USA > Iowa > Harrison County > History of Harrison County, Iowa, including a condensed history of the state, the early settlement of the county together with sketches of its pioneers > Part 16
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Lawyer Dakan qualified and discharged the onerous duties of this position by drawing the salary provided therefor, and when informed that Stephen King had resigned, possessing a modesty worthy of imitation in these latter days, rather than take upon himself the duties of County Judge (for he, by reason of his position, was County Judge ad interim), also resigned the office of County Prosecuting Attorney; and as a result one Richard Humphreys (called Dick Humphreys) was, on the 5th day of December, 1853, appointed to fill the vacancy occasioned by the resignation of Mr. Dakan. Mr. Dakan, though not a lawyer, possessed, largely, the symptoms, except that he was a strict temperance man; but outside of this was as windy as the most " gassy " professional lawyer in all the State of Iowa; not barr- ing the other thirty-seven States of this glorious Union.
There is a certain peculiarity touching the first Prosecuting Attorney of this county, and the individual who was appointed to fill his unexpired term, in this: Mr. Dakan was one of the most liberal, enterprising, faithful and upright, uncompromising men of this part of the State, but to him reverses came, matters over which he had no control, and by reason of miscalculation, failed financially, to the utter astonishment of all his friends and neighbors, fled from the face of his creditors, while there was an abundance of property to much more than satisfy his every debt. But the man who had moved in the highest circles of the county, when misfortune crossed his pathway had not the courage to stand faithfully at the financial helm and shore a craft that would have more than paid every obligation, but chose to let it sink without witnessing the scene.
Richard Humphreys, who succeeded Mr. Dakan by appoint-
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ment, was a man of reasonable legal qualifications, but there was a disposition in the man that he could not control, and this con- trolling power was manifest in the year of 1855, when he had migrated to the State of Missouri, and there like Zaccheus climbed a tree, but Zaccheus came down alive, a matter which this limb of the law wholly forgot, for while attached to the limb of the tree, there happening to be a peculiar attachment of this limb of the law to the limb of the tree, that unfortunately broke the neck of the law-limb.
At the April election of 1854 Mr. T. B. Neely was elected to serve out the unexpired term of Mr. Dakan, which he did with credit to himself and the gratification of the entire citizenship of the county electing him.
James W. Bates was elected at the April election of 1855, and drew his salary for the two years following. This gentleman was not a lawyer by profession, but in this matter, like the old- fashioned " Buckeye " when requested to attend church, replied, " I will either go or send a hand," and while Mr. Bates did not in person superintend and discharge the duties of the office to which he was elected, he furnished a hand to do it.
William T. Raymond, then living three miles north of Mag- nolia, was at the April election of 1857 elected to this position, and though a real good farmer, and lately hailing from the land of wooden nutmegs and basswood hams, discharged the duties of this ofice with ability, fairness and impartiality, which to-day is worthy of imitation. Here let it be said that Mr. Raymond, during his term of office, was frequently called upon to perform the functions of the office of County Judge, and while so acting was occupying the position of D. E. Brainard, but whenever so administering justice or otherwise so acting, his acts were always such as to meet the approval of Mr. Brainard.
The ending of the year of 1858 ended the office of County Prosecuting Attorney, an office having its inception not only on
13
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HISTORY OF HARRISON COUNTY.
the adoption of the Code of 1851, but dating back to the time of the admission of this State into the Union.
The following is a list of the Prosecuting Attorneys of this Judicial District:
O. H. Howe, elected Oct. 12, 1858; Henry Ford, Oct. 14, 1862; Orson Rice, Oct. 9, 1866; C. H. Lewis, Oct. 11, 1870; George B. McCarty, Oct. 13, 1874; S. M. Marsh, Oct. 8, 1878, re-elected Nov. 7, 1882.
Then the Twenty-first General Assembly, by act, determined that this office was no longer necessary, and the courts and peo- ple, after an experience and trial thereof for the period of twenty-eight years, fell back on the early wisdom of the State, and rejuvenated the office of County Prosecuting Attorney, to which position J. A. Phillips, an attorney of Dunlap, was chosen at the general election of 1886, and entered on the discharge of his duties on the first Monday of January, 1887.
THE COUNTY OFFICERS
elected at the time of the organization of the county, on the 7th of April, 1853, were as heretofore given, viz .:
Stephen King, County Judge-Mr. King resigned this posi- tion in August of the same year, and one P. Green Cooper, whether by appointment or by reason of being in a position to hold the office ad interim, officiated as County Judge until August election of 1854, at which time James Hardy was elected to fill the vacancy.
At the August election, 1855, James Hardy was re-elected and held this office until the election of D. E. Brainard in August of 1857, the general elections being the time provided for the elec- tion of county officers by act of the Seventh General Assembly, passed March 23, 1858. D. E. Brainard was again elected at the general election of 1859.
Jonas W. Chatburn, elected, 1861.
Samuel Moore, elected, 1863.
1
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HISTORY OF HARRISON COUNTY.
Jamas Harvey, elected, 1865.
H. C. Harshbarger, elected, 1867.
This person last named took the oath on the 1st of January, 1868, and held the position until the taking effect of the act passed by the Twelfth General Assembly, which legislated all the County Judges in the State out of office.
The records kept by these courts of their proceedings are unique, many of them as hard to interpret as the hieroglyphics on the pyramids or the characters on the copper plates found by Joe Smith; more conspicuous for what is not recorded than for the facts set forth.
The laws of the State did not require the County Judge to reside at the seat of justice, and to that end Mr. James Harvey during the term of his office resided on his farm in Raglan, but made occasional visits to the county seat to learn if anybody had departed this life so that executors or an administrator would need be appointed, but while at his business of farming a cer- tain gentleman from the old Buckeye State made a trip to this county in order to settle up an estate which had been hanging fire for a considerable time, when not finding His Honor at his office, made search for him among the hills of Raglan, and on his return stated that the County Judge of Harrison County was precisely like a pony he owned. "Why?" was the ready question of a bystander. Said the stranger, "In the first place he is very hard to catch, and in the second place when you do catch him he is not worth a d-n."
COUNTY TREASURER.
Whoever was elected to this position at the April election of 1853 is not shown by the records, but on the 5th of December, 1853, there being no person acting in such capacity, and there being a vacancy declared by the ad interim County Judge (P. Green Cooper), Mr. W. V. Cooper was by his honor appointed to the position of County Treasurer and Recorder. These two
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HISTORY OF HARRISON COUNTY.
offices were held together up to the 1st day of January, 1865, when they were severed by an act of the Legislature. W. V. Cooper held this position until the August election of 1854, at which time D. M. Gamett was elected to fill the vacancy. Au- gust, 1855, Stephen King was elected, and on the 25th of June, 1856, resigned the office, which was accepted by the court on the 27th of the same month, the resignation to take effect on the 1st day of August following. D. E. Brainard was then appointed to fill out the unexpired term of Stephen King. Jno. W. Cooper was elected August, 1857; * W. J. Boner, October, 1859: A. L. Harvey was elected to fill vacancy, in October, 1860; A. L. Har- vey was elected in October, 1861; Reuben Yiesley in October, 1863; George S. Bacon in October, 1865; A. W. Ford in October, 1867; George S. Bacon in October, 1869; John W. Wood in October, 1871 and 1873; Isaac P. Hill in October, 1875, 1877, 1879, 1881, 1883 and 1885; L. E. Massie in November, 1887.
The closest contest of any of the above was that of Mr. A. L. Harvey, who in 1860 ran for the treasurership, to fill the vacancy occasioned by reason of the death of W. J. Boner. At this elec- tion the Democratic nominee was one Jas. Perley, subsequently a partner in the firm of Dalley & Perley, in the mercantile busi- ness in Magnolia; the vote being so close that Mr. Harvey only had a majority of one. This was alarmingly close, but a major- ity of one, when had and counted, is a terrible big one.
CLERKS OF THE COURTS
Were elected as follows: P. G. Cooper elected in April, 1853; Wm. M. Hill in April, 1854, August, 1856, October, 1858, and October, 1860. In 1861, owing to certain complications regard- ing the governmental difficulties, Capt. Hill resigned and A. G. Hard was appointed in his stead. B. Price elected in October, 1862 and A. G. Hard 1864; J. W. Stocker in October, 1866 and
* W. J. Boner died at St. Jo., Mo., in the spring of 1860, and A. L. Harvey was appointed to the vacancy until the next general election.
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HISTORY OF HARRISON COUNTY.
1868; Henry Gleason in October, 1870, 1872 and 1874; C. L. Hyde in October, 1876, 1878, 1880, 1882 and 1884; Thomas Arthur in November, 1886.
In the matter of the resignation of Captain William M. Hill, as above referred to, if the reader will pardon me I will make such explanation as will in a great measure give reason for an excuse, rather than condemnatory of him.
In the early spring of 1861, Mrs. Hill and the children had gone on a visit to the old home in Virginia, and between the date of her landing in the Old Dominion, and time set by her for her return, the war broke out, and under the existing circum- stances she was unable to pass through the Confederate or Union lines. Here, then, was a condition by which a father was sep- arated from his wife and children, and by reason of the compli- cations, it became necessary for Captain Hill to make a trip to old Virginia in order to procure the return of his wife and children.
Mr. Hill, knowing the temper of the Virginia people, and in good faith supposing that a letter to some of his old friends in that place would, in some measure, show that he was slightly favorable to the southern cause, and pave the way for the obtainment of his wife and family, was foolish enough to write such a letter; but the letter, instead of being sent through the Federal lines, was apprehended and sent to Washington and by the postal department at the place returned to the writer at Magnolia, who, at this time was on his way to Virginia, making the best terms he could in order to procure a permit for the return to Iowa of his wife, self and children. One Joe L. De Forest, whom Hill had taken out of the gutter and had placed in the Clerk's office during this time as his deputy, receiving the mails for his principal, took out of the postoffice at Magnolia this letter which had been returned to Hill, and which had not been considered by the department of sufficient importance to hold, and as soon as perused by him, was carried to and rehearsed in the ears of some of the leaders of the Republican party, which
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brought about a great hurrah, and culminated in this same letter being carried to Des Moines and there placed before the U. S. Grand Jury, and this jury, in term found a bill of indict- ment against Hill for treason.
On the first Monday in January of 1862 he was arrested by " Hub " Hoxie, then U. S. Marshal for this district, and carried to Des Moines for trial at the January term of the U. S. Circuit Court, he (Hill) taking with him a score or more of witnesses from his home at and around Magnolia. On arriving at the place aforesaid he demanded trial but the U. S. District Attorney, instead of trying the case, entered a nolle prosequi, and Hill was set at liberty. This occurred during the afternoon session of the court and the day being so far advanced, the different per- sons from this county, who were in attendance as witnesses, could not then start for their homes. Early in the afternoon an invitation was given by one Charles Van, who had been for some time previously in and about Calhoun, and who at that time lived in West Des Moines, to all of the Harrison county men (except W. T. Raymond and Mr. Hill), to take supper with him that evening at nine o'clock.
Scarcely had the friends of Hill left the hotel until "Hub" Hoxie, without warrant or authority, took Hill from his bed and kidnaped him, carrying him by bypaths, from pillar to post, avoid- ing all county seats or places where Hill could procure legal counsel and be released on habeas corpus, and when arriving at the Mississippi river, put him on board of the cars and rushed him through to Fort Lafayette, where he was held as a prisoner for six or more months, until he would sign a contract by which he released all clainis against the government or Hoxie for damages for false imprisonment. Never during the history of the Republican party was such an egregious outrage committed on the rights of any citizen of the State of Iowa. The Govern- ment was at that time sending regiment after regiment into the. field for the express and avowed purpose of placing the country
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HISTORY OF HARRISON COUNTY.
in a condition by which the civil law could be enforced; but here in Iowa at this time when the courts were not menaced, where there had been an indictment, and the supposed criminal had been brought before the bar for trial, and he had taken up the glove and was willing to try the wager of legal battle and the same had been refused by the courts, then to surreptitiously kidnap the man, was such a shame and disgrace to the party in power, as did in public or secret bring the blush on the cheek of every honest minded citizen in the State.
After the incarceration of the old Captain, and on his return to his own state and family, this disgrace so wrought up his mind that shortly thereafter, there were indications of mental unsoundness, and as a sequence to the story which has been told, Hill in 1879 tried to suicide and soon thereafter was taken to the hospital for the insane at Mt. Pleasant; was discharged from this as an "incurable," and finally died at Mercy Hospital at Dav- enport, Iowa, in 1881, heing so imbecile as to forget wife, chil- dren and all family ties. Yet they who were the authors of this misfortune stalk abroad, in this county at this writing, not seeming to think that they were the authors of so great a mis- fortune, outrage and wrong. This is the saddest incident in all the history of the county.
COUNTY RECORDER
Was an office which was carried along with the office of County Treasurer from the organization of the State up to the spring of 1864, at which time the Legislature of the State, by act of the Tenth General Assembly, severed the offices, and as a result of such legislative action, the different counties in the State, at the general election of 1864, elected a County Recorder. The first Recorder elected in this county was Joe. H. Smith, who was elected in 1864; H. C. Harshbarger, in 1866; J. C. Milliman, in 1868, 1870, 1872 and 1874; A. K. Grow, in 1876, 1878 and 1880; D. M. Hardy in 1882 and 1884; Col. French, in 1886.
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HISTORY OF HARRISON COUNTY.
SCHOOL FUND COMMISSIONER
Was an office in being at the organization of the county, at which time an election was had, viz .: John Thompson was elected in April, 1853 and 1855; Dr. John H. Rice in August, 1857, which office was legislated out of existence in 1858, and became in a condition of inocuous desuetude after the 1st of January, 1859.
COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT OF COMMON SCHOOLS
Was an office created by act of the Legislature of March 12, 1858, and provided that on the first Monday of the April fol- lowing, there should be elected in every organized county, a County Superintendent of Common Schools, who should hold his office for two years or until his successor was elected and quali- fied; this was changed by the next session of the Legislature, by which the person elected on the first Monday of April, 1858, should only hold the office until the election and qualification of his successor, which successor should be elected on the second Tuesday of October, 1859. The first person elected to this office was Joe. H. Smith, in April, 1858; H. D. King, in October, 1859. Mr. King resigned June 1st, 1861, and George S. Bacon was appointed June 5th, 1861; George S. Bacon elected October, 1861; Stephen King, in 1863; R. N. Day, in 1865; C. H. Holmes, in 1867; Horace McKenney, in 1869; Lemuel Gale, in 1871; G. H. Demon, in 1873; S. G. Rogers, in 1875; J. D. Hornby, in 1877 and 1879; A. J. Miller, in 1881 and 1883; H. A. Kinney, in 1885 and 1887.
COUNTY AUDITOR
Was an office created by Chapter 160 of the acts of the Twelfth General Assembly, having in view the disposing of the County Judge system as well as giving furlough to the old County Supervisor system, and providing that all County Judges then in office should be County Auditors, ex officio, for the term of two
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HISTORY OF HARRISON COUNTY.
years following the first Monday of January after their election. This act taking effect on the 4th of July, 1868, Mr. H. C. Harsh- barger, then wearing the ermine, the insignia of this office, was, by virtue of this act, the first County Auditor:
H. C. Harshbarger, by virtue of being County Judge, 1869; William H. Eaton was elected in 1869, 1871, 1873, 1875, 1877, and dying on May 5, 1878, the place was filled by the appoint- ment of L. E. Massie, who was appointed in June, 1878, to fill the vacancy. Almor Stern was elected' in 1878, 1879 and 1881; James H. McGavren was elected in 1883 and 1885; Frank Croes- dale was elected in 1887 for 1888 and 1889.
SHERIFFS.
The first Sheriff elected was Captain Chester M. Hamilton, at the August election in 1853, who resigned on the 1st of Jan- uary, 1854; John M. Rogers was appointed February 25, 1854; John M. Rogers was elected at the August election, in 1854, to fill vacancy; James Hutchinson was elected for the years of 1856 and 1857; Clayton Webb, for the following term, but resigned October 19, 1857, and W. A. Ellis was appointed to fill the vacancy. W. A. Ellis was elected in October, 1858, for the unexpired term of Webb; W. A. Ellis was elected in October, for 1859, 1860, and 1861; Samuel Moore was elected for 1862 and 1863; H. G. Vincent was elected for term of 1864 and 1865, but resigned March 27, 1865; George Musgrave was appointed April 4, 1865; John G. Downs was elected for the term of 1866 and 1867; A. I. Cutler was elected for 1868 and 1869; J. J. Peck was elected in 1870, 1871, 1872, 1873, 1874 and 1875; J. B. Mc- Arthur was elected for 1876, 1877, 1878 and 1879; Wiley Mid- dleton was elected for 1880, 1881, 1882 and 1883; John D. Gar- rison was elected for 1884, 1885, 1886, 1887, 1888 and 1889.
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HISTORY OF HARRISON COUNTY.
SURVEYORS.
George H. White was elected in August, 1853, for 1853 and 1854-1854 and 1855; George H. White was elected in August, 1855, for 1855 and 1856-1856 and 1857; N. M. McKimmey was elected in August, 1857, and held office by election until 1864, and resigned. J. Z. Hunt was appointed to fill the vacancy. John A. Parkin was elected for the years of 1866 and 1867; J. Z. Hunt was elected for the years of 1868 and 1869; George Madison was elected 'for the years of 1870, 1871, 1872, 1873, 1874, 1875 and 1876. Mr. Madison died in 1876, and Logan Crawford was appointed to fill the vacancy. W. M. Magden was elected for the years of 1877, 1878 and 1879; Logan Craw- ford was elected for the years of 1880, 1881, 1882 and 1883; Reuben Ballard was elected for the years of 1884 and 1885, but resigned in 1885, and A. C Snyder was appointed to fill the vacancy, and was elected for the years of 1886 and 1887; John McCabe was elected for the years of 1888 and 1889.
REPRESENTATIVES.
T. Butler Neely, elected in 1854, residence, Little Sioux. N. G. Wyatt, elected in 1856, residence, Magnolia. Samuel H. Cassady, elected in 1858, residence, Sioux City. D. M. Harris, elected in 1859, residence, Audubon county. William W. Fuller, elected in 1861, residence, Magnolia. Stephen King, elected in 1863, residence, Whitesboro. L. R. Bolter, elected in 1865, residence, Jeddo City. J. H. Smith, elected in 1867, residence, Magnolia. Geo. H. McGavren, elected in 1869, residence, Missouri Valley. P. Cadwell, elected in 1871, residence, Magnolia.
L. R. Bolter, elected in 1873 and 1875, residence, Jeddo City. H. B. Lyman, elected in 1877, residence, Dunlap. George Richardson, elected in 1879, residence, Modale.
L. R. Bolter, elected in 1881 and 1883, residence, Logan.
D. M. Harris, elected in 1885, residence, Missouri Valley.
B. F. Roberts, elected in 1887, residence, Dunlap.
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HISTORY OF HARRISON COUNTY.
From the time of the real drawing of party lines in the county in 1860 up to the present, the length of time and number of sessions of the Legislature in which this county has been repre- sented, the Republican party has taken the lead, in this: that eight sessions have been represented by Republicans and six by the Democrats, viz: Fuller, King, Smith, McGavren, Cadwell, Lyman, Richardson and Roberts-Republicans.
Bolter in 1865, 1873, 1875, 1881 and 1883; Harris in 1885; these, Democrats. .
Mr. Bolter has served longer in the popular branch of the "law manufacturing" establishment of the State than any other man in the county, and in addition thereto, I may truthfully add, has ever been a good legislator, but at times has been hedged about by some of those questions which bother men so after election, viz .: the redemption of pledges made before the cast and count of the vote.
William W. Fuller, in 1862, resigned his place in the Legisla- ture and accepted a Captaincy in the volunteer service and entered the army August 16th, 1862, and died at Green wood, Mississippi on the 14th of March, 1863.
Legendary, 'tis said, that the Hon. T. Butler Neely was a man equal to every occasion, while at Iowa City, for representing a district, where the constituency did not wear the finest robes and sail in carriages, he, like the people of his district, wore the garb of the honest yeomanry of the western slope, and while there some coxcomb, thinking to make some sport, in company, asked Mr. Neely what county he resided in and what counties he represented; this being answered by Mr. Neely, this same fellow wanted to know of Neely what the population of Harrison county was? To which Neely replied: "Sir: there is a con- siderable quantity of Acer Dasycarpum, Acer saccharinum, carya amara, juglans nigra, negundo acerides, quercus tinctoria, tilai americana, ulmus americana and ulmus fulvia: but the princi- pal part is cottonwood and water elm."
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This answer being promptly reported to the Speaker, Mr. Neely was at once recognized as the Cincinatus of the House, and his views consulted on all great occasions during that and the extra session which convened July 22, 1856. Some, at this date, pretend to say that Neely started for Iowa City, prior to the convening of the Legislature, on foot and barefooted, having his shoes tied to a walking cane and this cast over his shoulder, and without socks. This Mr. Neely denies and says that the story is an indulgence of fancy at the expense of fact, for hav- ing a pair of socks in his pocket he did not wish to trammel himself by these until he arrived at his place of destination.
Mr. Neely was a good representative man, settled in the county in 1850, lived here for nearly the one-third of a century, married at Little Sioux and af that place reared a large family and within the past decade removed to Port Susan Bay, Washing- ton Territory, at which place he now serves as an official under the Democratic administration, for which during his entire stay here he had a love bordering on adoration.
Hon. George Richardson, like all good men, has been the vic- tim of misplaced confidence and the object of slander, for some who have not the fear of God before their eyes nor respect- ing the truth, have circulated the report that Mr. Richardson, at the time he left his home to represent his constituents, bought his ticket for Washington, D. C., and had his baggage checked for the same place, supposing that the duties of his office called him thither, but inquiry has been made directly of Mr. Richardson, and he says the same is a vile slander, and false in fact and particular.
STATE SENATOR.
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