The Fort Dodge Messenger: March 17, 1904

Willey Takes His Departure

“Nutty” Willey Left Fort Dodge for all Time.

Does So When He is Threatened to Be Named as Candidate for the Cherokee Dry House.

Michael Conlin, Earnest Willey and William Kelso were arraigned in police court this morning on the charge of being drunk. The first two named were fined $1 and costs, while Kelso was taxed $5 and the trimmings. conlin is a track laying foreman and was employed by the Great Western in laying steel for the Omaha extension. He is deaf and for that reason had some difficulty in pleading guilty when arraigned this morning. His fine was suspended providing he would return to work.

Ernest Willey, who is better known as “Nutty” Willey, left the city hall this morning with the firm determination of never showing his face in Fort Dodge again. He made this prmise under threat of being sent to the dry hosue at Cherokee. Willey has been a well known character in Fort Dodge for a number of years  and has been arrested repeatedly for being drunk. He was given an hour to get out of town, together with the information that if he again came within the limits of the city he would be promptly arrested.

(Editor’s note: I’ll try to gather more articles about “Nutty” Willey. I can safely say that he did forget to stay away from Fort Dodge and in fact, returned on March 21, 1904. Also, at this time, the mental health facility in Cherokee apparently had a 1904 version of rehab. That was what Ernest Willey was trying to avoid by promising to leave Fort Dodge forever.)