A look back 150 years to Christmas in Newton of yesteryear

They say that history repeats itself, and, in this holiday season, I am reminded of the Newton of a century-and-a-half ago, when times were tough and there was widespread dissatisfaction with the administration in Washington. In 1858, Newton had a population of about 1,000. It had voted to incorporate in April 1857, by a vote of 121 to 34. Hugh Newell, a former Know Nothing, was mayor. He came to Newton from Jackson County in 1855, and was admitted to the bar on Sept. 12 of that year. The “splendid” new Jasper County courthouse was completed in October 1858 at a cost to the taxpayers of $26,600. Located where the present courthouse is situated, the oblong, 50x62, three-story high structure was built “in the most substan[tial] manner, afte