Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1899-11-17
Some EARLY Remembrances
About Howard County.

Forty-two years the 18th of the pres
ent month since the writer with his
family, came to Howard county. New
Oregon then was a thriving village Of
more than..500 inhabitants, and when
the census of 1850 was taken, had over
100. Since then it has presented the
features of "Goldsmith's Deserted
Village, +" and is now devoted to farm
ing and nursery, the ground being oc-
cupied by the New Oregon nursery of
J. B. Mitchell. At the time of our
arrival and for several years, New
Oregon was distributing point for
mails north, northwest, west and
southwest, the names of several towns
and postotfices being unknown to the
present generation. The town OF
Albion was then named Osborne and
had postoffice of the same name with
DR.. J. w. Reed as postmaster. South
west near the Geo. Merry farm in
Paris a postoftice was established
named Sturgis Point, with John 1.
Sturgis postmaster. After it's suspen-
sion another was established in the
same town near Lourdes, named Crane
Greek over which Michael Montague
had charge. The mails for Osborne,
Sturgis Point and Crane Creek, were
conveyed by the incumbents of those
offices.
Stage mails were made up fol
Vernon Springs, Lime Springs, Eaton.
vile, LIE Roy, Forest City, Mimi, the
route terminating at Mantorville,
with semi-weekly service. The towns
of Oak Dale and Chester then consti-
tuted one township known as Iowa
River township, and Eatonville post
office was at the home farm of Artemus
Eaton west of the present village OF
Chester. The western mails were
made up for Vernon Springs, Howard
Center, Saratoga, Riceville, Cardiff
and Usage, the end Of the route.
Howard postotfice, one mile north OF
Elma, was on the stage route from
Fort Atkinson west, supplying
Howard, and Busti offices in this
county and Nelson, Cardiff and Usage
in Mitchell county, with tri-Weekly
mails on both these routes stnamed
AT Howard, w. S. Pettibone had a
hotel which had a reputation more
widely known than that of the town
where located. Everybody went to
Pettibone
With here and there an exception
those who were residents of the
county in 1857 are numbered with the
dead, and those of them remaining
are largely strangers to the present
genera tion, as they in time will be tc
the generation that comes after them
The county business in 1857 was
transacted at Howard Center, ther
the legal county seat. Jas. G. Upton
county judge, Edmund Gillett, county
clerk, Henry A. Cook, treasurer anc
recorder, the two offices being ther
united. The county business was
transacted in small building aoros.
the street west from the barn of f. p
Hewlett, the courts were held in th,
hotel Of John f. Thayer standing
where the residence of f. P. Howlet
| is located.
From Howard Center, the count.
seat was removed by vote to a poin
situated about half way between
New Oregon and Vernon Springs, in
wooden building erected and donated
to the county by the villages O
Vernon Springs and New Oregon. l
was afterwards removed by the boar'
of supervisors to Vernon Springs, tn
county business being transacted il
the two story stone building standin
there yet, and was removed from tina
place to Cresco in the early days @
the town, where it is permanent
located.