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This article was taken from the Allison Breeze
dated Friday, December 2, 1887. Thanks to Darrell Jepson for
donating the article.
What Makes a Town?
A town will not make itself. If the people of the town stand around with their hands in
their pockets waiting for it to grow, they will wait until doom�s day
and still be disappointed.
Location is something of course. Natural advantages count for a good deal.
One or more rail roads are regarded as indespensible in the making
of a good town in these times. To
be sure, all these things which we have mentioned, together with many not
here enumerated, go a good way towards building up a city or center of
trade, and of social and political influence.
But the most important factors in the establishment and
developement of a town are MEN. We
don�t mean drones spiritless, go easy things, but men, active, wide
awake, enterprising men, who have push and who are public spirited who
know no such word as fail. Let
a town have a number of such men to back it and its success and prosperity
are assured. They can and
will compel success and are superior to their surroundings.
These are men who dig down mountains, tunnel hills, bridge rivers,
who cause a beautiful city to arise out of the midst of a quagmire, who
create the very foundation upon which the city rests, as in the case of
Chicago, in such matters there is scarcely any limit to a man�s power.
Allison may not become a Kansas City, an Omaha, or a
Chicago. But there is no
reason why its people should not make the most which can be made out of
it. We can make a good town
here. We can make it a city
which will, in the near future, number its thousands.
Can we? Do you really
believe it? Of course we can. What hinders? All
we need is enterprise and determination to conquer every difficulty.
We can�t all get rich in a few months.
We can�t double our wealth by doubling the price of our real
estate. We don�t need and
we don�t want a speculative, mushroom boom. We must not drive away business or capital by our selfish
greed to make all there is to be made.
We must give others a chance with ourselves.
Business and capital are not coming here for OUR SAKES�to enrich
US. Business and capital seek
profit as well as we. The
profit must be divided. It
ought to be divided.
Somehow we must make it plain to those whom we invite
here that it will pay to come here that it is to their interest to come.
There is plenty of capital to be invested.
There are any number of good active business men to locate here if
THEY CAN MAKE IT PAY. CAN
they make it pay? If so, can
we convince them of the fact? Let
us study how we may make business, how we may develop the resources of the
country, how we may induce immigration, by what means we may convince
business men and capitalists that it will be profitable for them to invest
with us. Let us think on
these things. Having thought,
let us act. We must have
faith ourselves to inspire faith in others; for � No great deed is done
by falterers who ask for certainty.�
ALLISON!
PRESENT AND PROSPECTIVE
Its Advantages, Its Inducements and Its Needs.
Kansas is a proud state.
Proud of its schools, of its progressive people and of phenomenal
strides from the lowest to the first rank in Agriculture and Horticulture.
No part of the state has contributed more to this result than the
west and of this section the rich Valley of the Solomon river is probably
the most famous. Pulsating
with life and business on the headwaters of this beautiful valley, its
clusters of tasteful brick and brightly painted houses, in the emerald
setting of the surrounding forest and slope, Allison, very appropriately
styled the Crown of Solomon rests on a level plain, a picture of
loveliness and thrift, endowed with and surrounded by every natural
advantage, ALLISON
has an inexhaustible supply of pure water at depths of twenty-five
to forty feet. Dry pure air
that will cure most lung troubles. No
malaria. Rich soil.
An intelligent and progressive population.
The best of school facilities.
Regular church service of the Methodist, Congregational, Catholic,
Lutheran, and United Brethren churches.
Mail facilities in three directions, and will soon have more.
A good Brick Yard, Two Hotels and three Grocery Stores.
The Dry Goods, Drug, Hardware, Furniture, Flour and Feed, Livery,
Nursery, Meat Market, Blacksmith and Printing interests are all present.
It has four Notaries, three Land Agents, two Attorneys, and one
Physician. Also an Art Studio.
TRIBUTARY TO ALLISON, extends, in every direction, a
wide fertile and well settled territory.
It is nearly centrally between four County seats, viz; those of
Norton, Graham, Sheridan and Decatur, and is from twenty-six to
thirty-five miles away from all of them.
North to Nebraska, thirty miles, there is no larger town than
Allison except two of those County seats.
South to the K. P. R. R., thirty-five miles, there is no town as
large; and no town at all inside of twenty miles.
West to Colorado line, one hundred miles, there is no town as large
except the County seats, and to the east our only competing town is
Lenora, eighteen miles distant, the present terminus of the Central Branch
Pacific little railroad. Our
R. R. PROSPECTS are bright. The
Central Branch has built its last one hundred miles or more directly
westward up the Solomon via Beloit, Downs and Kirwin to Lenora.
It has made a survey following the same course to Allison and we
have reason to expect it here next summer with a Division Station as we
are one hundred miles west of the division at Downs.
The Rock Island has planned to run from Norton to Colby; and if it
does, cannot fail to make Allison a Station as it is on a direct line.
We are assured of the Santa Fe railroad as their agents have
purchased large interests in the town and they are building in this
direction from Plainville evidently en route for Oberlin and the north
space west. We offer
INDUCEMENTS to Farmers and Investors as we have a surrounding tributary
territory of over four hundred square miles of all rich land equal
intrinsically to the one hundred dollar per acre land of the East, much of
which can now be bought for five dollars per acre and even less:
and, as we are practically out of debt, our taxes are very light. To the farmer we can show four successive years of heavy
crop, excepting this last season which was not so good. To the Horticulturist we can show Orchards bearing abundantly
of Apples, Pears, Grapes and small fruits.
ALLISON NEEDS more good farmers to raise corn, wheat,
rye, oats, barley, peanuts, cattle, hogs and sheep, all of which do well
here. More farmers to raise
Broom Corn which is at home here, and a BROOM FACTORY to work up their
product. More growers of
sorghum which is always a successful crop, and a SUGAR FACTORY to supply
the immense home demand for sugar and syrup.
A GRIST MILL to buy our surplus wheat and supply our big demand for
flour. A WOOLEN MILL to work
up our big wool crop and supply all northwest Kansas.
A TILE FACTORY to make roof, floor, chimney, well and other tile
from our splendid tile clay. A
CHEESE FACTORY to supply the cheese that we now ship from New York and
Chicago. A TANNERY to use up
the car loads of hides annually shipped east.
Allison needs all these and offers fortunes to experienced men in
all the lines. There are also
FINE OPENINGS here for good Lumber Yard, a Bank and Dealers in all the
leading lines of Merchandise. Persons
desiring a more detailed description, or information on any special branch
of industry will do well to open a correspondence at once with the Allison
Board of Trade.
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Thursday, April 25, 2024
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