The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1920-10-23
BY HARRY ROOT.


The Nicodemus community of coll
ored people, of Graham county, as a
l'result of the big 1920 wheat crop, are
using their surplus money buying
more land. Most every family in the
colored settlement, owns an auto. An
effort is being made in the colony to
organize a corporation to conduct a
store with G.. NJ. Sayers as general
manager. That town has long needed
a big mercantile house as was the case
a quarter of a century ago when Nieo-
tlemus had not less than three general
stores, two newspapers and a bank.
Losing all hopes of getting a railroad
and several years of crop shortage,
most of her business houses moved
away. Foriseveral years the colony or
colored peoplA have raised big crops,
and many ofSthem own good houses,
besides herds of stock. Wheat sowing
in the county is more than half COM
pleted. The farmers claim that the
| early sowing has proved the best in
yield and test. In the Graham county
family named Sayers. They home
steaded as did other colored people
They went to work, they stuck to it,
nor Gid hot winds nor drouth drive
| them away from Graham county, Two
! of the Savers boys, w. L. and John
| @. put in extra time reading law and
| passed successful examinations. Both
of them have served the county al
county attorney, the latter now filling
| that office and candidate for re-elec-
| ton. Both of them have had cases
| before the supreme court. W. l..
| SayerS practices in several courts in his
| district, and in the last three terms of
court in Rocks, Graham and Sheridan
/ counties he was employed in cases the
Nentire terms. The colored people have
! been honored since their settlement in
| Graham county. Two of them have
y lfx- aff 1pr
was on the board of commissioners, one
served as clerk of the district court.
| Nd one, E. P. McCabe, served the
/ state two terms as state auditor.
Pennsylvanians were among the
first settlers to locate in Osborne
/ county. Col. w. L. Bear was the lead
! or and organizer of the colony OF
thirty or more who came from the
! counties of Berks and Lancaster. the
most of them taking up claims in 1 81.
4 This colony also laid out the town OF
| Osborne, which is the seat of govern
! ment of the county None OF them
brought their families along. 1t was
| in April, 1871. Indians had been COM
hitting depredations, and buffalos
were numerous. At a point overlook
/ ing the Solomon valley the colony
built a stockade. two miles from the
present town of Osborne. Here they
| would meet for the night, and do farm
months they lived this way, and until
their homesteads had all been select
| ed. and dugouts. sod and log houses
! had been constructed After the
i town was well under way Colonel Bear
vas engaged in4the practice of law
| and as a side line he assisted in To-
eating many newcomers in the county.
The county was organized in 1871 Al
| the November election that year ne
was elected to the legislature. The
| Of a
1.-THE grasshoppers had eaten up the
( CROP Colonel Bear was selected one
of the commissioners to gather and
| solicit aid for the settlers. who mad
| to Pennsylvania in 1878, where he was
! engaged in school work several years
His health failing there, he again re-
| turned to Osborne, a confirmed IN
| valid, and after several months suf-
| fering he passed away, November &c,
/ 1880 He is buried in the Osborne
| cemetery, where the remains of sew
| eral of the original s,eRnsylvania col
/ onists are sleeping their last sleep
/ He served in the Civil war as lieuten-
d ant colonel in a regiment recruited In
Il Lancaster county. Very few of the
first colony. of homesteaders are now
living.
Journeying on to the end OF the
Central Branch railroad from klrwln
the first town reached was Marvin
named for H. L. Marvin, who built
this road from Greenieaf to Lenora
Later years the name was changed tC
Glade. The next stop was at BIS
Bend. since changed to Speed. thence
Ito Logan. Continuing west Densmort
was the first ~Ttop, then Edmond
named after Jack Edmonds, a vel
known travelling salesman i'm north
= west Kansas in pioneer days. Two OF