USA > Iowa > Polk County > Des Moines > Des Moines, the pioneer of municipal progress and reform of the middle West, together with the history of Polk County, Iowa, the largest, most populous and most prosperous county in the state of Iowa; Volume I > Part 33
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But the General was not to be let off so easily. A meeting was held at Colonel Hooker's office on the following evening, to consider the propriety of a dem- onstration in honor of the city's distinguished guest. It was agreed that General Sherman should be invited to meet the soldiers and citizens of Des Moines and vicinity at the courthouse on the following Saturday afternoon. Committees were appointed, including one on invitation, consisting of Messrs. Cleveland. Casady and Hooker. The General graciously accepted, and at 2 o'clock on Sat- urday, his carriage arrived at the courthouse, preceded by Colonel Hooker, mar- shal, and the Des Moines brass band. Messrs. Hatton and Moody, Mrs. Mosher and Miss Corning sang "Union, God and Liberty." Mayor Cleveland delivered a brief address of welcome, to which General Sherman responded as follows :7
"I am thankful for the kind manner in which I have been received by the peo- ple here to-day. There are many old soldier-faces turned toward me. I can tell them almost wherever I meet them. First there is a tawny color of the skin, caused by the exposure to the sun. Then there is an honest expression which always beams from the soldier's eye. I did not come here to talk to you, or to be honored by the people here, but I came to see my brothers and their families. Twenty years ago, when I was on the eve of sailing for California, around Cape Horn, I advised my brothers to come. here. I knew there was a military post here to protect settlers from invasion and depredations by the Indians. They came. Now I have the pleasure of coming to see them. I hope and believe that they have been fair samples of the Sherman family. [Applause.] I hope they may have the privilege of living here a long time yet, and that they may prosper, and leave many of the same name to perpetuate it. [Laughter and applause.] I thank you for your kind expression in regard to my services to my country. I can say that I have lived twenty years of soldier's life. When I heard this war was coming, I sat down and figured up what would be the result. I knew that as a whole the Mississippi Valley was bound together by a common interest, and I did not believe the general government could be broken up for a few negroes down in Louisiana. I made up my mind this Union could not be broken up.
"When I prepared to cross from the Mississippi to the Atlantic seaboard, many thought that my army was too small to cover that vast area; they feared .it was not able to perform the march of 2,100 miles; and yet when this war first began, men, true men, too, thought that 75,000 soldiers would be sufficient to quell the Rebellion! Seventy-five thousand men on paper would make about thirty thou- sand for the field. It takes about three hundred thousand on paper to make one hundred thousand fighting men. I had about seventy-five thousand men to start with ; then I was down. I have been up, and down, several times since. Now I am up again! I heartily thank those who give me such a cordial greeting here to-day, but if they only cheer me while I am riding on top of the waves, or when
7 From report in the State Register, October 8, 1865.
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I am down join in howling against me, I care but little for it. Nevertheless, I believe that the hearts of your people beat for me, that you are and have been my friends. When the war was over, I thought I would go back to Ohio and see those whom I knew in boyhood, for I thought they would welcome me. I came here because I believed the people who lived where my brothers did, would also welcome me. But to go back and look upon the war .- Whenever I look back on the last two years of the war, the impression comes vividly before my eyes, of soldiers walking along on those sandy roads, dolefully singing-
'When this cruel war is over.'
"I have not heard this song, however, for the last three or four months. [Laughter and applause.] When war comes you have to meet it and the men who shrink from danger then are not the men to people Iowa, nor the great west. But I have never doubted, not once, the fidelity of your men. Iowans, when they were in Georgia and Alabama, following me on the march, would have gone on if they had thought that it would take their children and their chil- dren's children in the future, to accomplish it. [Applause.] I thank you for calling a meeting for the purpose of getting to see me, for I am not handsome. [Laughter and applause.] I thank you for the cordial greeting you have given me to-day, and I hope that during the rest of my stay in Des Moines, I may be permitted to quietly enjoy my visit to my brothers."
A new paper mill, owned by J. H. Boyd & Co., one of the promising later ad- ditions to the business of Des Moines, located in the south part of the city, was destroyed by fire October 17.
The public schools in West Des Moines in 1865 were five in number including the High School, with 1,517 children of school age and about 1,000 in attendance. Professor Corless was at the head of the High School, with about sixty pupils. Mrs. Dunlap was principal of the fourth ward. The third ward was unsupplied. Miss Young was principal of the second, on Elm street. Miss Chittenden pre- sided over "the school across the 'Coon."
The 26th of October marked the arrival of Judge Wright and family from Keosauqua. The judge was reported as "busily engaged fixing up their residence on Walnut street."
The dedicatory services of the M. E. church, West side, occurred on Sun- day, October 29. Rev. Dr. Hosfield, of Chicago, officiated. The society had had financial trouble for many years The business collapse of '57 had com- pelled it to suspend building operations. The property was incumbered with a mortgage which they could not lift. But, eight years afterward the new church was built and its debt lifted and the society confidently was looking forward to a bright future, which has since been more than realized.
Major Ensign was given a cordial greeting in Des Moines on the 30th. Few men who went out from Des Moines in '61 saw as much hard service as Sergeant (now Major) Ensign of old Company D, Second Iowa.
Maj. S. H. M. Byers, referring to the closing scenes of the war, says:8 "It would require a volume to even mention the names of the men and women of the Capital and of the State at large who labored for the cause of the Union all through the weary days of the war." Referring to the men and women of the Capital, he mentions Mr. and Mrs. James Callanan who "gave of their abundance in all directions, assumed the total support of various soldiers' families, and by word and deed set a noble example of patriotism that found rivals in every direc- tion in the Capital City." Continuing, he said: "There were the patriotic Mr.
8 Iowa in War Times, p. 465.
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and Mrs. Savery, the Mills families, the Palmers and a hundred others leading in society at the Capital, engaged in organizing methods to help the Iowa soldiers or the cause for which they were fighting. Men of high political position like the Hou. George G. Wright, chief justice, and senator of the United States, and Hon, C. C. Cole, also a supreme judge later, brought all their influence and power to bear in ways that made their names familiar to patriots of Iowa. Hon. Jonathan Cattell, too, Mrs. Cattell, John N. Dewey, Stewart Goodrell, and Thomas Mitch- ell were prominent in everything pertaining to the country's interests."
The building season of '65 closed with a record of unparalleled activity ; but the high prices of building material had resulted in the erection of many cheap structures.
A sad reminder of the war, December 28, was the arrival of the bodies of Captain A. T. Blodgett, of Des Moines, and Col. James Redfield, of Dallas county. The public funeral of Captain Blodgett was held in Des Moines Sunday morning, the last day of the old year. Col. J. N. Dewey was chief marshal. The services were conducted by Revs. Sanford Haines and J. A. Nash. A mili- tary escort was provided, with Captain Hunter in command. Among the many who attended the funeral were city, county and state officials, ex-army officers and soldiers. Thus, in sorrow over the losses of the war, mingled with satisfac- tion because of the great gain therefrom, the eventful year 1865 went out.
BOOK III. DES MOINES.
PART III. THE CITY'S RECONSTRUCTION ON A PEACE BASIS.
1866-1869.
CHAPTER I.
ADVENT OF THE FIRST RAILROAD IN DES MOINES-EVENTS OF 1866.
The inauguration of Governor Stone and Lieutenant-Governor Gue, Janu- ary II, 1866, drew many citizens to the State House. The Governor's address was one of rare interest, reassuring the loyal that so far as Iowa was concerned, there would be no backward step.
On the same evening the question of the senatorship for the long and the short term was settled in republican caucus by the selection, on the third ballot, of James Harlan for the long term, and of Samuel J. Kirkwood on the first ballot for the short term. While the proceedings were harmonious, underneath the surface there were conditions which led to the defeat of Harlan six years later. Whatever were the facts, the friends of Governor Kirkwood and Senator Grimes maintained that when Mr. Harlan became Secretary of the Interior, the way was made clear for the War Governor as his successor in the senate.
"Mustered out" was a heading frequently used during the winter of '66. Not a few from Iowa who supposed the close of the war would end their term of service found they were obliged to serve their full three years.
Railroad meetings were held quite as frequently as in the pioneer days "be- fore the war," and the same pluck, determination and business tact were shown in their deliberations.
At a meeting held in the courthouse, February 8, the Iowa and Minnesota railroad perfected its organization by electing as directors: B. F. Allen, P. M. Casady, J. M. Tuttle, Hoyt Sherman, T. K. Brooks, J. B. Stewart, Wesley Red- head, George G. Wright, B. F. Roberts, S. F. Spofford, C. G. Bridges, John Scott, J. Q. Hoggart, John Porter, John Cheshire, J. B. Knapp and M. D. McHenry. The directors organized with P. M. Casady, president; B. F. Rob- erts, vice president ; B. F. Allen, treasurer ; Hoyt Sherman, secretary, and Judge Wright as an additional member of the Executive Board. Articles of incor- poration prepared by Judge Casady were adopted at the meeting, subscriptions to the capital stock were made to the amount of $18,000, and steps were taken for an aggressive campaign to secure another important connection with the outside world.
At a meeting of the Des Moines Presbytery on the 8th, the resignation of Rev. Thompson Bird was accepted and a resolution was adopted, taking the op- portunity offered to express the high appreciation in which this pioneer preacher and pastor was held by his associates, ministers and laymen. "Having come into the State at an early day, he had not only laid the basis of the religious insti- tutions of this city, but organized or secured the organization of a large por- tion of our other churches, particularly in Southern Iowa."
On the 15th the officers and soldiers who had participated in the Fort Donel- son victory held an anniversary festival at the Savery House, with General Tut- tle in the chair. Major Ensign acted as toastmaster. General Tuttle, Governor Stone, Mayor Cleveland, Editor Palmer, Captain Mccullough, Captain Crane and S. W. McElderry made stirring speeches. A second Iowa organization was effected with General Tuttle, president, General Weaver and Colonel Howard vice presidents, Major Ensign and Captain Marsh secretaries.
On Washington's birthday the local democrats ratified President Johnson's veto of the Freedman's Bureau bill, M. D. McHenry, presiding.
On the Ist of March, the Tidrick & Hippee Iron Works passed into the hands of a stock company of which F. M. Mills was president.
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The result of the city election on March 5 brought out Frank Palmer's well- seasoned rooster over what the radical Register editor still persisted in terming a "Union Victory." Mayor Cleveland was reelected by 56 majority over S. F. Spofford, and the council stood eight republicans to 5 democrats. The total vote, "the largest ever cast in the city," was 1,433, against 1,097 in '65.
The departure of Gen. James A. Williamson and family for Fort Smith, Ark., early in March, was a matter of deep regret to many.
The vetoes of President Johnson stirred the feelings of many at the Capital city, who regarded the President's course as nothing less than an attempt to neu- tralize the results of the war. On the other side were not a few who sustained the President. One Saturday night the Register brought out its flag, and "the boys" burned powder in celebration of the senate's victory over the President.
A State Editorial Convention was held in Des Moines. March 7. Hon. C. F. Clarkson, the oldest editor in attendance, was chairman, and Ed. Russell, of the Davenport Gasette, secretary. The local members were Frank W. Palmer and J. M. Dixon, of the Register, Col. W. H. Merritt, of the Statesman and Frank M. Mills, of the School Journal. The newspaper men then remonstrated against print-paper monopoly with quite as much zeal as their successors are now remon- strating. The resolution to fix uniform advertising rates has a familiar sound to the veteran editors of to-day! .
The move for a Walnut street bridge was on in the spring of '66; and, once on, there was no rest from frequent meetings until the bridge was ordered.
This was a bad year for schools on both sides of the river. On the west side, a school-house tax was voted down. On the east side, a proposition to appro- priate $3,000 for school grounds was defeated.
Late in March, Mrs. Gray, widow of Judge J. H. Gray, announced the open- ing of a select school in Des Moines.
"On to Kansas City" -- was the new slogan in the spring of '66. The Des Moines and Kansas City Railroad company had been organized several years before ; but legislative enactments and court decisions had prevented county sub- scriptions for stock. It was now proposed to revive the project and push it to conclusions. A survey made by Chief Engineer Bausman from Des Moines to Indianola was completed in April.
A large increase in population, the volume of business and the number of business houses in the spring of '66 afforded much encouragement to believers in the future of the Capital city.
The General Assembly, in April, appropriated money for an arsenal with Gen- eral Baker, Colonel Godfrey, J. W. Cattell and B. F. Allen as commissioners therefor.
"The largest audience ever assembled in the courthouse greeted Frederick Douglass" April 16. The eminent negro orator, taking for his theme "The As- sassination and its Lessons," delivered a lecture "which could not be excelled in its eloquence and comprehensiveness."
In the spring of '66, the Rip van Winkle management of the Mississippi and Missouri railroad gave signs of waking and assurances were given in April that the road would be "immediately pushed forward to Des Moines."
The pioneer, Dr. A. Y. Hull, who has so often figured in these pages, sold his east side residence, in April, to Dr. Potter of Vandalia, preparatory to re- moval to Texas.
The Soldiers' Families' Relief Association of Des Moines, which performed a noble part in relieving the destitute families of soldiers during the war, met June 21, to make final report of its stewardship. It reported $512.05 still on hand, and resolved that, of this balance, $312.05 be retained subject to order, for the purchase of clothing for children in the Orphans' Home, and the balance was turned into the county treasury.
The federal assessment on manufactures, reported in July, 1866, brings out a long list of local manufactories, among which were the following :
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the new gas company; the Des Moines Iron Works; the Gilcrests, wood manu- facturers ; J. H. Given & Co., plow works; B. M. Good, vinegar works; Howell & Seeburger, tin, iron and copper; Carter, Hussey & Curl, blank book manu- facturers ; the Harbachs, furniture ; Jack Brothers, wood manufacturers ; Jordan, Carpenter & Co., woolen factory; J. Kingsberger, harness; Mills & Company, blank books; S. A. Robertson, brick; Shepherd, Perrior & Bennett, woolen fac- tory ; Yeoman & Coggeshall, stone ware. Several manufacturers of boots and shoes, beer, cigars, tombstones, etc., were also named in the list.
The colored people of Des Moines and vicinity assembled near the court- house, August I, in celebration of the abolition of slavery in the West Indies. The entire negro population of the city, from four to six hundred, were out. They were addressed by James Yancey of Fairfield, Rev. Mr. Wells, an ex-slave, W. S. Peterson and others.
The corner-stone of Capitol schoolhouse, East Des Moines, was laid August 2, with imposing ceremonies, in which the Masons performed a prominent part. Hon. J. W. Cattell, president of the board, presided. Hon. O. Faville and Hon. James Wright delivered addresses.
Early in August, Senator Harlan advised B. F. Allen that the Kasson House bill for an appropriation of $15,000 to purchase a site for a custom house and postoffice in Des Moines had received the sanction of the senate and the Presi- dent. Messrs. Kasson, Cole and Allen were authorized to select the site.
August 8, came the announcement that Judge Love, of the U. S. Circuit Court, had authorized the sale of the Mississippi and Missouri railroad to the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific company. The sale insured the speedy completion of the road to Des Moines.
The local Lecture Association in August elected John Teesdale president, Stephen Sibley vice president, J. L. Kimball treasurer. There was also a Young Men's Literary Association, with Edward W. Gillett president, William Sharman vice president and Albert Weeks secretary. The association planned for a bril- liant lecture course.
At Last -- the Whistle of the Locomotive!
August 29, 1866, must ever stand out as a great day in the history of Des Moines. Readers of these pages have followed the history of those ten long years of planning and waiting and working for railroads in the days of old Fort Des Moines. They have read, in outline, the later story of hope deferred, be- ginning with the removal of the Capitol to the well-nigh inaccessible valley city on the Des Moines and continued on through hard times, through disturbing rumors of war, through the awful experiences of war, and through those last months of individual sacrifice for the completion of the Valley road,-and, now, the whistle of the engine announced to eagerly waiting ears the actual fact !- the physical entrance of the Valley railroad into Des Moines! The local press had faithfully announced the building of the road from Keokuk to the northwest, its arrival in Oskaloosa, in Pella, in Monroe, in Prairie City, at Woodville Sta- tion, and at last at Des Moines !
The first train left Keokuk at 7:30 a. m. and arrived in Des Moines a few minutes before three p. m. The train brought about three hundred excursionists from Keokuk, Burlington, Fairfield, Ottumwa, Oskaloosa and other points. Among the more prominent of the excursionists were Justice Samuel F. Miller, Mayor William Patterson, Gen. H. T. Reed, Gen. J. H. Wilson, Col. P. C. Haines, Col. A. W. Sheldon, Col. D. B. Hillis, Col. J. C. Parrott, Hon. G. W. Mc- Crary, Gen. W. W. Belknap, Judge W. H. Seevers, Gen. J. M. Hedrick, Hon. E. M. Stiles and Judge Rankin.
The crowd, gathered at the depot, to witness the incoming train, included "all Des Moines." Mr. Kasson, in his happiest vein, welcomed the train-loads of ex- cursionists. Mayor Patterson responded. Colonel Leighton, representing the road, recited the history of the enterprise, referring to it as a road built by Iowa men, by Iowa enterprise and, in great part, by Iowa money. Without govenment
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aid, it was the first road to invade the Capital City! President Smith, of the road, was called out and happily responded. Dr. Beardsley of the Burlington Hawkeye, Messrs. Stiles and Gillaspy of Ottumwa also spoke. "The speech of the occasion"-as might have been expected-was by Judge Wright. Himself a newcomer from Keosauqua, he rejoiced in that the railroad had followed him to Des Moines ! He pictured a brilliant future for the Capital City-part of which the judge lived to see realized.
The long-waited-for Walnut street bridge was dedicated September 3. "All creation was down to see it done!" Mr. Spofford, from the bridge committee, addressed the gentlemen of the Clinton Bridge company commending their promptness and fidelity. J. M. Dorr, on behalf of the company, modestly ad- mitted all that had been said, and made similar allegations relative to the com- mittee and the interests they represented.
General Tuttle's acceptance of the democratic nomination for Congress cre- ated divisions even in families, in Des Moines. Many republicans voted for him on personal grounds, and others with great reluctance voted against him for political reasons. The General's defeat (by General Dodge) was a serious dis- appointment to many of his personal friends.
Announcement was made October 13 that B. F. Allen, Des Moines' foremost capitalist, had for months been preparing grounds on the summit of the bluffs, in the western part of the city, between the Adel road and the 'Coon river, twenty-nine acres in all, for the erection of a home for himself and family- the socially historic "B. F. Allen mansion," now for many years owned and oc- cupied by F. M. Hubbell, his successor as financial premiere in Des Moines. The well cultivated slopes of "Terrace Hill" were then covered with a dense growth of hazel brush, scrub oak and heavy timber. A skillful landscapist, J. T. Elletson, retained as much of the original forest as was desirable, and laid out the broad acres into grass plats, flower-banks, vineyards and orchards, with winding drives and walks, with a reservoir tapping the river for supplies, the water supplying fountains and pools. The grading, terracing, tree-planting,- all bespeak the artist. The work was a revelation and a delight to the citizens of Des Moines
A State Temperance Convention was held in Des Moines, October 24, the object of which was the organization of a State Temperance Society, in ac- cordance with the recommendation previously made by Messrs. Peterson, Nourse, Cattell, Brandt and James Wright. An organization was effected, the chief purpose of which was to inaugurate an era of prohibition in Iowa.
P. T. Barnum, the famous author of the proverb, "The world loves to be humbugged," lectured in Des Moines, November 12. There was standing room only, in the old courthouse. His theme was "Money Getting" and in two hours he convinced all present that he was a student of what we now call "modern methods."
A return excursion from Des Moines to Keokuk over the new road drew three hundred Des Moiners to the Gate City on the 20th of November, who re- turned with large stories of the hospitalities extended them.
The manufactures of Des Moines in 1866, as shown by the assessor, were valued at $637,722, of which flour was the chief item, placed at $300,000; woolen goods, gas, boots and shoes, blank books, furniture, clothing, plows, harness, paper, brick, beer, stoneware, tin and copper ware, castings and machinery. wood-work, etc., were the other items, and in the order named.
Those were the days of government licenses, of which nothing now remains but the license on liquor dealers. Following were the licensed in Des Moines in 1866: Wholesale dealers 42, wholesale liquor dealers 6, retail dealers 149, re- tail liquor dealers 42, manufacturers 72, peddlers 36, lawyers 49, real-estate bro- kers 24, cattle brokers 16, physicians 26, insurance agents 21, hotel keepers 15, eating houses 14, butchers 12, claim agents 9, patent-right venders 8, photog- raphers 5, commercial brokers 5, stallion and jack-keepers 8, liverymen 6, brew- ers 4, bankers 3, dentists 5, billiards 3, gas-fitter I, auctioneer I.
CHAPTER II.
BUSINESS IN DES MOINES IN 1866-67.
The close of the war and the resumption and reconstruction of business and society on a peace basis found the city of Des Moines full of ambition to fulfill her manifest destiny. The year 1866 found the city well on its way toward, and yet a long way from, the goal of its ambition.
Pausing once more as in 1857-58 to take account of stock at the beginning of another era of progress, we turn with interest to the first City Directory is- sued in Des Moines, that of 1867,1 finding in its pages a reflex of the city itself at the close of the previous year. The directory was published by Mills & Com- pany, and was creditably printed and handsomely bound. Its 160 pages, includ- ing much advertising, make a striking contrast with the 1,544 pages of the City Directory of 1910. The back cover is appropriated by Brown & Spofford, with an advertisement of their agricultural warehouse and seed store. Mr. George A. Jewett, the. lumberman and capitalist of today, was at the time bookeeper for the firm. The front cover carries the advertisements of Percival & Co., real estate; Iowa Business College, Worthington, Warner & Co., A. Rawson, Dentist, W. H. Major, groceries and queensware, and Graham & Cleghorn, liverymen. The pioneer firm of Gilcrest Brothers occupy the entire front-cover page with an "ad" embellished with a wood-cut of their planing mill and sash and door factory, located on the bank of the river on the East side, corner Front and Vine. The back cover, inside, is taken by the American Emigrant Company, New York and Des Moines,-its local representatives, Edward H. Gillette, land agent, and J. C. Savery, general superintendent. The company supplies tickets to emigrants from Europe, "exercises ample protection over all consigned to its care," and "buys land and sells to actual settlers only."
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