USA > Indiana > St Joseph County > A history of St. Joseph County, Indiana, Volume 1 > Part 53
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a. See the history of Liberty Township, in the previous chapter.
ceeding, as formerly, along the Indian trails from Fort Wayne and Detroit, or coming up the St. Joseph from Lake Michigan. The im- migrant seeking a home upon the Michigan road lands or bringing his family and house hold goods to the home already selected; the speculator intent upon picking out the fat of the land or in projecting towns in the wilder- ness, and the merchant bringing up his goods from the Wabash,-all moved along the great thoroughfare, on foot. on horseback, by the lumbering stage coach or in the weighty Pennsylvania wagons that perehanee had once rolled across the Alleghanies, bearing in their capacious bosoms the seeds of future common- wealths. And on this thoroughfare Lakeville was a modest station.
The original plat of the town, consisting of Lots A. B. C. D. E. & F., on the west side of the Michigan road, is first shown on record as lying north of and adjoining Coquillard's addition to the town; which addition was platted August 18, 1857, by Alexis T., Alexis and Frances C. Coquillard. Alexis Theodore Coquillard was the son; Alexis, the nephew ; and Franees C. Coquillard, the widow of the elder Alexis Coquillard, one of the founders of the city of South Bend. The original plat was itself afterwards placed on record Deeem- ber 23, 1859; but again in connection with the Coquillard addition.
Like others of our towns, Lakeville was for many years of slow growth. When the Michi- gan road, from South Bend to Plymouth be- came a plank road, an infusion of new life for a time gave an air of prosperity to the little hamlet, and several additions were plat- ted to the town; but after a few years the plank road became out of repair and the old planks were taken up and the toll houses re- moved. After another interval the Vanda- lia railroad came in, and still later the Wa- bash gave connection with Chicago and with the east. The town has since prospered, and is now one of the busiest of our small muniei- palities. Additions have been platted by John Henderson, Michael Hupp, Stephen A. Ulery
315
HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
and Sarah E. Rush; and the population, in 1900, had reached three hundred and fifty. The drainage and improved cultivation of the surrounding lands have also tended to estab- lish the town upon a substantial basis, and Lakeville is now sure to go on prospering and to prosper. Lakeville became an incorporated town by order of the board of county commis- sioners, July 7, 1902.
Sec. 4 .- RIVER PARK .- River Park oceu- pies the territory between South Bend and Mishawaka, on the north side of the St. Jo- seph river. The original plat was aeknowl- edged April 7, 1892, by Albert J. Horne and Benjamin F. Dunn. Several additions have since been platted, the principal of these be- ing Fordham and Berner's Grove. A peti- tion for the incorporation of the town was filed with the county board May 7, 1900, and an election ordered for May 23, 1900. While the election was in favor of incorporation, yet, on remonstrance being presented and considered, the commissioners refused to or- der the town incorporated. From this de- eision of the board an appeal was taken to the circuit court, where the decision was re- versed; and an order was made by the court, December 28, 1900, incorporating the town of River Park. The town has grown rapidly. the population being now estimated at from two to three hundred people. It has a post office. an excellent school and many business houses suited to the needs of a suburban pop- ulation. A fine fruit nursery is conducted by Mr. John B. Witwer, who, like the great majority of his townsmen, has a most de- lightful home in River Park. The South Bend watch factory, which rivals Elgin and Waltham in the superior quality of its watches, is located in River Park.
Pottawatomie Park adjoins the town of River Park; although this fine pleasure ground, the largest in the county, was placed in the custody of the city of South Bend by the county commission- ers. The park consists of sixty acres, including forty acres formerly used for
the St. Joseph county fair grounds. On the discontinuance of the holding of an- nual county fairs on those grounds, an act, approved March 1, 1905," was passed by the legislature authorizing the county commis- sioners to place such lands in the care of the city authorities, to be used as a park, which on April 3, 1906, was done in this case. The county afterwards added twenty acres of fine woodland on the north, formerly a part of the old county farm. The city of South Bend, in accepting this trust, gave to the grounds the exceedingly appropriate name of Pottawatomie Park. The late Rich- ard H. Lyon, whose fine taste and historical instinct were sensibly affected by the erection of this noble park for the use of the people of the county, wrote the following beautiful tribute to the friendly Indians, after whom the park was named :
"The action of the South Bend authorities in adopting the name Pottawatomie for the new park on the old fair grounds, recently donated to the city by the county commis- sioners, will meet the general approbation of this community. It is a commendable pro- ceeding, thus honoring the great nation of red men, who with their cousins, the Ottawas and the Chippewas, once possessed and occu- pied this vast territory now embraced in northern Indiana, by giving to the largest and most important tract of the region dedi- cated to public use this highly appropriate title in recognition of a tribe whose name is written high in Algonquin history.
"Too little attention is paid in this part of the west to the preservation of good old In- dian names by the white raee that took the land from their dusky brethren, the original and rightful owners. South Bend's streets. most of her leading ones, are laid out on Indian trails, yet not one bears an Indian name with the sole exception of Miami street, formerly the old Turkey Creek road. There have been distinguished red men enough as- sociated with the early history of this country a. Acts, 1905, p. 108.
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
to have afforded each of our important thor- oughfares a representative Indian name. In the states east of us, particularly in New York and New England, Indian names of appropriate significant meaning have been generously applied to streets, public buildings, parks and private estates, thus preserving permanently the quaint lore of the original Americans.
"Every Indian word and especially an In- dian name, has a distinct meaning and that is one reason so many have been adopted by the whites of the cast. The word Pottawato- mie has its peculiar definition or meaning in English. The Indians of this race were said to be experts in starting fires from the rub- bing of two stieks together, hence they were called flame creators or blaze blowers. They originated in the Green bay country, Wiscon- sin, and followed the explorer, Robert Cave- lier de La Salle, into the St. Joseph valley, soon after he discovered this region in 1679. It is an important fact that the first friendly service that La Salle received from either whites or Indians, after he launched out on his tour of the discovery of the great north- west, was at the hands of a Pottawatomie chief. The Pottawatomies were ever the white man's friend. but the white man was not always their friend, at least did not al- ways treat them as they deserved.
"During the Chieago massacre in 1812 and the Black Hawk war of 1832, the Pottawato- mies of the St. Joseph valley rendered invalu- able service to the whites, which at the time was duly appreciated, but forgotten in after years when the government obtaining pos- session of their lands by subterfuge, bundled the most of them off to Kansas, where they were given a small and unfruitful reserva- tion for the vast and rich lands they and their fathers once owned here. The last of the tribe to leave this vicinity was the Pokagon band, which removed from the original vil- lage on the old Sac and Fox trail down the river near Bertrand to VanBuren and Cass counties, Michigan. in 1836.
"There is not a full-blooded Pottawatomie living in St. Joseph county now. Not many moons in the past the brave red man held undisputed sway in the wilds hereabouts, but his wigwam, his hunting grounds, his Wa" whoop and his quaint garb have all disap- peared and in their place the productive farms, the thriving cities and villages of the white man cover the landscape. Nothing is left of the Pottawatomie but the unknown graves of his ancestors, the memory of his useful deeds and his extreme friendliness toward his white brethren. Why should we not honor his memory by christening the new and extensive park with the name of Pottawatomie? When shall we see a statue of a representative Pottawatomie chief placed in a conspicuous spot in the grand park ?
Sec. 5 .- WALKERTON .- The town of Walk- erton, not far from the center of Lincoln township, is one of the most flourishing een- ters in northern Indiana. Except the cities of South Bend and Mishawaka, it is the larg- est and most important municipal corpora- tion in St. Joseph county. The town, as it now stands, is a combination of different towns and additions, all united under the name and government of Walkerton. The first of these corporations was that of West Troy, laid out by Elias D. Jones in the south- east part of the northeast quarter of section twenty-three, township thirty-five north, range one west. This town was platted by Mr. Jones December 14, 1854.
On June 20, 1856, William C. Hannah platted the town of Walkerton, which was laid out in the southwest quarter of section twenty-four, in the same township and range as West Troy. Burk's addition to West Troy was platted April 27, 1860. On December 11, 1868, Jacob Rupel had the plats of his first three additions to Walkerton placed on rec- ord. A fourth addition was platted by him on July 2, 1875, and a fifth on January 23, 1884. Dixon W. Place platted his first addi- tion to Walkerton September 3, 1887. All
317
HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
these corporations and additions, with the subsequent growth of each, are now united in one vigorous municipality, the center of an active and enterprising business and farm- ing community.
The town was named from John Walker, the promoter of a railroad through the town, from Plymouth to Laporte, known at first as the Indianapolis. Peru & Chicago railroad, but long since become a part of the Lake Erie & Western system, extending from In- dianapolis to Michigan City. This railroad, during the feeble period of its existence, was nicknamed the Pe-wee road. Two other rail- roads nnite with the Lake Erie & Western to make Walkerton an important railroad center. These are the Baltimore & Ohio, and the Three I, otherwise the Chicago, Illinois & Southern. The Lake Erie and the Three I are under the control of the Lake Shore sys- tem. These railroads are of great moment to Walkerton and the southwest part of the county. Formerly the connections with the outside world were practically confined to exits by way of Plymouth and Laporte. Now, in addition, the people are in close connection with Chicago and the east by the great trunk line, the Baltimore & Ohio, and with the conn- ty seat at South Bend. as well as with the Illinois coal fields, by the Three I, or Chi- cago, Illinois & Southern, as it is now called.
Mr. Samuel J. Nicoles, long a leading citi- zen of the town, as he is indeed a Christian gentleman. whose citizenship would be an honor to any community, gives the following comprehensive statement of present condi- tions : Walkerton, says Mr. Nicoles, is com- pactly built, with a very good class of homes in the residence sections, and with good two- story brick buildings in the business part. Among these is an excellent hotel. Another is the two-story cement stone building, occu- pied and owned by William A. Endly, the enterprising editor and proprietor of the Walkerton Independent.
The first newspaper established in the town was the Walkerton Visitor, the first copy of
which was issued by Henry S. Mintle, April 7, 1875. Mr. Mintle continued the publica- tion until his death, May 13. 1886, when the paper was sold to J. F. Endly, who changed the name to the Walkerton Independent. Since the death of Mr. Endly, his son, Wil- liam A. Endly, has continued the publication of the Independent, which has become a first class newspaper.
In 1879, before J. F. Endly, became the owner of the Independent, he started the publication of the St. Joseph County Repub- lican, which, in 1881, he sold to D. M. Eve- land. This paper was afterwards purchased by Theodore Needham, who, in turn, sold it to Burroughs & Son. Later it ceased publi- cation, and the presses and material were re- moved to Laporte.
The Walkerton State Bank, with a capitai of twenty-five thousand dollars, is a well con- dueted and very safe and conservative inst :- tution. A grain elevator of ample capacity is owned and managed by a reliable com- pany with abundance of capital. The mer- chants are agreeable and accommodating business men, and carry at all times large and well assorted stocks of goods. The town is also well supplied with lawyers and doetors. There is a substantial brick school building, in which is conducted a graded school. in- «Inding a first class high school.
There are at present five church organiza- tions: the Presbyterian, the Catholic, the United Brethren, the Methodist and the Sey- enth Day Adventist. Two of these have re- cently built fine church edifices, one of ce- ment stone and one of pressed brick. An- other has in course of erection a fine large building of stone and concrete. The first church to be ereeted in the town was by the Methodists. in 1859. The Baptists erected a church in 1870, and the Catholics in 1876. The Presbyterian society. as stated by Mr. Endly, was organized February 5, 1876. with sixteen members, when the old Baptist church building was used as its house of worship.
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
The present fine edifice was formally dedi- cated June 12, 1904.
The streets of Walkerton are wide, with cement sidewalks extending in every direc- tion, and with shade trees on either side. The town is in some degree committed to municipal ownership of public utilities. It has a well constructed and well managed system of water works: and also a fine elec- tric light plant. Both are owned and oper- ated by the town.
After several fruitless attempts, Walkerton became an incorporated town June 8, 1877. The first petition for incorporation was filed with the county auditor December 2, 1873, and an election was ordered for the 22nd of the same month. By reason of irregularities in the proceedings. the commissioners re- fused to act favorably on the petition. A second petition was not filed until March 8, 1876, when an elction was ordered for April 3, 1876. No further proceedings were had
on this second petition. The third petition was filed with the board March 5, 1877, and an election was ordered for April 2nd fol- lowing. The report of this third election was returned on June 8, 1877; and the board of county commissioners finding everything reg- ular and according to law, an order was en- tered duly incorporating the town.
By the census of 1900, the population of Walkerton was one thousand and thirty-sev- en. The town has grown rapidly since that date, and Mr. Nicoles estimates the present population at fifteen hundred. With its enter- prising citizens, its fine farming surround- ings and its excellent railroad facilities, Walkerton is, besides, well located, being at a sufficient distance from South Bend. Laporte, Plymouth and Knox to admit of free and ample growth. Its future is assured; and St. Joseph county has good cause to be proud of her southwestern capital.
CHAPTER X.
THE CITY OF MISHAWAKA.
I. FORMATION AND INCORPORATION.
Unlike as they are in many respects, there is one thing in which Mishawaka resembles Walkerton. The town consisted originally of several towns, plats and additions, which, ul- timately, were brought into a single munici- pal body. To this municipality was given the musical name of Mishawaka, a name which before the union did not belong in a dis- tinetive manner to any of the divisions.
Sec. 1 .- THE ST. JOSEPH IRON WORKS .- The first and principal of these minor divi- sions was the St. Joseph Iron Works, a town laid out in 1833 by Alanson M. Hurd, who is therefore generally regarded as the founder of the city of Mishawaka. The following is Mr. Hurd's dedication and description of his plat :
"The exterior line of this village plat be- gins on the top of the bluff, on the south side of the St. Joseph river, and runs thence south seventy poles to a stake: thence west eighty and 1/1621 poles to a stake; thence north sixty-one poles to a stake: thence west seven- teen poles to a stake; thence north sixty-two poles to the river; and thence, as the river meanders, one hundred fourteen and one-half poles, containing fifty-two and seven-tenths acres. The subdivision is as this plat rep- resents. Each lot is four by eight perches, containing, of course, thirty-two square perches each. The alleys are sixteen and a half feet wide, and the width of cach street is marked in them respectively. This village is laid out on the north part of lot number
six and the northeast part of lot number five, in school section number sixteen, township thirty-seven north of range number three cast, called the town of the St. Joseph Iron Works.
"In testimony I have hereunto set my hand and seal, this 15th day of July, 1833.
"A. M. HURD."
Acknowledged July 15, 1833, by William L. Earl, his attorney-in-fact. "Laid out and surveyed for Earl and Hurd, by T. W. Bray, St. Joseph county surveyor." The river is marked in the plat as the "Great St. Joseph River."
The original plat was re-filed by A. M. Hurd, on February 21, 1835, together with additions on the north, west and south. It is this second plat that is usually referred to as the "Original Town."
On October 23, 1835, a plat of out lots was filed by Mr. Hurd, lying on the west of the original town, and opposite the island in the river at that point. On this last plat the name of the principal east and west street is recognized as the "Vistula Road."
On August 17, 1836, Francis P. Taylor acknowledged and filed his plat as an addi- tion to the town of St. Joseph Iron Works. This plat was surveyed by Thomas P. Bulla, and the road from the west is called "Vistula and Loteas Road."
The name St. Joseph Iron Works was taken from that of a company of the same name which Mr. Hurd. Mr. Earl and others had organized for the manufacture of iron
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
at this point. Bog iron ore was found in con- siderable quantities in the swamp under the hills south of the town, being the same swamp around which La Salle was forced to find his way on the night in December, 1679, when he got lost in seeking for the portage to the Kankakee.ª Mr. Hurd and his company were of opinion that the ore in this marsh would prove inexhaustible and that his iron works would expand into a flourishing manufactur- ing town. The construction of a blast fur- nace for the reduction of the ore had been commenced the spring previous to the plat- ting of the town, and was completed in 1834.
The company was duly incorporated by an act of the legislature, approved January 22, 1835, in which it was declared, "That Alanson M. Hurd, of the county of St. Joseph, John JJ. Deming and John H. Orr. and their associates, be, and they are hereby constituted a body corporate and politic, by the name and style of the president, directors and company of the St. Joseph Iron Works, for the purpose of manufacturing iron."b
By section 6 of the act, it was provided " That the said corporation shall be and they are hereby authorized to ereet a dam across . e river St. Joseph, at the head of the Mish- awaka rapids." The dam thus authorized was built by the iron company in 1835. It was the first dam across the St. Joseph river and is still in good condition.
The elaborate title of the company, being the "President. Directors and Company of the St. Joseph Iron Works," proved to be needlessly cumbrous, and the legislature, by an act approved February 1, 1836, shortened the name of the corporation to the "St. Joseph Iron Company."e Under this title the company continued to operate its fur- naces and manufacture iron until 1856, when the bog ore was exhausted. The business of the corporation was thereupon changed to manufacturing. A foundry was put in oper-
a. See Chap. 2, Subd. 2.
b. Local Acts, 1834, p. 79.
c. Local Laws, 1835, p. 206.
ation, and plows, cultivators and other like machinery were manufactured. In 1868 the name of the corporation was again changed and it has since been known as the St. Joseph Manufacturing Company. This old corpora- tion has been one of the effective forces in building up Mishawaka and in making it a great manufacturing center.
Alanson M. Hurd and other enterprising citizens, not content with the building of the dam and laying the foundation of great manufacturing industries, were desirous of having a bridge across the river. For this purpose a charter was obtained from the legislature by an act approved February 7, 1835," in which it was provided, "That N. M. Wells, A. M. Hurd, John J. Deming, J. II. Orr and O. Hurd, with their associates, be and are hereby constituted a body corporate and politie, by the name and style of the Mishawaka bridge company, for the purpose of constructing a bridge across the St. Joseph river at the Mishawaka rapids, in the town- ship of Penn, in the county of St. Joseph." The bridge was finally constructed in 1837. It was built across the river at Bridge street and was a substantial structure creditable to the private enterprise of its builders. This was the first bridge to be placed across the St. Joseph river.b
It will have been noticed that although the official name of the town was the St. Joseph Iron Works, yet the name Mishawaka per- sisted in indicating its presence, even before its time. In each of the acts of the legisla- ture to which reference has been made the name Mishawaka appears; the president, di- rectors and company of the St. Joseph Iron Works were authorized to build a dam "at the head of the Mishawaka rapids," and the company incorporated to construct a bridge over the river was styled "the Mishawaka bridge company," and was authorized to build its "bridge across the St. Joseph river at the Mishawaka rapids." Even earlier
a. Local Laws, 1834, p. 87.
b. See Chap. 7, Subd. 2.
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IIISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
than this action on the part of the legislature of the state of Indiana, was the action of the United States government. In the spring of 1834 a post office was established for the new town and the name of Mishawaka was given to the post office at the suggestion, it is said, of Mr. Yerrington, the first post- master. It is said, too, that this was the name of an Indian village formerly located on the site of Taylor's addition to the St. Joseph Iron Works.a
Sec. 2 .- BARBEE'S PLAT .- The first record- ed plat. however, on which the name of Mishawaka appears is that made by William Barbee and Henry Harman, April 2, 1835. For convenience, perhaps, this plat is usually referred to as Barbee's addition; but it does not appear to have been intended as an addi- tion, but rather as an independent town. The name of the St. Joseph Iron Works nowhere appears, although the Barbee plat adjoins the "Original Town" on the east. The title is "Plat of the Town of Mishawaka," and it was acknowledged April 20, 1835, as the "Town Plat of Mishawaka," by the pro- prietors, "William Barbee and Henry Har- man, by William Barbee as Agent." The de- scription by the surveyor, Tyra W. Bray, reads :
"This plat represents the town of Misha- waka, in St. Joseph county, Indiana. Laid ont by William Barbee and Henry Harman on the 20th day of April, 1835, on a part of the northwest fractional quarter of section fifteen, in township thirty-seven north, and in range three east (2 Mer.), and on a part of the northwest quarter of the southwest quarter of the same section. The beginning point of this plat is the quarter section cor- ner on the line dividing sections fifteen and sixteen, running thenee north fifty-six poles to a stake; thenee east five poles to the northwest corner of lot number eleven, etc., ete. ""
Sec. 3 .- FOWLER'S ADDITION .- The next
a. Chapman's Hist. St. Joseph County, Chica- go, 1880, p. 790.
plat laid out is entitled "Fowler's Addition to Mishawaka." The surveyor's description is as follows: "Town plat for G. W. R. Fowler, north side river St. Joseph. opposite St. Joseph Iron Works. First lot, No. 1, north of the southwest corner of section ten, 141% rods, size of lots four rods in front, eight rods baek. All streets four rods. Al- leys one rod, running north and south, hav- ing eight lots in a block. T. P. Bulla, sur- veyor." The plat was acknowledged April 22, 1836, by "George W. R. Fowler, the pro- prietor of the above mentioned and described village."
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