The Young America Fire Company was organized on October 9, 1856, at a meeting held in Burrows Hall, presided over by John A. McDowell, who afterward served as mayor of the city. In this company were several men who afterward became men of national reputation. Among them may be mentioned Samuel R. Curtis, who served as mayor of the city, a member of Congress, and as a general in the Union army in the Civil war; William W. Belknap, who was secretary of war in the cabinet of President Grant; Hugh W. Sample, who was elected mayor of Keokuk in 1858, and the Confederate General Winder, then a young lawyer of Keokuk, who went south, joined the secession movement and became notorious as the superintendent of Libby Prison, at Richmond, Virginia.

The first president of the company was R. H. Magruder, who, with Curtis, Belknap, Sample and McDowell, took active steps to supply the company with hand engines and other fire-fighting apparatus. Two engines were purchased-the "Gallery," built by Rogers & Son, of Baltimore, Maryland, and the "Honneyman," which was built in Boston, Massachusetts. The Gallery, after being used a few years, was dismantled and sold as old metal, but the Honneyman continued in use for about a quarter of a century. The Columbia hose reel, purchased at the same time as the two engines, was afterward remodeled and change to a one-horse truck.

In 1860 the Rolla Fire Company was organized. The early meetings of this company were held in the blacksmith shop of Chris Smith, who was one of the members and made a large triangle, which served the company in place of a bell.

Union Fire Company No. 3 was organized in 1861, with George T. Higgins, afterward sheriff, W. B. Miller, William Landers, Jacob Speck and Donald Robinson among the active members.

The first steam engine was purchased by the city in the spring of 1866. It was manufactured by the Amoskeag Works, of Amoskeag, New Hampshire, and was called the "Young America," for the company to which it was assigned. Prior to that time the old hand engine Honneyman had been in the hands of this company, but when the steamer arrived and was placed in commission, the Honneyman was turned over to the Rollas.

After the great fire of July 4, 1870, it was decided to buy a second steamer and a Silsby engine, manufactured at Seneca Falls, New York, was purchased. It was christened the "Rolla" and went to the Rolla Fire Company, the old Honneyman being sold to the Town of West Point.

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In October, 1878, the paid fire department was organized and engines, hose reels, hook and ladder truck, etc., were placed under the control of the city. In 1914 the department consisted of four stations, and the apparatus of two steam engines, one chemical engine, one hook and ladder truck and four hose reels, manned by an efficient force of men.

PUBLIC LIGHTING

On Friday evening, January 4, 1856, the streets of Keokuk were lighted by gas for the first time. The original founders of the Keokuk Gas Company were William Herrick and Edward Kilbourne, who built a plant and laid mains in the fall of 1855. These two gentlemen and Charles B. Foote filed articles of incorporation for the Keokuk Gas Light and Coke Company on December 20, 1855, with Edward Kilbourne as the first president and Josiah Davis as the first secretary. The capital stock provided for in the articles of incorporation was $100,000, enough of which was paid up to put the works in good condition.

In 1865 Daniel Mooar acquired a controlling interest in the gas works and a few years later a reorganization took place, Mr. Mooar being elected president; R. H. Wyman, vice president, and H. R. Miller, secretary and superintendent. Under this management substantial improvements were made and the mains extended. In 1900 the works were transferred to the Keokuk Gas and Electric Company.

Electric lights were introduced into Keokuk by the Badger Electric Company, which was incorporated on March 2, 1885, by S. S. Badger, of Chicago, A. J. McCrary and Charles J. Smith, of Keokuk. A plant was established on Third Street, between Johnson and Exchange, with a capacity of sixty arc lights of 2,000 candle power each, most of which were installed for street lighting, though a few were placed in stores, etc. After about seven years the holdings of the company were transferred to the Fort Wayne Electric Company, of Fort Wayne, Indiana.

In the meantime a small incandescent plant had been established by J. C. Hubinger for his personal benefit. Being unable to secure gas from the gas company for lighting his residence, he drilled an artesian well and utilized the water to operate a small electric generator, sufficient to furnish incandescent lights for his house. Some of his neighbors were afterward placed on the circuit and the plant was enlarged. After the Fort Wayne company took over the Bad

ger interests, the old Thompson-Houston equipment was replaced by Wood machines and other improvements were made, after which the entire plant was sold to Mr. Hubinger. Both the gas works and the electric light plant are now controlled by the Stone & Webster Syndicate, which also operates the power plant at the big Keokuk dam.

STREET RAILWAY

The Keokuk Street Railway Company was organized early in the year 1882, with James H. Anderson as president, practically all the stock being held by local capitalists. Work was immediately commenced on two lines. The first began at the corner of Main and Fourteenth streets, thence east on Main to Fifth Street, and down Fifth to B Street in Reid's addition. The other line started at the railroad station, thence via Main to Sixth Street, on Sixth Street to Morgan, on Morgan to Eleventh, on Eleventh to Seymour, and on Seymour to Rand Park. Subsequently a line was built on Fourteenth Street from Rand Park to Main Street, so as to form a loop.

Mules and horses furnished the motive power until 1892, when the local company sold out to the Hubbell Syndicate, of Des Moines, which converted the plant into an electric railway system. The Main Street line was extended west to Nineteenth Street, on which car barns were built, and a little later the line on Nineteenth Street was extended to Oakland Cemetery. The Des Moines company sold out to J. C. Hubinger and others, and for a time it was operated in connection with the electric light plant. After one or two other changes in ownership the railway passed into the hands of the Stone & Webster Syndicate, which has put on new cars and otherwise greatly improved the service.

THE POSTOFFICE

The first person to act as postmaster at Keokuk was John Gaines, though he was never regularly appointed. The first mails were carried by Robert McBride from St. Francisville, Missouri, on horseback, or from Warsaw, Illinois, in a skiff, and Mr. Gaines undertook the work of distributing letters and other mail matter to the proper persons.

On June 24, 1841, L. B. Fleak was appointed postmaster and held the position for about three years. In speaking some years afterward of his experiences as postmaster, Mr. Fleak said:

"The postoffice was first kept in the Keokuk House. When I rented out the hotel in 1843, I moved the office to the corner of First and Johnson streets, and afterward to a building midway between First Street and the levee on Johnson Street. During the time I kept it at the latter place, my store was robbed, but the mail matter was not molested. There was $22,000 belonging to the United States lying in an old pine desk in the store room when the robbery took place. It had been handed to me by Major Stewart, army paymaster, for safekeeping and I had gone home and forgotten it. When we caught the burglar, I asked him why he did not open the desk and take the money. He said he did lift the cover, but thought no one would be fool enough to leave money in such a place."

When Mr. Fleak resigned, in the summer of 1844, W. S. McGavic and J. C. Ainsworth were applicants for the place, but through the influence of Henry J. Campbell and others the appointment went to Adam Hine, a river man, who was hardly ever at Keokuk. He appointed John B. Russell his deputy and some years later Mr. Hine said that all he knew about being postmaster was that he was called upon to make good a shortage of several hundred dollars, when his successor took possession of the office and checked up the business. This shortage was attributed solely to careless methods of keeping

accounts.

On March 16, 1887, ground was broken for the present postoffice building at the corner of Seventh and Blondeau streets and about two years later the new building was opened to the public. It is a substantial structure of stone and brick, two stories high, the main floor being devoted to the handling and distribution of mails and the second story to the United States Court. In the tower is a clock which marks the time and strikes the hours. In 1914 the Keokuk postoffice employed, besides the postmaster and assistant postmaster, fourteen city carriers, three substitute carriers, two rural carriers, twelve clerks and three janitors. The annual receipts of the office, in round numbers, amount to $83,000.

INDUSTRIAL ASSOCIATION

On January 22, 1906, the Keokuk Commercial Club was organized "for the purpose of fostering the splendid industries now flourishing and to encourage additional manufacturing enterprises that may wish to locate in the city."

In January, 1911, the club was succeeded by the Keokuk Industrial Association, with C. R. Joy as president and A. D. Ayres as