Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1882-12-29
NO. 80

o'N0iJ' ho soiu out 10 dOuk, the nrSt
county clerk. In the summer of 1873 d. E.
Sheldon came here and opened general
store in the rooms vacated by him few
days since when he went in his present
splendid emporium. He had at that time
one shelf IL feet long and two boards laid
on flour barrels for his counter. Quite Gif.
ferent from now.
From the Fall of 1872 to the Summer of
1873 the population OF the county was fast
increasing. Judge Shepler and his family
cam elm and the Judge tried the expert
ment of farming up the river, but not max
ing succes of it he went to killing and skim
ming buffalo and prospered much better. ID.
VanSlyke, the Swank family, A. L. Duncan.
DIR. Rigg, the first physician here, and many
others whose names are familiar, located
here. The first child born in the county,
was Ralph Duncan, son of A. l.. Duncan.
and the citizens promised to give him n
town loti but whether they did or not, we
don't know. Ralph is fine boy nearly
ten years old. The Walters family had !,
new baby at their house soon after Ralph's
appearance.
lt was about this time, the Spring of
1873, that Snn City was considered a town.
It being before known as the Griffin ranch.
ID. Douglass, the present leading mer-
chant of that place opened ont a stock Of
goods in the stockade building, and had n
good trade from the surrounding country
which he has kept and added TO as the
country has filed up with cattle men.
Reub. Lake established Lake City April
3, 1873, and has held the fort since. Soon
afterwards he was appointed the first sher-
III of the county, but he did not allow his
promotion to turn his head, for he contin-
ned to treat all alike, and trade for anything
from section ofIland to a scrubbv Arkan.
sas yearlng. For a long time ne has been
known as 1.-THE Rustler."
1t was in June, 1873, that the county was
organized, the first commissioners being
Samuel II. Ulmer, l.. ii. Bowlus and j. G.
kirkpatrick. The names of this trio will
60 down to history as the most sscnergetic"
board that ever existed i'm the state. On
this crowd have been showered curses srffi-
cient 20 start small Hades. They were
the instigators of the bond swindle.
AT the meeting of the commissioners in
July 1873, the bonds of the following off.
GERS were approved and they entered on the
discharge of their duties: r. Lake, sheriff
e. II. Douglass, district clerk; Nj. D. Houk.
county clerk; A. Kent, register of deeds;
VIM. Friedley, treasurer; H..T. McCarty.
county attorney; D. Updegraf, probate
judge; j. McNalley, coroner; James Call.
county superintendent; j. N. Lane. sur
veyor.
1t was in the summer of 1874 that the So
called Indian raid occurred-when band
OF Indians, lead by number of white men.
it is alleged, came to this county and mur.
dered several citizens up the Medicine river.
There are different versions of the story.
One is that the invaders were Indians who
were opposed to the whites settling up the
country and destroying their hunting
grounds. Another version is that they
were white men, in Indian rdisguise, who
were hired by interested parties to drive
out the population that che rascality of the
bond ,swindlers might not be detected or
interrupted. Old citizens don't like to saw
much about that raid, preferring to let the
dead past bury its dead-the dead Indians
being already buried. The invaders were
satisfied with one invasion.
To protect the citizens stockades were
built at this place, up the river twelve miles
and at Sun City. The one here ran north
and south through the alleys parallel with
and next to Main street. Where the Cresset
Office stands was the northern line and near
Blickhahn's shop was the southern line. It
was made Of cedar posts set on end In the
ground. AS further protection compa-
ny of militia was organized at this place
and one at Sun City, and these were willing
to keep off all savages for the pay they re-
ceived from the state.
This county was great grazing district
for buffalo, and old settlers tell us that there
were twenty times as many buffalo here as
there are cattle now. One enthusiastic old
settler remarked that he had seen them 50
thick on the Medicine river that one could
walk for miles by only stepping from one
buffalo to another. We suppress his name
for the sake Of his family. But they were
thick, and died in great numbers. Their
bleached bones were as thick in the can.
yons and on the prairies as stumps are in a
clearing. Who does not remember the
"Bone AgeT' When the bone pilgrims
swooped down on this country by the hun.
dreds and hauled the bones away by the
thousands of tons. There was no harm In
this, but this same crowd was guilty OF
, meanness, for they would burn off the grass
on every occasion they had the opportunity
that the white bleached bones rnight be-
seen more easily. This was after the 4Ce-
dar Are - when These sama v,llvr;,,,s car,~