Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1916-11-14
WRITING BOOK
Upon COMMUNITY
Harriet Bonebright Close Now En-
gagged in the work-wil be
Of Value to Coming
Generations.
OLD SETTLERS RAPIDLY GOING.
Should be a Complete History Of the
Town and Surrounding
Country Written.

There has been need in Webster
y City for number of years of a his
torical building or museum where
the old relics of the earliest days Of
this county might be displayed, safe
from thievery or fire. AS the Oldest
pioneer residents are dropping off,
one by one, and homes are being
broken up by their demise, there are
lost to this community valuable
relics Of life lived in different day
+ and age.
i No month goes by that this thing
does not occur. An excavation is
made and piece of pottery or a
\, weapon of another race and period
4 comes to light, and there is no place
&. to put it that the younger generation
of the community may see and appre'
\. ciate. 1t is true that there is always
J. a glad welcome in the state histori-
cal building of Iowa for relics of
value, but real Hamilton county
building and association is needed.
There are left in this city handful
of men and women from Is to 80
Z. years of age whose intellects and
memories are quite clear and prolific
of information regarding the begin
snings of this community. A history
should be written--rot commercial
.Rpterprise-but real history of the
atitpography of this city and it's first
lie.lildings, it's trees, it's swamps, its
,ilauthentic infancy. The History of
sepsmilton county contains much Of
SvalTe regarding this town, but one
must read and sift, read and sift, to
. gain information about the earliest
doings in the city here. Even then.
( much of real valuable information
has been-sleft out.
s.. s8iet Fnnebright Closz is finish
/, ina a laookNpon this community con-
\ tain'nC rem, ,niecences and recollec-
TONS of the earliest settlers and this
voitilneS viii be of untold value and
intcres. to the younger as well as the
( older generation. Mrs. Closz is a
writer Of rare merit and her un-
swerving adherence to the actual
: facts will make the book Of value
aside from the literary ability pos.
Z sessed by the author. The book has
been in the process of writing for a
number of years and those who are
acquainted with the products of her
facile pen will await the publication
with interest.
But there should be alse book of
direct historical bearing, close ad-
herence to the facts brought to light
along the line of the march of the
years, relating directly to the begin
ming and the growth Of Webster City
alone. The Kendall Young Library
estate might father each of these
movements SO necessary while the
older generation are still among us.
An annex to the library, in which
the collection of relics might be on
permanent exhibition, would be but
another block in the towering mon
ument erected in this community to
the memory of Kendall Young.
And then, if the keepers Of the es
tate could see their way clear to pay
for the gathering together of facts
of earliest Webster City into one vol
ume, for the benefit and enjoyment
Of those who make Webster City
their home, the monument memorial
would raise it's head still higher. The
idea lis not new; it has been spoken
Of many times during the past few
years in many conversational
group. There is genuine wish for
these things in Webster City. With
in ten years the last survivor of an
other day will have gone, and strang-
er hands will consign to many bon
fire and scrap heap early day uten-.
sfls,hand made implements and wow
en-, blankets. The announcement of a
resolve to have both of these things,
both historical annex and an au-
therNtic history, would be greeted
with interest and approval by the
residents of this community who are
grateful to the thrifty past for the
luxuries now enjoyed There are
three, or four writer's here who could
do the subject justice. possessing au-
thertticity, marked ability and a real
knowledge of the history of another
period, SO necessary to correct his
tory of this city. Among these are
Senator D. c. Chase, E. d. Burgess
and Harriet Bonebright Close. 1t
might be that not one of these could
be persuaded to undertake the work,
hut their fitness to do work of this
kind, could not be questioned.