Mr. Young's letter follows:
"I have been reading in The Reporter about the fire at the Bradford school, and your item stated that the date the school was built could not be determined.
"We thought it might be of interest to you know we have an old history book of Chickasaw county. In it, it states that in 1852, according to accounts the first scool was opened in Bradford. I goes on to tell that the first Chickasaw County Court House was built in Bradford in 1854 with James Lyon as first county judge, and Andrew Sample as first county sheriff.
"The first store was run by a J.A.J. Bird, which was the first merchandising don in the county. A Dan'l Fritcher ran the first boarding house. A Wm. Dow was first blacksmith. "Pig's Eye' was the first saloon, run by a man named Dodge.
"The first doctor was a 'root and herb' doctor, S. C. Haynes, who located in Bradford about 1855. An interesting thing in the account is how instead of horses, he drove a pair of elk harnessed to his wagon or sleigh.
"The county seat was moved to New Hampton in 1857.
"In 1848 Truman Merritt settled where Greenwood now is. Here a daughter was born to him in 1850, being the first white child born in the county. After growing to womanhood she married Avery Earl.
"In 1851 a son, Elmer, was born to a Mr. and Mrs. Case, being the first male child born in the county.
"There are many other interesting items in this history book, but we thought the few we have here might be of some interest to the older people around Nashua.
"If at any time anyone would like to read more about it they would be welcome to come to our place and do so."
Source: The Nashua Reporter, March 5, 1953
Contributed by Claudia Groh, transcribed by Bruce Kuennen
