USA > Missouri > Buchanan County > The history of Buchanan County, Missouri > Part 14
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One of the first settlers of Tremont Township was Ishmael Davis, from Kentucky, but a native of Maryland, who in the spring of 1837 settled on the edge of Rock House Prairie. His son, R. T. Davis, now a resident of St. Joseph, born here in April, 1837, is said to have been the first white child born in the county. Ambrose D. McDaniel came from Kentucky in 1837, and also settled on the Rock House Prairie. He was killed at his home, in the township, during the war of the rebellion. George Jeffers, a native of Tennessee, came from Clay County to Buchanan in 1838, and located on section 34, township 56, range 34. He pre-empted his claim, broke twenty acres, planted with corn, fenced it, and moved in with his family the February of the following year. He pre-empted the place now owned by his son, James M. Jeffers.
James Gibson, in 1838, settled on the east side of Platte, about a mile from Dixon's Mill. He died there.
Harold Miller came with Gibson and settled in the same neighbor- hood with him, joining him on the east. He was from Virginia.
Robert Irwin, in 1838, settled about a mile northeast of Dixon's Mill. He was born in Tennessee, but came to this county from Clay.
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HISTORY OF BUCHANAN COUNTY.
He was a prominent citizen of the county, and a member, at one time, of the County Court. He emigrated to Oregon and died there in 1876.
Samuel D. Gilmore, the son of James Gilmore, who lived in the Platte Purchase long before its settlement by the whites, as a black- smith to the Sac and Fox Indians, opened up a farm on the east side of Platte River, half a mile above Dixon's Mill.
Samuel D. Gilmore was appointed, by the Governor, the first sheriff of Buchanan County. He emigrated to Oregon and is still living there.
Stephen Bedford settled on Malden Creek, in the east part of the township. He was from Kentucky, but had lived in Clinton County before coming to Buchanan.
Daniel McCreay, a Tennesseean, settled on the waters of the Malden, in 1838.
Joabs Schultz, who was also from Tennesse, arrived in the spring of 1838, and settled on the east side of Platte River, near Dixon's Mill. He was one of the first justices of the peace elected in this part of the county. He served a number of years in that office, and is still living on the tract where he originally settled.
Henry Jones came to Buchanan from Clay, early in the settlement of the county and located on section 27, township 56, range 34. He died in 1848, being murdered by a man named Gibson.
Creed Herring is now one of the oldest settlers of the township. He is a native of Shelby County, Kentucky, and settled where he now lives in the fall of 1843.
Edward M. Trotter, now residing near Frazer, came to the township in 1841.
M. D. Finch settled on the Rock House Prairie in 1842, and has since lived in the vicinity of where he settled.
Wilson P. Mudgett and P. P. Mudgett, settled on Rock House Prai- rie in 1839. Wilson P. was the first postmaster of the settlement. He is dead. P. P. is now living in Iowa.
SETTLEMENT OF WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP.
Joseph Robidoux was the first white man to locate within the lim- its of what is now known as Washington Township, and indeed, within the territory of the Platte country. His name is so inseparably associ- ated with the history of St. Joseph, from its foundation to 1868, the date of his death, that we shall speak of him only in connection with what we shall say of the city ; giving then a brief biographical sketch of the Robidoux «family, and such other facts and reminiscences concerning Mr. Robidoux as we have at our disposal.
In speaking of the settlement of Washington Township, we shall confine ourselves to a reference only to the settlements made outside of
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HISTORY OF BUCHANAN COUNTY.
the city of St. Joseph, preferring for convenience sake to treat of the pioneers of the city in the history of the city proper.
Among the early settlers of this township was John H. Whitehead, who originally came from Virginia to Clay County, Missouri, and thence to Buchanan County, in 1837, locating two miles southeast of St. Joseph.
William Whitehead came at the same time, and located with his brother John H. Whitehead above referred to.
Henry W. Hanson emigrated from Kentucky in 1837, and settled on the edge of the bluffs, about a mile south of St. Joseph. He was one of the judges of the first election held in the township.
James Cochran settled at an early day in the southwest part of the township, in the bottom near Contrary Creek.
Frederick Waymire was also an early settler and located near Con- trary Creek. He was appointed overseer of district number six, Wash- ington Township, in 1841. He took the contract and built the first court house in the county, at Sparta, and was paid out of moneys arising from the sale of lots in that whilom seat of justice.
Waymire & Gilmore operated a mill in 1840, on Contrary Creek.
James H. Whitehead was a citizen of Washington Township, and, as early as 1840, was an inspector of tobacco in Robidoux's warehouse, at the Blacksnake Hills.
William Pough, a Kentuckian, came from Clinton County in 1837, and made a settlement on the southeast quarter of section 33, township 57, range 35.
Claiborne F. Palmer arrived from Ray County in 1838, and settled at the foot of the bluffs south of St. Joseph. He was in 1840 appointed one of the alloting justices of the township.
A. C. Hyde is one of the old residents. He came from Kentucky in 1840, and located where he now lives, on section 32, township 57, range 35.
Thomas, John and Elisha Sollers were among the earliest pioneers, and settled north of St. Joseph.
James Highly was an old settler.
Stephen Parker made a settlement about two miles northeast of St. Joseph, and Isaac and Michael Miller located on lands adjoining Parker.
James G. Karnes came from Monroe County, West Virginia, in the fall of 1839, and settled north of St. Joseph, on section 34, township 58, range 35. Shortly afterward he moved to the place where his family still reside.
Alexander Fudge, from Covington, Virginia, arrived from Clay County in the spring of 1839, and located on section 34, township 58, range 35, where he lived till his death, in January, 1875.
Sabert Sollers settled in the fall of 1839, on section 27 of the same Congressional township.
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HISTORY OF BUCHANAN COUNTY.
Leroy Kaufman, in 1839, settled the place now owned by Wallace Asher.
Benjamin Williams was one of the early settlers north of St. Joseph, as was also Jacob Groshon.
Logan James and Edward Maxwell made settlements in the town- ship in 1837, where they now reside, near the north line of the county. Logan split twenty-five hundred rails in 1838 for the first cow he bought after coming here.
On the One Hundred and Two River, Isaac Waymire, at an early day, owned a mill and bridge, which occupied the present site of Corby's Mill.
John H. Cox was an early settler on the same stream, below the mill.
The McCorkles located between the One Hundred and Two and Platte Rivers, but that vicinity was then sparsely settled.
David Ewing lived near Saxton Station, and was, in 1840, a road overseer.
William Sally and a man named Keaton were early settlers.
Joseph Davis located north of St. Joseph.
George Coughern was one of the allotting justices of the township in 1840.
Michael Bailew and F. B. Kercheval were old settlers.
Michael Rodgers and John C. Mansfield came early.
Simeon Kemper came out in 1839, from Kentucky, but did not bring his family till 1840. He located on section 9, township 57, range 35. Mr. Kemper resides in St. Joseph at the advanced age of 82 years.
Frederick W. Smith, in 1838, settled on section 8, township 59, range 35, where he now lives, his land, as well as that of Kemper, being now within the corporate limits of St. Joseph. Mr. Smith was the first postmaster at St. Joseph after the town was laid out.
Dr. Daniel G. Keedy was the second physician to locate in Buchanan County. He settled in the bottom below the city, west of the round house. Joseph P. Grubb, at one time Judge of the Circuit Court in this district ; Col. J. H. R. Cundiff, formerly one of the editors of the Gazette, and S. W. Campbell, at present a banker in Kansas, married daughters of Dr. Keedy.
Dr. Keedy was a prominent and successful physician. His widow is still living.
General Bela M. Hughes, now of Denver, Colorado, settled just north of where Col. James N. Burnes now lives, and just below the fair grounds.
Robert I. Boyd settled just below King Hill, on the bluffs. His widow is still living.
9
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HISTORY OF BUCHANAN COUNTY.
Wm. T. Harris located on section 9, township 57, range 35, just outside the city limits.
Joseph Gladden settled north of St. Joseph, in 1837.
John R. Carter was another old settler, who located near the State Asylum. He is dead.
Colonel Samuel C. Hall located on the northeast quarter of section 8, township 57, range 35, and was the first justice of the peace in St. Joseph.
Richard Gilmore, who is still living, settled near the northeastern limits of St. Joseph, in 1838.
John B. Hundley is an old settler of the township, who resides in St. Joseph.
William P. Richardson, also located at an early day near the city limits. His daughter married General W. P. Hall, of St. Joseph.
Isadore Pouline was an early settler, and clerked for many years for Joseph Robidoux. He sold his claim to W. K. Richardson.
The township contains a considerable German settlement.
Nicholas Ozenberger was the first German settler. He came from Wayne County, Ohio, in 1847, and located where he now lives, in the northeastern part of the township, between the One Hundred and Two River and the Platte.
The singular name of the One Hundred and Two was given to that stream, according to common belief, by the men employed in making the United States survey, from the fact that it is just 102 miles in length.
ADDITIONAL NAMES.
Having spoken of the old settlers somewhat at length, we shall con- clude this chapter with an additional list of the names of men who came to the county between 1837 and 1840. This list, of course, will embrace the names of many who have died or moved away, yet if we are not mis- taken it will be read and examined with interest by not only the citizens who constitute the present population of the county, but with far more interest by future generations :
Anthony, J. A. Argyle, A. A.
Anno, William.
Asher, Singleton. Anderson, Joshua.
Allison, H. P.
Allen, Wright.
Agee, James.
Agee, Samuel.
Austin, Thos. H.
Briton, John.
Beckett, Benjamin.
Bevens, Walter.
Beauchamp, E. A.
Baker, Morris,
Brown, David. Brown, Alexander.
Bonham, Joel. Bond, John.
Burgess, C. M. Becraft, Wm.
Burns, Jeremiah.
Blankenship, Geo. W.
Beck, James.
Britton, George. Burgess, Stephen.
Belliew, M. B
Boyd, Robert. Bohanan, John.
Buford, Thomas.
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HISTORY OF BUCHANAN COUNTY.
Brown, Elisha.
Barnett, Jesse.
Bohart, Jacob.
Brinton, Thomas.
Bonner, John W.
Bridgman, J. W.
Brooks, George.
Bragg, Wm.
Bell, John.
Butler, John.
Cameron, James.
Cunningham, Christo'er.
Castle, Ozro.
Clarby, Wm. H.
Camages, Geo. W.
Cogdale, Wm.
Carpenter, Whipple.
Clark, Wm. J.
Chilton, Robert.
Conner, Phebe.
Cleek, Jacob.
Chapman, Wm.
Coyl, Simeon.
Dodge Edwin.
Dunn, James.
Dixon, James.
Davis, Mathew.
Ditimore, George.
Dillon, L. H.
Davis, John S.
Davidson, E. M.
Deppen, Isaac.
Ellington, John.
Emory, James M.
Eager John.
Edgar, J.
Edgar, J. A.
Ellison, John. Elliott, Willis.
England, Aaron.
Fuller, Miles.
Eanickson, John. Falkner, James. Fesher, Henry.
Fulks, Henry.
Fletcher, Charles.
Flannery, Wm. Gillem, Mitchel.
Gaver, James.
Gaston, Zachariah.
Gabbert, Jefferson.
Gilmore, Robert.
Gilliam, E.
Gilmore, Jas. G.
Gibson, Isaac.
Hughart, Joseph.
Hardin, Robert.
Holladay, Joseph.
Harrington, Wm.
Holman, Jas. R. Hall, Joseph.
Hancock, Richard.
Hill, Samuel.
Harris, Betsey.
Henderson, Guilford.
Hadley, Samuel.
Hickman, Thomas
Hainlino, Jeremiah,
Hays, Hugh.
Horton, Thomas.
Hurst, Daniel.
Hooper, Parker A.
Hurness, Lewis.
Haines, Isaac.
Johnson, Samuel.
Jenkins, Joseph.
Jackson, Samuel.
Jones, David.
Jeffers, George. Jones, Harvey.
Jones, Ambrose.
Knapp, Alfred.
Kinney, George.
Kirk, Peter.
Kirkman, Thomas.
Kessler, Sebastian.
Lilly, David R.
Lemon, Mary.
Linville, Byram.
Lower, Henry.
Loveland, Robert.
Lewis, Luke. Madden, Gabriel.
Morris, John.
Mulkey, Daniel.
McGuire, A.
Monroe, Wm.
Montray, Gilford.
Meville, Nicholas.
Miller, Harrold.
Magill, Samuel.
Modrel, John.
Marc, Joseph.
Moore, Wm.
Moss, Henry. Michael, Michael.
Norris, John. Owen, W. M.
O'Neil, Johnson.
Pierce, James C.
Price, B. F.
Price, Nathan.
Parmer, C. F.
Powell, Chas.
Patterson, Green.
Potter, Abraham.
Pearson, Allen.
Reynolds, Wm. W.
Fulton, James.
Foster, A. J.
Fields, Wm.
Fielding, Sanford.
Hunter, A. J.
Holman, Daniel.
Jones, Edward.
Jacob, Nicholas.
McDaniel, Wm.
Mans, Geo. W.
Millett, Nimrod.
McCubbin, John C.
Neubry, Alexander.
Owens, Nicholas.
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HISTORY OF BUCHANAN COUNTY.
Roy, Lewis E. Rector, Jas. M.
Rhover, Upton.
Robinett, Stephen.
Reynolds, Hugh.
Smith, Hiram.
Swaney, Robert.
Singleton, Samuel.
Snyder, Edwin. Stanley, Joseph. Sipes, John. Taylor, Geo. W.
Thompson, James. Thomas, Wm.
Tucker, Benjamin. Townsend, John.
Whisman, John W.
Wallace, Mike.
Wilson, Aaron. Webb, Rufus.
Woods, Alexander.
Williams, Henry.
Wrinkler, David.
Wilcox, Edward.
Wade, Wmn.
Young, Wm.
Zumwalt, C. P.
Russell, Andrew. Ross, John. Strode, John S.
Smith, Anderson. Sampson, John. Shea, Dudley. Scott, James.
Shultz, Joab. Sarber, Abraham.
Tavrance, Lloyd. Utt, Henry. Walker, Joseph.
Wonderline, Joseph. Willett, Nimrod.
CHAPTER VI.
PIONEER LIFE.
THE PIONEERS' PECULIARITIES-CONVENIENCES AND INCONVENIENCES-THE HIS_ TORICAL LOG CABIN-AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS-HOUSEHOLD FURNITURE- PIONEER CORN-BREAD-HAND MILLS AND HOMINY BLOCKS-GOING TO MILL- TRADING POINTS-BEE-TREES-SHOOTING MATCHES AND QUILTINGS.
In the heart of the grand old forest, A thousand miles to the West, Where a stream gushed out from the hillside, They halted at last for rest. And the silence of ages listened To the ax-stroke loud and clear.
Divining a kingly presence In the tread of the pioneer.
He formed of the prostrate beeches A home that was strong and good ; The roof was of reeds from the streamlet, The chimney he built of wood, And there by the winter fireside, While the flame up the chimney roared,
He spoke of the good time coming, When plenty should crown their board-
When the forest should fade like a vision, And over the hillside and plain The orchard would spring in its beauty, And the fields of golden grain. And to-night he sits by the fireside In a mansion quaint and old, With his children's children around him, Having reaped a thousand-fold.
During the decade which comprehends the first ten years of its his- tory, the settlement of Buchanan County was in its earliest stage of pioneer life. All that can be known of this period must be drawn chiefly from tradition.
In those days the people took no care to preserve history-they were too busily engaged in making it. Historically speaking, those were the most important years of the county, for it was then the founda- tion and corner-stones of all the county's history and prosperity were laid. Yet this period was not remarkable for stirring events. It was, however, a time of self reliance and brave persevering toil ; of privations
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HISTORY OF BUCHANAN COUNTY.
cheerfully endured through faith in a good time coming. The experi- ence of one settler was just about the same as that of others. They were almost invariably poor, they faced the same hardships and stood generally on an equal footing.
All the experience of the early pioneer of this county goes far to confirm the theory that, after all, happiness is pretty evenly balanced in this world. They had their privations and hardships, but they had also their own peculiar joys. If they were poor they were free from the bur- den of pride and vanity ; free, also, from the anxiety and care that always attend the possession of wealth. Other people's eyes cost them nothing. If they had few neighbors, they were on the best of terms with those they had. Envy, jealousy and strife had not crept in. A common interest and a common sympathy bound them together with the strongest ties. They were a little world to themselves, and the good feeling that prevailed was all the stronger because they were so far removed from the great world of the East.
Among these pioneers there was realized such a community of interest that there existed a community of feeling. There were no castes, except an aristocracy of benevolence, and no nobility, except a nobility of generosity. They were bound together with such a strong bond of sympathy, inspired by the consciousness of common hardship, that they were practically communists.
Neighbors did not even wait for an invitation or request to help one another. Was a settler's cabin burned or blown down ? No sooner was the fact known throughout the neighborhood than the settlers assembled to assist the unfortunate one to rebuild his home. They came with as little hesitation, and with as much alacrity as though they were all mem- bers of the same family, and bound together by ties of blood. One man's interest was every other man's interest also. Now this general state of feeling among the pioneers was by no means peculiar to this county, although it was strongly illustrated here. It prevailed generally through- out the West during the time of the early settlement. The very nature of things taught the settlers the necessity of dwelling together in this spirit. It was their only protection, They had come far away from the well established reign of law, and entered a new country, where the civil authority was still feeble and totally unable to afford protection and redress grievances. Here the settlers lived some little time before there was an officer of the law in the county. Each man's protection was in the good will and friendship of those about him, and the thing any man might well dread was the ill will of the community. It was more terri- ble than the law. It was no uncommon thing in the early times for hardened men, who had no fear of jails or penitentiaries, to stand in great fear of the indignation of a pioneer community. Such were some of the characteristics of Buchanan County.
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HISTORY OF BUCHANAN COUNTY.
HOUSE AND HOME COMFORTS.
The first buildings in the county were not just like the log cabins that immediately succeeded them. The latter required some help and a good deal of labor to build. The very first buildings constructed were a cross between "hoop cabins" and Indian bark huts. As soon as enough men could be got together for a " cabin raising" then log cabins were in style. Many a pioneer can remember the happiest time of his life as that when he lived in one of these homely but comfortable old cabins.
A window with sash and glass was a rarity, and was an evidence of wealth and aristocracy which but few could support. They were often made with greased paper put over the window, which admitted a little light, but more often there was nothing whatever over it, or the cracks between the logs, without either chinking or daubing, were the depend- ence for light and air. The doors were fastened with old-fashioned wooden latches, and for a friend, or neighbor, or traveler, the string always hung out, for the pioneers of the West were hospitable, and entertained visitors to the best of their ability. It is noticeable with what affection the pioneers speak of their old log cabins. It may be doubted whether palaces ever sheltered happier hearts than those homely cabins. The following is a good description of these old land- marks, but few of which now remain :
" These were of round logs, notched together at the corners, ribbed with poles, and covered with boards split from a tree. A puncheon floor was then laid down, a hole cut in the end and a stick chimney run up. A clapboard door is made, a window is opened by cutting out a hole in the side or end two feet square, and finished without glass or trans- parency. The house is then "chinked " and " daubed " with mud. The cabin is now ready to go into. The household and kitchen furniture is adjusted, and life on the frontier is begun in earnest.
"The one-legged bedstead, now a piece of furniture of the past, was made by cutting a stick the proper length, boring holes at one end one a half inches in diameter, at right angles, and the same sized holes corresponding with those in the logs of the cabin the length and breadth desired for the bed, in which are inserted poles.
"Upon these poles, clapboards are laid, or lind bark is interwoven consecutively from pole to pole. Upon this primitive structure the bed is laid. The convenience of a cook stove was not thought of, but instead the cooking was done by the faithful housewife in pots, kettles and skil- lets, on and about the big fire-place, and very frequently over and around, too, the distended pedal extremities of the legal sovereign of the household, while the latter were indulging in the luxuries of a cob pipe, and discussing the probable results of a contemplated elk hunt up and about the Platte and One Hundred and Two.
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HISTORY OF BUCHANAN COUNTY.
These log cabins were really not so bad after all.
The people of to-day, familiarized with "Charter Oak" cooking stoves and ranges, would be ill at home were they compelled to prepare a meal with no other conveniences than those provided in a pioneer cabin. Rude fire-places were built in chimneys composed of mud and sticks, or at best, undressed stone. These fire-places served for heating and cooking purposes ; also for ventilation. Around the cheerful blaze of this fire the meal was prepared, and these meals were not so bad after all. As elsewhere remarked, they were not such as would tempt the epicure, but such as afforded the most healthful nourishment for a race of people who were driven to the exposure and hardships which were their lot. We hear of few dyspeptics in those days. Another advantage of these cooking arrangements was that the stove pipe never fell down and the pioneer was spared being subjected to the most trying of ordeals, and one probably more productive of profanity than any other.
Before the country became supplied with mills which were of easy access, and even in some instances afterward, hominy-blocks were used. These exist now only in the memory of the oldest settlers, but as relics of the "long ago," a description of them will not be uninteresting :
A tree of suitable size, say from eighteen inches to two feet in diam- eter, was selected in the forest and felled to the ground. If a cross-cut saw happened to be convenient, the tree was "butted"-that is, the kerf end was sawed off so that it would stand steady when ready for use. If there were no cross-cut saw in the neighborhood, strong arms and sharp axes were ready to do the work. Then the proper length, from four to five feet, was measured off, and sawed or cut square. When this was done the block was raised on end and the work of cutting out a hollow in one of the ends was commenced. This was generally done with a common chopping axe. Sometimes a smaller one was used. When the cavity was judged to be large enough, a fire was built in it and carefully watched till the ragged edges were burned away. When completed, the hominy-block somewhat resembled a druggist's mortar. Than a pestle, or something to crush the corn, was necessary. This was usually made from a suitably sized piece of timber with an iron wedge attached, the large end down. This completed the machinery, and the block was ready for use. Sometimes one hominy-block accommodated an entire neighborhood and was the means of staying the hunger of many mouths.
In giving the bill of fare above we should have added meat, for of this they had plenty. Deer would be seen daily trooping over the prairie in droves of from twelve to twenty, and sometimes as many as fifty would be seen grazing together. Elk were also found, and wild turkeys and prairie chickens without number. Bears were not unknown. Music of the natural order was not wanting, and every night the pioneers were lulled to rest by the screeching of panthers and the howling of
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HISTORY OF BUCHANAN COUNTY.
wolves. When the dogs ventured too far out from the cabins at night, they would be driven back by the wolves chasing them up to the very cabin doors. Trapping wolves became quite a profitable business after the state began to pay a bounty for wolf scalps.
All the streams of water also abounded in fish, and a good supply of these could be procured by the expense of a little time and labor. Those who years ago improved the fishing advantages of the country never tire telling of the dainty meals which the streams afforded. Sometimes large parties would get together, and having been provided with cooking utensils and facilities for camping out, would go off some some distance and spend weeks together. No danger then of being ordered off a man's premises or arrested for trespass. One of the pecu- liar circumstances that surrounded the early life of the pioneers was a strange loneliness. The solitude seemed almost to oppress them. Months would pass during which they would scarcely see a human face outside their own families.
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