NOTE: This column started in the Warsaw Daily Times on January 13, 1932 and appeared daily through the end of April, 1932. You will find lots of names and incidents mentioned. All has been included along with credits. The date of the newspaper will be at the at the TOP of the column. Several columns will be included in each segment. Names & incidents have been bolded for emphasis. There is no indication who compiled the column for the paper. Marge

Warsaw Daily Times January 25, 1932

Remember when:
J. P. Thomas was in the general merchandising business and his greatest delight was to give the boys arithmetic problems difficult to work. Some were also tricky.

Will Minear ran a livery stable and tie barn.

Milo Richards nearly always won the pie-eating contests on Fourth of July celebrations.

George Shultz lined up about 50 children in front of the Red Front restaurant and treated them with Christmas candy.

John Shultz ran a meat market and incidentally was the first in town to serve ice cream in his place of business.

Art Erwin served the first ice cream sodas in town.

D. H. Clymer operated picture studio and newspaper.

The Claypool Band of 14 pieces entered a band contest at North Manchester fair, competing with 3 other bands of 28 to 34 pieces and came home with second prize.

Elias Tridle operated a blacksmith shop in a building located where the Claypool Lumber company's office now is located. When the first opera house was built across the street from where the depot now is. Medicine shows were a special attraction.

Marion Minear cobblered shoes in the rear of Fred Dresser's hardware store.

J. W. Shoemaker did a thriving sawmill and lumber business.

Mrs. Brackett was postmistress and also carried groceries as a side-line.

Mrs. Alice Guinee operated a bakery and restaurant.

Andy Taylor was town marshal.

The foregoing Claypool "Back When's sent in by J. E. S.

Sixty-five years ago when men were high-top boots, pants tucked in to keep snow out. There were no shoes. Boys wore high red top boots with copper toes. Charley Wahl used to make the finest high-top boots to measure, costing as high as $40. -(Al Sloan)

Peru Flood of 1913
In 1913 the call came from Peru, Ind., flood suffers for help. All Warsaw churches and lodges sent clothing and food. Mayor B. F. Richardson, the best mayor we ever had, gave each Warsaw volunteer rescue worker a pair of hip boots. The Winona interurban took loads of rescuers with motor and fifty row boats from Winona Lake down to Peru. Such a sight I will never forget. Horses, cows and chickens were drowning. We got there about 3 p.m. I cooked hot coffee in an interurban freight car and kept the boys warm. We had doughnuts for food. It was cold that spring. Among the Warsaw rescuers were Linc Hughes, Charlie Engle, John Orr, C. C. Dukes, Charles A. Kelly, William Hibschman, Dr. DuBois, Dr. W. L. Hines, Dr. C. W. Smith, John Hite and others by the score.
The boys rowed boats right across the tops of small trees in the flooded district. The only part of the town that had not been inundated was the court house which stood on higher ground. There food was being served to a line of hungry families. I took Lieut. Governor O'Neal and his aide across the flooded district in his old row boat with a big load of clothing and food, rowing six miles across country. I rowed right down the street car tracks so we would not get lost. It was snowing and blowing and the waves and current were high and swift, washing around street corners and jumping about three feet high. The lieutenant-governor wanted his aid to rest. The man got confused and struck a pole with his boat, and he saw it was up to Sam. He knows his oars. Well, we landed at the court house, the driest spot in Peru.
Then I got a call to take a colored family off a porch roof down by the roaring Wabash river which was causing all the trouble. Five of them were perched and shivering on the porch roof. The old lady was yelling, "Oh Lordy, they left us until the last to save!" They wouldn't sit still in the boat and suddenly we hit a post. I took hold of it, pulled and lost my balance and fell into the water over my head in depth, but I was back in the boat in a minute. We finally made the court house. I nearly froze. I got dry clothes there. It was then about 2:30 a.m. A doctor there forbade us to drink the dirty water, fearing an epidemic, so we found some beer. My Red Cross tag, which all volunteer rescue boatmen from Warsaw wore, was good for food or beer any place they had any. At the C. & O. hotel a big fellow waved an apron at me and I fastened my boat to the fire escape ladder and crawled into his saloon. Water was over my boot tops at his front door. He loaded my boat with coal and food and I started out to distribute them to the sufferers. I came back later and asked the man for a warm drink. "Why, you can have all you want," he said. He then gave me six quarts of "Sunnybrook" and told me to take it to the sick people. There were lots of them. No fires in the homes, no warm food, and only contaminated water to drink had caused much illness. That Sunnybrook warmed things up with me for quite a while. Next I answered a call where a family wanted some coal. I got down there and they had a big red card, "Diphtheria," on the door. But I went right in "protected as I was by Sunnybrook." I gave each a cup full of whiskey. I kept on distributing the whiskey. At 6:30 a.m. I had only a quart left. I kept at the work until Rev. D. D. Smith of the M. E. church asked me to take them some place. The water commenced to go down some and after half a mile my boat stuck on the ground. I had to carry him on my back two squares to his home. He had a big home with a stone fence around it and it was dry there. He had not been home for three days, ministering to the people. Brother Smith said, "God bless you, my boy. You Warsaw boys have done great work. Let me give you something for a token. We will never forget you Warsaw boys." I declined his token. He then told me that my name would be placed in the court house forever as the "Life-saver from Warsaw." He gave me a paper to take with me, saying not to open it until I got home. "Read it and it will help you through," he added. I was about dead for sleep. I met Charles Kelly and C. C. Dukes at the C. and O. hotel. The waves were whirling and splashing in whirlpools and the current was strong but I made the trip three times from the hotel to the interurban cars. Dr. C. W. Smith fell out of my boat but George Engle and I pulled him back in. When we got to the car line our freight cars were gone. I got in an interurban car and when the conductor came along I was asleep. He shook me and I showed him my Red Cross card. "That's good only in your private car, and it's gone," he said. "You got to pay or count the time." Then I remembered that paper that Rev. Smith had given me, which I was to read when I felt bad or was in trouble. In that note which he had written was a $20 bill. However, Dr. Smith had seen my plight with the conductor and paid him before I could offer the $20 bill. I never caught the diphtheria or smallpox everyone was afraid of and I guess a fellow won't catch it when he does the right thing. -(Sam Hutton)
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Warsaw Daily Times January 26, 1932

Remember when--
Everyone used kerosene, coal oil, for lights and cooking and Tom Archer, of 667 S. Buffalo street, drove the "oil wagon" and signaled to housewives his arrival and for them to bring out their oil cans by sounding a gong, a triangular piece of iron, which he struck with another iron rod. 'Member his old gray mare and how the dogs used to bark at Archer.

Billy Potts operated a peanut stand here and ran a race with Johnny Dillon for "half a shillin"

Cornelius Hines led the discussion at George Hendee's shoe shop and in the heat of argument struck Jack Walters over the head with his ever-present cans to emphasize a point which Walters contested.

Just east of the Big Four depot on East Market street was a big swamp later cleaned up and planted in onions and celery by George Griggs and later by M. D. Polk. Boys got 50 cents per day for weeding onions, crawling all day long on hands and knees.

When the city show grounds were located where Frank Gilworth now lives on East Center street and there were no homes along there for two blocks farther east.

Everybody walked instead of buying gasoline.

A. T. S. Kist had a cider mill on East Center Street near Wood street where boys used to get their fill when Mr. Kist was away. Later Jake Schue's cider mill across the Pensy tracks on Canal street got all this free trade.

The C. W. and M. Railroad, now the Big Four, burned four-foot wood in its funny looking engines with a big smoke stack. They had a water tank out by Lakeside park. When they struck a grade the brakeman and conductor had to get off and walk. It took four hours from Warsaw to Goshen and 30 cords of wood. Each brakeman had to carry a sack of coupling pins and links.

Roy Webber, deceased son of the lake Dr. I. B. Webber, of this city, had the first bike or bicycle. The front wheel, where the power was applied, was six feet high and the rear wheel only one foot high. Roy had to take a step ladder to make a mount. He usually fell off. -(Sam Hutton)

Then came the safety bicycle for the girls; later the bicycle made for two, then the motorcycle. Charlie Grabner broke out with the first motorcycle in Warsaw.

C. E. Shutt made the first horseless carriage here and Ernest Osborn and Carl Baughman produced the first motorboat in Warsaw.

Henry Wheeler manufactured all the bricks for the country round-about at his brickyard north of Warsaw, using red clay, taken from around Little Pike lake, moulding it and baking the bricks in kilns.

A big pond more than two or three acres and three feet deep stood near the Brethren church in East Warsaw, in the rear of the Klingel Laundry and Modern Bakery. It was a good place for muskrats. The pond was located inside the old fair ground and the half-mile race track entirely surrounded the pond which was close to the east boundary of the fair ground.

The North-End Scrubs composed of Catcher Bill Rowe, Pitcher Guy Bash, Shortshop Ernie Osborn; Second Baseman Joe Peterson, Third Baseman Ralph Bumbaugh, Fielders Art Peterson, Harry Stewart and Sammy Hutton, defeated Red Johnson's East-End Stars on the old ball diamond behind the Winebrenner residence, then across from the East ward school. Bill Rowe had to put out the gasoline lanterns marking the Big Four switches so I went in to catch. A foul tip caught me in the eye and what a lump came up. Our signals were one finger for an in, two for an out, three for an upshot, four for a drop and five for an outdrop. We won 21 to 7 and assumed the name of North End Stars, taking it from the East-Enders. -(Sam Hutton)

The Warsaw Silver Cornet band which took high rank among the musical organizations of its kind in these parts. Henry Lathrop and Charlie Grosspitch, cornetists, Bramwell Funk, baritone; Austin Funk, trombone; John A. Peterson, Bb tenor; Frank Manchester, Bb cornet; Dr. W. H. Eggleston and Hugh Hanna played the little "oom-ta-ta-ta" horns; Amos Kehler pumped the big over-sized tuba, which was carried like a sack of corn on one shoulder; Will Power operated the snare drum, while in the anatomy of James Wadsworth Nye was generated the required energy to beat the big bass drum, and to Charlie Funk was assigned the task of clanging the cymbals. When the band paraded the then unpaved streets, the members thereof arrayed in their tin hats with nodding plumes and uniforms of dark blue, trimmed and latticed with gold braid across the breast, and epaulets on their shoulders, the organization was indeed the pride of Warsaw's citizenry as well as the idol of the accompanying procession of small boys who inevitably brought up the rear.
At stated intervals during the summer season concerts by the band were rendered in a bandstand erected at the southeast corner of the courthouse square (Center and Buffalo streets). This band stand was built by popular subscription from the various merchants and was erected on immense timber about two feet square planted perpendicularly in the earth and towered nine or ten feet above the ground. On top of this post was constructed a large circular platform over which a canopy or roof was built. The structure much resembled a one story-Chinese pagoda, seen in the old-fashioned geographies and was withal a pleasing piece of architecture. It was constructed in the '70's and the workmen who built it included such well-remembered artisans as Philip Winters, Nathan McConnell, George Deerwester, Ed and Philip Nichols. The structure remained there until the decks were cleared preparatory to the building of the new court house in 1881. It's former site is now occupied by the attractive display of cannon presented by the United States government to Kosciusko county in recognition of the service of its soldier heroes. -(E. C. Aborn)

The murder of Bill Hull, the butcher, which occurred at the cabin home of Joseph Rowe during one of the country dances characteristics of the early '80's. The scene of the crime was located a short distance west of the curve in the Pennsylvania railroad tracks at the western outskirts of the city. John Schaeffer was accused of the crime, was arrested, and his trial took place in the old Methodist church building, which was being used as a court room while the new court house was being built. The evidence submitted was purely circumstantial and the jury returrned a verdict of four years in prison. Public sentiment strongly condemned such a verdict, the exception being based on the fact that Schaeffer was either guilty or not guilty, and if guilty, he should received a more severre sentence; if not guilty, he should be acquitted. Judge E. V. Long evidently thought so too, for he unhesitatingly granted an application for a new tiral, at the conclusion of which Schaeffer was acquitted. The defense was based on the fact that the dead body of Hull was found near the railroad tracts, indicating that he had been struck by a passing train. The circumstantial evidence against Schaeffer was due to the fact that he and Hull had indulged in a quarrel during the progress of the dance. -(E. C. Aborn)

The old "gravel train" (Train C) on the Pennsylvania railroad, which for so many years maintained headquarters in Warsaw. This train was one of the chief units of the maintenance of way departments of the division extending from Fort Wayne to Valparaiso and was under the jurisdiction of Supervisor L. M. Berlin, now retired. The crew originally was comprised of W. H. Simons, conductor; R. D. Rowe, engineer; James Hill, fireman; Al Walsh, brakeman. At a later date the train was in charge of Horton Dillingham, comductor; Jerry McCarthy and Harry Bigner, engineer and fireman, respectively. In those days any able-bodied man willing to work could usually land a job on Train C. Wesley Light is the present supervisor, and although he maintains his office in Warsaw, the work train has been discontinued. -(E. C. Aborn)
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Warsaw Daily Times January 27, 1932

Remember when--
John Chandler, motorman, and Walter Kendall, conductor, were in charge of the Warsaw-Winona car and one night during its first year of operation, ran over a supposed man (a dummy dressed up) sitting on the track on Center street just beyond Fred Beyer's home. The train crew was sure a man had been killed. Kendall insisted that Chandler go back to the scene of the accident. "No use," answered Chandler, "he's all cut to pieces." But with his lantern Kendall walked back, and found the dummy, properly dressed, the clothes having been stuffed with straw--a prank of five lads. The prompt investigation and the avowed prosecution scared the young men implicate to such a degree that none entered into a prank like that again. -(H. H.)

Warsaw always had a Chinese laundry and boys used to have great sport teasing and annoying the owners and throwing old rats in the laundry door. The Chinese were supposed to use rats for soup as a rare delicacy. It was great fun to watch the Chinaman dampen the clothes as he ironed them, by filling the mouth with water then blowing a spray of fine mist over the clothes.

Remember back when the first and only time Ringling Bros. Circus showed in Warsaw. They showed on the lot just south of the old Jacques property on East Center street. Their main tent was a round top and the Ringling Brothers (five of them) were featured in a tumbling act. -(Cleve Pepper)

We got the weather forecast from the top of a tall pole that stood in Dr. White's yard, where the public library now stands.

All kids under sixteen years of age had to be off the streets by 9 p.m. They rang the old Baptist church bell for the curfew. Some of the kids, myself included, used to stand on the corner until the last tap of the bell, then duck into the Chinese laundry that stood where the Interurban station now stands and wait there until some older persons were going our way and then walk home with them. -(Cleve Pepper)

A. T. S. Kist's "Gold Spike" railroad project, a proposed line to extend from Fayette, Ohio through Kendalville, Albion, North Webster, Warsaw, Mentone, Rochester, Francesville and Winamac, to a point on the Wabash railroad in Illinois. Though subsidies were voted by most of the cities, towns and townships on the proposed rout, the line never materialized, owing to inability to sell the bonds. So enthusiastic were the residents of Albion and vicinity over the project that, in addition to voting the substantial financial aid, also donated the right-of-way and graded several miles of roadbed at their own expense after the survey had been made by Mr. Kist. The "Gold Spike" project came into being about the time the Wabash road was compelled to give up its lease on the Eel River line, and had the "Gold Spike" become a reality the road would now be the main line of the Wabash between St. Louis and Detroit. This project took place in the latter '80's and it was Mr. Kist's hope to locate the shops and division headquarters in Warsaw. The name "Gold Spike" was suggested by William Grimm, an old-time resident. -(E. C. Aborn)

We had snow in winters and it was great sport to go out to Winona and coast down Evangel hill on toboggan sleds.

Boys wore leggings to protect against the snow or pulled on long stockings right over their shoes when the snow was dry.

Steamer "Daisy", Capt. Seth Baldwin, arrived and departed from the municipal pier at the foot of Buffalo street on trips around Center lake. Fare was 10 cents. On several occasions during extremely high water, the intrepid captain made trips though the outlet and down the Tippecanoe river as far as McElroy Hill. Of course, this was prior to the time when the awful blunder was made by building the cut-off a couple of miles north of the city, whereby a portion of the river was transformed from a beautiful, crystal stream into a narrow phlegmatic creek. An iron bridge, some fifty or sixty feet in length, spanned the stream at the point where now exists a small stone arch at the north end of Lake street on highway No. 20. Had the state conservation department been in existence at that time, it is safe to predict that this awful transgression upon natural beauty would never have been permitted. It is the earnest hope of many citizens that the department will at some future time decide to appropriate sufficient funds to again restore the waters of the legendary Tippecanoe to the channel where nature decreed they should flow. -(E. C. Aborn)

Jim Cisney put up ice on the east side of Center Lake. He always wore a big fur overcoat. In one of the pockets he always kept a big bottle of whiskey as a cold preventative. All Cuffle, applying for a job one morning, was given a generous drink out of the bottle and was told by Cisney that if he would follow him wherever he went he might find a job for him. So they started out through the rooms, down the runway and out on the lake, where Cisney lost his footing and slipped into the water. When the workmen had pulled him out, the men were somewhat worried that Jim might take cold from his plunge into the icy waters, but Jim pulled out his bottle and took a good drink. That assured them that he would be all right. Then All remembered he had been told by Jim to follow him wherever he went, so he slipped into the water, he doubtless having in mind that cold preventative which Jim assured the men would prevent any chance of a cold. -(Joe Teghtmeyer)

The court yard, with the old frame court house in the center and the brick office building on the north side. The many beautiful shade trees, the green lawn and gravel walks. The whole was surrounded by a board fence, the boards of which ran lengthwise and which, in addition to the posts, were painted and sanded in an evident effort to cause them to resemble stone. The entire square was encircled by a board sidewalk, a hitching rack and a cobblestone gutter with the indispensable town pump, which seemed to work overtime, at the corner of Center and Buffalo. Festivals were frequently held in the court yard. This era preceding the advent of gas and electric lights, the festal scene was illuminated by undulating strings of Japanese lanterns containing tallow candles, while immerse kerosene torches, mounted on poles were placed at convenient locations. Admission was free to all--rich and poor, high and low: white and black were there, and all were welcome, the only charge being for the strawberries, ice cream and other delicacies on sale, the proceeds to go to the society in charge of the event, and purchase was optional. -(E. C. Aborn)
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Warsaw Daily Times January 28, 1932

Remember when--
Timothy Leighton, who was the Warsaw section foreman on the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago railroad, later know as the Pennsylvania, from the time of the construction of the line until the building of the Nickel Plate, when he entered the employ of the latter road, Mr. Leighton maintained his residence in Warsaw until his retirement from the Nickel Plate, after which he went to Fort Wayne to make his home with his daughter where he died several years ago. -(E. C. Aborn)

Ed Lewis operated the green house at Lakeside Park and Joe Hutton took care of the beautiful flower gardens in Lakeside Park. They had large flower gardens and beds between the driveways. W. D. Frazer, Dr. I. B. Webber, H. S. Biggs and C. M. Alward operated the park at that time. And remember the fine artistic fountains all fed by natural springs. At the park entrance were two bald eagles. Then the bath house and toboggan slide were located where now stands the ice house.

Perry Kantner was chased up a tree by an escaped bear at Lakeside Park and Andy Pollock, who had been feeding the bear some real honey, coaxed the bear back into his cage. Perry stayed up the tree until 4 a.m. The bear liked Andy. Guess Perry had been teasing Mr. Bear.

The Big Four railroad had a turntable here and used to run their engine on the track, turn it around like a merry-go-round and head it in the other direction. Boys used to have lots of fun playing on the turn table when it was left unlocked.

The Big Four railroad had a roundhouse here where it repaired engines. Trains ran from here to Elkhart and back and to Wabash and back the same day, then stayed here over night. At night Jerry Moore, a colored man, used to shine up the engines.

Ice packing in Warsaw gave employment to hundreds of men the year round and Warsaw shipped more ice than any place in Indiana. Railroads here had special switches and engines to move the ice cars.

Frequently at night, Center lake, looking down Buffalo street from Market or Center streets, resembled a great torchlight procession, occasioned by the multiplicity of spearing jacks (gasoline torches), with powerful reflectors attached to boats occupied by fishermen armed with spears. Then they picked out the "big ones", but modern game laws seemingly had tended to cause spearing and netting to exist only in the history of the sport world. -(E. C. Aborn)

Merl Funk and Dol Blue were the best fishermen in this part of the state. They made all their own baits for casting and also used large live chub minnows, 6 to 9 inches long for pike and bass. Mr. Funk often caught pike four feet long weighing 24 pounds and more. They fished only for the big ones. Mr. Funk put a red feather on a clothes-pin and stuck a hook in it and landed a big bass casting. Another time he used an old corn cob as a bait and it worked just as well. Now you have to pay a fancy price for trick baits that don't do half as good. -(Sam Hutton)

E. F. Yarnelle, of Fort Wayne, caught the largest garfish ever seen around here, nine feet long weighing 365 pounds more or less. Bathers were afraid of the sea serpent. "The City of Warsaw" Winona lake steamer, was almost upset one time by the big fish. Joe Campfield stuffed it and the last time I saw it was 26 years ago. -(Sam Tallstory Hutton)

Ben Gillespie at the corner of Center and Buffalo streets, calling in stentorian tones, "A-l-l a-b-o-a-r-d! Lakeside Park! Goin' right out!" -(E. C. Aborn

The old-fashioned yellow omnibus that plowed, sometimes hub-deep, through mud streets, with Horace Evers occupying the driver's seat on the top. The bus operated between the railroad passenger stations and hotels, as well as transporting passengers to and from private residences. -(E. C. Aborn)

Attempt was made to drill an oil well on the north shores of Pike lake on the Lones farm right near the edge of the lake. Drillers worked for more than a year sinking a shaft, but all they struck was "Bay rum and Plymouth Rock," according to the old head driller who chased us boys away. -(Sam Hutton)

We used to play poker in the courthouse basement. The janitor had a son, "Kid" Hardman, who claimed the officers could not get in. One night in walked Charlie Moon, Charlie Douglas and Will Winebrenner, Warsaw policemen. We all got fined $13.80 each. My alias that night was "J. B. Felt." -(F. Humphreys, Pierceton)

Joe Campfield, Abner Makemson, John Lehman, Houton Frazer and others from here went hunting in Main and brought home many deer and one big bear shot one season by Campfield. Hundreds of persons inspected the game and many in town had venison steak or a piece of bear meat as a souvenir.

John Phillips and M. D. Polk operated dray lines in Warsaw.

Bootblacks were stationed on the street with their brushes and box strapped over their shoulder. Some country boys came to town and their shoes were dusty. Amie Collins wanted to shine their shoes for them and induced one of the boys to let him shine his shoes so the others would, too. After he had shined one shoe he wouldn't shine the other until this boy paid him, after he had told him he would do it for nothing.

School children walked miles to school instead of being hauled in school motor buses.
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Warsaw Daily Times January 29, 1932

Remember when--
There were no interlocker and derail systems at the railroads and engineers had only hand-brakes to bring their trains to a stop. Gates swung across the tracks of the Big Four and Pennsylvania railroad and men operated them by hand to prevent trains colliding at the junction of the two railroads.

The late John Collins was the leading ice dealer in Warsaw.

John Sweitzer used to play the bass drum for the Salvation Army and had the best basso voice in the state. Sweitzer was pretty good with the "Halleujaha" and "amens," too.

The entire space on the north side of East Center street between the Everhard residence and the property now occupied by Milo Amos was vacant, with the exception of a brick house built by the late O. P. Jacques on a patch of high ground near Tamarack street. A board sidewalk extended the entire distance. This walk was built for the most part on stilts and was in a bad state of repair much of the time. It was quite narrow, and in the event a person should make a misstep it usually meant a plunge of several feet into a ditch filled with slime and muddy water. The opposite side of the street was vacant from the present residence property of Roy Roberds on the west to the residence of the late Judge James S. Frazer on the east. That part of this space extending from Tamarack street west was for many years the exhibition grounds for the circuses which visited the city. Market street at that time terminated at Hickory street (Big Four tracks) and the tented field extended for quite a distance south of the present line of that thoroughfare. Among the circuses which exhibit on those grounds could be recalled Ringling's Sells Brothers, Burr-Robbins, Adam Forepaugh and LaPearl, the latter a one-ring show, but a great favorite with Warsaw people, for the reason that each and every one of its performers were artists pre-eminent in their respective lines and the La Pearl band was regarded as one of the best musical organizations that ever visited these parts. On one occasion an aggregation known as the Sagwa Medicine Company anchored on these grounds for a period of two weeks. The company carried a large squad of Kickapoo Indians --bucks, squaws and papooses--who gave exhibitions of their weird songs, dances and tribal customs. In addition expert marksmen demonstrated their marvelous skill and accomplished musicians, both vocal and instrumental, provided splendid entertainment, while extraordinarily proficient prestidigitators mystified the assembled multitude with their feats of legerdemain. Two entertainments were given daily, afternoon and evening, and admission was free to all. It was indeed a most meritorious entertainment and all that was asked of the throngs in attendance was that they listen to a ten-minute talk on the merits of "Sagwa" an Indian remedy "guaranteed to be an infallible cure" for every ailment from corns, bunions and ingrowing nails to floating kidneys and Asiatic cholera. "Price, 50 cents." -(E. C. Aborn)

John Robinson's circus exhibited on one occasion at Lakeside Park. The aggregation arrived on a Sunday morning in hot July via the old C.W. & M. and the train was run directly into the park. After unloading had been accomplished and tents erected, the entire membership of the organization, with the possible exception of the African lions, the Bengal tigers and the laughing hyenas, spent the larger part of the afternoon and much of the night bathing in the crystal waters of Pike lake. The trumpeting of the elephants, as with raised trunks they sprayed the water into the air and over their backs, was echoed by shouts of delight from both performers and canvas hands and snorts of satisfaction from horses and other members of the menagerie. The manager, through a statement published in the paper the following day, announced that their visit to Warsaw would ever be cherished as a bright spot in the memory of all members of the aggregation -both man and beast. -(E. C. Aborn)

Eggs were cheaper even than now at three dozen for a quarter, and hens blushed instead of cackling every time they laid one.

I was helping hold down a balloon being filled with hot air west of the court house. As the balloon slowly started up I got entangled in a rope and Ed Nichols jumped up and cut it with a pocket knife or else I would have been an involuntary aviator. -(Sam Hutton)

When the stock market depression never hurt the business here at the Warsaw Wall Street Exchange. The bar was crowded just as usual.

Bootleggers were not so prominent and dated back way before the Civil war. Later they carried pints of whiskey in their boot-tops and sold liquor on Sundays when the saloons were not permitted to be open on the Sabbath.

When Gus Meyer shipped a load of cattle east and the man in charge sold a cow from the shipment when the train stopped in Ohio to water the stock. Gus could not convict the man because the court ruled there was no crime, but merely a breach of trust.

The Pennsylvania passenger station way down in the west end of town on South Union street, four blocks from the business center. Here also was located the Western Union telegraph office and prior to the advent of the telephone, it was necessary for patrons to walk or drive to the station to send a message. One operator handled both train orders and commercial business. Ed Shorb conducted a railroad eating house on the corner opposite the station. -(E. C. Aborn)

Willis Burket was ordered by the court to divide, the household furniture evenly with his divorced wife. Willis went home and with a saw cut the tables chairs and bed in half and thus complied with the courts order.

Andy Pollock, who had an eighteen inch flowing beard, got into a fight with Willis Burket. Willis got hold of the long whiskers and pulling on them twisted Pollock's head almost completely around. Bystanders separated the combatants. The bout occurred in the court yard, then a favorite place to settle arguments of this kind.

Camp meetings which attracted hundreds of visitors were annually held for a period of two weeks by an organization known as the Holiness Society. The meetings took place at the old fair grounds in east Warsaw and were attended by persons from all parts of the central west. -(E. C. Aborn)

Gypsies held up Tom Archer at their camp on W. Market street, when Archer drove up with his oil wagon , the Gypsie Queen rammed her hand in Archer's hip pocket and got a handful of silver money while four buck Gypsies stood around threatening Archer. Arlie Hillegas telephoned the police and they came to Archer's rescue and recovered the money. Police chief then forced the gypsies to leave town.

The question of superiority of the horse over the mule developed an argument here, and Clave Gilliam's team of horses beat Jim Douglas' team of mules in a drive from here to Goshen and back, fifty miles. Gilliam's horses won by perhaps an hour. The bet was for $50. Two hundred persons watched the finish in Warsaw. Jim Douglass was the father of Harry Douglass of this city, and kept a stable of fine horses and mules.

Twenty-nine years ago a chair factory located where is now the box factory.

Oil drillers on the Goddard farm at Pike lake struck salt water, claiming it spoiled what chances they had for oil.

Bill Klingel and Joe Hutton were the first golf players in this county playing at Mineral Beach golf course.

Otto Philpott took care of the cemetery at Oakwood and paid ten cents for each groundhog scalp. I cleaned them all out and caught 120. -(Sam Hutton)
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Warsaw Daily Times January 30, 1932

Remember when--
William Garner, Warsaw's chief of police for 15 years, used a wheelbarrow for a patrol wagon. When the saloons closed, the drunks were deposited in a row just outside the saloon door and later gathered up by the patrol wagon. After a night in jail, which gave them time to sober up, they were released.

Bennie Becker ran a junk shop where now stands the Skinner monument works. Rumor had it that Bennie was a short-weight artist and gypped the small boys who gathered junk.

Paul Chapman, John Ramsey and Patsey Miller were the local pugilistic artists and staged many an exhibition bout. Chapman learned to box in the navy and was adept with the leather mitt. The Bass feed store was usually the meeting place and slugging and a knockout usually ended the affairs which started quite gently.

Lew German ran the oil wagon and later his East Fort Wayne street, grocery where we bought licorice and chocolate candy with sometimes a prize penny, embedded in the star shaped piece of chocolate.

Deafy Rush was working for Superintendent J. D. Sutton of the city water works company. Deafy did not see Sutton standing nearby and said "Sutton looks like a monkey," with characteristic gestures of a monkey scratching his flea-bitten ribs. Sutton took no offense but Deafy was mortified when he looked up and saw him.

Dr. Woolley sold his drug store here to the late J. B. Watson who remained in the business here perhaps 35 years or more at the same place.

If you wanted to rent a horse and buggy for Sunday you had to leave your order a day or so before with the Huffer Brothers.

The Enterprise department store occupied the three floors of the building recently vacated by R. G. Rutter hardware store. Rosenstock & Shield operated it and sold everything. Then it was predicted that department stores would put out of business all the other stores because of their superior buying facilities, but that didn't prove any more true than the chain store bugaboo.

When Sam Hutton used to sell the Chinese laundremen hickory shad, a beautiful looking fish taken from local lakes, but almost impossible to eat because of its myriads of small bones. The Chinamen could not operate chopsticks on the shad.

Deputy Sheriff Charlie Nice emptied 1200 bottles of home brew in the city dump yard. The rats got drunk and followed Nice to George Griggs' barn. and Mr. Griggs objected.

Clark Mumaw worked at his father's bakery shop located where now stands the Mellencamp store.

Bill Justus and Ed Hunter were dispensers at Bill Chapman's place and Bill would say to every customer the toast: "The same to you, too?"

Mayor L. J. Bibler learned his profession under R. C. Smith, undertaker.

You could drive your horse and buggy into Gilliam's livery barn here and get your horse fed for ten cents and unhitched, fed and hitched again after storage, all for twenty-five cents. Now that money goes for gasoline. -(A. B. Sloane)

At the Baril restaurant they had a sign here sixty years ago which read: "All you can eat for 10 cents."

There were no awnings in front of Warsaw stores, but wooden roofs extended awning-like out over the entire sidewalk. Sidewalks were made of two-inch planks and were about half the width of the present walks. In the residence district there were no walks in many places. What walks there were, were made of boards.