Mower County transcript., 1903-10-21

Large Crowds Were Present Last Sunday Afternoon
II at Oakwood-Th Weather Auspicious-A Very
i Interesting Program Report Of Hon. 80 :
81 mi a0.:W. Shaw's Historical Address: a,lrl

i istoarifalA> . A Address: RS b 3r54So3::.>) L
sident, sD:& H. Stimson: secretary, Dr.
W:.L.s Hollister; treasurer, S. A? Smith
superintendent, A., Frederick; other
Etrastees,$ ,$F..W W. Kimban, r.. %, Hail. {
Following is MIR. aShaw's historical
Eaddress complete. ~ f<$s}XE s
u..s HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
ISSfsS3 {s%E&S;
The life of community for a day, a
month, year, or generation is an
aggregation of individual experiences,
! and as in the life of every individual, SO
likewise rinr the, history Of every COM
munitY, there ale Occurring seasons of
fmore than ordinafyai s4There are
occasions when not only individuals but
/. whole iconrnnnities are sforeibly remind
ed of the rapid flight of time and of the
changes effected in series of years.
These changes are not confined to any
one class objects; they maysbe pre-.
dicted Of almost every thing around Us.
Many Of them are 50 gradual that when
viewed III therelation 81 two successive
days, they are wholly imperceptible;zbut
for all that. they~.are nc, ,lesse1eal. The
|'countenanee of friend a saw, yesterday
land etthis morning hassto. sme under
gone no alteration, but let separation
occur and the. absence of years in
tervene, and how apparent the change.
{ This, to us as individuals and as a
| community, is an occasion of special in
terest4 twill Bring to some of you tender
memories of days long gone: perchance
of departed ones with whom in the glow
of life's morning you walked along :our
streets; perhaps of disappointed hopes
and bitter griefs that time may never
heal, but whatever it may bring to you
or me, to a; single one it does not fail tc
repeat its appropriate and impressive
llesson that changei6 if human lives is an
unvarying law .,.sa.s ! 5sss s: :..l s.
.'Tis inzthe contrast Of conditions pre-:
vaillng in the community at'the time o1
the establishments of this burial place
with those now existing: and in these
alone that may be found proper realiza
ton of the changes which the passing
years have wrought, and it's in the pre-
,sentation Of such contrast that toda,
your thoughts will be largely called tt
what is long gone.
Primarily we are assembled to dedicate
to its proper use this crowning accom-
plisbment in this home of the dead, in
cldentally too, we are& observing the
fiftieth anniversary of the building o.
the first house erected in this county
within rifle shot of the very place of thi:
gathering.
Within the assigned limits can make
little reference to the very infancy o:
the settlement along this river bank
sufficient to say that the coming of the
pioneers of 1853 and q, followed by the
influx of 1855 and E. gave the population
proportions of some magnitude. So fal
as l know there has not been found
among us proper record of the attend
ant privations and hardships that marked
that earlier period. Such as they are
chiefly exist in the recollections of the
few surviving participants, whose num-
Der is so rapidly growing less.
In 1858 the scattered cabins had be.
come hamlet OF less than two hundred
souls. Nevertheless with the involved
possibilities this number was sufficient tc
attract the coming of the first newspaper
the "Mower County Mirror" of which il
there are any files among us, l have
never seen them. 1t was removed tc
Rochester in 1860. In December of the
same year was issued the first number oi
Austins second newspaper, the "Minne
sofa Courier" which continued abou
three years. In July, 1863, was issued the
first number of the Register" and files
of both have been kindly placed in my
hands by Mr.. H. O.. Basford. have
looked through these with absorbing in.
terest. This was "a little world within
Itself. AS late as July IS. 1862, the
Courier said "Our latest ST.. Paul papers
are dated 9th inst. and under our present
mail facilities we are forced to- go tc
press without any news later than those
I,contained in the paper of above date
1 And here we have in hand the preserved
record of its affairs in which, my friends
the participants are lying all about US
Allsits circums scribed local interests are
before us Its homelY social life it:
politics, conflicts of opinion, its bicker
lings and strifes, (for it had them) selfish
ness, and withal. the ties Of friendship
land mutual trust between fellowmen
Hove, sympathy, generosity, self-denial
human nature, as in broader fields, re
t;re = n 10 r;vaYc;TaI rIarartor; r;cf;ce