USA > Iowa > Webster County > Fort Dodge > History of Fort Dodge and Webster County, Iowa, Volume I > Part 31
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With all their crudeness, with all their exposure, with all their privations and hard times-for there were hard times in those days-yet, the pass- ing of those pioneer days, with the quaint old "prairie breaking plow," the string of oxen, the old prairie-schooner wagon, the elk and deer, with now and then a buffalo, the prairie chickens, the "dug-outs," sod houses, and log cabins, give to us old pioneer settlers a tinge of sadness difficult to express in words ; for with all these have gone a great deal of that community and fellowship of neighborhood feeling, so common and so heartily expressed from one to an- other in the abounding hospitality and in the kindly exchange of help in those days. Then those living miles apart were friends and neighbors. Now the fam- ilies living on adjoining quarter sections are strangers. Today it seems that each one thinks he must "go it alone," as did the old "prairie breaking-plow," which usually did go it alone, for it was so constructed as to hold itself ; except at the beginning and at the end of the furrows there was little handling of the rear end , of the long lever. It was easily made to take the sod and to leave it at the farther end.
While we say good-bye to this bygone "breaking-plow," let us not forget that it-like those early and hardy pioneers, rude through they were in some respects, like the old plow and other tools in that day-has bequeathed to us, who are reaping the rich harvest of the sowing, an inheritance of which we can be proud, and for which I most truly hope we are grateful.
Willowedge Farm, Near Ft. Dodge, May, 1912.
THE OLD PRAIRIE SLOUGH By Charles Aldrich
Among the characteristic landmarks of old Iowa which are now becoming obsolete, the prairie slough was one of the most conspicuous and the most neces- sary to be reckoned with. During the springs and summers of long ago one heard a great deal about them. They were the terror of travelers, for in those clays we had no railroads, and the Western Stage Company was often compelled by the bottomless condition of the roads to abandon their coaches and use com- mon lumber wagons instead. A long and strong rope was often indispensable. both with the coaches and lumber wagons. It was tied to the tongue of the vehicle which had been "sloughed down," and the teams were placed out on solid ground where they could pull their very utmost. It was sometimes necessary to pry up the wheels, and it came to be a saying that the traveler must carry with
BENEDICT HOME, FORT DODGE Opened in November, 1907, and maintained by the W. C. T. U. of Iowa
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him a fence rail in order to do his part in the business. In some extreme cases he had literally to "work his passage." When I came into lowa in 1857 the rail- road extended west of Dubuque only thirty miles. From there on we journeyed in a lumber wagon, in which we carried our few household belongings, and the type, cases and stands for a small, old-fashioned printing office. Very fortu- nately my wife and sister rode in a buggy. The No. 3 Washington hand press was wagoned through later. Our route was close to the present track of the Illinois Central Railroad. We had several times to unload our lumber wagon and carry our freight across by hand. In the outskirts of the village of Independence we saw a wagon with a much lighter load than ours stuck fast in the center of a wide slough. How the poor man and team were extricated from this forlorn place we never knew, for they were too far out in the mud and water for us to attempt to reach them. The sloughs were very plenty on this long road of 150 miles, and we often had to use all our skill to get through or around them.
Hon. L. S. Coffin, the well-known Iowan, who has made his name illustrious through his beneficient labors in behalf of railroad employes,-a reform of which he was the sole originator,-migrated into Webster county from the south. He had a heavily loaded wagon, in which the members of his family were also rid- ing, and when he attempted to cross-near the site of the present village of Strat- ford, Hamilton county-one of those wide, deep sloughs, through which if you went one way you would likely wish you had gone another, his wagon stuck fast. His team could not move an inch and he was in much perplexity, for that wide stretch of country as far as eye could reach was without a house. But leaving things as they were, he started out on foot to see if he could find anyone to help him. He soon descried a man with two or three yoke of oxen-a "breaking team"-a couple of miles away. On reaching him he found a ready helper who started at once with his teams to get him out of his trouble. On reaching the spot this was readily accomplished. Mr. Coffin was very grateful and wanted to pay the rough-looking young man for what he had done. But the latter refused to take anything. Mr. Coffin tried to force upon him a $5.00 bill. But the man was incorrigible. Mr. Coffin next bethought him of a bottle of whisky which had luckily been brought along to be handy in case of "snake-bites," but the prairie-breaker was equally set against taking a drop of whisky. Mr. Coffin, who was possibly less an advocate of prohibition than he afterwards became, scarcely knew what to make of a frontiersman who would neither take pay for so good a job nor indulge in "a pull" at the whisky bottle. That event occurred some fifty-seven years ago. Mr. Coffin "still lives" on his farm near Fort Dodge. Mr. Maxwell, who helped him out of the slough, was one of the heroes of the Spirit Lake Expedition and of the great Civil war.
The prairie slough was always an interesting object and a wonder to me. In the winter it would be frozen solid-as cold and dead as an iceberg. Some of the larger ones, however, would be studded with muskrat houses, huge piles of coarse weeds and mosses, which the animals tore up from the bottomis of the sloughs. These creatures wintered in their houses safe from everything except the spears of the Musquakie Indians. But in the summers the prairie sloughs were fairly alive, and with a variety of life. Several species of small mollusks- coiled shells-the names of which the reader may find in any elementary book of conchology, if he is curious about such matters, had lived and died in our
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prairie sloughs for countless ages. The winds drifted the bleached and empty shells ashore, where they often looked like piles of small white gravel. Several species of birds nested in the weeds and coarse grasses which grew out in the water. Yellow-headed blackbirds were the most conspicuous. They were about the size of the purple grackle (crow black-bird) which often comes nowadays into our cities and towns to build its nest and rear its young in the shade trees. The head and neck almost to the shoulders were a bright yellow and glistened like polished gold. They were very beautiful birds, but their notes were ter- ribly harsh-as distressing as the filing of a saw. The beautiful red-wings also made their homes in the sloughs, as did the marsh wrens. They ingeniously wove together several stalks of coarse grass and made themselves strong nests, safe from predatory wolves and foxes. In point of numbers the red-wings far surpassed the others, breeding every summer by millions in our prairie sloughs. The nests of the marsh wrens were marvels of ingenuity. When minks were plenty, they also had their abodes in and about the sloughs. Ducks, geese and cranes summered in these damp regions, often appropriating the muskrat houses for their nests. And there were mosquitoes beyond any computation. They simply swarmed in clouds.
Myriads ,of beautiful dragon-flies-"devil's darning needles"-were also evolved in these prairie sloughs. The young dragon-fly. in the first stage in which it would interest a common observer, was an ill-looking, scraggy, rough water bug. But it presently grew tired of living under water, and on a warmı. sunshiny day, crawled up one of the weed-stalks. Finding a fit place for ridding itself of its old clothes, it sat down to wait. After a while as it dried off in the sun, the back of the head cracked open and a new head, shining like a diamond, was slowly protruded. Its back also soon split open and the new creature slowly came forth with a little bundle compactly rolled up on the middle segment of its body. As the sun continued to warm the insect the bundle unfolded, stretching out into gauzy wings. If, at this juncture, you frightened it, the smart young dragon-fly promptly flew away. Its birth and education were things of its brief past and it was "ready for business"-keen to enjoy all the pleasures of its brief existence. The old shell closed up as the new insect left it, and remained a dry. gray husk, clinging by the stiffened limbs to the support selected for this curious transformation scene.
No two prairie sloughs were alike. We had ponds or lakelets, where the water was open, in rare instances abounding with fish-and others, where the surface was covered with dense growths of bulrushes and coarse grasses, which looked black when seen from a little distance. One could go around such places (Iry shod. Little valleys with but gradual descent, down which the water slowly crept through the grass roots and the black ooze, were also called sloughs, as were wide reaches of swamp lands. These last were the teamsters' and travelers' terror, for it was impossible to go around them. In the spring and in rainy sea- sons they became almost impassable, and when a wagon stuck fast the horses or oxen had a wonderful penchant for lying down, no doubt in great discourage- ment- and there you were !
In July, 1859. I made a journey to Spirit Lake. Cyrus C. Carpenter-years afterwards one of our distinguished governors-was easily persuaded to go with me and show me the way, which was scarcely more for many a weary mile than
I. H.I.Co.
VIEWS OF WILLOWEDGE FARM, THE HOME OF HON. L. S. COFFIN
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a dim trail. He was familiar with every mile of the journey and I was not. The weather was so extremely warm that my horse gave out on the treeless, houseless, 25-mile prairie between the Des Moines river and the lake, and we had to stop on the road until the sun went down, and travel until one o'clock in the morning. to reach our destination. While resting on the ground in the shade of the buggy we became very thirsty. Finally Carpenter, pointing southwest, asked me, " Do you see that patch of black grass?" I saw it plainly though it was half a mile distant. "There," he remarked, "is plenty of water, and I will go and get some." After long plodding through the long prairie grass he re- turned with half a pail of water. It contained fragments of decaying bulrushes, and was doubtless alive with animalcula, but in my terrible thirst I never tasted anything more refreshing. The grass was black-dark green-because it grew tall and rank in the mud and water. Carpenter had learned all about "black grass" in his work as government surveyor.
The prairie slough also entered into our local politics in this way; we had somebody running for office every year, much as we do nowadays. One of "the sloughs" that some of these patriots used to set up was that they had "waded sloughs" in the interests of pioneer settlers. I remember stating editorially in reply to one of these "claims," that undoubtedly in coming time monuments would be set up to mark places where some of these illustrious men had entered the sloughs and where they came out on the farther sides. I had my own ex- perience in the sloughs, and can recall many instances in which my buggy stuck fast, the horses fell down, and I had to jump into the water-and be very quick about it, too-and loosen the harness to save the poor beasts from drowning.
Among the precious schemes adopted by ambitious people for draining sloughs, I recall one which was in the highest degree unique-far ahead of any ever devised by the late Colonel George E. Waring, Jr., our great American authority in that field of usefulness. These drainage "experts" were reported to have "invented" this plan : A large ditching-plow was drawn by means of long ropes and several yoke of oxen, across the shallow enclosed ponds; from one side to the other, simply making a large furrow, but providing no outlet whatever. This was termed "draining the swamp lands." It used to be asserted in those early days that some of these thrifty operators occasionally found county author- ities along the frontier weak enough, or dishonest enough, to grind out warrants and pay for such work. And thus they doubtless "made money."
But what changes have been wrought ! The prairie slough is almost as much a thing of the past as the deer or the buffalo. Tile drainage and the obvious changes in our climate have made dry land of their beds, and many species of animals and birds which once dwelt in them have entirely disappeared. Even the large aquatic and wading birds no longer pass this way, or come and go in very diminished numbers. Some species may also be very near extinction. Cultivated fields occupy the places where the little lakes and ponds shimmered in silvery brightness fifty years ago.
THE HISTORY OF DRAINAGE
There is a lack of literature on the subject of drainage. This is probably due to the fact that drainage is comparatively new. Irrigation is ancient. It is Vol. I-17
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as old as the knowledge of man. Tile drainage on the other hand is less than a century old. William Smith, an eminent English geologist, in an article pub- lished in 1834, recommended deep plowing and drainage as a means of increas- ing the productiveness of farm lands. This would indicate that the subject was at that time a new one. In 1846 England passed a law to loan money at low rates of interest to farmers to drain their farms in the interest of agriculture, and public health. This is probably the first law passed by any government in the interest of drainage of farm land.
In 1825 a Scotchman bought a farm in New York state. It had the reputa- tion of being worn out. When leaving his home to take a ship for America he saw fires burning by the wayside as he looked out of the window of the coach in which he was riding. He asked the coachman what it meant. The coachman laughingly said, "Oh, some fools are burning crockery to put in the ground."
On inquiry Johnson learned that tile were being made for the purpose of drainage. It set him thinking. He concluded that such an improvement would be valuable. He knew his neighbors would ridicule him and he would be a sub- ject for all the jokes of the community, but he was too strong a character to be laughed down.
He shipped tile from his country and when they were being laid his neigh- bors watched the process with interest and made wise observations. They asked how water could get into them, how would the water overcome the pressure of the atmosphere at the outlet and get out of the tile. They would freeze, they would crush, they might poison the land. They would draw the water to them and make the land too wet; they would dry out the land in the summer. But the Scotchman did not weaken, and the tile were put in the ground. This was in 1835, and we believe it was the first used in the United States. It was known as horse -- shoe tile. It was made open on one side and was laid on the open side in the ditch. The tile were laid from two to twenty feet apart.
To us this seems extravagant, but we must remember that this man was do- ing a new work. He had no man's experience to which he might appeal to guide him. The philosophy of tiling had not been developed. The whys and where- fores were unanswered. It is probable he would have gotten as good results with less work and expense, but he did well, and his name should be among the great and valuable men of our country.
The theories and dolorous predictions of the neighbors were shattered when the tile began to do business. The poor and worn-out farm in a few years took the blue ribbon from the State Agricultural Society for being the best tilled and arranged farm in the state. The wheat raised on the farm took the first premium for the greatest yield and superior quality. The tile won the day.
In a bulletin published by Mr. J. O. Wright, supervising drainage engi- neer, Washington, D. C., he makes the statement that the first authentic record of any drainage law in the United States, was that of a law enacted by the gen- eral assembly of New Jersey, September 12, 1872. In this statement he is in error, for the general assembly of Iowa passed a drainage law, which was ap- proved by the then Governor C. C. Carpenter on April 24, 1872. This was nearly five months prior to the enactment of the New Jersey law. To Iowa, therefore, belongs the honor of passing the first drainage law in the United States; and to Governor Carpenter belongs the honor of having signed it.
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"THE EVERGREENS, " FIRST NURSERY IN NORTHWESTERN IOWA, PLANTED BY A. J. HAVILAND
THE NEW YOR PUBLIC LIBRARY
ASTOR, LENOX AND TILDEN FOUNDATIONS.
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This law was made applicable to counties of 10,000 and more inhabitants. The law was enacted no doubt for the eastern portion of the state, as there was not a county in the northwestern part of the state at that time with that many in- habitants, nearly half of the counties of the state then had less than 10,000 population.
Then it is probable that this provision was to protect the non-resident land owner. A large portion of the population in this part of the state were home- steaders and did not at that time have patents on their land and were not required to pay taxes until they had. But they could have, if permitted, formed drain- age districts, the expense of which might have been more than the value of all the land in the district. The land then could be purchased for $2.50 to $5.00 per acre. The provisions of this law for forming drainage districts remained in force until about six or eight years ago, when they were declared to be uncon- stitutional by the supreme court of the state. The law was amended from time to time to meet the requirements of the growing condition of the state.
The first drainage work in Webster county was begun in the year 1893. The preceding year a petition of the interested landholders had been presented to the board of supervisors, asking for the construction of an open ditch in Cooper township. At the April, 1893, session of the board, the petition was granted, and a ditch was constructed over and across sections 13, 14, 15. 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, and 33 of township 89, range 27, Cooper township. In excavating this ditch 70,957 cubic yards of dirt were removed. The total cost of the ditch was $9,000. In a few years the ditch began to fill up and soon became practically useless as a drain. In the year 1891, the board of supervisors after an examina- tion of the ditch reported that it was practically worthless. Soon after that a petition was filed with the county auditor asking that the ditch be cleaned. Under the law at that time it was necessary to appoint commissioners to appraise the damages and to fix assessments. On account of the large amount of money which the ditch had cost originally, it was feared that the additional expenses of cleaning would not meet with favor among the most of the people owning the lands within the drainage district. This caused the matter to be delayed from time to time. Neither the board of supervisors or the auditor took any action upon the matter. However, on August 30, 1902, Judge J. R. Whitaker of the eleventh judicial district issued a writ of mandamus in a case entitled J. J. Ryan et al. vs. J. F. Ford, auditor, ordering the repair and improvement of the Cooper township ditch. No action, however, was taken under the writ; and May 31, 1904, A. N. Botsford and six others again filed a petition with the county auditor asking for the construction of a drainage ditch, which in the words of their petition would "trace the course of a ditch repaired and con- structed about ten years since, and which has become obstructed and insufficient for drainage purposes." This time the board took action upon the petition and L. L. Merrill and J. A. Adams, disinterested resident landholders of Webster county, and C. H. Reynolds, county surveyor of Webster county, were appointed as commissioners to inspect and classify all the lands affected by the proposed ditch. The commissioners reported July 29, 1905, and notice of assessment was served on all interested parties by W. C. Woolsey, deputy sheriff, on August 9, 1905. After considerable delay because of inability to secure bids, the work was finally let to Messrs. Boyles and Lizenby, who completed the ditch. This ditch
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was the cause of much litigation, and cost the county more than the construction of the original ditch.
The second drainage district established was in 1904, and was established under the law of that year, being the first district to be established under the present drainage law. It includes lands lying principally in Lost Grove and Dayton townships and drains what is known as the Blair's Lake district.
At the present time there are 163 drainage districts in Webster county. At the close of the year 1912 the total amount spent for drainage work in these districts was $1,250,162. The cost per acre of this drainage was from nothing to a maximum of $45 per acre. However, it has practically doubled the value of the farm lands within the drainage district. In addition to the amount spent for district drainage, there has been an even larger amount spent for private drains. This class of drainage is generally tile ditch, while the work in the drain- age districts is both open ditch and tile.
FARMERS CO-OPERATIVE MOVEMENT
By C. G. Messerole
In these days when "Big Business" turns to co-operation as an alternative from a return to cut-throat competition. or to continued strife in the courts as a result of a "Joy Riding," which has finally exhausted the patience of a long suffering public, it seems proper that in the history of Webster county there should appear the story of one of the first really successful co-operative busi- ness enterprises ever conducted in the United States.
A glance at the co-operative map of Iowa, at once locates Webster county as the very center of the co-operative industry. The reason for this is: first, that Webster county is the center of an intelligent rural citizenship; second, that it is the center of a rich agricultural section ; and last, but by no means least, be- cause of the sturdy character of the rural population that would no longer sub- mit to a further exploitation of the resources of the soil, and the toil of her husbandmen.
In the year 1901, a group of farmers of Gowrie and Lost Grove township met in a country school house in the vicinity of Gowrie, for the purpose of de- vising some plan, whereby the local market for farm produce might be freed from the restrictions which surrounded it. They were laughed at, jeered at, and even threatened; but they stuck to the main purpose, that of establishing the right to market their produce in their own way, and to buy such goods as they saw fit through their own agency. They asked no rebates or special privileges. All they wanted was a site for their elevator, an open market, and a "Square Deal." Did they get it?
Both the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific, and the Chicago & North Western Railroads refused to grant them a site. After much delay, they suc- ceeded in buying a piece of ground near the Newton & North Western Railroad. They began the erection of an elevator before even a track was laid to their property ; and this in face of repeated threats that the track would never be laid. It may be pertinent to note at this point, that corporations as well as individuals have a right to change their minds, and that under some conditions they have
W. H. PLUMB Pioneer Nurseryman
THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
ASTOP, LENOX AND
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been known to do so. It is a significant fact, that at the present time, there is not a railroad company doing business in lowa, that is not begging for co- operative industries to be located on their lines. This fact alone is sufficient proof of the success of the movement.
The elevator at Gowrie was finally completed. The side track was laid, in spite of former threats ; and the elevator was formally opened for business Sep- tember 15, 1902. The writer well remembers (not without a smile), the threats of competitors, and their effect upon the official board.
The writer, who was employed as the first manager, was told to open up the house, but was informed that he was not expected to do much business. The manager having some faith in his own ability, and still larger faith in the justice of the cause, resolved, that he would either make of this business a realization of the hopes of the founders, or that he would throw up the job.
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