The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1914-07-21
Interesting Story by Glenn d.
Bradley in July Issue.
4 LEADER IN GRAND ARMY
One Of Topeka's Best Known
Characters.
Other Items Of General Interest
I'm the Traffic World.

The July issue OF the santa Fe maya
Rine contains an article on Thomas J.
Anderson. one Of the well known kan
sas railroad veterans. written by Glenn
y. Bradley. The article Is ~headeds
''Builders Of the Santa Fe." and says:
atom Anderson never shoveied any
dirt along the right Of way. He appears
never to have carried q railroad sur
veyor's chain: nor did he ever aquint
through a Santa Fe transit. He was .
military hero, q. A. R. patriarch.
prop in the Masonic order. politician
of unusual skill, q maker Of Kansas
history and a mover Of things in gen.
eral. Also he was one Of the Santa Fe
boosters and he was the man who made
Topeka famous. He also rivals Colonel
Holiday in having sported the finest set
Of side whiskers ever seen In the Santa
Fe service.
Anderson came into existence in At
water Portage county. Ohio, on May g.
1889. He sprang from Scotch-Irish de-
scent, the sturdy, tireless stock that has
given us most OF our tllustr1ous pioneers.
"Ohio community grew stale Tor this
vigorous clan. So to satisfy the Scotch
Irish love of excitement the family. in
1857, moved to Kansas, where there was
excitement E-plenty. and settled at
Grasshopper Falls.
when the Santa Fe purchased the
Kansas Midland in 1875 Anderson was
Santa Fe. In 1878 he was appointed
Santa Fe agent for Kansas, Colorado
and New Mexico.
Postmaster in Topeka.
This larger position he resigned in
1881 to become postmaster in Topeka.
He had been mayor Of the city in 1875
1876. and he had managed to slip in a
lature between 1877 and 1881. In 1880 he
was a delegate to the Republican ma
tional convention. where he voted
thirty-six times for General Grant.
I'm 1888 he was G. A. r. department
commander for Kansas, and that year
he doomed just a few less than ten
thousand new members into the Grand
Army.
"All this may sound energetic enough.
but It does not measure the full round
Of Toms activities.
HE had helped organize the National
woman's Relief Corps and he had found
time to serve in the old Capital Militia
Guards. In 1SSS-1SS4 he was brigadier
and major general Of the Kansas ma
tional guard.
General Agent OF Rock Island.
HE then seems to have itched to get
into railroad work once more, 80 about
1887 he became general agent for the
Rock Island. with headquarters in To-
pelka. In 1892 he was made assistant
general passenger agent for the Rock
Island Lines west Of the Missouri river.
He remained in Rock Island service un-
til December. 1897, when he Withdrew to
become secretary of the Topeka Com
mercial club, a position peculiarly suited
70 q booster spirit. He had just dis
posed Of another political preference.
having been delegate-at-large to the
Republican national convention Of 1896.
"Mr. Anderson was secretary OF the
Commercial club from 1898 to 1908.
During the ten years he boosted the
membership from 81 to 265.
Anderson was again prominent as
secretary Of the relief organization dur
ing the big flood of 1903. He boosted
hard in getting the Topeka Auditorium
built, and he doomed q lot Of good pave
ment onto the streets of that city. And
in still other ways did this intrepid
booster clinch notoriety for his home
town.
Death overlook Tom Anderson at his
home On January 81. 1912. He was an
arch booster. We can pay no worthier
triube than this: Fffty-five years in
KansaA Forty-four years In Topeka.
And he never owned q hammer"