USA > Missouri > Caldwell County > History of Clinton and Caldwell Counties, Missouri > Part 15
USA > Missouri > Clinton County > History of Clinton and Caldwell Counties, Missouri > Part 15
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In the early summer of 1831 John Raglan and Ben Lovell came into the county. The former settled on Shoal Creek about three miles east of Kingston. He built a cabin and improved a small farm. Lovell only
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camped and remained until fall, when he departed. When Jesse Mann first came to Shoal Creek there was not a white settler between him and Canada so far as it is now known, but a few months later some families settled on Grand River near the center of what is now Daviess County.
Jesse M. Mann, a son of Jesse Mann, in July, 1831, settled on Log Creek, a half mile southeast of Kingston and about the same distance south of his father's home. The two Manns and John Raglan were the only families living in Caldwell County at the beginning of 1832. Their situation was somewhat exposed, but these hardy pioneers gave little heed to the dangers surrounding them, but were interested more in mak- ing a home in this new country. In the spring of 1832, however, many other pioneers pushed into the country. Among those who came about this time were Abram Couts, Thomas Vanderpool, William Givens, and Wallace McAfee, who settled near the present site of Kingston; Thornton Gwinn, David Gwinn and Henry Gwinn, in Mirabile Township; Elisha Cameron, who settled in Grant Township, west of Polo, and Zephaniah Woolsey, who settled in the east part of Fairview Township. Robert White came from Ohio and settled on Shoal Creek within a mile of the site afterwards known as Mormontown Ford. Jacob Haun, the builder of Haun's Mill, came into the county in the spring of this year and located at this ill-fated spot.
In 1833 Samuel Hill, Eppa Mann and George Roland also located in Kingston Township; George Williams entered a claim three miles west of the present site of Kingston; Jesse Clevenger and Joseph Hightower settled on Goose Creek, in what is now Mirabile Township. Michael Turn- idge located in the same neighborhood about this time. Lyon Brothers made a settlement on Log Creek, east of Kingston, afterwards known as Salem. Here a horse mill, a blacksmith shop and several cabins were built and took the form of a little village, the first town in Caldwell County. It was never anything but a small hamlet and was a voting precinct in 1834 while this section was yet a part of Ray County, and there were 20 votes cast at the fall election in 1834. At one time 40 acres of land was laid out into town lots, but with the Mormon exodus a few years later the town was abandoned and there is now nothing to mark the place.
The life of the early settlers of Caldwell County was much the same experienced by the pioneers of other parts of the West. They dwelt in . log cabins, were plainly clothed and partook of humble fare, lived com- fortably and doubtless enjoyed a freedom in manner of life that is not to
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be found in many localities today. They dressed and lived according to their circumstances, and being for the most part in about the same con- dition, they mingled together as equals and were dependent on each other for help in various undertakings. The newcomer was warmly welcomed. When he selected his claim, cut his house logs and hauled them to the place chosen for his future home, his neighbors for miles around would come to his assistance, and in a short time his cabin would be ready to occupy. Then he would clear off a patch of ground, make rails to fence it, plant a crop and become a part of the life of the community.
The first farms were carved out of the timber lands. The timber was cut down, the logs rolled together, the brush piled on and all was burned to make way for cultivation.
It is said that T. W. Higgins, in the spring of 1842, opened up the first prairie farm, and in the winter of that year he built a house on the edge of the prairie while the weather was freezing and the snow covered the ground to the depth of fifteen inches. The old settlers deemed this folly and ridiculed the idea of locating on the prairie when good timber land could be had. Not many years elapsed, however, until it began to be recognized that the folly was in the selection of the timber land rather than the prairie.
Up to 1835 but little farming had been done in the county. Every settler had his truck patch, growing a little corn, a few vegetables, pota- toes, etc., just enough to supply the family with pone and other substan- tial food, while many bee trees along Shoal furnished sweetening for the table.
Cotton was raised successfully, although not extensively, but soon cotton yarn, imported from the East, could be purchased at Richmond cheaper than it could be raised and spun here, and the raising of cotton was practically abandoned. Flax was among the first crops raised, being raised for the bark, of which linen and linsey were made. Nearly every family had a flax patch and a few sheep on which they depended for cloth- ing supplies.
The first white child born in the county was to Joseph and Elizabeth Hightower, in October, 1832.
The first death among the settlers was that of Miralda Couts, a little daughter of Abraham Couts, who, her clothing taking fire accidentally, was burned to death. Then a child of Thomas Vanderpool, who lived on Log Creek, west of Kingston, died, and he himself was accidentally shot
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and killed. Abraham Couts also lost another child. All these were buried in the first cemetery in the county, a half mile east of Kingston, and today it is doubtful if same can be located.
The first wedding was that of Hardin Stone and Julia Mann, in May, 1832, taking place at the home of the bride's parents, was performed by the Rev. John Stone, a brother of the groom, and in the presence of almost the entire population of the county.
The first preachers are said to have been John Stone and Winant Vanderpool, both primitive Baptists, who visited the homes of the settlers along Shoal Creek and there preached to them.
It is claimed by some, that the first school was taught by Mary Ann Duty, in an abandoned cabin on Long Creek in the summer of 1838, but this writer is inclined to the belief that the first school was held in Far West nearly two years before this time.
The first well was dug by Jesse M. Mann on his farm eat of where Kingston now is located, prior to this all the settlers obtained their water from springs.
The first mill in Caldwell County was that of Lyon Brothers at Salem, built in 1833. In 1834 Jacob Haun built a mill on Shoal Creek in Fair- view Township, that marked the spot of a massacre that was one of the important events of the early history of this county, which will be given further notice. January, 1884, Robert White built a mill which after- wards became well known as Filson's Mill, on Shoal Creek. In 1837 a mill was partly erected by Mormons a short distance west of the bridge across Shoal creek north of Kingston, but was abandoned soon thereafter when they were forced to leave the county and was later completed by Joe Wilhoit and Samuel Massingale and operated for several years.
With the coming of the Mormons in the fall of 1836 and the follow- ing year, and the organization of the county, Caldwell County began to be rapidly populated and within two years, from only a few straggling settlements, it increased to a population of over 5,000 inhabitants and was a place of great interest and of turmoil and strife.
CHAPTER VI.
ORGANIZATION OF CALDWELL COUNTY.
ORGANIZED IN 1836-THE LOCATIONS OF MORMONS-TROUBLE IN JACKSON COUNTY-THEIR SETTLEMENT IN CLAY AND CALDWELL COUNTIES-MOR- MONS LOCATE IN CALDWELL COUNTY.
Up to Dec. 26, 1836, what is now Caldwell County comprised a por- tion of Ray. Ray was organized Nov. 16, 1820, out of a part of Howard County, and consisted of all that part of Missouri west of Grand River to the boundary line. The western boundary line at this time was a line running due north from the mouth of the Kansas River to the northern boundary, the Platte Purchase having not yet been acquired.
In order to arrive at the cause for the organization of the county it will be necessary to take a brief view of the rise of a religious sect known as the "Mormons".
The History of Caldwell County, published in 1886 by the National Historical Company of St. Louis, says "it may be fairly stated that noth- ing in the history of modern fanacticism equals the progress of Mormon- ism in the United States and in all the world. It is marvelously strange that an uneducated youth, without wealth or social standing; indeed, with- out prestige of common morality (for the founder of Mormonism is said to have been a dissolute, unprincipled young rake, and notorious only for his general wickedness), should excite a revolutionary movement in the religious world, and be able to operate on the public credulity, by means of the wildest and most ridiculous pretensions to divinity and proph- ecy, and that, too, in an age of refinement and scientific intelligence."
It is not necessary for the purpose of this narrative to enter into the history of the founding of this sect or of the book of Mormon on which it was founded. Joseph Smith and his followers, meeting with much oppo- sition in Kirtland, Ohio, where they had gathered in 1831, decided to come West and seek a new location. He first visited Saline County, then
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Lafayette and finally came into Jackson County. At Independence he claimed to have received a revelation that this was to be the seat of his kingdom. He entered several thousand acres of land and returned to Kirtland, and in 1832, they came in full force and settled in or near Inde- pendence. Here they met with scant welcome by their neighbors who could not tolerate their new religion and were not slow to express their views regarding either one. The Morning and Evening Star, a newspaper established by the Mormons, appeared every week, and in it were "revela- tions" promising much to the faithful and pronouncing woe upon the "wicked Gentiles". An anti-Mormon paper took up the matter and printed an article entitled "Beware of False Prophets" directing its attack espe- cially at the Mormon leaders. A public meeting was held in Independence July 20, 1833, where certain measures were discussed looking to some way in which the Mormons could be forced to leave. A public address was agreed upon, stating among other things that within two years this sect had increased in their midst from just a few until now there were upwards of 1,200, that each spring poured fourth a new swarm; that the mass of them were ignorant and poverty-stricken, "a little above the con- dition c_ the blacks"; that they exercised a corrupt influence over the slaves; and that they believed and boasted that the whole country was their destined inheritance, and concluded as follows:
"Of their pretended revelations, their personal intercourse with God, and his angels, the maladies they pretended to heal by laying on of hands, and the contemptible gibberish with which they profane the Sabbath, and which they dignify with the appellation of unknown tongues, we have nothing to say: vengence belongs to God alone. But as to the other matters set forth in this paper, we feel called upon, by every consider- ation of self-preservation, good society, public morals, and the fair pros- pects that, if they are not blasted in the germ, awaits this young and beautiful country, at once to declare, and we do hereby most solemnly declare:
"That no Mormon shall in future move and settle in this country.
That those now here, who shall give a definite pledge of their intention within a reasonable time to remove out of the country, shall be allowed to remain until they have sufficient time to sell their property and close their business without any material sacrifice.
"That the editor of the Star be required forthwith to close his office, and discontinue the business of printing in this county; and, as to all
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other stores and shops belonging to the sect, their owners must in every case comply with the terms of the second article of this declaration, and upon failure, prompt and efficient measures will be taken to close same.
"That the Mormon leaders here are required to use their influence in preventing any further emigration of their distant brethern to this country, and to counsel and advise their brethern here to comply with the above requisitions.
"That those who fail to comply with these requisitions be referred to those of their brethern who have gifts of devination and of unknown tongues, to inform them of the lot that awaits them."
Following this another meeting was held by several hundred of Jack- son County citizens and they declared their intention of driving the "Saints" out forceably if they would not go peacefully. In the meantime, the office of the Star had been razed and the press and type destroyed and the editor tarred and feathered.
The outcome of the whole matter was that the Mormons were forced to flee and sought safety in Clay County placing the Missouri river between them and their enemies. There was great discomfort and misery among the fugitives as they crossed the river in November, the weather being cold and rainy, and the half-clad women and children suffered severely. They were received very kindly in Clay County and were rented homes and furnished provisions and given employment.
The public authorities of the state sympathized with the efforts of the Mormons to obtain redress and Attorney General Wells wrote them that if they desired to be re-established in their homes in Jackson County a sufficient force would be sent for their protection. He advised them to remain in the state and organize themselves into a regular company of militia, promising them a supply of arms if they did so.
The Mormons, however, were averse to fighting, or taking any steps that might lead to further trouble. They desired to go into the terri- tory now embraced in Kansas, but at that time, this belonged to the Indians and was not open for settlement. So they began to seek new homes in Missouri, north of the Missouri river.
Those who had seized and occupied the lands of the Mormons in Jackson county wished to acquire some legal title to them so they made a proposition, offering them $1.25 per acre and making no allowance for the improvements. This proposition was refused and it was finally agreed should be submitted to certain prominent citizens of Clay county for arbi-
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tration. The arbitrators met at Liberty and Jackson County sent over thirteen commissioners and the Mormons were properly represented. It is said that the commissioners from Jackson County seeing their cause was going against them, withdrew, accusing the arbiters with sympathy for the Mormons, and left Liberty in great indignation after a general fight had been barely averted.
It was, perhaps, in 1833, when the very first Mormon families came into Caldwell County, locating in the southern portion. In the next year or two others followed and in 1836 they came in great force.
The citizens of Clay County, at first friendly and kind to the Mor- mons, became tired of their presence in the county, and the trouble that was constantly arising because of them, a mass meeting of the citizens was held at Liberty at which resolutions were passed, a part of which follow, being quoted from The Latter-day Saints Millennial Star, of November 19, 1853, which, with other books and data have been fur- nished the writer by Elder Walter W. Smith, Church Historian, at Inde- pendence, for use in preparing this narrative.
"It is apparent to every reflecting mind that a crisis has arrived in this county, that requires the deep, cool, dispassionate consideration and immediate action of every lover of peace, harmony and good order. We cannot conceal from ourselves the fact that at this moment the clouds of civil war are rolling up their fearful masses, and hanging over our devoted county. This painful state of things has been produced mainly by the rapid and increasing emigration of that people commonly called Mormons, during the last few months. It is known to all, that in Novem- ber, 1833, these people were expelled from their homes in Jackson County, without money, without property, without the means of subsistence for themselves, their wives, and their children, and like Noah's dove, without a resting place for their feet.
"They came to our county thus friendless and pennyless, seeking (as they said) but a temporary asylum from the storm of persecution by which they were then buffeted. Their destitute and miserable condition, at that inclement season of the year, excited the deep sympathies of the philanthropic and hospitable citizens of this county; and notwithstand- ing the thousand reports that were borne on the wings of the wind, charg- ing them with almost every crime known to the laws of our country, yet our feelings of kindness, and sympathy for human suffering prevailed over every obstacle, and they were received with friendship, and treated
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with toleration, and often with marks of peculiar kindness. They always declared that they looked not upon this county as their home, but as a temporary asylum; and that, whenever a respectable portion of the citi- zens of this county should request it, they would promptly leave us in peace as they found us."
The resolution then states that that time has now arrived, that the duty they owe to themselves and families now demands that they require this pledge to be fulfilled; that to all appearances this people now intended to make this their permanent home and the center and rendezvous for this people. Then it goes on to state;
"These are some of the reasons why these people have become objects of the deepest hatred and detestation to many of our citizens. They are Eastern men, whose manners, habits, customs, and even dialect, are essen- tially different from our own. They are non-slave holders, and opposed to slavery, which in this peculiar period, when Abolitionism has reared its deformed and haggard visage in our lands, is well calculated to excite deep and abiding prejudices in any community where slavery is tolerated and protected."
Other things are given, for which, however, the committee would not vouch for the correctness of the reports and statements, but whether true or false had the effect of exciting the citizens of the county and combined to raise a prejudice against them and a feeling of hostility that they feared would inevitably lead to serious trouble. While not contend- ing that they had the right under the laws to expel them by force, yet they warned the Mormons that if they regarded their own safety and welfare they will heed the admonition, given in a spirit of frankness and kindness ; and advising them to seek a home where they may obtain large bodies of land and establish a community of their own.
Further resolutions then follow :
"Therefore, be it resolved by this meeting, that they view, with feelings of the deepest regret the present unhappy situation in our county.
"That it is the fixed and settled conviction of this meeting that unless the people commonly called Mormons will agree to stop immediately the emigration of their people to this county, and take measures to remove themselves from it, a civil war is inevitable."
A committee of ten was appointed to make known the views of this meeting to the Mormons and they in turn held a meeting at which the following resolutions was passed:
1
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"Resolved: For the sake of friendship, and to be in a covenant of peace with the citizens of Clay County, and they to be in a covenant of peace with us, notwithstanding the necessary loss of property, and expense we incur in moving, we comply with the requisitions of their resolutions in leaving Clay County, as explained by the preamble accom- panying the same; and that we will use our exertions to have the Church do the same; and that we will also exert ourselves to stop the tide of emigration of our people to this county.
"That we accept of the friendly offer verbally tendered us by the committee yesterday, to assist us in selecting a location, and remov- ing to it."
These resolutions were presented to the citizens who held another meeting, and the reply of the Mormons was said to be satisfactory and the citizens urged to keep the peace toward the Mormons and a committee was appointed to solicit funds to assist those Mormons who required help to leave the county.
During the summer of 1836 the Mormons selected what is now Cald- well County for their new home and began their settlement here in earnest. It was then a portion of Ray County, but the people of the northern portion of that county, as well as the Mormons, were informed that a new county was to be organized expressly for the occupation and general benefit of the Mormons. In fact, an arrangement of this kind had been made by the leaders of this people and certain prominent men of the state. An entire county was to be set apart for the Saints. While the gentiles were not forbidden to enter it, it was believed that few, if any would desire to do so. At this time only about fifteen or twenty
families lived in Caldwell. The Mormons were to have the undisputed possession of the new county ; to hold the county offices, send a represen- tative to the Legislature and in return for these privileges were not to settle in any other county save by express consent and permission pre- viously had and obtained, of two thirds of the non-Mormon residents of the township wherein they desired to locate. .
This was thought by everyone to be a complete and satisfactory solu- tion of this problem which had caused so much trouble up to this time.
As has been said, the Mormons began to settle in large numbers in the summer of 1836. Phelps and Whitmer visited this section and found it to be a very desirable location. A few gentiles were found, and nearly
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all of them bought out, some few refusing to sell. The acquisition of the county by the Mormons was eminently fair and just.
In December 1836 Caldwell county was organized and the county- seat located at Far West. Justice of the Peace were appointed and the political machinery was entirely in the hands of the Mormons who elected their county officers and the new county started off in a flourishing condition.
CALDWELL COUNTY COURT HOUSE, KINGSTON
-
New Building
Hamilton, Mo, High School.
NEW HIGH SCHOOL BUILDING, HAMILTON
CHAPTER VII.
FAR WEST.
MORMONS LOCATE COUNTY SEAT HERE-PLAN THE GRAND TEMPLE-MORMON HEADQUARTERS-FIRST HOUSE IN FAR WEST-MANY MORMONS MAKE THEIR HOMES HERE-GROWTH OF FAR WEST-FIRST POST OFFICE-NEWS- PAPER ESTABLISHED.
The history of the rise and fall of Far West rivals in interest that of any other city ever established in the state or nation. Its rapid growth and flourishing prospects until it contained over twenty-five hundred inhabitants in less than three years, the outlook for a city of the plain that would doubtless have been the largest in this section of the country had fortune favored this sect here as it later did at Salt Lake City. The proposed Grand Temple, its admirable location, the wide avenues and the stirring scenes there enacted, then the dramatic climax in the expulsion of the Mormons from the state and the decay of the city until in a few years it was entirely abandoned, reads like a romance of old. If Far West had continued to grow and flourish, as the first few years gave promise, the history of the entire state would have been vastly different. Nothing remains today of this once thriving city except the large exca- vation for the Grand Temple and a few rocks scattered about the temple site. Pilgrims come from the ends of the earth every year to visit this historic place. In the fall of 1913 Joseph Smith, the president of the Mormon Church at Salt Lake City, with friends, visited the site of old Far West, where he was born seventy-five years ago.
In the summer of 1836, W. W. Phelps and John Whitmer were ap- pointed as a committee to select a site for the headquarters of the Mor- mons and they came north in Clinton, Daviess and what is now Caldwell counties and rode for several days exploiting the country and finally chose the site for their new city, Far West. The town site was entered Aug. 8, 1836. The north half was entered in the name of W. W. Phelps;
(15)
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the south half in the name of John Whitmer, but both merely held the land in trust for the Church. Soon thereafter the town was laid out being one mile square. The blocks were 396 feet square and the streets were 821/2 feet wide, except the four principal avenues, which diverged at right angles from the public square in the center, and these avenues were 132 feet wide. The public square was designed as the location for the Grand Temple.
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