Sheriff Jacob B. Lent
October 11, 1881, Jacob B. Lent was elected Sheriff of Osceola County, receiving 125 votes over his running mates E. Huff, receiving 118 votes; S.S. Parker, receiving 94 votes; Hezekiah Littlechild, receiving 90 votes, Albert Romey, receiving 89 votes,and A.B. Greaves, receiving 6 votes.
The town of St. Gilman was all but a ghost town by 1879 due to the grasshopper invasion from 1874 to 1876; nonetheless, St. Gilman became a prosperous town once again in 1882 and changed its name to Ashton.
In 1883, the Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Northern Railroad Company came through Osceola County. Soon thereafter, The Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad Company came through. Allendorf became the main station on that line.
October 9, 1883, Jacob B. Lent was re-elected Sheriff of Osceola County receiving 730 votes.
In 1884, Sheriff Lent's pay was increased to $400 per year.
Fall of 1884, the town of Ocheyedan was formed.
Mennonite Barn on Business Corner
In 1884 a Mennonite settlement from Canada, as well as Michigan, Indiana, and Pennsylvania settled in the area of Business Corner, known as A34 (220th Street) and M18 (White Avenue) in Osceola County. They located 1 1/2 miles east, and 1/2 mile north of the future town of May City. In 1897, the settlement erected several buildings that were all painted brownish red. Today, one of those barns remains at Business Corner and can easily be recognized by its vertical siding and overhanging farbay that was built to provided shade for livestock. At one time there was a grocery store, jewelry store, watch repair shop, a broom and cigar factory, a wagon shop, a harness shop and a number of houses. In 1915 the Mennonite families returned to the areas in which they came from due to the lack of unity and differences in the group. A Mennonite cemetery, with 26 graves remains as a reminder of the settlement which is located 1/8 mile west of Business Corner.
January 16, 1885, W. F. Fitzsimmons was selected Deputy Sheriff of Osceola County at the Board of Supervisors meeting. The fees for the County Sheriff's office for 1884 totaled $197.50 for the year.
October 13, 1885, Jacob B. Lent was re-elected Sheriff of Osceola County, receiving 500 votes over his running mate James W. Morrison which received 303 votes.
January 25, 1888, the fees for the County Sheriff's office for 1887 was determined to be $419.52 for the year.
Jacob B. Lent was a war veteran. He was a private in Company I, in the Twentieth Wisconsin Infantry. His trade was selling farming machinery of all kinds. Lent served three, two years terms as Sheriff of Osceola County from 1882 to 1888.
Ocheyedan's Main Street looking North in 1880's
Home | Mission | Services | Tips | Jail | Press | Sales | Warrants | Wanted | Photo | 911 | K9 | Staff | Jobs | History | FAQ | Links
Visit the Osceola County Website | Visit the Sibley Iowa Website