Editing What Cheer, Iowa (section)

==History==
[[File:What Cheer, Iowa - City of What Cheer - Water Tower (24227028989).jpg|thumb|right|Watertower in What Cheer]]
Robert Forsyth, born in [[Kilmarnock, Scotland]], came to America in 1857, and made his way to [[Rock Island, Illinois]], where he arrived penniless.  He worked for most of a decade as a coal miner before coming to Petersburg, the future What Cheer.  In the 1870s, he began buying coal lands around town, mostly on [[Credit (finance)|credit]].  When the railroad came to town, he leased his land to the coal companies and bought into a local [[drug store]], eventually operating stores in What Cheer, [[Mystic, Iowa|Mystic]] and Jerome, Iowa.<ref>B. F. Gue, [https://books.google.com/books?id=QZ8UAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA518 Progressive Men of Iowa], Conway & Shaw, Des Moines, 1899; page 518.</ref>  Other Scots from the Kilmarnock region ([[Ayrshire]]) also settled in the area.  Robert Orr came in 1875 after working in the coal mines of [[Colchester, Illinois]].  His son Alexander went on a successful career as a mine owner in [[Mystic, Iowa|Mystic]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=jH4UAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA279 Past and Present of Appanoose County, Vol. II], S. J. Clarke, Chicago, 1917; page 278-280.</ref>

The [[Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railway]] (BCR&N) built a {{convert|66|mi|adj=on}} branch to What Cheer in 1879.<ref>Report of the Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Northern Railway Company for the year ending June 30, 1880, [https://books.google.com/books?id=ISETAAAAYAAJ&lpg=PA133&pg=PA278 Third Annual Report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners for the Year Ending June 30, 1880], Mills, Des Moines, 1880; page 133.</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=6I5XgcduNQYC&pg=PA250 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.</ref>  With the arrival of the railroad, the What Cheer coalfield quickly became one of the most important [[coal mining]] centers in Iowa.  The Starr Coal Company had over 200 employees and could produce 1,000 tons of coal per day.  By 1883, they were operating three mines and took over several others.<ref name=lees>James H. Lees, History of Coal Mining in Iowa, Chapter III of [https://books.google.com/books?id=1BUMAAAAYAAJ&lpg=PA555&pg=PA555 Annual Report, 1908], Iowa Geological Survey, 1909, page 555.</ref>  When, in 1884, the [[Chicago and North Western Railway]] built its line through What Cheer to [[Consolidation Coal Company (Iowa)#Muchakinock|Muchakinock]], there was a further expansion of mining in the area.

Local Assembly 1474 of the [[Knights of Labor]] was based in What Cheer and had a membership of 65 in 1884.<ref>Part III, Labor Organizations: Knights of Labor, [https://books.google.com/books?id=nps3AAAAMAAJ&pg=PA55 First Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Iowa], Geo. E. Roberts, Des Moines, 1885; page 55.</ref>  On Oct. 15, 1884, 500 miners in What Cheer went on [[strike action|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.<ref>Part VIII, Strikes and Arbitration, [https://books.google.com/books?id=nps3AAAAMAAJ&pg=PA148 First Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Iowa], Geo. E. Roberts, Des Moines, 1885; page 148-149.</ref>  This strike cut coal production in the What Cheer significantly.<ref>Charles A. Ashburner, Coal, [https://books.google.com/books?id=QYgoAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA30 Minerals Yearbook, Calendar Year 1885], U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1886; page 30</ref>

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.<ref>Annual Report of the Burlington Cedar Rapids & Northern Railway Co., [https://books.google.com/books?id=iCM2AAAAIAAJ&pg=RA1-PA330 Annual Report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners for the Year Ending June 30, 1891], Ragsdale, Des Moines, 1891; page 330.</ref>
In 1892, mines along the BCR&N (all of which were in the What Cheer region) loaded 129,316 tons of coal.<ref>Annual Report of the Burlington Cedar Rapids & Northern Railway Co., [https://books.google.com/books?id=IiM2AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA130 Fifteenth Annual Report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners for the Year Ending June 30, 1892], Ragsdale, Des Moines, 1892; page 130</ref>

On May 1, 1891, the miners of What Cheer and many other mining towns went on [[strike action|strike]] for the [[eight-hour day]].  1000 men walked off the job in What Cheer, but returned to work defeated on June 16.<ref>Chapter VIII, Strikes and Lockouts, [https://books.google.com/books?id=bBkoAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA604 Third Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor and Industrial Statistics of Nebraska for 1891 and 1892] Calhoun, Lincoln, 1892; page 604.</ref><ref>James Gildroy, Biennial Report of the Second District, [https://books.google.com/books?id=DCMXAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA69 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.</ref>  On August 15, 1896, the miners struck again over several small grievances.  The strike lasted 10 to 12 weeks.<ref>J. W. Miller, Biennial Report of the Second District, [https://books.google.com/books?id=PRAAAAAAMAAJ&pg=RA6-PA29 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.</ref>  Local 841 of the [[United Mine Workers]] union was organized in What Cheer in 1897, and in 1902, it had 200 members.<ref>Trade Unions in Iowa -- Table No. 1, Mine Workers of America, United, [https://books.google.com/books?id=5dooAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA234 Tenth Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Iowa, 1901-1902], Murphy, Des Moines, 1903; page 234.</ref>

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.<ref>T. C. Lagoe, County and District Reports: What Cheer District, [https://books.google.com/books?id=HAo3AQAAIAAJ&pg=PA586 Annual Report of the Board of Directors of the Iowa State Agricultural Society for the year 1890], Ragsdale, Des Moines, 1891; page 586.</ref>  Within the decade, the What Cheer Drill and Miners' Tool Company was selling equipment in mining districts around the nation.<ref>Items of Interest, [https://books.google.com/books?id=cZXmAAAAMAAJ&pg=PR45 The Michigan Miner], Schaeffer & Trumble, Saginaw, Feb. 1, 1899; page 21.</ref>  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.<ref>Alexander Walker, Post Drill Frame, [https://patents.google.com/patent/US463469 U.S. Patent 463,469], Nov. 17, 1891.</ref><ref>Alexander Walker, Self Dumping Mechanism for Coal Elevators, [https://patents.google.com/patent/US517782 U.S. Patent 517,782], Apr. 3, 1894.</ref><ref>Alexander Walker, Combined Fuse Cutter and Splitter, [https://patents.google.com/patent/US838924 U.S. Patent 838,924], Dec. 18, 1906.</ref><ref>Alexander Walker, Car Dumping Apparatus, [https://patents.google.com/patent/US535647 U.S. Patent 535,647], Mar. 12, 1895.</ref><ref>Alexander Walker, Coal-Drill Support, [https://patents.google.com/patent/US733775 U.S. Patent 733,775], July 14, 1903.</ref><ref>Alexander Walker, Drilling Machine, [https://patents.google.com/patent/US838923 U.S. Patent 838,923], Dec. 18, 1906.</ref><ref>Alexander Walker, Combined Fuse Cutter and Splitter, [https://patents.google.com/patent/US838924 U.S. Patent 839,924], Dec. 18, 1906.</ref><ref>Alexander Walker, Detachable Pick Point, [http://www.google.com/patents?id=_xtXAAAAEBAJ=&pg=PA1 U.S. Patent 1,024,754]{{dead link|date=June 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}, Apr. 30, 1912.</ref><ref>Alexander Walker, Boxing, [https://patents.google.com/patent/US1043377 U.S. Patent 1,043,377], Nov. 5, 1912.</ref>  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.<ref>Wage Scales and Trade Agreements Between Employers and Employees in Iowa, Blacksmiths', Toolmakers' and Employers' Scale and Agreement at What Cheer, Iowa, [https://books.google.com/books?id=5dooAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA208 Tenth Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Iowa, 1901-1902], Murphy, Des Moines, 1903; page 208.</ref>  At the time, the blacksmiths local 259 had just 17 members.<ref>Trade Unions in Iowa -- Table No. 1, Blacksmiths, International Brotherhood of, [https://books.google.com/books?id=5dooAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA273 Tenth Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Iowa, 1901-1902], Murphy, Des Moines, 1903; page 273.</ref>
[[File:Welcome to What Cheer, Iowa (23977534623).jpg|thumb|What Cheer welcome sign]]
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 [[Whim (mining)|horse-gins]] to operate their hoists.<ref>Henry Hinds, the Coal Deposits of Iowa, Chapter I of [https://books.google.com/books?id=1BUMAAAAYAAJ&lpg=PA287&pg=PA287 Annual Report, 1908], Iowa Geological Survey, 1909, page 484.</ref>

By 1909, there were only a few mines left in the county, all producing coal for local consumption in What Cheer.<ref name=lees />  The decline of What Cheer's mines in the 20th century was reflected in declining union membership.  In 1912, Local 841 of the [[United Mine Workers]], based in What Cheer, had only 18 members.<ref>Tally Sheet, [https://books.google.com/books?id=cfAUAAAAIAAJ&pg=RA1-PA1007 Proceedings of the 23rd Annual Convention of the United Mine Workers of America], Indianapolis, 1912; Volume 2, page 182A.</ref>

The What Cheer Clay Products Company [[strip mine]]d local coal into the mid-century, but in their case, coal was a byproduct.  Their primary source of clay was the 8 to 12 foot (2.5 to 4 meter) [[underclay]] found immediately below the coal.<ref>Charles S. Gwynne, Ceramic Shales and Clays of Iowa, [https://pubs.lib.uiowa.edu/igsar/article/id/838/ Iowa Geologic Survey Annual Report], Vol. 38, 1941.  pages 315-316.</ref>  What Cheer Clay Products was organized in 1911.<ref>Trade Notes, [https://books.google.com/books?id=MlFBAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA33-PA5 Western Contractor], Vol. 20, No. 564 (Nov. 1, 1911); page 5, lower left.</ref>  The plant cost $300,000 to build, and was seriously damaged by a fire in 1917.<ref>Editorial Notes and Clippings, [https://books.google.com/books?id=QzQ-AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA409 the Clay-Worker], Vol. LXVII, convention number (April 6, 1917); page 409, lower left.</ref>  Despite this, by 1920, the company was expanding, purchasing a new [[Dragline excavator]] in order to work their [[clay pit]].<ref>Increasing Demand for Fall Deliveries, [https://books.google.com/books?id=gG0-AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA137 Brick and Clay Record], Vol. 57, No. 2 (July 27, 1920); page 137, lower right.</ref>