Grant Township
Named for William Grant who homesteaded in 1874
Listed as a Precinct in 1875 (Assessors books)
County adopted township system in
1883
Location:
Third tier from the top, 2nd in from the west
Rivers & Streams:
Wood River winds cattycorner from southeast
corner to northwest corner
All other streams or waterways empty
into it.
Whole township is in the Wood River
watershed
Type of land: Mixed crop and pasture
Transportation routes:
Stagecoach – from Kearney up
south side of Wood River through Stanley and Greendale
Railroad – Kearney & Black
Hills - Up Wood River on north side through Amherst
Highway – State Highway 40 on
same route as railroad up north side of Wood River
Graveled bed completed in 1936
Paved in 1958
Post Offices:
Huntsville – Couple miles southeast of present day Amherst
Miles B. Hunt – Filed on homestead early in 1873.
Lived on his land some years before
filing
Post Office established in Oct. 1873,
first in the township
Post Office moved 2 miles west Mar.
15, 1877 and renamed Stanley
Greendale – Mile and a half or so northwest of Amherst
Post Office established in 1879
Closed when the railroad was built in
1890
Stanley – Had Post Office from 1877 until 1891 when it was
discontinued.
[another source] In 1890 P O was moved to Amherst
Located at intersection of present
day Eagle Road and Road 145,
(mile east of road from Odessa to Amherst)
Mile south &
two east of Amherst
At the crossroads – 2 general stores
and post office
Blacksmith shop
A mill on the Wood River northwest of Stanley
School, Dist. 13
Hotel, livery barn, blacksmith shop
Bank
Methodist Church
Dr.’s office
Newspaper – Stanley News
Literary Society – Tuesday nights
Topics of debate
"The United States Owes Her Greatness to Her Geographic Position and
Not
Her Form of Government."
"The School District Should Furnish Text-Books and They Should Be
Uniform."
"Courts are Bigger Frauds Than the Railroads." Stanley vs. Riverdale
Towns:
Amherst – Established in 1890 as a
depot on the K & BH Railroad
Laid out by K & BH Railroad 2 ½ miles
northwest.
Train did not stop at Stanley
Hotel moved
Doctor moved
Soon not enough people in Stanley, Post Office discontinued
Incorporated in 1894
Has wide streets. Main St. is 100 feet wide; others are 80 [most streets
are 60]
Cemeteries:
Old Stanley
½ mile west of Stanley – Graves from
Huntsville Cemetery moved here
Schools:
All closed & joined Amherst, Dist. 119
Dist. 13 – Stanley – organized in 1873 – First school in township
May have been in session before it was
officially organized
School census in 1890’s had 70 children
Second building erected about 2 miles east
Second school called “East Stanley”
First school called “West Stanley” or “Old Stanley”
East Stanley closed at end of 1953-54 term
District closed in 1959
Dist: 31- Greendale
Located northwest of Amherst, upstream on
the Wood toward Watertown & Miller
Organized in July, 1876
Closed after 1954-55 term.
Dist. 44 – Glendale
Located south and a little west of
Amherst
Organized in late 1870’s
Dissolved in 1959
Had a literary society in 1890’s
“A man will do more for his friends
than he will for money”
“There is more pleasure in pursuit
than in possession”
Dist. 74 – Prairie Dell
Located 2 miles east and a little north
of Amherst
Organized in Dec. 1883; dissolved in 1959 and divided between 3
districts, one being 119
Dist. 108 – River View
Organized in 1887 by taking land from
Dist 31 and 44
Located about one mile west of Amherst on south bank of Wood River
Students from Amherst attended here until Dist 119 was organized
In Feb 1893 Dist 108 purchased land in Amherst and built a second
schoolhouse
Dist. 119 was formed in Nov. 1894; this building became theirs.
Last term for Dist. 108 was the 1940-41 school year
Present Day:
2006 Election Results - Grant Twp Board
Vote for up to 3
Kevin Klingelhoefer . . . . . . .146
80.22
WRITE-IN. . . . . . . . . . . 36
19.78
County Board Secretary 10-22-2007
Other two members are Ryan Fisher and
Clark Nuttelman
Telephone conversation with Kevin Klingelhoefer 10-22-2007
Meetings – Annual meeting,
other times informal meetings when something comes up
Responsibilities – Roads &
Cemetery
Roads – Do not own any
equipment
Delegated responsibility for road
maintenance to county
County asks each year if there are changes to their list of
priorities on which
roads are to be graded and/or have snow removed
After ice storm last winter he & son cleared one road themselves
Cemetery – The township owns Old Stanley
Cemetery
Delegated operation to the cemetery
board which hires maintenance person
Township Board has to make major decisions like if more land were to
be
purchased
And Also:
Dec. 4, 1891 - W. L. Moss – Director of Dist. 13 – Charged with
Malfeasance of Office
Took lumber appropriated lumber left from
building the school to his own use.
Now a splendid barn is the result
Purchased coal at $4 per ton. Sold it to the school for $7/ton.
It is said that neighbors told him if he returned the lumber, nothing
would be said.
He didn’t and was arrested
Long and bitter battle but a year later a jury declared him “not guilty”
From the HUB:
July 1899
Mr. Green does threshing
Finished on Van Blue farm at end of day
Next job on Jesse Blue farm
Mr. Green refused to move machine there, roads too bad
Mr. Blue offered to hitch his horses to it and pull it
Mr. Green refused to take machine where the engine could not pull it.
One word led to another
Mr. Green made a statement
Mr. Blue called him a liar
A fight took place
Mr. Green got the worst of the deal, taking several blows about the head
About a dozen men present; apparently wanted to see who was the “best man”
Township Justice of the Peace fined Blue $5 plus costs –
court costs, constable costs, $30 in
witness fees
Mr. Blue is appealing to the District court – which may make his costs even
higher
It was said there was already bad blood between these two and this affair
will not improve matters.
[Mr. Blue may have to find someone else to do his threshing next year.]
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