Elkhart County, Indiana - Chapter with an unread heading (no. 10 of those read), 1905

If this liistory of Elkhart county had been compiled two decades ago, a consistent representation of Nappanee, with regard to its relative size and commercial importance among other Elkhart county towns and cities, avouIcI have given its history a place in the chapter on " smaller centers.'" But so rapidly has this phenomenal caiter of population in the southwest corner of our county forged to the front in respects of population, business activity, and industrial resources, as well as the various other phases of urban life, that Nappanee desen-es separate consideration under a distinct capitular title as one of the three chief centers of this count}-. To celebrate the thirty odd years of Nappanee's prosperous existence Air. G. N. Murray, the well known editor of the Nappanee Nezi's, has just compiled a comprehensive history of the citv which he has kindly furnished for publication, in its essential points, in this work.

.\ clean town morally, socially and religiously. A town with beautiful shaded streets and well kept lawns, with many handsome homes, and more miles of cement sidewalk than any small town in the state, and creditable business bouses and hotels: a to\\n where farmers can sell their produce, grain and stock, and buy from merchants who carry up-to-date stocks of goods in all the various commercial lines, as well as building materials and wholesale manufactured products. A town with ten churches, of Sunday-schools, of good public schools, of places of amusement, a town of industrious and sober mechanics, of publicspirited citizens who work together unselfishly to improve the community in which they live; a town with all the modem benefits of banking, of railroad, telegraph, telephone, electric lights and water works and pure water. A town with many large fraternal and insurance orders, and courteous, well-read professional men. A town in the midst of the most fertile farming regions in the middle west, where crops can be and are so varied that a total failure or farmers' " famine" is unknown; where energetic, industrious farmers own beautiful homes, well nourished lands and enjoy all the privileges of city life, and yet in touch with the health-giving influences of the country. A town in touch with the great onion lands of the state - lands which have within a few years been transformed from a marsh to garden. .V town, the youngest in Elkhart county, yet the third in size and importance commercially and political!}", with a population in the year 1905, just thirty-one years after the first plat was made, of two thousand seven hundred souls. Such, says Mr. Murray, is the Modern Nappanee.

Nappanee is not only in the midst of a most thriving agricultural country but the town has distanced in commercial and manufacturing enterprise and importance all her neighboring country trading points, and is at present only rivaled by the cities, in the center of whicli circle she is happily situated as the medium whereby farming lands and town property is advanced in value. The county-seat, Goshen, is seventeen miles to the northeast; Elkhart, the largest city in the C(junty, to the north eighteen miles; Mishawaka and South Bend, twenty-four and twenty-eight miles to the northwest: Plymouth, twenty-two miles to the northwest ; and Warsaw twenty-two miles to the southeast. This circle of cities is made up of county seats, excepting Elkhart and Mishawaka. Thus Nappanee becomes an important factor commercially and socially to St. Joseph, Marshall and Kosciusko counties, from which counties people come to trade, as well as a political factor in her own, Elkhart county, on whose extreme southern border the town is situated. Nappanee's corporation is one mile square and the south corporation line is on the county"? border line with Koscmsko county, three and onehalf miles from the ^Marshall cc:)unt\- line and about the same distance from St. Joseph county. Alain street in Nappanee, running north and south, divides Locke and Union townships in Nappanee. Those older towns some eight or ten miles ilistant, which were once competitive points for Nappanee's merchants - Milford, Bremen, Wakarusa and Bourbon - are now no longer drawing factors from this vicinity, so rapid has been the growth of Najjpanee and the care exercised by her people in keeping in touch with the farming community.

There is considerable interest in the early history of Nappanee. The early settlers are here now, and with them their children and grandchildren. The inception of the town followed the construction of the

Chicago division of the Baltimore & Ohio Raih-oad in 1S73. The first station house was tliat now occupied li_\- the Unger miUinery rooms and stood ahout where the stock pens are nr.w located. Henry Ehy was the first station agent, he anil his hrother (ieorge residing at Locke. Mr. Eby also had the first goods on sale here, occupying room in the station house, which stood in the edge of the timljer. The original town site was laid out on the farms of and jjy Messrs. Daniel Aletzler. John Culp. jr.. and Henry Stahly. Sr., about the middle of December, 1874, and l<its were ofi^ered for sale. The present Dietrich corner was laid out in -i clearing or " deadening " with tall timb«- standing here and there. This station was then called Locke Station. The railroad officials called the interested parties together to select a name. .Vll the names suggested were not acceptable to the railroad people, as they were similar or alike to some <jther station on the line. George Eby was in the council and he suggested Xappanee, an Indian name. This was rejected b\ those interested, though agreeable to the railroad people, who then said that it should remain Locke Station. \Mien the town was surveyed and the proposition for a j^ostoffice eventually came up the name Xappanee was selected as previously suggested, there already being a Locke, and the railroad people at once adopted the new name, spelling it Napanee. When it was adopted b\- the postoffice department at \\'ashington the second " p " was added.

The B. & O. Railroad seemed then to have been the onh inducement f(jr people to buy these lots, for there were no other natural advantages aside from the distance from other trading points. Notwithstanding that the town was laid out on the " water shed " - the highest point of ground in this part of the country - the water on the north side of Market street finding its way into the ( ireat Lakes and the water on the south side of Market street flowing on to the Gulf via the Kankakee, the early home-seeker found considerable water on the " shed." The town site was closely bordered by the forest on the southeast, and swamp ash prevailed along the willows and huckleberry bushes on portions of the town lots. There was an abundance of timber adjacent. In fact Messrs. J. C. Mellinger and B. F. Myers located a sawmill here in 1873, prior to the time of laying out the town, the mill standing where the M. E. parsonage now is. However, these gentlemen resided in Locke, a then prosperous village two and a half miles north and west, at the time the town was platted in 1874. L^p to January, 1875. a large number of lots had been sold, but no one had attempted to erect a dwell- ing thereon nr to enter the new tnwn as a citizen. There was no road south of the puhhc square then. It was anything but an inviting proposition. F.ut earl\- in that January C. D. Volkmann. at present local macliinist ami l)oiler-maker. was looking for a location to begin anew the battle f(M- this world's goods, having lost his dwelling in a New Paris fire. The oniv lots witliin his then financial reach were lots ^,7 ^I'lfl 38 in the John Culp, Jr., (iriginal plat. .\ now rusty ddcument drawn by the late Robert H. W'alburn under date of Januaiy 1 1, 1875, in the form of a mortgage contract, shows that Mr. Volkmann came into possession of the two lots by paying twenty dollars cash and an agreement tn pay a balance of sixty dollars. He obtained these lots on a promise to erect a house and move his family to the new town site. .\ few days after found Mr. Volkmann erecting the first dwelling house e\er built in Nappanee, assisted bv his Ijrother-in-law, b^li Holderman. The weather was below zero and they worked b}- a rail fire. On Februar_\- 3 following he moved his family into the little house, thus becoming the " oldest inhabitant " of Nappanee l\v actual settlement on the then town site. In front of the house was a wh.eat field, in the rear was a frog pond. In the meanwhile he and his brother-in-law opened a blacksmith shop un one lot. Another industry to enter the town was a planing mill owned by the iate Joseph Strohm. This, together with the sawmill, was the early beginning of the large consolidated industr}- of the present, John D. and Frank Coppes as young men beginning the sawmill work here on the Mellinger mill in 1873, and afterward becoming financially interested, buying the Myers' interest and finally absorbing the Strohm planing mill in 1879. Two years later Samuel D. Coj^pes, the present tenker, joined hands w-ith his brothers and their brother-in-law, Mr. Mellinger, who in 1884 disposed of his interest, and the firm name became Coppes Brothers & Zook, and continued success brought consolidation of growing interests and the ])resent name of Coppes, Zook & Mutschler Company.

In the meanwhile other industries followed and mercantile interests exjjanded as the country became cleared up and the town grew. After a short period of about fourteen years (short when compared with the experiences of hundreds of towns). Nappanee outgrew her township garb and assumed afifairs municipal.

The town government will be somewhat changed under the latest laws governing cities and towns. But up to and at the i)re.sent time it is governed by a board of four trustees elected b\- the people of the entire corporation. Likewise, is a town clerk, a marshal and a treasurer elected. The l3oard of town trustees in 1905 is as follows: Charles Klaus, William Pollock. John Hartman and William Miller. The town clerk is O. G. Reinoehl; town treasurer. H. E. Coppes; town marshal, George Weyburu, and merchant night officer, Lee Hare.

Municipal improvement has kept pace with business dex'elopment. The water and lighting system is a matter of pride to the citizens, and since the condition of streets, the supply of wholesome and abundance of water, and hght for puljlic and domestic purposes are among the features of a town which are first considered by the prospective citizen, Nappanee is fortunate in having gi\-en attention to these improvements at an early stage in her career. The water supplj- of Nappanee is pumped from a depth of one hundred and fifty-nine feet. To obtain adequate pressure for fire protection and other purposes the standpipe has been carried up one hundred and sixteen feet, above which is a steel tank, only recently placed in position, with a capacity of seventyfive thousand gallons. The pressure is fifty-four pounds to the square inch. To light the tdwn about twenty-five large arc lights are maintained, and over two thousand incandescent bulbs. Economy and efficiency are both promoted by having the water works and electric light plant aimbined intO' practically one institution, in one building and under the same management. Those in active control of this municipal industry are Joseph E. S])icer. electrician, and John Pfefferle. engineer.

Usually the first question asked about a country town by onfe who wishes to bring up a family therein is : " What is the character of its schools?" Among those institutions of which Nappanee is proud and Avhich have made an impression on the outside world, so to speak, are the pubbc schools. Every town and hamlet has its public schools, to be sure. But the educational facilities are far from being equal. In this respect Nappanee stands among the best. The Nappanee schools have not always been what they are now, but they have always been abreast of the growth and prosperity of the town and its best endeavors, until at the present time they liave forged ahead of many educational institutions in more i)retentious cities and towns than Nappanee.

For the past ten years Professor S. W. Baer, at the head of the schools, with a competent corps of teachers numbering ten at the present time, has devoted his time and energy to promoting the edu- cational facilities of the Nappanee schools and with great success. He retires from school work this season. The Nappanee high school was organized in September, 1895, the beginning of Professor Baer's suijerintendenc}', with a four years' course. In 1898 the school was given its first commission from the state. The commission was renewed in 1902 and again in 1905. This commission authorizes the .superintendent of schools to certify pupils for admission to the \'arious state colleges. In 1904 the h.igh school was put upon the diploma list for the Uni\ersity of Michigan. Northwestern University, the University of Cincinnati, Ohio, and Ohio Wesleyan University. Delaware. Ohio. Besides the state colleges and the above named universities the graduates of the Nappanee high school are admitted without examination to De Pauw University, I'ranklin College, Wabash College, Butler University, Earlham College, in fact all the higher institutions of learning both state and denominational in the state of Indiana. During the history of the high school there have gone forth from its halls eighty-four graduates, forty-four girls and forty boys. The opening of the September term brings to the schools a new superintendent in the person of Professor Charles F. Miller, of North Manchester, an educator of broad experience and recognized ability. The board of education is comprised of two manufacturers and one professional man : Frank Coppes. president: David F. Miller, secretary: Dr. \\'illar(l A. Price, treasurer.

Nappanee is a city with twelve hundred church members and eleven hundred and eighty-seven Sunday-school attendants, and in its religious life is nO' less progressive than as a commercial and industrial center.

The Methodist Episcopal church was founded here in 1874; members enrolled at this time two hundred and forty : services everv Sunday: Hanson C. Smith, pastor. Sunday-school enrollment one hundred and ninety. A\'. E. W'eldy, superintendent.

The Mennonite church was founded here in 1870. Its present membership is one hundred. Services are held every alternate Sundav evening and alternate Sunday morning. D. Burkholder and N. Metzler, pastors. Sunday-school enrollment one hundred and fortv: Frank j\Iaust, superintendent.

Aniish Alennonite church founded here in 1875 with thirteen members; present enrolhnent one hundred and four; ser\ices alternate Sundays, mornings and evenings; James H. McGowan, pastor. Sundayschool membership one hundred and eight, John H. Walters, superintendent.

The German Baptist ( Dnnkard ) cliurch was founded here in 1883; present membership one hundred and sexenty ; services every Sunday ; David Metzler, pastor. Membership of Sunday-school one hundred and seventy, Charles Reed, superintendent.

The Progressive Brethren was founded here in 1888: present membership two hundred and ten; services ever)- Sunday; H. B. Flora, pastor. Sundav-school enrollment one hundred and eighty. James Cosper. superintendent.

The Evangelical church was founded here in 1891 ; present enrolled membership one hundred and ten; serxices every Sunday night and alternate Sunday mornings; Clifford D. Rarey. pastor. Sunday-school membershi]) one hundred and twent\'-f(un'. P. E. Reinggenberg, superintendent.

The Lutheran church was founded here in igoi ; membership' forty; serx'ices every Sunday; A. L. Boliek. pastor. Membership of Sundayschool sixty-nine; James B. Long, superintendent.

Idle Presbyterian church was founded here in September. i8gy; present membershi]) forty ; services every Sunday ; Campbell L. ]\IacKay, pastor. Enrollment of Sunday-school forty-three, Arthur A. Laughlin, superintendent. This is the only congregation without a church building, liut plans are already adopted and a church w ill lie built this summer at a cost of from five to six thousand dollars. .\t this time services are held in the Auditorium.

Mennonite Brethren in Christ cliurch lias a membership of sixtyfive; ser^-ices every Sunday morning and alternate Sunday evenings; C. K. Curtis, pastor. Sunday-school membershi]) fifty. Frank Baker, su])erinten{lent.

Elsewdiere we have spoken of the princijjal manufacturing interests of Na])panee. Some of the business and professional men and firms of the ciiv in 1905 are as follows: Enos Newcomer, jeweler; S. \V. Craige. grocer; N. A. Lehman, furniture and undertaking; Howenstein. Burbach