USA > Iowa > Jackson County > The history of Jackson County, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c., biographical sketches of citizens, war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion history of the Northwest, history of Iowa miscellaneous matters, &c > Part 63
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One orphan in this Asylum has considerably passed the age prescribed for choosing a trade. He has been an inmate for thirteen years, and is now eighty- four years of age. The children call him "Grossvater," i. e., grandfather. He does chores, and makes himself generally useful.
The Asylum was organized as to its directory in 1873, and is now in the hands of eleven, as follows : H. Luz, of Dubuque ; J. Leinz, Bellevue ; M. Reck, Spragueville; G. Grossman, D. H. Daudel, J. G. Rembold, Charles Hankammer, Andrew Defries and Brechter Lienemann, Andrew ; J. Yoss, Davenport, and H. Heinrichs, Spragueville.
BELLEVUE.
The beautiful and attractive site now occupied by the little city of Bellevue was one of the first points occupied by the habitation of white men west of the Mississippi River.
The Western Annals, in speaking of the military exploits in 1812, makes the following mention of Bellevue :
" There was a United States factory and a small stockade up the Missis- sippi, at the point now called Bellevue, which was besieged by a party of Win- nebagoes, about 200 in number. It was not an eligible situation for defense, as, from points of steep and high bluffs, the invaders could throw firebrands and burning sticks upon the block-houses. The commanding officer, Lieut. Thomas Hamilton, with Lieut. B. Vasquez and a small force, resolutely defended the fort, and drove off the assailants."
The Missouri Gazette, of July 31, 1813, also speaks of the military post situated here, as follows :
"Our little garrison on the Mississippi has taught the Indians a few lessons in prudence. With about thirty effective men, those brave and meritorious sol- diers, Lieuts. Hamilton and Vasquez, in a wretched pen improperly called a fort, beat off 500 savages of the Northwest."
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
The disparity in numbers in estimating the force of an Indian party is not unusual, even in our own day.
The fort was soon after abandoned, and ceased to be a military post.
INCORPORATION.
In 1836, the Legislature of the Territory of Wisconsin passed an act for the incorporation of towns, and, the same year, an act was passed supplemen- tary to the same, and was as follows :
Be it enacted by the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Wisconsin, That the towns of Bellevue and Peru, in the original county of Dubuque, are hereby authorized to elect Trustees for said towns, and to be governed in all respects according to the provisions and to have the same privileges and to do all things which any other incorporated towns can or may do under the provisions of the said act.
But Bellevue did not form a town government until 1841, the first election for town officers being upon the 6th day of October, 1841.
Philip McClaer surveyed and laid out the town in the spring of 1835, but it was resurveyed and platted by the Government in the following year. A special act of Congress "for the laying off the towns of Fort Madison and Burlington, in the county of Des Moines, and the towns of Bellevue, Dubuque and Peru, in the county of Dubuque, Territory of Wisconsin, and for other purposes," was passed. The following is a part of said act :
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the tracts of land in the Territory of Wisconsin, including the towns of Fort Madison and Burlington, in the county of Des Moines, Bellevue, Dubuque and Peru, in the county of Dubuque, and Mineral Point, in the county of Iowa, shall. under the direction of the Surveyor General of the Public Lands, be laid off into town lots, streets, avenues, and the lots for public use, called the public squares, and into out-lots, having regard to the lots and streets already surveyed, in such manner and of such dimensions as he may think proper for the public good and the equitable rights of the settlers and occupants of the said towns. Provided, That parts of land so to he laid off into town lots, etc., shall not exceed the quantity of one entire section, nor the town lot one-half of an acre, nor shall the out-lots exceed the quantity of four acres each.
When the survey of the lots shall be completed, a plat thereof shall be returned to the Sec- retary of the Treasury, and, within six months thereafter, the lots shall be offered to the high- est bidder at public sale, under the direction of the President of the United States, and at such other times as he shall think proper. Provided, That no town lot shall be sold for a sum less than five dollars. And provided further, That a quantity of land of proper width on the river banks at the towns of Fort Madison, Bellevue, Burlington, Duhuque and Peru, and running with said river the whole length of said towns, shall he reserved from sale (as shall, also, the public squares), for public use, and remain forever for public use as public highways, and for other public use.
This act was approved July 2, 1836.
In the following year, an act was passed creating a Board of Commissioners to hear pre-emption claims, and for other purposes. It was approved March 3, 1837. An official survey, under authority of this act, was made in- -, and the sales of land began in 1844.
Although Bellevue was used as a military fort as far back as 1812, yet there were no actual settlers here until twenty years afterward. He who has the honor of being the first white man to take up land and make this his home was James Armstrong, who came here in the spring of 1833, and began farming in the valley just south of the present town site. He was followed in the fall of 1833 by William Jonas, David Segar, Thomas Nicholson and William Dyas. These men settled in the same valley with Armstrong, and engaged in farming. Alexander Reed, settled in Pleasant Creek Valley, and broke the first ground in the county ; also John and James White settled in the same valley.
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
This settlement grew slowly, and it was not until 1836 that the first store was established here. Mr. J. K. Moss came in that year, with a stock of mis- cellaneous goods, and opened his store on the lot that is marked No. 1, on the official plat. He was followed by Nic. Jefferson, who opened a store on Lot 40.
The first men who did anything at blacksmithing were Hankins, Ziegler & Whittemore, in 1839. They had a shop on Second street, near where the Mer- chant's Hotel now stands. They did a locksmith's trade as well. The first regular blacksmith-shop was started in 1842, by a man of the name of Hawkins, near where M. Altfilisch's store now stands. He was followed soon after by Henry Jones, who opened a shop a little further up on Front street.
The first saw-mill was built by Bell & Sublett, in 1838. It stood about where the present Jasper flouring-mill stands. About the same time, Mr. Kincaid built the first grist-mill. It stood upon the Duck Creek, in the val- ley, just below the bluffs that overlook the present town site on the south.
A ferry was established between this shore and the Illinois shore in 1835, by Vincent Smith ; but it was located some six miles above the present site of Bellevue, at the mouth of Fever River.
In the year 1838, William Bartlett and J. S. Kirkpatrick established a ferry here, consisting of a flatboat propelled by oars. This was the style of ferry until 1851, when W. A. Warren obtained a charter and established a horse ferry from Bellevue to Sand Prairie, on the Illinois shore. He was obliged to cut a channel through Cut-Off Island, about one hundred yards long. three feet deep and twenty-five feet wide. It has since been enlarged fifty yards wide. This channel connects with Crooked Slough. The ferry connects with the highways leading to Galena, Hanover and Savanna.
Bellevue was the first county seat of Jackson County, which was estab- lished in 1837. The county seat remained here until 1841; then was removed to Andrew ; then back to Bellevue, in 1848; then back to Andrew, in 1861, and then to Maquoketa in 1873.
NAME AND SITE.
The original name of the town was Bellview, in honor of John D. Bell, who was, in one sense, the proprietor of the place. This name was subse- quently changed to the French spelling -- Bellevue.
The town is located about forty feet above the water's edge, in a sort of wide valley, or, more properly speaking, a recess in the bluffs of the river. Mill Creek enters the Mississippi at this point, and, with the exception of the gorge where this stream breaks through to the Father of Waters, from its course through the uplands, Bellevue is surrounded, north, west and south by high bluffs or hills.
The bluff just above the river is probably two hundred and fifty feet in height, and is sometimes called "North Bluff." From the summit of this emi- nence is one of the finest views in the Mississippi Valley, a landscape of rav- ishing beauty in the summer or autumn. To the north and south, the bosom of the great Father of Waters is visible for miles, on whose gentle surface, the hulls of an inland commerce find their great continental highway, and bear from the rich fields which skirt its banks the harvests of one of the most fruit- ful valleys of the world.
Toward the west, is the narrow, steep gorge of Mill Creek, the confluence of a dozen tiny brooks and living springs. Just below, by the art of trade, it
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
widens into a mill-pond, to furnish the power which machinery demands, and to which the creek is a willing and joyful slave.
At the foot of the bluff nestles the city, with a look of peace, thrift and security, which imagination might ascribe, in part, to the influence of the rock-crowned sentinels on either hand, which stand as silent monitors of the ages.
Various islands are in the river at this point, adding to the beauty of the scene by their appearance, like to cushions of green in a "picture of silver." The Illinois shore, flat and swampy for a distance, is covered with groves of heavy timber, flinging their broad shoulders over the land, until they give way to fields ripening to a perennial harvest-fields which the hand of industry adorns with beauty, while compelling them to contribute to usefulness. The view is grand, and no visitor to Bellevue can afford to allow the difficulty of ascending the bluff to prevent him from beholding its loveliness.
ARCHAEOLOGICAL.
Bellevue and vicinity was formerly inhabited by the tribes of Indians known as the Sacs and Foxes. Immediately below town, on the ground now occupied by the Presbyterian Cemetery, there was a village of the Sacs. In 1850, the war-pole was still standing. Immediately below the village was their burying- ground.
Dr. Lawrence Millar, an amateur archæologist and resident of Bellevue, hearing of this burying-ground. went prospecting among the graves. Upon opening one grave, he found the remains of a man, evidently a chief, and upon the body he found a large silver breast plate or pin, about three inches in diam- eter. On the bones of the arm were found silver bracelets. Beside the skull, earrings, and a ring, that had evidently been worn in the nose. The vermil- ion, or war-paint, was still fresh on the scalp. The body had been buried in a sitting posture, with the knees and head together, facing toward the east, and had been enveloped in a robe of fur, evidently of a wolf. On the outside was a casing of elm-bark.
In another grave, were found the remains of a female, with the same kind of rings in the ears, and about the waist a wampum belt, so much decayed, however, that it crumbled when brought to the air.
On the third body found, there were iron bracelets on the arms. The bracelets had been plated The remains of a child were also found, which were evidently of recent burial. A string of bronze bells were also found near the body, about the size of small hickory nuts. '
Along the shores are found many arrow points. A little way below where the village stood, there is a stratum of two feet of muscle-shells and clam- shells, evidently being a place where the Indians had their annual clam feed.
Immediately below this, there is a mound on the bank of the Mississippi, about twenty-five feet in height and about forty feet in base diameter. This mound Dr. Millar dug into, and found it formed of different strata of clay. Some of the earth had been brought from the surrounding plain, some from the bed of the river, containing muscle-shells and portions of carnelian. Then came another stratum of white clay, which must have been brought three- fourths of a mile, for there is none to be found nearer than that. This · stratum was about two feet thick. About four feet below the top of the mound was found a body of recent burial. About ten feet below were found decay- ing bones and some flat stones. a part of a rude vault which had fallen down.
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
Beneath the stones were found fragments of rude pottery, of nearly the same ware as is seen in a modern crucible, made of clay, sand and gravel.
About two miles below this mound there is another, but the owner of the land would not allow it to be examined. He said that when he came there in 1833, the Indians used to sit upon this mound and black their faces. Dr. Millar saw Col. Forquer, who was a member of Gen. Grant's staff during the war, and who is the present chief of the Oneida tribe of Indians, and a grand- son of Red Jacket. He asked him about these mounds. Forquer said that his people held them in great reverence, but that there were no traditions as to their origin ; that they were pre-historic, and built by a race who inhabited these regions long before his people were here.
Dr. Millar opened another mound, just north of the town on top of the bluff. This one was most prominent of eight in number, running due east and west. About four and a half feet below the surface was found a regu- larly built platform of stone, seemingly an altar, upon which the ashes and charcoal were perfectly fresh. The wood had been of red cedar, which, at that time, grew plentifully on the adjacent bluffs. The remains of a human body were found in a charred condition. They were of a female and child of about twelve years of age. Charred bones of a dog or wolf were also found. This, evidently, had been a place of sacrifice. Upon opening the other mounds, nothing was discovered.
There were, a few years ago, the remains of ancient fortifications about where Hyler's store now stands, regularly built breast-works, showing a great amount of skill.
On the IHinois side of the river, there are mounds on the bluffs, which run east and west, and in the valley beneath they run north and south. Some have been opened and found to contain portions of ancient pottery and human bones. These mounds must be very old, for there are white oak-trees growing upon them that are two and a half and three feet in diameter.
Dr. Millar has a fine collection of articles found about Bellevue, which belong to ages long passed away, among which are pottery, stone axes, spear- heads, arrow-heads, instruments for tapping maple-trees, and stones which were used for fleshing hides.
THE FIRST DOCTOR.
The first doctor that Bellevue had was a very peculiar character. His name was M. M. Maughs, and many are the stories of his eccentricities. He rode a mule which he had " Joe," and he was to be seen at all hours of the day and night astride that mule, with his saddle-bags on either side, in which he carried his " drug store." This mule was the cause of some trouble to the Doctor, for he had a faculty of eating, and the Doctor often forgot this peculiarity in the animal, and would not provide for him for two or three days at a time, when he would bethink himself and put a whole bushel of corn in his crib and expect that to last the mule until he should think of it again. The donkey was not satisfied with this, and would eat the door-posts, the window- frames and, at last, ate the lock off the door and made his escape. Hood Davis was working for the Doctor at this time, and the Doctor, not knowing of the escape, sent Hood to "saddle up." Pretty soon, Hood returned, saying that the mule had eaten himself out of the stable. The Doctor was surprised, and, in his lisping voice said : " Eaten himself out, hath he ? Didn't I give him a whole buthel of oats day before yestherday ?" He sent Hood to hunt for the mule, who found him npon Sand Prairie.
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
The Doctor came to Bellevue in 1836. Some time after this, Dr. Jen- nings came. He was from New Hampshire, and was a well-dressed, gentle- manly man, while Dr. Maughs was quite the reverse. Hood Davis told the Doctor, one morning, that they had better fix up the office a little, for there had lately come a nice-looking doctor from New Hampshire, who might cut him out of his practice. The Doctor straightened himself up and brought down his hand, saying, " If the angel Gabriel should come down and go to doctoring, he could not supersede me in the practice of medicine ! "
After awhile, some of the Doctor's friends got him to trade off his mule for a horse which had lately been imported from Kentucky, and which was a vicious animal. He would get the bit between his teeth, and nobody could hold him. One day, Benjamin Evans was in town and bought some tinware, and was carrying it home in a bag. He overtook the Doctor on his new horse, and they two rode along together. Every now and then the tinware would rattle, and the Doctor's horse would prick up his ears and start to run. After awhile, the Doctor asked Evans what he had in his bag. He told him tin cans. The Doctor asked to please be careful, for his horse was a very vicious animal, and he was afraid he would run away. This was enough for Evans. He went in for some fun, and took special pains to rattle his cans. The Doctor turned to him and said : "Misther Evans, pleathe be careful, for this horth ith very vithus." Evans would wait a few moments and then rattle his cans until he got the Doctor's horse all worked up. He began to run, and Evans after him, holding his bag up and rattling his tinware with all his might. In this way, he nearly scared the old Doctor out of his wits. Maughs threatened to shoot Evans for this trick. Evans did not see him again for some time, till. one day, he was in town, and thought he would go and make it up with the old Doctor ; so he went to see him. The Doctor looked very cross, and said he had not for- gotten him. Evans said never to mind that, that he came on business ; that he was sick and wanted some medicine. "Thick, are you ? " says the Doctor. He examined his tongue and felt his pulse, and said, "I'll fixth you," and then made some powders and gave them to Evans, and told him how to use them. Evans paid him a dollar and departed. About three weeks afterward, Evans went to see him again. The Doctor started as if he had seen a ghost. Evans said, " Doctor, that medicine you gave me was not good for anything, it didn't do me any good." The Doctor jumped up, and in an excited manner said, " You lie, you lie, you never took that medicine, it is an abtholute impothibility, you lie, thir, you lie." Evans said he did take it, but wanted to know why he thought he had not. The Doctor said, " If you had taken that medethin, you would have been a dead man three weekths ago." Evans knew too much to take the medicine. He took it to Dubuque and had it examined, and it proved to be rank poison.
OLD SETTLERS' CLUB.
Bellevue has many old residents who have been here all the way from 1833 down to within twenty-five years from the present, at which time the term " old settler " stops, as applied to a resident. They are as jolly a set of men as could be met with in a year's travel, and to get a half-dozen of them together and get them talking of "ye olden time," is worth a "Sabbath-day's journey." It was from these oft-repeated meetings and the fun that they derived from them, that the idea of forming an " Old Settler's Club " had its first inception. So it was that a few of these choice spirits got together in the office of S. S. Simp- son, on the 26th of Angust, 1875, and a club was formed under the name of
n. b. Hoyler
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
" Old Settlers of Jackson County," and the following Constitution' and By- Laws were adopted :
We, the undersigned citizens of Jackson County, lowa, who have resided in said county twenty-five years and more, hereby associate ourselves together under the name of the "Old Settlers Association of Jackson County," for the purpose of perpetuating a remembrance of the association and events of early settlement of said county, and for such other purposes of a his- toric and social character as may be deemed advisable, and adopt the following constitution and . by-laws for the government of the same.
Then follow the usual articles, stating the officers and their duties. The By-Laws are as follows:
First-No person shall become an active member of this Association wbo shall not have been an actual resident of the county for at least Iwenty-five years.
Second-Any qualified person may become an active member of the Association, by being duly elected by a vote of a majority present at any meeting, regular or special, and payment of membership fees (50 cents), to the Treasurer.
Third-A membership fee of 50 cents shall be paid by every active member, and the As80- ciation may, by vote, levy an assessment upon its members, but not to exceed $1 at any one time.
Fourth-No membership fee or assessment shall be required of honorary members.
Fifth-Ten active members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.
Sixth-The election of officers and members shall he viva voce, unless some member calls for a vote by ballot, in which case the election shall be by ballot.
Seventh-The Constitution and By-Laws may be amended by a vote of two-thirds of the members present at any meeting.
The Association meets once a year and has a grand jollification meeting, to which are invited the good people of Jackson County and their friends.
Upon the evening of February 13, 1877, one of these re-unions took place, at which about two hundred of the old settlers of Bellevue and vicinity assem- bled, in the City Hall. The meeting was called to order by Capt. W. A. War- ren, the President of the Association. The minutes of the last meeting were read and accepted.
After which, the report of the Committee cn Deaths of Old Settlers was read, which began in the following feeling and beautiful manner :
"During the past year, we have been frequently and very forcibly reminded how rapidly our numbers are being depleted by death. Since our last re-union, we have followed to the grave no less than ten of our old settlers and esteemed friends and neighbors, and this death-roll contains the names of those who were not only among the pioneers of our county, but those who, by the kindness and generosity of their hearts and purity of their lives, endeared themselves to all who knew them. While we drop a tear of sorrow over the graves of the departed, let us cherish their memories by emulating their virtues."
Then followed feeling notices of the deaths of Mrs. D. J. Watkins, who died January 19, 1877 ; Mrs. David G. Bates, who died on the 8th of February, 1877 ; Mrs. A. N. Odell, who died March 10, 1876; Mrs. J. B. Bovard, who died in Kansas City ; Mrs. Henry Frerichs, who died a few weeks before this meeting ; Joseph Dorr, who died a few months before; Dennis Slattery, who . died a few months before; Mrs. Richard Cobb, died a short time before; Mrs. Nathaniel Butterworth, Sr., and W. H. Fenner, died the fall before, and within the last few days before this meeting, four old settlers that had been invited to this meeting departed this life. They were James Clarke, David Blakely, Mrs. Joshua Levan and Mrs. M. Sisler.
The report is signed by J. J. Kelso, W. A. Warren, S. S. Simpson, Committee.
This report was followed by an address by Mr. S. S. Simpson, an extract from which will more fully demonstrate the objects which influenced the forma- tion of this club :
" We meet to-night as an old settlers' association to enjoy a social re-union and to revive in memory the scenes and recollections connected with the early
M
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
settlement of our county, and it has been deemed proper to state briefly the circumstances under which this association was formed, the progress which has been made toward a permanent organization, and the motives which prompted it, as a suitable introduction to the festivities of the occasion.
" Many of you are aware that, for a number of years, it has been a custom in Bellevue for some one of the old settlers, about the beginning of the year, to invite his old friends. and neighbors to partake of his hospitalities and enjoy an evening especially devoted to the reminiscences of the early settlement of the county. These annual entertainments touched a responsive chord in every heart. They soon became so popular that they were looked forward to by the old settlers who participated in them as the most enjoyable occasion of the season, and it soon became difficult for the host to entertain his guests in a private house. We were, therefore, obliged from necessity either to remain exclusive and very limited in our numbers, or effect a permanent organization, and hold our re-unions in more commodious rooms than most of the old settlers could call into requisition at their private houses. In view of these facts, it was the unanimous will of those present at the meeting two years ago to perfect a permanent organization. Committees were thereupon appointed to carry out the will of that meeting. Several meetings of the officers and committees were subsequently held; a Constitution and By-Laws were adopted ; record books were procured for recording the proceedings of the meetings, and such other matters of an historic character as the Association should deem proper, and a goodly number of old settlers have enrolled themselves as members of the Asso- ciation.
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