THE REMOVAL OF TWO LANDMARKS

Montgomery County’s Old Court House and the

Palmer Livery Barn Razed to Make Room.

 (Palmer Livery Barn)

   Forty-one years ago last fall ground was broken at the corner of Coolbaugh and First

Streets for the erection of the old H. H. Palmer livery barn building, and this week the building is being torn down to make room for a more modern structure. The original building included the northeast portion of the one now being razed. It was 45 feet wide and extended back from the street perhaps 70 feet. The firm of Palmer & Thompson built it. Wm. Thomas conducted the barn for many years, and since then L. C. Miller and Imrie Bros. have occupied the building.

   Walter Tenney, who now owns the lot on which the barn stood, and who has had it town down, will build a new barn and a building for a feed exchange on the site. The building will be 90 by 120 feet in size.

   During the work of tearing down the old barn an old book, showing the daily business of the barn from Sept. 1, 1876 to Sept. 23, 1877, was brought to light. The barn during that period under the management of the late H. H. Palmer and J. L. Bake, and the entries made nearly 40 years ago include references to many people still residents of this community. Among those who made use of livery rigs in those days and are still residents of Red Oak or have only recently moved away are F. E. Loomis, G. B. Brown, G. R. Logan, C. H. Lane, John Hayes, D. B. Miller, E. M. Carey, W. C. Lockart, Ed Bake, Jas. Gilchrist, Smith McPherson, B. B. and Paul P. Clark, F. M. Byrkit, J. M. Junkin, T. B. Ratliff, Polk Stennett, H. P. Light, John Malnburg, Pat Rooney, F, P, Greenlee, W. H. Evans, A. C. Hinchman and M. E. Fisher. Many old settlers, among them T. H. Dearborn, L. H. Tonner, Edward Hayes, O. P. Worsley, O. F. Remmers, W. W. Merritt, W. F. Gassner and others, either did little driving or owned their own rigs.

   On July 4, 1877, there were 21 rigs sent out of the Palmer & Bake barn, indicating that it was a pretty lively Fourth of July for a town of its size. Among those who patronized the barn on that day were Chas. Bolt, Mel Roberts, Paul P. Clark, Geo. B. Brown, Marion Stennett, Gus and Dan Seaman and Thos. Griffith. On April 27 and 28 of the same year, there was a big storm, according to a note in the margin of the page, and there was no business on those days except the feeding of horses left there during the storm.

   There are a lot of entries, which do not convey much intelligence to people today, but were no doubt explicit enough at the time. For instance there are notations of rigs charged to “Villisca Lawyer,” “Barber at Dick’s,” “Colored Gent,” “George, the Waiter,” “Cook at Wormley’s,” “Dutch, the Painter,” “Brodby’s Friend,” etc.

   And the names of many men who were prominent in affairs of the town for many years, but who have lately gone to the Great Beyond, would bring back early incidents in the minds of many of the earlier residents still here. There are such names as J. B. Gregg, Newton Hanna, Dr. S. R. Kreidler, Chas. Kelly, H. W. Otis, Justus Clark, M. Wadsworth, Dr. R. D. Sperry, Dr. H. A. McFatrich.

   Two features of the livery business in those days, differing considerably from present customs, are noticeable from the records in the book. In the days when Palmer & Bake were in business long drives were frequent, and there are numerous entries showing that teams were hired for trips to Atlantic and other towns 30 or 40 miles from Red Oak. Then there was the young men living in the country, who owned a horse, but had no buggy and harness. The old book shows that the letting of buggies and harness was a common practice, especially on Sunday, when the young men took trips for which a saddle was hardly suited.

(Montgomery County’s Old Court House)

    The removal of another old landmark is about to take place, it being the first court house built in Montgomery county, which building stands on the ground occupied by the Shields feed yard. The building has been utilized for over 35 years as a warehouse and stable. It will be displaced by a more substantial structure composed of artificial stone.

   The old building stands on Hammond Street about midway between Third and Fourth streets. Its location is such that a person standing at the southwest corner of the Presbyterian Church may see the spire of the new court house looming up back of the center of the old building. Its contour is plain and rendered unsightly by a large tobacco sign and several doors have been cut in the side to make the unloading of hay convenient and to admit air for the animals kept therein. There are photographs of it in existence and a picture of it appears in Merritt’s county history, but it conveys little of interest to the beholder.

   The size of the building is 18 by 36 feet with 18-foot posts and a quarter-pitch roof. The frame is composed of cottonwood and the siding is of walnut, all from timber grown in this county.

   The county records do not show when the court house was ordered built, but they show that in 1857 Judge A. G. Lowe, the first county judge, was paid $1141.50 as the contract price for the work, the money being taken from the county lot fund, which fund was probably derived from lots sold by the county in the town of Frankfort, where the county seat was first located.

   Not much more than five years afterwards the question of removing the county seat to Red Oak was agitated and in the late summer of 1863 a vote was taken on the subject. This vote stood 115 for removal to Red Oak and 109 for its retention at Frankfort. There was more or less jockeying before the vote was properly canvassed and litigation followed. The removal was ordered June 8, 1864, but nothing was done until some months later. In June 1865, the records were removed to Red Oak and in January 1866, the undertaking of removing the building was begun. It was attended with some difficulties.

   The expense was borne by the people of Red Oak and the contract was awarded to the late Wayne Stennett. The building was placed on sleds with 30 yoke of oxen attached. A fair start was made, but when a point somewhere near one-half the distance to Red Oak had been reached a frightful snowstorm came up and the building was abandoned on the prairie. The cold was so intense that for several days no attempt was made to resume the work. When operations were again begun it developed that no one knew just where the building was located. The storm was a blinding blizzard when work stopped and no thought was taken as to where the movers were when they quit. After several hours of riding about, the building was found and the work proceeded until finished.

   The building was first placed on the lot now occupied by the Sweger block, north of the Farmers’ national bank, but in 1871 it was moved across the street to the ground now occupied by the Tracy-Sadler store and the building was repaired and remodeled, other rooms in an adjoining building being leased to give ample quarters for the increased business.

   In 1876 the old court house was sold. It was removed to its present site and has since been used for warehouse or stable purposes. The county offices were then removed to the Malnburg & Gassner building now occupied by the telephone company. In 1881 the offices were again removed, this time into the McConnell building on Fifth and Reed streets, over the Roberts seed house. Here the offices remained until the completion of the present court house in 1891.

   The occupancy of private structures for so long a time after the abandonment of the old building was because on several occasions elections held to vote on the appropriation of money to build a new court house resulted unfavorably.

   Today Montgomery County enjoys the distinction of having the best court house in Iowa for the money. The present building cost a trifle less than $100,000, and it can be truthfully said that every dollar expended for it went into the building. Besides being an architectural beauty, representing the modern style, which puts light and sunshine into practically every apartment, it is fireproof. The only thing wrong with it seems to be that it ought now and then to be the abiding place of a Democratic county official.