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 47

Author: Union Historical Company, Des Moines, pub
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Des Moines, Iowa : Union Historical Co.
Number of Pages: 1074

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 47

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Owing to the fact that some of the early settlers were energetic mill- wrights, who employed all their energy and what means they possessed in erecting mills at a few of the many favorable mill-sites which abound in the county, yet going to mill in those days, when there were no roads, no bridges, no ferry-boats, and scarcely any conveniences for traveling, was no small task, where so many rivers and treacherous streams were to be crossed, and such a trip was often attended with great danger to the traveler when these streams were swollen beyond their banks. But even under these cir- cumstances some of the more adventuresome and ingenious ones, in case of emergency, found the way and means by which to cross the swollen streams, and succeed in making the trip. At other times, again, all attempts failed them, and they were compelled to remain at home until the waters sub- sided, and depend on the generosity of their fortunate neighbors.

Some stories are related with regard to the danger, perils, and hardships of forced travels to mills and for provisions which remind one of forced marches in military campaigns, and when we hear of the heroic and daring conduct of the hardy pioneer in procuring bread for his loved ones, we think that here were heroes more valiant than any of the renowned soldiers of ancient or modern times.

During the first three years, and perhaps not until some time afterward, there was not a public highway established and worked on which they could travel; and as the settlers were generally far apart, and mills and trading

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HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.

points were at great distances, going from place to place was not only very tedious but attended sometimes with great danger. Not a railroad had yet entered the State and there was scarcely a thought in the minds of the peo- ple here of such a thing ever reaching the wild West; and if thought of,. people had no conception of what a revolution a railroad and telegraph through here would cause in the progress of the country. Then there were less than 5,000 miles of railroad in the United States, and not a mile of track laid this side of Ohio, while now there are over 100,000 miles of rail- roads extending their trunks and branches in every direction over our land.

Supplies in those days came to this Western country entirely by river and wagon transportation. Mail was carried to and fro in the same way, and telegraph dispatches were transmitted by the memory and lips of emi- grants coming in or strangers passing through.

In early days going to inill was always tedious and sometimes it was also quite dangerous work. For a number of years there was no mill for the purpose of grinding corn and wheat nearer than Oskaloosa, in Mahaska county. However, shortly after the building of Fort Des Moines a mill was erected south of Des Moines, in what is now Warren county. It was built in the first place for the purpose of sawing lumber, in 1843, but was afterward changed into a grist mill.

This mill was the first one erected in the county, and for some time was the only one. As was mentioned in a former chapter, the mill was located near the mouth of Middle river, in what was then Polk county but now is within the bounds of Warren county. The enterprise was inaugurated by Captain Allen and a man by the name of Barlow. Shortly after the begin- ning of the structure, Barlow withdrew from the enterprise, and his place was taken by J. D. Parmelee. After the mill was completed as a saw mill it was the only place in the whole region of country where lumber could be procured. Some time after the saw mill was put into operation, burs were attached and corn and wheat were ground. For some years after this people came from all parts of Polk, Boone, Dallas, Warren and Madison counties-frequently driving as far as fifty miles-for the purpose of hav- ing their grain ground. The mill was not of sufficient capacity to meet the demands made upon it, and although it was operated day and night, it was no uncommon thing for a score of farmers to be encamped in the vi- cinity awaiting their turn. Parmelee's mill, as it was then called, was known far and wide, and its reputation was perhaps greater than any one which has since been built in this part of the State.

As before narrated, the mill was built in 1843, as a saw mill, for the pur- pose of furnishing lumber for building the Des Moines barracks. The in- tention was, however, to make it a grist mill also as soon as the population and productions of the county should demand it. The first run of burs was put in in 1847. It was for grinding both corn and wheat, but nothing but corn was ground until after the harvest of 1848, simply because there was no wheat to be ground. There was no elevator at that time, so after the wheat was ground it was carried to the upper story of the mill and fed by hand through a spout leading to a bolt on the bur floor. People came from far and near, attracted by the reports of the completion of the mill, with their grists, so that for weeks before it was ready for work Middle river bottom was dotted over here and there with hungry and patient men waiting until it was ready to do their work that they might return with flour and meal to supply their almost famishing families and those of their

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HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.

neighbors, thus enduring the hardships of camp life in those early days in order that they might be able to secure the simple necessaries of life, de- void of all luxuries. These same men, while Daniel Moore was putting up the bolt and bur and fixtures, refused to let him quit his work to gather his corn, which yet remained in the fields, but went themselves and gathered it for him.

It was no unusual thing for those who had come a great distance with their grists to find the mill temporarily out of repair. In such cases they would all go to work and assist in repairing it, should the difficulty, as fre- quently was the case, be in the mill-race or the dam.

The nearest mills to this point were then located at Oskaloosa, and the completion of this one obviated the necessity of a journey of seventy-five miles, through river bottoms which really had no bottoms, and over roads which were not surveyed, and were little more than a trail through the woods and over the prairies. This, then, was a last resort, and the name and fame of Parmelee's mill was known far and wide, and Parmelee him- self was probably the best known man in the whole State west of the Red Rock reservation. Some time in 1847 the fort at Des Moines was aband- oned, as the necessity for its existence had ceased, and the stores there ac- cumulated were sold out at auction. This, though, was of rather doubtful advantage to the great majority of the settlers, from the fact that it took money to buy supplies, and money was the one commodity which did not then exist in this region in quantities sufficient to "supply the wants of trade," as has been the wail of many an incipient political economist, even for the past few years.

The people of Polk county were more fortunate than the early settlers of many other counties, in that the first mill built anywhere in the country was within its borders and at a distance of not more than thirty miles from the farthest point of settlement in the county, and though the Des Moines river had to be crossed by many, and numerous other streams, yet it was not long till a good ferry was maintained at several points along the Des Moines, and the lesser streams soon were spanned by temporary bridges. Going to mill was by no means an easy task, but the people of Polk county knew little of those experiences of going seventy-five miles to mill, as have those of others, as this (Parmelee's) mill was both a saw and grist mill, and for a long time made the meal, flour and lumber for all the re- gion now included in Warren, Madison, Polk and Dallas counties, and some- times for settlers living in even more distant parts. To a good extent this mill, on account of its convenient location and capacity for grinding, stopped the rush of travel to Oskaloosa from all the country now known as Central Iowa, especially of all those who had found it necessary to go there for milling purposes and breadstuffs; and, being the only mill in all these parts as a consequence it was crowded night and day with anxious customers, each desiring to get his grist done first, so as to return home. On account of the great rush of work it had to do, and possibly because it was built and run not altogether in the most systematic and commendable manner, this mill, relied on by so many who depended upon it for their daily bread and corn cake, finally got so completely out of repair that they were compelled to stop running it. This brought a sad state of affairs for the settlers in the communities and country round about, who were now in the habit of getting all their grinding and sawing done at this place. Something must be done to put it in running order again so as to accommodate the custom-

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ers. Finally Judge L. D. Burns, the pioneer millwright, was sent for to put it to rights again, and after a two weeks' siege of as thorough repair- ing as the circumstances and conveniences would permit, the mill was again found in running order, to the delight of the owner and the satisfac- tion of his numerous and dependent customers. And in order that our younger readers may more fully understand the hardships endured by the settlers in other counties, we append Judge Burns' narrative of the diffi- culties attending the break-down and the joy at the completion of the re- pairs. The miller, poor Mordecai Disney, seemed to be overwhelmed with trouble, at times, to know what to do amid the babble around him, and this deserving class of people are apt to get, as a general thing, more cursings than blessings anyhow:

"Poor Disney had learned to make the most of his position under ordi- nary pressure, but this was rather too much for his trained equanimity, and he would get off, now and then, some of the most chilling expletives that we ever heard. This mill was finally run down with constant over-work and no care, and it became so relaxed that it stopped business altogether. This was a terrible blow to the settlers, and its stoppage implied the going away off to Oskaloosa for breadstuffs.

" Several machinists were called in, but the patient got worse and worse. We were finally called to the sick bed of the frontier mill in consultation. We found the patient completely prostrated, its nervous system was sadly out of sorts. We administered alteratives and cordials. The patient, un- der this radical treatment, and in the course of two weeks, got entirely well and was ready to go to work again with increased vitality. But alas! when we were ready to try the ability of the convalescent mill to eat corn, we were brought to realize the fact that-

' Life is a dream of a few brief acts; The actors shift, the scene is often changed; Pauses and revolutions intervene, The mind is set to many and varied tunes, And jars and plays in harmony by turns.'

"John D. Parmelee was not in calling distance to come and see the ex- patient survive. John had put in most of his time, during the sickness and convalescence of the mill, up at the fort as a zealous votary of the fiery god Bacchus. The excellent woman and wife, Mrs. Parmelee, sent Jack, an old bachelor domestic, to go up to the Fort and bring John D. home to 'see the mill start.' Jack went, but delayed his coming. Another messenger was sent by the good woman to hasten Jack's return. The second messen- ger found John D. and Jack on a protracted ' bust.' Deaf to all entreaty, John refused to come home to 'see the mill.' The second messenger, too, was soon overcome by the furious god, and joined in the debauch. The miller, Mordecai Disney, was finally sent up to the Fort to bring back the three loyal disciples of jolly John Barleycorn. He was successful, and John D. 'saw the mill start' out with new life and vigor, to his perfect satisfaction, muttering all the while to himself:

' There is a tide in the affairs of men Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; Omitted, all the voyage of their life Is bound in shallows and in miseries.'

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"Suddenly John D. yelled out at the top of his voice: 'See, boys, how she chaws!' "

Those of the pioneer settlers of Warren, Madison, Dallas and Boone counties who still remain, doubtless have the memory of that old mill even more firmly and indelibly in their minds than the settlers of Polk county, as they had farther to travel, and in many cases there were no roads, bridges, no ferry-boats, and scarcely any conveniences, for traveling was no small task where so many treacherous streams had to be crossed, and such streams swollen so as to overflow the banks; even under these circum- stances some of the more ingenious and adventuresome ones found means to cross the stream and made the journey in safety. The fact that there were hungry ones at home awaiting the return of the grist afforded a great impetus to the surmounting of difficulties.

The importance of the Parmelee mill was at its height in 1848 and 1849, after which it began rapidly to decline and has never since enjoyed as wide a reputation, by several counties, although we believe it is still in existence and probably does more work and better work than then. A mill, like other kinds of blessings, is most appreciated when rarest. Those citizens of Des Moines and the various towns and villages of the county who scarcely ever think of the different processes the material has to pass through before it comes out of the oven bread to satisfy their hunger, and even many farmers, who have grist mills at their very doors, can scarcely appreciate the fact that so much depended on one mill a few short years ago. To one living at this time it seems almost miraculous that, in the absence of river or railroad communication and the great distance from materials, so many mills were erected at an early day.

In a copy of the Des Moines Gazette, published January, 1850, we find the following:

"LIST OF ALL THE GRIST AND SAW MILLS IN POLK COUNTY JANUARY, 1850."

Hickman's saw mill, on Beaver, nine miles above Fort Des Moines; ca- pacity about ten thousand feet of lumber per day.

Stutzman's saw mill, on Big Creek, fifteen miles up the Des Moines river from Des Moines; had capacity of two thousand and five hundred feet of lumber per day.

Gilpin's saw mill, eight miles up the Des Moines river from Des Moines; had capacity for manufacturing about one thousand feet of lumber per day.

Thompson's saw mill, located on Four Mile Creek; had capacity for saw- ing ten thousand feet of lumber per day.

Napier's saw mill, on Four Mile Creek; had a capacity for making two thousand feet of lumber per day. This mill also had a run of burs for grinding corn and wheat.

Keeny's saw mill, on North river, six miles above the mouth; it had a capacity for manufacturing two thousand five hundred feet of lumber per day, and also had a run of burs for grinding meal.

There was still another mill on North river, a few miles above Keeny's which had a capacity for making about twenty-five hundred feet per day.

Perkins & Jones had a saw mill on North river, about ten miles from Des Moines, which had a capacity of about twenty-five hundred feet per day.

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HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.

Parmelee had two mills, one eight and the other ten miles from Des Moines. The capacity of one was two thousand and the other three thous- and feet per day. There were burs attached to each for the purpose of grinding meal.

Wright & Stump had a saw mill located in Dallas county, some twelve miles from Des Moines; it had a capacity of two thousand feet per day.

B. F. Jesse had a saw mill on Walnut Creek, three miles from Des Moines; it had a capacity for cutting two thousand feet of lumber per day.

A gentleman by the name of Meacham had a saw mill located on the east side of the river from the Fort. It was a circular saw propelled by six horses. He manufactured about fifteeen hundred feet of lumber per day.

Bundrem had another horse mill located six miles from Des Moines. It was propelled by twelve horses and had a capacity of about twenty-five hundred feet per day.

The Snodgrass mill, about six miles from Des Moines, on Beaver, had a capacity of twenty-five hundred feet per day.

A. Grosclose had a grist mill located on the Des Moines river, which had a capacity of grinding about one hundred and fifty bushels of wheat per day.

A paragraph, published in the Gazette, issue of January 25, 1850, says:

"These mills are principally in running order, and those that are not will be by spring. All these mills, with one exception, are in Polk county. What county in the State can present such a list-and what is more these mills and the steam mills heretofore noticed, altogether cannot cut a foot more lumber than they will readily dispose of the coming season."

The steam mills alluded to in the paragraph were those of Van & Allen, Dean & Cole and E. & E. Hall. The notice referred to appeared in the third number of the Gazette, and was as follows:

"In our last we gave a description of Messrs. Van & Allen's steam mill, and promised a notice of that of Messrs. Dean & Cole. We visited the mill one day last week, and although it is not entirely or even nearly com- pleted, enough is done to show that it will be a very large and handsome structure, unsurpassed in the West.

"This mill is situated on the east bank of the Des Moines river, directly at the ford and opposite the town. It is to be built in the form of an L, facing south and east, and is designated as a grist and saw mill.

" The south wing running traversly to the river is fifty feet in length by twenty-five feet in width; three stories high and is to be occupied as a grind- ing department, with two run of burs, smut machine and all things nec- essary to make superfine flour. This division of the mill it is not expected will be put formally into operation before the first of April. The east wing, to be used as the saw mill, measures fifty feet by twenty, and is cal- culated to run one upright and one four foot circular, and one lath saw.

" Messrs. Dean & Cole are pushing forward the work on this part of the mill as fast as the weather will permit, and contemplate being ready to start one saw by the middle of next month. When the river is high the logs will be floated up close to the mill, and the proprietors intend to erect the necessary machinery to haul them out of the river at its lowest stage.

" The motive power is a steam engine; cylinder two feet stroke, eight and a half inch bore, supplied from a boiler thirty-one feet in length by forty-two inches in diameter. The fly-wheel is calculated to make one

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hundred and eighty revolutions per minute. The stack towers seventy feet for a draft. For fuel they have a coal bank within half a mile and plenty of wood around the mill. The power of their engine is not suffi- cient to run the entire machinery at the same time, and it is their design to run the saws by day and grind at night, proposing hereafter should the business require it to construct a race from Hall's dam, a few hundred yards above, to and under the grist mill for the purpose of driving that by water power.

" Messrs. Dean & Cole have, at almost every step, encountered many and discouraging difficulties, but relying upon the prospects in the future, they have steadily and perseveringly pursued the even tenor of their way and we trust, as we verily believe, they will eventually reap a rich reward for their labor.

" Messrs. E. & E. Hall have nearly completed a new saw mill just above the town, on this side of the river. They have a good substantial dam constructed, which is being further improved and strengthened. When finished this dam will enable the mill to cut from three thousand to five thousand feet of lumber per day. It has been in operation some two months. The Messrs. Hall are enterprising men and will not rest until they have one of the best mills in all the country."

Many who peruse this book will doubtless be surprised at the promi- nence that is given to the mills of the county during the pioneer period, but if such could, for a short time, be taken back to the pioneer days, days when houses had to be erected in a short space of time, no lumber for their construction, no railroads to convey it here and no money to pay for it even were there means of transportation; no flour nor meal except what was hauled by ox teams from points along the Mississippi river-if in all or any of these particulars the reader could realize the condition of the pio- neer of Polk county, he would in his very heart bless the pioneer mill- wright and when he passes one of these old weather-beaten mill structures would feel like taking off his hat as a work of reverence.

In pioneer times the question of accessible trading points was nearly as important as was that of mills. Saw mills were first necessary in order to procure lumber for the construction of dwellings; grist mills were needed, for without them the early settler would have been driven to the verge of starvation; but after the pioneer was snugly quartered in his newly built cabin, and he had enough wheat and corn ground for the winter, it was then his business to dispose of his surplus farm products whereby he alone could hope to purchase the necessary amount of clothing and groceries, and begin to lay up a little money to enter the land he had preempted. Trad- ing points, where the pioneer could dispose of his farm products, were far off and difficult of access.

Fort Des Moines was a trading point of some importance when the county was first thrown open for settlement. The garrison quartered there together with their horses, consumed all that was raised by the farmers, but, unfortunately, as the county began to settle up rapidly and the sup- ply increased, the government troops were withdrawn and the demand de- creased. What stores and shops there were continued to be operated, and new ones were established, but it was the business of these merchants and shop-keepers to sell and not to buy. Aside from a very uncertain navigation of the Des Moines river, and that for only a brief time during one season of the year, these merchants were compelled to convey their goods from Keo-

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HISTORY OF POLK COUNTY.

kuk by wagon. In those days the Des Moines merchants were not at all anxious to trade their goods for country produce, and if some of them did so the cost of transporting the goods to the Fort and the prospective cost of carrying the produce to Keokuk was so large in both cases that the pro- ducer if he disposed of his produce at Fort Des Moines got no money, and if he got goods he got them at a ruinous rate; every yard of calico, every pound of sugar, every ax, hoe or knife by the time he got it into his cabin represented days of hard labor. Even those who had brought with them from the East horses, cattle, hogs and sheep for the purpose of entering into the business of stock-raising, soon found that, while the country was extremely well adapted to that kind of industry, they could not succeed in the business on account of the great distance to market. In this day of traffic and bargaining, when there are stock buyers and grain dealers at nearly every cross-road, we can scarcely realize the difficulty and uncer- tainty of getting anything. This trouble originated in the fact of there being no means of transportation. It was true then, even as now, that consumers in the older settled parts of the country were anxious to buy Iowa corn, hogs and cattle; it was true then as now that hundreds of men, with money, and of a speculative turn of mind, were ready for trade and traffic; it was the two hundred miles of comparative wilderness and im- passable roads which deprived the pioneer of the just rewards of his labor.

As has already been stated, there were, at the time spoken of, no railroads in the State, and less than five thousand miles of railroad in the United States-not a single track had yet entered Chicago, and not a mile of track west of Ohio. Under these circumstances the people could only hope for an outlet by the way of the Des Moines river to Keokuk; this they did confidently expect at no far distant time, and meanwhile they could but content themselves in disposing of their products as best they could at such points as Fort Des Moines, Eddyville, Oskaloosa, or by con- tinuing their journey still further, at Burlington or Keokuk. By depend- ing on these places, all of which afforded at least a very uncertain or a very distant market, they could, by industry and economy, lay by a very little money, and by the postponement of the land sales finally be able to procure a good title to their homesteads. The inducements, however, for new em- grants to locate here, when there was so much available land nearer the great water outlet of the Mississippi, were so small, and the objections which were urged by prospectors, on account of the distance from market, were so great that some of the more public spirited and adventuresome of the citizens of Polk county determined to make Fort Des Moines a trading and shipping point. As before remarked, they could not hope for a rail- road when they knew the two States of Illinois and Indiana must be spanned before they could hope to get a road; their only hope was in the Des Moines river. The improvement of the channel of that stream, until its navigation would be regular and safe, was the only hope of the country, and to save the country, the leading men of the county began to devote their best en- deavors. Congress had already been petitioned for aid; the aid had been granted and the work commenced, but those who had set their hearts upon making Fort Des Moines a great trading and shipping point, could not patiently await the slow movements of the parties having the matter in charge. We have already seen how Hoyt Sherman, B. F. Allen, R. W. Sypher and others endeavored to anticipate the river improvement, and ac- tually did succeed in bringing several boats up the river as far as Des

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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 47

Author: Union Historical Company, Des Moines, pub Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Des Moines, Iowa : Union Historical Co. Number of Pages: 1074

Author: Union Historical Company, Des Moines, pub
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Des Moines, Iowa : Union Historical Co.
Number of Pages: 1074