USA > Wisconsin > Sauk County > The history of Sauk County, Wisconsin, containing an account of settlement, growth, development and resources biographical sketches the whole preceded by a history of Wisconsin > Part 52
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100 | Part 101 | Part 102 | Part 103 | Part 104 | Part 105 | Part 106 | Part 107 | Part 108 | Part 109 | Part 110 | Part 111 | Part 112 | Part 113 | Part 114 | Part 115 | Part 116 | Part 117 | Part 118 | Part 119 | Part 120 | Part 121 | Part 122 | Part 123 | Part 124 | Part 125 | Part 126 | Part 127 | Part 128 | Part 129 | Part 130 | Part 131 | Part 132 | Part 133 | Part 134
POLITICAL PARTIES IN SAUK COUNTY.
For the past twenty-four years, Sauk County has been largely Republican. Prior to 1856 and subsequent to the organization of the county in 1844, it was under Democratic rule. The change of front came in November, 1856, at the Presidential baptism of the Republican party. As an index to the political complexion of the county for the past thirty-two years, the follow- ing figures will be interesting :
1848-Zachary Taylor, W., 149; Martin Van Buren, F. S., 139; Lewis Cass, D., 158.
1852-Franklin Pierce, D., 681; Winfield Scott, W., 622; John P. Hale, F. S., 156.
1856-John C. Fremont, R., 2,014; James Buchanan, D., 993; Millard Fillmore, A., 4 1860-Abraham Lincoln, R., 2,309 ; Stephen A. Douglas, D., 985 ; John Bell, U., 2. 1864-Abraham Lincoln, R., 2,076; George B. McClellan, D., 985.
1868-Ulysses S. Grant, R., 3,262; Horatio Seymour, D., 1,366.
1872-Ulysses S. Grant, R., 2,702; Horace Greeley, L., 1,354.
1876-Rutherford B. Hayes, R., 3,395; Samuel J. Tilden, D., 2,201; Cooper, G., 16.
1
350
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY.
CHAPTER III.
LOCATING THE COUNTY SEAT-COURT HOUSES-RAILROADS -- AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRIES, SOIL, ETC .- SAUK COUNTY AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY-BLOOD CATTLE-STOCK BREEDERS' ASSOCIA- TION -- DAIRYING-STATISTICAL-HOPS, AND THE PANIC OF 1868-NATURE'S PROVISIONS.
LOCATING THE COUNTY SEAT-COURT HOUSES.
In 1843-44, the people of Prairie du Sac petitioned the Legislature to fully organize Sauk County. The residents of the Baraboo Valley remonstrated, on the ground that there were not voters enough in the county from which to draw a jury-list, and fill the county offices ; and, fur- ther, that it was not politic, at that time, to burden themselves with the expense of a fully or- ganized county. But this remonstrance availed nothing, for the Saukites had made up their minds to lose no time in which to allow Baraboo to gain strength, and a bill was pushed through the Legislature and approved May 10, 1844, under the provisions of which Noah Phelps, of Green County, John Morrison,* of Jefferson, and Charles Hart, of Milwaukee, were appointed Commissioners to locate the seat of justice. They were instructed to make a thorough exam- ination of the whole county, and make the location " with regard to the future as well as the present population." They finally decided to locate it at one of the Sauk villages-the one
which would make the largest donation. Sauk City, or Lower Town, offered the Bryant- Haraszthy House, estimated to be worth $3,000. Prairie du Sac, or Upper Town, offered a certain number of village lots, supposed to be worth more than the Lower Town offer. The Commissioners accepted the Prairie du Sac offer, and the seat of justice was located accordingly.
Some months later the people of Prairie du Sac offered the deeds of the donated lots to the County Board. It was then discovered that they contained a clause making the lots revertible to the original donors in case of the removal of the county seat. This excited great indigna- tion among the residents of Sauk City, Baraboo and the region known as the Bluffs, and several public meetings were held at which the matter was discussed.
In the summer of 1845, at one of these meetings, a committee was appointed, consisting of Count Haraszthy and Edmund Rendtorff, of Sauk City, and Levi Moore, Abram Wood, Thomas Remington and William H. Canfield, of Baraboo, to make an exploration of the inter- ior of the county, and ascertain whether the land was fit for settlement and cultivation. The committee started on this exploration on the 10th of November, 1845. Count Haraszthy's mare and a week's provisions, a shot-gun, two rifles and a bird-dog constituted the outfit. They took the pinery road to Seeley's Creek, and camped that night in a pinery shanty. In the morning, the Count took the halter off the mare and told her to go home to her colt, and, taking one day's provisions, the explorers started for the primeval forests. The next day, Wood shot a deer, but did not get it, and a partridge, which the Count bagged, had to suffice for dinner, supper and breakfast, for six stalwart men. Another day was passed with nothing but water to drink, and the next breakfast and dinner, also, were a blank. It was proposed to shoot the dog that night for supper, but Capt. Moore's trusty rifle brought down a fine yearling buck, and the fast was soon terminated.
The committee crossed over the head-waters of Honey Creek, passed on to Bear Creek, thence down Narrows Creek to the Baraboo River, and thence to Baraboo. They subsequently reported to a mass meeting that the interior of the county was not only fit for cultivation, but would make a fine agricultural district.
In the winter of 1845-46, the Legislature was petitioned to re-establish the seat of justice by a vote of the people. The petition was granted, and on the 7th day of April, 1846, an elec- tion was held, resulting in the removal of the county seat to Baraboo. The county board
* Died of apoplexy while exploring the county.
351
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY.
appointed twelve Commissioners to designate the point for county-seat purposes. They made an arrangement with the school district for the southeast quarter of Section 35, which quarter the school district had previously claimed. On the day of the Government land sale, which occurred soon afterward, Prescott Brigham, then a County Commissioner, purchased the said quarter-section in his own name, and with his own money, there being no funds in the county treasury, and subsequently deeded it to the county. The County Commissioners platted it into a village, and called it Adams, in consideration of Mr. Brigham's high regard for the renowned Massachusetts family of that name. The survey was made by Charles O. Baxter, and the rec- ord of it bears date of April, 1847. The name was changed to Baraboo in 1852. The block upon which the old Western Hotel was afterward built was purchased by Sumner & Maxwell before a public sale of lots was held. Harvey Canfield and C. C. Remington were appointed Commissioner and Clerk, respectively, to conduct the sale of lots, and about $4,000 was realized therefrom. With this money a wooden court house and jail were subsequently put up on the north side of Fourth street, facing the public square. The court-house was two stories high, and was completed in April, 1848, by Col. Edward Sumner, the contractor. The jail, it is said, resembled a huge dry-goods box, and was surrounded by a high wooden fence. Abe Wood was among the early inhabitants of this "jail." He had been incarcerated for attempting to shoot Henry A. Chapman, and, soon after being locked up, raised a portion of the loose floor and dug his way out.
But Baraboo did not long enjoy her county seat laurels in peace and quiet. About 1850, Reedsburg became an aspirant for county seat honors. The contest waxed warm for some time, and finally reached a climax in the spring of 1851, when the citizens of the " burg " took the position that no rafts or logs should pass over their dam en route for Baraboo. The services of a United States Deputy Marshal were called into requisition by the Baraboo people, and the Reeds- burg dam was partially cut away. This event has since been referred to as the "Reedsburg war."
In 1852, the leading residents of Reedsburg petitioned the Legislature to have a nine-mile strip stricken from the southern portion of Juneau County and attached to the northern part of Sauk County. The petition was granted, and the strip added in accordance with the prayer of the petitioners. This brought Reedsburg nearer the geographical center of the county. In 1853, through the efforts of Charles Armstrong, member of the Legislature, the strip was set back. But Reedsburg was not yet prepared to relinquish its claim, and, in 1855, they again came before the Legislature with a petition, praying that the county seat question be submitted to a vote of the people. The petition was granted, and in April, at the spring election, the question being submitted, Baraboo came off victorious.
The necessity for a new and better court house becoming apparent, the County Board at once took steps toward building. Sixty of the prominent citizens of Baraboo came forward with a $3,000 subscription to defray a portion of the expenses. In the fall of 1855, a contract was let to P. A. Bassett for the erection of a two-story brick building, 40x60 feet, in the center of the public square. The structure completed, was formally accepted by the board on the 1st of January, 1857.
On the night of the 4th of July, 1857, the old court house (then the property of Peter Van Wendall) was destroyed by fire. A local writer thus sums up the history of this ancient land- mark.
" The remorseless fire on the night'of the 4th inst., destroyed the last vestige of this vener- able edifice. As we stood and saw the fire-fiend wrapping it in his lurid glare, and as one by one the old timbers dropped to ashes beneath his fiery embrace, we could not help letting our thoughts wander back to the past, when the old court house was the pride of our village, the best building in all Sauk County. Erected in 1847, when Baraboo was scarcely a hamlet, and this county numbered its inhabitants by scores instead of by thousands, its construction was a work of no small magnitude. When completed, no wonder that the pioneers, long used to the hut and wigwam, should gaze upon it with honest pride. A year or two after the building
352
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY.
was put up, we well remember how a new acquaintance volunteered to show us the sights, and took us the first thing to see the new court house, then the 'elephant ' of the place. The second story was not only the court-room, but the schoolroom, the church, the lecture-room, and, in fact, the only place for the accommodation of public assemblages. At last the wants of the people, growing with the increased population, demanded a new court house, and ere a larger and more showy building could be completed, the old court house was left deserted, for a time, when its upper story was let for a printing office to D. K. Noyes, then the proprietor of the Republic. At last, neglected by man and abused by the elements, it was not fit for a printing office, even, and the Republic changed its quarters. After that it stood empty and forlorn until about two years ago, when it was bought by P. Van Wendall, and moved a short distance to the east, when a new front was built for it; and, being otherwise rejuvenated, it presented an entirely different appearance. It was then turned into a saloon, and no doubt felt the degrada- tion deeply. But it was not long to endure this humiliation. The fire came, and as the flames seethed, hissed and roared in, around and about it, it was cleansed of all impurities, and its ashes sank to earth as pure as nature herself."
In 1857, a hexagonal stone jail was built near the corner of Second and Broadway, over- looking the river and the picturesque hills and vales beyond. Col. Sumner was the contractor. In 1864, an addition, or rather a new wooden jail, was built in the rear of the stone structure, which had come to be considered unsafe. The construction of this latter building was super- intended by Jonas Tower, of Ironton fame.
In 1867, the interior of the new court house was remodeled. New floors were laid, parti- tions altered, two fire-proof vaults put in to accommodate the records of the County Court and Register of Deeds, and a Sheriff's office added.
When the question of a permanent location for the county seat was finally settled, and Reedsburg ceased to be an aspirant, the citizens of Baraboo turned their attention toward the improvement of the public square. A large number of the principal kinds of shade and orna- mental trees were planted throughout the park. Many of them have grown to be full size, and now spread their cool branches above the heads of a new generation.
RAILROADS.
About 1850, leading citizens of Sauk County obtained a charter for a railroad through the Baraboo Valley. The corporate title was the Fort Winnebago, Baraboo Valley & St. Paul Rail- way Company. At that time, A. Hyatt Smith, Robert J. Walker and others were engaged in building (chiefly on paper) a line of road from Chicago to Janesville, and from there, it was understood, the main line was to pass through Madison and the Baraboo Valley to St. Paul, while a branch was to lead via Fond du Lac to the Lake Superior region. Messrs. Smith & Walker had organized a company for this purpose, under the statutes of Illinois and Wisconsin, known as the Rock River Valley Union Railroad Company, and later as the Chicago, St. Paul & Fond du Lac Company. They had a charter from Janesville to Madison, and had laid con- siderable track between Chicago and Janesville. The scheme had every element of apparent suc- cess in its composition, and the citizens of Sauk County, fearing the road from Madison to St. Paul might be located at a point too far south to be of any benefit to them, procured the charter referred to, and subsequently obtained amendments to it securing the right of way from Madison to Baraboo, and thence northwestward to La Crosse or any other point on the Mississippi River. They stood ready to deliver this charter to Messrs. Smith & Walker, and also to furnish finan- cial aid, just so soon as those gentlemen manifested their ability to put the road through.
In 1852, a bill was introduced in Congress granting to the Chicago, St. Paul & Fond du Lac people the alternate sections of land for six miles on either side of the proposed routes to aid in the construction of the roads. A clause in this bill provided that, in case the lands which would so fall to the company had been settled by private entry, an equivalent should be given them from the then unoccupied lands in other parts of the State. The bill passed to a third reading, and was defeated by one vote, when its friends were confident of its success. Opposition to it came
353
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY.
chiefly from Milwaukee, from parties then engaged in directing the affairs of the La Crosse & Milwaukee road, now the La Crosse Division of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul. They fought it vigorously from the very beginning, but, having twice met with defeat (in the first and second readings), had withdrawn from the contest, and openly conceded its ultimate success. The friends, as well as the enemies, of the grant, were very numerous. The " third house " was com- posed almost entirely of Wisconsin men. Smith & Walker had opened regular headquarters, and it is said the former expended $80,000 in the one article of wine during the two winters that the contest lasted. P. A. Bassett and Col. James Maxwell, of Baraboo, went to Washington at dif- ferent times in the interest of the grant, Mr. Bassett being present when the final vote was taken. The defeat of the grant bill, of course, left the managers of the Chicago, St. Paul & Fond du Lac Company without prospective resources, and they were compelled to let the project rest.
In the winter of 1856-57, negotiations were opened with the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad Company, of which William B. Ogden was then President. P. A. Bassett, of Bar- aboo, having been delegated by the citizens to consult with Mr. Ogden, proposed to him that if the company would take the matter in hand and build a road through the valley, Sauk County would give in bonds and securities the sum of $450,000, and that the city of Madison would increase the amount to $600,000. Mr. Ogden promised that the route should be surveyed the following spring and work commenced as soon thereafter as possible. The crash of 1857 ruined the company's calculations in this regard and postponed further consideration of the sub- ject. 1
A corporation known as the Milwaukee & Western Railroad Company also enjoyed the favorable consideration of the people of Sauk County at an early day ; but before any action was taken by the company toward locating a line, the corporate name was changed to the Milwaukee, Watertown & Baraboo Valley. Judge S. L. Rose, of Beaver Dam, becom- ing President of this company, secured an amendment to the charter, and called it the Mil- waukee, Watertown, Beaver Dam & Baraboo Valley Railroad Company. The sum of $100,- 000 was named as the amount Sauk County would be required to raise to aid in its construc- tion, and Judge Rose made a tour through the Baraboo Valley for the purpose of soliciting subscriptions. Special elections were held in some of the towns through which the proposed line was to have passed, and money voted to aid in its construction. The town of Merrimack pledged itself to raise $50,000 should the line cross the river at that point before the bonds were issued. Other towns along the contemplated route held out similar inducements. The company was thus thrown upon its own resources to commence the work, and for the want of means the project was abandoned.
It remained, however, for that great railway genius, Byron Kilbourn, to successfully enlist the support of the citizens of Sauk County in favor of a railway scheme calculated to make the "poor rich and the rich richer." The agents of Mr. Kilbourn's enterprise invaded the county from the direction of Milwaukee and induced numerous farmers to give their notes, secured by mortgages upon their property, for the stock of the then comparatively unknown La Crosse & Milwaukee Railroad. In many parts of the county they found but little difficulty in securing customers for their paper. The advantages of a road running in front of every stockholder's door were pictured in attractive colors and eloquently dwelt upon. Then there was something irresistibly enticing in the prospect of forthcoming dividends upon the stock, which would surely enhance its value 100 per cent by the time the road should have been completed.
Meetings were held at all the principal points in Sauk County, at which enthusiastic speeches were made in favor of subscribing to the stock of the road. Mr. Kilbourn was present in person at many of these gatherings, and frequently harangued the assemblage. An old settler of Baraboo remembers hearing him, on one occasion, state that the road would in all probability pass through Baraboo ; at any rate, "Baraboo stood as good a chance as any other. point in the county." That same evening a meeting was in progress at Newport, at which the speakers assured the citizens of that pretentious place that the road would certainly cross the river there. These promises, though glaringly inconsistent, served the desired purpose to keep
354
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY.
up the excitement, and farm mortgages continued to be given with the utmost confidence in the declarations of the railroad men ; in fact the granting of mortgages became a mania which lasted so long as there were unencumbered farms and confiding farmers in the county. It is a remarkable fact that farms with mortgages upon them were considered worth more than those that were unmortgaged, so earnest were the people in the belief that the stock of the La Crosse & Milwaukee Railroad Company would appreciate in value and pay handsome dividends to the holders of it. Not to be the possessor of shares of this company was for a time considered a social disqualification, and, it is said, not a few neighborly feuds occurred between holders and non-holders on account of a manifest feeling of superiority on the part of the former over the latter.
But there finally came a revelation which, at this late date, seems almost cruel to refer to. The first intimation the people had of the " true inwardness" of the scheme was contained in the announcement that the company had decided not to cross the Wisconsin River at Newport ; neither would the line pass through the Baraboo Valley. On the contrary, the managers had concluded not to penetrate any part of Sauk County with their road. Still the holders of stock remained hopeful. Passing over the question of anticipated dividends, the stock, they thought, would certainly be redeemed at par, and in this way they would escape loss. Then came the in- telligence that the road had passed to other hands, and that the individuals composing the original company, were no longer responsible to the mortgagors for the redemption of the stock they held. Following close upon this astonishing information, came still more tangible evidence of duplicity, in the form of interest-bills upon the bonds of the defunct company. It had been stipulated be- tween the farmers and the railroad men that the interest upon the bonds should be paid by the lat- ter, but now that the company had ceased to exist in name, the bondholders naturally pounced upon the grantors of the mortgages for interest satisfactions. Recourse has since been had to the courts, decisions being rendered in favor of the bondholders.
In the meantime the road was rapidly approaching the Wisconsin River from the east. Apparently nothing definite had been determined upon as to the point of crossing, and the cit- izens of the village of Newport, though sadly disheartened over the prospect before them, resolved to press their claims to the last. The village had been built up principally upon the verbal promises of' the officers of the La Cross & Milwaukee Company that the road should cross the Wisconsin River at that point, and in anticipation thereof, lots rose to a very high price. Soon afterward, however, the company purchased land a mile and a half up the river, and procured a new location for the crossing. Many of the Newport citizens were stockholders in the road, but had no power to remedy the great wrong inflicted upon them. Finding themselves unable to obtain redress, they next endeavored to secure a depot on the line of the road opposite their place. In December, 1858, the company's Board of Directors granted a memorial, signed by the most prominent business men of Newport, Baraboo, Reedsburg, Delton, and the surround- ing country, to allow Newport to erect a depot, on the east side of the river, at her own expense, and have the trains stop there. The prayer of the petitioners was granted, and forthwith was heard in the then almost deserted village, the busy sound of ax, saw and hammer, and within ten weeks one of the handsomest depots on the line of the road stood erect and ready for use. On the 25th of February, 1859, a grand festival was held to celebrate the event, and the next day the first passenger train stopped there. And Newport was "resurrected." Some of the toasts on that festive occasion were very appropriate. For instance : "The Resurrection-New- port on the right, Kilbourn City on the left." "The citizens of Newport and vicinity-may they never be obliged to go to Kilbourn City to get on a train." And this one, aimed at the heads of the railroad managers : " The La C. & M. R. R., from Lone Rock to the head of the Dells- " A serpent once roamed in a garden, 'tis said, With deception and lies as his theme ; And engulfed in corruption our primitive head, By his false and fraudulent schemes.
" So his offspring can now, in all they may do, Be known by the manner they travel-
The serpentine course this railroad pursues, Will their origin fully unravel."
355
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY.
But the confiding people of Newport were not permitted long to enjoy the privileges and benefits accruing to an ordinary way station. Mr. Kilbourn soon pushed his road up the east side of the river to the present site of the city which bears his name. A crossing was there effected, and, with characteristic energy, Mr. Kilbourn completed his road to the Mississippi River, about one mile of the line passing through Sauk County.
The feeling against the company was very intense, not only in this county, but in other parts of the State where the people had been hoodwinked. In order to quiet the deceived mortgagors, the La Crosse & Milwaukee Company finally signed over to them their State land-grant. Sales of this grant have since been made, and the proceeds distributed pro rata among the mort- gagors. About 20 per cent lias so far been realized upon the original amounts invested.
The facts concerning subsequent movements to obtain a road through the Baraboo Valley are very meager, though the citizens did not pause in their efforts to secure this long-desired out- let. In the fall of 1862, the Chicago & North-Western Railroad Company made a preliminary examination of a route from Madison to La Crosse, and, in March following, Vice President Perry H. Smith, of Chicago, wrote to Gen. Starks, of Sauk County : " The route is an exceed- ingly feasible one, though some portions of it will be quite expensive. Our Board of Directors have determined to extend their line to the river, although, with the uncertainties of the times, I can make no positive promises of an immediate commencement of the work."
At a meeting of citizens held July 23, 1863, the Baraboo Valley Railroad Association was organized with P. A. Bassett as President, and correspondence was at once entered into with various railroad companies, setting forth the advantages of the route and the extent to which the people of the county would lend financial aid. In September following, the Chicago & North- Western Company made a survey from Madison to La Crosse, through the Baraboo Valley, Col. Van Meenan, the surveyor, reporting favorably upon the route. Here the subject appears to have been temporarily dropped.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.