USA > Wisconsin > Waupaca County > History of Waupaca county, Wisconsin > Part 6
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When they got the load off they tried to keep him till he got sober; but he would start back, although it was almost night. So, after fixing him up as well as they could, they let him go. He soon
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went to sleep, and when he awoke it was towards morning and he was fast to a tree, and unable to tell where he was. It was afterwards found that he was on the edge of the Spencer marsh. He finally got things straightened out, and reached Weyauwega the next night, tired out and nearly starved.
Town officers, 1889: Chairman-W. D. Parish; Supervisors-H. Jensen, C. W. Orner; Treasurer -George Gerold; Clerk-Bert Shaw; Assessor- C. P. Sibley ; Justices of the Peace-M. Burnham, R. J. Wolsey, J. H. Warner, C. R. Brown, O. H. Perry, H. Pope.
CHAPTER XIV.
TOWN OF DAYTON -ITS HISTORY AS WRITTEN BY J. HOLMAN IN 1876-PARFREY'S "PEPPER MILL "-A BEAR STORY.
In treating the Town of Dayton we can not do better than to publish entire a sketch by J. Hol- man, written in 1876, as follows :
"At a meeting of the County Board held at Muk- a, December 7, 1852, Township 21 north, of Range 11 east, was detached from the Town of Lind, and organized as a distinct town, to be called Dayton. It was the first single township in the County separately organized as a town.
"At the same meeting, it was ordered that the first town meeting for the Town of Day-
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ton be held at the house of Lyman Dayton, on the se1/4 of the ne1/4 of Section 15. At said town meeting, April 15, 1853, the following town of- ficers were elected :
"Chairman-W. C. Carr; Supervisors-Samuel Shaw, James Lathrop; Town Clerk-John Martin, Jr .; Treasurer-Thomas F. Thompson; Assessors -J. D. Chamberlain, S. F. Eaton, and H. N. Waterhouse; Town Superintendent-Samuel Sim- cock; Justices of the Peace-L. Dayton, Aaron Carter, and Amos D. Munger ; Constables-Edwin Packard, George Barnhart, and William J. Cham- berlain.
"J. H. Jones also was Justice of the Peace, hav- ing been elected the year before, in Lind. Dayton, Barnhart, and Packard did not qualify.
"It was voted that the next town meeting, in 1854, be held at the house of W. C. Carr, Crystal Lake, ne1/4 of Section 28. The town meeting of 1855 was held at the house of J. H. Jones, Rural; and that of 1856 was held at Parfreyville. Since then the town meetings have been held alternately at Rural and Parfreyville.
"The first settler in the Town of Dayton was a Mr. Hitchcock, who built a shanty in April, 1850, on the farm now owned by W. D. Emmons, nw1/4 of ne1/4 of Section 8. His family being sick, he left the next Fall, 1850.
"Early in 1850, Samuel Shaw settled on the farm now owned by E. M. Sawyer, se1/4 of ne1/4 of
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Section 7, and about the same time Thomas F. Thompson settled on the farm now owned by William Harden, better known as the Ashman place, ne1/4 of se1/4 of Section 7.
"In May, 1850, George C. Van Horn arrived, driving the first team of horses into the town. He settled on the farm now owned by Mrs. Van Horn, Section 7. Van Horn built the first log house in town, on the ne1/4 of sw1/4 of Section 7. The house was not ready to live in until near Fall. Before that time, their only shelter was a carpet hung over some poles, Mrs. Van Horn doing the cook- ing in the open air. Mr. Van Horn broke the first land in town, in May, 1850, on Section 7.
"June 20, 1850, George Barnhart, Joseph Rob- bins, and Aaron L., John and Anthony Forbes arrived with their families, in all twenty persons.
"Barnhart, after living in his covered wagon about six weeks, built a shanty on the farm now owned by E. Gallup, se1/4 of Section 13. The same Fall, 1850, he moved his shanty to the nw1/4 of sw1/4 of Section 11, on the south bank of the river.
"Joseph Robbins settled on the farm now owned by Mrs. H. Taloda, nw1/4 of Section 24.
"Aaron Forbes settled on the farm now owned by John Clark, ne1/4 of Section 24.
"John Forbes settled on the ne1/4 of se1/4 of Sec- tion 24, just where the road from the northwest strikes the town line.
"Anthony Forbes settled in Lind.
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"In July, 1850, Lyman Dayton arrived and set- tled on the farm now owned by Norman Baker, se1/4 of nw1/4 of Section 15.
"We can not ascertain that any others came in 1850.
"Among those who came in 1851 were Robert Parfrey, Section 11, Parfreyville ; J. H. Jones, ne1/4 of Section 10; W. Caley, se of se of Section 2, where he now lives; J. A. Robbins, on the farm now owned by William Radley, ne of se of Section 20; H. H. Waterhouse, on the farm now owned by John Burgoyne, ne of Section 31; W. J. Chamberlain, on the farm now owned by R. Neil- son, nw of sw of Section 7; S. Story, where he now lives, nw of sw of Section 8; O. Dutcher, on the farm now owned by J. Day, se of ne of Section 14; Thomas Morgan, on the farm now owned by F. Shoemaker, sw of sw of Section 15; and Joseph and Robert McCrossen, on the farm now owned by A. P. Hyatt, se of se of Section 4.
"Early in 1852 the following named persons ar- rived, forming what is still called the "Crystal Lake Settlement:" W. C. and W. S. Carr, Section 28; Rev. Samuel and William Simcock, Section 21; Chester Packard, Section 34; Edwin and Sumner Packard, Section 27; S. Randall, Section 21; J. Conklin, Section 22; and S. F. and W. S. Eaton, Section 34.
"Also, in 1852, came F. Suydam, Section 31; John Martin, Jr., Section 19; A. D. Munger, Sec-
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tion 6; A. Carter, Section 20; H. McLean, Sec- tion 25; Joseph A. Lathrop, Section 1; E. Smith, Section 1; R. Rorabacher, Section 19; and Joseph Edwards, Section 22.
"W. D. Emmons, F. Shoemaker, G. W. Stine- mates, J. Stratton, J. Day, A. Potts, and others, came in 1853.
"Among the many who came in 1854 were M. H. Rice, S. W. Hoyt, and R. Holman.
"For the first season or two provisions were not very plentiful. The settlers could supply them- selves with venison and other game withont going far from their clearings, but for flour, groceries, etc., they were obliged to go to Strong's Landing, as Berlin was then called, and some of them went even to Sheboygan and Milwaukee for supplies.
"In the Fall of 1850 Mrs. Dayton was obliged to eke out her small supply of flour with an oc- casional dish of soup, which she made by chop- ping some corn in a bowl. About the same time, bread became very scarce at Van Horn's. Mr. Van Horn, after putting up his log house, had gone with his team to Racine County, to work on a threshing machine, after which he was to return with a load of supplies. But before his return Mrs. Van Horn had got nearly to the bottom of the flour sack; so she went to Mr. Hitchcock, on the Emmons place, to try to buy some buckwheat, of which he had about half an acre standing in the shock. He told her he was going to move away
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soon, and she could have the buckwheat if she could use it. The next day she took her carpet for a threshing floor, and some bags, and went down and carried the shocks together, and pounded them out with a stick, getting six bags of grain and chaff. With the first favorable breeze she win- nowed out a half bushel of grain, and, taking it on foot to Mr. Dayton's, ground it in their coffee mill, and sifted it in their seive, leaving the bran for toll .*
"But Dayton's coffee mill soon gave way to the "Pepper Mill," as Parfrey's grist mill, built in 1851, was called. Parfrey's grist mill was 16 x 20 feet, boarded up and down. The shafts were made of tamarac and oak, unhewn. The wobble of the machinery, occasioned by crooked shafts, was counteracted by tightening pulleys, weighted down with stones. The belts were made of bags, sewed together, and cotton factory cloth.
"It is well remembered that the first grinding in Parfrey's mill was one Saturday afternoon. The next day Parfrey attended meeting at the house of Thomas Spencer. After the sermon, and before the benediction was fairly finished, Parfrey jumped to his feet, and, taking a handful of flour from the tail pocket of his coat, shouted at the top of his voice, 'Here's a sample of my flour !'
"That is a fair sample of the kind of helpmates the first settlers of our County were blessed with. Long live the memory of the pioneer women of Waupaca County ! J. W.
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"The water power at Parfreyville was staked out and claimed by Thomas Spencer in the Spring of 1850, and was by him given to Parfrey on con- dition that he should build a mill and grind a bushel of corn before the mill then being built at Waupaca (in 1851) should grind a kernel. Par- frey accomplished the task.
"Custom increased rapidly, and in 1855 Par- frey took a partner into the business, and built a large mill on the spot where the old one stood. But Parfrey's partner and the hard times of 1857 were too much for him; so he sold his interest in the mill at Parfreyville, and built a small mill at the foot of Junction Lake. But, his financial em- barrassment continuing, he disposed of his mill at Junction Lake, and left the country.
"In 1863 the mill at Parfreyville was thorough- ly repaired by J. D. Kast, after which it did a large and paying business until Christmas, 1874, when it was burned to the ground. In the Spring of 1876 the high water, which was the highest ever known in this stream, destroyed the dam, leaving the water to flow in its old channel, and thus uncovering ground that had been under water since the summer of 1851.
. "Parfrey's house, the first built in Parfreyville, was 12 x 14 feet. It was built in March, 1851, by George Barnhart, while Parfrey was away after his family. It stood on the south side of the river, close by the two pine trees now standing on
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the bank. The pines were transplanted when very small, twenty-three years ago. The road leading toward Crystal Lake now crosses the exact spot where the old house stood.
" The first frame house in town was built by J. H. Jones, early in 1851. It stood on the south side of the river, at the foot of Junction Lake.
"In the Fall and Winter of 1852, Jones built the house now owned by W. J. Chamberlain, in Rural.
"In 1856, Jones built the mill building now owned by J. and C. S. Ashman, but the machinery was not put in operation until 1862.
"In 1853 James A. Lathrop built a saw mill at Crystal River, which was operated until it had ex- hausted the pine that grew along the streams and lakes of Dayton and Farmington, and in the swamps of Lind.
"In 1867, Lathrop & Palmer built a carding mill on the spot where the saw mill stood.
"In 1855, Lathrop & Barnum built the grist mill now owned by E. Gruner.
" The first postoffice in town was established in 1851. 'Nepawan' was the name, and L. Dayton was the first postmaster. In 1853, Nepawan post- office was removed to Rural, and J. H. Jones was appointed postmaster.
"The first public school in town was taught in 1852, by Miss Eunice Randall, now Mrs. W. S. Carr, in the Pleasant Valley neighborhood, in a
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shanty school house which stood on the farm now owned by R. Neilson.
"A private school was taught the same Summer (1852) by Miss Almira Dayton, in one room of J. H. Jones' house, at Junction Lake. Miss Dayton's way of noting the flight of time during school hours was by watching the shadow of the sash upon the window sill, which she had marked off for the different hours of the day.
"The first frame school house was built at Pleasant Valley, in 1854. It is still in use. It then stood a little west from where E. M. Sawyer now lives.
"In the Summer of 1853, Miss Eunice Randall taught the first school in the Crystal Lake neigh- borhood, in the log house of Mr. Simcock. The house still stands on the farm now owned by T. F. Fuller.
"The first school house at Rural was the small house now occupied by William Nickel. One of the first who taught in it was Miss Ellen Jane Jones, now Mrs. J. Ashman.
" The first school at Parfreyville was taught in the Summer of 1854, by Miss Jane Lathrop, in a shanty on the lot where the school house now stands. W. S. Carr taught in the same shanty in the Winter of 1855-56. The school house now in use was built by W. C. Barlow in the Fall of 1856. At the present time there are eight school houses in town.
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"The first preaching in town was by a Metho- dist minister by the name of Miller, and by the Rev. Cutting Marsh, Indian missionary at Wau- paca. Rev. Samuel Simcock also preached during 1852 and for three years thereafter. John Martin, Jr., preached occasionally at Pleasant Valley, in the house of T. F. Thompson.
"The first funeral in town was that of a child of Joseph Robbins, Section 24, in August, 1850. The first adult person who died in the town was the wife of Robert Parfrey, in March, 1851.
"The first white child born in the town was Cal- vin Morgan, son of Thomas and Fanny Morgan, and grandson of L. Dayton, in February, 1851.
" The first marriage ceremony in town was per- formed by J. H. Jones, Justice of the Peace. The parties were James McCrossen and Miss Cornelia A. Jones.
" The first public highway in town was a State road from Weyauwega, in the direction of Stevens Point. It crossed the farm now owned by C. Sheldon, and passed on westward by Dayton's place. The first bridge was built near Dayton's.
"The road from the west, through Rural, Par- freyville, and Crystal River, was laid out in 1852. The remains of the first bridge at Parfreyville can yet be seen, just above the present bridge. Before the bridge was built, the river was forded a few rods farther north, at the place where C. M. Jones' wagon shop now stands.
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HISTORY OF WAUPACA COUNTY.
"The first blacksmith in town was William Caley. He had a small shop in 1851 and 1852, about thirty rods north of the bridge, at Parfrey- ville, on the north bank of the river, where the house of S. H. Conklin now stands. The black- smith shop now in use at Parfreyville was built by R. Holman in 1854, and is the oldest building now standing.
"In 1852, N. P. Judson kept a small supply of groceries, etc., in a shanty on the south side of the river, about one hundred rods west from Parfrey's. He soon moved to Waupaca.
"In January, 1855, S. W. Hoyt opened a store in the wing of R. Holman's house. L. J. Hebard was Hoyt's clerk.
" The total value of all property in town at the first assessment, in 1853, was $9,630.75. Taxes for that year were as follows: State tax, $57.59; County tax, $78.89; County school tax, $25; Town tax, $70; total, $231.68. The town tax included $35 voted to pay indebtedness incurred in 1852, while connected with Lind."
J. HOLMAN.
In 1853, W. C. Carr planted the first apple tree. He raised fruit about ten years later.
The first winter after Mr. Carr built his house, which was 18 x 24 feet, he had to accommodate, for several weeks, four families besides his own -people who had made claims and were waiting to put up cabins. Besides that, he was continual-
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ly keeping travelers who were looking for land. That is the way many of our old pioneers were forced to spend a few of the first years in this then wild region; and we are fain to believe that the majority of them really enjoyed life with a zest un- known after a country becomes settled and im- proved. At least, such is our experience, and we often hear the same sentiment expressed by others who have had pioneer experiences.
We shall give a bear story, told us by Mr. Carr: One day Mrs. Carr went into the garden, and saw there what she took to be a large black dog. She immediately returned, and reported what she had seen. Mr. Carr quickly went out, and found just what he anticipated-a young bear, quite large. As he approached it, young bruin started for the tree fence, and, as it was going through, Mr. Carr grabbed for its foot, but missed it. He then gave the alarm, and his son put the dogs on the track. The bear was soon treed and shot. Carr thinks that if he could only have got hold of that bear's foot, there would have been lively times in that garden-and we rather think the old gentleman is right!
The following is a list of the town officers for 1889: Chairman-P. A. Hamm; Supervisors- N. M. Darling, A. E. Williams; Treasurer-M. E. Barton; Clerk-L. F. Shoemaker; Assessor-E. L. Devine; Justices of the Peace-T. Court, W. S. Eaton.
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HISTORY OF WAUPACA COUNTY.
CHAPTER XV.
TOWN OF FARMINGTON-HISTORICAL SKETCH BY C. L. GREEN. LIST OF EARLY SETTLERS - AN OLD RAILROAD PROJECT.
Historical sketch of the Town of Farmington, read by C. L. Green at the Centennial celebration in the Village of Rural, July 4, 1876 :
"Township 22 north, of Range 11 east, known as the Town of Farmington, was first settled by Ambrose M. Gard, who made his claim in Septem- ber, 1849, on the ne1/4 of the nw1/4 of Section 25.
"As the tide of immigration was fast pouring into the then 'far west,' the country soon became settled. Among the first settlers may be named Roswell Hicks and Granville Jones, who made their claims on Section 27 in the Fall of 1849, building the first house in the town, into which they moved about the 28th of December, having passed a portion of the Winter in a cloth tent at Waupaca Falls, undergoing all the privations and hardships of frontier life; being surrounded by Indians and wild beasts ; living for several months upon corn ground in a common coffee mill, and de- prived of many of the comforts of civilized life.
"The first white child born in the town was Rollin Jones, in 1851.
" The first plowing was done by Mr. Jones in the Spring of 1850. The nearest grist mill being at Plover, in Portage County, they were obliged to
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take their grain there to be ground, taking three days to go and return with oxen.
"C. O. Brown, a native of Sweden, came here in 1849 .* Going to New York in 1851, he returned with about seventy families of his countrymen, a number of whom settled in the northeast quarter of the town.
"On the 4th of July, 1851, just a quarter of a century ago, the patriotism of the country united in the first grand celebration of American In- dependence held in Waupaca County. The cele- bration was held on the farm of Granville Jones, on the north side of Maple Island Lake. The orator of the day was Wilson Holt, then residing at Waupaca. Fifty persons were present, having come from all directions, on foot, and with oxen.+
"As the land in this part of the country had not yet come into market, it could not be entered. It was not until the year 1852 that it was offered for sale. In that year the following named persons entered land at the land office in Menasha: Abi- gal C. Sessions, Roswell Hicks, Horace Dewey, Ambrose M. Gard, William Dudterman, Merrick Barton, John M. Dewey, Caleb Preston, John McArthur, F. S. King, Robert Morrison, A. R. Gray, C. O. Brown, S. Leonard, J. K. Parish,
*C. O. Brown first came in 1850, and went to New York and re- turned with the emigrants in 1852.
J. W.
¡This is a mistake. The first Fourth of July celebration in Wau- paca County was held on Lone Pine Hill, Lind, in 1850. J. W.
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George W. Ross, Otis Beck, Jonas Nordeen, John Harris, Francis Beardmore, A. E. Erickson, Alfred Godfrey, Maurice Hearn, Eastman Arnie, George Roberts, William P. Edwards, and Granville Jones. "April 15, 1853, the town was formed, the name Farmington being given to it by Mr. Beardmore. Previous to that time it belonged to Waupaca.
" The first election was held at the house of John Fischer, on the first Tuesday of April, 1854. Forty votes were cast. The officers elected were: Chair- man - Granville Jones; Supervisors - Merrick Barton, C. O. Brown; Clerk-Francis Beardmore; Treasurer-C. O. Brown.
"In 1861 an effort was made to build a railroad from Fremont to Stevens Point, via Waupaca .* Aid was asked of the several towns along the pro- posed line of the road. Farmington responded by voting $700, also by subscriptions from individu- als. The funds were used, the grading partly com- pleted to Waupaca, and then the project was abandoned. Since that time the Wisconsin Central railroad has been built through the town, giving it good transportation facilities.
"The chief products are wheat, corn, oats, rye, barley, buckwheat, potatoes, hops, and wool.
"An incident of the early days may be here re- lated : A large black bear invaded the territory, and the settlers congregated to drive him away.
*The Oshkosh, Fremont & Wausau railroad.
J. W.
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HISTORY OF WAUPACA COUNTY.
He was driven across Maple Island Lake to what is called Raspberry Island. Roswell Hicks, seizing his large saber between his teeth, swam across the lake and drove him back to the main land, where he was slain by the land forces."
The foregoing well written sketch was published in the Waupaca County Republican, but we copy it from the original manuscript, kindly lent us by Mr. Green. It is in the main accurate, so far as it goes, and we gladly avail ourselves of its assist- ance in writing up the town.
The Town of Farmington is bounded on the north by Scandinavia, on the east by Waupaca, on the south by Dayton, and on the west by Portage County. It is a good farming town, is settled by an enterprising, industrious people, and is getting well improved. It is a good place to settle in, and the emigrant could easily go farther and fare worse than by setting his stakes there.
The first school taught was by Miss Orlie, in the Leonard district-No. 1.
The first school house was built in the Leonard district.
The first church (Lutheran) was built on Sec- tion 10.
Mr. Leonard built the first saw mill. In 1874 he also built the first grist mill.
The first postoffice was established on Section 7, with W. H. Cipperly as postmaster.
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HISTORY OF WAUPACA COUNTY.
The first mail route was from Waupaca to Plover.
The Government survey was made in 1851. The next survey was made by A. V. Balch in 1852. The first store was kept by W. H. Cipperly.
The first apple tree was planted by Francis Beardmore, in 1854, and he raised the first apples. Town officers for 1889: Chairman - Fred Fisher; Supervisors-Thomas Anderson, James Morey; Treasurer-A. Anderson; Clerk-F. B. Pitcher; Assessor-John McFall; Justices of the Peace- Will Beardmore, James Swan, William Topping.
CHAPTER XVI.
TOWN OF ROYALTON -FIRST SETTLEMENT IN 1848, BY HICKS, LEUTHOLD, AND GILL - A GOOD FARMING AND STOCK RAISING TOWN.
The Town of Royalton consists of Township 22 north, Range 13 east. It is bounded on the north by the Town of Little Wolf, on the east by Muk- wa, on the south by Weyauwega, and on the west by Waupaca.
There is much first-class farming land in the town; in fact, it ranks among the best for agri- cultural pursuits, especially for dairying and stock raising. Fruit does well, where cultivated.
The first settlement was made in 1848 by Hicks, Leuthold, and Gill. In 1849 Simeon Hopkins
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came in and made a claim, then went back for his family, and returned in 1850. Others came in 1850, among them John, M. L., and J. K. Hay- wood.
In 1851 came Joseph Favell, William Shambeau, and Marshall Leavitt.
The first water power claim was made in 1850 by Hicks, Tourtelloth, and Gill, who built a saw mill, since burned, and rebuilt.
The first grist mill was built by M. L. Haywood in 1875. It is now owned by Dr. Dawley.
The first store was started by Mr. Ellis in 1853.
The first postoffice was established in 1853, with Bradford Phillips for postmaster. The mail route was from Green Bay to Stevens Point.
The first public school was taught by Miss Helen Monroe, now Mrs. Thomas, in 1855. Miss M. Haywood, now Mrs. Sheldon, taught a private school the year before.
The first school house was built in 1857, at North Royalton.
The first church (Congregational) was built in 1866. The first sermon was preached in 1854 by Elder Stevens, a Methodist.
The first marriage was that of Andrew More and Persis Haywood, in the Fall of 1853.
The first death was that of Hattie Searles, in 1855.
The first birth was that of Josephine Favell, in 1853.
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HISTORY OF WAUPACA COUNTY.
The first town meeting was held at the house of O. A. Rich, in April, 1854.
The first town officers were: Chairman-George E. More; Supervisors-S. Morse, Marshall Leav- itt; Town Clerk-Bradford Phillips; Justices of the Peace-R. Barsteen, A. Wheeler, T. A. Butter- field, H. Sherman; Constable-M. L. Haywood.
The first law suit was before Bradford Phillips, Justice of the Peace, in 1853. The case was " Rich vs. Hugh Sellers."
M. L. and John Haywood hauled the first logs cut at the mill, in 1850. The lumber was used in the mill.
The first apple trees were set out by John P. More in 1855. John Haywood planted apple seeds in 1851. An apple tree from one of those seeds planted thirty-nine years ago is now stand- ing on the premises of his son, M. E. Haywood, in the Village of Royalton. It is still healthy and vigorous, producing excellent apples - having borne, so he tells us, as many as twenty-five bushels in one season. The trunk of the tree, two feet from the ground, measures more than four feet in circumference.
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