USA > Missouri > A history of Missouri from the earliest explorations and settlements until the admission of the state into the union, Volume I > Part 2
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43
PART III .- Spanish-French Alliance-Military Plans and Dispositions -Society of the "Sans Culottes" at St. Louis-Expedition of Don Carlos Howard from New Orleans to St. Louis-Instructions to Howard for Protection of upper Louisiana-Affairs of upper Louisiana, 1796-The Spanish Company of Discovery-Spanish Scheme to Build Flouring Mills at New Madrid and Ste. Genevieve-French Settlers of Gallipolis Attracted to Louisiana-DeLassus Succeeds Trudeau, 1799-Rumors of English Invasion of Spanish Territory, 1800-Questionable Land Grants Made by Spanish Officials.
CHAPTER XI · 337
Ste Genevieve, First Permanent Settlement, Located in "Big Common Field"-Village probably Founded about 1730-Village Known as "Misere" -Report to Virginia in 1742 Refers to Village-Rocheblave Commandant in 1766-Valle first Spanish Commandant-Various Sales and Judicial Proceedings-Salt Works on the Saline-First Notaries-Cartabona second Spanish Commandant-Succeeded by Henry Peyroux de la Coudreniere, a Man of Literary Attainments-Succeeded by Don Francesco Vallé, fils, and he by Jean Baptiste Vallé-Caving of River Bank in Front of Old Village in 1780 -- New Town Located at its Present Site -- The Great Overflow of 1785 -Louis Viviat-The Estate of Louis Lambert dit Lafleur-First Settlers of the New Town-Immigration of French Inhabitants after the Conquest of Illinois by Clark-Effort of Spanish Officials to Attract such Settlers-The Village a Military Post during the Spanish Government-Story of a "Graft" in Spanish Times-Business and .Industries of the Inhabitants-Austin in Ste. Genevieve in 1797-Indian Village near Town-Extent of Jurisdiction of the Commandant of Ste. Genevieve-Foundation of Nouvelle Bourbon -De Luziere Commandant and Extent of his Jurisdiction-History of De Luziere-Settlers of Nouvelle Bourbon-Mine à Breton Discovered by Azor-History of Azor-Settlers at Mine à Breton-Grant of Moses Austin at Mine à Breton-Story of Moses Austin's Immigration to upper Louisiana -De Selle Syndic at Mine à Breton-Americans Settle Bellevue Valley in 1798-Settlements on "Big River"-The Murphy Settlement-The Cook Settlement-Settlement of St. Michael, now Fredericktown-First Settlers at "Old Mine"-Settlements on the Joachin and the Pattin and Names of Settlers -- Settlements in Bois Brule Bottom-Names of Settlers-Settlements on the St. Cosme, the Aux Vasse, the Brazeau and Establishment Creeks and at Other Points-Various Mines Located-The Fenwick Settlement on Apple Creek.
APPENDIX
I-Works on Noyer; Creek. II -Works in Section II, Township 55, Range 3, West, on Salt River. III - Works on Osage River. IV-Copper Plates found in Dunklin County.
ILLUSTRATIONS
AMOUREUX HOUSE. From a photograph of Mr. Henry Rozier 358 ANCIENT WORKS ON NOYER CREEK 9I
AUSTIN, MOSES. From an oil painting in possession of the Missouri Historical Society · 368
BEAUVAIS HOUSE. From a photograph of Mr. Henry Rozier · 353
BOLDUC HOUSE. From a photograph of Mr. Henry Rozier . 356
BOSSU, CHEVALIER. From a picture in his Nouveaux Voyages (Am - sterdam 1777). 250
BOUNDARY OF MISSOURI AS FIRST SUGGESTED 3
BOUNDARY OF MISSOURI AS SUGGESTED BY THE TERRITORIAL LEGIS- LATURE 5
BOUNDARY OF MISSOURI AS ADOPTED BY CONGRESS IN 1820 6
BOUNDARY OF MISSOURI WITH THE PLATTE PURCHASE ADDED I2
DELASSUS, CAMILLE. From a silhouette in possession of Mrs. Rice, of Perryville . 364
DE LUZIERE, PIERRE DELASSUS. From an original silhouette in possession of Mrs. Rice, of Perryville . 363
DE SOTO, FERDINAND. 99
DOUGHERTY, MAJ. JOHN. From a portrait in possession of his grand- daughter, of Philadelphia, Pa. II
DURHAM HALL. From an only photograph kindly given me by Mr.
Thomas D. Castleman, of Potosi, Mo. .
. 370
GUIBORD HOUSE. From a photograph of Mr. Henry Rozier 357
FORT EL PRINCIPE DE ASTURIAS, SEÑOR DON CARLOS . 294
HOMAN'S MAP OF LOUISIANA . 276
HUGHES, GEN. A. S. From an oil portrait in possession of his grand-
daughter, Miss Hughes, of Denver, Col. . I4
HUNTING SCENE. From Bossu's Nouveaux Voyages 37
KITCHEN'S MAP OF UPPER LOUISIANA . 279
LINN, SENATOR LEWIS F. From a portrait in his life IO
MAP OF CAPE GIRARDEAU AND SCOTT COUNTIES 64
MAP OF HOWELL COUNTY 79
MAP OF INDIAN PATHS AND TRAILS AND WARPATHS 226
MAP OF MISSISSIPPI COUNTY 61
MAP OF NEW MADRID COUNTY 58
MAP OF PEMISCOT COUNTY . 56
MAP OF PERRY AND BOLLINGER COUNTIES . 71
xvii
xviii
ILLUSTRATIONS
MAP OF RIPLEY AND BUTLER COUNTIES
73
MAP OF STODDARD COUNTY 69
MAP OF ST. LOUIS, OF 1780
313
MAP OF ST. LOUIS, OF 1796. From Collot's Dans l'Amerique 321
PEMISCOT MOUND. From a photograph
55
PEYROUX, HIS SIGNATURE
. 347
POTTERY BALLS POTTERY ILLUSTRATIONS. From publication No. 7 of the Missouri
45
Historical Society 50
Ross's MAP OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. . 379
SCOTT COUNTY MOUND 65
STONE HEADS. Found in mounds.
52
STONE IMAGE. From a photograph. 5I
THORNTON, COL. JOHN. From an oil painting in possession of his daughter, Mrs. Moss, of St. Joseph I5
VALLE, JEAN BAPTISTE. From an oil painting 349
WALKER, COL. J. HARDEMAN. From an oil painting in possession of Capt. Sims, of St. Louis, Mo. 7
ERRATA
On page 31, the first line, read " d'œil " for "d'oil." On page 161, the fourth line, read " Pekitanoui " for "Pekistanoui." On page 237, the sixth line, read " 1698 " for " 1798."
.
HISTORY OF THE EXPLORATION AND SETTLEMENT OF MISSOURI
CHAPTER I
Probable Origin of Name of the State-Variously Spelled in Early Narratives- Present Spelling Adopted by Joutel in his Narrative in 1686-History of the Boundaries of the State-Extension to the 36th Parallel between the Mississippi and the St. Francois-Addition of the So-called Platte Pur- chase in 1836-Controversy with Iowa as to the Northern Boundary- Wolf Island Litigation with Kentucky-The State Geographically Described -- The Hydrography of the State-Springs-The Topography of the State -- The Ozarks-The Ozark Plateau-The Granites-Crystalline and Sedi- mentary Rocks-Caves-Mineral Wealth-Iron-Lead-Zinc-Coal- Clays-Timber and Prairies-Primitive Forest Free of Undergrowth -Park-like Appearance of Country-Soil-Beauty of Landscape-Wild Fruits-Wild Flowers-Nuts-Prairie Fires-Burning Woods-Prolific Wild Animal Life-Buffalos-Bears-Beaver-Game-Fowls-Fish- Observations of Early Travelers and Missionaries-Meat of Wild Animals Salted on the St. Francois-Shipped in "Pettyaugers" to New Orleans.
The precise meaning of the name of the state, Missouri, is uncertain. It would seem to be a word of Siouan linguistic origin. According to Long, the Indians known to us as " Missouries, " dwell- ing at the mouth of this river, were called "Ne-o-ta-cha," or "Ne-o- ge-he," signifying "those who build a town at the entrance of a river,"1 and from one of these Siouan words the name may have been finally formed. McGee says, that the exact meaning of "Missouri" or "Ni-u-t'a-tci" (evidently the "Ne-o-ta-cha" of Long), is not known, but that it is supposed to refer to drowning of people in a stream, and may possibly be a corruption of the word "Ni-shu-dge," meaning "Smoky Water."2 This is about all the information we have as to the meaning of this word.3 The word has been variously
1 Long's Expedition, Vol. I, p. 339.
2 15 Rep. Bureau of Ethnology, p. 162.
3 Featherstonhaugh says that the Nahcotahs, or Dakotas, named the river Missouri "Minnay Shoshoh Chhray," which is, literally, "Water Muddy Hill." When this was first suggested, he says: "I was puzzled, but when I came to understand his description of the country, I thought it not unlikely that, as all of the Indian names we were acquainted with are corruptions from the French, the word Missouri might have its origin in these three words. By itself it is not an Indian word, and therefore, it is a fair inference that it is a corruption. My informant said that in crossing the country to the Chagndeskah you first
I
2
HISTORY OF MISSOURI
spelled. On Joliet's map it is spelled "Mess-8-ri" or "Mess-ou-ri," the figure "8" invariably standing in the old French manuscripts for "00" or "ou." On Marquette's map, as published by Thevenot in 1681, it is given as "8-miss-8-ri," that is to say, "ou-miss-ou-ri," probably a corruption of the original Siouan name by the Illinois Indians adding their characteristic Algonquin prefix.4 On Fran- quelin's map the river is named "Missourits," or "Emissourettes." Joutel in his Historical Journal, written in 1686, it should be observed, at that early day adopted the spelling of this word as it now prevails.5 Being the name of an Indian tribe found dwelling at or near the mouth of a river, this name was naturally bestowed on the river. From the river it was transferred to the territory organized out of the country through which the river ran, stretching from the Mississippi to the Rocky Mountains, and from this territory it was again transferred to the first state carved out of its limits.
The boundary of Missouri, as originally suggested in the memorial of the citizens of the territory, proposed to embrace in the limits of the new state the territory situated between parallels thirty-six degrees and thirty minutes and the fortieth degree, north latitude, with
came to the Chhray-tanka (Great Hill), which is the general name for the Coteau du Prairie; that there was then a second Chhray to cross; beyond that river was a third Chhray called "Minnay Shoshoh Chhray," because you could see "Minnay Shoshoh," the "Muddy River" (which is now called Missouri), from it. By abbreviating the first word "Minnay" of its last four letters, and afterwards the others, according to the principles of the French, the word "Mi-sho-ray" is produced. It is not improbable that such is the origin of the word "Missouri." - Featherstonhaugh's Canoe Voyage up the Minnay-Sotor, p. 403. Marest writes to Germon in 1712 from Kaskaskia that the river is com- monly called "Pekitanou," that is, "muddy water." 66 Jesuit Relations, p. 226.
4 15 Rep. Bureau of Ethnology, p. 124
5 In the reports of Benard de la Harpe, Bourgmont, Du Tisne and others, early in the eighteenth century, the name is spelled "Missoury" or "Missourys" and "Missourie." (6 Margry-Les Couriers des Bois, pp. 309 et seq.) Also, "Mis sourie," in Henry's "New Light of the Northwest," vol. i, p. 345, and again "Missouria" - " Missourite." The modern Sioux name is "Minishoshay" or "Meneshosha" or "Mississouri." See note 59, p. 346, of Vol. I, Henry's "'New Light of the Northwest." On the map accompanying Charlevoix's History of New France, made in 1745, the word is spelled "Missouri," but also "Missouris." But see full note numbered 49 by Cous, in Vol. I, Lewis and Clark's Expedition, p. 22. In Tonty's account he gives the name as "Missoun- ta." -- French Hist. Coll. of La., pt. i, p. 82. Ashe spells the name in September, 1806, "Misauri."- 3 Ashe's Travels, p. 97; and J. F. D. Smyth, in 1784, "Mis- ouri" and "Missoury." Coxe, in his Carolana, speaks of the Missouri as "The Yellow" and the "River of the Massorites," p. 31. Carver spells the word "Missorie." -- Travels, p. 75 (London, 1779). Ulloa, in 1769, and Galvez, in 1 779, spelled the name "Misuri;" and Gayosa, 1798, "Missuri." By the Spanish officials, the name was spelled generally "Misuri," and also "Misoury."
3
BOUNDARY
the Mississippi river as a boundary on the east and the Osage bound- ary on the west. These limits the memorialists thought "the most reasonable and proper that can be devised," and argued that the southern limit would be an extension of the line dividing the states of Virginia and North Carolina, Tennessee and Kentucky, and that the northern line would correspond nearly with the northern limits of the territory of Illinois, and corresponding with the Indian boundary near the mouth of the Des Moines.
Continuing, the memorialists say that three and one half degrees would be left on the south to form the territory of Arkansas, with the Arkansas river traversing the center of the same; and another front of equal extent embracing the great river St. Pierre, to form another state of equal extent on the north "at some future day"; and that the boundary de- fined for Missouri would virtually embrace all the country to which the In- dian title at that time was extinguished, with the 39 Missouri river flowing through the center of the proposed state and includ- ing the great body of the population residing west of the Mississippi. And, evidently fearing that Con- gress might conclude to make the great rivers the boundary of the new State, the memorialists say that they "deprecate the idea of making the divisions of the state to correspond with the natural divisions of the country," and that "such divisions would tend to promote that ten- dency to separate which it is the policy of the Union to counteract." 6 The Osage boundary on the west was a line extending from Fort Osage north and south about twenty-four miles east of the mouth of the Kansas river. If Congress had finally adopted the boundary scheme of the memorialists, the geographical appearance of the state would have been as shown on this page.
This boundary was not satisfactory to many of the residents, and 6 Petition in the Library of Congress, Manuscript Div.
4
HISTORY OF MISSOURI
petitions were circulated to make the Missouri river the northern boundary and give the new state an extension west7 for territory. Some of the people of the settlements situated south of parallel thirty-six degrees and thirty minutes also objected to being left out of the new state. One of the settlements so excluded was the village of Little Prairie, now Caruthersville, situated about thirty miles south of New Madrid and adjacent plantations. The settlements on Black and White rivers were also south of the suggested state line, and at that early day all these were important. The people were anxious to become citizens of a self-governing community and did not wish to be attached to the new territory of Arkansas, nor were they willing to be separated from the people with whom they were intimately associated by family, social and business ties. Accordingly, on March 16, 1818, about one month after the original petition was presented, another petition, signed by the citizens of the southern portion of the territory, was offered to Congress asking for a division of the territory, that the country south of the Missouri river might be formed into a separate state, and that the new state be given an extension west. To this the St. Louis Enquirer at the time objected, saying "If you get back forty or fifty miles from the Mississippi, the naked and arid plains set in and the country is uninhabitable except on the borders of creeks and rivers."
In the territorial legislature of 1818, New Madrid county was represented by Stephen Ross in the house, and by Dr. Robert D. Dawson in the legislative council; Lawrence county by Perry Mag- ness, Joseph Harden, and John Davidson in the house; and Arkansas county by Edmund Hogan in the house and Henry Cassiday in the Council. What more natural than that the boundary question should be brought forward in the house and council by the represent- atives of the districts left out of the new state, and that they should make an effort to secure an extension of the limits of the proposed new state so as to embrace the principal settlements on the left bank of the White river and south of New Madrid, at least as far as the 36th parallel of latitude? In this they were undoubtedly aided by the members from the southern portion of this proposed new state, as well as by those members who were anxious to secure for it the greatest possible population and the largest territory. Accordingly on November 22, 1818, the territorial legislature adopted a memorial
7 17 Niles' Register, p. 175.
5
BOUNDARY
to Congress, praying for the admission of Missouri as a state with a boundary more extensive than that proposed in the petition. Not only were the lines extended on the south, but also on the west and on the north. The boundary proposed in this memorial was set out as follows: Beginning at a point in the middle of the main channel of the Mississippi river at the 36th degree of north latitude and run- ning in a direct line to the mouth of Black river, a branch of White river; thence in the middle of the main channel of White river to where the parallel of thirty-six degrees and thirty minutes, north lati- tude, crosses the same; thence with that parallel of latitude due west to a point from which a due north line will cross the Missouri river at the mouth of Wolf river; thence due north to a point west of the mouth of Rock Three Tiers of Town Counties river; thence due east to the main channel of the Mis- sissippi, opposite the mouth of Rock river, and thence Kantet City down the Mississippi, in the middle of the main channel thereof, to the place of be- ginning. Wolf river, men- tioned in this description, Two Tiers of Kansas Counties rises in what is now Brown Part of county, Kansas, and flows Hititof Arkansas northeasterly through Doni- phan county, Kansas, into en port the Missouri, about opposite the mouth of the Nodaway. If this boundary had been adopted, about three tiers of counties now on the southern boundary of Iowa, and a strip thirty miles wide on the east side of the present state of Kansas, as well as a large part of northeastern Arkansas, would have been included within Missouri.
In the debate concerning the proposed boundaries, Burrill, of Rhode Island, objecting, said: "And with respect to the boundaries of the new state, I desire more definite information. Certain limits are indeed proposed by the committee in their report, but by a cer- tain bill which has been laid on our desk by mistake, it appears that certain other boundaries have been thought of, and I wish to know the cause of this variation of boundaries. Who was it that marked
6
HISTORY OF MISSOURI
out the immense district of country proposed to be included in the new state? Who has given these metes and bounds? I do not know, and I question whether the committee which reported it can inform the Senate. The boundaries are not described and marked out in the document on which the bill was professedly founded. The boundaries proposed in the amendment before the Senate, I believe, embrace a less extent of territory than those proposed in the memorial, but enough has been said to show that the Senate is without the necessary information to enable them to act understandingly." In the debate in the House, Trimble of Ohio suggested bringing the north line of Missouri one half degree south, as originally proposed, so as to give to the state to be formed later on the north of Missouri a part of the Des Moines valley 8
The boundaries of the state were at last fixed so as to extend south to parallel thirty- six degrees, north latitude, running thence west9 to St. Francois river, thence up and in the middle of the main channel thereof, to parallel thirty-six degrees and thirty 127 minutes, and thence west on this parallel to a point where $6 a meridian line extended due north and south would intersect the mouth of the Kansas river, thus moving the boundary west about four townships. On the north the boundary line was fixed where this meridian line would be intersected by a parallel of latitude, which passed through the rapids of the river Des Moines - and thus on the north the boundary was curtailed so as to exclude a little more than one tier of counties now in Iowa. Under the Act of 1820, Missouri had this boundary on the map of the United States.
In the work of securing for the new state at least a portion of the territory on the south proposed by the territorial legislature, the services of J. Hardeman Walker 10 were no doubt of great value.
8 17 Niles' Register, p. 440.
9 17 Niles' Register, p. 440.
10 Born in Fayette county, Tennessee, in 1790; came to Missouri Territory
7
BOUNDARY
Local tradition has inseparably connected his name with the exten- sion of the limits south to the 36th parallel between the Mississippi and St. Francois rivers. In 1818 Walker was one of the most ener- getic, public spirited and enterprising citizens of the territory, living on a large plantation near Little Prairie, south of the line proposed in the original petition. As soon as this boundary of the new state was made known, Walker began a vigorous and persistent agitation to secure such a change as would include the country south of New Madrid and the Little Prairie settlements and plantations. He no doubt urged the adoption of the memorial of the territorial assembly, praying for the enlarged limits; but the manner in which he succeeded in actually securing the extension which brought in the Little Prairie country is lost to history. It is, however, asserted that this change was effected principally through the personal efforts and influence of Walker. Undoubtedly he was aided by John Scott, of Ste. Genevieve, then the congressional delegate from the territory, and by the pow- erful influence of the leading lawyers and politicians residing at Jackson, at that time the great business and political center of J. HARDEMAN WALKER the territory south of St. Louis; Alexander Buckner, afterwards United States Senator, Gen. James Evans, Judge Richard J. Thomas, and many other influential men, then living there. The influence of Dr. Dawson, of New Madrid, mem- ber of the territorial council, and brother-in-law of Walker, also, no doubt, was enlisted in this matter. However this may be, I have it from those who ought to be familiar with the facts as his contem- poraries engaged in the practice of law in New Madrid and other southeastern counties, at the time the state was admitted, that to J. Hardeman Walker we owe it that the additional territory now in 1810 and settled near Little Prairies, (now Caruthersville), where he con- tinued to reside until his death in 1855. When in 1811-12, on account of the earthquakes, most of the inhabitants fled the country, he remained; was sheriff of New Madrid county in 1821-22, judge of the county court, and held many other local offices; a man of great public spirit and enterprise; owned a plan- tation fronting several miles on the Mississippi, a portion of which is now in the city limits of Caruthersville, a town which he laid out in 1851, near the old village of Little Prairie. In politics Colonel Walker was a Whig. His only child, a daughter, married Rev. George W. Bushy. One of his granddaughters married Captain Simms.
8
HISTORY OF MISSOURI
embraced in the limits of Pemiscot county, and most of that within the counties of Dunklin and New Madrid, was added to the new state. It is thus that the intelligent, energetic, and well-directed effort of a single individual is often made manifest.
In 1836 the state was still further enlarged by the addition of the so-called "Platte Purchase." The territory thus added is situated east of the Missouri river and west of the original meridian line run north from the mouth of the Kansas river to the parallel line of lati- tude passing through the rapids of the Des Moines river. The distance from the mouth of the Kansas river north to this parallel line of latitude is about one hundred miles. From this point, running on this parallel line west to the main channel of the Missouri river, the distance is about seventy miles, and then following the channel of the Missouri south and southwest to the mouth of the Kansas river, the distance is about one hundred and fifty miles. The district so added to the state contains about three thousand square miles, or approximately two million acres, and out of it have been carved successively the counties of Platte, Buchanan, Andrew, Holt, Atchison, and Nodaway. Primarily, the trouble between the settlers and the Saukees, the Foxes, and the Pottowatomies, occupying this country as their hunting grounds, led to the annex- ation of this territory to Missouri. As usual, the frontier people were the aggressors, going into the Indian country to hunt, and even attempting to make settlements. This gave rise to many complaints on the part of the Indians, and finally the Pottowatomies offered to exchange this territory for a district elsewhere, in order to avoid trouble with the encroaching settlers, no doubt cherishing the delusive hope that by moving farther away they would at last find a place where the white pioneers and settlers would not disturb them and their hunting grounds.11
The first discoverable official action to annex the so-called Platte Purchase to the state, is a memorial of the Missouri legislature,
11 Among the Pottowatomies, probably, was the celebrated Wau-bun-see, a younger brother of Black Partridge - Mu-ca-da-puck-ee. Wau-bun-see, meaning "Break of Day," from the fact that on several occasions on the frontier of Indiana he successfully made an attack at the break of day. A fine house was built for him by the government, but he would not live in it, prefer- ring his tent and camp. He died at a very old age in 1848, at Jefferson City, on his way to Washington, according to Draper. In 1794 Wau-bun-see was in Cape Girardeau, where Lorimier was then post commandant and managed Indian affairs for the Spanish officials. By the French he was then known by the name "La Point du Jour."
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.