The pioneer history of Pocahontas County, Iowa, from the time of its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 8

Author: Flickinger, Robert Elliott, b. 1846
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: Fonda, Iowa, G. Sanborn
Number of Pages: 1058

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13. With the Sacs and Foxes, 1837. -This treaty was made at the city of Washington, October 21, 1837, and by Carey A. Harris, commissioner. By reference to the map it will be seen that the western boundary of the Black Hawk Purchase of 1832 was very far from a straight line, and in 1837 it was proposed to make it a straight line. By this treaty the Sacs and Foxes ceded to the United States a tract of country west and adjoining the Black Hawk Purchase, containing 1,250,000 acres. This treaty was rati- fied February 21, 1838, and the lands were usually called by the early set- tlers the "Second Purchase."

"The warrior lover woos no more His dusky, dark-eyed forest maid,

Nor wins her heart by counting o'er The braves beneath his war-club laid."

The Indian, who possessed the soil

At the same time and place the Sacs at the dawn of civilization, was here and Foxes relinquished to the United in his own right. He believed in the States all their right and interest in Great Spirit. He worshipped no idols the country lying south of the bound- nor bowed to any superior but the ary line between the Sac and Fox great "Manitou." He made no sac- tribes and Sioux, as described in the rifice of human life to appease the

SPANISH GRANTS AND IOWA INDIAN TREATIES.

wrath of an offended Deity. He be- ground. HI℮ never blasphemed. lieved in a future of rewards but not His home is where the finger of des- of punishments, and was ever ready tiny points; yet his sympathies often and proud to sing the death-song even clustered deeply around the place of at the stake, that he might enter his nativity and the scenes of his the elysian fields of the good hunting- earlier life.

PIONEER HISTORY OF POCAHONTAS COUNTY, IOWA.

VII.

THE TRANSITIONS FROM DISCOVERY TO STATEHOOD.

"Arms and the man I sing, Who, first from the shores of Troy sailing, Driven by fate, came to Italy and the Lavinian Country; . Much was he tossed over land and sea, by the powers supernal, While he builded his city."-VIRGIL.

FERNANDO DE SOTO.

HE early history of noes to the head of Green Bay, they the Province of Lou- paddled up the Fox river to a place isiana, of which Iowa they called Portage-now Portage formed a part near City-then carrying their canoes the center, is one of across, a distance of two miles, they the most interesting embarked on the Wisconsin river, and chapters in the annals of our country. on the 17th of June, 1673, re-discovered

It was first visited in 1541, by Fer- the Mississippi, the mighty stream nando De Soto, a Spanish captain, the Indians had called the "Father of who had assisted Pizarro in the Con- Waters." They and their compan- quest of Peru, and later had been ap- ions, who consisted of five assistant pointed by the king of Spain, governor boatmen, floated down the river with- of Cuba and president of Florida. out exploring the country or seeing This daring explorer, intent on find- any of its inhabitants, until the 25th ing gold, in 1539, landing on the west of June, when they landed at a place coast of Florida with 600 followers, near the month of the Des Moines made his way through pathless for- river, now Lee county. Here, going ests and almost impassable swamps to ashore, they were probably the first the Mississippi river, which he dis- white men to set foot on the "Beauti- covered early in 1541. Crossing it he ful Land," and, finding fresh traces passed many miles up the Washita of men on the sand and a path that river and there spent the ensuing led to a prairie, these two heroic pio- winter. On his return to the Missis- neers followed the latter until they sippi, in May or June, he died and his discovered an Indian village on the body was sunk in its waters.

MARQUETTE AND JOLIET.

bank of the river and two other In- dian villages on a neighboring hill. After proceeding southward to the

In May, 1673, James Marquette, a French Jesuit Missionary, and Louis mouth of the Arkansas river, where Joliet, a fur trader of Quebec, started they were warned not to go farther, from the settlements in Canada, to they returned, paddling their canoes find a great river that the Indians against the powerful current of the told them lay west of Lake Michigan. river, feeling well repaid for their Making their way in birch-bark ca- voyage of discovery.

THE TRANSITIONS FROM DISCOVERY TO STATEHOOD.

LA SALLE.

was formed into one territory, that

Six years later (1679), the French a few months later was divided into voyager and discoverer La Salle, a Upper and Lower Louisiana; and the man of active brain and iron will, set occupancy of St. Louis by the United out from Montreal to complete the States as a military station, was im- work of Marquette and Joliet. To mediately followed by the important carry the supplies for his expedition,

treaty of 1804, in which ! the Indians he built on the shores of Lake Erie, relinquished their title to the lands not far above Niagara, the first sail- east of the Mississippi river. That ing vessel ever launched on the great year nearly all of what is now the lakes. In the fall of 1681, landing at state of Louisiana was erected into a the foot of Lake Michigan, where territory under the name of Orleans, Chicago now stands, he crossed over to and in 1810 this territory was in- the Illinois, and going down that riv- creased with an addition east of the er, entered the Mississippi in Febru- Mississippi, and in 1812 it was ad- ary, 1682. On the 19th of April fol- mitted as a state under its present lowing, he had reached the sunny name (Louisiana), and with its pres- waters of the Gulf of Mexico. There ent boundaries.

he set up a rude wooden cross on "March 20, 1804, congress provided which he fastened a metal plate, bear- that Upper Louisiana-that part of ing the arms of France. Then with volleys of musketry and loud shouts of "God save the King!" he took posses- sion of the entire vast territory water- the province north of the 33dl parallel, consisting now of Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa and southern Minne- sota-should be organized into a court ed by the Mississippi and its tribu- district and attached it to the terri- taries. To this region of unknown ex- tent at that time, twice as large as France, Spain and Germany united,

tory of Indiana for governmental and judicial purposes. " This arrange- ment gave rise to the term "District he gave the name of Louisiana, in of Louisiana," that occurs in the honor of Louis XIV, the king of early history of this part of the coun- France.

try, and extended from the Mississippi

As stated above, this vast province river to the range of the Rocky Mount- was held by France until 1763, when ains. it was ceded to Spain. In 1800 it was In 1807, for a brief period, Iowa was ceded back to France, and in 1803 pur- attached to the territory of Illinois chased by the United States, and yet for judicial purposes.

its western boundary was not definite- ly determined until the treaty of 1819 with Spain, when Florida was includ- ed and also ceded to the United States.

THE LOUISIANA PROVINCE DIVIDED.

TERRITORY OF MISSOURI.

The first division of Upper Louisi- ana, to which Iowa belonged, was in June, 1812, when the territory of Mis- souri, including Iowa was organized. In 1818, Missouri, applied for admis-

The purchase of the Louisiana Prov- sion to the Union as a slave _state. ince was a great event in American Two years of bitter controversy over history. It was referred to as "an her request to be received as a slave event so portentous as to defy meas- state, followed in congress, that urement; it gave a new face to poli- threatened the dissolution of the tics and ranked in historical import- Union. This controversy was settled ance next to the Declaration of Inde- by the adoption of the famous "Mis- pendence." As soon as it came into souri Compromise, " that forbade slav- the possession of the United States it ery in all that portion of the Louisi-

PIONEER HISTORY OF POCAHONTAS COUNTY, IOWA.

ana Purchase lying north of the par- Iowa, until the fall of 1788, when allel of 36 degrees, 30' north latitude- Julien Dubuque secured from the In- the northern boundary line of Arkan- dians the grant of land containing sas-except in Missouri.

the lead mines, along the Mississippi,

When, on July 19, 1820, Missouri be- which he occupied until his death, came a state, Iowa was detached and, March 24, 1810, when his lease ex- with other territory, remained. with- pired. out a government either political or In 1795, Basil Girard located on the judicial, until June 28, 1834,-one year Girard Tract, in Clayton county, and after it was opened for settlement,- occupied it with others under the when, because of unpunished outlawry Spanish, French and American gov- and crime, it was included in the ter- ritory of Michigan.

MICHIGAN, WISCONSIN, IOWA.

By an act of congress, June 28, 1834, all the country north of Missouri, that was included in the Upper Prov- ince of Louisiana "for the purpose of temporary government, was attached to and made a part of the territory of Michigan," and so continued until the admission of that territory into the Union as a state, June 15, 1836.

July 4, 1836, Iowa became a part of the newly organized territory of Wis- consin, that included the present states of Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota and the eastern part of North and South Dakota.

July 12, 1838, the territory of Iowa, including Minnesota and the eastern part of North and South Dakota, was organized.

December 28, 1846 after eight years of territorial government, Iowa was admitted into the Union as a sover- eign state, in succession the twenty- ninth.

EARLY SETTLEMENTS.

For 113 years after the discovery of and named the place "Council Bluffs." Iowa by Marquette and Joliet, it re- As they journeyed northward on the mained virtually an unknown land. east bank of the Missouri, one of their In that period of slow transportation men, Sergeant Floyd, died and was and limited reading, but of numerous buried on a bluff that has since been discoveries of new lands, the discovery known as Floyd's bluff, and the little of this interior portion of the North river in that section has been called American continent, failed to attract Floyd river. public attention. No effort was made St. Louis was founded in 1764. In to effect any settlement within the 1807, Robert Fulton made his suc- borders of what is now the state of cessful trial trip on the Hudson with

ernments. He was finally granted a patent in his own right, by the land office of the United States.

In March, 1799, Louis Honori estab- lished a settlement upon the site of the town of Montrose, in Lee county, which he improved and occupied until 1803. Two years later this property passed to Thomas F. Roddick, and to his heirs the original title to one sec- tion of land was confirmed, making this the first and oldest legal title to lands in Iowa.

Various venturesome parties of hunters, trappers and Indian traders made temporary settlements along the Mississippi, within the limits of Iowa, from 1820 to 1830, but did not permanently remain. In 1809 a mili -. tary post was established at Fort Madison, but inasmuch as it was in violation of a treaty stipulation, it was soon abandoned.

The western border of Iowa was traced in 1805, by Captains Lewis and Clark. They held an important coun- cil with the Indians, on the Missouri river bluffs in the northwest corner of what is now Pottawattamie county,

-57

THE TRANSITIONS FROM DISCOVERY TO STATEHOOD.

the "Clermont, " and steam, as a mo-' They continued to work successfully tive power on American rivers, was until the winter of 1831, when the demonstrated to be a practical force United States Government ordered the and soon had large application. In miners to desist and remove from the 1817, the first : steamboat reached St. territory west. of the Mississippi. Louis. That trading post for Indians They obeyed and returned to Galena. and hunters then passed from its pri- In the spring following, the "Black ". mal stage to a growing and important Hawk War" occurred in that vicinity, commercial center. Steam naviga- and, at its close, Mr. Langworthy and tion being applied on the Ohio and his fellow-miners returned to their Mississippi brought settlers into south- claims on the west side of the river. western Illinois and northeastern Mis- Their stay, however, was of short. du- souri, and prepared the way for the ration, for in the fall of that year settlement of Iowa. they were again ordered from the west

In :June, 1829, James Lyon Lang- side of the river. This order was en- worthy, resident of Galena, Ill., an forced by Colonel (afterwards Presi- energetic. pioneer of Welch descent dent) Zachary Taylor, commander of that inherited Puritan hardihood, and the Military Post at Prairie du Chien who, two years before being employed (Fort Crawford) accompanied by his by the United States Government, had son-in-law, Lieut. Jefferson Davis, ex- accompanied. General Henry Dodge rebel president.

while negotiating the treaty with the On June 1, 1833, the Rock Island Winnebago, Sac and Fox Indians at treaty went into effect and the whole Portage, Wisconsin, that secured to eastern portion of Iowa, being thrown the United States all northwestern open for settlement, became at once Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin, the theatre of the white man's enter- crossed the Mississippi, at a point prise. Mr. Langworthy and his fellow- afterward called Dunleith (now East miners, accompanied by about five Dubuque) in a canoe, swimming his hundred other adventurous pioneers, horse by his side, and, having obtained crossed the Mississippi, took possession permission for the space of three of their mining and homestead claims, weeks, from the Chief of the Indian made the first permanent settle- village at that place, explored the ment and in the village of Dubuque, whole region of country lying between near the site of the present Female the Maquoketa and Turkey rivers. Seminary, erected that same year, the In June of the next year (1830), ac- first school house in Iowa.

companied ~ by his brother Lucius On the opening of Iowa for settle- (father of Oscar A. Langworthy, hard- ment, in 1833, settlers rushed into the wareman of Fonda, 1878 to 1883,) and territory along the Mississippi, and others, he again crossed the Mississippi the city of Dubuque was first and, with the consent of the Indians, founded. Davenport, Burlington, resumed work in the lead mines of Ju- Fort Madison and other cities along lien Dubuque, that had not been the Mississippi were planted, from worked, except by the Indians, from the time of his death in 1810.

which the new settlements spread westward and the growth of the Ter- ritory and State has been rapid and steady from that time.

The first act resembling legislation in Iowa was drawn up by Mr. James L. Langworthy at this time, and con-

In 1836, three years after Iowa was sisted of an agreement regulating the opened for settlement, the population claims of miners and the amount of of the territory numbered 10,315. Two labor necessary to hold a claim, years later the population had in-

PIONEER HISTORY OF POCAHONTAS COUNTY, IOWA.

creased to 22,850. In the. census of Island. Dubuque was named as the 1840, seven years after the territory seat of justice of the former, while the was opened for settlement, the popu- lation numbered 43,112. Six years county seat of the latter was left to be designated by its own county court. later it numbered 96,088; in 1850, 192,- Burlington was selected as the seat of 204 and in 1860, 674,913.

justice for Des Moines county and the

The star of Empire was moving first court held there was in April, westward, the people of the timber- 1835, in a log house on the hill on lot clad east had heard of the beauty and

number 384. The laws of "Iowa coun- productiveness of this prairie-land, ty (now of the State of Wisconsin) where a farm could be made in a sea- not locally inapplicable," were extend- son with a yoke of oxen and a plow, ed to the two counties thus organized. and were coming in by thousands to Although the Legislative Council of the Territory of Michigan erected the ippi, September 6, 1834, and they were entitled to representation, no election of members to that body was held in the two Iowa counties that year, the first after settlement. enjoy the beauty of its broad land- scapes, the glory of its sunshine, the first two counties west of the Mississ- purity of its waters and the fertility of its acres. The fame of its wonder- ful natural meadows and the beauty and fertility of its prairies had spread not only over this country, but had crossed the seas, and the people of other countries, as well as the states in the east were crowding in to find homes in this richly inviting region of the prairie west.

PIONEER LEGISLATION.

The first official publication in which the name "Iowa" appeared was an act passed by the Legislative Coun- cil of the Territory of Michigan, Octo- ber 9, 1829, forming the county of "Iowa" of the country south of the Wisconsin and Fox rivers in what is now the state of Wisconsin .*

The first act of legislation for Iowa was the third act passed at an extra session of the Sixth Legislative Coun- cil of the Territory of Michigan at De- troit, September 6, 1834, and entitled "An Act to lay off and organize coun- members of the Legislative Council ties west of the Mississippi River." and twelve members of the House of This act created the counties of "Dubuque" and "Demoine"-each consisting of one township

Julien and named respectively Flinthill-from the Territory in Iowa the Black Hawk Purchase; the bound-

ary between them being a line run- Foley, Thomas McNight.

ning due west from the foot of Rock

When on the third day of July, 1836, the Territory of Wisconsin, including the Iowa District, came into existence with its organic act providing that all free white male citizens should be en- titled to vote, for the first time in the history of this territory was the pre- requisite of tax-paying omitted from the qualifications of voters. Hence the first time the people of this sec- tion elected their law makers a prop- erty qualification to vote was not re- quired. "In no part of the whole country east of the western line of the state of Iowa, except in Iowa and Minnesota, has it been true that the people have always exercised the right of suffrage without the prepayment of some sort of a tax." In 1836, three

Representatives of the territory of Wisconsin were chosen by the people of the counties of Dubuque and Des Moines. The names of those first elected were as follows:

then open for settlement, known as County of Dubuque :-

COUNCIL-Thomas McCraney, John

HOUSE-Loring Wheeler, Hardin Nowlin, Hosea T, Camp, Peter Hill

*Annals of Iowa, 1897, p. 224,

THE TRANSITIONS FROM DISCOVERY TO STATEHOOD.

Engle and Patrick Quigley. County of Des Moines :-

6, 1837, and continued until January 20, 1838. Arthur B. Inghram was COUNCIL-Jeremiah Smith, Jr., Jo- president of the Council and Isaac seph B. Teas, Arthur B. Inghram. Leffler speaker of the House. At this HOUSE-Isaac Leffler, Thomas Blair, session, Alexander McGregor appeared John Box, George W. Teas, David R. in place of Hosea T. Camp, deceased. Chance, Warren L. Jenkins and John A special session of the same Legisla- Reynolds.

ture was held at Burlington, June 11th

The first session of this body was to 25th, 1838, and Lucius H. Lang- held at Belmont, Iowa county, (now worthy appeared in place of Mr. Mc- in Lafayette county, Wisconsin,) and gregor, who had resigned. The con- continued from October 25th to nection of the people west of the December 9th, 1836. Peter Hill En- Mississippi with the Territory of Wis- gle, of Dubuque, was chosen Speaker consin terminated July 3d following, of the House. Congress had provided when the latter became a State and for the division of the Territory of the former the Territory of Iowa.

Wisconsin into three judicial districts and the Legislature at this session constituted the counties of Dubuque and Des Moines into the second dis- trict, to be presided over by Hon. David Irvin, one of the associate jus- tices of the Supreme Court.

TERRITORY NAMED.

In April, 1836, Lieut. A. M. Lea, of the United States Dragoons, publish- ed some "Notes on Wisconsin Terri- tory, with a map," that consisted, however, of a sketch of the "Iowa Dis- trict," a name he gave to the Black Hawk Purchase. In this little vol- ume is found the following prophetic paragraph:

The first and most noted act of local legislation was "an act to incorporate the stock-holders of the Miners Bank of Dubuque," of date November 30, 1836. The history of this bank was "Though this district may be con- sidered, for a time, as forming a part of this Territory, yet the intelligent readers will have little difficulty in fruitful of incidents in the politics of the subsequent Territory of Iowa. A full set of its notes may be seen framed in the Historical Society at Des foreseeing that aseparate government will soon be required for Iowa."

A second and important act was to In three years from the time that provide for "constructing a public section was opened for settlement Du- road from Farmington, on the Des buque had grown into a village of note Moines river, through Burlington and on May 11, 1836, John King, Esq., (Flint Hills), Wapello (Old Chief's issued the first number of the Dubuque Village) and Dubuque to the Ferry Visitor, the first newspaper published (now McGregor), opposite Prairie du in Iowa. It had for its motto "Truth Chien. "

our guide-the public good our aim," and for its head-line "Dubuque Lead Mines, Wisconsin Territory."

The third act divided the county of Des Moines into Lee, Des Moines, Henry, Louisa and Musquitine (Mus-

About this time a bill was introduc- catine) counties, and from a strip on ed in Congress to divide the Territory the south part of Dubuque county or- of Wisconsin, and a writer in the Vis- ganized the county of Cook (now itor, referring to this matter in an ar- Scott) and attached it to Musquitine. ticle entitled "A Vision," fancies that

The second session of the territorial he hears in his slumbers the call, "The legislature of Wisconsin was held at Legislature of the State of Iowa, " will Burlington, now in Iowa, November commence its session. These words

Moines.

60 PIONEER HISTORY OF POCAHONTAS COUNTY, IOWA.

THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA, Established February 25, 1847, at lowa City.

THE TRANSITIONS FROM DISCOVERY TO STATEHOOD.

served to direct public attention to tendent of Public Instruction was the name to be given to the new Ter- created and William Reynolds was ap- ritory that was erected July 4, 1838, by pointed to that position, but on March the Act of Congress of June 12th, sep- 9th of the next year the office was arating from Wisconsin the territory abolished.

west of the Mississippi.

TERRITORIAL LEGISLATION.

On November 6, 1837, Congress pass- ed an act to divide the Territory of Wisconsin and to establish the terri- torial government of Iowa. This act was approved June 12th and went into effect July 4th, 1838. This

The Territory was represented in the 25th and 26th Congresses by Wm. W. Chapman and in the 27th, 28th and 29th by Augustus C. Dodge.

Soon after the organization of the Territory, the question of Statehood became one of discussion. In 1840, act provided for an election that was held September 10, 1838, for a House of rep- resentatives, consisting of twenty-six members and a council of thirteen members. the Territorial Legislature passed an act that was approved July 31st, pro- viding for taking the sense of the peo- ple on the question of calling a con- vention for the revision of the Consti- tution, but a majority of the people The first territorial officers were ap- pointed by President Van Buren, and were as follows: were opposed to calling the conven- tion. February 16, 1842, an act was approved, providing for ascertaining GOVERNOR-Robert Lucas, of Ohio. by popular vote whether or not the peo- SECRETARY OF THE TERRITORY-Wm. ple were in favor of a convention to B. Conway. frame a Constitution for a state gov- CHIEF JUSTICE-Charles Mason, of ernment, and at the election, held Au-

Burlington.

gust 1, 1842, the vote stood, for the ASSOCIATE JUSTICES-Thomas S. Wil- convention 4,146; against, 6,868. Every son, of Dubuque, and Joseph Wil- one of the seventeen counties that liams, of Pennsylvania.

ATTORNEY GENERAL-M. Van Allen, of New York.

MARSHAL . OF THE TERRITORY-Fran- cis Gehon, of Dubuque.

The first delegate to Congress elect- ed by the people of the Territory was William W. Chapman.

The complexion of the Legislature that was elected on the same date was democratic.

voted gave a majority against it.

Two years later this subject was again agitated, and on February 16, 1844, an act was passed, providing for submitting the question at the town- ship elections in April, following. At this election the people decided in fa- vor of a convention by a large major- ity, the vote standing 7,221 for and 4,308 against.

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The pioneer history of Pocahontas County, Iowa, from the time of its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 8

Author: Flickinger, Robert Elliott, b. 1846 Publication date: 1904 Publisher: Fonda, Iowa, G. Sanborn Number of Pages: 1058

Author: Flickinger, Robert Elliott, b. 1846
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: Fonda, Iowa, G. Sanborn
Number of Pages: 1058