THE FREDONIA VALLEY
A Look Back at the History of The Fredonia Valley
This edition of Fredonia Valley Views marks the first to be in the Digital Early Bird. We began providing monthly articles for the Early Bird of the Crittenden Press in June of 2013. This is our 144th article over the course of 12 years! We are grateful to Chris and Allison Evans and the Crittenden Press for the fine coverage they have given our small town through the years!
Before jumping into another series about the Fredonia Valley, this month we want to highlight some things that are currently going on in the Fredonia Valley.
The Fredonia Valley Heritage Society held their May meeting on Thursday, May 1st at American Legion Post 103 at the Buddy Rogers Park in Fredonia. The program was presented by several re-enactors from the Caldwell County Genealogy Society’s past Cedar Hill Cemetery Ghost Walks. Robert Ward portrayed Dr. Charles Webb, a Princeton, Kentucky, Doctor from 1820 through the mid-1840s. He lost his life because of the explosion on a steamboat, the Lucy Walker, near New Albany, Indiana. His wife was Cassandra Ford Webb, whose father was James Ford of the outlaws of Cave-in-Rock. Carolyn Traum portrayed Margaret Edwards, the daughter of a Maryland politician who brought his family to Kentucky in the late 1700s. She was a woman of intelligence and a force to be acknowledged. She was also the sister of Ninnian Edwards, the first territorial governor of Illinois. Steve Ray portrayed Dan Grogan who had been a wagoneer in the War between the States. Later while helping plow on his son-in-law’s farm, he was tangled in the equipment and dragged to death by the team. Sarita Holt portrayed Lucy Mathews Neel Greer, a woman who saw a lot of loss during her time. She came with her first husband to Kentucky from Virginia. He died after a few years leaving her with eight children to raise. She married again but buried him also several years later. Her son was reported to be the youngest postmaster ever and he held that position at Fredonia. Maggie Gammon portrayed Elmiria Kelley, who lost six children during the Spanish Influenza during the 1918-19 time period, five of them in one week. (See photo). A business meeting was held following the program wherein various upcoming events were discussed.
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Left to right: Maggie Gammon, Robert Ward, Sarita Holt, Carolyn Traum, and Steve Ray portrayed characters from the Cedar Hill “Ghost Walk” Event sponsored by the Caldwell County Genealogy Society.
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The Fredonia Valley Heritage Society and Fredonia American Legion Post 103 will hold a Memorial Day Service at the Fredonia Valley Veterans Memorial on May 26th, at 1 p.m. Plans for a speaker and other events are still in the planning stages. We will recognize all veterans in attendance. We invite everyone to attend and show our appreciation for our veterans.
Immediately following the Memorial Day Service on May 26th, at approximately 2 p.m., we will move over to the Buddy Rogers Park on Dorroh Street to have a Dedication Service for a new Historical Sign in Fredonia awarded to the Fredonia Valley Heritage Society by the Kentucky Historical Society. There are over 2,400 historical markers statewide which share Kentucky’s story through short narratives about the people, places, and events that shaped communities across the Commonwealth. The new historical sign awarded in a highly competitive process is located at the site of the Rice Brothers Tobacco Factory which was situated on what is now Buddy Rogers Park owned by Fredonia American Legion Post 103. The sign tells the story of the Black Patch War in Fredonia and the Burning of the Rice Tobacco Factory. One side of the sign reads as follows: The Black Patch War in Fredonia: Farmers in western Kentucky and Tennessee fought with buyers over the price of their tobacco from 1904-1909. The farmers created the Planters Protective Association to challenge the American Tobacco Company’s monopoly on the cash crop, but many farmers refused to join. To compel their cooperation, vigilantes known as Night Riders scraped plant beds and burned barns and warehouses. The other side of the sign reads as follows: Rice Tobacco Factory Burned: While Night Riders were not as successful in northern Caldwell County, they did visit Fredonia twice during the Black Patch War. On November 12, 1906, they burned the Rice Tobacco Factory at this site. In February, 1908, they cut phone lines and held Fredonia captive for three hours while others rode to nearby View, Kentucky, to burn the property of tobacco buyer, A.H. Cardin.
To explain the historical significance of this sign in a little more detail, here is additional information. Tobacco was a major crop in the Fredonia Valley from the time of its settlement. When the railroad came to Fredonia in 1887, William Rice, Jr. saw new opportunities for the Fredonia Valley. The advantages local farmers would derive from a home market for their tobacco were numerous. A new town called Kelsey (later annexed into Fredonia) had just been formed between Fredonia and the Fredonia Depot. Here William Rice and his son purchased three and a half acres of land for a tobacco factory. The building, built in 1888, was a three story brick and frame with a metal roof building, and had a capacity of 450 hogsheads. It was the largest building ever located in Fredonia. The warehouse was the only large commercial employer in the area and provided jobs for both men and women. An 1893 issue of the Princeton Banner provided information as follows: The Rice Tobacco Company owned four stemmeries, including the one in Kelsey. The firm employed about 130 stemmers and in 1893 would pay out for tobacco and wages over $75,000, handling 1,260,000 pounds of tobacco. The tobacco of this firm all went directly to Liverpool, England.
By 1904, the dark tobacco farmer knew it cost at least six cents per pound to produce the tobacco. But by this time, tobacco was bringing only three to four cents a pound. The price of tobacco was beyond the control of both the farmer and the middleman and was controlled rather by the American Tobacco Trust (the Trust). This monopoly controlled almost all of the tobacco production in America and most of England.
By May of 1906, Night Rider activity increased. With the hillbillies now selling their tobacco at ten to twelve cents to the Trust, association members were getting just seven and one-eighth cents. The Night Riders started scraping tobacco plant beds of non-association members in Lyon and Caldwell County. Several hillbilly barns were burned, while scraping plant beds and whipping increased.
Night Rider activity was not as successful in northern Caldwell County. In the Fredonia Valley between Crider, Fredonia, and Farmersville, 200 or more farmers did not join the association or the Night Riders. According to James Nall in his book, “The Tobacco Night Riders of Kentucky and Tennessee”: “Henry Wilson, a farmer and stock dealer of Crider, was considered an unofficial leader in that section and was the only person who shot it out with the Night Riders. Although these growers had no organization, mounted groups of six, ten, or twelve men would patrol the area at night when danger threatened; and, as a result of their watchfulness, there were few Night Rider depredations in that area.”
By November, 1906, the Night Riders decided to burn independent tobacco warehouses in the area. On the night of November 12, 1906, the Rice Tobacco Factory was burned to the ground. The first floor was saturated with coal oil and torches lit the fire from the inside. “It was a large factory, and, although it made a big fire, it burned so rapidly that many citizens two and three blocks away slept through it all,” stated James Nall.
The November 13, 1906, issue of the New York Times stated, “The Kelsey Warehouse (Fredonia) was wrecked by dynamite set by the Night Riders. The explosion shattered windows in many houses. Bloodhounds have followed the trail of the wreckers for ten miles into Caldwell County. The stemmery had machinery for steam casing and a drying outfit for tobacco.” The same article mentions that “a letter had been sent to the growers who sold tobacco to the Trust warning them not to sell their tobacco and was signed by the Night Riders. After the warehouse fire, Rice promised not to sell the tobacco in his warehouses to the Trust.”
This was not the last trip by the Night Riders to Fredonia. In February, 1908, the Night Riders took possession of Fredonia, on their way to View in Crittenden County. Fredonia experienced the takeover by a mob they had missed when the Rice warehouse was burned. The Night Riders captured Oscar Scarberry, the Cumberland telephone night operator, and cut the wires at 1 a.m. in the morning. Then 75 men rode on to View, five miles away, where A. H. Cardin, the former populist state leader and only buyer of independent tobacco in the area, lived. A party of 25 men was stationed at Fredonia to prevent anyone giving an alarm to Cardin. One rider, after cutting the Cumberland telephone cable, climbed a telephone pole to cut the wire when the pole broke. He was severely injured and taken away by Night Riders. The mob also tore out the telephone in C. B. Loyd’s store. The clerk at Bugg’s Drug Store built a fire in the stove to keep the raiders warm while they waited for the others to return from View. Fredonia was held captive for three hours. These facts represent one of the most noteworthy historical events ever experienced by this small town. (Sources: The Tobacco Night Riders of Kentucky and Tennessee by James Nall, and the “Tobacco in the Valley” Chapter of The History of the Fredonia Valley by the Fredonia Valley Heritage Society.)
Following the Dedication Service for the Historical Sign on May 26th, a reception will be held at Fredonia American Legion Post 103 Building hosted by the Fredonia Valley Heritage Society. Everyone is invited to the sign dedication and reception.
Another exciting upcoming event in Fredonia being planned by the Fredonia Valley Heritage Society is being called “Hayride Through Fredonia’s Past.” It will take place on the evening of Saturday, June 21st. The event is still in the planning stages, but reservations can be made to take a hayride through Fredonia. Narrators on the hay wagons will tell of the history of Fredonia as historical locations are driven past. In addition there will be re-enactment scenes at three or four stops along the route. Keep an eye on the newspaper and Facebook for further information.
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Pam Faughn is the Official Historian for the City of Fredonia. She is president of the Fredonia Valley Heritage Society, and editor and designer of the “The History of the Fredonia Valley”, “In Pursuit of Art: The Talent of John F. Rice”, and “Veterans of the Fredonia Valley”, publications of the Fredonia Valley Heritage Society.
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