The Fort Dodge Messenger: Dec. 2, 1903

Wants Dealers to Pay $9,000

Mrs. S.E. Smith Files Suits Against Three Firms Selling Intoxicants

Alleges Sold Husband Drink

Report That Defendants are Only Men Who Wouldn’t Make Settlement

Suits for damages aggregating $9,000 (about $221.796 today) have been brought by Mrs. S.E. Smith against three Fort Dodge dealers in intoxicating liquors on the grounds that they sold intoxicating liquors to her husband, S.E. Smith, and thereby lost to her the support which she would have received from him had he not been furnished with opportunity to become intoxicated. The defendants int he suits are Jacob Schmoll, Kiley & McCaffrey and C.S. Corey. Of each individual dealer plaintiff asks $1,500 ($36,966) actual and $1,500 exemplary damages, or a total of $3,000 ($73,932). Petitions for plaintiff have been filed by W.T. Chantland in the office of the county clerk.

The wording of each petition is similar. It is alleged that the defendants for the past year have been selling intoxicating liquors to S.E. Smith, plaintiff’s husband, who is addicted to drink. It is claimed that Smith is a stone mason and when able to work makes from $2.50 to $4.50 ($62 to $111) per day, which however, he does not earn when under the influence of liquor.

It is hinted that the trial of the suits on file will prove unusually interesting. Smith, it is claimed, did not confine his liquor purchases to any particular dispensers of intoxicants and other liquor dealers may be implicated. There is a further report that defendants in the three suits on file are the only persons who refused to make a “settlement” with plaintiff and that others were accused of selling Smith liquor, but that they made a settlement and no action was taken against them.

Tags: 1903, Chantland, Corey, Kiley, McCaffrey, Schmoll, Smith

The Fort Dodge Messenger: Dec. 1, 1903

Sprinkles Gold Dust on Floor

Joaquin Miller, the Poet, Tells of a Dance Given in the Klondike

The Floor Becomes Slippery

Miners Sprinkle Gold Dust on it to Keep the Women From Falling.

At one of his lectures just after his return from the Klondike Joaquin Miller told the following story: “One night I was invited to a dance in a miner’s cabin and while Bill Dalton scraped away on his fiddle we just hoed it down. But eh miners tramped in and out so much between dances that before midnight the ladies declared the floor was so slippery they couldn’t dance another step unless something was done. Then something was done that never was possible in mining days in California. Each miner gallantly opened his buckskin powder pouch and sprinkled gold dust on the floor! And this was repeated throughout the night. And in the morning, ladies and gentlemen, those miners never troubles themselves about sweeping up that gold dust. They just hitched up their dog sleds and rode away.

At this point of Miller’s narrative there was a slight agitation in the audience, an ominous sign of incredulity, but Miller was equal to it. With a wave of his hand toward one of the boxes, he said, “And my old friend up there in the box, Captain John Healy, will substantiate what I say.”

It was a master stroke of the poet, for the house burst into applause and greatly embarrassed the modest millionaire mining and railroad promoter of Alaska, who unsuspectingly had accepted Miller’s invitation to attend the lecture in the afternoon.

(Editor’s note: There is nothing in the article that indicates origin. I doubt that this lecture occurred in Fort Dodge. But it is an interesting story, nonetheless.)

Tags: 1903, Healy, Miller

The Fort Dodge Messenger: Oct. 24, 1903

Pigeon Raising as Ft. Dodge Industry

B.C. Keim Begins with 500 Birds to Raise Pigeons to Satisfy the Epicure.

Business a Profitable One

P.D. Keim, Owner of Number of Carrier Pigeons, Also Interested.

B.C. Keim, living at 1413 Second avenue north has made a new business venture in Fort Dodge. That business referred to is the raising of pigeons for the market. Mr. Keim has been in this line of work but a very short time and has already about 500 birds, old ones, and expects to have at least 500 more at once, or as soon as he can purchase them. He makes his purchases thruout the country, buying them anywhere and paying a good price for them.

His pens are at his home, and they have a capacity of over 1,600 pigeons, all of the birds being confined to these pens. The principal object of course, in raising these birds is to dispose of them on the market, where they are dressed and are considered a great delicacy by the epicures in the city. They are sold when about four weeks old, and are at this time plump and tender. The young birds, or squabs, bring anywhere from $2.00 to $3.00 (about $49.29 to $73.93 today) per dozen on the market, and the demand for them is always good.

Mr. Keim’s father, P.D. Keim, is also interested in raising pigeons, but he has none but the fancy kind, known as “homers.” These birds are too valuable to be sold on the market, as they are the kind known as the “carrier” pigeon those formerly used for carrying messages, during time of war and before the telephone or telegraph was invented. They may be taken any distance form the home where they were raised, and if loosed will return to that place, no matter what the distance, seeming to know by instinct what direction to fly, and will go at once and direct to that place, without once swerving from the true and direct course.

Mr. Keim has large pens fitted up for these birds, leaving them plenty of room in which to fly but not allow them outside of the pens, as the chances are that if he did they would return to their former home. He expects to soon have some young ones, and these may be allowed their liberty as they will always return to him. He now has a half dozen pairs of the fancy birds and expects before a great while to have enough of these kind from the birds that he now has to put them on the market as the “Homer” squab is much more tender and plump than the ordinary bird, and consequently brings a higher price while it would be to (sic) expensive to buy the “Homer” birds at from $1.00 to $2.00 ($24.64 to $49.29) a pair they can, if the breeding is fast, be raised at no greater cost than the ordinary pigeon, and after the first outlay, the cost is no more.

Tags: 1903, Keim

California is indexed now, so it’s searchable. And this cool infographic includes celebrities who lived in California in 1940, as well as information about the times.

The Fort Dodge Chronicle: July 8, 1907

Marriage License is Granted Kalo Couple

Bride Was Probably the Youngest Ever License in Webster County, Being But Fourteen

Deputy County Clerk Lindquist has broken the record in the issuing of marriage licenses in several different ways, but this afternoon when he was called upon to issue a license to William B. Laughlin of Kalo to wed Annie May Raner of the same village, he smashed the record to small bits.

The groom confessed to having seen twenty-four winters while the bride’s age was given at fourteen. Accompanying the application for the license was a permit from the parents of the girl in which their willingness was expressed that she sould (sic) marry the young man, and the license was accordingly issued. She is probably one of the youngest brides ever licensed to wed in Webster county.

Tags: 1907, Laughlin, Lindquist, Raner

The Fort Dodge Messenger: July 7, 1906

Ellson Funeral to be Held Monday

Services at Home of Deceased’s Daughter Mrs. H.A. Jahn in the City

Interment Made at Pomeroy

The Eighteen Month’s Old Child of Mr. and Mrs. John White of Kalo Dies – The Funeral Will be Held Some Time Sunday.

The funeral of the late Peter Ellson whose death occurred Friday afternoon at 1:10 o’clock at the home of his daughter, Mrs. H.A. Jahn, will be held from the Jahn residence on 1418 1st avenue north, Monday morning at 10:00 o’clock. The body will then be taken to Pomeroy on the noon train where a brief funeral service will be held in the Swedish church of Pomeroy, interment to be made in the Swedish cemetery.

The deceased has resided in the city for some time making his home with his daughter, Mrs. H.A. Jahn, having resided in Pomeroy previously. His death wsa not wholly unexpected as he has been in poor health for some time. Death was due to complications and old age.

The eighteen months’ old child of Mr. and Mrs. White residing at Kalo died this morning after a brief illness from a complication of measles and pneumonia. The funeral will be held Sunday.

Tags: 1906, Ellson, Jahn, White

The Fort Dodge Messenger: July 7, 1906

Mayor ‘Gainst Swimmin’

Posts Sign at the River Which Warns the Small Boys to Keep Away From the Stream

The above notice posted at the river bank near the city waterworks has struck terror into the hearts of the small boys of the city who have been in the habit of taking an occasional plunge at any point along the river that their desire suggests. Complaints from residents living near the river has been the cause of hte posting of the sign, and on this occasion the mayor, though his jurisdiction usually extends only to the city limits has moved his authority line up the stream and barred the bathers entirely. The order will be strictly enforced too. The police have orders to arrest all violators.

Tags: 1906, Bennett

The Fort Dodge Messenger: July 6, 1905

More Fines for Illegal Fishing

Sac City Violators Forced to Suffer the Penalty

The Deputies as Detectives

Strangers Come to Town and Are Afterwards Found to Be Detectives  – Many Prominent Men Are Implicated in the Affair

Sac City, July 5 – Much surprise was expressed here on Monday when it was noised about that several of the prominent citizens had been arrested by state deputies acting under orders from head officials at Cedar Rapids, for illegal fishing in Wall Lake. About ten days ago several strangers came to Lake View and registered at a local hotel. They were unassuming and no one suspected they were keenly watching the shores of the lake. However, at last they made known their identity, and it resulted in the exposing of the fishermen. Those alleged to be guilty of the seining of fish from Wall Lake and arrested by the deputies are: Jas. Herring, Louis Hawks, W.A. Nuttes, and a druggist named Scott. They were taken in custody by Sheriff Tepeel and will be placed on trial soon to answer for the defense.

Tags: 1905, Hawks, Herring, Nuttes, Scott, Tepeel

The Fort Dodge Chronicle: July 5, 1907

Glorious Fourth Passed Quietly

Majority of Fort Dodge Citizens Spent Day in Cooling Shade of Nearby Woods

The glorious Fourth passed off very quietly in Fort Dodge, and during the afternoon there were fewer people to be seen on the streets than on a Sunday. During the morning hours there was considerable celebrating, but by noon the greater number of the people had sought the cooling shade of the nearby woods.

The majority of the people who left the city celebrated the day at Manson and Lehigh, both receiving large delegations, all of whom report a very pleasant time. No accidents incident to the day occurred in any of the towns in this section of the state. The banks of the Des Moines and the Lizard were well lined with fishermen, although the water was exceedingly muddy as a result of the heavy rain the night preceding.

All of the merchants in the city except the druggists, cigar dealers and news dealers closed their places all day long, the dealers in ice cream were entirely sold out of the commodity before night. All in all the day was passed very quietly and pleasantly by the people of this city, there being not even the usual minor accidents reported to mar the pleasures of the day, barring the sad drowning of Carl Intermill during the early part of the morning.

Tags: 1907, Independence Day, Intermill