Jefferson County’s Orphan Train Children, 1911

By Donna Ward

Look back in time to the week of January 13, 1911. The lives of some of our citizens are scored by that date. That week, the people of Oskaloosa were discussing “The Orphans” who were coming from New York. Sentiments were divided on the topic of these children. Men and women whose empty homes had been denied children were anxiously waiting, daring to hope that their dreams would come true and a child be theirs to keep. Prophets of gloom were denouncing New York Easterners, the government and anything else convenient for dumping the slum-bred problems of New York in Kansas’ clean, clear air. Others were sympathetically considering the alternative fate of children who would grow up into lives of degradation if left on the streets of the big cities. Some people were thinking in terms of gaining an extra pair of hands to help with the never ending farmwork. The majority of people, however, were simply curious; were these waifs different in some way? Who would come and choose?

The Oskaloosa committee had been selected. Anna Laura Hill, the children’s escort, needed their help in placing the little ones in suitable homes. They inserted the following notice in the January 13^th issue of the Oskaloosa Independent:

            “Agents of Children’s Aid Society have fifteen children from orphanages of New York State here for distribution this afternoon and evening, after the manner of the late distribution at Valley Falls. The local committee is composed of Drs. McCreight and Smith, D.A. Bliss, W.E. Huddleston, G.N. Jacquemin, S.E. True, J.H. Morrow.”

These men were influential in the community. They were cognizant of the position, temperament, and ability of most of the local residents. By practicing careful selection, the Children’s Aid Society claimed a 90 percent record for permanent placement.

Although many of the children placed by the Children’s Aid Society were adopted, that was not a requirement for placement. Even after the careful screening, Miss Hill returned from time to time to check on the children’s progress, the suitability of their homes and education. Many of the children established close friendships with Miss Hill, and corresponded with her the rest of her life.

The children had traveled on a regular passenger coach. After forty-three hours on the train, they were grimy and disheveled when they arrived. Miss Hill worked with experienced hands to clean them up, scrub their faces, slick down their hair, and brush their clothing. They stepped off that train prepared to face a new life in a new state with new families. To their eyes, the people looked and sounded somewhat strange. The little ones hid their faces, the older boys vacillated between sullen stares and bravado poses, and the girls tried to look calm and pretty while blushing under the stares of the depot spectators.

Miss Hill gathered her group about her, much as a mother would collect her brood. The ride into town on the hack was a pleasant relief from the stuffy coach. She counted out the 25¢ fare and ushered the children into the hotel. In the privacy of the hotel, they attacked the grime of their journey in earnest. The older children helped the younger ones. Miss Hill soothed their nervous jitters and short tempers, and reassured the frightened ones with her calm attendance to duties. After the brief respite, Miss Hill began her conversations with the local citizens. Some families offered temporary housing for some of the children. The youngest child was Friedolf Fredricksen, age two. He ate his first meal in Oskaloosa with the William Payne family. With his blond curls, impish smile, and brave acceptance of what life was offering him, he quickly made friends in his new hometown.

The month before this trainload arrived, a group of children had been placed in Valley Falls. Circulars had been distributed there, but the Oskaloosa Independent of December 9, 1910, had quoted the bulletin in its entirety with a headline “New York Waifs in Jefferson County.” Similar circulars had been posted in the city and passed around the county. Public interest was stirred.

At the appointed hour, the children were seated on the stage of the opera house, and Miss Hill addressed the gathered crowd. As people were attracted to certain children, they were interviewed by the committee, presented their recommendations, and were considered. Those who were chosen to receive a child were given a card with that child’s history on it. They entered an agreement to provide proper care, education, and reports to the society. The society reserved the right to visit and inspect the home within a year, and to remove the child if they found it unsuitable.

Critchfield Opera House stage

Those children that were not placed in Oskaloosa were taken to Valley Falls to fulfill the requests from the earlier distribution. After the excitement, the following item appeared in the January 20^th, 1911, issue of the Oskaloosa Independent, in the editorial comments:

            “The New York Orphans All Find Homes

            “The agents in charge of the orphans from New York state orphanages left town yesterday, having found homes for nine of their little charges in Oskaloosa and 6 going to Valley Falls where the former supply did not quite meet the demand, it seems.

            “A great deal of interest in the children was shown here, and several families entertained children until homes were found for them.

            “Legal adoption is not required and the children are really taken on trial, the society agreeing to take the child back if anything goes wrong. They are visited twice during the first year and then annually for a time, and families taking children are required to make yearly reports.

            “The best appearing children, and those in good health, are picked to bring to Western homes.

            “Otto Lantz, who lives 4 miles southeast of Oskaloosa, took a little German boy aged 3½ years, named Samuel Dubar — a bright little chap who speaks German readily.

            “Chas. Winans, at the old Fair grounds, has a little 2 year old German girl, Fredoff Fredericks.*

            “F.H. Corson, at the edge of town on the northwest, takes Katie Fichtner, aged 11.

            “Louis A. Kimmel, a mile east of town, has the oldest two of the lot, Anna Potthoff, aged 15, and William, her brother, aged 13 years.

            “Owen Johnston, 3½ miles northwest of town, has a little 6 year old maiden, Adelaide Loggman.

            “Harvey Wood, who recently came from Missouri and is on the Critchfield farm, 2½ miles southwest of town, has a boy, aged 9, Henry G. Palmer.

            “James Quakenbush, just east of town, takes Eva Grant, aged 10 years.

            “Thomas Davis, on the old Snyder farm, southwest of town, has Mildred Grant aged 12.

            “This lot of youngsters have certainly found good homes, and it is to be hoped will grow into good, strong, bright young men and women.

            “Of those sent to Valley Falls, Norman Deacon, aged 5 goes to Jessie _____; Fred Valentine, aged 6, to Newton Bilger; Wm. Bugglen, 12 years, to A.H. Jurgens; Wm. Hoyt, 8 years, to J. Irvin Spence; Marvin Miller, aged 6, to A.J. Jurgens.

            “The agents say that only about one in ten of the children are ever taken back, nearly all of them being acceptable to the families taking them.”

* “Fredoff’s” name was Friedolf Fredricksen, and he was of masculine gender and of Swedish heritage.

Friedolf Fredricksen was clothed in a dress, the normal attire for baby boys of that period. The Charles Winans family did not have other children, and chose “Friedoff” for their own. Before the end of the same year, they had completed the legal adoption. They considered him their son and never discussed his origins with him. In later years, his mother was unhappy that he tried to find his family.

Samuel Dubar was the 3½ year old German speaking child adopted by the Otto Lantzes. A picture of him in Friedoff’s possession shows a dark haired, delicately formed lad, with a fresh bright smile. The inscription on the picture is, “Otto Frederick Lantz, age 4 years, 1911.” The Lantz parents separated and all contact with the child was lost.

Mr. and Mrs. Kimmel took two of the older children. William was 13, and Anna was 15. Anna died a few years later, according to Friedoff, my informant.

Adelaide Loggman, age 6, was adopted by Mr. and Mrs. Owen Johnston. Of all the children, she was the one who tried to keep contact with the others, and she corresponded with Miss Hill. She clerked in the town stores, tended to the needs of her family, and became the typical old maid in town. Late in life, she married a Mr. Brown, living out of town for four or five years before she died of cancer.

Eva Grant, age 10, was adopted by Mr. and Mrs. James Quakenbush. She married Omer Frazier, the brother of Friedoff’s wife. Eva raised four children, William T., Harold, Doris and Betty.

Eva’s sister, Mildred Grant, was given a home by Mr. and Mrs. Tom Davis. Because of friction in the home, Mildred left while still young. She married a Mr. Harness; they made their home in California.

Anna Laura Hill

Most of the families discouraged the children from looking into the past. It was seldom discussed either with the parents or with each other. However, Mildred and Eva Grant did go back to find their brother, Gus, and sisters with whom they held a close relationship.

This story appeared in “Yesteryears” in October 1981, with an addition in April 1982 and a reprint of the Independent article in April 1995.

A Great Wolf Hunt

From the Meriden Ledger, December 13, 1901

By “Nimrod” 

Last Thursday witnessed a wolf hunt in our vicinity the like of which has not been seen in many a day — a genuine old fashioned hunt* — with horses and hounds and guns and hunters galore. Lafe Crane, who lives on the old Jim Martin place, reported that a large pack of hungry wolves were roaming about his farm and Upper Muddy [creek], killing dogs, throttling live stock and frightening women and children out of their wits. No sooner was this interesting information received in Meriden than a hunt was planned and the extermination of these ferocious beasts determined on. Word was sent to all the hunters in this and surrounding neighborhoods and truly it was a goodly assemblage that met on Thursday morning armed and loaded for the fray. Bob Wilkerson and Bill Hutchinson put their shooting irons in order, wiping out the rust that had accumulated since the convict hunt. Al Mitchell and Jimmy Boyer double shotted their pieces and skirmished out in advance on foot. Will Seal and Irve McQuilkin moved out to the right flank as far as Chris Martin’s where their horse fell sick and they gave up the fight. Chet Peebler was ready to go but his bird dog was under the porch scratching off fleas and would not come out, so Chet did not get on the firing line. Orb Frost got Charley McCoy’s best running horse in good trim and otherwise assisted in the rear. Ed Reed came up the night before with all but thirteen of his fine collection of dogs and hounds. Among them were the famous Pot hounds, Boozer and Snoozer. These are the two dogs for which Ed traded his last cow — so the wicked Popssay — Word was sent to George O’Brien and it was hoped he would come so as to give a truthful report of the affair afterward; but he had an engagement nursing a case of small-pox (the wild woman) and was unable to be present: hence the meagerness of this brief and bare account. In the absence of George O’Brien, George Richards was asked to report the affair and will probably do so later. Bill Sniggers, the famous hunter of Stink Creek was also unable to come. He was busy rounding up his children from the hazel brush for the winter, but he sent seventeen of his best dogs which partly atoned for his absence. All the dogs were collected the evening before and shut up in a box stall at the Livery Barn. During the night one of Snigger’s setters escaped, gnawed all the leather off a new saddle and ate three boxes of axel grease. His work next day was uncommonly smooth. Early in the morning all the hunters came together for the start. It was deemed necessary to take a plentiful supply of remedies for snake bites. Nowhere are rattlesnakes thicker than on Muddy and at this time of the year they bite viciously. There was a slight hitch in the plans here also as the drug stores have shut down for repairs during Revival. Word was sent to Rock Creek, St. Joe, K.C. and other wholesale points and the deficiency somewhat remedied. When stock was taken just before starting, the list showed three half pints of white horse, seven bottles of Hostler’s Stomach bitters, one jug of hard cider and one quart bottle of that form of liquid damnation known as Hainer’s. The dogs were called together; the ammunition wagons loaded everybody took a good pull and the start was made. Past Rice’s Hill, the Seal School House and the big Rock the party sped without mishap until going down the little bank north of the old Rippetoe’s place, Hink Botts leaned forward from his seat in the surrey to spit. Just then the front wheel ran into a chuck hole, the surrey lurched over and Hink tumbled over on the wheel [and] alighted on his head at one side of the road. He turned over, sat up, a little dazed but a few liberal doses of “polluted” white horse put him on his pins again and the journey continued. On raising the hill along the old Graden place the first wolf was sighted. It had crossed the road going east, and the hounds took up the trail with a chorus of deep howling and bawling. Away they went through the cornfields, across the road near the Hardshell church and then on over the hay fields and out of sight in the direction of George Biggs place.

This story appeared in “Yesteryears” in October 1988.

Note: The Meriden Ledger ran this story with a “To Be Continued” line, but no subsequent account appears on newspapers.com.

*In The Old Home Place, Jefferson County author Joy Lominska writes, “Red wolves once lived in the area, and the hunts may have actually begun as wolf hunts. However, over time the wolf population declined and the ever-present coyote became more numerous, as well as possibly interbreeding with remaining wolves to create a hybrid. The wolves and wolf hybrids would have been difficult to distinguish from coyotes from a distance. These hunts were still called wolf hunts, even when the target was largely coyotes.”

Braved Blizzard to Attend Dance

Thirty Below Zero Did Not Daunt Wm. Kirkpatrick and Steve Talcott, Then Boys

From the Winchester Star, January 18, 1918 

The severe cold weather the past week, when the mercury descended to 22 degrees below zero, was an incentive to some of our older inhabitants to grow reminiscent and to recall with interest times long ago, when the winters, as a usual thing, were decidedly more severe than any of recent years.

Jefferson County Courthouse, 1867-1960

W.F. Kirkpatrick recited a story of some 40 years ago, when he, in company with S.A. Talcott, rode in a buggy from Oskaloosa to Winchester in the biting cold. At that time it was the custom to occasionally give dances in the second story of the court house in Oskaloosa, which was practically a new building then. These dances always were well attended by young people from far and near, and were a source of much enjoyment to all of the participants. No orchestra was available in those days, of course, the faithful old fiddle being the only dependence for music by which to dance.

William Kirkpatrick and Steve Talcott were only boys then, and they enjoyed attending these social hops so much that the most severe blizzard tended not to temper their ardor for the sport. It was on a New Year’s eve that they braved a blizzard to attend one of these dances in the county court house. The storm was raging “after the ball,” but the boys were not daunted by its fury and took up their journey homeward in a temperature of 30 degrees below zero. They finally reached their destination, about daybreak next morning, but narrowly escaped freezing to death as a result of their 10-mile ride in the stinging cold.

This story appeared in “Yesteryears” in October 2011.

Amos McLouth

Founder of McLouth Dies at Ninety-Two

“Uncle Amos” Sleeps near Scene of Early Labor — Entire Community Does Honor to Memory of This Pioneer Builder, Soldier and Engineer.

From the Oskaloosa Independent, November 27, 1931

The entire community of McLouth, including its business houses and schools, did formal honor Wednesday afternoon to the memory of the man who laid out the town-site fifty years ago. “Uncle Amos” McLouth was laid to rest in Wildhorse cemetery, following services at the United Brethren church, where old friends paid tribute to his personality and his career.

Death came peacefully at the National Military Home, on Monday morning, Nov. 23. He was in his usual health, though feeble when his nephew, County Commissioner Amos H. Leech, called on him, Nov, 15^th, as he was accustomed to do twice a month. Attendants report that they observed nothing wrong until an hour or two before his passing.

Born in Lambertville, Mich., November 30, 1838, he was reared in that state, followed surveying as a youth, until the Civil War, when he enlisted in the 8^th Michigan cavalry. He was wounded at the Battle of Lookout Mountain.

His coming to Kansas, in 1868, was timed with the needs of this young empire for pioneer builders. Amos McLouth had the instincts of a builder and the capacity for executing constructive tasks. He purchased a quarter section of upland in eastern Jefferson county, buying from the Union Pacific railway for $3 an acre, and engaged in farming. He became county treasurer in 1873 and again in 1877. In 1880 he was elected state senator from Jefferson County.

"Tin bridge," Jefferson County, Kansas

About this time came the Leavenworth, Topeka andSouthwestern railroad project; McLouth took a lead in furthering it, and when it became assured that the road would pass through his farm, he proceeded to plat a town-site thereon, and named it McLouth. The old McLouth homestead is at the eastern border of the town, the residence being directly at the end of the leading east-and-west street. McLouth took an active interest in affairs of the community which developed around the shipping point, helped organize the bank which is now the Bank of McLouth, and was an early member of the Masonic Lodge.

In the 1880s he became associated with the Missouri Valley Bridge and Iron company as an engineer and salesman. He sold bridges all over the West and South, including a long span across Galveston Bay, and by reason of this occupation he formed an acquaintance perhaps wider than that of any other of our early citizenry. “Tin bridges,” they are called in these days of concrete spans, but they represented the best thought and engineering skill of their time and their construction was one of the major factors in the taming of the wild and boundless West. In bridging the streams they bridged distance and knit communities together into the fabric of our social structure; they bridged isolation and fear and changed the quality of our civilization; they bridged time and speeded the forward march of our conquest over material forces. In this constructive work, Uncle Amos was proud to have had a part. Given but seven more years and he would have completed the long span of bridging a century with his lifetime.

He later years were spent quietly at the soldier’s home, with frequent journeys back to the old home community of McLouth and to Oskaloosa.

He is survived by several nephews and nieces: Amos H. Leech, Ray E. Leech and Alma Mayer, all of Oskaloosa, Kans.; Lawrence and Lewis McLouth, of New York City; Ora Leech, Mrs. Alta Frye; Mrs. Mary Greene, Mrs. Annie Dennis, Mrs. Ella Thistle, Lambertville, Mich.; Dr. Geo. W. Davis, of Ottawa, Kans.; and Tulla H. Davis of Longview, Wash., are second cousins.

Funeral services were conducted by Rev. Frank Bennett, pastor of the McLouth United Brethren church. Tributes to the memory of the deceased were made by Judge Horace T. Phinney of Oskaloosa and Dr. Geo. W. Davis of Ottawa.

Honorary pallbearers were H.T. Phinney, W.E. Huddleston, R.W. Reynolds, H.H. Kimmel, T.J. Minney, M.L. Stigleman, J.W. Malloy, David Edmonds. Active Pallbearers, D.K. Dick, A.C. Chapman, J.J. Groshong, Jas. Graham, G.M. Casebier, H.W. Steeper, J.E. Bond, O.H. Harding.

This article appeared in “Yesteryears” in October 2008.