USA > Iowa > Monroe County > The history of Monroe County, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c., a biographical directory of citizens, war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion > Part 39
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Day succeeded night. Another weary march, another fruitless search for traces of human habitation. Again the sun sank and shut out the monotonous landscape. The wanderer gathered boughs and made a rude shelter from the piercing wind. Sleep forsook him, and a long watch for light began.
Three days had passed since he had eaten Christian food. The fearful thought that he had gone from his friends without acquainting them of his pur- pose intesified his agony of mind and body. The horses gone and he himself missing must have aroused the strangest thoughts among his friends. The morning came at last, but it found him in nearly an exhausted frame.
Fortune at last smiled upon the persistent efforts made by Mr. Clark. Had the last day of his experiences in the wilderness ended like those which pre- ceded, this story would have been far different in character. A tale of secret disappearance, a few bleached human bones, discovered by some settler on the spot, and an unraveled mystery would have been the leading points. As it proved, the search made for a habitation led to the discovery of a cabin on the plains. A fierce dog bounded out to attack the poor, tattered man, as he stag- gered up to the door and called for aid. The settler came to his rescue and soon supplied him with food. His life was saved.
Mr. Clark remained a short time at the cabin, and then pushed on toward where he learned the campers must be. The settler aided in the work of re- uniting the separated friends. As good luck would have it, Mr. Rankin was soon seen coming toward them, and the story of .Mr. Clark's bewilderment and escape was speedily told.
345
HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY.
It was afterward ascertained that Mr. C. traveled some twenty miles or more from the camp, and that at least three times that distance must have been traversed by him in his wanderings.
The sequel to this story is fully as interesting as the account here given of the experiences of Mr. C. The pony track seen in the grass on the first day satisfied the settlers that Mr. Clark's horses had been stolen. The amateur detectives took up the clue from the known oc- cupants of the cabin where the party camped, the fact of the absence of the men, etc., and followed the trail south, into Missouri. The peculiar docking of the horses' tails, their large size and fine appearance made it an easy task to trace them out. Near Lancaster, Mo., the team was re- covered, and a man named Shaffer was arrested by the posse, charged with the crime. A fellow named Wooden was suspected of complicity in the matter, but he was not proved guilty.
Shaffer was taken by force and brought into Van Buren County. As the posse had no warrant to take him in Missouri, he was allowed to go free on Van Buren soil, and then immediately arrested on a legal process. The crime for which he was taken having been committed on Indian territory, which was not within the jurisdiction of the Van Buren District Court, necessitated his trial at Fort Madison, in the United States District Court. Shaffer was confined at Keosauqua pending the required preliminary procedings, and thence taken to Fort Madison. There the trial resulted in a verdict of guilty. The law did not provide incarceration for such offenses, but it did not allow a total relinquishment of a prisoner proven guilty. The verdict, in compliance with the general statute, was the infliction of twenty- odd lashes upon the bare back. Accordingly, the proper officer proceeded to carry out the finding of the Court. Shaffer was stripped and the lash was heartily laid on his quivering flesh. This was probably the last public whipping ever administered in the Territory under orders of a lawful court. Judge Lynch often ruled such punishment; but the more civilized officers of the regular judiciary adopted a less summary method of punish- ment. The whipping was done in 1843.
The place where Mr. Clark was lost is now known as Hacklebarney, in Davis County.
ANOTHER INCIDENT.
The last of November, 1842, a party of men were out looking at the coun- try, in advance of the removal of the Indians, preparatory to making claims as soon as they should remove. All of the party returned home except Marshall Tyrrell and Orrin Judson, who determined to go further and see more of the country. The weather began to grow cold, the sun clouded in, and they wan- dered in various directions for more than two weeks, without food, except a very small quantity they had when the rest of the party left them. They were obliged to peel slippery elm trees, eating of the bark, and at length, in order to save their lives, they killed one of their horses and ate of the flesh. On the last day before they arrived at a human habitation, they discovered some honey in a fallen tree, when the most considerate and resolute of the two had a diffi- cult task to restrain the other from eating enough honey to have killed him. At length they reached their homes, to the joy as well as surprise of their families and friends, who had given them up as lost, supposing that if they had not been killed by the Indians they had starved or frozen to death, since some of the weather had been extremely cold.
3.16
HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY.
THE FIRST MAN.
In the Winter of 1833-4, the region now known as Iowa was attached to the Territory of Michigan for judicial purposes, and two counties, Dubuque and Des Moines, were created. Des Moines County extended from Rock Island to the southern boundary, including all the country west.
January, 1834, John B. Gray located at Flint Mills, or Sha-o-qua. A little settlement had been made there, and a plat surveyed by S. S. White, M. M. W. Carver and Amarjiah Doolittle. The proprietors called a meeting of the few men of the place, among them William R. Ross and Mr. Gray, and invited the latter to name the place. Mr. Gray chose Burlington, in honor of his old home in Vermont. Mr. Gray had opened a store at that place. The naming of the town took place March 3, 1834.
Mr. Gray was married to Eliza J. Stephens on the 15th day of May, 1834. Miss Stephens then lived in Hancock County, Ill., and was originally from Indiana.
March 3, 1835, Mrs. Gray gave birth to a daughter, Abigail A., who was the third child born in Burlington, and is now the oldest white child born in Iowa who has continuously resided herein. Miss Gray married Capt. W. A. Gray, who was no relation, although of the same name, and now resides in Albia.
The Grays remained in Burlington until 1842, when Mr. Gray became impressed with the idea that the region soon to be ceded to the United States was the place for him. In the Fall of that year, he started west, and entered the present county of Monroe, near the northwest corner. There he selected a claim. The laws would not permit the erection of a cabin, but he did what- ever he could to perfect his place.
Mrs. Gray moved to Eddyville in the Fall, and remained there during the Winter of 1842-3. The place consisted of some seventy or eighty Indian wigwams, and boasted but two white women, Mrs. Gray and her sister, Mrs. McAlvain.
Mrs. Gray had learned to talk the language of the natives and was familiar with their ways. She became personally acquainted, during her residence at Burlington and elsewhere in Iowa, with Black Hawk, Wapello, Keokuk, Kish- kekosh, Pashapaho and many other chiefs and sub-chiefs.
Mr. Gray watched his opportunity to get out his house-logs, and when the Ist of May arrived, hastened across the Des Moines River and put up his cabin. The 1st of May occurred on Sunday, and by night of that day a rude hut marked the claim of John B. Gray, on Section 3, Town 73 north, Range 16 west. The lines were not surveyed at that time, however. During the Fall or Winter of 1844, Mr. McBeth, a surveyor, had run a line to Eddyville, and thence across into this county, establishing Gray's Creek. That was the first survey made in this county.
On the 6th day of May, Mrs. Gray crossed the Des Moines River on her way to the home she had chosen. She was the
FIRST WHITE WOMAN IN THE COUNTY.
The family consisted of five persons, the parents and three daughters, Abigail Ann, Mary Frances and Lillias Jane.
On the 20th of September, 1843, John S. Gray,
THE FIRST WHITE CHILD BORN IN THE COUNTY,
was born. He is now in the far West.
347
HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY.
John B. Gray was one of three County Commissioners of Wapello County, elected in 1844.
The first corn raised in the county of Kishkekosh, as it was then called, was harvested by Mr. Gray in 1843. Supplies were brought from Burlington, by team. Mr. Gray brought pigs, chickens, etc., with him when he first came into the county. The ferryage of the river was performed by Indians, who fastened canoes together, and carried his wagon and other large pieces in sec- tions. Mr. Gray swam his team of cattle across. These were the first oxen in the county.
The cabin put up by Mr. Gray was such as is hereafter described, in a general way, as applying to the pioneers' houses. The door was hung on wooden hinges, and at meal time was lifted off, laid upon improvised supports, and used as the family table. The food in those carly days was such as nature and chance supplied.
W. G. Clark had examined the region hereabout, and had decided upon a selection on Section 8, Town 72 north, Range 17 west, afterward famous in the county seat contest, and still known as Clark's Point. Mr. Clark brought his bride with him from what is now Davis County, but was then a part of Van Buren. He made his claim on the first day possible for selections, May 1, 1843.
Mr. Clark married Miss Jane L. Rankin soon after his escape from death in the wilderness in 1843, and is still living with the lady of his choice, surrounded by a large family, in the enjoyment of comforts earned by battling with the realities of Western life. His large farm in the northwest corner of Monroe Township has a wide reputation in the county. Fifty acres of orchard and vineyard is thriving under his supervision, and his broad fields contain some of the finest of horses and cattle.
Oliver S. Clark, the first child born to this couple in this county, was born January 12, 1845.
Mr. Clark brought a small stock of goods to this county, and sold the first articles in the general mercantile line.
James Hilton drove across the trackless prairie and landed here on the 14th of May, 1843. He made the first wagon track over the sod which originally grew on the site of Albia. Judge Hilton's name is frequently met with in the pages of the records.
Several settlers date their entrance into Kishkekosh County from the first few months of occupation. Among others were John B. Gray, W. G. Clark, John Clark, J. H. Myers, Charles Bates, Joseph McMullin, William V. Bee- dle, Reuben Mckinney, Aaron Pickerel, William Miller, Peter Miller, Scott Steele, T. A. Templeton, A. Templeton, Mr. Renfrau, George Mclaughlin, Mr. Cane, the Tyrrell families, Josiah Lemasters, James Boggs, James Brandon, William Scott, Joseph Lundy, Lucas West, Oliver Powers, Amos Strickland, Harrison Davis, W. H. H. Davis, Alexander Myers, Daniel Cane, Thomas Williamson, James Hilton, H. Berner, N. E. Hendrix, G. Bougher, T. Kline, Joseph Stewart, James Stewart, O. P. Rose, John N. Massey, H. Searcey, James McIntyre; Thomas Williamson, Daniel Chance, James Finley, N. B. Jackson, John Williams, Robert Buchanan, Madison McIntyre.
Of those who first settled in Monroe County, there are still living here the following :
Wareham G. Clark, John Clark, James Hilton, HI. Berner, N. E. Hendrix, G. Bougher, T. Kline, Joseph Stewart, James Stewart, J. McMullin, Oliver Tyrrell, J. C. Boggs, O. P. Rose, Peter Miller, John N. Massey, H. Scarcey,
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348
HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY.
William V. Beedle, James Williamson, Thomas Brandon, Daniel Chance, N. B. Jackson, Thomas Finley, A. Templeton, John Williams, Robert Buchanan, Madison McIntyre.
James McIntyre settled in Urbana Township in 1843, and, as is shown in the records further on, gave the name to the McIntyre Precinct, one of the orig- inal polling places. He was popular because of his hospitality and general good nature. In fact, hospitality was then the rule, and all cabins were open to travelers free of expense. Those days are remembered with a sigh by the handful of pioneers still left to tell of the days of '43.
James Brandon located in the southwest corner of the county, in what is now Jackson Township, May 10, 1843. His son related to the writer the story of the trials of those days. For many years, there was neither school nor church in the neighborhood in which the family settled. The Mormon "trace" runs not far from there, and services after the rites of that society were occasion- ally held by passing companies. The aged wife of the pioneer still lives, but not in this county. The original party consisted of the Brandon family, Capt. Higby and William More.
Among the later pioneers, but one of the influential men, is noticed J. N. Repp, who named Jackson and Franklin Townships, and who has held the office of Justice of the Peace continuously since April, 1850. He was the first Jus- tice in Franklin and organized those townships named above.
PIONEERS' BILLS.
The following interesting document shows the cost of manual labor in the very early days. It may be here remarked that beeswax was an article of cur- rency in those days. It was cash, both here and at the nearest trading points. A copy of probably the first bill ever made out in this county is of interest :
June and 1st July, 1843.
W. G. CLARK to J. H. MYERS, Dr. $ 5 811
To driving team 15 days and half, at 37} cts. per day.
374
To John drove 10 days, 50 cts. per day.
To 3 lbs. beeswax, 20 cts. per lb.
60
To splitting 300 rails, 50 cts. per 100.
1 50
To John cutting house-logs, half day.
25
To chopping house logs, 2 days, 75 cts. per day.
1 50
To 43 days, getting out boards, 75 cts. per day ..
3 37}
To beeswax, $1.00 ; paid 75 cts., making balance. 25
To 1 bottle. 25
The whole amount. $18 91}
In those days, Mr. Clark furnished supplies to a good many settlers in his neighborhood, although he did not carry on a regular mercantile business. The following bill was found among his old papers :
KEOSAUQUA July 15, 1843.
G. W. CLARK bought of A. J. DAVIS. $ 1 50
2 sacks, («, 75 cts.
1 bbl. flour 4 00
6 bushels meal, @@ 25 cts. 1 50
1 bushel oats. 18
2 snaythes [snaths], @ 75 cts 1 50
1 fork. 50
173 pounds castings, @ at 5 cts 88
¿ pound spice, @ 19 cts. 9
$10 15
Received payment,
A. J. DAVIS, per STEELE.
To carrying chain one day 5 00
349
HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY.
FIRST FOURTH OF JULY CELEBRATION.
There was a Fourth of July celebration at Clark's Point, in 1843. A tall elm pole was procured from the forest, and a splendid national flag was made of material brought . from Ft. Madison. They had no fife or drum, and so somebody whistled Yankee Doodle while they nailed the flag to the pole, and then raised the glorious old banner to be seen for miles away by Indians on the prairies, by emigrants on their tedious marches, and by homesick settlers in their rude cabins.
The Indians were curious as to what it all meant, and were told that the white men had had a big fight at one time and had beaten the enemy, and that they had big guns and plenty of tea, whisky, etc. Invariably the question would be asked: "Ain't you got a little whisky left ?" The celebration of this occasion devolved mostly upon bachelors, or men who had come out to look for land without bringing their families with them. A public square had been laid out at Clark's Point, which then had the prospect of becoming the county seat, and around this square the men marched to the music of a cracked flute and a fiddle, the whole performance affording a great deal of amusement to the ladies present. There were then but three ladies in the settlement. The flag raised that day lasted two years, and remained all that while a blessed beacon for weary eyes to turn to in this strange far-off land.
A STEP TOWARD INDEPENDENCE.
By an act approved February 13, 1844, the county of Kishkekosh and the territory west of said county were attached to Wapello County for election, rev- enue and judicial purposes. The county of Wapello was then composed of all the territory from the eastern boundary thereof westward to the Missouri River.
By an act approved February 15, 1844, the Fourth Division of State Militia was formed, to comprise men from the counties of Davis, Appanoose, Wapello, Kishkekosh, Keokuk, Mahaska and Poweshiek. The first brigade was to be made up of Davis, Appanoose, Wapello and Kishkekosh.
By an act of the Territorial Legislature, approved February 15, 1844, Wapello County was created. Under the law, all territory west of that county was attached thereto for judicial and election purposes. In this way the first court held in Wapello was also the first court in which the settlers of this county were interested.
The first term of the District Court for this region was held at Ottumwa- then spelled with an A-September 18, 1844. Hon. Charles Mason presided. In those days the chief cause of litigation was the disputes over claims to lands. Settlers would lay claim to a piece of unentered land, and some other man would assert an equal right thereto. The first term of court brought numerous claim-contestants to Ottumwa. There, also, were the legal representatives of the State, eager for a case. Among the noted men were Judge Edward John- son, of Fort Madison, and Dr. G. S. Bailey, U. S. Marshal of Van Buren County. The disputants had ample opportunity for considering their grievances, for no Judge came the first day, and " court " was formally adjourned. The next day Judge Mason appeared, and suits were duly begun. During the prog- ress of court, the feelings of the men waxed hot, and the law's delay was frequently relieved by a good old-fashioned fight. The first suit was that of William Roland vs. Mathews. The case was finally decided in favor of the plaintiff. It was an exciting trial, and more than one blackened eye and bleeding nose was caused by it.
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350
HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY.
THE FIRST ELECTION.
The first election held in the precinct of Kishkekosh took place in August, 1844. The polls were located at W. G. Clark's house, at Clark's Point. W. G. Clark was chosen Justice of the Peace. The ballot box was constructed of a paper box, in which stockings were originally packed. This relic is still pre- served by the pioneer whose name is associated therewith. Mrs. Clark arranged dry goods boxes for tables, covering them with calico.
THE FIRST SCHOOL HOUSE
was built in 1844, on the Gray farm. Lorania Adams, of Blakesburg, was the first teacher, employed during the Summer of that year. Dudley C. Barber was the next teacher, he having charge of the school during the Winter term. Pupils came as far as six miles to attend. There were about fifteen or twenty pupils.
The school house was called the Pleasant School, and because of the fine view from there the township was named Pleasant Township.
While Mr. Barber taught the school, spelling matches were frequently held, and many a heated contest was waged over the various " hard words " that were passed from side to side. The population turned out en masse-it was but a roomful then-to participate in these entertainments. The young beau who succeeded in spelling down the class was the admiration of the girls and the envy of the boys for weeks afterward.
THE FIRST RELIGIOUS SERVICES
were probably held at Mr. Gray's house, but exact information on this point is not obtainable. There were so many missionaries during the years preceding regular service, that the memory of Mrs. Gray is not clear on this point. Serv- ices were held about this time at the Clark settlement. Mr. Post preached at different localities in 1845.
On the 4th day of March, 1845, Mr. Gray erected the first frame barn in the county. The lumber for the building was obtained at Haymaker's mill, on Cedar Creek, and was hauled some fifteen miles. The first wheat grown by Mr. Gray was cut in 1845. Mrs. Gray and her mother, Mrs. Stephens, aided in storing away the first crop-an illustration of the willingness and industry of the pioneer women of the county.
In 1845, the Grays got their milling done at the little corn-cracker in Mahaska County, owned by Samuel Vance.
The first wheat was raised in 1844 by Mr. Clark, who harvested from thirty acres.
The first piano in the county was owned by Mr. Clark, who obtained it from Frederick Manning, of Eddyville. The piano was Mr. Manning's wife's dower, and after the lady died, Mr. Manning would allow no one to touch it. The instrument was brought to Eddyville in 1850, or about that time, but was not brought to this county for some years later.
THE FIRST MARRIAGE
solemnized in Kishkekosh County was in 1844, while this was attached to Wapello County. Nelson Wescoatt and Mary Searcey were united in August of that year. £ Three months later, Mrs. Wescoatt died from the effects of fever, which was
351
HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY.
THE FIRST DEATH
in the county. In those days, there was no lumber to be had, and the question of how to construct a coffin for the occasion was a serious onc. The lady was greatly beloved by all, and tender hands aided in the funeral preparations. A black walnut tree was cut down, and from it puncheons were hewed. From these a coffin was made, the place of nails being supplied with wooden pegs. This rude box was covered with velveteen, obtained at W. G. Clark's. The lone resting place of the first bride is still pointed out on the old Searcey place.
The first doctor in the county was Levi Duncan.
The first gunsmith was Aleck Kemp.
The first saw-mill was built by Nelson Wescoatt, three miles west of where Albia now is, in 1845.
CLARKSVILLE.
The town which played the part of rival to Princeton for the honors of county seat was laid out by W. G. Clark, at the point named for him, two miles northwest of Princeton, early in 1845. It was there that the first District Court in this county was held, as the first election had already been, but prior to the dignifying of the locality by a special title.
THE FIRST DISTRICT COURT.
The court met March 23, 1846, Hon. Charles Mason presiding. Among the distinguished lawyers present were Messrs. Hendershott, of Ottumwa : Rice, of Oskaloosa; Judge Edward Johnson, of Fort Madison ; U. S. District Attor- ney and Dr. G. S. Bailey, of Van Buren County, then U. S. Marshal.
The original cabin erected by W. G. Clark had lasted about three years, and a new one was needed. When court time arrived, the new cabin was par- tially done. A section of the floor was laid, and at the end of the cabin a chair was placed for the Judge. The jury impaneled to try a civil case sat around on blocks of wood or whatever was convenient.
The grand jury, the first ever impaneled in the county, was composed of Andrew Mock, George Cain, Abram Webb, Philander Tyrrell, David Cooper, William V. Beedle, Abram Williams, William McBride, A. Myers, Charles Bates, George Anderson, J. A. Gilman, O. P. Rowles, John McIntire and Robert Harkman. The jury retired to a slough for deliberation on the moral condition of the county. An indictment was made against one " Bees- wax " Barber-so nicknamed because of a questionable transaction in beeswax, which was then regarded as currency in this county. The crime was a nameless offense against his own daughter, a little girl of 8 years. Barber had been kept at Clark's house'for about two weeks, awaiting trial. The confusion of the child was so great that she was unable to testify intelligibly, and Barber was liberated. The neighbors ostracized him, however, and all believed him guilty.
The lawyers and Judge came on horseback, with their library in their saddle- bags. When night came on, a storm set in and the horses needed shelter. Mr. Clark pulled up the floor, pushed back the seats in the " court room," and put the horses in there. The lawyers slept in the same room, on a bed of hay. In the night the horses got loose and began to eat the beds away from under the sleeping men.
HOW PIONEERS LIVED.
In choosing his home the pioneer usually had an eye mainly to its location, and for that reason settlers were oftener than not very solitary creatures, with-
352
HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY.
out neighbors and remote from even the common conveniences of life. A desir- able region was sure to have plenty of inhabitants in time, but it was the advance guard that suffered the privation of isolation. People within a score of miles of each other were neighbors, and the natural social tendencies of man- kind asserted themselves even in the wilderness by efforts to keep up communi- cation with even these remote families.
The first business of a settler on reaching the place where he intended to fix his residence, was to select his claim and mark it off as nearly as he could without a compass. This was done by stepping and staking or blazing the lines as he went. The absence of section lines rendered it necessary to take the sun at noon and at evening as a guide by which to run these claim lines. So many steps each way counted three hundred and twenty acres, more or less, the then legal arca of a claim. It may be readily supposed that these lines were far from correct, but they answered all necessary claim purposes, for it was under- stood among the settlers that when the lands came to be surveyed and entered, all inequalities should be righted. Thus, if a surveyed line should happen to run between adjoining claims, cutting off more or less of the other, the fraction was to be added to whichever lot required equalizing, yet without robbing the one from which it was taken, for an equal amount would be added to it in another place.
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