Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-05-02

They had, what was then considered.
! very fine canoe anchored in the river
near their place and one night the
; Indians began coming down stream.
The next morning they discovered
their pride gone and two, small, clum-
sy, affairs left in it's place. There was
a time for about two weeks when
canoe after canoe full Of Indians came
floating down the Des Moines. Hardly
| would one pass the farm until another
| would come in sight around the bend
above the home. This was the time
that the red men were on their way
| to the Usage mission. from which, the
I ma jority of them did not return to
| Iowa.
AGENCY Bigger Than Ottumwa.
When Mr.. McMillin was small boy
and, even after he had grown up to be
| good sized youth, Ottumwa was far
! outcassed, in size and as commercial
center, for the pioneers, by Agency. 1t
is only. distance Of little more
than two miles, from the McMiliin
place to the present town of Agency
and in those days, the same as now,
the trip was made up over the MIL
back of the rocks and cliffs near CHM
land 1t was busy scene. Tor the
early day folks, when the settlers, re"
as they were, at that time would drive
or walk in with their produce to the
market at Agency. There they woula
meet with their neighbors, chat
awhile and then start on the Trip
back home, maybe taking money for
their goods, but more often trading
it out for different little things
needed about the home; some store
cloth" a few kitchen utensils, pos
sibly toy or two, or some special
article of wearing apparel or gar
ment Ashland was a prosperous lit
tie trading center in those days, too'
and many times the McMllllns nave
gone there to sell their goods; Dut
Agency was the most popular OF .ne
two. Ashland prospered, Mr.: McMl,-
lin remembers, until after the hocN
Island was put through, and tnen
Eldon sprang up and 1t was not lhahy
years until Ashland began to 60 down
and SO became the remnant or an III
land town, as it is today. AT the
time the trips were made SO ire
suently to Agency, an incident ra
called by the Wapello county pioneer
is the days when Colonel Pete BAL
lingall, founder of the Ballingail MOTEL
was staying there. This was at the
time the Burlington was putting us
line through this part OF the country
and Ballingall was connected Win
the gangs He boarded at Agency
only while they were working tnere'
coming on to Ottumwa when ne de-
cided to look for location. At the
time the Rock Island first began sur
yeying for it's Des Moines river line
and later when actual construction
work had been started, Mr.. McMlllln
used to sell grain and food to the
section men who were working near
his place. The large rock formations
near Cliffland, and farther up toward
| Garrison rock, were blasted Off IN
! some places so that space might pc
had to allow the track to be laid.
Recalls Ottun,wa as Village.
Mr.. McMillin made his first trip
to Ottumwa when he was seven years
old After that he came several times
wear until he was almost grown
when his trips were more frequent.
His recollection Of the place is that
of a very small and meagerly active
little village. A few stores were
scattered along Main street and they
were all Of frame construction. Later
a. few more sprang up on Green,
Market and Court, and still later
some more on Second; and then
some one began to build brick
store and then some one else took
the same step. and so on until the
Mace has changed so that the pioneer
is scarcely able to believe it the
same. One thing which wildly I'M
pressed Mr.. McMillin at the time,
and which has always remained with
him, was the fact Of there having
been a brick tavern about where the
American Mining Tool Co. Is now To-
Gated. This was known then as the
Glass House, having been first started
by a pioneer Ottumwan by that
name This was a great congregat-
| ing place for the village folk and the
country neighbors as well when they
came to town.
Mr.. McMillin was married on No
vember 6, 1865, his twenty-third
birthday. to Miss Deborah Hender.
son. His wife died few years later.
and on September IA, 1877 he mar
ried a sister of his first wife. Miss
Virginia Henderson, who is now liv-
ing with him at the, old homestead.
He is the father Of seven children,
three boys and four girls. Three
members Of this pioneers original
family are still living and two OF
them are older than he. His sister is
Mrs. Rebecca Saylor, who is eighty
wears old and lives with her son-in-
law, Frank Harris. at 1926 South Ward
street. His brother is John McMil'
lin, who is seventy-four years of age,
and lives in Sunnyside addition. An
other sister, Mrs. Eliza Wiley, Is two
years and half younger than Mr..
McMillin and now resides about three
miles south of Ottumwa near the OgG
school house.
The Wape1lo county pioneer farmer
in closing his conversation said that
in the old days he used to get his
mail three times a week at Agency,
! coming out there by stage. Many
times he has passed the stage as he
would be on his way to market. Later,
| ~ hn