The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
Compiled and Edited by Virginia Ross
Stronghurst Graphic, Dec. 16, 1920
***OBITUARY***EVA FISHER: The many friends in this vicinity of Miss Eva Fisher were surprised and saddened to hear of her death which occurred at the Fisher home in Roseville at an early hour on Dec. 12th. Miss Fisher was a resident of Stronghurst during the period from the fall of 1912 to the spring of 1916 while her father, the late G. W. Fisher, was engaged in the grocery business here. The bright and cheerful disposition which she maintained during that time when she was constantly confined to her bed because of an incurable malady, won her the admiration and respect of all who knew her. She had considerable artistic talent and whiled away many of the hours with china and water color painting and fancy work.
Miss Fisher was born in Roseville May 12, 1890 and with the exception of the few years she lived in Stronghurst, her entire life was spent in that village. She was a member of the Methodist church. She is survived by her mother, Mrs. G. W. Fisher; two sisters, Mrs. Lulu Watson and Miss Beulah Fisher, both of Roseville; two brothers, Guy Fisher of Denver, Colo. and Roy Fisher of Roseville. Funeral services were held at the Roseville M. E. Church with interment in the Roseville Cemetery.
1895 GRAPHIC: Mrs. Ella May Chandler died at Terre Haute on Dec. 14th. A loss of $150,000 was entailed and 200 men thrown out of employment when the Weir Plow Shops at Monmouth burned down on the night of Dec. 12th. D. G. White of Kahoka, Mo. had rented a business room from Walt Simonson and was preparing to open a jewelry store. An almost continuous down pour of rain for two days had taken the frost out of the ground and made the roads almost impassable. Corn and oats were selling at the lowest point reached in 30 years. Frank Anderson came to Stronghurst to buy corn for Robt. Moir of Oquawka. J.A. Hutchinson of Monmouth was starting a new poultry dressing establishment in Stronghurst. In a suit brought by Mrs. H. H. Thomas against postmaster McElhinney to recover the amount of $200 claimed as damages sustained because of failure to obtain possession of the room which had been used as a post office until 5 weeks after the time specified by her. The jury in Justice Morgan's court brought in a verdict awarding her $37.50 in addition to the accrued rent.
Advertisers in this issue were the following: The Stronghurst Produce Co.; I.N. Jones, gen. mdse.; Geo H. Butler, harness; C. W. Daugherty, boots and shoes; Chant Bros. hardware; H. H. Rankin, hardware;W. C. Grigsy, jewelry; Huppener and Montgomery, photographers; T.J. Hunter, furniture and undertaking; The Landert, dry goods and notions; A. W. Carothers, Photographer; F.A. Edwards, blacksmith; Beal and Suplin:, livery; L. M. Loomis, lumber and coal; O. L. Dunsworth, gen. mdse; H. G. King, clothing; Miller and Taylor, gen. mdse; Turner and Jones, shoes and groceries; Lee Hamilton, holiday novelties; Stanley and Wickham, wagons and implements; Walter Simonson, meats; Walt Spiker, barber; J. W. Gordon, atty; Jno. A Rabb, painter and paper hanger; R. F. Robinson, atty.; E. W. Salter, physician; Armstrong, dentist; State Bank of Henderson County and Stronghurst State Bank. (This was very hard to read so errors may be present.)
BIG FIRE IN MONMOUTH: The big plant of the Monmouth City Manufacturing Co. more generally known as the Three M.Co was destroyed by fire early last Sunday morning entailing a financial loss of around $500,000 and throwing 90 men out of employment. The drying kilns, stacks, engine and boiler rooms connected with the plant were saved from the flames, but the main plant containing an immense amount of costly equipment and machinery and about $17,000 worth of newly manufactured ware were completely ruined.
The plant was owned by the Chas. Green Co., having been purchased by them a few years ago from the stockholders of the old Three M. Co., which had operated it under the management of a receiver for a year or more. The new company had completely overhauled and remodeled the plant and it was one of the best stoneware and pottery manufacturing concerns in the country.
The future plans of the owners have not been made public at this writing, but it is hoped and expected that they will decided to rebuild and continue the business in Monmouth. They have been assured of the assistance of the Monmouth Association of Commerce in any plans they may decide upon looking to that end. The amount of insurance carried on the property destroyed has not been made public, but it will probably fall far short of the amount of the loss.
The origin of the fire is a mystery. It was first discovered by an employee who came to the plant shortly before six o'clock Sunday morning and found a blaze burning briskly under a stairway leading from the second to the third floor of the building. He gave the alarm but by the time the firemen arrived, the fire had gained such headway as to make it impossible to save the main plant. Efforts to prevent the fire from spreading to the other buildings were, however, successful, and property to the value of something like $200,000 was saved.
A curious co-incidence in connection with the fire was that it occurred on the 25th anniversary of the burning of the Weir Plow Shops which was the most disastrous fire to Monmouth's history up to that time.
END IN THE HOSPITAL: Mrs. Quig Crane of Lomax is in the Burlington hospital suffering from a broken ankle resulting from an accident which occurred last Monday morning. A fire had started in a pile of cobs which had been placed too near the furnace in the basement of the Crane home and in carrying water with which to extinguish the fire, Mrs. Crane made a mis-step and fell down the basement stairs alighting in such a manner as to cause the fracture of the bones in her ankle in two places.
A STORE WORTH VISITING: A visit at the K.E. Yoakam store in Stronghurst at this time will furnish the one making the visit with an illustration of what business enterprise and the spirit of progress can accomplish. Several years ago Mr. Yoakam started in a modest way in the watch and jewelry repairing business here; and although obliged to give up the work for a year while serving his country during the war here and in France, he has gradually developed and enlarged the business until he now has one of the best stocked jewelry and art goods stores to be found outside the larger cities.
His sales room now includes the entire floor of the Chant building and is stocked at present with a large and fine line of jewelry, silverware, photographs, art goods, etc. and in addition thereto an especially complete line of children's toys, dolls, candies, etc. Mr. Yoakam recently enclosed his large show window, using colored art glass for the background. The effect produced is both striking and handsome and the display of the goods handled made very effective. This show window is worthy of more than a mere passing inspection as is also the fine line of merchandise now on display inside the store.
WAR IN IRELAND: Affairs in Ireland in connection with the Sinn Fein revolt against the British government seem to be fast approaching a crisis and actual civil warfare appears to be inevitable. Of course, no sane person doubts the ability of the British government to crush the Irish insurrection by the use of military power; but it is evident that the Lloyd George government hesitates to resort to extreme measures in view of the sympathy which is being manifested for the cause of the Irish freedom in other nations of the world with whom it is to England's present interest to maintain the most cordial relationships possible. . .
A CORNY STORY: From the Kirkwood Leader: Our friend J. W. Tharp calls attention to the story in the paper recently about a man who sold corn for 10 cents a bushel in 1861 and says he has a worse one than that, and so he has.
Jake says that in the winter of 1861 of which time he was living on a farm near Raritan, his father, himself, a hired man and his sister shelled 1,000 bu. of corn with a hand sheller, hauled it from there to Kirkwood (then Young America) and sold it for 8 cents a bushel. But a neighbor was worse off. He wanted to get a load of corn to Kirkwood and hired a man with a team to haul it as he could not do it himself. When the man returned, the owner of the corn found that he owed the teamster fifty cents above what the load of corn brought.
LOCAL AND AREA NEWS: Ray Cadle spent time in Stronghurst doing electrical work. The Stronghurst Men's Club is moving into the rooms above the Worley drug store. N. C. Curry and family now ride in a five passenger Buick purchased at the Wallin sale. Floyd Clark who had been employed in a Michigan automobile factory has returned to Stronghurst. Mrs. O.S. Calvert of Kahoka, Mo. has been visiting her father, Robert Gray, at Smithshire. Mrs. Minnie Peterson, who has been living in Galesburg for some time has stopped here a few days while enroute to the home of her parents at Garden City, Kansas. Joe Clark, editor of the Roseville Times-Citizen, has gone to California to spend the winter. The Stronghurst Telephone Co. expects to move its headquarters about Jan. 1st to the rooms above the First National Bank. Workmen are now engaged in enlarging these quarters by making the entire building full two stories high. Wick Crenshaw of Warsaw, who killed Bert Langford by striking him with his fist last summer during the Carthage fair, was convicted of murder in the circuit court at Carthage and sentenced to 15 years in the penitentiary. W.J. McElhinney is very seriously ill at his home and Miss Sara, who is attending State Normal school, has been called home. A copper still, two or three gallons of "moonshine" whiskey and a half barrel of mash were seized by Sheriff McDill in a raid on Grizzel Island, four miles north of Burlington.
The proprietor of the raided establishment, one Conrad Niwardowski, was also apprehended and now languishes in the county jail. A shooting match for live turkeys, geese and ducks will be held Dec. 22nd at Lake Fort. Both flying and still targets will be used.
"OBITUARY" MRS. WILLIAM ADAIR: Mrs. William Adair died at her home here last Sunday evening at about 7 o'clock following an illness of long duration. Anna Jane Stevenson, daughter of John and Elizabeth Stevenson, was born in County Antrim, Ireland, Feb. 14, 1843 and passed away at her home in Stronghurst on Dec. 12, 1920. In 1868 she married William Adair with whom she made her way to this country in 1871, settling in the vicinity of Biggsville which was the family home for many years. To Mr. and Mrs. Adair nine children were born, three of whom, namely, Jane, Robert and Mrs. Mary. Aherman have passed on before.
About six years ago, Mr. and Mrs. Adair left the farm in the Biggsville neighborhood and removed to Stronghurst. Soon after coming here Mrs. Adair began to fail in health and for almost five years has been a constant but patient sufferer.
In early life she professed her faith in Christ and united with the church in Ireland later uniting with the U.P. Church at Biggsville and on her removal to Stronghurst she united with the local U.P. church. Although her physical condition during the past few years made impossible for her to attend the church services, she often expressed her desire to be present at the services of God's house and only shortly before passing to her reward expressed her faith in and her love for her Savior.
Mrs. Adair is survived by her husband; six children, John and Will of Biggsville, Mrs. M. R. Vaughn of Burlington, Mrs. H.N. Vaughn, Henry and Miss Martha Adair of Stronghurst. These together with 20 grandchildren and five sisters and two brothers and many friends will ever hold her in loving remembrance.
Of her it may be said: "Her children arise up and call her blessed; her husband also and he praiseth her." Funeral services were conducted from the home, Dec. 14th with interment of the remains in the South Henderson Cemetery.
BIGGSVILLE BRIEFS Lloyd Whiteman has been in the hospital for two weeks taking treatments. Mrs. John Stevenson was brought home from the Burlington Hospital where she had been for several weeks. Owing to her age, an operation was not thought best in her case. Mr. and Mrs. George Holmes and son, who farmed near Galesburg during the past year are now keeping house for Mrs. Samuel Holmes.
Mr. Al Stotts has disposed of all of the old furnishings at the Blue Grass Hotel and is putting in new ones which will no doubt serve to increase the business there when he starts up in the near future. The Community Bible classes held the second Thursday afternoon and evening of each month are conducted by Dr. Rena Rezner. Mr. and Mrs. Lute Morris and family expect to be residents of Coloma having bought a plat of ground for a home there; they had been living in a tenant house of the Wm. Whiteman farm.
GLADSTONE GLEANINGS: Elmer Pence has commenced to rebuild on the foundation where the Duncan store stood which burned down a few weeks ago; he expects to erect a fine two story building with an upstairs hall. An oyster supper was given at the U.P. church by ladies of the congregation and cleared a sum of $30. The moving picture show at the M.E. Church was very good and greatly enjoyed by those present. Mr. and Mrs. Taylor Galbraith are remodeling their home. When it is completed, it will be one of the finest in the vicinity.
W. M. Colley had built himself a new workshop on the northeast corner of Mrs. Dave Cook's place; he will conduct a harness and shoe shop in the building. Fire damaged the A. J. Ditto residence on Wednesday afternoon.
The children first discovered it about 2 o'clock and it was put out, but at 4:30 p.m. it broke out afresh. With the aid of a bucket brigade, the flames were again subdued but not until considerable damage had been done. Mr. F. Sandstrom of Oquawka will have all kinds of fresh meat and lard at the Pitts produce house on Tuesdays and Saturdays from 2-4 p.m.. There will be a turkey chase from the Pitts product house under Bryan's hall. Three turkeys will be turned loose and the ones who are lucky enough to catch them will have a free turkey for Christmas.
CARMAN CONCERNS: Marie Dillon won first place and Edna Vaughn second place in the township spelling contest; there were only four contestants with Ruby Tharp and Miss Powell of Miss Dixson's school being the other two. Mrs. Jane Holt departed for her home in Franklin, Ind. after visiting her sister, Mrs. L. Brown, for several weeks. Wm. Kirby of South Dakota is visiting his brother, Charles Kirby. Mrs. Eliza Perry fell and sprained her ankle badly. Allen Crane and wife from Wyoming visited the W.Q. Crane home enroute to South Carolina where they will make their home.