An illustrated history of the counties of Rock and Pipestone, Minnesota, Part 4

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Luverne, Minn. : Northern History Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 924

USA > Minnesota > Rock County > An illustrated history of the counties of Rock and Pipestone, Minnesota > Part 4
USA > Minnesota > Pipestone County > An illustrated history of the counties of Rock and Pipestone, Minnesota > Part 4

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

HISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.

visited Rock county." The principal aid of Mr. Nicollet in his explorations in Minnesota was Lieutenant John C. Fre- mont, later the nominee of the republi- ean party for president of the United Stales.

Nicollet gave names to many lakes, streams and other physical features or adopted those which were current, and his map (a portion of which is repro- duced in this volume) shows the scope of his explorations. He described the region west of the Mississippi river as containing several plateaus, or elevated prairies, which marked the limits of the various river basins. The most remark- able of these he called Plateau du Co- teau des Prairies" (plateau of prairie heights) and Coteau du Grand Bois (wooded heights). Nicollet described the Coteau des Prairies as a vast plain, ele- vated 1916 feet above the level of the ocean and 890 feet above Big Stone lake, lying between latitudes forty-three and forty-six degrees, extending from north- west to southeast for a distance of two hundred miles, its width varying from fifteen to forty miles. On the map he locates it as extending from a point a short distance northwest of Lake Tra- verse in a southeasterly direction into lowa. and including the present Rock county.

With his party Nicollet visited the Pipestone quarries in July, 1838, and carved his name and the initials of his party, with the date, in the rock at that place. That he or some, of his men visited Rock county during the years he was prosecuting his explorations in Minnesota

is evidenced by the fact that several natural features of the county with which we are familiar were given names and quite accurately located for the first time. Rock river was labeled "Inyan Reakah or R. of the Rock." and is shown as flowing into the "Teankasıdata" (Big Sioux ). The principal tributary of the "Inyan Reakah" is called "Karanzi R. or R. where the Kansas were killed." roe- ognized as Kanaranzi creek. Farther north and also coming, in from the east are two other tributaries of the Rock. labeled "Tchan-Pepedan R. or Thorny Wood R." (spelled on a present day map Chanpepedan), and the "Hidden Wood C. or Tehan-Narambe C." (which we now spell Chanarambie.) The Split Rock is shown but not named. Beaver creek is either not shown or is incorrectly Jocated. In Pipestone county is shown "Red Pipe- stone C." "Indian Red Pipestone Quarry" and north of the quarry a stream flowing into the Big Sioux named "Coteau Perce C." Other places which are recognized on a present day map in the vicinity are "1. Shetek." "L. Talcott." "Okebene L." and "Ocheyedan L." Nicollet's work was of inestimable value to Minnesota by reason of the thoroughmess of his exploration and the reasonable accuracy of his map. which became the official map of the country.

For several years after the visit of Nicollet the future county of Rock was visited by white men only occasionally. We find that when Minnesota territory was created in 1849 the southwestern portion was a veritable terra incognita."" In fact all the land west of the Missis-

6It is possible that Nicollet did not in per- son visit Rock county, but certainly some of his party did. Owing to his premature death much of a historical nature concerning this region was lost. He had notes for a work of several volumes, relating principally to what is now Minnesota, and he had only fairly started the work when he died.

"The name had been given by the earlier French explorers.

10"Westward of the Mississippi river the country was unexplored and virgin. There were wide expanses of wild and trackless prairie, never traversed by a white man, which are now the highly developed counties of southern and southwestern Minnesota, with their fine and flourishing cities and towns and the other institutions that make for a state's eminence and greatness. Catlin had passed from Little Rock to the Pipestone quarry: Nicollet and his surveying party had gone over

....

JOSEPH NICOLAS NICOLLET

Who Explored Southwestern Minnesota in 1838 and Drew the First Authentic Map of the County.

HISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.

sippi was still in undisputed ownership of the Sions to the United States gov- of the Sioux bands, and white men had no right, whatever in the country. But the tide of immigration to the west set in and settlers were clamoring for admis- sion to the rich lands west of the river. In time the legal barrier was removed.

In the spring of 1851 President Fill- more, at the solicitation of residents of Minnesota territory, directed that a treaty with the Sioux be made and named as commissioners to conduct the negotiations Governor Alexander Ram- sey, ex-officio commissioner for Minne- sola, and Luke Lea, the national com- missioner of Indian affairs, These com- missioners completed a treaty with the Sisseton and Wahpaton bands-the up- per bands, as they were usually called -- at Traverse des Sioux (near the present site of St. Peter) during the latter part of July, 1851. Immediately after- ward the commissioners proceeded to Mendota (near St. Paul). where they were successful in making a treaty with the Wahpakoota and M'daywakanton bands.

The treaties were ratified, with impor- lant amendments, by congress in 1852. The amended articles were signed by the Indians in September, 1852, and in Feb- ruary of the next year President Fill- more proclaimed the treaties in force. By this important proceeding the future Rock county passed from the ownership

the same route and had traveled along the Minnesota Sibley and Fremont had chased elk over the prairies in what are now Steele. Dodge, Freeborn and Mower counties; the Mis- souri cattle drovers had led their herds to Fort Snelling and up to the Red river regions, but in all, not fifty white men had passed over the tract of territory now comprising south- orn and southwestern Minnesota when the territory was admitted in 1849."-Return Holcombe in Minnesota in Three Centuries.

11The territory ceded by the Indians was de- clared to be: "All their lands in the state of Iowa and also all their lands in the territory of Minnesota lying east of the following line. to-wit: Beginning at the junction of the

Buffalo river with the Red River of the North [ahout twelve miles north of Moorhead, in Clay county]; thence along the western bank of said Red River of the North to the mouth

ernment, and the former owners took up their residence on the north side of the Minnesota river. The territory purchased from the four Sionx bands was estimated to comprise about 23,450,000 acres, of which more than 19,000,000 acres were in Minnesota. The price paid was abont twelve and one-half cents per acre, which is the lowest price Rock county land ever sold for.11

The next record we have of white men visiting the future Rock county was in 1852, when surveyors under direction of Warner Lewis, surveyor general of lowa, ran the line between lowa and Minnesota territory. They started at the southwest corner of the county about the first of August, planted an iron post marking the boundary line,1 and proceeded on their way castward, completing the line across the southern boundary of Rock county on August 5.

Although Rock county did not receive permanent settlers until the late sixties, much earlier than that pioneers had pushed ont to many of the out-of-the-way places in Minnesota and located homes within less than a hundred miles of the county-to-be. The middle fifties were re- markable ones in Minnesota territory by reason of the immense tide of immigra- tion pouring in and The consequent ac- tivity in real estate operations. So carly as 1852 the real estate speculative

of the Sioux Wood river; thence along the western bank of said Sioux Wond river to lake Traverse; thence along the western shore of said lake to the southern extremity thereof: thence in a direct line to the junction of Kam- poska lake with the Tehan-ka-sna-du-ta. or Sioux river: thence along the western bank of said river to its point of intersection with the northern line of the state of Towa; including all islands in said rivers and lakes."

12This post, which still stands, is six feet in length, of which three feet are embedded in the ground. It is hollow, twelve inches square at the base and seven at the top. On the north face in raised letters is "W. B. Minn." on the south face. "Iowa." while on the east and west faces are "43º 30' N. 1 .. " Souvenir hunters have hacked a hole in the north side and carried away pieces of the cast iron.

HISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.

era commenced in St. Paul and the older settlements along the eastern border of the territory.

During 1853 and 1854 there were large accessions of population to the eastern portions ; roads were constructed; farms were opened in the wilderness; villages sprang into existence in many parts of the frontier. During these years the set- tlements did not extend to the western and southwestern parts of the territory, but during the following few years the human flow poured m and spread out in- to nearly all parts of Minnesota. The fever of real estate speculation, which had been only foobly developed before. now attacked all classes. Enormous and rapid profits were made by speculators who had the foresight and courage to ven- ture.

These hordes of immigrants did not take all the lands as they went along but were constantly pushing out to the frontier, seeking desirable locations in timbered tracts. In fact, so discriminat- ing were many that they refused to lo- cate where they could not have timber and prairie land adjoining! It was dur- ing this period, in 1856, that settlement was made on Lake Okoboji, near the present site of Spirit Lake, Iowa, at Springfield, where is now situated the town of Jackson, Minnesota, and at the falls of the Big Sioux river, where is now situated the city of Sioux Falls. Had unforseen events not taken place at this interesting period there can be no ques- tion that within a very short time Rock county would have been settled-nearly a decade earlier than was the case.

One of the items that resulted in the re- tardation of the westward march was the panic of 1857. The influx of settlers al- most completely ceased, times were very hard throughout the country, and es- specially was this condition of affairs

felt in the northwest. But another event of that year had a more important bear- ing on the future Rock county than had the panic. This was the Inkpaduta massacre. the first Indian outbreak in Minnesota. A small band of outlaw Sioux under the leadership of Inkpaduta, one of the most ruthless and treacher- ous characters in Indian history, went on the war-path in March, murdered every man, woman and child in the Okoboji Lake settlement and seven of those at Springfield.

The massacre proved to be a serious blow to the growth and development of this region. The counties in which set- tlement had been made were depopulated. The pioneers fled for their lives; every- thing was abandoned. Troops were soon stationed in the country, but it took time to restore contidence, and for some time all of those counties lying west of Fari- bault county remained almost wholly de- void of inhabitants.

It seems strange that at a time when only a handful of men were braving the dangers of the Indian country by re- maining in southwestern Minnesota, the territorial legislature should see fit to create the political division known as Rock county, together with several others in the vicinity. But such is the case. and Rock county was for the first time entitled to a place on the map of Min- nesota on May 23, 1857, when Governor Samuel Medary altached his signature to the bill creating it.

Conditions in Minnesota at the time · were unique. Thousands of people were pouring in and building themselves homes in the frontier sections. Elaborate schemes for big ventures were planned : nothing was done in a niggardly manner : frenzied finance reigned supreme. Rail- road rumors filled the air, and it was in- deed an out-of-the-way place that did not

IHISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.

look forward to the coming of the iron horse in the immediate future. Paper railroads covered the territory from one end to the other, and southwestern Minnesota was no exception to the rule. The territorial legislature caught the fo- ver and granted bonuses to various con- templated railroads. The townsite boom- ers carried their schemes to the legisla- ture and largely for their benefit the Minnesota Jawmaking body indiscrim- inately ercated counties in all parts of the territory -- in many of which there was not at the time a single resident. And Rock county came into existence under these conditions.

Investigation shows us that in addi- tion to the Indian title, which was quicted by treaty in the early fifties, the land now comprising Rock county has been in the possession of three different nations and has formed a part of six different terri- tories of the United States and of three different counties of Minnesota. Before taking up the story of the creation of the county I shall here break into the chronological order of events long enough to trace this matter of sovereignty.

Our county formed a small part of the new world possessions claimed by France by right of discovery and exploration. In 1763, humbled by wars in Europe and America, France was forced to re- linquish her province known as Louisi- ana, and all her possessions west of the Mississippi river were ceded to Spain in that year. Amid the exigencies of European wars Spain, in the year 1800, ceded Louisiana back to France, which was then under the rule of Napoleon Bonaparte. On April 30, 1803. negotia- tions were completed for the purchase of Louisiana by the United States for the sum of fifteen million dollars. On

13 Henry 11. Sibley, who lived at Mendota. was a justice of the peace of that county. The county seat was two hundred fifty miles

that date the future Rock county became a part of the United States.

Soon after the United States secured possession, in 1805, that part of the mammoth territory of Louisiana which had been called Upper Louisiana was organized into Missouri territory, and had our county then had inhabitants they would have been under the government of Missouri. Missouri was admitted as a state in 1820, and for several years there- after the country beyond its northern boundaries, comprising what is now Iowa and all of Minnesota west of the Missis- sippi river, was without organized gov- ernment. But in 1834 congress attached this great expanse of territory to Michi- gan territory. Two years later Wis- consin territory was formed, comprising all of Michigan west of Lake Michigan. and for the next two years we were a part of that territory.

Congress did a lot of enacting and boundary changing before it got Rock county where it belonged. We became a part of Iowa territory when it was created in 1838. because we were in- cluded in "all that part of the [ then] present territory of Wisconsin which lies west of the Mississippi river and west of a line drawn due north from the headwaters or sources of the Mississippi to the territorial line." Rock county was a part of Iowa territory until fowa became a state in 1846. During this time settlers began to locate in portions of what later became Minnesota, and they were put under the jurisdiction of Clay- ton county, Iowa.12 Before this the Min- nesota country had been practically a "no man's land." The only laws en- forced were the rules of the fur com- panies and the law of the sword admin- istered by the commandant at Fort Snell-

distant, and his jurisdiction extended over a region of country "as large as the empire of France."

HISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.

ing. By the admission of lowa as a state in 1816 our county again became actually a "no man's land;" we were a part of no territory or state. That con- dition existed until Minnesota territory was created in 1819.

When the first legislature convened afi- er the organization of the territory in 1819 it divided Minnesota into nine coun- ties, named as follows: Benton. Dakota, Itasca, Cass, Pembina, Ramsey. Washing- ton, Chisago and Wabasha. The whole of southern Minnesota was included in Wa- basha and Dakota, and of these two Da- kota had the bulk of territory. Wabasha included that part of the territory "lying east of a line running dne south from a point on the Mississippi river known as Medicine Bottle village, at. Pine Bend [near St. Paul], to the lowa line." Da- kota county (created October 27. 1819) was "all that part of said territory west of the Mississippi and lying west of the county of Wabasha and south of a line beginning at the mouth of Crow river. and up said river and the north branch thereof to its source. and thence due west to the Missouri river."14

Although Dakota county was larger than many of the eastein stalos. ils pop- ulation was almost nothing and it was declared "organized only for the purpose of the appointment of justices of the peace, constables and such other judicial and ministerial officers as may be special- ly provided for."

The future Rock county remained a part of Dakota county until March 5. 1853, when there was a readjustment of Dakota and Wabasha county boundaries.

"Minnesota territory then extended west to the Missouri river. In this mammoth county of Dakota were the following present day counties for parts of counties) in Minnesota, in addition to many in what is now the state of South Dakota: Rock. Nobles. Jackson, Mar- tin. Faribault. Freeborn. Steele. Waseca, Blue Earth. Watonwan. Cottonwood. Murray. Pipo- stone. Lincoln, Lyon, Redwood. Brown, Nicollet. la'Sneur, Rice. Dakota (parti. Scott, Sibley, Ronville. Yellow Medicine, Lac qui Parle,

and Blue Earth county came into exist- ence. The boundaries of the latter were described as follows: "So much terri- tory lying south of the Minnesota river as remains of Wabasha and Dakota counties undivided by this act." As the boundaries of the two older counties as defined by the act were very indefinite, it is impossible to state exactly what the dimensions of Blue Earth county were. It is known, however, that it included all of southwestern Minnesota.

For two years the unknown Rock county country remained a part of Blue Earth county, and then came another change. By an act approved February 20. 1855, the county of Blue Earth was reduced lo its present boundaries. Fari- bault county was created with the bound- aries it now has, except that it extended one township farther west than now, and the new county of Brown came into existence. The last named was de- scribed as follows: "That so much of the territory as was formerly in- cluded within the county of Blue Earth, and has not been included within the boundaries of any other county as herein established, shall he known as the county of Brown." All of the territory lying south of the Minnesota river and wesi of a line drawn south from the western boundary of the present day Blue Earth county now hecame Brown county, and Rock county remained a part of this until two years later, when it became a political division of itself.15

Rock county was only one of nine counties in southwestern Minnesola ere-

Chippewa. Kandiyohi (except small corner). Meeker (part), McLeod. Carver. Hennepin. Wright (part). Stearns (small part). Pope (part). Swift, Stevens (part). Big Stone and Traverse (part).

13Brown county was not organized at once. but by an act of the legislature on February 11. 1854. it was permitted to organize. New l'Im was named as the county seat.

HISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.

ated by the act of May 23, 1852.16 The section defining the boundaries was as follows :

That so much of the territory of Minne- sota as lies within the following boundaries be, and the same is hereby, established as the county of Pipestone:17 Beginning at the southwest corner of township one hun- dred and one, range forty-four; thence north to the northeast corner of township one hundred and four, of range forty-four west; thence west to the northwest corner of township one hundred and four north, of range forty-eight (48) west; thence south to the southwest corner of township one hundred and one north, of range forty-eight (48) west; thence east to the place of beginning.

If the reader will take the trouble to trace these boundaries on a map of the present day he will find that the bound- aries of the county extended about ten miles into what is now South Dakota, thus making the original Rock county (or Pipestone county, as it is designated in the act) of a size equal to the others created in 1857. It retained these di- mensions until Dakota territory was form- ed in 1861, when Minnesota's western boundary line was moved eastward and Rock county was reduced to its present limited area.18 The name was given be- cause of the huge mounds near the cen- ter of the county.19 Of the nine counties created by the act only Martin, Jackson, Nobles and Big Sioux were declared to be organized and "invested with all the immunities to which organized counties are entitled by law." They were attach-

16Minnesota territory at this time extended west to the Big Sioux river. The other coun- ties created by the act were Martin. Jackson, Nobles, Murray, Cottonwood, Pipestone, Big Sioux and Midway. The four first named were given the boundaries they now have and Cot- lonwood was practically the same. Big Sionx and Midway counties embraced parts of the present Minnehaha and Moody counties, South Dakota, and extended from the Big Sioux river to the boundary lines of Rock and Pipe- stone counties.

""In this early legislative act the territory embraced within the boundaries of Rock coun- ty was given the name Pipestone and vice versa. The transposition may have been due to a lack of knowledge of the physical features in this part of the country or to a clerical error. The mistake was later rectified, for we find that in the revised statutes of 1866

ed to the third judicial district and to the tenth council district.

It is needless to say that Rock county was not organized at this time. There were not only no residents in the coun- ty, but practically the whole of south- western Minnesota was deserted. Por- manent settlement in Rock county did not begin until 1862 and county govern- ment was not begun until 1820; then it. was organized under the original act of 1852, supplemented by a special act of 1870.

After the legislature had divided south- western Minnesota into counties it was deemed advisable to establish their bound- aries. A surveying party visited the county in September, 1858, and ran the lines which marked its boundaries.20 In July and August, 1859, another survey- ing party, headed by Snow & Hutton. visited the county and ran a line north from the iron post. Again in October and November, 1861, Carl P. Meyer did some surveying along the western bound- ary of Rock eounty.

So soon as confidence was restored after the Spirit Lake massacre, settle- ment was begun again in portions of southwestern Minnesota, and in the late fifties and very carly sixties quite a num- ber of settlers founded homes in Mar- tin, Jackson, Cottonwood, Murray and Nobles counties. Some of the counties east of these had not been seriously affected

Rock county is described with its proper boundaries, as is also Pipestone.

J&An abortive attempt was made to enlarge Rock county's boundaries in 1872, the history of which will be found in a later chapter.

12After the county was created, but before it was organized. there was talk of changing the name, and Grant and Lincoln were sug- gested as appropriate ones, in honor of the two great men of the hour. I have authority for the statement that the legislature of 1866 did change the name to Lincoln, but I have been unable to find the act. If such a change was made, it was soon revoked.

20The township lines were run in 1866 but the section lines were not surveyed until 1870, after settlers had come to the county.

HISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.

by the Indian ontbreak and had sub- stantial settlements. From another di- rection came settlers almost to the very threshold of Rock county, if they did not actually locate on Rock county soil. During the late fifties quite a number of men, some with their families, ad- vanced up the Big Sioux river from the lowa settlements and established homes where Sioux Falls now stands, and there resided until the outbreak of the Sionx war in 1862. Many of these were mem- bers of the townsite company which pro- posed to found a city at the falls of the Big Sioux.

It will be remembered that the origi- nal Rock county extended westward ten miles into what is now South Dakota. Its western boundary was within a short distance of Sionx Falls, and a bend of the Big Sioux river passed through the

southwestern corner of it. So it is not remarkable that when the federal census of 1860 was taken Rock county, Minne- sota, was credited with a population of 23.21 I have no knowledge of the exact locations of these first settlers, but pro- sume they had their homes on the Big Sioux river, not far from Sioux Falls, and not in Rock county proper.22 The enumeration was made by Elias D. Bru- ner, of New Ulm, on July 17, 1860. IIe found tou dwelling houses in Rock coun- ty, occupied by as many families. None of those visited had title to real estate. but several had personal property. the total value of which was $845. Follow- ing are the names of the inhabitants of Rock county (reported as Pipestone county) in 1860, their ages, occupation, birthplaces and the value of their per- sonal property :23

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

An illustrated history of the counties of Rock and Pipestone, Minnesota, Part 4

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970 Publication date: 1911 Publisher: Luverne, Minn. : Northern History Publishing Company Number of Pages: 924

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Luverne, Minn. : Northern History Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 924