Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1895-01-23
HENRY CLAY COLONY.
The Seat of a Successful Colored
Settlement.
THE KENTUCKIAN'S EXPERIMENT.
A Band OF Kx-Slaves Has Become q Thrlv-
Ing Indiana Community-They oc-
cupy Whole Township.

A few miles north of Elkhart, Ind. +,
Is settlement exclusively of colored
people, and known as Calvin Center.
In fact. the entire township in which
Calvin Center is located is occupied by
oolored people. nearly all of whom are
farmers ON large and successful scale.
The township has no small degree of
interest attaching to it, both from a
historical and sociological standpoint.
as some of those who now live there
and the ancestors of the present gener-
alton were slaves ON the plantation of
Henry Clay, the great Kentucky states.
man. and for long and faithful servi-
tude were granted their freedom by
him few years prior to his death.
Henry Clay, in recognition of the
faithful services of number of his old
family servants. and in a spirit of
characteristic generosity, gave them
their liberty and conveyed them to
Ohio. where he bought them lands and
located them. He returned to Ken
tucky, and but a few weeks afterward,
while sitting ON the veranda of his
plantation home one evening in rev.
erie, he was aroused by loud shout,
and, looking up, saw the entire band
OF his emanoipated slaves plodding
down the road toward him, swinging
their hats and sunbonnets and shout
ing hosannas Of gladness that they
were again ON the old familiar grounds.
In response to his questioning they in
formed him that they had become SO
homesick that they could stand it no
longer. and. pulling up stakes and dis.
posing Of their live stock and goods,
they had walked the entire distance
back to Kentucky to spend their re-
naming days in the fields they had
known SO we'll.
Clay had some pet theories in regard
to his scheme, and was chagrined in
being disappointed at its outcome. He
decided to make another effort, and,
after disposing Of the Ohio lands be
had bought for them, he again loaded
them up. Concluding that he would
remove them to more distant point,
whence they would not be SO likely to
walk back to Kentucky, he landed
them in Calvin township. which was
then scarcely village, and there they
have stuck ever since, multiplying and
prospering even more in both respects.
it may truthfully be said, than their
white neighbors of the surrounding
townships.
If Henry Clay's theory was sociol-
ogical one-that the negro could be
made self.respecting, independent, and
self-sustaining, he was right in it. for
under the thrifty care of his pioneer
ex-slaves, the broad and fertile acres OF
Calvin have been made to yield most
bountifully, and to-day the most pros
porous farmers of that section are to be
found among the colored people.
Considerable Indian blood has crept
into the colony, and straight hair. high
cheek bones. and an admixture of In
dian and negro features are noticeable.
William Allen, large, looking
colored man, with unmistakable evil
dences of the Indian about him, owns
and lives in the finest brick residence
in his section, and is the most extensive
live stock dealer in this vicinity. He
is rich and highly respected by whites
as we'll as blacks. Charles Bum
always made it point to corner timber
land, went into the lumber business
a Ion n with bio 70 r,,,;pr ond f1 dox, ;e
the wealthiest man in his neighbor-
hood, regardless of color.
There are many other colored men OF
extensive means and high degree OF
intelligence in the settlement, among
them Messsr. Hawke, Bass, Ash. and
others. all of whom have as high a
standing among the whites of the
neighborhood and this city as they have
among the people of their own color.
Another colored man noted for his
wealth and intelligence, was James
Matthews, who died few years ago.
He was SO black that his face shone
like a mirror. He had white wife,
always wore fine clothes and drove ex.
cellent horses.
The colored people showed great
shrewdness in getting possession oi
hundreds and hundreds of acres of the
hardwood timber land that abounde6
in their neighborhood before the matter
of timber supply assumed the import
ance of a question, and as the result
they are to-day the owners of nearly
all the hardwood timber in this local
ity, and have an absolute monopoly Of
the hard fire wood market in this city
and the surrounding towns of less i'm
portance. In the summer time they
push their farming. and in the winter
haul wood and saw logs, and py thi
means always keep themselves supplied
with ready money, having the advan
tage in this respect Of a majority O
their white friends. Some Of then
also do an extensive charcoal. burning
business.
There used to he q great deal Of law