Our Town 100 Years Ago: 9/14/2022

Was it a change in the weather or something else? By September 1896, law and order in the valley seemed to have withered in the summer heat. The rest of the state was not much better. Constable Thomas Coombs of Butte was attacked by five "roughs" and nearly beaten to death when he tried to serve an arrest warrant on one of the men; Mrs. Rose Heimbach of South Butte was thrown in jail for attacking Mrs. Susie Snelling with vitriol after Rose said, "You can have my husband, but first take this, and if that don't kill you I have something that will; and one mile north of East Helena 14-year-old Hawkins Eggens was shot and killed with bird shot – authorities did not buy the story of his companion, Joseph Shoemaker about a strange man doing the shooting and then escaping into the hills. The following stories are taken as written in the September 4 and 11, 1896 editions of the Jefferson Valley Zephyr.

In addition to a murder, a "hold-up" occurs in the good, old-fashioned style. Charlie Perrine, J. A. Borden, and Bill Leonard had an experience last Tuesday night which savored strongly the good old days. ...a little after the 'witching' hour when three villains-they were "gentlemen" during their presence-walked in and ordered them to throw up their hands. Although the intruders were masked the inmates thought it was a josh. But when they found themselves looking down the business end of three revolvers, they changed their minds. Borden, when asked the size of the pistols, said "32's" but a new kind, for it was like looking into a six-inch stovepipe while one was gazing at those gun muzzles.

CLOUDBURST: They were frequent and destructive the past week. There was a genuine cloudburst in this vicinity Monday and Tuesday of this week. That of Monday afternoon was accompanied by a high wind, and although the streets and town, especially in the upper end in a few moments turned into a good-sized lake no serious damage was done. East of here near Camp Golden a number of small bridges were carried out and the roads were generally damaged wherever there was a gulch or gully.

Up the valley, much damage was done to orchards, particularly that of Mr. James Winslow, where the trees were mostly stripped of their fruit, and many limbs broken. Mr. Winslow is said to have said it was the worst hail and rainfall he had seen in thirty years. On the South Boulder or portions of it, they escaped the deluge but were visited by a high wind. Frank Bricker came to town just after the storm and says that the wind carried off about 20 tons of his hay; so if a shower of hay has fallen recently in any other part of the country, the residents of that vicinity will know where it came from.

ZEPHYRETTES: Harry Berryman found a large wallet in Smith's haymow this week. The hobo who slept there had evidently forgotten to take it from under his pillow when he arose from his slumbers in the morning. Apparently, it is the property of someone who is or has been in the insurance business. The owner can have it by proving the property.

John Roth, of Silver Star, is making regular trips with an eight-horse outfit between that lively camp and Whitehall, with ore from the great Broadway mine. A number of hogs belonging to the H. Noble Meat Company were recently poisoned and died. It is anticipated that there will be no further occurrences of troubles of that nature. If any one thing speaks better for a town than another, it is an increased demand for real estate. Such is the condition of affairs in Whitehall.

HOMESTAKE: There are numerous pestiferous gold bugs around Homestake but we are pleased to state that most of them are foreigners, some of them dagoes, some Swedes, and one from New Jersey. Section Foreman Jacobson wants someone to trace up a whole lot of bedding that was borrowed without his consent. Mrs. Stevens, mother of Mrs. James Kelly is now sojourning with her daughter. This item is especially noteworthy from the fact that Mrs. Stevens is 98 years of age, active and hearty. In appearance, she is not more than 70.

In 1922, the world was seeing some great ups and some very sad downs. Greek occupation of Aydin, Turkey was ended but Turkish troops conquered Smyrna and murdered Greek citizens. A world record temperature, in the shade, was recorded in Aziziyah, Libya at 136.4 F, although the World Meteorological Organization invalidated that 90 years later. Here in the U. S., the New York Yankees played their farewell home games in Polo Grounds before moving to Yankee Stadium. Things in Whitehall seem to have settled down a bit compared to the events of 1896.

The County Fair will be starting soon. The Yellowstone Theatre will be the place to be each night when the band will have everyone's favorite dance tunes. Remember to vote for your favorite candidate for Princess of Jefferson County. You have a tough choice between Eleanor Wolverton and Irma Thompson.

Mayor Tait has placed a suggestion before the town council to honor our European War veterans. It involves building a large fountain between two sections of our park at the south end of Main Street. The Council approved. Ed Speck helped to design it and will be the builder. The finished structure will be 18 feet in diameter with the outer walls made of concrete. These will encircle a central pyramid covered in ore samples from local mines. At the top of the pyramid, there will be an arc light with a cluster of smaller ones to illuminate the water at night and a small statue of a Dough Boy. Water will trickle from the top of the pyramid and roll over the ores. In the water surrounding the center pyramid, native mountain trout, supplied by Mr. Fessendon of the Fish and Game, will be free to swim. Around the entire structure will be a 4-foot-wide walk that will make an excellent place for band concerts. The Northern Pacific has generously offered to supply the water for the fountain.

Our children have returned to school and are looking forward to another great year of learning. There are currently 131 students in grade school and 113 in high school. This includes 21 seniors, 38 juniors, 26 sophomores, and 28 freshmen. If you live outside of our county and are sending your children to our school, remember that there is a fee of $1.00 to $2.00 for some course materials other than textbooks. The deposit must be paid at the start of classes, and this will be refunded at the end of the school year, less 20%.

Farmers, do not miss your chance to have some prime hogs added to your stock. Harold Donohoe is selling his entire herd of Poland China hogs, some of which were bred to Big Boss. You might remember that this boar was listed as the largest in the world back in 1921. The Boss was recently sold to Montana State College.