ca 1910
Everybody has a “birth day,” so therefore, I W.M. Howenstein have one – I was born on the 22nd day of December 1834, in the town of Bucyrus, Crawford County, state of Ohio. The town, like myself at that time was very young – The noble redman was conspicuous in his presence, which I found out later on in life as I experienced many a fright from their whooping and yelling, under the influence of “Firewater,” as do many of the white friends today.
The house I was born in was a 1 1/2 story – built on a corner lot and on the street running east and west and on the main street north and south stood the shop my father used to conduct the business as a tailor. This was the shape.
Flower
Garden |
House |
Wool
House |
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Barn |
| Shop |
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Smoke
House |
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South
On the corner lot north was a large pond, always full of water, which was used as a skating pond in the winter for several years. In order to reach the north part of town, sticks of heavy timber from 18 inches to 24 inches wide were laid and a railing the whole length was strung to prevent accidents from falling in the water and mud. After crossing the foot log and on to dry land we came to two meat markets with their slaughterhouses in the rear. The balance of the town was on high ground clear to the Sandusky River, a very nice stream. This stream has the famous Buckeye Swimming hole made mention of by Whitcomb Riley, or rather the subject for a poem. It seemed to have been made for bathing and sport – a place of 200 ft or 300 ft. lined on one side with beautiful buckeye trees, affording a nice shade for fun and frolic. I well remember the schools took a May Day party, and chose the buckeye banks for our fun. It chanced that a large saw log came floating down, and one of the male teachers proposed to me to stop it which we did and with the aid of poles we got on and attempted to float but we lost control of it and both tumbled into the water – while those on the bank laughed and yelled at our misfortune; we climbed out and made for a large Sycamore tree that was burning and dried our clothes. Well do I remember the uneasiness of the teacher when he told me that he had the misfortune to have contracted that spring disease the “Itch” and had been using the ten common remedy in those days “sulfur” and was afraid of the consequences, but no harm came to him. All this occurred when I was 16 or 17 years old. Now to go back to my first school days – My first schoolhouse was an eight cornered one-story brick building. The desks for the larger boys, the great intellectuals ones from whom much was expected by their mamas and papas – were placed around the room in a circle – each lighted with a long narrow window; for us little tots in the center was filled up with plank seats, no backs and too high for the feet of most of us to rest on the floor. It was regular mixed up messes from those in their ABCs to the Rule of Three we were accustomed to hear about then. My first teachers were two females (they had to have two in this one room as the school was large) a mother and daughter Mrs. And Miss Espry were the names – I can well remember the lively times they had once in a while with some of the larger future statesmen. The teachers kept themselves well supplied with good substantial willow switches or rods to correct the bad habits of the unruly – they never wished to spoil the child by sparing the rod, and I know that if any of us were spoiled, big or little,it was not from neglect in the use of that instrument of punishment. I remember one instance of a young man 18 or 19 years old, bug and strong, perhaps weighed 175 or 180 lbs., got a little stubborn about something. When Mrs. Espry reached for her willow and went at him, she lashed him over his shoulders until he sprung from his seat she following him up lashing away, he retreating to a corner of the room when she played upon his legs and he a jumping a bawling like a good fellow – when she got through, she sent him to his seat where he sniffed and sobbed until school was closed. He was large enough to pick both teachers and carry them out to the street. Perhaps he was too brave to attack a woman. That old brick schoolhouse was in use for a long time. But the town kept growing and it was soon necessary to have more schools. The Irish school masters put in their appearance for select schools – a Mr. McGill was my first teacher of that class – he rented a room and fixed it up and taught in our town for a number of years -- He would teach a term of three or four months, and then have a vacation of as many weeks when he would have his spree, but would be all right when the time came for the next term. He was a splendid teacher – always had a good orderly school, no one was punished and we all loved him. In time we had a large two story, four room building and school matters began to take a different shape – a graded school was the outcome, but there was more trouble, scholars unruly and at times would carry the male teachers out on the street and lock the doors – would have some terrible fights at times so that the Bucyrus schools got a very bad reputation. They had to advertise for giants as teachers who would enter the schoolroom with big horsewhips or rawhides – This state of affairs lasted a long time, when a great change, which convinced me as a boy that corporeal punishment should not be the leading means or way of correcting the unruly. After the school officers had worked and advised ways and means to have a model school – and failed, and were about to give up, a tall, slim man, physically weak, presented himself to the board and applied for the place as a teacher in the schools – or rather, the high school. He was informed of the situation, and that they thought he would not be able physically to manage the school. He gave them to understand that he would attend to that part of it and would take all chances. He was hired and opened the school and there never was a better-governed school before or since anywhere in the whole country. He captured the school in less than 30 minutes after it was opened and every pupil was in love with him. Any student that would have attempted to make trouble would have been thrown out in the street. He taught in that school for years until he died, and never had an occasion to reprimand a single pupil. So much for the wild way.
This is sufficient for my young school days – I have gotten along now when I thought myself quite a boy – a young man feeling my oats. I kept right on going to school, enjoying the advancements and grading of the schools, passing from poorer buildings into better buildings and getting benefit of more advanced teachers with better graded schools. My parents were not possessed of much this worlds goods, yet we had plenty to eat and wear – and as I was the oldest of seven children living – was the first elected to help pay my way and support the younger of the family. My father being a tailor by occupation set me to work and learn the trade, but he never kept me out of school; however, I was required to work between school hours and put in my vacations on the tailor’s bench. This I did from my 14th to my 21st years. My father and mother never intended that I should follow the business as a means of a livelihood, but only to help me to something else which in their minds was a doctor. They conceived that idea from the fact that when I was a little boy, I was always playing doctor by having the younger children playing sick and I would feel their pulse, look at their tongue and then mix up medicine (colored water) and dose it out to them.
At 18 years commenced to read Medicine with our doctor in town. Read 3 years and worked at my trade – saved money and attended one course of lectures at Cincinnati, Ohio, in the fall and winter of 1856-7. That fall I cast my first vote for President – John C. Fremont, the first Republican Candidate of the party. My vote was challenged, as I was among strangers and some thought I looked too young to be of the proper age. I perhaps looked young and green, but I was determined to vote for John C at all hazards. My vote counted in that precinct, but not for general results. However, I got it back 4 years later when I voted for Abraham Lincoln in Placerville, Colorado.
After my first course of Medical lectures, I returned home almost out of money and started to work again at my trade to earn more money for more lecture courses and to read up at odd times on the practice of medicine. In 1858 I received a proposition from an uncle who was practicing medicine in a small town 15 miles north of FortWayne, Indiana, to come to him and study and ride with him so as to get some practical experience with my study and reading. I accepted, packed up my books, clothing, etc., and started. I arrived in Fort Wayne, which was then a pretty good-sized town, and when I arrived, my uncle the doctor was not there to meet me. I was somewhat disappointed but there was no use of fretting – so started out to hunt a livery to drive me over the 15 miles the distance to my future home. I found the town a very small one with a small one-story schoolhouse, two churches – a Methodist and a Catholic – to my surprise, the pastor of the Methodist Church was a Howenstein. We never could make out how nearly we were related. There was a strong family resemblance and he would have passed without question as a brother of my father and his brothers.
Now I was for a time away from my native home where I had lived so many years – and among strangers. Leo, the name of the town, was situated on the banks of the River St. Joe; the town was small but had a strong name – Leo (Lion). Had one small general story, saw mill and gristmill. The miller at first floated his flour to Fort Wayne on a flatboat – using oars – and brought back provisions and groceries. Business got so good he built a trevel power in the boat with side wheels and placed a pair of mules in the to work it. It did all right; could make better time. As we say now, he broke the record in making the distance. The country was new, all timber land and back roads. To use a buggy was out of the question most of the time, and no time could it be used at night, especially if dark. Horseback was the custom and many a night I wasn’t able to see the horse’s head – even gave him the rein and let him pick his way out of the woods. Many a time was I afraid that I might strike my head against a projecting limb of a tree. I worked along this way for nearly tow years up to the spring of 1860. Had been reading the newspaper all the winter telling of the wonderful gold mines of Colorado, especially Pikes Peak. By spring, my uncle had made up his mind to go there. I, of course, was young and no one depending upon me thought I would be just as well off there as anywhere. We had two horses, but no wagon. We had our wagon maker make us a wagon, and the blacksmith ironed it and I painted it and made the cover for it. A nearby farmer and his son by the name of Jacques joined us so that made a nice company. We made the trip from Leo to Ft. Wayne 15 miles where we laid in such material wanted on the road – but no great amount of provisions as it wasn’t necessary, as we could buy as needed. We left on the 7th day of April 1860 for our long trip. We had no tent but slept in the wagon. The morning of the day we started was beautiful. We all felt jolly and enjoyed our meals cooked in the open air by the side of the road. The first night we stopped to camp out for the we hitched our horses at the back end of the wagon fed them and then prepared our meals, did up the work, crawled in the wagon and bid good night to all care and trouble, and passed into the land of dreams; slept soundly all night and was surprised in the morning to find the ground all covered with snow. It was a cold job for me to start in to get our breakfast. We soon had the fire a going, made it larger than ordinary so as to warm us up. We ate a hearty breakfast and after being on the road again, the sun came out warm and the snow bade us goodbye. That was the last snow we saw until we reached the Rocky Mountains. Our trip through states, until we reached the Missouri River, was rather monotonous. We crossed the Mississippi River at Hanibal,Mo. The merchants of that city were at the landing to meet us to solicit our trade for supplies to make the trip. They did not succeed to sell us much as we had the settled country of Missouri to travel through from Hanibal to St. Joseph where all kinds of provisions could be had—we followed the Hanibal and St. Joe Railroad to the Missouri River to the City of St. Joe where we laid in supplies for when we crossed the river there we left all settlements and all civilization. We were in the land of the Indians, and buffalo. Our course then was up into Nebraska following the overland stage trail toward the first state stations on the Big Blue River. This station was called by all the Pikes Peaker Emigrants the turn table, for the reason so many were met here returning from Colorado and California, giving out discouraging news, especially from Pikes Peak, causing many people to turn around and start for home. Nearly every one we met coming back made the inquiry if we had a goose quill to put our gold in. The city of Beatrice is built upon that celebrated turntable on the Big Blue River. The change of scenery and travel was very great now. It was quite interesting in passing through the towns and country of the different states that made time pass more rapidly and pleasantly to us. WE are now following the Platte River – the scenery is not very inviting – no trees, nothing but poor grass, ground covered with a white alkali and no water but the dirty river water to drink and cook with, and many times after using the water, would find up stream a short distance a dead ox or horse left by some emigrant in the river badly decayed and tbe water carrying the filth on down the stream affecting the water we had but a short time before used. We made a change however for water supply, by digging holes in the banks of the stream one or two feed deep which would fill up immediately and in a few minutes would be clear and ready for use. It made it more agreeable than that from the river. But I must say that as our appetites kept growing stronger, we began to overlook many things that would not be acceptable at our homes, or even at a 2nd or 3rd rate boarding house. We got our peck of dirt all night – but how we did go for the flapjacks and bacon, the flapjacks covered with the fryings of the meat and molasses. It tasted good with our good coffee, no cream, but sugar. At Fort Kearney, we crossed the Platte River to the North Side. Here is [where] we had lots of fun—The river is very wide and owing to the snow melting on the mountains ahead of us the banks were full. The quick sand bottoms were always changing, some places deep and others shallow, and the water being so full of sand, the deep and the shallow places were all alike in appearance, so that crossing a foot – one minute you would be in water a few inches deep and the next over our heads and swimming for dear life for the next high ground. In taking our teams across we would raise the beds on top of the standards by placing pieces of boards across to keep our provisions dry and any females that happened to be with us. Now to get the wagon across, we would hitch on for or six yoke of oxen. This number of oxen was put so what while some of them would be compelled to swim some of the others would be on good ground and able to pull. One yoke could bring a wagon across all night on good ground, but worthless if they had to swim.
Some very amusing scenes appeared to make them all laugh and cheer. Of course, the oxen had to have their driver – two or three along side of them with their ox goads – A driver ahead and a yoke of oxen would be a floating – and by the time they were on solid ground, the next driver would be in the same fix and so on until landed.
In our company there were some loose horses – some of the boys jumped on their backs and undertook to cross, then there was fun. One horse and rider plunged in and both were lost to sight for awhile. The horse came up in one place and the rider in another, both making for shore – others followed in regular succession. We all got safely over and then fixed for camping and to get our meals, and feed our stock at last, but not least, to wring out our wet garments and let them dry on our backs.
