This picture, a stereo view of the North East corner of 9^th Avenue and Main Street in Winfield, KS is from the collection of the Cowley County Historical Museum. A detailed photogrammetric analysis of this photo has established the time as 2:56 P.M. on Oct. 3, 1879. This paper is a study and dramatization of what is happening in Winfield on this day.

When viewed in an old Stereopticon 3D viewer, the lamp post jumps out at you as well as the wooden staved barrel in the street to the left of the lamp post, which states "DAILY PAPERS & CITY NEWS" on two sides. Above the barrel is the hand pump for the public well on 9th Avenue. Below the cloth banner proclaiming "McCommon & Harter Druggists" a carefully printed sign showing "NEWS DEPOT," in front of a roof stretched between the drug store and Sydal's Shop. The News Depot houses a barber shop (indicated by a striped pole around which we see two gentlemen peering. The Drug Store was originally the Walnut Valley House, first hotel built in Winfield by J. P. Short, who received lots 11 and 12, Block 128, from E. C. Manning, head of the Winfield Town Co., in exchange. Short lived in a tent during construction. Foundation rock came from an area near Graham cemetery; lumber from trees on the Walnut, and shingles cut from walnut trees in Island Park. Pine siding, flooring, and finishing lumber was hauled from Emporia. Inside walls were covered with plaster board paper, the partitions made of flooring, and stove pipes ran through the roof. The hotel opened on October 14, 1870. Office, dining room, three bed rooms, and kitchen were on the first floor. The second floor had beds which stood heads to the wall on each side with a two foot corridor between the feet. The mattresses were filled with "Prairie feathers." No springs in these beds. Today, this floor above the Drug Store is occupied by doctors and lawyers. O. M. Seward, City Attorney since March, recently dissolved his partnership with Judge Pyburn. Through some consideration to Short, probably cash, Seward has his name painted on both the side and the front of the building.

Short, who originally served as trustee of Winfield Township and then Deputy County Clerk, is now Winfield City Clerk. He has taken up an office in the Page Building, on Lot 9, along with Judge W. M. Boyer, whose building north of the drug store had been purchased by J. S. Mann, clothier, in May 1879.

We see two men sitting on the third step of the stairs going up to Seward's with their feet on the second of the wooden steps. Upstairs, among others, is the office of Dr. Emerson. Two other gents moving about in front of them are blurred because of the long time exposure of camera. We see one indistinct figure standing still in the darkened entrance to the Drug Store and two or three figures moving about under the shadow of the awning to the left of the lamp post. A gent in dark pants with his left hand resting in the V of his vest is leaning against the flag pole with his hat cocked down, shading his eyes from the bright afternoon sun. The time is mid-after noon and we see the shadow of the lamp post almost reaching the bottom of the store front. Since the side of the Drug Store is on Ninth Avenue, which runs east and west, and the front of the store is on Main Street we can see that the sun is in the west and casting a shadow to the north-east. The shadow cast by the street lamp and the flagpole allow us to establish the date and time of the picture. More detail is shown in Appendix I.

In the previous month, both the Republican and the Democrats of Cowley County held their respective County Conventions. The second plank of the Republican platform states: "The people of this country owe the Republican party a debt of gratitude for having accomplished Resumption." The following week the Democrats, also meeting at Manning’s Opera House, used the 7^th plank of their platform to "Condemn the Resumption Act." The Resumption Act of 1875 provided for the redemption of United States paper currency, known colloquially as greenbacks, into gold beginning in 1879.

With "Resumption" accomplished, the local, state and national politicians proceed to "The Prohibitory Laws". One of the leading adherents to prohibition in the state and in the nation is the Governor of Kansas, John St. John. The Governor has accepted an invitation from his friend State Superintendent A. B. Lemmon to speak at the Walnut Valley Fair in Winfield on this day.

Also in town this day are three Nez Perce Indians from Indian Territory in the company of Cyrus M. Scott, former editor of the Arkansas City Traveler. Yellow Bull, his brother Red Elk and Yellow Bear are leaders of a family band of the Niimiipu tribe, as the Nez Perce call themselves. The Chiefs, as they are all addressed, have been invited by the Fair Committee. They are to be a major attraction as will the Governor. The Governor however, has his own agenda with Scott and the Indians. For the past year he has employed Scott as his eyes and ears (spy) in Indian Territory. Scott operates in the Territory under the guise of a horse trader. When the Niimiipu arrived from Baxter Springs in June arrangements had been made for Scott to act as their scout and lead them to their new reservation adjoining the Ponca. This was the beginning of what was to be a complex, two-way clandestine relationship between the Niimiipu, Scott and Governor St. John. The Fair is the first time they had all met together. It is noteworthy that Joseph did not come up for this event. It would take at least another paper to analyze why not. Had President Hayes been at the Walnut Valley Fair, Joseph would have been there.

Joseph is the primary leader of the captive Niimiipu in Indian Territory. During the Nez Perce War in 1877 he had earned grudging respect from General Nelson Miles as he helped direct a1600 mile fighting retreat. After the loss of all of the war chiefs and nearly half of the 900 people, Joseph camped in the Bear Paw Mountains, only 40 Miles from the Canadian border. Miles surrounded and surprised the Niimiipu and after heavy fighting they reach a standoff. Yellow Bull acted as the runner between Miles and Joseph and after some days convinced Joseph to seek peace. Gen. Miles had accepted Joseph’s terms that the surviving 400 Niimiipu be returned to their homeland in the Wallowa Valley in Eastern Oregon. Gen. Miles felt that he had the support of both Gen. Howard and the President in accepting Joseph’s terms stipulating that the Niimiipu would be returned to their homes in the Wallowa Valley. At a later date Miles was assured by President Hayes that the executive order on his desk, allowing the return of the Niimiipu to their homeland, would be signed immediately. As soon as Miles left his office, Hayes tore up the order and focused on financial matters such as the Resumption Act of 1875.

In January, 1879, Joseph and Yellow Bull traveled to Washington D. C. to talk to President Hayes and other officials. On the 16th Joseph gave a speech at Lincoln Hall which is quoted by Helen Hunt Jackson and many others as a milestone in the quest for Native American civil rights. Since the War Joseph has launched a public relations effort that is even more sophisticated than his military campaign. Yellow Bull, Red Elk and Yellow Bear are in Winfield as part of this effort. They are on display at the Fair, but they are also on a mission.

Articles appear monthly in the press regarding the many aspects of the Nez Perce War and the treatment of Joseph and his people in the aftermath. In the December, 1877, issue of The Galaxy, a good description of the War itself written by an author who gives only his initials as F. L. M. The surrender was October 5, 1877, so this is very soon after the event. In December, 1878, W. H. Babcock authors "Joseph the Nez Perce" in Harper’s Monthly. The front page of the Jan. 29, 1879, Arkansas City Traveler says "Chief Joseph, in full aboriginal regalia, was the bright particular star at a White House reception on Tuesday evening. Joseph seemed to enjoy it immensely."

In March 1879, Gen. Miles’ article "The Indian Problem" gives his viewpoint in the North American Review. It is followed in April by Joseph’s article, co-authored by Right Rev. W. H. Hare, D. D., "An Indian’s View of Indian Affairs", which is an expansion of his speech delivered in Lincoln Hall. A key statement in Joseph’s article is:

While often overlooked by historians, this statement clearly says that Joseph expected to kill Miles before the fight was over. The phrase "…what stock we had left" refers to the 1300 Indian ponies remaining from the initial herd of 4000. Most of these were the renowned Appaloosa horses that the Nez Perce had bred for centuries. All of this stock was "disposed of".

In July, Gen. O. O. Howard wrote "The True Story of the Wallowa Campaign" generally supporting Joseph, but takes issue with his claim to the Wallowa land.

Yellow Bull will stay on Joseph’s three points: they deserve their freedom, they want the same rights as all men, they pose a threat to no one. Scott and the Governor will not miss the irony as this message is delivered by the translator Chapman. In the past month the Arkansas City Traveler has reported that Chapman has left the Nez Perce Reservation for good because he believes they will kill him if he returns. He did. They didn’t.

The completion of the Railroad from Mulvane on Tuesday, September 30, adds an extra day to the Fair and at least 4000 extra people that day. Although the Fair Association has been boosting the Fair for six months, they have no idea how BIG a crowd is coming until they get a telegram from Mulvane at 8:30 am 1600 people are headed for Winfield on the first of the three trains. The plan starts to fall apart immediately. The call goes out for wagons and carriages to get to the depot on 14^th Avenue. The train arrives thirty minutes early and after a mad scramble, rides are provided for most of the 400 ladies. The men, after riding faster than a galloping horse for two hours on open flat cars, are on their own. On foot, on dusty streets, they head to the Fair Grounds north of Island Park. They may pass three well stocked Saloons, or, maybe not.

A free barbeque has been arranged to feed the crowd, but people must buy a ticket to the Fair to get the barbeque. A lot of people are upset when they pay and don’t get fed! By chance, the dam for Bliss’s Mill is being rebuilt at the time of the fair and the water level in the Walnut River and Timber Creek has dropped about 5 feet below normal level. Fair goers have easy access to Frank Manny’s Brewery and Ice House south across the lowered creek at the north end of Harter St., beyond 3^rd Avenue. The creek will rise ten feet after completion of the new dam.

By Friday, the day of the Governor’s visit, everyone’s patience has been tested. Friday night Mr. and Mrs. Bliss will hold a gala party (dry, of course) for the Governor. Charles Bliss and his sister, Jennie Rigby, wife of Rev. N. L. Rigby are staunch prohibitionists as are surely most of the attendees at the party. This will be a key event in planning the upcoming campaign to make Winfield a dry city. William Hackney, today in charge of the horse races and the speed ring at the Fair, is deciding if he should run for State Senator and go to Topeka on the prohibition ticket. Yellow Bull, during his day in Winfield will have an up close view of how political action is organized and energized in this society. In the Winfield Courier, Mr. Millington mentions that Yellow Bull was in town for the Fair and spoke for 10 minutes.

James G. Evans, 45. A photographer of Muscatine, Iowa. He will produce several prominent series of stereo photographs. He is listed in the Directory of Civil War Photographers, as being in Muscatine from 1862-65.

A. Hezekiah Beck, 36. A photographer and partner in BECK & DILLON Photographers. Their gallery is located on 10th avenue, between Main and Manning streets. Mr. A. H. Beck is an old resident of Cowley County, and well known to everybody. Mr. H. Beck has also been in the county for several years. Mr. G. W. Dillon, though but a year and a half in our city, is already well known and has had twenty years experience as a photographer. They are all gentlemen of ability in their profession, as can readily be seen by a glance at their work in their gallery, and spare no pains in endeavoring to please their patrons.

David H. Dix, 29. He specializes in well digging and foundation structures. He was one of the laborers who rebuilt the Bliss Mill dam in 1879. In March 1881 he undertook the job of making repairs on the city wells on Main Street. He lived at 920 East 8th Avenue. In 1885 he finished making a well at the "Imbecile Asylum" in Winfield and constructed a water reservoir six feet in diameter. In 1886 he built a 500 barrel cistern in the basement.

Ira McCommon, 28. A druggist and partner of Joe Harter. They purchased the A. H. Green drug store on the N. E. corner on 9^th & Main in mid November, 1877. A few months earlier he had purchased Dr. Mansfield’s Drug Store. Prior, he worked at the drug store of B. F. Baldwin. He is brother-in-law to Rev. Platter. He lives on the East side of Menor between Court House (now 14^th Avenue) and Maple.

Sol Burkhalter, 29. He operates a livery stable on the North side 8^th, between Main and Millington. He lives on the North side of 7^th between Loomis and Fuller. He likes to fish and hunt and knows race horses quite well. He seems to be a bachelor.

Joe Harter, 28. Along with brothers: Louis C., Virgil, Charles L., and David M., they become known as the "Harter Brothers." At times they worked together in various mercantile projects in Winfield and at times each carried on separate projects by themselves or with others. In time even the father of the Harter brothers, Elam Harter, became involved in one of their activities: the Tunnel Mills. Brother Charlie, 28, is Cowley County sheriff in 1879.

J. B. Chambers, 36. J. B. is a harness maker for F. J. Sydal. He lives on the East side of Manning between 7^th and 8^th. He is one of several employees who manufacture saddles and harness for Mr. Sydal. The other manufacturer of these goods is Wm. Newton, who will one day endow a hospital in Winfield.

J. W. Curns, 35. He is partnered with Manser in the Land Office. He lives on the N. E. corner of 8^th and Loomis. In January, 1873, he is Deputy Register of Deeds for Cowley County. In July the same year he is City Clerk and in August forms a Land Office with G. S. Manser. In March, 1874 Curns & Manser handles the sale of the East ½ of D. A. Millington’s block (now Memorial Park) to Rev. James M. Platter to build a grand new house directly north across 10^th Avenue from Mr. Fuller. Mr. Curns is now building a fine new brick house on 8^th Ave. which will be enclosed by mid-December. Mr. Curns is a Democrat.

G. S. Manser, 37. He moved to Winfield from Arkansas City and partnered with Curns in the Land Office. He lives on the S. W. corner of Millington and Blanden (now 13^th Ave.). Rev. Platter married C. S. to Fannie Walton, daughter of Amos Walton of Arkansas City on January 4, 1874. Curns & Manser seem to be involved in every civic organization from the International Order of Odd Fellows to the organizing of a Literary and Scientific Association and the establishment of a Library and Reading-Room in Sept. of 1874. Mr. Manser is a Republican.

Frank Manny, 36. He was born in Halle Saxe, Mersburg, Germany, on March 13, 1843. His family were beer brewers and he was brought up in that trade. Coming to America in 1862, he first lived at St. Louis, but immigrated to Kansas in 1870. He took up a claim in the south part of Rock Township. After ‘proving up’ on his claim, Manny came to Winfield for a year or two, and then went to Wichita for a time. He married Mary Chamberlain there in 1876. Frank Manny and his wife returned to Winfield, which remained his home for the rest of his life. They had six children: Carrie, May, Frank, Carl, Lee, and Ruth. Frank Manny built a stone brewery and ice house, at a cost of $13,000, after January 1, 1878. The 1888 city directory shows his home at 804 East Third (N. W. corner Harter) and his ice and coal yard on East Ninth Avenue.

Mrs. Jennie Rigby, 37. She was originally married to Rev. Tousey, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Winfield. After his death she married his replacement, Rev. N. L. Rigby. She and her brother C. A. Bliss are founding members of the First Baptist Church of Winfield and she works tirelessly on church projects and activities.

Charles A. Bliss, 47. He is among the first businessmen in town, building a store 84 feet by 22 feet in 1871. He builds Bliss’ Winfield Mills in fall of 1872 with partners Blanden and Woods. The mills are 3 ½ stories high, cost $25,000 and are finished in spring 1873. Bliss is operating a brick yard by 1878. When the mills are shut down in the fall of 1879 to rebuild the dam flour is in short supply. Buyers must go to Arkansas City for flour. Nov. 1879, flour production resumes.

Mrs. Julia Bliss, 42. The wife of C. A. Bliss, she moved to Winfield with her husband in 1870. The Bliss family is a major supporter of the First Baptist Church in Winfield and provided most of the funds for the first church as they will for the second, to be built in 1882. Mrs. Bliss is very close to her sister-in-law Jennie Bliss Rigby. The Bliss’s live on the South West corner of 10^th and Fuller.

Rev. N. L. Rigby, 40. Born in England, he is a Baptist minister. He seems to have come after Rev. Tousey dies. He is in Winfield by the fall of 1873. The church Christmas production of Pilgrims Progress put on by Mrs. Tousey, and Rev. Rigby is a big hit. On Jan 2, Rev. N. L. Rigby baptizes first convert in Walnut River. In March 1874 Mrs. Tousey becomes Mrs. Rigby. Rigby also raises sheep and is active in the Cowley County Wool Growers and Sheep Breeders Association. He sells his flock of 380 sheep in 1883 when he moves to Topeka.

Brettun Crapster, 23. He came to Winfield at 16. A good student, he worked for his cousin Charlie Black at his store on the SE corner of 9^th and Main and saved the store in November of 1874 when Charley Harter tried to fill a lighted coal oil chandelier. The oil ignited from one of the burners and spilled on the floor. J. J. Ellis ran over with a blanket to smother the fire but tripped over the can of oil and flame went everywhere. Jack Cruden and Tom Braidwood did their best to stamp and smother the fire, but it was Bret who had run outside to the horse trough and got two buckets of water and doused the fire and saved the day. Bret traveled often and widely. In 1876 he was in Philadelphia for the Centennial Fair. In 1877 he went to the Dakota Territory with "Uncle Billy" Rogers. They invested in a transportable sawmill in Leavenworth and hauled it up to Deadwood. After his Chinese laundryman taught him to play the game of Keno, Bret bought a gold mine and a new printing press and started a newspaper. After more travels, he returned to Winfield and bought the Winfield Telegram. He and Charley Black get their friend Charley Harter elected Sheriff in 1878. Bret, or Burt as he is sometimes called, is socially active and helped found The Winfield Amateur Dramatic Association.

Mott C. Rogers, 23. He wholesales wines, liquors, and cigars, and operates a billiard room, 8^th & Main. It is conveniently just across the street south of the Central Hotel. His dad G. W. Rogers runs the cigar factory, his mother runs the English Kitchen, one of two restaurants in Winfield. Mott is active in the social scene in Winfield and well regarded.

D. A. Millington, 56. After teaching for five years he left Illinois for the gold fields of California. He walked out via St. Louis, St. Joseph and Salt Lake City. After some success in gold mining he returned by steamship and mule across Panama. After lumber in Illinois and mercantile in Iowa he moved to Leavenworth, Ks. in the fall of 1862. He arrived in Cowley County in the summer of 1870 among the earliest settlers. He was part of the original Town Company and he surveyed and platted the town. He lives next door to Rev. Platter and across the 10^th street from banker Fuller. In 1875, his widowed oldest daughter Clara M. Flint married Allen B. Lemmon. Lemmon and Millington become partners in the Winfield Courier and were both City Council members before Lemmon’s election to State office. They have boosted tirelessly for a railroad and today have finally achieved their goal of putting Winfield on the map. Their second railroad will arrive within weeks from the east.

Cyrus M. Scott, 31. Scott came to Arkansas City from Emporia in 1871, hauling a printing press, damaged by a fire that almost killed Scott, and printed the first paper of the Arkansas City Traveler before shingles were placed on the roof of his office. He purchased the First Presbyterian Church, Methodist Church Parsonage and the lot on which the Calaboose stood in Arkansas City in 1880. He sold the paper and went into horse trading in Indian Territory, keeping this cover in 1879-1882 while working for Gov. St. John, assisted by Chief Joseph, Yellow Bull, and other Nez Perce Indians.

John Peter (Pete) Baden, 28. Born in Hanover, Germany in 1851, he emigrated to the United States in 1866 and arrives in Winfield in August 1879 by stagecoach from Independence with his wife Adelaide Elisabeth Ballein Baden and son Martin William who is age 7 months. He established his first business in town, a dry goods store on the S. W. corner of 10^th and Main. Many farmers paid for their clothes with the produce of their farms. J. P., as he preferred to be called, started another business to sell that produce. By 1882 would be shipping iced chickens, eggs and vegetables to the mines in Colorado. He buys Bliss’s Mill and converts it to steam power. He buys the Ice House and also converts it to steam. By 1893 his enterprises will allow him to build St. Johns College in Winfield. Just before his death in March, 1900 he will be negotiating to ship directly to Galveston, Texas.

Yellow Bull, 38 (est.). He is often referred to as 2^nd Chief of Nez Perce. Their reservation is in Indian Territory adjacent to the Ponca reservation near present day Ponca City, OK. He and Chief Joseph and interpreter Ad Chapman have visited the White House in Washington D. C. on January 16, 1879. His son, Red Moccasin Tops, along with Shore Crossing and Swan Necklace, killed Richard Devin and several other white settlers to start the Nez Perce War in March of 1877.

Governor of Kansas John Pierce St. John, 46. The 8th governor of the State of Kansas, St. John was born at Brookville, Franklin county, Ind., Feb. 25, 1833. He is the son of Samuel and Sophia (Snell) St. John. His father is a native of Orange county, N. Y., and his mother of English extraction. He was educated in the log school house of that period, and in 1852, at the age of 19, crossed the plains to California. There he pursued commercial ventures and participated in the wars with the Indians in northern California and southern Oregon in 1853-54. He was twice wounded. He then visited the Sandwich Islands, Mexico, Central and South America. He began the study of law while working as a miner in California. When the Civil War broke out he enlisted as a private in Company C, Sixty-eighth Illinois infantry, and served with that regiment in Virginia until it was mustered out in Nov., 1862. He was then commissioned a captain and commanded troops rendezvoused in camp at Mattoon, Ill. When the One Hundred and Forty-third Illinois infantry was organized, when he was commissioned lieutenant-colonel and served until the end of the war. After 4 years of law practice in Independence, Mo. he located in Olathe, Ks. He went to the State Senate n 1872, declined the Prohibition nomination for Governor in 1876 and was elected as Republican Governor in 1878 for the first of two terms. At this time he worked with Allen B. Lemmon, State Superintendent of Public Instruction from Winfield.

This is St. Johns first visit to Winfield and he will arrive on the private car provided by another of Lemmon’s friends from Topeka, W. B. Strong, General Manager of A., T. & S. F. RR.

Ad Chapman, 38. As a boy, during the Rogue River Indian War of 1855-56, Chapman carried dispatches for the Army from The Dalles to Fort Walla Walla. In 1861 he settled on White Bird Creek. For several years, he operated a ferry across the Salmon River near the mouth of White Bird Creek, and tradition has it that because of the experience he earned the nickname "Ad," an abbreviation for Admiral. Chapman married an Umattila woman who bore him a child. He later deserted them. Chapman was a member of the party that had hanged an Indian called Wolf Head, and according to Many Wounds, Chapman had brutally assaulted two Indian boys whom he had caught stealing his watermelons. He is also supposed to have sold a horse to White Eagle and then attempted to take it from him by force, the warrior had given him a sound beating. There are reports that Chapman was on the tribal blacklist for selling Nez Perce beef to Chinese miners, but he apparently maintained good relations with some of the Indians despite his shortcomings. Looking Glass was his friend, and there were others. Chapman was accused of turning tail and running during the Battle of White Bird Creek. Ad Chapman had a long history with the Nez Perce and been a combatant against them in the Nez Perce War. He feels the Indians respect his strength which is great. They feel contempt for his brutality and don’t trust him.

William P. Hackney, 36. Born in Jefferson County, Iowa, December 24, 1842, He served in the Union Army during the Civil War. In January, 1868, he was married to Miss Callie L. Vanderventer. On his way to Winfield in the winter of 1870-71, he was drafted by the vigilantes of Cowley County in their war against the Sheriff of Butler County and his gang of horse thieves. The Governor became involved as did the Supreme Court and Hackney established a good reputation in Topeka as a lawyer. He served as a member of Kansas State House of Representatives, 1872-77, and again in 1905-06. He partnered with Judge J. Wade McDonald in their law firm and various other ventures. Hackney & McDonald owned the Livery Stable lot and building on north end of Block 128. He was mayor of Winfield 1887-88. He died July 28, 1926 in Sawtelle Soldiers Home, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, Calif., burial location unknown. His election to the State Senate in Nov. 1880 was on the prohibition platform.

Non speaking – Red Elk and Yellow Bear
Mentioned by Name - Charles Youngheim, F. J. Sydal, J. O. Stuart, Marion B. Wallis, Stauffenberg, Sid Majors, E. F. Galloway, Doc Emerson, Jimmy Mumford, Mack McQueen, W. R. Jillson, Chief Joseph, Soranus L. Brettun, Charles C. Black, Red Moccasin Tops, Marshall E. B. Nicholson, Charlie Clayton, C. E. Torrance, and Allen B. Lemmon.

Mr. Beck, I think we want to get the whole block in the frame, clear down to Hackney and McDonalds livery building. That would put Stuart & Wallis’ Clothing Store at about the center.

Yes sir, that’s what I had in mind. By the way, it has been Mr. Mann’s Clothing Store since June and right now he and his associates Mr. Youngheim and Mr. Stauffenberg are standing by the barber’s pole. They can make you as fine a suit as any tailor in Kansas City or Chicago. Fine young men they are. I think we should leave them right were they are. I like people in the scene, at least a few, to give it some life.

We need to be careful, too many will overwhelm the picture. There are a lot of folks in town today. We need just enough. I really like that picture you took, what? A couple of years ago, of the Central Hotel, with the stage coach out front! That was a classic. Who was the guy standing with his thumbs in his lapel?

That was Sid Majors. He had just gone into partnership with his son-in-law and was playing the part. I really like that picture too.

Who are those men on the stairs by the Drug Store? Can we get them to move.

(yelling) Dave (Dix), can you fellas move away while we take a picture.

We’d like to Zeke, but (E. F.) Galloway had a bad fall up at Bliss’s Dam and is hurt pretty bad. Jimmy (Mumford) and Mack (McQueen) and I brought him down here to see Doc Emerson. Doc said he’ll be back in an hour or two. He said to just keep Galloway still till he gets here.

OK! So you guys just sit there and don’t move. We don’t want a bunch of ghosts wandering around in the picture.

Zeke, what about the wagon? Can we get that out of there?

Ira, how long is it going to take to unload that wagon?

Well Zeke, it will only take a few minutes now, as soon as Mr. Burkhalter unloads my pride and joy. These new glass showcases have been sitting in Wichita for two weeks waiting for the railroad to get here. They were custom made in Kansas City and will be the talk of the southwest! I’m going to have them set up in my drugstore just as soon as humanly possible.

(to Beck) Ira, has been staying awake at night waiting for his new display cases. He’ll go in and work on them and I’ll stay out here for your picture.

Thanks, Joe. Just lean up against that flag pole and brace yourself so you won’t move. Your brothers can just stay there in the front door. And Mr. Chambers, you look fine just hold on to that post and don’t move when we take the picture.

I’ll just wait for your signal Zeke. What about Mr. Sydal? Do you want him out here?

You’ll do fine J. B. You look like a saddle maker in that apron.

Mr. Beck, do you want Mr. Manser and I to get out in front of our Land Office?

No, Mr. Curns, you can just stand here behind the camera and keep an eye out for someone that looks land-hungry.

That would be a lot of folks Hezekiah, they are all coming to town looking for land. We have been swamped for the last 4 days since the train pulled in Tuesday morning.

(looks up from arranging his wagon) Haven’t these been the durndest crowds you have ever seen, Mr. Manser? We sure got caught flat footed when young Mr. Jillson came running into town with the telegram Tuesday morning. It said 1600 people were on the first train, just then leaving Mulvane. Expected them here by 10:00am. Woah! All of the liveries in town didn’t have enough wagons to handle that crowd. It took us till noon, running back and forth just to get the 400 ladies up to the fair grounds. Most of the fellas had to walk the two miles and boy oh boy were they thirsty after that two hour ride on open flat cars from Mulvane. They most all grabbed some bar-b-queue at the Fair and headed across the creek to Manny’s place to wash it down.

(walking up to group – in heavy German accent) There were lots of folks, and after ball game, there was more, more than I’ve ever seen. They liked to wiped me out. Young Jillson come a runnin’ up talkin’ de telegraph. He says for me to write up an order for my friend in Wichita that has the brewery and he will send it for two bucks. By Wednesday morning we had two more wagons full of beer kegs. It was just like the beer gardens in the old country for the Oktoberfest. Everyone was happy and singing.(will not try to simulate German accent here)

We hauled who we could back to the station. The rest was left where they lay, it looked like Shiloh the day after the battle.

That was after the ballgame Sol. They were tired and thirsty and barely able to walk across the creek to my ice house. It sure was nice that Charlie Bliss opened his dam for repairs. If the water had been high it would have been very hard for people to crossover to my place. (accent)

Tired hell, they wuz drunk Frank! Dead drunk. Marshall Nicholson had to rescue one fella from a barrel of cranerries down on Main Street. He’d gone to sleep, or passed out, on top of the barrel and had sunk with only his head and his feet stickin’ out. Charlie Clayton and C. E. Torrance came back to their beds at the Olds House Tuesday night and found two strangers sleepin’ in their beds so they stood ‘em up in the corner and in the mornin’ there they wuz still standin’ and sleepin’ in corner.

(walking up with her husband to her brother and his wife, to her brother, C. A. Bliss) Charles, are you responsible for this celebration of Saturnalia alleged to be a Fair.

My dear Jennie, t’was no intention of mine to send the flocks across Timber Creek to Manny’s Biergarten. The dam has been in poor shape for months and this is when we fix it, before the spring rains.

I think sometimes you are so concentrated on building your business and building the town that you forget the work of the lord. And Frank, you know better than to take advantage of all these young men! This is not the old country and these people can’t handle their alcohol the same.

(English accent) Frank, we know you come from a different culture, but here on the frontier we are trying to build a better society, and we believe that that will be without strong drink.

Begging your pardon Reverend, but this Fair is the best thing that ever happened to Winfield. We’ve had thousands of people in town this week and all of them are spending money and looking at real estate and farms and thinking about moving here. This town is going to grow and our business with it.

Brett, you have done a lot to boost our town with your newspaper and it is greatly appreciated. But your skill at running a Keno that you learned in that den of inequity in the Dakota Territory is wasted in out community. The flagrant drinking and gambling must stop!

Reverend, it is hard to be a growing city and not provide people with what they want. They will just go on down the Santa Fe line and find what they want. This Fair has been great for our town. A dry Fair will be a dead Fair.

And look what I see coming from my mothers restaurant, Mr. Scott and his Indian Chiefs. Hello Mr. Scott. Hello Chiefs. I thought I had seen men that could eat, but when I saw these fellas this morning I realized that I had never seen real eating!

Mott, your mother sure does set the best table in town, without doubt! And the Chiefs here were famished. They don’t get much good food down in the Territory and it is a real treat so set down to a real meal. But you are right. They can really put it away. And I swear, I don’t know where. Not an ounce of fat on any on them. Where did your mother get the fresh oysters?

Mr. Baden here. (points at Pete Baden standing next to him) He says he is doing a lot of produce trading now.

Yes, they come from a farmer north of Oxford on the Arkansas who gathers a batch before he comes to town. I send them over to Frank’s ice house and he keeps them till we need them. Mott’s mom is one of our best customers.

(addressing Yellow Bull) Chief how did you like the groceries your boys brought back last week?

We all appreciated them very much. Our children will grow strong and run fast because of your flour and potatoes. We are in your debt. Much better than government grub.

You know Chief, I was just thinking that with cool weather coming and with all of that fresh produce I’ve been trading for we might get your children something even fresh fresher.

Pete, you are right! You could use some of my ice to pack eggs and chickens and fruit for Yellow Bull. They would like that. When the dam is fixed we will have lots of ice this winter. Someday we’ll be able to pack a railroad car full of ice with your chickens and vegetables and send it to Mr. Fuller’s goldmine in Leadville.

From what I saw in Deadwood, those miners will pay whatever you ask for fresh eggs and apples and peaches.

(Governor’s party walks up) Brett, are you cooking up another deal? By the way, your Grandfather says to make sure you are behaving. You sound like you are going to make some money. But I hope not with that Democratic rag of yours. By the way, did you hear the news that Deadwood burned to the ground last week? Terrible. Terrible.

Oh God! I didn’t hear about Deadwood but I am not surprised. It was waiting to happen, all those wood buildings and no water system. Not all that different from here, come to think of it. A few years back we almost burned down Charlie’s (Black) store and would have if it weren’t for the horse trough full of water out front of the Drug Store.

I hope Grandfather was generous to your cause.

Oh! And our democratic rag is about to be The Daily Telegram and is next door to the Courier.

Your Democratic rag will be the death of Cowley county! They stand against everything we hold sacred, God, county, federal currency and the Republican party. They are still youlling about the Resumption Act passed four years ago. They want the government to print free money for them. They attack our way of life. This young man’s rag does the barking for all the political frauds of this place, but thank God we don’t have to worry about ever having a Democratic President in our lifetime.

Sir, thank you for you endorsement, but as a matter of detail your editorial referred to me not as a "young man" but rather as, and I quote, an "obsequious cur".

I’m sure you will keep things stirred up Bret.

Your Grandfather was very gracious as always, it was good to see him. He says he may invest here. We need the cities of Kansas to build in stone and brick before we have a terrible fire like Deadwood in any of our cities. Maybe you can convince your Grandfather Brettun to build a fine new stone hotel here in Winfield. You and your cousin Charlie (Black) could run it.

(to Scott) C. M. how are your travels in the Territory going? Any new happenings?

Yes sir, thanks to the Chiefs here and to Joseph we are learning a lot about our neighbors. We’ll talk later, before I leave.

That we will. And thanks to each of you Chiefs, Yellow Bull, Red Elk and Yellow Bear and also your Chief Joseph. We appreciate your help.

And Mrs. Rigby what is it you have on tap for us this evening?

John, that is an extremely poor choice of words considering our situation here!

I’m sorry, Jennie, a slip. Or perhaps we could tap a keg of Frank’s Ginger Beer? He tells me he will honor the prohibitory law when it passes by converting to Ginger Beer.

Yes sir! Yes ma’m! We will use our orchards in whatever way we can. I have a formula that will be very good. And it will be on tap!

John, I don’t always know when you are joking. I know you think I take our Temperance Movement too seriously. But I also know that you are a loyal supporter and we will deliver the votes! Tonight you will see how many supporters we have here in Winfield.

And Frank I care for you dearly, but I wished you would see the light and close down that brewery and concentrate on those lovely peaches in your orchards. You know how much you love my peach pie.

I am looking forward to your party Jennie, I know that you an Julia will put on an event to be remembered.

(to Ad Chapman) Ad will you and your charges be in town tonight?

That’s up to Yellow Bull, where he goes I go.

(Chapman interprets in signs) Tell me Mr. Bull, how do you and your people feel about our demon rum.

What do you mean demon rum?

Do you call it fire water? Alcohol?

Yes, firewater! It burns in our fires, it burns in our bellies, it burns in our souls. It is a very bad thing, firewater. My people have suffered much from drinking firewater. My Chief, Joseph said after the war "I will fight no more forever". I say I will drink no more forever.

Too bad your boy didn’t say that a couple a years ago. Wouda’ kept a lot of folks from dyin’.

(Glares at Chapman) That’s enough Ad. Just interpret, no editorializing.

Drink is bad!

(to Rev. Rigby) Reverend it sounds like we have an advocate.

Mr. Bull we welcome you to our movement to eradicate alcohol from Kansas. Would you like to come to our party tonight to honor the Governor and to align our forces for the upcoming election?

I am greatly honored to be invited to your house, but my friend C. M. wants to sleep in his own bed tonight and with good medicine I can sleep in my bed in my house too. You have helped me understand how your people make talk to make laws happen. I will use what I have learned to help my people get home before they are all gone.

How about you Mr. Beck would you and your wife like to come tonight and learn about our movement?

I would indeed ma’m, but I have promised my wife. I have been working like a madman with Mr. Evans, trying to capture our town in real depth in our stereoscopic photos. My wife just wants me to herself for one night.

I know just how she feels Hezekiah. Say no more.

Bill, will you and Callie be there?

I hope Callie will feel like coming. If she is too tired I will let her rest and be there by myself. You will be serving supper? One of you special tables for our honored guest. How could I miss it.

Oh Bill! You flatterer! You will make a fine Senator.

I do hope Callie get stronger. I know it is difficult for her here on the frontier. Maybe it will be better now that the railroad is here? Mr. Millington says his trip to Colorado and New Mexico this summer was exhilarating, the air is clean and clear and a tonic for the lungs.

This is a very auspicious day. Our town is going to change in ways we cannot imagine. I just wish you could capture the depth of the people in your picture, but alas, the camera freezes what it sees and not our feelings, not our hopes, not our future. Just what is here today, which may be gone soon enough.

Ok folks lets get this picture in the box! Everybody hold still….

Click …. 10 second pause ….click

Mr. Beck, it is done! Even at the great rate that Winfield is progressing we have frozen her forever exactly as she is today on this third day of October, 1879.

Captain Scott we need to speak for a few minutes.

Yes, sir. Mr. Chapman can you excuse us for a moment?

(Scott makes hand signs to Chiefs to follow him and the Governor, they walk away)

A fire will burn the Central Hotel and the north end of Block 128, April, 1880. Bret Crapster’s grandfather, S. L. Brettun arrives in town after the fire and decides to build the grand new Brettun Hotel. Former sheriff Charlie Harter will run the bar. Brett Crapster the gambling.

Zeke & Mrs. Beck will become the parents of twin girls in May, 1880

In March 1880, with Millington’s support Gov. St. John will deliver two temperance lectures in Winfield. Kansas will vote dry in 1880, and Winfield will have a budget crisis in 1882.

William Hackney will become a Republican State Senator in 1880 on the Prohibition platform

Mrs. Bliss gets sick in Dec. 1879 and dies in June 1882. Mrs. Rigby is at her side the whole time.

Rev. Rigby is called to Topeka and then to California The Rigby’s never live in their grand new house at 417 East 10^th Ave. Senator Hackney will buy the Rigby house and remodels it.

On Feb. 18, 1882, Gov. St. John is in Winfield as the house guest of D. A. Millington. On the following day he will speak to a crowed of 700 at the Opera House. He will be introduced by Sen. Hackney and on the stage with him will be C. M. Scott who has brought 60 ladies and gentlemen from Arkansas City on a special train.

The Niimiipu people will leave Arkansas City for the Pacific Northwest on May 22, 1885.

The Brettun Hotel will be bankrupt by 1892 and registered on the tax rolls as a single family dwelling. Later, connected to the city sewer, the Brettun will continue to serve Winfield.

Frank Manny fights the prohibitory laws and commits an unforgivable sin. He tells the Eastern newspapers that the boom is over in Kansas. He is never forgiven. He goes on trial over his Ginger Beer, he is acquitted. At a quarter past three in the afternoon of October 25, 1893 two young bootleggers, Morgan Wright and Wilber Norton kill City Marshal Hugh H. Siverd at the Northeast corner of 9^th and Main in Winfield. They had just delivered a load of beer to Frank Manny’s joint. A retrogression by W. P. Hackney will be printed in the Courier. Later he arranges for a star to placed in the sidewalk on the exact spot of the shooting. The star is cast from Civil War medals of Siverd’s friends and fellow veterans.

James A. Garfield, the last of the log cabin presidents, will be elected in November of 1880, will be shot July 2, 1881, and die September 19, of that year. Vice President Chester A. Arthur will finish the term but will not be re-nominated in 1884. Contrary to Mr. Millington’s expectations, Democrat Grover Cleveland will be elected President in 1884, the first Democratic President since the Civil War. Gov. John St. John, the Prohibition Party candidate for President in 1884 will be a key factor by draining votes away from Republican James G. Blaine.

The new President, Cleveland will finally allow the 231 surviving Nez Perce to leave Arkansas City by rail on May 22, 1885, for the Pacific Northwest. Chief Joseph will remain a political prisoner in exile on the Colville Reservation in west central Washington until his death. He will die of heartbreak in 1904 still on the Colville Reservation. In 1905, Yellow Bull, the last War Chief from the Nez Perce War of 1877, blind but still dignified, dressed in Joseph’s full regalia, will honor his friend at the memorial service at Colville. Yellow Bull will live until 1912.

The photograph studied in this article is from the collection of the Cowley County Historical Society Museum in Winfield. It is one of a set of four Stereopticon cards that have sequential numbers in the Museum collection. The technique of producing three dimensional views by looking at two off-set images had been around since before the development of photography. By the 1870’s Stereopticon viewer was in the parlors of America as is the DVD of today. Photographers around the globe sought out distinctive views that they could sell to this mass entertainment market. Bob Hartung showed this slide to me about ten years ago and it has always fascinated me. It is labeled as N. E. Cor. 9^th & Main with a date of 1877. After ten years of study, we now know that the date should be 1879 and that it is indeed the view looking north, north east along Main Street in Winfield from a point that would be about the middle of Main street in front of The Corner Bank. The buildings are in what is the 800 block of Main on the East side, which is numbered Block 128 on the City of Winfield maps.

A great deal of material has become available since Bob showed me this picture. Frankie Cullison showed me the other three slides in the set. I have had the opportunity to study a lot of historical source material that people in Cowley county have provided for my web site. Richard Kay Wortman and Mary Ann Wortman transcribed many, many rolls of microfilm of old newspapers in their research for their book, The History of Cowley County, Vol. I. The Beginning. Mary Ann Wortman has continued this work since Kay’s death and has unselfishly allowed all of their work to be published on the web site. Bruce Hedrick has scanned many more photographs from the Museum and added them to the web site. Bruce worked with Larry Rhodes of Arkansas City to scan the City Directories of Winfield for 1880, 1885 and 1888 to give us another source of information. Larry also taught me a great deal about how to interpret photos, how to look at them and see was is there, and what is not there. Rex Flottman produced a wonderful photo of the only known copy of the "birdseye view" map of Winfield produced by architect and city engineer John Hoenscheidt in 1878. This map gives us another view of Block 128 at the same time period. J. J. Banks put together a set of digital images of the Mayors of Winfield from the photos at the Museum. And Joan Cales of The Winfield Public Library provided a microfilm with the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps of Winfield from 1884 which provide a detailed map of what was on the ground 5 years later. By using all of these historical references it is now possible to know a great deal about the buildings, the business and the people in the town at the time of the photo. We can now even deduce who took the picture and piece together what was going on in town at the time.

Also special thanks to Dr. J. Diane Pearson of The Ethnic Studies Department, University of California at Berkeley for helping me understand who the Nez Perce were and what they were trying to accomplish.

The walk in front of the stores does not look like wood, rather is appears to be slabs of stone. The light colored track across the front of the picture from right to left appears to be the same type of stone slabs forming a dry, raised walk across Main Street The dirt surface of the street seems to arc down from the crown in the center of the street to a ditched drainage area next to the sidewalk slabs in front of the stores. The man in the apron in front of Sydal's Shop is standing in the low area of the drainage ditch which seems to be eight to twelve inches below the sidewalk. To the left of him is the first of the two surviving trees in this block of Main Street with its protective sheath of boards protecting it from the team and wagon just behind the cross walk, the second tree being behind the wagon near the other end of the block. The foliage on the trees would indicate late spring to fall before the leaves have dropped. From the Winfield Courier we know that the stone sidewalk was contracted by the City Council in October of 1878, to be installed on the following six months. The gas street lamp was installed in January 1879 by the owner of the tinsmith shop in the rear of the Drug Store. By studying the position of the shadows cast by the sun in the photo I have been able to determine that the date had to be before the Spring Equinox or after the Fall. Thus it was either early March or late September or early October. Since the March date cannot be right because of the leaves on the trees it must be September / October.

The shadow of the street light was the first lead I followed to study the position of the sun. Jim Davis provided measurements of the downtown Winfield sidewalks and I built a digital 3D model of Block 128 in my computer. After including a simulated sun position in the model I was able to get pretty close to the right shadow from the street light. Then I discovered that the flag pole supporting the vested gentleman in front of the Drug Store is casting a shadow that is just barely visible extending from the down stroke of the R. Photometric analysis of these two shadows gives us the sun position in the photo as Azimuth 228 degrees and Altitude 35 degrees. We also know that for the corner of 9^th and Main in Winfield the Latitude is 37.242 degrees North and Longitude 97.997 degrees West. This Sun position establishes a time at 2:56 P.M. on October 3. It cannot be October of 1880, because a major fire destroyed the Central Hotel and the North end of Block 128 in April of 1880. It cannot be 1878 or before because of the street light and the stone sidewalks. Therefore the year is 1879. The handwritten date on the photo is two years early. Another piece of supporting evidence for the 1879 date is that Mr. James G. Evans of Muscatine, Iowa, is in town and will leave to go back home on October 15. We can suppose that he has been in town to assist Mr. Hezikiah Beck in taking stereoscopic views. We know from other sources that J. G. Evans is making a tour of the Arkansas River Valley and will publish his photos in "Western Stereoscopic Views Arkansas Valley". Other publications will include "Evans’ Western Views", "Panoramic View of The City of Muscatine, Iowa", "Western Scenery". Today there are fifty-three examples of Evan’s work in the State Historical Society of Iowa collection.

Now that we have a precise date, we can collect who is in business on Block 128.

822 Main – McCommon and Harter Drug Store, upstairs is the law office of Mr. O. M. Seward, and the rooms of Dr. Emerson. Mr. Seward is out of town attending his mother who is ill.

820-1/2 Main – News Stand & Barber Shop. At one time John Nichols, father of George Nichols was at this location. Barber Nommsen was also here, as were the Foults Brothers.

820 Main – Sydal’s Shop – Saddles and Harness The perspective and angle of the photo is a little deceptive at first look. It is initially hard to tell that the aproned man is in front of Sydal's but we see the horse collar and the sign that says SADDLES & HARNESS, and knowing that this is the business of Sydal's we can make the connection. In addition to Frank J. Sydal, there was J. B. Chambers, harness maker

818 Main – This is referred to as the Boyer Building by the Courier. The tree is in front of the store with the sign that declares CLOTHING HOUSE, SHIRTS, HATS CAPS BOOTS SHOES & GENT'S FURNISHING GOODS. On the top of the facade is a sign that says "STUART & WALLIS" the year 1878 beneath. They went out of business in March and J. P. Short handled the disposition of the assets for the bank. He sold the contents of the store to J. S. Mann from St. Louis. Mr. Mann enlisted J. H. Stauffenberg as his taylor and Eli Youngheim as a manager and Ed King as clerk.

816 Main. The next building north is a two story brick with three windows on the second floor. The awning seems to come out to the street behind the tree. A sign on the street says "HARDW,,,," and I would guess would be hardware. This is known as the Page Building. It was built by Jay Page who operated a Saloon and Gambling Parlor with ladies upstairs until he was killed by Leland Web in 1878. When Page’s mother was in town for the funeral she began renting out space in the building. Dr. C. S. Van Doren, dentist and Dr. J. J. Wolfe, physician are located upstairs along with lawyers P. L. Burlingame, R. W. Graham and W. W. Perkins and of course County Clerk, J. P. Short.

814 Main. There is a building obscured the Hardware Store and the Land Office. This is occupied by J. P. M. Butler, Jeweler.

812 Main. In the front a Millinery and Fancy Goods store operated by Miss Nella Clements, in the back a Bakery – Mrs. G. W. Rogers

810 Main – Barber Shop Nommsen, Cigar factory G. W. Rogers

808 Main. Restaurant – The English Kitchen – Operated by Mr. & Mrs. G. W. Rogers and acknowledged as the best eating establishment in Winfield.

806 Main – The "LAND OFFICE" sign prominently displayed on the south side of the building is the office of J. W. Curns and G. S. Manser operating as Curns & Manser.

802-804 Main. The next building is a large livery barn with a very tall gabled roof that covers two lots in width. The sign says "LIVERY STABLE" and we know from the map of 1884 that this building is on the second and third lots from Eighth Avenue. The lots and building are owned by law partners Hackney & McDonald. Several firms have operated the livery stable.

800 Main. Saloon and Billiards, operated by Mott Rogers, son of G. W. Rogers. This first lot is located strategically just across Eighth Avenue from the Central Hotel. When the stage coaches pull up to the Central it is a short walk across the street to wash down the trail with a cool one. This location has been a saloon since the beginning.

Grafe, Steven L., Lee Moorhouse Paula Richardson Flemming (Forward). Peoples of the Plateau: The Indian Photographs of Lee Moorhouse, 1898-1915 (The Western Legacies Series) Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2005.

Jackson, Helen Hunt. A Century of Dishonor: A Sketch of the United States Government’s Dealins with some of the Indian Tribes. First edition published in 1881 by Harper & Brothers, New York. With additional Material in Appendix XV, published in 1885. Forward by Valeri Sherer Mathes. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1995.

Higgins, Cindy. Kansas Breweries & Beer, Topeka: Kansas History, Spring, 1993. http://www.freestatebrewing.com/FSBHistory.html