Transcribed by Carolyn Ward from History of Butler County, Kansas by Vol. P. Mooney. Standard Publishing Company, Lawrence, Kan.: 1916. ill.; 894 pgs.


CONTENTS

CHAPTER I.

ORGANIZATION.

Named in Honor of Andrew P. Butler — Early Influence Indicated in Name — One of the Original Thirty-three Counties — First and Later Boundaries — First County Seat — Township Boundaries — Organization of Townships — Districts — Topography — Products — Herd Law — Fences Pages 33 - 40

CHAPTER II.

ARCHAEOLOGY.

Pre-Historic Red Man — Coronado's Visit in 1541 — Native Indian Tribes — Indian Character — Early Trails — Evidences of Pre-Historic Occupation of Butler County — Indian Relics — Village and Camp Sites — Indian Traditions — Indian Implements Pages 41 - 46

CHAPTER III.

FIRST EVENTS.

First Settler — Births — Marriages — Postoffices — Stores — Schools — Churches — Court Records and Procedure — Official Acts — Elections — Assessment and First Valuation — Present Valuation Pages 47 - 53

CHAPTER IV.

COUNTY SEAT AND COURT HOUSE.

First County Seat — County Seat Elections — First Court House — Bond Issue Defeated — Citizens' Subscription — Further County Seat Contention — Court House Enlarged — New Court House — Location — Building — Cost — Extinct Towns Pages 54 - 62

CONTENTS

CHAPTER V.

INDIAN HISTORY AND EARLY TIMES.

The Plains — Dawn of Era — Primitive Times — First Settlement — Indian Perils and Scares — Cherokees Come — Indian Trading Posts — Camps — Settlement Prior to 1870 — Settlement in 1857 — Drouth of 1860 — Home Defense Company Organized — Butler County in the Civil War — First Settler in El Dorado — Cholera — Early Settlers — Postoffice — First Fourth of July Celebration — Homesteading Pages 63 - 74

CHAPTER VI.

PERMANENT SETTLEMENT.

Real Settlement — Pioneer Women — Erection of Saw Mills — Pioneer Life — Amusements — Grasshopper Year — Devastation — Reaction — Brighter Hopes — "Sleep, Old Pioneer" — Afterwards—Public Enterprises — Prosperity — Now Pages 75 - 85

CHAPTER VII.

TRANSPORTATION.

Highways in Early Days — Freighting — Government Trains — Mathewson — Stage Coaches — Experiences of Stage Coach Days — Stage Drivers — Passing of the Stage Coach Days — Railroads — First Railroad Bonds Voted — Another Bond Election — Santa Fe — Missouri Pacific — Frisco — Communication — Pioneer Mail Carrier — Star Route — Automobiles Pages 86 - 94

CHAPTER VIII.

TOWNSHIPS, CITIES AND TOWNS.

Augusta Township — Benton Township — Bloomington Township — Bruno Township — Chelsea Township — Clay Township — Clifford Township — Douglass Township Pages 95 - 119

CHAPTER IX.

TOWNSHIPS, CITIES AND TOWNS.

(Continued.)
El Dorado Township — City of El Dorado — Location — Early Industries — Name — First Postoffice — First Hotel — Railroads — Walnut Valley Times — El Dorado in 1870 — From the Walnut Valley Times of March, 1881 — El Dorado in 1916 Pages 120 - 152

CHAPTER X.

TOWNSHIPS, CITIES AND TOWNS.

(Continued.)
Fairmount Township — Fairview Township — Glencoe Township — Hickory Township — Lincoln Township — Little Walnut Township — Leon — Logan Township Pages 153 - 170

CHAPTER XI.

TOWNSHIPS, CITIES AND TOWNS.

(Continued.)
Milton Township — Murdock Township — Pleasant Township — Plum Grove Township — Prospect Township Pages 171 - 192

CHAPTER XII.

TOWNSHIPS. CITIES AND TOWNS.

(Continued.)
Richland Township — Rock Creek Township — Rosalia Township — Spring Township Pages 193 - 214

CHAPTER XIII.

TOWNSHIPS, CITIES AND TOWNS.

(Continued.)
Sycamore Township — Towanda Township — Towanda — Union Township — Walnut Township Pages 215 - 235

CHAPTER XIV.

POLITICAL HISTORY.

Early Political Views — Judicial Districts — First Election — Character of Officers — First Township Officers — All Independent Party — First Conventions — Political PartiesFarmers' Alliance and Populism — Free Silver Party — Last Election — Senators — Representatives — County Commissioners — County Clerks — County Treasurers — County Attorneys — Sheriffs — Clerks of the District Court — Registrar of Deeds — Probate Judges — Superintendents of Public Instruction — County Surveyors — County Assessors — County Health Officers Pages 236 - 249

CHAPTER XV.

COURTS AND THE BAR.

Early Judicial Districts — "No Man's Land" — County Lines in 1864 — County Seat Changed — Early Lawyers and Law Suits — First Deed Recorded — First and Second Terms of Court — Horse Thieves — Vigilance Committees — Lynchings — "Butler County War" — Criniinal and Civil Cases — Attorneys Pages 250 - 261

CHAPTER XVI.

MEDICAL PROFESSION.

Physicians of this Generation — Qualifications — Experiences — Pioneer Physicians — Advance of the Science — Surgery — Hospitals Pages 262 - 263

CHAPTER XVII.

AGRICULTURE.

Agricultural Society — First Fairs — Kafir Corn Carnival — Changes in Methods — Alfalfa — Kafir — Increase of Crop Acreage — Market Conditions — Oats and Wheat — Progress — "Kafir Corn — County Farm 264 - 270

CHAPTER XVIII.

LIVE STOCK INDUSTRY.

Early Day Horses — Trotting Stock — Some Fast Ones — Draft Horses — Mules — First Cattle — Losses from Severe Winters — Cattle Raising as a Business — Effect of Herd Law — First Cows — Bleeders — Finest Herd of Herefords in the World Pages 271 - 274

CHAPTER XIX.

HORTICULTURE.

Wild Fruits of Pioneer Times — First Orchards — Plant Disease — Insects — Investment — Butler County Horticultural Society — Successful Fruit Growers — Orchards — Native Trees — Native Flowers Pages 275 - 280

CHAPTER XX.

OIL AND GAS.

Supply of Fuel — Deep Test in 1879 — Other Tests — First Company Organized to Drill for Oil — Early Geologists. Reports Discouraging — Company Organized at Augusta — First Gas Discovered West of the Flint Hills Near Augusta — Other Tests and Discoveries — Oil Discovered — Marvelous Development Pages 281 - 284

CHAPTER XXI.

BANKS AND BANKING.

Present Prosperous Conditions — Number of Banks in the County — First Bank — Second and Third Banks — First National Bank — Exchange National Bank — Fourth Bank in El Dorado — Ed. C. Ellet — Officers and Capital — Citizens State Bank — Butler County State Bank — Exchange State Bank — State Bank of Leon — Peoples State Bank. Latham — Bank of Whitewater — Peoples State Bank. Whitewater — Towanda State Bank — Rose Hill State Bank — Rosalia State Bank — Beaumont State Bank — Character of Banks — Bank Commissioner Pages 285 - 291

CHAPTER XXII.

TELEPHONE SYSTEM.

Mysterious Switchboard — First Telephone Exchange at El Dorado — Butler County. Telephone and Electric Company — Growth of Business — Missouri and Kansas Telephone Company — Officers — Charles H. Parker Pages 292 - 294

CHAPTER XXIII.

BUTLER COUNTY SCHOOLS.

First School — Difficulties of Early Organization — Early Normal Institutes — First Teachers Associations — Course of Study Provided — First Commencement — First School House in El Dorado — Barnes Law Schools — Special Courses — Barnes High School League — Rural School Contests — Early Teachers — El Dorado High School — Superintendents — Central School Building Burned — Development of Schools Pages 295 - 300

CHAPTER XXIV.

THE PIONEER CHURCH.

First Religious Services in Butler County — A Pioneer Meeting House — Beecher's Sermons Delivered Here — First Sermon in Western Butler County — Missionaries — First Methodist Minister — All Denominations Represented — Sunday Schools — Influence of Churches Pages 301 - 303

CHAPTER XXV.

FRATERNAL ORDERS AND LODGES.

Masonic Lodges — Independent Order of Odd Fellows — Modern Woodmen of America — Grand Army of the Republic — Woman's Relief Corps — Anti Horse Thief Association Pages 304 - 313

CHAPTER XXVI.

WOMEN'S CLUBS.

Federated Clubs — Beethoven Club, El Dorado — Shakespeare Club — Woman's Mutual Benefit Club — The Avon Club, El Dorado — Daughters of American Revolution — The Outlook Club, Augusta — Twentieth Century Club, Douglass — Mutual Helpers, Cassoday — E. M. B. Club, Towanda — Every Wednesday Home Study Club Pages 314 - 317

CHAPTER XXVII.

REMINISCENCES.

First Commercial Sign — The Next Beer Story — A Booze Story — Another One — Just a Story — Celebration — Some Things — A Murder — When Times Were Young, by Frances E. Mooney — In Society — The Old Hotel — Another Time Pages 318 - 325

CHAPTER XXVIII.

REMINISCENCES, CONTINUED.

My Parents — The "Quilting Bee" Crowd — Recollections of Plum Grove — Back in the Sixties — The Last Battle — "Vagrant Memories" Pages 326 - 339

CHAPTER XXIX.

REMINISCENCES, CONTINUED.

My First Night in El Dorado — Memories — A Hunting Party — Dr. John Homer's Recollections — Southeast Butler — Early Times — A Story of the Days Long Gone — Memories of Pioneer Days Pages 340 - 358

CHAPTER XXX.

REMINISCENCES, CONTINUED.

Experiences of a Lawyer.
Joe Everson — Joe Everson and the Fool Boy — Gardner's Heroic Effort — Tiger Bill — An Intelligent Jury — A Defendant Who Lied — The Colonel's Stratagem — A Game of Pool — The Colonel and Dan — Mistaken Identity Pages 359 - 366

CONTENTS

CHAPTER XXXI.

REMINISCENCES, CONTINUED.

The Victory of Half a Century — A Pioneer — Story of Early Days — Pioneer Days — A Pioneer of 1868 — Recollections fo[sic] Jerry Conner Pages 367 - 378

CHAPTER XXXII.

REMINISCENCES, CONTINUED.

Mead's Ranch — Recollections of Early Times — An Indian Scare — Early Schools in El Dorado — A Tornado — Wing in the Seventies Pages 379 - 392

CHAPTER XXXIII.

BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY.


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