Nobles County MN Archives History - Books .....Chapter XII Worthington - 1871-1872 1908
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Book Title: An Illustrated History Of Nobles County

CHAPTER XII.

WORTHINGTON-1871-1872.



  Worthington, the capital of Nobles county, is the oldest and largest town in

the county. It is located on the east shore of lake Okabena, and its elevation

above sea level is 1,593 feet. [1] It is in the eastern part of the county, the

business center of the town being 16 miles from the county's northern boundary,

eight miles from the southern, seven and one-quarter from the eastern and

twenty-two and three-quarters from the western. Otherwise described, it is 178

miles southwest of St. Paul, the state capital, and is located on three lines of

railroad—the Chicago; St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha, the Worthington & Sioux

Palls, and the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific.



  The population, according to the last census,—that of 1905—-was 2,276. There

has been an increase since that date, and there are now about 2,500 people

residing in the village. It is one of the most progressive and prosperous^ towns

in southwestern Minnesota. All lines of business that are to be found in the

prairie communities of the Mississippi valley are represented. It is noted for

its schools, churches and social organizations, and in this respect it is the

peer of any town of its size in the state. It is the kind of town in which one

prefers to live.



  The location of Worthington, considered in its natural state, is one of

unusual beauty, and with the embellishments that have been added by the hands of

its residents, it stands at the present time as one of the prettiest little

cities of a state distinguished for its pretty towns. Especially is one charmed

with its loveliness in the summer season. Then the broad avenues and parks are

clothed in emerald foliage. Trees are everywhere. Due to the foresight of the

town's founders, the spot which was once barren prairie is now a bower of

beauty. Picturesque lake Okabena, upon the shores of which the city is builded,

is another beauty spot that adds charm to the location.



  One can hardly realize that less than half a century ago this spot was an

uncharted wilderness; yet such is the case. Time was when the dusky red men

pitched his tepee where now our churches are located; vast herds of bison moved

about lake Okabena and made their wallows where now our courts are held; timid

deer browsed where now the student studies his natural  history; elk in

countless numbers roamed the adjacent prairie and saw their antlers reflected in

the clear waters of Okabena as they bent down to drink.



  The first white men to set foot on the site of the town, so far as shown by

any records I am able to find, was the party of explorers under Joseph Nicholas

Nicollet, mention of whose explorations has been made in a previous chapter. On

the map which he issued in 1842 "Okebene" lake is accurately located, showing

that in the late thirties or very early forties the site of the town had been

visited by white men. Between that time and the date of the permanent settlement

of the country the site was visited infrequently by explorerers, military

parties, scouts, and trappers. The latter were the more frequent visitors.

During the late fifties and early sixties the country a short distance to the

east and south was settled, to a very limited extent, by trappers. The abundance

of game which overran the region drew hunters and trappers regularly to its

lakes. The Okabenas were on the itinerary of these nomadic frontiersmen, and the

site of. Worthington was visited occasionally by these men long before there was

any thought of a town there. Their permanent abiding places were further to the

east in Minnesota or in the settled portion of northern Iowa, about Spirit Lake,

and until the late sixties none claimed even a-temporary home within the limits

of what is now Worthington.



  It was in the month of September, 1868, that the first building was erected on

land which is now within the corporate limits of the town. On the 24th of that

month, there came to the Okabena Lake country, from Blue Earth, three

trappers-W. A. Dillman [2] Frank Fortner and John Wilson. They erected a

combination sod and log shanty on the east shore of East Okabena lake. Fortner

remained only two days, Wilson a month, but Mr. Dillman occupied the shanty and

engaged in trapping until Christmas, and became Worthington's first citizen. [3]



  Although over 100 people became settlers of Nobles county during the years

1867 to 1870, inclusive, on the site of the future village of Worthington not

one established his permanent home. During the winter of 1870-1871 G. J. Hoffman

engaged in trapping on lake Okabena and succeeded in taking $600 worth of furs.

He spent the winter in a dug-out on the south shore of the lake, a few paces to

the west of what is known as the "swimming hole." In the spring of 1871 he

walked to Osage, Iowa, and back again, carrying on his return trip a bundle of

willow cuttings- the start of the now famous Ludlow grove. That summer Mr.

Hoffman went to St. James, bought a small house there, and hauled it down to the

future city of Worthington on wagons. That house constitutes a part of what has

been the Ludlow home up to the present year. It was the first building of wood

within the corporate limits of the town. Mr. Hoffman's family, consisting of a

wife and two children, came to the new home as soon as the building was ready

for occupancy, and was Worthington's first family.



  Although both the Dillman shanty and Mr. Hoffman's house were within what is

now the corporate limits of Worthington, they were located outside the present

platted portion of the town, and the construction of those buildings had nothing

to do with the founding of the village.



  Worthington came into existence as the result of the building of the Sioux

City & St. Paul railroad. [4] The permanent survey was made early in 1871.

Immediately thereafter graders and bridge builders were put to work, and before

the winter set in the grading was completed to LeMars, Iowa, and the track was

laid as far as the present town of Worthington. During the time grading was in

progress one of the camps was located at the point where the village afterwards

made its appearance. The contractors erected a shanty just across the track from

the present location of the freight depot, which was used as a boarding house

for the graders. Immediately after the grading was completed the shanty was torn

down. It was early the intention of the railroad company to locate a station and

build a town on land at or near the point where the road passed Okabena lake.

The site first selected was on the south side of the lake, where Mr. G. J.

Hoffman had taken his claim. That gentleman refused to sell his property to the

railroad company for what the company considered a reasonable figure, and that

site was abandoned. [5]



  The railroad company, of which E. F. Drake was president and guiding spirit,

then selected the site at the east end of the lake and made the survey. Although

the original townsite was surveyed in the summer of 1871, the plat was not put

on record until the following year. The original plat extended from Eighth

street to Fourteenth street, and from the railroad track (along which ran First

avenue) to Eighth avenue. Blocks two to 25, inclusive, were surveyed by Alex L.

Beach, and blocks 26 to 45, inclusive, by T. P. Gere. The Gere certificate of

survey was dated May 22, 1872. The dedication was in the following words:



  The Sioux City and Saint Paul Rail Road company by Elias F. Drake, its

president, and the said Elias F. Drake, on behalf of himself [6], proprietors,

hereby acknowledge that so much of the plat of the town or village of

Worthington, as is shown hereon has been made by said proprietors and is

acknowledged and filed in accordance with the requirements of "an act providing

for the record, of town plats" now in force. The streets and alleys indicated on

said plat are dedicated to the use of the public for streets and alleys only and

in case of the vacation of any such streets or alleys by any competent

authority, the reversion and title in fee of such vacated streets or alleys is

hereby expressly reserved and declared to be in said proprietors, and the fee of

any part of any street or alley is declared not to be included in or as part of

any lot herein.



                                ELIAS F. DRAKE, Prest.

                                ELIAS F. DRAKE.



  The acknowledgement was made June 24, 1872, before G. A. Hamilton, a notary

public of Ramsey county. The instrument was filed in the office of the register

of deeds of Nobles county June 27, 1872, by Selim Fox, register, per John H.

Cunningham, deputy. [7]



  Before the lots were placed on the market, before a building was erected on

the townsite, an event occurred which vitally affected the history of the

town-to-be. This was the formation of the National colony and the assumption by

it of the control of affairs in Nobles county. It is not necessary here to

repeat the story of that organization, which has been told in a preceding

chapter. With the purchase and subsequent manipulation of the railroad lands by

the company, arose the necessity for a town in the new country to be used as its

headquarters-a town builded in accordance with the temperance beliefs of its

founders, who had extensively advertised that the community to which they were

to bring emigrants should be moral and temperate. Prof. R. F. Humiston and Dr.

A. P. Miller, who were the leading spirits of the colony company, at once

assumed the duties of founding the town, and late in the summer of 1871 they

paid a visit to the site. The land upon which the town was built a few months

later did not then have a sign of habitation on it, nor had it yet been

definitely named.



  The party consisted of Professor Humiston, Dr. Miller, Mrs. Miller and Captain

Aiken Miner, who made the trip by team from Jackson. They came to view the lake

and the site of their future labors. As they stood on the shore of the lake they

viewed the country as it had been since time begun; the hand of man had not

changed the work of nature. [8] The two promoters made the trip around the west

lake on foot on an exploring expedition. At the inlet at the west end of the

lake they constructed a raft and floated across the stream. It was nearly

nightfall when they finished surrounding the lake, and the party then went to

Graham lakes, fifteen miles away, to spend the night. Shelter was secured in the

log hut of H. C. Hallett, who "kept tavern" and was the postmaster.



  During the time the railroad was being graded through southwestern Minnesota

the site where afterwards the town of Worthington was built was known as

Okabena. When the colony company became interested, and. before the town was

founded, the name was changed to Worthington, which was the name of Mrs. Mary

Dorman Miller's (wife of Dr. A. P. Miller) mother before her marriage. The name

was suggested by Prof. Humiston. [9] The Worthington family was a prominent one

in Ohio. Among its members were Thomas Worthington, once governor of the state,

for whom the town of his name in Franklin county was named; and General J. T.

Worthington. [10] Not alone is the name distinguished for its Ohio connections.

It is one of the oldest in America. From a member of the Worthington family [11]

it is learned that the name can be traced back of the time of the Norman

conquest in England. It is a Saxon name and originated before the time of

William the Conqueror. The Saxons bearing the name lived in Derby, and there was

a town of the same name. Some member of the family came to America on the

Mayflower, and the American branch is founded from that ancestor.



  The name was not entirely satisfactory, and several times in the early days

suggestions were made that a change be made, but no action to that end was ever

taken. Many regretted that the Indian name "Okabena" was not given. [12]



  So soon as it was definitely settled that the colony company was to build a

town on Okabena lake preparations were begun to start the town. Before winter

set in quite a little town, had made its appearance on the spot where late in

the summer there was not a sign of habitation. Construction on the first

building was begun on Sunday, the first day of September, probably only a few

days after the Miller-Humiston party had visited the site. It was a frame

business house erected by H. W. Kimball for a hardware store. A detailed, and

apparently authentic, account of the building of this first structure is

furnished by a letter written by S. C. Thayer, the carpenter who did the work on

the building, and it is here reproduced. The letter was dated Liberal, Mo., Jan.

6, 1885:



  The first nail was driven with the following ceremonies:



  First I go back a little that you may understand it. At that time (August to

September, 1871) I was living on a claim in Jackson county and had been living

in Jackson. Had done some work for one, W. S. Kimball, of that place. At this

time said Kimball had a nephew come from Illinois, who was to start a kind of

branch hardware store at Worthington, which at this time was an uninhabited

prairie, not a stick or house within some, distance, the railroad not yet

completed to Worthington.



  So, on Saturday afternoon, Aug. 31, 1871, said nephew (Herb Kimball) came to

my claim "shanty" with a span of horses and wagon loaded with lumber for the

commencement of his new hardware store at Worthington. He had with him a

carpenter from Jackson by the name of Stephen Ford, who was to assist me in the

erection of the building. As it was getting late in the afternoon and I had some

arrangements to make in order to leave my wife and one child comfortable, I

prevailed on the "ship's crew" to stay with me over night, and take a fresh

start on Sunday morning, which was done.



  On Sunday morning all was ready, and we set out for our long journey (some

thirty miles or more) across the wild prairie, with shot guns, carpenter tools,

lumber, wagons and horses, with plenty of the necessaries of life for a week or

two. On we went. Noon came, and yet we were on wild prairie. Stopped and fed,

took a lunch, and we went toward the New Jerusalem. On, on, on until about five

or half past we passed a kind of swamp lake, and a beautiful southern slope of

another little sheet of water, and very close to it we stopped. It was a most

beautiful evening and also a beautiful spot of ground. Nothing to be seen except

land and water.



  Then arose the question in what manner we could best fit up our temporary

quarters until we could get our building enclosed, or partly so, I suggested the

wedge shaped shanty with ridge pole, which was adopted. Now for a couple of

stakes to rest our ridge pole on, but lo! we were not in a timbered country. So

we took a piece of 2x4x14 and cut it in two, sharpened the ends of each, drove

them into the ground. Then for the ridge pole took another of the 2x4. Here it

was found that it would take a 20d spike to fasten the ridge to the poles of our

building. So out of the wagon was rolled a keg of spikes, and Mr. Kimball

suggested that, inasmuch as I was a carpenter, I had better do the nailing. I

took the hammer and nail and stepped upon the keg, which had been placed at the

foot of the post, it being a little too high to reach. At this moment it

occurred to me that I was to be the man to drive the first nail in the (what was

to be) city of Worthington. So with these remarks I "sent the nail home" that

fastened the ends of the two first pieces of wood together in your city:



  "Be it recorded and by these witnesses (H. Kimball and S. Ford) remembered

that I, Solon Cassius Thayer, who was born in Bloomfield, Ohio, on the 21st day

of August, 1843, now a carpenter and joiner, and having no faith whatever in the

popular Christian religion, Gods or devils, but do believe in doing justice at

all times and in all places, and for the purpose of the upbuilding of a little

city that may bud and blossom for the good of its inhabitants, do on this

beautiful Sunday evening, the first day of September, 1871, drive the first nail

that shall fasten the ends of two pieces of wood together for the protection of

its inhabitants from the weather." [13]



  Off and up went the three hats and cheers for the city of Worthington.



  On the next morning we went at the framework of the new store, while Mr.

Kimball went to Heron Lake for more lumber. About the time we got our frame up

the lumber was on the ground for a large hotel and so on, and by the time we had

ours done there was quite a village. [14]



  The site of this first building was on Tenth street, where Devaney's billiard

hall is now located. As stated by Mr. Thayer, that fall there were a number of

others who came, erected buildings, and added to the population of the town. The

railroad was not yet completed to Worthington, and the material for all the

buildings erected in the fall of 1871 was hauled from Heron Lake, then the

terminus (temporarily) of the road. The building that fall was nearly all done

in October and November. Nearly all the buildings were under way at the same

time, and it is impossible to give the order in which they were completed.



  One of the first buildings started and completed was a store building put up

at the corner of Tenth street and Third avenue by L. F. McLaurin, [15] who

opened a general stock of goods, including dry goods, groceries, etc. A man by

the name of Leslie erected a little building on Ninth street, between Third and

Fourth avenues, [16] where he opened a store and sold whiskey as a side line.

Henry Davis & Brother opened a general store in a tent, carrying tobacco, shoes,

shirts and other articles, which found a ready market among the graders who were

then at work there. This temporary affair was discarded that fall, when Henry

Davis erected a one and one-half story building on Tenth street. [17] Although

their stock had to be hauled in on wagons from Heron Lake, three lumber yards

were opened that fall. One of these was in charge of I. N. Sater; another was

owned by Crocker Bros. & Lamoraux, with a man by the name of Folsom in charge;

the third was owned by Henry Young & Co., of which Levi Shell was the manager. [18]



  The most pretentious building erected in Worthington in 1871 was the

Worthington hotel. Excavation work was begun in October, the building was

completed that fall, and was opened during the winter. It was erected jointly by

the railroad company and the National colony, and its management was vested in

the latter. The cost is said to have been about $30,000. It was three stories

high and was, practically, the front half of the present day Worthington hotel.

Wm. B. Moore was the first manager. [19]



  The postoffice was established in December, 1871, and H. W. Kimball, the

hardware merchant, was appointed postmaster. Regular trains were not then

running to Worthington, the mail being brought in by stage by "Stormy Jack"

Grier, over the route from Jackson to Luverne. [20]



  Times were lively in the little village during the building days in the fall

of 1871. When cold weather set in some of those who were not in business left

the town to spend the winter in their old homes, and times were dull during the

cold weather season. A man who visited the town in January, 1872, said of the

conditions at that time:



  "I counted thirteen buildings all told and was informed that there were

thirteen inhabitants at that time. It was one of the 'snow winters,' and drifts

were piled all around the houses. I think there were seven snow steps leading

down to the depot platform. There was in the hotel one newspaper and a lot of

greasy pieces of pasteboard with heart shaped devices on them and other devices.

Several men boarders were waiting for spring to open."



  Almost all the inhabitants were men [21] who had established business

enterprises and could not leave them. They amused themselves with the newspaper,

the heart shaped devices, and practical jokes. About twenty men resided in the

town during the whole winter. Among these was a "mess" of five-E. R. Humiston,

A. P. Chamberlain, C. C. Goodnow, J. C. Goodnow and Jerry Haines-who,

soldier-like, went into barracks in a boarding house near the railroad and

boarded themselves. Besides those in the village proper were G. J. Hoffman, who

spent the winter on his, claim on the south side of the lake; Wm. F. Hibbard,

who wintered in a small house on the east lake; and Jerome Stewart, a blind man,

who lived in a shanty just across the track from the town.



  While times were dull during the winter it was known that with the opening of

spring Worthington would be one of the liveliest towns on the frontier.

Assurances were received from the colony managers that hundreds would pour into

the country in the early spring. Some of the colony immigrants arrived before

spring set in, and even during the month of January quite a few came and took up

their residence in Worthington in order to be in on the ground floor. Among

these 'were some of the best known citizens of Worthington today. The people who

were looking for the big rush were not disappointed. The first regular passenger

train ran into Worthington April 29, 1872, bringing with it many settlers, and

thereafter each day the train was filled with families who came to find homes in

the new country. Mrs. Clark, who was among the advance guard of the colony, has

written of the conditions in Worthington as she found them:



  "We were among the first members of a colony to arrive at the station of an

unfinished railroad, which was to be the nucleus of the colony and the county

seat of the county. There was a good hotel, well and comfortably furnished, one

or two stories neatly furnished and already stocked with goods, several others

in process of erection. A few rough board tenements, temporary shelters, to

serve the occupants until better houses could be built. The streets, scarcely to

be defined as such, were full of prairie schooners, containing families, waiting

until the masters could suit themselves with 'claims,' the women pursuing their

house-wifely avocations meanwhile-some having cooking stoves in their wagons,

others using gypsy fires to do their culinary work; all seeming happy and hopeful."



  Freeman Talbott, in a letter written July 20, 1886, tells of the impressions

he received of the new town during the rush time in the spring of 1872:



  "Fourteen years ago last May I made my first visit to Nobles county,

intending, if the surroundings suited me, to make Worthington my future home.

Quite a number of the first settlers had arrived. Some were living in

comfortable houses, some in rough board shanties, 12x14, others in tents, and

still others on the bleak prairie, about to select the site of future

independence on or near the banks of the beautiful lake Okabena."



  The arrival of the colonists had a magical effect upon the village, and new

business enterprises sprang into existence. On the last day of August, 1872,

there were 85 buildings on the town-site, where a year before the plat had been

located. Of these nearly all were permanent and much more substantial than is

usually the case during the rush of starting a new town. A list of the business

houses in Worthington on that date is furnished by a directory published in the

first issue of the Western Advance. Certainly an excellent showing had been made

in one year: 



HOTELS.

  A. P. Lyon, Worthington Hotel. 

  C. B. Loveless.



DRY GOODS AND GROCERIES.

  Peter Thompson, Ninth street. 

  L. F. McLaurin, Tenth street, corner Third avenue. 

  Davis & Brother, next door to postoffice. 

  Davis & Morrison, "Colony Store."



HARDWARE. 

  C. P. Hewett & Co., opposite the park.

  H. W. Kimball, near Worthington hotel. 

  H. D. Humiston, "Colony Store."



LUMBER. 

  I. N.  Sater, with Harrison's. 

  J. A. Town, with Crocker Bros.  & Lamoraux.



DRUGGISTS. 

  A. K. Veitz, opposite Worthington hotel. 

  Barber & Lawrence, opposite park.



FURNITURE.

  Heilburn & Pratt, Tenth street, opposite the park.



GROCERIES.

  S. D. Sprague, Ninth street, opposite park.

  P. B.  Crosby.



FLOUR AND FEED.

  S. F. Shepard, Third avenue,

  Peter Thompson, Ninth street.



BAKERY.

  Hugh & Dorman, Ninth street, opposite park.



RESTAURANTS.

  Fred Hascall, Tenth street, near the post-office.

  C. P. Stough, Ninth street.

  Hugh & Dorman, Ninth street.



LIVERY.

  Daniel Shell, Tenth street.



MEAT MARKET.

Bigelow & Co., Third avenue.



ATTORNEYS.

  M. B. Soule, Third avenue, opposite park.

  J. S. Shuck, Tenth street, opposite park.



PHYSICIANS.

Geo. O. Moore, corner Fifth avenue and Tenth street.

  J. Craft.

  R. D. Barber, Tenth street, at drug store.



NOTARIES PUBLIC.

  C. C. Goodnow, postoffice.

  M. B. Soule, Third avenue, opposite park.



COLONY COMPANY.

  Miller, Humiston & Co.



LAND AGENTS.

  A. Miner, at postoffice.

  C. C. Goodnow, at postoffice.

  Soule & Langdon, Third avenue, opposite park.



PAINTERS.

  L. F. Margrat and -. -. Shaw.



NEWSPAPER.

  Western Advance.



HARNESS MAKER.

  C.  L. Johnson, Ninth street, opposite park.



BLACKSMITHS.

  C. B. Loveless, Eleventh street.

  W. Hodgkinson, Eleventh street.



SHOEMAKERS.

  C. Moore, Eleventh street.

  J. S. Stone, Fourth avenue.



PRINTING.

  Advance Printing Co.



  The improvements for the year footed up to $80,550. Included in this amount

was the public hall building, known as Miller hall, which was erected by the

colony company at a cost of about $7,000. The building was 48x80 feet, was two

stories high, and had three large store rooms below. For several years the hall

served the purposes of church building, lodge rooms, school room, and was the

place of all social gatherings. It was destroyed by fire in 1878. The town was

extensively advertised, and during 1872 gained the reputation of being one of

the best towns in southern Minnesota. [22]



  One of the events of the year was the organization of Worthington township. A

petition was filed on March 30, asking the board of county commissioners to take

action toward bringing about the organization, and on April 30 the petition was

granted. On May 20 the first town meeting was held, and the village was under

township government for the first time.



  The temperance question was a very live issue in Worthington during the first

year of its existence. One of the first things determined on by the founders of

the National colony was that the colony should be a moral community, and to

secure this end it was decided to exclude the liquor traffic from the town and

country over which it had jurisdiction. This fact was emphasized in all the

advertising, and the result was that" the majority of the first settlers were

temperance people, who had been drawn to the colony largely by the promises

made. A large sum of money was set aside by Prof. Humiston and his associates to

prosecute liquor dealers should the traffic be started in the new town. A large

part of this fund was expended during the year 1872 in bringing actions against

three men who made attempts to establish liquor saloons in Worthington. The

saloons were promptly closed, and thereafter for many years there was no liquor

sold in the village.



  The village government had not been organized in 1872, and license legislation

was enacted by the board of county commissioners. To that body the people of

Worthington went with their request that no saloons be licensed in Worthington

township. A petition was circulated August 30, and was worded as follows:



To the Honorable Board of County Commissioners of Nobles County, State of
Minnesota:



  We, the undersigned, citizens of the town of Worthington, in said county,

respectfully represent that we believe that a. majority of our citizens within

our said township are opposed to the granting of license for the sale of any

kind of intoxicating liquors-either spiritous, vinus or malt-in our said town as

a beverage. And whereas the statute authorizing towns to vote on the question of

license provides that such vote shall be taken at a general election. And

whereas the next general election at which such vote can be taken will not be

holden until November 5.



  We therefore petition your honorable board that they rescind the vote of the

former board of commisisoners so far as it affects the said town of Worthington,

and that your honorable board refuse to grant licenses for the sale as a

beverage of any kind of intoxicating liquors within the limits, of our said town

of Worthington until after the next general election.



  Dated this 30th day of August, A. D., 1872 [23]



  Attached to the petition was a memorandum as follows: "Will Mr. Miller [county

commissioner] please present this petition? Many more names could have been

secured if there had been time to circulate it throughout the township. The wish

is almost universal that no license should be granted. I have asked but five to

sign it who have refused.-R. F. H."



  At the same time the ladies of the village presented a petition of similar

import [24] with the following attached memorandum, evidently made by Prof.

Humiston: "These are all from the village of Worthington, and there are other

ladies who would have signed the petition, but they were absent from home. Only

two have declined to sign and they on account of their husbands.-R. F. H."



  This overwhelming sentiment on the part of the people of the village and

township was not disregarded by the commissioners, and at a meeting held

September 3 they resolved "that no license for the sale of spiritous, vinus or

malt liquors be granted to any person in the township of Worthington before the

next general election." At the election in November only four votes were cast in

favor of the licensing of saloons. The promises of the colony managers to

provide a temperance town had been fulfilled.


ENDNOTES


   [1] This is the elevation as given by the C. St. P. M. & O. Ry. The 
elevation as given by the B. C. R. & N. engineers is 1,585 feet. At the 
point of crossing of the two roads it is 1,573 feet.

   [2] Still a resident of Worthington.

   [3] more detailed account of this event is to be found in chapter 2.

   [4] Now the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha.

   [5] Worthington Advance, Nov. 29, 1883.

   [6] The railroad company was the owner of the greater part of the 
original platted town-site (on section 23), which it had acquired 
through the land grant. A small three cornered piece of the original 
plat (on the southwest quarter of section 24) was the property of Mr. 
Drake, personally, he having come into possession of it by purchase. 
The quarter had been filed on by Geo. E. Stewart on Dec. 16, 1871, and 
that gentleman had secured the patent from the government on May 20, 
1874. The property was deeded to Mr. Drake the same day the filing was 
made.

  Clary's addition, which, however, was not platted until later, 
comprises parts of the northwest quarter of section 24. The east half 
of that quarter was filed on June 1, 1872, by Elias D. South. The west 
half was filed on May 27, 1872, by Veeder J. South.

   [7] Additions to this original townsite have been platted as 
follows:

  Park-Surveyed by O. D. Brown June 12, 1876; dedicated by the S. C. & 
St. P. R. R. Co., by E. F. Drake, president, and G. A. Hamilton, 
assistant secretary, Sept. 29, 1876; filed Oct. 4, 1876.

   Second-Surveyed by John O. Brunius; dedicated by the S. C. & St. P. 
R. R. Co., by E. F. Drake, president, and G. A. Hamilton, secretary, 
Nov. 1, 1879; filed July 8, 1880.

   Anderson's-Surveyed by T. Linus Blank Oct., 1882; dedicated by Henry 
H. Anderson Oct. 25, 1882; filed Oct. 26, 1882.

   Clary's-Surveyed by F. L. Diserens October, 1882; dedicated by 
Timothy F. Clary and Eliza F. Clary Dec. 2, 1882; filed Dec. 12, 1882.

   Subdivision of Blocks 20, 21 and 22-Surveyed by Orrin Nason; 
dedicated by the S. C. & St. P. R. R. Co., by Elias F. Drake, 
president, and G. A. Hamilton, secretary, Aug. 24, 1883; filed Sept 7, 
1883.

   Drake's-Surveyed by Wm. A. Peterson; dedicated by Elias F. Drake 
Feb. 11, 1884; filed Feb. 20, 1884.

   Anderson's Subdivision of Blocks 1 and 6 of Clary's addition-
Surveyed by L. L. Palmer; dedicated by Daniel Shell, Henry H. Anderson 
and Otis Bigelow April 23, 1884; filed April 23, 1884.

   Smith & Shell's-Surveyed by L. L. Palmer; dedicated by C. H. Smith 
and Daniel Shell June l, 1887; filed June 1, 1887; corrected plat filed 
June 29, 1895.

   Moulton's Resurvey and Subdivision of Clary's Addition-Surveyed by 
Myron Shepard July, 1887; dedicated by Minnesota Loan & Investment Co., 
by Geo. D. Dayton, president, and Geo. O. Moore, secretary, Aug. 24, 
1887; filed Aug. 25, 1887.

   Lots A, B, D and E of Block 8-Surveyed by W. D. Smith; dedicated by 
Minnesota Loan & Investment Co. (by Geo. D. Dayton, president, and Geo. 
O. Moore, secretary), R. F. Baker, L. Singer, W. S. Lewis and J. H. 
Johnson Dec. 19, 1887; filed May 9, 1888.

   McLean's Subdivision of Block 49 and Part of 50, Second Addition-
Surveyed by M. S. Smith; dedicated by Wm. McLean March 16, 1892; filed 
March 18, 1892.

   Okabena-Surveyed by M. S. Smith; dedicated by Benjamin F. Johnson, 
C. H. Alford, Adelia A. Prince, Alex Sterling, Gilbert Anderson and Wm. 
McLean Aug. 30, 1892; filed" Oct. 7, 1892.

   East-Surveyed by M. S. Smith; dedicated by H. T. Drake, A. M. Drake 
and W. H. Lightner, executors of the will of E. F. Drake, deceased, 
Oct. 16, 1894; filed Oct. 22, 1894.

   Nobles Street Crossing and Subdivision of Block 3 of East Addition-
Surveyed by M. S. Smith; dedicated by H. T. Drake, A. M. Drake and Wm. 
H. Lightner, executors of will of E. F. Drake, deceased, Sept. 17, 
1895; filed Sept. 28, 1895.

   Southwest quarter of section 24, Worthington township, embracing all 
lands in that quarter not already platted, including several additions 
and plats. Amended plat filed Sept. 28 1895. Smith & Shell's Division 
of Block A, of Meander Lot 1, in Section 25, Worthington Township-
Surveyed by M. S. Smith May 13. 1894; dedicated by C. H. Smith and 
Daniel Shell July 6, 1895; filed Nov. 13, 1895.

   Hansberger's Subdivision of Block 39-Surveyed by M. S. Smith March, 
1896, by order of county auditor for W. I. & F. L. Humiston, Jas. S. 
Ramage, Susan Ditty, U. F. Hansberger and Minnesota Loan & Investment 
Co.; filed Aug. 5, 1897.

   Shell's Subdivision of the Southeast 48 feet of Hotel Lot, Block 1-
Surveyed by M. S. Smith; dedicated by Daniel Shell Dec. 30, 1899; filed 
Dec. 30, 1899.

   Kraft's Subdivision of Block 11, Clary's Addition-Surveyed by M. S. 
Smith Feb. 13, 1900; dedicated by Geo. Miller, Samuel N. Rose and John 
G. Kraft May 18, 1900; filed June 5, 1900.

   Barnes' Subdivision of Lots 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, Block 50, Second 
Addition-Surveyed by M. S. Smith April 21, 1900; dedicated by Nathan 
Barries, Carl A. Anderson and Wm. McLean June 27, 1900; filed July 26, 
1900.

   Shell's Rearrangement of Lot 26, Block 1, of Anderson's Subdivision 
of Block 1, of Clary's Addition-Surveyed by M. S. Smith July 20 and 21, 
1900; dedicated by Daniel Shell July 23, 1900; filed Aug. 16, 1900.

   Paulson's-Surveyed by M. S. Smith; dedicated by Anna B. Paulson, S. 
A. Paulson, Mary Wass and J. E. Darling April 27, 1901; filed April 30, 
1901.

   Clifton-Surveyed by M. S. Smith; dedicated by Minnesota Loan & 
Investment Co., by Geo. D. Dayton, president, June 27, 1901; filed July 
17, 1901.

   Scott's Subdivision of East Half of Block 3, Clary's Addition-
Surveyed by M. S. Smith; dedicated by Minnesota Loan & Investment Co., 
by Geo. D. Dayton, president, Aug. 9, 1901; filed Sept. 9, 1901.

   Clement's-Surveyed by M. S. Smith; dedicated by Walter L. Clement, 
Sept. 30, 1901; filed Oct. 14, 1901.

   Ramage's Subdivision of Lots and Alleys in Blocks .3 and 7-Surveyed 
by M. S. Smith; dedicated by Jas. S. Ramage Dec. 6, 1901; filed Dec. 
26, 1901.

   Clement's Subdivision of Block 55, of the Second Addition-Surveyed 
by M. S. Smith; dedicated by Walter L. Clement Sept. 30, 1901; filed 
April 16, 1902.

   Block 1, North Worthington-Surveyed by M. S. Smith; dedicated by L. 
M. Bliss May 31, 1902; filed June 4, 1902.

   Albinson & Boberg's Subdivision of Lots in Block 52, Second 
Addition-Surveyed by M. S. Smith; dedicated by John A. Albinson and 
John A. Boberg June 4, 1902; filed June 11, 1902.

   McLean's Subdivision of Block 47 Second Addition-Surveyed by M. S. 
Smith; dedicated by Wm. McLean June 2, 1902; filed July 12, 1902.

   [8] In the early autumn of 1871, in company with Professor Humiston 
and my husband, I stood on the shore of lake Okabena, looking westward 
at the unaccustomed spectacle of the sunset on the prairie and its 
glorified reflection in the water below. There was not a house then 
where Worthington now stands, and the professor, with his accustomed 
gallantry, jocosely invited me to baptise the new townsite with the 
crystal water sparkling at my feet. But with what I now see to have 
been an excess of modesty, I declined." -Extract from letter written by 
Mary Dorman Miller, dated New York, Dec. 11, 1888.

   [9] Although I have a mass of data concerning the naming of 
Worthington, including letters written by everyone connected with the 
naming, I have been unable to learn the exact date the name was 
conferred. Prof. Humiston, Mrs. Miller and Mr. E. F. Drake have written 
detailed accounts of the event, but not one has mentioned the time the 
christening was made.

   [10] Correspondence in 1888 between Prof. R. F. Humiston, E. F. 
Drake, Mrs. Mary Dorman Miller and A. P. Miller of the Advance, has 
brought forth many incidents connected with the naming of the town. A 
St. Paul paper made the statement that the Minnesota town was named in 
honor of the Worthington family, of Toledo, Ohio. To this the 
Worthington Advance took exception, declaring that it was in honor of 
that branch of the family residing at Chillicothe, Ohio. Mr. Drake 
defended the statement of the St. Paul paper and erroneously declared 
that the name was given in honor of Prof. Humiston's wife's family, who 
lived at Toledo. Again the Advance corrected the statement of Mr. 
Drake. The latter then appealed to Prof. Humiston for a statement 
concerning the naming of the town. Prof. Humiston, in a letter dated 
Boston, Oct. 13, 1888, wrote:

   "Dr. Miller, my partner, wanted to name the town 'Dorman.' after 
Mary Dorman, his wife. You [Drake] and the railroad directors objected, 
saying that 'Dorman is a sleepy. dull, uneuphonius name.' and asked me 
to select something else. Wanting to please Dr. Miller, I concluded 
that if I could not give the town Mary Dorman's father's name, I would 
give it her mother's maiden name, which was Worthington, her father 
being the brother of Gov. Worthington. I believe, and General 
Worthington of Chillicothe, being her first cousin. When I suggested 
the name of Worthington, it was satisfactory to you and the directors, 
"you remarking that you had relatives by marriage of that name; so then 
and there, the name of Okabena was changed to Worthington."

   Mr. Drake added the following to Prof. Humiston's letter:

   ". . . When he [Prof. Humiston] proposed the name Worthington I said 
to him that I had relatives of that name. but neither he nor I supposed 
they were of the same family. You [Worthington Advance] were probably 
right that the person in whose honor the name was given was related to 
the Chillicothe family, and I was right in saying that the name was not 
given for Governor Worthington or any of his descendants, all of which 
I know intimately."

   Mrs. Mary Dorman Miller, in a letter to the Advance, dated New York, 
Dec. 11, 1888, wrote:

   "You and Mr. Drake are far 'at sea' in your attempt to give a 
historical account of the naming of Worthington; but I come to your 
rescue, though not as the traditional straw to the drowning man. My 
mother's maiden name was Worthington. Her father was Robert 
Worthington, of Chillicothe, Ohio, who was the brother of Thomas 
Worthington, governor of Ohio; and the now beautiful, prosperous town 
of Worthington, Minn., was named for 'the Chillicothe family.' "

   The correspondence was closed with the following from Mr. Drake in 
the Advance of Dec. 27, 1888:

  "It will now be well enough to consider the name of your thriving 
village settled, as to the question for whom it was named. Mrs. Miller, 
by virtue of her sex, is entitled to the last word. As Rip Van Winkle 
says, 'We will not count this.' My memory was at fault in saying the 
name was in honor of Mr. Humiston's family, instead of Mrs. Miller's. 
It was given, doubtless, in honor of her immediate ancestors, and not 
the family at large. So, it seems Mrs. Miller, you and I were all 
right, only differing as to whether the name was for the Worthington 
family at large or her branch of it . . . The controversy is ended. Let 
us have peace."


   [11] George E. Worthington, student of history at the Wisconsin 
University.

   [12] Some credence, has been given to a hoax on the naming of 
Worthington, originated in the early days. It was said that when 
settlers first came here and the question of a name for the town came 
up it was suggested that as the county had such a noble name, it was 
but fitting that the first town in it should have a name worthy of the 
county- and that Worthington was derived from the word worthy. Of 
course there is no truth in the statement.

   [13] Extract from Mr. Thayer's diary.

   [14] "I also built the first sail boat that sailed on lake Okabena 
(as it was then called), a little six foot beam by about twenty feet in 
length, which I sold my interest in to Prof. Humiston. It was called 
the Pioneer. I did considerable in and about the village, and about 
June 25, 1872, I left there for Jackson, and have never seen your city 
since."-Extract from Mr. Thayer's letter.


   [15] The McLaurin building still stands, and is owned and occupied 
by Peter Thompson.

   [16] On the lot upon which T. A. Palmer's house now stands.

   [17] Where the Davis brick block now stands.

   [18] The members of this firm were Henry Young, Levi Shell and 
Daniel Shell. The office was opened in November, having temporary 
quarters with Crocker Bros. & Lamoraux.

   [19] Mr. Moore did not give satisfaction to the colony company, and 
after having been in charge, about ten months he gave up the lease. He 
was succeeded by Captain A. P. Lyon, who conducted the business only 
two or three months, working for a salary for the owners. W. S. 
Stockdale was the next landlord. He was succeeded shortly after by 
Jonathan Ames, who leased the property and ran it about one year. On 
May 1, 1874, Daniel Shell took a five years' lease on the property and 
became its manager. At the end of the second year he purchased the 
property, which had come into the hands of Peter Thompson, who had 
secured a judgment against Miller, Humiston & Co. Mr. Shell conducted 
the business until 1888. Samuel Espey then leased the property, and 
after being its manager ten months, died. He was succeeded by John 
Fisher, who conducted the business four years under a lease. Mr. Shell 
then sold the property to F. R. Coughran and others, and Mr. Coughran 
was the landlord for several years. The property then passed into the 
hands of Geo. W. Lear, who had charge of it personally for a short 
time. W. H. Doolittle became the leasee and was landlord for a number 
of years. He was succeeded in recent years by Geo. W. Lear, Thomas 
Dorgan and Stanley Moore.

   [20] The Worthington office has been held by the following 
postmasters: H. W. Kimball, C. C. Goodnow, M. B. Soule, R. D. Barber, 
L. B. Bennett, Frank Lewis, E. L. Schwartz and F. R. Coughran.

   [21] Mrs. Herbert W. Kimball was the first woman to come to 
Worthington. She came here with .her husband in the fall of 1871, but 
returned to her old home for the winter. Mrs. Daniel Shell was the 
second lady to become a resident of Worthington.

   [22] A contributor to the Advance of Aug. 31, 1872 said: "From 
frequent conversations with gentlemen of different parts of the state, 
we are assured that Worthington today has the best reputation of any 
new town in Minnesota, and that great expectations have been raised in 
the minds of the  better class."

   [23] The petition was signed by the following: John A. King, L. S. 
Roberts, Ed. Chandler, L. C. Chaney, James S. Stone, M. H. Stevens, E. 
T. Dillabaugh, M. B. Soule, W. B. Akins, A. P. Miller, Wellington 
Sherwood, John H. Johnson, I. N. Sater, M. E. Distad, H. W. Kimball. H. 
Davis. C. E. Tourtelotte, Z. Keller, A. P. Lyon, A. L. Perkins, B. S. 
Langdon, Otis Bigelow, W. Hodgkinson, I. Allerton, Jas. McKirahan, John 
Alley, A. J. Willcox, D. S. Law, Benjamin R. Prince, C. B. Langdon, 
Stephen Miller, W. S. Langdon, R. D. Bagley, Daniel Shell, E. J. Bear, 
J. B. Haines, John U. Herzig, A. L. Clark, J. S. Goodnow, George. O. 
Moore, James Gibson, L. H. Farnham, R. D. Barber, D. Stone, C. B. 
Loveless, W. S. Stockdale, B. H. Crever, C. S. Newton, J. C. Clark, E. 
R. Humiston, Levi W. Chase, Benjamin F. Thurber, E. S. Terry, C. P. 
Hewitt, C. H. Stewart, R. F. Humiston, J. S. Shuck, J. P. Shaw, J. F. 
Humiston, A. C. Robinson, S. D. Sprague, H. M. McLean, P. A. Stoddard, 
C. P. Stough, Peter Thompson, T. L. Taylor, Hugh Kilpatrick. James 
Marden, John Ward, Benjamin Midboe, Chas. B. Moore, C. L. Chandler, F. 
C. Ecker, A. J. Manley, E. B. Hull, J. E. Riley, Wm. M. Bear.

   [24] Signed by Mrs. M. B. Soule, Mrs. Mary Herzig, Mrs. Harriett A. 
Lyon, Mrs. R. F. Humiston, Mrs. E. R. Humiston, Mrs. C. Davis, Mary H. 
Crever, Mrs. S. C. Crever, Mrs. L. J. Foster, Clara F. Moore, Sarah 
Humiston, Mrs. M. Stone, Mrs. A. Taylor, Mrs. Daniel Shell, Mrs. H. M. 
Farnam, Miss Celia E. Farnam, Mrs. B. Morsdehi, Almira Weaver, Jane 
Moore, Ann Miller, Mrs. Mary Chandler, Mrs. A. C. Robinson, Mrs. A. J. 
Manley, Mrs. A. S. Huff, Mrs. N. S. Roberts, Mrs. E. B. Akins, Mrs. A. 
Shuck, Mrs. M. D. Barber, Mrs L. H. McKirahan, Mrs. M. E. Bear, Emma 
Bear, Mrs. R. L. Langdon, Mrs. B. E. Parks, Mrs. Mary Shaw, Mrs. D. S. 
Law, Mrs. M. Stewart, Miss Mary Tangleson, Miss Susan B. Langdon, Mrs. 
Mahala Langdon, Mrs. Olive Clark, Mrs. C. Stougle, Mrs. C. B. Loveless, 
Mrs. Mattie Johnson, Mrs. Mary E. Gould, Mrs. C. E. Davis, Mrs. Hattie 
H. Bigelow.


Additional Comments:
Extracted from:



AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF NOBLES COUNTY

MINNESOTA

BY

ARTHUR P. ROSE



NORTHERN HISTORY PUBLISHING COMPANY 

WORTHINGTON, MINNESOTA 

PUBLISHERS

1908



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