USA > Iowa > Story County > History of Story County, Iowa; a record of organization, progress and achievement, Volume I > Part 4
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In these years of '51 and '52, the lands of Story County were not yet subject to entry, but about this time the lands South of the middle line of the County were opened to entry, and the lands farther North were opened soon afterwards. In anticipation of such opening to entry, these earlier settlers squatted in what appeared to them to be the favorable locations ; and later, when they were permitted to do so, they entered their lands or
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HISTORY OF STORY COUNTY
had them entered at the Government Land Office in Des Moines. When the time came for the organization of the County, there arose a political rivalry, not on party lines but between the settlement on the one hand on and about Squaw Fork and extending eastward across Skunk River to the east side of the groves about Bloomington and the settlement on the other hand along Indian Creek, extending from the Southern border of the County Northward to the locality, as it is now known, of Hickory Grove. In this rivalry, the question of supremacy was very easily decided; for the settlers on Skunk and Squaw Fork outvoted the settlers on Indian Creek. and elected the entire slate of the first officers of the County. These begin- nings, however, having once been made, and the time having come, prob- ably, when there were more lands open to entry in Story County than in any other County not more difficult of access, the county thickened rapidly in population, and routes of travel, or, at least, paths of communication. were established between the before scattered settlements, all tending toward the formation of a County according to recognized standards, with the as- pirations, organization and differences such as are to be expected in a new community.
Before undertaking, however, to name the first of these occupants of the land of Story County, it is proper to note, as is done with the Norseman in America, that there seems to have been an attempt at settlement in the County before the first of the known settlements. Those who came first to the Southwestern part of the County, and there were none in any other part of the County before those who are known to have been in that part, found standing a white man's shack on the South side of Ballard Grove, in Union Township, not far from Walnut Grove. The Ballards saw it when they came and settled a little farther West. Who built this shack, what were his hopes for the building of a County of which he was. in fact, the first white inhabitant, is not known nor even guessed. There is a suggestion from the locality that he may have been murdered by the Indians, but Indians were not murdering to any notable extent in this part of the Country at any time. and the one definite fact is that he was there and did not stay.
Of the permanent settlement. the earliest is now definitely understood to have been that of Dan W. and Mormon Ballard, on the east side of Pales- tine Township. on the 8th of March, 1848. They gave their name to Bal- lard Grove and Ballard Creek. They built them homes, occupied land, and remained there in the locality for about 30 years. They were not the sort of men to harmonize with the Norwegian settlement, which, in time, com- pletely surrounded them, and ultimately they sold out and went farther West. As has been before noted, they were not directly followed by any number of other settlers coming, like them, from Des Moines, but they were first in the County of permanent settlers and the fact has to be recog- nized and recorded. The next settler, and the one who for a quarter of a century was supposed to have been the first in the County, was Win. Parker. He located on the Southern edge of Collins Township, and there established
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HISTORY OF STORY COUNTY
the homestead upon which he lived and died. Writing under date of June 23d, 1876, for the purpose of establishing his record of settlement, he said : "In the fall of 1848. I came to Story County and built me a log cabin, size, 12×14 feet. April 12, 1849, I came to my cabin. It had no opening for door or window. I cut out a door with my ax, so I could carry my goods in. and moved into the pen, without roof or floor, I cut a tree for boards to cover the cabin, took my wagon bed apart to make a floor in my mansion to keep the two little babies off the ground; and, being root hog or die, my better half and I went to work. Some people say it is hard times now. They do not know hard times when they see them. Let them take it rough and tumble as I did, and they may talk. We lived in this hut till the next August, when I put me up what was called a good house in those days. I went 60 miles to mill, took me about a week to make the trip. We had a cast iron mill in the neighborhood that we used to run by hand. We were often glad to get a peck of corn cracked on this mill. Now I can go to mill and return in half a day. I have now 230 acres of land, all fenced except II acres. Collins Township has improved in proportion."
The first of the settlers on Skunk River was John H. Keigley. He lo- cated in the Northeastern part of Franklin Township, west of Skunk, and near the stream which is known as Keigley's branch. He lived there for many years and spent his old age in Ames, where he died. He was a man of much force and was always prominent in the affairs of his portion of the County. It happens that in 1869, some one, writing to the Story County Ægis concerning some matters of early history, invited by his narra- tions some correction, which Mr. Keigley, in a note to the then editor, made in the following statement : "In company with Nathaniel Jennings, I landed in Skunk River, Franklin Township. November, 1851, and erected a cabin on the farm where I now reside. Then as Alexander Sellkirk, 'I was monarch of all I surveyed.' The next to locate on Skunk River was Jesse Housong and William Arrasmith and families who came in the fall of 1852. Next came Franklin Thompson, William D. Evans, E. C. Evans and families. Then the following February, 1853. James Smith and sons lo- cated in Lafayette Township, his being the seventh family to locate on Skunk River, and not the first. I could give the settlement of each further if necessary. It was not my intention to write a full history of our County, but to correct an error."
The last of Mr. Keigley's observations suggests how some of the diffi- culties of compiling the earliest history of the County might have been obviated ; for, in fact. there was none of the carlier settlers better qualified than himself to have written a full history of the County any time ; and if he had done so, instead of excusing himself for not doing so, we should now be very glad. It will be noted that Mr. Keigley, in this statement. while he denies to James Smith the credit of being the first settler on Skunk. which credit we think was never really claimed for him, fixed him definitely as the first settler in Lafayette; also, contemporaneous with Mr. Keigley,
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HISTORY OF STORY COUNTY
was his brother-in-law, Nathaniel Jennings, a bachelor, who never married, but who made his home with the Keigleys until the call for arms in 1861. Then he went out with Company E of the Third lowa Infantry, of which Company he was defeated for a Lieutenancy by one single vote, and he died in the service at Memphis in August, 1862. Other testimony, con- cerning the first settlers on Skunk, is offered by Stephen P. O'Brien. He came to the County in October, 1852, and is the sole present day survivor of these men who settled in that locality before the organization of the County. He cites that in November, 1852, a Presidential Election was held for the settlement on Skunk River and Squaw Fork and returns made to Boone (or Polk) County. This was the first election to be held in the county or at least in that part of the County, and it appears to have been held for the west part of the County. The election was held at the home of Shadrick Worrell in Worrell's Grove, near the old time village of New Philadelphia, and probably a dozen votes were cast. Those now recalled who supposedly participated in this election are John H. Keigley, Nathaniel Jennings, Samuel Hiestand, John Wheeler, John T. Wheeler, Thomas Vest, Shadrick Worrell, Eli Deal, Sr., and John Housong.
In the same year, there was also an election at Sam McDaniels' shanty on the east side of East Indian, a mile or so South of llickory Grove. W. K. Wood and doubtless Isaac S. French participated in this election, as presumably did also Curtis J. Brown, George M. Kirkman, Jeremiah Corey, George Dye, Adolphus Prouty, James Sellers, Squire J. P. Robinson, Isaac S. French and some others. Tradition fixes this election for August, when the governor was being voted for.
We know of no returns now extant of these elections, but among the frontiersmen democrats usually predominated, and there can be little doubt that the initial vote of Story County was recorded in favor of Stephen Hempstead for governor or of Franklin Pierce for president.
Next of the pioneers who should here be separately specially mentioned, is Isaac S. French, who was in the County in 1850 in Indian Creek Town- ship and returned the next year and entered his first piece of land. . After- wards he sold his land and located again at or near Colo, in which vil- lage he now resides, he being the earliest of the surviving pioneers of the County. He was followed to the county by several brothers and by his father, Micah French, who was a soldier of the War of 1812, and who died here long afterwards at the great age of 07.
Of the first settlers who located in one place and stayed there for the balance of their lives priority, however, justly belongs to William K. Wood of lowa Center. le located on the farm where he now resides in March, 1852, and in all of the nearly 60 years intervening, he has been counted one of the most representative citizens of the County. In the early seven- ties, he represented the County for two terms in the general assembly and so long as he cared to do so he exerted much influence in public affairs. Prior to his location in Story County, he had settled on June 22, 1849,
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HISTORY OF STORY COUNTY
in the edge of the timber which skirts Skunk River, in the North part of Polk County, near the home of his brother-in-law, Calvin Corey, who had located there two years before, and from whom the neighborhood had ac- quired its name of Corey's Grove. After a time, however, he was not sat- isfied at Corey's Grove, and took occasion to make a number of trips around with others who were prospecting for land. In this way, he first saw the locality on the east side of Indian Creek, near Iowa Cen- ter, where is his present home and farm. One of these excursions was in January, 1851, when he and three others were on the North side of Skunk for four days, and slept on the ground with one blanket between them. The only settler then in the eastern portion of the County, and so far as he knew of the County as a whole, was William Parker before mentioned. He selected a quarter section of school land, which to him was the most attractive piece he could find on all the prairie, and though it was not then subject to entry and purchase, he ran his chance and later took possession. After a time he perfected his title by having the land appraised. as was provided for school lands, and he paid the price to Stephen O'Brien, now of Ames, who had become the School Fund Commissioner. In February of the following winter, 1852, he helped Adolphus Prouty to move over from Corey's Grove to Iowa Center, making Prouty the next after Parker and French of the settlers in this portion of the County. Then he built a three- sided slab shanty for himself on his piece of school land, built a big bon fire against a tree on the fourth side, and was prepared to be at home. In the last of March. he brought over his wife and part of their belongings, and thus they became the next of the families in this part of the County.
Some of Mr. Wood's reminiscences, dictated several years ago, afford a somewhat definite picture of some conditions as they were in the prospec- tive county at this time. Directly after his settlement, there came a heavy snow, and he hurried back to Corey's Grove to transport provisions before the thaw should come, but the thaw got the start of him and it made the snow and ice slump and Skunk River a sea. The river was between him and home, but he got over it all somehow, and then it took him all night to make the distance from there home. The oxen could hardly get along. He had to unload and pull his wagon out several times, and was in the snow from ankle to hip deep all the time. Arriving home, he could barely tarry for breakfast and then started back to the Grove after his brother, Jesse. whose leg had been badly injured by a kick from a horse. He borrowed Mr. Prouty's horse for Jesse to ride, and in returning home, they had more trouble in getting the horse to swim Skunk, and when they reached the Calumus, he carried Jesse across on his back. Twelve days later, he made another trip to look after his stock. Skunk was as high as ever. The raft was on the opposite side and the icy condition of the river such as to make swimming risky. He remembered an up-turned tree a quarter of a mile below, found it by a few of its roots that remained above water, took off his pants, tied them around his neck, crawled out on the submerged log as
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HISTORY OF STORY COUNTY
far as possible, gave the best possible jump, and landed in water up to his neck. It was just dark when he emerged from his bath, but he was on the other side of the river, and he reached Corey's Grove none the worse for the episode. Soon after, he built a good log house, fastened together with pins. There was not a nail about it. nor a stick of lumber except what he had hewed. Wooden hinges were made for the door, and the chimney was curbed by stocks and mortar built up outside. It was in this time that oc- curred the first death in that quarter. being that of a Norwegian stranger, who was crossing the prairie. Settlers heard of him, found him dead under his wagon and buried him, and his grave was the first in the present cemetery.
Little accidents in that time made lots of trouble. In the first summer. Mr. Wood broke the point of his plow and it took him three days to get it mended. He tied a pole to the hind wheels of his wagon, tied the plow on, hitched the oxen to the rig. perched himself on it part of the time, walked the rest, and made the trip to Des Moines and had the plow mended. The oxen crossed the Skunk willingly when Southward bound; because they were going toward their old home pasture, but on the return it was different. They did not like to forsake the Polk County blue stem. He drove them into the river, but they turned, floundered, and as one of them began to drown, he had to swim in and unyoke them and get them back to the shore." and then fish the cart and plow out with a grape vine. Twice he went through this process, but finally hitched the grape vine to the leader and went ahead and pulled while a friend from Corey's Grove drove, and the crossing was effected.
Under such conditions, neighbors were very welcome indeed, and the settlers were ready to give time, effort and. in fact, anything in their power to make newcomers welcome. All were poor, but they gladly shared their fare with those who came, and the little cabins sometimes sheltered as many as could be stowed on the floor. One time two men came from above Des Moines for prospecting, the flood detained them for two days, and they be- came anxious and wanted help homeward. Mr. Wood knew a place two miles below where he could cross Indian Creek with his horse if he was a good swimmer. They found the place, but the boat was on the other side. Ile started across on the horse and the other two horses followed ; but soon the two unaccustomed to swimming became frightened and scared his horse also, so that he was obliged to draw the horse's head under water and slide off and get away from the floundering three animals which threatened to drown them. As the horses all drifted down stream and became tangled in grape vines, Mr. Wood had to swim and release them and bring them back one at a time and get the boat and take the men across, they leading the horses. He went on with them and helped them across Skunk, and they arrived at Corey's Grove. They had been out since an early dinner, and he had spent five hours in the water. The travelers gave him a dollar.
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HISTORY OF STORY COUNTY
One of the earliest settlers, who was long and very prominently known in his part of the County, was W. W. Utterback, who located on Christmas, 1852, on the east edge of Nevada Township, in the shelter of Hickory Grove, and lived there until his death very many years afterward. His daughter, Joanna, now Mrs. Elwood of Colo, tells something of their arrival in the County. The father had first visited the County in the preceding fall. Ile went to see his brother-in-law, James Sellers, who had, during the year, lo- cated in the immediate vicinity of the present village of Maxwell. Mr. Utter- back liked the Country, and his brother-in-law assured him that there would be a big immigration to the County early the next spring, that all the new- comers would want timber land, and that the ones who came first would have best choice. Mr. Utterback was anxious to leave Illinois, because the family were all suffering there from fever and ague, and he had been told that in Iowa, after getting as far North as the 42d parallel, there was freedom from these diseases. He had been accustomed to the wooded country and could not think of settling where there was not timber, so he hurried back to Illinois, sold his farm and everything else except what could be loaded into or hitched to a covered wagon, and was ready in a week to emigrate. Three yokes of oxen, a horse, and a yearling colt were the live stock aboard. Per- haps four weeks were spent on the road, and as they were crossing Skunk River, one of the oxen fell on the ice and broke his leg. They had to leave him and his mate; as it was getting cold and beginning to snow, and so they started across the prairie. There was no house between Skunk River and the prairie, but they had not gone far when they met Isaac French and an- other young man, and Mr. French took off his head oxen and hitched them before the Utterback team. Mr. French said his oxen would take them all to Sellers' house without any guidance, and it was snowing and blowing so that they could not see sled tracks. It was just getting dark when hey reached Indian Creek, and Mr. Utterback was afraid to drive onto the ice so he unhitched the oxen and led them across, and they all walked up to Mr. Sellers' Cabin, about a quarter of a mile from this creek. Mr. Sellers was up the creek hunting deer, for deer and elk were plenty and furnished meat for the family ; but Mrs. Sellers had a welcome for them all, and she made a big fire with logs in the fire place. That was on Christmas Eve of 1852. Mr. Utterback soon got 160 acres, as above noted, buying out the claim of a squatter by the name of John Cox, who bad built a cabin and cleared off three or four acres of timber ; that is, he paid the man for his improvements. Mr. Utterback, however, entered the land from the Government. They then had to go to Des Moines for their mail, and to Oskaloosa to mill and for trading; but. as Mr. Sellers had indicated, the County soon began to settle and before long, Iowa Center and Nevada were trading points. Incidentally, the 42d parallel, which was sought as promising exemption from fever and ague, runs across the North part of the Utterback farm.
This year of 1852 is the one in the course of which came in the most of the settlers who were to have the honor of participating in the organization
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HISTORY OF STORY COUNTY
of the County. Prior to this year. the number who had found their way into the County was so small, and their locations as a rule were so remote from each other, that anything in the way of the formation of a unit was out of the question, even if there had not been the very great troubles before men- tioned, relating to Skunk River and nameless but numerous sloughs. But Boone and Marshall Counties had both been properly organized in 1849 and Polk and Jasper some time before. The skirmishers of the advancing line of migration had already reached the intervening County, and it was evident that the influx of the human tide was close at hand. In all of the new settle- ments, the very first occupants of the Country were the squatters who ex- pected, by occupying the land, to be able, when the lands should be opened to entry, to make the most advantageous selections ; but, with the opening of lands for entry, there was always a new tide of people seeking to possess the new country at Government prices for land. Story County at this time had the skirmishers already within its borders ; and its lands had become. in spite of sloughs and of Skunk River. the most attractive that there were left.
As was noted in the story, in connection with the Utterbacks, those who were on the ground were confident that the next year would bring a very material change, and these conclusions appear now to have been fully war- ranted. Of course, Skunk River continued to be bad for a dozen or 15 years ; but the sloughs, however disagreeable, were only an incident to the Country and were not. in fact, its dominating feature ; nor did the rush ponds spread so wide but that there was between them a very large amount of up- land, such as would be the most attractive to the settler when once means of communication and transportation should be provided, or the prospective number of settlers should be such as to promise early unity of action in the matter of providing such means of transportation and communication. The time had come to make a County ; and, notwithstanding the meagre means which the emigrants were bringing into the county, there was manifest con- fidence in the future. Those who were here, and coming in and getting pos- session of the land, were sure that there would be an early rise in values and the spirit of hopefulness appears to have been about as high as it well could be in a frontier settlement. The time for the making of Story had been a little slow in its arrival ; but the delay meant nothing of loss in the matter of ultimate prospects, and incentive for moving in, establishing homes, and building up the County, was abundant.
But those who came in in this year, with all the exultance of their hopes. had virtually all the County to pick from. One of these incomers, who has left some record of his arrival, was Judiah Ray. He came in in November, over the Jasper county trail, crossing the county line near the head waters of Wolf Creek somewhat west of the residence of William Parker. lle drove northwesterly, seeking the cabin of Sam McDaniel, which seems to have been a rendezvous for what settlers there were then in the County, and was the place before noted at which the election of 1852 had been held in this portion of the County. About the time that he saw the smoke of the Mc-
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HISTORY OF STORY COUNTY
Daniel cabin, he met on the prairie a man, who proved to be Barnabas Lowell, very unattractive of appearance, but nevertheless disposed to make his ac- quaintance. Lowell guided Ray and his family to the McDaniel cabin, where a rather rough crowd was found, who played cards and drank whisky far into the night. So uninviting was the outfit that Ray and his wife declined the hospitalities of the cabin, and spent the night in the shelter of the wagon. Ray got away as early as he could the next morning ; and, while it does not appear that there was anything worse about McDaniel than the sort of com- pany about him, Lowell subsequently appears as being of the type that are too often found upon the far frontier, lawless and reckless, and suited to give a bad reputation to the locality where such type is found. Ray turned to the Southwest and found the home of Hiram Vincent in the Western part of Indian Creek Township, and in that locality made his own settlement. At this time the settler farthest North, in the vicinity of West Indian Creek, was Joseph P. Robinson, and indeed he appears to have been the only settler at that time between the forks of the two Indians. His home bordered the tim- ber on the east side of West Indian Creek, not far from the center of Sec- tion 29 in Nevada Township. He was a hale old man, with a numerous family, mostly grown, and was a man much esteemed among such neighbors as he had. So far as recorded, he was the first Justice of the Peace, and certainly he conducted the first preliminary examination ever held in the County.
Over on Skunk in the previous October there had arrived Judge E. C. Evans and his brother, William D., Stephen P. O'Brien and others. Samuel Hiestand, father-in-law of O'Brien, had preceded them, but had been back to Illinois for others of his family, and was one of the party that arrived about this time. One effect of this arrival was to bring the Western settle- ment over to the east side of Skunk, in the bend North of Ames. The village of Bloomington was not actually started until some time later, but the lo- cality has since been known by that name ; and if the railroad, when it came, had passed through that neighborhood instead of leaving it a couple of miles or more to the Northward, probably Bloomington would to this day have been one of the most important towns in Story County. There was a good ford across Skunk in this neighborhood, and the outlook was excellent so far as the relations of the locality to the Western part of the County were con- cerned. Among the settlers in this locality was William Arrasmith, who was, with the exception of S. P. O'Brien, the last survivor of the original squat- ters there, and whose wife still lives at Ames.
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