The Evening Index from Greenwood, South Carolina • Page 1

Wakt THE GREENWOOD INDEX PAGES 1 to 8 ONE The Index is Read by More People In Greenwood County Than all Other Newspapers Combined. VOL XIII. GREENWOOD, S. THURSDAY MORNING, MARCH 3, 1910 No1 COLONIAL JACK HERE. TO BUILD $75,000 BRIDGE.

PANOLA COTTON MILL MAKERS OF GREENWOOD JfiK A Series of Sketches of Men Who Have Made and Are Making the Town What It Is CAPT. CRESWELL A. C. WALLER. Sketch No.

2 (The Index proposes to publish during the year 1910, one each week unless something unforeseen presents, a series of sketches of the men who hare made and are making Greenwood hat it Is. These sketches will, it Is hoped, be of value as stimulants for the younger generation to emulate the good works of their predecessors. The town cannot stand still, It must go forward and If the history of what has been done Is retold now and it will no doubt help towards the accomplishment of better and bigger things In the future. This Is the undertaking on the part of The Index and It Is hoped the spirit of the series will be understood and appreciated and that good will be accomplished. Eds.

Index.) Messrs. Cothran Cothran Retained As Euglneer in Charge, Messrs. Cothran Sf Cothran, civil engineers here, have been retained as engineers to construct the big steel bridge to be "reected over Beaufort river at Beaufort, S. C. The plans for this bridge are now being prepared and Mr.

F. H. Cothran of this firm, will leave In a few days for Beaufort to make the necessary Aiken to Greenwood and an appeal was made to Gen. McGrath, president of the South Carolina rallroair to get Interested, but he-" answeretl that he could not, his road was tqarbadly crippled by the results ofthe war. All this work of talkingAnd writing was something of a bluffy but the outcome of It was the road to Augusta.

To Dr. Parksyof Parksville, belongs, says Capt. Waller, the honor of first suggestingdefinltely a railroad from Greenwood to Augusta along the line now used. He suggested using the Fury's Ferry road and the scheme ap pealed to all interested. Gen.

Bradley of Bradley, wished it to run close to his home, deflecting it a little, and Mr. Mlddleton wanted it close to him at Clark's Hill another deflection, but all got Interested and the road took definite Rally meetings were held, -convicts were secured and the first dirt was broken out at what is now Salak.by Dr. E. R. Calhoun and Hon.

Geo. D. Tillman. Many wanted the work to start from the other end but Capt. Waller feared that the moil ey might give out by the time the road got to Midway and" that Abbeville would steP 1 and get the fruits of Greenwood's labors, so he urged that work be started from here.

It was a good The first survey of the road was made by an amateur surveyor, Capt Waller, says, but It was -good work His name was Ashmore and he was assisted by the late p. Frank Reynolds, of Greenwood. Their survey made the road enter Greenwood between the present home of Mrs. Barre and the Cambrel bouse. Tbe road was completed In 1881 Capt.

Waller represented the town In the Augusta meeting to elect officers, Augusta wanted the president and ten directors, according the South Caro linians the vice-presidency and six directors. Capt. Waller and Mr. Alex McNeil were Greenwood's delegates and they got the other Carolinians to gether and agreed on a slate, after sug gesting the same to the Augustans and the ticket for Carolina was made by Capt Waller as follows, Gen. Bradley, vice president; directors, Dr.

J. Maxwell, A. M. Aiken, Thos. R.

Riley, of Greenwood, Dr. J. D. Neel, ofTroy, and Messrs. Middfeton and Meriweath-er, residents of the lower end of the road.

Mr. E. F. Verdery, of Augusta was the first president. At that time Capt.

Waller became greatly Interested In a project to build another road from Augusta to Knox- vllle by way of Anderson. It looked as If something cruel was about to be done to the Greenwood and Augusta project He attended a meeting In Augusta and managed to unite this project with what Is now the C. W. C. by grafting the lower part of the Greenwood road with the new project and then getting -an offshoot at McCormlck for the other end which gave Anderson a road and pleased greatly Gen.

W. W. Humphreys, of An derson, the first president of that road and who at first was in favor of the Knoxville project. The New County. Of all the projects for Greenwood's advancement In which he has been In terested none furnished him with so much excitement and a better oppor tunity for the exhibition of his talents than the movement for the formation of the county of Greenwood.

He says the late Frank Arnold, was the first man to suggest and urge a new county for Greenwood, but even before that a new county bad been suggested, but as this suggestion was a Radical measure, it was not taken up. Two prominent Radical leaders in Ab beville wanted to divide the county so both could have a county to operate It and Greenwood was suggested as a fit and proper place for a county seat. The matter fell through, but only for a time. Capt. Waller was elected a member of the legislature from Ab beville county in 1888 and served one term.

In 1890 he was urged and against his personal wishes into a campaign for the State Senate against thelate Gen. R. R. Hemphill and was defeated by Gen. Hemphill by 75 votes.

From thfa time on until the constitutional convention the fight for the new bounty was prosecuted with vigor "by a number of citizens and Capt; Waller was untiring In his efforts. At one time, during Gov. Tillman's second term, a bill was put through the house for the new county and killed In the Senate, after It had seemed a cer tainty, but the constitutional convention of 1895 was the battle ground and In that memorable struggle over the number-of-miles limit Greenwood won. Abbellle wanted to fix tt so the lines Pushing His Burrow on a Stroll to Log Angeles, California. J.

A. Krohu, better known as "Colonial Jack," rrlved here last Saturday evening, pushing his wheelbarrow. He started from Boston Thanksgiving day and Is making his way to Los. Angeles by easy stages of from 18 to 20 miles per day. He says he is walking out to familiarize himself with the country so be can make good time on his way back.

He expects arrive in Los Angeles In November and will start from there on January 1, 1911. Oa wager of $1,000 that he can walk, pushing his wheelbarrow to Boston in 100 days, resting every Sunday. He finished a walk of 9,000 miles around the border of the United States in June, making the trip in 307 days. He said he had worn out 11 pair of shoes since he left Boston." ARRANGING FOR CONTEST. Loeal Arrangement Committee Will Meet This, Thursday, Afternoon.

The State Inter-colleglate Oratorical contest will be held here this year in April and the local arrangement committee will begin its work at once. Reduced rates were granted by the railroads last year and xthe same will be asked for this year. The local committee Is composed of Messrs. P. Blake, Mayor Baker, H.

L. Watson, Prof. I. E. Curry, J.

S. Bailey, G. W. Gardner, and Dr. R.

B. Eptlng will bold their first meeting Thursday afternoon at 4 o'clock in the offices of Tillman Watson. At this meeting matters of importance will be considered. Parlor Rifle Ordinance Passed. Spartanburg, Feb.

28. The city council tonight passed an ordinance prohibiting, boys under 16 years of age carrying rifles or shotguns within the city limits. Any boy under the age of 16 years, who desires to go hunting must hereafter be escorted to the city limits by some.pne over the age of 16 years, of the sheriff, who shall carry the gun or rifle. THE FIRE At MeCORMICK WAS MOST DISASTROUS. Wiped Out Practically the Entire Business Portion of the Town Incendiarism Is Suspected.

McCormlck, Feb. 28. The business section of McCormlck was almost'en-tlrely destroyed yesterday morpmg by fire, as reported In Monday's. State'. There has never been so a fire here before.

The-town was burned in 1SS3, but it was a wooden town then. The present town was brick. The flames were at about 1 O'clock. The alarm was Immediately given and the people called to assist the few who first discovered the flames. When the first comers arrived they found only smoke in the building occupied by the Fuller company.

The exacsource of the fire was hard to find; and, as soon as the front door ami back window were opened, the flames, fed by the wind, burst- forth, The flames soon reached the store of N. G. Brown Son, on the north, and the M. L. B.

Sturkey store on the south. The Fuller store occupied 'a central position and caused the flames to go In both directions. Besides the Fuller company, Brown Son, and M. L. B.

Sturkey, J. B. Harmon com pany, J. C. Deasou and the Farmers bank burned.

There was only one wooden building on the block and It was dynamited In an effort to save the three remaining building on the block. They were saved. All, however, were expected to burn and all things were carried out of the Fuller Drug company. Some of the people were almost frantic and Greenwood was called up and asked to send her fire company down to help extinguish the fire. They did not come, however.

The town has sustained a great loss over $100,000 and it will be long ere she will overcome suph a loss. Insurance was small In -almost every case. The ruins are pitiable to see. The best part of the town Is a ruin of brick and mortar. Fires have been very frequent In the t6wri of late.

Just before Christmas the Ketunia hotel, the largest hotel in tnwn. want burned. No one knows the cause of' the fire. 8ome, think, however, that Fuller company was robbed arid fired for the back window was found open by the first on the scene. Special to The State.

Another Big Egg. The record size egg for the season was brought to The Index office yesterday by Mr. Pi M. Cothran. It measures six and one-half Inches by eight and a halt Inches and weighs one quar ter of a pound.

The hen weighs eight STOCK WAS RAISED The Necessary $100,000 Se- cured Last Saturday STOCKHOLDERS MEET; Held at the City Hall Permanent Or ganization Perfected First Call Soon. A meeting of the stockholders of the Panola cotton, mill was held at the city hall last Saturday morning and at this meeting Capt. F. S. Evans made a report of the transactions affecting the mill project since the last meeting of the stockholders.

He had made a trip North and East and on this trip he met with great encouragement and with flattering offers on subscriptions from the machinery people. Some of the offers secured were unusually I good. 'He reported the amount of Stock secured In this way and stated that It was all secured with the under standing that the local subscriptions would amount to $100,000. The local fund, then, Saturday morning, amounted to $92,600. President John O.

Will-son suggested that the remaining sum be raised then and there and all the stockholders present were asked to do all they could towards increasing their subscriptions. This was done And some additional subscriptions were received after the meeting had been In progress, so in a short while it was announced that the necessary $100,000 was secured and an organiza tion was entered Into by the election of the following directors, F. S. Evans, W. R.

Cothran, Geo. H. Taylor, K. Baker, B. F.

McKellar, Jr. and J. R. Nleholls. It was voted by the stockholders that the first call for pay ments on subscriptions be made on March the fifteen.

It Is confidently believed that work on the new mill will shortly be under way and the boost that this additional tlg new enterprise will give Green wood will be something large. The effect of Grendel No. 2 is already be ing substantially felt. ABOUT SEABOARD DEPOT. Representatives of the Road, Local Committee and R.

Commission to Meet There will be a meeting here Frl day, March the 4th, of representatives of the S. A. L. Railway, the South Carolina Railroad Commission and the following members of a local commit tee. Mayor K.

Baker, City Engineer Thos. W. Cothran, Messrs. J. K.

Durst, H. h. Watson, F. B. Grler and A.

McD Singleton, president of the Merchants association and also Mr. W. McLure, secretary of the Merchants associa tion. The popular demand for a new pus ener station, strong. The Wis 1ness done here by the Seaboard' war rants It and the present plan' to re model Is a mere makeshift, McLure puts It, and the business peo ple generally are -kicking.

They want a passenger depot that ade qnately represents the town and as the Seaboard does the business here to warrant it, they cannot understand why the officials should be so slow about giving it. The Hospital Association. Th regular monthly meeting of the hospital association was held on Friday afternoon. A large number of la dies were present wnicn is very en couraging and shows that Interest Is being taken in their work. Mrs.

Em-mett Williams, who Is chairman of the committee to collect the subscriptions, gave an excellent report for which the association is very grateful. She reported that nearly all the subscrip tions were collected with very little trouble. Another committee will be appointed and" started to work very soon trying to get those people who, have, not already subscribed to do bo The lot has been entirely paid fort Plans for a building have been placed In the hands of a committee and with the money on hand they hope In a short while to begin building: Cor. Secretary. County Superintendents to Meet Columbia, Feb.

26, State Superintendent of Education Swearingen has issued a call for a meeting of all county "superintendents In this, city on Mareh 8. At this meeting legislative work during the recent session "will be discussed, Including the disposition of the' dispensary money. interesting Letters From AU Sections. DOINGS OF HOME PEOPLE Correspondents Write Entertainingly Aboot the Doings and Happenings of Their Community. Rock Hill votetT last week unanimously for a $400,000 bond issue for sewerage and other Improvements.

The Wutteford Smith library was formerly opened at Wofford college last Thursday with appropriate ceremonies. Rev. Hope H. Lumpkin, Episcopal r. 1Ih 1 call to Grace Episcopal churchm Charleston.

of the new county would, tut Greenwood out, but lost. Capt Waller wasihe first Senator from the new county. He was out of politics two senatorial terms, but last year was reelected for four years more. The G. Now S.

A. L. Jfi 1886, the idea of another big rall-foad to the West was being agitated In the upper part of the State. Chester, Union, Laurens and other counties were interested. Greenwood was alive to the opportunities and many meetings were held at different points In favor of the new road.

Capt, Waller says that his main stay in all these meetings was the late Prof. 3 Boozer who would grow eloquent In picturing the brilliant possibilities of the little town with more railroad. He would not only speak but ho would "write for the papers" and from such agltatfbn much was really accomplished. Abbeville was interested this road and a meeting was called to bo held in Columbia, Capt. Waller got together Prof.

S. P. Boozer, Messrs. W. H.

Bailey, J. T. Simmons and Bennett Reynolds. Judge Benet spoke for Abbeville and his remarks gave the impression that towns all around Greenwood were anxious for the road and wanted to contribute, but Greenwood had offered nothing save hot air, Capt. Waller hurriedly got his faithful fellow townsmen together and when he arose, he had blood on the moon for Abbeville and Benet.

He said, after an introductory, "Greenwood Is willing to give. My friend on my right Is willing to subscribe one thousand dollars. (That was Mr. Bailey). "Will an Abbeville man do as much here and now?" There was no response.

"My friend on my left will put down $500, will an Abbeville man cover It?" There was no, re sponse. I myseir wm put aown $350.00, will no. Abbeville man cover that?" No response. Just at that mo- m. I A n-u meni messrs.

i. oimuioin ouitdcu-net Reynolds entered the ball, arm in arm, and Capt. Waller Says they were as fine a looking palf of men as one could wish to see, inthose days. "My friends yonder will 'put down 250.00 each," and Messrs. Simmons and Reynolds bowed their heads, "will no Abbeville man cover that." It was get- ring painfully embarrassing.

Benet had made a fearful blunder. Some of the Abbeville men came to Capt. Waller and told him to let up, Abbeville would put down at the proper time, thev did not have the authority and could not put it down personally them selves, so much at least He told them that in the old days when a crying baby was brought to church It was either spanked or taken out of meeting. They did no take Judge Benet out and so he must' have a spanking. Finally Gen.

Hoke, of Raleigh, N. C. became interested in the project and through hearty co-Operation of people all along the line the road was built and by 1S91 trains were running from Monroe, N. to Atlanta. Lander College.

Cant. Waller's part in the removal of Lajider, formerly Williamston Female college, to Greenwood ts so recent that it Is well known to all. Is one of the trustees of the college and the main auditorium is named for him. He has always taken a lively Interest tn th school and education life of the town as dldls p-eople before him He gave the towt Its nrst graaea school svstem when ft member of the legislature and was for years a mem ber of the board ol trustees, wi Hf here has been an active on and nothing so occupies his. time and attention as matters for the up-bulld-I.

r.fmvood. His fellow-towns- IUM a men wisn ior nim manj own i usefulness for himself ana ror town. i I owners of nearlyill the houses In the village. When they left, tere were many lots for sale and little money left to pay for them. The loss by the exbaustioji and desolation of war, together with the loss in the money valuation of slavesiid the burden of security and other debts, most of which were for slaves and realty bought at high valuations cast a pall of gloom and discouragement over the stoutest hearts, particularly when the scarcity of provisions, The disorganization of labor, droughts and want of commercial contact with the outer world was contemplated.

Capt. Waller, after a return from South Georgia, Florida, and the West where he had been to gather up the remains of the estates of his father and brothers came to Greenwood in 1867. Capt. Waller, his title to captain resting upon merit, having been pro moted for bravery, served with Unction throughout the whole of the War Between the States. He was a.

captain of the 64th Georgia andWas in command of bis company during the seven last battles of He returned to Greenwood in 1866, finding the community depressed and conditions unfavorable for business enterprises, but he was not despondent and at once entered upon a career that has been restless, almost in its activity for the growth of- Greenwood. His first business venture was the formation of the firm of Walfer, Gail-lard Waller, the other members of the firm being Mr. I. V. Gaillard and Mr.

Cadmus G. Waller. The next year Mr. Galllard's interest was bought out arid the firm became Waller Bros Capt. Waller's firm was the first to buy a car of South Carolina ferti lizer here.

Capt. Waller's determination to pre serve the original plan of a square or plaza effect for the town was formed then, being instigated by Dr. E. Calhoun and he held to it for years 'Until it was an assured fact. He op posed All fettempta.io build houses or stores backing on railroad tracks to destroy the square and made some enemies, but the town at large Is the better for it.

He saw early In the beginning of his career as a raer chant that the town was handicapped by bad public roads, shut in by big hills and that the thing to do was to open up the public roads and open new streets. This he proceeded to do and It was by analogy that this view of the town's needs should be extended to the bigger field of railroads. In 1872, Capt. Waller was elected In-tendant of the town. Those were troublous times then.

There were two or three negroes on the. council, it was Radical Rule everywhere then, and it took tact and grit to. manage a town council with a colored majority on one's hands. In 1872, the town got a new charter, through the efforts of the new intendant. At that time the council consisted of W.C.

Blake, a Mr. Roland and Robert Griffin, colored, and another colored member. 1 The C. W. f.

Road-Freight rates are unimportant things to the average person, but to a- business man they are everything. It was a little matter of discrimination that finally lead to the formation of the Charleston Western Carolisa railroad. Dr. E. R.

Calhoun and Capt. C. A C. Waller and other merchants began to Investigate and found out that Ninety Six had a far better ratef than Greeinwood. For instance they, found out that cotton could be from Ninety Six to Charleston for fifty cents the bale cheaper than It could be from Greenwood.

A protest was made at once to the officials of the road, but to no purpose, and then began the campaign, at the. time based on nothing save the imagination of a few men here, for a new railroad. At first it was sought to build a railroad froto Capt. Creswell A. C.

Waller, a son of Albert and J. Elizabeth Creswell Waller, was born In Greenwood, South Carolina, of parents who were natives of Abbeville district. Albert Waller's father and his grandfather, the Rev. John Waller, were natives of Spotsylvania Virginia. The Rev.

John's father was not only a member of the House of Burgesses of Virginia, but he was also the first clerk of Spotsylvania county which office was In the hands of one of the family for 63 years from 1721. In the published abridgement ofthe records of that county will be found evidences of the fact that the Wallers were descendants of Sir William Waller and through him, but also of Alfred de Waler who came over to England from -the continent In the cabinet or wlttenagamote of William the Conqueror, J. Elizabeth Creswell was on her grandmother Creswell's side, a direct descendant from Joseph Ball, the grandfather of George Washingibn from other ancestors she was Scotch Irish. One of them being the Hon. John Hunter, member of the United States Senate 1796-'98, also a brother of Henry ('APT.

CRESWELL A. C. WALLER. Hunter of the French Spoliation claims. Albert purchased in August, 1834, the spot where Mrs.

A. C. Durst now resides, from two Blakes whose titles bear the date of 1816. He did this for the health of his family as well as for educational, purposes. Nine of his children were partially educated in the village of Greenwood.

The first school house within the present limits of Greenwood was erected by Col. Dick Griffin then living at what Is known as the Francis Arnold place. This house was afterwards a part of the Pelot homestead. The Greenwood Educational association was chartered In 1835 and thus became one of the three educational Institutions of the State exclusive of South Carolina college. After about ten years the Baptists and Methodists withdrew from it and built two nice brick school houses and the old chapel was enlarged by addition of two wings and other improvements.

Greenwood with four schools, two male and two female, became quite an educational center, having had several distinguished teachers and scholars to abide here for a time. At the death of Albert Waller, the brick houses, which were the first erected in the village, became a part of his estate and by consent of the family at a nominal figure religious and education edifices for a few years. C. A. C.

Waller never received a dollar for his part of the buildings and grounds. After the war, he, with i Bailey; Parks and others, brought, harmony again to the front by raising a fund and employing teachers from each de nomination. Harmony has existed ever since. During the war refugees from Charleston and. ether pojnta became I I mm I i i.