USA > Iowa > Linn County > History of Linn County Iowa : from its earliest settlement to the present time, Volume I > Part 61
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For a number of years citizens residing in west Cedar Rapids and in the eastern part of the county made various attempts for a free bridge across the river. Much of the grain and produce came from Benton county and the west- ern part of Linn county. A number of grain merchants and others were located
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on that side of the river and had their grain in storage at that place and were asking the railroad authorities for permission to erect freight houses on that side of the river. A number of citizens of Cedar Rapids who were interested in Kingston real estate also attempted this enterprise, believing that the time was not far distant before Kingston would become the more important town of the two. A petition was circulated for a free bridge across the Cedar river and pre- sented to the board of supervisors to take the matter under consideration. At the January term, 1871, the board appropriated $14,000 for the purpose, providing that the city or citizens of Cedar Rapids, or both, should guarantee to furnish the balance of such sum as should be necessary to pay for a first-class iron bridge across the Cedar. It was further provided that no part of the county funds should be expended until the whole sum necessary had been raised by subscrip- tion or otherwise. The citizens of Cedar Rapids, and others interested in the city, at onee circulated petitions for funds and also anthorized the mayor of Cedar Rapids to call an election and vote on the question of issuing bonds to aid in the ronstruetion of said bridge. This petition was signed by S. C. Bever, one of the early bankers, and by more than fifty citizens wanting a bridge located at what is now First avenue, asking that the city vote bonds to the extent of $6,000, prom- ising that the citizens would guarantee the balance for the ereetion of a bridge.
Another petition was signed by John F. Ely and about one hundred other citizens all interested in locating the bridge at the foot of Park avenue, now Third avenue. These gentlemen asked for the issuance of $12,000 worth of eity bonds, and were willing to guarantee any additional sum necessary over and above the amount appropriated by the county and eity, which they were to raise by private subseription. Thus, there were two faetions within the city, one working against the other in the matter of the location of the bridge. These factions were composed, of course, of people who were interested in the location at a point that would be most advantageous to their private interests.
During the winter of 1870-71 it was very eold and severe until in March when it became suddenly warm. Heavy rains followed and the river on or about the first of March was very high and the ice commeneed to move out. Large quantities of ice eame rolling and surging down the stream and carried every. thing down the river. In a few days the toll bridge at First avenue went down, struek by one of the ice floes which made it collapse. The Bourne saw mill also became a total wreck. and more or less damage was done to all the mills along the river. On account of the disaster to the toll bridge all communication with Kingston was cut off and it beeame necessary to do something at onee.
The city council was called together and the mayor ealled for an election. In this couneil sat J. J. Snouffer. Dr. Mansfield, Stephens, C. C. Cook, David Den- linger, E. S. Hill, James Bell, and E. Robbins, with Mayor Thomas Z. Cook. The city voted bonds to the extent of $12,000 by a majority vote of 483 for and 83 against the bond proposition. All this time E. Robbins, one of the aldermen, operated a small boat called the "Aurora," which had previously been used between this point and Vinton, as a ferry boat above the dam. It was so arranged that eight teams could eross at the same time.
About the same time Keech & Co. established a ferry boat that was operated by horse power attached to a cable stretched across the river.
The two men having the most to do with the building of this bridge werd William Ure, a member of the board of supervisors, from Scotch Grove, and Wil- liam Richmond, a part of the city council, who had charge of the entire work. These men devoted a great deal of their time in helping along the speedy con- struction of the bridge. The contraet for the superstructure was let in April to Messrs. O'Hanlan and O'Hara at a cost of $22,000.00. The contract provided that the work should be done within ninety days from April 15th. The bridge proper was erected by the Canton Bridge Company, of Canton, Ohio, and cost
JUDGE N. M. HUBBARD
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about $20,000 for the abutment and piers. The other necessary masonry work made a total cost of $42,000. The bridge fund consisted of the following amounts : The county expended $15,000; city bonds, $12,000; subscriptions paid, about $16,000.
For many years this bridge was considered as a county bridge and all moneys used for repairs were paid from the county bridge fund; later it was looked upon as a city bridge, and repairs, ete., were paid for out of the city treasury. This bridge was completed Angust 15th and a celebration was had. It is still used and the bonds have long sinee been paid.
During the year 1874 the board of supervisors appropriated $8,000 for the B avenue bridge and the eitizens subscribed $22,000, of which sum N. B. Brown subscribed $5,000, George Greene $4,000, William Greene $4,000, Higley estate $2,000. A contraet was let for the bridge in September, 1874, in the amount of $28,500; other additions were made, making the bridge cost about $32,000.
Fourteenth avenue bridge, known as the James street bridge, was begun in August, 1875, and completed in December of the same year at a total cost of $27,000. The county appropriated for this bridge $11,500, the city $6,000, and the property owners paid $9,500, T. M. Sinclair paying the largest amount.
The First avenue bridge was constructed in 1884 at a cost of about $25,000, the bridge being opened for traffic in November, 1884.
The Second avenue bridge, being a cement bridge with railings, cost about $110,000, and was opened for traffic in December, 1905.
The new Fourteenth avenue, or James street, bridge was commenced by the Union Construction Company in 1909, and completed in the spring of 1910 at a eost of about $80,000.
EARLY STEAMBOATING ON THE CEDAR
The following account of some early steamboating adventures on the Cedar river is from the pen of B. L. Wick, and is taken from the first volume of the Proceedings of the Historical Society of Linn county. It is of interest.
The subject matter of steamboating on the Cedar will scareely attraet any attention today and means only a pleasure jaunt with more or less inconvenience among sandbars on the upper river. However, historieally speaking, steamboat- ing on this river was an epoch-making period for this section of the country, and the prosperity of our eity was due in a large measure, to our dam, our grist, saw and woolen mills; and to our steamboat traffic. These industries made Cedar Rapids.
It has been said that the history of a town is frequently the history of a great river. This is true of nearly all the great European cities and is equally true of the great marts of commerce in this country. The great Father of Waters has. however, played an important part in the development of the middle west, of which great body of water the Red Cedar is one of its many tributaries. It has been stated that this great river system has 16,000 miles of navigable waters, and it is further the river along whose banks at least three of the European powers have contested for the extension of territory. I shall leave this discussion out of the question, and confine myself to one of its many branches - the Red Cedar.
It was not till August 7, 1807, that Robert Fulton propelled the Clermont up the Hudson by means of steam navigation at the rate of five miles an hour, and solved forever, the great question of water navigation. It was not long till the inventor and his friend, Livingston, extended their operations to the great west, and began building steamboats at Pittsburg, and on Deeember 6, 1812, the "Orleans" of 400 tons burden, was the first steamer which made the trip to New Orleans, and thus opened up the newly acquired possessions. This boat was com- manded by W. I. Roosevelt, a sturdy aneestor of a worthy descendant.
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Prior to this time the products of the great West had been transported by means of rafts and Hat boats, both slow and dangerous. Now river trade could be carried on up as well as down the river, and in what was then considered very quick time.
During the year 1819, Capt. Nelson was the first to propel a steamer, "The Independence," up the Mississippi river from St. Louis. It was not till 1825, according to an old pioneer. Dr. Isaac Galland, that Capt. James White, com- manding the steamer "Mandan, " passed the rapids at Keokuk.
In 1831, Col. George Davenport, the founder of the town which bears his name, explored the Red Cedar as far as Rock creek, and at this place established a trading post with the Indians, which continued for four years. This is the first navigation of this river by the whites on record. The first steamboat on the Des Moines river, of which we have any knowledge, was in 1837, which arrived as far as Keosanqua. The first keel boat was owned by Capt. Cash, and came up in the following year.
It seems that the settlers of the territory early began to encourage steamboat traftie with the world. On the 12th of January. 1839, the legislature of lowa Territory empowered a company to incorporate in the amount of $200,000, in order to build a slack water canal from the Cedar river to the Mississippi by way of Rock creek. An act was also passed for the inspection of steamboats. boilers, etc., at this session. Congress on November 6, 1846. for the purposes of improving the river traffic, granted certain lands to the Territory of lowa, to aid in the improving of the Des Moines river for the purpose of navigation. Even the other day a large appropriation was granted for the erection of locks and a canal at the Keokuk rapids on the Mississippi.
The Red Cedar river is about 248 miles long and is comparatively free from any rapids as far as this city, and hence, was early looked upon as one of the most favored rivers for steamboat navigation. The lowa, into which the C'edar empties, is about 240 miles in length, and not so favorable for navigation.
It is well known that Linn county was created by an act of the legislature of Wisconsin territory, and approved December 21, 1837; and the spot which our city now covers, was settled the following spring, by Osgood Shepherd and Wil- liam Stone, soon followed by Robert Ellis, Philip Hull. the Listebargers, Thos. Gainer and David King.
One cannot speak of steamboating without mentioning Robert Ellis, our re- spected pioneer who landed on the present confines of our city May 8, 1838. and found only one shanty inhabited, which was on the present location of the T. M. Sinclair packing house, and was owned by Philip Hull : the other hut was built near the Cooper mills and was then vacant as the owner, Osgood Shepherd, had gone east for his family. Mr. Ellis located on his present farm that summer and obtained a patent for it from President Polk, and he is no doubt one of the very few in this county who hold title direct from the government of this date. Mr. Ellis in the winter of 1846. had three flat boats built at. Palo. each boat being sixty feet long, sixteen feet wide and drawing three feet of water when loaded. On these boats he loaded four thousand bushels of wheat which he consigned to Noble and MeCutchins, of Burlington, millers of that place. On cach boat he had three men and these were provided with side oars to be used when they got into bends of the river. They started with their cargo the latter part of March and arrived after some trouble at Burlington : when arriving at Burlington the firm were in financial trouble and it looked as though the men could not get their pay. but it was finally arranged if Mr. Ellis could take flour to New Orleans, they could then realize some money and he would be paid. They remained here for some little time, and started out the three flat boats again, loaded down with flour. They were a long time in getting down the stream but kept on paddling when they got fast in the stumps and otherwise floated down the river. By the latter part
PHOTO'S. COPYRIGHTED BY WM. BAYLIS
VIEWS ALONG THE CEDARIRIVER
PUBLIC LIBRARY
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of June they arrived at New Orleans in safety and disposed of the flour, but again were unable to realize on the flour as it had been consigned to eertain brokers and the payments were tied up. They took in the slave markets and otherwise looked around the great eity which was now the great emporium of the west and the southwest. and then took steamer for Burlington. Arriving at Burlington Mr. Ellis stood no show of getting his money, but trusted to luek and bought a horse, riding horseback from Burlington to Cedar Rapids. Not till that fall did he realize anything on this wheat deal, and finally was paid after much trouble by the parties, who were not dishonest, but whose property interests had been tied up so they were unable to realize on their goods sufficiently to pay ereditors.
The new waterway of Robert Ellis became the subject of conversation for some time afterwards, and it inspired others to greater activity. The people realized that they must have an outlet for their produce and cheapen transportation, if possible. It became the subject of serious consideration hy the settlers. If this question could be solved, the greatness and importance of the eity as a commercial center would be assured. By 1839, keel boats had reached Ivanhoe, and quite a trade was carried on at certain seasons of the year, mostly in the spring. and mueh grain and farm produets were taken away in trade for provisions.
Thus Squire Holmes, the Higley Bros., Daniels & Co., and several others, from Marion and Cedar Rapids, in the early forties built flat boats at Westport and Ivanhoe and traded groceries and other artieles the farmers needed for wheat, pork, and other prodnee. This stuff was shipped in the early spring on flat boats. Sheds were also ereeted so as to store the grain until such time as the boats could be loaded. Old Henry Rogers also ereeted a saw mill and shipped a little lumber down the river. It was dangerous and not practical to get the lumber down stream. and the scheme was abandoned.
The first large Mississippi steamer, which came as far as our city limits, was in the month of August, 1844, ealled the "Maid of Iowa." when a number of settlers and also a part of Mormons came as landseekers.
"The first stream boat at Cedar Rapids was the 'Maid of Iowa' commanded by Capt. Chas. Ross. She landed and cabled to the saw-mill on the 3rd of August, 1844. just as the sun was setting."-Extract from Account Book kept by N. B. Brown.
On this boat was Rev. Isaac Searles, born in 1812, who located in Jolson county in 1842. Hle gave the first sermon in true Methodist fashion from the deck of the steamer. and talked to a large concourse of people who had assembled from the surrounding country. Each passenger was offered a lot by the enter- prising people of the city. As a result of this steamboat venture. a Methodist church was organized at the home of one of the Listebargers. During the next ten years. many large and small Mississippi steamers made the Cedar river points as far as Cedar Rapids, and quite a trade had been established between St. Louis, Keokuk, Burlington and this part of the state.
The last of the large Mississippi steamers, which made Cedar Rapids, was the "Uncle Tobey." of two hundred tons burden, which made her way up here among the brush and overhanging willows in the spring of 1853, and remained at the Third avenue landing for several days, at what is now the Warfield-Pratt-Howell building. When departing. after taking on a large cargo of grain and produee. she steamed np the river and turned down the channel on the west side of May's island. A number of people are still living who remember this steamer and the shouts and waving of handkerchiefs as the steamer glided smoothly down the river and out of sight.
From the Annals of Iowa, Vol. 5, page 401. I quote the following showing the rainfall in this state from 1848 to 1855: "In 1848, 26 inches; 1849, 49 inehes ; 1850, 49 ineles: 1851. 741% inches: 1852, 49 inches; 1853, 45 inches; 1854, 23 inelies and in 1855, 28 inches." Up to 1858, the rainfall was below the average.
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while during the years from '58 to '59, it was above the average. From the newspapers of that time, it seems that there were a great many foods during the summer months, so that steamboating was common on all the rivers during the entire year until frost came.
The question has frequently arisen, whether or not the rain fall was greater fifty years ago than now, and on the whole, from the old settlers, and from reports. as kept, it would seem to be about the same. All agree, however, that there was more water in the rivers, and they give their reasons as follows: "That the channel of the river was more narrow, and that the rivers were deeper, and free from the mud and the sand, which have now accumulated due to the tilling of the soil. Then the river banks were lined with trees, which protected the water from the rays of the sun, and the sloughs were filled with water all summer on account of the high grass, and all these sloughs, creeks, bayous, supplied the river with water during all seasons of the year, which is now not the case." All the water which fell in those days found its way into the river, which is not true after the ground became cultivated to any extent, so that it has been figured out that only about a fourth of the water finds its way into the river. This, of course, may be one of the reasons why steamboating was possible fifty years ago and is not now.
Of the many enterprising settlers, who came west to make this eity their home. there were a number of enterprising, wide-awake and industrions men, who had courage and besides possessed more than ordinary ability along commercial lines. Among these settlers, George Greene, who was a prime mover in every new enter- prise, succeeded in organizing a company for the building of a steamboat, to be called the "Cedar Rapids, " and to be especially built for navigation upon the Red Cedar river. In this company were, besides Mr. Greene, W. H. Merritt, the Dan- iels family. Dr. J. F. Ely. Dr. S. D. Carpenter and later. W. B. Mack. A eon- tract was entered into with parties at Pittsburg for the building of a modern steamboat, to be of white oak 155 feet long, single deck, stern wheel, clinker built. to be arranged for freight and passenger traffic, and to draw the least possible amount of water. The contract price for this steamer was $20,000, and it was launched in June, 1858, about three months after the contract was let. It was built at Freedom, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, not far from Pittsburg.
As to the subsequent history of this steamer, I shall confine myself to press notices from the Cedar Valley Times, which will give you an idea of the people and how much interest they took in this vessel, which was to connect them with the outside world. From the issue of July 8th, I find the following: "News has arrived that the 'Cedar Rapids' left Pittsburg July Ist, with 100 tons of freight." From the issue of July 22nd: "The 'Cedar Rapids' arrived from Pittsburg in three weeks, and is around at the dock at Market St. Roman candles were sent up from her deeks when she arrived, and the crowd upon the shores saluted her with renewed cheers and with a firing of cannons; below is her Log : 'Left Pittsburg July Ist, at dark. At Cincinnati the 5th ; at Louisville the 8th : arrived at St. Louis the 12th; left the 15th: arrived at the mouth of the lowa river at 11 o'clock, and took in tow. 60,000 feet of lumber: five feet of water in the channel up to the month of the Cedar river. Arrived at Moscow Friday evening. Consignees, William Greene, W. B. Maek, H. C. Camp. groceries ; L. Daniels. R. C. Rock, Greene and Hay, hardware : W. W. Smith. O. O. Stanchfield, lumber." The article further goes on describing the stemmer as follows: "She is 155 feet long, 26 feet wide, and three feet in the hold. She is a stern wheel, 14 feet in diameter, 18 feet long, buckets being 15 inches wide. She is provided with a decker or smaller engine for supplying the boiler with water, also with a smaller engine for hoisting freight out of the hold. All four engines are separate machines. She is also supplied with appliances, such as water guage. two Evans safety guides, one on each engine, life preservers, fire hose and force pump, in short, everything to make her n first-class passenger boat. The captain
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is J. M. Andrews, a gentleman who has had much experience with river nagiga- tion ; the pilot is Albert Wemper; mate, T. Risley ; engineers, J. P. Fulton and W. M. Hunter; clerks, J. C. Graves, A. W. Lamb. She had on 300 tons of freight, and drew only three feet of water, and when light, draws eleven inches. She had on board eighty-four passengers."
The above description will give you an idea of the first passenger boat of any note built for traffic in Iowa, and was no doubt at that time, one of the best equipped steamers for passenger and freight traffic owned exelusively by Iowa men and operated upon Iowa rivers.
On this steamer, which made its first trip in 1858, was W. B. Mack, a person well known to Cedar Rapids people, and who for half a century, up to the time of his death a few years ago, had been one of the most active business men of our city, and in an early day did much in the east in securing funds from the rich in various investments in this city. Mr. Mack had come to this city in March of this year, at the solicitation of Greene and Merritt, and he entered into a partnership relation with said men in the banking business. He carly saw the opportunity for Cedar Rapids as a wholesale center, and purchased stock in the steam ship company, went east in June, purchased a stock of groceries in New York city, had them transported by rail to Pittsburg, and personally saw that they were prop- erly stored on the "Cedar Rapids." On the route he made a purchase of a con- siderable cargo of Kenawha salt. All of which were shipped to Cedar Rapids, and was the first exclusive wholesale stock of groceries in this city. This had an effect of reducing the price of salt from $5 per barrel, to one-half, and it had the further effect of reducing the price of nearly every commodity, so that Cedar Rapids, on account of its transportation facilities, became known as a cheap trad- ing eenter, and I believe has retained that reputation up to the present time.
On this first trip of the "Cedar Rapids," came as a passenger from Pittsburg, Susan H. Greene, better known to you, as Mrs. A. S. Belt. If we could only have the impression of what this seventeen-year-old young lady saw on this trip from Pittsburg to Cedar Rapids, in the '50s, along this historic waterway, we should undoubtedly have at least a chapter of the history of the country and of the life of the people as she observed it, and it would no doubt make a valuable addi- tion to the history of this eounty.
The "Cedar Rapids" made in all, twelve trips during the season, to St. Louis, stopping at every point along the way to pick up cargo or passengers. In this respect, the captain was much like President Stickney. of the Great Western, who replied to the manager of an electric road the other day, wanting certain traffic relations established, that he would stop for a farm wagon, providing there was anything in it. Of the Cedar Rapids business men, who, during this time re- ceived large shipments of goods from time to time, I note the following: A. C. Keyes, J. S. Cook, A. H. Atwell, H. C. Camp, H. G. Angle. W. W. Smith Bros .. Stanchfield, Taylor, Greene, and W. B. Mack.
From the issue of July 29th, I find the following: "The 'Cedar Rapids' left for St. Louis yesterday, and had in tow, a barge loaded with 1,138 sacks of oats, 736 sacks of wheat, some corn and 938 barrels of flour. At Rochester it will take on 200 barrels of flour. It had besides twenty passengers. It was frequently difficult to get under the bridge at Moscow, so a quantity of sand was taken on board at Cedar Rapids to weigh the steamer down sufficiently to get under the bridge, when the weight of the cargo was not sufficient." On October 14th, the newspaper again mentioned the steamer having arrived from St. Louis with a good cargo, the bulk of which was 45,000 feet of lumber, consigned to O. O. Stanchfield and Gordon & Enos, the captain further reports low water and numerous sand-bars.
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