USA > Wisconsin > Green County > History of Green County, Wisconsin. Together with sketches of its towns and villages, educational, civil, military and political history; portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens > Part 38
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Iowa county, notwithstanding the act creat- ing the county of Green, claimed jurisdiction over the latter,-going so far as to appoint two of the residents within the limits of the last mentioned county, as justices of the peace- Daniel S. Sutherland and William Bowen. They were directed to cause an election to be held at the same time with that in other parts of Iowa county-for county officers; but the people were not desirous of recognizing the authority longer of the mother county; so the people, although a number assembled on the day designated, re- fused to vote. Very naturally this state of things could not long continue. The residents of Green made haste to have their county or- ganized, which was effected by the passage of " An Act to Organize the County of Green.
" SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the Council and House of Representatives of Wisconsin Ter- ritory, That from and after the passage of this act, the county of Green shall, to all interests and purposes, be and remain an organized county, and be invested with full power to do and transact all county business, which any regularly organized county may of right do ; and that for the purpose of electing the first county officers, the polls of election shall be opened at the house of Jacob LyBrand, in the town of New Mexico, and thereafter at such times and places as are or may be prescribed by law.
"SEC. 2. Beit further enacted, that the in- habitants of the county of Green aforesaid, are hereby required to pay to the county of Iowa, according to the number of inhabitants, their equal proportions of the debts remaining unpaid by the county of Iowa.
" SEC. 3. That the county treasurer of the county of Green shall audit and pay over to the sheriff of the county of Iowa, such sum as may become due to the county of Iowa, under the provisions of this act, out of the first monies that may come into the treasury of the said county of Green ; and the said sheriff is hereby
258
HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.
required to pay the same into the treasury of the county of Iowa for the use of said county.
"SEC. 4. That the county of Green shall be attached to the first judicial district. There shall be two terms of the district court, held annually at the seat of justice in said county of Green. The said district court for the said county of Green, shall have and enjoy all the power, right and duties, which courts in the other counties of this Territory have and enjoy, and shall be subject to all the restrictions im- posed upon said courts by the act entitled " an act for establishing judicial districts and for other purposes," passed at the first session of the legislative assembly ; and that the courts hereby authorized to be held in the county of Green, shall be held at the town of New Mexico, until otherwise ordered by law.
" Approved Jan. 15, 1838."
It will be noticed that the first election for county officers under the organic act was to be held in the town of New Mexico. By this it is to be understood a village of that name; as there was no town organizations at that date. The election was held "in the town of New Mexico " on the fifth day of March, 1838, ac- cording to law, resulting in the selection of the following persons as county commissioners, no other county officers being voted for :
Daniel S. Sutherland, 66 votes; elected.
William Bowen, 72 votes; elected.
Daniel Harcourt, 53 votes; elected.
Jeremiah Bridge, 35 votes.
William Woodle, 11 votes.
The three first named, having been declared elected, took the oath of office and became the first county officers of Green county.
These commissioners organized what they called a "Commissioner's Court," (equivalent to a county board of the present day, in its functions) on the 26th day of March, 1838. At the meeting of the electors, when these com- missioners were chosen, there were polled 231 votes, indicating quite a population for Green county. Of course, there was but one voting
place-the house of Jacob LyBrand-and the voters, some of them, had pretty long distances to travel, to exercise the right of suffrage. But, by the clection and swearing into office of the three county commissioners, the wheels of the county government were not all set in motion. It needed that other officers should be chosen, and these were to be elected at the coming an- nual election to be held in August-as the good denizens of the county supposed ; so, on the 6th day of that month, they again assembled to enjoy the inestimable privilege of the elec- tive franchise-voting for the following officers, with results as indicated :
Commissioner, Votes.
James Riley. .60
Daniel Harcourt
19
Treasurer,
Jehu Chadwick.
19
Coroner,
Jarvis Rattan
10
A. G. Houghton.
Assessor,
Jabez Johnson
60
David Davis
7
Collector,
Jabez Johnson
40
Register of Deeds,
Hiram Rust
.39
M. Bainbridge. 37
But there were "breakers ahead." By a special act of the Territorial legislature of June 23, 1838, the general election before held in August, was postponed to the second Monday (the 10th) of September, but all this time the citizens of Green county had remained in bliss- ful ignorance of the fact. But now, luckily, it was discovered just in time to save the issuing of certificates to the gentlemen supposed to have been triumphantly elected in the previous August.
At the next exercise by the electors of the right of suffrage, they, besides certain county officers to vote for, also cast their ballots for a a territorial delegate to Congress and for a member of the territorial council, and of the ter- ritorial house of representatives. Green county, at this time, formed a portion of a territorial district, comprising the counties of Green, Dane,
2
259
HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.
Dodge and Jefferson ; all of which participated in the election of territorial officers. For dele- gates to Congress, Thomas P. Burnet had fifty- two votes, George W. Jones thirty-seven votes, and James D. Doty two votes. For the legis- lative council, Ebenezer Brigham received in Green county, ninety votes. He was voted for in the counties of Dane, Dodge and Jefferson, in addition to Green, and was elected to repre- sent them in that body. For representative D. S. Sutherland received in Green county eighty- two, and L. E. Boomer two votes. Sutherland was the successful candidate in the four counties just named, representing them in the legislative assembly. The county officers elected on the same day were A. G. Houghton, assessor ; J. McCracken, treasurer; William Rittenhouse, recorder. James Riley and Daniel Harcourt were selected as county commission- ers, and A. Harris coroner.
The "swearing in" of these county officers and the entering upon their respective duties, (a term of the district court of the United States having already been held in the county) set all the wheels of the county government in motion, and Green county was not only fully organized, but had proceeded to business.
However, before dismissing the subject of the organization of Green county, it must not be overlooked that there was a matter closely con- nected with it which has not been considered. We therefore now call the attention of the reader to
IOWA COUNTY VS. GREEN COUNTY.
It will be remembered that by the second sec- tion of the act organizing this county, the in habitants were "required to pay to the county of Iowa, according to the number of inhabi- tants, their equal proportion of the debts re- maining unpaid by the county of Iowa." Here was an excellent chance for lawyers. How to make them pay that "equal proportion" was the question and for that matter it is still the ques- tion. But Iowa county soon took steps to bring the matter before her neighbor-Green county;
but the latter did not respond by paying up. The ball was opened by a formal call upon the county commissioners by an attorney with the exact amount figured up claimed to be due from Green to Iowa. Just here, let us copy from the county records:
"December 17, 1840.
"The Board of County Commissioners of the county of Iowa, in the Territory of Wisconsin, by their attorney, Robert C. Howard, produced to this Board, a certified stat-ment of debts against said Iowa county, up to March 4, 1837, in which said Iowa county demands of the said county of Green, her proportionable part there- of, under the act to organize the county of Green, approved Jan. 15, 1838, which amounts to $517 and fifty-three cents; and, after mature consideration, the adjustment of said claim is continued to the next January session of this Board."
"January 7, 1841.
"Upon an examination of the claim of Iowa Co., Wis., against Green Co., Wis., as exhibited to this Board by Robert C. Hoard, Esquire, the Board here being sufficiently advised of and concerning the same, is of the opinion that it belongs to the treasurer of Green county to audit and pay over the same if any due, to the sheriff of Iowa county, and that the Board here has not jurisdiction of the matter; and,
"Ordered, That the Clerk of this Board transmit a certified copy of this order together with the said account on file against Green county, to the Clerk of the Board of County Commissioners of Iowa county."
But the Treasurer of Green county would not audit and pay the claim, and Iowa county resorted to the courts for satisfaction. "But," says Miss Bingham, "though the claim was urged as late as 1850, and though the lawsuits to which it gave rise cost the people of little Green as much as the amount elaimed, yet they always insisted that, as they had derived no benefit from the expenditures for which they
260
HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.
were charged, the claim was unjust and should not be paid; and it never was paid."
CIVIL DIVISIONS OF GREEN COUNTY.
Green county was divided, by the Board of County Commissioners, on the 10th and 11th of January, 1849, into the following towns:
Cadiz, township 1 north, range 6 east. Clarno, township 1 north, range 7 east. Jefferson, township 1 north, range 8 east. Spring Grove, township 1 north, range 9 east. Decatur, township 2 north, range 9 east. Sylvester, township 2 north, range 8 east. Monroe, township 2 north, range 7 east. Jordan, township 2 north, range 6 east.
Adams, township 3 north, range 6 east.
Washington, township 3 north, range 7 east. Mount Pleasant, township 3 north, range 8 east.
Albany, township 3 north, range 9 east.
Brooklyn, township 4 north, range 9 east.
Exeter, township 4 north, range 8 east.
York, township 4 north, range 7 east ; town- ship 4 north, range 6 east.
The first change made after the erection of the county into the fifteen towns just named, was the setting off of the east half of the town of York into a new one to be called New Glarus. This was done by the board of super- visors of the county, Nov. 16, 1849. On the 20th of the same month, the north half of see- tion 6, in township 3 north, of range 9 east, (town of Albany) was taken from the last men- tioned town and attached to, and made a part of the town of Brooklyn. Afterward (and in the interest of temperance) two several parts of seetions 2 and 3, in the town of Clarno (both of which are now in the city of Monroe) were detached and added to the town of Monroe. Finally by a law approved March 25, 1882, the city of Monroe was incorporated, forming a new civil division, entirely independent of the towns of Clarno and Monroe, including the fol- lowing territory:
"The east half of the northeast quarter of section 34, and the southeast quarter of section
34, and the northeast quarter of the southwest quarter of section 34, and so much of the south- east quarter of the southwest quarter of section 34, as is included [in] Scott's addition, and the southwest quarter of the northeast quarter and the southeast quarter of the northwest quarter of section 34, all of seetion 35, in town 2 north, range 7 east, and fractional lots No. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 11 and 12, of section 2, in town 1, range 7 east, and fractional lots 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11, of section 3, town 1, range 7 east."
The incorporated villages of Albany and Brodhead (the only ones in Green county at this date, 1884) are not wholly divorced from the towns in which they are located; but are gov- erned by both town and village laws. They are eivil divisions of the county only in a quali- fied sense; they have separate representation on the county board. The village of Albany is in the town of Albany, and the village of Brod- head is in the town of Decatur.
The civil divisions of Green county at the present time (1884) are included, therefore, in the surveyed territory described in the United States surveys as follows:
Cadiz, township 1 north, range 6 east.
Clarno and south part of city of Monroe, township 1 north, range 6 east.
Jefferson, township 1 north, range 6 east. Spring Grove, township 1 north, range 6 east. Jordan, township 2 north, range 7 east.
Town of Monroe and north part of the city
of Monroe, township 2 north, range 7 east.
Sylvester, township 2 north, range 7 east.
Decatur and Brodhead village, township 2 north, range 7 east.
Adams, township 3 north, range 8 east.
Washington, township 3 north, range 8 cast. Mt. Pleasant, township 3 north, range 8 east.
Albany town and village and small part of the town of Brooklyn, township 3 north, range 8 east.
York, township 4 north, range 9 east.
New Glarus, township 4 north, range 9 east. Exeter, township 4 north, range 9 east.
261
HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.
Brooklyn (nearly all), township 4 north, range 9 east.
PRESENT OUTLINE OF GREEN COUNTY.
Range 6 East. Range 7 East. Range 8 East. Range 9 East.
YORK.
N. GLARUS.
EXETER.
BROOKLYN.
T. 4 North.
ADAMS.
WASH'TON. MT.PLEAS'T
ALBANY.
T. 3 North.
JORDAN.
MONROE ..
SYLVESTER
DECATUR.
City of
-
Monroe.
CADIZ.
CLARNO.
JEFFERSON. SPRING GR.
T. 1 North. T.2 North.
Base Line (South Boundary Line of the State). LOCATING THE COUNTY SEAT.
The "town of New Mexico," mentioned in the act creating Green county, where the "seat of justice" was established, was a village laid out by Jacob Andrick ; but, at the date of the passage of the law above mentioned, his plat had not been recorded. It was located within what are now the southern limits of the city of Monroe. As this was the point intended by the law for the location of the county seat, it was believed by some of the pioneers that in- investments here " would pay." Among the number holding this belief was Joseph Payne. Indeed, he rather coveted half the prospective "seat of justice," and made proposals to "Judge" Andrick for its purchase, but this was refused.
Mr. Payne not being successful in his endeav- ors to purchase an interest in "Judge" Andricks village, concluded to lay out a village of his own contiguous thereto. It was immedi- ately north of the "town of New Mexico," and extended so as to include both sides of that now occupied by the railroad track in the city of Monroe. But while the survey was go-
ing on, he concluded to make a last effort to purchase an interest in Andrick's village ; but his visit to the "judge" was barren of results. "Mr. James Campbell, who was Mr. Payne's surveyor, remembers," says Miss Bingham, in her History, "that while they were surveying, Mr. Payne stopped work to make a last effort to purchase a share in New Mexico, and that he remarked on his return from his fruitless visit to Judge Andrick, 'New Mexico isn't recorded, andif the old fool won't let any one else have half the county seat, he shan't have any part of it himself.' "
In order to accomplish his purpose, Mr. Payne resorted to a very cute "Yankee trick;" he finished the survey of his "town," named it when platted, "New Mexico," and then hastened to Mineral Point, the county seat (for Green county was not organized) to get it put on record. The news of this strategy reached the ears of the "judge" soon after Payne's depart- ure and he at once mounted a horse in pursuit with his "New Mexico" in his coat pocket. But he was too late. The last "New Mexico"-the one platted by Payne-was the first to go on record; and the " judge" was believed to be circumvented. But there is "many a slip be- tween the cup and the lip." The people now took the matter in hand.
A petition was cirenlated to have so much of the law creating the county of Green as fixed the "seat of justice" at the "town of New Mex- ico" repealed, and to have commissioners ap- pointed to locate the county seat. The petition was not only sent to Mr. Sutherland, the mem- ber of the Territorial legislature, to be pre- sented to the House, but to induce him to exert himself, a large number of voters pledged them- selves to abide the decision made by the com- missioners should a law pass as requested set- ting aside "the town of New Mexico." Mr. Sutherland's efforts resulted in the passage of the following law:
"An act to repeal so much of 'An act to di- vide the county of Iowa' as establishes the seat
262
HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.
of justice of the county of Green at New Mexico, and to provide for the location of the seat of justice of the county of Green.
"SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Wisconsin, that so much of the second sec- tion of an act entitled, 'An act to divide the county of Iowa,' as establishes the seat of jus- tice of the county of Green at New Mexico, be and the same is hereby repealed.
"SEC. 2. James L. Thayer, J. F. Ostrander and George W. Hickox are appointed commis- sioners to locate and establish the seat of jus- tice of said county of Green.
"SEC. 3. The commissioners aforesaid, or a majority of them, shall meet at the dwelling house of Joseph Payne, in said county, on the second Monday of February next, or as soon thereafter as practicable, and before proceeding to the discharge of the duties assigned them by this act, shall severally take an oath before some person legally authorized to administer the same, to perform the duties of their ap- pointment faithfully, without fear, favor, affec- tion, or any reward or hope thereof; and if either of the commissioners shall violate the above oath, he shall be liable to all the pains and penalties of perjury.
"SEC. 4. It shall be the duty of said com- missioners to make a careful examination of said county, having regard to its present and probable future population, and to locate the seat of justice of the same where, in their opinion, it will be for the best interest of the county.
"SEC. 5. So soon as the said commissioners shall have made the location as aforesaid, it shall be their duty to make report of the same to the clerk of the board of county commis- sioners of the county of Green, who shall re- cord the same, and shall immediately certify to the governor of the Territory where the selec- tion of the seat of justice of said county has been made by the said commissioners, and the governor shall thereupon issue his proclamation
declaring the place so selected to be the seat of justice of said county.
"SEC. 6. The said commissioners are al- lowed $5 per day cach, to be paid out of the treasury of raid county of Green, for every day so necessarily employed.
"Approved Dec. 19, 1838."
The commissioners appointed by this act took the oath prescribed, and proceeded "to make a careful examination of said county, having re- gard to its present and probable future popula- tion, and to locate the seat of justice of the same where, in their opinion, it will be for the best interest of the county." But, as the se- quel shows, they made a choice not at all ac- ceptable to the people. Their report was as follows:
"To the clerk of the board of county commis- sioners of the county of Green:
"We, the commissioners appointed by the legislative assembly of the Territory of Wis- consin to locate the county seat of the county of Green, agreeably to an act entitled, 'An act to divide the county of Iowa as establishes the seat of justice of the county of Green at New Mexico, and to provide for the location of the seat of justice of the county of Green,'* ap- proved Dec. 19, 1838, respectfully report,
"That, after having discharged the duties re- quired by said act in examining said county, have unanimously agreed to locate, and have located the seat of justice of said county of Green on the east half of the northeast quarter of section twenty-five (25), in town[ship] 2 north, of range seven (7) east, at a point desig- nated by a stake driven by us on said east half of the northeast quarter of said section twenty- five (25),-to which we have given the name of 'Roscoe.' All which is respectfully submitted. "JARED J. OSTRANDER,
"JAMES L. THAYER, "G. IIICKOX. "Roscoe, Green Co., Feb. 16, 1839."
* The act that the commissioners here attempt to describe wns the one just given- "An act to repeal so much of 'An act to divide the county of Iowa' as establishes the seat of justice of the county of Green at New Mexico, and to pro- vide for the location of the seat of justice of the county of Green."
263
HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.
As already intimated, the place fixed upon by the commissioners was not acceptable to the people. So, upon representations made to the Territorial legislature, they passed the act which follows, submitting the question of the location of the county seat to the electors of the county:
"An act to provide for [and] establishing the seat of justice of Green county.
"Be it enacted by the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Wisconsin, as follows:
"SECTION 1. For the purpose of permanently establishing the seat of justice of the county of Green, an election shall be held on the first Monday in May next, at which election, every free white male inhabitant who at the time of the passage of this act was an actual resident of the county and is of the age of twenty-one years, shall be entitled to cast his vote for such place or point as he may choose for the seat of justice.
"SEC. 2. The polls of election shall be opened at the usual places of holding elections in said county, and be conducted and the votes can- vassed in all respects as is prescribed by the law regulating general elections.
"SEC. 3. The clerk of the board of county commissioners shall certify to the result of the election, which certificate shall within ten days thereafter he transmitted by the sheriff of the county to the governor of the territory, and if, upon examination, the governor shall find that any one point voted for, has a majority over all the places voted for, he shall issue his proc- lamation of that fact, and the place so having the greatest number of votes shall from the date of such proclamation be the seat of justice of said county.
"SEC. 4. If upon examination of votes, the governor shall find that no one place has a ma- jority of the whole number of votes polled and returned to him, he shall issue a proclamation for a new election in said county.
"SEC. 5. The governor shall in his proclama- tion fix the time of holding said election and it
shall be conducted and returns thereof made in the same manner as the first election, and if there is no decision by a majority of the votes, agreeing upon any one point, then the governor shall issue his proclamation for a third election, and so on from time to time until the question is decided.
"SEC. 6. Before the governor shall issue such proclamation, declaring such place to be the seat of justice, the board of county commission- ers shall make and execute a deed re-conveying all donations which may have been made to the county at the present seat of justice, to the donor or donors, and any and all bonds which may have been executed in consequence of the present location shall be surrendered.
"SEC. 7. This act shall take effect from and after its passage. Approved March 9, 1839."
It would naturally be supposed that Mr. Payne's village, now that the votes of the peo- ple were to determine the question of the loca- tion of the seat of justice, would find strong supporters at least among his own friends, but an unforeseen obstacle now arose. It was a ques- tion of water supply. It would not do to under- take to build a county seat where water could not be obtained- at least by digging wells; but a well sunk to the depth of forty feet on Payne's site resulted in the finding of no water. This blasted his hopes. The pioneers would not consent to vote for so dry a spot. And, for some reason Mr. Andrick, too, abandoned the idea of making his "New Mexico" the county seat. So it was that "Roscoe" and the two "New Mexicos" were thrown overboard and other points fixed upon for competition in this interesting race for the seat of justice.
Combinations were now formed. One was the "Andrick, Wilcoxon and Sutherland" com- bination,-these gentlemen bringing forward a site which they claimed ought to be the one where justice in the future should be meted out; another was the "Payne, LyBrand and Russell" combination,-these men, desiring the votes of the electors for the county seat at a
264
HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.
different point-one considered by them as the champion location.
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