SERVING HENDRICKS COUNTY SINCE 1847
Page A-2
The Republican
Delving Into Yester~Year
Local historian and writer Paul Miner takes items from
The Republican’s Yester-Year column to develop an interesting, informative and often humorous article.
To the Editor: “If you would thrive, be up by five: for there is wealth and certain health, when at the plow, or milking cow.” So saith The Republican in an 1879 poetry selection. Danville’s route ahead needed direction from time to time. Two years later, roads pointed to prosperity. Eight radiated from the town, but only two were without a toll. The paper intoned that “all future gravel roads” must be made free to travel, advising county commissioners to buy all the toll roads as soon as funds permitted. With those free roads and “liberal advertising” by merchants and manufacturers, “and with the push characteristics of western towns, the population, wealth, industry and happiness of our county and her citizens might be increased an hundred fold.” Later that season, sandwiched between items that McCurdy’s had mince meat, and Frank Pierson sold Bandaline, “a new preparation for dressing the hair,” came counsel from former Massachusetts Senator Charles Sumner that “true greatness of nations” came not from wealth but from individual greatness. Greatness came not from “the triumph of the intellect alone,” or the arts, literature and science, as that served only to “enlarge the sphere of its influence.” No, “moral elevation” that was “sustained by the intellect of man” was the path to pursue. Come November, the No Name Club put on “the recherché affair of the day” – a ball – at the Mansion House. “The beauty, youth and grace” of Danville were there, and “the accumulated wealth of years” was seen “in the rich and costly array and the jewels which glittered on the necks of snow.” Clearly, sun-browned napes were not invited. The reporter left before the orchestra led guests through “the elf-like waltz,” followed by the 10 o’clock dinner. The affair broke up only as dawn approached. The Republican dispensed Buddhist scripture in March 1882: “Though the good may have little wealth, yet it is useful to all, like the water of a well. The selfish may have much wealth, but like the water of the sea, it quenches the thirst of none.” A “doctor” who relied on Nervine in May 1882 for a host of cures stalking all walks of life possessed a photographic gallery of restored customers, from laborers to “the haughty children of wealth.” Readers that month learned of a “recently deceased” St. Louis spaniel which possessed an estate left by its departed master. Wealth had not gone to the pooch’s head; it consorted with “common dogs.” The dead dog slept in a costly coffin at the family cemetery. “Idleness lies in bed sick of the mulligrubs, where industry finds health and wealth.” That’s what Victorian minister C.H. Spurgeon had to say. I discovered someone had arbitrarily substituted “mulligrubs” for “doldrums.” I much prefer mulligrubs. I am convinced Danville’s elite in 1882 were interested in the widowed Mrs. Paran Stevens (nee Mariette Reed), society hostess of New York’s Gilded Age, holding court in her Manhattan Italianate marble mansion. They might have chilled at the tale of a woman who hid her husband’s thousands and then died suddenly without telling him where the cash was secreted. “The Widow Bardell,” Avon correspondent, shared success stories early in 1883. Enos Huron started out as a section hand, and he had become foreman. Doctor John Ragan arrived with no money, “but lots of grit.” He now had a nice house on a corner lot “in the most fashionable part of town, and a steady increasing bank account.” Several farmers starting with nothing had worked their land to respectable levels. Will Reed had endured a farm foreclosure, but redeemed it, and now his net income from both farm and tile factory was “it is said, $1,300.” As for Avon’s young women, “if they escape the wily arts of the sterner sex to lure them into the matrimonial net, soon show they are fully competent to take care of themselves.” Cherry Grove correspondent Dick believed in August 1883 “the correspondent who strikes at a man because he may have to split rails for an honest living, is either a fool or a pampered son of wealth whose head is a gourd filled with putty.” Dick did not reveal that correspondent’s identity. Perhaps he wrote for the Gazette. Paul Miner Lizton ______________________________________________________________________
Publisher’s Point of View Class Time Last week, Danville Middle School Teacher Mrs. McRoberts stopped by with a handful of her students. They wanted to learn a little bit about an old-fashioned way of communicating to the community. The all-but-forgotten forerunner of Twitter, Facebook and Instagram all rolled up in one. It is called a “newspaper.” The name kind of says it all. Local news all inked up on some paper. Newspaper. Brilliant. These whippersnappers really seemed to enjoy learning about the history of The Republican and they really like learning about the equipment that was once used to print the newspaper right there in the building. The history and the equipment are fun but the reason we have the cool equipment and the unparalleled history of Hendrick County on our shelves is because of what the newspaper is to a community. It is a record of events. It is a celebration of achievements. It is an announcement of marriages and children born. It is a remembrance of those that have passed. It is a receptacle of lessons learned, both hard and fruitful. It is a voice. It is a responsibility. It’s hard to say how much these young future leaders will take away from this almost insignificant field trip to see the old dorky way of spreading the news, but one thing is certain. The pages of this old-fashioned, unsexy newspaper will be there to celebrate their achievements and their parents will come in to buy extra copies. And 100 years from now, just maybe, a handful of students from the Danville Middle School will make a similar visit to the newspaper and read this story and look at these pictures of the young men and women that had a field trip to the local newspaper. ______________________________________________________________________ What a Newspaper Is
6 East Main Street ~ P.O. Box 149 Danville, IN 46122 Phone: 317-745-2777 / Fax: 317-647-4341 E-mail: therepublican@sbcglobal.net BETTY JO BARTLEY Editor SUBSCRIPTION RATE $40 PER YEAR SINGLE COPY 50¢ PUBLISHED WEEKLY
MEMBER SINCE 1933
PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER WITH SOY INK
The Republican Hendricks County, LLC Gerald W. Vornholt, President
Periodicals Postage Paid Danville, Indiana 46122 (USPS PERMIT NUMBER 462200) POSTMASTER SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO P.O. BOX 149, DANVILLE, IN 46122
It is a library. It is an encyclopedia, a poem, a history, a dictionary, a time table, a romance, a guide to poitical resume, a ground plan of the civilized world, a low-priced multum in parvo. It is a sermon, a song, a circus, a shipwreck, a symphony in solid brevier, a medley of life and death, a grand aggregation of man’s glory and his shame. It is, in short, a bird’s eye view of all the magnanimity and meaness, the joys and sorrows, births and deaths, the pride and poverty of the world, all for a few cents. - Bill Nye __________
Thursday, December 2, 2021
Yester~Year
The Republican has published local news weekly since 1847. We offer this column as a look back at events from our archives and to help connect today’s readers to the people and events in our past. ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO Issue of December 3, 1896 Coatesville: Frank Roberts was very much surprised last week to hear from his brother, F.D. Roberts, who is in California. His relatives and friends have long supposed him dead. Plainfield: The old M.E. church has been sold to J.W. Crank, to be used as a flour exchange. Perhaps the town board may now consider the wisdom of organizing a fire department at Danville. The old excuse was there was not water to spare for practice drills. Now it is different. Danville has water to burn, so to speak, or to throw at the birds. G.A. Guthrie has at this office three potatoes that are prize winners. They weigh five and one-fourth pounds and the largest weighs over two pounds. They are of the Michigan Rose variety and are beauties. The Clayton post office election Saturday resulted in the selection of Clyde West, son of Scipio West. The thermometer has been almost to zero and the small boy has hunted up his skates, greased the runners and been out for business. C.F. Hall laughs at this cold weather because he has a furnace under his home. The new barber and bath rooms under the new bank building will be opened by Foster & Moody on Saturday of this week when they will be please so see all their old customers and others. New rooms, new furniture and everything clean and neat. The Green Valley and Dover Dale schools closed a week ago on account of the measles. Hazelwood: Diphtheria has again made its approach in our community, the eldest daughter of Samuel Prewitt being affected with it. Since Tuesday, Charles P. Hornaday has been the father of a bouncing baby boy and the proprietor of the Mammoth grocery has not been seen attending to business very much. His windows bear the firm name of C.P. Hornaday & Son and his delivery wagon has been likewise worded. _____ ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO Issue of December 1, 1921 Dashing into congested Main street at sixty miles per hour, skidding into machines parked on the north side of the square, a Buick roadster was captured, Saturday afternoon, with some fifty gallons of white mule. Sheriff Clark called on Messrs. Hall and Hogate, Tuesday afternoon, to pour out the white mule taken from the car on the square, Saturday afternoon. The amount of liquor that flowed through the sewer amounted to forty-five gallons. There is no poetry in pouring white mule and the odor drove people away rather than drawing them. Charles Doughty is back at his old job as a lineman with the Indiana Bell Telephone Company, after trying garage and laboratory work, none of which suited him as well as climbing poles and stringing wire. Last week, the big pumpkin which has been on exhibition at the Newman hardware store, was slaughtered. It contained 617 good seeds, which was one less than the number guessed by John Gray. Amo: The Thanksgiving market of the Baptist ladies netted $27. The yellow quilt on exhibition was sold for $10 to a traveling salesman who came in during the sale. Born, Nov. 22, to Mr. and Mrs. Chas. Dever, west of New Winchester, a twelvepound boy. The Plainfield Fertilizer Factory is now in operation and ready to take care of all dead animals. Immediate attention to all calls. Verl Crews, Plainfield, Ind. Phone 123. _____ SEVENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO Issue of December 5, 1946 At a meeting of the Danville town board, Monday night, Dr. A.G. Barrett, president, read a letter from Governor Ralph G. Gates, asking that Danville and vicinity meet the existing fuel situation with all the cooperation of a war-time emergency. Dr. E.C. Cumings has announced that the Founders Association now totals $13,896.50. Robert Schisler received the first Kaiser automobile in Danville, last week. The sale was made by the Crawley Auto Sales, which will have its official opening this weekend. Mrs. Nellie Stevens and Donald D. Hogate, former residents of Danville, were named on the executive committee of the Indiana State Society at Washington, D.C. Lynn Lawson celebrated his ninth birth-
day Saturday when he entertained ten playmates with a. theater party at the Royal. Max Lee of North Salem is employed in the Baker & Son annex. Residents living south of Danville on State Road 39 have been seeing deer in that community for the past week. Ralph Harris and Frank Yeager are establishing a record for ‘coon hunting. The catch last week up to Thanksgiving day, was six and previous to that time they had twenty-four to their credit. Dr. J.M. Niswander has completed the hand lettering of the twenty-two certificates of commission for the State of Indiana. The post office at Cartersburg has been moved from the Burton home to its new location. Miss Hazel Pilcher is post master. _____ FIFTY YEARS AGO Issue of December 2, 1971 The Plainfield Chamber of Commerce recently sponsored the “Red Pride Dinner” for the high school football team, which had an undefeated season. Elvin R. Newby, well known in the Amo and Coatesville area, is known throughout the Harlingen, Texas, Valley, as Mr. Shuffleboard. He and Mrs. Newby have been winter residents since 1947. The Danville Jaycees will sponsor their second annual Christmas Decorating Contest in Danville and Center Township. Competition will be open in two divisions, residential and business. Egg-throwing vandalism has been a popular “sport” in the Cartersburg area, according to Deputy Sheriff Ray Daughterty. Rev. Herman Lutz assumed his duties, yesterday, as pastor of St. Mary Queen of Peace parish, Danville. The marriage of Miss Nancy Rutledge and Thomas J. Wills was solemnized Saturday afternoon, at the Danville Friends Meetinghouse. Miss Marcia Kay Roberts will be installed Honored Queen, Saturday, 8 p.m., of Bethel 105 International Order of Job’s Daughters in the Western Star Masonic Temple, Danville. Promotions of Mary L. Hantzis to assistant administrator, Sondra S. Roxing to director of management, and Lana Jo Whicker to bookkeeper/secretary have been announced by William G. Hope, administrator of Extension at Danville. _____ TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO Issue of November 28, 1996 The Hendricks County Contractor Listing Ordinance becomes effective on January 1, 1997. The Danville Optimist Club will be selling Christmas trees at the Old Farm Shopping Center for the 13th consecutive year, beginning Saturday, Nov. 30. Connie Lawson, R-Danville, former Hendricks County Clerk, was administered the oath of office as State Senator, November 19, during a State House ceremony. Tri Kappa presents the 26th annual “Gingerbread Christmas” art and craft show on Saturday, Dec. 7, from 9-4, at the Plainfield High School. Garry Krabbe, vice president of State Bank of Lizton, has been elected to fill the vacancy of Matt Whetstone on the Brownsburg Town Council. Whetstone was elected State Representative on Nov. 5. Kiger Sunoco, Danville, hosted an autograph party, Thursday, for local boy who made good with his saxophone and clarinet, Bob Snyder. Danville’s famous Santa (Roy Walter) is busy making a list – a list of all his appearances this holiday season. _____ TEN YEARS AGO Issue of December 1, 2011 Frank & Mary’s at Pittsboro, famous for its catfish and fried tenderloins, will be closing if it is not sold, according to Larry Henry, grandson of Frank and Mary Henry, who opened the restaurant and tavern 66 years ago. It’s a pretty sweet job. That sums up Elisabeth Burnell’s role as the 2012 Indiana Honey Queen. The Town of Brownsburg’s traditional Christmas Under the Stars parade is being expanded this year into a full evening of family-friendly activities and entertainment, Dec. 3rd. On Monday, November 21, the Danville Town Council voted to demolish a house at 248 N. Tennessee that had been gutted by fire in November 2010. The Danville Chamber of Commerce will host a ribbon cutting on December 15 for two new businesses: Caskey’s Affordable Dental Services, 84 S. Tennessee and the Bread Basket Café & Bakery, 46 S. Tennessee.
