USA > Iowa > Polk County > The history of Polk County, Iowa : containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c., biographical sketches of its citizens, war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion, general and local statistics, portraits of early settlers and prominent men > Part 35
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A careful examination of the strata was made at two points along the. Des Moines river. One of these examinations was made near the north part of the county, with the following result:
Gray Shale and Shaly Sandstone 20 feet. Ash-colored Marl, containing Orthis Productus, Chonetes, Terebratulæ, and joints of Crinoids. 6 feet ..
Gray Shale ..
15 feet ..
Dark Blue Shale
8 inches.
Marly Limestone, with Productus, Chonetes, etc.
Ash-colored Shaly Clay. 10 inches.
4 feet.
Buff-colored, Arenaceous Limestone. 412 feet.
Unexposed 18 feet.
The uppermost bed in this section was found to contain marine shells in great profusion and in a most perfect state of preservation.
The following is the account of the other observation:
Finding it impracticable to get along the river, I took the bluff road for Fort Des Moines. At Dr. Brooks' quarry, one mile east of the city, a bed of sandstone is exposed, about twenty feet in thickness, and of a somewhat soft texture. A portion of the bed, however, is concretionary; the concre- tions exceedingly hard and compact, and some of them from ten to fifteen feet in diameter. Nearly all the building rock used at Fort Des Moines is obtained from this bed of limestone, which has been opened at various places in the neighborhood.
Section at J. M. Todd & Co.'s mill, at the upper end of Des Moines city:
Soft Micaceous Sandstone.
8 feet.
Compact Concretionary Sandstone.
112 feet.
Gray Shale and Shaly Sandstone. 10 feet.
Bluish Shaly Clay ..
2 feet.
Coal.
10 inches.
Sandstone
6 inches .. 6 inches.
Coal.
113 feet.
Slate ..
1 inch.
Coal ...
11% feet ..
Shaly Clay
114 feet.
Coal. . .
10 inches.
Shaly Clay.
5 feet.
Bitiminous Slate and Shale, mostly hidden
12 feet.
Slate
The coal in the above section is rather slaty and poor, though it serves for steam and ordinary purposes tolerably well. A good supply of a much better quality may undoubtedly be obtained by sinking a shaft to the lower seams, which are probably not more than two hundred feet below those in the above section. This coal is in a series of four seams, which crop out on the east side of the river, a half mile above the city. They are also seen in the bluff on the south side of the river, two miles below.
273
HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.
Two miles above the city on the east side of the river a bed of fire-clay crops out at the water level, overlaid by a thin band of sandstone contain- ing roots of Stigmaria. At the base of the drift deposit here is seen a bed of ferruginous conglomerate about three feet in thickness.
With regard to the coal formation of Polk county; Prof. White makes the following observation:
"Polk county is nearly centrally located among the coal counties of Iowa, and although large quantities of coal may reasonably be assumed to exist beneath its surface at no great depth, it has not yet been exclusively mined, except at and in the immediate vicinity of Des Moines.
" The mines of Messrs. Redhead & Co. are opened in the valley side of the Des Moines river, just north of and adjoining the city, and those of C. C. Van & Co. just south of the city in the valley side of the Raccoon. Other mines are also worked in East Des Moines, just south of the capitol; and still others may be opened at numerous points around the city, for the same bed of coal has about the same general level throughout the vicinity, having been originally continuous, and afterward cut through by the carv- ing out of the valleys of the Des Moines and the Raccoon. No data have been obtained showing the amount of coal annually taken from these mines; but in general terms it may be said that they supply the whole city and vicinity; the railroad companies for their own use and also a considerable quantity for shipment.
"As before mentioned these mines are all on a continuous bed, or more properly speaking, in three separate beds, which have here come so closely together that they are readily mined as, and appear as one bed, either one of which would be too thin for profitable working it alone. This compound bed has been recognized as far west as Redfield, in Dallas county, and as far southward as Indianola, in Warren county, as has been more fully shown by Prof. St. John.
"There is a fourth thin bed of coal a few feet beneath the others, as seen at Des Moines, which, at Newcomer's Point, five or six miles below the city, is some twelve feet beneath the representatives of those worked at the city. At Rattlesnake Bend, some eight miles below the city, a three foot bed of coal is exposed in the channel of the river, where at low water it is sometimes quarried for local use.
"The sub-carboniferous limestone does not appear in Polk county, even in the bed or banks of the Des Moines river, and it is evidently at some depth beneath that level throughout the county. It seems then not improb. able that other beds of coal, besides those referred to, may yet be found beneath them at Des Moines, as well as elsewhere in the county. Some borings have already been made at Des Moines, but efforts to obtain any satisfactory account of the strata passed through have failed.
"Besides the coal contained within the county it is also quite well sup- plied with fuel from the woodlands, which occupy the valleys of the two rivers.
"The clay associated with the coal beds of Des Moines furnishes excel- lent material for common pottery, and two establishments are in successful operation in the city for its manufacture."
The book containing the foregoing observations upon Polk county min- ing operations and the development of the coal interest, was published in 1870, and while the prophecies therein made have mostly been fulfilled, its statements of historical fact need much to be amended.
274
HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.
Prior to the time that Prof. White's book was published the coal interest of Polk county was in its infancy, and scarcely enough coal was mined for home consumption. The coal which was obtained at that time was found at a short distance beneath the surface of the ground, and as in most cases, it visibly cropped out of the ground along the streams, was of easy access, and procured in very limited quantities.
It is said that the presence of coal in and around the present site of Des Moines was first noticed by the soldiers who built and occupied the fort; it is also said that the blacksmith shops in connection with the garrison were supplied with coal from certain coal banks adjacent, and it is stated as a matter of history that A. N. Hays and Capt. Allen opened a coal shaft and stone quarry on the banks of the Des Moines as early as 1843.
Notwithstanding the fact that coal was known to exist in large quantities, and that it had been mined in small quantities as early as 1843, at the time Prof. White's book on the geology of lowa was published in 1870, nothing but a superficial and miscellaneous system of mining had been adopted, and the amount mined scarcely equalled the limited demand of the home market. About this time Wesley Redhead, a gentleman who has been identified with the interests of Des Moines and Polk county from the very first, commenced prospecting for coal in a systematic manner, with a view of engaging in the mining business on a grand scale. He made persistent efforts to achieve success, and called to his aid all the resources at his com- mand. In addition to his time and labor, he expended over eight thousand dollars of his own private funds, and still his investigations had not been crowned with success. Mr. Redhead finally secured the services of John Gibson, of Derbyshire, England, whose extended experience in the coal mines of the old world had eminently fitted him for the prosecution to a successful issue of the investigation which his employer had so long con- ducted in vain.
The circumstances attending the final effort, and its triumphant con- clusion, are related by Mr. Dixon in his centennial history of Polk county, and also in an editorial published in the Des Moines Leader, of June 4, 1873. A synopsis of both accounts is herein reproduced. Mr. Dixon says:
" A few rods south of 'Coon railroad bridge, on land belonging to Mr. R., west of south park, a drill was introduced in 1873, under the direction of Mr. Gibson, foreman. In the descent seventy feet were attained, the drill passing through three inferior veins of coal, and reaching at the depth indicated a flint rock, so stubborn and invincible as to bring discourage- ment even to the old Derbyshire miner, who advised Mr. R. at this point to abandon the work. Even the Geologist had stated that if success were not realized within that distance of the surface, it would be useless to pro- ceed further.
" Mr. Redhead did not participate in this gloomy view of the subject. He quiety inquired of the foreman how many feet of rod were left, and being answered that there were twenty, he urged the employment of every inch, declaring that if this did not bring the anticipated triumph of human en- terprise over stubborn nature, he would furnish a hundred feet more and work these up before he would abandon his long-cherished plans. They went to work again, consuming all of four weeks, at the slow rate of three inches per day, in perforating this massive rock, three feet in thickness. When the drill finally passed through the resisting mass, it quickly de-
275
HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.
scended through a vein five feet thick of black diamond coal, signalizing in its passage, the superiority of genius over inaminate matter.
" It was late in the evening when this great triumph was achieved; but, late as it was, James Clark, an employe of Mr. Redhead, who had been a witness of the thrilling scene just enacted, hurried away to report to that gentleman the auspicious result. To Mr. Redhead this report must have been intensely gratifying. He immediately went to B. F. Allen, and, on communicating his grand discovery, secured from the banker an investment of thirty-five thousand dollars. A shaft was sunk to the required depth, and in a short time all the appliances belonging to a first-class mine .were visible to the spectator, and scores of operatives down deep in the earth were busily engaged in bringing out from this vast store-house of nature its exhaustless treasures."
The following is from the Leader of June 4, 1873:
"WESLEY REDHEAD'S CAT OUT OF THE BAG.
" The Leader of the 3d stated that Wesley Redhead had at last been suc- cessful in his prospecting for coal, but owing to a pressure of other matter a detailed account of his work and discovery did not appear in that day's issue.
"It has always beeu a cherished theory of Mr. Redhead's that the sup- ply of coal about Des Moines was inexhaustible, and that a better quality than any now in the market would yet be found. In pursuance of this ob- ject he has worked early and late, incurring an expense of about six thous- and dollars, until at last his labor has been crowned with glorious success. Last January he commenced sinking a shaft in South Park, near Seventh street bridge. Two gangs, each consisting of eight men, were employed alternately night and day. A thin vein of coal was found near the surface -and further down two larger veins were passed through. When the shaft, which is 14x62 feet, had reached a depth of one hundred and eleven feet below the surface, Mr. R.'s foreman and other experienced miners were of the opinion that further search would be fruitless; but Mr. Redhead was confident, and, to use his own expression, was ' bound to dig to China, or find coal.' The work was continued, and fourteen feet further down- one hundred and twenty-five feet below the surface, and ninety feet below the bed of 'Coon river-the shaft struck a vein of coal four and one-half feet in thickness. This discovery was made on the 2d, and on the 3d a load of the coal was mined and conveyed to Mr. Redhead's office in this city, where it can now be seen. The best judges pronounced it of a superior quality and equal to any mined in Iowa. Directly above the coal vein the drills passed through twelve feet of slate, which was strongly impregnated with sulphur. The coal is hard and glossy, but presents no appearance of sulphur. It will be known as the Black Diamond Coal, and will be mined by the Des Moines Coal Company, of which Mr. Redhead is President. Work will be pressed forward as rapidly as possible, and the practical ben- efits arising from the discovery be demonstrated. A track will be laid to the shaft from the Indianola branch of the C., R. I. & P. Railroad, and the necessary machinery for hoisting put in by the company.
"Mr. Redhead is deserving of the thanks of Des Moines and vicinity for the perseverance he has shown and the discovery he has made. He was the first man to introduce anything like system in the business of coal min-
276
HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.
ing in Des Moines, and now his last great achievement places him in the rank of a benefactor, and he will undoubtedly receive the just encomiums of the people which he has so richly deserved."
We have thought it proper to introduce the foregoing in connection with the geology of the county. The mining interests will be treated more fully at the proper place.
CHAPTER III.
INDIAN AFFAIRS.
Policy of the government-Treaties-Annuities-The Sac and Fox Indians-Keokuk-
Wapello-Poweshiek-Indian incidents and reminiscences-The neutral strip-The Pottawattamies-Johnny Greene and his band-The [ Sioux-The Lott Atrocity-The revenge and the retaliation.
WHEN the European first landed on the eastern shores of this continent, intent on its conquest in the interests of civilization, the first question which came up for solution was the Indian question. This question indi- viduals grappled with on their own individual responsibility until the mother country on behalf of the colonies assumed the management of In- dian affairs, and since the establishment of the Republic the United States in its sovereign capacity has assumed control, but at no time from the very first to the present time, has the question been disposed of satisfactorily to any one; nor yet in the near future does there appear to be any satisfactory disposition of the Indian except to kill him.
In the management of Indian affairs in Iowa the government seems to have been peculiarly fortunate. This was partly due to the policy pursued by the government and partly due to the fact that the Sac and Fox Indians, who controlled the larger part of the territory, were a more tractable tribe of Indians, and their chiefs had a higher sense of veracity, integrity and honor than any other representatives of the race with which the white man came into contact. The Pottawattamies were few in number and had little influence; what influence they had was in the interests of peace and order. The Sioux are and always have been treach- erous and bloodthirsty, but the supremacy of the Sacs and Foxes kept them somewhat in abeyance.
It has been the custom of the general government in dealing with the Indians west of the Mississippi river to treat them as independent nations.
In these negotiations with the aborgines of Iowa the authorities, at vari- ous times, entered into treaties with the Sioux, in the north, and with the Sacs and Foxes, in the south, the government purchasing the land from the Indians just as Louisiana was purchased from France. The Black Hawk purchase was acquired by means of the first treaty made with the Sac and Fox Indians in reference to Iowa land. This treaty was made September 1, 1832, and included a portion of country bounded as follows: Beginning on the Mississippi river, where the northern boundary line of the lands owned by said Indians strikes said river; thence up or westward on said line fifty miles; thence in a right line to the Red Cedar river, forty miles from the Mississippi river; thence in a right line to the northern part of the State of Missouri, at a point fifty miles from the Mississippi river; thence by the said boundary line to the Mississippi river, and thence up the Mis-
277
HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.
sissippi river to the place of beginning. The western boundary line was a very irregular one, as it followed the same general direction as the Missis- sippi river. It ran in a general direction from the north in a course a little west of south, the line being considerably east of Iowa City.
The second purchase was made in 1837, October 21, and included a suffi- cient amount of territory to straighten the boundary line. The western boundary of the Black Hawk purchase being a very irregular line, the. treaty of 1837 was designed for the purpose of straightening said boundary line. By this treaty the Indians ceded a tract of country west and adjoin- ing the Black Hawk purchase, containing one million two hundred and fifty thousand acres. Upon survey, however, the number of acres proved in- sufficient to make a straight line, as was originally intended. The Indians stipulated to remove within one year, except from Keokuk's village, which they were allowed to occupy five months longer.
Although it is bel eved that the Indians, especially the chiefs, made this treaty in good faith and scrupulously adhered to it as they understood it yet it was unsatisfactory to both Indian and settler and many misunder- standings arose, but seldom if ever ended in bloodshed. The fact soon be- came evident that the white man had marked this goodly country for his own, and that the Indian would have to abandon it peacably according to treaty stipulations, or in the end be forcibly ejected. In accordance with the wise counsel of Keokuk, Poweshiek and Wapello they chose the former course.
The last treaty made with the Sac and Fox Indians comprehended all the rest of their lands in the State. This treaty was made at Agency City, in the present limits of Wapello county, and was concluded October 11, 1842, proclamation of its ratification having been made March 23, 1843, and possession was given to all that part lying east of Red Rock, now in Marion county, May 1, 1843. The last date, therefore, is the period when the whole of the country was thrown open to white settlement.
The principal chief in this treaty was Keokuk. A gentleman of an ad- joining county heard this chief make a speech on that occasion, which he pronounces an unusually eloquent address. He says, that in his opinion, " the former standing of Keokuk as an Indian orator and chieftain, as a dignified gentleman and a fine specimen of physical development, was not in the least overrated." During the Black Hawk trouble his voice was for peace with the white man, and his influence added much to shorten that war. As an honor to this chief, and owing to his influence in bringing about the treaty, a county was called Keokuk.
Thus from being at first the sole owners and occupiers of the soil the Indians disposed of territory time and again until finally the title to the whole of Iowa was vested in the general government.
As they ceded their lands to the United States, strip after strip, they gradually withdrew, and the white settlers took their place as possessors of the soil. The aborgines were not forcibly ejected from their lands as in other parts of the country, but the change was effected by a legitimate pro- ceeding of bargain and sale.
As a result of this peaceable arrangement, and the earnest efforts of the government to carry out, to the letter, the provisions of the treaties, the early settlers experienced none of the hardships which fell to the lot of the early settlers in other parts of the country, where misunderstanding about the ownership of the soil gave rise to frightful massacres and bloody wars.
278
HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.
The Indians gave no serious difficulty, and seldom, if ever, disturbed the early settlers of this county, after they had rightfully come into possession of it.
By the various treaties made with the Sac and Fox Indians, the govern- ment paid these $80,000 per year, by families. Mr. William B. Street, of Oskaloosa, was disbursing clerk for John Beach, Indian agent, during the year 1841, and still retains in his possession the receipts for the part pay- ment of his annuity, in his own handwriting, and the marks of the chiefs in signing.
We give an extract, including the names of part of the Indians who were at that time living at Kish-ke-kosh's village, which was located in the eastern part of Mahaska county.
" We, the chiefs, warriors, heads of families and individuals without fam- ilies, of the Sac and Fox tribe of Indians, within the same agency, acknowl- edge the receipt of $40,000 of John Beach, United States Indian Agent, in the sums appended to our names, being our proportion of the annuity due said tribe for the year 1841:
NAMES.
MARKS
MEN
WOMEN
CHILD'N
TOTAL
AMOUNT
Kish-ke-kosh1
X
1
1
3
4
[$ 1 30
Ko-ko-ach.
X
1
2
3
6
106 95
Pas-sa-sa-shiek.
X
1
1
2
2
55 65
Mo-ka-qua.
X
1
1
17 82
Pa-ko-ka.
X
1
1
2
4
71 30
Ka-ke-wa-wa-te-sit.
X
2
1
3
53 47
Much-e-min-ne2
X
1
1
2
4
71
Wa-pes-e-qua3
1
1
2
4
71 30
Wa-pe-ka-kah4
2
1
3
6
106 95
Mus-qua-ke5.
X
3
2
2
7
124 78
And fifty-nine others.
"We certify that we were present at the payment of the above-mentioned amounts, and saw the amounts paid to the several Indians, in specie, and that their marks were affixed in our presence the 19th day of October, 1861.
"(Signed)
"JNO. BEACH, U. S. Indian Agent. "THOMAS McCRATE, Lieut. 1st Dragoons. "JOSIAH SMART,
Interpreter.
" We the undersigned chiefs of the Sac and Fox tribe of Indians, ac- knowledge the correctness of the foregoing receipts.
"KEOKUK,& his X mark.
"POWESHIEK,' his X mark."
After the treaty of 1842, and the establishment of Fort Des Moines the following year, the headquarters of the Sac and Fox Indians were removed from Agency City, in Wapello county, to Polk county. Keokuk, the head
1Kish-ke-kosh means "The man with one leg off."
' Much-e-min-ne means "Big man.".
$Wa-pes-e-qua means "White eyes."
*Wa-pe-ka-kah means "White crow."
"Mus-qua-ke means "The fox."
"Keokuk means "The watchful fox."
"Poweshiek means "The roused bear."
279
HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.
chief of the Sacs, established his village some five miles southeast of Fort Des Moines, and the beautiful prairie on which he and his kindred dwelt continued to bear his name for many years after the Indians were removed. Poweshiek, chief of the Foxes, lived on Skunk river, near the present site of Colfax. The Indian agent, Major Beach, and his interpreter, Josiah Smart, before referred to, had their quarters on what was called Agency Prairie, east and south of the present site of the capitol. Still another Indian village, ruled over by Hard-Fish, was located near Des Moines.
The residence of these various Indian tribes in the vicinity of Des Moines dates from May 1st, 1843, at which time, according to the stipula- tion of the treaty of 1842, they removed west of a line running north and south through the town of Red Rock, in Marion county. As before remarked, the government, according to the provisions of the various treat- ies, paid to the Indians annually quite a sum of money.
The payments were made in silver coins, put up in boxes, containing five hundred dollars each, and passed into Keokuk's hands for distribution. The several traders received each his quota according to the several de- mands against the tribes admitted by Keokuk, which invariably consumed the far greater portion of the amount received. The remainder was turned over to the chiefs and distributed among the respective bands. Great com- plaints were made of these allowances to the traders, on the ground of ex- orbitant prices charged on the goods actually furnished, and it was alleged that some of these accounts were spurious. In confirmation of this charge over and above the character of the items exhibited in these counts an affi- davit was filed with Governor Lucas, by an individual to whom the governor gave credence, setting forth that Keokuk had proposed to the maker of the affidavit to prefer a fictitious account against the tribe for the sum of $10,000, and he would admit its correctness, and when paid the money should be divided among themselves, share and share alike. To swell the trader's bills, items were introduced of a character that should brand fraud upon their face, such as a large number of blanket coats, articles which the Indians never used, and telescopes, of the use of which they had no knowl- edge. This showed the reckless manner in which these bills were swollen to the exhorbitant amounts complained of, in which Keokuk was openly charged with being in league with the traders to defraud the Indians.
The money which actually came into the possession of the Indians was soon squandered by them, and the position of Indian trader, conferred by appointment, was a very lucrative one. During the period when the Indian resided in the vicinity of Des Moines, from May 1, 1843, to October 11, 1845, there were two firms who were allowed to trade with them. Phelps & Co. were from Illinois; they were traders in furs, and were permitted to carry on their business with the Indians. Their establishment was located near the present site of Tuttle's pork packing establishment. G. W. & W. G. Ewing were the regularly authorized Indian traders; they arrived on the 3d of May, 1843. Their business career here was eminently successful, and they accumulated quite a little fortune during their three years' harvest. Their place of business was on the East Side, not far from the quarters of Major Beach, the Indian agent: there they erected a log building, which was probably the first one erected in the county.
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