Iowa
Old Press
The New Era
Humeston, Wayne co. Iowa
February 18, 1886
The First and Last Criminal at Ft. Madison
The prisoner longest in service is No. 730, Samuel Trogden, sent
June 29, 1867, from Wapello county for life, for murder. He has
been a good soldier, and had served a term in this prison before
the war for horse stealing. The next 'veteran' is No. 823, J.B.
Mathews, committed May 1868, from Washington county for murder.
Both were well behaved and Mathews is too old to work. The
youngest recruit came to-day, bears the name of Johnson, and gets
the number 4,277, which represents the total number of men who
have been confined here since the prison passed under state
control in 1849. The first prisoner, or No. 1, was Isaac Grimes,
of Cedar county, committed September 22, 1849, under a sentence
for sixty days for "assault with intent to commit great
bodily injury." Grimes was a native of Indiana, 32 years
old, and some man had probably called him a liar, which no
Indiana man would take. He was pardoned after languishing eight
days. This prison was began under federal auspices in 1839, but
there is no record beyond "No. 1" as above noted. --
Senator Young in the Atlantic Telegraph.
The Iowa House passed a bill on the 12th exempting old soldiers
from the payment of poll-tax.
Mrs. Ida M. Riley, principal of the schools at Chariton, is going
to Ames to teach in the State Agricultural College. In addition
to her professorship she will be College librarian.
Robert Lincoln, son of the martyred President, owns a fine tract
of land in Crawford County. It was purchased by his father years
before he became President of the United States.
Last week two more of our great men passed to eternal rest, after
long and useful public lives. General Hancock and Horatio
Seymour, the soldier and the statesman have passed away leaving
their country bowed down with grief. One by one our great men are
passing away leaving their places on the battle field and senate
floor to be filled by the rising generation.
H.P. Sayles met with a painful accident at Clearfield last
Tuesday. He was coupling cars and in some manner got one of the
fingers on his left hand between the bumpers mashing it entirely
off at the middle joint. Dr. Singer of Clearfield, dressed the
wound, and it is getting along splendid.
W.F. Watson, of Albia, will establish a cheese factory at
Allerton, Iowa, if the milk from 500 cows can be secured and
delivered at the factory once each day during the season. The
price will be regulated by the price of cheese to some extent.
The milk from good cows will run from $5 to $6 per month for six
months. -- Allerton News.
Cambria - Mr. Harvey Alsire and Miss Frankie Miller were united
in marriage last Thursday.
[transcribed by S.F., February 2007]
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The New Era
Humeston, Wayne co. Iowa
February 25, 1886
John Freer, of Des Moines, was sentenced last week to fifteen
days in jail for grand larceny. He stole a watch from his mother.
The Atlantic Telegraph says that a hog belonging to John
Steinmates, near Anita, was discovered in a snow drift,
"alive but some what reduced in flesh," after having
lain there forty-two days with nothing to eat.
Geo. Connor, of Muscatine, a well known turfman, died at his home
on Muscatine Island last week. He was a soldier in Company B,
Iowa First, and was the author of the song, "Hard Tack Come
Again Some More," which became so popular through the Army.
Senator Stephens, of Creston, has introduced a bill in the Senate
to prevent the intermarriage of white and colored persons. The
bill makes the marriage of a full-blooded white and a colored
person a crime punishable by a fine of $100 or imprisonment for
three months.
O.W. Van Slyke, of Anita, has a ten dollar bill of the old
continental currency that has been in the family ever since the
payment of the troops in the Revolutionary war. Mr. Van Slyke's
great-grandfather was one of the patriots of those times and
received it as part of his pay for services in the war. It was
issued in 1776.
Jacob Mann, who has lived where he does in Linn Grove, Linn
county, for more than forty years, came into Burler's bank at
Springfield last week, with $800 in old series, first issue, of
government greenbacks. The money was sewed up in an old bootleg
with whang leather, and had not seen the light for twenty years.
It was exchanged for gold.
David W. Blackburn died at Keokuk last week. He was a conductor
on the first road built north of Keokuk, now owned by the
Burlington route, from 1858 to 1881. At the latter date he was
elected County Treasurer, and at the end of his second term an
examination ofhis books showed that he was short about $15,000. A
suit, pending ever since, has been continued on account of
Blackburn's bad health, the last continuance being last week.
The Iowa Senate on the 16th passed a bill to provide a home for
150 veterans of the Union army now being housed on county farms.
John Eckstrom, a swede, who has been working on the H.&S. as
a section hand, was taken to Corydon last week to be examined by
the commissioners of insanity. He has been at this place for the
past four years and was always supposed to be sane until some two
or three months ago, when he returned from a visit to Sweden. But
since that time his actions has been such that his rationality
has been questioned. We have not learned the result of the
examination.
M.A. Shuster, the school teacher at the Shuster school house some
two and a half miles this side of Cambria, was arrested last
Wednesday, on a warrant sworn out by A.J. Black, for assault and
battery, for whipping Willy, son of Wm. Black's who was one of
his scholars. The case came up before Esquire Sutton but on
change of venue by the defendant, to Mayor Thomas, who after a
careful hearing of the evidence discharged the defendant.
Town and County.
-Mrs. J.R. Cassity is reported very sick.
-Miss Nellie Galvin visited in Weldon, last week.
-Sheriff Jared was a Humeston visitor last Saturday.
-Robert Middlebrook paid Corydon a visit this week.
-W.L. Livingston made a trip to Des Moines this week.
-John Beal left for Garden City, Kansas, Tuesday morning.
-J.W. Hollandsworth has located at Monroe City, Missouri, near
Hanibal.
-J.L. Washburn, of LeRoy, was a pleasant caller last Saturday.
-Dr. Fortney says he has traded off his gray filley for a
two-year-old heifer.
-Joe Wells informed us that Alf Smith's large barn will be
completed this week.
-Mrs. Eugene Shepard is visiting relatives and friends in
Chariton this week.
-F.P. Moore went to Keokuk this week to visit and attend the
conductors ball.
-Mr. and Mrs. Homer Bean, Elmer and Miss Clara Markley attended
the conductors ball at Keokuk, this week.
-Miss Mim Corbet, of Chariton, visited her cousin, Mrs. James
Druce, this week.
-Little Cora, daughter of H.M. Blair, has been very sick with
croup, but is now reported convalescent.
-John Minahan, conductor on the H.&S. is taking a three weeks
rest and will visit among his host of friends.
-J.H. Coffman has his resturant now opened, and is prepared to
furnish meals at regular hours and coffee and lunch at all hours.
Give him a call.
-H.P. Sayles says his injured finger that was mashed off at
Clearfield last week, is getting along splendid and he hopes to
soon be able for duty.
[transcribed by S.F., February 2007]