USA > Iowa > Guthrie County > Centennial history of Guthrie county, Iowa > Part 2
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Of all those who came in 1850, Henry Brumbaugh and wife, who were then children, and Michael Leinart and family, are all that are left in this part of the county, Cass township, while of the settlement made in Jackson, Mr. Kunkle, J. W. Cummins, Benj. Denslow, Sam. Moore and J. W. York, are all that remain of those who came pre- vious to 1851.
In May, 1850, Michael Leinart bought a claim of David' Bay, which is the old Leinart farm, south-east of Panora. In November, of the same year, moved his family from the old homestead in Dearborn, Indiana. On his way hither, he stopped with friends in Wapello county, who remonstrated against his bringing his children where they would receive no education. But he was not to be dissuaded from his purpose. Though, like most of the old settlers, their purses were light, yet their hearts were brave and their pur- pose fixed. Their first residence was a shanty, but the pros- pect of a brighter and better future, made it a happy home, even amid the hardships of pioneer life. What though an occasional pang of homesickness clouded the hour, or the dismal howl of the wolf, brought before them, with a vividness they could not relish, their isolated condition; what though the larder was sometime empty and many seeming discouragements presented themselves, their un-
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HISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
bounded faith in the future prosperity and enlightenment of this fair land, enabled them to accept the situation hopefully, if not at all times. cheerfully, and in time to sur- mount all difficulties. Neither did they borrow trouble concerning the education of their two children, Valentine and Saranda. On the 21st day of January, 1851, a second daughter, Mary, now the wife of Jesse Johnson, of Panora, was born to them. When she was fifteen years old, she received a first-class certificate and taught a district school and she had never been to school out of the county either. She has since been a successful teacher, and her father and mother have just cause for self-gratulation, on their judg- ment in selecting a home, as they certainly have nothing to regret on the score of educational facilities, of which I will speak hereafter.
Not long since an old settler inquired of me, "How are times in Stuart now?" "Well, really I do not know; everybody is complaining of hard times." "Hard times, indeed! it disgusts me to hear the croakers of to-day com- plaining of hard times, small houses, lack of money, etc. Bless your soul, I wish you could have lived here in the early days of our county; you'd be ashamed to say hard times now. Why, there were times when we were fortu- nate, if we had half a bushel of corn or a bushel of pota- toes in the house."
The first year of their arrival here was devoted to pre- paring the land for the next year's crop. After turing the sod over or breaking the prairie, if done early enough in the season, they raised a crop of sod corn, which was good only for stock; the next spring they put in a crop of wheat, or corn, so they must wait over a year to realize anything from their own industry, at least until they could have any kind of grain of their own raising.
Those who brought wheat or corn, flour or meal with them, fared well for a time, but those who failed to do so,. sometimes suffered.
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IIISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
The nearest mill was below Winterset in Warren county, from which nearly all their breadstuffs were drawn by ox teams. As the distance was great, the streams not bridged and in high waters impassable, and as oxen travelled slowly any way, as soon as they could get 'round to it, an occasional settler constructed something that answered the purposes of a mill. One made by Mr. Kunkle, consisted of a large concave stone fixed permanently on the ground and another, convex, made to revolve in this, by horse power. A still more primitive arrangement was Andrew Brumbaugh's mill, which differed from the other, in that it was operated by men and women; a pole was fixed, one end in the upper stone and the other in the ceiling, by which they turned the mill.
Abram Moore owned a large coffee mill and several of the neighbors ground their corn upon that. They also ground corn, wheat and buckwheat upon the ordinary fam- ily coffee mill.
Many families, among whom was that of Mr. Denslow, lived on corn, with an occasional meal of wild meat for nearly two years. For some time after they raised a crop of wheat they lived on bread and turnips, the only variety or luxury being salt. When they came to Guthrie, their worldly possessions consisted of a team of horses and ten dollars in money. Mr. Denslow came in the fall of 1850, and made a claim on Sec. 4, T. 79, R. 30. In the spring he moved his family, and April 20, 1851, he made another claim on Sec. 35, T. 78, R. 30.
They lived, as did the rest of the old settlers, in a cabin, with the usual prairie bed, "made" table and benches. They are now well-to-do. Mrs. Denslow is yet hale and hearty, full of life and energy, and as I remarked to her the only time I ever saw her, " She seemed to have grown fat over the hard times." "Oh," she replied, "it is all over now and we can afford to laugh, but I tell you it looked pretty blue sometimes then."
The experience of one old settler is substantially the
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HISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
experience of all old settlers, so we give that of those, whose history we are most familiar with.
In 1848 the first settlement was made. In September, 1849, the first birth occurred. To the first settler nearly two years had rolled peacefully away, though not without its hardships and privations, and in August, 1850, this handful of people was called upon to perform the last sad rites over the remains of their neighbor, a Mr. M'Cullough,. who died in a cabin, which stood near the present site of Pearson's mill. A rude box, made by kind neighbors, was his coffin; a sheet furnished by Mrs. Kunkle, his shroud; the hearse, an old cart drawn by a yoke of oxen, and his final resting place, a beautiful bluff near Morrisburg. Slowly through the timber and over the prairie, to the place prepared for the reception of the mortal M'Cullough, the funeral procession wended its way. Without a word they lowered the coffin; in silence they covered it with the clods, and in silence returned to their cabins. Though no oration was said and no sermon preached, yet that reverential silence, their manful tenderness and their silent, heartfelt prayers, as they committed their fellow-man to the kind embrace of mother earth, were quite as acceptable in the sight of God. Though no stone marks bis resting place, while his pall-bearers live, he will not be wholly forgotten.
The winter of 1849-50 being very severe and feed scarce, many of the cattle died, and the work cattle that lived through, were so reduced as to be unable to draw the plow to break up the prairie sod for the spring crop, so the set- tlers were obliged to go the weedy bottoms along the 'Coon river and plant a sufficient quantity of corn to keep the wolf from their door, until they could open out their claims.
In 1850 the land in the western part of the state was sur- veyed by the Government, it having been previously pur- chased of the Indians, who made their exit from Guthrie in 1849, their ugly moccasin tracks in their serpent trails being scarcely obliterated when our first settlers arrived. 2
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HISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
A few of them still remained, who Indian-like, stole some horses from Dallas county and made good their escape, but were captured at Kanesville and the horses recovered. Ever since its settlement the county has been visited by roving bands of some tribe, for the purpose of hunting and selling their furs, who do no harm except begging and stealing what they can, and casting a general feeling of repugnance over the community where they happen to stop. I recall a laughable incident connected with one of their visits. A band of Musquakas camped west of Panora; every day squads of them would go through town, stop- ping at every house to beg.
Previous to this, an enthusiastic philanthropist said she would like nothing better than to have a negro family on one side of her and an indian family on the other; she would take so much pleasure in civilizing them. Very evidently she had, like all the rest of us, been reading Pope's "Lo, the poor Indian," and perhaps Longfellow's "Hiawa- atha," and with the rest of us, her sympathies were with the "poor, abused Indian." When the Musquakas came to her house, they did not look very spirituelle, nor yet like the imaginary "noble red man of the forest." They entered without permission and demanded something to eat. With fear and trembling she collected everything she had pre- pared for her family and gave them. This did not satisfy them, and seeing a red and green quilt, such as our grand- mothers and our mothers delighted in, upon the bed, a squaw marched up and deliberately helped herself to it. The lady's heart sank within her. "Ah," sighed she, men- tally, " there go hours, days, weeks; aye months of weary labor, and I dare not open my mouth. Alas, alas; what shall I do?" Echo answered, alas, alas. After they had de- parted with her fancy bed-quilt and other things, she simply said, with a sigh of relief, "Surely distance lends enchant- ment."
Besides those already mentioned, who came to Guthrie county in 1851, were Addison and William Cave, who set-
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HISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
tled where they now reside; Aaron Hougham on the Pear- son place; J. W. York, on the farm now owned by William Harvey, Sr .; Joseph Cave settled what is now known as the Windowmaker farm; David Thompson, his present place; William Miler, the farm owned by Larkin Maulsby ; Henry Harper, the place where T. E. Harbor now resides; Gev. Rohr, the place of Milton Harbor. S. G. Weeks took a claim, which is now the farm of W. T. Connor, and his son, A. G. Weeks made a claim where John F. Branson lives. Hiram Haskins " claimed " the farm now owned by William Swisher, west of Dale City. This list, with those before named, embraces all that were living in the county south of middle Raccoon river at the date of its organiza- tion.
Among those settling north of the river, or in the Leinart and Brumbaugh settlements, besides those already named, were John and Michael Messinger, T. M. Boyles, Wm. Grames and Asa Cox.
In the dim twilight of a May evening, in 1851, a solitary emigrant wagon halted at the cabin of Conrad Brumbaugh, and a little band of travellers, consisting of a man, his wife and two children, weary and travel-worn, were wel- comed to a home, as hospitable as kind hearts and ready hands could make it. These more than welcome guests, were Asa Cox and family, who had come west to seek a home.
Mr. Brumbaugh, fortunately, had two cabins on his claim, one of which he generously offered them, rent free, as long as they desired to occupy it. Of this kind offer Mr. Cox availed himself, remaining in the cabin until 1853. In 1852 Mr. Cox erected the residence now occupied by Lewis Harvont, which was the second house built in Pa- nora.
While they yet lived on Mr. Brumbaugh's place, the two families possessed one cow in common; one would milk her in the morning and the other in the evening. Panooch and Des Moines supplied these settlers with groceries and dry
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HISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
goods. They frequently walked to Panooch, a distance of twenty-five miles, for goods, which they carried upon their backs or drew upon, hand-sleds.
This was a lonesome walk, as there was but one cabin, in 1851, between Panooch and the present site of Panora. For flour and meal they went below Winterset and the Fort (Des Moines), and like all the old settlers, when they ran ashore, they ground their grain upon hand mills and coffee mills.
In 1852 when Anderson's mill was approaching comple- tion, everybody depended upon its supplying them with breadstuffs, but the high waters prevented its being put in operation at the expected time, and for four weeks the good people lived upon potatoes and squashes.
Mrs. Cox says the best meal she was ever privileged to partake of, was at the house of a neighbor, in 1851. She had been eating corn bread all summer long, and was per- haps a little tired of it. Her neighbor said she had some wheat and they would have a change. She ground the wheat upon her coffee mill and made graham gems, which were excellent and which were so grateful to Mrs. C.'s palate, she will never forget them.
All the summer long she had lived in her cabin, without having seen a single traveller. One afternoon in October she looked away to the east, and there, oh, joyful sight! was a covered wagon; they did not wait to see who were its occupants, but ran to meet it. It contained a solitary man, and stranger though he was, he was welcomed with as much joy as would have been the dearest friend they ever knew. Said one of these pioneers, in relating this incident, "if I ever wept for joy, it was then. The first train of cars I ever saw was not so grand a sight as was that covered wagon. Never before, nor since, have I felt such emotions of pure delight."
A valuable acquisition to the neighborhood was Aunt Polly, an annt of Mrs. Cox, who was the good angel of all the households, especially in sickness. Was a neighbor
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HISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
sick, Aunt Polly was sent for, and she, with kind heart and willing hands, was ever ready to give assistance and en- couragement.
The old settlers lived peacefully, without political con- tentions or dissentions, until the summer of '51, when, by permission of the Legislature, their desire for self-govern- ment was gratified.
ORGANIZATION OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
In the winter of 1850-51, the Legislature, then in session at Iowa City, divided the territory west of Dallas county into counties, and as it was a Democratic body, named our county after the great Democratic statesman of Kentucky, Guthrie.
At this session, L. W. Babbitt, of Kanesville, and E. R. Guiberson, of Madison county, represented Marion, Polk, Dallas, Jasper, Marshall, Story, Boone, Warren, and Madi- son counties, as well as all the rest of the territory in western Iowa.
Judge Mckay, who was then judge of the 5th Judicial District, appointed Theophilus Bryan organizing sheriff for Guthrie county. On the Sth day of August, 1851, he pro- ceeded in his official capacity to divide the county into two townships, or election precincts, the line dividing them com- mencing where Middle 'Coon river crosses the east line of the county, and running along said river to the section line between sections 9 and 16, T. 79, R. 30, thence west to the west line of the county. The north township was called Cass, the south Jackson. The place designated for holding elections in Cass was at the residence of Andrew Brum- baugh ; in Jackson at the residence of Fred Fry.
The next thing in order was to post written notices, call- ing a county convention to nominate candidates for the different county offices, to be voted for at the ensuing election, which was to be held on the first Monday of August. The said convention was held at the cabin of Joseph Ricks,
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HISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
near the old Brumbaugh mill, when the following nomina- tions were made : For County Judge, T. Bryan ; County Clerk, S. G. Weeks ; Treasurer and Recorder, T. M. Boyles ; County Assessor, James Moore ; Prosecuting Attorney, Fred Fry ; County Surveyor, A. G. Weeks ; School Fund Commissioner, Aaron Hougham ; Inspector of Weights and Measures, Sam'l Moore ; Sheriff, Michael Messinger.
At the August election they were all duly elected and qualified according to law. At this election, J. W. Cum- mins and Aaron Hougham were elected Justices of the Peace for Jackson township. At this time the population of the county was 222. The number of votes cast 39-all Democratic, which would indicate, to those of like faith, that the millenium. politically speaking, was nearer at hand then than now. At the second election there were four Whigs in the county, J. W. Cummins, J. H. Gander, John Anderson, and David Bay ; but as they were a hopeless minority, they had no ticket in the field. The names of those who voted at the first election are, in Jackson town- ship, Abraham Moore, James Moore, Samuel Moore, Benj. Moore, Fred Fry, H. Haskins, James Haskins, S. G. Weeks, A. G. Weeks, Aaron Hougham, J. W. York, Benj. Dens- low, Benj. Kunkle, G. W. Rohrer, J. Nevins, Henry Harper, Mathew Piper, J. W. Cummins, David Dailey, and Jerome Paige. The latter named two gentlemen lived in Dallas county, but it was more convenient for them to vote in Guthrie. Mr. Paige was elected constable for Jackson township, in which capacity he served for some time. At that time it was not considered "irregular" to select such officers from over the line ; or, as Guthrie was, previous to its organization, attached to Dallas for judicial and revenue purposes, perhaps they had formed a sort of second-cousin- hood and thought it was all in the family.
Those voting at the first election in Cass township were : Michael Messinger, John Messinger, George Messinger, Daniel Messinger, David Bay, Michael Mock, Andrew Brum- baugh, Joseph Ricks, John Davis, T. M. Boyles, John
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HISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
Vanorder, Jacob Vanorder, Theophilus Bryan, Michael Leinart, Conrad Brumbaugh, Nicholas Hartman, Wm. Grames, Peter Vandeventer, and Nathan Maynard. Of this number Mr. Leinart is the only one now remaining in the county.
The first ballot box used in Cass was Aunt Hannah Bry- an's tea-pot. At the next election they had an oblong box of walnut sides and bass wood ends, made by Richard Gilbert. This latter is now in the possession of Mrs. Cyn- thia Campbell, who treasures it as a relic of by-gone days.
At the first election in Cass, Mr. Leinart was elected a Justice of the Peace, but failed to qualify, and Nathan Maynard was appointed to fill the vacancy. Mr. Leinart was then elected Assessor for Cass, which office he ac- cepted.
The county being properly officered, the next thing was to have a county seat, the site for which was selected and the same reported on, the 25th day of September, 1851, by David Bishop, of Madison county, and Lewis Whitten, of Polk, commissioners appointed for the purpose by the Legislature of 1850-51.
After looking the ground over and discussing the relative merits of the different localities, they finally selected S. E. ¿ sec. 32-80-30. The original plat contained one hundred acres, with streets eighty feet wide. Several additions have since been made.
Mr. Bishop was paid $14 and mileage, and Mr. Whitten $15 and mileage for services in locating the seat of justice. With regard to the naming of the place, there are two stories. The one is that Mr. Bishop had thought out the name of Panora before leaving home. The prettier and more likely story is this : Two travelers were standing on the hill southeast of this place, and as they took in the beautiful landscape-the wide-spreading prairie to the north and east, the river, with its wood-crowned bluffs, wind-
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HISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
ing around the west and south -- the foliage at this time of the year being of the most gorgeous hue, for .
"It was just after the death of the flowers, And before they were buried in snow,
When had come that mystical season When nature is all aglow-
Aglow with a thinly veiled splendor,
More sweet than the brightness of spring-
Aglow with a beauty more tender Than any the summer could bring !"
One of them exclaimed, as the flitting clouds left the scene now in shadow and again in the soft, dreamy light of the autumn sun, " What a beautiful panorama !" The expres- sion, with a slight abbreviation, suggested itself as an appropriate name for the newly created county seat. Even if we were compelled to divest the name of its romantic associations, it is musical, and the location such as would warrant an enthusiast in weaving as many and as fanciful stories as he chose concerning it.
The first building erected in Panora was the present resi- dence of Louis Harvout, by Asa Cox, now deceased. Perhaps precedence should be given to the little log cabin which stood on the lot now owned by John Boblett, as the logs were drawn on the ground in 1851 by Michael Linhart. In 1852, just previous to the building of the Cox house, Abram Hursche, a Frenchman, bought the logs and built the cabin. The next building, and the one wherein the first hotel was kept, by Mr. Samuel Harris, is the one now occupied by James Harris as a residence, and was built in 1853. Previous to the building of this hotel, however, Judge Bryan commenced the erection of the pres- ent Roberts house, which was then intended for a residence, but was used as both residence and dry goods store.
The first stock of goods brought to the county was by Judge Bryan, in 1852, and consisted of a barrel of molas- ses, a sack of coffee, two or three pants patterns, and a few other things, which were kept at his residence, on the John Cline place.
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HISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
The first general store (including whiskey, which was called groceries) was opened in the little cabin above refer- red to, in 1853, by Abram Hursche and Thomas Turner.
The first carpenter in the county was Richard Gilbert, who came to Panora in 1853.
In 1854, Bryan and Craig opened a general store in what is now the bar room of the Roberts house.
In 1855, Michael Rosebrugh opened a hotel or boarding house in the Dr. Gustine house.
The first school house was built and the first school taught by a Dr. Sloan, in 1853.
The first church was built in 1856 by the Presbyterian Mission Society of New York, who sent one Harmon here as a missionary to preach to the heathen. The church was 20x2S feet in size, and stood on the east side of Court House square. It was used as a church and Court House -(here is where McFarland held his famous courts) -- for two or three years, when it was converted into a dwelling, then a wagon shop, and, finally, Dan Hardy bought and used it as a blacksmith shop. It is at present used for the same purpose by Mr. Warner. This Rev. Mr. Harmon was thought by Panorites to be quite as much in need of a missionary's instructions as were those he pretended to enlighten. He built the under-ground house, known as the "ground-hog house." He dug a cellar, put a frame inside of it, intending some time to raise it up, and put a stone wall under it ; but he had a way of never finishing what he begun, and the house, what is left of it, is under ground still. It may be interesting to new-comers to know what kind of team Brother Harmon drove-two milch cows with an Indian pony as "lead."
The first permanently located blacksmith was Lucien Hogelin, who came to Panora in 1853, and started a black- smith shop in 54.
In 1855, Daniel Hardy came to Panora and commenced blacksmithing in an old stable that stood on the west end of the present site of J. Cline's store building. The stable
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HISTORY OF GUTHRIE COUNTY.
was made of slabs, and, though it contained no windows, it let in the rain and daylight all over. Blacksmithing must have been a good business in those days, as Mr. H. made the first month $108, over and above all expenses, including household ; as flour was then selling at $6.75 per hundred weight, and other things in proportion, this was no small item. Merchants, at this time, brought their flour from Skunk river, and other goods from Keokuk and other points on the Mississippi. As these were almost invari- ably drawn by ox teams, four or five weeks of time were necessary to make the trip. If, in the mean time, the sup- ply of tea and coffee ran out in some families, those more fortunate shared with them their little store, while tobacco chewers passed 'round the "plug," taking a smaller bite each time, until it was "all chawed up and spit away," and then-poor martyrs-(ladies, you who had to live with them, I am sorry for you, but please don't tell the aforesaid martyrs that I said so.)
In 1855, there were four dry goods, or general stores, kept, respectively, by Bryan, Craig, Boblett and Powell. The latter " kept store" in the " old shingle house," which was made of boards or shingles, split out of the timber with an ax.
John Cline started the first plow and wagon shop in the county in the spring of 1856. In the autumn of the same year he succeeded Judge Bryan in the dry goods trade, and " held forth" in "Phil's" bar-room. Mr. Cline is now in a building 24x60, two stories and basement. The upper story is used for Masonic and Odd Fellows' Hall.
This building was erected in 1873 at a cost of $5,000. This is one of the best buildings of the kind in the county, and Cline and sons have, by strict attention to business, and to the wants of customers, become one of the most popular houses in thecounty. Mr. Cline came here in '55.
In 1856, S. Zinn established a general store in the Good- speed building, where the first treasury was kept. In 1860, he took H. Culbertson in as a partner ; in 1864, sold to Hoover
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