The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-09-17

plat of ground was evidently a burial
place long before the railroad was built
to Victoria. It is about 65x1OO feet.
In the center there is a rough granite
monolith, with bronze plate set in it,
which bears the following inscription:
This stone marks the burial place of
six track laborers who were in the
employ of the Union Pacific railway,
eastern division, and while on duty
about one mile west of here (now Vic
toria) were massacred by a band of
Cheyenne Indians, October, 1867. Erect
ed by the Union Pacific Railroad COM
pany.''
Near the monument the visitor can
see a row of small headStoneS. a foot
high above ground, and of native stone.
The workmanship is poor. On one of
these stones there is carved this in
scription: I'm memoriam: Henry D.
Donnye, Cambridge, Mass. and five
persons here to me unknown. To their
memory we carved this stone; killed
by the Indians in the year 1864. Dock
Williams" The plot of ground indi-
Gates that other burials were made
here later, but no stones mark the
graves. The spot hasn't been used for
burial purposes for many years. These
monuments and headstones would in
dictate that a "city of the dead was
started here several years before Vic
toria had name or railroad depot.
Among other interesting reminis-
Ellis county is the fact that in the early
seventies George Grant, doing business
in Glasgow Scotland, and London,
England, being possessed of some
wealth. founded an English colony in
America and located them in Ellis
county, which had been generously adj
vertised by the Union Pacific land
commissioner and his agents. In 1873
he entered into contract with the
commissioner for the purchase of 80
20 he
cific company. This land is all in the
vicinity of Victoria. In the contract
it was stipulated that the railraod COM
pany would build a station and name
it Victoria, and Grant paid $4,000 on
his purchases and executed note and
mortgage for the balance without in
terest. About May, 1873, the colon1sts
began to arrive here. The only mouse
was that of the section men. In the
COLONY was Walter Maxwell. a noted
Scotchman. He was a Roman Catho-
lie and Grant was an Episcopalian. To
keep his people together he built them
a church, almost wholly at his ex-
pense. 1t was completed in 1877. ana
he died in April, 1873. His burial is
said to have been the first service held
in the church. On the front entrance
to this church is the following inscrip-
ton: Erected A. D. 1877, by George
Grant, founder of Victoria colony.
Trustees: Rt Rev. Thomas H. Vail,
D. D., bishop of Kansas. Topeka; John
D. Perry, president Kansas Pacific r.
R, st. Louis; George Grant, Victoria;
Thomas R. Clark, New York. Arch1-
tect, l.. M. Wood; builder, o. P:
smith" The building is now in had
state Of decay. This colony endured
manv hardships, and many of them
returned to England.
From 1873 to 1875 other settlers of
the German-Russian nationality To-
Gated here They were poor but deter
H. of them hOn1 6Sfoa 6P6 and
pre-empted, and some of them pur-
chased land from the railroad COM
pany, and in some cases bought the
land of the discouraged members OF
the English colony. These people were
Roman Catholics. In the middle of
the seventies Mr.. Maxwell interested
himself in them, and it was only
short time before they had church.
1t was a poor apology at that for 1t
consisted of few rough boards set up
against a settlers house sufficient to
shelter the priest while mass was being
celebrated and the congregation stood
or knelt in the open air. In those days
there were but few priests. half
dozen or so in the western country as
far as the confines of Colorado and
New Mexico. Mr.. Maxwell bore a big
share of the expense in the building
of the first stone church the Catholics
occupied in the vicinity of Victoria.
Thus the German Russian colonists
succeeded in Ellis county where the
English immigrants failed. Work is
now progressing on the largest Cath
Ollie church here there is west of the
Mississippi river. 1t is entirely of local
stone, Bedford. Ind. and Vermont
granite. This when completed will be
the third church the Catholics have
built here, and all of them too small
to accommodate the rapid growth in
population. The dimensions are:
West to east outside. 220 feet. tran
SeptS north to south, ITO feet, width of