PART OF ZOO IN BEVER PARK, CEDAR RAPIDS
A SCENE IN BEVER PARK, CEDAR RAPIDS
BUSINESS IN 1856
From 1850 to 1860 Cedar Rapids had a marvelous growth, despite the panic of 1857 which wiped out some of the fortunes of those who had invested heavily in wild lands and who had engaged in banking. The Voice of Iowa, a local newspaper, has the following to say of the wealth of the city's business enterprises:
Flouring mills, four; planing mills, sash, doors and blinds, two; cooper, one; wagon and carriage factories, five; iron foundry, one; cabinet and chair factories, two; plow factories, three; boot and shoe factories, three; saddle and harness factories, three; tin, copper and sheet iron workers, four; woolen factory, one; brick yards, five; farm implement factories, two; merchant tailors, two; woodworking, two; newspapers, three; brick machine factory, one; grocery and provision stores, eight; dry goods, fifteen; clothing, five; drug stores, four; jewelers, two; hardware, four; book stores, two; book bindery, one; liquor and cigars, six; public halls, five; hotels, five; churches, four; lumber yards, four; bakery, one; banks, three; barber, one; public reading room, one. The same issue of the paper cites that the town should have a pork packing plant as well as a paper mill. It took a long time before the T. M. Sinclair Company's plant became an assured reality, which has become in time such a factor in the upbuilding of Cedar Rapids and Linn county.
The following list of business firms in Cedar Rapids in 1856 is of interest: