One of the largest jobs was the Temple Craft building, built in 1890 by a stock company (Editor’s Note: Building on southwest corner of 12th and M streets). Our part of the contract was a heavy stone wall some 24 inches thick under the entire building up to the grade line. Several years later we had the same kind of a contract for the basement of the Hub building, now owned by F. E. Edgerton, and leased for a term of years to the Safeway Store.

This building has had a great history for the last 40 years and we could tell of many experiences we had in many of the meetings held there, but space will only allow me to comment on one or two.

The G.A.R. Veterans, who in 1884 were 75 strong, always held their memorial services and meetings here. The Wood Brothers quartet, of which I was a member for over 32 years, was always engaged by General Bates to furnish the music. I also remember the meetings of E. J. Hainer and Judge Stark, both of whom went to Congress from this District. I have one of the Stark banners in my attic today. In the early days he was superintendent of our high school and a man loved by all who knew him.

I have wandered somewhat in telling of our building activities, but it would take too much space to tell about all of them. One more might be of interest, and was the cutting of all the stone, window caps, sills and water table of the addition on the south side of the old school building that burned down in 1907 (early Aurora High School). This was a large building and its burning was a great loss to the district. I remember the Evangelical and Presbyterian churches were used for school purposes, the courthouse and other places, until the new school building was finished.

This building was under construction at the time of the fire. I was employed as bricklayer and worked on the building from bottom to top.

I worked on the YMCA building, now called the Woodbine, the same year, putting the schoolhouse up one story, and while the carpenters put on the floors we worked on the other building until it was a story high, and then went back to the schoolhouse. To show the amount of brick it took for the present schoolhouse--all the brick in the old building was used to back up the walls of the second story of the new building. The stone of the old school building was sold to Frank Sharp and re-cut and used for the foundation of the C. P. Craft brick house across the street west. The foreman of all these buildings was Harvey Wood, with Joseph Neptune as contractor.

Harvey E. Wood was contractor of the Christian and Presbyterian churches. The latter church burned in the winter of Feb. 10, 1929, and he afterward rebuilt the Federated church. He also built the telephone and library buildings, the Burlington station and freight office, the East and West ward school buildings, and remodeled the South school, also the First National Bank building and many others here and in other parts of the country. He has now quit the business and is living on his big ranch in Montana. I mention these as Mr. Wood was one of the early settlers in Hamilton County and contributed much to the upbuilding of Aurora and vicinity and did more work in Aurora than any other one man.

I must not fail to speak of the churches that have helped so much to make Hamilton County what it is today. Beginning with the one I belong to and became a member of in Aurora in 1903. The first pastor when I came here was a man by the name of W. H. Tibbits, who followed J. T. Martel and L. C. Smith, and were among the first Methodist preachers in Aurora. The first Methodist church was organized in 1872 and the first quarterly conference held by J. T. Martel.

It was called the Zion Methodist Episcopal Church. The Zion was left out later on. The Methodists not having a church at that time, they held their meetings in the old Presbyterian church that stood where the Federated now stands, and later held their services in the old courthouse until they built their first church in 1883. Their parsonage stood where G. J. Bremer now lives and was sold to Lafe Isaman in March, 1884. The house was moved to the south part of town and the present house built and afterward remodeled by Oscar Gunnarson.

The first Methodist church was built by Robert Miller while Tibbits was pastor. After writing the above, I have found an earlier history of the church. In the early history of Hamilton County when the city was but a hamlet, in a little frame schoolhouse which stood on the ground now occupied by the Catholic Church, a little band of zealous men and women, about a dozen in number, organized themselves into a Methodist society under the leadership of the Rev. W. J. Wilson in the year 1872. Rev. C. L. Smith was the first minister appointed to take charge of this circuit. The second church was built in 1909 when Byron Marsh was pastor. The pipe organ was installed about the same time and the money raised at the dedication of the church.

The next church I shall speak of is the Salem Evangelical, built a few miles northeast of Aurora and dates back to 1888, with Paul Gressley as pastor. This church burned in 1914 and the old Mennonite church south of Aurora was purchased and moved onto the old site, remodeled and is still being used. Later the membership was divided and a church was built in Aurora. This church was used for several years and closed for lack of funds. The property was sold to John Haworth, and the building was torn down and the material sold.