Pike Township Family Stories
OLD RESIDENTS
Nichols, Iowa Centennial Book 1884-1984, pages 283-284
By Alberta Metcalf KellyThose people who are said to be a bit “long in the tooth” may vaguely remember the names and occupations of early Nichols residents who do not have “blood” descendants now living in our town.
Do these names of people who lived north of Ijem avenue ring a memory bell? Vincent Reynolds, Scott Baker, Susan Nichols, F. F. Carl, August Kern, Gertrude Kirchner, Grover Cottrell, George Crayton, the Hintz family, Will and Lily Schmitt, “Grandma” Shafer, Fred and Anna Schmitt, Herman Heinzle and “Wig” Wagner.
Or do you recall these business people on Ijem avenue? Gus Kaiser, Professor Eland, “Doc” Whetstine, John Hintz, Lizzie Van Tyl, “Hank” Britcher and Josiah Rummells.
Here are the names of old residents south of Ijem. Do you have a glimmer concerning them? Ida Nash, Robert Black, Albert Quimby, Ben Swickard, Milo Doran, “Allie” Slater, Abiah Hesser, Claude Duncan, John and Mary Foley, the Cone family, Henry Dowling, Peter Hart and the Haney family.
I can recall a few of them. Scott Baker was a banker, living where Donald Mills now lives. “Grover” Cottrell, the coal man, lived where Husons now reside. George Crayton, a contractor, lived where the Mapes and the Coons later made their home; he was responsible for much of the wooden lace on the homes.
Fred and Anna Schmitt resided where the Dennis Albrechts now live. Anna was a Walker who lived in Moscow and rode a bicycle down to teach Adams school on Monday mornings. The John Hester family occupies the former home of Susan Nichols, who lived there with a son by a former marriage.
Robert and Melissa Black, living where Priests now reside, took care of their granddaughter, Frances Kirchner, whose mother had died. Mayme Foley, our veteran teacher, lived with them for many years. Albert Quimby, married to Amelia Hintz, ran the livery stable at the site of Elder Implement repair shop on Ijem.
John and Mary Foley built the home that is now the Catholic parsonage. Abiah Hesser’s home is now the home of the Tom Hazens. She had one daughter, Olive Younkin, and a son by her first marriage and an adopted daughter, Maud. Olive married the depot agent, Frank Meese; my mother, then Ina Hankins, played at their home wedding.
To conclude this reminiscing, I do not remember when I was two and my family moved from a mired-down farm to try their luck at running the Central Hotel and dealing in livestock. When I was three, I do recall that I had three unique baby sitters who lived at the hotel and took care of me when my parents went socializing – John Hintz, who ran the hotel meat market; “Doc” Whetstine, editor of the Nichols Gazette; and Professor Eland, the school principal, who married Bess Baker, the banker’s daughter, and later became a medical doctor at Letts, Iowa.
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Page created December 18, 2010 by Lynn McCleary