The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1875-10-05

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Mr.. President, Ladies and Gentle
men: uiria1 ai ffa 'nou aiai '' n'tot
In compliance with q resolution ol
the Board, passed at their meeting in
February last. / appear before you to-
day to recall to your minds some of the
work performed by this Society in the
quarter of century Of its existence,
together with brief notice OF its foun.
dsrs and promoters. and the result oi
its labor as bearing upon the agricul-
tural interests Of the county and State.
We cast about us for tho old land
mark Of the Society, the pioneers Of
This work Of organization, the real
sorkcrs who first put hand 10 the pillow
Tor tho purpose Of improving the agri-
culture Of the county through associa-
lion; few are before US to-day, most
have been gathered into. that rest that
knows no turmoil until the Judgment
day. t.'rtsse v.- rs-
On the 10th day Of January. 1851, a
meeting of farmers OF the county as
sembled in Underwood's Hall in this
city in response to q call through the
papers. and organized the Hillsdale
County Agricultural Society. The
Constitution and Bylaws adopted for
its government and guidance were
drawn up and presented by the Hon.
Henry 8. Mead, then q member Of the
State Legislature. who then. and 90
long as he lived took q lively interest
In advancing the agricultural prosperi-
ty OF the county.
The Gfficers elected at the first meet
ing were as follows: The Hon. Henry
Packer, Of Litchfeld, President; Fred.
Fowler, Reading, Levi Treadwell. OF
wheatland. and DIR. Stillman Ralph. Of
Moscow, Vice Presidents; Hon. John
p. Cook, Treasurer; Isaiah McCollum.
Secretary; aud an executive committee
sf ono from saeh town an ths eo"aty,
composed of Benjamin +. Pierce. of
Moscow, Henry II. Ferris, Of Reading,
Chester Hunt, OF Somerset, Sherburn
Gaige Of Scipio. Henry Smith, Of
Litchfeld, Daniel Nichols of Allen,
VIM. n. Guy, Of Fayette, Asa G. Ed
wards, of Adams, Albert b. Slo0um, Of
wheatland, Dudley Worden, Of Pitts
ford, o. b. Coffin, OF Jefferson, b. b.
willett, of Cambria, VIM. r. Mont
gomery, of Camden, Daniel kinne, of
Reading, Cyrus'Pattersop, OF Wood
bridge, Thomas Burt, of Ransom, Tim
othy johnson, Of Wright, aud Nathan
iel s Dewey, of Amboy; OF this num-
Der Henry II. Ferris was the Recording
Clerk. These constituted the first
Board, and Of these a majority, viz.
Messrs. Treadwell, Ralph, Pierce,
Hunt, Gaige, Smith, Nichols, Guy,
worden, Coffin, willett, Kinne and
Johnson, rest from their labors, while
heir associates tarry a little longer Ia
,Djoy the privileges and contemplate
The result Of their efforts. -
At this point let me say that my re-
marks relative TO the transactions OF
the Society, after its organization un-
al 1852, will be mostly from memory.
IS the records Of the first eleven y.acs
nave been lost, and for which We would
gladly pay liberal reward could the,
be recovered. We want them for the
Historical incidents they contain, al
hough not necessary for our chartered
lights as the society has been re-organ-
zed since The circumstances of the
loss are as follows: At the election OF
1861, Mr.. ii. j. King was el cted Sec
| retary; at the January meeting of the
.Soard he decliped the office and the
Board appointed Albert Collins, Esq.
I.o fill the place made vacant. turued
lie records over to him, the bo,,k Deinp,
lll. Iwas again elected Secretary III
500, and in receiving the records and
fleets from Mr.. Collins he gave me a
uew record, remarking that the old one
vas full: that he had left 1t with ID. l..
Pratt, Esq, President OF the Society,
| IN Hiiisdaie. Calling upon the Presi-
ient be had no knowledge OF it, aud il
mas not been found yet, although e.
forts have been made To recover II.
The first Fair held by the Society
was in October, 1851, on the Court
House squares in this city, tho yard
being used for show GROUNDS, and the
court rooms for halls. In the stock
department., Gen. Geo. g. Munro led
aff with Thoroughbred short horn bull,
a very good animal at that early day. :
lie was followed by Uncle Zeb Will.
iams, Of wheatland, with bull
and one or two heifers; this composed,
as then called, the Durhams Of the
county. Next came the Hon. Lewis I
Miller, of Moscow, with two or three
head Of Devons, fine cattle OF their
class, and it is my recollection that ii.
II. Ferris, OF Reading. had representa-.
tiyes in this class, but OF this / am no,
certain.
In grades there were q few exhibi.
tors not fully recalled now. In horses
J. ID. Van Hovenburgh, with his Meas
enger; Garner Archer and others,
probably ten exhibitors in all. Sheep,
swine and poultry were not on exhibi
tion. In the halls department it wai
not overcrowd.d. Mr.. Emery and til,
Misses Clevelands made q small shos
n domestics; the ladies' contributed
some few articles Of needle work, and
The matrons of the country bread, but.
ter and fruit. This constituted the
irst exhibition of the Hillsdale County
Agricultural Society. The whole mum
Der of entries was less than "A hundred,
and the preniums awarded amounted
to nearly eighty dollars, aud paid frou
a fund raised by subscription, M alsC
the expenses.
The "a Fair for 1853 was held in tbs
village Of Jonesville On the publ,
square; this was boarded in, and a reg
ular admittance charged. Annual fsm
lily tickets so cents; single, 10 cents
The officers for this year: Fred. Fow
Ter, ESQ, Of Reading, President; shi
was before he became Colonel; Ches
ter Hunt, T.. 4. Chester, aud Wm. Cut
ler, Vice Presidents; Henry A. Della
van, Treasurer, aud l. III. Mccollum
Secretary: an address, the first, b,
Hon. Robert McClelland, of Monroe
The entries we're nearly double Of th,
previous year. The receipts are no
recollected, less, however. than 5000
out the comfy gave the mill tar, th
Law being compulsory at this time j
certxin conditions had been met by th
SOcieiy. s5 2, ci'.,si s..'7ts as
The third Fair Of 1859 Was held j,
this city Just nofth'of tho river on Oh
corner " Union aud Vine streets Tn
grounds were enclosed by setting post
aud stretching factory cloth sroun'
on the outside Of these, two Width
7 ls.,k nt.,i,.atts., .l...us ~ .arn fI,