133. Randolph County Misc.

LYNN.  Warren Hollingsworth, 1954.

  Warren Hollingsworth, owner of Hollingsworth Barber Shop in Lynn, was born December 6, 1916, north of Pinhook church on highway 227, on the farm owned by Bill Greene. His father, Ira, was a farmer.
  He attended school at Spartanburg and graduated in 1937. His next few years were spent farming before entering the International Barbers college at Indianapolis in 1940. After six months training he graduated and took a position in the Hiatt Barber Shop at Lafayette, Ind. He worked there three months but desired to come nearer home so he moved to Cambridge City and worked in the Moffett shop.
  In March of 1941 he moved to Richmond and took a chair at the Parker-Thomas shop which he held until entering the service in 1943.  On June 29, 1941, he married Alice Bragg of Spartanburg and they moved to Richmond to make their home.
  He enlisted in the Navy in October of 1942 but was not called until March of 1943. After training at Camp Perry, Va., he served in the Pacific Islands. He received his discharge in November of 1945 and returned to Richmond until 1947 when he bought his present shop.
  Warren has had several men work in the shop with him including, Bill Maines, Chuck Schlecty, John Chittick and Basil Hill. He is operating it by himself at the present time however.
  When asked of an outstanding experience that remains in his mind, Warren came up with two. The first concerns a shop on the west coast when he was in the Navy. It seems a sailor decided to dye his hair red, thinking the gals would like the idea, so he bought a bottle of dye and patted it into his hair. The result was horrible. After deliberation he came to the shop and ask the barber to cut off his hair. The barber, being a Navy man in charge of the chair next to Warren's grabbed the sailor around the shoulders and using electric clippers, took off all the red dyed hair. The operation was fine except for one thing, the skin on top of his head became coated with the dye in polka dot form and it made quite a picture.
  The other incident concerns Warren's first haircut of an officer. The officer, a 1st lieutenant looked like a general to Warren as he crawled into the chair. He had big bushy eyebrows, like John L. Lewis according to Holly, and as soon as he got into the chair he informed Holly he wanted them trimmed after he finished the haircut.
  The haircut job had just begun when the officer fell asleep and the shaking barber became more nervous as the minutes went by. Finally the haircut was finished and the eyebrow trimming time had come around. With the eyes closed, due to the sleeping officer, the brows were dipped down and when Holly made his first trim he took out a large chunk of skin.
  The officer landed about five feet out in the floor and Holly almost fainted. The incident ended all right however, as the officer seeing the scared look on the barbers face, laughed and crawled back into the chair.
  The Hollingsworths have two children, Diane and Joe. Mrs. Hollingsworth runs a beauty shop here in Lynn so the day is well filled for the entire family. Diane, the oldest, is in school but Joe is only 3 1/2 years old so Mrs. Hollingsworth has him to care for along with her other work.  Union City Times-Gazette, Jan, 1954. A Lynn Herald Reprint.



SARATOGA.  E. U. B. Church.

  The home of Joseph and Sarah Lollar, near Saratoga, was used as a preaching place for holding quarterly meetings from about the year 1857 and continuing about 10 years. Some of the early preachers were F.B. Rendrix, S.S. Holden, Elder William Miller and others.
  In the spring of 1871 the present class was organized at the nearby school house, under the pastoral labors of Rev. A. Douglas, pastor of the Union City Mission. The following were charter members: Sarah Lollar, Elisha D. Lollar, Mary A. Lollar, Joseph Lollar, Sereptha Lollar, John C. Albright, William Fraze, Nancy Fraze, Joseph Shierling and Susanna Shierling. The church became a part of the Rosehill, Ohio, circuit.
  A lot was secured in the southwest corner of Ward Township, Randolph County, Indiana. This was purchased from Sarah Lollar. On this lot a frame building, thirty-six by fifty, was erected. This frame church was built under the pastorate of S.T. Mahon with Joseph Shierling, Elisha D. Lollar and John C. Albright as trustees. The cost was about twenty-five hundred dollars, and was dedicated in July, 1873, by Rev. M. Wright, editor of the Religious Telescope, Dayton, Ohio.
  The following pastors served the church: D.J. Schenk, 1873-1875; J.W. Nickodemus, 1875-1877, and Jacob Cost, 1879-1881. Under the pastorate of Rev. Cost a frame parsonage composed of six rooms was erected on the adjoining lot at a cost of fifteen hundred dollars. Elisha D. Lollar, Joseph Lollar, Levi Coats, Henry Wickersham and William Whiteneck, trustees.
  J.C. Montgomery was pastor from 1881 to 1882; T.M. Harvey, 1882-1884, R. Moose 1884-1885; G. H. Bonnell, 1885 -1886; E.M. Counsellor, 1886-1888; W.H. Shepherd, 1888-1890; J.W. Lower, 1890-1891;R.W. Wilgus, 1891-1892; J.L. Kline, 1892-1894. In 1893, during Rev. Kline's pastorate, the church was re-built and enlarged with an additional room, vestibule and tower, veneered with brick and roofed with slate. The cost was four thousand dollars. Elisha D. Lollar, Joseph Lollar and William Fraze were trustees. The church was reopened November5, 1893, by Bishop J.W. Hott, who" did the church a grand day's work."
  In 1894 the Auglaize annual conference held its sessions here with Bishop E.B. Kephart presiding officer. Rev. W.L. Waldo served as pastor from 1894 to 1897; Elis Councell, from 1897-1898; A Kisel, 1898-1901. In 1901, by the action of the General Conference, this society was made a part of the White River Annual Conference, which that year held its session at Kokomo, Indiana.


DEERFIELD.  5 Cent Reward, July, 1862.

  RAN AWAY, from P. Stick farm, 4 1/2 miles east of Deerfield, Randolph County, Indiana, July 6, 1862, one John Murray, an apprentice to the farming business. Said boy is 16 years old, very dark complected, large mouth and flat nose. Any person returning said boy, shall receive the above 5 cent reward, but no thanks. This is also to warn all persons from trusting or harboring him on my account, as I will not be responsible for any debts he may contract.   PETER STICK



RIDGEVILLE.  Limestone Park, 1955.

  Limestone park , located one-half mile east of Ridgeville and supervised by the Randolph County Council of Conservation Clubs, will have three new shelter houses in the next few days.
  The houses, which were purchased from the Campbell Canning company of Saratoga , are 12 feet square with openings on the sides. A gabled roof covers the four wall frame. The houses come in sections and are bolted together. The floor is in two sections. Each house will be placed near the outdoor furnaces for convenience of picnickers, who wish to cook their meals out-of-doors for their outing or in some other convenient place. Two will be placed on the south side of the lake and the others in the small grove on the north side of the lake.
  The houses will make a much needed addition to the park facilities, as they have been needed badly as a shelter for those caught in the rain and for a general place of gathering. At the present, clubs have been using the park's concession stand as a gathering place, but this was not available to family gatherings and such. The shelter houses will be wired and tables placed in them as soon as funds become available. They will be erected on skids so that they can be moved to other locations, if necessary.
  Along with the shelter houses, the council has built new entrance posts at the park entrance. These will soon have new signs on them, telling the public of the park and the rules governing it. Later plans call for a block structure to cover the steel uprights to make a more attractive pillar.
  The council has contracted to have a new road built from the entrance to the well oval this summer. The new road will be built of asphalt and stone.
  The council has a caretaker at the park and with extra work being done this tear, it will require the selling of many park permits to cove  Many of the membersr the cost of materials, wages, etc. The permits are the only source of income for the council. Its funds are not only used for the park, but many of the county's conservation programs are financed by their funds. If you haven't gotten your park permit this year, do so.
  Many of the members of the county's conservation clubs have permit books, which they carry with them. Just inquire and you will be able to get one. Anyone 18 years or over must have a park privilege permit to use the facilities. This permit entitles you to use your own row boat at your own risk on the lake. No motors are allowed on the lake nor is any kind of intoxicating drinks allowed in the park. Holders of permits are required to abide by the park rules.
  Many of the county's conservation clubs have been using the park for their regular meetings, during the summer. Saratoga conservation club held a family night at the park Friday.



SARATOGA,WARD TOWNSHIP. 1963.

  Saratoga and Ward township form a community unit where everyone helps his neighbor. Ask anyone in the area, and he will say "That's not only true, that's putting it mildly!" The central source of this feeling is the Saratoga fire department and the Ward township volunteers.
  These organizations have joined in many projects to help their community, and in turn, the community has pitched in to help its firemen.
  After several years of planning, labor and fund raising by the entire community there is a new fire station and equipment.
  The new building has been under construction for a year as tax money was available. The past several weeks, the interior work and decorating have been done by the volunteer workers including the Lions club.
  The fire department and volunteers were organized eight years ago under direction of the town board. They have grown to a force of 22 members. Three years ago, Mrs. Jack Kessler organized the ladies auxiliary of the Ward township volunteers. Mrs. Merl Bousman is now president of that group, which has 14 members and meets socially each month.
  The firemen not only aid in disasters, but, with the auxiliary, follow up with any aid needed by the disaster victims.
  For instance, a few weeks ago, the William Stitt family home burned, destroying also the family possessions. The department was unable to save the home, but volunteers found a new home for the Stitts, and helped them move into it. The auxiliary and firemen picked up donations of bedding and furniture, and took them to the Stitts. They also cleaned and ironed the clothing that had been salvaged from the fire.
  The men's organizations have pumped out basements of homes during rainy seasons and stand by in any emergency such as a severe storm. In the current dry weather, with a water shortage, these men are delivering water to the farmers of the community for their livestock.
  Fire and emergency calls are taken by Merritt Manning at his service station.
  Not only does the new station-house hold the fire equipment, but is large enough to be used by the community for social affairs and fund raising projects.
  The ladies auxiliary recently served a fish supper to 234 guests, and with the proceeds bought a new automatic range for the kitchen. Their projects have included ham and bean suppers, dinners at farm sales and sponsorship of dances for the migrant Texan tomato pickers working in the county.
  All proceeds have been given for the building and equipment. Firemen and the Lions Club recently served a pancake and sausage supper. Later this month, the auxiliary will entertain the Youth Fellowship of the combined churches in the county.
  Each year, during Christmas, it is the custom for the fire department, volunteers an of the area will tell you, a very fine place to live.nd Manning's to raffle off four quarters of beef and sponsor an all-day Christmas party for the community. This party is complete with Santa Claus, door prizes, coffee and doughnuts and treats for everyone. The volunteers also decorate the town each Christmas season.
  The men's and women's organizations not only share in the work, but have fun, too. The women are especially proud of their waterball team. This past June, the team placed in the semi-finals in the Indiana Volunteer Firemen's Auxiliary convention at Angola.
  The cooperative spirit encouraged and developed by these public spirited groups, backed and aided by the community, have made Saratoga and Ward township, as any citizen of the area will tell you, a very fine place to live.   Winchester News, October, 1963. By M.C. Barrett.



WINCHESTER, Court House,1866.

  The much needed protection to the shade trees around the Public Square has finally been made. The posts have been set for some time, but the chain that was to encircle the Square only arrived a few days ago, and is now in its proper place. We are glad of it, for it has been an eye-sore to see the shade trees, after they gave evidence of thrift, and had yielded to the pedestrians the delights of a good shade. The chain cost $191, and weighs 1,528 pounds. Horses can be hitched to the chain on the outside, but parties will be subject to a fine for hitching them on the inside. Let all recollect this, as it may save a three or five dollar fine, with costs.

1945. Lightening strike.

  The Randolph county courthouse stands barren and desolate today, stripped of the little iron fence which surrounded the cupola atop its "dome." The attractive iron work added little to the construal value of the courthouse but contributed a great deal to the drab beauty of the building.
  Monday evening around 5 o'clock the God of lightening struck with all His fury, amid the crash of thunder and downpour of rain, and tore the fence from its very foundation. A part of the fence had been destroyed at a previous time. Now all that remains is a heap of mangled iron atop the courthouse dome.
  Offices in the courthouse were closed at the time but the janitor, Ora Brown, stated that the fuses were burned out.


1940. County Commissioners meeting.

  Still hoping, the Randolph county commissioners have asked $6,000 for installation of an elevator in the courthouse in Winchester. This item appears in the courthouse budget estimate for 1941. The county council has refused this appropriation on two previous occasions.
  Although most of the moneys sought by county officers are for routine business, several items stand out as special requests.
  In the county jail budget is an item seeking $1,200 for repair of the building. In passing it might be said that the salary of the seven county councilmen will be taken care of this time - the $420 yearly payment was omitted from the budget made in 1939 for this year and a special appropriation was necessary so they could draw their pay.
  One thousand dollars is asked for a county health nurse, part of whose salary the state will pay. Included in this request is $540 for traveling and $80 for operating expenses.
  At the county asylum, $1000 is sought for a sick ward, $400 for wiring of the building, $500 for repairs, $150 for a new manure spreader, $90 for one-fourth interest in a silage cutter, $500 for a large clothes dryer and refrigerator, $400 for a cook stove.