USA > Iowa > An illustrated history of the state of Iowa, being a complete civil, political, and military history of the state, from its first exploration down to 1875; > Part 56
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The bright days of Madison county had come, thanks to the well paid shipments to California and elsewhere, and there was a desire for railroads. In 1853, the county determined by an overwhelming majority to contribute one hundred thousand dollars toward building the Philadelphia, Fort Wayne and Platte River railroad, but the work was not prosecuted and the vote came to nothing. Doubtless the will manifested had an effect in adver- tising the wants and the courage of the people, and in that way contributed to the fulfillments of their desires. In the year 1868, the Chicago Rock Is- land and Pacific railroad was carried through to the Missouri river, passing
through Madison county near the northern boundary, and soon after that event Winterset became connected by railroad with Des Moines, securing in that way a good outlet for the surplus of the whole county. The accommo- dation obtained was worth more than all the contribution which was called for by the company.
The county agricultural society was organized in 1856, and the whole pop- ulation is said to have attended the first fair on Cedar creek. The move- ment has certainly proved a great suc- cess and the grounds belonging to the association near to the county seat at Winterset are beautiful, well appointed and extensive.
The public spirit of Madison coun- ty was manifested in a very whole souled way during the rebellion, as nearly one-tenth of the whole popula- tion of that county fought for the union.
Winterset occupies the geographical center, and is therfore well placed for a county seat. Middle river is at a lit- tle distance, only about one mile, and the location is superb. The city stands in the center of a very fine agricultur- al country, well endowed with wood, water, stone and coal, and as a com. mercial entrepot, it takes a high pos- ition among the best provincial towns in the state. The quarries which have been mentioned before as having been opened near the city, have had a beau- titying effect upon its appearance. Nearly all the best buildings for resi- dence, business and public affairs are of stone and the sidewalks are perma- nently made with the same excellent material.
The first settler here came in 1849, and he was the postmaster for all the country round soon afterwards, as well as a kind of factotum in county offices from the earliest days of the or- ganization. The city began to grow rapidly in the year 1856, and since that time, has known no check.
The public school was built in 1868, at a cost of $30,000, and it is certainly a noble looking edifice, standing on an elevation which commands the whole city, in the midst of grounds which have been ornamented by trees and shrubs, until they are the delight of all beholders. The details of the building need not be given, but the general effect is very fine, and the
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apartments are supplied with every modern convenience and facility for tuition and culture. The county teachers institute was organized in 1853 in this city, and the meetings of that body have been so well conducted that not only all the teachers and su- perintendents, but every citizen whosc miud rises above the consideration of dollars and cents makes it a business and finds it a pleasure to be present. The newspaper press of the city is well represented by the issues which advocate the different views of the sev- eral parties, and the commercial inter- ests of the locality can afford to pay liberally for advertising and general support. The city was incorporated in 1869, and there have been manufac- lories and mills in full operation from long before that time.
Mahaska County contains an area of five hundred and seventy-six square miles, standing fourth from the Mis- sissippi river in the third tier. The Des Moines river, the North Skunk and the Skunk, are all found travers- ing this county, which they may he said to divide into equal areas, trav- ersed in every direction by their arms and tributaries. The drainage of the county and the supply of water for irrigation, or in wells and springs, fit for use hy men and all the domesti- cated auimals, could hardly be sur- passed. Coleridge's Ancient Mariner saw “ water, water everywhere, but not a drop to drink; " but that is not the case in Mahaska county. Happily, in many of the settlements, it is almost the only drink cared for, and the tone of society is not injured by that fact.
There are no swamps nor marshes in this region of country, and all the streams are skirted with belts and groves of timber, enough for more than ordinary consumption.
This is one of the counties in which stratified rocks are found on the sur- face, hence the prevalence of springs to which attention has been inciden- tally called; and another result of considerable importance is found in the quarries, of sandstone and lime- stone, near Oskaloosa and in other localities, which are largely used for building purposes and in the manu- facture of quick-lime. Some of the sandstone at Oskaloosa is used for flagging, and although the quality is
not equal to the flagging procured from Arbroath, in Scotland, it suffices to meet all demands in Mahaska.
This county lies within the most productive region for coal in Iowa, just where the coal beds attain their maximum of thickness. The shafts necessary to reach down to this de- posit are not costly, as the measures are soon reached; and the quality of coal procured is very good. Many mines are already in operation, and the intersecting lines of railway which traverse this county carry immense quantities of black diamonds to every point of the compass. The state geol- ogist, Dr. White, speaks in the very highest terms of the quantity and quality of coal in these deposits; the beds here revealed will give the best mines in Iowa.
Brick clay, of the very finest quality, and some clay which will make excel- lent fire brick, have been found in Ma- haska county ; and hoth kinds of mate- rial will be turned to the best account by enterprising and industrious citi- zens.
The surface of Mahaska county on the uplands is rolling prairie, but the character of the country changes in the neighborhood of the streams and rivers, where valleys and bottom lands are found, and some small sections of broken land well covered with timber. Some of the valleys are quite extensive, and they are all fertile. These alterna- tions of country, where almost every stream has its helt of woodland or its grove, must have contributed very materially toward rapid settlement after the first white man came here to make a home. The soil is very rich, and will produce excellent crops of every kind from fruits to cereals ; hut the facilities for stock raising are so great that almost every farmer gives his best attention to that profitable branch of his manifold pursuit. Tame grasses are cultivated in many sections, but where the native grasses are en- tirely relied on, the stock raiser finds an unfailing supply for all seasons of the year. Mahaska is another instance of a beautiful region, an actual para- dise for farmers, heing at the same time an unexceptionable mining dis- trict.
The first white family settled in Mahaska county in the year 1842, be- fore the Indian title had expired, and
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consequently before the country was properly open to settlement; but the first comers were in good repute among the red men with whom they traded, not so much for the profit aris- ing from operations of that kind as for the purpose of maintaining friendly relations, while holding some of the best land, preparatory to a rush of set- tlers which was at that time expected on the " New Purchase " territory.
The expectation was not ill founded, for when the time came at which every man could mark out his location, in- tending settlers were encamped near the debatable land, a little army waiting for the stroke of the clock which should tell them of the first May morning in 1843, that they might begin at once in the starlight to mark of their claims. From this cir- cumstance, it will appear that Mahaska county had no period of tedious pro- bation while people at a distance were balancing its charms against the at- tractions of other districts. There was a furore for the new connty from the first, and the qualities revealed by time have more that equalized all expecta- tions. The first settlements to attract attention were those on Six Mile prairie a beautiful tract of country be- tween the Des Moines river and the Os- kaloosa. The first comers were attract- ed by the country, not by the county as they did not know until months after- wards what county they inhabited.
Nine months from the first staking out of the claims on that famous morn- ing in May by starlight, the county was ready for organization, and soon after- wards, in 1844, the county seat was lo- cated at " The Narrows," after a very spirited competition between that place, the Six Mile Prairie, and the center of the county. The decision was made as above for the site now occupied by Oskaloosa. The site of the location was at once entered upon by the county officials ; the person who had taken up the ground beforehand was induced to withdraw, and the town was platted for sale without delay. There was some heart-burning caused by the decision, but after a few man- ifestations of dissatisfaction on the part of the residents at Six Mile Prairie, the dispute was accomodated. "The Nar- rows" became the site for a town called Oskaloosa, and the county seat has been a fixture ever since. There
was a court house erected in 1845, and the work went steadily on by steps which were not remarkable nor extrav- agant. The course of travel by which Makaska county had to be reached was roundabout and tedious. Keokuk was reached by water easily, thence the immigrant made his way by river- craft up the Des Moines river, until points were reached from which the settlers could travel the remainder of their journey by wagon or by other similar conveyance to the locations upon which they were to build their fortunes. That method of communi- cation poorly served its purpose as looked at from our stand point to-day, because we have become accustomed to luxuries, conveniences and speed, such as would have suspended respira- tion in our slow-going fathers, but for the day of small beginnings, it served a vast public need, and under its opera- tion, the valley of the Des Moines river became very extensively populated and improved. Since then we have be- come fast and furious, and nothing less than railroad traffic will convey our produce, nor can we for any consider- ation accommodate our bodies and minds to less than twenty-five miles an hour. The construction of railroads came soon to help the development of Mahaska county. The Central Rail- road of Iowa passes through the coun- ty in a line almost direct from St. Louis and St. Paul, bisecting the coun- try almost in the center. The Keokuk and Des Moines Railroad is the con- necting bond between Des Moines - the Gate City, as it used to be called in the old river days, and the Capital City - and that road passes through Mahaska county. The lines just men- tioned connect with the great railroads traversing the state and communicat- ing with all parts of the union. The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Rail- road Company is now constructing a road between Oskaloosa and Sigourney which will bring the county seat into more immediate intercourse with the great markets for produce, as it will connect with the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad at Albia. These several iron roads traversing the coun- try, leave nothing to be desired in the way of convenience and dispatch and the farmers have great reason to be satisfied with their locations.
Education has commanded special
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attention from the settlers in Mahaska | tions of the edifice are made more from the very first, and the progress beautiful by stone courses which add very considerably to the architectural effect. The college was incorporated in 1857, and its first department opened in 1861, since which time its success has been remarkably great. made in that particular has been high- ly satisfactory. The public schools do not represent the whole machinery available for the training of youth in this region, although the care and cost bestowed upon that institution have been and still are exemplary ; but more of these in due course.
Penn College, an establishment which owes its rise and its mainte- nance almost entirely to the Society of Friends, and which is named after the son of the British admiral, the influ- ential courtier, and inflexible religion- ist, William Penn, the founder of the colony of Pennsylvania, is one of the most conspicuous adornments of the city of Oskaloosa, from which it is distant about one mile. The building is quite new, having been commenced in 1870, and is sufficiently spacious to meet all the demands of the commu- nity to which it may be said to belong. Paine once said that if the Quakers had been consulted as to the work of creation, they would have made the whole world drab, but the visitor to Oskaloosa, looking at Penn College, with its handsome grounds embosom- ing the edifice in living emerald of every shade, would come to a very dif- ferent conclusion. Possibly the Qua- kers of our day differ somewhat from the men with whom the writer, before quoted, was most conversant, as many of them were not sure that it was pol- itic or just on the part of the colonists to sever their connection with Great Britain, the descendants of William Penn being to this hour recipients of a pension from the English govern- ment for special services, but certainly to-day there are no truer lovers of the beautiful nor more zealous defenders of the rights of Americans than the quiet, unobtrusive men, who speak as they are moved by the spirit in the meeting houses of the Society of Friends, and are found foremost in every good work which demands sym- pathy and sacrifice.
Oskaloosa College stands near the western boundary of the city, on a very beautiful site, ten acres in extent, and the frontage of the institution pre- sents a very handsome edifice of one hundred and thirty feet in extent. The building is of brick, with facings of dressed limestone, and other por-
The public schools of the county have a set of buildings adapted to the work of tuition throughout the coun- ty, valued at $160,000, the number of schools being nearly one hundred and forty in round numbers. The renu- meration to teachers averages very nearly $75,000, and the permanent school fund comes within a fraction of thirty-five thousand dollars, or about five thousand better than the av- erage of all the counties in the state of Iowa.
OSKALOOSA stands on the site which was once known as " The Narrows," a beautiful location on high, level prai- rie, forming the divide between the Des Moines river and the Skunk. When the county seat was first located at this spot there was hardly a tree on the ground, but there has been no time lost in the matter of vegetal adorn- ment since that date, as may be gath- ered from the title, "City of Trees," which has been bestowed upon the county seat. Every man has planted trees in greater or less variety, and in large numbers; the residences are em- bowered in foliage, the streets have their lines of shade trees, enclosures and reserves are decorated, churches have their evergreens in continuous beauty, and the schools and colleges have compelled the forest to enter into their service, " to teach the young idea how to shoot."
The first cabin erected on this ground dates from 1833, and within one year from that time, school was being taught in the miniature city. There is now here an admirable sys- tem of grading under which the inde- pendent district organization aims at obtaining the highest educational re- sults. There are ahout twenty teach- ers employed in the several establish- ments, and the higher branches of tu- ition are ably presented to the pupils. Latin and German are taught in the high school at Oskaloosa. Churches of all kinds are well supported here, and mrny of the church buildings are fine specimens of architecture.
Newspapers in this city are numer-
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ous, extensive, and well supported, and their general character deserves the wide and general favor with which they are received.
NEW SHARON is a new station on the Central Railroad of Iowa, in the northern part of Mahaska county, sur- rounded by an agricultural country, in which the farmers are rapidly mak- ing headway, and, as a consequence of that fact the town enjoys a good local trade, besides the commission business incidental to shipments. There is some talk about an elevator, and the buildings in New Sharon are increas- ing in numbers and importance.
The town of New Sharon has a newspaper, which first made its ap- pearance in 1873, and it has become a valuable institution.
OSKALOOSA STATION is quite a con- siderable village on the line of the Ke- okuk and Des Moines Railroad, two miles, or rather more, from the city of Oskaloosa. As a shipping place, the station becomes daily of greater note, and there are several manufactories here which employ a great mass of work people, hence there is a steady in- crease of population.
There are many villages and post offices, around which some residences are slowly aggregating, about which the historian, not very far in the future, may become eloquent, but for the pres- ent it will suffice to chronicle their names, leaving the future to unfold their manifold claims upon the read- ing public. Their names are: Agri- cola, Belle Fountain, Auburn, Cedar, Buck Horn, Ferry, Eveland Grove, Givin, Granville, Fremont, Hopewell, Indianapolis, Mauch Chunk, Leighton, Union Mills, Peoria, and White Oak. The names are already significant of much promise.
Marion County stands fifth from the Mississippi, in the third tier from the southern boundary line of the state, touching Polk county, which lies to the southeast. The county is crossed diagonally by the Des Moines river, and nearly the whole region is drained and irrigated by that river and its numerous tributaries. A part of the township in the extreme northeast is drained by Skunk river and its afflu- ents, but the Des Moines may be said to be the river of Marion county, par excellence.
The rivers and streams mentioned, give an abundance of water for stock, and for domestic use, and on the larger streams there are abundant sites for the erection of mills and machinery. There are some places in the county where nature has been prodigal of such gifts, and the manufacturing class will not fail to turn such advantages to ac- count. The streams have abundant supplies of timber along their banks, and these belts and groves, well dis- tributed, abundantly supply the whole county with wood for fuel, and timber for building and fencing.
Where the timber prevails, it is no- ticed that the country is generally rough, and least adapted to agricul- ture, not that it is less fertile, but be- cause the operations of the farmer can. not be carried on with advantage in such localities. The open prairie land presents a sufficient field for enterprise at present, and therefore the broken country adjoining the streams will continue to be devoted to groves and belts of woodland, but whenever the supply falls short of the demand for farms and stock raising stations, it will be discovered that the locations now in disrepute, have much fertility to place at the disposal of the agricul- turist.
The surface of the prairie is undu- lating in some places, and rolling in others, with a deep and rich soil, ev- ery acre of which can be made product- ive of wealth. The value of the dark sandy loam in such locations has been descanted on already, and in this coun- ty that soil varies from about one foot to three feet deep. The river bottoms present a still more productive soil, such as can hardly be exhausted by tillage, varying from three to six feet in depth, and containing just enough sand to keep the land warm and easy to work.
Stock raising, in connection with farming, will become a specialty iu Marion county, and mauy agricultur- ists, mindful of all the advantages offered to their hands, have begun dairy farming with large prospects of a very gratifying success.
Profitable coal beds underlie Marion county in every direction, and seams from five to seven feet in thickness offer every conceivable facility for eco- nomical production. Many mines are already being worked to good advan-
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tage, and additional capital can be ob- lished posts within the region inhab- tained to extend the workings to al- most any extent. That circumstance causes a very advanced stage of pros- perity to become apparent throughout this region.
Near Pella and at many other points in Marion county, there have been quarries opened which give a superior kind of St. Louis limestone, which can be wrought with much greater facility than stone of that deposit gen- erally. Usually this stone is compact- ed well, but it is brittle to a fault, and liable to break in odd and unworka- ble shapes. The Pella stone lies in regular beds, with a cleavage easily ascertained and reliable, and in other respects also, this material can be worked advantageously. The stone is remarkably clear of flint, an advantage which is of very great moment to builders. Sandstone is also found in many places. where it can be quarried advantageously, and the quality vary- ing somewhat in different localities, is usually such as to render it of consid- erable value in building, but it is not so valuable nor so much sought for as the limestone which is found at Pella, because it is not susceptible of so high a finish, nor is it so capable of defying the atmosphere.
In some parts of this county, clear grit sandstone can be procured in any quantity, and in other places the stone is altogether too soft for building pur- poses, but customarily there is a good stone procurable which makes a very handsome edifice, the appearance re- minding one of the world famous Caen quarries. Some of the sandstone in this county is almost a brick red, but the color varies through all shades until it is found of light yellow in some places and a bluish gray in others. Marion county can thus combine the lumber trade, wherever it may be profitable, with coal mining in some districts and quarrying in others, while all over the country, the farmer and - breeder of first class stock has before him a certain aud not distant fortune.
- This county forms part of the " New Purchase " territory, which was ceded to the general government by treaty - in 1842, and it was thrown open to set- tlers in the following year, immedi- ately after the title of the Indians had died out, but prior to that date there were many traders who had estab-
ited by the Sac and Fox Indians, aud as the red men receded, these wary old campaigners followed them up, spy- ing out the most eligible spots for claims. Many men were thus enabled to secure advantages at the first open- ing, which would be unknown to the great mass who were waiting for daylight on the first of May, 1843, in order to drive their stakes in accord- ance with the strict requirements of the law. As in the case of Mahaska county, at the same date, there was an army of selecters encamped on the grounds before the hour came, which would enable them to commence opera- tions. There was a military post estab- lished, and the garrison was supposed to prevent any person crossing the boundary line into the ceded territory before the moment at which the rights of the " noble savage" had expired, but the eyes of Argus could not have secn all the infractions which were perpetrated, nor could the arms of Briareus have arrested all the of- fenders, so the gallant soldiery winked at innumerable pecadilloes, and the main dependence against substantial breaches of the law, in the matter of staking and blazing the lands which were to be defined and claimed, con- sisted in the prudent watchfulness which every man bestowed upon his neighbors, lest they should, in their zeal for commonwealth, step in and secure a slice of desirable territory be- fore the proper time, when the race would be open to the fleetest horses and the deftest hand.
Seventy familles settled in Marion county the first year of its regular set- tlement, and the locations which were peopled by them have since expanded into towns and cities which are now centers of wealth and influence in that region. The people were mostly poor and their homes were rude in the ex- treme, but they saw straight before them the line of duty, and they never turned aside from their purposes. Such buildings as they put up during the first year were not, as a rule, much better than an Indian wigwam, be- cause it was necessary to bend all their energies to the cultivation of their farms, and to procure the neces- saries of life for their families.
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