History of Saint Louis City and County, from the earliest periods to the present day: including biographical sketches of representative men, Part 194

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Philadelphia : L.H. Everts
Number of Pages: 1358

USA > Missouri > St Louis County > St Louis City > History of Saint Louis City and County, from the earliest periods to the present day: including biographical sketches of representative men > Part 194

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Decree and sign to appraisers. 2.00

For the petition ... 2.00

Four days in country, $4. ...

16.00

Three witnesses, each three days. 16.50

$71.25

For a copy.

4.50

Total $75.75

" The auctioneer to he paid hy the estate. April 26, 1803. " JOSEPH HORTIZ.

"1. William Massey to the United States, April 20, 1806, for two hundred and fifty dollars, paid hy Gen. James Wilkinson, United States army, five acres of this land, with the factory and huildings, called Bellefontaine, and the use for five years of the ground now used for the cantonment, with the buildings, gardens, woodland, etc., part of Lard's survey of one thousand arpens.

" 2. William Massey to Gen. James Wilkinson, July 29, 1806, for two thousand five hundred dollars, ahout five hundred ar- pens of land, called Bellefontaine, except the five acres sold to the United States, and which lies within the said tract.

" There is a deed of William Tharp to Gen. James Wilkinson, April 21, 1806, for the ahove five hundred arpens for the same consideration, two thousand five hundred dollars, Book A, 269, but as Tharp had no title to the land it must have been for Massey while ahsent.

"3. State of South Carolina, James Wilkinson, general United States army, to the United States, March, 1809, for two thousand five hundred dollars, the Bellefontaine tract, com- mencing at the mouth of Coldwater Creek; up said creek, east side, to the back line of Lard's grant; thence east on said line to line of Morris James; thence north on said line to the Mis- souri; thence with the meanders of said river to the beginning, less the five acres hought hy the United States from William Massey, ahout five hundred French acres, with the appurte- nances thereon.

"4. United States, hy Gen. Cass, Secretary of War, to James Samuel, Dunham Spalding, II. N. Davis, and E. T. Langham, at Washington, Sept. 29, 1836, for $1880.10, the ahove tract, etc., now called 219.47 acres. They laid out the town of Belle- fontaine in 1836."

City of St. Ferdinand .- This city, the corporate name of which is as above, is spoken of in some early histories as " Fleurissant," but now bears the com- mon designation of " Florissant." It was settled at

1887

COUNTY OF SAINT LOUIS.

about the same time that the first adventurers lo- cated at St. Louis, and was at first an Indian trading- post and a Jesuit mission. Father Meurin, S.J., is believed to have been the earliest missionary who labored among the natives at this point.

But little of the history of the station during the first thirty years of its existence is known. In 1793 it had acquired sufficient importance to be placed under the especial carc of the government, as the fol- lowing translation of a decrce issued by the Governor of the province will show :

" The Baron of Carondelet, Knight of the Order of St. John, Colonel of the Royal Armies, Governor, Intendant-General, Vice-Patron of the Provinces of Louisiana, Western Florida, and Inspector of their Troops, etc.

" Inasmuch as His Majesty, whom God preserve, by his royal edict of the 17th of August of 1772, has been pleased to con- cede to this government the authority to grant titles to special lieutenants of this province, and there having been formed in the district of Ylinoa a new settlement by the name of St. Fer- nando, and it being necessary to provide for the civil and mili- tary government of the same, because of good conduct, dis- tinguished zeal, exactitude, probity, and disinterestedness, which are requisite to insure confidence in the administration of public affairs, and these special qualifications being united in Mr. Blanchete, therefore, exercising the authority in me vested by the said royal decree, I declare and nominate for special lieutenant, with the rank of captain of militia of the said settlement of St. Fernando, its boundaries and jurisdiction, the said Mr. Blanchete, immediately subordinate, however, to the captain commandant of the establishment of Ylinoa, whom I command to have him recognized as such, and to the neigh- bors, sojourners, and inhabitants of the said post that they re- spect and obey him as such civil and military commander in all matters within the scope of his authority, awarding and caus- ing to be awarded to him the honors and deference to which he is entitled by reason of his office.

" These presents given, signed with my hand, sealed with the seal of my arms, and countersigned by the underwritten secretary of His Majesty for this government and intendancy.

" At New Orleans, the 30th of January, of one thousand seven hundred and ninety-three.

[Eagle and lion seal.]

" EL BARON DE CARONDELET,

ANDRES LOPEZ ARMESTO, "W. P."

In 1829 the place was first incorporated as a town, but after a few years the charter was allowed to lapse by neglect of the people to select officers. In 1843 it was again incorporated, and its existence as a town continued till 1857, when it was chartercd as a city by an act of the Legislature.

After its settlement the Spanish government, in ac- cordance with its custom, granted to the inhabitants of the village five thousand arpens (or four thousand two hundred and fifty acres) of common lands, which have since been known as the St. Ferdinand com- mons. These were for fuel and pasturage, and they were used as common lands till the time of the second incorporation of the town, when they were leased to

the inhabitants for long periods of time (usually one thousand years), in forty-acre lots, at a nominal rent.

What was known as the common fields was com- posed of parcels granted by the Spanish government to settlers in the town. These werc each one arpent, or about sixty-four yards in width, and extended " from river to river," or from Cold Water Creek to the Missouri River.

By reason of their characteristic sociability, and for mutual protection against the Indians, the first set- tlers had their dwellings in the town, and their farms were in this long, narrow shape, so that as they went to and returned from their daily labors they were to- gether, and werc thus able the better to defend them- selves in case of sudden attacks. The titles to the commons and the common fields, which were thus ac- quired under Spanish rule, were confirmed by an act of Congress in 1812, and the people, or their legal representatives, who had thus acquired lands in these common fields (so called because of the way of in- closing and working them) received deeds or certifi- cates of confirmation by complying with certain pre- scribed formalities and making the necessary proofs of occupancy, etc. Thesc long, narrow tracts have mostly disappearcd, or assumed forms more in accord- ance with modern customs.

The precautions which the pioneer settlers adopted for protection against the savages were not unneces- sary, as their subsequent experience proved. Among the Creole population at Florissant there are numerous traditions of murders by Indian marauders, either singly or in small bands, and without doubt these tra- ditions have truthful foundations, though they may have become much distorted in their details by oral transmission.

The difficulties and embarrassments, present and prospective, arising out of the renting of the St. Ferdinand commons led the people, in 1856-57, to scek a remedy for the evil, and this was finally found in an act of the Assembly incorporating the town as a city. The act was approved Feb. 11, 1857, and contained along with the usual provisions of city charters onc authorizing the legislative department of the city " to provide for the inclosing and improving, settling and conveying of all property, real and per- sonal, belonging to said city, and especially for the sale and conveyance of all the lands embraced within the United States survey No. 1202." This survey was made under the act of confirmation passed by Congress in 1812. Under this provision of the charter about six-sevenths of these commons have been sold. '

Owing to the loss of the records, the officers

1888

HISTORY OF SAINT LOUIS.

under the first incorporation, which continued from 1829 till 1832, and of the second, which was in foree from 1843 till 1857, cannot be given. Under the city charter the mayors have been as follows : Greg- oire Aubuchon, 1857; Michael Powers, 1858 ; Golvin Musick, 1860; Joseph C. Vrand, 1861 ; Julian Bates, 1862; Leonard Adams, 1863; Wil- liam J. A. Smith, 1864; and the present mayor, Charles Castello, 1865.

Charles Castello is of remote Spanish descent, though his grandfather came to this country from Ireland. He was born at Mineral Point, Wis., May 22, 1839, but his parents removed to Florissant, Mo., when he was an infant. He received a common school education and was reared as a farmer. At the age of twenty he went to Colorado, where he was engaged during a year and a half in mining. He then returned to Florissant and became a clerk in a store, where he remained during several years. He afterwards became an operator in real estate, and thus acquired a handsome competency. He continues to deal in real estate, and is also a conveyancer and notary.

In 1865 he was elected mayor of the city of St. Ferdinand, and has been re-elected to that office at every subsequent municipal election. He has also been during many years an efficient member of the school board. He now holds the office of public ad- ministrator in St. Louis County. He has always been a Democrat, politically, though during the war of 1861-65 he was a firm supporter of the Union. In his religious faith he is a Catholic.

In 1868, Mr. Castello was married to Miss Dora Menke, of Florissant, and they have had four chil- dren, two of whom are living.

As an evidence of the place which Mr. Castello holds in the esteem of his fellow-citizens, it is only necessary to point to his long term of service as chief magistrate of the eity of St. Ferdinand.

Of the members of the Council of St. Ferdinand three are chosen each year, and in view of the fact that the office is altogether unprofitable, the incum- bents have been many. For like reasons the office of clerk and register has been filled by many, often by several in the same year. The treasurers have been Samuel James, Lewis R. Brand, George Grotz- inger, Charles W. Smith, and William Mreen. Of these Samuel James has held the office three-fourths of the entire period.

Mr. James' father, who was of Welsh descent, removed from Kentucky to Florissant in 1793. His mother, whose maiden name was Julia Crilis, was a French Creole, born in Cahokia. Mr. James was

born in Florissant, in the house where he now resides, Sept. 16, 1817. He received his education in such schools as were kept in the country before the estab- lishment of the publie school system, was reared a farmer, and has always followed that occupation. He became by purchase the owner of the farm which had been the property of his father, and he still owns a large portion of that estate. Between 1840 and 1850 he was engaged in the business of shipping cattle and hogs to New Orleans. In 1850 he went to California, where he engaged for a short time in mining. Aside from this his life has been passed at Florissant.

At the age of twenty-one Mr. James was elected a trustee of the town of St. Ferdinand, and served in that capacity during several years. He was made treasurer of the town in 1854, and held that office in the town and city until 1881. He became treasurer of the school board at the same time, and still holds that position. In August, 1860, he was elected one of the judges of the County Court of St. Louis County, and served in that capacity until the enactment of the ordinance vacating the office in the State. During his term of office the St. Louis County Insane Asy- lum was established.

Judge James has always held the Catholic faith, in which he was reared, and in politics has acted with the Democratic party.

He was married Feb. 18, 1838, to Miss Virginia Robertson, of Bridgeton, St. Louis Co., and they have had eleven children, eight of whom are now living.

Judge James has always maintained an unblem- ished character for integrity, and is a respected and influential eitizen.

The situation and surroundings of Florissant have not been such as to lead to the establishment there of any important manufactories or shops, beyond what have been required to meet the wants of the people in the immediate vicinity. The round-house and machine-shop of the West End Narrow-Gauge Rail- road is located here, at the terminus of that road. It is the repair-shop of the road, and it lias facilities for making all the repairs on the rolling-stock, and build- ing locomotives when necessary. The machinery is driven by an engine of twenty-five horse-power, and eight men are employed. E. D. Church is the fore- man and master-mechanic.

The city has now six general stores, two hotels, three wagon- and blacksmith-shops, four shops, three tailor-shops, two harness-shops, one shoe manufactory, one tin-shop, and two physicians. Its population, according to the census of 1880, was eight hundred and seventeen.

Florissant Valley Lodge, No. 19, National

Chat basketto

LIBRARY OF THE

LIBRARY WN TUE

Samuel James

1889

COUNTY OF SAINT LOUIS.

American Association .- This was organized in 1881 with eighteen charter members, of whom Wal- ter Evans was president ; John D. E. Belleville, vice- president ; Charles Castello, secretary ; Robert Evans, treasurer ; and Gabriel Loraine, collector. The pres- ent officers are John Belleville, president ; John D. E. Belleville, vice-president; Charles Castello, secre- tary ; Robert Evans, treasurer ; and Gabriel Loraine, collector. John Belleville is also deputy national president. It is a beneficiary and mutual insurance . association.

Florissant Public School .- Prior to 1845 the parochial school of the Church of St. Ferdinand and the conventual school afforded the inhabitants of the town their only educational facilities. In March of that year an act was passed by the Legislature " to incorporate an academy in the town of St. Ferdinand, St. Louis Co." The trustees named in the act were James Castello, Gregoire Aubuchon, George Mc- Cullough, James L. Holliday, Edward Harrington, Thomas J. Minor, William Nutt, Paul G. Lindsay, and John B. James, and provision was made for the election of their successors by the inhabitants of the town. The act provided that instruction in the com- mon and higher branches should be given free to the children residing within the limits of the town, and common provision was made for the support of this academy by appropriating two-thirds of the revenue arising from the rents of the commons, which were then under leases. Under this act a one-story brick school building with two apartments was erected, and in this the school was conducted till 1857, when in- creased facilities were required, and an addition was made to the building, doubling its capacity.

In 1871 the academy plan was dropped, and the city and commons were constituted a school district under the general school law. In 1876 a new school building was erected on Washington Street, in an elevated and pleasant part of the city. The site in- cludes an entire square, giving ample room for play- grounds. The building is of brick, two storics in height, with four school-rooms, having an aggregate capacity for two hundred and seventy pupils, and up to the present time three of these rooms have been occupied and three teachers employed. In the tower of the building a clock has been placed.

In that portion of the district known as the com- mons a school of primary and intermediate grades is maintained.

The aggregate number of children instructed in these schools during 1881-82 was two hundred and eleven. The cost of the school edifice in Washington Street was between nine and ten thousand dollars, and

the total value of the school property belonging to the city is eleven thousand dollars. The amount ex- pended in the district in 1881-82 for school purposes was two thousand eight hundred and seventy-two dol- lars.

Church of St. Ferdinand .- As early as 1792 a wooden church stood in the old burial-ground at Florissant. It was called the Church of St. Ferdi- nand, in honor of the king of Spain who expelled the Moors from that country. The first entry in the baptismal register is as follows: "On Aug. 5, 1792, I, Pierre Joseph Didier, of the order of St. Benedict at Maux, Royal Abbey of St. Denis, and a missionary priest, baptized Claude Pallot, at St. Ferdinand, Flor- issant." Father Didier remained till 1798, when he was succeeded by Rev. F. L. Tusson, a Recollect, who signed as " curate of St. Charles." He was followed, in 1806, by Rev. J. Maxwell, and he, in the same year, by Rev. Thomas Flynn. After the pastorate of Father Flynn, the Trappists took charge in 1808. The Superior was Rev. Marie Joseph Dunand, who was assisted in the pastorate there from 1809 to 1811 by other Trappists. He resided at Monks' Mound, on the Collinsville plank-road, six miles cast of the St. Louis bridge, from 1810 till 1813, visiting Florissant weekly. In 1813 the Trappists left Illinois for France, and Father Dunand (who was commonly known as " the Father Prior") took up his residence at Floris- sant, where he remained till May, 1820, when he re- turned to France, and Rev. Charles Delacroix took charge. In 1821 the present church building was commenced. Prior to this time the trustee system had been in vogue here, and this had led to embar- rassments and conflicts of authority. Oct. 11, 1821, Bishop Dubourg recorded the following order : " The power of the trustees shall cease from the moment when the new church shall be blessed, and the parish priest shall be the only trustee, under our authority." It was also ordered by the bishop: "The old church, the adjacent grounds, and the débris of the old church shall remain at the disposal of the pricst. The cem- etery shall remain where it is, and shall be kept in- closed and be maintained at the charge of the parish- ioners."

The corner-stone of this church was laid by Father Delacroix, Feb. 19, 1821, and the stone for the purpose was presented by Madame Duchesne. It contained the following record in the Latin language: " On this Feb. 19, 1821, I, Charles Delacroix, by permission of Right Rev. Bishop Valentine Louis William Dubourg, laid the corner-stone of this church, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, under the invocation of St. Ferdinand and St. Francis Regis ;

1890

HISTORY OF SAINT LOUIS.

Madame Duchesne, Superioress, having donated the said corner-stone, Madame Octavia Berthold and Ma- dame Eugenie Andé being present, as also the pupils and many persons from the village." The church was blessed by Father Delacroix, Nov. 20, 1821, and was . dedicated by Bishop Rosatti, Sept. 5, 1823.

On the 20th of June, 1823, the church was made over to Rev. Charles Van Quickenborne, S.J., and it has ever since remained in charge of the Jesuit Fathers. The priests in charge have been, since Fa- ther Van Quickenborne, Rev. F. De Theux, 1827 ; Rev. J. F. Van Assche, 1829; Rev. G. L. Gleizal, 1838; Father Van Assche, 1840; Rev. F. J. Sau- tois, 1853; Father Van Assche, 1857, who remained till his death in 1877 ; since then the present pastor, Rev. A. Hayden.

In 1879 the church was enlarged, a new steeple was erected, and the interior was renovated, the whole at an expense of five thousand dollars. The old cem- etery became too full for further usc, and in 1876 a new and tasteful cemetery was laid out. It is located on a hill about a mile south from the city.

Church of the Sacred Heart .- The parish of the Sacred Heart was organized in 1866, in June of which year the corner-stone of the church edifice was laid. It was organized that some forty German fam- ilies who had become residents in this vicinity might worship together in their native language. The house was completed and dedicated in October, 1867. It is a brick edifice, fifty by one hundred feet, and its eost was twenty-five thousand dollars. The first pastor was Rev. Ignatius Panken, who was succceded in 1867 by Rev. Ignatius Pankert, and he, in 1876, by the present pastor, Rev. John Banhans. The parish now consists of one hundred and thirty fam- ilies.

A parochial school was established a year prior to the erection of the church, and a brick building, with a capacity for one hundred pupils, was erccted. About 1870 another school building was built, prin- cipally for boys. The school is under the charge of the Sisters of the Precious Blood, of whoin three are resident herc, and one secular teacher is employed. In this school instruction is given in both the Eng- lish and German languages, and the pupils average one hundred and twenty.

The sisters under whose charge this school has been placed belong to an order the vocation of which is the education of children and youth, and in this they have proved themselves highly efficient.

Sacred Heart Order .- The order of the Sacred Heart was first established in America in 1818. In the previous year Right Rev. Father Dubourg, Bishop

of Upper and Lower Louisiana, made application to Madame Barat, the Superior-General of the order, for a colony of the sisters to establish a home in his diocese. Accordingly five of these ladies-Madame Phillipine Duchesne, Superior, and Sisters Octavie Berthold, Eugenie Andé, Catherine Lamarre, and Mar- guerite Manteau-sailed from France in March, 1818. They arrived in New Orleans late in May, and at St. Louis on the 22d of August in that year. Early in the next month they opened a school in St. Charles, but after a trial of a year it was found that, by reason of the poverty or indifference of the people, they could not maintain themselves there, and arrangements were made for their removal to Florissant, for which place they departed on the 3d of September, 1819. Their transit was thus described by Mother Duchesne : " Sister Octavie and two of our pupils next embarked. I was to close the march in the evening, with Sister Marguerite, the cows and the hens; but the cows were so indignant at being tied, and the heat was so great, that we were obliged to put off our departure to the cool hours of the morning. Then, by dint of cabbages, which we had taken for them in the cart, they were induced to proceed. I divided my atten- tion between the reliquaries and the hens. We crossed the Missouri opposite Florissant. On land- ing, Marguerite and I drew up our charges in a line -she the cows and I the hens-and fed them with a motherly solicitude. The Abbé Delacroix came on horseback to meet us. Hc led the way, galloping after our cows when, in their joy at being untied, they darted into the woods."

Of the region into which these poor but devoted sis- ters, with their scant effects, came the Abbé Bcau- nard says, " This country has now, in summer, the appearance of a sea of verdure, studded with oaks of various sorts, walnut-trees, planes, and all kinds of forest-trees, among which stand a number of pretty houses and ornamented villas; but in 1820 not a single cabin was to be scen between St. Louis and Florissant, nothing but a boundless expanse of wav- ing grass, and, to complete the resemblance of this green plain to the ocean, storms often swept over it with sudden violence.

"The Spanish eolonist who had originally drawn the plan of this village had given it the name of St. Ferdi- nand, in honor of the sovereigns of his country, and it is often so called in Madame Duchesne's correspond- cnce. A little church had been built there, under the shadow of which a band of Trappists, driven away from France by the revolution, had taken shelter, and remained there till 1812. The curé of this place, M. Dunand, was the last survivor of this little community,

1891

COUNTY OF SAINT LOUIS.

and he was still known in the village as the Father Prior. He had undertaken to arrange the humble abode which the nuns were to occupy, but as it was not yet finished, they had yet to live in a farm which the bishop had bought in the midst of a wild solitude, surrounded by forests. The Rev. M. Delacroix re- sided there, and directed the tillage and cultivation of the neighboring land. He was the priest who had come on horseback to meet the sisters at the river- side."

Father Delacroix gave up his own abode to the nuns and made his quarters in a hut of matting, the entrance to which served both as a door and a window, and which had not sufficient space for a chair. The nuns lived as farm servants, looked after the cattle, planted and harvested maize, cultivated vegetables, gathered their firewood, etc. They subsisted during several months on some flour which they bought ou credit, and on a small bull salted. Father Bcaunard says, " The bishop used to laugh when he saw the nuns engaged in their homely labors, and asked Madame Andé if it was at Napoleon's court she had learned to milk the cows."

Their house at Fleurissant was made ready for them in the latter part of December, 1819, and the sisters went to it, walking in the snow knee-deep, wrapped in blankets, but shivering with the cold and covered with icicles, driving their cattle, guided only by the tracks of the pigs and other animals. Mother Duchesne wrote of their removal : " The cold deprived us almost of the power of motion. Having tried in vain to lead with a rope one of our cows, I hoped to make her fol- low us out of her own inclination by filling my apron with maize, with which I tried to tempt her on ; but she preferred her liberty, and ran about the fields and brushwood, where we followed her, sinking into the snow, and tearing our habits and veils amidst the bushes. At last we were obliged to let her have her own will and make her way back to the farm. I carried in my pocket our money and papers, but the strings broke, and everything, including a watch, fell in the snow. The wind having blown the snow on my gloves they were frozen on my hands, and I could not take hold of anything. Eugenie had to help me pick up my bag, and also my pocket, which I was obliged to carry under my arm."

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History of Saint Louis City and County, from the earliest periods to the present day: including biographical sketches of representative men, Part 194

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898 Publication date: 1883 Publisher: Philadelphia : L.H. Everts Number of Pages: 1358

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Philadelphia : L.H. Everts
Number of Pages: 1358