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In June, 1872,
the St. Joe & Denver City Railroad Company built a depot on land adjoining
on the east of the
little town started
by the citizens. Near and around the depot, the Town Site Company of that
road projected a
town and invited
the owners and business men of the old town to come over. The new town
site being on railroad
land, and they
not being able to perfect the title to the same until a foreclosure suit
against all the lands of that
company was settled,
the old town refused to move, even in the face of a threat from the company
to remove
their depot from
the vicinity.
As soon as the
title was perfected in the company, they at once began to lay off the town,
and the survey began
on the 11th of
September, 1874, by A. R. Buttolph. The first lot was sold on the 18th
of September to J. H.
Epley, and five
lots were sold on that day. The first settler in the town was John Clancy,
who ran the boarding car
while the track
was building, and afterward, kept a sort of boarding establishment in the
section-house.
In September, 1872,
A. B. Smith and H. Spencer erected a room and opened a store, consisting
of general
merchandise, on
the town site established by the citizens. J. H. Epley came from Crete,
Saline Co., Neb., in
May, 1873, and
also started a general store, where Smith & Spencer were located. These
parties remained on
these quarters
until the new town was surveyed, when they moved their stores into the
town and were the first
business establishments
in the place.
The first building
on the town plat following the depot and section-house was a lumber office
belonging to D.
Jaynes, and was
built in the fall of 1872, but Jaynes closed out his lumber yard the next
spring, and the office is
now occupied by
J. E. Broderick as a residence, and about the same time A. B. Chandler
and R. M. Aikens put
up a carpenter
shop, which is the building now made use of by McPeak & Sons, with
a stock of hardware.
Immediately after
the title to the town site was obtained and the permanence of the location
insured, the town
began to build
up. It was then that Smith & Spencer and Epley brought their stores
into the town. During the
month of September,
considerable progress was made--J. C. Clark started a lumber yard; D. McDonald
erected
a blacksmith shop;
J. W. Small opened a real estate and law office, and J. E. Hopper and J.
H. Conrad started a
drug store, and,
by the end of the year, there were six business houses, a lumber yard and
grain elevator, and the
town had a population
of about fifty people. It now has a population of about 600 people, and
contains many
substantial business
houses of varied sorts.
The town of Fairfield
was incorporated by the Commissioners of Clay County in June, 1878, and
J. R. Maltby, J.
H. Epley, L. Fryar,
W. S. Prickett and D. Howe appointed a Board of Town Trustees. The board
met and
elected J. R.
Maltby, Chairman; O. G. Maury, Clerk; C. F. Shedd, Treasurer; A. A. Kelsey,
Marshal; W. S.
Prickett, Attorney.
On September 24, P. G. Hayes was appointed Marshal, to fill the vacancy
caused by the
retirement of
Kelsey. The board passed the first ordinance on the 23d day of July, 1878.
The officers elected
for the year 1879 were: Trustees, J. E. Hopper, G. E. Glass, C. Palmer,
J. R. Madison and
H. Spencer; Chairman,
C. Palmer; Clerk, O. G. Maury; Treasurer, John Biddle.
1880--Trustees,
J. E. Hopper, Charles Palmer, O. H. Judd, G. E. Glass and H. Spencer; Chairman,
C. Palmer;
Clerk, F. H. Willis.
1881--Trustees,
J. R. Maltby, D. Howe, J. Tweed, D. Murdock and E. L. Brewer; Chairman,
D. Murdock;
Treasurer, J.
H. Case; Clerk, J. C. Hedge.
1882--Trustees,
W. S. Randall, T. J. Loomis, A. Broderick, C. F. Shedd and J. C. Hedge;
Chairman, W. S.
Randall; Clerk,
D. Howe; Treasurer, Charles Lewis.
The first school
was taught in the town of Fairfield in the winter of 1873-74, in a small
frame building erected
specially for
school purposes, in the fall of 1873. The house is a one-story frame and
at that time was the best
school building
in the county, being twenty-six feet wide by forty feet in length, and
cost $1,440. This building
continued in use
for a schoolhouse until becoming inadequate for the accommodation of the
school, a new school
building was erected,
in the summer of 1881. After the new house was completed, the occupancy
of the old
building for school
purposes was discontinued, and it was sold to the Christian denomination
in the fall of 1881,
and is now used
by that body for a church house, having undergone suitable reconstruction
for that purpose.
The new school
building, erected in the summer of 1881, is a fine large two-story frame
structure, of tasteful
architecture,
being constructed with appropriate and proportioned projections, and contains
four large
classrooms, with
recitation and principal's, cloak and ante-rooms, and all other necessary
apartments. The
schoolrooms are
fitted out with the most improved furniture, patent seats and desks and
all needful apparatus.
The cost of the
building when completed was $5,000. The building stands on an eminence
back of the town,
which slopes off
in all directions, and from which a view is had over the surrounding landscape
for a distance of
more than twenty
miles. The school was graded in the fall of 1881, being divided into the
primary, intermediate
and grammar school
departments, under charge of A. A. Randall as Principal, and Miss Emma
McKee and Mrs.
Alice Cooper,
as teachers.
The district in
which the town is included embraces a territory three miles square, and,
the town being located in
the corner section
of this territory, places the school beyond the convenient accommodation
of those living in the
remote section
of the district. For the accommodation of such, a schoolhouse was erected
to the southeast of the
town, a distance
of about two miles. At present, the schools in the town have an average
attendance of about
eighty pupils,
the enrollment being about 100.
Fairfield contains
four religious societies--the Methodist, Congregational, Christian and
Catholic. The first of
these established
in the town was the Congregational. The congregation was organized by Rev.
J. A. Jones, at
the residence
of H. J. Higgins, on Liberty Farm, on the Little Blue River, on the 1st
of January, 1872. Preaching
was held in residences
for some time, and, in the fall of 1872, the place of meeting was at Fairfield,
services being
held in the depot,
where they were continued until the approach of cold weather, and then
went to Smith &
Spencer's store,
and, in the spring of the next year, in Epley's store, and again, in about
a year from this, the
congregation worshiped
in the Brown Schoolhouse, now called Palmer Schoolhouse. During the summer
of
1874, the place
of meeting was changed to the school building in the town, in which they
remained until the
church was built,
excepting a short time in the fall and winter of 1877, when they met in
the Methodist Church on
every other Sunday.
Work began upon
the building of a church in 1878, and the house was not completed wholly
until the early part
of 1882, and was
dedicated on March 5 of that year by Rev. Mr. Merrill, of Omaha, State
Superintendent of
Home Missions.
The building is a one-story frame, 30x60 feet in size, and cost $2,800.
The congregation, with a
present membership
of seventy, continued under the pastoral charge of Rev. J. A. Jones until
November 1, 1872,
when he was succeeded
by the Rev. Thomas Pugh, who was followed by Rev. Mr. Abbott, on January
12,
1877, and was,
in turn, succeeded by Rev. R. Williams, the present pastor.
The Methodists
were the next to organize a church in the town, which was effected in August,
1873, in the depot,
by Rev. F. A.
Penny. Services were continued in the depot until the schoolhouse was completed,
when they
began the use
of that building and occupied it until the church building was completed,
in the summer of 1878.
The church is
constructed after the Gothic style of architecture, is 30x50 feet in dimensions,
and is nicely finished
with stained glass
windows, etc., costing, when completed, $2,150. The congregation, numbering
120 members,
is under the charge
of Rev. C. A. Mastin.
A Sunday school
was organized in the summer of 1878, with fifty scholars, and W. R. Stevens
was elected
Superintendent;
the school, now numbering 120 members, is under the superintendence of
W. S. Randall.
The Catholics organized
themselves into a congregation in October, 1877, there being about seven
families, and
took place in
J. R. Maltby's residence. Services were held monthly during that fall in
Conrad's Hall by Rev. J. G.
Glauber. The erection
of a church began in the latter part of the year 1878, and was completed
in the spring of
1879, so that
services could be held in the house, but was not entirely finished until
the spring of 1882. The
building is a
small frame, costing about $550. The congregation at present, numbering
some twenty families,
including those
in the adjacent country districts, is under the ministration of Father
Simeon, of Hastings.
On June 16, 1878,
the Christians, under the leadership of W. T. Newcomb, organized themselves
into a religious
body, comprising
twelve members, the meeting being held in the schoolhouse in which they
worshiped until the
fall of 1881,
when the new school building was completed and the old one was purchased
by the congregation,
and, after undergoing
suitable remodeling, has since been used by them as a church house. The
early services
were conducted
by W. T. Newcomb, who officiated in that capacity as early as the spring
of 1877. In
November, 1878,
Rev. George Lobengier took charge for one year, and was followed by the
Rev. William
Sumpter, who remained
about two years, and since his resignation, the body has been without any
regular pastor.
A parsonage was
erected in the fall of 1879, costing about $900, the total value of the
church property being
$1,500. A Sunday
school was started in the spring of 1879, with thirty-five scholars, and
S. J. Anthony was
chosen Superintendent.
The school now numbers fifty members, with F. D. Smith, Superintendent.
A union Sunday
school was begun in the spring of 1872, the first meeting being held at
the residence of H. J.
Higgins, at Liberty
Farm, where it was kept during that year, until the approach of winter,
at which time the
school was dismissed
for the winter, and, on the 9th of the following March, was started up
again, and L. Brewer
was elected Superintendent.
With the beginning of the next winter, the school was disbanded again,
and met
March 7, 1874,
in Brown's, now Palmer's, Schoolhouse, and elected W. R. Stevens Superintendent.
Meetings
continued to be
held in the schoolhouse until the fall of 1877, when they were changed
to the Methodist Church,
remaining here
about one year; were again held in the schoolhouse until the erection of
the Congregational
Church, in which
the school has since been kept. Other congregations at times branched off,
starting schools of
their own, so
that what remains of the union school originally started belongs almost
exclusively to the
Congregational
Church, and has a membership of 100, under the supervision of Lyman Porter.
A newspaper, called
the Fairfield News, was started in Fairfield in June, 1877, by J. H. Case
and O. G. Maury.
The first issue
of the paper was made on the 7th of that month. The establishment of the
paper was attended with
the most liberal
encouragement of the citizens of the town, who guaranteed for it a list
of 300 subscribers, eight
columns of advertisements
and a bonus of $300. The paper was a six-column quarto size, Republican
in politics
and had a circulation
of about 350. After about two years' operation, Case retired from the concern,
and it was
controlled by
Maury for about one year, when it was sold to J. W. Small, the present
editor and proprietor. Soon
after the paper
was started, it was changed to an eight-column folio size, which it has
since remained. At the
present time,
the paper has a circulation of 580 copies, and still retains faith in the
political creed of the
Republican party.
On account of the opinions promulgated by the News on county seat and other
local matters,
much dissatisfaction
and enmity was aroused against it by those holding adverse opinions. So
far were those petty
disagreements
carried, that in opposition to the News a second paper was begun by a stock
company,
composed of a
number of the citizens of the town, to which they gave the name of the
Fairfield Herald, the
company being
known as the Herald Publishing Company. The capital stock of the concern
is $1,000, and is
divided into 100
shares of $10 each. The company is operated by the thirty-seven stockholders,
who meet
quarterly and
choose and editor, two assistants and a business manager. With the first
starting, W. T. Newcomb
was chosen editor,
and the present editor is S. G. Wilcox.
A post office was
established in the fall of 1871, at a point two miles northwest of where
Fairfield now stands,
called White Elm,
and was kept by J. P. Scott, Postmaster. By authority of the proper government
officer, the
location of the
office was changed and brought into the town on June 27, 1873, at which
time it passed into the
hands of L. Brewer,
who was commissioned Postmaster.
The office, after
being called by various different names by the citizens, was finally given
that which it now bears.
Mr. Brewer has
continued Postmaster since his first appointment up to the present, with
the exception of about
seven months,
in the year 1881, when H. S. Gould received the commission, but his term
of office was
exceedingly brief,
Mr. Brewer again succeeding to the office, on January 1, 1882.
The Fairfield Lodge,
No. 84, A., F. & A. M., began under a dispensation from the Grand Lodge,
on
September 3, 1880,
the first meeting being held in Hopper's Hall, with ten members present.
The officers
appointed by the
Grand Master were B. F. Rawalt, Worshipful Master; O. P. Alexander, Senior
Warden, and
K. I. Willis,
Junior Warden. A charter was granted to the lodge June 22, 1881, there
being twenty-two charter
members. The lodge
then proceeded to organize under the charter, and elected B. F. Rawalt,
Worshipful Master;
O. P. Alexander,
Senior Warden; K. I. Willis, Junior Warden; W. S. Randall, Treasurer; L.
F. Fryar, Secretary;
J. McDonald, Senior
Deacon; B. R. Royce, Junior Deacon; Richard Bayly, Tiler, who were duly
installed into
their respective
offices by J. A. Tulleys, Past Grand Master, on the 26th of July, 1881.
The present officers of the
lodge, elected
December 27, 1881, are B. F. Rawalt, Worshipful Master; O. P. Alexander,
Senior Warden; W.
S. Randall, Junior
Warden; J. W. Small, Treasurer; A. A. Randall, Secretary; John Hedge, Senior
Deacon; B. R.
Royce, Junior
Deacon; George W. Noble, Tiler. The lodge, numbering twenty-five members,
composed of the
leading business
men of the town, is in harmonious and flourishing condition, and is supplied
with jewels and all
paraphernalia
necessary for the performance of the ceremonies of the order.
Grand Army of the
Republic.--This organization was formed in August, 1880, consisting of
twenty-six
members, by Col.
Woods, of Omaha, in Conrad's Hall, and W. S. Randall was elected Commander;
B. F.
Rawalt, Senior
Vice Commander; S. J. Anthony, Junior Vice Commander; L. Brewer, Chaplain;
D. A. Keeny,
Quartermaster;
O. P. Alexander, Surgeon; W. H. Fry, Adjutant, and B. R. Royce, Officer
of the Day. At a
regular meeting
on the third Wednesday in December, 1881, G. W. Noble was elected Commander;
J. W.
Small, Senior
Vice Commander; J. C. Hedge, Junior Vice Commander; L. Brewer, Chaplain;
J. E. Hopper,
Quartermaster;
O. P. Alexander, Adjutant; W. S. Randall, Surgeon; B. F. Rawalt, Officer
of the Day, and Jeff
Ogg, Officer of
the Guard. The society met in Conrad's Hall for about three years, when
they moved into their
present quarters,
in Hopper's Hall, where they hold regular meetings on the third Wednesday
of each month.
Temperance Alliance.--A
few of the people of the town of Fairfield met in the Methodist Church
in November,
1881, for the
purpose of organizing themselves into a Temperance Alliance for the suppression
of the traffic in the
sale of intoxicating
liquors and to assist in raising up the fallen inebriate. There were only
about a dozen persons
present, and the
organization was effected by electing F. H. Willis, President and B. F.
Rawalt, Secretary. Little
benefit, however,
resulted from the attempt, and what was done was subsequently abandoned.
During the
holidays of that
year, George Woodford, of Illinois, delivered a series of seven lectures
on temperance, and an
organization was
perfected, numbering about 350 members, with B. F. Rawalt, President; F.
Malone, Secretary,
and Mrs. Clara
Brodrick, Treasurer. The society hold regular meetings on the first and
third Friday evenings of
each month, in
the Methodist and Congregational Churches alternately. The Alliance, now
numbering 472
members, has been
active in the furtherance of the objects of its formation, and has done
much toward ridding the
town of saloons
and in stimulating many who had become besotted with drink to become sober
and temperate
men.
Fire Department.--Although
the town has thus far escaped the destructive influence of fires, yet,
acting on the
principle, "In
time of peace prepare for war," the citizens have wisely made provision
for defense against and the
suppression of
fire. The appliances provided for this purpose consist of a well wind-mill
and force-pump; three
cisterns, of 300-barrel
capacity, are constructed at the intersection of the principal streets,
and one 200-barrel
cistern near the
well, each of these cisterns being connected with the well by means of
underground pipes,
through which
the water is carried to fill them. In each of the cisterns is a wooden
pump, by means of which the
water is raised
into buckets, which are made use of until an engine can be procured. A
hook-and-ladder
company was organized
during the last year, with E. W. Lewis, Foreman, and the department consists
of
volunteer action
on the part of the citizens, the hole in case of fire being under the direction
of an engineer, who is
appointed by the
Town Trustees, together with his assistant. At the present time, D. Howe
occupies the position
of Chief Engineer,
and K. J. Willis, Assistant Engineer. With these appliances, the town is
comparatively safe
from fire, which
has been the cause of materially reducing rates of insurance by diminishing
the possibilities of
risks.
The first place
opened in Fairfield for the accommodation of the traveling public was the
Section House, kept by
John Clancey,
and which was continued until the winter of 1876-77, when W. W. Wattles
erected the Exchange
Hotel, which now
is the only public house in operation in the place. In the fall of 1879,
Mrs. C. J. Yates built the
Metropolitan Hotel,
which she used in the accommodation of guests, but, being confronted with
opportunities
more suitable
to the taste than that of being landlady of a hotel, she soon relinquished
the business for pursuits in
the matrimonial
relation.
Until a very recent
date, Fairfield did not possess a single banking institution. The first
concern of this kind was
established on
May 11, 1881, by J. W. Small and W. S. Randall, called the Fairfield Exchange
Bank, and is
engaged in general
banking business, with a paid up capital of $3,000 and deposits amounting
to about $12,000.
On the 14th of
May of that same year, a second monetary institution became established
under the name of the
Fairfield Bank
by a company composed of W. T. Newcomb, S. J. Anthony and O. C. Hubbell.
The concern
began business
with a cash capital paid up of $2,000, and has a reserve capital of $1,500
and deposits averaging
about $8,000,
and are also engaged in the transaction of a general banking business.
Both of these banks are
private institutions.
From the time the
town was first started, it has maintained a steady growth, always in the
rear of the settlement of
the country districts.
It is supported by a fertile country district occupied by many prosperous
and well-to-do
farmers, and it
awaits only time for a further development of the country when Fairfield
shall become a city of
considerable magnitude
and importance.