History of Taylor County, Iowa : containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, etc. : a biographical directory of many of its leading citizens, war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion, general and local statistics, portraits of early settlers and prominent men, history of Iowa and the Northwest, map of Taylor County, Constitution of the United States, reminiscences, miscellaneous matters, etc, Part 60

Author:
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Des Moines : State Historical Co.
Number of Pages: 868

USA > Iowa > Taylor County > History of Taylor County, Iowa : containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, etc. : a biographical directory of many of its leading citizens, war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion, general and local statistics, portraits of early settlers and prominent men, history of Iowa and the Northwest, map of Taylor County, Constitution of the United States, reminiscences, miscellaneous matters, etc > Part 60

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HISTORY OF TAYLOR COUNTY.

mind some of his history, which will appear properly here, he being the first physician resident in the county.

Dr. Luther Bent was a native of Oliio, and was born August 8, 1819. His youth was passed with his father on a farm, where he received the rudi- ments of a fair education. In 1849, when the California gold fever swept every State of the Union, he hastened across the plains and over the moun- tains to the far-off El Dorado, joining an emigrant company from his neighborhood. During the tedious and extended journey many of those with him fell sick. Young Bent, having read extensively in medical works, and being adapted by nature to the profession of nurse and physician, he ministered successfully to their wants. Before their des- tination was reached they gave him the soubriquet of " Doctor." While in California he devoted himself to mining, and after several months of arduous toil, in which he was successsful in money-getting, he determined to return to the States and fit himself for the practice of medicine.

Following this conclusion, he went to St. Louis, where he attended several courses of lectures. Having qualified himself, he went to Savannalı, Mis- souri, to visit a sister there residing. Maryville was suggested to liim as a point that furnished a fine opening for a physician, and in 1852 he estab- lished himself there, remaining about one year. He was often called to Taylor county to heal the sick, and in some of these visits he learned that there was no physician in the county. In 1853 he established himself at the residence of Judge Lowe, in Benton township; and for many years he was so active in all public affairs that it is proper he should receive a some- what extended notice. He was a man of fine physical proportions, and in- tellectually was rather above the average. His friends say that he was a perfect Chesterfield on courtly occasions, and his ability enabled him to act the part of the backwoodsman to perfection. He was generous to a fault, and no friend ever questioned his fidelity. He was impulsive to an extra- ordinary degree, and upon questions of honor he was peculiarly sensitive; consequently he wasn't everlasting in the olive branch line of business with his friends. Frequently there was deadly bitterness existing between them. There was one occasion especially deserving mention, which will serve to show Dr. Bent's character in its true light. Early in the summer of 1854, two men, named John Thompson and J. W. Miller, laid the foundation of a cabin on, and filed a preemption claim to, a portion of the land on which the town of Bedford now stands. Subsequently, Dr. Bent purchased their claim, and, although of no validity in law, it was respected by the settlers until the autumn of that year. In the meantime, a party of emigrants had arrived from Indiana, among whom was a physician named Derrickson.

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HISTORY OF TAYLOR COUNTY.

The newly-arrived doctor, in looking around for a place to invest his money, fixed a covetous eye upon the claim of Dr. Bent. But, not wishing to vio- late the rules that were held sacred by the early settlers, he went to Dr. Bent and asked him if he intended to enter it. Receiving an affirmative answer, he said: "Then I will not." Thompson then represented to Dr. Derrickson that Dr. Bent had not purchased the claim from himself and Miller, and through his own and the influence of Madison Guess, Derrick- son was prevailed upon to make the.entry. Dr. Bent, hearing of this, be- came greatly excited, and, with a loaded revolver in his hand, pointed over his left shoulder, he approached within a few feet of Derrickson, and said: " I learn that you have entered my land, and I give you one minute in which to decide whether you will make a personal matter of it or leave it to friendly arbitration." . Derrickson answered: "You have taken me by surprise, doctor." Bent simply said: "Your time is passing, sir." Der- rickson replied: "I will leave it to disinterested men." Upon hearing this, Bent turned and left him. The news of the affair spread rapidly. Much excitement was thus engendered, and angry feelings were manifested by the friends of the two doctors, and violence was anticipated. However, in the course of a few days, Dr. Bent sent a polite note to Dr. Derrickson, informing him that Judge Lowe would act as his friend in settling the mat- ter. Derrickson chose a friend, and he and Judge Lowe met. The result was an amicable adjustment of the difficulty, by which the title of the land was passed to Dr. Bent. Of course there was occasion for rejoicing, and, as Dr. Bent had learned in his trip across the plains that it was a custom among certain Indians on the ratification of peace to celebrate it by feasting upon the fattest dog belonging to the tribe, his eccentricity led him to con- ceive the idea of sanctifying the occasion of his treaty with Derrickson by inviting his own and his opponent's friends to a "dog supper." A large cur, as obese as a well-fed hog, was slaughtered. The hind-quarters were neatly dressed, properly seasoned, and nicely baked, under the doctor's su- pervision, in a large oven. The feast was had at Mr. O. W. Fenno's hotel. All in the way of edibles that the town afforded was placed upon a large table, and in the center was artistically arranged the two hams of the de- funct dog. The smell thereof was savory, and those who carved and ate said that the canine part of the feast was excellent. The boys had a " huge old time" that night, and the peace thus established was never disturbed in after years. Soon after this Dr. Bent was married to Elizabeth, daughter of Judge Lowe, and he became a prominent citizen of Bedford. He died August 1, 1878, mourned by all who knew him.

Mr. Fenno's hotel, above mentioned, was a log house, on Main Street. It

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HISTORY OF TAYLOR COUNTY.

is a whole history of itself, if all could be told. It knew every man in the county in its day, and all that was going on. It could repeat the villainies of the unprincipled scoundrels who infested Taylor county then as now and preyed upon the toils of honest men. The struggles of the deserving it could relate, and how ambition was disappointed and the heart sickened. For years it sheltered the adventurer, the gambler and the murderer as well as the man of upright life and pure heart; and if the old log hotel could be resurrected perhaps it might say, as does the ghost in Hamlet:

"But that I am forbid

To tell the secret of my prison-house, I could a tale unfold, whose lightest word

Would harrow up thy soul; freeze thy young blood; Make thy two eyes, like stars, start from their spheres; Thy knotted and combined locks to part, And each particular hair to stand on end Like quills upon the fretful porpentine. But this eternal blazon must not be."

In 1855, so Mr. L. Mohler says, all there was of Bedford were three log houses. But it was about this time the young town began to grow, al- though its progress was not very rapid. The county, too, began to fill up. The excellence of the soil for agricultural purposes had been noised abroad to the great world outside, and emigration was lively for a time.

In 1852 Aaron Quinby, who lives near Hawleyville, built the first mill in this vicinity for Madison Guess and John Scott. £ Madison Guess was shot several years since by his wife's paramour in Missouri, and John Scott is living in prosperous circumstances at Buchanan, Polk township. In 1857 Stephen H. Parker bought Madison Guess's interest, who afterward, or at the same time, became possessed of Mr. Scott's interest. In 1863 L. Mohler bought Mr. Parker out. Heretofore the mill had been only a " corn cracker." Mr. Mohler at once added new machinery to the estab. lishment so that an excellent article of flour was manufactured. But the old mill is no more. Scarcely a post, or even a sign, remains to mark its site. It was located on the East One Hundred and Two River, near where the bridge spans the same on the Mohler road.

Another old structure deserving of mention is the Bedford woolen-mills building. It is located near the stone quarries in the northeast part of the city. It was built very many years ago, but by whom we cannot say, his name having escaped our memory. It has not been used since 1875. The Hills Brothers were then running it, and becoming involved their creditors closed in upon them. We believe that John Hale is the proprietor at

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present. But be that as it may, the mills have since been idle; yet within that old building is, or was a few months since, some of the latest improved and most elegant machinery that was ever made, and no factory in Iowa has better. Still the old shell stands open, and tramps, mischievous boys, harlots, and every ruffian about town, has free access to all this machinery with liberty to mutilate and destroy. For years it has been the resort of every traveling prostitute visiting Bedford. It has become a disgrace to the city, an eyesore to the people of its immediate community, and it ought to be put to some good use or torn down.

Another old manufacturing establishment of Bedford that is gone was the flouring-mill that stood south of Thomas McCracken's residence. Its proprietor, W. W. Clark, upon the promise of a bonus from the citizens of Conway, tore it down and removed it to that place in 1878.

Brick of a splendid quality is made at Bedford. George W. Cromer has a yard that turns out a superior article, and John Gorman and Mr. Wallace are occasional manufacturers. Lenox and Conway, and frequently Creston and Hopkins, are supplied with brick from the yards at Bedford. The Lenox school-house is being constructed of Bedford brick.

A good quality of building stone is found in the corporate limits of Bed- ford, in the northeast part of the city. It is easily dressed, and makes a good article of lime, of which a considerable quantity is annually manu- factured. There are two quarries now being used-one the property of H. U. Greenlee, and the other of W. M. P. Long. -

In locating Bedford the commission appointed for that purpose must have had "in their mind's eye" the selection of a spot that was conducive to good health and longevity. Owing to stiff breezes, which occur at all seasons of the year, miasmatic and pulmonary diseases are unknown. Mortuary statistics show this to be one of the most healthful localities in the Union, there being but one death to every ninety-four persons. Upon this subject there is but one voice, and that is this-that it is decidedly healthy. To this there can be no dissent, for the visage of every inhabi- tant so attests, unless he came to the city diseased.

Before proceeding with the history of Bedford to greater length it would be well to mention the fact that the first sale of lots took place July 4, 1852. The first building was Mr. Fenno's, at the corner of Main and Water streets, where william Heller's brick now stands. It was a double log house. The building opposite on Main Street was the second one. It was made of hewed logs, and was Mr. Edwin Hinck's residence, and his business headquarters. In 1854 the only building erected was a double log house used by Thornton & Cadle, a firm elsewhere spoken of.

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HISTORY OF TAYLOR COUNTY.

For many years Bedford had to struggle to hold the county seat. At the March term of the county court in 1858, Joseph A. Hanes, prosecuting attorney, acting as county judge in the absence of Jesse .Evans, Dr. R. S. Baker presented a petition signed by one hundred and forty-seven persons asking the removal of the county seat to Lexington. It is needless to re- mark that Dr. Baker's petition failed, as did three other efforts in the same direction. That squelched all opposition. Bedford is still the seat of justice for Taylor county, and will ever so continue. Its wealth, its enter- prise, and its fine business blocks and private residences will forever hold it against all opposition.

The first school in Bedford was taught in a little frame building that then stood on the lots now occupied by M. L. (Tice) Louck's residence. was built by J. F. Engles for a home. He sold it to the school-district for $1,000. Engles soon afterward moved to Kansas. About sixteen years since it was purchased by Father Wolcott, an old citizen, who died in 1880, who was noted for his extreme age and for his strong Masonic tendencies. At the age of eighty years he could walk more miles in a procession than the ordinary young man of to day who is twenty-one and thinks the uni- verse is his by hereditary right. Mr. Wolcott had it "hauled " to the cor- ner where Combs & Sons' furniture factory now stands. It stood there un- til the spring of this year, when it was taken to pieces to make room for the factory. The experiences of that old building have been varied. It has sheltered children seeking education, it has warmed deserving poor people, and it has been the abode of shameless courtezans. It is now in kindling- wood and its history is at an end.

The first school-teacher was Darwin E. Jones. He taught in 1856-7. Later he was county treasurer and recorder. While J. A. Harvey, of Fre- mont county, was land commissioner of Iowa Mr. Jones was his private secretary. He then went to Illinois at the expiration of Mr. Harvey's term of office. Shortly after leaving Taylor county Jones fell heir to a streak of good luck. Several years before he had saved a man from drowning. That man presented him with a splendid farm, and the last heard of Darwin E. Jones he was on the highway to wealth.

Connected with the old school-house above mentioned a little circum- stance will bear relating. In 1856 or 1857, Jake Lewis was teaching a sing- ing-class there, and a fellow by the name of Cornell stole his horse. Cor- nell was caught at Lawrence, Kansas, by Dug. Dale. The expense of capturing him, $96, was made up by the citizens. The horse that had been stolen was a valuable one, and Mr. Cornell was sentenced to five years in the penitentiary for this crime. "Darbies " wouldn't stick on his wrists.

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HISTORY OF TAYLOR COUNTY.

No sooner were they put on than they were off, and while he was being tried he amused himself by spitting tobacco juice in the eyes of the specta- tors. When taken to Fort Madison he said that he would get out in less than a week, which he did.

Another gentleman who was " singing-master " at this first school build- ing, and in other places throughout the county, was Major A. B. Van Sickle, who was then a fine singer, and is to-day, although we believe that he rarely honors his friends with vocal performances any more.

Judge Hall, who died in 1879, succeeded Mr. Jones as public instructor. Afterward he was a leading lawyer of Bedford, and a son-in-law of the Rev. Dr. Golliday.

Next came John F. Saulsbury, who was a man of most excellent educa- tion. His moral character and his exalted manhood endeared him to all. When the tocsin of war sounded he went, with many others, to make tri- nmphant the flag of his country. He never returned. He sacrificed his life for the government he revered. His widow is the present Mrs. Charles Cope, a lady of most lovable qualities, and whose husband is to-day one of the foremost and best of Taylor county's citizens.

In 1864 a stone school-house was erected, which was sufficient until 1877. It contained four rooms and it is now being used in connection with the elegant building erected in the summer of 1877. Of this later building the people of Bedford are justly proud. It is one of the finest edifices of its class in southwestern Iowa. Its description and the history of its construc- tion are briefly as follows, the facts being condensed from the first issue of the Taylor County Republican:

July 24, 1876, a proposition was submitted to a vote of the citizens of the Independent school-district of Bedford to authorize the issue and sale of bonds to the amount of $16,000, for the purpose of erecting a new school- building. The proposition was carried by a handsome majority and the bonds were accordingly issued. These bonds were regarded by capitalists as a very desirable investment, and were negotiated at par, bearing eight per cent interest, and netted the district $15,680, after deducting two per cent commission for their sale. The bonds have ten years to run, but may be called in any time at the option of the district. They are signed by Thomas McCracken, president, and James P. Flick, treasurer of the board. They have twice been called in and twice refunded-now at six and a half per cent. The amount cut off from the principal is $4,500.

W. K. Ball, of Creston, Iowa, was selected as the architect, and prepared the plans and specifications. February 24, 1877, the contract was let to J. W. Combs, for the sum of $15,300, the work to be done by November 1,

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HISTORY OF TAYLOR COUNTY.

1877. The location is a considerable eminence in the northwestern part of town and the completed building presents a fine view. The site was ob- tained by vacating that portion of North Street which lies between Penn- sylvania and Illinois streets, and adding the ground to the adjoining square, formerly used for school purposes.

The building fronts eastward, standing squarely across North Street. The ground plan is a simple parallelogram, seventy-five feet in front and sixty- eight feet deep. The building is two stories high exclusive of the basement, and a half mansard roof. The furnace chimneys are built on the outside of the walls, and carried a considerable distance above the roof, presenting the appearance of ornamental towers. The material of the building is St. Joseph brick, with stone door-ways, steps, window-sills, lintels and water- base, and stone grain work at the corners. The stone used is a very close- grained variety of sandstone, obtained at Sagetown, Illinois, at a cost of a little over $2,000. The foundation is of stone, and the walls extend a con- siderable distance below the surface. The roof is of tin, and has an orna- mental cupola or observatory in the center. Underneath the entire structure is a basement, well lighted and ventilated. It contains two of the Ruttan Ventilating and Heating Company's furnaces, manufactured at Blooming- ton, Illinois, and put into the building at a cost of $845. The front entrance is reached by a flight of broad, massive stone steps. A double door fitted into an arched door-way opens into a vestibule, which commu- nicates by a similar door with a rotunda, which is about twenty-five feet square in the clear, exclusive of the space occupied by two stair-ways which lead from it to the second story. All the doors in the building open out- ward, to afford easy and rapid egress in case of a panic. The walls of the rotunda and all the rooms are wainscotted to a height of about four feet. On each side of the rotunda are two school-rooms, each twenty-four by thirty-two feet, and admirably lighted by four large windows, hung by means of weights. Each of the eight rooms in the house contains thirty- two double seats, which gives the house a capacity to seat 512 scholars. The seats were manufactured by the Novelty Iron Works, of Sterling, Illinois, and are built upon iron frames, of ash and walnut, in alternate bands; they cost $840. Blackboards of liquid slate are placed around the four walls of each room. There are 400 yards of blackboarding in the building. Each room is provided with a wardrobe twenty-two feet long by six feet wide. The arrangement of the rooms on the two floors is similar; those on the first floor have fourteen-feet, and those on the second floor fif- teen feet ceilings. On the second floor is a rotunda corresponding to the

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HISTORY OF TAYLOR COUNTY.

one on the first. In the half-mansard roof is an attic room sixty-eight by twenty-two feet.

The workmanship and material of the building are excellent. The con- tractor divided and sublet the work. The bricklaying was done by Messrs. Cunning and Wilson, and the plastering by W. H. Wilson. The carpenter work was sublet to William Boudart, and was done under the immediate supervision of James Shapley. The painting and graining were done by C. C. Mendenhall. The roofing and spouting were furnished by Evans, Good- rill Bros. & Co. The grounds have been nicely graded and drained with tiling, and good plank walks have been built around them. On the south side of the building a marble slab has been set in the wall, which bears the date of the erection of the building, the names of the directors, the builder, and the architect.

About January 1, 1878, the board accepted the building, and settled with the contractor, allowing him about $300 for "extras " not embraced in the specifications. The first principal of the school in the new building was Professor J. C. Kerr, now of Calhoun county, who continued in that position until the close of the year 1880-81. The present principal is Professor Eugene Cary. His assistants are Miss Eva McCloud, Miss Irene McCloud, Miss L. J. Boyd, Miss Laura McCracken, Miss Alice Taylor, Miss Hattie Lewis and Miss Belle Osborne. The fall term invariably com- mences the first Monday in September.

Superintendent Jeffrey gives the Independent School District of Bedford the following report for 1880:

No. of rooms in graded school. 9

Average number of months taught.

No. of teachers employed. 9

Salary per month, male. $ 65.00

Salary per month, female. 40.00

No. of children of school age. 625

566

No. of children enrolled in school.

Average daily attendance .. . 348

Average cost of tuition per scholar.

1.34

No. of school-houses (brick).

No. of school-houses (stone). 1

Value of school-houses $21,000.00

Amount paid teachers during the year. 3,857.0C

Amount expended for contingent purposes 1,294.81

Of the public schools of Bedford it is just to say that they are unexcelled.

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HISTORY OF TAYLOR COUNTY.

The courses are thorough, and " graduation " means more than the mere term implies. One having passed the portals of this knowledge house is well fitted for the important duties of all the years to come.

In this connection it is proper to speak of the Teachers' Association of the county. It dates from August 19, 1881, only, but it has within it those elements which will make it useful to the cause of education and the teach- ers especially. The best educational talent in the county has enlisted to make the cause successful. It will prove a valuable auxiliary to the county normal institutes which are provided for by law.

MASONIC.

The Masons are very strong in Bedford, and the organization of the "Blue Lodge " runs back to a time before Sumter had been fired upon, to the month of January, 1860, and not to February 1st, 1881, as Dr. Ran- dolph, the present secretary, reported to the historian hereof. The style of the organization is Taylor Lodge No. 156, A. F. and A. M. The charter members were J. S. Rand, E. Cook, E. T. Smith, D. Underwood, J. M. Faulkner, J. J. Scott, A. M. Simpson and James Mitchell. The date of the charter was June 8, 1860. The lodge was instituted by J. S. Rand, Ephraim Cook and E. T. Smith. The first officers were J. S. Rand, W. M .; E. Cook, S. W .; E. T. Smith, J. W .; Daniel Underwood, treasurer; J. W. Faulk- ner, secretary; J. J. Scott, S. D .; A. M. Simpson, J. D., and James Mitch- ell, tyler.

The present officers are R. O. Starling, W. M .; Edwin Houck, S. W .; A. H. Connett, J. W .; A. J. Litteer, treasurer, and W. F. Randolph, secre- tary.

The membership is about eighty-five. The time for meeting is the Wednesday night on or before the full moon. The lodge is prosperous and has accumulated a fund of more than $1,000. It has several hundred dol- lars loaned out, and owns two lots on Main Street. At present a rented hall at the corner of Main and South Green streets is used. It is elegantly fitted up and is rented for a period of about four years yet. Ere that time expires the lodge will have erected a building of its own.

The chapter, at Bedford, is known as Triangle Chapter No. 68, R. A. M. In March, 1873, a meeting of the Royal Arch Masons of Bedford and vicinity was called to organize a chapter, and a petition was signed by the following: R. O. Starling, M. C. Connett, R. B. Rockwell, W. F. Walker, Simeon Wright, John P. Wright, L. W. Fairbanks, O. B. Wilson, E. T. Smith and W. G. Barrows, and was sent to the grand high priest of the State of Iowa, with a recommendation from Clarinda Chapter, No. 49.

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HISTORY OF TAYLOR COUNTY.

March 26, 1873, a dispensation came, granted by the grand high priest. The chapter was organized by S. S. Bean, then of Clarinda, but now of Creston, who appointed Richard O. Starling to be the first H. P .; Comp. M. C. Connett, first K .; R. B. Rockwell to be first S., and October 24, 1874 a charter was granted. The present officers are R. B. Rockwell, H. P .; P. C. King, K .; R. W. Fitzgerald, S .; A. J. Litteer, treasurer; W. F. Walker, secretary; R. O. Starling, C. H .; J. D. Wilkins, P. S .; A. H. Connett, R. A. C .; J. J. Evans, master third vail; Guy Webster, master second vail; C. W. Williams, master first vail, and A. C. Redmon, sentinel.

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Author: Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Des Moines : State Historical Co. Number of Pages: 868

Author:
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Des Moines : State Historical Co.
Number of Pages: 868