The Graphic

August 18, 1927

106 TEACHERS AT INSTITUTE: One hundred and six teachers registered the first day of the Henderson County Teachers Institute which is being held in the grade school building at Oquawka from Monday until Friday of this week.  The new county superintendent, Mr. Chris S. Apt, who took his office the first of this month is conducting the affair and according to reports from experienced teachers, it is one of the best which they have ever attended. (Long list of attendees serves as list of who was teaching and where they were employed.)

SAW DICKSON MOUNDS:  Mr. and Mrs. B. L. Mudd returned from a visit with their son, Rex and wife at Lewiston, Ill., and report having had a wonderful time, especially sight seeing at the Dickson Mounds on the bluffs over looking the Illinois River flats and Thompson Lake near Havana.  These mounds, which have been opened this summer are attracting the attention of scientists who have visited it, representatives from the Smithsonian Institution, the University of Chicago, Illinois University and other places of learning who offer a big field for study.

They are accepted by all the scientists who have been there as of the race of mound builders that occupied the Mississippi and Ohio River valleys prior to the occupation of the country by the Indians, and they place the time of burial at a minimum of a thousand years ago.  Further, they give the information that there is but one other similar group burial in the world and that is in Europe where some four of five bodies have excavated while on the Dickson Mound more than forty bodies have been discovered with indications that further exploration will unearth many more. 

With imagination one can see the race of people who lived on these bluffs who found in the woods and hills, wild game of the kind that roamed there centuries ago.  Evidently, they were peaceful as  war implements weren’t found.  Only one evidence of warfare and that might have been accident has been found and this is a small flint arrow head that is embedded in the vertebra of one of the skeletons.

Many years ago, a crescent with the points to the east was seen on this mound.  Inside the crescent laid a basin and from this was taken the site of the covered the bodies.  Such clay is plentiful in this locality and disputes any claim that the it was carried from a distance.  Then the senior Mr. Dickson wanted to build a house and he leveled the mound down several feet, filling the basin with the earth. In doing this he unearthed many skeletons without thought or curiosity.  Today, all over the top of the hill human bones are found in abundance.  They placed the bodies on the top of the ground and then dug the clay to cover them is reasonably certain.  In the burial of the bodies, no form or effort at placing them in any certain position as they lie in all sorts of angles to each other except in what is evidently family interments such as is evidences where there are three: a male, female and baby (estimated four-month-old) placed between the mother and father skeletons.  On the wrist of the female in this particular family was found a strand of clam shell beads and lying on the breast of the little babe was a small marine shell.  Many of the bodes have similar shells lying on their breasts; clearly, this is a form of ornamentation used extensively.  The source of the marine shells might have come through trade with groups further south or as agreed by scientists that the Gulf of Mexico once extended far north.

That this people believed in the future existence in some form is clearly evidenced by the finding in practically every instance of a small clay pottery bowl, either in the crook of the elbow or at the shoulder of the skeleton, and within it is always found the half of a clam shell, presumably used as a spoon.  In these mounds, no evidence of food was placed in the bowl unless it was cereal and long since resolved into mother earth… (The mounds were explored by Don Dickson, a chiropractor, and he opened them as a tourist site in 1927 so yes, locals would have been interested and the Mudd family probably were quizzed extensively when they returned home.)

HE HAS A FRUIT FARM:  Lorenzo Foote, a former Stronghurst boy now has a 200-acre fruit farm at Tunnel Hill, Ill. and from the samples of the peaches The Graphic has just received, he is certainly an expert grower of fine fruit.  We judge them to be of the Alberta variety and are about nine inches in circumference and certainly make fine eating.  Lorenzo sent his mother, Mrs. Maud Foote of this place a bushel of the choice fruit with instructions to share up with The Graphic, which good advice; we are thankful to say, was carried out.

That Lorenzo is growing quite a few peaches may be surmised from the fact that in one year he has set out as many as 10,000 trees.  This season he has been shipping peaches by carloads.  Among other things Mr. Foote has seven acres of asparagus on his farm.  Asparagus growing for the market is quite an art, but Lorenzo seems to making good at it. He also has several acres devoted to flowers and shrubs, running a nursery of considerable merit.  Here’s wishing Lorenzo good luck and may he be assured that we will always be at his service when it comes to sampling fruit, especially peaches.

ROAD CONTRACT GRANTED:  The contract for the construction of section 118 of Route No. 94-A, 6.81 miles west of Monmouth was awarded to the McCarthy Improvement Co. of Davenport, Iowa.  The contract price is $232,039.60 (in today’s values $7,622,500.86).  The pavement to be constructed under this contract is all in Warren County and a part of the so-called Monmouth-Oquawka  road.  Work will probably start on the contract in a very short time.  It is thought that work will be on the road in Henderson County this fall.

MARRIED 50 YEARS: Mr. and Mrs. Germanicus Bowen of Terre Haute, Ill., celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary Sunday, August 14 with a family reunion; the remarkable part of the event was that all of their nine children were present.  A golden wedding is something unusual, but to have every member of a large family of children living and present to bring happiness to the parents on their 50th anniversary is a rare thing indeed!  All but one of the fourteen grandchildren and all four of the great-grandchildren were present.  The total attendance of relatives at the reunion was 39.  During the course of the day numerous friends and neighbors also called to extend congratulations.

Mr. and Mrs. Bowen are both in good health and enjoyed the occasion very much.  Mr. Bowen was born in Henderson County and has spent practically all of his life here.  He married in 1877 and commenced housekeeping at the old Lem Wagy place in the Old Bedford vicinity.  From here they moved to the nearby Crenshaw farm and after a short time took up their residence in Terre Haute where they still reside. Upon moving to Terre Haute, Mr. Bowen, with a partner, Mr. S. D. Parsons, opened a butcher shop which they conducted for a good many years.  Mr. Bowen used to deliver meat to the railroad workers when the Santa Fe was being put through the county.  That was before Media, Stronghurst and Decorra were known as towns.  Mr. Bowen is a good violinist and recalls playing for many old-fashioned barn dances.  In 1922 Mr. Bowen went to Sloan, Iowa, where he visited his daughter for three years and drove a school wagon.  Since his return he and his wife have spent most of their time at their home in Terre Haute and with children at Moline, Ill. 

A wonderful time was had by all at the golden wedding anniversary.  Two long tables, which were handsomely decorated with bouquets of golden glow, were set on the well-kept lawn shaded by beautiful evergreen trees.  Beautifully decorated cakes and a large gold cake present by a daughter, Mrs. Greeley Henry, graced the tables. 

After the sumptuous dinner, readings, music and conversations were enjoyed. A son, E. R. Bowen and wife of Stronghurst furnished violin and piano music and a daughter, Mrs. A. F. Trone, sang and played.  A 12 year old granddaughter, Margaret Henry of Moline, Ill. spoke several pieces and read a poem of her own composition entitled “ The Golden Wedding Day.” (in this article).  Before the gathering broke up, a generous purse of gold, silver and paper money was presented to M. and Mrs. Bowen.

The nine children and their families present were as follows: Mrs. G. A. Shafer and husband, son- Clifton, wife and three children: Raymond, Gloria and Clifford Ernest; son Robert, wife and daughter Louise, all of Stronghurst; and daughter, Mrs. Arlo Boggs and husband of East Moline, Ill.; E. R. Bowen and wife of Stronghurst, Ill.; Mr. and Mrs. Earl Bowen, daughter Dorothy and son Bryce of Rock, Falls, Ill.; Mr. and Mrs. Fran Bowen and son Wendall of La Harpe, Ill.; Mrs. Greeley Henry and daughter Margaret (Mr. Henry and daughter Ermal being unable to be present) of Moline, Ill.; Mr. D. O. Boen, Moline Ill. (his wife being unable to attend; Mrs. A. F. Trone and husband of Sioux City, Iowa; Mrs. Fred Gallagher (husband unable to attend and children, Geraldine, Mildred, Madge and Frank of Sloan, Ia.;  and Mr. and Mrs. R. J. Boggs, daughter Vergie and son Virgil of East Moline, Ill. Others in attendance from a distance were Mr. and Mrs. Walter Mackey, Rock Island, Ill.; Mrs. Nora Smith, Leeds, Iowa; Mrs.Trone, Industry, Ill.; and Mr. and Mrs. Fred Bivans and family of La Harpe.

WIN BIG AT MACOMB FAIR: I. H. Brokaw and son and Mr. J. A. Mahaffey of Stronghurst entered pigs and hogs for competition at the Macomb Fair and on Tuesday their thirteen entries won fifteen ribbons, six of them first.  Competition was close, there being a large number of entries, many of them of unusual high class.  In addition to beautiful ribbons, generous cash prizes were awarded.  Mr. I. H. Brokaw and son entered nine head of spring pigs, receiving ten prizes.  He also showed four aged hogs for Mr. J.  A. Mahaffey which won two first prizes, two second places and one third.  This is indeed a very creditable showing for Stronghurst.

WINS FIRST IN 2400 MILE RACE!  The Woolaroc, piloted by Arthur Goebel, a stunt flyer of Hollywood, competed the flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu Wednesday noon in 26 hours, 17 minutes and twenty seconds, winning first place and $25,000 in the Dole contest. ($821,250 in today’s values) The Aloha, piloted by Martin Jensen, a native of Hawaii, landed two hours later taking second place and winning $10,000. Only two others of the fourteen planes first entered successfully embarked on the trip and these the Golden Eagle and Miss Doran have not been heard from.

The Air King, built by the National Airway System of Lomax was not permitted to make the flight because the Department of Commerce reported it did not have sufficient gasoline capacity to make the trip.

CANNING FACTORY NEWS: Machinery has not been installed in the canning factory as rapidly as had been hoped for and it will be about ten days before it is ready for operations.  Tomatoes will be ready by that time and canning will be done on a large scale.  The tenth carload of cabbage was shipped out by the United Food Co. this week.  Tomatoes are being canned at Lomax factory this week.

COMING TO TOWN, CHAUTAUQUA MEETING: The officials of the  local Chautauqua association was held at the Stronghurst Telephone office and a good deal of detail work was looked after to ensure the success of this year’s event.  W.C. Regan and Delbert Dixson of the school board were also present and definite arrangements were made for using the auditorium at the school building for all sessions of the coming Chautauqua.  Mr. Regan stated at the meeting that 200 additional chairs had been purchased and are expected to be here before the opening date and will be for permanent use in the auditorium.  The terms of the arrangement with the school board provide that any amount over and above what is necessary to pay the expenses of the Chautauqua will go to the auditorium fund of the school.  Thus, people who purchase tickets will be contributing to two good causes and providing themselves with most excellent entertainment and instruction…

FORMER TEACHERS MEET: Mrs. Nancy Jamison of Biggsville was hostess to a number of former school teachers of Henderson County at her home last Friday afternoon.  Her sister, Mrs. L. H. Folmer, also a former Henderson County teacher was the honorary guest.  The afternoon was spent in visiting and recalling old times and experiences.  A love token was presented to Mrs. Folmer by each of her friends, and this gathering will long be remembered.

The following attended (This list is invaluable as may not appear elsewhere and also includes maiden name.): Anna Hillier Ingrham, Blandinsville, Ill.; Flo Spangler Tillostson, Moline, Ill.; Margaret Cowden, Monmouth, Ill.; Nancy Magee Keener, Altona, Ill.; Genie Fliege, Oquawka, Ill.; Bird Jones Dixson, Biggsville, Ill.; Jennie Hillier, La Harpe, Ill.; Olive James Jamison, Biggsville, Ill.; Adda Bainter Ross, Stronghurst, Ill; Bessie Graham, Kirkwood, Ill.; Elizabeth Cammerson Whiteman, Monmouth, Ill.; Mrs. Emma Sullivan Plummer, Biggsville, Ill.; Mrs. F.M Caughey, Biggsville, Ill.; Mrs. Esther John Foster, Biggsville, Ill.; Della Gordon Yeomans, Monmouth, Ill.; Laurine Kelly Pearson, Biggsville, Ill; Blanche Gibb McKee, Leavenworth, Kansas; Nancy Sloan Jamison, Biggsville, Ill.; and Mary Sloan Folmer, Cortland, New York.

LOMAX LINGERINGS: The Bible Class of the Christian Church met to make arrangements for the annual fish fry to be held on Labor Day.  Mrs. Bert Anderson and daughter, Naomi, are visiting friends in Kansas City.  Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Corbit have moved their household goods to Kernan, Ill. where he has accepted the position as section foreman.  Mrs. Roy Moore and sons, James and Ernest, of Memphis, Mo. have been visiting at the home of George Scott, Jr., and gathering blackberries. 

RARITAN REPORTS:  Clarence Powell, who has been staying at the Harold Simonson home, has gone to the Paul Lagle home.  Mrs. David Blanchard of Charlotte, North Caroline arrived Thursday afternoon for a visit with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. F.V. Brokaw and other relatives.  The ladies of the Catholic church gave a fried chicken supper on Wednesday night.  The Misses Anna and Elsie Ahlers are attending teachers’ institute and with a group of Stronghurst teachers are staying at Yellowbanks Cottage on the beach at Oquawka.  Harold Simsonson accompanied his brother, Jesse, to St. Paul, Minn. on business.  An accident which very easily could have been a serious one, happened Wednesday afternoon when a small truck driven by Lewis Worthington and carrying the men helping on his threshing machine, Grover Burke, Dale Neff, Fred Torrence and Judd Wetterling, turned out of one of the gates into the Algert Nolan field and collided with a Chevrolet coach driven by a young man from Burlington, Iowa.  No one was seriously hurt, but the cars were rather badly battered. Orders for oriental poppies and Madonna lilies are due as they are best planted this month.

It is claimed that every day in New York City alone there are 75 tons of pennies spent for newspapers.  There are 85 daily newspapers printed in this big city, and it is said that their combined circulation is more than 6,545,000.

BIGGSVILLE BRIEFS: Biggsville Annual Home-Coming Picnic is being held today at the village park with the Burlington orchestra furnishing the music.  Mr. and Mrs. A. P. McHenry and family left for an auto trip to visit relatives in the southern part of the state. Mr. and Mrs. Paul Clark have moved into a four-room apartment in the Maggie Reynolds residence which has been recently remodeled and made modern.  Miss Gladys Rice has accepted a position as bookkeeper with the Bushnell Pump Co .and began work Monday.  The Women’s Missionary society of the Presbyterian Church held an all-day meeting at the home of Mrs. Nora Martin.  Seventeen ladies were present and together with a number of others enjoyed a sumptuous dinner at the noon hour from which $10 was turned into the treasury.  The regular meeting was held in the afternoon with Mrs. T.W. Everitt, President, presiding.  The program on the Philippines was in charge of Mrs. Robert Cochran.  The W.S.M.S. of the M. E. Church met at the home of Mrs. Sam Beebe with Mrs. Mary Jackson, president presiding over the business meeting.  The devotionals were led by Mrs. Ed Parish with Mrs. Grace McVey program leader.  The subject studied was “Moslem Women.”

COLMA COMMENTS:  Lloyd, son of Mr. and Mrs. Wilson who is in the Navy left Great Lakes for Seattle, Washington and his address in now U.S.S. Colorado.  Mr. and Mrs. William Weir, Jr. were called to Long Beach, Calif., on account of the serious illness of the former’s father, W.
T. Weir.  Misses Lucile and Gladys Rice of Biggsville entertained at a picnic supper at the “Elms” Friday evening.  The board of review, consisting of Wilson Curtiss, Frank Myers, Fred Rehling and Earl Knox have been in different parts of the county his week inspecting tax complaints.  The annual reunion of the Stevenson families and relatives will be held Friday, Aug. 19 at the Monmouth Park.

LOCAL AND AREA NEWS:  Harold Simonson, Jess Simonson, and William Bricker left for St. Paul, Minn. to purchase cattle.  Herbert Fitz is in South Bend Indiana attending the Rockne-Meanwell School for athletic coaches.  Miss Myrtle Shallenberger is employed at the Fort Madison, Ia. creamery.  Rev. and Mrs. J. A. Mahaffey attended the Christian Workers conference at Monmouth.  Mrs. Noah Billups and daughter and Mrs. Mosley and son of Shattuck, Oklahoma were house guests at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Al Berg. Mr. and Mrs. A. E. Moore and family returned home from a visit with relatives in Canada; they report a fine trip and crops looking fine in that community.  Mrs. David Blanchard of North Carolina arrived last Thursday for a visit with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. F. V. Brokaw.  Mr. and Mrs. W. J. McElhinney and family along with Rev. Goerge H. Fickes of Easton, Pa. were dinner guests at the Cecil Brook home south of town on Wednesday evening.  Leslie McMillan of Detroit, Mich. motored here last Sunday to spend his two weeks’ vacation with his parents, Mr. and Mrs. J. S. McMillan.  John Combites, father of Clarence Combites, who sustained a fractured hip while at work with the threshing crew at his home a short time ago and who was taken to the Macomb Hospital, is recovering as well as could be expected. Mrs. Frances Harbour and Miss Mildred Grandy returned from Quincy where they purchased their fall and winter goods.  Dayle Grandy and Edith Wilcox are attending the Milan Epworth League Institute this week; Rev. C. S. McClure took them to Milan via auto.  Mr. and Mrs. Dwight Slater, married last week at Alexis, Ill,, stopped to visit the gentleman’s grandmother, Mrs. S. S Slater.  Mrs. Effie Johnstone of Kansas City, Mo. accompanied the young couple home to West Point, Ill. for a week’s visit. 

The annual picnic of the Lutheran congregation held at the”Elms” last Friday was decidedly a success.  A large crowd was present which did ample justice to the fine basket dinner served at noon.  The afternoon was spent socially and games and stunts were enjoyed by the young people and children.  Lynn W. VanDraska and Minnie L. Stanley of Keithsburg, Illinois were united in the bonds of Holy Matrimony on August 10th at the Methodist parsonage.  The beautiful ring ceremony of the Methodist Episcopal Church was used by Rev. C. S. McClure, officiating. On Sunday and Monday nights over 1,000 chickens were stolen at the homes of Mr. Parker and Mrs. S.P. Johnson and from other neighbors living around West Point, Illinois.  Mr. and Mrs. Ernest D. Walker and sons Robert and Richard motored to Victoria to visit friends.  They then motored on to Starved Rock and spent several days sightseeing and cooking their meals in the camp grounds in the park.  The home of Mr. M. L. Evans, Jr. was the scene of a merry party last Firday afternoon when his daughter, Margie Lou, entertained a number of her little friends.  The main feature of the afternoon was a jolly hour in the swimming pool.  Later, a dainty supper was served.  Miss Fanny Cooper of Oquawka is assisting with the work at the Freeman Doak home as Mrs. Doak is suffering from a painful accident she received last week while doing her family washing.  Her left hand became fastened in the power ringer, thus badly crushing her fingers.  On Thursday, August 25, at the M.E. Church at Terre Haute a big fish fry will be served.  Horse shoe pitching will be featured in the forenoon and a baseball game in the afternoon.  In the evening a miscellaneous program will be given.  The public is cordially invited to come and spent the day and meet old friends and acquaintances.  The members of the Ladies Aid of the M.E. Church will hold a picnic Friday afternoon at Bogus Hollow.  Each guest is asked to bring her own sandwiches and a covered dish besides their own table service.

ENLARGED SCHOOL BUS:  The school bus owned by Loren VanDoren of Raritan was lengthened to accommodate about 22 passengers (6 more than usual), the work being completed by Bert Moore of Stronghurst.  The bus is mounted on a Chevrolet chassis and is quite a neat affair.  Two benches, one on each side, run lengthways and the passengers sit facing each other.  Mr. Moore reports making the extension at the rear to have been quite a difficult job as it had to match the front part.  However, he did a good job and the bus looks fine.  The bus is used by Mr. VanDoren to carry students from Raritan who attend the Media High School. 

CONFIRMATION SERVICE:  A large audience was present at the Lutheran Church last Sunday to witness the confirmation exercise of the following young people: Misses Edith Peterson and Edna Carlson, Albert Peterson, Clarence Johnson, Caro Ottoson, Elmer Johnson and Harold Nolen.  Their first communion was held at two o’clock Sunday afternoon when a large number of the congregation was present. 

MEDIA BROADCASTER, part of the Stronghurst Graphic: The Coop Store changed hands and is now under the management of Arthur Shook as proprietor and Roy Baskett as clerk.  The Board of Review consisting of Frank Myers, Wilson Curtiss, Fred Rehling and Clerk Earl Knox have been in the Carman area inspecting tax complaints.  Arthur Dixon of Carman area, son of Mr. and Mrs. Lyle Dixon, is in the St. Francis Hospital at Burlington with a double fracture of the collar bone caused by running after some horse and ran forcibly into a post.  Another good rain in the Olena territory delayed the threshing.  The annual Dowell reunion was held at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Daryl Dowell on Sunday, August 14th.  A large crowd numbering 160 gathered there with well filled baskets to enjoy the occasion (long list of those attending).