Howard County, Indiana - The whole text, 1909 (part 2 of 9)

The boundary line and all lands west of that line were surveyed in 1838. Because of the fact, that the seven mile strip was first surveyed and the lands placed on the market, the first settlements were in this part of the county. The remainder of the county was not surveyed until 1846-7. In this sun-ey Benjamin Harden, of Johnson county, Indiana, ran out the range and township lines; that is, he blocked out the lands into districts six miles square. Van Xess, of Logansport, subdivided these squares into sections one mile square, and on each side of each section at the middle point a corner was established subdividing the section into quarter sections. The whole systein of range lines, township lines and section lines is in accordance with directions from the general land office at Washington. These general instructions for the sur\-ey of public lands in Indiana required that all lands should be located with reference to two principal lines - one running east and west and called the Base Line, and the other running north and south and called the First Principal Meridian. The Base Line is in the soutliern part of the state and tlie First Principal Meridian is slightly west of the middle of the state and is five miles west of Howard county. They intersect each other in the southern part of Orange county.

The township lines run east and west, parallel to the Base Line and are six miles apart. The first six mile strip north of the Base Line is in township i, north; the next six mile strip is in township 2. north, and so on north. Kokomo is chiefly in township 24 north. Meridians or range lines run north and south, parallel with the First Principal Meridian and are six miles apart. The first six mile strip east of the First Principal Meridian is in range i, east, and so on east. A congressional township is one of these six miles square tracts bounded on the east and west by range lines and on the north and south by township lines. A congressional township is a square territory containing thirty-six square miles or thirty-six sections. The sections in a township are numbered by beginning at the section in the northeast corner and numbering that i , and the next one west 2, the next one west 3, and thus to the west line, the last one being 6, and then beginning at the west end of the next row south calling the first one 7, the next east 8 and thus until the east side is reached and then starting at the east end of the next row south and going west and thus back and forth until the south side is reached and the last section is number 36.

From the organization of the county until the suiwey of the lands in 1846-7, there had been a large incoming tide of settlers, and the county was rapidly settled ; but no one was able to tell where his lines were and two or more settlers were liable to make improvements on the same tract of land, and it actually occurred that some failed io get their improvements on the right tract of land. There was mi)re or less confusion in these first settlements.

The pre-emption law was passed in congress, August 3, 1846. After its passage settlers rapidly endeavored to secure homes in accordance with its provision. The usual procedure in a claim was iirst to select a building site, then to cut down the saplings and make some brush heaps and then to build a shanty ten or twelve feet square of poles and cover it with bark or clapboards, and sleep in it at least one night.

It was his claim then and he could go back to move his family and no one else could "jump" his claim. Some people did quite a business in taking and selling claims. They would take as desirable a claim as they could and make some improvement, and then sell out to a new comer and then take another and make other improvements and sell again. A new comer often was willing to pay fifty dollars or one hundred dollars rather than go back into marshy level lands away from the rolling lands along the streams of water.

That the public lands might become the homes of actual settlers certain improvement and evidences of intention to settle upon them were required in addition to the purchase price before the issuance of patents by the government for the lands. The land offices for filing claims to these lands were at Indianapolis for all south of township 24; at Winamac for all north of township 23, and west of range line 5 ; at Ft. Wayne for all east of range line 5 and north of township 23.

The old state constitution before its i-evision in 1850, attempted to make the civil township identical with the congressional township. There were then three township tmstees for each township instead of one as now.

By law the sixteenth section of land in each congressional township was set apart for school purposes and when sold the money was to go into the pennanent school fund.

Reference has already been made to the fact that at the first election held in the county, the result was a tie, twelve Democrat and twelve Whig votes; that was in the presidential election of 1840, and was in the portion of the county west of the boundary line. In the fall of 1847 Dr. Corydon Richmond defeated Dr. J. H. Kern (father of John W. Kem), by seventeen votes. Adam Clark, Democrat, was elected county clerk in 1854 and again in 1858. In the election of 1858 the county was so evenly balanced that the result of the election of county auditor hinged on the admission of the vote of Honey Creek township. If the vote of Honey Creek township was counted in the vote of Howard county, James A. Wildman, Republican, was elected : if the vote of Honey Creek was not counted, Peter Hersleb. Democrat, was elected. Honey Creek was attached to Howard county and that gave Wildman, Republican, a majority. The political campaign of i860 was the most intense of any in its history. The Democrats were disposed to concede a small majority in the county. Certain wagers were made by local Democrats that Morton, Republican, would have a majority not exceeding three hundred in the county over Hendricks, Democrat. Morton's majority of more than six hundred was a mighty surprise. The county since then has been overwhelmingly and uniformly Republican, except in two instances, a Democrat having been twice elected sur\eyor.

Since the county has taken fixed and permanent form it has been eleven miles wide and twenty-seven miles long and has an area of two hundred and ninety-five and one half square miles. Cass and Miami counties bound it on the north, Grant on the east, Tipton and Clinton on the south and Clinton and Carroll on the west.

The natural drainage of the county is good ; \Yi\d Cat flows through tlie entire county from east to west ; on the south side Kokomo creek and Little \\"ild Cat creek and Honev creek flow into

\\'ild Cat and thus drain or afford outlets for drains for the south part of the county ; On the north side Lilly creek, Pipe creek and Deer creek drain or aft'ord outlets for drains for that part of the countv.

Pioneer life as it existed in Howard county in the forties has long since completely ceased to exist. Circumstances and conditions which produced and called it forth have passed away, and it is difficult now to convey an intelligible idea of it.

The pioneers of that early time in our county history were mostly persons of limited worldly possessions, who were looking for opportunities to secure homes for themselves and their families. Many of them were young people, or fathers and mothers with families of young people for whom they wished to give a start in life by getting possession of land while it was cheap in price.

Having heard of excellent lands out in the Indian country that were either on the market or soon would be, and that by going and taking a claim, making certain improvements and paying almost a nominal price each would come into the ownership of forty acres, eighty acres, or one hundred and sixty acres of land that he could improve into a good fann home in a few years. Leaving wife to look after things while he was gone to hunt a new home, the homeseeker went out, sometimes alone and on foot, sometimes on horseback and sometimes two or more would go together, pro\-iding themselves with wagon and team and a regular camping outfit. After selecting the site of the future home and taking the necessaiw

Paths Of Early Days

There were no traveled highways then. There were a few Indian traces, or paths, leading to the principal points on the outside of the Reserve. These led to Noblesville on the south, to Frankfort on the southwest, to Burlington and Delphi on the west, to Logansport on the northwest, and Peru on the north ; to Marion and \Vabash and other points on the northeast. Many of the early settlers on the south side came from Hamilton and Boone counties by way of the Noblesville trace. The settler, with his wagon and team, more frecjuently an ox team, must of necessity cut out his own wagon road and so made slow progress. He carried a limited housekeeping outfit, a stock of provisions, enough to last until the family could be settled in the new home and he could return for a fresh supply.

This new home was a "cabin" in the clearing. The timber was cut away on the building site so that there would be no danger from trees blowing down or falling on the cabin. The cabin was built of round logs, not dressed, cut from the trees round about the future home. The ends of the logs were notched and saddled so that they would fit upon each other at the house corners ; chunks were placed in the spaces or cracks between the logs and then daubed with mud, the mud being pressed into place and smoothed dnwn with the bare hand, the finished job showing the finger prints. The tlo<_irs were laid on sleepers made out of round 'logs hewn off on one side with a broad-axe, and were of puncheons, or thick slabs split from ash, oak, hickory or elm logs and dressed ofif with a broad-axe. They had no ceilings, but lofts instead, supported by

Cabin Furnishings

The chimney had pounded earth jambs and packed mud hearths, and sticks and clay upper part. It is said that one of the last thing-s of their evening vigil before retiring was to go out and inspect the chimney to see that it was not on fire. The fireplaces of those old-time chimneys were capacious affairs and held quite a pile of wood. In the evening, after the chores were done, the family sat about the blazing, crackling fire of logs and smaller pieces of wood in these huge fireplaces and enjoyed to the full the brightness, the warmth and the cheerfulness of the open fire in their oneroom house. These open fireplaces wei-e not only the heating plant, but also the cooking range of the home. The patient wife and mother, with her scant store of cooking utensils, cooked the meals of the family on the hearth with live coals shoveled from the fireplace. The blazing fires also furnished much of the light of the house, making a light far superior to the tallow candle. The door or doors were in keeping with the rest of the house - made of thin slabs, hewn smooth and hung with wooden hinges and fastened with a wooden latch. A string was fastened to the latch and was hung on the outside by passing the end through a small hole above the latch, so that the end would be suspended on the outside. At night, when all were in, the string would be pulled in and no one on the outside could lift the latch, and thus the door was locked to outsiders. A\^hen the latch string hung out neighbors deemed it a useless formality to ring the door bell, but pulled the string, lifted the latch and walked in. Hence the origin of the hospitable exclamation, "]My latch string hangs out."

They drew the water from wells with a windlass, a sweep or a pole with a natural h(iok to it. A sweep was a pole mounted in the fork of an upright pole set in the ground, with a bucket fastened to one end of the mounted pole by a rope long enough to let the bucket to the water when that end of the mounted pole was drawn down ; the outer end of the pole, being heavier, helped to lift the bucket of water.

Clearing The Land

Having erected his cabin and a iTide stable the pioneer at once set about clearing the land for a garden and a patch of corn. This was done by cutting the smaller trees and the bushes and piling them about the larger trees and burning them, thus killing the larger trees at once and destroying the shade. Breaking the ground was done with a jumping shovel, a shovel-plow, with a short, thick beam and an upright cutter extending to the point of the shovel. The ground was full of green roots, and it took strength and patience to do what at best was a poor job of breaking. The corn was planted by hand, covered with a hoe and cultivated by hand with a single shovel plow and the hoe - mostly with the latter. Later clearings were made by first deadening the timber, that is, girdling the trees and allowing them to stand two or three years or longer for the timber to die and dry out so that it would burn better in the heaps. When it was ready to clear much of the timber would be cut down and burned, chopped or sawed into suitable lengths for rolling, and at an appointed day there would be a log-rolling, to which all the neighbors would be invited. The men would come, bringing their neat handspikes, w^ell seasoned and strong. .\ yi)ke of oxen was nearly always present to assist in getting heavy logs into place. Most logs, however, were rolled or carried by the men with their spikes, and many feats of strength in lifting were shown.

The men always worked with a wiU and logs were rapidly piled in heaps. After the logs were piled the man and his boys, sometimes the girls, piled the trash and smaller logs on the heaps and burned them. Stooping and picking trash all day long and burning logheaps in smoking clearings deserve to have a place in the class of the hardest and most disagreeable of all work. The early fields had many standing dead trees and these continued to fall, generally in the crop season, for several years, and always were very much in the way. All rows were the proverbial "stumpy row to hoe." The hoe was the indispensable agricultural tool - a heavy, clumsy tool, not suited to make the boy on the farm enthusiastic in his calling.

Agricultural Implements

The Other cultivating tool was a heavy single shovel plow, sometimes known as the "bull-tongue," which required three trips to the row to plow out the weeds between the rows. Planting was done bv crossing off the field one way with this single shovel plow into furrows the width of com rows and then making furrows crossing these with the same plow, followed by a person dropping the com into the crosses; dropping the com was often done by a woman, as being light work, and the corn was covered by men and boys with hoes, generally three persons did the covering. Thus the planting force was one man to lay off the ground into rows, one person to drop the corn, and three with hoes to cover. Com was the first crop grown ; soon, however, wheat growing was attanpted. This was done by a person carrying a part of a sack of wheat across the shoulders and sowing it broadcast with the hand as he walked. He was followed, if in the corn, with a man with his single shovel plow, pulling down the weeds (the weeds grew luxuriantly in the new ground) and partially plowing under the wheat; if on ground that had been Ijroken for wheat, with an A harrow. Because of the fertihty of the fresh new soil this method of farming produced good crops.

The harvesting- of the wheat was done with reap hooks by the men and women, for the women often helped in the wheat harvest. With one hand they seized a handful of grain, and with the other they cut it off with the reap hook. Each bound his or her sheaves. This was a slow, laborious mode of harvesting. The coming of the grain cradle a few years later was hailed as a great advance. When one man cut the grain and threw it into swaths, ready for another man to gather up and bind that was thought up-to-date farming. The threshing was done either with a flail or by spreading on a threshing floor and tramping with horses until the kernels were loosened from the chaff. The flail was a short pole or spike, with a shorter pole or spike fastened to the end of it with a stout withe or thong, and required an expert to use it without danger to the user's head, for in the overhead swing of the flail the suspended end, which was intended to hit the grain with its full length, was liable to make a head-on collision with the user's head.

After the separation of the straw from the wheat and chaft" by forking, the wheat and chaff were run through a fanning mill and the chaff blown out. It was all hand work from start to finish - slow, tedious and laborious, and allowed the growing of limited crops only.

Corn

Com was the staple crop of the early settlers. It was the food crop of their stock and largely for themselves. Corn-bread, mush and milk were their principal articles of diet.

manufactured from boulders by flattening and rougbing the surface and fixed to turn one face on the other. This mill crashed the com as it passed between the faces of the boulders, the upper one revolving on the lower. Nathan C. Beals, who lived not far northeast of Oakford in very early times, had one.

The clothing of that time was also largely of home manufacture. The farmer grew flax, which he pulled and rotted and scutched. The good housewife spun the tow on her wheel and often wove it herself. The linen gannents were possibly a little rough and coarse, but were soon bleached into snowy whiteness. The farmer also had a flock of sheep and grew the wool that was converted into home-made woolen goods. The wool was scoured and picked at home, the men and boys helping on rainy days. Ofttimes there were wool pickings, to which the neighbor women were invited. These were social occasions and were real red-letter days in the social life of the community. After the wool was picked it was taken to a woolen mill and made into rolls, and then brought back home to be spun into yarn. The yarn was dyed or colored, and some of it was woven into cloth for the clothing of the men and women and the boys and girls of the home, and the other part was twisted into yarn for stockings and socks for all, and then would begin a season of knitting. The women would rise up early in the morning to knit and would sit up late at night for the same purpose. \\^oolsey-linsey dresses and jeans coats and pants were the fashionable clothing of the time. Not only was the cloth for the clothing home-made, but the ^-arious garments were home-made and hand-made also, for there were no homes into which a sewing machine had come. All the sewing was done bv hand.

The wives and mothers and daughters, too, of the pioneer period, were very industrious, for in addition to the various kinds of work ah'eady referred to which they did, they also attended to the household cares, the rearing of the families, the milking of the cows and a great number of other things, as they presented themselves. They were brave, uncomplaining burden bearers, who cheerfully and well did their full share in transforming the wilderness into a country of pleasant homes. We shall do well if we always pay loving tribute to their memory.

Reference has already been made to the effect that the first settlers sought homes on the rolling lands along the watercourses. These lands were soon taken, and the later comers had to go back into the level lands for their homes. These lands being level and covered with fallen timber held the water so that it did not flow away readily, and the counti"y was thus rendered swampy and wet for much of the year.

Searching For A Building Site

The settler, after looking about and finding a knoll sufficiently dry for building purposes, would locate. He had a double work to do in clearing his land and in making surface drains or ditches to cari-y ofif the water. There were certain natural channels, which, when the logs and other obstructions were removed, and were deepened and straightened, served as fair drains. At first open channels were thrown out in the fields to permit the water to flow away. These were so much in the way that the farmers cut ditch timbers out of the oak trees, then in the way, and placed them in these drains after deepening them, covering- the stringers or side pieces with slabs or cross headers, and then filhng in with dirt, thus making- good underground drains. The benefit was so marked that the farmers rrtshed the construction of wooden drains, cutting the channels or ditches themselves and having the boys to saw the ditch timbers with the old plain-toothed saws without drags. There never was a man who remembered the time he spent as a boy in sawing ditch timber except with the utmost aversion.

These swampy, wet lands when drained were by far the richest and most productive lands. The soil was black and deep, and when underdrained dried off quickly and yielded immense crops. After a few years the timber ditches began to decay and it was necessary to replace them with new ones. Meanwhile a good tile clay had been found in many places and tile mills and kilns were turning out red tile in large numbers. Farmers, therefore, turned their attention to putting in permanent drains of red tile. Tile drainage has been continued since by putting in regular drainage systems, using large sized tiles, until now the wet lands of Howard county are no longer wet lands. Because large areas have needed a common drainage and many farms have needed the same drainage system, the county has constructed many excellent public drains and drainage systems.

Public Dr.Mns

The first public drains were large open ditches passing in a meandering way through farms and rendering not a little land waste, the ditch channels growing up each year with bushes and weeds, and requiring frequent cleaning out. Many of these have since had one or more rows of large sized tiles laid in them and covered up so that fanning operations are now carried on over them. There are no lands in the county so low and wet that they

The pioneers of the county had vast forests to contend with. Almost every acre had one or more large yellow poplar trees upon it. Much of the land had many large black walnut trees; there were many fine gray ash trees and almost numberless large oak trees of the different varieties, while the common kinds of beech, sugar, elm, sycamore, lynn and other kinds were so plentiful it was a problem how to get them out of the way. In the veiy early pioneer days there were no saw-mills and no market whatever for even the choicest of the timber. Large poplar, wralnut, ash and oak trees were made into rails that a few years later could have been sold for many dollars. \\'here the early farmer wanted a field he deadened the large walnuts and poplars to destroy their shade, and allowed them to waste away, to blow down and then to be burned or worked into rails. The other timber was cut down and rolled into heaps and burned.

In this, our time of growing scarcity of timber, the acts of the pioneer settlers seem to have been wanton waste. They wanted clear fields rather than timber. A few years later, with the coming of the railroads and the building of steam saw-mills, quite a traffic in lumber sprang up. An immense amount of walnut, poplar and ash lumber was shipped to Cincinnati and other points. Saw-mill men and others bought of the owners of woodland where the timber had not yet been disturbed either for a lump sum all their poplar and walnut timber good enough for the saw, or else bought the trees singly, paying as high as five dollars for a good, straight, sound, yellow poplar thirty inches in diameter and tall enough for four twelve-foot sticks or logs. Some choice walnuts sold for eight dollars. Farmers derived quite a revenue from this source, and it was a time just previous to the Civil war when mbney was very scarce and hard to get. Later timber sold for higlier prices. It is doubtful if at any time the sale of timber in Howard county ever met a more needed want than in the few years preceding and the early years of the Civil war period.

Early Roads

The early roads of the county were made by felling the trees along the line of the proposed highway, cutting off so much of the tree as remained in the roadway, rolling or dragging it to the roadside ; so that the new road was full of stumps and it rec|uired a careful and skillful driver to miss the stumps ; mts and roots could not be avoided. Swamps had to be bridged. This was done by cutting logs of various sizes, long aiough for a single track, and placing them crosswise of the roadway and side by side the width of the swamp and throwing some dirt upon them to fill up the uneven surface. This dirt soon wore away and there remained the corduroy road. How rough and jolty it was to ride over this kind of a road in a farm wagon with no spring seat is not in the power of language to tell.

The pioneers did not, however, have as much use for rciids as the modem inhabitants. They did imich of their traveling on foor, a great deal on horseback, and not so much with wagons. It was no unusual thing for men to make long journeys on foot. Men who had moved to the vicinity of Kokomo from near Noblesville frequently visited the people of their former home, walking both ways ; going one day and returning another. The usual mode of going about in the settlement, either to the village, to the country church or to the neighbor, near or far, was to walk, mostly in paths through the woods.

Traveling On Horseback

The farmer usually went to mill on horseback with his grist in a sack swung across the horse's back. The preacher went from one preaching appointment to another on horseback ; the attorneys and the judges went to the various places of holding court on horseback and the physicians answered the call of the sick in the same manner, with his saddle bags swung across the horse's back, before or behind him. The wagon was used to carry heavy loads and was frequently drawn by a yoke of oxen. All the methods of getting about were slow and tedious. An ordinary trip in those days required two days - one going and one coming. If done in one day it was far into the night when finished.

Education

The pioneers did not neglect the education of their children. They provided as best they could log school-houses with rude slab seats and scant school supplies. The early schools were subscription schools and had a three-months' term in the year. The textbooks were the elementary spelling books, readers and Talbot's arithmetic. The master taught his system of writing. The only classes were the spelling and reading classes. Each worked alone in arithmetic and writing. When out of copy the master set a new one. When one stalled in arithmetic, he or she went to the master for help. The old-time schoolhouse had no blackboard and the lesson could not be illustrated by blackboard exercises. In fact, there were no arithmetic lessons assigned ; each worked on as fast as he could toward the back of the book.

A spelhng school was held in the evening about once a week, at which nearly everybody in the district would be present and engage in the spelling contests. Sometimes a neighboring school would be present and there would be quite a rivalry as to which could excel in correct spelling. The contests took various forms, but the real test was as to who could spell the most words without misspelling one. In most cases those present were divided by two persons selected to "choose up," who alternated with each other in selecting from those present the ones they wanted on their side, until all were chosen; then each captain would take his company to the opposite side of the house, and standing in line, endeavor to spell the other side down first. The teacher or other person would pronounce the first word to one side, starting with the captain, and the second word to the captain of the other side, alternating sides and going down the line to the end, or foot, and beginning again at the captain or head. Whoever missed a word took his seat and did not spell again until the contest was finished. Whiche\-er side kept a speller on the floor longest won.

At first the pioneers had not church houses, but religious ser\-- ices were held in the homes of the settlers. Preaching sendee was conducted by a traveling evangelist who happened along that way and stopped a while to hold meetings. There were also ministers among these early settlers, who combined the work of founding a home in the new country with that of preaching, working during the week and preaching on Sunday. Several religious denominations sent workers into these new settlements, so that they were soon supplied with religious services.

Wild Game

The woods all about the liomes of the early settlers abounded in wild game, deer, wild turkeys, raccoons and squirrels, and it is said that it was no unusual thing for the church-going people to carry a rifle along for "emergencies."

The life of the pioneer was one of privation and endurance. Bravely and uncomplainingly, even cheerfully, they bore it. They helped each other in the time of need without the thought of pay or reward. Open-handed hospitality was on every side. The hardships of their pioneer life seemed to have united them in a common sympathy. They lived a broader, more sympathetic life than their present successors. They visited with each other freely and shared their meals and had all things more in common than now. There was less of envy and jealousy, less disposition to take an undue advantage of their neighbors than in more recent times. For the most part they were strong and hardy and the adverse conditions of their lives only seemed to make them broader and more sympathetic. Ofttimes in their struggles they would have their money all spent and would be compelled to go out into the older settled communities to earn some money with which to buy the few necessities of their lives. Much of the trading with the local merchants was done with produce of various kinds. Money was exceedingly scarce. The trade was of necessity largely barter. The local merchants traded for hides, wild meat, wild honey and anything they could take to other markets and dispose of. Oxen were largely used as the teams for work, because they were cheaper in price, could be fed and kept more cheaply than horses and were supposed to move around in the mud more easily. The pioneers had no fruit except as they hauled it into the new settlements. Howe\'er, they early planted orchards in the new country, and within a very few years

Mail In Pioneer Days

Those pioneers did not have free rural delivery of the mail at their cabin doors each day. Indeed, we are told that in those days they had no stamps nor envelopes, and that it cost eighteen and three-quarters cents to carry a letter across the state, and it was paid for when received. There were then no daily papers containing all the news of the world up to the hour of going to press, with all the latest market quotations and. delivered to all parts of the settlement on the day of publication. Instead there was a small weekly folio published at New London about 1848 and called "The Pioneer." From it we learn that the pioneers of the early times discussed the public questions of their day quite as vigorously as public questions are now discussed. The pro-slavery men and the Free- Soilers were more vigorous and forcible in enforcing their beliefs than the average modern citizen. The temperance and the antitemperance forces did not lie down together in peace.

Chills And Fever

Among the many disagreeable features of the new countrj-, and by no means the least, was the chills and fever. From midsummer to early winter ague was well-nigh universal, hardly a person escaped being a victim. There were also many cases of bilious, malarial, intermittent and other kinds of fever resulting from the swampy country and stagnant water all about. Quinine was more staple than flour. The doctors were more than busy administering quinine, Dover's powders and calomel. In many farriilies there were hardly enough well ones to nurse the sick ones. It is said that it was as much a custom among the people then to get ready for the ague and fever as it is for us now to prepare for winter. Happily, with the draining of the country this condition has been eradicated. ^^'ith tlie passing of the conditions which produced the hardsliips and disagreeable features of the pioneer life, the life itself passed away in its entirety. Would that the virtues could have remained without its disadvantag'es and unpleasant parts.

The early schools of Howard county were very poorly equipped in every way. The houses were the primitive log cabins furnished with slab benches with no backs for seats; for writing desks thei-e was a broad board or boards fastened to the wall sloping sufficiently high for the larger pupils to write upon ; the smaller ones did not need it. The room was lighted by a narrow window or windows extending along the entire side. The house wam warmed by wood fires in the huge fireplace, the teacher and the larger pupils cutting the wood morning and noons.

Those were the days of subscription schools, that is. the parents or guardians subscribed a given number of pupils at so much each for the school temi, usually three months. The teacher ordinarily boarded with dififerent families in the district, spending a week in one family, the next week ini another, and so on until he had passed around, the board was a part of his compensation. The teachers as a class were not very learned. Many of them had not secured any training in grammar, and physiology was an unknown science to all except the most learned doctors. Arithmetic and spelling were their specialties. In arithmetic they were especially strong in single and double rules of three, and yet had they been asked to define proportion it would have been a dead language to them. Decimal fractions and square and cube roots were beyond them. As was the custom of the times they were past masters in the use of the rod or rather the long, green switches cut from tlie neighboring trees. A big switcli was an indispensable part of their ec|uipment for the day's work. They were workers and required the pupils to work.

The contrast between the school system or want of system of that time, and the present is very great. It must not be supposed that this difference is wholly due to the different conditions of a new and older settlement. These did affect it to a greater or lesser e.xtent, but the school system in Indiana prior to the taking effect of the revised constitution in 1851 was quite different from that in force since.

The Old System

Under the old system there were three trustees instead of one as now, yet the three had less power and latitude in the management of the schools than the one has now.

The civil township was required to conform as nearly as possible to the congressional for the reason that the general government had given to the state the sixteenth section in each congressional township for school purposes and the township trustees were given the control and management of the school lands and the funds arising from the sale of the school lands. The school lands could be oft'ered for sale, when five residents of the congressional township petitioned the trustees or trustee to order an election by the voters of the township on the question of offering them for sale, a township local option proposition. If a majority voted to sell they were accordingly offered for sale. Within ten years these lands had been sold realizing about twenty thousand dollars. This sum constituted the pemianent common school fund of the early years ; the interest on this fund was available for tuition purposes and any tuition fund in excess of this was raised bv a direct tuition tax. Under the old system when the trustees thought it necessary to buihl a new sclioolhouse, it was necessar)' to refer the question to the voters of the township, and if the majority voted to build, the house was built; but if the majority voted no, the house was not built. It did not matter how great was the need there was no appeal. It frequently happened under this itile that communities without a school house and with a large number of children of school age refused to vote for the building of the much needed school house. In illustration of this, this incident is vouched for by a reputable citizen. In a township in another county there was no school house. The better and more progressive citizens asked for the building of a school house, and the matter was referred to the voters of the township. A citizen with several children of school age, but none of whom had ever been in school and whose proportionate part of the cost of the house would probably have not exceeded seventy-five cents, worked all day at the polls against the building of the house and he was joined by a sufficiently large number of like spirits to defeat the school house proposition.

Free Public School System

In the matter of erecting school houses, the referendum feature was a failure and in the revised state constitution it was left out. The progressive citizenship favored a free public school system, but were opposed by a large conservative element who contented that the expenses would be burdensome and to make it practical would necessitate putting too much power in the hands of the school officers.

The general government had given the people an example of generosity in caring for the education of the people and that policy was adopted by the state: and the constitutional convention of 1850-1 which adopted our present ci:)nstituti<;in declared "knowledge and learning generally diffused throughout a community being essential to the presei-vation of a free govemmait, it shall be the duty -of the general assembly to encourage, by all suitable means, moral, -intellectual, scientific and agricultural improvement, and to provide, by law, for a general and uniform system of common schools, wherein tuition shall be without charge, and equally open to all."

That there should be a common school fund, from which there should be an interest income sufficiently large to almost insure free tuition they followed the foregoing declaration with this provision :

"The common school fund shall consist of the congressional township fund and the lands belonging thereto ; the surplus revenue fund ; the salime fund, and the lands belonging thereto ; the bank tax fund, and the fund arising from the one hundred and fourteenth section of the charter of the State Bank of Indiana ; the fund to be derived from the sale of county seminaries and the moneys and property heretofore held for such seminaries ; from the fines assessed for breeches of the penal laws of the state ; and from all forfeitures which may accrae : all lands and other estate which shall escheat to the state for want of heirs or kindred entitled to the inheritance ; all lands that have been, or may hereafter be, granted to the state where no special purpose is expressed in the grant, and the proceeds of the sales thereof, including the proceeds of the sales of the swamp lands granted to the state of Indiana by the act of congress of the twenty-eighth of September, one thousand eight hundred and fifty, after deducting the expense of selecting and draining the same; taxes on the property of corporations that may be assessed by the general assembly for common school purposes."

To pei-petuate these provisions for free tuition they provided further that. "The principal of the common school fund shall remain a perpetual fund, which may be increased, but never shall be diminished, and the income thereof shall be inviolably appropriated to

Old North College

In 1865 the legislature divided the common school fund as provided for above, taking out the congressional township school land and the money derived from the sale of such lands, making these the "congressional township school fund" and pro\iding that "it shall never be diministed in amount, the income of which, together with the taxes mentioned and specified in the first section of this act. the money and income derived from licenses for the sale of intoxicating liquors, and unclaimed fees, as provided by law, shall be denominated the "School revenue for tuition, the whole of which is hereby appropriated, and shall be applied exclusively to furnishing tuition to the common schools of the state, without any deduction for the expense of collection or disbursement."

The first section of the act referred to is "There shall be annually assessed and collected as state and county revenues are assessed and collected, sixteen cents on each one hundred dollars of taxable property, real and personal in the state, and fifty cents on each taxable poll, for the purpose of supporting a general system of common schools."

In 1875 the fees from licenses to retail intoxicating liquors were changed from this fund to the common school fund of the county where paid.

The setting apart of one section of land in each congressional township had its beginning in May, 1785, when congress passed an act for the suiwey of the Northwest Territory in which it was provided that this territory be divided into tracts six miles square called congressional townships, thus making them the units for future organization : the townships were directed to be subdivided into tracts one mile square to be called sections.

Moi.Row S History A Settled Goverxmext

In 1787 congress passed the famous ordinance for tlie organizing of a settled government for the Northwest Territory : the most important act of tlie last continental congress. It was in fact "the most notable law ever enacted by representatives of the American people," and to insure its perpetual enforcement, it was not left as a mere act of congress, which could be repealed at a subsequent session, but its six main provisions were made articles of solemn compact between the inhabitants of the territory, present and to come, and the people of the thirteen states.

Xo man was to be restricted of his liberty excepting as a punishment for crime : life, property and religious freedom were protected by just and equal laws. A clause, which several western states have copied in their constitutions, declared that "Religion, morality and knowledge being necessary to good go\-ernment schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged." To this end one section in every township was set apart for the support of common schools, and two entire townships for tb.e establishment of a university in this territoiy.

County supervisiijn has come to be what it is today through a long process of development. As early as 1818 the general assembly made it the duty of the Governor to appoint for each county a seminary trustee. The duty of this officer was almost entirely connected with the financial problem. In 1824 the law provided for the election of three trustees in each township and placed the examining of teachers and granting licenses among their duties. The examiners were school men and the meager test covered the subjects of reading, writing and arithmetic.

In 1830 the law provided for a school commissioner for each Cdunty who looked after the funds (^f the local school corporation and was elected for three \-ears.

In 1833 in addition to the school commissioner for the county and the three tmstees for the township, provision was made for the election of three sub-trustees in each district to hold office for one year. These district trustees examined applicants and employed teachers. The law of 1836 made it legal for any householder to employ a teacher in case of failure to elect district trustees. In 1837 in addition to all these officers and with only a slight modification of their duties, the circuit court was authorized to appoint annually three examiners whose duty it should be "to certify the branches of learning each applicant was qualified to teach."

Changes In School System

In 1847 Caleb Mills, state superintendent of schools, urged as an essential of the schools, efficient supervision, both state and county. The school law of 1849 abolished the office of county school commissioner, retained the three school examiners in each county and the three township trustees, but substituted one subtrustee in each district for the three formerly. This law als(i prescribed the minimum length of the school term and made the length of term of all the schools in the township unifomi.

The constitution of 1851 left the county school machinery practically as the law of 1849 left it, and so it remained until the sixties. The law of 1861 substituted one county e.xaminer foi" the three that fomierl}' held office in each county. The examiners under this was appointed by the county commissioners and held office for three years. This law made all examinations public and prohibited the granting of licenses upon private examinations. Prior to this an applicant for license could have an examination whenever he happened to find one of the examiners at home. This law further pro- vided that the examiner of each c<.ninty shall be the medium of communication between the state superintendent of public instruction and the subordinate school officers and schools; they shall also visit the schools of their respective counties as often as they may .deem it necessary during each term, for the purpose of increasing their usefulness and elevating as far as practicable to the standard of the best; advising and securing as far as practicable uniformity in their organization and management and their conformity to the law and the regulations and instructions of the state board of education and of the state superintendent of public instruction, and shall encourage teachers" institutes and associations. The law of 1861 was a great advance in the educational system of bur state.

In 1873 the office of county superintendent was created and that of examiner was abolished. This law provided that the "township trustees of the se\-eral townships shall meet at the ofifice of the county auditor of their respective counties on the first Monday of June, 1873, and biennially thereafter and appoint a county superintendent." This act did not create a new office, it merely changed the name of an old one and enlarged its powers.

In 1899 the term was extended to four years and required the holding of a thirty months' teacher's license, or a life or professional license to be eligible.

Since 1873 supen-ision of the countn,- schools has meant something in Indiana. The teachers are required to pass rigid examinations for which the questions are provided by the state board of education and the examining and grading of the manuscripts may be done by the county superintendent or the state superintendent. The county superintendent makes systematic supennsion a large part of his work. The rural schools have been graded; the standard of efii- ciency has been constantly raised ; and through the good work of the county superintendent the children are receiving advantages equal to those of the towns and cities.

The standard of granting licenses to teach in the common schools has been advanced from orthography, reading, writing and arithmetic with a private examination to a rigid public examination in orthography, reading, writing, arithmetic, geography, English grammar, physiology, United States history, scientific temperance and the literature and science of education.

A general average of eighty-five per cent, and not falling below seventy-five per cent, in any one of the ten items nor in success entitles the applicant to a twelve months' license. A general average of ninety per cent, and not falling below eighty-five per cent, in any one of the ten items nor in success entitles the applicant to twentyfour months' license. A general average of ninety-five per cent, and not falling below ninety per cent, in any one of the ten items nor in success entitles the applicant to thirty-six months' license.

Until 1852 there was much local confusion in school matters due to the fact that the law contemplated that the civil township should confomi to the congressional township which in fact it did not. The civil township really confonned to local conditions and the convenience of the people so that for the most part a congressional township was divided among two or more civil townships and thus the school lands or the money derived from the sale of such lands would rightfully belong to more than one township. With the reorganization under the new constitution this difficulty was done away with. The three township tiaistees were continued until 1859 \vhen one trustee was substituted for the three. By law he has charge of the school aflfairs of the township. His duty is to locate con\-eniently a sufficient number of schools for the education of the children therein; and builds or otherwise provides suitable houses, furniture, apparatus or other articles and educational appliances necessary for the thorough organization and efficient management of the schools. When a township has twenty-fi\'e common school graduates, he may establish and maintain in the center of the township a township graded high school to which all pupils sufficiently advanced must be admitted. If the township does not maintain a graded high school, . the common school graduates are entitled to transfers at public expense to a high school in another corporation.

It is the duty of each township trustee and each city school trustee to furnish the necessary school books, so far as they have been adopted or may be adopted by the state, to all such poor and indigent children as may desire to attend the common schools.

As a protection to the township against excessive or ill advised expenditures of public money the legislature passed a law in that in each township there should be an advisory board of three members elected by the voters of the township to hold the office for two years. They are to meet annually on the first Tuesday in September to consider the various estimates of township expenditure as furnished by the trustee for the ensuing year which they may accept or reject in part or in whole. These meetings are public and are open to anv tax payer who desires to be heard on any estimate or proposed tax \e\\.

were financial rather than educational ; the preservation and management of the school fund being the chief requirement of the ofifice. He was required to make annual reports to the general assembly, showing the condition and amount of funds and property devoted to education ; the condition of colleges, academies, county seminaries ; common schools, public and private : estimates and accounts of school expenditures and plans for the management and improvement of the common school fund and for the better organization of the common schools, but his chief duty was to look after the finances.

The new state constitution created the office of superintendent of public instruction by popular election. In 1852 the general assembly directed his election and fixed his salary at one thousand three hundred dollars. There were no educational or professional requirements for his eligibility. The people, however, have been careful and fortunate in electing men who were able and active in educational work.

The superintendent has charge of the system of public instruction, and a general superintendence of the business relating to the common schools of the state, and of the school funds and school revenues set apart and apportioned for their support. At the request of the school officials it is his duty to render, in writing-, opinions touching all phases of administration or construction of the school law.

The First State Road

The state board of education was finst organized in 1852 and consisted of superintendent of public instruction, the governor, the secretary', treasurer and auditor of state. In 1855 the attorney general was added. In 1861 the board was changed to cosist of the state superintendent of public instruction, the Go\-ern(:)r. the jjresident of the state university, the president of the state normal, and the school superintendents of the tliree largest cities in the state. In 1875 the president of Purdue University was added. In 1899 three men to be appointed by the governor were added. These men must be prominent citizens, actively engaged in educational work, and one at least must be a county superintendent, and no one to be appointed from a county already represented on the board. E. E. Robey is at present ( 1908 ) a member of the board as a county superintendent.

The board is responsible for all examinations of teachers and makes all questions used in their examinations which are for the following grades of license :

One, primary license, one year, two years and three years ; two, common school license, one year, two years and three years ; three, high school license, one year, two years, three years and five years ; four, professional, eight years ; five, life state license.

In addition to making the questions, the board conducts the examination and grades the manuscripts of applicants for professional and life state licenses.

The board is also the state board of school book cornmissioners. As such it adopts text books for the common schools for periods of five years. \\'hen a contract has been made with a publisher the books are secured for the public by a requisition of the county superintendent for the number of books needed in his county, upon the state superintendent, who in turn, makes requisition upon the contractor for the number of books needed in the state. The county superintendent thus becomes the agent for the sale of the books and makes his reports to the various contractors.

The state board of education, in order to keep some uniform standard of efificiency in high schools has established certain requirements in the work which entitles high schools to commissions. These commissions carry with them exemption from examination for entrance to the freshman class in the higher institutions of learning.

L'pon the recommendation of the state superintendent, members of the board inspect the work of the high schools and determine whether the requirements for commissions have been met.

The work of the board has resulted in a perceptible increase in the efficiency of the high schools ; since all schools want the commission and when once obtained eveiy effort is made by the school officers, teachers and patrons to retain it.

County Boards

The county boards of education are composed of the county superintendent, the several township tiiistees and the heads of the boards of trustees of town and city schools. They are not officially charged with duties ; the purpose appears to be that by meeting and discussing the various school interests they may be able to introduce better and more uniform methods in their several schools.

The teachers are required, by law, to attend a township institute in their township once each school month. The purpose being, by the addresses and discussions, to awaken greater interest among the teachers in their work, to impart new and improved methods in teaching.

The minimum length of the school tenn in any school corporation in a year shall be six months and the trustee is directed to levy sufficient tax to raise the money necessary to do so, provided he does not exceed the legal tax limit.

tliirteen dollars and fifty-three cents; congressional township revenue, one thousand three hundred and twenty-three dollars and forty cents ; tuition from local taxation, fort}'-one thousand four hundred and eighty dollars and fifteen cents ; received from liquor license, two thousand nine hundred dollars ; receix-ed from dog fund, one thousand eight hundred and se\-enty-nine dollars and sixty-five cents ; total, seventy-eight thousand three hundred and ninety-six dollars and seventy-three cents. The amount collected for the city of Kokomo, thirty-seven thousand five hundred and forty-three dollars and sixty-t\\o cents ; the amount for the county outside of the city of Kokomo. forty thousand eight hundred and fifty-three dollars and eleven cents. The amount of special school tax levied and collected in 1908 was forty-nine thousand three hundred and ten dollars and twenty-one cents; the amount collected for the city of Kokomo was twenty-two thousand six hundred and thirty-six dollars and thirty cents ; the amount collected for the county outside of Kokomo was twenty-six thousand six hundred and seventy-three dollars and ninety-one cents. The whole amount of school money, tuition and special for Howard county for the year 1908 was one hundred and twenty-seven thousand, seven hundred and six dollars and ninety-four cents.

Present D.A.Y Conditions

There are one hundred and seventy-two teachers of the various grades employed in Howard county, and the total number of children of school age in the county is eight thousand five hundred and twenty-five.

almost beyond belief; and the educational advance is equally great if not greater. From the rude and scanty furnishings and almost chaotic want of system" of the early schools, the change has been to large and commodious houses almost all built of brick, well heated and well lighted and equipped with the best of school furnishings. The organization from the state superintendent and state board of education down to the township and even the school district is so perfect that it constitutes a machine, the parts of which fit so well and work so harmoniously that they would delig^ht a mechanical engineer.

An educator of today whenever he refers to our school system at once becomes enthusiastic. He declares that we have the finest school system in the world, that we have a school fund so large and so well managed that tuition in the common schools is practically free; that our schools are so well graded that by easy stages one passes on up through the high schools to the higher institutions of learning. The people, too, are proud of their schools. The people our our neighboring state, Michigan, point with justifiable pride to their great state university at Ann Arbor with its learned professors and its thousands of students attracted from all lands and they give it generous support. The people of Indiana are no less justified in their pride for their excellent school system. They get closer to the masses of the people. The people of Michigan have good common schools, but their specialty is their great university, which only the few can reach, while ours comes to the masses and prepares the many for the ordinary affairs of life. In this symphony of praise there comes a discordant note.

Too Well Organized Too Morrow S History

material for this educational process is intelligent beings with very different mental equipments and that the purpose of an education is to lead out, develop and train the natural gifts and powers of the student ; to stimulate him to independent thinking" and research, and to avoid the mechanical mental processes.

Whether these suggestions are opportune it is not the province of the historian to say. In reviewing the school history of the past sixty years of our county, certain facts stand out prominently. Many students in the early schools with their two months' training became excellent spellers, good readers and penmen and acquired a practical knowledge of arithmetic that was surprising, and later the "old nonnal" in the late sixties and early seventies sent out from its school rooms men and women who stand out now living or in memory for their learning, and sound original thinking, men like John W. Kern, J. Fred Vaile, J. O. Henderson, Bronson Keeler, O. A. Somers, L. J. Kirkpatrick, A. B. Kirkpatrick, Professor W. A. Greeson, Professor John B. Johnson and scores of others of that date. To one looking over the personnel of those who have had their education in the schools of Howard county the period referred to seems to have been the golden age of school work in this county. The fact also is prominent that at that time there was less of the close organization than at the present time. The teacher of that time had much freedom and many of them had strong personalities which was impressed upon the pupils.

Whatever differences of opinion men may entertain of the merits or demerits of this close organization and the tendency to machine work in our schools all are heartily glad that so abundant means are provided for the education of the youth of our county.

The men of middle age watch the passing along of the school wagon with its load of happy noisy children going to or from school protected from the storm and mud or deep snow, and remember again that he walked long distances to school often through rain stomis and deep mud or else through the blizzard and biting cold and is glad that the children of today are not subjected to the like hardships.

The Indians had no roads. Their highways were paths or "traces" through the forests, over which they traveled on foot or on their ponies. The white man, of necessity, must have roadways over which to travel with his wagon and team. His first roads were but temporary affairs. They built them the nearest ways and where they were the least difficult to construct. Farmers' lanes formed important links in them, but after the lands were suiweyed and township, range and section lines were run out and established they began to locate the roads on these lines, and many of the former meandering roadways were abandoned. These for several years were dirt roads, or, more correctly speaking, mud roads, during most of the year. They were built by the supervisor, who "warned out" all the able-bodied men of his road district between the ages of twenty-one and fifty to work the roads each spring from two to four days for no remuneration save the public good. This service was never enthusiastic.

These roads were often impassable in places detours were made around such places by going out and over the adjacent farms. As the fanns were ditched and public drains constructed the roadbeds became drier and the roads became good much sooner.

There were no gravel or macadam roads constracted in Howard county before 1867, so that for more than twenty years the people had to be content with dirt roads.

Howard S First State Road

Tlie first state road located in the county was the Burlington and ]\Iarion state road from Burlington, in Carroll county, to Marion, in Grant county. The repurt on this road was made to the commissioners at their June tenn, 1845, by Thomas A. Long, one of the commissioners appointed by the legislature to do this work The road as reported by them was one and one-half miles in Carroll county, twenty-nine and one-fourth miles in Richardville county and eleven miles in Grant county. This was a winding road, changing its course fourteen times in Carroll county and sixty-four times in crossing Richardville county. In passing through Kokomo it altered at the west end of Sycamore street and passed out at the east end of this street. There were two state roads reported at the September term of the commissioners' court : The Kokomo and Michigantown state road, by David Foster and George W. Snodgrass, commissioners. This road began at the southwest cnrner of the public square in Kokomo and ran south in Bucke)-e street to the bluffs of Wild Cat creek, thence southwesterly to the north bank of ^^'ild Cat creek, crossing at the rapids, thence in a general southwesterly direction, zigzagging back and forth, finally reaching Michigantown. The other road was the Peru and Canton state road from Peru, in Miami county, to Canton (Tipton), in Tipton county. This road came into Kokomo from t!ie northeast in the general direction of the Lanby gravel road until it intersected Union street : thence in Union street to the southeast comer of the Donation, thence south on the line of Union street to Home avenue, thence southeast on the line of Home avenue almost to Kokomo creek, thence easterly and southeasterly , through the Purdum. the Dyas and other farms, to the intersection of the line of the Albright gravel mad. The Loganspi^rt state road was laid out a little later. The outline map of this road from the Cass county line to Kokomo shows wet prairies, ponds and sloughs almost the entire way. The general direction of this road was from the northwest to Washington street in Kokomo, and Washington and Walnut streets afforded entrance to the town proper.

First Gravel Roads

The first gravel roads in Howard county were toll roads. The tra\eler upon these roads must always go prepared to pay fare or toll, and at frequent intervals were toll-gates, or toll-houses, and the inevitable pole swung across the passage in front of the tollhouse, ready to be pulled down in front of the luckless rider or driver who attempted to pass without first settling with the keeper. It did not matter how great the hurry, the urgency of the call or how fierce the storm, toll must be paid. It did not matter that it was a public highwa}-, that had been cut out oi the forests twenty years before by the supervisor and the men of the road district, and had been worked by them e\'ery year since, a gravel road company could occupy it to the exclusion of these very men who had made the road, and by doing additional work, compel every one traveling with horse and vehicle to pay a toll for the privilege of passing over it. The land owner whose lands had been appropriated was not respected in this operation.

The law permitting this seizure said, "The Board of County Commissioners of the several counties of the state are hereby authorized to give their consent to the appropriation and occupation of any such state or county road or other public highway ovev and upon which any company may locate any such road."

I04 Morrow S History

tioii for the purpose of constructing or owning plank, macadamized, gravel, clay and dirt roads, by complying with the following requirements" : Then followed the usual requirements of stock companies. Whenever they had subscriptions for stock to the amount of five hundred dollars per mile they were pemiitted to file their articles of incorporation in the recorder's office and to become known publicly as a corporation. It is true that the toll gravel I'oads were not vei-y paying- investments from a pecuniary standpoint, and were built largely by public spirited men whose main purpose was to have good roads for travel the entire year. The grievance of tlie other party was that the road, whose right of way he had given, and upon which he had spent much labor and which was his only or main outlet from his home, was wholly occupied by the company and he was compelled to pay, willing or unwilling, for the privilege of pasisng over it.

It was commenced in 1867 and was completed in 1870, being three years in the building; is ten miles long and cost twenty-seven thousand dollars. It connected the county seat, Kokomo, with the then metropolis of western Howard county, New London, and passed through Alto and the future West Middleton, and was the main thoroughfare to the southwest. The city of Kokomo paid two thousand dollars toward the building of this road and individuals gave thirteen thousand dollars to assist in its building-. The leading citizens in forming the company to build and manage this road were Captain Barny Busby, Dr. E. W. Hinton, Isaac Ramsey, Jonathan Hansell, Josiah Beeson, Shadrach Stringer. Samuel Stratton, C. S. Wilson, Joseph Stratton, Hiram Newlin and Richmond Terrell, a splendid company of men. This was continued as a toll road until the growing- sentiment for free roads caused the

Other Gravel Roads

The other gravel roads built by companies organized a little later under the same or similar laws were: The Kokomo and Greentown gravel road, reaching from Kokomo to Greentown, eight and two-thirds miles long and mostly on the south side of Wild Cat creek. This road was commenced in 1869 and finished in 1874, and cost twenty-three thousand, two hundred and eighteen dollars. Vaile avenue was the western end and a toll-gate . stood where a brick business building now stands at the intersection of Union street. The leaders in the building of this road were Rawson Vaile, Xoah Carter, J. W. Smith, William T. ^Nlannering. Vespasian Goyer, Paul Miller, Clarke Boggs and N. J. Owings. This continued a toll road like the others until the growing free gravel road sentiment made it possible to sell out to the county, and it is now a free gravel road.

The Kokomo, Greentown and Jerome gravel road was organized in 1869 and was completed in 1871 at a cost of thirty-eight thousand dollars. It extends from Kokomo, running east on the north side of Wild Cat creek, through old Vermont, to Greentown, and thence to Jerome, a distance of twelve miles, and is a prominent eastern thoroughfare. The active friends of this road were David Smith, Andrew Patterson, C. C. Willetts, Rossiter Gray, Jacob Brunk, Bamhart Learner, D. S. Farley, John S. Trees, Jonathan Covalt, E. P. Gallion, W. M. Sims, J. R. Curlee and Milton Garrigus. This road is now a free gravel road, the toll system going with the others.

The Kokomo and Pete's Run gravel road was organized in 1869 and completed in 1871 at a cost of thirty-three thousand, fiftyio6 morrow's history eight dollars. It is eleven miles in length and is popularly known as the Jefferson street pike, beginning at the west end of Jefferson street and running directly west. It is the principal thoroughfare for the west end of the county toward Burlingion and Delphi. The active citizens in the building of this road were H. \\'. Smith, James McCool, Israel Brubaker, Michael Price, S. D. Hawkins, D. B. Hendrickson, Thomas M. Kirkpatrick and others. This, too. is now a free gravel njad, after a prosperous series of years as a toll road.

The \\'ild Cat gravel road was commenced in 1869 and completed in 1 87 1. This is popularly known as the \\'est Sycan^jre street pike, and begins at the west end of Sycamore street and runs west along Wild Cat ten miles, costing twenty-two thousand dollars. The principal friends and managers of this gravel road were Judge X. R. Linsday. William B. Smith, X. P. Richmond. Isaac Hawk, Silas Grantham, S. E. Overholser and Thomas Dimmitt. This road parallels the Petes Run gra\-el road and at no point is it far from it. It is built over hills and through bottoms, making it both more expensive to build and to keep in repair, and has Ijesides been unfortunate in having- the collection of the assessments enjoined and then being reassessed. The legislature then repealed the law authorizing the collection of gravel road taxes, making a combination of adverse conditions its friends were not able to overcome, hence they abandoned it.

The Deer Creek gravel road was commenced in 1873 and completed in 1875, at a cost of fifteen thousand dollars. The road began at the north end of Smith street and extended north five miles to the Miami county line. The active workers in securing this gravel road were William Kirkpatrick, John Davis, J. ^I. Leeds, Jesse Swisher, William Mills, Jacob Early and John ^^^ Lovin.

These were the only roads constructed under the company s}^stem. One of them reached the southwestern part of the county and did a good business ; one reached the north hne of the county and did a fair business ; two paralleled each other closeh' both to the east and west and one of each pair did not pay.

The sentiment that all roads should be public and free had grown rapidly and in 1877 the legislature passed a law for the construction of free gravel roads and providing for the payment for the same by assessing all lands lying within two miles of the road to be improved, according to the benefits to the several tracts to be assessed. The first roads to be built under this law were the Albright, commenced in 1878 and finished in 1879. This road begins at the south end of Home avenue and runs somewhat east of south, and terminates one mile east of Fairfield and cost fourteen thousand, seven hundred fifty-one dollars. Also the Rickett's road, which also begins at the south end of Home avenue and runs south on the range line to the south line of the county. This road was commenced in 1878 and finished in 1879 and cost thirteen thousand, nine hundred forty-six dollars and twenty-two cents. These two roads furnished excellent outlets for the south side of this county and the north side of Tipton county.

In 1882 the Peter Trouby gravel road was built at a cost of twenty-eight thousand, eight hundred sixty dollars and twenty cents. This road begins at the east end of Jefiferson street and runs in a northeasterly direction four miles, thence east four miles, ending at the west line of Liberty township. This road has since been extended east by the construction of the Gorsett gravel road, ending at the Darby road, one-half mile west of the Grant county line, and thus provides a splendid outlet for the entire northeastern part of the county.

In the same year, 1882, the J. L. Smith and; Harrison Harian gravel roads were built to the northwest, both starting together at the intersection of North and Smith streets and running together west and north three-fourths of a mile, and then separating, the Harlan following a general northwesterly direction along the line of the Logansport state road nearly four miles, ending at its intersection with the Smith road and was built at a cost of nineteen thousand, nine hundred ninety dollars and twenty-seven cents. The Smith road ran west after its separation two and one-half miles, thence north one and one-half miles, thence westerly to the vicinity of Poplar Grove, and is fourteen miles in length. This road provides the entire northwest part of the county with a good outlet to Kokomo.

In 1887 the P. N. Schrader gravel road, commonly known as "the pumpkin vine" because of its many directions, was built. This road provided the entire southeast part of the county a good outlet over a free gravel road to Kokomo.

These various gravel roads having a common center at Kokomo and radiating to all parts of the county, formed an admirable gravel road system for the entire county, affording citizens of all parts of the county an excellent highway at all seasons of the year direct to the county seat, his system of roads cost more than three hundred thousand dollars to construct and the annual repair cost is a very large sum.

Since 1887 many g-ravel roads have been constructed, most ()f them shorter roads, using the roads heretofore described a-^ a trunk system and building" branches and cross roads from one line to another.

The Tot.Vl Mileage

nine gravel roads built with a total length of two hundred and seventy miles and at an aggregate cost of six hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

Under the 1905 gra\'el road law as amended in 1907 and known as the three mile limit law there have been fifty-four roads sold for construction with a mileage of one hundred and fifteen. Thirty other roads are petitioned for and awaiting sale, the roads now sold for construction are completed and paid for the citizens will have invested about nine hundred thousand dollars in gravel road construction, and should the others now petitioned for be built, three-fourths or more of the road mileage of Howard county will be macadam or gravel and more than one million dollars will have been invested in their construction.

The annual cost of repair is now fifteen thousand dollars. \^dien the increased mileage now started is completed, the repair cost, if increased in like ratio, will amount to nearly twenty-five thousand dollars annually.

Were all the gravel roads in Howard county, constructed or ordered to be constructed, placed in a continuous line, end to end, and a railroad track laid on the line it would require a train running thirty miles an hour, fifteen hours to traverse it.

How The Ro.Ads Were Built

These roads have been constructed by varying methods. The first as we have seen was by companies and the stock system and the accompanying toll-gate. These became free roads only after they were purchased and paid for by an assessment on all lands lying within two miles of the road. The second step was under the law of 1877, which provided that the commissioners shall begin proceedings for the improvement upon the filing of a petition sigmed bv five or more persons whose lands would be assessed for the improvement asked for. and the filing of a bond to secure the costs sh(.utkl the proposed improvement fail. Under this law the costs of the improvement were paid out of an assessment made upon the lands lying- within two miles of the improved highway: each tract of land was to be assessed according to its relative benefit.

The next change provided that townships by a popular vote could order certain roads improved and the costs of the improvement were to be paid from the sale of a twenty year series of bonds against the assessed v-aluation of the township.

Then the system was changed to the assessment of the lands lying within two miles of the road proposed to be improved. This law provided that a majority of the resident land owners along the line and abutting the highway and also owners of a maojrity of the acres of land abutting should be represented on the petition before starting proceedings.

The next change was to the present law with its amendmen* that on the presentation of a petition signed by fifty resident land owners and voters of a township for the improvement of a highway less than three miles in length and which has a United States mail route upon it, either in whole or in part, or connects two gravel roads already constructed, it shall be the duty of the county commissioners! to take the necessary steps for the improvement and the cost of the improvement shall be paid from the sale of bonds at not less than par. the l)onds to be issued in a ten year series, bearing four and one-half per cent, interest: to be a lien upon the property of the township and not to exceed four per cent, of the assessed valuation of the township. Under this law there has been a flood tide of petitions for roads: the residents along any unimproved road insisting that inasmuch as they were compelled to help pay for the roads of others that they were justly entitled to have the others help them to pay for their inprovement.

Want Law Repealed

There is already a clamor for the repeal of this law because it is alleged that in the eager haste of each section to build its roads, a great debt is created and ci_)nsequent high taxes for a great number of years. On the other hand, it is justly urged that those communities which are now taxed to pay for road for other communities should have the benefit of a similar taxation to pay for the improvement of dieir roads.

The constant chang-e in the methods of paying for public improvements is the bane of our times. A fixed and equitable system of paying for public improvements should be adopted and rigidly adhered to. Those who have paid for their gravel roads by special assessments and then by a township tax are compelled to help pay for a distant improvement are wronged. Since so large a per cent, of the highway is now being improved under this law taxing all the people of the township, it seems the more equitable to continue it in force.

Public Buildixgs

The first court house was built in 1845 of hewn logs with a clapboard roof. It was twenty-four feet square and two stories high. It was so larg-e and commodious that the lower storv was divided by board partitions into offices and business rooms. One of the first-floor rooms was occupied by the clerk, another was used by H. B. Havens as a saddlery and harness shop and another by (;. W. Poisal as a tailor shop. Dr. Richmond alsn used this as a doctor's office.

The upper room was fitted up for a court room, ha\-ing- a rough board rostrum for the judge and a large table for the use of the clerk and the attorneys, and was fitted up with slab seats for the audience. This was the main auditorium of the town, and here were held all public meetings for several years.

By the tenns of the donation which Foster made for locating the county seat at Kokomo, Foster was to build this court house, By some change not satisfactorily explained Foster was released from this part of the contract. The commissioners, however, appointed Foster and Dennis McCormack to let the job and by inference to superintend the constiaiction. The contract was let to Rufus L. Blowers for twenty-eight dollars, and because of his failure to complete it within the time specified he was penalized two dollars, receiving twenty-six dollars for the job.

That the men who had offices in the court house were not very prompt in paying rent appears in this: At the June term, 1851, the following order was issued by the board of commissioners : "Ordered, that the sheriff be required to notify G. W. Poisal, C. and O. Richmond, X. R. Linsday and C. D. Murray to meet the board at its next meeting to settle with said board for office rent of the court house."

The county was growing and the spirit of enterprise and progress which has ever characterized the people of Kokomo and Howard count}- determined the commissioners that the first court house was now out of date, and they accordingly appointed C. D. Murray, Corydon Richmond and Austin C. Sheets a committee on plans and specifications, letting contract and superintending the construction of buildings for county offices.

Tliey adopted plans for two brick buildings eighteen feet wide, thirty-six feet long and one story high, one building to be located near the east entrance and on the north side of the path crossing the public square from the east to the west, and the other building near the west entrance and on the north side of the same path. The contract for the construction of these buildings was let to D. C. Hurley, Jesse Arnold and Henry C. Stewart for nine hundred and seventy-five dollars. The east building was occupied by the auditor and treasurer and the clerk and recorder occupied the west building.

The Preacher And The Cornerstone

In the erection of these buildings it was detennined that there should be a cornerstone laying with all proper ceremony. Uncle Billy Albright, as he was jjopularly known, was a stonemason and a popular local Methodist preacher of that day - a tall man, of strong build and powerful \-oice. Albright had spent two days dressing a cornerstone which had been taken from the Morrow (now Deffenbaugh) stone quarry. His work was almost done to his satisfaction ; there was a small place he thought he could improve. In chipping" it with his hammer the entire stone fell to pieces. In utter disgust he threw down his hammer, straightened himself up and after a moment's contemplation he realized that he could not do justice to his feelings, and cried out at the top of his voice, "Where is Mike Craver ? Run here, everybody. Here is something to be done. \\'here is Mike Craver?" Mike Craver was a pioneer plasterer and was not hampered by religious scruples.

The work went forward satisfactorily after this mishap so far as the records disclose, and the buildings were completed and for sixteen years they served the county. At the March term, 1868, the ciiunt}- commissioners - |erome Brown. Henrv L. ]\Ioreland and

Samuel Stratton, ordered tliat bids for building a court hnuse be ad\-ertised for. U> be considered at a special session on the 15th of April fiillinving. They reserved the right to reject any or all bids, if they were not satisfactory. .-Vll the bids were rejected and the board determined to hire the work done themselves. They accordingly appointed one of their number. Samuel E. Stratton, superintendent, with full power to ccintract for work and materials as seemed best for the interests of the county. J- Coffman had charge of the work as a mechanic and builder. The whole work was under the general supervision of the architect. Mr. Rimibaugh, and the final approval was to be by the board.

Extensin'E Improvements

It was commenced in 1868 and finished in 1870, and cost ninety-seven thousand, five hundred and forty-eight dollars and forty cents. The natural surface of the public scjuare was low and level. This was filled and sloped as we now see it, walks were built of large cut stones, a heavy iron fence with stone foundation was built around the entire square, outside of the fence was a paved way, and outside of the paved way was stretched a heavy iron chain supported by iron posts. This served as a public hitchrack for a numlier of years. The cost of these improvements with the cost of the town clock added increased the total cost of the court house to approximately one hundred and ten thousand dollars.

As originally constructed, the heating plant was in the basement, the several county offices - clerk, auditor, treasurer, recorder and sheriff, were on the first floor, and the entire second floor was given over to the court room, the judge's room and the jury room. The court room served also as the public auditorium for many years.

Tlie acoustic properties of the room were bad, the reverberation was sucli tliat accurate hearing was difficult. After trying- the ex periment of stretclu'ng a network of o\-erhead wires without satisfactory results it was determined to remodel the second floor by reducing the size of the court room and partitioning the other part into a larger jury room and ofifices for the county assessor, county superintendent of schools and the county surveyor.

From a description of this court house, written shortly after its completion we learn: "It is a tine and substantial brick, two stories in height, besides the basement. It is eighty-two by eightysix feet in size and one hundred and twenty-six feet high to the top of the tower. The court room in the second story is iifty-one by eighty-two feet in size and thirty-eight and one-half feet in height from floor to ceiling. There are four rooms or offices on the first floor, each twenty-two by twenty-four feet and sixteen feet high, used respectively by the clerk, recorder, auditor and treasurer. The sherift"s office, also on the first floor, is twelve by fourteen feet and sixteen feet story, and on the upper floor there are four jur}' rooms, all the same size as the sherifif's. Outside, the first story is sixteen feet, the second twenty-three feet and the mansard fourteen feet, and under the whole building is a basement in which is a furnace, with which at a cust of five thousand dollars for construction, the whole building is heated with steam. It presents an imposing appearance, is covered with slate, has good \-aults and compares very favorably with an}- other building in the state of the kind and cost."

Court House And Surroundings

Twenty-fi\-e years ago it was written : "The building is substantialh- built of good, durable material, and has within it fireproi-)f vaults for the different offices in which to store the records and val- uables belonging to the: county. Tlie square upon which it is built was filled up several feet so that it appears to stand on high ground ; there is surrounding the grounds an iron fence with stone foundations and a heav_v guard chain entirely around outside the sidewalk, which is well paved. All the walks leading to the building are paved with large cut stones. It is a fine appearing house, and when the forest trees that ha\'e been planted around it are sufficiently grown it will be a beautiful place. 'I"he dream of a (piarter of a century ago has more than been realized. The thrifty well grown trees and the sloping greensward make a beautiful place indeed. The unsightly, unsanitary hitching rack of that elder day, which seemed a permanent fixture, has given place to brick pa\-ements, wide cement walks and flowing; fountains. That high iron fence, which seemed as durable as time, is gone, and the weary sit upon the stone foundations and sigh for wooden seats. The hitch rack had many friends who were reluctant to see it go. It was a \'ery convenient hitching place and free of cost. One dark nig-ht the chain mysteriously disappeared and did not come back. At the time it was thought that the advocates of the city beautiful and clean knew where it was.

The first jail, as has alread}- been stated, was built of hewn timbers one foot square throughout walls, floor and ceiling ; the logs notched down close and boarded on the outside, with double doors of two-inch oak plank, with a home-made lock and key, the key alone weighing four pounds. It is said that no prisoner broke out of this jail. It was located at the southwest corner of VA^'Sshington and High streets. For twenty years the log jail did its work faithfulh'. In 1865 the board let a contract to J. \\'. Coft'man to build a brick and stone jail for $g,6oo. The front ]iart was the residence part fur the jailer's family and was of brick. The prison part was back of that and attached to it in such a way that the entrance to the jail was through the hallway of the dwelling. The prison part was built of stone and the cells of iron. There was a dug- well on the inside where the prisoners could get water. This well, on one occasion, furnished the means of escape for several prisoners by digging- from the well out under the wall of the prison. This jail and its location soon became unsatisfactory. It was urged that the sewerage was not good, though it was not far to a good outlet and that could ha\'e been overcome with no great expense. The prison itself seems to have been defective and was not a secure place to detain, prisoners. In 1880, fifteen years after the building- of this new jail, the con-unissioners planned to secure a new location for the building of a larger and safer jail where the sanitary conditions would be better for the ini-nates. A site was secured on the east side of South Main street, on the bluff of Wild Cat creek, large enough to furnish ample room for all necessai-y buildings and sightly surroundings, with the grounds well kept. The elevation of the grounds made it an easy matter to dump the sewage into ^^'ildcat. In 1882 a contract was let to McCorn-iack & Sweeney for the building nf a new jail at a cost of thirty-four thousand, three hundred and fourteen dollars. The building is one hundred and three feet fi\-e inches long : the front or residence part is thirty-seven feet nine inches wide and the jail part is fortythree feet seven inches wide; it is two stories and a basement in height. In the basement is placed the steam heating plant and two or three dungeons, the walls of which are made with a single stone. The cells are built out from the walls of the jail, so that communication from without is cut off. Accommodations are providetl for different classes of prisoners and a hospital room for the sick. The grounds and the surroundings are well kept and our jail has an inviting appearai-ice.