Friends are Confirmed, and Enemies are Confounded
This post continues looking at life in Hamburg, SC, the town in which the Jeffers family lived 1830-1855. The material covered centers on Henry Shultz, Hamburg's Founder and fervent Defender. The Jeffers family's father, Henry Langford Jeffers, had staked his livelihood and career in Hamburg, and would have been completely involved in all the efforts touched on below.
Henry Shultz, Founder and Proprietor of Hamburg, SC, was born too early - he would have loved social media. He was a salesman and a showman; he poured his soul into proclaiming the greatness of his town. Shultz did not take sides politically - his sole passion was to crush Augusta, GA, and establish Hamburg as the best place to live and to trade. In the early years he pushed for this goal by lobbying South Carolina’s state government to lend him money for building Hamburg. But in 1838 an article in a North Carolina newspaper galvanized him into using the printed word for his purposes.
In March of 1838, a reporter from North Carolina traveled by Railroad to Augusta, GA, to attend the Commercial Convention. He wrote in the 1838-04-04 Fayetteville (NC) Weekly Observer:
The country through which we passed, is exceedingly poor and uninteresting...Hamburg may be called the suburb of Augusta, [and is] scattered and shabby. Augusta is beautifully situated, and as far as I have seen, handsomely built up, with the widest streets in the country...Every thing about [Augusta] has the appearance of active and prosperous business.
The "Best Friend," early passenger train in South Carolina. LOC.
Shocked by the negative comparison, Shultz and his fellow Hamburg-loyalists
learned to garner positive press to counter the nay-sayers. They wrote boastful, promotional articles about Hamburg at every opportunity, like this one from 1838-12-27 Edgefield Advertiser:
It was with great pleasure that we read, in the Charleston Courier the subjoined account, of the increasing prosperity of the town of Hamburg. That spot, which, but a few years since, was an unsightly marsh, sending forth its pestiferous exhalations, is now covered with stately buildings, and is the great emporium of trade for a large section of South Carolina.
The great emporium of trade: Hamburg.
A stately house in Hamburg. The Edgefield Advertiser, 1839-02028. LOC
Shultz and company refined their techniques, staging big events to encourage local pride, then “reporting” on the happenings. Shultz organized patriotic ceremonies and parades intended to showcase Hamburg.
"Reporting" in the 1839-02-07 Edgefield Advertiser:
The Hussars,...composed of as fine a body of young men as I ever beheld, well mounted, formed about 12 o'clock, PM, and proceeded, by particular invitation of the patriotic Mr. Henry Shultz, the founder of their town, to his extensive and picturesque grounds on the Heights, about a mile distant, from which there is a fine and extensive view, as well of this place as of Augusta and the surrounding country for many miles. The approach of the Company was announced by the frequent discharge of a brass field piece, stationed behind the breast- work, which surrounds the entire front of the Heights.
When they arrived, they formed in the rear of Mr. Shultz's mansion, and went through several evolutions in a style equal to regulars. After which, the Company entered the enclosure and dismounting, marched to the martial music of Mr. Shultz's private full band, to a point, where that gentleman had taken his station, and, after a short address from Mr. S., which was answered by Capt. Griffin; the Corps were invited to partake of a sumptuous collation prepared for the occasion, in which they were joined by many of the spectators, the band playing all the time, which added much to the effect or the scene.
This over, the Company remounted, and, under a discharge of cannon, took up the line of march for this place. Here, about 4 o'clock, they sat down, with many invited guests, to a dinner...of the best that the season could afford, and the wines of the first quality. Mr. Shultz's band also attended, and after many patriotic and sentimental toasts had been given and drunk, the Company retired at an early hour, without any accident having happened to mar the pleasures of the day.
A 19th Century Militia, detail from print at LOC.
That went over well, and six months later, Shultz repeated the successful rally. In the 1839-07-13 Edgefield Advertiser he planted a glowing tribute to the beauty and perfection of Hamburg. The writer, an “Observer,” was awakened by a loud cannonading, because:
Mr. Shultz was rejoicing over the 18th anniversary of his flourishing and respected town...a populous and extraordinary town...this place, reared through toil and pain...Her star of glory has risen, and is now clear of those dark clouds that seemed to many as threatening obscurity, and to shut out her brightness from the world. But her brilliancy will shine, and cheer generations yet unborn, for nature has marked with her finger the site of Hamburg, as a place to be noted among the cities of our Republic - and who, then, can overthrow the works now erected?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Challenges always arose. In September, 1839, deadly contagious diseases were “rampaging” in the upcountry area. Abbeville and Augusta were hard hit. Henry Shultz and Hamburg’s Town Council acted quickly, banning the entry of any sick people. Shultz defended the heavy-handed law in the Edgefield Advertiser 1839-09-05:
...a decision of such vital magnitude at the present juncture, when a disease is at our door, belongs to the citizens of the whole town, and...I shall most solemnly and absolutely protest against the admitting a diseased person in town, under any terms whatsoever, at this particular time.
HENRY SHULTZ, Founder of Hamburg, S.C. Hamburg, Aug. 26, 1839.
A week later, Shultz could not resist bragging about Hamburg’s continued health, while aiming a blow at Augusta. The Edgefield Advertiser 1839-09-12:
The deaths of two grown persons and a child [at Hamburg], out of a population of about fifteen hundred, in three months, would not be considered bad, even at the Virginia springs.
And he could not resist comparing Hamburg to you-know-where:
The Fever and Banks in Augusta outdone - their subjects have left them - no Church, no News, and no Eating - Presses stopped, and Churches, and Hotels shut up.
Yours Respectfully, HENRY SHULTZ, Founder of Hamburg, S.C.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Never one to let grass grow under his feet. Shultz’ next campaign was to convince the big-money guys in Charleston that Hamburg was their bosom-buddy, their sister-city. He arranged a big meeting in Charleston in March, 1840, to carefully explain the advantages of investing large amounts of capital to build up Hamburg’s infrastructure, positioning the town to regain trade lost to Augusta. It was spelled out at length in the 1840-03-06 Edgefield Advertiser.
After the speeches in Charleston, Shultz returned to Hamburg triumphantly. He promptly recounted the homecoming ceremony in the newspapers. 1840-03-12 Edgefield Advertiser:
...this day, we witnessed grateful hearts, in unison with the enterprising Founder, expressing that gratitude for which he had striven for these nineteen years. Happy, thrice happy, must he be. The gloom which so long has overspread his energies, has disappeared - friends are confirmed, and enemies are confounded...The course of Hamburg is onward, onward, and still onward, until her name shall be respected among the cities of the earth.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I enjoy Mr. Shultz's style - a style that seems very familiar these days. Good to know that our current political combatants didn't invent this kind of bombast; it's been around forever.
The next post will tell more about the battle Shultz and Hamburg fought in order to defend her reputation. All things must come to an end.
No comments:
Post a Comment