Howard Houghton is parade marshal for this year’s Chautauqua

The Daviess County Chautauqua is recognizing the 100th anniversary of the Boy Scouts by making this year’s theme, "Scouting for fun on the square."

Howard Houghton grew up in Gallatin and graduated from Gallatin High School in 1948. He joined the Boy Scouts when he was 12 and became an Eagle Scout at 17. Howard recalls when the scouts earned their own money for supplies and camping equipment.

"It was little easier then because the war was on and there were paper drives and scrap drives," he said. He attended Camp Geiger in St. Joe for three or four years. He was lifeguard one summer and won ribbons for swimming. He was tapped into the Tribe of Mic-O-Say.

He was the typical boy scout living the outdoor life of camping and community service. But Howard didn’t take his youth and health for granted — he was happy to just be able to walk.

In 1943 Howard got an infection behind his left knee, probably from a spider bite. It got worse and he went to Dr. Doolin in Gallatin. The doctor’s office was over the Mundell Electric building which was next door to the Davis Drug Company.

Dr. Doolin tried to draw the poison out with mustard poultices. That didn’t work and the infection spread. The doctor thought Howard’s leg needed to be amputated.

His father loaded Howard up and took him to a specialist, Dr. Senor, in St. Joseph. Dr. Senor had a couple of ideas before doing such a drastic surgery. It was in August of 1943 and a new "miracle" drug had been used by the miliary and just then released for civilian use.

"It was penicillin," said Howard. "That’s the only reason I’m walking around today."

As a side note, when Howard was transferred to St. Joe in the 60s, he found out that Dr. Senor was company doctor for the railroad. He looked the doctor up.

"I told him he wouldn’t remember me, but he saved my leg back in 1943," Howard recalls. "He went to the file cabinet, thumbed through some files and pulled mine out. He still had that file after all those years. He was an old time doctor. He charged $4 for an office call and his wife wrote out the receipts."

Howard went a couple of semesters to the University of Missouri at Columbia and MU extension in Kansas City.

He worked in Kansas City at Hallmark Cards for about a year. He was in the production line, a cutters helper in the cutting department.

"We cut the cards from a great big lithograph sheet," Howard recalled. "I didn’t want to do that all my life; it was hard work."

The sheets came in five feet squares piled on skids. They were tall and heavy and had to be lifted on the cutter bed by hand and jogged to get the edges to line up.

"Joyce Hall was still alive at that time," Howard said. (Joyce C. Hall was the founder of Hallmark Cards.) "He lived at the plant for a time. He demanded the cards be cut perfectly. We threw away a lot of cards."

Howard worked nights and went to college during the day. He got around by streetcar.

"A lot of people don’t believe Kansas City had street cars," he said. "But it did. It was a wonderful form of transportation. You could go anywhere. Transfers were free. Fares were inexpensive."

The city decided to go with trolleys and buses and, as Howard remembers, sold the streetcars to South America.

"Kansas City streets were filled with rails for a number of years," he said. "Until they were removed and paved over."

Howard applied for a job with the Santa Fe Railroad. During the interview the man asked him if had ever been a boy scout and what rank he’d been. Howard told him he was an Eagle Scout. The man said, "Let’s hire him."

Howard was with railroad for 40 years in marketing and sales. He retired as manager of grain marketing.

"I don’t know much about the physical plant of the railroad and I don’t know much about the trains," Howard said. "But I know how much it costs to move a ton of freight a mile over certain tracks."

Howard was transferred from Kansas City to Pueblo, Colo, then to Denver, Colo, then to St. Joe, then to Kansas City again as district sales manager, and finally to Hutchinson, Kan., where he retired.

Howard and his wife, the former Georgia Burns, were married in 1950. They will celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary on Oct. 6.

Georgia is from Civil Bend. They met when they both went to high school at Gallatin.

Georgia went to Stony Point, a one room school house, before going to Gallatin High School. She and her brother, Wilbur Burns, used to ride their horse Sparky a short mile to Stony Point. Sometimes Wilbur would ride Sparky to school and turn him loose to find his way home. When he got home, Georgia would ride him to school.

Wilbur passed away two years ago. His wife Margaret Burns lives at Lake Viking.

Howard recalls hearing his grandmother Amanda Lynch talk about the James boys. She had seen them once. They had stopped by their farm, which was around Gallatin, and watered their horses.

"They’d just robbed either the railroad or the bank, I don’t remember which, and were hightailing it out of the country," Howard said. "Grandmother thought they were crazy. It was a warm day, but they wore dusters and heavy coats. Turns out, they were on their way to Minnesota."

He also recalls his grandmother talking about the hanging of Joe Jump and John Smith. It was certainly the first and probably the last such public hanging in Daviess County. When asked how the hanging went, his grandmother answered that it was very well attended. She said families for miles around came with their wagons and buggies bringing food and drink to observe the hanging. She added that the crime rate went way down.

Amanda and Henry Lynch owned a poultry house around Gallatin. His grandfather Henry was a banker and a judge in town. Jack and Dorothy Lynch of Lynch’s grocery were his cousins.

Howard’s other grandfather was Benjamin Houghton, who was sheriff for one term. He operated out of the Squirrel Cage Jail.

"He was sheriff during pretty bad times — prohibition," said Howard.

Howard’s uncle, Leland Houghton, was sheriff of Daviess County for many years as was his cousin, Tommy Houghton.

Howard and Georgia have three children, daughter Carol lives in Kansas City and works in insurance; daughter Janet lives in Vancouver, Wash., and is transfer coordinator at Washington State University; son Dan lives in Minneapolis, Minn., and works with information systems in computers.

"When we go visit, we see a lot of the country," Howard said. "We can choose the weather. We’ve got the children spaced perfectly."

They have six grandchildren. Three live in Washington state, two in Minnesota and one in Bolivia. Their son in Minneapolis has done missionary work in Bolivia for a number of years, hence his daughter has moved there for awhile.

Howard is an ordained elder in the Presbyterian church having served on sessions in Denver, St. Joseph, Prairie Village, Kan., and Hutchinson, Kan.

The Howards spend some of their winters in South Padre Island in Texas for the warm winds and mild climate.

"I was very surprised and pleased to be chosen as the grand marshal for the Chautauqua parade," said Howard. "It will be good to visit Gallatin, go around the square, see old landmarks and hopefully renew acquaintances with friends. I’m especially looking forward to touring the Squirrel Cage Jail."

A plaque on the first floor of the Daviess County Courthouse commemorates Gallatin’s Eagle Scouts. B.S.A. Troop 67, Gallatin, was chartered Nov. 22, 1932.

Charles Brandom 1938; Robert Richardson 1939; Bill L. Runnels 1940; Howard Houghton 1947; Maurice Richesson 1952; Larry Potts 1952; James L. Harlow 1964; William D. Gordon 1965; Lawrence D. Jefferson Jr. 1969; Damon Hennen 1976;

Chris Mort 1980; Darren Hennen 1981; Victor Marolf 1982; Jason Ripple 1983; Sean Ripple 1984; Davon A. Hennen 1986; Travis W. Elbert 1987; John E. Steigerwalt 1992; Jeremy T. Ripple 1997; Jordan B. Elbert 1998;

Weston Steele 1998; Duston Talbott 1998; John W. Anthuis Jr. 1999; Derick S. Talbott 2000; Jacob A. Gardner 2002; Daniel W. Pierce 2002; Sean A. Wood 2003; Timothy M. McCann 2003; Jonathan M. Arnold 2005; Logan E. Corwin 2006;

Phillip M. Arnold 2007; Mitchell King 2008; Billy Kerns 2008; Kevin A. Corwin 2008; John A. Corwin 2009; Myrick A. McLey 2009; Bradley G. Jones 2009.

Past Chautauqua Grand Marshals

1989 Mrs. Katherine Brandom

1990 Dr. E.E. Nixon

1991 Mrs. Aline Thompson

1992 Joe & Katherine Snyder

1993 J.Paul & Mary Virginia Croy

1994 Jack & Dorothy Lynch

1995 Jimmy Barton

1996 Bob & Jane Ann Paul

1997 Mrs. Katharine Barker

1998 Bob Teegarden

1999 David & Darlene Mackintosh

2000 Bob & Susan Ann Aulgur

2001 Arland & Mary Haynes

2002 Bill & Leota Snyder

2003 Nancy Terry

2004 Danny & Karen Critten

2005 Doyle & Darlene Patton

2006 Larry & Patty Dickinson

2007 Bill & Karen Reed

2008 Carl & Sherri Carder

2009 Evelyn Hockensmith, Viola Swofford and Marguerite Blackburn

Please note: The Gallatin Saddle Club Fun Day is set for 1 p.m. Sunday at Dockery Park. The time publicized on the Chautauqua flyer posted around town is incorrect