Among the historical sections of Norton County is the rich and attractive region in northwest Norton County, known as the Colony, for years more familiarly known as Rockwell City.
It was in the year 1878 and 1879 that this part of the county was settled up, the settlers coming there in a colony from the old homes back in southeast Nebraska, Missouri, and other points back in the older states.
Among the very first of its settlers was Isaac Harrider, who located on a Brethren Church now stands. Others who settled on homesteads there in the late fall of 1878 and the year of 1879, were: S. R. Hollister, who moved with his family from Fillmore County, Nebraska; Mike Liehty, who came out from the Falls City, Nebraska, county; Chris Strayer and G. W. Bishop, from Nevada, Missouri, who located claims in 1878 and brought the family out a year later; Homer Hale and his brother Albert, who took claims and batched it from some time; Henry Howard; the Jonathan Blue family; Mr. Boles and several others along about this period of the early history of the Colony.
To state that these early settlers endured hardships, is putting it but mildly. They had come from better countries, staked their faith on a new country, promising, but untried, and all being of the religious faith known as the Dunkards, they congregated together in selected homes for Sunday worship, and endured the season, summer and winter, droughts and snows and kept faith.
The first sod school house erected in the community was built on the site now occupied by the Brethren Church, and was used jointly for school house and church services. Rev. Workman being the pioneer preacher for the flock. The first term of school was taught by S. R. Holsinger, in the soddy. Along about the same time a store building was erected just across the road from the church, and a stock of goods was furnished by Cannon & Kennedy of Norton, and was cared for by John Blue, who also became postmaster there when the government opened a post office. The post office was called Bell, and for several years was conducted at this point a few years later the was purchased by Mr. Moon, who had charge a short time, and then it was transferred to Wm. Rockwell. A black smith shop, operated by Boles& Howard, did business there for several years. Another professional man to get early pioneer practice was Dr. Chenoweth, who lived several miles northwest of the store, Tom Leslie gave a five acre tract to the people for the church, and for cemetery purposes, where both are yet located.
One can scarcely realize the trials and tribulations of these pioneer settlers out on the summit of the divide. They hauled the water for domestic use, as well as stock, the first season from the Sappa creek, and Long Branch, ten and twelve miles away. There were no well drills in those days and the depth for water on the divide prohibited the digging for water at that time.
One day in 1879 a stranger rode into the community, fitted out in cowboy style, chaps, guns, and all, who enlightened the citizens that his name was Jim Campbell, of the Prairie Dog, who proceeded to enlighten them on many things, the most important, that they could get water within three miles for he had just finished a well for one Covey, at a depth of twenty feet, in the bottom of the draw. That was most welcome news, and afterwards was acted upon by the settlers. It was discovered too, that a spring existed within a mile of the well, which never went dry, and in the spot known to this day a Redds Lake. This important water hole has been the scene of many baptismal services for the churches in that part of the country.
Lumber for building, in the early period, was hauled by ox team from the Kansas Union Pacific railroad at Wakeeney, sixty miles due south from Norton, and six to eight days was consumed in getting down and back. Later, when the Missouri Pacific was pushing westward, lumber and supplies came from Kirwin forty miles away. Still later, but in the early eighties supplies, lumber and merchandise, had to be hauled from Lenora, the only railroad town in the county.
Several years after the first settler took up his abode the community was fairly settled, and it was then that the serious aspect of pioneer life came upon them. Crops failed because of months of droughts, seed lying in the soil from one summer to another without rain to bring forth and the brethren appealed to the old churches and people “back east” to send aid. The response was instant, and several car loads were shipped to Kirwin, the terminal of the road then, and twenty to thirty teams were sent over to bring the precious goods over. A day was taken for the journey over, another one to come back. Clothing, produce and eatables of almost every kind was sent from the good people back home, and it was received with thankful hearts, and divided among the families.
In the spring of 1884, when it was rumored that a railroad was coming that way, Wm. Rockwell conceived the idea of a town for his people and the community, and so moved his store a mile west and a half south, where he had erected a building, and where a town site was surveyed and laid out. The town was soon composed of his store, a blacksmith shop, a lumber yard, operated by W. P. Anderson and few dwellings. A well was put down directly in the center of the street, cornering the four quarter sections of land, and this familiar well and windmill had been a landmark in that community for years and years just being gilled and abandoned a few years ago. Shortly after founding the Mr. Rockwell took ill and died, leaving the farms and business in the hands of his wife, a lady of rare social and business gifts, hailing from New Hampshire.
In the spring of 1885 it was found that the railroad survey through the town site had been abandoned and the Burlington was building westward up the Prairie Dog to Norton, thence west out upon the divide for Oberlin the new county seat town of Decatur. Finding the dream of Mr. Rockwell to build a town on the site selected vanishing, Mrs. Rockwell, and Mr. Anderson moved their stock, and a portion of the store building to the newly laid out town of Norcatur, ten miles to the southwest, where both became identified with the earliest business ventures of the thriving town both having the first business of their kind in that new town.
For a long number of years, until the arrival of the rural mail system, the post office was maintained and know as Rockwell City, and it had various locations, but all being in the near community as where founded Mrs. Carrie Holsinger, wife of the first Justice of the Peace, and a 79’er, S. R. Holsinger, was postmistress for ten years. Mrs. J. M Shuey was also postmistress for a time, and also John Jackson, now of Oberlin, also was for a brief time Mrs. Jane Joseph.
Settlers flocked into the community in the eighties, being as memory recalls; the Blue families, Jarbo’s Burnworth’s, Thomas, who came in with the earliest settlers, Plowman, Levi Shaffer, C. R. Moore’s Keylon Heckman, Garber families, Coler’s Towslee’s, Betts, Temple’s, Deeter’s, Flickinger’s, Shaw’s, Liehty’s, Ervins’s, Maggard’s, Boody’s and many others.
Dan Deeter first arrived and located just north of the church. Later he and family drifted west and they are now scattered to the four winds. Jos. H. Deeter came in, all from Ohio. Joe Deeter returned to Ohio in the nineties.
It was long about the middle of the eighties that the church there became involved over the matter of dress as was dictated by the elder of the church, and the matter became so serious as to result in the split of the church. One wing believed in progression, keeping up with the world, the other in following strictly the principles of the apostles as regards to dress , separated from the world, etc. A new frame church had but recently been constructed near the old Soddy, and the division placed the members in quite a quandary. Finally things were so arranged as to leave the church in the hands of the progressive brethren, now called the Brethren, while the old line Dunkards are now known as the Church of the Brethren. The latter built a mighty handsome church building on a site a mile east and one half north of the old church and are at this time making some extensive improvements, both churches having a large membership in that community.
No place in the county, or northwest Kansas, has there been a better, hardier class of people, than the earliest settlers and their descendants of the Colony. They suffered all the hardships of the early pioneer settlers of the county, and had more serious difficulties to contend with than those of the creek and valleys, who had water and some timbers. They fought through it all, the droughts, the grasshoppers, the pests, the lean crop years, the blizzards and snows, and their stick to it liveness had wrought from the soil and buffalo grass land, a community of homes, schools, churches, and an agricultural district second to none in the country.
Among the very early settlers in the Colony, but few remain who had taken claims there in the seventies or early eighties. Cris Strayer and wife identified with every bit of history of the community, are still sibling on the old home site near the church. George Bishop and wife, with sons and daughter married and living near the old home, occupy the early home, and can look out over vast acres that he holds deed and title to, and is surrounded with plenty. John Thomsas, another of the early settlers, is one of the rich farm owners in that community and has stayed it out, and no doubt will be found there when the last call comes, for here he owns a splendid home to the virgin soil that looked a barren soil when he first placed eyes on it.
Many of the early settlers have answered the final call, some have moved to other lands, but there one can find children, and grand-children, of many of them, going ahead with the work of making home, and a better community, started and carried along by pioneers, and are reaping the rewards of the periled labors of the early day.
That community is yet known far and wide as the Colony, and will probably so remain until time shall be no more.