Elmore County Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1910-1915, 1911-11-11
Elmore County Seat War

i After stormy time In the last tel
ritorial legislature, the bill creatin
Elmore County passed. and was sdgr
ed by Governor Stevenson, the bib
authorizing the Governor to appoin
. set of officers TOR the new county
and fixing the temporary county sea
at Rocky Bar.
/ Although Mountain Home had re
hnQudshed her claim to the temporar
county seat, her people wene deter
mined to have the same permanentl
established there at the next genera
election, I'm th fan Of 1890. "A move
ment for that purpose was started
and enthusiastically seconded a
Glenns Ferry. and for two year
many "love feasts" between the tw'
towns, were held at either place.
Rocky Bar, having secured th
temporary county seat, determined I,
keep an iron grip on the plum, ant
entered into the fight, loaded for bear
and grizzlies at that.
The campaign for the county seat
between the two towns, opened i'm thu
early part of 1890, and continued un
TIL the election in the ensuing fall
the first election also, under state
hood.
E. C. Helfrich, w. ]. Turner, C.
R. Shaw, F. P. AXE, DR.. w. F. SmiHf
and J. H. Brady were the foremost
in the fight for Mountain Home.
Major F. P. Cavanah, G. M. Payne
], A. Nicholson, s. H. McCarty, Geo
D. Golden and Fred H. Davis led the
forces for Rocky Bar. At Glenns
Ferry, /. A, Heron, u. j. Coady, G.
d. Corker, C. G. Glenn and Frank
M. Roberts were the boss boosters
for Mountain Home, and w. M. Stock
ton, then county commissioner, was
i'm the midst Of the fray, on the side
Of Rocky Bar.
The election of 1890, being the first
state election In Idaho, was hotly con
tested all over the state, and on ac-
count Of the county seat, dit was par
ticularW warm i'm Elmore County.
Each OF the two towns, fighting for
the plum, had their ablest men at
every voting place in the county,
working like beavers.
The state went Republican, by
large majority. In Gilmore County, it
was go-asryou-p please race, as to the
county officers, although the state
Democratic ticket polled over two
thirds of the vote.
Mountain Home won the county
seat by vote OF almost two to one.
The following county officers were
Clerk of District Court w.
G. Wickersham, dem; Assessor and
Collector, G. F. Mahoney, dem;
Judge. A. M. Sinnot, rep; Treasurer,
G. T. Waller, dem; Surveyor, e. C.
Towme. rep; Coroner, DR.. W. +.
Smith, dem.; Comm issioners, Nels
Davis, rep, w. H. MaDon, dem and
Sam Blackwell. rep; Senator Green
White, dem; Representative, Martin
King. rep. 4
The Board OF Commissioners, ignor-
ng the will of the people. refused to
,emove the county records from
Rocky Bar d. B. Dthell voting to do
70, Maj Cavanah and w. M. Stockton
1ooing against.
G. R. Shaw commenced mandamus
proceedings to compel the Board to
'emove the county records to Noun
ain Home, but the case was dismis-
ed, the court ruling that only
ounty O1ftcer had the legal capacity
o. commence such a suit.
DIR. Smith, as coroner, then insti-
llted proceedings against the Board
or the same purpose, but the case
eN through on legal technicaIty.
The newly elected commissioners
'aMs, Manion and Blackwell, came to
fountains Home the ensuing Jan
airy. to organize the new Board, and
\ the newly elected county officers,
kept Surveyor-elect Towne, were
n hand to qualify.
Clerk-elect Wickersham, as deputy
ecorder, was ready to swear the
ew commissioners dn, but 'sthe best !
I'd plans Of men and mice oft gang
-----------