Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1902-10-08
GOOD REASONS WHY
COURT HOUSE SHOULD BE BUILT
Board of Supervisors Set Fourth Their
Reasons For Placing Court
House Matter Before Voters.

To the people of Winesheik County =
1t is earnestly requested by tht
Board of Supervisors, who are the au
thors of this letter to the people Of
Winnesheik county, who are or may
become interested in the question o.
erecting new court house upon the
old site; that you read this letter
carefully, that yop may better know
the reasons we have for submitting
this question to the people at the
present time.
We realize full we'll that in submitt
ing this question we will be criti
cised by many; we also realize that
in the event of the destruction of the
county's records, and that means the
peoples records, by fire, the Board OF
Supervisors would be criticised and
justly so, because they have the oppor.
tunity to know better than any one
else, except the present incumbents in
the several Offices, the exposed condi-
tion of the records.
The question of added vault room
for the several offices has been raised,
but the Board of Supervisors did not
wish to expend from $1,000 to 8,00C
of the peoples money for vaults, with
out first giving them chance to voice
their wishes in the matter.
We are servants of the people of
Winnesheik county, elected to look
after the financial interests of the
county, and to properly and carefully
disburse the funds that come under
our jurisdiction, and viewing the
matter in this way, we do not wish
to expend so large an amount of the
peoples money without first consult
ing them and giving them the chance
contemplated in our laws of express
ing their wishes by ballot.
Briefly stated, these are some of
the reasons why we have submitted
this question to you. but there are
other reasons which we will proceed
to more carefully enumerate.
Come with us if you will to the Sur
veyor's Office and you will find upon
investigation that there is no place of
safety for the records of that Office !;
the records of land surveys and road
surveys are all exposed there is the
Surveyor, ask him what the destruc-
tion of the records of his Office would
me IN to the people, and when you
have his answer we will pass through
the connecting door into the Recor-
der's Office, and having greeted the
genial Chas. LawrAnce, the present
incumbent of the Office, you will say,
but the records are protected here
surely, for there is the vault, yes if
in the event of the burning of the
the large safes in the
Treasurer Office do not in falling
crush the arch of the vault; and now
having asked Charlie all the ques-
tions we can think of, and he because
of his extreme good nature has an
swered them, we will pass out of the
east door and turn around the front of
the Court House to the Clerks office
and see what conditions we shall find
there. We enter, and after having
greeted the quiet and unasuming
Clerk of the Courts, Mr.. Haakenson,
we proceed with our Investigations.
We notice an elderly gentleman
studying intently some paper which
he holds in his hands. he has not no.
ticed our presence and says this is
the right paper Mr.. Clerk, this clears
mp the whole matter, and then he
notes our presence and after greetings
are exchanged we find him to be one
county, when the conversation turned
upon the court house question, said
So l am the administrator of certain
estate and have just found a paper
which, if it had been destroyed would
have caused untold trouble and ex-
pense to me and those interested in
the estate. "
We begin our investigation and find
the records in probate matters are
placed in paper boxes arranged in
racks which cover every inch OF avail
able space in the room; we notice the
new boxes of another pattern placed
in the center of the room by the
Board of Supervisors for filing papers
and note that this had to be done as
there was no other place to put them !;
we pass behind the Clerk S desk to
the vault and find every inch of avail
able space filled with old matter and
some new lying upon thu table be-
cause there is no other place to put it !;
we pass from there to the Sheriff S
Office and find that he has placed a
safe there at his own expense for the
protection of important papers which
may be placed in his hands.
We pass across the hallway to the
office and find the
same crowded state existing there,
leaving this Office we pass down the
hall to the Treasurer's office and upon
investigation find two large safes of
ancient pattern that would not resist
the efforts of burglar for more than
thirty minutes, and while we are
here let as say that there is not a
bank in Winnesheik county with such
meager protection for their funds as
here to the Auditors Office we find
we find in this Office. Passing from
in this Office almost all of the records
in jeopardy, consisting of Assessors
books, assessment rolls, road plats,
real estate plats, road records, copies
Of Board proceedings for several years
past, reports of various kinds with no
protection whatever except an old safe
that they dare not lock for fear they
could never open it again, the lock
being out of repair.
We believe we have briefly stated
facts as they are and wish the tax
payers Of Winnesheik county to give
this matter their careful consider
alton.
We often hear these words spoken