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Gwefan Cymru-Catalonia / Wales-Catalonia Website. The Welsh in Minnesota – an
online version of a book published in
1895 - "History of the Welsh in Minnesota, Foreston and Lime Springs, Ia.
Gathered by the Old Settlers. Edited by Revs. Thos. E. Hughes and David
Edwards, and Messrs. Hugh G. Roberts and Thomas Hughes"
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Gwefan Cymru-Catalonia Pages
138-158 48 The Welsh Language |
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History of the Welsh in
Minnesota, Foreston and Lime Springs, Iowa, gathered by the Old Settlers
Edited by the Reverends
Thomas E. Hughes and David Edwards, and Messrs. Hugh G. Roberts and Thomas
Hughes.
1895
THE WELSH SETTLEMENT OF LIME SPRINGS, IOWA.
By the Rev. Daniel Williams, Bancroft, Iowa. (pp138-158)
48 THE WELSH LANGUAGE. (x138)
The short sketch that I shall write about the Lime Springs Welsh settlement
will no doubt be read by many Welsh people, but I shall constantly keep before my
mind, as I write, the American reader, who is not able to read the Welsh
language, and is not familliar with Welsh customs.
First of all, a word may not be out of place about the Welsh language. Many
suppose that the language of Wales is simply the language of England, of which
the principality of Wales, is in some sense a part, but this is a great
mistake. There is hardly a language in Europe that differs more radically from
the English than the Welsh. They belong to different families - the English to
the Teutonic, and the Welsh to the Celtic family. As the Angles and Saxon came
from northern Germany, the English resembles its old sisters, the German, Dutch
and the Scandinavian tongues; it has been very materially changed by the
influence of the Latin, so that it now resembles, in many points, what are
known as the Romance tongues - the French, Spanish, Italian, etc., but the
Welsh was the original language of Britain - of a part of the island at least -
when the Angles and Saxons came, and retains to this day its distinctive
traits, and its distinguishing features. That it differs from the English may
be shown in this way. One of the most popular of English hymns, "Guide Me,
O Thou Great Jehovah?" was written by a Welsh minister, Rev. William
Williams. The same hymn is a favorite with the Welsh - in its Welsh version, of
course. Which of the two versions was written first I do not know. The first
stanza of the Welsh runs thus:
"Arglwydd! arwain trwy'r anialwch
Fi bererin gwael ei wedd,
Nad oes ynof nerth na bywyd,
Fel yn gorwedd yn y bedd.
Hollalluog
Ydyw'r un a'm cwyd i'r lan."
Below is a translation of the above, word for word:
Lord guide through the wilderness,
Me (a) pilgrim poor his look,
Not is in me, strength nor life,
Like a-lying in the grave.
Almighty
Is the one that will lift we up.
There is very little resemblance, it will be seen, between a word in Welsh and
the same word in English. Through and trwy in the first line, in
and yn in the fourth are about the only instances in which any
resemblance can be seen.
The patriotic Welshman will probably not agree with me that the Welsh is a
difficult language to acquire by mere grammar and lexicons, but such it
certainly is. Its euphonic changes - though one who has learnt the language
when a child, makes them without the least effort and without the least
mistakes - to a "foreigner" must be very puzzling. When to drop the c at the beginning of a word, or change
it into g or ch, when to change the t to
d or th is a knowledge he will have only after learning many rules, and
after putting these rules in practice for many a month. It is rarely that one
who learns the language from books becomes a master of the Welsh in this
respect.
A few years ago a professor of ancient languages, in one of the colleges of
Maine, made himself familiar with this language, by the use of the bible,
grammar and lexicon. His testimony is this: "Of all the languages I have
studied, the most complicated and wonderful in its euphonic changes is the
Welsh." Dr. James Hadley, long professor of Greek in Yale college, had
quite an affection for the Welsh; only a short time before his death, he
recited to his family, a Welsh hymn, and gave them the translation. The
Cambrians of the United States are just now proud of an American lady, of
Wilkesbarre, Pa., Miss Edith Brower, who it appears, has become quite familiar
with the Welsh language. In the Atlantic Monthly, for January, 1895, there is
from her pen an excellent article on "The Meaning of the Eisteddfod."
Letters written in Welsh by the late Dr. Hugo Schuchart, of Gratz, Austria,
show that he had a remarkable command of the Welsh.
This language, though known to but few "foreigners," is the language
of Wales, and is the language in daily use in thousands of families in America.
It is the language in use in the settlement - of which we now undertake to give
a short sketch.
The Welsh settlers of Lime Springs are to be found in six townships,
(1) Bristol, (2)York and (3)Beaver, Southern Fillmore
county, Minnesota,
and (4)Albion, (5)Forest City and (6)Chester, Northern Howard county, Iowa.
The settlement, therefore, is divided into two parts
by the state line, and into nearly two equal parts by the Upper Iowa river.
Lime Springs is a town of 600 inhabitants. In the language of railroad men, it
is a town on the I. & M. division of the C., M. & St. P. R. R., half
way between Austin and Calmer. One mile north of it is the old town of the same
name. Four miles northeast is Foreston, on the river already mentioned. Foreston
is not far from the geographical center of the settlement. With Foreston as a
centre, a circle drawn with a radius of twelve miles or so, would include about
all the Welsh families in this part of the country.
49 THE LOCATION OF FORESTON (IOWA) (x140)
In early days Foreston was quite a village, containing in 1866 probably fifty
or sixty buildings, but when the railroad came to Lime Springs in 1867, its
death sentence was signed; for many a day it has been like the deserted village
of Goldsmith, except that in this case the ground is deserted by the buildings,
and not the buildings by the inhabitants. The mill, the proprietor's house and
barn, the miller's house and Thurber's barn on the hill, are the only buildings
now to be seen; and these are all of recent construction, except Thurber's
barn; it stood there, we believe, in ante-railroad times. For the sake of
convenience we will go out from Foreston and locate definitely a few other
points. A mile and a half south is the Foreston church, four miles southwest is
the church of Lime Springs and six miles northeast is the Bristol church. From
the location of these Welsh churches may be gathered the location of the Welsh
families, for the churches were built, of course, at points most convenient for
the greatest number. Eighteen miles north of Foreston is Preston, the county
seat of Fillmore; twelve miles southeast is Cresco, the county seat of Howard;
four miles south is Barker's Grove, a large grove on high ground; in very early
times, according to tradition, a famous hiding place for horse thieves. The
next town above Foreston, on the river, is old Lime Springs, then comes
Chester, the next one below is Granger and not far below is Decorah, one of the
chief towns in northeastern Iowa.
.
50: EARLY SETTLERS - 1856-1866. (x141)
In this chapter we propose to give rather a full account of some of the early
settlers. The first Welshman who came to the vicinity of Lime Springs, of whom
we have any account, was R. W. Jones,
in the summer of 1856. America may have been discovered before the days of
Columbus, but it was Columbus who made the western continent known to the
civilized world. We believe that there was a Welshman or two near New Oregon
(southwest of Cresco) before the coming of Jones, but it was Jones, as we shall
see, who made the country known others, and drew in other Welsh families. Jones
and his wife' returned to Dodgeville, Wis., his former home, in the autumn of
1856, and remained there until the spring of
During the summer of 1860, Jones went north to Chatfield, where the land office
was at that time. Here he
accidentally met four Welshmen, J. J.
Jones, J. R. Williams, O. D. Owens and R.
W. Thomas, moving westward looking for land. Jones began to tell them of
the advantages of Southern Fillmore, and prevailed upon these men to turn their
faces that way. This was an important event, There was a relationship. J. J.
Jones' wife was a sister of Owens; J. R. Williams married another sister, and
all these were cousins of the wife of R. W. Jones. Yet this meeting in
Chatfield was purely accidental, and most important in the history of the Welsh
settlement; after this, one family came in the wake of another, one man came
because an acquaintance had come before him, but this meeting at Chatfield was
a mere accident. Had this not occurred it is quite possible that the Welsh
settlement of Lime Springs would never have come into existence, and the lot
and relationship of hundreds, if not thousands of persons, would have been
otherwise than they are.
J. J. Jones had been upon the northern lakes, and was often called by his
companions "Sailor Jack" or oftener "Jack Jones," and this
sobriquet clung to him through life. J. R. Williams also became known as
"Jack Williams," and is so known to this day, to young and old, Welsh
and others. Jack Williams took land in the southeast corner of York, Jack Jones
to the north and Thomas to the east, across the line in Bristol.
A Sunday school was started this summer in J. J. Jones' house, with Thomas the
only professing Christian among the men as superintendent. Along towards winter
Thomas returned to Wisconsin, and Jack Williams, before spring, in quest of a
wife.
In 1860, D. J. Davies and wife
returned to Wisconsin, having been missionaries among the Omaha Indians for
seven years. In the summer of 1861, David and his family, his brother William, also, and his family, set out
toward the west again; this time to find a home, possibly in Western Iowa, not
far from his former field of labor. These families crossed the Mississippi at
Prairie du Chien, and following the main road west through Northern Iowa,
encamped one evening on the bank of the Little Cedar river. There they heard
Lime Springs mentioned. William remembered that his friend G. G. Roberts, in Wisconsin, was accustom (sic;
= accustomed) to say, that Lime Springs was the postoffice address of
his brother-in-law, J. J. Jones, and the Welsh families with him. Next morning
the brothers, leaving their families where they were, "took the trunks out
of the light wagon, hitched up the cream colored horses," and started
toward Lime Springs, to visit these Welsh families. A few miles west of Lime
Springs they met one Richard Lewis,
whose people they knew in Wisconsin. He informed them that a few miles further
lived a Welshman, Thomas Evans.
Evans was one of those enthusiastic men, in whose eyes the future is always
bright and the place where they live is always the best. He immediately began
to descant on the glories of the country. The soil was incomparable, the
advantages in every respect most excellent. His arguments must have had weight
and his eloquence must have been effective, for we find that William very soon
located upon a piece of land and both were quite pleased with the country. The
morning before leaving, David, at family worship, had prayed very earnestly for
divine guidance; on his return he said to his wife: "Wel dyma ni wedi gweld tir yr addewid" - we have seen the
promised land. The whole company immediately turned about and began to move in
the direction of Lime Springs. It was the Fourth of July, 1861 soon after they
left the Cedar. David took possession of a small house near the creek, not far
from Evans, while William, and his family, went on his land two miles west. The
Welsh community, getting this strong re-enforcement, revived the Sunday school,
which had gone down at the departure of Thomas several months before. Late this
year two visitors from Wisconsin came to spy the land. Hugh Edwards (Bodwrog) and his friend John Roberts.
No family, as far as we know, moved in during 1862.
Yet this year was not without its importance. And first, we would mention a
cloud of sorrow that came over the little Welsh community; in March of that
year occurred the death of Thomas Evans, the second, as we have seen of the
Welsh settlers. He was buried north, near Canfield's, but the remains have
since been removed, as we have been informed, to the cemetery of Bristol. The
attending physician was Dr. Reed,
still residing at Lime Springs. During this summer again came two men on a
visit from Wisconsin; John D. Williams, and
his neighbor, William Lewis.
Williams was a brother-in-law of D. J. Davies. He had started the summer
before, but not meeting the Davies brothers at Prairie du Chien, as he
expected, returned home without going further. In June, 1862, he and Lewis came
via Dodgeville, up the Mississippi, then west across Southern Fillmore.
Williams was accustomed to relate an incident connected with this journey
reflecting honor on him as a pedestrian rather than Lewis. Starting out one
morning on foot from Caledonia, with thirty miles before them, they espied a
team in the distance, going in the same direction. They immediately decided to
give chase, overtake it if possible, and secure a ride. They quickened their
pace, exercised all their powers as on they went. They hailed the driver, made
signs, but with no success; either he did not hear, or did not heed. Lewis soon
began to feel that the task was a big one, was getting discouraged, and advised
giving up, but Williams insisted on going on. Lewis was rather corpulent, and
had a peculiar gait which was not at all favorable for a forced march. It was a
warm June morning. Williams, who was now several yards ahead, and by this time
carrying both bundles looked around and saw that the perspiration was showing
itself through Lewis' linen coat, but on they went.
The present generation are not aware of the fact that John D. Williams, in early and middle
life, was able by putting four of his fingers in his mouth, to produce one of
the most powerful and piercing whistles ever heard from a human head; coming at
this time to the brow of a hill, he dropped his bundles, put his fingers in his
mouth and whistled. The driver looked around and brought his team to a
standstill. When they came up to him they found that he had a lame horse, or
the chase would have been more desperate, and likely less successful. They were
carried, however, several miles and were well paid for the extra effort put
forth in the morning.
During this visit, Williams bought the quarter section
now owned by Rev. R. W. Hughes, for about $450, and eighty acres west of it for
$200, and another eighty acres near by, in 1866, with a crop oil it for $1,000.
Lewis bought eighty acres in Bristol for $200, and the
adjoining eighty acres in 1869, with a small crop for $3,000. From this it may
be seen that the time to buy land in Southern Fillmore was early in the 60's.
The first Sabbath Williams and Lewis attended the Presbyterian service at Lime
Springs, and listened to a sermon by Rev. Adam Craig. On the second Sabbath,
Williams preached in Welsh at the house of J. J. Jones. This was the first
Welsh sermon in this part of the country.
No new family came in 1863, yet it was a year of
interest. Early in 1863, Thomas decided to visit Minnesota again. Leavng his
home near Oshkosh, Wis., he lodged one night with John D. Williams. Williams said to him: "If you see land in
Minnesota that you like, come back this way; I can borrow money for you from an
old bachelor in this neighborhood, who has money to loan." Thomas went on
to Prairie du Chien, and at McGregor found a man from near Lime Springs, with
whom he rode as far as Barker's Grove; then walked to Foreston and on to Jack
Williams'. He bargained for eighty acres near what be had bought before, and
then returned to Wisconsin. At Portage City, he entered the car for Cambria, to
get the money promised by John D. Williams, but as he began to look for
Cambria, to his amazement he discovered he had taken the wrong train; that he
was on the main line going towards Milwaukee, and was now rushing towards
Wyocena. Consulting his pocket- book he found that to get back was simply
impossible, for his remaining change had been given for a ticket for Cambria,
and now he was rushing away from Cambria on another road. What to do was the
question. Finally the conductor kindly allowed him to ride to Watertown, from
which place he slowly worked his way towards his home near Oshkosh, depending,
most of the way, we presume, upon "John Shank's Mares." After getting
home he wrote Williams a letter about the land and the money, adding: "The
best way is for you to send the $200, and take the deed in your own name, and
if I can get the money in the future I will pay you.' About two years after
this, Thomas, having saved the $200, came to Cambria, paid the money, plus the
interest, paid the old bachelor, and the deed was signed to him by "J. D.
Williams and wife." This is the way men did business in primitive times.
In the spring of 1863, "when the snow was going
away," came David Roberts (Bont
Newydd), and his brother, Robert, to visit the new colony. After them came R. P. Jones and Rev. Robert Morris, a Congregational minister, from Wisconsin. This
is a date we can fix. "Morris," says one, preached a sermon on Easter
Sunday, and baptized a little girl, now one of the wives of Bristol. That was
the first time for me ever to hear about Easter." In June, came H. H. Morris and J. D. Williams. They returned to Wisconsin together, and this date
we can fix; for they brought the sad news of the accidental shooting that day,
north of Cambria, of a young girl on her way home from school. This happened,
according to records still extant, June 26, 1863. During this summer, a little
before the Fourth, came Rev. J. A. Jones,
of Berlin, Wis., on a visit.
The day before the Fourth, 1864, O. R. Jones and family arrived in Foreston. Mrs. Jones was a sister
of J. J. Jones. A little later, probably in August, came Rev. J. A. Jones and family. Mr. Jones had been called to minister
to the spiritual wants of the English congregation at Foreston, and the Welsh
people of Southern Minnesota.
Early in 1865 came R. P. Jones and family, and settled on a farm in Bristol. During
the autumn came Rowland Evans and
family, and bought land a few miles north, also J. H. Roberts, who went back to Wisconsin. Evans and family spent
the winter north in the town of Forestville.
In May, 1866, came H. H. Morris and R. W. Hughes; William R. Jones also came about the same time with his family.
Late this year came Hugh Edwards, R. T. Williams and their families, and J. D. Williams, in November, to his
farm on the state line. Many bought land this year, intending to come in the
following spring.
On Christmas day was held a great Welsh literary
meeting, in the Foreston school buildings Welsh Eisteddfod on a small scale.
The evening meeting was held in Fnglish. Some may remember Henry Van Leuven's oration on "Progressive Knowledge,"
and R. T. Williams' address on "The Original History of the Celtic
Race," and those who had recently left their old homes and were still feeling
that this was a new country, very much enjoyed a song sung by Rev. J. A. Jones
and family, "Pining for Home and the Old Fireside."
This Christmas evening, by Rev. J. A. Jones, in his
own house, was solemnized, we believe, the first marriage in this Welsh
settlement. Jane, daughter of W. P. Davies, was married to R. W. Hughes. We
have indeed heard a story, that Jack Williams was married here in very early
times. There is much of the humorous about Jack, and some people like to tell
stories, and it may be get up good stories about him. This story runs that he
was married at a very early day by Justice Sales
Green; that he had not the wherewith to remunerate Green for his services,
and that the justice had to wait on Jack for payment until fall. But this, we
believe, must be a fabrication. Our impression is that Jack was married in
Wisconsin; that he was married by a preacher, and that the preacher was paid
for his services, there and then, in the current coin of the country.
50.1 COMING IN GREAT NUMBERS - PROSPERITY -
ADVERSITY (x146)
We have dwelt at some length on the history of these years, 1856-1866; and that
for several reasons. The pioneers of every country deserve honor. These
settlers, for the first ten years, were few in numbers; we can count them, as
it were, and get acquainted with them as they come in. This becomes impossible
after 1866. Every man is known in a small village, not so in a great city. But
the chief reason is this : Not many who took prominent part in these early
times are now to be found. It may be well to record these events before the
survivors are gone to the silent land.
We shall touch but lightly, and in a different way, upon the years 1866-1895.
Early in 1867, the Welsh families began to come in great numbers. Each of the months,
March, April and May, of that year, probably saw as many families coming in, as
were to be found in the whole settlement in October of the previous year; and
they kept coming in goodly numbers till 1870, or later. And these were years of
prosperity. The land was constantly rising in value. This always inspires the
landowner. It gives him hope and courage. The wheat crop was good, and the
price high. We remember very distinctly that in the autumn wheat was $1.50 per
bushel. A farmer would go to Lime Springs in the fall of that year, with a good
load of wheat - fifty bushels, the product of two or three acres - and return
with $75 in his pocket. Indeed, we have recently noticed a newspaper item, that
the highest price ever paid for wheat in a great market was $3.00, in Chicago,
about this period of which we are writing. Yet there were some drawbacks,
Machinery was expensive. Hired help was high. Taxes were high. Interest was
high, 10 per cent or more. Many of the Welsh farmers had homes or barns to build,
and coming in on a prosperous wave, many mortgaged their land to get hold of
more. But good times are often dangerous times. It is when the day is pleasant
and the sea calm that the fisherman ventures out too far; and prosperous times
do not last forever. The seven years of plenty in the land of Egypt were
followed by seven years of famine. A few years after the times we have
described, with the farmers around Lime Springs, the tide began to turn, and
the water to flow back, and many a vessel - to carry out the figure - was left
on the strand high and dry. Many a farm had to go for the mortgage, and many a
farmer - prosperous a few years before - had to leave in spite of all he could
do, for other regions, to begin life over again, and that in some cases with
but very little capital. This unfavorable period continued for four or five
years, beginning with 1878. At this time the wheat crop failed, and as wheat
was the farmers' main support, the failure of the wheat crop was keenly felt by
all. It was about this time that a change was made, from wheat raising to
dairying and stock raising, and this is the line of farming followed ever
since. The farmers who were able to weather this storm, lived and prospered,
and are nearly all today in comfortable circumstances, as their good houses and
capacious barns testify.
51 ACCIDENTS. (x148)
It may not appear out of place to give some space, and this place is probably
the most appropriate, to a few unpleasant and indeed sad occurrences, in the
history of the Lime Springs settlement. Calamities and disasters, though not
pleasant to narrate or dwell upon, at the time produce profound impressions in
the community where they happen, and are long remembered by the inhabitants.
The Johnstown flood will not be forgotten in Pennsylvania. The Pomeroy cyclone
will be remembered by many families in Iowa for long years to come. Some things
took place in the Welsh community of Lime Springs that made great impressions
at the time, and are vividly remembered to this day.
51.1 THE MILLDAM IN FORESTON, 1867 (x148)
The first that we shall mention occurred early in
1867, at the milldam in Foreston. Two brothers, and another man, had gone one
day to Preston to inquire about land. Returning to Foreston that evening, they
found that the water had risen, that the team could not cross over the dam. One
brother took the team a mile north to John D. Williams', where he remained over
night. The other unfortunate brother, in crossing the millpond, was carried by
the current, boat, boatman and all, over the dam and thrown, of course, into
the boiling waters below. His body was found six weeks later a mile down the
river. The boatman reached the shore and was taken up thoroughly chilled and
exhausted. The writer has a very vivid recollection of this event; for next
morning, when the other brother was about ready to start with the team toward
Foreston, two men were seen coming across the field in the garb of hunters.
They called John D. Williams aside and informed him of the sad accident. J. D.
Williams accompanied the brother to Foreston, taking the writer along (who was
very unwilling to go on such a journey) and quietly broke to him the sad news
on the way. Some years after this J. D. Williams, J. Ap. Jones, of Cambria,
Wis., and two other men had the dreadful experience of finding the boat sinking
under them in the middle of the pond by the breaking of a plank in the bottom.
Williams, though not a "swimmer," swam this time and successfully
reached the dam on the upper side. The others were carried down by the strong
current, and swept through the dam, which at this time was partly broken. The
two younger men, however, being thoroughly alive to the situation, and
"grasping at a straw," caught hold of a piece of timber in the end of
the dam as they were rushed through, and held on until rescued. Jones, who was
older, more corpulent and much more unwieldly, was carried along bv the current
to the waters below, but fortunately found his feet touching terra firma,
as he was floating over a little islet some yards below the dam. Thus no lives
were lost, but the danger was great, and the experience, though the narration
was amusing to others after the event, was not to be forgotten by those who
were immediately concerned.
51.2 THE MILLDAM IN FORESTON AGAIN (x148)
Some years after this again four persons, father, son,
daughter and nephew, were crossing one Sunday morning to church. Not crossing
"far enough up," the boat was carried down by the current, but
providentially, as they were going over the dam, the front end of the boat
struck on a large stone on the lower side and lodged there, with the hind end
upon the dam, and the four persons inside. Word went to the Foreston school
building, where services were held in those days, and the shore was soon lined
by an anxious crowd. The question was how to reach the boat, or how to get the
people out of the dangerous place they were in. And this must be done quickly
for the river was rising, and the boat, in all probability, would soon be
displaced and thrown into the boiling waters below. Some endeavored to wade
part way across the dam, bracing themselves against the current by the use of
pitchforks; others attempted to ride on horses near enough to throw a rope.
After manoeuvering about in this way for some time, they succeeded in throwing
them a rope, which the son tied around his sister and cousin, who were then put
out and quickly drawn ashore by the crowd. This was done again to the father,
and finally the son; and the moment his foot left the boat, down it went into
the boiling waters.
51.3 THE BLIZZARD OF JANUARY, 1873 - DEATH OF REV. J.
J. EVANS. (x149)
But in writing of accidents, the saddest by far that ever occurred in the Welsh
settlement of Lime Springs, was the death of Rev. J. J. Evans, wife and child,
in the blizzard of 1873. Many, no doubt, remember that storm. We are not sure
but the word "blizzard" - to denote a terriflc snow storm - was first
used about that time. The writer was that winter at Minneapolis, if a personal
reminiscence may be pardoned. Before him lies a letter he wrote home
"January 20, 1873," two weeks after the storm. We quote the
following: "We have read of many 150 deaths in the late storm, the
Fillmore boys came back Saturday night with a story frightful to me. One of
them said that a Welsh minister, wife, three children and team, had frozen to
death January 7th, three or four miles north of Granger. The other had heard
that it was south of Granger, and that they were within half a mile of home. *
* * * Please let me hear by return mail." A letter soon came, giving full
particulars, but as this letter is not to be found, and as we do not like to
give important facts from memory, we asked B. F. Davies, Esq., of Cresco, to
consult for us the files of the "Howard County Times" and "Iowa
Plain Dealer." He kindly replied. We quote from his letter of March 25th,
1895: "The copy of the Times dated January 16, 1873, is missing. The copy
of January 9th mentioned the storm on Tuesday (January 7th), and the storming
at time of going to press. Paper of January 23rd says that the railroad
blockade of two weeks' duration had ended and trains were running. The Plain
Dealer of January 17th has the following, but I do not believe it exactly
correct.
“ACCIDENTS WITH EXPOSURE AND DEATH: The terrific storm that swept over this
region of country last week was attended by unusually severe and fatal
consequences. We learn of the death of Rev. John Evans, a Welsh clergyman,
residing in the township of Forest City, who, with his wife and two small
children, were during the evening at a prayer meeting(?), some two miles (?)
from home. Their course home was facing the storm, and it seems that when near
there, the team became fast in the snow. Whereupon Mr. Evans took one child
about three years old and carried it home, its arms and feet (?) becoming so
badly frozen as to result in death probably. He then took some quilts and
returned for his wife and babe. His wife was probably so benumbed that she
could not go, for she was found frozen to death near (?).the sleigh, while he,
it seems, after going about ten rods, fell upon (?) the babe, in which
condition both were found next day."
Believing that the above was not correct in several
particulars (see interrogation mark at doubtful points) we again wrote to one
of the sons of Mr. Evans, who likely gave us just about the facts in following
few lines: "The death of my parents was something like this: On a pleasant
afternoon, Tuesday, January 7th, 1893, they went to visit a neighbor,
three-quarters of a mile from home. About five in. the afternoon it began to
storm. They started home about seven. The neighbor lived in a grove, so they
did not know the severity of the storm before they started, but soon after
leaving the house, they came upon the open prairie, and had the storm full in
the face, without a fence or anything to guide them. Father reached the house
the first time about eleven, and took with him some clothes. About midnight he
came again, with little Lizzie, and returned for mother and the baby. The
thermometer was about eight below zero. The next day mother was found, also the
cutter and horses; and the day after father and the baby near together, and not
far from mother, who was in the cutter." We have heard neighbors relate
that Wednesday, the day of the search, was a frightfully cold day. If the
thermometer stood eight below the night before, with a terrible gale of wind
from the northwest, it must have been close to thirty if not to forty the
following day. By Thursday, when Mr. Evans' body was found, the storm was
somewhat abated. A person told us recently that he was sent to inform the
sister and family a few miles away. Wishing to have the news presented to the
sister as gently as possible, he called her husband outside, and gradually
broke the news to him; but he was entirely overcome and seemed to have lost all
control of himself. He went directly into the house and said to his wife,
"John Evans, his wife and children, are frozen to death." The sister
fell to the floor on her face and was for a time unable to move or speak. Mr.
Evans was to preach the following Sabbath at the Foreston school house, but on
that day the funeral sermon was preached to an immense number by Rev. O. R.
Morris. The sermon now lies before us. It was a serious, thoughtful, appropriate
discourse from the words in the Acts of the Apostles, "And devout men
carried Stephen to his burial and made great lamentation over him." This
death of Rev. Mr. Evans, and his family, in this way made a greater impression
than anything of the kind that ever occurred in the settlement. Beside the
circumstances connected with the event, the fact that Mr. Evans was one of the
ministers, well known and very much respected, tended to deepen the impression.
52: PROMINENT MEN OF LIME SPRINGS (IOWA) (x151)
A sketch of the Lime Springs Welsh settlement, or of
any other Welsh settlement, would be quite incomplete without considerable
space in it given to the subject of religion ; for religion has a prominent
place among the Welsh in any part of the world. But before we take up this
immediate question, we may be allowed to mention a few of the most prominent
persons in the Lime Springs community. By prominent persons we do not mean, of
course, men of national or international reputation - the little Welsh community
of Lime Springs could not claim such distinction - but men who have been, or
are now, more forward in the community, or elsewhere, than others. As such, we
would first mention the ministers.
52.1 MINISTERS (x152)
The ministers of Lime Springs fall into three classes.
The Pioneer Ministers - Revs. J. A. Jones, J. D. Williams, D. T. Rowlands, D. O. Jones, O. R.
Morris and J. J. Evans.
The Pastors - or those who have had special care of
particular churches: Rev. O. P. Morris,
R. Isaac, R. W. Hughes, J. W. Morgan, W. W. Davies and Edward Joseph.
The Young Ministers - In this class we put the young
men of Lime Springs who have entered the ministry. Revs. R. W. Hughes, Daniel Williams, J. T. Evans and T. H. Lewis.
It is somewhat singular, that the superintendents of
the American Bible Society for Iowa, Minnesota, North and South Dakota, have
been chosen from among these, viz : Rev.
R. W. Hughes and Rev. J. T. Evans.
Next to the ministers, in a Welsh community, we must put the elders of the
churches.
52.2 ELDERS. (x152)
The elders who have served the Bristol church are J. J. Jones, H. H. Morris, W. J. Williams.
The father-in-law of the last mentioned, also named William Williams, lived in the neighborhood and we believe served
for a time as an elder.
Foreston - Hugh
Edwards, W. T. Lewis, H. G. Jones, O. E. Williams, H. O. Roberts, W. W. Williams, W. R. Williams, E. T. Jones and J. H. Jones.
Lime Springs - D.
K. Jones, E. H. Jones and J. Price.
Somewhat important in a Welsh neighborhood are the singers, or rather
choristers.
52.3 SINGERS. (x152)
Four may be mentioned as having been quite prominent
in the service of song. Rev. J. A. Jones, who led the singers in early times.
The great musical genius, Daniel
Theophilus, W. T. Lewis, chorister in Foreston for twenty-five years, and
the present pastor, Rev. Edward Joseph.
The choristers now, we believe, are William
Thomas, for Bristol; W. W. Williams,
for Foreston, and G. G. Thomas, for
Lime Springs.
52.4 POETS. (x153)
The poets are Rev.
J. T. Evans, J. H. Roberts, J. R. Williams and Noah Hughes. Twenty years ago, at least, the poets seem to have
flourished better on the Bristol side than on the other. As the writer never
posed as an adjudicator of poetry he hardly feels competent to pronounce as to
the merits of these poets. He presumes, however, that the are all good poets. R. H. Jones, of Lime Springs, also
should be mentioned.
52.5 POLITICIANS. (x153)
It may be said, we believe, that the Welsh, as a
general rule, have but little ambition for political distinction. Whether the
prominence given to religion has anything to do with this we do not know.
Macauley, in his essay on Milton, says : "The Puritans were men whose
minds had derived a peculiar character from the daily contemplation of superior
beings and external interests. Hence originated their contempt for terrestrial
distinctions. The Puritan prostrated himself in the dust before his Maker, but
he set his foot on the neck of his king." And there is some Puritan tone
about the ordinary Welsh character. Some one has said that "The people of
the United States are a nation of office-seekers, as much as the English,
according to Napoleon, were a nation of shopkeepers." But this cannot be
said of the Welsh. Some, however, of the Welsh of Lime Springs have climbed up
a few rounds on the political ladder. E.
R. Morris was a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives in 1889. W. W. Williams in that of Iowa in 1892
and 1894. William Theophilus was
also a member of the Iowa legislature one term, and two terms clerk of court
for Howard county. B. F. Davies has
been auditor of Howard county for one or two terms.
52.6 TEACHERS. (x153)
Many of the young people of Lime Springs have
"taught school," and that with success ; but we recall but two that
have reached any prominence that we have space to mention. John Morris, son of Rev. O. R. Morris, graduated in 1888, at the
State University of Minnesota, with the degree of Bachelor of Mechanical
Engineering, having received, it was said, "the highest markings ever
given in that department." For several years after this he served as
“Supervisor of Manual Training in the schools of Minneapolis." The other
is Richard Jones, son of Rev. J. A.
Jones. Richard graduated at Iowa College, Grinnell, Ia. Was for a time
principal of the Des Moines High School, and later of the State Normal School
at Normal, Ill. In the meantime he had received the degree of A. M. from his
Alma mater. In 1889 he visited Oxford, Eng., and studied for a time at the
famous old university of Heidelberg, Germany, where he received the degree of
Ph. D. He is now professor in Swarthmore College, Pennsylvania.
53 RELIGION (x154)
We are inclined to the opinion that Holland, Scotland
and Wales are the most religious countries in Europe. Holland communities in
America have their churches and ministers. The attachment of the Scotch people
to the bible, the psalms and the kirk is well known. Just about as prominent is
this subject also among the Welsh. Dr. John Hall, of New York, said once in a
great convention in Belfast, Ireland : "There is a church in this alliance
which I think should be held up to Christendom as a model in regard to Sunday
school the Welsh Calvinistic Methodists. I have often said that that people are
born in the Sunday school. They live in it, they grow up in it, and they die
out of it." And Dr. Hall was right. We really believe that the Welsh have
the best Sunday schools in the world. Another fact is worth being mentioned.
The prevailing type of religion in these three countries is essentially the
same. In Holland it goes by the name of the Reformed church; in Scotland it is
called Presbyterianism ; in Wales Methodism. According to statistics as here
seen, about 90 per cent of the Protestants of Holland belong to that church. A
Scotchman said recently that twenty of the twenty-four churches in his native
city are Presbyterian. The church in Wales which has done more by far to mould
the national character than any other during the last century and a half is the
Methodist. At their annual conventions, there are ten, sometimes twenty,
sometimes thirty thousand people on the field listening to the preaching of the
gospel. The reader must not, however, put the meaning it usually has upon the
word "Methodists." The great revival which swept over Wales, and
partly over England, about the middle of the last century, was Calvanistic,
that is, "Presbyterian" in doctrine. “Methodists" and "Calvanists,"
in the letters of Walpool and the other statesmen of the day, were synonymous
terms. The Calvanistic preachers were attracting immense multitudes in 1736
-Whitfield in England, Rowlands and Harris in Wales; while Wesley cannot be
said to have done anything before his own " conversion," which he
puts in the year 1738. Thus it may be seen that the chief descendants of that
revival, all the other side of the ocean, that is, the Methodists are
"Calvanists" or Presbyterians. While the followers of Wesley are
called "Wesleyans." But as the followers of Wesley also call
themselves Methodists, especially in America, the others are often spoken of as
Calvanistic Methodists to distinguish them from the American Methodists, or
followers of John Wesley.
From this explanation we think it may be seen how it
is that the Welsh Methodists of America are really Presbyterians. This
denomination is the strongest by far among the Welsh of America. All the
churches of the Lime Springs settlement belong to it. This denomination -
though small compared with the great denominations of the land -shows, indeed,
considering all circumstances, as much vitality as any denomination in America.
54 THE CHURCHES OF LIME SPRINGS (IOWA) (x155)
A word now about the three churches of Lime Springs.
The churches of Bristol and Foreston were organized early in 1867. No church
building was erected, however, for six or seven years after this. This may
appear singular, that six years, after the great influx of 1867, should pass
before the Welsh of Lime Springs built a church; and yet it is not hard to
explain. The early settlers of Lime Springs differed from the early settlers of
Wisconsin fifty years ago. Those came directly from Wales. They did not come
exactly like the Pilgrim Fathers, to find here "freedom to worship
God," and yet there was a resemblance. They came from pressure, if not
oppression, to a land where they could get homes of their own. In homes of
their own they would have more leisure to train up their children, and more
spare moments to worship and serve God. With them, indeed, the religious
feeling was very strong. Forty acres or at most eighty was the amount of land
taken up; a small cabin or house was built and very soon a place for religious
meetings, a little building twenty-four feet square seems to have been the
conventional size of many of the first Welsh churches in Wisconsin. But the
Welsh of Lime Springs, with few exceptions, came not directly from Wales, but
from Wisconsin and eastern states. They had been somewhat Americanized. They
were coming to better their circumstances, wanted larger farms, had acquired
more or less taste for money-making. The religious feeling was less intense
than with the "emigrants" from Wales to Wisconsin twenty years
before. Yet we would not convey the idea that the settlers of Lime Springs were
neglectful of divine services - far from it. The teams were busy in the fields
six days in the week, but on Sunday morning they would be seen on the road
taking the family to service and sunday (sic) school.
Schoolhouses were large and commodious.
54.1 THE CHURCHES AT BRISTOL / FORESTON /
PROSCAIRON / SARATOGA PRAIRIE (IOWA) (x156)
So six years went by - seventeen from the time of the first settler - before a
church was erected. But at last, in 1873, the people of Bristol arose and built
a church, a fine commodious building worth between $2,000 and $2,500. And the
Foreston people, not willing to be behind, built the next year, a church 32x52
feet, one of the largest Welsh country churches in America. During those
prosperous years two new churches were organized. One northwest of Lime
Springs, called Proscairon, after an old church in Wisconsin; the other
southwest of Lime Springs. Some man, with a genius for giving names, called
that region of country "Canaan's Land," a name by which it was known
for many years. It is now known by the more modern, and likely more appropriate
name of "Saratoga Prairie." The church organized there is now in a
weak condition; the other church, on account of removals, was disbanded some
years ago.
54.2
THE CHURCH IN THE TOWN OF LIME SPRINGS (IOWA) (x156)
There now remains for us to say a word about the Welsh church in the town of
Lime Springs. The church and church building there have had a singular history.
Welsh meetings were held in the town of Lime Springs for the first time in the
year 1876. During that summer a Welshman, T. W. Hughes, lately from Chicago,
was elected superintendent of the (English) Presbyterian Sunday school. It is
probable that this had something to do with the formation of a Welsh class in
that school, October 27th of that year. This was the beginning. January 15,
1877, the first Welsh sermon was preached in the town by Rev. R. Isaac. June
14, 1877, a church of fourteen members was organized. Yet, the number of Welsh
in the town and vicinity was small, the church grew but very slowly. Twelve
years went by, singular as this may seem, before elders or deacons, were
elected. During the summer of 1891, the present pastor, Rev. E. Joseph, came to
take pastoral care of the Welsh churches. And what was of great importance to
Lime Springs, he made his residence in the town instead of in the country, as
former ministers had done. The number of Welsh families had increased somewhat
by this time, and some began (x157) to
agitate the subject of church building. The pastor, it is said, made a stirring
speech on the subject on Thanksgiving day. The little Free Methodist church, on
the corner, was sold about this time; a committee was appointed to see about
securing it, but their judgment favored putting their money into a new house. A
subscription list was started without delay. Encouragement and help were
received from Bristol and Foreston. By August.
55 THE WELSH LANGUAGE IN FORESTON (IOWA) (x158)
We said at the beginning, that Foreston is the center
of the Welsh community. So it is in location, but as far as prominence and
influence are concerned, the "center of gravity" has been of late
years moving toward the town of Lime Springs. Of the future of this Welsh
settlement we dare not speak. The Welsh language is used about as extensively
as it was a quarter of a century ago. Yet the older people, natives of Wales,
are dying; and their places taken by the young people, natives of America.
Though the same language is used by them it is less pure. In the course of
time, judging from the history of Welsh settlements in the east, the Welsh here
will give place to the language of the land; and at some period, in the future,
the language of Cambria "will not be living, even "in song." It
is to be hoped, however, that the churches will be kept up, and that the pure,
scriptural religion, introduced by the pioneers, will hold its ground from age
to age and flourish from generation to generation.
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