The 1890s are full of Cheney news and family events. Family visits. Crop reports. W.T. Cheney is active in local politics and Sunday School. Ralph and Mollie Cheney moved to Gypsum and are having kids.
Most of the stories are “every day,” but here are some noteworthy and interesting ones:
Ralph and Mollie
Mollie called him Ralph. Newspapers called him E.R. and Dr. E.R. Cheney. Nobody called him Enos. So in our stories we’ll call him Ralph and E.R.
Mary Belle Hestwood’s nickname was Mollie. It had been her nickname since childhood. Nobody called her Mary or Mary Belle. So in our stories we’ll call her Mollie.
1892
In June 1892, Ralph Cheney and Mollie Hestwood married after a whirlwind courtship, They began their married life in Garfield, Kansas, where E.R. had begun his medical practice.
At the end of June, Ralph’s father William Cheney reported on his crops.
William continued his leadership in church and Sunday School.
1893
In January, William Cheney went to Illinois to visit family, particularly his ailing mother. Mary Squires Cheney was age 86.
On March 29, 1893, Rollo Hestwood Cheney was born in Garfield, Kansas. He was the first child of Ralph (E.R.) and Mollie Cheney.
By July, Dr. E.R. Cheney had arranged to buy the medical practice of Dr. Harry Cassidy in Gypsum, Kansas.
On October 18, 1893, the Cheney family moved to Gypsum. E.R. began a medical practice that would last for more than 50 years.
1894
Gypsum was a thriving small town in southeast Saline County. It was about 15 miles southeast of Salina and 35 miles northeast of McPherson.
As winter approached, Mollie’s mother came to spend the winter in Gypsum.
Country Doctor
Dr. E.R. Cheney often attended continuing education lectures and classes during his long career.
Sometimes, it seemed the country doctor worked miracles. Other times, he couldn’t save the patient.
1895
The birth of Ralph Edwin Cheney kicked off the year on January 15, 1895. He was the second child of Enos Ralph and Mollie Cheney. He’s our great grandfather. He soon acquired the nickname “Ned.”
William Cheney had been active in local politics for many years. In 1895, he threw his hat in the ring for McPherson County Clerk.
In November, Ralph and Mollie Cheney were the target of a surprise dinner party at their house.
Country Doctor
Amputations and surgeries were performed at home, often on the kitchen table. And the traveling doctor was often subject to risks of weather or accident.
1896
Ralph and Mollie and kids moved into a new house in Gypsum.
William Cheney was active as ever in farmwork and livestock.
As busy as farm life was, W.T. Cheney continued to be active in local politics. At the Kansas Republican Convention,
On August 14, 1896, the Kansas Republican Party held its state convention in Topeka, where it formally nominated its slate of candidates for the state and congressional elections. The 1896 presidential election cycle was marked by a national debate over the country’s monetary policy, pitting supporters of the gold standard against advocates of “free silver”.
The Republican Party, led by presidential nominee William McKinley, officially supported the gold standard. The Democratic Party had nominated William Jennings Bryan, a strong supporter of bimetallism, or “free silver.”
McKinley and the Republicans won. W.T. Cheney was likely well satisfied.
Fall brings hunting season. E.R. Cheney and friends went duck hunting.
Country Doctor
Orthopedics was an essential part of the country doctor’s skill set.
The 1890s news continues with more Cheney family events in the next story.
Timeline
Sources:
- Family trees – Ancestry.com
- Images – Cheney family members – William Cheney, Mary Taylor Squires, Rollo Cheney, Ned Cheney, Fred Cheney – Cheney/Jarvis photograph collection
- Newspapers – each article footnoted with newspaper name and date – Newspapers.com
- Image – Medical Equipment – https://theconversation.com/ten-weird-and-terrifying-medical-instruments-from-the-past-22211
- Image – Medical Equipment – https://melnickmedicalmuseum.com/2009/12/01/a-short-history-of-stethoscopes/https://melnickmedicalmuseum.com/2009/12/01/a-short-history-of-stethoscopes/
- Image – Medical Equipment – https://birdlibrary.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16336coll1/id/146
- Image – Medical Equipment – https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/murder-medical-instruments-and-teaching-aids/
- Image – Postcard of A Kansas Wheat Field – https://www.hippostcard.com/listing/ekstrand-1908-farm-agriculture-kansas-wheat-field-postcard-hand-colored-5495/23317765
- Map composite – Saline County, Kansas – 1887 – L.H. Everts – Legends of Kansas – https://legendsofkansas.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/SalineCountyL.H.-Everts-Co1887-8×10-1.jpg
- Map composite – McPherson County, Kansas – 1887 – L.H. Everts – Legends of Kansas – https://legendsofkansas.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/McPherson_CoEvertsCo1887-8×10-1.jpg
- Images – Houses on Spring Street in Gypsum – Gypsum Valley Ks History – Gypsum Valley, KS history / [Gypsum Valley History Book Committee ; Virginia Ade, editor] – Johnson County Library, KS
- Image – Main Street McPherson, Kansas – Kansas Memory – 305366 – https://www.kansasmemory.gov/item/305366
- Image – People at Halloween dinner party – “Poultney Under Glass” – Glass plate negatives 1890-1910 – Poultney Vermont Historical Society – https://www.poultneyhistoricalsociety.org/exhibitions/glass-plate-negatives/poultney-under-glass-glass-plate-negatives-1890-1910/nggallery/page/2
- Images – Houses on Spring Street in Gypsum – Gypsum Valley, KS history / [Gypsum Valley History Book Committee ; Virginia Ade, editor] – Johnson County Library, KS
- Image – People with horse in front of farmhouse – Kansas Memory
- Image – A Good Day for Ducks – Kansas Memory – 221398 – https://www.kansasmemory.gov/item/221398
- Audio – Billie Goat Stomp – Joel Cummins – YouTube – https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=Fk6cTAOUKBY
Family Nibbles 
