USA > Iowa > Fayette County > Past and present of Fayette County, Iowa, Volume I > Part 7
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I
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FAYETTE COUNTY, IOWA.
SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR.
In the Spanish-American war the state furnished four regiments of in- fantry, two batteries of field artillery, a signal company, and a company of colored immunes. The United States navy was also represented, Fayette county having a representative in the person of Doctor Pattison, of Oelwein, who was a lieutenant.
A few veterans of the Mexican war are still living within the state, Fay- ette county having one who is a veteran of two wars.
IOWA NATIONAL GUARD.
Within comparatively recent years there has been a complete reorganiza- tion of the old "State Militia," which is now designated as the National Guard of the several states. The organization and discipline is much more thorough than formerly, while the equipment and emoluments are correspondingly im- proved.
The Iowa National Guard now consists of four regiments of infantry, of twelve companies each, and designated as the Fifty-Third, Fifty-Fourth, Fifty-Fifth and Fifty-Sixth Regiments. The headquarters of these are, re- spectively, Cedar Rapids, Muscatine, Ames and Sioux City. Each regiment is divided into three battalions in command of as many officers, ranking as majors. All of these regiments were called into active service during the war with Spain, the Fifty-Fifth serving about eighteen months, while the others served lesser periods. The governor of the state is the commander-in- chief, while he is assisted in the performance of his military duties by a staff of officers designated as adjutant-general, quartermaster-general, surgeon- general, judge advocate, inspector-general, chief of engineers and chief signal officer. These general officers have assistants, while there are seven "aides" appointed or detailed as assistants to the commander-in-chief, most of whom rank as lieutenant-colonels. Rotation in these appointments may account, in part at least, for the long list of "colonels" to be found in almost every county throughout the state.
The adjutant-general ranks as brigadier-general, and is the chief execu- tive officer of the National Guard, upon whom devolves a very large part of the detail work of that organization, the making of reports, and carrying out the orders of the commander-in-chief. He has charge of the State Arsenal and grounds, and all other property of the state kept or used for military purposes.
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FAYETTE COUNTY, IOWA.
STATE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT.
Under this department there are various organizations, with the purpose, in most cases, of enforcing or strengthening the power of existing laws. Among these may be enumerated the state railroad commissioners, the ex- ecutive council, bureau of labor statistics, board of parole, food and dairy commissioner, state printer and binder, fish and game warden, department of agriculture, state veterinary surgeon, board of veterinary examiners, Iowa State Library, state librarian, historical department, state mine inspectors, commission of pharmacy, custodian of public buildings and property, board of health, hotel inspector (operative since July 4, 1909), geological board, library commission, Iowa state highway commission, hall of public archives, Horticultural Society, board of law examiners, state oil inspectors, superin- tendent of weights and measures, director of weather and crop service, Iowa Academy of Sciences, the State Historical Society (established by law in the year 1857), educational board of examiners, Iowa State Teachers' Asso- ciation (in existence since May 10, 1854). The official heads of most of these various departments are appointed by the governor, and in most of those not so constituted the governor is designated as a member of the board by virtue of his office. The purpose of establishing these departments, in con- nection with the state government, will be readily understood from the titles of the offices created. In addition to the foregoing, there are a number of minor offices, the duties of which are not so universally applicable to all the people of the state.
CHAPTER III.
ORGANIZATION AND SETTLEMENT OF FAYETTE COUNTY.
Territorially speaking, Fayette county was originally one of the largest counties ever organized. It had a nominal organization on the 21st of De- cember, 1837, when its boundaries included an area of about one hundred and forty thousand square miles. It included within its limits all of the present state of Minnesota west of the Mississippi river, extending on the north to the British dominions, and included all of the territory of the Da- kotas east of the Missouri river, except a small tract in the southeast corner. Clayton county was constituted on the same date, and both were partly or- ganized from territory then embraced in Dubuque county. Clayton at that time included a portion of Allamakee county, and the county seat was es- tablished at Prairie La Porte (now Guttenberg). Nearly all the counties in northeastern Iowa, and some others, were formed, in whole or in part, from territory originally embraced in Fayette county. But this was only a "paper county," having no organization in fact until reduced to its present boun- daries in 1847, and finally organized in 1850. Previously the county had been attached to Clayton for judicial, revenue and election purposes, and an elec- tion had been held April 27, 1841, as ordered by the commissioners of Clay- ton county. The election was held at "the New Mission," and was desig- nated as precinct No. 9, the bounds of which shall be designated by the bounds of the neutral grounds. It would seem, therefore, that the Clayton county commissioners exercised jurisdiction over the Winnebago Reserve. The polls were ordered opened at the house of David Lowrie, and H. D. Brownson, John B. Thomas and David Lowrie were judges of the election. H. H. Singer was messenger, and Silas Gilmore was clerk. It does not ap- pear that there were more than three or four voters in Fayette county terri- tory at that time. This is probably the first election for any purpose ever held for the accommodation of Fayette county voters. An election was ordered on the 7th of April, 1851, for the purpose of locating the county seat. The contestants were "Centerville" (at the geographical center of the county), Lightville (afterwards Lima), at Light's Mill, on the Volga river, West Union, Auburn and Claremont, now Clermont, and once called "Norway."
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FAYETTE COUNTY, IOWA.
According to the conditions of the legislative enactment, the two places having the highest number of votes were required to hold another election to decide the matter, and West Union and Lightville held the deciding election on the first Monday in May, following, the result being in favor of West Union. This matter was decided by vote of the people in May, 1851 ; but two years later, under legislative enactment, commissioners were appointed who located the county seat on the southwest quarter of section 17, township 93, range 8, Westfield township. The law also prescribed that a vote should be taken on the question of removal to the new location. This was done in August, 1853, and resulted in favor of retaining the county seat at West Union. The conditions were complied with, a court house erected, and the official headquarters established. Another vote in April, 1860, ordered by the county judge, upon petition, resulted in favor of retaining West Union as the seat of justice. Another election was held in October, 1867, Fayette and West Union being this time the openly avowed candidates; but after a hotly contested canvass of the county, wherein some bad blood was engen- dered, West Union was again successful. The next and final effort looking to the removal of the county seat was made in June, 1873, when the county board of supervisors was petitioned to submit the question to the electors of the county. The territory was thoroughly canvassed by both parties to the controversy, and it is very evident that a pretty general expression of the people's wishes was secured. But a large number of the petitioners also placed their names upon a remonstrance, the assumption being that they had changed their views subsequent to signing the petition. A law question arose as to the legality of counting the names of the remonstrating signers on the petition, and an injunction was served upon the board of supervisors, restraining them from counting these names as petitioners. This action threw the matter into the courts and delayed the counting of the names until the time for submission had expired by statute, and West Union still retains the coveted prize. All except the first effort at establishing a county seat may appear irrelevant at this stage in the recital of early historical events, but with the purpose of exhausting the subject, it is all presented here in consecutive order. Having now the county organized, a county seat established and the first officers elected, it is proper to proceed with the chronological history.
Soon after the first settlers began to locate in Fayette county territory, the United States government established a military post about west-north- west of the old Clayton mission, on the Turkey river, near the southwest cor- ner of Winneshiek county. This was called Camp Atkinson, or Fort Atkin- son, in honor of General Atkinson, of the United States army. There a fort
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FAYETTE COUNTY, IOWA.
and barracks were erected, and a new mission was established about four miles south of the fort, with Rev. David Lowry, a Cumberland Presbyterian clergyman, in charge. The mission buildings were located just north of the Fayette county line, but some of the lands included were located in what is now Auburn township, in this county. Several hundred acres of land was broken up and rendered fit for farming purposes. The Winnebago Indians, then occupying the northern portions of Fayette county and adjacent terri- tory, were placed upon this reservation, first, with an idea to Christianize them, and secondly, to protect them from the incursions of unfriendly tribes of other nations. There were about two thousand nine hundred Winnebagoes thus provided for at the expense of the government. They were generally a peaceful band who obtained their living by hunting in the forests of Fayette, Clayton and Delaware counties, and seldom had any trouble with the white settlers. In the adjustment of affairs a small farm was allotted to each head of an Indian family, and all the inducements within the power of the govern- ment were extended to induce the savages to abandon their former mode of living and settle down to civilized life. Schools were established for the benefit of the children, but their attendance was governed, in a measure, by the condition of the home larder and, if well supplied with the fruits of the chase, they would neither work nor go to school. Neither did they take kindly to the religious instructions imparted, and after an expensive experiment cov- ering a period of about eight years, the effort so generously put forth had to be abandoned, and the Indians were removed to Minnesota in 1848.
Mr. Lowry was succeeded by James McGregor, and he by J. E. Fletcher, by whom the Indians were removed.
With the establishment of the military post at Camp Atkinson a trail was opened between that point and the pioneer settlements in Clayton, Dela- ware and Dubuque counties, and in that portion of Fayette county which was included in the Black Hawk purchase, and along this trail the first white set- tlements were made. This trail entered Fayette county near the northeast corner of Putnam township, assuming a northwesterly course until it crossed the Volga river, about four miles above Fayette, thence north through Center, Windsor and Auburn townships, crossing Little Turkey river in section 29, Auburn township, thence north to the "Fort." It constituted the main thor- oughfare then open to the pioneers, and a visit to the fort was considered an outing not to be despised. But the fort also afforded quite a local market, and many of those who visited the place did so with an eye to business. One of our surviving pioneers, Andrew J. Hensley, visited the mission in 1845, while William and John Paddleford, brothers, and very early pioneers on the
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FAYETTE COUNTY, IOWA.
Volga bottom below Wadena, were at the fort during its building in 1840. On that occasion they witnessed the revolting spectacle of a Winnebago "burial." In this case the corpse was placed on a platform constructed for the purpose, in a tree, the religious superstition being that when so elevated he could the more easily reach the happy hunting ground. There were many such burials discovered by early pioneers in this county, the most numerous of which were in Illyria township.
The territory now embraced within Fayette county comprised three sub- divisions of Indian lands, and was opened to settlement at different times, this being in accordance with the terms of a treaty entered into on the first day of June, 1833. What subsequently became the northern half of the county was included in the neutral grounds, or Winnebago reserve; the southeast- ern portion was included in the Black Hawk purchase, and the southwest corner, including the lands now embraced in Oran and Fremont townships, and a portion of Jefferson, remained in possession of the Sac and Fox Indians until ceded by them to the United States under provisions of a treaty ratified on the 21st of October, 1837. At the date last written there were but four full townships surveyed in the county, these being Putnam, Fairfield, Smith- field and Scott. But with the cession of territory in 1837, irregular boun- daries (though for the most part imaginary) were straightened, and the outlines of the county established as at present. The area of the county is seven hundred and twenty square miles, being four congressional townships east and west and five north and south. More than one-fourth the area of the county was originally covered with timber, much of which was of excel- lent quality. But for many years after the settlement began, wood was the only fuel and the only fencing material, while the forest supplied the building material in crude form, thus the timber was depleted much more rapidly than economy in later years, combined with diligent efforts at reproduction, have restored it. The varieties most common were the various species of oak, maple, elm, hickory, walnut, cherry, basswood or linden, cottonwood, iron wood, some scraggy pine and cedar, willow, etc. As the natural timber began to disappear, and in many instances before that period was reached, the perma- nent residents began the propagation of artificial groves and "windbreaks," both for purposes of adornment and protection. Some have also planted lib- erally of quick growing forest trees with a view to replacing the rapidly dis- appearing forest growth. With quite a number of well-to-do farmers, this has become an item of considerable interest, twenty acres or more being thus planted. And almost every homestead in the county is now more or less adorned with handsome groves, some of which are very beautiful. With the
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FAYETTE COUNTY, IOWA.
successful introduction of fruit growing came also the planting of evergreens and the cultivation of evergreen hedges, the two combining to render con- spicuous the many beautiful homes so adorned.
About the southwest half of Fayette county was originally termed prairie land, and but little natural timber grew in that section. It was also the more level, and though well watered with small streams and many springs, the larger streams, and consequently the heavier belts of timber are located in the northeastern half of the county. Along the Turkey river, through Eden, Auburn, Dover, Clermont, Pleasant Valley and Illyria townships are the heaviest belts of natural timber, the most rugged bluffs, and the most rough and hilly land to be found in the county. But there are also to be found some of the most valuable farms in the county, and some of the most picturesque valleys to be found anywhere. The valleys are especially fertile, though the upland is excellent for farming purposes and stock raising. With the added value of the timber, much of which is still standing on the steep hillsides, it is an open question as to whether this land is not as valuable as other lands more favorably situated. There are numerous streams which flow into the Turkey, the most important of which are Little Turkey, Crane creek and Otter creek, in the northern part, each of which drains a large area of country and furnishes water power for small industries, more prolific in former days than now. By flooding a large area of level land at Alpha, sufficient water power was secured to operate a flouring mill and other industries, as will appear more fully in the article on Alpha. Crane creek, a large stream, flows through a beautiful and fertile farming country in Eden township, and empties into the Little Turkey on the line between Eden and Auburn townships. Otter creek, a stream of considerable volume, flows in an easterly course through a heavily timbered country and rugged hills, past West Union and Brainard, and enters the Turkey near the county line just below Elgin. The Volga and its numerous tributaries drain the south-central portion of the county from northwest to southeast, passing through Bethel, the northeast corners of Banks and Harlan, and easterly through Center, Westfield and Illyria, leaving the county at sec- tion 25, Illyria. This river is next in size to the Turkey and, like the latter, is skirted with timber, some of which was originally of excellent quality; but most of the arable land has been cleared and is now cultivated in farms. For many years some of the best timber lands in Illyria township were held by non- resident speculators, the price asked for it being largely in excess of that asked for improved farms near it. Small tracts were sold to the farmers in the prairie districts, some of whom hauled their fire-wood, fencing and other nec- essary timber a distance of ten or twelve miles. This was also true of the
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FAYETTE COUNTY, IOWA.
Turkey river district, in the northern part of the county. The early settlers in Bethel, Banks and western Windsor townships were supplied from the "Auburn timber," hauling it ten to fifteen miles. When it is remembered that this was the only means of getting fuel in winter unless the people resorted to the doubtful expedient of burning corn, as they sometimes did in emergen- cies, we can readily discern one of the serious hardships of pioneer life. Driv- ing across a trackless, treeless, fenceless prairie in deep snow, which was then the rule rather than the exception, as now, the present-day citizen can form some idea of the hardships endured by his ancestors (probably) in the early development of Fayette county.
These small tracts of timber land, as cleared, were purchased for farm- ing land, and when many of them were combined in one body, the result was an excellent timber farm without the expense and labor of clearing it. But it is a well known fact among timber residents that section "thirty-seven" yielded more desirable saw-logs and building timber than any other section in Illyria township! [Section thirty-seven does not exist; it was the timber thief's refuge.]
The Little Wapsipinnicon traverses the southwestern portion of the county, flowing southeasterly through Fremont and Oran townships. There are also numerous creeks, all flowing south, among which may be mentioned Buffalo creek, Pine and Otter creeks, thus affording excellent drainage through a level prairie country. The timber in that section of the county is not as good as in the northern and eastern sections, though all the streams are fringed with some timber along the level valleys which skirt the streams in that locality.
The soil of Fayette county is nearly all peculiarly adapted to diversified farming. While there is some difference between the character of the land in different localities, there is none of the arable land in any section which does not produce a fair recompense for intelligent effort. The hilly land in the northern and eastern parts of the county is usually a clay soil, adapted to wheat growing and grass, in preference to corn raising. The soil in the valleys along the streams is a very fertile black loam, often con- taining a little sand, and occasionally a tract of considerable dimensions is quite sandy, this being true, also, of some of the prairie districts. Where not too sandy, this soil seems to be especially adapted to corn raising, and the Turkey valley soil, under the manipulation of such farmers as Henry George, William A. Anderson and others, has captured some valuable prizes at the corn and fruit exhibits at Omaha and elsewhere. The prairie townships, of which there are ten in the county, and some considerable portions of others,
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FAYETTE COUNTY, IOWA.
are very uniform in the character of the soil, nearly all being a deep black loam, some underlaid with gravel and others with hard-pan or clay.
Much of the unimproved prairie land was originally "sloughy," espe- cially the level portions of it. In an early day a system of blind ditching was inaugurated which was of material benefit to those who could employ that method, but many could not, on account of the cost. A machine was employed which was so constructed as to force aside the easily yielding soil, and by using the power furnished by five or six yoke of oxen, this appliance was forced through the ground at a depth of three or four feet, its depth be- ing regulated to the desired point. This left a comparatively small passage-
way for the water, which, of course, constantly wore larger. A standard, not much larger than a plowshare, cut the tough sod to the top of the ground, and this aperture quickly "healed up," leaving only the drainage way under- neath. The propelling power was attached to this standard. But the im- practicability of the device was soon apparent when the sod on top began to cave in, when it became anything but "a blind ditch!" In recent years a good deal of tiling has been used, and in all cases with satisfaction. But with the opening up of adjacent lands, and the gradual reduction in the amount of rainfall, many of the "sloughs" have become rich farming lands without any effort at drainage, other than surface drainage from plowing. This class of land, when once reclaimed, has proved to be the most fertile of any surrounding it, when intelligently planted and cultivated. Swamp lands and shallow lakes have been drained and the beds turned into the most profitable of corn fields, both in our own and adjoining states.
Other streams worthy of mention are the Maquoketa, Brush creek, Bell creek, Prairie creek, all of which, except Bell creek, flow through the southeastern part of the county and empty into the Volga. There is an Otter creek in the northeastern part of the county and another stream bear- ing the same name flows south through Jefferson township. There are many fine springs of pure water, and the stock farm without running water is decidedly an exception.
The pioneers, in seeking sites for their cabin homes, sought a location near some good spring if possible, regardless of prospective roads or farm boundaries ; and in later years it often became necessary to relocate the home site in order to be established on some highway, hence they often left the spring and its environments behind and were compelled to dig for water. The surface wells of early days, though affording a supply reasonably satis- factory as to quantity and quality, were not sufficient to supply the demands upon them in later years. They were usually shallow and yielded only sur-
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FAYETTE COUNTY, IOWA.
face water, often seriously impregnated with impurities. Being "dug" or open wells, they required attention as to the matter of cleanliness, and with- in the knowledge of the present generation three men lost their lives at Elgin from fire-damp or marsh gas, while engaged in cleaning out a well. These shallow wells have given place in later years to the deep wells rendered pos- sible through the invention and use of well-drilling machinery and wind engines now so universally in use. Both the quantity and quality of water have been greatly improved, and such a thing as driving a herd of stock in dry weather, three miles to a river or creek is now unknown, though a sprightly remembrance of men now living !
FIRST SETTLERS.
We believe that it is now generally conceded, though for many years dis- puted, that Franklin Wilcox was the first actual settler in Fayette county. But there are some extenuating circumstances which seemed to justify a difference of opinion on this subject. Besides his wife and daughter who accompanied him from Indiana to Fayette county in 1838, Franklin Wilcox's brother Nathaniel came at the same time and took up a claim just east of his brother's, on what subsequently became section I, of Smithfield township. Robert Gamble came with the Wilcoxes from Ead's Grove and selected a home on land which proved to be on section 13, Center township, and near the geo- graphical center of the county. For ten or more years this location was known as "Gamble's Grove," though since known as "Dunham's Grove." A postoffice was established at Gamble's Grove in 1850, with Thomas Woodle as postmaster. But Mr. Gamble did not remain long, being taken sick in the fall of 1840, and returned to Ead's Grove and never returned to this county. The first settlements in the county, including those previously men- tioned, were made south of and near the Winnebago reserve line, in territory included in the Black Hawk purchase. They were also near or on the trail between the pioneer settlements in Clayton, Delaware and Dubuque counties. It is claimed, traditionally, that an attempt was made to encroach upon the rights of the Winnebagoes in 1836, by a couple of adventurers named Edson and Grant, and that they commenced preparations to build a mill at Elgin, or in "Shin-Bone Valley," as that locality was called in early days. Joseph Quigley, a reliable citizen and very early settler of an adjoining town- ship in Clayton county, is authority for the statement. He claimed to have been well acquainted with the parties. Mr. Quigley said they came from the Turkey valley, below where Elkader is now located, and commenced
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