USA > Iowa > Franklin County > History of Franklin County, Iowa, a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume I > Part 31
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The first blacksmith shop in the township was opened by Mr. Ross and he assisted in building the first sawmill at Old Chapin, acting as head sawyer therein for four years. In 1875 this old pio- neer moved into Marion township on section 28.
E. D. Wright came to the township shortly after Abner Ross. He was born in Erie county, New York. In 1835 Mr. Wright went with his parents to Jones county, Iowa. He was in the gold diggings of California in the early '50s and in 1857 located south of Tharp's Grove, in what is now Marion township. Mrs. Wright taught the first school in Chapin.
S. C. Baker came with his parents, Almon and Julia A. Baker, from Illinois, and in 1858 located on section 9, Ross township. where he lived until 1872, and then sold out and moved to Jasper county.
One of the most prominent and prosperous farmers of this town- ship was W. H. McMillen. He was one of the first settlers in the township, having moved here with his stepfather, John Ashman, in 1858. They came from Saratoga county, New York, in 1858, and settled at Old Chapin. In 1875 he bought a farm of 320 acres just south of the village of Chapin, in Ross township. This land he bought at $13 an acre and it is now one of the finest places in the community. This farm is now owned by Ira T. Deam.
M. D. Gibbs, whose native home was in the State of New York, came with his parents to Franklin county, Iowa, in 1862, and located on section 6. He was a good farmer, prospered, and became one of the valued men of this community.
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HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY
W. D. F. Randolph, of New Jersey, settled in Ross township in 1862. He was a carriage maker by trade, which he carried on to- gether with farming here. Being a man of more than ordinary in- telligence and ability, he was often sought by his neighbors to assume the duties of local offices. He served as assessor of Ross township for a long term of years.
Simon Johnson located here in 1862 and accumulated several hundred acres of land. He held several township offices and was highly esteemed for his probity and fine neighborly qualities.
William Ellis settled on a farm of 160 acres in this township in 1863, where he devoted considerable of his abilities toward the raising of live stock. He was an excellent farmer and through in- dustry and frugality made for himself a farm and good home, and an excellent place in the esteem of the neighborhood.
G. W. Crawford was a good farmer and citizen, who took up a permanent residence in this township in 1862, locating on a farm of 160 acres on section 20. On this place he made many improve- ments and always had it well stocked with horses, cattle and hogs. Later in his career Mr. Crawford formed a partnership with W. W. Richards, at Chapin, and became a dealer in grain and merchandise. Later he added lumber and coal.
J. G. Zimmerman was a leading farmer of Ross township, who came here from Clayton county, Iowa, in 1865 .. At the time, he located on section 16 and soon had eighty acres nicely improved. To this he added several hundred acres more, devoting his time largely to the raising of live stock.
Toward the latter '6os settlement in Ross township became more rapid. Among those who arrived here between 1869 and 1880 were George Goppinger, J. C. Witthoft, A. T. Miller, E. K. Frost, S. A. Gibbs, William Eddy, S. P. Weaver, E. M. Knight, J. E. Crawford, Matthew Bird, Henry Gerfen, George Schollian, W. R. Yelland, Jacob Heuberger and E. F. Morris.
George Goppinger was a Bavarian by birth. He emigrated to the United States in 1868 and in 1869 made a permanent settlement in this township.
J. C. Witthoft, a native of Germany, made his first settlement in this country in Minnesota, where he worked at carpentry until the spring of 1870. That year he came to Franklin county and for four years cultivated a rented farm in this township. Two years there- after he bought a farm on sections 21 and 22, two hundred acres of
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HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY
which he soon had under cultivation. Of this he made one of the best farms in Ross township.
A. T. Miller came from his eastern home with his wife and four children in 1859, and settled on section 28, in West Fork township. There he remained until 1870, when he moved to a farm of 320 acres in Ross township, which he had purchased.
E. K. Frost was born in the State of New York. He became a suc- cessful school teacher and determining to come west, settled in Wis- consin. Mr. Frost arrived in Franklin county in 1871 and settled in Ross township, where he became the most successful fruit grower not only of the township but of the county.
S. A. Gibbs, a native of New York, removed from Winona county, Minnesota, to Franklin county, and located on section 6, Ross town- ship.
William Eddy was a native of Vermont. He served in the Civil war and in 1872 located in Chapin, where he opened the first hotel in that place, which was known as the Union House. The first building in which he entertained the traveler was a small shanty, which soon became too small for his increasing business. He then built a larger house, to which he gave a definite name.
S. P. Weaver was born in Princeton, Illinois. He was a veteran of the Civil war, came to Iowa in 1867, and in 1872 became a resi- dent of Chapin, where he entered the business of general merchan- dising. He left there in the 'Sos and moved to the State of Washington.
E. M. Knight was a New Yorker. After living in several places, he removed to Iowa in 1865. He came to Franklin county in 1872 and the same year opened a blacksmith shop in Chapin. It is said that Mr. Knight bought the first lot sold in the town and planted the first tree.
J. E. Crawford, a New Englander, served in the Civil war and attained the rank of captain. He settled at Dubuque in 1873 and in West Fork township in 1882. That year he commenced the mill- ing business at Chapin, in which he was engaged for many years.
Matthew Bird located on section 13, in Ross township, in 1874. He became quite prominent in local affairs.
S. O. Smedley began his residence in Franklin county in 1875, locating first at Chapin, where in company with his brother-in-law, W. W. Richards, he engaged in the mercantile business, having the first store and being the first postmaster in the town. After three
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HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY
years as a merchant he took up farming in the township and was the first to import Holstein cattle into the county.
Henry Gerfen was born in Prussia. He emigrated to the United States in 1864 and in 1874 moved to Wisconsin. He came to Frank- lin county in 1876 and after working on different farms, bought a tract of land on section 24, in Ross township, where he soon made for himself a good living.
George Schollian was a Pennsylvanian by birth. He was a car- penter and followed his trade in Dubuque county until 1874. In 1876 Mr. Schollian located in Chapin, where he became a dealer in general merchandise. He was a veteran of the Civil war and was held in high esteem by his neighbors, who elected him to different offices in the township.
W. R. Yelland, coming from Wisconsin in 1877, was attracted by the outlook in Franklin county and settled on a farm of 160 acres of land on section 16. On this he placed several head of live stock and improved the land, becoming one of the substantial farmers of the community. The pioneer postoffice of the township, a log cabin, was standing on the place when purchased by Mr. Yelland.
W. T. Adams settled in Ross township in 1876, pur- chasing a farm of 240 acres. This place was splendidly cultivated by Mr. Adams, who also built some of the finest farm structures in the township. Mr. Adams served in the Civil war and filled different township offices. In 1902 he was elected county auditor, serving four years. He died November 5, 1910.
Jacob Heuberger, a native of Switzerland, first settled in the United States at Scales Mound, Illinois, where he learned the trade of wagon making. Coming to Chapin in 1879, he started a wagon shop and soon was busily employed by his neighbors. He later pur- chased a farm a mile north of Chapin, where he now resides.
E. F. Morris was a native of Austria and a blacksmith by trade. He came to America in the spring of 1869 and to Chapin in 1879, where he entered the employ of E. M. Knight, and after a time opened a shop of his own.
Among the first things of importance to take place in Ross was the building of a mill by Abner S. Ross, H. H. Grinnell and R. T. Knight in 1858. This mill was conducted by Mr. Ross four years and by his partners six years longer. The building was then removed.
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HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY
A Mr. Neff, who was in the township a short time in 1857 and had left the county on account of the Indian scare, returned and soon thereafter died. He was buried on the hill on the line of a road. In grading the road some years afterwards a scraper struck the coffin. The body was thereupon removed and reburied in the cemetery.
R. T. Knight and Jane Gwynn were the first couple to be married in Ross township.
Florence Robinson, daughter of Dudley Robinson, was the first person born in the county. The date of her birth was in 1857.
Abner S. Ross kept the postoffice in Ross township on section 31. This was not far from Old Chapin.
The first election held in Ross before its separation from the various townships was held at Shobe's Grove, in 1858.
At William P. Avery's place the first religious services were held in a barn by Mr. Avery, who was the pioneer minister of this section of Franklin county.
In a small log cabin, Mrs. E. D. Wright taught the first school. She also taught three terms in a barn belonging to S. M. Lovering. The first schoolhouse was built in 1861 and destroyed by fire in 1877.
A Methodist Episcopal class was formed in Ross township, which was in the Rockwell charge up to 1883. Up to that time services were held at the schoolhouses. When a frame church was dedicated, the services were conducted by Reverend Crippen, of Mason City, assisted by the pastor, Reverend Will, who lived at Rockwell.
The town of Old Chapin, of which mention is made in the sketch of Richland township, was located on section 36, Richland, and sec- tion 31, Ross township. It was platted December 6, 1858, by Rev. J. B. Grinnell, of Grinnell, Iowa, who afterwards represented the Grinnell district in Congress and was also the founder of that city. But little was ever done in the way of business at Old Chapin, and upon the building of the Iowa Central Railway in 1882 a station was made on the road two miles east of this site, on sections 33 and 34, Ross township. George Beed platted what was called New Chapin, July 29, 1872, Obadiah Smith doing the surveying. The first ones to engage in business was William Avery and W. W. Richards, who formed a partnership and ran a general store. Avery sold his inter- est to J. E. Crawford. A few months thereafter Mr. Richards died and the business was closed.
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HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY
Schollian Brothers were the next to engage in trade here. They carried a small line of hardware, together with a general stock of merchandise. Sometime afterwards a Mr. Harper opened an ex- clusive hardware store. S. B. Weaver was the pioneer grain dealer. He built a large elevator in the winter of 1870-71. William Eddy built and conducted the first hotel, which was called the Union House. E. M. Knight was the first blacksmith. The first station agent was W. W. Richards. For many years S. B. Weaver, who opened the first drug store, was the only one to engage in that busi- ness in Chapin.
The village is unincorporated and has something over one hun- .
dred inhabitants.
The Modern Brotherhood of America, Chapin Lodge, No. 208, a fraternal order, was organized in 1898 with sixteen members. It has grown to thirty-two members. The president of the lodge is W. E. Crawford; secretary and treasurer, L. D. Knesel.
The Chapin Savings Bank, an institution in which the people of the community have great confidence, was organized in 1905, with a capital of $10,000. The first officials were: President, I. T. Deam ; vice president, C. M. Goodyear; cashier, D. E. Kenyon; directors, H. A. Froning, J. Heuberger, G. A. Mayer, H. A. Rust, H. T. Long and J. H. Hutchins. Capital, $10,000; deposits, $176,700; undivided profits, $6,748.
MOTT TOWNSHIP
Mott township was organized in 1879, having been erected out of Washington township. The first election was held at Maple Grove schoolhouse. E. F. Hanks, N. B. Claypool and Walter Beed were the first trustees. All the territory in Mott was formerly a part of Washington, which was one of the three original townships in the county, but being divided from time to time, Washington is now coextensive with the corporate limits of Hampton. Mott is bounded on the north by Ross township; on the east by Ingham; on the south by Reeve; and on the west by Marion.
Mott is composed principally of prairie land, somewhat broken, but it is one of the finest farming districts in the entire county. The territory is well watered and drained by three beautiful streams flowing in an easterly direction. Buffalo creek enters on section 6 and running in a southeasterly course, leaves the township at sec-
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tion 24. Spring creek makes its entrance on the west line of section 19 and leaves on section 25. Mulkins creek passes through sections 30, 29, 28, 33 and 34 and makes its exit from section 35. Along the streams were found by the early settlers considerable groves of tim- ber; none, however, of any great value, with the exception of that part of the township which became known as Mott's Grove. Here the timber was of better quality. As a matter of necessity, the rail- roads entering Hampton first enter Mott township.
James Van Horn located on section 21 in the fall of 1854, and is given the distinction of being the first settler in Mott township. He had a neighbor soon thereafter in the person of Isaac Miller, who stayed but a year or two and then sold to George Ryan. This is most probably part of the land which Ryan later platted for the town of Hampton.
Amon Rice became a permanent settler of Franklin county in 1854. He first located at Four Mile Grove in Geneva township, where he lived until the fall of 1855. That year he removed to sec- tion 20 in Mott township. Mr. Rice at that time was so reduced in circumstances that he had but a five-dollar bill left. He was per- severing and determined, so that through well directed efforts it was not long before he had become comfortably fixed in his cir- cumstances.
Noble Hart came to the township in 1855 and remained until the outbreak of the Civil war, serving until its close, when he returned to Franklin county and after a two years' residence removed to Kansas and there died.
Zebadiah Lathrop and Maria Thatcher Lathrop, his wife, and family emigrated from Pennsylvania in 1851 and settled in Cedar Falls, Iowa. In 1855 they came to Franklin county and located on section 17, in Mott township. At the same time L. S. Lathrop entered a farm here and built a log house and the first season broke ten acres of land. In 1873 L. S. Lathrop moved to Hampton and for a number of years was sexton of the Hampton cemetery.
James Scott settled on section 20, in 1855, and lived there six years. He then found employment in the Hansberry mill, now known as Beed's mill, where he continued until his death, which occurred in 1867.
Others who came in 1855, now remembered, were J. K. Utley, who settled on section 21. remaining, however, but a few years; Vol. 1-22
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HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY
Alexander Frazer, who located on section 15; and Charles Flanagan, who also settled on section 15.
Joshua Cromwell, of Indiana, arrived here in 1858 and located on section 10. He remained a short time and then returned to his native state.
Walter and William G. Beed, natives of England, settled in Franklin county in 1858, choosing Mott township for their home. They were practical farmers and became prominent in the com . munity. In 1872 Walter Beed married Mary L. Haecker.
C. J. Mott, who with his brothers, was probably one of the largest landowners at one time in Franklin county, came to this township in 1859, with a brother-in-law, and purchased 780 acres of land near Hampton. This place made one of the finest stock farms in Iowa. The Mott family became very promiennt as landowners and stock men, and a complete sketch of its members will be found in the second volume of this work.
J. E. Hunter settled here in 1860. He was a native of Vermont. In 1846 he emigrated to Wisconsin. Soon after his arrival in the county, he bought the Hampton House, which he presided over for ten years. He then engaged in farming in this township.
Daniel Wheeler was a Franklin county settler in 1855, first living in Geneva township, where he entered a farm partially improved. In 1862 Mr. Wheeler removed to Mott township, where he became the proprietor and manager of a large farm.
Joseph Bobst arrived in Franklin county in 1862 and became one of the active and prosperous citizens of this township.
Milo Rose, a Buckeye by birth, settled here in 1863 and later was the owner of a farm on section 24. Mr. Rose became prominent not only as a farmer but also as a man of affairs pertinent to the in- terests of his community. Among other offices he held was that of county supervisor.
In Mott township are many citizens of German ancestry, mostly present or former members of the Evangelical Association. They either came from Dane or Sauk county, Wisconsin, or followed on the trail of someone who did. The late Henry Haecker, father of E. D. and Dr. L. E. Haecker, was a pioneer of this township. Mr. Haecker came from Dane county, Wisconsin, with his family, in 1864, locating about two miles north of Hampton, just east of where the Mott schoolhouse stands. He was induced to come by Henry Meyer,
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HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY
Sr., who had resided at that time about eight years in West Fork township, coming from Sauk county, Wisconsin.
Lucius Loss, now deceased, was a near neighbor of the Haeckers in Wisconsin, and upon Mr. Haecker's return to his native state to settle up some business affairs, he induced Loss to return to Franklin county with him, and while here Loss bought the farm on section IO, now owned by David Vought, in Mott township. Soon after Loss' arrival, D. W. Hinman and Warner Marble arrived in the county. The latter bought the farm adjoining Loss' place on sec- tion 15. These settlements were made in the eastern part of Mott township, in the early '6os.
About this time John A. Messelheiser arrived here from Dane county, Wisconsin. He bought the farm which corners on the plat of Hampton, later owned by his son, Adam Messelheiser.
Casper Wolf, Mr. Messelheiser's son-in-law, was here in the early '6os. He bought the farm conducted by his son A. W. Wolf. Abraham and Henry Wolf, brothers of Casper, came about the same time.
Henry Scott, of Ohio, came to Franklin county in 1865 and opened a blacksmith shop in Hampton. Three years thereafter he took up farming in Mott township, on section 35.
E. F. Hanks was from the Empire state. He settled in this town- ship in 1865, on a farm of 160 acres in section 17. Part of this land was also on section 1, in Marion township.
John Nowell emigrated to the United States from England in 1851. After a short residence in New York, he came west and in 1866 settled on section 36, Mott township. He was a veteran of the Civil war. Aaron Church was a settler of 1864. His death oc- curred October 24, 1901.
Jacob Wire became one of the large landowners of Franklin county. He was a Pennsylvanian, who located on section 36, Mott township, in 1867. Mr. Wire was not only a large farmer but an extensive stock breeder and dealer.
George W. Pease was born at South Bend, Indiana. He enlisted in a Wisconsin regiment and served in the Civil war, rising to the rank of second lieutenant. In 1868 Mr. Pease settled on a farm one mile east of Hampton, where he practically failed and removed to Idaho. Returning to Franklin county in 1881 he bought another farm and through good judgment and unlimited determination finally succeeded in his endeavors.
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HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY
I. B. Wheeler settled on a farm in this township in 1868. He had purchased the property in 1864.
J. B. Peck located on a farm two miles east of Hampton, in 1868. He was one of the leading agriculturists of this section of the county during the period of his activity.
J. W. Cummings and A. B. Cummings located here in 1869 and took up farming as a livelihood.
Henry Burmester came from Germany to the United States in 1869 and almost immediately settled in Ross township, where he farmed two years and then located in Chapin. In 1876 he pur- chased 240 acres of land, which he made one of the best farms in the locality.
J. A. Atkinson was born in Dubuque county. He settled on sec- tion 27 in what was then called Washington township and soon be- came extensively engaged as a stock farmer.
John McNeill was one of the large farmers and stock-raisers of Mott township, coming here in 1870.
Jacob Klinefelter became a resident of Mott township in 1870. He was a native of Pennsylvania.
William Crawford removed from Canada, his birthplace, to Michigan in 1865, and in 1870 to Franklin county, locating in Mott township.
Fred Paulhus first began farming in Mott township in 1870. He was a native of Germany and immigrated to the United States in 1854.
D. J. Patton was one of Mott township's leading farmers, arriv- ing here in 1870. Later he located in Ingham township, whence he returned to Mott township and bought a farm of 380 acres on sec- tion 3. Mr. Patton served as a member of the State Legislature for four years. He died March 16, 1910.
Benjamin F. Brown located on section 36, Mott township, in 1870. He was born in Yorkshire, England, and upon coming to this country with his parents settled in Wisconsin. Mr. Brown be- came quite prominent in the affairs of the township and held various local offices.
James M. Snyder became an extensive landowner of Mott town- ship, after taking up his residence here in 1870. He became largely interested in live stock. Mr. Snyder was a cavalryman in the War of the Rebellion and served his country faithfully. As secretary of the Franklin County Agricultural Society he did valiant service.
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HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY
Christopher Fink settled on section 21, this township, in 1871. He was a native of Germany and came to America in 1865, first locating in Cook county, Illinois.
S. A. Davis located on section 1, Mott township, in 1874. Mr. Davis was a Pennsylvanian by birth and served in the Civil war. He became a valuable acquisition to the settlement in Mott township.
A. K. Waters settled here in 1875; Jacob Miller in 1879, on sec- tion 11; David Wolf, in 1877, on section II.
In 1858 the marriage of Thomas Newell and Ellen Lathrop took place. This was the first ceremony of the kind performed in Mott township.
The first birth was that of a child born to Mrs. Charles Knowles.
Mrs. Ryan lost her life by being frozen to death in the winter of 1856-7. This was the first death to occur in the township.
James Van Horn built a small log house on section 21, in the spring of 1854, the first to be erected in Mott township.
The first school was taught at Mott's Grove in a log cabin, in the winter of 1857. Mr. Fairbanks presided over the next school, which was taught in 1858. In 1859 a frame building was erected for school purposes on section 20, and served the township for twenty years.
The first religious service held in Mott township was at the log schoolhouse mentioned above, in 1858, Rev. Thomas K. Hansberry presiding.
In 1873, the Evangelical Lutheran denomination organized a church and held service in the schoolhouse until 1883, when it erected a church edifice on section 19.
The Evangelical Association in Mott township was first organized at Hampton in 1869. Meetings were held in the country at the school- house until 1881, when the society erected a church edifice situated in the valley of Buffalo creek, in the heart of one of the finest rural districts of Franklin county. The building stands on the southwest quarter of the northwest quarter of section 24 and cost about two. thousand dollars. It was dedicated December 19, 1881. The first pas- tor in the new building was Rev. O. F. Roll. The first members of this society were J. A. Messelheiser, Adam Messelheiser and wife, Casper Wolf and wife, William Wolf and wife, Henry Wolf and wife,. Jacob Klinefelter and wife, Jacob Miller and wife, Christian Fink and wife, Catherine Klousia and Conrad Roemer and wife. The pas- tors have lived in Hampton, having charge of the church at this place .. The present pastor in charge is Rev. J. Haehlen.
CHAPTER XXII
CLINTON TOWNSHIP AND THE TOWN OF SHEFFIELD-SECOND TOWN OF
IMPORTANCE IN FRANKLIN COUNTY-WHEN FOUNDED AND BY WHOM-BUSINESS ACTIVITIES, SCHOOLS, CHURCHES, ETC.
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