The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1913-07-24
Southern Iowa Editors in Keokuk
Extracts From What Some Of Them Say in Their
Papers About This City and It's Prospects


seething, swirling malestroms they
have created. And when the second
installation is made, the river above
the dam will rise three feet higher, and
then the waters will back up into the
channel for distance of about sixty
miles and many railroad beds, roads.
fields and farms will cease to exist ex-
cept beneath the murky waters that
will wash over them until the end OF
time. The huge body OF water above
the dam Is no longer the Mississippi
river, but is now known as Lake Coop
er, named In honor of the great engi-
neer who built the wonderful dam,
Hugh L. Cooper, the quiet, reserved,
determined man whose work at Keo-
kuk shall be his enduring and his
great monument. But Cooper was not
the first to think OF the feasibility Of
great water power in the rapids of
Keokuk. When Robert E. Lee WAS q
young United States army officer, just
out Of West Point, he was stationed
for time at the government fort at
Keokuk, and he wrote OF the possiblli-
ties that existed for q waterpowerJ
there that would make a great manu-
featuring empire OF that part of the
Mississippi valley. Parenthetically 1t
may be stated that Jefferson Davis
was also stationed at Keokuk in ante
belium days, when he, too. was gal
liant young officer in the service Of his
country under the Stars and Stripes.
1t would be impossible in any ar
ticle the length Of this to give any
adequate description OF this wonderful
dam, to tell of It's construction fea-
lures, It's magnitude, its supreme
greatness and uniqueness among all
the industrial works OF man on tho
face of the globe. 1t Is not far to Ii
from any place in Iowa and every
lowan should go and see it and study
1t and mediate on the wonderful infln-
ence 1t will have upon the industry
and life of this great valley in the
generations to come.
Keokuk is a city OF better than IT,
600 inhabitants. Like all the river
towns it has its Front street" where
the commerce of other days was tran
sacted. The business Of today is be-
ing done up on the higher levels
where broad, well paved and well light
ed streets stretch out over the leveled
tops Of the bluffs. There is still a
goodly sized lumber industry there, q
lot Of pearl button making, huge shoe
factory and many other busy manufac.
tories. 1t enjoys a large Wholesale
trade and still maintains a flourishing
wholesale dry goods house A large
six-story hotel is under course Of con-
struction. It will be nreproof ana
thoroughly modern. The town Is light
ed by electricity. furnished by the big
dam and the street cars are propelled
by the same force, which is also turn
ing the wheels In almost ali OF the fac
tories. The two daily newspapers,
The Gate City, republican, was found
crat, are modern newspapers with ex-
cellent news and editorial features and
are published in well equipped pian.s,
The Gate City, republican, was found
ed in 1916 and the Constitutional Demo-
crat first saw the light in 1S47, which,
you will admit, was some years before
northwestern Iowa had any newspa-
pers. The largest river steamboats,
ply on the waters of Keokuk's harbor
and the building OF the dam will great
ly stimulate river traffic, once the life
of Keokuk's trade. now dwindled to
almost nothing. Keokuk is sound f.
nancial center, being one of the rich
est towns in the state. Her future is.
indeed, very bright, as is the future OF
her sister towns UP and down the
great river, thanks to the stimulus Of
the colossal dam.