USA > Iowa > Story County > History of Story County, Iowa; a record of organization, progress and achievement, Volume I > Part 12
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The legislative act in question appropriated $10,000 for the purchasing of a farm and nominated a board of trustees, consisting of one member from each of the eleven judicial districts of the state, to conduct its affairs and make the location. A bonus was expected from the county that should act- ually secure the location; and in the ultimate, the determination became largely one of the generosity of this bonus. One of the trustees so appointed, doubtless at the instance of Mr. Dana, was E. G. Day of Story County and of Nevada, whose presence on the board was unquestionably a material factor in the ultimate determination. The question of securing the institu- tion, however, did not become an active one until the following Christmas on which day a public meeting was appointed at the court house in Nevada to give form and impetus to the enterprise. The meeting was very success- ful, and a committee, consisting of W. G. Allen, J. L. Dana, T. C. McCall, John Scott, and Judge E. C. Evans, was appointed to represent the interests of the county before the locating board. To back the committee properly, George A. Kellogg, then county judge, was petitioned to call an election for the purpose of voting $10,000 bonds in aid of the college, which election was
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held on the 7th of February, 1859, and resulted almost unanimously in favor of the bonds. Concerning all that happened between this time and the actual vote of the trustees making the election. there is much obscurity ; but the Story County people very soon found out that the $10,000 alone would not secure the institution.
It became. therefore, a matter of necessity to support the public donation with private liberality. and such support was, in fact, very generously given ; although the individual resources of the people at the time were undoubtedly limited. The support thus given, however, was not yet sufficient for the pur- pose, and it is known that Mr. Dana reached Dan McCarthy's one evening from Des Moines, with the advice that, "Something more had got to be clone." Just what more, and how much more, was done, and how it was accomplished, it would be difficult now accurately to tell, but somehow, the conditions were met, and the choice which had seemed to be almost certain to be in favor of Hardin or Polk was ultimately made in favor of Story by a vote of six to four. In the endeavors to reach a favorable conclusion, the private donations of the Story County people had been pushed above the donation of the county as a whole. The entire amount of both public and private donations exceeding $21.000. The donation and the activity of the citizens, however, were not the whole case in favor of the location that was finally made. In the act for establishing the institution, it had been specified that there should be variety of soils and of other conditions so that the farm to be located should be typical of as many different sections and interests of the state as possible. As a matter of fact, the ground chosen is exceptional for Story County in the variety of its local conditions. The ponds which were originally so numerous in various parts of the county, are not notice- able in that immediate vicinity. There was timber and prairie, bottom land and up land, a considerable stream and abundant water supply. The condi- tions of the act were fully met, and the enterprise of the people was very exceptional.
In this connection, it is to be observed that the effort to secure the college and farm was strictly a county matter and not a west side proposition. The local division which had been apparent among the squatters at the first elec- tion for the organization of the county, had entirely disappeared, and the committee which was appointed to represent the county was wholly a Nevada committee. The fact that from such beginnings and under such management. the institution should have been located on the west side of the county has been sometimes a matter of wonderment. Certainly it has appeared to show a spirit of unselfishness in the county seat, and also it has suggested an ap- parent lack of foresight on the part of citizens of the county seats. The facts appear to warrant the conclusion that the Nevada men acted in the matter with the best judgment that was possible and from most commendable motives ; although the truth undoubtedly does stand out that, by their action, they made it possible later on for a rival town to get started.
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Two conditions operated against the hopes which were undoubtedly en- tertained to have the college and farm located in the immediate vicinity of Nevada. One was that the country around Nevada was too flat and had too many ponds and did not offer the required variety of soil. The other was that Story County, in its endeavors to secure the institution, was receiving some important political support from Boone County, and that this sup- port was conditioned upon the institution being located in that portion of Story County which was most accessible to the people of Boone County. Also, Nevada had from the beginning of the county, up to that time been so nearly the whole thing in all the general affairs of the county, and the matter of eight, ten or fifteen miles was yet regarded so lightly by the people in the estimating of neighborhood relations, that probably it did not very seriously occur to the people here that the institution they were securing within ten miles could reasonably be regarded or regard itself as other than a Nevada institution. At any rate, the people of Nevada went heartily into the enterprise, pushed the vote of public funds and the sub- scription of private funds, and gave their most earnest and successful polit- ical endeavors toward the location of the college and farm in Story County.
The decision to locate the college had been indicated by a vote of the trustees on the 21st of June, 1859, and was formally entered on the follow- ing day, the 22d. The news, of course, spread rapidly in the vicinity of the prospective institution, and public interest in the institution became very alert in both Story and Boone Counties. The first manifestation of this interest was an almost spontaneous agreement to hold on the location selected a celebration of the approaching Fourth of July. The consequence was the holding on what is now the college campus of the most notable cele- bration, up to that time in the county, of National Independence. It was, of course, before the days of railroads, and the only transportation to the place was by wagon or on horseback; but the people of Boone and Story Counties both took proper interest, and especially the people of Nevada and Boonsborough. Very numerous delegations went from both towns, and were joined from all about, by as great a concourse of people as the population of the country would warrant. Showers fell while the delega- tions were on their way, but nothing dampened their ardor, and they ar- rived in full force at the scene, the Nevada delegation arriving before that from Boonsborough.
The celebration was organized with James Phelan of Boone as presi- dent, and the Declaration of Independence was read by Paul A. Queal of Nevada. John A. Hull of Boonsborough was orator of the day, and Col. Scott of Nevada, the other principal speaker. While this speaking was in progress, a picnic dinner was being spread, which was very greatly enjoyed, as such occasions are supposed to be enjoyed. Following the dinner, there were toasts to "The Day We Celebrate," by John A. Hull; "The American Flag." by Mr. Guinn of Boone; "The Memory of Washington," by John Scott of Nevada ; "The Heroes of the Revolution," by P. A. Queal; "The
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State Agricultural College and Farm," by J. L. Dana; "The President of the United States ( Buchanan )." by J. S. Frazier ; the "Army and Navy." by Jeremiah Marks of Nevada, who was also marshal of the day; "Our Mothers and Sisters," by R. D. Coldren of Story; "The Hawkeye State," by Mr. Ballinger of Boone. the father, we suppose, of the lately retired Secretary of the Interior, in President Taft's Cabinet; "The Commissioners of the Farmers' College." by E. G. Day; "The Farmers of lowa." by Mr. Foster of Boone: "The Rising Generation, the Hope of the World, and a Mighty Sure Crop in the Hawkeye State." by Prof. Brunning of Boons- borough.
This celebration was a great success. The common rejoicing over the securing of the college serving doubtless to ameliorate political asperities of the time. The chairman of the committee on arrangements at this celebration was Dan McCarthy of Washington Township, whose special pleasure and honor it was fifty years afterwards, as will later be noted. to be president of the day and general master of ceremonies at a Fourth of July celebration on the same ground in 1909. At this celebration, the orator was John A. Hull, Jr., of Boone, son of the orator of fifty years before, and a very great multitude from Story and Boone Counties joined with quite a number of the original celebrators in the felicitations over the event of July 4, 1859.
CHAPTER XI.
COUNTY AFFAIRS BEFORE THE WAR-(CONTINUED).
The politics of the county, as has been before noted, was in the first instance, strictly local, and Skunk River Township, with its 37 votes out- voted Indian Creek Township with its 27 votes in the original county elec- tion, held on April 4, 1853. Elections in those days came on quite fre- quently, and the next election was held in August of the same year, witlı apparently not so much of controversy, and consequently with a smaller vote; for notwithstanding the fact that unquestionably many settlers had, in the meantime. come into the county, less than 60 votes were cast for any office, and the successful candidates were John J. Zenor for sheriff ; Otho French for surveyor ; R. H. Robinson for coroner ; Adolphus Prouty for drainage commissioner and Stephen P. O'Brien for school fund con- missioner. Of these officers elected. Zenor and O'Brien were west-siders, while French. Robinson and Prouty were east-siders. In the following April, there was another election for school fund commissioner, and T. E. Alderman was elected over S. P. O'Brien by a vote of 59 to 43. In August of 1854, Judge Evans was again elected county judge over Adolphus Prouty by a vote of 66 to 36. Austin Prouty defeated Nathaniel Jennings for clerk by 58 to 51, and E. H. French was elected without opposition both prose- cuting attorney and surveyor. In August of 1855. Evans was again elected county judge by 198 votes to 40 for J. H. McLain, and 12 for J. P. Robin- son ; J. C. Moss also had a large majority for county treasurer, as did D. J. Norris for surveyor, and R. Hackley for coroner, but Zenor for sheriff, had only six majority over Geo. Child. In April, 1856, E. G. Day was elected clerk. practically without opposition ; John J. Bell was elected school fund commissioner over S. S. Webb, both being democrats. In August of the same year, Wm. Thompson defeated E. G. Day for clerk, and J. S. Frazier was elected prosecuting attorney. In April, 1857, Isaac Romaine was elected county assessor over W. G. Allen, and T. E. Alderman and I. T. Evans had a tie vote for drainage commissioner, while J. W. Cessna was elected coroner over W. G. Boswell, by a small majority. In this year the new constitution of the state was adopted, and the practice of holding two elections a year was discontinued, save that there was a special elec- tion for school superintendent, in the spring of 1858. Prior to that time,
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however, in August, 1857, Geo. A. Kellogg had been elected county judge over E. B. Fenn, Judge Evans not being this time a candidate. Wm. Lockridge was elected recorder and treasurer over Ed. Schoonover. Geo. Child was elected sheriff over W. B. Sweeney, and R. H. Mitchell was elected surveyor over D. J. Norris. Kellogg and Lockridge were dem- ocrats, and their party was gradually getting control of the county, the original rivalries of personal preference yielding to those of political align- ment. In the April election of 1858, this political condition was further manifested in the election of Geo. M. Maxwell as superintendent of schools by 331 votes to 289, for A. G. Shaw, republican; and in the October fol- lowing. S. S. Webb, democrat, was elected clerk over D. P. Ballard by 339 to 319. These were both clear cut democratic victories, and there was no mistaking the political situation in the county.
In 1859, however, there came the closest and hardest political fight that was ever engaged in by the two leading political parties of the county. Both sides put up strong candidates, particularly for the more important offices. The republicans again nominated Evans for judge and the dem- ocrats renominated Kellogg. The democrats nominated Sam S. Statler for treasurer, he being then deputy under Lockridge ; and the republicans nominated T. J. Ross, who was a young merchant at lowa Center. The republicans renominated Geo. Child for sheriff and the democrats nominated II. B. Young. Also there was the warmest kind of a legislative fight. The senatorial district then consisted of Hardin, Story, Hamilton and Boone Counties, and the representative district, of Story and Hamilton. The legislative conventions of both parties were held at Nevada, and the situation here in the county was thoroughly developed. The republican nominee for senator was John Scott of Story County ; the democrat nomi- nee, Henry B. Huff of Ilardin. The representative candidates were S. B. Rosenkranz of Hamilton and W. J. Graham of Story. The candidates for governor that year were Samuel J. Kirkwood on the republican side, and Augustus Caesar Dodge, the last territorial delegate and one of the first senators of the state and always an idol of democracy, on the other side. The time was one of intense political excitement everywhere, and Mr. Thrall's endeavor to hold down the political discussions through the columns of his paper, were only moderately successful.
In the ultimate, the republicans elected their entire ticket ; but they knew they had had a fight. Kirkwood's majority was 37 in the county. Scott, who was running against an outsider, climbed up to 49. In the case of the former being an outsider and Graham a local resident. Rosenkranz and Graham, being outsiders, the former's majority in the county was 3. although Hamilton County added a little to this majority. Evans ousted Kellogg by a majority of 12, and Ross led Statler by 10. Child led the local ticket with 23. while Reese for superintendent had 6. It was a period of straight voting, and the side that could get the largest number of its followers to the election, elected its ticket.
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Preliminary to this election, especial notice should be given of the nomi- nation of Scott for senator. This was the first notable victory by any citizen of the county in a convention of several counties. Scott had been a candidate the year before for the nomination for district judge, but had been defeated by Porter of Hardin, who made an effective combination with Col. Hepburn of Marshall, for district attorney. In the senatorial convention of the republicans at Nevada, Hardin gave its 14 votes to Win- chester of that county and Boone its 7 to Chas. Pomeroy of that county, while Scott had 8 from Story and 5 from Hamilton. In the ultimate, the Boone vote was turned to Scott and nominated him; but before that, there was an apparent mixing of senatorial and representative politics, that may have had much to do with Hamilton's support of Scott. The representa- tive convention of the two counties, of Story and Hamilton, was held here the same day, being composed largely of the same men as the senatorial delegations from those counties, and the 5 delegates from Hamilton being in the representative convention at the mercy of the 8 from Story. Dana wanted a renomination for representative, but he had antagonized Scott in the judicial convention of the year before, and the latter, who was now in control of both delegations, had no hesitation in winning the senatorship with the help of Hamilton, at the price of conceding the representative nomination to Hamilton. So the Hamilton delegation, as stated, supported Scott in the senatorial convention ; but in the representative convention, the agreement evidently went no further than that Story should give two votes to a Hamilton County man. The Hamilton delegates were not agreed upon a candidate, and it was some time before Rosenkranz was nominated. This matter is of interest as being the first instance of real convention politics, in which Story County is known to have figured with any success.
This senatorial convention was, by all odds, the most important polit- ical gathering that was held in Story County prior to the Civil war, and perhaps the most important that was ever actually held in the county. Its nominee was elected by about 150 majority, but only as the result of a fight through the four counties of the district. The nature of this fight is il- lustrated effectively by the resolutions of the senatorial convention, which resolutions express the sentiment of the prevailing side in the county and the district, and are therefore, under all the circumstances, fairly to be taken as the most authoritative voicing of Story County political sentiment, upon the first occasion when the county may fairly be said to have had clearly defined politics. The resolutions are as follows :
"Having an abiding faith in the integrity and stability of republican in- stitutions and believing it was the design of the framers and those who adopted the federal constitution that it should constitute the organic law of a government founded in justice, and looking solely to the interests of the people- that it was not expected by them that this government would be turned into a machine of corruption and fraud, in letting contracts and selling property- that it was not their intention that slavery should disgrace
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every state and territory under the American flag; and it never was in- tended by our political fathers that the federal constitution should en- hance or encourage the interests of slavery :
"Therefore, as the tendency and inevitable result of the principles and practice of the present democratic party are to inflict all these evils upon this nation,
"Resolved, that in view of the approaching election of 1860 and in con- sideration of the effect this campaign will have upon the result then, success is our bounden duty ; and we will use every honorable means to secure the triumph of our principles, believing that success is a duty we owe to our- selves, our country and our God."
One incident of this campaign deserves here particular mention and is of permanent interest for several reasons: The beginning of this in- cident, as it shows in the record, was the nomination in the democratic county convention of Jonas Duea of what is now Howard Township. for the office of drainage commissioner. As the matter is now understood. the office was not a very important one. The holder of it had a general authority to settle disputes between the man up the stream who wanted to run the water off of his land, and the man down the stream who was likely to get the water ; and certainly, from all that is known of the country at that time and from what has been done to it since and is being done now, there might have been enough for the drainage commissioner to do: but the fact was that the country had not yet progressed far enough to give any systematic attention to the drainage subject ; and the nomination to the office of drainage commissioner was therefore, essentially a com- plimentary matter ; but during the months and years immediately preced- ing this campaign, the Norwegians had begun coming into the county, and while some of them came direct from Norway and had not been naturalized as yet, the most had made a stopping place in Illinois and had been in the country long enough to have acquired their papers of citizenship. In a campaign which, as already noted, was ultimately to be determined by majorities ranging from 6 to 23. a bunch of votes such as already existed in the north and south Norwegian settlements, might well be a matter of vital consideration, and it is to be recorded on behalf of the democrats in this county, that they made, as noted, the first formal bid for the Norwegian support.
The bid was not very high, but the particular Norwegian complimented was indeed the one first to be considered in the matter of visiting recognition of this order. Jonas Duea was then a comparatively young man, but he had been the leading spirit of the committee sent out from Illinois to pick, in this part of lowa. a suitable place for a Norwegian colony ; and when the Committee picked what is now known as Howard Township. and was then the east half of Lafayette, and when the colony, in fact, came and the settlement was made, Mr. Duca was justly regarded as the leader of the settlement; but the democratic plan did not work, and the
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fact that it did not work is undoubtedly one explanation why the republi- cans carried the election and established their lasting supremacy in the county. Mr. Duea had not been in Nevada at the time the nomination was made ; but he, of course, learned of it soon after, and in the next issue of the Story County Advocate, he published a card declining the nomination. His declaration was emphatic; and insomuch as his political sentiment therein expressed was undoubtedly the sentiment of his associates in the set- tlement, his expression may now be taken as the first authoritative announce- ment to the people of Story County of the politics of the Norwegian settle- ment. Mr. Duea dated his card at Story City, September 14th, and he said :
"Editor Advocate: You will please do me the favor if you please, to publish the following card. I notice that the democrats in this county in convention have nominated me for the office of drainage commissioner. It is a pity that they should have taken so much trouble to place me in such a position. I am not flattered by their notice. I am a republican, and I hereby notify the public that I am a candidate for no office, and would not accept one from the democrats. I would not change my politics for any office in the county, to say nothing of the petty trick or bribe that they have attempted. I love freedom and will support the party that I think does the same." Signed, "Jonas Duea."
Not to be one sided in citations of political expressions of this cam- paign, it is worth while to quote a paragraph from a letter published in the Story County Advocate and written from Iowa Center, by one who subscribes himself as "One of the Old Guards." The reader may, at the start, have a little difficulty in comprehending what was regarded by this veteran as the main issue of the campaign ; but further on he will discover that the main grievance was the conduct of the state government under the republican regime, which was then about five years old, and which had been signalized by the addition of other state institutions, to the peniten- tiary, that had been the one state institution when the republicans came into power in the state. Whether the estimate of the amount of the state debt is entirely correct, we have some doubts; but the sentiments expressed were sustained in the ensuing election by a political force that lacked but a few votes of having a majority in the County. The spokesman for the Old Guard said :
WHAT THE "OLD GUARD" SAID.
"Fellow democrats, are you aware that you are on the eve of a guber- natorial election? Are you aware that on the 11th of October next, you are to measure strength with your old inveterate enemy? That enemy, ever changing in name, consistent only in its opposition to the ever onward march of democracy. Yes, on Tuesday the 11th of October next, you will be called upon to exercise the high prerogative of Freemen ; to sit in judg- ment, as jurors, on the acts of high functionaries-your servants-who have abused the power which a generous and confiding constituency en-
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trusted to their hands. Are you ready for the conflict? If not, begin now to get ready-brush up your old rusty armor, buckle on your harness, and prepare to strike another blow for your country. It will be no child's play for the enemy will die hard-it will be such a scene as occurs but once in an age, when men fight for their country, their altars and their fires. Remember that 'Eternal vigilance is the price of Liberty.'-'Have you hitherto spoken in whispers, speak now, as the tempest speaks, sterner and stronger.'
"Fathers, here is a field, for you to labor in, worthy of your proudest palmiest days. We want your counsel and your votes. We want your influence in redeeming our loved and beautiful state from republican mis- rule. Your gray hairs will be a proud banner to light the younger democ- racy on to victory. And. to the young but lion-hearted democracy I would say, arouse ; your country demands your help ; be active. be vigilant ; stir up your lukewarm neighbor-tell him an opportunity is now presented to rid the state and county of a set of leeches, who are fattening on their life's blood -prove by your acts, that you are not degenerate scions of a revolutionary stock. Are incentives to action wanted? Tell them that our state debt under democratic rule was only $70,000, and it is now over $500,000; tell them that the republican officials have trampled the constitution of the state under their feet by running the state into debt over $250,000; tell them that the republicans squandered the people's money; tell them that the republicans spent more money in 1857-yes, in one single year, than the democrats did in eight years. Tell them that we now have to pay to keep the wheels of government in motion, interest annually, as much into $5,000 as it took to carry on the government under a democratic administra- tion! Tell them that Gen. Dodge, our standard bearer, has pledged him- self to strike down the corruption and favoritism instituted by Governor Grimes & Co .; and tell them too, that the republican party, say that 'our taxes are not too high !!! ' Tell them we have a ticket composed of men fully up to the Jeffersonian standard, 'honest, capable, and faithful to the con- stitution,' and we look to them with an abiding confidence for their support, believing that when the sun shall rise on the morning of the 11th of October next, and the democratic clarion shall sound to the charge, every man shall be at his post, bringing with him the aged and infirm, that their hearts may once more be gladdened with an opportunity to battle in the cause of their country.
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