History of Butler and Bremer counties, Iowa, Part 94

Author: Union publishing company, Springfield, Ill
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Springfield, Ill., Union publishing company
Number of Pages: 1316

USA > Iowa > Butler County > History of Butler and Bremer counties, Iowa > Part 94
USA > Iowa > Bremer County > History of Butler and Bremer counties, Iowa > Part 94

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Particulars of each appear in their proper places,

The whole number of record books in the office at present is 122.

CHAPTER VI.

REMINISCENCES OF PIONEERS.

In this chapter are given the personal experiences of the pioneers of Bremer County. These articles are written or

related by the pioneers, and when writ- ten, the compiler has in no case attempted to change the style of the writer, it being

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HISTORY OF BREMER COUNTY.

the design to show the peculiarity of the writer as well as to record the facts nar- rated. The expressions of an individual in writing show his character and peculi- arities, as much as his features painted upon canvass, or printed from steel or stone. These reminiscences are interest- ing and well worthy of perusal.

By Charles Mc Caffre.

The following from the first settler of Bremer county-Charles McCaffre- to a Waverly paper, explains itself :

MR. EDITOR .- Seeing a Historical Sketch of the early settlements of Bremer county in the Bremer County Independent of January 5th, 1871, and, as it was incorrect in many particulars I, the undersigned, thought I would endeavor to make a few corrections through the columns of your paper for the information of the pres- ent inhabitants of Bremer county. I com- menced work in Bremer county about the 5th day of May, 1845, followed shortly after by brother Isaac September following, Jacob Beelah moved to the county. Early spring of 1846, Calvin Frady, Goliver Fisher, John H. Messinger, accompanied by his son, E. J. Mes- singer, George Tibbits, accompanied by his sons Wesley and Henry, settled in this county, and between then and the time that John T. Barrick and A. H. Miles settled in the county, the fol- lowing named persons came in: Joseph and James Fee, Aaron Dow, Ezra Allen, Philip Miller, Andrew Samples, Harry McRoberts, John James, Collier and Israel Trimbo. Although it is an acknowledged fact that some of these named above did not remain in the county very long, but they made claims, erected cabins, con- sequently were actual settlers. And it was also asserted in the Independent that John T. Bar- rick and H. A. Miles are the only one of the settlers that are present residents of the county which is incorrect, for the widow of said John H. Messinger, although quite young when they came here, is still a resident of the county.

Also John Clark's widow is a present resident of the County, and also David Clark's son is a citi- zen of Waverly. Besides there are several others I could mention.

The first birth and death in the county occured in the Fee family. The first marriage was Isaac McCaffre and Rebeca Buler.

CHARLES MCCAFFRE.

INDIAN HISTORY. M. Farrington.

There were three tribes of Indians rep- resented in this township at the time the whites began to settle therein-the Win- nebagos, the Misquakees and Pottawa- tomies. The Winnebagoes were about 500 in number, and their town was mostly in sections 22 and 23. The Misquakees were about 100 in number, and about 50 of the Pottawatomies. During the sum- mer season they went north and west for . sap-troughs, and leaving nothing here but their log shanties, covered with bark, and their brass sugar kettles, which they bur- ied. There are probably many of their kettles still buried in the timber. They cultivated no corn nor anything else, and their ponies were subject to browsing for their living in winter. The three differ- ent tribes were considerable intermixed and lived much together. Womanokaker, Four Eyes, Pukatuk, Hanahetakes, and Big Way were the five chiefs here. Womanokaker lived on the west side of the creek, in section 23, near where H. H. Ketch now lives. He was the great war chief and had the end of his nose shot off by a bullet.

The Indians were quite troublesome to the whites in stealing things which they might want, but never in the night, as they were too great cowards to sally out

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HISTORY OF BREMER COUNTY.

in the night for any such purpose. They - were removed from here by a detachment of U. S. troups from Fort Atkinson, in the fall of 1848. They took the Indians by surprise and disarmed and drove them off like so many cattle. The white settlers had secretly informed the government au- thorities that they wished the Indians re- moved, and the soldiers came without the knowledge of the unsuspecting Indians. Had they known whom of the whites had carried the information against them, their blood would doubtless have atoned for the act. Two of the settlers went one night and returned the next, and the Indians were entirely ignorant of the matter.

By Heman A. Miles. LERADO, TEXAS, Dec. 15, 1882.

Sister Elector:

For the past three weeks I have not been able to usc my right arm at all, and can just barely write now by resting on the table and inoving the paper to and fro to suit my hand, and dip- ping the pen in the ink with my left hand. I should be pleased to answer all your questions in detail, and give in full the incidents of my civil and military life, which as Mr. N. C. Deer- ing once remarked to me, as I gave him a brief sketch of my life, that it would make a history of itself that would interest any one and surprise my acquaintances, and if I could see the man who is getting up the history of Bremer and Butler counties, with its early pioneers, I could give him many important and interesting points, but as it is I shall have to be very brief, as I can only write a few moments at a time, having to stop and rest my arm. In many instances I shall have to leave. dates blank as I cannot remember them.

My mothers maiden name was Mary Jennings. She dicd in Sheffield, Vermont, in 1831, aged 37 years and 6 months. My father's name was Mastain Miles. He died October 12, 1863, in Owatonin, Minnesota, aged 66 years, 1 month." -

I was born in Sheffield, Vermont, on the 6th of September, 1825, and was married on the 29th of December, 1844, to Jane Hall. My wife's father's name was William Hall. His mother's maiden name was Jane Crocker, both were born in England. He died at Pike's Peak in 1859, aged 55 years. Her mother died in Milville, Massachusetts, Nov. 1872, aged 67 years. I em- igrated to Iowa in 1847. I resided in Linn county for upwards of two years, and then went to Bremer county in March, 1850. I moved my family there in September, 1850, at which time there were only fifteen families in the county, consisting of the Messingers, Tibbetts, Fees, Samples, Colliers, Beelers, Dows, Trumbos and J. Clark, all of whom are now dead, if I am cor- rectly informed, cxcept Henry Tibbets, Wesley Tibbets and Elias Messinger, and I am informed that they have all left and sought homes in other parts like myself. Many of the children of these early pioneers are now living in Bremer county, married there and have raised families. Our nearest post office was Cedar Falls, sixteen or sev- enteen miles distance away. Our nearest flour- ing mill was at Quasqueton, a distance of forty miles. Quite a number of Indians infested what was known as the Big Woods, for a time, but were not in any way hostile. They only stole a few chickens and pigs occasionally, from the set- tlers. In the spring of 1851, it rained, more or less, for thirty-nine days in succession. The whole county was flooded and it was almost im- possible to get to a neighbor's, much less to mill, and the result was that many of us got almost entirely out of provisions. I remember very dis- tinctly that myself and family lived on hulled corn alone, for nearly three weeks The first two years of my stay in Bremer county, I run a breaking team. I have broken prairie from the fork of the Shell Rock and Cedar River, on nearly every farm along and adjoining the Big Woods on the south and east sides to nearly the north line of the county.

I was appointed assessor, and made the first as- sessment of property that was ever made in But- ler and Bremer counties. I taught the first

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HISTORY OF BREMER COUNTY.

school that was taught in Bremer county. I built the first house that was built from sawed lumber in the county. I was elected the first constable and first clerk of the district and county court; one of the first school directors; one of the first law graduates, started and pub- lished the first newspaper, called together the citizens and organized the republican party, and have had the honor of filling the only county office in the county that has never been filled by a democrat. I have acted as justice of the peace, mayor, constable, road supervisor, town trustee, school director, secretary of the school board, postmaster, schoolmaster, sheriff, auc- tioneer, farmer and lawyer. I had charge of building the first school-house in the town of Waverly, which was built of stone. I built the peers and «butments for the second bridge across the Cedar River at Waverly. I done more to break up and close the whisky shops and gam- bling dens in Waverly, than any other man, for which my life was sought and threatened, my office gutted, books, records, and everything burnt up and thrown into the river.

I have two children, both young men, of whom I feel proud. The oldest one's name is Mostoin William-named after his two grandfathers. He was born in Linn county, Iowa, on the 14th day of June, 1850. The youngest one's name is Charles Sheridan-named after my oldest brother and General Sheridan. He was born in Waverly, Bremer county, Iowa, on the 20th day of July, 1860.

For two years I was law partner of the Hon. G. W. Ruddick, who came to Waverly a young man, seeking out a place to establish himself in his profession. When he arrived in Waverly, and made known his purpose, he was referred to me. I at once formed a very favorable opinion of him, and took him into my family, and fur- nished an office for him. He remained in my family until he married. The longer Iknew him the more I loved and esteemed him. To-day he is one of Bremer's most noble men. In the fall of 1861 I sold out to him, and enlisted in the Union army, to sustain the flag of my country. I en-

listed first on the 1st of October, 1861, and by false representations and fraud, the Governor of Iowa consented and permitted the company I enlisted in to be taken to St. Louis, Missouri, to make up a regiment, to be called the Lyon Regi- ment, said to have been organized by permis- sion of the War Department, at the request of General Fremont, in memory of General Lyon. It was represented that General Fremont had secured the organization of this regiment, to be composed of one company from each of the western States in his department, and one com- pany from Connecticut, General Lyon's native State, to be armed and equipped with extra arms, and each company to be credited to the State from which they enlisted. After reaching St. Louis, the place designated as the headquarters for organizing said regiment, we were held in quarters for a time, and then mustered into the Third Missouri, at which we all demurred, but in vain. Governor Kirkwood, Governor Gamble and the Secretary of War were appealed to by a resolution passed by the Legislature of the State of Iowa, to have us transferred to an Iowa regi- ment, but it was all to no purpose.

We left St. Louis, I think, in March, 1862, and under Gen. Curtiss took up our march down through Arkansas. Landing at Helena, we were not provided with any tents, and the weather for some time was quite cold, rainy with slight snow. This was quite severe on the soldiers. Before we reached Helena our sup- plies were cut off and we suffered much for want of proper rations. On this march, near Red River, Arkansas, in crossing a small stream of water on a log, while the Company was on a forced march to relieve a party that had been attacked by the enemy; the log broke and I fell on the rocks at the water's edge, dislocating my shoulder, elbow and fracturing my collar-bone. From here I was taken to Helena in an ambu- lance and after a short time discharged on ac- count of my injuries. I returned home to Waverly and, as soon as I sufficiently recovered I recruited another Company and went into the Fourteenth Iowa Infantry. When we werc

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HISTORY OF BREMER COUNTY.

taken out on the Meridian raid, under Gen- Sherman, from there back to Memphis, then up the Red River to join Gen. Banks. On the march up Red River I was not able to go with my Company, but remained in the hospital at Memphis, with chronic diarrhea contracted on the Meridian raid. On the return of the Regi- ment to Memphis I joined them when we were taken to Jefferson Barraeks, Mo., from there my Company, Capt. Lucas, and Company H., accompanied Gen. Ewing, as an escort, to Pilot Knob, Soon after our arrival we were notified of a raid made by the enemy into Ironton, about two miles distant from the Fort. We pur- sued the enemy with our little force consisting of about 400, with 60 mounted men and two pieces of artillery. Just about dark our mounted men run into Price's army, estimated at from 15,000 to 20,000 men, which caused us to fall back to Ironton, where we remained during the night. At daybreak the next morning the ene- my moved forward and caused our hasty retreat. We held the enemy for some time in the pass between the Sheperd and Knob mountains, dis- tributing our forces along the sides of the moun- tains on each side of the pass, as the enemy ad- vanced along the pass we fired into them from the sides of the mountains, when they became panic-stricken and confused. Soon, however the enemy sent forces along two sides of the mountains and forced us to retreat to the Fort. Major Williams and some of his men were cap- tured from the Sheperd Mountain in their at- tempt to retreat and were delivered over by Gen. Price to one Jeffreys, who took them out and in cold blood shot them down. They made several assaults upon the Fort, meeting with continuous repulses and severe losses. Their attacks upon the fort continued until dusk, when they fell back and went into camp, being surrounded by a force of fifteen or twenty thousand men, with our communications and supplies cut off, having only six or seven hun- dred men, we determined to make good our re- treat and took up march about 1 o'clock at night, when we quietly left the Fort and made our way

through the enemy's lines undiscovered. Next day we were pursued by about 5,000 of the enemy's cavalry and when overtaken were in heavy timber, where, for one whole-day we fought the enemy on a retreat. Reaching Lees- burgh, a point on the Railroad, about dusk, for- tifying ourselves the best we could and dispatch- ing a messenger to Rolla for reinforcements. The last charge made upon us by the enemy be- fore reaching Leesburgh was a very determined one and we lost several men in wounded and killed. My First Lieutenant, John Broclan, was mortally wounded in this charge. I was slightly wounded at the Knob in retreating to the Fort so that I was compelled to ride most of the way on our retreat from the Knob to Leesburgh.

Just after our arrival at Leesburgh there was a heavy train of cars come in from St. Louis loaded with quartermasters and company stores for the post at Rolla, which were soon unloaded and put in a position to burn, except the liquors, which were emptied out on the railroad track; it was thought that the small force we had there could be put aboard the cars and escape to St. Louis, but before everything was aboard, a fire was discovered down the track. The engine run down and found the enemy had sent a force around and fired the railroad bridge. Not hav- ing sufficient headway to prevent the engine from crossing, it run across and went on to St. Louis; so we returned to our post determined to do the best we could to defend our lives, expect- ing every moment the enemy would take us in. It being very dark, and in order to prevent the enemy from marching upon us in the darkness of the night, one of the boys from Captain Lucas's Company, Jerome Sampson, volunteered to go out near the enemy's lines and fire a hay stack and a log building, which lit up the whole line of the enemy, and burned nearly all night. This gave us an opportunity to see if the enemy attempted to advance upon us during the night. The next morning, about 9 or 10 o'clock, we received reinforcements from Rolla, of about 600 cavalry, who soon after their arrival charged on the cnemy's lines, and to our surprise,

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HISTORY OF BREMER COUNTY.

found that the enemy had retreated early that evening, in double quick haste, the cause of which was soon learned that a good Union man' residing at Leesburgh, had gone over into the enemy's lines early in the evening, and represen- ted himself to be a full fledged rebel, where- upon some of the rebel officers inquired of him what the train of cars that just arrived brought in, when he replied, that it brought in seven or eight thousand more of them Lincoln hirelings and damned Yankies; this saved us from being captured, also all the stores that were intended to be burned we moved from there to Rolla, thence to St. Louis. While at St. Louis I was detailed as officer of the guard to take out a certain number of rebel prisoners a short distance from the city, to be shot in retaliation of the men that were shot by Jeffries, who were cap- tured at Pilot Knob.

My company was mustered out in 1864, at Davenport, Iowa. When I returned home to Waverly, I then served one term as mayor of the city of Waverly, after which I received the ap- pointment as postmaster at Waverly, and on account of poor health resigned the place and came to Texas, in September, 1873, during which time I have enjoyed the best of health. I should be pleased to give in detail the incidents of my pioneer life, also of my military life, together with a complete detailed account of the incidents connected with the early settlement of Bremer county, but I am hardly able to write at all, and doubt very much whether you can read half I have written. Remember us to our friends; we are as well as usual. Love to all.

Yours truly,

H. A. MILES.

P. S. If any further questions you wish answered, let me know.

INCIDENTS OF EARLY DAYS IN BREMER

COUNTY. By S. F Shepard.

On the 20th of March, 1851, William Hale, Orrin O. Pitcher, John II. Shepard and myself left DuPage county, Illinois,

for Iowa, to look for homes for our fami- lies. We arrived at Janesville, as it is now called, the last of March, and stopped with John T. Barrick some two or three weeks, while looking the country over. We found Mr. and Mrs. Barrick very agreeable folks to stop with. Mr. Barrick offered to give Mr. Hale the water power in Janesville, if he would come there and improve it. Mr. Hale said it was too far from land, and the country would never be settled to any great extent. My brother and I bought a claim-one half section -- of Ezra G. Allen, on which I now reside. Forty acres of it were broke and fenced, on which was a log cabin 18x20 feet. We paid for the whole $250. In October, 1851, I moved to the claim with my family, and went into the house with Mr. Allen's fam- ily of seven, which, with my family of four, made a house full. Only one room, and a very low chamber, and not one light of glass in two sash, six lights, each filled with greased paper. Some time in Janu- ary, 1852, Mr. Allen moved up to Horton, six miles above Waverly, on the east side of the Cedar river, and was the first set- tler in Horton. Mrs. Allen said in the winter of . 1849-50, they ground three bushels of corn and fourteen bushels of buckwheat in their coffee mill, there being no grist mill nearer than Quasqueton, ten `miles below Independence, in Buchanan county, and forty-five miles distant from Janesville. In 1852 the snow commenced falling on the 9th of November, snowing for three days, in succession, the snow be- ing about twelve inches deep. On the 13th, two of my neighbors, Mason Eveland and James McRoberts, went out hunting deer. They soon came upon a fresh track, and

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HISTORY OF BREMER COUNTY.

followed it nearly all day before they killed the deer, fording or wading through the Cedar river twice during the day, and after dressing the deer and hanging it up they started for home, but McRoberts com- plained of being faint and hungry, and after traveling something like a mile, he became so much exhausted that he fell be- hind, unable to keep up with Mr. Eveland. Mr. Eveland took his gun, and carried it for him, and took him by the arm, and led him, until they came down near the mouth of Spring Branch, where it empties into the Cedar river, when McRoberts said he could walk no farther, and sat down on a log. Eveland said, "Now, stay right here until I send some one for you." Eveland got down to my house about dark, and said he wanted me to go after McRoberts. I said that I never had been up the river to that point yet, and did not know the way, "but," I said to Eveland, "you go over to McRoberts' house, and have one of his boys go with me." I harnessed my team, and in the course of a half an hour his oldest son, Thomas McRoberts, was at my house, and we started with the team around the road, a distance of five or six miles to the creek. We hitched the team and started with a lantern and finally came to the track where they crossed the creek. We followed their tracks until we came to the log where Mr. McRoberts had been left. He was not there, he had tried to follow Mr. Eveland's trail, but was unable to walk only a few steps with- out falling down and wallowing around in the snow; he got along in this way some twenty or thirty rods, and, as the ground was descending toward the creek, he natur- ally took that direction until he reached

the water. He left his rifle on the bank of the creek and made his way to about the middle and lying, or falling, on his back was drowned. This was at the mouth of the creek,, where it empties into the Cedar River. I said to Thomas McRob- erts, "there is your father out there in the creek and drowned." I waded out to him, took him up and brought him to the shore. I found him lifeless and cold. I cut a pole and we thought we could carry him to where we left the team. We laid him across the pole and his rifle to carry him. but we could not carry him and the light, and I carried him back again to where I found him, so that the wolves could not find him, and we started for home again, getting home about 1 a. m., the next morn- ing. I went with my team and three of the neighbors and brought him home to his children, five in all (no wife living). November, 1852, a gentleman farmer, living near Anamosa, Jones county, by the name of Berry, followed the Waubesi- penican river up, doing the threshing for the farmers as he came to them along the river, until he came into Bremer county, and then came down through the Big Woods to S. F. Shepard's farm to do his threshing and other jobs. While he was threshing for S. F. Shepard it commenced snowing and in the course of two or three days the snow fell to the depth of about thirty inches. Mr. Berry and his hands shoveled away the snow, finished S. F. Shepard's threshing and then moved the threshing machine to Mr. John T. Barrick's. While there he sold the threshing machine to John H. Martin and S. F. Shepard, and they finished the threshing for that winter.

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HISTORY OF BREMER COUNTY.

The next season Martin and Shepard done all the threshing in the west half of Bremer county, and all the threshing that was done in Black Hawk and Butler coun- ties, when Shepard bought out Martin's interest and done the threshing in the west half of Bremer, and all in Black Hawk and Butler county, until the fall of 1856. The price for threshing was four cents for oats and six cents for wheat. I have had a threshing machine, or an interest in one ever since, and threshing, more or less, every year since, until 1876. From 1852 to 1855, we had to go to Dubuque for re- pairs and heavy blacksmith work. In the fall of 1853, the Overman Brothers, at Ce- dar Falls, got a pair of burr mill stones, and put them into a part of their saw mill; then we could get our grinding done there. But there was no gearing to run the bolt and those who brought wheat to grind had to turn the bolt by hand, at least it was so in my case. Andrew Mullarkey had a small stock of dry goods, in a room about twelve feet square, at Cedar Falls, and the only store for three or four years at Cedar Falls. In 1851 there was only six or seven houses in this place, not a house in Water- loo, not one in Waverly, not one at Shell Rock and not one at Clarksville. All of these towns have grown to their present size in the course of thirty-one years.

In the fall of 1853, there was a great scare and fright among the white settlers and Winnebago Indians, near Clear Lake. A man by the name of Hewitt lived there; he harbored some Winnebagoes about him and some of the Sioux Indians came to his (Hewitt's) house one morning and wanted a Winnebago Indian boy to go out with them to hunt the Sioux Indians' ponies.

The boy started out with one of the Sioux Indians, and when they had got out a short distance from the house the report of a gun was heard. The Sioux Indian had shot down the Winnebago boy. This was the first of the fright. Several of the Sioux Indians went to Mr. Hewitt's house. looking for the rest of the Winnebago Indians. They searched Hewitt's house all over, up-stairs and down, but could not find them, for they had fled. They came down the Shell Rock River and frightened the whites as they came along, saying the Sioux Indians were after them and would kill all the whites. It made a general stampede of what few settlers there were from Cerro Gordo county, until they reached Janesville. They took their household goods, what they could carry, with their families and started, driving what live stock they had with them; stop- ping with friends and neighbors. The ex- citement by this time was at its highest pitch, and abount ten o'clock in the even- ing, after most of the families had come to Janesville, I heard some one galop up near the house. My dog began to bark; I got up and went out to see what was up. Squire Rowen had sent his hired man, Mr. Rumsey, to my house to warn me of my danger. He said the Indians were coming down the river, that they had divided their band some ten or twelve miles north- west of Janesville, and some were coming down the Cedar River and some down the Shell Rock, and would be upon us before morning. He wanted me to go out east to William McHenry's and to Samuel Jen- nings and let them know, and after he had given his orders like a major-general, he galloped off to headquarters at Janesville,

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History of Butler and Bremer counties, Iowa, Part 94

Author: Union publishing company, Springfield, Ill Publication date: 1883 Publisher: Springfield, Ill., Union publishing company Number of Pages: 1316

Author: Union publishing company, Springfield, Ill
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Springfield, Ill., Union publishing company
Number of Pages: 1316