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 40
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At Marble Rock a meeting was held on the evening of April 29, presided over by Elder John Kane. An eloquent appeal was make by Capt. M. M. Trumbull, of Butler County, at the close of which David Brubacher, Franklin Darland, Jesse Beelar, Mark J. Miller, Abraham Brubacher, Wolsey Hawks and William Bedell, took the oath as volunteers. Their answer, "We will," to the oath had in it a deeper, more significant and indescribable eloquence than could mark any oration. That "We will" burned itself into the memories of all who heard it, with an impress not yet erased, and which will perhaps never fade away.
At Floyd, May 1, a mass meeting was held, called to order by B. B. Van Steenburg, and presided over by E. Buck. Patriotic
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speeches were made by Joseph Manson, Dr. Birney and Mr. Buck. Resolutions to sustain the Government were adopted, and a mili- tia company called the "Frontier Rifles" was organized.
Enthusiastic meetings of a like nature were held at other points. Probably no other county in the whole State of Iowa saw its duty more quickly and acted with readier and more deliberate aim than Floyd.
May 4 arrived, and the grand mass convention at St. Charles City was held according to arrangement. Sixty-four more men, mostly young men, came forward as volunteers, eager "to do or to die" for their country. The class of local items in St. Charles City, and throughout the county, with which this volume deals up to 1861, are buried almost from sight amid the confusion of war, and become comparatively unimportant. Hence, while we must, for the next four years of history give the details of military affairs in this county, other items will be sparse; indeed, the people felt little like paying much attention to other things until "this cruel war was over."
Up to July 15, few, if any, counties in the State, had sent more volunteers to the war, in proportion to population, than the county of Floyd, and yet there was no company known distinctly as the "Floyd Company." Probably the reason was that Floyd County men were not anxious for office, or were only desirous of serving their country as "high privates." They enlisted in whatever neighboring company gave promise of being accepted and bringing them into active service.
July 13 was a busy day for the ladies of St. Charles. A di -- patch was received from Gov. Kirkwood ordering the soldiers of Floyd and Chickasaw Counties to march forthwith to their place of rendezvous at Burlington, and requiring them to be provided each with two gray woolen shirts, one pair of gray woolen trousers with black stripes on the sides, two pairs woolen socks, one pair bro- gans or laced boots, and one black or gray felt hat. The Board of Supervisors had appropriated from the County Treasury $10 a man to purchase uniforms for the volunteers subject to this call; but the making up of the garments was a gratuity on the part of the ladies of St. Charles. Some idea of their industry may be formed from the fact that all the shirts and pantaloons were completed and in readiness for the soldiers (twenty-four in number) to start on Monday morning. Conveniences called "companions," provided with thread, needles, pins, buttons, etc., were also furnished the
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soldiers by the ladies. The same promptness was exhibited at other points throughout the county.
At this point the imagination is impatient to cast aside and re- press the external noise and rush of material things, and hover, charmed, over the motherly significance of every little convenience and comfort furnished the son of war as he goes forth to distant lands, with the chances against his ever returning alive. And when, in the terrible battle-field or in the tedious, lonesome, mal - rious camp, he receives from home a bottle of preserves or a pack- age of knick-knacks, done up in clean napkins as only feminine hands can do them, can he fix his mind, even but for one moment, upon the real significance of these things, which is indeed more spiritual than material, without shedding a tear ? And the longer the mind dwells upon it the longer it wishes to dwell, until it col- lapses into a vacuity of thought from sheer exhaustion. Let him feel these things who can; others cannot be made to feel them with ever so much rhetoric. This secret of life-and-welfare preserva- tion, perceived only by true mothers, is too sacred even for poetry, or for words in any form.
The intervening Sunday, Rev. A. D. Bush preached a sermon to the soldiers, from the text, "When the host goeth forth against thine enemies, then keep thee from every wicked thing." The discourse was able, eloquent and impressive. The soldiers were dressed in uniform, and marched in procession to the church, car- rying the " star-spangled banner," which emblem of our national- ity was placed upon the platform and seemed to give inspiration to the speaker. Rev. E. J. McClelland assisted Mr. Bush in con- ducting the exercises. The house was crowded with an interested and thoughtful audience. When the preacher addressed his re- marks specially to the volunteers, exhorting them to be merciful as well as just, and pointed them to the perils they were about to encounter as they went forth in defense of the nation, many were the tearful eyes that were visible in various parts of the church. The scene can never be forgotten by those who were present.
On Monday morning all was bustle and animation in St. Charles, as these inexperienced and unhardened soldiers were about leav- ยท ing for the war. The soul-stirring notes of the fife and drum seemed to inspire the hearts of all. Numerous teams were pro- vided by the citizens with which to convey the volunteers to the railroad at Cedar Falls, whence they would proceed at once to the rendezvous at Burlington. At an early hour the brave boys were
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ready. Friends came in from abroad to give the parting hand and utter the sad farewell. One poor mother, in particular, who had come from a neighboring town and was sitting in the wagon while the soldiers were exercised in the drill, shed tears, when her stal- wart son in the ranks turned his eye toward her and his man heart was melted. Instantly he dashed away the tears that would start unbidden, and turned his head away. How the poor heart had to fight against its own tender ties! As the Intelligencer well remarked, "Could ambitious statesmen and corrupt politicians have half a realizing sense of the woes they bring, they would pause long before precipitating the people into a war like this."
Soon all was ready. The band struck up Yankee Doodle, as if to dry up the tears of the broken-hearted and drown their sorrows in prospect of a bright future. The Stars and Stripes floated gracefully upon the breeze, and the soldiers, accompanied by nu- merous friends, disappeared from the scenes of home.
August 10 was a proud day for the First Iowa Regiment, near Springfield, Mo., under Gen. Lyon. This was composed largely of business men who responded to the President's call with alac- rity. For the first few weeks they had much hard work to do, to which was attached but little glory. Some of their forced marches astonished the world, but they bore all cheerfully, and in most in- stances without a murmur. Poorly clad, and, part of the time, less than half fed, beneath a burning sun they traversed broad prairies. and sandy oak openings in pursuit of the enemy, their spirits buoyed up with the consolation that they were in the service of their country and protecting the homes of Union-loving families. Although their term of service had expired, they resolved to stand by Gen. Lyon and his little army while a force quadruple their size threat- ened them, and their resolution was carried out with great courage.
August 22, twelve of the citizens of Rockford and vicinity left for the war, joining Capt. McClure's company at Cedar Falls. They were O. H. Lyon, Charles Knapp, S. P. Pearsons, H. D. Gif- ford, J. S. Bradbury, E. C. Robbins, A. W. Dawson, Joseph Wilcox, Frank Davidson, Frederick Muhn, Johnson Gary and Jacob Yost. Their enlistment was quite sudden, taking their neighbors by surprise. Capt. McClure visited the place Tuesday afternoon, attending a meeting in the evening, and Wednesday evening the people gathered together to bid the soldiers farewell. Addresses were made by Elder Saxby, of Clear Lake, and Elder La Due, of Rockford, the latter presenting each of the volunteers.
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with a Testament. These, together with the three who had before enlisted, made a total of fifteen, out of a district of only sixty or seventy voters. An equal proportion from all the North would be a million of men.
In the spring of this year (1861), an order was issued under the State law for examination to be made of all men between eighteen and forty-five years of age who claimed exemption from military duty. A. B. F. Hildreth was appointed Draft Commissioner for Floyd County, R. W. Humphrey, Commissioner of Enrollment, and Dr. J. W. Smith, Examining Surgeon. These appointments were made by Governor Kirkwood. Accordingly Mr. Hildreth traveled over the county distributing notices, appointing a time at which all persons claiming exemption on account of physical disa bility should present themselves to the examining surgeon. and when the time arrived it was both exciting and amusing to witness the crowds of able-bodied men swarming around Dr. Smith's of- fice with all sorts of ailments, both genuine and counterfeit. Such a day for invalids and cripples as were congregated at Charles City on that day, has not been since the days when the lame, the halt and the blind gathered around the pools of Bethesda and Si- loam. Young men who had shaved for years, suddenly dodged behind their eighteenth year and became boys again. "O! if I were a boy again!" Those for whom there was no escape on the account of age, with forlorn look and quivering lips as suddenly plunged forward over the boundary lines of forty-five. Those who but a few days before had been boasting of their superior strength and great endurance, were hardly able to walk upright ;. while those whose hearing had always been acute, on that day could scarcely hear it thunder. Some fell to coughing, as if consumption were setting in, and others, who had no present trouble, had had some ailment years before, and were "liable to have it again."
During the summer of 1861 a third political party was or- ganized, known as " Union," or " Fusion," whose mission was to reconcile Republicans and Democrats upon some compromise measures. Their forces were scattered all over the North, and they made an effort to carry the day in Floyd County by nominating a full State and county ticket, and organizing a campaign; but at the general election, October 8, they polled an insignificant vote. Combining with the Democrats, they gave only 156 votes in this county while the Republicans gave Kirkwood 492. Twenty-three of the 156, were cast for Dean.
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HISTORY OF FLOYD COUNTY.
During the winter of 1861-'2, Sergt. S. P. Folsom, of Marble Rock, made a visit home, and returned to the army with several recruits. This man exhibited considerable bravery, as well as skill, at the battle of Belmont, where he had temporary command of his company. He was once taken prisoner, and boldly refused to give up his arms when so ordered. Before the rebels could wrest them from him they were fired upon by a squad of our troops. Folsom threw himself upon the ground just in time to escape the shot, while the rebels, supposing him killed, fled for their own safety, and Folsom rejoined his comrades, gun in hand, unharmed.
A long and tedious period intervenes here, when the announce- ment, " All quiet on the Potomac," continued to be the staple of war news(?), until it became proverbially stale. McClellan held the main army in Old Virginia, much of the time in the Chicka- hominy Swamps, putting the soldiery through their daily and in- terminable drill, ever getting ready and never proceeding to action. " On to Richmond!" the people impatiently cried, but mysteriously in vain. Recruiting at home, and nearly all other military prep -. arations, became irritatingly monotonous. Only now and then a ripple occurred important or exciting enough to be chronicled in history.
War, however, in all its phases, is a poetic subject, and the In- telligencer was graced with a spirited effusion in every number. In the number for March 24, 1862,, appeared the following:
TO THE FLOYD VOLUNTEERS. BY MISS H. F. BRAYNARD.
No coward hearts are those our friends, Who, for their country's good, Will gird the arms of warfare on, And shed, perchance, their blood.
But no! your blood shall not be spilt; God will protect the right ; And we will aid you by our prayers, And bless you day and night.
We miss you in our circles oft, And at the church and hall; Then we think of those who manfully Obeyed their country's call.
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HISTORY OF FLOYD COUNTY.
"Tis then a prayer goes up to Him Who rules in earth and heaven, That to Floyd's noble, gallant sous, May life and health be given.
And when the cry of peace is heard, And you hasten from the wars, We'll welcome back the friends we gave, And crown them conquerors.
March 24, 1862.
Under the call of July 8, 1862, for 300,000 men, Floyd County's quota was twenty-five or thirty men, yet she sent forth a full hundred of her brave sons to uphold the banner of the nation. The company met in Charles City, Aug. 21, and elected Charles A. Slocum, Captain; A. C. Rupe, First Lieutenant; Edward A. Reiniger, Second Lieutenant; John Butler, Orderly Sergeant; George P. Smith, Second Sergeant; Frank McConnell, Third Ser- geant; William Dyas, Fourth Sergeant; D. B. Mead, Fifth Ser- geant. They left, Sept. 3, for the rendezvous at Dubuque, where they were attached to the Twenty-first Iowa Infantry, recruited in this Congressional District.
INDIAN WAR.
Our heading here appropriately comes in as an interruption in the thread of history relative to the war for the Union, for inter- ruption it was, probably occasioned, if not actually instigated, by the Southern rebels or their Northern sympathizers. The first massacre in Minnesota, however, was not traceable to Southern influence.
During the last week of August, 1862, the news burst forth upon our law-abiding community here of fierce Indian atrocities in Southern Minnesota, and suddenly every man, woman and child (almost) was preparing defense. Every township organized, every neighborhood organized, and we might say, every family organized -all this, too, while the people were excited with various war news and were doing their utmost in answer to the great call for 300,000 men.
In the Intelligencer of Sept. 4, will be found full reports of the organization of these "home guards," too extensive for repetition here.
During the first week of September, the citizens of Charles City and vicinity appointed a committee consisting of David M. Fer-
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guson and A. L. Collins, to go to Minnesota and ascertain the facts connected with the raid. They made the following report:
"First, we with haste traveled to the Winnebago reserve, and found one hundred men stationed there to watch the Winnebagoes and keep them in subjection, though ostensibly to insure their safety against attacks from the Sioux, their old foes. We found there six Sioux prisoners taken by the Winnebagoes. At first the latter were divided upon the question of affiliating with the Sioux or helping the citizens. They at last decided to remain friends of the white settlers.
"From there we proceeded to Mankato, and on arriving there we found the town fortified and the people apparently quiet. But the leading citizens, those who knew best what the Indians were doing, assured us that danger was imminent. They said that to allow the people generally to know the worst, would produce an instant stampede of all the inhabitants. This accounts for the fact that, often when we made inquiry as to danger from the Indians, we received for reply, 'No danger; all quiet now; Indians driven off,' etc. While we were in Mankato, news came in of the mas- sacre of three persons, and a boy wounded, in Nicollet County, about eighteen miles from there. The leading citizens tried to smother this report and keep it from the masses, until they could thoroughly investigate the facts connected therewith. A com- mittee was appointed for the purpose, and the report found to be true.
"Secondly, we would say that Judge Flandrau, now Colonel, has command of the forces on the west side. It is his opinion that there is trouble brewing which will soon develop itself, and that Iowa, as well as Minnesota, is in danger. He and Colonel Sibley have troops enough to hold the Indians in check for the present, but how long he could not say. He advises the citizens of Northern and Western Iowa, to be in readiness, as there is certainly a con- cert of action on the part of the various Indian tribes to massacre the white settlers and lay waste the whole northwestern frontier, and they will do it if not promptly checked. Treaties are of no avail, and he thinks our only permanent safety consists in totally annihilating them, and thus completing a lasting peace.
"Col. Flandrau started out a company of armed men on Thursday morning, under Capt. Wm. Bierbauer, to afford what protection they could to the settlers. They were to visit Madelia, and would 27
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HISTORY OF FLOYD COUNTY.
probably extend the scout westward to the Des Moines River. The settlers complain because the Government has taken away their effective men for the war, and does not protect them against the Indians. If thus neglected the country will ere long lose its white population, because there is too much feeling of insecurity " for them to remain there.
" The number of persons known to have been massacred is 215. The number taken prisoners is about forty. Col. Flandrau states that from his knowledge of facts he is satisfied the above number of killed and prisoners is not exaggerated, and will prove much too sinall. The forces at Fort Ridgely, New Ulm, and South Bend, under Colonels Sibley and Flandrau, number about 1,500.
" The county of Blue Earth, and nearly all that part of Minne- sota through which we passed, showed signs of recent desertion. Houses were left tenantless, fields of wheat were unharvested, and everything had the appearance of hasty desertion. Some of the settlers had fled to the villages or forts for safety, and others had removed out of the State, seeking an asylum with their rela- tives and friends in Iowa, Wisconsin and other States."
It would be really sickening to detail the various methods which the Indians practiced in torturing and killing. They seemed to take particular delight in cutting and slashing men, women and children, leaving them not quite dead. Very often they would stretch their victims up on the wall of a house or other building, or on a tree, pinning or nailing them there, horribly mangled and scalped, but not dead!
Concerning the state of affairs at this time, as well as other mat- ters, an educated Winnebago chief popularly known as "Capt. Bradford " wrote a letter in behalf of his brother chief, Mr. French- man, or " Capt. Jim," to J. B. Dawley, of Niles Township, dat- ing it Sept. 30, at Winnebago Agency, (Minn.) as follows:
" You says you wants of us to be friends of whites always. I hopes we will try to do so all time. We dont wants to do like the Sioux did. I am very glad hear from you. If I could get chance to get off this fall, I would come down and send my boy in school again next winter. But our Agent, Mr. Balcombe, he would not let any one Indian go outside of Reserve now. All our people here now. They raise excitement great deal every day. Don't know when we have battle at our place.
"Mr. Frenchman [Capt. Jim] he going to start to St. Paul to- morrow. I have write this letter for him. He is my cousin.
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My name Bradford L. Porter. Most anybody know me in St. Charles. I am teaching school. Frenchman's boy he in my school now. His name John H. Frenchman-left his Indian name since he get in my school. Tell your daughter, Joanna Dawley, John H. Frenchman very glad hear from her. He say he like to come down this fall if he could, but he stay in my school this winter till get excitement over."
In 1861, and after the noted massacre at New Ulm, in Minne- sota, the Government forbade the Winnebago Indians from leaving their reservation; but a few stragglers still persisted in coming this way until they were driven back and forced to remain at home. The Government failing to pay them their annuity they became reckless and wanton, and some of them were found in arms against the Government. Forty of the latter were taken prisoners of war, and shipped by way of the Mississippi River to Rock Island, where they were detained a year or two, and then sent west. Prior to this, thirty-seven Sioux were captured and hung. The impression became prevalent amongst these red savages that the Rebellion meant not only the overthrow of the Government of the United States but also the delivery of all the old hunting grounds back to them.
In 1862 the Twenty-seventh Iowa Infantry, containing Capt. Slocum's company from this county, were ordered from Dubuque to Mille Lacs, to prevent trouble during the payment of the Sioux.
In July, 1863, Indians were found again at their old, horrible practice of massacring on the frontier, but for fear of the United States troops they this time cut short their career.
During the fall of 1863, the war with the Indians continued, the savages being gradually driven back from the settlements or taken prisoners. At this time there were estimated to be 14,000 Indians in Minnesota, of whom 7,200 were Sioux. The winter following there was a cessation of hostilities, but the ensuing spring and summer they resumed warfare, though still farther west. Even the year following (1864) they kept up their hellish work to some extent. But they never extended their depredations into Iowa, and the inhabitants of Floyd County continued to breathe easier until all fear was gone. The scenes of preparation to meet them were very similar to those among the Illinoisans during the Black Hawk war of 1832, and both numerous and ex- travagant were the rumors of "Indians coming," when danger was really far away.
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HISTORY OF FLOYD COUNTY.
Since the war of the Rebellion scarcely an Indian has been seen in this region, and their old camping grounds are fading from memory. It is only a question of time, and a short one at that, when the brutal Indians of this continent will all be killed off, while the smaller and more tractable portion will be absorbed within white civilization.
THE WAR FOR THE UNION, RESUMED.
The thread of story having carried us several years beyond the main point, in order to give an uninterrupted account of the Indian troubles, we now drop back to the summer of 1862, that gloomy and monotonous period of the great war.
Call after call was made for more men, each of which was promptly responded to, the brave sons of Floyd joining the great chorus, "We are coming, Father Abraham, three hundred thou- sand more." Recruiting went steadily on, soldiers' aid societies were formed, and all the concomitants of war were witnessed throughout the land. Patiently and with tears did the people work, wait and pray, wondering how long, oh, how long, they would have to send the sinew and strength of the land to the battle- field to be slain, or more likely to die with protracted illness. We never undertake to describe this mental, moral and physical condi- tion of the people; we commence to hint at it, and ever drop the subject witli a peculiar sense of dissatisfaction.
Aug. 9, 1862, sixteen ladies of Rock Grove published an appeal to the young men of Shell Rock Valley to volunteer for the war. Similar appeals were made by the noble, self-sacrificing women elsewhere in the county. Many men held back, not for any want of patriotism, or of bravery to meet the foe on the field of battle, or sickness and death in the camp, but because they considered it to be a fairer distribution of the burdens of war to resort to draft- ing. The process of drafting, or "conscription," indeed, is not so much to force men into the army,-as the words might seem to many to imply,-as to determine who shall go, and that without hesitation. Besides, it is less expensive than the ordinary means of raising volunteers.
Aug. 21, 1862, one hundred men were sent out from Floyd County, with Charles A. Slocum, Captain, and attached to the Twenty-seventh Iowa Infantry, the history of which will be found in the next chapter.
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HISTORY OF FLOYD COUNTY.
May 8, 1863, a false report came that the Union forces had capt ured Richmond, Va., the capital of the Southern Confederacy. Such details accompanied the report that it seemed almost impos- sible not to believe it. The somewhat uncertain rejoicing which followed the circulation of the report was of course soon termi- nated.
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