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The following is a excerpt from the book

"Spearville - City of Windmills" by Eleanor Fry
published by the Spearville News 1975
Santa Fe Trail
"To develop the area, railroad officials organized town
companies to promote the town and sell lots to settlers. The land for
the townsite of Speareville was deeded by the Santa Fe to the Arkansas Valley
Town Company in March, 1873, and was surveyed and platted. The town
was named for Alden H. Speare, railroad director and president of the town
company."
"The town spelling appeared as Spearville and Speareville
in the early days. The editor of the Speareville Blade in the 1880s
was careful to include the middle "e". By the 1890s, the spelling consistently
was Spearville. The
Dodge City Times
referred to the town as 'Spearvale' a few times in those very early days
of its existence."
"The town was platted on a slightly elevated tract, sixteen
miles east of Dodge City and twelve miles north of the Arkansas River."
"Spearville's first permanent residents were the Santa
Fe section foreman, Jonas Stafford, and his family. Stafford was stationed
at this particular watering spot beginning January, 1875. Stafford's
wife and daughters opened an eating house, mainly for the accommodation of
the section hands. they soon had the reputation of setting the best
table on the run and train men made it a point, whenever possible to 'make
Jonas's for meals.' At this time the section house and the water tank
with a stone foundation seven feet high was the only sign of habitation between
Offerle and Dodge City."
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"When the town became settled, Stafford
discovered that the encroaching civilization had its drawbacks. Some of
the townspeople did considerable complaining about the odor from his prized
Berkshire hogs."
"Spearville broke into the news on March 9, 1876, when
the Colorado Chieftain at Pueblo reported on the grand celebration in honor
of the completion of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway into that
town."
"Late in September 1877 W.V. Johnston and E.D. Swan
of Chicago came out along the line of the AT&SFRR prospecting. On
the morning of the 23rd day of September at before daylight they left the
train at what was put down on the railroad map as Spearville, or, in the
forcible language of Johnston, they were 'dropped on the prairie like a cat
in a bag.'"
"No survey had been made nor a lot staked. When
daylight came they took a look about them and the only objects visible to
the eye was the section house and the store building of Hall and Nelson, and
the rest was an unbroken stretch. But the situation pleased them.
They found a deep soil capable of producing the most abundant crops and on
investigation they found the country surrounding it capable of sustaining
and making wealthy a large population. After looking the field over
they determined to locate here. On returning to Chicago they entered
into correspondence with the AT&SFRR Co. with a vision of buying the town
site of Spearville. They also succeeded in interesting D. Williams of
Warsaw, Indiana, in the project who in turn interested Dr. W.S. Marshall of
the same place."
"On the sixth of December the townsite was surveyed
and divided into lots. At that time there were three houses on the ground.
But from that time its course has been onward."
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