Democratic Sentinel, Volume 9, Number 21, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 June 1885 — RENSSELAER. [ARTICLE]

RENSSELAER.

A Busy Town of the Indiana Prairie Country. Its First Settlement and Early History—lts Advantages, Business and Business Men—lts Ladies, the Iroquois, the Fraternities. An expanse of country, an outstretching village, with wide, clean streets,grassy lawns and thickening foliage, and the sparkle of a river and the murmur of a rapids, are among the first impressions received from a glance out and over the quiet, quaint and rural town of Rensselaer, the county seat of Jasper County. Indiana abounds in pretty towns, r ut none impress th traveler with a sense of quietude and restfulness as Rensselaer, and yet it is not devoid of the stir and animation of business life, and is in reality the center of an important section of country. It lies 127 miles northwest from Indianapolis and about seventy miles southeast of Chicago on the C. and I. AirLine Division of the L., N. A. and C. Railroad. It is surrounded by a section of country rich in natural resources and greater possibilities than have as yet been realized. It is watered by the Iroquois and Pinkamink Rivers, is in the center of a county comprising 553 square miles the chief characteristics of which are farming, grazing and mineral lands. Jasper County is better known than many owing to its illustrious founder, Sergeant Jasper, of Revolutionary fame, whose exploit at Fort Moultrie is familiar to readers of history. Re sselaer was formerly known as Newton, its first settlement being made in 1834, at which time the present thrifty, well drained and pretty fields were all a quagmire and a swamp. From his point to the head of the Iroquois River the. valley was a marsh, with a spontaneous growth of wild rice, pond lily and splater-dock. In 1839 the town took upon itself its present name, in honor of James Van Rensselaer, one of its early founders, and was then made the county seat. Its first session of court was held in 1840, in its primitive Court-house, a log structure, upon the site of which to-day there blooms and bears the fruit of a beautiful garden. In 1845 a frame Court-house was built. In 1857 another one was erected which was partially destroyed 1 y fire in 1866, which was partially rebuilt or repaired, and stands to-day the monument of those years. The first jail was a block-house made of hewn logs, 20x26 feet long, and the first man who was incarcerated therein got out in the night, and called at the Sheriff’s'house in the morning for his breakfast. W. J. Wright, a pioneer among the business men of the town, still active and enterprising, was the Sheriff at the time, am. delights to recall the reminiscences of those years. The present jail adjoining the Sheriff’s residence, a beautiful brick, is a strong structure, oomplet»d in 1883 at a cost of $12,700, from which the >aw-breaker could scarcely find so ready an exit without the aid of the jailer’s key to the heavy iron door between him and liberty.

THE FIRST RAILROAD running tkrougjthe town was the Indianapolis, Rensselaer and Chicago Narrow Gauge, which was opened February 15, 1878, and was largely instrumental in enhancing the general interest of the city.— Among the projected railroad interests, we learned of a new road which will run from La Cross south, giving direct communication with the coal fields in Clay county and access to the heart of this region; and another interest of vital importance to the town is the Fort Wayne, Rensselaer and Peoria Road, which was surveyed in 1883, and a two per cent, has been voted in the interest of she Roches'ter, Rensselaer and St. Louis Road; thus, with the radiation from this point in various directions, added to the present advantages of its railroad facilities, tae future of the little city may be counted upon as becoming one of the important railroad centers of Northern Indiana. The material

gr6wth OF THE CITY dates from the first advent of the rail and iron horse, the valuation of its improvements since then being not less than $500,000. Rensselaer is proud of its solid men, its moneyed interests, its fair fame as a town, and well she may be, but th re lies within her grasp far greater possibilities of growth, enterprise and wider iuterests than have as yet been developed. With a fair prospect of communication with adjoining States, in the midst of a fertile country, watered by forcts which can be garnered and utilized for the operation of industries, it only needs the enterprise and open-handedness of the spirit of the age to make the quiet, quaint city of our writing to resound with the hum and life of the business of the world. But it requires money to build a city; men and women must open their coffers and lay the'contents into the very lap of nature, and with nerve and unswerving energy draw with the golden magnet the waters from the earth,the timber from the forests, the ore from mines, and from our lives the best possible good for humanity and the world. Rensselaer has a population of over 1,000, has a light bonded debt of $9,000 on its school-house. With $463,593 of taxable property, only fifteen cents on SIOO as the tax levy, and the largest land owners of the county in her midst, there ’s no town within its section with greater possibilities, and there is no valid reason why industries should not thrive here as elsewhere. The raw material, fuel, waterpower from which to generate steam; at least plenty of territory upon which to build homes for the skilled mechanics to live in, cheap freight facilities, all are here, and capital and land to commence with, and then there is the vast country to be supplied with what Rensselaer could produce, and other towns will in the not-far-distant future. The advantages of this section for the establishment of local industries will bear investigation, and the closer the scrutiny and the more liberal its property owners the more certain will be the inducement to enterprising men to establish themselves here. The history of Rensselaer is replete with incidents of interest, many of which your c orrespondent had the pleasure of listening to, but lack of space forbids their recital. Among the more prominent of the early settlers were the names of W. J. Wright, who to-day is an undertaker and dealer in furniture, having been in busine s in the town for* more than forty years. He was born in Indiana when the State was a Territory, and has lived to see the wonderful changes of more than a half century in one section of the country alone. Joseph Yeoman, S. L. Sparling, Stephen Nowels are among the pioneers.— C. G. Wright was one of the earliest settlers, and established a trading post among the indians long before the town was laid out. George W. Spitler’s name ap-

peftrs as one of the early fathers, and was clerk, auditor and recorder for several years. Rensselaer was incorporated in 1859, but forfeited its charter during the years of the war because there were no men to sustain the offices. It is quite evident, with the status of women’s work and interests in the town, that, had the women of Rensselaer, in the year 1863, undertook to have officered the little town the charter would not have been surrendered, but, as it proved, it was regained again in 1864, and to-day the growth of the interests are due to the energy of all its people, both men and women. The first school-house was built in 1866, although George W. Spitler had taught iu his own house previons to this, and also in the old ourt-rc om. The first church was erected in 1857. The first sermon was preached by Rev. Enoch Long, a Methodist minister. The first Fourth of July oelebration oc.urred in 1843 and was quite unique, and, like nearly all innovations, was the carryiug out of a programme planned by a woman, Mrs. G. W. Spitler. In the morning all the neighbors met at Mrs. Spitler’s and took a hand in a quilting, had a dinner at noon and religions exercises and a ermon in the afternoon by Rev. Milton B. Hopkins, afterwards Superintendent of Public Instruction, and ended the day’s programme with a real oldfashioned dance. To-day Rensselaer has six churches —the M. E., two Baptist, Presbyterian, Christian and Cathode. Rev. T. C. Webster is the pastor of the M. E. Church and Father Zumbeltue is the Catholic minister.— Elder D. T. Halstead has been pastor of the “Church of God.” A fine school-house was erected in 1882. It is of modern build, a two-story brick, having eight rooms, a library, laboratory and apparatus. The Rensselaer High School is commissioned by the State, entitling the graduates of the present course to enter the State Normal, the State University or Purdue University without examination. The School Trustees for 1884 and 1885 are Dr. I. B. Washburn, President; M. L. Spitler, Secretary; M. F. Chilcote, ' reasurer; Prof. P. H. Kirsch, Superintendent. The teachers are as follows: Miss Margaret M. Hill, of the High School; James Burnham, third grammar; Amanda W. Osborne, second grammar; Mary F. Cox, first grammar; Miss May Miller, second primary; Miss Alice Irwin, first primary. The present enrollment is 307. The alumni of the High School comprises the classes of ’BO, ’B2 and ’B4 The press is represented here by two weekly newspapers. The Rensselaer Republican, owned and edited by George S. Marshall, is an ably conducted and newsy sheet. It is Republican in politic, fearless in tone and one of the most popular papers in Northwestern Indiana.. The Democratic Sentinel is edited by James W. McEwen, and has quite a circulation; is newsy and interesting. Editor McEwen is assisted by his daughter, Miss Ana B. McEwen, who is a good news writer.* The town officers are as follows: Charles Platt, Marshal; Val Seib, Clerk; T. J. Farden, Treasurer.— The Trustees are B. F. Ferguson, E. L. Clark, T. J. McCoy, John R. Vanatta and A. W. Cleveland. The coun y officers are: Geo. M. Robinson, Auditor; James F. Irwin, Clerk; Samuel E. Yeoman, Sheriff; Moses B. Alter, Treasurer; Thomas Antrim, Recorder; James C. Thrawls, Surveyor; Philip Blue, Coroner; D. Mv Nelson School Superintendent. The Commissioners are: Aso C. Prevo, S. R. Nichols, John Waymire. Peter H. Ward is the Judge of. the Circuit Court, and M. H. Walker, Prosecuting Attorney. Horace C. James, a scholarly and public -pirited man, is the Postmaster, and has been since April, 1879. In June, 1878, he re-

ceived the appointment of Consul to Turk Island, but declined the honor. He has been prom inently identified with the journalistic interests of the town, having edited the Union, of which the present Republican is a continuation, for twelve years, from 1868 to 1880. The roster of Jasper county Bar enrolls among its names those of Judge »Jammond, Judge Ward, M. H. h alker, Simon P. and David J. Thompson, Jas. W. Doutliit, Frank W. Babcock, M. F. Chilcote, M. L. Spitler, R. S. and Z. Dwiggins. and W. B. Austin. Prominent among the interests of the little city are the banking houses operated by citizens of Rensselaer. R. S. Dwiggins, the Prohibition candidate for Governor of Indiana, is the President of the Citizens’ Bank, Zimri Dwiggins is the Vice President and Val Seib the Cashier. John Makeever h the President of the Farmers’ Bank and Jay W. Williams is the Cashier. A. McCoy and T. Thompson are bankers and brokers and dealers in exchange. They are the successors es A. McCoy & Thompson. The medical profession is represented by W. W. Hartsell, homeopathic physician and surgeon; J. H. Loughridge, F. P. Bitters and I. B. Washburn, who is widel" and popularly known. Ira 0. Kelley is a popular dentist. Among the druggists we find Frank B. Meyer, a graduate of Philadelphia College of Pharmacy; F. B. Learning, vho was burned out last fall and is now manager of Emmet Kannal’s store, who is also an experienced pharmacist. * * The prominent dry goods dealers are Willey & Sigler, Ralph Fendig, Ellis & Murray, Ludd Hopkins, who opened business in 1864; Mollie W. Babcock, Sadie Laßue, assisted by Misses Minnie Murphy and Louise Platt, Mrs. E. Wilson and Miss Alice Stephens, Mrs. 8. A. Hemphill and E. P. Honan, and Miss Emma Martin. Mr. and Mrs. E. S. Woods have a nice, neat market with the freshest of fish, meats, dried meats, etc., for sale. They have been four yearS in Rensselaer keep a popular stand. J. J. Eiglesbach is the “pioueer store” for fresh and salt meats, having been established for eight years. The grocers are L. Tuteur, John Eger, Laßue Brothers and H. Purcupile, who operates a restaurant, confectionery stand and ice cream parlors. T. W. Haus has a bakery and a fine confection and fr it stand with restaurant combined. — C. C. Starr is a popular grocer, and fortunate in having so efficient an assistant as Ed. S. Rhoades, who has been with him four years. * * B. F. Ferguson is an extensive lumber dealer. W. H. &C. Rhoades have b en established since 1863. The have a fine assortment of harness, trunks, etc. They sell the Abbot Bros.’ buggies. The New Home and other sewing machines are on sale at their stand.” George Grauel, N. V. Cleaver, N. Warner & Sons, Bedfoad & Warner, John R. Vanatta are prominent and popular business men. T. J. Farden is a popular dealer in boots and shoes and gents’ furnishings, and ha.* a turn for unique advertising that is really ingenious. R. H. Yeoman, Charles B. Steward, John W. Duvall, C. A. Roberts & Bro. G. L. Morgan, S. Healey, S. Irwin & Son, L. C. Grant, William Meyer, C. G. Sears, R. P. Benjamin, Joseph Sharp and H. Mackey are prominently identified with the business interests of Pensselaer. J. D. Matthews operates a brick and tile works, making a specialty of repressed brick sos fronts. H. J. Dexter, the Popular news dealer, has a nice fruit and confectionery stand. Rensselaer has two good hotels The new Makeever House, under, the management of Philip Blue, is a first-class house, neat, nice and home-like. The Nowels House, kept by H. M. Babb, is finely located, having beautiful rooms and airy halls, and receives a share of the public patronage.

H. M. Babb is a pioneer in |the hotel business. He was for some years the proprietor of the De Sota House in McComb City, Miss., one of the most beautiful points on the old “Great Jackson Railroad.” Among the specialities of Rensselaer is the pretty Iroquois and the rapids, the iron bridge spanning the river, and the artesian well, which has never ceased to flow since it burst forth spontaneously when a party were boring for petroleum some years ago on the property of D. C. Hopkins. The water has medicinal properties which have been analyzed and pronounced equal to the mineral springs of greater celebrity. Why does not some enterprising man or woman utilize this foundation of wealth and health, while its gurgling, sparkling force is hurrying on to the river to waste and uselessness? □ Among the prominent ladies of Rensselaer is Mrs. Alice Dunlap, a teacher of vocal and instrumental music. Mrs. Eva Kirsch, an elocutionist of some note; Mrs. Elizabeth Purcupile, the State Lecturer for the State Eastern Star, and Mrs. Mary E. Spitler, the Past Grand Matron of the State Order of th Eastern Star. The fraternities are represented by the Prairie Lodge No. 1, a. f. and a. m. ; the o. e. s. Evening Star Chapter; Iroquois Lodge No. 143 1. o. o. f.; the Knights of Pythias; the a. o. u. w. No. 100; the k. andL. of h. ; Jasper Lodge No. 850, and the Rensselaer Post No. 24 g. a. r. Charles F. Wren is the agent at the L., n. A. &c. Depot. Nathaniel eeve is the agent for the American Express Company, We regret that lack of space precludes the mention of other interesti g items concerning the pretty town and its interests, and it is with regret that we bade good-bye to our hospitable entertainers and turned to other and stranger towns, and yet glad to have found so many friends of the Sunday Sentinel in the town of Rensselaer.

WHEELER

H. S. Lobdell, of the firm of Gilbert & Lobdell, Troy, Ohio, is here again with his agents, Messrs. Arnold and Siler, to canvass this and Newton counties.— Now is the time for Farmers to set out n w orchards, and rejuvenate the < Id, and for city residents to secure choice fruits for their lots and 1 land some flowers, evergreens and shrubbery for their lawns and yards, when they can procure them from a reliable firm that always keeps its promise and fills its contracts.