Anamosa - A Reminiscence 1838 - 1988

his own bank. went down the alley and into his
competitor's back door, and dumped the money into
the cash drawers. The 'run‘ was stopped.
Mr. Metcalf was the first man to ship a train load of
cattle from Cheyenne, Wyoming, to Anamosa over the
Union Pacific Railroad. Consequently, he was given a
life-time pass on the railroad.
H.C. Metcalf, along with J .C. Grifilth, J .C. Dietz. W.
Huggins and C.L.Niles, were the originators of the
Anamosa Waterworks. Later Metcalf and Griffith
bought the balance of the stock and it was sold to the
city.
The Metcalf Light Company was started by Horace
Metcalf and son, Charles, on Nov. 1. 1891. It was later
sold to the Anamosa-Oxford Junction Electric
Company. The Iowa Electric Light and Power bought
the plant May 1, 1914, and Charles Metcalf was named
manager. Mr. Metcalf had the distinction of being the
employee with the longest years of service in the
Company.
Charles Metcalf married Emma Haner from
Hampton. Neb. in 1892. A romance started while the
Metcalfs lived in Nebraska. Charles brought his bride to
his family home in Anamosa. The brick home, built in
1862, was one of the finest in this section of the
country. It is presently the home of the late Jack Merritt
family. Jack and Joyce Merritt purchased the home in
1959.
Charles remembered when he was a small boy. he
accompanied his father on a trip to his father's ranch in
Laramie, Wyoming. He related that hoards of
grasshoppers greased the tracks so badly, that brooms
were tied to the front of the train to sweep the hoppers
from the rails.
After years of persuasion. Charles‘ wife agreed to
make a return trip to Nebraska. It was recalled that her
worst suspicions were confirmed when she stepped off
the train and saw seven telegraph poles. with a man
hanging from each one of them. This was an example of
‘frontier justice‘ at its worst. She returned on the first
train that was heading back toward Iowa.
Charlie Metcalf had a pet bear, Tom, which had been
brought back from the west. Tom, for a time pulled
Charlie around town in a cart. Later when he began
growing, he caused a nuisance by yanking all of the
clothes off a neighbor's clothesline. He gave Charlie a
good mauling one day and that was the end of Tom.
The bear was stuffed and placed in Watters where the
six-foot form could be observed by shoppers.
Charles and Emma Metcalf had two children,
Margerita Wressell and Hubert C. Metcalf. They had
one grandson Charles Metcalf.
Early Streets and Sidewalks
In 1858, when the business portion of Anamosa was
still in the the western part of town, the lack of any
board sidewalks was severely felt. That is. it was felt by
the females in the little settlement, who had their long
skirts trailing through the mud.
The Eureka editor had this to say in January 1858.
"We presume no one will deny that our city is greatly in
need of sidewalks. We think a small effort and sufficent
funds could be raised by subscription to build good
substantial plank walks on both sides of Main Street
and on one side as far as the Fisher House, (now Iowan
Hotel building) at least. A few hours of rain makes it
impossible to go from one end of Main St. to the other."
There was a lot of talk. but no action was taken
towards building the sidewalks.
The ladies, tired of staying at home for weeks at a
time due to the mud. and cleaning the mud brought in
by their husbands and children, took the matter into
their own hands and organized what was referred to as
the “Mite Society". They proceeded to raise money for
the long-desired wooden sidewalks.
By April, 1859, considerable work was done on the
project. Most of the board walks were in. reaching east
as far as the Fisher House and covering the downtown
business portion. -
When completed. they made a dandy place for riding
horses, which this practice required action by the city
fathers. Three months later, an order from the mayor
and council made it unlawful for any person to dr'ive.
ride, or leave standing, or tied, upon any improved
sidewalk within the town of Anamosa, any horse, mule
or team of any kind. If they did so. they were liable for a
first offense fine of $ 1. and a second offense. $2.
In 1858, the name of Delhi St. was changed to Iowa
St.. and a mile east, Main St. was moved to the south.
due to the placement of the first road through the
territory — the Military Road.
When the Military Road was laid out in I839. the
by Bertha Finn
road. from Garnaviilo on, followed a gradual curve in a
northeasterly direction, cutting across the site on what
was later the Shaw Block. and is now Randy's
Hardware. The Military Road, according to Edmund
Booth. ran a bit northeast until it crossed the creek. on
this side of what was later B.F. Smith's brickyard. and
continued nearly directly north, along the west side of
Strawberry Hill.
On both sides of the Military Road, where later the
Union Depot stood. was a low area with crab-apple
trees and hazel brush. There were also a half dozen or
so. great, white, oak trees lining the roadway. The low
area was gradually filled in, with the extension of East
Main St.
By 1866, stone-flagged sidewalks made their
appearance on the north side of Main St.. between
Garnaviilo to Ford. An ordinance that year called for at
least six-foot unobstructed walks be built “providing
that no person shall be required to change. or remove.
permanent stone steps." At this there appeared both
wooden and stone sidewalks.
The next year. sidewalks around the upper end of
town were not completed. The muddy streets were at
times. knee-deep. Edmund Booth admonished the
contractors who would build the walks, to ‘strike while
the mud is deep‘. Later that year, in 1867. over $10,000
was spent on building wooden and stone side-walks
around the town. The first wooden walks were built on
Booth, Ford. First and Garnaviilo Sts.
The sidewalks, by ordinance, were to be made with
an even edge toward the street and toward the lot
adjoining. They were to be made of pine plank, 2 in.
thick, laid crosswise and the walk securely nailed with
4 in. spikes to joists laid lengthwise of the walk. not less
that 2 x 4. The cross walks, on the streets, were to be
made of stone 8 in. thick and 16 in. wide, and to be
placed in two tiers of sufficient width to make the
crossing 4 ft. deep. which was to be laid on four ft. of