USA > Iowa > Dickinson County > History of Dickinson County, Iowa, together with an account of the Spirit Lake massacre, and the Indian troubles on the northwestern frontier > Part 41
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42
"COL. W. S. DUNGAN SPEAKS.
"Chairman Smith announced that Hon. O. C. Howe, one of the first men to spread a report of the massacre, who was on the program, could not be present, but that his paper would be published. He then introduced Lieutenant Governor Dungan, who, on behalf of Governor Jackson, was present to accept the monument with Mr. Richards, the governor's private secretary. He congratulated the commission on giving to the state such an elegant shaft at so remarkably small cost ; praised the hero- ism of the pioneer, dwelt with considerable eloquence upon the scenery about the spot, and commended the spirit of appro- ciation of heroic services of the pioneer.
579
GOVERNOR CARPENTER AND HON. W. S. RICHARDS
"EX-GOVERNOR CARPENTER
was announced to present the monument to the state, repre- sented by Colonel Dungan and Private Secretary Richards. In diction, appropriateness for the occasion and rugged thought, it was the gem of the day. It was a resume of the work of the commission. In their plans and construction of the shaft, Minnesota granite was chosen, both for the historic sentiment of Minnesota's good offices and because it was better and cheaper than eastern granite. He thanked God that Judge Flandrau and Chetamnaza could be here to participate in the celebra- tion of the occasion which makes them certain characters in history. He accredited the design of the tablets, the collection of the names and data to Mr. Aldrich, paying him a glowing tribute for his efficient work. Closing he said : 'And now the monument passes into the custody of the state to be cared for and protected as an object lesson in history for the generations to come. It not only commemorates the great tragedy which crimsoned the waters of these lakes, but it will keep alive the memory of a species of American character which will soon become extinct. As we look away to the west, we are impressed that there is no longer an American frontier; and when the frontier shall have faded away. the pioneer will live only in history, and in the monuments which will preserve his memory.'
"THE MONUMENT ACCEPTED.
"Governor Jackson's private secretary, Hon. W. S. Richards, was presented and accepted the monument in behalf of the state. He spoke of the act of the Twenty-fifth General AAssem- bly as follows :
"""This bill,' continued Mr. Richards, 'was approved by his excellency, Governor Jackson, March 30, 1894, and on April 10th he appointed Cyrus C. Carpenter of Fort Dodge, R. A. Smith of Okoboji, Charles Aldrich of Des Moines, John F. Duncombe of Fort Dodge, and Abbie Gardner Sharp of Oko- boji, a commission to carry out the provisions of this act. How faithfully they have performed the duties assigned them this beautiful shaft and its surroundings speak for themselves. The successful completion of this monument is due to the fact that every member of the commission was identified with the early settlement and growth of this part of Towa, and that some of them were actual participants in the stirring events of which this monument is commemorative. Hon. C. C. Car-
580
DICKINSON COUNTY - IOWA
penter, twice governor of his state, twice elected to congress, and who has held many other positions of trust and confidence, but of all his public services I believe there is none of which he is prouder today than that he carried a gun in the Spirit Lake expedition of 1857.
" .Rodney. A. Smith, a pioneer of Spirit Lake; a member of his state legislature, a man of character and ability who bore the burdens and hardships of the pioneer settler; a man favor- ably known and highly esteemed by all; a gentleman who has done much to preserve the history of the event; also a mem- ber of the expedition that went to the rescue of the settlers.
".Charles Aldrich, a pioneer settler of Hamilton County, the founder and editor of the Hamilton Freeman, chief clerk of the Iowa house of representatives in the years 1860, 1862, 1866 and 1870; a member of his state legislature in 1882; founder of the Iowa Historical Department and its present curator, and who is now devoting all the energies of a trained mind and zealous heart to the work of preserving for future generations the glorious annals of a glorious state, which is to be the monument he will leave to those who shall come after him.
"'John F. Duncombe, another early pioneer of Webster County who commanded Company B, which was one of the companies that hastened to the defense and relief of the sorely pressed settlers of this community, and who came near losing his life through exposure during that campaign, and who since that time both as a legislator and citizen has left his impress upon the laws and institutions of his state.
"'Abbie Gardner Sharp, the sole survivor of that terrible massacre, whose presence here today. together with her friend, Chetanmaza, who was her rescuer and defender during the darkest and most terrible hours of her life, adds a living inter- est to this occasion.
" 'This commission needs no words of commendation at my hands. To say they have discharged each and every duty well is only faintly expressing that which is dne them. The labor they have performed and the time that they have given plan- ning and erecting this monument has been a labor of love to the memories of those who were so cruelly massacred by Tuk- padntah's savage band.
" 'In accordance with the act passed by the General Assom- bly. they are to receive no compensation for their services.
·
581
TELEGRAM FROM HON. J. F. DUNCOMBE
They will, however, in the years to come receive from those who dwell here and from those who visit this beautiful lake country each returning year, the benediction, 'Well done, good and faithful servants.
"One of the pleasant things of the event was a telegram from Hon. John F. Duncombe, who could not get over from Lon- don, England, yesterday to attend the ceremonies. It was as follows:
" . LONDON, ENGLAND, JULY 25.
" .To Hon. C. C. Carpenter, President of Spirit Lake Monu- ment Commission :
" 'I congratulate you and my colleagues of the commission on the final aet of dedication and unveiling of the monument which commemorates the most important and saddest event in the his- tory of our beloved Iowa. All glory and honor to the noble pioneers who died; to those who lost their lives in the effort to rescue the survivors, and to the great-hearted and happy people who have commemorated these worthy deeds. God bless Towa. My wife joins me in every sentiment.
"'JOHN F. DUNCOMBE.' "A POEM AND PICTURE.
"Mrs. C. H. Bennett, of Pipestone, Minn., then recited a beautiful poem, historie in incident and lofty in patriotism. While the choir was rendering more music the two Indians Chetanmaza and Marpiyahdinape were escorted to the platform by Mrs. Sharp and a photograph was taken of the whole scene, monument, Indians, commissioners, etc. Short speeches were then made by Hon. A. V. Stout of Grundy County and Sam G. Sloane, of Charles City. Mrs. Thomas, her son and Mr. Pal- mer, survivors of the Springfield fight, were introduced and applauded, and the exercises which commemorates the first state monument were at a successful end."
·
CHAPTER XLIV.
CONCLUSION.
AKING a retrospective view of the events of the last half century, we can see spread out before us with clean cut distinctness the many and varied changes incident to the transition of a country from the favorite rendezvous of a band of roving savages to the no less favorite resort of the cul- tured and refined devotee of fashionable society, and as we give scope to the imagination the changing pictures that come and go form a panorama, strange, unique, novel and interesting. The first scene in our moving picture is of a native population follow- ing the various occupations of savage life, and carrying out in their primitive way, their own peculiar ideas of the attainment of human happiness. We think of the lake region as having been, during the early half of the century just closed, the favorite resort of a roving, marauding band of Yankton Sioux, who, for untold generations, had held this fair domain as all their own, and from here as headquarters had conducted their preda- tory excursions far and wide in every direction.
As the lakes are now in their season the acknowledged cen- ter of the fashionable social life of our time, so but one genera- tion ago were they the acknowledged center of the savage life which then dominated this region. The conditions were ideal. The vast herds of elk and buffalo which roamed undisturbed over the boundless prairies, the countless myriads of water fowl that in their annual migrations invariably made the lakes a temporary resting place each spring and fall, together with the immense schools of fish inhabiting the crystal waters, these things combined made it possible for roving savages to secure the simple necessities of their mode of life with little exertion
583
CONCLUSION
on their part. Indeed, it would be difficult to imagine con- ditions more peculiarly fitted to the support and enjoyment of the primitive life of these roving bands, than those existing here at the time of the advent of the first white adventurers. What wonder then that they cling to these, their favorite haunts, with such stubborn pertinacity and bloody determination ?
The second scene is the coming of the white man. The rest. less, resistless spirit of adventure so characteristic of the American frontiersman, coupled with the marvelous accounts of the abundant game, the beautiful lakes and the charming groves by which they were surrounded, carly impelled the hardy pioneer to strike out far beyond the confines of civilization to ex- plore this land of romance and region of mystery. When it be- came apparent to the savage leaders that this fair domain they had so long considered all their own was in danger of being over- run and absorbed by the aggressive white settlers, the instinct of solf preservation impelled them to take such measures as
584
DICKINSON COUNTY - IOWA
their ignorant savage nature suggested to prevent the impend ing disaster. Then came the long list of annoying circum- stances and predatory excursions which produced the strained relations that have always existed between the Sioux and the Iowa frontier settlers. The savages were determined the whites should get no foothold on the Upper Des Moines or in the lake region. Crafty old Sidominadotah zealously watched and guarded every avenue of approach. It is not asserted, nor is it to be supposed, that he was more cruel and bloodthirsty than other savages of his time, but he was absolutely determined to defend his country against the encroachments of the whites at all hazards. 'Tis true treaties had been negotiated and signed some years previous whereby this region should be sur- rendered to the United States, but this band took no part in the council and refused to be bound by the treaty and claimed their ancient hunting grounds as still their own.
Quarrels and collisions, insignificant at first, continued to grow in frequency and magnitude, until they finally culmi- nated in the murder of the old chief and his entire family of nine persons by the desperado, Henry Lott, on the tragic banks of "Bloody Rum." Three years later this unprovoked and un- punished murder was terribly avenged by his brother, the fa- mous Inkpadutah, in the massacre of the entire Spirit Lake settlement, whereby some forty persons fell victims to his avenging fury. The fact that Inkpadutah and his followers were allowed to escape the punishment they so richly merited and to mix with and become a part of the other tribes, is given as one important factor in the aggregation of causes that led to the terrible Minnesota outbreak in 1862.
The relations of cause and effect which can be plainly traced through this series of occurrences forms a curious and striking episode. First in the series was the trouble between Chief Sid- ominadotah and the adventurer Lott near the mouth of Boone
585
CONCLUSION
River, when the old chief ordered Lott to leave their hunting grounds, and upon his refusal to do so, destroyed his property. abused his family and forced them to leave the place. Out of this circumstance grew the terrible tragedy of Bloody Run, which occurred a few years later, where Lott murdered his ancient enemy together with his entire family. This was in 1854. Three years later, or in 1857, came the Spirit Lako Massacre, which is directly traceable to the Bloody Run trag- cdy. The fact that the perpetrators of this massacre were not adequately punished, but that they were suffered eventually to join the agency Indians, is believed to have had much to do with precipitating the outbreak in 1862. But the analogy does not end here. The great bulk of the savages who participated in that bloody affair, after being kept a while as prisoners, were sent up the Missouri River and turned loose on a reservation.
It is the deliberate opinion of those who have made a careful study of the question that to this act should be attributed most of the subsequent troubles with the wild tribes of the upper Missouri which culminated in the Custer Massacre on the Little Big Horn in 1876.
This chain of events and their curious dependence upon cach other naturally call to mind the old saw with which we vere all familiar in our childhood days:
"For the want of a nail the shoe was lost ; through the loss of the shoe the horse was lost: through the loss of the horse the rider was lost ; through the loss of the rider the battle was lost, and through the loss of the battle the kingdom was lost, and all for the want of a horseshoe nail."
But the bloody picture of savage warfare passes and is fol- lowed by the quaint and ever enjoyable picture of pioneer life. The conditions that existed at the time of the first settlement of this county are impossible now in any part of the country.
586
DICKINSON COUNTY - IOWA
Now the railroads are the pioneers; the population comes later. But it wasn't so in the settlement of any part of Iowa. The prairie schooner, the plodding, slow moving train, the droves of straggling stock, the jolly campfire, around which nightly gathered the sturdy boys and buxom girls of the families of these early adventurers when on their journey to their new west- ern homes were a familiar picture a half a century ago in every part of Iowa. The self-denials, struggles and labors incident to obtaining a foothold in any new country are something that must be experienced to be understood. No mere description can convey an adequate idea of the thousand and one make- shifts and ingenious devices resorted to by the thrifty settlers in lieu of the conveniences to which they had formerly been accustomed.
The vicissitudes of pioneer life, its toils, hardships and pri- rations on the one side, and its pleasures, excitements and bright anticipations on the other, have been so often and so vividly portrayed that they need not be repeated. A whole volume, and an interesting one at that, might be written made up entirely of the experiences and reminiscences of the time when the old settlers in the log cabin or sod shanty days werc discounting the future in their efforts to make them homes in this far away and isolated region.
The early settlers of northwestern Iowa had much more to contend with than usually falls to the lot of the first settlers in a new country. The . grasshopper raid, by which the coun- try was devastated and the growing crops destroyed for four years, was an infliction wholly out of the ordinary and one against which common foresight failed to provide any defense or remedy. Only four or five counties suffered the full force of this disaster. Other counties were ravaged in part, but the four or five northwestern counties in this state felt the full force of the visitation. It was the
587
CONCLUSION
severest blow with which the settlers of this region ever had to contend, and taken in connection with the ordinary hard- ships of pioneer life, made the lot of the first settlers peculiarly trying and was the cause of much privation and suffering among them, and the only wonder is that they bore up under it as well as they did.
It transpired here as it has transpired in all new countries that those who suffered most in the toils, labors and privations of the early days were not the ones to reap the reward of their early sacrifices. The ideal pioneer is not a money maker. Usually the money making instinet is wholly wanting in his makeup. The liberal and almost careless openhearted and openhanded hospitality which is ever his most prominent char- acteristic, precludes the possibility of accumulating wealth. and it is therefore in accordance with the common order of things that a more venal and mercenary class should reap where he had sown and grow rich on the unrequited toil and. unrewarded labor incident to the subduing of a new country.
This trait of the pioneer character cannot be better illus- trated than by the story of President Lincoln's land warrant. which was first given to the world in a late number of "AAnnals of Iowa" by a Council Bluffs correspondent. As a captain in the Black Hawk War he was awarded a land warrant for one hundred and sixty acres. Instead of locating it, as he might have done, at the time on some of the valuable tracts adjacent to Chicago, he put it away with his discharge and kept it as a souvenir of his services in that campaign. In 1858, on the occasion of his visit to Council Bluffs, he had his land warrant with him, and on exhibiting it to a friend was asked why in the world he hadn't located it on some of the valuable land about Chicago, and referred to the fact that his friend, Judge Davis, disposed of his in that way and it was the foundation of the immense fortune he afterwards acquired. "Well." ro
588
DICKINSON COUNTY - IOWA
plied Lincoln, "David always made money but I never could. You see," he continued, "it was this way. I was afraid if I located it there might be times when I couldn't pay the taxes and then I might lose it." He located his warrant on this trip on a quarter section in Crawford County in this state. President Lincoln was not the first man nor the last to stand back and hesitate where others went in and rounded up their thousands.
With the coming of the railroads was ushered in the closing scene of our moving panorama, and our next view is of the busy, bustling, active life of the world around us. "Old things have passed away and all things have become new." The vast ex- panse of treeless prairie stretching away indefinitely to the northwest, which was once considered but a northern extension of the "Great American Desert," has been converted into fer- tile fields and thriving farms, which are now the homes of thousands of industrious and prosperous families, while busy cities, thriving villages and prosperous communities are every- where scattered through this region where so short a time since seemed one vast expanse of loneliness and desolation. Vast herds of sheep and cattle are now grazing on the fertile plains where then roamed the elk and buffalo. Modern improvements and modern appliances are seen on every hand. Schools and churches have been multiplied until they greet the traveler at every turn. The primitive methods of agriculture have been superseded by modern machinery and up-to-date appliances until "The man with the hoe" exists only in the memory of the old timer or the imagination of the modern poet.
ALPHABETICAL INDEX.
A.
Abbott. Harvey, 21>. Acheson. James, 496.
Adams, Miss D., 189.
Addington, J., 84, 106, 10S. Ageneies, Indian, 27, 238.
Agricultural Societies, 555. Aldrich. Charles, 52, 115, 355, 564, 567.
AAlgonquin Tribes, 17. Albee, M. P. W., 399. Allar, John, 476. Allen, Samuel, 322.
Alexander, Col., 122. "Alpha." 405. 406. 410.
Annals of Iowa, 39, 52, 109, 351.
Anderson, G., 322. Anderson, J. S. & W. H., 322. Anderson, Gilbert, 325.
Andrews, Rev. Charles. 460, 489.
Armin & Riley, 501. Arnold's Park, 527. Arnold. W. B .. 399. 477.
Arnold. Anthony, 502.
Arnold. C. A., 477. 520.
Astronomical Observation, 42. Arthur, A. D., 206. 208. 260. 312, 417. Arthur. H. D .. 208. 232.
Arthur, Mrs. Albert. 363.
Arthur, Miss Nellie. 366. Ault. Rev. J. W., 460.
Austin. J., 31S. Avery, C. H., 514. Ayers, C. H .. 322. 431, 447, 465. 466.
B.
Bad Hail, 200. Bad Lands, 285. Badgerow. G. A .. 551.
Bahls, Theo., 509. Bailey, W. II., 431, 460.
Bailey. Rev. T. S., 461. 5' 6.
Baird. Rev. A. K., 460.
Bailey & Barney, 444.
Baker. Gen. N. B .. 355. Baldwin. Judge C .. 234.
Ball. James. 189. 210. 417.
Bareus, Tom, 477. Barkman, Henry. 150, 159, 159, 212. 216, 259. 371. 417, 423. 427. 483. Barkman, Wm., 189. 221. 230, 260. Barkman. Miss Dena. 466.
Barr, George, 309. Barnes, Rev. G. W., 505. Barron. F. W .. 433. 472. Bartlett, Samuel. 322. Bascom, W'm., 549. Bates. O. C .. 306. 446. Battles:
Upper Ageney, 239. Fort Ridgley, 240, 242. New Ulm. 241. Bireh Coulee, 245.
Big Mound, 282.
Dead Buffalo Lake, 283. Stony Lake, 283. Bad Lands, 285. White Stone Hill, 262, 278, 279. 280. Baxter. Henry. 398, 403, 427, 443. Baxter, George. 433. "Beacon" (Spirit Lake), 434. 437. 443. 445, 466. Beacon Block, 432, 438.
Beck. J. A., 374. 545.
Bedow. C., 186. 157. Bee. Capt. B. E., 121. 122. 276.
Beebe, James, 322.
Beebe, Dr .. 502.
Beers. W. S .. 316. 428. 444. 480.
Bell, Ralph, 516. Bellows. George C., 318, 420, 425. 431, 445. "Ben Lennox." 406. Bennett, Daniel, 231. Bennett. H. J .. 232. Bennett, Miss Julia, 364.
Pennett. C. P .. 504.
Benson, J. T .. 302. Benson, S., 502. 509.
Bergman, A. F., 443.
Bergman, P., 462.
Berryhill. J. G., 516. Peter E M .. 435.
Big Island Grove. 96, 111.
Bingham. J. S .. 324.
Birch Conlee 229. 214. Bissell, Dr. G. R., 82. Blackbirds, 190. Blackert G .. 259. 422. 142.
Blaekert. E. G., 446, 485. Blackert, Mrs. E. G., 470.
Blaekert, Carl. 467. Blake. F. A., 232, 118.
590
DICKINSON COUNTY - IOWA
Blake, Miss Emma, 364. Blanchard, M. A., 148, 170. Blackman, Andrew, 476. Blizzards, 307. Blow, J. C., 515. Bowen, Rev. T. F., 462.
Bradshaw, John, 82, 119. Braistead, Rev. B. H., 460, 489, 511. Breffle, Ira, 509. BrefHle, S. W., 510. Bridges, 218. Bristol, Frank, 475. Britch, C., 462. Brizee, Geo. W., 102.
Broadgate Bros., 411.
Broadbridge, Rev., 460.
Brockway, Geo., 154.
Broderick, L., 512.
Brown, Rev. G., 211, 500.
Brown, Rev. G. W. L .. 458.
Brown, W. B., 148, 153, 161, 210. 363, 397, 444, 563. Brown, Roscoe, 426. Brown, Milo, 563.
Brown, Henry. 410.
Brown, Major J. R., 244.
Browne, C. W., 467. Brownell. Dr. E. L., 417. 436, 443, 348. Brownell, Mrs. E. L., 470.
Brownell's Beach, 548.
Bruns, U. 1., 557. Buckland, Mrs. A. L., 291, 366, 367, 480. Buffum. Elmer, 502.
Buffalo, Last in Iowa, 377.
Bunker, Mrs. C. A., 488.
Burkholder, Wm. E., 84, 90, 104, 106. Burton, Rev. N. L., 488. Bureb. Rev. H. . 459. Burtch. A .. 64. 84, 90.
Bush, G. H. 187, 202, 207. 541. Buffum, John. 509. Burrows, G. W., 509.
C.
Caldwell, Dan., 189. Call. A. C .. 188. Campbell, John, 197, 199. Calkins, Homer, 477. Campbell, HI. HI., 322. Campbell, R., 322. Campbell, Sam, 322, 431. Campbell. Wm., 323. Camp Release, 248. Camp Meeting (the first) 304.
Carleton, Mrs. Esther, 367. Carlton. W. F., 481, 562. Carlton, E. D., 381. 389, 363.
Carpenter, Hon. C. C., 83, 94, 100. 109, 182, 351, 567, 579. Carpenter, Rev. J. H., 461. Carse, Henry, 84, 99, 107. Carsley, Wm., 159.
Carroll, Rev. L., 464. Case. E. A., 485, 486, 541.
Case, Mrs. A., 478.
Case, Austin, 477.
Cassady, Lient .. 255, 256. 258. 260.
Chandler, C., 417.
Chappel, M., 324.
Chase. Wm., 493.
Chase, George, 383, 398.
Chautauqua, 472.
Cheney, Rev., 505.
Chetanmaza (Iron Hawk), 136.
Chiffen. Henry, 113. 197.
Chisholm, D. R., 427, 444, 460.
C., M. & St. P. R. R. 330, 370, 371, 373, 406.
C. & N. W. R. R., 371.
Christensen, J. C., 476, 563.
Chrysler, J. G., 509, 310.
Chrysler, A. B., 504, 509.
Church, Wm. L., 80, 81, 120, 184, 206.
Church. Mrs. L. J., 81. 116, 117. 120. Civic Societies:
Spirit Lake, 449. A. F. & A. M., 449. Royal Arch, 451. O. E. S., 450. I. O. O. F., 453.
Patrons of Husbandry. 454.
Good Templars, 454.
G. A. R., 455.
Knights of Pythias, 455.
1. O. U. W., 456. Modern Woodmen, 456. American Yeomen, 457. Milford:
A. F. & A. M., 491.
O. E. S., 491. 1. O. O. F., 492. G. A. R., 492.
Knights of Pythias. 493.
Modern Woodmen, 493. AAmerican Yeomen, 493.
Lake Park: A. F. & A. M., 507. 1. O. O. F., 507. A. O. U. W., 508. American Yeomen, 509.
Churches-Spirit Lake: Methodist, 458. Baptist, 459. Congregational. 460.
591
ALPHABETICAL INDEX
Presbyterian. 460. Episcopalian, 462. German Lutheran, 462. Catholic, 463.
Milford: Methodist. 487. Congregational, 4SS. Baptist. 489. Imtheran, 490. Catholic. 490.
Lake Park: Methodist, 505. Presbyterian, 506. Clark, Robert, 64, 66. 88.
Clark, Elmer, 411. Clark. G. P .. 477.
Clapp, Rev., 506. Clearwater, Rev. J. C., 505.
Coburn. R. E., 548.
Coffin, Hon. L. S., 523.
Cold Storage Plant. 440. Cohenour, Rev. J., 211. 458.
Cook, Rev. Joseph, 475.
Cook, Mrs. W. A., 488.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.