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Reno County: Grasshopper Invasion of 1874

April 21, 2021 by Jim Potter 2 Comments

 

https://jimpotterauthor.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Reno-County-Picnic-Grasshoppers.mp3

· Reno County Picnic: Grasshoppers

·

Settlers in Kansas had to deal with the worst weather. Droughts followed by floods followed by blizzards, busted many a pioneer. There were also grasshoppers and/or locusts. The voracious insects could strip a field of corn for lunch and devour clothes off a nearby clothesline for dessert. In the worst of times, farmers sold their farms, if they could, and headed back east. Many of those who remained, developed an odd sense of survivor humor. This postcard, titled “Rare Sport in the West,” is an example of an exaggeration postcard using self-deprecating humor. Rather than complain about mother nature, settlers learned to tell tall tales and laugh at their unfortunate circumstances. This photo postcard was created and copyrighted in 1909  by Marion W. Bailey (1869-1944), an early-day Hutchinson, Kansas, photographer. Author’s collection

It’s August 3, 1899, at the Old Settlers’ of Reno County picnic in Riverside Park, Hutchinson, Kansas.

Loretta McMillan Collins, 51, eating watermelon; Sarah Jane Riddle McMurry, 45, drinking blackberry cider; and Julia Clementine Latimer Whiteside, 31, eating fresh cherry pie; are sitting in the shade. They’re all wearing fancy hats and talking about the good ole’ days.

However, at age 31, Julia’s hardly eligible to be considered an old settler. Born May 6, 1868, in Jackson, Tennessee, she’s young enough to be a daughter of her husband, Houston Whiteside, Sr.

In 1888, Julia came to Hutchinson to visit her aunt. Julia met Houston and they married the following year in Memphis, Tennessee, at her uncle’s, her father having died in 1887. Julia was 20, Houston was 43.

Julia Clementine Latimer Whiteside inscription on the crypt in the mausoleum

Their two children, Ada, 7; and Houston, Jr., 9; are nearby. Ada’s drawing in a sketchbook; Houston Jr. is catching grasshoppers.

Sarah Riddle, born April 16, 1844, in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, married Jonathan McMurry, 27, in Shannon, Illinois, in 1867, when she was 23.

Sarah Jane Riddle McMurry gravestone

Sarah and Jon have enough children, seven to be exact, that just updating friends about their extended family could monopolize a conversation. Today, only their youngest, Edith, 15, is with them at the picnic. She’s listening to her elders.

Loretta McMillan, 51, born September 21, 1848, in Leavenworth County, Kansas, married Charles Collins, 22, at Lawrence, Kansas, in 1866, when she was 18.

Loretta McMillan Collins gravestone

“How is Charles?” Loretta Collins asks Sarah McMurry. This is always the question. The inquiry represents a long-standing bond between families. Charles Collins was the first sheriff of Reno County. He appointed Jon McMurry his undersheriff. Their mutual respect and family ties led Sarah and John to name their third child in his honor. Charles Collins McMurry was born in April 1872, three months after the county’s first election.

“He’s fine, thanks,” replied Sarah. “He and his wife, Rose; and Vernon, their one-year-old, are well.”

“Look at the men,” said Loretta, pointing her jaw towards their husbands. They must be telling war stories.”

“Sure looks like it,” agreed Sarah, “when Jon gets excited, he talks with his hands. Now he’s pointing towards his thighs. That’s where he was severely wounded at Big Hatchie during the battle in Tennessee.”

“Now, Houston’s grabbing his bad arm,” responds Julia. “I’m just glad they can get together and talk. Even though we both survived the devastation of the Civil War, Houston knows that I’ll never fully understand what it’s like to be permanently scarred. You can’t explain war.”

“The war scarred a lot of people, not only men,” said Loretta. “While they were off, our families were home, doing their best under trying circumstances.”

A Kansas family fights a losing battle with the relentless grasshoppers in a cartoon by illustrator Henry Worrall (1825-1902). It’s titled “Grangers versus Hoppers.” Kansas State Historical Society, Copy and Reuse Restrictions Apply.

Changing the subject, Loretta said, “Watching little Houston catch grasshoppers reminds me of the Rocky Mountain locust invasion of 1874.”

“Those ‘hoppers came out of nowhere from the west during that dry and hot summer,” said Sarah. “For days they obscured the sun, flying high in the air; they looked like snowflakes in a snowstorm.

“Streams of grasshoppers would detach from the main body, coming to the ground and devouring corn stalks and anything green. When they landed on our house, they sounded like a rainstorm.”

“Some people thought the swarms of locusts were a sign of the end of the world,” said Loretta. “They quoted Exodus 10 where the Lord told Moses to have locusts swarm over the land of Egypt and to have them devour everything growing in the fields.”

The settlers tried to stop the ‘hoppers but all efforts were in vain. How do you kill millions of flying pests? With a shotgun? Unsuccessful attempts were made to rake them up into piles, like leaves, and set them on fire, as this drawing illustrates. Unknown artist or publication. Kansas State Historical Society, Copy and Reuse Restrictions Apply.

“I wasn’t here in Reno County for the state’s grasshopper plague,” said Julia, “but Houston said the farmers were devastated because when the grasshoppers, or locusts, devoured their crops, they also ate the grains for the following year’s crops and the feed for their work animals.”

“They ate everything but the mortgage,” said Sarah, with a half-smile. “They would eat clothes off the clothesline, get into houses and clean out food in the cupboards. At night, people had to shake bedding to dislodge the grasshoppers before retiring.

“I heard about a woman who was wearing a white dress with a green stripe. The grasshoppers settled on her and ate up every bit of the green stripe in that dress before anything could be done about it.

“I can still hear the crunch of the grasshoppers underfoot when we walked outside. We couldn’t avoid them.”

“Farms were lost and many settlers returned to their former communities back east, broke and defeated,” said Loretta. “A good many families would have starved to death or frozen in their homes without the aid of communities outside of Kansas.”

*

“The frequent rains and flooding in May and June of 1877 in Hutchinson were another memorable event,” said Sarah. “When Cow Creek flooded, two-thirds of the city was inundated. The Main Street businesses had two feet of mud and water rush into their buildings.”

“Sidewalks were wooden, not stone,” added Loretta. “I remember the sidewalks at First and Main being washed away, even though they were staked down. Rowboats were used to ferry people who wished to remain high and dry.”

“On some streets, even riding a horse was dangerous due to the high waters,” added Sarah. “One man was drowned crossing the creek.”

*

Blizzard of 1888. Author’s collection

When Sarah started to recall the blizzard of 1888, Loretta realized that Julia would again be left out of the conversation.

Sarah was aware from the society page in the News that Julia and Houston regularly entertained honored guests at their home on east Sherman. Julia was often described as having a beautiful and cultured voice, being a ‘silvery soprano.’

“Was it difficult for you to adjust to Hutchinson from your life in Tennessee and Ohio?” asked Loretta?

“Houston made it easy for me,” answered Julia, “and the timing was right. My father had died the year before we met. When I visited my aunt here in Hutchinson, Houston and I were attracted to one another. He paraded me around as a classical amateur singer.”

“Did you have plans for the stage?” asked Loretta, knowing she may have gotten too personal.

Julia hesitated just a second before answering. “Neither Houston or I were prepared for a career in theater, although I had offers for professional services. We didn’t need the money,” replied Julia. “Instead, we’ve chosen to support the cultural arts. Houston expects a home theater to be built in a couple of years.

“Recently, at a celebration at home I sang, Non Mi Dir (Don’t Tell Me), from Don Giovanni, by Mozart.”

*

“It looks like Jon is getting his fiddle out,” said Sarah. I’ll bet he’s going to play Fisher’s Hornpipe or Money Musk.

“While I’m trained in classical music, I enjoy good music anytime,” said Julia, as she stood up, ready to move closer to Jon who was preparing to play.

Julia saw her husband walking towards her with his good hand outstretched. She reached for it. 

*

If you’re interested in what Julia Clementine Latimer Whiteside’s soprano voice might have sounded like in the 1880s and 1890s, click here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=HcD_Mi-7Kcc

Edita Gruberova, at age 63, in 2010, sings the classical song Non Mi Dir, by Mozart. The musical piece is 6:31 minutes long.      

*

One resource: History of Reno County, Kansas: Its People, Industries and Institutions, V1, (B. B. Bowen & Company, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1917), by Sheridan Ploughe. 

*

Until next time, happy writing and reading.

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Filed Under: Blog posts Tagged With: Bellefonte Pennsylvania, Charles Collins, Charles Collins McMurry, Cow Creek, Don Giodanni, Edita Gruberova, exaggeration postcards, Exodus 10, Fisher's Hornpipe, Henry Worrall, Houston Whiteside, Hutchinson Kansas, Hutchinson News, Jim Potter, John McMurry, Jon McMurry, Jonathan McMurry, Julia Clementine Latimer Whiteside, Kansas Authors Club, Kansas State Historical Society, Leavenworth Kansas, Loretta McMillan Collins, Marion W. Bailey, McMurry Brothers, McMurry Brothers Band, McMurry's String Band, Memphis Tennessee, Mozart, Non Mi Dir, Old Settlers' Association of Reno County, Reno County, Reno County Sheriff, Rocky Mountain locust invasion, Sarah Jane Riddle McMurry, Sheriffs of Reno County

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Comments

  1. Alrx says

    April 21, 2021 at 7:38 am

    Meanwhile this wonderful conversation is going on!!!

    Reply
    • Jim Potter says

      April 21, 2021 at 7:44 am

      Side-conversations are part of history.

      Reply

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Denise Low, author of Jackalope (Red Mountain Press)

Jim Potter is a cop, retired, but he brings deep understanding of this job to his novel Taking Back the Bullet: Trajectories of Self-Discovery. This layered novel has literary dimensions as characters explore crisis situations. Congratulations to this fine writer for his debut novel.

Rebecca from Proud Police Wife

Taking Back the Bullet is an emotional, yet captivating novel. Jim Potter does a superb job of intertwining each character and putting their individual identities on display. All law enforcement storylines are a true reflection of Potter’s years as a police officer because they are realistic and relatable. This is a book I highly recommend.

Dennis Perrin, educator

Masterful storytelling, exquisite character development, so real as to HURT and HOPE, a real page turner. Begs for stage, screenwriters, and visual episodic development a.k.a. TV series . . . Thanks Jim Potter for telling it like it is AND providing us visions of how it could be. Well done!

Rebecca Schillaci

As a former law enforcement officer, I found the story very relatable as it details the life of a law enforcement officer and the struggles some face throughout their careers. . . Taking Back the Bullet is a journey of understanding, respect, and forgiveness . . .

Sheryl Remar

I enjoyed the different stories of this book because Tom, James, and Suanna, the three main characters, represent in their own way the different struggles with themselves and society’s idea of what is normal.

John & Cindy Morrill, 20 years Air Force retired, 17 years law enforcement

I enjoyed your book. When I am looking for a new read, I always read the first page, last page and choose a random page somewhere in the middle before I decide to buy it. You had me on all three pages. I also like reading a book where you can relate to the characters and the settings in which they live and work. It makes a story more realistic if you can say, I am familiar with the area; I know where that town is or I have traveled that street. It was easy to relate to the characters. In one way or another, I have met them all somewhere in my journeys.

Judy Hawk

. . . I was impressed with the Native American information as well as the depth of character development . . . .

Wynona Winn, PhD, retired school superintendent

Three main characters walk different paths but with the same destination – each coping with his or her self-discovery, self-identity, and self-realization. Much like their earlier counterparts – Huck Finn and Holden Caulfield – their journeys are often joyous, often tedious and often tragic.

Diana Dester

Good story line, building the characters along the way. Great job!

Deb Theis, LSCSW, clinical therapist/hypnotherapist

Jim Potter has done it again! After his book, Cop in the Classroom: Lessons I’ve Learned, Tales I’ve Told, Jim has written another great work. In Taking Back the Bullet: Trajectories of Self-Discovery, Jim Potter takes us on an insightful journey into the lives and relationships of numerous characters. Jim is such a talented storyteller that the reader quickly becomes immersed and has a ‘bonding experience’ with each of the characters, feeling their joy, fear, passion and pain. Jim’s novel speaks to the empowerment of persistence with the characters as they work through their trials. As a therapist, I appreciated the heartfelt struggles from each of the characters and their diversity. I also found value in the novel’s understanding of society’s misunderstanding of both mental health and other conditions in which people struggle. The novel contains rich exposure to various realities that many of us do not know about . . . but should. When I finished this captivating novel, I was wanting to read the sequel! It was an honor and a wonderful, mesmerizing experience reading this book. Congratulations, Jim!

Jane Holzrichter

I finished it last night around midnight. What a great piece of work. It kept me intrigued all the way to the end.

Sean McArdle, Winchester, England

Retired police officer Potter’s novel centres on very disparate characters and through the tried and tested means of gradually introducing each one, builds a sense of anticipation about what is going to happen to them. This often used methodology is not easy to do well but is superbly handled by Potter who knows how to give enough detail to bring the characters to life, yet not too much so as to slow down the pace of the developing story. A climactic event affects the main characters and it is at this point Potter’s deep knowledge of people and police procedures really hits home; page by page we read how a seemingly simple, though terrible occurrence, can have huge consequences. To Potter’s credit the story does not have a completely conclusive or simplistic ending. Instead it leaves the reader thinking about how the events of a single minute can affect lives forever. I would whole heartedly recommend this book not as a crime novel or even as a novel about crime but as a beautiful and positive affirmation about what it is to be human and how ultimately it is relationships which matter more than events.

Morgan Penner

Taking Back the Bullet is a novel that provides the reader with a window into the world of law enforcement. As the novel unfolds, the reader is able to see how split-second decisions alter the lives of the main characters in the story. Taking Back the Bullet also explores how humanity is impacted by mental illness. One of my favorite quotes from Taking Back the Bullet is “We’re all just a critical moment from being disabled or mentally ill, and we don’t want to think about it.” The novel also provides the reader an opportunity to gain a better understanding of how mental illness impacts the individuals, their family, friends, and society. Taking Back the Bullet is a story of forgiveness and overcoming life’s struggles and tragedies.

Steve Becker

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Larry Kruckman, anthropologist

Jim Potter displays ethnographic skills in Taking Back the Bullet: Trajectories of Self-Discovery, creating vivid scenes and fascinating characters. The Greeks had a word for subcultures and people’s behavior: ‘ethos,’ or ‘ways of being.’ In colorful, sometimes marvelous detail, this novel captures various people and settings . . . the ethos of rural Kansas: a jail, art fair, powwow, rehab center, courtroom, albinos, and even someone in the throes of postpartum depression. So detailed are the descriptions that they must be drawn from the author’s personal experience. Besides the artfully created characters such as the struggling jailer and husband Tom Jennings, local artist Jesse Thomas, and Native American Joe Morningcloud, there is a tight story line that grabs your attention and won’t let go. Human tensions, love, conflict, joys and sorrows are all there. Magically, all the many pieces come together in a final crescendo, giving hope that even when we find ourselves in big trouble we can survive. This is a novel I highly recommend!

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Karleen Wilson-Moon

Terrific story relevant to today’s social issues . . . well written . . . likable characters . . . insightful perspective from an insider in law enforcement.

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