Iowa
Old Press
Mason City Globe-Gazette
Mason City, Cerro Gordo co. Iowa
Friday, May 31, 1929
Mason City News in Brief
-Harry Mark has left for Chicago on a business trip. He
expects to be gone about a week.
-Dr. and Mrs. F.C. Shaklee, 1111 First street southwest, have as
theiir guest, Mrs. Shaklee's brother, L.D. Chapin of Davenport.
Mr. Chapin is recuperating from a railroad accident from which he
suffered the loss of a leg.
-Miss Evelyn Fitzpatrick, Parkersburg, came Thursday for a visit
with relatives here.
-Bill Daly, with his sister, Mrs. Harry Lutz, came from Davenport
yesterday. Mrs. Lutz will remain for a few weeks' visit with
relatives and friends.
-The condition of Frederick Beck, high school senior, remains
unchanged. Beck suffered a broken ribs, leg and arm, concussion
of the brain, cuts and bruises Tuesday when he was thrown from a
car driven by Vincent Tiernan, when it collided with a truck
driven by Bion McPeak. He has been unconscious since the
accident.
Do You Know Cecil C. Watts?
Clear Lake, May 31 - Following in the footsteps of his
father, James Watts, who bought and sold livestock in this
community for more than 50 years, is the favorite occupation of
Cecil C. Watts, who recently accepted the position as sales
manager of the newly organized North Iowa Co-Operative Livestock
Marketing Association with headquarters at Mason City.
Mr. Watts has been manager of the Clear Lake Co-Operative
association for more than five years. During that time the
membership has increased from 120 to 375 members with annual
reports averaging more than $650,000 worth of business.
Cecil Watts was born in Lincoln township, Aug. 23, 1888, and has
spent practically all of his life in this community. in 1912 he
worked for the Chicago Northwestern unloading and feeding station
at Mason City. Three years following that he acted as traveling
livestock agent and for 20 months he was employed as assistant to
the general superintendent of the Union Stock Yards in Chicago.
Because of ill health in his family he returned to Clear Lake and
took up duties as livestock buyer for Jacob E. Decker, at Mason
City, and later went into business for himself as buyer and
shipper of livestock in Clear Lake and adjoining territory.
"The work I am about to undertake is the biggest I have ever
been engaged in," Mr. Watts said. "It offers bigger
possibilities and is more constructive. We have been working on
the plans for four years."
The idea of the North Iowa reloading station is to group
co-operatives shipment of hogs for sorting, grading and selling.
Livestock will be shipped and trucked in and then disposed of
according to its grade. The project is the first in Iowa. Two
associations similar have been established in Ohio.
Cresco Veteran Dies on Memorial Day
Cresco, May 31 - John Gager, Cresco's oldest Civil war
veteran, died at his home in Cresco Thursday morning, at the age
of 88 years. He was born April 14, 1841, in Meriposa township,
Peterburough county, Ontario, Canada, the last of 11 children
born to Herbert and Achsah Cody Gager. At the age of 14 he came
to Iowa with his father and settled in Kendallville, Winneshiek
county.
In May, 1859, he moved to Nebraska and at Brownsville he enlisted
in the Union army Dec. 9, 1861, while teaming for the government.
He joined the Ninth Kansas cavalry which later consolidated with
the second Kansas cavalry, Company G, and was mustered in at Fort
Leavenworth, Kas., serving three years and one month.
At the end of the service he returned to Kendallville, and on
Dec. 25, 1865 was married to Miss Adaline E. Trask. They moved to
Kansas in 1869 and back to Iowa in 1874, since when they lived in
Cresco and vicinity.
They were the parents of three daughters and two sons: Mrs. L.E.
Strawn, Cresco; Arthur and Lorenzo, both of whom died in early
manhood; Mrs. E. Jones, Mason City and Miss Virginia, at home.
Mrs. Gager died March 7, 1913. The three daughters survive, also
16 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.
Mr. Gager was at the time of his death the oldest member of the
Cresco G.A.R. post, and his death leaves but six men of that
organization in this vicinity and two other veterans living here,
not members of the post.
Funeral services will be held in the Baptist church Sunday at 2
p.m. to be conducted by the pastor, the Rev. C.S. Carroll, with
interment at Oak Lawn cemetery. Sons of Veterans will be
pallbearers, and patriotic orders will attend in a body.
During Mr. Gager's last illness he expressed a hope to live until
after Memorial day and as he had been improving some during the
past week or more he expected to be stong enough to attend the
memorial services on Thursday.
D.A.R. To Put Marker at Estherville
Estherville, May 31 - Among the distinguished visitors who are
expected to be present when Okamanpado chapter, D.A.R., dedicates
a marker to the Estherville meteor is D.W. Morehouse, president
of Drake Unitversity. Dr. Morehouse has shown much interest in
the Estherville meteor and has conducted research along this
line. Part of the data he has gathered will be used on the
inscription. the dedicatory exercises have been set tentatively
for June 14.
The inscription on the marker will state: "The Esthervile
Meteorite fell 482 feet due east of this spot on May 10, 1879. It
was one of the three greatest "falls" on record. Parts
of the meteorite are found in important museums of the world.
Erected in 1929 by Okamanpado chapter, Daughters of the American
Revolution."
This is the largest meteorite which has ever fallen in North
America.
Crowd Takes 21 Cans of Liquor
Decorah, May 31 - A Ford coupe, containing 100 gallon
cans of liquor, was raided by bystanders when it tipped over at
Ridgeway near here. Twenty-one gallons were taken before
authorities could be summoned to the scene. Sheriff Frank
Christen arrived in time to confiscate the remaining 79 cans and
to arrest the driver of the car who gave his name as Kelly. The
man, who was not badly hurt, is being held in jail here.
[transcribed by S.F., November 2015]