USA > Iowa > Polk County > Pioneers of Polk County, Iowa, and reminiscences of early days, Vol. II > Part 10
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"Uncle Johnny," as he was called, did not propose to recognize the West Siders, as was his rule, and soon after his church organ- ization, the name was changed to "First Presbyterian Church," to distinguish it from the Central. November Fifteenth, 1857, they were consolidated as the Central Church.
First Physician (Civilian)-Doctor Thomas K. Brooks, Sep- tember, 1845.
First Frame Building-Two-story, at southeast corner of Third and Market streets, by David Solenbarger, in July, 1847.
First Brick Dwelling-Corner Fourth and Court Avenue, where the Valley National Bank now stands, by L. D. Winchester, in 1849. "Billy" Moore was married in it.
First Tavern on the East Side-W. H. Meacham's log cabin, near east end of Grand Avenue bridge, in 1845.
First Tavern on West Side-Log cabin on Market Street, used as a blacksmith shop by the soldiers, to which was added a frame addition in 1846, by Martin X. Tucker, as he was called. He signed his name with an "X" and somebody else had to write the rest of it.
First Drug Store-In the old soldiers' Guard House, by Doctor F. C. Grimmel, October, 1846, corner Third and Vine streets.
First School-April, 1846, in one of the log barrack buildings, by Miss Davis. She had to suspend school in July, 1846, while the District Court was held in her schoolroom.
First Public School-Organized November, 1849.
First Public School Building-Erected in 1855, at the north- west corner of Ninth and Locust streets. It required two years from start to finish.
First Regular Mail-Arrived March Third, 1849, by special messenger on horseback.
First Postoffice Building-A small, one-story frame, northeast corner of Second and Vine streets, built by Hoyt Sherman, Post- master, in 1850.
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First White Male Child-Son to John B. Scott, an Indian trader, on the east bank of Des Moines River, near Vine Street, born in January, 1845.
First White Female Child-Born to a settler, Frances Michael, October Twentieth, 1844.
First Death-An infant child of Lieutenant Grier, of the gar- rison, September, 1845.
First Marriage License-Benjamin Bryant and Elvira Birge, June Eleventh, 1846.
First Census Taken-July, 1846; population, one hundred and twenty-seven.
First Record of Sale of Town Lot-Angust Fourteenth, 1846.
First Mortgage of Record-June Twenty-ninth, 1847.
First Ice Dealer-Ed. R. Clapp, 1846.
First Meat Market-"Uncle David" Norris, on Second Street, 1846, though John Hays always claimed priority to Norris.
First Town Couneil-Met in Court House, October Twenty- sixth, 1851.
First President of Town Council-"Father" Thompson Bird.
First Newspaper-The Iowa Star, June Twenty-sixth, 1849.
First Daily Newspaper-The Register, January Thirteenth, 1862.
First Stage Coach-July First, 1849.
First Mill-By W. HI. Meacham, on the East Side, in 1846, near where the casket factory now is It was run by horse power.
First Stove Store-By Jesse F. Dicks, Number One, Mechan- ies' Hall, Second Street, 1849.
First Coal Dug-By soldiers of the garrison, in 1843.
First Lawyer Admitted to Practice in the District Court- William D. Frazee, September, 1846.
First State Capitol-Opened January Eleventh, 1858.
First Fraternal Organizations-Masonic, Jannary Sixteenth, 1850; Independent Order of Odd Fellows, April Twenty-sixth, 1850; Knights of Pythias, February Twenty-second, 1871; Ancient Order of United Workmen, February Eighth, 1875; Legion of Honor, July First, 1879; Grand Army of the Republic, March Twelfth, 1878.
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First Tailor-J. M. Thrift, on Second Street, 1845.
First Citizens' Store-By B. T. Hoxie, on Second Street, cor- ner of Vine, 1846.
First Plasterer-Samuel Gray, 1848. He plastered the first Court House.
First Photographer-G. L. Reynolds, 1856.
First Ingrain Carpet-Brought by Mrs. Captain West, 1849.
First Full-blooded Irishman-Michael McTighe, who came in 1854. He ran the Shamrock House, on Second Street, between Market and Vine; was a member of the City Council from 1861 to 1877, and, with Michael Drady, ran the old First Ward to suit themselves. And Drady is still with us, his head full of stories galore of those old days. They were a jolly, hustling couple.
First Amusement Hall-Built by Doctor M. P. Turner, on Court Avenue, adjoining The Register and Leader Building, in 1856.
First Iron Foundry-By H. N. Heminway, in the Fall of 1856.
First Steam Boiler Works-By N. S. McDonnell, near the east end of Court Avenue bridge, and he is still running the business at the same place. The first boiler made went into Heminway's foundry.
First Brass Band-By C. A. Mosier, in 1855.
First Piano-Was brought by Captain F. R. West, in 1853.
First Drayman-Michael Kennedy, 1853.
First Steam Power Printing- By John Teesdale, 1859.
First Carriage-Built by O. W. Munsell, for Captain West, in 1867.
First Brewery-George Hierb, at corner of Seventh and Cen- ter street, 1855.
First Time City Was Lighted With Gas-July Sixteenth, 1865.
First Fire Company Organized-A volunteer, 1865.
First Railroad Passenger Train-August Twenty-ninth, 1866, the Keokuk and Des Moines.
First Street Railway-1867, built by Doctor M. P. Turner.
First Carload Wheat Shipped from City to Chicago-By War- ren & Graham, September Fourth, 1867.
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First Railroad Bridge-Built by the Rock Island, 1868.
First Velocipede-By Wesley Redhead, July Twenty-eighth, 1869.
First Street Pavement-Cedar blocks, 1882, on Walnut, from First to Fifth.
First Furniture Dealer-C. D. Reinking, 1848.
First Brick Dwelling on the East Side-By Doctor T. K. Brooks, 1851.
First Brick Business House on the East Side-Near Fourth and Locust streets, 1856.
First Brick Building-Doctor "Jim" Campbell's Infirmary, at 'Coon Point, 1849.
First Brick Building on Court Avenue-Sherman Block, at Third, 1856.
First Brick Building on Walnut-Northwest corner of Third, 1855 ; known as Exchange Block.
First Frame Residence on the East Side-By Colonel J. M. Griffith, at the northeast corner of Sixth and Walnut.
First Barber-John Chalmers, a Scotchman. He attempted to fill his lamp one evening with camphene, when it exploded. He was carried into the cabin of Elder Nash, which stood on Walnut, a short distance west of the Exchange Block, and died in a few hours.
First Shoemaker-Nat. Campbell, 1845. He had a small log shop near the present corner of Sixth and Cherry, and made good shoes.
First Power Printing Press .- A Guernsey, 1856, was run by hand, on which the Citizen, a Free Soil paper, was printed. It existed one year, and then joined the multitudinons wrecks of early newspapers.
First Express Company-The United States, May, 1856.
First Locomotive Entering City-A Manchester built engine, the Marion, Number Eleven, August Twenty-eighth, 1866. It hauled a load of rails to complete the track to the East Side, for the Valley Road.
First Court House-Commenced in 1848, completed in 1850; stood where the Union Depot now stands.
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First Incorporation of the Town of Fort Des Moines-1851.
First Incorporation of City of Des Moines-1857.
First Time Court House Was Lighted by Gas-January Sev- enteenth, 1864.
First Recorded Total Vote of the Town at a General Election- Two hundred and forty-four, in 1852; population, five hundred and two.
First Steam Power to Drive Machinery-Put in a mill by C. C. Van, 1849.
First Meeting of the Legislature in the City-January Elev- enth, 1858.
First General Merchandise Store-Built of logs, by Robert A. Kinzie, where the Sherman Block is, at Third and Court Avenue. He could sell goods to anybody but Indians, being prohibited by the commander of the garrison.
First Mayor of the City of Des Moines-William H. McHenry, 1857, familiarly called by old-timers, "Old Bill," to distinguish him from his son, now a Judge of the District Court.
First Hook and Ladder Company-1865.
First Bridge-A pontoon, at Grand Avenue, 1856, then known as Keokuk Street on the east side of the river, and Sycamore on the west side.
First Bridge Proper-A trestle, at Market Street, 1857.
First Bridge at Court Avenue-1858.
First Bridge at Walnut Street-1866.
First Bridge Across the 'Coon-1862, built by Doctor M. P. Turner.
First "Grand Social Event"-A fancy dress party, Winter of 1859, at the home of Edwin Sanford, on Seventh Street, below Mulberry, then the most fashionable portion of the town. About sixty invitations included all the society people. It was a hilarious aggregation of fun-makers. I don't think Mrs. Judge Rice, "Fri- day" Eason, C. W. Keyes, B. F. Allen, John A. Kasson, or Mrs. Bina M. Wyman, then a most sedate and circumspect schoolma'am, have forgotten it. There was real, solid enjoyment in the social events of those days, such as is not to be had in these days.
VOL. II-(9).
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First Cemetery-At a point near the northeast corner of Third and Locust, and extended north nearly one block. The first burial in it was the child of Colonel Grier, in September, 1845. It was subsequently removed, as were all the four bodies interred therein.
First Name of the Postoffice-"Raccoon River," and it so remained until 1847, when it was changed to "Fort Des Moines."
First Bank-B. F. Allen, on Second Street, 1855.
First Citizen Blacksmith-William H. DeFord. His shop was on Elm Street, near Third, in a log cabin.
First Flock of Sheep Brought to Polk County-Pastured on the Commons, where the Court House now stands, and westward. Doctor "Jim" Campbell brought them.
First Log Cabin Built by a Settler-On the west side of Fourth Street, between Market and Elm, and was conspicuous until 1868, for three large Cottonwood trees which stood near it.
First Systematic Deep Coal Mining-By Wesley Redhead and John Gibson, in 1870.
First Tannery-In 1847, two men, named Roberts and Kane, built a log cabin for a tannery at the corner of First and Walnut streets. They dug a large cave in the bank of Des Moines River, in which to keep oil, grease, and "stuffing." They got oak bark on Terrace Hill, where Fred. Hubbell lives. The following Spring, the river flood carried away the contents of the cave, the cabin was sold and moved to give place to the Demoin House.
First Business College-J. W. Muffly, 1864.
July Twenty-second, 1906.
JUDGE CHESTER C. COLE
JUDGE CHESTER C. COLE
C' HESTER C. COLE was born June Twenty-fourth, 1824, at Oxford, New York, of English ancestry, which is given high rank in Burke's Registry of English Peerage and Heraldry. He spent his youth on a farm with his mother, attended public schools and Oxford Academy until thirteen, when he became clerk in a store until eighteen, when he entered the Junior Class at Union College. At twenty-one, he entered the Law School of Har- vard, and graduated in 1848. He then went to Frankfort, Ken- tucky, where he reported the proceedings of the Legislature for the Daily Commonwealth of that city, at the conclusion of which, he located at Marion, Kentucky, was admitted to the Bar of Critten- den County, and began the practice of law, in which, during his nine years' stay there, he attained a high rank, especially in crimi- nal law. It was said of him he was counsel for the defense in nearly every criminal case before the court, and never had a client convicted ; that he never prosecuted but two criminal cases, one for murder, and the defendant was hung; the other for passing counter- feit money, and the defendant was sent to the penitentiary. His practice extended to several counties in Illinois, and he came in contact with the ablest lawyers of that time and place.
In 1857, he came to Des Moines, a stranger, began practice, and was soon accredited a leading position with the Bar.
In 1859, he was nominated by the Democratic Convention for Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. His opponent was Caleb Baldwin, of Council Bluffs, weighing over four hundred pounds, a ponderous and formidable one for the young newcomer. The Democratic party was then divided on the leading political issue at that time-the Missouri Compromise. Cole was identified with the Douglas wing of it, but the party had lost its grip in Iowa, and he was defeated.
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In 1860, he was nominated by the Democrats for Representative in Congress, from the Second District, which comprised nearly the south half of the state. His opponent was Samuel R. Curtis, very little known, and whom he was told could be beaten without effort. He loaded himself with speech-making material, and having got possession of the Statesman office, he hired Stilson Hutchins, a well-known politician and newspaper editor in those days, to run it during the campaign. With a team each, they started out-there were no railroads, and stage coaches did not run where they wanted to go. They traveled together, became good friends, sometimes riding together, and the drivers together. He soon discovered that Curtis had to be considered with zeal and care. Referring to it not long ago, he said :
"I will tell you what I did. I made a speech-I had material for a few speeches on hand-and the next day made another speech. I found Curtis' mind so tardy he could not answer the speech I had just made, but would answer overwhelmingly the speech I had made the day before. The difficulty was, it did not get to the same audiences, for we had moved. I concluded I would substitute; make the speech in one place that I should have made in another place, and, upon my word, he made most conclusive answer to it. I found that it would not do to be repeating the same thing before him; I must get new material; so I had Hutchins gather up mate- rial and suggestions, which he brought me every week or two. The campaign was never equaled in the state. There were seventy days in succession. From Keokuk to the Missouri River, back to the Mississippi, thence back to the Missouri, and then back to the Mis- sissippi, with an average of more than one debate a day, for though there was arranged but one debate each day, each party had the right to put in an additional one, and we did. The hardest task was to avoid repeating, to baffle my opponent's slow grasp of points, but he proved to be a man of great strength of mind and vigor of character, and became one of the great men of the Nation. We became warm friends thereafter."
In 1858, he was elected City Attorney, and served one term.
In 1861, when reports came of the attack on Fort Sumter, the Judge headed a call for a mass meeting, which was held in Sher- man IIall. The crowded gathering was addressed by him in a
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stirring, unanswerable appeal for support to the Government in putting down the Rebellion. Thenceforward he was allied with Union men, though he was recognized by his party until 1862, when he was called to address a party convention, on which occa- sion, in most scathing terms, he denounced the party for its sym- pathy with the South.
In 1863, when rumors came that a Rebel raid was to be made on the Missouri border, the Judge took the field and spent thirty days among the people of the border counties, in earnest endeavor to reconcile his old Democratic associates to the new order of things. He left the party, and joined hands with Baker, Bussey, Tuttle, and Crocker, to save the Union. William M. Stone was running for Governor on the Republican ticket. The Judge sup- ported him by public addresses and through the newspapers, giving in vigorous, patriotic terms his reasons therefor, and Stone was elected.
In 1864, in recognition of his labor in behalf of the Union, Gov- ernor Stone appointed him an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and in October he was elected to the full term of six years by the unprecedented majority of forty thousand. In 1869, he became Chief Justice of the Court. In 1870, he was reëlected, and the same year Iowa College at Grinnell conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Laws. In January, 1876, he resigned and resumed the practice of law.
In 1865, he boldly and publicly announced himself in favor of Negro Suffrage, and was the first person of prominence and influ- ence in the state to do so, on the ground of right, reasonableness and justice, an innovation which, at that time, required the courage of one's convictions.
The same year, he, with George G. Wright, his court associate, organized the Iowa Law School, at Des Moines, which at once gave promise of great success. In the meantime, steps were being taken to organize a Law Department of the State University. To avoid a formidable rivalry, a plan was perfected to merge the school into the department of the University, but the necessary legislation thereto was not secured until 1868, when the department was opened, but the founding was antedated so as to include the gradu- ates of the Iowa Law School for the years 1866, 1867, and 1868.
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The school then closed, became the Law Department of the Univer- sity, and Wright and Cole the law lecturers.
The year 1865 was a busy one for the Judge. A general effort was being made to provide a suitable home for the orphan children of soldiers. It appealed so directly to his sympathies, he at once took an active part in the matter, was made one of the Trustees, and elected President of the Board. He found there twenty-five children, poorly cared for, with less than one thousand dollars funds for expenses. During the first year, eight hundred children were gathered in, and over two hundred and fifty thousand dollars expended in improvement and equipment of the home.
He also assisted in organizing the State Fire Insurance Com- panv, and was elected its Vice-President.
In 1872, it became apparent to discerning minds that the State Library was in a dilapidated, chaotic condition, evidencing no pur- pose, method, or utility-in fact, it could hardly be called a library. The necessity for some legislation that would give it the dignity of a state office and be of benefit to the people became so conspicuous, Judge Cole and his associates took hold of it, and secured the pas- sage of an Act creating a Board of Trustees comprising the Gov- ernor, Superintendent of Public Instruction, and Supreme Judges ; the library was made a state institution, and provision for its enlargement and permanent improvement. It is now, with its more than one hundred thousand volumes, beautifully housed in the Capitol and "Charley" Aldrich's magnificent omnigatherum- that's what everybody calls it-an honor to the state.
When the Judge was practicing law, he also edited for many years the Western Jurist, a law journal published by Mills & Com- pany, which attained a high rank. In 1879, he edited the re-publi- cation of the first eight volumes of the Supreme Court Reports, with elaborate annotations, which evidenced his legal acumen and exhaustive research.
In 1892, he was chosen Dean of the Law Department of Drake University, which office he holds now.
Possessing a natural genius for the law-in fact, being a born lawyer-he has cultivated and enlarged his acute, subtle, penetrat- ing mind by cautious, laborious study, large experience, and long
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practice, until he has become master of the science of law. As a forensic orator, he is clear, forcible, argumentative, possessing the power to sway juries, and hold the attention of audiences. As a Judge, his plain, penetrating, analytical reasoning, and good judg- ment, were potent factors in his court, consisting of his associates, Wright, Dillon and Lowe, the strongest and best the state has ever had. Under the new Constitution, without precedents, it was their duty to fix the rule of law respecting the taxing power of the Gov- ernment; the relation of corporations to the body politic, and cor- porate rights, involving intricate and perplexing questions under an ambiguous clause of the Constitution requiring the property of corporations, with their numerous ramifications and widely diver- gent interests, to be taxed the same as that of individuals. So wisely was it done, their decisions have become the established law.
In social life, the Judge has been a prominent factor in all its departments-civic, educational, and religious-always ready and active to promote the welfare of the community. He holds high rank in the Masonic fraternity and Knights of Pythias. He is eminently social, and heartily enjoys company. His home is noted for its generous hospitality. That big house on Fourth Street was the scene of some of the most brilliant and notable entertainments known in the city.
In my reporting days, the Judge was my favorite in fishing for news respecting the doings of the Supreme Court. He knew and appreciated the wants of newspaperdom. I recall one day when interviewing him, Judge Mitchell, of the then Circuit Court, came in, bringing an opinion he had prepared with great care, evidently to avoid a reversal of it by a higher court, and asked Cole to read it, which he did, saying: "You have sustained your position very well, but suppose-" adding a half dozen words. "I never thought of that," said Mitchell, and, putting the opinion in his pocket, went home to build another one that would stand up. The Judge was ever ready to help others.
The Judge is an admirer of fine horses, and he likes to see the "wheels go 'round." Several years ago, he became just a little sporty, for a diversion, indulging in a beautiful pair of black, high- steppers, which, with perceptible self-satisfaction, he gave the peo- ple frequent opportunity to see on the streets in their graceful
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movements. Sometimes, perchance, he would draw up alongside Levi J. Wells, outside, exercising some of his sprinters. It was the rule of Levi never to let anything that went on four legs pass him on the road, and the Judge was sometimes humorously inclined to tease him for a short spin, and "see the wheels go 'round."
As a citizen, he is an exemplar of the best type of civilian. His public spirit and constant endeavor to promote the highest ideal of civic life have added greatly in the betterment of the city and state.
Religiously, he is a Presbyterian, and for many years has been an Elder of the church. He was largely instrumental in securing the merger of the Old and New School churches in the city, in 1874.
Despite his eighty-two years, he is hale and hearty, and to his law school, clients, and friends, seems as vigorous as thirty years ago.
August Fifth, 1906.
DR. H. L. WHITMAN
DOCTOR HENRY L. WHITMAN
O NE of the best and most beloved of early settlers of Des Moines was Doctor Henry Lyman Whitman.
He was born in Hartford, Connecticut, December Thir- tieth, 1814, of English ancestry, who crossed the Atlantic in 1638, four years after the family from whom my own family descended, all of whom settled in the same vicinity in Connecticut.
He spent his life on a farm until the age of seventeen, receiving the education afforded by the common schools of that day. During his eighteenth year, he attended Hartford Academy, and fitted bim- self to enter Amherst College, from which he graduated in 1839, with distinction as a scholar. He then spent two years teaching in Tennessee and Missouri, when he returned to Weathersfield, Con- necticut, and began the study of medicine with Doctor Welch, an eminent practitioner, preparatory to entering Jefferson Medical College, at Philadelphia, from which he graduated in 1845.
His Western teaching tour convinced him the West presented the best inducements to a young man with aspirations or ambition, and he came to Freeport, Illinois, where he remained two years, securing an extensive and good practice, but the spirit of migra- tion was rife everywhere, and in 1848, the lead-mine district of Dubuque was an attractive point. Thither he went, and for five years was engaged in laborious and lucrative business.
In 1853, Raccoon Forks and Fort Des Moines had come into prominence as the probable Capital of the state. Public sentiment was largely in favor of removing the Seat of Government from Iowa City to a more central point in the state, which Fort Des Moines, geographically, was then admitted to be. The military post had given it a prestige which portended well to that end. It was also the objective point of several railroads-on paper, it is true. Emigration was moving toward it rapidly, and the Doctor came that year. The town was small, little more than a village,
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with less than eight hundred inhabitants, great and small, the small ones averaging more than the usual census ratio, for the stork was a busy bird in those days.
The most accessible and comfortable tavern in town was the Marvin House, near Walnut, on the east side of Third. It was the headquarters of the stage coach lines, and the home of the most popular young meu of that time. The Doctor being a bachelor, fond of good company, also made it his home until the Demoin House was built, when he removed there, remaining until his mar- riage, in December, 1865, when he purchased the residence built by J. E. Jewett, which stood on First Street, and was removed to give place to the new Library Building.
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