USA > Iowa > Lee County > The history of Lee county, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c. > Part 58
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Judge McFarland was then Prosecuting Attorney. Vrooman showed him his back, with the marks of the lash still upon it, at Montrose. Next week afterward, McFarland organized a crowd of his retainers at Montrose, and, armed with long cowhides, took the Brooks family, one Conn, John Hine, and others, out of their beds at night, and, rowing to the island between Montrose and Nauvoo, whipped them severely, and, putting them into their own skiffs, without oars, shoved them off into the river to float over the rapids, with orders never to return. The Brooks family went to the Missouri River, and Vrooman to the interior of Illinois, where he was afterward murdered by his own son.
None of them ever come back !
During the time this gang lived at Nauvoo, they frequently stole wagons, buggies, harness, and small articles from Fort Madison. On one occasion, they stole the buggy of Dr. Rinehart, of that place, which was found sunk in a slough, on the opposite side of the river. Wagons were frequently found sunk in the river, and kept down by weights, to be taken up and painted over after search had been made for them by the owners.
When the Brooks family and their hangers-on were driven away, these petty depredations ceased. During the reign of the Danite Band its victims in Iowa were often arrested at their houses by these masked marauders, taken from their beds and put on horse-back, tied securely, behind some one of the band, and, when crossing the horse-thief ferry at Montrose, those against whom death was decreed were killed, their bowels ripped open and entrails taken out, and their bodies, with weights attached, sunk in the river.
In October, 1878, when Isaiah Hale, of Fort Madison, visited the Pacific Slope, he stopped at Salt Lake City, where he met Bishop Hunter, Daniel Wells, one of the twelve apostles, and many others with whom he was well acquainted, in the hey-day of Jo Smith's reign at Nauvoo. Apostle Wells invited Mr. Hale, who is a portly, good-looking, well-proportioned man, to
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remain in their midst, and suggested, as an inducement, that some of their women might be attracted to him and desire to be "sealed" to him in Mormon wedlock. But he preferred to return to his pleasant home on the banks of the Mississippi, where polygamy is not recognized.
OLD SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION.
[The following ode to the Old Settlers of Iowa is from the pen of Hon. Daniel F. Miller, Sr., the Nestor of the Iowa bar, and was published in the Keokuk Constitution, of December 3, 1877. It was composed for the occasion of the tenth anniversary banquet tendered the Keokuk bar by Messrs. Gilmore & Anderson, and was read by Mr. Miller in response to the sentiment, " The Old Settlers of Iowa." It is here introduced because of its peculiar appropriate- ness to this chapter in the history of Lee County.]
O dear to my heart is the name of Old Settlers, The men whom I knew in the days of my youth, Whose labors and worth will be ever remembered, As symbols of goodness and friendship and truth.
Our rich yielding farm-lands they found in wild fetters, Incumbered with sage-grass and brambles and weeds ; And they plowed deep the soil, and built the log cabins, For food, and for shelter, for man and his needs.
There are few of them left, and they who yet linger On this side the shore of eternity's rest,
Do often recur with sweet recollections, To their long-ago homes in the land of the West.
O land of the West ! O home of Old Settlers ! From thy prairies and valleys I never will part ; For here 'neath thy bosom lie buried my comrades, Who, in the morn of my life, were so dear to my heart.
The log-cabin roof has long since departed, But a lone chimney here and there, shows where it stood ;
And they of the future, as they look on its ruins, Will sigh as they think of the death of the good.
No longer the savage the prairie roams over, And orchards and grain fields enliven the land ; But while we may live we will ever remember The zeal and good works of the pioneer band.
Yes, we will remember, forever remember, The zeal and good works of the pioneer band, Who suffered such hardships, and shrunk from no danger, To give us our homes in this beautiful land- This Iowa land; this beautiful land ; Of all homes on earth, the most beautiful land.
The Indian right to possession of the eastern slope of Iowa expired in June, 1833, consequently almost forty-six years have passed away since white men first came to occupy the fertile lands in Lee County.
Since the time when the cabins of white men began to be reared upon the hillsides and within the valleys of the numerous streams that find their source in hillside springs and unite their waters with the mighty Mississippi, the Father of Waters, or the Des Moines, the years have been so full of change that the visitor of to-day, ignorant of the past, could scarcely be made to realize that during these years a population of nearly forty thousand has grown up within the limits of the county whose history we are writing. From a savage wild, marked by bloody conflicts of Indian tribes, and recorded only in vague tradition and dumb mounds of earth, this land has become a center of civilization, net-lined with fences and checkered with the fairest fields of cultivation.
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY.
Schools, churches, highly cultivated and remunerative farms, with their handsome dwellings, mark the camping-places and battle-grounds of the wild men who once held dominion over these prairie plains and forest-covered hills. Cities, towns and villages occupy the places once dotted over with Indian wigwams. Strong bridges span the streams where once bark canoes served as ferries for the wild red men, their women and children, and railroads and tel- egraph lines-adjuncts and agencies of the highest type of civilization known to the world's history-mark the course of the trails they made when traveling from one part of the country to another.
It is not strange that among the pioneer settlers of any new country a deep- seated and sincere friendship would spring up, that would grow and strengthen with their years. The incidents peculiar to life in a new country-the trials and hardships, privations and destitutions-are well calculated to test not only the physical powers of endurance, but the moral, kindly, generous attributes of manhood and womanhood. They are times that try men's souls and bring to the surface all that there may be in them of either good or bad. As a rule, there is an equality of conditions that recognizes no distinctions. All occupy a common level, and, as a natural consequence, a brotherly and sisterly feeling grows up that is as lasting as time, for " a fellow feeling makes us wondrous kind." With such a community, there is a hospitality, a kindness, a benevo- lence and a charity unknown and unpracticed among the older, richer and more densely populated commonwealths. The very nature of their surround- ings teaches them to "feel each other's woe, to share each other's joy." An injury or a wrong may be ignored, but a kindly, generous, charitable act is never forgotten. The memory of old associations and kindly deeds is always fresh. Raven locks may bleach and whiten; full, round cheeks wither and waste away; the fires of intelligence vanish from the organs of vision; the brow become wrinkled with care and age, and the erect form bowed with accu- mulating years, but the true friends of the "long ago " will be remembered as long as life and reason endure.
The surroundings of pioneer life are well calculated to test the "true inwardness " of the human heart. As a rule, the men and women who first occupy a new country-who go in advance to spy out the land and prepare it for the coming of a future people-are bold, fearless, self-reliant and indus- trious. In these respects, no matter from what remote sections or countries they may come, there is a similarity of character. In birth, education, religion and language,' there may be a vast difference, but, imbued with a common pur- pose-the founding and building of homes-these differences are soon lost by association, and, thus they become one people, united by a common interest, and no matter what changes may come in after years, the associations thus formed are never buried out of memory.
In pioneer life there are always incidents of peculiar interest, not only to the pioneers themselves, but which, if properly preserved, would be of interest to posterity, and it is a matter to be regretted that the formation of old settlers' associations has been neglected in so many parts of the country. The presence of such associations in all the counties of our common country, with well-kept records of the more important events, such as dates of arrivals, marriages, deaths, removals, nativity, etc., as any one will readily admit, would be the direct means of preserving to the literature of the country the history of every community, that, to future generations, would be invaluable as a record of ref- erence, and a ready method of settling important questions of controversy. As important as these associations are admitted to be, their formation has not
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become general, and there are many counties in the Western country whose early history is almost entirely lost because of the absence of such societies. Such organizations would possess facts and figures that could not be had from any other source. Aside from their historic importance, they would serve as a. means of keeping alive and further cementing old friendships, and renewing among the members associations that were necessarily interrupted by the inno- vations of increasing population.
In the winter of 1871, a few of the pioneer settlers, actuated by the motives suggested in the preceding paragraphs, determined to call a meeting of the pioneers for the purpose of organizing an old settlers' association. An informal meeting was held at the Court House on the evening of the 5th day of January, 1871, at which the venerable Philip Viele presided as Chairman, and R. W. Pitman acted as Secretary. After some discussion and a free inter- change of opinion, the following resolutions were adopted :
Resolved, That this meeting be adjourned to meet at this place on the 13th day of April next, for the purpose of perfecting said organization.
Resolved, That all old settlers present who were inhabitants of the county on the first day of July, 1840, he invited to sign their names, and the time of their coming into the county, to a roll, which was done as follows :
1830-James W. Campbell, October.
1834-Alexander Cruickshank, March 1; J. C. Parrott, September.
1835-R. W. Pitman and Lewis G. Pitman, April 2; James Cruickshank (born), May 7; Samuel Paschal, September.
1836-John G. Kennedy, April 12; E. S. McCulloch, May; Silas. D Hustead, June ; John H. Douglass (born), June 20; J. A. Casey, July 6 ; Elias Overton, August 18; Peter Miller, September 22 ; Jacob Abel, October 15.
1837-Jacob Vandyke, January 22; Cromwell Wilson, February ; James Caldwell, May 4; Philip Viele, June 2 ; Hazen Wilson, July : Enoch G. Wilson, November 28 ; George L. Cole- man, November 29.
1838-Philotus Cowles, May 3.
1839-Daniel F. Miller, April 15 ; Robert A. Russell, April ; J. E. Marsell, May 1; Isaiah Hale, May ; Robert McFarland, November ; James T. Blair, November 16.
1840-Ferdinand Kiel, March 15; George B. Leidy, May ; Elkanah Perdew, June 19 ; R. McHenry (date not given.)
At the April meeting (the 13th), on motion of Judge Russell, one Vice- President was appointed from each township, as follows :
Jackson, Guy Wells ; Jefferson, William Skinner ; Franklin, Alexander Cruickshank ; Montrose, G. Hamilton ; Pleasant Ridge, J. A. Casey ; Des Moines, N. Sargent ; Van Buren, John Herron ; Harrison, A. Anderson ; Cedar, D. S. Bell ; Marion, B. Holtkamp; Washington, D. McCready ; West Point, R. W. Pitman ; Charleston, John Cassady ; Denmark, Curtis Shedd; Green Bay, John Morgan ; Madison, Peter Miller.
D. F. Miller, R. McFarland and E. Mccullough were appointed a com- mittee to prepare a constitution and by-laws for the government of the Associa- tion.
The 4th day of July, 1871, was selected for the first annual celebration of the Association, and, on motion of D. F. Miller, Judge Viele was selected as orator of the day.
John Van Valkenburg, R. A. Russell, J. C. Walker, John G. Kennedy and Peter Miller were appointed a committee " to make all necessary arrangements for a good celebration."
All persons who came into the county "after the 4th day of July, 1840, and up to the State organization, were declared to be honorary members of the Association.
On motion of Alexander Cruickshank, Hon. A. C. Dodge, of Burlington, was invited to be present at the celebration on the 4th day of July next (1871).
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Article 1, of the constitution declares that " this Association is organized for the purpose of commemorating, by an annual celebration, or otherwise, as the Association shall, from time to time, determine, the early settlement of Lee County, Iowa, and to cement and keep in lively remembrance of the old set- tlers the acquaintance and friendship of their pioneer lives."
By Article 2, all persons who came to the county prior to July 1, 1840, are eligible to membership. Membership fee, 50 cents.
The officers of the Association are a President, sixteen Vice Presidents, Sec- retary, Corresponding Secretary, Treasurer and Marshal. The President and Vice Presidents are constituted a Board of Business Management.
Officers of the Association are elected at the annual celebrations.
FIRST ANNUAL RE-UNION.
The first annual re-union of the pioneer settlers of Lee County was held at the fair-grounds, on the 4th day of July, 1871. Of this first annual gather- ing of the Pioneers of Lee County, the Gate City, of Keokuk, had a full report, from which the following paragraphs are quoted :
"From all parts of Lee County, came up the pioneers, their wives and children. It was a gala-day for them. This retrospective view of the halcyon days and the sorrowful, weary, toilsome ones, would alike bring pleasant recol- lections to them as they recounted their hopes, their trials and their victories, for had they not performed their duty as God had best given them the knowledge, and according to their several abilities ? Venerable men were there, whose white hairs and trembling limbs gave token of a lengthy pilgrimage. More than a generation had passed since, in early manhood, they crossed the Missis- sippi to carry the blessings of civilization into the wilds of Iowa. With strong arms and true hearts, they had battled with the perils of border-life, and con- quered. The wilderness and solitary place, to-day, as the result of their labors, buds and blossoms as the rose.
"Men in the prime of manhood were there who, although "old set- tlers," are still comparatively young in years. These came in boyhood's hopeful hours, nobly assisted their elders in the struggles incident to the pioneer, and are worthy to share in the honor and glory of the victory. With their wives, children and friends, these men came to greet each other, to renew the friendships of early years, and to pledge to each other for the future a strong and perfect fellowship. All honor to the pioneers, the heroes and heroines of the past. Future generations will arise and call them blessed. It was appropriate that the Fourth of July, our national holiday, should be chosen for such a gathering.
"At an early hour in the morning, the people commenced to come. Every train from the east, south and west brought accessions to the numbers. They came in wagons, carriages, on horse-back and on foot until the fair-grounds in the vicinity of Fort Madison were alive with people. The number present was estimated at between four and five thousand. The arrangements for the comfort of those who came to celebrate the day were creditable to the citizens of Fort Madison who had the matter in charge."
For some cause, Judge Viele did not appear as orator of the day, as arranged at the April meeting, and the address was delivered by Hon. Daniel F. Miller, of Keokuk. The address was not lengthy, but in every way in keeping with the occasion.
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"LAY HIM DOWN GENTLY."
In concluding his address, Mr. Miller said :
" We (I mean the old settlers) have selected the 4th of July of each year - as the annual celebration-day of our Old Settlers' Association. So long as two of our number live and reside in Lee County, so long will the festivities inau- gurated by us to-day continue to be celebrated and honored; and when the last old settler shall be called to his "long home," we consign the burial of his remains to our children and the generation that succeeds us.
" ' Lay him down gently- The last of his race ; His comrades are all gone -- The tomb is his place. Lay him down gently Beneath the green sod, Which he and his kindred In early life trod : . Give his body to earth, But his spirit to God.' "
After the address, came a basket-dinner, then the reading of the Declara- tion of Independence, and an oration by Gen. A. C. Dodge, of Burlington. Next came the regular and volunteer toasts and responses. The election of officers followed :
ยท President, Col. William Patterson, of Keokuk.
Vice Presidents : Israel Anderson, of Jackson Township; J. D. William- son, Pleasant Ridge; N. Sargent, Des Moines ; John O. Smith, Denmark ; R. W. Pitman, West Point ; Jonas Rice, Washington ; John Herron, Van Buren ; John K. Cooney, Jefferson ; Devore Palmer, Madison ; John Morgan, Green Bay ; Lyman Ditson, Franklin ; Elias Overton, Marion; Samuel Pick- hard, Charleston ; Jacob Mendenhall, Cedar ; E. S. Mccullough, Harrison ; G. J. Hamilton, Montrose.,
AT PITMAN GROVE.
The second annual gathering of the old settlers was held at Pitman Grove in August, 1872, Col. Patterson Presiding. Mr. C. K. Pitman, in behalf of the Pitman family, for whom the grove was named, delivered an address of welcome, which was replete with excellence and the outcroppings of genuine Kentucky hospitality. Hon. J. M. Casey was the orator of the day. In that address, Judge Casey, who came to the county when he was a boy, and grew to be a man, a lawyer and a Judge within the jurisdiction of Lee County, reviewed the history of the county from 1836 to that time, which was enlivened with anecdotes and incidents of early times. Referring to the condition of the country in 1836, and contrasting it with the condition in 1872, Judge Casey said :
" We will view it as it was in 1836. The population of the United States at that time did not exceed 13,100,000; and the aggregate population of Mis- souri, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and Iowa amounted to only 725,000, which is 465,000 less than Iowa, as enumerated two years ago (in 1870). These five great States, with an area of 283,866 square miles, equal in extent to France, England, Scotland and Wales, as recently as 1840, had only 1,080,940 inhabitants, which is 107,266 less than Iowa had at the time of the last census. But see them in 1870, with a population of 7,521,082, which is more than one-half of what the population of the United States was in 1836. And Iowa, with a population of 10,531 in 1836, and 42,924 in 1840, became the
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eighth State in point of population in 1870, Illinois the fourth and Missouri the sixth. This wonderful progress and development of the West is worthy of our thoughtful contemplation. Who of the early settlers of this county, in their wildest visions, ever imagined such results ?
" In further consideration of the contrast of 1836 with the present, we find that St. Louis then had about 12.000 inhabitants ; now, abont 320,000. Chi- cago then had 3.265, and in 1840, 4,470. To-day she has a population of about 300.000, and, in consideration of its rapid growth and vast commercial transactions, is the most wonderful city in the world.
" And there are old settlers here to-day who had an opportunity of pur- chasing from the Government the site upon which the Queen City of the Lake is situated, but failed to see its future, and preferred farming land in this county.
After the speeches, came the annual election of officers.
President, Hon. D. F. Miller, of Keokuk : Vice Presidents, Guy Wells. Jackson Township ; James Bullard, Jefferson ; R. A. Russell. . Madison ; W. H. Rodgers, Green Bay : Dr. Levi Farnsworth, Denmark : Henry Dye, Wash- ington : William Pitman, Sr., West Point ; John Allen Casey, Pleasant Ridge : Barney Holeamp, Marion : David Bell. Cedar: Alexander Cruickshank. Franklin : Absalom Anderson, Harrison : Samuel Pickard, Charleston : R. W. Dresser. Van Buren : Nicholas Sargent, Des Moines.
Treasurer, Robert McFarland.
Secretary, R. W. Pitman.
Sargent's Grove, on the Des Moines Valley Railroad, thirteen miles from Keokuk, was designated as the place, and the second Thursday in August (the Sth), 1878, for holding the next meeting.
AT SARGENT'S GROVE.
At the Pitman Grove meeting. Nicholas Sargent, one of the pioneers. extended an invitation to the Association to hold the third annual gathering at his grove. His farm consists of 1.000 acres, in one body, of the best farming land in the Des Moines Valley. His house is a fine brick structure, two stories in height, and situated on the bluff, and overlooks hundreds of well-cut- tivated acres. In the valley below the house, is a beautiful black-walnut grove. planted and grown by his own hands, and here the third annual re-union of the pioneers and old settlers in Lee County was held. Mr. Sargent bore the entire expense of preparing for this gathering, from his own purse. Long tables and benches, two great stands, a huge beer-vat filled with ice and ice- water, and scores of tin cups, were in readiness when the guests came. Half a score of barrels stood near by, ready to replenish the water-tank when its sup- ply gave out. Hay, corn and oats, without stint, had been hauled from the old pioneer's cribs. bins and stacks, and deposited on the ground, for the use of those who came with horses. Nothing had been neglected that could in any way add to the comfort of man or beast. An Old Settlers' string band was occupying one of the stands. and discoursing airs familiar and popular in the days when the pioneers were young. Jake Griffey, Mordecai Evans and MeGoll were there in the glory of old tunes, when they played for the people who danced on floors made from puncheons or whip-sawed boards. to the tune of Monie Musk, the Arkansas Traveler. Horse-Head, and Roaring River. The entire grove was carpeted with a luxuriant growth of Kentucky blue grass, which had been mown and raked for the festive gathering. The music of the violins was not to be resisted. It awakened old memories, and it
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY.
was not long until the Old Settlers, whose religious tenets did not prevent, were " tripping the light fantastic toe " on the shady green ; and it was a noticeable fact that the feet of those who had been church-members for many years, and who had eschewed dancing as of evil practice, kept up a wonderfully active + tipping. A large number of Illinoisans and Missourians were present, on this occasion, as much interested, apparently, as the old settlers of Lee County.
At 10 o'clock A. M., the President, Hon. D. F. Miller, called the meeting to order. The music and dancing ceased. At the request of the President, Col. William Patterson, who represented himself and thirty descendants-chil- dren, grandchildren, and one great-grandchild (a son of Mrs. Abbie Creel Walker, of Montana), opened the meeting with prayer. An hour was then spent in listening to short speeches and anecdotes about old times ; and at 11 o'clock, the meeting adjourned for dinner.
Isaac R. Campbell, of Missouri, told about killing a bear on the identical spot where the gathering was held. He also exhibited a buckskin purse made and presented to him by Black Hawk.
W. C. Stripe was charged with coming into the country too late to be a pioneer. He retaliated by saying the President had only ruled him out because he was not good looking. He denied the charge, and offered the following com- plimentary toast to Nicholas Sargent : " Although this is 'Old Nick's' stamping-ground, it is good to be here."
Uncle George Heywood, the oldest man in Clark County, Mo. (eighty-four years of age), was present on the platform.
Mr. Gregg, then editing a monthly paper at Hamilton, Hancock Co., Ill., devoted to the interests of old settlers, and who published a paper at Montrose as early as 1837-38, was present, and made some happy remarks about old times and old settlers.
John Hiner, one of the first butchers in Keokuk, amused the gathering by telling about one of his early speculations. He bought two cub bears, at Keokuk, for $25, and, after keeping and feeding them a year, took them to St. Louis to find a buyer. He had an offer of $100 for them by a man who was out of the city. While waiting to deliver the animals, he had taken up a posi- tion near a millinery-shop, when a mischievous boy sharpened a hoop-pole and commenced stirring up the animals The bears got on the rampage, and Hiner was in hot water. " I threatened the boy," said Hiner, "but what could one man do with a boy when he had two bears in hands ? There was an excitement about that millinery-shop, and the French proprietress got her French blood up to fever heat, and called me a 'yaller rascal,' and declared she was going for the police. The boy prodded harder, the bears got madder, and I began to get scared. To cap the climax and add to the terrors of my situation, the bears tore down the poles that supported the awning that shaded the front of the millinery-shop. They fell with a crash, and then I was scared. Just then, a man came along and offered me $5 for the two bears. Five dollars was better than no money when visions of the police and the police-station were staring me in the face, and I closed with the offer at once. I turned over the bears, pocketed the $5, and turned to get away as fast as I could, when lo! there stood Col. Patterson leaning against a lamp-post, laughing at me. Then I got mad. But that boy with a hoop-pole was a smart one, and (turning to D. F. Miller), no doubt, became a first-class lawyer or a graduate from some peni- tentiary long ago."
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