Seed House Corner

F.M. Keeney's son, Leon, in suit closest to the car

courtesy of Clare Keeney, loaned from Bob Keeney (Leon's son)

This building was on the large north lot as you turn down onto the main street into Woodburn.  For many years in the early days, a blacksmith shop was located here.  In 1911, F.M. Keeney built the large seed house.    

F.M. Keeney & Sons - Farm Feed & Seed 1911 - 1922
Frank Boor - grain house 1922 -
Davenport Garage - Cecil Davenport 1946 - late 1948 or early 1949
Addison "Junior" Huss - storage for his Pioneer Seed Corn sales - late 1960's or early 1970's
Kayot Kampers - 1970's
storage for Iowa Furniture Wholesale 1970's & 1980's
This building was destroyed by fire in the 1970's, a metal building was put up that was destroyed in a windstorm in the 1980's

Telephone office

Bruffey Rooming House, later the telephone central office

probably Sally (Johnson) and John Bruffey on the porch

Lot 29, across the street from the current post office

                                 Bruffey Rooming House -

                                                Mr. & Mrs. John Bruffey                              ?        - 1913

                                Telephone office - J. Ed Oliver                                      1913 - 1915

                                Telephone office - Art Ecklund                                     ?      - 1920’s

                                Telephone office - Ella (Oneall) Davenport                     1930’s?

                                Telephone office - Linda Lee                                        1940’s? - 1950?

                                Woodburn Fire Hall                                                      1980’s? - present

Prior to 1913 the telephone exchange was in Harken's Clothing Store, then in J.Ed Oliver's home from 1910-1913.   In 1904 there was a large fire in the business district and newspaper noted the telephone exchange owned by W.D. Harken & Son was burned out, but the switchboard was saved.

Phone directory from late 1950's - early 1960's?
Click once on it, then click again when it brings it up and it should be readable. 



Newspaper ads

Ball teams

Woodburn Black Bear Chargers

Girls’ basketball team of 1931-32
Back – Celesta Marquis, Alene Davis, Marcella Marquis, Mr. Wetzler (John), Oma Bales, Elizabeth McClure.

Front – Wilma Jane Kellogg, Joy Mackey.

1937-1938 Basketball team
Back: Mr. Oliver-coach, Johnny Mason, Merle "Red" Gardner, George Ochanpaugh, Glenn Mason, Edward Smith.
 Front: Jackie Evans, Russell Heston, Cecil Davenport, Earnest Herndon.

1947-1948 Boys’ Team

Back: Mr. Agans-Coach, Marion Powell, Dennis Ochanpaugh, Stanley Woods, Darrell Davis. Front: Clare Keeney, Norris Davis, Stanley Steele, Jimmie Wilson, Dean Gardner.
Their record was 19-7. They took second place in the Mormon Trail Tournament and second place in the Sectional Tournament.

1949-1950 Girls’ Team

Back: Mrs. Lillian Davis - Chaperone, Joanne James, Evelyn Dixon, Barbara Webb, Joyce Peterson, Pearl Weaver, Janice Ewoldsen, Mr. John Agans - Coach.

Front: Rosalie Bishop, Anne Heston, Gloria Marquis, Darlene Deemer, Twyla Gardner, Roberta Norman. Not pictured: Kathryn Reynolds, Coleen Brothers, Bernita Webb, Naomi Duree. Their record was 8-12.

Woodburn Bank

There was no bank in Jackson Township until 1895. Until that time, some merchants had loaned money at the prohibitive rate of 24%. In the Osceola Sentinel dated March 16, 1893, it was noted in the Woodburn items that the safe for the bank arrived last Thursday and business will soon begin. (We have not been able to locate where the bank was at this time, but Benjamin Coppock‟s obituary stated that the bank started in 1893). A reference to this first bank was also found in the Osceola Democrat on August 2, 1900, where it is mentioned that Ben Coppock is remodeling the old bank building and making a dwelling out of it.


The bank as we knew it was built by Mr. Earl Black, who contracted to build in June of 1895. It was completed the same year. C.A. Twyford was the president in 1895 with Coppock serving before him, John Voris was president in 1904. On January 8, 1914, William Voris resigned as assistant cashier. Miss Margaret K. Childers, assistant cashier at Iowa State Bank, with five years banking experience, took his place. John A. Voris, cashier, stayed at his position. Minnie Reeves worked for John Voris, and took over when he died on March 29, 1914.   The officers of the bank in 1923 were: W.B. Tallman, Pres.; J.E. Shepherd, Vice Pres.; Margaret K. Childers, Cashier; Marie Donner, Cashier. Others connected with the bank were John Coppock, Lewis Crist and Fred Reinig (who was president at one time).

John Voris

Osceola Sentinel, August 9, 1932

Woodburn Bank Seeks "Waivers" Closes at Noon Monday as Osceola Bank Halts to Secure Agreements

When the Iowa State bank in Osceola closed to secure depositor’s agreements Monday morning it was conceded that the bank at Woodburn would find it necessary to do the same thing. For a time it was thought it might weather the storm but by noon Monday withdrawals became heavy and the directors decided to close. At the present time plans are being worked out along similar lines to those in Osceola and it is thought that that bank, too, will be reopened under the depositors agreement plan. A mass meeting was to be held there Tuesday morning and work of securing the "Waivers" started. The citizens’ committee is as follows: Fred Davis, S.E. Hootman, Harve Porterfield, L.L. Stedwell, Chester Wilson, and Gus Fuller.

On August 24, 1932 the bank reopened with accounts under $25.00 released in full. Only 20% of anything over $25.00 could be withdrawn and they had to agree to leave the money in the bank for three years. As far as everyone remembers the bank closed shortly after this for good.   It was then used as the post office and Gurnea Marquis' barbershop.   Marvin Pollard had "Pollard's Potluck" store in it in the mid-1970's.   Unfortunately, this building was torn down in the 1980's.

Grocers

 

City Meat Market, north of where the taverns later were

Floyd Heston at Marquis' Grocery, where the Hole in the Wall restaurant later was

(William) Lawrence Marquis ran a meat market in Woodburn around 1911 and a grocery store in Woodburn for several years in the late 1930’s – early 1940’s. 

Dorothy Evans at Marquis' Grocery

In June, 1935, Orville Gardner and his father, Gilham, opened Gardner and Son Grocery, located where the current Post Office is.  The grocery later moved to where the Wilson Grocery Store was that wrapped around the bank and Orville and wife, Vera, owned the store.  One thing the family remembers is the store being robbed in the 40’s.  The robbers took 100 lb. sacks of potatoes, emptied shoe boxes, and spilled flour all over the floor.  The thieves were traced to California.  No money was at the store, Orville always took it home and hid it around the motor of the refrigerator.  Some employees of the store were Faye Weaklend, Leola Jenkins, Ernest Carder, Mike and Eva Webb and family, and Gilham, Orville, Vera, Dean, Twyla, Don and Kay Gardner.  They had a big truck and had a cream and egg route to the farms, which Mike Webb helped drive.  Grocery orders were called in and delivered on the route.  The truck was used to pick up groceries at the warehouse in Des Moines, haul stock to packing houses, haul coal, and to move families.  Seasonal trips were made to Colorado for peaches, Muscatine for cantelope, Indianola for apples, and watermelon from elsewhere.  The store closed in the fall of 1953.  Orville, Vera, Kay, Phillip and David moved to California in May, 1955. 

Webb Grocery, Mike and Eva Webb

 same location as Marquis Grocery

In 1944, Mike worked for Gardner’s Grocery, driving a grocery truck and also picking up cream and eggs.  Eva clerked for them.  After leaving the employment of the Gardners, Mike worked for Russel Boor, Willie Davenport, Seth Hootman and Edward Horton.  From 1948 until 1949, Eva operated the E and H Cafe.  In December, 1949, they bought the grocery store from Clifford “Punch” and Mary Lou Mason.  They operated the store until health forced them to sell in 1959. 

Grocery store was at the Bowen Drug Store location, in operation from 1953 to mid-1970's.

Owned at different times by Finley Atherton, Al Newton and Mark and Vicki Binning. 

Post Office

Elsie Lowe, postmistress - when the post office was across the street from current location

Phyllis (Davis) Wright, postmistress when it was in the bank building 1930's - 1974

Gurnea Marquis was appointed postmaster at Woodburn on July 1, 1944, and worked in the post office for 15 years.  Lowa became a clerk in the post office in 1945.  Her starting wages were $330 a year.  She worked with Gurnea there for the next fourteen years until his retirement in 1959. 

Phyllis Wright worked at the Woodburn post office starting in 1963, was appointed postmaster at Woodburn in 1973 and worked there until September, 1990.   Sherri (Rodda) Reynolds is the current postmaster.

Woodburn Post Office, 1995