USA > Colorado > History of Nevada, Colorado, and Wyoming, 1540-1888 > Part 17
USA > Nevada > History of Nevada, Colorado, and Wyoming, 1540-1888 > Part 17
USA > Wyoming > History of Nevada, Colorado, and Wyoming, 1540-1888 > Part 17
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87
the surveyor-general of the state to survey the line between the 42d parallel and the Monte Diablo base line, about at the 38th parallel. 12
The discovery of silver, and the development of the Comstock mines gave additional importance to the subject. The California governor, in his message to the legislature in January 1861, mentioned that the population of the mines was desirous of being annexed to California, and recommended that congress be me- morialized to grant the right to California to extend her boundary to the 118th degree of longitude. In the following month the territory of Nevada was organized with its floating western boundary as above, and on the 26th of March, the California legislature passed an act providing for the election, in joint convention, of a commissioner to cooperate with the United States commissioner in determining the eastern limit of the state.13 At this time the terms of the act of congress organizing the territory were probably unknown to the legislators.
Governor Nye of Nevada addressed a communica- tion to the first legislature recommending the ap- pointment of a committee to memorialize the California legislature, asking for the grant of all that portion of their state lying east of the summits of the Sierra Nevada. 14 Two commissioners, Isaac Roop and R. M. Ford, were, in accordance with this advice, elected in joint convention November 16, 1861, to proceed, in company with the governor, to the California capital, soon after the meeting of the next assembly, and re- quest that body to cede to Nevada the territory in question; and on the 29th of the same month an act of the Nevada legislature was approved authorizing the governor to order the survey of that portion of the west boundary from Lake Tahoe 15 to below Esme-
12 Cal. Stat., 1860, 184-5.
13 Cal. Jour. Sen., 1861, 38; Cal. Stat., 1861, 587-S.
14 Nev. Jour. Council, 1861, 96-7; Nev. Lais, 1861, 513-14.
15 Lake Tahoe is called Lake Bigler in the act, by which name it was known to Californians for some time. The name was distasteful to many, and certainly not so appropriate as its Indian appellative.
-
154
TERRITORIAL ORGANIZATION.
ralda, and an appropriation was made therefor, with a proviso that the survey was to be contingent upon the non-action of California. 16 That state making no survey, John F. Kidder and Butler Ives surveyed the line from Lake Tahoe south, and received pay there- for.
The commissioners proceeded to California, and in March 1862 presented their memorial. Nothing came of the visit beyond a conference on the 21st of the month,17 and in the following December another memorial was sent from the legislature of Nevada to that of California. Congress, had, however, already attempted to compensate for the loss of territory on the west by adding a degree of longitude on the east.18
In the mean time the injurious effect of the unset- tled western boundary and undetermined jurisdiction was becoming more and more apparent with the in- crease in population. The sheriff of Plumas county, California, in attempting to make an arrest at Susan- ville, in February 1862, was resisted by an armed force, and one of his posse wounded. Governor Stan- ford of California then appointed Judge Robert Rob- inson a commissioner to visit the then acting-governor of Nevada, Orion Clemens, with the object of con- ferring upon the means of peaceably arriving at a settlement of the boundary dispute. The California commissioner informed the acting-governor of Nevada that the authorities of his state would not consent to the summit boundary, and it was agreed between them that a commissioner from California and one from Nevada should be appointed to establish a per- manent boundary ; but in order to remove the danger of any future conflicts as to jurisdiction, a line should be temporarily regarded as running north through the
16 Nev. Laws, 1861, 269. The legislators were a little in the dark about the geography of their territory. 'Below Esmeralda ' would have taken the surveyors out of the territory.
17 Cal. Jour. Sen., 1862, 387, 389; Cal. Jour House, 1862. 390.
18 Nev. Laws, 1862, 195; Acts and Res., 1861-2. 295; Cong. Globe, 1861-2, 408; H. Ex. Doc., 47, pt 3, 46th cong. 3d sess.
155
BOUNDARY
eastern end of Honey lake, and as running south on the survey of Kidder and Ives. 19
On the 16th of May, 1863, Clemens appointed Ives commissioner on the part of Nevada, who joined the California commissioner, Kidder, in Lake valley on the 22d of May, and they proceeded to establish the boundary line, beginning at Lake Tahoe, and running north to the Oregon boundary, and south to within one degree of the north line of New Mexico, when winter arrested further progress. The work of the commission was accepted by both the California 2º and Nevada legislatures, and Ives was paid, for his part of it, $3,000. This final action put an end to the con- flicts which for many years distracted the communities on the border of the two commonwealths. California yielded a jurisdiction, long maintained, over the rich mining region of Esmeralda, with the town of Aurora, and Nevada relinquished any claim to a revenue from Lassen county.
Hardly were these conditions of peace entered upon when the territory aspired to become a state.21 With- out altering its boundaries in the formation of its constitution, except to add one more degree on the east,22 in order to embrace the mining region of Pahranagat, it was provided that whenever congress should authorize the addition to the territory or state of Nevada of another degree on its eastern border, or California should relinquish any territory lying west of her then eastern boundary, either of these might be embraced within and become a part of the state of Nevada,23 thus giving evidence that Nevada still felt
19 Butler Ives was deputy surveyor-general to John W. North, and John F. Kidder was his chief clerk. The assistant clerk in the surveyor-general s office was Julius E. Garrett. Nev. Laws, 1861, xvii.
20 Cal. Stat., 1864-4, 506-7. Nev. Laws, 1864, 139.
21 Nev. Compiled Laws, i., cxxix .; Nev. Constit. Debates, 847.
22 The legislature by concurrent resolution, in Dec. 1864, asked for the extension of its eastern boundary another degree. It was presented in the senate by Nye of Nevada, and ordered to lie on the table and be printed. Sen. Jour., 236, 38th cong. 2d sess.
23 Nev. Stat., 1864-5, 60; 133-4; Cal. Jour, Sen., 1865, app. 55.
156
TERRITORIAL ORGANIZATION.
herself unfairly dealt with in the matter of her west- ern boundary.
In May 1866 congress granted the one degree on the east to which Nevada laid claim, as far south as the Colorado river, and with it all of Arizona lying between that river and the south line of Nevada, making together 31,850 square miles, and made ap- propriations for the survey." To this southern terri- tory some objections were made, upon the ground that it was worthless, but in January 1867 the legis- lature formally accepted the gift, after passing a reso- lution in the senate to have the whole of Utah annexed, and in March 1869 appropriated $4,000 for continuing the survey of the east line. Not yet con- tent with its area, and grasping after more silver mines, the legislature in 1871 asked congress to give Nevada all of Idaho lying south of the Owyhee river, to which request no favorable answer was returned. The same legislative body memorialized the California assembly to grant them the boundary named in the organic act of Nevada territory, namely, the summit of the Sierra.25 But this attempt to revive the boun- dary agitation met with no approval by that body.26 It was, however, agitated about this time by the commissioner of the general land office, Willis W. Drummond, who reported in 1871 that the line be- tween California and Nevada, from Lake Tahoe north to the Oregon boundary, had never been correctly surveyed, and asked for an appropriation of over $41,000 to have the survey rectified. It was alleged that California was atthat time exercising jurisdiction over 13,000 square miles of Nevada territory." The
24 First appropriation in 1868 was $10,625, which was increased to $17.000 in 1870, when I. E. James began the survey. Mess. and Doc., 1871-2, pt. i., 49-51; Carson Appeal, Oct. 2, 1870.
25 House Jour., 137-8, 42d cong. Ist sess .; House Misc. Doc., 32, 42d cong. Ist sess .; Nev. Laws, 1871, 185; Nev. Jour. House, 1867, 116, 123-4, 195-7. 235; Nev. Jour. Sen., 1871, 160-2; Carson State Register, Aug. ,1871. Dis- turnell's Dir., 1881, 10; Austin Reese River Reveille, Dec. 15, 1855; Elliott & Co's Hist. Ariz., 29; Tullidge's Hist. Salt Lake City, 247.
26 U. S. Constit. and Charters, 1240.
27 Virginia City Territorial Enterprise, in S. F. Chronicle, April 13, 1872.
157
TERRITORIAL OFFICIALS
survey of the west and east lines was finally com- pleted in 1874,28 the returns being made by Allexery Von Schmidt, astronomer and surveyor, who gave the length of line between California and Nevada at a little over 611 miles,29 the north line coincident with the 42d parallel being 310 miles, and the east line somewhat shorter than the west, the southern boundary being a sharp angle. Notwithstanding the frequent discussions of the boundary between Nevada and California, which should have led to a better knowledge of the limits of either, litigation has been had as late as 1881, founded upon a dispute as to the proper jurisdiction.
The United States officers, appointed upon the or- ganization of the territory of Nevada,3º were James W. Nye, governor,31 Orion Clemens territorial secre- tary,32. George Turner chief justice, Horatio M. Jones and Gordon N. Mott associate justices, with Benja- min B. Bunker United States attorney,33 D. Bates
28 Cal. Jour. Sen., 1875; app. 10, 7-8.
29 House Ex. Doc., i. pt 5., 13; Nev. Jour. Sen., 1877, app. 8, 1; Id., 1879 app 9, 3-4.
30 The Cal. legislature assisted in persuading congress to create a new ter- ritory, instructing its delegation in Washington to use their best endeavors. Cal. Stat., 1860, 409. Gwin and Latham of Cal., and Otero or New Mexico, presented bills in favor of the project. Jour. Sen., 181, 36th cong. Ist sess .; Cong. Globe; 1859-60, 374, 317, 2668. Latham presented 3 petitions from western Utah; Grow of Pa presented a bill in the house for the temporary government of Nevada. Green of Mo. was the author of the bill which finally passed the senate Feb. 26, 1861, and the house on March 2, 1861, and was approved the same day. Jour. Sen., 228, 317, 372, 36th cong. 2d sess .; Ex. Doc., vol. 26, 1084, 46th cong. 3d sess.
31 Commissioned March 22, 1861. Nye was born in Mass. about 1815, re- moved at an early age to N. Y., where he was educated for the bar. He practised in Syracuse 4 years, removing thence to N. Y. City in 1857, where he was appointed com. of police. His reputation as a political orator was made in 1848, in supporting free-soil principles. Though a democrat, he was strongly anti-slavery. Syracuse Journal in Dayton L. C. Sentinel Feb. 11, 1865; Gold Hill News. March 8, 1870; Virginia City Chronicle, Dec. 28, 1876; S. F. Evening Post, Jan. 13, 1877.
32 Clemens was from Mo., and a brother of Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain), who accompanied him to Nevada. J. C. Gallagher officiated as secretary until the arrival of Clemens, abont the middle of August.
33 J. McC Reardon was elerk sup. ct; David M. Hanson clerk Ist dist, with Dighton Corson district attorney; Alfred Helm clerk of the 2d district; with Marcus D. Larrows attorney; Alfred James clerk of the 3d distriet, with E. B. Zabriskie attorney, Nev. Laws, 1861, xvii.
158
TERRITORIAL ORGANIZATION.
marshal, and John W. North surveyor-general. Gov- ernor Nye arrived in July, his proclamation declaring the territory organized being issued on the 11th, fol- lowing which, on the 24th, was the order to take a census of the population preparatory to districting the territory and ordering an election, Henry De Groot, in the absence of the marshal, being appointed to make the enumeration. The returns were made on the 8th of August, and the day of election set for the 31st.
The total number of votes cast at the election was 5,291, of which only 985 were democratic, the great majority in Nevada being on the union side of poli- tics, and very enthusiastic in support of the govern- ment. " Battle-born"-meaning organized amidst the tumult of events on the eve of the great civil war-is the favorite soubriquet for Nevada in use by political writers. Born on the eve of battle, she took no time for infancy or childhood, but poured out the precious contents of her subterranean treasury with a free hand to the help of the nation, from the very hour of her birth. 34
The election resulted in the choice of John Cradle- baugh for delegate to congress, and in the election of nine councilmen and fifteen representatives.3
$4 Nye says, in his report to Secretary Seward, in Dec. 1861: 'I may here, I think, with pardonable pride, call your special attention to the gratifying fact that the tertitory of Nevada, with one exception, stands alone among the states and territories of the union in having provided by legislation for the payment of her share of the war debt. The money will be subject to the draft of the secretary of the treasury of the U. S. by the month of August next ' Sen. Doc., 36, vol. v., 3, 37th cong. 2d sess.
35 As there was but one county organized in the whole territory the re- turns for councilmen were made from the following districts: No. 1, includ- ing all of Carson valley south of Clear creek, J. W. Pugh; No. 2, including all of Carson valley north of Clear creek, Ira M. Luther; No. 3, Empire city and vicinity, William M. Stewart; No 4, Silver City and vicinity, John W. Grier (resigned during the first session); No. 5, Gold Hill and vicinity, Thomas Hannah; No 6, Virginia City and vicinity, including the Flowery mining district, Augustine W Pray and J. L Van Bokkelen; No 7, includ- ing Washoe valley and the region between the valley and Steamboat creek, Solomon Geller; No. S, Steamboat creek and Truckee valley, none elected; No. 9, including all the territory north of Truckee valley and west of Pyra- mid lake, Isaac Roop The representatives from district No. i were Samuel Youngs and William E. Teall: No. 2, James McLean; No. 3, W, P. Har-
159
LEGISLATURE.
The governor ordered the assembling of the legis- lature on the 1st of October at Carson City, but houses being few, and owners doubtful of their pay, some difficulty was experienced in procuring a hall. They were relieved from their embarrassment by the offer, rent free, of a large stone building outside of town, belonging to Abraham Curry, famous among his fellows for deeds of generosity, who furnished the impromptu capitol in a primitive fashion with benches and tables, and crowned his munificence by construct- ing a horse-railroad from the legislative hall to Carson City, on which the legislators were privileged to ride free. 36
The code of laws passea was similar to that of Cal- fornia, upon which, and the code of New York, it was based. Both houses passed strong union resolu- tions, and every way behaved most loyally.37 By an act of November 25th the territory was divided into nine counties, namely : Churchill, Douglas, Esmer- alda, Humboldt, Lake-name changed to Roop De- cember 5, 1862-Lyons, Ormsby, Storey, and Washoe.
ington and John D. Winters; No. 4, William L. Card and R. M. Ford; No. 5, John H. Mills; No. 6, Mark H. Bryant, Ephraim Durham, and Miles N. Mitchell; No. 7, Edward C. Ing and J. H. Sturtevant; No. 8, William J. Osborn; No. 9, John C. Wright. Nev. Jour. Council, 1861, 5-6; Nev. Jour. House, 1861, 4; Sac. Union, Sept. 16, 1861. J. L. Van Bokkelen was presi- dent of the council; Henry O. Smeathman, secretary; William H. Barstow, asst sec .; Noah T. Carpenter, sergeant-at-arms; P. H. Shannon, messenger; Henry Lewis, page. Miles N. Mitchell was speaker of the house; W. M. Gillespie, clerk; Samuel E. Witherill, Charles C. Conger, assistant clerks; J. B. McCormack, sergeant-at-arms; G. S. Pierson, messenger; Robert T. Haslan, page. Nev. Laws, 1861, xviii.
36 This last is on the authority of Mark Twain's Roughing It, in which is given a humorous history of the first Nevada legislature. He says the legis- lature 'sat 60 days, and passed private toll-road franchises all the time. When they adjourned it was estimated that every citizen owned about three franchises, and it was believed that unless congress gave the territory another degree of longitude there would not be room enough to accommodate the toll-roads. The ends of them were hanging over the boundary line every- where like a fringe.' The same mnight have been said of all the other carly territorial legislatures. But concerning the seats for the representatives, I find that Mrs M. A. Ormsby and Miss H. K. Clapp of Carson city donated on the 19th of October to the members 'comfortable chairs for their use,' and that they were not only thanked, but invited to a seat within the bar of the house for the remainder of the session. Nev. Jour. House, 1861, 87
37 Parker's Letter-Book, MS., 34-6; Rept. of Gov. Nye, in Sen. Doc. 36, v., 37th cong. 2d sess.
160
TERRITORIAL ORGANIZATION.
Churchill, Esmeralda, and Humboldt included most of the territorial area, and the other counties the pop- ulation. In point of fact, the only white inhabitants of the central and eastern parts of the territory were a few station-keepers along the overland mail route, hardly more than enough to constitute the usual corps of county officers. The legislature, however, nominated, and the governor confirmed, three com- missioners for each county, whose duty it was to meet and apportion their territory into voting pre- cincts preparatory to a general election, to be held on the 14th of January, 1862, for the purpose of choosing county officers, who should hold until the regular election on September 3d, provided for in the elec- tion law of the territory. This rapid change of offi- cers gave some of the counties three different sets between the 1st of January and the middle of Sep- tember 1862.
The organic act provided for nine councilmen, which number might be increased to thirteen, whose term of service should be two years, and thirteen as- semblymen, whose number might be doubled, to serve one year. The legislature made the whole of this in- crease at the first session. In an act concerning crimes and punishments it was provided that no black person, or mulatto, or Indian, or Chinese should be permitted to give evidence against or in favor of any white person; and that any person having one eighth part negro blood should be deemed a mulatto, while every person having one half Indian blood should be deemed an Indian. In the civil practice act it was provided that all might testify, whether of negro or Indian blood, who had not one half or more of black blood in their veins; thus placing the value of prop- erty above that of life or liberty to those who were three quarters white, an impropriety which the gov- ernor pointed out, while he approved the crimes act on the ground of necessity, the condition of society in Nevada at this time requiring the restraints of a penal
161
REVENUE AND RESTRICTIONS.
code. A tax of forty cents on every $100 of taxable property was imposed for territorial purposes, with an additional tax of sixty cents for county purposes. 38 A poll-tax of two dollars was also imposed on all males between the ages of twenty-one and fifty years, not exempted by law, for county purposes, a neces- sary measure for raising revenue in a country where the land still belonged to the United States, and the population was a migratory one. The mines with
OF
NEVADA
TERRITO
U. S.OF A
VOLENSETPOTENS
1861
TERRITORIAL SEAL.
their products remained untaxed, although the design adopted for the territorial seal had reference only to mining as an industry.40 A law to secure the observ- ance of the sabbath was passed and approved, which
38 Nev. Laws, 1861, 144. This tax was raised in 1862 to 50 cents oñ $100 for territorial, and SO cents on the same for county expenses. The last terri- torial legislature fixed the tax at 30 cents on $100 for territorial and not to exceed 80 cents on the same for county revenues.
39 The poll-tax was increased to $4 a head in 1862, and might be made to constitute county hospital funds. The limit of age was subsequently ex- tended to sixty years. and assessors made ex-officio poll-tax collectors.
40 Mountains, with a stream of water coursing down their side and falling on the overshot wheel of a quartz mill at their base. A miner learning on his pick and holding a United States flag. Motto: Volens et Potens. De signed by Secretary Clemens. Nev. Jour. Council, 1861, 46; Nev. House Jour.,
43; Nev. Laws, 1861, 295. Certainly nothing classic.
HIST. NEV. 11
162
TERRITORIAL ORGANIZATION.
inflicted a fine of not less than $30 nor more than $250 for keeping open a play-house, gambling-den, cock-pit, or engaging in any species of noisy amuse- ments on the "first day of the week, commonly called Lord's day ;" and the same law interdicted any judi- cial business, except in the case of a jury in unfinished deliberation, which might receive further instruction or deliver a verdict on Sunday ; but permitted arrests for crime, and an examination before a justice on Sun- day.41 Cohabitation with Indians, Chinese, or negroes was made punishable by fine of not less than $100 nor more than $500, or imprisonment in the county jail for not less than one month nor more than six. Lotteries were also forbidden. Altogether the work of the first legislature, which extended over sixty days, was discreet and moral, and it would have been well could they have kept society up to their standard.
With the adjournment of the legislature, the offi- cials appointed by that body and the governor came into power," and arranged the preliminaries of the coming election of county officers. Some difficulty was experienced in appointing officers for Lake and Esmeralda counties, arising from the disputed boun-
41 Nev. Comp. Laws, i. 2; S. F. Bulletin, Oct. 24, 1861.
42 The commissioners appointed by Gov. Nye for Douglas county were S. A. Kinsey, Hiram Mott, and Henry Vansickle; county clerk, Joel A. Harvey; surveyor, Robert F. Hart; sheriff, William Wallace; probate judge, Chauncey N. Noteware; recorder, B. Rush Horton; treasurer, John Ting- man. Com. of Humboldt co., M. S. Thompson, A. U. Sylvester, and A. Benway; sheriff, A. W. Nightingill; probate judge, A. W. Olliver. Com. of Lyon and Churchill counties, E. B. Zabriskie, Rufus E. Trask, and S. S. Buckland; co. clerk, Daniel Kendrick; sur., Francis Tagliabue; sheriff, J. Martin Reese; dist. atty., Frank H. Kennedy; treas., John Irvine; rec., John G. Shirts. Com. of Ormsby co., H. F. Rice, J. S. Albro, and F. A. Tritle; co. clerk, Parker H. Pierce; sheriff, William L. Marley; sur., James S. Law- son; probate judge, E. C. Dixon; dist. atty, Dighton Corson; treas., Philip Stoner. Com. of Story co., H. G. Blasdel, Charles E. Olney, and Israel Knox; co. clerk, Nelson W. Winton; probate judge, Leonard W. Ferris; sheriff, William H. Howard; rec., H. G. Blaisdell: sur., Seneca H. Marlette. Com. of Lake co., William Wetherlo, William H. Naightley, and Daniel Murray. They failed to provide for the election as intended, and the county was not organized until the following year. Com. of Washoe co., F. H. Burroughs, H. F. Pierce, and C. C. Smith; sheriff, Charles C. Smith; co. clerk, B. E. Shannon; rec., Isaac Mears; supt schools, J. W. North, Nev. Jour. Council and House, 1861.
163
COUNTY AFFAIRS.
dary. In the case of Esmeralda, it was divided be- tween two jurisdictions. In March 1861 the California legislature organized the county of Mono, with the town of Aurora for the county seat, assuming that the bounds of that state reached eastward beyond this then thriving place. The act creating the county provided for the election in June of a full set of county officials,43 except a judge, who was to be appointed by the governor, and it was attached to Tuolumne for representative purposes.
Before the arrival of Governor Nye and the organi- zation of the territory of Nevada, the election had taken place, and Mono county, with a full list of officers, most of whom resided in Aurora, was exer- cising jurisdiction over the Esmeralda mining district of western Utah.“
An appropriation of $10,000 had been made by the California legislature for the expenses of a boundary commission to act in concert with the United States surveyor in locating the east line of the state, and the Nevada legislature appropriated one tenth of this sum for a similar purpose, which circumstances deterred the territorial authorities from pressing the matter of county jurisdiction; and although an act "to legalize the records of Esmeralda mining district" was intro- duced in the council, it was not passed. The question of ownership was still unsettled in 1862, no complete organization of Esmeralda county having taken place before the annual election in September;" but never- theless, at this election representatives were chosen from Esmeralda county to the legislature of Nevada, while Aurora was doing duty as the county seat of
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.