Wichita eagle., 1888-01-22
WICHITA.
What it is, What has Made it and What
Will Sustain it.

VIII Sustain it.
A correspondent of the Springfield,
No., Herald spent few days in this
city recently and while here took upon
hilnself the trouble of making a pretty
thorough investigation into the facts
and circumstances of the city's history
and present condition. We reproduce
the result of his energies, in part. as
furnished to the Herald in the shape of
a letter, of date, January 10:
We said in our last, Wichita lis a
ruby set in mud, studded with sllanties
and bordered with sunfiowers. The
ruby consists of massive. costly three.
four and five story business blocks.
stone and iron. fine public buildings
and very beautiful and expensive
private residences, all built to stay.
The setting of mud is broad
avenue of unpaved prairie soil.
smooth and fine In al weather except
the extremes OF wet and dry and windy,
when one is compelled to wallow i'll it OF
eat it. The shanties are only so in COM
parison with houses of larger growth
four room frames of the smallest and
cheapest build. end as the suburbs of
two and three years age. in consequence
Of the phenomenal growth Of the city are
now we'll into its heart. this border of
cheap houses is broad one, lighting
manfuIly with the sunfiowers and prairie
grass for possession of the black, cracked
soil. The buildings in Hobart S addition
Springfield are fine in comparison. and
of beauty Of surroundings and location
are beyond fine, beyond all comparison.
Mr.. Hobart in his last addition has made
his lots twenty five feet front and holds
them at $500. The lots in the extreme
suburbs of Wichita are all TWENTY-FIVE
feet and are held at from $3.50. to $3.50
each. They are more than three times
the distance from the business portion of
the city that Hobart's addition in from
the business part of Commercial street
But our days research of yesterday
was one of profit. inasnluch as we learn
ed the causes which have made Wichita
grow from a place Of so inhabitants in
1870 to a present population of near or
quite 40. 000-a period of seventeen years.
The wonderful change has been wrought
by really wonderful unanimity and de-
termination of the entire populace to
make it grow. favored by good geo.
graphical location and seconded by rail
road companies in their efforts to avail
themselves of the advantages of this
growth. We'sincerely believe that had
Wichita been peopled by non-pregress-
i've fossilized class of people who would
have done nothing to induce immigra-
ton or railroad construction. she would
not have been more than half her pres
ent size to-day. and that instead of hav-
ing seven railroads centering in her
borders and more under construction
three would have been her limit.
For several years previous to 1879.
Wichita was the terminal point of spur
of the Atchisou, Topeka & Santa Fe rail
road, her only outlet. During that year
this spur was continued on down to the
line Of the Indian Territory. She had then
reached population of nearly 5,O0o by
reason of the energy of her business men.
In 1880 the Frisco was completed to
Wichita and she reached a population of
5,4S2. Three years later lin 1888 the
st. Louis. Fort Scott & Wichita was
completed and she then had as good
railroad facilities as were afforded
Springfield on the completion of the
Gulf road to Memphis. and had increased
her population to 5000. Then it was
that the business meu and capitalists
commenced to push. They advertised
the town to the utmost. They not only
invited manufacturers to the place. but
after judiciously determining what
branch of manufacturing industry would
10, I've n C1,h
scribed the means to induce its coming
and got it by purchase.
In one year they ran their population
from 5000 to 15.410. This boom at once
attracted the attention of railroad CAPT
talists and was followed by the construc-
ton of the Wichita d Western railroad
and then the Rock Island and the Kan
sas Midland, the two latter completed
the past summer. 50 that now Wichita
has seven different railroads that lead
out in ten different directions. while her
population increased $40 in 1884, /, 10
in 1885. 1861 in 1886, and about
5000 during 1881. Now this re-
markable increase i'll population has
not been due so much to railroad con-
struction as to the increasing effort of
the people here. Neither has gas" and
"inu cOlnpllsned IT,
No. they wanted the Burton car works
and they pat their hands i'll their pockets
and brought ont sufficient inducements
to bring them here. The works will con-
sist of ten brick buildings. etc, cover
Ing thirty-eight acres of land. will cost
500, 600. The company has a capital Of
81 600. 900 and will give employment To
2,00D men.
They wanted the Wichita watch COM
pany. raised it with material aid and it
has capital OF s250.000 and gives en-
ployment to 400 persons.
They wanted Jacob Dold & Son to
start IA packing house and raised 100000
by subscription as an ndUcement. He
comes with a capital of Sl,000.0oo and
viii employ so men.
They induced the Gilbert pillow works
works to locate with capital of S20O, 000:
will begin operations next month and
employ 500 men.
4 boot and shoe factory has 100000
capital and has $50 operatives.
\ wire nail mill has 100000 capital
and employs 200 operatives
An agricultural implement factory
has 100000 capital and employs 200
men.
Then there are planning mills. SASH and
door factories a spice mill that employs
thirty men. carriage works, terra Gotta
works and various other minor manu-
factories. with more promised.
In public works Wichita has done Won
derfully well. for she has got them with
out bonding the city. Tier are over 400
electric lights in use for public and pri-
vate purposes. besides the light afforded
by gas company. She has supply Of
water from the Arkansas river. furnished
by company that has over nine miles