USA > Wisconsin > Dodge County > The History of Dodge County, Wisconsin, containing a history of Dodge County, its early settlement, growth, development, resources, etc > Part 79
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The Secretaries of the South Ward District have been William Euen, John Ware, Ira Hill and L. D. Hinkley.
The North Ward School .- The North Ward, after being set off as a separate district in October, 1860, had no schoolhouse. A lot on Franklin street containing three-fourths of an acre of land was therefore purchased of Seymour Wilcox for $450, and early in 1861, the erection of the present plain but substantial brick and stone structure began. The plan was furnished by Mr. Whiting, who also had the contract for the wood-work. Eli Hooker was overseer of the work of construction. The building cost something over $6,000, and was finished for occupancy in the fall of 1861. . It contains four large rooms, which accommodate 250 pupils. The school is divided into four graded departments, the same as the South Ward
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School, and gives employment to five teachers. The high school department has quite a num- ber of foreign scholars, and the room is crowded.
In 1868, all the records and papers of the North Ward School were burned. The clerks have been Eli Hooker, M. J. Althouse, A. Nudd, W. J. Oliver and Emil Hainsman.
THE POST OFFICE.
The first Postmaster to serve the inhabitants of Waupun and vicinity was Seymour Wilcox, who was appointed in the winter of 1840 and 1841, and kept the office in his log house near where the old family residence now is. He received no stated salary, and the revenue of the office at first was very little, indeed, only a few letters coming into his hands during the first year. There were neither envelopes nor postage-stamps in use then, and the Postmaster col- lected 25 cents for an ordinary letter from the person to whom it was directed. Even at that exorbitant rate the settlers were thankful enough to get a letter, and whenever one arrived the whole neighborhood knew it, and sooner or later learned the contents of the precious missive. Mr. Wilcox was succeeded as Postmaster by B. Hinkley.
In 1848, John N. Ackerman secured the appointment of Postmaster, and moved its office to his residence in " Upper Town," or the western portion of the village. As there had been a spirited rivalry between Upper and Lower Towns for some time, the inhabitants of the latter naturally rebelled at having the office moved a half-mile to the west. They could do but little, however, but complain, until the ingenuity of William Euen brought both revenge and a return of the post office. He drafted a general order demanding that the Postmaster deliver to him whatever mail might be in the office for persons whose names were signed to the document. As all the people of " Lower Town " signed this order, Mr. Ackerman was obliged to deliver the mail to Mr. Euen, who thereafter was compelled to take a horse to transport the large quantities of letters and papers directed to people living in "Lower Town." Finally, early in 1849, L. B. Hills received a commission as Postmaster, and the post office was moved back to "Lower Town." Mr. Hills served nearly four years.
In 1853, Artimadorus Ingersoll was appointed Postmaster by Franklin Pierce to succeed Mr. Hills, but was removed before the end of the year for refusing to obey the orders of the politicians in appointing a deputy, and Cromwell Laithe was appointed to take his place. Mr. Laithe served the balance of the term, and soon after Buchanan took his seat as President in 1857, Thomas Stoddart was appointed Postmaster. He served four years, until June, 1861, when S. H. Brinkerhoff, the present incumbent, was appointed by Abraham Lincoln. The Waupun post office became a money-order office in August, 1866.
During several years after the office was first established, mail was sent and received only once each week, and when the mail carrier arrived twice a week, the inhabitants thought there could be nothing like modern mail facilities. Now, mail is received and sent out six times each twenty-four hours, and the revenue of the office amounts to nearly $1,000 per quarter. When the Dodge County Mutual Insurance Company was doing business, the Waupun post office paid out through its money-order department as much as any office in the State, with two or three exceptions.
When Mr. Hinkley was Postmaster, he carried the letters remaining in the office to all great occasions in the crown of his hat. When, therefore, any one asked whether there was any mail in the office, he took the office from his head and looked over the little package of begrimmed missives in short order, handing out whatever he found for parties present. The inhabitants regarded this as a great convenience, and were not backward in praising Mr. Hink- ley for establishing the post office on the top of his head.
WAUPUN AGRICULTURAL AND MECHANICAL ASSOCIATION.
This society was organized in 1868, holding its first fair in the fall of that year, at Wau- pun. There were seven annual exhibitions by the society. The organization wound up its affairs
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in 1875: Except financially, its fairs were always a success ; they had a material influence for good upon the agricultural interests of the vicinity.
CEMETERIES.
The First Burial Place .- A knoll of dry land near the railroad store where the C., M. & St. P. Railroad crosses Washington street, was first used as a burial place by the inhabitants of Waupun. When the railroad was built, the graves were all defaced and dug over, and no one knows now precisely where the first graves were located.
Waupun Cemetery .- In 1853, a tract of one and one-half acres of land was purchased of John N. Ackerman, on the west side of the Beaver Dam road in Dodge County, in Section 5, and named Waupun Cemetery. This was used mostly by the people of Upper Town and vicin- ity during several years, but in 1862, when Forest Mound Cemetery was opened, it nearly fell into desuetude.
Forest Mound Cemetery .- In 1860, Thomas Stoddart made a visit to the cemetery at Alton, Ill., and was then impressed with the idea that Waupun had no such burial place as the inhabitants and the beautiful surroundings entitled her to. "Go back to Waupun," said Mrs. Brown to Mr. Stoddart, " and open a beautiful cemetery, and do make it large enough, for there is plenty of room in this country for the dead to have eternal sleep undisturbed." Mrs. Brown was a Scotch lady, and made such a remark because in Scotland the want of room is so great in cemeteries that corpses are buried one upon another, and seven years is about as long as the dead can be allowed to rest without being dug up to make room for others. The subject was thereafter agitated in Waupun, and resulted in a meeting at the office of W. H. Tay- Jor, when the statutes concerning cemeteries were consulted. On the 16th of November, 1862, W. H. Taylor, George W. Bly, Thomas Oliver, Thomas Stoddart, Charles Jones, T. W. Markle, H. L. Butterfield, A. W. McNaughton and William Hobkirk were chosen Directors or Trustees of Forest Mound Cemetery, and these nine, with Edwin Hillyer, subscribed $75 each for twelve acres of shaded, hilly, dry land, on Section 32, in Fond du Lac County. Thomas Stoddart platted the grounds into lots and laid out the carriage ways. The lots are all of uniform size, each lot and walk being one rod in width. The grounds had many oak shade trees, just as nature planted them, and evergreens and maples have been added since, until Forest Mound Cemetery is an attractive spot.
W. H. Taylor was Secretary until 1867, and Thomas Stoddart has occupied that position ever since. There has been no change in the Board of Trustees, although some of them are dead and others permanently absent.
PUBLIC HALLS.
Dodge's Hall .- The first public hall in Waupun was called Dodge's Hall. It is now owned by Thomas Stoddart, and known as Grange Hall. It was finished in 1856, and was the pride of the village in those days.
Opera Hall .- The principal hall of Waupun is Opera Hall, built by Thomas Oliver, in 1868. It is light and high, capable of accommodating 500 persons, and well appointed as to stage property and scenery. It is owned by Luther Butts, and situated in the second story of the large brick block on the corner of Mill and Washington streets.
Other Halls .- Utter's Hall, in the second story of the old South Ward School-house, is a large room frequently used for balls and other public entertainments and meetings. It is on Washington street, opposite the Simpson House. Donovan's Hall, in the fine brick block belong- ing to the Donovan Brothers, is used mostly for dances, balls and festivals. The Good Templars' and Odd Fellows' Societies have halls, but they are little used except for lodge meetings.
HOTELS.
Simpson House .- This hotel, of which Mrs. M. A. Simpson is proprietor, is a well-kept house, and consists of two buildings situated on the north side of Washington street, east of the railroad. Mrs. Simpson makes a success of hotel keeping.
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HISTORY OF DODGE COUNTY.
Fisher House .- This hotel, by the Fisher Brothers, is on the site of the old Exchange, built by Seymour Wilcox, now the corner of Fond du Lac and Washington streets. It is well patronized.
Other Hotels .- The Western Hotel and Gast-Haus are the other hotels of Waupun.
FUN IN YE OLDEN TIME.
Along in the forties, Waupun was notorious for practical jokes, lively social gatherings, wide-awake old folks and tricky young ones. A few illustrations will be given to convey an idea of what was constantly kept up by the fun-lovers for nearly twenty years.
By invitations, and other modes of advertising, David Bruce once gathered a large crowd at his place for a dance, but the fiddlers failed to appear. Dennis Morse and a companion were present, and being a good whistler, Dennis was requested to whistle for the dance while Mr. Bruce drove five miles for a fiddler. Dennis complied, and his friend thumped a sonorous dishpan, to enable the dancers to keep time. Bruce found no musician, and, on returning, requested Dennis to keep on with the whistle and dishpan while he went for yet another fiddler. Both journeys were unsuccessful, but the dance went off merry enough, and Mr. Bruce collected the usual fee to "pay the fiddlers." When the crowd had gone, Mr. Morse inquired of Mr. Bruce if he was still agent for the Moline plows-if so, he would take one, provided credit could be extended until spring. Credit was offered, and Mr. Morse took the plow. When spring came, Mr. Bruce dunned Mr. Morse for pay for the plow. "Pay !" exclaimed Dennis ; "I paid you well enough when I whistled for your dance." Mr. Bruce was indignant, and sued for the value of the plow. Mr. Morse, as a good joke, put in a counterclaim for whistling and pounding on the dishpan, and won the suit! From that day, David Bruce never engaged a whistler until he had agreed upon terms.
When Dr. H. L. Butterfield first came to Waupun, he had neither money nor clothes, and as people were very backward about getting sick enough to require a physician's serv- ices, his condition grew worse instead of better. Finally, the wife of Mr. N., one of their prominent citizens, fell ill, and the husband sent for Dr. Butterfield. The Doctor did not appear as ordered, and a few hours later, Mr. N. called at his office and personally requested Dr. Butterfield to go and attend to his wife. Mr. N. returned home, but no Doctor appeared that day. Next morning, he called at the Doctor's office, and again demanded "why in christendom his wife was not attended to?" "I'll tell you," meekly replied Dr. Butterfield, who now smokes rich Havanas in a luxurious home; "I am too ragged to go anywhere-I can't even leave my chair when anybody is around." "I can fix you out," said Mr. N .; "you just put on my pantaloons and visit the woman. I can stay here till you return." The Doctor pulled off his dilapidated trousers, consisting of nothing but short legs and a weak waistband, donned his customer's suit and left. He paid a visit to the patient, and spent a half-day in making other visits and calls, and attending to business that he had neglected a fortnight for want of pantaloons. When he returned to his office, he found Mr. N. nearly insane. People had called on him in numbers, and as he couldn't possibly get into the ragged, short-legged unmentionables left by the Doctor, he had to receive in his bare legs or shin down the streets in the same ludicrous condition. No little merriment has been had over this laughable circum- stance.
Joseph Hobkirk was at one time Justice of the Peace. As such, a certain young man was brought before him to be tried for stealing a turkey. The prosecution had a shrewd lawyer ; the case was well presented and the evidence of guilt was overwhelming. However, to the great astonishment of all-even the prisoner -- and the disgust of the plaintiff and his attorney, Justice Hobkirk decided "Not guilty." Shortly afterward, he was taken to task by the angry plaintiff for rendering such an unjust verdict. "You see," replied the sly Justice, " I couldn't find the boy guilty, for he didn't steal the turkey, and knew nothing about it. You just come along with me to dinner, for my wife is an expert at roasting turkeys, and then tell me if you don't think the old bird was worth catching." Thus the joke leaked out.
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Thirty years ago, or more, heavy merchandise was very costly in Waupun, owing to heavy freight rates. Salt, in particular, was regarded by the farmers as a most burdensome necessity on this account. When, therefore, on one bright winter's morning it was announced that a salt well of great strength had been struck on Dr. Butterfield's lot, a perfect furor of excitement ensued. The glorious news spread far and wide, and the usually quiet little village was soon crowded with an excited populace, who had come in from miles around. Salt water from the rich bonanza well was handed freely around ; was sipped by every one and pronounced by many . who professed themselves judges, to be equal to water from the famous Syracuse wells. It was found in every store; was carried home in bottles ; boiled down by many to test its strength ; and analyzed by a village expert, and found to contain soda, magnesia and other ingredients, and a very large percentage of pure salt. Property rose at a bound two or three hundred per cent, and, as the location of the State Prison was still an unsettled matter, a meeting of the citizens was called and a committee appointed to draw up and forward to Madison a full statement of the rich discovery, which was thought would be a powerful lever to use with the prison locating Committee in favor of Waupun. But, on account of a private dispatch, this letter was not sent, and, when the citizens found out that fact, a howl of indignation went up against the Postmaster, who was denounced as a traitor. Immediately, steps were taken to oust him from his office, and the excitement grew more intense than ever. Matters finally began to look serious, as property was advancing, leases were being made and various improvements planned, and the secret was let out that a young Scotch clerk, who is now an old Scotch hardware merchant, had poured half a barrel of rock-salt into the famous well. Next day, not a man could be found who would acknowledge that he had been sold, but a peep into several woodsheds would have disclosed dozens of tin pans spoiled in boiling down water from the salt well.
Richard Graham, the clothier, was very bashful in his earlier days. He, therefore, was made the butt of numerous practical jokes. On one occasion he invited a friend to a New Year's dinner. The wags of the village issued between one hundred and two hundred invitations to the best people in the vicinity to appear at his house to dine on New Year's Day, sign- ing Mr. Graham's name. Enough of them came to fill the house, much to the chagrin and consternation of all, as there was not food enough in the house to feed one-quarter of those pres- ent. However, necks had not begun to grow stiff in those days, and the joke was taken good- naturedly.
John Carhart came to Waupun unmarried, and soon after began to pay marked attention to one of the village belles. Occasionally, he prolonged his visits well into the night. Two fun-loving Scotchmen, who afterward became prominent business men, stretched a rope across the street on which John would return, and attached to it a man of straw. This straw man was placed in the path, and the boys posted themselves on house-tops on either side of the street, each grasping one end of the rope. Just as Mr. Carhart reached the spot, the rope was jerked and the straw man shot into the air past his head. The sight of a man springing from the ground into the air like a rocket was so unusual that the frightened lover took to his heels and was never seen to pass that spot alone after dark.
Other tricks without number were perpetrated by a certain mischievous clique, whose mem- bers are now the principal citizens of Waupun, such as temporarily stealing horses, cows, fowls, carriages and anything come-at-able; sending out bogus wedding cards, frightening excitable individuals by arresting and trying them on bogus processes for various crimes ; sending the doc- tors post haste where they were not wanted; causing prominent men to be sued for bogus bills of indebtedness ; using young ladies' names to invite Tom, Dick and Harry to call ; charging losses by theft upon innocent but nervous parties, and keeping the vicinity in an uproar generally, and everybody on nettles lest they should be made the butts of practical jokes. There was only now and then one who would not take these pranks in good part, and all such were reserved for further tantalization.
CHAPTER X.
WATERTOWN.
FIRST SETTLEMENT-TIMOTHY JOHNSON'S NARRATIVE-THE FIRST LOCATION IN DODGE COUNTY- LUTHER A. COLE'S REMINISCENCE-GROWTH OF WATERTOWN-PIONEERS-SCHOOLS-RELIG- IONS-MANUFACTORIES -- HOTELS -- BANKS -FIRE DEPARTMENT - POST OFFICE -SOCIETIES - GOVERNMENT-NEWSPAPERS.
FIRST SETTLEMENT.
As about one-third of the city of Watertown lies in the county of Dodge, this work would be incomplete without a sketch of its history. Timothy Johnson is acknowledged to have been the first settler on that part of Rock River now embraced within the city limits of Water- town. The place was known for some years as Johnson's Rapids. Mr. Johnson, not long before his death, wrote a narrative of his experience here, from which the subjoined facts are taken. He was a native of Middletown, Conn., born June 28, 1792. After traveling over and living in many parts of the South and East, he found himself, in the fall of 1835, in the village of Racine, at that time composed of but a few shanties. In January, 1836, undeterred by the severity of winter storms, he continued his march westward, striking the Rock River Valley in the vicinity of Wisconsin City, a "paper village" with one inhabitant, the site of which is now embraced within the limits of Janesville. Going to Rockford, Ill., for a supply of provisions, he returned to Wisconsin City, and, in February, renewed his journey, following the course of the river northward. Stopping about two miles below the present site of Jefferson, Johnson erected a small log shanty. He occupied his time by clearing a small spot of ground, and in making short excursions about the country. During one of these exploring expeditions, he discovered what was soon afterward known as Johnson's Rapids (now Watertown). The banks of the river at this point were fringed with a beautiful growth of red cedars, the background being thickly wooded, on the west side with stately oaks, and on the east with a forest of maples, elms and ash. The eastern half of the stream was covered with a sheet of glistening ice, and, felling a tree across the unfrozen current, the solitary adventurer crossed over the rippling waters and returned to his shanty. While on this expedition, Johnson was robbed of the provisions he carried with him, by a band of red-skins, and was without food forty-eight hours.
Johnson visited "the Rapids" again within a few weeks, and staked out a "claim" of about one thousand acres, whereon the principal portion of Watertown now stands. In June, 1836, he made a trip to Milwaukee, where he purchased a fresh supply of provisions, a yoke of oxen and a wagon. He returned to his shanty on Rock River by way of Fort Atkinson, bringing with him Philander Baldwin, Reeve Griswold and Charles Seaton. During the summer, they cut a road from Johnson's shanty up the east side of the river to "the Rapids," and soon after- ward built a log cabin on the west side of the river, below the railroad junction, on the side now occupied by Mr. Carlin's residence. In the fall, Johnson sent word to his family in Ohio, to meet him in Milwaukee, which they did, and on the 10th of December, 1836, the little pioneer party reached the Rapids.
FIRST SETTLEMENT IN DODGE COUNTY.
The first settlement, however, in that portion of the city of Watertown lying in Dodge county, was made by Luther A. and John W. Cole and Amasa Hyland. Mr. L. A. Cole thus relates his experience: "Previous to 1836, very little or nothing was reliably known of the spot where the city of Watertown now stands. It is reported that a Frenchman had established a trading-post on the west side of the river, in what is now the Third Ward, on a rise of ground
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where Timothy Johnson built the first dwelling-house ever erected by an American within the present limits of the city. Near the Frenchman's deserted and decaying cabin, was an Indian burying ground containing several graves. At the head of one of them stood a rude wooden cross, which tradition says was the last resting-place of the solitary trader, who had been mur- dered by the Indians in a fierce impulse of passion to avenge some real or fancied injury, or to get an opportunity to plunder his stock. * * I left my home in Vermont at the age of twenty-two, and landed at Detroit in 1834. From there I went to Grand Haven, whence, in company with Philander Baldwin and Elisha M. Osborn, I went to Chicago. From that village we started on foot for Milwaukee, following the Indian trail most of the way, and arriving there May 10, 1836. I worked at the carpenter and joiner business until December, with the exception of about two months, which I devoted exclusively to the ague. Taking my blanket and provisions upon my shoulder, I started for Johnson's Rapids, passing over the road which had been cut out by Mr. Johnson a few weeks previous. Amasa Hyland accompanied me. A few months before, I had, through the agency of a friend, made two claims at the Rapids, one covering the farm now owned by John W. Cole, and the other the farm now owned by heirs of Benjamin J. Morey. In January following, I purchased, at Milwaukee, three bar- rels of flour and three of pork. I paid $20 dollars a barrel for the flour and $40 a barrel for the pork. Building a cabin in Dodge County in company with Mr. Hyland and my brother, John W., we commenced keeping what we called 'bachelors' distress.' The peculiar luxury of this method of living can only be appreciated by those who have enjoyed it. We made it a point not to wash our dishes until we could count the mice tracks upon them.
" The season of 1837, I worked on the saw-mill and dam of Charles F. H. Goodhue & Son. From that time until the fall of 1839, I was occupied mainly at lumbering and farming. In November of that year, Mr. Hyland, J. A. Chadwick, David Griffith, William P. Owen, William Stanton, Jr., Brice Hall, John Dimmick and myself went to Arkasas for the purpose of spending the winter in chopping steamboat wood. We floated down Rock River in a skiff, and were eight days reaching the Mississippi. We remained in Arkansas until the following spring, each of us having a clever-sized ' pile,' when we returned to Watertown.
" In 1841, my brother, John W., and myself erected the building on the corner of Main and Second streets, and opened the first store in Watertown. The next year, Mr. Bailey and myself purchased of Selvay Kidder (he having previously purchased of the Goodhues) 750 acres of land on the east side of the river, included in the present site of the city, with the mill and water- power. We were to pay 1,000,000 feet of lumber, to be delivered at Beloit within seven years. We associated with us, the next year, Linus R. Cady and my brother, Ebenezer W., and, in three years and a half from the date of the purchase, we made the last payment. In the spring of 1838, provisions and money were scarce. We had but little pork in the settlement, and subsisted mainly upon fresh fish, with which Rock River abounded. Our flour having failed us, at one time we were nearly a week without bread.
"The Winnebago Indians committed many petty thefts for some time after Watertown was first settled. One of them having stolen a watch from Mr. Griswold, a pair of mittens of Peter V. Brown and a quantity of tobacco from me, we thought it best to make an example of him. Forming a ring and stripping him of his blanket, Griswold and I took turns in applying the lash to his back. But we tempered justice with mercy; no blood was drawn. The expedient worked like a charm. After that, Indian thefts were hardly known in the settlement."
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