Iowa Old Press
Alton Democrat, September 10, 1904
Alton, Iowa
Clara Ruether aged five living near LeMars was instantly killed by having a horse kick her on the head while out in the barn at dinner time when her father was putting up the team.
Hawarden Independent, Sept. 22, 1904
ATE POISONED CHICKEN
As a Result One Child is Dead, Two More Will Die and Others Are Critically
Sick.
LeMars, Ia., Sept. 21-One child is dead, two will probably die and a dozen
more are seriously ill, from the effects of ptomaine poison at Seney and
vicinity. Physicians from LeMars are busy attending the sick.
The doctors trace the poison to pressed chicken served at a birthday party
at the home of Arthur Reeves in Seney. The 6-year-old daughter of John
Osborne is dead and her 10-year-old sister is in a precarious condition.
Wallie Reeves, aged 9, will probably die. The other cases though serious
will probably recover.
Among the sufferers are Jessie Reeves, aged 17; two children of George
Reeves; Mrs. John Osborne; two children of Ed Hughes; members of the family
of Grant Chapman, Elam Chapman, C. W. Cook and Elmer Austin.
The chickens were killed in the morning and served in the evening, after
being boned and pressed.
The general store of Jonathan Alderson at Seney was burglarized yesterday
and 500 cigars and a quantity of handkerchiefs and jewelry taken.
Rock Valley Bee, September 23, 1904.
Mrs. Margaret Smith
Mrs. Margaret Smith died at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Agnes Dunham, Saturday, September 17, 1904, at 7:30 p.m.
Margaret Sedgwick was born in Ireland August 12th 1812 and was married to Mr. Smith. Nine children were born to them, seven boys and two girls. They came to this country when the children were small. Later they settled [at] Elk Point, S.D., where the husband died. Mrs. Smith since that time made her home with her daughter, Mrs. Dunham. Several years ago she suffered from paralysis in her arm but recovered. In July of this year her limbs became paralyzed and since then she has grown weaker.
Her daughter, Mrs. Joe Morrow of St. Lawrence, S.D. and her son John, of Hudson, and Joe, of Elk Point, were present at her deathbed. Funeral services were conducted at the house Tuesday morning and the body taken to Elk Point for interment. Mrs. Dunham and John Smith, went to Elk Point where they were met by Tom another son who lives at Omaha.
Alton Democrat, Alton, (Sioux), Iowa, Saturday, September 24, 1904,
A Fatal Party
A children's party at Seney south of here on the edge of Plymouth
county ended disastrously last week. Half a dozen children were poisoned by
pressed chicken and one has died. Others are dangerously ill. The six year
old daughter of John Osborne was the victim. She was a niece of Billy
Sardeson who formerly lived at Alton. Billy gives this version of the
poisoning. The chickens from which the poisoning was received were killed
by Mr. Osborn (sic--Osborne) on his own place shortly before they were
cooked. Mr. Sardeson explains the origin of the poisoning as having been
due to the fact that the kettle in which the chickens were boiled was left
tightly covered and set away to cool. He believes that under such
circumstances, decomposition begins to take place and that ptomaine's then
are formed. Several other occurrences of the same kind have come to Mr.
Sardeson's notice and he is satisfied that allowing any meat, especially
fowls or game, to cool in a closed vessel after cooking will make them
dangerous.
Noted Woman
Mrs. Margaret Ann Smith died at the home of her daughter Mrs. Margaret Dunham in Rock Valley this week and was taken to Elk Point, South Dakota for burial beside her husband Tuesday.
Mrs. Smith was born in Lisburn county Antrim Ireland August eight 1812 and was a direct descendant of King George the First. Her father's family were Quakers. She came with her husband to America in 1843 settling in Toronto, Canada. In 1845 they removed to Iowa and on November ninth 1868 they took a homestead one mile east of Elk Point.
In many respects Mrs. Smith was a remarkable woman. Her surviving children are James and Joseph Smith of Elk Point, Thomas of Omaha Nebraska for many years county judge of Union county South Dakota and Robert postmaster at Charlotte, North Carolina, Mrs. Dunham of Rock Valley at whose home she died and Mrs. Eliza Morrow of Lawrence, South Dakota.