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| Accidents and Crime A Boiler Explosion - One of the most melancholy disasters which ever occurred in the county was the explosion of a boiler at Alexander Demorris' saw-mill, in Steady Run township. It occurred March 2, 1875, and resulted in the instant death of four persons, the fatal injury of a fifth, and serious injury of several others. The mill was very thronged with work and was being run at a high pressure of steam. At the time of the explosion the mill was not in operation, it having been stopped for a short time to file the saw, and a head of steam was allowed to accumulate beyond the capacity of the boiler. Mr. Demorris was filing the saw; Hezekiah Utterback, his son, Hezekiah Utterback, and nephew, Pony Utterback, had just arrived with a log. Mr. Utterback, Sr., was talking with Mr. Demorris and the boys had gone to the furnace to warm themselves; the engineer had just stepped out with a Mr. Merrifield to mark some logs when the explosion took place. The two Utterback boys, R. D. Snakenberg and Andrew Binehart were killed instantly. Mr. Utterback, Sr., was struck by the debris, fracturing his skull and lower jaw, from the effects of which injuries he shortly died. Mr. Demorris had a leg and three ribs broken and his face blown full of particles from the furnace. Mr. Merrifield had a leg badly bruised and the engineer sustained a number of serious injuries. Mr. Binehart and Mr. Snakenburg were turning a log on the carriage at the time of the explosion and were mangled in a horrible manner. The mill was a total wreck, the boiler being torn apart at every joint and scattered over several acres of ground. Attempted Wife Murder - On Tuesday, June 28, 1865, the wife of William J. Allen, living about a mile and a half west of Sigourney, was found lying on the floor, near the bed, in an insensible condition. The bed was bespattered with blood, and upon investigation it was found that the lady had received a frightful wound on the right side of the head. A large black-walnut club about five feet long, bespattered with blood was found on the floor near by. The husband, William J. Allen, was a man of very unprepossessing appearance, and from his conduct when the neighbors first appeared, as well as the fact that a very questionable intimacy had for some time existed between him and a young girl in the neighborhood, led the people to suspect him of having committed the assault. Upon being questioned, he said that while at work he saw two men leave the house and go into the woods near by, and that he believed they had committed the act. He was arrested the same evening and brought to Sigourney. The next morning when brought before a magistrate he waived an examination and was held to bail in the sum of $10,000. The sheriff, W. B. Merriman, started the same day to convey him to the jail at Oskaloosa for safe keeping, but was followed by an exasperated crowd who overtook him a few miles from town, demanded the prisoner and threatened to hang him on the spot. The sheriff was determined to defend his prisoner as long as possible, but finally agreed to return to town, and take the prisoner to the jail at Muscatine, the crowd consenting not to molest him if Allen was taken to a stronger jail than the one at Oskaloosa, which they believed unsafe, as nearly all prisoners confined there from Keokuk county had heretofore escaped. The sheriff then turned back to Sigourney, but had not gone more than half way when the crowd again determined to hang the prisoner, and fresh attempts were made to seize him. However, the coolness and good judgment exercised by the sheriff, and Allen promising to make a full confession, again quieted the angry crowd. Allen then confessed that he had struck his wife while she was lying upon the bed, with a single-tree; that he did so because he was engaged to marry a young girl in the neighborhood and wanted to get his wife out of the way. The truth of his confession in several particulars was doubtful. After this confession the sheriff was permitted to proceed with his prisoner unmolested. Upon arriving at town he took the precaution to procure the services of several of the militia to guard the prisoner until he should reach Washington. Allen appeared to manifest no concern about the recovery of his wife, and having been removed under heavy guard, was lodged in the Muscatine jail until the following term of the District Court, when he was brought back to Sigourney and arraigned for attempted murder, his wife in the mean time having recovered. He was found guilty, and on the 13th of October was sentenced to a term of seven years in the state penitentiary. The Strausser-Shell Tragedy - On Thursday, January 19, 1874, an altercation took place in Prairie township, between J. B. Strausser and August Shell, which resulted in the death of the former. There seems to have been no witnesses to the affray, and the testimony of the survivor went through so many hands and received so many embellishments that it is almost impossible to give an accurate statement of the case. The facts of the matter, as nearly as can be arrived at, were as follows: Shell was a tenant of Strausser, and had his cattle in the fields of the latter, in which there was some corn which Strausser did not think worth gathering. Shell's cattle would occasionally get into this corn, when Strausser would drive them off with his dogs. On the morning of the fatal day Shell got on a horse with the intention of looking for his cattle, but seeing them coming up, worried by the dogs, put up his horse and got his gun, intending to shoot the dogs. On getting out into the field he met Strausser, and a scuffle took place, the latter attempting to get the gun away from Mr. Shell. In the struggle the gun was discharged, the contents lodging in the right lung of Mr. Strausser. When the gun was discharged, Shell gave it up, and Strausser, though mortally wounded, had strength enough left to strike Shell on the head with the gun, bending the trigger guard, and fracturing his skull. After being struck Shell clinched Strausser and both fell, whereupon, seeing that his antagonist was dying, Shell arose and ran to the house for assistance. A young man who was staying with Shell thereupon went out, and they found Strausser dead. They then went over to Strausser's house and told his wife of the occurrence. After the excitement occasioned by the affray had abated, Shell became very sick from the effects of the blow he had received, and was some weeks recovering. At the next session of the District Court the grand jury took the killing of Strausser under advisement, but failed to indict Shell. So the matter ended. Both parties, prior to the altercation, had borne good characters as peaceable and law abiding citizens. Strausser was one of the old settlers of the county, and among the first citizens of Prairie township. The Holland Homicide - William M. Holland, of English River township, was shot, and instantly killed, by Miss Caroline White, about noon, on Monday, July 23, 1877. The circumstances connected with the perpetration of this deed are as follows: Miss White was a young woman about eighteen years of age, the daughter of Godfrey White, of English River township. She had always borne a good name, and aside from assertations derogatory to her character, said to have been started by Holland, her virtue had never been questioned. Holland was a married man, and the father of seven children. He was possessed of no property, and was dependent for the support of his family upon work furnished by the neighbors. He had from time to time been in the employ of the girl's father, and by him, frequently furnished with sustenance for his family, in advance of his labor. In return for these favors he was said to have circulated the statement that Miss White was not a virtuous girl, and that he had, on several occasions, had criminal intercourse with her. Several attempts were made by the girl and her friends to clear up the scandal, but Holland, although denying that he had ever made such charges, could never be induced to sign any statement branding them as false. An engagement between the girl and a young man of that neighborhood, was, on account of these reports, broken off. On the day of the homicide, Miss White went to the house of Thomas Yokum, where Holland was harvesting. After dinner, and before the rest had left the table, Holland got up and went out of the room. Miss White followed him, and presented him a paper, which she asked him to read and sign. He gave her an evasive answer, and started to leave her. As he started to leave she drew a revolver and fired, the shot passing through his heart, causing instantaneous death. She then stepped up to where he was lying and emptied the remaining chambers of the revolver into his head. Miss White was arrested and waived examination, and her bond was fixed at $9000. At the next session of the District Court the grand jury found an indictment against Miss White, and in the following spring she was arraigned for trial. The trial was protracted and quite exciting. The law firm of Donnell & Brooks, assisted by Col. Mackey, conducted the defense, while the State was represented by district attorney Lafferty, assisted by George D. Woodin, Esq. The defense sat up the plea of insanity, and Dr. Ranney, of the state lunatic asylum, was subpoenaed as an expert to testify in the case. The jury brought in a verdict of "not guilty," and Miss White was released. There was a bitter feeling aroused over the result of the trial, and Dr. Ranney, especially, was severely criticised,on account of the evidence which he gave as an expert, it being chiefly through his evidence that the defense won the case. Not only in the county, but all over the State, was this case spoken of, and the sad affair is still talked over around the firesides of this and adjoining counties. The Killing of Theodore Rice - On Monday, April 29, 1878, Theodore Rice, a hotel-keeper of Delta, was shot and almost instantly killed, by A. L. Smith. About six o'clock in the evening of the day mentioned, Mr. Rice was smoking a cigar in the office of the hotel of which he was proprietor, when Smith, a young man who was buying hogs in that vicinity, and who had been boarding with Rice, came in and stated his intention of changing his boarding place. Rice claimed a balance on board, and asked settlement; Smith disputed the bill and refused to pay it. Smith went up stairs, got his valise, and returning, was about to depart, when Rice took hold of it, and told him he could not take the valise away till he paid the bill; whereupon Smith drew a pistol and told Rice if he didn't let go he would shoot him. Rice thereupon loosened his hold on the valise, passed into an adjoining room, procured an iron poker, and returned, expecting to find Smith still in the hall-way. In this he was mistaken. Smith had left the house and passed across the street, and Rice followed, but did not get nearer to him than fifteen or twenty feet, when Smith again drew his pistol. Rice, seeing the pistol, went off in another direction, evidently attempting to gain entrance to a drug store near by. Smith did not fire, but passed beyond the drug store, out of sight of Rice. He then returned, and before Rice had gained entrance to the drug store, and taking deliberate aim, shot him. The-ball passed through the left shoulder and on through his lung, and he fell against the store building. He soon rallied, and started across the street toward his hotel, and just before he reached the entrance, fell to the sidewalk. He was taken up and carried into the house, where he expired in a few minutes. Smith was arrested, and sent to the jail at Sigourney. He was afterward released on bail, and, although he was subsequently indicted by the grand jury, has not yet been tried. Mr. Rice was a young man about twenty-four years old, and left a wife and two children. The Capture and Conviction of Crawf. Walker - In February, 1873, the store of Lee & Johnson, at Talleyrand, was robbed of goods to the value of $800. The goods were taken away in a sleigh, and the cutter was tracked to the northeast corner of Liberty township, and there the track was lost. Suspicion was at last fastened upon one Crawf. Walker, who had for some time lived in Liberty township, and who had earned a bad name, both on account of his own suspicious conduct, and on account of certain disreputable persons who gathered around him. Andrew Stranahan, who was then sheriff of the county, conceived the idea of spying out the matter, and accordingly made his way on foot to Liberty township, dressed in the attire of a day-laborer, and, arriving in the neighborhood of Walker's premises, hired himself out as a day-laborer, to one Michael Corridon, for fifteen dollars per month. Here he worked for a number of weeks, and was frequently in company with Walker and his friends, at one time visiting the house of the former, at which time and place, seeing things which led him to believe that Walker was the guilty party, on the 29th of June he procured a posse of men, surrounded Walker's house, and proceeded to make the arrest. The house was surrounded, and quite a number were in it with Stranahan at the time the arrest was made, but before the irons could be placed on the prisoner he managed to escape through a window, and despite all the efforts of the posse outside, got away. After Walker had escaped, the house was searched, and a part of the stolen goods found. The whole neighborhood was searched, but Walker could nowhere be found. In May of the following year a young man living in Dayton, Washington county, went out in search of some cattle and seeing a man of suspicious appearance in the brush returned to the village and reported, whereupon a number of citizens went out and captured the individual, who proved to be the identical Crawf. Walker who had been sought for by the Keokuk county officials for nearly a year in vain. He was taken to Keota and there turned over to sheriff Stranahan, by whom he was taken to Muscatine and lodged in jail. In the following August he was brought back to Sigourney and arraigned on charge of burglary; he was found guilty and sentenced to the penitentiary for three years, but his case having been appealed he was taken back to the Muscatine jail. There he remained till November, 1875, when hearing that an effort was likely to be made to release him by means of a writ of habeas corpus, Stranahan removed him to the jail at Fairfield. He was lodged in the jail at the latter place on Friday, and on the next Tuesday night he made his escape from the prison. No more was heard of Walker till August, 1876, when he was arrested for committing highway robbery in Marion county, and incarcerated in the jail at Oskaloosa. In the following November Walker made his escape from the jail in Oskaloosa and was not heard from again till May, 1877, when Stranahan heard that he was in Sullivan county, Missouri; he telegraphed the sheriff of Sullivan county, who arrested Walker and held him till Stranahan arrived, who having gone to Missouri took possession of Walker, and bringing him back to Keokuk county lodged him in the jail at Sigourney, which had in the meantime been built. During the following October, Walker attempted to carry out some plans which he had been for some time perfecting. Having made a saw out of an old case-knife, which he managed to secure, he sawed off the bar which fastened the door on the inside of the cage at the entrance of the jail. When the jailer, not suspecting anything, entered preparatory to locking the prisoners in their cells for the night, Walker sprang upon him and with the assistance of other prisoners overpowered him so as to get out of the building. The jailer, Mr. Haudek, however, was pluck to the last, and although the other prisoners got away, he managed to hold on to Walker till help arrived and the prisoner was put back into his cell. In the following December he was again sentenced to the penitentiary and conveyed to Fort Madison, where he remained till the expiration of his term of sentence. The father and two brothers of Walker, who prior to his arrest had lived in Liberty township, and who bore a bad name, left the county and have not since been heard from. Sheriff Stranahan achieved quite a reputation on account of the skill which he manifested in working up this case, also for the promptness in which he traced out the location of one Joe Berry, a forger; he was a faithful and energetic officer and held the position of sheriff for eight consecutive years. Transcribed by Pat Wahl.  The Keokuk County Vigilance Committee This was a body of men banded together for the purpose of bringing to justice certain outlaws, who, in former times, infested that region of country, bordering on South Skunk river, and more particularly that locality commonly known as "Brushy Bend." The association was composed of the best men of that part of the county, and its object was to assist the officers of the civil law in the discharge of their duty, and failing in this, to take the execution of the law into their own hands, and punishing the offenders. In 1857, that part of the county before referred to had a bad name, on account of a systemized plan of stealing which was carried on. In some cases oxen and cattle were slaughtered on the premises of the owner, and the meat and hides taken to the adjoining counties and sold. In other instances horses, saddles, bridles, corn and potatoes were stolen. The people were very well convinced who the aiders and abettors of these thefts were, and in some cases the proof was sufficient to secure the arrest and trial of certain persons, but in every case the ends of justice were thwarted by the false testimony of the confederates in crime. In order to protect their property, and free their country from the bad name which fastened itself upon them, certain citizens or Richland and Jackson townships formed a secret organization, and thus met organized theft with organized force. The organization in Jackson township was separate from the Richland organization, but not independent of it, as both organizations acted in concert, and with the full understanding of the other. In 1858 a horse was stolen from David Myers, who lived near the Jefferson county line, about half way between Richland and Ioka. The two organizations before named took the matter in hand, recovered the horse and captured the thief. The latter, however, by the evidence of his confederates, evaded the law, and was released. There lived in the region of "Brushy Bend," four brothers by the name of Byers, who were implicated in certain thefts, and these four persons, now, were closely watched by the vigilants. It was not long till a man by the name of Stalker had a saddle and a bridle stolen. Ike Bowers, who, about that time had departed to Marion county, for the purpose of attending a camp-meeting, was suspected, and the vigilants sent emissaries after him to watch his movements, and, if possible, trace out the stolen property. When these arrived on the campground, they found Byers in the very midst of the worshipers, taking a very active part in the conduct of the meeting. They said nothing to him concerning the real object of their visit, and led him by their conduct to suppose that they had simply come for religious consolation. However, while they sat near him in meeting, united their voices with his in singing the songs of Zion, and possibly may have lead in prayer, they at the same time kept a close lookout for the missing saddle and bridle. In the course of time they found the missing property in the possession of a man from an adjoining county, who, upon being questioned, stated that he had bought them of Byers. Byers was thereupon arrested, and together with the man in whose possession the property was found, brought back to Richland, where he was tried before a justice of the peace. The evidence this time being conclusive, and his brothers being unable even by their false testimony to establish an alibi, Byers was sentenced to a term in the county jail, whither he was conducted by the proper officers. Keokuk county in those days had a jail, but it was not remarkable for its imposing appearance or its security. Upon being locked up, and the officer from Richland offering to shake the parting hand, Byers refused, saying: "It ain't worth while, for I'll be back at Brushy Bend to-morrow." And sure enough he was, for the following night he broke jail, and was back home nearly as soon as the officer. The vigilants, seeing that the civil authorities were powerless to deal with such an outlaw, got together the following night, proceeded to the home of Byers, took him out of bed, and placing a rope around his neck led him to the timber. Just before entering the timber they informed him of their intention to hang him; he asked permission to pray; they granted him thirty minutes, which was occupied in the most fervent supplication. One of the vigilants who was present at the time, and who had seen him at the Marion county camp-meeting, says, that although Byers prayed most fervently and eloquently at the camp-meeting, the effort on this particular night was peculiarly eloquent and fervent; possibly the pressure of the rope against his vocal organs gave to his voice a particularly pathetic and sympathetic tone. When the thirty minutes were up the vigilants started with Byers into the timber looking for a suitable limb, the latter all the while looking up, as if anxious to find a suitable place and have the work over with. At length a limb was found, and the victim was swung free from the ground, but not into eternity, as the vigilants did not all contemplate such extreme measures. After he had been suspended for a moment they let him down, and informed him if he would confess his crimes and reveal his confederates, they would release him. This Byers refused to do, and they repeated the operation several times. At length being persuaded that Byers would die rather than make a confession, they thereupon stripped him, brought forth some whips, with which they had previously been provided, and after giving him a severe castigation, gave him his clothes and told him to leave the country, and not again to return on penalty of being hung in earnest. Byers left, and was never again seen in that locality. There were a good many peaceably inclined Quakers living in and about Richland who objected to the measures resorted to by the vigilants, and in order to avail himself of their moral support another one of the Byers removed to Richland where he hoped to continue operations without taking the chances of being whipped. After he had stolen a number of things the quiet town was nearly scared out of existence, and corportion [sic] lines could scarcely retain its people, when late one night some three hundred vigilants appeared on the street and, after parading through the town with Byers tied to a horse, departed for the timber. This Byers, likewise, was never more seen in those parts. He had been served like Ike, and, like Ike, he thought it best to follow the parting injunction of the regulators. The other two Byers brothers, in due course of time, were detected in the commission of thefts, together with a boy by the name of Wyant and two or three other associates of theirs, all of whom were taken out of their beds at night, a sound whipping administered and ordered to leave the county. The last one to go was "Lige Byers," who, awhile afterward returned, and upon his earnest protestation and promises of good behavior, was allowed to remain. He soon fell from grace, however, was waited upon by the ever attentive committee and vanished in the night-time, never again to tread the romantic vales of "Brushy Bend." While the vigilants were carrying on their operations south of Skunk river an attempt was at one time made to have them indicted. They were, however, duly informed of the contemplated legal proceedings and were furnished with the name of the prosecuting witness on the day when the grand jury assembled at Sigourney. Certain members of the committee were at the latter place as soon as the swiftest horses could carry them there. It would not do, however, to commit violence at the seat of justice, so they resorted to strategy. While the judge was giving his charge to the jury they were entertaining the prospective prosecuting witness at a neighboring saloon, who, by the time he was called, was too drunk to make a coherent statement. The grand jury thought it beneath their dignity to listen to the maudlin gibberish of a drunk man, so they dismissed him to sober off. The following night said prosecuting witness was on his way to the Skunk river timber in charge of a body of vigilants and during the remainder of that term of court he could not be found though the grand jury sought him faithfully with deputies and bailiffs. The vigilants had a most thorough organization and proceeded against offenders in a cool and systematic manner. When a person was suspected they held a secret meeting and a jury was selected to pass upon the case, the evidence was all given in and the jury retired for consultation; if they acquitted the accused that ended the matter, but if they brought in a verdict of guilty the case was promptly disposed of the following night. There was a regular annual or monthly assessment made on each member of the organization and thereby a fund accumulated to pay all necessary expenses. The organization is still in existence and it has not been long since a man who was in the habit of stealing honey left a certain neighborhood very suddenly. He was out late one night and chanced to see a hundred or so of the vigilant's horses hitched at a school house; he went home in a hurry, silently folded his tent and departed. Transcribed by Steven McBride. The Jail The county jail was built in 1875. Prior to that time the prisoners were kept at Washington and Muscatine. When the county-seat was at Lancaster there was a jail erected at that place, but it was never noted for elegance or safety. The present jail is one of the best in the State and Keokuk county now returns the compliment by keeping the prisoners for the county which formerly kept hers. The first action in reference to the building of a jail was at the September term, 1874, as follows. "On motion it is resolved that the board of supervisors submit to the voters of Keokuk county, Iowa, a proposition to build a jail in said county, to be voted on at the October elections 1874." The election was held according to order, with the following result: for jail, 1,631; against jail, 314. In the following January the board resolved that they collectively be appointed a committee to visit Chicago and intermediate towns for the purpose of examining city prisons, county jails, etc., with a view to the erection of a jail in Keokuk county. It was also ordered that three warrants of thirty-five dollars each be issued by the auditor to defray the expenses of the trip. This action of the board was the occasion of some very severe criticism on the part of certain tax-payers of the county. Among other manifestations of dissatisfaction was a poster, printed at South English, which was extensively distributed throughout the county, of which the following is a copy: "Indignation meeting! Tax-payers of Keokuk county, you are hereby requested to meet at South English on Saturday, July 17, 1875, at 2 o'clock P. M. to consider what action shall be taken in regard to the wholesale plunder of the treasury by the board of supervisors. "Signed, MANY CITIZENS." The board, however, went on this tour of inspection and probably did the best thing for the county which could have been done. For on this trip they learned something relative to prisons and jail building, and whether it may be directly attributed to what they learned on this trip or not, one thing is certain, viz: The jail was erected, and when finished, proved to be the best building of the kind in this part of the State. On their trip to Chicago, the board of supervisors arranged for the cells and cell doors which formerly were used in the city prison of Chicago. They also contracted with W. L. Carrol, of Chicago, to draw plans and specifications for the jail building. At the April session the board ordered that bonds should be issued, negotiated and sold, to the amount of ten thousand dollars for the erection of the jail. This order for the issue of bonds called forth another outburst of indignation in the north part of the county, and at a public meeting held at South English the following resolutions were adopted: "WHEREAS, We, the tax payers of Keokuk county, have reason to believe that our county supervisors have been recreant to their trust in so much that they have voted to themselves for services since the 1st of January, 1875, an amount equal to $65 a month each for the entire six months; that they have treated with disrespect a petition of tax-payers; that they have clearly shown their incompetency to fill the important positions they occupy, in issuing the county jail bonds without legal authority, and by being unable, or unwilling, to transact the business of the county within the time specified by law, to-wit: thirty days; (see See. 3791, Code 1873); therefore, be it "Resolved. 1st—That a committee be appointed to investigate the propriety of enjoining the board from making further appropriations for services, and the auditor and treasurer from drawing and paying the same. "2d.—That the issuing by the board of supervisors of the county bonds, known as the jail bonds, without the proposition for a tax having been adopted by the people, and the sale of said bonds absolutely void in law, under the representation that they were valid, meets our unqualified censure. "3d.—That the present board be requested to resign, and allow the people to fill their places by members who can transact the business of the county within the time specified by law." The supervisors, however, did not resign, but went on with the plans for the erection of the building. The jail was completed in the latter part of the year 1875, and, as before remarked, is one of the most substantial buildings of the kind in the State. The following description of the building, published in the "News," of the issue January 5, 1876, will give a good idea of the building: "For a proper understanding of the buildings described, it is necessary to state that although described as two buildings, they are connected and separated only by a partition wall. "Ground plan of dwelling, 38 feet 8 inches by 28 feet 8 inches, divided into four rooms, viz: pantry, vegetable, furnace and fuel rooms. These divisions are made by brick walls. The outer walls, forming the foundation of the structure, are of stone, four feet thick at the base, and by offsets reduced to one foot eight inches at a height of eight feet, receiving a water-table as a base for the brick work. "The main walls are of brick, fifteen inches thick, with air chambers of two inches, stone sills and caps for the openings. First story, nine feet eight inches, second story, nine feet two inches, in height, divided as follows: First floor, hall, parlor, dining-room, office, kitchen and pantry; all of which are provided with the necessary cupboards, drawers, shelving, chests and outfit pertaining to first-class rooms. The second story is divided into four rooms, two of which are provided with wardrobes, neatly fitted and furnished with shelving, hooks, etc. In the attic are two nice, large, well-ventilated chamber rooms. "The building is neatly plastered, hard finished and painted throughout with three coats of paint, and blinds to all the windows. The roofing is of black slate, with water gutters and spouting leading to the cistern, to be described hereafter. "The ground plan of the jail building proper is thirty-one feet two inches by twenty-one feet four inches; footings, five feet thick, of heavy limestone, laid in cement. The foundation walls are ten feet in height, extending six feet into the ground and four feet above, being three feet thick where they receive the water-table and floor. The main or outside walls are of sandstone, three of which are twenty-two inches, and the other twenty-six inches, thick, each stone reaching through the wall, laid in cement, weighing from one to four thousand pounds each, and doweled with a two-inch round cast-iron ball to prevent them being slipped out. The style of the work is rock face, cut beads and drave margins. "These walls are eighteen feet high, mounted with neat cornice and cap-pings, with four windows two by six feet. Each window is guarded with two sets of mixed steel bars, one and one-half inches in diameter, set six inches into the rock, with five stays crosswise with the bars passing through them, and with ordinary sash and ground glass. "Inside of the walls described, commencing at the same depth, are three other walls, the main wall making the fourth, surrounding a space ten by seventeen feet which forms the privy vaults. On these walls sit the cells, which are nine in number, and located so as to leave a corridor on three sides seven feet wide, which is flagged with stone eight inches thick, and long enough to reach and be built into the main walls on one side, and under and form a part of the foundation for the cells on the other. Under the corridor, and surrounding the foundation wall of the vault, is a cistern of four hundred to five hundred barrels capacity, for general use of the building: The cells are five by seven feet, floor surface, and seven feet high, formed from six stones eight inches thick, and of proper size for one each to form bottom, top, sides and end, and weighing from one to three-tons. Each cell is provided with two iron cots, solidly fastened to the wall, and a sail-stool bolted to the floor. Four of these nine cells are located so as to form a square. On top of these cells are situated four other cells, which are reached by an iron stairway which lands on an iron platform in front of the doors. On top of the eight cells under the roof is the ninth cell, or female department, thirteen by eighteen feet, formed by rubble walls planked inside with two-inch plank, and lined with iron. "The cells are located on one side of the building, so as to connect with one of the outside walls, and between the cell stone and the wall is two inches of solid iron to prevent cutting through the wall. The cell rock floor, and sitting of the entire jail is of limestone from the Joliet quarries. The window-frames and sash are all the wood there is inside the jail. Each cell is provided with two iron doors, one grated, and the other a solid slab covering the grates, each of which has a strong separate fastening. "The entrance to the jail is from the sheriff's office in the dwelling through five iron doors, all of which have separate fastenings. Inside the jail, surrounding the entrance, is a cage of iron lattice-work, into which the sheriff will pass, locking two doors behind him, and passing the key to an attendant in the office before opening the door of the cage admitting him to the prisoners. "The prison is ventilated by an air duct leading from the vault under the corridor floor into a ventilating flue built between the two main chimneys, and arranged so that if there is fire either in the furnace or cook-stove it will rarefy the air in the ventilating fines, causing draft and a flow of air down through the sail-pipes into the air duct and out the top of the chimney. From experiments that have been made it is believed that the jail will be free from the offensive and unhealthy smell that is present in most: places where prisoners are confined. Both jail and dwelling are warmed throughout from a furnace located in the basement of the dwelling. It required about five hundred perch of rock to construct the building." Hon. B. A. Haycock, of Richland, and J. H. Terrel were the contractors. The contract was originally let for $9,600. This, together with the cost of the real estate, supervision and architect's fee, amounted to the sum of $14,222.31. The board of supervisors at the time consisted of Messrs. Merryfield, Bower and Morgan. Transcribed by Steven McBride. |
