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A Thriving Western
Town
There are but two towns in Rock County,
both, on the railway, Bassett is the county seat. It is located in the western part of the county and has a population of
about 300.
The other town is Newport,
located in the eastern part of the county.
It is a typical western village and the solitary business street is a
scene of great activity from daylight till dark.
The bulk of the trade of the country for a radius of forty
miles is transacted in Newport and the business
men of the town are enterprising and energetic lot of native born Americans,
mostly from Iowa,
who appreciate the benefits attending a “hustle for business.”
Modern methods characterize their dealings, and their
aggressiveness is reaching out for business has resulted in corralling the
great bulk of the trade of that entire vicinity.
Newport
is one of the principal hay shipping points in the northwest. Of the total of 2,400 cars of hay shipped out
of Rock County in 1899. 1,875 cars were shipped
from Newport
It is also an
important stock shipping point, cattle and hogs being shipped from there in
large numbers. The hog shipping business
along amounts to between $40,000 and $60,000 per year.
During May of this year $6,000 worth of wool was shipped
from Newport to
eastern markets and several large sheep ranches have recently been established
in the county, adding materially to the resource of the section.
Newport is provided with good
graded schools, under the direction of Professor E. James, a graduate of the
state Norman school at Peru.
The Methodists of the town have a good church and the United
Brethren have established a society there.
The Newport
creamery is one of the institutions of which the town is proud. It boasts a record of a carload of butter and
eggs shipped each two week during the five months in the year to the Boston market , where the butter is sold at Elgin prices. When it is considered that this butter is
made of milk from range cattle obtaining their sole sustenance on land worth
less than $15 per acre, modern dairy methods receive a severe shock.
With enterprise which has characterized the town from the
beginning, Newport
is reaching out for two manufacturing institutions which are regarded as
necessary for the future welfare of the young city.
These are a broom factory and a flour mill. A considerable quantity of broom corn is
raised in the vicinity and the highland
on the “table” over in Keya
Paha County
produces a large amount of wheat which would find a good market on the spot if
a mill was at hand to convert it into flour.
One of the solid institutions of Newport is the Rock County State Bank. This was established in February, 1899, with
a capital of $25,000. C. M. Thompson is
president and B. V. Thompson cashier.
Although younger than neighboring banks in the county, this bank does a
liberal share of the business and has plenty of money to loan on proper
securities, being on the alert to take up all legitimate business.
President Thompson, with other Newport
business men is engaged in organizing a company to put in a telephone line to
connect with interior towns in Keya
Paha County.
The Newport Land Company is a concern which has done much to
attract attention to the vicinity of Newport. W. H. Allen is president, C. M. Thompson
treasurer, and S. G. Sparks secretary.
This company does an extensive real estate business, mostly in farm
lands, and is able to give detailed and valuable information regarding land
anywhere in that section of country. Among the long list of lands offered by
this company to intending settlers are ranches of all sizes and descriptions,
farms, etc., in all parts of the county.
One of the leading establishments in the town is that of E.
L. Myers, well known in the state as the president of Nebraska Lumber Dealers’
association. Mr. Myers has one of the
finest lumber yards in the state, his sheds being enclosed and measuring 290
feet in length. Other sheds are in
course of construction and when these are completed Mr. Myers will have the
finest yard in the state outside of the largest cities. Besides lumber, Mr. Myers handles coal, all
kinds of agricultural implements, wind mills, vehicles of all descriptions,
paint and oils. He also deals in grain
and livestock. He buys hogs and cattle
for the eastern market, his purchases of hogs alone averaging between $40,000
and $50,000 per year. Mr. Myers is a
native of Pennsylvania and landed in Newport twelve years
ago. He has been very successful to
business and owns over a dozen houses and stores in the little town.
The most extensive mercantile establishment in Newport is the general
store of Smith Brothers. They occupy
three store rooms of large size and deal in hardware, furniture, harness,
agricultural implements of all kinds, carriages and wagons, wind mills, pumps,
musical instruments and do a general undertaking business. This house has been established twelve years
and has a substantial patronage from the town and surrounding country. The volume of business done by them last year
amounted to over $35,000.
Another very successful business man is Al Willerling,
dealer in general merchandise, including dry goods, clothing, hats and caps,
crockery, etc. Mr. Willerling has been
in business in Newport
for the past seven years and has accumulated a comfortable surplus, which he
has invested in a ranch and a “bunch of cattle,” demonstrating his faith in the
country and doubling his capital at the same time.
To a person bent on investing that section of country the
most important institution in the town is the livery barn of Frank Gorton. In a country where distant points can be
reached only be driving the discovery of a place where good livery service can
be secured is a very important point.
Mr. Gorton’s barn is well supplied with good horses and strong vehicles
and one of the greatest bugbears to prospective investigators is removed by a
call upon him.
A good share of the publicity which has been obtained by Newport has been secured
through the efforts of Mr. R. Hadspeth, dealer in real estate. Mr. Hudspeth makes a specialty of handling
land belonging to eastern capitalists and has and extensive list of desirable
ranches under his control in the vicinity of Newport and Bassett.
Morning World - Herald
- June 24, 1900
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