Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1871-05-26

tion. Minerva-like towns and cities
sprang into full growth throughout
the length and breadth of the State,
every train bringing its quota the
material necessary to develope the
wealth and productive resources Of
the country.
Our own county and city were
among the first of the inland coun-
ties of Northern Iowa to receive the
impulses of growth and advance
ment resulting from railroads. The
track layers on the Dubuque and
Sioux City Railroad reached Indc-
pendence in the winter Of 1859, and
as well may be imagined the occa-
sion was made one ofgreat rejoicing
by our people. 1t was to them like
the busting Of his bars to the prison
er, and it's immediate effects were
the quickening of trade, activity in
real estate and the bringing to the
town of wide awake, shrewd bust
ness men from the outside world,
keen for speculation, and ready to
improve the opening prosperity Of
the county to put money in their
pockets. Every day brought access
sions of value to the population Of
town and county. When the rail-
road reached this city its future was
no matter of conjecture. Besides
other advantages it was the county
seat, and from that time to the pres
ent it has continued to grow with
uninterrupted expansion.
FROM 1859 TO 1864
nothing had occurred to disturb the
even tenor Of the towns progress.
The place grew more rapidly than
it had at any other like period Of
its existance, and a feature worthy
Of especial note is the relative char
acten of buildings erected before
and after the railway reached here.
The ideas of the public became eli
larged and with that growth came
pride-pride in the appearance of
their dwellings and places of busi-
ness. The spirit of rivalry between
towns as well as villages too was
high, and as result OF this rivalry
stimulated into life by the railway,
we point with pride to noble public
buildings, business blocks and cle-
giant residences.
The year 1864 was memorable
one In the annals of Independence,
as many events of especial as we'll
as painful interest occurred which
live in the memory Of the inhabi-
tants of that year. Many of these
events we cannot mention for want
of space and time. Some of them
however cannot be omitted.
| NoTE.-Thc writer has had it re-
vealed to him since his labors be-
gan that to give anything like sat
isfactory history Of Independence,
more elaborate plans should have
been formed, and that in place of
three or four columns of newspa-
per volume of as many hundred
pages should have been allotted to
the task.
But ''to return to the subject"
the chief event of local Importance
in 1864 was the
COUNTY SAFE ROBBERY.
This occurred on the night of
March 18th of the year mentioned.
The Treasurer's office was forcibly
entered by burglars, the safe blown
open with powder and $4,000 alb
stracted. For many moths no clue
to the robbers could be obtained.
In July of the same year, however,
the detectives arrested three men
and lodged them in the Jail of the
county as the perpetrators of the
robbery. Their names were Chris
tian Rorabacher, arrested at his
home, near Pilot Grove, Blackhawk
county, w. H. Knight, arrested at
Dubuque, w. II. Pollard, arrested
in the State of New York. The
prisoners were indicted in Septem-
ber and took 4 change Of venue to
!. Delaware county. At the succeed
ing term Of the District Court at
Delhi, in April, 1865, Knight was
tried, convicted and sentenced to
term of six years in the penitcn-
tiary. Rorabachcr took another
change of venue to Bremen county,
where be was tried i'll May, with
the same result, his sentence being
also six years in the pcnitcntiary.
Pollard was afterwards tried in
Butler county and acquitted. The
evidence upon which Knight and
Rorabacher were convicted was
merely circumstantial, worked up"
with much skill by the detectives,
but no part of the stolen money has
been recovered to this day. After
the excitement of the time had sub
sided there began to be suspicious
in the public mind that possibly the
result of the trials were due more
to the zeal of the detectives in hope
OF the large reward offered, than the
guilt of the prisoners, and this feel
ing finding expression in petition
to the Governor asking for their
pardon, they were released at the
expiration of 4 little more than half
the term of their sentence.
A sad sequel to this transaction
was the return of Knight to this
county in June last, far gone in the
last stages of consumption, without
money, without friend or relative
on earth, wrctched and forlorn, for
the purpose rs he said of protesting
with his latest breath his innocence
of the crime for which he had been
convicted, and as sort of poetic
justice compelling the community
which had wronged him to give Sc
pulture to his worn out BODY. He
lived less than 4 week after his ar
rival, and his last hours were sooth-
cd by the offices of christian chari-
| ty.
The same year, independence
having grown in population, busi-
ness and civilization sufficient to
warrant the casting off of the swad-
ding clothes Of her infancy, move
was made and successfully, for