Buffalo County, Nebraska - Chapter 44: Efforts to Vote County Bonds As Aid to Railroads Efforts Not Successful, 1916

That there are no railroad bonds outstanding against Buffalo County and that the bonded indebtedness against the county is comparatively small at this date (1915) is not because no effort has been made in the past to vote such bonds, but rather to the reason that the early settlers, so to speak, "burned their fingers" in the voting of county bonds and have fought shy on any such proposition since.

The early settlers, being comparatively young in years, and of little experience in public affairs, were easily induced to vote county bonds with which to build a courthouse at Gibbon and to bridge the Platte. Time and again boomers and promoters have since made efforts to have county bonds voted in aid of proposed railroads, but without avail.

County commissioners, under the spell of such boomers and promoters, were quite complaisant to their visionary schemes and called elections for such purpose, but the people of the county were quick to protest and prevent favorable action.

The county bonds voted to complete the courthouse at Kearney would not have been voted had not the taxpayers of the county been tricked in the matter of building a courthouse. The wish of the taxpayers was to levy a tax for a term of years with which to build the courthouse, and on estimates submitted and agreed to, voted the levy.

Tricksters and schemers so manipulated the matter that the levy so voted was expended in a foundation and side-walls and it was necessary to vote county bonds in the amount of $45,000 in order to complete and furnish the building. The foundation walls of the present courthouse were first laid in the fall and early winter, and when frozen appeared firm and solid. C. Putnam was at the time deputy county clerk, and being of an inquiring turn of mind and a man of strictest integrity, he pried off a section of the foundation wall, carried it in the clerk's office beside the fire, and it soon crumbled to pieces. The result was Capt. Joseph Black, also a man of unquestioned integrity, was appointed to superintend the erection of the present county courthouse.

As a matter of history, to illustrate how complaisant the county commissioners were to assist in forwarding schemes to bond the county in aid of proposed railroads, and how wide awake the voters were to prevent such action, record is here made in one instance of the action of the commissioners and of the protest of the voters.

The editor has in his possession the original petitions, bearing signatures of the petitioners, which make plain the history of the case. Five of these petitions were circulated and signed by a total of 294 taxpayers. The forty-eight names first given are of persons residing in Kearney at the time.

"To the Honorable Board of Commissioners of Buffalo County, State of Nebraska : "Gentlemen - We, the undersigned, respectfully petition your honorable body to recall the proclamation made by you which provides a special election to be held on the 27th of November, 1875, for the purpose of voting on the proposition to issue the bonds of Buffalo county in the sum of $75,000 to aid in the construction of a proposed railroad from Kearney to Sioux City, and your petitioners further pray that you give notice in the county papers that the said proclamation is recalled and countermanded, and as reasons therefor we oft'er the following: That the petition upon which the said proclamation was granted was signed by less than one-fourth of the voters of Buft'alo county. That the said petition was circulated only in Kearney and that it was not generally known that such a petition was in circulation. That a majority of the voters of Buffalo county are opposed to the said proposition and by recalling it the expense of an election will be saved, and to this end your petitioners do earnestly pray."

The following subscription list, bearing the signatures of seventy persons and pledging a total of $250, was found among the papers of S. S. St. John, a long time resident of Kearney, and turned over to the editor of this history by his son, L. N. St. John.

"We, the undersigned, agree to pay the amounts placed opposite our respective names to assist in carrying the election of bonds to aid the Nebraska Southern Railway company in constructing a line of railway from Red Cloud to Kearney, Nebraska; and, also, to pay expenses asked by Gov. Thayer for the encampment of the state militia here two weeks in September, 1888, 2,500 strong."