USA > Iowa > Wapello County > The history of Wapello 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, general and local statistics history of the Northwest, history of Iowa > Part 53
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" This was a most magnificent grant, embracing some of the best lands in the State ; and if the proceeds had been judiciously and properly expended, would have made a great thoroughfare for steamboats, besides affording an immense water-power for driving machinery. But, through the incompetency of man- aging the means, and the intrigues of designing men, the whole of the lands below the Raccoon Fork, and a large quantity above, were disposed of, and very little practical good accomplished toward the navigation of the river."
ORIGIN OF THE NAME DES MOINES.
In Nicollet's " Report of the Upper Mississippi River," made to Congress, February 16, 1841, and published in 1843, he gives the following account of the origin of the name of the Des Moines River :
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" The Des Moines is one of the most beautiful and important tributaries of the Mississippi, north of the Missouri; and the metamorphosis which its name has undergone from its original appellation is curious enough to be recorded.
"We are informed that Father Marquette and M. Joliet, during their voy- age in search of the Mississippi, having reached the distance of sixty leagues below the mouth of the Wisconsin, observed the foot prints of men on the right side of the great river, which served as a guide to those two celebrated explorers to the discovery of an Indian trail, or path, leading to an extensive prairie, and which they determined to follow. Having proceeded about two leagues, they first saw one village on the bank of the river, and then two others upon the slope, half a league from the first. The travelers, having halted within hailing distance, were met by the Indians, who offered them their hospitalities, and rep- resented themselves as belonging to the Illinois nation.
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HISTORY OF WAPELLO COUNTY.
"The name which they gave their settlement was Moningouinas (or Moin- gona, as laid down in the ancient maps of the country), and is a corruption of the Algonquin word, Mikouang, signifying at the road, by their customary elliptical manner of designating localities, alluding, in this instance, to the well-known road in this section of the country which they used to follow as a communication between the head of the lower rapids and their settlement on the river which empties itself into the Mississippi, to avoid the rapids ; and this is still the practice of the present inhabitants of the country.
" Now, after the French had established themselves on the Mississippi, they adopted this name ; but with their custom (to this day also that of the Creoles) of only pronouncing the first syllable, and applying it to the river as well as to the Indians who dwelt upon it-so they would say, 'la riviere des Moines' (the river of the Moines) :' 'allez chez les Moines' (to go to the Moins people). But in latter times the inhabitants associated this name with that of the Trappist Monks (Moines de la Trappe), who resided with the Indians of the American bottom.
" It was then concluded that the true reading of the riviere des Moines was the 'riviere des Moines,' or river of monks, by which name it is designa ted on all the modern maps. The Sioux, or Ndakotah Indians call the Des Moines Inyan-sha-sha-watpa, or Redstone River, from inyan stone; sha-sha, redu- plication of sha, red ; and watpa, river. They call the upper east fork Inyan-sha-sha-watpa-sunkaku, the Brother of the Redstone River."
THE CRIMINAL RECORD.
The propriety of admitting to these pages accounts of the criminal events which have occurred in the county is a question which, naturally, is suscept- ible of different decisions. Some of our readers will contend that the dark side of life ought to find no abiding mention here, while still another portion will argue that no omissions should be made from the calendar of crime. We have concluded to adopt a rule of our own in this chapter, straining the prerog- ative of an historian thereby, perhaps, but rather on the side of prudence than that of license. We shall give accounts of only the three tragedies which have crimsoned the records of Wapello County, and resulted in the execution of the guilty offenders against the sacred law of human life. Several homicides have been committed in the county since its organization, but in all cases, save the ones here related, the perpetrators of the deeds have either been adjudged guilt- less before the law, or have received sentences of imprisonment for terms ran- ging from twenty years downward. Minor crimes have also been committed, at various times. but the average character of the official records is far above that of many other counties of the State. It is decmed proper to omit all allusion, in detail, to such events, and give merely the important cases, which are decid- edly a part of the county history.
First, we transcribe from the Courier the following graphic account of the Laura Harvey tragedy and the final punishment of McComb, the murderer. This is the only legal execution which has taken place in Wapello County.
THE LAURA HARVEY MURDER AND EXECUTION OF McCOMB.
" On Tuesday, March 27, 1860, a party consisting of three persons-two men and a woman-arrived in this city, and put up at the Jefferson House, then kept by John Potter. They came in a common two-horse wagon, with an extra
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HISTORY OF WAPELLO COUNTY.
horse tied to the back of it. The team was put up at Mr. Blodgett's livery stable while they remained here. During their stay at the Jefferson House, they attracted the attention of Mr. Potter's family, as the conversation between the members of the party was anything but friendly toward the young girl. While here, the men did not express themselves very freely as to their destina- tion or designs, but did on several occasions say that they thought they would locate somewhere near here, as farmers, without, however, conring to any definite conclusion. They remained here unitl Wednesday, about 2 o'clock, when they left for Eddyville, where they arrived the same evening. Here, also, the sus- picion of the landlord was aroused by the conversation heard in their room. The girl was heard to say that she wished to return to her mother, from whom she had been stolen. We might here say, however, that, before they left this city, the men called at Dr. Taylor's drug store and requested him to send for the Rockford, Ill., Daily News, from March 19, for two weeks, and copies of the Rockford Register, to be forwarded to Eddyville. They hesitated to give their names, but finally gave the name of William Moore. They left Eddy- ville on Thursday morning, crossing the bridge southward. Before leaving, they said they were going a few miles into the country to look at a farm. About 11 o'clock that morning, they were seen on the Chillicothe road, heading toward this city.
" Nothing more was seen or heard of them until about 11 o'clock the same night, when Mr. John Prosser, the proprietor of the ferry, Mr. Barnes and two others were going home from town. They had crossed the river, and had gone some twenty rods-or about half-way to Mr. Prosser's house-when a wagon, drawn by two horses, and one horse following, and two men aboard, passed rapidly quite near the party, driving toward the ferry. Prosser sent his son to the boat to cross them over, if they desired. The boy went, but they had already driven into the river, and he saw the two men stooping over the side of the wagon and looking into the water, as if they were throwing something into the stream. It being quite dark, however, he could not see distinctly what the men were doing. The team drove on in a few minutes, and the boy went home. About an hour afterward, a wagon was heard passing Prosser's house, and as they could not be found next morning, it was supposed they had recrossed.
" On Friday morning, March 30, the body of the woman was found a few feet below the lower ford. When found, it was nearly covered by water. and to some extent by sand. It had been thrown into the channel of the river, but, coming into contact with a root, it had lodged. Mr. Aumack, the milk- man, first discovered the body. He, with Mr. Prosser and others, placed it in a skiff and brought it to this side of the river, where it remained until the arrival of the Coroner. It was conveyed to a building in town, where a jury was impan- neled and an inquest held. A large number of witnesses were subpoenaed, and testified. The body was subjected to a post-mortem examination, which proved that she had not committed suicide. There were wounds on the head and face which were severe and fatal ; one eye was black and blue, and much swollen, and on the throat were marks of fingers deeply indented, enough to choke a person to death. The jury, after hearing all the testimony, etc., returned a verdict that the deceased came to her death by blows inflicted upon her head by a person or persons to them unknown. As soon as possible, officers and men were sent out in every direction to secure the perpetrators of this brutal murder. Up to this time, we believe, no names could be found of the girl or murderer, although she was identified as the same person who had been at the Jefferson House a few days before.
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HISTORY OF WAPELLO COUNTY.
"A week passed by, and large rewards were offered for their arrest, and yet there were no tidings of the murderers, only that they had been traced to Iowa City, where a man had sold the horses and harness, which were identified as the same the party of three brought to this city. After that, all efforts were in vain. Meanwhile, letters were written to Rockford, Ill., and, in answer, the whole matter of the names and character of the men were given. It appeared that all were from Rockford, and their names were George Lawrence, Benjamin A. McComb and Laura J. Harvey.
" Miss Harvey had been receiving the attentions of Lawrence for some time, against the wishes of her parents, and it seems that some ten days before they left for Iowa, they had gone to Beloit, Wis., and there were clandestinely married, as she showed her mother the marriage certificate afterward. In a few days after, she and Lawrence started off in the cars for the Mississippi River. It appears that McComb, with two of Lawrence's horses and one of his own, started after them. It seems to have been a concerted movement between Lawrence and McComb. Lawrence had some $700, which, it is said, he stole before he left. Nothing more was heard from them until the body of the girl was found dead.
" The general impression was, at the time, that Lawrence and McComb were both equally guilty of the murder ; but, as it afterward proved, Lawrence met the same fate as the girl.
" On the 28th of July. 1860, just four months after the murder of Laura J. Harvey, the body of a man was found in a ravine heading Copperas Creek, about four miles from this city, eastward. The Coroner impaneled a jury, and soon the mystery was solved. The flesh was nearly gone, but the skeleton, with the exception of one leg, was there. The clothes, including coat, vest, pants, gaiter-boot on one leg, and silk cravat around the neck, were in pretty good preservation, so much so that they were readily recognized by the witnesses as those worn by Lawrence while here. Witnesses testified to pecul- iar seams in his pants, to the buttons on his coat, and to other articles, so that there could be no possible doubt of the identity of the man. After hearing all the testimony, the jury returned a verdict that the deceased was George Law- rence, and that he came to his death by means of a wound inflicted on the head with a murderous instrument by some person or persons unknown.
" The place were the remains were found is, perhaps, as well adapted to the purpose of concealing a dead body as could be found in the vicinity. It was so near the head of the ravine, and the banks on each side were so steep and pre- cipitous, that everybody would find it easier to go round the head of the ravine than to attempt to cross it.
"So it was, that the mystery of crime was unraveled link by link, until the chain reached to the criminal, and brought him, sooner or later, to justice. There was no doubt that McComb was the real murderer of both victims. But where was he ? No clue had yet been found of him. Was it possible that he could escape the punishment that was due him ? It is an old saying, that ' murder will out,' and so it proved to him. Four years had elapsed, and yet he was free in the world, carrying his double crime with him, until at last his career was run.
" On the 2d of March, 1864, three officers of Davenport arrested, at a small saloon, a man supposed to be McComb. He was brought here on the 4th of the same month. His arrest, as nearly as we can learn, was about as follows : A young soldier, stationed at Camp McClellan, and who knew this man McComb previous to his committing the murder, happened to meet him and
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recognize him. McComb had been in the employ of this young soldier's father for three years, near Rockford, Ill., and was recognized by him instantly. The soldier, being cognizant of the murder and of the fact that McComb and the girl left Rockford together, immediately informed the proper officers of the fact, who started at once to find the individual. I He was found at the saloon just as he had concluded a trade with a man for a horse, for which he had paid $180. When arrested. he quietly asked ' What for ?' but made no resistance. The man who had sold him the horse agreed to give him back $170, and retake the horse, which was agreed upon. He seemed flush with money and did not evince the least uneasiness. He said nothing about the affair, and only remarked that all he wanted was a fair trial. His business at that time appeared to be bounty- jumping.
" When brought to this place, he appeared cheerful and conversed freely with visitors. He admitted that he was the McComb they were after ; that he once lived near Rockford ; but said his name was Lansing B. McComb, instead of Benjamin A. McComb. He said he had been here before, and that he knew George Lawrence, but knew nothing of the murder nor of the Harvey family. Soon after being lodged in jail, he employed attorneys to defend him, but we have never learned whether he made any effort to get proof of his innocence or not ; at least at his trial he had none.
" On Tuesday, June 7, 1864, the trial of B. A. McComb commenced before the District Court, then in session. When the case was called, he appeared by his counsel and filed his plea of 'Not guilty.' Two applications were made for a continuance, one of which was overruled and the other granted, but the con- tinuance was avoided on the part of the State by admitting that he could prove the allegations set out in his affidavit.
" About one hundred persons were summoned before a jury could be formed. There was some excitement attending the trial, but it was not of such a charac- ter as to prevent his having a fair and impartial hearing. The trial was ably conducted on both sides. The testimony of the witnesses corresponded. The charge of the Judge to the jury was able and comprehensive. During the trial, the prisoner seemed perfectly calm and easy, apparently taking great interest in the testimony.
" After the charge of the Judge, the jury retired, and remained out some three-quarters of an hour, when they returned with the following verdict : 'We, the jury, find the defendant guilty of murder in the first degree.'
"On Wednesday, June 14, the time having arrived for the sentence, the prisoner was brought into court and the sentence of death passed upon him. When the Judge asked him if he could show any cause why sentence should not be pronounced against him, or if he had anything to say, he replied : ' I don't know as I have.' The Court then sentenced him to be hanged on the 27th of July, at 12 o'clock M. The prisoner received the sentence without any apparent emotion, preserving the same indifference that he had throughout the trial.
"The case was taken to the Supreme Court, and consequently he was not hanged on the day appointed.
" On the day fixed by the District Court for McComb to be hanged, a great many people from the country who had not, perhaps, heard of the postponement of the execution, or who did not believe it, came in to witness the prisoner receive his punishment. By noon of that day the streets were crowded with people, old and young, but up to this time nothing transpired to indicate any unlawful purpose on the part of the multitude. Shortly after noon, however,
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impelled, seemingly by a common purpose, the crowd gathered around the Jail, and the leaders, some dozen persons, avowed their purpose to take the prisoner out and hang him. Several persons addressed the crowd, urging them to desist, and let the law take its course, which, however, had no apparent restrain- ing effect. The Sheriff resisted the execution of their purpose to the best of his ability.
" A vote was taken by the mob-now numbering some hundreds-which was decided in favor of hanging, after which a rush was made for the door of the Jail. After a good deal of maneuvering, they finally broke open the back door and entered, breaking also the locks on the cell of the prisoner and taking him out. He asked for an hour, which was given him, to prepare for death. He was taken into the Catholic Church, and baptized, after which the mob again took him in charge. The crowd could not decide upon a proper place to exe- cute him, but, after some time, they placed him in a wagon, and took him about a mile east of town, where they found a bent tree, and a place fit to carry out their design. They got the rope adjusted around his neck, and were about throwing it over a limb, when McComb requested time to make a few remarks, in substance, that they were hanging an innocent man : he said that he could prove that George Lawrence was still living, and that he did not murder Laura J. Harvey.
" At this point a cry was raised all through the crowd, "Take him back !' Others yelling out 'Hang him !' Then a short struggle for the possession of the rope ensued, when some one called out, 'Cut it!'. This was no sooner said than done, and the prisoner rescued from the hands of the mob, placed in a wagon, driven rapidly to town and lodged again in jail. It was a daring act on the part of those who rescued him but they could not stand by and see mob law rule our county.
"On Wednesday evening, August 24, McComb escaped from the jail, in brief as follows: Knowing that the Sheriff (who resides in the Jail), was absent from home, he, by the means of offering a little boy of the Sheriff's, only about 11 years old, large sums of money, etc., induced him to unlock his cell and the back door, so that the prisoner had nothing to do but to walk out and escape. He took the boy with him for a short distance, but for some reason drove him back home.
" It appeared that McComb and another prisoner had been tampering with the boy for some time before, and, taking advantage of the Sheriff's absence, consummated their design on that evening. We will here state, that after a full investigation of the matter, no blame was attached to the Sheriff or Dep- uty, as they had watched the Jail alternately every night, and on that evening the Sheriff supposed he would be at home in time to watch that night, which he was at 8 o'clock.
"The prisoners were pursued in every direction, and on the following Sat- urday morning McComb was recaptured some fifteen miles east of this city and brought back the same day, and once more lodged in his old quarters.
"On Wednesday, August 31, another mob assembled for the purpose of again trying to execute the prisoner. It was composed mostly of the same persons who constituted the first mob. They found, however, on their arrival here, that the Jail was so guarded by the military as to render the execution of their purpose dangerous to those who attempted it. After having given the mob time to survey the precautions taken to preserve the law, the Sheriff ordered them to disperse, which, upon consultation among themselves, they concluded to do, and did disperse without any further demonstration. The
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citizens of this city had determined previous to this, that mob law should never again reign over civil law.
" The Supreme Court convened in the beginning of December last, and the case of McComb was argued in its turn. The Court affirmed the decision of the District Court. It was then left to the Governor to fix the day of execu- tion. He being absent then, and for some time afterward, the day was not fixed until a few weeks ago, and indeed the Sheriff of this county was not officially advised of the time until last Saturday (the 11th), when he received the warrant of the Governor, fixing the 17th for the execution. When the prisoner was advised officially of the time, he, as on all occasions, received it calmly and indifferently, saying nothing, and seemingly caring nothing about it.
" The morning of the 17th of February, the day appointed for the expi- ation of the great crime was cloudy and snowing moderately. The streets were wet and unpleasant for locomotion. A military company from Kirkville arrived at an early hour, and with Companies A and B, of this place, repaired to the Court House to act as guard. Up to 10 o'clock, the mumber of stran- gers in town was considerable, but not noticeably large. About that time, however, the people began to arrive more freely, until at 12 the crowd proba- bly numbered 2,000.
" The Mayor of the city had issued his proclamation requiring all the saloons to be closed, and the order was universally respected as far as is known. It was a wise precaution to preserve order. The following twelve persons composed the jury summoned by the Sheriff, according to law, to witness the execution : E. H. Stiles, R. W. Boyd, J. W. McGlasson, Charles Dudley, Thomas Foster, A. Melick, B. D. Baker, John Newman, William A. Nye, M. J. Williams, T. J. Zollars and Thomas C. Harkins.
" The prisoner did not sleep well the night before the execution, as he had not for several nights previous. He was cheerful, however, as he has been gen- erally throughout his imprisonment. He partook of food in the morning mod- erately. About 9 o'clock, Rev. Father Kreckle, Catholic priest of this city, with clerical assistance from abroad, attended in the prisoner's cell to prepare him, according to the rites of that Church, for the great change about to take place.
" The gallows had been erected during the night in the west end of the hall, in front of the cells, the platform raised about five feet from the ground. At about half past 11 the jury were sworn and proceeded to the place of execution. No other persons were admitted except the guard, clergymen, physicians, Drs. Williamson and Hinsey, and two or three representatives of the press. The hour of 12 drew near. The officiating priests were still engaged with the prisoner in his cell, he still appearing calm and collected.
" The clergymen left the cell, and the Sheriff, assisted by Deputy Reed, proceeded to robe the prisoner for the execution. While this was going on, Mc Comb remarked to Reed, 'Bill, I'd make a good priest.'
" At precisely 12 o'clock, allowance being made for difference in time-pieces, McComb, accompanied by Revs. Father Kreckle and McCailly, the Sheriff and Deputy Sheriff Reed, came from the cell. He walked with a firm step. At the foot of the gallows, a pause of a few minutes was made, while the priest offered prayers, the prisoner responding. At the conclusion of the exercises, the prisoner walked quickly back across the length of the hall to the cells of his fellow-prisoners, of whom he took leave ; returning toward the gallows through the crowd, he shook hands with such persons as he knew, pausing a few minutes and speaking in a low voice to Judge Trimble. He then ascended the scaffold,
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walking steadily and firmly, and at once deliberately took hold of the rope, apparently testing its strength. Being called upon by the Sheriff, he stepped forward near the front of the platform, and spoke distinctly as follows :
" ' You have come to see an innocent man hung. I am here upon the gallows with but a very few minutes to live, and I say to you I am an innocent man. I want you to recollect that I am about to suffer on false testimony. My life has been sworn away. There is no other State where I could have been convicted upon this evidence but the State of Iowa. Still, I do not blame any of you. I don't know that I have any enemies here. I may have, but I don't know them. But, although my enemies will cheat me out of my life, they can't cheat me out of heaven. I have no confession to make. I have made none, and I can give you, if there should be anything published purporting to be McComb's confession, that you will know that it is false. I want you all to recollect this (repeated several times in the course of his remarks), I am an innocent man, and in three or four years, when it is too late to restore me to life, you will know it. I have only one request to make, that my body, after I am dead, may be taken down to the Court House and exhibited to those who are my enemies.'
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