Anamosa - A Reminiscence 1838 - 1988

still visible in the stone steps leading to the front door.
In 1889 the building. owned by Col W.T. Shaw, on
the southwest corner of Main and Davis was rented for a
new baby carriage factory. The following year, this
company moved to Cedar Rapids bringing forth the ire
of the editor of the Anamosa Journal. He denounced
Anamosa for refusing to help keep the factory from
going to that metropolis.
By 1891. with the exception of the Pitcher 81 McKay
shops and the buildings across from the Shaw's Block,
all the buildings on both sides of Main Street were
completed. The trees. planted 30 years before. were
showing dense foliage and the cross streets were lined
with private residences.
Prior to the building of the City Hall, the city annually
rented various rooms around the city in which to
conduct city business and for meetings held by the fire
department. In 1903, when the building was dedicated.
everthing went according to plan except that Mayor
M.P. Sigworth was ill and the two speakers, I-Ion. F.O.
Ellison and Judge B.F. Miller, were called out of town.
There was a good attendance in spite of the
misunderstanding about the price of admission which
was put at S1 without specifying that ladies were
admitted free ofcharge.
A program of music by the Glick Orchestra. a song by
James Abel. and performances by eight little girls. was
followed by a dance lasting until 2 a.m. The new
building. a credit to the town. was 56 X 48 feet and two
stories high. Chadwick Gr Son built it for a contract
price of $4.780. and a Mr. Albright of Mt. Vernon
finished the carpenter work at a cost of about $400. The
fire department paid for the cement work, which came
to about $266. Charley Brown did the cement work and
the painting besides donating a large amount of the
labor. The masonary work was done by A.J. Smith of
Cedar Rapids. Firemen's receipts for the dance was
close to 3300. as reported in the newspapers.
Aside from a stairway at the left, the lower floor was
one room, to be occupied by the hose carts and hook 8!
ladder wagon. The second floor was a hall. The tower
was 72 feet high. with the bell occupying the top.
The lower section was used for suspending the hose for
drying. In 1907 the city purchased the lot adjoining on
the north for $750 and the building was used to house
the street sprinkler and other equipment.
In 1904 the post office was moved into the newly
erected Scoonover building on the site previously
occupied by the Congregational Church.
Main Street Over the Years
In 1904 J .L. Kaufman sold out his grocery and meat
market to Don Downing and J.E. Tyler of Cedar Rapids.
Mr. Downing had charge of Swift Packing Co. at Cedar
Rapids for nine years. Mr. Tyler -had been running a
market 15 years. Mr. Kaufman started in Anamosa in
1877. and his two sons. L.H. and W.F. had been
assisting about 12 years. In 1925 a young man by the
name of Charles Tyler. who had held the popular
position of assistant cashier for several years in the
Anamosa National Bank resigned to begin working for
the Tyler 81 Downing store. At the same time “Bud"
Downing also joined the finn. The Tyler and Downing
name has been a familiar one on Main Street for 83
years. A volume could be written on the funny
happenings that went on in this store over the years.
The frlendy owners and good-natured clerks kept
things ‘lively’. "Bud's" son. D.A.. called "Buddy". to
distinguish between the two. joined the firm in 1948. as
did "Buddy's" son. Dirk. in 1979, purchasing an
interest in 1980. thus carrying on this family tradition.
" Charley" Tyler had no children. Cletus McNamara
began working for the store in 1950. “Buddy"and
"Clete" bought into the firm in 1954. “Clete's" son.
Doug. began working in the store when he was 16 years
old in 1967. becoming a part-owner in the business in
1976. Tyler & Downing closed its doors in 1986.
However. the T 8: D name is still being used on Main
Street as the Jack G: Jill Supermarket sells T & D Meats
in its store. This business is currently located in the
building built and owned by the Julius Westphal
farnily.
Anamosa had a laundromat. with pick up and
delivery service. called the Steam Laundry. It was
owned by S.M. Cole in the mid-1890s.
In 1908 G.H. Monroe purchased the hardware store of
l.P. Mienhart. After 28 years experience with creditors.
he wanted to try a ‘cash-only‘ venture. I-Ie sold out in
1939 and it was to be a $25,000 sale. This was one of
the oldest business on Main Street at the time.
South Garnaviilo was the seat of a war with "Lucky"
Baldwin the bone of contention. in 1913. His yard
contained all kinds of ‘material' that he gathered in
town. Robert Johnson, mayor at the time. was
attempting to alleviate the situation. However,
"Lucky" had his adherents who stood by him. Forced
off one place, he bought a lot of his own to store his
treasures. However, a teamster dumped a load contrary
to his wishes and when "Lucky" objected. the teamster
hit him with a chain. "Lucky" had the assailant
arrested. The teamster paid S 10 for his dastardly deed.
The local paper noted. "The end is not yet." "Lucky"
was still in business when George Zeuch, as a city
councilman. took him on in 1933. At the time his
treasures were stored in ‘Dublin’. Zeuch proposed that
a subscription be raised to buy out “Lucky's" property.
including his treasures. since the property was on the
main-traveled thoroughfare leading into the city. It
seemed that the authorities [governing the health and
sanitary laws) could do nothing to help. That body had
been beseeched for years. The answer to this
conundrum was. ‘to buy him out‘. His price was S500.
and Zeuch met with all the city's organizations to raise
the money. "Lucky's" treasures were loaded on
railroad cars and shipped away and the buildings were
moved. George Zeuch was commended for his work on
this project. "Lucky". not exiting gracefully, sued
George for alleged damage while the removal of his
treasures was being planned.
In 1914 all of the telephone and light poles and wires
were removed from Main Street. (This fact may help
date your Main Street photos.) The poles were moved to
the alleys. with the exception of those used in
maintaining the arc light service.
In 1914 J.H. Gustine, ‘Gus the Tailor‘, purchased a
house in the western part of the city. This house had
been built by L.N. Perkins. a deaf mute. who came with
the Walworth family in 1839. (Before 1895. Anamosa
had five families of deaf mutes.) Perkins was an
excellant carpenter. I-Ie died at the age of 84. after
having been blind one year before his death. 1-le left a
wife and two children. a son. 22. and a daughter. 21.
The Eureka files indicate that Gustine would move the