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 42
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On the 14th of February Mr. Jones attended a political meeting on the West Side; was appointed secretary of the meeting and nominated for the office of County Surveyor, to which office he was afterward elected. This shows the way the early settlers did things. There was no higgling nor holding off because a man was a stranger. An ambitious man did not need to wait five or ten years till the people got acquainted with him. Mr. Jones' experience affords a good illustration of the manner in which they proceeded: a man came to the county one day and on the following day was nominated for a county office, and that particular office too, which at that time was one of the most responsible and lucrative ones.
When the commissioners appointed to locate the seat of justice made their report Mr. Jones was ordered, by virtue of his office, to lay off the place which became the county seat of Polk county and afterward the capital of the State. The following is the order of the County Commis- sioners:
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Ordered, A. D. Jones, County Surveyor, proceed as soon as practicable to lay off a town, at the site selected for the county seat of Polk county.
Mr. Jones; in accordance with this order proceeded to survey the town, commencing the work on the 4th day of June, 1846. It is said that in running a line near the Des Moines river the brush and trees in some places were so dense that it was impossible for him to see the rod-man and in such cases he would require the latter assistant to halloo, and then he would take his bearings from the sound.
By reason of his having the reputation of being an ex-postmaster and from the extraordinary knowledge of the civil service which this previous experience was supposed to have imparted to him, Mr. Jones was waited upon by a special messenger, and requested to assist in the opening of the first mail which arrived. In the mail was found Dr. Brooks' commission and a bond; the latter was signed by Jeremiah Church and Peter New- comer, and the new postmaster and the new post-office formally entered upon their career of honor and usefulness.
Mr. Jones was a very energetic and industrious man in his way and with the start he made in 1846 would have achieved great things had his activ- ity and tact been supplemented with that patience and perseverance which characterized such men as Casady, Tidrick, Sherman, Redhead, Granger, and others. As it was he left the place at the very time when everything depended upon his staying. From Des Moines he went to the new county of Madison and assisted in organizing the county and laying out the county seat. The early settlers of Winterset remember A. D. Jones as one of the most conspicuous men of early times, and in the early history of that town, just as in the early history of Des Moines, his name figures more exten- sively than any other. From Winterset he went to Omaha, which latter place he helped to usher into being just as he did the two Iowa towns. Whether or not he profited by the remarkable advantages there presented for achieving wealth and position is a matter which does not come within the scope of this work.
Dr. James Campbell, who still resides in Des Moines, having his office and residence on the corner of Front and Elm streets, came to Polk county in March, 1846, and has constantly resided here during the last thirty-four years. He was born in Ohio July 11, 1815, and emigrated to Iowa as early as 1839, locating at that time in Van Buren county. Shortly after his ar- rival at Fort Des Moines he fell in with Robert A. Kinsay, the govern- ment sutler who, that the government troops were about to evacuate the post and his occupation was gone, was desirous of disposing of his stock of goods. Mr. Campbell soon struck a bargain with him and opened up, soon after, a stock of dry goods and groceries in the old guard-house, which was located near the present corner of Vine and Third streets, the location be- ing not far from the present site of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad depot. In one of the first numbers of the Iowa Star, pub- lished in 1849, we find the following advertisement:
"James Campbell, retail dealer in Dry Goods, Groceries and provisions, Fort Des Moines, Iowa. Keeps constantly on hand a general assortment of Dry Goods, such as: Sheetings, fancy prints, cassimeres, jeans, al- pacas, cloths; satinets, tweeds. Also,
Groceries, such as: Coffee, sugar, molasses, cotton yarn, salt, whisky, iron nails, peach brandy, Cognac brandy, Port Malaga and Madeira wines,
24
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gin, rum and Pittsburg ale. Also, Hardware, Queensware, Boots, Shoes, Hats and Caps. Also, the attention of farmers and others is particularly called to my assortment of groceries, and liquors which will always be full and cheaper than the cheapest, as I am determined to make it an object for the farmers to deal with me. Give me a call."
There was another merchant whose settlement in Polk county was co- temporaneous with that of Mr. Campbell; his coming to the county may possibly have been even earlier. Of the precise date of his arrival we can- not definitely speak, as the old settlers, record upon which we chiefly de- pend for these dates is blank in the column where this date should appear. This record was not begun till 1868 and Mr. Sypher probably had forgotten the precise date of his arrival, hence the omission. The only record fol- lowing his name is the following:
" Born January 3d, 1819; died April 9th, 1879."
Mr. Sypher's first place of business was in a log building, east of the river, on the claim first owned by Phelps & Co., and afterward the prop- erty of Dr. Brooks. The house where he exposed for sale a great variety of merchandise, was located where the pork house now stands. He after- ward removed his establishment to the West Side and located on the corner of Second and Vine streets. The corner of Second and Vine was probably the best location for a business house in the town during the first ten or fif- teen years of its career, and Mr. Sypher was one of the most popular and successful merchants in the whole region of the country. It may not be interesting to any one and may seem to be even unappropriate to some, but nevertheless for the sake of authentic facts of history incidentally connected therewith, and the early reminiscences which are thereby suggested, we herewith reproduce an address which Mr. Sypher circulated among his cus- tomers in 1849:
" R. W. Sypher takes this method of returning thanks to his friends in Polk and the adjoining counties of Dallas, Boone and Madison, for the lib- eral patronage he has received from them and solicits a continuation of their past favors. I have on hand a good assortment of such goods as are usually kept in my line of business; consisting in part of dry goods, gro- ceries, hardware, queensware, boots, shoes, glass, nails, etc., and intend to make frequent additions to my stock.
" Persons desirous of making purchases are solicited to give me a call, as I am determined to sell on as reasonable terms as any other establishment in the place. Store on the corner of Second and Vine streets, Fort Des Moines, Iowa."
It will be seen by the foregoing that Mr. Sypher did an extensive busi- ness, and that among his customers were many of the early settlers of Mad- ison, Dallas and Boone counties, together with the people of Polk county, who bought goods of him. In after years and during the time that this whole region of country was yet in its infancy, Mr. Sypher established branch houses in other counties and he was regarded by many of the early settlers as a veritable merchant prince. Among other branch stores which he established was one at Boonesboro, the county scat of Boone county.
His partner was Samuel B. McCall, the first sheriff and for many years county judge of Boone county. He also represented the district of which Polk county formed a part in the General Assembly of the state. The Boonesboro store was started in 1851 and the business was closed out in
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1855. There are few business men succeeding Mr. Sypher who had a more extended trade or a better business reputation.
While speaking of the early business men of Polk county, the name of B. F. Allen is suggested to the writer. He is a nephew of Captain Allen, who appeared at Raccoon Fork, May 9, 1843, and the fact that the uncle was dispatched to this point by the government to superintend the con- struction of the fort, and that he formed a most favorable impression of the country during his stay here, doubtless had much to do in bringing the nephew. Mr. Allen's remarkable career in Polk county began in 1848 and may properly be said to have ended a few years ago, when his unexpected and disastrous failure created such wide-spread surprise and disaster.
Immediately after arriving at Fort Des Moines Mr. Allen opened a store of general merchandise. He had one advantage over many others who came at an early day, in that he had considerable ready money. Whatever enterprise he entered upon Mr. Allen prosecuted to to its conclusion with rare tact and remarkable energy. What money he had when entering upon his Iowa career he invested to the very best advantage, and the amount, though not considered large at the present day, was readily increased by reason of the favorable surroundings until it became a princely fortune. His extensive business transactions, extending into nearly all the counties of Central Iowa, threw him into contact with an unusually large number of people, and his acquaintance was probably larger, extending through a pe- riod from 1848 to 1876, than that of any other man in Central Iowa.
Though many people in Polk county suffered by his failure, many more profited by his success, and although the city in particular felt the shock when the doors of his Des Moines house closed, it was through the doors of that house, which for over a quarter of a century swung on easy hinges, that much of the vital current of enterprise, which made it great, passed. He threw himself unreservedly into every enterprise and scheme which promised to aid in the development of Des Moines and the surrounding country. What he did in later years the reader is familiar with, but to show what he did in early times, when daring enterprises more directly af- fected the people, we reproduce some paragraphs from the Des Moines Gazette of 1851.
" Messrs. Griffith and Marvin have just returned from below, being un- successful in bringing up a boat. They obtained one at St. Louis, placed upon it over two hundred tons of freight for Ottumwa and Fort Des Moines. The boat proceeded up the Des Moines river as far as Bentons- port and there unfreighted, being unable to get over the dam. The result is greatly to be regretted, and especially now, from the fact that it had on board a large quantity of flour for this place. There is not a pound in the market and everybody's out.
" We have received no mail from the East for ten days past in conse- quence of the loss of bridges, etc. It is reported that the mail for this place was lost in a creek between Ottumwa and Eddyville one day last week."
These foregoing paragraphs appeared during the month of May and the issue of June 25th contained the following:
" Steamboat again .- Three of our enterprising citizens, J. M. Griffith, B. F. Allen and R. W. Sypher, together with Mr. Corwin, of Eddyville, left here on Tuesday of last week for St. Louis with the sine qua non to purchase a steamboat to run up the Des Moines river. There is no doubt
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HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.
that the boat will be purchased and will come up. We shall look for her at our wharf early next week. We shall date this event as the commence- ment of a new era in the history of the Des Moines republic, an era of in- creased and unceasing prosperity and wealth."
Mr. Allen was one of the first to invest money in the erection of a large steam mill, an institution which aided much in the development of the county, and one much needed by the people. The matter of steamboat navigation and the erection of mills will be treated more fully hereafter.
Whatever may have been the wreck and ruin which followed the down- fall of Mr. Allen, or whatever the causes which led to the disaster, he was, in the days of his prosperity, a public benefactor. He gave with lavish hand, was prominent and active in all measures which would aid the prosperity of the people with whom he lived, and an important factor in the development of the county and its material prosperity, and he deserves a prominent place in the history of the county.
His career as a merchant extended through a period of seven years, from 1848 till 1855, part of which time he had a partner by the name of Lyon. His partner in the erection and management of the steam saw and grist mill was a gentleman by the name of Van. The house where the store was carried on is still standing and is one of the few old landmarks which have been able to withstand the spirit of innovation, demolishing nearly all other works of primitive time. The old store room is located on Second street between Market and Vine. It is very long for its height and width and has the appearance of being built in sections at different times. It is in a bad state of repair, the decaying floor revealing the hewed sleepers and the falling plastering showing the split-oak lathing.
Hoyt Sherman came to Iowa April 28, 1848, and on the 2d of May fol- lowing arrived in Polk county. As is well known by many of our readers he is a member of the illustrious Sherman family, whose representatives have distinguished themselves alike in the civil and military service of the country. He was born at Lancaster, Ohio, November 1st, 1827, and there- fore had not yet arrived at majority upon coming to this county. A brother by the name of James had preceded him about one year and it was probably on this account that young Sherman ventured into the wilds of the West so far from home.
James Sherman had engaged in merchandise and the younger brother came out to assist him. This James Sherman was one of the first mer- chants of the county. He died a number of years ago. The next year after Hoyt Sherman came to the county another brother by the name of L. P. Sherman came, arriving in November. He was born at Lancaster, Ohio, October 12, 1822. We notice in the old settlers' record, from which these dates have been obtained, that Hoyt Sherman arrived in the State April 28th, and in Polk county May 2d. The date of L. P. Sherman's ar- rival in the State was November 15th, and in Polk county November 18th, from which we conclude that it took from three to four days to get to Des Moines after crossing the Mississippi river.
Hoyt was appointed postmaster of Des Moines by President Taylor in the spring of 1849, and during the first week in January, 1850, L. P. started the Gazette, the first Whig paper published in Des Moines, and the second journal established here, Barlow Granger having begun the publi-
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cation of a Democratic paper called the Iowa Star about one year pre- vious.
After publishing the paper for one year, Mr. L. P. Sherman sold it to other parties and engaged in other pursuits. He has been a man of rest- less activity and a citizen of more than ordinary prominence from the time of his arrival till the present time. He is now and for some time has been an officer in the United States Civil Service, with his office in Des Moines.
Hoyt Sherman held the office of postmaster during the term of four years; in 1853 President Pierce coming into office, a good reliable Demo- crat was appointed as his successor, in the person of Wesley Redhead. In order to show the number of mail routes at that time, the direction in which they extended and the postal facilities of a city thirty years ago, which now has mails arriving every day, free delivery, fast mail routes, etc., we reproduce the postmaster's notice as published in the Iowa Star of November 22, 1849, giving information on that subject:
"Arrival and departure of mails to and from Fort Des Moines:
"East-via Oskaloosa, arrives every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 8 P. M., and departs Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, 5 A. M .; closes at 7 P. M.
" East-via Iowa City, arrives every Wednesday and Saturday at 6 P. M., and departs every Monday and Thursday at 7 A. M .; closes on Wednesday and Sunday at 8 P. M.
"Southeast-via Knoxville and Albia, arrives every Saturday at 6 P. M. and departs every Monday at 8 A. M .; closes Sunday at 8 P. M.
" South-via Lancaster, Missouri, arrives every Saturday at 6 P. M. and departs every Monday at 8 A. M .; closes Sunday at 8 P. M.
" West-to Council Bluffs, arrives every Sunday at 6 P. M. and departs Monday at 8 A. M.
"West-to Penoach, arrives every Friday at 11 A. M. and departs same day at 2 P. M .; closes at 1 P. M. same day.
"Southwest-to Winterset (Madison county), arrives every Friday at 11 A. M. and departs same day at 2 P. M .; closes at 1 P. M. same day.
"To Castleton (Polk county), arrives every Saturday at 12 M. and de- parts same day at 2 P. M.
" Office open every day (except Sundays) from 8 o'clock A. M. till 8 P. M.
" HOYT SHERMAN, P. M."
In connection with Mr. Allen, already alluded to, and others not yet mentioned, Mr. Sherman manifested much enterprise and public spirit in assisting to secure steamboat navigation when the people of the town were out of provisions, and, by reason of the heavy rains and bad roads, wagon communication was an impossibility. The Iowa Gazette of May 30th, 1851, contained the following paragraph:
" Messrs. Griffith, Marvin, P. Myers and Hoyt Sherman left this place on last Tuesday, in a skiff, bound for Keokuk and St. Louis, designing to freight a steamboat for Des Moines. They may be expected to return some time next week."
With the Iowa Shermans it has been similar as has been the case with the Ohio Shermans; they have not always been successful in getting the office for which they aspired, but their ambition in this direction has prob- ably been as frequently gratified as the average ambition of men. They
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HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.
have invariably proved efficient public servants, and as individuals and as a family may well be proud of their record.
Barlow Granger was a most active and energetic citizen of Fort Des Moines and Polk county during the early pioneer days. His career in Iowa may be said to be contemporaneous with that of Polk county. As the editor and publisher of the first newspaper, among the first land agents and attorneys, no account of the early settlement of the county in which he did not extensively figure would be at all authentic or reliable.
Mr. Granger was born in the state of New York, May 31, 1816; learned the trade of printer in the office of the Courtland Advocate, went to Albany in 1838 and considered it his home until 1847, although during the time he started out as a wandering journeyman printer, and though his career in that line was not very extensive it was somewhat extended. After travel- ing from place to place for some time he finally landed in St. Louis, and while engaged on a paper at that place was visited by an old acquaintance from Albany by the name of Jones. After being together for a few days the two concluded to go to Des Moines.
They took a boat to Keokuk and from there to Fairfield took passage on a stage. At the latter place they hired a buggy in which they came to Des Moines. Arriving here things did not at all suit them and they started to leave the country. On their way to leave the county and when they had arrived near where Mr. Granger's suburban residence now stands they took a view of the Des Moines valley, and from that standpoint the country pre- sented new beauties and resources. They immediately changed their minds and determined to remain. Mr. Granger selected the place near where they then stood as the location of his future residence and his companion selected the place where afterward Mr. Allen erected his mansion.
After deciding to remain they returned to the Fort much better satisfied. To some this short trip out of town and back would seem to have had no significance, but they really accomplished a great deal in that short drive, which, in the case of at least one of them, was the turning point in his future destiny. Although they had no friends here, no money and no business, the two young men seem to have been well satisfied. Having determined to stay, and the feeling of indecision which is so fruitful of discontent hav- ing been banished they were contented with the present so long as they could by some honorable means obtain a meal, and looked confidently and hopefully to the future.
After looking around for some time they finally determined to engage in the real estate and land warrant business and for this purpose they finally succeeded in negotiating a loan of five thousand dollars for the purpose of carrying on the business. Not long after, Mr. Jones, while temporarily ab- sent in the southeast part of the State, fell in with some acquaintances who were making ready to go to California, and he falling a victim to the gold fever, concluded to accompany them. He rashly concluded that his friend Granger would also embark in this scheme and join the company upon their arrival at Des Moines. In this he was mistaken for the latter had fully determined to make this his home and he possessed too much power of will to be pursuaded from a course which he had fully decided upon. Jones went to California. Granger remained, and in remaining had his most sanguine expectations gratified. The real estate and land warrant business was not very brisk at first, but it gradually grew on his hands,
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while he had his share of the law business. It is the impression of the writer that Mr. Granger had no partner after the departure of Mr. Jones. It was almost universally the custom for lawyers and real estate dealers, in those days, to have partners, and it is said that, at one time, Mr. Granger's advertisement read as follows:
" Barlow & Granger, attorneys at law, notaries public and real estate deal- ers. The former will at all times attend to all kinds of business belonging to his line, and the latter will attend to all other business which may be placed in the firm's charge."
He did not pride himself as some others upon his legal attainments,-but was, nevertheless, a successful lawyer.
One of his first clients was a man by the name of Robinson, who had erected a cabin upon his claim before it was surveyed; afterward, when the government surveys were made and the lands entered, it transpired that Robinson's cabin was a short distance across the line on the land entered by one Daily. Daily was an unreasonable man and signified his intention of holding the cabin. Robinson came in haste to the Fort and counseled with Lawyer Granger; the latter informed him that Daily had the law on his side and probably could hold the cabin. At this information Robinson became very despondent and inquired whether there was nothing could be 'done. The lawyer studied awhile and then replied, that there was nothing he could do and he could not think of any human aid which would avail; however, as some consolation to his client, he would suggest that the Iowa winds were very powerful, so much so, in fact, that he had known houses and barns to be moved by them much farther than the distance his client's house was from his line. "Now," added the lawyer, "if, one of these nights, a powerful wind were to arise and blow your house across on to your land, I think Daily would have a hard time of it to get it back." Mr. Granger, after delivering himself of this opinion, resumed his reading and the client departed. In the course of a few days Robinson again made his appearance at Granger's office, wreathed in smiles and looking jubilant:
" Good morning, Robinson," said the lawyer. "How are things up the river ?"
"Bad enough, bad enough," replied the client; "we had a h-l of a wind up there last night and my house was blown from Daily's land across the line onto my own ground."
Having delivered himself of this speech he handed Mr. Granger a five dollar bill and departed. The facts in the case were that Robinson was not slow to act on the lawyer's hint; he had gone home and, the first dark night, procured the assistance of some friends and moved his house, and Daily finding that he had been outwitted, never took any steps to deprive the former of his rightful property.
It does not appear that Mr. Granger ever took any very active measures to elevate himself to office, neither, as a rule, was he a very active politician, preferring rather to attend quietly to his business and make money. How- ever, in hotly contested elections, when on the eve of election day the Dem- ocrats despaired of success they usually held a council at Granger's office and sought his advice as a last resort. By reason of the plans laid and the tactics adopted at these secret conclaves victory was sometimes snatched from the very jaws of defeat. Hoyt Sherman probably remembers how that after the election was over and the returns, which elected him County by a safe majority, were supposed to all be in, one Spalding came in
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