USA > Wisconsin > Rock County > The History of Rock County, Wisconsin: Its Early Settlement, Growth, Development, Resources, Etc. > Part 82
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As will be seen, a new ward-the Fifth-was created out of the First and Fourth Wards. April 26 .- E. Lewis elected President of the Board.
May 3 .- J. H. Balch and G. H. Williston elected Assessors; Edward Ruger, City Engi- neer, and W. Jeffers, Abraham Parker, O. Brooks and John Spalding, Constables.
May 17 .- A. C. Bates elected Alderman of the Second Ward (to fill vacancy), and M. Schwa yler Constable of the same ward.
August 23 .- At a special election, D. E. Fifield succeeds Ira Miltimore as Alderman of the Third Ward.
City Officers elected April 3, 1872 : Mayor, James Sutherland ; Treasurer, F. S. Law- rence; Clerk, C. L. Valentine; City Attorney, J. W. Sale; Police Justice, W. Smith, Jr .; Justice of the Peace, C. G. Gillett; Sealer of Weights and Measures, H. Knoff. Aldermen- J. C_ Metcalf, of the First Ward; C. L. Martin, Second Ward; D. E. Fifield, Third Ward; W_ Casar, Fourth Ward; W. Knoff, Fifth Ward. School Commissioners-J. H. Balch, of the First Ward, and J. G. Orcutt, Fourth Ward. Supervisors-H. N. Comstock, of the first Ward; H. Richardson, Second Ward; Cyrus Bliss, Third Ward; D. Jeffries, Fourth Ward.
A. April 18 .- J. C. Metcalf elected President of the Board, and George Heild, A. K. Cutts, V. Parker, D. McDougall and Maurice Smith, Constables.
May 2 .- James Church and J. M. Haselton elected Assessors, and James Shearer, Chief Engineer.
City Officers elected April 2, 1873 .- Mayor, James Sutherland; Treasurer, F. S. Law- rene; Clerk, C. L. Valentine; City Attorney, J. W. Sale; Justice of the Peace, M. S. Prichard; Sealer of Weights and Measures, H. Knoff. Aldermen-Magnus Hanson, of the Firs & Ward; Charles W. Stark, Second Ward ; J. B. Moon, Third Ward; George C. McLean, Fifth Ward. School Commissioners-L. J. Barrows, of the First Ward; G. W. Lawrence, Third Ward; Charles Skelly, Fifth Ward; W. A. Lawrence, at large. Supervisors-Hiram Bunca p, of the First Ward; Jesse Miles, Second Ward : Cyrus Bliss, Third Ward; Randall Williams, Fourth Ward; Thomas M. Lynch, Fifth Ward.
M
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HISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.
The election for Alderman in the Fourth Ward between O. P. Robinson and Levi B. Carle having resulted in a tie, the same was determined by order of Council by casting lots, resulting in the choice of O. P. Robinson, who took his seat as a member.
April 23 .- J. C. Metcalf elected President of the Board; G. W. Wheeler, John J. Com- stock, A. W. Parker, J. W. Carman and Merritt Case, Constables, and N. Cratzenburg, Marshal.
May 7 .- James Church and J. M. Haselton elected Assessors.
January 14, 1874 .- Henry Doty elected Constable of the Fourth Ward, vice J. W. Car- man, resigned.
City Officers elected April 7, 1874 .- Mayor, Hiram Merrill; Treasurer, J. M. Haselton; Clerk, C. L. Valentine ; City Attorney, John Winans; Justice of the Peace, Hiram Taylor; Police Justice, L. F. Patten; Sealer of Weights and Measures, O. Brooks. Aldermen-D. Davis, Jr., of the First Ward; Anson Rogers, Second Ward ; James Church, Third Ward; J. A. Blount, Fourth Ward, and J. Fitzgibbons, Fifth Ward. School Commissioners-F. P. Schicker, of the Second Ward, and E. C. Smith, Fourth Ward. Supervisors-E. Leavitt, of the First Ward; S. Hutchinson, Second Ward; O. Guernsey, Third Ward ; E. C. Smith, Fourth Ward, and T. M. Lynch, Fifth Ward. Constables-William J. Porter, of the First Ward ; John J. Comstock, Second Ward; A. W. Parker, Third Ward ; Henry Doty, Fourth Ward, and Merritt Case, Fifth Ward.
April 23, O. P. Robinson elected President of the Board.
May 13, J. J. R. Pease and E. L. Dimock elected Assessors, and Council decided to dispense with services of Marshal.
City Officers elected in April, 1875 .- Mayor, J. W. St. John ; Treasurer, J. M. Hasel- ton ; Clerk, Joseph Wallace; City Attorney, Pliny Norcross ; Justice of the Peace, F. White- aker ; Sealer of Weights and Measures, J. Lawler. Aldermen-W. B. Britton, of the First Ward; A. C. Bates, Second Ward; J. M. Bostwick, Third Ward; O. P. Robinson, Fourth Ward, and W. Hemming, Fifth Ward. School Commissioners-L. Hunt, of the First Ward; J. B. Whiting, Third Ward; G. C. McLean, Fifth Ward, and J. Shearer, at large. Super- visors-E. Levitt, of the First Ward; J. Miles, Second Ward ; O. Guernsey, Third Ward; L. B. Earle, Fourth Ward, and T. M. Lynch, Fifth Ward. Constables-W. J. Porter, of the First Ward; J. J. Comstock, Second Ward ; A. W. Parker, Third Ward; H. Doty, Fourth Ward, and M. Case, Fifth Ward.
April 23 .- J. A. Blount elected President of the Board.
May 11 .- John J. R. Pease and E. L. Dimock elected Assessors.
Francis Whittaker officiated a portion of the year as Police Justice, during the sickness of that official.
City Officers elected in April, 1876 .- Mayor, J. W. St. John ; Treasurer, J. M. Haselton; Clerk, E. L. Dimock ; City Attorney, Pliny Norcross ; Justice of the Peace, M. M. Phelps: Police Justice, L. F. Patten ; Sealer of Weights and Measures, Herman Knoff. Aldermen- D. Davis, Jr., of the First Ward ; S. S. Judd, Second Ward; J. A. Blount, Fourth Ward, and J. B. Fitzgibbons, Fifth Ward. School Commissioners-J. C. Burnham, Jr., of the Second Ward, and M. M. Conant, Fourth Ward. Supervisors-J. C. Metcalf, of the First Ward; J. J. R. Pease, Second Ward; Fenner Kimball, Third Ward; L. B. Carle, Fourth Ward, and E. Ratheram, Fifth Ward. Constables-J. H. Taylor, of the First Ward ; J. J. Comstock, Second Ward; A. W. Parker, Third Ward ; J. F. Drake. Fourth Ward, and Merritt Case, Fifth Ward.
April 28 .- James Church declared Alderman of the Third Ward, and J. A. Blount elected President of the Board.
May 4 .- A. D. Wickham and J. J. R. Pease elected Assessors.
May 9 .- A. C. Ressiguie elected Assessor, vice J. J. R. Pease, declined.
City Officers elected April 3, 1877 .- Mayor, Pliny Norcross ; Treasurer, J. M. Hasel- ton ; Clerk, E. L. Dimock ; City Attorney, E. F. Carpenter ; Justice of the Peace, J. H. Balch ;
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HISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.
Sealer of Weights and Measures, E. Richardson. Aldermen-F. S. Lawrence, of the First Ward; S. Hutchinson, Second Ward; H. D. Mckinney, Third Ward; John T. Wilcox, Fourth Ward, and William Hemming. Fifth Ward. School Commissioners-Lewis Hunt, First Ward ; J. B. Whiting, Third Ward ; G. C. McLean, Fifth Ward, and James Shearer, at large. Supervisors-J. C. Metcalf, First Ward ; O. F. Nowlan, Second Ward; Fenner Kimball, Third Ward : L. B. Carle, Fourth Ward, and E. Ratheram, Fifth Ward. Constables-J. H. Taylor, First Ward; A. W. Parker, Third Ward; J. F. Drake, Fourth Ward, and M. Case, Fifth Ward.
April 24, J. A. Blount elected President of the Board, and J. M. Burgess and A. D. Wickham, Assessors.
City Officers elected April 2, 1878 .- Mayor, Pliny Norcross ; Treasurer, J. M. Hasel- ton ; Clerk, James M. Burgess ; City Attorney, Horace McElroy ; Justice of the Peace, A. D. Wickham ; Police Justice. M. S. Prichard ; Sealer of Weights and Measures, E. Richardson. Aldermen-D. Davis, of the First Ward ; W. T. Vankirk, Second Ward; James Church, Third Ward ; Patrick Joyce, Fourth Ward, and. J. B. Fitzgibbon, Fifth Ward. School Commission- ers-S. C. Burnham, Jr., of the Second Ward, and J. W. St. John, Fourth Ward. Supervi- sors-J. C. Metcalf, of the First Ward ; O. F. Nowlan, Second Ward; B. B. Eldredge, Third Ward ; L. B. Carle, Fourth Ward, and E. Ratheram, Fifth Ward. Constables-John H. Tay- lor, of the First Ward ; John J. Comstock, Second Ward; A. W. Parker, Third Ward; J. F. Drake, Fourth Ward, and Merritt Case, Fifth Ward.
April 23, D. Davis elected President of the Board, Edward Murdock and Edward Connell Assessors.
April 30, Charles Sexton elected Assessor, vice Edward Murdock declined.
October 14, Thomas T. Croft elected School Commissioner of the First Ward, vice Lewis Hunt, resigned.
December 23, A. K. Cutts elected Constable of the Second Ward, vice John J. Comstock, resigned.
March 3, Alexander M. Russell elected City Marshal.
City Officers elected April 1, 1879 .- Mayor, Samuel C. Cobb ; Treasurer, J. M. Hasel- ton ; Clerk, James M. Burgess; City Attorney, E. F. Carpenter ; Justice of the Peace, Frank Brooks; Sealer of Weights and Measures, E. Richardson. Aldermen-T. T. Croft, of the First Ward; W. Cox, Second Ward ; George Barnes, Third Ward; O. P. Robinson, Fourth Ward, and James II. Burns, Fifth Ward. School Commissioners-James Shearer, of the First Ward; W. D. Hastings, Third Ward; B. J. Daly, Fifth Ward, and Stanley B. Smith, at large. Supervisors-J. C. Metcalf, of the First Ward; O. F. Nowlan, Second Ward ; B. B. Eldredge, Third Ward ; L. B. Carle, Fourth Ward, and E. Ratheram, Fifth Ward. Consta- bles-John H. Tavlor. of the First Ward; A. K. Cutts, Second Ward; A. W. Parker, Third Ward; J. F. Drake, Fourth Ward, and George Rook, Fifth Ward.
April 21, D. Davis elected President of the Board, and William Hodson and Edward Con- nell, Assessors.
Janesville is the chief manufacturing center in Southeastern Wisconsin. The population is given at 14,000 souls. The city limits cover five sections, or 3,200 acres of land. It is almost in the center of Rock County. The principal business portion is on the east side of the river on a flat from one to two hundred yards in width lying between the river and a range of hills covered with beautiful groves. The city is growing very rapidly on the West Side, and at present quite a rivalry is developing between those owning property on the East Side and those with interests on the West. It is a good-natured rivalry, though, and can do injury to neither.
THE JANES CORRESPONDENCE.
LETTER NO. 1. UNIONTOWN, CAL., April 17, 1855. Editor Janesville Gazette, Dear Sir : I found a stray Chicago paper from which I have cut the following : " Janesville-The population of Janesville according to the census just taken, is 6.029; number of voters, 1,275. The Gazette states that ten years ago the population of the entire township was less than 800."
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HISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.
From the above, 1 conclude that there is a paper published in Janesville called the Gazette, and not having seen it, I don't know that it has the scent of sulphur on it, so that I could tell which of the defunct political parties it has affinity to, and shall on that point plead " Know-Nothingism," only I suppose that no Democratic weed could ever vegetate to any degree of perfection in so pure a place as Janesville was, when I was a youngster. I naturally suppose that among 6,000 inhabitants, there may be some a little curious to know by whom and how the place owes its origin, and who gave it the name, etc. In the first place, I would say that Amos Kendall, Postmaster General under Van Buren, gave the name of Janesville to the post office, and appointed H. F. Janes the first Postmaster at that place long, long ago, as old Dr. Jaynes, of Philadelphia, has claimed the name for the sale of his quack medi- cines. [ appeal to A. T. Walker, G. H. Williston, D. Smiley, Charles Stevens, Gen. Sheldon, and others, who wme . in Rock County at an early day. On the 15th day of January, 1836, I cut the initials of my name on s " black "jack " on the city plat and called it my claim. At that time, Samuel St. John was the only resident in the county. When I left Janesville, the stump of the old " black jack" was standing in the street between the house built by myself and Charles Stevens and the river, on the north side of the street. Please respect it on my account, as it was awful cold when I made the claim. Since that time I have been constantly working westward till the nasty Pacific hus made a stop to further progress in that direction. In the fall of 1849, my western progress was suddenly stopped by the Pacific, and yet the sun sets west of me, and my wife positively refuses to go to the Sandwich Islands, and the bark is starting off my rails and that is longer than I ever allowed myself to remain on one farm, so that I am st loes how to act in the present dilemma.
My son, Jasper N. Janes, was born in Janesville May 15, 1838, and was the first child born in the place." He is now in his seventeenth year, is tall and slim and partakes rather strongly of Young America. If any of the " Was- hoos" of Janesville who have not the good or bad fortune to be acquainted with me desire more information, I csa inform them that I am now in my fifty-second year, weigh two hundred and ten pounds, stand six feet and two inches in my socks, and have rambled with my family over more of the western country and to less purpose than say other man in it. If any of my old comrades should yet be living and think enough of me to send me a line, they can do so by directing to Uniontown, Humboldt Bay, California.t
In the paragraph that put me to scribbling this epistle, it appears that ten years ago there were not eight hundred inhabitants in the whole township. Well, at the annual election in the fall of 1836, the whole number of votes cast in the county, or what is now Rock County, was 32, all told. Of these, Gilbert Knapp received 32 for the Council ; Alanson Sweet, William Lee and Mr. Reed had about an equal number, each for the same office, two to be elected ; Charles Durkee, Gen. Sheldon and Dr. Cornwall got the votes for the Assembly. I am satisfied that at the time the entire population of Rock County would not have reached one hundred inhabitants. The first election was held at the house of Samuel St. John, about one mile below Janesville, or below where Janesville wa, in August, 1839.
Should any of my old cronies wish to know what I am doing in California, I can only say that I am doing well. am well pleased with the country and in the enjoyment of excellent health. H. F. JANES.
[The Janesville Standard published the foregoing letter in its issue of June 6, 1855, with the following notice :
In another column will be found a highly interesting letter from Mr. Janes, the founder of this city, and after whom it was named. We extract it from the Gazette, to which paper it was written by the author. We do not care to quarrel with the old gentleman in his far off home, because of his political principles. If we are not wrongly informed, however, he was a candidate upon the Democratic ticket at one time for the Legislature from this county. and was beaten by the present Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of this State, who was a Whig. The letter is well worthy a perusal, and we can only wish it may stir up some of our older citizens, to whom he alludes, to fresbes their recollections and give to our people some of their reminiscences of the past.
The old stump to which he alludes was on the bank of the river for a long time after our advent here, and served as a high-water mark. Mr. Janes would have it preserved as a memento of the past for his sake; but the hand of improvement has long since demolished it, and a stately edifice is in progress of erection upon the spot where it stood. ]
LETTER NO. 2.
UNIONTOWN, HUMBOLDT BAY, CAL., November 10, 1855.
Dear Sir : I have been in the receipt of your useful paper for some time past, and am not aware to whom lu indebted for it ; but be he whom he may, he has my heartfelt thanks for his kindness, as it is received with gratitude by me, and is one of the greatest treats that falls to my lot. Previous to the receipt of the Gazette I seldom heard of Janesville, except once in a great while I happened to meet a Wisconsin man, and we generally have a pleasant chat about the growth and prosperity of Wisconsin in general and Janesville in particular. I have received one paper from Janesville called the Standard, in which the editor has copied my letter to the Gazette, and. in his remarks. appeared to have been under a mistake in regard to my political faith. What I said in that letter, I said in a joke, not knowing that my scribbling would ever appear in print. I was at that time and still am a Whig in politics, and Calhoun and Clay have each said in some of their great speeches in the United States Senate that .. Wise men some- times change their opinions, but fools never do," and that may account for my opinions never having undergone! change. It is true that Judge Whiton beat me for the Legislature, not on political, but on local grounds. At the time, in 1836, or 1837, Janesville was the "Sebastopol," and Beloit, Wisconsin City, St. George's Rapids, Rockport and Hume's Ferry were the allied powers that besieged it. I was put in nomination by the Janesville party, and,
. By the word "place," Mr. Janes means the village of Janesville; but Seth B. St. John was the first born in what are now the city limits + Mr. Janes is now (1879) Living above Humboldt City, Cal.
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HISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.
after two or three caucuses, the " allies" selected Judge Whiton, knowing that he " blew hot and cold," and would carry some of the Janesville votes, and all the combined opposition. They took him on the principle of availibility, and elected him. I was not then or at any time in my life a politician, and since the old lines have been abolished, 1 have rather leaned toward the Republican party. There is one point, however, that I am radical on, and that is the subject of slavery. On this point, I think I am fixed, settled and confirmed-am bound to raise my voice against it in all its phases and forms. I have long since come to the determination to make no compromise with it, but to make war with it to the handle wherever I meet it. I think I can speak advisedly on this subject. I was brought up in a Slave State, and lived, besides, in Missouri from the 15th of May, 1840, till the 224 of April. 1849, making twenty- four years and a half of my life in the midst of the curse of slavery, and, so far as Missouri is concerned, were it not for the curse of slavery, she could, in twenty years, be the Empire State, but it hangs as an incubus on her des- tiny. It is the vampire that feeds upon her vitals, and, like a funeral pall, enshrouds her in darkness. Her location, her mineral resources, her vast agricultural wealth being washed by the Mississippi nearly one-half the distance. round her, with the Missouri through her center-Nature could do no more for her, and all she wants is enterprise to develop her vast resources, and I would venture the prediction that, if slavery were done away, that in ten years, the price of real estate would increase to twice as much as all the negroes that are in it would sell for at this time, to my nothing of the increase of population, manufactures, arts, sciences, commerce, education, etc.
I cannot help relating one circumstance that occurred in the township that I settled in at the Presidential election in the fall of 1840. It will give you some idea of the sagacity of some of Maj. Phelps' constituency. It was his Congressional District and near his residence. On the morning of the election, there way much trouble among the voters to know who to vote for for District Attorney. The trouble appeared to be to know which was the Democratic candidate, and they had, to use a California gambling phrase, to " go it blind," for, at that time. I am certain that there had never been a newspaper in the township, and one-half of them would not have known it had there been one, and the other half would not have known whether it belonged to the vegetable or animal kingdom. In this dilemma, they selected their man and voted for him. Late in the evening. one of the citizens of the place that had been absent, no doubt electioneering hard all day, rode up; and. in fact, he was the " big dog in the tan- yard," and inquired how the election went. .. All well," responded a dozen voices ; "108 for Van. and 5 for Tippe- canoe." " Who did you run for Prosecuting Attorney ?"" .. J. S. Waddle." "J. S. Waddle ! ' responded the citizen, at the same time looking persimmons. "Yes, we run him." " Why, he was the only Whig on the ticket." " Well, we did not know it." " But didn't you know he was a Kentuckian ?" "Yes." "Did you ever know a Kentuckian that knew enough to be a lawyer that was not a Whig?" You could have had some idea of the length of the 119th Psalm, if you could have seen their faces about that time.
The Standard man seems to think that I would be lost in amazement if I were to visit the city at this time. No doubt such would be the fact, as he says truly I was monarch of all I surveyed, from the bank of the river to the bluff, and up and down as far as the bends in the river would permit. There was not a mark of cultivation to be seen when I first marked out my location, where now stands the city of Janesville. Should I ever find myself in a condition to pay the city a visit without cramping myself for means. I shall surely make it a visit for no other reason than to see what an enterprising people can do in twenty years. Now, some of your renders would probably think it strange that twenty years have scarcely gone by since the entire population of Janesville consisted of one family -myself, wife and four children-and the only improvements were one log cabin, 18 feet square, without door, shutter or window, and no floor but Mother Earth. and, instead of paved sidewalks and graded streets there was an Indian trail which wound its serpentine course through what is now probably the heart of the city, and all the land on the flat and the sides of the bluffs back from the river were covered with scrub onk. timber, and instead of the whistle of the railroad cars. or the hum and bustle of the thousands that daily throng your streets, we had the crok- ing of the coyote, or the midnight yell of the drunken Indian. At that time there were no houses, farms or improve- ments as far as the eye could reach, and traders took their course and traveled where it suited their purpose, and were at home where and when night overtook them. Twenty years ago I owned the only grindstone in Rock County, and people came from the remotest parts of the county to grind their axes, shares, etc. I have never been able to learn where you built your Court House. I had selected a block to put it on, on top of the hill, back of where Harvey Story's blacksmith-shop stood when I left Janesville.
I must conclude this letter, having spun it to a much greater length than I intended, or your patience would admit. without touching upon one-half of what I should like to say : in fact, the Gazette brings to mind vastly more incidents connected with the early settlement of Janesville, than would fill a half-dozen such sheets as this. 1 should like to give you and my old friends, a bird's-eye peep at this country through your paper.
Should this scribbling or any part of it be deemed worth the space it would occupy in your columns, you are ut liberty to use it ; if not, dispose of it as you please. If you publish it, please dress it up in such language as will make it readable-it is unnecessary for me to tell you that I am not a scholar. Yours truly.
I. F. JANES.
LETTER NO. 3.
UNIONTOWN, Cal., March 21, 1857.
Dear Sir: In reading the [Janesville] Guzette, I am not a little surprised to see the difference that twenty years has made in the appearance of things in and around Janesville. At this time twenty years ago, the present city of Janesville was just putting on its swaddling clothes, and, I believe. it was not dignified with a name. Now, through the Gazette, I hear of railroad arrivals and new railroads running into it from all parts of the State, of telegraph despatches, of ponderous three and four story buildings going up as if by magic, and lots selling for more money than I ever saw at one time. Some of your citizens will hardly credit the story, that but little over twenty years ago, there was but one log cabin, and one family was the sum total of the inhabitants of the present city of Janes- ville; and now, while I pen this scrawl, the first child born in the city [village], is sitting in the room with me-a tall,
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HISTORY OF ROCK COUNTY.
slim lad in his nineteenth year. As to politics, he is Republican throughout, body, breeches, boots; and, for that matter, there is no difference in the pioneer family of Janesville.
Your railroads, telegraphs, etc., may be spry and quick for anything that I know, but they were not quick enough for me. I have kept ahead of all such slow concerns and have never got in sight of one yet, and, at present,
* there is no danger of their overtaking me. *
* Yours truly, H. F. JANES.
LETTER NO. 4.
I was born on the 12th of February, 1804. in Pendleton County, Va., on Straight Creek, one of the extreme 'head branches of the South Branch of the Potomac. In 1819. my father moved to Ohio, and settled on the Scioto ·shore at Chillicothe, where I remained till the 15th day of April, 1825, when I left the parental roof, on an old one .eyed horse, with two shirts and $4 in my pocket, all told.
At about the end of a week, I reached the vicinity of where La Fayette. Ind .. now stands. At that time, L Fayette had no existence, except in name. There I married my wife on the 15th day of March, 1827. I remaine in that country till September, 1832, when I moved with my wife and two children to La Porte County, Ind. remained there till April 1835, when I moved to Wisconsin with my family and settled in Racine County, six mil . . due west from the city of Racine. The February previous, I went to Wisconsin to select a location, and found . one white family in Racine County, being that of Elam Beardsley. There was not a house nor any signs of civili . tion between Grosse Point, twelve miles north of Chicago, and Skunk Grove, now Mount Pleasant, in Racine County We were at home wherever night overtook us; our fare was rather hard, but the bills were not high at that time Capt. Gilbert Knapp had some men at work in Racine, and I think he had a log cabin built, or partly built at the time I first saw the place where the city now stands. I selected a situation for a farm on a branch of a stream, to which I gave the name of Hoosier Creek; and, so far as I know, it retains that name yet. I landed on my claim with my family about the Ist of May, and went to work in good earnest. On the 1st day of August, 1835, my son, J. W. Janes, was born, and was the first white child born in Racine County; he is now grown and is a hale and active young man.
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