Person:Harmon Austin (3)

Hamburg Years

Harmon remained on the farm, became a carpenter a stone mason and a contractor. He bought timberland in the hills, operated the saw mill and engaged in construction of homes and buildings. He also built a plank road from the front of their property running north to Buffalo. It was completed in 1848 and was known as the White’s Corners Road. It was a toll road and the toll stations were constantly relocated to prevent travelers from detouring through the woods to avoid paying the tolls. The road exists to this day and is now known as South Park Avenue. Harmon married in 1841 Jane Wilson, who died within a year, perhaps in childbirth. He married again in 1843 to Elvira Parks who was born in Hamburg to James and Polly (Brown) Parks. Polly’s paternal grandfather was Perley Brown who was killed at the battle of white Plains on Oct 28, 1776. Her maternal grandfather was Lt. Philip Perry who was shot down in Shaftsbury, Vermont on Aug 1, 1775, probably near the Arlington line, while trying to arrest Hazard Wilcox, a Tory spy. There is a tablet to his memory in the station in Arlington, VT. She was proud to be a cousin (however distant) to Oliver Hazard Perry, hero of the battle of Lake Erie in the war of 1812. she named 2 of her sons Parley and Perry after her patriot grandfathers. Strangely, Philip does not appear in the DAR listing even though there is a Lt. Philip Perry chapter of the DAR somewhere in Florida. On March 18 1858, Lucy Austin died and about the same time, John became blind. In the 1830’s the area began to see a large influx of German immigrants. Harmon hired hands, some of them Germans as farm laborers and Elvira kept a German girl as a domestic, to help with Housework, tending the children and John who eventually was bedridden for the last 2 years of his life before dying in late 1864 or early 1865(more likely 1871 as he appears in the 1870 census s.a.). Harmons eldest son Perry Lucius was born June 17, 1844 in East Hamburg. He enlisted in the Army shortly after his 18th birthday, served until the end of the war and was discharged 5 days before his 21st birthday. He soon married and moved on to Illinois. The second son, Lafayette married in 1867 and moved to North Boston, New York.

On to Kansas

Harmon had a nephew, James Smith, who decided to go to Kansas and take up a homestead He was interested in raising cattle. He was a veteran, many of his buddies had gone to Kansas, and the new frontier was calling him. His relatives painted a dreary picture of the hazards of this New Country, and urged him to settle down in New York. But in spite of their pleas he decided to go. He went by rail to Russell, Kansas and then 60 miles North to Bull City with a freight hauler. He made his headquarters in Bull City. Then he walked miles in all directions to locate a place that suited him best, and what he thought would make the best cattle farm. He picked out land on the Little Medicine Creek, southwest of Bull City, and wrote to his Uncle Harmon, who was his favorite uncle back in New York. He wrote in glowing terms of the great country, and he urged his uncle and his two younger cousins to come so that they could all get land together. In this way they could help each other, and be better able to protect themselves against Indian attacks and renegades. At this time Bull City was the town farthest west in the Soloman Valley. The settlers started a town about every ten miles, fearing to go further apart because of Indians. Harmon Austin gave much thought to the opportunity of getting 160 acres of land for himself, and for each of his sons. His Parents were dead, his two older sons had already left home and the younger ones were approaching adulthood. His wife was not overly enthusiastic about the move, but said she would go if he thought it was the right thing to do. Harmon had all arrangements made by May 1872, and he, with Cassius,16 and Herman Delos, 19, left for Kansas. They went by rail to Russell, Kansas. They came on to Bull City by wagon. A few days after their arrival in Bull City the Austin’s met James Smith. During that interval they met and talked with Lyman Earl and Gen. Hiram C. Bull. Gen. Bull heard about Harmon Austin's skill as a carpenter, stone mason, and contractor. They talked Harmon into building a hotel. At this time there were four buildings in Bull City, three log cabins and Gen. Bull's log store. There was a partial building on the corner that Lyman T. Earl had started. It had no roof. Antone Korb rented it, put a tent over the top, and used it for a home while he built his log house. Harmon Austin also rented the partially built Earl building while he built the hotel. They began building at once. Harmon was a fine carpenter, and stone masons were plentiful as many homes were built of native rock. The hotel was built of hand hewn, native yellow sandstone blocks; the interior woodwork was all finished in native black walnut. When completed the hotel had 15 rooms, a lobby, dining room, with a two-story frame building at one end to be used as a kitchen on the lower floor, and the Austin family sleeping quarters upstairs. In November the hotel was finished, and Harmon sent word back to New York for his wife and daughter to come west. They arrived in Bull City on November 16, 1872. It was a big change for Mrs. Austin. The bleak prairies of Kansas were in direct contrast to their beautiful farm in New York. The only thing that seemed plentiful to her was the endless prairie, cotton wood trees, sunflowers, and grasshoppers. They shipped their furniture from New York, and when it arrived the new hotel was opened for business. Gen. Bull was sure Bull City would be the metropolis of the west. In 1873 Charles Guttery built a large one-room house with a basement, where the water tower later stood. He ran a blacksmith shop. His son, Harry, was to be a barber. The first frame house was built by Lyman T. Earl and later used by Pat Campbell for a residence and a Post Office. The building used for the central office of Gen. Bull and Earl was of stone, and later used as a store. The first school was taught in an upstairs room of the Austin Hotel. It was taught by Mrs. Ira Stockbridge. Ira used a team of oxen on his farm. Mrs. Stockbridge walked back and forth to her school. In 1873 Harmon Austin built the first school house of the same stone construction as the hotel. Sunday school, elections and other meetings were held in the Austin Hotel. The second sermon preached in Bull City was in the hotel by Capt. Osborne, a Congregational preacher. After the schoolhouse was built most gatherings were held there. At the Austin Hotel of Bull City. Business was very good, for there were many prairie schooners coming, and many men walked 60 miles from the nearest railroad. Indians often stopped at the hotel and asked for bread. My Great Grandmother, Elvira, always gave them bread, even though it was sometimes needed at the hotel. The hotel never lacked for meat. Buffalo, antelope, deer, and occasionally wild turkey and quail were regular items. Milk and dairy products were plentiful at nearby farms. General groceries were available at the Bull Store. When a baby died in the community there were no coffins available, Harmon Austin took a walnut partition board out of the hotel and built a coffin. The frame for the Common School Diploma of Frank P. Austin, Harmon's grandson, was made by Frank from walnut from the old Austin Hotel. He salvaged this wood when the hotel was later made into the Stephenson's store. The frame is now in the possession of Patricia Austin Horrigan, daughter of George C. Austin. He also made a bookcase of this walnut, now owned by Frank Clinton Austin, a grandson of Frank P. Austin. In May 1874, just two years after coming to Bull City, my Great Grandfather Harmon Austin died of typhoid-pneumonia. Doctors had little training, and drugs were scarce. Castor oil and quinine were all that was available. As a result of these conditions, the death rate was high. Many families were entirely wiped out with diseases such as scarlet fever, diphtheria, and red measles. Small pox was also a dread killer. Great Grandma, Elvira Austin, continued to run the hotel for a few years, and then decided it was too much for her and her daughter, Emma. She sold the hotel to Mr. J.B. Taylor and took up a homestead 1 1/2 miles from town, since all the good valley land had been taken. Undaunted she lived in a half basement house with walls four feet above ground on two sides. There were windows on the south and west. The ridgepole ran across the top with smaller saplings running down and resting on the sidewalls. Brush was laid and matted across these poles, and then a layer of prairie hay. All of this was covered with a layer of clay. After settling, roof was about 4 inches thick. The floor was dirt. This made a "comfortable" home, but she had to share it with snakes, centipedes, and scorpions. There was no way to keep them from coming through the roof. At night the coyotes howled at Great Grandmother's door, and she wondered if they would scratch their way through the dirt roof. They never made it. After a heavy rain, the roof would leak for a few hours. Great Grandmother planted several hundred trees including several shad varieties, mulberry, and walnut. She planted 175 fruit trees; 100 peach, and the balance were cherry, plum, and apple. Wild plum, chokecherry, and wild grapes grew everywhere and were enjoyed by early settlers. Wild currants were available too. Great Grandma Elvira and her daughter, Emma, found ready sale for her fruit. She gave fruit to those unable to buy. She trimmed and cared for her trees and in winter shoveled snow deep around the roots. They prospered and were soon able to build a sturdy two-story frame house. She organized a Sunday school for neighboring children and taught them the Bible. The front of her house was shaded by two large crab apple trees. In the spring they looked like huge white blankets of snow with a purplish cast. They were loaded with fruit which she used for jelly and preserves. She found ready sale for her surplus. The greatest day of the year was Christmas when her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren came for a festival. Much of the food was raised and prepared by her. There were a few groceries that she needed to buy. One of her grandchildren remarked, "I feel sorry for any child that never knew the love of a grandmother." She left the luxury of a rich farm in New York and faced the terrible hardships of pioneer life in Kansas. She never complained and always said that God was very good to her. She said 1874 was the hardest year when she lost her husband, and she couldn't have made it through the winter except for gifts of food and clothing from New York. There was a wonderful spirit and her New York neighbors never forgot her. When the freighters brought boxes from the east, they would gather and open the boxes and divide the contents. It was a joyful time. In addition to the loss of her husband, the grasshoppers had taken most of the local crops that year. At 80 she was still tall and straight and looked to be about 60. There was a sparkle in her eyes and she was very active. At 84, she was standing on a chair trimming trees. She fell and broke her hip, and from that time on she was an invalid. Her main complaint was that she couldn't get out and do the work that needed to be done. She died three months after her accident in 1907. Kansas lost a noble pioneer. As settlers came west, Gen. Bull and Lyman Earl interviewed as many as possible. If they felt they would make good citizens they were urged to stay. According to Niles Endsley, the following notes were found in his mother's (Emma Austin Endsley) notebook. "David and Nancy Campbell, their daughter Mary, and husband pat were here when we came. Their daughter Nell was the first white girl born here. There were no better folks than the Campbells. Lyman T. Earl should not be forgotten, his daughter and her husband, Dr. Hill also cam to Bull City." Dr. Martin was the first doctor to open an office in the city. Gen. Bull had hired men to freight for him between Bull City and Russell. His top driver was George Whiteman, an Indian fighter who took part in the last Indian attack in the country. This was at Bullock's Ranch down near where the village of Bloomington now stands. This was July 3, 1870. Gen. Bull bought buffalo hides and bones which he traded for other goods which he stocked in his store. The Post Office was established on May 31, 1871. Gen. Bull was the first postmaster. A minimum quantity of mail had to come to a town before a post office could be established. Mrs. Bull sent many letters to her friends in the east and had them remail them to help build the mail volume up to the requirements. The general would dump the mail out on the bed to sort it. Bob Bates came to Bull City in 1874 and worked as a freighter for bull. This freight line continued until the Missouri Pacific R.R. came to Bull City in 1880. This became a distributing point for many towns and communities. It was a busy town in those days. The first passenger train came in Jan. 1, 1880. Mary Lewis was on that first train. Bull City was now a boomtown. All the good land was homesteaded by 1879. The first gristmill was built and ready to run in 1873. Chas. Cook spent all his money on this mill. It burned to the ground before it turned a wheel. Cook became so despondent and deranged that he killed his baby, and tried to kill his wife with a hatchet. She got away and ran for help. When the help arrived they found that Cook had killed himself. The mill was rebuilt by Mr. Rush. It was later operated by Stover and Powers, and burned to the ground again. The Miller brothers built a new frame mill near the bridge, and it also burned. I have a picture of this mill, and the old Soloman River Bridge, where it was $5.00 fine to cross faster than a walk. The founders of Bull City felt their dreams were coming true, and that their city would truly become the metropolis of the Middle West. Then came the tragic death of the General and two of his employees. On Sunday morning October 12, 1879 the employees went to feed the animals in the park. The elk raced across and pawed the ground furiously when they started to open the gate. Bob Breckel went to the house and told the General, "We will get some good stout clubs and go down there and subdue him." So they armed themselves with clubs. The General was the first to go in. The elk charged furiously and knocked him down and gored him. When Breckell went to the rescue, he was also knocked down and gored. After seriously wounding Breckell, the elk turned again on the General. Nicholas went to his rescue, he was also gored. The fourth man, Sherman, was caught in the elk’s horns and tossed over the fence. A heavy book in his pocket saved his life. General Bull had 44 wounds, and Dr. Martin said he was no doubt killed instantly. Breckell was 32 years old and Nichols 64. They had helped the General all they could.

1.   Edith Austin Moore, Compiler. The John Austin Family of New London Greenwich and Stamford, CT. (Manuscript)
   p 99.

   Information received from:
   Mr. Cassius P. Austin, Alton, KS. (1925).
   Mr. Frank C. Cross, 1114 Downing St., Denver, CO.
   Mr. Lafayette C. Austin.

2.   SETTLERS MOVE WEST: AN AUSTIN FAMILY HISTORY.

   By George Charles Austin, son of Frank P. Austin,
   and great grandson of Harmon and Elvira (Parks) Austin
   (with some editing by Patricia Austin Horrigan)

3.   Memoir of Emma Jane Austin Endsley.
4. ↑ ^4.0 4.1 Harmon Austin [1], in Find A Grave.

   "HARMON AUSTIN DIED Nov. 16, 1873 AGED 62 years."

5.   Erie, New York, in United States. 1870 U.S. Census Population Schedule. (National Archives Microfilm Publications M593 and T132).

   AUSTIN HARMAN 58 M W NY NY ERIE E HAMBURG
   Harman Austin
   Estimated Birth Year: 1812
   Gender: Male
   Age in 1870: 58y
   Color (white, black, mulatto, chinese, Indian): White
   Birthplace: New York
   Home in 1870: New York, United States
   Household Gender Age
   Harman Austin M 58y
   Alvira Austin F 46y
   Delos Austin M 16y
   Cassinz Austin M 14y
   Emma Austin F 7y
   John Austin M 86y