USA > Iowa > Floyd County > History of Floyd County, Iowa : together with sketches of its cities, villages and townships, educational, religious, civil, military, and political history; portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens > Part 22
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The first school in Davenport was taught in 1838. In Fairfield, Miss Clarissa Sawyer, James F. Chambers and Mrs. Reed taught school in 1839.
Johnson County was an entire wilderness when Iowa City was located as the capital of the Territory of Iowa, in May, 1839. The first sale of lots took place Aug. 18, 1839, and before Jan. 1, 1840, about 20 families had settled within the limits of the town. During the same year, Mr. Jesse Berry opened a school in a small frame building he had erected on what is now College street.
In Monroe County, the first settlement was made in 1843, by Mr. John R. Gray, about two miles from the present site of Eddy- ville; and in the summer of 1844 a log school-house was built by Gray, Wm. V. Beedle, C. Renfro, Joseph McMullen and Willoughby Randolph, and the first school was opened by Miss Urania Adams. The building was occupied for school purposes for nearly 10 years.
About a year after the first cabin was built at Oskaloosa, a log school-house was built, in which school was opened by Samuel W. Caldwell, in 1844.
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At Fort Des Moines, now the capital of the State, the first school was taught by Lewis Whitten, Clerk of the District Court, in the winter of 1846-'7, in one of the rooms on " Coon Row, " built for barracks.
The first school in Pottawattamie County was opened by George Green, a Mormon, at Council Point, prior to 1849; and until about 1854 nearly all the teachers in that vicinity were Mormons.
The first school in Decorah was taught in 1855, by Cryus C. Carpenter, since governor of the State. In Crawford County the first school-house was built in Mason's Grove, in 1856, and Morris McHenry first occupied it as teacher.
During the first 20 years of the history of Iowa, the log school-house prevailed, and in 1861 there were 893 of these prim- itive structures in use for school purposes in the State. Since that time they have been gradually disappearing. In 1865 there were 796; in 1870, 336; and in 1875, 121.
Jan. 1, 1839, the Territorial Legislature passed an act providing that " there shall be established a common school, or schools, in each of the counties in this Territory; which shall be open and free for every class of white citizens between the ages of five and 21 years." The second section of the act provided that " the County Board shall, from time to time, form school districts in their respect- ive counties whenever a petition may be presented for the purpose by a majority of the voters resident within such contemplated district." These districts were governed by boards of trustees, usually of three persons; each district was required to maintain school at least three months in every year; and later, laws were enacted providing for, county school-taxes for the payment of teachers, and that whatever additional sum might be required should be assessed upon the parents sending in proportion to the length of time sent.
In 1846, the year of Iowa's admission as a State, there were 20,- 000 scholars, out of 100,000 inhabitants. About 400 school dis- tricts had been organized. In 1850 there were 1,200, and in 1857 the number had increased to 3,265.
In March, 1858, upon the recommendation of Hon. M. L. Fisher, then superintendent of public instruction, the seventh General Assembly enacted that "each civil township is declared a school district," and provided that these should be divided into sub-dis- tricts. This law went into force March 20, 1858, and reduced the number of school districts from about 3,500 to less than 900. This
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change of school organization resulted in a very material reduction of the expenditures for the compensation of district secretaries and treasurers. An effort was made for several years, from 1867 to 1872, to abolish the sub-district system. Mr. Kissell, Superintend- ent, recommended this in his report of Jan. 1, 1872, and Gov. Mer- rill forcibly endorsed his views in his annual message. But the Legislature of that year provided for the formation of independ- ent districts from the sub-districts of district townships.
The system of graded schools was inaugurated in 1849, and new schools, in which more than one teacher is employed, are univer- sally graded.
Teachers' institutes were organized early in the history of the State. The first official mention of them occurs in the annual report of Hon. Thomas H. Benton, Jr., made Dec. 2, 1850, who said: "An institution of this character was organized a few years ago, composed of the teachers of the mineral regions of Illinois, Wisconsin and Iowa. An association of teachers has also been formed in the county of Henry, and an effort was made in October last to organize a regular institute in the county of Jones." At that time, although the beneficial influence of these institutes was admitted, it was urged that the expenses of attending them was greater than teachers with limited compensation were able to bear- To obviate this objection, Mr. Benton recommended that " the sum of $150 should be appropriated annually for three years, to be drawn in installments of $50 by the superintendent of public instruction, and expended for these institutions." He proposed that three institutes should be held annually at points to be desig- nated by the superintendent.
The expense of this would be trifling, and all recognized the ben. efits to be derived; and yet no legislation was had until March, 1858, when an act was passed authorizing the holding of teachers' institutes for periods not less than six working days, whenever not less than 30 teachers should desire. The superintendent was authorized to expend not exceeding $100 for any one institute, to be paid out by the county superintendent, as the institute might direct, for teachers and lecturers, and $1,000 was appropriated to defray the expenses of these institutes.
Mr. Fisher at once pushed the matter of holding institutes, and Dec. 6, 1858, he reported to the Board of Education that institutes had been appointed in 20 counties within the preceding six months, and more would have been held but the appropriation had been exhausted.
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At the first session of the Board of Education, commencing Dec. 6, 1858, a code of school laws was enacted, which retained the existing provisions for teachers' institutes.
In March, 1860, the General Assembly amended the act of the board by appropriating "a sum not exceeding $50 annually for one such institute, held as provided by law in each county." In 1865 the superintendent, Mr. Faville, reported that " the provis- ion made by the State for the benefit of teachers' institutes has never been so fully appreciated, both by the people and the teach- ers, as during the last two years."
By an act approved March 19, 1874, normal institutes were estab- lished in each county, to be held annually by the county superin- tendent. This was regarded as a very decided step in advance by Mr. Abernethy, and in 1876 the General Assembly established the first permanent State normal school at Cedar Falls, Black Hawk County, appropriating the building and property of the Soldiers' Orphan's Home at that place for that purpose. This school is now " in the full tide of successful experiment."
The present public-school system of Iowa is admirably organized, and if the various officers who are entrusted with the educational interests of the commonwealth continue faithful and competent, should and will constantly improve.
Funds for the support of the public schools are derived in sev- eral ways. The 16th section of every Congressional township was set apart by the general Government for school purposes, being one thirty-sixth part of all the lands of the State. The minimum price of these lands was fixed at one dollar and twenty- five cents per acre. Congress also made an additional donation to the State of 500,000 acres, and an appropriation of five per cent. on all the sales of public lands to the school fund. The State gives to this fund the proceeds of the sales of all lands which escheat to it; the proceeds of all fines for the violation of the liquor and criminal laws. The money derived from these sources constitutes the permanent school fund of the State, which cannot be diverted to any other purpose. The penalties collected by the courts for fines and forfeitures go to the school fund in the counties where collected. The proceeds of the sale of lands and the five per cent. fund go into the State Treasury, and the State distributes these proceeds to the several counties according to their request, and the counties loan the money to individuals for long terms at eight per cent. interest, on security of land valued at three times the
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amount of the loan, exclusive of all buildings and improvements thereon. The interest on these loans is paid into the State Treas- ury, and becomes the available school fund of the State. The counties are responsible to the State for all money so loaned, and the State is likewise responsible to the school fund for all moneys transferred to the counties. The interest on these loans is appor- tioned by the State Auditor semi-annually to the several counties of the State, in proportion to the number of persons between the ages of five and twenty-one years. The counties also levy an an- nual tax for school purposes, which is apportioned to the several district townships in the same way. A district tax is also levied for the same purpose. The money arising from these several sources constitutes the support of the public schools, and is suffi- cient to enable every sub-district in the State to afford from six to nine months' school each year.
The burden of direct taxation is thus lightened, and the efficiency of the schools increased. The taxes levied for the support of the schools are self-imposed. Under the admirable school laws of the State, no taxes can be legally assessed or collected for the erection of school-houses until they have been ordered by the election of a district at a school meeting legally called. The school-houses of Iowa are the pride of the State and an honor to the people. If they have been built sometimes at a prodigal expense, the tax-pay- ers have no one to blame but themselves. The teachers' and con- tingent funds are determined by the Board of Directors under certain legal instructions. These boards are elected annually, except in the independent districts, in which the board may be entirely changed every three years. The only exception to this mode of levying taxes for support of schools is the county school tax, which is determined by the County Board of Supervisors. The tax is from one to three mills on the dollar; usually, however, but one.
In 1881 there were in the State 4,339 school districts, contain- ing 11,244 schools, and employing 21,776 teachers. The average monthly pay of male teachers was $32.50, and of female teachers $27.25. There were 594,730 persons of school age, of whom 431,- 513 were enrolled in the public schools. The average cost of tuition for each pupil per month was $1.62. The expenditures for all school purposes was $5,129,819.49. The permanent school fund is now $3,547,123.82, on which the income for 1881 was $234, 622.40.
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In each county a teachers' institute is held annually, under the direction of the county superintendent. The State contributes $50 annually to each of these institutes.
Good as the public-school system is, there is much room for im- provement, and certain reforms are everywhere called for. Among the changes needed are the revision and simplification of the school law, the establishment of county high schools, of which there is but one at present, and provision by the Assembly for more State nor- mal schools.
HIGHER EDUCATION.
Besides the State University, State Agricultural College and State Normal School, which are described under the head of State Institutions, ample provision for higher education has been made by the different religious denominations, assisted by local and individual munificence. There are, exclusive of State Institutions, 23 universities and colleges, 111 academies and other private schools. All these are in active operation, and most of them stand high. A list of the universities and colleges, and brief notice of each, is herewith given:
Amity College is located at College Springs, Page County; S. C. Marshall is president. There are six instructors and 225 students.
Burlington University is located at Burlington, Des Moines County. E. F. Stearns is president of the faculty. There are five instructors and 63 students.
Callanan College is located at Des Moines, Polk County. There are 14 in the faculty, of which C. R. Pomeroy is president, and 188 students enrolled.
Central University is located at Pella, Marion County. It is an institution of the Baptist denomination. Rev. G. W. Gardner is president of the faculty, which numbers seven. There are 196 students.
Coe College is located at Cedar Rapids, Linn County. S. Phelps is president. There are 10 in the faculty, and 100 students.
Cornell College is located at Mt. Vernon, Linn County, and is under the control of the M. E. Church. W. F. King is president. There are 20 instructors and 400 students. This college is one of the highest in character, and has a large attendance.
Drake University is located at Des Moines, Polk County. G. T. Carpenter is president, and is ably assisted by 25 instructors. There are 125 students.
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Griswold College is located at Davenport, Scott County, and is under the control of the Episcopal Church. W. S. Perry is presi- dent. There are seven instructors and 80 students.
Iowa College is located at Grinnell, Poweshiek County. G. F. - Magoun is president. There are 14 instructors and 359 students. The institution is one of the leading colleges in Iowa, and is perma- nently endowed.
Iowa Wesleyan University is located at Mt. Pleasant, Henry County. W. J. Spaulding is president. There are six in the faculty, and over 160 students in attendance. The University is under the auspices of the M. E. Church, and enjoys a high degree of prosperity.
Luther College is situated in Decorah, Winneshiek County. L. Larson is president of the faculty, which numbers 10. There are 165 students in attendance.
Olin College is located at Olin, Jones County. C. L. Porter is president.
Oskaloosa College is situated at Oskaloosa, Mahaska County. G. H. Mclaughlin is president. The faculty numbers five, and the students 190. The college stands very high.
Penn College is situated in Oskaloosa, Mahaska County. B. Trueblood is president of the faculty, which numbers five. There are 175 students in attendance.
Simpson Centenary College is located at Indianola, Warren County. E. L. Parks is president. There are nine instructors and 150 students.
Tabor College is located at Tabor, Fremont County. Wm. M. Brooks is president. The college was modeled after Oberlin Col- lege, in Ohio. The faculty consists of six, and there are 109 stu- dents.
Upper Iowa University is located at Fayette, Fayette County, and is under the control of the M. E. Church. Rev. J. W. Bis- sell is president. There are 11 instructors and 350 students. This University stands very high among the educational institutions of the State.
University of Des Moines, at Des Moines, has five instructors and 80 students.
Whittier College was established at Salem, Henry County, by the Friends. J. W. Coltrane is president. There are four instruct- ors and 105 students.
Riverside Institute. This school is located at Lyons, on a beautiful elevation overlooking the Mississippi River, and is one of the most sensible schools in the West, special care being taken
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of the health and physical development of the pupils. To Rev. W. T. Currie is due the credit of establishing and giving prosper- ity to this academy.
MISCELLANEOUS.
EMINENT MEN OF IOWA.
We present biographical sketches of several of Iowa's most emi- nent statesmen, which doubtless will prove interesting to every citizen of this State.
William B. Allison was born at Perry, Ohio, March 2, 1829; studied law and practiced in Ohio until he removed to Iowa, in 1857 ; served on the staff of the governor of Iowa, and aided in organizing volunteers in the beginning of the war for the suppres- sion of the Rebellion ; was elected a representative from Iowa in the 38th Congress, as a Republican, receiving 12,112 votes against 8,452 votes for Mahony, Democrat; was re-elected to the 39th Con- gress, receiving 16,130 votes against 10,470 votes for B. B. Richards, Democrat ; was re-elected to the 40th Congress, receiving 15,472 votes against 10,470 votes for Noble, Democrat ; was re-elected to the 41st Congress, receiving 20,119 votes against 14,120 votes for Mills, Democrat, and 149 votes for Thomas, Independent, serving in the House of Representatives from Dec. 7, 1863, to March 3, 1871 ; was elected to the United States Senate as a Republican, to succeed James Harlan, Republican, and took his seat March 4, 1873.
Cyrus Clay Carpenter was born in Hartford Township, Sus- quehanna Co., Pa., Nov. 24, 1829. His father and mother died when he was quite young, and at the age of 12 years he found himself alone in the world, and destitute. He first attempted to learn the trade of clothier, but not liking this, he quit after a few months and spent the next few years on a farm. He spent each winter in school. At the age of 18 he commenced teaching school, and for the next four years divided his time between teach- ing and attending the academy in Hartford. He then left his na- tive State for Ohio, where he engaged in teaching for one and a half years, and working in summer on a farm.
In 1854 he turned his face westward, stopping at various points in Illinois and Iowa, and finally reached Fort Dodge, where he found employment as assistant to a Government surveyor, in divid-
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ing townships immediately west of the Fort. His entire worldly possessions at this time were contained in a carpet-sack which he carried in his hand.
After working a short time at surveying and teaching school, he opened a land-office, and in platting and surveying lands for those seeking homes he found constant and profitable employment for the next three years. During this time he became extensively known, and being an active Republican, he was elected to the Leg- islature in the fall of 1857. His district then comprised 19 counties, which he represented during the following legislative term, being the first session held in Des Moines after the removal of the capital from Iowa City.
In 1861, on the breaking out of the Rebellion, he volunteered his services, and he steadily rose from commissary to Brevet Colonel, with which rank he was mustered out at the close of the war.
In the fall of 1866 he was elected Register of the State Land Office, which required his removal to Des Moines. He was re- elected in 1868. In 1870 he refused a renomination, and returned to Fort Dodge. In the fall of 1871 he was elected Governor of Iowa, which office he filled for four years.
Gov. Carpenter's services as public speaker and orator have been widely sought after and highly appreciated, and he has made him- self one of Iowa's most popular men.
In 1878 he was elected to the 46th Congress from his district, in 1880 he was re-elected, and he now sits in the 47th Congress.
Chester Cicero Cole was born in Oxford, Chenango Co., N. Y., June 4, 1824, and in that place he passed the earlier portion of his life. He received a good academic education, and at the age of 18 was prepared to enter the junior class in Union College; but from this he was prevented by a severe and protracted illness. Four years later he entered the law school at Harvard University, where he received a thorough legal training.
June 24, 1848, he married Amanda M. Bennett, and soon after he located in Marion, Ky., where he commenced the practice of his chosen profession. His rise was rapid and he soon acquired a lucra- tive practice.
In May, 1857, Judge Cole came to Des Moines, Iowa, where he has since resided, and practiced for some time with his usual suc- cess. Two years later he was a candidate for Judge of the Supreme Court on the Democratic ticket, but was defeated.
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At the beginning of the war he took a firm stand on the side of the Government, and hence naturally found his alliance with the Republican party. During the war he lent his whole energies to rallying the people to the Union cause. In the campaign of 1863 he contributed powerfully to the election of William M. Stone as Governor of Iowa. He was probably the first prominent man in Iowa to advocate openly negro suffrage.
In December, 1863, Judge Cole took an active part in the estab- lishment of the Soldiers' Orphans' Home, of which he was first a Trustee and then President. His administration was most suc- cessful.
In February, 1864, he was appointed one of the Judges of the Supreme Court, and in the following fall was elected to the same position by over 40,000 majority. To this position he was re-elected in 1870. Since then he has edited the Western Jurist, and sev- eral volumes of Reports. Few men have contributed more to the welfare of Iowa than Judge Cole.
Augustus C. Dodge was born at St. Genevieve, Mo., Jan. 2, 1812; received a public-school education; removed to Burlington, Iowa, and was Register of the land-office there from 1838 to 1840; was elected a delegate from Iowa in the 26th Congress as a Democrat; was re-elected to the 27th, 28th and 29th Congresses, serving from Dec. 8, 1840, to March 3, 1847; was elected U. S. Senator from Iowa on its admission as a State, serving from Dec. 26, 1848, to his resigna- tion, Feb. 8, 1855; was appointed by President Pierce Minister to Spain, serving from Feb. 9, 1855, to March 12, 1859; was a dele- gate to the National Democratic Convention at Chicago in 1864; was elected Mayor of Burlington on an Independent ticket Feb. 2, 1864.
James W. Grimes, L. L. D., was born in Deering, Hillsboro Co., N. H., Oct. 20, 1816; was the youngest of eight children, and of Scotch-Irish extraction; entered Dartmouth College in August, 1832, and commenced the study of law in February, 1835, with James Walker, at Peterboro, N. H .; settled at Burlington (now in Iowa, then in the " Black Hawk purchase," which was attached to the Territory of Michigan) May, 1836, and engaged in the practice of law, 12 years; was partner with Henry W. Starr. His public ser- vice was as secretary to an Indian commission held at Rock Island, Sept. 27, 1836; was a Representative of Des Moines County in 1838, and in 1843 in the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Iowa, and in 1852 in the General Assembly of the State; was one of the
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founders of the Republican party and earnestly opposed the repeal of the Missouri Compromise; was chosen Governor in August, 1854, for the term of four years, having been nominated for the of- fice at the last State Convention of the Whig party ever held in Iowa, and also by the Free-Soil Democracy. By the effect of a new constitution his tenure of office terminated in January, 1858, when he was chosen U. S. Senator from March 4, 1859; in January, 1864, was chosen for a second term; resigned in August, 1869, owing to failing health. He first suggested to the Senate the introduction of iron-clad vessels into the navy, July 19, 1861. He died suddenly of heart disease at Burlington, Iowa, Feb. 7, 1872.
James Harlan was born in Clarke Co., Ill., Aug. 26, 1820; re- ceived a classical education, graduating at the Asbury University, Indiana; studied law; was the Iowa State Superintendent of Pub- lic Instruction in 1847; was President of the Wesleyan University, Iowa, in 1848; was elected as U. S. Senator from Iowa as a Whig, in May, 1855, and his seat having been declared vacant on the ground of an informality in his election, he was again elected in 1856 for the remainder of the term; was re-elected in 1860; in 1865 he entered the cabinet as Secretary of the Interior, and resigned in September, 1866, having been re-elected to the U. S. Senate as a Republican, to succeed S. J. Kirkwood, Republican, and serving from September, 1866, to March 3, 1873.
Stephen Hempstead was born at New London, Conn., Oct. 1, 1812. At the age of 16 he removed to St. Louis with his parents and brothers. In the spring of 1830 he went to Galena, where he was clerk in a commission house. He was there during the Sac and Fox war, and was an officer in an artillery company organized for the protection of that place. After the defeat of Black Hawk he spent two years as a student in Illinois College, at Jacksonville. He then studied law, and was admitted to practice in 1836. He was the first lawyer to practice in Dubuque.
Upon the organization of Iowa into a Territory, Mr. Hempstead was elected as a member of the Legislative Council, in which he was chairman of the committee on judiciary. At the second session of the Council he was elected President thereof. He was also President of the Council in 1845.
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