USA > Wisconsin > Dane County > Madison > A history of Madison, the capital of Wisconsin : including the Four Lake country : to July, 1874, with an appendix of notes on Dane County and its towns > Part 15
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The Trustees of the Village, on the 23d of March, 1846, pub- lished proposals to lease the Hydraulic power within the corpo- ration limits as follows:
" WHEREAS, it has been ascertained by measurement that there is within the corporation limits of Madison, a fall or difference of elevation between the Third and Fourth of the Four Lakes, sufficient if improved, to create a water power of considerable magnitude; and whereas, the legislature of this Territory did by an act approved February 3, 1846, grant to the corporation of Madison the right to lease, improve or otherwise dispose of said water power, therefore,
" Public notice is hereby given that the undersigned Board of Trustees of said Corporation, will receive proposals until the first day of June next, for leasing the right to the water above men- tioned for a term of years on the condition that the lessee or lessees excavate and complete a canal of 40 feet in width at the bottom and 50 at the top, from the Fourth to the Third Lake along or near East Canal street, dam the present outlet of the Fourth Lake, build two good plank bridges across said canal, the one near the Third and the other near the Fourth Lake, with a substantial railing to each; erect a good flouring mill with at least four run of stone, and such other machinery as the lessee or lessees may see proper, all to be performed within a reason- able time, and bonds to be given to the Trustees of the Corpo- ration of Madison for the faithful prosecution and completion
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of said work. The Trustees would state for the information of those who may desire to undertake the work, that they have caused a level to be taken, and that the engineer reports a dif- ference of 3 71-100 feet between the water of the above named lakes, with the opinion that, by the proper damming, this fall may be increased to 53 or 6 feet. The distance between the Lakes on the proposed route is about 48 chains, and the nature of the ground favorable for excavation. This cannot but create a great power, especially when it is considered that its head is a lake of some twenty miles in circumference. The undersigned have the utmost confidence in the practicability and advant- ages of the work, and feel that they can lease upon terms which will make it a most desirable object to any capitalist who may have the means necessary to undertake its construction.
"T. W. SUTHERLAND, President. " PETER W. MATTS, " ELIAB B. DEAN, Jr.,
" WILLIAM N. SEYMOUR,
" ALONZO WILCOX,
" JAMES MORRISON,
" BARLOW SHACKLEFORD,
" Trustees.
" J. T. CLARK, Clerk.
" MADISON, March 23, 1846."
In reply to which, a proposition was made by SIMEON MILLS to lease the water power for sixty years; which proposition was accepted. Subsequently Mr. MILLS had a careful survey made of the level of the lakes, and not being satisfied with the result, abandoned the undertaking. In 1848 he erected on lots 6 and 7, block 116, corner of Main and Blair streets, a steam saw mill. On the 6th of December, 1857, he advertised for 1,000 saw logs.
The celebration of the 4th of July this year was observed with the following officers: JONA. LARKIN, President; M. G. VAN BERGEN and J. Y. SMITH, Vice Presidents; A. A. BIRD, Marshal; BERIAH BROWN, Reader; WM. WELCH, Orator; Rev. S. E. MINER, Chaplain; S. F. BLANCHARD, D. B. SNEEDEN, ROYAL BUCK, JOHN T. WILSON, GEO. A. CARY, E. B. DEAN, Jr., BEN-
Y
THE CAPITOL, FROM THE SOUTH GATE. HOSPITAL FOR THE INSANE.
JONES, Photo.
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FOUR LAKE COUNTRY OF WISCONSIN.
JAMIN HOLT, ANDRUS VIALL, BERIAH BROWN, and S. M. VAN BERGEN, Committee of Arrangements. Of the celebration one newspaper says:
" The Honorable Fourth of July arrived in town last Friday night, and notwithstanding the lateness of the hour, many of our citizens were on hand to welcome his approach by a salute from a 150 pounder (that is to say, the anvil weighed that), and such other "hasty " ceremonies as were suited to the occasion.
" Daylight was ushered in by a magnficent thunder storm, .and in the way of a morning salute, the thunder did the clean thing, while the said anvil lay upon the ground in mute aston- ishment. The salute being over, the vapors disappeared and old Sol received the nation's guest with warm congratulations. The oration, by Mr. WELCH, judging from the impression it produced and the various opinions and remarks which it elic- ited, must have possessed the rare qualities of originality and strength, if nothing more. The dinner was served up in good style by R. W. LANSING, and the Madison Brass Band enlivened the occasion by a variety of choice music, and we are happy in being able to add that but very little of intemperance or dis- orderly conduct was witnessed during the day and evening."
Until the year 1846, Madison cannot be said to have had a public cemetery. The sand ridge, southeast of the depot of the Milwaukee and Mississippi Railroad Company, the university hill, and part of block 61, had been previously used - none were enclosed or otherwise improved. The first act of the corporation for the purchase of burial grounds, seems to have taken place this year, but the purchase was not perfected until two or three years later. The grounds selected was block 180, about one mile northeast of the capitol building, and embraced an area of about three and a half acres. It was subsequently platted into 256 lots, 16 of the larger size equivalent to 64 of the smaller ones being reserved as a Potters Field, leaving 236 lots, 10 by 18 feet each, for private sale; of this last number 139 have been disposed of, leaving for future wants but 117 lots. The ground on the whole is favorably located and adapted to
12
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the end in view, having a subsoil generally composed of sand and gravel. It has been properly enclosed with a neat and substantial fence, at an expense of about $200. The land has an elevation of about thirty feet above lake Monona, on which it ought to have bordered, and has an easy and gentle slope, and was deemed a judicious selection considering the views entertained of the probable future growth of the village.
Maj. H. A. TENNEY has an article in the State Journal of November 26, 1853, strongly urging the importance of pur- chasing a tract of land of forty or more acres, to meet the future wants of the town.
The population of Madison this year (1846) was 626, and Dane county 8,289. Two-thirds, and probably three-fourths of the village plat was covered with forest trees and hazel brush. Not over half a dozen houses had been erected west- ward or northward of the Capitol square; and the forest north- eastward remained unbroken below the street on which the old jail is located. East and west King street (now State street), a part of Morris (now Main street), and those immediately around the square, comprised about all the streets opened for travel. Such was the appearance of the village in 1846, and for four years thereafter its growth was anything but rapid.
The amount of real and personal property assessed for cor- poration purposes, and the amount of taxes levied for 1846 were: Real, $41,019. Personal, $9,300. Total, $50,319. Amount of tax, $251.60.
We are indebted to Dr. C. B. CHAPMAN, who came to Madi- son in 1846, for the following paper of reminiscences of men and things as they appeared to him shortly after his arrival:
"It is not easy to calculate the advantage which would be conferred upon individuals and communities by the introduc- tion into schools and families of a system by which the more important events of each day shall be noted. The small amount of time which would be demanded for a strict adherence to such a custom, seems to indicate that it only requires that some simple form should be introduced in order to secure a more general compliance with the custom. If such statements in a
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diary should only embrace reports of weather and employment of the day, it would enable the person to recur to many other contemporary incidents. I am reminded of what I have stated, as I have set for myself the task of producing an account of my first years in Madison. It has been by the expenditure of much labor and care in the searching for memoranda, that the dates, which will hereafter appear, have been arrived at and made reliable, while more use of exact dates would be much more satisfactory.
"It was on the 18th of May, 1846, that I left Bristol, Trum- bull county, Ohio, for Madison. There was no railroad in that part of the State; the nearest was the Lake Erie and Mad River Road, from Sandusky, extending southward. I journeyed to Cleveland by private conveyance, and thence to Milwaukee by the steamboat Wisconsin. Boats were then well patronized by travelers and emigrants, along the chain of lakes, from Buf- falo to Chicago. A portion of the Michigan Central Road had been finished, and a small proportion of the passengers left us; at Detroit, in order to come onward by that route, which gave but little advantage in time.
"We arrived at Milwaukee on the morning of Saturday, May 23d, and, as the stage left there for Madison but three times a week, or on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, we re- mained until Monday morning, the 25th. We arrived at Janes- ville at 11 P. M., and at Madison the evening of May 26. Our first view of the dome of the old capitol was from the eleva- tion north from DEMING FITCH's farm, northwest quarter of section 25. The town site was then mostly covered by a forest of small oaks. The forest along the way through Greenbush was so dense that we did not obtain another view of the Capitol until near the south corner of the Capitol square. The only building between that corner and the outlet of Dead Lake (Lake Wingra) was the log house of THOMAS DUNN, which was a short distance below the court house. The City Hotel was then the stage house, and stood upon the corner where the FAIRCHILD Block now stands. It was a story and a half house, and was kept by Col. A. A. BIRD. It was there
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I took my first repast in Madison. An incident occurred dur- ing my first hours in Madison that I have well remembered. On crossing the street, after our evening repast, to the east gate of the Capitol square, accompanied by a fellow-passenger, we met a person with a surveyor's chain, who walked to the capitol with us, and was ready to reply to our various questions, occasionally attracting our attention to some new beauty of the place. As we passed to the west door, and took a view of the town in that direction, I embraced the opportunity to en- quire for the residence of Rev. S. E. MINER, to whom I had letters, when I found I was talking with him. He had just been using the surveyor's chain for the purpose of preparing for the foundation for the Congregational church. It was the building that stands on Webster street, opposite the engine house. That building was finished and occupied on the ap- proach of the coming winter. Mr. MINER occupied a frame house that stood on the lot now occupied by WAYNE RAMSAY, Esq., on the corner of Carroll and Gorham streets. It was then owned by R. T. DAVIS, and afterwards by the successor of Mr. MINER, Rev. CHAS. LORD. The only house in that vi- cinity was on the opposite corner, and occupied by Hon. GEO. B. SMITH.
" The block upon the shore of Lake Mendota, between Wis- consin avenue and Pinckney street, was soon after purchased by JULIUS T. CLARK, Esq., who then predicted that that ridge would become desirable residence property, although it was then reached by passing through a thick growth of oaks, and no streets were defined after leaving the Capitol grounds. The streets as well as the lots were covered by a forest of small oaks. JOHN MALLO had a brick yard on the third block west of the corner of the Capitol square. The lot where 'BROWN's Block,' formerly 'BRUEN's,' now stands, was mostly covered by small trees, as well as the avenue adjoining, and JAMES MORRISON and others had it in use for their pig-styes. The jail, which was a rude log structure, stood near the small brick schoolhouse. It had two rooms, one of which was reached by passing through the first, and the inner room had some of the
FOUR LAKE COUNTRY OF WISCONSIN. 173
ancient appliances for securing criminals. The only inmate at that time was a JAMES WHITE, who was awaiting his second trial for an attempt to shoot NICHOLAS SMITH. He was con- fined by a chain attached to one leg, and was or had divested himself of most of his clothing. He was tried and convicted three times, and the verdict set aside each time on account of the just belief of Judge DAVID IRWIN, that he was irresponsi- ble by reason of insanity. His conduct, after he was finally set at liberty, fully justified his course. The next year, the jail was occupied by a Frenchman by the name of GROSS, who was tried for the murder of a man in what is now the town of Springfield. Although it was alleged that some gold coin that belonged to the man was found in his possession, he was ac- quitted. In this jail was also confined, a few years later, the 'Monk of La Trappe,' who was afterward convicted of murder by the Columbia county court, and sentenced to the peniten- tiary for life. This Rev. Mr. LEAHEY had traversed the coun- try as a lecturer, which vocation he attempted to resume after his pardon, but with so little success that he soon gave it up.
"The school in the ' Little Brick,' I believe, was then under the supervision of ROYAL BUCK, who was succeeded by DAVID H. WRIGHT; this house and the old Capitol were the only places where religious services were held, until the Congregational church edifice was completed.
"There were four hotels when I came, and the fifth was re- opened a few months after. These were the ' American,' kept by JAMES MORRISON; the ' Madison House,' by WELCH & BUSH- NELL; the 'City Hotel,' by A. A. BIRD, and the 'National, by R. W. LANSING. The 'Lake House' was re-opened the same autumn by J. P. MANN.
"The number of inhabitants was then said to be 400, which I believe was a liberal estimate. Surrounding the square were the following buildings, as nearly as I can remember: between the north and east corners was the building which was early . known as 'The Tiger,' the American Hotel, W. W. WYMAN'S brick house (unfinished), and the United States Block (unfin- ished). Between the east and south corner were the City
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HISTORY OF MADISON AND THE
Hotel, SHIELDS & SNEEDEN's store (on the site of S. KLAUBER & Co.'s store), A. L. COLLINS' and T. W. SUTHERLAND's law offices, the building now occupied by W. VEERHUSEN, the Na- tional Hotel, S. MILLS' old residence, and two smaller buildings used as saloons. The only house on the side between the south and west corners was the house of HENRY GULLION, now a part of F. A. OGDEN's building. Between the west and north cor- ner was the residence of JOHN CATLIN, Esq., which stood where the United States building now stands. The only stores were those of SHIELDS & SNEEDEN, FINCH & BLANCHARD, and E. B. DEAN & Co., but J. C. FAIRCHILD added one a short time after. The only house on Main street, southwest from Mr. MILLS' was that of THOS. DUNN, which was in the second block below the Court House. L, F. KELLOGG occupied a house nearly op- posite his present residence. PETER KAVANAUGH had a place near the corner of State street and University avenue, and there was a house about two blocks westward of that, on Uni- versity avenue, which was then temporarily occupied by B. BRITTON. The only house beyond, and near the city limits, was that of A. E. BROOKS. Nearly all the buildings were around and near the Capitol square. King street, from the east corner of the park to the Lake House, was the only street that was at all defined by improvements, and these in a rude way. JOHN STONER lived near the shore of Lake Mendota, the only residence but that of ALEX. WILCOX, in that direction.
" An incident which occurred in March, 1849, will indicate the condition of improvements west of the Capitol. As Dr. N. M. DODSON, a medical student, now of Berlin, Wis., was on his way from Galena to Madison, he called at the house of PETER KAVANAUGH to enquire the distance to Madison. It was at twi- light, or he would have been guided by the dome of the capitol.
" I remained here without my family, who joined me in Sep- tember, and I was an inmate of the family of DAVID HOLT du- ring that time. Mr. HOLT was then Postmaster, and had his office on Webster street, near the old Argus office building. We were first established in housekeeping in a rude old struc- ture that was situated where J. M. BOWMAN now resides, and
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FOUR LAKE COUNTRY OF WISCONSIN.
then known as the SCHEMERHORN house, where we remained until the following April. I then purchased the building known as the "Tiger," on Pinckney street, where we remained until 1850. That building was said to have been a place where much money was won and lost at faro and other games, during the sessions of the Legislature; an incident not remarkably creditable to our early legislators, although, perhaps, as much so as the incidents of some of the years since that time. It may be supposed that as the times and methods of living were then crude, the Legislature and legislators would partake of the same characteristics. I have the impression however, that those early bodies would compare quite favorably, both in tal- ent and definite ideas with most of their successors.
" The two persons I first met in alighting from the stage at the time I arrived, were A. A. BIRD and JAMES HALPIN. JAMES had charge of the dining room, and made himself generally useful. He soon after engaged at the American Hotel then kept by JAMES MORRISON. He made a contract with Mrs. MOR- RISON to serve for one year, but was to forfeit his wages in case he should return to his old habits. He was successful in com- plying with his contract, but shortly after the time specified had expired, under the influence of an event in his family, and of a generous tendency to enjoy the bestowment of hospitality, he joined in convivial circles which he was supporting, and they culminated in the rapid waste of all they had accumulated, including the tidy furniture in their room. After removing from the American to a place on the shore of Lake Monona near the Lake House, where they lived in wretchedness for a time, finding himself without the means for supplying his ap- petite for stimulants, he ended his carousal by taking a quan- tity of opium that would likely have proved fatal but for the use of the stomach pump. How well he recovered from this habit, and maintained the character of a respectable citizen, and filled the place of trust as Superintendent of Public Prop- erty, was observed with peculiar gratification by his friends. But he was not always fully himself on account of a free use of opium and morphine, and this often caused his friends to
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suspect that he had partly returned to his old habit. I believe he maintained his integrity as to the use of common stimulants, but his second habit became so strong, that he declared his ina- bility to relinquish their use, and he was sometimes nearly as much beclouded in his intelligence as formerly. His life was a peculiarly eventful one. He was a native of Ireland, and from an early age had traversed the ocean as a sailor. He landed from a ship in Quebec during the prevalence of the cholera in 1832, and suffered an attack of the malady, from which he rapidly recovered. He then came to the States -enlisted as a soldier, and was with Gen. Z. TAYLOR mostly in the capac- ity of a servant, during part of the Black Hawk War. He was once entrusted with despatches between Green Bay and. Prairie du Chien, when he traversed the distance alone, often passing the streams by swimming his horse. In April, 1838, he was a soldier at Newport, Ky., and with a small detachment that was ordered to an upper Mississippi station had taken passage on the steamer Moselle, when she blew up at a Cin -- cinnati landing. His company were all killed or drowned. He: was thrown from the upper deck into the stream, swam ashore, and proceeded to his place of destination and reported in due form. Although a roughish kind of an Irishman, he was re- markable for the fidelity with which he fulfilled any trust com- mitted to him.
" I cannot recall any who now occupy the same places they did at that time, except Mrs. BRIGHAM, WILLIAM N. SEYMOUR and the PYNCHEONS; and Mrs. BRIGHAM is the only person who occupies the same house. DAVID HOLT owned and occupied the house opposite Gen. DAVID ATWOOD's. The house that was re- cently removed from the corner in order to give place to Gen. ATWOOD's new residence, was occupied by PETER H. VAN BER- GEN, and soon after by JESSE A. CLARK. J. G. KNAPP was then Superintendent of Territorial Property, and lived opposite the Capitol House (recently known as the Rasdall House), on King street. JOHN Y. SMITH, Superintendent before Mr. KNAPP, be- fore I came, was then of the " Argus " firm with BENJAMIN HOLT and S. MILLS. He was then occupying a house from
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which that of Hon. S. D. HASTINGS, was remodelled, but moved to his own house that autumn, where his first wife died the fol- lowing March. Mrs. SMITH, as well as her husband, was an early resident of Green Bay, where she came from New York when quite young, as a missionary of the Episcopal church. She possessed rare literary qualities which were little known on ac- count of her peculiar diffidence. A fragment of her diary, du- ring a thunder storm, while passing up Lake Huron, on her way to her new home, will indicate her chaste imagination, and such as has often conferred a world-wide fame. It was this: " Who but Jehovah could cause the heavens to groan in thun- ders, and to weep in showers."
" There were two early residents of Madison who were not well pleased with the improvements which were invading the 'Four Lake country." They were from Canada - Canadian French - and I have the impression that they preceded the first permanent residents. These were LOUIS MONTANDON and PHILIP COVALLE. ABEL RASDALL lived in the log house which had been occupied by the PECK family on Webster street, be- low Mrs. BRIGHAM's residence. WM. M. RASDALL was Deputy Sheriff, and had charge of the jail at the time before mentioned. IRA W. BIRD was Sheriff and A. A. BIRD, Hotel Keeper, Rev. CHARLES LORD succeeded Mr. MINER as supply of the Congre- gational church in the autumn of 1846. He came from Massa- chusetts, but had been a missionary at Independence, Mo. He remained until 1854, and bore his part with fidelity in giving caste to our early society, in which Mrs. LORD was a true help- mate. His health, or especially his sight, failed for a time to such extent as to render him incapable of performing the neces- sary work of preparation, when he returned to his native hills in Massachusetts, where he remained, having so far recovered as to be able for lighter service. After a brief illness, he died at the house of his daughter in Brooklyn, N Y. His predecessor, Rev. Mr. MINER, left the ministry a few years after he left Mad- ison, and has recently been engaged in successful business in Kansas.
"Justice was for several years mostly dispensed by Esquire
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SEYMOUR, * who was one of the most active and useful among our early citizens, and was a generous leader in every new en- terprise of whatever kind. As there was no church edifice for several months, the use of the council chamber in the old capi- tol was shared by the Congregational and Episcopal churches. Rev. STEPHEN MCHUGH was the minister of the Episcopal church. The Methodists occupied the school house for their services. There was no church-bell until June, 1848, when one was placed in the Congregational church, and this served for common use of the several congregations for about four years. I well remember the first time I heard its tones, as I was re- turning from my first excursion to Chicago. The bell was not yet placed in the tower, but was placed near the corner of Webster and Main streets, where 'Squire SEYMOUR would have it rung, and when a respectable crowd gathered around it, would embrace the opportunity to secure contributions to be used in payment for the bell.
" The number of improved farms throughout the county was then, but very few, and consequently, in most cases they were far between. My first excursion outside the village in connection with the practice of my profession, was to Sugar river, about sixteen miles. It was not far from the present residence of VARNUM PARKHURST. The patient was a Mrs. LOMARY, and the messenger, SAMUEL PARKHURST. I have the impression that we did not pass more than four houses on the way. My next visit was to JOHN ENSIGN, who kept a way-side inn called the Prairie house, eight miles north-east from town on the old Fort Winnebago road. The houses passed on the way beyond
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