The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-02-19
Old Mutual Company AbsOrbs
Its Bankrupt Competitor.
Two Systems Consolidated
Gives Much Better Service.
NO BOOM IN GRAHAM COUNTY
Steady, Consistent Prosperity
Characterizes Hill City District.
Many Former Citizens Are
Making Good Elsewhere.


Hill City, Kan. Feb. 19.-The tele-
phone war in Hill City and Graham
county has for some years been
grievance to the general public, and
so long as the two rival companies
were controlled by the original par
ties a solution of the trouble was i'm
possible. Recently the telephone trou-
BILE has been ironed out by the pur-
chase OF the Central system which
was started as a competing line to the
Mutual Telephone company by h u.
Taylor. who has been at the head OF
the Mutual company, and is also preSl-
dent of the LenOra Telephone COM
pany The Central system was built
as "A competing line about ten years
ago. For a year or more II has been
in the hands of a receiver. Under an
order of the court the new owner bid
it in for an amount equal TO the IN
debtedness. which was confirmed by
Judge c. :. Sparks Since then a
trunk line connecting the two central
offices has beer built, and it is now
possible for one to reach, any phone IN
the city or Graham county, besides
giving them the benefit of long DIS
lance facilities to any phone in the
state.
Since Mr. Taylor became interested
In the telephone business here, the
conditions have been greatly improved
The Hill City office now has net
long distance connection with eastern
just steady and Prosperous.
Hill CITY is not experiencing any
boom, but there isn't a vacant dwelling
in town. and all she store rooms are
occupied. Three garages are required
to take care of the interests of the
numerous auto owners, besides half a
dozen or more of the citizens visited
Kansas City last week, during the auto
show. Several new residence oullu
ings will be erected this spring ana
summer. The completion of the DR..
Parker business building is contem-
plated and this will give Hill City a
fine modern opera house
Citizens Make Good.
Former Hill Cityites who started in
business here and made money are
now located elsewhere, and making
good. Ex-Lieutenant d. J. Hanna Is
in SaIina, and continues to make mon
ey; w. H. Hill made his fine financial
start here, and is doing well in Kan
sas City, and g. a. Garrison and L. A
Meyer former citizens of this town,
are now operating a solid bank in
Smith Center. Now f. f. Mullaney,
who made his good start here. has re-
Gently branched out-made safe invest
ments in one of the solid banks in To-
peka.
James Holmes. who recently pur-
chased d tract of land adjoining Hill
CITY. will erect a residence here this
year and retire from farm life.
4 Pioneer Farmer.
Peter Bollinger. a farmer. is the
owner of the Boston store block, ana
an opera house upstairs. He came to
Graham county in the pioneer days,
and at one time was the largest wheat
raiser in the county. At one time ne
sold $4,000 worth of Graham county
lands to VIM. Carlisle, the Atchison
millionaire.
over 5000 acres of Graham county
lands have been sold since the first Of
the year The corn crop of 1915 is es-
timated at two million and one-half
bushels. besides a big crop of wheat
was harvested.
1t is claimed that with less than
100 families in Graham county there
are more than 700 OF them owning
autos.
There isn't a scarcity of hotels in
Hill CITY. There are five and they all
look as if they are doing business. The
town has three banks, and room for
all as the business shows.
The people of Hill City will get to-
gether and secure the new postoffice
building. the city park, and the Carne-
gle library. None of them should fail.
The first visit the State Journal cor
respondent made to Graham county
there was an exciting county seat fight
going on between five towns. One of
And they will pull together for these
enterprises.
Many Changes in County.
Several towns in the county, the
names of which appeared on the first
maps, have disappeared. among them
New and Old MiIlbrook, Gettysburg,
Roscoe, Fremont, Pagan, Gould City,
Atkins and there may be others. eight
or ten papers were printed in the sew
eral towns in the pioneer days. Now
the news is told in the columns of two
newspapers. Few of the oldtimers re-
main, and among them is F. D. Turck.
farmer and lawyer; 4, B. Pipes the
pioneer hardware dealer of Hill City,
and T. H. Magill, former newspaper
fellow, now in the real estate work: c.
Fountain, farmer and stock raiser, and
James Gordon, former member of the
legislature and has held other offices
of trust in Graham county, and farm
er. has retired from active work and
lives in town, and D. NJ. Smith and
Capt. James JuStus, old soldier boys
of 1S61-1S65, now live in happy homes
in Hill City, and enjoy this life as much
as their ages permit. The old scenes
have changed in the last thirty years
as the writer of these notes first saw
them, and a new and better Hill City
has grown up.