Omaha daily bee., 1908-06-28
TRAGIC STORY OF A TOWN
Why the Pacific Railroad Passed St,
jos and Anchored in Omaha.
REBEL WELLS DID THE BUSINESS
4 Legend that is Mighty Interesting
~ True-RenectIOns OF the
Pathos of Blasted
Hopes.

Pathos of Blasted
Hopes.
The pathos Of human regrets and blasted
hopes pictured by the eminent Quaker poet
John Greenleaf whittier, in his famous
lines:
OF all the sad words OF tongue and pen,
The saddest are these, ut might have
been
have for one community in the Missouri
valley a soulful meaning as deep as that
which wrung gobs OF tears from the hearts
Of Maud Muller and the judge. st. Joe is
the afflicted community. No one would
suspect from IT'S look that silent sri-f
gnaws at the vitals, unless the present
su~perabundance Of wa'er ~provokes the h'g
gard face. But from Lake Contrary to the
summit Of Robadieux's bluff the s5bs OF
what might have been well up whenever
the distant rumble Of a Pacific railroad
train is heard. The reason occasionally
crops out in a semi-historical way, and
the latest version OF it is set forth with
much detail in VIII L. Visscher's recently
published story of The Pony Express
St. Joe's %sorrowing tale stretches back to
the early days of the civil war when the
sainted town imagined it was destined to
De the eastern terminus OF lht i've idlli
route, but its expectations were blasted
by the rebel yells Of one jeff Thompson.
Hopes Built High.
Mr.. Visscher's statement Is more In the
nature Of a suggestion than a fact estab-
lished. and Is predicated on the assumption
that the pony express route from st. Joe,
the most practicable then in operation,
would have been chosen as the route OF
the Pacific railroad had not the flag Incl
dent changed the route OF destiny. The
legend, in substance, states that Senator
Charles Sumner of Massachusetts was a
stanch supporter OF the claims Of st. Joe
as the eastern terminus OF the proposed
Pacific railroad, which had been under
consideration in congress for years prior to
the date Of the incident in 1861. The city
possessed constructive advantages superior
to any other settlement on the Missouri
river. The Hannibal & st. Joe railroad
had it's erminus there. a fact of ire
mendous Importance in transporting mate.
rial for the new road. "St. joe says the
writer. was at that time easily the most
important city on the Missouri river. Kan.
sas City was little known other than West.
port Landing. a struggling village under
the bluffs, most important as the steam.
boat landing for Westport. a small town q
few miles inland, in Missouri. the outfit,
ting depot for much overland traffic
Omaha was then little more than a trading
post opposite Council Bluffs, Ia, But there
as in Kansas City, another great city has
grown"
what Struck the Town.
The incident which charged Senate
Sumner from an intense partisan of st
Joe to an enemy of the city was precipitateC
by the rebellious conduct of some Of th'
residents. After the election of Mr.. Lin
coin in 1860, and his Inauguration in 1861, al
president, which precipitated the secession
OF the southern states" continues the mar
rative, Jeff Thompson, a prominent either
OF st. Joe, committed an act that, though
apparently a trifling affair, comparatively
resulted in many wondrous changes
Thompson became an intense secessionis
and was afterward an officer OF the con
federate army. The tradition is that he
with some other young men, tore down tn,
United States flag from the st. Joseph post
office and replaced It with the flag OF tn,
southern confederacy. The story, whicl
seems to be of strong foundation in trutl
and vouched for by many persons of tn
time and place, further relates tina Mr.
Sumner, when informed Of the st. Joe Incl
dent, became as ~strenuously opposed L
that city, In the premises, as he had beei
In its favor heretofore, and that he ha,
much to do with influencing Mr.. Lincol,
to name Omaha as the beginning OF tn
Iron Trail westward"
Jen Was n Terror.
Supporting the statement OF Thompson
traitorous act is the verified fact tina
John l.. Bittinger, for many years a lead
ing Journalist Of the city, and who was pos
master at the time, apprehended Thompso
in the act Of destroying the flag that h
had pulled down. and recovered the frag
ments at the muzzle OF a revolver.
Thompson was not content with his frs
act Of treason to the government. HI
rebel yell was heard wherever the unto
flag was raised. He was the leader OF
rebel mob which compelled the occupants c
Turner hall to haul down the flag whic
the Turner society floated from the flag
staff Oh the building. These acts OF dis
loyalty and contempt for the government
are supposed to have incensed tho authori
ties at Washington and caused the Massa
chusetts champion of human liberty to pu
the hot iron TO rebel flesh of St. Joe an
place the city on the Pacific railroad "ha
been" list.
This is conceded to be the saddest chap
ter in the melancholy romance of st. Joe
Why historians OF the Pacific railroad an
Of Omaha nave overlooked the tragic ep.
sode and neglected to feature it as a III
ting penalty for disloyalty is a mystery tn
local historians can solve at their leisure
1t may help st. Joe and partially vindicat
jeff to point out that as early as 1853 III
route now occupied by the pioneer trans
continental railroad from Omaha to IN
Rocky mountains was substantially locate
by Hon. Peter A. Dey, General Grenville n
Dodge, J. E. House and George House. II
nine succeeding years were years OF talk.
years Of destruction rather than construC
ton. In 1852 these eminent railroad patti
finders confirmed the original route an
the constructive administration Of Presider
Lincoln set the machinery in motion, estat
lished the initial point" between Oman
and Council Bluffs. and that settled /
jeff Thompson appears TO have bee
Ignored as completely as st. Joe.
CHOIR HAS PICNIC AT MANhWI