What Cheer, Iowa
What Cheer, Iowa | ||
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FIPS code 19-84900 | | |
GNIS feature ID | 2397291[2] |
What Cheer (
Naming
What Cheer was founded in 1865 as Petersburg, named after Peter Britton, its founder. This name was rejected by the
Sources differ as to why the name What Cheer was chosen. The phrase what cheer with you is an ancient English greeting dating back at least to the 15th century.[7] One theory of the name is that a Scottish miner exclaimed What cheer! on discovering a coal seam near town.[6][8]
A more elaborate theory suggests that Joseph Andrews chose the name because of one of the founding myths of his native town of
What Cheer has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.[11]
History
Robert Forsyth, born in
The
Local Assembly 1474 of the Knights of Labor was based in What Cheer and had a membership of 65 in 1884.[17] On Oct. 15, 1884, 500 miners in What Cheer went on strike, demanding higher wages. The established wage was 3 cents per bushel, and the miners demanded an additional half cent. The state militia was put on alert, but after 6 weeks, the miners accepted a quarter-cent raise.[18] This strike cut coal production in the What Cheer significantly.[19]
In 1886, the What Cheer Coal Company began to consolidate the local mines, buying up the Starr Coal Company and the Granger Coal Company. In 1887, they employed 1,100 miners, and they continued to operate until 1899. From 1885 to 1901, the Crescent Coal Company was an important local producer.
In 1891, the BCR&N Railroad's Iowa City Division, serving What Cheer, carried 38,080 tons of coal, by far the most important commodity carried by that line.[20] In 1892, mines along the BCR&N (all of which were in the What Cheer region) loaded 129,316 tons of coal.[21]
On May 1, 1891, the miners of What Cheer and many other mining towns went on
The first industrial development in What Cheer was driven by the needs of the coal mines. In 1890, What Cheer was home to three firms making mining drills, Walker & Thompson, Enterprise Manufacturing and the newly formed What Cheer Drill Company.[26] Within the decade, the What Cheer Drill and Miners' Tool Company was selling equipment in mining districts around the nation.[27] Alexander Walker, originally with Walker & Thompson filed numerous patents on mining equipment, most of which were assigned to the What Cheer Drill and Miners' Tool Company, later named the What Cheer Tool Company.[28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36] In 1903, the Starr Manufacturing Company, American Mining Tool Company and the What Cheer Tool Company agreed to a union wage scale with the International Brotherhood of Blacksmiths.[37] At the time, the blacksmiths local 259 had just 17 members.[38]
In 1907, the Volunteer Brick and Tile company was operating its own coal mine to fuel its kilns. The mine had a steam hoist to lift coal 40 feet from a coal seam from 4 to 5 feet thick. The Lea Brothers' mine in north-central What Cheer also had a steam hoist and still shipped some coal by rail. The remaining mines in the area were all small, using horse-gins to operate their hoists.[39]
By 1909, there were only a few mines left in the county, all producing coal for local consumption in What Cheer.
The What Cheer Clay Products Company
Geography
The central business district and the larger part of the town is located on the north-east bank of Coal Creek, a tributary of the North fork of the Skunk River.[45] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.24 square miles (3.21 km2), of which, 1.22 square miles (3.16 km2) is land and 0.02 square miles (0.05 km2) is water.[46]
Transportation
Demographics
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
1880 | 719 | — |
1890 | 3,246 | +351.5% |
1900 | 2,746 | −15.4% |
1910 | 1,720 | −37.4% |
1920 | 1,626 | −5.5% |
1930 | 1,310 | −19.4% |
1940 | 1,339 | +2.2% |
1950 | 1,119 | −16.4% |
1960 | 956 | −14.6% |
1970 | 868 | −9.2% |
1980 | 803 | −7.5% |
1990 | 762 | −5.1% |
2000 | 678 | −11.0% |
2010 | 646 | −4.7% |
2020 | 607 | −6.0% |
Iowa Data Center Source: |
2010 census
As of the
There were 293 households, of which 23.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.6% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 44.0% were non-families. 38.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.95.
The median age in the city was 45.3 years. 23.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 19.5% were from 25 to 44; 28% were from 45 to 64; and 22.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.8% male and 52.2% female.
2000 census
As of the
There were 307 households, out of which 22.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.9% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.7% were non-families. 36.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.90.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 22.7% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 21.8% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 23.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,292, and the median income for a family was $36,500. Males had a median income of $30,859 versus $22,917 for females. The
Education
The Tri-County Community School District operates local area public schools.[50]
Notable people
- Betty De Boef, Iowa State Representative and resident
- United Mine Workers, 1917–1920, born in What Cheer in 1882
- B. J. Palmer, the developer of chiropractic was born in What Cheer in 1882.[51]
- Ed Thomas, raised in What Cheer, was NFL high school football coach of the year in 2005
In fiction
What Cheer is the hometown of the title character in Marguerite Young's enormous novel Miss MacIntosh, My Darling (1965). In a 1993 interview, Young claimed to have been unaware that What Cheer was genuine.[52]
What Cheer is also the setting in the novel, "The Home For Wayward Clocks," written by Kathie Giorgio, published by The Main Street Rag Publishing Company in 2011.
References
- ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
- ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: What Cheer, Iowa
- ^ Sherman, Barney (September 14, 2017). "Iowa Place Names: U–Z". Iowa Public Radio. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
- ^ a b "2020 Census State Redistricting Data". census.gov. United states Census Bureau. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
- ^ a b Virgil J. Vogel, Iowa Place Names of Indian Origin, University of Iowa Press, 1983.
- ^ a b Tom Savage, A Dictionary of Iowa Place Names, University of Iowa Press, 2007; pages 236-237.
- ^ Gary Martin, Wotcher, in the Phrase Finder web site.
- ^ Anonymous, attributed to William H. Stennett, A History of the Origin of the Place Names Connected With the Chicago & North Western and Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railways, Chicago, 1908; page 138.
- ^ Federal Writers' Project of the Works Progress Administration, Iowa, A guide to the Hawkeye State, Viking Press, 1938 (reprinted as the WPA Guide to 1930's Iowa by the University of Iowa Press, 1986); page 514.
- ^ Fredrick C. Beach and George E. Rines, eds., What Cheer (2 articles), The Americana: a universal reference library, Vol. 16, Scientific American, New York, 1907; page 688.
- ISBN 9781440507397.
- ^ B. F. Gue, Progressive Men of Iowa, Conway & Shaw, Des Moines, 1899; page 518.
- ^ Past and Present of Appanoose County, Vol. II, S. J. Clarke, Chicago, 1917; page 278-280.
- ^ Report of the Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Northern Railway Company for the year ending June 30, 1880, Third Annual Report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners for the Year Ending June 30, 1880, Mills, Des Moines, 1880; page 133.
- ^ Travelers' Official Guide of the Railway and Steam Navigation Lines in the United States and Canada, National Railway Publication Co., New York, July 1881; pages 250-251.
- ^ a b James H. Lees, History of Coal Mining in Iowa, Chapter III of Annual Report, 1908, Iowa Geological Survey, 1909, page 555.
- ^ Part III, Labor Organizations: Knights of Labor, First Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Iowa, Geo. E. Roberts, Des Moines, 1885; page 55.
- ^ Part VIII, Strikes and Arbitration, First Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Iowa, Geo. E. Roberts, Des Moines, 1885; page 148-149.
- ^ Charles A. Ashburner, Coal, Minerals Yearbook, Calendar Year 1885, U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1886; page 30
- ^ Annual Report of the Burlington Cedar Rapids & Northern Railway Co., Annual Report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners for the Year Ending June 30, 1891, Ragsdale, Des Moines, 1891; page 330.
- ^ Annual Report of the Burlington Cedar Rapids & Northern Railway Co., Fifteenth Annual Report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners for the Year Ending June 30, 1892, Ragsdale, Des Moines, 1892; page 130
- ^ Chapter VIII, Strikes and Lockouts, Third Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor and Industrial Statistics of Nebraska for 1891 and 1892 Calhoun, Lincoln, 1892; page 604.
- ^ James Gildroy, Biennial Report of the Second District, Fifth Biennial Report of the State Mine Inspectors to the Governor of the State of Iowa for the two years ending June 30, 1891, Ragsdale, Des Moines, 1891; page 69.
- ^ J. W. Miller, Biennial Report of the Second District, Eighth Biennial Report of the Mine Inspectors to the Governor of the State of Iowa for the two years ended June 30, 1897, Conway, Des Moines, 1897;page 29.
- ^ Trade Unions in Iowa -- Table No. 1, Mine Workers of America, United, Tenth Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Iowa, 1901-1902, Murphy, Des Moines, 1903; page 234.
- ^ T. C. Lagoe, County and District Reports: What Cheer District, Annual Report of the Board of Directors of the Iowa State Agricultural Society for the year 1890, Ragsdale, Des Moines, 1891; page 586.
- ^ Items of Interest, The Michigan Miner, Schaeffer & Trumble, Saginaw, Feb. 1, 1899; page 21.
- ^ Alexander Walker, Post Drill Frame, U.S. Patent 463,469, Nov. 17, 1891.
- ^ Alexander Walker, Self Dumping Mechanism for Coal Elevators, U.S. Patent 517,782, Apr. 3, 1894.
- ^ Alexander Walker, Combined Fuse Cutter and Splitter, U.S. Patent 838,924, Dec. 18, 1906.
- ^ Alexander Walker, Car Dumping Apparatus, U.S. Patent 535,647, Mar. 12, 1895.
- ^ Alexander Walker, Coal-Drill Support, U.S. Patent 733,775, July 14, 1903.
- ^ Alexander Walker, Drilling Machine, U.S. Patent 838,923, Dec. 18, 1906.
- ^ Alexander Walker, Combined Fuse Cutter and Splitter, U.S. Patent 839,924, Dec. 18, 1906.
- ^ Alexander Walker, Detachable Pick Point, U.S. Patent 1,024,754[dead link], Apr. 30, 1912.
- ^ Alexander Walker, Boxing, U.S. Patent 1,043,377, Nov. 5, 1912.
- ^ Wage Scales and Trade Agreements Between Employers and Employees in Iowa, Blacksmiths', Toolmakers' and Employers' Scale and Agreement at What Cheer, Iowa, Tenth Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Iowa, 1901-1902, Murphy, Des Moines, 1903; page 208.
- ^ Trade Unions in Iowa -- Table No. 1, Blacksmiths, International Brotherhood of, Tenth Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Iowa, 1901-1902, Murphy, Des Moines, 1903; page 273.
- ^ Henry Hinds, the Coal Deposits of Iowa, Chapter I of Annual Report, 1908, Iowa Geological Survey, 1909, page 484.
- ^ Tally Sheet, Proceedings of the 23rd Annual Convention of the United Mine Workers of America, Indianapolis, 1912; Volume 2, page 182A.
- ^ Charles S. Gwynne, Ceramic Shales and Clays of Iowa, Iowa Geologic Survey Annual Report, Vol. 38, 1941. pages 315-316.
- ^ Trade Notes, Western Contractor, Vol. 20, No. 564 (Nov. 1, 1911); page 5, lower left.
- ^ Editorial Notes and Clippings, the Clay-Worker, Vol. LXVII, convention number (April 6, 1917); page 409, lower left.
- ^ Increasing Demand for Fall Deliveries, Brick and Clay Record, Vol. 57, No. 2 (July 27, 1920); page 137, lower right.
- ^ What Cheer, Johnson's (Revised) Universal Cyclopaedia, Vol. VIII, Thoriidae-Zytomierz, A. J. Johnson & Co, New York, 1886; page 521.
- ^ "US Gazetteer files 2010". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 11, 2012.
- ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 11, 2012.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ "FY20_TRI-COUNTY" (PDF). Iowa Department of Education. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
- ^ BJ Palmer Chronology. 1882 (Sept 14): BJ Palmer is born in What Cheer (Rehm, 1980, p. 271; Gielow, 1981, p. 32)
- ^ Fuchs, Miriam (2003). "Interview with Marguerite Young". The Review of Contemporary Fiction. XXIII (1): 131. This is ironic, because Young was noted for confounding the fantastic with the real, in real life and in her fiction.
External links
- Map of coal mines in and around What Cheer
- What Cheer Paper
- City-Data Comprehensive statistical data and more about What Cheer