History of Trempealeau County, Wisconsin, Part 23

Author: Curtiss-Wedge, Franklyn; Pierce, Eben Douglas
Publication date: 1917
Publisher: Chicago Winona : H.C. Cooper
Number of Pages: 1318

USA > Wisconsin > Trempealeau County > History of Trempealeau County, Wisconsin > Part 23

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are worthy characteristics and made the Scandinavians a powerful factor in the development of this county. Labor was an absolute necessity in the building of homes and transforming the wild country into productive farms. Being honest and steady workers, they were sought by the older settlers as farm hands, artisans, salesmen, and so on, and they eagerly availed them- selves of the opportunities when not needed on their claims.

Compared with their English, Scotch and Irish fellow pioneers, they were at a decided disadvantage, not being conversant with the language of their adopted country. Consequently, very few of them held public office or clerical positions-at any rate out of all proportion to their numbers or natural abilities. They were, however, well equipped in their own language, they could all read, most of them write and cipher, and many enjoyed higher education. Weekly newspapers were soon found in every home, and they were as well posted on current events as their English-speaking brethren. Therefore, though not foremost on the public rostrum, they were an intel- ligent and safe factor in the settlement of all public questions. Their patriotism and loyalty to the land of their adoption is evidenced by the number of volunteers that went forth from among them to save the Union during the dark days of the Rebellion, and their record for valor is second to none.

Of the manual labor that has gone into the development of this county, no nationality has contributed so much as the Scandinavians. Go where you will throughout this county and see the fertile, well-fenced farms, with their comfortable homes, spacious and well-painted barns and other farm buildings, good roads and substantial bridges, fine public buildings and parks, business houses and manufacturing establishments, it would be hard to point to that which has not some of the Scandinavian brain or brawn in its make-up, for which the pioneer directly or indirectly deserves credit.

Taken collectively, they had their faults as well as their virtues, but their good traits outweighed their bad ones, leaving the balance in their favor. This is the heritage they left to the cosmopolitan population of Trempealeau County of today. (By Peter H. Johnson.)

Scandinavian Settlers. In the spring of the year 1854, there was a large number of immigrants that left their native home, Hardanger, Nor- way, for the United States. Most of them settled temporarily in Dane and Columbia counties, this State.

At that time government lands that seemed to be of any value in these counties were taken up by settlers and speculators. These sturdy young men and women, without any means to buy the higher-priced lands held by speculators, and desiring to procure a home of their own without running too much in debt, began to look around for cheaper lands.

In 1855 the first immigration of Norwegians began in Trempealeau Valley, and the rumors of the fertile villages of Trempealeau and Jackson counties began to spread.

In 1857, Iver K. Syse, Iver and his son Orjans Torblaa arrived into North Beaver Creek. Mr. Syse settled in Trempealeau and the two Tor- blaas across the line in Jackson County.

In 1858 the following arrived: K. K. Hallanger, Knut Richelson, the

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two brothers, Thomas and Nels Herreid, the latter the father of C. N. Herreid, once Governor of South Dakota, Ole N. Skaar, Tosten R. Thompson, Nels B. Henderson, Lars Hanson, Ole Ellingson and Ole I. Dale.

In 1859, Simon Nelson, Torkel Gunderson, Arne Arneson, Torkel Hal- dorson, Haldor and Iver Torkelson and Anve O. Saed and several others arrived. These settled in the valley east and west of the county line in the vicinity of what was formerly known as Hegg Postoffice. The largest part of these settlers arrived on the same ship in 1854, including Knut K. Hage- stad, Sr., and family.

The first settlers in Bear Creek Valley in 1858 were aforesaid Ole Ellingson, Lars Knutson, from Nummedahl, and Helge Knutson from Hal- lingdal. He served in the army and died in a Southern hospital in 1864. His brother, Anders Knutson, arrived three years later.

In 1860, Knut K. Hagestad, Sr., Lars Grinde, the two brothers Lars B. and Gullick Johnson, D. O. Hagestad, Lasse Olson and several others arrived.

The Brovold and Instenes families, Jens K. Hagestad, Hendrick Sven- son, Halvor Skjeie, and five brothers of Thomas and Nels Herreid, with numerous others, arrived and settled in the valley in the '60s.

The first Norwegian Lutheran church organization was perfected in 1858. In 1859 the congregation decided to build a church, as the primitive farm dwellings were very inconvenient for religious gatherings. A large part of the dwellings were dug-outs in the side-hills, with Mother Earth for floors and walls, and poles, marsh hay and sod for roofing. Those that were more able built log houses 12 by 12 or 12 by 14, and the more pretentious structures were 16 by 16 by 10 feet high. The roofing consisted mostly of shakes cut out of oak logs with straight grain in 2-foot lengths and split similar to shingles with a broad ax for cleaver, and evened off to proper thickness with a hand ax.

After they had decided to build the church, every male member of the congregation that was able to swing an ax joined together and went south over the hills into South Beaver Creek to cut logs for the building. They were allowed for the sum of $4.00 to cut the logs that were needed for the structure 24 by 30 by 12 feet high on the lands of Ole Olson, a Swede. The logs were hewed in the woods and hauled in the winter of 1859-60, and the church was built likewise by the members in 1860-61. There was no money to spare to hire carpenters to do the work, but most of them were handy with tools, and all were willing to do their share of the work. This was the first Norwegian Lutheran church built in Western Wisconsin.

The old log church was superseded by a more modern frame structure in the early '70s. After the new church was completed, the old church was sold to Baard O. Herreid, who moved it onto his farm one and one-half miles north of Hegg, and it is now used for a dwelling house.

The first School District of the North Branch of Beaver Creek was organized in 1861, now known as the Hegg district, and the Bear Creek District was organized in 1862.

The main promoter and organizer of the Ettrick Scandinavian Mutual Insurance Company was Jens K. Hagestad, who came into the valley in 1867 and bought the Iver K. Syse farm in 1868. The company was incorporated

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under the laws of the State February 16, 1877, and commenced business April 4, 1877, with the following officers: Jens K. Hagestad, President ; N. L. Tolvstad, Secretary, and Iver P. Engehagen, Treasurer, who has served the company as Treasurer up to the present time. (By E. J. Brovold.)

The County in 1871. At the close of school in March, 1871, I knew little of Trempealeau County personally, outside of Trempealeau Village, Galesville and the Prairie. The county was generally spoken of as the Tamarack, the Openings, Caledonia, Black River, Decorah Prairie, Hardy Creek, Beaver Creek, French Creek, Lake Cooley, Over the Pass, Holcomb Cooley, Over the Ridge, Square Bluff, American Valley, Travis Valley, Chimney Rock, Elk Creek, Bruce Valley, and the Beef River Valley. The county was localized in these terms, but the territory was not definite, as each overlapped the others nearby. The postoffices, as I recall them, were Trempealeau, Galesville, Ettrick, Arcadia, Pigeon Falls, Chimney Rock, Osseo, and Hamlin. The natural objects in the county were Trempealeau Mountain, Trempealeau Lake, Trempealeau Bluffs, Decorah Peak, Whistler Pass, Barn Bluff, Square Bluff and Chimney Rock. They no doubt will remain a monument to the Almighty power to whom all nature responds.

I had then been no farther north than the one trip to Arcadia Christmas Eve, but I knew of Caledonia as the home of Donald and Alex McGilvray, Joshua Rhodes, Charles Holmes, D. D. Chappell, Pussy Williams, John Bohrnstedt, Christian Schmidt, Thomas Hayter, John Arntz, William Suttie, Frank Bender, Ira Ramsden, John Hess, R. C. Towner, John Towner, Gilbert Gibbs, Al Gibbs, William Post, Moses Ladd, Charles Pickering, J. C. Poly- blank, C. C. Bigelow and Mr. Beardsley.

Over the Pass-Dodge, not then organized, as the home of Mat Brom, R. Baumgartner, Charles Keith, Jake Schaffner, Joe Pellowski, Paul Rud- neck, J. L. Sanderson, Joseph Utter, Frank Rushka, John Wier, Andrew Losinski, John Wicke, Peter Pellowski and Charles Cleveland.

Ettrick as the home of Iver Pederson, C. G. Beach, Robert Cance, Con Lynch, Maurice Casey and James McCarthy.

Burnside as the home of George H. Markham, A. A. Markham, Giles Cripps, Martin W. Borst, Lee Hutchins, William Russell, D. C. Cilley, John Haakenson and James Reid.

Arcadia as the home of Dr. I. A. Briggs, N. D. Comstock, Collins Bishop, Gay T. Storm, D. C. Dewey, John D. Lewis, H. B. Merchant, Douglas Arnold, Jerry O'Brien, James Gaveney, David Massuere, Daniel Bigham, John Big- ham, Thomas Simpson, Carl Ernst, George Webb, Isaac Newcomb, D. L. Holcomb, Frank Zeller, Carl Zeller, Phillip and Henry Hartman, William Bohman, Christian and John Haines, J. W. Ducker, Henry Pierce, J. B. Gorton, Joseph Kellogg, Louis and Simon Wojczik, Andrew Pietrick, Ole O. Peterson, Joseph Stahoski, William Robertson, George Dewey, Henry Dewey, Sidney Conant, Alexander Bautch, Ole A. Hegg, John Wool, Nic, Casper and Peter Meyers, Emory M. Stanford, Thomas Busby, Jonathan Busby, Ira Penny, John Truman, Herman Tracy, Dr. G. N. Hider- shide, Dan English, A. F. Hensel, Frank Pellowski, John Tuschner, P. II. Varney, Charles Mercer, J. H. Gleason, P. Tucker, Peter Case and William Arnold.

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Lincoln as the home of Thomas Lake, David Wade, Henry Stratton, Henry Freeman, F. W. Ingalls, Moses B. Ingalls, David Wood, Alvah Wood, G. M. Follette and Mr. Irving.

Preston as the home of Henry Lake, James McKivergin, Gullick Olsen and Henry Carpenter.

Hale as the home of M. J. Warner, David Maloney, Robert Warner, Silas Parker, D. S. Watson and Charles Wagoner.

Pigeon as the home of Peter Ekern, J. D. Olds, George Olds and H. A. Fremstad.

Albion as the home of D. J. Odell, M. B. Gibson, R. P. Goddard, Ed. Borwell, Henry Teeple, A. and D. Wingad and Mr. Englesby.

Sumner and Beef River Valley as the home of R. C. Field, J. L. Linder- man, Ed. Matchette, Charles Shores, V. A. Gates, William Henry, Otto Langerfield, W. F. Carter, Alex. and John Tracy, W. H. Thomas, P. B. Williams, D. J. Lyon, Ben Webster, James Rice, Dennis Lawler, D. L. Rem- ington, Thomas Cox, V. W. Campbell, James King, Hezekia Hyslop, Scott Hotchkiss, Elias Gay, F. Fuller, John Lovesey, William Lindsay, James McIntyre, Henry Gilbert, John Carter, William Boyd, Zeb, John and Cosle Jones, James W. Grant and William Tomlinson and Robert Bowers.

There are other names which deserve mention and a place on this list that do not come to my memory after forty-one years of active busy life of responsibility and cares. I trust no person or family will feel disappointed or slighted in the omission of names from these lists. There has been no wish or purpose to leave any name off these lists; and if names are not cor- rectly spelled such errors were unintentional and unavoidable. To prepare such lists after a long span of years is not an easy task.

At the time of which I write, Whistler Pass, a fall or dent in the bluff above the farm of James Field, over which the highway was built from the Prairie and the Tamarack Valley into the Trempealeau Valley, now in the town of Dodge, was a term of frequent mention, and much of the travel from the western part of the territory over the ridge was on that highway. The Pass attracted my attention through curiosity, no doubt, and led me to make an early visit to it. From Martin's Corners the Pass was plainly seen to the north. Whistler Pass remains, but has lost much of its frequent mention, and of its early notoriety.

Many Winnebago Indians were then camped and lived much of the year along the river above Trempealeau Village, and one village near Trempealeau Lake was said to number 800 or more people, a portion of whom were of mixed blood. Several "half-breed" families lived in Trempealeau Village, the men generally being strong, fine-looking fellows, the most distinguished among them being Antoine Grignon, and some of his descendants, with those of the Bibault family, have been and are residents of the county, and on the whole have been good citizens. Thede Booher was styled "The Big Indian," a name generally applied to him about the county to the time of his decease.

Trempealeau Village, in the fall of 1870, was a thriving, busy place, its streets and market-places full of teams, and its business places full to

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overflowing with country people, farmers who came to market produce and purchase farm and home supplies. They came from Decorah Prairie and beyond Black River; from the head of Beaver Creek Valley nearly to Black River Falls; from the head of the Trempealeau Valley nearly to Merrilan; from Pigeon Creek northeast into Jackson County; from the Elk Creek valleys and over the ridge in Beef River Valley; they came from Chimney Rock Valley, and the Traverse Valley away out in the Mondovi country. Many came to the Trempealeau market 30, 40, 50 and 60 miles. Before this I had not seen so busy a mart, emporium, entrepot, or place of traffic as was the beautiful village of Trempealeau nestling at the foot of Trempealeau Bluffs, and fronting on the Mississippi River, with its teeming activity of soil products and human freight carried by the then wonderful Mississippi River steamers, with skow bottom, and of ponderous width.

The most frequently mentioned as wealthy people in the county, as I recall, were Ben Healy, John Rhodes, W. A. Johnston, Isaac Clark, Wilson Davis, George H. Markham, and R. C. Field. The most popular politicians in the county, that is, the most likely to be elected when candidates for office, were N. D. Comstock, A. A. Arnold and A. W. Newman. The most noted horsemen were Moses King and Lee Hutchins. The wittiest lawyer was Frank Utter. Among the jolliest men were Ralph Martin, Pussy Williams, Marvin Babbit, Sr., Thomas Sutcliff, Jimmy Field and Henry Teeple. The most popular man with the women was Gay T. Storm. The most frequently mentioned clergymen were James Squier and D. O. Van Slyke. The most powerful men were Jack McCarthy, Aaron Kribs and John Bugbee. The only brewer was Jacob Melchoir; the leading miller was Wilson Davis, and the best known butcher was Bill Blume. The noted Indians were old Chief Black Hawk and "Big Indian," Thede Booher. The most skillful blacksmith was J. B. Ingalls, while the greatest threshers were Jim Merwin and Ike Wright. The leading saloonkeeper was Pete Eichman, and the most dead-sure rifle shot was Bob Nibs. The great mule-driver was Philo Beard, and the best known stage-driver was Jerry Webber. It is my impression the most noted singers were the Grignon sisters. Others, no doubt, deserve mention, but memory fails me.

Some of the pioneer women of Trempealeau County had been delicately reared, most of them had known the comforts of life, all had left associa- tions which were dear to them. The sundering of these ties was not easy, nor was it a condition to be sought. It is but natural that they were strongly attached to their old homes, friends and comforts. Ties of kindred and friendship were to be broken; comfortable homes left behind; friends of a lifetime to be parted with, when with their husbands they set their faces westward for a new life and new homes, they knew not where. All beyond the city of Buffalo was then the West, Detroit was in the West, and Chicago and Milwaukee were in the far West. In many instances they knew it must be among strangers, and that privations, and even extreme dangers, were to be met and mastered-at least endured. These pioneer women shared in all the toils of weary journeys, in sunshine and in storm. ever westward. They did not grumble of the coarse fare and hunible, oftentimes rude, accommodations of wagon and roadside: the canal-boat

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and the open stage, the log tavern, and at times the open-air bivouac. These women were always the brave members of the family or the party. Often late in autumn, or in the early spring, not infrequently in the cold storms. the discouraging sleet and mist and the complaining chilly winds, they went bravely on to the very outposts of civilization, over long, lonely and far- reaching prairies, the gloomy forests, dismal roads, often mere trails beset with stumps, quagmire, and where no sign of civilization or human habita- tion was to be seen, except the wigwam and hut of the then dangerous savage. They traveled largely through a country without settlers or any evidence of civilization, at times even making roads upon which to travel.

Can we picture the trials that came to their brave hearts, in hours of bitterness and loneliness, thus removed from the homes and kindred they had left behind-remembrances which must have risen up before them often and often, and how extremely bitter must have been those recollec- tions, and yet, through their tears which must have silently flowed, they stood brave sentinels to their little ones who clung to them for comforting words and care. A word picture fails to give the full facts. Such feelings were natural and nurtured in their hearts; yet they bore these and other burdens as bravely as did the renowned "mothers of ancient Sparta." Who will, I ask, who can pay these pioneer women of the West, and of Trempealeau County, the full measure of praise they so richly deserve?

The many sports and pleasures for the pioneer man, such as hunting the deer, the wolf, the wild fowls and other game; the sport of fishing, and the pleasure of roaming at will, all suitable to the rougher nature and coarser tastes of man were denied to these women, who with their chil- dren were shut up in log cabins or rude huts, often without floors, doors, or windows,-often filled with smoke and into which the chill of winter whistled, and the stars at night looked down upon those faithful women and mothers and their sleeping children; often with no furniture except the rudest kind, and without kitchen utensils save kettle and frying-pan, and almost totally destitute of crockery,-seldom even with tinware, they made that dearest condition of life, the home, possible and a positive fact. For weeks, for months and even for years in a continued struggle with- out modern-day conveniences and helps, they struggled and they won; and these pioneer women helped make Trempealeau County what it is today. -(By Stephen Richmond.)

Cruise of the Spray. One day during the latter part of April in 1866 the little steamboat Spray swung up to the river front landing at Trem- pealeau and stopped for refreshments and supplies for the crew. "She was a trim little boat," said the old riverman, "about 30 feet long and 10 feet wide, and was a flat-bottomed craft with a stern paddle wheel."

The crew remained in town about an hour when the boat pulled out for its journey up the Trempealeau River. Arrived at the Trempealeau navigation became impeded by snags and leaning trees, and a gang of men was kept busy removing these obstacles. Saws and axes were brought into play, and now and then a headline was run out and fastened to a tree and the capstan used to drag the boat over a shoal. Two men stood on the forward deck with pike-poles to shove the boat away from the bank in

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sharp bends of the river, or where shallow water was encountered to take soundings.

Thus the steamboat struggled slowly along up the river, clearing its way as it went, but of all the difficulties met with the wooden wagon bridge was the most formidable, for settlers living along the river hearing of the approaching steamboat where on hand to protest against the damaging of their bridges. However, in every case except one, the officers of the boat persuaded the people who resisted them that the establishment of navigation on the river meant more to them than the loss of a portion of their bridge. Some of the settlers hailed the coming of the boat with joy, taking it as a messenger of progress come to open an easy way to the world's markets, while others cursed the audacious little "Spray" as "another freak endeavoring to establish an impossibility," the navigability of the river. Still others took the steamboat venture as a joke and laughed at the idea of navigating a stream that a boy could wade when the water was at its normal stage. But still they must have looked at the coming of a steamboat more as a novelty than anything else, and made the most of it by being on hand to feast their eyes upon the wayward little craft.

Here and there along the route a few of the settlers would get aboard the Spray, to enjoy a ride on the Trempealeau River. Among these was Daniel Bigham of Arcadia, who boarded the boat down near the old Dan English place and rode nearly to the present site of Arcadia. Dan was interested in watching the boat navigate the river, but says if he had been in a hurry he would have made better time walking. "It took a good deal of time to cut out the snags and trees that obstructed the channel," said Dan, "and when we grounded the engine would stop and wait for the water to wash the sand from under the boat. They destroyed all of the bridges in the town of Arcadia," continued Mr. Bigham, "and it caused considerable commotion among the settlers, for in that day with but few sawmills and a scarcity of lumber it was difficult to build a bridge."

The news that a real live steamboat was actually navigating the modest little Treampealeau traveled so much faster than the boat itself that the up-river people were on hand to welcome the strange visitor when it arrived.

When the Williamsburg settlers heard the shrill whistle of the boat they flocked down to the landing on the Baker place, and as the gangplank touched shore many felt that the marvelous day of prosperity was at hand. In fact a market landed in the burg that day, for the captain of the boat bought bread and eggs from the inhabitants and paid the expectant farmers for it in clean cash.

On the 2nd day of May, 1866, George H. Markham made record in his diary of the passage up the Trempealeau River of the steamboat Spray. The Markhams settled in the Trempealeau valley not far from the site of the present village of Independence in 1856, and Mrs. Geo. H. Markham distinctly remembers seeing the boat on its journey up the river.

The Spray continued on its course up the river until the wagon bridge located three miles below Whitehall was reached, when it was met by David Wade and David Wood, representing the town of Lincoln, who refused it further passage on account of necessitating the destruction of the bridge.

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The people of Lincoln had heard of the approaching steamboat and of its wanton destruction of bridges on the lower river, and had decided not to allow such destruction in their territory. They were practical men and had no rosy dreams of the future steamboat activity on the river, and con- sidered their bridge worth more than the vague possibilities of a future waterway market.

And so the adventurous rivermen turned back, and on the journey down stream they stopped at Arcadia to take on a shipment of flour from the Massuere Company mill.

On account of the current and the river being free of snags and trees the return run was much faster and easier than the up-river trip. At Marshland the boat was laid up for some time, but it finally resumed its course into the Mississippi and completed its round trip at LaCrosse.

Why such a trip was undertaken is somewhat of a mystery. Some say that the Northwestern Railroad Company gave the owners of the boat a bonus for not compelling the road to maintain a draw bridge across the river at Marshland. Others say the journey was made to determine the navigability of the Trempealeau River. Whatever the motive it certainly established the fact that the river was not a suitable stream for navigation. -(By Eben D. Pierce.)

Early Trempealeau. I left the State of New York in the spring of 1851 for the West, traveling by rail, by stage, and on foot, and by steam- boat, arriving at Montoville, now Trempealeau, Wisconsin, on May 6, 1851. As this place I found James Reed. He lived in a log cabin. His business was buying furs from the Indians for the Prairie du Chien Fur Company. While here for a short time I went out each day in different directions exploring the country, going on one trip north to the Trempealeau River near where the village of Blair now stands, finding the country everywhere swarming with wild deer and game of all kinds, and many large or small camps of Indians. The soil appeared to be of good quality,-some prairie, some burr oak openings, some rolling, and high bluffs and deep valleys, with plenty of good pure water, springs, creeks and rivers. After being out several days I returned to Mr. Reed's and then procured an axe of Mr. Reed and went northeast into the burr oak openings, and I selected a claim of 160 acres of land and cut logs and rolled up the body of a cabin, and marked out my claim, cutting name and date on the logs of the cabin, then returned to Mr. Reed's, after having made the first claim known to me in Trempealeau County. I then took the boat up the Mississippi River to look for work, arriving at the mouth of Chippewa River and going up that river to the falls I obtained work for one year at good wages. During the year I wrote many letters to my father and friends in the East, describ- ing the country about Montoville and urging them to come and settle there, and at the end of the year, the last of May, 1852, I returned to Montoville to look after my claim, and finding there a most wonderful change, new buildings along the river, and here and there out on the prairie. Mr. Reed was still there in business. I went out to see my claim and found one, William Cram. had bought the land on the south and adjoining my claim, and was building a log house. I then did a little work on my claim, and

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History of Trempealeau County, Wisconsin, Part 23

Author: Curtiss-Wedge, Franklyn; Pierce, Eben Douglas Publication date: 1917 Publisher: Chicago Winona : H.C. Cooper Number of Pages: 1318

Author: Curtiss-Wedge, Franklyn; Pierce, Eben Douglas
Publication date: 1917
Publisher: Chicago Winona : H.C. Cooper
Number of Pages: 1318