USA > Iowa > Polk County > Centennial history of Polk County, Iowa > Part 1
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.
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
NYPL RESEARCH LIBRARIES
3 3433 08192100 3
IV 0 (Polk Co. ) Dixon
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2008 with funding from Microsoft Corporation
http://www.archive.org/details/centennialhistor01dixo
IVO
.
CENTENNIAL HISTORY
OF
POLK COUNTY,
IOWA,
BY J. M. DIXON, BLIND EDITOR.
Authorized by the Board of Supervisors of Polk County.
MRS. J. M. DIXON AND J. W. DOUGHTY, AMANUENSES.
DES MOINES: STATE REGISTER, PRINT. 1876.
THE NEW YORK PUBLICLIBRARY
95200 ASTOR, LENOX AND TILDEN FOUNDATIONS. 1898.
COPYRIGHT SECURED.
DEDICATION.
-
To the citizens of Polk county, among whom the Author has been living during the past twenty years, enjoying the benefit and personal acquaintance with many of them, this unpretended volume is affectionately dedicated.
DES MOINES, October, 1876.
J. M. DIXON.
BONNE CHANDLER
NEW STATE CAPITOL BUILDING OF IOWA.
PREFACE.
-
Three persons, consisting of my wife, my wife's brother, J. W. Doughty, and myself, have devoted more than three months of unremitting toil, to the compilation of this his- tory. From the day in which we began the work, the ma- terial of which it is composed has grown and expanded on our hands beyond all previous conception or anticipation. The limits to which this volume has been of necessity restricted, have compelled us to throw away many pages of manuscript, which ought to be preserved and embodied in book form.
The critical reader will doubtless think of many subjects which should have been incorporated into this history, but which are absent. Let him remember, however, that these subjects would have been presented here, if space had been found for them. One department alone of this work-The Incidents of History -- would of itself, if properly ampli- fied, have formed a work very much larger than this vol- ume. In the progress of our labor, we have reverted in thought to scores of events, which, though passing into utter oblivion, we have not been able for want of room, to introduce.
In writing up the Townships, the only facility we pos- sessed in obtaining material, was afforded by correspon- dents, and not by conversation with pioneers. In the city here, we had the pleasure of talking up these subjects with many gentlemen whose names are published in their proper connection; but with the exception of Thomas Mitchell, John D. McGlothlen, A. S. Rice, and one or two others, we have not had the benefit of a conversation with a solitary
€
CENTENNIAL HISTORY
citizen from the country. We have written repeatedly to parties in all the country townships, urging them to meet us at some point in Des Moines, or to respond by letter to such interrogations as we thought proper to propound. The result was, that the information we sought was not ob- tained, except in a few desultory cases. In this contin- gency, the only thing we could do was to subsidize the pub- lished histories of others, or such floating paragraphs in the local journals as might render us assistance. The his- tory, therefore, of the townships, which we have prepared for this volume, is not as accurate, nor as complete as we could wish; but our readers are assured that we have se- cured to ourselves every possible help in the compilation of this branch of our history.
We avail ourselves of this opportunity to return our thanks to P. M. Casady, Dr. D. V. Cole, Byron Rice, S. F. Spofford, W. H. McHenry, R. W. Sypher, Barlow Granger, J. B. Bausman, C. A. Mosier, and other pioneers, who have given us substantial information. The City and County officers have generously responded to the many demands we have made upon them. The County Auditor, George C. Baker, contributed hours of his time in helping us to decipher and utilize the old records. The labor of two days was expended in looking up the dates of township organi- zations.
A person inexperienced in that class of work involved in the preparation of a history like this, can form no ade- quate conception of the toil and responsibility which have been assumed by the author. In search of one little date alone, we have gone twenty times to the individual from whom it was to be obtained, before a satisfactory result was reached; and as history and biography are composed of names, dates, and events, it may well be imagined that un- told labor has been expended in the production of this vol- ume.
THE AUTHOR.
7
OF POLK COUNTY.
OFFICIAL HISTORY.
-
In the latter part of June last, the Board of Supervisors, in deference to the following Proclamation of Governor Kirkwood, employed me to write an official Centennial History of Polk County. The contract to write the work has been faithfully executed, and the result is now before the reader.
THE CENTENNIAL.
BY THE GOVERNOR:
A PROCLAMATION.
To the People of the State of Iowa:
The Congress of the United States having in view a com- memoration of the approaching Anniversary of National Independence that shall fitly and worthily close the first century of American history, has adopted a resolution, which has been brought to my notice by the Secretary of State of the United States in the following communication:
DEPARTMENT OF STATE, WASHINGTON, April 15th, 1876.
To HIS EXCELLENCY, the Governor of the State of Iowa :
SIR :- I have the honor to inclose herewith, for your in- formation, a copy of the Joint Resolution of the Senate and House of Representatives, approved by the President on the 13th of March last, recommending to the people of the United States the adoption of measures to obtain record of
8
CENTENNIAL HISTORY
the progress of our institutions during the first century of their existence.
It has been deemed proper to bring the joint resolution in question to the notice of the Governors of the several States.
I have the honor to be,
Your Excellency's obedient servant, JOHN L. CADWALADER, Acting Secretary.
JOINT RESOLUTION on the celebration of the Centennial in the several counties or towns.
Be it resolved by the Senate and House of Represen- tatives of the United States in Congress Assembled, That it be, and is hereby, recommended by the Senate and House of Representatives to the people of the several States that they assemble in their several counties or towns on the approaching Centennial Anniversary of our National Inde- pendence, and that they cause to have delivered on such day an historical sketch of said county or town from its formation, and that a copy of said sketch may be filed, in print or manuscript, in the Clerk's office of said county, and an additional copy, in print or manuscript, be filed in the office of the Librarian of Congress, to the intent that a complete record may thus be obtained of the progress of our institutions during the First Centennial of their exist- ence.
Approved, March 13, 1876.
I take pleasure in calling the attention of the people to this Congressional recommendation, and in bespeaking for it responsive action. We are very happily situated to carry out its object. Our history, eventful as it has been, can be told by men who have witnessed it all, and indeed helped to make it. The desired sketches of many of our counties, towns, and townships, can be made by such persons, while they can furnish material for all of them.
9
OF POLK COUNTY.
It is suggested that narratives be prepared and read on the day designated-
1. Of the several counties.
2. Of the several townships.
3. Of the several cities and towns.
And that one copy of each be transmitted to the Con- gressional Library, one to the State Library at Des Moines, and one to the State Historical Society at Iowa City, and one filed with the Auditor of the county.
The value of the information thus amassed would be ma- terially augmented could it be supplemented with other sketches, such, for instance, as
4. Of school-districts under both present and former or- · ganizations.
5. Of colleges, academies, and other private institutions of learning.
6. Of the various church organizations of the State.
7. Of the missionary, benevolent, literary, scientific, and fraternal associations.
8. Of agricultural progress, including histories of State and County societies.
9. Of manufacturing interests, including notices of or- ganizations for furthering the same.
10. Of the mining interests.
11. Of the mercantile interests.
12. Of the several professions.
And, in short, of all enterprises or occupations whose his- tory may in any manner illustrate the development of the resources of the State, its past progress, and its present con- dition.
It is suggested that the last named sketches be presented to the associations or bodies interested for their information at such times as may suit their convenience, and copies sent to the State Library, and the State Historical Society, and also to the central authority of the association, denomina- 2
10
CENTENNIAL HISTORY
tion, or order, in cases where individual societies are thus connected.
It is recommended that appointments be made at an early day of proper persons to prepare the sketches, so as to afford all the time practicable for such preparation.
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused to be affixed the Great Seal of the State of Iowa.
[L. s.]. Done at Des Moines, this 11th day of May, in the year of our Lord one thousand, eight hundred and seventy-six, of the Republic the one hundredth, and of the State the thirtieth.
SAMUEL J. KIRKWOOD.
By the Governor :
JOSIAH T. YOUNG, Secretary of State.
DISCOVERY OF IOWA.
On the 18th day of June, 1673-more than two hundred years ago-those two historic explorers of the olden time, James Marquette and Louis Joliet, glided with their canoe into the current of the Upper Mississippi, on a voyage of discovery. On their way southward to the mouth of the river Arkansas-still on the bosom of the Father of Waters -they noted the bold, abrupt bluffs which are now seen overlooking the city of McGregor, in Clayton County. Their eyes also rested on many other wonderful scenes of nature on the western bank of the river, which, nearly two centuries later, were intimately associated with populous cities, and with the stirring march of a purer and loftier civilization. At the remote period to which we refer, all that vast territory, stretching away westward from the river Mississippi, under the name of Louisiana, belonged to France by the right of discovery; and this right was main- tained for ninety years. It was then ceded by the stipula-
11
OF POLK COUNTY.
tions of treaty to Spain; and in the year 1800, it was retro- ceded to France, where the ownership rested until 1803, when the whole magnificent territory, with all its sublime possibilities, became the property of the United States Gov- ernment. The amount paid for it was $15,000,000.
STATE AND COUNTY.
The Territory of Iowa was admitted into the Union in 1846, constituting the twenty-ninth State in the order of admission. Polk County was organized under a law of the Territorial Legislature, passed January, 1846. It is bounded on the north by Boone and Story counties; on the south by Warren; on the east by Jasper, and on the west by Dallas. It embraces an area of about 350,000 acres of land. It is finely watered by the river Des Moines, and numerous trib- utaries, among which our own classic 'Coon occupies a prominent place.
DES MOINES RIVER.
The Des Moines River, or "River of the Monks," from which early title its present name is derived, is one of the natural beauties of the County and of the State. Entering the County near its northwest corner, it takes its departure at the extreme southeast. Its principal change of direction in the County is at Des Moines, where it receives an im- pulse eastward by the discharge of the Raccoon River. Following these two directions of the stream, by two cor- responding right lines, we find that the river waters a stretch of country in Polk County, of thirty-five miles in length, while the meanderings of the stream increase this distance to about fifty-five miles. For a distance of about ten miles, however, by the water measurement, the river forms the line between the Counties of Polk and Warren.
Being the largest river of the interior of Iowa, the at- tention of navigators was drawn towards it in an early day.
12
CENTENNIAL HISTORY
" The lower Des Moines river was visited by steamers as early as 1836. It was not until the year 1843, that the banks of the river as high up as the locality then known as "Coon Fork," were washed by the waves of a vessel propelled by steam.
The year 1839 gave birth to the first legislative enact- ment, relating to the construction of dams on the Des Moines in Van Buren County, which was the beginning of public works of that nature on that stream. The rise, pro- gress, and final result of the great scheme that promised to make this justly termed "grandest of Iowa rivers," a navi- gable water route, form many pages of our legal and legis- lative histories; but our limited space forbids any extended reference to the subject.
Since 1843, and before the days of railroads, up to the year 1859, an occasional steamer managed to pass over the dams, making a hurried excursion to Des Moines. In those days, Central Iowa had no list of exports; there were no re- turn freights, and but few passengers to reward the labors of the adventurous navigators.
Numerous experiments have been made in the navigation of the river above Des Moines, but generally with craft badly adapted to the service. The most notable attempt in this line was made by Henry Scribner about the year 1869. Several frail vessels were constructed from time to time, which were allowed to go to decay. The nearest approach to successful navigation, was the attempt made during the present year by William Beazley, in the construction and operation of a little side-wheel steamer, which bore no name and but little freight,-her chief duty being that of towing scows or barges, loaded with lumber and fire-wood, on the downward trips.
Those best acquainted with the river, hold to the opinion that a comparatively small expenditure of money would render the stream useful in the transportation of timber in
13
OF POLK COUNTY.
all the various shapes and conditions needed in the building up of a large city, and accommodate as well, the agricultural district accessible to its double coast line of about fifty- seven miles of thickly wooded shores. The fall of the river is sufficiently rapid to afford excellent water power; and in time, the combined advantages of power and im- proved navigation will be attained by the construction of permanent dams at several points within the limits of the County.
RACCOON RIVER.
The Raccoon river, which takes its rise near the lands drained by the Little Sioux, brings the overflow of waters of Swan Lake in Pocahontas county, and Storm Lake in Buena Vista county, down through the counties of Calhoun, Sac, Carroll, Greene, Guthrie, and Dallas. It first strikes Polk County near the southwest corner, and flows to its confluence with the Des Moines at the Capital City, a dis- tance, measuring directly, of nine and three-fourths miles; but such is the curvature of this flow of waters, that its actual length in the County is but little short of twenty-one miles. The fall is rapid; and with the exception of the dam at Commerce, its currents are unchecked by any obstacle, save the resistance offered by the numerous bends.
Fagan's mill, situated near the mouth of Walnut Creek, was the chief point of interest connected with the stream in the earlier days of the County. The river's wide and wooded bottom lands, are annually visited by the little remnant of the tribe of Indians who once claimed them as a part of their happy hunting grounds. Still faithful to its name, and the traditions of those early non-settlers of the country, it furnishes to their skillful hunters numerous specimens of the animal from which it takes its name. The prairie lands of its valley proper, are unsurpassed in fertility; and many
14
CENTENNIAL HISTORY
of our best Polk County farms lie within sight and sound of its rushing waters.
The thrifty village of Commerce is as yet the only point of commercial importance on its banks west of Des Moines. Another well known land-mark is the extensive and well im- proved farm of James O. Jordan, whose enterprise and hos- pitality have long made him conspicuous among the early settlers of the vicinity. A mile east of this locality is the point of divergence of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific and the Des Moines & Fort Dodge Railroads. The demands of shippers call for the location of another village at this point, which, we understand, is about to be accomplished.
SKUNK, OR CHICAQUA RIVER
The good taste which has been displayed in the retention of this name, Skunk, bestowed by the Indians, may fairly be questioned. It is, however, our province to deal with the physical features of this most singular of Iowa streams. Its mission seems to be to water a certain area of Iowa's fertile soil, which duty has, up to this present writing, been faithfully discharged, as all who have been connected with the service of transportation of freight or passengers across its still but muddy waters, can freely testify. It gathers up the surplus waters of Hamilton county, and flowing through parts of Boone and Story, passes through Polk, and thence on a line nearly parallel with the Des Moines river, empties into the Mississippi at a point some ten miles below the city of Burlington. It crosses the northeast corner of the County, describing a distance, geographically speaking, of thirteen miles; but its many bends give it a water-line of twenty-two miles in length in the County.
The fall of the stream is in marked contrast with that of the Raccoon river; and the drainage of the large area of country through which it passes, flows off slowly, widening out over its wide, rich bottom-lands, and presenting formid-
15
OF POLK COUNTY.
able difficulties to all means of transportation. For some years the project of cutting a direct channel for the entire distance of thirteen miles, has been agitated, with a view of promoting more rapid drainage and reclamation of the val- uable lands in its vicinity. The usually gentle slopes of the uplands contiguous to the stream, are rich in agricultural wealth, and they are rapidly becoming occupied with im- provements of a good class. It is confidently predicted that the talked of change in the condition of the stream, will furnish to the citizens of the County several thousand acres of tillable bottom lands, as valuable in point of pro- ductiveness as any in the world.
ANCIENT MOUNDS.
Fifteen mounds, the work of a pre-historic race, dotted the surface on the original site of Fort Des Moines. One of these ancient relics stood near where Moore's Opera House now stands, on the summit of which was erected the old residence of W. W. Moore. Another one stood on the site of the Court House, and others were scattered about in different localities. They are supposed to be the places where the dead of antiquity were buried, as bones have fre- quently been exhumed from them. At what age of the world's history, or by what race of men these tumuli found all over the continent were created, no one can tell. The curious reader in search of more minute particulars, is re- ferred to a very interesting treatise on the Pre-Historic Races, written by J. W. Foster. The work to which we refer proves very conclusively, that the Mound-Builders of the Mississippi Valley constituted a populous and powerful nation, divided into stationary communities. They
worshiped the elements, and their form of government sub- ordinated the masses to hereditary power. They were at least semi-civilized, as many of their inventions and ap- pliances for the uses of society, plainly testify. It is be-
16
CENTENNIAL HISTORY
lieved, that this old race of men were driven from their home in the great Valley by an irruption of enemies; and they afterward established their home in Central America, where the ruins of their magnificent cities and temples are still visible.
PHYSICAL FEATURES.
The surface of the County is not a dead and monotonous level, like many of the counties of Northern Illinois, and other sections of the West, but it is gently undulating, forming an agreeable picture to the eye. Although the pre- vailing feature of the surface is prairie, there are, neverthe- less, many fine bodies of timber decorating the valleys of the Des Moines and other streams, and giving beauty and diversity to the scenery. The County lies a little South of the centre of the State; but in respect to the other cardinal points of the compass, it is centrally located, lying midway between the two great rivers of the continent, and indeed of the globe-the Missouri and Mississippi.
ABORIGINAL POPULATION.
Polk County was included within the Sac and Fox reser- vation until the 11th day of October, 1842, at which time the title was transferred by treaty to the United States Government. It was stipulated, however, that the Indians should remain undisturbed within their reservation for three years after the date of the treaty-that is, until the 11th day of October, 1845. In this connection, Hon. C. C. Nourse remarks in his admirable Centennial Address, de- livered at Philadelphia, September 7th, 1876:
"In obedience to our progressive and aggressive spirit, the government of the United States made another treaty with the Sac and Fox Indians on the 11th day of August, 1842, for the remaining portion of their lands in Iowa. The treaty provided that the Indians should retain possession of
17
OF POLK COUNTY.
all the lands thus ceded until May 1, 1843, and should oc- cupy that portion of the ceded territory West of a line run- ning North and South through Red Rock until October 11, 1845. These tribes at this time had left their principal village at Ottumwah-no, now called Ottumwa. As soon as it became known that the treaty had been concluded, there was a rush of immigration to Iowa, and a great number of temporary settlements were made near the Indian boundary, waiting for the first day of May. As the day approached, hundreds of families encamped along the line, and their tents and wagons gave the scene the appearance of a mili- tary expedition. The country beyond had been thoroughly explored, but the United States military authorities had prevented any settlement, or even the marking out of claims by any monuments whatever. To aid them in marking out their claims, when the hour should arrive, the settlers had placed piles of dry wood on the rising ground at convenient distances, and a short time before 12 o'clock of the night of the 30th of April, these were lighted, and when the mid- night hour arrived it was announced by the discharge of fire-arms. The night was dark, but this army of occupation pressed forward, torch in hand, with axe and hatchet blazing lines with all manner of corners and angles. When daylight came and revealed the confusion of these wonder- ful surveys, numerous disputes arose, settled generally by compromise, but sometimes by violence. Between mid- night of the 30th of April, and sundown of the first of May, over one thousand families had settled in this new pur- chase. While this scene was transpiring, the retreating Indian was enacting one more impressive and melancholy. The winter of 1842-3 was one of unusual severity, and the Indian prophet, who had disapproved of the treaty, at- tributed the severity of the winter to the anger of the Great Spirit because they had sold their country. Many religious rites were performed to atone for the crime. When the 3
18
CENTENNIAL HISTORY
time for leaving Ottumwah-no arrived, a solemn silence per- vaded the camp, and the faces of their stoutest men were bathed in tears; and when their cavalcade was put in motion, toward the setting sun, there was a spontaneous outburst of frantic grief from the entire procession. The Indians remained the appointed time beyond the line run- ning North and South through Red Rock. The government established a trading post and military encampment at the Raccoon Fork of the Des Moines river, then and for many years known as Fort Des Moines. Here the red man lin- gered until the 11th of October, 1845, when the same scene that we have before described was re-enacted, and the wave of immigration swept over the remainder of the "New Pur- chase."
Soon after the treaty, there were three Indian villages situated not far from the site of Des Moines. The one of which Keokuk, the successor of the celebrated Black Hawk, was Chief, was located on Keokuk prairie. The one of" which Poweshiek was Chief, was situated near the present village of Colfax. The third village, whereof but few his- toric traces are left, was ruled by the war-club of Hard- Fish, of whom a meagre and unsatisfactory record remains.
The Sacs were an inoffensive tribe, so far as their history in Polk county is concerned. Their wigwams, or houses, were of the most barbaric structure, formed of poles and bark, and their internal accommodations were of the rudest character. Their Chief, Keokuk, was a brawny, stalwart savage, of commanding presence, weighing 250 pounds. He distributed the government annuity among his people, and presided over them with much dignity, despite the fact that he would frequently, like the multitudes of his race in mod- ern times, give himself up to paroxysms of intemperance. In military prowess, he was deficient, yet he sustained him- self as a popular Chief. After his removal with his tribe to Kansas, or, rather, to the Territory of Missouri, he died 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.