Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1909-07-10
PEOPLES PULPIT.
AT I ON MAN SAW
FIRST COURIER
N. w. RoWELL WAS BOY IN OF.
TuMWA IN 1s4s WHEN PAPER
WAS STARTED.

N. w. RoweIl of Alton, who saw the
first impression taken on an old hand |
press of the first issue of the Courier |
back in 1S4S has written a letter to |
the Courier in which he speaks re-
miniscently Of the old times in Wapello
county. Mr.. Rowell does not take |
much stock in the question of navigat-
Ing the Des Moines. Evidently Mr.. |
Rowell hasn't been in Ottumwa for
some time and has not noticed that the |
Des Moines Is still healthy stream
He will no doubt be surprised when
the steamboats, are again whistling on
the stream His letter in full follows:
Alton, Ia, July 6, 1909.
Editor Courier: I see from copy
of your paper before me, that the
Courier was founded August s, 1s48.
Permit me to say that when I was a
small boy l was on the streets of OF
tumwa in the fall of 1S4S. Something
attracted my attention to small
building on the north side of what is
now East Second street, at least there
Is where | now locate it. / remember
1t was situated upon high bank. r.
entered the building and there saw for
the first time in my life a printing
press, small hand press. There were
two men there, and my recollection
now is that they were Dick" Warden
and John Gossage; and saw them take
the first impression of the Ottumwa
Courier. That is sixty-one years ago.
In the fall of 1S47 father with his fam
lily came in wagons from Ohio, pur-
chased a claim of 240 acres one mile
east of old Dead-long-ago (Dahlonega)
and afterwards entered these lands at
Fairfield. The original settlers l APP
prehend are all dead, and most of the
next generation have passed to the
other side. Those now living that
can call to mind that were my as
sociates in my boyhood days in and
about Dahlonega are Capt. w. H. Kit
terman, George Rouse, William Owen,
Sam McClung, and perhaps Nick He'd
rick. There may be others but If SO
I cannot call them to mind. Dahlonega
was then the center of population and
business Of Wapello county and had
the distinction of having the first
factory in the New Purchase" 1t
was a pottery, as then called "pot-
by and seeing man with foot
lathe running revolving table on
which was a quantity of pliable clay,
and with his hands he nodded and
shaped crooks, jars, jugs and other
ware. Some time later this pottery
went into disuse. have not seen the
method Of making crockery since this
old potter shop" closed. wonder il
the same, or like methods are now
in use for molding crockery ware. OF
tumwa has potter shop of her
own. I wonder if they get their clay
at the old bank which was just south
of Dahlonega on Sugar creek. re-
member being at the bank once and
taking home a chunk Of the clay and
l nodded in my hands some crude
shaped marbles and burnt them in the
fireplace Ottumwa has the advant-
age of being located on one of the
water ways" of our state. You
know there Is much talk Of improve
ment Of the waterways of this country,
the Des MONIES river among the rest.
Well the Des Moines was once navig-
able. l have seen boats land and dis
charge and receive freight where the
Union depot now stands, or rather
where the Coal palace was built. That
was not the river channel but bayou,
the boats came in and turned and
went out and pulled around the great
bend on their way for Eddyville, Red
Rock and Raccoon Forks. But the day
of the navigation Of the Des Moines
river is past. We have damned it.
bridged it and turned its waters from
the natural channel for domestic and
manufacturing purposes In so much
that we will hardly remove these use
full things for the purpose Of naviga-
ton by 9 few small beats from thirty
or sixty days in the year. For five
months it is frozen up and for the
other five months there Is not suf-
f1cient water for navigation. There are
times when an old COW standing above
a rifle and while filing her capacious
stomach would stop the entire flow of
this would-be navigable river. l ap-
prehend this Improving the water
ways" is a scheme to spend the public
revenues, and will accomplish about
as much for the Des Moines river as
was accomplished in her behalf in the
days that preceded the issue of the
RED Dog Currency"
SiXty-one years ago OttumWa was
but hamlet, but now city Of large
proportions. and the Courier-of which
was present at its birth, then but a
weekly folio has grown to be daily
| long since with its thousands of cir
culation. Success to the Courier, the
city of Ottumwa and her good people,
N. w. Rowell.