USA > Iowa > Clayton County > History of Clayton County, Iowa : from the earliest historical times down to the present : including a genealogical and biographical record of many representative families, prepared from data obtained from original sources of information, Volume I > Part 25
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The convention held August 18, to select delegates for the con- gressional convention was not so harmonious. William Hoffbauer was
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chairman of this convention and J. E. Corlett secretary. A resolution was introduced instructing for William B. Allison, this was opposed by J. O. Crosby and Dr. G. W. Chase and was advocated by B. T. Hunt and Willis Drummond. The resolution was passed with but four opposing votes. Allison was renominated and stumped the county.
Samuel Merrill presided at the convention which nominated H. S. Granger for clerk and W. D. Crooke for recorder. There was a bitter fight for this nomination, Crooke defeating J. Oglesbee on the third formal ballot. Oglesbee, later, opposed the election of Crooke.
Although he had been the chairman of the Republican convention in July, Reuben Noble allied himself with the new party and he was nominated for Congress at a convention at West Union, which the Republican newspapers dubbed the "kangaroo" convention. Mr.
Noble's defection drew upon him many bitter attacks from Republican sources. The Democrats nominated Robert L. Freeman for clerk and Mr. Roedemann, of Guttenberg, for recorder. The Republican state ticket carried the county by upwards of 700, Allison had 577 majority over Noble, Granger had 517 majority and Crooke was elected by 312.
Merrill for Governor-It was in November, 1866, that Samuel Merrill of McGregor was first proposed as a candidate for governor, by the Dubuque Times. In this connection the Times says: "Colonel Samuel Merrill of Clayton county enjoys the confidence and esteem of all who know him-he is a first class and successful business man- and well qualified to assume and discharge the varied duties of the executive chair." While this mention of Merrill was well received it was not taken very seriously by Clayton county Republicans at first. The Elkader Journal says of him: "Colonel Merrill is a good and strong man, but he is not the only strong man the Third Congressional District can boast. We urge that if there be any considerable opposi- tion to Colonel Merrill we select and unite upon some other of the many able men from this part of the state." As late as February 27, 1867, the Journal is not sure that it would not be better to unite upon B. T. Hunt. A month later, however, Colonel Merrill's chances are recorded as being bright and the Republicans were strong in his support. Merrill was nominated, his Democratic opponent being Charles Mason. M. L. Fisher was a candidate for state superintendent on the Democratic ticket. Mr. Merrill received a handsome indorse- ment from his home county, his majority being 811. H. E. Newell for senator, J. C. Vaupel for treasurer, James Davis for sheriff, and C. A. Dean for judge on the Republican ticket were elected without opposi- tion. M. E. Smith, Republican, defeated Carl Kostman, Democrat, for surveyor by 83 majority ; for superintendent, W. A. Preston, Repub- lican, defeated J. Briggs, Democrat, by 59 majority ; N. Hamilton, James Newberry and P. G. Bailey, Republicans, were elected to the legislature. The question of prohibition was a live issue in this cam- paign. The people of McGregor were much pleased over the election of Merrill and showed their good will by serenading him at his home. In November Mr. Merrill resigned the position, as president of the First National Bank of McGregor, and soon went to Des Moines to prepare for the duties of his high office.
Campaign of 1868-That Clayton county was influential in state
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politics, in both parties, is shown by the fact that the following year, Senator David Hamer of McGregor was the Democratic candidate for secretary of state. This was the presidential campaign in which Horatio Seymour was the Democratic candidate against General U. S. Grant. At the Democratic convention, held at Elkader, Professor Briggs presided and A. J. Jordan, C. P. Goodrich, Reuben Noble, B. P. Rawson and B. F. Fox were on the resolutions committee. Delegates to the congressional convention were instructed to support John T. Stoneman ; A. W. Daugherty of Elkader was nominated for clerk and Dr. Paul Stockfeldt for recorder. At the congressional convention Stoneman withdrew in favor of William Mills, of Dubuque, who was nominated for congress. Mr. Stoneman was the Democratic candidate for presidential elector for this district. The Republicans renominated Allison for congress and Granger for clerk and Crooke for recorder. A feature of the campaign was a joint debate held at McGregor between Allison and Noble. After the election Colonel Richardson says: "We haven't official returns from anywhere, but this is true: Democrats can pay their debts with safety." The Republican majority for Grant was 831; for Wright, as against Hamer, for secretary of State, 852. The Republican county candidates were elected; the vote for a jail tax carried by 1,249 and the proposition to strike the word "white" from the constitution received 370 majority.
Campaign 1869-The year 1869 was filled with personal politics largely. Among the Republicans the contest raged about William B. Allison who had senatorial ambitions. Post office appointments at McGregor and Elkader had created considerable dissatisfaction and a Republican convention held at Elkader, July 10, presented the name of Judge E. H. Williams as a candidate for the senate. Other Repub- lican nominees were Samuel Murdock and H. B. Taylor for rep- resentatives, Henry Kellner for treasurer, James Davis for sheriff, M. E. Duff for auditor, W. C. McNeal for superintendent, S. L. Peck for surveyor and H. . D. Bronson for coroner. The resolutions, which caused such dissention among the Republicans and which were directed against Allison, read as follows: "While we are proud to acknowledge that the success of the Republican party has been largely due to its patriotic, free, and independent newspaper press, we unqualifiedly condemn the infamous practice inaugurated in this congressional dis- trict, of subsidizing and corrupting this, which should be the great conservator of public virtue, by the use of federal patronage to accomplish personal advancement." A. P. Richardson was the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor and aside from the Democratic and Republican county tickets there was a "Financial and Labor Reform" ticket in the field. This latter ticket, however, endorsed all the Democratic candidates except L. R. Gilbert for representative and Tim M. Hopkins for sheriff. The Republicans scored again at this election, Merrill receiving 511 majority. Mr. Richardson was given a handsome complimentary vote. All the Republican candidates
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were elected, except that John Everall, Democrat, was elected superin- tendent by 884 majority. The race for treasurer was close, Kellner defeating Charles Schultze by 16 votes. It will thus be seen that in the four years following the war Clayton county furnished a successful candidate for governor and candidates for lieutenant-governor, sec- retary of state, state superintendent, congress, and presidential elector. No other county in Iowa has ever excelled this record in any four- year period.
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CHAPTER X
DEVELOPMENT PERIOD-1870-1880
RIVER RAILROAD-NARROW GAUGE-VOLGA VALLEY LINE-DAVENPORT AND NORTHWESTERN-FAIRS AND SCHOOLS-POLITICAL ARENA-HAYES- TILDEN CAMPAIGN-COUNTY GOVERNMENT-COMPLETION OF COURT HOUSE-COUNTY EXPENSE-CHICAGO FIRE-SECOND GOLD DISCOVERY -CLAYTON COUNTY INSURANCE COMPANY-POOR FARM MURDER- DEATH ROLL OF PIONEERS-OLD SETTLERS' REUNIONS-FIRST REUNION -SECOND REUNION-LATER GATHERINGS-TOWN HISTORY-RINGLING BROTHERS-M'GREGOR EVENTS-ELKADER-ABD-EL-KADER.
W HILE the years glide into the stream of time, as the rivers flow into the Father of Waters, without perceptibly raising its level or increasing its mighty current, still, looked at from the perspective of later years, it will be found that there has been steady progress and that the tide of civilization changes in its characteristics and grows in momentum. It is also possible to see various trends in events and thus, roughly, to divide history into periods. In the history of Clayton county, after the first American settlements there were: First, the pioneer period; next, the period of permanent settlement; then, the fever of war and the renewed rush of settlement at its close; now, from 1870 to 1880, comes a period of internal development. The county became practically at a standstill as to population; the increase from 1870 to 1875 was but six. The "Golden Era" of McGregor ended in the 60's and the chief activities shifted again to the south part of the county, where towns sprang up and developed along the line of the Volga River Railroad and of the Davenport and Northern. It was a period, also, of large imaginings and, while many of these projects failed, they, nevertheless, show the indomitable courage and enterprise of the people. It was a time too of organization. The first struggle had been more of a man to man contest, now there were time and opportunity to enjoy the social side of life; thus in these years are found the beginnings of many societies. The Agricul- tural Society, the Sunday School Association, Church organizations, lodges and Turn Vereins flourished, while, in politics, the heated dis- cussions of war times died away to be replaced by more personal, and it must be confessed, more sordid issues.
River Railroad-In 1870, the only railroad in Clayton county was the line from North McGregor through Monona and Luana and to the west. The people of McGregor had found that this railroad, instead of increasing their importance, had decreased it, but the enterprising peo-
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ple of that city were not ready to acknowledge defeat and still enter- tained dreams of empire with McGregor a metropolis and they believed that the cure was to be found in more railroads, and the big men of the town, of whom there were many, interested themselves greatly in railroad projects. The Dubuque and Minnesota was one of the first lines pushed ; S. T. Woodward and J. H. Merrill being directors. H. B. Carter, J. A. Hysham, A. F. Tipton, S. T. Woodward, Gibb Douglass and Timothy Davis represented Clayton county at the meet- ing held to organize. Donations were asked from different Clayton county towns along the river. The McGregor Times opposed this movement, but meetings were held and, under the spell of Judge Wil- liams' eloquence, the business men of McGregor voted unanimously for a tax. As a result of this meeting an election was ordered, for June 1, 1870, but this was postponed for a month on account of an error in serving notice. A tax of 5 per cent was voted by a majority of 281. In the meantime, Elkader was also interested in railroads and, after an exciting election, a tax was voted by 71 majority. Gut- tenberg also voted a tax, but Clayton voted against it. E. H. Williams received the contract for grading the first thirty miles north of Dubuque and, in October, 1870, a celebration was held when the first ground was broken for the river road. H. I. Havens, D. B. Dawson, B. F. Fox, B. Schroeder, A. T. Jones and A. W. Burlingame composed a com- mission to fix the damages along the right of way. The work of con- struction was pushed rapidly and, by May, 1871, it was stated that trains were expected to reach McGregor by September 1; that con- tracts had been let for grading as far as Harper's Ferry and that men were already at work. In June it was announced that the rails had arrived and also the locomotives, the "William Andrews," and the "John D. Burt," for, in those days, locomotives, like steamboats, were known by name. There were the usual troubles of construction and. certain contractors vanished over night without paying for labor or for ties. But, by September, 1871, the railroad had reached the mouth of Turkey river and it soon reached McGregor and beyond.
Although, at this time, all the railroads of Clayton county are parts of the Milwaukee system, all the various lines of the county were at first built by independent companies ; thus, at first, there were no traffic arrangements between the road running west of McGregor and the road north, and it was some time before there were any friendly relations between the two roads. It was several years before the line to the west was compelled to build a spur connecting McGregor with North McGregor, and it was not until 1874 that the Milwaukee rented the Times office and fitted it up as a McGregor ticket office.
Narrow Gauge-One favorite project was the building of a line up the Turkey river. A proposition was made to Elkader that this line would be built to connect with the river road, for $2,000 per mile, the right of way, depot, grounds, etc. A meeting was held to con- sider this and Messrs. Carter, Woodward, Price, Young and Garber appointed to solicit funds. The Iowa and Minnesota constructive company was formed to carry on this work, but the amount asked was too large and Elkader could not meet it. Another project was the Cedar Rapids and McGregor Railway, via Elkader and Manchester ;
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still another was the ambitious Milwaukee, Chicago, Cassville and Montana. This line was incorporated, with $6,000,000 as the capital stock. The promoters of this line were E. H. Williams, James Hysham, Thomas Updegraff, J. O. Crosby, H. B. Carter and others and the headquarters were to be at McGregor. In the meantime, E. H. Wil- liams proposed a narrow gauge railway from McGregor to the south- west, passing through Elkader. Many articles were printed to show the superiority of the narrow gauge line over the broad gauge system. The Waterloo and McGregor narrow gauge railway was incorporated. This met with the approval of McGregor people, and Messrs. Flem- ming, Newell, and J. H. Merrill went to Waterloo to investigate. Their report was unfavorable, but Judge Williams urged the matter and a further committee was appointed. In October, 1871, Elkader rejoices that the narrow gauge, thanks to Judge Williams, is assured and during the same month, Lee, Keenan and Flynn broke the first ground for the narrow gauge. A connection was made with the Mil- waukee at Beulah but, before the line had reached much more than half way, hard times closed down and work stopped, leaving Elkader still without railroad connection. The road suffered severely from washouts and it led a,precarious existence. Judge Williams persisted, however, and, in order to carry on the work with the least possible expense, maple rails were used, instead of iron, for the last miles of construction. In December, 1874, the McGregor Times states: "The Iowa Eastern (narrow gauge) has been completed to the mouth of Dry Mill creek and within four miles of Motor. A station house has been erected and Patrick Heendan is station agent. The work on the Motor extension is to be prosecuted during the winter without cessation. At St. Claf station, T. C. Peterson is building a first class elevator and, at Farmersburg, Ben Johnson is about to double the capacity of his warehouse. At each of the stations there are buyers engaged in the purchase of grain and produce of all kinds. From all accounts we are disposed to think that better days are dawning on the career of the narrow gauge, and taking all things into con- sideration, Judge Williams is entitled to praise for the tenacity and faith he has exhibited in his enterprise."
This optimism appears to have been justified, for, in September, 1875, it is noted that the narrow gauge has sixteen new cars. In 1876, however, the road was in difficulty and the supreme court rendered a decision in favor of Ole Nelson, who had supplied tics, establishing his claim as a prior lien over bondholders. Illustrating the speed of the narrow gauge, there was a lawsuit growing out of the fact that certain dogs ran along beside the train, barking at and annoying the passengers, whereupon Attorney Young stepped to the platform and shot and killed one of the dogs.
A year later the Elkader Register tells that the Iowa Eastern receipts for 1879 were $14,174.74, expenses $12,055. The company have sixteen miles of iron rails and 3.7 miles of wooden rails. The rolling stock consisted of one locomotive, one passenger car, two express and baggage cars, fifteen box cars, eight stock cars and six flat cars. W. C. Brown, afterwards president of the New York Central Railway was the first agent at Beulah.
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The history of Judge Williams' struggles and failures and his never-failing courage and integrity is told in his biography given in another chapter.
Volga Valley Line-In 1871, agitation for the Volga River line was commenced and, in July, Volga voted a tax of 5 per cent in favor of the "Iowa Pacific." This line seems to have had good backing and it experienced fewer of the vicissitudes of pioneer railroading than did the other lines of the county. In November, 1874, a Volga cor- respondent writes, "We are bound to have a railroad at last ; Daniel Green, the great railroad contractor, has contracted to grade six miles of the Volga Valley Railroad. He has secured the men and teams for active operation." The correspondent also tells of Volga City as it was before the coming of the railroad, saying: "Volga City is a wide- awake, enterprising town, with one flouring mill, owned by Henry White; two dry goods stores, owned by Hollister and Wetmore; a wagon shop, owned by Pardee and Goodwin ; three blacksmith shops, one tin shop, harness shop, boot and shoe store and two hotels. The Methodists have a very good frame church, and one Union church, frame. There is a Masonic lodge, a Good Templars lodge, and a flourishing grange. Dr. McLane enjoys a splendid practice." This line was pushed to completion through the county and the towns of Osterdock, Elkport, Littleport, Mederville, Osborne and Volga became prosperous and thriving. Each town boomed, particularly, while it was the terminus of the line. The farmers hailed the railroads with joy and fraternized with the contractors and their men. There were balls and parties and banquets given by the citizens in honor of the railroads and, when the road was completed, this was reciprocated by free excursions to Dubuque.
The building of this road caused deep inroads upon the trade of Elkader and the Register says: "All are aware of the drawing off in the grain and produce trade by the extension of the Volga branch along our border and within six miles of our door. The effect is apparent to everyone doing business in this place. It is well enough to look these facts square in the face. To hold our own and build upon the foundation we now have is the question of the hour." The Register mentions two proposed lines to connect with the Volga branch either at Elkport or at Littleport. Later in the year it was reported that Judge Williams was making repairs on his road and expected to have a train running to the depot within a week or two. Elkader was not content with this service, however, and, in 1879, a committee was appointed to examine a route to connect with the Volga branch at Mederville. Garnavillo also had longings for rail connection with the outside world and at a meeting held in February, 1878, Crosby, Linton and Kregal were appointed to examine the feasibility of a line from Garnavillo down Buck creek and, at a second meeting, Judge Williams offered to extend the narrow gauge to Garnavillo, if that city would donate $13,000.
The Davenport and Northwestern-The line through the southern part of the county, from Edgewood to Strawberry point, also met with difficulties. This was called the Davenport and Northwestern and, like other lines, was built largely on faith and fell into the sheriff's
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hands. In 1879, William Larrabee, acting for creditors, seized the part of the road running through Clayton county and, for a time, there was no train service beyond Greeley. The Davenport and Northwestern was obliged to put in a turn table at the county line and the Larrabee interests operated the road from there on, independently. It was then rumored that the Milwaukee would take over the entire line.
The Iowa Eastern was the last line to fall into the hands of the Milwaukee system. After the flood of 1876, the track had not been relaid and the terminus was three miles from Elkader. In 1882, the Milwaukee took possession, built the line to Elkader, proper, and made it of standard gauge. No railroad mileage has been added to the county since that time, and all the lines are parts of the Milwaukee system. Showing the standing of McGregor in the business world it might be added that its railroad enterprises were not confined to this county and that, in 1875, it was a McGregor company, headed by Joseph Reynolds, which constructed a narrow gauge railroad into Hot Springs, Arkansas, and maintained it for many years.
Fairs and Schools-The agricultural association went through many ups and downs during this time. The wonder is that they main- tained the struggle and did so well as they did. The year 1870 found the society with a debt of $585, and it was with this handicap that it proceeded with its work. W. S. Scott was elected president and E. C. Hall secretary. The fair was held in September and was described as being a success. More attention was paid to woman's work and the ladies of the county responded with enthusiasm. Crops were bad in 1869-70, this was reflected in the exhibits. In 1870 the attendance was between 2,500 and 3,000 and this encouraged the officials. In the meantime a district agricultural meeting was called of the four counties, Clayton, Allamakee, Winnishiek and Fayette. The purpose was to hold a fair at Postville, and the success of this institution detracted somewhat from the county organization. In 1871 the exhibit was not so large and the attendance fell off so that premiums were not paid in full.
James Jack was president in 1873. The 1874-5 fairs were success- ful, that of 1875 being described as the "best ever." For the first time school children were encouraged to exhibit and this was a prominent feature of the fair. In 1876 D. F. Bickel was elected president and the secretary was G. H. Otis. They started with a balance on hand of $128.70 and the fair that year was a great success with good patronage and a fine exhibit.
At the annual meeting held in January 1877, A. F. Nichols was elected president and G. H. Otis was continued as secretary. The fair was held in September and the attendance was large, the live stock exhibit was especially good and the society was able to pay its premiums in full. A reform wave struck the society in 1878, the old officers were re-elected, but a resolution was adopted prohibiting games of chance and the crying of wares on the fair grounds. A resolution to stop racing was lost. It had become apparent, however, that the fair could not be made a money-making institution at its then location and, at a meeting, in September, 1878, John Corlett introduced a resolution providing for the removal of the fair to a more central location. There
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is no record, however, of any vote being taken and the fair remained at National. Weather was against them that year and the fair was prolonged one day on account of rain. So far as exhibits were con- cerned, the fair was a success, but the attendance was poor. The receipts of the fair were $888.
At a meeting held in December, Sanford Ballou was elected presi- dent and A. C. Rogers secretary.
In 1879, the situation was complicated by the formation of a society in the south part of the county, holding a fair at Strawberry Point, in September. This fair was successful, with no rain, fine races, receipts of $935 and expenses of $887. The same good fortune did not follow the county fair, which, in spite of good exhibits, was spoiled by rain which prevented large attendance, but not the walking race, which was a star feature. The fair was unable to pay its premiums in full. Nevertheless the officers, S. Ballou and A. C. Rogers, were re-elected and the society started the new decennial with high hopes.
It would be unprofitable to give the program of all the many teachers' conventions and institutes held. The institute became a prominent feature in school life and as many as 180 teachers attended. Association meetings were held frequently, as were also township meetings. All these were helpful in increasing the efficiency of the schools. J. F. Thompson and John Everall were the leading and most popular educators with the teachers, and institutes were held at various points in the county. McGregor, Guttenberg, Monona, Elkader, and Strawberry Point built up strong independent school systems and the principals of these schools were drawn upon to conduct the institutes for the rural teachers.
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