thereto, and its name changed to
Fairmont.
During the fall of 1871, several buildings were
erected. Building was kept up during the winter, and by May 1, 1872, there
were altogether about forty buildings in the new town.
The first sermon was preached in the fall of 1871, at
the new railroad depot, by Rev. G. W. Gue. Late the
same year, the
building of the Methodist Episcopal Church was commenced. This was the
first church in the county. J. W. Stewart was pastor.
The first newspaper, called the Fairmont
Bulletin, was established early in May, 1872, by Will R.
Gaylord.
The first death occurred in the summer of 1872, and
it was that of a young child of Mr. and Mrs. William
Chapin.
The first school was taught in the summer of 1872, by
Miss Elvie Lewis, now Mrs. Dan Phillips, in a small
frame building rented
for school purposes.
The first marriage took place in the fall of 1872,
and was that of Clarence C. Chapin and Miss Morgan.
The early history of Fairmont is marked by no
remarkable events other than its wonderful progress. In the
spring of
1873, the town had attained such size that it was determined to become
incorporated as a village,
which was accomplished May 26, 1873, and A. S.
Shepard, H. L. Edwards, W. C. Zeigler, J. E. Porter
and B F. Parliman were
appointed Trustees.
In 1873, the schoolhouse was built, and was 24x48
feet in dimensions, with two wings each 10x24 feet, and
the entire
building two stories high. The schoolhouse grounds comprise an entire
block, which was donated
by the town company
and was planted to
trees.
Fairmont continued to improve very fast until the
summer of 1874, when the grasshoppers ruined the crops throughout the
county tributary to it, when a dull period followed for about two
years.
In the fall of 1876, business again revived. The
crops had been good, and this town was the market for a
large scope of
well-settled country. To the south it commanded a trade for several miles,
while from the
north farmers hauled their crops from the northern part of
York County, and the business done in Fairmont
was great. This great
prosperity continued during the year 1877, but since that time other towns
have
increased their business facilities, and Fairmont no longer draws a
trade from so large a territory as formerly.
There is, however, a large
and well-settled country naturally tributary to it, whence a good support
is derived
and the business of the town may be said to be in a prosperous
condition.
In the winter of 1878-79, the town was nearly
destroyed by a
big fire which burned several buildings, and,
for awhile, threatened to
sweep away the entire town, and it was with only the greatest difficulty
that this was prevented. The fire was supposed to have been of incendiary
origin, and T. J. Wells was arrested and
brought to trial on a charge of
arson, but, after a long and exciting trial, he was acquitted.
Fairmont is a business town of considerable importance. The
business and professional interests of the
town are represented by two
grain elevators, two lumber yards, eight grocery stores, three general stores,
one
dry goods store, two hardware, three drug, one boot and shoe, one
furniture, one jewelry, one millinery
and furnishing store, a number of
dress makers, two harness shops, two meat markets, four agricultural
implement warehouses, three newspaper offices, two banks, three hotels,
two restaurants, two bakeries,
two livery stables, two blacksmith shops,
two carpenter shops, one cheese factory, one flouring-mill,
one wagon and
implement manufactory, one marble works, three coal yards, two saloons, a
number of
real estate and loan agencies, tailor shop, barber shops, etc.,
four physicians, eight lawyers, one photographer, three editors, four
ministers, and five school teachers.