Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-05-09
The Veteran Official.

An old gentleman, Mr.. Strother
Evans, who has been q citizen of Wash
ington for more than half a century,
has a curious store of historical nara
tive. Few people now living knew An
drew jackson personally, and MIR.
Evans came to the National capital in
July, 1929, four months after the first
inauguration Of President jackson.
And 1929 was. it will be remembered,
only fifteen years after the burning of
the capital by the British. Mr.. Evans
is considerably over eighty, nearer nine
,ty in fact, but his hearing is still unim-
paired and his memory perfect. He is
still a clerk underline Government, hay
ing held office almost continually since
Jackson's time-through fifteen admin
list atoms. In 1881 he was promoted to
u $ 1,4oo clerkship 0hen a pr nicely sal
ary) by Governor Cass, Secretary of
War under Jackson, and Old Hickory's
signature (autograph) was affixed to
Abe papers used in the transaction.
Yhroughh $ father-in-law. a MI. O'Neal,
who was a warm personal friend of
jackson. MI. Evans came to know him
quite intimately. The northwest por-
ton of this city, now the center
of wealth and fashion, was then
a barren waste Of field and marsh.
Lafayette Square was a muddy bramble
patch without wen a fence round it.
On the west SIDE stood an old house
wherein Dolly Madison lived and died.
IAslittle below stood the row known as
the ''seven houses" on the north side Of
Pennsylvania avenue, between Seven
teenth and Eighteenth streets, and the
s'six houses near Twenty-third street.
These with two exceptions were the
finest houses in the town, and where
the grandest people lived. One of the
exceptions was the immense singularly
built residence at the corner Of New
York avenue, known as ''the Octagon,"
and Eighteenth street. This was con
siderered a palace in that day, and was
the home Of one of the finest gentle
men and richest men in Virginia.
John Tayloe ''of Carolina" as he
proudly subscribed himself. just in
front of the Tayloe place, which is still
in a state Of tolerable preservation,
stood or the very bank of the Potomac
the then magnificent home of General
Van Ness, the second finest house.
General Van Ness had married the only
child OF David Burns, who then owned
a large portion of the land upon which
the city now stands. The Van Ness
home, which fifty years ago was at the
height of its grandeur. gathering within
its stately walls the cho cest society of
the con nent, is a pathetic sight to-day.
iCrumbling, decaying, isolated, it has
fallen from its high estate to become a
negro dance house.
When MIR. Evans came here those
were the PRINCIPAL houses of the town,
then a mere village of less than IS 600
inhabitants. His father-ia laws 1Mr.
lO'Neal) house was neal what was
known as Holmeade's burial ground,
not far from the boundary. There was
no house between this and the White
House, and Old Hickory used to stroll
across lots on Sunday afternoons to
chat with the family in a friendly way,
and get a drink of water from the
O'Neal well. which he preferred to that
of the White House. The picture con-
jured up by this trenlulous old voice,
-. --~rA - 80 -.