USA > Wisconsin > Racine County > Racine > Racine, belle city of the lakes, and Racine County, Wisconsin : a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Vol. I > Part 7
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PASTIMES
But if the pioneers had their hardships, they also had their amusements and entertainments. Too busy to visit during the day, one family would often go over to a neighbor's to "sit until bedtime." On such occasions the women would either knit or sew while they gossiped, the men would diseuss crops, church affairs or politics, and the children would crack nuts or pop corn. And bedtime did not mean a late hour, for all must rise early the next morning for another day's work.
Old settlers can recall the shooting matches, when the men met to try their skill with the rifle, the prize for the best marks-
Chicago March the 20, 1835
on my amoval at this place I informed my Friend Cat P.S. Hubbard. What you wished une interest in our improvement at Port Gilbert. on Oost Duin, which include the Month of the Priv. the Form ali, and a Milt "fear of the Fall 4 miles Wives at which Found we have contracted for the exception If he Saw mill which we promise will an In operation by 1 tb pray for the pourfour . as groung you an interest bak A , Purchase 1 Socapus cent sante underoded qual intranet bing one thing at $1200. which he Days he will let you have at same price There and presous her who would be glad tangusa to get it at the price the game should be unveiling to take $ 2000 for my's Fremme he would not dell at that janice .but i'm my fromis to frauen an instruction
B gin you all the information you very Naque
ONE-THIRD OF RACINE FOR $1,200
A reproduction of Gilbert Knapp's letter to Jacob A. Barker of Buffalo, in March, 1835, offering one- third interest in the new town for $1,200.
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man being a turkey or a haunch of venison. At these matches some wonderful scores were made, and there was hardly a settler who could not have qualified for a sharpshooter in the army.
On grinding days at the old mill a number of men, while waiting for their grists, would pass the time in athletic contests, such as rimming foot races, wrestling, or pitching horseshoes. Then there was the husking bee, in which pleasure was combined with profit. On such occasions the corn to be husked was divided into two piles as nearly equal as possible; two of the guests would "choose up" and divide the assembled company into two sides. The winner would then select his pile of corn and the contest was on, the object being to see which side would finish first. Men and women alike took part and the young man who found a red ear was permitted to kiss the lassie next to him in the circle. "Many a merry laugh went round" when some one found a red ear and the lassie objected to being kissed. The young men some- times did not play fair, for they passed a red ear covertly from one to another.
When the orchards grew old enough to bear fruit the "apple cutting" became a popular form of amusement, when a number would gather at the house of some settler to pare and slice enough apples to dry for the winter's supply. The husking bee and the apple cutting were frequently followed by a dance, the orchestra consisting of the one lone fiddler in the settlement. He might not have been a elassie musician, but he could make his old fiddle bring forth such tunes as "Money Musk." "Turkey in the Straw," "The Irish Washerwoman," or "The Wind That Shakes the Bar- ley Fields," and he never grew tired in furnishing the melody while others tripped the light fantastic toe.
After the public school system was introduced, the evening spelling school offered both entertainment and instruction. At the close of the exercises the young men could "see the girls home" - provided they did not "get the mitten" - and if these acquaintances ripened into an intimacy that ended in a wedding, it was usually followed by a charivari, or, as it was pronounced on the frontier, a shivaree, which was a serenade in which noise took the place of harmony. The serenade was nearly always kept up until the bride and groom showed themselves, and the affair ended all the more pleasantly if the members of the shivareeing party each received a slice of wedding cake and a glass of cider.
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HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
One would naturally suppose that the early settlers, after they had toiled to build up a home in the wilds, would be content to remain in that community and enjoy the fruits of their labors. This, however, was not always the case. Some men were pioneers by nature and disposition. As it has been said of Daniel Boone, they wanted to live where they could hear the crack of no man's rifle except their own. They preferred the freedom of the fron- tier to the older community, with its conventionalities and oft- times burdensome taxation. Consequently, some who settled in Racine County in early days, actuated by this spirit and caught by the wanderlust, crossed the Mississippi and became pioneers a second time. Such men are well described in Brininstool's beautiful poem:
THE OLD TRAPPER'S SOLILOQUY
I've taken toll from ev'ry stream that held a furry prize, But now my traps are rustin' in the sun ;
Where once the broad, free ranges, wild, unbroken, met my eyes, Their acres have been civilized and won.
The deer have left the bottom lands, the antelope the plain, And the howlin' of the wolf no more I hear,
But the busy sounds of commerce warn me of an alien reign, As the saw and hammer echo in my ear.
I've lived to see the prairie soil a-sproutin' schools and stores, And wire fences stretch on every hand;
I've seen the nesters crowdin' in from distant foreign shores, And the hated railroads creep across the land. My heart has burned within me, and my eyes have misty grown, As Progress came, unbidden, to my shack ;
My streams have all been harnessed and my conquest overthrown, And I've been pushed aside and crowded back.
I've seen men come with manners and with customs new and strange, To take the land which I have fought to hold;
I've watched the white-topped wagons joltin' on across the range With those who sought to lure the hidden gold. I've seen the red man vanquished and the buffalo depart, And cowmen take the land which they possessed,
And now there's somethin' tuggin' and a-pullin' at my heart, And biddin' me move on to'rds the West.
There ain't no elbow room no more to circulate around, Since Civil'zation stopped beside my door;
I'll pack my kit and rifle and I'll find new stompin' ground, Where things is like they was in days of yore. I've heard the Great West whisper, and the old, free wild life calls, Where men and Progress never yet have trod;
And I'll go back and worship in my rugged canyon walls,
Where the pine trees croon and Nature is my God.
CHAPTER V RACINE COUNTY ORGANIZED
CONDITIONS PRIOR TO THE ORGANIZATION OF THE COUNTY - HOW CLAIMS WERE MADE-CLAIM ASSOCIATIONS -CONSTITUTION OF THE MILWAUKEE UNION - ENFORCING TIIE LAW - ORGANIZATION OF THE COUNTY - ELECTION OF CAPTAIN KNAPP TO THE LEGISLA- TURE -- THE ORGANIC ACT-KENOSHA CUT OFF FROM RACINE - THE FIRST ELECTION -INAUGURATION OF GOVERNMENT - ELEC- TION PRECINCTS AND JUDGES- EARLY FINANCES-THE LAND SALE-THE COURT-HOUSE -THE COUNTY JAIL.
In order that the reader may have a clear understanding as to how Racine County as a separate political division came into existence, it will be necessary to go back a few years and briefly review the events that occurred prior to its organization. As stated in a former chapter, the territory now comprising Racine County was made a part of Brown County, by proclamation of Governor Lewis Cass of Michigan Territory in 1809, and the Territorial Legislature of Michigan included it in Milwaukee County some years later. It was therefore a part of Milwaukee County at the time Captain Gilbert Knapp made his claim at the mouth of the Root River in November, 1834.
Captain Knapp was soon followed by others. No official survey of the lands purchased from the Chippewa, Ottawa and Potawatomi Indians in 1833 had been made, so each settler selected and marked the claim he desired - the word "claim" in this connection meaning both the tract of land selected and the right to hold it against all comers. There was no way of describ- ing or designating the tract with sufficient exactness to form a legal record, hence the settlers asserted their rights to the lands upon the same principle that nations claim islands or parts of continents - the right of discovery and possession. As a plain matter of fact, the settlers who went upon the public domain before the lands were surveyed and offered for sale were tres- passers, and liable to expulsion by government troops. They were called "squatters," and "squatters' rights" became an issue in more than one political campaign along in the '30s and '40s. Only in a few cases were they driven from the lands by soldiers. the government officials recognizing the fact that the squatters,
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as a rule, were honest, industrious men, who would develop the resources of the country and in time become good citizens.
All over the new West there was a sort of unwritten law that each squatter might select a certain quantity of land and hold it until the government survey was made and the lands offered for sale, when he mist enter it in the regular way, or his "claim title" would no longer be respected. In Eastern Wisconsin this un- written law permitted each squatter, who was the head of a family or a male person over eighteen years of age, to select 160 acres of prairie and 160 acres of timber land as his claim. In other localities the umwritten law was less liberal, each claimant being permitted to select and hold only 160 acres.
In the event of a controversy between claimants, over the ownership of a given parcel of land, both the disputants were without means of legal redress, as the squatter was technically a trespasser and had no standing in law. To illustrate: "A" might locate a claim and measure his 320 acres as accurately as he could by using a pocket compass and pacing the distance along the boundaries, marking his name and date of making the claim upon his stakes, or, if the land was timbered, upon the blazes on the trees, after which he would return to his old home to bring out his family. Upon again arriving at his claim he might find that during his absence "B" had settled upon the land, or, in other words, had "jumped his claim." As neither the original claimant nor the "claim jumper" could appeal to the law for protection, "A" was forced to assert his rights and recover his land by such means as lay in his power. To avoid violence in such cases the settlers established a court of their own, before which all disputes could be carried for adjudication. The first courts of this character were known as
CLAIM ASSOCIATIONS
Hence, the first settlements in Eastern Wisconsin were ruled by a pure democracy - the whole populace uniting to make the laws, and cach citizen assuming his share of the responsibility for their enforcement. At first, each neighborhood had its own asso- ciation or club, composed of practically all the settlers, which made rules and regulations for the establishment and protection of claims. Such organizations were formed at Milwaukee, the settlement on the Root River, the Pike River colony, and at Oak
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Creek and Skunk Grove. Difference in the regulations adopted in these several localities, and the uncertainty as to how far the boundary and jurisdiction of each association extended, soon resulted in confusion, which threatened to annul the good work of the associations. As all were in the County of Milwaukee. it was suggested that a county union be formed, to the end that all the settlements should work under the same rules. A mass meeting or convention was therefore called early in the year 1836, at which a committee was appointed to draft a constitution and report the same at an adjourned meeting of the convention. At the adjourned meeting, which was composed of delegates only, the report of the committee was adopted as the
"CONSTITUTION OF THE MILWAUKEE UNION
"That we, the undersigned, as settlers of public lands within the County of Milwaukee, deem it of vital importance that there should be, for the interests of the settlers, cordiality of feeling among them; that should Congress refuse to extend the pre-emp- tion law, our whole dependence is upon union and our respect for each others' rights. If we go on contending and striving one against the other until the day arrives when it shall be decided whether we are to have a home upon this spot that we have selected, there will be no hope of success. And now let us come forward, determined to protect one another, and our success will be complete; let not the imprudence of any one destroy the fair prospects of the whole. What must be the condition of those who have expended their last farthing in reaching the spot they claim, if they are to be driven from their temporary refuge by a mob or the unfeeling speculator? To the instigator of the mob we would say, beware! - to the speculator, remember the mourn- ful feelings of the emigrant, sobbing adieu to the tombs and tem- ples of his fathers, his toils and sufferings in building up a new habitation and gathering the manna from heaven, like the Israel- ites, from the bosom of the wilderness.
"And now, as American citizens (and there is a charm and magic in the word), we pledge ourselves to support and protect each other in holding our just and lawful claims against all oppo- sition: also to support and abide by the following resolutions: For the support of this we solemnly avow to each other and call upon
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God to witness their truth and sincerity, and invoke disgrace upon our heads should we prove guilty of duplicity :
"Article I. Resolved, That the county be divided into two districts: that the first district shall include all that part of the county north and east of the township line of Township No. 4- the second, all that part of the county south and west of the north line of said township.
"Article II. That each distriet shall be entitled to a register, who shall be a surveyor, legally appointed by the county sur- veyor, by the recommendation of the district in which he may reside, whose duty it shall be to make a correct plat of his district and record the same upon a book of record, which said surveyor shall keep for the recording of claims; which shall be subject to the inspection of any person holding or wishing to make a claim, who has or may hereafter sign this constitution. Said surveyor shall attend to all calls to examine and survey any premises ap- plied for, and in case there is no previous claim upon said prem- ises, the surveyor shall make a survey of same and keep a record of all such surveys, and give a certificate to the said applicant for said premises to the same effect; which certificate shall be filed in the treasurer's office of the same district; and upon application to the treasurer to file said certificate, the party applying for it shall pay to the treasurer two dollars, and it shall be the duty of the treasurer to give a receipt for the same.
"Article III. To constitute a claim, there shall be a house erected on the same, at least twelve feet square, with roof covered with boards or shingles: also, if in timber lands, there shall be at least one acre chopped for cultivation and fenced seven rails high, and if on the prairie, there shall be at least two acres fenced as above; all to be performed within forty days from the adoption of this constitution - the first claimant shall be the person who shall have made the first improvement without evident signs of relinquishing the same, by absence, or by making other claims - that within forty days from this time, or forty days from the time of making the claim, (he) shall have the same recorded by the district recorder, and pay the sum of two dollars into the district treasury.
"Article IV. That all male citizens over the age of eighteen, and females over the age of sixteen, shall be entitled to hold a claim by complying with the foregoing resolutions.
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TIMERS TOOLS25A
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HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
"Article V. That every person wishing to make or hold a claim within this county, shall make such claim in person and comply with the second and third resolutions, except females, who shall reside within the county, who may employ an agent in making a elaim and be protected by this constitution and resohi- tions; in case of leaving the same, they shall employ an agent to reside on said claim.
"Article VI. A treasurer shall be appointed in each district by their own delegates to this convention, who shall receive all money paid into the treasury and give a receipt for the same, a copy of which shall be filed in the office of the recorder.
"The treasurer shall keep a true account of all moneys re- ceived and expended by him, applied to the purposes ordered by this constitution, and if the same shall not be wholly expended when the land shall be obtained by sale or pre-emption and all difficulties settled, he shall refund the remainder to each person who has signed this constitution, in proportion to the amount received from each individual. Said treasurer shall give to the board of arbitrators a good and sufficient bond amounting to $2,000. Each treasurer shall provide himself with the books sufficiently large to record all claims and enter upon the same all testimony and decisions of the committee, with the certificate of the presid- ing officer within his district, which shall be kept and subject to the inspection of all persons as specified in Article II. He shall keep in his possession this constitution and resolutions, and every person shall, before paying in his money, sign the same - any person complying with the foregoing shall be considered a member and equally protected by the same. Said treasurer shall be enti- tled to twenty-five cents for each certificate he may legally issue: and for all recording the same fee as the county recorder, to be paid by each individual who may require such recording to be done.
"Article VII. Resolved, That a board of arbitrators con- sisting of five shall be selected by the people of each distriet. The duty of said arbitrators shall be to attend to all summons legally served, coming from a judge or justice of the peace, to sit as a board of arbitrators, to hear and try any case brought before them, within the meaning of this constitution. The judge or justice issuing the same shall preside over said board and record all testimony and decisions of the same. A majority of the said
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HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
arbitrators shall constitute a quorum and proceed to business after being duly sworn according to law; and in case the whole number of arbitrators are present, each party may have the privi- lege of rejecting one member of said board; and in case that one party has no objection to any one member, the other may reject two of the same, the oldest claimant so contending shall have the preference, provided he has made a legal claim; and in all cases the decision of the board shall be the same as if rendered by a court, and the judge or justice shall proceed accordingly; and cach member summoned and appearing to sit upon any such case shall be entitled to two dollars.
"Article VIIT. Resolved, That each member and clerk of this convention shall be entitled to two dollars per day while attending, including the time of going to and returning from said convention, to be paid equally ont of the funds of each treasury of the districts sending the same. by the members presenting a certificate signed by the president and clerk of this convention.
"Article IX. That all decisions of the board of arbitrators in conformity to any of the foregoing resolutions, shall be put in force and complied with, peaceably if can be, and forcibly if must be. In case forcible means shall be resorted to, all reasonable expenses so made shall be paid out of the treasury of the district where such expenses are made.
"Article X. Resolved, That in case any difficulties should arise in regard to claims not comprehended in the foregoing reso- lutions, the board of arbitrators shall have universal jurisdiction over the same and their decision shall be final, as provided in the foregoing resolution.
"Article XI. Resolved, That any person who has a family of three or four children shall be entitled to hold one claim for six children, provided the oldest of such children does not exceed the age of eighteen or sixteen years, and that he or she shall have complied with the foregoing resolutions."
The delegates who adopted this constitution were as follows: Milwaukee - Alanson Sweet, Albert Fowler, B. W. Finch, Henry C. West and Horace Chase; Root River -Gilbert Knapp, Levi Mason, Walter Cooley and William Ince; Pike River -Jason Lathrop, G. P. Post, Waters Towslee and George W. Griffin; Oak Creek - JJohn Fowle and John P. Haight; Skunk Grove - Svines Butler. Gilbert Knapp was chosen chairman of the con-
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vention, and Dr. Bushnell B. Cary and J. C. Knapp were secre- taries. By order of the convention the constitution was printed by Jason Lathrop, at Pike River, and it was widely cirenlated, forming the basis of the constitutions of similar organizations all over Wisconsin.
ENFORCING THE LAW
Some trouble was experienced in the enforcement of the regu- lations of the claim associations, which constituted practically the only law known to the squatters, and no doubt exercised a whole- some influence throughout a region which otherwise might have become the prey of lawless men. Once in awhile some one would come into a new settlement, knowing that the rules of the associa- tion were without sanction of state or national law, and undertake to pre-empt a claim that had already been chosen by some squat- ter. These "claim jumpers," as they were called, were looked upon with great disfavor by the actual settlers and severe punish- ment was often inflicted upon them for their disregard of the self-made laws of the community. The following paragraph, relating to the customs of early days and the difficulties that occurred over the clain question, is taken from a little pamphlet published in Milwaukee in 1842, after the trouble was all over: "By mutual concession and an honorable adherence to neigh- borhood regulations, claim making was governed by a pro tem. law, which answered the purpose of general protection for the homes of the settlers until their lands came into market. So gen- eral did this become, and so united were the interests of the settlers, that it was deemed extremely hazardous, as well as highly dishonorable. for a speculator or stranger to bid upon a claim, even though it was not protected by a 'pre-emption right.' More than one 'war' was waged when such attempts as that were made, almost invariably resulting in the rout of the interloper. In some instances blood was shed in defense of the recognized rights of the settlers. When it was clearly understood what im- provements constituted a claim, and when the settler conformed to the 'by-laws' of his neighborhood, it was just as much respected for the time being as if the occupant had the government patent for it. If he chose to sell his claim, he was at perfect liberty to do so, and the purchaser succeeded to all the rights and immunities of the first settler."
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ORGANIZATION OF THE COUNTY
Such was the state of affairs when the machinery of the Ter- ritorial Goverment of Wisconsin was started on July 4, 1836. At that time there were but three counties in that portion of the territory now comprising the State of Wisconsin, viz .: Brown, Towa and Milwaukee. As stated in a former chapter, Henry Dodge was appointed governor and soon after being installed in office he issued a proclamation for election of members of the Legisla- ture. Milwaukee County, which then included Racine, was enti- tled to two members of the upper branch and three of the lower, to be elected on October 10, 1836. From an old Chicago news- paper the following account of the political campaign is taken:
"The sachems and wise men of Racine considered it of the greatest importance that one of their citizens should be elected to the council, because they had in mind the organization of a new county and the location of its seat of justice. Besides that, there were many visions of improvements floating in the minds of far- sighted men, who even ventured the assertion that railroads were practicable. Captain Gilbert Knapp, the first settler in this lovely and prosperous region, had won the esteem of his fellow- citizens, and was chosen as the man to represent the County of Milwaukee by the Racine voters. A convention to nominate a candidate was called at Rochester and delegates attended from all parts of the district, making the tiresome journey thither on horseback. Captain Knapp's friends were successful, but now came the rub. Milwaukee was sorely displeased and a formidable ticket was placed in the field in opposition to the captain. The excitement of that time was no less profound than that of many a sneceeding campaign. Electioneers on horseback penetrated to the farthest settlements and urged the importance of their re- spective canses. Every possible means was resorted to by the opposing factions and the election day dawned upon a thoroughly aroused people. The result was the triumphant election of Cap- tain Knapp."
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