The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1920-09-11
BY HARRY ROOT.

EkOO4.
There was a town staked off in De-
catur county in July. 1887, and named
Hawkeye. The capital stock was sT0.-
'o00. The Hawkeye Town company in
corporators were: J. M Brady, F. NJ.
Taylor, George N Hunter, F. NJ. Stew
art. E. A. Hall, J. B. McGonigal and
Henry Claar, all of Colby, Thomas
then short grass country, it seems
about all one could do was to organize
and lay out a townsite. There wasn't
many people living in that section of
OF the principal Industries was gather
ing buffalo bones, and hauling them to
the Union Pacific railroad south, or
the B & NJ. north, about Z miles. The
gathering of bones no doubt kept
many family from starvation Your
correspondent has seen thousands of
tons of buffalo bones in piles along the
railroad in Buffalo Park, Grinhell and
other towns along the Union Pacific,
in Cove county, awaiting shipment to
eastern markets. There was another
Decatur county town started and
named st. John, in honor of Governor
St John It was chartered in January,
1879, with a capital stock of only $500.
The incorporates were: E NJ. Crun-
merr E A Halloweils J C Humphrey,
VIM. H Woodward. jr-< Ed Knowles,
Chauncey Perry. all of Belleville, Re-
public county, and W. S. Chapman. of
Jewell Center. Jewell county, since
changed TO Mankato. 1t looks as if
the incorporates Clipped in" only
500 each. ST. John was only q few
miles from Oberlin, which already had
quite a start For a time it looked as
II the town would get a good start A
building was under way TO be occupied
by d printing office. but the paper
was never born. J. C Humphrey was 10
start the paper; Your correspondent
knew him well. His first work IN
Kansas he and the writer set type on
the Atchison Champion in the early
seventies For many years he pub
lished the Beuevilie Telescope. He
passed on several years ago. The
Oberlin pushers were too much for the
st. John incorporators. and in a few
months the town shut up shop and
moved to Oberiin. and the townsite
went back to the farm. W. s. Chap
man. one of the incorporators. lives
in Topeka, while all the others are
dead.
In the early times in Sheridan coun-
ty there seemed TO be quite as many
people hunting locations for new town
sites as there were inhabitants. So
town was chartered and named Guy.
with a capital stock of $1,000 Why
it was given this name unless to save
ink when one was writing, it being
short. it never was known The town
was laid out in December, 1887. the
stockholders being Isaac Mulholland.
". J. Carson. W. H. Allen, Charles
Perkins and J. H. Whitson- Another
town was chartered in May. 1855, and
named Sheridan. with a capital stock
of $4,000. and the following incor-
porators: NJ z. Vsndiyer, I n. Pence.
c. E Chandler. G. c. Thompson. NJ.
D. Gallogly, R. B. Gray. s D Hopkins
and Joseph Jenkins. Neither town got
very far in commercial supremacy
Both of them had a good object in
view when chartered. The writer of
these notes visited the two towns in
the interest of the Atchison Champion.
and was offered a town lot for a
write up" If he had accepted all
towns" he visited in pioneer times, he
might today be living on Easy street
Guy and Sheridan went back to the
farm, the business of the former NOV
ing to Hoxie. and that of the latter 10
SeIden- Most OF the incorporators are
now dead.
An invitation from A ". King. then
one of the commissioners Of Rocks
county. Your correspondent made his
first visit to Plainville and the Para
disc Flats country more than IS years
those days. with few business houses.
among them being NJ Meistreu.
Weeks & Robinson. John Butler and
R. l. Ordway. II had q hotel known
as the Little Soddy." built entirely OF
sod the inside clean as a parIor, rooms
partiUoned off for beds and timing
room which drew the travelling men
for miles around because one could
always get q clean meal and bed and
their moneys worth and not q bed