LYON COUNTY GENEALOGY
Ancient News
October 1884
Riverview Post Office will doubtless soon be changed to Little Rock when it will have a daily mail. The new station being laid out at Little Rock, where the BCR&N crosses the stream, is called Little Rock.
"Everything is corrupted and votes can be bought indiscriminately." Such are the sentiments likely to gain currency during political campaigns.
October 1894
If Judge Wakfield's decision in the Independent District bond cases should be affirmed by the supreme court, it will leave the district in shape to think about building a school house suitable to its needs. The schools will be overcrowded again next year.
A man drove down from Alexandria, S.D., this week with 100 young shoats for which he said there was no feed there. He sold them at Larchwood and this place. If Rock Rapids businessmen and citizens wish to keep abreast of the times, they should lose no time in following the example of Sibley, Sheldon and a number of other neighboring cities and organize a commercial club or businessmen's association.
A number of cement sidewalks have been laid in different parts of town. The cost is not greatly in excess of that for the common walk, while there is no comparison in durability. Rock Rapids has probably as poor sidewalks as will generally be met with and it would be very agreeable to see something stable and safe, not to mention appearance, take their place.
October 1904
R.M. Peile marketed the first new corn of the season the last of the week and received 40 cents per bushel for his product. The corn was perfectly sound and the small lot that was husked showed a yield of 60 bushels per acre.
If Rock Rapids businessmen and citizens wish to keep abreast of the times, they should lose no time in following the example of Sibley, Sheldon and a number of other neighboring cities and organize a commercial club or businessmen's association.
The Reporter is in receipt of a lengthy communication entitled "Here are a Few Reasons Why a Man Can Not Profess Christianity and Socialism." But as the author neglected to sign his name, the same will not be published under any circumstances. Further, the Reporter does not believe that discussions of this kind are of value to the public and we do not desire to start a controversy which would probably be carried on for weeks and weeks and entail a great amount of work for the paper.
October 1914
R.S. Reeves has a bunch of corn on exhibition in the First National Bank which is about the best we ever saw. Mr. Reeves has 200 acres of this corn, which his neighbors declare will average 75 bushels to the acre.
Eastern horse buyers were here last week and succeeded in picking up a couple of carloads. They bought only the best and paid good prices. For four of the teams, they paid $450 each.
Marshal Carroll was called to make a raid on a barn in the north part of town Sunday where a crowd of men were indulging in a bacchanalian jamboree and playing poker. Someone in the crowd saw the marshal coming and gave the alarm, then the earth seemed to open up and swallow them. The marshal was unable to capture a one of them. The wife of one of the players notified Mr. Carroll of the meeting, it is said.
Marshal Carroll nabbed a valise Sunday belonging to a couple young fellows who had been working around here for some weeks. The valise contained several bottles of whiskey which it was at first believed was being bootlegged. Monday, however, it was found that the young men had been to Sioux Falls and all but one bottle had been purchased for other men who had sent the money with them and they were given this valise back.
William Ellis, the colored porter in Goode's Barber Shop, was arrested Thursday evening and fined $1 and costs amounting in all to $5.95 for riding his bicycle on the sidewalk.
October 1924
The unimproved Hathaway tract of practically 50 acres changed hands this week. This ground was bought a few years ago by a committee named by the Comus Club to secure land for a golf course. It paid $10,000 for the land, to hold it for golf purposes. However, it was never used for golf; the golf club, when it organized, rented other land.
The Ku Klux Klan had a klonvocation, as advertised, in Rock Rapids Tuesday evening. A parade started from the fairgrounds about 8:30 p.m. The line of march was through the business district and back to the fairgrounds. It was part of the agreement on which the parade permit was secured from Mayor Hampe that the klansmen should march without masks and they did so. The number of klansmen, klanswomen and children in the parade was about 340.
About 150 depositors of the Iowa Savings Bank, which failed to open its doors July 10, 1924, gathered at Lyon Theater last Saturday afternoon to hear the details of a proposed plan to organize a new bank using part of the assets of the old bank and to name a committee of depositors to work out the liquidation of the balance of the assets, doing away with the present receivership.
October 1934
Rock Rapids football fans will have their first chance to watch a night football game on the local field tomorrow evening. Twenty-four 1500-watt bulbs will furnish the illumination for the game. The big bulbs make the field light as day and experts insist that there is no reason why the play should be a bit slower than in a day-time contest.
At a special meeting here yesterday, members of the board of health of the city of Rock Rapids received a report of the discovery of a case of Malta Fever here. This disease, a dangerous one, is transmissible and is generally carried by milk. To be absolutely safe, they urge that all milk be boiled before being used.
Lyon's pauper warrants for the first time in many years, now carry the wording "not paid for want of funds." This is public evidence of a fact that has long been known – that the county's poor fund was overdrawn but it does not mean that the warrants are not good. Now they must be taken to the bank where they will be cashed – and carried until the county has money to pay them.
Permission from Jodie Hoogendoorn, Editor, Lyon County Reporter