Iowa Old Press
Postville Herald
Postville, Allamakee Co., Iowa
Thursday, September 22, 1927
John S. Grohe, First Depot Agent - Was in Charge When
First Train Came Into Postville
The days of "Way Back When" were called on
Monday of this week when Secretary A.C. Webster of Brotherly Love
Lodge No. 2014, A.F. & A.M., received a letter from John S.
Grohe of Wilmington, Delaware, extending cordial greeting to the
lodge membership and reminding them he had not forgotten the many
kindnesses they had shown him years ago when he was a resident
here. The letter also stated that he served as Junior Warden of
the lodge here in 1869.
By the same mail came a photograph of Mr. Grohe to replace the
one destroyed here by fire in 1886, when all of the lodge records
and most of its furniture and paraphernalia went up in smoke. The
lodge hall at that time was located on the second floor of a
frame structure that stood on the lots now occupied by W.E.
Dermo's barber shop. Since that time and to the present day the
lodge hall has been located on the second floor of what was in
Mr. Grohe's time, the Bayless, Douglass & Co. drug store, now
the Douglass Pharmacy.
Mr. Grohe is now 86 years of age and holds membership in Eureka
Lodge No. 23 in his home city. But who was John S. Grohe? By
looking up history we find that when the McGregor & Western
railway ran the first railroad train into Postville on August 8,
1863, that Mr. Grohe was the first station agent. And that health
and happiness may be his to his journey's end is the wish and
hope of us all.
Frank Thill Dead
A message to Postville relatives yesterday afternoon
conveyed the sorry intelligence that Frank Thill had passed away
at 3:30 p.m., at Dell Rapids, S.D., his death following an
operation for gall bladder troubles. Frank was a former Postville
boy and friends in the old home town will regret to hear of his
demise.
Reunion
About 70 relatives and members of the family of Mrs.
Julia Pearson and a few old Hardin friends held a reunion at the
Old Stone House last Sunday and had a most delightful time in
feasting and sociability.
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While engaged in sharpening a knife yesterday L.O. Koevenig had
the misfortune to cut a deep gash in his thumb, causing a wound
it required the services of a surgeon to fix up.
While out at Iowa City last week E.J. Handy went through the
clinic at the University Hospital to find out why his injured
shoulder was not getting along as it should. It was discovered
that the shoulder had been fractured and that there were several
pieces of loose bone that must be removed. Hence on Saturday the
operation was performed and the fragments of bone taken out and
it is now expected the injured member will round into shape in
due season, although Earl will have to remain in the hospital for
about ten days. As will be remembered the injury was received
some weeks ago while Earl was assisting in driving a bunch of
cattle to the stockyards, when the horse he was riding stepped
into a ditch and fell in such a manner that Mr. Handy was pinned
beneath the animal.
County Seat Items
Only one marriage license was issued at the clerk's
office the past week to Albert Schultz, 24, and Ethel Adney, 20,
both of Postville. - Waukon Democrat
Miss Anna Stilwell departs Friday for Ames, Iowa, where she has
accepted the position of chaperon at the Gamma Phi Beta sorority
house. -Waukon Democrat
While Mr. and Mrs. F.H. Lee were away from their apartment on
West Main street some miscreant entered their home Sunday
afternoon by the use of a skeleton key and stole about $30. - Waukon
Democrat
Jacob Iseli, living east of town, lost two fine steers from the
heat Saturday forenoon. He was delivering sixteen head which he
had sold to John Arnold when one of them succumbed to the heat
near the creamery and the other died after reaching the
stockyards. - Waukon Journal
Jim McGuire's pacer, Ellen Bradley, won a six heat race at
Oskaloosa, Iowa, Monday of last week. She bids fiar to be the
speediest race horse ever trained in Waukon. - Waukon Journal
Mrs. Tom Cassidy had the misfortune to fall downstairs at her
home Friday morning while attending to her household duties and
received two fractured ribs, forehead wounds and numerous bruises
about her body which will no doubt prove very uncomfortable for
some weeks. -Waukon Democrat
A disastrous fire of unknown origin occurred at the W.K. Collins
farm home in French Creek township about one o'clock this
Thursday morning, which destroyed a small barn, hog house,
granary, 1200 bushels of newly threshed oats, harnesses, etc. Two
horses which were in the barn were rescued. but for the kindly
assistance of neighbors a large barn and other buildings woud
have been burned. The buildings were partially covered by
insurance. -Waukon Democrat
The latest chaper in the criminal career of Hayes Van Gorder,
former Allamakeeite, is given in the following news item from
Danville, Ill., in Friday's Chicago Tribune: "Hayes
Van Gorder, prisoner in the federal penitentiary at Leavenworth,
Kans., came here with a guard, at his own request to plead guilty
in federal court to charges of cashing forged money orders. He
said he wanted to clear up his record so he could start out with
a clean slate. He was sentenced to serve fifteen years additional
when his present term is completed. He then asked leave to
withdraw his guilty plea, but the judge declined." -Waukon
Journal
Some Ancient History of Postville People - from the
Waukon Democrat 20 years ago:
-Frank Orr and W.C. McNeil are at Battle Creek, Mich.,
taking sanitarium treatment.
-Gilbert Sanders, Harry Orr and Josie Nicolay of Postville, have
gone to Ames to attend college.
-The McWilliams 80 acres in Post township has been sold to A.M.
Candee for $5,000. It is all good tillable land.
-Dr. Flynn of Postville, received his new auto buggy this week
and the Review says it is a nice looking machine, and by the way
he has been driving about town we judge it has plenty of speed.
-The Review of Postville says: "There will be
hardware a-flying in the air one of these days if the party
making nocturnal visits to the woodshed of a lady on Sumner
street happens to get a loaded stick in his stove."
Some Ancient History of Postville People - from the
Waukon Democrat 40 years ago:
-About a dozen of the Pythian brethern of the Postville
lodge came over to have an applicant for membership in their
lodge put through the inquisition here, their paraphernalia
having been burned in the recent fire.
-Messrs. Leui & Orr of Postville, while operating a
well-drilling machine on the Bollman farm, struck a vein of solid
magnetic iron when down to a depth of 85 feet. They were several
days getting their outfit through it as it was about sixty feet.
[transcribed by S.F., October 2018]