The Topeka state journal., 1921-03-12
BY HARRY ROOT.

c. W. Culp, of Mitchell county,
father of State Senator Bert c. CuIp,
of Beloit. of the Thirty-third district,
was a Topeka visitor in the close of
the session. He went to Mitchell
county in March. 1870, with wife
and two children, and So in money.
The first work he did was to erect
some kind of a 'sha ok" for his family,
which he homesteaded as svon as he
arrived there. There was only one bed
in the house and this had feather
mattress. Buffaloes were plentiful,
and with little else to eat the family
SubSisted to some extent on this kind
of meat. Later on he got hold of some
hogs, and while the family were out
for a time the hogs took possession of
| the shack and on their return they
! found the feather tick torn to pieces
and the contents scattered over the
floor. Mr.. Culp told the writer of
| these notes about the disastrous flood
and rain he witnessed in September,
1870. It rained for nearly two days,
and the country was covered with
water so far as the eye could see. Mrs.
| Culp stood in water several feet deep
| for several hours, while the children
saved themselves by climbing on the
table and nearly drowned before res
| cued. Mr.. Culp was elected justice OF
the peace in the spring of 1871. He
also performed the first marriage cere-
mony in Mitchell county in the spring
of 1871. He met the man and wife a
quarter of q century afterward. They
were living together yet, so he took it
for granted that it was happy, loving
match, as all should be. He believes
| he was the first subscriber to the Be-
lott Mirror, the first paper printed in
| Beloit, in 1871, by A. B. Cornell. 1t
| is interesting to hear Mr.. Culp talk OF
the pioneer days in Mitchell county,
and one of the pleasant pastimes was
when he was chasing after the ante
| lope and buffalo. For many years he
lived adjoining Scottsvi1le. and erected
the largest barn in Mitchell county,
and engaged in breeding and raising
thorotred horses. A senatorial con-
lyentiou was held there, and no other
building being large enough to shelter
1.-The delegates and other Politicians, the
convention was held in the barn. This
was in 1886, when 1. D. Young, OF Be
lott, was nominated. The Culps have
lbeen prominent factors in the develop
| ment of Mitchell county In the yicin-
ty where he homesteaded half CEN
tury ago only two men remain, CHARLES
L. Brown and George Wagner, the rest
having either passed on or moved else
where.
Another "Iost town. in northwest
Kansas has come to light In the lat
tier part OF tIle H1HStieS a toNH AoiAieo
iGrace was laid out on Beaver creek,
Sherman county, 1t was named ZOE
Grace Baker, daughter of William
Baker, and now the wife of W. E: Butt
ler If the town had any desire for
county seat honors 1t was never known.
At one time it had several pushers. It
had a postoffice, skimming station,
general store, hotel and blacksmith:
The building of the Rock Island read
left Grace several miles away. and the
l"boomers' pulled up stakes and moved
to Goodland, 1t is said the marks OF
the town can be plainly seen yet. Item
writers for the two Goodland papers
!. mention the town or Grace, and say
1t was once a thrifty center for busi-
ness. The writer of Sixth District
Notes appreciates the good things said
of them, and he regrets that in his
chase for subscribers for the Atcnison
Champion and The Topeka state Jour-
NAL, in northwest Kansas, he over
looked the town of Grace. Sherman n
county. There were several towns In
that county that Jared the same as
Ora ce, and among them were Ganoy,
Leonard Eustis, Sherman Center,
Itasca and voltaire, once thrifty. and
some of them had a wishful eye for
the location of the county seat
Rexford is the home of A. A. Gillis-
pie, member of the legislature from
Thomas county. With the building
of the Rock Island road thru north
west Kansas Rexford was put on the
maps, not as boom town, but To-
Gated for the object of building up a
grain. stock and business center.
The Quarter of land on which the
town is located was homesteaded by
Dallas Baum, one of the early pio-