Trending
I would have enjoyed the rain we had a couple of weeks back; I was in Omaha that week and heat indexes were consistently above 105. It was HOT!! While visiting family there, I so wanted to see Fort Atkinson. Even though I worked in the Postal Service for nearly 30 years, my heart has always been in tune with our nation's history. A chance to see another mid 1800's site is sure to give me goosebumps. So... imagine my surprise, and a little joy, when I spotted an "Atkinson" address while walking through Our Neighborhood on our return to Webster City.
Charles E. Atkinson was not born in Iowa, but in Freeport, Illinois. Charles grew up in a family of some six children. There is not a ton of information on the family, except that his father was a very successful building contractor and worked on government buildings from Illinois west to Wyoming and the several states between. His sons, and a son-in-law, were all involved in this "family business". Charles was the first to strike out on his own when he and his wife, Blanche "Abbie" Atkinson, and son, Edgar, moved to this area around the turn of the twentieth century.
Charles worked in many locations in the state of Iowa. Locally, his primary jobs involved the "old" Post Office, on the corner of 1st and Willson, old Lincoln School, which exists only in memories and the statue of Abraham Lincoln that now stands in front of the current High School, and his work on the Methodist and Catholic churches. He was also involved in other projects, such as the original Elks Building, St Joseph's Mercy hospital, the old armory and the city electric and power plant.
An article in the local paper in July of 1923, states "Everywhere Mr Atkinson had the reputation of being a contract who "never fudged". His contracts were always fulfilled to the very smallest detail. This reputation he held wherever he was known." Other nearby projects he oversaw included larger buildings and a bank in Fort Dodge. Charles moved to Our Neighborhood in 1923; his son, Edgar, died in 1934 and wife, Abbie, followed in 1947. I'm pleased to have met them and I greet them as I stroll past.
Of Charles' projects, my favorite, I'll be honest, is the old Post Office. I absolutely adore the look of it and can imagine the clerks, carriers and the Postmaster, down to the smallest details, working to provide a service they all took pride in. All that mail was hand cancelled, sorted, dispatched and received... and delivered; without web-based sorting programs, optical scanners, warp speed sortation equipment or even vehicles... beyond those that were fueled by hay and grass. Rural (RFD) carriers earned about $400 a year while clerks were paid a bit more, some $500 annually.
A side note on the history of the Post Office. The permanent rollout of Rural Free Delivery (RFD) in 1902 resulted in a severe reduction in Postmaster salaries and caused some 20,000 post offices to be closed across the country by 1910. Even today, advances are resulting in "downsizing" of Postal facilities... nothing new there. Now I just need to find someone residing in Our Neighborhood named "Fort" to complete this small quest.