USA > Wisconsin > Buffalo County > History of Buffalo County, Wisconsin > Part 26
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But Alma should not possess the dignity of being the capital of this county without having to fight for it at the next town elec- tion, 1861, with the City of Buffalo. This young corporation, in which Mr. Mr. Charles Schaettle, sen., was then the most promi- nent man and leading citizen, made strenuous efforts to wrench from Alma the newly acquired distinction. At that time the own- ers of lots in the city, living mostly at Cincinnati and other places south and east of this state, still entertained great expectations in regard to the future prosperity . of the place, and were ready to make any reasonable sacrifice for its promotion, and. on the strength of this fact, the enterprise was undertaken with the prom- ise of furnishing free of cost, a suitable court-house, of which I furnished the plan and elevation, Mr. Schaettle and others doing the canvassing, showing the plan all round the county. The scheme, however, miscarried, and when afterwards, Mr. Schaettle and some of his then fellow-citizens went to Alma, to possess them- selves, vis at armis, figuratively, of the offices and papers, they were
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prevented from accomplishing their design, ridiculed and threat- ened with violence and compelled to leave, at which retrograde movement they were serenaded by the old fiddler to the tune: " Wender nit bald heigo, ihr Chaiba " which translated from his native Swiss dialect means: Won't you please decamp, you rascals! * C. H.
This is the story of the struggle for capital honors among the leading communities of Buffalo County. After a short time the animosities roused by it subsided, the heated imaginations cooled off, and harmony was again restored.
After having finished this unavoidable digression, we can now return to the chronicle of the county board.
The next meeting after the one mentioned before the episode of the county seat question was a special one, held
May 28th 1860,
the first one in Alma. The county officers were ordered to hold their offices in the house of F. S. Richards previous to the building of a court house. $400.00 having accumulated from the funds destined to pay the so-called wolf-bounty, it was determined to divide this surplus among the towns and corporations. District Attorney Lees declared the proceedings illegal, because, as might be surmised from the record of the proceedings, some other person had voted in place of John Linse, who seems to have been chair- man of the Town of Belvidere, but no notice seems to have been taken of the attorney's objection.
The regular meeting for the year was held
November 9th, 1860,
in the old schoolhouse at Alma. Nothing but routine business was transacted at this meeting.
Next meeting, a special one, was held
July 8th, 1861,
in the same place and in it the so-called Bates' house was accepted as a temporary court house. The campaign of Buffalo City against Alma on the county seat question had compelled the peo- ple of Alma to pledge themselves to do as much as its rival prom- ised to do, that is, to build a court house, but as this could not be done forth with, a temporary abode for the officers was furnished. The house thus furnished was large, but scarcely more than a mere shell. A new court house was however at the time in course of
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erection. The board had met for the purpose of equalization of assessments, which up to that time was done in a separate session. At the annual meeting
November 12th, 1861,
there was an entirely new task before the board. The legislatare of that year had passed a law requiring counties of about the pop- ulation which Buffalo County had at that time to be divided into three supervisor districts for each of which a supervisor had to be elected, to serve for two years. These three supervisors were to have the same powers and functions as the county board as it was originally constituted. I have never learned the reason for this change, and I know that from the beginning it met with consider- able opposition. There is much to be said for and against the arrangement, and the most important objection was always, that the districts could not be arranged to suit the various interests of the different towns. Of course, a member would have to be from one particular town, and the other towns belonging to the district might feel slighted and jealous, although they had nothing to say against the member elect personally. With regard to the busi- ness to be transacted, I think it was almost too much for three or even five men, but I have not heard that any serious complaints were made as to the administration of affairs, although there was always dissatisfaction for the reasons already mentioned. The di- vision itself was made as follows:
District No. 1. Waumandee, Glencoe, Cross and Gilmanton.
District No. 2. Buffalo, Eagle Mills, Belvidere and City of Buffalo.
District No. 3. Nelson, Naples, Maxville, Modena and Alma.
The Town of Modena was established at this session and to consist of Township 23, Range 12 with the northern tier of sec- tions of Township 22, Range 12.
The salary of the county superintendent of schools, of which the first one had been elected that year, and was to enter into office in January 1862, was stipulated at $400 per annum.
The numerous mistakes occurring in assessments, especially by assessing land not yet entered, could not be remedied until an abstract of entries was procured from the land office of the dis- trict, and it was ordered that this should be procured.
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In this session Conrad Moser, Jr., who was deputy for J. D. Lewis acted for the first time as county clerk.
The three supervisors for the newly created districts had al- ready been elected and held a special meeting.
January 3d, 1862.
The districts were represented as follows:
1st district by John Maurer of Waumandee;
2d by John Buehler of Buffalo;
3d by John Burgess of Nelson.
John Buehler was elected chairman for the year. Sections 4 and 5 of Township 19 Range 11 were detached from the town of Buffalo and annexed to that of Eagle Mills. The county court, F. Fetter, Judge, was permitted to be held at Fountain City, until the new court house would afford the necessary accommodation.
Arrangements were made to procure the necessary furniture for the new court house.
Another special meeting was held
June 2d, 1862.
County Treasurer L. F. Binder having died, it had become necessary to appoint his successor, and Peter Polin was destined to fill the vacancy.
Section 36 of Township 21 Range 12 was detached from the town of Belvidere and annexed to that of Waumandee. It was ordered that the proceedings of the board should be published in the Alma "Journal " and the Buffalo County "Republikaner " at one half of legal rates.
The citizens of Alma were allowed to hold town meetings at the court house.
A special meeting was held
September 1st, 1862.
In this meeting it was resolved to petition the Governor of the state to cause all Indians to be removed. There were none in Buf- falo County, and hardly a handful in any county within fifty miles from it, but at that time the outbreak of the Sioux in Min- nesota took place and everybody was scared. Panics are always unreasonable, for the Indians in our neighborhood, if any there were, had more reason to be scared than the white population, of whom there were perhaps many hundredfold more, who on sus- picion might have made rough work with the poor redskins.
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In this session it was resolved that the following registered town plats should be vacated:
City of Belvidere, Buehler's Addition to Fountain City, the City or Village of Upper Fountain City.
Annual meeting held
November 11th, 1862,
John Burgess was elected chairman.
The treasurer was authorized to exchange tax certificates on village lots in his office for such certificates on land. It was re- solved to vacate Bishop's Addition. the Lower Addition and Pat- terson's Addition to Fountain City. The salary of the county clerk was fixed at the sum of $800 annually. Up to that time he had his fees on redemption of tax certificates and other transac- tions. The County Judge was requested to move his official quart- ers to the court house.
At the special meeting
December 1st, 1862,
the making up of the jury list was the main transaction.
Another special meeting was held
March 24th 1863,
in which Sections 6 and 5, and the West Half of Section 4 of Township 21, Range 12, were detached from the town of Belvidere and annexed to that of Alma.
Some discussion was held on the subject of altering the Foun- tain City and Alma road in such a manner as to avoid building a bridge at the mill dam in Eagle Mills.
At the special meeting held
July 6th, 1863,
the re-establishment of the supervisor districts was the order of the day. No changes were made in them.
There is something said in the proceedings of this session about a petition to the Attorney General of the State, or rather an inquiry, concerning a supposed mistake on the part of J. A. Tester, Deputy County Treasurer in signing tax certificates without first signing the name of County Treasurer Polin. This was about the time when everything began to be scrutinized by the piercing eyes of our lawyers, and flaws, real or supposed, were made capital in the industry of politics, though this particular case did not afford very much opportunity for that. I can not now remember how
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the matter terminated, which affords me sufficient reason for sup- posing that the alleged mistake finally was no mistake at all, and at the worst only the omission of a customary but not essential formality.
The board met
July 13th, 1863,
for the purpose of equalization ef assessments.
The annual meeting convened
November 10th, 1863,
but was adjournedto November 16th.
It was resolved that the County Superintendent of Schools should receive a salary of $400 per annum, provided that he furn- ish from the teacher or teachers of every school district a certificate of having spent two whole days in the school. In case of such cer- tificates not forthcoming the fourth quarter of said salary should be withheld and he should receive but $300.00. Did it not occur to the gentlemen: 1. That the law prescribed the duties of the superintendent, and gave them no authority whatever in the mat- ter? 2. That they virtually made the superintendent dependent upon those, who by law were under his jurisdiction? 3. That a superintendent (or any other officer) who needed such a whip to be driven to perform his duty, was not worth having under any circumstances ?
This was a most unwarranted and gratuitous insult to the su- perintendent elect, Mr. C. F. Kingsland, and the only excuse, such as it is, for this resolution might be, that it was only intended to give the people at large a favorable impression of the severity of the county board in official matters.
The salary of the District Attorney was fixed at $400.00; that of the County Treasurer at $600.00.
$100 were appropriated for the purchase of a safe of Mr. Fin- kelnburg. The Treasurer was required to give $16,000.00 offi- cial bonds.
Sections 25 and 36 of Township 22, Range 12, were detached from the town of Alma and annexed to that of Wau mandee.
Adjourned to November 21st, probably to give the clerk and treasurer time to make up their reports. Why they should have required so much extra time, does not appear. One matter, how- ever, which had been allowed to go on and to grow into an accum-
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ulated nuisance may have been at the bottom of it. This was the issue of illegal tax certificates, a large per cent. of which were on land not entered at the time of assessing it, and another large per cent. originating in the inexperience of those, who had to do the preliminary work, the balance being due to other accidental neglects or errors, which will happen under the most rigid system and scrutiny. The abstract of entries, of which to every town sucb a part was sent in copy, as contained all the original descriptions of the entered land had been in some degree applied to the correc- tion of the increasing evil, and the mass of the certificates had to be separated and decisions made as to what should be done with the separate lots of tbem. The matter was, of course, very import- ant, but whether it required all the fuss and feathers, in the way of public notices and such things that was made about it, I am, at this distant day, inclined to doubt, There was a plain chance for somebody to show his superior knowledge and consequent import- tance, that could not very well pass unimproved.
At the specal meeting
March, 21st 1864,
the supervisors were:
1st District-John Maurer, Waumandee.
2d District-Ferdinand Huefner, Buffalo.
3d District-John Burgess, Nelson.
It was resolved, that the certificates on lots in the vacated town-plats should be sold at auction during an advertised period of four weeks, and afterwards at the option of the County Treasurer.
An appropriation was made for the construction of a bridge across Trempealeau River, provided that the town in which it was situated was to appropriate the same sum. The bridge was to be erected in Section 10, T. 20, R. 10, which, I think, is about six miles out of the way.
A report on the county road to the bridge in question was de- manded, from Fountain City across the bluffs.
The jail built by the City of Buffalo was to be inspected with regard to its fitness for a county jail. $150.00 were appropriated for extra work performed in the office of county treasurer, most or all of it with regard to abstracts of entries. and illegal certificates, probably also for getting up the plat-books and making the entries in the same.
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Special meeting,
July Ilth, 1864.
Board consisting of John Burgess, Ferdinand Huefner and John Ochsner. Mr. Burgess was elected chairman, possibly at the preceding meeting, and it may also be that John Ochsner was present at the same.
It was resolved that the road across or upon the mill dam in Eagle Mills should be surveyed, field-notes and plat filed in the office of the county clerk, and right of way secured. Specifications to be made, and contract advertised for the construction of the road.
$500.00 were appropriated for the road from Fountain City to La Crosse (via Trempealeau River bridge, I suppose). Might as well have been appropriated for a road to the moon, although, if intelligently expended, it was a proper application of money.
$150.00 were appropriated for improvements in the Buffalo City and Waumandee road.
It was resolved to furnish the County Superintendent of Schools with revenue stamps to put upon teachers' certificates.
The County Clerk was ordered to procure an official seal for the Register of Deeds.
The Treasurer was ordered to advance the necessary money to defray expenses in the prosecution of the case of the State of Wis- consin against Christian Brucker, to be tried on a change of venue in Pepin County. The District Attorney to account for the proper use of the money advanced.
A special meeting was held
September 12th, 1864.
A proposition was received of Ferdinand Mehrmann to build the dam (for his own mill) and the bridges for crossing (mill stream and waste flues) for $1500.00. The clerk was empowered to make a contract, and the necessary sum was appropriated for the purpose.
At the annual meeting
November 15th, adjourned to 16th,
the salary of the County Clerk was fixed at $1000.00 and he was required to give bonds in the sum of $5000;00.
It was resolved to publish the delinquent tax lists in the Eng- lish and German newspapers published in the county, as before.
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An appropriation was made for repairing the bridge across Beef River, above and near Alma.
License was granted to A. G. Remondino of Wabasha for a ferry across the Mississippi at that point and to John Creese for one across Beef Slough at some connecting point.
Special meeting held
July 10th, 1865,
mostly for the purpose of equalizing assessments.
Mr. Remondino required to appear September 2d before the board to have his ferry-charter amended.
$150.00 were appropriated for planks on the Beef River bridge near Alma.
At the special meeting
September 11th, 1865,
Mr. Remondino surrendered his ferry-charter, and the same was transferred to Levy Deetz and one McClarney at reduced rates for the time from May 1st to November 1st in each year, charges for other times according to old rates.
Resolved not to issue county orders for illegal tax certificates until after annual meeting.
At the annual meeting
November 14th 1865, (adjourned to 15th,)
the salaries of the county officers were determined as follows: Treasurer $800.00, and to give a bond of $16,000.00; District At- torney $400.00, and County Superintendent $400.00. The county treasurer's office having been plundered some time before, the clerk was ordered to procure a burglar proof safe.
Appropriations were made to:
The town of Alma for alterations on Beef River Road $500.00 The town of Eagle Mills to improve Waumandee Road 300.00 Robert Lees to pay expenses of Quo warranto suit .: 150.00
Orders were to be made out for illegal certificates.
A reward of $20.00 was voted to Otto Furrer who had found the county orders formerly stolen from the Treasurer's office.
$25.00 were appropriated for the construction of an "ice- breaker " on the Trempealeau River bridge, to which the county had contributed money.
The meeting was adjourned to
December 18th, 1865.
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At this adjourned meeting Sections 13 and 24 of Township 21, Range 12, were taken from the town of Belvidere and annexed to that of Waumandee. The petition for establishing the town of Elizabeth (now Canton) was laid over until next meeting.
The Register of Deeds (at that time Jacob Wirth) was re- quested to WRITE plainly . To understand this, it must be remem- bered that the Register of Deeds for the past four years had been Otis F. Warren, considered to be the best penman in the county at that time. Jacob Wirth, the Register elect, was a one-armed vet- eran, who could, with his left hand write quite well and legibly, but could not be expected to handle the books of the registry, nor to write much into them as he would be tired out by the position he would have to assume for the purpose. He was also much ad- dicted to hard drinking, and unreliable for the actual business of the office. It was a foregone conclusion, that he would have to employ a competent deputy, and the resolution above quoted was perhaps a strong hint to be careful in the selection. But there was still another notion in the injunction. Our lawyers, and other quibblers, had determined that, according to law, and the deci- sions of " ze Supreme Court," the Register of Deeds must actually " write " every word of an instrument to be placed on record, and should not, on pains of rendering the record " void" use any blanks, that is, no part of the record should be partly printed and partly written. Thus the emphasis of the sentence is to be put upon the verb " write " and not upon the adverb "plainly." As this was the last meeting in which C. Moser, jr., was to act as County Clerk, the board passed resolutions of thanks for his able and courteous conduct in the office. Although in general such com- pliments are as hollow and meaningless as most other compli- ments, and as I am afraid that they who passed the vote did not exactly realize the situation, yet I must say, that Mr. Moser did generally speaking, deserve the compliment of having been a capable, attentive and courteous officer. The system he introduced into everything connected with the administration of county affairs, though perhaps not perfect, was certainly superior to prev- ious ways, and in fact simple and comprehensible, and worked very well for a long time. Even at present time we see some effects of it, although they can not be traced out by every one.
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The new board elected at the general election in fall, held a special meeting
February 10th, 1866.
The members were:
1st District-George Cowie of Glencoe.
2d District-Henry Roettiger of Buffalo.
3d District-Harvey P. Farrington of Naples.
Mr. Cowie was elected chairman.
The petition for establishing a town of Elizabeth was again postponed; also, an application of the City of Buffalo relating to the purchase of tax certificates upon lots in the place.
$500.00, probably due on milldam contract, was appropriated to the town of Eagle Mills.
The clerk was ordered to turn over to the County Surveyor plat and field notes on the survey of the road on the mill dam.
A special meeting was again held
July 9th, 1866,
probably on account of equalization of assessments which was duly performed. Other business was transacted as follows: Resolved to pay tax certificates to towns for such taxes returned unpaid as they were entitled to; Appropriation made for the Trempealeau bridge, and $23.05 for costs in the case of the State of Wisconsin ex relat. Gates, against Ferdinand Fetter.
Annual meeting
November 13th, 1866.
Account of Pepin County in the case of State vs. Christian Brusker, $140.00, allowed.
$200.00 appropriated for the road from Fountain City to Black River Falls, and the same amount on the Trempealeau bridge.
The salary of the County Clerk was fixed at $1000.00 and his bond at $5000.00.
Resolved to fine the member from the third district Harvey P. Farrington $50.00 for non-attendance at this session.
Special meeting
January 21st, 1867.
The several supervisor districts were represented by the fol- lowing members:
1st District-George Cowie of Glencoe.
2d District-Lawrence Kessinger of Belvidere.
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3d District-James L. Hallock of Maxville.
Resolved not to allow any accounts against the county until the annual meeting. This resolution was rescinded in the next meeting.
The abstract of entries was ordered to be completed to the time being.
A strip, one mile wide, being the northern tier of sections in the Township 23 of Ranges 13 and 14, was detached from the Town of Maxville and annexed to that of Nelson.
The town of Page (now Canton) was set off containing Town- ship 24 of Range 12, and elections ordered to be held at the schoolhouse at Walker's Corners in April.
Special meeting held
May 8th, 1867.
Account of the Town of Eagle Mills for improvement on the Milldam road rejected.
Also to make an appropriation for the Trempealeau bridge, the matter represented being too indefinite.
$200 appropriated for repairs on Beef River bridge above Alma. $200 appropriated to the town of Nelson for bridges.
The town of Eagle Mills was vacated, but not divided.
The name of the Town of Page was changed to Canton.
The West Half of Section 33 and the East Half of Section 34 of Township 24, Range 13, were detached from the Town of Max- ville and annexed to that of Nelson.
Ordered a desk to be purchased for the use of the Clerk of the Circuit Court.
Resolved to build a Jail adjacent to the Court House and to begin the necessary excavation forthwith.
Special meeting
July 8th, 1867.
Resolved to publish, that at the annual meeting the Town of Eagle Mills would be divided, and petitions for the formation of the Towns of Altoona and Montana would be heard.
Resolved to charge the amount of illegal tax certificates against the town from which, by any mistake or neglect of officers of the same, it originated.
The salary of the County Treasurer was fixed at $1000.00, and his bond at $42,000.00 on account of the large amount of money to
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be collected for building the jail. The salary of the District At- torney to be $500.
The Sheriff was authorized to hold his office in the same room as the County Treasurer.
At the annual meeting
November 15th, 1867,
the town of Eagle Mills was distributed as follows:
To the Town of Buffalo, all that part in Range 11, in Town- ship 19 and the South half of Township 20, all of Town 19, Range 12 and the eastern tier of Sections 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 36, 35, and 84 of Township 20, Range 12.
To the Town of Waumandee the northern half of Township 20, Range 11, and such parts of Sections 1, 12 and 13 of Township 20, Range 12, as had belonged to Eagle Mills.
To the town of Belvidere the Sections 20, 21, 22 and 23 of Township 20, Range 12.
Besides this division there was a general change of boundaries for the better accommodation of the occupants of the parts trans- ferred from one town to another.
The east halves of Sections 2 and 11 of Township 20, Range 12 from Belvidere to Waumandee.
Sections 5, 6 and 7 and North Half of Section 8 of Township 22, Range 11, from Waumandee to Alma.
The Town of Montana consisting of Township 22, Range 10, with the next adjacent two rows of Sections of Township 22, Range 11, was set off, the first election to be held at the schoolhouse in Dannuser's valley.
The meeting adjourned to
December 2d, 1867.
Certain roads were designated as county roads, as required by a law of the preceding legislature, and a special county road tax levied.
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