No one said it would be easy, settling a small town and community. Mother Nature played her role in pioneer days along with border ruffians and horse thieves.
A sundry of items from newspaper articles and historical publications reveal the hardships and damages the pioneers endured.
The prosperity of the county was seriously retarded by the big drought of 1860. The crop yield was almost an entire failure. There was no small grain raised and very little corn.
In May 1872 there were heavy rains, which flooded the streams and much damage was done to growing crops. Many places were covered with water for many days.
In the summer of 1874, just as the harvest of small grain was being completed, the grasshoppers appeared in immense numbers. They came down on fields in myriads and within three days the fields of corn and every other thing that was yet green was destroyed.
On June 8, 1875, a severe storm of wind and rain passed over the county and did considerable damage to growing crops and demolished many farm buildings.
April 10, 1882, news clipping: "Valley Falls was visited by a very severe hail storm Friday night about 11 o'clock, which not only broke every window on the south side of every house but ruined nearly every iron and tin roof in town.
"Some of the stones weighed over a pound. They came down thick and fast injuring fruit trees and small gardens. There is not a business house in town that was not more or less damaged. The roofs on the Hillyer bank building were ruined. The plate glass in one of the bank buildings was ruined while another was cracked. "Old settlers say it was the worst hail storm they had ever seen."
The Valley Falls Historical Society museum will be open at 10 a.m. Saturday.
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