USA > Iowa > Mills County > History of Mills County, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, etc. > Part 50
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In the matter of the drainage of the Missouri bottom, now on this 12th day of August, 1878, it being the time set for hearing in this matter, it is made to appear by the return of James S. Hendrie, sheriff, that due, legal and truly personal service of the pendency and prayer of this petition was by him made in Mills county, on the following named persons as parties, across or over whose land the ditch is proposed to run, namely : H. W. Brown, J. A. Donelaw, John Johnson, Geo. Gilleard, C., B. & Q. R. R., B & M. R. R., E. Jones, J. W. Summers, W. G. Summers, J. J. Swain, Hannah Swain, Benj. Gunsolly, W. H. Fague, George Morrow, J. D. Wright, David Deffibaugh, Jacob Crawson, C. L. Epperson, Jasper Cook, and the K. C., St. J. & C. B. R. R., and it is further made to appear by proof, that the said notice was published for two consecutive weeks in the Mills County Journal, a weekly paper published at Glenwood, in said county, the last publication being made August 3, 1878, by which it appears that due and legal service has been had on the fol- lowing named persons who do not reside in Mills county : N. Hill, J. S. Wright, Jacob Dishong, B. C. Birdsall, and Giles Dowles; and it further appears that claims for damages on account of the location of the ditch or drain, has been made by the following named persons, and none other, namely : H. W. Brown, E. R. Arrison, C. L. Epperson, Benj. Gun- solly, David Deffibaugh, F. H. Dashner, E. Jones, Geo. Gilleard, K. C., St. J. & C. B. R. R.,
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HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
W. H. Taylor, John Johnson, Nelson Hill, and J. A. Donelaw. Therefore it is ordered that further proceedings in this matter be had at the next regular session of this board, and in the meantime shall take the lawful steps necessary to ascertain the amounts of actual dam- age to the several claims aforesaid.
The construction of the ditch was not unattended by opposition, though all matters pertaining thereto were adjusted satisfactorly with a single exception. Damages were assessed, and the final proceedings had in the October term, 1878, as follows:
In the matter of the Watkins ditch: Now, on this 15th day of October, 1878, it is made to appear to the board that the damages heretofore assessed have been secured to be paid, and further, that the public health, convenience and welfare will be promoted by carrying forward to completion the improvement prayed for; therefore, it is ordered unanimously by this board that this ditch and drainage improvement is hereby established on the route specified in the return of Seth Dean, county surveyor, filed July 22, 1878, and the plat and profile accompanying said return, and of the dimensions therein specified; and that the Auditor proceed as provided by law to let the same by contracts and in sections, divided by this board, as follows : Section No. 1 being embankment above the Williams mill-dam, 3,000 feet long, and marked on the ground; sections 2 to 14 inclusive, to be eacli 1,500 feet in length, and as marked on the ground; sections 15 and 16 to be 1,500 feet long each ; section 17 and last, to be 4,000 feet in length more or less, the work on each of said sec- tions to be completed on or before December 1, 1879.
The position of this needed improvement may be noted on the map accompanying this volume. It is sufficient to say that it has already demonstrated the wisdom of the measures which inaugurated and carried to a successful issue its construction.
THE COURT HOUSE.
No records exist relative to the building of this structure. The origi- nal legislation, the notices, the elections, the contract, all have disappeared from the county records for reasons best known to those immediately connected with their disappearance. The building is a brick structure, two stories in height, the upper of which is used for court purposes. On the first floor are the offices devoted to the use of the county officials. The building was erected in 1857, and cost about forty thousand dollars -perhaps a sufficient reason for the loss of all records pertaining to it.
FAIR ASSOCIATIONS.
"The principal advantage of academies consists in the philosophical spirit naturally engendered by them, which spreads itself throughout soci- ety, and extends to all objects. The isolated inquirer may resign himself without fear to the spirit of system: he only hears afar off the contradic- tion which he incurs. But in a learned society the conflict of systematic
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HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
opinions soon results in their overthrow, and the desire of being mutually satisfied necessarily establishes between the members an agreement to admit nothing but the results of observation and calculation. Hence, as experience has shown, true philosophy has been generally diffused since the rise of academies. By setting the example of subjecting everything to the examination of a rigorous analysis, they have dissipated the preju- dices which had too long tyrannized in the sciences, and in which the best intellects of preceding ages had shared. Their useful influence over opinion has, in our day, dispelled errors which had been received with an enthu- siasm that in other times would have perpetuated them. Equally exempt from the credulity which would admit everything, and the prejudice which disposes to the rejection of whatever departs from received ideas, these enlightened bodies have always, in difficult questions, and with refer- ence to extraordinary phenomena, wisely awaited the answers of observa- tion and experiment, which they have at the same time solicited by prizes and by their own labors. Proportioning their appreciation, as well to the magnitude and difficulty of a discovery as to its immediate utility, and convinced by many examples that the most sterile in appearance may some day lead to important consequences, they have encouraged the research for truth in regard to all objects, with the exclusion of those only which the limits of man's understanding render forever inaccessible. Finally, it is from their bosom that those great theories have arisen whose generality places them beyond the common reach, and which, spreading themselves by numerous applications over nature and the arts, have become inexhaustible sources of light and fruition. Wise governments, convinced of the glory and prosperity of empires, have not only instituted them, but attached them to their own service, that they might derive from them that knowledge which has often proved of the highest public ad- vantage."-Laplace, (Precis de l' Historie de l' Astronomie p. 99.)
It was on this principle that the farming community of this county established the various fair organizations that have conduced so largely to foster its agricultural interests. But their value is little understood. Many suppose that mere theories fine-spun from the imaginations of pseudo-farmers and the opportunity to present them, or their results, are the main objects of organizations of this kind. But their real and true object is to present the great principles which lie at the foundation of the practical pursuits of life. It would be an exceedingly difficult matter to point out any single occupation which more directly and profoundly affects the general public than that of tilling the soil-all the experience of all the past should therefore be brought to aid in reducing that occu- pation to the standard of exact science. None but the unskillful farmers say they want no scientific farming. In their occupation they have given them Nature in all her richness, the richest domain for experiment in the
426
HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
known world. As yet, in the west, little has been done; Nature has done so much the cultivators of the soil have been content with her gifts. While in the older east the practical deductions of science have infused new life and given a new impulse and a new energy to all the depart- ments of human industry, and husbandry among the rest, here the farms are being cultivated as they were by the sires and grandsires of long ago .. Progress and improvement are stamped on every feature of western life save this single one, and farmers are plodding on "in the good old way of our fathers."
To obviate this dangerous tendency, local fair associations have been organized and maintained, and with most remarkable results. A kind of generous rivalry has been inaugurated, a rivalry which manifests itself in the improvement of stock and fruit, in the more careful tilling of the soil and consequent increase of crops. The farming community is begin- ning to learn that rich as is the soil they cultivate, it is not inexhaustible, and may even yet be improved. At the fairs, are brought together from all parts of the adjacent country the finest and best of the year's harvest- ing; implements and tools for inspection and comparison ; articles of home manufacture and handiwork to care for these necessary interests of the. farmer's home, and even the products of educated taste to foster a love for the fine arts and the beautiful in Nature and art. All these things are subserved more or less successfully by the various fair associations of the county.
The oldest of these is the Mills County Agricultural Society, which was. organized September 20, 1856, with Josiah Farrer as president, and Lewis W. Tubbs as secretary. The organization had a short life, and ceased to be before a single fair had been held. A second attempt was made March 16, 1858, which resulted in electing as president the gentle- man who had served in that capacity in the preceding organization, and as secretary, W. S. Graff. A board of directors, consisting of one mem- ber for each township, was appointed, who were to report at a future meeting, a constitution and necessary by-laws. When the constitution was drafted, the objects of the association were stated as follows:
ART. 1. The object of this society shall be the encouragment and improvement of agri- culture, domestic manufactures and mechanical arts, and shall be known as the Mills county Agricultural Society.
The first article and those that followed it, with a few verbal changes,. were adopted from the constitution of the Des Moines county association. The last meeting held by the society organized in 1858, bears the date of May 21, 1859. In September of 1859 the last fair was held, the enter- prise not meeting with the support that its importance would seem to have warranted. From that time until March 3, 1866, there was nothing
427
HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
done in the county in this direction. On that day the citizens of the county met at the court house in Glenwood to " re-organize " the society. A committee, consisting of L. A. Williams, William E. Dean and H. A. Copeland, wasappointed to draft a constitution and by-laws. This committee reported April 21, 1866, when the constitution was adopted and the organization again had an existence. In March of 1867 the fol- lowing entry appears in the minute book of the secretary, from which it appears this second attempt ended in failure:
Mr. Mickelwait offered the following resolution :
Resolved, That in the opinion of this meeting the people of Mills county are unwilling to keep up an agricultural society, and after an ineffectual attempt on the part of the few to create an interest in this matter, we deem it expedient to dissolve this organization and it is further resolved that the sum of twenty-five dollars be paid to the secretary for ser- vices and that the remaining funds on hand be appropriated to the Soldier's Orphans' Home at Glenwood, Iowa.
Two years later, May 15, 1869, another attempt was made "to resusci- tate the Mills County Agricultural Society," which resulted in the enroll- ment of twenty-two names on the membership list. George Mickelwait was elected president; E. C. Bosbyshell, treasurer; and S. A. Williams, secretary. The constitution and by-laws of the organization for 1866, were provisionally adopted as those which should govern the new "res- urrection." From that time until the present the society has had a kind of existence, not always successful nor so useful as it might be made, but of this the reader is well aware. It would be a matter calling for con- gratulation should the residents of the county rally to the support of their fair and make it the success it eminently deserves to be. Only in this way can the best interests of the farming community be subserved, interests which, as has been above indicated, are the sole source of wealth and prosperity to the county.
In the summer of 1873 the second fair society was organized at Mal- vern, under the name of the Mills County Central Agricultural and Me- chanical Association. It was the outgrowth of a strong public opinion that the interests of the farming community could best be served at some point more central than that chosen as the headquarters of the society whose history has just been given. The prime movers in the enterprise were J. M. Strahan, D. M. Whitfield, and Joseph Foxworthy, aided by the lead- ing men of that portion of the county. A joint stock company was organized and shares issued at five dollars each. The proceeds thus derived were expended in the purchase of suitable grounds and the erec- tion of buildings. The grounds owned by the society comprise some twenty-eight acres, situated on section thirty-two, at the geographical cen- ter of the county. When the first meeting for the election of permanent officers was called, an enthusiastic gathering convened and chose as presi-
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HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
dent, John Barnum; vice-president, S. Van Orsdale; secretary, J. D. Paddock; and treasurer, W. D. Evans. At the same time and place a board of directors consisting of sixteen persons was chosen. The first fair was held in September, 1873. The prosperity of the organization has been so marked that the price of shares has been advanced to ten dollars each. It is entirely out of debt, and bids fair to rival any similar organization of this portion of the state. The entries at the first fair num- bered three hundred, while those for 1880 made a grand total of thirteen hundred.
To these societies are entrusted all the interests of the county that per- tain to farming. What they have accomplished can perhaps never be fully known or its value estimated. Many have doubtless been incited to renewed endeavor, and thus directly been benefitted by the exhibitions of stock and produce which yearly find their way to these trysting places. One feature must always militate against a completely successful fair, and that is the division of interest that will result from duplicate societies. The area to which the operations of such a society are confined is so small that one or both must finally succumb. In these matters, as in those of a more far-reaching and different nature, community of interests and oneness of purpose must obtain if ever permanent success is to be assured.
.
COUNCIL BLUFFS MEDICAL SOCIETY.
There have been long periods in the history of the race when men engaged in a special work or employed in special pursuits kept wholly to themselves the results of their toil and their speculation. Little comes down to us from those earlier days when men began first to wrestle with the great problems of life and mind, of disease and health. This was not because they thought little, nor because what they did compass in the world of intellect possessed no value, but because the interests of each individual necessitated such action as this. Later on, men engaged in the same occupation or professions banded together to interchange experi- ences and opinions, to review theories and present doctrines. An impulse was thus given to the learned professions that has never yet ceased to have its value; an impulse which is maintained by the same means and fostered for the same ends. In accordance with this idea the Council Bluffs Medical Society was organized, August 2, 1869. The association holds its annual meeting on the first Tuesday in August. Its objects are those pertaining directly to the profession from which its members come. They come together in annual convention and present not only their experiences but relate test cases, present theses on diseases in special forms
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HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
or on medicines with special usage. Doctors often come to their Ther- mopylæ, and must have recourse to the experience of others of the Spar- tan band who brave the dangers of disease, or endure the toil of the physi- cian's life. Few are they who fully realize what these men, faithful in the hour of pain and danger, are required to endure, an endurance second only to the love that prompts them to their task. The society to which many of the physicians of this county belong, while not a distinc- tive county organization, has nevertheless a far-reaching influence within its limits, and thus directly affects the interest of the people in the matter of health.
THE EARLY FERRIES.
During the earliest days of the county's history, passage over the streams within its boundaries was accomplished by fords, at the best un- reliable, and always, at certain seasons, impassible. In a prairie region like this, the banks of the streams are soft and yielding, and even their beds are continually changing, hence a ford is by no means permanently reliable. When the last obstacle to the colonization of this county, and indeed of western Iowa, had been removed, and the tide of immigration began to flow westward, increased facilities were demanded. Very many reached this county from sections farther north, having crossed the Nish- nabotna so high up that a mere fording was all that was necessary. Many stopped, but others kept on their way. These passers-by were of two classes; very many of them were Mormons on their way to the New Jerusalem, and many others were adventurers, the news of the discovery of gold in California having filled every road with trains of fortune seek- ers. With this increased travel came an increased demand for better and safer facilities by which to cross the streams that lay in the way of the emigrant.
One of the earliest ferries was that at White Cloud, across the Nish- nabotna in the southeastern part of the county. It is not known whether this is the one kept by a Mr. Hill, but if not, he was the proprietor of one near that point at a very early day. The records and all authentic information with reference to this ferry have long since been destroyed.
To operate these ferries a license was required from the board of coun- ty commissioners, who also fixed the rates of toll or passage. These ferry licenses were granted usually for a single year, but not infrequently for much longer periods. The keeping of the ferry was a public neces- sity, and those who were able to purchase a " flat-boat," turned it to good advantage by use in this manner. Some of the applications are in full
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HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
accord with other legal documents of early days. Sometimes a notice was posted to the effect that the person whose signature was attached, intended applying for a license. The following is an instance wherein the intention was followed by the act:
NOTICE.
Is hereby given that I shall apply to the next term of the county court at Coonville, for a licence to establish and keep a ferry on the Misourie River at Plattsville in the County of Mills and State of Iowa December 12th, A. D. 1851.
SAM'L MARTIN.
PETITION.
To the Honerable Cort of Mills County:
I pray your Honor for license to establish and keep a ferry at Plattsville acrost the Mis- ourie river in the county of Mills and State of Iowa, extending three-forths of a mild down the river and one and one-forth milds up said river from the town of Plattsville, for the term of ten years, January the fifth, A. D. 1852.
SAMUEL MARTIN.
This was the first establishment of a ferry at this point across the Mis- souri. There had previously been one in operation at Trader's point, con- ducted by Peter A. Sarpy.
Col. Sarpy was one of the first white men in this county, having come in 1836, and engaged in trade with the Indians. The boats used were the ordinary flatboats of the western rivers, and frequently the crossing was so uncertain, the boat would land a mile below its usual haven. Often the passengers were obliged to lend a helping hand to get across at all. Conscious of these disadvantages, in 1853, Col. Sarpy proposed to estab- lish a steam ferry, and the result may be gathered from the following extract :
APPLICATION OF PETER A. SARPY FOR FERRY LICENSE.
The court being satisfied that all the legal requisites on said application were complied with, and that a ferry was needed at the said point, and that the said Sarpy is a suitable person to keep said ferry. It is, therefore, ordered, that license be granted to the said Sarpy to keep said ferry as follows, to-wit:
STATE OF IOWA, MILLS COUNTY. S
To all whom these presents may come, greeting:
Whereas, Peter A. Sarpy having made application to the county court for license to es- tablish and keep a steam ferry boat during the spring emigration, and suitable flat boats, skiffs, etc., at other times across the Missouri river at that point where the east half of sec- tion 26, township 73, north, of range 44 west, borders on said stream, and having in all res- pects complied with the requisites of the law.
These are therefore authorizing the said Peter A. Sarpy to establish and keep for ten years a ferry boat as aforesaid, at the same point at the said river, and have the said privi-
431
HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
lege exclusive for the distance of one mile above the said point, and one mile below said point, and so far as the shore of the said river at the said point, within the limits of the said county is concerned, shall charge ferriage at the following rates, to-wit:
For wagon and two horses (steam-boat) $ 4.00
For wagon and four horses,
5.00
For loose cattle per head,
.25
For sheep per head,
.05
For man,
.10
For wagon and two horses, (flat-boat).
1.00
For wagon and four horses,
1.00
For footman, 66 .10
For horseman,
.50
For sheep per head,
.05
For cattle per head,
.10
In testimony whereof, I have hercunto set my name and affixed my private seal, (there being no seal of office yet provided by law), this the sixteenth day of April, A. D. 1853.
H. P. BENNETT, [SEAL]. County Judge of Mills county, Iowa.
In the following year a license was granted to J. L. Sharpe to " keep a ferry" at Bethlehem. The following is the record in this case;
Upon application of Joseph L. Sharpe for a license to keep a ferry on the Missouri river at the town of Bethlehem, and it appearing to the satisfaction of the court that the said applicant is a suitable person to keep a ferry, and the keeper of the previous ferry at the same point, and it further appearing to the court that due notice of the application has been made, and all other requisites of the law being complied with, it is therefore ordered that so far as the shore of this state is concerned, license be and is hereby granted to the said Joseph L. Sharpe, for the term of ten years from the date hereof, as follows, to-wit:
STATE OF IOWA, SS. MILLS COUNTY.
To all whom these presents shall come, greeting:
WHEREAS, Joseph L. Sharpe having made application to the county court of Mills county for license to establish and keep a ferry at the town of Bethlehem, on the Missouri river, and having in all respects complied with the requisites of the law, these are therefore, authorizing the said said Joseph L. Sharpe to establish and keep, (so far as the shore of this state is concerned) for ten years, a ferry on the Missouri river at the said point, with the exclusive privilege of one mile each way therefrom, above and below said point, and he is authorized to charge and receive tolls for ferrying at the following rates, to-wit :
For wagon and two horses. $ 1.00
For wagon and four horses 1.50
For footman .10
For horseman. .50
For sheep per head. .05
For cattle per head. .10
The time for ferrying is between sunrise and sundown, at all times when the river is within its banks and in boating order.
In testimony whereof, I, Hiram P. Bennett, county judge, have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of said county at my office in Glenwood, this, the 1st day of May, A. D., 1854.
[SEAL.]
HIRAM P. BENNETT, County Judge of Mills county, Iowa.
432
HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
These were all the ferries established in the county. The rates of fer- riage in these days seem exorbitant, but they were hardly so then. There was no choice; either the rates current must be paid or there was no pas- sage. The modern triumphs of engineering skill, by which the widest streams are readily bridged, have made the ferry a thing of the past, and they have, many of them, taken their places among the things that were.
RAILROADS.
Somebody once wrote a book, "The World on Wheels," the title of which, though not historical, is very suggestive of the conditions of prog- ress. Communication with the outside world was neither ready nor pleasant, in the days of the lumbering coach. Two lines of these coaches formerly ran through the county, one, the St. Joseph and Council Bluffs line, running by way of Sidney, Tabor, Glenwood, and thence to Council Bluffs, and the route of the Western Stage company, through from one county seat to another, and these lines formed the only mode of public conveyance from one point to another. The trips of the stages were originally made weekly, then semi-weekly, and finally daily, as the grow- ing business warranted such an increase of facilities. The life of the traveler in those days was by no means a pleasant one. When steep hills must be ascended, or muddy bottoms crossed, the passenger-wearied as he was by the swaying and rough usage of hard driving-was expected to descend and mount the hill or cross the bottom on foot. Passengers then became often travel-stained, in a sense which now no longer obtains. But like all companies whose business was of a public nature, the Wes- tern Stage company was often censured for carelessness and wanton abuse of public good nature. One such censure contains the cause of the trouble that so often led to delayed and damaged mail matter in the days before the railroad. It is as follows:
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