History of northern Wisconsin, containing an account of its settlement, growth, development, and resources; an extensive sketch of its counties, cities, towns and villages, their improvements, industries, manufactories; biographical sketches, portraits of prominent men and early settlers; views of county seats, etc., Part 15

Author: Western historical co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Chicago, Western historical company
Number of Pages: 1052

USA > Wisconsin > History of northern Wisconsin, containing an account of its settlement, growth, development, and resources; an extensive sketch of its counties, cities, towns and villages, their improvements, industries, manufactories; biographical sketches, portraits of prominent men and early settlers; views of county seats, etc. > Part 15

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The next white men to arrive were probably fur traders and lumbermen ; the latter class in the employ of Knapp, Stout and Co. The first logging was done in 1848. A number of the employes of this Menom- onee lumber firm naturally decided to make a home in the new and promising region. Among others may be named S. P. Barker, John Quaderer, James Brocklin, Hiram Storey, Henry Sawyer, C. P. Fuller, John Myers and Edward Delong. The first modern dam- after the alleged Cadot dam-was built by James Brocklin, for Knapp, Stout & Co., on the west fork of Yellow River, in 1863. The following year the same firm improved the Red Cedar for log-driving purposes.

The first saw-mill was built by F. H. and O. T. Perkins, in the southwestern part of the county, in 1862. They operated it until 1867, when the supply failed, and they were obliged to abandon it. It was but a small affair, using a circular saw.

In 1868, the firmn of Knapp, Stout & Co. began to realize the value of the water-power and timber in this section, and commenced numerous improvements, one of which was that of farming. They now own the " Prairie Farm," in the southern part of the county, where they have hundreds of acres under cultivation. By improving the power furnished by the waters of Hay River, this substantial firm now operate saw, grist. shingle. lath and planing mills. The village of Rice Lake has become quite a thriving business point under the firm's management.

The principal industry is lumbering. Immense quantities of pine timber are cut and driven to a mar- ket below on Red Cedar River.

The first settler who came to the county solely witli agricultural intentions was Jolin Banks, who located in the southern part of the county in 1855.

The North Wisconsin Railway, from Hudson to Lake Superior, passes through the northwestern towns of the county, and furnishes a means of communication that will eventually be of essential value to the people there.

The first church erected in the county belonged to the Roman Catholics. The first Protestant services held were conducted by Rev. W. Bird, a Methodist Episcopal.

In 1868, the first mail was carried from Menomonee by James Brocklin, to the post-office at old Barron. S. P. Baker was the Postmaster.

Austin Skinner held the first Justice's Court, the case in dispute arising out of a transaction over a weasel skin.

The first white child born here was a daughter of Michael Jones, in 1855. The first white person to die

HISTORY OF NORTHERN WISCONSIN.

was Miss Ball, whose death is said to have resulted from poison administered by jealous Indian maidens. The first school was taught by Margaret Clark.

The population of the county in 1880 was 7,023.

ORGANIZATION.

By an act of the Legislature of Wisconsin, approved March 19, 1859, Townships 32, 33, 34, 35, 36 and 37 north, in Ranges 12, 13, 14 and 15 west, were set off from Polk County and made into a new county, under the name of Dallas, in honor of George M. Dallas, Vice- president of the United States, between the years 1845-9. The new county was attached to Polk, for all purposes, civil and judicial. The county seat was located at the village of Manhattan.

In 1860, Townships 32 to 37, inclusive, in Ranges 10 and 11 west, were detached from Chippewa, and annexed to Dallas. In the same year, it was taken from Polk, and attached to Dunn for civil and judicial purposes.

In 1863, in accordance with a vote had by the people of Dallas County, the Legislature attached Range 15 of Dallas to Polk County.

By an act approved March 2, 1868, Dallas County was organized for county and judicial purposes from and after January 1, 1869. The county was continued as one town, under the name of Dallas, and an election for town officers fixed for the first Tuesday in Novem- ber following.

The county seat was, by the same act, located on Section 26 in Township 34, of Range 12 west, after- ward known as the village of Barron. By the same act it was made the duty of the Governor to appoint

the first county officers. He, accordingly, made Fran- cis Finley, County Judge ; James G. Neville, Register of Deeds ; James Brocklin, Treasurer; Alfred Finley, School Superintendent ; and D. F. Boswell, Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, which was formed of Rose- man Kellogg, C. P. Fuller and S. P. Barker.

In 1862, the first election was held for town officers. The voting occurred at the house of John Banks. Those elected, however, failed to qualify, and the organization was postponed until 1868, when S. P. Barker, James Vennette and John Banks were made Town Supervisors ; John Quaderer, Treasurer; and James Neville, Town Clerk. Polls were open at Quad- erer's camp.

By an act of the Legislature in 1869, the name of the county was changed, and called Barron, in honor of H. D. Barron, now serving as Circuit Judge of the eleventh circuit, of which Barron is a part.

Two papers are published in this county. The Barron County Chronotype was started at Rice Lake, in 1874, by S. N. Carpenter. It was removed to Bar- ron, under the charge of Fred Peachman; but it is now issued at Rice Lake, by C. F. Bone.

The Barron County Shield was first issued October 6, 1876, by A. Dewey, at Barron. It is now in charge of Walter Speed & Co., at the same place.

BARRON.

The county seat bears a name similar to that of the county. Its site was owned originally by John Quaderer, one of the pioneers. The village is situated on Section 28, Town 34 north, Range 12 west It contains several hundred inhabitants.

BAYFIELD COUNTY.

NATURAL ADVANTAGES.

Bayfield County has no prairie lands, most of the country being covered with growths of timber-chiefly hemlock, spruce, pine, sugar-maple, red oak, elm, pop- lar and white and yellow birch. The numerous streams afford facilities for handling the lumber cheaply. The streams in the northern part of the county empty into Lake Superior, while those in the southern part flow toward the Mississippi. They are bordered by rich lands, easily cultivated and very pro- ductive. There is a good supply of red and brown sandstone. Copper and iron have also been found.

Bayfield County has a coast line on Lake Superior of over seventy-five miles, of which not less than fifty miles are a safe and secure harbor for vessels. This harbor is formed by the Apostle Islands, which shelter it from winds in every direction. There are a number of trout streams in the county. Among the most noted are the Sioux River, Onion River, Pike's Creek, Fish Creek, Raspberry and Sand rivers. All manner of wild game abounds in the woods, especially deer and bear.

INDIANS.

The Chippewa Indians formerly occupied what is now Bayfield County, and many of their descendants

still live there, engaging in the same occupations as their white neighbors. The Indians have a reserva- tion in this county, called the Red Cliff Reservation. Buffalo Bay, Indian village, contains a Government saw-mill. It is one of the most beautiful spots on the lake. Its population numbers 500, and is composed mostly of half-breeds and civilized Indians, who have all adopted the white man's dress. Robert Pew estab- lished a school here in 1874. January 29, 1878, Red Cliff was visited by a destructive fire, which consumed property to the amount of $15,000. The Govern- ment, Mr. Mahan and family and L. O. Clemens were the principal losers.

EARLY HISTORY.

This section is the scene of the first efforts by white men to introduce civilization into Wisconsin. The facts are detailed in the foregoing pages.

October 1, 1665, Father Allouez, the first white man who came to the county, reached the bay. It is be- lieved that for a short time he was located at the place now known as Pike's Bay, the precise spot being un- known. One tradition designates Section 22, and an- other Section 27, in Township 50 north, Range 4 west, the latter on the estate of Franklin Steele. The Jesuit

HISTORY OF BAYFIELD COUNTY.

engaged in missionary duties amongst the Indians, as is related in the preceding pages of this work.

Subsequently two other Jesuit missionaries, James Marquette and Louis Nicholas, attempted to perfect the work of Allouez. They were the next known white visitors to Bayfield. In 1693, Du Luth arrived, and traded with the Indians of "Chegoimegon." Mis- sionaries, voyageurs, fur traders, were the visitors of what is now Bayfield County, at different periods from 1666 to the year 1854, at which date speculators pur- chased lands of the United States, as preliminary steps to the modern settlement by whites.

The first settler of Bayfield County was Elisha Pike, who, with his wife and two children, came from Toledo, Ohio, in 1855, and located on Section 21, Township 50, Range 4, in Bayfield County. He pur- A court-house was built under contract by B. F. Bieksler, of Ashland, in 1874, costing about $15,000. chased an old saw-mill of Julius Austrian, who had bought of the American Fur Company. Mr. Pike . Prior to this time the county offices were located in also commenced farming. private buildings.

The territory of Bayfield County belonged to five different counties before it was set off with an indi- vidual organization.

In October, 1818, the county of Michilimackinac, which included all of the present State of Wisconsin north of a line passing west from the head of De No- quet Bay, was created by Lewis Cass, then Governor of the Territory of Michigan. A new county, with the name of Chippewa, was created by the same au- thority in 1825. This county was formed of territory taken from the northern part of Michilimackinac, and extended along the entire southern shore of Lake Superior.

After the Territory of Wisconsin was separately organized, Crawford County embraced all of this re- gion, the former two disappearing when the dominion of Michigan over them ceased.

St. Croix County was created from Crawford, by an act of the Territorial Legislature of Wisconsin, in 1840, and included all that corner of the State.

In 1845, La Pointe County, including in its area the present counties of Douglas, Bayfield and Ashland, was set off from St. Croix.

In 1854, Douglas County was set off. Up to 1858, La Pointe had been the county seat of La Pointe County, but the seat was then removed to Bayfield, at which action the people of La Pointe united with Ash- land in the effort to form a new county, comprising the Apostle Islands, which was done in 1860. The name of Bayfield was given to the remaining part of the old county of La Pointe in 1866. The county records were destroyed by fire in 1874, and the historian was unable to obtain a transcript of the first organization. The first election held in Bayfield was in November, 1857, when it was a town of La Pointe County. April 7, 1858, the first town election was held there.

Owing to absence of records of the town of Bay- field the first complete list of officers that can be found is for the year 1859, though the town was set off two years before that. The officers for 1859 were : Andrew J. Day, Chairman ; Linneus Matthews and William S. Warren, Supervisors ; J. Harvey Nourse, Benjamin F. Bicksler and George Clark, Assessors ; Peter H. Ley and Elisha Pike, Justices of Peace ; Charles O. Stedwell and Antoine Perinier, Constables ;

T. L. Patterson, Treasurer ; J. Henry Feemeyer, Clerk ; Benjamin F. Davison, Overseer of Highways ; Paul Lanouette, Sealer of Weights and Measures; Andrew Tate, Superintendent of Schools. The first meeting of this Town Board was held April 5, 1859, at which meeting $600 were appropriated for a school building, and $500 for a cemetery ; $10 was made the license for selling spirituous liquors. In September, $1,000 were appropriated for building roadsand bridges to the St. Croix River.

An observatory has been built by the Government three miles from Bayfield, from which can be seen, with a good glass, a part of the north shore of Lake Superior and the eastern part of the Apostle Island group.

The population of the county (then La Pointe) in 1860 was 352; in 1870, 344; and in 1875 it was 1,032.

The present county officers are: John McCloud, County Judge ; John Gonyon, Sheriff ; Louis J. Bach- and, Clerk ; Nelson Boutin, Treasurer; J. D. Crutten- den, Register of Deeds ; W. J. Herbert, Clerk of Cir- cuit Court ; B. B. Wade, District Attorney ; O. Flan- ders, Superintendent of Schools ; E. Pike, Coroner.

Town officers are : Frederick Fischer, Chairman ; A. Tate and Ervin Leihy, Supervisors; J. D. Crutten- den, Town Clerk ; J. H. Nourse, Town Treasurer ; O. Flanders and E. Pike, Justices of Peace ; Wm. Herbert, Street Commissioner.

The Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Rail- road is surveyed to Bayfield, and is finished to Long Lake. Most of the line is graded to Chequamegon Bay. It will probably be constructed through to Bay- field in 1882.

BAYFIELD.

Bayfield is the county seat and the principal place in Bayfield County. It was named in honor of Lieut. Henry R. T. Bayfield, of the British navy, who made the first sur- vey of Lake Superior, from 1823 to 1825. It is sometimes called " The Fountain City," from the fact that in front of many of the cottages are fountains, supplied with water from the hydraulic works.

It is probable that missionaries and traders visited the present site of Bayfield at a very early date. The Bayfield Press gives the following account of the place in 1765 :

"It seems that in August, 1765, Alexander Henry, a trader, landed at what is now Bayfield, and built a house just below Chapman & Co.'s store, and above Col. Banfill's house, occupied by F. Boutin, Esq. He called the place Chagawamig, and says he 'found fifty lodges of Indians there. These people are almost naked, their trade having been interrupted, first by the English invasion of Canada, and next by Pontiac's War. *

* Chagawamig, or * Chagawamigon, might at this period be regarded as the metropolis of the Chippewas, of whom the true name is Ojebway. : * * The chiefs informed me that they had * frequently attacked the Sioux, with whom they are always at war, with 1,500 men, including in this number the fight- ing men of Fond du Lac, on the head of Lake Superior. The cause of the perpetual war carried on between these two nations is this, that both claim, as their exclusive hunt- ing ground, the tract of which lies between them.

HISTORY OF NORTHERN WISCONSIN.

"'The Chippewas of Chagawamig are a handsome, well- made people, and much more cleanly, as well as much more regular in the government of their families, than the Chip- pewas of Lake Huron. Adding the Indians of Chagawa- mig to those I brought with me, I had now a hundred fam- ilies, to all of whom I was required to advance goods on credit. At the expense of six days' labor, I was provided with a very comfortable house for my Winter's residence. My Winter's food was the next object ; and for this purpose, with the assistance of my men, I soon took 2,000 trout and white fish, the former frequently weighing fifty pounds each. We preserved them by suspending them by the tail in the open air. These, without bread or salt, were our food through all the Winter, the men being free to consume what quantity they pleased, and boiling and roasting them

"' I found myself in possession of a 150 packs of bea- ver, weighing 100 pounds each, besides twenty-five packs of otter and martin skins, and with this part of the fruits of my adventure, I embarked for Michilimackinac, sailing in company with fifty canoes of Indians, who had still 100 packs of beaver, which I was unable to purchase.'

"M. Cadotte, who has many descendants living in this vicinity, was a partner of Mr. Henry. Vincent Roy, Sr., now nearly eighty years of age, a man of great integrity and of high standing, has often pointed out the site of Henry & Cadotte's buildings, and even now some of the places where they buried their goods can be seen."

The first settlement was made by a party of nine men, under charge of John C. Henley, March 24, 1856, wIlo, landed on a point now occupied by the residence of Col.

BAYFIELD.

whenever they thought proper. After leaving Michili- mackinac, I saw no bread, and I found less difficulty in reconciling myself to the privation, than I could have anticipated.

"'On the 15th of December the bay was frozen entirely over. After this, I resumed my former amusement of spearing trout, and sometimes caught a hundred of these in a day.

"' My house, which stood in the bay, was sheltered by an island of fifteen miles in length, and between which and the main shore the channel is four miles wide. On the island there was formerly a French trading post, much fre- quented, and in its neighborhood a large Indian village. To the southeast is a lake, called Lake des Ontaonaies, from the Ottawas, its former possessors; but it is now the property of the Chippewas. [ This is probably Ashland Bay .- ED.]

"'On the 20th of April, 1766, the ice broke up, and several canoes arrived filled with women and children, who reported that the men of their land were all gone out to war against the Nadowessies, or Sioux. On the 15th of May a part of the warriors, with some others, arrived in fifty canoes, almost every one of which had a cargo of furs.'

" After giving an account of the doings and adventures of the war party, he says :

John H. Knight. The first tree was felled, and the party erected a log cabin on the spot now occupied by the United States land-office. The cabin was finished March 26. On the twenty-seventh, John M. Free arrived, bringing Maj. Mc- Aboy, a civil engineer, and others, to lay out the town. They came overland from Superior. A dock was built. Hon. H. M. Rice, of St. Paul, had located the land and selected the site for Bayfield. The first family to arrive was John C. Hen- ley's, on the schooner "Algonquin," May 8, 1856, this be- ing the first vessel. Others who came about this time were Andrew Tate, Peter H. Ley, John Hamlin and S. S. Vaughn. Others soon followed. The first steamer to arrive was the "Lady Elgin," on June 16, 1856, and the propeller " Manhattan," July 7. The propeller "Mineral Rock " arrived July 27 with an engine and mill machinery with Mr. Kahoe. The first frame house was built by John C. Henley, July 16, 1856. The first hardware store was started by John and R. W. McCloud, of St. Paul, under charge of Joseph McCloud, in September, same year. S. S. Vaughn opened the first provision store in October. The building of a hotel by the Bayfield Land Company was commenced December 25, 1856, and was finished in June, 1857. It was opened by J. H. Nourse. This hotel was burned in 1860, then kept by George D. Livingston. The first post-office was established in October, 1856; Jo- seph McCloud, Postmaster. Mail service was carried on

HISTORY OF BAYFIELD COUNTY.

between Bayfield and St. Croix Falls semi-monthly. First mail was carried through by August La Rush.

In 1856 a dock was built, and a steam saw-mill erected. At this time Congress had passed several magnificent land grants to aid in construction of railroads, one of them, called the St. Croix and Lake Superior land grant, ex- tending from Madison and Portage to Lake St. Croix, and from there to the west end of Lake Superior and to Bay- field. In 1857 a dock was built by Charles E. Rittenhouse, which has since disappeared.

Bayfield was made a port of entry, December, 1858. In May, 1859, the revenue cutter " John B. Floyd " arrived for service on Lake Superior, with Bayfield as her station.

H. C. Hayward is the present Postmaster and Port Col- lector.

The steamers of the Lake Michigan & Lake Superior Transit Company touch at this point regularly. Connec- tion is made with Ashland by the little steamers " Favorite " and " Eva Wadsworth " daily.

$500 were appropriated for a cemetery in 1859. It is located on Section 28, about three and one-half miles west of the village.

The anticipated railroad from Bayfield to St. Croix [in aid of which a grant of land, now known as the "Bayfield and St. Croix land grant," had been bestowed by Congress, which, it was believed, would cause Bayfield to excel even Chicago in business enterprise] had induced many East- ern people to purchase lots in Bayfield at enormous prices. In 1857, when all fictitious enterprises disappeared, the illusion was dispelled.

In 1860, Mr. McAboy's residence was burned. In Au- gust, 1862, two buildings and a store belonging to Mr. Mc- Aboy and Mrs. Day were burned. The Bayfield House was destroyed by fire, March 10, 1863. The Herbert House was burned March 12, 1872, and in 1874, three buildings- one containing some of the county records, and another the Indian Agency offices-were burned. This was the largest fire Bayfield ever experienced.

The village of Bayfield is well built ; the land gradually rises at an easy grade until one gets back about two miles, where it is several hundred feet above the lake, giving all who build a fine view of the bay. The streets are lined with shade trees, its sidewalks kept in good repair, and the whole place has a neat and substantial look. A system of water-works supplies almost every house in the town with pure spring water.

Large quantities of some of the finest building material in the West, are obtained from the red sandstone quarry in the harbor.

The harbor at Bayfield is constantly dotted with sail- boats and vessels, and upon the completion of a railroad, the village will, in all probability, become one of the finest Summer resorts in the country.

The harbor is formed by islands which shelter it from the wind in every direction. It is magnificent in its sur- roundings and perfect in all its details. It is the only har- bor on Lake Superior that does not require engineering skill to complete and be made serviceable. It is large enough to accommodate any amount of shipping, no sunken rocks or dangerous reefs, and the largest draught vessels float in its waters without grounding ; the largest steamers can land with safety in the most boisterous weather. It opens earlier and closes later than any other harbor, it be- ing inside the currents of wind that drift the field-ice and icebergs across the face of, and into the bays.

As a commercial point in the manufacture and shipment of lumber she has all the elements requisite to build up a heavy business, equal to any point on the lakes. The fish- eries in this vicinity are unexcelled, the field being unlim-

ited and the markets good; in this branch a big busine .. has been built up which is assuming immense proportions. The shipment of tan bark is carried on to quite an extent.

As a Summer resort Bayfield comes in for a large share of the patronage. The town site includes almost every variety of surface, at some points forming beautiful terraces one above the other, and from all points a fine view of the lake is seen.

Schools .- The first school was opened December 1. 1856, in the upper room of S. S. Vaughn's building; it was kept up by subscription ; was taught by Miss Rebecca Mc- Aboy ; it was closed in March 1857. Another school was opened October 1, 1857, by Rev. Joseph Peet; this was also kept up by subscription. This school was closed the follow- ing Spring.

At the first town meeting, held April 7, 1858, Andrew Tate was elected Town Superintendent of Schools, who proceeded to organize the first school district. The first school meeting was held May 1, 1858 ; at this meeting the following officers were elected : John C. Henley, Director ; A. J. Day, Treasurer ; W. S. Warren, Clerk. The first public school was opened July 19, 1858, Miss Sara Ma- han, Teacher, who came from Cleveland, Ohio. The first school building was erected in the Summer of 1872. In 1876 another school was built on the bay about a mile and one-half above town, which has since been abandoned. The present attendance is about fifty: the school is first class in every respect, has good teachers and considered one of the best schools in northern Wisconsin.

Religious .- The first religious services were held in 1856, in different houses, by William S. Warren, of the Metho- dist Church. An organization was perfected in August, 1857, Rev. James Peet, as pastor.

A Presbyterian Church was organized in the Fall of 1856 ; Rev. T. R. Elder was the pastor. Both these organ- izations erected churches. Neither of these denominations now hold any services, and have passed out of existence ; both churches have been sold and are now used as private dwellings.

Christ Church Episcopal Mission .- Lay readings were commenced in October, 1869, by Thomas Carrington. . \ mission was organized April 8, 1870, and church built and occupied the following September. Bishop Wells preached the first sermon. In an early day Mr. Rittenhouse, of Washington, D. C., deeded in trust six lots for the benefit of an Episcopal Church at Bayfield, Wis. These lots are now held by the trustees of the church. The present mis- sionary is the Rev. J. A. Davenport, who has officiated for several years. The present officers of the mission are, John McCloud, warden; J. H. Knight, secretary; J. D. Cruttenden, treasurer.

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Author: Western historical co., Chicago, pub Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Chicago, Western historical company Number of Pages: 1052

Author: Western historical co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Chicago, Western historical company
Number of Pages: 1052