The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1918-05-15
AN OLD TIMER.

Mr.. Huckstep is one of Crawford
county's first settlers. After ride o.
400 miles in prairie schooner, drawn
sbya yoke OF oxen, he no doubt alight
ed from the wagon and exclaimed
Eureka, we have found the promised
land" This was on the fourteenth
day of April, in the year 1856. He
was then mere lad, about ten years
SOf age, the son of John B. Huckstep
zone of our sturdy pioneers, who help
ed to make history in this part Of
h Iowa. Hewing logs from the forest
trees for a log cabin to. shelter the
family, breaking sod land, bagging q
deer or two to replenish the family
4 larder and at times assisting In fight
( ing Indians, was then the order OF
1 the day, in those good old days"
Bear In mind the county was but
/ sparsely settled in 1856. The number
OF inhabitants in the county in 1856,
all told, was only 1886, of which 131
were male and 1O4 females. The whole
number Of voters was but So; num-
her OF acres of improved land. 45S;
! number Of farmers, 43; carpenters. g.;
blacksmiths, l; millers, /; physicians,
I. The first school erected was at
Mason's Grove, across the Boyer river
east of the present location Of the
town OF Deloit. 1t was built in the
4 fall of 1856. and Morris McHenry, who
helped build it, taught the first school
. term of three and one-half months,
commencing Nov. 4, 1856. The fol.
& lowing spring, it is said. Mr.. McHenry
had $50 Coming" to him. The first
/ sermon preached in the county was
u preached Sunday. Oct. IA, 1856, by
A Rev. William Black, of the M. E.
church, and the same day, after the
& sermon, the first religious society was
y organized. with seven members.
The subject Of our sketch, w. T.
4 Huckstep. has seen MANY changeb'
4 during his residence in Crawford
Z county, and the land of promise has.
no doubt. developed far beyond the
hope of his early boyhood days. He
resided for many years in Milford
township, and, as he has ever been a
candidate for a political Office or edit
ed a newspaper, he still ranks high
In the estimation of the public.
Mr. Huckstep has been very busy
man on the farm where he now re.
sides, 1t would seem, for he told me
he sold three car loads of hogs, of
HIS own raising. since last harvest,
and still has thirty-five brood sows
with 185 spring pigs and three more
m0therB to report. I noticed three
f0ur.hoTse teams at work in the fields
and remarked that he seemed to be
we'll provided with horses. I was told
there are now thirty.two head of
horses, big and little. on the farm.
understand that Mr.. Huckstep and
to Sv.r{fe Mo Sv1o - lao
our state next year, to reside in an.
other state q little farther south, to
escape the nervousness OF our winter
weather and there live at ease, for
"age sits with decent grace upon his
visage, and worthily becomes his sill
yer locks; he wears the marks Of
many years we'll spent, of virtue.
TRUTH well tried, and wise experience"
When it was told last year that
Tracy North had paid $500 per acre
to f. r. Robinson for his quarter sec.
8tion farm, located about four miles
northwest of Vail, many were aston
tshed at the price, for no farm of its
size In this section OF the state had
sold for SO much money. I called at
the farm last week and had short
visit with Roy Osterlund, the young
man who rented this farm for SIS per
acre. Fifteen dollars per acre rent
Is enough to make anyone set up and
take notice, and there is considerable
interest taken by the farmers in this
county In the outcome of the transac.
ton. There are some who think it
impossible to pay that amount of rent
md have profit left over. Here is
hoping they are poor guessers. Mr..
Osterlund does not seem to consider
that he has taken unto himself any
great task, but is working along just
as II he was doing nothing unusual.
He will plant los acres to corn and
have twenty acres in small grain, the
remainder is in pasture.
During q visit with J. F. Byrnes last
week, on his farm four miles north.
west of Vail and eight miles northeast
Of Denis0n, John said he had proven
to his own satisfaction the importance
Of starting OF in the pure bred live.
stock business with foundation select.
ed from the herds Of leading breed.
ers. He has been growing into the
d big type Poland China swine business
for several years and now has in his
herd the most popular blood lines OF
the breed. For instance, in Smooth
Bob, one OF his herd boars, he has
son OF Big Bob. which is at the head
OF the Fred Sievers herd at Audubon.
His grand sire, Chief Price I'd, was
bred by that grand old breeder, Peter
Mouw. Smooth Bob is now about
two yeas4 old and will weigh nearly
1000 pounds. Paul Wagner, of
1 Pierce, Mob, gave $1,025 for the half
brother Smooth Bob. Another herd
boar, aGGut fifteen months old, is
Big Orange. bought of J. l.. Risley
81 Amtes. He was sired by Black Or.
San9e and he by Peter Mouw's Orange.
His dam was Big Giantess. He is a
deep bodied fellow and will weigh
about 900 right now. A last fall boar,
Long Timm. was recently purchased
Of H. Fessenmeyer This young boar
n = promising individual and was
sired BY Big Timnl, which gives him
bone and size to spare. While John
had number Of good females in his
herd he decided last fall to purchase
4 few more. He attended the sale OF
erl,,, = yVolkor q Sons at Aleyan.