USA > Iowa > Clinton County > The history of Clinton County, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns &c., biographical sketches of citizens > Part 53
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" Filled with the day's adventures was our hero, Sad adventures with the wild Camanches, And the conflict with the ' tiger,' In the house of Richard Buster.
" ' William,' spoke our ' busted ' granger, ' William, in the place that's kept by Buster, A funny game I saw the boys a-playing ; Such a game I never saw before. Edward looked, and was amaz-ed, Amazed to see such funny playing, Playing never seen before.'
"One deck dealt from a box, the other spreaded, Spreaded out like Butcher's searches For lands of which he might be owner When, with Judge's sign and mandate, Sammy Brown caught the ' Chieftain,' and in durance kept him.
" Butcher soon saw what the game was, Told me also what the scheme was, Told me how I soon could learn it, And how to place my coin to beat it.
" A quarter on that covered table put I, Table where the spreaded cards lay, Lay so pretty and seductive, And I found in half a minute, Brought my coin another with it.
" This repeated, soon within my pocket rested Coins that, as I counted, happy made me. Then thought I it will be better, Better thus to earn some money Than by selling wheat at only thirty, Thirty cents and nothing more.
" So with larger coins I tried the faster To gather from the cards thus spreaded Gains I sometimes had dreamed of But had never seen before.
452
HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.
" ' In the stable put the horses pranky,' Said I to the grinning hostler, As his palm closed on the silver Taken from my growing store.
" They called a fellow there a ' tiger,'
Tiger fierce and very greedy, Greedy as the wolf in winter, Winter when the storm goes howling, Howling wild the prairies o'er.
" At the tiger then I buck-ed,
Bucked with money hard-earned Money got for all my farm load,
Farm load raised up in Elvira, Elvira high, my prairie home.
" Then I bet a paper dollar,
Put it down, quite sure of winning,
Winning back a dollar more.
Now no longer ran the game so smoothly,
Smoothly as it ran before.
" Malette he won my wealth, in he raked it,
Raked it from the cards there spreaded Out on the table, where they lay
So pretty and seductive,
Seductive now no more.
" . Do you know him, William, know Mallette ?
Mallette who Butcher says a " heavy dog is ?"
Ileavy also in his " dealing,"
Heavy in his cards and counters,
Heavy in his chips and checks, that is
What they call the thing he bets with.'
" In less time than I can tell you,
Tell you of my rapid losses,
Losses fighting that fierce tiger.
I was stripped of every shilling.
" ' That's a eurus game, William, curus,
Curus in the way they play it,
Curus in the way you bet it,
Curus in the way you win it,
Curus in the way you lose it,
Curus in the way you deal it,
Curus, any way you fix it.'
" William knew not what the game was, And Jakey Lepper thus continued :
" ' In the books of ancient story, Stories told of ancient fellows. Stories told somewhere in Seriptur,
In some place that you may know of,
It is told how some old monarchi,
Monarch fierce and wrathy,
Chased some people or some children
O'er some creek, or muddy river,
O'er some brook or roaring water,
Where the water in its fury, Rising on the ones pursuing, Swamped them, swamped them underneath it.'
" Then out spake William, learned in sacred lore, ' Why, Jacob, you must speak of Pharaoh.'
" ' Pharaoh ! Pharaoh, it's right ; you struck it. Struck it, William ; the game's a slick one, And its name is Pharaoh.' "
453
HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.
WAR HISTORY.
For outburst of patriotism in the first rush to arms, for continued devotion in the protracted contest, for unfaltering confidence in the final result, for unfailing courage in darkest hours, and for patient endurance under severest sacrifices, the history of the North is a grand one; and the record made during the bloody days of the rebellion a proud one.
When the contest was forced upon the country, the people, so long at peace that the clash of arms had never been heard by the generation, were quietly pursuing their peaceful employments, making farms or cultivating those already made, erecting homes, founding cities and towns, building shops and factories, or in the professions devoting mind and body to useful pursuits. The country was but just recovering in a degree from the depression and losses of the panic. of 1857. The future was full of hope and promise. The threatened calamity, like the distant mutterings of a coming storm, was but a whisper. True patriots, the people of the North discredited the threats of the rebels, who were plotting the ruin of the best government the world had produced.
But when the flag fell, in April, 1861, from the battlements of Sumter, the North awoke. Dazed for a moment, like a giant suddenly aroused from deep slumber, it stood breathless ; the next witnessed an outburst unparalleled in the annals of time. Scarce had the last click of the telegraph given the full tidings, and the call of our martyred President for 75,000 men, than the quota was filled ; and the night-shades had scarce fallen before regiments of men were moving toward the capital of the nation. Men and means were offered without stint. Patriotism thrilled and pulsated every heart. The farm, the workshop, the office, the pulpit, the bar, the bench, the college, the school- house-every calling offered its best men, their lives and fortunes, in defense of the Government's honor and its unity. Party lines for the time were ignored. Bitter words, spoken in the heat of political contests, were forgiven and forgotten ; and, joining hands in a common cause, the masses of the people repeated the emphatic words of America's soldier-statesman, "By the great Eternal, the Union must and shall be preserved."
The gauntlet thrown down in insolence by the misguided men of the South. was taken up in sorrow, but with a determined spirit of patriotism and love of country.
The belief that the war would be of short duration was soon dispelled, and the people were confronted with the dismal prospect of an internicine struggle, long, bloody and desperate. But the determination of the people was equal to the emergency. Call succeeded call, but to every demand came a ready response, until nearly three and a half millions of men had taken the field in answer to the demands of the Government.
Of the sacrifices of life, of the treasures of wealth poured out before the old flag waved triumphantly over the whole Union, the people well know.
In this war the State of Iowa made a most glorious record. She was most nobly represented by her brave sons on every battle-field, and Clinton County promptly responded to her country's call. Instantly upon the fall of the flag the county was aflame, and, until the last armed foe had surrendered, her gallant sons, by birth or adoption, were freely offering their lives in defense of the government they loved.
On the 15th of April, President Lincoln issued his call for 75,000 men, and. three days later, recruiting began in Clinton County in response to the call.
454
HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.
Capt. H. P. Cox prepared a muster-roll in Lyons, and Lieut. Thomas Snowden one in Clinton.
On Thursday evening, April 18, a war meeting was held in Lyons which filled their largest hall to overflowing. It was presided over by Mayor Samuel G. Magill, and, as expressed in the report of the Lyons Advocate, "The speech of the President was earnest, forcible, and running over with patriotism." " The President took his seat amid deafening cheers of the assembled multitude, each one of whom seemed to be brimful of patriotism. as was the case also with quite a number of ladies present. The portrait of Washington was brought into the room as the cheers for the Chairman subsided. but, as the calm and placid face was placed above the seats occupied by the officers, a perfect furore of applause greeted it." Patriotic airs were sung. doubtless, with an expression and depth of feeling never before experienced by those present. Speeches were made and appropriate resolutions adopted, and many expressed their will- ingness to " pledge their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor " in the cause, if need be. On the next day. the proper muster-rolls were prepared, and seventeen men enrolled their names upon them at once.
On the 19th of April, a large and enthusiastic meeting was held in Clinton, presided over by Mayor John C. Bucher, and Dennis Whitney, Secretary. The lines of party were for the time obliterated, and the unanimous voice was that of patriotic sentiment. At the close of the meeting. nineteen men enrolled themselves as volunteers to serve for three months or during the war. and sums of money were pledged for the expenses of equipping and furnishing needed supplies.
These men formed the nucleus for the first company raised in the county, and a week later its ranks were filled. The company was at first called the Clinton County Guards. The outburst of enthusiasm had spread throughout the State. Five companies had hurried to the rendezvous at Davenport. As yet but little system or methodical action had developed. The storm had burst suddenly. No provision for equipping and placing troops in the field had been made by the State, and the executive officers for the moment were bewil- dered by the crisis with which they were confronted. In this emergency, the people sprang into the breach, and not only furnished the men, but also the material of war. On the 27th of April, the City Council of Lyons appropri- ated $650 to purchase the material with which to equip the " Clinton County Guards." The women, to whom and to their loyal sisters throughout the whole land the nation is ever a debtor for their unselfish devotion, sacrifices, ministra- tions and prayers from the hour when the first shock came until the hour when the memory of the last fallen patriot had been embalmed in the sorrow-stricken heart of mother, wife, sister or lover, to the number of about fifty assembled, and, as expressed by the editor of the Advocate, "all with busy hands and devoted hearts were preparing garments for those who have volunteered to defend what these ladies love next to their Father in Heaven-the flag of their country. What hand can falter when the ladies of the land show such devotion
to the cause ? What heart will faint when encased in the uniform prepared by such hands, the seams of which may have been moistened by the tears of love -unbidden tears, that the necessity should exist for such a work." Two weeks later, a list of the names of eighty-seven ladies who had assisted in the work of preparing the uniforms of this company was published. This company soon went forward fully uniformed in gray, trimmed with red. and joined the Second Iowa Infantry as Company I June 5. 1861. with the following officers : Captain, H. P. Cox; First Lieutenant, Noel B. Howard; Second Lieutenant,
455
HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.
Thomas Snowden. The day previous to their departure, they were presented with an elegant silk flag by the ladies of Lyons.
This company, the first of the many sent from Clinton County to defend the Union, was enlisted for three months ; but, upon their arrival at Keokuk, it was announced that no more three-months' enlistments were being accepted. and the term must be for three years unless sooner discharged. An eye-witness thus described the scene when this announcement was made: "Tuesday, at 9 A. M., we were suddenly called into line, and our Lieutenant read to us the articles of war and explained to us that we were to be sworn in for three years, unless sooner discharged. An opportunity was then given to any one to leave the ranks who did not wish to take the oath on those conditions. No one left the ranks. We then broke ranks, and, being called together at 11 o'clock A. M., one of the number did not wish to go. stating that he could not be away from his family so long. We had pretty fairly discussed the three-year question before, and, although some seemed to think that some fair ones would be looking for them before then, all came to the conclusion that they must wait. Country first, and then home and those who make it, recognizing 'without a country there is no home.'" At 12 o'clock, they took their stand in line, the oath was administered and Clinton County had given its first company of brave men into the service of the United States. Out of this company the first soldier fell, Corporal Albert E. Winchell, who was killed by the accidental discharge of a comrade's musket while the company were on scouting service in Missouri, June 27, 1861. After arduous service for the term of their enlistment. many of the members who survived returned home in the summer of 1864. and those who re-enlisted were consolidated into six companies, known as the Second Iowa Veteran Infantry, Lieut. Col. N. B. Howard, and, in November follow- ing, the veterans of the Third Iowa were merged with them, with Col. Howard in command.
Meanwhile, W. E. Leffingwell and others were engaged in raising a com- pany of cavalry, which was then known as the "Hawk-Eve Rangers." This company furnished their own horses and acconterments. Many of the horses were sold by the farmers to the young men who had more courage than cur- rency, upon securities that would give a bank discount clerk "awful pause." The ranks of this company were soon filled to one hundred strong, and, on the 25th of July, left for the rendezvous at Burlington. As indicated above, this company was raised and equipped without State or Government aid, and was the first fully equipped company of cavalry raised in Iowa. It became Company B. First Iowa Cavalry, and was officered as follows: Captain, W. E. Leffingwell : First Lieutenant, S. S. Burdette; Second Lieutenant, William H. DeFreest.
July 24, 1861, the company was presented with a beautiful flag of blue silk, and bordered with golden stars, the name of the company being displayed upon the one side while the reverse bore the name emblematically represented by a hawk and an eye. In the talons of the bird was the motto-" We will meet you on the border." Their departure is described as follows : " At an early hour on Thursday morning. the bugle sounded the . assembly,' and in a very short time the barracks were astir with the preparations for departure. There was but one attempt at cheering that we heard, the feelings of the people being entirely too much wrought up to indulge in a hearty cheer. With the dis- astrous results of the last few days in full recollection-all felt that going forth to war was no trifling matter." This was on July 25. only four days after the disastrous battle of Bull Run. The company marched overland to Burlington, and became Company B, First Iowa Cavalry.
456
HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.
At or about the same time, a company of cavalry with the nomme de guerre of "Black Plume Rangers " was being recruited at Clinton. This company was filled, and. on September 1, they departed for the rendezvous joining the First Cavalry as Company M, with the following officers : Captain, W. H. Ankeny : First Lieutenant. James Crissey ; Second Lieutenant, J. P. Crosby.
The next organization from this county was Company A, Eighth Infantry. This company was raised in Camanche, Eden, De Witt, Orange and Center principally. and was mustered in September 5, 1861. The commanding officers were : Captain, Charles Stearns, De Witt ; First Lieutenant, Henry Muhs, Camanche; Second Lieutenant, Hezekiah Browning, De Witt.
In a little more than a month later, October 22. 1861, still another com- pany took the field. A portion of this organization, however, was composed of men from Linn County. The officers who went out with this command were : Captain, John C. Marvin, Clinton : First Lieutenant, William 'T'. Bagley, Mount Vernon ; Second Lieutenant, Robert L. Wilson. Cedar Rapids, and was mus- tered in as Company K. Tenth Infantry.
Within less than a month, November 15, 1861, Company A, Fifteenth Infantry. was mustered into the service. This company was recruited by Capt. Josiah Kittle ; First Lieutenant, William Swansen ; Second Lieutenant, Jesse Penniman, all of Lyons, and who went out in command of the company, and Sergeant (afterward Lieutenant) John F. Evans, and Sergeant Alonzo Hat- field, both of De Witt. All these gentlemen had been detailed on this service. This company was raised in Lyons, and about De Witt, though there were men in its ranks from various townships in the county. and they made a brilliant record during their service.
The next organization to take the field was one recruited by John H. Smith and M. D. Madden, and was commanded as follows : Captain, J. Henry Smith, Camanche ; First Lieutenant. W. H. Iloyt, Camanche ; Second Lieutenant, M. D. Madden. Lyons. This company has been called the " Lion Company of Clinton County." and this without disparagement of any of the other com- panies, none of whom made other than a proud record. This regiment gained notice for its terrific fighting, and at Atlanta nearly the whole regiment was captured. Capt. Smith. with some comrades, escaped from the rebel prison hell, and, after the most terrible hardships, reached the sea-coast and found refuge on a Union war vessel. The whole command re-enlisted, and served until the close of the war. This company was mustered in, December 10, 1861, as Company A, Sixteenth Infantry. This company was recruited in Camanche and Lyons, although, of course, the surrounding townships con- tributed largely to the ranks.
On the 28th of February, 1862, another company was mustered in. This was known as Company F. Sixteenth Infantry, and the following officers went to the field with it: Captain, Edward S. Fraser. Davenport ; First Lieuten- ant, Josiah Heavner, Wheatland ; Second Lieutenant, Peter Miller, Jr., Lyons. This company was raised in Wheatland and vicinity and in Lyons and vicinity, with a portion of the command from Scott County.
On the 25th of August. 1862. the Twentieth Infantry was mustered into the service. There was not strictly a Clinton County organization in it, although many men from the county enlisted in its ranks, the regiment being raised in Scott and Linn Counties. Among the officers were Surgeon A. O Blanding, Lyons; First Lieut. B. F. Jordan, Wapsie, Co. F; Second Lieut. Frederick E. Starck, Clinton, in Company G.
457
HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.
A number of men from this county were also in Company A, Twenty-fourth Infantry, which was raised in Linn, Scott, Cedar, Jackson and Jones Counties. The officers of Company A were: Captain, S. H. Henderson, Sabula ; First Lieutenant, Charles Davis, Deep Creek ; Second Lieutenant, George W. Davis, Deep Creek. This company was mustered in September 18. 1862.
From this brief record, we find that ten companies wholly or in part com- posed of Clinton County men, had taken the field within about eighteen months from the first call for troops. The returns made by the enrolling officers September 13, 1862, give the total number of men between the military ages in the county as 4,741, with 720 exempt for cause, leaving the total military list liable to service in the county, 4,021; and the report further states that already 1,459 volunteers had taken the field. or nearly one-third of the able bodied men who were in the county when the enlistment began. Every township, city and hamlet had contributed to this army of patriotic defenders of their country.
Still the cry came for more men, and, though prolonged and disheartening campaigns had decimated and thrice decimated the ranks of those who had early rushed into the struggle, and the conflict grew vaster and the peril more deadly, the hearts of the people did not falter, and hundreds of brave men stood ready to refill the shattered ranks and take the places of their fallen friends and townsmen.
In 1862, it was determined to raise a full regiment in the county, to be known as the Clinton County Regiment. With already depleted numbers, it seemed as if this was a sacrifice beyond the ability of the people to bear. To do this was to call for the service of every third able-bodied man within the limits of the county. However, recruiting began at once, and, on the 30th of September, 1862, the Twenty-sixth Iowa Infantry was mustered into the ser- vice with full ranks. The roster of the field and staff officers was as follows : Colonel, Milo Smith, Clinton ; Lieutenant Colonel, Samuel G. Magill, Lyons ; Major. Samuel Clark, De Witt; Surgeon, A. F. Hudson, Lyons : Assistant Surgeon, William McQuigg, Lyons; Additional Assistant Surgeon. George F. Wetherell, Lyons ; Chaplain, Rev. John McLeish, Clinton : Quartermaster. Joseph H. Flint. Lyons.
Company A was composed largely of men from the northeastern townships of the county and the adjoining vicinity in Jackson County, and was recruited by and mustered into service under command of the following officers : Cap- tain, Sherman R. Williams, Lyons ; First Lieutenant, Asa Franklin, Lyons ; Second Lieutenant, A. D. Gaston, Lyons.
Company B was nearly all of it from Jackson County, having been recruited by and was mustered in by the following officers : Captain. James W. Eckles, Maquoketa; First Lieutenant, Alva Wilson, Maquoketa ; Second Lieutenant, Thomas B. Harrison, Maquoketa.
Company C was largely from the city of Clinton. Its officers were : Cap- tain, George W. Johnson, Clinton ; First Lieutenant, Peter L. Hyde, Clinton : Second Lieutenant, James McDill.
Company D was raised in De Witt, Washington and Waterford, and in its ranks were many Irish patriots who took arms in defense of their adopted country. Its officers were : Captain, Nathaniel A. Merrell, De Witt ; First Lieutenant, James H. Runyon, De Witt ; Second Lieutenant, James F. Gil- more, De Witt.
Company E was a German Company, largely made up of citizens of Lyons, Elk River and Deep Creek. It was mustered in under command of: Captain,
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HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.
John Lubbers, Lyons ; First Lieutenant. Edward Svendsen, Elk River ; Second Lieutenant, Preban Hansen, Deep Creek.
Company F was raised in De Witt, Olive and Orange Townships princi- pally. Its officers were : Captain, Joel B. Bishop, De Witt ; First Lieutenant, William R. Ward, De Witt ; Second Lieutenant, Silas Freeman, De Witt.
Company G. was an Irish company, and was recruited in and about Lyons, and from around the mouth of the Maquoketa. Its officers were: Captain, James H. Heavey, Lyons : First Lieutenant, John Quinn. Lyons ; Second Lieu- tenant, Philip MacCahill, Lyons.
Company H was recruited in the vicinity of De Witt. Its officers were: Captain, C. M. Nye, De Witt ; First Lieutenant, James S. Patterson, De Witt : Second Lieutenant, John Barrett, De Witt.
Company I was raised from Wheatland and the townships of Spring Rock, Liberty. Berlin and a few men from the border of Cedar County. Its officers were : Captain, Edwin A. Wemple, Wheatland; First Lieutenant, John L. Steele. Wheatland ; Second Lieutenant, Edward W. Bennett, Wheat- land.
Company K was raised in Lyons. Deep Creek. Elk River, Washington and Waterford Townships, principally. Its officers were : Captain, Nelson C. Roe, Lyons: First Lieutenant, Nathan D. Hubbard. Deep Creek ; Second Lieutenant. Lucian Pomeroy. Lyons. The Twenty-sixth Regiment was mustered out June 6. 1865.
The last company raised in the county was Company A, Sixth lowa Cavalry, which was mustered in January 31, 1863. Its officers were : Captain, John Galligan, Clinton ; First Lieutenant. John M. Gates, De Witt : Second Lieu- tenant. Sinon J. Toll. Lyons.
Taking into account the fact that many scattering men had enlisted in other organizations and in batteries and in the naval service. it may be presumed that, up to this date. Clinton County had furnished over 2,500 volunteers. But, notwithstanding this great number of men, who had voluntarily gone into the service, the requirements of the General Government were not satisfied, and. in September. 1864, the draft, which the people had made so great sacrifices to avoid, was made, and about 200 men were drawn for service from Clinton County.
Meanwhile, the women were equally as earnest and enthusiastic as their husbands. fathers, sons and brothers. "Soldiers' Aid and Relief Societies" were organized in the towns and townships of the county, and systematic work inaugurated and carried forward for providing the volunteers in field and in hospital with the necessaries and luxuries they so much needed. Clothing, bed-clothing, cots, slippers, books, papers, delicacies were forwarded in unlim- ited quantities. It will never be possible to fully estimate the mighty impulse given to the cause, or the encouragement afforded to the soldiers enduring the hardships of the campaign, or the privations and dispiriting surroundings and sufferings in the hospitals, by the women of the North, by their indefatigable labors.
The Board of Supervisors took action at a special session held July 5. 1861, and voted $5,000 to equip and uniform the "Hawk-Eye Rangers," which vote only had two dissenting voices. This money was expended by a special committee of their number, viz .: James Van Deventer, George Gris- wold and John F. Homer, who so faithfully executed their trust as to receive a vote of thanks from their associate members. On September 30, 1861, the following resolution was unanimously passed :
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