The history of Clinton County, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns &c., biographical sketches of citizens, Part 70

Author: Western Historical Co
Publication date: 1879
Publisher: Chicago : Western historical company
Number of Pages: 812

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 70

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For the aid of this enterprise, the citizens subscribed and paid $32,000. It seems questionable whether the results have proved sufficiently beneficial to them to reimburse them for this sacrifice.

Wheatland was incorporated July 13, 1869, and the first election held July 29.

The following gentlemen have held official position under the city govern- ment :

Mayors-E. Woods, 1869-71; C. H. Sanford, 1872; E. Woods, 1873: T. D. Gamble, 1874-78 : O. J. Thornton, 1879.

Recorders-A. M. Hall, 1869-70 ; H. C. June, 1871 ; L. B. Manwarring, 1872-73; H. J. Hoskin. 1874-75 ; A. M. Hall, 1875-79.

Aldermen-T. D. Gamble, T. P. Farrington. Henry Bullmer. John Schmidt, David Moohr, 1869: Jesse Stine, A. Smith, E. Carter, David Moohr, H. C. Potter, 1870 ; E. M. Tucker, James Welsh, O. J. Thornton, T. D. Gamble, Peter Goddard, 1871; T. D. Gamble, E. M. Tucker, J. Stine, W. H. Bayliss, L. Smith, 1872; Jerome Dutton, J. Stine, O. J. Thornton, D. Moohr. A. Smith. 1873; O. J. Thornton, D. Moohr, A. Smith. D. B. McCullough, J. C. Growell, 1874 ; W. H. Bayliss, D. Moohr, A. M. Hall, H. A. Fickie, O. J. Thornton. 1875 ; H. A. Fickie, O. J. Thornton. J. Stine, James F. Scott, George Matthews, 1876 ; H. A. Fickie, J. Stine, O. J. Thornton, W. L. Nick- els, J. F. Scott, 1877; C. C. Churchill, W. L. Nickels, H. A. Fickie, O. J. Thornton, L. Munson. 1878 ; L. Munson, W. L. Nickels, H. C. Ford, H. A. Fickie. M. C. Jones, Jacob Worth, 1879.

Treasurers-E. Carter. 1870; T. D. Gamble, 1871; D. B. Mccullough, 1872; C. II. Sanford, 1873; D. B. McCullough, 1874 ; S. M. Batterson, 1875-79.

Marshals-James F. Scott, 1869: J. H. Barrett, 1870; W. H. Hicks, 1871; O. J. Thornton. 1872; W. H. Hicks, 1873; J. F. Scott, 1874; G. P. Matthews, 1875-79.

Assessors-J. F. Scott, 1872 : D. Brown, 1873-74 ; J. C. Growell, 1875-79.

The city has a neat two-story brick City Hall, which was erected in 1876. The present population is 1.000.

CHURCHES.

The Presbyterian Society is a flourishing one and has a neat and com- modious church edifice, which was erected in 1858. It was the first Church organized in Wheatland, and has maintained a prominent position in the religious affairs of the city.

St. Paul German Reformed .- This Church and society erected a church building in 1859, but this has been supplanted by a fine church building, which they have recently completed ; they have a flourishing society, the German element being largely represented both in Wheatland as well as in the surround- ing farming country. The Pastor of the Church is Rev. Frederick Deickmann.

The Disciples organized a Church here in 1869, which is still one of the leading sects in the city ; they have a pleasant house of worship.

The Methodists have an organization, but have never erected a house of worship ; they occupy the church building of the Presbyterians. Rev. Mr. Harmer is their supply.

The first school building occupied in Wheatland was a frame building. but the demands of the town soon outgrew its capacity, and, in 1868, an imposing and commodious brick edifice was erected sufficient for the accommodation of

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HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.

400 pupils. It has four departments. The average attendance is 280. The present corps of teachers are : Miss Flora Brown, Principal ; Miss Libbie Rogers, Intermediate ; Eva C. Brown, Primary ; -, German Department (no appointment having been made for the ensuing school year).

LODGES.

Zaradatha Lodge, No. 184, A., F. §. A. M., was organized in 1865, and has been in prosperous existence to the present time. Its present W. M. is J. A. Frost.

Wheatland Lodge, No. 123, A. O. U. W., was organized June 8, 1877, and has a present membership of 35. Its officers are T. D. Gamble, P. M. W .; C. C. Churchill, M. W .: Riley Whitmarsh, Recorder : Adolph Smith, F. ; Jacob Worth, R.

THE PRESS.

In October, 1864, Robert S. Baker and Charles Graham established a . paper at Wheatland, which they called the Clinton County Advocate. In December of the same year, Mr. Baker retired, and the firm became Graham & Gault. So far as can be learned, this was the first paper established there, This paper did not continue for a great length of time.

In 1872 or 1873, Dr. Carothers removed the material of an office from Clarence and established the Wheatland News, which he successfully conducted until his death, in the winter of 1875-76. He was succeeded by Frank L. Dennis, who purchased the material and conducted the paper until August, 1878, when it was suspended, the material taken to Wall Lake, in Sac County, where Mr. Dennis established a paper.

Mr. W. H. Bayliss has also for nearly a year published a small paper called the Wheatland Enterprise.

In the fall of 1868, H. C. Ford, who had for some months published a paper at Lost Nation, called the Chief, discontinued that enterprise, and, mov- ing the material to Wheatland, established the Wheatland Union, which he is now successfully conducting.

The following directory gives the present business status of Wheatland :

George W. Alt, jeweler; S. M. Batterson, dry goods; W. H. Bayliss, Wheatland Enterprise ; J. R. Bielenburgh, veterinary surgeon; T. B. Bissell, tailor; C. C. Churchill, wagon-maker; D. S. Cook, physician; F. Deickman, physician; Jerome Dutton, real estate; John Durkee, blacksmith; F. C. Fifield, hardware; H. C. Ford, Wheatland Union ; Fleig & Thompson, black- smiths; Mrs. R. B. Fleming, millinery; T. D. Gamble, druggist and physi- cian; H. Guenther. druggist ; Reul George, carriage-shop; John Growell, gunsmith ; George Hornrighausen, dry goods and clothing; C. Hoffmaster, saloon ; W. P. Hills, physician ; W. C. Jones, express agent; Mrs. J. Kidd, millinery ; P. Kroger and H. Kokberg, shoe dealers; J. Lohman and Joseph Loeptien, saloons; Lohman & Booth, groceries; George Matthews, cattle- buyer: L. Munson, wood and coal : David McMillin, pumps and wind-mills ; H. Meyer, cigar manufacturer : L. Murray, bridge-builder; Petersen Brothers, dry goods, groceries, and grain-buyers; C. L. Pasche, tailor; D. D. Rorick, attorney ; Jesse Stein, J. S. Stowrs, attorneys; D. W. Scott, dentist; William Seigmund, butcher; E. M. Tucker, Tucker House; O. J. Thornton, livery ; A. Van Bogert, restaurant; John Walraven, Postmaster and stationer; Miss S. J. Wade, millinery ; Woods & Hall, lumber-dealers; J. Wirth, furniture dealer.

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HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.

LYONS.

Among the thousand actual and possible sites for cities and towns along the Mississippi, that of Lyons is the peer of any in beauty and healthfulness of location, and natural adaptation for the demands of commerce and business. The broad and dry plateau stretching from the gradually receding bluffs, affords excellent and salubrious sites for dwellings, with natural drainage without the need of expensive artificial grading or filling. This plain, being protected toward the north and west by imposing bluffs, which form a graceful detour, is remarkably well sheltered from the cold northwestern storms, so that indeed the temperature averages perceptibly milder, and vegetation more forward in spring, than out on the prairies. The gently rising and naturally terraced bluffs were also duly considered by the keen-sighted early prospectors and proprie- tors, as destined to be what they have since proven, residence sites unsurpassed along the river, above any possible dust or malaria ; and, though, perhaps, not so warm in winter as the lower levels, in summer swept by reviving breezes. As the bluffs recede from the river, they become steeper, till the acclivity finally melts into the rolling prairie. Lyons has one of those exceptionally fortunate loca- tions, whose pristine beauty cannot be obliterated by the too frequently " vandal hand" of the march of improvement. At the present date, to a contemplative spectator on the top of the "Lone Grave " Bluff, just northwest of the upper saw-mill, the indestructible beauty of the scene is manifest. Toward the east, wrapped in the purple haze of distance, are the rounded or abrupt bluffs that were the river's primitive banks. Nearer, and from their height apparently rendering the river narrower, are the bolder bluffs above Fulton. Toward the northward, the river winds between a broad labyrinth of islands and bayous, overlooked by limestone cliffs on the west, and the wide, level expanse of its eastern bank ; but toward the south, the vision rarely combines landscape beauty with the evidences of prosperity and civilization. At the base of the bluff stretch the tree-embowered streets of Lyons, chalet and cottage roofs lending

the scene picturesqueness From close by to the horizon at Riverside, extends an almost unbroken line of towering mill and factory chimneys, the smoke from which being from pine and not from soft coal, instead of darkening the air, floats like a veil over the cities or river, lending enchantment to the view of what might, though useful, otherwise seem prosaic and commonplace ; through this hazy canopy the church steeples and the water-works tower appear idealized, and the bridge stretches like a wire lattice from shore to shore. The gleaming river curves to the west and vanishes between Beaver Island and the Albany bluffs, where the aborigines sleep in their mounds. To the east, the bluffs and prairie, dotted with stately houses and comfortable farms, meet the horizon. Even fairer, if less busy, was the landscape when first viewed by the pioneers of Lyons. No one can well wonder at their pitching their tents, or literally, driving their claim stakes.

As stated in a previous chapter, the father of the settlement, Elijah Buel, arrived in 1835, soon followed by George W. Harlan. By that time, Mr. Buel's improvements had somewhat relieved the primeval aspect of the local- ity. Messrs. Buel and Harlan joined together to attract others, and by dili- gent labor made their site appear quite civilized during the two years before 1837, that they were the only residents. In April, 1837, in connection with Dennis Warren, Chalkley A. Hoag and Sewel Foster they laid off a plat into

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HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.

town lots and named the place Lyons, in honor of the city of that name by the rushing Rhone, in France. The land upon which the town was laid off was entered and a patent received from the Government in 1840, at which time some adjoining land was added thereto.

Until the proposed advent of the Lyons & Iowa Central Railroad, the town grew but slowly. Settlements were in the mean time being made at Ful- ton, and a ferry, noted elsewhere, established between the two places, though no mail crossed the river till 1843. The social and business life of the settle- ment was essentially that of a rural community, and not unlike that indicated in the general sketch of the county. Order prevailed, the germs of religion and education were fostered. All the settlers had unbounded faith in the good time coming and a warm welcome for those who chose to locate among them.

The first township election for town and county officers was held in April, 1850, at the house of George Norton. The following poll-list comprises the adult male settlers, and is also valuable as showing how far Lyons then extended: Alexander. John, Harrison, Edward, Oliver, Robert and William Aikman, Benjamin, Chester and Isaac G. Baker, Leonard Barton, Lyman Buck, Elijah Buel, James and John R. Boyd, Cicero and Shubael Coy, Jara Emory, Allan Gilson, Daniel, Charles and Frederick Hess, A. and Edward Hatfield, G. W. Harlan, D. W. Fisher, Roger Glenning, William Lewis, T. Loomis, John Latta, John Long, Joseph Loveland, Philip Monroe, James Goff, William Hogan, John Horseacke, Elijah Owen, Noble Perrin, William Potts, Jonathan L. Pearce. G. L. Pearce, Jr., Barney Reynolds, Isaac Ramsay, John Sloan, Stephen Tripp, Martin Smith, Thomas Watts, Francis Wier, Henry Francheir. Fifty-one in all.

Among time-stained documents belonging to the late John Sloan, now in possession of Supt. L. T. Sloan, are several that are very suggestive as to the condition of the dwellers in Lyons at that time, and the contrast between the past and the present resources of the community. Among them is the first school subscription circulated in this part of Iowa, and, indeed, the Northwest. It is dated, " Lyons, Iowa Territory, February 1, 1841," and shows not only by that early date, so soon after the town's beginning, but by its sentiments, and still more by the subscriptions. the concern of the signers for establishing the future city upon a sound, moral and educational foundation. It reads :

" We, the undersigned, being anxious to encourage morality, and to diffuse education through the country, and viewing at the same time the importance of a permanent school establishment in this neighborhood, and, also, the ulti- mate advantages attendant on such an institution, for the growth and prosperity of our country, are willing to aid and assist in erecting a building for the above purposes, which is to be located in the town of Lyons, I. T., on certain land donated for that purpose by the proprietors of said town. * * *

The above building to be free for all denominations for religious meetings, at any time when the same is not occupied for school purposes. Signed: Oliver P. Aikman (in produce), $5; John Aikman (in team work), $5; John R. Boyd (in plastering), $3; Philip Deeds (in work), $3; James Boyd (in team work), $5; Joseph Boyd (in team work), $1.50; Alex. Aikman (in produce), $5; Shubael Coy (in produce, labor or timber), $15.

In these quiet, early days of Lyons, the monotony of ordinary occupations was rarely stirred, except by the advent of the mail carrier, who brought news that now seems like that of a previous age, the arrival of steamers, the passage of emigrant trains, and perchance a wedding or the arrival of a very young immigrant, unable to state exactly just where it did hail from. In both Lyons

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and Camanche, there were some citizens who appreciated the opportunity for aquatic sport offered by the glorious river rolling past their doors, then flashing like crystal, because uncontaminated by the sedimentary washings from millions of acres of plowed fields. Pleasure-sailing on the river afforded hearty and wholesome enjoyment.

But the intelligent forefathers of Lyons did not allow their minds to rust, but kept their intellectual faculties alive by, for several years about 1855, maintaining a debating club, which, avoiding political and religious grounds of dispute. discussed moral and economic questions with equal ardor and friendli- ness. It is interesting to note that one of the first questions was proposed and opened in the affirmative by Mr. Daniel Hess : " Is a railroad from the Atlan- tic to the Pacific Ocean practicable ?" Probably no one, not even Mr. H., was quite sanguine enough to anticipate that, within less than the time for the youngest infant in the settlement to attain his majority, those who survived would hear the clattering thunder of a train whirling from New York to San Francisco in less than ten days.

For newspapers. Eastern publications were the only reliance for many years. Books were not uumerous, but were carefully read.

Patriotic and political meetings were not neglected. Partisan animosity did not run very high, though the enthusiasm of the Harrison campaign of course extended to the voters of Iowa, in a moderate degrec.

The national anniversary was duly observed, dinners being served in tem- porary booths, where all feasted together royally and sociably. Anvils were used for cannon to fire patriotic salutes. In 1841, one Warren brought to Fulton and Lyons a flat-boat loaded with lumber. On the Fourth of July, Daniel Hess and other citizens, while firing salutes from an anvil as the boat passed to and fro from one village to the other. were challenged by the Fulton men. who were also waking the echoes with anvil detonations, to fire a com- petitive series of rounds-one for cach State and Territory-the party who accomplished their task first to be entertained at dinner by their rivals. The challenge was accepted, and the "artillerymen " prepared for some firing unsurpassed in rapidity by a battery of modern breech-loaders. But, owing to some awkwardness, the first shot had been barely fired when the Fulton maga- zine exploded. fortunately killing no one, but wounding and burning several men very severely. It is unnecessary to add that the Lyons party bought their own dinners.

In 1852. the Lyons & Iowa Central Railroad was organized and began opera- tions. H. P. Adams, of New York. was its leading and controlling spirit. In the spring of 1854, the Company came to an inglorious end : several hundred employes having been unpaid for months, except by goods sold from a store controlled by the Company ; hence its immortalization as the "Calico Road." Its history in the interval has been briefly and sufficiently alluded to in connec- tion with that of the Chicago, Iowa & Nebraska. Authentic details as to its true inwardness are utterly lacking. There are no records except the technical memoranda preserved by the honest and competent engineer, the venerable Allen Slack, now residing in Lyons, who was too busy with his work to give consideration to the financial condition of the Company. How many bonds were issued, at how enormous a discount negotiated, how much money was realized from their sale, and what became of the funds, are matters as fruitful of conjecture as the "Man in the Iron Mask," or the authorship of the Junins letters. It was claimed that the failure of the Cochituate Bank, of Boston, precipitated the Company's failure. Probably it was largely due to the fact

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HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.

that they wasted their resources, by scattering their work over a long line, instead of following Engineer Slack's advice, and completing one section of line at a time.

Mr. Slack's plans for the proposed high bridge were very maturely consid- ered, and the finely drawn original profile was well calculated to inspire confi- dence in the feasibility of building the lofty structure. Its clear length would have been 2,700 feet; it would have been 80 feet above high-water, and the piers 200 feet apart, in water from 22 to 40 feet in depth. Its abutments would have been near the Fulton cemetery and on the Lone Grave Bluff, near the upper saw-mill. The approach on the Illinois side could have been made by grades of from 20 to 40 feet per mile, and the westward gradients were equally practicable. Messrs. Buel, Lake, and other Lyons citizens subscribed liberally, considering that there were probably not over two hundred people in Lyons at the time, for the preliminary survey. That did not seem like the indifference to railroad interests, of which Lyons has been so freely and unthinkingly accused. But as usual, when a public undertaking fails, there were carping and cynical persons in Lyons who were not slothful in freely criti- cising others. One of the satirical pasquinades of that time is quaint enough to preserve. It is entitled :

A CHAPTER FROM THE BOOK OF CHRONICLES, BEING AN EXTRACT FROM THE HISTORY OF LYONS, IOWA.

CHAPTER I.

1. And it cime to pass that after these things, that in the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-four, certain Gentiles from the East, even from the land of New England, emigrated to the Territory of Wisconsin, which is Iowa.

2. And when they had crossed the great river of America, which is the Mississippi, they saw that the country was very beautiful, producing fragrant flowers and the choicest fruits, while the wild elk and deer roamed over its prairies.

3. And when they had journeyed many days in search of a place whereon they might build a city, they pitched their tents over against the Narrows of the Mississippi, on an elevated plain.

4. And lo ! when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw that the place upon which they then were, was one of exceeding great beauty. Then they tarried there many days.

5. And it came to pass on the evening of the tenth day, while they were sleeping. they saw a vision, as of a chariot crossing the great river on a bridge of wire, which was suspended from the bluffs on either side, elevated five and fifty cubits above the water. The same vision did each of them see.

6. And straightway they, with one accord, determined to build there their city. And they "squatted" upon that place, and claimed it and held it as their own. And they called the city Lyons.

7. Now the city of Lyons improved greatly for a time, and promised to be one of the finest among the great commercial towns in the country which lies in the Upper Valley of the Missis- sippi.

8. But when the Gentiles who had founded the city saw that they had hit upon the right place in which to invest their spare cash, and that by holding on to what property they then had, they would eventually become exceeding rich, their hearts were hardened-as many others have been under like circumstances-and they said among themselves, " Let us travel into a far country, and when our lands have become valuable we will return."

9. And the names of these Gentiles were Don, whose surname is Juan, and Felix whose surn ime is Grundy, and one Crandall.

10. And Crandall traveled to the eastward and came to a great city, where he fared sumptu- ously every day. And he died. And his heirs came in possession of his property, and hold it even unto this day, and refuse to sell even the smallest part.

11. And Don journeyed to the northward, where he is even unto this day. But he hath not sold his lots, neither hath he given any of them unto the poor ; so that the part of the city of Lyons which he owneth is not yet improved.

12. But the heart of Felix relented, and he went not away, but did what he could to improve the city ; and his possessions waxed great, and he is very rich. He hath more than either of his partners.

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HISTORY OF CLINTON COUNTY.

13. And it came to pass that after the two Gentiles left the city, it ceased to improve for a time, because there were no lots for sale. And other towns sprang up in the neighborhood.

14. And, because the proprietors of these towns held out inducements to settlers, they prospered. And many left Lyons and went to reside in the villages round about.

15. Now in the city of Davenport there lived a certain scribe, cilled Alfred, whose sur- name is Sanders. He exulted over the humiliation of Lyons, and despitefully treated her in his newspaper. Ile hath received his reward.

16. For when certain rich men came from the East and saw how many natural advantages were possessed by Lyons, they determined to build a railroad, so that the people of that city might reach New York in two days' journey, and so carry their produce where it would sell for a fair price. And this railroad is nearly completed.

17. Now it is expected that when Don readeth this chapter, he will cloth himself and repent in sackcloth and ashes ; and that he will return unto Lyons and do what is in his power to make reparation for this great sin which is upon him.

18. And now that Lyons is beginning to be appreciated and is acknowledged to possess at least as many natural advantages as any other place on the Upper Missisippi, the scribe, Alfred, should cease to use his efforts to retard her progress, or divert capital from her borders.

19. For, know ye not, ye great men of Davenport, that ye are in danger of bringing upon yourselves great tribulation, even to the breaking-down of the mighty bridge whereof ye have boasted yourselves, with a great raft from above. BOCHIM. LYONS, October 9, 1854.

After the failure of the L. & I. C. project, all but the most sanguine resi- dents of Lyons, for some time, felt as if their hopes of seeing the city a railroad center were indefinitely deferred. Many removed to other points, but new arrivals maintained, and, in fact, increased the population. In 1855, the city was re-surveyed by Allen Slack. On July 17, 1855. it was first publicly announced in Lyons that a town was to be inaugurated on the site of Clinton, but then, and for several years after, the prospect of Clinton appeared so vis- ionary that it was scarcely regarded as a possible future rival. It is impossible for the historian to determine whether, during Lyons' golden opportunity in 1854-56, her citizens, as a body, were or were not apathetic to their true interests. Many certainly were not, judging from the substantial aid that they gave the Air Line, even to the extent of mortgaging their homes, to subscribe for stock. This second enterprise was a scheme of S. S. Jones, the late editor of the Religio-Philosophical Journal, of Chicago. His murder by Pike, in the winter of 1876-77, is fresh in the memories of those who knew him in early days as a shrewd and capable railroad man. He was Secretary of a line proposing to cross the river at Sabula, and thence traverse Iowa. He proposed to extend a branch from Maquoketa to Lyons, but, on the failure of the Sabula crossing scheme, planned to connect the Dixon & Iowa Central Air Lines at the Fulton- Lyons crossing. According, a company was organized, and again the prospects of Lyons brightened, and both population and business rapidly increased. Grading began on the Air Line in the fall of 1855, and was vigorously prose- cuted, till interrupted by frost. In the spring it was resumed, and the grading was done at intervals between Lyons and Maquoketa. The means for the work in 1855-56, were supplied by local subscriptions, and farm mortgages, and naturally proved rather scanty. Indeed, railroad engineering was not the exact science that it is to-day, and the ideas of many railroad projectors as to the ultimate cost of their lines were comparatively somewhat vague. The views of people along proposed lines were still more misty.

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The history of Clinton County, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns &c., biographical sketches of citizens, Part 70

Author: Western Historical Co Publication date: 1879 Publisher: Chicago : Western historical company Number of Pages: 812

Author: Western Historical Co
Publication date: 1879
Publisher: Chicago : Western historical company
Number of Pages: 812