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TH£  NlW  Y3rK 

PUBLIC  LIBRARY 


I 


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HERMAN  A.  MUELLER 


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HISTORY  OF 


MADISON  COUNTY 


IOWA 


AND  ITS  PEOPLE 


HERMAN  A.  MUELLER 

SUPERVISING  ^EDITOR 


ILLUSTRATED 


VOLUME  I 


CHICAGO 

THE  S.  J.  CLARKE  PUBLISHING  COMPANY 
1915 


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PREFACE 


For  several  years  it  has  been  my  ambition  to  prepare  and  compile  a  History 
of  Madison  County.  That  time  has  been  delayed  until  in  the  fall  of  1914  when 
arrangements  were  made  with  The  S.  J.  Clarke  Publishing  Company  of  Chicago 
to  act  as  Supervising  Editor  of  the  first  volume.  Mr.  W.  L.  Kershaw  was 
employed  to  do  the  writing  and  compiling  from  the  large  source  of  material 
at  hand. 

The  manuscripts  of  the  late  Andrew  J.  Hoisington,  of  Great  Bend,  Kan^s, 
who  in  the  year  1905  gathered  much  valuable  material  for  the  purpose  of  pub- 
lishing a  History  of  Madison  County,  were  secured  through  the  kindness  of  his 
.sister,  Mrs.  Samuel  Johnson,  of  Union  Township.  (Read  the  Life  of  Andrew 
J.  Hoisington  in  Volume  Two.)  Much  of  the  material  from  this  manuscript  was 
incorporated  in  this  History. 

Another  source  was  from  the  material  collected  by  the  Madison  County 
Historical  Society  since  its  organization  in  1904.  All  papers  presented  before  the 
Historical  Society  are  preserved  as  well  as  other  matter  of  historical  value.  Much 
of  this  material  was  drawn  upon  for  this  History. 

Also  the  two  histories,  viz:  Davies'  History  and  Directory  of  Madison  County, 
published  in  1869,  and  The  History  of  Madison  County,  published  in  1879,  were 
used.  These  two  books  were  written  at  a  time  when  many  of  the  early  pioneers 
were  still  living  who  knew  much  of  the  beginning  of  things  in  Madison  County. 
Nearly  all  those  persons  have  passed  away,  which  makes  the  collecting  of  early 
history  more  difficult. 

The  newspaper  files  of  the  Winterset  papers,  especially  the  special  historical 
numbers  published  at  various  times  by  The  Madisonian,  The  Reporter,  The  News, 
and  The  Winterset  Review,  were  freely  used. 

To  all  the  above  sources  we  make  due  acknowledgment  for  the  data  which 
was  drawn  upon  for  the  present  History. 

We  wish  to  express  our  sincere  thanks  to  the  Advisory  Board  for  their  advice 
and  assistance  rendered ;  also  to  the  many  members  of  the  Madison  County  His- 
torical Society  who  have  at  different  times  presented  papers  before  the  society. 
These  papers  have  been  used  quite  extensively  in  this  volume. 

We  especially  express  our  appreciation  to  the  persons  named  below  and  make 
due  acknowledgment  of  the  same  at  this  time.  Two  of  them  have  passed  away 
but  their  many  kind  and  noble  deeds  live  in  the  hearts  of  those  who  were 
privileged  to  know  them,  viz :  W.  S.  Wilkinson  and  Mrs.  Jennie  Lothrop  Whedon. 

The  names  of  the  authors  and  the  subjects  written  by  them  which  appear 
in  this  History  are  as  follows : 

W.  S.  Wilkinson:  "The  Big  Snake  Hunt,"  "As  a  Boy  Saw  It,"  "Early 
Schools,  Religion,  and  Politics,"  and  "The  Buffalo  Mills." 

E.  R.  Zeller:     Biographies  of  Andrew  J.  Hoisington  and  Judge  J.  A.  Pitzer, 
and  "History  of  the  Kentucky  Settlement." 

iii 


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IV  PREFACE 

T.  C.  Gilpin :  "History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Winterset,"  "History 
of  Pitzer  Post,  G.  A.  R.,  Winterset,"  "History  of  Evening  Star  Lodge,  A.  F.  & 
A.  M.,  Winterset." 

James  Gillespie :     "History  of  the  Irish  Settlement  of  Madison  County." 

W.  H.  Lewis :  "How  the  Courthouse  Was  Taken  by  the  Board  of  Supervisors," 
"Winterset  in  1864." 

George  Storck :  '^History  of  the  German  Settlement  of  Jefferson  Township," 
"History  of  the  Farmers'  Mutual  Insurance  Company  of  Madison  County." 

D.  B.  Cook:     "History  of  the  Quakers  in  Madison  County." 

Ezra  Brownell :     "History  of  the  Grange  Movement  in  Madison  County." 

Mrs.  Jennie  Lothrop  Whedon :  "History  of  the  W.  R.  C.  and  of  the  Chapters 
in  Madison  County." 

A.  E.  Goshorn :     "The  Geology  of  Madison  County." 
•  Samuel  Fife :     "Reminiscences  of  South  Township  in  an  Early  Day." 

Fred  Beeler :     "Early  Days  in  Walnut  Township." 

The  Supervising  Editor  in  the  past  fifteen  years  has  gathered  much  material 
and  has  written  several  articles  for  the  Historical  Society.  This  material  and- 
papers  were  also  used  in  the  first  volume. 

'As  the  manuscript  is  not  before  me  at  this  writing,  it  is  possible  that  mention 
of  some  persons  who  have  contributed  has  not  been  made,  so  at  this  time  I  want 
to  make  acknowledgment  to  all  who  have  in  any  way  helped  to  make  this  History 
possible. 

The  History  may  not  reach  the  expectations  of  many,  not  even  the  Supervising 
Editor,  but  if  it  has  served  the  one  mission  of  collecting  and  preserving  history 
to  future  generations  some  good  will  have  been  accomplished.  Doubtless  there 
will  be  much  valuable  historical  matter  which  will  be  omitted  which  possibly 
should  not  have  been,  but  it  will  be  for  the  reason  that  such  facts  were  not  known 
or  were  overlooked  by  the  Supervising  Editor.  That  it  will  be  free  of  errors  is 
almost  an  impossibility.  Memories  of  persons  are  not  always  reliable,  dates  are 
not  always  safe  to  handle,  and  names  are  easily  twisted,  so  to  make  a  history 
»vithout  errors  creeping  in  would  be  a  task  seldom  ever  accomplished. 

I  trust  that  this  History  will  meet  the  approval  of  all  who  have  a  real  interest 
in  Madison  County,  and  who  have  its  history  and  its  people  at  heart. 

Again  thanking  the  many  persons  who  have  encouraged  and  assisted  in  the 
gathering  and  writing  of  this  volume,  and  with  a  promise  that  in  the  future  a 
better  and  large  history  may  be  written, 

I  remain,  respectfully  yours, 

H.  A.  Mueller, 

Supervising  Editor. 


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CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  I 

GEOLOGICAL  STRUCTURE  OF  MADISON  COUNTY I 

CHAPTER  n 

INDIANS  AND  THEIR  VILLAGER  IN  MADISON  COUNTY 12 

CHAPTER  HI 
Madison's  advance  guard  of  civilization 20 

CHAPTER  IV 

MADISON    COUNTY   ORGANIZED 29 

CHAPTER  V      ■ 

PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  COMMISSIONERS'  COURT 36 

'  CHAPTER  VI 

COUNTY   BUILDINGS    57 

CHAPTER  VII 

POLITICAL     66 

CHAPTER  VIII 

ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  REPUBLICAN  PARTY  IN  MADISON  COUNTY 75 

CHAPTER  IX 

EDUCATIONAL    • 78 

CHAPTER  X 

RELIGIOUS  ORGANIZATIONS 9O 

CHAPTER  XI 

THE   MEDICAL   PROFESSION    99 

CHAPTER  XII 

BENCH   AND  BAR IO3 

CHAPTER  XIII 

THE   PRESS    114 

V 


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vi  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  XIV 

POSTOFFICES    117 

CHAPTER  XV       • 

FIRST  MARRIAGES  IN  THE  COUNTY I23 

CHAPTER  XVI 

MADISON  COUNTY  CLAIM   CLUB I26 

CHAPTER  XVII 

THE  REEVES  WAR I34 

CHAPTER  XVIII    . 

SWAMP    LANDS    I38 

CHAPTER  XIX 

LOST  AND  FORGOTTEN  TOWN  SITES I44 

CHAPTER  XX 

SOME  MADISON   COUNTY   MILLS I5O 

CHAPTER  XXI  ■ 

THE  SIMPLE  LIFE    I56 

CHAPTER  XXII 

TRANSPORTATION     169 

CHAPTER  XXIII 

OUT  OF  THE  BOUNTEOUS  HAND  OF  NATURE I76 

CHAPTER  XXIV 

THE  "underground  RAILROAD" 183 

CHAPTER  XXV 

MADISON  COUNTY  IN  THE  CIVIL  WAR .* 185 

CHAPTER  XXVI 

MADISON    COUNTY  SOCIETIES 217 

CHAPTER  XXVII 

QUAKER  SETTLEMENT  IN   MADISON   COUNTY 221 

CHAPTER  XXVIII 

CLAYTON  COUNTY   COMES  TO    MADISON 228 

CHAPTER  XXIX 

SCHOOLS  AND  RATTLESNAKES 233 


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CONTENTS  vu 

CHAPTER  XXX 

A^OCIATIONS  AND  OTHER  THINGS 24O 

CHAPTER  XXXI 

SOUTH    TOWNSHIP    2SO 

CHAPTER  XXXn 

UNION   TOWNSHIP    269 

CHAPTER  XXXni 

SCOTT   TOWNSHIP    279 

CHAPTER  XXXIV 

DOUGLAS  TOWNSHIP    288 

CHAPTER  XXXV 

LINCOLN    TOWNSHIP     296 

CHAPTER  XXXVI 

CRAWFORD  TOWNSHIP f'. 3OO 

CHAPTER  XXXVII 

WALNUT  TOWNSHIP 307 

CHAPTER  XXXVIII 

WEBSTER   TOWNSHIP 3I3 . 

CHAPTER  XXXIX 

PENN  TOWNSHIP    316 

CHAPTER  XL 

MADISON   TOWNSHIP    32O 

CHAPTER  XLI 

JEFFERSON   TOWNSHIP    33O 

CHAPTER  XLII 

JACKSON   TOWNSHIP    341 

CHAPTER  XLIII 

LEE   TOWNSHIP    ^ 344 

CHAPTER  XLIV 

GRAND  RIVER  TOWNSHIP 349 

CHAPTER  XLV 

OHIO    TOWNSHIP 356 


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viii  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  XLVI 

MONROE   TOWNSHIP 360 

CHAPTER  XLVn 

THE  CITY  OF  WINTERSET 363 

CHAPTER  XLVin 

FRATERNAL  BODIES  OF  WINTERSET 376 

CHAPTER  XLIX 

WINTERSET  IN  1864 — PIONEER  MERCHANT 389 

CHAPTER  L 

MISCELLANEOUS 395 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 


CHAPTER  I 

GEOLOGICAL  STRUCTURE  0FTV[ADIS0N  COUNTY 
(By  Arthur  Goshom,  Editor  the  News) 

All  my  life  I  have  delighted  in  the  outdoors  and  lived  in  it  as  much  as 
possible.  I  believe  I  can  say  to  this  society  that  this  liking  i^  real,  not  assumed. 
The  bug  has  always  been  in  me  and  it  is  yet  there.  I  could  always  understand 
the  man  in  James  Whitcomb  Riley*s  poem  who  said  he  liked  to  go  into  the 
woods  and  do 

"Just  as  I  dum  please, 
When  the  green 
Is  on  the  trees." 

As  a  very  little  child  I  had  the  old  gully  that  cuts  into  the  shore,  or  at  least  the 
shallows,  of  the  old  Carboniferous  Sea,  which  you  know  as  Kipp's  Hollow,  and 
which  I  knew  as  Bradfield's,  for  a  playground.  The  fossils  of  its  rocks  were 
my  first  playthings.  Its  little  brook  ran  through  our  calf  lot,  and  it  was  the  first 
thing  I  ever  dammed. 

One  of  the  first  questions  that  I  ever  asked  myself  was  why  some  of  its 
rocks  were  red,  and  round  aCnd  smooth.  Why  the  pebbles  were  round  and 
smooth,  and  why  some  of  the  rocks  were  flat  and  white,  and  seemed  to  grow  in 
the  ground,  and  how  the  funny  shells  got  into  them.  Why  some  of  the  soil  was 
black,  and  some  red,  and  some  yellow. 

A  sarcastic  teacher  came  nearly  preventing  all  outward  expression  of  this 
liking  for  the  outdoors  by  assigning  us  a  nature  topic,  and  then  singling  out  my 
little  effort,  and  ridiculing  it  before  the  whole  school,  characterizing  it  as  stolen 
gush.  It  was  not  stolen;  it  was  not  gush.  But  her  sarcastic  words  hurt  so 
bitterly,  the  gibes  of  my  none  too  gentle  companions  cut  so  deep,  that  it  was 
years  before  I  dared  tell  anyone  that  it  was  not  just  for  the  hunting  that  I 
explored  every  crook  and  turn  of  every  one  of  Middle  River's  ravines,  and 
hunted  its  rock  exposures ;  and  that  it  was  not  the  passionate  love  of  fishing  alone 
that  made  me  get  acquainted  with  every  riffle  on  the  river,  and  every  peculiarity 
of  its  bed. 

Sarcasm  and  ridicule  are  cruel  weapons  and  make  ugly  wounds.  A  home 
thrust  may  easily  change  the  bent  of  one's  mind,  or  the  course  of  his  whole  life. 
A  few  years  teaching,  and  many  in  the  newspaper  business  have  made  me  know 
that  every  man,  every  woman,  and  every  child  is  pleased  by  praise;  and  that 


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2  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

every  man,  every  woman,  and  every  child  is  deeply  hurt  by  sarcasm  or  ridicule, 
no  matter  how  indifferent  to  it  he  may  appear  to  be,  or  how  invulnerable  he 
looks.  And  he  who  is  addicted  to  their  use  may  well  pause  before  he  lances  his 
victim. 

It  is  only  in  late  years,  anyhow,  that  healthy  men  and  women  have  taken 
possession  of  the  outdoors.  It  is  only  in  late  years  that  an  active  business  man 
in  vigorous  health  dared  get  up  and  say  that  he  liked  outdoors,  and  that  he 
could  see  beauty  in  the  landscape,  and  in  the  sky's  coloring,  and  that  he  liked  it 
just  because  he  liked  it,  and  did  not  care  who  in  Sam  Hill  knew  it,  without 
being  set  down  as  weak  minded,  cracked,  sentimental,  and  a  gusher. 

As  a  boy,  as  an  older  boy,  as  man,  I  tramped  over  the  wooded  hills  of  Middle 
River  and  explored  every  bit  of  its  ravines  and  hollows  and  its  rock  exposures ; 
and  as  an  indifferent  student  of  geology  studied  its  structure  until  I  came  to 
think  that  perhaps  I  had  an  idea  how  it  was  formed.  It  is  only  because  of  this 
lifetime  acquaintance,  tramping  its  hills  and  its  valley  from  one  end  of  it  to  the 
other  as  perhaps  few  have  tramped  it  that  I  presumed  to  impose  on  your  time 
and  perhaps  offer  a  few  suggestions  that  may  be  of  value  when  you  once  fairly 
start  into  the  study  of  its  geology,  in  whatever  branch  you  may  take  up. 

And  believe  me  when  you  undertake  this  work,  even  if  you  do  not  take  it 
seriously,  you  have  an  intensely  interesting  subject  in  one  of  the  most  interest- 
ing bits  of  geological  formation  in  Iowa.  And  you  and  I  know  that  not  in  the 
the  whole  state  is  there  another  valley  so  peculiarly  made,  so  grandly  cut  in 
canyon  walls,  as  that  of  the  ancient  valley  below  us.  In  taking  up  its  study  you 
are  at  least  out  of  doors  in  Iowa's  finest  scenery. 

If  you  believe  in  the  conclusions  of  the  men  who  have  made  the  structure 
of  the  earth  a  lifetime  study,  you  must  believe  in  boundless,  limitless  time.  Not 
time  as  it  suggests  itself  to  you  in  minutes,  hours,  days,  weeks,  months,  years,  or 
even  centuries;  but  ages,  ages  upon  ages,  millions  upon  millions  of  years,  a 
vast  abyss  of  time,  in  which  your  lifetime  and  mine  would  be  but  a  clock's  tick, 
or  the  passing  of  an  electric  spark.  One  can  hardly  conceive  of  such  time.  It 
is  one  of  the  few  things  the  human  mind  cannot  grasp ;  for  like  space,  it  had  no 
beginning,  neither  will  it  have  end. 

All  the  earth  at  your  feet,  every  bit  of  soil,  all  its  clays,  all  its  rocks,  except  a 
very  few,  are  but  ground  up  rock,  rock  ground  over  and  over  again  and  deposited 
by  wind  on  land,  or  by  rivers  on  their  flood  plains,  or  carried  out  in  solution 
or  as  silt  and  sand  to  the  beds  of  lakes  or  seas.  It  may  be  in  varying  degrees 
of  hardness  and  of  fineness,  but  nevertheless  it  is  all  ground  up,  igneous  rock 
which  we  only  know  as  granites  and  quartz.  Pick  up  a  bit  of  it  and  perhaps  you 
can  see  the  sand  in  it.  Examine  it  under  the  microscope  and  it  is  all  rock,  every 
bit  of  it,  except  a  little  vegetable  mold  called  humus. 

When  the  earth  cooled  sufficiently  to  allow  the  moisture  in  its  air  envelope 
to  collect  on  the  igneous  rock — for  the  whole  body  of  the  earth  is  supposed  to  be 
fire  heated  rock — in  wrinkles  and  depressions  on  its  face,  into  seas  and  oceans, 
the  formation  of  the  land  as  we  know  it  commenced.  If  one's  imagination  be  the 
least  vivid  he  can  picture  the  world  in  formative  stages  a  veritable  battle  of  the 
elements,  so  awful  in  its  magnificence,  so  terrifying  in  its  aspects,  so  staggering 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  3 

in  its  proportions  that  he  will  shiver  in  terror  and  draw  bed  clothes,  child-like, 
over  his  head. 

Hissing,  half  molten  rocks  hurled  back  scalding,  boiling  seas ;  tempests  com- 
pared to  which  our  awful  cyclones  would  be  but  tiny  wind  storms,  swept  its 
surface.  Explosions  compared  to  which  Sumatra's  eruption  that  twice  belted  the 
earth  with  its  dust  would  have  been  a  pop  gun's  report,  shattered  its  dense 
atmosphere.  Earthquakes  that  hourly  threw  up  mountain  chains  only  to  demolish 
them  again  and  bury  them  in  ocean  depths,  rocked  it.  Lightning  played  a  con- 
stant tattoo  in  huge  bolts  on  rock  and  sea,  for  there  was  no  land  then. 

Some  fireworks  that!  But  it  must  have  been  under  some  such  conditions 
amid  some  such  terrifying  scenes,  after  the  earth  became  somewhat  stable,  that 
the  wind  and  water  commenced  the  attack  on  the  igneous  rock,  to  manufacture 
them  into  the  earth  as  we  know  it.  And  it  was  only  after  it  had  become  stable, 
.  allowed  something  permanent,  that  w^  commence  to  read  its  history  in  the 
deposits  of  the  old  seas. 

And  such  has  been  the  length  of  time  since  that  has  happened,  since  the  sur- 
face of  the  earth  became  permanent  or  cooled,  that  there  has  been  deposited 
over  almost  all  of  the  face  of  the  earth  these  sedimentary  or  manufactured 
rocks  or  clays  from  a  few  hundred  feet  to  thirteen  miles  in  thickness.  Such  a 
deposit  seems  incredible,  but  again  you  must  go  back  to  time,  and  allow  enough 
for  it.  How  much  time  you  may  not  name,  but  your  guess,  if  you  but  guess 
large  enough,  is  just  as  good  as  that  of  the  most  scientific  man's. 

But  whether  you  believe  in  this  nebular  hypothesis  of  the  world's  forma- 
tion, that  it  developed  from  a  molten  body  and  that  it  had  grown  to  its  full 
size  before  the  wind  and  water  commenced  their  work,  or  whether  you  believe 
in  the  later  and  now  very  generally  accepted  theory,  the  Planetesimal  theory 
of  the  growth  of  the  earth  and  the  moon  from  slow  accumulations  from  an 
earth-moon  ring,  and  that  the  oceans  and  rivers  and  the  wind  began  their  work 
long  before  either  body  had  attained  its  present  size,  is  not  material  now.  We 
are  concerned  with  the  time  in  which  our  own  country,  or  at  least  the  face  of  it, 
was  formed.  There  is  too  much  in  geology,  too  much  of  it  in  our  own  topic  to 
even  scratch  it  in — whatever  this  paper  is. 

If  we  would  go  out  in  Mrs.  Whedon's  yard  and  dig  or  bore  down  with  a 
diamond  drill,  a  core  drill,  eight  hundred  feet  and  stretch  the  boring  out,  it  would 
be  nearly  three  blocks  long. 

1.  You  would  find  one  to  three  feet  of  black  dirt.  That  is  loess,  a  wind 
deposit,  mixed  with  vegetable  mold,  and  it  was  brought  here  by  the  wind. 

2.  A  foot -or  two  of  buff  loess  that  has  been  little  mixed  .with  vegetable 
mold. 

3.  Between  thirty  and  forty  feet  of  glacial  drift  and  residual  limestone 
clays.  The  drift  was  deposited  by  glaciers ;  the  residual  clays  are  either  decom- 
posed rock,  or  clay  not  hardened  into  rock,  and  were  deposited  in  the  sea  bed. 

4.  One  hundred  and  fifty  feet  of  alternating  layers  of  limestone  and  'shales 
that  were  deposited  in  a  carboniferous  sea,  the  last  water  that  covered  Madison 
County — the  Bethany  limestones  of  the  carboniferous. 

5.  Six  hundred  feet  of  alternating  beds  of  limestones  and  shales  and  clays 
that  were  deposited  in  the  first  carboniferous  sea  that  covered  the  county,  or 


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4  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

at  least  part  of  it.  You  might  find  a  bed  of  coal  in  it.  How  much  more  of  the 
formation  of  that  old  carboniferous  sea  is  there  no  one  knows,  for  800  feet  out 
on  the  old  Newlon  farm,  just  beyond  North  River,  is  as  far  down  as  boring  has 
been  made.  A  deeper  boring  was  made^  by  the  Great  Western  at  Peru,  but  its 
record  is  not  public. 

Whether  this  carboniferous  formation  rests  on  the  Devonian  formation, 
the  age  preceding  it,  we  do  not  know,  and  will  not  know  until  a  deeper  boring 
has  been  made.    If  it  does,  we  were  a  long  time  under  water. 

THE  CARBONIFEROUS 

Discussing  Middle  River's  ancient  valley  we  shall  only  consider  its  structure. 
Middle  River  Valley  is  the  oldest  one  by  far  in  this  part  of  the  state.  It  is  very, 
very  old  and  has  successfully  withstood  the  attacks  of  glaciers.  Compared  with 
our  valley  the  country  to  the  west  and  north  of  us,  and  their  rivers,  are  very  new 
and  very  recent. 

All  we  really  know  of  the  county  is  that  its  top,  after,  of  course,  removing 
the  drift  and  the  loess,  was  laid  down  in  the  bottom  of  a  carboniferous  sea. 
And  since  it  was  deposited  the  earth  here  was  not  violently  disturbed  at  any 
time  for  the  strata  of  clays  and  limestone  He  in  our  hills,  layer  upon  layer,  not 
wrinkled,  exactly  like  the  layers  of  a  jelly  cake.  You  can  trace  a  bed  of  lime- 
stone clear  across  the  county.  You  can  find  that  bed  of  shale  from  which  they 
make  the  tile  at  the  tile  works,  at  Peru,  on  Cedar  and  on  North  River  and  North 
Branch.  The  bed  of  limestone,  from  which  you  gather  so  many  fossils  in  Kipp's 
Hollow,  is  the  very  same  one  which  lies  on  the  very  top  of  the  Backbone  and, 
if  you  are  not  able  to  identify  it  by  the  rock,  you  can  do  it  by  the  fossils  in  it. 

The  lower  valley  lies  wholly  within  the  coal  measures  which  are  here  in 
Iowa  called  the  Des  Moines.  The  coal  measures  are  exposed  along  Middle  River 
as  far  west  as  the  Backbone.  There  is  no  coal  to  speak  of  in  the  formation 
exposed  and  whether  there  is  any  deeper  down  we  do  not  know,  for  the  explorers 
for  coal  have  drilled  so  foolishly  and  unwisely  that  we  know  little  about  it. 
The  first  coal  boring  that  I  know  of  was  made  years  ago  in  that  little  round 
glen  below  Dabney's  Lake.  At  the  Mardis  Brick  Yard  a  syndicate  bored  down 
from  the  top  of  the  hill.  A  little  geological  knowledge  would  have  sent  them 
to  the  river's  bottom  and  saved  150  feet  of  drilling.  An  old  man  bored  or 
tunneled  into  the  hill  in  Young's  Hollow,  east  of  town,  and  the  shaft  is  there 
yet.  Bailey,  who  drills  wells,  says  that  only  small  coal  veins  are  encountered  in 
the  Des  Moines  formation.  Tilton  and  Bain  are  of  the  opinion  that  somewhat 
deep  borings  in  the  northeast  part  of  the  county  may  find  coal  and  that  pockets 
may  be  found.  That  old  carboniferous  sea  stretched  from  Fort  Dodge  in  Iowa 
to  Keokuk,  and  from  What  Cheer  to  Winterset  and  beyond.  It  covered  the 
whole  ^of  Western  Missouri  and  Eastern  Kansas  and  stretched  into  Oklahoma 
and  Arkansas. 

How  the  coal  was  made  we  do  not  exactly  know.  There  are  just  as  many 
theories  as  there  are  geologists. 

Certain  it  is  that  during  the  carboniferous  time  vegetation  in  luxuriousness 
such  as  the  earth  does  not  now  know  grew  over  its  face,  and  that  in  its  slimy. 


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oozy  swamps,  trees  grew  and  fell,  and  were  converted  into  coal.  In  its  muggy, 
moist  climate,  such  as  geologists  picture  it  to  be,  ferns  grew  to  huge  trees  and 
lower  plant  life  into  sizes  such  as  we  can  scarcely  conceive.  All  the  coal  in 
Iowa  seems  to  have  been  deposited  along  the  Des  Moines  River  from  Fort 
Dodge  to  Keokuk. 

THE  BETHANY  LIMESTONE 

When  the  country  east  of  Tileville  rose  out  of  the  great  sea  or  swamp,  the 
country  around  Winterset  remained  submerged  until  two  hundred  feet  or  more 
of  rocks  and  clays  had  been  formed. 

Winterset  must  have  been  close  to  the  edge  of  the  sea  and  if  not  on  the  very 
shore  was  not  far  out  in  the  shallows.  The  abundant  fossils  of  the  rock  are  good 
evidence  of  being  close  to  shore,  for  marine  life  in  such  quantities  lives  close  to 
the  beach  or  in  the  shallows  of  the  sea.  The  rocks  disappear  at  Tileville  and  while 
Winterset  was  submerged  Patterson  and  Bevington  and  the  country  to  the  north- 
east was  out  of  water.  The  last  carboniferous  sea  extended  from  Earlham  down 
into  Missouri.  It  extended  far  west.  When  they  bored  the  deep  well  in  Clarinda, 
they  came  upon  our  rocks  600  feet  down  and  found  them  of  the  same  character 
and  nearly  of  the  same  thickness  and  separated  by  about  the  same  shales  as  they 
are  here.  At  Bethany,  Missouri,  they  are  exposed,  and  Bethany  gives  our  rocks 
their  names  as  they  were  first  described  there.    Bethany  lies  south  of  here. 

I  remember,  when  yet  a  small  boy,  I  went  with  my  uncle  and  grandmother 
to  Missouri  to  get  three  wagon  loads  of  peaches.  None  grew  here  then  and  it 
was  a  common  thing  to  do.  The  peaches  rotted  and  coming  home  we  stopped  in 
the  rocky  bed  of  a  river  about  the  size  of  Middle  River,  near  Bethany,  Missouri, 
to  can  some  peaches  and  make  peach  butter.  The  hills  had  a  famiHar  look,  .the 
rocks  had  too.    It  reminded  me  of  and  looked  much  like  home. 

We  had  not  been  in  camp  long  until,  prodding  into  the  bank  I  found  a  fine 
specimen  of  Cameratus,  a  spirifer  that  is  quite  common  in  our  own  rocks.  I 
soon  dug  up  other  kinds  common  to  our  rocks,  and  promptly  named  them.  And 
when  on  closer  investigation  I  saw  our  own  rocks  reproduced  bed  for  bed,  the 
hills  resembling  our  own  hills,  our  clays,  the  rocky  river  and  all  that,  the  home 
longing  came  over  me  so  strong  that  I  could  not  go  back  to  camp.  Uncle  laughed 
at  me  when  I  told  him  we  had  the  same  rocks  at  Winterset,  but  I  proved  it  to 
him  by  the  fossils.  Grandmother  eased  it  over  for  me  by  saying  that  if  these 
were  our  rocks  and  the  stream  like  Middle  River  there  surely  must  be  bass  in 
the  pools,  and  sent  me  to  catch  her  one.  I  did,  I  caught  three  in  ten  minutes 
and  permitted  my  brother  to  make  our  share  of  the  peach  butter  after  that. 
Incidentally  I  might  mention  that  it  was  on  this  same  trip,  near  Plattsburgh,  in 
another  rocky  hollow,  going  down,  that  great  flocks  of  wild  pigeons  passed  over 
us  morning  and  evening,  the  last  time  I  ever  saw  the  bird  whose  mysterious 
and  complete  disappearance  so  suddenly  has  sorely  perplexed  ornithologists. 

There  are  four  beds  of  the  Bethany  limestone.  The  top  one  is  the  Fusulina, 
a  thin  shaly  rock,  in  many  places  so  full  of  fossils  you  could  not  stick  in  another 
if  you  tried. 

The  second  bed  is  the  Winterset  limestone,  our  fine  white  building  rock  that 


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6  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

is  hs^ndsomer,  stronger,  than  any  other  Iowa  limestone,  and  far  superior  to  Bed- 
ford stone.  Some  day  all  the  best  houses  in  Iowa  will  be  built  from  it.  With  its 
shales  and  clays  it  varies  from  twenty  to  forty  feet  thick.  There  are  miles  of 
it  exposed. 

The  third  bed  is  the  Earlham  limestone,  named  because  of  the  exposures  at 
Earlham.  It,  too,  is  fine  building  rock  and  from  it  was  burned  the  excellent 
lime  in  the  old  lime  kilns  that  were  once  in  every  hollow  near  Winterset.  The 
Earlham  limestone  and  shale  is  from  thirty  to  forty  feet  thick. 

.  The  fourth  bed  is  the  Fragmental,  a  fine  rock  but  little  used,  because  it  lies 
deep  and  there  is  so  much  good  rock  above  it.  It  varies  in  thickness  and  with 
its  shales  is  from  ten  to  thirty  feet  in  depth.  All  the  rocks  are  fine  cement 
rocks  and  with  their  shales  produce  the  best  cement. 

When  the  country  slowly  emerged  from  that  carboniferous  sea  in  which 
our  limerock  was  deposited  it  rose  up  in  a  great  plain.  Middle  River  was  not 
there,  neither  was  the  valley.  There  were  no  hills,  no  ravines.  It  was  as  flat 
and  probably  as  unrelieved  as  this  floor.  There  may  have  been  lakes  on  its 
surface,  but  judging  from  all  that  is  left,  the  country,  drawing  a  line  from 
Truro  to  Earlham,  through  Winterset,  was  flat  without  a  hill  in  it.  It  tipped 
or  sloped  gently  to  the  northeast.  And  then  the  water  commenced  to  make  our 
country  as  we  know  it  by  gouging  out  the  ravines  and  carrying  down  the  soil 
and  clays  to  the  Mississippi  Delta. 

Every  hill  and  every  valley  we  have  in  the  county  was  caused  by  erosion. 
The  material  that  once  lay  between  is  now  down  in  the  Mississippi  Delta. 
The  limestone  restricted  the  erosion  in  the  western  two-thirds  of  the  county. 
Middle  River  cut  deep  through  the  rocks,  but  it  cut  its  gorge  narrow,  as  rivers 
always  do  in  hard  rocks.  We  are,  right  here,  200  feet  above  the  bed  of  the  river 
where  John  Holloway  cuts  his  ice  a  mile  away.  Patterson  is  230  feet  below  us 
and  Bevington  is  about  thirty  feet  more.  Earlham,  Winterset  and  Truro  are 
about  on  the  same  level,  and  all  lie  on  ridges  that  have  been  little  eroded,  held 
up  by  the  underlying  limestone  and  the  tough  residual  clays. 

The  escarpment  at  the  eastern  edge  of  the  limestone  is  one  of  the  unique 
features  of  the  geology  of  the  county,  and  is  the  only  one  that  I  know  of  in  Iowa 
that  marks  the  jump  from  one  geological  period  to  another.  Just  the  moment 
you  go  out  of  the  limestone  you  will  notice  that  the  country  is  lower,  that  the 
erosion  has  been  greater,  the  hills  longer,  the  ridges  sharper,  and  the  soil  is 
different.  The  big  flat  topped  divides,  which  are  characteristic  of  the  north- 
west part  of  the  county,  were  saved  to  us  by  the  limestone  which  resisted  the 
action  of  the  water. 

In  the  western  part  of  the  county  the  glacial  drift  covered  everything  deep, 
and  again  the  country  is  rough  and  the  ridges  sharp  because  the  drift  easily 
erodes.  Adair  County  was  covered  deep  by  the  drift,  and  that  is  what  makes  it 
so  hilly. 

You  can  trace  how  Middle  River  cut  its  way  up  the  valley  bench  by  bench 
on  the  sides  of  the  ravines,  for  they  plainly  mark  a  period  of  rest  from  the 
cutting.  One  of  these  benches  or  terraces  the  Buffalo  Road  partially  follows. 
It  is  very  marked  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  ravine. 

Doubtless  at  the  edge  of  that  escarpment  when  the  river  commenced  to  cut 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  7 

its  way  back  through  the  limestone  were  fine  waterfalls.  I  do  not  see  how  any 
such  a  place  as  the  Devil's  Backbone  could  have  been  cut  without  the  presence 
of  falls.  But  Middle  River  is  now  so  old  that  where  it  cuts  through  the  rock  its 
passage  over  the  different  beds  is  marked  only  by  riffles.  Every  riffle  on  a  river 
marks  a  limestone  crossing,  or  else  a  different  clay  bed. 

THE  GLACIER 

And  then,  after  it  had  cut  its  deep  way  through  the  county  the  whole  North 
American  continent  got  on  a  bender.  A  great  climatic » change  came  over  it, 
or  it  rose  up  some  two  thousand  feet  or  more.  It  was  not  a  "hot  time,"  but  this 
continent  certainly  elevated  itself  at  least  that  much  more  than  it  now  lies  above 
the  level  of  the  sea.  Some  geologists  give  it  almost  a  mile.  Again  your  guess 
is  just  as  good  as  anyone's,  and  mine  as  good  as  that  of  the  most  learned 
geologist.  A  great  ice  sheet  came  pouring  down  over  the  country.  It  was  not 
a  glacier  such  as  exists  today,  but  a  great  ice  cap  like  the  one  that  covers  Green- 
land, and  which  flows  irresistibly  like  a  river.  It  did  things  to  this  country, 
and  to  Middle  River  Valley,  but  it  did  not  disfigure  this  section  around  Winterset 
anything  like  it  did  in  other  places. 

Imagine  a  great  wall  of  ice,  a  hundred,  two  hundred,  five  hundred,  two 
thousand  feet  thick,  flowing  down  over  a  land,  planing  the  surface  off,  obliterat- 
ing its  hills,  filling  up  its  valleys,  leveling  it  down  like  a  huge  King  road  drag 
does  the  street:  that  was  the  Kansan  glacier,  so  called  because  it  was  the  only 
one  that  crossed  the  Missouri  River  into  Kansas.  The  continent  was  covered 
with  successive  ice  sheets,  but  Calvin  and  Bain  say  that  only  one  of  them,  the 
Kansan  (it  was  the  first),  ever  touched  Madison  County. 

Imbedded  in  its  body  and  on  its  surface,  it  bore  a  vast  amount  of  material — 
dirt,  sand,  rock,  that  it  tore  from  the  country  to  the  north.  Whenever  you  find 
a  big  red  or  yellow  boulder  in  this  country,  or  for  that  matter  any  kind  of  a 
rock  that  is  not  limestone,  you  may  be  sure  the  glacier  has  been  there.  A  boulder 
or  niggerhead  was  brought  here  by  the  ice,  and  its  parent  ledge  may  be  way  up 
in  Canada,  in  Minnesota  or  Northern  Wisconsin.  Tilton  says  that  the  country 
between  Winterset  and  Peru  looks  surprisingly  like  a  driftless  country,  but  I 
have  never  yet  found  any  great  extent  of  cotmtry  in  the  county  that  is  free  from 
glacial  drift.  What  I  never  saw  is  a  boulder  up  on  top  of  Middle  River's  divide. 
One  of  the  most  interesting  and  exasperating  geological  problems  that  you  meet 
in  studying  the  surface  of  the  county  is  to  separate  the  drift  clays  from  the  clays 
that  were  left  on  top  of  the  limestone,  when  the  old  carboniferous  sea  was  here. 
But  whenever  you  find  the  clay  mixed  with  pebbles  you  instantly  recognize  the 
glacier's  work. 

If  the  Kansan  glacier  did  not  leave  its  mark  on  top  of  this  ridge  where 
Winterset  stands  it  was  all  around  it.  The  red  "niggerheads"  that  came  from 
Canada  and  Minnesota,  or  perhaps  from  further  northeast,  strew  Buffalo  Hollow 
and  Kipp's  Hollow  is  full  of  them.  Cedar  has  plenty,  Many  of  the  surprises 
that  come  to  the  well  diggers  come  from  the  freaks  of  that  old  glacier  and  it  is 
never  safe  to  count  on  anything  when  digging  far  down  into  the  clays — the 
glacier  may  fool  you. 


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8  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

The  drift  deposited  by  the  Kansan  glacier  here,  was,  to  say  the  least,  sur- 
prisingly thin.  It  covered  the  eastern  part  pretty  deep,  and  the  southwest  part 
of  the  county  to  the  depth  of  fifty  to  three  or  four  hundred  feet.  But  right  near 
Winterset  its  work  seems  to  have  been  largely  confined  to  erosion.  You  can  find 
the  glacial  scratches  on  the  lime  rocks,  so  "Skinner"  Rodgers  tells  me,  any 
place  where  you  start  a  quarry  and  get  far  enough  back  so  you  do  not  hit  the 
weathered  rock.  I  never  saw  any  of  them,  though  when  the  old  state  quarry 
was  opened  down  Kipp's  Hollow,  I  spent  all  the  time  I  could  steal  watching  them 
uncover  the  top  rock. 

Middle  River  suflFered  little  from  the  glacier.  Like  all  the  rest  of  the  valleys 
of  the  county  it  lay  nearly  at  right  angles  to  the  glacier's  course.  Calvin  thought, 
and  so  did  Tilton,  that  when  the  big  glacier  swooped  down  on  the  country  it 
filled  the  valleys  with  ice  and  then  flowed  on  over  their  tops.  You  do  not  find 
many  big  boulders  down  in  the  valley.  You  do  find  them  in  the  ravines.  On 
the  hillside  just  west  of  the  Hogback  Bridge  on  North  River  is  the  biggest 
boulder  I  know  of  in  the  county.  It  must  be  half  as  large  as  this  room.  From 
the  Backbone  west  the  glacier  must  have  plowed  the  valley  full  in  places,  for  it 
is  yet  half  filled.  And  from  the  western  edge  of  the  county  in  Adair  the  stream 
runs  entirely  over  the  drift. 

If  you  are  acquainted  with  the  valley  at  all,  you  know  "The  Backbone." 
The  next  bridge  over  the  river  above  it  is  Bertholf's.  About  half  a  mile  below 
that  bridge  a  considerable  fork  or  branch  bears  off  to  the  southwest.  The  whole 
valley  is  unusually  wide  at  that  place,  and  the  limestone  has  been  cut  out  wider 
there  than  any  place  on  the  upper  valley.  Evidently  the  river  forked  there  once, 
and  a  far  longer  and  larger  stream  bore  off  to  the  southwest.  The  glacier  filled 
the  valley  completely  and  the  stream  now  runs  down  over  the  drift.  I  called  Prof. 
Calvin's  attention  to  it  in  1878  when  he  was  here,  and  he  looked  at  it  with 
interest.  Tilton  traced  that  old  valley  clear  to  Macksburg  and  beyond  into  the 
present  valley  of  Grand  River,  and  says  that  if  it  was  not  the  larger  fork  of  the 
river  once,  it  at  least  was  one  of  consideVable  size. 

When  we  commenced  to  improve  our  city  we  commenced  by  getting  water 
works,  and  commenced  right,  for  city  water  is  essential  in  your  house  in  this  age, 
if  you  would  live  like  white  folks.  But  with  the  blind  faith  of  the  ignorant, 
and  utter  willingness  to  risk  a  $60,000  investment  of  tax  payers'  money,  with- 
out the  least  scientific  investigation,  we  contracted  for  two  wells  to  be  put  down 
on  my  father's  old  farm  where  a  fair  sized  spring  broke  through. 

That  would  have  been  laughable  indeed  if  the  $60,000  and  the  water  supply 
of  the  city  had  not  depended  on  it!  Water  for  a  city!  If  it  had  not  been  for 
that  old  glacier  we  would  not  have  had  enough  water  in  a  dry  time  to  water 
the  town  cow.    The  glacier  saved  the  city  from  a  monumental  mistake. 

When  they  dug  those  wells  they  struck  a  bed,  an  eight-foot  bed  of  glacial 
sand.  No  one  knew  it  was  there  before.  I  was  raised  on  that  farm  and  knew 
it  was  there  and  knew  that  it  was  glacial  sand,  and  knew  the  spring  came  from  it, 
but  never  for  an  instant  supposed  the  sand  was  over  six  inches  thick. 

Go  south  from  the  wells  down  below  the  old  pond  known  as  Dabney's  Lake, 
and  to  the  little  nook  where  the  creek  or  gully  turns  north.  You  are  in  the 
rocks.     The  sides  of  the  gully  are  all  drift.     It  is  boulder  strewn.     Some  big 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  9 

red  Sioux  quartzite  boulders  lie  along  its  sides.  All  the  little  valley  shows 
excessive  glacial  action,  that  is,  for  this  country.  In  preglacial  times  the  upper 
reach  was  doubtless  much  longer,  and  probably  cut  through  the  Cedar-Middle 
River  Divide  and  it  was  probably  wider  from  the  rocks  up.  The  glacier  filled 
it  up  and  the  water  running  down  over  it,  and  under  it  when  it  commenced  to 
recede  left  a  glacial  sand  bank  there.  At  least  that  is  the  way  geologists 
account  for  other  sand  banks.  Or  it  may  be  the  shore  of  a  small  glacial  lake. 
The  sand  is  full  of  boulders — small  niggerheads — some  very  odd  ones  too,  and 
all  the  usual  small  pebbles.  On  its  extent,  depends  whether  we  shall  have  a 
great  abundance  of  that  fine,  pure  water,  or  whether  you  will  go  down  in  your 
pockets  and  dig  up  another  eight  or  ten  thousand  dollars  to  move  your  water 
supply.  When  you  do  go  to  investigating  for  water,  Td  advise  you  to  use  your 
influence  to  get  the  opinion  of  some  man  who  has  knowledge  of  the  drift,  or  who 
would  at  least  use  the  auger  test  instead  of  depending  on  the  bending  of  a  hazel 
switch  to  tell  him  where  the  water  lies. 

And  while  we  are  talking  of  city  improvements,  Fll  just  say  that  we  should 
have  finished  the  waterworks,  and  solved  the  water  problem,  and  put  in  sewers 
before  we  ever  touched  the  paving  of  the  residence  portion  of  the  streets. 

If  the  city  council  tonight  passes  that  resolution  of  necessity  your  taxes  will 
be  so  high  on  account  of  the  paving  that  you  would  feel  like  mobbing  another 
that  would  tax  you  for  sewers  and  for  water  supply.  Turning  a  little  town  into 
a  high  class,  boulevarded  city,  makes  it  very  pretty,  but  it  will  put  a  decided 
crimp  into  the  income  of  its  owners. 

When  the  Kansan  glacier  receded.  Middle  River  commenced  to  cut  down 
the  drift  that  partially  filled  it,  and  it  has  done  it  fairly  well,  but  from  Rose- 
man  Bridge  it  yet  runs  over  the  drift  in  many  places,  and  from  the  western 
edge  of  the  county  entirely.  Whether  the  upper  valley  ever  had  its  rock  exposed 
can  only  be  guessed.  Iowa  was  covered  by  several  glaciers  after  that  but  none 
reached  here.  The  last  one,  the  Wisconsin,  which  must  have  come  thousands 
of  years  after  ours,  came  down  to  the  Coon  River  and  planed  the  country  off  as 
smooth  as  a  big  floor.  Its  western  edge,  the  glacial  moraine,  is  marked  by  great 
numbers  of  boulders.  One  could  once  almost  walk  on  the  boulders  of  that 
moraine  from  Panora  to  Storm  Lake.  If  the  Wisconsin  glacier  had  come  down 
over  this  country  like  it  did  over  Dallas  County,  Middle  River  would  not  be 
here,  and  its  deep  valley  would  have  been  filled  with  drift. 

THE   LOESS 

And  now  we  have  reached  the  top  soil,  the  loess,  the  soil  that  gives  us 
our  com,  our  clover,  and  our  living.  It  is  black  on  top,  buff  underneath,  and 
covers  the  country  to  a  depth  of  three  to  five  feet  everywhere.  It  is  fine,  without 
pebbles,  contains  no  limestone,  and  is  not  stratified.  It  grows  your  roses,  and 
your  gardens,  for  it  is  rich  in  plant  food.  It  is  black  because  it  has  been  exposed 
to  the  action  of  the  sun  and  wind,  the  leaching  of  rains,  and  the  mixture  of 
humus  or  vegetable  mold.  Otherwise  it  might  be  yellow  or  buff,  for  that  is  and 
was  its  probable  original  color.  It  covers  the  country  everywhere,  and  the  rich- 
ness of  your  land  depends  on  its  thickness. 


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10  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

How  did  it  get  here?  Go  up  into  your  garret,  or  rather  your  garret's  garret, 
the  receptacle  of  your  discarded  finery,  your  husband's  old  trousers,  the  tomb 
of  many  of  your  financial  mistakes,  and  freaks  and  fashions  of  other  years. 
When  you  crawl  into  that  cubby  hole,  what  do  you  find?  Dirt?  Sure!  Dust? 
Yes,  certainly;  a  coating  of  fine,  impalpable  dust  is  over  everything.  The 
house  has  been  reasonably  well  built,  and  the  garret  was  fairly  tight,  but  the  dust 
is  surely  there. 

Suppose  you  had  let  that  dust  accumulate  a  thousand  years.  How  thick 
would  it  have  been  ?  Leave  it  a  million  years  and  I  grant  you  that  if  the  timbers 
retained  their  original  strength,  that  the  garret  would  be  chuck  full  of  dust  and 
that  the  dust  weight  would  break  the  joists. 

Go  out  to  where  your  snow  bank  lay  all  winter.  When  that  bank  disappeared 
it  left  on  your  grass  a  coating  of  dirt.  Quite  a  bit  more  would  come  in  the 
sunmier  time.  Repeat  that  process  a  thousand  years,  ten  thousand,  half  a  million 
years.  How  thick  a  coat  of  dirt  would  you  have?  The  wind  would  blow  some 
away,  the  rain  would  wash  some  away,  but  on  the  whole  you  would  have  every 
year  more  than  you  lost.  That  is  how  the  loess  came  here.  The  wind  brought  it. 
There  is  no  other  way  to  account  for  the  loess.  Examine  it  and  it  is  composed 
of  the  very  finest  bits  of  sand,  mostly  glacial  drift,  but  it  is  very  fine  and  there  is 
nothing  in  it  except  what  the  wind  carried  or  could  carry.  It  covers  everything 
and  is  everywhere,  except  places  where  it  has  been  washed  away.  For  years 
aiid  years  it  puzzled  geologists,  but  Le  Conte,  and  Calvin  and  Shimek  of  our  state, 
all  agree  that  our  rich  top  soil,  our  good  com  land,  was  brought  here  by  the  wind. 
Some  of  you  remember  how  the  dirt  banked  up  against  the  hedge  rows  in  the 
'80s  in  a  three-day  wind,  and  those  banks  are  yet  plainly  visible. 

Those  of  you  who  have  seen  the  bad  lands  of  Dakota  have  seen  how  the 
wind  has  cut  the  land  into  fantastic  shapes  and  curious  forms.  In  Nebraska  I 
saw  a  sand  hill  of  no  mean  proportions  entirely  disappear,  and  other  small  ones 
form.  The  loess  covers  the  country  very  much  deeper  as  you  approach  the 
Missouri  River.  The  yellow  bluffs  that  line  the  Missouri  River  on  the  eastern 
side  are  composed  of  it. 

The  loess  is  very  thick  in  some  parts  of  the  county.  It  is  thicker  in  Penn 
and  Jackson  townships  than  it  is  here.  In  parts  of  the  county  where  the  land 
has  been  subjected  to  much  erosion  on  account  of  the  character  of  the  drift  it 
is  very  thin.  Wherever  the  loess  is  thin  the  land  may  be  poor,  because  the  plow 
either  runs  into  the  drift  gravel  or  drift  clays  or  the  stubborn  residual  clays  of  the 
carboniferous. 

CEMENT 

The  limestone  rock  of  the  county  is  the  greatest  asset,  though  we  look  at  it 
with  indifference.  We  have  allowed  the  millionaire  lumber  thieves  to  steal  the 
forests  and  cut  them  down  in  Minnesota  and  Wisconsin  until  they  are  all  gone. 
Think  of  the  far-sightedness  of  a  Government  that  would  trade  magnificent 
forests  of  Norway  pines  for  a  few  millionaires,  and  a  few  gaudy  palaces  they 
inhabit  in  St.  Paul  and  Minneapolis  and  Chicago!  They  are  cutting  the  hard 
pine  forest  of  the  South  now,  and  it,  too,  will  soon  be  gone. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  11 

In  the  search  for  new  material  with  which  to  build,  we  have  commenced  to 
use  cement,  and  the  industry  is  growing  by  leaps  and  bounds.  They  are  finding 
new  uses  for  it  every  day.  Its  manufacture  is  bound  to  be  the  greatest  industry 
in  the  state.  In  all  the  states,  and  in  all  the  West,  except  at  Bethany,  Missouri, 
and  lola,  Kansas,  are  no  such  beds  of  pure  limestone  as  we  have  right  here. 

It  makes  cement  that  cannot  be  excelled.  Already  they  have  a  monster  plant 
in  Des  Moines  and  they  are  carrying  fifty  cars  of  rock  and  shale  each  day  from 
our  quarries  on  North  Branch  and  making  them  into  cement. 

The  industry  is  just  begun.  It  takes  no  far-sighted  person  to  see  that  before 
long  every  one  of  the  rock  exposures  of  the  ravines  of  Middle  River  will  be 
quarried  for  cement.  In  your  lifetime,  you  will  see  great  steam  shovels  tearing 
down  the  rock,  and  workmen  delving  in  a  dozen  quarries.  You  will  see  great 
lime  kilns,  and  dozens  of  machines  crushing  rock  for  Iowa's  roads. 

The  advance  in  the  price  of  stone  land  is  just  as  sure  to  come  as  was  the 
advance  of  the  price  of  com  land  when  com  land  was  $30  an  acre  around  Winter- 
set.  It  will  come  stealthily,  but  it  will  come,  just  as  surely  as  the  forests  diminish, 
and  the  use  of  cement  grows. 

I  am  no  land  agent,  and  yet  no  boomer.  But  if  you  have  an  investment 
to  make  as  you  would  invest  in  life  insurance,  or  one  for  your  children,  go  buy 
some  of  the  stone  land.  It  is  our  cheapest  land.  Agriculturally  it  will  always  be 
worth  all  the  money  you  pay  for  it,  and  will  be  almost  certain  to  increase  without 
considering  the  rock.  Some  day  the  cement  trust  will  buy  you  out,  and  if  it 
cannot  buy  you  out,  it  will  find  some  way  to  pry  you  of  your  holdings. 

I  believe  just  as  firmly  as  I  believed  in  1890  that  corn  land  would  be  worth 
some  day  $100  an  acre,  that  every  acre  of  land  that  mns  along  a  rock  exposure 
will  not  only  be  worth  $100  an  acre,  but  that  it  will  be  worth  five  times  that 
amount,  and  sell  readily  for  that. 

There,  at  least,  is  an  American  reason  for  studying  the  geology  of  the  county. 
Put  on  your  old  shoes,  it  won't  hurt  you  to  get  your  feet  wet,  if  you  take  care  of 
yourself,  in  spite  of  what  the  doctors  say,  and  go  study  the  rock  exposures. 
Hunt  them  up,  and  see  how  much  rock  lies  in  sight,  and  how  extensive  the  strip- 
ping would  be.  Or  if  you  are  not  of  a  practical  turn  of  mind,  study  the  fossils 
of  the  different  strata  and  you  will  grow  intensely  interested.  If  you  are  seeking 
a  fortune,  dig  into  the  many  shales  and  clays  and  bum  them.  In  your  experi- 
ments you  might  find  a  new  china,  or  a  new  pottery,  or  even  a  superior  brick,  as 
I  am  almost  sure  you  would.  If  you  are  just  a  student,  and  would  make  a  name 
for  yourself,  study  the  drift  in  the  county,  map  its  depth,  its  extent,  and  tell  of 
the  ravages  of  that  Kansan' glacier.  It  has  not  yet  been  done,  and  you  have 
almost  a  virgin  field. 

Anyhow,  in  doing  it  you  have  been  out  of  doors  with  a  delightfully  interest- 
ing study,  and  if  you  come  home  with  weary  feet,  and  dbg  tired,  you  have  not 
lost  a  day,  but  have  added  one  to  the  length  of  your  life. 


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CHAPTER  II 

INDIANS  AND  THEIR  VILLAGES  IN  MADISON  COUNTY 

By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

Were  it  possible  by  any  system  of  investigation  to  find  out  the  history  of 
all  the  peoples  who  have  occupied  this  country  since  the  beginning  of  time,  men 
would  stand  ready  for  the  undertaking.  Were  it  possible  to  trace  an  immigra- 
tion from  the  North,  through  British  America,  throughout  our  fields  of  gold  and 
ice,  beyond  the  Behring  Straits,  southward  through  Asian  lands  to  some  unknown 
Garden  of  Eden,  as  the  home  and  birthspot  of  the  Indian  predecessors,  men  and 
money  would  not  be  wanting  in  the  enterprise.  But  now  it  seems  the  origin 
of  those  people  is  a  closed  book  and  no  one  is  found  to  break  the  seal  thereof. 

History,  like  Nature,  has  its  hilltops,  and  though  one's  vision  may  be  shaded 
by  a  misty  past,  much  remains  within  the  range  of  observation  and  research 
which  may  be  classified,  recorded  and  bequeathed  to  those  who  shall  come  after. 
This  testament  should  convey  not  only  the  full  complement  of  that  which  lias 
been  received  but  increased  by  the  results  of  inquiry,  of  studies  and  observa- 
tions. The  present  generation  stands  today  upon  a  natural  promontory  and  the 
panorama  of  the  past  is  largely  presented  in  all  directions  to  an  extent  not 
reviewed  by  its  predecessors. 

The  North  American  Indian  was  a  strange,  somewhat  contradictory  char- 
acter; in  war,  daring,  cunning,  boastful,  ruthless;  in  peace,  cheerful,  dignified, 
superstitious,  revengeful ;  clinging  as  far  as  possible  to  the  customs  of  his  fore- 
fathers. Civilization  came  as  a  destroyer.  Future  generations  of  the  present  race 
will  come  who  shall  know  him  only  as  a  dim,  historic  figure,  around  which 
clusters   the  mythology  of  an  ancient  race. 

The  folk  lore  of  the  American  Indians  was  charmingly  rich  in  legend  and 
tradition.  Since  the  immemorial  past  those  children  of  Nature  read  them  in  the 
leafy  woodland,  on  the  broad  prairie,  in  the  blue  vault  of  heaven,  in  the  crimson 
sunset,  in  the  dark  storm-threatening  clouds,  and  in  every  gentle  breeze  or  sweep- 
ing hurricane.  Each  story  lived  on  in  the  hearts  of  its  people.  And  here  and 
there  on  earth's  foundation  rocks,  or  on  some  mighty  forest  tree,  was  borne  a 
quaint  inscription — 

**Full  of  hope  and  yet  of  heart-break. 
Full  of  all  the  tender  pathos 
Of  the  Here  and  the  Hereafter." 

Briefly,  in  the  way  of  introduction  to  the  subject  of  Indian  occupancy  of  this 
county,  it  may  be  said  that  before  the  coming  of  the  Algonquin  tribes — Sac, 

12 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  13 

Foxes  and  others — the  Sioux  family  tribes  roamed  over  Iowa  from  Missouri 
to  the  far  away  and  then  unknown  North.  In  the  early  portion  of  the  last  cen- 
tury, by  a  treaty  of  intermediation  between  the  National  Government  and  the 
then  warring  tribes — the  Sioux  tribes  on  one  side  and  the  Algonquin  tribes 
of  the  other — this  portion  of  Iowa  was  allotted  to  the  Sacs,  Foxes  and  kindred 
tribes,  and  thereafter  only  occasional  trouble  occurred  in  this  part  of  the  state 
between  the  distinctive  nations  of  Indians — the  last  great  battle  between  them 
was  during  the  early  '40s  in  Dallas  County. 

The  Sac  and  Fox  tribes  remained  in  exclusive  possession  of  this  part  of  the 
state  but  a  comparatively  short  time,  but  as  these  tribes  were  here  in  occupancy 
when  this  region  became  familiar  to  large  numbers  of  white  people  and  were  the 
next  predecessors,  nearly  all  direct  interest  in  the  Indian  history  of  this  region 
centers  in  them. 

The  S»c  and  Fox  tribes  ceded  the  last  of  their  lands  in  Iowa  to  the  United 
States,  of  date  August  11,  1842,  but  the  treaty  of  sale  provided  that  they  might 
retain  the  privilege  of  occupying  all  of  it  until  May  i,  1843.  And  it  further  pro- 
vided that  they  might  retain  all  the  territory  west  of  a  line  running  between  Wayne 
and  Appanoose  counties,  between  Lucas  and  Monroe,  and  through  Jasper,  Marion, 
Marshall  and  Hardin  counties  to  their  northern  limits  until  October  11,  1845. 
Peacefully,  quietly,  these  tribes,  who  scarce  were  aborigines,  yet  wholly  alien  to 
the  Aryan  forces  that  crowded  them  beyond  the  Missouri,  as  fades  the  mist  of  a 
summer  mom,  imperceptibly  vanished  from  the  fairest  and  richest  lands  beneath 
the  circle  of  the  sun.  They  left  no  track  nor  trace,  nor  impress  in  all  of  Madison 
County  that  once  they  owned  its  soil — that  once  they  built  their  transient  wig- 
wams along  its  streams,  grew  their  corn,  feasted  upon  the  abundant  deer  and 
elk  and  wild  turkey  and  fish  and  honey,  and  buried  their  dead  upon  its  hills. 
Even  their  cemeteries  are  now  almost  legendary  and  the  exact  location  of  their 
villages  nearly  forgotten.  It  is  indeed,  a  serious  neglect  that  no  writer  of  Madi- 
son County  history  has  placed  on  record  a  single  line  concerning  the  local  occu- 
pancy of  those,  or  atiy  other,  tribes  of  Indians.  Though  more  than  sixty  years 
have  passed  since  those  Indian  days  and  very  few,  if  any,  of  the  members  of  those 
tribes  yet  live,  and  scarcely  one  of  the  half  white  trappers  who  dwelled  or  traded 
among  them  are  left  to  tell  their  story,  much  can  be  gathered  of  the  fragments 
by  one  who  has  the  love  and  zeal  for  the  work.  Nowadays,  and  all  hereafter, 
it  is  very  interesting  to  peruse  the  story  descriptive  of  their  villages  and  burial 
places,  their  manner  of  living  and  the  kind  of  Nature^s  children  they  were. 

All  primitive  peoples  seek  for  their  more  or  less. temporary  abodes  a  combina- 
tion of  convenient  water,  timber  and  meadow  land  for  reasons  that  are  obvious. 
Thus  Madison  County,  before  the  devastating  hand  of  the  white  man  touched 
its  Nature  molded  form,  afforded  all  the  Indian  needed  besides  tbe  fruitage  of 
shrub  ^nd  tree,  the  catch  of  its  streams,  the  meats  of  the  chase  and  the  honeyed 
sweetness  of  the  bee. 

Thus  the  old  Indian  village  on  Cedar  Creek,  in  Union  Township,  at  the 
mouth  of  Lull's  Branch,  close  north  of  the  creek  and  west  of  the  branch,  on  the 
southwest  quarter  of  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  21.  The  site  of  this 
village  was  then  wooded  without  much  underbrush,  the  high  and  almost  sheer 
bluffs  gave  protection  in  winter  from  the  icy  blasts,  and  spring  and  running  water 


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14  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

was  abundant.  There  always  was  a  bit  of  prairie  meadow  land  in  the  creek 
bottom  just  above  and  near  below,  and  upon  the  divide  to  the  north  extended, 
in  those  days,  one  of  the  loveliest  prairies  of  the  county.  There  was  much  clear 
timber  miles  about  and  the  capture  of  deer  and  turkey  was  easy.  In  the  early 
portion  of  the  last  century  there  were  plenty  of  elk  in  this  portion  of  the  state 
and  furred  animals  were  abundant.  This  village  was  maintained  all  the  year 
round  for  a  long  period  of  time.  In  the  summer  season,  while  the  adult  men 
were  absent  on  the  chase,  or  otherwise  engaged,  the  squaws  cultivated  some 
corn  near  by.  During  the  winter  season,  with  the  men  of  the  band  at  home,  the 
time  was  employed  in  trapping,  caring  for  the  ponies,  practicing  marksman- 
ship, but  mainly  utter  idleness  prevailed. 

Toward  the  springtime  the  village  would  be  visited  by  a  fur  trader,  who  was 
always  a  welcome  visitor,  for  then  he  brought  them  gaudy  trinkets  and  *'fire- 
water"  to  exchange  for  furs. 

The  band  of  Indians  who  made  this  village  their  home  was  variously  esti- 
mated at  from  one  to  two  hundred.  About  this  number  was  there  during  the 
'30s  and  as  late  as  1843,  the  year  before  the  floods  throughout  the  West.  This 
village  was  abandoned  some  time  before  the  spring  of  1845,  for  a  fur  trader  that 
winter  found  no  Indians  living  or  camped  thereabouts.  But  he  did  find  that 
winter  Indians  over  on  Middle  River  and  on  North  River.  He  understood  that 
the  bands  were  preparing  to  move  out  of  the  country,  because  by  their  treaty 
they  were  to  vacate  by  the  fall  of  that  year. 

There  was  an  Indian  village  on  North  River  located  about  the  center  of  the 
south  half  of  section  6,  in  Union  Township,  on  lands  now  or  recently  owned 
by  J.  H.  Weidner.  This  location  is  about  a  mile  down  the  river,  on  the  north 
side,  from  the  North  River  Bridge  on  the  road  due  north  of  Winterset  leading 
to  De  Soto.  As  with  all  other  such  villages  there  was  a  big  spring  close  by  and 
also  fine  timber  and  some  grass  land.  This  village  was  occupied  probably  until 
the  spring  of  1845. 

Close  to  the  site  of  this  village  there  was  in  cultivation  perhaps  the  largest 
acreage  in  the  county.  The  Indians  at  this  place  had  about  sixty  acres  they 
planted  and  cultivated  at  least  for  many  years  up  to  the  summer  of  1844.  It  was 
unusual  for  them  to  grow  so  large  a  field  to  crops.  Usually  a  few  acres  was 
the  limit  and  at  some  of  their  villages  it  appears  no  ground  was  cultivated.  There 
were  several  fields  on  lower  Clanton  Creek  and  elsewhere,  but  nowhere  else, 
so  far  as  is  known,  was  there  then  in  this  county  as  large  a  farm  cultivated  by 
the  Indians  as  at  the  village  above  described.  These  abandoned,  fields  were  a 
great  convenience  to  some  of  the  pioneer  settlers  who  came  here,  during  the 
first  two  years. 

To  the  Guye  family  this  large  field  of  cultivated  land  was  of  the  greatest 
advantage.  This  family  arrived  during  the  first  days  of  May,  1846,  about  the 
same  time  as  the  Clanton  colony,  and  shortly  after  the  arrival  of  Hurst,  on  sec- 
tion 36,  Crawford  Township.  The  first  Guye  house  was  built  on  the  south  side 
of  North  River,  in  the  bottom,  in  the  very  heavy  timber  near  the  center  of  the 
north  half  of  section  7,  and  directly  south  of  this  large  Indian  field.  This  field 
was  used  by  them  during  the  season  of  1846  and  they  cultivated  some  thirty 
acres  of  it,  growing  an  abundance  of  com  and  other  crops.     They  farmed  this 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  15 

land  afterward  and  improved  land  upon  the  hill  to  the  south  of  their  first  loca- 
tion on  the  bottom  and  where  they  afterward  resided. 

The  methods  of  agriculture  practiced  by  these  Indians  were  of  the  most 
primitive  character  and  yet  usually  their  crops  were  abundant.  Com,  beans 
and  tobacco  were  the  chief  crops  planted.  A  heavy  sort  of  iron  hoe  was  their 
chief  instrument — a  type  of  what  used  to  be  known  as  '^nigger  hoe."  Occasion- 
ally they  had  rude  instruments  made  of  hard  wood,  fashioned  into  a  faint 
resemblance  of  something  that  answered  the  purpose  of  a. plow,  to  which  some- 
times was  attached  a  pony  by  thongs  of  rawhide,  but  usually  pulled  by  squaws. 
There  were  also  in  general  use  sharpened  sticks,  with  which  they  dug  up  or 
cultivated  the  ground.  The  weeds  were  disposed  of  by  pulling  them  up  by  hand. 
As  the  soil  was  exceedingly  rich  and  loose,  comparatively  little  work  was  needed 
in  making  ready  the  ground  for  planting,  and  after  planting,  little  cultivation  was 
necessary.  The  main  work  was  to  keep  down  the  weeds  and  as  above  stated, 
this  was  done  mostly  by  pulling  them  up  by  hand. 

"Women's  rights,"  as  known  among  the  Indians  since  immemorial  times,  con- 
sisted in  doing  all  the  work  about  the  village  or  camps.  They  took  care  of  the 
meats  brought  in  by  their  braves,  planted,  cultivated  and  harvested  the  crops 
and  prepared  the  food  for  eating.  But  the  latter  was  a  simple  process.  Some 
food  was  eaten  raw  and  what  was  cooked,  was  boiled  in  kettles — great  messes  of 
food  boiled  together.  However,  sometimes  they  roasted  or  baked  their  green 
com,  potatoes  and  even  meats,  but  always  the  preparation  of  food  was  a  limited 
affair.  The  squaws  also  gathered  most  of  the  wood,  used  for  cooking,  or  for 
warming  their  bark  huts  and  tepees  in  winter.  Theirs  was  the  "simple  life" 
indeed ;  so  much  so  that,  after  all,  their  daily  toil  was  not  what  at  first  thought 
it  would  seem  to  have  been — very  little  garment  making,  no  sweeping,  no  house- 
keeping worth  the  mention. 

The  Sac  and  Fox  Indians  were  among  the  most  civilized  of  the  northem 
Indians  when  they  left  Iowa  in  1845.  They  had  been  in  constant  contact  with 
the  French  and  English  and  Americans  for  more  than  a  hundred  years. 
Naturally,  they  were  of  a  milder  and  less  ferocious  disposition  than  most  other 
nations  of  the  American  aborigines.  Thus  they  were  no  match  for  the  Sioux 
in  battle  and  could  not  migrate  northward.  The  unmerciful  cupidity  of  the 
white  man  forced  him  on  and  on  toward  the  setting  sun.  He  had  none  of  the 
qualities  that  fitted  him  for  life  on  the  arid  Great  Plains,  and  beyond  them  were 
the  mountain  ranges  in  which  he  could  not  dwell.  The  white  man  already 
occupied  Missouri  on  the  south.  His  race  was  ended — the  white  man's  prisoner 
henceforth  he  became,  is  now  and  forever  must  be  until  the  last  one  has  paid 
the  penalty  for  having  existed. 

The  cemetery  for  this  Indian  village  (on  Cedar)  was  located  near  the  middle 
of  the  north  line  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  16,  in  Union  Township. 
This  was  diagonally  about  a  mile  northeast  of  the  village,  upon  the  prairie.  As 
late  as  1872  there  were  occasional  reminders  found  by  those  cultivating  the  ground 
that  once  Indian  burials  were  made  there.  It  is  likely  burials  were  made  else- 
where in  the  vicinity  of  the  village. 

It  was  learned  from  a  fur  trader  that  about  1840  there  was  a  much  used 
Indian  trail  leading  from  this  village  northeasterly  on  the  long  sloping  ridge 


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16  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

on  the  east  half  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  21,  on  past  the  Indian  ceme- 
tery and  northeasterly  toward  the  old  Indian  village  near  the  junction  of  North 
River  and  North  Branch.  This  trail  followed  the  divide  around  North  Elm 
Creek  and  down  to  North  River  in  the  depression  west  and  north  of  the  present 
Farris  schoolhouse. 

There  was  comparatively  little  hazel  or  other  small  underbrush  in  that  portion 
of  the  county.  The  woodlands  were  open  and  the  prairie  fires  kept  down  the 
brush  that  later  on  grew  abundantly,  as  no  doubt  it  had  long  before  grown. 

There  still  remains  a  grove  that  was  much  larger,  on  the  northeast  quarter  of 
the  southeast  quarter  t)f  section  15,  in  Union  Township,  now  owned  by  James 
H.  Farris,  a  pioneer  settler.  At  this  grove  there  was  at  different  times  a  small 
Indian  village,  or  camp,  probably  there  because  of  the  big  spring.  Some  burials 
were  made  on  land  later  owned  by  A.  J.  Hoisington,  near  the  southwest  comer 
of  the  tract  previously  described. 

In  Crawford  Township,  at  different  periods  up  to  1845,  there  were  Indian 
villages  and  favorite  camping  places.  One  was  near  Patterson,  one  at  the  old 
time  Bell  grove  and  spring  on  section  26,  opposite  where  the  railroad  curves 
northeasterly  toward  Bevington,  and  another  near  the  west  line  of  section  36, 
near  where  Hiram  Hurst,  the  first  permanent  settler  in  Madison  County,  took 
his  claim.  There  was  a  band  of  Indians  located  there  as  late  as  1845.  This 
vicinity  was  a  favorite  place  for  them  both  in  summer  and  winter.  At  the  junc- 
tion of  Cedar  and  North  River,  occasionally  small  bands  of  Indians  mad^  their 
winter  quarters,  but  this  did  not  seem  to  be  a  favorite  point  with  them  for  some 
reason.    However,  trapping  was  good  in  its  season. 

At  the  four  corners  of  Lee,  Jefferson,  Union  and  Crawford  townships  occa- 
sionally fur  buyers  found  a  small  band  of  Indians  in  the  winter  time. 

In  Lee  Township  it  is  not  remembered  there  were  any  villages  or  camps  save 
at  Badger  Grove,  on  section  14.  This  did  not  seem  an  attractive  point  for  them, 
though  during  the  '30s  and  '40s  small  bands  were  camped  there.  White  men 
seldom  came  that  way  because  of  its  isolation  from  larger  streams  and  bodies 
of  timber. 

In  Jefferson  Township  the  center  of  Indian  interest  from  about  the  year 
1800  to  1845,  and  certainly  for  a  long  period  before  that  century,  was  around 
the  junction  of  North  Branch  with  North  River.  Occasionally  a  small  band  was 
found  temporarily  camped  in  the  grove  on  the  old  time  Waymire  Branch,  now 
known  as  Spring  Branch,  on  section  25,  Jefferson  Township. 

The  junction  neighborhood  of  North  Branch  and  North  River  afforded  all 
the  natural  advantages  required  for  the  high  enjoyment  and  prosperity  of  these 
dusky  sons  and  daughters  of  Nature.  The  wilder  and  more  nomadic  Sioux 
found  here  a  winter  retreat  against  the  Arctic  storm,  though  in  summer  time 
he  loved  the  open  on  the  prairies.  In  the  early  years  of  the  century  he  fought 
the  Algonquin  tribes  in  this  region,  partly  because  he  loved  fighting  for  its  own 
sake  and  partly  for  the  keeping  of  those  hunting  grounds  and  winter  resting 
places.  And  that  junction  of  the  streams  was  one  of  his  favorites.  Periodically 
he  fell  upon  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  and  many  a  **brave"  on  either  side  hastily 
departed  for  the  **happy  hunting  ground*'  thereabouts  in  those  bloody  encounters. 
Even  after  the  agreement  by  treaty  between  the  ever  warring  nations  in  the 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  17 

early  part  of  the  century  had  given  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  this  region,  the  bloody 
Sioux  would  sometimes  swoop  down  from  the  northwest  prairies  to  steal  the 
ponies  and  take  the  scalps  of  the  more  peaceful  tribes. 

At  the  junction  of  those  streams  there  was  abundant  timber,  water,  fish, 
wild  footed  game  and  furred  animals.  Indian  life  at  that  point  was  a  surfeit  of 
ease.  Up  to  the  year  1845,  when  the  Indians  gave  possession,  always  one  or  more 
villages  existed  in  the  vicinity  of  the  junction  of  those  streams.  It  was  most 
of  the  time  the  headquarters  of  some  sub-chief  and  frequently  considerable 
bands  made  it  their  winter  quarters,  many  of  the  squaws,  pappooses  and  old 
men  remaining  all  the  summers. 

Some  forty  rods  north  and  a  little  west  of  the  southeast  comer  of  the  west 
half  of  section  35  there  always  was  a  large  spring,  near  which  William  Schoen 
settled  in  the  early  '50s.  This  is  at  the  very  foot  of  the  divide  between  the  two 
streams.  From  this  spring  westerly  the  ground  slopes  up  and  was  originally 
covered  with  forest  trees.  Eastward  from  the  spring  there  was  a  small  open 
space  covered  with  grass  without  a  single  shrub  or  tree— about  five  or  six  acres 
in  extent.  It  was  densely  wooded  all  around  and  in  those  times  without  under- 
brush. A  short  distance  north  was  the  branch  and  but  a  little  way  southeast  was 
the  river.  The  streams  united  about  a  half  mile  northeast  of  the  spring.  It 
was  an  ideal  place  for  winter  existence.  Since  time  immemorial  there  were 
Indians  to  be  found  there,  in  both  summer  and  winter.  Indian  fur  traders 
always  made  this  a  point  to  reach  and  to  lay  over  if  necessary.  At  times  there 
were  five  hundred  or  more  Indians  living  thereabouts. 

Within  the  radius  of  a  mile  of  the  big  spring,  at  one  time  or  anqther,  were 
villages  more  or  less  temporarily  occupied.  One  of  the  most  productive  points 
for  the  finding  of  Indian  stone  axes,  arrowheads  and  the  like  is  near  and  south 
of  a  strong  flowing  spring  almost  on  top  of  the  hill  on  the  northwest  quarter  of 
the  southeast  quarter  of  section  34,  in  the  garden  of  Charles  Addy,  and  else- 
where on  his  place.  A  short  distance  east  of  the  spring  is  a  round  top  hill, 
the  highest  in  that  neighborhood,  overlooking  many  miles  up  and  down  the  valley. 
Since  the  settlement  of  the  country  there  have  been  many  finds  of  old  time 
Indian  property  within  a  mile  of  the  old  spring. 

Some  tales  of  Indian  times,  more  or  less  legendary,  or  perhaps  exaggerated 
by  the  ready  tongue  of  the  pioneers  who  early  trapped  or  hunted  or  traded  among 
the  tribes,  have  come  sifting  down  to  those  who  later  came  to  till  the  soil  on  which 
they  trod. 

During  the  period  of  the  Sac  and  Fox  exclusive  occupancy  of  this  portion  of 
Iowa  mostly,  they  buried  their  dead  in  the  ground  and  had  preferences  for 
particular  places  of  interment.  In  thus  disposing  from  sight  their  departed  ones, 
they  adopted  somewhat  the  universal  custom  of  the  white  man  with  whom  they 
had  been  acquainted  a  long  while  before  migrating  here  in  a  body.  Occasionally, 
when  one  of  their  number  died  remote  from  their  burial  places,  they  placed 
their  dead  up  in  a  tree  top  near  a  stream,  fastening  the  body  as  securely  as 
possible  by  use  of  thongs  cut  from  the  tanned  skins  of  wild  animals.  Convenient 
to  the  corpse  was  also  fastened  on  the  tree  some  food  and  a  vessel  containing 
water.  Thus  the  pioneer  Clanton  Colony  in  1846  found  the  remains  of  an 
Indian  on  a  tree  close  to  the  bank  of  Clanton  Creek.    An  old  iron  vessel  attached 

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18  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

to  the  tree  soon  after  disappeared.  The  earlier  settlers  occasionally  found  Indian 
remains  on  trees  in  several  localities  during  the  first  year  of  the  settlement  of  the 
county — 1846.  But  whether  the  bodies  thus  disposed  of  were  Sacs  or  Foxes,  or 
belonged  to  other  tribes  whose  members  may  have  been  traveling  across  this 
county,  the  pioneer  settlers  could  not  know,  as  all  dead  Indians  looked  alike  to 
them. 

The  graves  of  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  were  not  dug  to  any  great  depth,  and  a 
little  bark  from  a  tree  was  made  to  answer  the  purpose  of  a  coffin.  The  body 
was  usually  carried  to  the  grave  by  old  women  who  howled  most  piteously  at 
intervals  during  the  ceremony.  Before  closing  the  grave,  one  of  the  Indians 
present  would  wave  a  stick  or  war  club  called  "puc-ca-waw-gun,"  saying  in  audible 
voice  in  his  own  language  what  means  in  English,  **I  have  killed  many  men  in 
war  and  I  give  their  spirits  to  my  dead  friend  who  lies  here  to  serve  as  slaves 
in  the  other  world.*'  After  this  the  grave  was  filled  with  earth  and  in  a  day  or 
two  a  rude  cabin  or  shed  of  rough  bark  was  made  over  it.  If  the  deceased  was 
a  brave,  a  post  was  planted  at  the  head  of  the  grave,  on  which  in  a  rude  manner 
the  number  of  scalps  and  prisoners  he  had  taken  in  war  was  represented  by  red 
paint.  Upon  the  death  of  an  adult,  his  property  was  usually  distributed  among 
his  relatives,  and  his  widow  returned  to  her  own  family  or  nearest  kinsfolk. 
The  widow  was  the  principal  mourner  for  the  deceased  and  her  grief  seemed 
sincere;  her  countenance  became  dejected,  she  seldom  smiled,  clothed  herself  in 
rags  and  with  disheveled  hair  and  spots  of  black  paint  on  her  face,  wandered 
about  in  a  pensive  mood,  seldom  shedding  tears  except  when  alone  in  the  woods. 
Generally  they  ceased  mounting  on  the  suggestion  of  some  friend,  upon  which 
occasion  they  washed,  painted  themselves  red  and  put  on  their  best  clothes  and 
such  ornaments  as  they  might  have. 

Some  of  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  entertained  the  opinion  that  the  spirit  of  the 
deceased  hovers  about  the  village  or  lodge  for  a  few  days  and  then  takes  its 
flight  to  the  happy  hunting  ground.  On  its  way  they  supposed  it  passed  over 
an  extensive  prairie  beyond  which  the  woods  appear  like  a  blue  cloud.  Between 
this  woodland  and  the  prairie  there  is  a  deep  and  rapid  stream  of  water  across 
which  there  is  a  pole  that  is  kept  in  continual  motion  by  the  force  of  the  current. 
This  stream  the  spirit  must  cross  on  the  pole  and  if  it  belonged  to  a  good  person 
it  got  over  safely  and  found  all  its  good  relations  that  had  gone  on  before  it. 
In  this  woodland  is  game  of  all  kinds  and  very  abundant,,  and  there  the  spirits 
of  the  good  lived  in  everlasting  happiness.  But  if  on  the  contrary,  the  spirit 
belonged  to  a  bad  Indian  in  its  world  life,  it  would  fall  off  the  pole  into  the 
stream  and  the  current  swept  it  down  to  the  land  of  evil  spirits,  where  it  forever 
remained  in  poverty  and  misery. 

They  believed  in  one  great  and  good  spirit,  who  controlled  and  governed  all 
things,  and  they  believed  in  supernatural  agents,  who  were  permitted  to  inter- 
fere in  their  earthly  concerns.  They  also  believed  there  was  a  bad  spirit  but 
subordinate  to  the  Great  Spirit — Monotah  they  called  the  latter.  The  bad  spirit 
was  permitted  to  annoy  and  perplex  the  Indians  by  means  of  bad  medicine, 
poisonous  reptiles,  killing  ponies,  sinking  canoes  and  such  like  doings.  All  their 
misfortunes  were  attributed  to  the  influence  of  this  bad  spirit.  And  yet  they 
had  some  vague  idea  that  in  part  the  doings  of  the  evil  spirit  were  permitted 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  19 

by  the  good  spirit  as  a  punishment  for  bad  deeds.  They  believed  in  ghosts  and 
when  they  thought  they  had  seen  one,  the  friends  of  the  deceased  gave  a  feast 
and  hung  up  some  clothing  as  an  offering  to  appease  the  troubled  spirit. 

In  a  sort  of  way  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  may  l^e  considered  a  religious  people. 
They  rarely  passed  anything  extraordinary  in  nature — like  a  cave,  immense  rock, 
sharp  high  hill,  or  the  like — without  leaving  behind  them  some  tobacco  for  the 
use  of  the  spirit  who  they  supposed  resided  there. 

During  the  autumn  of  the  year  large  numbers  of  the  tribes  were  accustomed 
to  make  daily  feasts,  some  to  the  great  good  spirit,  others  to  the  bad  spirit,  to 
pacify  him.  Their  great  chief,  Black  Hawk,  left  on  record  some  of  his  beliefs, 
among  which  has  been  found :  "I  am  of  the  opinion  that,  so  far  as  we  have  a  right 
to  use  it,  determining  what  is  right  or  wrong  and  we  should  always  pursue  that 
path  which  we  believe  to  be  right." 

Again  he  says:  "We  thank  the  Great  Spirit  for  all  the  good  he  has  con- 
ferred on  us.  For  myself  I  never  take  a  drink  of  water  from  a  spring  without 
being  mindful  of  his  goodness." 

And  again:  "We  can  only  judge  of  what  is  proper  and  right  by  our  own 
standard  of  what  is  right  and  wrong.  *  *  ♦  The  whites  may  do  wrong  all 
their  lives  and  then  if  they  are  sorry  for  it  when  ^hey  die  all  is  well,  but  with  us 
it  is  different.    We  must  continue  to  do  good  throughout  our  lives." 

These  Indians  believed  that  com  was  a  special  and  mysterious  gift  from  the 
Great  Spirit.  The  Sacs  held  a  rich  arid  highly  poetic  traditional  belief  concerning 
it,  which  their  greatest  modem  chief,  Black  Hawk,  thus  narrates :  "According 
to  tradition  handed  down  to  our  people,  a  beautiful  woman  was  seen  to  descend 
from  the  clouds  and  alight  upon  the  earth  by  two  of  our  ancestors,  who  had 
killed  a  deer  and  were  sitting  by  the  fire  roasting  a  part  of  it  to  eat.  They  were 
astonished  at  seeing  her  and  concluded  that  she  was  hungry  and  had  smelled 
the  meat.  They  immediately  went  to  her,  taking  with  them  a  piece  of  the 
roasted  venison.  They  presented  it  to  her.  She  ate  it,  telling  them  to  return 
to  the  spot  where  she  was  sitting  at  the  end  of  one  year  and  they  would  find  a 
reward  for  their  kindness  and  generosity.  She  then  ascended  to  the  clouds  and 
disappeared.  The  men  returned  to  their  village  and  explained  to  the  tribe 
what  they  had  seen,  done  and  heard,  but  were  laughed  at  by  their  people.  When 
the  period  had  arrived  for  them  to  visit  this  consecrated  ground,  where  they 
were  to  find  a  reward  for  their  attention  to  the  beautiful  woman  of  the  clouds, 
they  went  with  a  large  party  and  found  where  her  right  hand  had  rested  on  the 
ground,  com  growing;  where  the  left  had  rested,  beans;  and  immediately  where 
she  had  been  seated,  tobacco." 


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CHAPTER  III 
MADISON'S   ADVANCE  GUARD   OF  CIVILIZATION 

The  Indian  title  to  the  land,  of  which  Madison  County  is  a  part,  was 
extinguished  in  the  year  1845.  By  treaty,  the  Government  had  secured  a  large 
area  of  country,  suitable  for  cultivation  and  the  bounteous  production  of  grain, 
grasses  and  other  of  the  various  food  stuffs  indigenous  to  this  latitude.  Strange 
to  say,  however,  almost  a  year  was  permitted  to  elapse  before  the  white  man 
came  and  claimed  **his  own."  It  is  not  known  that  any  person,  white,  red  or 
black,  stepped  foot  into  Madison  County  before  the  year  1846,  for  other  pur- 
poses than  of  exploration,  hunting  or  trapping.  Here  were  thousands  of  acres 
of  rich  prairie  lands  and  other  thousands  covered  by  luxuriant  growths  of 
valuable  timber.  Three  beautiful  rivers  traversed  and  watered  the  fertile  soil, 
aided  by  many  tributaries,  and  fruits  and  honey  were  to  be  found  in  vast  quan- 
tities. Nature  had  provided  lavishly  and  beckoned,  with  eager  and  welcoming 
hand  to  the  countless  thousands  of  men  and  women  of  the  Eastern  states,  to 
come  and  settle  upon  this  land,  whose  every  feature  and  attribute  was  a  glow- 
ing and  substantial  promise  of  bounteous  harvests  and  consequent  prosperity. 

To  Hiram  Hurst  is  given  the  distinction  of  being  the  first  person  to  settle 
within  the  confines  of  this  splendid  domain,  designated  as  Madison  County.  This 
advance  guard  of  the  splendid  host  of  men  who  peopled  the  county  and  made  it 
fructify  so  amazingly,  migrated  from  Buchanan  County,  Missouri,  early  in  the 
year  1846  and,  as  near  as  any  one  can  compute  the  time,  found  his  way  into 
that  part  of  Madison  County  now  known  as  Crawford  Township,  on  April  1, 
1846.  The  country  looked  good  to  him.  The  three  requisites  of  the  home 
builder  were  here  in  all  their  fullness  and  graciousness :  Salubrious  climate, 
abundance  of  pure,  limpid  water  and  a  supply  of  timber,  which  seemed  at  the 
time  almost  inexhaustible.  He  had  his  ax  and  a  superabundance  of  energy, 
strength  and  ambition,  all  salient  attributes  of  the  frontiersman.  Nor  was  he 
lacking  in  ambition  to  carve  out  a  home  and  habitation  for  himself  and  a  large 
family  dependent  upon  him.  Here  he  was,  an  Ishmael  in  the  wilderness;  an 
involuntary  absentee  from  his  former  haunts.  For  it  is  part  of  the  tradition 
surrounding  this  historically  interesting  character  that  he  was  compelled  to 
leave  Missouri;  or,  in  other  words,  he  was  a  fugitive  from  justice.  As  reputa- 
tions go,  when  bandied  hither  and  yon  by  the  evil  minded  or  credulous,  Hurst 
was  credited  with  having  killed  his  man.  Another  one  had  it  that  he  burned  a 
neighbor's  property  in  a  spirit  of  vengeance,  and  again,  the  story  was  rife  in  the 
early  days  that  the  pioneer  settler  of  Madison  County  was  a  petty  thief,  in  that 
he  had  stolen  a  bunch  of  Missouri  hogs.  These  were  the  idle  and  harmful  tales 
extant  among  those  who  followed  Hurst  into  the  wilderness,  but  the  real  char- 

20 


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HIEAM  HURST  GEORGE  W.  GUYE 

First     white    settler     in     Madison  Came  to  Madison  County,  May  3, 

County.     Came  from   Missouri  about  1846.     Voted  on  the  adoption  of  the 

April  15,  1846.     First  claim  in  sec-  Constitution,   August,   1846,   at   Fort 

tion  36  of  the  (now)  Crawford  Town-  Des    Moines,    and    has   voted    at    all 

ship,  near  the  present  home  of  Joseph  principal    elections    since.       Entered 

H.  Duff.    Left  in  1854  for  Nebraska,  the   first   piece   of  land   in   Madison 

where  he  died  in  1889.  County   in  January,   1850. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  21 

acter  of  the  man  and  the  place  he  attained  in  the  confidence  of  his  new  neighbors 
are  not  consistent  with  moral  turpitude  and  wrong  doing. 

Hurst  built  a  little  **shack"  in  the  timber,  and  cuhivated  a  small  patch  of  corn 
in  the  spring  and  summer  of  1846.  In  the  fall  of  that  year  he  returned  to  his  old 
home  in  Buchanan  County,  Missouri,  where  his  friends  settled  the  difficulties 
facing  him.  He  then  packed  up  his  household  belongings  and  other  chattels  and 
with  wife  and  children  came  back  to  his  Iowa  home,  where  he  installed  his 
family  and  goods  in  the  humble  habitation  provided  for  them.  Hiram  Hurst 
remained  on  this  place,  situate  on  section  36,  in  Crawford  Township,  until  July, 
1847,  when  he  sold  his  claim  to  Thomas  Cason,  who  settled  in  Crawford  about 
that  time.  Hurst  then  took  a  claim  in  section  29  in  South  Township,  living  there 
until  the  fall  of  185 1,  when  he  sold  to  N.  S.  Allcock  and  moved  to  Scott  Town- 
ship. In  1854  Hurst  secured  a  tract  of  land  on  section  26,  Scott  Township,  of 
E.  M.  Green  way,  an  eastern  speculator,  for  which  he  paid  $68,  and  in  the  fall 
of  the  same  year  sold  land  in  section  20,  South  Township,  to  John  Creger.  Before 
the  end  of  the  year  he  was  with  his  family  in  Otoe  County,  Nebraska,  and  was 
one  of  that  community's  first  settlers. 

No  stain  remains  upon  the  name  of  Madison  County's  first  settler.  As  will 
be  seen,  in  a  reminiscent  article  prepared  by  Samuel  Fife,  who  worked  for 
Hurst  in  185 1,  an  honest  and  unbiased  tribute  is  paid  the  first  settler's  character. 
Mr.  Fife  portrays  him  as  **a  very  quiet  man,  of  good  judgment,  and  had  a  fine 
family.  His  family  here  was  composed  of  a  wife  and  four  little  boys.  I  have 
worked  for  him  several  times  and  always  found  him  a  gentleman  and  his  wife  a 
perfect  lady." 

The  final  chapter  in  the  life  of  Hiram  Hurst  is  furnished  by  his  son,  John,  in 
a  letter  of  date  March  5,  1906,  to  Herman  Mueller,  in  answer  to  a  written 
inquiry  relative  to  certain  data  concerning  Hiram  Hurst.  The  letter  speaks  for 
itself  and  it  is  to  be  trusted  the  memory  of  the  writer,  John  Hurst,  is  of  a 
reliable  character : 

*'Wymore,  Nebraska,  March  5,   1906. 
**Mr.  H.  A.  Mueller,  St.  Charles,  Iowa. 

**Dear  Sir:  Your  letter  of  February  12th  received.  Have  been  waiting  for 
some  time  to  get  the  ages  of  my  father  and  mother,  IJiram  and  Elizabeth  Hurst, 
which  were  recorded  in  the  old  family  Bible,  now  in  the  hands  of  one  of  my 
brothers. 

**I  assure  you  I  am  more  than  pleased  to  have  the  name  of  my  father  asso- 
ciated with  the  first  settlers  of  Madison  County,  Iowa,  and  will  state  right  here 
that  my  brother  WilHam  was  the  first  white  child  bom  in  the  county — was  bom 
in  camp  on  the  third  day  after  arriving  in  same  on  the  Middle  River  Bottom 
which  was  afterward  sold  to  Mr.  Cason.* 

**Hiram  Hurst  was  born  in  Washington  County,  Virginia,  March  i,  1821, 
was  married  to  Elizabeth  Todd  December  20,  1840.  Moved  from  Virginia  to 
Tennessee  and  then  to  Kentucky  and  from  there  to  Missouri.  Then  to  Madison 
County,  Iowa,  April   i,  1846.     Moved  from  there  to  Nebraska  in  the  fall  of 

*  In  this  statement  Mr.  Hurst  is  mistaken  as  his  father  returned  to  Missouri  for  his  fam- 
ily and  did  not  reappear  here  until  early  in  the  following  year.  William  Hurst  told  me  he 
was  born  in  1845. — Editor. 


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22  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

1854  and  settled  on  the  Missouri  River  at  the  mouth  of  the  Weeping  Water  now 
in  Otoe  County,  being  one  of  the  first  white  settlers  in  the  county.  He  followed 
farming  but  was  the  first  justice  of  the  peace  in  the  county,  which  office  he  held 
continuously  for  twenty  years;  was  a  Baptist  minister  for  a  number  of  years 
before  his  death,  which  occurred  on  the  i8th  day  of  September,  1889. 

"My  mother  was  bom  in  Kentucky  in  the  year  of  1824,  October  25th,  died 
August  24,  1874.  To  them  was  bom  by  my  mother  eleven  children.  Seven  are 
still  living.  Their  names  are  John  M.  Hurst,  Wymore,  Neb. ;  James  H.,  Almena, 
Kansas ;  William  H.,  Zincite,  Mo. ;  Thomas  J.,  Wymore,  Neb. ;  Isaac  N.,  Wymore, 
Neb. ;  Isabelle  Hughes,  Omaha,  Neb. ;  Martha  M.  Bales,  Talmage,  Neb.  Hiram 
Hurst  was  married  three  times;  his  second  wife  died  before  one  year  after 
marriage.  His  third  wife  was  a  Mrs.  Wood  of  Lorton,  Neb.  To  them  were  bom 
four  children ;  three  are  still  living,  Mollie,  Edward  and  Fred,  all  living  in  Otoe 
County,  Neb." 

THEN   CAME  OTHERS 

Hiram  Hurst  was  not  fated  to  long  remain  by  himself  in  this  new  coimtry, 
for  on  the  evening  of  April  24,  1846,  two  colonies,  also  from  Buchanan  County, 
Missouri,  arrived  in  Madison  County  and  became  permanent  settlers.  The  new- 
comers were  the  Clanton,  Clark  and  Guye  families.  The  former  was  made  up 
of  the  following  named  persons:  Rachel  (Moore)  Clanton,  widow  of  Charles 
Clanton,  Sr.,  her  children,  with  their  wives  and  children,  namely:  Charles 
William,  wife  and  children,  John,  Rachel,  Margaret,  Lucinda  and  Elizabeth; 
Isaac,  his  wife,  Loraine,  and  children,  Joel,  Nancy,  William,  Wesley,  George  and 
Moses;  Joel  M.,  his  wife,  Sarah,  and  children,  William,  Frank  and  Polly;  Ruth 
Clanton,  her  husband,  Caleb  Clark,  and  their  children,  Louisa  Jane,  Rachel  Char- 
lotte, Sarah  Ellen,  Nancy  Elizabeth  and  Cynthia  Ann  and  Rufus.  With  this 
colony  were  Charles  McCray  and  GiflFord  Lee,  both  unmarried,  who  remained 
in  the  settlement  but  a  few  months  and  then  retumed  to  their  Missouri  homes. 

The  Guye  family  consisted  of  Samuel  Guye,  a  widower;  his  sons,  James, 
George,  Frank  and  Houston;  daughters,  Mary,  Elizabeth,  Angeline  and  Maria. 
On  the  evening  of  April  ^24th,  both  colonies  went  into  camp  on  the  banks  of 
Middle  River.  The  Guyes,  reaching  the  river  about  an  hour  in  advance  of  the 
Clantons,  crossed  over  and  camped  on  the  north  bank,  and  the  Clantons,  on  that 
account,  and  also  because  night  was  coming  on,  camped  on  the  south  bank. 
As  each  had  considerable  live  stock,  this  arrangement  was  a  good  one,  in  that 
it  kept  the  cattle  apart.  The  elder  Guye  and  the  Clantons  were  somewhat 
acquainted  with  each  other  in  Missouri. 

That  night  a  heavy  rain  fell,  which  filled  the  river  too  high  for  fording 
and  it  continued  to  rain  during  the  following  afternoon,  so  that  both  colonies 
remained  in  camp  until  aftemoon,  when  the  Guyes  continued  their  journey  into 
Linn  Grove,  in  Warren  County.  The  men  of  the  Clanton  contingent  crossed 
the  river  in  an  Indian  canoe  and  visited  Guyes  and  William  Hurst,  a  brother 
of  Hiram,  whom  they  had  met  at  Spring  Hill,  in  Warrdn  County,  and  was 
informed  by  him  that  his  brother  Hiram  had  gone  westward  up  Middle  River 
and  staked  out  a  claim.     From  here  the  men  of  the  Clanton  party  went  out 


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•  ^  UNCLE  ^'  CHABLEY  YOUNG 

Came  to  Madison  County  in  1853 
and  lived  in  Ohio  Township.  Was  a 
pioneer  blacksmith  and  a  Christian 
preacher.  A  veteran  of  the  Civil  war, 
being  a  member  of  the  Thirty-ninth 
Iowa   Infantrv. 


MR.  AND   MRS.   JOEL  CLANTON 

Came  to  Madison  County  in  May,  1846.  settling  in  the  (now)  South  Township  about  1^ 
miles  west  of  the  present  site  of  St.  Cliarles.  Platted  Hanton  's  addition  and  Clanton  *s  addi- 
tion of  1888  of  St.  Charles. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  23 

prospecting  for  claims.  They  struck  a  southwesterly  course  and  crossing  the 
Warren  County  line  into  Madison,  arrived  in  Crawford  Township.  Here  Middle 
River  was  crossed  near  the  Hurst  claim  and  seeing  a  cabin,  the  prospectors 
.  went  to  it  and  found  Hurst  asleep  in  a  hut  constructed  out  of  material  aban- 
doned by  the  Indians  the  year  before.  At  first  Hurst  appeared  to  be  frightened 
but  upon  learning  the  object  of  his  visitors,  he  gave  them  much  assistance  in 
locating  their  claims  in  what  was  afterwards  known  as  Clanton's  Grove.  This 
family  staked  out  the  boundaries  of  their  new  home  immediately  west  of  and 
adjoining  the  future  town  of  St.  Charles,  on  the  3d  day  of  May,  1846.  On 
that  same  day  the  Guye  family  staked  a  claim  on  section  7,  on  the  south  bank 
of  North  River,  in  that  part  of  the  county  now  known  as  Union  Township. 

Caleb  Clark,  the  husband  of  Ruth  Clanton,  located  on  the  hill  west  of  Clanton 
Creek  and  north  of  Steele  Branch,  but  soon  sold  out  and  located  on  a  tract  of 
land  north  of  and  adjoining  Joel  M.  Clanton's,  in  section  14,  now  owned  by 
W.  S.  Lindsley.  Thus  these  two  colonies  were  simultaneously  and  collectively 
considered  one  colony,  whose  members  were  the  second  settlers  of  Madison 
County. 

It  is  said  that  Henry  McKinzie  settled  in  this  county  in  the  fall  of  1846, 
but  this  has  been  disputed,  the  date  of  his  arrival  being  made  as  in  the  spring 
of  1847.  However  that  may  be,  he  was  among  the  first  comers  and  settled  with 
his  sons,  Abner,  Daniel,  Thomas,  Aaron  and  Gabriel,  in  Scott  Township,  where 
he  remained  until  1855  and  then  left  for  Texas.  From  Texas  he  went  to  Douglas 
County,  Kansas,  where  he  died. 

Ephraim  Bilderback  married  Malinda  McKinzie,  daughter  of  Henry 
McKinzie,  and  came  to  the  county  with  his  father-in-law.  He  settled  on  section 
9,  Scott  Township,  and  later  sold  to  Abner  Bell.  Bilderback  then  went  up  on 
the  South  Coon,  where  his  father  lived,  the  latter  having  built  a  mill.  Ephfaira 
finally  went  West  and  died  there. 

Lemuel  Thombrugh  came  to  Madison  County  in  May,  1846,  and  settled  in 
the  Guye  neighborhood,  where  he  built  a  cabin  on  the  land  later  owned  by 
William  Gentry,  and  still  later  by  George  Homback.  Thombrugh  returned  to 
Missouri  in  August  after  his  family,  and  coming  back,  was  accompanied  by  his 
brother  James  and  family,  all  of  whom  lived  on  Lemuel  Thombrugh*s  claim 
on  the  Cedar,  until  Lemuel  sold  out  and  moved  away  in  1849.  James  Thom- 
brugh left  the  claim  on  the  Cedar  in  the  spring  of  1847  ^"d  went  south  on  Middle 
River,  where  he  took  up  another  claim  on  the  south  side  of  the  river  in  the  timber. 
Here  he  grubbed  a  patch  of  land  and  with  one  yoke  of  oxen  put  out  a  small 
crop.  He  was  the  first  settler  on  Middle  River  bottom.  He  built  a  cabin  on 
the  land,  which  was  burned  down  on  May  4,  1861. 

About  the  ist  of  September,  1846,  James  Fidler,  with  his  wife  and  unmar- 
ried children,  and  James  Thombmgh,  his  son-in-law,  and  wife,  migrated  from 
Weston,  Buchanan  County,  Missouri,  to  Madison  County.  He  lived  with  his 
son-in-law  and  was  the  first  person  to  die  in  Madison  County.  He  had  taken 
a  claim  and  got  a  cabin  built  in  the  edge  of  the  timber  on  section  29,  in  Union 
Township,  but  died  early  in  October,  a  little  over  a  month  after  his  arrival. 

It  is  said  that  Felt  Johnson,  a  son-in-law  of  Henry  McKinzie,  came  with 
him  in  1846  and  settled  on  section  8,  in  Scott  Township.     He  soon  afterwards 


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24  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

sold  to  Samuel  Casebier  and  went  over  on  **the  Clanton/'  where  he  lived  a  few 
years,  disposing  of  his  possessions  to  Wheatley  Harper,  and  returned  to  Mis- 
souri, where  he  died. 

James  Brown  and  family,  with  his  brother  Hezekiah,  a  single  man,  and 
Vincent  and  family,  also  Lebben  Shelton,  wife  and  three  children,  all  came 
together  from  Buchanan  County,  Missouri,  in  1847.  James  Brown  first  settled 
and  long  lived  on  section  36,  in  Jefferson  Township.  Vincent  Brown  settled 
on  section  12,  in  Union  Township.  Hezekiah  Brown,  the  unmarried  brother, 
made  his  home  alternately  with  his  brothers  James  and  Vincent  and  went  to 
Kansas  a  short  time  before  the  Civil  war. 

John  Wilhoit  was  one  of  Madison  County's  pioneers  of  1847.  He  first  settled 
on  the  south  half  of  section  35,  in  Jefferson  Township.  This  he  sold  to  William 
Schoen  in  1852. 

Two  Mendenhall  brothers,  one  of  them  named  Charles,  both  unmarried,  with 
two  Hinshaws,  relatives,  migrated  from  Missouri  in  the  fall  of  1847  and  settled 
on  section  32,  in  Jefferson  Township.  The  Mendenhalls  stopped  only  two  or 
three  years  and  then  went  to  Kansas. 

Silas  and  William  Hinshaw  had  with  them  their  widowed  mother.  William 
Hinshaw  married  a  sister  of  William  Ludington.  A  few  years  after  his  arrival 
here  he  went  to  Kansas  and  while  hunting  buffaloes  on  Smoky  Hill  River, 
he  was  killed  and  scalped  by  Indians.  Some  time  in  the  '50s  Silas  Hinshaw 
went  from  here  to  Sioux  City,  Iowa,  with  the  avowed  intention  of  killing  every 
Indian  he  met.  While  near  Sioux  City  two  Indians  came  to  his  cabin,  when  he 
picked  up  an  ax  and  killed  one  of  them.  The  other  escaped.  The  third  day 
after  this  occurrence  Silas  was  found  dead  at  his  home,  with  all  his  fingers  and 
toes  cut  off.  No  other  wounds  were  discovered  and  it  was  presumed  he  bled 
to  death  in  the  presence  of  his  murderers. 

James  Brewer  was  also  a  settler  of  1847,  coming  from  Missouri.  He  first 
settled  where  Jacob  Bennett  afterward  lived,  having  entered  a  part  of  section  22. 
About  1854  he  returned  to  Missouri  and  from  thence  to  Kansas.  These  were 
the  only  settlers  in  Madison  Township  that  year.  John  Evans  and  John  Butler 
settled  in  the  Guye  neighborhood  either  in  the  latter  part  of  1846,  or  early  in 
1847.  In  looking  for  claims,  it  is  said,  they  were  amazed  to  find  other  persons 
in  the  township  ahead  of  them. 

BOUNTIFUL   CROPS  IN    1 846 

The  year  1846  treated  the  pioneers  bountifully.  The  weather  was  fine  and 
seasonable  and  without  storm  or  flood.  The  Guyes  got  in  thirty  acres  of  com, 
.  in  an  old  Indian  field  that  produced  some  fifty  bushels  an  acre,  and  quite  a  patch 
of  potatoes  yielded  well.  Joel  Clanton  got  out  seven  acres  of  corn,  by  deadening 
trees  in  the  edge  of  the  timber  west  of  St.  Charles.  Others  here  early  enough 
to  plant  late  crops  had  good  yields.  Altogether  there  were  planted  sixty-one 
acres  that  averaged  about  forty  bushels.  About  two  hundred  bushels  of  potatoes 
were  grown  and  very  little  of  anything  else.  Wild  hay  of  course  was  abundant. 
Deer  and  wild  turkeys  were  numerous  and  all  this  wooded  region  literally 
flowed  with  the  honey  of  wild  bees.     No  family  that  came  that  year  moved 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  25 

away  until  in  later  years.  A  few  single  men,  or  those  who  came  without  their 
families  and  only  to  look  at  the  country  a  few  days,  returned  to  their  former 
homes.  The  following  winter  was  a  moderate  one  and  there  was  no  suffering 
among  the  settlers.  Flour  and  corn  meal  were  scarce  with  some  at  times,  owing 
to  the  long  distance  from  sources  of  supplies.  No  event  of  unusual  interest 
occurred  in  the  county  in  1846  save  the  first  settlement  of  this  region.  The 
settlers  were  too  poor  and  consequently  too  happy  to  have  any  troubles. 

FIRST   MARRIAGE  IN    COUNTY 

The  first  marriage  that  occurred  in  Madison  County  was  about  June  i,  1846. 
The  father  of  the  bride  was  John  Butler,  who  first  settled  about  one  mile  north- 
west of  the  schoolhouse  east  of  Winterset  some  two  miles,  on  what  was  afterward 
known  as  the  Anon  James  farm.  It  required  some  time  for  him  to  get  up  a 
cabin ;  but  why  should  not  two  more  people  make  a  home  on  their  own  account  ? 
The  colony  brought  along  a  preacher,  but  the  license  was  only  to  be  obtained 
somewhere  on  Des  Moines  River.  That  was  not  so  far  away,  however,  so 
Daniel  Chenoweth  and  Betsey  Butler  were  married  before  her  father  got  his 
cabin  up,  out  in  the  timber,  by  the  first  preacher  in  the  county.  Elder  John 
Evans,  the  famous  "Hard  Shell"  Baptist,  who  distinguished  himself  in  church 
work  in  the  early  days.  Chenoweth  entered  land  of  the  Government  on  section  6, 
in  Scott  Township,  and  on  section  i,  Lincoln  Township,  in  the  year  1850.  He 
remained  here  at  least  several  years. 

EARLY    ELECTIONS 

During  the  first  year  of  the  settlement  of  the  county  there  was  no  provision 
whereby  settlers  could  vote  within  the  county.  But  at  the  state  election,  to 
determine  the  adoption  or  rejection  of  a  constitution,  upon  which  depended  the 
admission  of  Iowa  as  a  state,  held  August  3,  1846,  five  settlers  from  Madison 
went  by  horse  team  in  a  wagon  to  Fort  Des  Moines  to  vote.  No  other  question 
was  asked  them  touching  their  qualifications  than  where  they  lived.  Des  Moines, 
even  that  early,  was  prospectively  a  candidate  for  the  state  capital,  and  therefore 
all  the  people  in  this  part  of  the  state,  very  few  as  there  were,  favored  the  adop- 
tion of  any  kind  of  a  constitution  that  would  hurry  the  admission  of  the  state 
into  the  Union. 

On  the  morning  of  August  i,  1846,  pursuant  to  previous  arrangement,  the 
following  persons  were  at  the  cabin  of  John  R.  Beedle,  who  then  lived  about 
a  quarter  of  a  mile  northwest  of  where  Greenwood  schoolhouse,  in  Union  Town- 
ship, now  is:  George  W.  and  James  Guye,  Samuel  Casebier,  John  Chenoweth 
and  John  R.  Beedle.  These  five  persons  were  the  pioneer  voters  of  Madison 
County.  Casebier's  claim  was  a  portion  of  the  east  part  of  Winterset,  the 
Guyes  lived  in  Union  Township.  Other  settlers  were  expected  to  make  up  the 
party,  but  failed  to  be  present.  The  voting  contingent  arrived  home  August 
5th,  being  absent  five  days. 

During  the  following  year,  1847,  Madison  County  was  made  a  separate  voting 
precinct  by  the  commissioners  of  Marion  County,  to  which  this  county  had  been 


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26  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

attached  for  all  purposes.  Madison  County  was  officially  designated  as  "Black 
Oak  Grove  precinct,"  under  the  misapprehension  by  the  board  that  the  prevailing 
upland  groves  were  of  that  variety  of  oak.  John  Butler's  house  was  designated 
as  the  place  for  holding  the  first  election.  It  stood  on  section  29  in  (now) 
Union  Township,  about  a  mile  northwest  of  the  present  schoolhouse  between 
Winterset  and  Tileville.  The  building  actually  used  was  a  new  log  stable  just 
built  and  had  not  been  used  for  any  purpose.  Although  the  state  constitution 
required  that  all  voting  should  be  by  ballot  none  had  been  printed  and  no  paper 
was  at  hand  on  which  to  write  names  of  those  voted  for.  Each  voter  therefore 
announced,  orally,  his  choice  and  the  clerks  tallied  his  vote  on  the  poll  books. 
As  the  poll  books  were  constantly  open  for  inspection  all  day  every  one  present 
might  know  from  vote  to  vote  how  the  result  stood,  but  little  interest  was  mani- 
fested and  the  little  there  was  lay  in  the  claim  of  those  living  south  of  Middle 
River  for  one  justice  and  one  constable,  while  those  north  of  that  stream  also 
wanted  a  man  elected  for  each  position.  In  early  days  that  stream  was  a  political 
Rubicon,  and  continued  so  up  to  the  final  location  of  the  county  seat.  With 
that  question  settled  Middle  River  ceased  to  be  much  of  a  political  factor. 

The  election  board  was  organized  at  9  o'clock  A.  M.  by  those  present  choos- 
ing Philip  M.  Boyles,  Lemuel  Thombrugh  and  William  Gentry,  Sr.,  judges, 
and  Thomas  M.  Boyles  and  Ephraim  Bilderback,  clerks.  The  following  persons 
voted  in  the  order  given :  Leonard  Bowman,  David  Cracraf t,  David  D.  Henry, 
Andrew  Evans,  Doctor  H.  Whited,  Robert  Deshazer,  Absalom  McKinzie,  John 
R.  Beedle,  George  Myers,  Amos  Case,  Claiborne  Pitzer,  D.  J.  Casebier,  J.  M. 
Clan  ton,  Isaac  Clan  ton,  Samuel  Crawford,  J.  C.  Casebier,  William  Combs,  Jacob 
Combs.  George  W.  Guye,  James  W.  Guye,  Valentine  Johnson,  Asa  Mills,  Samuel 
B.  Casebier,  Henry  W;  McKinzie,  James  Thombrugh,  John  Butler,  Samuel  Guye, 
Lemuel  Thombrugh,  David  Bishop,  Philip  M.  Boyles,  William  Gentry,  Sr., 
Thomas  M.  Boyles,  Ephraim  Bilderback — total  33. 

Philip  M.  Boyles  carried  the  election  retums  to  Knoxville,  county  seat  of 
Marion  County,  to  which  this  county  was  attached,  on  an  Indian  pony.  After 
some  trouble  he  found  the  clerk  of  the  board  of  commissioners,  who  afterwards 
became  a  noted  politician — Lysander  W.  Babbitt,  of  Council  Bluffs.  Before 
retuming  Boyles  got  the  vote  canvassed  and  brought  back  with  him  the  certificates 
of  election  for  the  successful  ones. 

Following  was  the  vote  of  that  election :  Justices  of  the  peace,  David  Bishop 
(elected),  23;  John  Butler  (elected),  22;  Samuel  Guye,  14.  Constables,  James 
Thombrugh  (elected),  21;  Samuel  B.  Casebier  (elected),  19;  William  Combs, 
17;  William  Bishop,  i. 

Justice  David  Bishop  and  Constable  James  Thombrugh  lived  south  of  Middle 
River  and  Justice  John  Butler  and  Constable  Samuel  B.  Casebier  lived  north  of 
that  political  stream.  This  was  the  first  election,  the  first  of  the  county  seat 
fights  and  the  result  was  a  draw. 

It  is  not  the  purport  of  this  chapter  to  give  in  detail  the  names  and  locations 
of  all  the  settlers  who  came  to  the  county  in  the  first  years  of  its  existence,  for 
the  reason  that  a  chapter  will  be  devoted  to  the  history  of  each  of  the  townships 
and  necessarily  the  first  settlers  of  these  particular  localities  must  be  mentioned. 
Therefore,  in  order  to  avoid  any  repetition  the  narrative  of  the  pioneers  from 


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PHILIP  M.  BOYLES 

Arrived  in  Madison  County,  May  11,  1846.  First  com- 
missioners' clerk  of  county,  elected  January  1,  1849. 
Took  an  active  part  in  the  pioneer  life  of  Madison  County. 
Second  sergeant  of  Company  A,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa 
Infantry. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  27 

this  on  will  be  treated  in  the  townships  in  the  chapter  assigned  to  the  township 
in  which  they  are  located.  However,  this  chapter  can  be  fittingly  brought  to  a 
close  by  a  partial  list  of  names  of  the  men  and  women  who  settled  in  Madison 
County  during  the  first  ten  years  after  the  arrival  of  Hiram  Hurst,  as  appeared 
in  the  semicentennial  edition  of  the  Madisonian,  published  November  i,  1906: 
1846— Mrs.  Elizabeth  (Clark)  Smith,  Rufus  Clark,  A.  C.  Beadle,  C.  F. 
Clanton,  W.  W.  Clanton,  Mrs.  Polly  (Clanton)  Souders,  Mrs.  Angeline  Guye 
Vanwy,  W.  G.  Dorrell;  1847 — William  Thomburg,  Lewis  Thomburg,  W.  W. 
Gentry,  Henry  Evans,  Mrs.  Sarah  (Clark)  Smith,  Mrs.  Lucy  A.  Fife,  Mrs.  R. 
M.  J.  Collins;  1848 — George  W.  Smith,  W.  S.  Wilkinson,  Lucinda  James,  A.  W. 
Wilkinson,  Mrs.  Margaret  Stinson,  John  Stinson,  Mrs.  Maranda  Hubbard, 
Mrs.  Permelia  Kerms,  Asa  B.  Smith,  S,  S.  Guiberson,  Mrs.  Katie  Guiberson, 
Caleb  Rollings,  Andrew  Snyder,  Mrs.  Andrew  Snyder;  1849 — Chal  Danforth, 
W,  R.  Danforth,  William  Brinson,  W.  A.  Chase,  Amos  Fife,  Samuel  Fife, 
Samuel  Snyder,  Daniel  Vancil,  Mrs.  George  RatliflF,  Mrs.  Mary  Farris,  W.  S. 
AUcock;  1850 — G.  W.  PoflFinbarger,  J.  I.  Guiberson,  Joshua  Clark,  Mrs.  Mollie 
Roberts,  Abner  Bell,  Mrs.  Mary  Shoup,  Mrs.  K.  Carter,  Mrs.  Lorinda  Taylor, 
J.  C.  Thombrugh;  1851 — ^James  L.  Bertholf,  Mrs.  Nancy  Speer,  Mrs.  Adela 
Carter,  J.  A.  Rhymo,  F.  M.  Bruce,  R.  P.  Bruce,  L.  M.  Bertholf,  Wesley  Coch- 
ran, J.  H.  Farris,  Mrs.  Martha  Tidrick,  Mrs.  Barbara  Shaver  Clanton,  Mrs.  Joel 
Childers,  John  M.  Runkle,  Mrs.  Mary  Dehaveh,  Mrs.  C.  F.  Clanton,  John  Bruce, 
I.  M.  Clanton,  S.  L.  Johns;  1852 — J.  W.  Leinard,  Jeff  Wheat,  J.  H.  Moore, 
J.  N.  Gordon,  W.  I.  Gordon,  T.  A.  Duer,  S.  G.  Ruby,  William  Schoen,  Mrs. 
J.  C.  Clark,  Samuel  Walker,  Mrs.  Belle  Smith,  Mrs.  Sarah  Archer,  Mrs.  D. 
Guilliams  Close,  B.  C.  Guilliams,  Mrs.  Rosa  Walker,  Alfred  Brittain,  Mrs. 
•Julia  Brittain,  Pleasant  Brittain,  S.  W.  Barrow,  Mrs.  McPherrin,  Mrs.  Katherine 
Bean,  F.  M.  McDaniel,  A.  H.  McDaniel,  Michael  lams;  1853 — W.  R.  Shriver, 
D.  G.  RatliflF,  William  Hartsook,  Mrs.  Samuel  Myers,  Capt.  E.  G.  Barker,  Milton 
Boyles,  Andrew  Macumber,  Christopher  Wilson,  Isaac  Reager,  Lewis  Crawford, 

A.  S.  Speer,  S.  S.  Morgan,  Stanislaus  Baur,  Mrs.  Theresa  Baur,  Daniel  Reigle, 
John  F.  Johnston,  L.  A.  McCumber,  J.  W.  Smith,  C.  H.  Young,  John  McNeley, 
J.  A.  Macumber,  Alex  Macumber,  John  Faurote,  Mrs.  W.  G.  Dorrell,  Mrs. 
Lizzie  Clifton,  Henry  Macumber;  1854 — I.  C.  Walker,  D.  K.  Getchell,  Minerva 
Nicholson,  Mrs.  Mary  Evans,  B.  F.  Bowlsby,  William  Fennimore,  John  Brown, 
Mrs.  Artie  McCrea,  Mrs.  Lucy  Walker,  Martha  Egy,  J.  S.  Egy,  Hiram  C.  Smith, 
Mrs.  Hiram  C.  Smith,  Mrs.  Andrew  Gaekle,  Mrs.  Polly  Bradshaw,  George  T. 
Damall,  Mrs.  J.  W.  Crossley,  Mrs.  William  Scrivener,  Mrs.  Mary  C.  Nichols, 
John  Reed,  John  Creger,  David  Bradshaw,  W.  S.  Porter,  Mrs.  Nancy  E.  Porter, 
Mrs.  Mary  A.  Reed,  M.  M.  Gilleran,  Mrs.  R.  J.  Creger,  J.  M.  Allen,  Mrs.  Mahala 
Arnold,  Samuel  Lathrum,  Mrs.  Julia  Arnold,  Mrs.  Mary  J.  Creger,  Mrs.  J.  V. 
Kirk,  Mrs.  Fannie  Baker;  1855 — J.  C.  Foster,  Mrs.  M.  Hockenberry,  Mrs. 
Amanda  Davis,  Reuben  J.  Foster,  Rollen  Walker,  Samuel  T.  Johnston,  Mrs. 
Frank  Rundall,  Mrs.  R.  J.  Foster,  Mrs.  Sarah  J.  Brokaw,  Mrs.  Albert  Johnson, 
Eli  Arnold,  John  M.  Downs,  Mrs.  Marilda  Witt,  Joseph  Cunningham,  C.  E. 
Huglin,  P.  J.  Cunningham,  S.  D.  Ford,  F.  L.  Bissell,  Mrs.  Fannie  Anderson, 
F.  G.  Bissell,  Thomas  Early,  Josiah  Banks,  Mrs.  S.  T.  Johnston,  Alex  Cregmiles, 

B.  F.  Conn,  W.  S.  Conn,  N.  P.  Pomeroy,  Mrs.  N.  G.  Baugh,  C.  A.  Roberts,  A. 


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28  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

M.  Benge,  J.  E.  Benge,  Malissa  Lyon,  Lydia  Danforth,  Israel  Hoover,  Mrs. 
William  Thomburg;  1856 — John  H.  Smith,  Luke  A.  Smith,  Margaret  Moore, 
Hannah  Moore,  Sarah  Young,  J.  T.  Young,  W.  C.  Young,  George  W.  Young, 
Eudora  Preble  Benge,  T.  J.  Hudson,  Mrs.  A.  W.  Wilkinson,  William  Ellsberry, 
John  Cox,  H.  J.  B.  Cummings,  Mrs.  C.  P.  Lee,  Andrew  Crawford,  E.  F.  Con- 
noran,  Isaac  Holmes,  James  Gillaspy,  I.  S.  Longnecker,  Mrs.  Sarah  Brittain, 
Mrs.  K.  McCloskey,  Alfred  Souders,  William  Ludlow%  Mrs.  Elijah  Hiatt,  Arch 
Holmes,  A.  B.  Moorman,  Mrs.  A.  B.  Moorman,  Mrs.  Irene  Connoran,  Mrs. 
N.  J.  Young,  R.  M.  Young,  W.  H.  Black,  John  Roy,  Joseph  Rippey,  H.  D.  Moor- 
man, Mrs.  R.  A.  Moorman,  Mrs.  S.  J.  Turner,  Mrs.  J.  S.  White,  Mrs.  Melvina 
Lake,  Leroy  McMains. 


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CHAPTER   IV 
MADISON  COUNTY  ORGANIZED 

Madison  County  lies  in  the  south  central  part  of  Iowa,  in  the  third  tier  of 
counties  north  of  Missouri.  North  of  it  is  Dallas  County,  while  to  the  east 
is  Warren;  to  the  south  are  Clarke  and  Union,  and  to  the  west,  Adair.  In 
form  it  is  an  approximate  square,  and  includes  sixteen  congressional  townships : 
Townships  74-77  north  and  ranges  26-29  west.  Owing  to  errors  in  the  original 
survey,  the  area  is  only  566.4  square  miles,  instead  of  the  customary  576.  This 
county  was  originally  known  as  the  "Three  Rivers"  country,  owing  to  the  pres- 
ence of  three  rivers  which  flow  within  and  through  its  boundaries,  furnishing 
abundant  drainage  and  some  water  power,  and  having  along  their  banks  lux- 
uriant growths  of  timber,  all  requisites  and  attractions  for  the  settler. 

On  the  13th  of  January,  1846,  the  Legislature  passed  an  act  establishing  the 
County  of  Madison.  This  measure,  among  other  things,  provided  for  the  holding 
of  elections  to  perfect  the  organization  of  the  county,  and,  furthermore,  the 
boundary  lines  were  described  as  shown  below : 

"That  the  following  shall  be  the  boundaries  of  a  new  county,  to  be  called 
Madison,  to  wit:  Beginning  at  the  northwest  comer  of  Warren  County  thence 
west  to  the  northwest  comer  of  township  jy,  north  of  range  29  west;  thence 
south  to  the  southwest  comer  of  township  74,  north  of  range  29  west;  thence 
east  to  the  southeast  corner  of  township  74,  north  of  range  26  west;  thence 
nortb  to  the  place  of  beginning." 

At  the  time  Madison  County  was  created  twelve  other  counties  were  formed 
by  the  Legislature  and  Madison  was  attached  to  Marion  County,  for  taxation, 
election  and  judicial  purposes.  Early  in  1847,  the  commissioners  of  Marion 
County  ordered  that  all  of  Madison  County  constitute  an  election  precinct,  to 
be  known  as  Black  Oak  Grove  precinct.  The  first  election  held  in  the  newly 
established  precinct  was  in  the  fall  of  1847,  with  polling  place  at  the  house  of 
John  Butler  as  heretofore  related.    This  was  the  first  election  held  in  the  county. 

The  county  of  Madison  continued  attached  to  Marion  County  until  the  year 
1849.  ^y  t^^s  time  about  three  years  had  elapsed  since  the  coming  of  the  first 
settler  in  the  community  and  quite  a  number  of  farms  had  been  opened.  Men 
of  good  character,  energy,  determination  and  thrift  made  up  the  first  contingents 
of  that  army  of  homeseekers  soon  to  follow  them,  and  they  had  gotten  far 
enough  along,  in  the  way  of  establishing  homes  for  themselves  and  families,  as 
to  become  alive  to  the  importance  of  having  an  established  form  of  government 
for  the  unorganized  county  in  which  they  had  chosen  to  set  their  stakes.  There 
were  now  something  like  one  hundred  voters  within  the  boundary  lines  of  Madi- 
son County  and  through  the  efforts  of  certain  of  their  leaders  the  Leei.<;lature 

29 


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30  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

passed  and  approved  an  act  on  the  27th  day  of  December,  1848,  providing  for 
the  holding  of  an  election,  at  which  officers  for  the  county  government  should 
be  chosen  by  vote  of  the  electorate.  The  measure  also  nominated  and  named 
Thomas  Butler,  of  Dallas  County,  George  Gillaspy,  of  Marion  County,  and 
Isaac  Cooper,  of  Polk  County,  a  commission,  to  locate  the  seat  of  justice  for 
the  new  county. 

Previqus  to  the  election  and  in  pursuance  of  the  provisions  of  the  act  of 
1846,  Ephraim  Bilderback,  organizing  sheriff,  and  his  deputy,  A.  D.  Jones, 
divided  the  county  into  three  election  precincts,  namely.  North,  Center  and 
South,  and  at  these  places  the  election,  completing  the  organization  of  Madison 
County,  was  held  on  the  first  day  of  January,  1849. 

Iowa  was  strongly  democratic  up  to  the  Civil  war,  so  that  it  is  not  strange 
that  Ephraim  Bilderback,  organizing  sheriff,  was  of  this  political  faith.  He 
was  shy,  however,  on  education  and  political  finesse,  but  his  delinquencies 
in  these  respects  were  met  and  overcome  by  his  astute  deputy,  A.  D.  Jones,  also  a 
democrat,  who  was  not  only  a  man  of  education  and  of  good  lineage,  but  also 
at  the  time,  ^'easily  the  smoothest  person  in  politics  in  the  whole  county  until 
he  left  in  1853."  It  was  Jones  who,  so  it  is  said,  organized  the  county,  maneu- 
vered the  election  so  that  his  henchmen  should  predominate  in  the  county  gov- 
ernment, and  one  of  his  ambitions  was  to  have  the  seat  of  justice  located  at 
"The  Narrows,"  or  Tileville,  on  property  owned  by  him.  In  this  he  was  far 
from  being  successful,  but  the  election  itself  resulted  mainly  in  favor  of  the 
democrats  and  the  "boss"  was  satisfied.  Below  is  given  the  result  of  the  organiz- 
ing election  and  the  names  of  those  elected  to  office : 

SHERIFF 

Ephraim  Bilderback  (D) 38 

Samuel  Guye    (D) 30 

CLERK   OF  DISTRICT   COURT 

George  W.  McClellan  (W) 47 

Samuel  B.  Casebier  (D) 13 

PROSECUTING  ATTORNEY 

Alfred  D.  Jones  (D) 39 

CORONER 

Leonard  Bowman   ( W) 47 

COUNTY  COMMISSIONERS 

William  Combs   (W) 40 

David  Bishop  (D) 41 

William  Gentry  (D) 43 

Daniel  McKinzie  ( W) 3 


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FIRST  FIVE  VOTERS  IN  MADISON  COUNTY 
Voted  at  the  election  held  August,  1847,  in  **  Black  Oak  Grove  pre- 
cinct."   Back  row:   Philip  M,  Boyles;  Joel  M.  Clanton.  Front  row:  John 
R.  Beedle;  James  Guye;  George  W.  Guye 


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AS7  0r(.  L:-Nf  .\  a.n.- 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  31 

Wm.  Allcock  (D) 7 

John  C.  Casebier  (D) lo 

Mathew  Jones    (D) 5 

Heniy  McKinzie  (W) 39 

commissioners'   clerk 

Pliilip  M.  Boyles  (D) 35 

James  Thombrugh  (D) 34 

George  W.  McClellan  ( W) i 

PROBATE    JUDGE 

William  M.  Phipps  ( W) 48 

Philip  M.  Boyles  (D) i 

RECORDER 

Joseph  K.  Evans  (D) 10 

Joshua  Hinkley   (W) 9 

SURVEYOR 

Alfred  D.  Jones  (D) 36 

William  Harmon  ( W) 9 

SCHOOL  FUND  COMMISSIONER 

Daniel  Vancil   (D) 8 

David  Cracraft  ( W) 7 

SEALER  OF   WEIGHTS  AND   MEASURES 

Samuel  Fleener  (D) i 

SELECTION  OF  THE  COUNTY  SEAT 

There  is  nothing  to  show  that  anything  had  been  done  up  to  this  time  in  the 
way  of  selecting  a  location  for  the  seat  of  government,  notwithstanding  the 
fact  that  by  the  provisions  of  an  act  passed  by  the  Legislature  on  December  2Ty 
1848,  a  commission  had  been  appointed  for  that  purpose.  The  men  so  chosen 
were  Thomas  Butler,  of  Dallas  County,  George  Gillaspy,  of  Marion,  and  Isaac 
Cooper,  of  Polk,  but  there  is  a  strong  probability  that  Cooper  did  not  serve, 
as  only  two  of  the  conmiission,  Butler  and  Gillaspy,  signed  the  report  afterwards 
filed  with  the  clerk  of  the  Commissioners*  Court.  There  were  no  bickerings, 
wire  pulling,  or  underhand  methods  used  as  far  as  now  known,  in  persuading 
the  commission  to  select  this  or  that  site  for  the  county  seat.  Their  choice 
was  in  the  exact  center  of  the  county,  having  requisite  features  and  attractions 
for  the  purposes  of  the  settlers  at  that  time  and  the  generations  to  follow  them. 
The  location  of  Winterset  for  the  capital  of  Madison  County  was  well  chosen 


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32  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

and  the  only  adverse  criticism  advanced  is  the  lack  of  proper  railroad  facilities, 
by  which  the  people  of  the  outlying  districts  might  reach  the  place.  No  effort  to 
wrest  the  prize  from  Winterset  has  ever  been  made  with  any  degree  pf  hope  of 
success. 

After  the  locating  commissioners  had  selected  Winterset,  Judge  E.  R.  Guiber- 
son  started  a  petition  for  the  relocation  of  the  county  seat.  This  was  late  in 
the  fall  of  1849.  He  wanted  the  county  seat  relocated  on  or  near  the  northwest 
quarter  of  section  33,  in  what  is  now  Union  Township,  and  adjoining  a  quarter 
section  of  land  he  owned  in  that  community.  Guiberson  worked  hard  on  his 
petition  and  finally  secured  about  fifteen  signers.  His  contention  was  that  the 
proposed  new  location  was  nearer  the  center  of  the  settlements  and  was  a  more 
eligible  tract  of  land  in  every  way  for  the  county  seat,  but  he  was  unsuccessful 
in  convincing  a  sufficient  number  of  the  settlers  that  his  proposition  was  a  good 
one.    He  soon  abandoned  the  scheme  and  sold  his  claim. 

The  county  seat  of  Madison  County  was  not  chosen  for  almost  six  months 
after  the  county  was  organized,  and  why  so  long  a  time  had  been  permitted  to 
pass  without  the  accomplishment  of  this  most  necessary  act  does  not  appear  by 
any  data  now  at  hand.  However,  Winterset  was  selected  as  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment by  Thomas  Butler  and  George  Gillaspy,  locating  commissioners,  on  the 
20th  day  of  June,  1849,  as  the  following  exact  copy  of  their  report,  filed  with  the 
commissioners'  clerk,  P.  M.  Boyles,  attests : 

**State  of  Iowa       ) 
Madison  County     j 

"We  the  undersigned  commissioners  appointed  by  the  first  section  of  an  act 
of  the  General  Assembly  of  the  State  of  Iowa  for  the  location  of  the  seat  of 
justice  of  Madison  County  approved  December  27,  1848,  and  after  being  sworn 
agreeable  to  the  provisions  of  said  act  and  after  examining  the  situation  of 
said  county  taking  into  consideration  the  future  as  well  as  the  present  population 
of  said  county  do  hereby  establish  and  locate  the  seat  of  justice  of  said  county 
upon  the  west  half  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  thirty-one,  township 
seventy-six,  range  twenty-seven  west,  and  the  east  half  of  southeast  quarter 
of  section  thirty-six,  township  seventy-six,  range  twenty-eight  west  in  the  district 
of  land  subject  to  sale  at  Iowa  City,  Iowa,  in  said  state. 

'*In  witness  whereof  we  have  hereunto  set  our  hands  and  seals  at  the  place  of 
location  this  20th  day  of  June,  A.  D.  1849. 

'Thomas  Butler     (Seal)  )  Locating 
.  "George  Gillaspy    (Seal)  V  Commissioners." 

The  Commissioners'  Court  met  in  regular  session  on  the  second  day  of  July, 
1849,  but  nothing  appears  of  record  in  the  minute  book  of  that  body  bearing  on 
the  report  of  the  locating  commissioners.  It  is  plainly  evident,  however,  that 
the  report  had  been  filed,  and  the  matter  placed  before  the  commissioners,  as 
the  following  clearly  shows : 

Ordered,  That  the  county  surveyor  of  Madison  County  proceed  as  soon  as  con- 
venient to  lay  off  the  seat  of  justice  of  said  county,  as  follows:  He  shall  lay 
off  about  eighty  acres  of  the  quarter  located  on  as  nearly  as  possible,  extending 
it  one-half  mile  east  and  west  and  one-quarter  of  a  mile  north  and  south  as 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  33 

nearly  as  circumstances  will  admit  of,  making  the  square  as  nearly  as  can  be 
equally  surround  a  stake  set  by  the  commissioners  of  said  county,  as  the  center 
of  the  public  square  of  said  seat  of  justice. 

Ordered,  That  the  lots  in  the  seat  of  justice  shall  be  in  length  132  feet  north 
and  south  and  66  feet  east  and  west.  Alleys  shall  be  laid  out,  running  east  and 
west  through  every  square  of  one  rod  in  width  so  as  to  divide  the  blocks  equally, 
except  the  alleys  of  the  two  squares  one  on  the  east  and  the  other  on  the  west 
side  of  said  public  square,  which  shall  run  north  and  south.  The  streets  shall 
be  sixty-six  feet  in  width  running  at  right  angles  north  and  south  and  east  and 
west  through  the  length  and  breadth  of  said  town,  and  said  surveyor  shall  do 
all  other  work  necessary  to  be  done  about  said  plat  as  is  usual  in  said  cases. 

Ordered,  That  William  Gentry  be  authorized  to  employ  some  person  to  make 
800  stakes,  3  feet  in  length,  2j^  inches  square,  and  haul  said  stakes  on  to  said 
town  plat  as  may  be  directed  by  said  surveyor,  said  stakes  to  be  made  of  burr 
or  white  oak  timber  and  sound,  square  at  the  top  and  sharp  end  equally,  so  as 
to  drive. 

Ordered,  That  P.  M.  Boyles,  William  Gentry,  William  Combs,  David  Bishop 
and  Enos  Berger  be  employed  to  assist  said  surveyor  in  the  surveying  of  said 
lots. 

Ordered,  That  the  county  seat  of  Madison  County  be  called  Winterset. 
Ordered,  That  A.  D.  Jones  be  requested  to  write  an  advertisement  for  publi- 
cation of  the  sale  of  lots  in  the  town  of  Winterset,  and  that  it  be  sent  to  the 
Iowa  Star  for  publication. 

Ordered,  That  Charles  Wright  be  employed  to  carry  it  to  Fort  Des  Moines, 
to  the  office  of  said  paper,  for  which  he  will  be  allowed  the  sum  of  $1.25,  and  that 
said  notice  shall  be  taken  to  said  paper  by  Tuesday  night  next. 

Ordered,  That  the  terms  of  sale  of  said  lots  shall  be  one-fourth  cash  in  hand, 
and  the  balance  in  three  installments  of  six  months  each,  which  shall  be  dis- 
charged by  notes  of  equal  size,  given  to  the  board  of  commissioners,  who  will, 
in  turn,  give  a  certificate  of  purchase  to  the  buyer,  which  shall  be  presented  to . 
said  board  for  a  deed  when  said  land  shall  have  been  purchased  from  the  general 
Government,  and  said  notes  discharged  by  said  buyer. 

Ordered,  That  means  be  taken  to  borrow  $150  for  the  purpose  of  entering 
the  town  quarter. 

Ordered,  That  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  authorized  and  empowered  to  effect  a 
loan  of  $150  for  the  purpose  of  entering  the  quarter  on  which  Winterset  is  situ- 
ated, and  that  he  be  authorized  and  empowered  to  execute  notes  or  other  instru- 
ments of  writing  necessary  to  obtain  said  sum  of  .money,  and  to  assign  our  names 
to  such  instruments. 

NAMING  OF  THE  COUNTY  SEAT 

There  is  more  than  one  account  of  how  the  county  seat  came  by  its  name. 
One  account  has  it  that  when  the  county  commissioners  met,  after  the  locating 
commission  had  made  its  report  on  the  selection  of  a  site  for  the  county  seat, 
that  the  commission  had  chosen  the  name  of  Independence  for  the  capital,  to 
which  the  Commissioners'  Court  objected,  as  there  was  another  town  of  the  same 

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34  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

name  in  the  state.  It  .was  thereupon  suggested  that  Summerset  would  be  a  pleas- 
ing name,  but  it  being  in  December  and  the  weather  very  cold,  one  of  the  com- 
missioners recommended  Winterset  as  being  a  more  appropriate  name,  and  the 
clerk  being  requested  to  write  the  word  Winterset  to  see  how  it  would  look,  it 
appeared  attractive  on  paper  and  the  name  was  adopted.  This,  however,  does 
not  tally  with  A.  D.  Jones*  recollection  of  the  circumstances,  by  and  under 
which,  the  county  seat  was  named.  Among  other  events  related  by  him  in  an 
article  published  in  the  History  of  Madison  County  (1879),  ^^  has  this  to  say 
in  relation  to  the  subject: 

"Combs,  Bishop  and  Gentry  were  the  first  county  commissioners.  The  locat- 
ing commissioners  were  Babbitt,  Gillaspy  and  Bond,  who  located  the  county 
seat,  and  I  think  called  it  *  Independence,*  to  which  name  I  took  exceptions  and 
suggested  that  the  name  be  not  accepted  by  the  county  commissioners.  I  gave 
as  reasons  that  there  were  other  towns  in  the  state  by  that  name,  and  that  it 
would  produce  confusion  in  our  mail  matter,  together  with  other  plausible 
arguments. 

"The  commissioners  concluded  not  to  accept  the  name.  Then  came  the  dif- 
ficulty to  obtain  a  suitable  name  for  the  new  town.  To  all  names  offered  a 
negative  was  given  and  they  were  numerous  I  assure  you.  At  last  some  person 
suggested  Summerset  as  the  name,  to  which  Bill  Combs,  who  was  lying  down 
on  a  bench,  roused  up,  and  quite  petulantly  remarked  that  *you  had  better  call 
it  Winterset,'  in  derision,  for  we  had  a  terrible  scourge  with  the  deep  snow  that 
winter.  I  at  once  suggested  that  would  be  a  good  name.  Then  Combs  took 
exceptions  to  that,  for  he  said  it  would  prevent  persons  from  coming  to  a  country 
that  was  so  cold,  that  they  adopted  cold  names  for  their  towns.  I  examined 
the  postal  register  and  found  nothing  like  it  except  Winterseat  in  the  State  of 
North  Carolina.  I  commenced  urging  the  name  and  writing  it  and  sticking  it 
upon  the  wall,  until  I  got  them  familiar  with  it,  when  the  commissioners  adopted 
and  recorded  it." — [The  explanation  of  Jones  seems  to  be  generally  accepted  as 
the  correct  one. — Editor.] 

SYSTEMS  OF  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT 

In  the  act  to  divide  the  Territory  of  Wisconsin  and  to  establish  the  terri- 
torial government  of  Iowa,  Congress  extended  over  the  new  territory  the  exist- 
ing laws  of  Wisconsin,  "so  far  as  the  same  are  not  incompatible  with  the  pro- 
visions of  the  act  of  separation.*'  This  measure  was  but  a  provisional  one, 
however,  subject  to  be  altered,  modified  or  repealed  by  the  governor  and  legis- 
lative assembly  of  Iowa.  A  law  of  Wisconsin  Territory,  approved  December 
20,  1837,  had  established  a  board  of  county  commissioners  in  each  county  and 
this  was  the  law  of  Iowa  Territory  until  December  14,  1838,  when  the  Terri- 
torial Legislature  passed  a  similar  law.  Under  this  measure  the  boards  of  county 
commissioners  administered  the  government  of  their  respective  counties  until 
the  adoption  of  the  Code  of  1851.  Their  duties  were  multifarious  and  they 
wielded  immense  power  within  the  county.  In  1851  the  county  judge  was 
invested  with  the  usual  powers  and  jurisdiction  of  county  commissioners  and 
of  a  judge  of  probate.    The  old  county  judge  system  continued  to  be  the  law 


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ALFRED  D.  JONES 

Born  in  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania,  January  30,  1814: 
moved  to  Ohio,  where  he  was  educated:  came  to  Polk 
County,  Iowa,  in  1846:  was  elected  county  surveyor  and 
in  July,  1846,  platted  the  original  Des  Moines.  Came  to 
Madison  County  in  June,  1848,  settling  at  the  **  Nar- 
rows'*  near  Tileville,  where  he  opened  a  store.  He  was 
the  first  postmaster  in  this  county,  calling  the  office  at 
his  store  '  *  Montpelier. ' '  Assisted  Sheriff  Bilderback  to 
organize  the  county  and  was  chosen  county  surveyor  and 
prosecuting  attorney  at  first  election,  January  1,  1849. 
Laid  out  Winterset  in  1849,  Council  Bluffs  in  1852,  and 
Omaha  in  1854.     Became  first  mayor  of  Omaha. 


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A.' 


^\  I 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  35 

of  the  state  after  the  abolishment  of  the  Commissioners'  Court  in  185 1  until  the 
Eighth  General  Assembly  passed  what  was  popularly  known  as  **the  county 
supervisor  law,"  which  was  included  in  the  revision  of  i860.  This  provided  for 
a  board  of  supervisors,  consisting  of  one  from  each  civil  township,  to  which  was 
committed  the  administration  of  county  affairs.  This  law  remained  on  the 
statute  book  until  the  adoption  of  the  Code  of  1873,  when  the  number  was 
reduced  to  three  persons  in  each  county  except  in  specified  cases,  when, it  could 
be  increased  to  five  or  seven.  With  this  amendment,  the  county  supervisor  law 
has  remained  with  no  material  change  until  the  present  time.  The  business  affairs 
of  Madison  County  were  commenced  while  the  county  commissioners  system  was 
in  operation,  and  the  proceedings  of  that  body  are  given  in  the  next  chapter. 


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CHAPTER     V 
PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  COMMISSIONERS'  COURT 

The  first  meeting  of  the  Commissioners*  Court,  composed  of  three  persons 
whose  powers  and  duties  were  similar  to  those  of  the  present  board  of  super- 
visors, was  in  a  double  log  cabin,  that  stood  near  where  the  Tileville  side  track 
was  laid,  east  of  Winterset.  No  effort  had  as  yet  been  made  for  the  location 
of  the  county  seat,  but  at  the  meeting  of  the  Legislature  in  1848,  a  commission 
of  three  persons  was  selected  for  the  purpose,  whose  members  failed  to  perform 
the  duties  imposed  relative  to  the  location  of  a  seat  of  justice  for  Madison 
County,  until  late  in  June  of  the  year  1849.  Thus  it  was  that  Madison  County 
had  no  capital  town  during  the  first  six  months  of  its  political  existence. 

The  object  of  this  chapter  is  to  present  to  the  reader  the  proceedings  of  the 
first  legislative  body  and  business  agency  of  Madison  County.  The  acts  and 
enactments  of  the  Commissioners*  Court  were  of  exceeding  importance  to  the 
new  community,  as  they  were  the  foundation  stones  upon  which  the  local  gov- 
ernment and  prosperity  of  the  county  were  founded.  The  records  of  the 
Commissioners*  Court,  as  kept  by  its  clerk,  or  a  deputy,  indicate  in  a  way  the 
important  matters  passed  upon  by  that  body ;  a  faithful  abstract  of  these  records 
is  here  produced : 

Jan.  9,  1849. 

Ordered,  that  William  Sturman  and  Leonard  Bowman  be  accepted  as  security 
for  John  R.  Beedle,  constable  elect,  in  the  bond  of  $500. 

Ordered,  that  John  Butler  and  Samuel  B.  Casebier  be  accepted  as  security 
for  Daniel  Chenoweth  constable  elect,  in  a  bond  of  $500. 

Ordered,  that  Ephraim  Bilderback,  and  George  W.  McClellan  be  accepted 
as  security  for  Alfred  D.  Jones,  county  surveyor  elect,  in  a  bond  of  $500. 

Ordered,  that  all  that  part  of  said  county  which  lies  north  of  a  line  commenc- 
ing at  a  Government  survey  stake  on  the  west  line  of  said  County,  which  is 
situated  two  miles  north  of  the  center  of  the  County  aforesaid,  running  thence 
easterly  to  the  head  timbers  of  the  Howerton  Branch,  thence  easterly  to  the  head 
of  Cedar  creek,  thence  down  the  main  channel  of  said  Cedar  Creek  until  it  crosses  - 
the  Range  line  between  Ranges  26  and  2^  West,  thence  on  a  direct  east  line  to  the 
East  line  of  said  County,  shall  constitute  and  be  styled  Union  township,  and  the 
place  of  holding  the  first  election  in  said  township  shall  be  at  the  home  of  Leonard 
Bowman. 

Ordered,  that  all  that  part  of  said  County  which  lies  south  of  Union  township 
in  the  county  aforesaid  and  east  of  a  line  commencing  at  a  ford  where  said 
Cedar  creek  crosses  the  Range  line  between  Ranges  26  and  27  West,  nmning 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  37 

thence  south  to  the  main  channel  of  Middle  river  in  said  county,  and  also  all 
that  part  of  said  county  which  lies  south  of  the  main  channel  of  said  Middle 
river  until  it  reaches  the  mouth  of  the  large  branch  lying  between  Samuel  Fleener 
and  John  Wilkinson,  thence  up  said  Branch  until  it  reaches  the  main  prairie 
divide,  thence  Westerly  on  said  divide  until  it  reaches  the  west  line  of  said 
County,  shall  constitute  and  be  styled  South  township  and  the  place  of  holding 
the  first  election  in  said  township  shall  be  at  the  house  of  Nathan  Viney. 

Ordered,  that  all  that  part  of  said  county  lying  between  Union  and  South 
townships  in  said  county  shall  be  constituted  and  styled  Center  township,  and 
the  place  of  holding  the  first  election  in  said  township  shall  be  at  the  house  of 
William  M.  Phipps. 

Ordered,  that  Union  township  in  said  county  shall  constitute  the  first  Com- 
missioners' district  in  the  County  aforesaid. 

Ordered,  that  Center  township  in  said  County  constitutes  the  second  Commis- 
sioners' district  in  the  county  aforesaid. 

Ordered,  that  South  township  in  said  County  constitutes  the  third  Commis- 
sioners' district  in  the  County  aforesaid. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn  until  lo  o'clock  tomorrow  morning. 
Ordered,  lo  o'clock,  Feb.  20  inst..  Court  met  pursuant  to  adjournment. 
Ordered,  that  the  account  of  Alfred  D.  Jones  in  amount  $10.13  be  allowed 
for  services  as  deputy  organizing  sheriff  of  said  county. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  David  Bishop  in  amount  $2.50  be  allowed  for 
two  days  service  as  County  Commissioner  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  William  Gentry  in  amount  $2.00  be  allowed 
for  two  days  ser\'^ices  rendered  as  County  Commissioner  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  William  Combs  in  amount  $2.00  be  allowed 
for  two  days  service  rendered  as  County  Commissioner  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  P.  M.  Boyles  in  amount  $2.00  be  allowed  for 
two  days  services  rendered  as  Commissioner's  Clerk  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  the  place  of  holding  the  next  regular  session  of  the  Commis- 
sioners' Court  for  said  County  shall  be  at  the  house  of  Porter  Roberts  in  said 
County. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn. 

Attest,  Philip  M.  Boyles, 
William  Combs, 
William  Gentry, 
David    Bishop. 

Commissioners'  Court,  Madison  County,  Iowa,  special  term,  February  the 
19,  1849. 

In  pursuance  of  previous  notice  being  given,  the  commissioners  of  said  county 
met  at  the  house  of  Alfred  D.  Jones  in  the  county  aforesaid  on  19th  day  of 
February,  inst. 

Present  Commissioners  David  Bishop,  William  Gentry,  William  Combs, 
Commissioners'  Clerk  P.  M.  Boyles,  A.  D.  Jones  Prosecuting  Attorney  and 
Ephraim  Bilderback  Sheriff  of  said  County. 

The  following  orders  were  then  made  by  said  Commissioners  and  required 
to  be  placed  upon  the  records  of  said  County,  viz : 


County  Com's. 


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38  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Ordered,  that  John  Butler  and  Andrew  Evans  be  accepted  as  security  for 
Philip  M.  Boyles,  Commissioner's  Clerk  elect,  in  a  bond  of  $2,000. 

Ordered,  that  all  accounts  presented  to  this  Court  for  payment  shall  be  in 
writing  and  shall  contain  a  bill  of  the  several  items  which  constitutes  said  account. 

Ordered,  that  the  several  county  officers  of  said  County,  except  the  Probate 
Judg?,  are  hereby  authorized  to  procure  such  books  and  stationery  as  may  be 
necessary  in  the  discharge  of  their  respective  official  duties  at  the  expense  of  the 
aforesaid  county. 

Ordered,  that  the  following  shall  be  the  form  of  the  County  orders  to  be  issued 
by  said  Commissioner's  Clerk,  to  wit : 

State  of  Iowa  No.  5  Com'rs  Office 

Madison  County  $1.00  Jan.  term  1849 

Treasurer  of  said  county  pay  to  Alfred  D.  Jones,  or  order,  one  dollar  for 
stationery  furnished  the  Com'rs  Clerk  out  of  any  money  in  the  treasury  appro- 
priated for  county  expenditures.    By  order  of  the  Commissioners  of  said  County. 

Attest,  Philip  M.  Boyles. 

SECOND    MEETING 

Ordered,  Commissioners'  Court,  Madison  County,  Iowa,  regular  term,  April 
the  9,  1849. 

Met  according  to  law  at  the  house  of  Porter  Roberts  in  said  county.  Present, 
Cqmmissioners  David  Bishop,  William  Combs,  William  Gentry;  Commissioners' 
Clerk,  P.  M.  Boyles;  A.  D.  Jones,  Prosecuting  Attorney,  and  Ephraim  Bilder- 
back  sheriff  of  said  county. 

Ordered,  that  John  R.  Short  and  William  M.  Phipps  be  accepted  as  surety 
for  Ephraim  Bilderback,  Assessor  Elect,  in  a  bond  of  $500.00. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  Alfred  D.  Jones  in  amount  of  $15.00  be  allowed 
for  services  rendered  as  Prosecuting  Attorney  of  said  county  as  per  bill  on  file. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  P.  M.  Boyles  in  amount  $14.41  be  allowed  for 
services  rendered  as  Commissioners'  Clerk  of  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  Ephraim  Bilderback  in  amount  of  $5.12^4  be 
allowed  for  services  rendered  as  Sheriff  of  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  P.  M.  Boyles  in  amount  $1.00  be  allowed  for  one 
day  attending  Com's  Court  at  this  term  as  Com's  Clerk. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  Ephraim  Bilderback  in  amount  of  $1.00  be 
allowed  for  one  day  attending  Com's  Court  ^s  Sheriff  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  William  Combs  in  amount  $1.00  be  allowed  for 
one  day  services  rendered  as  County  Commissioner  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  David  Bishop  in  amount  $1.25  be  allowed  {or 
one  day's  services  rendered  as  County  Commissioner  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  William  Gentry  in  amount  $1.00  be  allowed  for 
one  day's  services  rendered  as  County  Commissioner  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  the  place  of  holding  the  first  District  Court  of  Madison  County 
will  be  at  the  house  of.  Enos  Berger  in  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  the  place  of  holding  the  next  regular  term  of  the  Com's  Court 
will  be  at  the  house  of  Enos  Berger  in  said  County. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  39 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn. 

Attest :  P.  M.  Boyles. 

William  Combs 

David  Bishop       y  County  Com's. 

William  Gentry 

Ordered,  Com's  Court,  Madison  County,  Iowa,  regular  term,  July  the  2,  1849. 
Met  according  to  law  at  the  house  of  Enos  Berger  in  said  County. 

Present,  Com's  David  Bishop,  William  Combs,  William  Gentry ;  Com's  Clerk, 
P.  M.  Boyles  and  Ephraim  Bilderback,  sheriff  of  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn  till  2  o'clock  P.  M.  2  o'clock  inst.  Court  met 
pursuant  to  adjournment. 

Ordered,  that  the  present  assessment  list  of  Madison  County,  Iowa,  be  received 
for  the  year  1849. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn  till  8  o'clock  tomorrow  morning. 

8  o'clock  inst.  Court  met  pursuant  to  adjournment. 

Ordered,  that  there  be  a  tax  levied  of  4  mills  to  the  dollar  for  county  purposes 
and  2  mills  and  a  half  to  the  dollar  for  state  purposes  and  one  mill  to  the  dollar 
for  school  purposes. 

Ordered,  that  the  Com's  Clerk  shall  make  out  a  tax  list  to  the  treasurer  and 
issue  a  warrant  to  said  treasurer  for  collection. 

Ordered  that  the  Com's  clerk  shall  make  out  an  abstract  of  the  assessment  list 
which  abstract  shall  contain  the  number'of  polls,  the  amount  of  real  estate  and  the 
amount  of  personal  property,  which  abstract  he  shall  forward  to  the  Auditor  of 
State. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  P.  M.  Boyles  in  amount  $3.29  be  allowed  for  serv- 
ices rendered  as  Com's  Clerk  of  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  P.  M.  Boyles  in  amount  of  $3.22  be  allowed  for 
services  rendered  as  Com's  Clerk  of  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  Enos  Berger  in  amount  45  cents  be  allowed  for 
stationery  furnished  said  county  previous  to  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn  till  i  o'clock  P.  M. 

I  o'clock  inst.  Court  met  pursuant  to  adjournment. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  E.  Bilderback  in  amount  $4.00  be  allowed  for 
services  as  Sheriff  of  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  the  county  surveyor  of  Madison  County  proceed  as  soon  as  con- 
venient to  lay  off  the  Seat  of  Justice  of  said  County  as  follows:  He  shall  lay 
off  about  eighty  acres  of  the  quarter  located  on  as  nearly  as  practicable,  extending 
it  one  half  mile  east  and  west  and  one  quarter  of  mile  north  and  south,  as  nearly 
as  circumstances  will  admit  of  making  the  square  and  as  nearly  as  can  be  equally 
around  a  stake,  set  by  the  Com's  of  said  County,  as  the  center  of  the  public  square 
of  said  Seat  of  Justice. 

Ordered,  that  the  lots  in  the  Seat  of  Justice  shall  be  in  length  132  feet  north 
and  south  and  66  feet  east  and  west;  alleys  shall  be  laid  running  east  and  west 
through  every  square  of  one  rod  in  width  so  as  to  divide  the  blocks  equally 
except  the  alleys  of  the  two  squares,  one  on  the  east  and  the  other  on  the  west 
side  of  said  public  square  which  shall  run  north  and  south ;  the  streets  shall  be 


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40  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

sixty-six  feet  in  width  running  at  right  angles  north  and  south  and  east  and  west 
through  the  length  and  breadth  of  said  town ;  and  said  surveyor  shall  do  all  the 
work  necessary  to  be  done  about  said  plat  as  is  usual  in  said  cases. 

Ordered,  that  William  Gentry  be  authorized  to  employ  some  person  to  make 
800  stakes  to  be  3  feet  in  length,  2J/2  inches  square  and  haul  said  stakes  onto  said 
town  plat  as  may  be  directed  by  said  surveyor;  said^ stakes  to  be  made  of  burr  or 
white  oak  timber  and  sawed  square  at  the  top  and  sharpened  equally  so  as  to 
drive. 

Ordered,  that  P.  M.  Boyles,  William  Gentry,  William  Combs,  David  Bishop 
and  Enos  Berger  be  employed  to  assist  said  surveyor  in  the  surveying  of  said 
town. 

Ordered,  that  the  County  seat  Madison  County  be  called  Winterset. 

Ordered,  that  George  Gillaspy  be  allowed  $16.00  for  services  rendered  as  locat- 
ing Com.  of  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  Thomas  Butler  be  allowed  $9.00  for  services  rendered  as  locat- 
ing Com.  of  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  P.  M.  Boyles  be  allowed  $2.00  for  2  days  services  rendered  as 
Com's  Clerk  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  David  Bishop  be  allowed  $2.25  for  2  days  services  rendered 
ing  Com.  of  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  William  Combs  be  allowed  $2.00  for  2  days  services  rendered 
as  Com.  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  William  Gentry  be  allowed  $2.00  for  2  days  services  rendered 
as  Com.  at  this  termi 

Attest,  P.  M.  Boyles. 
David  Bishop 

William   Combs    y  County    Com's 
William   Gentry 

Commissioner's  Court,  Madison  County,  Iowa,  special  term,  July  the  23,  1849: 

(Note:  Every  word  hereinafter  of  proceedings  of  this  session,  except  signa- 
ture of  Commissioners,  is  in  hand  writing  of  Alfred  D.  Jones). 

Present,  David  Bishop,  William  Gentry,  William  Combs,  Com*s,  and  P.  M. 
Boyles,  Com's  Clerk. 

Ordered,  that  the  plat  and  survey  of  the  town  of  Winterset  as  made  out  by 
A.  D.  Jones,  county  surveyor  of  said  county,  on  the  19th  day  of  July,  1849,  be 
received  and  placed  on  file  in  this  office. 

Ordered,  that  lot  number  6  in  Block  17  be  appraised  at  $30  and  the  lots  as 
follows :  4  in  B  17,  $20;  2  in  17,  $15 ;  8  in  same,  $25. 

Block  16 :  lot  4  at  $15,  lot  2  at  $12,  lot  8  at  $15,  lot  6  at  $14,  lot- 
Block  15 :  lot  5  at  $15,  lot  7  at  $10,  lot  i  at  $8,  lot  3  at  $8. 

Block  18 :  Lot  8  at  $30,  lot  2  at  $20,  lot  3  at  $15. 

Block  19:  No.  I  at  $5  and  7  at  $10,  No.  3  at  $8. 

Block  20:  No.  8  at  $10,  No.  6  at  $8,  No.  4  and  2  at  $5. 

Block  24:  I  at  $25,  3  at  $25,  5  and  7  at  $12. 

Block  25 :  4  at  $25,  2  at  $20,  8  and  6  at  $^5. 

Block  26:  Lots  I  and  3  at  $18,  No's  5  and  7,  $15. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  41 

Block  2j :  I  and  3  at  $12,  5  and  7  at  $8. 

Block  23 :  3  and  4  at  $18,  8  at  $10,  6  at  $8. 

Block  22 :  I  at  $20,  3  at  $16,  7  and  5  at  $10. 

Block  21 :  I  at  $15,  3  at  $10,  5  and  7  at  $6. 

Block  II :  5  at  %22,  7  at  $20,  i  and  2  at  $10. 

Block  12 :  8  and  6  at  $15,  4  and  3  at  $10. 

Block  13 :  8  and  6  at  $10,  i  and  2  at  $5. 

Block  14 :  8  and  6  at  $8,  i  and  2  at  $5. 

Block  10:  5  and  7  at  $15,  3  and  4  at  $6. 

Block  9 :  5  and  7  at  $10,  3  and  4  at  $5. 

Block  8:  5  and  7  at  $8,  3  and  4  at  $5. 

5  and  6  in  blocks  7,  5,  5,  4,  3,  2,  i  at  $5. 

I  and  2  in  blocks  7,  6,  5,  4,  3,  2,  i  at  $3. 

3  and  4  in  blocks  34,  33,  32,  31,  30,  29  and  28  at  $5. 

7  and  8  in  blocks  34,  33>  3^,  3i»  30»  29,  28,  at  $3. 

Ordered  that  A.  D.  Jones  be  requested  to  write  an  advertisement  for  publica- 
tion of  the  sale  of  lots  in  the  town  of  Winterset  and  that  it  be  sent  to  the  Iowa 
Star  for  publication. 

Ordered,  that  Charles  Wright  be  employed  to  carry  it  to  Fort  Des  Moines  to 
the  office  of  said  paper  for  which  he  will  be  allowed  the  sum  of  one  dollar  and 
twenty-five  cents  and  that  said  notice  shall  be  taken  to  said  press  by  Tuesday 
night  next. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn  till  i  o'clock  P.  M. 

I  o'clock  inst.  Court  met  pursuant  to  adjournment. 

Ordered,  that  the  general  sale  of  lots  in  the  town  of  Winterset  shall  be  on 
Wednesday  the  22d  day  of  August,  A.  D.  1849. 

Ordered,  that  the  terms  of  sale  of  said  lots  shall  be  one  fourth  cash  in  hand 
and  the  balance  in  three  installments  of  six  months  each  which  shall  be  dis- 
charged by  notes  of  equal  size  given  to  the  Board  of  Commissioners  who  will  in 
turn  give  a  certificate  of  purchase  to  the  buyer  which  shall  be  presented  to  said 
Board  for  a  deed  when  said  land  shall  have  been  purchased  from  the  General 
Government  and  said  notes  discharged  by  said  buyer. 

Ordered,  that  notes  given  to  the  Board  of  Commissioners  if  not  paid  when 
they  become  due  shall  draw  interest  at  the  rate  allowed  by  statute  and  if  such 
notes  should  not  all  be  discharged  at  the  time  the  last  becomes  due  then  the 
lots  for  which  said  notes  were  given  shall  be  forfeited  and  the  money  paid  the 
county  also  forfeited  to  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  appointed  town  lot  agent  for  the  town  of 
Winterset  in  said  county  and  that  he  shall  receive  such  compensation  as  is  usual 
in  such  cases  and  as  he  and  said  Board  shall  agree  upon. 

Ordered,  that  the  County  donate  to  Enos  Berger  town  lot  number  2  in  block 
22  in  the  town  of  Winterset  as  an  equivalent  for  80  acres  of  a  claim  on  the  lands 
on  which  the  Seat  of  Justice  is  located. 

Ordered,  that  Charles  Wright  be  appointed  crier  to  sell  the  lots  in  the  town 
of  Winterset  on  the  day  appointed  for  the  general  sale. 

Ordered,  that  A.  D.  Jones  be  employed  to  make  a  sale  plat  for  the  town  of 
Winterset  to  be  ready  on  the  day  of  sale  for  use. 


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42  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Ordered,  that  William  Gentry  be  allowed  $3.75  for  services  as  chain  carrier 
in  the  town  of  Winterset. 

Ordered,  that  William  Combs  be  allowed  $3.75  for  services  on  the  town  quarter 
of  Winterset. 

Ordered,  that  Irvin  Baum  be  allowed  $3.75  for  services  on  town  quarter. 

Ordered,  that  P.  M.  Boyles  be  allowed  $3.75  for  services  on  town  quarter. 

Ordered,  that  Enos  Berger  be  allowed  $3.75  for  services  on  town  quarter. 

Ordered,  that  John  Deshaser  be  allowed  $2.50  for  400  stakes  for  town  quarter. 

Ordered,  that  Andrew  Evans  be  allowed  $2.50  for  400  stakes  for  town  quarter. 

Ordered,  that  William  Gentry  be  allowed  $1.00  for  stakes  for  town  quarter. 

Ordered,  that  A.  D.  Jones  be  allowed  $69.50  in  town  lot  funds  for  services 
as  surveyor  and  other  services  in  such  sums  as  said  Jones  may  wish. 

Ordered,  that  William  Combs  be  allowed  $1.00  for  services  as  Com'r. 

Ordered,  that  William  Gentry  be  allowed.  $1.00  for  services  as  ComV. 

Ordered,  that  D.  Bishop  be  allowed  $1.25  for  services  as  Com'r. 

Ordered,  that  P.  M.  Boyles  be  allowed  $1.00  for  services  as  ComV  Clerk. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn. 

David  Bishop         1 
William    Combs     I  Com's 
William    Gentry     J 
Attest:   P.  M.  Boyles,  Com's  Clerk. 

The  record  of  proceedings  from  this  time  to  the  close  of  the  year  1849  is  in 
the  hand  writing  of  James  Thombrugh,  except  the  commissioners*  signatures. 

Commissioners'  Court,  Madison  County,  Iowa,  regular  term,  Oct.  the  ist,  1849. 
Present,  Henry  McKinzie,  William  Gentry,  Com's  and  J.  Thombrugh,  Com's 
Clerk. 

Ordered,  the  Com's  Clerk  be  authorized  to  issue  orders  to  all  persons  entitled 
to  fees  for  services  as  judges  and  clerks  and  for  canceling  the  polls. 

Ordered,  that  the  ac't  of  the  Des  Moines  Star  be  allowed  $1.50. 

Ordered,  that  the  ac't  of  P.  M.  Boyles  for  services  as  Com's  clerk  be  allowed 
$4.90. 

Ordered,  that  the  ac't  of  E.  Berger  be  allowed  to  the  amount  of  $4.00  in  town 
lot  fimd  for  recording  plat  of  Winterset. 

Ordered,  that  A.  D.  Jones  be  allowed  $10.00  in  town  lot  fund  for  sale  plat  and 
other  services. 

Ordered,  that  William  Compton  be  allowed  75  cents  for  furnishing  one  blank 
book  for  Judge  of  Probate. 

Ordered,  that  G.  W.  McClellan  be  allowed  $1.75  for  two  blank  books  fur- 
nished. 

Ordered,  that  J.  Folwell  be  allowed  $1.50  in  town  lot  fund  for  services  ren- 
dered on  town  quarter. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn  until  tomorrow  morning  9  o'clock. 

Henry  McKinzie  )    ^      , 
William   Gentry    V 
Attest:   J.  Thombrugh,  Com's  Clerk. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  43 

Corn's  Court  met  pursuant  to  adjournment.  Present,  N.  S.  Allcock,  Com.  9 
o'clock,  2nd  day  of  term. 

Ordered,  that  E.  Bilderback  be  allowed  $36.64  for  cessing  (assessing)  said 
county  and  other  services  as  sheriflf. 

Ordered,  the  petition  of  E.  Berger  and  others  calling  for  a  road  commencing 
at  the  north  end  of  Front  street  in  the  town  of  Winterset  in  Madison  County  to 
nm  thence  on  the  nearest  and  best  route  to  the  East  line  of  said  county  in  the 
direction  to  F*t  Des  Moines  be  granted  and  the  following  gentlemen  be  appointed 
viewers :  Silas  Bams,  Esq.,  Isaac  Clanton,  John  Wilkinson,  and  that  A.  D.  Jones 
be  appointed  surveyor  on  said  road.  Road  bond  of  A.  D.  Jones  and  S.  B.  Casebier 
filed  previous  the  granting  of  said  petition  and  that  said  viewers  and  surveyor 
shall  meet  at  the  town  of  Winterset  on  the  first  day  of  Nov.,  1849,  or  within  five 
days  thereafter,  to  commence  said  view  and  survey  and  proceed  otherwise  accord- 
ing to  law. 

Ordered,  that  lot  3  in  block  26  be  donated  to  Samuel  B.  Casebier  for  eighty 
acres  of  claim  on  which  the  location  was  made  for  the  town  of  Winterset. 

Ordered,  that  A.  D.  Jones  be  allowed  two  dollars  in  town  lot  funds  for  services 
as  clerk  at  the  sale  of  lots  in  Winterset. 

Ordered,  that  the  petition  of  S.  Bams  and  others  calling  for  a  road  com- 
mencing at  the  northeast  comer  of  the  Public  Square  in  the  town  of  Winterset 
in  Madison  County  on  the  nearest  and  most  eligible  route  to  the  north  line  of 
said  county  in  the  direction  to  Penoach  in  Dallas  County,  Iowa,  be  granted  and 
the  following  gentlemen  be  appointed  viewers  of  said  road:  SS.,  Charles  Wright, 
Samuel  Crawford,  Irvin  Baum,  and  A.  D.  Jones  be  appointed  surveyor  on  said 
road.  Road  bond  of  Silas  Barns  and  Enos  Berger  filed  previous  to  the  granting 
said  petition  and  that  said  viewers  and  surveyor  shall  meet  at  the  town  of  Winter- 
set  on  the  20th  day  of  Oct.,  A.  D.  1849,  or  within  five  days  thereafter,  to 
commence  said  view  and  survey  and  proceed  otherwise  according  to  law. 

Ordered,  that  the  petition  of  A.  D.  Jones  and  others  calling  for  a  road  com- 
mencing at  the  south  end  of  Front  street  in  the  town  of  Winterset  to  run  from 
thence  on  the  nearest  and  best  route  to  Simmons  and  Casebier's  mill  on  Middle 
river  be  granted  and  that  the  following  gentlemen  be  appointed  viewers  on  said 
road,  viz:  William  Gentry,  Silas  Bams,  Enos  Berger,  and  A.  D.  Jones  be  ap- 
pointed surveyor  of  said  road  and  that  the  viewers  and  surveyor  shall  meet  at 
the  town  of  Winterset  on  the  isth  day  of  Nov.,  1849,  or  within  five  days  there- 
after and  proceed  otherwise  according  to  law. 

Ordered,  that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  allowed  $17.10  for  services  as  School  Fund 
Com.  of  said  Co. 

Ordered,  that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  allowed  $25.00  in  town  lot  funds  for  services 
as  town  lot  agent. 

Ordered,  that  Enos  Berger  be  allowed  $4.00  for  8  days'  house  rent  for 
holding  court  for  said  Co. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn  until  9  o'clock  tomorrow  moming. 

Henry   McKinziel 
William    Gentry  j-Com's 
N.  S.  Allcock       J 

Attest:   J.  Thombrugh,  Com's  Clerk. 


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44  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Corn's  Court  met  pursuant  to  adjournment,  3rd  day  of  term,  9  o'clock. 

Ordered,  that  there  be  a  court  house  built  in  the  town  of  Winterset,  Madison 
County,  Iowa.  Description  as  follows,  viz :  Of  hewed  oak  logs  twenty  by  twenty 
four  feet  square,  two  story  high,  first  nine  ft.,  second  eight  ft.,  said  building  to 
be  let  out  at  the  lowest  bidder  on  the  third  Saturday  of  Oct.,  A.  D.  1849. 

Ordered,  that  the  Com's  Clk  be  employed  to  write  a  specification  of  said  house 
and  also  to  write  four  advertisements  for  letting  out  said  building. 

Ordered,  that  William  Gentry  be  allowed  five  dollars  for  two  days'  services 
rendered  as  Com.  of  said  County. 

Ordered,  that  William  Gentry  be  allowed  two  dollars  and  50  cents  for  one  day's 
services  rendered  as  Co.  Com.  at  this  term  in  town  lot  fund. 

Ordered,  that  Henry  McKinzie  be  allowed  five  dollars  for  two  days'  service 
rendered  as  Com.  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  Henry  McKinzie  be  allowed  two  dollars  and  fifty  cts  in  town 
lot  funds  for  one  day's  serv^ice  as  Com.  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  N.  S.  Allcock  be  allowed  two  dollars  and  fifty  cts.  for  one  day's 
service,  rendered  as  Com.  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  N.  S.  Allcock  be  allowed  two  dollars  and  fifty  cts  in  town  lot 
funds  for  one  day's  service  as  Com.  at  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  James  Thombrugh  be  allowed  ten  dollars  for  services  as  Com's 
Clk. 

Ordered,  that  J.  Thombrugh  be  allowed  four  dollars  in  town  lot  funds  for 
one  day's  service  rendered  as  Com's  Clk  and  filing  certificates  of  lots  sold. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn. 

Henry  McKinzie  ^ 
William  Gentry     ^  Com's 
N.   S.  Allcock       J 

Attest :  J.  Thombrugh,  Com's  Clk. 

Special  term,  Oct.  20th,  A.  D.  1849,  Com's  Court,  Madison  County,  Iowa. 
Present,  Henry  McKinzie  and  William  Gentry,  Com's. 

Ordered,  that  the  court  house  in  Winterset  be  reversed  (reduced)  to  a  one 
story  house  eighteen  by  thirty  feet  square. 

Ordered,  that  Henry  McKinzie  be  allowed  two  dollars  and  fifty  cts  of  the 
town  lot  fund  for  one  day  service  as  Com. 

Ordered,  that  William  Gentry  be  allowed  two  dollars  and  fifty  cts  of  the  town 
lot  fund  for  one  day  service  as  Com. 

Ordered,  that  J.  Thombrugh  be  allowed  three  dollars  of  the  town  lot  fund  for 
services  rendered  as  Com's  Clerk. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn. 

Henry    McKinzie 

Attest :  J.  Thombrugh,  Com's  Clerk. 


William  Gentry      ^ 


Commissioners'  Court,  Madison  County,  Iowa,  special  term,  Dec.   14,   1849. 
Present,  Henry  McKinzie,  William  Gentry,  and  J.  Thornbmgh,  Com's  Clerk. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  45 

Ordered  that  a  license  be  granted  to  William  Compton  to  keep  grocery,  in  said 
County,  for  the  term  of  twelve  months. 

Ordered,  that  means  be  taken  to  borrow  150  dollars  for  the  purpose  of  enter- 
ing the  town  quarter. 

Ordered,  that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  authorized  and  empowered  to  effect  a  loan 
of  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  for  the  purpose  of  entering  the  quarter  on  which 
Winterset  is  situated  and  that  he  be  authorized  and  empowered  to  execute  notes 
or  other  instruments  of  writing  necessary  to  obtain  said  sum  of  rtioney  and  to 
assign  (sign)  our  names  to  such  instrument. 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  J.  Thombrugh  be  allowed  the  amount  of  seven 
dollars  for  services  as  Com*s  Clerk. 

Ordered,  that  Court  adjourn  until  next  regular  meeting. 

Co.  Com's 


Attest :  J.  Thombrugh,  Com's  Clerk. 


Henry    McKinzie 
William  Gentry 


Winterset,  Iowa,  Jan.  7,  1850. 

Present  Commissioners  Henry  McKinzie,  William  Gentry  and  Norval  S. 
Allcock ;  David  Bishop,  deputy  Commissioners'  Clerk. 

Road  petition  by  Joel  Clanton  and  others  for  a  county  highway  commencing 
at  county  line  east  of  Joel  Clanton*s  farm,  thence  by  the  nearest  and  best  route 
to  Simmons  &  Casebier's  itiill  on  Middle  river  granted.  Viewers  appointed  were 
Samuel  Peter,  Philip  Boyles  and  Daniel  Vancil,  and  A.  D.  Jones  surveyor,  who 
were  directed  to  meet  at  house  of  Joel  Clanton  March  ist,  1850,  or  within  5  days 
thereafter,  and  proceed  to  view  and  mark  said  road. 

Report  of  Enos  Berger,  County  Treasurer,  received  and  he  was  directed  to 
make  out  and  post  written  abstracts  of  receipts  and  expenditures  as  required  by 
law. 

Court  adjourned  until  tomorrow  morning. 

January  8,  1850.  Court  met  pursuant  to  adjournment — present  same  as  yes- 
terday. 

Enos  Berger  allowed  $7  for  one  blank  book  and  commission  for  collecting 
taxes. 

Commissioners'  clerk  instructed  to  issue  orders  to  jurors  according  to  law 
when  called  for. 

Road  petition  by  Thomas  Cason  and  others  for  a  county  highway  "Com- 
mencing at  the  county  line  where  the  road  crosses  the  same  running  by  Esqur 
Adamson's  to  the  Lynn  Grove  and  from  thence  on  the  East  side  of  Thomas 
Cason's  farm  near  the  house,  thence  on  the  nearest  and  best  route  to  the  county 
line  in  the  direction  of  Pisgah,"  was  granted.  Viewers  appointed  were  John 
Wilkinson,  Samuel  Fleener  and  Levi  Bishop,  and  A.  D.  Jones  sur\'eyor  and 
directed  to  meet  at  Esqur  Adamson's  on  the  2nd  Monday  of  March,  1850,  to  view 
and  mark  said  road. 

E.  Bilderback,  sheriflF,  allowed  $8  for  summoning  petit  jury  for  May  terpi, 
1849.  Also  be  allowed  $16  for  summoning  grand  and  petit  juries  for  September 
term  of  the  District  Court,  1849. 


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46  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

E.  R.  Guiberson  ordered  to  use  $50  of  the  town  lot  fund  for  "entering  the  town 
quarter." 

Road  petition  by  A.  D.  Jones  and  others  for  a  county  highway  commencing 
at  the  north  end  of  Front  street  in  Winterset,  thence  on  the  nearest  and  best 
route  in  the  direction  of  Fort  Des  Moines  to  the  east  line  of  county  was  granted. 
Viewers  were- Asa  Mills,  D.  H.  Whited  and  Samuel  B.  Casebier  and  A.  D.  Jones 
surveyor  and  directed  to  meet  at  Winterset  on  the  4th  Monday  in  March,  1850, 
to  view  and  mark  said  road. 

Commissioners  McKinzie  and  Gentry  each  allowed  $2.50  out  of  the  town 
lot  fund  for  services  as  Commissioners  at  the  special  meeting  of  the  Court  Dec. 
14,  1849. 

Commissioners  McKinzie,  Gentry  and  Allcock  each  allowed  $5  for  two  days 
services  attending  January  term,  1850. 

David  Bishop  allowed  $4  for  services  as  deputy  commissioners'  clerk,  January 
term,  1850. 

Adjourned  until  tomorrow  morning. 

January  9,  1850,  Court  met  pursuant  to  adjournment — present  same  as  yes- 
terday. 

Following  lots  in  Winterset  were  appraised,  viz : 


Lot 

Blk 

$ 

5 

17 

50 

7 

17 

30 

5 

16 

30 

I 

18 

50 

7 

18 

50 

4 

18 

30 

2 

19 

10 

8 

19 

20 

I 

20 

10 

7 

20 

12 

2 

24 

SO 

8 

24 

30 

I 

25 

30 

7 

25 

20 

Lot 

Blk 

$ 

4 

26 

25 

I 

23 

50 

8 

22 

20 

6 

22 

15 

8 

21 

15 

2 

21 

15 

8 

II 

-  50 

3 

II 

15 

5 

12 

50 

I 

12 

10 

6 

10 

25 

I 

ID 

10 

8 

4 

10 

8 

3 

ID 

Public  sale  of  lots. ordered  on  Feby  i,  1850,  and  advertisements  thereof  by 

posting  written  notices  and  by  two  insertions  in  the  Iowa  Star  (at  Des  Moines). 

Report  of  the  Locating  Commissioners    (Commissioners  appointed  by  the 

State  Legislature  to  locate  seat  of  justice  of  Madison  County)  ordered  recorded. 

The  following  accounts  were  allowed  and  ordered  paid  out  of  the  lot  fund  : 

A.  D.  Jon^s,  making  out  papers  for  entering  town  quarter $2.00 

Henry  McKinzie,  services  ComV  Jan.  term 2.50 

N.  S.  Allcock,  services  Com'r  Jan.  term 2.50 

William  Gentry,  services  Com'r  Jan.  term 2.50 

David  Bishop  i  day's  service  deputy  elk 2.00 

Adjourned.    (Minutes  signed  by  each  commissioner  and  atteste4  by  D.  Bishop, 
deputy  elk). 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  47 

Special  term,  Feb.  8,  1850.  Present  Henry  McKinzie  and  William  Gentry, 
Commissioners,  and  Jas.  Thombrugh,  Com's  Clk. 

Ordered,  that  S.  B.  and  D.  J.  Casebier  be  paid  $50  out  of  lot  fund  in  part 
payment  for  building  court  house. 

James  Thombrugh  allowed  $3.05  out  of  lot  fund  for  services  as  Com*s  Clk. 
Ordered,  that  all  lots  sold  at  public  sale  and  forfeited  by  purchaser  shall  not  be 
subject  to  private  entry. 

Lot  I  in  block  16  appraised  at  $10  for  purpose  of  erecting  a  school  house  for 
the  district  including  the  town. 

Following  accounts  allowed  on  the  lot  fund: 

Jas.  Thombrugh,  i  day's  service  Com's  clk $2.00 

H.  McKinzie,  i  day's  service  Com'r 2.50 

William  Gentry,  i  day's  service  Com'r ^ 2.50 

Adjoumed.     (Signed  by  each  Com'r  and  attested  by  J.  Thombrugh,  clerk). 

R^;ular  April  term.  Board  met  April  8,  1850.  Present,  Henry  McKinzie,  Wil- 
liam Gentry  and  Norval  S.  AUcock,  commissioners,  and  James  Thombrugh,  clerk. 

Bills  allowed  on  lot  f tmd : 

A.  D.  Jones,  services  at  dot  sate  and  blank  book $  3.00 

James  Thombrugh,  services  and  fees  as  com's  clk 12.82 

John  Allen  Pitzer  employed  to  procure  Copy  of  the  field  notes  of  Madison 
County. 

Adjoumed  to  9  A.  M.,  April  9th. 

April  9,  1849,  Commissioners  met  pursuant  to  adjournment.  Present  the  same 
as  yesterday. 

Ordered,  that  the  report  of  a  road,  commencing  at  the  north  end  of  Front 
street,  running  thence  in  the  direction  to  Adel  to  the  county  line  of  said  county, 
be  received  and  the  same  is  hereby  established  as  a  county  road  and  ordered  to 
be  opened ;  that  Charles  Wright  be  allowed  three  dollars  as  viewer  on  said  road ; 
that  A.  D.  Jones  be  allowed  $12.50  for  services  as  surveyor  on  said  road. 

Ordered,  that  the  report  of  a  road,  commencing  at  the  south  end  of  Front 
street,  running  thence  to  Simmons  &  Casebier's  Mill  in  said  County,  be  received 
and  the  same  is  hereby  made  a  coimty  road  and  ordered  to  be  cut  out  thirty  feet 
wide:  that  E.  Berger  be  allowed  $2.84  for  recording  county  orders;  that  the 
town  quarter  on  the  south  be  surveyed  into  lots  containing  one  and  four-fifths 
of  an  acre  as  far  east  as  the  old  survey  with  no  streets  mnning  East  and  West ; 
that  Charles  Wright  be  allowed  $1  for  services  rendered  at  lot  sales  in  Winterset ; 
that  the  following  described  lots  be  appraised  as  follows,  to  wit : 

Lot       Block     Value        Lot      Block      Value       Lot    Block    Value 
3  17  $50  7  12  $15  8  4        $10    ' 


I 

17 

30 

2 

12 

10 

3 

4 

5 

I 

16 

10 

5 

13 

10 

4 

4 

S 

I 

16 

10 

7 

13 

6 

7 

3 

5 

7 

16 

25 

4 

13 

8 

8 

3 

5 

6 

IS 

10 

3 

13 

5 

4 

3 

5 

8 

10 

10 

5 

14 

10 

3 

3 

3 

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48 


HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 


«t 

Block 

Value 

■  Lot 

Block 

Value 

Lot 

Block 

Value 

4 

lO 

8 

7 

14 

10 

7 

2 

5 

2 

15 

8 

4 

14 

5 

8 

2 

5 

6 

i8 

30 

3 

14 

SO 

3 

3 

3 

6 

19 

20 

8 

10 

50 

4 

2 

3 

4 

19 

12 

2 

10 

20 

7 

I 

5 

5 

20 

8 

8 

9 

12 

8 

I 

5 

3 

20 

5 

6 

9 

10 

3 

I 

3 

4 

24 

50 

2 

9 

5 

4 

I 

3 

6 

24 

15 

I 

9 

5 

I 

34 

5 

3 

25 

25 

8 

8 

5 

2 

34 

5 

5 

25 

15 

6 

8 

5 

5 

34 

3 

2 

26 

18 

I 

8 

5 

6 

34 

3 

6 

26 

15 

2 

8 

5 

I 

33 

5 

8 

26 

15 

7 

7 

5 

2 

33 

5 

4 

27 

15 

8 

7 

5 

5 

33 

3 

2 

27 

10 

4 

7 

3 

6 

33 

3 

6 

27 

8 

3 

7 

3 

I 

32 

5 

8 

27 

-  8 

7 

6 

5 

2 

32 

5 

2 

23 

20 

8 

6 

5 

5 

32 

3 

5 

23 

8 

3 

6 

3 

6 

32 

3 

7 

23 

8 

4 

6 

3 

I 

31 

ID" 

4 

22 

16 

7 

5 

5 

2 

31 

6 

4 

21 

10 

8 

5 

5 

5 

31 

3 

6 

,  21 

6 

3 

5 

3 

6 

31 

3 

6 

II 

50 

4 

5 

3 

I 

30 

S 

4 

10 

15 

7 

4 

10 

2 

30 

5 

5 

30 

5 

6 

30 

5 

5 

29 

3 

6 

29 

3 

I 

29 

5 

2 

29 

3 

I 

28 

3 

2 

28 

3 

5 

28 

3 

6 

28 

3 

Ordered,  that  a  sale  of  lots  take  place  in  the  town  of  Winterset  on  the  30th 
day  of  May,  next,  terms  of  sale  to  be  one-third  in  hand  and  one-third  in  12 
months. 

Ordered,  that  James  Thombrugh  be  allowed  $6.50  for  stationery  for  county, 
A.  Q.  Rice  $2.44  for  opening  poll  books,  Henry  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock  and 
William  Gentry  each  $2.50  for  i  day's  service  as  Commissioner  this  term,  James 
Thombrugh  $2  for  i  day's  service  as  Clerk  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  H.  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock  and  William  Gentry  be  allowed  $2.50 
each  out  of  the  lot  fund  for  one  day's  service  as  Commissioner  this  term  and  James 
Thombrugh  $2  out  of  lot  fund  for  one  day's  service  as  clerk  this  term. 

Ordered,  that  lot  8  in  block  14  be  donated  to  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
and  all  other  denominations  can  have  a  lot  of  the  same  quality. 

Ordered,  that  the  Court  adjourn.  (Signed  by  each  Commissioner  and  attested 
by  the  clerk).       ' 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  49 

Special  term,  May  3,  1850.  Commissioners'  Court,  Madison  County,  Iowa. 
Present,  Henry  McKinzie,  William  Gentry,  Commissioners,  and  J.  Thombrugh, 
Clerk. 

Ordered,  that  the  Court  House  be  received,  by  the  contractors  pointing  the 
underpinning  and  repairing  the  roof  ;  that  S.  B.  and  D.  J.  Casebier  be  allowed  $100 
balance  on  Court  House;  that  Henry  McKinzie  and  William  Gentry  each  be 
allowed  $2.50  out  of  the  lot  fund  for  one  day's  service  at  this  term  and  J.  Thom- 
brugh $2  for  a  day's  service  as  clerk  this  term  out  of  lot  fund.  Adjourned. 
(Signed  by  the  two  Commissioners  present  and  by  the  clerk). 

Commissioners'  Court  met  special  term.  May  30th,  1850.  Present,  Henry 
McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock  and  William  Gentry,  and  James  Thornbrugh,  Com'r's 
Clerk. 

Ordered,  that  the  following  described  lots  be  appraised  as  follows,  viz.,  lying 
in  the  additional  survey  on  the  south  end  of  Winterset : 


Lot 

Value 

Lot 

Value 

Lot 

Value 

I 

$25 

14 

$20 

2 

$28 

13 

25   » 

3 

12 

12 

15 

4 

30 

II 

15 

5 

20 

10 

12 

6 

15 

9 

15 

7 

12 

8 

10 

21 

5 

20 

12 

19 

10 

18 

5 

17 

12 

16 

12 

15 

8 

Ordered,  that  the  sale  of  lots  be  continued  on  the  succeeding  day ;  that  Court 
adjourn.    (Signed  by  each  of  the  Commissioners  and  attested  by  the  Clerk). 

Note :  All  the  future  proceedings  of  the  Commissioners'  Court  are  in  the  hand- 
writing of  Israel  D.  Guiberson.  As  may  be  observed,  he  not  only  appeared  to  be 
deputy  commissioners'  clerk  but  also  wrote  the  commissioners'  names  to  the  record 
from  the  following  July  term  to  the  next  April  term.  There  was  criticism  because 
he  signed  up  the  record  and  thereafter  the  commissioners  wrote  their  own  signa- 
tures to  it.  James  Thombrugh  continued  in  office  as  clerk  but  henceforth  failed 
to  write  any  portion  of  the  record  or  even  sign  his  own  name  in  attest.  Mr. 
Thombrugh  remained  in  this  office  until  its  abolishment,  August,  1851,  at  which 
time  the  conmiissioner  system  was  succeeded  by  a  county  judge.  It  will  be  ob- 
served that  the  following  proceedings  of  the  July  term  are  queeried  as  to  dates  but 
the  whole  record  is  reproduced  here,  as  it  appears  in  the  original.  The  record 
shows  that  the  commissioners  drew  pay  for  three  days  in  session,  while  it  only 
gives  proceedings  of  two  days,  and  same  as  to  clerk.  Query. — Wa»  one  day's 
proceedings  entirely  omitted  from  the  record  by  the  acting  clerk  ? 

July  term,  1850,  July  i,  9  o'clock  A.  M.,  Commissioners'  Court  met  at  the 
Court  House  in  the  town  of  Winterset,  Madison  County,  Iowa.  Present,  Henry 
McKinzie,  Norval  S.  Allcock  and  William  Gentry,  Commissioners,  and  James 
Thombrugh,  Commissioners'  Clerk. 

A  petition  of  Enos  Berger  and  numerous  other  citizens  of  Madison  County 


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50  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

being  presented  praying  for  the  grant  of  a  road  forty  feet  wide  running  as  follows, 
to  wit :  Beginning  at  the  east  end  of  Court  avenue  in  the  Town  of  Winterset  and 
running  easterly  to  the  former  residence  of  A.  D.  Jones  in  said  county,  thence 
following  the  dividing  ridge  to  the  top  of  the  same  westerly  of  the  house  of  G.  W. 
fMcClellan,  thence  northeasterly  to  a  place  west  of  where  the  California  track 
passes  said  house,  thence  east  to  a  ridge  that  leads  directly  to  the  dividing  ridge, 
thence  along  said  ridge  passing  the  house  of  John  C.  Carroll  where  the  California 
track  passes  said  house,  thence  the  nearest  and  best  route  for  a  road  along  said 
dividing  ridge  to  the  county  line  in  the  direction  of  Dudley  on  the  Des  Moines 
river ;  it  was  ordered  that  the  same  be  granted  and  the-f oUowing  named  persons  be 
appointed  viewers  on  said  road,  to  wit:  Charles  Wright,  William  Combs,  Irvin 
Baum ;  also  ordered  that  A.  D.  Jones  be  appointed  surveyor  and  that  viewer  and 
surveyor  shall  meet  on  the  ist  Monday  in  September,  1850,  or  within  five  days 
thereafter,  to  proceed  to  view  and  survey  said  road  as  th6  law  directs.  It  was 
also  ordered  by  said  Board  that  the  account  of  Charles  Wright  calling  for  $2 
for  services  rendered  as  salesman  of  town  lots  be  allowed  out  of  the  town  lot 
fund ;  that  account  of  E.  R.  Guiberson  calling  for  $7  for  services  rendered  on  the 
town  plat  on  quarter  be  allowed  out  of  the  town  lot  fund ;  that  account  of  I.  D. 
Guiberson  calling  for  $3  for  services  rendered  as  Prosecuting  Attorney  at  May 
term,  1850,  be  allowed.  Whereupon  Court  adjourned  until  tomorrow  at  9  o'clock. 
July  2nd,  9  o'clock.  Board  of  Commissioners  met  pursuant  to  adjournment 
and  passed  the  following,  orders,  to  wit :  That  the  assessment  of  Madison  County 
be  received ;  that  account  of  S.  Bams  sum  of  $32  be  allowed  for  services  as  Sheriff  ; 
that  account  of  E.  Berger  sum  of  $5.50  be  allowed  out  of  town  lot  fund  for  services 
as  County  Recorder  and  one  dollar  of  the  County  revenue  for  stationery;  that 
account  of  James  Thombrugh  sum  of  $17.40  be  allowed  for  services  as  Commis- 
sioners' Clerk;  that  there  be  a  tax  of  four  mills  on  the  dollar  levied  for  county 
purposes  and  2j^  mills  for  state  purposes  and  J4  mill  for  school  purposes — making 
in  all  7  mills  on  the  dollar;  that  Henry  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock  and  William 
Gentry  each  be  allowed  $2.50  out  of  the  town  lot  fund  for  one  day's  services  as 
Commissioner;  that  William  Gentry  be  allowed  $1.25  for  services  on  town  quar- 
ter; that  $1.75  be  allowed  James  Thombrugh  for  services  as  Commissioners' 
Clerk;  that  H.  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock  and  William  Gentry  be  allowed  $5  each 
for  services  as  the  Board  of  Commissioners  at  this  term ;  that  license  be  granted 
John  H.  Dougherty  and  Stephen  T.  Barber  to  keep  a  grocery  in  the  town  of  Win- 
terset for  the  term  of  12  months  from  this  date;  that  James  Thombrugh  be  al- 
lowed $4  for  two  days'  services  as  Commissioners'  Clerk  at  this  term.  It  was 
thereupon  ordered  that  Court  adjourn  sine  die.  (Commissioners'  names  all  signed 
by  I.^D.  Guiberson,  also  clerk's  name  by  same.) 

October  Term,  Madison  County,  Oct.  7,  A.  D.  1850.  Commissioners'  Court 
met  pursuant  to  law.  Present,  Henry  McKinzie,  Norval  S.  Allcock  and  Edmond 
Wood,  Commissioners,  and  James  Thombrugh,  commissioners'  clerk,  whereupon 
they  proceeded  to  transact  the  business  of  the  County  pertaining  to  their  office, 
when  it  was  ordered  that  the  petition  of  Jesse  Young  and  others  asking  for  a  road 
^  commencing  at  the  county  line  of  Madison  east  of  Joel  M.  Clanton's  farm,  mnning 
thence  the  nearest  and  best  route  to  Winterset,  be  granted,  and  the  following 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  51 

persons  were  appointed  viewers  thereon,  to  wit:  Absolom  McKinzie,  S.  Bams 
and  John  Dorrell,  and  Simmons  Rutty,  surveyor,  all  to  meet  at  the  house  of  J.  M. 
Clanton  on  the  ist  Nov.,  1850,  or  within  5  days  thereafter;  that  William  Gentry 
be  allowed  $7.50  for  services  by  guarding  prisoners;  that  S.  Bams  be  allowed 
$43.75  for  services  as  Sheriff;  that  P.  M.  Boyles  be  allowed  $7  for  services  by 
guarding  prisoner;  that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  allowed  $1.85  as  J.  P.  in  case  of  State 
against  Nunn ;  that  A.  McKinzie  be  allowed  50  cents  for  services  as  constable  in 
same  case ;  that  A.  D.  Jones  be  allowed  $9.75  of  the  town  lot  fund  for  services 
on  town  quarter;  that  I.  D.  Guiberson  be  allowed  $13  for  services  as  prosecuting 
attorney ;  that  William  Wear,  jailer  of  Polk  County,  be  allowed  $3.12^/^  for  attend- 
ing on  prisoner  from  Madison  County ;  that  the  sheriflF  of  Polk  County  be  allowed 
$6.40  for  services  rendered  as  sheriff  in  case  of  State  vs.  Nunn ;  that  A.  McKinzie 
be  allowed  $1  for  services  as  bailiff  at  the  last  term  of  District  Court;  that  Court 
adjourn  until  2  o'clock  tomorrow. 

October  8th  Court  met  pursuant  to  adjoumment,  whereupon  it  was  ordered 
that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  allowed  $34  for  services  as  School  Fund  Commissioner ; 
that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  allowed  $7.75  out  of  the  town  lot  fund  for  services  as 
town  lot  agent;  that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  authorized  to  give  a  contract  to  the  lowest 
bidder  for  ceiling  and  otherwise  repairing  and  finishing  the  rooms  of  the  Court 
House,  also  to  fumish  stove  flues  in  same,  to  be  completed  by  the  i8th  of  Nov., 
1850,  also  to  purchase  a  stove  for  one  room  of  house;  that  the  account  for  grand 
jury  be  allowed;  that  James  Thombrugh  be  allowed  $8.40  for  services  as  Com- 
missioners* Qerk;  that  James  Thombrugh  be  allowed  $3.50  of  the  lot  fund  for 
services  as  Commissioners'  Qerk;  that  $23.57^/4  be  allowed  James  Thombrugh 
for  services  as  Commissioners'  Clerk;  that  H.  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock  and  E. 
Wood  as  commissioners  and  James  Thombrugh  as  clerk  be  each  allowed  $2.50 
for  services  at  this  term;  that  H.  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock,  E.  Wood  each  be 
allowed  $2.50  of  the  town  lot  fund  and  James  Thombrugh  $2  of  the  same  each 
for  services  rendered  at  this  term ;  that  Court  adjoum.  ( Names  of  each  commis- 
sioner and  of  the  clerk  signed  by  I.  D.  Guiberson.) 

April  term,  April  14th,  185 1.  Commissioners'  Court  met  pursuant  to  law. 
Present,  Henry  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock  and  Edward  Wood,  Commissioners,  and 
James  Thombrugh,  Commissioners'  Clerk,  whereupon  it  was  ordered  that  E.  R. 
Guiberson  be  allowed  $8  of  the  town  lot  fund  for  writing  deeds ;  that  P.  M.  Boyles 
be  allowed  $1  for  wood;  that  James  Thombrugh  be  allowed  $17.30;  that  Court 
adjoum. 

2  o'clock  P.  M.  Court  met  pursuant  to  adjoumment.  Ordered  that  James 
Thombragh  be  allowed  $1.30;  that  James  Thombrugh  be  allowed  $2.25  of  the 
town  lot  fund. 

That  the  petition  of  Charles  Wright  and  others  calling  for  a  road  commencing 
in  the  town  of  Winterset  in  Madison  County,  Iowa,  to  run  thence  south  80  rods, 
thence  on  the  most  practicable  route  to  or  near  Bertholf's  mill  on  Middle  river, 
thence  on  the  most  practicable  route  to  the  south  line  of  the  county  in  the  direction 
of  Pisgah,  be  granted,  and  that  Samuel  Peter,  J.  M.  Watson  and  Silas  Bams  be 
appointed  viewers  and  Simmons  Rutty  surveyor  of  said  road  who  shall  meet  at 


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52  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Winterset  on  the  ist  Monday  of  June,  A.  D.  1851,  or  within  five  days  thereafter, 
and  proceed  to  view  and  survey  said  road  according  to  law ;  that  E.  R.  Guiberson 
be  allowed  $46.33  of  the  town  lot  fund  for  repairing  Court  House  and  purchasing 
stove  for  same;  that  the  accounts  of  the  judges  and  clerks  of  election  for  Superin- 
tendent be  allowed ;  that  Court  adjourn  until  tomorrow  morning  at  9  o'clock  A.  M. 

April  15th,  9  o'clock  A.  M.  Commissioners  met  pursuant  to  adjournment. 
Ordered,  that  Absolom  McKinzie  as  Constable  be  allowed  $1  for  posting  up  notices 
of  April  election  and  mileage  for  the  same;  that  Enos  Berger  be  allowed  $1.04 
for  collecting  taxes ;  that  final  settlement  be  made  with  Enos  Berger,  late  Treas- 
urer, whereupon  settlement  was  made  and  received  of  him  in  full  for  the  tax  list 
of  1849;  that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  allowed  $1.50  of  the  town  lot  fund  for  writing 
town  lot  deeds ;  that  the  account  of  E.  R.  Guiberson  for  $466.80  for  money  paid 
to  George  Homback  entering  land  for  town  and  money  paid  Thombrugh  be 
allowed  of  the  town  lot  fund;  that  accounts  of  N.  S.  Allcock,  Henry  McKinzie 
and  Edward  Wood  be  allowed  each  $2.50  of  the  town  lot  fund  for  one  day's  serv- 
ices as  Commissioners  this  term ;  that  Henry  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock  and  Edward 
Wood  each  be  allowed  $2.50  for  one  day's  services  as  Commissioners  at  this  term ; 
that  James  Thombrugh  be  allowed  $2  of  the  town  lot  fund  for  services  as  Commis- 
sioners' Clerk  at  this  term ;  that  James  Thombrugh  be  allowed  $2  for  one  day's 
services  as  Clerk  at  this  term ;  that  Court  adjourn.  (Signed  by  each  commissioner 
himself,  but  not  attested  by  any  one  as  clerk.) 

July  Term,  July  7th,  1851.  Commissioners  met  pursuant  to  law.  Present, 
Henry  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock  and  Edward  Wood,  Commissioners,  and  I.  D. 
Guiberson,  deputy  clerk.  Ordered,  that  John  Wilhoit  be  allowed  75  cents  for 
wood;  that  Court  adjourn. 

I  o'clock  P.  M.  Court  present.  Henry  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock  and  Edward 
Wood,  Commissioners,  and  I.  D.  Guiberson,  Com'r's  Clerk.  Ordered,  that  the 
report  of  the  county  road  leading  from  the  county  line  east  of  Joel  M.  Clanton's 
farm  in  Madison  County,  Iowa,  mnning  thence  to  Winterset,  the  County  seat 
of  said  County,  be  recorded ;  that  James  Thombrugh  as  Commissioners'  Clerk  be 
allowed  $5.75 ;  that  James  Thombmgh  be  allowed  $2.05  for  services  as  Commis- 
sioners' Clerk  out  of  town  lot  fund ;  that  Simmons  Rutty  be  allowed  $7.50  as  sur- 
veyor on  Clanton  road;  that  George  Smith*  be  allowed  $2.75  for  carrying  chain 
on  above  road;  that  Royal  Uran  be  allowed  $3.75  for  carrying  chain  on 
above  road ;  that  J.  M.  Clanton  be  allowed  $3.75  for  marking  on  said  road ;  that 
S.  Barns  be  allowed  $4.50  as  viewer  on  said  road ;  that  John  Dorrell  be  allowed 
$4.50  for  services  as  viewer  on  said  road;  that  the  account  of  James  Thom- 
brugh for  $232.50  of  the  town  lot  fund  be  allowed;  that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be 
allowed  of  the  town  lot  fund  amount  $132;  that  Court  adjoum. 

July  8th,  1851.  Court  met  at  9  o'clock.  Present,  Henry  McKinzie,  N.  S. 
Allcock  and  Edward  Wood,  Commissioners,  and  I.  D.  Guiberson,  deputy  Com- 
missioners' Clerk.  E.  R.  Guiberson,  Commissioners'  agent  to  sell  lots  in  the 
town  of  Winterset,  Iowa,  reported  the  following,  to  wit : 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISOX  COUNTY  53 

A  statement  of  lots  sold  and  funds  on  hand : 

No.  of  lots  sold 157 

Amount  of  sales $2,200.25 

Amount  of  orders  redeemed i»375-i3 

Amount  of  notes  on  hand 478.00 

Amount  of  cash  on  hand 347-12 


$2,200.25 
up  to  July  8th,  185 1. 

E.  R.  Guiberson,  T.  L.  Agent. 

Ordered,  that  the  time  of  payment  of  notes  now  in  the  hands  of  the  T.  L. 
Agent  for  town  lots  be  prolonged  six  months  from  the  time  said  notes  are  due ; 
provided  the  makers  of  said  notes  will  come  forward  and  execute  new  notes 
payable  six  months  after  date  on  conditions  that  the  lots  for  which  said  notes 
are  given  shall  forfeit  to  the  county  if  said  notes  are  not  paid  on  or  before  the  day 
on  which  the  notes  become  due,  at  ten  per  cent  interest ;  that  the  Town  Lot  Agent 
be  authorized  to  loan  the  town  lot  fund  to  any  person,  by  taking  security,  who 
is  a  freeholder,  at  ten  per  cent  interest,  provided  that  the  amount  loaned  to  any 
one  person  at  the  same  time  shall  not  exceed  fifty  dollars  nor  be  loaned  for  a 
longer  time  than  12  nor  less  than  6  months. 

Ordered,  that  the  boundaries  on  South  township  be  changed  as  follows,  to  wit : 
Commencing  at  the  east  line  of  the  county  on  Middle  river,  to  run  thence  west 
following  the  meanderings  of  said  river  to  the  mouth  of  Porter's  Branch,  thence 
south  following  the  meanderings  of  said  Branch  to  the  center  of  section  15,  town- 
ship 75  of  range  No.  27,  thence  direct  to  the  center  of  section  23  in  said  town- 
ship and  range,  thence  east  with  Jones  Creek  to  the  mouth  of  a  branch  running 
between  John  Dorrell's  and  Mathew  Jones*  farms,  thence  up  the  said  branch  to 
the  divide,  thence  down  a  branch  running  in  an  easterly  direction  to  Clanton's 
Creek,  thence  up  said  creek  to  the  mouth  of  the  Frely  Branch,  thence  with 
said  Branch  to  the  dividing  ridge,  thence  east  direct  to  the  east  line  of  said 
county;  that  Court  adjourn. 

Ordered,  that  a  new  township,  to  be  called  *'Walnut,"  be  organized  in  Madison 
County,  Iowa,  which  shall  be  bounded  as  follows,  to  wit:  Commencing  at  the 
center  of  the  south  line  of  section  15  in  township  No.  75  of  range  No.  27  in 
said  county,  to  run  thence  in  a  westerly  direction  along  the  dividing  ridge  to  the 
west  line  of  said  county,  thence  south  to  the  southwest  comer  of  the  county, 
thence  east  to  the  southeast  comer  of  said  county,  thence  to  the  place  of  beginning,, 
running  along  the  south  boundaries  of  South  township ;  that  A.  J.  Stark,  J.  W. 
Guiberson  and  John  C.  Johnson  be  appointed  Trustees  of  said  Walnut  township 
and  that  the  place  of  holding  elections  be  at  the  house  of  A.  J.  Stark. 

Ordered,  that  a  new  township,  to  be  called  **East"  township,  be  organized  in 
Madison  County,  Iowa,  to  be  bounded  as  follows,  to  wit:  Commencing  at  the 
east  line  of  said  county  on  Middle  river,  to  run  thence  west  along  the  meander- 
ings of  said  river  to  the  southeast  line  (comer)  of  section  34  in  township  76  of 
range  27,  thence  directly  north  to  the  north  line  of  said  County,  thence  east  fol- 
lowing the  north  and  east  lines  around  said  County  to  the  place  of  beginning;. 


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54  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

that   George   W.    McClellan,   John   Carroll   and   Seth    Adamson   be   appointed 
Trustees  for  said  county  (township). 

Ordered,  that  there  be  a  new  township  organized  in  Madison  (to)  be  called 
"Madison"  and  bounded  as  follows,  to  wit:  Commencing  at  the  southwest 
comer  of  section  25  of  range  No.  28  in  township  No.  76,  to  run  thence  west  along 
the  dividing  ridge  to  the  west  line  of  said  county,  thence  north  along  said  line 
to  the  north  line  of  said  county,  thence  east  along  the  north  line  of  said  county 
to  the  west  line  of  Union  township,  thence  south  along  said  line  to  the  place  of 
beginning,  and  George  Fry,  Irvin  Baum  and  William  Combs  be  appointed  Trus- 
tees, and  the  place  of  election  be  at  George  Fry's. 

Ordered,  that  the  boundaries  of  Union  township  be  changed  as  follows,  to  wit : 
Commencing  at  the  N.  E.  Corner  of  section  34  (27)  in  township  No.  76,  of  range 
No.  27,  to  run  thence  west,  following  up  the  meanderings  of  Cedar  river  to  the 
southwest  comer  of  section  25  in  township  76,  of  range  27  (28),  thence  north  to 
the  north  line  of  said  county,  thence  east  to  the  west  line  of  East  township,  thence 
south  along  said  line  to  the  place  of  beginning. 

Ordered,  that  James  Thornbrugh  be  allowed  $2.87^/2  for  services  as  District 
Clerk;  that  the  time  of  the  contract  with  James  Thornbrugh  for  building  and 
completing  a  jail  in  the  town  of  Winterset  be  changed  from  the  ist  of  October, 
1 85 1,  to  the  ist  of  January,  1852;  that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  authorized  to  receive 
from  time  to  time  the  rent  due  town  lot  fund  from  district  No.  2  in  Center 
township  for  the  use  of  one  room  of  the  Court  House;  that  A.  D.  Jones  be 
allowed  $50  for  his  services  as  School  Fund  Commissioner  for  the  term  of  seven 
months  commencing  on  the  9th  day  of  September,  1850,  and  ending  with  the 
1st  day  April,  A.  D.  1851;  that  Court  adjoum. 

July  9th,  Court  met  pursuant  to  adjoumment,  whereupon  it  was  ordered, 
that  A.  D.  Jones  be  allowed  $2  for  stationery  as  School  Fund  Commissioner; 
that  E.  R.  Guiberson  be  allowed  $6.50  on  the  town  lot  fund  for  writing  deeds; 
that  the  addition  to  the  east  part  of  the  town  of  Winterset  be  laid  out  into  lots, 
so  as  to  make  two  tier  of  lots  running  North  and  South  and  so  as  to  have  two 
lots  lie  together  east  and  west,  and  that  the  County  Surveyor  be  required  to  lay* 
off  the  same  by  the  25th  of  July,  1851 ;  that  there  be  four  mills  tax  levied  on 
each  dollar  of  all  the  taxable  property  of  Madison  County  for  county  purposes 
and  one-half  mill  on  the  dollar  for  school  purposes ;  that  $87  be  deducted  from 
the  assessment  of  Aquilla  Smith ;  that  Otho  Davis  be  allowed  $8.32  for  services 
as  Treasurer;  that  Henry  McKinzie,  N.  S.  AUcock  and  Edward  Wood  each  be 
allowed  $5  for  services  as  Commissioners  at  this  term;  that  James  Thornbmgh 
be  allowed  $4  for  two  days  services  as  Commissioners'  Clerk  at  this  term ;  that 
Henry  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock  and  Edward  Wood  each  be  allowed  $2.50  out  of 
the  town  lot  fund  for  services  as  Commissioners  at  this  term ;  that  James  Thom- 
brugh  be  allowed  $2  out  of  the  lot  fund  for  one  day's  services  as  Commissioners' 
Clerk  be  required  to  advertise  the  August  election  to  be  held  in  Walnut,  East 
and  Madison  townships  on  the  ist  Monday  of  August,  185 1,  according  to  the 
provision  of  statute;  that  Court  adjoum.  (Signed  by  each  Commissioner  but  not 
attested.) 

Special  term  Commissioners'  Court,  July  26th,  1851,  Commissioners'  Court 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  55 

met  pursuant  to  law.  Present,  Henry  McKinzie  and  Edward  Wood,  Commis- 
sioners, and  I.  D.  Guiberson,  deputy  Commissioners'  Clerk,  whereupon  it  was 
ordered  that  S.  Bams  be  allowed  $30  for  assessing. 

Ordered,  that  the  outlots  to  the  addition  on  the  east  side  of  the  town  of  Winter- 
set  be  appraised  as  follows,  to  wit: 


Lots 

Valui 

I 

$20 

2 

15 

3 

35 

4 

50 

5 

25 

6 

18 

7 

15 

8 

12 

Lots 

Value 

9 

$10 

10 

10 

II 

10 

12 

20 

13 

35 

14 

40 

15 

15 

16 

13 

Ordered,  that  the  account  of  hands  and  surveyor  in  surveying  East  addition 
to  the  town  of  Winterset,  amounting  to  $12.50,  be  allowed  of  the  town  lot  fund; 
that  A.  D.  Jones  be  allowed  $25  for  services  as  School  Fund  Commissioner;  that 
Simmons  Rutty  be  allowed  $1  of  the  town  lot  fund  for  services  surveying;  that 
there  be  a  public  sale  of  outlots  to  the  East  addition  of  the  town  of  Winterset, 
that  the  same  be  advertised  to  take  place  on  the  9th  day  of  August,  A.  D.  1851 ; 
that  A.  D.  Jones  be  employed  to  cry  the  sale  of  outlots  on  the  9th  day  of  August, 
1851,  and  that  he  be  allowed  $1  for  the  same  of  the  town  lot  fund;  that  Henry 
McKinzie  and  Edward  Wood  be  allowed  each  $2.50  of  the  town  lot  fund  for 
one  day's  services  as  Commissioner;  that  I.  D.  Guiberson  be  allowed  $2  for 
service  as  Commissioners'  Clerk;  that  the  term  of  sale  of  the  outlots  promised 
at  this  term  be  one-third  down,  one-third  in  six  and  twelve  months  from  the  date 
of  sale;  that  Court  adjourn.  (Signed  by  the  two  commissioners  but  not  attested 
by  the  clerk.) 

Special  term,  July  28th,  185 1,  Commissioners  met.  Present,  Henry  Mc- 
Kinzie, N.  S.  Allcock  and  Edward  Wood,  Commissioners,  James  Thombrugh, 
Commissioners'  Clerk.  Ordered,  that  the  act  of  Commissioners  passed  at  the 
regular  July  term,  1851,  relative  to  the  levy  of  taxes  be  and  is  hereby  repealed; 
that  there  be  a  tax  of  three  mills  levied  on  each  dollar  value  of  all  the  assessed 
property  within  the  County  of  Madison  for  State  purposes;  that  there  be  a  tax 
of  one  mill  on  each  dollar  value  of  all  the  assessed  property  in  the  County  of 
Madison  for  roads  and  bridges ;  that  there  be  a  poll  tax  of  one  dollar  for  the  use 
of  roads  levied  on  each  individual  liable  to  pay  such  tax  by  the  provision  of 
statute;  that  there  be  a  school  tax  of  one-half  mill  on  each  dollar  value  levied 
on  all  the  taxable  property  of  Madison  County;  that  there  be  three  and  a  half 
mills  levied  on  each  dollar  value  of  ail  the  assessed  taxable  property  of  Madison 
County  for  county  purposes ;  that  there  be  a  poll  tax  of  50  cents,  levied  on  each 
person  liable  to  pay  such  tax,  for  county  purposes;  that  Henry  McKinzie,  N.  S. 
Allcock  and  Edward  Wood  each  be  allowed  $2.50  for  one  day's  service  as  Com- 
missioner; that  I.  D.  Guiberson  be  allowed  $2  for  service  as  Commissioners' 
Qerk;  that  Court  adjourn.  (Signed  by  each  of  the  three  commissioners  but  not 
attested  by  any  one  as  clerk.) 


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56  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

County  Court,  Madison  County,  Iowa,  Sept.  Term,  A.  D.  1851. 

Be  it  remembered  that  on  the  2nd  day  of  Sept.  A.  D.  1851,  the  Court  met 
pursuant  to  law.    Present,  John  A.  Pitzer,  Judge. 

Sept.  2,  185 1,  ordered  that  the  road  plat  heretofore  filed  for  the  location  of  a 
road  to  be  located  from  the  south  end  of  Front  street  in  the  town  of  Winterset, 
running  south  to  the  south  line  of  Madison  County,  be  and  the  same  is  hereby, 
established  (and)  recorded.  There  being  no  further  business  it  is  ordered  that 
the  Court  adjourn  until  the  next  term  in  course. 

This  Commissioners  Court  record  is  the  first  book  of  record  and  therefore  the 
oldest  of  all  the  county  records. 

It  is  a  book  of  which  the  pages  are  6%  x  y^  inches  and  the  cover  6j4  x  7% 
inches.  The  cover  is  heavy  pasteboard  with  sheep  leather  across  the  back;  the 
cover  a  mottled  brown  shaded  with  some  more  dark  than  light.  The  book  is 
strongly  sewed  and  is  in  fine  condition  of  preservation,  except  that  the  leather 
backing  of  the  front  cover  is  torn  from  end  to  end,  but  the  cover  itself  is  held 
on  by  the  middle  two  cords  of  binding. 

The  book  contains  72  leaves,  including  4  fly  leaves  unruled.  The  other  leaves 
are  ruled  in  blue,  y^  inch  between  lines — 21  lines  to  the  page  with  Space  equal 
to  a  line  at  bottom  and  nearly  2  line  space  at  top  margin.  Being  ruled  for  an 
account  book,  each  page  has  three  vertical  lines — the  first  ij4  inch  on  left  hand 
side  of  page  from  edge  of  page ;  the  other  two  vertical  lines  at  right  side  of  page, 
the  first  of  which  is  Ij4  inch  and  the  second  ^  from  right  side — vertical  lines 
a  yellow  color.  The  paper  is  of  good  quality.  The  cost  price  is  marked  "40c" 
with  a  heavy  flourish  on  upper  front  first  fly  leaf. 

The  four  writers  of  the  record  all  used  a  good  quality  of  ink — P.  M.  Boyles, 
James  Thombrugh,  I.  D.  Guiberson  and  A.  D.  Jones. 

The  written  contents  of  the  record,  including  all  the  signatures  of  the  com- 
missioners, are  nearly  as  bright  as  when  written.  However,  the  line  ruling  is  quite 
faded  and  the  paper  itself  shows  its  age. 

The  book  has  seldom  been  opened  or  handled  since  that  September  day  in 
1 85 1,  when  Judge  Pitzer  made  the  last  record  on  the  next  to  the  very  last  page. 
There  is  scarcely  a  blot  or  "crossed  out"  word  in  all  the  records  written  by  Boyles, 
Thombrugh  and  Jones.  Guiberson's  portion  of  the  record  is  not  blotted  nor  other- 
wise defaced,  except  there  is  considerable  written  in  that  he  "crossed  out*'  with  his 
pen  which,  with  evident  omissions  of  record,  mars  an  otherwise  fine  record. 


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CHAPTER  VI 

COUNTY  BUILDINGS 

Since  its  inception  Madison  County  has  been  called  upon  to  spend  large  sums 
of  money  in  providing  suitable  structures  for  its  offices,  records,  monies  and 
archives.  Also  for  the  safe  keeping  of  criminals  and  persons  accused  of  crimes 
and  misdemeanors.  It  is  also  a  matter  of  fact  that  Madison  County,  while  pros- 
perous and  the  great  majority  of  her  people  are  frugal  and  industrious,  has  that 
element  to  be  found  in  all  communities,  that  needs  the  care  and  sheltering  super- 
vision which  come  only  from  the  public  funds.  The  poor  and  indigent  are  here 
and  have  been  almost  from  the  start  and,  it  being  incumbent  upon  the  county  as  a 
Christian  bailiwick  to  provide  food,  clothes  and  a  habitation  for  the  helplessly 
poor  and  needy,  that  part  of  the  county*s  obligations  has  not  been  slighted.  A 
farm  and  suitable  buildings  have  been  bought,  and  paid  for  out  of  the  public 
purse. 

THE  OLD  LOG  COURTHOUSE 

The  first  building  erected  for  the  use  of  the  county  was  a  log  structure,  built 
on  a  lot  now  a  part  of  Monumental  Park.  The  first  action  taken  by  the  board 
of  county  commissioners  in  this  relation  was  on  the  third  day  of  its  October 
session,  which  began  on  the  first  of  the  month,  in  the  year  1849^  when  it  was 
"ordered  that  there  be  a  court  house  built  in  the  town  of  Winterset,  Madison 
County,  Iowa ;  description  as  follows :  Of  hewed  oak  logs  20  x  24  feet  square, 
two  stories  high,  first  9  feet,  second  8  feet.  Said  building  to  be  let  out  to  the 
lowest  bidder  on  the  third  Saturday  of  October  A.  D.,  1849;  ^hat  the  commis- 
sioners' clerk  be  employed  to  write  a  specification  of  said  house  and  also  to  write 
four  advertisements  for  letting  out  said  building." 

At  a  special  term  held  October  20th  following,  two  of  the  commissioners 
present,  it  was  "Ordered  that  the  court  house  be  reversed  to  a  one  story  house, 
18  X  30  feet  square." 

February  8,  1850,  commissioners  allowed  S.  B.  and  D.  J.  Casebier  (first  indica- 
tion in  the  records  of  who  got  the  contract)  $50  as  part  payment  for  building 
courthouse,  to  be  paid  out  of  lot  fund. 

At  a  special  term  held  May  3d  following,  it  was  "Ordered  that  the  court 
house  be  received  by  the  contractors  pointing  the  underpinning  and  repairing  the 
roof ;  that  S.  B.  and  D.  J.  Casebier  be  allowed  $100,  balance  on  court  house." 

There  was  no  separate  item  in  the  clefk's  bill,  for  drawing  the  specifications 
and  writing  the  notices  preparatory  to  the  letting  of  the  contract,  and  there 
appears  to  have  been  no  other  items  of  cost  for  the  construction  of  the  building 

57 


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58  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

than  already  stated — ^a  total  of  $150.     The  contractors  got  all  cash  down,  the 
town  lot  fund  having  been  in  cash  all  the  time. 

To  this  old  temple  of  justice  came  judges,  lawyers,  litigants  and  the  people 
generally,  some  to  hold  court  and  others  to  listen  to  the  proceedings.  Within  its 
walls  have  been  heard  passionate  and  eloquent  arguments  of  members  of  the 
bar  and  ministers  of  the  gospel,  the  latter  often  holding  sway,  on  an  improvised 
pulpit  within  its  walls  of  hewed  logs,  teaching  the  Word  to  the  settlers  and  having 
a  large  share  of  the  people  for  their  audience.  The  pedagogue  also  had  a  place 
here,  and  taught  the  children  "the  rudiments,"  until  a  schoolhouse  was  built;  so 
that,  the  three  professions,  the  law,  education  and  religion,  gained  a  hearing  in 
this  humble  courthouse.  Many  years  ago  the  building  was  sold  and  removed  to 
Court  and  Jacksoa  streets,  where  another  floor  was  added  to  the  top  and  with 
weather  boarding  covering  its  rough  sides  was  so  changed  that  its  most  intimate 
acquaintance  passed  it  by  without  signs  of  recognition.  It  was  used  for  a  bam 
many  years  and  torn  down  and  removed  a  few  years  ago. 

FIRST  JAIL 

Courthouses  and  jails  move  hand  in  hand  with  church  and  school  organizations 
usually  in  the  onward  march  of  the  western  pioneers.  These  .four  institutions, 
especially  in  Iowa,  closely  followed  the  advent  of  the  first  settlement  of  a  new 
community.  In  Madison  County,  in  the  order  of  their  establishment,  first  came 
the  school,  next  the  church,  third  the  court  and  lastly  the  jail.  We  come  now  to 
the  building  of  the  first  county  jail  in  Madison  County,  in  the  year  185 1. 

The  county  had  been  organized  over  two  years.  Offenses  against  the  peace 
and  dignity  of  the  state,  property  and  life,  had  already  been  committed  by  citi- 
zens. Sessions  of  court  had  been  held.  The  care  and  safe  keeping  of  prisoners 
had  been  costly  to  the  taxpayers  of  the  infant  county.  Lack  of  revenue  had  pre- 
vented the  earlier  building  of  a  gaol  of  detention.  But  the  sale  of  lots  in  the 
little  Town  of  Winterset,  by  the  county  which  owned  the  town  site,  was  pro- 
viding the  means  with  which  to  meet  its  current  expenses  and  also  to  erect 
needed  county  buildings.  Thus,  at  the  session  of  the  Commissioners'  Court  held 
January  7,  1851,  it  was  "ordered  that  there  be  a  jail  built  on  lot  No.  4,  in  block 
No.  18,  in  the  original  town  of  Winterset,"  to  b^  completed  by  the  first  Monday 
in  October,  185 1.  It  was  further  "ordered  that  there  be  a  contract  made  with 
the  lowest  bidder  on  the  second  Saturday  of  February,  1851,  for  the  building  of 
the  jail  house  above  ordered  and  payment  to  be  made  by  installments  as  follows : 
One-third  when  the  building  is  commenced,  one-third  when  half  done,  and  the 
balance  when  the  work  is  completed." 

Nothing  further  appears  in  the  record  relating  to  the  county  jail,  until  a 
special  term  of  the  Commissioners'  Court  held  February  8th,  at  which  it  was 
"ordered  that  James  Thombrugh  be  allowed  of  the  town  lot  fund  one-third 
of  the  amount  allowed  him  by  contract^  for  building  the  jail,  at  the  commencement 
of  the  building  of  the  same."  This  is  the  first  and  only  intimation  in  the  record 
that  a  contract  had  been  let  to  any  one,  and  the  record  is  silent  concerning  the 
price  to  be  paid  or  the  terms,  other  than  when  payment  should  be  made.  It  may 
be  added  here  that  Thombrugh  was  also  the  commissioners'  clerk  at  the  time,  but 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  59 

the  hand  writing  of  the  commissioners'  record  shows  for  itself  that  Israel  D. 
Guiberson,  as  deputy  clerk,  was  entering  all  the  record,  for  some  time  before 
as  well  as  afterward  during  that  year. 

Among  the  remnant  miscellaneous  papers  yet  preserved  in  the  auditor's  office 
is  the  commissioners*  specifications  of  this  jail  building.  Because  of  its  oddity, 
and  the  all  round  uniqueness  of  the  building  required  to  be  built,  it  is  given  in 
full.     It  was  written  by  Israel  D.  Guiberson: 

"Specifications  of  a  jailhouse  to  be  erected  in  the  town  of  Winterset,  Madison 
county,  Iowa,  to  wit:  Size  of  same  to  be  1 8  feet  square,  the  foundation  to  be 
laid  of  good  stone,  three  feet  high  and  three  feet  thick,  two  feet  of  said  founda- 
tion to  be  beneath  the  surface  of  the  earth  and  one  foot  above,  the  whole  square 
between  the  foundation  walls  to  be  raised  to  a  level  with  said  walls  by  filling 
in  small  rock,  the  whole  of  which  is  to  be  floored  over  with  hewn  timbers  12 
inches  thick,  from  said  floor  on  each  side  is  to  be  built  two  walls  of  hewn  timber 
eight  feet  high  and  one  foot  apart  and  the  space  between  to  be  filled  in  with  rock 
and  mortar.  The  second  floor  to  be  lain  with  hewn  square  timbers  12  inches 
thick  and  finished  on  top  with  ij4  inch  plank  nailed  through  the  outside,  timber 
walls  to  be  continued  7  feet  above  the  second  floor  and  then  to  be  floored  over 
in  the  same  manner  as  the  second,  except  the  ij^  plank,  all  of  said  timber  to  be 
of  good  oak  or  walnut  or  slippery  elm,  one  window  12  inches  square  in  ftie  lower 
story  with  iron  bars  4  each  way  in  each  wall,  and  a  trap  door  through  the  second 
floor  to  be  composed  of  2  inch  lumber  double  and  well  nailed  together  with  large 
iron  spikes,  to  be  a  door  into  the  upper  story,  door  shutter  to  be  made  of  inch 
lumber,  double,  well  nailed  together  and  hung  in  substantial  manner  with  strong 
iron  bars  across  each  side  of  said  door  so  as  to  be  locked  and  made  safe ;  also  a 
flight  of  stairs  to  be  erected  on  the  outside  of  said  building  and  a  platform  to 
enter  said  door  in  the  upptsr  story,  iron  bar  across  said  trap  door,  and  a  strong 
lock  to  fasten  the  same,  so  as  to  make  it  substantial;  also  to  be  a  good  shingle 
roof  put  upon  said  house ;  all  of  which  is  to  be  completed  by  the  first  Monday  in 
October,  A.  D.  1851 ;  the  contract  for  the  building  of  the  same  to  be  let  to  the 
lowest  bidder,  who  shall  give  his  bond  with  security  to  the  commissioners  of 
Madison  county,  Iowa,  conditioned  according  to  the  specifications  above  named. 

*T.  S.  Timber  may  be  10  inches  in  place  of  12.  There  is  to  be  a  window  in  the 
second  story,  similar  to  the  one  named  to  be  in  the  first  story,  with  4  iron  bars 
each  way.  The  outside  wall  to  be  laid  with  a  cement  made  of  sand  and  lime 
laid  in  the  cracks  as  the  wall  is  raised,  and  the  logs  to  be  notched  down  so  as  to 
touch.    All  of  said  work  to  be  done  in  workmanlike  manner." 

And  this  old  barricade  tried  to  do  its  duty  for  many  long  years.  A  prisoner 
once  remarked  on  being  taken  into  it  that  "a  man  ought  to  be  ashamed  to  try  to 
get  out."    Anecdotes  relating  to  the  old  shack  are  numerous  and  amusing. 

Work  on  the  jail  proceeded  slowly  and  at  the  July  meeting  the  commissioners 
extended  the  time  for  its  completion  until  January  i,  1852. 

When  the  jail  was  completed  is  not  known,  as  the  records  after  September, 
1 85 1,  appear  to  be  missing  for  a  period  of  more  than  two  years.  Nor  do  existing 
records  show  how  much  the  contractor  was  to  receive,  nor  how  much  was  paid 
him,  for  its  construction.  However,  he  received  the  sum  of  $232.50,  July  7, 
1851,  on  the  contract.    And  in  the  county  judge's  annual  statement  for  the  year 


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60  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

ending  July  5,  1852,  there  is  an  entry  of  ^'balance  due  on  jail  $25."  The  members 
of  the  board  at  the  time  were  David  Bishop,  Norval  S.  Allcock  and  Edward 
Wood.    The  sheriff's  name  was  Silas  Barns. 

In  1865,  a  committee  of  the  board  of  supervisors,  appointed  to  consider 
repairs  on  the  jail,  reported  against  the  feasibility  of  spending  any  money  on  the 
old  cabin,  whereupon  the  clerk  of  the  board  was  authorized  to  sell  the  jail  to  the 
highest  bidder.  Some  time  later  the  old  relic  was  removed  and  for  a  while  John 
Stiffler  maintained  a  set  of  scales  on  the  lot.  In  June,  1867,  **the  application  of 
the  Soldiers'  Monument  Committee  for  aid  was  taken  up,  and  on  motion,  it  was 
voted  to  donate  the  jail  lot  for  the  benefit  of  the  monument  and  H.  J.  B.  Cum- 
mings,  C.  D.  Bevington  and  M.  R.  Tidrick  were  appointed  a  committee  to  sell  the 
same."  Rev.  C.  T.  McCaughan  was  the  purchaser,  who  dismantled  the  concern 
and  used  the  logs  in  building  a  stable  on  his  own  lot. 

THE  PRESENT   JAIL 

When  the  second  and  third  courthouses  were  built  the  county  jail  was  made  a 
part  of  the  structures.  The  courthouse,  put  up  in  1868  and  destroyed  by  fire  in 
1875,  had  cells  for  prisoners  in  the  second  story,  but  when  a  replica  of  the  ruined 
structur?  took  its  place,  provisions  were  made  for  incarcerating  offenders  against 
the  law  in  the  basement.  This  continued  to  be  the  county  jail  until  the  year 
1903,  when  a  two-story,  pressed  brick  building  was  erected,  on  the  comer  of 
Green  and  North  First  streets,  at  a  cost  of  approximately  eleven  thousand  dol- 
lars. The  front  is  on  the  Green  Street  side  and  is  arranged  as  a  residence  for 
the  jailer.  To  the  rear,  on  the  First  Street  frontage  is  the  jail  proper,  which  has 
in  the  center  of  it  one  large  room,  a  steel  cage,  divided  into  cells.  This  building 
was  secured  for  the  county  after  considerable  opposition  by  certain  of  the  tax- 
payers. 

MADISON    county's    STATELY   TEMPLE   OF    JUSTICE 

The  taxpayers  of  Madison  County  have  expended  for  the  building  of  the  last 
two  courthouses  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars,  of  which  $120,000 
was  practically  a  total  loss.  Displaying  a  just  realization  of  the  importance  of  the 
bailiwick  to  the  state  and  assuming  a  pardonable  pride  in  her  institutions,  the 
money  was  granted  by  the  electorate  for  the  building  of  a  temple  of  justice  that 
would  do  them  credit  from  a  material  and  artistic  point*  of  view. 

The  construction  of  the  first  modern  building,  of  which  the  present  one  is 
almost  an  exact  replica,  was  commenced  in  the  year  1868,  and  in  its  description 
the  reader  will  have  in  mind  the  one  now  standing.  The  structure  was  built  of 
the  famed  grey  Hmestone  so  abundant  in  the  county,  and  is  in  the  form  of  a 
Greek  cross,  each  of  its  four  wings  fronting  a  street.  At  the  entrances  are  mas- 
sive stone  columns  supporting  piazzas,  which  are  approached  by  concrete  walks 
from  each  street ;  from  them  flights  of  stone  steps,  fifty  feet  in  width,  lead  to  the 
main  corridors,  six  feet  above  the  level  of  a  beautiful  campus. 

The  first  floor  is  devoted  to  the  county  offices.  These  rooms  are  well  lighted 
by  high,  broad  windows  and  are  supplied  with  steel  vaults  for  the  safe  keeping 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISOX  COUNTY  61 

of  valuable  documents.  In  the  second  story  are  the  court  room,  apartments  for 
the  judge  and  attorneys  and  jury  rooms.  The  attic,  which  is  large  and  spacious, 
makes  a  convenient  place  for  the  storage  of  the  flotsam  and  jetsam  accumulating 
from  year  to  year.  The  basement  was  for  many  years  the  county  jail,  having  cells 
for  the  incarceration  of  prisoners,  and  in  this  arrangement  it  differed  from  its 
unfortunate  predecessor,  as  in  that  one  the  jail  was  constructed  in  its  second 
story.  The  whole  is  surmounted  by  a  majestic  dome,  in  which  is  hung  a  pon- 
derous bell,  whose  tolling  warns  the  judge  and  bar  of  the  customary  fiction  that 
"it  is  eight  o'clock  until  nine."  On  the  apex  of  the  dome  is  a  cupola,  in  which 
is  "the  town  clock,"  having  on  its  four  faces  dials,  that  are  plainly  visible  at 
night  for  many  miles,  made  so  by  electric  lights  surrounding  them. 

'  This  building  cost  about  one  hundred  and  thirty  thousand  dollars  and  was 
finished  early  in  the  year  1878,  the  work  on  its  construction  having  been  started 
soon  after  the  destruction  of  the  one  preceding  it.  The  new  courthouse  pleased 
the  people  who  built  it  and  has  called  forth  the  admiration  of  all  who  have  seen 
it.  Standing  as  it  does  in  a  beautifully  shaded  park,  its  majestic  proportions  stand 
out  clearly  and  speak  for  themselves.  Phoenix-like  the  temple  arose  from  its  own 
ashes  and  even  today  is  one  of  the  best  buildings  of  its  character  in  the  State  of 
Iowa.  Dedicatory  exercises  followed  the  securing  of  the  keys  from  the  con- 
tractor, which  are  indicated  by  the  program  hereto  attached : 

DEDICATION 

OF  THE 

MADISON  COUNTY  COURTHOUSE 

AT 

Winterset,  Iowa,  February  4th,  1878 

President. — Hon.  John  Leonard 
Hon.  John  Mitchell 
Hon.  Wm.  M.  Stone 
Vice  Presidents  ^   Hon.  C.  C.  Nourse 

Hon.  H.  W.  Maxwell 
Hon.  Fred.  Mott 
Chaplain. — ^Rev.  J.  H.  Potter 

Music  By 
WINTERSET  LIGHT  GUARD  BAND 

Programme : 
I. — Music,  Band 

2. — Prayer,  Chaplain 

3. — Music,  Band 

4. — Introductory  Address,  President 

5.— Address,  Hon.  G.  G.  Wright 

6. — Music,  Band 

7. — ^Addresses,       Hon.  John  Mitchell  and  Hon.  Wm.  M.  Stone 
8. — Music,  Band 

9. — Addresses,      Hon.  C.  C.  Nourse  and  Hon.  H.  W.  Maxwell 


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62  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Toasts : 
I. — Madison  County — The  peer  of  any  county  in  the  State  in 

resources,  and  the  enterprise  of  her  citizens. 
Response,  Hon.  Fred  Mott 

2. — The  Judiciary  of  Iowa — Distinguished  alike  for  its  learn- 
ing and  integrity.    May  it  continue  the  guardian  of  the  rights 

and  liberties  of  the  people. 
Response,  Hon.  C.  C.  Cole 

3. — The  Bar  of  Madison  County — May  it  ever  maintain  an 

honorable  standard  in  the  profession. 
Response,  T.  C.  Gilpin 

4. — The  Bar  of  Iowa — In  character  and  ability  the  peer  of 

any  in  the  Union. 

Response,  Hon.  P.  Gad  Bryan 

5. — This  Court  House — May  the  law  be  here  administered  in 

the  enlightened  spirit  of  the  age,  and  only  in  the  advancement  of 

justice. 
Response,  Rev.  Henry  Wallace 

6. — The  Superintendent  and  workmen  who  constructed  this 

building,  worthy  the  gratitude  of  their  patrons  for  their  skill 

and  fidelity. 
Response,  •  S.  G.  Ruby 

7. — The  ladies  of  Madison  county,  God  bless  them. 
Response,  A.  W.  C.  Weeks 

Music,  Band 

A  BIT  OF  COURTHOUSE  HISTORY 

The  first  stone  courthouse  was  discovered  burning  about  11  o'clock  on  the 
morning  of  October  2,  1875.  The  fire  broke  out  in  the  gable  of  the  east  wing 
and  soon  communicated  with  the  dome.  The  wind  was  blowing  a  gale  from  the 
south  at  the  time  and  nothing  could  be  done  to  arrest  the  fast  consuming  flames. 
The  north  side  of  the  square  was  in  imminent  danger,  which  was  averted  by  the 
heroic  efforts  of  citizens,  many  hurriedly  reaching  the  scene  of  destruction  from 
the  outlying  districts.  All  valuables  were  removed  from  the  treasurer's  office  and 
most  of  the  records  were  gotten  out ;  then  the  vaults  were  locked.  Not  an  accident 
occurred,  but  the  building  was  an  utter  ruin  and  carried  no  insurance. 

On  the  27th  day  of  October,  1875,  a  few  days  after  the  disaster,  the  board 
of  supervisors  called  a  special  election  for  November  23d,  following,  so  that  the 
question  of  issuing  $100,000  in  bonds,  for  the  purpose  of  building  a  courthouse 
might  be  passed  upon.  The  election  was  held  and  the  proposition  carried  by  a 
majority  of  464. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Madison  County  Historical  Society,  held  March  9,  1907, 
Judge  W.  H.  Lewis  had  a  valuable  and  interesting  paper,  treating  of  certain 
phases  of  the  first  courthouse  history,  which  is  deserving  of  a  place  in  this  chapter. 
In  this  relation  he  said : 

The  second  courthouse  in  Madison  County  was  built  under  contract.     The 


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FIRST  COURTHOUSE,  WINTERSET 
Built   in    1850 


COUNTY  COURTHOUSE,  WINTERSET 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  63 

contract  for  its  erection  was  let  in  1868  by  the  board  of  supervisors  during  the 
time  it  consisted  of  seventeen  members,  and  was  awarded  to  Jacob  Reichard, 
of  Marion  County,  Iowa,  to  be  built  and  completed  within  a  term  of  three  years. 
The  nearest  railroad  station  at  that  time  was  DeSoto,  or  perhaps  a  point  east  of 
Des  Moines,  and  the  work  of  getting  material  for  the  building  was  a  difficult 
one. 

During  the  time  the  house  was  being  built  there  was  a  considerable  degree 
of  friction  between  the  contractor  and  the  board  of  supervisors.  These  troubles 
reached  their  climax  in  the  autumn  of  1870  when  the  house  was  completed,  and 
the  contractor  and  the  board  of  supervisors  not  being  able  to  agree  on  terms  of 
settlement,  the  contractor  locked  the  doors  and  refused  to  give  possession  of  the 
house.  Public  interest  had  previously  been  excited  by  the  circumstances,  that 
during  the  second  year  that  the  work  was  going  on,  the  county  auditor  seemed  to 
be  the  adviser  and  attorney  for  the  contractor  while  by  law  he  was  the  repre- 
sentative and  guardian  of  the  public  interests.  This  feeling  of  dissatisfaction  was 
increased  when  at  the  close  of  his  official  term  and  during  the  last  year  of  the 
work  of  building  the  courthouse  he  openly  took  charge  of  the  contractor's  in- 
terests. 

The  last  session  of  the  "big  board  of  supervisors,"  while  it  yet  consisted  of 
seventeen  members,  was  held  at  about  the  time  of  the  completion  of  the  house 
and  they  were  unable  to  make  terms  to  obtain  possession  of  the  house  and  a 
final  adjournment  was  made  leaving  the  contractor  in  possession  of  the  house 
and  the  doors  locked. 

This  state  of  affairs  continued  until  the  ist  of  January,  1871,  when  the  first 
meeting  of  the  board  of  supervisors  with  three  members  occurred.  No  settle- 
ment was  reached  at  this  session  and  just  as  the  final  adjournment  for  the  term 
was  about  to  be  made,  a  member  suggested  that  they  ought  to  take  possession 
of  the  courthouse  before  going  home.  The  other  members  replied  that  they  would 
be  glad  to  do  so  if  they  could  and  it  was  agreed  to  try.  A  lawyer,  V.  Wainwright, 
was  called  in  and  he  suggested  a  plan,  which  was  adopted  and  put  in  operation 
at  once. 

A  suit  was  begun  before  justice  of  the  peace,  V.  G.  Holliday,  claiming  that 
the  keys  of  the  courthouse  were  the  property  of  the  county  and  asking  that  a 
writ  of  replevin  be  issued  and  the  keys  taken  from  the  contractor  and  delivered 
to  the  board  of  supervisors.  The  contractor,  Mr.  Reichard,  his  attorney,  T.  C. 
Gilpin,  Melvin  Stone,  a  hardware  dealer,  and  several  other  persons  were  made 
parties  defendant.  The  proceedings  were  begun  just  at  nightfall  and  the  justice 
announced  that  he  would  hold  court  until  the  case  was  finished.  The  writ  of 
replevin  was  issued  and  placed  in  the  hands  of  Sheriff  J.  S.  TuUis  for  service. 

Stone,  who  was  one  of  the  defendants,  had  made  a  contract  to  furnish  a  lot 
of  heavy  coal  stoves  to  use  in  the  courthouse  and  the  stoves  had  arrived  and  he 
had  no  room  to  put  them  in  his  store  and  having  no  other  place  to  put  them  he  had 
notified  the  auditor  that  he  was  ready  to  set  up  the  stoves  in  the  courthouse 
according  to  his  contract,  but  as  the  contractor  had  the  keys  he  would  not  allow 
the  stoves  to  be  put  in. 

Reichard  and  Stone  were  close  personal  friends  and  to  accommodate  Stone, 
it  was  arranged  between  them  that  Stone  might  put  the  stoves  in  the  house  in  the 
night  after  the  stores  were  all  closed  and  everybody  asleep. 


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64  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

It  was  thought  best  to  try  to  get  the  keys  Stone  was  supposed  to  have  first. 
The  office  of  the  justice  was  so  located  as  to  afford  a  good  view  of  the  windo\ys 
of  the  courthouse  and  the  court,  the  sheriff  and  his  posse  and  the  supervisors 
sat  and  waited  for  the  Hght  that  told  that  Stone  and  his  men  were  in  the  house 
at  work. 

While  they  waited,  it  was  learned  that  one  of  Reichard's  men  had  gone  in 
the  early  evening  to  take  the  train  at  DeSoto  for  Des  Moines.  As  Reichard 
had  been  getting  money  of  a  Des  Moines  bank  and  the  cashier  was  getting  uneasy, 
it  was  conjectured  he  was  taking  the  keys  to  the  bank  to  serve  as  collateral,  so  a 
deputy  was  dispatched  with  the  best  team  in  town,  with  orders  to  overtake  him 
at  all  hazards. 

After  midnight  the  light  was  seen  to  move  toward  the  east  entrance  and  the 
sheriff  and  his  posse  placed  themselves  near  and  waited  until  all  were  outside, 
the  door  locked,  and  all  a  few  feet  away  from  the  door,  when  he  announced  him- 
self as  sheriff  and  called  a  halt  and  surrender.  The  presence  of  a  well  placed 
posse  made  it  easy  to  obey  the  demand.  The  sheriff  demanded  of  Stone  the  sur- 
render of  all  the  keys  to  the  courthouse  he  had  in  his  possession.  This  Stone 
refused  and  the  sheriff  took  him  and  his  men  before  the  court  and  the  court 
ordered  him  to  deliver  the  keys  to  the  sheriff.  Stone  again  refused  and  the  court 
promptly  adjudged  him  guilty  of  contempt  and  ordered  him  to  be  fined  and 
imprisoned  until  he  obeyed  the  order.  Finding  himself  thus  placed,  he  gave  up  a 
large  bunch  of  keys.  The  sheriff  was  ordered  to  hold  him  in  custody  until  it 
appeared  that  he  had  given  up  all  the  keys. 

J.  F.  Jones,  a  mechanic,  who  had  fitted  all  the  locks  on  the  doors  was  in 
court  and  the  bunch  of  keys  Stone  gave  up  was  given  him  to  examine  and  desig- 
nate the  doors  to  which  they  belonged.  This  he  was  able  to  do  and  he  found  that 
the  keys  to  the  jail,  which  was  located  in  the  third  story,  were  not  in  the  lot. 
While  these  keys  were  being  sorted  the  sheriff  and  his  posse  went  to  look  up 
Reichard  and  his  attorney.  The  contractor's  boarding  house  was  surrounded 
and  the  sheriff  rapped  at  the  door,  announced  himself  and  his  business  and  de- 
manded admittance.  Some  delay  was  made  and  excuses  were  offered  for  not 
admitting  him.  A  window  was  raised  at  the  back  of  the  house  and  Reichard 
started  to  climb  out,  but  Joe  Garlinger  laid  his  hand  on  him  and  told  him  to  get 
back.  There  seemed  to  be  much  noise  made  about  the  stove,  and  the  sheriff  was 
getting  impatient  when  they  let  him  in. .  They  found  a  hot  fire  in  the  stove  and  a 
bunch  of  keys  in  the  fire.  The  fire  was  quickly  drawn  and  the  keys  got  out. 
With  these  keys  and  Mr.  Reichard,  the  sheriff  returned  to  the  justice's  office  and 
found  the  court  still  in  session  and  ready  to  proceed  with  the  case.  Reichard 
was  asked  concerning  the  keys  but  refused  to  answer,  demanding  to  see  his 
attorney.  He  was  promptly  gratified,  for  at  that  moment  the  deputy  sheriff  with 
Reichard's  attorney,  T.  C.  Gilpin,  in  charge,  appeared  in  the  door.  After  a  brief 
consultation,  Reichard  refused  to  answer  any  and  all  questions.  The  court  ad- 
judged him  to  be  in  contempt  and  ordered  him  committed  to  jail.  The  question 
concerning  the  keys  was  asked  of  the  attorney,  who  also  refused  to  answer, 
and  was  promptly  adjudged  in  contempt  and  ordered  committed  to  jail.  Reichard 
and  his  attorney  both  began  to  laugh  but  the  sheriff  showed  the  jail  keys  and  told 
them  to  follow  him. 


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RUINS  OF  SECOND  COURTHOUSE, 
VVINTERSET 


VIEW  OF  COURTHOUSE  SQUARE,  WINTERSET,  1868 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISO^i  COUNTY  65 

At  this  the  smiles  faded  and  they  announced  themselves  ready  to  answe^r. 
They  said  there  was  a  lot  of  keys  in  a  barrel  of  ashes  fn  the  backyard  at  Reichard's 
boarding  house.  Some  of  the  posse  went  and  got  them.  At  this  time  the  deputy 
sheriff,  who  had  gone  toward  DeSoto  returned  with  his  man,  but  he  had  no  keys'. 
Mr.  Jones  said  he  seemed  to  have  keys  to  all  the  doors  and  the  defendants  were 
relieved  from  the  penalties  for  contempt  of  cotu*t  until  later  in  the  day. 

It  was  now  nearly  daylight  and  messengers  were  sent  for  each  county  officer  to 
report  for  duty  at  the  new  courthouse.  In  a  very  short  time  all  appeared  and 
each  was  given  the  key  to  his  office  and  directed  to  move  in  immediately.  The 
rising  sun  shone  on  a  busy  scene  in  that  courthouse.  Many  men  were  hurrying 
in  with  armfuls  of  books  and  early  in  the  morning  every  officer  was  behind  his 
desk  ready  for  business.  This  was  Saturday,  and  Saturday  was  then,  as  ever, 
before  and  since,  a  great  day  in  Winterset.  As  the  people  came  in  the  news  was 
joyously  spread  that  the  new  courthouse  was  open  and  in  possession  of  the  county 
officers.  A  happy  crowd  of  people  passed  through  the  halls  and  corridors  until 
nightfall,  and  the  new  board  of  supervisors  were  unanimously  voted  the  heroes 
of  the  day. 

THE   COUNTY   FARM 

When  the  county  grew  to  such  proportions  as  to  acquire  a  class  of  people 
known  as  indigents,  the  helpless  poor  and  unsound  of  mind,  it  became  necessary 
for  the  authorities  to  devise  ways  and  means  for  their  care  and  comforts.  At 
first,  when  their  number  was  insignificant,  the  unfortunate  ones  were  "farmed 
out"  to  a  proper  person,  who  undertook,  for  a  nominal  remuneration,  to  give  his 
charge  food  and  shelter.  This  system  was  a  makeshift  and  very  unsatisfactory 
to  the  county  and  her  wards,  so  that  it  was  determined  to  provide  an  asylum, 
to  be  built  and  maintained  from  the  public  funds,  for  those  worthy  of  support. 
To  this  end  a  tract  of  land  was  purchased  in  the  year  1876,  where  a  large  frame 
building  was  erected  for  inmates.  Later,  a  two-story  brick  structure  was  erected 
for  the  care  and  safe  keeping  of  the  feeble  minded  and  insane.  Some  few  years 
ago,  the  building  for  the  insane  was  abandoned  for  its  original  purpose,  owing  to 
a  law  having  been  passed  making  it  obligatory  on  counties  of  the  state  to  send 
their  hopelessly  insane  to  a  state  institution  provided  for  them;  so  that,  for 
several  years  this  building  on  the  county  farm  has  practically  remained  vacant. 
However,  the  farm,  consisting  of  256^  acres  and  located  in  sections  24  and  25, 
Douglas  Township,  has  been  kept  in  a  good  state  of  cultivation  and  all  necessary 
buildings  have  been  maintained  for  the  steward,  inmates  and  live  stock.  The 
number  of  unfortunates  seeking  care  and  shelter  in  this  infirmary  has  never  been 
large  and  at  this  writing  there  are  only  twelve,  nine  of  whom  are  men  and  three 
women. 

In  his  annual  report  for  the  year  19 13,  the  steward,  G.  W.  Gilliland,  makes 
the  following  notations :  "The  farm  consists  of  257  acres,  upon  which  is  built  one 
dwelling  house  of  nine  rooms,  one  pauper  house  of  fourteen  rooms  and  one  of 
twelve  rooms;  two  bams,  double  corn  crib,  poultry  house,  ice  house,  workhouse, 
coal  house  and  two  hog  houses     *     *     *     Total .  valuation  of  farm,  $30,808." 


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CHAPTER  VII 

POLITICAL 

The  county  had  been  divided  into  three  voting  precincts,  named  North,  Center 
and  South,  and  their  names  suggest  tbeir  relative  location.  NortH  included  all 
the  territory  north  of  a  line  drawn  from  the  head  of  Cedar  to  the  west  line  of  the 
county,  down  the  channel  of  Cedar  to  where  it  crosses  the  line  between  now 
Union  and  Crawford  townships,  thence  east  to  the  east  line  of  the  county.  Center 
precinct  embraced  that  portion  of  the  county  beginning  at  the  point  where  Cedar 
crosses  the  boundary  line  between  now  Union  and  Crawford  townships,  thence 
south  along  that  line  to  the  dividing  ridge  between  Middle  River  and  Jones 
Creek,  thence  westerly  to  the  county  line,  thence  north  to  the  south  line  of  North 
Precinct.  South  Precinct  included  the  remaining  portion  of  the  county,  being 
south  and  east  of  Center  Precinct.  Thus  Center  had  the  smallest  area  but  it 
contained  over  half  the  votes  of  the  county. 

NORTH  PRECINCT 

The  election  was  held  at  the  log  house  of  Samuel  Guye,  which  stood  near  the 
southwest  comer  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  7  in  now  Union  Town- 
ship. The  judges  were  James  W.  Guye,  Joseph  Combs  and  Alfred  Rice;  clerks 
were  Claiborne  Pitzer  and  Joshua  Hinkley.  Rice  first  administered  the  oath  to 
all  the  others  and  in  turn  Guye  qualified  Rice.  The  poll  opened  about  9  o'clock 
A.  M.  and  closed  at  6  P.  M.  The  following  persons  voted  in  the  order  given : 
William  Brunk,  Jacob  Combs,  John  Wilhoit,  Martin  Baum,  William  Sturman, 
David  S.  Bowman,  James  Brown,  Irvin  Batmi,  Samuel  C.  Brownfield,  Leonard 
Bowman,  John  B.  Sturman,  John  Cracraft,  John  R.  Beedle,  Amos  Case,  David 
Cracraft,  William  Combs,  George  W.  Guye,  Samuel  Guye,  William  Hinshaw, 
Joseph  Combs,  Claiborne  Pitzer,  Joshua  Hinkley,  James  W.  Guye,  Alfred  Rice — 
24.  In  this  precinct  Bilderback  for  sheriff  had  3  votes,  Guye  for  sheriff  had 
18;  McClellan  for  district  clerk;  15;  Samuel  Casebier  for  district  clerk,  5;  A.  D. 
Jones  for  prosecuting  attorney,  18;  Bowman  for  coroner,  18;  Combs  for  com- 
missioner, 20 ;  Daniel  McKinzie  for  commissioner,  3 ;  Bishop  for  commissioner, 
13 ;  Allcock  for  commissioner,  7;  Gentry  for  commissioner,  13 ;  Casebier  for  com- 
missioner, I ;  Henry  McKinzie  for  commissioner,  6 ;  Boyles  for  commissioners' 
clerk,  16;  Thornbrugh  for  commissioners'  clerk,  6;  George  W.  McClellan  for 
commissioners'  clerk,  i;  Phipps  for  probate  judge,  17;  Joshua  Hinkley  for  re- 
corder, 9;  Jones  for  surveyor,  18;  David  Cracraft  for  school  fund  commissioner, 
7;  Alfred  Rice  for  justice,  21 ;  John  R.  Beedle  for  constable,  21 ;  George  W.  Guye 
for  constable,  16;  Martin  Baum  for  constable,  3;  Mr.  McKinzie  for  commis- 
sioner, 2. 

66 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  67 

CENTER   PRECINCT 

No  record  remains  concerning  the  election  at  this  precinct.  The  election  was 
held  at  the  house  of  Chenoweth  Casebier,  who  lived  near  and  a  little  east  of  the 
center  of  section  32  in  now  Union  Township.  Two  of  the  judges  were  Joseph 
K.  Evans  and  John  Butler  and  one  of  the.  clerks  was  Alfred  D.  Jones.  At  least 
thirty-four  votes  were  cast. 

SOUTH    PRECINCT 

The  election  was  held  at  the  log  house  of  Joel  M.  Clanton.  The  judges  were 
William  C.  Allcock,  Caleb  Clark  and  Joel  M.  Clanton ;  clerks  were  N.  S.  Allcock 
and  Seth  Adamson.  William  C.  Allcock  first  administered  the  oath  to  all  the 
others  and  in  turn  was  qualified  by  Clark.  The  poll  was  opened  about  9.30  A.  M. 
and  closed  at  6  P.  M.  The  following  persons  voted  in  the  order  given :  Caleb 
Clark,  Charles  Clanton,  N.  S.  Allcock,  D.  S.  Smith,  Seth  Adamson,  Isaac  Clanton, 
David  Simmerman,  Samuel  Peter,  Joel  M.  Clanton,  William  C.  Allcock — ten. 

At  this  precinct,  Bilderback,  for  sheriff,  had  9  votes ;  George  W.  McQellan  for 
district  clerk,  9;  Leonard  Bowman  for  coroner,  7;  Henry  McKinzie  for  com- 
missioner, 6;  William  Gentry  for  commissioner,  5;  David  Bishop  for  commis- 
sioner, 10;  Philip  M.  Boyles  for  commissioners'  clerk,  2;  James  Thombrugh  for 
commissioners'  clerk,  8 ;  William  Phipps  for  probate  judge  had  10;  A.  D.  Jones  for 
surveyor,  7;  Seth  Adamson  for  justice  of  the  peace,  9;  Samuel  Peter  for  justice 
of  the  peace  had  i ;  William  C.  Allcock  for  constable,  9 ;  David  S.  Smith  for 
constable,  i ;  A.  D.  Jones  for  prosecuting  attorney,  7.  The  result  of  the  election 
has  already  been  given. 

What  was  then  popularly  known  as  the  "August  election*'  was  held  Monday, 
August  6th,  at  which  three  state  officers  were  elected  and  in  Madison  County  a 
full  line  of  county  officers,  the  organizing  election  on  the  first  day  of  January 
being  a  special  election,  the  officers  then  elected  holding  only  until  their  successors 
should  be  chosen  at  the  regular  election  in  August,  and  qualified. 

The  county  seat  had  been  located  to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  all  the  "north- 
siders"  and  "Hoosier  prairie'*  had  almost  cheerfully  acquiesced  in  the  result. 
Fortunately  for  the  county  no  disposition  for  strife  over  the  matter  remained.  All 
together  the  scattering  settlements  of  the  county  united  with  vim  and  energy  for 
the  upbuilding  of  Winterset  and  for  a  greater  Madison  County.  Party  lines  were 
neither  drawn  nor  thought  of  in  matters  relating  to  Madison  County.  The 
county  was  nearly  4  to  i  democratic  on  national  politics  and  yet  whigs  were 
elected  to  nearly  half  the  county  offices. 

At  this  election  there  were  eighty-two  votes  cast  in  the  county.  More  than 
eighteen  legal  voters  did  not  attend  the  election  and  there  were  several  persons 
who  had  not  been  residents  long  enough  to  be  qualified  voters.  Probably  there 
were  at  this  time  one  hundred  and  thirty  persons  in  the  county  of  voting  age. 

In  the  absence  of  any  public  issue  the  little  interest  there  was  manifested 
clustered  around  the  offices  of  sheriflf,  commissioners*  clerk  and  recorder.  Con- 
cerning Sheriff  Bilderback,  it  was  claimed  he  was  utterly  incompetent  and  that 
A.  D.  Jones  was  the  real  sheriff.    It  was*the  big  office  of  the  county,  but  ^'Hoosier 


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68  HISTORY  OF  MADISON*  COUNTY 

prairie/'  including  the  Clanton  country,  remained  loyal  to  Bilderback  and  pulled 
him  through.  Following  is  the  result  of  this  election :  Sheriff,  Ephraim  Bilder- 
back ;  clerk  of  district  court,  George  W.  McClellan ;  commissioners*  clerk,  James 
Thombrugh;  coroner,  Leonard  Bowman;  commissioners,  Henry  McKinzie,  N. 
S.  AUcock,  William  Gentry ;  prosecuting  attorney,  A.  D.  Jones ;  surveyor,  William 
Harmon;  recorder  and  treasurer,  Enos  Berger;  probate  judge,  William  M. 
Phipps ;  sealer  of  weights  and  measures,  John  Butler. 

The  canvass  of  the  returns  in  the  above  election  was  certified  by  P.  M. 
Boyles,  commissioners'  clerk,  and  by  Justices  of  the  Peace  Joshua  C.  Case- 
bier  and  Alfred  Rice,  of  date  August  8,  1849. 

Following  are  the  names  of  the  election  board  officers  and  those  who  voted  at 
this  election: 

UNION    TOWNSHIP 

Election  held  at  the  log  house  of  Leonard  Bowman.  Judges  were  David  D. 
Henry,  Leonard  Bowman  and  James  Brown.  Clerks  were  Irvin  Baum  and 
Thomas  M.  Boyles.  Those  who  voted  were  David  Brinson,  Samuel  Guye,  George 
W.  Guye,  James  W.  Guye,  Lewis  Baum,  Henry  Rice,  Claiborne  Pitzer,  William 
Sturman,  David  D.  Henry,  James  Brown,  John  B.  Sturman,  Thomas  M.  Boyles, 
Anderson  W.  Moore,  Alfred  Rice,  William  Hinshaw,  John  Wilhoit,  James 
Brewer,  William  Combs,  Leonard  Bowman,  Irvin  Baum,  Nimrod  Taylor — 
twenty-one. 

CENTER   TOWNSHIP 

Election  held  at  the  log  house  of  Enos  Berger  on  the  town  site  of  Winterset 
(then  the  only  house  on  the  town  site).  Judges  were  Joseph  K.  Evans,  Charles 
Wright  and  Jonathan  C.  Casebier.  Clerks  were  E.  R.  Guiberson  and  P.  M. 
Boyles.  Those  who  voted  were  John  Deshazer,  E.  R.  Guiberson,  William  M. 
Phipps,  A.  D.  Jones,  Henry  Simmons,  Joseph  Moore,  Absalom  Thombrugh, 
John  Galaway,  Charles  Mendenhall,  John  Wayson,  William  Harmon,  Daniel 
Vancil,  J.  C.  Casebier,  William  Stephenson  (Stinson),  Absolom  McKinzie,  Lemuel 
Thombrugh,  James  Thombrugh,  P.  M.  Boyles,  Enos  Berger,  Charles  Wright, 
J.  K.  Evans,  John  Butler,  David  Chenoweth,  Andrew  Evans,  Robert  Deshazer, 
George  W.  McClellan,  John  M.  Evans,  Henry  McKinzie,  E.  Bilderback,  John 
Wilkinson,  William  Gentry,  Samuel  Crawford,  Hiram  Hurst — ^thirty-three. 

SOUTH    TOWNSHIP 

Election  held  at  the  log  house  of  Nathan  Viney.  Judges  were  Andrew  J. 
Stark,  Caleb  Clark  and  George  Smith.  Clerks  were  David  Bishop  and  N.  S. 
Allcock.  Those  who  voted  were  Samuel  Fleener,  Seth  Adamson,  Noah  Bishop, 
Isaac  C.  Smith,  Joseph  Bishop,  Asbury  W.  Bums,  Joel  M.  Qanton,  John  Carroll, 
William  Smith,  Levi  Bishop,  Benjamin  M.  Hilmon,  Isaac  Clanton,  A.  J.  Hart, 
David  Simmerman,  Charles  Clanton,  Reuben  G.  Lee,  William  C.  Allcock,  Nathan 
Viney,  J.  M.  Watson,  Samuel  Peter,  A* J.  Stark,  Caleb  Clark,  George  Smith, 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  69 

N.  S.  Allcock,  David  Bishop,  Dr.  H.  Whited,  David  Worley,  David  S.  Smith— 
twenty-eight. 

The  next  was  the  regular  election  held  on  the  Sth  day  of  August,  1850,  at 
which  state,  district  and  some  county  officers  were  elected.  The  poll  books  are 
missing.  The  result  of  this  election  appears  by  the  following  abstract  certified 
by  James  Thombrugh,  commissioners'  clerk,  and  Justices  John  Vanhouten  and 
L.  D.  Skidmore :  representative,  two  to  elect,  E.  R.  Guiberson  and  Lysander  W. 
Babbitt ;  clerk  of  district  court,  James  Thombrugh ;  county  commissioner,  Edwin 
Wood;  surveyor,  Simmons  Rutty. 

At  a  special  election,  held  October  19^  1850,  to  fill  vacancy  in  the  office  of 
treasurer  and  recorder,  Otho  Davis  was  elected. 

A  special  election  was  held  April  27,  185 1,  to  fill  a  vacancy  in  the  office  of 
sheriff,  caused  by  the  resignation  of  Ephraim  Bilderback.  The  contestants  were 
Silas  Bams  and  Joseph  Evans,  and  each  received  thirty-four  votes.  By  casting 
lots,  Bams  won  the  office. 

On  the  first  Monday  of  August,  185 1,  the  regular  election  was  held  under  the 
law;  passed  at  the  late  session  of  the  General  Assembly,  which  vacated  the  office 
of  county  commissioners  and  substituted  the  office  of  county  judge.  Other 
changes  were  made  in  county  offices.  An  abstract  of  the  retums  is  all  that  remains 
of  record.  It  shows  that  John  A.  Pitzer  was  elected  county  judge;  Silas  Bams, 
sheriff;  I.  D.  Guiberson,  treasurer  and  recorder;  Simmons  Rutty,  surveyor; 
William  Gentry,  coroner;  Thomas  D.  Jones,  prosecuting  attorney. 

In  1852,  I.  G.  Houk  was  elected  district  clerk  at  the  April  election  and  in 
August  came  the  first  presidential  election  held  in  Madison  County.  Previously, 
party  lines  had  not  been  sharply  drawn  in  the  county  and  several  whigs  were 
elected  to  office  in  previous  years.  The  year  before  there  was  a  marked  tighten- 
ing of  party  lines  and  in  this  year  each* candidate  took  his  chances  on  his  party 
ticket.  The  election  plainly  showed  the  increasing  strength  of  the  whig  party. 
Out  of  a  total  vote  of  253  cast  by  the  presidential  electors,  the  whigs  totaled  103. 
At  this  election  both  democratic  candidates  for  the  Legislature,  N.  B.  Allison 
and  P.  Gad  Bryan  were  elected.  Other  officers  elected  were:  Clerk  of  dis- 
trict court,  I.  G.  Houk ;  county  attorney,  M.  L.  McPherson. 

The  counties  of  Madison,  Warren  and  Marion  constituted  a  senatorial  dis- 
trict and  the  same  counties  comprised  a  district  which  was  entitled  to  three 
representatives.  The  three  receiving  the  highest  number  of  votes  in  the  district 
were  declared  elected,  so  that  this  election  sent  to  the  Legislature  N.  B.  Allison, 
P.  Gad  Bryan  and  William  Gentry,  all  democrats.  Houk  won  his  election  for 
clerk  of  the  district  court  by  casting  lots  with  his  opponent,  Alfred  D.  Jones,  each 
having  received  131  votes. 

As  near  as  the  records  will  permit,  a  list  of  county  officials  from  1849  ^o  191 4 
follows,  the  year  first  mentioned  showing  the  date  of  election : 

BOARD  OF  COMMISSIONERS 

1849 — David  Bishop,  William  Combs  and  William  Gentry,  chosen  at  the  first 
election,  which  was  a  special  one;  Henry  McKinzie,  N.  S.  Allcock,  William 
Gentry,  chosen  at  the  regular  election  in  August;  1850-1,  Henry  McKinzie, 
Norval  S.  Allcock  and  Edmond  Wood. 


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70  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

CLERK    OF    COMMISSIONERS*    COURT 

P.  M.  Boyles,  1849;  James  Thonibrugh,  chosen  at  the  r^^lar  election, 
1849. 

COUNTY  JUDGE 

1851-8— John  A.  Pitzer;  1859-60,  E.  R.  Guiberson;  1861-4,  T.  D.  Jones; 
1865-7,  N.  W.  Garretson;  W.  H.  Lewis  appointed  to  fill  vacancy  1867;  1868, 
T.  C.  Gilpin,  who  continued  in  office  until  January,  1869,  when  it  was  abolished 
and  he  became  and  acted  in  the  capacity  of  auditor  until  the  first  regular  election 
for  that  office. 

CLERK  OF  DISTRICT  COURT 

1849-51 — G.  W.  McClellan;  1852-3,  I.  G.  Houk;  1854-5,  Lewis  S.  Davis; 
1856-9,  C.  D.  Bevington;  1860-1,  E.  A.  Huber;  1862-7,  M.  R.  Tidrick;  1868-71, 
Daniel  E.  Cooper;  1872-5,  E.  O.  Burt;  1876-81,  W.  R.  Shriver;  1882-7,  W.  S. 
Whedon;  1888-91,  W.  C.  Newlon;  1892-5,  D.  C.  Wright;  1896-9,  H.  S.  Thomson; 
1900-03,  R.  L.  Huston;  1904-07,  J.  A.  Way;  1908-11,  W.  F.  Craig;  1912-15,  H.  C. 
Husted. 

RECORDER 

Joseph  K.  Evans,  January  i,  1849;  Enos  Berger,  1849;  regular  election,  Otho 
Davis,  Octobet,  1850 ;  I.  D.  Guiberson,  1851-2;  Enos  Berger,  recorder  and 
treasurer,  1853-5;  Dr.  L.  M.  Tidrick,  1856-7;  David  Bishop,  treasurer  and 
recorder,  1857-8;  I.  G.  Houk,  treasurer  and  recorder,  1859-62;  R.  A.  Stitt, 
treasurer  and  recorder,  1863;  in  1865  th^  offices  of  treasurer  and  recorder  were 
separated  and  R.  A.  Stitt  was  elected  treasurer.  It  is  presumed  he  retained  the 
recordership  until  his  successor  was  elected  the  following  year.  O.  A.  Moser, 
1866-9;  J.  F.  Smith,  1870-3;  J.  W.  Graham,  1874-7;  A.  McMichael,  1878;  J.  A. 
Sanford,  to  fill  vacancy,  1879 ;  J.  A.  Sanford,  1880-1 ;  G.  W.  Klingensmith,  1882-4 ; 
Eva  Klingensmith,  to  fill  vacancy,  1885;  Eva  Klingensmith,  1886-7;  Caroline 
Murray,  1888-91 ;  John  T.  Young,  1892-5 ;  Jerome  Griffith,  1896-9;  W.  H.  Vance, 
1900-3 ;  E.  F.  Connoran,  1904-7 ;  George  Hill,  1908-1 1 ;  Jeannette  E.  Beck,  1912-15. 

TREASURER 

R.  A.  Stitt,  1865-6;  William  H.  Leonard,  1867-8;  J.  A.  Pitzer,  1869-70;  E.  G. 
Barker,  1871-4;  M.  A.  Knight,  1875-80:  J.  M.  Andrews,  1881-4;  C.  F.  Koehler, 
1885-6;  James  Early,  1887-90;  I.  W.  Horn,  1891-4;  J.  H.  Wintrode,  1895-6; 
D.  G.  Ratliff,  1897-1900;  J.  W.  Smith,  1901-05;  C.  L.  Wilson,  1906-07;  C.  H. 
Hochstetler,  1908-11;  John  W.  Krell,  1912-15. 

SHERIFF 

Ephraim  Bilderback,  1849-50;  Silas  Bams,  1851,  chosen  at  a  special  election 
in  April  of  that  year  to  fill  vacancy,  and  elected  to  the  office  at  the  regular  election 
in  August;  Lewis  S.  Garrett,   1853;  William  Combs,  1855;  Joseph  K.  Evans, 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  71 

1857-8;  Samuel  Hamilton,  1859-61;  H.  C.  Carter,  1863-4;  J.  F.  Brock,  1865-70; 
J.  S.  Tullis,  1871-2;  W.  O.  Ludlow,  1873-4;  D.  G.  Ratliff,  1875-8;  J.  R.  Davis, 
1879-82;  John  McAndrews,  1883-6;  Jeff  Wheat,  1887-90;  M.  E.  Bennett,  1891-4; 
M.  L.  Silliman,  1895-8;  Douglas  Roy,  1899-1900;  J.  W.  Breeding,  1901-2;  Sol 
Breeding 'appointed  to  fill  vacancy,  1903;  John  Docksteader,  1903-7;  J.  P.  Breed- 
ing, 1908-13 ;  F.  B.  Brock,  1914- 

AUDITOR 

Thomas  C.  Gilpin,  1869;  S.  G.  Holliday,  1869-72;  C  C.  Goodale,  1873-8; 
A.  L.  Tullis,  1879-82;  Ezra  Brownell,  1883-6;  G.  W.  Poffinbarger,  1887-91 ;  A.  N. 
Hull,  1892-5;  C.  C.  Stiles,  1896-9;  Herman  A.  Mueller,  1900-03;  G.  W.  Patterson, 
1904-07;  T.  M.  Scott,  1908-11 ;  C.  R.  Green,  1912-15. 

.     SURVEYOR 

Alfred  D.  Jones,  1849;  Wm.  Harmon,  regular  election,  1849;  Simmons  Rutty, 
1850-4;  William  Davis,  1855-62;  E.  S.  McCarty,  1863-5;  W.  H.  Lewis,  1866; 
P.  G.  Andrews,  1867-70;  A.  W.  Wilkinson,  1871-2;  R.  A.  Patterson,  1873-6; 
J.  A.  Wilkins,  1877-8 ;  O.  A.  Moser,  1879-81 ;  R.  A.  Patterson,  to  fill  vacancy, 
1881 ;  J.  A.  Snyder,  1883-4;  J.  A.  Wilkins,  1885-6;  A.  N.  Canfield,  1887-8;  R.  A. 
Patterson,  1889-94;  Robert  A.  Greene,  1895-1900;  E.  C.  Wilson,  1901 ;  W.  R. 
Stewart,  1902;  D.  E.  HoUingsworth,  1903-5;  W.  C.  James,  1906-7;  Charles 
Merrill,  1908-9 ;  E.  B.  Hiatt,  1910  to  date. 

CORONER 

Leonard  Bowman,  1849;  William  Gentry,  185 1;  Dr.  John  H.  Gaff,  1852-4; 
Dr.  John  G.  Scott,  1855;  David  Surber,  1857;  J.  L.  Denman,  1858;  D.  B.  Allen, 
1859;  C.  H.  Coon,  1871-4;  A.  Hood,  1875-6;  P.  M.  Boyles,  1877-84;  M.  C. 
DeBord,  1885-6;  J.  M.  Hobson,  1887-92;  D.  S.  Martin,  1893-1903;  F.  O. 
Richards,  1904-14. 

COUNTY  SUPERINTENDENT  OF  SCHOOLS 

In  a  measure,  the  first  head  of  the  schools  in  Madison  County  held  office 
under  the  title  of  school  fund  commissioner,  the  first  incumbent  of  the  office, 
Daniel  Vancil,  being  elected  in  1849;  David  S.  Bowman,  April  2,  1849;  E.  R. 
Guiberson,  1852;  C.  M.  Wright,  1854;  James  Shepherd,  1856-8;  Lewis  Mayo, 
1859-60;  H.  W.  Hardy,  1861-4;  J.  S.  Goshorn,  1865-6;  H.  W.  Hardy,  1867-70; 
C.  C.  Chamberlain,  1871,  resigned  April  i,  1872,  W.  A.  Ross  appointed  to  fill 
vacancy;  Butler  Bird,  1872-4,  Butler  Bird  resigned  January,  1875,  H.  W.  Hardy 
appointed  to  fill  vacancy;  H.  W.  Hardy,  1875-8;  Emma  Ray,  1879-80;  Homer 
Thompson,  to  fill  vacancy,  January  6,  1881 ;  J.  W.  Mann,  1881-4;  E.  R.  Zeller, 
1885-8;  T.  H.  Stone,  1889-92;  J.  J.  Crossley,  1893-96;  Ed  M.  Smith,  1897-8;  H. 
D.  Smith,  1899-1902 ;  T.  H.  Stone,  1903-06;  Gertrude  M.  Duflf,  1906-09,  resigned ; 
Jean  M.  Cash,  1910,  to  fill  vacancy ;  John  Gentry,  1911-12 ;  Carrie  E.  Ludlow,  1913- 


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72  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

COUNTY  ATTORNEY 

The  first  officer  of  the  District  Court,  whose  duties  were  to  represent  the 
state  in  criminal  and  semi-criminal  actions,  was  known  and  designated  as  the 
district  attorney,  whose  jurisdiction  extended  throughout  the  counties  compris- 
ing the  judicial  district  for  which  he  was  elected.  The  first  incumbent  of  this 
office  was  Alfred  D.  Jones.  The  General  Assembly  of  1885-6  passed  an  act 
abolishing  the  office  of  district  attorney  and  creating  the  office  of  county  attorney, 
thereby  confining  the  duties  of  the  prosecutor  to  his  own  county.  The  county 
attorney  under  the  act  holds  his  office  by  the  votes  of  the  electorate  of  the  county, 
the  same  as  other  officers.  The  first  election  in  Madison  County  for  county 
attorney  was  held  in  1887,  and  the  first  to  hold  the  office  was  John  A.  Guiher; 
Frederick  Mott,  1890-3;  J.  P.  Steele,  1894-7;  C.  A.  Robbins,  1898-1901 ;  W.  S. 
Cooper,  1902-05;  Leo  C.  Percival,  1907-09;  Sam  C.  Smith,  1910-13;  Phil  R. 
Wilkinson,  1914- 

CIRCUIT   COURT  ABOLISHED 

In  1869,  the  business  of  the  District  Court  had  become  so  great  that  a  new 
tribunal  was  created  and  designated  as  the  Circuit  Court.  This  court  exercised 
general  jurisdiction  concurrent  with  the  District  Court,  in  all  civil  actions  and 
special  proceedings,  and  exclusive  jurisdiction  in  all  appeals  and  writs  of  error 
from  inferior  courts,  and  had  a  general  supervision  thereof  in  all  civil  matters. 
It  also  had  the  power  to  correct  and  prevent  abuses  where  no  other  remedy  was 
provided.  This  court  also  had  original  jurisdiction  of  all  probate  matters.  Prior 
to  the  year  1869  the  clerk  was  elected  as  clerk  of  the  EHstrict  Court.  When  the 
law  went  into  effect  establishing  the  Circuit  Court,  the  official  duties  were  circum- 
scribed by  both  courts.    January  i,  1887,  the  Circuit  Court  was  abolished. 

BOARD   OF   SUPERVISORS 

In  the  year  1861  the  system  of  county  board  of  supervisors  was  organized  in 
the  various  counties  of  the  state,  by  act  of  the  Legislature.  The  following  persons 
composed  the  first  board  of  supervisors  in  Madison  County : 

Josiah  Arnold,  William  McDonald,  Otho  Davis,  Henry  A.  Myers,  Milton 
Thompson,  J.  C.  Scott,  Lewis  Crawford,  Oliver  Crawford,  Ira  S.  Smith,  Ashford 
Lake,  J.  D.  Hartman,  Harbert  Harris,  David  Stanton. 

1862 — ^J.  W.  Lane,  O.  Crawford,  M.  Thompson,  William  McDonald,  S.  Ross, 
L.  Crawford,  L.  N.  Clark,  H.  Harris,  M.  C.  Hockenberry,  J.  D.  Hartman,  William 
Gentry,  A.  Lake,  D.  McCarty,  C.  A.  Beerbower,  D.  Francis,  A.  Bonham,  S.  H. 
Guye. 

1863 — David  McCarty,  J.  W.  Lane,  O.  Crawford,  S.  Ralston,  E.  H.  Venard, 
William  H.  McDonald,  S.  Harter,  L.  N.  Clark,  A.  Bonham,  S.  Ross,  H.  Hann, 
A.  Bennett,  G.  A.  Beerbower,  H.  Harris,  W.  J.  Davis,  M.  C.  Hockenberry,  Samuel 
Harter. 

1864— William  McDonald,  Alfred  Hood,  Thomas  H.  Pendleton,  Hugh  Hann, 
S.  Ross,  O.  Crawford,  E.  H.  Venard,  Matthew  McGee,  Abihu  Wilson,  W.  J. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  73 

Davis,  H.  C.  Smith,  S.  Hamblin,  S.  Harter,  A.  Bennett,  Samuel  Ralston,  J.  C. 
Scott,  Van  B.  Wiggins. 

1865— William  H.  McDonald,  George  W.  Roberts,  O.  Crawford,  J.  M. 
Browne,  E.  H.  Venard,  P.  M.  Boyles,  S.  A.  Ross,  B.  F.  Brown,  James  Allen, 
M.  M.  McGee,  Thomas  H.  Pendleton,  Simeon  Hamblin,  Abihu  Wilson,  W.  J. 
Davis,. H.  C.  Smith,  J.  C.  Scott,  A.  Hood. 

1866 — George  W.  Roberts,  Oliver  Crawford,  William  Anderson,  William 
McDonald,  P.  M.  Boyles,  S.  A.  Ross,  B.  F.  Brown,  J.  W.  Cooper,  E.  G.  Perkins, 
Benjamin  Blythe,  Allen  Bamett,  A.  G.  Welch,  James  McAfferty,  E.  C.  Stewart, 
John  McLeod,  M.  C.  DeBord,  James  Allen. 

1867 — ^William  McDonald,  E.  G.  Perkins,  J.  W.  Cooper,  A.  J.  Adkison,  Wil- 
liam L.  Wilkin,  B.  F.  Brown,  William  Anderson,  James  McAfferty,  George  W. 
Roberts,  E.  C.  Stewart,  John  McLeod,  A.  G.  Welch,  Benjamin  Blythe,  Eli  Cox, 
Allen  Bamett,  J.  D.  Whitenack,  Thomas  W.  Stiles. 

1868— E.  F.  Tumey,  C.  Hughart,  T.  W.  Stiles,  William  Anderson,  William 
McDonald,  Eli  Cox,  Q.  C.  Bird,  B.  F.  Brown,  J.  D.  Whitenack,  James  Goare, 
I.  N.  Hogle,  H.  H.  Harris,  Daniel  Francis,  O.  B.  Bissell,  A.  M.  Hart,  Joseph 
J.  Grier. 

1869 — William  Anderson,  John  McLeod,  Sr.,  J.  D.  Whitenack,  D.  F.  Tumey, 
Daniel  Frailcis,  James  Goare,  Van  B.  Wiggins,  George  B.  Breeding,  I.  N.  Hogle, 
C.  Hughart,  Thomas  W.  Stiles,  William  Smith,  Harbert  Harris,  O.  B.  Bissell, 
A.  M.  Hart,  J.  J.  Grier,  George  Fisher. 

In  1870  the  supervisor  system  was  changed  and  the  number  reduced  to  three, 
who  should  be  elected  by  the  county  at  the  general  election  and  the  length  of  their 
terms  to  be  decided  by  lot.  After  this  change  supervisors  were  elected  as  follows, 
but  the  change  was  not  complete  iintjl  the  old  supervisors  had  served  out  their 
terms  : 

1870 — George  Fisher,  I.  N.  Hogle,  J.  M.  Andrews,  William  Anderson,  W.  H. 
Lewis,  E.  H.  Conger. 

1871 — ^William  Anderson,  E.  H.  Conger,  W.  H.  Lewis. 

1872 — E.  H.  Conger,  Thomas  Runkle,  W.  H.  Lewis. 

1873 — ^W.  H.  Lewis,  Thomas  Runkle,  Milton  Wilson. 

1874 — W.  H.  Lewis,  Thomas  Runkle,  Milton  Wilson. 

187s — W.  H.  Lewis,  S.  M.  Creger,  Milton  Wilson. 

1876 — W.  H.  Lewis,  S.  M.  Creger,  Milton  Wilson. 

1877 — S.  M.  Creger,  G.  A.  Beerbower,  Milton  Wilson. 

1878 — G.  A.  Beerbower,  John  H.   Marley,   Mihon  Wilson. 

1879 — Alfred  Hartman,  G.  A.  Beerbower,  John  H.  Marley. 

1880 — ^J.  H.  Marley,  J.  F.  Buchanan,  Alfred  Hartman. 

1881 — ^J.  F.  Buchanan,  Charles  Polk,  L.  S.  Holmes. 

1882 — ^J.  F.  Buchanan,  Charles  Polk,  L.  S.  Holmes. 

1883 — Charles  Polk,  C.  W.  Thompson,  George  Storck. 

1884 — George  Storck,  George  Duncan,  M.  C.  Shaw. 

1885 — George  Storck,  M.  C.  Shaw,  J.  M.  Browne. 

1886 — M.  C.  Shaw,  J.  M.  Browne,  G.  F.  Lenocker. 

1887 — G.  F.  Lenocker,  J.  M.  Browne,  L.  N.  Conway. 

1888— L.  N.  Conway,  M.  M.  McGee,  G.  F.  Lenocker. 


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74  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

1889— L.  N.  Conway,  M.  M.  McGee,  Thomas  W.  Stiles. 

1890— M.  M.  McGee,  Thomas  W.  Stiles,  N.  B.  HoUingsworth. 

1891 — ^Thomas  W.  Stiles,  N.  B.  HoUingsworth,  L.  Banker. 

1892 — N.  B.  HoUingsworth,  L.  Banker,  John  Brooker. 

1893 — L.  Banker,  John  Brooker,  W.  E.  Mack. 

1894— John  Brooker,  W.  E.  Mack,  H.  H.  Kilgore. 

1895— W.  E.  Mack,  H.  H.  Kilgore,  John  Brooker. 

1896 — H.  H.  Kilgore,  John  Brooker,  A.  B.  Johnson. 

1897 — ^John  Brooker,  A.  B.  Johnson,  A.  Dunlap. 

1898 — A.  Dunlap,  C.  S.  Wilson,  A.  B.  Johnson. 

1899 — Alexander  Dunlap,  C.  S.  Wilson,  A.  B.  Johnson. 

1900 — C.  S.  Wilson,  A.  B.  Johnson,  Alexander  Dunlap. 

1901 — ^A.  Dunlap,  A.  B.  Johnson,  C.  S.  Wilson. 

1902 — ^Alexander  Dunlap,  C.  S.  Wilson,  A.  J.  Jones. 

1903 — C.  S.  Wilson,  A.  J.  Jones,  James  Breckenridge. 

1904 — ^A.  J.  Jones,  M.  O.  Brady,  James  Breckenridge. 

1905 — ^A.  J.  Jones,  M.  O.  Brady,  James  Breckenridge. 

1906 — M.  O.  Brady,  A.  J.  Jones,  James  Breckenridge. 

1907 — M.  O.  Brady,  R.  A.  Lenocker,  A.  J.  Jones. 

1908 — R.  A.  Lenocker,  M.  O.  Brady,  J.  T.  Young. 

1909— M.  O.  Brady,  J.  T.  Young,  W.  H.  Deardorff. 

1910 — ^W.  E.  Shambaugh,  W.  H.  Deardorff,  L.  V.  Price. 

191 1— L.  V.  Price,  W.  H.  Deardorff,  W.  H.  Maxwell. 

1912— L.  V.  Price,  W.  H.  Maxwell,  C.  D.  Stiles. 

1913— W.  H.  Maxwell,  C.  D.  Stiles,  L.  V.  Price. 

1914— C.  D.  Stiles,  L.  V.  Price,  W.  H.  Maxwell. 

1915— L.  V.  Price,  W.  H.  Maxwell,  C.  D.  Stiles. 

REPRESENTATIVES 

Below  is  a  list  of  Madison's  able  men  who  represented  the  county  in  the 
General  Assembly :  Senate :  M.  L.  McPherson,  6th,  7th,  8th  and  extra  session, 
9th  and  extra  session ;  Benjamin  F.  Roberts,  loth  session ;  Benjamin  F.  Murray, 
13th  and  14th;  Eli  Wilkin,  20th  and  21st;  Richard  Price,  22d  and  23d;  James  J. 
Crossley,  28th,  29th,  30th,  31st  and  32d. 

House:  Edwin  R.  Guiberson,  3d  and  7th;  Benjamin  F.  Roberts,  6th;  T.  D. 
Jones,  8th  and  extra ;  Alfred  Hood,  9th  and  extra ;  John  E.  Darby,  loth ;  Joseph  M. 
Browne,  nth;  Benjamin  F.  Murray,  12th:  John  H.  Hartenbower,  13th;  David 
D.  Davisson,  14th;  O.  B.  Bissell,  isth;  J.  J.  Smith,  i6th;  William  F.  Hadley, 
17th;  Daniel  Francis,  i8th;  Butler  Bird,  19th;  Albert  R.  Dabney,  20th  and  21st; 
Dr.  J.  H.  Mack,  22d  and  23d ;  I.  K.  Wilson,  24th ;  A.  L.  Wood,  25th,  26th  and  extra 
session ;  John  Shambaugh,  27th  and  28th ;  Robert  A.  Greene,  29th,  30th  and  31st ; 
John  Schoenberger,  32d  and  extra  session ;  Elias  R.  Zeller,  33d  and  34th ;  Walter 
F.  Craig,  35th ;  R.  A.  Lenocker,  36th. 


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CHAPTER  VIII 

ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  REPUBLICAN  PARTY  IN  MADISON 

COUNTY 

In  publishing  what  follows,  nothing  should  be  construed  in  a  partisan  sense. 
The  democratic  party  long  had  existed,  even  from  the  beginning  of  the  nation 
under  its  republican  form  of  government.  Thomas  Jefferson,  third  president  of 
the  United  States,  was  its  first  great  beacon  light  and  patron  saint  and  then  came 
Andrew  Jackson,  "Old  Hickory,"  who  solidified  its  ranks  and  made  the  party  the 
dominant  one  for  generations.  But  the  republican  party  was  bom  while  Madison 
County  was  in  her  infancy  and  leaders  in  the  political  affairs  of  this  community 
took  part  in  the  christening.  So  that,  a  general  outline  of  the  notable  event  has 
a  place  in  this  work. 

An  account  of  the  formation  and  first  years  of  the  republican  party  in  Iowa 
will  doubtless  be  of  interest.  The  party  was  organized  in  the  county  in  1856, 
mainly  through  the  exertions  of  H.  J.  B.  Cummings.  Colonel  Cummings,  on  his 
way  in  search  of  a  new  home,  crossed  the  Mississippi  River  on  the  ice,  in  January, 
1856,  and  came  directly  to  Winterset.  He  was  an  ardent  believer  in  the  prin- 
ciples of  the  new  party,  which  had  been  organized  in  the  state  he  came  from  the 
previous  year,  and  a  certain  incident  occurring  soon  after  arriving  at  his  new 
home,  was  the  occasion  of  his  entering  upon  the  work  of  organization  here: 
Mr.  Glazebrook,  the  democratic  postmaster  here,  received  from  the  office  of 
Horace  Greeley  a  package  of  documents  urging  the  organization  of  the  party  in 
all  the  coimties  of  the  state,  also  printed  calls  for  assembling  of  persons  in 
sympathy  with  the  movement,  with  the  time  and  place  of  meeting  in  blank,  to  be 
filled  out  to  suit  the  local  conditions.  Mr.  Glazebrook,  though  not  in  sympathy 
with  the  movement,  was  a  fair  minded  man,  and  had  a  keen  sense  of  official 
duty,  so  he  handed  the  package  to  Mr.  Cummings,  as  the  right  man  into  whose 
hands  the  document  should  be  placed.  Cummings  filled  out  the  blanks  and  with 
the  aid  of  a  Mr.  Amold,  a  photographer,  posted  them  throughout  the  county. 
The  first  meeting  was  held  in  the  old  schoolhouse,  which  then  was  situated  where 
the  high  school  is  now  located,  and  which  was  afterward  moved  to  Court  Avenue 
on  the  lot  just  west  of  the  new  Madisonian  office,  and  where  it  remained  until 
1905,  when  it  was  torn  down  that  it  might  no  longer  mar  the  appearance  of  sur- 
rounding property,  and  especially  the  new  library  building.  The  meeting  for 
organization  was  held  at  night  and  there  was  quite  a  respectable  crowd  present. 
There  were  no  lights  in  the  building  and  proceedings  were  delayed  until  a  man 
could  be  dispatched  up  town  for  a  half  dozen  candles.  The  meeting  was  called 
to  order  by  Mr.  Cummings  and  the  Rev.  J.  E.  Darby  was  elected  chairman.  Mr. 
Cummings  acted  as  secretary.    Among  those  present  taking  part  beside  the  two 

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76  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

gentlemen  already  mentioned,  were  N.  W.  Garretson  and  John  McLeod,  Sr., 
W.  W.  McKnight,  B.  F.  Roberts  and  J.  J.  Hutchings.  The  work  of  organiza- 
tion was  soon  finished  and  a  convention  was  called,  to  meet  in  the  Methodist 
Church,  for  the  purpose  of  nominating  a  county  ticket.  At  this  convention  M.  L. 
McPherson  was  nominated  for  senator,  B.  F.  Roberts  for  representative  and 
H.  J.  B.  Cummings  for  attorney.  At  the  election  the  ticket  was  successful 
and  in  November  Fremont  carried  the  county  over  Buchanan  by  a  majority  of 
sixty-one.  Many  exciting  campaigns  have  been  fought  out  in  Madison  County, 
notably  in  the  days  of  the  greenback  party,  still  vivid  in  the  memory  of  many 
now  living,  but  it  is  questioned  if  there  ever  was  a  more  exciting  campaign 
than  this.  The  republican  meetings  in  Winterset  were  mainly  held  in  the  old 
stone  Christian  Church.  The  democrats,  on  one  occasion,  tried  to  get  the 
Methodist  Church  and  the  trustees,  not  giving  their  consent,  they  undertook  to 
take  possession  anyway,  and  there  resulted  a  great  tumult  at  the  doors,  but 
through  the  great  valor  of  one  Mr.  Shannon,  who  emulated  **Horatius  at  the 
bridge,''  the  crowd  was  kept  out  and  had  to  seek  other  quarters.  There  was  a 
spellbinder  sent  here  by  the  State  Republican  Committee,  whose  name  is  for- 
gotten, but  who  is  said  to  have  been  an  orator  of  unusual  ability,  and  through 
his  eloquence  converts  were  made  by  the  score.  Colonel  Cummings  and  M.  L. 
McPherson  also  stumped  the  county  during  the  campaign. 

In  those  days  the  spring  elections  were  of  about  as  much  importance  as  the 
fall  elections.  The  following  editorial  from  the  Iowa  Pilot,  the  first  paper  pub- 
lished in  Winterset,  dated  March  27,  1857,  is  pertinent: 

"Our  fellow  citizens  will  bear  in  mind  that  next  Monday  week  is  the  day 
for  holding  the  spring  elections.  There  are  seventl  important  officers  to  be 
chosen,  among  which  are  one  district  judge,  one  superintendent  of  public  instruc- 
tion, commissioner  of  Des  Moines  river  improvement,  register  of  state  land 
office,  county  assessor,  and  the  usual  township  officers.  Below  will  be  found  the 
republican  ticket.  Let  every  republican  be  at  the  polls  and  cast  his  vote  and 
influence  for  republican  men  and  principles. 

"Superintendent  of  public  instruction,  L.  H.  Bugbee;  commissioner  of  Des 
Moines  improvement,  Edwin  Manning ;  register  of  land  office,  William  H.  Holmes ; 
district  judge,  William  M.  Stone;  county  assessor,  E.  S.  McCarty." 

In  the  issue  of  the  same  paper,  dated  August  22,  1857,  the  following  official 
directory  from  which  it  appears  that  a  majority  of  republicans  were  elected,  is 
noticed  : 

"County  judge,  John  A.  Pitzer;  senator,  M.  L.  McPherson;  representative, 
B.  F.  Roberts;  treasurer  and  recorder,  L.  M.  Tidrick;  district  clerk,  William 
Pursell;  prosecuting  attorney,  H.  J.  B.  Cummings;  sheriflf,  William  Combs." 

The  same  issue  of  the  Pilot  stated : 

"The  city  council  are  particularly  lenient  to  hogs  and  dogs.  From  the  official 
ordinance  in  another  column  it  will  be  seen  that  they,  that  is  the  hogs  and  dogs, 
not  the  councilmen,  have  the  freedom  of  the  city  extended  till  the  first  day  of 
October.  They  should  have  a  mass  meeting  on  the  public  square  and  adopt  a 
vote  of  thanks  as  an  expression  of  their  gratitude  to  their  illustrious  governors. 
In  this  prairie  country  dumb  brutes  have  sense  enough  to  keep  in  close  quarters 
when  cold  weather  begins." 


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COLONEL  H.  J.  B.  CUMMINGS 
Came  to  Madison  County  in  1856  and  was  one  of  the 
organizers  of  the  republican  party  in  the  county  in  that 
year;  colonel  of  the  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Regiment;  served 
in  Congress,  being  elected  in  1876;  was  connected  with 
the  Madisonian  for  a  period  of  twenty  years.  He  was 
the  father  of  Mrs.  Laura  J.  Miller,  and  passed  away  a 
few  years  ago. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  77 

The  campaign  of  1858  seems  to  have  been  a  very  exciting  one  for  an  off  year. 
In  the  issue  of  the  Madisonian  of  September  4th  there  is  a  call  for  the  formation 
of  a  republican  club.  The  call  is  supplemented  by  an  appeal  to  the  republican 
voters  to  "jine/*  from  which  the  following  extract  is  taken: 

"What  say  you  republicans?  Let  us  have  an  institution  that  will  be  an  honor 
to  the  republican  party  of  Madison  County.  Start  the  ball  in  motion  and  do  not 
fear  but  that  it  can  be  kept  rolling.  Let  the  hypocrisy,  treason,  bribery,  corrup- 
tion and  profligacy  of  the  sham  democracy  be  exposed  until  they  cry  enough." 

And  again :  **We  hope  the  republicans  of  the  various  townships  will  do  their 
duty  in  securing  large  audiences  at  the  several  places  where  Judge  Stone  and 
Prosecuting  Attorney  Cummings  have  appointments  to  speak." 

The  same  paper  has  a  call  for  the  county  convention  to  nominate  a  county 
ticket.  The  various  townships,  of  which  there  were  then  thirteen,  were  entitled 
to  forty-two  delegates.  The  call  was  signed  by  Fred  Mott,  J.  M.  Browne,  J.  J. 
Hutchings,  William  Jones  and  H.  J.  B.  Cummings  as  county  central  committee. 

During  this  campaign  there  was  a  heated  contest  between  William  Pursell, 
for  the  office  of  county  clerk,  and  Doctor  Bevington,  his  democratic  competitor. 
One  Saturday,  just  prior  to  the  election.  Doctor  Bevington  learned  that  the  records 
in  Purseirs  office  were  considerably  behind  and  made  arrangements  to  take  a  man 
with  him  to  examine  them  the  following  Monday.  Colonel  Cunmiings,  who  was 
out  at  Big  Grove  that  day  making  a  political  speech,  did  not  get  home  till  after 
night  and  found  Pursell  anxiously  awaiting  his  return.  He  had  been  informed 
by  a  particular  friend  of  the  intended  raid  on  his  office  and  did  not  know  what 
to  do.  Cummings  was  a  strict  Presbyterian,  who  pUt  great  stress  on  the  observ- 
ance of  the  Sabbath  day,  but  he  was  also  an  ardent  republican  and  wanted  to  see 
his  party  succeed.  After  deliberating  over  the  matter  jfor  some  time  he  decided 
to  help  save  his  party,  although  at  the  expense  of  his  religious  principles.  So  he 
agreed  to  lock  himself  in  the  clerk's  office  on  Sunday,  and  help  Pursell  straighten 
out  the  records.  The  two  put  in  a  twelve-hour  day  on  those  records,  and  on  the 
following  Monday,  when  Doctor  Bevington  and  his  committee  arrived,  they  found 
the  records  all  correct  and  up-to-date.  Doctor  Bevington  was  elected,  but  always 
thought  some  one  had  lied  on  Pursell. 

From  i860  till  the  present  time  Madison  County  has  been  republican,  and 
much  credit  for  this  condition  is  due  to  the  energetic  manner  in  which  the  party 
was  organized  and  managed  during  the  first  few  years  of  its  existence. 


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CHAPTER  IX 
EDUCATIONAL 

The  first  school  taught  in  Madison  County  was  in  that  part  of  it  allotted  to 
Union  Township,  in  1847-8.  The  school  was,  of  course  and  by  necessity,  main- 
tained by  subscription,  the  county  being  not  yet  organized.  Mrs.  Polly  Case,  wife 
of  Amos  Case,  was  the  first  teacher.  Elsewhere  some  information  is  given  con- 
cerning this  family.  The  school  term  was  three  months,  and  the  compensation 
agreed  upon  was  $1  per  month,  per  scholar.  The  log  building  in  which  the 
school  was  held  was  one  of  two  cabins,  built  near  each  other  in  the  heavy  timber 
by  Case  and  his  father-in-law,  Hinkle,  in  the  fall  of  1846.  During  the  fall  of 
1847  these  pioneers  built  another  cabin  for  Hinkle,  some  distance  north,  into 
which  he  moved.  It  was  in  the  cabin  vacated  by  Hinkle  that  Mrs.  Case  taught 
school.  In  size  the  structure  was  twelve  feet  square  and  was  built  of  unhewn  oak 
logs,  with  "chink*'  and  cla^  mortar  between.  There  was  the  regulation  *'stick 
chimney"  and  fireplace.  The  roof  was  of  universal  "A"  design,  having  clap- 
boards and  heavy  pole  weights  to  hold  them  in  place.  Other  details  were  a 
puncheon  floor,  a  puncheon  door  fastened  with  a  string;  it  had  a  wooden  latch 
and  was  hung  by  wooden  hinges.  There  were  three  long  puncheon  seats,  sup- 
ported by  legs  of  two-inch  saplings.  One  of  the  seats  was  used  for  the  recitations. 
The  teacher  had  no  desk  or  seat.  A  short  puncheon  writing  desk  was  supported 
by  two  pins  driven  into  holes  bored  into  one  of  the  logs.  A  window  having  six 
panes  of  8x10  glass  furnished  a  moiety  of  light.  By  having  a  good  fire,  the  door 
was  left  open,  or  partly  open,  and  by  this  arrangement  the  pupils  could  see  their 
books.  Being  surrounded  by  heavy  timber,  there  was  no  wind  to  bother ;  besides, 
the  winter  was  a  mild  one. 

The  term  began  the  first  Monday  in  December,  1847,  ^"d  continued  twelve 
weeks,  during  which  time,  spelling,  reading,  writing  and  arithmetic  were  taught. 
A  home-made  ink  was  used,  made  out  of  wild  berries,  hulls  of  walnuts,  or  the 
bark  of  trees.  Lunches  mostly  consisted  of  com  bread  (there  was  no  flour  in 
the  country  at  all),  or  fried  mush,  sometimes  cold  potatoes,  wild  fruits,  cold 
pork  and  venison,  plenty  of  wild  honey  and  maple  syrup.  Those  seemingly 
half  wild  children  of  the  forest  and  prairie  had  great  abundance  of  appetite  and 
food.  Theirs  was  the  "simple  life*'  we  read  about;  theirs  were  health  and  great 
endurance. 

No  specially  important  event  marked  the  history  of  this  school.  During  the 
noon  hour  the  children  roamed  about  and  through  the  woods  they  knew  so  well, 
and  frequently  the  larger  boys  were  tardy  when  "called  to  books."  But  this 
was  no  serious  oflfense  unless  they  were  out  too  long.  In  such  cases  they  might 
be  kept  in  their  seats  during  the  afternoon  recess.  "Calling  books"  was  done  by 
the  teacher  pounding  on  the  door,  or  casing,  with  a  short  stick. 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  79 

The  names  of  the  pupils  attending  this  initial  school  were :  Francis  Marion, 
Samuel  Houston,  Mary  and  Elizabeth  Guye,  David  Reece,  Daniel,  Levi  and  Mary 
Bowman,  Nancy  and  Hiram  Beedle,  a  daughter  of  a  Mr.  Brownfield,  Moses 
Hinkle,  Lorena  Harris.  They  were  children  respectively  of  Samuel  Guye, 
Leonard  Bowman  and  John  R.  Beedle.  Concerning  the  others,  Brownfield's 
first  name  nor  the  name  of  his  daughter  have  been  obtained ;  Moses  Hinkle  was 
a  brother  of  the  teacher.  Lorena  Harris  was  an  adopted  daughter  of  Mrs.  Case 
and  later  became  the  wife  of  George  W.  Guye. 

SOME    EARLY    SCHOOL    LAWS 

The  act  of  January  15,  1849,  concerning  school  officers  and  examination  of 
teachers,  which  was  in  effect  the  first  year  of  the  organization  of  Madison  County 
and  remained  in  effect  the  next  few  years,  provided  as  follows : 

"In  each  organized  school  district  there  shall  be  elected  on  the  first  Monday 
in  May  of  each  year  one  president,  one  secretary  and  one  treasurer,  who  shall 
constitute  a  board  of  directors. 

"The  board  shall  employ  all  teachers,  shall  not  overdraw  the  teachers'  fund 
but  if  it  be  short  of  enough  to  pay  amount  due  the  teacher  at  the  agreed  upon 
rate  per  month,  the  balance  shall  be  paid  by  the  persons  sending  pupils  in  such 
manner  as  agreed  upon  by  the  teacher  and  the  board. 

^'Before  employing  any  teacher  the  board  shall  examine  or  cause  to  be  ex- 
amined such  person  in  spelling,  reading,  writing,  arithmetic,  geography,  history 
of  the  United  States  and  English  grammar,  and  if  found  qualified,  may  employ 
him." — Iowa  Code,  1850. 

The  county  school  fund  commissioner  was  invested  with  power  to  divide 
unorganized  territory  into  school  districts  or  to  change  boundaries  of  existing 
districts  upon  petition  of  two-thirds  of  the  legal  voters  of  the  territory  in  interest. 
— Iowa  iZode,  1850. 

School  age  was  between  five  and  twenty-one  years,  as  now.  But  persons  of 
any  color  other  than  white  were  wholly  excluded  from  the  public  school  system. 
On  the  other  hand,  no  person  other  than  white  was  taxed  for  public  school 
purposes. 

FIRST  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS  CREATED  IN  THE  COUNTY 

In  1849  the  county  was  divided  into  three  townships.  Union,  Center  and 
South ;  the  former  on  the  north,  and  the  other  two  as  their  names  indicate.  The 
townships  were  divided  into  school  districts  during  the  first  half  of  the  year  1849 
and  the  districts  were  numbered  from  one  upward.  September  15th  of  that 
year  there  were  four  school  districts  in  Union,  five  in  Center  and  four  in  South. 
Enumeration  of  all  white  persons  was  required  in  each  district  between  Sep- 
tember 15th  and  October  ist.  Colored  persons  then  were  excluded  and  even 
exempt  from  paying  taxes  in  support  of  schools.  From  the  reports  that  remain 
on  file,  have  been  gathered  the  following  information  concerning  the  schools 
of  the  county  on  the  ist  day  of  October,  1849,  ^"^  the  names  of  those  within 
school  age  (boundary  lines  do  not  appear) .   Each  school  district  had  a  board  of 


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80  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

directors,  the  secretary  of  which  made  an  annual  report  to  the  school  fund 
commissioner,  who  was  A.  D.  Jones. 

In  District  No.  i,  Union  (now)  Township,  the  board  was  composed  of 
James  Brown,  who  then  lived  on  section  36,  in  what  is  now  Jefferson  Town- 
ship; David  Cracraft,  on  the  northeast  of  section  9,  in  Union;  Major  Farris, 
who  lived  on  the  southwest  part  of  section  10,  Union  Township,  was  secretary 
of  the  board  and  as  such  certified  the  enumeration.  Names  of  those  of  school 
age  were:  Nancy,  Hiram  and  Abraham  Beedle;  Emeline,  Eli,  Reuben,  Milton, 
Rosa,*Mary  and  Julia  Ann  Cracraft ;  Harriet  and  Lewis  Wilhoit ;  Wesley  Monroe 
Moore ;  Joseph,  Samuel,  Sarah,  Thomas,  John,  William  and  James  Riley  Brown ; 
James  Oemmons.  This  district  included  the  east  half  of  Union,  north  of  Cedar, 
and  all  the  county  east  and  north. 

In  District  No.  2,  Union  Township,  Leonard  Bowman  was  president  of  the 
board  and  lived  on  the  southwest  part  of  section  5 ;  Thomas  M.  Boyles,  secretary 
lived  on  the  southwest  part  of  section  17;  and  William  Sturman,  treasurer,  on 
the  northeast  part  of  section  9,  all  in  Union  Township.  The  secretary  filed  no 
list,  but  certified  there  were  twenty-six  persons  of  school  age  in  No.  2.  It  is 
presumed  this  district  embraced  the  west  half  of  Union  and  all  the  county  north 
of  it. 

District  No.  3  had  for  its  president  of  the  board  Claiborne  Pitzer,  who  lived 
on  section  16;  William  Combs,  secretary,  on  section  14;  and  Jacob  Combs,  treas- 
urer, west  and  south  of  William  Forbes,  all  in  what  is  now  Douglas  Township. 
The  names  of  those  within  school  age  were:  Elizabeth,  Matilda,  Nancy,  Lititia, 
Lucy  Ann  and  Lucinda  Brinson;  Leander,  Asbury,  Martitia,  Nancy  and  Craw- 
ford McCarty;  Hiram,  Amanda,  Perry  M.,  Noah  S.,  Aaron  V.  and  Rebecca 
Bams;  Henry  F.,  Fletcher  B.,  Emory  W.,  Sarah  P.,  Newton  B.  and  Samuel 
C.  Pitzer;  Hiram  and  George  W.  Baum;  Barbara,  Benjamin,  Lucinda  and  Sarah 
Jane  Combs. 

In  District  No.  4  William  Hinshaw  was  president  and  Alfred  Rice  was  secre- 
tary. His  home  was  on  the  edge  of  Madison  Township,  where  Jake  Trester 
afterward  located.  Nimrod  Taylor,  the  treasurer,  lived  near  the  Rice  place. 
Those  of  school  age  were :  Silas  and  Rebecca  R.  Hinshaw ;  William,  John, . 
Elizabeth  and  David  Taylor;  Eliza  Jane,  Samuel  J.,  John,  David  and  Elam  Rice; 
Stepton  Brewer. 

The  school  board  of  Center  Township,  District  No.  i,  was  composed  of 
Charles  Wright,  president,  who  lived  on  Middle  River,  a  little  southwest  of 
Winterset;  William  Harmon,  secretary,  and  David  Vancil,  treasurer,  both  of 
whom  lived  near  the  "Backbone.*'  The  children  within  school  age  were:  Mary, 
Francis  and  Martha  Wright;  Joseph,  William,  Lewis,  Louisa  and  Marinda 
Ellen  Thomburg;  Francis  M.  Moore;  Julian,  Margaret  and  Martha  Ansley; 
Sarah  Ellen  and  Francis  A.  Skidmore;  Charles,  Isaac,  Elizabeth  and  Lydia 
Vancil;  Lorenzo,  George  L.,  Amanda  Caroline,  Lineville  M.,  John  H.,  Nancy 
Jane  and  Tilman  G.  Harmon. 

In  EHstrict  No.  2  the  board's  members  were:  Enos  Berger,  president,  who 
lived  in  Winterset;  Samuel  B.  Casebier,  secretary.  He  lived  near  Winterset  on 
the  east;  and  Daniel  Chenoweth,  who  lived  about  a  mile  south  of  Winterset. 


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HIGH  SCHOOL,  ST.  CHARLES 
Erected  in  1913 


PUBLIC  SCHOOL  BUILDING,  ST.  CHARLES 
Building  used  for  a  school  from  1877  until  1913.     Rear  wing  built  in  1877;  front  wing  built 

in  1886.     Torn  away  in  1913 


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-J 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  81 

The  enumeration  list  for  this  district  is  missing,  the  one  of  all  greatly  to  be 
desired.    This  district  included  Winterset  and  territory  around  it. 

In  District  No.  3  were  J.  C.  Casebier,  president,  who  lived  next  north  of  the 
Theo  Cox  farm;  John  Butler,  secretary,  with  residence  on  section  29  in  (now) 
Union;  and  David  D.  Henry, ^treasurer,  who  lived  on  section  20,  in  (now) 
Union.  The  secretary  certified  there  were  fifty-three  children  of  school  age. 
This  district  probably  embraced  the  territory  between  Cedar  and  Middle  River, 
in  (now)  Union,  from  a  mile  east  of  Winterset,  to  Tileville. 

The  members  of  the  board  in  District  No.  4  were  Henry  McKinzie,  president, 
who  lived  on  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  16,  now  Scott  Township;  David 
Bishop,  secretary,  on  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  22,  now  Scott  Township ; 
no  treasurer  given.  Those  of  school  age  were :  Miles  N.  Casebier,  Louisa  Sim- 
mons, Elizabeth  E.,  Daniel,  Thomas,  Aaron,  Ann,  Emeline,  Mahala  and  Caroline 
McKinzie;  Anna,  James  and  Mary  Crawford;  Louisa,  Rebecca,  Joseph  and 
Pelina  Thornburg;  Thomas  M.,  Mary  Margaret,  David  J.,  William  Sidney, 
John,  Matilda  Ellen  and  Daniel  Wilkinson ;  John,  William,  Washington,  Edward, 
James  and  Nancy  Jane  Higgins;  Henry  Mcjohnson;  Jesse  N.,  Mary  Jane  and 
Nancy  Caroline  Fleener.  This  district  seems  to  have  embraced  all  of  (now)  Scott 
Township,  west  of  Fleener's  Branch. 

The  board  in  District  No.  5:  Daniel  Newberry,  president;  lived  south  and 
east  of  McClellan*s  on  the  bottom;  George  W.  McClellan,  secretary;  and  Calvin 
Randall,  treasurer.  Those  of  school  age  were:  Samuel,  William,  Elias  G.,  Katy 
Jane  and  Joseph  Mendenhall;  Mary  Katharine  Steward.  Probably  this  district 
included  the  territory  comprising  Union  Township  east  of  Tileville,  between 
Cedar  and  Middle  River. 

South  Township,  District  No.  i :  Levi  Bishop,  president ;  John  Vanhouten, 
secretary,  who  lived  on  section  34  in  (now)  Union  Township;  and  Nathan 
Viney.  Those  of  school  age  were:  Lewis,  Linza,  Sally,  Jane  and  Verlina 
Graves;  Mary  and  Edward  Carl;  James  Berchert;  Minerva,  Robert  and  Louisa 
Viney ;  Josiah,  John,  Bertha  and  Sarepta  Bishop ;  Joseph  B.  and  Mary  A.  Whited; 
James  Irving,  William,  Hulda  and  Sarilda  Ann  Harbert;  Hester  Ann,  Winnie, 
Benjamin  and  Emeline  Bishop;  David,  Peter  and  John  J.  Vanhouten.  This  dis- 
trict included  all  of  (now)  Scott  Township,  east  of  Fleener's  Branch  to  (now) 
South  Township. 

District  No.  2:  David  S.  Smith,  president;  Seth  Adamson,  secretary;  and 
William  Smith,  treasurer.  Those  of  school  age  were :  Huldah,  Mary  J.,  Aaron 
M.,  Solomon  W.  and  Sarah  E.  Adamson;  James  T.,  John  J.,  Eleanor,  Thomas  T., 
Joshua,  Colista,  William  T.  and  Permelia  E.  Cason;  John  S.  A.,  Barton  W.  S., 
Permelia  A.  U.,  James  S.  M.,  Benjamin  P.  B.  and  Elizabeth  D.  E.  Essley ;  John 
W.,  George  W.,  Mary  M.  and  Benjamin  A.  Worley;  Milton  M.,  Lorenzo  W., 
William  T.  and  Armelda  A.  Smith. 

District  No.  3 :  President  not  given ;  Norval  S.  Allcock,  secretary ;  lived  where 
the  Town  of  Hanly  now  is;  treasurer,  not  given.  Those  of  school  age  were: 
Margaret  S.,  John  J.,  Lorenzo  W.,  Frances  E.  and  James  H.  Allcock;  John  W., 
James  H.,  Jacob  H.,  Eveline  E.  and  Elvina  M.  Simmerman;  Joel,  Nancy,  Wil- 
liam, Isaac  W.,  Moses  E.,  George,  Thomas  N.,  William  W.,  Charles  P.,  John  C, 
Lucinda,  Sarah  M.  and  Rachel  Clanton ;  Louisa  J.,  Rachel  C,  Sarah  E.,  Nancy  E. 


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82  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

and  Cynthia  Ann  Clark ;  George  W.,  Granville  A.,  Lucinda,  William  C.,  Mary  J., 
Lucy  Ann,  Sarah  L.  and  Elizabeth  R.  Smith;  Lucinda  E.,  Orlema  J.  and  Jesse 
M.  Hail;  Wily,  Henry  A.,  Martin  S.,  Frederick,  Sarah  E.,  Marvinda  and  Heze- 
kiah  Stagerwalt.  This  district  about  included  (now)  South  Township,  and  Ohio 
except  along  Jones  Creek. 

District  No.  4:  Hiram  Hurst,  president;  Mathew  W.  Jones,  secretary;  and 
Nathan  Bass,  treasurer.  The  school  election  was  held  at  the  house  of  Andrew 
Hart,  who  was  chairman  of  the  meeting,  and  Mathew  W.  Jones,  secretary.  Four 
voters  were  present — Hart,  Hurst,  Jones  and  Bass.  Hurst  and  Bass  had  each 
four  votes  and  Jones  three.  The  secretary  was  careful  to  report  "no  opposition 
to  the  candidates."  Those  of  school  age  were:  Leroy,  Ambrose  P.,  Thomas  J., 
Norman,  Michael  and  Nancy  E.  Nunn;  John  M.  Hurst;  John,  Caleb  and  Mary 
E.  Rollins;  Andrew  Jackson  and  William  Hart;  Francis  and  Mary  E.  Stark; 
William  J.  Dority ;  Lemuel,  William  and  Wilson  Dorrell ;  George  Head ;  Gillam, 
Mary,  Henry  and  Nancy  J.  Peters ;  William,  Elizabeth,  EmeUne  and  John  Jones ; 
Joseph,  Elisha,  William,  Christopher,  Elizabeth  and  John  Trimble. 

A.  D.  Jones,  school  fund  commissioner  of  the  county,  summarizes  the  school 
enumeration  of  the  county,  as  of  date  October  i,  1849,  being  the  first  school 
enumeration  of  the  county,  as  follows: 

Union  Township,  District  No.  i — 21;  No.  2 — 26;  No.  3 — 29;  No.  4 — 12; 
total,  88. 

Center,  No.  i — 25;  No.  2 — 29;  No.  3 — 53;  No.  4 — 34;  No.  5 — 6;  total,  147. 

South,  No.  1—28;  No.  2—27;  No.  3—46;  No.  4—32  (33) ;  total,  133  (134). 

Grand  total  of  children  in  the  county  of  school  age,  October  i,  1849,  3^8. 

Nothing  remains  in  the  records  to  show  there  were  any  schools  taught  in  the 
county  during  the  summer  of  1849.  Up  to  this  time  but  one  house  had  been 
built  in  the  county  for  school  purposes,  and  that  one  stood  some  distance  north- 
east of  the  present  "Buffalo"  schoolhouse  in  Scott  Township,  elsewhere  de- 
scribed. It  was  erected  by  volunteer  labor  in  the  early  summer  of  1848.  Existing 
conditions  were  not  conducive  to  school  attendance.  Children  old  enough  to 
go  considerable  distances,  necessary  in  sparsely  settled  communities,  were  large 
enough  to  fight  weeds  in  the  fields. 

The  records  show  no  report  for  the  year  1850. 

There  appears  to  have  been  no  enumeration  of  children  of  school  age  in 
the  several  districts  of  the  county  filed  with  the  school  fund  commissioner,  but 
instead,  a  certified  report  of  the  number  was  made  by  the  secretary  of  each 
district  to  that  officer  for  the  year  ending  October  i,  1851.  From  these  reports, 
which  agree  in  form  only  in  that  each  gives  the  total  number  of  those  of  school 
age  and  all  but  one  or  two  written  on  small  scraps  of  foolscap  paper,  the  following 
is  quoted: 

Union  Township,  District  No.  i :  The  secretary  failed  to  sign  his  name. 
He  gave  the  heads  of  families  and  the  number  of  children  in  each  family  of 
school  age  as  follows:  James  Farris  3,  James  Brown  7,  Charles  Farris  i,  Vincent 
Brown  i,  Lewis  Adams  i,  Anderson  Moore  2,  Abraham  Mitchell  i,  Samuel 
Folwell  3,  John  R.  Beedle  3,  John  B.  Sturman  i,  Greenbery  Ridinour  i,  David 
Barrow  4;  total,  28.  This  report  is  excellently  written  and  it  is  supposed  there- 
fore that  David  Barrow  wrote  it,  for  he  was  by  far  the  best  penman  in  that 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  83 

portion  of  the  county  for  years.  No.  2,  Secretary  N.  W.  Guiberson  reports  50. 
No.  3,  Secretary  W.  Hopkins  reports  44.  No.  4  of  last  year  became  a  part  of 
a  new  township. 

Center  Township,  District  No.  i:  Secretary  William  Harmon '  reports  44. 
No.  2,  Secretary  J.  K.  Evans  reports  76  and  one  (subscription)  school  taught. 
No.  3,  Secretary  John  Butler  reports  61  and  further  says:  A  3-months  school 
taught  by  John  C.  Bird,  aged  20  years,  bom  in  Ohio,  average  cost  per  day  6J/2 
cents  (per  scholar),  $22  paid  out  of  school  funds  and  $23  by  those  sending  to 
said  school;  branches  taught  were  spelling,  reading,  writing  and  arithmetic; 
books  used  were  Webster's  Elementary  Spelling  Book,  McGuffy's  First  Reader, 
Third  and  Fourth  Eclectic  Readers,  Briggs  Penmanship  and  Davis  Arithmetic. 
No.  4,  Secretary  Daniel  Campbell  reports  83,  one  school  taught  42  days,  at  $16 
per  month,  and  20  pupils  enrolled.  The  teacher  was  Abner  Bell,  whose  age 
was  27.  He  was  bom  in  Ohio;  paid  $16  out  of  teachers'  fund  and  $16  by  volun- 
teer subscription.    No.  5,  Secretary  W.  R.  King  reports  10. 

South  Township,  District  No.  i :  Secretary  Royal  Uran  reports  43.  No 
school  in  district;  no  schoolhouse;  $10.50  teachers'  fund  on  hand;  no  school 
tax.  No.  2 :  Secretary  Thomas  Cason  reports  37 ;  no  school  taught ;  **no  aggre- 
gate amount  paid  teachers;"  "no  library  nor  volumes;"  $22.06  school  money  on 
hand ;  one  schoolhouse  "and  it  was  built  by  the  citizens" ;  no  school  tax  levied. 
No.  3 :  Secretary  David  Fife  reports  61 ;  one  school  taught  by  Oliver  H.  Perry, 
aged  21,  bom  in  Ohio.  Thirty-nine  pupils  in  attendance;  i  wood  (log)  school- 
house;  average  attendance  during  school  term  was  I4>^;  books  used  in  school 
were  United  States  Primer,  Webster's  Elementary  Spelling  Book;  McGuffy's 
First,  Second  and  Third  Readers,  Goodrich's  First  Reader,  Child's  Easy  Reader, 
"Young  Man  Away  From  Home,"  "Life  of  General  Marion ;"  Ray's  Mental  and 
2d  Part  Arithmetic,  Kirkham's  Grammar,  Olney's  and  also  Morse's  Geography. 
The  secretary's  report  is  on  blue  unmled  paper  12x30  inches,  elaborately  ruled. 
No.  4:  Secretary  Millen  Hunt  reports  26  pupils  and  $27.05  teachers'  funds  on 
hand. 

Madison  Township,  District  No.  i :  Secretary  Jacob  Fry  reports  17,  and 
their  names  as  follows:  Henry,  Fletcher,  Emory,  Samuel  and  Newton  Pitzer; 
Thomas  Anderson ;  John,  Samuel,  Edwin  and  Voorhes  Fry ;  Sarah  and  Embery 
Pitzer ;  Ann,  Mary,  Jane,  Amanda  and  Rody  Fry ;  John  Kellum. 

Walnut  Township,  District  No.  i :  Secretary  J.  W.  Guiberson  reports  21. 
September  13th,  a  district  meeting  at  which  a  site  was  selected  on  which  to  build 
a  schoolhouse.    Adjourned  to  meet  again  October  4th,  to  arrange  for  its  building. 

Total  school  population  in  county,  October  i,  185 1 — 601.  Increase  during 
past  year  232. 

There  remain  no  records  to  show  the  school  population  for  1853.  The  total 
school  population  of  the  county  for  1854  was  1,056  but  there  is  given  no  enumera- 
tion by  districts. 

Beginning  in  the  winter  of  185 1-2  the  number  of  schools  rapidly  increased 
throughout  the  county.  Schoolhouses  multiplied,  taxes  for  school  purposes  were 
increasingly  levied  and  general  interest  manifested  in  all  portions  of  the  county 
relating  to  education.     Northern  people  rapidly  arrived,  population  increased 


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84  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

fast,  more  teachers  came,  new  districts  were  organized  and  township  lines  began 
to  be  more  permanent. 

'     WHAT  THE  YEARS  HAVE  DEVELOPED  IN  THE  SCHOOLS 

The  first  schools  in  Madison  County  were  supported  by  subscriptions  and 
held  in  the  homes  of  the  settlers.  The  teacher  "boarded  round,''  and  the  monthly 
stipend  for  drilling  into  the  children  the  principles  and  practical  application  of 
the  three  "Rs"  was  of  quite  a  negligible  quantity.  Be  that  as  it  may,  as  soon  after 
the  county  was  organized  and  school  laws  formulated  and  put  into  practice,  rude 
log  schoolhouses  were  erected  and  the  school  system  of  Madison  County  was 
launched.  The  schools  of  the  county,  as  in  all  counties  of  the  state  at  that  time, 
were  in  a  very  chaotic  condition  for  several  years  after  Madison  was  given  a 
form  of  government.* 

The  first  school  taught  in  Winterset  was  presided  over  by  Mary  Ann  Danforth, 
in  the  log  courthouse  in  the  summer  of  1850.  The  pupils  were  children  of  E.  R. 
Guiberson,  John  Wilhoit,  James  Folwell,  Enos  Berger,  William  Compton,  Wil- 
liam Alcorn,  Otis  Davis,  Samuel  Lockard,  Lign  Miller,  Chal  Danforth,  W.  R. 
Danforth  and  an  adopted  son  of  A.  D.  Jones. 

As  has  been  heretofore  related,  the  official  head  of  the  schools  in  the  county 
was  the  school  fund  commissioner,  whose  duties  devolved  upon  the  county  super- 
intendent of  schools,  the  office  of  which  had  been  created  and  the  first  incumbent 
thereof,  James  Shepard,  elected  in  1856.  He  served  the  county  in  this  capacity 
during  the  years  1857  and  1858,  and  was  succeeded  by  Lewis  Mayo,  whose  report 
for  the  school  year,  beginning  October  5,  1859,  and  ending  October  4,  i860,  is 
the  earliest  mention  in  the  records  of  the  superintendent's  office.  According 
to  this  report  there  were  at  that  time  sixty  schools  in  the  county;  there  were  in 
the  county  2,936  children  of  school  age,  1,513  males  and  1,423  females.  The 
number  who  attended  school  was  1,742,  average  attendance  1,025,  which  does 
not  speak  well  either  for  attendance  or  punctuality.  The  value  of  the  school- 
houses  in  the  county  was  $10,565,  while  the  value  of  all  apparatus,  maps,  etc.,  is 
placed  at  $7.  Unfortunately,  it  is  not  stated  just  where  the  valuable  apparatus 
was  located  nor  do  subsequent  reports  tell  what  became  of  it;  if  it  could  be 
located  and  the  particular  district  which  owns  it  desired  to  part  with  it,  a  hand- 
some price  might  be  obtained  from  the  committee  which  is  securing  relics  for  the 
old  settlers'  society  of  the  county.  Some  idea  may  be  had  about  the  character 
of  the  schoolhouses  at  the  time,  from  the  fact  that  of  the  forty-six  schoolhouses 
then  in  use,  two  of  them  were  stone,  twenty-six  frame  and  sixteen  log.  There 
were,  as  has  been  said,  sixty  schools  in  the  county;  the  whole  amount  paid 
teachers  was  $3,452.65,  axid  if  they  had  six  months'  school,  which  is  the  shortest 
period  of  time  schools  may  be  in  session,  teachers  were  paid  $9.50  per  month. 
Teachers  who  are  dissatisfied  with  their  compensation,  which  ranges  from  $35 
to  $45  per  month,  can  console  themselves  with  the  thought  that  there  has  been 
progress  in  the  right  direction. 

Mr.  Mayo,  the  second  county  superintendent,  was  defeated  for  reelection  by 
H.  W.  Hardy,  whose  first  report  is  for  the  school  year  beginning  October  5,  1861, 
and  ending  October  4,  1862.    Mr.  Hardy  has  been  more  directly  and  for  a  longer 


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MES.  MARY  DANFORTH,  1849 

First  school  teacher  in  Winterset.     Sister   of  A.  D. 
Jones  and  mother  of  William  R.  and  Challen  Danforth. 


MRS.   MAKY   FARRIS  AUNT  KATIE  GUIBERSON 

Wife  of  Charles  Farris.     Came  to  Wife    of    Judge    E.    R.    Guiberson. 

Madison    County    in    1849.      Died   in  Came  to  Madison  County  in   1849. 

October,   1914. 

PIONEER  WOMEN  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY      .  85 

time  identified  with  the  schools  of  the  county  than  any  other  person.  He  was 
engaged  in  the  actual  work  of  teaching  in  the  county  for  more  than  a  quarter 
of  a  century  and  in  the  meantime  filled  the  office  of  county  superintendent  at 
three  different  periods,  first  for  four  years,  then  again  four  years,  and  lastly,  a 
period  of  five  years,  making  in  all  thirteen  years  of  service  in  the  county  superin- 
tendent's office.  During  his  first  term  of  service,  beginning  early  in  the  '60s,  he 
found  school  affairs  in  a  very  crude  condition.  His  compensation  was  about 
twenty-five  dollars  a  year,  in  addition  to  what  fees  came  to  him  for  issuing  cer- 
tificates. Being  a  cooper  as  well  as  a  teacher,  he  frequently  carried  on  an  exam- 
ination in  his  shop  without  suspending  his  manual  labor.  It  is  said  he  often 
turned  up  a  finished  barrel  and  had  the  teacher  write  her  examination,  using 
the  barrel  for  her  manuscript,  while  he  went  on  making  another  barrel.  It  has 
been  suggested  that  in  some  instances  the  applicant  used  one  end  of  the  barrel, 
while  the  worthy  examiner  was  hooping  the  other  end,  but  Mr.  Hardy  says  this 
is  not  true. 

Mr.  Hardy  was  succeeded  by  J.  S.  Goshom,  who  served  one  term  and  then 
went  into  the  insurance  business.  More  recently  he  successfully  entered  politics 
in  Nebraska  and  for  a  few  years  helped  to  ijiake  school  laws  instead  of  adminis- 
tering those  made  by  some  one  else.  Mr.  Goshom  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  Hardy, 
who  served  two  terms,  when  Mr.  Chamberlin  was  elected.  The  latter  did  not 
serve  and  the  board  appointed  W.  A.  Ross,  who  was  a  candidate  for  election 
the  following  fall,  but  was  defeated  by  Butler  Bird.  Mr.  Bird  resigned  and  was 
succeeded  by  Mr.  Hardy,  who  was  appointed  by  the  board  and  was  then  elected 
and  reelected.  Miss  Ray  was  the  next  superintendent  and  she  was  succeeded  by 
Homer  Thompson,  who  was  appointed  by  the  board.  Mr.  Thompson  was  suc- 
ceeded by  John  Mann,  who  was  succeeded  by  E.  R.  Zeller.  The  latter  was  fol- 
lowed by  T.  H.  Stone,  who  was  succeeded  by  J.  J.  Crossley  and  the  latter  in  turn 
by  Ed  M.  Smith.  Then  came  H.  D.  Smith  and  T.  H.  Stone  again.  Gertrude  M. 
DuflF  was  inducted  into  the  office  in  January,  1907,  and  after  serving  some  time, 
resigned,  and  Jean  M.  Cash  filled  out  the  remaining  six  months  of  the  term.  John 
Gentry  followed  in  191 1  and  the  present  incumbent,  Carrie  E.  Ludlow,  took 
charge  in  1913. 

The  county  superintendent's  office  has  grown  in  dignity  and  usefulness  till 
it  has  become  one  of  the  most  desirable  offices  in  the  county.  Examinations 
are  no  longer  held  on  a  barrel  head,  in  a  cooper  shop,  with  shavings  for  a  carpet, 
but  in  one  of  the  best  rooms  in  one  of  the  best  courthouses  in  the  state  and  a  sure 
enough  carpet.  There  are  just  as  devoted  and  earnest  teachers  now  as  there 
were  fifty  years  ago,  but  none  who  either  from  a  sense  of  duty  or  love  for  the 
work  would  serve  one  year  in  the  superintendent's  office  for  the  $25  Mr.  Hardy 
worked  for  away  back  in  1861. 

There  are  now  176  schools  where  there  were  but  60;  now  there  are  144  school 
buildings,  not  including  parochial  schools,  where  there  were  but  42.  In  1859 
the  total  amount  paid  teachers  for  the  school  year  was  $3,459.65,  while  for  the 
school  year  ending  July,  1914,  there  was  paid  the  teachers  of  the  county  the 
sum  of  $75,343.85;  contingent  expenses,  $18,700.55;  schoolhouse  expenses, 
$2,838.66.  All  of  the  log  schoolhouses  have  been  replaced  by  neat  and  com- 
fortable buildings,  which  are  a  credit  to  the  county,  and  not  a  disgrace,  as  was 


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86  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

the  case  at  one  time.  As  before  stated,  the  enrollment  in  1859  was  1,742,  while 
the  number  enrolled  in  1914  was  4,099,  and  the  teaching  force  has  grown  from 
60  to  259. 

Another  matter  in  the  development  of  the  schools  of  the  county  which  has 
caused  much  labor  and  many  lawsuits,  is  the  present  arrangement  of  districts. 
There  are  now  in  the  county  three  different  systems  in  force.  The  following 
townships  have  the  district  township  system:  Lee,  Jefferson,  Madison,  Penn, 
Jackson,  Union,  Scott,  Webster,  Monroe,  Walnut  and  Ohio.  These  district  town- 
ships are  subdivided  into  subdistricts,  and  a  subdirector  elected  for  each.  The 
following  townships  have  the  independent  district  system:  Douglas,  Crawford 
and  Lincoln.  The  independent  districts  consist  of  certain  territory,  which,  as 
the  name  indicates,  is  as  absolutely  independent  of  all  other  territory  as  the 
United  States  is  independent  of  England.  For  each  of  these  independent  districts 
three  directors  are  chosen,  each  of  whom  holds  the  office  for  three  years.  Grand 
River  Township  is  an  independent  district  township,  which  differs  from  the  dis- 
trict townships  in  that  the  directors  are  chosen  by  the  voters  of  the  entire  town- 
ship, and  the  matter  of  employing  teachers  and  managing  the  schools  is  in  the 
hands  of  the  board  instead  of  being  distributed  out  among  the  directors  indi- 
vidually. Grand  River  Township  also  has  a  township  high  school,  which  is  the 
only  one  in  the  county  and  probably  the  only  one  in  the  state. 

The  district  township  of  Walnut  has  eleven  schoolhouses ;  Grand  River  inde- 
pendent district  township  has  ten;  Jackson,  Jefferson,  Madison,  Monroe,  Penn, 
Scott,  South  and  Webster  each  have  nine.  This  is  the  ideal  number  of  school- 
houses,  where  the  township  is  not  cut  up  by  impassable  streams  and  the  territory 
is  not  encroached  upon  by  independent  districts.  This  gives  a  schoolhouse  for 
each  four  sections  of  land,  and  if  located  in  the  geographical  center,  no  pupil 
can  possibly  be  more  than  two  miles  from  school. 

There  are  urban  independent  districts  which  have  not  been  spoken  of.  They 
are  Winterset,  Earlham,  St.  Charles,  Truro,  Patterson,  Bevington,  Macksburg 
and  Peru.  Earlham  district  has  been  in  existence  more  than  thirty  years.  The 
Earlham  schools,  since  they  have  come  under  the  supervision  of  W.  H.  Monroe 
and  combined  with  the  academy,  have  had  a  reputation  that  has  extended  all 
over  the  state. 

The  St.  Charles  schools  were  a  part  of  the  district  Township  of  South  until 
about  twenty  years  ago,  when  an  independent  district  was  formed. 

The  schools  of  Truro,  Peru,  Bevington  and  Patterson,  while  technically  urban 
independent  districts  with  a  large  board  of  directors,  are  practically  the  same  in 
character  as  the  rural  independent  districts,  except  they  have  what  they  call  a 
high  school  of  limited  curriculum. 

The  township  high  school  of  Macksburg  has  quite  an  honorable  history.  It 
was  fortunate  in  its  first  principal,  Professor  Snelling,  a  most  efficient  teacher  of 
many  years'  experience.  Under  his  supervision  the  school  had  a  reputation 
throughout  this  and  adjoining  counties.  It  is  the  impression  that  the  Macksburg 
high  school  has  not  kept  pace  with  the  onward  march  of  events.  It  is  now  inde- 
pendent. 

Winterset  has  school  facilities  on  a  par  with  the  average  county  seat  town 
of  Iowa.  There  are  two  large  school  buildings  furnished  with  all  the  modem  ap- 


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EARLHAM   ACADEMY 


PUBLIC  SCHOOL,  EARLHAM 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  87 

pliances,  and  the  teaching  force  will  compare  favorably  with  the  best  in  the  land. 
Winterset  points  with  pride  to  her  schools ;  their  present  efficiency,  however,  did 
not  spring  into  existence  with  one  bound,  but  is  the  product  of  many  years' 
effort.  When  one  observes  with  how  little  friction  the  average  graded  school 
runs  along,  with  harmony  everywhere,  and  apparently  by  the  sheer  force  of  its 
own  momentum,  one  can  scarcely  appreciate  the  fact  that  it  was  not  always  so. 
Although  many  schools  were  taught  in  Winterset,  in  garrets  and  churches  prior 
to  that  time,  the  year  1868  may  properly  be  said  to  have  been  the  beginning  of 
the  city's  graded  school  work.  The  old  stone  schoolhouse,  which  in  later  years 
has  been  succeeded  by  the  commodious  new  high  school  building,  was  completed 
that  year  and  thrown  open  to  the  public.  It  was  limited  to  eight  departments 
and  a  high  school.  Whoever  will  in  the  future  narrate  fully  the  facts  relating 
to  the  founding,  building  and  first  three  years  of  occupancy  of  the  building  will 
have  a  tale  to  unfold  replete  with  strife,  bi9kerings  and  ridicule,  which  the  later 
generation  knows  nothing  of.  It  will  do  well  to  remain  in  that  ideal  state  sup- 
posed to  result  from  ignorance.  While  the  building  of  the  old  house,  known  as 
"Fort  Cummings,"  was  not  up  to  the  most  approved  plan  of  modem  times,  it  was 
nevertheless  well  adapted  to  the  purpose  for  which  it  was  built,  and  by  no  means 
deserved  the  notoriety  it  received.  A  public  school  building  constructed  from 
the  native  granite  was  unusual  in  those  days,  and  on  the  completion  of  the  build- 
ing, applications  for  the  position  of  principal  poured  in  from  all  sides.  C.  C. 
Qiamberlin  was  one  of  these  and  secured  the  position.  Professor  Chamberlin 
became  unpopular  and  the  board  refused  to  elect  him  after  the  second  year. 
The  second  principal  was  a  man  named  Preston,  and  he  remained  but  one  year. 
Then  came  a  man  named  Cox,  who  was  elected  for  the  second  year,  but  before 
he  got  through  with  it  had  several  difficulties  and  a  long  and  exciting  lawsuit, 
which  grew  out  of  punishing  a  boy,  and  afterwards  with  the  school  board,  which 
he  claimed  did  not  pay  him  enough.  By  1873  applications  for  the  principalship 
were  perceptibly  diminished,  but  that  year  E.  R.  Zeller  accepted  the  office.  Under 
his  directions  a  new  course  of  study  was  \ adopted,  and  the  following  year  the 
first  class  graduated  from  the  Winterset  high  school.  This  class  consisted  of  the 
following:  Laura  Cummings,  now  Mrs.  J.  W.  Miller;  Jennie  Snyder,  now  Mrs. 
C.  T.  Koser;  Ida  Ewing,  later  Mrs.  J.  A.  Sanford,  but  for  several  years  de- 
ceased; Carrie  Haskins,  now  Mrs.  Howell;  Hattie  Cox,  now  Mrs.  E.  R.  Zeller; 
and  Dillie  Jones.  A  class  has  been  graduated  every  year  since  then,  with  one 
exception,  and  while  many  of  the  graduates  have  removed  from  the  county 
and  some  of  them  have  died,  those  who  remain  exercise  a  very  important  in- 
fluence upon  the  social  and  industrial  interests  of  the  county.  Mr.  Zeller  retained 
the  principalship  of  the  schools  for  five  years,  when  he  resigned.  As  early  as 
1878  the  big  stone  schoolhouse  became  inadequate  for  the  needs  of  the  district 
and  that  year  the  north  ward  schoolhouse  was  erected.  Mr.  Mowatt  succeeded 
Mr.  Zeller  and  he  in  turn  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  Eastman,  who  was  followed  by 
Mrs.  Webster.  When  Mrs.  Webster  resigned  Mr.  Carson  was  elected  and  held 
the  position  for  two  years,  when  Mr.  Dean  was  called  to  the  place  and  he  was 
succeeded  by  T.  H.  Stone.  Mr.  McClenahan  followed  Mr.  Stone  and  he  was 
succeeded  by  the  efficient  superintendent,  I.  D.  Salisbury.  Then  followed  C.  E. 
Akers  and  in  191 1  David  Williams  received  the  appointment. 


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88  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

In  1894  the  old  stone  schoolhouse  showed  signs  of  falling  down.  It  was  con- 
demned and  in  its  stead  the  present  imposing  structure  was  erected.  It  contains 
eight  commodious  school  rooms  besides  a  large  room  for  the  high  school  and 
recitation  room.  It  is  furnished  with  a  steam  heater  and  Smead  ventilating  ap- 
paratus. It  is  built  of  pressed  brick  and  covered  with  a  slate  roof.  It  cost,  when 
completed,  including  furnishing,  about  thirty  thousand  dollars. 

TJie  Madison  County  Teachers'  Institute  was  organized  in  Winterset,  in 
October,  1858,  by  J.  H.  L.  Scott,  an  eminent  educator,  who  resided  at  the  time 
at  Osceola.  The  organization  held  its  annual  meetings  continuously  from  its 
commencement  to  the  present  time,  and  has  been  the  means  of  accomplishing  a 
vast  amount  of  good  for  the  cause  of  education  in  Madison  County.  The  teachers 
attend  the  meetings  and  take  an  active  part  in  the  various  exercises  of  the  insti- 
tute. It  may  be  added  that  many  citizens  of  the  county  who  are  not  teachers 
often  affiliate  and  regularly  attend  the  institutes.  Liberal  provisions  for  the 
normal  institute  system  were  enacted  by  the  Fifteenth  General  Assembly,  and  in 
conformity  with  the  law,  Butler  Bird,  then  county  superintendent,  arranged  for 
the  first  session  in  the  summer  of  1874.  The  institute  lasted  two  weeks,  with 
about  fifty  teachers  in  attendance.  The  two  instructors  were  Mrs.  Morey,  of 
Burlington,  and  E.  R.  Zeller,  of  Winterset.  The  sessions  of  the  school  were  held 
in  the  auditorium  of  the  high  school  building.  As  now  recalled,  the  whole  six 
hours  of  each  day  and  the  full  five  days  of  each  week  were  occupied  or  con- 
sumed in  continuous  recitations.  In  later  years,  the  length  of  the  term  has 
gradually  been  shortened. 

Such  is  a  brief  but  accurate  account  of  the  schools  of  the  county  and  it  may 
truthfully  be  said  that  the  growth  of  the  schools  both  in  number  and  efficiency 
has  fully  kept  pace  with  the  industrial,  mercantile  and  religious  enterprises  of 
the  county.  The  schools  are  expensive  and  a  large  part  of  the  money  paid  as 
taxes  goes  for  their  support  and  yet,  while  the  average  citizen  of  Madison 
County  does  many  things  as  willingly  as  paying  his  taxes,  there  is  no  other 
institution  he  looks  upon  with  such  zealous  eyes  as  the  public  schools  and  the 
time  is  past  in  which  it  would  be  prudent  for  any  one  to  make  an  attack  upon  the 
system  in  general,  or  upon  any  one  school  in  particular. 

AN  OLD  CERTIFICATE 

As  a  souvenir  of  the  early  schools,  under  the  county  superintendent  system, 
the  following  is  deemed  of  sufficient  value  to  be  preserved  in  this  article : 

"The  State  of  Iowa  ) 

>  ss. 
Madison  County     ^ 

"This  certifies  that  the  bearer  Mr.  Robert  Clelland  in  my  opinion  is  qualified 

to  teach  the  following  branches,  to-  wit : 

Orthography No.  i 

Reading No.  2 

Writing No.  i 

Arithmetic No.  i 

Geography No.  i 

English  Grammar   No.   i 


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OLD  SOUTH  WARD  SCHOOL,  WINTERSET 


WINTERSET  HIGH  SCHOOL 


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h..  .J 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  89 

"This  certificate  stands  good  for  12  months  from  date. 
"Dated  at  Winterset,  this  29th  day  of  October,  A.  D.  1858. 

"James  Shepard, 
"Sup't.  of  Common  Schools, 

"Madison  Co.,  Iowa." 

The  foregoing  is  a  copy  of  a  teacher's  certificate  issued  by  the  first  superin- 
tendent of  Madison  County  to  Robert  Clelland,  a  resident  of  Bevington. 

Mr.  Clelland  taught  over  one  hundred  terms  of  school  in  his  lifetime.  He 
taught  many  terms  at  St.  Charles  and  nearly  all  the  neighboring  schools. 


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CHAPTER   X 
RELIGIOUS   ORGANIZATIONS 

John  Evans,  who  came  here  in  May,  1846,  was  not  only  the  first  preacher  of 
the  "Hardshell  Baptist"  denomination  in  the  county,  but  the  first  one  of  any  de- 
nomination. He  came  full  of  enthusiasm  to  gather,  in  the  vicinity  of  where  he 
located,  as  many  of  his  religious  faith  as  he  could  and  build  up  a  strong  church. 
Rev.  John  Evans  migrated  to  this  place  from  Northwest  Missouri,  where  he  had 
for  years  devoted  much  of  his  time  to  preaching  and  therefore  had  a  large  ac- 
quaintance in  that  section  of  the  country.  Not  only  did  he  locate  a  claim  here 
for  himself  and  worked  to  improve  it,  but  also  marked  out  other  claims  for 
imaginary  persons,  seeking  to  hold  them  until  he  could  locate  members  of  his 
church  on  them.  He  had  much  success  for  a  year  or  two  in  thus  establishing 
his  people  and  during  the  first  three  years  of  the  county's  history  he  had  the 
strongest  church  of  any  denomination  in  point  of  numbers  and  influence.  The 
members  were  located  around  where  Winterset  now  is.  The  Methodists,  almost 
universally  the  first  in  a  new  country,  did  not  begin  to  strongly  appear  until  three 
years  after  the  first  settlement  of  the  county. 

John  Evans  was  of  a  type  and  character  not  understood  at  the  present  time. 
So  far  as  preaching  and  laborious  eflForts  to  build  up  his  church  were  concerned 
"Salvation  was  free;"  free  as  the  sunshine  and  the  rain.  Illiterate  beyond  most 
persons,  even  in  those  days,  in  the  use  of  the  English  language,  especially  as  a 
writer,  he  had  a  liberal  command  of  expressions  with  which  to  convey  his  under- 
standing of  religious  creeds.  If  he  did  "kill  all  the  horses  in  Missouri"  expound- 
ing his  conceptions  of  a  hell  to  come,  as  some  careless  sinners  declared,  no  one 
who  heard  him  doubted  for  a  moment  that  he  was  working  harder^  than  a  rail 
splitter  to  build  up  his  church.  His  sermons  were  Calvinistic  to  a' degree  not 
now  imagined.  All  such  forceful  and  zealous  natures  provoke  hostility  and  criti- 
cism ;  certainly,  he  reaped  his  full  share  here  in  the  early  days.  And,  he  may  have 
enjoyed  a  happy  life  while  here,  but  it  was  not  evidenced  by  any  of  the  usual  out- 
ward appearances.  He  enjoyed  the  confidence  of  most  of  his  church  members  and 
is  favorably  remembered  to  this  day  by  those  of  his  church  whg  heard  him 
preach  in  their  childhood. 

The  early  records  of  this  church  were  destroyed  when  the  house  of  Asa  Smith 
was  burned.    It  was  here  this  pioneer  preacher  lived. 

The  church  was  organized  at  the  house  of  John  Butler,  in  Union  Township, 
it  is  presumed  from  lack  of  anything  more  authentic,  in  1847.  Among  those  who 
joined  at  that  time  were  John  Butler  and  wife  Susan;  Samuel  Crawford  and 
wife  Polly;  Joshua  Casebier  and  wife  Louisa;  James  Thombrugh  and  wife 
Elizabeth;  Lemuel  Thombrugh  and  wife  Sarah;  Widow  Sarah  Fidler;  Miss 

90 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  91 

Nancy  Fidler,  who  married  Noah  Staggs,  of  Dallas  County;  Paulina  (Fidler) 
Mendenhall,  Mathew  Jones  and  wife,  on  Jones  Creek;  Mrs.  Betsy  (Butler) 
Chenoweth ;  Asa  Mills  and  wife  Sarah ;  William  Gentry  and  wife  Sarah ;  Widow 
Ellison;  and  William  Simmons  and  wife  Polly,  of  Linn  Grove,  in  Warren 
County.  Among  those  joining  about  that  time  and  before  1850  were:  Mrs.  John 
(Nancy)  Dorrell,  Widow  Anna  Osbum,  Aquilla  Smith  and  wife,  John  Craw- 
ford and  wife  Mary;  Mrs.  Jane  Pender,  Mrs.  Sarah  (Evans)  Casteel,  Robert 
Evans  and  wife  Elizabeth;  Moses  Osbum  and  wife  Hannah;  Widow  Nellie 
Flynn,  James  Crawford  and  wife  Achsa;  Mrs.  Henry  (Nancy  Ann)  Simmons. 
For  several  years  meetings  were  only  held  at  the  homes  of  the  members, 
and  never  at  a  schoolhouse  or  other  building.  By  previous  arrangement  they 
met  at  a  member's  house,  on  which  occasion  the  family  provided  a  dinner  for  all 
who  attended.  Settlers  lived  distant  from  each  other  and  some  of  them  had 
many  miles  to  go,  without  roads  and  generally  by  ox  teams,  taking  all  the  chil- 
dren with  them.  It  was  an  all  day's  tedious  journey  to  "go  to  meeting"  and 
home  again.  And  then,  by  all  remaining  together  for  dinner,  there  was  delightful 
visiting  between  families  who  elsewhere  could  not  hope  to  meet,  commingling 
of  children  and,  just  think  of  it! — a  golden  opportunity  for  Cupid  to  practice 
with  his  arrows  on  the  young  men  and  women.  Among  the  homes,  where  meet- 
ings were  more  frequently  held,  were  those  of  John  Butler,  William  Gentry, 
James  Thombrugh,  Aquilla  Smith  and  Samuel  Crawford. 

SOME   FIRST   CAMP    MEETINGS 

In  September,  1848,  occurred  the  first  camp  meeting  in  the  county.  This  was 
held  about  two  miles  below  the  depot  in  Patterson,  on  the  northeast  quarter  of 
section  33,  in  Crawford  Township.'  For  many  years  this  place  was  a  noted  one 
for  out-door  meetings,  political  as  well  as  religious.  It  was  earliest  known  as 
the  McGinnis  and  later  as  the  Holton  place.  The  meeting,  and  other  meetings 
later  on,  were  held  under  an  immense  black  walnut  tree  that  was  over  six  feet 
in  diameter,  and  more  than  one  hundred  feet  high.  The  lower  limbs  began 
about  nine  feet  above  the  ground  and  the  shade  of  the  tree  extended  about  eighty 
feet  in  diameter.  This  camp  meeting  was  held  under  the  direction  of  the  Metho- 
dists and  there  were  three  preachers  present — Rev.  Ezra  Rathbum,  of  I>es 
Moines  (then  commonly  known  as  the  "colored"  preacher  from  his  very  dark 
complexion).  Rev.  Allen,  of  Linn  Grove,  and  the  other  one  is  not  remembered. 
People  were  in  attendance  from  long  distances,  from  miles  northwest  of  (now) 
Winterset,  and  from  Dallas,  Polk  and  Warren  counties.  Probably  over  a  thou- 
sand persons  attended  at  one  session  or  another.  It  remained  in  session  about 
a  week  and  was  said  to  have  been  a  ''successful"  meeting  from  the  church  stand- 
point. Anyhow,  it  drew  a  great  crowd  of  sinners;  and  persons  of  various  de- 
nominations, besides  nearly  the  entire  Methodist  population  hereabouts  were 
present.  It  was  the  second  great  gathering  of  people  in  Madison  County,  that  of 
July  Fourth  that  year  being  the  first.  So  great  was  the  success  of  this  meeting 
that  the  Methodists  held  another  in  the  fall  of  1849  and  again  in  1850.  People 
camped  as  a  rule  in  their  covered  wagons  and  most  of  them  came  in  ox  wagons. 
Tents  were  very  scarce  in  those  days  and  none^  were  on  the  ground  at  the  first 
meeting.    Grass,  water  and  fuel  were  abundant  and,  of  course,  free. 


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92  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

About  the  year  1850,  a  Presbyterian  farmer,  who  was  also  somewhat  of  an 
educated  clergyman  and  named  William  Wood,  settled  in  northeast  Jackson  Town- 
ship, where  he  remained  many  years.  At  first  he  was  very  active  as  a  preacher 
and  organized  and  led  camp  meetings  with  such  help  as  he  could  obtain.  He  con- 
ducted these  meetings,  one  a  year,  during  1850,  1851  and  1852;  at  least,  they 
were  the  first  gatherings  of  the  kind  west  of  Winterset  and  were  held  in  the  west 
part  of  Douglas  Township. 

After  1850  out-door  meetings  holding  *'over  Sunday"  and  for  longer  periods, 
began  to  increase  in  number  and  continued  the  fashion  many  years.  By  1865 
they  began  to  go  out  of  vogue  and  since  have  been  almost  abandoned. 

METHODIST 

The  first  Methodist  minister  who  preached  in  Winterset  was  George  W.  Teas, 
who  was  appointed  to  the  Three  Rivers  Mission,  a  circuit  formed  at  a  session  of 
the  Iowa  conference  held  at  Fort  Madison,  in  August,  1849.  Andrew  Coleman, 
who  was  the  presiding  elder  of  the  Des  Moines  District  at  that  time,  visited  the 
county  during  the  year  and  preached  at  the  various  appointments  in  the  county. 
It  was  during  this  year,  1849,  that  the  first  church  organization  at  Winterset 
was  formed.  It  consisted  of  ten  members,  as  follows:  Claiborne  Pitzer,  who 
was  appointed  class  leader;  E.  R.  Guiberson,  wife  and  mother;  Israel  Guiberson, 
Thomas  Ainsley,  Esther  Ainsley,  James  Folwell  and  wife  and  Martin  Ruby. 

Parson  Teas  appears  to  have  had  reasonable  success,  as  he  reported  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty-four  members,  nineteen  probationers  and  one  local  preacher  at 
the  end  of  one  year.  This,  of  course,  included  the  members  on  the  whole  Three 
Rivers  circuit.  This  man,  Teas,  seems,  however,  to  have  had  some  trouble  with 
his  presiding  elder  later  on  and  withdrew  from  the  church,  announcing  his  with- 
drawal by  the  following  poetic  couplet,  which  was  published  in  one  of  the  Des 
Moines  papers: 

"Let  it  be  known  from  shore  to  shore, 
G.  W.  Teas  is  a  Methodist  no  more." 

In  the  course  of  a  few  years  the  trouble  was  adjusted  and  Mr.  Teas  returned 
to  the  fold,  when  he  announced  the  fact  in  a  like  poetic  effusion : 


'*Let  it  be  known  among  all  men, 
G.  W.  Teas  is  a  Methodist  again." 


The  next  session  of  the  Iowa  conference  was  held  at  Fairfield,  August  7, 
1850,  when  D.,  Worthington  was  appointed  presiding  elder  of  the  district  and 
Rev.  G.  Case  was  sent  to  the  Madison  County  work.  In  1851  John  Hayden  be- 
came presiding  elder  and  David  T.  Sweem  was  sent  to  this  county.  That  year 
there  were  reported  329  members,  twenty-nine  probationers  and  five  local 
preachers. 

Until  September,  1852,  the  Three  Rivers  circuit  was  in  existence  and  this 
included  a  greater  part  of  Warren  County,  as  well  as  Madison  County.  Sep- 
tember 29th  the  Three  Rivers  circuit  was  divided,  the  east  part  becoming  the 
Indianola  circuit  and  the  west  part  the  Winterset  mission.  Robert  G.  Hawn  was 
sent  to  Madison  County.    R.  Swearingen  was  the  next  minister  and  he  served  two 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  93 

years.  He  was  unusually  successful,  the  membership  more  than  doubling  during 
his  pastorate.  The  next  conference  was  held  in  Keokuk,  September  26,  1855. 
J.  B.  Hardy  was  appointed  presiding  elder  of  the  district  and  Winterset  was  left 
without  a  minister.  The  presiding  'elder  then  appointed  Leonard  Parker  to  the 
place.  There  were  the  following  appointments  at  this  time :  Winterset,  Paytons, 
Worthington  and  Darnalls,  Brooklyn  and  other  appointments  in  the  county  having 
been  detached  and  made  a  part  of  another  mission.  Samuel  Weeks  was  the  next 
pastor  and  he  was  succeeded  by  James  Haines  in  1857,  whose  salary  was  $320. 
S.  AI.  Good  fellow  was  appointed  to  the  charge  in  1858,  and  his  health  failing,  he 
resigned  and  was  succeeded  by  C.  C.  Mabee.  The  next  preacher  was  W.  S.  Peter- 
son. In  1859  the  Iowa  conference  was  divided  and  Winterset  became  a  part  of 
the  new  Des  Moines  conference.  The  first  session  of  the  Des  Moines  conference 
was  held  at  Indianola,  August  28,  i860.  Sanford  Haines  was  elected  presiding 
elder  and  U.  P.  Golliday  was  sent  to  Winterset.  In  1861  J.  F.  Goolman  was  sent 
to  Winterset  but  soon  after  he  resigned  to  enter  the  army  as  captain  of  Company 
H,  Twenty-third  Iowa  Infantry.  He  was  succeeded  by  Dugald  Thompson; 
then  came  R.  S.  Robinson,  C.  J.  Nixon  and  C.  C.  Mabee  again  in  1864-5. 

It  was  not  until  1865  that  Winterset  became  a  station.  Up  till  this  time  it  had 
been  a  part  of  a  circuit  and  the  time  of  the  pastor  was  divided  between  this  and 
other  appointments.  The  different  appointments  as  classes  of  the  church  in  the 
county  at  that  time  were  as  follows :  Lindens,  Lavertys,  Allcocks,  Smiths,  Flem- 
ings and  Linn  Grove.  The  appointments  in  the  south  part  of  the  county  were 
formed  into  a  circuit  in  1858,  called  Brooklyn  circuit  and  J.  B.  Rawls  became  the 
pastor.  Both  Rawls  and  one  of  his  successors,  Charles  Woolsey,  died  on  the 
circuit  and  their  remains  were  buried  in  the  old  Ebenezer  cemetery.  There  are 
now  twenty  Methodist  Church  buildings  in  the  county  and  several  preaching 
appointments  where  they  do  not  own  a  church  building.  They  are  located  as 
follows:  Jefferson  Township,  one;  Webster,  three;  Madison,  two;  Penn,  one; 
Douglas,  one;  Crawford,  two;  Scott,  two;  Grand  River,  two;  Monroe,  two; 
Walnut,  one ;  Ohio,  one ;  South,  two ;  Winterset,  one.  The  pastors  in  Winteijset 
in  more  recent  years  have  been :  H.  H.  O'Neal,  J.  F.  Goolman,  B.  F.  W.  Koser, 
J.  A.  Smith,  E.  M.  H.  Fleming,  J.  W.  Todd,  W.  F.  Laidley,  C.  H.  Newell,  W.  D. 
Bennett,  W.  C.  Martin,  Artemus  Brown,  J.  R.  Horswell,  C.  L.  Nye,  Fred  Harris, 
W.  G.  Riheldaffer,  C.  J.  English,  R.  W.  Matheny,  Eugene  W.  F.  Requa,  Walburn 
and  W.  G.  Hohanshelt,  the  present  pastor. 

PRESBYTERIAN 

In  1854  Rev.  J.  C.  Ewing,  of  the  New  School  branch  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church,  came  to  Winterset  and  gathered  what  people  he  could  find  of  like 
religious  faith  and  organized  a  church.  The  organization  was  completed 
October  10,  1854,  and  it  was  taken  into  the  care  of  the  Presbytery  of  Des  Moines, 
with  Mr.  Ewing  as  pastor.  The  first  members  were:  John  S.  Gaff,  Margaret 
Gaff,  Dr.  J.  H.  Gaff,  David  Lamb,  Polly  Ann  Hawkins,  Martha  K.  Kams,  Emily 
Homback,  Mary  Dorrence.    Dr.  J.  H.  Gaff  and  David  Lamb  were  elected  elders. 

In  1855  a  new  church  building  was  begun  and  completed.  It  stood  on  the 
corner  where  is  now  the  Church  of  Christ.     In  1864  Mr.  Ewing  resigned  and 


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94  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

was  succeeded  by  Rev.  A.  M.  Heiser.  This  gentleman  was  a  man  of  much 
ability  and  great  religious  zeal,  many  of  his  sermons  by  request  having  been 
published  in  the  local  press  of  that  time. 

In  1857  the  Old  School  Presbyterian  Church  was  organized  by  a  committee 
of  which  Rev.  Mr.  Jacobs,  of  Knoxville,  was  chairman.  The  organization  at 
first  consisted  of  eleven  members,  of  which  J.  R.  McCall  and  J.  D.  Jencks  were 
elected  elders.  Walter  L.  Lyons  was  the  first  pastor  and  served  during  the  build- 
ing of  the  church  edifice,  which  was  in  1859.  This  building  was  situated  where 
the  electric  light  plant  is  now  located.  It  was  used  for  church  purposes  till  the 
completion  of  the  new  Presbyterian  Church,  when  it  was  used  for  school  purposes 
till  the  North  Ward  school  building  was  erected,  when  it  was  abandoned  and 
became  the  property  of  the  city  and  was  used  as  a  home  for  the  fire  engine.  When 
the  powerhouse  was  erected  it  was  moved  to  the  land  owned  by  B.  L.  Sprinkle 
and  reconstructed  into  a  bam  where  it  still  stands.  Rev.  T.  J.  Taylor  was  the 
second  pastor  of  this  church  and  he  resigned  in  1862  to  become  chaplain  in  the 
army. 

As  before  stated,  the  New  School  Church  was  in  charge  of  Rev.  D.  M. 
Heiser  in  1864.  The  pulpit  of  the  Old  School  Church  had  been  vacant  for  two 
years  and  through  the  efforts  of  Reverend  Heiser  there  was  a  union  formed  of  the 
two  branches.  This  occurred  December  15,  1867.  Rev.  E.  Dickinson  succeeded 
Mr.  Heiser  and  served  till  April,  1870.  He  was  succeeded  by  J.  H.  Potter,  who 
came  September  i,  1870.  Mr.  Potter  was  remarkably  successful  and  served  the 
church  with  great  acceptability  for  thirteen  years.  It  was  under  his  pastorate 
that  the  present  substantial  church  edifice  was  built.  It  was  completed  and  dedi- 
cated in  1876,  at  a  cost  of  $14,000. 

Reverend  Potter  was  succeeded  by  Dr.  H.  M.  Robertson,  October  29,  1883, 
who  was  followed  by  Rev.  H.  C.  Herring,  January  i,  1890.  The  ministers  since 
that  time  have  been  Reverends  Ely,  McDonald,  Marquis  and  Rev.  James  Corkey, 
who  has  served  this  congregation  for  the  past  eight  years. 

During  the  year  1885  an  addition  was  built  to  the  church  and  in  1890  an 
elegant  parsonage  was  erected. 

TRINITY    EPISCOPAL 

The  Episcopalians  have  never  been  strong  in  numbers  in  Winterset.  A  few 
families  have  lived  here  for  many  years.  Some  thirty  or  more  years  ago  an 
organization  was  formed  and  a  small  chapel  was  erected.  Services  have  been 
held  from  time  to  time  by  clergymen  who  have  visited  the  city  for  that  purpose. 
In  1881  and  1882  Rev.  R.  W.  Estabrookwas  the  regularly  installed  pastor,  and 
it  is  believed  he  is  the  only  resident  pastor  the  church  has  ever  had.  Services 
are  now  only  occasionally  held.  Among  some  of  the  leading  members  of  the 
church  in  the  past  have  been  C.  W.  Hale  and  family,  Mrs.  C.  B.  Wfelch,  Mrs. 
Winchester  and  Mrs.  A.  Crawford. 

CATHOLIC 

There  are  many  people  of  the  Catholic  faith  in  and  around  Winterset.  They 
have  two  church  buildings  in  the  county,  the  oldest  and  largest  being  located  in 


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OLD  PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH,  WINTERSET 

Built  in    1859.      Has   served    as    church,   schoolhouse    and    fire   engine   station,    and    is    now 

used  as  a  stable 


OLD  CATHOLIC  CHURCH,  WINTERSET 
Replaced  by  a  magnificent  new  church 


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BAPTIST  CHURCH,  WINTERSICT 
Burned  February,  1905.    Rebuilt  on  same  foundation 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  95 

Lee  Township.  For  many  years  after  an  organization  was  formed  in  Winterset, 
services  were  held  in  leased  rooms.  More  than  thirty  years  ago, a  church  building 
was  erected  in  the  west  part  of  town  and  furnished  in  an  elaborate  manner.  The 
Misses  Horan,  James  Swift  and  John  Fox  were  largely  instrumental  in  securing 
the  erection  of  the  church  building.  This  building  was  replaced  by  a  modem 
structure,  of  pleasing  architectural  design,  in  191 1.  Among  its  more  recent  active 
members  in  Winterset  may  be  mentioned  Dr.  Jessie  V.  Smith,  Mrs.  B.  F.  Min- 
tum  and  Mrs.  F.  D.  Davenport.  Among  the  pastors  who  have  served  this  people 
may  be  mentioned  Revs.  Fathers  J.  M.  Ehinnion,  M.  V.  Rice,  J.  W.  Murphy  and 
Patrick  Feeley,  James  A.  Troy,  William  J.  Churchill,  and  the  present  pastor. 
Rev.  J.  C.  White,  who  took  charge  of  the  parish  in  October,  1914. 

FIRST  CHRISTIAN 

It  is  well  authenticated  that  the  Elder  Thomas  Cason  of  this  church  was  one 
of  the  first  preachers  in  Madison  County.  Aside  from  the  fact,  nothing  is  known 
about  his  efforts  to  establish  a  religious  organization.  In  1853  Rev.  A.  D.  Kellison 
and  wife  organized  the  First  Christian  Church  at  Winterset.  A  substantial 
church  building  was  erected  in  1855  and  met  the  requirements  of  the  organization 
until  1896,  when  it  was  torn  down  and  a  commodious  and  modem  church  was 
erected.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kellison  preached  for  the  church  until  1858.  Other 
early  pastors  were  Rev.  A.  Bradfield,  Elders  Storr  and  Bishop.  Reverends  Fuller 
and  Jellison  were  later  pastors.  In  1891  Rev.  W.  B.  Golden  was  the  pastor  and 
he  was  followed  by  Reverend  Howard,  who  remained  several  years.  Under  the 
efforts  of  the  latter  the  congregation  was  materially  built  up  and  it  was  largely 
through  hi^  untiring  efforts  that  the  church  building  was  erected.  The  next 
pastor  was  sRev.  L.  E.  FoUensbee,  who  has  since  achieved  quite  a  reputation  on 
the  lecture  platform.  His  successor  was  Rev.  E.  E.  Bennett,  who  was  followed 
by  Rev.  Grafton.     The  church  is  now  without  a  pastor. 

Among  the  prominent  members  in  early  times  were  the  families  of  John 
Rogers,  William  Compton,  Doctor  Philbrick,  David  Bishop,  John  Brinson,  A.  J. 
Adkinson  and  Mrs.  Ogden. 

This  denomination  had  an  organization  and  church  building  at  Peru  in  early 
times.    More  recently  the  building  has  been  removed  to  the  new  town. 

BAPTIST 

This  society  was  organized  by  Dr.  J.  A.  Nash  in  January,  1856,  with  a  mem- 
bership of  twelve.  Services  were  held  wherever  a  room  could  be  secured  until 
1859.  ^^  ^857  Rev.  A.  W.  Russell  became  the  pastor,  giving  this  charge  half  of 
his  time.  In  1858  a  lot  was  secured  and  work  was  begun  on  the  erection  of  a 
stone  church.  The  work  was  slow.  The  completion  of  the  stone  walls  exhausted 
all  the  available  funds,  when  Deacon  Read  sold  a  farm  and  used  the  proceeds 
in  finishing  the  building.  Judge  Leonard  seated  the  house  and  built  the  pulpit. 
From  the  time  the  church  was  dedicated  until  the  new  church  was  built  there 
was  scarcely  a  Sunday  that  some  kind  of  religious  services  were  not  held  within 
its  walls.    The  new  church  building  was  commenced  in  1886.    It  was  completed 


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96  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

and  dedicated  February  20,  1887.  On  the  morning  of  February  12,  1905,  from 
some  unknown  cause  the  building  caught  fire  and  was  burned  out,  leaving  the 
walls  standing  in  such  condition  that  they  could  not  be  used  in  rebuilding  the 
edifice.  Work  was  immediately  begun  on  another  building  and  funds  were  soon 
secured  which,  supplemented  by  the  amount  received  for  insurance,  enabled  the 
congregation  to  complete  the  work.  The  new  building  was  dedicated  December 
31,  1905,  at  which  time  enough  money  was  pledged  to  pay  the  entire  indebtedness. 
This  is  now  the  largest  and  most  beautiful  church  in  the  county.  The  following 
have  been  some  of  the  pastors  of  this  church :  A.  W.  Russell  served  the  church 
at  the  time  the  first  building  was  erected.  He  was  succeeded  by  W.  A.  Eggles- 
ton,  who  served  for  several  years.  He  resigned  on  account  of  poor  health  and 
died  soon  afterwards.  Next  came  O.  T.  Conger,  who  was  succeeded  by  Reverends 
Carton,  Delano,  Jolin  Gulton,  W.  A.  Welsher,  W.  A.  Weaver  and  G.  C.  Peck, 
the  latter  being  the  pastor  at  the  time  the  second  church  building  was  dedicated. 
He  served  the  church  for  several  years,  during  which  time  the  membership  was 
greatly  increased.  Then  followed  Revs.  C.  Holmes,  Anthony  Jacobs,  P.  H. 
McDowell,  and  Fred  Berry.  During  the  pastorate  of  the  latter  the  church  flour- 
ished as  never  before.  Before  coming  to  Winterset  he  had  been  engaged  in 
.  evangelistic  work  and  this  characterized  his  labors  while  pastor  here.  He  finally 
resigned  to  again  enter  the  evangelistic  work  in  the  state.  For  a  time  thereafter 
the  pulpit  was  vacant  and  then  came  Rev.  Fred  Berry,  whose  successor  was 
Reverend  Atwood,  who  died  within  a  short  time  after  leaving  the  charge.  He 
was  followed  by  Reverend  Stewart,  whose  successor  was  Reverend  Moon. 

There  was  formerly  a  Baptist  Church  in  Patterson  but  in  later  years  the  or- 
ganization has  gone  down.  There  was  a  Baptist  Church  in  Ohio  Township, 
which  was  burned  in  191 2.  A  few  years  ago  the  Old  School  Baptists  erected  a 
church  building  in  the  cemetery  north  of  Winterset. 

UNITED  PRESBYTERIANS 

In  August,  1855,  the  Associate  Reform  Congregation  of  Winterset  was  or- 
ganized with  fifteen  members,  and  afterward  the  Associate  Congregation  or- 
ganized with  six  members.  In  1858  after  the  general  union  of  the  Associate 
and  Associate  Reform  Churches  under  the  name  of  United  Presbyterian,  these 
two  congregations  united  and  became  the  United  Presbyterian  Church  of  Win- 
terset, having  forty  members.  The  first  United  Presbyterian  minister  coming 
to  Winterset  was  Rev.  David  Lindsay.  He  was  followed  by  James  Green.  Among 
the  members  of  pioneer  times  were  Reverends  Patterson,  Christy,  Vance,  Stur- 
geon, Steel  and  Sawhill.  In  May,  1856,  Rev.  John  Graham  located  on  a  farm 
near  Winterset  and  frequently  preached  to  the  people.  Rev.  C.  T.  McCaughan 
was  the  first  regularly  installed  pastor  of  the  church.  He  remained  six  years, 
during  which  time  the  congregations  at  Patterson,  North  Branch,  Union  and 
Peru  were  organized.  The  two  latter  still  exist  and  have  commodious  church 
buildings,  the  one  from  Pitzer  having  been  moved  from  its  former  location  a  few 
years  ago.  For  about  thi-ee  years  Rev.  J.  U.  McClinahan  was  pastor  of  the 
church  at  Winterset,  then  the  pulpit  was  supplied  for  a  time  by  Henry  Wallace. 
A.  M.  Campbell  then  served  several  years.  Then  came  Rev.  J.  H.  White,  who 
was  followed  by  Reverend  Dugan.    The  present  pastor  is  Reverend  Stewart. 


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REV.  C.  T.  McCAUGHAN 

Came  to  Madison  County  in  1865  and 
was  pastor  of  the  United  Presbyterian 
Church  in  Winterset  for  many  years.  As- 
sisted in  organizing  and  building  up  five 
other  churches  in  the  county.  Born  in 
Trigg  County,  Kentucky,  in  1814,  and 
died  in  Winterset,  October  13,  1909,  at 
the  age  of  ninety-five  years.  Grand- 
father of  Charles  Trumbull  White, 
editor  of  '*  Everybody 's. ' ' 


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'V        V 


I 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  97 

SEVENTH-DAY   ADVENTISTS 

This  church  is  appropriately  named,  from  its  two  prominent  tenets  of  faith ; 
seventhvday  meaning  the  Sabbath,  which  they  observe  as  a  day  of  rest;  Ad- 
ventist,  meaning  a  belief  in  the  speedy  coming,  a  second  time,  of  Christ.  The 
church  building  where  they  worship  was  erected  in  1882.  They  have  no  stated 
pastor,  but  hold  regular  services,  at  which  some  one  of  the  members  officiates. 
A.  J.  Stiffler  was  for  many  years  a  prominent  member,  but  he  removed  to  Oregon 
some  years  ago,  whei^e  his  death  occurred. 

CHURCH    OF   CHRIST 

The  first  meetings  of  this  denomination  were  held  in  a  log  schoolhouse  about 
a  mile  and  a  half  east  of  Winterset.  The  church  was  first  organized  in  Winterset 
in  1856,  occupying  rooms  upstairs  on  the  north  side  of  the  square.  Peter  Russell 
was  among  the  first  pastors.  In  1857  a  frame  building,  where  now  stands  the 
residence  of  Ben  Bare,  was  used  for  church  services  and  at  the  close  of  the 
Civil  war  the  congregation  purchased  the  building  owned  by  the  Old  School 
Presbyterians  and  this  served  as  their  house  of  worship  till  the  new  church  was 
erected  in  1899.  The  pastors  who  have  served  this  congregation  are:  Revs. 
J.  P.  Roach,  J.  K.  Cornell,  D.  R.  Dungan,  O.  H.  Derry,  J.  M.  Lowe,  Hodkinson, 
Major,  Veach,  J.  H.  Ragan,  O.  M.  Pennock,  S.  D.  Harlan,  and  the  present  pastor, 
Rev.  L.  F.  Davis. 

There  are  four  other  churches  of  this  denomination  in  the  county — Early 
Chapel  in  Jackson  Township,  one  in  Barney,  one  at  Patterson  and  one  at  St. 
Charles.  The  Patterson  church  met  with  an  irreparable  loss  in  the  death  of 
Butler  Bird.  The  church  at  Barney  is  a  comparatively  new  organization  and  is 
in  a  prosperous  condition.  E^rly  Chapel  was  named  in  honor  of  the  Early 
family  which  has  resided  in  that  vicinity  for  many  years.  It  is  a  beautiful  and 
well  kept  building  on  a  commanding  site  in  one  of  the  best  farming  communities 
of  the  county. 

CHURCH    OF   CHRIST   IN    CHRISTIAN    UNION 

Some  fifteen  years  ago  Reverend  Quick  came  to  Winterset  and  after  preaching 
in  a  tent  for  some  time,  organized  a  church  and  soon  afterward  secured  funds 
from  the  people  of  the  town  to  build  a  church.  Reverend  Quick  was  followed 
by  Rev.  Joseph  Griffin.  ^ 

This  denomination  has  another  organization  and  building  in  Lincoln 
Township. 

UNITED    BRETHREN 

This  denomination  has  five  church  buildings  and  organizations  in  Madison 
County,^  and  all  are  in  a  flourishing  condition.  The  strongest  and  probably  the 
oldest  organization  is  the  Shambaugh  Chapel,  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Jeffer- 
son Township.    There  are  two  other  churches  in  this  township — Jefferson  in  the 


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98  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

southeast  part  and  North  River  in  the  Brittain  neighborhood.  Rev.  E.  W.  Curtis, 
who  was  largely  instrumental  in  forming  the  organization  at  Jefferson  and  North 
River,  served  as  pastor  a  number  of  years. 

Providence  Chapel  is  located  near  Middle  River,  in  Scott  Township.  The 
members  of  the  organization  worshipped  for  many  years  in  the  schoolhouse 
near  by.  For  several  years  past  they  have  worshipped  in  a  neat  church  building 
which  bears  the  name  of  Providence.  In  i860  Rev.  John  Blair  6ame  from  Ken- 
tucky with  twelve  yoke  of  oxen,  several  horses,  one  carriage  and  numerous  rela- 
tives. They  left  their  native  state  on  account  of  their  hostility  to  slavery.  They 
settled  in  Scott  and  South  townships  principally,  and  Blair  Chapel  was  the  out- 
growth of  this  immigration.  It  is  located  in  South  Township,  near  the  Craw- 
ford Township  line.  A  number  of  years  ago  the  building  burned  and  it  was 
replaced  by  a  neat  and  substantial  edifice. 

THE  FRIENDS 

There  are  two  localities  in  Madison  County  where  there  are  quite  a  number 
belonging  to  this  church.  Earlham  and  vicinity  was  largely  settled  by  them  and 
that  unusually  fine  body  of  land  extending  from  the  west  part  of  Madison  Town- 
ship eastward  is  called  "Quaker  Divide"  because  so  many  of  the  early  farmers 
belonged  to  that  church.  The  Town  of  Earlham  from  the  start  has  had  a  large 
number  of  this  faith  and  among  its  adherents  may  be  found  some  of  the  most 
prominent  citizens.  The  town  itself  was  named  in  honor  of  Earlham  College  in 
Indiana,  a  school  maintained  by  the  Friends.  In  Ohio  Township  is  another  settle- 
ment largely  made  up  of  Friends.  Oak  Run  is  the  name  of  the  home  of  the  organi- 
zation. 


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CHAPTER  XI 

THE  MEDICAL  PROFESSION 

The  pioneers  of  the  healing  art  in  Madison  County  were  the  guardians  of  a 
widely  dispersed  population.  Aside  from  their  professional  duties,  they  con- 
tributed their  full  share  to  the  material  development  of  a  newly  opened  country. 
Some  were  men  of  culture,  who  had  gained  their  medical  education  in  college. 
Others  were  of  limited  educational  attainments,  whose  professional  knowledge 
had  been  acquired  in  the  offices  of  established  practitioners  of  more  or  less  ability 
in  the  sections  from  which  they  emigrated.  Of  either  class  almost  without  excep- 
tion, they  were  practical  men  of  great  force  of  character  who  gave  cheerful 
and  efficacious  assistance  to  the  suffering,  daily  joximeying  on  horseback  scores 
of  miles,  over  a  country  almost  destitute  of  roads  and  encountering  swollen, 
unbridged  streams,  without  waterproof  garments  or  other  now  common  protection 
against  the  elements.  Out  of  necessity  the  pioneer  physician  developed  rare  quick- 
ness of  perception  and  self-reliance.  A  specialist  was  then  unknown,  and  the 
physician  was  called  upon  to  treat  every  phase  of  bodily  ailment,  serving  as 
physician,  surgeon,  oculist  and  dentist.  His  books  were  few  and  there  were  no 
practitioners  of  more  ability  than  himself  with  whom  he  might  consult.  His 
medicines  were  simple  and  carried  on  his  person  and  every  preparation  of  pill 
or  solution  was  the  work  of  his  own  hands. 

PIONEER    PHYSICIANS 

Dr.  J.  H.  Gaff  was  the  pioneer  doctor  of  Madison  County  and  the  first  one 
to  commence  the  practice  in  Winterset,  setting  up  his  office  in  the  spring  of  1850 
fn  the  recorder's  office,  which  necessarily  occupied  a  small  space  in  the  primitive 
log  cabin  built  as  the  first  courthouse.  He  put  up  one  of  the  first  log  houses  in 
the  county  seat  and  in  this  humble  dwelling  he  lived  and  boarded  the  young 
single  men  until  they  were  able  to  set  up  an  establishment  of  their  own.  Doctor 
Gaff  was  a  "regular"  and  his  kindly  face  was  known  throughout  the  county 
during  its  infancy. 

Dr.  L.  M.  Tidrick  studied  medicine  while  living  in  Ohio  and  graduated  from 
the  St.  Louis  College  of  Medicine.  For  a  short  time  in  1850  he  practiced  in  Des 
Moines  and  in  the  spring  of  1851  located  in  Winterset,  opening  an  office  in  the 
log  courthouse.  He  was  a  man  of  acknowledged  ability  in  his  chosen  profession 
and  his  kind  and  sympathetic  nature  made  him  a  welcome  visitor  in  the  sick 
room.  Doctor  Tidrick  was  a  member  of  the  State  Medical  Association,  also  the 
Madison  Cotmty  Medical  Association,  and  one  of  its  organizers.  He  married 
Martha  Bell  in  1854  and  in  1855  was  elected  county  treasurer. 

99 

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100  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Dr.  William  Leonard  was  one  of  Madison  County's  leading  physicians  ^nd 
surgeons  and  also  an  Ohioan.  He  turned  his  eyes  westward  in  1859  and  located 
in  Winterset,  then  a  village  of  a  few  houses.  He  read  medicine  in  his  native 
state;  graduated  from  the  Ohio  Medical  College  in  1852  and  from  Jefferson 
Medical  College  (Philadelphia)  in  1854.  He  began  practice  in  his  native  state 
and  coming  here,  soon  became  a  leader  and  a  success  in  the  profession  of  medi- 
cine. In  1862,  Doctor  Leonard  was  appointed  assistant  surgeon  of  the  Thirty- 
ninth  Iowa  Infantry,  which  position  he  filled  until  April,  1863,  when  he  received 
the  appointment  of  post  surgeon  at  Corinth,  Mississippi,  and  was  assigned  to  the 
staff  of  Gen.  Grenville  M.  Dodge.  In  October  of  that  year  he  became  surgeon, 
by  commission,  of  the  Seventh  Illinois  Infantry,  which  office  he  retained  until 
the  close  of  the  Civil  war.  Doctor  Leonard  was  a  member  of  the  State  Medical 
Association  and  of  the  Madison  County  Medical  Association;  he  also  held  the 
office  of  county  treasurer  one  term. 

Dr.  J.  H.  Mack  was  a  good  physician,  but  a  better  business  man.  He  was  from 
the  '*Buckeye"  state  and  located  at  Macksburg  in  1857.  He  walked  from  Des 
Moines  to  Grand  River  Township  and  settling  there,  soon  acquired  several 
hundred  acres  of  choice  land.  Doctor  Mack  was  patriotic  and  enlisted  for  the 
Civil  war  in  the  Forty-seventh  Iowa  Infantry.  Returning  to  Macksburg  he 
resumed  the  practice  of  his  profession  and  ministered  to  a  large  and  paying 
clientele.  He  served  in  the  Legislature,  as  representative  in  the  22d  and  23d 
sessions. 

Dr.  J.  A.  Rawls  was  considered  an  intelligent  physician  and  skilled  surgeon. 
He  graduated  from  the  Ohio  Medical  College  in  1876,  but  was  a  resident  of  the 
county  as  early  as  1859.  Macksburg  was  his  chosen  headquarters,  and  here,  and 
in  the  surrounding  country,  he  enjoyed  a  good  practice. 

Dr.  S.  B.  Cherry  was  one  of  Winterset's  quite  early  physicians,  coming  to  the 
county  seat  in  1862  and  opening  an  office ;  was  very  successful.  He  was  assistant 
surgeon  of  the  Forty-seventh  Iowa  Infantry,  and  after  resuming  his  practice 
became  an  organizing  member  of  the  Madison  County  Medical  Association. 

In  the  list  of  physicians  in  the  practice  at  Winterset  in  1868  were  David 
Hutchinson,  L.  M.  Tidrick,  E.  L.  Hillis,  J.  B.  Duff,  A.  C.  Baldock,  A.  J.  Russell,. 
A.  J.  Morris,  S.  B.  Cherry,  D.  D.  Davisson  and  G.  M.  Rutledge. 

Dr.  Wm.  M.  Anderson  came  to  Iowa  in  1858,  after  studying  and  practicing 
medicine  in  Ohio,  and  in  the  spring  of  i860  came  to  St.  Charles,  Iowa — pur- 
chasing the  home  and  business  of  Dr.  J.  S.  Calaway,  the  first  practicing  physician 
in  St.  Charles.  Doctor  Anderson  was  one  of  the  leading  physicians  in  Madison 
and  Warren  counties  and  followed  the  profession  from  the  time  of  his  arrival 
to  the  time  of  his  death — December  i,  1897.  Dr.  A.  B.  Smith  came  to  St.  Charles 
about  the  same  time  as  Doctor  Anderson  and  later  was  in  partnership  with 
Dr.  L.  J.  Forney  and  sometime  in  the  '70s  moved  to  Winterset  where  he  operated 
a  drug  store  for  many  years,  and  died  in  California  a  few  years  ago. 

Dr.  T.  Roberts  long  was  St.  Charles'  leading  physician,*  locating  there  in  1874. 
He  was  bom  in  Ohio,  came  to  the  State  of  Iowa  with  his  parents  and  taught 
school  several  terms.  He  then  read  medicine  and  was  graduated  from  the  College 
of  Physicians  and  Surgeons,  at  Keokuk,  in  1873. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  101 

W.  M.  Beaver  was  born  in  Mercer  County,  Pennsylvania,  and  studied  medi- 
cine there.    He  began  the  practice  of  his  profession  at  St.  Charles  in  1869. 

Dr.  L.  J.  Forney  began  the  practice  first  at  St.  Charles,  then  moved  to  Winter- 
set  in  1869,  but  came  to  the  county  six  years  previously.  He  was  a  graduate  of 
the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons,  Ohio  Medical  College  and  Rush  Medical 
College. 

In  1874  the  firm  of  Tidrick  &  Likes  was  formed.  This  was  shortly  after  the 
arrival  of  Dr.  E.  T.  Likes  from  Guernsey  County,  Ohio.  He  received  his  medical 
education  at  the  Detroit  Medical  College  and  after  associating  himself  with  Doctor 
Tidrick,  enjoyed  a  large  and  lucrative  practice. 

Dr.  J.  H.  Wintrode,  who  was  a  Pennsylvanian  by  birth,  received  his  profes- 
sional education  at  Baltimore.  He  located  in  Winterset  in  1876  and  in  1879 
married  Flora  B.  Hutchings.  While  engaged  in  the  practice  he  also  conducted  a 
drug  store  for  some  time.    He  served  one  term  as  county  treasurer. 

Dr.  John  Green  may  be  placed  among  the  pioneer  physicians  of  Madison 
County,  as  he  came  to  Walnut  Township  in  an  early  day,  located  at  Peru  and  for 
years  answered  the  calls  from  a  large  and  contiguous  territory.  In  1853  Dr.  N. 
M.  Smith  arrived  in  Walnut  Township  and  later  read  medicine  under  the  direc- 
tion of  Doctor  Green.  He  attended  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons  at 
Keokuk,  was  graduated  and  locating  at  Peru,  enjoyed  a  fair  measure  of  success. 

It  has  been  difficult  to  secure  the  names  of  all  the  physicians  worthy  of  notice 
who  have  practiced  in  Madison  County,  so  that  the  omissions  must  be  attributed 
not  to  an  unworthy  motive,  but  to  lack  of  knowledge  of  the  full  list.  However, 
in  a  general  way,  others  not  already  noticed  may  be  here  mentioned. 

Doctor  Rippey  was  an  old  practitioner  who,  like  many  others,  traveled  across 
country  in  all  kinds  of  weather  "horseback,*'  with  his  saddlebags.  For  some  years 
he  lived  about  six  miles  south  of  Winterset. 

Doctor  Sloan  was  of  the  last  named  place  and  practiced  there  for  many  years, 
after  which  he  retired  to  a  life  of  well  earned  ease. 

Dr.  John  Cooper  practiced  here  in  the  period  from  1875  to  about  1883.  He 
went  to  Des  Moines,  where  he  continued  to  practice  a  number  of  years.  His  son, 
Butler  Cooper,  began  the  practice  here  in  the  '90s  but  remained  a  few  years 
and  then  located  in  another  place.    He  has  been  dead  some  years. 

It  has  been  said  that  "actively  competing  for  and  enjoying  a  fair  share  of  the 
practice  in  St.  Charles  and  vicinity  are  Drs.  S.  N.  Sayre  and  E.  K.  Anderson, 
both  younger  in  years  than  Doctor  Roberts,  but  mature  in  experience,  sound  in 
judgment  and  both  deserving  of  the  high  social  and  professional  position  which 
they  enjoy.*'  Dr.  I.  K.  Sayre  is  a  son  of  S.  N.  Sayre,  with  whom  he  is  in 
partnership. 

"Dr.  B.  D.  Little  has  for  many  years  enjoyed  and  deserved  the  confidence 
of  the  people  of  Patterson  and  vicinity,  having  accomplished  a  large  amount  of 
professional  work.  At  Bevington,  Doctor  Findlay,  one  of  the  younger  men, 
kept  the  people  well  but  is  now  gone.  The  first  practitioner  there  was  Dr.  T.  F. 
Kelliher,  who  is  now  a  leading  physician  of  Des  Moines.  At  Earlham,  Doctor 
Day,  a  son  of  the  late  Judge  Day,  of  Des  Moines,  has  for  many  years  been  active 
in  his  chosen  profession.  Doctor  Irwin  is  also  in  the  practice.  Dr.  F.  W.  Bush. 
a  native  of  the  county,  was  prominent  in  his  community  around  Pitzer,  both  pro- 


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102  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

fessionally  and  socially,  as  were  also  Drs.  Scofield  and  Miller,  of  Macksburg, 
who  are  gone.  To  take  their  places  are  M.  B.  Coltrane  and  Doctor  Wallace. 
Doctors  Griffith  and  J.  W.  Carver,  of  Peru,  are  still  there,  but  Doctors  Clearwater 
and  McClellan,  of  Truro,  are  gone."  Dr.  J.  A.  Hutchinson  is  now  the  only  one 
remaining  in  Truro.    Dr.  G.  N.  Skinner  was  the  first  physician  there. 

Of  the  members  of  the  medical  fraternity  at  Winterset,  Dr.  John  Milholland 
had  the  longest  career  up  to  the  time  of  his  departure  a  few  years  ago,  having 
received  his  degree  from  the  University  of  Missouri  in  1874.  He  was  a  veteran 
of  the  Civil  war  and  for  many  years  served  as  a  member  of  the  pension  board  of 
this  county.  Dr.  W.  H.  Thompson  is  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  obtained  his 
literary  education  in  Pittsburg,  and  graduated  from  Jefferson  Medical  College 
(Philadelphia)  in  1884.  Dr.  Edward  Embree  was  graduated  from  the  State 
University,  medical  department,  in  1889,  and  Dr.  G.  N.  Skinner  from  the  medical 
department  of  Drake  University  the  same  year.  Dr.  R.  R.  Davisson  graduated 
from  Rush  Medical  College  in  1890 ;  Dr.  Jessie  V.  Smith  from  Keokuk  Medical 
College  of  Chicago  in  1896;  and  Dr.  W.  F.  Sterman  from  the  Illinois  Medical 
College  of  Chicago  in  1896;  Doctor  Richards  is  a  graduate  of  the  homeopathic 
department  of  the  University  of  Iowa,  while  Doctor  Ruth  received  his  diploma 
from  Keokuk  Medical  College  in  1891.  He  is  no  longer  here.  Dr.  D.  D.  Davis- 
son  was  long  one  of  the  leading  physicians  of  Madison  County  and  a  prominent 
citizen.  He  served  in  the  Legislature  from  this  county.  Dr.  C.  B.  Hickenlooper 
is  a  recent  addition  to  the  fraternity  and  is  a  successful  practitioner.  Dr.  T.  P. 
Weir,  an  osteopath,  has  a  good  practice  and  is  popular. 

MEDICAL   ASSOCIATION 

The  Madison  County  Medical  Association  was  first  organized  July  14,  1872, 
and  on  the  2Sth  of  the  month,  the  organization  was  perfected  by  the  election  of 
D.  D.  Davisson,  president;  W.  L.  Leonard,  vice  president;  S.  B.  Cherry,  secretary; 
A.  Smith,  treasurer;  Sloan,  Leonard  and  Cherry,  censors. 

For  some  years  the  association  held  regular  meetings,  upon  which  occasions 
carefully  prepared  papers  were  read  upon  subjects  pertinent  and  interesting  to 
the  profession ;  but  interest  finally  died  out  and  the  meetings  ceased  to  have  the 
regularity  first  intended  by  the  members.  Finally,  after  a  lapse  of  time,  the  society 
was  reorganized  on  May  15,  1899,  with  the  following  members:  R.  R.  Davisson, 
Edward  Embree,  F.  A.  Ely,  G.  N.  Skinner,  D.  D.  Davisson,  W.  H.  Thompson, 
J.  A.  Lawson,  W.  F.  Sterman,  John  Milholland.  The  officials  were:  R.  R. 
Davisson,  president;  Edward  Embree,  vice  president;  F.  A.  Ely,  secretary;  G.  N. 
Skinner,  treasurer.  The  present  members  of  the  society  are:  R.  R.  Davisson, 
W.  H.  Thompson,  F.  D.  Davenport,  C.  B.  Hickenlooper,  Edward  Embree, 
Jessie  V.  Smith,  E.  K.  Anderson,  T.  Roberts  and  S.  N.  Sayre,  St.  Charles ;  J.  A. 
Hutchinson,  Truro ;  J.  W.  Carver,  East  Peru.  The  present  officials  are :  B.  D. 
Little,  of  Patterson,  president;  G.  N.  Skinner,  vice  president;  R.  R.  Davisson, 
secretary-treasurer. 


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CHAPTER  XII 
BENCH  AND  BAR 

Perhaps  no  body  of  men,  not  excepting  the  clergy,  may  exercise  a  greater 
influence  for  good  in  a  community  than  those  who  follow  the  profession  of  the 
law,  and  it  must  b^  admitted  that  to  no  other  body,  not  even  to  the  so-called 
criminal  classes,  are  committed  greater  possibilities  for  an  influence  for  evil. 
What  that  influence  shall  be  depends  upon  the  character  of  the  men  who  con- 
stitute the  bar  of  the  community — ^not  merely  on  their  ability  or  learning  but  on 
their  character.  If  the  standard  of  morality  among  the  members  of  the  bar  is 
high,  the  whole  community  learns  to  look  at  questions  of  right  and  wrong  from 
a  higher  plane.  If  the  bar,  consciously  or  unconsciously,  adopts  a  low  standard 
of  morality,  it  almost  inevitably  contaminates  the  conscience  of  the  community. 
And  this  is  true  not  only  in  the  practice  of  the  profession  itself,  not  only  because 
of  the  influence  of  members  of  the  bar  as  men  rather  than  lawyers,  but  in  the 
effect  upon  other  professions  and  occupations  to  which  the  bar  acts  as  a  feeder. 
The  members  of  the  Legislature  are  recruited  largely  from  the  legal  profession. 
How  can  legislation,  designed  solely  for  the  welfare  of  the  public,  be  expected 
from  one  whose  honor  as  a  lawyer  has  not  been  above  suspicion?  And  since 
lawyers,  outside  of  the  Legislature,  have  a  great  influence  in  shaping  the  law, 
how  can  the  people  expect  that  influence  to  be  exerted  in  their  behalf  when  the 
bar  itself  is  unworthy?  Still  more  does  the  character  of  the  bar  effect  the 
judiciary,  which  is  supplied  from  its  ranks.  It  is  not  always,  perhaps  not  gen- 
erally, the  case  that  members  of  the  bench  are  chosen  from  those  lawyers  who 
have  attained  the  highest  rank  in  their  profession.  If  a  judge  be  industrious  and 
honest  but  not  of  great  ability,  or  if  he  be  able  and  honest,  though  lacking  in- 
dustry, the  rights  of  the  litigants  are  not  likely  to  suffer  seriously  at  his  hands. 
But  there  have  been  instances  where  judicial  office  was  bestowed  solely  as  a 
reward  for  political  service ;  and  while  it  is  sometimes  realized  that  one  who  has 
been  a  strenuous  and  not  too  scrupulous  politician  up  to  the  moment  of  his 
elevation  to  the  bench,  has  thereafter  forgotten  that  there  was  such  a  trade  as 
politics  and  has  administered  justice  without  fear  or  favor,  the  experiment  is  a 
dangerous  one.  No  one  need  be  surprised  if  in  such  a  case  the  old  maxim  holds 
true :  "He  who  buys  the  office  of  judge  must  of  necessity  sell  justice."  Let  our 
judges  be  men  who  are  subject  to  other  influences  than  those  of  the  facts  sub- 
mitted to  them  and  the  law  applicable  to  those  facts ;  let  them  lack  that  independ- 
ence which  is  an  imperative  requisite  to  one  who  holds  the  scales  of  justice;  let  a 
well  founded  suspicion  arise  that  their  decisions  are  dictated  by  something  outside 
of  their  own  minds  and  consciences,  and  the  confidence  of  the  people  in  the  main- 
tenance of  their  rights  through  the  agency  of  the  courts  is  destroyed. 

It  has  been  the  good  fortune  of  the  City  of  Winterset  and  the  County  of 
Madison  that  the  members  of  the  bar  here  have  been,  for  the  most  part,  men  of 

103 


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104  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

high  character  as  well  as  ability  and  learning,  so  that  its  bar  has  won  a  high 
and  honorable  reputation  throughoiit  the  rest  of  the  state  and  because  of  the  high 
character  of  the  bar  it  has  followed  that  those  of  its  members  who  have  been 
elevated  to  the  bench  have  enjoyed  the  confidence  and  respect  of  the  public 
and  have  been  honored  not  only  in  their  own  locality  but  in  many  cases  through- 
out the  state  and  in  other  states. 

Yet  the  preparation  of  a  history  of  the  bar,  so  far  at  least,  as  that  part  of  it 
which  lies  back  of  one's  own  generation  is  concerned,  is  attended  with  considerable 
difficulty.  Probably  few  men  who  in  their  time  play  important  parts  in  the  com- 
munity or  even  in  the  state  or  nation,  leave  so  transient  a  reputation  as  lawyers 
do.  A  writer  on  this  subject  who  took  for  his  text  "The  Lawyer  of  Fifty  Years 
Ago,"  said:  "In  thinking  over  the  names  of  these  distinguished  men  of  whom 
I  have  been  speaking,  the  thought  has  come  to  me  how  evanescent  and  limited  is 
the  lawyer's  reputation,  both  in  time  and  space.  I  doubt  very  much  if  a  lawyer, 
whatever  his  standing,  is  much  known  to  the  profession  outside  of  his  own  state." 
Those  who  attain  high  rank  in  the  profession  must  realize  that  with  rare  excep- 
tions, their  names  are  "writ  in  water."  One  may  turn  over  the  leaves  of  old 
reports  and  find  repeated  again  and  again  as  counsel  in  different  cases  the  name 
of  some  lawyer  who  must  have  been  in  his  time  a  power  in  the  courts,  only  to 
wonder  if  he  has  ever  seen  the  name  outside  of  the  covers  of  the  dusty  reports 
in  which  it  appears.  Hamilton,  in  the  conventions,  in  the  Federalist  and  in  the 
treasury,  and  Webster  in  the  Senate  and  in  public  orations,  have  perpetuated  and 
increased  the  fame  of  lawyers  Hamilton  and  Webster;  but  were  it  not  for  their 
services  outside  the  strict  limits  of  their  profession,  one  might  come  upon  their 
names  at  this  date  with  much  the  same  lack  of  recognition  as  that  with  which 
one  finds  in  a  reported  case  the  names  of  some  counsel,  great  perhaps  in  his  own 
time,  but  long  since  forgotten. 

And  there  is 'another  difficulty  in  preparing  such  a  history  as  this,  brief  and 
therefore  necessarily  limited  to  a  few  names,  and  that  is  that  some  may  be  omitted 
who  are  quite  as  worthy  of  mention  as  those  whose  names  appear.  It  is  not 
often  that  any  one  man  stands  as  a  lawyer  head  and  shoulders  above  the  other 
members  of  the  profession;  and  the  same  may  be  said  of  any  half  dozen  men. 
In  many  cases  the  most  careful  measurement  would  fail  to  disclose  a  difference 
of  more  than  a  fraction  of  an  inch,  if  any.  Lives  of  eminent  men  who  have  at 
some  period  been  practicing  lawyers,  have  contained  the  assertion  that  while  they 
were  engaged  in  the  practice  of  their  profession  they  were  the  "leaders  of  the 
bar,"  but  there  is  almost  always  room  for  doubt  as  to  whether  the  title  is  not  a 
brevet  bestowed  by  the  biographer  alone.  Therefore  the  mention  in  this  article 
of  certain  lawyers  must  not  be  taken  as  any  disparagement  of  those  who  are  not 
mentioned,  and  finally,  it  is  to  be  observed  that  this  article,  so  far  as  the  bar  is 
concerned,  will  treat  not  only  of  those  members  who  are  past  and  gone,  but  will 
make  mention  of  some  of  those  now  in  the  flesh.  But  first,  attention  is  directed 
to  the  judicial  districts  in  which  Madison  County  found  herself  at  various  times. 

THE  FIRST  DISTRICT  COURT  IN  MADISON 

The  first  constitution  of  the  State  of  Iowa  contained  the  provision  that  **The 
judicial  powers  shall  be  vested  in  a  Supreme  Court,  District  Courts  and  such 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  105 

inferior  courts  as  the  General  Assembly  may  from  time  to  time  establish/'  The 
constitution  also  provided  that  "The  first  session  of  the  General  Assembly  shall 
divide  the  state  into  four  districts,  which  may  be  increased  as  the  exigencies  may 
require/*  In  accordance  to  this  latter  provision  the  counties  of  Van  Buren, 
Jefferson,  Davis,  Wapello,  Keokuk,  Mahaska,  Marion,  Monroe,  Appanoose  and 
the  counties  west  of  the  counties  of  Marion,  Monroe  and  Appanoose  were  placed 
in  the  third  district.  This  in  effect  provided  for  Madiso'n  County,  which  at  the 
time  was  attached  to  Marion  for  judicial  purposes. 

C^  January  12,  1849,  "An  act  to  create  a  fifth  judicial  district  was  approved." 
The  new  district  thus  formed  was  composed  of  the  counties  of  Appanoose, 
Wayne,  Decatur,  Ringgold,  Taylor,  Page,  Fremont,  Monroe,  Lucas,  Qark, 
Marion,  Warren,  Madison,  Jasper,  Polk,  Dallas,  Marshall,  Story  and  Boone, 
so  that  at  the  time  Madison  County  was  organized,  in  1849,  ^^d  held  its  first 
District  Court,  it  formed  a  part  of  the  fifth  judicial  district,  and  the  first  term 
of  this  court  was  opened  May  31,  1849,  at  the  house  or  grocery  of  Enos  Berger, 
with  Judge  William  McKay,  of  Des  Moines,  on  the  bench.  This  first  temple  of 
jtistice  was  certainly  a  novel  and  unpretentious  affair.  The  judge  took  his  seat 
behind  the  counter,  in  the  store  room,  while  attorneys,  other  court  officials, 
litigants,  jurors  and  spectators  were  in  front  of  the  counter.  Everybody  in  the 
country  who  possibly  could  come  to  the  Berger  store  was  there  to  attend  the 
unusual  occurrence  of  the  holding  of  the  District  Court  in  the  new  county.  Not 
only  was  the  county  without  a  courthouse,  but  more  strange  to  say,  it  was  not  yet 
possessed  of  a  seat  of  justice. 

In  the  first  record  book,  kept  by  the  clerk  of  the  District  Court,  appear  the 
following  entries: 

May  Term,  A.  D.  1849. 

At  a  regular  term  of  the  District  Court  held  at  and  in  the  house  of  Enos 
Berger,  within  and  for  the  County  of  Madison,  in  the  State  of  Iowa,  on  the 
thirty-first  day  of  May,  A.  D.  1849,  present,  the  Honorable  William  McKay, 
Judge  of  the  Fifth  Judicial  Circuit  in  said  State: 

No.  I. 
Leonard  Bowman 

V. 

Samuel  Guye 

This  day  come  the  defendants,  by  Casady  &  Tidrick,  their  attorneys,  and 
filed  their  affidavit  and  asked  a  change  of  venue,  whereupon  the  court  allowed  a 
change  of  venue  in  this  case  and  ordered  the  same  to  be  sent  to  Polk  County, 
Iowa,  and  the  court  doth  further  order  that  the  defendants  in  this  case  pay  the 
costs  of  this  term. 

No.  2. 
The  State  of  Iowa  ' 

V.  *   Surety  of  the  Peace.     Recognizance. 

Samuel  Guye 

This  day  came  the  defendant,  by  his  attorney,  and  filed  his  motion  to  dismiss 
the  case  and  the  court  doth,  on  consideration  thereof,  sustain  the  motion.  There- 
fore, it  is  ordered  and  adjudged  by  the  court  here  that  this  case  be  dismissed. 


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106  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Recognizance  for  Surety  of  the  Peace. 


State   of   Iowa 

V. 

Samuel  W.  Guye 


This  day  comes  the  defendant,  by  his  attorneys,  and  filed  his  motion  to  dismiss 
the  case,  because  there  was  an  affidavit  before  a  justice,  and  the  court  doth,  upon 
consideration  thereof,  sustain  the  motion.  Therefore,  it  is  ordered  and  adjudged 
by  the  court  here  that  this  cause  be  dismissed. 

It  does  not  appear  that  at  this  term  of  the  court  either  a  grand  or  petit  jury 
was  impaneled.  The  second  term  was  held  on  May  30,  1850,  Judge  McKay 
on  the  bench.  The  sheriff  reported  the  return  of  a  venire  for  a  grand  jury,  which 
was  sworn  by  the  court  and  William  Sturman  was  appointed  foreman.  On 
motion  of  R.  L.  Tidrick,  I.  D.  Guiberson  and  M.  L.  McPherson  were  admitted  to 
practice  at  this  bar,  after  having  presented  certificates  of  admission  to  the  courts 
of  the  states  from  which  they  came.  I.  D.  Guiberson  was  then  appointed  prose- 
cuting attorney  for  the  term.  These  proceedings  are  here  related  simply  to 
show  how  the  first  court  in  Madison  County  was  established. 

THE  BENCH 

Men  of  high  breeding,  culture,  education  and  highly  developed  legal  talents 
have  presided  over  the  courts  in  this  county  even  from  the  beginning.  William 
McKay,  as  before  stated,  was  the  first  district  judge  and  resided  in  Des  Moines. 
He  was  elected  to  the  bench  on  the  democratic  ticket  at  the  April  election  in  1849, 
and  continued  on  the  bench  until  the  close  of  the  September  term  of  1852.  Judge 
McKay  was  a  graduate  of  a  Kentucky  military  school,  and  that  is  probably  the 
reason  why  he  became  known  as  Major,  or  Colonel  McKay,  before  he  secured  the 
more  dignified  title  of  Judge.  He  went  to  Des  Moines  in  February,  1846,  and 
was  known  as  a  young  man  of  culture,  courtly  manners,  genial  and  attractive. 
It  was  not  long  before  he  gained  public  attention.  Young  McKay  was  soon  hold- 
ing minor  positions  of  a  clerical  nature,  having  first  become  clerk  of  the  State 
Commission,  which  was  composed  of  alleged  "Quakers,*'  who  were  authorized  to 
select  a  tract  of  800  acres  of  land  donated  by  Congress,  upon  which  to  locate  a 
new  state  capital  site.  His  report  was  too  precise  in  that  it  revealed  the  skull- 
duggery of  the  Commission;  whereupon,  the  Legislature  repudiated  "Monroe 
City,  in  Jasper  County,"  as  the  site  for  the  new  state  capital.  Des  Moines  was  a 
candidate  itself  for  this  great  prize  and  McKay  was  too  loyal  to  his  own  town  to 
report  in  favor  of  any  other. 

At  the  May  term  of  the  District  Court  in  1847,  McKay  was  admitted  to  the 
bar  of  Polk  County,  and  was  the  first  applicant  to  accomplish  that  end.  He  was 
elected  judge  of  the  fifth  district  in  1849.  Judge  McKay  was  an  ardent  teetotaler 
and  avowed  his  temperance  principles  on  all  occasions.  He  was  esthetic  and  loved 
the  beautiful,  whether  in  animal  or  still  life.  He  held  the  office  of  judge  four 
years  and  was  defeated  for  reelection  by  P.  M.  Casiday,  of  Des  Moines,  who  soon 
resigned  and  was  succeeded  by  the  eccentric  Judge  C.  J.  McFarland,  of  Boone. 
In  1857  Judge  McKay  went  to  Kansas,  where  he  died  a  few  years  later.  In  all 
his  relations  with  civic  and  social  life  he  stood  for  the  betterment  of  all. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  107 

In  1853  ^^^  state  was  again  redistricted  and  divided  into  nine  judicial  dis- 
tricts. By  this  arrangement,  Madison  was  placed  in  the  ninth  district,  with 
Monroe,  Appanoose,  Wayne,  Decatur,  Lucas,  Clark  and  Warren.  Madison  re- 
mained in  the  ninth  until  1857,  when  the  eleventh  judicial  district  was  created, 
in  which  Madison  was  placed  with  Poweshiek,  Mahaska,  Jasper,  Marion,  Polk, 
Warren  and  Dallas.  When  a  new  alignment  of  the  judicial  districts  was  effected 
in  1858  Madison  was  again  assigned  to  the  fifth  district,  which  was  completed 
with  the  addition  of  Carroll,  Audubon,  Greene,  Guthrie,  Adair,  Dallas,  Warren 
and  Polk  counties,  where  it  has  remained  until  the  present  time. 

The  next  judge  to  sit  on  the  bench  at  this  court  was  John  S.  Townsend, 
who  succeeded  P.  M.  Casiday,  the  latter  having  resigned  the  position  without 
having  held  a  term  of  court  here.     William  M.  Stone  followed  Townsend  in 

1857. 

John  H.  Gray  was  the  first  judge  to  preside  here  after  Madison  County  had 
been  permanently  placed  in  the  fifth  judicial  district.  He  served  from  1859  until 
in  the  fall  of  1865,  when  his  death  occurred.  Then  came  Charles  C.  Nourse,  who 
was  appointed  to  fill  the  vacancy  left  by  Judge  Gray.  His  successor  was  Hugh 
Maxwell,  who  was  also  appointed  to  fill  a  vacancy.  He  was  on  the  bench  from 
1866  until  1870. 

John  Leonard  belonged  in  Madison  County  and  was  elected  to  the  bench  in  the 
fall  of  1874.  He  was  a  man  of  fine  legal  mind  and  dealt  out  justice  with  strict- 
ness and  unwavering  impartiality.  During  his  incumbency  of  the  office  he  was 
called  upon  to  pass  on  many  cases  that  became  of  state  wide  celebrity. 

W.  H.  McHenry  succeeded  Judge  Leonard  in  1878.  John  Mitchell  was  the 
first  to  sit  upon  the  circuit  bench  here  in  1868,  the  fifth  judicial  district  having 
been  divided  into  two  circuits.  Judge  Mitchell  held  court  in  the  first  circuit, 
composed  of  Warren,  Monroe  and  Dallas,  and  Frederick  Mott,  of  Madison 
County,  held  court  in  the  second  district,  composed  of  Adair,  Cass,  Guthrie, 
Audubon,  Greene,  Carroll  and  Madison.  Judge  Mott  was  considered  one  of  the 
ablest  and  purest  judges  of  the  Iowa  bench,  but  was  compelled  to  retire  upon  the 
abolishment  of  the  second  circuit  of  the  fifth  judicial  district  in  1873.  ^^  1878 
another  circuit  was  formed,  when  S.  A.  Calvert  was  appointed  to  tfie  judgeship. 

A.  W.  Wilkinson,  of  Winterset,  was  elected  to  the  district  bench  in  1887, 
and  served  until  1902.  His  record  as  a  ju^st  of  sound,  legal  acumen,  painstak- 
ing care  in  preparing  decisions  and  impartiality  in  his  rulings,  is  unassailable. 
He  was  one  of  the  most  popular  judges  in  the  district,  and  while  on  the  bench 
commanded  a  high  place  in  the  estimation  of  those  holding  place  in  the  appellate 
courts.  He  left  the  bench  to  resume  the  practice  of  the  law,  and  is  now  the 
nestor  of  the  Madison  County  bar.  A  more  extended  sketch  will  be  noticed  in 
the  second  volume  of  this  work. 

The  names  of  other  judges  of  this  district  follow:  O.  B.  Ayers,  of  Knox- 
ville,  Marion  County,  1887-90;  J.  H.  Henderson,  Indianola,  Warren  County, 
1887-95;  William  H.  McHenry,  Des  Moines,  1879-86;  James  H.  Applegate, 
Guthrie  Center,  1891-1914;  Edmund  Nichols,  Perry,  Dallas  County,  1903-10; 
John  A.  Storey,  Greenfield,  Adair  County,  1896;  James  D.  Gamble,  Knoxville, 
Marion  County,  1896-1910;  William  H.  Fahey,  Perry,  Dallas  County,  191 1 ;  Loren 
N.  Hayes,  Knoxville,  Marion  County,  191 1. 


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108  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

I 

THE  BAR 

The  bar  of  Winterset  contains  upon  its  roster  the  names  of  a  number  of  promi- 
nent men,  and,  as  a  class,  the  lawyers  of  this  place  have  been  men  of  high  char- 
acter, and  one  naturally  feels  a  thrill  of  local  pride  in  looking  over  the  roll  of 
names  of  those  men  who  have  done  so  much  to  protect  the  rights  of  the  people 
and  to  preserve  in  its  purity  that  jurisprudence  which  is  the  foundation  stone  of 
American  civilization. 

One  of  the  earliest  lawyers  of  Madison  County  was  Israel  D.  Guiberson, 
who  in  the  few  years  he  practiced  his  profession  established  a  reputation  which 
is  still  cherished.    He  died  in  1856. 

M.  L.  McPherson  was  a  pioneer  lawyer  who  rose  to  eminence.  He  was 
decidedly  a  man  of  power.  He  was  a  soldier  in  the  Civil  war,  was  a  member  of 
the  State  Senate  and  was  a  man  of  prominence  in  the  state.  As  an  advocate 
he  has  had  few  equals. 

Gen.  A.  J.  Baker  practiced  law  here  prior  to  the  Civil  war.  He  enlisted  in 
the  Seventeenth  Iowa  Infantry  and  after  the  war  settled  in  Missouri  and  from 
there  he  moved  to  Centerville,  Iowa,  about  forty  years  ago.  He  was  attorney 
general  of  the  State  of  Missouri  and  also  of  Iowa. 

In  the  early  days  of  ^this  country,  Col.  H.  J.  B.  Cumrhings  was  a  lawyer  of 
recognized  ability.  He  was  colonel  of  the  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry  and  served 
through  the  war,  at  the  close  of  which  he  engaged  in  the  newspaper  business. 
He  was  elected  to  Congress  in  1876  and  served  one  term. 

John  Leonard  always  ranked  as  one  of  the  able  and  successful  lawyers  of  the 
state.  He  was  judge  of  the  District  Court  one  term.  He  devoted  his  time 
exclusively  to  the  practice  of  his  profession  and  was  eminently  successful. 

Judge  Frederick  Mott  was  for  many  years  the  law  partner  of  Judge  Leonard. 
He  was  a  soldier  in  the  Civil  war,  served  one  term  as  circuit  judge  and  has  also 
served  as  county  attorney.  Some  years  ago  he  retired  from  the  practice  of  law 
and  engaged  in  the  banking  business,  but  now  lives  with  his  son  in  Des  Moines. 

Judge  A.  W.  Wilkinson  is  the  only  one  of  the  early  practitioners  now  actively 
engaged  in  the  profession.  While  comparatively  a  young  man  he  was  elected  to 
the  district  bench,  where  he  immediately  sprang  into  prominence  as  the  possessor 
of  one  of  the  finest  judicial  minds  in  the  state.  So  well  did  he  serve  the  people 
and  so  popular  did  he  become  with  the  bar  of  the  district  that  he  was  reelected 
time  and  again,  finally  retiring  on  his  own  motion  after  a  service  of  sixteen 
years.    He  is  now  senior  partner  of  the  firm  of  Wilkinson  &  Wilkinson. 

Among  the  early  lawyers  may  be  mentioned  S.  G.  Beckwith  and  G.  N.  Elliott. 
They  both  gave  up  their  practice  in  1862  and  joined  the  Union  army.  Elliott 
rose  to  the  rank  of  colonel  and  after  the  war  he  was  a  successful  attorney  in 
Topeka,  Kansas,  where  he  died  some  eleven  years  ago.  Beckwith  was  killed  at 
Black  River  Bridge  and  his  memory  as  a  true  patriot  will  always  be  cherished. 

V.  Wainwright  came  to  this  county  during  the  Civil  war  and  engaged  in  the 
practice  of  his  profession.  He  was  an  able  and  successful  lawyer  and  a  con- 
scientious and  scholarly  gentleman.  He  died  in  Winterset  almost  a  quarter  of 
a  century  ago. 

One  of  the  brightest  young  men  of  this  state  was  B.  F.  Murray.  He  was 
not  only  prominent  as  a  lawyer  but  he  was  prominent  in  politics.     He  served  a 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  109 

term  in  both  branches  of  the  Legislature.  His  health  broke  down  while  he  was 
yet  a  young  man  which  ended  a  career  that  could  not  have  been  otherwise  than 
brilliant. 

Hon.  S.  G.  Ruby  was  for  many  years  one  of  the  prominent  and  successful 
lawyers  of  this  county.  For  a  number  of  years  he  was  consul  for  this  republic 
at  Belfast,  Ireland.  He  also  held  other  important  Government  positions.  He  and 
B.  F.  Murray  were  among  the  first  to  enlist  in  the  Union  army  from  here. 

Judge  W.  H.  Lewis  has  for  many  years  been  engaged  in  the  nursery  busi- 
ness. He  was  a  successful  lawyer  for  a  number  of  years  and  served  one  term  as 
county  judge. 

V.  G.  HoUiday,  at  one  time  an  attorney  of  this  place,  is  now  practicing  his 
profession  in  Colorado. 

T.  C.  Gilpin  was  a  soldier  in  the  Civil  war.  He  came  about  its  close  and 
enjoyed  a  lucrative  practice  until  he  retired  a  few  years  ago.  He  also  served  as 
county  judge  and  county  auditor  of  this  county.  For  many  years  his  law  partner 
was  his  brother,  Hon.  S.  J.  Gilpin,  who  died  in  Winterset  a  few  years  ago. 

Maj.  Eli  Wilkin  and  John  Burke  came  to  this  county  about  the  year  1868  and 
began  the  practice  of  law.  Both  were  Union  soldiers.  In  a  few  years  Burke 
removed  to  St.  Louis,  where  he  became  prominent  and  wealthy.  Major  Wilkin 
built  up  a  fine  practice,  which  he  retained  until  he  removed  to  the  State  of  Wash- 
ington. He  served  one  term  in  the  State  Senate  of  Iowa.  He  died  at  his  old  home 
in  Ohio  some  fourteen  years  ago. 

Byram  Leonard  began  the  practice  of  law  here  under  flattering  prospects  but 
his  career  was  cut  short  by  his  death  in  1878.  He  was  a  good  lawyer  and  highly 
respected  in  this  community.  His  brother,  J.  F.  Leonard,  is  still  engaged  in 
practice  and  has  also  engaged  in  farming  to  some  extent. 

A.  W.  C  Weeks,  at  one  time  a  prominent  attorney  of  this  place,  is  now  in 
Oklahoma.    He  quit  the  law  some  years  ago  and  is  now  engaged  in  journalism. 

The  firm  of  McCaughan  &  Dabney  was  engaged  in  the  law  business  at  this 
place  for  about  twenty  years.  They  were  both  able  and  successful.  Mr. 
McCaughan  is  now  largely  engaged  in  mining  and  farming  in  Mexico  and  Mr. 
Dabney  went  into  the  oil  business  in  San  Francisco  and  died  a  few  years  ago. 

J.  R.  Chandler,  at  one  time  mayor  of  Winterset,  and  a  prominent  attorney, 
was  highly  respected.    He  served  in  the  Civil  war. 

J.  M.  Miller,  Hotner  Thompson,  J.  W.  Wood  and  M.  Polk  were  all  at  one 
time  members  of  the  bar  at  Winterset.  Mr.  Wood  and  Mr.  Polk  are  dead;  Mr. 
Thompson  is  engaged  in  the  newspaper  business  at  Valley  Junction,  Iowa,  and 
J.  M.  Miller  is  engaged  in  the  real  estate  business  in  the  State  of  Washington. 

G.  W.  Seevers,  one  of  the  oldest  members  of  the  bar,  died  in  1914. 

Hon.  C.  C.  Goodale,  of  Lamars,  Colorado,  is  another  member  of  the  bar.  of 
Madison  County  who  attained  honors  and  eminence.  He  was  not  only  an  able 
lawyer  but  was  at  one  time  a  popular  politician  of  this  state.  He  has  been 
eminently  successful  in  Colorado  and  for  a  number  of  years  was  surveyor  general 
of  that  state.  T.  R.  Wilkie  practiced  at  this  bar  several  years  and  left  for  Des 
Moines  about  five  years  ago. 

S.  D.  Alexander  attained  some  prominence  at  this  bar  and  severed  his  con- 
nections only  when  death  and  disease  called  him  away,  in  191 4. 


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110  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Emory  Nicholson  also  died  but  quite  recently — in  1913. 

J.  J.  Crossley  served  as  county  superintendent  of  schools  two  terms;  repre- 
sented this  district  in  the  State  Senate,  and  for  several  years  was  prosecuting 
attorney  in  Alaska  after  moving  there.  He  is  now  practicing  law  in  Portland, 
Oregon. 

Of  the  present  members  of  the  bar,  brief  mention  will  be  made,  as  more 
extended  notice  of  their  careers  will  be  found  in  the  second  volume.  John  A. 
Guiher  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  able  lawyers  of  the  state.  He  has  a  fine 
practice  and  the  people  o\  this  county  would  feel  a  pride  in  seeing  him  promoted 
to  the  bench.    He  was  appointed  railroad  commissioner  in  January,  19 15. 

J.  P.  Steele  is  one  of  the  older  members  of  the  local  bar,  has  a  good  practice 
and  is  a  successful  lawyer.    He  has  served  the  county  as  its  prosecuting  attorney. 

W.  S.  Cooper  has  proven  a  success  as  a  general,  all  around  practitioner.  He 
served  at  one  time  as  county  attorney. 

Others  who  should  be  mentioned  in  this  connection  are  W.  O.  Lucas,  W.  T. 
Guiher,  ex-county  attorney,  Leo  Percival,  Phil  R.  Wilkinson,  county  attorney 
elect,  J.  J.  Crossley,  J.  E.  Tidrick,  C.  A.  Robbins,  ex-county  attorney  and  now 
assistant  attorney  general  for  Iowa ;  Samuel  C.  Smith,  late  county  attorney,  who 
made  an  enviable  record  as  county  attorney  and  has  established  a  large  practice; 
Joseph  F.  Smith,  of  the  firm  of  Robbins  &  Smith;  J.  W.  Rhode,  of  Earlham; 
and  W.  A.  Tris,  of  St.  Charles. 

JUDGE  GILPIN    IN   REMINISCENT    MOOD 

Webster  defines  history  as  an  account  of  facts ;  but  the  prevailing  iconoclasm 
of  the  present  age  would  seem  almost  sufficient  to  forestall  any  effort  of  individual 
or  society  to  attempt  to  perpetuate  aught  of  historic  reminiscence.  So  persistent 
have  been  the  efforts  of  these  image  breakers,  that  one  is  almost  forced  to  the 
conclusion,  paradoxical  as  it  may  seem,  that  history,  instead  of  being  an  account 
of  facts,  is  a  true  and  correct  record  of  events  and  incidents  of  the  past,  that  never 
transpired.  Truth  and  fiction  have  been  by  them  so  inextricably  confounded  that 
the  disgusted  and  confused  school  boy  was  more  than  half  right  when  he  said, 
"history  is  a  confounded  nuisance."  They  have  broken  the  cross  bow  and  arrow 
of  William  Tell,  and  relegated  him,  with  the  tyrant  Gessler,  to  the  region  of 
mythical  mists. 

Arnold  Winkelried  no  longer  forces  a  breech  through  the  serried  ranks  of 
the  Austrians  by  grasping  to  his  heroic  breast  their  cruel  lances.  Leonidas  and 
Thermopylae  have  been  by  them  sponged  from  the  legendary  tablets  of  Spartan 
epics.  Casabianca  no  longer  shouts  defiance  to  the  flame  wrapped  ship,  but  has 
been  pronounced  a  witless  fool.  The  cherry  tree  and  little  hatchet  have  been 
classed  with  the  improbable  stories  of  ^Esop,  preference  being  given  to  the  fables 
of  the  black  slave.  Even  our  old  venerated  Christmas  friend,  Santa  Claus,  has 
been  playing  a  part  under  the  disguise  of  pater  familias.    Sic  transit  gloria  mundi. 

Thus  have  these  pestilent  iconoclasts  been  shattering  the  favorite  images, 
which  we  have  fondly  chrished  from  our  youth  up,  as  historical.  Nor  is  their 
office  and  work  of  modern  origin.  They  have  been  busy  wreckers  for  near  three 
thousand  years.     The  old  poet  Homer  was  declared  by  Aristotle  to  be  a  myth. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  111 

while  Socrates  and  Plato,  after  400  years  of  Homeric  history,  cast  a  shadow  of 
doubt  upon  the  story  of  Achilles,  of  Hector,  of  Agamemnon,  of  the  famous  siege 
of  Troy  and  the  fascinating  story  of  the  beautiful  Helen  of  Troy. 

The  antiquity  of  this  office  seems  to  afford  a  license  to  these  modem  wreckers, 
and  invests  them  with  a  sort  of  sophomorical  imitativeness.  Your  association 
must  therefore  be,  more  than  usual,  optimistic  and  instigated  by  a  strong  faith, 
that  the  record  you  are  preparing  shall  survive  the  criticism  and  skepticism  of 
the  future. 

If  my  information  is  correct,  the  object  and  purpose  of  your  society  is  to 
collect  and  preserve  of  record,  events,  incidents  and  interesting  items  pertaining 
to  the  early  settlement,  growth  and  progress  of  this  county,  to  prepare  an  account 
of  facts.  Your  purpose  and  object  is  most  praiseworthy,  for  as  the  poet  Spenser 
says, 

"How  many  great  ones  may  remembered  be. 
Who  in  their  days  most  famously  did  flourish. 
Of  whom  no  word  we  hear,  no  sign  we  see. 

But  as  things  wiped  out  with  a  sponge,  do  perish." 

Praiseworthy  to  preserve  as  on  a  tableted  monument,  commemorative  of  the 
toils,  privations,  sacrifices  and  perils  encountered  by  the  hardy  pioneers,  who, 
notwithstanding  all  discouragements,  persistently,  courageously,  hopefully  and 
patiently,  builded  better  than  they  knew,  the  foundations  of  our  grand  old  country. 
All  honor  to  their  noble  work.  Be  it  yours  to  prevent,  "that  as  things  wiped  out 
as  with  a  sponge,  their  deeds  and  memories  do  perish."  Praiseworthy  that  from 
the  record  you  preserve,  we  and  others  their  successors,  may  not  only  learn 
something  of  the  early  history  of  this  county,  but  be  influenced  and  inspired 
thereby  to  emulate  these  heroic  pioneers,  in  all  that  may  tend  to  the  growth, 
prosperity  and  achievement  of  the  superstructure  builded  upon  the  foundation 
they  laid. 

Although  requested  to  do  so,  having  come  to  Iowa  in  the  spring  of  1861,  and 
to  Winterset  at  the  close  of  the  war,  in  September,  1865,  I  shall  be  unable  to 
furnish  only  more  recent  incidents,  perhaps  none  worthy  of  note  or  that  you  have 
not  already  of  record.  I  regret  that  I  did  not  know  of  this  county  sooner,  that  I 
might  have  been  a  pioneer  like  the  patriotic  woman  President  Lincoln  told  of, 
who  wrote  him  that  she  was  sorry  that  she  did  not  know  the  war  was  coming  on, 
as  now  she  had  only  five  sons  to  give  to  her  country. 

Being  a  mepaber  of  the  bar,  it  would  be  perhaps  expected  that  some  reference 
should  be  made  by  me  to  the  courts,  attorneys  and  civic  government  of  the 
county.  There  were  three  courts  when  I  became  a  member  of  the  bar  in  1865 — 
the  District  Court  having  jurisdiction  of  the  criminal  cases,  of  causes  involving 
large  amounts,  and  of  equity  proceedings ;  the  Circuit  Court  of  the  lesser  civil 
actions;  and  the  County  Court  having  the  control  and  management  of  probate 
matters. 

I  was  elected  county  judge  for  the  years  1868  and  1869,  and  did  so  well  the- 
first  year  that  the  Legislature  abolished  the  office  from  and  after  January  i,  1869. 
They  very  kindly,  however,  took  care  of  the  deposed  county  judges,  by  creating 
the  new  office  auditor,  and  providing  that  they  should  hold  the  new  office  for  the 
year  1869. 


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112  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

I  was,  therefore,  the  last  county  judge  and  the  first  auditor  of  this  county. 
The  county  judge,  among  other  duties,  issued  marriage  licenses,  and  when  re- 
quested, was  authorized  to  perform  the  marriage  ceremony.  I  recall  one  instance 
of  an  aged  couple  who  had  lived  together  for  fifteen  or  twenty  years,  but  had 
been  separated  by  divorce  for  more  than  twenty  years,  had  been  apparently 
reconciled  by  mutual  friends.  They  came  to  my  office  one  day  with  their  friends 
and  wished  me  to  issue  the  license  and  marry  the  old  couple.  I  did  so,  and 
as  was  my  usual  custom,  shook  hands  with  them,  wished  them  well  and  said 
I  hoped  their  last  days  would  be  their  best  days.  Imagine  my  surprise  and 
indignation/ when  the  bridegroom  shook  his  grey  locks  and  said,  "Well,  it's  got  to 
be  a  dumed  sight  different  from  what  it  was  if  it  is.*'  The  old  fellow  shuffled 
off  out  of  the  office,  leaving  the  bride  and  her  friends  to  settle  the  license  and 
marriage  fees. 

"  A  notable  case  was  tried  in  the  District  Court,  then  being  held  in  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  Building,  located  where  the  electric  light  plant  is  now  situated. 
This  was  prior  to  the  erection  of  our  first  courthouse.  A  dose  of  aconite  had 
been  mistakably  administered,  resulting  in  the  death  of  the  patient  and  a  conse- 
quent suit  for  a  large  amount  in  damages  against  the  druggist,  who  was  accused 
of  issuing  the  fatal  prescription.  During  the  progress  of  the  examination  of 
witnesses  and  experts,  the  word  aconite  was  very  frequently  used.  Old  Colonel 
Curtis  had  long  officiated  as  court  bailiff  and  was  apparently  as  necessary  to  the 
proper  conduct  of  the  court  as  the  presiding  judge  himself.  The  colonel  was  a 
faithful  servant,  but  during  the  slow  and  tedious  prolongation  of  this  aconite 
case,  as  it  was  called,  he  would  drop  off  into  the  semi-consciousness  of  a  nap. 
Being  at  one  time  aroused  from  one  of  these  somnolent  lapses,  by  the  order 
of  the  jucige  to  adjourn  court,  he  arose  and  blinkingly  announced,  "Hear  ye, 
hear  ye,  the  honorable  aconite  court  is  now  adjourned." 

Our  county  has  always  had  the  reputation  of  having  a  talented  and  well 
equipped  bar.  During  the  sessions  of  the  District  Court,  quite  a  number  of 
attorneys  from  Indianola,  Knoxville  and  Des  Moines  were  accustomed  to  attend 
and  our  bar  reciprocated  during  sessions  held  in  these  other  counties.  A  very 
notable  and  gratifying  change  for  the  better  is  the  elimination  of  all  abusive 
language  and  conduct  of  opposing  council.  While  our  bar  has  always  been  com- 
paratively free  from  such  reprehensible  conduct,  as  much  cannot  truthfully  be  said 
of  some  other  counties  in  this  district  in  former  days;  our  judges  of  late  years 
have  frowned  down  all  such  unseemly  and  ungentlemanly  exhibitions  of  pugnacity. 
It  is  a  sad  reminiscence  that  not  one  of  the  members  of  the  bar  of  1865  ^s  now 
in  the  active  practice. 

Colonel  Cummings,  Mott,  Ruby  and  myself  are  the  only  living  relics,  leaving 
the  forensic  honors  and  emoluments  to  the  younger  members  of  the  profession. 
Some  of  our  business  men  of  that  day,  in  order  to  escape  compulsory  jury  duty, 
were  admitted  members  of  the  bar,  the  only  qualification  being  the  willingness 
and  ability  to  furnish  an  oyster  supper  to  the  members.  Some  of  these  bivalvular 
lawyers  may  yet  remain  "in  esse." 

The  board  of  supervisors  consisted  of  one  member  from  each  township, 
seventeen  in  all,  having  about  the  same  duties  as  the  present  board.  I  recall  the 
member  from  Monroe  Township — the  tall,  dark  complexioned,  angular  Herbert 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  113 

Harris.  He  was  a  man  of  strictest  integrity  and  highly  respected  by  the  other 
members.  He  was  a  man  of  few  words.  When  claims  or  appropriations  were 
under  investigation  his  one  and  only  speech,  as  he  extended  his  long  arms,  was 
"Guard  the  treasury,  boys,  guard  the  treasury."  He  would  have  been  a  good 
president  of  the  New  York  Life  Insurance  Company. 

Old  Father  McLeod,  of  Center  Township,  was  the  president  of  the  board  and 
was  very  careful  to  preserve  the  dignity  thereof,  and  of  his  official  position.  It 
was  his  custom  to  call  the  roll  of  the  members,  noting  absentees  and  delinquents. 
At  one  of  the  morning  sessions  he  called  the  name  o,f  John  Kirk,  the  member 
from  Scott  Township,  giving  the  peculiar  Scotch  whirr  to  the  R — ^John  Kirk.  He 
said,  "Kirk,  John  Kirk."  He  said,  "Kirk,"  a  little  louder,  "John  Kirk."  "I 
answered  twice,"  said  Kirk.  "Ha  ye  didna,"  said  McLeod,  "that  was  na  but  a 
grunt."  Had  Kirk  said  "here,"  or  "present,"  the  dignity  of  the  board  would  have 
been  conserved. 

Our  first  courthouse  was  erected  during  my  term  of  office  as  auditor  and 
the  board  of  supervisors  appointed  me  to  superintend  the  work.  I  did  so  from 
the  water  table  to  the  dome.  That  part  being  constructed  of  wood,  a  Mr.  Lemon, 
a  carpenter,  looked  after  that  part.  During  the  construction  of  the  main  build- 
ing, the  contractor  complained  of  a  serious  defect  in  the  plan  which  provided 
for  an  arch  over  the  vault  of  one  of  the  offices.  The  plan  showed  it  to  be 
elliptical,  with  a  very  short  spring ;  the  west  end  was  to  rest  as  a  skewback  on  an 
angle  of  the  main  wall,  while  the  east  end  must  rest  against  a  hollow  brick  wall, 
without  other  support.  The  board  declined  to  make  any  change  and  the  con- 
tractor, under  protest,  built  it  as  specified.  Upon  removing  the  form  or  support, 
the  east  end  pushed  through  the  wall  and  the  arch  crashed  down.  A  half  circle 
arch  was  then  substituted.  After  the  building  was  completed,  but  before  the 
keys  had  been  delivered,  a  controversy  arose  between  the  board  and  contractor 
about  compensation  for  some  extras.  The  county  wanted  the  use  of  the  house 
but  could  not  get  poss.ession  of  the  keys.  The  contractor  had  locked  every  door 
and  window  and  took  the  keys  to  his  boarding  house.  The  sheriff  and  others 
went  to  demand  them,  were  refused  and  proceeded  to  hunt  for  them.  The  land- 
lady, hoping  to  conceal  the  keys,  made  a  fire  in  a  certain  stove,  which  aroused  the 
suspicion  of  the  officers.  With  the  assistance  of  an  iron  poker  the  keys  were  all 
found,  although  somewhat  blackened  and  marred. 

Some  amusing  incidents  occurring  in  the  early  part  of  the  war  have  been 
related  to  me,  anent  the  threatened  attack  in  the  city  and  the  consequent  prepara- 
tions for  resisting.  Trees  were  felled  across  some  of  the  highways,  which  an 
ordinary  plow  horse  could  clear  without  touching  the  bark.  A  barricade  across 
one  of  the  roads  south  of  town  was  constructed  of  fence  rails  taken  from  each 
side  in  front  and  rear  of  the  fortification,  and  would  have  proven  quite  formidable 
to  cavalry,  infantry  and  artillery,  had  not  the  engineers  thoughtlessly  left  gaps 
around  the  barricade  over  the  smooth  open  prairie.  I  do  not  vouch  for  these 
incidents  and  will  only  suggest  that  your  secretary  interview  some  of  the  resident 
military  of  that  day  for  incidents  that  may  be  of  value  to  the  Iowa  National 
Guard  at  least. 


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CHAPTER  XIII 

THE  PRESS 

The  newspapers  of  Madison  County  do  not  make  a  big  showing  in  point  of 
numbers,  but  in  that  regard  they  make  up  the  discrepancy  in  character  and  the 
completeness  in  which  they  cover  the  field  of  their  especial  endeavor.  The  county 
was  not  very  old  when  it  attracted  to  the  county  seat  James  Her,  who  brought 
with  him  from  the  "Buckeye''  state  a  small  press,  fair  type  and  other  para- 
phernalia, with  which  he  set  up  the  first  printing  office  and  established  the  first 
newspaper  in  this  part  of  the  state. 

WINTERSET    MADISONIAN 

This  paper  is  credited  as  one  of  the  strongest  weeklies  in  Southwestern  Iowa, 
in  point  of  influence,  and  it  is  also  one  of  the  oldest. 

In  1856  James  Her  bought  a  second  press  and  equipment  from  the  Sandusky 
(Ohio)  Register  and  brought  it  to  Winterset  on  a  wagon.  At  that  time  no  paper 
had  been  established  between  Des  Moines  and  Council  Bluffs.  The  Madisonian 
is  therefore  one  of  the  oldest  newspapers  in  the  state  and  the  very  oldest  in 
Southwestern  Iowa.  The  history  of  the  paper  in  its  establishment,  growth  and 
development,  runs  parallel  with  the  growth  and  development  of  the  state.  Its 
various  publishers  have  invariably  been  exponents  of  the  persistence,  energy  and 
ambition  of  the  community,  which  has  so  liberally  sustained  it,  and  it  has  more 
than  kept  pace  with  the  growth  and  progress  of  affairs. 

The  following  persons  either  in  part  or  whole  have  owned  and  published  the 
Madisonian  since  its  founding  by  Mr.  Her  in  1856:  J.  J.  Davies,  Oliver  H.  Ayers, 
E.  H.  Talbot,  J.  M.  HoUiday,  C.  S.  Wilson,  M.  H.  Ewing,  E.  W.  Fuller,  H.  J.  B. 
Cummings,  S.  H.  Springer,  C.  C.  Goodale,  E.  R.  Zeller,  Henry  Wallace,  Homer 
Thompson,  Albert  Strong,  Fred  Strong,  S.  D.  Alexander  and  the  present  owner 
and  publisher,  Ed  M.  Smith,  who  has  been  associated  with  the  paper  since  1899 
and  the  sole  owner  and  publisher  since  1904.  The  Madisonian  has  always  been 
the  official  paper  of  the  county  and  has  never  been  relegated  to  a  second  place  in 
point  of  influence  and  patronage.  It  has  always  had  a  larger  subscription  list 
than  any  other  in  this  or  adjoining  counties,  and  since  1908  the  list  has  been 
maintained  on  a  cash  in  advance  basis. 

In  1906,  the  Madisonian  took  up  its  quarters  in  a  neat  and  substantial  new 
home,  just  a  half  century  after  its  establishment.  The  structure  is  practically 
three  stories  in  height,  when  the  high  basement  is  considered.  It  is  faced  with 
buff  pressed  brick  and  on  the  facade  is  inscribed  in  raised  letters  "The  Madi- 
sonian." The  cost  was  $8,000  and  the  new  home  of  this  pioneer  newspaper 
ranks  among  the  best  and  most  modem  in  the  state.  The  plant  itself  is  an 
excellent  one.    A  late  improved  press  in  the  basement  turns  out  neatly  printed 

114 


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JAMES  ILER 

Founder   of   the   Madisonian,    1856.     First  called   the   **Iowa 
Pilot."     Mr.  Her  died  December  10,  1905 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  115 

Madisonians  rapidly;  in  the  shipping  room  close  by  the  papers  are  soon  wrapped 
and  ready  for  distribution  by  carrier  and  the  mails.  The  types  for  the  paper 
are  cast  and  placed  in  line  by  the  improved  Mergenthaler  linotype,  installed  early 
in  the  year  of  191 5. 

The  second  floor  is  devoted  to  the  counting  rooms,  editorial  rooms  and  com- 
posing rooms,  while  the  third  story  is  given  over  to  offices. 

WINTERSET  REPORTER 

The  Winterset  Reporter  was  founded  by  Wood  &  Gill  in  1885  and  first  pub- 
lished in  St.  Charles  as  the  St.  Charles  Reporter.  There  it  remained  ten  years, 
when  it  was  moved  to  Winterset.  The  first  issue  as  the  Winterset  Reporter  made 
its  appearance  April  11,  1895.  In  March,  1896,  Mr.  Wood  purchased  the  in- 
terest of  Mr.  Gill,  but  within  a  few  days  sold  a  one-half  interest  to  W.  F.  Payton, 
who  was  known  as  the  business  manager.  This  arrangement  continued  until 
April  21,  1898,  when  Ray  M.  Price  became  the  owner  of  Payton*s  interest  and 
business  manager  as  well. 

During  September  of  the  same  year  another  change  in  ownership  took  place, 
S.  D.  Alexander  purchasing  the  interest  of  A.  L.  Wood,  who  had  been  appointed 
postmaster  of  Winterset.  Alexander  &  Price  continued  the  publication  of  the 
paper  until  May  11,  1899,  when  Mr.  Price  became  the  sole  owner. 

January  i,  1903,  Mr.  Price  changed  the  form  of  the  paper  from  a  six- 
column  quarto  to  sixteen  pages,  four  columns  to  the  page,  which  form  was  con- 
tinued but  three  months  when  the  old  quarto  form  was  readopted  by  his  suc- 
cessor. 

Mr.  Price  died  March  23,  1903,  and  the  present  owner,  J.  W.  Miller,  bought 
the  paper  of  his  estate,  taking  possession  April  i,  1903.  Mr.  Miller  assumed  the 
duties  of  publisher  and  editor  as  an  experienced  newspaper  man,  having  been  one 
of  the  editors  of  the  Madisonian  from  1876  to  1887. 

The  Winterset  Reporter  has  always  been  a  stanch  and  consistent  republican 
newspaper.  Each  one  of  its  several  editors  were  thoroughly  grounded  in  the 
republican  faith  and  they  have  battled  fearlessly  for  the  principles  of  re- 
publicanism and  the  enhancement  of  the  party's  interests.  Its  straightforward 
and  consistent  course  throughout  its  career  has,  no  doubt,  had  much  to  do  with 
its  success,  which  has  been  marked. 

WINTERSET  NEWS 

The  Winterset  News  was  established  in  1872,  when  Jacob  Morgan,  who  had 
been  foreman  of  the  Winterset  Madisonian,  bought  the  plant  of  the  Winterset 
Sun,  a  semi-weekly  republican  paper,  from  Wilson  &  Newlon,  and  changed  its 
name  and  politics.  The  first  issue  of  the  Sun  was  September  26,  1868,  the 
publishers  being  Wilson  &  Holaday.  Wilson  afterwards  went  to  Des  Moines 
and  was  city  editor  of  the  Register  for  years.  J.  M.  Holaday,  familiarly  known 
as  "Milt,"  was  a  printer  and  belonged  to  a  prominent  family.  The  Sun  was  a 
five-column  folio.  Holaday  sold  his  interest  in  the  paper  to  A.  J.  Hoisington  the 
following  year  and  the  latter  in  turn  sold  to  William  Newlon.     The  paper  did 


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116  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

not  pay  and  the  plant  was  sold  to  Morgan,  who  issued  the  first  News  in  the 
rear  upper  room  of  the  Jones  block,  opposite  the  present  building  of  the  News. 
Morgan  conducted  the  paper  several  years,  and  after  selling  out  he  was  con- 
nected with  the  Council  Bluffs  Nonpareil,  published  the  Kearney  (Nebraska) 
E>emocrat,  and  was  postmaster  of  that  city  during  Qeveland*s  first  term.  In 
1876  he  sold  the  plant  to  Maj.  D.  D.  Palmer,  of  Iowa  City,  who  published  the 
paper  until  shortly  before  his  death,  having  in  the  meantime  sold  the  paper, 
March  15,  1888,  to  Arthur  Goshom,  who  had  sold  his  own  paper  in  Pierce, 
Nebraska,  to  obtain  it.  Major  Palmer  changed  the  News  from  an  eight-column 
folio  to  a  six-column  quarto  a  year  or  two  prior  to  his  death.  The  News  has 
always  been  one  of  the  strongest  papers  in  Southern  Iowa.  In  spite  of  the  fact 
that  90  per  cent  of  the  business  men  of  Winterset  have  been  of  opposite  political 
faith  since  the  Civil  war,  the  News  has  enjoyed  their  good  will  and  always  has 
been  well  patronized. 

NEWSPAPERS  OF  ST.  CHARLES 

There  have  been  several  papers  published  since  the  first  newspaper  was  started 
by  M.  I.  Bean  in  1884. 

The  St.  Charles  Watchman  was  the  first  paper  published  by  M.  I.  Bean  in 
1884.  After  two  or  three  years  the  paper  was  purchased  by  A.  L.  Wood  and 
the  name  changed  to  the  St.  Charles  Reporter.  About  the  year  1893  or  there- 
abouts Mr.  Wood  moved  the  outfit  to  Winterset  and  changed  the  name  to  the 
Winterset  Reporter,  and  this  made  the  second  republican  paper  in  the  county 
seat. 

Mr.  P.  S.  Wise  then  started  the  St.  Charles  Hawkeye,  operating  it  five  or  six 
years  with  success.  He  then  sold  it  to  D.  F.  Peffley — then  the  next  owner  was 
Al  P.  Haas,  followed  by  W.  O.  Hodgson,  Fred  Bolte,  Otto  Engstrom,  Mrs. 
Wilton,  Mr.  Eldridge,  Cope  &  Long,  J.  U.  Gitzy,  and  finally  Joe  Long  of  Osceola, 
who  sold  the  outfit  to  Mr.  Eldridge  and  moved  it  away.  This  was  in  1907.  In 
February,  1909,  Mr.  P.  S.  Wise  started  the  St.  Charles  News  and  is  running  a 
bright  little  country  newspaper. 

THE  EARLHAM  ECHO 

The  Earlham  Echo,  a  weekly  newspaper,  was  established  in  1890  and  for 
many  years  it  was  edited  and  published  by  A.  L.  Rowen.  Some  four  or  five 
years  ago  Paul  R.  Stillman  took  charge  and  is  now  in  full  control.  Mr.  Stillman  is 
quite  a  young  man,  but  promises  to  develop  the  newspaper  instinct  and  "nose  for 
news"  so  prominently  manifest  and  known  to  be  characteristic  in  other  Stillmans 
of  the  state,  one  of  whom  was  an  able  editorial  writer  on  the  old  Des  Moines 
Register  and  later,  about  the  breaking  out  of  the  Civil  war,  founded  the  Sioux 
City  Journal.  The  son  of  this  pioneer  editor  is  Paul  Stillman,  editor  the  Jefferson 
Bee,  and  late  speaker  of  the  Iowa  House  of  Representatives. 

Truro  has  had  two  papers,  the  Graphic  and  the  Star.  Neither,  however,  was 
published  there,  nor  is  one  of  them  left.  A  paper,  taking  the  title  of  the  Macks- 
burg  Record,  is  edited  by  Mrs.  Schell.  It  is  a  five-column  quarto  and-  is  printed 
at  Lorimer. 


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STAFF  OF  THE  IOWA  PILOT,  1856 

Frank  Foster  James  Her  John  C.  Foster  Mary  Iler-Newton 

First  **  Devir '  First  editor  First  solicitor  First  compositor 


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CHAPTER  XIV 
POSTOFFICES 

When  the  first  settlers  came  to  Madison  County  (1846)  there  were  no  rail- 
roads west  of  the  Mississippi  River,  and  probably  none  west  of  Chicago.  The 
mail  at  that  time  was  carried  by  steamboats,  stages  and  on  horseback.  Until  the 
first  postoffice  was  established  at  Montpelier  (1848)  the  people  had  to  go  to  Fort 
Des  Moines  after  their  mail  and  the  necessities  of  life. 

After  the  postoffice  was  moved  to  Winterset  (1849)  this  became  the  post- 
office  and  trading  point  for  nearly  all  the  people  of  Madison  County.  Soon  post- 
offices  were  established  in  other  parts  of  the  county  along  stage  routes  or  roads 
leading  to  other  towns.  Winterset  became  the  starting  point  for  these  post- 
offices.  Nearly  all  the  early  postoffices  have  been  discontinued  and  forgotten. 
With  the  advent  of  rural  free  delivery  all  the  country  postoffices  have  been  aban- 
doned.   The  postoffices  now  in  Madison  County  are  along  the  line  of  a  railroad. 

Winterset. — The  first  postoffice  established  in  Madison  County  was  called 
Montpelier.  Alfred  D.  Jones  came  up  from  Des  Moines  in  June,  1848,  and  built 
a  log  store  east  of  Tileville,  on  the  ridge  in  section  26,  Union  Township,  then 
called  the  "Narrows,"  and  secured  a  postoffice.  Mail  was  brought  from  Des 
Moines  on  horseback.  Later  it  was  brought  by  stage  until  the  railroad  was 
built.  Samuel  Snyder  and  his  brother  Alfred  carried  the  mail.  They  lived  at 
Norwalk.  They  would  go  to  Des  Moines  one  day,  and  then  to  Montpelier  and 
back  to  Norwalk  the  next;  thus  they  woujd  have  mail  every  other  day.  Later 
the  office  was  moved  to  Winterset  and  Mr.  Snyder  and  his  brothers  continued 
to  carry  mail  until  1852. 

In  1849  the  name  of  the  office  was  changed  to  Independence  and  Enos  Berger 
became  postmaster.  In  September  of  the  same  year  the  name  was  again  changed 
to  Montpelier.  May  30,  1850,  the  office  was  changed  to  Winterset  and  Enos 
Berger  came  along  with  the  mail.  The  officials  since  then  are  as  follows :  John 
A.  Pitzer,  D.  C.  McNeil,  Thomas  C.  Bird,  William  M.  Knowlton,  M.  Glaze- 
brook,  J.  J.  Davies,  E.  O.  Burt,  F.  M.  Cassidy,  D.  E.  Cooper,  Thomas  J.  Hudson, 
William  R.  Shriver,  T.  J.  Hudson,  A.  L.  Wood,  J.  W.  Miller,  Ed  M.  Smith, 
W.  H.  Vance  and  Arthur  E.  Goshom.  Of  the  postmasters,  let  it  be  noted  that 
the  term  of  office  was  the  shortest  for  E.  O.  Burt,  who  held  the  place  less  than 
one  month,  while  that  of  his  successor,  F.  M.  Cassidy,  was  the  longest,  extending 
for  a  period  of  nearly  fifteen  years.  It  may  also  not  be  improper  to  say  that 
with  a  few  exceptions  these  have  been  representative  men  and  as  a  general  thing 
changes  have  been  the  result  of  changes  in  the  national  administration  rather 
than  from  any  fault  in  the  management  of  the  office.  Should  some  one  write 
a  true  and  detailed  account  of  the  exciting  contests  about  the  postmasterships  of 

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118  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Winterset,  he  would  have  to  deal  with  some  of  the  most  exciting  incidents  of  our 
city's  history.  What  has  been  said  of  Winterset  does  not  apply  with  equal 
force  in  the  case  of  the  other  postoffices,  although  there  have  been  exciting 
contests  at  Earlham,  St.  Charles,  Truro,  Peru,  Patterson  and  Macksburg, 
but  these  rural  offices  were  not  much  sought  after,  as  the  compensation  was 
not  sufficient  to  recompense  the  official  for  the  labor,  worry  and  responsibility 
incident  to  the  office.  In  many  cases,  some  public-spirited  individual  assumed 
these  duties  and  responsibilities  simply  to  accommodate  his  neighbors. 

Earlham  became  a  postoffice  January  12,  1869,  ^i^d  Martin  Cook  was  first 
postmaster.  He  was  followed  by  John  R.  Thomson,  Dayton  Bamett,  D.  M. 
Roberts,  John  B.  Davis,  A.  J.  Davis,  Isaac  K.  Wilson,  M.  E.  Wilson,  John  E. 
Chamness  and  E.  M.  Crosswait  and  W.  H.  Dudley. 

St.  Charles. — This  office  was  established  December  13,  1853,  with  David 
Downs  as  postmaster.  Those  succeeding  him  were  as  follows:  Milton  Thomp- 
son, William  McCreery,  L.  f.  Thompson,  J.  H.  Stiffler,  William  L.  Browne, 
J.  L.  Browne,  S.  S.  Switzer,  A.  L.  Wood,  S.  S.  Switzer,  J.  L.  Fleming,  O.  M. 
Horton  and  Philip  D.  Switzer. 

Peru. — For  many  years  this  was  one  of  the  important  points  on  the  Winterset 
and  Osceola  route.  The  office  was  established  April  18,  1853,  and  was  discon- 
tinued August  21,  1903.  This  is  the  long  and  honorable  list  of  worthy  postmas- 
ters: B.  F.  Brown,  Peter  R.  Lilley,  B.  F.  Brown,  J.  P.  Boyd,  H.  C.  Wright, 
William  C.  Smith,  C.  D.  Clark,  J.  W.  Likens,  B.  R.  Rankin,  M.  C.  Lorimor,  Mary 
E.  Travis,  J.  W.  Keller,  R.  F.  Bush,  William  L.  Hiatt  and  A.  C.  Turner. 

East  Peru  was  established  November  7,  1888.  The  following  have  been  post- 
masters ;  Charles  W.  Wright,  William  Painter,  J.  M.  Allen,  Jr.,  Joseph  Harwood, 
Robert  Greene,  Ullrich  Z.  Waechter,  A.  C.  Creger,  F.  H.  Greene  and  S.  B. 
Hamand. 

Patterson. — This  office  was  established  June  10,  1872,  with  Sol.  B.  Catterlin 
as  postmaster.  His  successors  in  order  named  w^re  L.  C.  Doan,  Butler  Bird, 
W.  A.  Wright,  George  R.  Branscom,  Douglas  Debord,  George  A.  Wall,  Harvey 
Brown,  Douglas  Debord,  Thomas  S.  Love,  W.  H.  Doan,  George  A.  Potter  and  Roy 
Gillogly. 

Bevington*was  established  June  4,  1872.  The  following  have  been  the  officials : 
Cornelius  Haight,  R.  A.  Wilson,  Campbell  Hughart,  William  T.  Cason,  Campbell 
Hughart,  George  W.  Shreeves,  William  W.  Eraser,  J.  T.  Cash,  H.  D.  Harrell, 
Robert  Clelland,  Harry  D.  Harrell,  William  Cody  and  Merton  C.  Doak. 

Amazon  was  the  name  of  a  postoffice  established  July  16,  1850,  and  discon- 
tinued the  following  year.  It  was  located  on  the  southwest  quarter  of  the  south- 
east quarter  of  section  12,  Scott  Township,  a  short  distance  south  and  west  of 
Union  Chapel  and  cemetery.  Emanuel  J.  Henkel  was  the  postmaster.  He  was 
a  physician  and  laid  out  a  town  there  called  Richmond.  There  was  at  one  time 
a  store  there,  kept  by  some  one  whose  name  we  cannot  learn.  The  mail  was 
brought  from  Winterset. 

Banner  was  the  name  of  a  postoffice  established  in  June,  1874,  and  discon- 
tinued the  following  year.  It  was  located  at  the  northwest  corner  of  the  north- 
west quarter  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  7,  in  Virginia  Township, 
Warren  County,  but  was  thought  to  be  in  Madison  County.    Mail  was  brought 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  119 

from  Bevington  via  St.  Charles,  Banner,  New  Virginia  to  Osceola.     John  S. 
Crawford  was  the  first  and  only  postmaster. 

Barney. — This  postoffice  was  established  in  November,  1888.  The  following 
have  been  postmasters:  J.  W.  Galbraith,  Richard  Beardsley,  B.  R.  Rankin, 
Charles  Klein,  J.  H.  Woods,  Richard  Beardsley,  Sophia  Beardsley  and  Milton 
Stephenson. 

Bell's  Ridge  was  located  on  the  northwest  quarter  of  the  northwest  quarter 
of  section  i,  South  Township,  land  now  owned  by  C.  E.  Huglin.  It  was  estab- 
lished October  31,  1851,  and  discontinued  November  27,  1854.  Henry  A.  Bell 
was  the  postmaster.  It  was  learned  from  a  letter  that  A.  D.  Bell  was  the  mail 
carrier,  that  he  was  sworn  in  by  Judge  Pitzer  and  the  mail  was  brought  every 
Thursday  from  Winterset. 

Bloomingdale  was  established  in  September,  1857.  I^  ^^s  located  on  the 
northwest  quarter  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  35,  Jefferson  Township, 
land  now  owned  by  William  Schoen  estate.  The  office  was  discontinued  in  De- 
cember, 1858.  Henry  du  d'Huy  was  the  first  postmaster  and  was  succeeded  by 
John  McManus  in  1858. 

Brooklyn  was  a  town  laid  out  by  J.  W.  Guiberson  and  located  on  the  southwest 
quarter  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  14,  Walnut  Township,  land  now  owned 
by  L.  F.  Cliftpn.  A  postoffice  was  established  there  in  February,  1857,  and  dis- 
continued in  June,  i860.  The  following  were  the  postmasters:  William  S. 
Quick,  William  Mills,  J.  W.  Guiberson  and  D.  D.  I>rake. 

Charlottesville  was  the  name  of  a  postoffice  located  on  the  northeast  quarter 
of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  24,  Jackson  Township,  land  now  owned  by 
S.  D.  Ford.  It  is  said  the  name  was  selected  in  honor  of  Charlotte  Welch,  wife 
of  A.  G.  Welch,  the  first  postmaster.  This  office  was  discontinued  in  October, 
1861.  The  office  was  supplied  from  a  mail  route  leading  from  Winterset  through 
Redfield  and  Panora. 

Clanton. — This  office  was  established  in  February,  1859,  and  discontinued  in 
March,  1894.  It  was  located  in  Monroe  Township,  and  at  the  homes  of  various 
farmers  living  near  the  center  of  that  township.  The  first  official  was  Blewford 
Boling.  Then  came  Wesley  Wilson,  William  H.  West,  L.  C.  McKibbon,  William 
H.  West  again  and  then  in  1876  Hugh  Alexander,  who  handed  out  mail  at  his 
hospitable  home  until  1892,  when  he  was  followed  by  M.  R.  Sheldon  and  Elbert 
Bullock,  who  was  postmaster  when  the  office  was  discontinued. 

Ellsworth  was  established  August  3,  1861,  and  discontinued  August  19,  1873. 
It  was  located  on  the  northeast  quarter  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  21, 
Crawford  Township,  land  now  owned  by  C.  S.  Crawford.  Oliver  Crawford 
was  the  first  postmaster  and  the  mail  was  supplied  by  a  route  leading  from  Des 
Moines  to  Winterset.  Lucinda  Crawford  was  postmistress  and  then  came  James 
Bell. 

Foster  postoffice  was  established  November  7,  1879,  located  first  at  the  home 
of  Nathaniel  Foster,  Walnut  Township,  and  then  at  the  home  of  George  H.  Orr, 
in  Scott  Township.  The  office  was  discontinued  October  30,  1882.  Mail  from 
Winterset,  Foster,  Gear  to  Murray. 

Gear. — This  office  was  named  in  honor  of  Gov.  John  H.  Gear,  and  was  estab- 
lished November  18,  1879.  It  was  located  first  at  the  home  of  John  Reasoner 
and  then  at  the  home  of  William  N.  Bowman,  both  in  Monroe  Township.     It 


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120  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

was  on  the  mail  route  from  Winterset  to  Murray.    Later  mail  was  brought  from 
Barney.    It  was  discontinued  September  12,  1903. 

Gilpin  was  located  at  the  northwest  comer  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  the 
southwest  quarter  of  section  i,  Union  Township,  on  land  now  owned  by  Nick 
Nolan.  The  office  was  established  November  9,  1885,  and  discontinued  January 
9,  1888.     H.  L.  Bigelow  was  the  first  and  only  postmaster. 

Hanley  postoffice  was  established  December  6,  1889.  The  following  have  been 
postmasters:  J.  G.  Martin,  S.  S.  Nicoson,  Lydia  Schoonover,  A.  H.  Bishop, 
William  T.  Lee,  S.  S.  Niooson,  F.  M.  James,  Jesse  Lee,  R.  Hv  Glasgow,  P.  F. 
James,  Laura  E.  Glasgow,  W.  C.  Montgomery  and  Jennie  I.  Howard.  The 
office  was  discontinued  May  i,  191 1. 

Harrison  office  was  established  April  27,  1900,  and  discontinued  with  the 
coming  of  rural  free  delivery,  June  15,  1905.  It  was  located  near  the  center  of 
Webster  Township.  J.  B.  Wilkinson,  John  F.  Craven  and  George  I.  Rippey  were 
the  postmasters. 

Heaton  was  named  in  honor  of  "Uncle  Billy**  Heaton,  one  of  the  early  settlers 
of  Lee  Township.  It  was  established  August  6,  1858,  and  discontinued  February 
14,  1861.  It  was  located  on  the  northeast  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of 
section  33,  Lee  Township,  land  now  owned  by  Julia  Mulvihill.  The  first  and 
only  postmaster  was  Francis  B.  Wilson. 

Kasson  was  named  in  honor  of  J.  A.  Kasson,  for  several  terms  member  of 
Congress  from  this  district.  It  was  located  in  the  southwest  comer  of  Monroe 
Township.  The  office  was  established  September  4,  1861,  and  discontinued  June 
30,  1905,  by  reason  of  the  rural  free  delivery.  The  following  were  the  postmas- 
ters: Benjamin  Blythe,  C.  L.  Kirk,  J.  V.  Kirk,  Lemuel  Bishop,  William  I.  Harris, 
William  E.  Berry,  C.  C.  Bancroft,  C.  H.  Lewis,  William  Bivin,  J.  M.  Newton  and 
J.  M.  Archer. 

Lefever  is  located  on  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  31,  Grand  River  Town- 
ship, on  land  owned  by  J.  M.  Lefever,  south  of  the  large  stock  farm  owned  by 
the  late  L.  N.  Conway.  The  office  was  established  April  14,  1892,  and  was  dis- 
continued October  3,  1894.    Mary  E.  Lefever  was  the  postmistress. 

McBride  office  was  established  May  16,  1889,  and  was  discontinued  May  23, 
1901.    It  was  located  on  the  northwest  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section 
34,  Jefferson  Township,  on  land  owned  by  August  Burger.    The  following  were ' 
the  officials:   Ellen  Burger,  D.  A.  Litton,  Grant  Taylor  and  George  M.  Powell. 
The  mail  was  brought  from  Van  Meter. 

McPherson. — This  office  was  launched  under  the  supervision  of  Charles 
Polk,  in  June,  1876.  The  office  remained  at  that  hospitable  home  for  about 
one  year,  when  it  was  removed  across  the  road  to  the  residence  of  E.  B.  Thom- 
son, where  it  remained  until  it  was  discontinued  April  21,  1900.  It  was  on  the 
direct  road  from  Winterset  to  Macksburg  and  was  supplied  by  the  daily  route 
which  has  for  so  many  years  been  operated  between  these  two  cities.  It  is  sup- 
posed the  office  got  its  name  from  the  popular  and  well  remembered  pioneer 
lawyer  of  Winterset,  M.  L.  McPherson. 

Maple  Grove. — This  office  was  located  at  the  home  of  E.  G.  Perkins,  in  Jack- 
son Township,  in  June,  1874,  where  it  remained  until  October,  1889,  when  it 
was  removed  to  the  residence  of  Mr.  Grosscup  across  the  road.  It  was  dis- 
continued in  1903.    Mr.  Perkins  and  Miss  Janie  Grosscup  were  the  only  officials. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  121 

Middle  River  postoffice  was  located  at  the  town  of  Webster,  December  12, 
1855.  Otho  Davis  was  the  first  postmaster  and  his  successors  are  as  follows: 
F.  M.  McAferty,  J.  V.  Nelson,  J.  E.  Shidler,  Luther  Fox,  F.  B.  McAferty,  F.  M. 
Tidrick,  Rufus  Ulery,  Edward  Loucks,  L.  J.  Cook  and  John  Craven.  The  office 
has  been  discontinued. 

North. — This  office  was  located  in  the  vicinity  of  Worthington,  in  the  south 
part  of  Madison  Township.  It  was  established  June  19,  1861.  Alexander  Kirk- 
land,  William  H.  Clampitt,  George  T.  Nichols  and  A.  M.  Clements  were  post- 
masters: Mail  was  carried  from  Winterset.  The  office  was  discontinued  August 
4,  1869,  soon  after  Earlham  postoffice  was  established. 

North  Branch  was  located  on  the  southwest  quarter  of  the  southwest  quarter 
of  section  26,  Madison  Township,  on  land  now  owned  by  J.  L.  Peters  and  S.  D. 
Palmer.  The  office  was  established  November  16,  1853,  and  discontinued  Oc- 
tober 18,  i860.    The  first  and  only  postmaster  was  Jacob  Bennett. 

North  River,  southwest  quarter  northwest  quarter  of  section  5,  Jackson 
Township,  was  established  April  i,  1872,  with  George  Rose  as  postmaster.  The 
office  was  discontinued  January  3,  1876. 

Ohio. — This  office  was  located  near  the  east  line  of  Walnut  Township,  in 
the  vicinity  of  Ebenezer  church  and  cemetery.  It  was  established  February  10, 
1862,  and  discontinued  in  1889.  The  office  was  for  many  years  in  the  store 
carried  on  at  that  place  and  S.  M.  Walker  and  J.  W.  Smith  presided  over  its 
destinies  for  nearly  twenty  years.  Fred  Beeler  became  postmaster  in  188 1  and 
was  the  official  at  the  time  the  office  was  discontinued,  Chas.  W.  Wright  having 
served  from  August,  1884,  till  April,  1888.  The  mail  was  carried  along  the 
well  known  and  much  traveled  road  leading  from  Winterset  to  Osceola. 

Ord  was  made  a  postoffice  in  1888  and  went  out  of  commission  June  15,  1905. 
It  was  located  in  the  Macumber  neighborhood  on  the  Winterset  and  Macksburg 
road.  C.  G.  Bertholf,  A.  M.  Bertholf,  E.  M.  Rippey,  Henrietta  Rippey,  A.  M. 
Bertholf  and  J.  W.  Rippey  in  the  order  named  sold  stamps  and  handed  out  letters 
at  this  Government  station.      ^ 

Pitzer  was  named  in  honor  of  J.  A.  Pitzer,  one  of  Winterset's  pioneers.  The 
office  was  established  July  13,  1889.  Mary  Speer  was  the  first  official  and  was 
followed  by  J.  L.  Fox,  R.  C.  Speer,  H.  B.  Jones,  C.  Van  Stigt  and  E.  E.  Brooker. 
The  office  was  discontinued  September  29,  1906. 

Pleasant  View  was  located  in  Webster  Township,  in  March,  1870,  and  dis- 
continued in  1876.  The  location  was  the  homes  of  O.  H.  Smith  and  David  Rich- 
mond, who  were  the  postmasters.  The  following  is  gathered  from  a  letter  written 
by  O.  H.  Smith:  "I  live  in  the  same  place  that  I  did  when  I  was  postmaster 
and  the  mail  was  carried  from  Winterset  to  Cromwell,  and  a  Mr.  Hawley  was  a 
carrier.    Delos  Campbell  and  Merid  Craven  were  also  carriers." 

Price  was  for  a  short  time  a  postoffice.  It  was  located  at  the  northwest 
comer  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  34,  Lincoln 
Township.  It  was  located  where  B.  L.  Thrift  now  lives.  It  was  on  the  Win- 
terset and  Creston  road  via  Macksburg,  also  the  Winterset  and  Afton  road; 
the  former  was  daily  and  the  latter  tri-weekly.  The  office  was  established  June 
8th  and  discontinued  in  November  of  the  same  year,  1876.  L.  C.  McKibben  was 
the  postmaster. 

Queen's  Point  was  an  office  established  May  16,  1854,  at  the  residence  of 


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122  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Hogan  Queen,  in  South  Township,  on  the  road  leading  from  Winterset  to  St. 
Charles.  It  was  discontinued  in  1855,  reestablished  in  1856  and  again  discon- 
tinued in  1867.    Hogan  Queen  was  the  postmaster  all  the  time. 

Reed. — This  office  was  located  in  1881  at  the  southeast  comer  of  the  north- 
east quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  21,  Ohio  Township.  That  was 
on  the  farm  now  owned  by  Isaac  Holmes,  who  was  the  first  postmaster.  In  1882 
it  was  moved  to  the  new  town  of  Ego.  In  1884  the  name  of  the  new  town  was 
changed  to  Truro,  and  the  name  of  the  office  was  also  changed.  After  Isaac 
Holmes,  G.  N.  Skinner  became  postmaster;  then  Holmes  served  again  and 
was  followed  by  George  Patton,  J.  D.  Hillman,  Ella  Earl,  J.  W.  Smith,  George 
W.  Caskey,  J.  A.  Bardrick  and  Isaac  E.  Holmes,  nephew  of  the  first  postmaster. 
Homer  D.  Brown  and  Brada  Brown 

Venus. — In  1863  there  was  a  postoffice  established  with  this  classic  name. 
It  was  situated  near  the  center  of  Grand  River  Township  and  A.  J.  Hasty  was 
the  dignified  and  genial  autocrat  who  first  presided  over  its  destinies.  He  was 
followed  in  the  order  named  by  John  D.  Craven,  Sylvester  Bennett,  Wm.  O.  Lee, 
John  H.  Bray,  John  D.  Craven,  E.  E.  Stewart,  Martin  Jessup,  George  W.  Lowry 
and  Peter  H.  Seay,  when  it  was  discontinued  October  4,  1870.  It  was  reestab- 
lished in  1 87 1,  with  Mary  A.  Miller  as  postmistress.  Then  John  D.  Craven  re- 
appeared and  was  followed  by  J.  H.  Marley  and  J.  H.  Mack,  when  the  town  of 
Macksburg  was  laid  out  and  the  name  of  the  postoffice  was  changed  to  conform 
with  it.  Since  then  the  postmasters  have  been  Madison  Osbom,  B.  F.  Conway, 
J.  M.  Lee,  D.  A.  Sawyer,  J.  D.  Love,  B.  S.  Bonham,  William  H.  Armstrong, 
H.  H.  Saxton,  L.  C.  McKibben  and  Ethel  M.  Busch. 

Wells. — On  the  northwest  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  6, 
Grand  River  Township,  there  lived  for  many  years  one  Ira  W.  Brownell.  At 
that  place  was  established  a  postoffice,  October  19,  1871,  and  named  Wells.  The 
office  was  discontinued  in  1896.  During  the  life  of  the  postoffice.  Wells,  Mr. 
Brownell  held  an  uninterrupted  term  of  office,  a  period  of  nearly  twenty-five 
years,  which  speaks  well  for  the  patience,  politeness  and  integrity  of  that  much 
respected  Government  official. 


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CHAPTER    XV 

FIRST  MARRIAGES  IN  THE  COUNTY 
By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

The  marriage  records  of  Madison  County  begin  with  a  book  now  marked 
"B."  The  first  entry  is  No.  105  of  date  July  4,  1855,  when  license  to  marry 
was  issued  to  George  Harman  and  Anna  Smares.  But  following  this  license 
are  a  few  that  evidently  are  duplicates  of  those  issued  previous  to  the  beginning 
of  this  record.  The  one  reaching  farthest  back  in  point  of  time  is  that  of  Jonas 
Shreves  and  Elizabeth  Longabaugh,  whose  license  to  wed  was  of  date  June  28, 
1854,  and  they  were  married  July  9,  1854,  by  Justice  of  the  Peace  W.  H.  Comp- 
ton,  who  made  return  thereof  July  14,  1854.  Six  licenses  are  duplicated  in  this 
book  from  a  previous  record. 

What  became  of  the  previous  records  we  may  never  know.  Anyhow  we 
do  not  learn  that  there  is  in  existence  any  record  preceding  this  book  **B"  of 
marriage  records.  The  loss  is  accounted  for  differently  but  generally  credited  to 
have  occurred  at  the  time  the  courthouse  was  burned  in  1875. 

However,  there  is  what  purports  to  be  a  reversible  alphabetical  index  of 
marriage  records  wherein  is  given  the  names  of  persons  married,  the  number  of 
the  license,  the  book  in  which  recorded  and  the  page  number  of  the  record.  This 
list  begins  with  No.  i  and  includes  all  those  numbers  to  and  including  104  and 
states  they  were  recorded  in  "Book  A.''  This  index  also  includes  marriages 
recorded  in  "Book  B,"  which  is  in  existence.    It  is  all  of  "Book  A''  that  is  missing. 

This  alphabetical  index  of  marriages  marked  as  recorded  in  "Book  A,"  of 
which  we  assume  there  were  104,  because  in  marriage  register  marked  "B,''  the 
first  number  is  given  as  105,  contains  at  least  three  omissions,  providing  no  errors 
in  giving  the  serial  number  were  made  by  those  who  entered  the  record  in  "Book 
A."  The  numbers  4,  59  and  62  are  missing.  However,  the  copyist  who  made 
this  alphabetical  index  was  grossly  careless  in  doing  the  work,  as  it  is  plain  to 
one  who  checks  it  over.  Therefore,  it  may  be  that  three  marriages  are  omitted 
in  this  index,  or  else  there  were  but  loi  instead  of  104. 

Besides  these  three  numbers  in  doubt  there  are  at  least  six  duplicates  in 
"Book  B''  from  "Book  A,"  as  before  described.  Thus  the  serial  number  of 
marriage  licenses  in  the  first  series  appears  to  be  long  of  the  true  number.  This 
purported  index  to  "Book  A'*  may  contain  still  other  omissions.  Among  those 
married  not  found  in  this  index,  it  was  learned  from  Samuel  Fife,  of  St.  Charles, 
that  he  attended  the  wedding  of  a  Mr.  Simmons  and  a  Miss  Marshall  in  February, 
1854,  in  St.  Charles,  at  the  home  of  Milton  R.  Thompson,  the  bride  being  a  sister 
of  Mrs.  Thompson,  and  the  ceremony  being  performed  by  Justice  of  the  Peace 
I>avid  Fife. 

Before  the  organization  of  this  county  it  was  attached  to  Marion  County 

123 


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124  PIISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

for  various  purposes.  As  there  was  then  no  official  machinery  for  issuing  mar- 
riage licenses  in  this  county  until  its  permanent  organization,  January  i,  1849, 
it  would  be  interesting  to  know  who  were  married  in  this  county  under  licenses 
issued  in  Marion.  Existing  records  in  this  county  give  no  clue.  There  is  said 
to  have  been  one,  probably  more.    Who  knows  ? 

As  before  stated,  there  is  no  marriage  register  before  No.  105,  of  date  July 
4»  1855,  except  the  few  duplicated  marriage  records  in  "Book  B"  referred  to. 
Since  the  early  marriages  in  any  newly  settled  country  always  remain  a  matter 
of  interest  to  succeeding  generations,  and  because  the  record  is  given  we  give 
the  following  as  found  in  the  index  of  the  missing  "Book  A.'*  In  a  few  cases 
we  have  secured  marriage  dates  and  those  are  added.  The  list  is  here  given  in 
the  order  found  in  the  index:  E>avid  S.  Smith  to  Jane  Cason,  April  19,  1849; 
Mesheck  Casteel  to  Sarah  Evans,  August  13,  1849;  Lewis  Baum  to  Barbara  Jane 
Wolverton;  No.  4,  missing;  George  W.  Guye  to  Lorena  Harris,  September  2, 
1849;  Samuel  W.  Poffinbarger  to  Hannah  Smith;  David  Fleener  to  Mary  M. 
Wilkinson;  Charles  Wright  to  Rachel  Waymire;  Charles  Clanton  to  Mary  C. 
Allcock;  William  Butler  to  Anna  Evans;  James  Phipps  to  Minerva  Viney; 
Elijah  Perkins  to  Julia  Ann  Ansley,  February  — ,  1850;  Thomas  Wilkinson  to 
Nancy  Jane  Erinson;  H.  James  Perkins  to  Elizabeth  Moody;  James  W.  Guye 
to  Irena  Smith;  Joseph  Randall  to  Rebecca  Ann  Henry;  James  M.  Lee  to  Elenor 
Cason;  William  R.  King  to  Esther  Jane  Jessup;  George  W.  Richardson  to  Edna 
Burgess;  John  J.  Cason  to  Mary  Ann  Brinson;  William  A.  Williams  to  Susan 
Clair;  Hiram  J.  Barns  to  Harriet  Elizabeth  Gentry,  December  — ,  1850;  David 
Fife  to  Mary  Jane  Smith;  Amos  Fife  to  Lucy  Ann  Smith,  March  15,  1851,  by 
Rev.  Thomas  Cason;  Frederick  Waymire  to  Mary  Wright;  Jonathan  W.  Rob- 
bins  to  Frances  Sheppard ;  Andrew  G.  Week  to  Mary  Jane  Adamson ;  Henry  Sim- 
mons to  Nancy  Ann  Pender ;  Elisha  B.  Bell  to  Abigail  Watson ;  Milton  Smith  to 
Permelia  Johns;  John  Esley  to  Catharine  Johns;  Thomas  Brown  to  Elizabeth 
Moore;  Erastus  S.  Jones  to  Mary  E.  Guiberson;  Luther  W.  Boxley  to  Phoebe 
Queen ;  Elias  Burgess  to  Hester  Ann  Bishop ;  Thomas  Casteel  to  Mary  J.  Bow- 
man; Jesse  Bell  to  Hulda  Adamson;  Martin  Wheeler  to  Mary  Blair;  Thomas 
Hooten  to  Lucinda  Casebier;  Jesse  Reeves  to  Elizabeth  Barlow;  Alfred  Queen 
to  Susan  Ann  Hinkle;  Samuel  Snyder  to  Julia  Blair,  February  17,  1852,  by 
County  Judge  John  A.  Pitzer;  Lemuel  Dorrell  to  Ursula  Stephenson;  David 
Brinson  to  Sarah  Evans  j  Lorenzo  Harmon  to  Frankly  Ann  Evans ;  Benjamin  F. 
Miller  to  Elizabeth  Peter;  Sherwood  Howerton  to  Ann  Fry;  David  J.  Casebier 
to  Martha  Chiles;  Dickson  Webster  to  Susan  J.  Perry;  Charles  Clark  to  Minerva 
Farris;  F.  William  L.  Schoen  to  Dorothea  Lorenzen,  July  6,  1852,  by  Justice  N. 
W.  Guiberson;  Charles  Chinn  to  Jane  Matheny;  Sanford  Haines  to  Bashabeth 
Foster ;  William  Stean  to  Susanna  Bertholf ;  Andrew  Johns  to  Mary  Ann  Smith ; 
William  Ballen  to  Margaret  S.  Allcock,  January  9,  1853;  Martin  B.  Ruby  to 
Mary  F.  Myers ;  Samuel  Clevenger  to  Temperance  White ;  No.  59  missing ;  Daniel 
Miller  to  Lucy  Jane  Campbell ;  William  Garrett  to  Tabitha  Evans ;  No.  62  missing; 
C.  D.  Bevington  to  Philena  Parker;  William  H.  Shaikler  to  Ruth  Pitts;  Alex- 
ander Blair  to  Martha  Terry,  his  second  wife;  Levi  Smith  to  Margaret  Ann 
Cochran;  Jacob  Watson  to  Sarah  Ann  David;  Alfred  Brittain  to  Eliza  Sturman, 
March  8,  1853,  by  Rev.  John  Evans;  Dexter  Howard  to  Elizabeth  Moore; 
Andrew  J.  Hogg  to  Rebecca  Humphry ;  James  M.  Watson  to  Ann  Marshall ;  Wil- 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  125 

Ham  Johns  to  Catharine  Longabaugh;  James  Hinkle  to  Mary  Farson;  William 
Steele  to  Mary  Leveridge;  L.  M.  Tidrick  to  Martha  Bell;  Jacob  Fry  to  Martha 
Ruby;  Horace  Howard  to  Elizabeth  Hoggart;  Daniel  Bowman  to  Elizabeth 
Folwell ;  William  Pursell  to  Jane  Sturman ;  Joseph  Addison  to  Eliza  Ann  Brin- 
son ;  Lewis  McGinnis  to  Winnie  Bishop ;  Zachariah  G.  Peter  to  Amy  O.  Blakely ; 
Alfred  B.  Fox  to  Elizabeth  Ann  Herron;  Joseph  L.  Thompson  to  Irena  Mc- 
Daniel;  Robert  Allen  to  Martha  Wright ;.  George  Hornback  to  Eliza  Jane  Goe; 
William  Paul  to  Eliza  Ballard;  Leander  McCarty  to  Mary  Jane  Gaff;  Craig 
Games  to  Sarah  Jane  Murphy ;  John  Snyder  to  Jane  Rate ;  M.  A.  Carmichael  to 
Martha  Gordon ;  Martin  D.  Swafford  to  Sarah  Ann  Sulgrove ;  James  Adkins  to 
I>elphi  Colier;  Jonas  Shreeves  to  Elizabeth  Longabaugh,  July  9,  1854;  James 
N.  Gentry  to  Mary  Snyder;  James  Brinson  to  Sarah  Ann  Gardner;  George  W. 
Mitchell  to  Nancy  Jane  Hornback,  January  i.  1855;  Jacob  Shellhart  to  Emeline 
Cracraft,  December  23,  1854;  Alexander  M.  Bertholf  to  Lucinda  A.  Niles,  Au- 
gust 27,  1854;  Oliver  H.  Perry  to  Mertila  McCarty,  October  26,  1854;  George 
M.  Wilson  to  Mary  Ann  Doud;  George  M.  VanGundy  to  Melissa  Sulgrove; 
Henry  Augustine  to  Frances  M.  Wilson,  January  22,  1855;  Andrew  Miller  to 
Lousina  J.  Showver. 


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CHAPTER   XVI 

MADISON  COUNTY  CLAIM  CLUB 
By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

Title  to  land  in  Madison  County  could  not  be  obtained  until  January  21,  1850, 
at  which  time  the  Government  domain  in  the  north  half  of  the  county  was  opened 
for  entry.  But  the  title  to  school  lands  was  secured  as  soon  as  the  county  was 
sectionized  in  1849.  As  settlements  began  in  May,  1846  (not  counting  Hiram 
Hurst),  there  was  a  period  of  three  years  and  eight  months  of  occupancy  when 
the  only  rights  to  real  estate  were  obtained  by  priority  of  settlement  and  con- 
tinuous residence.  Lands  thus  selected  were  called  "claims."  Elsewhere  is 
described  the  manner  of  taking  these  '^claims." 

During  the  first  two  and  a  half  years  of  the  settlement  of  the  county  no 
serious  disagreements  arose  concerning  claim  rights;  but  as  settlers  continued 
to  arrive  in  increasing  numbers  and  the  choicest  lands,  in  the  public  estimation, 
were  mostly  occupied  during  the  winter  of  1848-9.  a  "Claim  Club"  was  organized, 
notwithstanding  that  up  to  .this  time  there  had  been  no  professional  "claim 
jumpers,"  nor  other  intruders  upon  the  claim  rights  of  settlers.  Madison  County 
was  singularly  free  of  molestation  by  land  speculators,  as  regards  any  invasion 
of  the  rights  of  those  already  settled  upon  the  land.  This  immunity  from  in- 
trusion was  because  the  force  of  "claim  jumpers"  had  been  spent  in  the  counties 
eastward,  in  counties  along  the  Des  Moines  River.  In  those  localities  and  in 
counties  still  farther  east  "claim  clubs"  were  in  existence  and  doing  very  active 
business,  often  dealing  justly  and  frequently  committing  wrong. 

While  there  was  no  apparent  good  reason  for  the  organization  of  a  "claim 
club"  in  this  county,  the  formation  of  one  was  urged  by  those  active  spirits  who 
delight  in  "stirring  up  things,"  and  by  others,  who  feared  that  as  the  time 
approached  when  the  lands  would  "come  into  market"  there  might  be  trouble 
made  by  people  not  yet  in  sight.  Half  a  dozen  persons  who,  in  a  small  and 
modest  manner,  were  doing  something  in  a  legitimate  way,  at  trading  in  claims 
to  "accommodate  new  settlers,"  jumped  aboard  the  proposition  to  organize  and 
by  the  end  of  the  winter  the  "Madison  County  Claim  Club"  became  the  first 
county  wide  organization. 

Charles  Wright,  who  lived  on  Middle  River,  southwest  of  (now)  Winterset, 
was  elected  captain  of  the  club.  He  was  chosen  mainly  because  he  had  been  a 
soldier  in  the  then  late  war  with  Mexico  and  partly  because  he  was  active  in 
promoting  the  organization.  Besides,  he  was  doing  some  business  in  handling 
claims  for  others,  and  it  presumably  might  work  in  nicely  in  some  emergency 
of  interest  and  help  his  affairs  to  be  at  the  head  of  this  "claim  law"  enforcing 
machinery.  William  Sturman,  who  was  living  on  the  northeast  part  of  section 
9,  in  (now)  Union  Township,  became  secretary.     He  also  had  material  interest 

126 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  127 

in  the  enforcement  of  the  "claim  law/'  since  he  had  brought  a  considerable 
sum  of  cash,  for  those  days,  to  the  county,  and  was  ready  to  enter  lands,  amount- 
ing to  more  than  a  ''claim,*'  when  they  "came  into  market."  Naturally,  he  wanted 
to  protect  all  his  claims. 

While  all  those  who  traded  at  all  in  claims,  or  were  trying  to  "cover  up" 
more  than  one  claim,  were  active  in  the  organization,  yet  the  membership  was 
nearly  all  of  an  unselfish  character,  wholly  devoted  to  the  maintenance  of  "law 
and  good  order,"  and  desirous  to  protect  each  settler  in  his  just  rights  of  claim. 
The  following  obligation  was  signed  by  each  member : 

"Pledge  of  the  Madison  County,  Iowa,  Qaim  Club: 

"Whereas,  Self-protection,  the  acquiring  and  peaceable  possession  of  property, 
are  essential  to  the  happiness  and  prosperity  of  the  people ;  and 

"Whereas,  Reckless  claim  jumpers  and  invidious  wolves  in  human  form  are 
prowling  through  the  county  for  the  purpose  of  robbing  the  settler  of  his  claim 
and  of  the  means  of  support ;  therefore,  be  it 

"Resolved:  First,  that  we  pledge  ourselves  to  protect  every  member  of  this 
club  in  his  rights  of  claim,  or  against  the  preemption  of  adverse  parties,  without 
fear  of  the  world,  the  flesh  or  the  devil. 

"Second : — That  no  person  shall  be  allowed  to  preempt,  or  to  purchase  from 
the  Government,  any  claim  of  a  member  of  the  club  without  the  unequivocal 
consent  of  the  member. 

"Third : — That  the  filing  of  any  intention  to  preempt,  in  contravention  of  the 
right  of  any  member  hereof,  shall  be  regarded  as  an  attempt  to  deprive  one 
member  of  his  rights  under  the  eternal  fitness  of  things,  and  we  pledge  ourselves 
one  to  another  to  meet  the  offender  on  the  home  stretch  with  logic  of  life  or 
death. 

"Fourth  :-^That  a  committee  of  three  be  raised  whose  duty  shall  be  to  hear 
and  adjust  any  disputes,  evasions  or  disagreements  that  may  arise  with  members 
of  this  club,  or  any  case  where  claims  of  members  are  in  dispute  with  outside 
adverse  claimants  of  every  character  whatever. 

"Fifth : — That  we  pledge  ourselves  to  sustain  and  uphold  our  committee  and 
appointees  in  the  performance  of  their  several  duties  and  to  enforce  their  de- 
cisions and  adjudications  to  the  very  letter,  with  force  and  arms  if  necessary. 

"Sixth : — ^That  a  cordial  invitation  is  hereby  extended  to  every  citizen  of  the 
county  to  sign  these  articles  of  by-laws  and  assist  in  their  faithful  execution  and 
enforcement." 

Printed  copies  of  this  pledge,  obtained  from  counties  eastward  where  like 
organizations  existed,  were  used  here  but  the  original  list  of  subscribing  members 
was  lost  within  a  few  years.  In  fact  one  never  heard  a  member  volunteer  the 
statement,  as  if  with  a  sense  of  pride,  that  he  was  a  member,  nor  yet  when  one 
was  asked  concerning  his  membership  would  he  deny  it.  Within  ten  years  the 
resident  membership  remaining  in  the  county  seemed  to  feel  no  sort  of  pride  in 
the  memory  of  the  club.  "Uncle  Billy"  Sturman,  who  had  been  its  secretary, 
used  to  freely  tell  about  events  of  those  days  and  one  time  explained  this  lack 
of  pride  by  saying,  "It  never  did  but  one  thing — turn  tail  to  a  red  flag."  This 
explanation  refers  to  the  "Battle  of  Union  Township,"  hereafter  related.  On 
the  other  hand,  those  not  members,  when  asked  whether  or  not  they  were  mem- 
bers of  the  club,  would  promptly,  almost  savagely,  reply  "No,  sir."    The  reason 


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128  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

for  this  acidity  of  reply  was  that  at  the  time  of  the  organization  and  for  a  while 
after  great  effort  was  made  to  have  all  claim  holders  join  it  and  those  who  held 
out  in  refusal  were  made  to  understand  they  were  considered  a  sort  of  outlaws, 
enemies  to  the  public  welfare  and  unwilling  to  aid  in  the  common  protection  of 
their  neighbors. 

Over  forty  years  ago  the  late  Andrew  J.  Hoisington,  writer  of  this  article, 
made  some  effort  toward  securing  a  list  of  the  men  who  had  been  members  of 
the  club  and  those  who  were  not,  but  the  ones  interviewed  on  both  sides  seemed 
averse  to  aid  him  and  he  gave  it  up.  Because  the  list  gathered  is  so  incomplete 
he  concluded  not  to  give  any  names.  The  life  of  the  club  was  of  short  duration — 
less  than  three  years.  It  slowly  fainted  away  in  1850  and  no  one  observed  when 
its  pulse  ceased  to  throb. 

It  is  estimated  that  about  three-fourths  of  the  claim  holders  4n  the  county 
were  either  nominally  or  actively  members  of  the  club  and  tjie  one-fourth  not 
belonging  were  all  radical  in  their  opposition.  Thus,  in  effective  force,  the  parties 
were  approximately  even.  For  this  reason  the  politicians  did  not  seek  to  use 
the  influence  of  the  organization.  It  was  a  poker,  hot  at  both  ends.  Besides, 
the  pro  and  anti-club  memberships  were  a  mixture  of  whigs  and  democrats. 
The  whigs  in  the  county  were  in  a  hopeless  minority  and  had  no  interest  in 
making  the  club  a  political  issue ;  the  democrats  could  not  afford  to  take  chances. 
Both  club  and  anti-club  sides  contained  a  majority  who  were  democrats.  How- 
ever, nearly  every  office  holder  during  those  years  belonged  to  the  club. 

The  club  held  meetings  only  when  especially  called  together  to  consider  a 
complaint  and  this  was  seldom.  In  the  absence  of  public  buildings  such  meetings 
were  held  at  the  cabins  of  members  within  two  or  three  miles  of  Winterset, 
usually  in  the  daytime.    Little  or  no  secrecy  was  observed. 

BATTLE    OF    UNION    TOWNSHIP 

By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

In  the  above  paragraphs  are  related  the  details  relative  to  the  organization  and 
character  of  the  '*Madison  County  Qaim  Club.''  The  only  important  event  in  its 
history  occurred  in  early  May,  1850,  and  took  place  in  the  west  part  of  Union 
Township.  The  following  account  is  in  substantial  agreement  with  statements 
made  in  later  years  by  persons  engaged  on  either  side. 

George  W.  Guye  staked  out  and  located  a  claim  on  May  4,  1846,  which  proved 
to  be^  when  surveyed  three  years  later,  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  8,  in 
(now)  Union  Township.  At  the  time  he  was  not  of  legal  age,  but  under  the 
"claim  law"  then  recognized  everywhere  in  the  West  and  also  by  the  Govern- 
ment, he  had  a  right  to  locate  a  claim,  since  he  would  become  of  age  before  the 
land  "came  into  market.'*  During  the  summer  of  1847  Leonard  Bowman,  with 
his  family,  arrived  in  the  neighborhood  and  staked  a  claim  next  east  of  Guye's, 
building  his  cabin  in  such  location  that  when  the  Government  survey  was  made 
it  was  about  forty  rods  over  on  the  claim  Guye  had  staked  out  and  started  a 
cabin,  which  he  later  completed.  Thus,  both  cabins  were  on  the  same  quarter  sec- 
tion. The  township  lines  being  run  in  the  fall  of  1848  (and  section  lines  the  next 
spring),  a  conflict  of  claim  title  arose.     The  land  could  not  be  entered  by  any 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  ^  129 

one  until  January,  1850.  Bowman  became  a  member  of  the  claim  club  and 
remained  an  active  one.  Guye  never  joined  it.  Thus  the  club  was  bound  to 
protect  Bowman.  It  was  argued  that  Guye  was  a  young  man  and,  anyhow, 
not  of  age  when  he  staked  the  claim;  that  he  should  select  another  tract.  Be- 
sides, it  was  also  urged.  Bowman  had  a  large  family,  to  which  Guye  replied  that 
he  was  first  in  right  on  the  land  and  had  coriiplied  with  every  requirement  of 
the  times  and  the  claim  laws.  Some  eflfort  was  made  toward  a  settlement  of  the 
dispute  without  result.  Guye  offered  to  compromise  with  Bowman  by  each 
taking  an  "80,"  but  Bowman  demanded  all  or  none.  Neighbors,  near  and  far, 
took  sides  with  increasing  bitterness  as  the  time  for  entering  lands  approached. 
Guye  firmly  refused  to  recognize  the  claim  club  in  any  manner  and  entered  the 
eighty  acres,  on  which  Bowman's  cabin  stood,  on  the  first  day  the  lands  of  the 
north  half  of  the  county  were  open  for  entry — beating  Bowman's  attorney  to  it 
just  fifteen  minutes. 

After  Guye  had  entered  the  land  in  dispute,  thus  ignoring  and  even  defying  the 
assumed  right  and  power  of  the  club  in  the  matter,  the  latter  was  logically  forced 
to  take  action  or  dissolve  as  an  organization. 

This  case  was  the  only  serious  one  it  had  up  to  this  time,  and  no  other  in 
sight.  A  special  meeting  of  the  club  was  called  and  after  some  ineflfectual  eflfort 
to  secure  a  large  attendance  of  the  members,  a  meeting  was  held  late  in  April, 
1850,  at  which  there  was  serious  division  over  the  question  -whether  the  club 
should  try  to  enforce  its  claim  of  authority  in  the  case.  Guye  owned  the  land. 
Everyone  had  become  satisfied  he  would  never  deed  it  over  to  Bowman  while 
alive  and  in  case  of  death,  of  course  he  couldn't.  Therefore,  it  was  certain  there 
was  but  one  of  three  things  the  club  could  accomplish :  Kill  the  recalcitrant  Guye, 
run  him  out  of  the  country,  or  the  club  itself  go  out  of  business  forever. 

Finally,  a  majority  of  the  club  members  present  at  the  meeting  voted  to  try 
to  compel  Guye  to  deed  the  land  to  Bowman,  or  leave  the  country.  Accordingly, 
a  notice  was  written  in  duplicate,  the  substance  of  which  contained  these  alterna- 
tives :  "Within  ten  days  deed  the  land  to  Bowman  and  wait  on  him  one  year  for 
his  pay,  or  suflFer  the  penalty."  The  penalty  was  well  understood  by  both  sides 
to  be  that  the  club  would  run  him  out  of  the  country,  peaceably  (?),  if  he 
would  go,  forcibly,  if  he  would  not ;  and  the  latter  included  the  probability  that 
Guye's  great  form  would  become  a  magnificent  corpse  before  the  close  of  the 
proceedings. 

Hampton  Jones,  living  then  and  until  his  sudden  death  near  the  center  of 
section  18,  in  Union  Township,  was  willingly  selected  to  deliver  the  notice  to 
Guye  in  person.  Jones'  great  size,  youthful  strength  and  vigorous  fighting  dis- 
position well  equipped  him  for  the  mission.  From  his  cabin  to  Guye's  was 
scarcely  the  length  of  a  mile  across  the  prairie,  northeast.  Guye  was  his  neigh- 
*  bor  and  it  would  seem  to  most  people  a  ticklish  errand  for  him  to  undertake ; 
later  on  he  found  it  a  bloody  one. 

The  next  day  Jones  went  over  on  horseback  to  where  Guye  was  plowing  for 
corn  in  his  field.  Guye  had  been  anticipating  such  notice  from  the  club  but  did  not 
expecf  its  delivery  by  so  near  a  neighbor.  And  this  angered  Guye  all  the  more. , 
It  seemed  to  him  that  Jones  had  been  selected,  or  may  be  had  volunteered,  to 
deliver  the  notice  because  a  near  neighbor  with  great  fighting  qualities.  Guye 
thereupon  proposed  to  Jones  to  fight  it  out  and  settle  the  matter  then  and  there 


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130  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

alone  between  themselves.  To  this  Jones  objected,  but  offered  to  select  with  him 
a  day  when  they  should  meet  in  Winterset  and  fight  it  out  to  a  finish.  They 
agreed  on  the  following  Saturday  as  the  day  of  combat.  Guye  had,  of  course, 
vigorously  and  in  no  really  proper  Sunday  school  language,  refused  to  concur 
in  either  alternative  contained  in  the  notice.  So  that  after  arrangements  for  the 
fight  were  completed  Jones  went  away  to  report  to  the  club  and  Guye  quit  plow- 
ing for  some  time.  The  latter  had  other  and  more  pressing  business — a  fist 
fight  to  a  finish  the  following  Saturday  with  Jones  and,  should  he  survive  that, 
a  gun  fight  with  the  Madison  County  Claim  Club  exactly  ten  days  thereafter. 

News  of  these  two  events  appointed  to  occur,  spread  on  the  wings  of  the 
wind  throughout  the  thin  settlements.  It  was  by  far  the  greatest  sensation  that 
had  taken  place  in  the  four  years'  history  of  the  county.  There  was  the  smell, 
and  almost  the  taste  of  human  blood  everywhere.  Up  to  this  time  no  serious 
trouble  had  occurred.  The  four  years'  progress  of  the  community  had  been  op- 
pressively free  of  any  bloodshed.    Not  even  a  horse  thief  had  been  hung. 

On  the  first  Saturday  in  May,  in  the  forenoon,  the  opposing  parties  met 
in  Winterset  to  witness  the  gladiatorial  combat  agreed  upon  by  Hampton  Jones 
and  George  Guye.  The  former  had  chosen  Taylor  Sargent  and  the  latter  Henry 
Rice  as  their  respective  seconds.  About  one  hundred  men  were  in  the  little 
county  seat,  representing  every  settled  portion  of  the  county.  Over  half  the 
voters  were  present  and  most  of  them  armed  with  small  weapons.  The  sheriff 
came  over  from  his  farm  in  (now)  Scott  Township,  and  all  the  constables  of 
the  county  were  there  to  see  the  fight.  Every  resident  preacher  also  was  there. 
The  weather  was  fine. 

The  principals  were  escorted  by  their  seconds  into  the  John  A.  Pitzer  general 
store,  on  the  west  side  of  the  square,  and  weighed  on  a  new  platform  scale. 
Guye  pulled  down  192  pounds  and  Jones  206;  each  stripped  to  his  shirt.  Jones 
outclassed  Guye  in  weight  fourteen  pounds.  Then  the  seconds  got  rope  of  bed 
cord  size  and  with  their  principals  went  out  on  the  square,  where  a  large  ring 
was  formed  by  tying  the  rope  around  stakes  set  in  the  ground.  The  square 
was  prairie  sod  and  had  been  burned  off  the  fall  before,  and  the  young  grass  had 
grown  but  little. 

There  was  but  little  betting  and  not  much-  jollity.  It  was  rather  a  serious 
appearing  crowd,  for  no  man  dared,  even  in  his  own  mind,  to  feel  sure  what  the 
outcome  would  be.  The  club  members  were  very  largely  in  the  majority,  but 
many  felt  neutral.  The  anti-club  men  were  quiet,  but  very  bitter,  well  prepared 
and  ready  for  trouble.  The  extreme  partisans  of  Bowman  felt  secure  in  the 
overwhelming  majority  of  club  members  and  therefore  ready  for  anything. 
While  it  had  been  mutually  agreed  that  nothing  but  the  fistic  encounter  between 
the  principals  should  occur,  all  knew  that  the  least  accidental  spark  might  ex- 
plode great  trouble.  Naturally,  there  were  some  who  were  drinking  more  whisky 
than  was  needful  for  such  an  occasion. 

As  soon  as  the  ring  was  inclosed,  Jones  hopped  in  and  jumping  up  and  down 
called  to  Guye  to  come  ahead.  The  latter  followed.  The  seconds  announced 
that  this  fight  was  to  be  "rough  and  tumble,"  "catch  as  catch  can,"  no  rtftes  to 
observe  and  that  no  others  than  the  principals  would  be  allowed  in  the  ring 
until  one  of  them  should  cry  "enough."  The  seconds  were  also  husky  fellows, 
capable  of  enforcing  their  rules.    Upon  signal  from  the  seconds  the  fight  began. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  131 

1st  round:— Guye  landed  heavily  on  Jones'  cheek  bone,  clinched,  each  trying 
to  trip  the  other;  a  short  wrestle  and  both  went  down;  a  dog  fall. 

'2d  round: — Jones  landed  heavily  on  Guye's  eyes,  felling  him  to  the  ground 
almost  totally  blinded. 

3d  round : — Guye  worked  for  a  time  to  recover  sight,  clinched  and  broke 
holds,  both  winded.     Round  a  stand-off. 

4th  round : — Some  sparring  when  Guye  landed  a  heavy  kick  on  Jones*  stom- 
ach, followed  by  two  more  kicks  on  his  body  and  Jones  fell,  Guye  on  top.  He 
clinched  Jones'  hair  and  landed  three  licks  on  his  head  and  ribs. 

By  this  time  Joshua  Pursell,  a  strong  friend  of  Guye's,  had  jumped  in  the 
ring  and  began  to  pull  Guye  off  Jones,  upon  which  James  Guye,  a  brother  of 
George,  and  a  powerful  man,  struck  Purcell  on  the  head  with  his  fist  and  knocked 
him  over  the  rope,  nearly  killing  him.  All  this  was  done  in  a  moment.  Almost 
at  the  same  time  both  seconds  jumped  to  their  principals  and  pulled  them  apart. 
Jones  had  not  hollered  "enough";  he  was  far  beyond  the  ability  to  make  any 
kind  of  noise. 

Jones  was  helped  off  the  grounds  and  after  washing  up  was  taken  home  by 
friends.  Guye  was  able  to  care  for  himself.  Both  were  covered  with  blood 
from  head  to  foot.  They  punished  each  other  severely.  Guye  ever  after 
carried  a  scar  on  his  head,  as  a  memento^ of  the  battle. 

Both  these  men  were  powerfully  built,  young  (Guye  22  and  Jones  25),  hard- 
ened by  frontier  life  and  accustomed  to  rough  and  tumble  wrestling.  Besides, 
they  were  strongly  embittered  against  each  other  and  fought  for  supremacy. 

No  unpleasant  event  marred  the  enjoyment  of  this  occasion.  Of  course,  the 
peace  officers  remained  during  the  day,  for  the  same  duty  as  extra  policemen 
are  now  employed  on  gala  days.  There  was  some  whisky  imbibed  but  it  proved 
to  be  neither  a  claim  club  nor  an  anti-claim  club  exhilarant.  Over  the  result  in 
the  ring,  the  club  members  had  no  incentive  for  crowing ;  the  other  and  minority 
side  was  serenely  pleasant. 

The  result  of  this  day*s  contest  settled  nothing,  but  it  produced  a  salutary 
effect  on  the  public  mind  toward  peace.  The  members  of  the  club  present  were 
strongly  impressed  by  the  event  and  those  whose  nerves  were  weak  or  who  really 
cared  nothing  for  the  land  contest  at  issue  realized  that  deep  red  fighting  blood 
filled  the  veins  of  the  anti-club  minority.  There  was  no  longer  doubt  in  the 
mind  of  anyone  that  if  the  issue  came  to  a  gun  to  gun  contest  there  would  be 
killing  done  quite  surely  on  both  sides.  And  this  leaven  accomplished  its  work 
the  next  two  or  three  days. 

The  following  week,  the  tenth  day  after  Jones  had  served  the  club's  notice 
on  Guye,  about  forty  members  of  the  club  met  at  the  house  of  Silas  Bams,  to 
devise  means  of  punishing  Guye,  in  case  he  should  not  by  that  day  have  deeded 
the  land  in  question  to  Bowman.  They  met  at  10  o'clock  in  the  forenoon  and 
Bowman  reported  that  no  deed  had  been  tendered  him.  Bams  lived  in  a  cabin 
west  and  near  the  spring  on  section  13,  in  Douglas  Township.  This  cabin  bumed 
in  December,  185 1.  It  was  in  the  edge  of  the  timber.  The  forty  members  present 
remained  there  in  consultation  and  disagreement  over  what  to  do  or  whether  to 
try  to  do  anything,  until  2  o'clock,  at  which  time  they  moved  in  a  body  south  up  on 
top  of  the  dividing  ridge  and  along  the  ridge  northeasterly. 

In  the  meantime  the  anti-club  men  had  organized  and  to  the  number  of  seven- 


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132  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

teen  were  in  session  at  the  double  log  house  of  Samuel  Guye,  which  stood  on 
the  southwest  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  7  in  (now)  Union 
Township.  Samuel  Guye  was  chosen  captain  and  commander.  Meeting  early 
that  morning,  Calvin  Smith  was  chosen  to  do  picket  duty,  to  watch  the  move- 
ments of  the  club  force  and  report.  The  anti-club  men  had  one  strong  marine 
glass  and  also  a  lesser  glass,  which  gave  them  the  great  advantage  of  not  only 
observing  their  enemy  closely  at  a  hidden  distance,  but  identifying  each  individual 
and  the  gun  he  carried.    The  club  force  had  no  glass. 

Each  side  was  armed,  every  man  with  a  rifle  that  carried  about  two  hundred 
yards.  Besides  a  rifle,  most  of  the  men  on  both  sides  had  smaller  arms,  as  pistols 
and  knives.  The  club  force  carried  a  fine  six-foot  American  flag,  made  by 
the  women  especially  for  them. 

When  the  club  force  turned  on  the  divide  northeast,  the  scout  reported  the 
movement  and  Nimrod  Taylor  was  sent  on  horseback  with  an  immensely  large 
red  bandanna  handkerchief  fastened  to  a  small  pole  for  a  flag.  As  rapidly  as 
his  horse  could  run  he  went  toward  the  club  force.  When  the  club  force  first 
saw  him  and  his  flag,  they  were  on  section  18,  Union  Township,  land  later  owned 
by  Samuel  B.  Johnson.  Then  they  stopped  to  await  the  approach  of  the  man 
with  the  red  flag,  who  had  no  gun  in  sight.  Taylor  halted  before  getting  within 
gunshot  range  of  the  company,  waved  his  red  flag  in  a  beckoning  manner  to  come 
on ;  then  waved  his  hat  in  the  same  way,  then  both  hat  and  flag  at  once  in  like 
manner. 

The  club  force  remained  standing  and  in  consultation  some  time.  Little  more 
than  half  a  mile  in  front  of  them,  across  an  open  prairie,  there  was  a  masked 
enemy  of  unknown  number,  in  a  position  of  their  own  choice,  equally  well  armed 
and  would  surely  shoot  to  kill.  They  must  ride  to  the  attack  across  an  open 
prairie  to  the  edge  of  a  timber  where  their  enemy  was  behind  buildings,  fences 
and  other  protection. 

The  club  force  slowly  about-faced  and  returned  toward  Bams*  place,  separated 
and  returned  to  their  several  places  of  abode.  The  war  was  ended.  The  Madison 
County  Claim  Club  history  then  abruptly  closes. 

Those  members  of  the  club  present  on  the  day  of  the  battle  that  was  not 
fought  were:  Captain,  Charles  Wright;  Silas  and  Hiram  J.  Bams,  William 
Gentry,  William  and  Thomas  Sturman,  James,  Vincent  and  Heztkiah  Brown, 
E>avid  D.  Henry,  John  Butler,  James  and  Lemuel  Thombmgh,  Samuel  and 
Joshua  Casebier,  David  Brinson,  Leonard,  David  and  Reece  Bowman,  James 
Brewer,  William  Brunk,  Alfred  Q.  Rice,  Sherwood  Howerton,  Daniel  McKinzie, 

Noah  Boshop,  Whited,  Samuel  Folwell,  Andrew  Waymire,  Charles  and 

Isaac  Clanton,  N.  S.  Allcock,  Mesheck  Casteel  and  eight  other  names,  forty  in  all. 

The  anti-club  force  fortified  at  Samuel  Guye's  were:  Captain,  Samuel  Guye; 
James  and  George  Guye,  Henry  Rice,  James  B.  Bedwell,  Calvin  Smith,  Levi 
Smith,  William  Stinson,  Joseph  K.  Evans,  William  and  Silas  Hinshaw,  William 
and  Joseph  Combs  and  two  brothers  named  Mendenhall — total  seventeen. 

Some  time  much  later,  one  day  in  Winterset,  George  Guye  hunted  up  and 
bought  a  coon  skin,  took  it  over  to  John  Brewer's  blacksmith  shop  southeast 
of  the  square,  a  block,  where  he  knew  the  former  captain  of  the  claim  club  was 
having  some  work  done.  Wright  had  entered  his  claim  by  a  Mexican  war 
bounty  land  warrant.    So  Guye  offered  him  the  coon  skin  for  any  land  warrant 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  133 

he  might  get  for  his  services  in  the  Madison  County  Qaim  Qub  war.  While 
displaying  his  coon  skin  to  Wright  the  latter  got  in  the  first  lick  and  it  counted. 
At  it  they  went,  furiously,  but  Brewer  was  a  good  man  himself  and  finally 
parted  them.  No  one  ever  heard  that  Guye  ever  offered  any  more  coon  skins 
on  such  terms. 

speculators'  lands 

"Speculators"  was  a  term  exclusively  applied  to  those  who  came  here  from 
more  eastern  states — in  the  particular  case  of  Madison  County  they  mostly  were 
from  "York  State,*'  Pennsylvania  and  Ohio — and  bought  Government  land  at 
$1.25  an  acre  as  a  speculation,  without  intending  ever  to  move  here  and  reside. 
Most  fortunately  for  the  settlers  this  class  of  persons  did  not  appear  until  about 
1854.  Within  some  two  years  they  had  picked  nearly  every  remaining  unentered 
piece  of  Government  land.  As  the  settlers  had  already  entered  all  the  timber, 
the  contiguous  prairie,  and  even  considerable  of  the  near-by  prairie  lands,  tha 
speculators  were  confined  to  the  more  remote  prairie  districts  and  thus  their  advent 
did  not  retard  the  growth  of  the  county.  As  it  turned  out,  the  lands  they  en- 
tered could  not  have  been  settled  until  the  close  of  the  war  in  1865,  after  which 
a  new  and  wealthier  class  of  people  came  in,  able  and  willing  to  pay  the  small 
advance  the  disappointed  speculators  asked. 

Immediately  following  the  advent  of  the  speculators  came  the  hard  times 
that  began  naturally  in  1857  and  culminated  here  in  1858-9.  Land  speculators 
were  financially  hard  hit  at  home  and  became  unable  in  most  cases  to  pay  taxes 
on  their  western  properties.  The  "hard  times"  continued  until  1862,  but  in  the 
meantime  much  of  their  land  was  sold  for  taxes  or  the  title  thereto  became 
complicated.  Nobody  here  wanted  an  acre  of  it  at  any  price.  In  this  manner 
about  ten  years  passed  in  the  history  of  the  lands  held  for  speculation  purposes — 
no  income  from  them,  a  large  tax  account  piled  up,  not  to  speak  of  interest  on  the 
investments.  Flush  times  arrived  about  the  close  of  the  war  and  people  here 
began  to  buy  land.  The  speculators  began  oflFering  to  sell  at  about  three  dollars 
an  acre.  Suddenly  appeared  from  Eastern  Iowa,  Illinois  and  sections  further 
east,  large  numbers  of  land  buyers,  for  not  only  the  "speculator"  lands,  but  for 
other  cheap  lands.  While  lands  rapidly  advanced  in  price  the  eastern  speculator 
lands  sold  early  at  from  three  to  five  dollars  an  acre.  Thus  the  speculator  of 
1854-6  ^tood  to  lose  after  all  those  long  ten  years. 


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CHAPTER     XVII 

THE  REEVES  WAR 
By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

While  the  events  about  to  be  related  did  not  occur  in  Madison  County,  a 
considerable  number  of  her  people  were  more  or  less  connected  with  the  affair 
in  various  ways  and  they  also  played  a  part  in  the  first  county  election.  The 
story  has  never  been  told  with  any  considerable  degree  of  completeness  or  truth- 
fulness until  now,  nor  is  it  hereinafter  related  more  than  to  show  the  part  Madison 
County  settlers  had  in  the  affair. 

During  the  early  fall  of  1845,  j^st  before  the  Indians  gave  possession,  George 
and  Noah  Reeves,  two  brothers,  and  their  large  families  settled- at  Linn  Grove, 
on  North  River,  in  now  Linn  Township,  Warren  County.  In  their  families 
were  five  grown  sons.  As  other  settlers  arrived  the  next  year  or  two,  an  increas- 
ing public  opinion  prevailed  that  the  Reeves  crowd  was  a  horsestealing  outfit, 
if  not  murderers  to  boot.  After  a  time  circumstantial  evidence  so  largely  accu- 
mulated that  open  accusations  were  made.  The  Reeves  had  not  stolen  any  horses 
in  that  vicinity,  nor  permitted  others  to  do  so,  for  prudential  reasons,  but  to  the 
south,  southeast  and  southwest,  they  were  believed  to  be  doing  a  wholesale  busi- 
ness. Persons  related  to  their  organization  as  developed  after  they  were  forced 
from  the  county,  covered  all  that  section  from  north  of  Des  Moines  south  into 
Missouri  and  to  the  Missouri  River,  even  to  the  Mississippi.  The  names  of  three 
of  the  sons  were  Cam,  Pressly  and  Jesse ;  the  names  of  the  other  two  are  for- 
gotten. 

Matters  became  so  that  in  the  summer  of  1848  a  ''vigilants  company"  was 
organized,  from  among  the  settlers  on  North  and  Middle  Rivers  in  (now)  Warren 
County,  to  the  number  of  about  sixty  men,  of  whom  a  man  named  Lasure  (or 
some  such  name)  was  captain.  This  company  made  an  ineffectual  effort  to  run 
the  Reeves  families  out  of  the  country.  Soon  after  this  occurrence  two  Linn 
Grove  men,  named  James  Phipps  and  James  Hart,  were  in  Des  Moines,  and 
there  got  into  an  altercation  with  the  Reeves  boys,  in  which  Phipps  was  seriously 
and  Hart  slightly  wounded.  Des  Moines  officers  arrested  Cam  Reeves  for  the 
shooting  that  had  taken  place  and  took  him  to  Oskaloosa  for  safe  keeping. 

Immediately  after  this  *'gun  play,"  the  Warren  County  Vigilants  took  up 
again  the  matter  of  ridding  their  county  of 'these  families,  this  time  with  far  more 
determination.  As  always  in  such  cases,  the  Reeves  had  some  friends  among 
the  settlers,  and  there  were  others  too  timid  to  take  sides  either  way.  Reinforce- 
ments were  sought  in  Madison  County  and  at  length  an  organization  was  effected 
and  named  "Black  Oak  Grove  Vigilants  Company,"  after  the  name  of  the  Madison 
County  voting  precinct.  Samuel  Guye  was  elected  captain.  There  were  eighteen 
members,  among  whom  were  the  captain,  Irvin  and  Louis  Baum,  William  Combs, 

134 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  135 

Alfred  and  Harvey  Rice,  Samuel  Casebier,  D.  Chenoweth,  James  and  George 
Guye,  Lemuel  Thombrugh  and  others.  The  members  of  the  company  lived 
north  of  Middle  River.  All  went  horseback  and  armed  to  Linn  Grove,  arriving 
toward  evening,  where  they  found  the  Warren  County  Vigilants  in  camp. 

After  the  shooting  of  Phipps  and  Hart  all  the  young  men  of  the  Reeves  crowd 
went  to  and  remained  in  Des  Moines.  The  old  men  remained  at  their  homes; 
the  latter  two  and  their  families  were  placed  under  close  guard.  Another  man, 
much  wanted,  was  also  found  in  one  of  the  Reeves  homes,  but  that  evening  he 
induced  a  detail  of  the  Madison  County  company  to  take  him  over  to  a  settler's, 
named  Snyder,  for  something  he  claimed  he  must  have.  He  declared  he  was 
then  ready  to  leave  the  country  if  the  Vigilants  so  elected.  At  this  house  Snyder 
managed  to  get  out  a  back  way  and  escaped. 

The  next  morning  a  detail  from  the  Warren  company  was  ordered  to  guard 
the  Reeves  apd  also  help  make  ready  for  their  removal  from  the  country  and 
the  rest  of  the  two  companies  pulled  out  for  Des  Moines  to  capture  the  four 
Reeves  boys  known  to  be  there.  Horses  were  scarce  those  days  and  about  a 
third  of  the  Warren  company  went  a-foot.  One  of  the  latter,  named  Mason,  was 
barefoot.  The  morning  was  quite  cold  and  there  were  frequent  puddles  of  frozen 
water,  but  Mason  plunged  bravely  through  all  of  it  without  cohiplaint. 

Arriving  at  Four  Mile  Creek,  south  of  Des  Moines,  the  company  found  a 
horse  tied  to  a  sapling.  Near  by  a  man  was  lying  on  the  ground.  His  saddle 
served  for  a  pillow  and  the  saddle  blanket  was  under  him.  By  his  side  was  a 
bottle  of  whisky  and  it  was  evident  he  was  pretending  to  be  in  a  drunken  sleep. 
The  man  was  at  once  recognized  as  Sheriff  Michaels,  of  Polk  County.  He  was 
on  his  way  to  Linn  Grove  with  warrants  for  the  arrest  of  six  of  the  Vigilants, 
who  were  in  the  crowd.  At  that  time  the  north  tier  of  townships  of  (now) 
Warren  County  was  in  Polk  County.  The  Vigilants  searched  the  sheriff,  took 
away  his  arms,  all  his  official  papers  and  compelled  him  to  accompany  them  on 
his  horse,  fully  explaining  to  him  what  they  wanted  and  were  going  to  do,  not 
only  with  him  but  with  the  Reeves. 

The  Vigilants  marched  down  the  old  Coon  bluff  hill  road,  south  of  Des 
Moines,  in  plain  view  of  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  future  capital  city.  This 
produced  an  extraordinary  scene  in  the  little  village. 

Reports  of  the  gathering  of  the  two  companies  of  Vigilants  at  Linn  Grove 
had  been  carried  to  Des  Moines  by  friends  of  the  Reeves,  exaggerated  into  the 
alarming  intelligence  that  the  town  itself  was  to  be  destroyed  and  all  the  citizens 
compelled  to  leave  for  the  sin  of  harboring  the  Reeves  boys  and  their  friends. 
It  was  also  freely  reported  that  some  of  the  citizens  of  the  fort,  being. found  over 
on  North  River,  were  captured  and  killed.  The  Reeves  boys  and  their  friends 
had  the  more  credulous  men,  women  and  children  in  Des  Moines  worked  up  to  a 
frenzy  of  excitement.  This  element  was  organized  and  headed  by  a  Colonel 
Baker.  His  small  band,  armed  as  best  they  could  and  with  music  of  fife  and 
drum,  desperately  pleaded  for  reinforcements. 

The  more  conservative  of  the  Des  Moines  men  refused  to  join  Colonel  Baker 
and  his  excited  band  and  quietly  agreed  among  themselves  that  if  the  Vigilants 
only  wanted  the  Reeves  gang  they  were  welcome  to  come  and  take  them  away. 
The  Reeves  gang  had  already  given.  Des  Moines  some  trouble  and  after  the 


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136  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

shooting  of  Phipps  and  Hart  they  were  very  much  not  wanted.  This  element 
had  a  considerable  majority. 

The  Vigilants  marched  across  the  Coon  bottom,  to  a  point  of  timber  on  the 
south  side  of  the  river  west  of  the  ford,  where  they  halted  and  agreed  upon  a 
plan  of  campaign.  Two  men  were  sent  across  the  river  into  the  town  to  inform 
the  citizens  whom  they  wanted  and  what  they  were  determined  on  doing,  and  to 
consult  with  those  citizens  who  were  known  to  favor  the  removal  of  the  Reeves 
gang.  The  Vigilants  were  kindly  received  by  this  element  and  given  the  informa- 
tion desired,  especially  the  exact  location  of  the  Reeves  boys.  They  were  har- 
bored in  a  saloon  run  by  a  man  named  Joseph  Crews,  whose  place  was  a  little 
north  and  west  of  the  old  Magazine  Building,  and  quite  out  by  itself. 

The  men  sent  into  the  town  to  reconnoiter  returned  and  reported.  A  small 
detail  of  footmen  was  left  to  guard  the  sheriff.  Coon  River  was  very  low  at 
the  old  ford  and  the  Vigilants  after  crossing,  formed  in  single  file,  the  horsemen 
in  the  lead,  the  footmen  keeping  up  the  best  they  could.  The  horsemen  rode 
rapidly,  carrying  their  guns  ready  to  fire,  in  their  right  hands  and  guiding  their 
horses  with  their  left  hands.  Colonel  Baker  and  his  braves,  instead  of  repelling 
the  invasion,  were  invisible.  The  road  to  the  Crews  saloon  forked  some  distance 
before  it  reached  his  place  and,  as  agreed  upon,  the  first  horseman  took  one 
fork  and  the  next  one  the  other,  and  so  on  alternately  the  force  proceeded  on 
each  side  toward  and  beyond  the  saloon  until  it  was  surrounded.  Pressly  Reeves, 
upon  seeing  the  horsemen,  ran  out  of  the  building  and  away  toward  the  Des 
Moines  River,  but  was  soon  captured  without  a  shot  being  fired.  After  sur- 
rounding the  saloon,  the  Reeves  were  told  that  if  they  would  quietly  surrender, 
give  up  their  arms,  go  with  the  Vigilants  to  their  homes,  load  up  their  chattels 
and  leave  the  country  forever  they  would  not  be  harmed.  The  Reeves  refused 
and  declared  tl^ey  would  fight  to  the  last.  After  some  time  spent  in  parleying, 
it  became  evident  that  sterner  arguments  were  necessary.  Thereupon,  not  wish- 
ing to  shoot  anyone  nor  be  shot  at,  a  wagon  loaded  with  prairie  hay  was  pulled 
up  against  the  rear  of  the  building  and  those  inside  informed  that  the  hay  and 
building  would  be  immediately  fired  unless  they  surrendered.  Then  Crews  de- 
manded that  the  boys  should  surrender.  The  Vigilants  again  pledging  their  safe 
removal  from  the  country,  the  Reeves  gave  up  and  peaceably  went  with  their 
captors.  The  Vigilants  thanked  the  citizens,  except  Colonel  Baker  and  his 
mighty  army,  and  quietly  recrossed  Coon  River,  where  the  sheriff  was  released 
and  his  arms,  papers  and  other  property  restored.  And  then  the  self-appointed 
rangers  returned  to  Linn  Grove  without  further  incident. 

While  at  Des  Moines  no  one  was  allowed  to.  take  a  drink  of  intoxicants  nor 
carry  any  along  either  way;  not  even  the  barefoot  Mason  got  a  drop.  It  also 
should  be  related  that  the  sheriff  kept  himself  and  his  papers  safe  on  the  north 
side  of  the  Coon,  and  never  did  serve  the  warrants.  However,  it  would  be  inter- 
esting to  know  how  his  '^returns"  read. 

Arriving  at  Linn  Grove  late  that  afternoon  the  male  members  of  the  Reeves 
family  were  kept  under  close  guard  and  the  females  and  smaller  children  under 
surveillance,  but  all  were  permitted  to  help  in  making  ready  for  moving  South 
out  of  the  country  the  following  day.  No  particular  incident  occurred  and  early 
next  morning  the  Reeves  loaded  their  wagons,  and  with  live  stock  and  everything 
movable,  treked  southward,  escorted  by  both  Vigilant  companies  in  full  force. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  137 

The  refugees  followed  the  old  Dragon  trail  toward  St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  and 
toward  evening  went  into  camp  on  the  south  bank  of  South  River.  Next  morning 
after  breakfast,  all  the  men  were  taken  some  distance  from  the  women  and  chil- 
dren and  given  their  instructions,  to  the  effect  that  they  must  not  only  leave 
the  country  but  also  the  state  and  none  of  them  were  ever  to  return.  About  this 
time  some  of  the  Warren  County  Vigilants,  who  had  suffered  from  the  depreda- 
tions of  the  Reeves  gang,  got  the  elder  George  Reeves,  who  was  considered  the 
ring  leader,  away  from  the  rest,  tied  him  to  a  sapling  and  began  lashing  him  with 
a  whip.  When  this  was  discovered  by  the  Madison  County  Vigilants  they  raised 
violent  objections,  and  Alfred  Q.  Rice,  of  the  Madison  County  company,  quickly 
cut  Reeves  loose.  The  Warren  County  members  were  reminded  of  the  pledges 
made  to  the  Reeves  that  they  should  not  be  harmed  in  person  or  property.  While 
this  was  going  on  some  straw  in  a  bed  tick  in  one  of  the  wagons  was  set  afire, 
but  this  was  extinguished  and  resulted  only  in  the  loss  of  the  tick  and  a  part  of 
the  wagon  cover.  All  arms  were  returned  to  the  Reeves  but  their  ammunition 
was  withheld  from  them.  The  Reeves  outfit  proceeded  along  the  road  southward 
and  the  Vigilants  returned  to  their  homes. 

The  Reeves  party  reached  Pisgah,  a  Mormon  village,  on  the  trail  a  short  dis- 
tance north  of  Grand  River,  in  Union  County,  that  night  and  there  they  remained 
some  time,  but  the  Warren  Vigilants  kept  close  tab  on  them.  Later  they  went  on 
west,  across  but  near  the  Missouri  River,  but  not  into  oblivion. 

A  curious  sequel  to  this  event  occurred  forty  years  later  in  Seattle,  Washing- 
ton, where  long  resided  Francis  Guye,  son  of  Samuel  Guye,  captain  of  the 
Madison  County  Vigilants.  He  was  too  young  and  not  in  the  "Reeves  War."  A 
man  named  Reeves  bought  a  residence  property  adjoining  Guye's.  Soon  after- 
ward Reeves  erected  a  high  and  very  solid  board  fence  between  himself  and 
Guye.  This  the  latter  could  not  understand  nor  could  he  understand  why' his 
neighbor.  Reeves,  apparently  would  never  look  at  him  nor  speak  to  him.  In 
1893  George  Guye  was  visiting  his  brother  Francis  in  Seattle  and  happened  at 
once  to  meet  Reeves  near  his  home  on  the  sidewalk.  Guye  at  once  recognized  him 
and  called  him  by  name,  upon  which  Reeves  gave  him  a  sharp  look  and  passed 
on  without  speaking.  The  recognition  was  mutual.  And  in  this  way  Francis 
Guye  came  to  understand  the  mystery  of  the  high  fence.  This  Reeves  was  one 
of  the  younger  of  his  family  and  had  learned  that  Francis  was  a  son  of  the  Captain 
Guye  who  helped  to  run  out  his  family  from  Warren  County.  He  had  never 
forgotten  or  forgiven  a  Guye. 


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CHAPTER  XVIII 

SWAMP   LANDS 
By  A.  J.  Hoisington* 

By  act  of  Congress,  passed  and  approved  September  28,  1850,  certain  states 
of  the  Union  were  granted  all  the  swamp  and  overflow  lands  within  their  borders. 
Notwithstanding  this  provision  large  tracts  of  land  were  alienated  by  the  Govern- 
ment, which  came  under  the  classification  of  swamp  or  overflowed  land,  and 
to  meet  the  predicament  Congress  passed  and  approved  an  act  March  2,  1855, 
in  which  it  was  provided  that  swamp  and  overflowed  lands  in  the  several  states 
entered  with  cash  since  the  act  of  September  28,  1850,  the  cash  thus  received 
by  the  Government  should  be  paid  over  to  the  states  (or  counties),  and  for  those 
swamp  and  overflowed  lands  entered  by  land  warrants  or  scrip,  the  state  or  county 
should  be  indemnified,  by  permitting  the  state  or  county  to  select,  in  lieu  of  such 
entered  lands  in  the  several  counties,  vacant  or  unentered  lands  subject  to  cash 
entry  at  $1.25  per  acre,  within  the  state. 

The  lands  accruing  to  Madison  County  by  the  acts  of  1850,  1855  and  1857 
amounted  to  something  over  18,000  acres.  The  lands  selected  under  the  indem- 
nity measure,  consisted  of  2,974.49  acres,  located  in  (now)  Garfield  Township, 
and  5,528.25  acres,  in  Williams  Township,  Calhoun  County,  Iowa;  also  550.60 
acres  in  Cedar  Township,  Sac  County,  Iowa,  which  were  conveyed  by  patent  to 
the  state.  May  31,  1867,  and  later  by  deed  to  Madison  County.  As  computed 
by  the  late  A.  J.  Hoisington,  who  gave  the  subject  careful  study,  this  swamp 
land  was  later  sold  for  about  $92,000,  and  the  amount  in  cash,  in  indemnity 
money  due  and  paid  the  county  for  swamp  and  overflowed  land  sold  by  the 
Government,  was  $9,188.  But  Madison  County  benefited  by  none  of  this  money, 
which  aggregated  over  $100,000.    Why,  is  told  in  the  following  paragraphs : 

The  first  information  found  in  the  county  records,  concerning  the  "swamp 
lands**  of  Madison  County,  is  of  date  January  15,  1861,  in  the  proceedings  of  the 
board  of  supervisors  as  follows:  "Motion  was  made  that  H.  J.  B.  Cummings' 
services  be  procured  to  take  necessary  steps  to  obtain  all  the  information  possible 
in  regard  to  the  Swamp  Lands  of  this  County.    Carried." 

Acting  upon  this  authority,  on  June  3,  1861,  "Mr.  Cummings  made  his  report 
in  reference  to  the  Swamp  Land  of  this  County.  Motion  was  made  that  the 
report  be  received  and  that  the  Committee  continue,  which  was  carried." 

The  next  action  taken  by  the  board  was  on  June  6,  1861,  as  follows:  "Motion 
was  made  that  the  previous  motion  to  continue  Cummings  in  relation  to  the  Swamp 
Land  be  rescinded.  Carried.  Motion  was  then  made  that  H.  J.  B.  Cummings 
receive  four  per  cent  of  the  swamp  land  money  that  he  gets  for  this  county  and 
if  he  gets  nothing  he  gets  no  pay.    Carried." 

The  next  record  of  the  board  referring  to  the  subject  is  of  date  October  22, 

138 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  139 

1862,  when  the  following  action  was  taken:  "On  motion  L.  N.  Clark  was  nom- 
inated as  Agent  to  procure  from  the  Government  the  Swamp  Land  grant  for 
Swamp  Lands  lying  in  this  county  upon  the  following  conditions,  viz:  if  said 
grant  shall  amount  to  more  than  twenty  thousand  dollars  the  Agent,  L.  N.  Clark, 
to  receive  for  his  services  five  per  cent  of  the  amount;  if  the  amount  shall  not 
exceed  the  sum  of  twenty  thousand  then  the  Agent  shall  receive  seven  per  cent  of 
the  grant  secured." 

The  resolution  by  the  board,  appointing  Clark  agent  of  the  county,  was  sent 
by  the  clerk  of  the  county  to  the  United  States  Land  Officers  at  Des  Moines  and 
found  insufficient,  in  "that  it  is  not  specific  enough  as  to  the  power  intended  to 
be  conferred  upon  said  agent  to  meet  the  requirements  of  law."  The  land  office 
suggested  a  form  inclosed  in  its  letter.  A  security  bond  was  also  required,  but 
it  seems  no  further  action  was  taken  at  this  time  by  either  the  board  or  its  ac- 
credited agent. 

During  the  afternoon  session  of  the  board,  held,  June  3,  1863,  as  the  records 
show,  a  "motion  was  then  made  to  sell  and  Convey  the  interest  of  Madison  County, 
Iowa,  in  and  to  the  Swamp  Lands  of  said  county  to  the  American  Emigrant 
Society;  motion  to  amend  by  letting  the  Company  take  the  land  on  the  halves, 
recorded  vote  demanded  on  the  propositions.  The  following  named  members 
voted  in  favor  of  accepting  the  thousand  dollar  proposition :  J.  W.  Lane,  J.  W. 
Davis,  A.  Bennett,  H.  Haun,  E.  H.  Venard,  S.  Harter,*S.  Rolston,  D.  McCarty. 
The  following  named  members  voted  in  favor  of  letting  said  Company  have 
said  lands  on  the  shares:  L.  N.  Clark,  S.  A.  Ross,  A.  Bonham,  O.  Crawford, 
William  McDonald,  H.  Harris,  G.  A.  Beerbower.  It  was  thereupon  declared 
sold  to  the  American  Emigrant  Society  for  $1,000  and  the  assignment  of  her 
interest  to  the  same  was  made  to  A.  West  and  the  money  paid." 

It  will  be  observed  that  L.  N.  Clark  voted  against  the  outright  sale.  Follow- 
ing is  a  copy  of  the  instrument  of  transfer : 

"In  consideration  of  one  thousand  dollars,  the  receipt  whereof  we  hereby 
acknowledge,  we,  the  Board  of  Supervisors  for  the  county  of  Madison  and  State 
of  Iowa,  do  grant,  bargain  and  convey  unto  Albert  West  of  Winterset,  county 
and  state  aforesaid,  all  the  right,  title  and  interest  which  Madisoa  County  has 
now  or  may  have  hereafter  in  any  Swamp  Lands  belonging  to  said  County, 
according  to  the  tenor  of  a  certain  Act  of  Congress  passed  in  1850,  indemnity 
provided  by  the  Acts  of  1855  ^tnd  1857,  and  we  further  agree  to  protect  the 
said  Albert  West  in  the  transfer  hereby  made  so  far  as  the  interests  of  this 
County  in  said  Swamp  Lands  may  be  concerned,  and  indemnity. 

"Done  at  Winterset,  the  county  seat  of  Madison  County,  this  3rd  day  of 
June,  1863. 

"David  McCarty, 
"Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Madison  County,  Iowa." 

The  next  step  taken  by  the  American  Emigrant  Society  to  strengthen  and 
clear  its  title  to  the  lands  is  shown  by  the  following  record  of  the  board  of 
date  September  8,  1863 : 

"The  papers  or  deed  of  conveyance  was  presented  in  behalf  of  the  American 
Emigrant  Company  requesting  the  Board  of  Supervisors  to  make  a  title  of  the 


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140  ,  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Swamp  and  overflow  lands  of  Madison  County  and  State  of  Iowa,  a  survey  or 
Nos.  of  said  land  being  attached  and  described  in  said  papers  or  deed  of  convey- 
ance in  which  said  Company  claims  were  sold  by  the  Board  of  Supervisors  of 
said  County  to  Albert  West  on  the  3rd  day  of  June,  1863,  and  afterwards  sold 
and  transferred  by  the  said  A.  West  to  them.  On  motion  a  committee  of  three 
consisting  of  L.  N.  Clark,  J.  W.  Lane  and  S.  Ralston  was  appointed  to  report 
on  the  propriety  of  making  a  deed  to  said  Company  for  said  lands." 

During  the  afternoon  of  the  same  day  the  committee  made  report  as  follows : 
"Your  Committee  appointed  to  investigate  the  propriety  of  making  a  deed 
to  the  Swamp  and  ovei'flow  lands  of  Madison  County  would  respectfully  report 
as  follows:  That  this  Board  take  no  further  action  toward  making  a  deed  or 
perfecting  a  title  to  said  lands  either  to  Albert  West  or  the  American  Emigrant 
Company  for  the  following  reasons:  That  at  the  time  and  before  the  Board 
contracted  in  regard  to  said  swamp  lands  with  A.  West  there  were  misrepresenta- 
tions made,  we  think,  which  induced  and  influenced  the  Board  to  do  differently 
from  what  they  wouJd  have  done  had  they  fully  understood  the  facts  in  the  case, 
and  would  recommend  that  this  board  take  no  further  action  in  the  matter  ex- 
cept to  refund  the  amount  received  by  this  County  with  10  per  cent  interest  per 
annum  when  required  of  thern  by  the  proper  persons  to  receive  the  same.  On 
motion  the  report  of  the  Committee  was  received  and  Committee  discharged. 
Motion  was  then  made  that  the  report  of  the  Committee  be  adopted,  the  following 
named  members  voted  in  the  affirmative :  J.  W.  Lane,  O.  Crawford,  S.  Ralston, 
E.  H.  Venard,  William  McDonald,  S.  Harter,  L.  N.  Clark,  S.  Ross,  A.  Bennett, 
D.  McCarty,  H.  Harris,  W.  J.  Davis  and  Otho  Davis,  those  being  all  the  members 
present." 

Thus  the  matter  remained  until  the  Board  meeting  of  date  January  4,  1864, 
when  the  Agent  of  the  Society  made  another  eflfort  for  title  as  appears  by  the 
record : 

"Mr.  Savery,  Agent  of  the  American  Emigrant  Society,  made  some  statements 
in  reference  to  the  Swamp  Lands  of  the  County  and  asked  for  some  further  action 
on  the  part  of  the  Board  in  the  premises.  On  motion  a  committee  of  three, 
consisting  of  Hood,  Venard  and  Ross,  was  appointed  to  confer  with  Mr.  Savery 
on  the  matter  and  report  tomorrow." 

During  the  afternoon  of  the  following  day  the  record  proceeds  to  say : 
"The  Committee  appointed  to  confer  with  Mr.  Savery,  Agent  of  the  American 
Emigrant  Society,  in  reference  to  Swamp  Lands  sale  then  submitted  the  follow- 
ing report:  The  under  Committee  appointed  to  take  under  consideration  what 
action  should  be  taken  by  Madison  County  Board  of  Supervisors  in  relation  to 
the  Swamp  Lands  of  said  County,  and  to  compromise  with  the  American  Emi- 
grant Co.,  would  respectfully  report  as  follows :  That  a  Committee  of  three  per- 
sons be  appointed  by  the  County  Board  with  full  powers  to  act  in  behalf  of  the 
County  in  relation  to  said  Swamp  Lands,  either  to  eflfect  a  compromise  with  said 
Company  to  prosecute  the  claim  of  the  County  for  a  fee  or  share,  or  to  take 
such  other  action  in  the  premises  as  they  deem  most  expedient  for  the  interests 
of  said  County  and  that  said  Committee  be  authorized  to  employ  counsel  in  be- 
half of  the  County,  which  expenses,  with  all  other  expenses  of  the  Committee, 
shall  be  paid  by  the  County,  together  with  a  reasonable  compensation  to  said 
Committee  for  its  services.     The  report  of  Committee  was  received  and  upon 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  141 

motion  adopted.  B.  F.  Roberts,  C.  D.  Bevington  and  C.  S.  Wilson  were  appointed 
by  the  Board  as  said  Committee  with  additional  powers,  to  wit:  That  if  said 
Committee  deem  it  best  to  annul  said  contract  and  to  tender  the  Company  the 
amount  paid  said  County  for  s^id  Swamp  Lands  with  interest  thereon  at  ten 
per  cent  per  annum,  they  are  authorized  to  borrow  the  amount  on  the  credit  of  the 
County." 

The  committee  members  were  not  of  the  board  and,  so  far  as  the  records 
show,  were  not  sworn  or  otherwise  qualified,  to  faithfully  perform  their  duties 
in  the  interest  of  the  county  otherwise  than  as  reputable  citizens,  in  whom  the 
general  public  had  confidence.  To  say  the  very  least,  the  appointment,  and  the 
whole  procedure,  appears  odd  from  the  viewpoint  of  today.  The  final  disposi- 
tion of  the  entire  claim  of  Madison  now  rested  solely  with  this  committee  of 
otherwise  unofficial  citizens.  Thus  the  American  Emigrant  Society  had  to  con- 
vince only  three  men  that  the  county,  as  the  society  contended,  never  did  have  a 
legal  claim  for  any  swamp  lands,  nor  for  indemnity,  and  therefore  the  county 
should,  as  a  matter  of  right,  execute  a  quit  claim  deed  to  the  society  for  all 
the  lands  claimed  by  the  county.  And  to  prove  the  whole  hearted  liberality  and 
utter  kindness  of  the  society  in  thus  freeing  the  county  from  all  complications  in 
ridding  itself  of  its  swamp  lands,  it  proposed  to  pay  all  the  expenses  (if  not 
exceeding  $ioo)  of  the  committee  and  of  a  special  session  of  the  board  to  be 
called  fpr  the  purpose  of  executing  the  quit  claim  deed  to  the  society  for  452 
forty-acre  tracts  of  land,  amounting  in  all  to  over  eighteen  thousand  acres. 

The  committee,  having  been  appointed  January  5th,  completed  its  work  dur- 
ing that  month  and  a  special  meeting  of  the  board  was  called  to  meet  February  i, 
1864,  to  ratify  its  report. 

To  complete  the  story  such  portions  of  the  proceedings  are  given  of  the  special 
session  as  seem  material: 

"Clerk's  Office  of  Madison  County, 
"February  ist,  1864. 

"The  Board  of  Supervisors  met  by  request  of  majority  of  the  members  at  10 
o'clock  A.  M.  President  in  the  chair.  Members  not  all  being  present  on  motion 
Board  adjourned  until  i  o'clock  P.  M. 

"Board  met  pursuant  to  adjournment.  President  in  the  chair,  all  the  members* 
being  present.  After  hearing  report  of  the  committee  appointed  by  said  Board  at 
its  late  meeting  to  confer  with  the  American  Emigrant  Company  in  relation  to  the 
sale  of  Swamp  Lands  of  said  County  and  matters  pertaining  thereto  motion  was 
made  and  carried  to  receive  and  adopt  the  report  of  said  Committee  which  is  as 
follows : 

"To  the  Honorable  Board  of  Supervisors  of  Madison  County : 

*'We,  your  Committee  appointed  to  settle  the  Swamp  Land  claim  of  this 
County  with  the  American  Emigrant  Company,  respectfully  report:  That  upon 
a  careful  examination  of  the  decisions  of  the  Department  of  the  Interior  we  find 
that  we  have  neither  a  claim  for  Swamp  Lands  nor  for  indemnity  on  the  General 
Government  in  consequence  of  the  provisions  of  the  Act  of  Congress  passed 
March  3,  1857,  and  even  if  the  County  had  any  claim  the  actions  of  the  Board 
of  Supervisors,  we  ascertained  by.  consultation  with  able  lawyers,  assigned  that 
claim  to  the  American  Emigrant  Co. ;  thereupon,  we  concluded  an  agreement  with 
the  Emigrant  Co.  upon  the  following  terms:    The  Board  of  Supen^isors  are  to 


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142  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

make  a  quit  claim  deed  of  said  lands  to  the  said  Company  and  the  said  Com- 
pany are  to  pay  the  expenses  of  this  your  Committee  and  of  convening  the  Board 
of  Supervisors  to  amount  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars.    (Signed,) 

"B.  F.  Roberts,  chairman,  C.  D.  Bevington,  C.  S.  Wilson,  Committee." 

The  record  further  contains  a  copy  of  the  quitclaim  deed,  in  which  is  set 
forth  a  reaffirmation  of  sale  ancf  transfer  to  Albert  West  of  **all  the  swamp  and 
overflowed  lands  of  said  County  and  claim  for  the  same  on  the  United  States 
which  instrument  has  been  sold  and  transferred  by  said  West  to  the  American 
Emigrant  Company."  The  deed  goes  on  to  covenant  that  in  future  **any  lands 
that  shall  be  located  under  or  by  any  scrip,  so-called,  which  may  be  claimed  on 
said  claim*'  the  county  shall  convey  in  like  form  to  said  company.  The  deed  is  of 
great  length  and  seems  to  fully  cover  everything  in  the  way  of  title  of  over 
eighteen  thousand  acres  of  land  in  Madison  County,  therein  particularly  de- 
scribed, and  "claim  on  the  United  States  for  indemnity  to  such  lands  as  have 
been  sold  for  cash  or  entered  with  land  warrants.''  ^ 

The  deed  bears  date  of  February  i,  1864,  and  is  signed  by  all  the  members  of 
the  board,  to  wit:  William  McDonald,  chairman;  Thomas  H.  Pendleton,  A. 
Hood,  M.  M.  McGee,  A.  Bennett,  Simeon  Hamblin,  S.  A.  Ross,  E.  H.^  Venard, 
Samuel  Ralston,  J.  C.  Scott,  Van  B.  Wiggins,  Samuel  Harter,  W.  J.  Davis,  H. 
Haun,  Oliver  Crawford,  H.  C.  Smith,  Abihu  Wilson. 

The  $100  to  be  paid  as  costs  for  the  deed  was  distributed  as  follows :  Board 
of  supervisors,  $51.82;  clerk,  M.  R.  Tidrick,  for  services  making  deed,  postage, 
etc.,  $5.85;  committeemen,  C.  D.  Bevington,  $21,  B.  F.  Roberts,  $io.66j4;  C.  S. 
Wilson,  $io.66j/i. 

The  lands  covered  by  the  deed  and  particularly  described  therein  were  located 
in  the  several  townships  as  follows:  In  Ohio,  1,130.20  acres;  South,  3,160;  Wal- 
nut, 960;  Scott,  766.13;  Monroe,  240;  Grand  River,  595.54;  Crawford,  5,978.64; 
Lee,  1,243.03;  Union,  i-,272.47;  Jefferson,  1,884.58;  Douglas  120;  Madison,  440; 
Lincoln,  280;  total,  18,070.59  acres. 

No  lands  appear  to  have  been  described  as  in  the  townships  of  Webster,  Jack- 
son and  Penn. 

The  record  of  the  board  of  supervisors  for  January  8,  1868,  shows  the  fol- 
lowing item : 

"The  clerk  was  authorized  to  inform  the  American  Emigrant  Company  that 
the  Board  is  ready  to  convey  the  lands  patented  to  Madison  County  as  indemnity 
for  swamp  and  overflowed  lands  therein." 

January  27,  1868,  *The  Board  then  proceeded  to  execute  to  the  American 
Emigrant  Company  a  special  warranty  deed  for  all  lands  received  in  lieu  of 
swamp  lands  in  Madison  County."  Board  all  present,  to  wit :  D.  F.  Tumey,  C. 
Hughart,  T.  W.  Stiles,  William  Anderson,  William  McDonald,  Eli  Cox,  Q.  C. 
Bird,  B.  F.  Brown,  J.  D.  Whitenack,  James  Goare,  I.  N.  Hogle,  H.  H.  Harris, 
Daniel  Francis,  O.  B.  Bissell,  A.  M.  Hart,  Joseph  J.  Greer,  J.  McLeod,  Sr. 

Thus  another  board,  and  nearly  four  years  later,  went  the  previous  boards  one 
better  and  gave  a  warranty  deed  to  the  company  for  the  swamp  lands  of  Madison 
County. 

October  12,  1904,  there  yet  remained  on  the  books  of  the  General  Land  Office 
unadjusted,  scattering  tracts  in  Madison  County,  originally  claimed  by  the  state 
for  Madison  County  as  swamp  and  overflowed  lands.     Of  these  there  were 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  431 

i6  forty-acre  tracts  that  belonged  to  the  cash  indemnity  class  and  30 
forty-acre  tracts  of  the  land  indemnity  class.  Evidently,  these  tracts  were 
abandoned  for  some  reason  by  the  American  Emigrant  company,  or  the 
state,  at  the  time  of  the  settlement  with  the  Government  in  1866-7.  The 
department  desired  to  close  the  account  and  balance  the  books  with  the 
State  of  Iowa.  Accordingly,  its  special  agent,  Fred  Hoisington,  of  Ohio,  was 
assigned  to  the  work.  November  i,  1904,  he  requested  the  board  of  supervisors 
to  investigate  the  character  of  these  tracts  and  then  waive  claims  to  all  those  not 
swamp.  The  board  declined  to  take  any  action  in  the  matter.  In  July,  1905,  the 
same  special  agent  repeated  his  request  to  the  board  with  like  result.  Upon  this 
the  special  agent  gave  the  board  thirty  days'  notice  of  a  hearing,  set  for  August 
II,  1905,  at  the  office  of  the  board  in  the  courthouse  at  Winterset,  at  which  date 
the  board  might  present  proof  of  the  swamp  and  overflowed  character  of  the 
unadjusted  tracts  named  in  the  list.  The  day  of  hearing  arrived,  the  Govern- 
ment's representative,  Fred  Hoisington,  was  on  hand,  but  the  board  failed  to 
appeal*.  In  the  meantime  the  special  agent  had  made  personal  inspection  of  each 
tract,  and  in  his  report  to  the  department  said  in  effect  that  none  of  the  tracts 
were  within  the  law  and  the  instructions.  The  commissioner  of  the  General  Land 
Office  thereupon  canceled  the  tracts  and  thus  the  swamp  land  account  of  Madi- 
son County  was  forever  closed. 


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CHAPTER  XIX 

LOST  AND  FORGOTTEN  TOWN  SITES 
By  H.  A.  Mueller 

The  first  settlers  in  Madison  County,  who  came  between  the  years  1846  and 
1848,  were  principally  from  the  State  of  Missouri.  They  had  lived  in  a  sparsely 
settled  country,  were  a  simple  living  folk,  caring  for  little  beyond  their  immediate 
wants,  hence  they  were  no  town  builders. 

In  1848,  1849,  and  1850  and  later  there  was  a  large  influx  of  settlers  from 
Indiana,  Ohio  and  the  eastern  states.  They  were  more  ambitious  and  visionary 
than  the  first  settlers.  They  saw  the  possibilities  of  towns  springing  up  on  the 
broad  prairies  of  Iowa.  Thus,  as  the  county  began  to  settle  up,  some  one  would 
lay  out  and  plat  a  town  site  and  offer  lots  free  to  those  who  would  start  some 
business.  Soon  a  general  store  would  be  started,  a  postoflice  established  and  a 
blacksmith  and  wagon  shop  set  up. 

The  first  town  laid  out  in  Madison  County  was  Winterset,  the  county  seat. 
Three  commissioners  were  appointed  by  the  Legislature  to  locate  the  county  seat 
of  Madison  County.  They  performed  their  duty  in  June,  1849,  in  locating  the 
present  location  of  the  county  seat  of  Madison  County.  The  county  commis- 
sioners then  proceeded  to  have  the  town  surveyed  and  laid  out  in  lots.  This  was 
done  July  19,  1849,  by  A.  D.  Jones,  and  the  town  was  called  Winterset. 

Then  other  towns  were  laid  out  on  some  public  highway  leading  from 
the  county  seat  town  to  Des  Moines,  or  to  some  other  larger  town.  Railroads  were 
not  thought  of  at  that  time  so  far  West. 

The  first  town  platted  that  afterwards  became  obsolete  was  the  Town  of 
Richmond.  Dr.  Emanuel  J.  Henkel,  a  brother  of  John  Henkel,  and  of  Mrs.  O.  M. 
Archer,  of  Truro,  came  to  Madison  County  about  1848  and  took  a  claim  on  Jones 
Creek  about  where  the  N.  P.  Pomeroy  farm  is  located.  1-ater  he  took  a  claim  in 
the  southeast  quarter  section  12,  Scott  Township,  and  on  July  25,  1849,  had  A.  D. 
Jones  to  lay  out  the  Town  of  Richmond,  in  the  southwest  quarter  of  the  southeast 
quarter  of  section  12,  Scott  Township,  which  land  is  now  owned  by  Lot  Eldridge. 
This  is  west  of  the  Hogan  Queen  stone  house.  The  plat  consisted  of  four  blocks, 
of  eight  lots  each.  The  streets  were  sixty-six  feet  wide,  except  Broadway,  which 
was  82^  feet  wide.  The  streets  running  east  and  west  were  called  High,  Broad- 
way and  Grove ;  those  running  north  and  south,  Line,  Center  Avenue  and  Spring 
Street.  He  gave  to  A.  D.  Jones,  the  surveyor,  all  the  lots  in  blocks  i  and  3. 
The  streets  and  alleys  were  dedicated  and  donated  to  the  public  so  long  as  the 
town  shall  exist.  This  was  done  July  30,  1849,  2i"d  the  plat  was  recorded  by 
Enos  Berger,  recorder,  August  27,  1849.  Mr.  Henkel  then  built  a  double  log  cabin 
for  a  store  building.  A  postoffice  was  established  here  July  16,  1850,  with 
Emanuel  J.  Henkel  as  postmaster.    The  postoffice  was  called  Amazon.    The  doc- 

144 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  145 

tor  attended  to  the  postoflice  and  practiced  medicine,  while  he  had  a  man  to  operate 
his  store.  The  postoffice  was  discontinued  October  31,  1851 ;  the  store  removed, 
and  this  was  the  end  of  Richmond.  The  doctor  moved  to  Union  County,  Iowa, 
and  before  the  War  of  1861,  went  to  Arkansas,  and  after  the  beginning  of  the 
war  was  never  heard  from.  His  relatives  think  that  he  was  foully  dealt  with 
for  being  a  northern  sympathizer. 

Fairview. — In  the  fall  of  1850,  Samuel  Comstock  had^  Simmons  Rutty  lay  out  a 
town  in  the  northeast  part  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of 
section  24,  South  Township,  about  one-fourth  mile  northeast  of  the  present 
To^n  of  St.  Charles,  on  land  now  owned  by  H.  P.  Anderson.  He  named  it  Fair- 
view.  He  built  a  log  store  16x24  feet  late  in  the  fall,  then  went  to  Oskaloosa  for 
his  stock  of  merchandise.  On  his  return  with  the  goods  it  was  winter,  and  the 
cabin  store  not  being  finished  he  kept  the  goods  in  the  house  of  Joel  Clanton,  who 
lived  west  of  the  present  site  of  St.  Charles.  Samuel  Fife  acted  as  his  clerk. 
Mr.  Comstock  sold  what  he  could,  but  the  settlers  being  few  and  money  scarce, 
and  having  purchased  his  goods  on  time,  he  was  not  able  to  meet  his  bills  when 
they  became  due,  so  his  creditors  came  the  next  spring  and  took  what  he  had 
left.  The  records  at  Winterset  do  not  show  that  the  plat  was  ever  recorded.  The 
store  building  was  never  finished  and  was  later  sold  to  Uncle  John  Byars,  who 
moved  it  to  St.  Charles  after  that  town  was  laid  out  in  the  fall  of  1852.  It  was 
the  first  building  erected  in  the  Town  of  St.  Charles,  being  moved  and  put  up  on 
lot  7,  northwest  section,  where  Joseph  Vanscoy  conducted  a  restaurant  for  several 
years.    Mr.  Comstock  left  and  thus  ended  the  Town  of  Fairview. 

Brooklyn. — About  1850  and  earlier  there  came  to  Madison  County  from  Ohio 
the  Guiberson  family,  who  tdok  quite  an  active  part  in  the  early  days  in  the  up- 
building of  this  country.  E.  R.  Guiberson  was  county  judge  and  representative  of 
Madison  County ;  Israel  Guiberson  was  a  lawyer  and  held  the  office  of  recorder, 
dying  early ;  Nathaniel  Guiberson  was  a  prosperous  f arrrter  in  Union  Township, 
dying  a  few  years  ago ;  John  W.  Guiberson  was  a  farmer  and  Methodist  preacher 
in  Walnut  Township.  On  May  29,  1855,  he  had  William  Davis,  the  county  sur- 
veyor, plat  the  Town  of  Brooklyn,  which  plat  was  signed  and  dedicated  September 
6,  1855,  and  approved  by  Judge  Pitzer,  April  15,  1856,  and  plat  ordered  recorded. 
It  is  described  as  follows :  Beginning  at  the  northwest  comer  of  the  southeast 
quarter  of  section  14,  74-27,  thence  running  south  30.40  chains,  east  16.75  chains, 
north  15.75  chains,  east  3.15  chains,  north  14.58  chains,  west  19.90  chains  to  the 
place  of  beginning.  The  town  consisted  of  eleven  blocks  of  eight  lots  each,  each 
block  seventeen  rods  square,  and  there  were  also  nine  outlots.  The  land  is  at 
present  owned  by  Leroy  Clifton.  The  town  was  located  on  the  main  traveled  road 
from  Winterset  to  Osceola,  and  the  stage  stopped  here.  From  1856  to  i860 
Brooklyn  was  quite  a  thriving  town.  There  were  two  general  stores  run  by 
John  W.  Guiberson  and  William  Mills,  respectively ;  one  blacksmith  shop  operated 
by  Asa  Roberts ;  and  a  brickyard  by  William  Quick.  The  Methodist  circuit  rider. 
Rev.  J.  B.  Rawls,  lived  here;  also  John  Hilton,  Lee  Nunn,  David  Drake,  a  Mr. 
Gillespie,  Smith  Jones,  son-in-law  of  J.  W.  Guiberson;  William  Rhyno,  Mr. 
Flanagan,  father  of  the  late  John  Flanagan,  deputy  auditor  under  G.  W.  Poffin- 
barger.    J.  Vance  Walker  taught  singing  school  two  winters  in  this  village. 

A  postoffice  was  established  February  19,  1857,  with  William  Quick  as  the  first 
postmaster,  followed  in  succession  by  William  Mills,  John  W.  Guiberson  and  D.  D. 

Vol.1    —10 


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146  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Drake,  under  whose  incumbency  it  was  discontinued  June  15,  i860.  About  this 
time  Mr.  Guiberson  moved  to  California.  Later  it  was  discovered  that  the  title 
to  the  lots  was  not  good  on  account  of  an  incumbrance  that  was  against  the  land 
before  it  was  platted.  The  original  plat  is  on  file  in  the  recorder's  office  at  Winter- 
set,  but  it  does  not  appear  to  be  made  a  matter  of  record.  During  the  '60s  the  vil- 
lage began  to  decline;  people  began  to  leave;  some  taking  the  buildings  away, 
others  abandoning  them  or  disposing  of  them  the  best  they  could,  until  finally 
all  the  buildings  were  removed.  Fred  Beeler  bought  the  last  building  left  stand- 
ing and  moved  it  to  his  farm.  The  last  transfer  of  lots  was  made  by  William  S. 
Quick  to  Margaret  Hilton,  April  12,  ,1865.  Today  scarcely  a  trace  can  be  found 
where  back  before  the  war  once  stood  a  thriving  village  of  fifty  or  more  souls. 

Grand  View. — This  town,  located  in  Monroe  Township,  was  platted  by  John 
Bullock  and  Maxwell  McCants,  August  15,  1855,  and  dedicated  to  the  public 
December  4,  1855.  The  plat  was  approved  by  County  Judge  Pitzer  and  recorded 
April  4,  1856,  in  Book  "E'*  on  page  337.  It  is  described  as  beginning  at  the 
northwest  comer  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  22, 
74-28,  thence  west  8.375  chains,  south  11.50  chains,  east  16.75  chains,  north  11.50 
chains,  west  8.375  chains  to  the  place  of  beginning.  Mr.  Bullock  owned  the  west 
half  and  Mr.  McCants  the  east  half  of  the  town]  At  present  Robert  Garrett  owns 
the  west  part  and  Samuel  Boling  the  east  half  of  the  old  site.  John  Bullock  was 
the  father  of  Manville  Bullock  and  J.  D.  Bullock,  who  lived  many  years  in  Monroe 
Township  as  respected  citizens,  and  died  there.  He  was  also  the  father  of  Mrs. 
Marilda  Witt,  of  Winterset,  and  Mrs.  Mahala  Tincher,  of  Jackson  Township,  War- 
ren County,  Iowa.  Samuel  Boling  stated  that  two  small  buildings,  a  dwelling  and 
a  store,  were  built,  but  the  settlers  being  few,  the  store  did  not  remain  long.  A 
few  lots  were  sold,  but  as  the  town  did  not  prosper  the  lots  that  were  sold  reverted 
or  were  resold  to  the  original  owners. 

Lavega. — This  town  was  surveyed  and  platted  by  William  Davis,  surveyor, 
October  12,  1855,  at  the  request  of  William  W.  Keeney,  the  chain  carriers  being 
Ethan  E.  Pindell  and  William  Richardson.  This  plat  is  on  file  in  the  recorder's 
office,  but  was  never  recorded.  The  description  of  the  survey  is  as  follows: 
Beginning  at  the  northwest  comer  of  section  15,  township  74,  range  29,  thence 
south  11.50  chains,  east  11.50  chains,  north  11.50  chains,  west  11.50  chains,  thus 
making  the  plat  forty-six  rods  square.  This  town  was  divided  into  four  blocks 
of  eight  lots  each.  Each  lot  was  66x132  feet;  the  streets  were  sixty-six  feet  wide 
and  alleys  16^  feet  wide.  The  streets  running  east  and  west  were  Clay,  Wash- 
ington and  Monroe ;  those  running  north  and  south,  JeflFerson,  Polk  and  Webster. 
This  town  was  in  the  northwest  part  of  Section  15,  Grand  River  Township,  at 
present  occupied  by  a  part  of  the  original  plat  of  Macksburg,  lying  east  of  the 
public  park,  a  part  of  Barker's  Addition  to  Macksburg,  and  a  part  of  the  farm 
now  owned  by  Capt.  E.  G.  Barker. 

Nothing  was  done  except  the  staking  out  of  the  town.  It  is  believed  a  Mr. 
Hurd  laid  out  the  town,  but  the  plat  shows  it  was  Mr.  Keeney.  Rev.  Hiram 
Pearce,  of  Afton,  who  was  an  old  settler  of  Grand  River  Township,  remembers 
the  laying  out  of  the  town,  but  states  no  attempt  was  made  to  build  it  up  or  any 
one  to  start  a  store.    Macksburg  has  superseded  this  lost  town. 

Grand  view. — About  1856  or  1857  there  came  from  Greene  County,  Pennsyl- 
vania, William  Heaton,  a  very  eccentric  man,  who  always  did  things  very  different 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  147 

from  any  one  else.  Later  he  became  a  prominent  citizen  of  Madison  County,  and 
a  leader  of  the  greenback  party  in  Madison  County.  During  its  palmy  days  he 
defended  its  principles  everywhere  and  all  the  time,  with  all  the  power  of  speech 
at  his  command.  Mr.  Heaton  was  familiarly  called  **Uncle  Billy"  Heaton,  and 
was  well  known  in  this  part  of  the  state.  He  was  an  idealist  and  a  dreamer.  He 
bought  large  tracts  of  the  best  prairie  land  in  Lee  Township,  and  conceived  in  his 
mind  the  building  of-  a  town  and  the  establishment  of  a  seminary  on  the  broad 
prairie  between  Badger  Creek  and  North  River.  He  laid  out  a  town  in  the  north- 
east township,  in  Madison  County,  in  the  northeast  part  of  the  northwest  quarter 
of  section  27  and  called  it  Grandview.  The  site  at  present  is  owned  by  John 
McLaughlin.  The  town  was  surveyed  by  J.  M.  Laird,  October  5,  1857,  and  was 
deeded  to  the  future  lot  holders,  April  14,  1858,  which  deed  was  approved  by  the 
county  judge,  John  Pitzer,  and  recorded  June  i,  1858,  in  Book  **E,"  page  527. 
The  town  was  laid  out  in  forty-two  blocks  of  twelve  lots  each;  each  lot  is 
56x168  feet.  Two  streets  running  through  the  town  are  100  feet  wide;  the 
other  streets  are  each  eighty  feet  wide. 

William  Heaton  then  proceeded  to  sell  town  lots  in  Grandview  under  the 
following  contract:  He  obligated  himself  to  invest  the  entire  proceeds,  less  the 
expense  of  the  sale  of  these  lots,  for  the  purpose  of  instituting  and  maintaining  a 
seminary  of  the  highest  grade,  in  which  shall  be  taught  all  branches  usually  taught 
in  similar  literary  institutions,  the  proceeds  to  be  invested  as  follows : 

( 1 )  One  block  to  be  reserved  for  the  seminary  building. 

(2)  One-quarter  of  a  block  to  be  reserved  for  a  primary  school  building. 

(3)  One-quarter*  of  a  block  each  for  three  churches,  the  denominations  to  be 
selected  by  a  majority  vote  of  those  who  may  purchase  the  other  forty  blocks. 

(4)  All  the  remainder  to  be  invested  in  the  erection  and  maintenance  of  the 
seminary. 

Then  there  followed  a  long  agreement  as  to  appraisement,  selection  and  pay- 
ment of  these  lots.  Purchasers  were  to  meet  12  M.,  June  15,  1858,  to  make  selec- 
tion of  lots.  It  was  also  to  be  inserted  in  the  deed  that  if  owner  permitted  the  sale 
of  intoxicating  liquors,  or  gambling,  he  would  forfeit  said  lots  for  use  of  the 
seminary. 

Herman  Mueller  has  in  his  possession  one  of  these  contracts  made  with  Ira  C. 
Walker,  October  5,  1857,  signed  by  William  Heaton  and  Ira  C.  Walker.  Said 
Heaton  agreed  that  on  the  i8th  day  of  June,  1858,  or  when  the  purchasers  met 
to  select  said  lots,  that  he  would  file  a  bond  for  $50,000.00,  to  faithfully  dispose  of 
funds  coming  into  his  hands  by  said  sale  of  lots.  Dalies*  History  states  that  in 
the  summer  of  1858  Mr.  Heaton  and  quite  a  large  number  of  citizens  met  on  the 
ground,  and  speeches  were  made  by  B.  F.  Roberts  and  others,  setting  forth  the 
great  importance  of  a  seminary  of  learning  at  this  point,  etc. 

"From  some  cause,  the  praiseworthy  enterprise  was  abandoned  and  there  is 
nothing  to  this  day  to  show  for  the  Town  of  Grandview  but  the  stakes  that  were 
driven  in  the  ground  to  mark  the  lots."  Davies'  History  was  published  in 
1869,  eleven  years  later.  Mr.  Heaton  lived  in  Lee  Township  until  about  1885 
or  1886,  when  he  returned  to  Illinois,  where  he  was  a  large  property  owner.  He 
died  several  years  ago.  His  son,  Daniel  Heaton,  lived  at  Greenfield,  Iowa,  for 
many  years ;  another  son,  Abner,  lived  on  the  Lee  Township  farm  and  now  lives 
at  Greenfield.    A  son,  Jester  Heaton,  lives  at  Winfield,  Kansas.    The  old  settlers 


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148  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

in  Lee  Township  can  relate  many  stories  and  anecdotes  concerning  the  eccentrici- 
ties of  "Uncle  Billy''  Heaton. 

Worthington. — This  town  was  laid  out  and  platted  by  John  Todd  and  George 
T.  Nichols,  November  5,  1857,  and  was  recorded  March  31,  1858.  This  plat 
consisted  of  eight  blocks,  four  blocks  on  either  side  of  the  public  highway  running 
south  of  the  present  Worthington  Church.  The  location  is  as  follows:  Com- 
mencing at  the  northeast  comer  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter 
of  section  32,  township  7*j,  range  28,  Madison  Township,  thence  running  east 
5.25  chains,  thence  south  21  chains,  thence  west  10.50  chains,  thence  north  21.05 
chains,  thence  east  to  the  place  of  beginning.  John  Todd  owned  the  west  four 
blocks  and  G.  T.  Nichols  the  east  four  blocks.  The  land  is  at  present  owned 
by  D.  H.  Tough  and  Christian  Frey.  Mr.  Todd  was  an  uncle  of  John  M.  Hurst, 
a  son  of  Hiram  Hurst,  who  was  the  first  settler  in  Madison  County.  George  T. 
Nichols  was  the  father  of  Mrs.  Walter  Vance,  of  Winterset,  and  Vinton  Nichols 
and  Charles  Nichols,  who  lived  in  Madison  Township  for  many  years.  Some 
lots  were  sold  in  this  new  town  as  shown  by  the  transfer  book  in  the  auditor's 
oflfice.  Several  dwelling  houses  were  built,  in  which  families  lived,  and  also  a 
store  building  was  put  up  by  John  Todd  and  William  Hudson,  father  of  Tom 
Hudson,  of  Winterset,  in  1859.  Soon  after  Mr.  Hudson  died,  so  no  store  was  ever 
conducted  at  that  time.  John  Whitenack  bought  the  store  building  and  moved  it 
to  his  farm  and  used  it  for  a  dwelling.  Dave  Parsons,  Frank  Clampitt  and  Wil- 
liam Clampitt  lived  in  the  town  at  one  time.  There  were  two  blacksmith  shops  in 
this  place  at  one  time.  The  following  is  taken  from  the  Madisonian,  Vol.  2,  No.  11, 
issued  Saturday,  September  18,  1858: 

"Worthington. — ^This  is  the  name  of  a  new  town  recently  laid  out  in  Madison 
Township,  this  county,  through  the  enterprise  of  Messrs.  Todd  and  Nichols, 
the  gentlemanly  proprietors.  It  is  beautifully  located  on  a  smooth  prairie  on  the 
State  Road  leading  from  our  city  to  Panora,  and  about  midway  between  these 
places.  We  expect  in  time  it  will  make  a  thriving  village.  The  place  has  lately 
received  a  new  accession  in  the  shape  of  a  two-horse,  big-fisted,  double-breasted 
blacksmith,  and  he  has  thrown  out  a  banter  that  he  will  wrestle  or  run  with  any 
man  that  wants  his  horse  shod,  and  if  he  is  thrown  down  (the  other  to  take  his 
choice  of  hold),  or  outrun,  he  will  shoe  the  horse  for  nothing,  but  if  he  is  the 
victor  he  is  to  have  double  pay.  The  match  is  to  come  off  at  Worthington  next 
Saturday,  and  a  large  concourse  will  undoubtedly  witness  the  fun." 

Possibly  some  of  the  old  settlers  can  furnish  the  name  of  that  blacksmith 
and  tell  whether  the  matcluever  came  off. 

A  postoffice  was  established  June  19,  1861,  called  North  P.  O.,  with  Alexander 
Kirkland*  as  the  first  postmaster.  On  October  18,  1863,  William  H.  Clampitt 
became  the  postmaster,  holding  his  position  until  March  13,  1866,  when  George  T. 
Nichols  took  over  the  responsibility.  A.  M.  Clements  received  the  appointment 
April  30,  1868,  and  the  postoffice  was  discontinued  August  4,  1869.  This  was 
about  the  time  that  the  Rock  Island  Railroad  was  built  west  from  Des  Moines 
to  Omaha.  Earlham  was  laid  out  and  a  postoffice  was  established  there.  All 
hopes  of  building  a  town  at  Worthington  had  vanished  now.  However,  the 
neighborhood  still  retains  the  name  of  Worthington.  The  plat  was  recorded  in 
deed  record  "E''  on  page  505. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  149 

The  widow  of  George  T.  Nichols  died  at  the  home  of  her  daughter,  Mrs. 
Walter  Vance,  January  2,  1909. 

Some  time  about  1853  or  1854  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railroad 
Company  made  their  first  survey  from  Davenport  to  Omaha,  passing  through 
Madison  Township,  south  of  the  present  road.  Derrick  Bennett  having  entered 
the  northeast  quarter  of  section  16,  in  1852,  and  thinking  that  he  would  be  the 
first  to  grasp  the  opportunity,  laid  out  a  town  site  on  his  land  in  1854.  He  had 
the  stakes  set  to  hold  the  site,  but  the  next  survey  of  the  railroad  was  made 
about  a  mile  farther  north  than  the  first  one,  running  up  and  along  Bulger  Creek, 
now  the  present  line  of  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railroad,  leaving  Mr. 
Bennett's  town  out  on  the  prairie.  No  notes  of  the  surveyor  were  kept,  so  no 
record  is  to  be  found.  All  the  information  came  direct  from  Mr.  Bennett  himself. 
He  sold  the  farm  in  1855  to  "Uncle  Billy''  Bamett,  who  lived  on  it  until  his 
death  a  few  years  ago.  Mr.  Bennett  moved  to  Winterset,  where  he  lived  until 
a  few  years  ago,  when  he  went  to  Des  Moines.  He  died  recently  at  the  home  of 
his  son. 

Peru. — This  village  is  sometimes  called  "old  Peru"  to  distinguish  it  from  East 
Peru.  Peru  is  not  entirely  lost  nor  forgotten,  but  with  the  building  of  the  Great 
Western  Railroad  it  dwindled  from  a  hustling  town  to  a  place  of  only  a  few 
residences.  Peru  was  laid  out  by  Aaron  and  Sarah  Hiatt,  April  15,  1855,  and  the 
plat  was  recorded  September  14,  1855,  in  Book  "E,"  page  ninety-five,  Simmons 
Rutty,  surveyor.  It  is  located  in  the  northwest  part  of  the  southeast  quarter  of 
section  3,  Walnut  Township,  on  the  main  road  from  Winterset  to  Osceola.  Davies' 
History,  published  in  1869,  states  that  this  village  had  one  store,  one  blacksmith 
shop,  one  cabinet  and  wagon  shop,  one  shingle  manufactory,  one  steam  saw- 
mill, one  church,  fifteen  or  twenty  private  residences  and  about  seventy  in- 
habitants.   A  stone  schoolhouse  was  in  process  of  erection. 

In  the  Madison  County  History,  published  in  1879,  it  states  that  Peru  had 
about  one  hundred  inhabitants,  that  there  was  one  good  flouring  mill  built  in  1875-6 
by  Jesse  Hiatt,  at  a  cost  of  $11,500,  and  that  the  town  had  the  following  business 
houses :  General  stores,  H.  C.  Wright  and  E.  &  J.  D.  Hilman ;  blacksmith  shops, 
William  H.  Barbary,  S.  N.  Travis ;  hotels,  Illinois  House,  Peru  House;  physicians, 
N.  M.  Smith,  Z.  F.  Burt,  P.  R.  Lilley;  wagon  maker,  T.  T.  Waechter;  mechanic, 
W.  P.  De  Witt;  carpenter,  Owen  Deleplain. 

Two  years  before  the  town  was  laid  out,  a  postoffice  was  established,  April 
18,  1853,  with  B.  F.  Brown  postmaster,  who  was  followed  in  succession  by  Peter 
R.  Lilley,  December  29,  1858;  B.  F.  Brown,  March  20,  1866;  J.  P.  Boyd,  August 
14,  1866;  H.  C.  Wright,  May  25,  1868;  William  C.  Smith,  August  4,  1884;  C.  D. 
Clark,  December  15,  1884;  J.  W.  Likens,  January  28,  1885 ;  B.  R.  Rankin,  Novem- 
ber 3,  1885 ;  M.  C.  Lorimor,  May  10,  1889;  Mary  E.  Travis,  April  26,  1890;  J.  W. 
Keller,  June  10,  1895;  R.  F.  Bush,  April  8,  1896;  William  L.  Hiatt,  April  i, 
1898;  A.  C.  Turner,  August  5,  1901.  The  office  was  discontinued  with  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  rural  free  delivery,  August  21,  1903.  Today  there  is  no  business 
of  any  kind  conducted  in  this  village.  Thus  it  has  been  demonstrated  here,  as  in 
many  other  places,  that  the  railways  have  been  the  making  and  unmaking  of  many 
a  town. 


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CHAPTER  XX 

SOME  MADISON  COUNTY  MILLS 
By  H.  A.  Mueller 

When  the  first  settlers  arrived  here  in  1846  they  were  many  miles  from 
either  a  saw  or  grist  mill  and  were  compelled  to  go  to  Oskaloosa  or  Parmalee's 
Mill  in  Warren  County  for  com  meal  and  flour,  which  at  that  time  meant  hard- 
ships and  many  risks.  The  mills  were  very  primitive,  being  built  of  logs,  covered 
with  clapboards  and  floored  with  puncheons,  but  as  the  country  began  to  settle 
there  at  once  sprung  up  a  demand  for  saw  and  grist  mills.  This  article  will  only 
mention  the  mills  run  by  water  power,  of  which  many  were  built  in  this  county 
but  have  long  since  passed  away. 

The  first  mill  erected  in  the  county  was  what  was  known  as  a  corn  cracker. 
It  was  erected  in  1848  by  Hart  &  Hinkle  on  the  present  site  of  Buffalo  Mill.  It  was 
a  rude  affair,  constructed  of  logs,  and  the  dam  was  equally  primitive,  being  made 
of  brush.  The  burrs  were  made  from  boulders.  Although  grinding  was  slow, 
the  service  of  this  old  mill  in  a  measure  met  the  demands  of  the  settlers,  especially 
during  the  hard  winter  of  1848-9. 

Some  other  mills  were  projected,  as  a  clipping  from  the  Iowa  Star,  published 
at  Des  Moines,  shows.  The  correspondent  probably  was  A.  D.  Jones,  and  his 
article  reads  as  follows:  "Winterset,  April  30,  1850.  There  are  already  five  mills 
in  process  of  erection  in  Madison  County,  one  of  which  has  commenced  grinding 
with  one  run  of  large  burrs  and  is  doing  a  good  business.  The  proprietors  are 
Messrs.  Simmons  &  Casebier,  and  anticipate  their  sawmill  will  be  in  active 
operation  some  time  during*  the  summer.  This  mill  is  situated  on  Middle  River 
about  a  half  mile  south  of  the  county  seat  (Buffalo  Mill). 

"Mr.  Jessup  is  building  a  grist,  saw  and  carding  mill  on  the  stream  about  four 
miles  below  (Weller  Mill).  Mr.  Bertholf  has  his  building  and  draw  partly  done 
and  will  be  able  to  grind  and  saw  after  harvest.  This  mill  is  also  situated  on 
Middle  River,  about  two  and  a  half  miles  from  town  (Afton  Bridge  Mill).  John 
Hagy's  sawmill  would  have  been  in  full  operation  ere  this  had  not  sickness  pre- 
vented (smallpox  broke  out  among  the  workmen  in  this  mill  that  boarded  at 
Thornburgs).  This  mill  is  also  situated  on  Middle  River,  about  four  miles  from 
Winterset  (at  Drake's  Ford,  Lincoln  Township),  and  yet  another  is  building  on 
North  River,  erected  by  William  Combs,  on  section  12,  Douglas  Township.  This 
county  is  certainly  a  very  desirable  place  for  a  few  skilful  millwrights,  who  could 
undoubtedly  obtain  immediate  employment." 

Thus  it  is  seen  by  the  above  that  within  four  years  from  the  first  settlement 
five  mills  were  in  process  of  building  and  about  i860  many  more  were  erected 
along  the  streams,  which  today  are  all  gone  and  there  is  scarcely  a  mark  left 
to  show  where  once  there  was  such  busy  life  as  usually  existed  in  and  about  these 
industrial  concerns. 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  151 

REIGLE   MILL 

Briefly,  the  location  of  these  mills,  who  built  them  and  when  they  ceased  to 
be  operated,  will  be  mentioned.  On  North  Branch  of  North  River  there  was  one 
mill — a  sash,  or  what  is  known  as  an  "up  and  down"  sawmill,  built  by  Jacob 
Riegle,  about  1854-5.  It  was  located  on  the  northeast  quarter  of  the  southwest 
quarter  of  section  35,  Jefferson  Township,  and  cost  a  considerable  sum  of  money. 
It  did  quite  a  bit  of  sawing  but  never  proved  a  profitable  investment.  The  mill 
was  last  run  by  John  Wiggins,  about  1872.  He  also  had  attached  a  burr  and 
ground  corn  meal  and  feed.    The  structure  was  washed  away  about  1874. 

DAVID  KARROW    MILL 

On  North  River,  the  first  one  on  the  east  was  David  Barrow's  com  mill,  sit- 
uated on  the  north  half  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  2,  Union  Township. 
There  is  no  longer  a  stream  here  but  a  bayou  just  below  a  small  bridge.  In  1854 
Mr.  Barrows  constructed  a  dam,  put  up  a  small  shack  and  installed  a  run  of 
burrs.  The  power  was  obtained  from  water.  This  continued  to  furnish  meal  for 
the  neighborhood  until  about  1870. 

SETH   BARROW    MILL 

In  1877  Seth  Barrow,  son  of  David  Barrow,  built  a  water  mill  above  the 
Eli  Cox  bridge,  on  section  5,  Union  Township.  He  sold  out  to  Alfred  Brittain  in 
1879,  who  operated  the  mill  until  1881,  at  which  time  the  high  water  cut  around 
the  dam,  when  the  mill  was  abandoned. 

COMBS  MILL 

The  Combs  mill,  mentioned  in  the  communication  of  Jones,  was  built  by 
William  Combs  in  1849-50,  near  the  west  line  of  section  13,  Douglas  Township. 
This  was  an  "up  and  down"  sawmill  and  also  com  cracker.  It  was  operated  until 
1857.  when  the  dam  was  washed  out  by  the  flood  of  that  year.  Jonathan  Myers, 
son  of  Alexander  Myers,  was  drowned  below  the  old  dam  in  1853,  while  getting 
a  grist  ground;  he  had  gone  in  bathing.  Parts  of  the  mill  stood  until  1858,  and 
even  later;  some  of  the  logs  are  to  be  seen  today.  The  two  burrs  are  in  possession 
of  O.  L.  Evans. 

SULGROVE    MILL 

The  Sulgrove  mill — a  sash  sawmill — was  built  in  1856,  by  the  Sulgroves,  on  the 
south  side  of  the  stream  on  the  north  half  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  9, 
Douglas  Township,  above  the  present  Sulgrove  bridge.  The  mill  was  operated 
until  1868,  when  the  dam  was  washed  away.  The  frame  of  the  mill  was  torn 
away  in  1876  by  the  high  waters. 

wood's  MILL 

An  "up  and  down"  sawmill  was  built  in  the  fall  of  1851  by  Gilbert  D.  Wood, 
on  North  River,  just  below  the  mouth  of  the  Howerton;  that  is  to  say,  on  section 
17,  Douglas  Township.    George  B.  Chase  helped  build  this  mill  and  operated  it. 


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152  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Wood  &  Chase  made  the  wheel  and  Mr.  Harlan  built  the  frame  work.    The  mill 
was  operated  until  1854,  when  it  was  destroyed  by  fire. 

HUGLIN  MILL 

Huglin's  grist  and  sawmill  stood  on  the  south  bank  of  the  Middle  River,  about 
the  center  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  35,  in  Crawford  Township.  It  was 
built  in  185 1  by  John  M.  Johns  and  H.  A.  Bell.  In  1852  John  J.  Bell  and  Abner 
Bell,  Jr.,  brothers,  ran  it  two  years.  It  was  later  owned  by  Abner  Bell,  Jr.,  and 
George  Jordan.  Joachim  Huglin  bought  it  in  1866  and  built  the  flouring  mill, 
which  continued  to  run  until  torn  down  and  moved  away  in  1879. 

WELLER    MILL 

The  Weller  mill  was  a  saw  and  grist  mill,  which  was  built  by  Solomon  Jessup 
in  1850,  on  jection  35,  Union  Township.  It  was  owned  and  operated  in  turn  by 
Elisha  Weller,  Samuel  Coltrane,  Van  Wiggins,  A.  F.  Burger,  James  Cummins  and 
John  Wiggins,  until  finally  purchased  by  White  &  Munger.  John  B.  Lamb 
operated  it  until  1881,  when  the  dam  was  washed  away. 

CAMPBELL   MILL 

Campbell  mill,  just  above  Holliwell  bridge,  was  built  in  1851  by  Dan  Camp- 
bell and  Jghn  Daugherty.  Abner  Bell  and  Aaron  McKinzie  helped  on  its  con- 
struction. This  was  a  sash  sawmill  and  was  purchased  of  the  original  owners 
in  1855  by  Alexander  Atkinson,  who  sold  it  to  Messrs.  Moore  &  Young  in  1857. 
The  purchasers  were,  respectively,  uncle  and  father  of  ex-Recorder  John  T. 
Young. 

BUFFALO    MILL 

The  "Buffalo"  mill  was  closely  connected  with  the  early  history  of  Madison 
County.  It  was  built  by  Hart  &  Hinkle  as  a  com  cracker.  Later  Simmons, 
Casebier  &  Thdmbrugh  built  a  sawmill  on  the  west  side  of  the  stream  in  185 1 ; 
this  was  washed  away.  In  1851  William  Compton  bought  the  mill  and  to  it  added 
a  grist  mill  with  two  run  of  burrs.  He  also  ran  a  sawmill,  in  which  he  installed 
a  carding  machine.  It  finally  became  known  as  the  Compton,  or  Buffalo  mills, 
receiving  the  latter  name,  so  it  is  said,  by  reason  of  Mr.  Compton  always  appearing 
at  his  work  enveloped  in  a  buffalo  overcoat. 

Compton  continued  to  run  the  Buffalo  mill  until  1874  and  to  him  it  was  a 
very  profitable  enterprise.  People  came  for  miles  around  to  get  their  flour. 
Sheds  were  built  to  accommodate  the  customers  and  their  teams,  for  it  was 
necessary  in  those  days  for  each  settler  to  wait  his  turn  to  have  his  com  ground. 
The  mill  was  sold  to  Vermillion  &  Kleatsch  and  in  the  storm  of  1880  was  almost 
totally  wrecked.  C.  D.  Bevington  bought  Vermillion's  interest  and  it  was  rebuilt. 
Mr.  Kleatsch  then  sold  his  interest  to  W.  H.  Lewis.  Many  improvements  were 
made  to  keep  up  with  the  times,  but  the  investment  proved  a  financial  failure. 
The  mill  was  sold  to  Moorehead  and  J.  S.  W.  Cole  and  was  operated  by  Thomas 
Pace.  In  1886  the  floods  washed  the  dam  away  and  the  mill  never  again  was 
rebuilt.    A  part  of  the  stmcjture  is  still  standing. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  153 

AFTON  BRIDGE  MILL 

What  is  known  as  the  Afton  Bridge  mill  was  built  in  1850  by  J.  T.  Bertholf. 
It  was  a  grist  mill.  Bertholf  sold  to  Joseph  Wright,  who  added  to  the  industry 
a  sawmill.  This  property  was  located  on  the  section  line  between  sections  13  and 
14,  Lincoln  Township,  and  just  north  of  the  present  Afton  bridge.  The  sawmill 
was  further  down  the  river  along  a  bayou,  through  which  the  mill  race  ran. 
Mr.  Tomlinson  bought  it  later  of  Mr.  Wright  and  operated  it  for  sonte  time. 

DRAKE  FORD  MILL 

The  Brinson  mill  at  Drake  Ford  was  a  water  power  mill,  built  in  1849,  by 
David  Hagge.  He  boarded  with  Absalom  Thomburg  and  took  down  with  the 
smallpox  while  building  it,  giving  the  disease  to  all  the  family  except  one  son, 
George.  This  was  the  first  circular  sawmill  in  the  county  and  stood  east  of  Drake 
Ford  bridge  on  section  15  east  of  the  house  now  owned  by  J.  E.  Addy  in  Lincoln 
Township.  Mr.  Hagge  sold  to  Craig  Gaines  and  Mike  Danner  in  1851.  Later 
Joseph  Brinson,  father  of  William  Brinson,  of  Winterset,  purchased  it  and 
operated  the  mill  until  the  dam  washed  out.  Brinson  then  sold  the  property  to 
John  Reed,  who  rebuilt  the  mill  a  short  distance  above  and  across  Middle  River, 
put  in  burrs  and  ground  both  wheat  and  com,  besides  sawing  lumber.  The  dam 
washed  out  in  1864,  which  induced  Reed  to  sell  the  machinery;  the  building 
was  torn  down  and  moved  away. 

BACKBONE   MILL 

About  the  year  1859  John  Harmon  built  what  has  since  been  known  as  the 
Backbone  mill.  It  was  an  "up  and  down"  affair,  and  got  its  power  from  the  river 
by  tunnelling  a  passage  for  the  stream  through  the  rock  of  the  "backbone"  to 
the  wheel.  Harmon  sold  to  W.  L.  Wilkin  and  R.  D.  Vermillion  in  1867,  who  put 
in  a  grist  mill ;  G.  F.  Kleatsch  worked  for  them.  This  mill  was  run  for  several 
years  by  various  owners  until  1882,  when  Henry  Evans  bought  it  and  operated 
it  some  time.  The  old  mill  has  been  lying  idle  the  last  fifteen  years  or  more. 
In  the  meantime  part  of  the  structure  was  torn  down  but  some  of  it  is  still  standing. 

JAMES  BERTHOLF  MILL 

There  was  an  "up  and  down'*  sawmill  built  in  1866  by  James  Bertholf.  It 
stood  on  the  west  side  of  Middle  River,  on  the  section  line  of  sections  16  and  21, 
Lincoln  Township.  The  machinery  was  brought  from  Andrew  Bertholf's  mill 
further  up  the  river.  Joseph  Brinson  bought  the  property  in  1869,  operated  it  a 
few  years  and  then  sold  out  to  Linsey  Macumber,  who  ran  it  three  years  and 
sold  to  Alex  Macumber  in  1872,  who  continued  to  operate  it  one  year.  The  build- 
ing was  washed  away  in  the  floods  of  1876  while  owned  by  D.  Philbrick. 

ANDREW  BERTHOLF  MILL 

Andrew  H.  Bertholf  in  1854  built  a  sash  sawmill,  operated  by  water  power, 
just  below  the  present  Linsey  Bertholf  bridge  and  near  the  center  of  section 


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154  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

17,  Lincoln  Township.    This  was  run  a  few  years;  then  the  machinery  was  re- 
moved in  1866  and  installed  in  the  James  Bertholf  mill  further  down  the  river. 

HOCKENBERRY  MILL 

The  Hockenberry  mill  was  an  "up  and  down"  waterpower  sawmill  and  was 
built  in  1855,  in  section  14,  Webster  Township,  by  M.  C.  Hockenberry  and  Paul 
Denning,  but  was  not  completed  until  1856.  The  builders  operated  it  up  to  the 
beginning  of  the  Civil  war,  when  Hockenberry  sold  his  interest  to  Paul  Denning, 
who  continued  therein  until  he  sold  to  William  and  Mart  Shoefflen,  in  1868,  who  in 
turn  sold  to  E.  M.  Roseman  in  1870.  Mr.  Roseman  operated  the  mill  a  few 
years  and  then  lost  it  by  floods. 
• 

WEBSTER   MILL 

Charles  Friend  began  the  construction  of  a  sawmill  in  1854,  M.  C.  Hocken- 
berry doing  the  construction  work.  It  was  completed  by  B.  F.  McAfFerty  and 
Fred  Mason,  who  had  it  in  operation  in  1856.  They  ran  the  mill  about  three 
years,  when  Otho  Davis  got  possession,  and  added  a  set  of  burrs  and  ground 
com.  Then  in  turn,  as  millers,  came  a  Mr.  Hoadley,  Asbury  Evans,  Carl  Sampson, 
George  McVey,  Rufus  UUery,  Mr.  Hohn,  and  finally  Mr.  "Rogers.  No  sawing  had 
been  done  for  thirty  years,  and  probably  no  grinding  for  fifteen  years.  About 
1903,  or  1904,  the  building  was  still  standing  on  the  bank  of  Middle  River,  south 
of  Webster,  and  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  west  of  the  public  road  running  south 
of  town.  It  was  at  that  time  decaying  rapidly  and  the  river  had  washed  around 
the  south  end  of  the  dam,  leaving  the  mill  on  dry  land.  The  machinery,  however, 
was  still  in  the  building  and  all  it  needed,  so  it  seemed,  was  repairing.  This 
was  the  beginning  of  the  last  chapter  in  the  history  of  the  old  Webster  mill. 

BARKER    MILL 

About  1853,  or  1855,  Samuel  Barker  built  a  sawmill  on  Grand  River,  on  sec- 
tion 17,  Grand  River  Township,  which  afterwards  became  known  as  Barker's 
mill.  It  was  operated  about  ten  years,  part  of  this  time  by  Dr.  J.  H.  Mack.  It 
then  .stood  idle  until  about  i860,  when  it  became  practically  a  ruin.  About  1875 
George  Everett  put  up  a  small  building,  constructed  a  wooden  wheel  and  in  this 
primitive  mill  ground  com  and  chop  feed.  In  1877,  Evan  Doty  and  Captain  Barker, 
son  of  Samuel  Barker,  bought  the  property,  put  in  a  thirty-six-inch  Leffler  turbine 
wheel  and  erected  a  new  building.  Here  quite  a  milling  business  was  conducted 
by  the  persons  just  named  until  1889,  when  Alvin  Griswold  purchased  the  mill 
and  in  1892  attached  a  circular  saw  and  manufactured  lumber.  This  mill  was 
torn  down  a  few  years  ago,  and  was  the  last  water  power  mill  run  in  Madison 
County. 

HIATT  &  BROWN  MILL 

The  Hiatt  &  Brown  mill,  in  Walnut  Township,  was  constructed  in  the  fall  of 
1852  by  Aaron  Hiatt  and  B.  F.  Brown.     It  was  a  sawmill,  operated  by  water 


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BACKBONE  MILL,  LINCOLN  TOWNSHIP 

Devil's  Back  Bone  in  rear,  with  tunnel  underneath,  which  was  dug  by 
John  Harmon  and  his  three  sons.  It  was  completed  in  1859.  The  mill  was 
first  used  to  saw  lumber  and  later  as  a  gristmill,  which  was  operated  until 
1904  when  it  was  abandoned,  and  a  few  years  ago  was  torn  down.  Henry 
Evans  was  the  last  owner  and  operator. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  155 

power,  and  stood  on  Clanton  Creek,  in  section  ii,  about  a  half  mile  southeast  of 
East  Peru.  The  mill  was  completed  in  the  summer  of  1853  ^"^  was  put  together 
by  F.  S.  J.  Garroutte,  of  Winterset,  later  of  Adel.  All  was  in  running  order  by 
the  spring  of  1854,  when  the  wheel  was  found  deficient,  so  a  Johnston  wheel  was 
put  in.  This  mill  was  owned  and  operated  by  Hiatt  &  Brown  until  about  1856, 
when  Aaron  Hiatt  sold  his  interest  to  Elijah  Hiatt,  late  of  Truro,  and  father 
of  Surveyor  E.  E.  Hiatt.  About  i860  ^iatt  sold  his  interest  to  John  Steel  and 
later  bought  B.  F.  Brown's  interest,  which  he  sold  to  Benjamin  Reed  about  the 
close  of  the  war.    About  the  year  1868  the  mill  was  washed  away  by  high  waters. 

HARTMAN   MILL 

Hartman  &  Downs'  mill,  west  of  Hanley,  was  begun  in  the  year  1851  as  an 
"up  and  down"  affair,  completed  in  1853  ^"^  operated  until  some  time  during  the 
sixties,  when  Dr.  William  Anderson,  father  of  H.  P.  and  E.  K.  Anderson,  and 
an  old  practicing  physician,  bought,  controlled  and  operated  it  until  about  1869, 
at  which  time  Elijah  Collins  bought  a  half  interest  in  the  enterprise.  During 
the  summer  of  1871  the  firm  of  Anderson  &  Collins  rebuilt  and  improved  the  mill 
and  was  ready  for  operations  in  1872,  when  M.  I.  Bean  and  E.  Collins  managed 
the  business.  In  1873  M.  I.  Bean  purchased  Collins'  interest  and  continued  to 
run  the  mill  until  1876,  when  high  water  took  out  the  dam.  The  property  was 
then  sold  to  R.  A.  Howard  and  his  father,  who  built  a  new  dam,  but  the  Hoods 
again  came  and  washed  out  the  improvements,  so  the  mill  was  abandoned  in  1877. 
The  site  of  Hartman  &  Downs'  mill  is  a  short  distance  west  from  Clanton  Creek, 
and  east  of  Bridgeport  school  house. 

PHIPPS    MILL 

What  was  known  as  the  Phipps  mill  was  built  in  1866  by  James  Phipps, 
further  up  Clanton  Creek,  on  section  2^,  on  land  now  owned  by  S.  T.  Johnston. 
The  mill  was  completed  in  1867  and  subsequently  Phipps  sold  half  of  his  interest 
to  Isaac  Allen,  and  the  balance  to  William  Allcock  later.  About  1873  the  new 
firm  sold  to  R.  M.  J.  Collins,  who  was  proprietor  of  the  mill  until  1876,  when 
the  high  waters  destroyed  it. 


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CHAPTER   XXI 

THE  SIMPLE  LIFE 
By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

LCM3    HOUSES 

The  natural  resources  of  new  countries  provide  liberally  all  the  necessities  for 
human  existence,  until  such  time  as  the  pioneer  may  acquire,  if  diligent,  a  more 
reliable  and  convenient  supply,  better  adapted  to  his  previous  habits  and  customs. 
The  Indian  was  not  destructive  during  his  occupancy  of  the  country  and  left 
for  the  \^itt  man's  use  all  the  wealth  of  game  and  forest  and  soil,  just  as  he  had 
received  it  from  Nature's  bountiful  hand.  Thus,  the  pioneer  settlers  found  in 
great  affluence  wild  game  and  fish,  the  sweets  of  the  bee  and  maple,  and  material 
for  the  building  of  the  home. 

If  the  settler  came  during  the  spring  or  planting  season  of  the  year,  usually 
his  first  employment  was  in  planting  such  crops  for  which  he  was  able  to  prepare 
the  ground  and  then  came  the  building  of  a  log  house ;  meanwhile,  "camping  out" 
in  the  wagon  or  in  a  tent,  for  all  were  prepared  for  outdoor  living.  If  he  arrived 
at  other  than  the  spring  time,  house  building  was  first  in  order  of  importance. 
The  pioneer  always  settled  either  in  a  forest,  or  on  the  prairie  border  of  one, 
but  in  the  latter  case  a  little  way  in  the  timber.  And,  if  he  was  early  enough 
to  have  choice  of  location,  he  selected  a  site  facing  the  prairie  to  the  south  or 
east.  In  nearly  every  case  the  settler  had  been  bom,  raised  and  always  lived 
in  a  heavily  timbered  country.  But  he  found  here  far  more  prairie  than  timber 
and,  instinctively,  he  seemed  to  know  that,  soon  or  late,  he  must  use  the  prairie 
largely  for  farming  operations.  Thus,  most  of  the  early  settlers  sought  to  include 
in  their  "claims''  a  piece  of  adjacent  prairie  land. 

The  settlers  of  1846-7-8-9  and  1850,  without  an  exception,  save  that  of  Judge 
Pitzer,  who  built  and  lived  in  the  first  frame  house  in  the  county  (in  VVinterset), 
built  and  dwelled  in  log  houses.  These  structures  were  of  three  general  styles — 
of  round  or  unhewn  logs,  hewn  logs  or  built  of  "poles."  Where  the  settler  had 
time  and  help  sufficient,  he  hewed  the  logs  in  the  timber,  where  the  trees  were 
felled,  and  hauled  or  dragged  them  to  the  site  of  the  house.  Enough  men  were 
then  notified  on  a  certain  day  he  would  have  a  "house  raising."  It  was  considered 
that  twenty  men  were  necessary  to  quickly  and  safely  "raise"  a  house.  It  was 
universally  the  rule  that  a  notification  of  a  "raising"  was  a  "draft"  on  the  services 
of  the  man  notified  for  that  whole  day.  He  was  not  invited,  requested,  or  even 
asked  to  attend ;  he  was  simply  notified.  Of  course,  there  might  be  some  prior 
engagement  that  would  prevent  the  "notified"  person  from  being  present  and, 
for  this  reason,  upon  notification  he  was  asked  but  one  question:  "Can  you  go?" 
During  the  first  year  or  two  so  thin  were  the  settlements  that  sometimes  "drafted" 

156 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  157 

neighbors  would  have  to  go  from  eight  to  fifteen  miles.  The  earliest  settlers, 
along  Jones  Creek  and  Upper  Clanton,  came  northward  to  Middle  River  for  help 
and  the  pioneers  of  Webster  and  Jackson  depended  on  the  Winterset  neigh- 
borhood. 

As  the  "raisings'*  began  early  in  the  morning,  so  as  to  be  sure  of  a  finish  by 
night,  those  from  a  distance  must  start  before  breakfast  time  at  home.  But 
as  no  breakfast  was  served  at  the  "raising''  they  must  hustle  out  early.  Some 
sort  of  a  dinner,  served  in  some  sort  of  a  manner — the  best  the  newcomers  could 
possibly  do  under  the  circumstances — came  at  noon.  As  a  rule  no  supper  was 
served  and  none  expected.  Of  course  no  pay  for  the  day's  work  was  given  or 
would  have  been  accepted  if  offered.  It  was  a  duty  each  settler  owed  the  new- 
comer in  return  for  like  service  rendered  him  when  he  came  to  the  country. 

The  early  settlers  of  this  county  were  largely  teetotalers,  or  very  moderate 
users  of  intoxicants,  and,  therefore,  it  was  the  exception  when  whisky  was  fur- 
nished at  these  "raisings."  When  offered  at  all  to  those  who  chose  to  drink, 
moderation  was  the  rule,  since  to  take  too  much  was  dangerous  to  the  others. 

The  **raising"  of  a  log  house  included  the  carrying  up  of  the  four  sides,  the 
gable  end  logs;  proper  placing  of  the  cross  poles,  or  logs  which  held  the  gable 
end  logs  in  place,  and  to  which  the  clapboards  would  be  nailed  or  weighted  down 
by  poles,  and  such  sills  for  the  floor  to  rest  upon  as  the  owner  chose.  The  door 
and  window  places  and  fire  place  were  left  for  the  owner  to  cut  or  saw  out  as 
he  chose  and  the  roof  and  floor  he  could  add  at  his  convenience. 

The  "raising"  of  an  unhewn  log  house  was  in  the  same  manner.  Generally, 
the  owner  would  later  employ  an  expert  to  hew  the  logs  in  the  wall.  Good  hewers 
were  rather  scarce  and  if  the  owner  could  not  hew,  he  had  to  build  his  house  with 
the  crude  logs  and  hire  a  hewer  when  he  could.  Good  hewers  commanded  higher 
wages  than  common  woodsmen,  and  for  hewing  logs  in  the  wall  a  still  higher 
price  was  demanded,. it  being  more  difficult  and  slower  work ;  besides,  the  logs  when 
left  for  some  time  became  more  or  less  seasoned  and  consequently  tougher. 

A  *'pole"  house  was  built  of  very  large  and  straight  poles,  or  small  logs, 
never  hewn,  and  otherwise  built  as  regular  log  houses.  Comparatively  few  were 
erected  and  they  were  far  from  desirable.  They  were  intended  but  for  temporary 
use  as  a  habitation  and  eventually  were  turned  into  use  as  stables. 

Log  houses  cost  little  except  in  labor  and  often  were  completed  without  the 
expenditure  of  a  cent.  Nothing  was  bought — not  even  a  nail,  a  window  glass 
or  a  door  hinge.  In  such  case  the  roof  was  of  clapboards,  weighted  down  by 
large  poles,  laid  from  end  to  end  of  the  roof  across  the  lower  end  of  each  tier 
of  boards ;  the  windows  were  of  light  colored  paper,  well  oiled  or  greased ;  the 
doors  were  "batten"  ones,  made  of  puncheon  or  clapboards,  fastened  together 
by  wooden  pins,  and  hung  by  wooden  hinges.  The  fastening  consisted  of  a  wooden 
latch. 

The  old  southern  style  of  building  two  separate  log  houses,  each  complete  and 
independent  of  the  other,  end  towards  end,  and  located  from  ten  to  sixteen  feet 
apart,  was  sometimes  adopted  here.  This  design  came  in  about  1 850-1  and  was 
followed  until  about  1854.  It  was  the  period  between  the  old  style  single  log 
cabin,  and  the  frame  building  era,  that  began  in  great  earnest  in  1855,  when  saw- 
mills became  numerous.  Upon  the  twin  log  houses,  a  chimney  was  built  at  the 
extreme  ends  of  each  compartment,  the  space  between  being  boarded  and  a  passage 


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158  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

way  from  house  to  house  made  by  cutting  a  door  through  the  middle  of  the  adja- 
cent ends  of  the  two  log  houses  or  compartments.  This  made  lots  of  room.  Some- 
times, from  end  to  end  on  the  front  side  of  the  building  a  covered  porch  was 
extended,  usually  with  a  small  summer  kitchen  or  a  **spare''  bedroom  at  one  end. 

BREAKING  OUT  A  FARM     . 

The  early  settlers  found  the  prairies  covered  by  grasses  that  grew  tall  and 
coarse  and  rank,  some  kinds  growing  taller  than  a  man.  Some  seasons  the  "blue 
joint"  grew  as  tall  as  a  man's  head  on  horseback.  The  grass  roots  were  large, 
coarse  and  matted  the  ground  so  closely  that  in  places  in  the  sloughs  near  the 
surface  there  were  more  roots  than  earth.  Such  places  could  not  be  broken 
by  any  plow  the  first  settlers  had. 

The  very  early  settlers  did  not  come  prepared  with  plows  and  teams  strong 
enough  to  break  either  the  heavier  prairie  lands  or  the  brush.  Indeed,  suitable 
plows  were  not  then  made  in  this  region,  nor  until  about  1850  did  makers  of 
plows  begin  to  build  them  strong  enough  for  such  work.  For  several  years  after 
settlement  began  only  the  easily  plowed  pieces  were  brought  under  cultivation. 
In  those  days  all  kinds  of  plows  were  made  at  individual  shops  and  wholly  by 
hand.  If  a  farmer  needed  any  kind  of  a  plow,  he  went  to  his  favorite  blacksmith 
and  gave  his  order,  to  be  filled  when  his  turn  came.  But  every  blacksmith  was 
not  a  plow  maker. 

Thus,  for  three  or  four  years  the  little  fields  of  the  settlers  were  mostly  along 
the  edges  of  the  timber,  where  some  trees  could  be  deadened  and  later  removed 
as  they  decayed,  or  there  came  leisure  time  to  cut  them  down  and  burn  them. 
And  then  close  along  the  timber  line,  the  grass  sod  was  easier  to  break.  It  should 
be  remembered  that  at  first  there  was  but  very  little  or  no  brush — it  was  either 
timber  or  prairie — because  the  great,  sweeping  prairie  fires  kept  down  all  kinds 
of  undergrowth. 

The  earlier  settlers  brought  few  horses  or  cattle,  which  led  them  to  adopt 
the  custom  of  "splicing"  their  team  forces  when  breaking  land.  A  little  later 
on  "breaking"  became  a  business  quite  exclusively  its  own.  Plowing  had  to  be 
done  at  a  certain  season  of  the  year,  between  May  20  and  about  July  i,  while  the 
grass  and  brush  grew  most  vigorously.  As  this  was  also  the  cultivating  season 
of  the  year  and  com  was  the  leading  crop,  a  farmer  could  not  both  break  and 
cultivate  the  same  season.  So  that  one  or  two  men  would  rig  up  a  suitable  break- 
ing plow  and  with  plenty  of  teams  (always  oxen),  make  contracts  with  those 
in  the  neighborhood  wanting  breaking  done  and  continue  the  work  during  the 
breaking  season.  The  price  for  breaking  until  1870,  when  the  custom  mostly 
ceased,  was  around  $3  per  acre,  for  prairie  land,  and  $4  to  $5  for  brush.  Horses 
and  mules  were  seldom  used,  and  never  on  brush  land,  because  they  were  too  fast 
in  their  movements  and  not  steady  enough.  Oxen  were  slow,  steady  going  animals, 
stepping  no  faster  when  the  draught  was  easy  than  when  it  was  heavy.  However, 
considerable  of  the  prairie  divide  lands,  the  last  broken  in  the  county  during  the 
early  '70s,  were  broken  by  horses  and  mules,  because  clear  prairie  and  the  sod 
had  become  much  easier  broken  by  long  pasturage. 

The  breaking  plow  of  the  period  from  1850  to  1870  was  made  about  as  follows : 
The  plowshare  was  'of  sufficient  size  to  cut  from  18  to  30  inches,  according  to 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  159 

the  strength  of  the  team.  Some  moldboards  were  fashioned  to  deliver  the  sod 
smooth  in  the  furrows  and  others  to  deliver  it  "kinked";  that  is,  throw  the  sod 
so  the  farther  edge  fell  unevenly  or  kinky.  It  was  claimed  for  the  latter  method 
that  the  sod  would  rot  better  and  quicker.  The  quality  of  the  team  often  depended 
upon  the  financial  ability  of  the  breaker  but  always  on  the  kind  of  sod  or  brush 
land  to  be  turned  over.  There  were  two  "shares."  One  would  last  without  sharp- 
ening about  two  days,  unless  there  were  rocks,  gravel  or  extra  hard  roots,  or  the 
ground  was  too  dry,  when  the  "share"  required  sharpening  daily.  A  fair  day's 
breaking  was  from  two  to  three  acres.  Two  strong  men  were  necessary,  one  to 
handle  the  plow  and  the  other  to  drive  the  team.  The  latter  wielded  a  big,  kmg 
whip,  the  whip  stock,  usually  hickory,  being  from  six  to  ten  feet  long.  The  lash 
was  of  heavy  braided  leather  and  from  ten  to  fifteen  feet  long,  finished  with  a 
long  buckskin  "cracker."  • 

The  plow  was  strongly  and  heavily  made  in  all  its  parts.  Being  much  too 
heavy  for  a  man  to  guide,  a  strong  two-wheeled  truck  was  attached,  two  or  three 
feet  back  of  the  front  end  of  the  great  long  plow,  which  supported  and  steadied 
the  beam.  To  guide  the  "share"  into  or  out  of  the  ground  and  regulate  the  depth, 
a  strong  lever  was  attached  near  the  forward  end  of  the  plow  beam,  extending 
back  over  the  trucks,  where  it  was  supported  by  a  frame,  and  directly  over  the 
beam  back  to  a  little  past  the  moldboard,  easy  of  reach  by  the  plowman,  there 
being  an  upright  piece  of  timber,  fastened  to  the  beam  about  half  way  between 
the  point  of  the  "share"  and  the  moldboard  extending  upward  about  four  feet. 
Through  this  upright  were  bored  inch  holes,  about  four  inches  apart.  This  upright 
passed  through  a  mortise  in  the  lever,  or  an  iron  strap  attached  to  the  lever.  A 
wooden  or  iron  pin  held  the  lever  in  place. 

■  Attached  to  the  beam,  close  to  the  point  of  the  ."share,"  was  the  cutter, 
for  many  years  always  a  heavy  bar  of  steel,  sharpened  on  the  front  edge.  This 
kind  was  used  up  to  the  very  last,  in  brush  land,  or  where  there  was  rock  or 
much  "red  root."  But  in  the  later  years,  when  smooth  prairie  was  broken,  th^ 
rolling  style  of  cutter  was  generally  used.  It  was  like  the  modem  disc,  but 
without  the  bevel. 

To  the  front  end  of  the  plow  beam  was  attached  a  great  clevis,  such  an  aflfair 
as  young  men  seldom  or  never  see  nowadays.  Common  log  chains  were  generally 
used,  extending  from  ox  yoke  to  ox  yoke.  For  a  i6-inch  plow,  three  yoke  of 
oxen  were  usually  required;  for  a  larger  plow,  of  course,  more  were  necessary, 
or  if  the  brush  was  too  heavy.  A  24-inch  plow  was  about  the  limit  in  size  and  this 
required  six  or  seven  yoke  of  good  oxen.  Farmers  preferred  furrows,  on  brush 
land,  from  eighteen  to  twenty  inches  wide,  and  on  prairie,  sixteen  inches.  The 
writer  never  has  heard  of  a  man  driving  a  breaking  team  of  oxen  through  a  season 
without  having  exploded  volumes  of  profanity.  In  all  polite  and  religious  circles 
of  that  period  it  was  expected  and  excused. 

PIONEER  BEDSTEADS 

During  the  first  few  years  very  few  bedsteads  were  brought  from  former 
homes  by  the  settlers.  As  soon  as  the  log  cabin  was  covered  two  2-inch  auger 
holes  were  bored  into  the  logs,  the  proper  distance  from  one  comer  for  the 
length  and  breadth  of  the  bed,  a  round  or  squared  post  for  the  other  comer 


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160  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

support  prepared,  into  which  like  holes  were  bored ;  round  poles  were  fitted  into 
these  holes  for  bed  railings — and  the  bedstead  was  completed.  Bed  ropes  were 
always  brought  along.  Sometimes  pole  cross-pieces  were  fastened  to  the  logs 
or  wooden  pins  along  the  logs,  to  which  was  fastened  the  inside  section  of  the 
bed  rope,  and  thus  was  made  ready  for  the  bed  clothes.  To  economize  space, 
trundle  beds  were  made  to  fit  under  each  bed  of  standard  height.  These  were 
for  the  children,  but  often  were  used  by  "grown-ups." 

In  those  primitive  days  nearly  every  family  kept  a  flock  of  geese.  The  very 
early  settlers  usually  brought  along  a  pair  of  geese,  sometimes  more,  which 
traveled  along  with  the  cattle  and  sheep  while  moving.  These  furnished  feathers 
for  beds  and  the  woman  who  could  boast  of  the  largest  number  of  feather  beds 
stood  supreme  among  the  women  of  the  neighborhood.  A.  J.  Hoisington  says 
he  heard  his  mother,  as  late  as  1859,  ^^^  a  neighbor  woman  one  day  talking 
feather  beds  and  then  he  learned  that  Mrs.  Brown,  who  lived  in  JeflFerson  Town- 
ship, on  section  36,  and  was  a  member  of  the  pibneer  family  of  that  community, 
had  sixteen  feather  beds.  Each  woman,  characteristically,  excused  herself  by 
saying,  *'Mrs.  Brown  had  every  chance,  since  she  lived  on  the  banks  of  North 
River,  where  it  was  no  trouble  to  raise  geese/'  Every  family  who  could  afford 
them  slept  in  winter  between  two  feather  beds.  To  say  of  a  family,  "Why,  they 
haven't  a  feather  bed  in  the  house?"  was  to  express  the  direst  poverty  of  their 
condition.  Until  comparatively  late  years  if  the  parents  failed  to  give  a  newly 
married  daughter  a  good  feather  bed  it  became  the  talk  of  the  neighborhood. 

During  the  first  fifteen  years  nearly  every  family  kept  some  sheep  and  thus 
woolen  bed  clothes  were  abundant.  With  a  plentiful  combination  of  feathers 
and  wool  on  a  bed  in  those  days  one  never  thought  of  the  homely  style  of  the 
bedstead. 

WHEN    THE   STOVE   CAME 

Probably  neither  a  heating  nor  cooking  stove  was  in  Madison  County  until 
1850.  At  that  time  the  stove  was  not  in  common  use  in  the  eastern  and  more 
settled  sections  of  the  country,  outside  of  towns  and  cities.  The  price  of  stoves 
was  relatively  high  and  the  plan  on  which  they  were  built  was  the  simplest  imag- 
inable. The  old  time  box  heating  stove  was  a  rectangular  iron  box,  with  a  door 
in  the  front  end,  within  an  inch  as  wide  and  high  as  the  whole  end,  and  had  a 
small  hearth  with  a  slide  cover.  Through  the  top,  as  near  as  possible  to  the  rear 
end,  was  a  hole  over  which  rested  the  stovepipe;  the  top  had  no  other  opening. 
The  stove  was  supported  by  four  heavy,  detachable,  feet  or  legs.  Cookstoves 
were  not  large,  but  very  heavy,  and  all  were  made  of  cast  iron.  They  had  narrow 
hearths,  with  sliding  cover  and  shallow  ash  pit.  The  fire  box  was  without  grating ; 
it  had  a  door  at  one  end  nearly  the  size  of  the  fire  box.  Next  back  of  the  fire 
box  and  extending  a  foot  below  was  the  oven,  the  bottom  portion  of  which 
extended  under  the  fire  box.  The  oven  had  a  shelf  midway  of  the  top  and 
bottom.  Between  the  top  of  the  stove  and  top  of  oven  was  a  space  of  some 
two  inches,  which  exposed  the  top  of  the  oven  to  the  heat  and  besides  allowed 
the  smoke  to  pass  on  to  the  opening  for  the  stovepipe.  The  stovepipe  hole  was 
in  the  center  of  the  stove  on  its  top.  Across  the  width  of  the  stove,  in  front  of 
and  next  to  the  stovepipe  hole,  was  a  sliding  damper.     When  the  damper  was 


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open  the  smoke  and  heat  went  direct  to  the  pipe;  when  closed,  the  smoke  and 
heat  were  thrown  down  a  vacuum,  back  of  the  oven,  and  then  the  smoke  passed 
back  and  up  the  chimney,  thus  increasing  the  heat  at  the  back  end  of  the  oven  and 
lessening  the  draft  up  the  chimney. 

In  1855  a  cook  stove  cost  from  $40  to  $80  at  Mississippi  River  towns.  Very 
few  heating  stoves  were  sold  at  that  time,  the  price  ranging  from  $20  up,  according 
to  size. 

William  Compton  brought  the  first  large  heating  stove  to  Winterset  in  1850, 
which  was  set  up  in  his  store  room.  In  the  fall  of  1851  he  sold  it  to  the  old 
Guiberson  school  district  in  Union  Township.  It  was  two  feet  high,  three  feet 
wide  and  four  and  a  half  feet  long.  It  probably  was  the  largest  stove  ever  in 
use  in  the  county. 

John  A.  Pitzer  brought  the  first  cook  stove  when  he  moved  to  Winterset  in 
1850.  Slowly  other  stoves,  both  for  cooking  and  heating,  were  brought  into 
the  county  and  by  1855  became  comparatively  of  common  use. 

SHOE    MAKERS    AND    REPAIRERS 

The  boots  worn  by  the  early  settlers  were  coarsely  made.  Women's  shoes 
were  of  much  the  same  rude  material  Indeed,  women  and  g^rls  often  wore 
men's  boots,  especially  in  snowy  and  muddy  weather.  The  foot  wear  was  bought 
ready  made  at  the  stores  and  seldom  were  mended,  but  worn  as  long  as  they 
held  together.  Women  and  children  usually  went  "barefoot"  from  early  spring 
to  late  in  the  fall.  Men  also  followed  this  practice  in  the  season  of  the  year 
when  their  work  admitted  it.  Men,  women  and  children  roamed  over  the  prairie, 
through  brush  and  timber,  in  their  bare  feet  when  it  seemed  impossible  for  human 
endurance,  and  many  women  and  children,  whose  work  did  not  require  protracted 
hours  in  the  cold  and  snow,  wore  no  shoes  during  the  winter,  substituting  for 
them  home  made  moccasins  fashioned  out  of  remnants  of  woolen  clothes.  Cash 
was  always  required  to  buy  boots  and  shoes,  and  that  was  generally  scarce  and 
often  impossible  to  obtain.  A  pair  of  boots  or  shoes  was  the  limit  of  affluence 
for  nearly  all  persons  in  the  county.  Going  "barefoot"  was  necessary,  if  not 
popular.  There  was  no  caste  or  exclusiveness  in  the  pioneer  days  of  Madison 
County  and  necessity  established  customs.  So  that  when  one  neighbor  tried  to 
"lord  it  over"  another,  means  were  at  hand  to  discipline  the  culprit.  Often  even 
large  girls  were  laughed  out  of  wearing  shoes  at  summer  school.  The  "barefoot" 
scholars  set  the  "pace"  and  insisted  on  it  being  observed  by  all.  It  was  common, 
during  the  'sos,  to  see  women  and  men  at  religious  meetings  in  their  bare  feet. 
This  all  seems  strange  to  us  nowadays ;  but  necessary  economy  in  all  things  then 
required  sacrifices  of  this  character. 

In  most  country  neighborhoods  there  was  some  one  who  mended  boots  and 
shoes — cobblers  they  were  called.  Once  in  a  while  a  farmer,  who  mayhap  had 
worked  in  an  eastern  tannery,  would  make  a  try  at  tanning  a  few  hides  at  home 
for  himself  and  neighbors.  The  leather  turned  out  proved  of  inferior  quality, 
but  as  it  cost  nothing  but  labor  to  produce  and  the  raw  hides  were  cheap,  the 
stuff  answered  many  purposes. 


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162  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

EARLY  TIME  BLACKSMITHS 

The  first  blacksmith  in  the  county  was  Ephraim  Bilderback,  who  settled  in 
1846  near  the  center  of  Scott  Township,  bringing  with  him  a  small  supply  of  tools, 
besides  a  bellows  and  anvil.  He  was  appointed  the  organizing  sheriff  and  was 
elected  first  sheriff  of  Madison  County.  There  was,  of  course,  very  little  black- 
smith work  to  do  in  1846,  that  being  the  year  in  which  the  first  settlements  of  the 
county  were  made.  Later,  he  did  not  care  to  work  much  in  his  smithy  and  before 
he  left,  in  the  early  '50s,  abandoned  the  bellows  and  anvil  entirely. 

In  1850,  the  year  following  the  location  of  Winterset,  blacksmiths  opened 
up  in  town,  doing  the  work  for  the  county  several  years,  after  which,  owing 
to  the  largely  increased  population  and  greater  demand  for  work,  neighborhood 
shops  opened  in  distant  portions  of  the  county.  By  1856  there  were  several  shops 
in  and  outside  of  Winterset. 

Before  1865  the  blacksmith  made  everything  required  by  his  customers,  out  of 
bar  iron  or  steel ;  horse  shoes  and  nails  were  pounded  out  by  hand.  Until  about 
i860  charcoal  alone  was  used  by  the  smiths  in  this  county. 

CARPENTERS   AND   JOINERS 

At  the  first  and  until  sawmills  began  to  cut  the  native  timber  into  lumber,  about 
1850,  there  was  no  employment  for  mechanics  in  wood  work.  Buildings  were 
all  of  logs  and  the  finishing  of  them  was  of  the  rudest  kind.  The  pioneers  were, 
with  rare  exceptions,  all  farmers,  and  the  exceptions  readily  adapted  themselves 
to  that  industry. 

As  sawmills  increased  and  people  began  to  use  the  lumber  for  houses  and 
other  purposes,  workmen  in  wood  appeared.  Some  were  carpenters,  who  could 
build  a  house  but  were  unable  to  put  in  doors,  windows  or  do  the  finer  work 
inside  or  outside;  this  class  of  work  belonged  to  "joiners"  and  there  were  many 
more  carpenters  than  joiners.  Ready  made  doors  or  windows  were  not  in  the 
market,  so  that  all  had  to  be  made  by  the  hand  of  some  local  joiner  out  of  native 
lumber.  Unless  a  carpenter  and  joiner  had  the  contract,  a  carpenter  would  do 
the  rough  work  and  the  joiner  finished  the  job  ready  for  the  plasterers.  During 
the  middle  '60s  ready-made  doors  and  windows  came  on  the  market  at  Des  Moines 
and  a  few  years  later  were  on  sale  in  smaller  towns.  This  nearly  ended  the  trade 
of  joiners  and  since  then  the  carpenter  and  joiner,  as  such,  rarely  has  been 
h^ard  of. 

HARVESTING   WILD   HAY 

Prairie  grass  was  the  only  kind  of  stock  feed,  except  grain,  for  about  twenty 
years  after  the  county  was  settled.  Until  the  advent  of  mowing  machines,  near 
the  middle  '60s,  the  grass  was  cut  with  a  scythe.  This  was  a  slow  process,  but 
generally  the  grass  was  heavy  on  the  bottom  lands  and  in  the  prairie  sloughs. 
Until  about  i860  the  upland  grass  was  not  mown,  although  it  was  a  finer  quality 
for  hay  than  bottom  or  slough  grass.  It  cut  much  less  to  the  acre  and  was 
neglected  until  the  quantity  on  the  bottom  lands,  and  increased  number  of  stock, 
made  the  use  of  it  necessary. 

It  is  very  often  the  case  that  the  over-abundance  of  a  supply  in  its  raw  state 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  163 

results  in  great  scarcity  in  its  prepared  state,  through  negligence  to  prepare  and 
wastefulness  after  preparation.  Thus  with  a  wilderness  of  prairie  grass  it  was 
often  that  in  the  spring  hay  was  scarce  and  very  high  in  price.  Occasionally, 
a  considerable  migration  through  the  county  or  influx  of  settlers  would  cause 
scarcity  and  high  prices.  If  either  of  these  came  in  the  spring,  when  otherwise 
there  was  a  shortness  of  supply,  woe  unto  the  man  who  had  to  buy,  if  he  had  the 
money,  or  pity  for  his  stock  if  he  had  not!  In  the  spring  of  1850-1,  during  the 
California  travel  through  the  county,  wild  hay  sold  as  high  as  $40  and  $50  per 
ton,  and  many  were  unable  to  purchase  at  any  price.  Settlers  hauled  hay  as  far 
as  a  day's  travel  one  way  to  the  roads  over  which  the  caravans  were  passing,  went 
into  camp  and  sold  out  their  hay  as  they  could,  and  then  returned  home  feeling 
highly  remunerated  for  their  time.  In  selling  hay  those  days,  if  the  whole  load 
was  not  '^lumped  off/'  it  would  be  disposed  of  by  the  armful,  or  the  seller  would 
size  up  the  physical  ability  of  the  buyer  to  carry  hay,  and  then  offer  him  as  much 
as  he  could  carry  in  his  arms  for  so  much.  A  man  can  never  properly  estimate 
the  amount  of  hay  he  can  carry  until  he  has  some  experience  in  thus  measuring 
hay  at  the  rate  of  $50  a  ton. 

At  the  period  of  this  great  scarcity  and  demand,  and  at  some  later  and  similar 
periods,  settlers  mowed  the  previous  year's  grass,  mixed  it  with  the  new  hay, 
and  sold  it.  Rank  fraud  and  swindle  as  it  was,  often  the  buyer  had  to  take  it 
that  way  or  go  without  hay  for  his  hungry  team.  Some  twenty  years  later,  a 
very  elderly  and  pious  farmer,  then  in  this  county  and  well  off,  at  least  in  this 
world's  goods,  bragged  to  a  neighbor,  pointing  to  a  fine  eighty  acres  of  well  culti- 
vated land  he  owned,  that  he  entered  it  all  with  money  obtained  by  selling  Cali- 
fomians  "last  year's"  grass,  cut  in  the  spring  and  mixed  with  good  hay.  He  even 
set  up  justification  for  his  reprehensible  acts,  repeating  the  same  old  argument: 
"Others  were  doing  likewise.  I  may  as  well  have  their  money  as  the  other 
fellow." 

It  is  remembered  that  in  March,  1859,  even  poor  prairie  hay  sold  at  $20 
per  ton  and  some  people  hauled  it  several  miles  besides.  This,  notwithstanding 
prairie  grass  was  unusually  abundant  the  year  before.  Two  or  three  times,  in 
the  last  thirty  years,  tame  hay  and  clover  have  reached  tall  figures,  to  be  sure, 
but  the  product  did  not  grow  wild,  and  without  limit,  on  almost  (at  that  time) 
valueless  land. 

Wild  hay  was  put  up  in  this  manner :  The  grass  was  mown  with  a  scythe,  left 
two  or  three  days  in  the  swath  to  cure,  forked  into  small  piles,  and  when  abun- 
dantly dried,  hauled  home  and  stacked.  Often  times  the  mown  hay  was  raked 
together  and  then  pitched  into  piles.  However,  danger  from  prairie  fires  and 
theft  generally  prevented  stacking  where  cut.  Grass  that  would  not  make  from 
three  to  five  tons  per  acre  was  not  considered  worth  cutting  during  the  first 
ten  or  fifteen  years. 

I 

BURIAL   OF   THE   DEAD 

Preparations  for  the  burial  of  the  dead  in  the  very  early  days  were  simple 
and  cheap.  At  first  there  were  no  sawmills  for  the  making  of  lumber  and  none 
was  brought  by  the  immigrants.  On  rare  occasions  some  one  had  a  whip  saw, 
with  which  to  make  a  few  rough  boards.    Up  to  the  time  when  small  water-power 


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164  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

sawmills  began  to  turn  out  rough  boards,  coffins  were  made  out  of  such  crude 
material.  Sometimes,  for  small  children  or  infants,  coffins  were  made  of  the 
bark  of  trees,  by  one  who  understood  the  business,  and  were  rather  neat  affairs. 
Sometimes  **puncheon''  boards,  made  by  splitting  straight-grained  logs  into  strips 
as  thin  as  possible  and  then  hewing  them  smooth,  were  good  material  for  the 
purpose.  Occasionally,  a  portion  of  a  wagon  box  was  cut  up  and  used,  or  a  box 
in  which  articles  were  packed  by  the  family  and  brought  into  the  country.  In 
a  few  cases,  willows  were  woven  into  basket  form,  with  a  lid,  and  used  for  small 
children.  It  is  known  that  in  two  or  three  cases,  the  children  being  quite  small, 
two  suitably  sized  logs,  cut  to  proper  length,  were  hollowed  out,  like  large  maple 
sap  troughs,  in  which  a  body  was  laid  in  one  and  covered  by  the  other.  Auger 
holes  were  bored  through  each  end  of  the  two  troughs  and  wooden  pins  inserted, 
thus  securely  binding  together  the  two  portions  of  the  rude  but  substantial 
casket. 

By  1850  the  local  lumber  supply  began  to  furnish  material  for  coffins  and 
there  were  carpenters  enough  in  the  country  to  make  them.  In  every  considerable 
community  there  was  at  least  one  carpenter,  who  made  a  specialty  of  supplying 
coffins  for  that  neighborhood,  always  keeping  on  hand  seasoned  black  walnut 
lumber  for  the  emergency.  In  case  of  a  death,  the  deceased  was  measured  and 
an  order  sent  to  the  favorite  carpenter  and  it  was  the  unwritten  law  that  the 
carpenter,  upon  receiving  an  order  for  a  coffin,  should  drop  any  work  he  had 
on  hand,  except  it  was  a  similar  one,  and  forthwith  finish  the  order,  which 
usually  required  one  day.  The  body  of  a  deceased  person,  as  a  rule,  was  kept 
over  one  whole  day  and  buried  the  next.  If  the  day  following  the  death  happened 
to  be  a  Sunday,  the  carpenter  made  the  coffin  on  that  day,  regardless  of  the  artisan's 
religious  convictions  relative  to  working  on  the  Sabbath.  In  such  cases,  making  a 
coffin  was  not  considered  as  labor,  but  as  a  Christian  duty  due  from  any  neighbor 
in  assisting  in  the  burial  of  the  dead.  After  1850,  and  for  several  years,  the  usual 
charge  for  making  a  coffin  ranged  from  nothing  up  to  an  exchange  of  work, 
**time  for  time,*'  the  family  of  the  deceased,  in  the  same  manner,  paying  for  the 
lumber,  and  sometimes  furnishing  it.  In  Winterset,  professional  coffin  makers 
charged  from  $2  to  $5,  according  to  the  size  and  style  of  finish.  In  these  primitive 
(times  now  in  mind,  there  were  no  extras  to  a  coffin.  The  wood  work  and  (later) 
screws  were  all.  At  the  very  first,  when  lumber  began  to  be  plentiful,  many  coffins 
were  plain  boxes,  the  same  size  from  end  to  end.  Soon  afterward,  however,  they 
were  all  made  about  in  the  proportion  of  two  thirds  the  width  of  the  body  for  the 
head  and  one-half  the  body  for  the  feet;  no  handles  were  attached.  The  top 
was  all  of  one  piece,  which  was  nailed  to  the  receptacle  at  the  beginning,  but  later 
screws  were  used.  The  top,  usually,  was  not  nailed  or  screwed  down  until  the 
last  thing  before  lowering  the  coffin  into  the  grave.  At  the  bottom  of  the  grave 
a  deeper  depth  was  dug,  in  size  just  long  and  wide  and  deep  enough  to  hold  the 
;Coffin.  Then  over  it  a  single  layer  of  rough  boards  was  placed  crosswise  the 
length  of  the  grave.  Upon  the  death  of  a  person,  one  or  two  neighbors  were 
asked  to  dig  the  grave,  the  person  representing  the  family  having  already  selected 
the  place  in  the  burial  ground.  No  charge  was  made  for  the  work  and  after  the 
body  was  lowered  into  place,  volunteers  remained  to  refill  the  grave. 

Usually  some  kind  of  brief  religious  services  were  conducted  in  connection 
with  the  burial  proceedings,  by  a  preacher,  if  one  was  convenient,  or  by  some 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  165 

elderly  person  of  the  neighborhood  of  kindly  and  religious  bent.  As  for  several 
years  there  were  very  few  public  places  for  gatherings,  and  at  first  none  at  all, 
funerals  were  held  direct  from  the  late  home  of  the  deceased  to  the  burying  ground. 
A  prayer  and  a  hymn  or  two  at  the  house,  a  procession  of  neighbors  in  wagons 
or  on  horseback  to  the  grave,  a  similar  short  service  at  the  grave,  and  the  cere- 
monies were  at  an  end.  It  was  customary,  even  among  non-religious  families, 
to  arrange  with  a  minister  to  preach  the  funeral  sermon  at  a  later  date.  Because 
of  the  scarcity  of  ordained  preachers  and  their  prior  engagements,  sometimes 
these  funeral  sermons  were  not  delivered  for  weeks  or  even  months,  and  in  rare 
cases  over  a  year  might  elapse  between  the  funeral  and  the  sermon. 

In  nearly  every  instance  the  body  of  the  deceased  was  kept  one  whole  day 
and  two  nights.  Watchers  for  the  night  were  arranged  by  the  neighbors.  During 
the  very  early  years,  generally,  families  were  quite  a  distance  from  each  other, 
and  often  couriers  had  to  be  sent  to  inform  them  of  a  death.  Assistance,  if 
needed,  was  plainly  asked  and  always  promptly  given.  Even  if  neighbors  were 
not  on  friendly  terms  there  was  not  the  least  hesitancy  about  asking  for  or 
receiving  assistance  in  case  of  a  death,  no  matter  when  they  had  ceased  to  be  on 
speaking  terms.  The  occasion  of  a  death  often  restored  friendly  relations  between 
neighbors.  In  those  times  two  of  the  watchers  always  remained  close  to  the 
deceased,  one  at  each  end  of  the  casket.  This  close  watch  was  for  the  double 
purpose  of  protecting  the  body  from  attack  by  rodents,  or  other  enemies,  and  to 
detect  any  sign  of  life,  but  the  custom  has  long  since  disappeared  from  this  section 
of  the  country. 

PRAIRIE   FIRES 

The  prairie  settlers  were  in  great  danger  of  prairie  fires,  between  the  time 
the  frost  killed  the  grass  in  the  fall  and  the  coming  of  the  snows  of  winter,  and 
from  the  going  of  the  snows  toward  spring  and  the  growth  of  new  grass.  The 
grass  grew  generally  from  two  to  eight  or  ten  feet  high  and  very  thick  on  the 
ground.  The  settlers  were  confined  to  the  timber  belts  along  the  streams  and 
their  little  fields  furnished  but  little  if  any  obstruction  to  a  big  prairie  fire.  At 
first,  there  was  little  or  no  brush  and  a  belt  of  timber,  unless  of  much  width,  would 
not  stop  it.  With  a  high  wind  a  prairie  fire  would  advance  at  a  speed  now 
unbelievable,  in  most  cases  almost  as  rapid  as  the  wind,  because  the  wind  would 
carry  sparks  and  blades  of  burning  grass  through  the  air,  igniting  the  grass 
long  distances  ahead  of  the  body  of  the  conflagration,  thus  continually  starting 
new  fires  ahead.  On  an  open  prairie,  before  a  high  wind,  no  horse  could  run 
fast  enough  to  keep  up  with  it.  Such  rapidly  moving  fires,  however,  were  only 
occasional. 

Early  in  the  fall  it  was  the  supreme  but  oft  neglected  duty  of  a  settler  to  bum 
wide  fire  guards  around  the  exposed  sides  of  his  improvements.  These  guards 
were  made  by  first  plowing  three  or  four  furrows  next  to  the  improvements, 
and  another  set  of  furrows  several  rods  on  the  prairie  side.  Sometimes  the 
latter  furrows  were  not  plowed.  Then  the  first  very  calm  spell  that  came  the 
whole  family,  if  large,  or  two  or  three  neighbors,  were  called  on,  and  the  grass 
outside  the  inner  furrows  was  set  on  fire  in  one  place,  close  to  the  inner  furrows, 
if  no  outside  furrows  were  plowed,  or  if  plowed  the  fire  was  set  further  out. 


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166  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Each  person  was  supplied  with  hazel,  willow  or  other  small  bundles  of  switches, 
easy  to  wield  with  the  two  hands.  One  person  would  extend  the  firing  line  slowly 
and  cautiously,  because  the  wind  might  prove  treacherous  and  blow  quite  sud- 
denly from  any  direction.  When  the  fire  had  burned  back  far  enough,  it  was 
whipped  out  with  the  switches.  And  thus  the  work  proceeded  until  the  fire  guard 
was  finished.  Usually,  burning  fire  guards  was  done  some  windless  evening 
and  often  lasted  imtil  far  into  the  night. 

Besides  accidents  caused  by  a  sudden  rising  of  the  wind,  or  n^ligence  in 
whipping  out  the  last  spark,  once  in  a  while  inexperienced  settlers  would  attempt 
the  work  alone.  Soon  after  David  Cracraft,  of  Union,  a  large  wheat  grower 
and  flouring  mill  man  of  his  period,  came  here  in  1847  he  put  up  a  large  amount 
of  fine  hay,  which  was  exposed  to  prairie  fires.  He  plowed,  a  fire  guard  around 
the  stacks  and  had  sent  for  some  neighbors  to  help  bum  a  strip  outside  the  plowed 
ground.  As  was  his  custom,  he  got  in  a  hurry,  and  started  a  fire  at  a  considerable 
distance  back  from  the  plowed  furrow,  while  a  light  breeze  was  blowing  toward 
the  hay  stacks.  As  the  fire  increased  in  volume,  the  wind  increased  in  force, 
as  always  it  does  around  a  prairie  fire,  and  when  the  blaze  reached  the  furrows, 
sparks  blew  across  and  ignited  the  hay  stacks ;  Cracraf t's  neighbors  arrived  in 
time  to  see  them  all  bum.  He  was  a  tenderfoot  on  the  prairie  but  leamed  his 
lesson  well.  He  had  a  lot  of  stock  and  was  compelled  to  buy  hay  until  grass 
time. 

In  spite  of  all  preparations  against  prairie  fires  quite  occasionally  the  guards 
would  be  jumped  by  sparks  of  flying  leaves,  grass,  or  rolling,  tumbling  weeds. 
Tumbling  weeds  were  greatly  in  evidence  in  those  days  and  were  the  cause  of 
great  danger  in  times  of  fire.  They  grew  to  great  size,  several  feet  in  diameter. 
Before  a  high  wind  they  would  roll  many  miles,  or  until  they  reached  timber 
or  some  obstruction  like  a  fence.  In  case  of  a  prairie  fire  they  carried  flame  a 
long  distance  over  burned  or  plowed  ground. 

Among  the  great  fires  in  the  county  was  one  that  came  down  Coon  divide 
from  the  northwest  about  the  year  1850.  The  wind,  shifting  more  northerly 
as  it  approached  Lee  Township,  jumped  North  River  at  several  points  between  the 
four  comers  of  Jefferson,  Lee,  Union  and  Crawford  townships  and  the  mouth 
of  Cedar,  burned  over  the  divide  to  Cedar,  jumped  that  stream  and  made  its 
way  clear  to  the  banks  of  Middle  River  in  Crawford  Township.  It  swept  Coon 
divide  far  down  toward  the  Des  Moines  River  and  did  much  destruction  to 
fences,  even  on  Middle  River. 

These  fires  were  constantly  a  menace  to  improvements — until  the  early  '60s — 
along  the  divide  south  of  Middle  River,  along  both  sides  of  Grand  River,  along 
the  divide  between  North  and  Middle  rivers  and  all  along  Coon  divide.  The 
danger  rapidly  decreased  as  the  prairies  began  to  settle  up. 

CALIFORNIA  TRAILS 

The  California  travel  across  this  county  was  along  four  routes  or  roads  during 
the  years  1849,  1850,  1851  and  1852.  The  route  more  largely  followed  was  then 
known  as  the  "North  Fort  Des  Moines  road,"  being  the  one  staked  out  by  the 
Guyes  and  their  companions  while  on  their  way  to  Des  Moines  to  vote  in  August, 
1846,  elsewhere  described;  and  later  a  portion  of  the  state  road  from  Des  Moines 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  167 

to  Indiantown  in  Cass  County.  This  road  was  followed  up  to  section  i6  in  Union 
Township,  thence  westerly  along  the  dividing  ridge  of  Cedar  and  North  River 
into  Douglas  and  on  to  the  western  portion  of  the  county,  where  it  joined  the 
route  west  from  Winterset  in  Jackson  Township.  This  route  was  selected  by 
one  Clark  of  Council  Bluffs,  who,  early  in  1849,  had  passed  along  posting  printed 
notices  giving  the  advantages  of  this  route,  directions  to  follow  and  special 
places  where  hay  and  com  were  in  supply.  The  next  important  route  followed, 
entered  the  county  a  mile  northeast  of  where  St.  Charles  now  stands,  passed 
Joel  Clanton's  house,  crossed  the  early  time  ford  above  the  present  Clanton 
bridge,  westerly  along  the  old  time  road  on  "Hoosier  prairie"  to  old  "Buffalo 
Mills"  on  Middle  River,  and  up  the  hollow  to  Winterset.  As  to  the  latter  place, 
there  usually  was  abundant  feed  for  sale.  The  third  route  in  importance  was  the 
dividing  ridge  road  between  Middle  River  on  the  south  side  and  North  River 
and  Cedar  on  the  north  side  to  Winterset,  at  which  point  it  united  with  the  In- 
dianola  and  Knoxville  road,  continuing  westerly  along  the  crest  of  the  divide  to 
Middle  River,  crossing  in  Adair  County.  The  fourth  barely  touched  this  county 
along  its  north  line,  following  the  Coon  on  the  south  side  and  on  westward, 
passing  around  the  head  of  North  Branch  in  Penn  Township.  There  was  less 
feed  supply  along  this  route  and  less  water  and  timber.  Thus  it  was  not  a 
favorite  route,  although  a  few  miles  shorter  than  its  competitors.  After  leaving 
Madison  County  the  feed  supply  was  slim  until  the  traveler  reached  Council 
Bluffs.  But  as  the  wagon  trains  outfitted  and  started  on  their  way  at  such  time 
in  the  spring  as  to  reach  this  portion  of  the  journey  about  the  time  grass  was  big 
enough  to  satisfy  the  trains,  no  dry  feed  was  necessary  beyond. 

People  nowadays  can  have  little  idea  of  the  magnitude  of  the  overland  travel 
in  the  years  of  the  gold  excitement.  Along  in  the  middle  of  May  to  the  first  of 
June  hundreds  of  teams,  usually  drawn  by  two,  three  or  four  yoke  of  oxen  each 
spring  passed  along  this  way  bound  for  the  land  of  gold.  In  1850,  in  one  day 
during  the  latter  part  of  May,  105  wagons  passed  through  Winterset.  Often 
at  the  Middle  River  crossing  near  the  west  of  the  county,  over  two  hundred  teams 
were  in  camp  at  one  time.  The  price  of  com  in  1849  ^"^  1850  was  frequently  $2 
a  busjiel,  and  while  sometimes  it  was  less,  at  other  times  it  was  whatever  the 
seller  chose  to  ask.  Hay  sometimes  reached  as  high  as  $50  per  ton.  The  first 
two  years,  however,  $20  may  be  considered  to  have  been  an  average  price. 
Farmers  hauled  their  surplus  corn  and  hay  for  miles  to  the  roads  where  they 
waited  for  the  expected  trains  of  emigrants.  If  the  trains  had  been  fortunate 
in  laying  in  a  supply  on  the  way  the  leaders  had  the  best  of  the  situation  and 
"jewed"  the  farmers  down  to  a  reasonable  price;  if  not  supplied,  the  farmers' 
prices  for  forage  were  set  to  fit  the  emergency. 

This  California  travel  afforded  the  only  market,  and  a  remunerative  market, 
to  the  farmers  during  those  years.  And  the  best  of  it  was  that  it  gave  them  gold 
and  silver,  the  only  kind  of  money  the  Government  would  accept  for  entry  of 
lands. 

HORSEBACK   RIDING 

During  the  first  twenty  years  of  the  settlement  of  the  county,  country  people 
and  most  of  those  even  in  town  moved  about  in  one  of  three  ways — in  wagons,  on 


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168  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

horseback,  or  on  foot.  If  a  man  and  his  family  were  going  to  meeting,  to  town 
or  elsewhere,  he  hitched  up  a  team  of  horses,  if  he  had  one,  or  else  his  yoke  of 
oxen.  As  late  as  i860  there  have  been  counted  the  teams  driven  to  a  religious 
meeting,  and  oxen  were  in  the  majority.  Up  to  i860,  perhaps,  there  were  but  three 
family  carriages  in  the  whole  county,  outside  of  Winterset,  and  very  few  there. 
Buggies  were  unknown  in  the  country  for  use. 

During  that  period  with  country  people  the  most  genteel  way  of  moving 
around  was  on  horseback.  Of  course  the  horses  were  what  are  now  called  ^*plugs,'' 
and  worked  in  harness  most  of  the  time.  Nor  were  saddles  to  be  found  at  every 
house.  Probably  not  a  third  of  the  farmers  owned  a  saddle  until  after  i860. 
But  nearly  every  farmer  owned  at  least  one  horse — about  nine  out  of  ten. 
Riding  bareback  was  so  common  that  one  with  a  saddle  was  apt  to  be  particularly 
noticed,  that  is  the  saddle  was.  And  if  a  man  got  a  new  saddle  it  was  the  talk 
of  the  neighborhood  and  the  owner  became  the  cynosure  of  all  eyes;  and  these 
were  some  of  the  questions  put  to  him:  "What  did  you  have  to  pay  for  it?" 
"Where  did  you  get  it?"  "Does  it  ride  easy?"  "Can  I  use  it  one  day  next  week 
to  try  it,  since  I  have  been  thinking  of  buying  one  myself  ?"  and  a  score  of  other 
excited  and  anxious  queries.  Borrowing  saddles  was  a  great  custom  and  cases 
have  been  known  where  a  man  would  walk  two  miles  to  borrow  a  saddle,  and 
carry  the  saddle  home  on  his  back,  so  he  might,  for  the  pride  of  riding  in  the 
"thingumbob,"  make  a  horseback  trip  of  but  three  miles  to  meeting.  Generally 
the  temptation  in  such  cases  to  fib  about  the  ownership  was  not  overcome  by  the 
preacher's  sermon.  Usually,  the  borrower  modified  the  statement  by  saying  he 
was  "on  a  trade"  for  it  and  was  trying  it. 

The  great  ambition  of  every  young  woman  was  to  own  a  side-saddle.  Com- 
monly, they  rode  bareback  and  were  experts.  One  with  a  new  side-saddle  rode 
as  in  a  balloon.  The  difference  was  observable  between  the  girls  who  had  a  new 
one  and  she  who  rode  her  mother's  old  saddle — the  one  with  a  new  saddle  care- 
fully displayed  all  of  it  she  could,  while  the  one  using  her  mother's  old  one  was 
equally  as  careful  to  conceal  the  trapping  with  her  riding  skirts.  For  a  ragged 
and  faded  old  side-saddle  was  far  from  a  thing  of  beauty. 


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CHAPTER   XXII 
TRANSPORTATION 

EARLY  ROADS    IN    MADISON    COUNTY        ^ 

By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

The  first  road  petition  was  considered  by  the  Commissioners'  Court  of  Mad- 
ison County,  October  2,  1849,  2i"d  the  following  order  made: 

"That  the  petition  of  Enos  Berger  and  others  for  a  road  commencing  at  the 
north  end  of  Front  street  (street  next  east  of  the  square)  in  the  Town  of  Win- 
terset,  in  Madison  County,  to  run  thence  on  the  nearest  and  best  route  to  the  east 
line  of  said  county  in  the  direction  of  Fort  Des  Moines  be  granted  and  the  fol- 
lowing gentlemen  be  appointed  viewers :  Silas  Bams,  Esq.,  Isaac  Clanton,  John 
Willdnson,  and  that  A.  D.  Jones  be  appointed  surveyor  on  said  road.  Road 
bond  of  A.  D.  Jones  and  S.  B.  Casebier  filed  previous  the  granting  of  said  petition. 
And  that  said  viewers  and  surveyor  shall  meet  at  the  Town  of  Winterset  on  the 
first  day  of  November,  1849,  ^^  within  ten  days  thereafter,  to  commence  said 
view  and  survey,  and  proceed  otherwise  according  to  law." 

The  petition  was  signed  by  the  following  persons :  E.  Berger,  William  Comp- 
ton,  William  Phipps,  A.  D.  Jones,  Joshua  Casebier,  William  Stephenson,  Leonard 
Bowman,  A.  D.  Jones  (twice  signed  it),  William  Gentry,  J.  K.  Evans,  James 
Thombrugh,  John  Butler,  David  D.  Henry,  J.  C.  Casebier,  William  Combs,  P.  M. 
Boyles,  G.  W.  McQellan,  Samuel  B.  Casebier,  Major  Farris,  David  McCarty, 
Alfred  Rice,  S.  Bams.    (Forgoing  is  the  spelling  of  their  names  as  signed.) 

This  eflFort  for  a  highway  went  no  further — was  unpopular,  and  was  antag- 
onized by  those  settlers  north  of  Cedar  and  on  North  River  and  northwest  of 
town,  who  wanted  the  Des  Moines  road  located  along  a  route  making  northeast 
to  Brown's  Ford  on  North  River  (in  southeast  comer  of  Jefferson  Township) 
and  on  by  Badger  Grove  to  the  fort.  Besides,  effort  was  made  by  those  on 
Clanton  Creek  and  by  those  located  around  what  came  later  to  be  "Buf- 
falo,** on  Middle  River,  southeast  of  town,  to  establish  the  main  highway 
from  the  east  along  that  route.  In  those  days  and  for  a  long  period  later  great 
effort  was  made  to  establish  a  road  and  commercial  center  where  St.  Charles 
now  is.  But  A.  D.  Jones,  George  McClellan  and  others  then  much  interested  along 
the  divide  between  Cedar  and  Middle  River,  renewed  their  effort  and  on  January 
8,  1850,  Jones  presented  another  petition,  which  was  granted,  and  Asa  Mills, 
D.  H.  Whited  and  Samuel  B.  Casebier  were  appointed  viewers,  with  Jones  as 
surveyor,  to  meet  and  locate  the  road  on  the  fourth  Monday  in  March,  1850. 
This  effort  died  "a  bomin"  and  got  no  further. 

Again,  July  18,  1850,  Enos  Berger  and  others  petitioned  for  a  road  "forty 
feet  wide,  beginning  at  the  east  end  of  Court  Avenue,  in  Winterset,  and  mnning 

169 


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170  HISTORY  .OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

easterly  to  the  former  residence  of  A.  D.  Jones  (now  Tileville),  thence  following 
the  dividing  ridge  to  the  top  of  the  same  westerly  of  the  house  of  G.  W.  McClel- 
lan,  thence  northeasterly  to  a  place  west  of  where  the  California  track  passes 
said  house,  thence  east  to  a  ridge  that  leads  directly  to  the  dividing  ridge,  thence 
along  said  ridge,  passing  the  house  of  John  Carroll,  where  the  California  track 
passes  said  house,  thence  the  nearest  and  best  route  for  a  road  along  said  dividing 
ridge  to  the  county  line,  in  the  direction  of  Dudley  on  the  Des  Moines  River." 

This  petition  was  granted  also  and  the  following  viewers  appointed :  Charles 
Wright,  William  Combs,  Irvin  Baum,  with  A.  D.  Jones,  surveyor,  who  were  to 
meet  the  first  Monday  in  September,  1850.  Finally,  October  7,  1850,  William 
Combs  and  Irvin  Baum  certified  that  on  September  9th  they  had  "viewed  and 
established*'  said  road  and  found  it  ^'of  public  utility"  and  that  the  distance  was 
twelve  miles  and  twenty  chains  (i2j4).  Scarcely  a  foot  of  the  present  road 
is  on  the  line  then  located  but  it  was  the  foundation  route  for  the  present  one. 
The  field  book  of  that  survey  shows  that  it  ran  from  the  east  end  of  Court  Avenue, 
passed  east  of  Wilhoit's  fence,  north  to  T.  Spencer's  field  to  the  second  mile  post 
east  of  Bird's  Grove,  on  south  of  Blair's  field,  to  a  "stump  south  of  I>eshaser's 
former  residence;"  on  to  the  fourth  mile  tree  of  white  oak,  and  on  from  one 
tree  to  another  to  a  place  described  as  "last  of  slough;"  on  through  "thicket 
timber"  to  "Carroll's  timber,"  to  seventh  mile  post  on  prairie  in  (now)  Crawford 
Township,  on  to  the  east  county  line.  The  route  may  be  easiest  described  as 
following  the  top  of  the  dividing  ridge  from  Winterset  to  the  Warren  County  line. 
At  the  county  line  it  tied  on  to  a  road  extending  easterly  to  Linn  Grove,  in  War- 
ren County,  on  North  River. 

The  route  of  this  road  was  already  much  traveled  and  had  been  used  since 
April  30,  1846,  when  the  Guye  colony  made  the  first  wagon  tracks  from  Linn 
Grove  to  near  the  county  line  and  on  the  following  day  from  there  to  the  timber, 
near  the  township  line  between  (now)  Union  and  Crawford  townships,  north- 
westerly of  the  future  Patterson,  following  the  crown  of  the  ridge  all  the  way, 
at  which  point  the  colony  diverged  northwesterly  down  the  long  ridge  through 
the  timber  and  crossed  to  the  north  side  of  Cedar  Creek.  It  is  not  known  who 
drove  the  first  wagon  from  the  point  where  the  Guyes  left  the  ridge  up  the 
divide  through  the  timber  to  near  Winterset,  but  it  i?  probable  that  it  was  the  large 
colony  which  arrived  near  Winterset  a  very  few  days  after  the  Guyes  came, 
and  consisted  of  Philip  and  McDonough  (Thomas)  Boyles,  John  Butler,  Asa 
Mills,  Lemuel  Thombrugh  and  others. 

This  route  became  the  first  one  traveled  any  considerable  distance  from  east 
to  west  in  Madison  County.  Its  history  since  the  eventful  days  of  April  30  and 
May  I,  1846,  when  the  Guye  colony  made  the  first  trace,  is  a  long  and  important 
one. 

The  Commissioners'  Court  rarely  held  a  session  that  a  petition  or  petitions 
for  new  roads  did  not  appear  for  the  consideration  of  that  body.  And,  this  is  not 
a  matter  for  wonder,  as  the  country  was  practically  in  a  state  of  nature,  and 
highways  were  absolutely  necessary — in  fact,  one  of  the  first  requisites  to  the 
consummation  of  settlement.  The  opening  and  making  of  roads  was  an  ex- 
tremely important  matter  to  the  founders  and  builders  of  the  county,  and 
for  that  reason  petitioners  for  a  road  always  got  a  ready  and  considerate  hearing 
by  the  commissioners.    Among  other  early  roads  viewed  and  laid  out  in  Madison 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  171 

County  may  be  mentioned  the  following,  as  appears  of  record  in  the  minutes  of 
the  Commissioners'  Court: 

At  the  October  term,  1850,  **the  petition  of  Jesse  Young  and  others,  asking 
for  a  road  commencing  at  the  county  line  of  Madison,  east  of  Joel  M.  Clanton's 
farm,  running  thence  the  nearest  and  best  route  to  Winterset,  be  granted,  and 
the  following  persons  were  appointed  viewers  thereof,  to  wit :  Absolom  McKinzie, 
S.  Barns  and  John  Dorrell ;  and  Simmons  Rutty,  surveyor,  all  to  meet  at  the  house 
of  J.  M.  Clanton  on  the  first  of  November,  1850,  or  within  five  days  thereafter." 

January  term,  1851.  Ordered,  ^That  the  road  commencing  at  the  east  end 
of  Court  Avenue  in  the  Town  of  Winterset,  Iowa,  and  running  thence  by  way  of 
George  McClellan's  and  John  CarrolFs  to  the  east  line  of  the  County  of  Madison 
be  established  and  made  a  lawful  highway." 

April  term,  1851.  Ordered,  *That  the  petition  of  Charles  Wright  and  others, 
calling  for  a  road  commencing  in  the  Town  of  Winterset,  Madison  County,  Iowa, 
to  run  thence  south  80  rods,  thence  on  the  most  practicable  route  to  or  near 
Bertholf's  Mill,  on  Middle  River,  thence  on  the  most  practicable  route  on  the 
south  line  of  the  county  in  the  direction  of  Pisgah,  be  granted,  and  that  Samuel 
Peter,  J.  M.  Watson  and  Silas  Barns  be  appointed  viewers,  and  Simmons  Rutty 
surveyor  of  said  road,  who  shall  meet  at  Winterset  on  the  first  Monday  of  June, 
A.  D.  1851,  or  within  five  days  thereafter,  and  proceed  to  view  and  survey  said 
road  according  to  law." 

The  above  are  but  samples  of  the  legislative  work  accomplished  by  the  law- 
making bodies  of  Madison  County  during  its  formative  period.  To  enumerate 
all  the  "petitions  for  roads  granted  and  rejected  would  be  a  heavy  and  thankless 
task,  and  not  at  all  interesting  to  the  general  reader.  For  these  reasons  no 
further  space  will  be  given  to  the  subject.  ' 

THE  FAMOUS  BLUFF  ROAD 

The  most  famous  of  Madison's  highways  is  the  BluflFs  road,  so  named,  some 
one  will  say,  because  there  is  not  a  hill  on  it.  The  BluflFs  road  really  got  its 
name  from  Council  BluflFs.  In  the  old  day  this  was  the  road  to  Council  BluflFs, 
over  which  the  stage  line  ran.  It  used  to  be  called  the  "Council  BluflFs  Road." 
Later  they  dropped  it  to  "The  BluflFs  Road,"  and  now  it  goes  by  the  name  of 
"The  BluflF  Road." 

The  BluflF  road  runs  through  a  country  of  fine  flat  farms.  The  beauty  of  the 
country  it  traverses  is  apparent  to  all.  The  land  rolls  gently ;  the  soil,  the  incom- 
parable black  soil,  three  or  four  feet  deep,  makes  the  farms  unequaled  for  fer- 
tility. The  BluflF  road  today  is  a  fine,  well  graded  county  highway  on  which  one 
drives  for  miles  between  fine  farms.  Eight  miles  out  of  Winterset  you  strike  the 
first  hill  at  the  old  Ham  Lee  farm.  From  there  on  to  Middle  River  the  country  is 
broken.  The  old  BluflF  road  in  the  '60s  angled  out  of  Winterset  from  the  Hawkins 
place  on  Court  Avenue,  where  Sam  Anderson  now  lives,  southwest  across  a  bit 
of  prairie  that  remained  open  for  years,  because  John  Leonard  owned  it,  to  the 
Smith  place  where  James  Baird  now  lives.  Then,  as  now,  it  ran  out  west,  past 
the  Stinson  cabin,  where  Judge  Lewis  has  his  work  shop.  Rube  Hanner  lived 
in  a  log  cabin  where  Fairmount  stands.  Across  the  road,  where  Mclllree  lives, 
Josiah  Arnold,  a  fine  old  Ohio  man,  built  a  home  and  lived  there  many  years. 


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172  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

The  Roberts'  home — the  old  stone  house  that  stands  near  the  city  wells — famous 
for  being  an  underground  station  for  escaping  slaves,  came  next,  and  then  Newt 
Gordon's  farm  on  top  of  the  little  hill.  The  house  is  now  gone  and  the  orchard 
cut  down.  Richard  Bruce's  farm  was  next.  From  the  Bruce  farm  west  was 
open  prairie  until  after  the  war,  the  settlers  closing  in  steadily  until  the  road 
was  a  continuous  lane.  The  stage  line  ran  over  this  road  to  Fontanelle,  through 
Lewis  to  Council  Bluffs.  Greenfield  was  a  yellow  house.  The  BluflF  road  crossed 
Middle  River  at  Tom  Tucker's  in  Adair  County,  swinging  north  to  follow  the 
big  divide.    Tucker  drove  the  stage. 

During  the  settlement  of  the  county  after  the  war  the  Bluff  road  was  always 
dotted  with  covered  wagons  in  trains  of  sometimes  thirty  or  forty,  a  dozen, 
two  or  three,  and  singly.  One  was  hardly  ever  out  of  sight.  The  "movers" 
camped  along  the  road  and  grazed  their  stock  as  they  went  along.  A  fence 
was  necessary  for  a  farm  on  the  Bluff  road  in  those  days,  for  nearly  all  the 
wagons  had  cattle  with  them.  The  settlement  of  Kansas  and  Nebraska  was 
going  on  at  the  same  time  and  the  Bluff  road  was  the  main  thoroughfare 
through  Southern  Iowa.  At  the  Hi  Smith  farm  the  road  branched  to  Nevin, 
crossing  Middle  River  at  the  Wight  bridge  and  going  through  the  present  Hebron 
— then  Schwens  and  later  Busby's.  Those  who  crossed  the  Missouri  at  Ne- 
braska City  or  Brownsville  went  that  way. 

The  spring  at  the  city  wells  was  the  first  camping  place  for  the  movers. 
They  used  to  cut  the  bridge  and  steal  the  rails  from  the  fence  for  their  fires. 
At  Baugh  Branch  and  at  Wight's  many  of  them  camped.  The  farmers  alorig 
the  road  had  all  come  to  this  country  in  covered  wagons  and  they  gave  hundreds 
of  tons  of  hay,  and  hundreds  of  bushels  of  com  away  to  the  movers.  The  wild 
hay  was  plenty.  All  they  had  to  do  was  to  cut  it.  "Help  yourself"  was  almost 
an  invariable  answer  to  a  mover  who  asked  for  hay.  Tom  Roy  used  to  set 
aside  a  stack  for  the  "movers." 

The  first  settlers  along  the  Bluff  road  clung  to  their  farms.  There  were  few 
changes  in  many  years,  but  when  the  land  hunger  commenced  the  new 
comers  looked  with  covetous  eyes  on  the  fertile,  fat  farms.  Of  the  real  old 
settlers  along  the  road  Judge  Lewis,  Jonathan  Gordon,  and  George  Tracy  alone 
remain.  The  Arnolds,  Goshoms,  Gordons,  Beerbowers,  Lawsons,  Bruces, 
Foshers,  Roys,  Rehards,  Smiths,  Hawks,  Perkins,  Lees,  Grosscups,  Georges, 
Foxes,  are  all  sold  out. 

BRIDGES 

The  Cox  bridge,  in  Union  Township,  marks  one  of  the  oldest  crossings  of 
North  River.  In  1868  Cox,  whose  homestead  was  just  south  of  the  crossing, 
contracted  with  the  county  to  put  a  bridge  in.  The  structure  was  entirely  of 
wood,  but  when  it  was  taken  down  in  191 3,  to  be  replaced  by  a  modem  steel 
bridge,  the  timbers  were  found  to  be  in  a  splendid  state  of  preservation. 

Eli  Cox  and  his  sons,  George,  John  and  Alfred,  built  Madison  County  quite 
a  number  of  bridges  of  the  wooden,  covered  kind.  They  sawed  the  lumber  at 
their  own  mill,  and  built  the  framework  of  solid  oak.  The  piers  were  of  stone 
quarried  near  the  bridge  sites,  making  them  entirely  home-made  structures. 
Even  the  mortar  used  in  the  piers  was  Madison's  own  product,  the  sand  being 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  173 

hauled  from  the  creeks  and  the  lime  burned  in  local  kilns.  Cox  commenced  to 
build  bridges  in  1864,  his  first  one  being  placed  over  North  River,  on  the  De  Soto 
road,  near  Jonathan  Cox's  farm.  All  his  first  bridges  were  of  the  uncovered 
kind,  because  the  board  of  supervisors  of  early  days  had  too  'many  bridges  to 
build,  and  they  could  not  afford  the  covered  ones. 

.  One  of  the  first  covered  bridges  Eli  Cox  built  was  the  Donahue  bridge,  over 
North  River,  near  the  eastern  line  of  the  county.  It  stands  here  today  a  testi- 
mony to  his  honest  workmanship.  The  cover  protected  the  timbers  and  pre- 
vented rain  from  getting  into  the  joints  and  around  nails  and  bolts.  When  these 
old  bridges  are  taken  down  the  timbers  are  invariably  found  to  be  in  a  good 
state  of  preservation. 

But  the  wooden  bridges  in  Madison  are  fast  giving  way  to  steel  structures. 
Modern  road  traffic  demands  heavier  bridges.  The  county  supervisors  refuse 
to  take  chances  of  a  bridge  going  down  with  threshing  outfits  and  entailing  a  suit 
for  damages.  When  a  wooden  bridge  becomes  shaky  it  is  condemned  and  a  new 
steel  structure  replaces  it. 

Bridging  the  streams  of  Madison  County  has  been  an  expensive  proposition. 
The  bridge  fund  always  has  been  expended  to  the  penny.  North  Branch,  North 
River,  Middle  River,  Jones  Creek,  Clanton,  South  River  and  Grand  River  and 
their  tributaries  have  many  crossings.  The  demands  for  good  roads  and  well 
bridged  streams  will  keep  the  county  bridge  fund  exhausted  for  some  years  to 
come.  In  the  old  days  a  man  was  content  to  get  across  a  stream  on  any  kind 
of  a  bridge.  The  steam  threshing  outfits  now  demand  a  heavy  bridge  and  a 
man  in  his  heavy  motor  car,  when  he  hits  a  county  bridge  full  tilt  at  forty  miles 
an  hour,  swears  if  it  gives  him  a  bump  or  he  can  feel  the  slightest  tremor. 

The  new  bridge  cost  $8,024  when  it  was  finished.  It  ought  to  last  for  all 
time.  It  has  a  span  of  ninety-six  feet.  A  bridge  over  Steele's  Branch,  on  the 
Patterson-St.  Charles  County  road,  which  was  finished  in  the  fall  of  1913,  has 
a  span  of  sixty  feet  and  cost  $4,150.  The  plans  are  on  file  for  a  new  steel  bridge 
over  Middle  River,  on  the  Greenfield  road,  that  will  have  a  span  of  100  feet. 
County  Engineer  Hiatt  estimates  that  it  can  be  built  for  $6,000,  because  steel  is 
20  per  cent  cheaper  than  when  the  Cox  bridge  was  built.  It  may  be  built  in  191 5. 
The  county  has  spent  the  last  four  years  for  bridges  as  follows : 

BRIDGE   WARRANTS 

Warrants  1909 t $21,861.20 

Warrants  1910 32,475.61 

Warrants  1911 32,775-69 

Warrants  1912 35,143.12 

Warrants  1913 20,726.15 

RAILROADS 

The  main  line  of  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railroad  passes  through 
two  of  the  northern  townships  of  Madison  County  and  a  branch  runs  from 
Des  Moines  to  the  county  seat.  The  Omaha  line  reached  the  present  Town  of 
Earlham  late  in  the  year  1868  and  was  the  incentive  for  the  establishment  of 
one  of  the  best  trading  points  in  the  county.    The  building  of  the  town  was  well 


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174  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

under  way  in  the  early  part  of  1869,  and  here  the  railroad  company  established 
a  station,  built  a  section  house,  water  tank  and  depot.  The  projectors  of  Earl- 
ham  were  led  to  believe  by  the  builders  of  the  road  that  this  place  would  be  made 
a  division  point  and  given  shops,  but  their  hopes  in  this  regard  have  not  as  yet 
been  realized.  However,  the  coming  of  the  road  induced  many  to  locate  in  the 
place,  and  no  town  in  Madison  County  grew  as  rapidly  and  had  such  splendid 
prospects  as  Earlham.  It  became  and  is  today  one  of  the  best  shipping  points 
in  this  section  of  the  state.  When  grading  began,  Martin  Cook,  one  of  the  early 
Quaker  settlers  in  Madison  Township,  put  up  a  building  at  the  east  end  of  the 
"dump,*'  not  far  from  where  the  tenement  house  of  Clarence  Wilson  now  stands. 
This  small  building,  which  they  called  a  "shebang,"  was  stocked  with  supplies 
which  were  sold  to  the  men  working  on  the  construction.  When  Earlham  was 
established  in  the  fall  of  1868,  Martin  Cook  moved  the  "shebang"  with  his  stock 
of  goods  into  the  new  town  and  was  appointed  by  the  railroad  company  its  first 
agent.    This  was  the  first  railroad  in  Madison  County. 

Four  years  later,  in  February,  1872^,  the  first  railway  train  entered  Winterset 
over  the  branch  road  from  Des  Moines  and  generally  since  then  two  passenger 
trains  and  one  local  have  provided  transportation  for  its  citizens.  The  first  train 
arrived  in  Winterset  on  the  last  day  of  February,  1872,  and  was  the  subject  of 
considerable  jollification.  Snow  was  falling,  and  melting  as  it  came  down,  but 
nevertheless  a  large  crowd  assembled  to  greet  the  train.  It  arrived  about  3 
o'clock  P.  M.  and  was  hailed  with  every  demonstration  of  joy  by  the  multitude, 
and  music  by  a  brass  band  added  in  large  measure  to  the  welcome.  Contractors 
and  railroad  men  generally  were  warmly  congratulated  and  then  escorted  to  the 
St.  Nicholas,  where  a  banquet  was  serv^ed.  The  train  itself  was  made  up  of  con- 
struction cars  and  it  was  several  weeks  before  passenger  trains  began  running. 

The  first  passenger  train  arrived  here  on  the  13th  of  May,  1872.  When  it  left 
for  Des  Moines  "the  engine  bell  rang  and  for  the  first  time  the  conductor  called 
out  'passengers  for  Des  Moines  all  aboard,'  and  Winterset  was  no  longer  an  inland 
town,  dependent  upon  wagons  for  communication  with  the  outer  world.  During 
the  summer  of  1872,  immediately  following  this  event,  seventy-three  buildings 
were  erected  in  Winterset,  at  a  cost  of  over  ninety  thousand  dollars,  and  within 
the  seven  years  next  following  it  more  than  doubled  its  population." 

C.  D.  Bevington  was  one  of  the  chief  promoters  and  builders  of  this  branch 
of  the  Rock  Island.  When  constructed,  it  was  named  the  Des  Moines,  Winterset 
&  Southwestern  Railroad,  and  when  the  company  for  its  construction  was  or- 
ganized Doctor  Bevington  became  its  president.  It  was  uncfer  his  personal 
supervision  that  the  line  was  completed  from  Summerset  to  Winterset — a  distance 
of  twenty-six  miles.  The  work  was  all  paid  for  within  seven  months  and  when 
finished,  trains  stopped  at  the  depot,  which  stood  in  the  east  part  of  town,  on 
North  Ninth  Street.  Southeast  of  it  on  a  side  track,  was  erected  a  large  elevator, 
still  standing,  but  long  since  out  of  commission.  Some  years  ago  a  ne\y  depot 
was  erected  at  North  First  Avenue. 

The  Chicago,  St.  Paul  &  Kansas  City  Railroad  was  built  in  1887,  entering 
the  county  on  section  i,  in  South  Township,  and  leaving  it  on  section  35,  in  Mon- 
roe Township.  It  is  now  a  part  of  the  Chicago  Great  Western  System,  and  has 
stations  at  Hanley,  in  South  Township,  and  East  Peru  and  Barney,  in  Walnut 
Township.    At  the  time  of  its  completion  the  towns  mentioned  were  established 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  175 

and  EastTeru  is  the  principal  station  along  the  line  in  this  county.  Hanley  is 
quite  a  busy  little  trading  point,  about  ij4  miles  west  of  St.  Charles. 

The  Keokuk  &  Western  Railroad,  now  a  part  of  the  Burlington  System,  was 
built  in  1882  as  a  narrow  gauge  and  entered  the  county  in  South  Township,  just 
east  of  St.  Charles,  making  that  place  its  first  station  in  the  county.  Running  in 
a  southwesterly  direction,  its  next  stopping  point  is  Truro,  from  whence  it 
bends  southward  and  then  taking  a  curve  on  section  26,  in  Ohio  Township, 
trends  in  a  northeasterly  direction  and  leaves  the  township  and  county  at  section 
24.  It  was  changed  to  a  standard  gauge  about  1896.  With  these  lines  Madison 
County  is  pretty  well  supplied  with  railroad  facilities.  A  number  of  other 
railroads  were  projected  in  the  early  years  of  the  county's  existence,  but  little 
was  ever  accomplished  in  the  way  of  their  construction,  so  that  today  the  county 
has  no  railroads  other  than  those  mentioned,  two  of  which  are  main  lines — the 
Chicago  Great  Western  and  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific  System. 

The  Creston,  Winterset  &  Des  Moines  Railroad  when  projected  was  intended 
to  have  its  termini  at  Creston  and  Des  Moines.  The  road  was  built  in  1912  from 
Creston  to  Macksburg,  a  distance  of  twenty-one  miles,  and  never  got  any  farther. 
On  the  31st  day  of  December,  1912,  the  first  train  entered  Macksburg,  and  of 
course,  that  section  of  the  county  was  delighted  with  the  prospects.  But  the 
improvement  has  not  met  the  anticipations  of  its  projectors  or  the  people  along 
the  transportation  line.  In  the  fall  of  1914  the  property  was  placed  in  the  hands 
of  a  receiver  and  since  then  a  decided  improvement  has  developed. 


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CHAPTER  XXIII 
OUT  OF  THE  BOUNTEOUS  HAND  OF  NATURE 

WILD  ANIMALS 

By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

Not  one  wild  buffalo  was  ever  seen  in  Madison  County  since  the  day  of  its 
first  settlement.  The  very  first  settlers  frequently  found  the  horns,  skulls  and 
bones  of  the  bufifalo,  which  apparently  had  been  gone  many  years  from  this  local- 
ity. When  the  Sac  and  Fox  tribe  of  Indians  came  into  possession  of  their  hunting 
grounds  hereabout  there  were  occasionally  small  herds  of  bison  to  be  met  with 
here.  Early  white  hunters  of  this  county,  as  late  as  1850,  occasionally  found  a 
buffalo  or  two  north  and  northwest,  at  a  distance  of  from  thirty  to  one  hundred 
miles  from  this  county.  They  appeared  to  be  stragglers  from  the  buffalo  country 
in  the  Dakotas,  or  from  across  the  Missouri  River  west.  Trappers,  who  visited 
this  region  during  the  first  twenty  or  thirty  years  of  the  nineteenth  century 
found  considerable  herds  in  this  region  of  the  state.  At  that  time  they  moved 
southward  in  the  fall  and  northward  in  the  spring.  But,  within  the  knowledge 
of  the  earliest  trappers  through  this  region,  far  back  in  the  century  of  1700, 
buffalo  were  never  in  such  great  numbers  here  as  they  were  on  the  Great  Plains 
country  beyond  the  Missouri  River  and  in  the  land  of  the  Dakotas. 

When  this  county  was  first  settled  there  were  no  foxes  here.  They  began  to 
appear  on  rare  occasions  about  1880,  since  which  time  an  infrequent  one  may 
be  found. 

During  the  early  portion  of  the  last  century  there  was  a  considerable  num- 
ber of  bears  in  this  portion  of  Iowa,  but  none  ever  was  found  wild  in  this 
county  since  its  settlement.  An  occasional  bear  has  been  seen  by  Madison  County 
hunters  in  west  Dallas  County,  and  further  north  and  west,  as  late  as  1850. 

Catamounts,  or  animals  called  by  that  name,  were  occasionally  met  with  in 
this  county  when  the  first  settlers  came  and  a  lone  one  might  be  seen  in  the  more , 
remote  timber  neighborhoods  as  late  as  i860.    There  was  one  (may  be  two  of 
them)  seen  in  the  northwest  comer  of  Crawford  Township  in  the  summer  of 
1861. 

The  prairie  gray  wolf  was  an  abundant  and  prolific  animal  to  be  found  every- 
where in  the  county  when  first  settled.  During  the  first  few  years  they  could  be 
seen  almost  any  day  in  any  locality.  Their  food  was  so  abundant  that  they  never 
attacked  any  one,  although  sometimes  they  would  follow  a  person  with  fresh 
meat.  They  were  very  fond  of  tame  chickens  and  the  e^irly  settlers  had  to  pro- 
vide safe  places  for  their  poultry  of  all  kinds.  Sometimes  these  marauders  of 
the  prairie  would  carry  off  small  pigs.  The  black,  or  timber,  wolves  were  scarce 
and  they  all  disappeared  by  1862.     Being  considered  a  dangerous  animal,  they 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  177 

were  closely  hunted  down.  During  the  '50s  there  was  a  bounty  on  wolf  scalps 
and  when  the  bounty  law  went  into  effect  live  wolf  scalps  rapidly  became  less  in 
number.  But  they  were  never  exterminated  in  the  county  and  occasionally  one,  or 
even  more,  may  be  seen,  or  more  often  heard,  in  the  more  brushy,  rocky  and 
broken  districts  of  the  county. 

Elk  were  not  found  in  the  county  when  the  first  settlers  came  but  had  been 
numerous  a  few  years  previous.  Up  to  1840  they  were  here  in  great  numbers. 
Being  a  prairie  animal,  they  only  came  to  the  woods  when  the  snow  was  deep  or 
the  weather  cold.  Since  the  beginning  of  the  first  settlement  elk  had  not  been 
seen  south  of  the  Coon  River  but  north  of  that  stream  they  were  in  considerable 
numbers  up  to  the  snowy  winter  of  1855-6,  when  they  were  almost  exterminated 
by  the  settlers  in  Greene  and  more  northern  counties.  That  winter  a  herd  of  them 
numbering  thousands  was  seen  near  Jefferson.  They  had  been  driven  by  the  heavy 
snow  storms  from  the  north  into  the  then  thin  settlements  along  North  Coon. 
The  settlers  nearly  destroyed  the  herd  by  spring  and  never  after  was  any  consid- 
erable number  seen  in  that  region.  All  the  years  up  to  that  winter  elk  could  be 
found  in  west  Dallas,  in  Guthrie,  Carroll,  Audubon  and  more  northern  counties. 
The  early  settlers,  who  were  hunters,  used  to  go  every  fall  to  the  district  north- 
west of  Madison,  for  this  and  other  wild  game.  But  the  hard  winter  named 
above  ended  the  sport. 

Deer  were  here  in  almost  unbelievable  numbers  when  the  first  settlers  came 
and  in  rapidly  decreasing  numbers  remained  until  the  winter  of  1855-6,  when 
they  were  practically  exterminated  in  this  part  of  the  state.  Only  an  occasional 
one  could  be  seen  afterward.  At  first  they  were  comparatively  tame  and  it 
required  but  little  ingenuity  to  get  a  piece  of  fresh  venison  any  day.  During  the 
first  four  or  five  years  venison  was  plentiful  and  cheap  and  considerable  quanti- 
ties were  hauled  to  the  river  markets.  Sometimes  it  had  no  sale  in  Winterset. 
Before  1849  there  was  no  market  for  deer  meat  in  the  county,  save  as  occasionally 
a  new  settler,  who  was  not  a  hunter,  would  pay  a  little  something  for  a  choice  cut. 
The  pelts,  of  course,  always  commanded  a  price  at  the  river  markets,  but  the 
value  was  ridiculously  low.  Charles  Farris,  who  was  one  of  the  most  skillful  deer 
hunters  in  Southwestern  Iowa,  a  pioneer  settler  of  Union  Township,  has  been 
heard  to  say  that  in  one  day  he  counted  over  a  hundred  deer  in  sight. 

WILD  TURKEYS 

These  birds  were  found  here  by  the  early  settlers  in  great  flocks,  wherever 
there  was  a  considerable  grove  or  body  of  timber.  At  first  they  were  compara- 
tively tame  and  easily  approached,  because  the  Indians  molested  them  but  little 
and  when  desiring  to  catch  them  they  generally  used  a  snare  instead  of  shooting 
them.  To  the  Indians  they  had  no  commercial  value,  but  soon  after  the  arrival  of 
the  white  man,  turkeys  were  caught  in  great  numbers  and  hauled  to  the  markets 
on  the  Mississippi  River  or  to  St.  Joseph.  During  the  "cold  winter"  of  1847-8 
many  of  the  birds  perished,  but  they  rapidly  increased  again.  The  "hard  winter" 
of  1855-6,  together  with  the  great  destruction  of  them  every  season  of  the  few 
years  preceding  by  the  settlers,  about  finished  the  supply  of  the  bird  in  the  county. 
However,  a  few  small  roosts,  in  the  most  secluded  localities  in  the  timber,  might 
be  found  until  about  i860.  The  last  roost  on  Cedar  was  extinguished  in  the  fall 
of  1862. 

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178  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

A  great  many  young  turkeys,  and  occasionally  a  nest  of  eggs,  would  be  found 
by  the  early  settlers.  From  these  were  obtained  the  tame  birds  that  later  on  sup- 
plied the  county.  Doubtless,  some  of  their  very  distantly  related  descendants  are 
in  the  county  at  this  day. 

WILD   FRUITS    AND    NUTS 

At  the  time  the  first  settlers  arrived,  in  the  year  1846,  wild  fruit  was  not  plenti- 
ful, except  grapes  in  some  localities.  There  was  comparatively  little  brush  any- 
where, because  most  of  the  country  was  annually  burned  over  by  great  prairie 
fires,  preventing  the  growth  of  the  hazel,  plum,  crabapple  and  all  other  varieties  of 
shrubs ;  thus,  any  increase  of  the  timber  belt  was  prevented.  Only  now  and  then 
appeared  a  plum  patch  or  clump  of  crabapple  trees;  even  hazel  nuts  were  not 
abundant.  But  close  along  the  banks  of  the  streams,  entwined  on  great  forest 
trees,  well  protected  from  the  prairie  fires,  the  wild  grape  flourished  and  not  else- 
where until  in  later  years. 

The  nuts  of  the  forest  trees,  the  hickory  and  black  and  white  walnut,  abounded 
in  the  wooded  portions  of  the  county.  The  great  supply  of  these  greatly  decreased, 
as  the  trees  were  cut  down  for  building  and  fencing.  By  the  year  i860  the  nut- 
bearing  trees  mentioned  became  comparatively  scarce.  The  early  settlers^  and 
even  those  of  later  years,  made  it  their  business  to  gather  a  supply  of  nuts  every 
fall  for  the  winter,  but  this  habit  largely  ceased  about  i860  and  for  the  last  forty 
years  is  seldom  done,  for  quite  obvious  reasons. 

When  the  first  settlers  arrived  they  began  to  check  the  devastating  prairie 
fires  and,  more  rapidly  than  would  be  supposed  possible,  grew  the  various 
varieties  of  shrubs  and  underbrush,  yet  found  in  the  county ;  especially  the  hazel 
flourished.  The  wild  plum,  crabapple,  elderberry  and  similar  shrubbery  soon  came 
into  bearing  along  the  edges  of  the  old-time  forests,  so  that,  by  1850,  hazel  nuts, 
plums,  crabapples,  wild  cherry,  gooseberries,  blackberries,  raspberries,  currants, 
haws  and  serviceberries  began  to  abound.  By  1855  these  appeared  in  great  quan- 
tity in  most  of  the  timber  districts.  Their  growth  and  increase  were  not  materially 
lessened  until  about  i860,  when  lands  whereof  they  were  indigenous,  began  to  be 
largely  broken  up  for  farming  purposes.  This  curtailment  went  on,  gradually, 
until  about  1880,  when  much  the  larger  portion  of  the  land  had  been  brought  into 
cultivation. 

During  the  '60s  tame  fruit  b^an  to  yield  largely  and  as  it  increased  in  quantity 
wild  fruit  was  not  so  generally  sought,  and  since  1875  "^^  ^  large  amount  of 
wild  fruit  has  been  consumed  in  the  county. 

Wild  strawberries  were  in  great  abundance  at  the  time  of  the  first  settlement 
and  continued  until  the  country  began  to  be  generally  under  cultivation.  Their 
quality  was  good  and  they  were  an  excellent  substitute  for  tame  ones. 

Occasionally,  wild  plums  were  found  of  large  size,  as  much  as  two  inches  in 
diameter,  but  they  were  very  rarely  to  be  found.  The  larger  ones  had  almost  as 
fine  a  taste  as  the  common  varieties  of  tame  ones.  Once  in  a  while  a  crabapple 
tree  might  be  found,  bearing  apples  two  inches  in  diameter,  but  these  were  almost 
too  rare  to  mention.  The  great  quantity  of  these  two  fruits,  from  1855  to 
i860  iir  some  portions  of  the  county,  seems  remarkable  to  young  people  of  this 
period.    Many  hundreds  of  plum  trees  have  been  seen  which  bore  from  one  to  two 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  179 

bushels  each  and,  it  was  nothing  uncommon  for  a  crabapple  tree  to  bear  a  bushel 
or  more.  One  plum  tree  patch  in  Northeast  Union  Township,  in  the  Hoisington 
neighborhood,  covered  more  than  an  acre,  and  some  years  produced  abundantly. 

But  plums  and  crabapples  were  abundant  only  in  some  localities.  This  was 
noticeably  true  in  North  Crawford  Township,  where  timber  and  brush  were 
plentiful,  but  plums  and  crabapples  scarce.  Of  course,  they  did  not  grow  in  the 
prairie  districts.  These  varieties  of  fruit  were  mostly  to  be  found  in  the  townships 
of  Union,  Douglas,  Madison  and  South,  with  considerable  production  along  the 
streams  in  other  townships;  Badger  Creek  never  produced  much.  Wherever 
noticed,  this  fruit,  as  was  the  case  with  all  the  other  varieties  of  wild  fruit,  was 
almost  entirely  found  along  the  south  side  of  the  timber  belts ;  mainly  because  the 
north  sides  were  more  regularly  exposed  to  sweeping  prairie  fires  before  the  set- 
tlements. 

In  those  days,  wild  fruits  were  not  preserved  at  all.  The  usual  manner  was 
to  dry  them  on  the  roofs  of  homes  and  sheds,  on  loose  boards  and  sometimes  on 
cloths — then  they  were  sacked  or  boxed  up  and  laid  away  for  winter  and  spring 
use.  Usually,  plums  and  crabapples  were  boiled  before  they  were  dried.  Grapes 
and  elderberries  were  usually  dried  on  the  stem.  Cherries,  haws,  blackberries, 
raspberries,  currants  and  gooseberries  were  dried  as  they  came  picked  from- the 
tree  or  bush.  The  sweetening  used  in  cooking  them  was  nearly  all  sorghum 
molasses,  although  a  few  fortunate  ones  had  maple  sugar  or  maple  molasses ;  may 
be,  one  in  a  hundred,  after  the  first  very  few  years. 

SUGAR  TREES  AND  CAMPS 

By  H.  A.  Mueller 

The  early  settlers  found  in  Madison  County  a  wealth  of  forests  growing  along 
the  streams  and  adjoining  hillslopes.  About  one-fourth  of  the  whole  area  of 
Madison  County  was  covered  with  valuable  timber.  It  was  here  that  the  early 
pioneer  built  his  home  where  material  was  near  to  build  his  log  cabin,  fuel  for  his 
fire  place,  and  protection  for  his  live  stock  and  himself  against  the  rigorous  win- 
ters of  those  days.  On  the  rich  bottom  lands  he  found  excellent  groves  of  hard 
or  sugar  maple  trees.  Some  of  these  groves  had  been  operated  by  the  Indians 
before  their  leaving  this  county  in  1845,  and  for  several  years  Johnny  Green  and 
his  tribe  would  return  in  the  spring  to  hunt,  trap  and  make  maple  sugar. 

In  the  early  days  cane  sugar  was  an  expensive  luxury,  so  the  maple  groves  in 
the  spring  time  became  the  temporary  abode  of  nearly  all  the  early  settlers  for  the 
purpose  of  securing  their  yearns  supply  of  sugar.  The  process  of  manufac- 
turing maple  sugar  in  those  days  was  something  as  follows:  If  the  operator  of 
the  grove  did  not  live  near  by,  a  rude  log  cabin  would  be  erected  in  which  to 
live  during  the  sugar  making  season.  When  the  season  opens  depends  upon  the 
weather,  as  the  sap  does  not  begin  to  run  until  it  thaws  in  the  daytime  and  freezes 
at  night.  So  the  season  may  begin  in  January  or  even  as  late  as  the  first  of  April 
and  last  until  the  month  of  May,  or  until  the  above  mentioned  conditions  cease 
to  be. 

During  the  winter  it  would  be  necessary  to  prepare  for  sugar  making,  as  there 
was  no  time  to  lose  when  the  season  opened.    Some  made  small  troughs  in  which 


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180  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

to  catch  the  sap,  by  splitting  a  stick  three  or  four  feet  long  and  hoUowirtg  out  the 
center  until  it  would  hold  a  gallon  or  two  of  sap.  Others  used  tin  pans  or 
crocks.  Then  spiles  were  necessary  to  lead  the  sap  from  the  tree  to  the  trough. 
A  spile  was  usually  made  from  a  common  elder  or  a  sumach.  A  stick  about  a  foot 
long  was  notched  about  two  inches  from  either  end  on  opposite  sides  to  the  cen- 
ter and  then  split,  making  two  spiles.  The  pith  was  punched  or  burned  out  of  the 
round  end,  trimmed  to  fit  an  inch  auger  hole  and  the  open  part  of  the  spile  had  a 
valley  cut  in  the  center  to  lead  the  sap  into  the  trough.  Now,  as  soon  as  the  sap 
would  run  the  trees  were  tapped  by  boring  usually  two  holes  into  each  tree  and 
driving  the  spiles  therein.  Every  day  the  sap  would  be  gathered  and  hauled 
to  the  camp  to  be  boiled  down.  In  an  early  day  the  hauling  was  done  with  oxen 
hitched  to  a  sled,  on  which  was  a  barrel  to  hold  the  sap.  This  boiling  down  was 
done  either  in  big  iron  kettles,  or  evaporating  pans.  Iron  kettles  were  mostly 
used  in  the  early  days.  The  boiling  was  continued  until  considerable  sap  was 
boiled  down  and  then  it  was  allowed  to  cool  and  then  was  strained  through  a  cloth 
to  take  out  all  the  dirt.  Before  continuing  the  boiling  process,  either  eggs  or  milk, 
or  both,  were  thoroughly  stirred  into  this  partially  boiled  down  sap,  and  then 
slowly  boiled,  which  would  bring  all  the  impurities  to  the  top  and  then 
skimmed  off.  This  boiling  continued  until  a  syrup  was  made  and  if  syrup  was 
wanted,  the  process  here  ended.  Nothing  was  better  to  be  eaten  with  com  bread, 
Johnny  cake  or  buckwheat  cakes,  than  good  maple  syrup. 

If  sugar  was  wanted,  the  syrup  was  boiled  down  until  it  was  so  thick  that  when 
a  small  quantity  dropped  into  cold  water  it  would  become  hard  and  break  into 
pieces  upon  striking  it  against  a  board.  It  was  then  run  into  molds,  pans,  etc. 
If  crumbly  sugar  was  desired  the  boiling  and  stirring  process  was  continued 
until  it  would  crumble  into  small  crumbs.  This  was  used  for  sweetening,  much 
as  our  cane  sugar  of  today. 

Who  of  the  old  settlers  have  not  been  to  a  sugaring  off?  If  not,  he  has  missed 
much  of  the  fun  in  maple  sugar  making.  Sugaring  off  is  the  final  process  and  is 
usually  done  after  night.  The  young  people  of  the  neighborhood  gather  in  about 
the  camp,  watch  the  process  of  sugaring  off  and  eat  good  sweet  maple  sugar.  What 
pleasant  memories  sugar  making  recalls  to  the  early  pioneers?  Those  splendid 
maple  sugar  groves  are  about  all  gone  and  the  pleasant  memories  will  soon  go 
with  them,  for  in  a  few  years  there  will  be  very  few  living  that  ever  helped  make 
sugar  in  Madison  County.  The  places  of  these  groves  have  now  become  our  rich- 
est cornfields,  from  whose  products  we  get  the  glucose  syrup,  usually  set  upon  our 
tables,  presumably  to  look  at,  for  very  few  eat  it. 

Would  that  we  could  go  back  to  those  early  days,  help  bring  in  the  sap,  sit 
around  the  kettles  and  feed  the  flames  that  would  boil  down  the  sugar  water  into  de- 
licious syrup  or  sweet  tasting  sugar !  But  those  days  are  gone  and  a  few  more  years 
and  those  that  participated  in  sugar  making  will  have  gone  to  their  reward.  Few 
of  the  present  generation  know  very  little  of  the  manufacture  of  maple  sugar 
and  where  beautiful  maple  groves  once  flourished  in  Madison  County.  It  is  for 
these  that  this  article  is  written.  Herewith  appended  is  a  list  of  groves  and 
camps: 

Groves  on  North  River  and  on  North  Branch  of  North  River :  The  first  one 
of  any  note  was  one  just  below  the  mouth  of  North  Branch,  east  half  of  the  south- 
east quarter  of  section  36,  Jefferson  Township,  operated  by  Alexander  Ballentine ; 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  181 

William  Schoen  had  one  in  the  forks  of  North  Branch  and  North  River,  on  the 
southeast  quarter  of  section  35,  Jefferson  Township ;  David  Barrow  had  a  camp  or 
grove  of  maples  on  the  northeast  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  2, 
Union  Township,  that  was  operated  for  many  years  and  there  are  still  several 
trees  standing,  which  A.  D.  Fletcher,  the  present  owner,  at  times  taps  for  home 
use;  John  B.  Sturman  in  an  early  day  had  a  camp  on  the  south  side  of  North 
River  on  the  southeast  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  3,  Union 
Township,  and  Harvey  Lee  had  one  on  the  north  side  of  the  same  forty  which 
he  ran  until  1880;  Levi  B.  Phillips  operated  a  camp  for  some  time  on  the  south 
side  of  North  River,  on  the  southwest  quarter  of  the  tiortheast  quarter  of  section 
3,  Union  Township;  William  Sturman  had  one  on  the  northwest  quarter  of  the 
northeast  quarter  of  section  3,  north  of  the  river,  and  was  a  large  grove,  which  was 
run  as  late  as  1890;  Thomas  Garlinger  had  a  camp  on  the  north  half  of  the  north- 
west quarter  of  section  3,  Union  Township,  which  was  worked  every  year  by  Mrs. 
Thomas  Garlinger  until  her  death  about  1880;  Benjamin  Duckett  had  a  small 
grove,  a  continuation  of  the  Garlinger  grove,  on  the  south  half  of  the  southeast 
quarter  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  34,  Jefferson  Township;  there  is  a 
young  grove  there  at  the  present  time ;  George  W.  Guye  had  a  camp  on  the  east 
half  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  5,  Union  Township ;  James  Guye,  on  the 
west  half  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  5,  Union  Township;  Angeline 
Vanwy,  the  west  half  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  7,  Union  Township, 
and  another  on  the  west  half  of  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  7,  Union  Town- 
ship; Jonathan  Cox,  one  in  the  bend  on  the  south  side  of  the  river,  on  section 
12,  Douglas  Township;  John  Norris,  northeast  quarter  of  the  southwest  quarter 
of  section  14,  Douglas  Township,  until  his  death  in  1904,  and  the  grove  was 
chopped  off  in  the  spring  of  1905 ;  Samuel  Folwell,  a  small  grove  on  the  south 
side  of  North  Branch  on  the  northeast  quarter  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section 
34,  Jefferson  Township. 

Groves  on  Middle  River:  McDowell  camp  on  the  south  half  of  the  south- 
cast  quarter  of  section  36,  Crawford  Township;  T.  Cason,  west  of  house  and 
east  of  Middle  River,  on  the  northwest  quarter  of  the  northwest  quarter  of.  sec- 
tion 36,  Crawford  Township ;  W.  T.  Cason,  the  southwest  quarter  of  the  northwest 
quarter  of  section  36,  Crawford  Township ;  John's  eamp  in  the  northeast  quarter 
of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  35,  Crawford  Township,  between  the  house  and 
river  on  the  south  side,  below  the  old  mill,  was  a  grove  of  200  trees,  later 
owned  by  Campbell  Hughart ;  a  grove  near  the  old  Weller  Mill,  on  the  northeast 
quarter  of  section  35,  Union  Township;  Van  Houten  grove,  southwest  quarter  of 
section  35,  Union  Township ;  Sam  Fleener  camp,  northeast  quarter  section  3,  Scott 
Township ;  Jack  Porter  camp,  northwest  quarter  section  4,  Scott  Township ;  John 
Wilkinson  camp,  northeast  quarter  section  4,  Scott  Township;  Ephriam  Bilder- 
back  camp,  northeast  quarter  section  4,  Scott  Township ;  Henry  McKenzie  camp 
northwest  quarter  section  9,  Scott  Township ;  Felt  Johnson  camp,  northeast  quar- 
ter section  8,  Scott  Township ;  Sam  Crawford  camp,  northwest  quarter  section  8, 
Scott  Township;  James  Thombrugh  camp,  northeast  quarter  section  7,  Scott 
Township ;  Andy  Hart  camp,  northwest  quarter  section  7,  Scott  Township ;  W.  W. 
Mattox  camp,  southwest  quarter  section  7,  Scott  Township;  Charles  Wright 
camp,  southeast  quarter  section  7,  Lincoln  Township ;  James  Smith  camp,  south- 
west quarter  of  the  northwest  quarter  section  15,  Lincoln  Township,  east  of 


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182  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

"backbone''  north  of  Middle  River;  Benjamin  Ludlow  camp,  southeast  quarter  of 
the  southeast  quarter  of  section  9,  Lincoln  Township,  later  owned  by  Margaret 
Moore. 

Clanton  Creek :  Clanton  bottoms  have  been  noted  for  their  heavy  timber  and 
there  were  many  fine  maple  groves.  Andrew  Johns  had  a  small  camp  south  of  the 
creek,  on  the  southwest  quarter  of  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  11,  South 
Township;  James  Martin  had  a  fine  grove  a  little  farther  east  on  the  southeast 
quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  1 1 ;  George  Smith  had  a  grove  in  the 
bend  east  of  the  creek,  on  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  10;  W.  A.  Carter,  west 
of  the  creek,  on  the  northwest  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  15,  and 
on  the  east  side;  J.  G.  Carter,  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  15;  Abraham 
Black  west  of  the  present  site  of  Hanley  and  east  of  the  creek,  the  north  half  of 
the  northwest  quarter  of  section  22,  and  farther  south  where  P.  A.  Carter  now 
lives,  on  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  22,  South  Township ;  Perry  Cummings, 
or  later,  the  Guernsey  camp,  was  a  fine  grove  on  the  southeast  quarter  of  the 
northwest  quarter  of  section  2y,  South  Township ;  James  A.  Rhjmo  had  an  excel- 
lent grove  west  of  Clanton,  the  south  half  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  29, 
which  has  been  operated  until  late  years;  Pleasant  Rollings  camp  was  a  little 
farther  north  on  the  northeast  quarter  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  29 ;  H. 
A.  McLaughlin  also  had  a  fine  camp  on  the  north  half  of  the  southwest  quarter  of 
section  28.  From  Rhyno's  camp  to  the  present  site  of  East  Peru  there  were  no 
groves  of  any  size.  Jacob  Brown  had  one  south  of  East  Peru,  east  of  the  road 
leading  south  of  town,  on  the  south  half  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section 
II,  Walnut  Township;  John  Brown,  west  of  the  road  on  both  sides  of  Clanton, 
now  owned  by  J.  R.  McKee  and  S.  B.  Winchester,  the  southeast  quarter  of  the 
northwest  quarter  and  the  northeast  quarter  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section 
1 1 ;  Aaron  Hiatt,  a  grove  west  of  East  Peru,  north  of  the  railroad  on  both  sides 
of  the  creek  south  of  Austin  Reed, — the  northeast  quarter  of  section  10,  Walnut 
Township ;  Ben  Brown,  south  of  the  mouth  of  Rattle  Snake  Creek,  the  southwest 
quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  10.  These  groves  about  Peru  were 
nearly  continuous.  Then  there  were  no  more  until  near  John  Hindman's,  on  the 
northwest  quarter  of  section  15,  Walnut  Township,  also  the  northeast  quarter 
of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  15,  now  owned  by  W.  T.  Jesse, 
and  the  northwest  quarter  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  15,  now  owned 
by  James  Harwood. 

Jones  Creek:  Lathrum  grove  is  still  standing,  on  the  northwest  quarter  of 
the  northwest  quarter,  and  the  northeast  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of 
section  21,  South  Township;  N.  P.  Pomeroy,  the  southeast  quarter  of  the  north- 
west quarter  of  section  20,  is  also  standing ;  and  Joel  Graves  grove  in  section  23, 
Scott  Township. 


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CHAPTER  XXIV 

THE  "UNDERGROUND  RAILROAD*' 
By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

Beginning  about  the  year  1850  and  continuing  until  about  1862,  numerous 
runaway  negro  slaves  from  Missouri  passed  through  this  county  on  th^ir  way 
northeast  to  Canada,  or  to  some  northern  portion  of  the  United  States,  where  aboli- 
tion sentiment  was  strong  enough  for  them  to  feel  safe  from  pursuit  and  capture. 
Until  1855-6  the  political  sentiment  of  this  county  was  largely  opposed  to  aboli- 
tionism. 

About  1850  there  were  very  few  persons  in  the  county,  with  anti-slavery 
sentiments,  to  actively  aid  slaves  in  making  their  escape  from  their  masters. 
By  1856  the  number  had  greatly  increased  and  by  i860  they  were  so  numerous  as 
to  make  no  secret  of  their  work  in  aiding  the  negro  to  freedom.  Those  who  har- 
bored and  actively  helped  slaves  to  escape  were  commonly  called  "agents  of  the 
underground  railroad"  and,  extending  across  the  country  from  south  to  north 
and  some  miles  apart,  were  "stations,"  which  were  the  homes  of  the  more  coura- 
geous and  radical  abolitionists.  These  stations  were  made  known  and  gave  shelter 
to  runaway  slaves,  who  traveled  by  night  and  were  secreted  in  them  in  the 
daytime.  In  many  cases  the  "agents"  would  haul  the  runaways  by  team  from 
one  "station"  to  another  in  the  night  time,  or  on  horseback.  During  the  later  '50s 
and  early  '60s  they  were  frequently  taken  in  the  daytime  along  circuitous  routes, 
concealed  in  wagons. 

James  Farris,  who  settled  in  Union  Township  in  185 1,  was  one  of  the  boldest 
and  most  active  of  these  "underground  station  agents"  from  the  very  first.  He 
was  far  past  middle  age  but  of  strong  physique,  a  noted  deer  hunter  and  trapper 
and  feared  nothing.  He  used  to  brag  about  his  work  in  this  line  and  even  publicly 
defied  searching  parties.  One  early  morning  during  the  later  '50s  a  runaway 
negro  man  approached  him,  from  the  timber  close  by  his  house,  much  fearing 
to  do  so  and  yet  desperate  because  of  hunger  and  fatigue,  with  his  overnight 
travel.  The  black  man  had  been  directed  to  Farris'  place  but  not  further,  and 
didn't  know  where  to  go  next.  Farris  thought  he  had  seen  the  negro  before  and 
finally  the  poor  fellow  admitted  he  belonged  to  a  son-in-law  of  Farris',  who  lived 
in  Missouri  and  whom  Farris  occasionally  visited.  Farris  at  once  put  his 
visitor  at  ease  and  told  him  he  would  be  taken  care  of  and  shielded  from  his 
enemies ;  that  he  would  be  taken  on  to  the  next  station  over  on  Coon  River.  The 
slave  was  then  hidden  in  the  loft  of  one  of  the  double  log  houses  in  which  Farris 
lived,  but  early  that  evening,  who  should  arrive  at  the  house  but  the  son-in-law  and 
his  party,  to  stay  all  night,  never  suspecting  that  his  father-in-law  was  at  that 
moment  giving  refuge  and  asylum  to  his  human  chattel.  It  would  not  do  to  send 
the  runaway  ahead,  so  slave  and  master  slept  in  the  same  house  that  night,  the 

183 


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184  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

former  overhead  and  the  latter  below.  The  slave  was  very  quiet  that  night,  as 
might  well  be  supposed.  Next  morning  the  master  and  party  were  directed  by 
Farris  where  probably  it  was  wise  to  look  for  the  slave.  He  told  them  to  hunt 
as  far  as  to  the  North  River,  but  that  it  was  useless  to  cross  the  divide  over  to 
the  Coon,  for  the  reason  that,  if  the  runaway  had  reached  that  far  he  was  perfectly 
safe,  since  there  were  so  many  bitter  and  tough  abolitionists  in  that  vicinity.  The 
slave  hunters  consumed  all  the  day  in  searching  along  North  River  without  suc- 
cess, as  a  matter  of  course,  and  returned  to  the  Farris  house  to  stay  all  night, 
the  son-in-law  saying  he  would  give  up  the  chase  and  go  home  next  morning. 
That  night,  David  W.  Gilliland  and  another  man  took  the  darky  on  his  way,  and 
the  disconsolate  master  returned  to  Missouri,  short  a  $i,ooo  slave  through  the 
radical  abolitionism  of  his  father-in-law. 

William  McDonald,  who  lived  in  Southwest  Jefferson  Township,  was  another 
"station  agent."  Among  other  chattels  he  brought  with  him  from  Ohio  a  fine  fam- 
ily carriage,  and  it  was  said  that  the  vehicle  did  much  and  valiant  duty  as  a 
passenger  coach  on  the  "underground  railroad"  tracks. 

John  Early,  of  Jackson  Township,  was  in  charge  of  a  very  busy  "underground 
station,"  and,  it  is  said,  had  as  many  as  five  runaway  slaves  on  his  place  at  one 
time.  Advocates  of  the  "peculiar  institution"  of  the  South  were  becoming  exas- 
perated at  the  repeated  loss  of  their  human  chattels,  through  connivance  of 
abolitionists  in  the  North,  and  placed  warrants  in  the  hands  of  deputy  United 
States  marshals  for  the  recovery  of  their  property.  Early  soon  received  a  "tele- 
gram," presumably  from  "underground  wires,"  that  a  United  States  officer  was 
in  his  neighborhood,  hunting  slaves  out  of  bounds,  which  led  him  to  clean  up  an 
antiquated  pistol  and  announce  himself  as  being  ready  for  all  comers. 

On  another  occasion  Early  became  the  host  of  Sheriff  Sam  Hamilton,  a  pro- 
slavery  man,  and  another  democrat,  whose  name  has  gotten  away.  The  men 
were  billed  to  speak  on  the  political  situation,  at  the  Early  schoolhouse,  and 
were  at  the  home  of  the  slaves'  friend  by  his  invitation.  When  supper  was  about 
to  be  announced,  three  chairs  were  placed  at  one  side  the  table  and  the  democratic 
guests  were  so  placed  in  them  that  the  middle  seat  was  left  vacant.  Then  Early 
told  his  wife  to  bring  in  her  other  visitor,  and  upon  compliance  with  his  request, 
a  ponderous  black  "nigger  mammy"  was  escorted  to  the  dining-room  and  placed 
between  the  sheriff  and  his  democratic  friend.  The  trio  made  a  remarkable  setting 
to  the  scene  and  the  present  day  reader  can  hardly  realize  the  ludicrousness  of  the 
situation.  But  Hamilton  and  his  companion  were  equal  to  the  occasion  and  joined 
heartily  with  Early  in  his  manifest  and  successful  effort  to  please  all.  After  the 
intentionally  prolonged  meal  was  finished,  without  any  demonstrations  of  chagrin 
or  hostility,  the  two  pro-slavery  politicians  thanked  their  host  for  his  hospitality 
and  took  their  departure  for  the  democratic  meeting  waiting  for  them  at  the 
schoolhouse. 


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CHAPTER  XXV 
MADISON  COUNTY  IN  THE  CIVIL  -WAR 

On  the  1 6th  of  April,  1861,  four  days  following  the  assault  on  Fort  Sumter, 
Gov.  Samuel  J.  Kirkwood,  of  Iowa,  received  the  following  telegram  from 
Simon  Cameron,  secretary  of  war : 

"Call  made  on  you  by  tonight's  mail  for  one  regiment  of  militia  for  immediate 
service." 

That  very  day  the  governor  proclaimed  to  the  people  of  Iowa  that  the  nation 
was  imperilled  and  invoked  the  aid  of  every  loyal  citizen  in  the  state.  The  tele- 
gram above  alluded  to  was  received  at  Davenport.  The  governor  was  then  resid- 
ing at  Iowa  City  but  there  was  no  tel^raphic  communication  in  those  days  between 
the  two  cities. 

It  was  important  that  the  dispatch  should  reach  the  eyes  of  the  governor  at 
once,  and  General  Vandever,  then  a  civilian,  volunteered  to  take  the  message  to 
Iowa  City.  The  governor  was  found  on  his  farm  outside  the  city  by  the  self- 
appointed  messenger,  dressed  in  homespun  and  working  in  the  field.  Reading  the 
dispatch.  Governor  Kirkwood  expressed  extreme  surprise  and  exclaimed :  "* Why, 
the  President  wants  a  whole  regiment  of  men!  Do  you  suppose  I  can  raise  so 
many  as  that,  Mr.  Vandever?"  When  ten  Iowa  regiments  were  offered  a  few  days 
later  the  question  was  answered. 

IOWA  RALLIES  TO  THE  COLORS 

"Whether  in  the  promptitude  of  her  responses  to  the  calls  made  on  her  by  the 
general  government,  in  the  courage  and  constancy  of  her  soldiery  in  the  field," 
said  Col.  A.  P.  Wood,  of  Dubuque,  upon  one  occasion,  "or  in  the  wisdom  and  effi- 
ciency with  which  her  civil  adminstration  was  conducted  during  the  trying  period 
covered  by  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  Iowa  proved  herself  the  peer  of  any  loyal 
state.  The  proclamation  of  her  governor,  Samuel  J.  Kirkwood,  responsive  to 
that  of  the  President  calling  for  volunteers  to  compose  her  first  regiment,  was 
issued  on  the  fourth  day  after  the  fall  of  Sumter.  At  the  end  of  only  a  single  week 
men  enough  were  reported  to  be  in  quarters  (mostly  in  the  vicinity  of  their  own 
homes)  to  fill  the  regiment.  These,  however,  were  hardly  more  than  a  tithe  of  the 
number  who  had  been  offered  by  company  commanders  for  acceptance  under  the 
President's  call.  So  urgent  were  these  offers  that  the  governor  requested  on  the 
24th  of  April  permission  to  organize  an  additional  regiment.  While  awaiting 
the  answer  to  this  request  he  conditionally  accepted  a  sufficient  number  of  com- 
panies to  compose  two  additional  regiments.  In  a  short  time  he  was  notified  that 
both  of  these  would  be  accepted.  Soon  after  the  completion  of  the  second  and 
third  regiments,  which  was  near  the  close  of  May,  the  adjutant  general  of  the 

185 


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186  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

state  reported  that  upward  of  one  hundred  and  seventy  companies  had  been  ten- 
dered to  the  governor  to  serve  against  the  enemies  of  the  Union. 

''Much  difficulty  and  considerable  delay  occurred  in  fitting  these  regiments  for 
the  field.  For  the  First  Infantry  a  complete  outfit — not  uniform — of  clothing 
was  extemporized,  principally  by  the  volunteered  labor  of  loyal  women  in  the 
different  towns,  from  material  of  various  colors  and  qualities  obtained  within  the 
limits  of  the  state.  The  same  was  done  in  part  for  the  Second  Infantry.  Mean- 
time, an  extra  session  of  the  General  Assembly  had  been  called  by  the  governor 
to  convene  on  May  isth.  With  but  little  delay  that  body  authorized  a  loan  of 
$800,000  to  meet  the  extraordinary  expenses  incurred  and  to  be  incurred  by  the 
executive  department  in  consequence  of  the  new  emergency.  A  wealthy  merchant 
of  the  state,  ex-Governor  Merrill,  then  a  resident  of  McGregor — immediately  took 
from  the  governor  a  contract  to  supply  a  complete  outfit  of  clothing  for  the  three 
regiments  organized,  agreeing  to  receive,  should  the  governor  so  elect,  his  pay 
therefor  in  state  bonds  at  par.  This  contract  he  executed  to  the  letter,  and  a 
portion  of  the  clothing  which  was  manufactured  in  Boston  to  his  order,  was  de- 
livered at  Keokuk,  the  place  at  which  the  troops  had  rendezvoused,  in  exactly  one 
month  from  the  day  on  which  the  contract  had  been  entered  into.  The  remainder 
arrived  only  a  few  days  later.  This  clothing  was  delivered  to  the  regiments  but 
was  subsequently  condemned  by  the  Government  for  the  reason  that  its  color  was 
gray,  and  blue  had  been  adopted  as  the  color  to  be  worn  by  national  troops." 

MADISON  COUNTY  ALIVE  TO  THE  SITUATION 

The  news  soon  reached  Winterset  that  the  Southern  states  were  in  rebellion 
and  that  the  flag  had  been  insulted  at  Charleston,  South  Carolina.  Although  fully 
advised  of  the  spirit  manifested  by  Southern  leaders  the  people  were  not  prepared 
to  realize  the  danger  menacing  free  institutions  of  the  Republic  and  were  as- 
tounded and  horrified  when  the  real  situation  arose  and  confronted  them.  But 
almost  every  man  and  woman  in  Madison  County  loved  and  revered  the  Union 
and  rallied  at  the  first  call,  to  express  their  sentiments.  Mass  meetings  from  this 
on  were  the  order  of  the  day  and  night,  and  but  little  time  was  lost  before  action 
was  taken.  At  one  of  these  meetings,  held  on  April  24,  1861,  at  the  Christian 
Church,  in  Winterset,  a  large  assemblage  of  people  met  in  the  house  of  worship 
and  was  presided  over  by  Dr.  D.  B.  Allen ;  John  J.  Davies  acted  as  secretary.  The 
object  of  the  meeting  was  to  discuss  the  ominous  situation  of  the  country  and  to 
ascertain  how  many  persons  in  the  county  were  willing  to  join  a  military  com- 
pany, or  companies,  for  home  protection,  and  a  committee  of  ten  was  appbinted  for 
the  purpose  of  securing  the  names  of  those  desiring  to  become  members  of  the  pro- 
posed companies.  That  committee  was  composed  of  the  following  named  per- 
sons: L.  D.  Kams,  L.  N.  Clark,  William  L.  Leonard,  A.  Hood,  N.  Garretson, 
H.  C.  Carter,  Frederick  Mott,  William  Shannon,  J.  W.  Holbrook  and  C.  Gaskill. 

It  was  the  sense  of  the  meeting  that  both  the  cavalry  and  infantry  company 
should  be  organized,  and  that  as  their  formation  would  be  for  home  protection 
the  citizens  should  furnish  the  enlisted  men  with  arms.  Thereupon,  the  Madison 
County  Rangers,  a  cavalry  company,  was  organized  and  the  patriotic  citizens  sign- 
ing their  names  that  evening  to  the  rolls  of  the  cavalry  company  were:  J.  I. 
Denman,  J.  M.  Lambert,  E.  W.  Evans,  D.  D.  Davisson,  C.  A.  Gaskill,  H.  C. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  187 

Carter,  G.  M.  Rutledge,  H.  M.  Porter,  B.  M.  Bixby,  William  Reynolds,  Samuel 
Conigan,  Butler  Bird,  W.  C.  Newlon. 

An  infantry  company  was  also  formed  and  assumed  the  name  of  the  Winter- 
set  Guards.  Its  muster  roll  showed  the  following  names:  O.  C.  Ayres,  S.  G. 
Beckwith,  D.  W.  Burnett,  G.  W.  Betts,  J.  W.  Craven,  F.  M.  Cassidy,  H.  C.  Fams- 
worth,  M.  Foster,  B.  C.  Howell,  N.  A.  Harlan,  W.  M.  Jenkins,  J.  W.  Kirk,  B.  F. 
Murray,  J.  P.  Noel,  A.  Nosier,  F.  M.  Pickerell,  W.  R.  Shriver,  John  Stiffler, 
James  Stafford,  S.  B.  Williams,  C.  C.  Ward,  Cal  Trion,  C.  Tibbies,  William  H. 
Goodwin,  J.  M.  Andrews,  D.  D.  Bennett,  Thomas  Bardrick,  F.  I.  Cash,  L.  N. 
Clark,  H.  J.  B.  Cummings,  T.  W.  Fouch,  J.  D.  Holbrook,  W.  P.  Hastings,  J.  M. 
Holaday,  L.  D.  Kams,  J.  R.  Lambert,  H.  Marlow,  John  Nichbl,  Eli  Odell,  Lee 
Pitzer,  T.  M.  Stiffler,  G.  W.  Stiffler,  E.  T.  Warner,  J.  H.  Williams,  J.  D.  Williams, 
M.  R.  Tidrick,  D.  W.  Thompson. 

The  "Rangers'*  met  on  the- evening  of  the  26th  and  selected  these  officers: 
Captain  D.  D.  Davisson;  first  lieutenant,  G.  M.  Rutledge;  second  lieutenant, 
Butler  Bird ;  third  lieutenant,  B.  F.  Bixby ;  orderly  sergeant,  H.  C.  Carter.  The 
men  joining  the  "Rangers'*  were  required  to  furnish  themselves  with  a  horse 
and  saddle  "and  such  arms  as  each  might  obtain."  And  the  object 
of  the  organization,  by  the  records,  was  to  "defend  the  citizens  and  property  of 
Madison  County  when  the  contingency  might  require  it."  This  was  the  first 
military  company  organized  in  Madison  County. 

Other  warlike  movements  on  the  part  of  the  citizens  took  place,  one  closely 
upon  the  other,  and  a  few  of  them  will  be  related  in  order  to  show  the  spirit  and 
feelings  of  the  people  at  that  time  of  national  travail.  On  April  27,  1861,  S.  G. 
Beckwith  and  Jesse  R.  Lambert  announced  the  receipt  of  their  commissions  from 
the  adjutant  general  of  the  state,  to  organize  a  company  of  volunteers  "in  this 
senatorial  district."  At  the  close  of  this  announcement  the  newly  made  officials 
sent  out  this  appeal.  "Let  not  the  young  men  of  our  district  be  slow  in  responding 
to  the  call  of  their  country  in  a  time  of  danger."  To  encourage  others  it  was 
reported  that  S.  G.  Beckwith,  Jesse  R.  Lambert,  Butler  Bird,  William  L.  Leonard, 
James  McQeary,  William  C.  Newlon  and  B.  F.  Murray  had  already  volunteered. 

On  April  27,  1861,  the  following  call  was  issued:  "The  people  of  Madison 
County,  in  favor  of  sustaining  the  Government  in  its  endeavors  to  maintain  and 
preserve  the  Union  in  its  present  crisis,  are  requested  to  meet  at  Winterset  on 
Saturday,  May  4,  1861,  at  i  P.  M.,  for  the  purpose  of  giving  expression  to  their 
views  as  American  citizens.  Signed,  Albert  West,  M.  L.  McPherson,  M.  Glaze- 
brook,  L.  S.  Garrett,  A.  Hood,  Cal  Ballard,  C.  D.  Bevington,  John  Leonard,  H.  J. 
B.  Cummings,  Samuel  Hamilton,  L.  Mayo,  J.  J.  Davies,  W.  L.  Hart,  D.  D.  Davis- 
son,  N.  Garretson,  I.  L.  Tidrick,  John  McLeod,  William  Compton,  J.  W.  Moody, 
J.  A.  Pitzer,  D.  B.  Allen,  W.  L.  Leonard,  L.  M.  Tidrick,  J.  F.  Brock. 

At  St.  Charles,  May  i,  1861,  a  large  and  enthusiastic  war  meeting  was  held; 
a  Union  pole  was  raised  and  a  beautiful  large  flag,  made  and  presented  by  the 
ladies  of  that  neighborhood,  was  run  up  to  the  breeze.  The  occasion  was  enlivened 
by  music  from  the  Indianola  Brass  Band  and  Union  speeches  were  made  by  Dr. 
William  L.  Leonard,  of  Winterset,  and  Lewis  Todhunter,  of  Indianola.  "Ringing 
patriotic  resolutions  were  adopted." 

Great  excitement  prevailed  throughout  the  county  and  war  with  the  South 
was  the  exclusive  subject  of  general  conversation.    Those  opposed  to  the  prosecu- 


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188  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

tion  of  the  war  kept  their  views  to  themselves,  while  in  public  places,  for  the  dan- 
ger of  violence  was  imminent. 

On  May  i,  1861,  Elder  A.  Bradfield,  of  the  Winterset  Christian  Church,  de- 
livered an  ultra  patriotic  sermon  in  favor  of  the  war  for  the  Union.  Other  local 
ministers  were  equally  patriotic  in  the  pulpit. 

The  following  extracts  from  the  Madisonian  are  matters  of  local  history  and 
should  be  of  more  than  ordinary  interest  to  the  present  and  future  generations,  if 
not  of  the  past:  A  detachment  of  regular  soldiers  from  Fort  Randall,  Dakota 
Territory,  on  their  way  to  the  seat  of  war  passed  through  Winterset  May  4th. 
They  were  entertained  by  the  citizens  and  given  a  hearty  reception.  May  18th,  the 
Clinton  Guards  of  this  county  met  for  organization  and  elected  the  following 
officers :  Captain,  R.  A.  Stitt ;  first  lieutenant,  E.  H.  Venard ;  second  lieutenant, 
W.  T.  Shelbum ;  ensign,  James  Brinson ;  first  sergeant,  Jacob  Hyskill.  The  com- 
pany numbered  forty-four  men.  They  proposed  to  uniform  themselves  forthwith 
and  report  to  the  Government. 

About  May  20th  sixty  stands  of  arms  passed  through  Winterset  for  Page 
County,  which  was  threatened  with  attack  by  rebels  from  Gentry  County,  Mis- 
souri. 

Before  May  25th  "Madison  County  Guards,*'  of  Winterset,  had. disbanded, 
by  reason  of  internal  disagreement,  and  another  organization  was  perfected  which 
took  the  name  of  the  "Union  Zouaves."  This  organization  was  officered  by  H.  J.  B. 
Cummings,  captain ;  John  R.  Nichol,  first  lieutenant ;'  J.  R.  Lambert,  second  lieu- 
tenant; J.  M.  Andrews,  third  lieutenant;  L.  N.  Clark,  first  sergeant;  J.  S.  Goshom, 
second  sergeant;  W.  P.  Hastings,  third  sergeant;  S.  Pitzer,  fourth  sergeant;  John 
Stiffler,  fifth  sergeant;  J.  W.  Burnett,  E.  A.  Huber,  J.  M.  Holaday,  E.  C.  Ward, 
corporals.  The  privates  were  Frederick  Mott,  J.  J.  Davies,  C.  P.  Lee,  R.  Bain,  C. 
Danforth,  J.  D.  Williams,  C.  Armbreast,  A.  Nosier,  B.  F.  Murray,  John  Hinkle, 
E.  W.  Reynolds,  T.  M.  Stiffler,  G.  S.  Stiffler,  Marion  Cassiday,  J.  P.  Wallace,  and 
J.  S.  White. 

May  25th,  another  company  was  due  to  be  organized,  which  styled  itself  "The 
Silver  Greys,"  and  was  composed  of  men  over  thirty  years  of  age. 

June  27th  Capt.  P.  Gad  Bryan,  of  Indianola,  made  a  stirring  speech  at  the 
Christian  Church,  in  the  effort  to  secure  recruits,  for  his  cavalry  company.  He 
made  an  impressive  address  which  was  followed  by  M.  L.  McPherson,  of  Winter- 
set.  At  the  conclusion,  the  following  Madison  County  men  were  enlisted :  J.  R. 
Lambert,  W.  R.  Shriver,  C.  Tibbies,  D.  W.  Burnett,  T.  M.  Stiffler,  John  Faurote, 
J.  D.  Jenks,  E.  S.  Ewing,  Milton  Carter,  J.  H.  Bird,  D.  D.  Burnett,  G.  Tibbies, 
John  H.  Williams,  and  Butler  Bird. 

During  the  latter  part  of  April  a  company  had  been  organized  in  Madison 
Township,  of  which  William  F.  Clampitt,  a  Mexican  war  veteran,  was  captain. 
This  military  organization  was  the  subject  of  much  reckless  talk  for  some  time,  as 
the  loyalty  of  certain  of  its  members  was  much  questioned,  and  as  strongly  de- 
fended by  Captain  Clampitt. 

June  29th  E.  S.  Ewing,  of  Winterset,  advertised  for  cavalry  horses.  The 
owners  were  asked  to  give  a  credit  of  six  months  to  volunteers  with  approved  se- 
curity.   He  didn't  secure  many. 

July  13th  Capt.  H.  J.  B.  Cummings'  Company  G,  Fourth  Iowa  Regiment, 
started  for  its  rendezvous  at  Council  Bluffs.     Their  departure  was  one  of  the 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  189 

saddest  affairs  that  ever  occurred  in  the  County.  Probably  every  eye  that  witnessed 
the  scene  was  blinded  by  tears.  Not  even  the  most  indifferent  or  hardened  per- 
son withheld  his  emotions.    It  was  never  forgotten  by  any  one  present. 

Previous  to  the  departure  of  Company  G,  on  July  12th,  the  ladies  in  and 
near  Winterset  gave  a  festival  supper  to  the  company.  It  was  one  worthy  of  the 
ladies  and  the  occasion.  After  the  soldiers  had  eaten  their  fill  there  was  an 
abundance  for  the  citizens  present.  At  this  festival  the  ladies  presented  the 
company  with  a  beautiful  flag.  Miss  Geraldine  Squire  made  the  presentation  ad- 
dress and  the  response  was  by  the  captain,  H.  J.  B.  Cummings. 

August  31,  Lieut.  J.  D.  Jenks,  and  Serg.  Jesse  R.  Lambert,  of  Bryan's  Cavalry, 
were  home  on  a  few  days  leave  of  absence.  On  their  return  the  following  re- 
cruits went  with  them :  William  O.  Ludlow,  Joseph  Reynolds,  Edward  Marlow, 
Matthew  Wilkins,  Mr.  McCandless  and  "Curly  Joe." 

September  ist,  the  board  of  supervisors  appropriated  $150  out  of  the  county 
funds,  for  the  benefit  of  the  families  of  volunteers  of  Madison  County,  who 
were  left  in  destitute  circiunstances  by  reason  of  such  enlistments,  if  there  should 
be  any. 

The  above  excerpts,  which  were  scattered  hither  and  yon,  throughout  the 
various  issues  of  the  Madisonian  during  the  stirring  year  of  1861,  give  a  good  por- 
trayal of  the  things  that  most  interested  the  people  in  Madison  County  at  that 
time.  Many  such  events  occurred  before  the  close  of  hostilities  between  the 
North  and  the  South.  It  certainly  would  be  interesting  reading,  to  many,  to  give 
a  full  relation  of  the  local  war  time  incidents,  but  space  will  not  permit.  However, 
Madison  County  did  her  part,  faithfully  and  well,  in  putting  down  rebellion  and 
upholding  the  glory  and  integrity  of  republican  institutions.  The  county  was  rep- 
resented in  a  number  of  different  regimental  organizations  and  furnished  710 
men  to  the  ranks  of  the  Union  army,  which  was  in  excess  of  her  quota.  The  com- 
missioned officers  from  Madison  County  in  that  great  conflict  were  as  follows : 

H.  J.  B.  Cummings,  colonel,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry;  George  N.  Elliott, 
lieutenant  colonel.  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry ;  Dr.  William  L.  Leonard,  surgeon, 
Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry;  Frederick  Mott,  quartermaster.  Thirty-ninth  Iowa 
Infantry;  S.  G.  Guiberson,  captain.  Company  A,  Thirty-ninth  Infantry;  Oliver  C. 
Ayers,  first  lieutenant,  Company  A,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry ;  Charles  S.  Arm- 
strong, first  lieutenant.  Company  A,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry;  J.  B.  Rawls, 
second  lieutenant.  Company  A,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry;  John  P.  Jones, 
second  lieutenant  Company  A,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry ;  J.  M.  Browne,  captain 
Company  F,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry ;  Thomas  W.  Stiles,  captain.  Company  F, 
Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry;  Adolphus  Bradfield,  captain.  Company  F,  Thirty- 
ninth  Iowa  Infantry;  William  Anderson,  first  lieutenant.  Company  F,  Thirty- 
ninth  Iowa  Infantry;  Dr.  S.  B.  Cherry,  surgeon,  Forty-seventh  Iowa  Infantry; 
J.  S.  Goshom,  captain,  Company  E.  Forty-seventh  Iowa  Infantry;  J.  D.  Jenks, 
brevet  lieutenant  colonel,  First  Iowa  Cavalry ;  William  R.  Shriver,  first  lieutenant. 
First  Iowa  Cavalry ;  William  Pursell,  captain,  Company  I.  Fourth  Iowa  Cavalry ; 
J.  R.  Lambert,  first  lieutenant,  Company  I,  Fourth  Iowa  Cavalry;  William  Hast- 
ings, first  lieutenant  Company  I,  Fourth  Cavalry;  William  Early,  first  lieutenant 
Company  I,  Fourth  Iowa  Cavalry ;  E.  W.  Raymond,  quartermaster  sergeant.  Com- 
pany I,  Fourth  Iowa  Cavalry ;  William  W.  Buchanan,  second  lieutenant.  Company 
E,  Fifth  Iowa  Cavalry;  M.  R.  Tidrick,  first  lieutenant  Company  G,  Third  Iowa 


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190  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Infantry;  R.  A.  Stitts,  adjutant,  Fourth  Iowa  Infantry;  D.  E.  Cooper,  captain 
Company  F,  Fourth  Iowa  Infantry;  A.  J.  Tisdale,  captain  Company  F,  Fourth 
Iowa  Infantry;  Leander  Pitzer,  first  lieutenant  Company  F,  Fourth  Iowa  In- 
fantry; John  A.  Kelly,  first  lieutenant  Company  F,  Fourth  Iowa  Infantry;  Josiah 
McLeod,  quartermaster  sergeant,  Third  Infantry ;  John  M.  Cooper,  second  lieu- 
tenant Company  F,  Fourth  Iowa  Cavalry ;  Davis  S.  Smith,  first  lieutenant  Com- 
pany K,  Eleventh  Iowa  Infantry ;  George  Gregory,  second  lieutenant  Company  K, 
Eleventh  Iowa  Infantry ;  J.  W.  Stiffler,  second  lieutenant  Company  K,  Tenth  Iowa 
Infantry ;  J.  H.  Goolman,  captain  Company  H,  Twenty-third  Iowa  Infantry ;  S.  G. 
Beckwith,  first  lieutenant  Company  A,  Twenty-third  Iowa  Infantry;  J.  L.  Ship- 
ley, first  lieutenant  Company  H,  Twenty-third  Iowa  Infantry ;  J.  D.  Ewing,  first 
lieutenant  Company  H,  Twenty-third  Iowa  Infantry ;  Robert  E.  Martin,  first  lieu- 
tenant Company  C,  Thirty-third  Iowa  Infantry.  Of  the  above  named  officers, 
J.  D.  Ewing,  Leander  Pitzer,  O.  C.  Ayers  and  J.  P.  Jones  were  killed  in  battle,  or 
died  of  wounds  received  while  in  battle. 

THE  ROLL  OF  HONOR 

The  roster  of  names  which  follows  is  taken  from  the  latest  reports  prepared 
in  the  office  of  the  adjutant  general  of  the  State  of  Iowa,  and  it  may  be  said  to  be 
complete  and  correct.  In  looking  over  the  roster  as  published  in  the  history  of 
Madison  County  of  1879,  quite  a  number  of  names  were  omitted  and  some  mis- 
spelled. It  has  been  sought  in  this  endeavor  to  avoid  errors  and  not  omit  the  name 
of  one  worthy  to  appear  in  this  roll.  But  when  the  attempt  is  made  to  publish  the 
name  of  every  person  from  Madison  County  who  served  in  the  Civil  war,  it  is 
practically  impossible,  as  there  were  many  who  enlisted  while  away  from  home  in 
regiments  belonging  to  other  states.  However,  insofar  as  unremitting  efforts  on 
the  part  of  the  adjutant  general's  office  are  concerned,  the  roster  of  Madison 
County's  heroes  should  be  considered  intact: 

THIRD    INFANTRY 

COMPANY    G 

Blakeley,  George  H.,  enlisted  May  27,  1861 ;  veteranized  January  4,  1864,  in 
Second  Infantry. 

Dick  Reuben,  enlisted  May  21,  1861. 

Etherton,  Stephen,  enlisted  May  27,  1861. 

Huffman,  Joseph,  enlisted  May  27,  1861. 

McLeod,  Josiah,  enlisted  May  20,  1861 ;  promoted  to  quartermaster  sergeant ; 
taken  prisoner  at  Shiloh,  April  6,  1862 ;  discharged  March  28,  1863. 

Murray,  Benjamin  F.,  enlisted  May  21,  1861 ;  taken  prisoner  at  Shiloh. 

Newlon,  William  C,  enlisted  May  21,  1861 ;  promoted  to  third  sergeant; 
slightly  wounded  at  Shiloh ;  lost  a  leg;  discharged  April  6,  1863. 

Reayer,  James  H.,  entered  Second  Veteran  Infantry  June  21,  1864. 

Ruby,  Samuel  G.,  Eighth  Corps;  enlisted  May  21,  1861 ;  discharged  July  8, 
1862,  for  disability. 

Tidrick,  Miller  R.,  enlisted  May  20,  1861 ;  appointed  commissary  sergeant 
June  8,  1861 ;  promoted  October  22,  1861 ;  resigned  May  23,  1862. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  191 

Warner,  Ephraim  P.,  enlisted  May  21,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Shiloh;  discharged 
September  12,  1862. 

FOURTH  INFANTRY 

COMPANY    B 

Moore,  John,  enlisted  July  10,  1861. 

COMPANY  F 

Unless  otherwise  specified,  the  members  of  this  company  enlisted  July  i,  1861. 

Henry  J.  B.  Cummings,  captain ;  transferred  to  Thirty-ninth  Infantry,  Septem- 
ber 14,  1862,  with  the  rank  of  colonel. 

Robert  A.  Stitt,  first  lieutenant ;  appointed  adjutant  May  28,  1862 ;  promoted  to 
captain,  September  12,  1862;  wounded  at  Vicksburg;  resigned  December  6,  1863. 

John  S.  Goshom,  second  lieutenant ;  resigned  April  22,  1862. 

William  McCreery,  enlisted  July  i,  1861 ;  first  sergeant. 

Leander  Pitzer,  second  sergeant;  promoted  to  second  lieutenant  April  14, 
1862;  promoted  to  first  lieutenant  May,  1862;  wounded  at  Vicksburg,  December 
29,  1862;  died  of  wounds  at  Paducah,  January  23,  1863. 

Daniel  E.  Cooper,  third  sergeant;  promoted  to  second  lieutenant  June  i,  1862; 
promoted  to  captain,  December  27,  1863 ;  resigned  September  30,  1864. 

John  F.  Smith,  enlisted  July  i,  1861,  fourth  sergeant. 

Thomas  M.  Stiffler,  fifth  sergeant;  wounded  at  Chickasaw  Bayou  and  Vicks- 
burg; died  of  wound  August  14,  1863. 

James  Bunson,  enlisted  July  i,  1861,  first  corporal;  discharged  April  3,  1862, 
for  rheumatism. 

John  Faurote,  third  corporal ;  promoted  to  first  corporal. 

William  Porter,  second  corporal ;  discharged  April  3,  1862,  for  rheumatism. 

James  H.  Stafford,  fifth  corporal;  promoted  to  second  corporal;  wounded  at 
Chickasaw  Bayou;  killed  in  action  at  Cherokee,  October  23,  1863. 

John  M.  Cooper,  private ;  promoted  to  sixth  corporal,  April  3,  1862 ;  first  lieu- 
tenant, December  2^,  1863;  mustered  out  as  private  September  4,  1864,  commis- 
sion being  revoked. 

William  H.  Fowkes,  fourth  corporal;  discharged  for  rheumatism,  April  3, 
1862. 

George  W.  Tibbies,  sixth  corporal ;  promoted  to  third  corporal. 

Adoniram  J.  Tisdale,  seventh  corporal ;  promoted  to  fourth  corporal ;  promoted 
to  second  lieutenalnt,  January  25,  1863 ;  promoted  to  captain,  September  30,  1864, 
vice  Coopei:  resigning. 

George  D.  Sullivan,  eighth  corporal ;  promoted  to  fifth  corporal,  December  26, 
1861. 

Abraham  Guilliams,  musician;  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge,  March  7,  1862. 

William  Guilliams,  musician. 

Wilford  W.  Crandall,  wagoner;  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge;  taken  prisoner  at 
Clayville,  Arkansas. 

Privates 

AUoway,  Benjamin  F.,  enlisted  August  21,  1862;  died  at  White  River,  Arkan- 
sas, July  8,  1863. 


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192  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Ambreast,  Casper,  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge. 

Anderson,  Elisha. 

Archer,  Henry  H.,  enlisted  March  ii,  1864. 

Ault,  Augustus,  enlisted  February  27,  1864. 

Barrett,  Joseph,  promoted  seventh  corporal,  April  3,  1862. 

Bird,  Anderson,  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge. 

Brinson,  David  A.,  enlisted  August  21,  1862 ;  died  at  Young's  Point,  Louisiana, 
February  7,  1863,  of  disease. 

Brinson,  James,  discharged  for  disability  April  3,  1862. 

Brinson,  Thomas,  enlisted  August  21,  1862;  discharged  for  disability  at 
Young's  Point,  Louisiana,  February  7,  1863. 

Brinson,  William,  enlisted  August  21,  1862. 

Baker,  David  E.,  discharged  August  5,  1863. 

Banta,  Henry  D.,  appointed  hospital  steward,  January  i,  1862. 

Bell,  Rufus,  promoted  to  eighth  corporal;  promoted  seventh  corporal;  mus- 
tered out  July  24,  1865. 

Brooks,  Gilbert  M.,  mustered  out  September  4,  1864. 

Bruce,  John  R.,  enlisted  March  21,  1862. 

Burdick,  Albert  M.,  wounded  in  face  at  Pea  Ridge ;  discharged  at  Black  River, 
Mississippi,  August  18,  1863. 

Cason,  John  J.,  enlisted  August  21,  1862;  discharged  June  12,  1863. 

Cason,  Joshua  H.,  discharged  September  28,  1864,  for  disability. 

Clary,  Henry  C,  enlisted  August  21,  1862;  mustered  out  July  24,  1865. 

Qine,  William  R.,  enlisted  November  15,  1861 ;  discharged  August  4,  1863. 

Collins,  Milton,  wounded  at  Vicksburg;  died  at  Vicksburg,  July  28,  1863. 

Compton,  James  R.,  taken  prisoner  at  Clayville,  Arkansas. 

Conard,  Jackson,  discharged  May  16,  1862,  at  Bates ville,  Arkansas.  . 

Conard,  John,  mustered  out  July  24,  1865. 

Conard,  Joshua,  mustered  out  July  24,  1865. 

Curry,  William  R.,  enlisted  July  i,  1861. 

Darby,  John  E.,  enlisted  March  31,  1864;  discharged  June  18,  1865. 

Davis,  George  B.,  enlisted  July  8,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge. 

Davis,  William  H.,  enlisted  March  19,  1864. 

Debusk,  Elihu,  died  of  fever  at  Rolla,  November  17,  1861. 

Debusk,  Isaac,  enlisted  November  15,  1861 ;  died  of  grief  at  Cassville,  Mis- 
souri, March  16,  1S62, 

Debusk,  William  S.,  died  of  wounds  at  Pea  Ridge. 

Decker,  Ethel,  enlisted  July  i,  1861. 

Dorrance,  Alexander  P.,  enlisted  August  15,  1862;  killed  at  Walnut  Hills,  Mis- 
sissippi, May  19,  1863. 

Dorrance,  James  H.,  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge  and  Chickasaw. 

Dunsmore,  Daniel  G.,  enlisted  July  i,  1861. 

Easton,  John  A.,  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge,  discharged  at  St.  Louis. 

Epperson,  James  M.,  discharged  for  tetanus,  September  18,  1861. 

Evans,  Jesse  B.,  discharged  for  disability  March  14,  1864. 

Faqua,  Charles  B.,  enlisted  April  11,  1864. 

Faqua,  John  H.,  enlisted  April  11,  1864. 

Flanigan,  William,  discharged  May  16,  1862,  at  Batesville,  Arkansas. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  193 

Ford,  Ivan  S.,  enlisted  February  29,  1864. 

Fowler,  Thomas  M.,  discharged  at  Keokuk,  November  24,  1864. 

Fuqua,  John  H.,  enlisted  July  i,  1861 ;  mustered  out  July  24,  1865. 

Garrett,  Andrew. 

Gearhard,  Abrani,  discharged  at  Batesville,  May  16,  1862. 

Gilliland,  Daniel  W.,  enlisted  April  2,  1862. 

Goodwin,  William  H.  H.,  wounded  at  Vicksburg. 

Guilliams,  Benton  C.,  enlisted  March  19,  1864. 

Guilliams,  George,  discharged  for  wounds  March  23,  1865. 

Harris,  Samuel  B.,  enlisted  July  10,  1861. 

Hess,  William  J.,  enlisted  November  i,  1862;  discharged  November  21,  1862. 

Holliday,  John  Milton,  enlisted  January  i,  1862;  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge;  dis- 
charged. 

Hood,  J.  K.  P.,  enlisted  March  28,  1864. 

Jessup,  Isaac,  enlisted  August  15,  1862;  transferred  to  Invalid  Corps,  August 
28,  1864. 

Jumper,  George  W.,  discharged  December  18,  1861 ;  for  rheumatism. 

Kelley,  Alfred,  enlisted  October  15,   1861 ;  wounded  at  Chickasaw  Bayou, 
December  29,  1862 ;  died  at  Paducah,  Kentucky,  January  19,  1863. 

Kelley,  John  H.,  enlisted  July  10,  1861 ;  promoted  to  first  lieutenant,  Novem- 
ber II,  1864. 

Kelso,  William  C,  enlisted  March  29,  1864. 

Kinkennon,  N.  W.,  enlisted  August  15,  1862;  transferred  April  28,  1864,  to 
Invalid  Corps. 

Kinkennon,  Jacob  P.,  enlisted  November  15,  1861 ;  discharged  May  15,  1862. 

Laflin,  William  A.,  enlisted  November  15,  1861 ;  transferred  to  Invalid  Corps, 
January  15,  1864. 

Logan,  William,  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge;  discharged  December  20,  1862. 

McConkey,  Phineas,  enlisted  November  15,  1861. 

Mackey,  Thomas,  enlisted  February  27,  1864. 

Mackey,  William  J.,  enlisted  November  15,  1861. 

Martin,  Andrew  C,  discharged  December  i,  1862. 

Moore,  Anderson,  enlisted  August  16,  1862;  wounded  at  Chickasaw  Bayou; 
discharged  June  6,  1863. 

Nicholson,  Dwight,  promoted  to  eighth  corporal,  April  3,  1862. 

Osbom,  Philip,  enlisted  August  28,  1862 ;  died  at  Young's  Point,  February  22, 
1863. 

Pearce,  James  H.,  enlisted  April  7,  1864;  killed  in  action  at  Kenesaw  Moun- 
tain, June  27,  1864. 

Ray,  Isaac,  enlisted  August  12,  1862. 

Reel,  Thomas  A.,  enlisted  November  15,  1861 ;  died  at  Kewanna,  Indiana, 
March  20,  1864. 

Runkle,  John  M.,  enlisted  November  15,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Chickasaw  Bayou 
and  discharged. 

Scott,  John  W.,  enlisted  August  21,  1862;  wounded  at  Vicksburg;  died  at 
Young's  Point,  Louisiana,  1863. 

Sherfy,  Jacob  D.,  enlisted  November  15,  1861 ;  died  February  5,  1863. 

Vol.  1—13 


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194  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Shortess,  Chris  C,  enlisted  November  15,  1861 ;  died  of  measles,  February  r6, 
1862. 

Smith,  George  W.,  wounded  at  Chickasaw  Bayou;  captured  February  2,  1864. 

Smith,  Isaac  N.,  enlisted  March  21,  1864. 

Smith,  John  W.,  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge,  March  7,  1864;  died  March  17,  at 
Cassville,  Missouri,  of  wounds. 

Smith,  Orseneth  F.,  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge;  discharged  October  30,  1864. 

Smith,  Thomas  P.,  enlisted  February  20,  1864. 

Stafford,  Oliver  P.,  enlisted  August  12,  1862 ;  discharged  February  19,  1863. 

Starks,  Doane,  enlisted  July  i,  1861. 

Sturman,  James,  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge,  March  7;  died  March  11,  1862. 

Sturman,  John  J.,  enlisted  July  i,  1861. 

Stewart,  Elisha  C,  wounded  at  Pea  Ridge. 

Stiffler,  George  L.,  enlisted  November  15,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Chickasaw  Bayou. 

Stiffler,  Henry,  wounded  at  Chickasaw  Bayou,  August  3,  1863. 

Stiffler,  John  W.,  enlisted  February  27,  1864;  mustered  out  for  reenlistment. 

Tedford,  Alexander  H.,  wounded  at  Chickasaw  Bluffs ;  died  February  9,  1863. 

Tibbies,  Charles  E.,  taken  prisoner  at  Clayville,  Arkansas. 

Tilton,  Roswell  S.,  enlisted  November  15,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Chickasaw  Bayou. 

Troutman,  William  F.,  enlisted  November  15,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Chickasaw 
Bayou. 

Van  Doren,  Corydon,  enlisted  November  15,  1861. 

Venard,  Sylvester,  transferred  to  Invalid  Corps. 

Walker,  William  M.,  enlisted  February  23,  1864;  died  October  16,  1865,  at 
Marietta,  Georgia. 

Wilderson,  Charles  E.,  died  of  disease  at  Wilmington,  North  Carolina,  April 
25,  1865.  t 

Wilderson,  Samuel,  enlisted  July  i,  1861. 

Williams,  Joseph  D.,  died  September  17,  1861,  from  hernia. 

Williams,  Joseph  W.,  discharged  for  disability  May  16,  1862. 

Williamson,  John  H.,  wounded  at  Chickasaw  Bluffs;  died  at  Young's  Point 
of  wounds,  February  14,  1863. 

TENTH  INFANTRY 

COMPANY    K 

George  Gregory,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  commissioned  second  lieutenant 
January  8,  1862;  wounded  at  Champion  Hills,  resigned  July  31,  1863. 

David  S.  Smith,  enlisted  September  2,  1861,  first  sergeant;  wounded  at  Cham- 
pion Hills,  May  16,  1863;  promoted  second  lieutenant,  August  i,  1863;  killed  at 
Missouri  Ridge,  November  23,  1863. 

Oziah  A.  Moser,  enlisted  May  i,  1861,  fifth  sergeant;  wounded  at  Vicksburg; 
discharged  March  7,  1862. 

J.  P.  Lytle,  enlisted  September  2,  1861,  fourth  corporal;  killed  at  Champion 
Hills. 

Alexander  Eskew,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  promoted  to  corporal. 

P.  V.  Carpenter,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  sixth  sergeant ;  wounded  at 
Corinth,  October  4,  1862;  discharged  February  12,  1863. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  195 

Samuel  T.  Ferguson,  enlisted  September  2,  1862;  promoted  to  eighth  corporal; 
killed  at  Champion  Hills. 

John  W.  Stiffler,  enlisted  September  28,  1861,  second  sergeant;  promoted 
second  lieutenant,  August  i,  1863;  killed  at  Missionary  Ridge,  November  25,  1863. 

Privates 

Ansley,  Josiah  D.,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  discharged  April  18,  1862. 

Arnold,  Eli,  enlisted  September  2,   1861. 

Bell,  Allen,  enlisted  September  13,  1862. 

Bell,  J.,  enlisted  December  16,  1861. 

Boardman,  Mahlen  N.,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Charleston, 
Missouri,  June  8,  1862;  discharged  October  27,  1862. 

Bowers,  Alanson,  enlisted  November  30,  1861 ;  discharged  November  30,  1862. 

Brown,  James  B.,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  discharged  April  18,  1862. 

Burson,  Clement,  September  2,  1861 ;  discharged  March  23,  1862. 

Clary,  Cyrus  C,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  died  at  Mound  City,  Indiana^ 
April  II,  1862. 

Clary,  David,  enlisted  September  2,  1861.  i; 

Dillman,  Samuel  A.,  enlisted  December  3,  1861.  J"' 

Grover,  Amos,  enlisted  September  2,  1861. 

Johnson,  G.  W.,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  died  at  Cape  Girardeau,  Missouri, 
November  13,  1861,  of  fever. 

Keebles,  William  H.,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Champion  Hills; 
veteranized  January  i,  1864. 

Keys,  William  J.,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Chattanooga,  No- 
vember 25,  1863;  veteranized  February  i,  1864. 

Lympus,  Nathan  S.,  enlisted  December,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Charleston,  Mis- 
souri, January  8,  1862. 

McNeeley,  James,  enlisted  December  16,  1861 ;  discharged  July  16,  1862. 

Mark,  Andrew,  enlisted  December  4,  1861 ;  discharged  April  20,  1862. 

Myers,  Jonathan  G.,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Champion 
Hills;  died  May  25,  1863. 

Northern,  Bartley,  enlisted  December  14,  1861. 

Parker,  Milton,  enlisted  December  7,  1861 ;  discharged  at  Corinth,  October 
16,  1862. 

Spencer,  Alexander  G.,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability, 
April  22,  1862. 

Stiffler,  James  H.,  enlisted  September  2,  1861. 

Thomas,  Willis,  enlisted  December  7,  1861 ;  discharged  April  22,  1862,  for 
disability. 

Tomey,  James,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  captured  at  Chattanooga,  Novem- 
ber 25,  1863;  died  at  Andersonville  prison.  May  23,  1864. 

Westerman,  Adolph,  enlisted  September  2,  1861 ;  discharged  at  Hamburg, 
April  28,  1862. 

Young,  Jesse  C,  enlisted  November  30,  1861 ;  mustered  out  December  19,  1861. 

FIFTEENTH  IOWA  INFANTRY 

COMPANY    A 

Benedict,  Dewitt  C. 


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196  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

COMPANY    B 

Anderson,  George. 

Brittin,  Joseph  D.,  enlisted  October  2,  1861 ;  mustered  out  November  9,  1861 ; 
died  of  smallpox,  May  6,  1862,  at  Pittsburg  Landing,  Tenn. 

Burger,  August  F.,  enlisted  September  29,  1861 ;  promoted  seventh  corporal, 
November  14,  1864;  sixth  corporal,  January  i,  1865;  fifth  corporal,  March  14, 
1865;  fourth  corporal,  April  14,  1865;  mustered  out  July  24,  1865,  at  Louisville, 
Kentucky. 

Burger,  Frederick,  enlisted  March  31,  1864;  wounded  in  left  hand,  August  26, 
1864,  near  Atlanta,  Georgia;  mustered  out  July  24,  1865,  at  Louisville,  Kentucky. 

Cracroft,  Milton  T.,  enlisted  September  17,  1861 ;  mustered  out  July  24,  1865, 
at  Louisville,  Kentucky. 

Folwell,  James  D.,  enlisted  September  23,  1861 ;  discharged  March  23 ;  died 
of  phthisis,  December  8,  1862. 

Folwell,  John  M.,  enlisted  September  23,  1861 ;  promoted  eighth  corporal, 
November  26,  1862;  fifth  corporal;  died  of  congestive  chills,  August  28,  1863, 
at  Vicksburg,  Mississippi. 

Hubbard,  Isaac  D.,  enlisted  October  2,  1861 ;  wounded  July  21,  1864,  near 
Atlanta,  Georgia ;  died  of  wounds  July  24,  1864. 

Moore,  John  H. 

Powell,  Elihu. 

Quinnett,  Vandamon. 

Reigle,  Benjamin,  enlisted  September  23,  1861 ;  died  of  pneumonia  at  Win- 
terset  May  12,  1862. 

Spethman,  Leopold,  enlisted  September  23,  1861 ;  discharged  March  9',  1863, 
for  disability. 

Watson,  Joseph  H.,  enlisted  October  2,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability  Febru- 
ary 6,  1863,  at  Vicksburg,  Mississippi. 

Wiggans,  Van  Buren,  enlisted  September  18,  1861 ;  second  sergeant;  resigned 
and  discharged  for  disability,  September  30,  1862. 

SIXTEENTH   IOWA  INFANTRY 

COMPANY  G 

Schoen,  William,  enlisted  October  i,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability,  Sep- 
tember 12,  1862,  at  Keokuk,  Iowa. 

TWENTY-THIRD  INFANTRY 

COMPANY  E 

Evans,  Lorenzo  D.,  enlisted  June  14,  1862. 

COMPANY  G 

Clanton,  Thomas  H.,  enlisted  January  25,  1865. 
Collins,  Henry,  enlisted  January  25,  1865. 
Conn,  Francis  M.,  enlisted  January  25,  1865. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  197 

Fincher,  Benjamin  W.,  enlisted  January  25,  1865  5  transferred  to  Twenty-ninth 
Iowa  Infantry. 

Greer,  John  L.,  enlisted  January  25,  1865  J  transferred  to  Twenty-ninth  Iowa 
Infantry  July  23,  1865. 

Ilor,  George,  enlisted  January  25,  1865;  transferred  to  Twenty-ninth  Iowa 
Infantry. 

Mullan,  John,  enlisted  January  25,  1865;  transferred  to  Twenty-ninth  Iowa 
Infantry  July  23, 1865. 

Pursinger,  Isaac  A.,  enlisted  January  25,  1865 ;  died  March  18,  1865,  at  Fort 
Gaines,  Alabama. 

COMPANY  H 

James  F.  Goolman,  enlisted  July  22,  1862;  commissioned  captain  September 
19;  resigned  June  24,  1863. 

Sylvester  G.  Beckwith,  enlisted  July  22,  1862;  commissioned  first  lieutenant 
September  19,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River  Bridge;  died  of  wound  June  5,  1863. 

William  Mills,  enlisted  August  27,  1862;  commissioned  second  lieutenant 
August  2^'^  resigned  August  26,  1863. 

John  D.  Wight  Ewing,  enlisted  July  22,  1862;  first  sergeant;  promoted  to 
second  lieutenant;  wounded  at  Black  River  Bridge;  died  at  Memphis  of  disease 
July  20,  1863. 

John  E.  Roberts,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  third  sergeant. 

John  D.  Craven,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  third  sergeant. 

Andrew  C.  Beerbower,  enlisted  July  23,  1862;  fourth  sergeant;  killed  at  Milli- 
ken's  Bend,  Louisiana,  June  7,  1863. 

John  Miller,  enlisted  August  9,  1862 ;  fifth  sergeant ;  promoted  to  first  sergeant ; 
wounded  at  Black  River  Bridge,  Mississippi,  May  17,  1863;  died  May  19. 

Zenas  Whaley,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  first  corporal. 

Robert  A.  Matthews,  enlisted  July  24,  1862;  second  corporal;  discharged  June 
3,  1863,  for  disability. 

John  Myers,  enlisted  August  9,  1862 ;  third  corporal. 

Seymour  B.  Williams,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  fourth  corporal;  wounded  at 
Spanish  Fort,  Alabama,  March  30,  1865 ;  died  April  2,  1865. 

Thomas  S.  Myers,  enlisted  August  4,  1862;  fifth  corporal;  discharged  for 
disability  March  23,  1865. 

John  Hamblin,  enlisted  August  4,  1862;  sixth  corporal. 

Jesse  Truitt,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  seventh  corporal;  wounded  at  Black 
River  Bridge,  Mississippi,  May  17,  1863. 

Bevoni  C.  Howell,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  eighth  corporal;  discharged  for 
disability  August  26,  1863. 

Lewis  Kimer,  enlisted  August  12,  1862;  musician. 

William  C.  Jones,  enlisted  August  2,  1862 ;  wagoner. 

Privates 

Armstrong,  James  F.,  enlisted  March  29,  1864. 

Balentine,  Alexander  J.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  died  October  10,  1863, 
on  steamer  Southwester. 


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198  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Barker,  Thomas  C,  enlisted  July  26,  1862;  discharged  for  disability  March 
13,  1863. 

Berry,  Benjamin  H.,  enlisted  July  20,  1862. 

Berry,  William  T.,  enlisted  July  20,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River  Bridge; 
promoted  to  corporal;  died  at  Vicksburg  of  disease  August  11,  1863. 

Bishop,  Ransom,  enlisted  August  11,  1862;  died  February  27,  1863,  at  Iron 
Mountain,  Missouri. 

Breeding,  James  E.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  discharged  for  disability  March 
2,  1863. 

Brooks,  Hiram  C,  enlisted  August  9,  1862 ;  died  September  3,  1863,  ^^  Win- 
terset. 

Bowse,  James,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Carey,  Marion,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Casteel,  Isaac,  enlisted  July  21,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River  Bridge. 

Compton,  David,  enlisted  July  31,  1862. 

Compton,  John  F.,  enlisted  August  i,  1862;  discharged  April  10,  1863,  for 
disability. 

Conrad,  Samuel,  enlisted  August  12,  1862. 

Cooper,  Henry,  enlisted  August  i,  1862. 

Cregmiles,  William  A.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Crumbaker,  Andrew  J.,  enlisted  July  28,  1862;  died  of  fever  at  Memphis 
July  3,  1863. 

Davidson,  Daniel  N.,  enlisted  August  13,  1862;  promoted  to  corporal;  died  at 
Vicksburg  July  31,  1863. 

Drake,  Curtis  M.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862 ;  died  of  measles  at  St.  Louis  No- 
vember 3,  1862. 

Dtunstry,  August,  enlisted  July  24,  1862;  died  at  Black  River  Bridge  April 
25,  1863. 

Evans,  Lorenzo  D.,  enlisted  June  14,  1862 ;  mustered  out  July  26,  1865. 

Folks,  Morgan  O.,  enlisted  July  9,  1862;  discharged  February  16,  1863,  ^^r 
disability. 

Forster,  Aaron  M.,  enlisted  August  2,  1862. 

Ford,  Lewis,  enlisted  July  26,  1862 ;  discharged  May  19,  1863,  ^^r  disability. 

Gibbons,  Joseph  A.,  enlisted  July  21,  1862;  died  July  9,  1863,  at  Black  River 
Bridge,  of  disease. 

Goe,  William  G.,  enlisted  July  5,  1862;  died  July  8,  1863,  at  Vicksburg. 

Green,  John  C,  enlisted  March  28,  1864;  died  at  Limesport,  Louisiana, 
October  6, 1864. 

Green,  John  L.,  enlisted  July  2,  1862;  discharged  August  8,  1863,  for  dis- 
ability. 

Hamblin,  Columbus  C,  enlisted  July  26,  1862;  died  August  16,  1863,  ^^ 
Memphis. 

Harlow,  William  R.,  enlisted  August  8,  1863;  discharged  November  15,  1864, 
for  disability. 

Hecock,  Samuel  C,  enlisted  July  i,  1862. 

Hecock,  William,  enlisted  August  12,  1862. 

Henkle,  Joseph,  enlisted  August  18,  1862;  discharged  November  9,  1864,  for 
disability. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  199 

Hiatt,  Nathan  W.,  enlisted  July  21,  1862;  wounded  at  Port  Gibson  May  i, 
1863 ;  died  at  DuvaFs  Bluff,  December  2^,  1864. 

Hubbard,  Cyrus  C,  enlisted  August  5,  1862;  died  January  27,  1863,  en  route 
to  Rolla,  Missouri. 

Jesse,  William  T.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River  Ridge 
May  17,  1863. 

Johns,  Abijah  B.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  died  August  16,  1863,  at  St.  Charles, 
Arkansas. 

Johnson,  Benjamin,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Kendall,  John,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  discharged  November  17,  1862,  for 
disability. 

Kinnaird,  George  H.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Kirk,  Charles  W.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Lane,  Reuben  C,  enlisted  August  2,  1862. 

Lee,  Reuben  G.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862 ;  died  at  Patterson,  Missouri,  October 
22,  1862. 

Likins,  John  M.,  enlisted  August  2,  1862;  died  at  Milliken's  Bend,  July  20, 
1863. 

Lynch,  Robert,  enlisted  March  19,  1864;  transferred  to  Twenty-ninth  Iowa 
Infantry,  July  23,  1865. 

Lynch,  Peter  S.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Mahew,  William  M.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Mann,  James  W.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Marchel,  John,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Marley,  Alexander,  enlisted  July  31,  1863. 

Matthews,  Richard,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  discharged  November  17,  1862. 

McBee,  James,  enlisted  August  8,  1862;  discharged  for  disability,  August  8, 
1863. 

McClintock,  John  E.,  enlisted  December  28,  1863;  transferred  to  Veteran 
Reserve  Corps,  June  17,  1864. 

McClintock,  James  M.,  enlisted  August  11,  1862;  died  at  New  Orleans,  No- 
vember II,  1863. 

•McDaniel,  Allen  H.,  enlisted  July  22,   1862. 

McWiUiams,  Samuel  M.,  enlisted  July  31,  1862;  died  of  disease,  November 
13,  1862. 

Mount,  William  A.,  enlisted  August  14,  1862;  discharged  May  19,  1863,  ^^r 
disability. 

Myers,  Asahel  W.,  enlisted  August  8,  1863. 

Noble,  John,  enlisted  December  2,  1863. 

Noble,  William,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Oldham,  Jesse,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Peter,  Zachariah  G.,  enlisted  August  5,  1862. 

Porter,  George  W.,  enlisted  March  21,  1864. 

Powell,  Rolando,  enlisted  August  6,  1862 ;  died  August  28,  1863,  at  Memphis. 

Pursinger,  Morgan  D.,  enlisted  August  9,   1862;  wounded  at  Black  River 
Bridge. 

Pursinger,  William  W.,  enlisted  August  12,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River 
Bridge,  May  17,  1863. 


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200  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Reel,  William  H.,  enlisted  August  i8,  1862. 

Richmond,  William  S.,  enlisted  August  15,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River 
Bridge. 

Rollins,  Caleb,  enlisted  August  12,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River  Bridge. 

Rollins,  Isaac  L.,  enlisted  July  26,  1862 ;  transferred  to  Veteran  Corps. 

Rollins,  John  J.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  wounded  at  Spanish  Fort,  Alabama. 

Shepherd,  Alexander  S.,  enlisted  August  4,  1862. 

Shipley,  John  L.,  enlisted  August  20,  1863. 

Shoemaker,  William  W.,  enlisted  July  26,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River 
Bridge. 

Short,  Hubbard  S.,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Smith,  James,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River  Bridge; 
died  of  wounds  August  11,  1863. 

Stephens,  Joel  R.,  enlisted  August  11,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River  Bridge. 

Utter,  H.  L.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Weaver,  Ephraim  B.,  enlisted  February  26,  1864. 

Weaver,  William  J.,  enlisted  March  26,  1864;  transferred  to  Twenty-ninth 
Infantry,  July  23,  1865. 

Weeks,  Finley  G.,  enlisted  August  i,  1862. 

Wilder,  Nahum  E.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River  Bridge 
and  Spanish  Fort. 

Williams,  Joseph  C,  enlisted  August  16,  1862 ;  wounded  at  Black  River  Bridge, 
May  17,  1863,  and  at  Spanish  Fort,  Alabama,  March  30,  1865. 

Wine,  Elijah  S.,  enlisted  August  12,  1862. 

Wine,  George  S.,  enlisted  January  23,  1864. 

Winkley,  Luther  W.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  wounded  at  Black  River 
Bridge. 

Youhg,  William  E.,  enlisted  August  12,  1862;  died  at  Vicksburg,  of  disease, 
June  28,  1863. 

Young,  Eugene  M.,  enlisted  March  16,  1864. 

Young,  Henry  L.,  enlisted  March  16,  1864;  died  at  St.  Charles,  Arkansas,  of 
fever,  August  i,  1864. 

THIRTY-FOURTH  INFANTRY 

COMPANY   C 

Martin,  Robert  E.,  first  sergeant;  promoted  second  lieutenant,  January  14, 
1863;  promoted  to  first  lieutenant  Company  B,  consolidated  regiment,  March 
5,  1863. 

Harbison,  Mathew  H.,  eighth  corporal;  died  at  Memphis,  January  20,  1863. 

Monteith,  John  W.,  musician. 

Privates 

Harbison,  William  P.,  discharged  April  6,  1863,  at  Chicago,  for  disability. 
McGinnis,  George,  died  April  21,  1863,  at  St.  Louis. 
Way,  John  C,  enlisted  August  13,  1862. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  201 

COMPANY   H 

Blosser,  Noah,  died  February  6,  1863,  at  St.  Lx)uis. 
Blosser,  Christian,  enlisted  August  19,  1862. 
Potter,  WiUiam  J.,  enHsted  August  19,  1862. 

Reed,  John  R.,  enlisted  August  20,  1862;  discharged  June  21,  1864,  ^^^  dis- 
ability. 

Sheldon,  David,  enlisted  August  19,  1862. 

Stichler,  Samuel  A.,  discharged  April  13,  1863,  at  St.  Louis,  disability. 

Stichler,  Mathias,  died  March  4,  1864,  at  New  Orleans. 

THIRTY-NINTH  INFANTRY 

H.  J.  B.  Cummings,  colonel. 

Frederick  Mott,  quartermaster;  enlisted  and  commissioned  September  15, 
1862;  appointed  captain  and  A.  A.  G.,  February  3,  1865. 

William  L.  Leonard,  assistant  surgeon ;  enlisted  and  commissioned  September 
17,  1862. 

Thomas  J.  Taylor,  chaplain;  enlisted  and  commissioned  October  3,  1862; 
resigned  July  13,  1863. 

John  M.  Andrews,  quartermaster  sergeant;  enlisted  August  17,  1862;  ap- 
pointed November  24,  1862. 

COMPANY  A 

George  N.  Elliott,  captain;  enlisted  August  8,  1862;  commissioned  November 
24,  1862;  promoted  to  major;  promoted  to  lieutenant  colonel.  May  4,  1864;  mus- 
tered out  as  major. 

Oliver  C.  Ayers,  first  lieutenant;  enlisted  August  8,  1862;  commissioned 
November  24,  1862. 

Jonathan  B.  Rawls,  second  lieutenant;  enlisted  August  11,  1862;  wounded  at 
Parker's  Cross  Roads,  December  31,  1862;  resigned  April  2,  1864. 

John  P.  Jones,  first  sergeant;  enlisted  August  11,  1862;  wounded  at  Parker's 
Cross  Roads;  killed  at  Allatoona,  October  5,  1864. 

Philip  M.  Boyles,  second  sergeant;  enlisted  August  12,  1862;  discharged 
September  9,  1863. 

James  F.  Brock,  third  sergeant;  enlisted  August  13,  1862;  captured  at  Alla- 
toona, October  5,  1864. 

Thomas  Ansley,  fourth  sergeant;  enlisted  August  8,  1862;  died  at  Davenport, 
December  24,  1862. 

Samuel  S.  Guiberson,  fifth  sergeant ;  enlisted  August  8,  1862 ;-  promoted  to 
fourth  sergeant,  December  31,  1862;  first  lieutenant  and  then  captain,  January 
28,  1865. 

Charles  T.  Jones,  first  corporal;  enlisted  August  14,  1862. 

David  Applegate,  second  corporal;  enlisted  August  8,  1862. 

Martin  B.  Ruby,  third  corporal;  enlisted  August  13,  1862;  killed  at  Allatoona, 
October  5, 1864. 

Charles  S.  Armstrong,  fourth  corporal ;  enlisted  August  8,  1862 ;  promoted  to 
fifth  sergeant,  December  31,  1862;  promoted  to  first  sergeant  and  first  lieutenant, 
March  26,  1865. 


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202  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

James  S.  Wallace,  fifth  corporal;  enlisted  August  ii,  1862. 

John  S.  Tullis,  sixth  corporal;  enlisted  August  11,  1862;  wounded  at  Alla- 
toona;  discharged  February  24,  1865. 

John  W.  Barber,  seventh  corporal ;  enlisted  August  14,  1862 ;  discharged  De- 
cember 15,  1863. 

Jesse  Williams,  eighth  corporal ;  enlisted  August  13,  1862 ;  wounded  at  Parker's 
Cross  Roads. 

Benjamin  F.  Bowlsby,  musician;  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

William  N.  White,  musician ;  enlisted  August  14,  1862. 

John  S.  Maggs,  wagoner;  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Privates 

Alexander,  James  F.,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Allcock,  Lorenzo  W.,  enlisted  August  8,  1862 ;  promoted  to  corporal ;  wounded 
at  AUatoona;  discharged  March  13,  1865. 

Allen,  Benjamin,  enlisted  August,  1862-;  died  at  Davenport,  November  20, 1862. 

Allen,  Isaac,  enlisted  August  8,  1862. 

Bates,  Lewis  F.,  enlisted  August  8,  1862 ;  wounded  at  Parker's  Cross  Roads. 

Bethel,  George  W.,  enlisted  August  16,  1862. 

Betts,  George  W.,  enlisted  August  12,  1862. 

Bertholf,  John  W.,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Boling,  James  W.,  enlisted  August  8,  1862;  captured  at  Parker's  Cross  Roads; 
discharged  April  4,  1863. 

Breeding,  Joseph  A.,  enlisted  August  12,  1862;  discharged  August  24,  1863. 

Brittain,  Alfred,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Brittain,  Pleasant,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Brown,  Edward,  enlisted  August  14,  1862;  wounded  at  Parker's  Cross  Roads; 
died  at  Jackson,  Mississippi,  of  wounds,  February  27,  1863. 

Brown,  George,  enlisted  August  12,  1862. 

Brown,  Thomas,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  wounded  at  Parker's  Cross  Roads. 

Cady,  Henry,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Carter,  Benjamin  F.,  enlisted  August  14,  1862;  discharged  February  25,  1863. 

Cassiday,  F.  Marion,  enlisted  August  13,  1862. 

Chase,  Henry  M.,  enlisted  August  14,  1862;  captured  at  Parker's  Cross  Roads. 

Chase,  George  B.,  enlisted  August  10,  1862. 

Church,  Benjamin  F.,  enlisted  August  13,  1862. 

Compton,  Martin,  enlisted  August  14,  1862 ;  discharged  May  27,  1863. 

Connoran,  Edward  F.,  enlisted  August  18,  1862. 

Cook,  John  H.,  enlisted  August  14,  1862. 

Dabney,  Isaac  W.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 
Debord,  Meres  C,  enlisted  August  9,  1862 ;  captured  at  Parker's  Cross  Roads ; 
discharged  June  21,  1864. 

Duncan,  John  M.,  enlisted  August  11,  1862;  captured  at  AUatoona. 

Fleming,  David,  enlisted  August  10,  1862 ;  captured  at  Parker's  Cross  Roads. 

Gatchell,  Albert  A.,  enlisted  August  14,  1862;  wounded  at  AUatoona;  dis- 
charged December  12,  1864. 

Goare,  William,  enlisted  August  13,  1862;  wounded  at  AUatoona,  October  5, 
1864 ;  died  October  25th  of  wounds. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  203 

Harlan,  John  A.  P.,  enlisted  August  12,  1862. 

Hindman,  John,  enlisted  August  11,  1862. 

Hollingsworth,  Elbert,  enlisted  August  13,  1862. 

Houston,  Reuben  J.,  enlisted  February  24,  1864. 

Johnson,  Hosea  H.,  enlisted  August  12,  1862;  captured  at  Shady  Grove, 
Tennessee,  December  31,  1862;  transferred  to  Invalid  Corps. 

Jones,  Caleb  Brinton,  enlisted  August  14,  1862. 

Jones,  Thomas,  enlisted  August  13,  1862;  died  at  Corinth,  March  10,  1863, 
of  fever. 

Kale,  James,  enlisted  August  10,  1862 ;  captured  at  Shady  Grove. 

Kale,  William  J.,  enlisted  February  24,  1864;  killed  at  Allatoona,  October 

5,  1864. 

Kensler,  John,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  captured  at  Shady  Grove. 

Kephart,  Abraham,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Kopp,  Theodore,  enlisted  August  14,  1862;  died  at  Rome,  Georgia,  of  fever, 
August  27,  1864. 

Landis,  Isaac  N.,  enlisted  August  10,  1862;  captured  at  Allatoona. 

Landis,  William  Bird,  enlisted  August  14,  1862;  killed  at  Allatoona,  October 

5,  1864. 

Landon,  Martin  V.  B.,  enlisted  Aiigust  14,  1862. 

Large,  Upton  T.,  enlisted  May  14,  1862;  wounded  at  Allatoona. 

Large,  Patrick,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  died  at  Davenport,  November  19, 
1862. 

Longnacker,  Isaac  S.,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Lovelace,  Brinton,  enlisted  November  14,  1862.     • 

McKibben,  William,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

McKinzie,  Aaron,  enlisted  August  14,  1862;  captured  at  Allatoona. 

McLaughlin,  E.  D.,  enlisted  August  13,  1862. 

Means,  Lewis  F.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Mercer,  Clinton  T.,  enlisted  August  14,  1862;  captured  at  Allatoona. 

Mills,  Albert  C,  enlisted  August  11,  1862;  captured  at  Shady  Grove. 

Mills,  Ephraim,  enlisted  August  22,  1862 ;  captured  at  Shady  Grove. 

Miller,  Benjamin  F.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Morgan,  William,  enlisted  August  10,  1862;  died  at  Winterset,  November  19, 
1862. 

Myers,  Daniel  M.,  enlisted  August  12,  1862;  died  at  Corinth,  May  21,  1863. 

Norman,  Lemuel  M.,  enlisted  August  14,  1862. 

Oglesbee,  John,  enlisted  August  23,  1862;  discharged  January  29,  1864. 

Oglesbee,  Isaiah,  enlisted  August  23,  1862;  wounded  at  Allatoona. 

Peach,  Leander,  enlisted  August  10,  1862;  died  at  Des  Moines,  October  19, 
1862. 

Peach,  Moston  W.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Pendleton,  Henry  C,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  died  at  Corinth,  February  3, 
1863,  of  disease. 

Pontius,  Solomon,  enlisted  August  15,  1862 ;  wounded  at  Parker's  Cross  Roads, 
December  31,  1862;  died  of  wounds,  January  3,  1863. 

Porter,  Isaac,  enlisted  August  12,  1862;  wounded  at  Allatoona;  promoted  to 
first  sergeant  April  24,  1865. 


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204  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Rollstin,  Porter,  enlisted  August  ii,  1862. 

Ratliff,  John  W.,  enlisted  August  18,  1862. 

Ray,  Joseph,  enlisted  August  10,  1862;  died  at  Corinth,  March  13,  1863,  of 
disease. 

Rhodes,  James  M.,  enlisted  August  11,  1862;  discharged  June  24,  1864. 

Rhodes,  Pleasant  M.,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  captured  at  Shady  Grove. 

Rice,  John, .  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Richmond,  John,  enlisted  August  9,  1862. 

Roberts,  Benjamin  F.,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  captured  at  Shady  Grove; 
discharged  June  14,  1865. 

Shupe,  Levi  I.,  enlisted  August  8,  1862 ;  discharged  December  9,  1862. 

Siemiller,  Cyrus,  enlisted  August  9,  1864. 

Smith,  John,  enlisted  August  13,  1862. 

Stickle,  Boyd  J.,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  died  at  Davenport,  December  3, 
1862. 

Swim,  Anthony  J.,  enlisted  August  12,  1862. 

Thomson,  William  D.  enlisted  August  14,  1862. 

Tucker,  Thomas,  enlisted  August  9,  1862;  wounded  at  Parker's  Cross  Roads. 

Walker,  James  Vance,  enlisted  August  9,  1862 ;  discharged  March  14,  1863. 

Whitenack,  Robert  A.,  enlisted  August  ^4,  1862. 

Wood,  Gilbert  D.,  enlisted  August  12,  1862;  captured  at  Shady  Grove;  dis- 
charged March  9,  1863. 

Young,  Robert  M.,  enlisted  February  29,  1864. 

Young,  Newton  W.  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  promoted  to  fourth  sergeant, 
April  24,  1863. 

COMPANY  F 

Joseph  M.  Browne,  captain;  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  wounded  at  Parker's 
Cross  Roads;  resigned  June  15,  1864. 

Adolphus  Bradfield,  first  lieutenant;  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  promoted  to 
captain,  June  16,  1864. 

Thomas  W.  Stiles,  second  lieutenant,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  promoted  to 
captain,  July  14,  1863. 

James  A.  Wright,  first  sergeant;  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  discharged  Jan- 
uary 24,  1864. 

William  Anderson,  second  sergeant ;  enlisted  May  22,  1862. 

John  Lewis,  third  sergeant;  enlisted  August  17,  1862;  died  at  Corinth, 
April  3,   1863. 

John  L.  Williamson,  second  corporal;  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Samuel  M.  Creger,  third  corporal;  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Lauren  M.  Stephens,  fourth  corporal;  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

James  L.  Parks,  fifth  corporal;  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  wounded  at  Alla- 
toona;  discharged  July  6,  1865. 

James  M.  Cord,  sixth  corporal;  enlisted  August  20,  1862;  died  at  Corinth, 
February  6,  1863. 

Joshua  S.  Wallace,  seventh  corporal;  enlisted  August  17,  1863;  discharged 
October  30,  1863. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  205 

Jonathan  A.  Gordon,  musician;  enlisted  November  i,  1862;  discharged  August 
17,  1863. 

Jonathan  Roby,  musician;  enlisted  August  20,  1863. 

Jackson  H.  Kale,  wagoner;  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

James  Fosher,  promoted  from  private  to  first  corporal,  January  11,  1863. 

Privates 

Baker,  Elias,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Baker,  John,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Baker,  Richard,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  discharged  for  disability  April  6, 
1863. 

Beickel,  George,  enlisted  August  17,  1862;  discharged  August  i,  1863. 

Beickel,  Michael,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Bradfield,  Alvin,  enlisted  August  17,  1862;  promoted  fifth  sergeant,  October 
25,  1864. 

Bradshaw,  David,  enlisted  February  25,  1864;  wounded  at  Allatoona;  trans- 
ferred to  Veteran  Reserve  Corps,  April  29,  1865. 

Carmichael,  Moses  A.,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Church,  Othello,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Clear,  John,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Clampitt,  Richard  M.,  enlisted  August  17,  1862;  transferred  to  United  States 
Signal  Corps,  March  28,  1864. 

Clanton,  George,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Clopton,  Robert,  enlisted  August  20,  1862;  died  at  Cairo,  November  7,  1863. 

Conrad,  Timothy,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Creger,  James,  enlisted  August  20,  1862;  died  at  Corinth,  August  29,  1863. 

Davis,  James  R.,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Fife,  Samuel,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Foreman,  George  W.,  enlisted  August  17,  1862;  discharged  April  8,  1863^ 

Fosher,  James,  enlisted  August  17,  1862;  promoted  to  first  corporal,  January 
II,  1863. 

Foster,  Reuben  J.,  enlisted  August  20,  1862,  as  eighth  corporal;  discharged 
February  17,  1863. 

Gordon,  Samuel  A.,  enlisted  August  20,  1862;  discharged  August  2,  1863. 

Griffin,  John,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Hallgarth,  David,  enlisted  August  20,  1862;  discharged  June  21,  1865. 

Harmon,  George,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Henager,  John  J.,  enlisted  August  17,  1862;  wounded  at  Parker's  Cross 
Roads. 

Herren,  Henry,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Hiatt,  Elijah,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Hillen,  James,  enlisted  February  29,  1864;  killed  in  action  at  Allatoona. 

Hollenbeck,  Aaron,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Holmes,  Archibald,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Holmes,  William  W.,  enlisted  August,  1862;  died  at  Athens,  Alabama,  May 
8,  1864. 

Hoselton,  Pumal,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  promoted  second  corporal,  Oc- 
tober 25,  1864. 


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206  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Hubbard,  Martin,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Huglin,  John  G.,  enlisted  August  20,  1862;  wounded  at  Allatoona. 

Keffer,  Samuel,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Landon,  Daniel  J.,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Landers,  Felix,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Lee,  James  M.,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Martin,  James  H.,  enlisted  August  17,  1862;  killed  at  Allatoona. 

Matthews,  S.  W.,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

McClellan,  Benjamin,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

McConnellee,  James,  enlisted  August  20,  1863. 

Miller,  William,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Miller,  Joseph  H.,  enlisted  March  9,  1863;  wounded  at  Allatoona;  died  at 
Rome,  Georgia,  of  wounds,  October  30,  1864. 

Mount,  Edward,  enlisted  January  25,  1864;  wounded  at  Allatoona. 

Nichols,  Amos,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Nickell,  Alexander,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 
•   Nickell,  Isaac,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  killed  in  Allatoona. 

Nickle,  Robert  C,  enlisted  August  22,   1862,  as  fifth  sergeant;  discharged 
for  disability,  September  21,  1863. 

Parker,  Ira,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Parker,  Isaac,  enlisted  February  22,  1864;  killed  at  Allatoona. 

Robinson,  Stephen,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Robinson,  Emery  S.,  enlisted  August  22,  1862. 

Roy,  Thomas,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Scott,  William,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Shannon,  Harvey,  enlisted  August  20,   1862;  wounded  at   Parker*s   Cross 
Roads ;  discharged  April  11,  1864. 

Smith,  Newlin,  enlisted  August  24,  1862. 

Stafford,  James,  enlisted  August  20,  1862;  discharged  January  26,  1863. 

Sutton,  Ezra,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Swearingen,  Thomas  B.,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Thomburg,  William,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  wounded  at  Parker's  Cross 
Roads. 

Wasson,  David  N.,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Walter,  John  H.,  enlisted  August  20,  1862. 

Wheat,  Jefferson,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Wilkins,  William  L.,  enlisted  August  22,  1862,  as  fourth  sergeant;  promoted 
second  sergeant  February  i,  1864. 

Wilkinson,  William  S.,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  wounded  at  Parker's  Cross 
Roads. 

Willis,  Thomas,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  discharged  September  21,  1863. 

Young,  Charles  H.,  enlisted  August  20,  1862;  discharged  February  19,  1863. 

Young,  George  M.,  enlisted  August  22,  1862;  captured  at  Allatoona. 

Young,  James,  enlisted  August  17,  1862. 

Young,  Thomas  C,  enlisted  August  20,  1862;  discharged  April  18,  1865. 

FORTY-SEVENTH  INFANTRY 

Asbury  Nosier,  quartermaster  sergeant ;  promoted  from  private,  Company  E. 
August  3,  1864. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  207 

Joseph  H.  Mack,  hospital  steward ;  promoted  from  private  Company  E. 
Samuel  B.  Cherry,  assistant  surgeon. 

COMPANY    E 

John  S.  Goshom,  captain;  commissioned  June  4,  1864. 

Stiffler,  Abraham  J.,  second  lieutenant ;  commissioned  June  4,  1864. 

William  Bard,  Jr.,  first  sergeant;  May  4,  1864. 

Martin  M.  Gilleran,  second  sergeant;  May  4,  1864. 

Albert  B.  Stafford,  third  sergeant;  May  4,  1864. 

James  B.  Ralston,  first  corporal ;  May  4,  1864. 

John  S.  Bard,  second  corporal;  May  21,  1864. 

Oliver  P.  Stafford,  third  corporal;  May  4,  1864. 

Thomas  Early,  fourth  corporal ;  May  4,  1864. 

Madison  Epperson,  seventh  corporal;  May  9,  1864. 

Frederick  Cline,  eighth  corporal;  May  9,  1864. 

Privates 

Acheson,  Robert  R.,  enlisted  June  4,  1864. 

Amy,  Eugene  M.,  enlisted  May  9,  1864. 

Amy,  John  B.,  enlisted  May  9,  1864. 

Barker,  David  P.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Beall,  Edward,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Benedict,  William  T.,  enKsted  May  4,  1864. 

Berry,  John  H.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Bishop,  Milton  S.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Bixby,  Benjamin  F.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Blakeley,  Thomas  J.,  enlisted  May  16,  1864;  died  at  Helena,  Arkansas,  June 
18,   1864. 

Brown,  John  M.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Bullock,  Manville  L.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Compton,  George,  enlisted  May  29,  1864;  died  at  Helena,  Arkansas,  July  11, 
1864. 

Cooper,  Milton  D.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Cooper,  Warren  D.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Crable,  John  J.,  enlisted  May  27,  1864. 

Danforth,  Challen,  enlisted  May  16,  1864. 

Davis,  Peter,  enlisted  May  15,  1864. 

Deuel,  Benjamin  F.,  enlisted  May  16,  1864. 

Dewey,  James  H.,  enlisted  May  29,   1864. 

Dickson,  James,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Duff,  John  B.,  enlisted  May  16,  1864. 

Farris,  Isaac  F.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Flanery,  Patrick,  enlisted  May  16,  1864. 

Foresman,  James,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Foster,  Jasper  A.,  enlisted  May  9,  1864. 

Gamble,  Michael,  enlisted  May  20,  1864. 


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208  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Griffin,  Henry  W.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Hartsook,  Salem,  enlisted  May  27,  1864. 

Hendricks,  Joshua,  enlisted  May  4,   1864. 

Hiatt,  Elam,  enlisted  May  17,  1864. 

Hindman,  Robert,  enlisted  May  16,  1864. 

HolHngsworth,  J.  J.,  enlisted  May  16,  1864. 

Kirkland,  Samuel,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Kinkennon,  James  T.,  enlisted  May  4;  died  at  Helena,  July  11,  1864. 

Lamb,  John  B.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Lathrum,  John,  enlisted  May  16,  1864. 

Lathrop,  D wight,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Mario w,  Eddy,  enlisted  May  16,  1864. 

Martin,  Isaac,  enlisted  May  27,  1864. 

Mack,  Joseph  H.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

McDonald,  Nathaniel,  enlisted  May  4,  1864;  died  at  Helena,  August  13,  1864. 

McLaughlin,  F/  J.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Pearson,  George  B.,  enlisted  May  6,  1864. 

Poffinbarger,  William  C.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Pry  or,  Matthew  G.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Queen,  William  H.,  enlisted  May  16,  1864. 

Runkle,  John  M.,  enlisted  May  16,  1864. 

Smith,  Wilson  W.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Spencer,  James,  enlisted  May  16,  1864. 

Weaver,  Philip,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

Wheelock,  Solomon  B.,  enlisted  May  4,  1864. 

COMPANY    F 

Benedict,  George  W.,  private,  enlisted  May  2,  1864. 
Riser,  William  H.,  musician,  enlisted  May  27,  1864. 

FORTY-EIGHTH  INFANTRY 

COMPANY   B 

Carpenter,  William  W.,  enlisted  June  25,  1864. 
McClellan,  George  W.,  enlisted  July  6,  1864. 

COMPANY  c 

Ford,  Franklin,  enlisted  July  4,  1864. 
Howell,  Emerson,  enlisted  July  7,  1864. 
Rudrow,  E.  V.,  enlisted  May  21,  1864. 

VETERAN  CORPS 
TENTH  INFANTRY 

COMPANY    K 

Dillman,  Samuel  A.,  enlisted  January  i,  1864. 
Eskew,  Alexander,  enlisted  January  i,  1864. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  209 


Keebles,  William  H.,  enlisted  January  i,  1864. 
Keys,  W.  J.,  enlisted  February  i,  1864. 
Weekly,  Merritt,  enlisted  February  24,  1864. 


FIRST   CAVALRY 

COMPANY   D 

James  D.  Jenks,  first  lieutenant;  promoted  captain,  May  4,  1862;  promoted  to 
major,  February  13,  1864. 

William  R.  Shriver,  second  lieutenant;  enlisted  July  31,  1861 ;  promoted  first 
lieutenant  July  i,  1862;  resigned  June  18,  1864. 

Qarence  S.  Wilson,  third  sergeant;  enlisted  June  13,  1861 ;  discharged  Febru- 
ary 14,  1863. 

Butler  Bird,  third  corporal;  enlisted  June  13,  1861 ;  promoted  quartermaster 
sergeant,  July  i,  1862;  discharged  February  14,  1863. 

William  G.  Applegate,  seventh  corporal;  enlisted  June  13,  1861 ;  promoted  to 
saddler's  sergeant,  September  i,  1862. 

E.  S.  Ewing,  bugler;  enlisted  June  13,  1861 ;  promoted  regular  quartermaster    * 
sergeant,  August  8,  1861;  promoted  commissary  sergeant,  June  i,  1862;  dis- 
charged June  31,  1865. 

Milton  C.  Carter,  saddler;  enlisted  July  18,  1861 ;  discharged  February  14, 
1863. 

Privates 

Armstrong,  Robert  F.,  enlisted  March  7,  1864. 

Andress,  Harvey  D.,  enlisted  February  18,  1864. 

Barker,  Elihu  G.,  enlisted  July  18,  1861 ;  discharged  to  accept  promotion  in 
One  Hundred  and  Thirteenth  United  States  Infantry,  A.  D. 

Baxley,  Francis  M.,  enlisted  February  23,  1864. 

Benge,  Anderson  M.,  enlisted  February  16,  1864;  promoted  saddler,  August 
15,  1865. 

Bird,  James  H.,  enlisted  July  18,  1861 ;  killed  by  guerrillas.  May  15,  1862, 
at  Butler,  Missouri. 

Burnett,  David  D.,  enlisted  July  18,  1861 ;  promoted  to  bugler,  October  7,  1861 ; 
wounded  at  Lafayette,  Missouri,  March  11,  1862. 

Burnett,  David  W.,  enlisted  July  18,  1861. 

Black,  James  W.,  enlisted  July  18,  1861 ;  discharged  October  28,  1861. 

Carter,  William  C,  enlisted  July  18,  1861. 

Cleland,  Thomas  M.,  enlisted  June  13,  1861. 

Colville,  George  H.,  ehlisted  July  18,  1861 ;  died  at  Sedalia,  Missouri,  Novem- 
ber 4,  1862. 

Davis,  Henry  C.,  enlisted  June  10,  1863. 

Flanigan,  William,  enlisted  February  8,  1864;  died  of  disease,  January  31, 
1865. 

Graham,   Abel,   enlisted   September  2,    1862. 


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210  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Graham,  John  W.,  enlisted  June  13,  1861. 

Graham,  William,  enlisted  June  13,  1861 ;  promoted  saddler,  May  20,  1863. 

Grier,  Alvin  T.,  enlisted  February  15,  1864. 

Hammon,  David,  enlisted  February  23,  1864.  • 

Harmon,  Tilman  G.,  enlisted  September  14,  1861. 

Hollingsworth,  George,  enlisted  July  18,  1861 ;  died  April  9,  1863,  at  Lake 
Springs,  Indiana. 

Housh,  Charles  H.,  enlisted  February  16,  1864. 

Hunt,  Charles  W.,  enlisted  July  18,  1861. 

Imes,  William  L.,  enlisted  February  27,  1864. 

Johnson,  Benjamin  R.,  enlisted  September  14,  1861. 

Kirk,  Jacob  W.,  enlisted  February  13,  1864. 

Kirkhart,  Jacob  L.,  enlisted  February  i,  1864. 

Lake,  Baylis  E.,  enlisted  July  18,  1861 ;  captured  February  23,  1863. 

Lane,  William  W.,  enlisted  March  4,  1864. 

Ledington,  George  W.,  enlisted  February  29,  1864. 

Lee,  William  O.,  enlisted  July  18,  1861. 

Ludlow,  William  O.,  enlisted  September*  5,  1861. 

McCandless,  James  K.,  enlisted  September  5,  1861. 

Marks,  Elias,  enlisted  February  9,  1864. 

Moore,  Ephraim,  enlisted  June  15,  1864. 

Peach,  Joseph,  enlisted  February  7,  1864. 

Pitzer,  John  M.,  enlisted  June  4,  1864. 

Pursel,  William,  enlisted  June  13,  1861 ;  promoted  captain  Company  F,  Fourth 
Cavalry. 

Read,  George,  enlisted  June  23,  1861 ;  died  at  Little  Rock,  November  23,  1863. 

Reynolds,  Joseph  K.,  enlisted  September  5,  1861. 

Sampson,  Carlos  E.,  enlisted  June  13,  1861 ;  promoted  second  corporal,  Oc- 
tober 7,  1861. 

Shannon,  James  M.,  enlisted  May  13,  1863. 

Shannon,  Samuel  E.,  enlisted  July  18,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Montevallo,  April  14, 
1862;  promoted  corporal,  but  no  vacancy  reported. 

Shannon,  William,  enlisted  July  18,  1861. 

Shrackengrast,  J.  W.,  enlisted  February  27,  1864. 

Smith,  Jackson  C,  enlisted  September  5,  1861. 

Thomas,  Harvey,  enlisted  July  18,  1861 ;  died  at  Memphis,  September  30, 
1863. 

Turk,  William  M.,  enlisted  June  13,  1861 ;  promoted  to  first  corporal,  Septem- 
ber I,  1862. 

Wilkin,  Matthew  W.,  enlisted  September  5,  1861. 

Williams,  John  H.,  enlisted  June  13,  1861. 

Wilson,  William  M.,  enlisted  July,  1861. 


FOURTH  CAVALRY 

Edward  W.  Raymond,  quartermaster  sergeant,  enlisted  October   14,   1861 ; 
promoted  from  fifth  sergeant  Company  I ;  mustered  out  February  16,  1865. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  211 

COMPANY  I 

William  Pursel,  captain;  enlisted  July  i,  1861 ;  resigned  October  26,  1864. 

Jesse  R.  Lambert,  first  lieutenant,  enlisted  July  i,  1861 ;  resigned  July  2,  1862. 

George  W.  Caskey,  third  sergeant;  enlisted  October  11,  1861 ;  promoted  second 
sergeant,  February,  1862;  killed  in  action  at  Brownsville,  Mississippi,  October 
18,  1863. 

William  G.  Reynolds,  fourth  sergeant;  enlisted  October  21,  1861 ;  promoted 
third  sergeant,  February,  1862;  discharged  June  18,  1862. 

Edward  W.  Raymond,  fifth  sergeant ;  enlisted  October  14,  1861 ;  promoted 
regimental  quartermaster  sergeant,  January  i,  1862. 

Edward  Johnson,  second  corporal ;  enlisted  August  10,  1861 ;  'promoted  first 
corporal;  transferred  to  Invalid  Corps,  March  5,  1864. 

William  McConnellee,  third  corporal;  enlisted  October  26,  1861 ;  promoted 
second  corporal  February  28,  1862;  second  lieutenant,  April  5,  1863;  wounded  at 
Bear  Creek,  Mississippi,  June  22,  1863;  discharged  March  15,  1865. 

S.  L.  Montgomery,  fourth  corporal ;  enlisted  October  25,  1861 ;  promoted  third 
corporal,  February  28,  1862;  first  sergeant,  veterans;  died  at  Memphis,  June  15, 
1864. 

James  W.  Smalley,  fifth  corporal;  enlisted  October  21,  1861. 

William  Early,  sixth  corporal;  enlisted  November  16,  1861 ;  promoted  fifth 
sergeant  and  fourth  sergeant,  February,  1862,  and  third  sergeant,  June  i,  1862; 
second  lieutenant,  April  5,  1863;  resigned  March  30,  1864. 

Andrew  M.  Hart,  seventh  corporal;  enlisted  November  5,  1861 ;  promoted  to 
sixth  corporal,  February  28,  1862;  fourth  corporal,  June  18,  1862;  sixth  sergeant, 
October  18,  1862;  fifth  sergeant,  November  i,  1862;  fourth  sergeant,  June  28, 
1863;  Third  Corps;  discharged  September  22,  1864. 

JcAn  Ruby,  musician;  enlisted  October  8,  1861. 

M.  G.  Bullock,  eighth  corporal ;  enlisted  October  19,  1861 ;  promoted  seventh 
corporal,  February  28,  1862. 

John  W.  Dabney,  wagoner;  enlisted  November  18,  1861 ;  promoted  eighth 
corporal,  October  12,  1862;  seventh  corporal,  November  i,  1862. 

Alfred  Benge,  saddler;  enlisted  Octob,er  15,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability, 
January  24,  1863. 

Privates 

Allen,  Hiram,  enlisted  November  21,  1861 ;  discharged  December  10,  1862. 

Anderson,  John  B.,  enlisted  October  14,  1861. 

Applegate,  Allen,  enlisted  March  31,  1864. 

Applegate,  Andrew,  enlisted  January  8,  1862. 

Beezley,  Nathan,  enlisted  November  5,  1861 ;  killed  at  Columbus,  Georgia, 
April  16,  1865. 

Beall,  Leonard  B.,  enlisted  October  21,  1861. 

Bell,  John  J.,  enlisted  November  16,  1861 ;  promoted  to  third  sergeant  in  1862; 
discharged  for  disability  January  28,  1863. 

Benge,  Alfred,  enlisted  October  15,  1861. 

Bird,  Thomas  M.,  enlisted  October  21,  1861 ;  captured  at  Black  River  Bridge, 
June  22,  1863. 


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212  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Blakeley,  Charles  W.,  enlisted  October  14,  1861 ;  discharged  at^Batesville, 
Arkansas,  June  18,  1862. 

Bressler,  William  H.,  enlisted  October  19,  1861. 

Bruce,  Francis  M.,  enlisted  October  24,  1861. 

Campbell,  Robert,  enlisted  October  22,  1861 ;  captured  at  Helena,  Arkansas, 
March  27,  1863 ;  wounded  at  Selma,  Alabama,  April  2,  1865. 

Cutting,  Joseph  E.,  enlisted  October  11,  1861. 

Collins,  Alexander,  enlisted  October  21,  i86i.* 

Currier,  Russell  G.,  enlisted  October  14,  1861 ;  captured  at  Black  River  Bridge, 
June  22,  1863. 

Dearduff,  Edward,  enlisted  January  14,  1862. 

Darby,  Daniel  H.,  enlisted  October  19,  1861 ;  discharged  April  5,  1863. 

Foresman,  Robert  W.,  enlisted  November  21,  1861. 

Fosher,  William  M.,  enlisted  October  23,  1861 ;  promoted  seventh  corporal, 
October  18,  1862;  sixth  corporal,  June  i,  1863;  fifth  sergeant,  January  28,  1864; 
first  sergeant,  veterans,  July  i,  1864;  accidentally  drowned  in  the  Ohio  River,  near 
Elizabethtown,  Illinois,  February  11,  1865. 

Graham,  Chauncey  W.,  enlisted  October  11,  1861;  promoted  to  fourth  ser- 
geant, veterans,  July  11,  1864. 

Hart,  George  W.,  enlisted  November  20,  1861. 

Hart,  Miles  H.,  enlisted  November  5,  1861 ;  promoted  to  sixth  corporal;  fifth 
corporal,  February  28,  1862;  fourth  corporal,  June  i,  1862;  third  corporal,  June 
18,  1862;  second  corporal,  October  18,  1862;  fifth  sergeant,  November  i,  1862; 
fourth  sergeant,  June  28,  1863;  fifth  sergeant,  veterans,  July  i,  1864. 

Hastings,  William  P.,  enlisted  October  14,  1861,  as  first  sergeant. 

Hecock,  David,  enlisted  October  23,  1861. 

Henkle,  Sylvester,  enlisted  October  21,  1861 ;  discharged  April  13,  1862. 

Hill,  David,  enlisted  November  14,  1861. 

Inns,  Stephen,  enlisted  October  8,  1861. 

Johnson,  William,  enlisted  September  i,  1862. 
•     Laidley,  James  M.,  enlisted  September  17,  1862. 

Lull,  Alexis,  enlisted  November  16,  1861 ;  captured  at  Black  River  Bridge. 

McConnellee,  A.,  enlisted  October  26,  1861. 

McNeal,  W.  H.  H.,  enlisted  November  16,  1861 ;  died  at  Helena,  February  26, 
1862. 

Macumber,  Andrew,  enlisted  October  24,  1861. 

Mahoney,  John,  enlisted  October  12,  1861. 

Matthews,  Alonzo  W.,  enlisted  October  24,  1861 ;  died  at  West  Plains,  Mis- 
souri, July  I,  1862. 

Myers,  Samuel,  enlisted  October  25,  1861. 

Needles,  A.  H.,  enlisted  October  16,  1861 ;  promoted  third  corporal,  June  i, 
1862;  discharged  June  18,  1862. 

Noble,  John  S.,  enlisted  October  11,  1861. 

Parsons,  Andrew  W.,  enlisted  December  i,  1863. 

Pearson,  James  M.,  enlisted  October  25,  1861. 

Philby,  Enoch,  enlisted  October  26,  1861. 

Philby,  James  J.,  enlisted  October  26,  1861 ;  discharged  June  21,  1862. 

Philby,  John  F.,  enlisted  January  6,  1862. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  213 

Phillips,  James,  enlisted  November  i6,  1861 ;  discharged  April  15,  1862. 

Ralston,  Robert,  enlisted  November  16,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Osage  River,  Kan- 
sas, November  25,  1864. 

Raymond,  Myron  A.,  enlisted  January  i,  1864. 

Read,  Thomas,  enlisted  October  11,  1861. 

Reed,  Evans,  enlisted  January  14,  1862;  promoted  sixth  sergeant,  June  i,  1865. 

Rice,  Albert,  enlisted  March  18,  1864;  wounded  at  Guntown. 

Richey,  Paris,  enlisted  October  19,  1861. 

Ruby,  John  W.,  enlisted  October  9,  1861 ;  appointed  bugler. 

Schweers,  John,  enlisted  September  21,  1862. 

Schweers,  Reinhardt,  enlisted  September  27,  1862. 

Sowash,  Daniel,  enlisted  March  26,  1864;  died  in  camp  at  Vicksburg,  April 
20,  1864. 

Stewart,  Thomas,  enlisted  October  14,  1861 ;  captured  at  Black  River  Bridge. 

Wilkinson,  Thomas  W.,  enlisted  November  14,  1863 ;  wounded  and  captured 
at  Ripley,  Mississippi,  June  11,  1864. 

Whipple,  Charles  H.,  enlisted  November  18,  1861. 

Wright,  William,  enlisted  October  23,  1861. 


FIFTH  CAVALRY 

COMPANY  D 

William  W.  Buchanan,  first  sergeant ;  enlisted  1862 ;  promoted  first  lieutenant, 
November  i,  1862;  resigned  May  12,  1863. 

Privates 

Douglas,  Isaac  P.,  discharged  February  7,  1862. 

Dutt,  Charles,  enlisted  June  24,  1861 ;  veteranized  Company  G,  Fifth  Cavalry, 
January  i,  1864. 

Judd,  Alexander,  discharged  July  29,  1865. 

Sperry,  James  A.,  enlisted  October  15,  1861 ;  appointed  regular  second  mu- 
sician ;  enlisted  as  private  Company  D,  Fifth  Veteran  Cavalry. 

Wolf,  Daniel,  enlisted  October  15,  1861. 


NINTH  CAVALRY 

COMPANY  H 

Burton,  W.,  enlisted  October  14,  1863. 

Kendall,  James,  enlisted  October  24,  1863;  died  at  Benton  Barracks,  March 
19,  1864. 

Kendall,  John,  enlisted  September  19,  1863. 

Matthews,  Richard  T.,  enlisted  September  26,  1863;  discharged  August  2, 
1865. 


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214  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Nickell,  James  H.,  enlisted  October  24,  1863. 
Pearce,  Joshua  C,  enlisted  October  5,  1863. 


LIGHT  ARTILLERY 

FIRST   BATTERY 

Cooper,  Elisha,  enlisted  January  4,  1864;  died  of  disease  March  7,  1864. 

Cunningham,  Thomas  H.,  enlisted  January  16,  1864;  died  before  reaching 
the  battery. 

James,  Henry,  enlisted  March  25,  1864. 

James,  William,  enlisted  December  29,  1864. 

Kilner,  Franklin,  enlisted  November  13,  1864. 

Lewis,  Joseph,  enlisted  December  9,  1863. 

Newman,  Charles  A.,  enlisted  January  i,  1864;  died  of  disease  February  11, 
1865. 

Newman,  Peter  S.,  enlisted  January  19,  1864. 

Peters,  James  S.,  enlisted  January  i,  1864. 

MISCELLANEOUS 

Atkinson,  Alexander,  enlisted  March  28,  1862,  Company  I,  Seventeenth  In- 
fantry. 

Richardson,  George  B.,  enlisted  February  9,  1864,  Company  K,  Fifteenth 
Infantry. 

Ducketl,  Isaiah,  enlisted  August  15,  1862,  Company  I,  Twenty-third  Infantry; 
died  at  Milliken's  Bend,  Louisiana,  July  15,  1863. 

Rice,  Samuel,  enlisted  January  4,  1864,  Company  K,  Twenty-ninth  Infantry. 

Bachelder,  George  F.,  enlisted  August  4,  1861,  Second  Infantry,  Company  D. 

Lynch,  Andrew,  enlisted  May  4,  1861,  Company  D,  Second  Infantry;  dis- 
charged at  Bird's  Point,  October  25,  1861,  for  mental  derangement. 

Bowlsby,  William  H.,  enlisted  November  26,  1864. 

Cook,  Frederick  M.,  enlisted  December  30,  1863. 

Williams,  Henry  C,  enlisted  December  10,  1864,  Twelfth  Infantry. 

Weeks,  Charles  P.,  enlisted  September  28,  1864,  Thirteenth  Infantry. 

Pope,  George,  enlisted  January  22,  1864. 

McGar,  John,  enlisted  Jtine  11,  1861,  Company  K,  Twenty-second  Illinois. 

Hammer,  John  H.,  enlisted  August  27,  1861,  Company  \  Twenty-eighth 
Illinois. 

Fry,  Samuel,  enlisted  September  2,  1862,  Company  H,  Eleventh  Illinois 
Cavalry. 

Duncan,  James  G.,  enlisted  May  4,  1861,  Second  Infantry,  private;  promoted 
to  sixth  corporal  May  27,  1861 ;  to  third  sergeant,  July  16,  1861 ;  to  second  ser- 
geant, March  26,  1862. 

Mason,  William  B.,  enlisted  May  4,  1861,  Company  D,  Second  Infantry. 

Garrett,  William,  private,  Company  D,  Second  Cavalry;  enlisted  August  2, 
1861 ;  veteranized  March  i,  1864. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  215 

Pilgrim,  Gerhard,  Company  C,  Fourth  Cavalry ;  enlisted  September  27,  1862 ; 
killed  July  10,  1864,  at  Guntown,  Mississippi,  in  action. 
Schmalzla,  Charles,  enlisted  February  2,  1864. 

THE   SOLDIERS*    MONUMENT 

Madison  County's  people  were  among  the  very  first  in  the  whole  United 
States  to  erect  a  monument  to  the  soldier  dead.  The  first  suggestion  for  such  a 
movement  appeared  in  the  columns  of  the  Madisonian  from  one  of  its  corre- 
spondents, but  the  County  Agricultural  Society  took  the  initial  step  in  furthering 
the  project  when,  at  a  meeting  held  by  its  officials  in  October,  1865,  ^  ^'soldiers' 
monument  committee"  was  organized,  consisting  of  H.  J.  B.  Cummings,  president; 
Flora  Winkly,  secretary;  J.  J.  Davies,  treasurer;  together  with  E.  W.  Fuller, 
Mrs.  Mary  A.  Hutchings,  and  Miss  Emma  McCaughan,  executive  committee. 
Sub-committees  were  appointed  in  each  township,  whose  duty  it  was  to  solicit 
contributions  for  the  memorial  shaft.  Festivals,  lectures  and  exhibitions  were 
given  in  Winterset  and  in  other  localities  during  the  winters  of  1865*  and  1866,  to 
secure  funds  for  the  project,  not  to  mention  school  exhibitions  and  various  other 
plans.  The  board  of  supervisors  donated  the  old  courthouse  and  jail  lots,  and 
when  the  jail  lot  was  sold  and  another* lot  purchased  adjoining  the  courthouse  lot, 
a  site  for  the  monument  had  been  secured. 

On  July  28,  1865,  the  officers  of  the  Fair  Association  announced  that  they 
had  set  apart  a  portion  of  their  grounds  for  the  display  and  sale  of  articles  to 
secure  funds  with  which  to  build  the  monument.  At  the  time  A.  J.  Adkinson  was 
president  of  the  association  and  J.  J.  Davies,  secretary.^  The  free  department 
thus  donated  was  placed  in  charge  of  H.  J.  B.  Cummings,  M.  R.  Tidrick,  S.  G. 
Ruby,  Miss  Charity  Lothrop,  Mrs.  J.  J.  Hutchings  and  Mrs.  D.  N.  Elliott.  The 
following  township  committees  were  appointed  to  solicit  funds  and  adopt  other 
means  for  securing  money  to  build  the  monument : 

Center. — Mrs.  W.  G.  Walker,  Mrs.  Maggie  Jones,  Miss  Mary  Hutchinson, 
John  T.  White. 

Crawford. — Mrs.  W.  L.  Wilkins,  Mrs.  Jennie  Howell,  Miss  Martha  Gamble, 
Samuel  Eyerly. 

Douglas. — Mrs.  George  Seevers,  Mrs.  William  Gore,  Miss  Emma  Brooks,  W. 
S.  Harlan. 

Grand  River. — Miss  Alice  Lee,  Mrs.  A.  Bonham,  Dr.  J.  H.  Mack,  Mrs.  D. 
Craven. 

Jackson. — Margaret  Ralston,  Mary  Stewart,  Charlotte  Welch,  William  Early. 

Jefferson. — Mrs.  Chilcoat,  Mrs.  B.  Ballentine,  Miss  McDonald,  J.  K.  Mohler. 

Lee. — Mrs.  Hagen,  Mrs.  Captain  Johnson,  A.  J.  Burkhead. 

Lincoln. — Mrs.  Doctor  Leonard,  Mrs.  Benjamin  Titcomb,  Miss  Margaret 
Ruby,  E.  G.  Perkins. 

'Madison. — Mrs.  P.  Sanford,  Mrs.  Edward  Peed,  Miss  Spray,  G.  T.  Nichols. 

Monroe. — Miss  Nancy  Ritchie,  Mrs.  Fisher,  Mrs.  Simon  Hamblin,  Frank 
Cochran. 

Ohio. — Mrs.  R.  J.  Creger,  Mary  Holmes,  Mrs.  David  Bradshaw,  David 
Evans. 

Penn. — Mrs.  Abihu  Wilson,  Mrs.  Kate  Francis,  Miss  L.  M.  Darby,  Daniel 
Francis. 


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216  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Scott. — Miss  Kittie  Campbell,  Miss  E.  Prebel,  Mrs.  Lucinda  Johnson,  Hugh 
C.  Bird. 

South. — Mrs.  Doctor  Smith,  Mrs.  S.  P.  Thompson,  Miss  Agnes  Herren,  D.  S. 
Smith. 

Union. — Mrs.  S.  Wells,  Miss  O.  Montgomery,  Miss  M.  J.  McDaniel,  P.  M. 
Boyles. 

Walnut. — Mrs.  Aaron  Hiatt,  Mary  Compton,  Mrs.  J.  B.  Rawls,  Dr.  P.  Lilly. 

Webster. — Mrs.  Otho  Davis,  Miss  Lizzie  Ettien,  Mrs.  Myron  Raymond,  David 
Richmond. 

On  the  i8th  day  of  November,  the  monument  committee  met  and  "Resolved 
that  a  monument  of  marble  be  erected  on  the  Public  Square  in  some  locality  not 
to  interfere  with  the  new  courthouse,  the  monument  to  be  not  less  than  twenty- 
five  feet  high  and  to  bear  an  inscription  of  names  of  all  deceased  soldiers  who  were 
residents  of  the  county  at  date  of  enlistment,  or  who  have  died  from  results  of 
service  in  the  war."  The  estimated  amount  to  be  expended  on  the  monument  was 
$2,500,  and  at  this  time  about  seven  hundred  dollars  of  the  amount  had  been 
subscribed. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  general  committee,  held  on  July  28,  1866,  it  was  proposed 
to  build  a  two-story  structure  having  a  hall  with  marble  slabs,  or  tablets,  in- 
serted in  the  wall,  whereon  should  be  inscribed  the  names  of  deceased  soldiers 
instead  of  the  monument.  However,  the  sentiment  for  a  monument  eventually 
prevailed,  and  there  stands  today  in  the  little  plot  of  ground  known  as  Monument 
Park,  on  the  comer  of  Court  and  Second  streets,  a  neat  shaft  twenty  feet  high, 
having  a  base  of  native,  stone,  surmounted  by  a  marble  column ;  suitably  inscribed 
on  its  faces  are  the  names  of  Madison  County's  Civil  war  heroes,  and  it  was 
dedicated  to  their  memory  forever.  The  dedication  took  place  October  7,  1867, 
upon  which  occasion  Hon.  M.  L.  McPherson,  then  the  leading  lawyer  of  this  part 
of  the  state,  and  Dr.  William  L.  Leonard  delivered  orations,  commemorative  of 
the  event.  It  should  be  added  that  the  monument  is  guarded  at  each  corner  by  a 
field  piece  used  in  the  war  for  the  preservation  of  the  Union. 


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CHAPTER  XXVI 
MADISON  COUNTY  SOCIETIES 

THE  MADISON  COUNTY  HISTORICAL  SOCIETY 

Pursuant  to  a  call,  the  citizens  of  Winterset  met  in  the  office  of  the  county 
auditor,  on  Tuesday  evening,  March  4,  1904,  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  a  his- 
torical society.  H.  A.  Mueller  was  chosen  temporary  chairman  and  J.  A.  Way, 
secretary.  The  purpose  of  the  meeting  was  to  learn  the  views  of  those  present 
as  to  the  feasibility  of  organizing  a  society  for  the  preservation  of  all  material 
obtainable  relating  to  the  history  of  Madison  County.  It  developed  during  the 
proceedings  that  it  was  the  unanimous  opinion  of  those  present  that  such  an  or- 
ganization would  promote  the  best  interests  of  the  county  in  general.  It  was 
therefore  moved  by  J.  W.  Miller  that  the  chair  appoint  a  committee  of  three  to 
draft  a  constitution  and  by-laws  and  report  the  result  of  its  work  at  the  earliest 
convenience.  In  compliance  with  this  action  the  chair  appointed  E.  R.  Zeller,  T. 
H.  Stone  and  J.  C.  Parish  as  members  of  the  committee.  Adjournment  then  took 
place  after  the  next  meeting  was  arranged  to  be  held  at  the  office  of  the  county 
superintendent  on  the  evening  of  March  15,  1904. 

The  second  meeting  of  the  society  was  held  pursuant  to  agreement  at  the 
office  of  the  county  superintendent  in  the  courthouse.  The  committee  on  constitu- 
tion and  by-laws  reported  and  their  work  was  adopted.  The  rules  were  then 
suspended  on  motion  of  G.  W.  Poffinbarger  for  the  election  of  the  following 
officers :  President,  H.  A.  Mueller ;  vice  president,  T.  H.  Stone ;  secretary,  J.  A. 
Way;  treasurer,  E.  R.  Zelfer;  directors,  G.  W.  Poffinbarger,  J.  C.  Clark,  C.  C. 
Schwaner,  O.  L.  Evans ;  corresponding  secretaries,  J.  C.  Parish,  Center  Township ; 
O.  L.  Evans,  Douglas  Township. 

At  this  meeting  it  was  moved  and  carried  that  E.  R.  Zeller  and  J.  C.  Clark 
prepare  papers  for  the  next  meeting,  also  that  G.  W.  Poffinbarger  and  C.  C. 
Schwaner  be  placed  on  the  program  for  addresses  at  the  next  meeting  to  be 
held  April  22,  1904.  The  constitution  was  then  presented  to  be  signed  by  the 
members,  namely :  E.  R.  Zeller,  Charles  C.  Schwaner,  J.  C.  Clark,  G.  W.  Poffin- 
barger, John  C.  Parish,  T.  H.  Stone,  O.  L.  Evans,  J.  A.  Way  and  H.  A.  Mueller. 

At  a  meeting  held  June  21,  1904,  among  other  things  it  was  provided  that  the 
following  persons  be  elected  corresponding  secretaries:  M.  I.  Bean,  South  Town- 
ship ;  E.  L.  Etchison,  Crawford  Township ;  A.  H.  Storck,  Madison  Township ;  W. 
S.  Wilkinson,  Scott  Township.  On  motion  of  a  member,  George  W.  Guye,  for  the 
Valuable  contribution  of  historical  data  given  by  him  to  the  society,  was  elected  an 
honorary  life  member  of  the  society. 

The  first  public  program  of  the  society  was  given  on  the  evening  of  September 
22, 1905,  in  the  courtroom  at  8 130  P.  M.,  on  which  occasion  there  was  quite  a  large 

217 


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218  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

body  of  members  present.  A  paper  "Trials  and  Triumphs  of  Pioneer  Life/'  was 
read  by  E.  R.  Zeller.  In  the  same  manner  W.  S.  Wilkinson  discoursed  on  **An 
Early  Settlement  on  Middle  River,  or  Recollections  of  an  Eearly  Settler."  The 
evening's  festivities  were  brought  to  a  pleasant  close  by  an  interesting  short  ad- 
dress from  J.  C.  Clark. 

The  Historical  Society  has  kept  up  its  meetings  regularly  since  the  organization 
in  1904.  Through  unwearied  interest  and  indefatigable  efforts  the  society  has 
gathered  a  great  amount  of  valuable  historical  data  and  numerous  articles,  handi- 
work, implements  and  the  like  that  belonged  to  certain  of  the  pioneers  of  Madison 
County';  these  things  have  a  place  assigned  the  society  in  the  public  library. 
Various  interesting  papers,  pertinent  to  the  early  days  and  peoples  of  this  com- 
munity, have  been  prepared  by  members  and  read  before  the  society  at  its  regular 
meetings  and  published  in  the  local  press.  Each  individual  member  has  his  or  her 
part  to  perform  in  securing  and  preparing  for  future  generations  everything 
available  which  will  add  to  the  value, of  the  society's  archives.  The  institution 
is  a  valuable  addition  to  the  county's  activities  and  if  its  efforts  continue  in  the 
future  as  in  the  past,  the  Madison  County  Historical  Society  will  have  contributed 
inestimable  blessings  upon  the  community,  in  the  way  of  preserving  in  history 
facts  and  incidents,  relating  to  the  early  days  of  this  county  and  the  history  of 
the  people  who  opened  the  county  and  laid  the  foundation  for  its  upbuilding  and 
prosperity.  By  the  end  of  1905  the  following  persons  became  members  of  the 
society : 

M.  O.  Brady,  G.  W.  Patterson,  R.  P.  Mitchell.  W.  H.  Vance,  J.  W.  Smith, 
J.  W.  Miller,  J.  E.  Hamilton,  Lee  B.  Tidrick,  R.  L.  Huston,  J.  A.  Docksteader, 
C.  W.  Eastman,  G.  M.  Violet,  R.  H.  Cooper,  Laura  J.  Miller,  H.  W.  Hardy,  I.  E. 
T.  Wilson,  W.  H.  Lewis,  George  Mueller,  D.  G.  Ratliflf,  W.  S.  Wilkinson,  E.  A. 
Herman,  John  A.  Guiher,  W.  S.  Cooper,  M.  I.  Bean,  George  Storck,  L.  S.  Ray, 
J.  P.  Steele,  J.  R.  Davis,  A.  H.  Storck,  E.  F.  Connoran,  J.  V.  Walker,  L.  H. 
Andrews,  F.  L.  Bissell,  T.  S.  Love,  E.  L.  Etchison,  J.  V.  Evans,  H.  A.  Kinsman, 
C.  A.  Robbins,  Fred  Beeler,  M.  C.  Shaw,  A.  J.  Jones,  W.  O.  Creger,  S.  O.  Banker, 
George  Cox,  J.  E.  Smith,  Blair  Wolf,  R.  A.  Lenocker,  S.  M.  Compton,  A.  B. 
Shriver,  Myles  Young,  G.  A.  Quick,  B.  F.  Carter,  Eldon  E.  Baker,  W.  H.  Mon, 
roe,  J.  T.  Young,  W.  H.  Koser,  J.  W.  Leinard,  J.  A.  Ryner,  C.  F.  Clanton,  J.  C. 
Thompson,  J.  M.  Link,  W.  F.  Craig,  Frederick  Mott,  A.  M.  Benge,  William  Brin- 
son,  Ed  M.  Smith,  E.  E.  Howell,  Arthur  Burger,  G.  W.  McKenzie,  F.  G.  Ratliff, 
Herman  Kneuper,  Isaac  Reager,  J.  A.  Gordon,  M.  J.  Gordon,  M.  R.  Sheldon,  E. 
Brownell. 

H.  A.  Mueller  has  served  the  society  as  president  from  the  date  of  its  organiza- 
tion to  the  present  time.  J.  A.  Way  was  the  first  secretary,  serving  one  year.  He 
was  followed  by  E.  R.  Zeller  for  one  year,  who  was  again  secretary  in  191 3  and 

1914- 

Walter  F.  Craig  was  secretary  from  his  election  in  March,  1906,  to  the  year 
191 3.    The  secretary  at  present  is  also  treasurer  of  the  Society. 

MADISON  COUNTY  CHAUTAUQUA  ASSOCIATION 

A  number  of  representative  citizens  of  Winterset  met  at  the  courtroom  Mon- 
day evening,  August  8,  1910,  in  response  to  a  call  that  had  been  issued  for  the 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  219 

purpose  of  organizing  a  local  Chautauqua.  Rev.  J.  S.  Corkey  was  elected  tem- 
porary chairman  and  T.  V.  Dugan  clerk.  After  stating  the  object  of  the  meeting, 
a  motion  was  unanimously  carried  that  the  meeting  proceed  to  organize  an  inde- 
pendent Chautauqua,  to  be  controlled  and  managed  by  the  citizens  of  Winterset 
and  Madison  County,  thus  making  the  Chautauqua  a  home  enterprise.  The 
society  was  then  organized  on  the  basis  of  a  stock  company,  of  which  shares  were 
issued  at  a  par  value  of  $io  each.  John  Frankelberger,  W.  O.  Lucas,  Mrs.  Jennie 
Whedon,  Elmer  Cole  and  T.  V.  Dugan  were  appointed  a  committee  to  solicit  stock 
and  before  the  first  meeting  closed  twenty-six  persons  had  subscribed  for  shares. 

The  next  meeting  was  held  August  15,  1910,  and  was  called  by  Rev.  J.  S. 
Corkey.  After  prayer,  the  committee  appointed  to  solicit  stock  reported  nearly 
two  hundred  shares  subscribed  for.  The  organization  was  then  perfected  by  the 
election  of  fifteen  directors,  five  to  serve  three  years,  five  two  years  and  five  one 
year.  Dr.  W.  H.  Thompson,  Rev.  E.  M.  Atwood  and  A.  L.  Stout  were  the  com- 
mittee appointed  to  select  the  board  of  directors.  E.  E.  Boss,  Elmer  Cole  and 
Rev.  L.  F.  Davis,  were  of  the  committee  to  draft  a  constitution  and  by-laws. 
The  organization  was  then  named  the  Madison  County  Chautauqua  Association. 

The  soliciting  committee  at  the  second  meeting  reported  300  shares  subscribed 
for  and  the  members  thereof  were  then  authorized  to  appoint  helpers  in  all  the 
various  townships  of  the  county  to  assist  in  securing  members.  The  following 
directors  were  the  selection  of  the  committee  appointed  for  that  purpose:  for 
three  years,  Charles  T.  Koser,  W.  H.  Vance,  L.  F.  Davis,  H.  N.  Shaw  and  T.  V. 
Dugan;  two  years,  Fred  Farquahr,  Dr.  W.  H.  Thompson,  E.  K.  Cole,  Dr.  F.  O. 
Richards  and  W.  O.  Lucas ;  one  year,  S.  A.  Hays,  Elmer  Orris,  Prof.  A.  C.  Akers, 
A.  L.  Stout  and  L.  V.  Price. 

The  board  of  directors  elected  at  the  last  meeting  met  August  23,  1910,  at  the 
courthouse,  at  which  time  Charles  T.  Koser  was  elected  president;  E.  K.  Cole, 
vice  president;  T.  V.  Dugan,  secretary;  and  A.  L.  Stout,  treasurer.  A  committee 
was  then  appointed  on  programs  made  up  of  the  following  persons :  T.  V.  Dugan, 
H.  M.  Shaw,  Dr.  F.  O.  Richards,  Fred  Farquahr.  S.  A.  Hays  and  W.  O.  Lucas 
were  elected  as  stock  committee,  which  was  empowered  to  appoint  one  or  more 
persons  in  each  township  to  represent  the  Chautauqua. 

At  the  meeting  held  September  12,  1910,  and  before  a  Chautauqua  had  been 
held,  Mr.  Koser  resigned  the  position  of  president,  and  Prof.  A.  C.  Akers  was 
elected  in  his  stead.  At  this  meeting  the  president  and  secretary  were  authorized 
to  borrow  the  sum  of  $50  for  the  purpose  of  defraying  the  expense  of  the  associa- 
tion until  the  next  assembly. 

The  first  assembly  of  the  association  was  held  in  the  early  part  of  August, 
191 1,  and  ended  on  the  15th  of  the  month.  It  was  successful  in  every  respect. 
At  that  time  Walter  F.  Craig  was  president,  as  Professor  Akers  had  resigned 
the  office  some  time  previously.  From  that  time  on  the  association  has  held  its 
annual  assembly  at  Winterset  and  each  year  interest  in  the  programs  has  in- 
creased. 

The  movement  for  a  permanent  site  for  a  tabernacle  began  at  the  conclusion  of 
the  assembly  of  191 2.  A  committee  was  appointed  to  secure  subscriptions  for 
stock,  whereby  funds  were  secured  to  put  up  a  structure  of  steel,  of  umbrella 
design.  The  association  was  extremely  fortunate  in  having  great  friends  in  its 
aim  and  objects  in  A.  W.  Crawford  and  wife,  Martha  A.  Crawford,  who  con- 


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220  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

veyed  to  the  association  lots  3  and  4  in  block  14,  of  the  original  Town  of 
Winterset,  as  a  site  for  the  tabernacle.  This  property  "was  donatecl  to  the 
association  as  a  free  gift,  except  that  in  case  the  society  failed  to  hold  a  Chau- 
tauqua for  two  successive  years,  the  property  was  then  to  revert  to  the  grantors, 
their  heirs  or  assigns,  unless  the  grantee,  its  successors  or  assigns,  pay  to  the 
grantor  the  sum  of  $1,000.  The  gift  was  accepted,  committees  were  appointed  to 
solicit  sale  of  stock  for  the  tabernacle,  a  building  committee  composed  of  Dr.  W. 
H.  Thompson,  W.  S.  Cooper  and  J.  E.  Smith  chosen,  and  at  the  May  meeting  of 
1913  it  was  reported  that  all  of  the  necessary  stock  of  $4,000  had  been  subscribed. 
A  contract  was  let  and  the  191 3  Chautauqua  was  held  in  the  new  tabernacle. 

This  Chautauqua  has  met  a  very  gratifying  success  in  its  efforts  to  give  to 
Winterset  and  the  people  of  Madison  County  annually,  a  week'fe  entertainment  of 
a  character  of  the  highest  class,  for  a  nominal  price.  They  are  privileged  to  hear 
the  best  talent  in  the  land,  orators,  lecturers,  musicians,  vocalists  and  instructors 
of  national  reputation.  The  society  has  become  imbedded  upon  a  firm  founda- 
tion and  promises  the  community  a  continued  high-class  yearly  program  as  long 
as  the  support  and  patronage  equal  its  efforts  in  this  behalf. 

COMPANY   G,   FIFTY-FIFTH   REGIMENT,   IOWA   NATIONAL   GUARD 

This  regiment  was  organized  with  twelve  companies  in  1892  from  the  old 
Third  and  Fifth  regiments.  It  was  mustered  into  the  United  States  service  for 
the  war  with  Spain  in  1898  and  reorganized  as  the  Fifty-first  Regiment  in  1900. 
The  number  designation  was  changed  in  1902  to  the  Fifty-fifth  Infantry  and 
Company  G  was  organized  at  Winterset. 

On  the  19th  day  of  December,  1905,  Company  G  Armory  Association  was 
incorporated  by  Charles  W.  Aikins,  Charles  B.  Palmer,  Phil  R.  Wilkinson,  C.  V. 
B.  Alexander,  I.  H.  Krell,  Fred  Hudson,  Fred  W.  Gaekel,  Ralph  Cook,  Fred 
Smith.  A  directory  of  seven  members  was  provided  for  in  the  articles  of  incor- 
poration and  the  commanding  officer  was  selected  as  the  president  and  treasurer 
of  the  association,  whose  authorized  capital  stock  was  placed  at  $2,000,  each  share 
of  the  par  value  of  $20.  The  shares  early  found  ready  sale  and  a  commodious 
concrete  block  building  was  erected  on  North  First  Street,  between  Jefferson  and 
Green  streets.  This  is  the  meeting  place  of  Company  G,  whose  officers  are: 
Charles  W.  Aikins,  captain ;  Phil  R.  Wilkinson,  first  lieutenant ;  Fred  W.  Gaekel, 
second  lieutenant. 

THE    GOOD    ROADS    ASSOCIATION    OF    MADISON    COUNTY 

Following  the  passage  of  the  Anderson  road  law,  H.  A.  Mueller,  then  auditor 
of  Madison  County,  called  together  all  the  township  trustees  and  road  supervisors 
to  talk  over  the  enforcement  of  the  new  law.  At  this  meeting  the  Good  Roads 
Asssociation  was  organized  May  28,  1903,  and  chose  the  following  officers: 
President,  W.  H.  Lewis ;  vice  president,  C.  A.  Robbins ;  secretary,  H.  A.  Mueller. 

OLD  SETTLERS  ASSOCIATION 

The  Old  Settlers  Association  of  Madison  County  was  organized  at  Winterset, 
March  4,  1905,  and  elected  officers  as  follows:  President,  George  Cox;  first  vice 
president,  W.  W.  Gentry;  second  vice  president,  William  Brinson;  third  vice 
president,  George  Seevers;  secretary,  T.  J.  Hudson;  assistant  secretary,  George 
Poffinbarger;  treasurer,  Jeff  Wheat;  chaplain,  B.  F.  Bowlsby.  Reunions  are  held 
annually  at  Winterset. 


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CHAPTER  XXVII 

QUAKER  SETTLEMENT  IN  MADISON  COUNTY 
By  D.  B.  Cook,  Earlham,  Iowa 

The  settlement  of  Friends,  or  Quakers,  in  Madison  County,  Iowa,  began  in  the 
year  1853,  when  Jesse  Painter  and  wife  settled  about  midway  between  the  present 
locations  of  the  towns  of  Peru  and  Barney,  in  the  southeast  part  of  the  county, 
and  Richard  Cook  and  wife,  in  Madison  Township,  just  north  of  the  present  Town 
of  Earlham,  in  the  northwest  part  of  the  county.  These  were  the  beginnings  of 
two  Friends  settlements,  which  later  developed  into  Oak  Run  Monthly  Meeting, 
in  the  southeast  part,  and  North  Branch  and  Earlham  Monthly  Meetings,  in  the 
northwest  part  of  the  county. 

The  next  persons  to  settle  at  Oak  Run  were  Thomas  and  Dosha  Morman,  in 
1855.  Their  son,  Newton  Morman,  is  the  only  member  of  the  family  now  liv- 
ing in  the  neighborhood.  Another  son,  Clark  (familiarly  called  Uncle  Clark), 
lived  near  Oak  Run  for  many  years  and  died  at  Winterset  some  years  ago.  A 
daughter,  Martha,  married  David  Ellis,  and  another  daughter,  Mary,  married 
Elwood  Hiatt,  and  lived  one  and  one-half  miles  northeast  of  the  church  until  the 
time  of  his  death. 

Calvin  and  Eunice  Ellis  came  here  from  Ohio  in  1865.  Reese  and  Sarah  Ann 
Ellis  came  in  1871.  Their  son,  T.  L.  Ellis,  was  long  one  of  the  ^'standbys"  of  the 
church. 

The  formation  of  the  congregation  began  with  an  "indulged  meeting"  at  the 
home  of  Thomas  Morman  in  1865.  A  preparative  meeting  was  organized  at  the 
home  of  Calvin  Ellis,  May  18,  1871,  to  be  known  by  the  name  of  Oak  Run  Pre- 
parative Meeting.  The  name  was  suggested  by  Calvin  Ellis.  The  meeting  was 
opened  by  a  committee  of  twelve  from  Ackworth  Monthly  Meeting,  Warren 
County.  This  committee  drove  over  in  a  big  wagon  and  were  entertained  at  the 
home  of  Calvin  and  Eunice  Ellis.  The  charter  members  were  T.  C.  and  Rhoda 
Morman,  Elwood  and  Mary  Hiatt,  David  and  Martha  Ellis,  Calvin  and  Eunice 
Ellis,  who  still  reside  near  the  church. 

On  the  15th  day  of  September,  1853,  Richard  Cook  and  wife,  in  company  with 
his  brother  William  H.  Cook  and  family,  and  John  Wilson  and  family,  left  Marion 
County,  Indiana,  to  move  to  Iowa.  After  about  a  month  of  travel  by  team  and 
wagon,  during  which  time  they  underwent  the  hardships  incident  to  a  journey  of 
this  character,  they  arrived  in  Warren  County,  where  an  uncle  of  Richard  Cook 
lived.  Before  the  end  of  October  his  brother  entered  land  in  Union  Township, 
Dallas  County,  and  about  the  same  time  John  Wilson  entered  land  in  Adams 
Township  of  the  same  county.  Richard  entered  land  in  the  northwest  corner  of 
Madison  Township,  as  before  stated,  and  about  the  same  time  two  sons  of  John 
Wilson,  Abihu  and  Christopher,  entered  land  in  Madison  and  Penn  townships. 

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222  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Richard  Cook  made  his  home  on  the  land  which  he  entered  until  the  spring  of 
1857,  when  he  sold  to  Wesley  Cox,  another  Friend,  also  of  Marion  County,  In- 
diana, and  removed  to  Dallas  County.  He,  with  his  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Mary  Bowles,  afterward  moved  to  Earlham,  where  they  both  passed  away,  Mrs. 
Cook  in  1897,  and  Mr.  Cook  in  1901.  Christopher  Wilson  was  a  successful 
farmer  near  Earlham  during  the  remainder  of  his  life.  He  was  living  in  the  Town 
of  Earlham  at  the  time  of  his  death,  March  26,  1908. 

The  records  of  Bear  Creek  Preparative  Meeting  show  that  a  complaint  was 
entered  against  Abihu  Wilson  in  1855  for  "accomplishing  his  marriage  contrary  to 
discipline."  He  had  married  Eliza  Ellis,  daughter  of  Peter  Ellis.  He  evidently 
left  the  church  at  that  time,  or  at  least  ceased  to  take  an  active  part,  as  his  name 
does  not  appear  on  the  records  after  that  date.    He  died  in  Dallas  County  in  1903. 

The  next  Friends  to  enter  land  in  Madison  Township  were  Seth  Wilson  and 
his  son,  Milton  Wilson,  who  came  from  Wayne  County,  Indiana,  in  the  summer 
of  1854.  The  Town  of  Earlham  now  covers  part  of  the  entry  made  by  Seth  Wil- 
son. Milton  entered  500  acres  of  land  in  sections  17  and  18.  He  moved  to  Iowa 
in  1856  with  his  wife,  who  in  her  maidenhood  was  S.  Jane  Murphy.  They  were 
married  October  18,  1852,  and  made  their  home  on  the  old  homestead  for  eighteen 
years,  where  Mr.  Wilson  engaged  in  farming.  They  then  moved  to  Earlham  and 
later  to  Des  Moines,  where  they  still  reside.  Their  son,  Isaac  K.  Wilson,  was 
representative  from  Madison  County  in  the  General  Assembly  for  one  term,  being 
the  youngest  man  ever  elected  to  that  position  from  this  county. 

Seth  Wilson  came  with  his  family  to  Iowa  in  i860.  He  died  in  Earlham  some 
years  ago.  One  of  his  daughters  married  Cyrus  Griffin,  another  married  Josiah 
Stanley,  a  third  married  David  Beasley  and  a  fourth  became  the  wife  of  Oliver 
Goldsmith  Owen,  a  Friend  minister,  who  later  became  rector  in  the  Episcopalian 
Church. 

William  Bamett  and  family  were  the  next  Friends  to  locate  in  the  northwest 
part  of  the  county,  coming  here  from  Marion  County,  Indiana,  the  date  of  their 
arrival  in  Iowa  being  July,  1855.  William  Bamett  and  Mary  Ann,  his  wife,  had 
a  family  of  ten  children. 

Other  families  coming  in  that  year  were  Wilson  Barnett,  a  brother  of  William, 
from  Hendricks  County,  Indiana,  and  John  Allen  and  family.  His  wife,  Margaret, 
was  a  daughter  of  Richard  Mendenhall.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Allen  were  members  of 
the  Friends  Church  and  the  other  members  of  their  family  united  with  the 
society  after  coming  to  Madison  County. 

In  1856  David  and  Hannah  Smith  Stanton  located  on  the  Pilot  Grove  Farm, 
in  Penn  Township. 

In  the  fall  of  1857,  Thomas  and  Ruth  Wilson  came  here  from  Marion  County. 
Indiana.  Their  family  consisted  of  six  sons  and  three  daughters,  one  of  whom, 
Margaret,  became  the  wife  of  Wesley  Cox,  whose  home  was  on  a  tract  of  land 
purchased  of  Richard  Cook.  Here  the  Wilson  family  stopped  for  a  short  time 
until  a  permanent  location  could  be  made.  They  settled  on  the  north  half  of  sec- 
*tion  16,  Penn  Township,  the  land  having  been  purchased  of  Milton  Muger  for 
$7  per  acre.  This  continued  to  be  the  home  of  Mr.  Wilson  until  his  removal  to 
Earlham  in  1874.  He  was  one  of  seven  who  voted  at  the  first  election  held  in 
Penn  Township  in  the  fall  of  1858. 

In  1858  Cyrus  Griffin  and  wife  Eliza,  daughter  of  Seth  Wilson,  located  near 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  223 

where  North  Branch  meeting  house  was  afterwards  built.     He  kept  a  general 
store  in  one  room  of  his  house  for  some  time. 

Among  other  early  settlers  were  Joseph  Beasley,  Stephen  Hockett  and  John 
Hockett,  with  their  families. 

MEETING     HOUSES 

The  first  meetings  in  the  new  settlement  were  held  at  the  home  of  William 
Bamett.  Later  the  meeting  place  was  transferred  to  a  house  standing  in  Martin 
Compton's  yard.  This  was  the  place  of  meeting  until  about  the  year  1862  or 
1863,  when  Friends  built  a  frame  house  on  the  southeast  comer  of  Cyrus  Griffin's 
land.  This  building  was  also  used  for  a  schoolhouse.  William  Bamett  bought 
this  building,  after  the  second  house  was  erected,  and  moved  it  into  Earlham, 
where  it  is  still  doing  service  as  part  of  a  dwelling.  The  second  building  was 
erected  on  a  tract  of  five  acres  bought  for  meeting  house  and  burial  ground.  The 
original  deed  states  that  said  lot  was  conveyed  by  Martin  Compton  and  his  wife, 
Ann  E.  Compton,  to  the  trustees  of  Bear  Creek  Monthly  Meeting — five  acres  of 
land  on  the  northeast  comer  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  9,  dated  September 
5,  1862,  consideration  $50.  On  this  lot  North  Branch  Meeting  House  was  built  in 
1869,  at  a  cost  of  about  twenty-six  hundred  dollars,  Seth  Wilson,  David  L.  Beasely 
and  William  Bamett  being  the  building  committee.  The  house  was  a  frame  stmc- 
ture,  30  by  50  feet,  with  a  sliding  panel  partition  dividing  it  into  two  rooms,  the 
one  on  the  east  being  occupied  by  the  men  and  the  one  on  the  west  by  the  women. 
This  partition  was  left  open  during  meeting  for  worship,  but  was  closed  during 
meetings  for  business,  the  men  and  women  holding  separate  sessions.  A  gallery 
large  enough  for  two  rows  of  seats  ran  along  the  north  side  of  the  rooms  facing  the 
entrance,  and  the  main  audience  room  had  an  inclined  floor.  The  seats  were 
of  the  box  pattern,  made  of  black  walnut.  In  1893,  when  the  house  was  no 
longer  used  for  meeting  purposes,  it  was  sold  to  William  Ramsey,  who  moved 
it  away  and  converted  it  into  a  dwelling  and  other  buildings. 

The  first  meeting  house  in  Earlham  was  erected  on  the  southwest  comer  of  the 
east  half  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  i,  Penn  Township.  The  title  to  the 
lot  was  conveyed  by  Nathan  Mendenhall  and  wife  to  the  trustees  of  Bear  Creek 
Monthly  Meeting,  December  15,  1868.  The  house  built  on  this  lot  was  later 
moved  into  the  Town  of  Earlham,  where  it  served  for  meeting  purposes  until 
superseded  by  the  one  now  occupied  by  Earlham  Friends. 

Following  is  a  copy  of  the  minutes  of  the  first  preparative  meeting  held  at 
North  Branch,  as  taken  from  the  original  record : 

"North  Branch  Preparative  Meeting  of  Friends  opened  and  held  in  Madison 
County,  State  of  Iowa,  on  Fifth  day,  9th  of  7th  month,  1863,  by  the  approbation 
and  direction  of  South  River  Quarterly  Meeting  of  Friends.  Also  there  is  a  com- 
mittee very  acceptably  present  with  us  and  produced  a  copy  of  a  minute  of  their 
appointment  by  Bear  Creek  Monthly  Meeting  of  Friends  to  attend  the  opening  of 
this.    John  Hockett  was  appointed  clerk  for  the  day. 

"The  queries  were  all  read  in  this  meeting,  with  written  answers  thereto, 
which  the  clerk  was  diceted  to  forward  to  the  monthly  meeting,  and  assist  in 
making  out  a  summary. 

"The  following  named  Friends  are  appointed  to  propose  the  name  of  two 


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224  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Friends  to  next  meeting  to  have  the  care  of  the  burying  ground,  namely :  Joseph 
Beasley  and  John  Wilson. 

"The  following  named  Friends  are  appointed  to  propose  the  name  of  a  Friend 
for  clerk,  namely,  Josiah  Stanley,  John  Hockett. 

"The  meeting  then  concluded. 

"John  Hockett,  Clerk  for  the  Day." 

The  North  Branch  Friends  were  members  of  Bear  Creek  Monthly  Meeting, 
which  had  been  organized  in  1856,  in  Union  Township,  Dallas  County;  also  of 
South  River  Quarterly  Meeting,  Warren  County,  which  had  been  organized  in 
i860. 

At  the  next  meeting,  held  August  6th,  John  Hockett  and  William  Barnett  were 
appointed  a  committee  to  care  for  the  bur)ring  ground,  and  John  Wilson  was  ap- 
pointed permanent  clerk. 

At  a  later  meeting,  held  October  8th,  the  subject  of  finances  was  introduced. 
William  Barnett  was  appointed  temporary  treasurer,  and  the  sum  of  $1  was 
directed  to  be  raised  by  the  members,  56  cents  of  which  was  to  be  paid  to  the 
monthly  meeting  for  quarterly  meeting  stock,  and  the  balance  to  be  used  to  pur- 
chase glass  for  this  meeting  and  report  to  next  meeting. 

December  10,  1863,  Seth  Wilson  was  appointed  permanent  treasurer.  The 
London  General  Epistle  was  read  "to  our  edification  and  comfort." 

Minutes  of  February  9,  1865.  "William  Barnett  and  John  Wilson,  who  were 
appointed  a  committee  to  ascertain  cost  of  breaking  meeting  house  lot  and  fencing 
it,  make  a  report  that  the  cost  will  be  $17.50.  They  propose  a  rail  fence  on  west 
and  north  to  join  to  John  Hockett,  rails  to  be  furnished  on  the  ground  according 
to  our  rate  of  apportionment." 

The  second  clerk  of  the  meeting  was  Joel  Hockett,  appointed  June  8,  1865. 

The  "rates  of  apportionment"  referred  to  above  appears  in  the  minutes  of 
January  11,  1866,  as  follows:  Seth  Wilson,  14  per  cent;  William  Barnett,  14  per 
cent;  Joseph  Beasley,  12  per  cent;  Stephen  Hockett,  8  per  cent;  Dayton  Barnett, 
7  per  cent ;  David  Beasley,  7  per  cent ;  William  Beasley,  7  per  cent ;  Christopher 
Wilson,  7  per  cent;  Josiah  Stanley,  5  per  cent;  Ira  Barnett,  5  per  cent;  Joel 
Hockett,  5  per  cent ;  Wesley  Barnett,  4  per  cent ;  Asa  Barnett,  4  per  cent ;  John 
Hockett,  4  per  cent ;  John  Wilson,  4  per  cent ;  Joseph  L.  Hockett,  4  per  cent ;  total, 
III  per  cent. 

A  committee  was  appointed  at  this  meeting  to  take  into  consideration  the 
size,  plan  and  estimated  cost  of  a  new  meeting  house,  namely:  John  Hockett, 
Joseph  Beasley  and  Seth  Wilson.  The  committee  made  a  satisfactory  report 
March  8th  and  the  subject  was  dismissed  for  the  present. 

April  12,  1866.  "David  Beasley  and  Eunice  Wilson  informed  the  meeting 
that  they  propose  marriage  with  each  other,  having  obtained  consent  of  their 
parents,  which  is  directed  to  be  forwarded  to  the  monthly  meeting."  Also  "John 
Day  and  Hannah  Talbert  propose  marriage  with  each  other,  which  is  directed 
forwarded  to  the  monthly  meeting." 

The  first  request  for  membership  seems  to  have  been  May  24,  1866.  The 
request  is  as  follows:  "The  overseers  inform  that  Cyrus  Griffin  and  his  wife 
Eliza  Griffin,  with  their  minor  children,  James,  Henry,  Milton  W.,  Ella,  Jane, 
Homer,  Virgil,  Benjamin  S.,  Sarah  Elizabeth,  Owen  P.,  Edgar  and  Anna,  wish 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  225 

to  be  joined  in  membership  with  the  Religious  Society  of  Friends.    The  request 
is  directed  forwarded  to  the  monthly  meeting." 

In  order  to  make  the  next  minutes  of  North  Branch  Preparative  Meeting 
better  understood,  two  will  be  inserted  from  Bear  Creek  Monthly  Meeting.  Under 
date  of  March  30,  1867,  it  is  recorded  that  "Friends  of  Penn  Township,  Madison 
County,  Iowa,  request  for  a  preparative  meeting  to  be  held  on  fourth  day  pre- 
ceding Bear  Creek  Monthly  Meeting,  and  a  meeting  for  worship  on  first  and 
fourth  days,  to  be  known  by  the  name  of  Union  Preparative  Meeting."  A  com- 
mittee was  appointed  to  take  the  request  into  consideration. 

On  April  27th  the  committee  reported  in  favor  of  granting  the  request  and  a 
committee  was  appointed  to  attend  the  opening.  The  approximate  date  of  the 
opening  was  May  22,  1867.  The  place  of  opening  was  the  home  of  Joshua 
Newlin,  where  the  meetings  were  held  until  the  house  was  built  on  a  lot  bought 
of  Nathan  Mendenhall  as  previously  stated. 

In  North  Branch  minutes  of  April  25,  1869,  Joel  Hockett,  Joseph  Beasley 
and  John  Wilson  were  appointed  a  committee  to  confer  with  Friends  of  Union 
Preparative  Meeting  to  consider  the  propriety  of  requesting  for  a  monthly 
meeting. 

September  23,  1869,  the  building  committee  reported  the  meeting  house  about 
completed.  There  seems  to  be  no  further  reference  to  the  building  in  the  minutes. 
The  next  step  was  the  opening  of  the  monthly  meeting.  Following  is  a  record 
from  the  minutes  of  the  meeting  of  women  Friends:  "North  Branch  Monthly 
Meeting  of  Friends  opened  and  held  at  North  Branch,  Madison  County,  Iowa, 
9th  month,  30th,  1869." 

The  minutes  of  men  Friends  of  the  monthly  meeting  have  not  been  found 
and  are  supposed  to  have  burned  in  the  house  of  David  Hockett,  in  Earlham,  who 
was  clerk  at  the  time. 

The  next  item  of  interest  is  October  4,  1869,  when  Union  Preparative  Meeting 
requested  that  the  name  be  changed  to  Earlham. 

A  revolution  now  entered  Bear  Creek  Quarterly  Meeting.  This  first  started 
in  the  yearly  meetings  farther  east  and  entered  the  meetings  of  Bear  Creek 
Quarter  in  the  year  1873.  This  revolution  began  by  holding  revival  meetings, 
called  "general  meetings,"  under  the  care  of  a  committee  appointed  by  the  quar- 
terly meeting,  in  conjunction  with  a  like  committee  appointed  by  the  yearly 
meeting.  The  first  general  meeting  was  held  at  North  Branch,  February  9,  1873, 
and  continued  during  six  sessions.  The  committee  reported  that  they  believed 
the  meeting  was  "held  to  the  honor  of  truth." 

The  next  meeting  was  held  at  Bear  Creek,  following  the  quarterly  meeting 
in  February,  1874.  It  began  on  the  second  day  and  closed  on  the  fourth  night. 
The  report  of  the  committee  on  this  meeting  was  that  the  fore  part  was  held 
to  pretty  good  satisfaction  but  the  latter  part  was  not  so  satisfactory.  The  "not 
satisfactory"  feature  of  the  meetings  came  out  during  the  discussion  of  the  report 
and  proved  to  be  the  closing  meeting  of  fourth  day  night.  At  this  meeting  a 
"mourners'  bench"  and  "testimony  meeting"  were  introduced,  after  the  well 
known  custom  of  the  Methodists.  This  created  much  dissatisfaction  among 
the  more  conservative  members. 

Following  the  quarterly  meeting  in  February,  for  the  next  two  years  general 
meetings  were  held  at  Bear  Creek.    It  was  evident  that  the  two  factions  were  get- 

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226  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

ting  farther  apart  as  the  work  progressed.  The  climax  was  reached  at  the  next 
general  meeting  in  1877.  This,  like  the  others,  followed  the  quarterly  meeting 
in  February.  On  the  third  day  of  the  meeting  the  leader  arose,  and  after  a  few 
remarks,  called  on  all  those  who  were  tired  of  sin  and  desired  to  live  a  different 
life  to  come  to  the  front  seats.  About  twenty  came  in  a  body;  others  followed 
later.  Great  confusion  followed.  Prayers,  cries  and  groans,  interspersed  with  an 
occasionar  stanza  of  a  hymn,  were  heard  from  all  parts  of  the  large  room.  For 
the  conservative,  whose  customary  worship  was  that  of  "silent  waiting  before 
the  Lord,"  until  the  "risings  of  life"  should  appear  before  speaking,  this  was 
too  much.  They  saw  in  this  the  death  knell  of  Quakerism,  and  to  save  the  *'be- 
loved  society"  something  must  be  done,  even  if  it  required  something  desperate. 
Apparently  by  common  consent,  the  conservative  Friends  began  to  depart  for 
their  homes  and  the  die  of  separation  was  cast. 

A  conference  was  soon  called  of  all  Friends  who  were  dissatisfied  with  these 
revival  methods,  which  culminated  in  a  general  conference  for  the  whole  quar- 
terly meeting,  which  met  at  Bear  Creek,  April  29,  1877.  At  this  conference  it 
was  decided  that  the  society  had  so  far  departed  from  its  ancient  testimonies  as 
to  forfeit  its  right  to  an  existence,  and  that  in  order  to  have  such  society  it  was 
necessary  to  reorganize.  Steps  for  reorganization  were  accordingly  taken.  This 
was  to  take  place  at  each  of  the  monthly  meetings  belonging  to  the  quarter, 
namely,  Bear  Creek,  North  Branch  and  Summit  Grove  (now  Stuart).  North 
Branch  Monthly  Meeting  being  the  first  in  order  following  the  conference,  was 
to  be  the  place  of  beginning.    The  date  of  this  meeting  was  June  16,  1877. 

The  meeting  for  worship  which  always  precedes  the  business  session,  passed 
without  anything  out  of  the  ordinary.  When  the  time  for  business  came,  Joseph 
Beasley,  who  was  "timer"  of  the  meeting,  arose  and  made  the  customary  sugges- 
tion that  "Friends  might  now  proceed  to  take  up  the  business  of  the  monthly 
meeting,  and  we  have  no  clerk,  some  one  should  be  appointed  for  the  day." 
Jesse  Beasley  was  named,  and  after  taking  his  place,  read  a  short  statement  ex- 
plaining the  present  action  and  then  read  the  opening  minutes.  Stephen  Hockett 
now  arose  and  objected  to  the  appointment  of  a  "clerk,"  saying  that  they  had 
one  "clerk"  and  that  was  enough;  that  Allen  Bamett  was  already  the  "clerk." 
He  then  followed  with  the  remark :  "I  understand  Friends  that  this  action  today 
means  a  separation  in  the  church.  I  have  seen  separations  in  the  church  before 
and  I  want  to  warn  you  that  the  people  who  separated  never  did  any  good  after- 
wards." This  was  followed  by  other  speeches  on  the  same  subject.  A  time  or 
two  during  the  discussion  Joseph  Beasley  was  heard  to  say,  ^*We  don't  want 
any  contention.  Friends.  We  simply  want  to  hold  North  Branch  Monthly  Meet- 
ing." But  the  confusion  was  so  great  that  it  was  out  of  the  question.  So  they 
withdrew  to  the  yard  and  held  a  council  to  decide  upon  further  action.  After 
they  withdrew,  Allen  Bamett  opened  the  meeting  as  usual,  and  the  business 
meeting  was  held  as  though  nothing  out  of  the  ordinary  had  taken  place. 

Those  who  withdrew  met  at  the  meeting  house  on  the  fourth  day  following 
and  completed  their  reorganization.  Separations  in  the  other  monthly  meetings 
followed  soon  and  in  August  a  quarterly  meeting  was  organized  at  Bear  Creek, 
and  a  yearly  meeting  a  few  weeks  later  at  Oskaloosa.  It  was  discovered  at 
North  Branch  that  those  who  withdrew  composed  almost  all  the  members  of  the 
preparative  meeting.     Those  who  remained  sold  their  interest  in  the  church 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  227 

property  to  the  conservatives  and  withdrew  to  Earlham.  This  gave  the  conserva- 
tives undisputed  possession.  Later  these  people  all  moved  away,  mostly  to  Earl- 
ham, where  they  built  a  new  meeting  house,  modeled  after  the  old,  which  they 
sold  to  William  Ramsey,  as  before  stated.  The  last  business  meeting  held  in 
the  old  house  was  the  conservative  Friends  monthly  meeting,  on  the  26th  of 
February,  1891. 


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CHAPTER  XXVIII 

CLAYTON  COUNTY  COMES  TO  MADISON 
By  H.  A.  Mueller 

Up  to  the  time  of  the  Revolutionary  war,  practically  all  the  people  of  the 
United  States  were  living  east  of  the  Allegheny  Mountains,  comprising  the  thir- 
teen original  colonies.  There  was  very  little  emigration  to  the  west  of  the  Alle- 
ghenies  until  after  the  Revolutionary  war.  By  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century 
there  was  quite  a  waye  of  immigration  into  Tennessee,  Kentucky  and  Ohio, 
Indiana  and  Illinois,  until  by  1818  all  the  above  mentioned  states  had  sufficient 
population  to  be  admitted  as  states.  Iowa  had  scarcely  been  thought  of  and 
as  yet  belonged  to  the  Indians.  It  was  not  until  after  the  Black  Hawk  war, 
1832-3,  that  the  first  settler  crossed  the  Mississippi  and  settled  along  the  western 
shore.  The  first  Iowa  settlers  came  from  across  the  river,  from  Illinois,  Indiana, 
Ohio  and  the  eastern  states.  Some  came  by  steamers  down  the  Ohio  River 
and  up  the  Mississippi  River  and  then  scattered  along  the  western  bank  of  the 
Mississippi,  some  stopping  at  Keokuk,  others  at  Burlington,  Davenport,  etc. 
Others  came  west  across  the  country  in  prairie  schooners,  and  they  were  ferried 
across  at  these  various  places.  Clayton  was  among  the  first  counties  to  be  settled, 
hence  by  the  time  that  Madison  County  was  open  for  settlers,  late  in  the  fall  of 
1845,  Clayton  County  was  pretty  well  settled  for  that  day. 

The  first  settlers  in  Madison  County  were  from^  Missouri,  coming  in  the 
spring  of  1846.  The  Clanton  colony  settled  near  where  St.  Charles  now  stands. 
The  Guye  family  settled  in  Union  Township.  Later  in  the  summer  there  came  also 
from  Northwestern  Missiouri  John  Evans,  Lemuel  Thombrugh,  John  Butler, 
William  Butler,  Irwin  Baum,  Martin  Baum,  Jacob  Combs,  William  Combs,  John 
Beedle,  P.  M.  Boyles  and  others. 

The  following  year  there  came  David  Bishop  and  the  Whiteds,  who  settled 
south  of  Middle  River  on  what  was  afterwards  known  as  Hoosier  Prairie.  These 
were  from  Indiana  and  started  a  colony  of  Hoosiers,  made  by  the  addition  of 
the  Henkels,  the  Runkles,  Queens,  Debords  and  others. 

Union  Township — Sturmans,  Lulls  and  Phillipses  came  from  Coshocton 
County,  Ohio.  Later  in  the  '50s  there  was  a  large  colony  settled  in  Ohio  Town- 
ship, from  which  the  township  took  its  name.  However,  people  from  Ohio  and 
Indiana  settled  in  various  parts  of  Madison  County;  the  Irish  settlement  in 
Lee  and  Crawford  townships;  the  German  settlement  in  Jefferson  Township; 
the  Quakers  about  Earlham ;  the  Ohio-Swiss-German  settlement  in  Penn  Town- 
ship and  the  Kentucky  settlement  in  South  and  Scott  townships. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  all  the  settlements  already  mentioned  came  from  outside 
the  State  of  Iowa,  while  the  Clayton  County  settlers  came  from  within  the 
State  of  Iowa.    Up  to  the  time  of  the  Civil  war  and  later  there  were  many  no  ^ 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  229 

doubt  who  had  first  settled  in  some  other  part  of  Iowa  and  later  moved  to  Madison 
County,  but  there  is  no  single  county  that  ever  sent  such  an  immigration  as 
Cla)rton,  and  one  that  has  made  such  an  impress  upon  the  people.  This  wave 
began  about  1864  and  lasted  until  1873.  The  cause  of  this  emigration  was  to 
find  cheaper  lands,  as  the  land  from  where  they  came  had  increased  in  value 
and  they  were  also  seeking  a  more  moderate  climate. 

C.  C.  Goodale,  one  of  the  best  known  men  in  Madison  County  thirty  years  ago, 
had  the  following  to  say:  "The  first  settler  from  Clayton  County  was  John 
Wragg,  who  in  the  year  1863  settled  in  Grand  River  Township,  but  only  stayed 
there  about  a  year,  when  he  removed  to  Dallas  County,  where  he  remained  until 
he  died. 

"The  pioneer  of  the  Clayton  County  wave,  however,  was  Daniel  Hazen,  who, 
having  sold  his  farm  in  1863  in  Clayton  County,  and  desiring  a  more  moderate 
climate  where  the  winters  were  not  so  severe,  shortly  afterward  made  a  trip 
through  the  southern  and  southwestern  part  of  the  state,  and  becoming  attracted 
by  the  fertility  of  the  soil  in  Jefferson  Xownship,  purchased  land  there  in  1864. 
In  1865  he  moved  there  and  was  shortly  afterward  followed  by  three  of  his 
brothers,  Emerous  and  Rufus  Hazen,  who  settled  in  Jefferson  Township,  and 
Emerson  Hazen,  who  settled  in  Lee  Township.  With  Rufus  Hazen  came  Miss 
Lucinda  Parks,  who  shortly  afterwards  married  Henry  Gutshall,  a  resident  of 
Jefferson  Township,  and  there  they  still  reside. 

"In  August,  1865,  Charles  C.  Goodale,  an  acquaintance  of  the  Hazens,  came 
to  Jefferson  Township  and  worked  for  Daniel  Hazen,  and  during  the  winter 
taught  school  in  the  Jefferson  schoolhouse  in  that  district.  During  the  winter 
he  purchased  a  tract  of  land  in  Lee  Township,  where  he  afterwards  resided 
until  the  fall  of  1873,  when  he  moved  to  Winterset,  having  been  elected  county 
auditor.  John  Stevenson  settled  in  Lee  Township  in  1867  and  remained  there 
several  years,  after  whicli  he  removed  to  California. 

"Jefferson  Township  was  the  favored  township  for  the  people  from  Clayton 
County,  owing  to  the  character  of  the  soil,  which  resembled  that  of  Clayton 
County,  and  also  to  the  smooth  undulating  surface  in  the  northern  part  where 
most  of  them  settled.  In  1866  those  who  came  to  Jefferson  Township  were 
Malcolm  McBride,  William  C.  Hazen,  Gustavus  Hazen,  John  Kelley,  Mrs. 
Estey,  George  and  John  Brooker  and  John  Hartenbower. 

"In  1867  those  who  came  were  William  Brewster,  Leonidas  Renshaw, 
Lewis  Ballou,  Enoch  Allen,  Frank  Trunkey,  Elliott  Cook,  Jonathan  Smith,  John 
Hutchins,  Alfred  Pierce,  Almon  Wright,  John  Wright,  Dewitt  C.  Wright,  Hardy 
Lockwood,  Gudliffe  Brooker,  Frederick  Brooker,  Timothy  Killam,  and  John 
Smith.  All  these  settled  in  Jefferson  Township.  Afterwards  and  prior  to  1870 
those  who  settled  in  this  township  from  Clayton  County  were  Merrill  A.  Knight, 
Alexander  Miller,  Sylvester  Renshaw,  Silas  Angier,  William  Kelley,  Gearhardt 
Storck,'  John  Westphal,  Herman  Marquardt,  Ferdinand  Marquardt,  Mr.  Stein- 
house,  Merrill  Carty,  Harriet  Hazen,  George  Allen  and  William  Buske. 

"In  1868  Anson  M.  Peters  settled  in  Madison  Township  and  soon  after 
George  Storck  settled  there.  About  the  same  time '  Simeon  Alger  settled  in 
Penn  Township  and  Thomas  Adams  and  William  Sherman  settled  in  Jackson 
Township. 

"During  the  period  from  1865  to  1870  Dr.  Evan  Linton,  Mrs.  Linton,  Harri- 


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230  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

son,  Hettie  and  Emily  Linton,  Emily  Adams  and  C.  H.  Lancaster  came  from 
Qayton  County  and  settled  in  Winterset. 

**Of  the  foregoing  settlers,  John  Hartenbower  and  John  Smith  were  after- 
wards elected  as  representatives;  Merrill  A.  Knight,  county  treasurer;  George 
Storck,  county  supervisor;  Dewitt  C.  Wright,  clerk  of  the  district  court;  and 
Charles  C.  Goodale,  county  auditor." 

Of  the  list  mentioned  it  will  be  noted  that  many  have  moved  away  and 
others  have  passed  to  a  better  land.  However,  many  of  their  descendants  are 
living  within  th^  county,  some  occupying  the  homes  where  their  parents  first 
settled. 

The  Clayton  County  settlers  were  an  honest,  sober,  industrious  class  of  citizens 
and  were  progressive  farmers.  They  became  identified  with  Madison  County's 
best  farmers  and  having  settled  in  the  north  part  of  the  county,  they  made  a  wise 
choice  in  the  selection  of  farms  and  soon, became  well-to-do  and  prosperous. 

John  Wragg,  who  settled  in  Grand  River  in  1863,  went  to  Dallas  County  the 
following  year  and  founded  the  Wragg  Nursery,  which  is  now  known  all  over 
the  state. 

Lee  Township. — Emerson  Hazen  came  here  in  1865  and  owned  320 
acres  of  land  in  section  16.  He  died  several  years  ago.  Part  of  the 
farm  is  still  owned  by  a  son  and  daughter.  John  Stevenson  came  in  1867  and 
owned  a  farm  on  section  5,  which  is  now  occupied  by  William  Shambaugh.  Mr. 
Stevenson  moved  to  Colorado  many  years  ago.  Solomon  H.  Bronson  arrived 
in  1868  and  for  a  time  lived  on  section  19.  He  soon  afterward  began  buying 
and  shipping  hogs,  making  his  residence  at  De  Soto,  Booneville  and  Commerce. 
He  died  a  few  years  ago  at  the  latter  place. 

Madison  Township. — Enoch  Allen  in  1867  bought  640  acres  of  land 
on  sections  11,  12,  13  and  14,  which  he  sold  to  Anson  M.  Peters,  who  came 
in  1868.  Mr.  Peters  owned  one  of  the  best  farms  in  Madison  Township.  Several 
years  ago  he  moved  to  California,  first  disposing  of  his  land.  It  is  owned  at 
present  by  Henry  Thomsen  and  others.  George  Storck,  the  first  of  the  Germans, 
came  in  1868  and  bought  160  acres  on  which  he  still  lives.  He  owns  in  all  440  acres. 

Penn  Township. — Simeon  Alger  settled  at  Penn  Center,  in  Penn  Township, 
in  1868,  and  there  passed  away.  He  was  the  father  of  Mrs.  L.  Renshaw,  Mrs. 
Merrill  Carty  and  Mrs.  Rev.  William  Mercer. 

Jackson  Township. — Thomas  Adams  and  William  Sherman  settled  here  in 
1868.     Clark  Sherman  owned  land  in  sections  4  and  9  from  1876  until  1901. 

Jefferson  Township. — Daniel  Hazen  bought  his  farm  in  section  27  in  1864 
and  moved  thereon  in  1865.  He  later  owned  320  acres.  About  1883, 
on  account  of  ill  health,  he  and  his  family  went  to  Florida  and  there  his 
wife  died.  He  and  his  sons  returned  to  Madison  County.  He  died  a  number 
of  years  ago.  His  son  Bert  now  lives  in  Union  County  and  Carl  lives  in  Oregon. 
Emerous  Hazen  bought  land  on  section  3  in  1865,  where  his  son  Frank  still 
resides.  Rufus  Hazen  settled  on  section  14  in  1865,  near  Pleasant  Grove  Church. 
He  moved  to  Union  County  many  years  ago  and  some  of  his  children  still  reside 
there.     He  is  now  deceased. 

C.  C.  Goodale  came  in  1865.  He  worked  for  Daniel  Hazen  and  also  taught 
school.  He  later  lived  on  a  farm  in  Lee  Township.  In  1873  he  was  elected 
county  auditor,  holding  the  position  three  terms.     In  1887  ^^  moved  with  his 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  231 

family  to  Lamar,  Colorado.  For  four  years  he  was  surveyor  general  of  Colorado 
and  made  his  home  in  Denver.  He  is  now  practicing  law  at  Lamar,  where  he  has 
property  interests. 

George  Allen,  who  came  in  1865,  was  a  brother  of  Mrs.  Emerous  Hazen. 
Mrs.  Henry  Gutshall,  who  was  formerly  Miss  Lucinda  Parks  and  came  here  in 
1865,  lives  on  the  old  homestead  on  section  2. 

George  Brooker,  jvho  came  in  1866,  married  a  Miss  Killam.  He  owned  the 
northeast  quarter  of  section  22.  He  died  about  1885.  His  children  were  Clinton, 
Elmer  E.  of  Des  Moines,  Orva  of  South  Dakota,  Ernest  of  Jefferson  Township 
and  Mrs.  Williams. 

John  Brooker,  who  came  in  1866,  settled  on  section  16,  Jefferson  Township. 
He  died  in  Winterset  in  1904.  He  married  Mary  Htlbbard  and  their  children 
are  Ernest,  William,  Mrs.  Lou  Imes,  Mrs.  Trindle,  Mrs.  Coe  and  Clara. 

Malcolm  McBride,  who  came  in  1866,  settled  on  section  22,  He  died  about 
1894.  He  married  a  Miss  Hazen,  who  died  many  years  ago.  Their  children 
were  L.  W.  of  New  Mexico,  Mrs.  Hettie  Baur,  Mrs.  Nellie  Alexander  and  Carrie. 

John  Kelley,  who  came  in  1866,  married  a  Miss  Estey  and  they  had  several 
children.  Mrs.  Estey,  who  came  the  same  year,  died  many  years  ago.  Besides 
her  daughter,  Mrs.  Kelley,  her  children  were  Oren,  Benjamin  and  Mrs.  Kopp. 

Gustavus  Hazen  at  one  time  owned  Reigle  Mill.  John  Hartenbower  owned 
160  acres  of  land  on  section  25.  He  was  elected  representative  in  1870.  He  later 
went  to  Kansas  where  he  was  elected  to  the  same  office.  He  died  a  few  years  ago. 

Elliott  Cook  owned  320  acres  of  land  on  section  24.  Francis  Trunkey 
owned  land  on  section  13.  He  moved  to  Van  Meter,  Iowa,  and  died 
there  several  years  ago.  Gudliffe  Brooker  lived  on  section  20.  He  became 
very  prominent  in  Sunday  school  work  and  was  president  of  the  county  Sunday 
school  association  for  twenty  years  or  more.  He  sold  his  farm  and  died  in  Earl- 
ham  in  March,  1907.  Frederick  Brooker  lived  but  a  short  time  in  Jefferson 
Township,  when  he  moved  to  Missouri  and  there  died.  William  Brewster 
owned  land  on  section  21.  He  eventually  returned  to  his  old  home  in  Connecticut 
and  died  there  several  years  ago.  Lewis  Ballou  owned  240  acres  of  land  on 
section  17.  He  eventually  moved  to  Pasadena,  California.  Leonidas  Renshaw 
owned  a  farm  on  section  21.  He  sold  his  land  several  years  ago  and  moved 
to  Indianola  and  later  to  Canada.  He  married  a  Miss  Alger.  John  Hutchins 
owned  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  16.  He  died  several  years  ago. 
Some  of  his  children  resided  in  Colorado  and  a  son,  Dr.  A.  C,  lives  in  Des 
Moines.  His  daughters  are  Mrs.  Frank  Howell  and  Mrs.  Alvin  Williams.  Mun- 
son  Wright  owned  the  Procknow  farm.  He  moved  to  Storm  Lake.  Alfred 
Pierce,  who  lived  on  section  12,  married  a  Miss  Wright.  Almon  Wright  lived  on 
section  12.  D.  C.  Wright  was  elected  clerk  of  the  district  court  in  1893.  He 
later  moved  to  North  Dakota.  Timothy  Killam  first  located  in  Winterset  and 
later  in  Jefferson  Township.  He  was  the  father  of  Mrs.  Gudliffe  and  Mrs. 
George  Brooker,  J.  M.  Killam  of  Truro,  T.  L  of  St.  Charles,  C.  D.  of  Sioux 
City  and  George  of  Denver.  Jonathan  Smith,  who  owned  land  on  section  14, 
moved  to  Van  Meter  and  there  died  a  few  years  ago.  John  J.  Smith  lived  on 
section  10,  and  was  elected  representative  in  1875.  Silas  Angier  moved  from 
the  county  to  Dakota  and  later  moved  to  Indianola,  Iowa.  Adam  Geizelman  lived 
on  the  Renshaw  farm.    All  the  above  named  came  in  1867  to  Jefferson  Township. 


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232  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

George  Cook,  who  came  in  1868,  owned  eighty  acres  on  section  14.  His 
children  were  Elliott,  Frank  and  George.  He  died  in  1885.  Merrill  Knight,  who 
came  the  same  year,  owned  160  acres  on  sections  7  and  8.  He  was  elected 
county  treasurer  in  1875  and  served  two  terms.  He  conducted  a  hotel  in 
Winterset  for  a  time  and  later  lived  on  a  farm  in  Jackson  Township,  where 
he  passed  away.  He  had  three  sons  and  three  daughters.  Sylvester  Ren- 
shaw  came  in  1868  and  settled  on  section  21,  Jefferson  Towjnship.  He  married  a 
Miss  Hazen  and  moved  to  Earlham.  Alexander  Miller  settled  on  the  southwest 
quarter  of  section  9,  Jeiferson  Township.  Gerhardt  Storck  came  in  1870  and 
located  on  sections  9  and  10.  He  married  a  Miss  Marquardt  and  reared  a  large 
family  and  died.  Ferdinand  Marquardt  came  in  1870  and  located  on  section 
3.  August  Bemau  came  in  1872  and  settled  on  section  7.  He  died  in  1885.  J.  H. 
Bemau,  also  deceased,  lived  on  section  14.  Another  son  William  lived  on  the 
homestead.    The  daughters  were  Mrs.  R.  Kneuper  and  Mrs.  Henrietta  Wishmire. 

William  Buske,  who  came  to  the  county  in  1871,  lived  on  section  8.  He  later 
moved  to  Des  Moines.  Charles  and  Merrill  Carty,  who  came  in  1872,  were  then 
aged  eleven  and  thirteen  years  respectively.  August  Zieman  and  wife  came  in 
1873  and  located  on  sections  21  and  28.  Carl  Marquardt  and  wife  also  came  in 
1873.  They  were  the  parents  of  Mrs.  Gerhardt  and  Mrs.  George  Storck,  Mrs. 
W.  H.  Burger  and  Ferdinand  and  Herman  Marquardt.  Frederick  Roggeman 
came  in  1873  and  settled  on  section  8.  He  sold  to  Louis  Niendorf.  John  West- 
phal  came  here  in  1874  and  settled  on  sections  3  and  4.  He  died  in  1884.  His 
widow  afterward  moved  to  Des  Moines.  His  son  Herman  lives  in  Jefferson 
Township.  Frederick  H.  Myers  came  in  1874  and  located  on  320  acres  on  sec- 
tion 21. 


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CHAPTER    XXIX 
SCHOOLS  AND  RATTLESNAKES 

The  schools  of  this  county  were  at  first  conducted  on  the  old  subscription 
plan,  says  W.  S.  Wilkinson,  in  a  paper  on  the  pioneer  schools,  read  before  the 
Historical  Society,  in  19Q5.  Some  one  would  go  around  the  district  with  a  sub- 
scription paper  and  the  head  of  each  family  would  subscribe  so  many  scholars 
for  the  term  at  the  price  stated  in  the  paper.  If  they  secured  a  sufficient  number 
of  pupils  the  teacher  was  hired  and  the  school  went  on.  If  not,  the  effort  was 
a  failure.  Many  a  subscription  paper  has  gone  by  default  by  not  securing  the 
required  nuipber. 

The  wages  paid  were  about  ten  dollars  a  month  and  the  teacher  boarded 
'round  among  the  scholars,  boarding  a  week  at  one  home,  and  the  next  week 
at  another.  Girls  frequently  taught  for  as  low  as  eight  dollars  a  month.  Money 
was  scarce  then  and  the  teacher  sometimes  had  to  take  part  of  his  wages  in 
trade. 

The  schools  of  the  early  days  were  of  two  kinds.  There  was  the  "loud 
school,"  and  the  "silent  school."  The  silent  school  was  where  the  pupils 
prepared  their  lessons  silently,  as  at  the  present  time,  and  the  loud  school 
was  where  they  prepared  their  lessons  in  a  loud  voice  all  at  the  same  time  in 
school.  Both  the  loud  and  silent  plan  had  their  advocates.  In  the  loud  school 
one  scholar  would  be  preparing  his  spelling  lesson :  B-a-k-e-r — baker ;  s-h-a-d-y — 
shady ;  1-a-d-y — lady ;  t-i-d-y — tidy ;  another  his  reading  lesson :  "The  boy  stood 
on  the  burning  deck,  whence  all  but  him  had  fled,"  and  another:  "Mary  had  a 
little  lamb,  its  fleece  was  white  as  cotton  and  everywhere  that  Mary  went,  the 
lamb  would  go  a  trottin'."  I  think  those  were  not  the  words  in  the  book,  but 
something  like.  They  would  all  be  reading  their  lessons  over  in  a  loud  voice  at 
the  same  time,  making  more  noise  than  a  lot  of  women  at  a  quilting  party. 

The  first  school  I  ever  attended  was  on  the  silent  plan,  but  the  teacher  would 
usually  let  us  study  our  spelling  lessons  out  loud  of  evenings  and  sometimes  of 
Saturday  afternoons  we  would  have  loud  school;  you  see  then  we  had  six  long 
school  days  in  a  week.  The  first  school  I  attended  was  partly  on  the  loud  and 
partly  on  the  silent  plan.  I  think  the  teacher  favored  the  loud  plan  but  some 
of  us  were  too  bashful  to  study  out  loud  so  we  composed  the  silent  part  of  the 
school. 

The  first  loud  school  I  ever  saw  in  Winterset  was  shortly  before  the  Civil 
war.  The  school  was  taught  by  Mr.  HoUingsworth,  a  very  fine  old  gentleman. 
He  called  it  a  select  school.  A  few  of  us  from  J.  S.  Goshom's  school  visited  the 
select  school  one  forenoon.  We  arrived  just  before  recess.  The  teacher  enter- 
tained us  very  nicely.  He  was  very  enthusiastic  over  his  plan  of  teaching  and 
explained  the  advantages  of  that  mode  very  satisfactorily — to  himself. 

When  time  came  for  books  he  called  the  school  to  business.    It  would  hardly 

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234  ,         HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

be  proper  to  say  order,  for  I  could  see  no  order  about  it.  For  some  reason  he 
had  run  behind  with  his  recitations,  and  he  called  out  to  Mary  Wasson  to  hear 
such  a  class  and  on  another  advanced  scholar  to  take  another  class  in  another 
part  of  the  room,  while  he  heard  another  class  himself  and  entertained  his  visitors 
at  the  same  time  in  a  loud  voice ;  he  had  to  talk  very  loud  to  be  heard  above  the 
racket.  I  think  there  were  forty  or  fifty  scholars  present.  There  were  two 
reading  and  one  spelling  class  reciting  at  the  same  time,  while  all  the  rest  of  the 
school  were  studying  their  lessons  out  loud  and  each  one  trying  to  read  louder 
than  anyone  else  in  the  school.  That  was  the  loudest  school  I  ever  saw.  They 
made  more  noise  than  the  party  spoken  of  a  while  ago.  Now  some  of  the  teachers 
are  so  particular  they  will  hardly  let  us  whisper  in  school,  if  they  can  help  it. 

In  the  old  school  days,  the  teacher  had  his  rules  for  the  government  of  the 
school  written  down.  There  were  usually  about  ten  of  the  rules  and  they  stated 
what  should  be  done  and  what  should  not  be  done.  These  rules  were  read  the 
first  thing  the  morning  the  term  commenced  and  frequently  afterwards  until  all 
were  familiar  with  them.  It  was  considered  that  there  was  more  virtue  in  the  rod 
at  that  time  than  at  the  present  and  for  a  small  violation  of  the  rules  a  scholar 
would  receive  about  five  lashes  with  a  switch,  and  for  a  greater  violation  he 
would  be  punished  according  to  the  offense. 

The  free  school  system  did  not  come  into  practical  operation  for  several 
years  and  not  for  some  time  after  the  first  free  school  act  was  passed.  It  was 
opposed  by  some  of  the  heaviest  taxpayers  on  the  ground  that  it  was  unjust  for 
one  man  to  have  to  pay  for  the  schooling  of  other  people's  children.  It  was 
claimed  by  some,  and  not  perhaps  without  some  flavor  of  truth,  that  those  who 
paid  the  least  taxes  had  the  most  children  to  send  and  those  who  paid  the  most 
taxes  had  the  fewest  children  to  send. 

About  this  time  the  school  lands  of  this  county  were  sold,  the  proceeds  of 
which  formed  the  "school  fund,"  which  still  exists.  The  interest  of  that  fund 
was  used  then  as  now,  as  a  public  teachers'  -fund.  This  proved  to  be  a  great 
stimulus  to  the  free  school  system,  as  under  a  subsequent  act  each  school  district 
had  to  maintain  six  months'  school  each  year  to  entitle  them  to  their  share  of  the 
public  money.  I  think  there  was  the  same  county  levy  of  one  mill  then  as 
now  but  districts  had  to  arrange  for  the  balance  of  the  six  months'  school  and 
the  subscription  plan  was  often  resorted  to  to  help  out  the  required  amount  of 
school,  so  that  the  free  school  system  was  not  in  force  much  before  i860. 

The  public  school  fund  was  cared  for  for  several  years  by  a  school  fund 
commissioner  elected  or  appointed  in  each  county,  and  was  under  the  direction 
and  frequent  inspection  of  the  superintendent  of  public  instruction,  but  the  office 
of  school  fund  commissioner  has  lon^  been  done  away  with. 

Under  the  first  free  school  law  there  were  thtee  directors  in  each  school 
district  and  the  law  made  it  the  duty  of  the  directors  to  examine  or  have  some 
competent  person  to  examine  the  teacher  as  to  his  qualifications  to  teach  before 
commencing  the  school.  This  was  before  there  was  a  county  superintendent  of 
schools. 

The  free  school  system  was  started  under  the  unfavorable  circumstances  hinted 
at  but  was  improved  from  time  to  time  until  it  developed  into  the  great  free 
school  system  of  today,  of  which  the  people  of  this  state  are  justly  proud  and 
which  those  of  other  states  view  with  some  degree  of  admiration. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  235 

Early  under  the  new  system  a  number  of  schoolhouses,  mostly  log  houses, 
were  built  in  each  township.  The  districts  were  marked  out  and  the  schoolhouses 
built  more  to  accommodate  the  settlers  than  to  divide  the  township,  so  that  of 
the  first  five  or  six  schoolhouses  built  in  Scott  Township,  only  one  or  two  now 
stand  on  the  ground  where  the  first  schoolhouse  was  built. 

The  old  schoolhouse  was  used  for  early  meetings,  church,  political  and  social 
gatherings;  there  were  the  writing  schools,  the  singing  schools,  the  lyceum  and 
the  old  fashioned  spelling  school.  Those  meetings  were  of  frequent  occurrence 
during  the  winter  season  and  were  a  source  of  much  enjoyment,  and  perhaps  a 
degree  of  profit  to  those  engaged  in  them.  The  spelling  was  very  popular  with 
the  young  people  and  the  teacher  who  refused  to  have  spelling  every  week  or 
two  was  very  unpopular  with  his  school,  and  if  he  did  not  look  sharp,  he  was 
likely  to  be  turned  out  by  his  scholars,  and  sometimes  he  was  turned  out  when  he 
did  have  spelling. 

Schools  would  sometimes  prepare  for  a  spelling  match  and  different  schools 
would  meet  at  one  of  the  schoolhouses  on  a  certain  evening  in  friendly  contest 
to  see  which  school  could  spell  the  other  down.  The  result  was  usually  received 
with  good  grace  by  the  defeated  school  but  sometimes  charges  of  unfairness 
were  made  by  the  defeated  school  and  the  blame  sometimes  landed  on  the  teacher 
of  the  successful  school.  That  and  the  difficulty  of  keeping  order  and  the  extra 
labor  it  entailed  made  it  in  course  of  time  unpopular  with  the  teachers,  so  they 
used  all  their  influence  to  do  away  with  the  spelling  school  and  today  it  is  almost 
a  thing  of  the  past. 

The  principal  sport  at  school  was  town-ball  and  at  times  they  would  have 
interesting  games,  and  woe  to  the  passerby  who  ventured  to  hollow  "school 
butter." 

At  this  time  there  were  no  church  buildings  and  meetings  were  held  in 
the  schoolhouses  and  private  homes.  They  were  conducted  more  on  the  pioneer 
plan  than  the  more  formal  mode  of  today.  People  wore  no  silks  and  satins  then ; 
their  clothing  was  mostly  home  made  and  they  did  not  object  to  getting  right 
down  on  their  knees  at  those  revival  efforts  for  which  those  times  were  noted. 
Some  of  those  revival  meetings  were  spirited  affairs  and  some  of  the  bad  boys 
used  to  say  that  when  the  women  got  to  shouting  the  fun  commenced.  And 
there  was  the  old  fashioned  camp  meeting  where  the  people  would  go  with  a 
covered  wagon  or  tent  and  camp  out  for  days  at  a  time  near  some  good  spring 
in  the  woods,  and  there  are  some  certain  spots  in  this  county  today  still  spoken 
of  as  *'the  old  camp  meeting  ground.''  But  the  old  fashioned  camp  meeting 
was  a  pioneer  institution  and  has  almost  passed  away  in  its  old  form. 

The  old  log  courthouse  in  Winterset  was  used  for  several  years  for  all  the 
town  gatherings,  church,  school,  political  and  social. 

The  politics  of  an  early  day  in  Iowa  was  of  a  mild  form;  there  were  the 
democrats  and  whigs;  some  were  democrats  I  suppose  because  Jackson  was  a 
democrat;  others  were  whigs  because  they  didn't  want  to  be  democrats.  The 
principal  difference  between  the  parties  at  that  time  was  on  the  tariff  and  on 
banking,  but  as  the  people  on  the  frontier  did  not  buy  much,  they  did  not 
excite  themselves  very  much  about  the  tariff. 

The  campaigns  were  run  differently  from  what  they  are  now.  It  was  inde- 
pendent politics  then,  more  like  the  primary  campaigns,  only  there  were  not  so 


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236  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

many  candidates.  If  a  man  ran  for  office  then  he  went  around  over  the  country 
and  talked  to  the  voters.  There  was  no  packing  of  conventions  then,  for  there 
were  no  conventions  to  pack,  and  before  the  secret  ballot  came  into  use  they  voted 
by  word  of  mouth.  The  candidates*  names  were  written  in  a  column  in  the  voting 
place  and  when  a  man  went  to  vote  for  a  man  he  said  so  and  it  was  marked 
down  to  him,  and  if  a  man  got  the  most  votes  he  was  elected  and  if  he  did  not 
get  the  most  votes  he  was  not  elected. 

One  heard  little  about  politics  then,  only  in  a  presidential  campaign,  and  not 
much  then  and  it  would  be  four  weeks  after  election  before  it  was  known  who 
was  elected  President.  There  were  but  few  papers  published  in  Iowa  at  that 
time.  There  was  one  started  in  Des  Moines  early  in  the  '50s.  An  agent  came 
around  through  thi^  county  and  my  father  subscribed  for  the  paper.  I  do  not 
remember  the  name  of  the  paper. 

There  were  a  few  abolitionists  in  the  eastern  states  and  some  farther  west  who 
thought  that  it  would  be  funny  to  steal  a  few  negroes  and  run  them  off  to  Canada, 
and  that  raised  a  little  steam.  And  there  were  a  few  ''Know  Nothings"  that  were 
mean  enough  to  think  that  Pat  and  Yacob  had  no  right  to  vote  and  hold  office 
in  this  country  and  that  certain  religious  people  ought  to  have  nothing  to  say 
in  this  Government,  and  that  raised  a  little  more  steam.  And  there  were  a 
whole  lot  of  fellows  who  said  that  the  South  should  not  have  any  more  territory 
for  slavery  if  they  could  help  it.  And  there  were  a  whole  lot  of  fellows  who 
said  they  wanted  more  territory  for  slavery,  that  they  needed  it  in  their  business 
and  that  they  would  have  it  if  they  could  get  it.  And  then  things  began  to  boil. 
Our  quiet,  independent  politics  was  soon  changed  to  a  roaring,  raging  political 
storm. 

The  different  parties  raised  their  liberty  poles  in  every  town  in  the  county. 
They  held  their  meetings  in  every  schoolhouse  in  the  county,  sometimes  in  the 
daytime  and  sometimes  at  night.  Sometimes  they  would  hold  their  meetings 
in  the  woods.  They  would  sometimes  gather  at  a  schoolhouse  like  a  camp  meeting, 
go  in  the  morning  and  stay  all  day,  have  speaking  in  both  the  forenoon  and 
afternoon.  And  they  would  sometimes  round  up  at  Winterset  in  the  evening 
and  frequently  some  would  get  enthused  with  spirits  that  were  not  altogether 
political.  They  would  sometimes  have  a  joint  discussion.  Both  sides  would 
meet  and  divide  the  time  and  each  side  would  have  just  so  long  a  time  to  see 
how  many  mean  things  he  could  say  about  the  other  side,  and  according  to  the 
verdict  of  the  crowd  both  sides  always  came  out  away  ahead. 

Henry  Clay  Dean  made  his  great  speech  to  the  people  of  Madison  County  in 
the  summer  of  i860,  I  think.  He  spoke  under  a  walnut  tree  just  a  few  steps 
south  of  the  old  lime  kiln  on  Buffalo  road.  The  stump  of  that  tree  was  dug 
up  a  few  years  ago  to  get  it  out  of  the  highway.  There  was  a  crowd  there  like 
a  camp  meeting  and  the  woods  of  Middle  River  rang  with  Henry  Clay's  voice. 
At  the  close  of  the  meeting  the  people  crowded  around  the  stand  to  shake  hands 
with  the  speaker;  men  and  women,  old  and  young,  strove  in  that  throng  to 
extend  that  mark  of  courtesy  to  their  favorite  orator. 

BIG   SNAKE    HUNT   IN    1848 

Much  has  been  said  at  one  time  or  another  about  the  "Great  Snake  Hunt," 
as  it  was  called,  which  took  place  in  this  county  in  the  spring  and  summer  of  1848. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  237 

As  is  well  known,  when  this  county  was  first  settled  the  rattlesnakes  were  very 
numerous  and  it  is  natural  that  the  settlers  would  be  very  uneasy  lest  some  of 
their  loved  ones  should  become  victims  of  the  deadly  sting  of  these  reptiles, 
so  during  the  fall  and  winter  previous  to  that  spring,  there  was  as  much  talk 
as  about  the  cabbage  snake  the  last  year  or  two,  and  with  better  reason. 

After  talking  the  matter  over  among  themselves  for  some  time  they  called 
a  meeting  of  the  settlers  to  form  some  plan  of  concerted  action  to  get  rid  of 
the  snakes,  and  they  concluded  that  the  best  way  to  get  rid  of  the  snakes  was  to 
kill  them.  So  it  was  agreed  to  have  a  general  snake  hunt  the  coming  season.  To 
increase  the  interest  ia  the  enterprise  it  was  decided  to  divide  the  settlers  into 
two  companies  by  the  line  running  through  the  center  of  the  county  east  and  west. 
This  line  divided  the  settlers  about  evenly. 

Those  living  on  the  north  side  of  that  line  were  in  the  North  Company  and 
those  living  south  "of  it  were  in  the  South  Company.  To  give  form  to  the  move- 
ment each  company  selected  a  captain.  William  Combs  was  captain  of  the  North 
Company  and  Ephraim  Bilderback  was  captain  of  the  South  Company,  and  to 
add  still  more  interest  to  the  hunt  it  was  agreed  that  the  company  killing  the 
greatest  number  of  snakes  was  to  receive  from  each  man  of  the  defeated  company 
a  certain  amount  of  com  to  be  delivered  at  Hart  &  Hinkle's  mill,  which  was  being 
built  that  summer.  As  to  the  amount  of  com  there  seems  to  be  some  difference 
in  recollection.  Mr.  Davies  has  it  two  bushels  to  the  man;  Mr.  Guye  thinks 
it  was  ^Yz  but  Mr.  Wilkinson  thinks  that  it  was  a  peck  of  com  to  the  man. 
But  it  matters  little  about  the  amount;  it  was  a  small  amount  of  com  but  the 
com  was  never  paid,  though  I  think  (W.  S.  Wilkinson,  writer  of  the  article 
speaking)  it  would  have  been  if  it  had  ever  been  demanded,  and  the  circum- 
stances had  been  such  that  it  could  well  have  been  done,  but  the  snow  was 
so  deep  that  winter  that  the  settlers  could  scarcely  get  the  com  to  the  mill  to  make 
the  meal  for  their  com  bread  and  by  the  time  their  crops  were  in  the  next  spring, 
there  was  not  one  settler  in  a  dozen  that  had  any  com  above  what  would  bread 
their  family  through  the  summer.  And  the  object  of  the  hunt  was  accomplished; 
the  snakes  were  killed  and  little  was  thought  of  the  bonus. 

All  the  instmctions  given  were  to  go  forth  and  kill  all  the  snakes  they  could ; 
to  sneak  out  and  watch  the  dens  as  the  snakes  were  coming  out  in  the  spring 
and  kill  as  many  as  possible  before  they  got  abroad.  You  may  be  sure  that  all 
were  pretty  busy  that  spring  getting  their  ground  ready  and  planting  crops,  but  at 
noon  every  nice,  warm  day,  while  the  snakes  were  coming  out  of  their  dens, 
some  one  would  run  down  to  the  snake  dens  to  see  if  there  were  any  snakes 
lying  around  in  the  sun,  and  usually  some  were  caught.  Most  of  the  snakes 
killed  were  caught  before  leaving  their  dens. 

It  is  the  habit  of  the  rattlesnake  at  the  approach  of  winter  to  den  up  in  the 
rocky  bluffs  along  the  streams  where  there  is  an  open  ledge  of  rocks  affording 
an  entrance.  They  remain  in  their  dens  until  the  weather  begins  to  get  quite 
warm  in  the  spring.  About  the  last  of  April  or  the  first  of  May,  according  to 
the  season,  they  begin  to  come  out  in  the  warm  part  of  the  day  and  lie  around 
in  the  sun  a  while  and  then  crawl  back  into  the  den.  As  the  weather  grows  warmer 
they  leave  the  den  by  degrees,  coming  back  to  the  den  at  night  for  a  while  before 
leaving  it  entirely,  affording  the  vigilant  snake  hunter  a  good  opportunity  to  kill 


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238  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

them  before  they  get  off  into  the  woods  and  brush.  Many  snakes  were  found 
and  killed  after  getting  away  from  their  dens  that  summer  and  fall. 

The  settlers  were  on  the  lookout  for  snakes  at  all  times  and  Sunday  was 
given  over  to  the  hunting  and  killing  of  them.  Quite  a  few  were  killed  in  the 
fall  as  they  were  returning  to  their  dens.  It  was  customary  to  go  around  armed 
with  clubs  amd  when  watching  the  dens  in  the  spring  have  a  wire  hook  driven 
into  the  end  of  a  stick  to  pull  the  snakes  out  of  holes  and  from  under  rocks. 
The  rattles  of  the  snakes  were  saved  and  were  counted  at  the  celebration  held  in 
Guye's  Grove  on  the  Fourth  of  July,  1848 — ^the  first  celebration  ever  held  in  this 
county. 

There  was  a  committee  appointed  to  count  the  rattles,  consisting  of  Jacob 
Combs  and  William  Gentry,  of  the  North  Company,  and  David  Bishop  and  some 
one  whose  name  is  not  now  remembered,  from  the  South  Company.  A.  D.  Jones 
of  the  North  Company  was  appointed  clerk  of  the  committee.  The  rattles 
counted  that  day  amounted  to  between  three  thousand  and  four  thousand.  The 
north  side  counted  the  most  rattles.  Few  kept  count  of  the  snakes  killed  after 
that  season,  but  from  some  who  did  keep  count  there  were  ten  or  twelve  per  cent 
of  the  snakes  killed  after  the  count,  which  would  run  the  total  number  killed 
that  season  to  something  over  four  thousand. 

There  was  no  organized  "snake  hunt'*  after  1848  but  the  settlers  kept  up  their 
vigilance  and  watched  the  snake  dens  just  as  closely  for  several  years  after  the 
*'hunt''  until  the  snakes  became  quite  scarce,  so  that  they  ceased  to  cause  any  great 
uneasiness. 

Some  very  interesting  and  successful  snake  frolics  were  engaged  in  that 
season,  some  of  which  have  already  been  told  in  county  history  that  seems  a 
little  large,  which,  no  doubt,  are  true.  It  should  be  understood  that  these  large 
frolics  took  place  on  Sunday,  when  the  whole  force  would  go  forth  in  crowds 
and  make  a  general  round  up  of  dens.  One  of  these  was  where  George  Guye  and 
some  others  of  the  north  side  killed  over  one  hundred  snakes  one  Sunday.  Mr. 
Guye  is  still  living  to  testify  to  these  facts.  The  first  den  they  went  to  in  the 
morning,  when  it  was  cool,  they  found  about  thirty-seven  snakes  rolled  up  in  a 
ball,  supposedly  to  keep  warm,  and  during  the  day  they  killed  the  number  given. 
Of  course  this  took  place  in  the  spring  when  the  snakes  were  coming  out  of 
their  dens. 

At  first  there  was  no  town,  mill,  church  or  schoolhouse,  and  nothing  to  draw 
the  people  together,  so  there  were  no  beaten  roads  and  nothing  more  than  a 
narrow  path  from  house  to  house  or  anywhere  else  and  there  were  high  weeds 
and  grass  everywhere.  It  seems  fortunate,  as  numerous  as  the  rattlesnakes 
were  in  this  county,  that  there  were  not  more  people  bitten  by  them.  The  boys, 
and  many  of  the  men,  went  in  their  bare  feet  in  the  warm  weather  and  ran 
some  very  close  chances  of  being  bitten  by  rattlesnakes  while  in  the  weeds.  But 
the  large  kind  were  considered  slow  .of  action  until  thoroughly  aroused  and 
it  is  said  they  would  always  rattle  before  making  their  strike.  Men  and  boys 
would  jump  higher  and  farther  at  the  sound  of  the  rattle  of  a  snake  than  they 
were  apt  to  do  under  any  other  circumstances.  The  constant  vigilance  of  the 
people  and  the  inertness  of  the  snakes  was  probably  the  reason  so  few  were  bitten. 
There  were  but  two  cases  of  snake  bite  in  the  Wilkinson  neighborhood,  neither 
of  which  proved  fatal.     There  were  other  cases  in  the  county  and  there  were 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  239 

some  deaths.  Sam  Peter's  boy  was  bitten  on  the  finger  or  hand  while  playing 
near  the  house  and  died  in  a  few  hours.  Of  the  two  spoken  of  in  the  Wilkinson 
•neighborhood,  one  is  still  living  but  not  in  this  state.  They  were  both  confident 
that  their  lives  were  saved  by  the  use  of  whisky — the  only  sure  cure  for  snake 
bite.  It  was  so  popular  a  remedy  that  people  usually  kept  some  on  hand  in  case 
of  need.  Some  people  used  to  think  it  was  as  good  a  preventative  as  a  cure. 
When  the  first  prohibition  law  was  passed  in  this  state  it  was  opposed  by  a  good 
many  on  the  ground  that  whisky  was  the  only  sure  cure  for  snake  bite.  People 
do  not  seem  to  think  so  much  of  whisky  for  snake  bite  as  they  used  to.  The 
doctors  do  not  use  as  much  for  snake  bites  as  they  did  but  they  use  it  ior  other 
things. 

Stock  was  sometimes  bitten  by  rattlesnakes,  or  supposed  to  be,  and  the 
remedy  in  that  case  was  rattlesnakes  master,  a  weed  that  grew  everywhere  on  the 
prairie,  with  a  stem,  flag  leaves  and  a  large  burr  on  top.  This  weed  was  gathered, 
the  juice  pounded  out  and  mixed  with  sw^et  milk  and  the  animal  drenched 
with  it ;  a  poultice  was  also  made  of  this  weed  and  bound  to  the  wound.  There 
were  but  few  deaths  among  stock  caused  by  snake  bite. 

Some  of  the  habits  of  the  rattlesnake  are  hard  to  understand.  So  many 
stories  have  been  told  about  snakes  that  are  so  unreasonable  that  one  is  apt  to 
consider  all  stories  which  are  not  understood  as  "snake  stories." 

Uncle  Davy  Henry,  a  very  nice,  jovial  fellow,  settled  on  Cedar  Creek,  on 
the  bottom  place  now  occupied  by  J.  J.  Gaston.  He  was  liked  by  everybody  but 
was  counted  a  little  high  on  snake  stories  and  every  one  had  a  laugh  at  Uncle 
Davy's  stories.  He  used  to  tell  of  seeing  a  dozen  or  two  young  snakes  run  into 
their  mother's  mouth.  Every  one  knew  that  was  not  true  but  people  repeated  it 
to  laugh  about  and  the  boys  laughed  about  it.  They  knew  it  was  not  true  because 
the  old  folks  said  it  was  not  true,  but  everybody  liked  Uncle  Davy,  he  was  such 
a  nice  clever  man  and  so  truthful  in  everything  except  snakes.  Sarah  Cooper 
states  in  her  work  on  the  subject  of  snakes  that  "the  young  rattlesnakes  are 
hatched  in  broods  of  eight  or  ten  and  cared  for  by  the  mother  snake  until  well 
grown,  and  on  the  approach  of  danger  they  run  into  their  mother's  mouth."  How 
now  about  Uncle  Davy's  story?    It  don't  look  so  bad  after  all. 

Some  of  the  snake  stories  told  are  snake  stories  indeed,  but  others  that  look 
unreasonable  are  nevertheless  true.  W.  S.  Wilkinson  once  opened  an  old  snake 
and  found  in  it  thirty-four  young  ones  and  he  helped  his  mother  skin  an  old 
one  to  get  the  oil  for  medical  purposes  and  found  in  it  over  ninety  young  snakes, 
ranging  in  length  from  one  and  one-half  to  two  inches.  Henry  Rogers,  a  neighbor 
of  the  Wilkinsons,  afterward  counted  ninety-four  young  snakes  in  an  old  one. 

Note. — From  some  cause  Mr.  Davies  got  the  date  of  the  snake  hunt  wrong. 
He  has  it  1849.  It  should  be  1848.  See  A.  D.  Jones'  letter  in  ^'Madison  County 
History." 

It  is  thought  to  be  a  disputed  question  among  naturalists  whether  or  not 
rattlesnakes  care  for  their  young  in  this  way. 


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CHAPTER  XXX. 
ASSOCIATIONS  AND  OTHER  THINGS 

PATRONS   OF    HUSBANDRY 

By  Ezra  Brownell 

The  order  of  Patrons  of  Husbandy  originated  with  O.  H.  Kelly,  an  officer 
of  the  Department  of  Agriculture,  in  1866,  and  the  giving  to  women  a  full  mem- 
bership therein,  with  Miss  Carrie  A.  Hall,  of  Boston,  Massachusetts.  These  two, 
with  William  Saunders  and  Rev.  A.  B.  Grosh,  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture, 
William  M.  Ireland,  of  the  Postoffice  Department,  Rev.  John  Trimble  and  J.  R. 
Thompson,  of  the  Treasury  Department,  and  F.  M.  McDowell,  a  pomologist,  of 
Wayne,  New  York,  organized  the  National  Grange,  in  a  small  building  in  the 
gardens  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  on  December  4,  1867,  and  the  following 
officers  were  elected:  J.  R.  Thompson,  lecturer;  William  M.  Ireland,  treasurer; 
O.  H.  Kelly,  secretary;  William  Saunders,  master. 

The  first  subordinate  grange  was  organized  at  Washington,  D.  C,  as  a  school 
of  instruction,  January  8,  1868,  with  William  M.  Ireland  as  master.  The  first 
subordinate  grange  to  receive  a  charter  was  at  Fredonia,  New  York,  April  16, 
1868.  The  first  state  grange  organized  was  Minnesota  State  Grange,  February 
22,  1869.  The  first  subordinate  grange  organized  in  Iowa  was  Newton  Grange, 
No.  I,  at  Newton,  Jasper  County,  May  2,  1868,  under  dispensation  from  the 
National  Grange,  with  A.  ,Failer,  W.  M.  and  C.  A.  Fish,  secretary.  The  first 
subordinate  grange  to  receive  a  charter  from  the  Iowa  State  Grange  was  Hardin 
County  Grange,  No.  i,  January  i,  1871,  organized  by  Dudley  W.  Adams.  The 
first  Iowa  State  Grange  was  held  in  1871  and  its  sessions  have  been  held  each  year 
since  at  various  places  in  the  state. 

The  granges  organized  in  Madison  County  were  as  follows : 

No.  12,  Prairie  Flower,  January  10,  1871,  Ohio  Township,  William  Anderson, 
master;  J.  Garst,  secretary;  W.  Anderson,  organizer. 

No.  85,  Earlham,  December  6,   1871,  Earlham;  S.  Hightower,  master;  D. • 
Stanton,  secretary;  W.  D.  Wilson,  organizer. 

No.  170,  Penn,  February  15,  1872,  Penn  Township,  C.  Crane,  master;  Daniel 
Francis,  secretary;  J.  D.  Whitman,  organizer. 

No.  210,  St.  Charles,  February  29,  1872,  St.  Charles;  S.  M.  Creger,  master; 
John  Honnold,  secretary;  S.  M.  Hightower,  organizer. 

No.  249,  Stringtown,  March  13,  1872,  Jackson  Township;  William  Bard, 
master;  J.  S.  Bard,  secretary;  S.  M.  Hightower,  organizer. 

No.  262,  North  Branch,  March  14,  1872,  Douglas  Township;  J.  Butler,  master; 
J.  H.  Lock,  secretary ;  S.  M.  Hightower,  organizer. 

No.  295,  Douglas,  March  30,  1872,  Douglas  Township;  J.  A.  Dooley,  master; 
S.  A.  Ellis,  secretary ;  S.  M.  Hightower,  organizer. 

240 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  241 

No.  376,  South  Branch,  May  7,  1872,  Douglas  Township;  H.  Davis,  master; 
John  Stock,  secretary;  S.  M.  Hightower,  organizer. 

No.  378,  Winterset,  May  11,  1872,  Winterset;  N.  W.  Garretson,  master; 
W.  H.  Lewis,  secretary;  W.  D.  Wilson,  organizer. 

No.  480,  Prairie  View,  July  8,  1872,  Jackson  Township;  Henry  Comp,  master; 
E.  G.  Perkins,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  559,  Peru,  September  4,  1872,  Walnut  Township;  Isaac  Reager,  master; 
B.  F.  Brown,  secretary ;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  560,  Scott,  September  4,  1872,  Scott  Township;  J.  S.  Holmes,  master; 
W.  S.  Wilkinson,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  571,  Grand  River,  September  14,  1872,  Grand  River  Township;  J.  W. 
Pinkney,  master;  T.  Sharp,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  755,  Webster,  December  28,  1872,  Webster  Township;  E.  A.  Pindell, 
master;  M.  C.  Shaw,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  875,  Union  Chapel,  February  11,  1873,  South  Township;  W.  H.  Queer), 
master;  S.  A.  Ross,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  876,  Monroe,  February  12,  1873,  Monroe  Township;  Bolsar  Hartsook, 
master;  B.  F.  Hartsook,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  877,  Clanton,  February  13,  1873,  Monroe  Township;  Gerth  Hamblin, 
master;  Mattie  Hamblin,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  878,  Deer  Creek,  February  14,  1873,  Monroe  Township;  J.  Reasoner, 
master;  M.  R.  Sheldon,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  895,  Jefferson,  February  18,  1873,  Jefferson  Township;  J.  A.  Harten- 
bowcr,  master;  William  McCleary,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  896,  Union,  February  18,  1873,  Union  Township;  T.  S.  Love,  master; 
J.  S.  McGinnis,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  899,  Patterson,  February  19,  1873,  Patterson;  W.  Howell,  master;  John 
Gamble,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  935,  Pleasant  Grove,  February  22,  1873,  Jefferson  Township;  Jas.  Means, 
master ;  J.  T.  Shaw,  secretary ;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  1,096,  Lincoln,  March  14,  1873,  Lincoln  Township;  W.  J.  Ruby,  master; 
W.  A.  Steward,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  1,206,  Valley,  March  22,  1873,  South  Township;  Robert  Cleland,  master; 
M.  I.  Bean,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  1,207,  Ohio,  March  24,  1873,  Ohio  Township;  C.  H.  Young,  master;  G. 
W.  Foreman,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  1,208,  Liberty,  March  27,  1873,  Lincoln  Township;  William  Hartsook, 
master;  Noble  Peters,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  1,235,  Harmony,  March  29,  1873,  Madison  Township;  M.  A.  Knight, 
master;  George  Storck,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  1,236,  Bethel,  March  31,  1873,  Walnut  Township;  L.  H.  Chapman,  master; 
D.  F.  Foster,  secretry;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  1,293,  Jackson,  April  5,  1873,  Jackson  Township;  S.  Hamilton,  master; 
D.  H.  McDill,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

No.  1,382,  Buckeye,  April  17,  1873,  Ohio  Township;  Robert  Eyrie,  master; 
Calvin  Ellis,  secretary;  N.  W.  Garretson,  organizer. 

The  above  granges  continued  their  work  for  various  periods,  all  finally 
lapsing.     The  last  to  report  to  the  State  Grange  were  No.  376,  South  Branch, 

Vol.  1— m 


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242  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

paid  to  December  31,  1891 ;  Ndf  480,  Prairie  View,  paid  to  June  30,  1892;  and 
No.  1,208,  Liberty,  paid  to  December  31,  1894. 

Perhaps  an  epitome  of  the  Grange  principles  and  accomplishments  would  be 
interesting,  the  motto  being  "In  essentials,  unity;  in  non-essentials,  liberty;  in  all 
things,  charity." 

The  specific  objects  of  the  grange  were  to  develop  higher  manhood  and  woman- 
hood; to  strengthen  love  for  pursuits;  to  foster  cooperation;  to  maintain  laws; 
to  buy  less  and  produce  more;  to  condense  the  weights  of  exports;  to  discoun- 
tenance the  credit  system,  the  mortgage  system  and  every  other  system  tending  to 
prodigality  and  bankruptcy;  to  meet  together,  talk  together,  work  together,  and 
act  together  for  mutual  advancement. 

farmers'  mutual  insurance  company 

A  meeting  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  a  township  mutual  benefit  association 
was  held  on  June  22,  1878.  Wm.  McDonald  presided  at  this  meeting  and  H.  D. 
McCombs  acted  as  secretary.  A  permanent  *  organization  was  perfected  with 
Emerous  Hazen  as  president ;  J.  C.  Weede,  secretary ;  and  John  Westphal,  treas- 
urer. On  January  4,  1879,  ^^  the  second  meeting  the  same  officers  were  chosen. 
On  December  4,  1879,  the  association  met  for  the  purpose  of  adopting  a  constitu- 
tion, and  articles  of  incorporation  as  the  Farmers'  Mutual  Insurance  Company, 
covering  the  south  half  of  Dallas  County  and  all  of  Madison  County.  At  this 
meeting  Emerous  Hazen  was  chosen  president;  H.  D.  McCombs,  secretary;  and 
John  Westphal,  treasurer.  The  charter  members  were  all  Jefferson  Township 
farmers,  viz. ;  H.  D.  McCombs,  A.  P.  Fitch,  Wm.  McDonald,  Charles  Wishmire, 
Wm.  Buske,  Emerous  Hazen,  H.  E.  Marquardt,  Louis  Ballou,  Ed.  Steinhaus,  Wm. 
Steinhaus,  F.  P.  Hazen,  Ferdinand  Marquardt,  Harry  Linton,  A.  B.  Kirkpatrick, 
Chris.  Heitman,  J.  C.  Weede,  and  John  Wesphal. 

At  a  special  meeting  held  in  Winterset  on  January  10,  1880,  the  newly  incor- 
porated company  elected  the  following  officers :  President,  Emerous  Hazen ;  vice 
president,  Lewis  Ballou;  secretary,  H.  D.  McCombs;  treasurer,  John  Westphal; 
directors,  A.  B.  Kirkpatrick,  Wm.  McDonald,  J.  C.  Weede,  F.  Pw  Hazen,  Harry 
Linton,  A.  P.  Fitch,  Ferdinand  Marquardt,  Wm.  Buske,  Chris.  Heitman  and  H. 
E.  Marquardt. 

Some  time  during  the  year  1880  Emerous  Hazen  died  and  at  the  annual  meeting 
in  December  of  that  year  George  Storck  was  chosen  president,  H.  D.  McCombs, 
secretary,  and  Wm.  McDonald,  treasurer.  Mr.  Storck  held  the  position  of  presi- 
dent until  April  8,  1893,  when  he  was  chosen  secretary  to  take  the  place  of  H.  D. 
McCombs,  deceased,  and  has  held  that  position  to  the  present  time.  Mr.  Mc- 
Combs had  held  the  position  of  secretary  from  1880  to  the  time  of  his  death  in 
1893,  with  the  exception  of  the  year  1881  when  it  was  filled  by  James  McCullough. 
At  the  time  of  the  death  of  Mr.  McCombs,  John  Brooker,  who  had  been  vice 
president  since  1885  became  president,  serving  as  such  until  his  death  in  the  year 
1904.  At  the  time  of  Mr.  Brooker*s  death  George  Mueller  was  vice  president  and 
was  then  made  its  president,  serving  in  that  capacity  until  the  present  time.  Abe 
Golden  was  elected  treasurer  in  1882  to  take  the  place  of  Wm.  McDonald,  de- 
ceased, serving  as  such  until  the  annual  meeting  of  1888  when  Taylor  Jennings 
was  chosen  and  he  has  held  that  position  to  the  present  time. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  243 

The  company  at  the  present  time  is  in  a  flourisking  condition,  carrying  over  two 
million  dollars  risk  by  1,200  farmers. 

The  annual  meeting  is  held  in  Winterset  on  the  third  Saturday  of  October  of 
each  year.    At  the  last  meeting  the  following  officers  were  chosen : 

President,  George  Mueller  of  Jeflferson  Township,  Madison  County;  vice 
president,  D.  C.  Harper,  of  Adams  township,  Dallas  County;  secretary,  George 
Storck,  of  Madison  Township,  Madison  County;  treasurer,  Taylor  Jennings,  of 
Van  Meter  Township,  Dallas  County.  There  is  also  chosen  one  director  from 
each  township,  there  being  nineteen  at  the  present  time. 

MADISON  COUNTY  FARMERS^  INSTITUTE 

By  H.  A.  Mueller 

Pursuant  to  a  call,  a  meeting  was  held  in  the  grand  jury  room  in  the  court- 
house at  Winterset,  Iowa,  on  March  14,  1903,  at  1 130  P.  M.,  for  the  purpose  of 
organizing  a  farmers'  institute  in  Madison  County.  H.  A.  Mueller  was  chosen 
temporary  chairman,  and  T.  M.  Scott  temporary  secretary.  After  a  few  remarks 
the  following  officers  were  chosen:  President,  J.  H.  Leonard,  of  Union  Town- 
ship; secetary,  T.  M.  Scott,  of  Scott  Township;  treasurer,  H.  A.  Mueller,  of 
Winterset ;  members  of  the  executive  committee,  W.  H.  Lewis  of  Lincoln  Town- 
ship, George  Mueller  of  Jefferson  Township,  J.  W.  Sawhill  of  Jackson  Township, 
John  Schoenenberger  of  Walnut  Township,  and  A.  J.  Jones  of  Scott  Township. 

Arrarfgements  were  made  to  hold  the  first  institute  on  March  25th  and  26th 
following.  H.  A.  Mueller  was  appointed  a  committee  to  secure  members  and  to 
arrange  for  the  coming  program. 

The  first  annual  meeting  of  the  Madison  County  Farmers'  Institute  was  held 
in  the  court  room  on  March  25,  1903.  Prof.  P.  G.  Holden  of  Ames,  Iowa,  and 
Henry  Wallace  of  Wallace's  Farmer,  Des  Moines,  Iowa,  took  part  in  the  pro- 
gram. The  day  following,  March  26th,  the  constitution  and  by-laws  were  adopted 
and  the  officers  chosen  for  the  ensuing  year  as  follows :  President,  J.  H.  Leonard ; 
vice  president,  T.  M.  Scott;  secretary,  H.  A.  Mueller;  treasurer,  A.  M.  Meachem ; 
executive  committee,  W.  H.  Lewis,  John  Schoenenberger,  and  George  Storck. 

The  presidents  and  secretaries  of  the  Institute,  since  1905,  have  been : 


Year 

President 

Secretary 

1905.... 

...T.  M.  Scott 

H.  A.  Mueller 

1906 

...H.  H.  Hawk 

H.  A.  Mueller 

1907.... 

...H.  H.  Hawk 

J.  S.  Herman 

1908..., 

...H.  H.  Hawk 

J.  S.  Herman 

1909..., 

...S.  A.  Hays 

W.  I.  Raymond 

1910 

S.  A.  Hays 

W.  I.  Raymond 

191 1 

....S.  A.  Hays 

W.  I.  Raymond 

1912 

W.  D.  Patterson 

H.  G.  Tilton 

1913.... 

W.  D.  Patterson 

.  H.  G.  Tilton 

The  last  institute  was  held  at  Winterset  on  January  16  and  17,  1913,  and  was 
a  very  successful  meeting.    The  following  summer  arrangements  were  made  for  a 


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244  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Short  Course  to  take  the  place  of  the  Farmers*  Institute.    At  a  meeting  on  Sep- 
tember 20,  1913,  officers  were  chosen  as  follows: 

President,  W.  D.  Patterson;  vice  president,  W.  P.  Rhyno;  secretary,  W.  H. 
Vance,  treasurer,  P.  M.  McNamara.  W.  H.  Vance,  refused  to  serve  and  at  a  later 
meeting  S.  A.  Hays  was  chosen  secretary  and  township  .vice  presidents  were 
chosen.  The  first  Short  Course  .was  held  at  Winterset  December  29,  1913,  to 
January  3,  1914. 


MADISON    COUNTY   FAIRS 

By  H.  A.  Mueller 

The  first  settlers  had  been  here  ten  years  before  there  was  any  attempt  made 
to  hold  any  kind  of  a  fair.  They  were  busy  in  building  homes,  clearing  the  forests, 
building  fences  and  breaking  the  land  for  cultivation. 

In  the  fifth  annual  report  of  the  Iowa  State  Agricultural  Society  for  1858, 
Elias  Stafford,  secretary  of  this  society  made  the  following  report :  "The  question 
of  organizing  the  Agricultural  Society  in  Madison  County  was  first  agitated  in 
Jun^,  1856.  Elias  Stafford,  during  the  early  part  of  that  month,  circulated  ad- 
vertisements, calling  a  meeting  on  the  21st,  at  which  time  a  number  of  farmers 
and  others  met  and  appointed  a  committee,  consisting  of  Messrs.  B.  F.  Roberts, 
J.  A.  Pitzer,  Elias  Stafford,  W.  F.  Suydam  and  E.  R.  Guiberson,  to  prepare  and 
report  a  constitution  for  a  County  society  at  an  adjourned  meeting  to  be  held 
on  the  28th  inst.  The  day  to  which  the  meeting  stood  adjourned  having  arrived, 
and  those  present  who  were  at  the  first  meeting  and  some  others,  the  committee 
appointed  for  the  purpose  reported  a  constitution,  which  after  due  consideration 
was  adopted,  after  which  the  meeting  adjourned  until  July  5th. 

'^']n\y  5th,  1856. — Pursuant  to  adjournment  those  interested  in  the  formation 
of  a  County  Society  met.  Elias  Stafford  in  the  chair.  On  motion  the  meeting 
proceeding  to  perfect  the  organization  of  the  Society  by  electing  officers  as  pro- 
vided by  the  Constitution  adopted  at  the  last  meeting.  The  election  resulted  as 
follows:  President,  Elias  Stafford;  vice  presidents,  H.  J.  B.  Cummings,  W.  F. 
Suydam,  J.  B.  Sturman,  William  Bennett,  J.  W.  Shannon,  Isaac  Reager,  T.  W. 
Folwell,  Samuel  Kenyon  and  Frank  Bosworth;  corresponding  secretary,  B.  F. 
Roberts ;  recording  secretary,  W.  W.  McKnight ;  treasurer,  D.  F.  Arnold.  Our 
annual  meeting  for  the  election  of  officers  is  held  on  the  first  Saturday  of  January 
of  each  year. 

"The  first  annual  fair  was  held  October  8th  and  9th,  1856,  almost  two  miles 
northeast  of  Winterset.  (This  was  on  the  James  James  farm,  southeast  quarter 
of  the  northeast  quarter  of  Section  29,  Union  Township,  which  is  now  owned  by 
Mrs.  Joseph  Criss).  There  was  no  protection  from  the  weather  to  anything  on 
exhibition,  except  the  ladies  department,  which  was  arranged  under  sheds.  The 
exhibition  was  limited  and,  we  might  say,  thin  in  every  branch,  although  the 
weather  was  good.  An  address  was  delivered  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Russell,  of  Adel, 
Dallas  County.  After  the  sale  of  some  excellent  fruit  trees  belonging  to  Mr. 
Smith,  the  proceeds  were  donated  to  the  society.  The  people  generally,  were  well 
pleased  and  satisfied  with  the  exhibition  and  went  home  determined,  if  spared 
another  year,  to  be  among  those  who  should  draw  premiums. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  245 

Receipts   $146.25 

Expenditures    78.90 

Balance  in  treasury $67-35 

1857 

"The  annual  meeting  of  the  society  was  held,  as  provided  by  the  constitution, 
on  the  first  Saturday  in  January.    The  election  of  officers  resulted  as  follows : 

President Wm.  Jones 

Recording  Secretary Elias  Stafford 

Corresponding  Secretary W.  W.  McKnight 

Treasurer D.  F.  Arnold 

"Vice  Presidents — H.  J.  B.  Cummings,  Elihu  Wilson,  John  B.  Sturman,  J.  W. 
Shannon,  Isaac  Reager,  E.  S.  McCarty,  Lemuel  Kenyon  and  Frank  Bosworth. 

"The  second  annual  exhibition  was  held  at  the  same  place  as  the  first,  on 
October  ist  and  2nd,  1857.  In  the  stock  department,  it  was  an  improvement  on 
last  year,  but  in  the  grain  and  vegetable  departments,  not  so  good.  There  were 
72  entries  in  horses  and  53  in  cattle.  In  both  classes  there  were  some  excellent 
animals  shown.  Messrs.  Compton,  Wilson  and  Bamett  were  the  winners  in  this 
class. 

Receipts $14145 

Expenditures 4340 

Balance  in  treasury $  98.05 

1858 

"The  election  this  year  resulted  as  follows : 

President A.  J.  Adkinson 

Recording  Secretary Elias  Stafford  f 

Corresponding  Secretary W.  W.  McKnight 

Treasurer B.  F.  Roberts 

"Vice  Presidents  or  Directors — D.  F.  Arnold,  H.  J.  B.  Cununings,  N.  W.  Gar- 
retson,  C.  Wilson,  Otho  Davis,  A.  Parker,  E.  S.  McCarty,  William  Payton,  J.  C. 
Johnston,  W.  Hardy  and  F.  Bosworth. 

"At  this  meeting  initiatory  steps  were  taken  to  secure  a  permanent  place  and 
fixtures  for  holding  our  fairs.  After  much  debate  this  movement  resulted  in 
leasing  ten  acres  of  ground  half  a  mile  from  Winterset.  (This  ground  was  south 
of  the  M.  Schroeder  brewery,  in  the  northeast  quarter  of  Section  31,  Union  Town- 
ship, now  owned  by  Mrs.  S.  D.  Alexander).  It  is  beautifully  located  on  high,  dry 
prairie,  and  we  have  succeeded  in  enclosing  six  acres  of  it  with  a  good  close 
fence,  seven  feet  high,  gates  and  other  accommodations,  so  as  to  make  it  what  it 


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246  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

should  be  for  the  purpose  for  which  it  was  designed.  The  third  exhibition  was 
held  on  the  new  grounds  on  October  7th  and  8th,  and  notwithstanding  all  our 
preparations,  it  was  a  comparative  failure.  We  do  not  attribute  this  to  a  want  of 
interest  on  the  part  of  the  farmers,  but  to  the  universal  failure  of  crops  and 
scarcity  of  money,  in  connection  with  the  fact  that  a  violent  and  cold  storm  pre- 
vailed during  the  fair  and  two  days  previous,  rendering  it  very  unpleasant  for  out 
of  door  employments. 

Receipts  for  membership , $80.00 

Receipts  from  other  sources 33.00 

Total $113.00    . 

Paid  out  for  fence $80.10 

Balance  in  treasury $32.90 

"We  have  not  paid  any  money  for  premituns,  giving  diplomas  only.  The 
fencing  and  other  fixtures  on  our  grounds  have  cost  $625.00  on  which  we  have 
paid  $386.00  leaving  us  in  debt  $289.00." 

Fairs  Were  held  here  annually  until  1866,  except  the  years  1861,  1862  and  1863, 
when  theire  were  no  exhibitions.  No  reasons  were  assigned  but  all  know  that 
that  was  during  the  Civil  war,  when  the  people  were  busily  engaged  in  defending 
their  homes,  and  their  minds  were  occupied  with  news  from  the  front.  The 
writer  has  not  had  any  definite  information  relative  to  when  the  first  fair  was 
held  at  the  grounds,  west  of  Winterset.  In  the  report  for  1865  the  secretary 
states  that  "The  Board  of  Supervisors  have  appropriated  $300.00  for  purchasing 
new  grounds,  and  $200.00  was  raised  by  individual  subscriptions."  In  the  report 
for  1866  he  says  that  "the  fair  was  held  at  the  grounds  near  Winterset.  The 
Society  have  purchased  the  old  fair  grounds  and  are  some  in  debt.  However,  a 
deed  was  not  made  to  the  Society  until  Sept.  2,  1867."  Fairs  were  held  here  an- 
nually, except  in  1894.  A  premium  list  was  published  that  year,  but  that  being  the 
"dry"  year,  no  crops  were  raised,  the  cattle  and  hogs  were  all  sold,  or  were  not  in 
condition  to  be  put  on  exhibition,  and  the  farmers  having  the  "blues,"  no  fair  was 
held. 

The  Society  had  its  *'ups"  and  "downs."  Some  years  there  was  rain  and  mud 
to  contend  with.  In  others  there  were  poor  exhibits,  or  the  times  were  hard.  In 
1882  a  cyclone  in  July  tore  down  the  fences  and  buildings  of  the  association.  Ever 
since  its  organization  in  1856,  officers  were  elected  every  year  at  the  annual  meet- 
ing in  January.    A  complete  list  of  the  presidents  and  secretaries  is  as  follows : 

Year  President  Secretary 

1856 Elias  Stafford  W.  W.  McKnight 

1857 Wm.  Jones  Elias  Stafford 

1858 A.  J.  Adkison  Elias  Stafford 

1859 David  Stanton  J.  I.  Denman 

i860 W.  J.  Patterson  J.  I.  Denman 

1861 .:....  .P.  M.  Boyles  J.  J.  Davies 

1862 P.  M.  Boyles  J.  J.  Davies 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 


247 


Year  President 

1863 A.  J.  Adkison 

1864 A.  J.  Adkison 

1865 A.  J.  Adkison 

1866 A.  J.  Adkison 

1867 A.  J.  Adkison  * 

1868 C.  B.  Lothrop 

1869 M.  Glazebrook 

1870 Theodore  Cox 

1871 Wm.  L.  Leonard 

1872 N.  W.  Munger 

1873 N.  W.  Guiberson 

1874 N.  W.  Guiberson 

1875 Wm.  F.  Hadley 

1876 Wm.  F.  Hadley 

1877 C.  B.  Lothrop 

1878 C.  B.  Lothrop 

1879 Wm.  Hedge 

1880 F.  H.  Roper 

1881 C.  F.  Koehler 

1882 John  S.  Taylor 

1883 John  S.Taylor 

1884 Henry  Comp 

1885 J.  P.  Steele 

1886 J.J.  Gaston 

1887 J.  K.  Barcroft 

1888 J.  H.  Wintrode 

1889 Ham  Lee 

1890 Ham  Lee 

1891 Ham  Lee 

1892 C.  F.  Perkins 

1893 Ham  Lee 

1894 Robert  Niblo 

1895 Robert  Niblo 

1896 L.  C.   Houk 

1S97 W.   E.   Mack — resigned 

T.  J.  Hudson — chosen 

1898 T.  ].  Hudson 

1899 C.  F.  Allgqyer 

1900 George  Johnson 

1901 Ben  Mintum — resigned 

W.  H.  Doak — appointed 

1902 J.  W.  Breeding 

1903 D.  T.  Miles 

1904 D.  T.  Miles 

1905 J.  H.  Dow 

1906 A.  D.  Guye 


Secretary 
C.  S.  Wilson 

C.  S.  Wilson 
J.  J.  Davies 
Martin  Houston 
Martin  Houston 

D.  E.  Cooper 

E.  G.  Perkins 
D.  E.  Cooper 
A.  H.  Adkison 
A.  H.  Adkison 
A.  H.  Adkison 
Herman  Kinsman 

D.  E.  Cooper 

A.  W.  Wilkinson 
W.  S.  Whedon 
W.  S.  Whedon 
W.  S.  Whedon 
J.  A.  Sanford 
J.  A.  Sanford 
J.  H.  Wray 
J.  H.  Wray 

E.  R.  Zeller 
W.  P.  Rhyno 
W.  P.  Rhyno 
W.  E.  Ratliff 
E.  L.  Vance 
C.  F.  Perkins 
J.  H.  Wintrode 
J.  H.  Wintrode 
Charles  Brock 
C.  F.  Perkins 
S.  A.  Hays 

H.  S.  Thomson 
Ham  Lee 

Charles  Lee 
Charles  Lee 
T.  J.  Hudson 
Charles  Lee 

T.  J.  Hudson 

T.  J.  Hudson 

T.  J.  Hudson 

T.  J.  Hudson 

T.  J.  Hudson 

J.  H.  Dow — resigned 

A.  L.  Foster — appointed 


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248  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 


Year 

President 

Secretary 

1907.... 

...A.  D.  Guye 

Elmer  Orris — 

W.  H.  Vance — assistant 

1908.... 

....A.  D.  Guye 

John  Duff 

1909.... 

Elmer  E.  Orris 

W.  E.  Grismer 

1910 

Elmer  E.  Orris 

'     A.  L.  Foster 

191 1 

Elmer  E.  Orris 

A.  L.  Foster 

1912 

....A.  D.  Guye 

S.  A.  Hays 

1913. . 

...J.  D.  Ross 

S.  A.  Hays— resigned  April,  1913 
Eugene  Wilson — chosen 

1914. . . 

Same  officers  held  over 

However,  the  Society  continued  its  exhibitions  with  more  or  less  success, 
until  the  year  1913,  when  it  closed  its  books,  sold  the  property,  turned  the  balance 
of  money  on  hand  to  the  treasurer  of  Madison  County  and  went  out  of  existence 
in  1914. 

LEGEND 

The  first  County  Fair  of  Madison  County  was  held  about  thirty-five  rods  east 
of  the  southwest  comer  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  of 
section  29,  in  Union  Township.  This  property  was  then  owned  by  James  James 
and  the  fair  ground  was  a  little  distance  east  of  the  stone  house  that  has  stood 
these  fifty  years  or  more  and  in  the  large  open  barn  yard  and  pasture  combined 
that  remains  to  this  day.  At  the  time  the  highway  ran  north  and  south  along 
the  west  line  of  this  James'  farm,  but  an  open  driveway  extended  easterly  from 
the  highway  close  south  of  the  stone  house  and  as  far  east  as  the  bam  yard  and 
adjoining  pasture.  This  open  driveway  was  about  forty  feet  wide.  By  evening 
during  the  fair  the  driveway  was  closely  packed  with  wagons  and  great  difficulty 
occurred  in  clearing  the  blockade. 

POPULATION  OF  MADISON  COUNTY   1849-I914 

1849..        701  1850..     1,179  185I..    1492  1852..    1,832  1854..    3,112 

1856..    5,508  1859..    7,071  i860..    7,339  1863..    7,934  1865..    8,214 

1867..    9,764  1869..  11,817  1870..  13,884  1873..  14,698  1875..  16,030 

1880.. 17,224  1890.. 15,977  1900.. 17,710  I9IO.. 15,621 

POPULATION  BY  TOWNSHIPS   FROM    189O-I9IO: 

I9IO  1900  1890 

Center  Township  coextensive  with  Winterset  City 2,818  3,039        2,281 

Winterset  City: 

Ward    I : ; 1,516         

Ward   2 1,302        

Crawford  Township,  including  Patterson  Town 707  830           830 

Patterson  Town    147  163           133 

Douglas  Township   736  899           891 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  249 

Grand  River  Township,  including  Macksburg  Town. . . .    763 

Macksburg  Town 197 

Jackson  Township 615 

Jefferson  Township 648 

Lee  Township   497 

Lincoln  Township 699 

Madison  Township,  including  Earlham  Town i>459 

Earlham  Town   749 

Monroe  Township 649 

Ohio  Township,  including  Truro  Town 940 

Truro  Town    310 

Penn  Township 698 

Scott  Township 781 

South  Township,  including  St.  Charles  Town i,i94 

St.  Charles  Town  399 

Union  Township 595 

Walnut  Township,  including  East  Peru  Town IJ35 

East  Peru  Town 371 

Webster  Township  687 


900 

937 

23s 

186 

766 

749 

863 

804 

606 

593 

798 

811 

1424 

1,061 

630 

.302 

737 

771 

958 

866 

"765 

773 

960 

974 

1,445 

1,196 

412 

387 

770 

794 

i,"3 

886 

252 

.  837 

760 

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CHAPTER  XXXI 
SOUTH  TOWNSHIP 

Ctne  of  the  three  subdivisions  of  the  county  created  was  that  of  South  Town- 
ship, which  became  identified  as  such  at  the  February  term  of  the  court  in  the  year 
1849,  and  the  place  selected  for  the  first  election  was  the  house  of  Nathan  Viney. 
Before  court  had  adjourned  the  boundary  lines  as  first  drawn  were  materially 
changed,  and  at  the  July  term  a  further  transformation  in  its  lines  was  effected. 

As  now  organized  and  laid  out,  South  Township  is  bounded  on  the  east  by 
Warren  County,  on  the  west  by  Scott  Township,  on  the  north  by  Crawford  Town- 
ship and  on  the  south  by  Ohio  Township.  For  agricultural  purposes  and  stock- 
raising,  this  community  has  many  superior  advantages.  Qanton  Creek  runs 
through  it  near  the  center  from  the  southwest  to  the  northeast  and  along  its 
borders  was  found  by  the  settlers  a  heavy  grove  of  timber,  which  at  the  time  was 
scarcely  surpassed  in  the  state.  There  are  also  numerous  smaller  streams,  which 
furnish  excellent  water  and  drainage.  Stone  abounds  on  Clanton  Creek  and  good 
veins  of  coal  have  been  found  on  Buchanan  Creek.  There  are  two  lines  of  rail- 
roads entering  South  Township.  The  Chicago  Great  Western  cuts  across  this 
domain  from  the  southwest  comer  to  the  northeast  comer  and  a  branch  of  the 
Chicago,  Burlington  &  Quincy,  formerly  the  Keokuk  &  Western,  enters  on 
section  34,  and  mnning  northward  passes  through  St.  Charles  by  a  diagonal 
course.  Hanley  is  a  station  on  the  Great  Westem.  Its  religious  society  is  the 
Methpdist  Episcopal. 

A  large  part  of  South  Township's  history  relating  to  its  early  settlement  has 
already  been  told  in  this  volume,  so  that  it  would  be  repetitious  and  rather  irk- 
some to  go  over  the  details  in  this  chapter.  However,  the  reader  by  this  time  is 
acquainted  with  the  fact  that  the  members  of  the  Clanton  colony  were  the  first 
white  persons  to  stake  out  claims  and  become  settlers  in  this  locality.  It  should 
also  be  remembered  that  Caleb  Clark,  whose  wife  was  a  Clanton,  was  one  of  the 
band  of  immigrants  known  as  the  Clanton  colony. 

David  Bishop  was  among  those  who  settled  in  South  Township  in  1847,  com- 
ing that  year  from  Shelby  County,  Indiana.  He  established  a  home  on  section  7, 
and  at  the  time  his  family  was  the  eleventh  to  set  up  a  residence  here.  David 
Bishop  was  one  of  the  first  county  commissioners  and  in  1857  was  elected 
treasurer  and  recorder  of  the  county. 

The  Fifes — ^Amos,  David  and  Samuel-^were  natives  of  Columbiana  County, 
Ohio,  and  settled  in  the  township  in  December,  1849,  the  details  of  which  will 
be  found  in  an  article  written  by  Samuel  Fife,  hereinto  incorporated,  together  with 
quite  a  comprehensive  survey  of  other  pioneers,  who  settled  here  and  the  essential 
facts  relating  thereto.  Mr.  Fife  mentions  the  names  of  many  of  the  hardy  men  and 
women  who  took  part  in  opening  the  land  here  to  cultivation  and  giving  the 
township  its  start  on  its  great  road  to  progress  and  prosperity,  so  that  their  names 

250 


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DAVID  BISHOP 

Came  to  Madison  County  in  1847.  Was  elected  a  justice  of  the 
peace  at  first  election  held  in  Black  Oak  Grove  precinct,  Augitst, 
1847.  One  of  the  first  county  commissioners  chosen  January  1, 
1849.  Was  elected  recorder  and  treasurer  of  Madison  County  in 
1857  and  was  defeated  for  representative  in  1859.  One  of  the 
commissioners  appointed  in  1851  to  locate  the  county  seat  of 
Guthrie  County.  Father  of  Rev.  J.  G.  Bishop  of  Dayton,  Ohio, 
and  of  the  late  A.  H.  Bishop  of  South  Township 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  251 

will  not  be  repeated,  but  their  histories,  as  they  relate  to  that  of  South  Town- 
ship, will  be  left  to  Samuel  Fife  to  portray.  There  are  many  others,  however, 
who  deserve  a  place  in  this  history  not  mentioned  in  the  Fife  reminiscences,  and 
still  others,  the  details  of  whose  immigration  to  this  county  are  not  available. 
So  far  as  possible,  therefore,  what  is  known  of  the  settlers  following  those  men- 
tioned will  be  here  indicated. 

M.  C.  Debord,  a  Virginian  by  birth,  immigrated  from  Shelby  County,  Indiana, 
with  his  family  to  Illinois  to  1843,  fr'om  which  state  he  came  to  Iowa,  and  in 
September,  1849,  located  on  section  7,  in  this  township,  where  he  lived,  for  many 
years  and  enjoyed  the  fruits  of  a  frugal  and  industrious  life.  He  at  one  time 
served  on  the  board  of  supervisors.  Among  his  children  bom  here  was  E.  C. 
Debord,  who  married  Miss  Joan  Hicks  in  1873  ^^^  ^^^  many  years  lived  on 
section  7. 

J.  C.  Johnston  and  Madeline,  his  wife,  left  the  State  of  Indiana  in  the  spring 
of  1850  and  arrived  in  Madison  County,  where  they  located,  choosing  for  their 
home  South  Township.  Jehu  M.  Johnston,  a  son,  came  the'  same  year  and 
located  on  section  32.  The  journey  from  the  Hoosier  State  was  made  in  a 
wagon  and  required  about  two  months.  Mr.  Jehu  M.  Johnston  later  moved  to 
section  26. 

T.  J.  Rhyno  also  moved  into  the  county  in  1850.  He  was  a  Virginian  by 
birth  but  lived  for  many  years  in  the  State  of  Ohio,  where  he  married  Sarah 
Draper  in  1848.  Mr.  Rhyno  located  on  section  32.  He  entered  500  acres 
of  land.  It  is  said  that  when  he  left  his  home  in  Virginia  he  walked  the  whole 
distance  to  Louisville,  Kentucky,  and  in  1850  walked  from  Keokuk  to  South 
Township. 

James  A.  Rhyno,  also  of  Virginia,  became  a  journeyman  printer  and  worked 
at  the  trade  for  some  time  in  Ohio  and  several  of  the  southern  states.  He  served 
in  the  Mexican  war  and  during  the  winter  of  1851  arrived  in  South  Township, 
where  he  entered  160  acres  of  land  on  section  28. 

The  Runkles,  Thomas  and  son,  J.  M.,  were  settlers  in  this  township  in  185 1. 
Thomas  located  on  section  7,  and  in  1850  married  Catherine  Guilliams.  J.  M. 
Runkle  located  on  section  i. 

Nicholas  Shaver  was  one  of  the  first  comers  to  the  township.  He  was  a 
native  of  Virginia,  settled  in  Ohio,  from  which  state  he  came  by  wagon  to 
Madison  County  in  1851  and  located  on  section  4  in  1853.  George  Hartman, 
came  in  1851  and  N.  S.  Allcock  in  1847. 

David  Downs  was  bom  in  Monroe  County,  Indiana,  in  1824.  He  was  mar- 
ried in  1848  and  in  1850  settled  in  Warren  County,  where  he  remained  until  the 
spring  of  185 1.  He  then  came  to  Madison  County  and  located  in  this  township. 
Mr.  Downs  built  the  first  sawmill  in  the  township  and  with  his  partner,  and 
father-in-law,  George  Hartman,  was  engaged  in  the  lumber  business  about  three 
years,  when  he  removed  to  his  home  on  section  24. 

James  Phipps  located  on  section  35  in  this  township  in  185 1.  He  was  a  native 
of  Grayson  County,  Virginia.  When  thirteen  years  of  age  his  parents  removed 
to  Tennessee  and  from  there  to  Missouri,  from  whence  he  came  to  Iowa,  first 
locating  in  Warren  County  in  1846. 

C.  W.  Thompson,  who  was  long  a  justice  of  the  peace,  was  an  Ohioan  by  birth 
and  came  from  his  native  state  to  this  township  with  his  parents  in  1852. 


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252  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Abraham  Black  was  bom  in  the  Old  Dominion  in  1803  and  with  his  family 
removed  to  Indiana  in  1840,  from  whence  he  came  to  Madison  County  in  1852 
and  located  on  section  22,  where  Hanley  now  stands. 

John  Hartman  came  with  his  parents,  George  and  Mary  Hartman,  from  Hen- 
dricks County,  Indiana,  to  Iowa,  in  1850,  and  to  this  county  in  the  spring  of 
185 1,  when  they  located  on  section  14,  in  South  Township.    The  father  died  in 

1873. 

Hogan  Queen  was  bom  in  Wayne  County,  Indiana,  in  1821,  and  married 
Martha  A.  Runkle  in  1846.  With  his  family  he  came  to  Madison  County  by 
wagon  in  1853,  spending  sixteen  days  on  the  road  and  upon  his  arrival  here,  located 
on  section  7,  where  he  improved  one  of  the  finest  farms  in  the  county.  Mr. 
Queen  became  a  large  landowner  and  one  of  the  important  men  of  the  county. 

J.  M.  Browne,  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  removed  to  Ohio  when  a  young  man 
and  in  the  spring  of  1855  came  to  Madison  County  and  settled  at  St.  Charles. 
In  addition  to  being  one  of  the  pioneer  merchants  of  the  town  he  was  also  a 
farmer  and  stock- raiser  and  accumulated  considerable  land.  In  August,  1862,  he 
organized  Company  F,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry  and  was  elected  its  captain. 
After  being  wounded  at  the  battle  of  Parker's  Cross  Roads,  he  resigned  his 
commission  and  in  the  winter  of  1865-6  represented  this  county  in  the  Eleventh 
General  Assembly.    Captain  Browne  died  in  October,  1913. 

N.  P.  Pomeroy  was  one  of  the  worthy  settlers  who  came  to  Madison  County 
from  Holmes  County,  Ohio,  in  1855,  and  settled  in  this  township.  For  many 
years  his  home  was  on  section  17.  He  married  Sarah  J.  Collins  in  i860.  She  was 
also  of  Holmes  County. 

Jefferson  Wheat  arrived  in  South  Township  early  in  the  '50s.  His  fathei 
bought  a  claim  on  section  26  and  there  the  family  took  up  their  residence. 

Thomas  W.  Stiles  was  one  of  the  sturdy  and  worthy  Hoosier  farmers,  who 
left  his  native  state  in  1858  and  first  settled  in  Warren  County.  Two  years  later 
he  located  on  section  3,  South  Township.  Stiles  enlisted  in  Company  F,  Thirty- 
ninth  Iowa  Infantry  in  1862  as  second  lieutenant  and  on  the  resignation  of  Capt. 
James  M.  Browne  he  was  promoted  to  fill  the  vacancy. 

I.  S.  Taylor,  a  Pennsylvanian  by  birth,  moved  with  his  parents  to  New  York 
and  eventually  found  his  way  to  Indiana,  from  which  state  he  immigrated  to 
Iowa  in  1858.  He  chose  Madison  County  for  his  home  and  located  on  section  7, 
South  Township. 

James  Young  was  born  in  Pennsylvania  in  183 1  and  lived  there  until  the 
spring  of  1856,  when  he  located  on  section  i,  this  township.'  He  was  a  veteran 
of  the  Civil  war,  being  a  member  of  Company  F,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry. 

R.  M.  Young  came  in  1856.  Located  on  section  12.  He  was  a  member  of 
Company  I,  Thirty-ninth  Infantry. 

Caleb  Clark,  after  two  or  three  removals,  finally  made  his  residence  at  Winter- 
set.  He  was  a  mason,  as  were  a  number  of  his  sons  and  it  is  doubtful  if  any 
one  has  done  more  hard  work  and  more  permanent  work  than  the  members  of  this 
pioneer  family.  The  Clanton  settlement  was  a  stopping  place  for  stock  drovers 
and  teamsters  when  the  nearest  market  was  at  Keokuk  and  Eddyville.  The  All- 
cocks  and  Aliens  also  stopped  here  and  left  their  mark  in  the  organization  of  Elm 
Grove  Church.  This  was  one  of  the  first  religious  organizations  formed  in  the 
county  and  it  has  been  permanent  and  progressive.    The  old  house  of  worship  was 


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DOUBLE  LOG  HOUSE  OF  ISAAC  CLANTON 

Built  in  1853  on  section  23  South  Township  near  St.  Charles.  The 
lumber  used  was  sawed  by  the  Hartman  and  Downs  up  and  down  sawmill 
on  Clanton  Creek.  This  was  a  palace  in  its  day  and  was  used  as  a  resi- 
dence until  the  ^908  when  it  was  converted  into  a  barn  and  so  used 
until  about  1912  when  it  was  torn  down  by  James  Fulton. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  253 

recently  removed  and  a  beautiful  new  one  erected  in  its  place,  with  all  modem 
conveniences. 

Other  early  settlers  are  Nathan  Viney  who  came  about  1848  settling  on  the 
west  part  section  18.  Here  the  first  election,  January  i,  1849,  was  held  in  South 
Township.  About  1850  Mr.  Viney  sold  his  farm  and  moved  to  section  26,  South, 
owning  the  farm  west  of  the  Viney  Schoolhouse,  named  after  him,  also  the  ceme- 
tery to  the  west  of  the  home,  later  known  as  the  Summerville  farm. 

James  Wheat  came  in  185 1  and  bought  the  claim  of  Charles  Clanton  on  section 
26  later  owned  l)y  Albert  King. 

Isaac  Knotts  came  in  1850  and  settled  on  section  35,  on  land  now  owned  by  S. 
A.  Bradshaw. 

George  Smith  settled  in  1847  on  section  10  on  the  east  side  of  Clanton  Creek. 
He  was  the  father  of  Mrs.  Amos  Fife,  still  living  in  St.  Charles. 

Isaac  Smith  settled  in  1847,  at  the  foot  of  the  hill  on  section  11,  where  Mr. 
Amos  Fife  lived  for  many  years. 

Pleasant  Rollins  settled  on  Clanton  Creek  on  section  28,  in  1847.  His  son, 
Caleb,  lived  in  that  vicinity  for  many  years.  He  was  a  soldier  of  the  Civil  war, 
dying  a  few  years  ago. 

David  Simmerman  came  in  1848,  settling  on  the  west  part  of  section  15,  south 
of  the  present  home  of  W.  A.  Carter. 

Hiram  Clough  and  family  came  in  1852  settling  where  S.  T.  Johnston  lives, 
section  25,  and  Oliver  Morgan,  in  1853,  settled  just  east  of  them  on  the  same 
section  on  land  that  is  now  owned  by  S.  T.  Johnston  and  J.  P.  Small. 

In  1849  Jesse  Young  bought  the  claim  of  Caleb  Clark  on  section  14  and  in 
1851  sold  to  George  Hartman.  Mr.  Hartman  and  Jesse  Young  in  1852  laid  out 
the  town  of  St.  Charles. 

Bud  Whited  came  in  1847  with  his  brother-in-law,  David  Bishop,  and  settled 
in  the  northwest  part  of  South  Township  near  the  present  site  of  Union  Chapel. 
This  later  became  known  as  the  M.  C.  Debord  farm  on  section  7. 

David  Worley  was  a  Methodist  Episcopal  preacher  and  in  a  very  early  day 
settled  in  section  3.    Captain  Stiles  for  many  years  owned  the  land. 

Wm.  Steigerwalt  bought  the  first  claim  of  Caleb  Clark  on  section  10  and  in 
1853  sold  to  Mr.  Steel,  the  father  of  Stephen  Steel. 

In  1855  William  Bradshaw  settled  in  section  36  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  his 
daughter,  Mrs.  Robert  Phipps. 

George  Black  came  in  1852  and  lived  on  section  36  for  many  years  until  his 
removal  to  St.  Charles  where  he  died  about  1900. 

Norval  S.  Allcock  came  in  1847  ^^^  bought  the  claim  of  Gifford  Lee,  now  the 
present  site  of  Hanley.  His  cabin  was  situated  in  the  south  part  of  the  present 
site  of  Hanley  near  Mrs.  Bishop's  bam.  He  sold  his  claim  to  Abraham  Black  and 
bought  the  claim  of  Hiram  Hurst  on  section  29  and  moved  there  in  the  fall  of 
1 85 1.  Mr.  Allcock  was  a  county  commissioner  in  1850.  It  was  at  his  home  that  the 
early  circuit  rider  stopped  and  held  church  occasionally.  Meetings  were  held  at 
his  home  and  later  in  the  school  houses,  from  which  developed  the  present  Elm 
Grove  Church. 

Thus  by  the  time  of  the  Civil  war,  South  Township  was  pretty  well  settled  and 
contributed  many  men  for  the  various  regiments,  especially  the  39th. 

The  first  schoolhouse,  which  was  a  log  cabin,  stood  about  a  fourth  of  a  mile 


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254  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

north  of  J.  M.  Clanton's  residence  and  was  built  about  1850.  The  building 
answered  its  purposes  until  about  1858,  when  it  became  a  storer^oom  in  St. 
Charles.  Another  schoolhouse  took  its  place  which,  when  discarded  by  the 
authorities,  was  converted  into  a  harness  shop,  and  is  still  used  as  a  store. 

Log  raising  and  fitting  them  snugly  and  securely  at  the  comers  required  a 
certain  amount  of  expertness  and  among  the  settlers  there  were  some  who 
were  adepts  at  the  business,  and  when  a  cabin  was  to  be  raised  their  services  were 
always  in  demand.  Among  the  principal  ones  better  known  as  "comer  men'* 
around  St.  Charles  about  the  year  1849  were  Joei  Canton,  Samuel  Fife,  George 
Black,  and  David  Downs.  Samuel  Fife  helped  raise  cabins  and  fit  the  comers 
along  South  River  and  Clanton  to  Middle  River.  Mr.  Fife  says  very  little  whis- 
key was  used  at  these  raisings  and  that  he  never  happened  to  be  at  a  raising 
where  whiskey  was  present.  However,  he  says  that  when  Sheckels'  house  was 
raised  in  St.  Charles  in  1854,  one  Clerly,  while  sitting  in  the  shade,  met  his  death 
by  a  log  falling  on  him.  It  is  said  that  if  the  man  had  been  sober  he  could  have 
easily  saved  himself  from  harm.  At  the  time  Clerly  lived  on  David  Lathrum's 
place  west  of  St.  Charles. 

Before  the  Civil  war,  any  person  so  inclined  and  possessing  the  material  and 
experience,  could  manufacture  whiskey  without  let  or  hindrance  from  the  Govem- 
ment.  About  i860  Tom  Young  had  a  distillery  on  his  place  in  St. 'Charles,  which 
he  sold  to  Jacob  Kimer,  who  moved  it  to  his  farm,  west  of  Hanley,  now  owned 
by  Sanford  Johns,  where  he  put  up  a  special  building  near  a  big  spring  and  close 
to  the  main  road.  There  he  continued  to  make  *'fire  water''  until  two  years  after 
the  war,  when  the  still  was  forced  out  of  business  thereafter  by  the  mandates 
of  the  law. 

REMINISCENT 

The  writer  of  the  lines  following  was  a  daughter  of  Caleb  Clark,  a  son-in-law 
of  Mrs.  Clanton,  and  a  member  of  the  Clanton  colony.  She  was  the  first  white 
female  bom  in  Madison  County,  January  9,  1847,  and,  according  to  local  historians, 
she  is  credited  with  being  ahead  of  all  others  in  this  respect,  male  or  female. 
This  little  bud  grew  into  a  choice  prairie  flower,  which  was  plucked  by  Andrew 
Tusha  for  his  own.  A  few  years  ago,  Mrs.  Tusha  was  called  upon  by  the 
Madisonian  to  relate  some  of  her  early  recollections  and  this  is  what  she  said: 
"According  to  our  old  family  Bible,  I  was  bom  January  9,  1847,  ^^  Madison 
County,  Iowa,  about  one  mile  from  St.  Charles  on  what  is  known  as  the  old 
Hartman  farm.  From  there  father  moved  to  the  old  Asa  Evans  farm  in  1849, 
and  from  there  to  another  place  a  little  nearer  Winterset.  About  that  time  was 
the  Califomia  emigration  and  father  traded  a  cow  for  a  stove.  That  was  the 
first  stove  I  ever  saw.  About  that  time  father  bought  the  first  clock  I  ever  saw. 
Brother  Frank  Clark  has  the  clock  yet.  I  went  to  my  first  school  while  we  lived 
there.  They  had  home-made  stools,  without  any  backs.  From  that  place  father 
moved  to  Winterset  when  I  was  seven  or  eight  years  old.  There  I  went  to  school 
in  the  first  schoolhouse  built  in  Winterset.  It  stood  about  the  same  place  as  where 
the  South  Ward  school  is  now.  We  lived  in  Winterset  until  I  was  married  to 
Andrew  Tusha  in  1866.  Then  Mr.  Tusha  and  I  moved  to  a  farm  on  North 
Branch,  sold  out  there  and  moved  to  the  Middle  River  bottom,  close  to  what  is 


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MRS.  MARY  TUSHA 

First  white  child  born  in  Madison 
County.  Daughter  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Caleb  Clark.  Date  of  birth,  January 
9,  1847. 


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•^  I 


-V    I 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  255 

known  as  the  Tusha  Schoolhouse.  Mr.  Tusha  helped  organize  the  district  and 
build  the  schoolhouse.  We  lived  there  about  sixteen  years  and  then  moved  to 
Hoosier  Prairie,  and  from  there  to  St.  Charles,  and  from  St.  Charles  we  came  to 
Elida,  New  Mexico,  in  1905.  Our  son  and  son-in-law  also  came  to  Elida  and 
filed  on  claims.  There  are  schoolhouses  all  over  the  country  and  we  have  an 
eight  room  schoolhouse  in  Elida.*' 

A  PRIMITIVE  SCHOOL 

The  first  settlers  in  South  Township  were  Joel  M.  Clanton,  Isaac  Clanton, 
Charles  Clanton,  Caleb  Clark  and  their  families,  who  came  from  Missouri  in  the 
spring  of  1846,  and  settled  near  the  present  site  of  St.  Charles.  They  were  so 
busily  occupied  in  building  homes  and  clearing  the  forest  that  for  the  first 
few  years  no  attention  was  given  to  schools.  Soon  other  settlers  came  and  by 
1849  there  were  several  families  living  in  the  county. 

The  organization  of  schools  rested  with  the  school  fund  commissioner.  An 
original  document  was  found  among  old  papers  at  the  township  clerk's  office,  of 
South  Township,  describing  a  school  district,  which  included  the  present  dis- 
trict of  St.  Charles,  and  reads  as  follows:  *'N.  S.  Allcock.  Sir:  I  have  this  day 
formed  a  school  district,  No.  3,  in  South  Township,  Madison  County  as  follows : 
Beginning  at  the  southwest  comer  of  section  30  in  township  75  and  range  26, 
thence  east  3  miles  to  the  northeast  comer  of  section  2,  in  township  75,  in 
range  26,  thence  south  5  miles  to  the  southeast  comer  of  section  36,  in  town- 
ship 75,  in  range  26,  thence  west  to  the  place  of  beginning,  and  you  are  hereby 
requested  to  notify  the  qualified  voters  within  said  bounds,  to  meet  at  the  house 
of  Joel  M.  Qanton  therein  on  the  lOth  inst.  at  2  o'clock  P.  M.  and  then  and 
there  proceed  to  elect  by  ballot  one  secretary,  one  president  and  one  treasurer 
for  said  school  district. 

^'Given  under  my  hand  officially  this  loth  day  of  September,  1849. 

"E.    R.    GUIBERSON, 

"School  Fund  Commissioner  of  M.  C,  Iowa." 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  paper  upon  which  the  above  was  written,  the 
following  appears :  "A  list  of  white  persons  residing  in  school  district  No.  3,  of 
South  Township,  Madison  County,  between  the  ages  of  five  and  twenty-one 
years,  taken  between  the  15th  of  September  and  the  ist  of  October,  A.  D.,  1849; 
Joel  Clanton,  Nancy  Clanton,  William  Clanton,  Isaac  W.  Clanton,  Moses  E. 
Clanton,  George  Clanton,  Thomas  N.  Clanton,  William  N.  Clanton,  Charles  F. 
Clanton,  John  Clanton,  Lucinda  Clanton,  Sarah  M.  Clanton,  Rachel  Clanton, 
Louisa  J.  Clark,  Rachel  C.  Clark,  Sarah  E.  Clark,  Nancy  E.  Clark,  Sunthaan 
Clark,  George  W.  Clark,  Granvill  A.  Smith,  Lucinda  Smith,  William  C.  Smith, 
Mary  Jane  Smith,  Lucy  Ann  Smith,  Sary  L.  Smith,  Elizabeth  R.  Smith,  Lucinda 
E.  Hail,  Orlenia  T.  Hail,  Jesse  M.  Hail,  Willey  Stagerwalt,  Henry  A.  Stager- 
wait,  Martin  Stagerwalt,  Fearick  Stagerwalt,  Sarah  E.  Stagerwalt,  Maranda 
Stagerwalt,  Heserkiah  Stagerwalt." 

In  accordance  with  this  call  the  following  officers  were  elected:  President, 
George  Smith ;  secretary,  N.  S.  Allcock ;  treasurer,  William  C.  Allcock. 

No  school  was  held  that  year  but  the  following  season  a  log  schoolhouse  was 
built  in  Frank  Clanton's  pasture,  near  the  north  side  and  about  twenty  rods  west 


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256  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

of  the  turn  of  the  road  south  of  Mr.  Vanatta's  house  and  about  ten  rods  north  of 
where  the  slaughter-house  stood. 

Abner  Bell,  of  Patterson,  was  the  first  teacher.  School  was  held  in  the  fall 
and  winter  of  1850-51  and  the  pupils  attending  were:  Joel  Clanton,  William  Clan- 
ton,  Wesley  Clanton,  Moses  Clanton,  Margaret  AUcock,  Frances  Allcock,  Lorenzo 
Allcock,  John  Simmerman,  James  Simmerman,  Jacob  Simmerman,  Sarah  L. 
Smith,  Elizabeth  Smith,  Lucy  Ann  Smith,  Mary  Jane  Smith,  Daniel  Smith,  George 
Smith,  George  Clanton,  Thomas  Clanton,  Nancy  Clanton,  William  W.  Clanton, 
Charles  Frank  Clanton,  Samuel  Fife,  James  Bell,  Mary  Jane  Bell. 

'  The  taxpayers  of  South  Township  at  this  time  are  indicated  by  the  following : 
"A  true  list  of  the  taxable  property  of  the  district,  as  taken  from  the  assessment 
roll  of  the  county,  this  2d  day  of  July,  A.  D.  1850. 

Norval  S.  Allcock $1.60 

William   Allcock 2.01 

Charles  Clanton 2.61 

Isaac  Clanton 6.39 

Joel  M.  Clanton 3.71 

David  Fife 2.71 

Amos   Fife 1.23 

George   Smith 2.74 

Isaac   Smith 2.20 

David   Simmerman 4.55 

Nathan   Viney 6.14 

Jesse  Young 2.55 

Isaac  Knotts 1.04 

James  M.  Lee 2.49 

Qement  Lee 1.41 

Jacob  Kinkamon 52 

David  Ralston 58 

Joseph  Miller 23^ 

"N.  S.  Allcock,  Secretary  of  School  District  No.  3,  of  South  Township.'' 
All  were  marked  paid  except  the  last  two. 

•ST.  CHARLES 

The  land  on  which  the  City  of  St.  Charles  was  originally  located  is  the  west 
half  of  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  24.  The  north  "forty"  was  entered  by 
William  Wallace  White,  January  10,  1851,  and  the  south  "forty"  by  Jesse  C. 
Young,  December  14,  1850.  Later  George  Hartman  bought  the  north  "forty" 
and  he  inspired  the  project  of  locating  the  town.  The  platting  was  done  for 
George  Hartman  and  Jesse  C.  Young,  October  7,  1852,  Simmons  Rutty,  surveyor. 
Hartman  was  an  enterprising  man  and  besides  being  a  considerable  farmer, 
operated  a  large  sawmill  on  the  Clanton,  a  short  distance  southwest  of  the  present 
bridge  near  Hanley.  The  town  as  laid  out  comprised  four  blocks,  called  respec- 
tively the  northwest,  northeast,  southwest  and  southeast  sections,  which  in  this 
respect  is  unlike  any  other  town  platted  in  the  county.    The  owners  gave  the  place 


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pri 


ARY 


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MR.  AND  yatS.  NORVALL  S.  ALLCOCK 

Mr.  Allcoek  came  to  Madison  County  in  April, 
1848,  and  took  up  a  claim  where  Hanley  now 
stands.  Elected  township  clerk  of  South  Town- 
ship, April  2,  1849,  and  member  of  Board  of 
County  Commissioners,  August  6,  1849. 
Founder  of  the  Elm  Grove  Methodist  Episcopal 
Class  and  Church.  The  Methodist  Episcopal 
circuit  rider  always  found  a  welcome  at  the 
home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  AUcock. 


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METHODIST  CHURCH,  HANLEY,  SOUTH  TOWNSHIP 
Erected  in  1906 


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''  '< 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  257 

no  name  at  the  time,  which  was  also  a  novelty  in  town  building.  For  some  time 
the  little  community  discussed  one  name  and  then  another,  until  finally  it  gen- 
erally was  agreed  to  call  it  St.  Charles,  after  a  town  in  Missouri.  This  name 
was  adopted  but  it  seems  has  never  been  entirely  satisfactory.  The  postoffice 
was  established  December  13,  1853,  with  David  Downs  in  charge.  For  some  years 
the  growth  of  the  town  was  slow  but  when  the  railroad  came  its  spirits  were  re- 
vived and  since  then  St.  Charles  has  advanced  in  a  steady  and  substantial  man- 
ner, until  it  is  one  of  the  best  business  towns  of  its  class  in  the  county. 

The  first  house  erected  was  by  John  Byers,  in  1853,  shortly  after  the  town  was 
laid  out.    This  was  a  one-story  log  dwelling. 

Milton  Thompson  opened  the  first  stock  of  merchandise  in  St.  Charles  and 
was  soon  followed  by  B.  F.  Allison  and  the  firm  of  Browne  &  McCreary. 

Adam  Stiffler  and  Charles  Young  were  early  blacksmiths. 

INCORPORATION 

St.  Charles  was  incorporated  under  an  order  of  the  Circuit  Court  at  the 
March  term  of  1876,  when  it  was  ordered  by  the  courts  that  J.  M.  Anderson,  W.  E. 
Mack,  H.  D.  Bean,  E.  Faust  and  William  McClure  be  appointed  commissioners 
to  hold  an  election  as  provided  by  law.  In  pursuance  of  this  mandate  of  Judge 
John  Mitchell,  an  election  was  held  at  the  township  house  in  St.  Charles  on  Mon- 
day, the  15th  day  of  May,  1876.  Upon  the  ballots  voted  was  printed  the  following : 
**For  incorporation  or  against  incorporation,"  and  forty-two  citizens  expressed 
themselves  in  favor  of  incorporation.  Theie  were  only  two  votes  cast  against  it. 
The  names  of  the  voters  follow:  Ephraim  Wallace,  Walter  Wallace,  William 
Ross,  Alonzo  Emery,  N.  B.  Morgan,  William  M.  Anderson,  S.  C.  Coletrane, 
Grove  Robinett,  W.  E.  Mack,  J.  T.  Anderson,  J.  M.  Anderson,  P.  V.  Carpenter, 
George  Fatton,  D.  P.  Morgan,  John  F.  Johnston,  G.  W.  Armstrong,  William 
McClure,  E.  Faust,  H.  D.  Bean,  David  Wallace,  Jacob  Kepner,  William  Beaver, 
S.  H.  Lyons,  S.  L.  Wood,  William  L.  Brown,  D.  Boswell,  J.  R.  Robertson,  N.  D. 
Bean,  Hiram  McCandless,  Jackson  Kleckner,  William  K.  Kramer,  G.  C.  Lawhead, 
T.  Roberts,  Stephen  Steele,  C.  W.  Thompson,  L.  J.  Forney,  S.  M.  Wallace,  Andrew 
Reid,  B.  W.  Tincher,  J.  C.  Armstrong,  T.  F.  Hoff,  R.  C.  Nickle,  R.  Dick,  William 
Barton. 

On  the  loth  day  of  July,  1876,  at  the  township  house  in  St.  Charles,  the  first 
election  was  held  in  the  town  for  municipal  offices.  H.  D.  Bean  was  elected  mayor, 
William  McClure,  recorder;  T.  Roberts,  William  Beaver,  George  Patton,  J.  M. 
Anderson  and  E.  Faust,  trustees.  On  the  14th  day  of  July  the  newly  elected 
officers  met  at  the  township  house,  qualified  and  perfected  the  organization  of  the 
incorporated  town. 

Among  other  proceedings  of  this  meeting  was  a  motion  authorizing  the  mayor 
to  purchase  a  docket  and  journal.  David  Wallace  was  elected  mayor  and  W.  L. 
Browne,  treasurer.  The  mayor  was  instructed  to  appoint  a  committee  to  draft 
rules  to  serve  as  a  manual  to  govern  the  council.  This  committee  consisted  of  T. 
Roberts,  William  McClure  and  George  Patton. 

Following  is  a  list  of  persons  who  have  held  the  offices  of  mayor  and  clerk 
since  St.  Charles  was  incorporated:  1876 — H.  D.  Bean,  mayor;  William  McClure, 
clerk;  1877 — Jackson  Kleckner,  mayor;  C.  W.  Thompson,  clerk;  1878 — Jackson 

Vol.  I— IT 


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258      •  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Kleckner,  mayor;  C.  W.  Thompson,  clerk;  1879 — S.  L.  Wood,  mayor;  C.  W. 
Thompson,  clerk;  1880 — S.  L.  Wood,  mayor;  C.  W.  Thompson,  clerk;  1881 — I. 
M.  Clanton,  mayor;  C.  W.  Thompson,  clerk;  1882 — George  Patton,  mayor;  C.  W. 
Thompson,  clerk;  1883 — W.  B.  Hodge,  mayor;  George  Patton,  clerk;  1884 — ^W. 
B.  Hodge,  mayor;  S.  N.  Sayre,  clerk;  1885 — J.  W.  Baird,  mayor;  S.  N.  Sayre, 
clerk;  1886 — ^John  Baird,  mayor;  S.  N.  Sayre,  clerk;  1887 — A.  V.  Barger,  mayor; 
S.  N.  Sayre,  clerk;  1888 — ^John  McCandless,  mayor;  S.  N.  Sayre,  clerk;  1889 — 
S.  G.  Stouffer,  mayor;  S.  N.  Sayre,  clerk;  1890 — ^J.  M.  Browne,  mayor;  G.  W. 
Jeffries,  clerk;  1891 — ^J.  M.  Browne,  mayor;  G.  W.  Jeffries,  clerk;  1892 — ^J.  H. 
Stiffler,  mayor;  J.  L.  Armstrong,  clerk;  1893 — ^J-  H.  Stifikr,  mayor;  O.  M.  Hor- 
ton,  clerk;  1894 — C.  F.  Wood,  mayor;  O.  M.  Horton,  clerk;  1895 — ^W.  H.  Cater, 
mayor;  O.  M.  Horton,  clerk;  1896 — E.  P.  Bell,  mayor;  O.  M.  Horton,  clerk; 
1897— E.  P.  Bell,  mayor;  O.  M.  Horton,  clerk;  189&--E.  P.  Bell,  mayor;  O.  M. 
Horton,  clerk;  1899 — C.  F.  Wood,  mayor;  O.  M.  Horton,  clerk;  1900 — C.  F. 
Wood,  mayor;  O.  M.  Horton,  clerk;  1901 — P.  S.  Wise,  mayor;  O.  M.  Horton, 
clerk;  1902 — P.  S.  Wise,  mayor;  O.  M.  Horton,  clerk;  1903 — P.  S.  Wise,  mayor; 
J.  L.  Fleming,  clerk;  1904— G.  A.  Zimbelman,  mayor;  J.  L.  Armstrong,  clerk; 
1905 — G.  A.  Zimbelman,  mayor;  M.  I.  Bean,  clerk;  1906— P.  S.  Wise,  mayor; 
J.  L.  Fleming,  clerk;  1907 — P.  S.  Wise,  mayor;  J.  L.  Fleming,  clerk;  1908 — 
P.  S.  Wise,  mayor;  J.  L.  Fleming,  clerk;  1909 — P.  S.  Wise,  mayor;  J.  L. 
Fleming,  clerk;  1910 — G.  L.  Archer,  mayor;  J.  L.  Fleming,  clerk;  191 1 — G.  L. 
Archer,  mayor;  J.  L.  Fleming,  clerk;  1912 — G.  L.  Archer,  mayor;  J.  L.  Fleming, 
clerk;  1913 — G.  L.  Archer,  mayor;  J.  L.  Fleming,  clerk;  1914 — P.  S.  Wise, 
mayor;  Clive  Johnson,  clerk. 

St.  Charles  has  not  yet  reached  that  stage  where  it  feels  able  to  assume  the 
expense  of  installing^  public  utilities  such  as  waterworks,  sewerage,  electric 
lights  and  paving.  But  it  has  the  incentive  and  the  inclination  so  to  do  and 
the  time  is  not  far  distant  when  St.  Charles  will  be  enjoying  these  privileges 
and  conveniences  the  same  as  some  of  her  neighbors.  Notwithstanding  these 
drawbacks  the  town  has  many  natural  attractions,  such  as  a  pure  atmosphere, 
plenty  of  good  water,  excellent  transportation  facilities  and  the  surrounding 
country  replete  with  finely  cultivated  and  improved  farms,  whose  owners  are 
frugal,  industrious  and  prosperous.  With  these  conditions  and  blessings  St. 
Charles  has  every  incentive  to  continue  on  her  road  of  steady  advancement  and 
has  high  hopes  for  the  future.  Her  school  and  church  buildings  are  modem 
and  substantial  and  meet  the  requirements  of  all  involved  in  their  maintenance, 
and  as  a  business  and  shipping  center  she  gives  way  to  none  in  the  county, 
when  all  things  are  considered. 

FINANCIAL 

The  St.  Charles  Savings  Bank  waa  organized  by  W.  A.  Tris  during  the  spring 
of  1904,  and  on  May  26th  of  that  year  opened  for  business  in  the  building 
formerly  occupied  by  the  Citizens  Bank.  Its  first  board  of  directors  was:  J.  D. 
Whisenand,  J.  G.  Olmsted,  Edwin  A.  Nye,  H.  F.  Cross  and  W.  B.  Brown,  all 
prominent  business  men  of  Des  Moines,  and  Francis  Power  and  E.  B.  Cochran 
of  St.  Charles.  The  first  officers  were :  President,  J.  G.  Olmsted ;  vice  president, 
Francis  Power;  cashier,  W.  A.  Tris;  assistant  cashier,  N.  J.  Tris.     In   1913, 


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NORTH  SIDE  OF  MAIN  STREET,  ST.  CHARLES   . 
Johnston  Block,  built  in   1900.     Masonic  Hall  and  office  of  the  Drs.   Sayre  above;   J.  F. 
Johnston's  bank  and  Switzer  &  Anderson's  general  store  below 


SOUTH  SIDE  OF  MAIN  STREET,  ST.  CHARLES 
Rebuilt  in  1912 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  259 

after  nine  yelars  of  continued  growth,  larger  quarters  became  necessary,  and  a 
fine  bank  buf  Iding  was  erected  on  the  comer,  which  in  its  complete  accommo- 
dations will  /make  a  suitable  home  for  many  years.  Thirty  stockholders  repre- 
senting a  wiealth  of  perhaps  two  million  dollars  are  at  present  connected  with 
and  behind  I  this  bank.  Its  present  officials  are :  Francis  Power,  president ; 
A.  R.  Dowips,  vice  president;  W.  A.  Tris,  cashier;  and  W.  D.  Downs,  assistant 
cashier. 

J.  F.  Johnston's  Bank  began  business  in  June,  1901,  with  a  capital  of  $20,000, 
with  the  f/ollowing  officers:  President  and  sole  owner,  J.  F.  Johnston;  vice 
president,  iW.  A.  Barnes;  cashier,  Henry  Hayden;  bookkeeper,  Carrie  E. 
Johnston.  \  Later  the  capital  was  increased  to  $30,000,  and  in  1905  to  $50,000. 
In  August,!  1905,  Mr.  Hayden  died  and  soon  after  Herman  A.  Mueller  became 
cashier,  anil  Carrie  E.  Guilliams  assistant  cashier.  The  officers  in  1909  were: 
President,  T.  F.  Johnston;  vice  president,  Carrie  E.  Guilliams;  cashier,  H.  A. 
Mueller;  assistant  cashier,  C.  C.  Guilliams.  In  April,  1913,  H.  A.  Mueller  quit 
the  employ  iof  the  bank  after  eight  years  of  faithful  service,  and  C.  C  Guilliams 
became  cashier.  The  bank  has  grown  rapidly  in  the  past  ten  years  and  is  one 
of  the  leading  private  financial  institutions  of  the  county. 

SCHOOLS 

After  St.  Charles  was  platted  in  1852,  and  until  1889,  the  town  was  a 
subdistrict  of  the  school  district  of  South  Township,  being  subdistrict  No.  3 
when  first  organized  (see  early  schools  of  South  Township),  and  later  it  was 
changed  to  No.  6.  The  first  structure  was  a  one-room  building,  erected  about 
1858,  which  was  replaced  by  a  two-story  building  of  two  rooms  in  1877.  The 
first  building  was  mpved  on  the  north  side  of  Main  Street  and  is  now  used  by 
W.  B.  Snider  for  a  general  store.  In  1886  another  two-story  building  was  added, 
making  four  rooms  and  a  high  school  was  organized,  with  Jackson  T.  Rhyno  as 
the  first  principal.  He  served  two  years  and  George  M.  Langeteig  followed 
in  1888.  In  1889  St.  Charges  was  made  an  independent  district  and  since  that 
time  the  following  named  have  served  as  principals:  J.  D.  Phillips,  1889-90; 
J.  H.  Schroeder,  1891 ;  L.  J.  Little,  1892-7;  J.  W.  Radebaugh,  1897-8;  J.  W. 
Miller,  1899-1903;  A.  H.  Anton,  1904  to  fall  of  1906;  Fred  B.  Tyler,  1907;  E. 
G.  Lockhardt,  1908-9;  Frank  E.  Moore,  191  o;  Ray  Edmondson,  191 1;  Merton 
Crowl,  1912;  J.  H.  Denius,  1913-4. 

A  two-story  brick  building,  consisting  of  eight  rooms  and  basement,  was 
erected  in  191 1-2,  at  a  cost  of  $15,000.  St.  Charles  can  boast  of  as  good  a  school 
as  any  town  of  its  size  in  the  State  of  Iowa. 

The  first  officials  of  the  St.  Charles  independent  school  district  were:  J.  M. 
Browne,  president;  R.  D.  Minard,  secretary;  David  Downs,  director;  C.  F. 
Wood,  treasurer.  R.  D.  Minard  has  held  the  position  of  secretary  to  the  present 
time.  The  high  school  has  an  excellent  four-year  course  and  to  date  (191 5) 
has  graduated  150  students,  74  boys  and  76  girls,  the  first  class  being  graduated 
in  1893. 

UNITED   PRESBYTERIAN    CHURCH 

The  early  records  of  this  society  state  that  "about  1852  a  number  of  families 
came  to  the  county  who  were  members  of  the  Associate  and  Associate  Reformed 


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260  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Presbyterian  churches.  The  first  of  these  was  Oliver  Crawford,  { who  in  1852 
settled  in  Crawford  Township  on  the  farm  still  known  by  his  name.i  J.  G.  Free- 
bom,  Anderson  McLees,  Robert  Gamble  and  William  Kenedy  cameV  to  the  same 
neighborhood  soon  after.  These  persons  soon  organized  a  societW  for  social 
worship  and  catechetical  instruction  on  the  Sabbath  to  supply  the  place  of 
preaching.  About  this  time  Joseph  Henderson,  John  and  Robert  ibaird  and  a 
few  others  who  had  located  near  St.  Charles  united  with  those  a^ove  named 
in  an  effort  to  secure  preaching,  at  least  occasionally.  The  first  nlinister  was 
the  Reverend  Mr.  Tindsay,  of  the  Associate  Church;  then  came  the \  Rev.  John 
W.  McClain,  of  the  same  denomination.  On  the  19th  of  February,  1055,  an  As- 
sociate Reformed  Church  was  organized  by  the  Rev.  James  Greene  at  the  home 
of  J.  G.  Freeborn  with  a  membership  of  seventeen." 

From  the  old  session  records  which  have  been  preserved  since  i£f55  the  fol- 
lowing list  of  charter  members  of  the  Clanton  congregation  of  the  Associate 
Reformed  Presbyterian  Church  when  organized,  February  19,  1855/,  is  found: 
Oliver  Crawford,  James  G.  Freeborn,  George  Piper,  Robert  C.  Bair4,  Margaret 
Gamble,  John  W.  Baird,  Joseph  Henderson,  John  Wilkins,  Lucind^ei  Crawford, 
Martha  Freeborn,  Anderson  McLees,  Robert  Gamble,  Sarah  Ga/nble,  Nancy 
Baird,  Margaret  Henderson,  Mrs.  Wilkins.  Robert  Gamble  and  Jciin  W.  Baird 
were  elected  ruling  elders  and  James  Greene,  moderator. 

From  18.S7  to  1862  this  congregation  sat  under  the  preaching  of  different 
ministers,  among  others,  the  Rev.  James  Miller  and  Reverend  Mr/  Vance.  Little 
can  be  discovered  of  the  congregational  history  from  1862  to  TB67,  except  that 
the  congregation  existed  at  that  time  as  a  United  Presbyterian  (church,  the  legiti- 
mate result  of  the  union  of  1858.  Perhaps  the  war  had  muchy  to  do  with  the  in- 
completeness of  the  session  records  at  that  time.  ^^ 

In  1867  the  session  was  moderated  by  the  Rev.  Andrew.  McCartney.  During 
this  year  four  members  were  received  from  the  Old  School  Presbyterian  Church. 
May  I,  1868,  there  were  forty-one  members.  In  1868  and  1869  the  session  was 
moderated  by  the  Rev.  A.  J.  McCartney  and  Doctor  McCaughan.  The  present 
house  of  worship  was  built  in  1868.  On  May  i,  1870,  there  were  fifty-six 
members. 

Rev.  A.  J.  Graham  was  the  first  pastor  of  the  congregation.  His  pastorate 
began  in  1870  and  continued  about  three  years.  In  1874  Rev.  G.  P.  Raitt  began 
his  pastorate,  which  continued  ten  years.  Rev.  J.  C.  White  acted  as  moderator 
in  1884  and  1885.  In  1886  Rev.  Wilson  R.  Baldridge  was  called  to  the  pastorate. 
His  pastorate  lasted  until  1893.  From  1893  to  1905 'there  was  no  settled  pastor. 
Rev.  M.  R.  Cochran  was  stated  supply  from  1895  ^^  1898,  and  Rev.  Leonard 
Proudfit  was  stated  supply  from  1899  to  1904.  February  i,  1905,  W.  F.  Graham 
assumed  the  pastoral  duties  and  was  installed  on  the  20th  of  June  following. 
After  a  pastorate  of  about  four  years  Reverend  Graham  resigned  to  take  up 
work  elsewhere,  and  for  some  time  afterward  the  congregation  was  served  by 
occasional  supplies.  Then  for  two  years  Rev.  M.  M.  Milford  held  services  on 
alternate  Sabbaths.  Later  Rev.  I.  C.  Rankin  served  as  stated  supply  for  about 
two  years,  and  in  July,  1914,  Rev.  H.  J.  Bell  took  charge  of  the  congregation 
as  stated  supply.     The  present  membership  is  about  seventy-five. 


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OPERA  HOUSE,  ST.  CHARLES 
Formerly  the  old  Methodist  Church,  erected  in  1874.     Property  of  the  St.  Charles  Park  and 

Improvement  Association 


VIEW  OF  A  RESIDENCE  STREET,  ST.  CHARLES 
T.  I.  Killam  and  J.  S.  Huftv  residences 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  261 

CHURCH    OF    CHRIST  OR   THE  DISCIPLES  OF   CHRIST 

The  church  was  organized  in  the  spring  of  1857  by  Reverend  Short,  of 
Winterset,  Iowa.  Meetings  were  held  in  the  schoolhouse  or  in  the  homes  of 
the  members  until  about  1870  when  a  church  building,  under  the  pastorate  of 
Rev.  J.  P.  Roach,  was  built  on  the  lots  still  occupied  by  the  present  church 
building.  Meetings  were  held  about  every  other  Sunday  for  many  years  until 
Reverend  Roach  came,  who  was  a  resident  pastor  and  did  much  for  the  church. 
The  first  building  was  blown  down  by  a  hurricane  some  few  years  after  its 
erection,  so  until  the  present  church  was  built  about  1890,  services  were  held 
in  the  homes  or  in  some  empty  store  building.  Services  were  also  held  in  the 
building  vacated  by  the  Methodists  and  owned  by  the  Old  Style  Presbyterians. 
Reverend  Carpenter,  later  chancellor  of  Drake  University,  preached  several  years 
during  its  early  existence.  Some  of  the  charter  members  and  families  be- 
longing at  that  time  are  as  follows:  Isaac  Clanton,  Joel  M.  Clanton,  George 
Smith,  William  Adams,  Milton  Thompson,  Mr.  Lympus,  George  Hartman, 
Mrs.  David  Downs,  Wesley  Stiffler,  who  was  killed  in  the  Civil  war,  John  Mc- 
Ginnis,  Sr.,  and  four  sons  and  a  daughter,  all  of  whom  had  families;  Samuel 
Fife  and  others.  For  many  years  the  pastors  have  been  students  from  Drake 
University,  and  at  present  Rev.  Herman  Olmstead  is  serving  the  charge  every 
Sunday.  The  church  is  in  a  flourishing  condition  with  about  one  hundred 
members. 

METHODIST  EPISCOPAL  CHURCH 

Mr.  Adam  Stiffler,  of  Norwalk,  Iowa,  while  here  last  fall  (1914)  related 
that  he  came  to  St.  Charles  in  1856  and  operated  a  blacksmith  shop.  The  shop 
standing  on  lot  6  northwest  section,  where  W.  H.  Black's  house  stands.  Mr. 
Stiffler  said  that  he  did  not  belong  to  church  at  that  time,  and  there  was  no 
Methodist  class  in  town.  In  1858  Reverend  Murphy  held  a  revival  meeting  in  the 
new  house  of  William  Bradshaw,  now  owned  by  Eliza  McLaughHn,  and  at  these 
meetings  Mr.  Stiffler  was  converted.  A  class  was  organized  with  Mr.  D.  S. 
Smith  leader;  he  soon  after  leaving,  Mr.  Stiffler  was  chosen  class  leader,  remain- 
ing thus  until  1868  when  he  moved  to  Norwalk,  Iowa.  St.  Charles  was  first 
put  into  the  New  Virginia  circuit ;  R.  S.  Robinson,  presiding  elder,  and  John  W. 
Anderson  was  the  pastor.  Mr.  Stiffler  had  built  a  shop  on  lot  6,  northwest 
section,  and  Mr.  Milton  Thompson  had  built  a  log  store  on  the  east  part  of 
that  lot  6,  and  in  this  store  Mr.  Stiffler  and  family  lived,  and  in  this  home  for  the 
first  two  years  the  meetings  were  held.  As  the  circuit  was  large,  there  was 
preaching  about  every  third  Sunday.  Later  Mr.  Milton  Thompson  had  built 
a  frame  store  building  on  lot  3,  southeast  section,  where  the  blacksmith  and 
garage  of  P.  S.  Wise  is  located.  About  the  year  i860  Mr.  Thompson  sold  this 
building  to  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Class  for  a  church  and  went  to  the  east 
part  of  the  state.  In  this  building  which  was  transformed  into  a  meeting 
house,  church  was  held  until  1874  when  they  sold  the  building  to  the  Old  Style 
Presbyterians  and  built  a  church  on  lots  3  and  4,  northwest  section.  The  lots 
and  building  are  now  owned  by  the  St.  Charles  Park  Association.  In  the  year 
1905,  under  the  charge  of  Rev.  M.  J.  Rarick,  the  present  church  was  built  at  a 
cost  of  about  five  thousand  dollars. 


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262  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

The  pastors  who  have  served  the  St.  Charles  Church  since  its  organization 
are  as  follows:  John  W.  Anderson,  1858-59;  Enoch  Wood,  i860;  Sam  Jones, 
1861-62;  J.  Knotts,  1863-64;  John  Hestwood,  1865-66;  Michael  Sheets,  1867; 
transferred  to  Winterset  Circuit,  1868 — with  John  Hestwood,  1868-69;  William 
Abraham,  1870;  Israel  Mershon,  1871-72;  Frank  A.  Goodrich,  1873;  James  S. 
Morrow,  1874;  Arthur  Badley,  1875;  supplied  by  John  Branston,  1876;  Arthur 
Badley,  1877-78;  Benjamin  Brownfield  Kennedy,  1879;  Charles  W.  Stuart,  1880; 
Benjamin  F.  Shetterly,  1881 ;  Adam  Kern,  1882;  George  W.  Patterson,  1883- 
84;  supplied  by  Alpheus  Hunt,  who  held  a  wonderful  revival,  1885;  Benj.  F. 
Shetterly,  first  quarter,  got  into  trouble;  W.  Capps  Smith  supplied,  1886;  Francis 
Plumb,  1887;  Simon  W.  Lauck,  1888;  supplied  by  W.  W.  Williams,  1889-90-91- 
92-93;  Frank  W.  Ewan,  1894-95-96;  Andrew  Hancox,  1897-98-99;  George  W. 
Palmer,  1900-01 ;  William  Christie  Smith,  1902 ;  Monroe  J;  Rarick,  1903-04-05 ; 
William  Mercer,  1906-07;  Augustine  W.  Armstrong,  1908;  Albert  Edward 
George,  1909-10;  John  A.  Evans  Cunningham,  191 1 ;  supplied  by  W.  W.  Williams, 
1912-13;  W.  A.  Piper,  1914. 

The  present  membership  is  about  two  hundred.  Hanley  is  connected  with  St. 
Charles  and  has  services  on  Sunday  afternoons. 

THE   ST.    CHARLES    PARK    AND    IMPROVEMENT    ASSOCIATION 

The  above  association  was  organized  July,  1905,  and  incorporated  in  August, 
1905,  by  the  following  incorporators:  Henry  Imes,  J.  N.  Smith,  D.  B.  Sankey, 
G.  L.  Archer,  Johnston  &  Stayton,  L.  W.  Lynch,  S.  N.  Sayre,  P.  S.  Wise,  S.  S. 
Morgan,  T.  I.  Killam,  Dr.  T.  Roberts,  Francis  Power,  Geo.  A.  Zimbelman, 
J.  F.  Johnston,  E.  E.  Williams,  H.  A.  Mueller,  Henry  Hayden,  S.  S.  Switzer, 
H.  P.  Anderson,  E.  K.  Anderson,  J.  L.  Fleming,  James  McCloskey,  O.  M.  Horton 
and  Collins  &  Sloan.  The  purpose  of  the  organization  was  to  buy  the  old  M. 
E.  Church  lots  in  order  to  preserve  the  grove  in  which  old  settlers  and  other 
meetings  of  a  public  nature  might  be  held.  Also  to  have  a  hall  for  public  meetings 
and  entertainments.  The  first  officers  chosen,  who  served  during  1905,  were  as 
follows:  President,  S.  N.  Sayre;  vice  president,  S.  S.  Switzer;  secretary,  Henry 
Hayden;  treasurer,  J.  F.  Johnston;  diectors,  H.  P.  Anderson,  L.  A.  Collins,  J. 
N.  Smith,' F.  Power  and  E.  E.  Williams.  President,  1906:  S.  N.  Sayre;  Dr.  T. 
Roberts  served  as  president,  1907-08-09-10-11 ;  W.  A.  Tris,  1912-13;  J.  L. 
Stayton,  1914;  O.  M.  Horton,  191 5.  Secretary  Henry  Hayden  died  Aug.,  1905; 
H.  A.  Mueller  was  chosen  to  fill  the  vacancy  and  held  the  position  from  that  time 
to  date.  J.  F.  Johnston  has  been  treasurer  since  organization.  Directors  for 
191 5  are:  H.  P.  Anderson,  E.  E.  Williams,  C.  C.  Guilliams,  J.  L.  Stayton,  and 
J.  N.  Smith.    H.  A.  Mueller,  secretary;  vice  president,  T.  I.  Killam. 

OLD   settlers'   ASSOCIATION    OF    MADISON   AND   WARREN    COUNTIES 

The  first  records  of  the  society  were  lost,  but  as  near  as  it  can  be  recalled  by 
Lewis  Allen  and  others,  the  first  *^01d  Settlers"  meeting  was  held  in  the  Joel 
Clanton  grove,  just  west  of  the  Joel  Clanton  homestead,  about  the  year  of 
August,  1885.  It  was  mostly  through  the  energy  and  persuasion  of  Dr.  William 
Anderson,  a  pioneer  physician,  that  the  first  meeting  was  held,  and  the  associa- 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  263 

tion  organized.  The  first  officers  chosen  were :  President,  John  Byars ;  secretary, 
Dr.  William  Anderson;  John  Hartman  and  Lewis  Allen,  finance  committee. 
Annual  reunions  have  been  held  since  that  time  and  with  one  or  two  exceptions, 
when  it  was  held  at  Patterson,  the  meetings  have  been  held  in  the  vicinity  or 
within  the  Town  of  St.  Charles,  where  the  society  was  organized.  Reunions 
are  usually  held  during  the  month  of  August.  Many  look  forward  to  this  day 
as  a  day  of  meeting  old  friends  and  neighbors,  and  there  congregate  annually 
in  the  grove  north  of  the  Opera  House,  now  owned  by  the  Park  Association, 
from  one  to  three  thousand  people.  Those  who  have  been  chosen  president 
since  1902  are  as  follows:  C.  W.  Faust,  Dr.  f.  Roberts,  Lewis  Kimer,  R.  D. 
Minard,  H.  P.  Anderson,  Jas.  A.  Rhyno,  W.  F.  Law  and  Dr.  J.  W.  Bishop. 
Secretaries:  M.  I.  Bean,  C.  W.  Minard  and  E.  K.  Anderson.  Officers  for  191 5 
are  as  follows:  President:  James  McCloskey;  ist  vice  president,  Samuel  Lee; 
2nd  vice  president,  Lewis  Allen;  secretary,  Dr.  E.  K.  Anderson;  treasurer,  J. 
F.  Johnston ;  chaplain,  Rev.  W.  W.  Williams ;  executive  committee,  H.  A.  Muel- 
ler, C.  C.  Guilliams  and  J.  L.  Stayton. 

JOHN    MILLER    POST,    NO.    1 58,    G.    A.    R. 

John  Miller  Post,  No.  158,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  was  organized  at 
St.  Charles  and  received  its  charter  March  30,  1883.  The  name  assumed  for 
the  society  was  that  of  a  young  hero,  John  Miller,  whose  home  was  on  the 
north  side  of  town  near  the  railroad.  He  was  orderly  sergeant  of  Company  H, 
Twenty-third  Iowa  Infantry,  and  gave  up  his  life  for  his  country  at  Black  River 
Bridge,  in  one  of  the  southern  states.  Sergeant  Miller's  body  was  brought  home 
and  given  the  funeral  rites  of  a  brave  soldier.  This  was  the  first  burial  of 
a  war  hero  at  St.  Charles. 

The  names  of  the  organizing  members  of  Miller  Post  follow:  George  W. 
Armstrong,  J.  Mc.  Armstrong,  M.  I.  Bean,  Edward  Bell,  William  B.  Hodges, 
Lewis  Kimer,  S.  A.  Lyon,  Samuel  P.  Reed,  Thomas  Roberts,  James  H.  Stiffler, 
Silas  Sheeley,  John  Skinner,  E.  C.  Shigley,  G.  W.  Smith,  Jefferson  Wheat,  Wil- 
lia^n  Wallace,  Thomas  Wilson,  James  Waddell,  Nathaniel  Winship,  James  Young. 
The  first  officers  were :  M.  I.  Bean,  P.  C. ;  Lewis  Kimer,  S.  V.  C. ;  Jefferson 
Wheat,  J.  V.  C. ;  William  B.  Hodges,  adjt. ;  Thomas  Roberts,  Q.  M.;  James 
H.  Stiffler,  surgeon ;  S.  P.  Reed,  chaplain ;  E.  Faust,  O.  D. ;  John  Lathrum,  O.  G. ; 
George  W.  Armstrong,  S.  M. ;  P.  V.  Carpenter,  Q.  M.  S. 

Post  comamnders  from  the  organization  to  the  present  time:  M.  I.  Bean, 
S.  S.  King,  Daniel  Matson,  W.  B.  Hodges,  J.  M.  Brown,  James  H.  Stiffler,  S.  R. 
Leonard,  Thomas  Roberts,  S.  W.  Lee,  A.  O.  Scott,  J.  M.  Brown,  M.  I.  Bean, 
Adam  Siedel,  J.  W.  Carman,  O.  M.  Horton,  William  Harding,  Fred  Johnston, 
J.  W.  Carman,  W.  L.  Allen,  Fred  Johnston. 

John  Miller  Woman's  Relief  Corps,  No.  242,  was  instituted  January  14, 
1892.  The  charter  members  were:  Mrs.  Jennie  Browne,  Persis  Smith,  Emily 
Stiffler,  Anna  C.  Anderson,  Sarah  E.  Leonard,  Carrie  M.  Martin,  Anna  Hodges, 
Florence  Jeffries,  Margaret  Horton,  Grace  Roberts,  Casander  Burger,  Eliza 
Hoff,  Hannah  Woods,  R.  Jane  Stiffler,  Margaret  Armstrong,  Elizabeth  E.  Mack, 
Catharine  Bean,  Florence  Wood,  Elinor  Lee,  Etta  J.  Armstrong,  Catharine  W. 
Minard,  Louisa  Johnston,  Hattie  Lawhead,  Addie  Carman,  Barbara  Foster  and 
Isabell  Faust. 


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264  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

MODEL   LODGE,    NO.    315,    A.    F.    &    A.    M. 

Model  Lodge,  No.  315,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.  was  organized  and  sent  in  its  application 
for  a  dispensation  March  25,  1872.  The  application  was  signed  by  W.  H.  Hol- 
linshed  and  R.  D.  Minard.  W.  H.  Hollinshed  was  recommended  for  master, 
William  Anderson,  senior  warden,  and  E.  Frank,  junior  warden.  Besides  these 
the  application  was  signed  by  George  lA,  Cheek,  Elijah  Kinnaird,  W.  E.  Mack, 
Allen  Lawhead,  Sr.,  H.  G.  Phillips,  Samuel  Wallace  and  J.  A.  Myers. 

The  application  was  granted  and  dispensation  issued  April  8,  1872.  The 
new  lodge  held  its  first  meeting  on  April  16,  when  the  following  officers  were 
appointed:  R.  D.  Minard,  secretary;  W.  E.  Mack,  treasurer;  S.  M.  Wallace, 
S.  D. ;  G.  A.  Myers,  J.  D. ;  G.  H.^  Cheek,  tyler. 

The  first  lodge  hall  was  on  the  comer  west  from  Johnston's  Bank,  where 
it  remained  until  the  lodge  built  the  second  story  of  a  frame  business  building. 
Here  it  remained  until  the  property  was  destroyed  by  fire  in  1898.  After  the 
fire  a  hall  was  rented  and  occupied  over  the  comer  drug  store  until  the  Johnston 
Bank  Building  was  erected,  when  the  lodge  built  and  fumished  the  second 
story,  in  1900. 

Model  Chapter  Order  Eastern  Star  was  formed  at  a  meeting  held  in  Ma- 
sonic Hall,  in  January,  1895,  ^^  which  time  a  petition  for  a  dispensation  was 
signed  by  Mrs.  L.  C.  Hartman,  Mrs.  Sarah  E.  Leonard,  Mrs.  Maggie  Horton, 
Mrs.  Lida  Johnston,  Mrs.  Susanna  C.  Bell,  Mrs.  Rebecca  A.  Minard,  Mrs. 
Jennie  J.  Switzer,  O.  M.  Horton,  S.  R.  Leonard,  J.  F.  Johnston,  John  Hartman, 
E.  P.  Bell,  Sr.,  L.  C.  Minard,  S.  S.  Switzer,  H.  C.  Minard  and  R.  D.  Minard. 
The  following  officers  were  elected :  Mrs.  Susanna  C.  Bell,  W.  M. ;  R.  D.  Minard, 
W.  P. ;  Mrs.  Sarah  E.  Leonard,  A.  M. ;  Mrs.  Rebecca  A.  Minard,  secretary ;  Mrs. 
Jennie  Switzer,  treasurer. 

January  15,  1894,  dispensation  was  granted,  and  on  Febmary  25,  1895,  Model 
Chapter  received  its  charter.  The  charter  officials  were  as  follows:  R.  D. 
Minard,  W.  P. ;  Susanna  C.  Bell,  W.  M. ;  Sarah  Leonard,  A.  M. ;  H.  C.  Minard, 
secretary-treasurer;  Maggie  Horton,  cond. ;  Rebecca  A.  Minard,  A.  C. ;  Louisa 
Johnston,  Adah;  Jennie  Switzer,  Ruth;  Lura  Sayre,  Esther;  A.  M.  Horton, 
warder;  E.  P.  Bell,  S. 

St.  Charles  Lodge,  No.  416,  L  O.  O.  F.,  was  organized  in  St.  Charles  and 
a  charter  granted  in  October,  1880.  The  charter  members  were:  C.  W.  Thomp- 
son, Dr.  Thomas  Roberts,  H.  Burger,  T.  F.  Hoff  and  C.  W.  Hale. 

The  Odd  Fellows  first  met  in  the  Masonic  Hall,  where  the  St.  Charles  Sav- 
ings Bank  stands.  This  building  burned  in  1898.  A  hall  was  then  purchased  over 
the  Jennings  drug  store,  which  burned  December  23,  191 1.  In  the  following 
year  the  order  built  a  new  brick  hall  on  the  same  site.  The  lodge  is  in  a  flourish- 
ing condition. 

Madison  Encampment,  No.  146,  L  O.  O.  F.,  was  granted  a  charter  in  October, 
1903.  The  charter  members  were:  George  W.  Hubbell,  Dr.  E.  K.  Anderson, 
O.  M.  Horton,  J.  G.  Carter  and  George  Mackrill. 

Rebekah  Lodge,  No.  469,  at  St.  Charles,  was  instituted*  in  October,  1899, 
with  twenty-eight  charter  members. 

Camp  No.  2890,  Modem  Woodmen  of  America  received  its  charter  April 
13,  1895,  and  had  the  following  members  at  that  time:   John  W.  Baker,  W.  A. 


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CHRISTIAN  CHURCH,  ST.  CHARLES 
Erected  about  1890 


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UNITED  PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH,  ST.  CHARLES 
Built  in  1868 


METHODIST  EPISCOPAL  CHURCH,  ST.  CHARLES 
Erected  in  1905 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  '  265 

Barnes,  E.  Bell,  M.  W.  Browne,  J.  L.  Davey,  H.  L.  Martin,  J.  G.  Martin,  R.  W. 
Martin,  J.  E.  Montgomery,  L.  M.  Ralston,  George  B.  M.  Robinette,  S.  N.  Sayre. 
The  first  officials  were:  William  A.  Barnes,  consul;  J.  G.  Martin,  clerk;  L.  M. 
Ralston,  banker. 

St.  Charles  Homestead,  No.  200,  Brotherhood  of  American  Yeomen,  was  in- 
stituted December  15,  1898,  with  the  following  officers:  H.  F.,  G.  L.  Archer; 
M.  of  C,  W.  F.  Lurr;  M.  of  A.,  G.  W.  Armstrong;  W.  P.,  Dr.  S.  N.  Sayre;  C, 
J.  N.  Smith;  O.,  H.  L.  Martin;  W.,  W.  O.  Phillips;  S.,  G.  B.  Chadd;  G.,  U.  F. 
Templeton;  L.  W.*,  Mrs.  Lura  Sayre;  L.  R.,  Mrs.  Mary  F.  Law;  organist,  Mrs. 
Hattie  Archer. 

RECOLLECTIONS    OF    SAMUEL    FIFE 

David  and  Amos  Fife,  being  my  elder  brothers,  and  myself  left  our  homes 
in  the  State  of  Ohio,  September  2,  1849,  coming  by  steamer  down  the  Ohio  and 
up  the  Mississippi  to  Keokuk,  where  we  worked  until  December  ist.  David  and 
I  then  started  afoot  to  Madison  County,  shipping  our  belongings  by  freight  team 
to  Des  Moines.  At  length  we  arrived  at  Des  Moines  and  the  next  day,  about 
4  P.  M.,  arrived  at  Thomas  Cason's,  hungry  and  tired.  Mrs.  Cason  gave  us 
our  fill  of  com  bread  and  buttermilk  and  it  was  the  best  meal  I  ever  ate,  so  it 
seemed.  We  pushed  on  to  Isaac  Smith's,  where  Amos  Fife  later  lived,  and 
stayed  all  (Saturday)  night.  The  log  house  was  16  by  24  feet,  and  with  their 
six  or  seven  children,  the  Smiths  slept  in  one  room.  They  had  good  beds.  The 
bedsteads  were  fastened  to  the  walls. 

Next  day  we  went  to  church  at  George  Smith's,  the  first  house  west  of 
Isaac  Smith's.     Thomas  Cason  (New  Light  clergyman)   preached. 

David  Fife  "took  a  claim"  and  we  built  a  shanty  on  the  north  side  of  Clanton, 
which  was  later  owned  by  R.  M.  Young,  where  we  both  lived  all  winter,  working 
at  making  rails. 

Thomas  Cason  came  here  in  1847  and  bought  out  Hiram  Hurst.  He  was  a 
very  enthusiastic  Christian  and  soon  was  holding  regular  religious  services  at 
his  home,  at  George  Smith's  and  sometimes  at  other  homes  until  the  Clanton 
schoolhouse  was  built  in  the  fall  of  1850.  In  those  days  ministers  did  not  preach 
for  the  money  there  was  in  it  but  for  the  good  they  might  do.  The  families 
composing  his  congregation  or  church  were:  Thomas  Cason  (eight  or  nine  of 
them),  Jacob  Kincannon  and  family,  George  Smith  and  family,  Isaac  Clanton 
and  family,  Rachel  Clanton,  William  Hale  and  family  and  David  Bishop  and 
family. 

The  settlers  here  when  I  came  were :  Joel  M.  Clanton,  Isaac  Clanton,  Charles 
Clanton,  Caleb  Clark,  Isaac  Smith,  George  Smith,  David  Simmerman,  Nathan 
Viney  (on  later  Queen  place),  Norval  S.  Allcock,  William  Allcock,  Pleasant 
Rollins  (1847),  David  Worley,  David  Bishop,  Bud  Whited,  Doc.  Whited,  James 
Fidler,  William  Hale,  William  Nunn  (single  man)  and  William  Stagerwalt. 

During  the  winter  of  1850-51  there  was  a  religious  revival  and  William  Nunn 
was  immersed  in  Clanton  Creek.  Thomas  Wilkinson  at  the  time  suggested  that 
the  minister  had  better  put  him  under  again,  as  it  was  current  gossip  that  he 
was  too  intimate  with  a  certain  neighbor's  wife.  During  that  spring,  while 
William  Hale  was  away  all  day  splitting  rails  near  (now)  Hanley,  William  Nunn 
and  Mrs.  Hale  loaded  up  everything,  even  $100  in  gold  and  Hale's  land  warrant. 


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266  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

and  left  for  Missouri.  Hale  found  his  house  and  premises  stripped  of  contents 
when  he  returned  home  that  evening.  Next  day,  being  April  election  at  Viney's 
(west  of  Queen's),  Hale  asked  for  help  to  pursue  the  parties  and  recover  his 
wife  and  property.  No  one  would  go,  so  he  walked  to  Marion  County,  where 
he  got  a  wagon  and  team,  then  took  after  the  miserable  couple,  and  overhauled 
them  in  Missouri.  He  brought  Nunn  back,  turned  him  over  to  the  county  author- 
ities, who  held  him  at  Winterset  for  trial,  but  no  one  appearing  against  him  he 
was  released.  Hale  took  his  family,  before  court  convened,  to  near  Council 
Bluffs  and  the  next  heard  of  him  was  early  in  the  fall  of  1854,  when  I  met  him 
on  Cox's  hill,  between  Winterset  and  Middle  River.  He  and  his  father  were 
on  horseback  going  east. 

I  have  omitted  Hiram  Hurst  since  he  first  settled  in  now  Crawford  Township, 
on  what  later  became  known  as  Cason  place.  This  claim  he  sold  to  Thomas 
Cason  in  1847.  Later  he  lived  on  the  old  Say  re  place,  on  sections  20  and  29, 
South  Township,  east  of  Elm  Grove  church.  I  worked  for  him  on  May  7,  1851, 
and  hauled  rails  to  his  Scott  Township  farm.  Some  of  the  early  settlers  tried 
to  make  out  that  Hurst  was  a  criminal;  that  he  had  stolen  hogs  in  Missouri. 
Others  said  he  had  burned  a  building  and  had  to  leave  Missouri.  My  under- 
standing was  that  he  got  into  an  altercation  with  a  man  in  Missouri  and  nearly 
killed  him.  While  here  he  was  a  very  quiet  man,  had  good  judgment  and  was 
of  a  fine  family.  His  family  here  was  composed  of  a  wife  and  four  little  boys. 
I  have  worked  for  him  several  times  and  have  always  found  him  a  gentleman 
and  his  wife  a  perfect  lady.    He  sold  out  and  went  to  Nebraska. 

Norval  S.  Allcock  came  to  Madison  County  in  1847,  became  quite  a  noted 
man  in  those  early  days  and  prominent  in  the  early  history  of  this  community. 
He  took  part  in  politics,  being  a  member  of  the  second  County  Commissioners' 
Court.  He  was  very  prominent  as  a  Methodist  exhorter  and  class  leader.  Mr. 
Allcock  bought  his  claim  of  Gifford  Lee,  where  Hanley  was  laid  out,  and  lived 
there  until  the  fall  of  1851,  when  he  sold  to  Abraham  Black  and  moved  to  the 
Hurst  place,  east  of  Elm  Grove.  Allcock's  home  was  often  used  for  church 
services  and  revivals.  It  always  was  the  home  of  the  circuit  rider.  When 
ninety  years  old  Mr.  Allcock  walked  two  miles  to  church,  and  was  highly  com- 
plimented by  Reverend  Wickersham  for  his  zeal  and  great  services  in  the  cause 
of  Methodism  in  South  Township.  A  monument  should  be  erected  to  his  memory. 
Elm  Grove  Church  was  the  direct  result  of  his  early  meetings. 

The  three  Clanton  brothers  and  Caleb  Clark  were  the  first  settlers  of  South 
Township.  They  left  Buchanan  County,  Missouri,  in  April,  1846,  bound  for 
Fort  Des  Moines,  following  the  dragoon  track  that  extended  from  Fort  Des 
Moines  to  Fort  Leavenworth.  It  was  then  well  beaten.  Clantons  and  Clark 
went  to  Fort  Des  Moines  and  not  being  pleased  with  the  land  over  there,  turned 
back,  bearing  southwest,  recrossing  North  River  at  Linn  Grove,  and  on  the  divide 
went  into  camp.  From  there  the  men  of  the  party  went  out  prospecting  for 
claims,  going  southwesterly,  crossed  the  county  line  of  Warren  and  Madison 
into  Crawford  Township.  They  crossed  Middle  River  near  Hurst's  claim  and 
seeing  a  cabin  went  to  it  and  found  Hurst  asleep.  At  first  he  was  frightened 
but  soon  learned  the  object  of  his  visitors  and  gave  them  much  assistance  in 
locating  their  claims  on  what  was  afterwards  known  as  Clanton's  Grove.  They 
staked  their  claims  May  3,  1846. 


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AMOS  FIFE 

Came  to  South  Township,  Mad  it  on 
County,  in  1849.  Married  Lucy  Ann 
Smith  in  ]8ol.  Was  a  veteran  of 
the  Mexican  war,  having^  enlisted  in 
an  Ohio  regiment.  Died  in  St. 
Charles,  April  28,  1908.  His  widbw 
died  March  15,  1915,  at  her  home 
in  St.  Charles. 


SAMUEL  FIFE 

Came  to  Madison  County  in  1849. 
Member  of  Company  F,  Thirty-ninth 
Iowa  Infantry.  Is  still  living  in  St. 
Cliarles,  Iowa. 


WILLIAM  SCHOEN 

Came  to  America  in  1851  and  to 
Madison  County  in  1852.  Was  the 
first  German  to  come  to  Madison 
County  and  the  first  of  a  German 
settlement  in  Jefferson  Township. 
Died  May  6,  1910. 

*  See  history  of  German  settlement. 


H.  W.  HARDY 

Served  Madison  County  as  super- 
intendent of  schools  for  thirteen 
years  in  three  different  periods, 
being  elected  the  first  time  in  1861. 
Also  taught  school  in  Madison  County 
for  over  a  quarter  of  a  century  and 
was  more  directly  and  for  a  lonjrer 
time  identified  with  the  schools  of 
the  county  than  any  other  person. 
He  diet  I  a  few  years  ago  in  Winterset. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  267 

In  the  spring  of  1850  many  settlers  came  to  South  Township.  J.  C.  Johnston 
and  son  J.  M.  located  south  of  Jeff  Rhyno's  place,  across  Oanton.  J.  M.  Johnston 
lived  east  of  the  creek. 

Jeff  Rhyno  came  in  1850  and  William  Rhyno  settled  near  Peru.  Hogan 
Queen's  father  settled  here  in  1850,  buying  out  Nathan  Viney,  who  had  settled 
there  in  1848. 

Jesse  Young  came  in  1849.  He  first  lived  where  Caleb  Clark  lived  and 
built  a  log  house  where  George  J.  Carter  now  lives — one  of  the  original  owners 
of   St.   Charles. 

In  1850  Georgfe  Hartman  and  David  Downs  came  from  Hendricks  County, 
Indiana.  Hartman  bought  the  land  owned  by  Caleb  Clark  and  occupied  the 
previous  year  by  Jesse  Young.    Downs  lived  in  the  same  yard  for  four  years. 

Hartman  was  well  to  do.  He  brought  his  money  in  a  chest  18  by  10  by  10 
inches — hooped  strongly  with  iron  bands,  and  hauled  it  out  with  him  in  the 
family  wagon.  The  chest  contained  $4,000,  all  in  silver.  He  first  opened  it  at 
Indianola.  Hartman  was  an  honest,  charitable  man  and  feared  no  robbery  of 
his  money.  Hartman  and  Downs  hired  the  writer  to  drive  an  ox  team  to  and 
from  Burlington  in  August,  1851,  to  haul  the  irons  for  the  first  sawmill  to  be 
erected  in  South  Township.  George  Hartman  went  along.  We  were  gone  twenty 
days  and  we  labored  all  that  fall  and  winter  in  putting  up  the  mill.  In  December, 
Stephen  Divilbliss,  of  Adel,  was  hired  as  millwright.  He  brought  five  men  along 
to  do  the  framing  and  build  the  mill  wheel,  but  did  not  finish  his  work  until 
1852.  The  mill  began  operations  as  soon  as  there  was  a  sufficient  water  supply 
that  fall.  The  mill  and  dam  were  well  built  and  cost  heavily.  The  dam  was 
frame  and  all  the  lumber  was  hauled  from  Compton's,  south  of  Winterset. 
Hartman  and  Downs  ran  the  mill  until  about  1862  or  1863  and  then  sold  to  Dr. 
Anderson,  who  at  once  rebuilt  it. 

I  worked  for  Joel  Clanton  from  a  period  in  1850  to  August,  1851,  and  then 
lived  with  Hartman  until  August,  1855. 

A  town  was  laid  out  before  St.  Charles,  about  one-fourth  of  a  mile  northeast 
of  that  place,  on  sections  24  -75-26.  It  was  named  Fairview.  Samuel 
Comstock  laid  it  out  in  the  fall  of  1850  and  put  up  a  store  building  out  of  logs 
16  by  24  feet.  Simmons  Rutty  was  the  surveyor.  Comstock  went  to  Oskaloosa 
that  fall  and  laid  in  a  stock  of  goods  and  stored  them  at  Joel  Clanton's  until 
his  building  was  ready.  The  goods  were  sold  at  Clanton's  and  I  was  clerk  during 
that  time.  Comstock  had  bought  the  goods  on  time  and  as  he  never  finished 
his  store  room,  the  next  spring  his  creditors  took  the  goods  back  to  Oskaloosa 
and  the  history  of  the  Town  of  Fairview  was  ended.  Comstock  had  entered 
a  lot  of  land  through  Henn-Williams  &  Company,  of  Fairfield.  Unable  to  meet 
the  payments,  he  lost  everything.  Hartman  bought  the  land  of  Henn-Williams 
&  Company  and  St.  Charles  succeeded  as  a  trading  point.  It  was  located  a  little 
southwest. 

The  first  settler  in  St.  Charles  was  John  Byers.  He  bought  the  unfinished 
home  vacated  by  Comstock  in  Fairview  and  moved  it  on  lot  7  in  St.  Charles. 
The  lot  was  given  hin^  as  a  premium  for  being  the*  first  man  to  settle  in  the 
town.     This  was  in  the  fall  of  1852. 

Milton  R.  Thompson  put  in  the  first  stock  of  goods  in  the  spring  of  1853 
and  ran  a  general  store.    One  Allison  in  the  fall  of  1853  put  in  the  second  store. 


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268  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Before  this,  trading  was  done  at  Winterset,  Indianola  or  Des  Moines.  In  1855 
Allison  sold  his  store,  which  was  in  a  log  buijding  on  lot  i,  to  J.  M.  Browne  and 
William  McCreery. 

The  third  store — a  log  house — was  built  on  lot  5,  where  the  Johnston  Bank 
now  stands,  by  a  Mr.  Burnsides  in  the  fall  of  1854,  and  a  short  time  later  he 
traded  the  store  to  David  Fife,  who  in  1855  moved  the  stock  to  Afton,  putting 
up  the  first  store  in  that  new  town.  J.  M.  Browne  was  the  manager  of  this 
store  until  1875  ^^  later. 

At  the  April  election  of  1852  David  Dbwns  was  elected  justice  of  the  peace 
of  South  Township,  and  Samuel  Fife,  constable.  William  H.  Compton  had  been 
justice  of  the  peace  before  Downs,  but  his  constable  was  Harbert  in  (now)  Scott 
Township. 

The  first  marriage  solemnized  in  St.  Charles  was  in  February,  1854.  A  Mr. 
Simmons  was  married  to  Miss  Marshall,  a  sister-in-law  of  Milton  R.  Thompson, 
at  whose  house  the  wedding  occurred.  Justice  David  Fife  performed  the  cere- 
mony. I  was  one  of  the  guests  and  thus  witnessed  the  first  marriage  in  the  Town 
of  St.  Charles.  Simmons  came  here  from  near  Burlington  to  secure  his  bride 
and  both  returned  to  his  home  the  next  day  after  the  ceremony  by  wagon. 
No  record  of  this  marriage  appears  in  Madison  County. 

In  the  spring  of  1853  ^^e  first  bridge  for  wagons^was  built  across  the  Clanton, 
a  few  rods  below  the  Hartman  sawmill.  During  this  spring  thousands  of  emi- 
grants passed  through  this  part  of  the  county  to  California.  The  east  and  west 
roads  were  lined  with  teams.  On  this  occasion  the  Clanton  was  not  fordable 
and  hundreds  of  teams  had  collected  on  the  bottom  waiting  to  cross.  A  genius 
among  their  number,  seing  piles  of  slabs  around  the  mill,  planned  and  built 
a  temporary  bridge.  Trees  of  proper  length  were  cut  for  stringers  and  hauled 
to  the  banks  of  the  stream.  One  end  of  the  log  was  thrown  into  the  water  and 
floated  to  its  place.  Then  men  and  teams  swam  across  and  the  other  end  was 
placed  in  position.  Slabs,  loaned  by  Hartman,  were  laid  on  the  stringers  loosely, 
and  all  crossed  over  safely.  A  half  day  was  spent  in  constructing  this  crude 
bridge  but  it  answered  the  purpose  and  was  used  some  time,  or  until  the  next 
freshet. 

The  exodus  to  California  began  here  in  1849  and  reached  its  maximum  in 
1850,  but  lasted  several  years.  The  early  travelers  followed  up  the  divide  south 
of  Winterset,  without  crossing  Middle  River  at  all. 


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CHAPTER   XXXII 
UNION    TOWNSHIP 

At  the  sitting  of  the  Commissioners'  Court,  on  January  9,  1849,  Union  Town- 
ship, the  first  to  be  named  in  the  county,  was  created  and  its  boundaries  de- 
scribed. The  place  provided  by  the  commissioners  for  holding  the  first  election 
was  at  the  home  of  Leonard  Bowman.  Union  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  Jef- 
ferson, on  the  west  and  east  by  Douglas  and  Crawford,  respectively,  and  on  the 
south  by  Scott. 

This  township  has  many  natural  advantages.  The  surface  is  divided  in 
about  the  proper  proportion  between  rich  prairie  and  heavy  timber  land  and 
was  originally  dotted  with  handsome  groves.  The  North  River  zigzags  across 
the  northern  tier  of  sections,  with  the  exception  of  section  i,  and  the  Middle 
River,  in  its  sinuous  way,  touches  the  southeast  comer  of  the  township,  and 
with  tributaries  of  North  River,  such  as  Cedar  Creek,  furnishes  abundant  water 
and  drainage.  There  is  a  good  supply  of  stone  and  the  Des  Moines  and  Winterset 
branch  of  the  Rock  Island  Railroad  traverses  its  southern  sections.  The  east 
corporation  line  of  Winterset,  or  Center  Township,  occupies  part  of  the  west 
half  of  section  31,  or  in  other  words,  the  southwest  comer  of  the  township. 

Union  Township  attracted  to  its  confines  the  Guye  family,  consisting  of 
Samuel,  his  sons,  James,  George,  Frank  and  Houston,  and  daughters  Mary, 
Elizabeth,  Angeline  and  Maria.  These  people  had  come  to  the  county  on  the 
evening  of  April  28,  1846,  with  the  Clantons,  all  being  from  Buchanan  County, 
Missouri.  On  the  3d  day  of  May,  they  staked  out  claims  on  section  7,  on  the 
south  bank  of  North  River.  This  family  became  closely  associated  with  the 
early  history  of  the  county,  and  George  Guye,  who  lived  on  the  old  homestead 
for  over  fifty  years,  is  now  and  has  been  for  several  years  past  a  resident  of 
Winterset. 

Lemuel  Thombrugh  was  a  native  of  Missouri  and  migrated  to  Madison 
County  in  May,  1846,  settling  in  the  Guye  neighborhood,  where  he  built  a  cabin 
on  land  later  owned  by  William  Gentry  and  still  later  by  George  Homback. 
Thornbrugh  returned  to  Missouri  in  the  fall  of  that  year  and  brought  back 
with  him  his  family.  The  Thombmghs  all  lived  on  LemueFs  claim  on  the  Cedar 
until  the  fall  of  1849,  when  Lemuel  sold  out  and  moved  away.  James  left  the 
Cedar  in  the  spring  of  1847  ^"d  went  south  on  Middle  River.  Here  he  took 
up  another  claim  on  the  south  side  of  the  river  in  the  timber,  where  he  grubbed 
a  patch  of  land  and  with  one  yoke  of  oxen  put  out  a  small  crop.  He  built  a 
cabin,  which  was  burned  down  in  May,  1861. 

James  Fidler,  with  his  wife  and  unmarried  children,  also  came  in  September, 
1846,  with  Thornbrughs,  James  Thornbrugh  being  his  son-in-law,  with  whom 
Fidler  lived  until  his  death  a  month  later.     He  had  taken  a  claim  and  built  a 

269 


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270  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

cabin  in  the  edge  of  the  timber  on  section  29.  His  was  the  first  death  in  Union 
Township. 

Vincent  Brown  left  his  home  in  Buchanan  County,  Missouri,  in  1847,  ^^^ 
with  his  family  settled  on  section  12.  His  brother  Hezekiah  and  another  brother, 
James,  and  his  family,  came  to  Madison  County  about  the  same  time.  James 
settled  in  Jefferson  Township,  while  Hezekiah  made  his  home  at  the  above 
place,  but  went  to  Kansas  a  short  time  before  the  war. 

John  R.  Beedle  immigrated  from  Northwestern  Missouri  to  Madison  County 
in  June,  1846,  and  settled  a  quarter  of  a  mile  northwest  of  the  present  Green- 
wood schoolhouse  in  this  township,  on  section  4.  That  fall  he  moved  to  the 
northeast  quarter  of  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  11,  and  lived  there  until 
his  death  several  years  ago. 

Philip  M.  Boyles  came  to  the  county  in  the  summer  of  1846  and  located  in 
Union  Township.  His  first  habitation  was  a  structure  built  of  poles,  which  were 
fastened  together  with  wooden  pins  and  covered  with  basswood  bark.  For  the 
first  few  years  he  experienced  all  the  trials  and  privations  of  a  pioneer,  at  one 
time  walking  to  Saylorville,  in  Polk  County,  where  he  worked  for  two  weeks 
at  fifty  cents  a  day  in  order  to  procure  money  with  which  to  buy  seed  com. 
He  was  too  poor  to  own  a  horse.  It  is  said  that  Mr.  Boyles  hauled  the  first 
merchandise  brought  to  Winterset,  bringing  the  goods  from  Keokuk  for  A.  D. 
Jones.  He  was  the  first  clerk  of  the  County  Commissioners'  Court  and  took 
a  very  active  part  in  the  organization  of  the  county.  Mr.  Boyles  became  quite 
a  large  landowner  and  for  many  years  prior  to  his  death  was  a  resident  of  Win- 
terset, where  he  engaged  in  the  live  stock  business.  A  son,  M.  Boyles,  was  bom 
on  the  Union  Township  farm  in  1853. 

William  Gentry,  with  his  family,  migrated  from  Indiana  to  Madison  County 
in  1847,  ^"d  located  on  section  30.  He  was  one  of  the  three  members  of  the 
first  board  of  county  commissioners.  His  sons,  F.  M.  Gentry  and  W.  W.  Gentry, 
were  of  the  family  who  came  with  him. 

John  Butler  and  John  Evans  were  settlers  in  the  township  as  early  as  May 
10,  1846.    A  day  or  so  later  came  Irvin  Baum. 

Leonard  Bowman  was  one  of  the  settlers  in  this  township  of  1847,  coming 
that  year  from  De  Kalb  County,  Missouri.  Alfred  Rice,  of  the  same  place,  was 
also  a  settler  of  1847. 

David  Cracraft  migrated  from  Buchanan  County,  Missouri,  in  1847.  He 
located  on  what  is  now  known  as  the  Withrow  farm,  and  lies  buried  on  the 
Brock  way  place. 

Major  Farris  was  the  first  one  of  that  name  in  the  township,  coming  in 
the  spring  of  1849  with  his  wife,  Minerva,  and  child,  Sarah  Jane.  He  began  the 
improvement  of  what  afterwards  became  his  father's  place  on  the  Elm,  the 
southwest  quarter  of  section  11,  but  little  of  the  land  was  broken  that  year.  In 
March  of  the  next  spring,  while  sugar  making  north  on  the  Beedle  place,  he 
took  a  severe  cold  and  died  of  pneumonia.  Dr.  J.  H.  GaflF  attended  him.  His 
was  the  first  burial  in  the  old  Farris  graveyard. 

About  September  i,  1849,  Charles  Farris,  wife  and  daughter,  Nancy  Jane, 
arrived  here  and  lived  in  a  tent  with  the  Beedles  and  Major  Farris.  He  spent 
part  of  the  early  summer  in  improving  a  tract  of  ground,  then  put  up  a  cabin. 
Charles  helped  build  the  Major  Farris  double  hewed  log  house  that  stood  on 


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EDWIN  R.  GUIBERSON 

Born  in  New  Jersey  in  1807  and  mi- 
grated to  Holmes  County,  Ohio.  Served 
a  term  in  the  Ohio  Legislature.  Came 
to  Polk  County  in  1848  and  to  Madison 
County  in  1849.  Was  town  lot  agent 
for  sale  of  lots  in  county  seat,  Winter- 
set,  in  1849.  Elected  justice  of  the  peace 
of  Center  Township  February  23,  1850; 
school  fund  commissioner  April  1,  1850; 
reelected  in  1852.  Elected  Representa- 
tive for  Madison  County  to  the  third 
General  Assembly  August  5,  1850  and 
again  in  1858,  serving  in  the  third  and 
seventh  General  Assemblies.  Defeated 
for  county  .judge  by  Judge  Pitzer  in 
1855.  W^as  elected  judge  in  1859  serv- 
ing one  term.    Died  in  1864. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  271 

the  place  until  in  the  '70s,     In   1850  Charles  bought  the  southwest  forty  on 
section  i,  where  he  built  a  cabin. 

In  April,  1848,  William  Stinson  and  wife,  Margaret,  arrived  in  the  township 
from  Burlingtbn,  Iowa,  and  lived  with  the  John  Evans  family  that  summer, 
when  he  moved  into  a  cabin  which  he  built  on  the  place  later  owned  by  Suydam. 
The  next  summer  he  removed  to  section  36,  just  west  of  Winterset,  and  in  the 
fall  of  that  year  moved  to  what  is  now  known  as  the  Harris  farm.  He  built 
a  one-room  frame  shanty  which  was  afterwards  sold  to  Judge  Pitzer.  That 
same  year  he  built  a  cabin  on  the  Aquilla  Smith  place  and  farmed  the  land 
until  the  Civil  war.  This  cabin  stood  on  a  spot  on  the  knoll  now  occupied  by 
Judge  Lewis'  shop. 

Joseph  K.  Evans  and  family  and  Hannah  Smith,  a  sister  of  Mrs.  Stinson, 
who  afterwards  married  Samuel  W.  Poffinbarger,  came  here  in  1848.  He  built 
his  house  near  the  'ione  elm"  tree,  which  stood  south  of  the  Scydam  place. 

When  the  Stinsons  arrived  here  the  Gentrys  lived  next 'west  of  John  Evans. 
The  next  place  east  was  that  of  the  Boyles,  then  in  their  order  the  Butlers  and 
the  Thombrughs. 

John  Evans  raised  a  little  com  and  cabbage,  but  no  turnips  in  1847.  In  1848 
the  Stinsons  raised  lots  of  onions  and  potatoes,  including  sweet  potatoes,  and 
had  a  big  crop  of  garden  truck. 

Those  who  came  in  1847  were  C.  J.  Casebier,  P.  Casebier,  Joshua  Casebier, 
William  Harmon,  M.  Reeve,  A.  Hart  and  Claiborne  Pitzer.  There  were  also 
Alfred  Q.  and  Henry  Rice,  Basil  Pursel,  James  Brown,  George  Magnus,  John 
B.  Sturman.  Charles  Farris  and  the  Guifcersons  in  1848,  also  William  Butler  and 
the  Staffords. 

Judge  E.  R.  Guiberson  came  the  year  of  1848  and  located  a  claim  in  Union 
Township.  After  Winterset  had  been  decided  upon  as  the  county  seat,  he  en- 
deavored to  have  Winterset  discarded  for  the  position  and  relocate  the  seat  of 
government  on  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  37,  and  adjoining  a  quarter 
section  of  land  he  owned  in  that  community.  In  this  he  was  unsuccessful.  He 
was  one  of  the  leaders  among  the  men  who  built  the  superstructure  of  Madison 
County  and  later  represented  Madison  in  the  State  Legislature.  Israel  Guiberson 
was  a  lawyer  and  held  the  office  of  recorder,  dying  in  an  early  day.  Nathaniel 
removed  from  the  old  home  in  Holmes  County,  Ohio,  in  1850,  and  located 
on  section  17,  and  at  the  same  time  came  W.  B.  Guiberson,  who  married  Miss 
A.  M.  Pursel  in  1866. 

William  Sturman  was  a  native  of  New  Hampshire.  He  removed  to  Ohio  in 
an  early  day  and  from  there  came  to  Madison  County  in  1849  ^^^  settled  on 
section  9,  this  township,  where  he  improved  a  farm  and  became  a  large  land- 
owner. 

J.  S.  McGinnis  left  Indiana  in  1852  and  that  same  year  located  in  Union 
Township.    He  married  Miss  Melvina  M.  Tisdale  in  1863. 

The  Rubys  came  as  early  as  1852.  Eli  Cox  in  1856.  He  entered  120  acres 
of  land  in  section  5,  which  was  the  last  entry  made  in  the  township.  Mr.  Cox 
erected  a  sawmill,  which  was  kept  busy  for  many  years  turning  out  lumber  for 
the  settlers.    He  was  one  of  the  large  landowners  of  the  township. 

Thomas  Garlinger  arrived  in  Crawford  Township  from  Ohio  in  1855.   Moved 


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272  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

later  to  Union  Township  and  accuriiulated  several  hundred  acres  of  land.  He 
was  one  of  the  most  successful  live  stock  dealers  in  the  county. 

If  one  should  attempt  to  give  the  history  of  Union  Township  in  all  its  details, 
a  goodly  sized  book  would  be  the  result.  That  means  that  the  space  required  is 
greater  than  the  scope  of  this  work  contemplates.  The  historical  society  estab- 
lished a  few  years  ago,  has  gathered  some  little  local  data  in  a  fragmentary 
manner,  pertinent  to  the  early  history  of  the  county,  but  the  society,  unfortunately, 
has  been  late  in  commencing  operations.  Most  of  the  people  who  came  on  to 
the  prairies  and  into  the  timber  of  the  county  in  the  '40s  have  either  passed  from 
earth  or  have  gone  to  other  parts  of  the  country.  Those  remaining  show  the 
ravages  of  time,  both  physically  and  mentally,  and  but  few  there  are  who  can 
be  relied  upon  for  a  statement  relative  to  events  transpiring  in  the  early  days, 
so  that  if  the  reader  becomes  disappointed  in  not  finding  the  names  of  certain 
families  who  early  settled  in  the  community,  or  the  relation  of  an  incident 
seemingly  of  importance,  and  a  part  of  the  history  of  this  community,  these 
things  should  be  considered  as  attributable  to  the  utter  impossibility  of  securing 
the  necessary  facts. 

In  Union  Township,  as  in  all  new  American  communities,  as  soon  as  the 
necessary  preliminaries  of  building  habitations  and  garnering  crops  were  con- 
summated, educational  facilities  were  provided  for  the  children,  church  organiza- 
tions were  established  and  other  things  accomplished,  to  ease  the  burdens  of  life 
and  seek  the  contentment  that  comfortable  homes,  well  conducted  schools,  prop- 
erly maintained  churches  and  general  prosperity  evolve. 

THE    FIRST    SCHOOL 

By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

The  first  school  in  the  township  was  erected  during  the  fall  of  1852,  on  the 
northeast  acre  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  17,  which  was  donated  to  the 
vicinity  by  Nathaniel  W.  Guiberson,  who  had  entered  that  quarter  from  the 
Government  in  1850.  This  log  schoolhouse  remained  a  few  years,  when  a  frame 
building  was  erected  one  mile  south  and  a  quarter  of  a  mile  east  of  the  old  one. 
Samuel  Guye  secured  the  contract  for  the  construction  of  the  building  at  $120 
in  cash.  He  was  a  millwright  by  trade  and  handy  with  tools.  The  structure 
was  20  by  20  feet  and  most  of  the  sawed  stuflF  was  done  at  the  old  Pierson  mill 
at  Summerset,  in  Warren  County.  Rough  one-inch  oak  boarding,  six  inches 
wide,  was  used  for  the  floor,  laid  on  smooth  surfaced  logs  for  sleepers. 
The  ceiling  was  one-inch  rough  linn  boards,  ten  inches  wide;  the  rafters  and 
sheeting  were  sawed  out  by  James  and  George  Guye  with  a  whip  saw.  The 
shingles,  which  were  of  black  walnut,  were  hand  shaved  and  nailed  on  to  the 
sheeting.  The  gable  ends  were  weather  boarded  and  nailed  to  split-out  stud- 
ding, roughly  evened  on  the  outer  side.  A  rough  puncheon  door  hung  by  iron 
butt  hinges  was  fastened  by  a  thumb  latch.  It  had  no  lock.  There  were  six 
windows — three  on  the  east  and  three  on  the  west,  each  with  twelve  panes 
8  by  12-inch  glass.  Seats  were  made  of  rude  puncheon,  split-out  boards,  smoothed 
on  top  by  a  jack  plane,  supported  by  legs,  of  which  one  end  was  driven  into 
two-inch  holes,  bored  into  the  puncheons  near  each  end.    But  few  of  the  pupils 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  273 

• 

had  desks  the  first  few  years.  At  the  first  term  a  carpenter  named  Joseph  Thomp- 
son made  a  combined  seat  and  desk,  with  a  lid,  and  gave  it  to  Emma  and  America 
Pursel,  who  used  it  between  them.  This  seat  and  desk  was  envied  far  and 
near  throughout  the  county.  Thomas  Sturman  made  seats  and  desks  for  each 
of  his  three  sisters  and  himself.  A  fairly  good  teacher's  table  was  furnished  by 
the  district.  The  room  was  more  or  less  heated  by  a  long  box  stove  that  was 
4  feet  long,  2  feet  wide  and  2  feet  high.  It  was  built  to  hold  a  lot  of 
wood.  The  stove  stood  in  the  middle  of  the  room  and  the  pipe  went  straight 
up  through  the  roof.  This  big  "wood  eater"  was  a  second-hand  monster  and 
had  been  used  by  William  Compton  in  his  grocery  store  at  Winterset. 

The  first  term  taught  in  this  then  **grand  new  schoolhouse"  was  by  John 
Jordan,  of  Pella.  He  began  his  ministrations  on  the  first  Monday  in  December, 
1852,  and  continued  the  term  twelve  weeks.  Basil  Pursel  was  the  school  director. 
Succeeding  terms  were  taught  by  the  following  persons:  The  summer  of  1853 
by  Jane  Sturman;  winter  term  of  1853-54,  a  Mr.  Wright,  summer  term  of  the 
year,  Phoebe  Gordon ;  winter  term  of  1854-55,  John  Bird ;  summer  term  that  year, 
Jane  Tumey;  winter  term  of  1855-56,  a  Mr.  Lewis. 

Following  is  the  complete  enrollment  of  pupils  attending  the  first  term  of 
1852-53  in  the  new  schoolhouse:  Thomas,  Jane  (married  William  Pursel), 
Harriet  (married  a  Mr.  Kelly),  Sarah  (married  Frank  McDaniel),  children  of  the 
elder  James  Sturman;  Eliza  (married  Alfred  Brittain),  Missouri  (marffed  Jack- 
son Jones),  Dorinda  (married  James  Henry  Farris),  Joel  (died  in  i860),  and 
John  James  (died  in  the  army),  children  of  William  Sturman;  Francis  M., 
Samuel  Houston,  Mary  (married  Elzie  Evans),  Elizabeth  (married  Enos  Mills), 
Angeline  (married  Henry  Vanwy),  Maria  (married  George  Ludington),  chil- 
dren of  Samuel  Guye;  William,  Absalom  K.,  and  Amenca  M.  (married  William 
Guiberson),  children  of  Basil  Pursel;  Frank,  Irene  (married  Joseph  Thompson), 
children  of  Henderson  McDaniel;  Reuben  and  Emeline  (married  Jacob  Shell- 
hart),  children  of  David  Cracraft;  William,  son  of  Nathaniel  W.  Guiberson; 
Eliza  (married  Challen  Danforth),  Cecelia  (married  Daniel  Brobst),  children 
of  John  B.  Sturman;  George  D.,  Martha  (married  S.  S.  Guiberson),  and  John 
Thompson,  children  of  William  Ratcliff,  whose  widow  had  married  Samuel 
Guye;  Martha,  Lizzie  and  Bruce,  children  of  Samuel  Stover;  Rebecca  Ann, 
Matilda  and  Phoebe  Allison,  sisters  of  Mrs.  Philip  M.  Boyles  of  southwestern 
Union  Township. 

No  very  young  pupils  attended  this  school.  At  recess  the  larger  ones 
indulged  in  a  game  called  "snatch  and  catch  'em,'*  which  was  similar  to  'Mrop 
the  handkerchief."  Sometimes  on  extra  cold  days  this  game  was  played  until 
long  after  the  noon  hour,  school  being  called  about  in  time  to  be  ready  for  a 
respectable  dismissal  at  4  o'clock.  Jump  the  rope  was  also  a  popular  pastime 
and  also  "blind  man's  buff."  Occasionally  there  was  a  spelling  school  at  night. 
Missouri  and  Jane  Sturman  usually  "kept  the  floor"  the  longest  when  "spelling 
down." 

GUYE   SCHOOLHOUSE 

By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

Another  educational  institution  of  Union  Township  in  the  early  days  was 
the  Guye  schoolhouse,  which  was  built  at  about  the  time  or  shortly  after  the 


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274  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Guiberson  schoolhouse.  There  was  some  trouble  experienced  in  getting  the 
district  divided  from  the  Guiberson  district,  for  the  reason  that  there  was  not 
enough  money  to  build  a  schoolhouse.  Thereupon  Basil  Pursel  donated  hewed 
timber  (sills,  comer  posts  and  plates)  for  a  building,  George  and  James  Guye, 
sleepers  and  joists;  Samuel  Guye,  the  studding,  Richard  Cooper,  sheeting,  Thomas 
Townsend  and  William,  his  son,  some  other  lumber,  and  Samuel  Hildebrant, 
Hampton  Jones  and  Levi  Smith  also  contributed  building  material,  all  of  which 
was  placed  on  the  ground.  The  work  of  building  was  paid  for  out  of  public 
money. 

Before  this  house  was  built,  a  term  of  school  was  taught  in  a  house  vacated 
by  Levi  Smith  that  summer.  The  first  teacher  was  Thomas  Townsend  who  lived 
on  the  Casper  place.  The  term  was  three  months.  When  Townsend  got  his 
certificate  from  the  county  superintendent  he  invited  that  official  to  visit  his 
school,  assuring  him  he  would  show  him  a  model  institution.  When  the  super- 
intendent arrived  at  the  Guye  schoolhouse,  he  found  Townsend  sitting  in  the 
middle  of  the  room  with  a  six  foot  gad  in  his  hand,  which  he  would  wave 
through  the  air  in  one  direction,  pound  it  on  the  floor  and  then  wave  it  in  another 
direction,  exclaiming  at  each  stroke  "mind  your  books,"  and  other  like  ex- 
pressions. He  was  a  "Hard  Shell*'  Baptist  preacher  and  peculiar  in  his  way, 
but  the  superintendent  agreed  with  him  that  he  kept  order  with  his  gad.  The 
school  official  also  learned  that  Townsend  whipped  at  least  one  scholar  a  day; 
but  he  taught  no  more  in  that  section  of  the  county.  Everybody  agreed  he  kept 
order  but  wanted  no  more  of  his  kind  of  teaching. 

THE   FIPLER    CEMETERY 

By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

James  Fidler  was  the  first  man  who  died  in  Madison  County.  He  was  well 
along  in  life  and  had  been  an  almost  helpless  invalid  some  eight  years  prior  to 
his  location  in  this  township.  His  death  had  long  been  expected  by  the  family 
to  occur  at  any  time.  Fidler  took  a  claim  and  had  built  a  cabin  in  the  edge  of 
the  timber  on -section  9,  up  on  the  ridge  west  of  Long  Branch.  He  died  early  in 
October,  1846.  There  being  no  graveyard  in  the  county,  and  one  place  being 
as  good  as  another,  naturally,  he  was  buried  on  his  own  claim,  a  little  north  of 
his  cabin  in  the  woods.  Later  that  fall  a  little  child  of  David  D.  Henry's  was 
scalded  to  death  by  tipping  over  a  pot  of  water.  The  child's  body  was  interred 
near  Fidler's  grave  and  this  was  the  second  burial  there.  Contemporaneous 
burials  at  this  place  were  those  of  Jane,  daughter  of  Chenoweth  Casebier,  aged 
about  sixteen  years;  James  Thombrugh,  Eliza  Tremble,  little  Sarah  Crawford, 
Anderson  Crawford,  Sarah  Pender,  four  years  old,  who  was  burned  to  death; 
Mrs.  Mahala  Simmons,  wife  of  Henry  Simmons,  David  Cracraft  and  one  of  his 
daughters,  a  child  of  Asa  Mills  and  a  child  of  Philip  M.  Boyles. 

A   SENSATIONAL   WAKE 

By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

Jacob  Evans  died  June  5,  1870,  in  Union  Township,  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
three  and  was  buried  in  Winterset  cemetery.    All  the  members  of  the  very  large 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  275 

family,  except  one  son,  were  in  a  room  adjoining  where  the  body  lay.  The 
men,  while  laying  out  the  body  of  the  deceased,  attempted  to  keep  the  partition 
door  closed,  but  as  often  as  they  closed  it,  some  one  would  partly  open  it  again 
from  the  adjoining  room,  and  the  men  observed  that  some  members  of  the 
family  were  closely  watching  them.  This  caused  annoyance  and  somewhat  pro- 
voked them.  It  was  after  dark  when  the  body  was  prepared  and  placed  to  one 
side  of  the  room.  It  was  decided  to  remove  the  bed  out  of  doors  into  an  out- 
building. This  caused  a  disturbance  in  the  adjoining  room  and  it  could  be  seen 
that  those  occupying  it  were  peeping  through  the  partly  opened  door.  After 
removing  the  bedroom  doors  those  attending  the  body  discovered  an  old  trunk 
under  the  bed,  and  while  the  bedstead  was  being  taken  down  one  of  th6m  got 
hold  of  the  trunk,  but  at  that  moment  two  grown-up  sons  of  the  deceased  rushed 
in,  fighting  each  other,  each  one  attempting  to  get  to  the  trunk  first.  The  at- 
tendants interfered,  desiring  to  learn  what  the  trouble  was  about,  and  finally 
made  peace  between  the  boys.  One  of  the  daughters  then  explained  why  the 
men  had  been  closely  watched  and  why  the  boys  rushed  in  and  were  fighting. 
It  developed  that  in  that  old  hair-covered  trunk,  which  was  encircled  a  hundred 
times  with  bed  cord,  were  their  father's  will  and  $4,000  in  gold.  Ever  since  he 
had  moved  to  Iowa  in  1851,  that  frail  safe  had  been  the  storage  place  of  a  fortune 
in  gold.  In  it  Evans  had  brought  the  treasure  then  in  view  from  Indiana  to  Iowa, 
and  how  many  years  the  trunk  had  performed  its  peculiar  duty  before  the 
removal  of  the  family  here  none  but  the  members  knew.  But  it  was  a  matter 
of  local  comment  as  early  as  1857,  when  Mr.  Evans  paid  for  a  building  in  the 
spring  of  the  year  just  mentioned,  which  had  replaced  one  destroyed  by  fire, 
the  money  came  from  that  old  trunk.  During  all  his  life  in  Iowa,  either  Mr. 
Evans  or  his  wife  was  by  that  trunk.  They  never  left  it  alone  at  any  time.  It 
was  on  their  minds  all  the  time. 

Union  Township  has  no  trading  point  within  its  borders.  At  one  time,  in  the 
later  '40s,  a  little  settlement  was  established  at  what  later  became  known  as 
Tileville,  acquiring  its  name  from  the  manufactory  of  tile  in  that  vicinity.  A.  D. 
Jones  ran  a  small  store  there  for  a  short  time.  Here  was  Montpelier  postoffice, 
first  in  the  county.    It  has  a  railroad,  however,  but  no  station. 

Fortunately,  George  W.  Guye,  one  of  the  boys  who  came  with  his  father, 
Samuel  Guye,  in  the  spring  of  1846  and  settled  in  this  township,  is  still  living 
and  has  been  for  some  years  past  a  resident  of  Winterset.  He  remembers  many 
interesting  things  relative  to  his  family,  which  history  has  now  become  part  and 
parcel  of  that  of  Madison  County.  He  says  that  he  'was  bom  in  White  County, 
Tennessee,  in  1826,  and  that  the  family  moved  to  Sullivan  County,  Indiana,  in 
1828.  In  that  year  they  turned  their  faces  westward  and  arrived  in  the  Territory 
of  Iowa  in  1841,  stopping  at  lowaville,  in  Van  Buren  County.  They  then  took 
the  old  Mormon  trail  and  reaching  a  point  in  Nodaway  County,  near  Andrew 
County,  Missouri,  April  16,  1846,  the  family  remained  there  until  coming  to 
Madison  County,  arriving  in  Union  Township,  April  28th.  "As  early  as  1841," 
he  relates,  "we  heard  of  the  Three  Rivers  country,  that  it  would  be  opened  for 
settlement.  There  were  glowing  accounts  of.  this  country  coming  to  us  from 
trappers  and  traders  who  had  been  here.  Upon  reaching  the  county,  we  stopped 
with  Hiram  Hurst  two  nights,  and  one  night  at  Linn  Grove  with  Lafridge 
Bedull,  whom  we  knew  in  Missouri.     The  following  night  we  were  at  Cruz 


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276  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Grove,  north  of  Churchville,  and  the  next  night  camped  in  the  J.  H.  Farris  grove, 
where  we  stayed  while  staking  out  our  claim.  May  3,  1846.  We  built  a  cabin 
of  linn  logs  in  two  days  and  this  was  the  first  real  house  in  the  county. 

*'Hiram  Hurst  put  in  a  crop  .in  the  summer  of  1846  and  then  went  after  his 
family,  meeting  its  members  at  the  state  line.  He  had  constructed  a  cabin  of 
buckeye  and  hackberry,  which  he  covered  with  elm  bark.  It  was  a  small  affair. 
It  was  here  we  visited  him  the  day  we  crossed  the  Middle  River.  We  were  the 
first  guests  he  entertained  in  Madison  County.  When  we  arrived  he  looked  wild 
and  got  his  gun,  but  we  told  him  who  we  were  and  that  \ve  were  looking  for 
information.    He  said  he  had  not  as  yet  seen  the  country. 

"My  father,  Samuel  Guye,  located  on  section  7,  on  land  afterwards  known  as 
the  Vanwy  place.  My  claim  was  on  sections  5  and  8,  parts  of  which  afterwards 
became  known  as  the  Hendricks  and  Ryner  farms.  James  also  located  on  section 
8.  The  other  members  of  the  family  were:  Mary,  who  married  Elzie  Evans, 
and  died  in  southwestern  Missouri ;  Elizabeth,  the  wife  of  Enos  Mills ;  Francis 
M.,  who  later  became  a  citizen  of  Seattle,  Washington;  Samuel  H.,  who  moved 
some  years  ago  from  the  county  to  Des  Moines;  Angeline,  the  wife  of  Henry 
Vanwy;  and  Maria,  who  married  George  Ludington. 

**When  the  land  here  was  opened  for  entry,  on  January  i,  1850,  I  went  to 
Iowa  City  on  horseback  to  buy  land.  The  journey  there  and  back  consumed 
seven  days.  I  paid  Judge  Carrollton  to  bid  in  for  me  two  hundred  and  forty 
acres.  This  was  the  first  farm  land  sold  in  Madison  County  at  that  time.  I 
might  here  add  that  I  did  not  get  my  patent  for  the  land  on  which  I  located 
and  entered  until  twenty  years  afterwards. 

"The  members  of  my  family  farmed  land  on  North  River  once  cultivated  by 
Indians.  When  we  came  here  we  brought  from  seventy  to  eighty  head  of  cattle 
and  one  hundred  head  of  sheep.  We  broke  the  prairie  in  1847  ^'^h  oxen,  of 
which  we  had  six  yoke.    We  also  had  three  horses. 

"My  parents  were  married  in  Tennessee.  My  mother  owned  slaves  in  that 
state  at  the  time  and  before  departing  for  Indiana  permitted  them  to  purchase 
their  liberty.  Arriving  in  the  Hoosier  State,  my  parents  bought  a  fine  farm  and 
my  father  speculated  in  toll  turnpikes,  much  to  his  disadvantage.  He  was  com- 
pelled to  sell  the  farm  and  met  with  another  disaster  by  taking  $4,750  of  the 
purchase  price  in  bills  of  the  State  Bank  of  Indiana,  which  decreased  in  value 
fifty  cents  on  the  dollar  before  arriving  in  Missouri,  where  another  farm  was 
purchased  in  1841.  Not  liking  to  live  in  a  slave  state,  we  left  Missouri  with  some 
money,  horses,  cattle,  sheep'  and  household  goods,  and  as  has  been  before  stated, 
arrived  in  Madison  County,  April  28,  1846. 

"John  Beedle,  John  Chenoweth,  Samuel  Casebier,  my  brother,  James  Guye, 
and  myself  went  to  Des  Moines  on  the  2d  day  of  August,  1846,  to  vote  at  an 
election  which  was  to  be  held  on  August  3d  to  ratify  the  first  constitution  pro- 
posed in  the  State  of  Iowa.  We  all  voted  for  the  adoption  of  the  constitution. 
At  that  time  I  was  only  twenty  years  old." 

PIONEERS   OF   UNION   TOWNSHIP 

By  A.  J.  Hoisington 

The  story  of  each  pioneer  settler  of  Madison  County  becomes  more  and  more 
interesting  and  romantic  as  the  years  go  by.    Over  sixty  years  have  passed  since 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  277 

they  began  to  arrive;  only  a  very  few  of  those  old  enough  to  remember  their 
coming,  what  they  did,  how  they  lived  and  even  who  they  were,  are  living  to  tell 
the  tale. 

Their  names,  where  they  came  from,  where  they  first  located,  what  next  they 
did  and  how  they  lived,  their  daily  habits,  their  customs,  their  religion  and  politics 
and  the  manner  of  people  they  were — and,  finally,  what  became  of  them — is  of 
interest  to  us  now.  At  random  I  will  here  briefly  mention  a  few  who  came  the 
first  year  or  two — there  is  no  special  reason  that  I  mention  one  and  omit  another, 
since  I  have  no  favorites  among  them. 

Omitting  Hiram  Hurst  and  the  Clanton  and  Guye  colonies,  which  makes  a 
little  book  by  itself,  since  they  were  the  first  people,  there  came  a  few  days  after 
them  the  colony  among  whom  are  still  well  remembered,  William  Gentry,  Philip 
M.  Boyles,  John  Evans,  Asa  Mills  and  others.  This  colony  was  a  large  one  and 
all  were  from  Missouri.  It  should  be  recalled  that  Hurst,  the  Clantons  and  Guyes 
were  all  from  Missouri,  and  for  the  matter  of  that,  nearly  all  the  settlers  in  1846 
and  1847  came  from  Missouri — Northwest  Missouri. 

David  D.  Henry  came  in  May,  1846,  and  settled  on  section  20,  Union  Town- 
ship, on  the  north  bank  of  Cedar  Creek,  where  was  a  beautiful  little  bottom  of 
prairie  meadow,  making  the  first  improvement  there.  He  had  a  family  and  was 
from  Missouri.  In  185 1  he  joined  the  California  bound  crowd  and  left,  taking 
his  family.  He  entered  the  southeast  quarter  of  the  northeast  quarter  and  the 
southeast  quarter  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  that  section  in  1850. 

William  Gentry  came  in  May,  1846,  from  Missouri,  first'  settling  on  the  north 
half  of  the  west  half  of  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  30,  Union  Township, 
near  where  the  present  house  stands  on  top  of  the  hill  south  of  Cedar  bridge, 
straight  north  of  Winterset.  He  entered  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  there  in 
1850.  He  was  one  of  the  most  prominent  and  active  citizens  of  the  county  in 
the  early  days  of  its  history — one  of  its  first  county  commissioners  and  on  the 
board  that  named  Winterset  and  platted  the  town.  Later  on  he  sold  out  and  set- 
tled on  the  north  side  of  the  lane,  some  distance  west  of  where  Tileville  now  is. 
Mr.  Gentry's  relation  to  the  history  of  the  early  days  makes  him  an  important 
figure  in  many  of  its  chapters.  He  lived  out  his  days  in  the  county  he  helped  to 
mold  and  established  and  died  respected  by  all. 

Leonard  Bowman  came  in  the  spring  of  1847  from  Missouri,  and  first  settled 
on  the  east  half  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  5,  in  Union  Township.  As 
the  lands  in  this  county  were  not  surveyed  until  1849,  it  turned  out  that  he  was 
on  the  quarter  on  which  the  Guyes  had  located  the  year  before.  There  is  quite 
a  history  to  this  quarter  that  pertains  to  pioneer  history  of  the  county  which  is 
herein  related.  -  Not  only  was  this  southwest  quarter  the  one  on  which  the 
pioneer  Guyes  first  located,  they  being  the  first  settlers  west  of  close  to  the 
east  line  of  the  county,  but  it  was  the  first  tract  of  land  entered  in  Madison 
County — January  21,  1850.  To  mate  the  long  story  brief,  George  Guye  beat 
Bowman  to  the  United  States  land  office,  then  located  at  Iowa  City  and  got  the 
land.  After  thus  losing  his  claim.  Bowman  settled  west  of  where  the  county 
farm  now  is,  in  1850.  He  sold  out  about  1853  and  moved  to  South  Audubon 
County,  Iowa,  where  he  lived  and  died.  When  here  he  had  a  large  family,  of 
whom  some  were  quite  grown  up,  among  whom  were  sons,  David,  Reece,  Daniel 
and  Levi,  and  daughters,  Mary  and  Cassie.     David  went  to  California,  Daniel 


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278  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

married  Elizabeth  Folwell,  in  1854,  and  lived  in  Audubon  County,  and  Reece  and 
Levi  went  west  beyond  the  Missouri  River. 

Brownfield  came  in  June,  1846,  with  John  B.  Sturman  and  John  R.  Beedle, 
from  Missouri.  He  had  a  family  and  settled  on  the  northeast  part  of  section  10, 
in  Union  Township,  where  Boone  afterward  owned  some  land.  He  made  no 
improvements  but  a  log  cabin  and  left  in  1848.  His  only  distinction  here,  besides 
being  one  of  the  very  first  settlers,  is  that  he  was  one  of  the  five  voters  of  Madison 
County,  who  went  to  Fort  Des  Moines  and  voted  at  the  election,  August  3,  1846, 
when  the  state  constitution  was  adopted,  which  five  voters  marked  the  first  road 
northeasterly  to  Des  Moines  on  their  way  to  vote. 

Thomas  M.  Boyles,  brother  of  Philip,  came  with  the  colony,  a  single  man,  and 
settled  on  the  southwest  of  section  17,  Union  Township,  which  he  entered  in  1850. 
He  arrived  in  May,  1846,  and  there  settled,  building  a  log  cabin  and  cutting  out  a 
small  clearing  where  afterward  long-  resided  the  elder  Sturman  and  his  son 
Thomas.  Late  in  the  fall  of  1847  he  married  a  daughter  of  John  Butler,  who 
came  with  the  Boyles  from  Missouri  and  who  had  settled  in  the  south  edge  of 
the  timber  next  east  of  the  Philip  Boyles  farm.  There  was  a  great  wedding, 
but  the  big  boys  of  the  then  sparsely  settled  country  were  not  invited.  This  slight 
they  resented  by  organizing  a  charivari  party.  Having  long  distances  to  go  they 
were  late  in  getting  to  the  Butler  cabin.  All  had  gone  to  bed,  or  it  seemed  to  the 
boys  they  had,  for  the  cabin  was  dark  and  quiet.  The  boys  began  their  noise  with 
every  cow  bell,  stolen  from  the  cattle  in  all  the  region  about.  They  had  two  big 
dinner  horns,  tin  pans  and  other  things,  with  which  to  make  the  deafening  noise. 
This  infernal  din  they  kept  going  until  wearied  out,  but  no  one  in  the  house  seemed 
to  give  any  attention  to  them.  They  were  afraid  to  try  to  get  inside,  because  they 
might  meet  with  trouble.  Finally,  they  quietly  moved  away,  disappointed,  tired 
and  disgusted.  Passing  through  the  timber  northward,  crossing  Cedar,  they 
finally  got  to  Boyles'  cabin  on  the  hill  south  of  where  Joe  Forney  lives  now,  de- 
termined to  let  Boyles  and  his  bride  know  they  had  called  that  way.  Of  course 
the  bride  and  groom  were  at  Butler's.  Boyles  had  three  sheep  only.  The  boys 
built  a  rail  pen  on  top  of  a  haystack  and  put  in  it  the  three  sheep,  but  fearing 
the  pen  might  not  hold  them  and  the  sheep  get  killed  or  injured  in  the  downfall, 
they  finally  took  .the  sheep  down  from  the  pen  on  the  stack  and  put  them  in  the 
cabin,  where  they  fastened  them  in  and  left  them.  Disarranging  other  things 
around  the  place  they  pulled  out  for  their  several  cabins  of  abode,  miles  away  for 
all  of  them.  Toward  morning  they  got  home.  It  was  a  dead  failure  all  around 
and  the  more  so  it  seemed  to  them  afterward  when  they  could  not  hear  even  a 
whisper  from  any  one  concerning  what  they  had  done  that  night.  .No  one  ever 
mentioned  in  their  hearing,  or  so  they  could  hear  of  it,  anything  about  their 
doings.  Most  of  all,  the  boys  wondered  about  the  sheep  in  the  house,  but  they 
never  knew,  or  heard.  They  have  always  supposed  that  when  they  left  the  Butler 
cabin,  some  one  followed  them,  with  the  expectation  of  mischief  at  Boyles'  cabin 
and  that  when  they  left  the  latter  with  the  sheep  inside,  some  one  was  there  to 
right  things.  Thus  ended  the  first  charivari  in  Madison  County.  Among  those 
in  this  crowd  I  remember  to  have  heard  named  George  W.  and  Francis  M.  Guye, 
Reece,  Dan  and  Levi  Bowman  and  Martin  Baum.  There  were  nine  or  ten  in  the 
crowd.    Boyles  later  sold  to  the  elder  James  Sturman  and  moved  to  Texas. 


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CHAPTER  XXXIII 

SCOTT  TOWNSHIP 

Scott  Township  was  organized  in  1861  and  was  one  of  the  first  localities  to  be 
settled  in  Madison  County.  It  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  Union,  on  the  south  by 
Walnut,  on  the  east  by  South  and  on  the  west  by  Lincoln  townships.  The  Middle 
River  and  Jones  Creek  are  its  principal  streams.  Middle  River  passes  through 
the  northern  part  of  this  domain  from  west  to  east,  and  Jones  Creek  flows 
through  the  southern  part.  The  divide  lying  between  Middle  River  and  the 
Clanton  is  widely  known  as  "Hoosier  Prairie,"  deriving  its  name  from  the  fact 
that  many  of  its  settlers  came  from  Indiana.  The  topography  of  the  township 
indicates  a  flat,  or  level  prairie.  However,  in  the  breaks  near  the  streams  the 
surface  of  the  township  is  very  rough  and  broken.  While  the  county  was  still 
young,  there  were  many  beautiful  farms  on  "Hoosier  Prairie"  and  in  other  por- 
tions of  this  township.  It  is  an  agricultural  district  and  the  entire  township  teems 
with  well  improved  farms,  buildings,  good  roads  and  all  the  modem  improve- 
ments to  be  found  in  a  high  grade  country.  Inexhaustible  quantities  of  the  very 
best  of  limestone  are  found  along  the  bluffs  of  Middle  River,  and  coal  abounds  in 
various  places.  With  the  many  springs  and  small  streams  that  exist  here  and 
throughout  the  township,  the  community  has  become  a  very  desirable  one  for  the 
raising  of  stock  and  other  industries. 

Henry  McKinzie  was  probably  the  first  settler  to  locate  in  this  township, 
coming  here  in  the  latter  part  of  the  summer  of  1846.  He  settled  on  what  after- 
wards became  the  McKnight  farm.  Mr.  McKinzie  removed  here  from  his  old 
home  in  Sangamon  County,  Illinois,  which  was  near  that  section  of  the  country 
made  famous  as  having  been  at  one  time  the  home  of  Abraham  Lincoln.  McKin- 
zie built  a  crude  log  cabin  on  his  claim,  which  gave  way  to  a  frame  house  in 
1848,  said  to  have  been  the  first  frame  residence  built  in  the  county.  He  hauled 
the  lumber  all  the  way  from  Burlington.  About  this  time  came  David  Bishop, 
William  Allcock  and  John  Wilkinson ;  also  Ephraim  Bilderback,  the  Organizing 
sheriff  of  the  county.  W.  S.  Wilkinson  until  his  death  in  1914,  was  a  resident  of 
the  township,  while  Judge  A.  W.  Wilkinson  is  and  has  been  for  many  years,  a 
resident  of  Winterset. 

Ephraim  Bilderback  built  a  small  structure  and  set  up  a  forge  upon  his  farm, 
where  was  conducted  the  first  blacksmith  shop  in  the  county. 

Asa  Mills  settled  on  the  north  part  of  the  township,  north  of  Middle  River,  on 
section  5,  in  the  summer  of  1846. 

Samuel  Crawford,  in  the  summer  of  1847,  built  a  cabin  on  the  southwest 
quarter  of  section  5,  which  in  the  fall  of  that  year  was  destroyed  by  fire.  Being 
left  without  a  habitation,  Crawford  moved  in  with  James  Thombrugh,  where  he 
stayed  all  winter,  but  before  spring  he  had  gotten  up  another  cabin  and  moved 
into  it. 

279 


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280  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

About  the  year  1849  or  1850,  there  were  quite  a  number  settled  in  the  township, 
among  whom  were  John  Rogers,  Marius  C.  Debord,  John  Landers,  Whitley  Allen, 
John  Hinkel,  Joel  Graves,  William  Hogg,  Josiah  Struthers,  Josiah  Smith,  Isaac 
Debusk.  John  S.  Holmes  and  William  Bowlsby  settled  here  soon  after,  also  W. 
W.  McKnight,  John  Rogers,  George  Close,  Mitchell  Robinson,  J.  S.  Holmes, 
George  Hammer,  J.  R.  Silliman,  John  Jones,  A.  J.  Campbell,  Benjamin  F.  Reed, 
Ed  Herrall,  A.  H.  Adkison,  James  Harris,  B.  Lake,  John  Dryden,  Porter  Ral- 
ston, B.  F.  Carter,  George  A.  Breeding,  James  Short,  Noah  King. 

Abner  Bell  with  his  wife  and  two  children  arrived  in  Madison  County  from 
Hancock  County,  Ohio,  on  September  30,  1850,  and  lived  in  the  house  on  the 
Allcock  claim  until  the  following  spring.  That  winter  Bell  taught  school  in  the 
Clanton  schoolhouse  and  in  the  spring  of  185 1  moved  to  section  16,  and  bought 
forty  acres  of  school  land.  That  spring  a  log  schoolhouse  was  built,  in  which  he 
taught  a  three  months'  term.  This  was  the  first  school  in  that  district.  He  sold 
out  in  the  next  spring.  In  the  winter  of  185 1-2  Bell  taught  in  the  Adamson 
schoolhouse,  that  stood  south  of  Middle  River  about  eighty  rods,  above  Huglin's 
Mill.  In  the  spring  of  1852  he  moved  west  of  Churchville,  on  the  edge  of  Madison 
County. 

Theodore  Cox  settled  in  the  township  along  about  1854  and  improved  a  tract 
of  land,  so  that  it  became  a  magnificent  farm.  Hogan  Queen,  Annon  James, 
Solomon  Odell,  Thomas  Stevens,  Israel  Hoover,  Jesse  Hiatt,  J.  S.  Lorimor  and  I. 
Oglesbee  all  improved  farms  in  this  township  and  became  leading  citizens  of  the 
community. 

Of  the  later  arrivals  may  be  mentioned  '*Fidler"  Jones,  William  Fennimore,  a 
splendid  business  man ;  George  Orr,  G.  W.  Hann,  John  Holmes,  Orville  Rollstin, 
Benjamin  and  Andrew  Jones,  G.  M.  Grout,  M.  W.  Peach,  J.  S.  Herman,  J.  E. 
Spurgin.  These  men  have  all  given  to  their  farms,  their  homes  and  the  commu- 
nity, their  best  energies  and  are  held  in  the  highest  esteem  by  neighbors  and  friends 
throughout  the  county. 

There  are  four  churches  in  the  township:  Providence  United  Brethren, 
Bethel  Methodist  Episcopal,  Elm  Grove  Methodist  Episcopal  and  Zion  (union). 

THE  KENTUCKY  COLONY 

By  E.  R.  Ziller 

In  the  early  summer  of  i860  a  little  colony  of  brave  and  sturdy  people  left  their 
homes  in  Kentucky  to  try  their  fortunes  in  the  to  them  unknown  State  of  Iowa. 
In  this  relation  a  Keokuk  paper  of  date  May  28,  i860,  had  the  following  to  say : 
**A  procession  consisting  of  nine  wagons,  one  carriage,  twelve  yokes  of  oxen  and 
several  spans  of  horses,  passed  up  Main  Street  last  Saturday  morning  bound 
for  Madison  County,  Iowa.  They  came  from  Kentucky.  They  belong  to  one 
family,  the  head  of  which  is  Rev.  John  Blair,  who  informed  us  that  they  were 
obliged  to  leave  on  account  of  their  sentiments  on  the  slavery  question."  As 
related  by  Rev.  John  Blair,  the  reason  given  why  he  and  his  party  picked  upon 
Madison  County  for  their  future  home  was  that  a  brother,  Alexander  Blair,  had 
immigrated  from  Kentucky  to  Indiana  in  pioneer  times  and  a  few  years  later 
settled  in  Madison  County,  Iowa,  on  land  now  known  as  the  "Mills''  farm  at 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  281 

Tileville.  Those  comprising  the  Blair  party  were  Rev.  John  Blair,  Rev.  Richard 
Armstrong,  Elza  Blair,  John  Blair,  Jr.,  James  Blair,  William  Blair,  William  Turk, 
John  Heneger,  Peter  Carter,  James  McKinney,  William  Carter,  Alexander  Eskew 
and  Thomas  Rhodes.  In  the  fall  of  the  same  year  another  party  arrived,  consist- 
ing of  George  Breeding,  Rev.  C.  Hughart,  Joseph  A.  Breeding,  B.  F.  Carter  and 
others.  In  the  following  spring  a  third  party  located  in  the  county,  namely :  J.  M. 
Eskew,  J.  T.  Blair,  George  H.  Kinnaird,  W.  T.  Jesse,  Henry  Monday  and  David 
Mosby.  The  numerous  descendants  and  relatives  by  marriage  of  this  splendid 
aggregation  of  settlers  form  a  very  important  part  of  the  population  of  Scott  and 
South  townships.  "In  that  lonely,  but  beautiful,  cemetecy,  at  Blair  Chapel  lie 
the  remains  of  many  of  those  who  composed  the  early  Kentucky  emigrants.  There 
repose  the  remains  of  the  heroic  leader  and  his  faithful  colleague.  Rev.  Richard 
Armstrong.    A  number  of  others  are  buried  at  Union  Chapel." 

y 

AS  A   BOY   SAW   IT 

By  W.  S.  Wilkinson 

We  came  to  this  county  in  the  spring  of  1848.  The  report  had  come  to  where 
we  lived  that  there  was  a  good  country  out  here :  nice  rolling  prairies,  plenty  of 
good  timber,  good  running  springs, .  an  abundance  of  stone,  and  the  principal 
undergrowth  was  rattlesnakes,  which  the  boys  thought  about  correct. 

The  early  farms  were  mostly  made  in  the  timber,  for  there  were  but  few 
that  had  teams  able  to  turn  the  prairie  sod.  The  timber  soil  was  more  easily 
stirred.  We  worked  constantly  at  our  clearing  but  every  nice  warm  day  at  noon 
during  the  spring  we  would  run  down  to  the  snake  den  and  see  if  there  were  any 
snakes  lying  in  the  sun  around  the  den — ^and  we  usually  found  some — this  was 
the  summer  of  the  big  snake  hunt.  Now  Sunday  was  as  strictly  observed  in  the 
fore  part  of  that  summer  as  I  have  ever  seen  it  at  any  time  since.  It  was  given 
over  exclusively  to  the  hunting  and  killing  of  rattlesnakes.  We  had  no  preaching 
here  then.  This  was  just  before  the  preacher  came.  But  after  the  snake  killing 
season  they  organized  Sunday  school  and  we  thought  it  a  No.  i  school.  We 
put  on  our  clean  linen  pants  on  Sunday  morning  and  went  to  Sunday  school — the 
small  boys  did  not  wear  pants  every  day  unless  we  had  company — a  boy  is  not  so 
bashful  when  he  is  dressed  up — that's  the  way  a  boy  saw  it. 

After  our  com  was  laid  by,  James  Thombrugh  was  employed  to  teach  school 
and  they  built  a  log  schoolhouse  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  east  of  the  Buffalo 
Mills,  and  we  had  a  pretty  full  school.  There  were  few  families  in  the  neigh- 
borhood, but  they  were  the  kind  that  counted  in  making  a  school.  The  school 
was  run  for  six  weeks  and  was  then  closed  on  account  of  more  pressing  duties 
— hay  making  and  com  cutting.  Henry  Evans*  is  the  only  one  now  living  in  the 
county  that  I  know  of  besides  myself  that  attended  that  school. 

Five  of  the  settlers,  my  father  among  them,  went  up  the  Coon  River  that  fall 
on  a  bee  hunt,  naming  small  streams  and  localities  from  incidents  of  the  trip,  some 
of  which  I  can  now  recall  as  Johnson's  Defeat,  where  Felt  Johnson  got  lost  one 
day  while  out  bee  hunting  and  did  not  find  camp  until  nearly  morning ;  Wilkinspn 
Fork,  where  the  only  bee  tree  my  father  found  was  stolen  and  cut  by  other 

*  Henry  Evans  and  the  w/iter  of  this  article  both  are  dead. 


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282  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

hunters ;  McKinzie*s  Paradise,  probably  from  the  old  gentleman's  genial  disposition 
and  jolly  ways ;  Bilderback's  Success,  where  Eph  Bilderback  found  about  as  many 
bee  trees  in  one  day  as  any  other  man  in  the  crowd  found  on  the  whole  trip. 
They  found  and  cut  over  eighty  bee  trees  and  brought  home  a  fine  lot  of  honey, 
which  they  strained  and  took  to  St.  Joe,  Missouri,  sold  and  got  their  supplies  for 
the  winter — a  sack  of  salt  each,  a  bushel  or  so  of  coffee,  some  sugar,  some  dried 
fruit  and  some  other  necessaries  for  their  families,  and  if  they  had  not  gotten 
them  that  way  I  do  not  know  how  they  would  have  gotten  them. 

They  returned  from  St.  Joe  on  the  night  of  the  2d  of  December,  1848,  and  that 
night  the  big  snow  began  to  fall.  On  the  morning  of  the  3d  the  snow  was  about 
four  inches  deep  and  by  evening  it  was  about  flank  deep  to  a  horse  and  it  kept  on 
snowing  without  any  wind  or  bluster  for  some  time.  I  have  never  seen  as  much 
snow  on  the  ground  at  any  other  time  as  there  was  that  winter  and  I  never  saw 
the  snow  piled  as  high  in  the  forks  of  the  trees  as.it  was  then.  The  snow  lay 
on  the  ground  until  in  April,  and  when  we  commenced  to  make  sugar  the  next 
spring  it  was  knee  deep  in  the  timber  and  by  the  time  the  snow  disappeared  sugar 
making  was  done.  There  was  no  frost  in  the  ground.  This  was  before  the  town 
(Winterset)  was  made.  In  the  summer  of '1848  A.  D.  Jones  set  up  a  store  at  the 
Narrows,  as  it  was  called  (Tileville),  and  was  the  first  postmaster  in  the  county. 
We  used  to  go  there  for  the  mail  and  to  trade  a  little  and  we  thought  "A.  D." 
ought  to  have  the  county  seat,  which  was  being  much  talked  of  about  this  time. 
"A  D."  was  a  great  favorite  among  the  boys,  but  the  old  men  put  the  town  right 
out  in  the  prairie  grass  and  not  a  shade  tree  in  sight — ^an  awful  mean  trick  as  the 
boys  saw  it. 

The  town  was  located  in  the  summer  of  1849.  The  commissioners  met  to  niame 
it  some  time  in  July.  It  was  quite  chilly  for  the  time  of  year.  A.  D.  Jones  was  the 
commissioners'  clerk.  They  talked  about  the  name ;  one  proposed  Independence, 
another  Summerset,  but  the  third  thought  they  had  better  call  it  Winterset.  That 
raised  a  big  laugh  and  **A.  D."  wrote  Winterset,  in  his  splendid  hand,  and  held  it 
^p  for  their  inspection.  The  commissioners  liked  the  name.  They  passed  the 
flask,  set  it  down,  and  Winterset  was  made  the  town. 

ON  HOOSIER  PRAIRIE 

The  following  paper  was  read  by  W.  S.  Wilkinson,  of  Scott  Township,  at  a 
meeting  of  the  Madison  County  Historical  Society  : 

Early  in  the  spring  of  1847  ^V  oldest  brother,  Alfred,  came  from  Davis  County, 
Iowa,  with  one  horse  to  Fort  Des  Moines  and  rented  twenty  acres  of  ground  of 
Mr.  Lamb,  about  where  the  starch  factory  now  stands.  He  planted  it  in  com, 
agreeing  to  give  one-half  of  it  in  rent. 

About  the  first  of  June  my  father,  with  the  rest  of  the  family,  followed,  but 
being  stopped  by  high  water  we  remained  in  Marion  County  for  some  time,  not 
reaching  the  neighborhood  of  the  Forks,  as  the  union  of  the  Raccoon  and  Des 
Moines  rivers  was  then  usually  called,  until  towards  fall.  We  lived  that  fall 
and  winter  on  Four  Mile  Creek,  about  six  miles  northeast  of  the  Forks.  During 
the  winter  reports  came  to  us  of  this  country  up  here,  that  it  was  a  fine  place,  good 
soil,  nice  rolling  prairies,  plenty  of  good  timber  along  the  streams,  and  the  prin- 
cipal undergrowth  was  rattlesnakes.  On  our  arrival  we  found  plenty  of  the 
"undergrowth." 


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LEWIS  CEAWFORD 

Came  to  Madison  County  in   1853. 
A  Mexican  war  veteran. 


W.  S.  WILKINSON  SAMUEL  SNYDER 

Came  to  Madison  County  in   1848.  First     mail     carrier     in     Madison 
Veteran    of    the    Civil    war.      Wrote  County.       Carried     mail     from     Des 
several     papers     for     the     Historical  Moines  to  Montpelier,  the  first  post- 
Society  which  appear  in  the  Madison  office  in  Madison  County,  in  1848. 
County    History. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  283 

Early  in  the  spring  of  1848  my  father  and  brother,  Thomas,  came  to  Madison 
County  to  locate  a  claim  and  built  a  cabin  within  a  few  steps  of  a  nice  spring 
just  one  and  a  half  miles  north  of  the  center  of  Scott  Township.  They  covered 
the  cabin  in  the  usual  way  with  clapboards  and  weight  poles,  but  running  short 
of  boards  they  covered  a  small  patch  with  elm  bark.  One-half  of  the  floor  was 
laid  with  puncheon  split  from  linn  logs  and  smoothed  with  a  broad  ax ;  the  other 
half  was  laid  with  bark  placed  flat  on  the  ground.  A  stick  and  mud  chimney 
was  built  with  a  stone  wall  and  jambs  for  a  fireplace. 

My  father  and  brother  then  returned  and  removed  the  family  from  Polk 
County  as  soon  as  the  stock  could  live  on  the  grass.  We  started  about  the  20th  of 
April,  1848,  with  our  cows,  sheep,  hogs,  chickens,  a  pair  of  geese  and  our  house- 
hold goods.  We  arrived  at  our  new  home  just  after  dark  on  Friday,  April  23, 
1848.  The  next  day  we  unloaded  our  wagon  and  fixed  things  for  housekeepihg, 
while  our  stock  grazed  on  the  grass.  The  next  day  being  Sunday,  we  rested  and 
viewed  the  landscape  o*er.  On  Monday  morning  we  went  to  work  clearing  a  piece 
of  timber  land  to  plant  in  corn,  our  horse  team  not  being  able  to  turn  the  prairie 
sod.  We  put  in  eight  or  ten  acres  of  com  and  later  planted  a  good  patch  of 
potatoes,  cabbage  and  other  vegetables.  Our  com  when  cut  up  made  a  fine  lot 
of  feed,  but  the  grain  was  not  well  matured  on  account  of  being  planted  so  late. 

After  the  crops  were  tended  the  settlers  began  to  pay  some  attention  to  school- 
ing their  children.  They  built  a  log  cabin  for  a  schoolhouse  just  east  of  the 
Buffalo  Mills,  in  what  is  now  Eli  Wright's  field,  and  hired  James  Thombrugh  to 
teach  a  term  of  school.  He  commenced  some  time  in  August  and  taught  six 
weeks.  The  fall  work  coming  on,  he  closed  the  school  until  winter,  but  the  snow 
was  so  deep  that  winter  that  the  children  could  not  go,  so  he  never  finished  the 
term.  That  was  the  first  school  taught  in  the  county.  The  pupils  attending  that 
term  as  well  as  I  can  remember  them  were:  Absalom,  Daniel,  Thomas,  Aaron, 
Ann  and  Emeline  McKinzie ;  Louisa,  Rebecca  and  Joseph  Thombrugh ;  James  and 
Ann  Crawford ;  Will  and  Jack  Hart ;  Henry  Evans,  Will  Butler,  Miles  Casebier, 
Thomas,  Margaret,  David  and  W.  S.  Wilkinson.  I  think  there  were  two  or  three 
others,  but  I  cannot  recall  their  names.  Of  the  above  only  two  are  living  in  this 
county :  Henry  Evans  and  myself.  Two  are  living  in  Kansas,  one  in  Washington, 
two  in  Oregon  and  one  in  Rock  Island,  Illinois.  A  year  or  so  later  some  school 
districts  were  marked  off  and  the  Roger  schoolhouse,  in  Scott  Township,  was 
built.  Mrs.  Danforth,  mother  of  Chal  and  William  Danforth,  taught  the  first 
school  there. 

That  fall  my  father  and  some  of  the  neighbors  went  on  a  bee  hunt  up  the 
Coon  River.  They  found  and  cut  eighty  bee  trees  and  brought  home  a  fine  lot  of 
honey.  After  straining  it,  they  hauled  it  to  St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  and  traded  it 
for  their  winter  supply  of  groceries.  Had  they  not  secured  their  provisions  in 
that  way,  I  do  not  know  how  they  would  have  got  them.  They  returned  on  the 
2d  of  December,  1848,  and  the  next  morning  the  snow  was  about  four  inches  deep. 
It  continued  to  snow  until  it  became  a  big  snow — the  deepest  I  ever  saw.  It  must 
have  been  at  least  three  feet  on  the  level — some  said  it  was  more.  The  settlers 
could  not  keep  the  road  broken  through  that  sn6w,  not  even  to  the  mill.  They  kept 
tracks  broken 'from  house  to  house,  so  they  could  go  on  horseback,  and  their 
milling  was  done  in  that  way. 

During  the  summer  of  1848  Hart  &  Hinkley  built  a  little  grist  mill  on  the  site 


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284  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

where  the  Buffalo  Mills  afterwards  stood.  They  started  some  time  in  the  fall.  It 
was  a  small  affair,  but  it  answered  the  settlers*  purpose  well  that  winter  of  the 
deep  snow.  I  do  not  know  how  they  could  have  gotten  along  without  the  mill. 
They  could  grind  nothing  but  com — in  fact,  there  was  nothing  else  to  grind  that 
winter.  The  next  season  I  think  they  had  some  buckwheat  and  possibly  a  very 
little  wheat  to  grind.  The  millers  got  some  kind  of  a  screen  to  sieve  their  buck- 
wheat. They  called  it  a  sarse ;  I  do  not  know  what  it  was  like ;  probably  the  real 
name  was  sarcenet,  a  hand  bolt  made  of  sarcenet  silk.  Of  course  we  did  not  get 
good  flour  but  it  was  a  change  from  corn  bread. 

I  think  the  first  Sunday  school  in  the  county  was  organized  in  the  summer  of 
1848,  at  the  house  of  Levi  Bishop,  in  Scott  Township.  Sam  Fleener  was  super- 
intendent and  Mrs.  Bishop  teacher.  They  did  not  confine  their  instruction  to  the 
scriptures  alone,  but  taught  the  little  folks  their  letters,  spelling  and  reading.  The 
books  used  were  the  spelling  book  and  Testament. 

The  first  bridge  in  this  county  was  built  in  the  fall  and  winter  of  1854-5, 
across  Middle  River,  where  the  Indianola  and  Winterset  road  crossed  that  stream 
in  Scott  Township,  now  known  as  the  Holliwell  Bridge.  Madison  County  paid 
John  McCartney  $500  for  building  it.  The  bridge  was  a  forty  foot  span  with  a 
framed  approach  at  each  end.  It  was  a  frame  bridge  with  double  bents  at  each 
end  of  the  spans  twenty-two  feet  high.  The  timbers  of  this  bridge  were  hewn 
sixteen  inches  square.  The  stringers  of  the  main  span  were  forty-four  feet  long 
to  lap  at  the  ends  on  the  bents.  The  framed  approaches  at  each  end  were  twenty 
feet  long.    The  bridge  was  finished  early  in  the  spring  of  1855. 

THE  BUFFALO  MILLS 

By  W.  S.  Wilkinson 

When  the  first  settlers  came  to  this  county,  the  nearest  mill  to  them  was  the 
old  Parmalee  Mill,  near  the  mouth  of  Middle  River,  about  fourteen  miles  south- 
east of  Des  Moines,  and  when  that, mill  was  closed  for  repairs,  or  for  any  cause, 
as  was  sometimes  the  case,  they  had  to  go  farther  on,  often  as  far  as  Oskaloosa, 
some  eighty  or  ninety  miles,  and  sometimes  to  Missouri,  near  St.  Joe.  So  in  the 
spring  of  1848,  Hart  and  Hinkley  commenced  the  erection  of  a  little  grist  mill  on 
the  site  where  the  Buffalo  Mills  afterwards  stood — the  first  mill  built  in  the 
county.  • 

They  put  up  a  building  of  logs  and  covered  it  with  clapboards,  on  the  east 
bank  of  the  river,  with  the  fore-bay  under  the  west  end  of  the  building.  I  don't 
know  how  they  built  a  fore-bay  without  any  sawed  lumber.  They  must  have  built 
it  of  hewed  timbers,  for  there  was  no  lumber  made  in  the  county  at  that  time. 

The  mill  dam  was  what  was  called  a  brush,  or  log  dam.  They  cut  small 
trees  and  trimmed  the  limbs  off  the  body,  leaving  the  brush  on  the  top.  These 
trees  were  then  laid  side  by  side  across  the  bed  of  the  stream  for  a  foundation  for 
the  dam.  Then  the  log  part  was  built  across  twelve  or  fifteen  feet  above  the  butt- 
ends  of  these  trees,  so  that  they  would  form  an  apron  to  prevent  the  water  from 
undermining  the  dam.  The  old  brush  dams  were  substantial  when  the  brush  got 
set  in  the  mud,  if  the  banks  were  made  secure,  but  they  were  leaky  old  things 
and  let  too  much  water  pass  through. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  285 

Hart  and  Hinkley  worked  pretty  steady  at  the  mill  that  summer,  and  the 
settlers  turned  out  to  help  in  any  way  they  could,  and  after  their  crops  were  laid 
by,  they  had  more  time  to  give  the  needed  assistance. 

I  do  not  remember  what  time  they  started  the  mill ;  I  think  it  was  not  much 
before  the  first  of  October  and  perhaps  a  little  later  than  that  date.  They  com- 
menced to  grind  some  corn  before  they  had  their  millhouse  entirely  inclosed,  and 
one  night  when  the  roof  was  about  half  on,  the  men  were  in  the  mill  busy  grinding 
a  grist  of  com  for  some  hungry  settler,  when  there  came  up  a  little  wind- 
storm and  blew  off  what  roof  they  had  over  their  works  and  sent  the  clapboards 
and  weight  poles  flying  around  so  lively  that  it  gave  the  mill  men  such  a  scare 
that  the  boys  had  the  laugh  on  them  for  weeks  afterwards.  But  the  settlers 
came  to  their  aid  the  next  morning  and  before  forty-eight  hours  they  had  their 
mill  roof  secure  against  any  ordinary  storm. 

Andy  Hart  was  a  large,  strong  man,  I  should  judge  about  thirty-five  years 
old,  able  to  do  any  amount  of  hard  work,  but  I  think  he  was  no  mechanic. 

Mr.  Hinkley  was  a  man  well  up  in  years,  as  old  a  man  perhaps  as  there  was  in 
the  county  at  that  time,  but  he  was  a  fine  workman.  He  made  the  water  wheel, 
shaft  and  cog-wheels  that  run  the  mill,  and  had  to  take  every  piece  out  of  the 
tree,  for  there  was  no  sawmill,  not  even  a  whipsaw  in  the  county  at  that  time 
that  I  know  of. 

When  we  think  of  the  conditions  that  prevailed  at  that  time,  I  cannot  help 
but  think  that  these  men  did  the  very  best  thing  that  could  have  been  done  at  that 
time  for  the  settlers  of  this  county. 

That  was  the  winter  of  the  deep  snow.  I  have  never  seen  as  much  snow  on 
the  ground  at  any  other  time  as  there  was  that  winter,  and  it  lay  on  till  April. 
The  settlers  could  not  keep  the  road  broken  to  the  mill.  They  kept  a  track  broken 
where  they  could  keep  in  the  timber,  so  they  could  go  on  horseback,  and  the 
milling  was  mostly  done  that  way  during  that  winter. 

I  heard  of  rpen  taking  grain  to  mill  that  winter  on  a  handsled  over  the  crusted 
snow  where  they  had  to  cross  the  prairie  for  some  distance.  If  they  had  not  had 
the  little  mill,  I  do  not  know  what  they  would  have  done  that  winter. 

Hart  and  Hinkley  run  the  mill  about  a  year  and  sold  it  to  Casebier  and  Sim- 
mons, who  afterwards  took  in  James  Thombrugh  as  partner.  I  think  this  deal 
was  made  in  the  fall  of  1849.  The  new  firm  commenced  immediately  the  erection 
of  a  sawmill  on  the  west  side  of  the  river  and  commenced  to  saw  lumber,  but  the 
high  water  in  June,  1851,  washed  the  sawmill  out  and  they  then  put  it  on  the  east 
side  of  the  river  joining  on  to  the  south  side  of  the  grist  mill.  They  also  remodeled 
the  grist  mill  and  put  in  bolts  and  commenced  grinding  wheat.  By  this  time  the 
mill  was  doing  considerable  business.  The  town  of  Winterset  was  starting  and 
there  was  a  lively  demand  for  all  the  lumber  and  breadstuflfs  the  mill  could  fur- 
nish. 

Among  the  early  settlers  of  this  county  were  some  very  strong  men  who  liked 
at  times  to  show  off  their  physical  powers.  And  when  Casebier  &  Company 
remodeled  the  grist  mill,  they  took  out  the  mill  shaft  that  Hart  and  Hinkley  had 
put  in  and  it  lay  around  in  the  millyard  for  a  number  of  years,  serving  as  an 
object  upon  which  these  men  could  test  their  strength.  I  think  Ab.  McKinzie 
was  the  champion,  but  he  had  several  very  able  competitors.  I  do  not  think  it 
would  have  caused  very  much  jealousy  among  the  early  settlers  of  this  county  if 


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286  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

the  statement  had  been  made  at  that  time  that  I  make  now,  that  Ab.  McKinzie 
was  probably  the  strongest  man,  physically,  that  ever  lived  in  the  county. 

James  Thombrugh,  one  of  the  partners  in  the  mill,  died  in  December,  1851, 
and  early  in  the  next  year,  I  think  it  was,  William  Compton  bought  the  mill 
property.  He  took  possession  and  commenced  immediately  a  vigorous  prosecution 
of  his  affairs,  which  he  kept  up  as  long  as  he  managed  the  business.  He  had  been 
in  business  in  Winterset  ever  since  the  town  started  and  had  worked  up  a 
profitable  trade,  a  good  share  of  which  he  held  after  moving  to  the  mill. 

On  taking  charge  of  the  business  here,  he  built  a  residence  just  east  of  the  mill, 
in  the  side  of  the  bluff  where  the  cedar  trees  he  planted  still  stand.  He  dug  a 
basement  about  sixteen  by  thirty-two  feet,  and  made  the  walls  of  the  lower  story 
of  stone  and  put  a  frame  building  over  it  of  the  same  size.  The  house  was 
divided  into  four  rooms,  two  above  and  two  below.  There  was  a  large  stone  chim- 
ney and  fireplace  at  each  end  of  the  house — stoves  were  not  so  plentiful  then  as 
they  are  now — and  a  double  porch  on  the  west,  the  full  length  of  the  building  and 
seven  feet  deep,  and  when  neatly  balustered  and  painted,  made  quite  an  imposing 
appearance  at  that  early  day.  Viewed  from  the  mill  and  highway,  and  when 
enlarged,  as  it  afterwards  was,  and  in  its  time  flanked  on  the  east  and  north  by  a 
splendid  apple  orchard  and  vineyard,  it  made  a  very  desirable  home  for  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Compton  and  the  large  family  they  there  reared. 

They  entered  the  upper  part  from  the  level  of  the  ground  on  the  east,  and 
the  lower  part  from  the  level  on  the  west.  The  two  upper  rooms  were  used  for 
living  and  sleeping  rooms,  and  the  lower  south  room  was  the  kitchen.  Many  a  nice 
batch  of  corn  dodger  has  been  baked  in  the  skillet  at  that  fireplace.  The  north 
lower  room  was  used  at  first  for  a  storeroom.  Mr.  Compton  put  in  a  mixed 
stock  of  goods — some  groceries  and  dry  goods,  and  some  wet  goods,  too. 

The  increasing  population  from  immigration  soon  so  increased  the  demand 
for  material  that  Mr.  Compton,  in  order  to  meet  that  demand,  as  far  as  possible, 
run  his  mills  day  and  night,  whenever  he  had  the  water  to  do  so.  And  in  order  to 
increase  his  water  supply,  he  improved  his  mill  dam  and  raised  it  considerably 
higher,  against  the  protest  of  some  landowners  up  the  river,  who  brought  suit 
for  damages,  but  Mr.  Compton  was  always  the  successful  party  in  the  suit. 

After  Compton  took  possession  of  the  property,  he  kept  a  competent  mechanic 
employed  most  of  the  time.  His  first  mechanic  was  Steven  Divilbliss,  who  I 
think  stayed  about  one  year.  He  was  said  to  be  a  master  workman.  Then 
Charles  Rice  came  for  about  that  length  of  time  I  think.  Then  came  Judge 
Smalley  who  remained  as  long  perhaps  as  Compton  needed  a  steady  workman. 
Some  of  the  regular  hands  in  the  mill  were  Sam  Crawford,  miller,  who  worked 
for  several  years,  and  Mr.  Wright,  laborer,  who  stayed  as  long  as  he  was  able  to 
do  an)rthing. 

J.  B.  Lamb  was  a  regular,  standby  for  many  years.  He  commenced  about 
1855  ^^d  remained  as  long  as  Compton  owned  the  mill.  Then  there  is  Philip 
Moore,  now  approaching  seventy-five  years,  who  commenced  work  in  the  mill 
when  a  boy  and  stayed  with  it  as  long  as  a  wheel  turned,  and  although  his  home  is 
now  beyond  the  "Big  Muddy,"  he  may  occasionally  be  seen  on  the  old  stamping 
ground.  In  1856,  Mr.  Compton  installed  steam  power  and  used  both  steam  and 
water  power  when  necessary. 

From  this  time  on  the  capacity,  as  well  as  the  popularity,  of  the  Buffalo  Mills 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  287 

was  on  the  increase.  The  flour  went  into  several  counties  of  Southern  Iowa, 
and  teams  were  run  regularly,  hauling  flour  from  this  mill  into  that  territory  until 
the  railroads  were  built  through  that  section.  Mr.  Compton  continued  in  the 
business  until  some  time  in  the  '70s,  when  his  health  began  to  fail.  He  sold  to 
Vermillion  and  Kleatsch,  and  retired  from  active  business. 

The  new  firm  kept  the  mill  well  up  to  its  former  reputation,  until  it  was  de- 
stroyed by  a  cyclone  in  the  summer  of  1880.  After  the  destruction  of  the  old 
mill,  it  was  rebuilt  on  a  more  modem  plan  and  lost,  in  a  measure,  the  pioneer 
character  of  its  former  days. 

It  seems  proper  this  paper  should  close  here.  Judge  Lewis,  one  of  the  pro- 
prietors of  the  new  mill,  is  still  with  us  and  is  much  more  vigorous  in  body  and 
mind,  and  more  capable  of  furnishing  at  some  future  time,  a  supplementary  paper 
on  the  rebuilding  and  final  downfall  of  that  dear  old  landmark. 

With  a  few  words  on  the  surroundings  of  the  old  mill,  I  must  close.  During 
the  early  prosperity  of  the  Buflfalo  Mills,  there  were  other  branches  of  business 
carried  on  in  the  same  vicinity  for  many  years.  A  store  was  kept  by  some  one 
about  ^all  the  time  until  after  the  war,  and  at  times  a  blacksmith  shop  and  wood 
repair  shop,  and  at  one  time,  a  brickyard  was  run  for  several  years.  About  the 
time  of  the  Civil  war,  the  old  water  power  sawmill  was  taken  out  and  that  build- 
ing was  turned  into  a  wool  carding  machine.  All  these  different  branches  of 
business  employed  a  number  of  men  in  addition  to  those  in  the  mills,  and  in  the 
timber,  furnishing  logs  to  the  saw  and  wood  to  run  the  engines. 

These  men  were  mostly  settled  around  near  the  mill  and  formed  a  settlement 
of  perhaps  thirty  families,  a  majority  of  whom  owned  their  house  and  grounds, 
large  or  small.  The  settlement  was  important  in  itself  and  assumed  the  char- 
acter of  an  unorganized  village,  going  by  the  name  of  Buflfalo. 

In  the  district  there  were  at  least  seventy-five  or  one  hundred  children  of 
school  age — the  largest  school  in  the  township,  and  perhaps  the  largest  country 
school  in  the  county — but  since  the  mill  has  gone  down,  it  has  shrunk  to  about  an 
average  of  the  district  schools. 


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CHAPTER  XXXIV 
DOUGLAS   TOWNSHIP 

That  part  of  the  county,  of  which  Douglas  is  now  a  component  part,  early  at- 
tracted settlers,  and  some  of  the  first  white  men  to  set  their  stakes  with  the  purpose 
of  making  Madison  County  their  future  home  located  here.  The  township  was 
organized  in  1861  and  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  Madison,  on  the  south  by 
Lincoln,  on  the  east  by  Union  and  on  the  west  by  Jackson  townships.  Like  Union, 
it  is  divided  up  into  very  desirable  proportions  of  timber  and  prairie  land.  North 
River  and  Cedar  Creek  pass  through  it,  flowing  from  west  to  eaat.  Numerous 
springs  and  streams  also  exist  in  various  portions  of  it.  Nature  seems  to  have 
been  lavish  with  this  section  of  the  county,  as  almost  all  over  its  entire  supface  is 
rich  fertile  land  which  has  been  so  improved  that  the  township  now  contains 
many  of  the  best  farms  under  cultivation  in  the  county. 

The  first  persons  to  Settle  in  Douglas  Township  were  the  three  Baum  brothers, 
Irvin,  Martin  and  Lewis,  the  latter  two  of  whom  were  single  men;  also  Jacob, 
William  and  Joseph  Combs  and  their  sister,  Irene  B.  Combs.  This  party  all  came 
together  from  Andrews  County,  Missouri,  in  May,  1846,  and  settled  in  the  same 
neighborhood,  in  the  east  part  of  Douglas  Township,  between  the  Cedar  and 
North  River,  with  the  exception  of  Joseph  Combs.  The  land  on  which  Jacob 
Combs  located  later  became  the  property  of  William  Forbes,  that  of  William 
Combs  where  the  widow  Evans  later  resided,  and  the  Joseph  Combs  place  finally 
found  its  way  into  the  possession  of  the  Monaghans.  The  Irvin  Baum  farm 
passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Webbs ;  Martin  Baum's  place  became  the  McDonald 
farm  near  the  Howerton  Branch  and  the  Lewis  Baun]  farm  was  where  Jacob 
Evans  later  resided.  These  people  were  all  of  the  democratic  persuasion  and 
probably  to  that  fact  may  be  ascribed  the  reason  for  the  name  given  the  township. 
Joseph  Combs  never  married  and  some  years  after  leaving  here  removed  to 
Marion  County,  where  he  died.  Jacob  Combs  sold  out  to  one  Smith  and  went 
to  Oregon.  He  later  returned  to  Iowa  and  died  in  Marion  County.  William 
Combs  removed  to  Saline  County,  Kansas,  and  finally  met  his  death  by  being  run 
over  by  a  train  near  Spokane,  Washington.  Irvin  Baum,  after  some  years'  resi- 
dence here  removed  to  Spokane  and  the  other  two  Baums  immigrated  to  Kansas. 

W.  Compton,  an  Ohioan  by  birth,  removed  to  Peoria  County,  Illinois,  and 
from  there  immigrated  to  Washington  County,  Iowa,  in  1839.  After  spending 
several  years  in  Polk  County,  he  removed  to  Madison  County  in  1849  and  located 
in  this  township  on  what  is  known  as  the  town  quarter  section  of  land.  It  is 
said  that  he  was  the  first  man  to  sell  groceries  in  Madison  County  and  he  after- 
ward bought  Hart  &  Hinkley's  mill  site  on  Middle  River  where  they  had  been  run- 
ning a  com  cracker.  He  built  on  this  fine  mill  site  the  first  grist  mill  erected  in  the 
county.  With  this  he  also  built  a  sawmill  and  installed  a  carding  machine.  For 
his  second  wife  he  married  Sarah  Knight,  in  1873. 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  289 

Robert  Evans  settled  in  this  township  in  1851,  in  the  northern  part  of  the 
township,  where  he  lived  and  died,  as  did  also  his  wife. 

The  township  had  not  long  been  settled  before  James  Musgrave  arrived 
from  Indiana.  He  settled  on  section  i  in  this  township  in  January,  1852,  and  in 
i860  built  a  bam  40  by  60  feet,  with  an  eight-foot  basement,  which  was  considered 
at  the  time  to  be  the  largest  structure  of  its  kind  in  the  county. 

E.  Bennett  was  a  settler  in  the  county  as  early  as  185 1,  coming  from  Marion 
County,  Indiana.    He  married  Mary  J.  Leech  in  1857. 

R.  P.  Bruce  also  settled  here  in  185 1.  He  was  a  native  of  Kentucky  but  had 
lived  seventeen  years  in  Illinois  prior  to  coming  to  Madison  County.  F.  M. 
Bruce  came  with  his  parents  at  the  same  time.  He  enlisted  in  the  Fourth  Iowa 
Cavalry  and  served  three  years. 

B.  F.  Cooper  was  bom  in  Putnam  County,  Indiana,  in  1851,  and  came  to 
Madison  County  in  1857,  with  his  parents.  He  married  Miss  Mary  C.  McCleary 
in  1879.    She  was  bom  in  Madison  County. 

J.  S.  Goshom  was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  who  came  to  the  State  of  Iowa 
in  1852  and  located  in  this  township  in  1856.  He  enlisted  in  the  Fourth  Iowa  In- 
fantry for  the  Civil  war  and  served  as  second  lieutenant  of  Company  F.  Within 
ten  months  he  was  honorably  discharged  and  enlisted  in  the  Forty-seventh  Iowa 
Infantry  and  was  commissioned  captain  of  Company  E.  He  held  the  office  of 
county  superintendent  of  schools.  His  son,  Arthur  E.,  is  the  present  postmaster 
and  editor  of  the  News  at  Winterset. 

W.  H.  Lewis  came  to  Iowa  with  his  parents  in  1849  from  Chautauqua  County, 
New  York.  He  was  raised  on  a  farm,  read  law  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1865, 
but  only  practiced  his  profession  a  short  time.  He  later  started  a  nursery  in  this 
township,  to  which  he  has  given  a  great  part  of  his  attention.  He  served  an  un- 
expired term  as  county  judge  by  appointment,  was  county  commissioner  several 
terms  and  superintendent  of  the  construction  of  the  courthouse  and  other  build- 
ings of  the  county. 

F.  M.  McDaniel  came  to  Madison  County  from  Indiana  in  1852,  and  located 
here.    He  married  Miss  Sarah  Sturman  in  1859. 

Matthew  M.  McGee,  a  native  of  Ireland,  immigrated  to  the  United  States  in 
1831,  first  settled  in  Ohio,  and  thence  in  1854  located  here,  becoming  one  of  the 
large  landowners  of  the  community.  His  attention  was  paid  largely  to  the  rais- 
ing and  feeding  of  stock. 

Edwin  Peed  was  one  of  the  Indianians  who  located  in  the  county  in  1856.  He 
settled  on  section  4  on  land,  part  of  which  he  entered  in  1853. 

D.  Applegate  was  quite  an  early  settler  in  this  township,  coming  in  1858  from 
Tmmbull  County,  Ohio.  He  enlisted  in  the  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry  in  the 
Civil  war  and  served  three  years.  Two  of  his  sons,  Andrew  and  Allen,  enlisted  in 
Company  I,  Fourth  Iowa  Cavalry,  and  served  until  the  close  of  the  war.  Allen 
was  on  picket  duty  on  his  fifteenth  birthday. 

George  Bardrick  settled  on  section  25  in  1854  and  became  a  large  landowner. 
In  writing  of  this  township  upon  one  occasion,  Prof.  E.  R.  Zeller  had  the  follow- 
ing to  say :  "The  natural  topographical  conditions  here  were  such  as  to  require 
much  hard  work  to  make  a  beginning.  The  Dabneys,  Applegates,  F.  M.  Bmce, 
M.  M.  McGee,  Edwin  Peed,  H.  W.  Laizure,  J.  W.  Cline,  J.  W.  Thompson^ 
McDonalds,  the  Allgeyers,  Sulgroves,  Abrahams,  Chases,  Coxes,  Eyerlys,  the 

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290  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Rogans,  Rehards,  Ruths,  Hayes,  James  Monaghan  and  F.  M.  McDaniel  were  there 
to  meet  the  exigencies.  The  Clarks,  Getchells,  S.  A.  Ellis  and  the  Abrahams  sub- 
dued the  forests  and  hazel  brush,  where  is  now  the  Rhyno  ranch,  and  to  the 
south  W.  H.  Lewis  and  J.  S.  Goshom  made  the  wilderness  blossom  as  the  dahlia. 
Mr.  Lewis'  efforts  have  without  doubt  brought  more  tangible  results  than  those  of 
most  any  other  one  in  the  county. 

"J-  C.  Wilson  was  a  man  of  positive  character  and  so  was  J.  F.  Buchanan,  at 
one  time  a  member  of  the  board  of  supervisors.  George  Johnson  and  Joseph 
Comp  have  been  largely  useful  in  later  times,  while  the  Kinsman  family  stands 
out  prominently  in  its  moral  influence  on  the  community.  John  Norris  for  many 
years  operated  a  valuable  farm  near  Winterset  and  did  much  to  improve  the  grade 
of  cattle,  and  no  one  was  more  familiarly  known  than  David  Gilliland.  Besides  the 
Rhyno  ranch,  there  is  the  large  and  beautiful  stock  farm  improved,  owned  and 
operated  for  a  half  century  by  Richard  Bruce,  and  later  managed  by  the  Orris 
brothers." 

Jonathan  Myers  and  Martin  Ruby  put  up  a  steam  sawmill  in  1855  ^^^  turned 
out  a  great  deal  of  lumber  for  the  settlers.  The  mill  finally  reverted  to  Samuel 
Kirkland,  who  conducted  it  successfully  for  many  years.  Church  organizations, 
Sunday  schools  and  school  houses  came  into  existence  as  soon  as  the  settlers  pro- 
vided for  their  immediate  necessities.  West  Star  Church  has  a  large  congrega- 
tion. 

The  log  house  put  up  by  Irvin  Baum  was  18  by  20  feet  in  ground  dimensions, 
but  was  the  largest  house  in  the  county  at  that  time.  Unfortunately,  it  was 
burned  to  the  ground  a  few  days  after  it  had  been  finished.  His  neighbors  a  few 
days  afterwards,  without  giving  any  notice  came  to  his  assistance  and  helped  him 
erect  another  good,  substantial  home. 

Those  were  the  days  when  the  term  neighbor  had  a  real  significance  and 
there  was  no  exclusiveness  between  settlers.  Even  though  they  might  live  miles 
apart  they  were  neighbors  and  shared  with  each  other  without  stint  or  grudg- 
ngness.  Here  is  another  instance  of  what  real  neighborliness  is :  In  1847  William 
Combs'  fence  was  destroyed  by  fire  while  he  was  absent  in  Missouri.  His  neigh- 
bors gathered  together  on  Sunday  and  replaced  the  fence  by  a  new  one,  thus 
saving  his  crops  from  being  destroyed  by  stock,  which  in  those  days  ran  at  large 
generally. 

The  winter  of  1855  was  a  very  severe  one  and  the  snow  lay  deep  upon  the 
ground.  The  mercury  was  down  below  zero  and  froze  a  crust  on  top  of  the  snow 
thick  and  hard,  so  as  to  make  it  impracticable  for  horses  to  travel.  The  severity 
of  the  weather  continued  so  long  that  some  of  the  settlers  became  short  of 
food,  whereupon  Jacob  Combs,  William  Combs,  Irvin  and  Lewis  Baum  made  up 
a  party  and  with  their  teams  started  for  Compton's  Mill  on  Middle  River.  The 
journey  was  an  extremely  difficult  and  rather  dangerous  one,  as  they  were  obliged 
to  beat  the  snow  with  wooden  mauls  all  the  way  to  their  destination.  It  was  only 
by  this  means  that  the  horses  were  enabled  to  travel. 

A  PRIMITIVE  SCHOOL 

While  gathering  material  for  his  proposed  history  of  Madison  County,  the 
late  A.  J.  Hoisington  prepared  the  following  description  of  the  first  schoolhouse 
in  Douglas  Township,  which  was  about  three  miles  due  north  of  Winterset : 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  291 

"It  would  be  interesting  and  valuable  historical  information  for  all  time  to 
come  if  we  had  complete  records  and  descriptions  of  the  first  and  early  common 
schools  in  the  several  townships  of  the  county.  There  are  those  yet  Hving  who 
can  furnish  much  of  it  if  they  woyld  do  so,  and  besides  there  are  many  scraps  of 
records  lying  around  loose  that  should  be  gathered.  Persons  in  the  several  town- 
ships and  school  districts  should  interest  themselves  and  do  this  work. 

*1  beHeve  that  to  William  Garrett  belongs  the  credit  of  organizing  and  teach- 
ing the  first  school  north  of  Winterset,  although  the  Guiberson  School  in  Union 
Township  comes  in  close  to  that  period.  Mr.  Garrett  arrived  in  Madison  County 
in  October,  1849,  from  Hendricks  County,  Indiana.  He  came  with  a  small 
colony  led  by  John  Hooten,  who  settled  in  (now)  Lincoln  Township  and  became 
one  of  the  prominent  characters  and  active  citizens  of  the  county.  Mr.  Garrett 
at  once  obtained  employment  with.  George  Homback  and  W.  B.  Hopkins,  then 
two  active  citizens,  and  aided  them  in  opening  up  what  was  afterward  long  known 
as  the  James  Farm,  the  second  farm  east  of  the  long  time  Boyles  place.  Garrett 
made  about  the  first  Government  land  entry  in  Madison  Township,  the  same  being 
for  160  acres  in  section  28.  During  March  of  that  year  he  and  Jacob  Fry  dug  and 
walled  a  well  in  Winterset  for  William  Compton,  near  where  the  soldiers'  monu- 
ment stands.  He  and  Fry  have  made  the  claim  that  this  was  the  first  completed 
and  walled  well  in  Winterset.    The  town  was  surveyed  the  July  before. 

"In  the  fall  of  1850  Garrett  went  back  to  Indiana  on  a  visit.  He  returned  to 
Madison  County  in  December,  185 1,  and  immediately  opened  a  subscription 
school,  in  a  vacant  log  cabin  about  three  and  a  quarter  miles  due  north  of  Winter- 
set,  on  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  13,  in  Douglas,  and  near  the  center  of  the 
quarter.  The  cabin  had  been  built  by  Silas  Bams  in  1848.  In  1850  he  sold  the 
claim  to  W.  B.  Hopkins,  who  built  a  better  house  some  forty  rods  farther  south 
and  oflFered  the  vacant  cabin  for  schoolroom  purposes.  The  cabin  was  14x16 
feet,  had  a  clapboard  door,  stick  and  clay  style  chimney  and  a  small  glass  win- 
dow on  the  south.  There  were  three  seats  made  of  slabs  obtained  at  William 
Combs'  sawmill,  northwest  on  North  River.  Fuel  for  the  big  fireplace  was  abund- 
ant, but  the  cabin  needed  repairing.  The  patrons  and  neighbors  of  the  school  met 
Saturday  night  of  the  first  school  week  and  that  night  the  cabin  burhed  down. 
The  scholars  lost  a  portion  of  their  books.  The  textbooks  used  that  one  week 
were  McGuflfy's  first,  second  and  third  readers,  McGuflFy's  speller,  Ray's  arith- 
metic and  some  other  books.  The  school  term  lasted  but  one  week.  It  was  to  be 
a  subscription  school,  for  there  was  then  no  public  school  moneys  used.  The 
teacher  did  not  ask  any  compensation  for  the  time  taught.  He  says  the  school  was 
not  a  ^glorious  victoree'  for  any  one,  but  was  the  first  school  opened  in  what  is  now 
Douglas  Township.  Following  are  the  names  of  the  pupils  who  attended :  Perry, 
Aaron,  Noah  and  Emily  Bams;  Louisa,  Charlotte,  Mary  E.  and  Rufus  Clark; 
Barbara,  Sarah  Ann  and  Benjamin  Combs ;  L.  D.  Evans,  Samuel  Houston  Guye, 
Willis  G.,  Almira  and  Barbara  Hopkins. 

"In  the  spring  of  1852  a  school  district  was  organized  and  a  frame  schoolhouse 
erected  on  land  owned  by  Jacob  Combs.  The  schoolhouse  was  built  about  a  half 
mile  north  and  about  a  quarter  west  of  the  present  Abram  Schoolhouse.  It  was  a 
box  frame,  sided  and  ceiled  with  lumber  from  William  Combs'  sawmill,  north  on 
North  River.  Probably,  George  Gundy  was  the  carpenter.  The  room  was  14x16 
feet.    The  door  was  in  the  east  end  and  across  the  west  end  was  a  single  row  of 


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292  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

8x10  window  glass.  Under  this  row  of  glass  was  a  long  slab  table  used  for 
writing  purposes.  The  benches  to  sit  on  were  log  slabs  with  legs  made  of  round 
poles  cut  to  proper  length.    There  was  a  rough  board  floor. 

"The  directors  the  first  year  were  Jacob  Combs,  Caleb  Clark  and  David 
McCarty.  Miss  Mary  Jane  Gaff,  sister  of  Doctor  Gaff,  taught  the  first  term  in  the 
new  schoolhouse  during  June  and  July,  1852.  Mr.  Garrett  taught  the  next  term 
during  January  and  February,  1853.  The  directors  had  some  trouble  in  getting  a 
stove  to  heat  the  room.  Nearly  everybody  used  fireplaces  those  days.  Stoves  were 
not  on  the  market  hereabouts.  Finally,  Mr.  Garrett  said,  the  directors  obtained  a 
second  hand  stove  that  was  a  combination  of  fourth-rate  cooking  stove,  a  fourth- 
rate  heater  and  a  first  class  smoker.  Of  it  he  says:  *I  think  I  have  some  respect 
and  veneration  for  old  people,  old  scenes  and  old  relics,  but  I  draw  the  line  on  that 
old  stove — let  it  be  relegated  to  oblivion.' 

"The  textbooks  and  studies  that  winter  were  McGuffy's  series  of  readers  and 
spellers,  Ray's  arithmetic,  and  writing.  We  flattered  ourselves  that  we  made  some 
progress  educationally.  The  scholars  that  winter  were  as  follows :  Lydia,  Letitia 
and  Newton  Brinson;  Aaron,  Noah  and  Emily  Bams;  Rose  Baum,  Sarah  Jane 
Combs,  Louisa,  Charlotte,  Cynthia,  Mary.E.  and  Rufus  Clark;  Barbara,  Lucinda 
and  B.  F.  Combs;  Sarah  and  Mary  Etchison;  E.  J.  and  L.  D.  Evans;  Willis  G., 
Almira  and  Barbara  Hopkins;  Daniel  and  Jonathan  Myers;  Leander,  Asbury, 
Bradford  and  Nancy  McCarty;  Marshall  and  Ellen  Spurlock;  George  W.  and 
Hiram  Wolverton  and  Cassie  Bowman.  Perhaps  of  these  only  Rufus  Clark,  Mrs 
Joshua  Bennett  and  Mrs.  Stephen  James  now  live  in  Madison  County.  Daniel 
and  Jonathan  Myers  and  Hiram  Wolverton  gave  up  their  lives  to  their  country 
during  the  great  Civil  war. 

"For  teaching  that  term  of  school  Mr.  Garrett  was  given  his  board  free  by  his 
good  old  friend,  W.  B.  Hopkins,  and  $15  a  month  from  the  school  fund." 

CALEB  Clark's  stories 

The  winter  of  1848-9  was  long  after  known  as  the  **cold  winter."  Caleb  Clark 
was  then  living  on  a  claim  in  South  Township.  He  was  on^  of  the  Clanton 
colony  of  1846.  In  later  years  he  often  illustrated  how  cold  and  snowy  that 
winter  was  by  relating  the  following  story,  which  he  appeared  to  believe  really 
occurred :  He  had  a  small  bunch  of  hogs  that  were,  of  course,  the  "hazel  split- 
ter" and  "razor  back"  breed,  then  the  only  kind  in  the  county.  He  had  a  few 
acres  of  com  not  yet  gathered  when  the  early  and  deep  snow  fell.  When  the 
storm  ceased  he  looked  for  his  hogs  but  could  not  find  even  a  trace  of  them  nor 
hear  of  them  in  the  neighborhood.  More  snow  fell  and  the  com,  deeply  buried 
,  under  it,  remained  ungathered.  One  day  toward  spring  as  the  snow  began  melting 
he  started  9Ut  across  the  field  on  some  errand.  Suddenly  he  found  himself 
over  head  in  the  snow  among  a  bunch  of  hogs.  At  once  they  disappeared  from 
sight.  Floundering  around  a  while  in  the  snow  trying  to  get  out,  he  discovered 
the  snow  was  tunneled  along  the  ground  in  every  direction.  Finally  getting  out,  he 
watched  and  waited,  until  some  days  later  he  discovered  his  hogs  were  in  the  field, 
all  alive  and  fattened  for  market.  They  had  somehow  gotten  into  the  corn  during 
the  first  snow  storm  and  were  entirely  buried.  Like  moles,  they  had  made  their 
way  through  the  snow  along  the  surface  of  the  ground  for  com,  and  had  runways 


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MR.  AND  MRS.  CALEB  CLARK 


LAST   RESIDENCE    OF   CALEB   CLARK,   WINTERSET.     BUILT    IN    1855 


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TILUKN   h' 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  293 

« 

all  over  the  field.  They  ate  snow  for  drink,  and  of  course,  they  were  so  deeply 
buried  under,  they  remained  warm  all  winter  and  became  fat.  One  sow  had  a 
litter  of  pigs  bom  under  the  snow  and  they  were  blind.  He  guessed  the  reason 
and  pried  their  eyelids  apart,  putting  blinders  over  their  eyes  so  the  light  at  first 
would  not  ruin  their  sight. 

Another  story  he  used  to  relate  so  often  that  he  came  to  believe  it  himself 
was  concerning  the  browsing  of  cattle  and  horses  in  early  days.  When  hay  was 
scarce  in  winter  time  and  early  spring,  owners  of  stock  would  cut  down  certain 
trees,  so  that  the  stock  might  eat  the  buds  and  small  twigs  from  the  limbs. 
Usually,  the  stock  became  very  fond  of  this  food.  At  the  time  of  this  story 
Clark  was  living  on  a  claim  he  had  taken  near  the  Clantons  on  Clanton  Creek.  He 
had  missed  a  cow  and  could  not  find  it  anywhere.  After  several  days  of  search, 
one  day  he  went  down  to  the  creek  thinking  to  follow  the  channel  on  the  ice, 
because  it  made  easier  walking  than  through  the  deep  snow,  and  hoping  that  some- 
where down  toward  Middle  River  he  might  find  some  trace  of  his  missing  cow. 
Continuing  on  the  ice  a  long  distance  he  heard  the  lowing  of  a  cow.  Surprised, 
and  unable  to  see  the  animal,  he  listened  and  then  walked  on.  Soon  again  he 
heard  the  sound  and  closer,  but  yet  could  see  nothing  nor  tell  from  what  direction 
came  the  sound.  Finally,  after  walking  around  and  watching  closely  and  occa- 
sionally hearing  the  lowing  as  from  a  cow,  he  became  greatly  mystified,  for  surely 
by  the  sound  it  must  be  close.  He  could  plainly  see  along  the  ground  through  the 
timber  a  much  greater  distance  than  the  sound  seemed  away.  Every  time  he 
started  to  walk  the  sound  came  again  with  increasing  tones  of  distress.  He  began 
to  doubt  his  senses  and  grew  alarmed  at  his  loneliness  in  the  otherwise  silence  of 
the  woods,  miles  from  any  human  habitation  (as  he  would  tell  the  story),  wonder- 
ing if  it  might  be  a  waylaying  catamount  or  Indian  seeking  to  lure  him  on  to  his 
own  destruction,  or,  indeed,  if  he  had  not  suddenly  gone  crazy  on  the  subject  of 
his  lost  cow.  Distractedly  gazing  about,  he  happened  to  glance  upward  among  the 
tall  trees  and,  at  the  same  moment,  came  another  distressful  low.  He  thought 
he  saw  a  cow's  head  way  up  in  the  tree.  Going  closer,  there  came  another  low. 
It  surely  was  a  cow's  head  and  horns  and  voice.  He  went  up  close  to  the  tree 
and  investigated,  the  cow's  face  looking  pitifully  down  upon  him  the  while. 
He  found  that  the  cow's  head  was  sticking  out  through  a  knot  hole  of  a 
hollow  tree  at  a  high  distance  from  the  ground.  The  cow  had  wandered  through 
the  timber,  seeking  to  browse  upon  some  tree,  but  unable  to  find  one  low 
enough  to  reach  the  limbs,  had  found  a  big  hollow  slippery  elm  tree,  and  climbing 
up  inside  of  it,  she  came  to  a  knot  hole  among  the  branches.  Getting  her  head 
out  to  browse  on  the  limbs,  and  feeding  all  she  wanted,  she  was  unable  to  draw 
her  head  back  because  of  her  horns.  There,  way  up  in  the  tree,  she  had  remained 
all  those  days,  living  on  the  buds  and  tender  limbs  of  the  abundant  branches  of  the 
tree,  but  unable  to  get  down  and  go  home  over  night.  She  had  well  nigh  eaten 
off  all  the  twigs  and  bark  on  the  big  tree.  Going  back,  Clark,  as  related  by  him, 
climbed  the  outside  of  the  tree  and  cut  away  the  knot  hole  until  the  cow  could 
pull  her  head  back.  Then  she  climbed  down  the  tree  and  gladly  went  home  with 
her  master.  Ever  after  Clark  closely  guarded  his  cows  during  winter  and  early 
spring  time. 


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294  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

DOUGLAS   TOWNSHIP,   THE   LAND   OF   POETRY 

By  W.  H.  Lewis. 

Douglas  Township,  as  it  came  from  the  hand  of  its  Creator,  before  it  was  de- 
faced by  the  work  of  man,  was  a  beauty  spot  in  the  world's  occidental  Eden.  It 
resembled  its  oriental  prototype,  in  having  a  noble  river  near  one  side ;  it  excelled 
it  in  having  that  river  bordered  by  picturesque  cliffs  and  headlands,  with  the  beau- 
tiful prairies  south  of  it,  and  fringed  along  its  course  with  noble  forests. 

The  aspects  of  Nature  seem  always  to  have  influenced  the  character  of  its 
inhabitants,  as  Sir  Walter  Scott  says  of  his  homeland : 

"O  Caledonia !  stern  and  wild, 
Meet  nurse  for  a  poetic  child !" 

So  we  would  reasonably  look  for  poets  along  the  course  of  North  River. 

Up  toward  the  northwest  comer,  along  what  is  now  known  as  the  Stringtown 
road,  there  resided  in  the  early  '70s  a  band  of  brethren  associated  together  in  a 
Methodist  class.  The  old  reaper.  Death,  invaded  the  brotherhood  and  took  one 
of  them.  One  of  the  mourning  brethren  endeavored  to  partially  express  his 
appreciation  of  the  departed  one  and  his  grief  over  their  loss  in  a  poem.  It  is 
written  in  the  style  and  measure  of  Bryant's  Thanatopsis.  It  is  too  long  for 
reproduction  here,  but  a  copy  of  its  concluding  paragraph  will  give  some  idea 
of  its  character  and  its  merits.    It  ranks  high,  considered  as  unprofessional  work. 

So  let  us  live, 

That  when  our  pilgrimage  on  earth  is  done. 
And  Time  shall  toll  our  summons  to  the  skies. 
To  tranquil  pleasures  of  a  purer  realm 
We'll  part  in  peace.     Twill  not  be  very  long, 
'Til  those  who  still  survive  us  shall  pursue 
The  course  we  swiftly  run.    And  soon  again, 
We'll  meet  around  the  throne  of  God  in  heaven 
With  all  our  loved  ones  who  have  gone  before. 
To  share  the  joys  of  everlasting  life, 
And  love  immortal. 

— C.  L.  Harlan. 
Winterset,  Iowa,  June  11,  1872. 

About  the  year  1866,  an  appreciative  observer  of  the  scenery  along  the  river, 
in  the  vicinity  and  above  and  below  the  Hogback,  tried  to  express  his  apprecia- 
tion of  that  scenery  in  a  little  poem,  so  short  that  I  will  give  a  full  copy.  It  is 
one  of  those 

"Jewels,  that  on  the  stretched  forefinger  of  Time, 
Sparkle  forever." 

NORTH    RIVER 

Shall  Bums  sing  the  Afton,  the  Doon  and  the  Ayr, 
And  others  less  famous,  sing  rivers  less  fair. 
Yet  thou,  noble  North  River,  still  glide  along 
Unmentioned  in  story,  unhonored  in  song? 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  295 

Shall  landscape  so  lovely  as  seen  from  thy  hills, 
And  fountains  so  crystal  as  seek  thee  in  rills, 
And  prairies  and  woodlands  so  lovely  as  thine 
Call  no  sweeter  muse  to  their  service  than  mine  ? 

Thy  stream  winds  as  clear,  through  a  valley  as  fair, 
As  either  the  Afton,  the  Doon  or  the  Ayr, 
Yet  thou  art  unhonored,  while  they  are  renowned. 
Wherever  a  lover  of  song  can  be  found. 

No  wonder  that  murmurs  come  up  from  thy  tide, 
And  seem  all  Hesperian  poets  to  chide ; 
Such  beauty  still  calling,  yet  calling  in  vain 
For  merited  praise,  has  right  to  complain. 

Sweet  river,  thy  landscape  is  fair  to  behold ; 
Thy  vale  is  so  verdant,  thy  bluffs  are  so  bold ; 
Thy  woodlands  abounding  in  cool,  shady  bowers ; 
Thy  hill-points  ascending  in  high  rocky  towers. 

From  whose  lofty  summits,  O,  is  it  not  grand. 
Thus  sitting  with  pencil  and  paper  in  hand, 
To  gaze  on  a  scene  so  romantic  and  bold 
As  never  before  was  my  lot  to  behold? 

Assist  me,  ye  Muses !  O,  swell  your  fair  throats 
With  your  sweetest,  your  grandest,  your  loftiest  notes ; 
I  feel,  but  I  fear  I  can  never  portray 
With  justice,  the  grandeur  of  what  I  survey. 

Far  northward,  ascending  till  met  by  the  sky 
Like  uprising  billows,  the  prairie  lands  lie, 
With  here  and  there  visible  over  their  swells, 
A  farm  indicating  where  somebody  dwells. 

While  eastward  and  westward,  and  northward  ascend 
The  wood-covered  hills,  like  a  wall  'round  the  bend 
Where  sweetly  meanders  thy  cool  stream  along. 
Thou  noble  North  River,  fair  theme  of  my  song 

But  now,  the  bright  sun,  sinking  low  in  the  west. 
No  longer  reflects  from  thy  stream's  silver  breast ; 
Thy  valley  grows  dark,  and  thy  woods  gather  gloom ; 
So  farewell,  sweet  stream,  I  must  hie  away  home. 
(By  George  W.  Seevers,  Sr.) 

So  in  view  of  what  I  have  written  and  what  I  have  copied,  I  submit  my 
claim  that  Douglas  Township  is,  and  of  right  ought  to  be,  "The  land  of  poetry." 


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CHAPTER  XXXV 
LINCOLN  TOWNSHIP 

Lincoln  Township  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  Douglas,  on  the  south  by 
Monroe,  on  the  east  by  Scott  and  on  the  west  by  Webster.  Middle  River  crosses 
through  its  territory  from  west  to  east  a  little  north  of  the  center.  There  were 
large  bodies  of  heavy  timber  when  the  settlers  first  came  and  the  supply  of  lime- 
stone and  building  stone  is  practically  inexhaustible.  Coal  has  been  found  crop- 
ping out  of  the  bluffs  along  the  banks  of  Middle  River.  In  the  center  portion 
of  the  vicinity  of  Middle  River  the  surface  of  the  country  is  quite  rough  and 
broken,  but  in  the  southern  and  northern  portions  the  prairies  are  beautiful 
and  just  rolling  enough  to  make  the  most  desirable  farms.  Numerous  small 
streams  a;id  springs  provide  an  abundance  of  fresh  water  for  stock  and  all  of 
the  township  is  now  occupied  and  under  improvement,  showing  beautiful  homes, 
substantial  farm  buildings  and  fences,  bridges  and  well  kept  roads. 

Lincoln  Township  has  a  natural  curiosity  in  the  topographical  feature  of 
the  locality,  known  as  the  ^'Devil's  Backbone,"  a  big  formation  of  nature,  about 
five  miles  west  of  Winterset  on  Middle  River.  This  is  a  ^*high,  rough  rock  ridge, 
so  narrow  that  at  the  top  there  is  only  room  for  a  wagon  road.  The  Middle  River 
running  from  east  to  west  strikes  the  ridge,  which  is  over  two  hundred  feet  above 
the  water  level  and  thence  bears  away  in  a  circuitous  route  and  some  two  or 
three  miles  further  down  its  course  bends  around  until  it  passes  on  the  other 
side  of  the  same  deep,  high  ridge.  From  water  to  water  directly  through  the 
ridge  is  less  than  one  hundred  feet.  An  early  settler  in  that  neighborhood, 
named  John  Harmon,  together  with  his  sons,  tunneled  the  ridge  through  solid 
rock,  occupying  three  years'  time  to  do  the  work.  They  thus  obtained  a  waterfall 
of  twenty  feet,  making  it  the  most  desirable  site  for  a  mill  in  the  western  country. 
A  large  room  has  been  made  in  the  rock  around  the  mill  end  of  the  race,  making 
as  delightful  a  bathing  place  as  can  be  foimd  anywhere.  A  large  grist  mill  and 
sawmill  has  lately  (1868)  been  erected  at  this  point  by  Messrs.  Wilkin  &  Com- 
pany. This  'backbone'  is  quite  a  curiosity  and  worth  going  a  long  distance 
to  see." 

This  township  was  settled  as  early  as  1847,  Absalom  Thomburg,  C.  D. 
Wright  and  Daniel  Vancil  coming  that  year  and  settling  in  the  timber  along 
Middle  River.  James  Bertholf  and  Elijah  Perkins  arrived  early  in  1849.  Alexan- 
der Bertholf,  his  sons,  Alexander,  Zachariah,  George  and  James,  and  Joshua 
Gentry  and  Rev.  John  Hootan,  settled  in  the  township  in  185 1.  It  was  not  long 
thereafter  when'  William  Harmon,  a  Mr.  Skidmore  and  John  Macumber  con- 
tributed their  presence  and  energies  to  the  new  settlement. 

Elijah  Perkins  was  a  native  of  New  Hampshire,  immigrated  to  Ohio  when  a 
young  man,  where  he  taught  school  for  several  years,  and  came  to  the  State  of 

296 


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STONE  HOUSE  BUILT  BY  HON.  B.  F.  ROBERTS 

This  house  was  built  in  the  early  '50s  and  was  used  as  a  station  on 
the  '^Underground  Railway/'  It  was  later  used  as  a  boarding  house  for 
the  employees  of  White  &  Hunger's  woolen  factory  which  stood  near  by. 
It  is  well  preserved  and  is  still  used  as  a  residence.  Many  of  these  houses 
were  built  in  the  '50s  and  '60s  in  Madison  County. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  297 

Iowa  in  1848.  Early  in  the  year  1849  he  located  on  section  14,  in  this  township, 
on  which  he  made  many  improvements. 

John  Hootan  was  bom  in  Madison  County,  Kentucky,  in  1805,  removed  to 
Indiana  and  from  there  to  Madison  Coimty,  Iowa,  in  1849.  He  removed  his 
family  here  in  1850.  Mr.  Hootan  was  a  Baptist  minister,  and  it  is  said,  always 
took  off  his  coat  to  preach.  He  was  rather  eccentric  in  his  habits  and  mode  of 
dress.  Tradition  has  it  that  he  used  wooden  pins  to  hold  up  his  suspenders  and 
while  on  the  platform  walked  back  and  forth,  continuously  haranguing  his 
audience.  During  one  sermon,  so  it  is  said,  being  much  interested  in  his  subject, 
the  clergyman  stepped  off  the  platform  with  a  jolt,  but  this  did  not  break  him 
of  the  acquired  habit. 

David  Halgarth  came  in  1850  and  was  one  of  the  township's  substantial 
farmers.  He  also  was  a  member  of  Company  F,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry  and 
served  three  years  in  the  Civil  war. 

Isaac  Jessup  first  lived  in  Indiana  and  in  1849  settled  in  Warren  County, 
Iowa,  from  whence  he  came  in  1851  to  this  township.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Fourth  Iowa  Infantry  in  the  Civil  war.  When  Mr.  Jessup  first  came  here  he 
split  rails  for  25  cents  per  100,  paid  10  cents  per  pound  for  meat,  and  for  eighteen 
months  carried  all  his  grain  that  was  used  in  his  family  for  breadstuff  to  mill 
on  his  back. 

Jacob  Leinard  left  his  home  in  Harrison  County,  Ohio,  in  1852,  and  came  to 
this  township,  where  he  secured  200  acres  of  land  2j^  miles  southw^t  of  Win- 
terset.  A  daughter,  Anna  Christina,  was  united  in  marriage  to  Lewis  Thomburg 
in  1855. 

John  Brown  came  to  the  county  from  Ohio  in  1854  and  was  one  of  the  frugal 
and  prosperous  farmers  of  Lincoln  Township.  Along  about  this  time  Caleb 
Clark,  who  first  settled  in  South  Township  in  1846,  and  in  1849  in  Douglas, 
removed  to  this  township  on  a  farm  near  Winterset. 

In  185 1  E.  G.  Perkins  entered  240  acres  of  land  in  Lincoln  Township,  which 
he  partly  improved  and  then  returned  to  his  home  in  New  Hampshire.  Six 
years  thereafter  he  came  back  to  the  township  and  eventually  removed  to  Jackson 
Township.  He  served  the  county  as  treasurer  and  recorder  when  the  offices 
were  combined,  and  was  also  a  member  of  the  board  of  supervisors. 

John  Reed  was  a  native  of  England  and  came  to  the  county  in  1855.  He  owned 
and  operated  a  sawmill  near  the  "Backbone." 

J.  A.  Macumber  immigrated  from  Ohio  in  1853  and  became  one  of  the  large 
landowners  of  this  township. 

James  W.  Evans  was  a  settler  as  early  as  1855.  In  1858  he  married  Catherine 
J.  Vancil.    Mr.  Evans  died  in  1874. 

J.  F.  Brock,  who  held  the  office  of  sheriff  four  years  and  was  the  incumbent 
of  various  township  offices,  settled  in  the  county  in  1856.  He  enlisted  in  the 
Thirty-ninth  Infantry  in  1862  and  served  during  the  war. 

T.  Conard  was  a  Holmes  County,  Ohio,  man  and  in  1856  forsook  the  Buckeye 
State  for  Iowa  and  settled  in  Madison  County.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Thirty- 
ninth  Iowa  Infantry  in  the  Civil  war,  serving  three  years. 

Samuel  Duncan  was  a  native  of  the  State  of  New  York,  removing  with  his 
parents  to  Ohio,  from  there  to  Indiana  and  from  the  Hoosier  State  to  Iowa  in 


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298  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

1853,  when  he  became  a  citizen  of  Madison  County.    He  has  held  various  Lincoln 
Township  offices. 

The  Lorimors,  B.  F.  and  A.  W.,  were  Ohioans  who  found  Iowa  a  good  place 
in  which  to  live  and  raise  tlieir  families,  hence  the  year  1856  found  them  located 
in  this  township.  The  Lorimor  brothers  for  several  years  were  the  largest  sheep 
men  in  the  county. 

Benjamin  Titcomb,  a  native  of  Maine,  removed  to  Illinois  and  after  a  residence 
of  ten  years  arrived  in  this  county  in  October,  1854.  He  held  various  township 
offices  and  died  in  October,  1876.  His  son  Otis  enlisted  in  the  First  Iowa  Bat- 
tery and  died  from  disease  contracted  in  the  army  in  1864. 

In  a  few  years  Lincoln  Township  had  many  substantial  farmers,  some  of 
whom  were  before  and  others  followed  those  last  mentioned  in  this  article. 
Among  them  were  Joseph  McKibben,  Benjamin  Hartsook,  William  Cameron,  Dr. 
William  L.  Leonard,  Nathan  Newlon,  George  A.  Beerbower,  D.  G.  Martin, 
Samuel  Gordon,  Samuel  Duncan,  Isaac  Hogle,  John  Huffman  and  C.  Fink. 

No  attempt  has  been  made,  because  of  its  impossibility,  to  describe  all  the 
brave,  industrious  and  worthy  men  and  women  who  came  to  Lincoln  Township 
in  its  early  days  and  opened  out  and  improved  farms  and  began  that  great  move- 
ment which  has  made  the  township  and  the  county  so  well  known  for  its  fine 
farms,  splendid  homes,  good  schools  and  church  buildings.  But  many  of  the 
names  worthy  of  mention  and  not  found  here  will  be  noticed  on  the  pages  of  the 
second  volume  of  this  work. 

Lincoln  Township  at  one  time  prided  itself  upon  having  within  its  borders 
a  woolen  mill,  whose  products  found  a  ready  market  not  only  locally,  but  abroad. 
This  industry  was  known  as  the  Madison  Woolen  Mills  and  was  established  in 
1865  by  J.  T.  White  and  N.  W.  Munger,  the  buildings  being  located  on  a  spot 
iy2  miles  west  of  Winterset,  on  the  Council  Bluffs  road.  These  struc- 
tures were  of  stone,  40  by  50  feet,  three  stories  high,  with  a  wing  20  by  50, 
<:ontaining  engine,  boiler  and  dye  room.  In  addition  there  was  a  two-story 
ware  room  20  by  40,  and  a  half  dozen  dwellings  for  operatives,  altogether  making 
a  little  village.  The  machinery  was  manufactured  expressly  for  the  mills  and 
combined  all  improvements  up  to  that  time.  All  the  rooms  were  heated  by 
steam  pipes  connected  with  the  boiler.  The  establishment  furnished  employment 
to  twenty-five  operatives  and  turned  out  annually  30,000  yards  of  woolen  goods 
and  large  quantities  of  yams,  consuming  about  sixty  thousand  pounds  of  wool. 

THE   CHURCH   OF   CHRIST 

This  church  was  organized  about  the  middle  of  December,  1853,  t)y  Elder 
Irvin  W.  Gordon,  at  the  log  house  of  Joseph  Brinson  which  stood  on  the  south- 
east quarter  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  9,  Lincoln  Township.  Those 
who  united  themselves  together  as  a  band  of  Christians  on  this  occasion  were: 
Irvin  W.  Gordon  and  wife,  Sarah;  Caleb  Clark  and  wife,  Ruth;  William  I. 
Gordon  and  wife,  Sarah ;  Joseph  Brinson  and  wife,  Rebecca ;  Israel  Miller  and 
wife,  Cynthia;  William  Bird  and  wife,  Sarah;  Nancy  Jane  Gordon,  Martha 
Gordon,  James  Farris,  Sr.  Among  those  who  preached  for  the  congregation  the 
first  few  years  were  Elders  Washington  Short,  Gill,  N.  E.  Corey,  James  Rhodes, 
J.  P.  Roach  and  Noah.    Services  were  held  the  first  years  usually  at  the  homes 


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OLD  STONE  SCHOOLHOUSE  NEAR  BUF-  WEST   STAR   CHURCH,  DOUGLAS 

FALO   MILLS,   SCOTT   TOWNSHIP  TOWNSHIP 


AFTON  ROAD  BRIDGE,  LOOKING  NORTH, 
LINCOLN  TOWNSHIP 


AN  OLD  CABIN  IN  LINCOLN  TOWNSHIP  OLD  BERTHOLF  HOMESTEAD  IN 

LINCOLN  TOWNSHIP 


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\V{ 


ANU 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  299 

of  the  members  and  occasionally  in  the  old  log  courthouse,  when  not  used  by 
others. 

There  is  a  church  in  the  Ord  neighborhood  that  is  well  attended. 

THE   GORDON    BAND 

With  the  coming  of  Irvin  Walton  Gordon  from  Versailles,  Indiana,  who  set- 
tled near  the  center  of  Lincoln  Township,  October  15,  1852,  appeared  the  first 
distinctively  musical  aggregation  in  Madison  County,  for  many  years  known  all 
over  this  portion  of  the  state  as  the  Gordon  String  Band.  Its  first  appearance 
before  the  general  public  was  upon  the  occasion  of  the  third  celebration  of  July 
Fourth  held  in  this  county — July  4,  1853 — in  a  grove  southeast  of  the  square  and 
close  to  Winterset,  across  the  draw  and  next  east  of  **Gospel  Ridge."  On  this 
occasion  the  players  and  their  parts  were  as  follows :  J.  Newton  Gordon,  clarionet 
A ;  I.  William  Gordon,  violin ;  Samuel  A.  Gordon,  bass  drum ;  Jonathan  Gordon, 
snare  drum ;  Jackson  Porter  and  Reuben  Hanna,  violins ;  Dr.  J.  H.  Gaff,  clarionet. 
Granville  Bond,  from  Adel,  was  an  all  around  helper  in  different  parts,  especially 
the  violin.  This  band  played  at  most  of  the  important  gatherings  in  Madison 
and  adjoining  counties  during  the  '505  and  even  later  on.  During  the  year  i860 
the  first  brass  band  was  organized  in  the  county  at  Winterset,  by  the  Ayers 
Brothers,  then  in  the  drygoods  business.  The  elder  one  was  E.  J.  and  the  younger 
one  Oliver  C,  who  later  enlisted  in  the  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry  and  was 
killed  at  Allatoona.  This  band  had  twelve  pieces  and  its  members  were  as  follows  r 
E.  J.  Ayers,  leader ;  Asbury  Nosier,  clerk  of  band ;  John  D.  Holbrook,  baritone ; 
Samuel  G.  Ruby,  tuba ;  Jerry  Barker,  tenor ;  Hamilton  Leisure,  alto ;  Oliver  Ayers, 
B  flat;  E.  J.  Ayers,  E  flat;  ** Yankee"  Clark,  E  flat;  Newton  Gordon,  E  flat; 
William  Holbrook,  alto ;  Charles  Williams,  alto ;  Frank  McLaughlin,  E  flat.  This 
band  continued  doing  business  until  E.  J.  Ayers  removed  in  1864;  about  then 
the  band  broke  up.  During  all  this  time  the  Gordons  were  doing  something  with 
their  string  band  at  private  entertainments  and  on  public  occasions. 


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CHAPTER    XXXVI 
CRAWFORD  TOWNSHIP 

This  is  one  of  the  first  townships  created  in  the  county  and  was  first  given 
the  name  of  East  Township,  which  was  later  changed,  together  with  the  boundary 
lines,  to  conform  with  the  present  limits  and  to  follow  the  proportions  of  an 
exact  congressional  township.  George  W.  McClain,  John  Carroll  and  Seth  Adam- 
son  were  appointed  by  the  Commissioners'  Court  trustees  of  the  said  newly 
created  township,  which  as  it  now  stands  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  Lee,  on 
the  south  by  South,  and  on  the  west  by  Union  townships.  Warren  County  forms 
the  east  boundary  line.  North  River,  Middle  River  and  Cedar  Creek  flow  directly 
through  Crawford  Township  from  west  to  east  and  on  all  of  these  streams 
originally  were  large  groves  of  timber.  Limestone  in  moderate  quantities  and 
some  coal  are  indigenous  products.  There  is  probably  no  region  in  the  county 
better  watered  than  this,  as  numerous  springs  and  small  streams  abound,  pro- 
viding the  best  of  refreshments  for  stock  and  drainage  of  the  land.  The  surface 
is  more  rough  and  rolling  than  any  other  township  in  the  county,  yet  most  of  its 
land  is  susceptible  of  cultivation  and  throughout  the  township  are  some  of  the 
choicest  farms  in  Madison  County. 

It  was  to  Crawford  Township  that  Hiram  Hurst,  the  first  settler,  was  attracted 
and  here  he  set  up  his  stakes  for  a  permanent  settlement  on  the  ist  day  of  April, 
1846,  rehabilitating  an  old  bark  wick-i-up  left  partially  standing  by  an  Indian, 
its  last  inhabitant.  That  spring  and  summer  he  planted  and  cultivated  a  small 
patch  of  com  and  in  the  fall  returned  to  his  home  in  Buchanan  County,  Missouri, 
for  his  family,  which  he  brought  back  with  him  to  his  new  home  and  settled  on 
section  36.  As  the  first  settler  in  the  county,  the  name  Hurst  stands  out  inter- 
estingly and  significantly,  so  that  considerable  space  has  been  devoted  to  the 
history  of  Madison's  pioneer.  Those  interested  may  be  fully  informed  by  revert- 
ing to  the  chapter  entitled  Madison's  Advance  Guard  of  Civilization. 

The  next  person  known  to  have  settled  in  Crawford  Township  and  who 
became  a  permanent  settler  was  Thomas  Cason,  who  bought  the  Hurst  claim  on 
section  36,  in  July,  1847,  ^"d  took  up  his  residence  there.  J.  J.  Cason  was  a 
member  of  his  family.  The  Casons  immigrated  from  Indiana  and  when  Thomas 
chose  the  Hurst  place  for  his  future  home  he  had  two  sons,  W.  T.  and  T.  T.  Cason. 
The  latter  was  bom  in  1837  and  the  former  in  1843.  Both  boys  remained  on  the 
old  homestead  for  many  years  and  became  important  citizens  of  the  township. 

J.  B.  McGinnis,  Thomas  Stewart,  William  Weakley,  Jacob  Kinkannon, 
Jackson  Nelson  and  George  Salisbury  were  here  as  early  as  1851  and  the  widow 
Shreves  and  sons,  John,  Jonathan  and  Jonah,  became  citizens  of  the  township  in 
1852. 

Oliver  Crawford  arrived  here  in  1852,  coming  from  the  State  of  Ohio  with 
his  family.     It  was  in  honor  of  Mr.  Crawford  that  the  township  received  its 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  301 

name.  Both  he  and  his  wife  have  long  since  passed  away,  leaving  the  following 
children :  Mary  J.,  Sarah  A.,  Robert  J.,  Elizabeth  E.,  Maria  T.,  William  W.  and 
Charles  S.  Crawford. 

James  Gillaspie,  still  living  and  a  resident  of  Patterson,  was  bom  in  County 
Londonderry,  Ireland,  in  the  year  1830,  emigrated  to  the  United  States  in  1852, 
and  to  this  county  in  1856.  Mr.  Gillaspie  recently  prepared  a  history  of  the 
Irish  settlements  in  Lee  and  Crawford  townships,  and  as  both  these  divisions  of 
the  county  were  largely  made  up  of  the  Irish  race,  Mr.  Gillaspie*s  relation  of 
his  people's  migration  to  this  land  of  plenty  and  prosperity  finds  an  interesting 
place  at  the  close  of  this  chapter. 

Thomas  W.  Folwell  was  a  shoemaker  who  left  Holmes  County,  Ohio,  in 
the  fall  of  1 85 1  and  located  in  Winterset,  where  he  followed  his  trade  4>4 
years  and  then  located  on  section  20,  where  he  for  many  years  cultivated 
the  soil,  improved  his  farm  and  lived  as  onp  of  the  important  citizens  of  the 
community.  One  son,  John  M.,  died  in  the  army,  while  a  member  of  the  Fifteenth 
Iowa  Infantry. 

Michael  Loftus  was  born  in  Ireland  in  1817,  married  Bridget  McGloon  in 
1845  ^^d  two  years  after  immigrated  to  Canada.  In  1855  he  came  to  Madison 
County  and  located  in  Crawford  Township  and  raised  a  large  family  of  children. 

Patrick  Swift  came  to  New  York  from  Ireland  in  1848  and  remained  there 
until  1856,  when  he  settled  in  this  county  and  acquired  several  hundred  acres  of 
land. 

S.  E.  Shannon  came  to  the  county  in  the  fall  of  1855  and  married  Mary  E. 
Hughart  in  the  fall  of  1865.  Shannon  was  a  member  of  Company  B,  First 
Iowa  Cavalry,  and  served  three  years  in  the  Civil. war  with  honor  to  his  name. 

Among  those  who  came  later  than  the  above  mentioned  and  identified  them- 
selves with  the  stability  and  prosperity  of  the  township  may  be  mentioned,  as 
far  as  possible  by  name,  Aaron  Howell,  John  Holton,  George  Blosser,  John  and 
Ephraim  Potter,  Elvis  Stout,  Jonah  Shreves,  J.  M.  Huglin. 

James  and  Abner  Bell  were  settlers  here  at  an  early  date,  and  "the  latter,  a 
large,  imposing  and  vigorous  man  of  four  score  years,  still  lives  in  the  locality 
of  his  first  trials  and  triumphs.*' 

The  Hardy  schoolhouse  east  of  Patterson  received  its  name  from  one  of  the 
early  families  living  in  that  vicinity. 

One  of  the  largest  landowners  in  Crawford  Township  in  the  latter  '50s  was 
Aaron  Howell,  who  had  a  farm  of  over  nine  hundred  acres  under  cultivation. 
He  came  to  the  township  in  1855  with  but  a  few  hundred  dollars  in  his  pocket, 
but  by  economy,  perseverance  and  diligence  became  one  of  the  richest  farmers 
in  Madison  County. 

One  of  the  early  millers  in  Crawford  Township  was  J.  M.  Huglin,  who  had 
a  grist  and  sawmill  on  Middle  River,  where  he  did  a  large  business.  About  this 
time  the  firm  of  Carson  &  McDowell  also  had  a  steam  sawmill  on  the  river. 

The  Adamson  schoolhouse  was  located  and  built  on  section  35  in  the  early 
'50s.  Among  the  pupils  were  Tom,  Bill,  Calista  atid  Elizabeth  Cason;  Mills, 
Solomon  and  a  daughter  of  the  Adamsons;  Jesse,  Rebecca,  Mercy,  Abner  D. 
and  Martha,  children  of  Rev.  Henry  A.  Bell;  William,  Sanford,  Permelia  and 
another  maiden  of  the  John  M.  Johns  family ;  Milton,  Lorenzo  Dow,  William, 
Jr.,  and  a  daughter,  all  belonging  to  William  Smith ;  John,  Malcolm,  Abbott  and 


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302  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

a  little  girl,  children  of  David  Worley.    A.  A.  Moser  taught  this  school,  which 
was  held  about  the  winter  of  1852  or  1853. 

IRISH    SETTLEMENT    IN    CRAWFORD   TOWNSHIP 

By  James  Gillaspie 

Lee  and  Crawford  townships  were  largely  settled-  by  natives  of  the  Emerald 
isle.  The  history  of  this  hardy  and  thrifty  people,  who  came  into  the  wilderness, 
made  for  themselves  homes  in  this  new  world  and  contributed  to  its  prosperity,  was 
tersely  related  by  one  of  them,  James  Gillaspie,  in  a  carefully  prepared  paper, 
for  the  Madison  County  Historical  Society,  in  March,  1907.  Mr.  Gillaspie  was 
bom  in  Ireland  in  the  year  1830  and  immigrated  to  this  country  in  1852,  landing 
in  New  York  City.  In  the  early  part  of  the  year  1856  he  found  his  way  to 
Madison  County  and  settled  in  Crawford  Township.  Here  he  took  up  a  residence 
and  it  was  in  this  old  homestead  he  wrote  the  history  of  the  Irish  families  of 
Lee  and  Crawford.  Mr.  Gillaspie  was  true  to  his  adopted  country  in  the  hours 
of  her  peril  and  in  1864  enlisted  in  Company  A,  Sixteenth  Iowa  Infantry,  serving 
until  the  close  of  hostilities  between  the  two  sections  of  the  Union  at  strife.  He 
returned  home  and  in  course  of  time  filled  most  of  the  important  offices  of  his 
community.  This  worthy  son  of  "Ould  Erin"  lived  a  long  and  useful  life  in 
Crawford  Township  and  gained  the  esteem  of  a  large  circle  of  friends  and 
acquaintances.    Now  for  the  story : 

The  first  settlers  did  not  come  here,  as  some  suppose,  by  any  preconcerted 
plan,  in  order  to  form  a  settlement,  nor  were  they  lately  landed  from  Ireland. 
They  were  men  of  families  for  the  most  part  who  had  lived  for  several  years 
in  other  states  of  the  Union.  Some  were  farmers  before  coming  to  Iowa  and 
some  followed  other  occupations  of  life.  Iowa  being  then  a  new  state,  and  its 
lands  to  be  had  at  Government  price,  many  sold  their  possessions  in  other  states 
in  order  to  better  their  conditions  in  Iowa.  As  Des  Moines  was  about  to  become 
the  capital  of  the  state,  it  was  but  to  be  expected  that  immigration  would  flow 
to  the  capital,  and  as  the  lands  within  several  miles  of  Des  Moines  were  nearly  all 
owned  and  held  by  eastern  speculators,  people  wishing  to  purchase  farms  were 
compelled  to  scatter  out  from  that  city.  So  the  first  Irish  families  liking  the 
looks  of  the  country,  located  in  what  is  known  as  the  Irish  Settlement.  This 
settlement  consists  of  two  townships  in  Warren  County,  as  well  as  the  townships 
of  Lee  and  Crawford  in  Madison  County.  But  for  the  purpose  of  this  article,  I 
confine  myself  to  the  Irish  settlers  who  located  in  Madison  County  prior  and 
up  to  i860.  I  will  begin  with  Crawford  Township  and  give  the  names  of  those 
who  settled  north  of  North  River,  the  year  they  came,  as  far  as  possible,  and 
also  as  far  as  I  know,  where  they  came  from  directly  to  Iowa.  They  are  as 
follows : 

Andrew  Connor  and  family  in  1854  or  earlier;  came  from  Wisconsin;  is  now 
dead ;  father  of  Stephen  and  John  Connor  of  Crawford,  and  Michael,  of  Lee. 

Patrick  and  John  McManus  in  1854,  from  Wisconsin.  Patrick  is  dead; 
family  moved  away.    John's  family  moved  from  here. 

John  McLaughlin  and  family  in  1854.  John  came  from  Wisconsin  and  was 
the  father  of  Michael  McLaughlin,  of  Lee,  and  John,  of  Winterset.  He  has  been 
dead  many  years.  • 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  303 

John  Ryan  and  family,  brothers  and  sisters,  in  1855,  from  Wisconsin.  Mr. 
Ryan  has  been  dead  many  years.  He  was  the  father  of  John  and  William  Ryan 
of  this  place.    The  son,  John,  is  now  dead  but  his  family  lives  here. 

John  Fallon  and  family  came  from  Pennsylvania  in  1855,  I  believe.  John 
died  here  many  years  ago  and  his  family  moved  west. 

John  Cunningham  and  family  came  from  Wisconsin  in  1855.  Mr.  Cunning- 
ham died  a  few  years  ago ;  father  of  Joseph  and  P.  J.  of  this  place. 

Tom,  James  and  John  Finan,  brothers,  came  in  1855,  from  Wisconsin ;  owned 
a  sawmill  north  of  North  River;  also  farmed;  sold  out  and  moved  west.  Each 
of  the  Finans  had  families. 

John  Connor  and  family  came  in  1855  from  Wisconsin,  I  think.  After  a 
few  years  he  sold  out  and  moved  away. 

John  Manion  and  wife  came  from  Wisconsin  in  1856;  sold  farm  and  moved 
to  Des  Moines. 

John  Roddy  and  family  about  1856;  sold  out  and  went  to  Des  Moines  after 
a  few  years. 

John  Monaghan  and  family  from  Wisconsin  in  1855;  Mr.  Monaghan  is  dead 
and  his  family  moved  away. 

We  now  come  to  the  Irish  who  lived  in  Crawford  Township  south  of  North 
River : 

Darby  Gill  and  family  in  1855  from  Canada,  I  think.  Mr.  Gill  is  dead;  some 
of  his  family  have  died ;  some  live  in  Warren  County  and  some  in  Polk. 

Michael  Donohue  and  family  in  1855.    He  is  dead  and  family  moved  away. 

James  Gallagher  and  family  in  1855  from  Canada;  he  is  dead.  His  son, 
James  F.,  lives  in  Des  Moines;  his  son  Dominick's  family  live  on  the  old  farm. 

Pat  Swift  came  in  1855;  he  is  dead  and  his  family  is  gone. 

Frank  Cassidy  and  family  came  in  1855  from  New  York  City;  he  is  dead  and 
two  of  his  sons  went  West.  Mrs.  M.  McLaughlin,  of  Lee  Township,  is  his 
daughter,  and  two  other  daughters  live  in  Des  Moines. 

Patrick  Smith  and  family  came  from  New  York  City.  Mr.  Smith  came  in 
1855  and  bought  his  farm,  and  his  wife  and  children  came  in  1856.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Smith  are  dead ;  they  were  the  parents  of  Luke  A.  Smith  of  this  place,  and 
John  H.  Smith,  of  Winterset. 

Thomas  McGarr  came  from  New  York  City  in  1855;  remained  three  or 
four  years,  then  went  to  California,  where  it  is  believed  he  died,  unmarried. 

James  Gillaspie  came  here  from  New  York  City  in  the  spring  of  1856,  accom- 
panied by  his  wife  and  other  relatives;  he  is  still  living  on  the  old  home  farm. 

Charles  Walls  and  family  came  in  1856;  bought  and  sold  four  or  five  farms; 
lived  here  until  1874,  then  returned  to  New  York  City.    He  is  long  in  his  grave. 

John  Harrington  and  family  came  in  1856  from  New  York  City.  After 
living  here  about  thirty-five  years  he  traded  his  farm  for  Des  Moines  property. 
He  is  dead;  his  son,  Matthew  Harrington,  is  living  in  Des  Moines. 

John  Crawley  and  family  came  from  New  York  City  in  1856;  lived  on  a  farm 
for  several  years  and  died.  His  family  sold  the  farm  and  moved  to  Cass  County, 
where  some  of  them  are  still  living. 

Michael  Loftus  and  family  came  here  from  Canada  in  1857.  Mr.  Loftus 
died  several  years  ago;  his  son  Mike  and  several  of  his  daughters  are  still  resi- 
dents of  this  place. 


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304  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Michael  McGlone  and  family  came  from  Canada  in  1857 ;  he  is  dead  and  his 
widow  and  son  Martin  still  live  on  the  farm. 

James  Kirby  and  family  came  here  in  1856  from  Pennsylvania;  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Kirby  are  dead ;  their  son,  John  F.,  and  daughter,  Maggie,  live  on  the  old 
farm;  William  and  James,  two  other  sons,  live  near  on  farms  of  their  own. 
Since  writing  the  foregoing  William  has  died. 

Patrick  Reilly  and  family  came  here  in  1855  from  Canada.  He  is  dead.  The 
farm  was  sold  a  few  years  ago.  His  son,  Patrick,  and  two  daughters,  all  married, 
live  in  Des  Moines,  and  another  son,-  John,  lives  in  Iowa,  east  of  Des  Moines. 
Later,  John  and  family  moved  to  Des  Moines. 

Darby  Carr  and  family  came  in  1855;  he  died;  the  family  after  several  years 
moved  to  Des  Moines. 

Thomas  OToole  and  family  came  here  in  i860  from  Des  Moines;  sold  his 
farm  a  few  years  ago  and  removed  to  Omaha,  Nebraska.    Now  deceased. 

Thomas  Durigan  and  family  came  here  in  1858;  lived  here  for  several  years, 
then  moved  across  the  line  into  Warren  County,  where  he  died.  Some  of  the 
Durigan  family  are  still  living  in  Iowa  but  not  on  the  old  farm. 

John  McDonnell  and  family  came  in  i860  from  Wisconsin.  Mr.  McDonnell 
sold  his  farm  a  few  years  ago  and  moved  to  Nebraska,  where  he  died.  His  son, 
Dennis,  lives  in  Crawford  Township  and  Thomas  in  Des  Moines. 

John  Cutler,  an  early  settler  in  Warren  County,  settled  in  this  township  in 
the  early  '50s  with  his  family. 

William  Kennedy  and  family  came  here  in  1856  from  Philadelphia  and  after 
living  here  for  many  years  moved  to  California  where  he  died.  Mrs.  Robert 
Smith,  of  South'  Township,  is  one  of  his  daughters. 

Anderson  McLees  and  family  came  here  in  1856  from  Philadelphia.  He  died 
a  few  years  ago  in  Winterset.  John  McLees,  his  son,  lives  in  Lincoln  Township ; 
William  McLees  lives  in  North  Dakota. 

Robert  McMichael  came  from  Pennsylvania  in  1855  or  1856.  He  died  a  few 
years  later.    His  brother,  William,  came  on  the  farm. 

PATTERSON 

Patterson  lies  on  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  29,  Crawford  Township, 
and  was  laid  out  by  A.  W.  Wilkinson,  surveyor,  for  Alexander  Pattison,  March 
5,  1872.  The  intent  of  the  owner  was  to  name  the  town  Pattison,  but  the  name 
was  misspelled  when  the  plat  was  filed  for  record  and  that  accounts  for  it  being 
as  it  is.  The  town  lies  something  Over  seven  miles  east  of  Winterset  on  the  Des 
Moines  branch  of  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railroad,  and  has  a  popula- 
tion of  about  150.  About  the  year  1890  it  had  grown  in  population  to  the  number 
of  133  and  at  the  next  census,  in  1900,  there  were  163  in  the  town;  so  that,  by 
the  last  enumeration,  it  can  be  seen  that  the  town  has  not  progressed  in  the  number 
of  its  inhabitants.  However  that  may  be,  it  is  a  good  trading  point  and  ships 
large  numbers  of  cattle  and  hogs  annually. 

The  first  lot  in  the  town  was  bought  in  April,  1872,  by  L.  C.  Doane.  S.  B. 
Catterlin  built  the  first  house  and  a  short  time  thereafter  erected  a  store  building, 
installed  a  stock  of  goods,  bought  in  Winterset,  and  became  the  pioneer  merchant 
of  the  place.  He  kept  a  general  store  and  for  a  while  conducted  a  large  business. 
Some  time  later  he  took  into  partnership  Henry  Griffin. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  305 

As  soon  as  the  town  had  been  laid  out,  H.  H.  Bass  opened  a  lumber  yard 
and  shortly  thereafter  John  W.  Ellis  had  a  drug  store  in  operation.  Then  came 
Doctor  Dorman,  who  practiced  his  profession  here  for  some  time.  It  was  not  long 
before  W.  C.  Henry  put  up  an  elevator,  which  was  later  destroyed  by  fire.  Then 
came  Robert  McDowell  and  his  son,  Newton,  who  were  the  first  carpenters  in  the 
town,  and  about  the  same  time  A.  C.  Dutton  opened  up  a  blacksmith  shop. 

John  Stiffler  opened  a  hardware  store  about  1873. 

In  1877  the  Eureka  Flour  Mill  was  erected  by  Alexander  Pattison  and  Thomas 
Fox.  It  was  a  two-story  frame,  with  basement,  had  four  run  of  stone,  with  a 
patent  process,  and  cost  about  $6,000.  The  mill  was  later  operated  by  Pattison  & 
Bell,  and  in  1880  was  destroyed  by  fire. 

The  first  agent  for  the  railroad  company  was  H.  H.  Bass.  He  was  succeeded 
by  Alexander  Pattison,  and  for  the  past  twenty-six  years  T.  H.  Debord  has  been 
in  charge  of  the  company's  affairs  at  this  point. 

The  first  schoolhouse  was  built  about  1874.  It  is  a  frame  structure  with  two 
rooms  and  was  taught  by  Thomas  J.  Ross,  principal,  and  Byrum  Bird.  Some 
years  later,  as  the  town  grew  and  mc^re  space  became  necessary,  an  addition  was 
built  to  the  structure  so  as  to  provide  for  three  rooms  and  the  same  number  of 
teachers.    The  school  is  now  graded  and  is  an  independent  district. 

The  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  organization  was  an  appointment  on  the  St. 
Charles  Circuit  until  about  1907.  The  building,  a  frame,  was  erected  in  1872  at  a 
cost  of  $1,600.  This  gave  way  to  a  new  frame  house  of  worship  in  the  winter 
of  1914,  which  was  built  at  a  cost  of  $4,000.  It  was  dedicated  early  in  the  year 
1915.  The  pastors  of  this  church  since  the  change  from  the  St.  Charles  Circuit 
have  been  Rev.  E.  Durant,  who  served  one  year ;  Reverend  Rusk,  one  year ;  Arthur 
Eastman,  two  years,  and  the  present  pastor,  Rev.  F.  V.  Warner,  who  has  been 
in  charge  the  past  three  years. 

Somewhere  in  the  '80s  a  Christian  Church  was  established  here.  A  house  of 
worship  was  erected  and  for  some  time  the  society  had  quite  a  large  membership, 
but  the  original  members  mostly  are  all  gone  and  no  regular  pastor  has  been 
engaged  for  some  time.  Occasionally,  services  are  held  in  the  church  by  a  min- 
ister from  Winterset. 

The  Baptists  were  established  here  and  built  a  church  at  about  the  same  time 
as  the  Methodists.  They  had  a  large  congregation  which  has  dwindled,  away 
until  the  society  is  no  longer  locally  intact.  Some  time  ago  the  building  was  sold 
to  the  lodge  of  Modem  Woodmen,  which  was  organized  about  the  year  1885.  The 
Odd  Fellows  also  have  a  lodge  here  and  owned  their  own  building,  which  was 
burned  down  about  1902.    They  now  meet  in  the  Woodmen  Hall. 

Patterson  was  incorporated  October  27,  1877,  and  at  its  first  election  placed 
the  following  named  persons  in  office:  C.  E.  Sampson,  mayor;  J.  W.  Ellis,  clerk 
and  treasurer;  John  Stewart,  marshal;  Alexander  Pattison,  A.  B.  Wilder,  H. 
Gratner,  James  M.  Lee,  Henry  Brown  and  G.  V.-  Wright,  councilmen. 

BEVINGTON 

Bevington  is  also  a  business  point  in  Crawford  Township  and  a  part  is  in 
Warren  County.  It  has  a  population  of  about  one  hundred  and  twenty-five.  It  is 
twelve  miles  east  of  Winterset,  on  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railroad,  and 

Vol.  1-20 


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306  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

is  located  on  the  south  part  of  the  east  half  of  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  25. 
It  was  laid  out  on  the  19th  day  of  March,  1872,  by  A.  W.  Wilkinson,  surveyor,  for 
John  Williamson,  owner  of  the  land,  and  was  named  in  honor  of  Dr.  C.  D.  Bev- 
ington,  one  of  the  leading  citizens  of  Winterset.  The  first  house  built  in  the  town 
was  erected  by  C.  Haight  in  1872.  It  afterwards  became  known  as  the  Bevington 
House.  That  same  fall  Felix  McManus  erected  a  building  and  opened  a  gen- 
eral merchandise  store. 

The  town  is  an  independent  school  district,  has  one  teacher  and  a  good  f  ramf 
school  building. 

Shortly  after  the  town  was  established  the  Methodists  organized  a  society 
and  erected  a  frame  church  building,  but  for  some  years  past  the  organization 
has  not  flourished  and  the  church  has  remained  idle  for  religious  purposes. 

The  Bevington  Bank,  a  private  concern,  was  organized  in  1897,  by  James 
Watt,  L.  J.  Klemm,  J.  C.  O'Donnell,  Jerry  Sullivan  and  Dr.  T.  F.  Kelleher.  The 
officials  were :  James  Watt,  president ;  L.  J.  Klemm,  vice  president ;  J.  C.  O'Don- 
nell,  cashier;  J.  O.  Stamen,  assistant  cashier.  J.  P.  Laughlin  has  been  manager 
of  the  bank  since  July,  1909. 

Middle  River  Camp,  No.  680,  M.  W.  A.,  was  instituted  March  26,  1891,  First 
officers :  T.  J.  Jones,  V.  C. ;  M.  Armstrong,  W.  A. ;  J.  G.  Huglin,  B. ;  Zach  Turpin, 
clerk. 


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CHAPTER  XXXVII 
WALNUT  TOWNSHIP 

Walnut  Township  was  formed  out  of  a  part  of  South  in  1851  and  as  originally 
constituted  included  the  territory  of  Monroe,  Grand  River  and  parts  of  Webster, 
Lincoln,  Ohio  and  Scott  townships.  The  township  is  bounded  on  the  north 
by  Scott,  on  the  south  by  Clarke  County  and  on  the  east  and  west  by  Ohio  and 
Monroe  townships  respectively.  This  region  is  thoroughly  well  drained  by  the 
two  branches  of  Clanton  Creek,  which  unite  within  its  limits.  There  is  plenty  of 
timber  along  the  streams  and  an  abundant  supply  of  limestone.  The  surface  is 
rough  and  uneven  in  places  but  the  first  and  second  bottoms  of  Clanton  Creek 
furnish  unsurpassed  farming  land.  The  soil  is  a  rich  dark  loam  and  yields 
large  crops  of  com,  wheat,  oats,  hay,  potatoes  and  other  products  indigenous 
to  this  latitude.  On  Clanton  Creek,  about  a  mile  and  a  half  east  of  Peru,  is  a 
peculiarly  shaped  high  ridge  of  ground  known  as  "Hog's  Back,'*  which  is  some- 
what similar  to  the  ''DeviFs  Backbone,"  mentioned  in  another  chapter.  It  is  a  steep 
bluff  about  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  feet  high  and  three- fourths  of  a  mile  long. 
Clanton  Creek  courses  along  one  side  of  the  ridge  and  a  small  stream  on  the  other. 
This  high  formation  is  composed  mostly  of  limestone  rock  and  a  peculiar  reddish 
clay,  which  is  often  spoken  of  as  **paint  clay." 

From  data  now  at  hand  it  is  determined  that  the  first  persons  to  settle  in 
Walnut  Township  were  John  Mars  and  Tom  Carr,  who  it  is  said  furnished 
meat  to  settlers  who  came  later,  from  hogs  running  wild  at  that  time,  which 
was  probably  about  the  early  part  of  1848.  These  hogs,  it  is  presumed,  strayed 
away  from  the  herds  of  Mormon  emig^nts  passing  through  Union  County  on 
their  way  to  Salt  Lake. 

The  first  permanent  settlers  were  the  lams  families.  Moses  lams  located  in 
the  township  in  1848  and  William  Guthrie  came  the  same  year.  Hugh  and  Jasper 
lams  came  in  1849;  Michael  in  1852;  Isaac  and  M.  lams  settled  on  the  prairie 
southwest  of  Brooklyn  in  the  latter  year.  They  knew  the  Guibersons  in  Holmes 
County,  Ohio.  William  Davis,  who  came  to  be  known  as  "Black  Hawk"  Davis, 
was  a  brother-in-law  of  Moses  lams. 

John  Guiberson  settled  south  of  the  Clanton  in  1849  and  laid  out  the  town 
of  Brooklyn.  Isaac  Bird,  a  native  of  Virginia,  married  Susanna  Williams  in  the 
State  of  Ohio  and  in  185 1  came  here  and  entered  150  acres  of  land  from  the 
Government. 

William  Guthrie,  already  mentioned,  left  Madison  County,  Ohio,  in  1849, 
and  spent  the  winter  in  Mahaska  County,  Iowa.  He  located  in  this  township 
in  the  following  spring  and  took  up  a  claim  on  section  34,  where  he  lived  many 
years  and  became  one  of  the  stanch  citizens  of  the  community. 

Isaac  Reager  immigrated  from  Indiana  in  1847  ^"^  while  at  Burlington,  Iowa, 

307 


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308  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

married  Mary  Sutherland.     In  1853  he  moved  to  Madison  County  and  located 
on  section  5,  in  Walnut  Township. 

Samuel  Walker  was  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  this  township,  coming  in  the 
winter  of  1852-3.  At  the  time  he  had  for  his  neighbors  Allen  McClure,  John 
Guiberson,  William  Rhyno  and  Joseph  Burdick.  Mr.  Walker  has  been  wont  to 
relate  that  when  he  arrived  in  the  township,  the  few  settlers  that  were  here  held 
church  at  each  others  homes,  and  at  times  were  gratified  by  the  expounding  of 
the  gospel  according  to  one  Rev.  Swearengen.  John  Guiberson  was  a  local 
preacher  and  often  held  forth  at  the  homes  of  his  neighbors. 

The  Smiths,  of  whom  there  were  quite  a  number,  became  residents  of  Walnut 
Township  in  1854.  There  was  J.  W.  Smith  with  his  parents,  John  and  Rebecca 
Smith;  also  O.  F.  Smith,  T.  P.  Smith,  J.  H.  Smith,  N.  M.  Smith,  W.  C.  Smith 
and  a  girl,  M.  E.  Smith. 

At  the  time  of  the  advent  of  the  Smith  family  to  this  community,  there  were 
then  living  here  Allen  McClure,  John  Guiberson,  a  Mr.  Painter,  Joseph  Burdick, 
Doc  McGuire  and  Job  Smith  and  uncle,  John  Smith,  who  lived  with  him  during 
the  winter  of  1854-55.  There  was  also  S.  M.  Walker.  These  families  are  all 
that  lived  east  and  south  of  the  Clanton. 

With  Isaac  Reager,  when  he  came  in  1853,  were  Daniel  Baker,  wife  and  two 
children  and  John  Baker  and  wife,  Margaret.  They  settled  on  the  homestead  now 
owned  by  the  Baker  estate. 

Aaron  Hiatt,  who  founded  old  Peru,  a  North  Carolinian,  left  his  Indiana 
farm  in  the  spring  of  185 1  and  settled  in  Oskaloosa,  where  he  married  his  second 
wife.  In  October  of  that  year,  Mr.  Hiatt  with  his  bride,  located  on  section  3 
in  this  township.    He  passed  away  a  few  years  ago  at  the  age  of  eighty-eight. 

Benjamin  F.  Brown  was  one  of  the  early  settlers,  coming  in  1851.  In  1853 
he  started  with  Aaron  Hiatt  in  the  management  of  a  sawmill  near  Peru.  A  few 
years  later  he  turned  his  attention  to  farming  on  his  place  adjoining  old  Peru. 
In  1873  he  removed  to  Redfield,  Iowa,  where  he  erected  a  large  flouring  mill 
which  is  still  in  operation  and  later  went  to  Camas,  Washington,  where  he  ended 
his  days.  • 

Nathaniel  Foster,  of  the  Buckeye  State,  located  on  section  6,  in  1854. 

Lewis  Mease  settled  in  the  township  in  the  spring  of  1857,  and  Marsha  Cor- 
nelison  in  1858.    Nicholas  Schoenenberger  was  here  as  early  as  1855. 

Other  early  settlers  who  came  in  the  '50s  were  Jacob  Brown,  brother  of 
Benjamin  F.  Brown,  James  Emerson,  the  Marshalls,  John  Emerson,  the  McClures, 
Drakes,  Burdicks,  Alexander  Lorimor,  who  built  the  first  steam  sawmill  in  the 
township ;  the  Hiltons,  Fivecoats,  Flanigans,  Paul  Jones,  Tiltons  and  Fowlers. 

In  May,  1855,  William  (Black  Hawk)  Davis,  county  surveyor,  platted  the 
Town  of  Brooklyn,  on  section  14,  for  John  Guiberson,  and  soon  thereafter  Gui- 
berson opened  a  general  store  at  the  place.  A  man  by  the  name  of  Mills  from 
Indianola  also  had  a  small  store  there  for  a  while.  Leo  Nunn  set  up  a  black- 
smith shop  in  the  hamlet.   (See  article  on  postoffices.) 

Of  Methodism  in  Walnut  Township,  Isaac  Reager,  one  of  the  founders  of  the 
society  in  this  locality,  prepared  in  1905  the  following  interesting  details: 

"In  the  spring  of  1855  ^Y  wife  and  self,  with  Ransom  Bishop  and  wife, 
arranged  to  have  meetings  on  Sundays  every  two  weeks,  at  our  homes  turn  about. 
Meetings  were  conducted  most  of  the  time  by  exhorters.    The  preacher  in  charge 


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CHRISTIAN  CHURCH,  EAST  PERU 


METHODIST  EPISCOPAL  CHURCH, 
EAST  PERU 


SCENE  IN  PERI^ 


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I   'i: 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  309 

of  the  Winterset  mission,  Rev.  Richard  Swearengen,  preached  occasionally.  In 
the  latter  part  of  August,  1855,  Reverend  Swearengen  formally  organized  the 
society  into  a  class.  According  to  the  records,  sixteen  members  united  with  the 
church  on  that  day,  of  which  the  following  are  the  names  of  those  now  living: 
Mrs.  Jane  Gregory,  of  Bethel;  Mrs.  Fanny  Baker,  of  Winterset;  Mrs.  Polina 
Vorse,  of  Ringgold  County;  Mrs.  Rachel  Reager,  of  Norcatur,  Kansas,  and 
myself.  Those  that  have  died  are  as  follows:  Joseph  Quinn  and  wife,  Mary 
Quinn,  James  Quinn,  William  Quinn,  Elizabeth  Bishop,  Andrew  Reager  and 
wife,  Joseph  Reager,  Hamilton  Reager  and  Abram  Compton.  All  these  lived 
Christian  lives,  died  in  the  faith  and  we  have  no  doubt  are  now  among  the 
redeemed.  The  society  was  known  as  the  Reager  society,  or  class,  with  Isaac 
Reager  as  classleader.  Since  that  time  it  has  gone  through  many  changes  of 
names  and  location.  When  organized  it  was  in  the  Winterset  mission.  That 
fall  at  the  Iowa  Conference  two  circuits  were  formed  out  of  the  mission — the 
Winterset  and  the  Brooklyn  circuit — with  Joel  Mason  as  preacher  in  charge. 

"In  1856  a  schoolhouse  was  built  and  a  Sabbath  school  organized  and  the 
place  of  meeting  moved  there  and  called  the  Pleasant  Grove  class,  thus  relieving 
Sisters  Bishop  and  Reager  of  the  responsibility  of  having  it  in  their  homes,  which 
they  had  done  for  a  year  without  a  complaint,  doing  all  they  could  for  the 
cause  of  God.  In  1881  we  purchased  the  Adventist  Church  in  Peru  and  moved 
the  society  into  it,  and  changed  the  name  to  Peru  class.  In  1885  we  built  a  new 
church  and  the  railroad  soon  after  came  along  and  built  the  Town  of  East  Peru. 
In  1894  the  church  was  moved  to  East  Peru,  where  it  now  stands,  and  the  name 
of  the  society  was  changed  to  East  Peru.  The  annex  of  the  building  was  added 
in  1898.  During  this  time  many  changes  have  been  made  in  the  circuit.  As 
before  stated,  it  was  organized  as  the  Brooklyn  circuit,  with  Joel  Mason  as  pastor 
and  J.  B.  Hardy  as  presiding  elder.  Brother  Hardy  is  still  living  and  is  an 
honored  superannuated  minister  of  the  Iowa  Conference.  In  1867  the  name 
was  changed  to  Ohio  circuit.  In  the  fall  of  1885  it  was  changed  to  Peru.  In  the 
fall  of  1894  it  was  changed  to  Truro  and  in  1895  to  East  Peru.  The  East  Peru 
class  now  numbers  130  members. 

"The  names  of  the  pastors  in  their  regular  order  are  as  follows :  Joel  Mason, 
Thomas  Dixon,  J.  B.  Rawls,  John  M.  Baker,  M.  Sheets,  Charles  Wolsey,  William 
Abraham,  Israel  Mershon,  A.  A.  Powers,  E.  A.  Winning,  D,  B.  Clarg,  S.  W. 
Milligan,  R.  J.  Davis,  J.  R.  Ferguson,  B.  F.  Shetterly,  J.  G.  Bourne,  S.  N. 
Mathena,  S.  W.  Milligan  (second  time),  J.  D.  Funk,  H.  J.  Smith,  B.  F.  Shetterly 
(second  time),  D.  B.  Clarg  (second  time),  G.  W.  Patterson,  W.  F.  Hestwood, 
H.  C.  Preston,  Simpson  Guire,  G.  W.  Patterson  (second  time),  G.  L.  McDougal, 
W.  C.  Smith,  A.  V.  Nepper,  J.  M.  O'Fling,  R.  R.  Grantham,  Paul  Gardiner, 
Ed.  Nolte,  John  Branson,  William  M.  Blood,  Charles  C.  Wilkins,  W.  W.  Williams. 
This  makes  about  thirty-eight  pastors  we  have  had;  there  have  been  nineteen 
presiding  elders  since  our  organization,  four  of  these  while  we  were  yet  in  the 
Iowa  Conference." 

EAST    PERU 

The  old  Town  of  Peru*  was  laid  out  on  the  i8th  day  of  April,  1855,  by  Sim- 
mons Rutty,  surveyor,  for  Aaron  Hiatt,  and  for  some  time  was  quite  a  busy 

*  See  Chapter  on  *'Lost  and  Forgotten  Towns." 


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310  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

little  trading  point,  having  a  couple  of  general  stores,  a  blacksmith  shop  and 
school  and  church  close  by.  Nothing  now  remains  but  the  schoolhouse  and  a 
few  dwellings,  as  the  hamlet  was  forsaken,  for  business  purposes,  when  the 
railroad  was  built  a  mile  south  of  it  and  the  new  town  of  East  Peru  was  founded. 

East  Peru  was  iaid  out  December  6,  1887,  by  R.  A.  Patterson,  surveyor,  for 
William  H.  See,  owner  of  the  land,  and  is  located  on  the  north  half  of  section 
II,  in  Walnut  Township.  It  stands  on  the  north  bank  of  Clanton  Creek,  on  the 
Chicago,  St.  Paul  &  Kansas  City  (Chicago  Great  Western)  Railroad,  and  to  the 
north  is  a  stretch  of  superb  farming  lands,  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation. 
Peru  is  one  of  the  best  shipping  points  in  the  county,  and  has  a  good  graded 
school  and  two  churches.  Close  by,  to  which  a  spur  of  the  railroad  extends,  is 
a  spkndid  quarry,  equipped  with  machinery  and  appliances  of  the  latest  devices, 
from  which  is  taken  vast  quantities  of  stones  for  building  and  other  purposes. 
The  town  has  several  general  stores,  hardware,  furniture,  drug  and  meat  estab- 
lishments, a  blacksmith  shop,  livery  stable,  hotel,  garage,  cement  and  tile  works, 
implement  and  harness  stores,  telephone  exchange,  restaurant,  elevator,  lumber- 
yard and  a  very  neat  and  comfortable  depot. 

East  Peru  was  duly  incorporated  and  now  has  a  population  of  about  400. 
When  it  was  laid  out  there  were  three  houses  on  the  site.  It  is  said  that  James 
Harwood  was  the  first  one  to  engage  in  business,  having  a  stock  of  general  mer- 
chandise. H.  C.  Wright  opened  a  general  store  soon  after.  The  school  building 
— a  frame — was  erected  about  the  year  1906.  The  school  is  graded  and  employs 
three  teachers.    The  history  of  the  churches  is  given  elsewhere. 

For  a  new  town  East  Peru  is  quite  advanced.  In  the  summer  of  1913,  F.  A. 
Herwehe  established  and  built  an  electric  light  plant,  which  he  sold  to  L.  F. 
Clifton  in  October,  1914.  This  utility  was  a  small  aflfair,  costing  about  $1,500, 
and  built  as  an  experiment.  The  present  owner  is  convinced  the  improvement  can 
be  made  permanent  and  profitable,  and  with  this  view  in  mind  has  made  expensive 
additions  and  alterations  to  the  machinery. 

The  Peru  Savings  Bank  is  a  solid  financial  institution,  which  came  into  being 
when  the  Bank  of  East  Peru,  a  private  concern,  was  established  in  1899,  by  Wil- 
liam Fennimore,  J.  S.  Emerson  and  William  Painter.  About  1900  Painter  sold 
his  interest  to  the  remaining  partners  and  a  year  later,  or  two  or  three  years  later, 
Fennimore  sold  to  Emerson,  who  continued  operations  until  December  i,  1910, 
when  the  Peru  Savings  Bank  was  organized  and  established  under  the  laws  of 
the  State  of  Iowa,  by  William  Deardorflf,  E.  C.  Zimmerman,  F.  M.  Beeler,  W.  A. 
Harwood,  J.  L.  Harwood,  John  Schoenenberger,  Edgar  Harrell,  N.  W.  Oglesbee 
and  R.  E.  Phillips.  The  officials  are :  President,  W.  H.  Deardorff ;  vice  president, 
J.  L.  Harwood;  cashier,  E.  C.  Zimmerman;  assistant  cashier,  L.  M.  Delaplain. 
Capital,  $10,000;  undivided  profits,  $4,500;  deposits,  $82,275. 

Hazel  Lodge,  No.  573,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  was  organized  June  6,  1901,  with 
R.  A.  Greene,  worshipful  master;  J.  F.  Deardorff,  senior  warden;  A.  C. 
Creger,  junior  warden.  Maple  Leaf  Lodge,  No.  577,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows,  was  organized  in  October,  1903,  by  Henry  Smith,  P.  S.  Todhunter, 
W.  P.  Benge,  G.  W.  Finley,  J.  J.  Spurgin,  who  were  also  the  first  officials. 
Modem  Woodmen,  Walnut  Camp,  No.  2691,  was  established  on  the  19th  of 
January,  1895,  with  fifteen  members,  and  the  Woodmen  of  the  World,  East 
Peru  Camp,  No.  380,  was  organized  January  6,  1911,  with  eleven  members.    An 


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STONE  AND  CEMENT- COMPANY 'S  PLANT  AT  EAST  PERU.  WALNUT  TOWNSHIP 


STONE  QUARRY  AT  EAST  PERU,  WALNUT  TOWNSHIP 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  311 

auxiliary  lodge,  the  Woodmen  Circle,  Walnut  Grove,  No.  iii,  was  organized 
July  7,  191 1,  by  Emma  L.  Foster,  Hattie  M.  Lilley,  Cora  Inez  Dowler,  Augusta 
L.  Thomsen,  Ila  Hiatt,  Martha  Ergenbright,  Anna  Gillian,  Velma  M.  White,  Anna 
White,  Lena  Garst,  Josie  Johnson  and  John  W.  Carver. 

REMINISCENT 

By  Fred  Beeler,  in  1908 

Of  the  old  settlers,  a  few  of  them  are  still  living  in  Walnut  Township  in 
the  enjoyment  of  well  earned  fortunes  they  founded  in  the  early  times,  but 
the  greater  part  of  them  have  passed  away,  and  others,  in  the  nature  of  things, 
will  not  long  survive.  Several  are  in  the  South  and  West,  where  they  are  all 
playing  the  part  of  pioneers,  feut  wherever  they  may  be,  and  whatever  fate 
may  betide  them,  it  is  but  truth  to  say  that  they  were  excellent  men  and  women 
as  a  class,  and  have  left  deep  and  enduring  impression  on  Walnut  Township  and 
Madison  County.  They  built  better  than  they  knew ;  they  were  men  and  women 
of  energy  and  activity,  invariably  poor,  but  brave-hearted,  and  few  long  remained 
poor,  doubtless  owing  to  the  fact  they  lived  within  their  means,  however  limited, 
and  the  result  was  prosperity  and  contentment.  With  always  a  cordial  welcome 
to  their  fireside  and  table  for  the  stranger,  yet  for  several  years  these  pioneers 
lived  under  great  privations  and  discouragement.  In  years  gone  it  was  noticeable 
with  what  affection  the  pioneers  spoke  of  their  log  cabins,  and  it  may  be  doubted 
whether  palaces  ever  sheltered  happier  hearts  than  those  lonely  cabins.  They 
were  made  of  logs,  notched  together  at  the  comers,  ribbed  with  poles  and  covered 
with  clapboards.  A  puncheon  floor  was  then  laid  down,  a  hole  cut  in  the  end 
of  the  structure  and  a  stick  chimney  run  up.  A  clapboard  door  was  built  and 
a  window  was  made  by  cutting  a  hole  in  the  side  or  end,  about  sixteen  or  eighteen 
inches  square  and  finished  without  glass.  Logs  were  then  chinked  with  mud  made 
of  top  soil. 

The  first  white  settlers  in  Walnut  Township  were  John  Mars  and  Tom  Carr, 
who,  it  is  said,  furnished  to  settlers  who  came  later  on,  meat  from  hogs  running 
wild  here  at  the  time.  It  was  claimed  the  hogs  got  away  from  the  Mormon  emi- 
grants passing  through  Union  County  on  their  way  to  Salt  Lake  and  strayed 
to  this  locality.  Among  the  next,  and  we  might  say  permanent  settlers,  were 
Aaron  and  Jesse  Hiatt,  Ben  and  Jacob  Brown,  who  built  the  first  water  mill 
across  Clanton;  James  Emerson,  the  Marshalls,  Rhynos,  John  Guiberson,  Mc- 
Clures,  Drakes,  Burdicks,  the  five  brothers,  Elijah,  Job,  Thomas,  John  and  William 
Smith,  and  their  venerable  parents. 

Grandfather  and  Grandmother  Walker,  as  they  were  familiarly  called,  with 
their  three  sons,  S.  M.,  William  and  J.  V.  Walker,  Ben  Roberts,  Alex  Lorimor, 
who  built  the  first  steam  sawmill  in  the  township ;  the  Hiltons,  Fivecoats,  Flani- 
gans,  McGuires,  Paul  Jones,  Levi  Mease,  Tiltons,  Fowlers,  Isaac  Reager,  Dan 
Baker,  were  also  among  the  early  settlers. 

The  first  county  bridge  in  Walnut  Township,  across  Clanton,  was  built  in 
1863  or  1864,  near  where  Austin  Reed  now  lives.  There  had  been  a  number  of 
so-called  bridges  of  logs  constructed  across  this  stream.  They  were  covered 
with  poles  and  had  puncheon  floors.    When  the  freshets  came  they  were  certain 


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312  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

to  be  washed  away.  But  at  that  time  the  streams  were  much  narrower  than  now 
and  we  had  no  difficulty  in  securing  trees  along  the  banks  to  reach  across  them. 
And  that  calls  to  mind  the  majestic  trees  which  at  that  time  graced  each  side  or 
bank  of  our  water  courses,  black  and  white  walnut,  three  kinds  of  elms,  hard  and 
soft  maple,  hackberry,  hickory,  ash  and  the  stately  white  and  yellow  cottonwood ; 
linn,  commonly  called  basswood,  and  also  the  buckeyes,  which  caused  the  early 
settler  any  amount  of  grief,  both  in  early  spring  and  fall,  as  the  cattle  while  brows- 
ing in  the  fall  would  eat  the  buckeyes  and  founder  on  them,  and  not  infrequently 
the  result  would  prove  fatal. 

BARNEY 

Barney  is  a  hamlet  and  station  on  the  Great  Western  Railroad.  It  was  laid 
out  in  May,  1887,  by  R.  A.  Patterson,  county  surveyor,  for  Alexander  Macumber, 
and  is  located  on  section  31.  The  place  has  a  store,  shops  and  a  church — the 
Christian.  Close  by  is  a  school.  It  has  a  postoffice,  with  one  rural  route.  (See 
chapter  on  postoffices.) 


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CHAPTER   XXXVIII 
WEBSTER   TOWNSHIP 

A  recent  writer  described  Webster  Township  as  "having  a  schoolhouse  on 
every  hillside,  four  churches  and  no  railroads  or  saloons  in  the  valley.  It  is 
a  delightful  country  to  travel  over  when  the  clay  hills  are  macadamized  by  the 
sun  and  a  good  community  to  visit  in  when  the  people  are  not  too  busy."  This 
division  of  the  county  is  bounded  on  the  west  by  Adair  County,  on  the  east  by 
Lincoln  Township,  on  the  north  by  Jackson  and  on  the  south  by  Grand  River. 
The  surface  is  rough  and  broken  but  fine  stone  for  building  purposes  and  the 
manufacture  of  lime  is  found  here  in  abundance.  Originally  it  had  a  very  fine 
grove  of  timber  and  the  stone  along  Middle  River  is  almost  inexhaustible.  The 
stream  just  mentioned  crosses  the  township  almost  diagonally  from  the  northwest 
corner. 

As  far  as  is  now  known,  the  first  person  to  settle  here  was  John  H.  Baugh. 
He  was  bom  in  Madison  County,  Kentucky,  and  immigrated  with  his  parents  to 
Hendricks  County,  Indiana,  in  1830,  where  he  remained  until  1849.  Upon  coming 
here,  he  entered  land  on  section  12,  and  remained  there  a  great  many  years, 
where  he  raised  a  family  of  five  children  and  became  prosperous. 

Other  arrivals  in  the  township  soon  thereafter  were  Thomas  Wright,  L.  D. 
Skidmore,  Dexter  Howard,  James  Harmon,  Patrick  Lorge,  John  Vancil,  Otho 
Davis,  J.  R.  Drake  and  A.  M.  Hart. 

Another  contingent  made  up  the  early  settlers'  roll  as  follows :  O.  H.  Smith, 
Cass  Shaw,  F.  M.  Walker,  Adam  Krell,  H.  G.  Milligan,  John  Schnellbacher, 
Henry  Wissler,  J.  H.  Krell,  Joshua  Aikins,  Joseph  Steele,  E.  M.  Richmond, 
Charles  Gaynor  and  the  Orrises.  Most  of  these  persons  mentioned  have  either 
passed  to  the  beyond  or  have  moved  away. 

Otho  Davis,  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  immigrated  to  Jefferson  County,  this 
state,  in  1839,  and  to  Madison  County  in  1850.  He  laid  out  the  Town  of  Webster 
and  settled  in  the  township  in  1856.  He  was  for  many  years  postmaster  at 
Webster.    He  was  elected  treasurer  and  recorder  in  October,  1850. 

Dexter  Howard  was  a  native  of  New  York.  He  immigrated  to  Illinois  and 
from  there  to  Madison  County  in  1853,  becoming  a  citizen  of  Webster  Township. 

Andrew  Johnson  was  bom  in  Indiana  in  181 1  and  came  to  Madison  County 
in  1857,  settling  in  Webster  Township,  where  he  raised  a  large  family. 

F.  M.  McAflferty  was  a  settler  of  1855.  He  enlisted  in  the  Twenty-ninth 
Iowa  Infantry  in  1862  and  served  until  the  close  of  the  Civil  war. 

G.  H.  Milligan  came  here  from  Indiana  in  1856  and  found  here  E.  A.  Pindell, 
who  had  preceded  him  from  Brown  County,  Ohio,  in  1854. 

One  of  the  frugal  and  industrious  farmers  of  this  township  was  S.  Pope,  who 
immigrated  to  Iowa  and  settled  here  in  1857. 

313 


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314  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

P.  M.  Rhoads  became  a  settler  in  Madison  County  in  1855.  He  enlisted  in 
the  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry  and  during  the  Civil  war  served  three  years. 
John  Schnellbacher  was  a  good  farmer  and  an  equally  good  preacher.  He 
immigrated  from  Germany  to  this  country  in  1841,  first  stopping  in  Ohio,  where 
he  married  Fredericka  Meyer  in  1845.  There  he  was  licensed  as  a  local  preacher 
by  the  Evangelical  Association  and  in  1850  was  taken  into  the  conference  and 
assigned  to  the  traveling  ministers  in  mission  work.  This  brought  him  to  Madison 
County  in  1855,  when  he  located  on  a  Webster  Township  farm  of  240 
acres.  Mr.  Schnellbacher  was  wont  to  say  that  while  a  resident  of 
Madison  County  he  had  seen  com  sell  for  $3  a  bushel  and  food  so  scarce  that 
at  one  time  he  took  his  watch,  a  pair  of  buggy  springs  and  a  Bible  to  mill  to  put 
up  as  collateral  for  flour,  but  was  unable  to  get  any.  It  was  only  out  of  sympathy 
on  the  part  of  the  miller  when  he  saw  despair  depicted  on  the  suppliant  counte- 
nance that  he  agreed  to  let  him  have  some  rejected  flour  on  time,  which  Mr. 
Schnellbacher  was  soon  able  to  pay  for,  much  to  the  surprise  of  the  miller.  This 
old  pioneer  and  his  wife  have  both  long  since  passed  away. 

F.  M.  Walker  was  bom  in  Indiana  in  1828,  and  there  learned  the  trade  of 
gunsmith.  He  came  to  this  county  in  1855  and  for  many  years  was  one  of 
Webster  Township's  prominent  farmers  and  citizens.  He  was  postmaster  at 
Pleasant  View  until  the  office  was  abandoned.  Mr.  Walker  settled  on  section  23 
and  lived  there  for  forty-nine  years,  or  in  other  words,  up  until  the  time  of  his 
death,  which  occurred  in  1904. 

On  section  24  is  located  Pleasant  View  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  which  was 
organized  in  1856,  at  the  house  of  J.  Richmond,  with  the  following  members: 
Jarub  and  Susan  Richmond,  W.  S.  Milligan  and  wife,  W.  S.  and  George  R. 
Richmond,  Ann,  Nathaniel,  Sarah  A.,  Mary,  Charles,  Lydia  and  Orrin  Rich- 
mond, Anna  Johnson,  John  Johnson  and  wife,  John  and  Sarah  Waraick  and 
Oliver  Haven.  The  members  first  met  in  a  schoolhouse  on  section  23.  On  the 
latter  section  is  a  Christian  Church. 

The  Fair  View  Cumberland  Presbyterian  Church  was  organized  May  22,  1869, 
by  John  B.  and  Martha  Knowles,  William,  Margaret,  Joseph  and  Sarah  Steele, 
Jane  Stone,  S.  S.  and  Sarah  Probst,  M.  I.  and  E.  J.  Wood  and  Nancy  Henderson. 
A  house  of  worship  was  erected  on  section  26.  There  are  also  churches  on  sections 
2,  31,  32  and  14,  and  at  Webster,  on  section  6. 

WEBSTER 

This  town  was  laid  out  on  section  6,  in  Webster  Township,  by  Otho  Davis, 
in  1855.  Davis  then  opened  a  general  store  and  on  December  12,  1855,  Middle 
River  postoffice  was  located  at  Webster  and  Mr.  Davis  was  commissioned  the 
first  postmaster.  His  successors  have  been  M.  M.  McAfferty,  J.  V.  Nelson,  J.  E. 
Shidler,  Luther  Fox,  F.  B.  McAfferty,  F.  M.  Tidrick,  Rufus  Ulery,  Edward 
Loucks,  L.  J.  Cook  and  John  Cravens.  On  April  27,  1900,  Harrison  postoffice 
was  established  and  located  near  the  center  of  Webster  Township,  with  J.  B. 
Williamson  as  postmaster.  With  the  coming  of  rural  free  delivery  the  office  was 
discontinued  in  1905. 

Soon  after  Davis  opened  his  store,  F.  O.  Burke  engaged  in  general  mer- 
chandising, and  F.  M.  McAfferty  opened  a  blacksmith  shop.    Soon  after,  Charles 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  315 

Dinsmore  had  a  shop  for  repairing  wagons  in  operation.  About  1856  Charles 
Friend  commenced  the  building  of  a  mill  for  grinding  com.  It  was  finished  in 
the  latter  part  of  1856  by  Benjamin  McAiferty  and  F.  G.  Mason.  The  mill 
afterwards  fell  into  the  hands  of  Otho  Davis,  and  finally  G.  M.  McVey  became 
the  owner. 

In  June,  1875,  Winona  Lodge,  No.  339,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  was  chartered  and 
had  the  following  officers :  F.  M.  McAflferty,  W.  M. ;  Irvin  Wilcox,  S.  W. ;  Otho 
Davis,  J.  W.;  W.  McAfferty,  S.;  S.  Garrett,  C;  Charles  Dinsmore,  S.  D.; 
H.  F.  Devault,  J.  D. ;  D.  L.  Busby,  T.  The  lodge  moved  to  Pitzer  but  is  now 
no  more.  At  the  present  time  Webster  has  shown  no  evidences  of  having  grown 
within  the  last  several  years.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  it  has  become  smaller  as  time 
goes  by. 


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CHAPTER    XXXIX 

PENN  TOWNSHIP  k 

Penn  Township  was  created  by  the  County  Court  on  the  ist  day  of  March, 
1858,  and  the  first  election  was  held  in  the  old  log  house  in  which  Daniel  Francis 
took  up  his  residence  in  1855.  It  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  Dallas  County, 
on  the  south  by  Jackson  and  east  by  Madison  townships,  and  on  the  west  by 
Adair  County.  In  other  words,  it  is  the  northwest  comer  township  of  Madison. 
Penn  is  an  unusually  level  tract  of  land,  very  fertile  and  wholly  prairie.  In  the 
early  days  no  timber  was  to  be  found  except  at  Pilot  Grove,  locally-  made  famous 
as  the  place  for  holding  the  Penn  Center  annual  picnics.  This  grove  extends  from 
a  small  stream  back  upon  the  prairie  and  in  early  days  could  be  seen  at  a  distance 
of  many  miles,  serving  as  a  pilot  for  the  travelers.  The  township  is  wholly 
agricultural,  there  being  no  town  within  its  borders,  so  to  speak,  as  only  the  edge 
of  Earlham  infringes  on  its  northeastern  boundary  line. 

Dexter,  about  the  size  of  Earlham,  is  just  across  the  line  in  Dallas  County 
and  these  two  trading  points  compete  for  the  business  favors  of  Penn  and  share 
them  about  equally. 

The  history  of  Penn  Township  covers  a  period  of  about  sixty-five  years,  dat- 
ing back  to  1849,  or  1850.  The  wooded  country  to  the  north  of  Penn  was  settled 
some  years  before,  as  it  is  well  known  the  pioneers  kept  close  to  the  timber.  Penn 
being  a  level  stretch  of  country,  was  on  that  account  avoided  by  the  early  pioneers 
of  this  part  of  the  state.  The  first  settlers,  it  is  said,  were  the  brothers,  William 
and  Joseph  Jeflfries,  who  came  here  from  Missouri  about  1850  and  selected  a  rich, 
level  tract  of  land  at  the  center  of  the  township  and  built  the  first  house,  a  log 
cabin,  within  its  borders.  Being  of  pro-slavery  proclivities  and  the  people  who 
followed  them  into  this  garden  spot  coming  from  Ohio  and  Indiana  and  of  ardent 
abolition  tendencies,  discouraged  them  in  remaining  in  an  atmosphere  not  con- 
genial, so  they  left  the  field  to  others.  First  among  these  was  John  Wilson  and 
family,  among  whom  were  two  sons,  Christopher  and  Abihu  Wilson,  who  came 
in  1853  from  Marion  County,  Indiana.  Christopher  was  bom  in  1827.  He  located 
on  section  i  and  became  one  of  the  landed  proprietors  of  the  township.  When  he 
put  up  his  first  buildings,  he  hauled  the  timbers  from  Des  Moines.  In  1864 
he  married  Rachel  Smith,  of  Penn  Township,  who  died  in  1867.  For  his  second 
wife  he  married  Martha  Newby.  Abihu  was  born  in  1830.  He  settled  on  section 
12  and  was  the  first  person  to  enter  land  in  the  township.  It  is  also  said  that  he 
raised  the  first  crop  and  ran  the  first  harvester  and  threshing  machine  in  the  com- 
munity.   William,  a  son,  was  the  first  child  bom  in  Penn  Township. 

John  E.  Darby  left  his  Ohio  home  for  the  newer  Iowa  country  in  1855,  com- 
ing to  Winterset  in  that  year.  He  taught  school  the  two  following  years  and  in 
1857  settled  on  a  farm  in  this  township,  where  he  died  a  few  years  ago.  He 
helped  organize  the  republican  party  at  Winterset  in  1856. 

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HISTORY  OF  mAdISON  COUNTY  317 

Daniel  Francis  was  bom  in  Drake  County,  Ohio,  in  1826,  and  in  1850  married 
Emily  Edington,  a  native  of  the  same  county.  He  arrived  in  this  township  May 
22,  1855.  He  for  many  years  served  as  justice  of  the  peace,  served  as  county 
supervisor  five  years,  assessed  the  township  fifteen  times  and  represented  his 
county  in  the  State  Legislature.  When  he  and  his  young  wife  arrived  here  they 
had  but  little  of  this  world's  goods.  The  winters  were  extremely  cold  and  wood 
being  scarce  it  had  to  be  hauled  a  long  way.  Their  neighbors  accumulated  very 
slowly  until  the  locating  of  the  railroad  in  1867,  when  the  country  settled  rapidly. 
He  afterward  moved  to  Des  Moines,  where  he  passed  away.  He  gave  his  prop- 
erty for  a  home  for  aged  Methodist  preachers. 

David  Stanton  and  family  came  from  Ohio  in  June  1856,  and  settled  at  Penn 
Grove,  where  he  improved  a  farm.  His  father  was  a  first  cousin  of  Edwin  M. 
Stanton,  Lincoln's  famous  secretary  of  war.  Mr.  Stanton  built  the  first  house 
at  Pilot  Grove  and  was  the  envy  of  his  neighbors,  as  he  had  a  team  of  horses, 
while  they  had  risen  no  higher  in  the  way  of  a  team  than  a  yoke  of  oxen.  David 
Stanton  was  a  leader  in  his  day,  lived  many  years  in  Penn,  then  moved  to  Quaker 
Ridge  and  finally  passed  to  his  reward. 

William  M.  Fleming  left  the  Buckeye  State  in  1857  and  traveling  by  rail  as  far 
as  Iowa  City,  he  then  reached  Des  Moines  by  stage  coach.  From  the  future  capital 
city  he  walked  the  rest  of  the  way  through  a  late  November  blizzard  and  found  an 
abiding  place  in  this  township,  where  he  took  up  a  claim  and  that  same  fall  broke 
up  forty  acres  of  sod.  The  next  year  he  went  back  to  Ohio  and  returned  with  his 
bride  to  his  prairie  home. 

Washington  Francis,  a  brother  of  Daniel  Francis,  was  one  of  the  pioneers  and 
put  in  his  leisure  time  in  the  '60s  freighting  between  Iowa  and  Pike's  Peak.  He 
sold  the  old  homestead  in  this  township  in  1904. 

About  the  year  i860  the  Schlarbs,  with  Nicholas  at  the  head,  and  the  Holder- 
lj;aums,  led  by  Michael,  and  afterwards  the  Lenockers,  all  from  Holmes  County, 
Ohio,  settled  on  the  west  side  of  the  township  and  within  a  short  time  that  local- 
ity was  mainly  made  up  of  people  from  Ohio. 

There  were  other  old  settlers,  some  coming  before  and  others  after  those 
named.  Among  them  were  Josiah  Scott,  Hamlin  Murphy,  Addison  Armstrong 
and  I.  D.  Neff,  who  saw  the  prairie  before  the  buflfalo  trails  had  been  wholly 
obliterated  by  the  plow.  There  was  also  Charles  Crane,  another  school  teacher, 
With  the  rapid  immigration  came  the  railroad  and  the  pioneer  days  of  Penn  were 
practically  at  an  end.  The  rich  prairie  farms  which  could  be  had  almost  for  the 
asking  became  more  fertile,  now  that  the  railroad  was  in  sight,  and  suddenly 
mounted  up  in  value.  Sixty  years  ago  farms  in  this  locality  were  almost  given 
away;  now  they  sell  for  $100  to  $150  and  even  as  high  as  $200  an  acre. 

W.  A.  Ross  was  for  many  years  prominent  among  the  citizens  of  Penn  Town- 
ship. He  left  several  years  ago  for  Lee  County.  J.  M.  Hochstetler  and  the 
Koehlers  came  somewhat  later.  C.  F.  Koehler  was  county  treasurer  two  terms. 
He  now  resides  in  California. 

G.  F.  Lenocker  developed  a  magnificent  farm  and  served  a  term  as  member  of 
the  board  of  supervisors.    He  moved  to  Dexter  in  1899  ^"d  died  a  few  years  ago. 

Tames  Breckenridge,  for  some  time  a  member  of  the  board  of  supervisors, 
resided  for  some  years  on  the  farm  owned  and  operated  for  many  years  by  his 
father,  but  now  lives  in  Jackson  Township.    Then  there  were  the  Marstons  and 


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318  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

the  Murphys,  also  H.  L.  Kale,  who  removed  from  the  farm  to  Earlham  and 
became  mayor  of  that  bustling  little  city. 

Quite  a  number  of  the  sturdy,  frugal  and  industrious  people  of  Germany 
settled  in  Penn  Township  in  the  latter  *6os  and  early  '70s.  Among  them  may  be 
mentioned,  together  with  the  Koehlers,  Hochstetlers,  Schlarbs,  Holderbaums  and 
Lenockers,  Fred  Imboden  and  Hezekiah  Leeper  and  family. 

Penn  Township  has  the  distinction  of  being  at  one  time  the  home  of  Edwin 
H.  Conger,  whose  name  became  quite  prominent  among  the  leading  men  of  this 
country.  He  settled  on  a  farm  on  section  5,  about  1868,  after  having  served 
his  country  in  the  Civil  war  and  risen  to  the  rank  of  major.  He  served  this  county 
on  the  board  of  supervisors  and  was  one  of  the  first  three  members  chosen  for  that 
body  when  it  was  cut  down  to  its  present  size.  At  the  age  of  thirty-seven  he  was 
state  treasurer  and  when  forty-one  became  a  United  States  congressman.  He 
represented  his  Government  at  Brazil  when  forty-seven  and  at  the  age  of  fifty- 
seven  was  sent  to  China  by  President  McKinley  as  United  States  minister,  where 
he  performed  the  duties  of  his  office  in  a  highly  satisfactory  manner  and  especially 
during  the  great  Boxer  uprising.  Of  his  residence  in  Madison  County,  he  speaks 
interestingly  in  a  letter  written  to  Herman  Mueller,  from  Pasadena,  California, 
April  18,  1906,  in  the  following  words  : 

**Yours  9th  received.  I  am  not  much  at  write-ups  for  myself,  and  really  don't 
know  what  you  want.  But  I  cannot  refrain  from  expressing  to  you  something  of 
my  gratitude  for  a  true  friendship,  which  was  first  given  me  by  the  good  people  of 
Madison  County  nearly  forty  years  ago,  and  has  continued  true,  generous  and 
steadfast  ever  since.  I  have  never  for  a  moment  forgotten  it,  nor  ever  for  a 
moment  ceased  to  be  grateful  for  it. 

"I  came  to  Madison  County  in  1868,  a  young  man  of  twenty-five,  with  no 
idea  of  politics  in  my  head,  and  no  desire  for  official  place  or  distinction.  I  simply 
went  to  work.  But  in  the  autumn  of  1869,  while  I  was  in  the  field  plowing,  J.  _J. 
Hutchings  and  Bill  Newlon  drove  into  my  field  and  told  me  it  was  my  duty  to  be 
a  candidate  for  county  supervisor  from  Penn  Township.  I  said  I  hadn't  time, 
didn't  want  the  place,  etc.;  besides,  I  did  not  know  a  half  dozen  men  in  the 
township.  But  I  finally  consented  and  was  elected,  beating  one  of  the  very  best 
men  who  ever  lived  in  the  county — Daniel  Francis.  I  don't  know  how  or  why. 
The  board  then  consisted  of  seventeen  men,  one  from  each  township.  I  remem- 
ber them  all  as  splendid,  substantial  men.  And  it  was  thus  that  my  acquaintance 
extended  all  over  the  county.  A  few  years  thereafter,  two  I  think,  the  board  was 
reduced  to  three  members.  Its  first  membership  was  Captain  Anderson  from  the 
southeast  township — Ohio;  Judge  Lewis  from  Winterset,  and  myself  from  the 
northwest  township — Penn.  I  think  we  drew  lots  for  the  length  of  our  terms. 
I  drew  one  year,  Captain  Anderson  two  and  Judge  Lewis  three.  I  was  therefore 
made  the  first  chairman.  My  associates  were  excellent  men  and  my  service  with 
them  was  most  agreeable. 

"This  was  my  first  start  in  politics.  I  soon  moved  just  across  the  line  into 
Dallas  County  and  in  a  few  years  entered  politics  again.  My  career  since  has 
been  an  open  book.  But  in  every  contest,  I  have  had  the  active,  loyal  and  earnest 
support  of  all  my  old  and  many  new  Madison  County  friends.  If  I  haven't  done 
well,  I'm  going  to  lay  the  blame  on  them  for  first  enlisting  me.  If  I  have  done 
measurably  well,  I  am  glad  to  give  them  the  credit,  for  the  same  reason.     I 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  319 

shall  love  Madison  County  and  her  good  people  as  long  as  I  live,  and  hope  I  may 
never  prove  unworthy  of  their  confidence  and  aflfection.  Please  say  so  to  any  and 
all  of  them  you  meet  and  believe  me,  Yours  Sincerely, 

"E.  H.  Conger/' 

PENN  CENTER  PICNIC 

The  Penn  Center  picnic,  which  has  been  an  annual  event  for  over  forty  years, 
got  its  inception  from  A.  C.  Holderbaum,  who  taught  the  Penn  Center  school 
in  1873.  Holderbaum  was  a  young  man,  who  received  his  education  at  the  Illi- 
nois State  Normal.  He  conceived  the  idea  of  having  the  school  picnic  more  than 
a  small  district  affair,  and  to  this  end  invited  all  the  other  schools  in  the  township 
to  take  part.  All  responded  and  the  result  was  the  first  general  picnic  of  the  Penn 
Township  schools.  When  the  appointed  day  arrived  for  the  initial  picnic  in  1873, 
every  school,  headed  by  its  teacher,  took  place  in  line  and  marched  down  to  Pilot 
Grove.  The  program  that  day  was  the  model  and  forerunner  of  the  many  that  have 
followed.  The  forenoon  was  occupied  by  the  school  children  in  their  various  exer- 
cises and  the  afternoon  by  the  older  people,  in  speech  making,  singing,  story  telling 
and  the  like.  In  the  meantime,  the  children  enjoyed  themselves  in  numerous 
forms  of  amusement.  The  teacher,  A.  C.  Holderbaum,  who  afterwards  was 
founder  of  the  Dexter  Normal  School,  was  the  real  manager,  but  David  Stanton 
was  president  of  the  day.  N.  Angle  had  charge  of  the  music.  Editor  Davis,  of 
the  old  Dexter  Herald,  ^'made  a  part  of  a  speech  to  be  concluded  in  the  next  week's 
Herald."  As  a  matter  of  course,  others  displayed  their  oratorical  abilities  on  the 
glad  occasion.  Since  that  time,  in  each  succeeding  year,  without  a  break,  the  Penn 
Center  picnic  has  been  held  at  Pilot  Grove,  not  only  for  the  schools  of  Penn 
Township,  but  for  men,  women  and  children  living  many  miles  around.  It  is  a 
notable  event  in  the  locality  and  is  looked  forward  to  each  year  by  those  living 
in  various  parts  of  the  county.  The  Penn  Center  picnic  has  long  been  celebrated 
in  this  section  of  the  state,  and  is  widely  noticed  by  the  press. 


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CHAPTER  XL 
MADISON  TOWNSHIP 

Madison  Township  was  formed  out  of  the  west  part  of  Union  in  1851,  and  as 
originally  made  up  was  very  nearly  the  northwest  quarter  of  the  county  and 
included  the  future  townships  of  Penn,  Jackson,  and  Douglas.  It  is  bounded  on 
the  north  by  Dallas  County,  on  the  south  by  Douglas,  on  the  east  by  Jefferson  and 
on  the  west  by  Penn  townships.  It  has  many  of  the  features  of  Penn  Township, 
especially  in  the  northern  portion.  It  is  comprised  of  high,  rolling  prairie  land 
and  is  on  the  divide  between  North  Branch  and  Raccoon  River.  The  southern 
part  of  the  township  is  crossed  by  North  Branch,  along  which  there  was  originally 
a  heavy  grove  of  timber. 

James  Brewer  was  probably  the  first  settler  in  Madison  Township,  as  it  is  said 
he  located  here  in  1849.  Then  came  Henry  Grosclose,  Henry  Rice  and  a  man 
named  Hannahs,  who  took  claims  on  the  south  side  of  North  Branch.  John  Todd 
settled  at  a  point  afterwards  known  as  Worthington  in  the  same  year  and  shortly 
thereafter  they  were  followed  by  George  T.  Nichols  and  Leroy  Anderson. 

The  time  established  for  the  coming  of  Derrick  Bennett  was  early  in  1852. 
He  himself  is  authority  for  the  statement  that  his  entry  was  the  second  in  the 
township  and  that  he  was  the  first  person  to  cultivate  a  patch  of  ground  in  the 
neighborhood. 

Jacob  Bennett  immigrated  to  Iowa  in  1852  and  located  in  this  township  on 
section  35,  where  he  lived  for  many  years  and  became  one  of  the  most  pros- 
perous farmers  in  the  county,  owning  at  one  time  over  one  thousand  acres  of  land. 
He  was  the  father  of  a  large  family.  When  he  arrived  in  Madison  Township 
Mr.  Bennett's  nearest  neighbor  lived  eight  miles  distant.  He  built  the  first  school- 
house  in  the  township  and  gave  it  to  the  district. 

Another  one  of  the  earliest  citizens  here  was  James  Allen,  who  arrived  from 
Indiana  in  1853.  For  a  great  many  years  he  lived  on  section  20  and  was  the 
possessor  of  several  hundred  acres  of  land. 

Michael  Gabbert  was  a  native  of  Tennessee.  He  immigrated  to  Iowa  in  1836 
and  to  this  county  in  1854.  In  the  year  last  mentioned  he  settled  on  the  place  later 
known  as  the  Kendig  farm  and  then  removed  to  section  15.  Mr.  Gabbert  was  one 
of  the  pioneer  men  of  Iowa  and  was  personally  acquainted  with  the  Indian  chiefs, 
Keokuk  and  Black  Hawk. 

G.  W.  Lemar  settled  in  the  county  in  1857.  He  married  Mary  Spray  in  i860. 
He  was  successful  in  his -undertakings,  built  a  beautiful  home  and  had  one  of  the 
largest  orchards  in  the  county.  He  was  for  several  years  justice  of  the  peace  in 
this  township. 

William  McKibben  came  from  Delaware  County,  Indiana,  in  1855,  and  for 
three  years  lived  in  Dallas  County.     In  1858  he  located  on  section  5,  Madison 

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OAK  GROVE  CHURCH,  WEBSTER  MAPLE  GROVE  CHURCH,  WEBSTER 

TOWNSHIP  TOW^NSHIP 


WORTHINGTOX  CHURCH  AND  CEMETERY,  MADISON  TOWNSHIP 


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r"^;: 


■'  Y  j.'K 


L 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  321 

Township.    He  was  a  veteran  of  the  Civil  war,  enlisting  in  Company  A,  Thirty- 
ninth  Iowa  Infantry. 

Andrew  Oldham  settled  on  section  35,  in  1857.    He  was  a  prosperous  farmer 
and  was  always  looked  upon  as  one  of  the  leading  citizens  of  the  community. 

R.  B.  Powell  was  a  settler  here  in  1854.    He  raised  a  large  family  and  was 
a  man  of  more  than  ordinary  importance  to  the  township. 

Eli  Woolery  entered  land  on  section  32,  in   1852,  upon  which  he  built  a 
home  and  at  once  began  cultivating  the  soil. 

E.  R.  Zeller,  in  writing  of  this  township  in  1906,  had  in  part  the  following  to 
say :  "Jacob  Trester  will  never  be  forgotten  by  those  who  for  so  many  years 
traveled  the  Desoto  Road.  George,  William  and  Eber  Duff  helped  develop  the 
same  neighborhood.  The  two  latter  still  have  their  farms,  while  the  former  was 
last  heard  of  in  British  Columbia.  G.  T.  Nichols  improved  a  farm  and  was 
chiefly  instrumental  in  building  a  church  in  a  cemetery  adjoining  which  his  re- 
mains have  long  since  reposed.  Len  Williams  was  for  many  years  one  of  the 
most  prominent  citizens  of  Madison  Township  but  recently  sold  the  fine  farm 
which  he  improved  and  now  lives  in  Winterset.  George  Storck,  his  neighbor,  has 
made  the  wilderness  blossom  as  the  rose.  Merrill  Knight,  who  lived  across  the 
line  in  Jefferson  Township,  was  for  three  terms  county  treasurer.  Madison  Town- 
ship is  deservedly  renowned  because  of  Earlham,  the  main  part  of  which  lies 
within  its  borders.  This  thriving  town  has  all  been  built  during  the  period  under 
consideration.  No. town  had  been  thought  of  there  in  1856.  *  *  *  Mention 
must  be  made  of  the  Hills  and  Thomsons,  who  were  the  main  forces  in  founding 
the  town.  There  were  two  brothers,  Mark  and  Jesse  Hill,  and  again  two  other 
brothers,  John  and  Mark  Thomson.  The  two  sets  of  brothers  did  not  always 
work  in  concert  but  each  set  of  brothers  always  worked  together.  *  *  * 
There  is  but  one  of  the  Thomsons  and  one  of  the  Hills  remaining,  Mark  Thomson 
having  removed  to  Kansas  some  years  ago  and  Jesse  Hill  died  this  summer  ( 1906) . 
There  were  other  Hills,  some  of  whom  have  removed  elsewhere.  Of  the  younger 
generation  of  Thomsons,  Hugh  was  for  two  terms  county  clerk  and  is  now  cash- 
ier of  an  Earlham  bank." 

William  Fee  is  credited  with  having  settled  in  this  township  in  1853  and  a  year 
or  so  later  J.  W.  and  White  Burnett ;  Jolin  Wilson,  with  his  sons,  Abihu,  Christo- 
pher and  Henry.  These  all  settled  on  the  divide.  Jacob  Gabbert,  Michael  Gab- 
bert,  William  Coe  and  Benjamin  Powell,  with  his  sons,  located  on  the  divide  in  the 
eastern  part  of  the  township. 

Jacob  Bennett  put  up  the  first  school  building  in  the  township  in  1853  ^ind 
Samuel  Kirkland  taught  the  first  school  held  there.  At  the  present  time  the  com- 
munity is  well  supplied  with  schools  and  churches,  for  the  history  of  which  see 
another  chapter.  However,  the  township  has  a  large  number  of  citizens  belonging 
to  the  Society  of  Friends,  who  have  two  large  churches  at  Earlham.  They  are 
among  the  best  citizens  in  the  community  and  have  some  of  the  finest  farms. 

Fairview  M.  E.  Church  is  on  section  13 ;  Worthington  M.  E.  Church  on  section 
32,  and  North  River  U.  P.  Church  on  section  36. 

At  a  point  on  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  4,  from  the  line  of  the  Chicago, 
Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railroad,  a  spur  runs  south  into  section  16,  where  is  one  of 
the  largest  stone  quarries  in  the  State  of  Iowa,  now  being  worked  by  the  Iowa 

Portland  Cement  Company.    This  quarry  is  perhaps  equalled  only  by  the  cement 
Tol.  I— 11 


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322  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

quarry  at  Mason  City,  in  extent.  The  rock  is  the  Earlham  formation  of  the  upper 
carboniferous  limestone  which  underlies  Madison  County  in  four  beds.  It  is  rich 
in  cement  content  and  from  this  stratum  the  lime  which  the  early  settlers  burned  in 
the  kilns,  before  the  modem  methods  of  making  cement  and  plaster  were  intro- 
duced, was  made. 

"That  was  splendid  lime  that  was  burned  in  the  old  kilns  along  the  creeks 
in  the  early  day.  The  plaster  made  from  it  is  on  the  walls  of  hundreds  of  Madi- 
son County  homes.  The  foundations  of  nearly  all  the  old  houses  and  the  walls  of 
the  old  stone  buildings  that  stand  without  a  crack  attest  its  strength  and  quality. 
It  was  a  crude  method  of  making  lime  that  was  used  in  burning  these  old  kilns. 
Old  man  Rogers,  or  Caleb  Clark,  or  some  other  man,  would  build  a  kiln  (a  cone- 
like structure)  out  of  the  rock,  and  then  he  and  his  boys  would  dump  rock  taken 
from  this  stratum — it  underlies  the  whole  county,  except  the  northeast  portion — 
and  fill  it  full.  The  rock  was  fairly  well  broken.  At  the  bottom  of  the  kiln  a  fire- 
place that  would  hold  more  than  a  cord  stick  in  length  was  built.  After  the 
kiln  was  full,  the  space  left  for  fire  was  filled  with  wood  and  kept  bumfng  night 
and  day  for  two  or  three  days.  When  the  burning  was  finished,  the  whole  inte- 
rior displayed  a  mass  of  soft,  pure,  unslacked  lime.  The  product  was  sold  directly 
from  the  kiln,  shoveled  into  wagon  boxes  of  those  coming  for  it.  A  kiln  was 
usually  ruined  by  one  burning  and  another  was  built  near  it,  if  the  season  hap- 
pened to  be  good,  while  the  contents  of  the  first  kiln  were  being  sold.  The  ruins 
of  these  old  kilns  can  be  seen  in  all  the  ravines  south  of  Winterset  that  had  roads 
down  them  in  the  early  days. 

"There  are  four  beds  of  limestone  belonging  to  the  upper  carboniferous  lime- 
stone in  Madison  County.  The  state  geologist  has  given  them  the  names  of  Fusil- 
ina,  Winterset,  Earlham  and  Fragmental.  The  formation  entire  is  about  two 
hundred  feet  deep  and  from  tests  which  the  cement  company  has  made  the 
Earlham  formation  proves  the  richest  in  lime  and  the  best  suited  for  making  Port- 
land cement.  In  section  i8  is  a  stone  quarry  opened  in  1869  by  J.  E.  Parkins,  at 
one  time  a  resident  of  Winterset.  He  bought  the  property  of  Milton  Wilson  and 
competent  judges  in  Chicago  and  New  York  pronounced  the  stone  inferior  to 
none  in  the  West  for  building  purposes.  When  first  taken  from  its  bed  it  is 
extremely  soft  and  almost  as  easily  worked  as  chalk.  Exposure  to  the  air,  how- 
ever, renders  it  as  hard  as  granite.  Parkins  put  a  force  of  about  thirty  men  to 
work  quarrying  the  rock  and  dressing  it  on  the  ground  ready  for  shipment.  He 
also  erected  a  patent  lime  kiln  near  the  quarry  which  had  a  capacity  of  turning  off 
a  carload  of  lime  daily.  A  spur  of  the  Rock  Island  Railroad  runs  from  Earlham 
to  the  quarry.  It  was  in  more  recent  years  that  the  Portland  Cement  Company 
opened  its  quarry  on  section  16. 

"When  the  company  located,  it  chose  the  North  Branch  exposure  as  best 
suited  for  its  quarries  and  purchased  a  large  body  of  land  along  the  north  side. 
Doubtless,  railroad  facilities  and  the  shorter  distance  were  large  factors  in  deter- 
mining the  location.  The  North  Branch  quarry  in  itself  is  an  immense  aflPair. 
It  has  been  in  operation  but  a  few  years.  It  lies  on  the  north  side  of  North 
Branch  and  follows  the  curvature  of  one  of  its  numerous  small  tributaries.  Al- 
ready almost  a  mountain  of  dirt  has  been  removed,  to  get  to  the  stone,  which  the 
company  loads  on  cars  and  ships  to  Des  Moines.  A  branch  line  from  the  main 
line  of  the  Rock  Island  at  Earlham,  runs  down  to  the  quarry  and  directly  into  i-t 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  323 

alongside  the  rock  face.  A  large  force  of  men  are  constantly  employed  in 
handling  the  rock  alone.  That  is  to  say,  the  men  who  do  nothing  but  drill,  blast 
and  load  the  rock.  The  job  of  stripping  the  rock  is  let  by  the  cement  company  to 
contractors  and  excavation  companies  which  employ  at  least  forty  or  fifty  more 
men  in  handling  the  dirt." 

EARLHAM 

Madison  County's  first  town  to  secure  a  railroad  was  Earlham,  a  thriving  and 
beautiful  little  trading  point,  which  was  laid  out  on  the  south  fractional  half  of 
the  northwest  quarter  of  section  6,  in  Madison  Township,  by  Benjamin  F.  Allen, 
May  4,  1869.  The. surveying  of  the  land  was  the  work  of  an  engineer  in  the 
employ  of  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railroad  Company.  The  land 
originally  the  site  of  Earlham  was  entered  by  Seth  Wilson,  Sr.,  and  conveyed  by 
him  to  David  Hocket.  In  the  fall  of  1868  Benjamin  F.  Allen,  of  Des  Moines, 
bought  the  property  of  Hocket,  paying  $20  an  acre  for  it,  and  it  was  known  at  the 
time,  by  certain  persons,  that  Allen  intended  laying  out  a  town  site  on  his 
purchase.  Before  the  survey  was  made,  two  or  three  houses  already  stood  on  the 
town  site  and  as  soon  as  the  lots  were  ready  for  sale  several  buyers  were  on 
hand,  whose  intentions  were  to  commence  at  once  to  prepare  for  the  erection  of 
buildings,  preliminary  to  engaging  in  mercantile  pursuits  in  the  new  town.  Mar- 
tin Cook  had  a  building  one-half  mile  west  of  the  place,  which  he  at  once  removed 
to  Earlham,  and  Dr.  M.  R.  Lyon  erected  a  building  for  the  installation  of  a  stock 
of  drugs  and  also  for  residential  purposes.  Both  pioneer  builders  and  merchants 
later  were  compelled  to  move  their  houses,  as  it  developed  that  Martin's  building 
had  been  placed  on  the  line  separating  two  lots  and  the  Lyon  drug  store  stood  in 
the  middle  of  the  street. 

Earlham  now  lies  in  two  townships,  Madison  and  Penn,  but  chiefly  in  the 
former.  It  is  peculiarly  fortunate  in  its  location  for  the  country  surrounding  it 
can  well  bear  comparison  with  any  other  section  of  Iowa,  or  with  any  country  in 
the  universe,  for  richness  and  variety  of  soil  and  its  adaptability  to  easy  culti- 
vation; for  the  purity  of  the  water  and  invigorating,  life-preserving  qualities  of 
the  air;  for  its  beauties  of  landscape  and  the  general  prosperity  and  evidences  of 
wealth,  apparent  to  the  naked  eye  on  every  hand. 

The  name  assigned  to  Earlham  was  chosen  by  Milton  Wilson.  The  idea  of 
establishing  a  "Quaker"  college  here  was  early  manifested  by  certain  of  the  early 
settlers  of  that  religious  persuasion  and  there  being  a  **Friends*'  college  at  Earlham, 
Indiana,  Mr.  Wilson  suggested  that  the  name  be  given  to  this  place,  at  the  same 
time  expressing  the  ardent  hope  of  himself  and  others  that  as  a  college  town  it 
one  day  would  be  heard  from  in  no  uncertain  tones.  The  name  Earlham  was 
adopted  and  within  a  few  months  a  stock  company  was  organized  for  the  purpose 
of  establishing  a  college  and  $5,000  of  the  stock  was  subscribed  by  leading  men  of 
the  county.  An  interesting  account  of  the  enterprise  is  given  elsewhere  in  this 
work.  As  soon  as  the  survey  was  completed,  lots  were  oflfered  at  prices  rang- 
ing from  $25  to  $125.  Martin  Cook  bought  the  first  one  sold  and,  before  the 
expiration  of  two  weeks  thereafter,  at  least  more  than  half  the  lots  were 
disposed  of  to  purchasers,  most  of  whom  were  men  who  had  made  up  their 
minds  to  build  and  become  residents  of  the  place.     In  the  autumn  of   1869 


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324  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

the  railroad  company  had  constructed  a  side  track,  a  section  house  and  water 
tank  and  before  the  close  of  the  year  the  firm  of  Getchel  &  Tichenor,  of  Des 
Moines,  established  a  lumberyard;  the  lumber  concern  of  Thompson  &  Mad- 
dem,  of  Davenport,  soon  followed,  and  both  these  yards  furnished  material 
for  building.  "Notwithstanding  the  season  and  weather  were  the  worst 
possible  for  such  operations,  business  houses  and  dwellings  began  to  go  up  with 
a  rapidity  and  steadiness  that  demonstrated  at  once  the  determination  of  the  new 
settlers  to  build  up  a  town.  The  result  was  that  scarcely  five  months  after  the 
first  stake  was  planted  in  the  frozen  earth,  Earlham  contained  at  least  thirty-five 
buildings,  many  of  which  are  first  class  for  a  country  village." 

Seth  Wilson  erected  the  first  building  in  Earlham  for  entertainment  of  the 
traveling  public,  in  1869,  and  it  long  was  known  as  the  Earlham  House. 

Martin  Cook  was  the  first  general  merchant  and  Dr.  M.  R.  Lyon  had  the  first 
drug  store.    Mr.  Cook  was  appointed  and  served  as  the  first  station  agent  in  1869. 

The  first  business  man  of  Earlham  was  a  Quaker — Martin  Cook  of  Quaker 
Divide,  When  grading  began  on  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railroad,  he 
and  John  R.  Cook,  also  a  Quaker  from  the  same  locality,  put  up  a  building  at  the 
east  end  of  the  "dump,"  not  far  from  where  the  tenement  house  at  Clarence 
Wilson  now  stands.  This  small  building,  which  they  called  the  "shebang,"  was 
stocked  with  supplies,  which  they  sold  to  the  railroad  grading  gangs.  When  Earl- 
ham was  located  in  the  fall  of  1868,  Martin  Cook  moved  the  "shebang,"  with  its 
stock  into  the  new  town,  locating  near  where  John  Bechtel's  restaurant  now  stands. 
Martin  was  appointed  first  postmaster,  with  the  office  in  this  building.  He  was 
also  the  first  station  agent.  He  soon  sold  his  farm  and  built  a  house  in  Earlham. 
About  1 87 1  or  1872  he  became  a  homesteader  in  Lyon  County,  Iowa. 

Joseph  Cook  erected  a  building  in  1869  and  installed  a  stock  of  farm  imple- 
ments and  similar  articles.  He  also  engaged  in  the  commission  business.  Before 
the  close  of  the  year  he  had  a  competitor,  in  the  firm  of  Cammack  &  Hill. 

In  the  fall  of  1869  the  firm  of  Bamett  &  Hawkins  was  "already  occupying 
their  large  storeroom  (sixty  feet  deep)  and  have  filled  it  with  a  splendid  assort- 
ment of  general  merchandise." 

"A.  &  T.  E.  Barnett  have  a  number  one  grocery  establishment.  They  are 
live,  energetic  young  men  and  they  are  doing  a  good  business.  But  we  cannot 
specify  even  a  tenth  of  the  diflPerent  firms  and  enterprises  in  this  flourishing  young 
city.  The  depot  will  be  commenced  immediately  and  rapidly  pushed  to  a  comple- 
tion. According  to  the  most  reliable  authority  Earlham  is  to  be  the  permanent 
division  station  of  the  railroad,  an  honor  that  De  Soto  now  enjoys  temporarily." 
All  this  happened  to  Earlham  in  the  year  of  its  founding.  The  quotations  are 
from  J.  J.  Davies'  excellent  little  history  of  the  county,  published  in  1869. 

EARLHAM    INCORPORATED 

On  the  30th  day  of  March,  1870,  hardly  a  year  after  the  town  was  laid  out, 
a  petition  was  filed  in  the  District  Court,  asking  for  the  incorporation  of  Earlham 
as  a  town.  The  petition,  the  prayer  of  which  was  granted,  was  signed  by  the 
following  citizens :  Ezra  Cook,  Andrew  Noble,  W.  F.  Dillon,  John  Hinshaw,  E.  N. 
Beeher,  Mason  R.  Lyon,  C.  I.  Swartfager,  J.  S.  Rodecker,  Daniel  Madden,  John 
R.  Thomson,  F.  S.  Cottle,  Martin  Cook,  David  Stanton,  William  R.  Hill,  John 


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CORNER   OF   MAIN   AND   CHESTNUT   STREETS,   EARLHAM 


CITY  PARK,  EARLHAM 


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L 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  325 

R.  Cook,  William  Stevens,  J.  P.  Asbom,  George  L.  Wheeler,  Jno.  W.  Reagan, 
Abijah  Johnson,  John  Hawkins,  M.  D.  Hill,  Alfred  McKinney,  Henderson  McKin- 
ney,  Eli  H.  McKinney,  J.  Hinshaw,  Thomas  Phewton,  A.  H.  Gibson,  Henry  Cam- 
mack,  Israel  Compton,  J.  W.  Kenworthy,  Joseph  Cook,  Aaron  McKinney,  T.  E. 
Bamett,  V.  Hawkins,  Dayton  Bamett,  Asa  Barnett,  J.  O.  Griffith,  Seth  Wilson,  J. 
Bullock  and  G.  W.  Hackthom. 

On  the  26th  day  of  April,  1870,  an  election  was  held  at  the  office  of  David 
Stanton,  on  the  question  of  incorporation,  which  resulted  favorably.  The  judges 
were:  David  Stanton,  Thomas  P.  Newton,  and  J.  Hinshaw;  clerks,  Abijah  John- 
son and  William  R.  Hill.  At  this  time  Earlham  had  210  inhabitants  and  was  stead- 
ily growing,  both  in  population  and  business  enterprises.  Probably  no  inland  town 
in  the  state,  depending  for  support  on  the  farming  communities  surrounding  it, 
improved  so  rapidly,  as  to  seek  incorporation  within  a  year  after  its  birth. 
Churches,  a  schoolhouse,  depot  building,  elevator,  hotel  and  many  business  enter- 
prises were  in  operation.  For  some  years  thereafter  Earlham  handled  more 
stock  than  any  other  town  in  the  county.  The  Presbyterian  Church  was  built  in 
1870,  also  that  of  the  Conservative  Friends.  The  Methodist  Church  soon  fol- 
lowed. A  bank  was  established  and  with  its  main  line  of  the  Rock  Island  Rail- 
road, Earlham  had  many  advantages  over  other  towns  in  the  county;  not  only 
from  the  fact  that  its  railroad  was  a  trunk  line,  but  also  owing  to  its  being  the 
only  railroad  having  a  station  in  the  county. 

The  postoffice  was  established  in  January  (see  chapter  on  postoffices),  1869, 
and  Martin  Cook,  the  pioneer  settler  and  merchant  of  the  town,  was  commissioned 
postmaster.  In  a  short  time  a  volunteer  fire  company  was  organized  and  a  small 
frame  building  for  the  apparatus  erected,  which  also  has  been  the  town  hall. 

WATER  WORKS  AND  ELECTRIC  LIGHT  SYSTEMS 

A  special  election  was  held  at  Earlham  on  the  29th  of  June,  1908,  at  which  the 
question  of  issuing  bonds,  not  to  exceed  $10,000  in  amount,  for  the  building  of 
a  water  works  and  electric  light  system  was  voted  upon.  This  election  did  not 
meet  the  requirements  of  the  law,  as  the  amount  of  bonds  in  question  exceeded 
the  prescribed  limit  of  one  and  one-fourth  per  cent  of  the  actual  value  of  taxable 
property  within  the  corporate  limits  of  the  town.  Citizens — ^to  the  number  of  1 1 1 
— ^then  petitioned  council  to  call  an  election  to  test  the  views  of  the  electorate  on 
the  question  of  issuing  in  excess  of  the  legal  limit,  not  to  exceed  5  per  cent. 
Thereupon,  a  special  election  was  held  on  the  loth  day  of  February,  1909,  for  the 
issuance  of  bonds  not  to  exceed  the  sum  of  $10,000;  and  a  further  sum  of  $7,000 
in  bonds,  for  the  erection  and  maintenance  of  a  water  works  and  electric  light 
system.  Both  males  and  females  voted,  the  total  number  of  ballots  on  the  water 
works  proposition  being  136.  Of  this  number  102  males  and  8  females  voted  yes ; 
25  males  and  i  female  voted  no.  For  electric  lights  there  were  118  votes  cast  for 
the  improvement  and  20  votes  against  it. 

Bids  were  immediately  advertised  for  the  modem  municipal  improvements  of 
water  works  and  electric  lights  and  Joseph  C.  Bortenlanger,  of  Omaha,  was 
awarded  the  contract,  his  bid  being  $16,694.  The  bonds  were  sold  to  Wells, 
Dickey  &  Company,  of  Minneapolis,  at  5  per  cent.  A  one-story  brick  building  was 
erected  for  the  power  house  for  both  plants,  in  which  were  installed  boilers,  pumps, 


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326  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

d)mamos  and  all  necessary  modern  equipment  for  the  improvement.  A  splendid 
supply  of  water  was  obtained  from  deep  wells  and  on  April  12,  1910,  the  plant 
was  tested  and  accepted.  Today  Earlham  is  well  lighted,  having  recently  set  up 
a  number  of  five-globe  electroliers  in  the  business  center,  and  the  people  enjoy 
an  abundance  of  pure,  limpid  water,  both  for  domestic  and  public  use. 

THE  PARK 

One  of  Earlham*s  beauty  spots  is  a  tract  of  land,  consisting  of  one  whole  block, 
practically  in  the  heart  of  the  corporation.  This  is  the  city  park,  which  has  a 
velvety  carpet  of  grass  and  is  shaded  by  a  variety  of  ornamental  trees.  The  land 
was  bought  for  park  purposes  some  twenty  years  ago  and  the  people  have  but 
recently  awakened  to  the  realization  that  this  piece  of  land  is  one  of  the  town's 
richest  and  choicest  assets ;  it  is  a  breathing  spot  and  pleasure  ground,  that  will 
grow  in  value  and  become  more  and  more  appreciated  as  the  years  go  by  and  Earl- 
ham develops  into  a  city  of  greater  proportions. 

THE  SCHOOLS 

E.  R.  Zeller,  a  competent  and  masterful  educator  for  many  years,  served  effi- 
ciently and  very  satisfactorily  as  county  superintendent  of  schools  and  became 
thoroughly  conversant  with  all  that  pertained  to  the  educational  institutions  of 
the  county.  In  the  chapter  devoted  to  the  schools,  in  this  volume,  speaking  of  the 
Earlham  schools  he  says:  ''Earlham  district  has  been  in  existence  all  of  forty 
years,  and  the  Earlham  schools,  after  coming  under  the  supervision  of  W.  H. 
Monroe  and  combined  with  the  academy,  have  had  a  reputation  that  has  extended 
over  all  the  state.*' 

The  Earlham  schools  are  enjoying,  along  with  the  town,  an  unusual  measure 
of  success.  From  1900  to  1903  the  enrollment  very  nearly  doubled  in  numbers. 
It  has  grown  to  a  twelve  grade  institution,  with  a  splendidly  equipped  corps  of 
teachers  and  two  substantial  brick  and  stone  buildings. 

In  1901,  the  school  having  outgrown  its  one  building,  the  district  purchased 
the  Earlham  Academy  and  thus  made  it  practically  the  high  school  for  the  town. 
The  academy  was  erected  in  1891,  at  a  cost  of  nearly  twelve  thousand  dollars,  and 
is  a  fine  modern  structure  in  every  respect,  heated  by  steam  and  nicely  finished 
inside.  The  founders  of  the  academy  established  it  as  a  private  or  church  school 
and  maintained  it  as  such  until  the  rapidly  expanding  public  school  demanded 
more  room,  when  it  was  thought  best  by  all  parties  to  combine  the  two  schools  and 
thus  unite  the  school  interests  of  the  town.  It  now  appears  that  it  was  a  very  wise 
move,  as  the  schools  have  experienced  an  unprecedented  growth.  When  the 
academy  was  united  with  the  public  school  system  it  was  arranged  to  retain  as 
far  as  possible  the  identity  of  the  academy  and  it  is  so  maintained.  In  addition  to 
the  regular  courses,  there  are  maintained  special  courses  in  business  and  music, 
special  teachers  being  provided  for  the  same.  Also  attention  is  given  to  the 
preparation  of  teachers  for  the  country  schools,  the  work,  with  this  object  in  view, 
being  confined  largely  to  the  teachers'  special  ^nd  review  classes. 

The  principal  of  the  school  is  a  believer  in  the  potency  of  music  and  claims 
that  music  may  be  used  as  a  successful  leaven  to  the  school  work.    Hence,  gen- 


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NEW  METHODIST  EPISCOPAL  CHURCH,  EARLHAM 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  327 

erous  attention  is  given  to  music  and  a  very  large  music  department  is  maintained 
in  the  academy.  Two  teachers  have  charge  of  such  work  and  lessons  on  piano, 
organ,  violin  and  orchestra  instruments  are  given  all  who  apply  at  a  very  reason- 
able tuition. 

The  academy  is  supplied  with  musical  instruments  and  the  music  department 
is  maintained  without  expense  to  the  district.  The  music  department  is  of  addi- 
tional advantage  to  the  academy  inasmuch  as  it  attracts  to  the  school  many  young 
people  who  like  music. 

A  commercial  department  is  maintained  and  an  able  instructor  employed  to 
conduct  the  work.  A  course  requiring  at  least  nine  months'  work  is  offered. 
Practical  studies  are  given,  such  as  bookkeeping,  commercial  law,  commercial  arith- 
metic, correspondence,  etc. 

While  the  academy,  or  high  school,  by  virtue  of  its  position  claims  a  large  part 
of  the  attention,  yet  the  grade  work  is  not  to  be  overlooked.  The  grades  are  in 
charge  of  competent  teachers  and  are  doing  good  work.  They  occupy  a  substan- 
tial brick  and  stone  building  near  the  center  of  the  town.  When  pupils  complete 
the  work  of  the  grades  they  are  given  a  certificate  of  promotion  to  the  academy 
or  high  school  and  are  transferred  to  that  building. 

The  credit  for  the  successful  outcome  of  the  Earlham  schools  is  due  also  very 
largely  to  those  people  who  established  the  Earlham  Academy  for  had  there  been 
no  private  academy  in  past  years  there  would  be  no  public  academy  today.  Hence 
no  man  or  set  of  men  can  justly  claim  all  the  credit  for  the  present  condition  of 
the  schools. 

FINANCIAL 

One  of  the  strong  and  substantial  financial  institutions  of  the  county  is  the 
Citizens  Bank,  organized  in  1878,  as  the  Citizens  State  Bank,  by  Mark  D.  Hill 
and  Charles  Thomas,  as  a  private  concern.  The  bank  commenced  business  in  a 
one-story  frame  building  that  stood  on  the  site  of  the  present  postoffice.  On 
July  I,  1901,  the  Citizens  Bank  was  organized  under  the  laws  of  the  State  of 
Iowa,  by  Mark  D.  Hill,  C.  B.  Johnson,  Luther  Hill,  J.  A.  McKinney  and  A.  M. 
Williams.  It  was  capitalized  at  $25,000.  The  officers  elected  were :  Mark  D.  Hill, 
president;  J.  A.  McKinney,  vice  president;  C.  B.  Johnson,  cashier.  In  1905 
Harry  W.  Hill  succeeded  C.  B.  Johnson  in  the  office  of  cashier  and  in  1908  J.  R. 
Mendenhall  became  vice  president.  The  place  of  business  has  been  for  the  past 
several  years  in  the  Fred  Bilderback  brick  building,  on  the  comer  of  Main  and 
Chestnut  streets.  Capital,  $25,000;  surplus  and  undivided  profits,  $12,000;  de- 
posits, $284,000. 

The  Bank  of  Earlham  was  organized  in  1901,  by  H.  E.  Teachout,  A  Nelson, 
A.  C.  Miller,  F.  A.  Baylies,  H.  M.  Whinery,  H.  S.  Thomson.  The  officials  were: 
H.  E.  Teachout,  president;  A.  C.  Miller,  vice  president;  H.  M.  Whinery,  cashier; 
H.  S.  Thomson,  assistant  cashier.  January  i,  1909,  the  bank  was  reorganized  by 
H.  S.  Thomson,  and  its  present  officials  are:  President,  Thomas  Early;  vice  presi- 
dent, F.  Bilderback;  cashier,  H.  S.  Thomson.    Responsibilities,  $500,000. 

RELIGIOUS  BODIES 

Elsewhere  in  this  volume  is  given  a  chapter  on  the  church  societies  of  the 
county,  the  subject  there  being  treated  in  a  general  way.    The  great  desire  of  the 


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328  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

editor  of  this  work  has  been  to  gather  and  publish  all  the  essential  details  of  each 
and  every  church  in  the  county,  but  in  this  design  he  has  been  handicapped  and 
prevented  through  several  causes,  among  them  being  the  loss  of  records  and  failure 
on  the  part  of  pastors  and  others  to  furnish  material  as  promised.  So  that,  when 
a  certain  church  is  not  specially  mentioned,  the  readers  can  attribute  the  omission 
to  some  cause  difficult  to  overcome.  The  old  established  churches  of  Earlham 
already  have  been  alluded  to,  but  recently,  a  new  religious  body  has  come  into 
existence,  the  details  of  which  follow.  The  Church  of  Christ' was  organized  in 
the  early  part  of  1912  and  on  the  4th  day  of  June  in  that  year  was  incorporated, 
the  articles  being  signed  by  the  charter  members,  namely :  I.  D.  Neff,  C.  C.  Couch, 
Viola  M.  Schlarb,  Lester  Neff,  Sarah  Nunnamacker,  John  Drake,  Frank  J.  Pro- 
haska,  John  E.  Bechtel,  E.  H.  Payne,  Mrs.  E.  H.  Payne,  Mrs.  S.  C.  Moreland, 
Roxie  Wicks,  Mrs.  Erl  Hays,  Erl  Hays,  Mrs.  John  Neff,  Mrs.  John  E.  Bechtel, 
Mrs.  W.  H.  Dudley,  Charles  W.  Henry,  Frank  Mleynek,  Mary  Mleynek,  Mrs. 
John  Drake,  John  G.  Neff,  Lois  Neff,  S.  I.  Nunnamacker,  Mrs.  George  Francis, 
N.  I.  Neff,  Vada  C.  Rhode,  Mrs.  M.  A.  England,  Mrs.  Hannah  Wagner,  Paul  N. 
Pa)me,  Sarah  Hillan,  Ida  E.  Wagner,  Blanch  Mleynek,  Inez  Payne,  S.  M.  Drake, 
H.  R.  Neff,  Mabel  Mleynek,  Mrs.  L.  J.  Rhode,  Mrs.  M.  C.  Hillan,  Mrs.  Laura  E. 
Williams,  Minnie  Wagner,  Dolores  Dudley,  Velma  Dudley,  J.  E.  England,  Byron 
Pa)me,  Truman  Payne,  Leah  Stanley,  Emma  Wagner,  Mrs.  W.  A.  Anderson,  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  O.  W.  Chester,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ralph  Price,  Hallie  Rhode,  Mrs.  Fannie 
Anderson. 

On  July  21,  the  matter  of  a  permanent  home  was  discussed.  E.  H.  Payne,  S. 
C.  Moreland  and  C.  C.  Couch  were  appointed  a  building  committee  and  later  lots 
were  purchased  of  R.  Hayden  on  the  east  side  of  North  Chestnut  Street,  upon 
which  a  handsome  church  edifice  was  erected,  at  a  cost  of  $8,000.  The  house  of 
worship  was  dedicated  September  2^^  1914,  by  Rev.  A.  M.  Haggard,  of  Des 
Moines.  Prior  to  this  meetings  were  held  in  the  academy.  The  first  pastor  to 
preach  to  this  congregation  was  Rev.  J.  A.  Hutchings  and  the  present  membership 
totals  seventy.  A  Ladies'  Aid  Society  and  Christian  Endeavor  are  strong  auxil- 
iary formations  of  the  new  church. 

FRATERNAL  ORDERS 

Madison  Lodge,  No.  568,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  was  organized  April  10,  1900,  as  a  re- 
organization of  St.  Albans  Lodge,  No.  363,  the  charter  of  which  had  been  per- 
mitted to  lapse.  The  charter  officials  were :  John  R.  Thomson,  W.  M. ;  Ed  A. 
Packard,  S.  W. ;  C.  A.  Hudson,  J.  W.  Other  first  members  were :  William  Dun- 
lap,  J.  F.  Fritz,  J.  R.  Mendenhall,  Peter  McQuie,  J.  P.  Osborne,  N.  A.  Packard, 
Fred  Wilke,  A*  B.  Johnson. 

Earlham  Chapter,  No.  294,  Order  Eastern  Star,  was  organized  October  24, 
1900,  by  Mrs.  Emma  Fox,  Mrs.  Louise  Hatfield,  Mrs.  Ella  Carroll,  Miss  Dayse 
Catterlin,  Miss  Edna  Klingensmiller,  Mrs.  May  Monroe,  Mrs.  Mary  Maulsby, 
Miss  Ismay  Packard,  Miss  Enia  Thomson,  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Thomson,  Mrs. 
Augusta  Wilke,  William  Best,  George  Fox,  W.  A.  Monroe,  U.  E.  Maulsby  and 
Fred  Wilke. 

Earlham  Lodge,  No.  546,  I.  O.  O.  F.,  was  organized  April  21,  1892,  with  the 
following  charter  members :  J.  H.  Maxwell,  N.  G. ;  Fred  Bilderback,  V.  G. ;  J.  A. 


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Presbyterian  Church 


Christian  Church 
A  GROUP  OF  EARLHAM  CHURCHES 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  329 

Griswold,  Sec. ;  E.  S.  Fry,  P.  G. ;  N.  Bilderback,  R.  S.  Males,  E.  B.  Griswold, 
James  McDonald,  E.  S.  Fox,  Jr.,  D.  L.  Gabbart,  J.  P.  Osborne. 

Marguerite  Lodge  of  Rebekahs,  No.  233,  was  organized  October  18,  1895,  by 
Josiah  H.  Maxwell,  Louisa  K.  Maxwell,  Seth  H.  and  Maggie  W.  Clay,  E.  S.  and 
MoUie  J.  Fry,  C.  M.  and  Agnes  P.  Crosswait,  N.and  Fannie  Bilderback,  Jennings 
P.  and  Maggie  Osborne,  James  W.  Fry,  Jr.,  and  Sarah  E.  Fry;  R.  S.  and  Ella 
T.  Males,  George  and  Eva  B.  Fry. 

Earlham  Camp,  No.  2162,  M.  W,  A.,  was  organized  August  25,  1895,  with 
twenty-one  members. 

Royal  Neighbors  Camp,  No.  2439,  was  organized  March  22,  1901,  with  twenty 
members. 


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CHAPTER  XLI 
JEFFERSON  TOWNSHIP 

Under  date  August  ii,  1858,  the  County  Court  ''Ordered,  That  a  new  township 
be  made  and  established  out  of  the  west  end  of  Badger  Township,  to  be  described 
as  follows,  to  wit :  commencing  at  the  northeast  comer  of  section  i,  thence  west  to 
the  northwest  comer  section  6;  thence  south  to  the  southwest  comer  of  section 
30 ;  thence  east  to  the  southeast  comer  of  section  25 ;  thence  north  to  the  place  of 
beginning,  all  in  township  jj  and  range  2^, 

"And  it  is  further  ordered  and  ordained  that  Badger  Township  be  and  remain 
all  of  township  'j'j  and  range  26. 

"And  it  is  further  ordered  that  the  said  new  township  be  known  as  and  named 
Jefferson  Township;  and  it  is  further  ordered  that  the  first  election  in  said  new 
township  be  held  at  the  house  of  William  Alford,  in  said  new  township,  and  that 
the  warrant,  provided  by  law,  be  directed  to  Addison  Knight,  constable,  to  post 
the  notice  and  make  the  return  required  by  law.'' 

The  township  above  named,  as  shown  by  the  map,  is  bounded  on  the  north  by 
Dallas  County,  on  the  south  by  Union,  on  the  east  by  Lee  and  on  the  west  by 
Madison  townships.  North  Branch  passes  through  its  boundaries  from  west  to 
east  and  along  this  stream  the  settlers  found  an  abundance  of  excellent  timber. 
Badger  Creek  traverses  the  northern  part  but,  unlike  most  streams,  little,  if  any, 
timber  was  found  along  its  borders.  However,  there  were  large  areas  of  good 
limestone  on  North  Branch  and  some  coal  of  an  excellent  quality  has  also  been 
found  along  this  branch.  Following  the  streams  the  surface  of  the  country  is 
quite  rough  and  broken,  but  in  other  portions  the  prairies  are  high  and  rolling 
and  in  this  age,  excellent  in  all  thngs,  many  fine  farms,  highly  cultivated  and 
improved,  add  beauty  and  interest  to  the  general  landscape.  The  northern  part 
of  Jefferson  comprises  a  portion  of  that  beautiful  prairie  lying  between  North 
Branch  and  Coon  River,  known  as  Quaker  Divide. 

Probably  no  person  now  in  Jefferson  recalls  the  fact  that  once  the  township, 
except  the  southem  tier  of  sections,  was  a  part  of  Badger  Township,  nor  for  that 
matter,  that  there  ever  was  a  township  named  Badger.  There  was  a  township 
by  that  name,  however,  which  only  existed  from  March  16,  1857,  to  September  6, 
1858,  at  which  latter  date  the  name  was  changed  to  Lee,  in  honor  of  Harvey  Lee, 
then  a  resident  near  the  southwest  comer  of  that  township.  At  the  first  election 
held  in  the  county,  January  i,  1849,  ^^^  the  purpose  of  perfecting  its  organization, 
what  is  now  Jefferson  Township  was  included  in  that  part  of  the  county  desig- 
nated as  North  voting  precinct.  At  the  second  meeting  of  the  Commissioners' 
Court,  held  Febmary  19,  1849,  this  included  as  a  part  of  Union  Township,  one  of 
the  three  townships  created  on  that  day.  On  July  8,  185 1,  the  east  two  tiers 
of  sections  now  within  the  confines  of  Jefferson,  with  other  territory,  was  in- 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  331 

eluded  in  a  new  township  named  East,  whch  comprised  the  territories  of  the 
present  Lee  and  Crawford  and  the  northeastern  corner  of  Union. 

This  township  was  named  in  honor  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  third  President  of  the 
United  States.  At  the  first  election  for  township  officers,  party  lines  were  not 
drawn  in  local  matters  and  but  one  ticket  was  placed  in  the  field.  However,  the 
township  was  decidedly  republican.  The  north  four  and  a  half  miles  of  its  terri- 
tory constituted  a  part  of  what  was  in  early  times  known  and  designated  as 
"Coon  Divide."  Being  practically  destitute  of  timber  it  was  not  settled  very 
rapidly.  It  had  two  periods  in  the  history  of  its  settlement  during  which  nearly 
all  of  its  first  settlers  arrived — from  1854  to  1859,  and  from  1866  to  1870.  But 
the  land  in  that  portion  of  the  present  township  along  North  River  and  North 
Branch  was  quite  well  occupied  by  1866. 

Pursuant  to  notice  issued  by  the  County  Court  electors  of  the  township  first 
met  at  the  house  of  William  Alford  on  October  12,  1858,  for  the  purpose  of 
electing  a  list  of  officials.  Alexander  Ballentine  was  chosen  chairman  and  the  elec- 
tion board  was  completed  by  the  selection  of  William  Payton,  Alexander  Ballen- 
tine 'and  Thomas  Myers  as  judges ;  Anthony  Myers  and  Samuel  W.  Nicholson, 
clerks.  The  following  list  of  persons  were  elected  as  the  first  officials  for  the 
township:  Trustees,  George  Fisher,  William  Alford  and  William  McCleary; 
clerk,  Samuel  W.  Nicholson ;  assessor,  Anthony  Myers ;  road  supervisors,  district 
No.  I,  George  Gutshall;  No.  2,  William  Payton;  No.  3,  John  P.  Clark.  The  latter 
being  exempted,  William  McCleary  was  appointed  in  his  stead  November  i8th 
following.  Justices  of  the  peace,  Daniel  H.  Rose  and  Alexander  Ballentine ;  con- 
stables, John  B.  Nicholson  and  William  B.  Norris.  At  this  election  the  following 
persons  voted :  Thomas  D.  Nicholson,  William  L.  Brown,  Jacob  Riegel,  Harvey 
Smith,  John  Gossage,  John  H.  Mitchell,  John  B.  Nicholson,  William  Alford,  Wil- 
liam Payton,  D.  H.  Rose,  George  Fisher,  George  Fisher,  Jr.,  William  M.  Fisher, 
Thomis  S.  Myers,  John  S.  Moon,  George  W.  Mullen,  Alexander  Ballentine,  Daniel 
Jones,  Thomas  Jones,  William  B.  Norris,  Hugh  Ballentine,  Thomas  Myers,  A,  J. 
Ballentine,  Alexander  Chambers,  Merit  Cunningham,  William  McCleary,  S.  W. 
Nicholson,  H.  T.  Ballentine,  Anthony  Myers  and  John  W.  Roderick. 

James  Brown  settled  on  North  River  in  southeast  quarter,  section  36,  77-2^^ 
then  Union,  now  Jefferson  Township,  in  1847,  ^^  Brown's  Ford  (later  Brown's 
Bridge). 

Among  the  first  settlers  were  flie  Gossage,  1848  (?) ;  Smith",  1852;  Bowers, 
1853  (?) ;  Bauer,  1854;  Folwell,  1850;  Payton,  1854;  Brown,  1847;  Rose,  1854; 
Gutshall,  1854;  Nicholson,  1854;  Schoen,  1852,  and  Fisher,  1855,  families.  It  is 
said  that  John  Gossage  was  here  as  early  as  1848  or  1849,  and  turned  over  the 
first  sod  broken  in  the  county  on  what  afterwards  became  the  Nicholson  place. 

Samuel  Folwell  left  his  home  in  Holmes  County,  Ohio,  in  1850,  and  making  his 
way  west  to  Iowa,  settled  on  section  34,  in  this  township.  A  son,  James  D.,  lost 
"his  life  from  disease  contracted  while  in  the  army.  He  was  a  member  of  Company 
B,  Fifteenth  Iowa  Infantry. 

Josiah  Smith  came  to  the  county  with  William  Lucas  and  the  Bennetts  from 
Springfield,  Illinois,  and  settled  in  Jefferson  Township,  in  1852.  Thomas  J. 
McKenzie  married  Mary,  a  daughter  of  Josiah  Smith,  in  October,  1854,  the  cere- 
mony being  performed  by  J.  K.  Evans,  justice  of  the  peace.     By  1870  Josiah 


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332  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Smith  had  quite  a  large  nursery,  which  he  sold  to  a  brother,  Harvey  Smith,  in 

1873. 

In  January,  1852,  as  will  be  seen  later  on  in  this  chapter,  William  Schoen 

bought  a  claim  on  the  south  half  of  section  35,  on  which  he  took  up  his  residence 

and  through  industry  and  good  judgment  brought  it  to  a  high  state  of  cultivation. 

It  was  his  home  for  a  great  many  years. 

Stephen  Bower  arrived  in  the  township  in  1853;  D.  H.  Rose,  George  Gutshall 
and  Thomas  Nicholson,  in  1854. 

S.  W.  Nicholson  was  bom  in,  Jefferson  County,  Ohio,  and  came  to  Iowa  from 
that  state  in  1854.  He  entered  land  on  section  18,  in  this  township.  During  the 
same  spring  William  Payton  and  James  Brown  located  near.  These  three 
families  were  among  the  first  to  locate  in  Jefferson  Township.  Mrs.  Nicholson 
taught  the  first  school  on  the  divide  between  Council  Bluffs  and  Des  Moines,  in  a 
building  whch  long  stood  near  the  Nicholson  residence.  Mr.  Nicholson  died  in 
1874  and  for  many  years  thereafter  the  homestead  was  ably  managed  by  his 
widow,  who  was  a  member  of  the  first  religious  organization  in  the  township — 
that  is  to  say,  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  which  was  organized  in  July,  1855, 
at  the  home  of  William  Payton.  The  society  at  that  time  consisted  of  William 
Payton  and  wife,  D.  H.  Rose  and  wife,  John  Mitchell  and  wife,  George  Mullen 
and  wife,  S.  W.  Nicholson  and  wife,  George  Gutshall  and  two  others. 

Ira  C.  Walker  and  his  bride,  Lucy  Edmondson  Walker,  settled  in  Jefferson 
Township  in  1854.  Here  they  found  an  unbroken  tract  of  land  on  North  River, 
where  Mr.  Walker  built  a  home  and  from  the  waist-high,  grass-grown  land,  he 
made  a  farm  which  had  no  superior  in  Madison  County.  Winterset  and  Des 
Moines  were  their. only  markets.  In  1910  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Walker  celebrated  the 
sixtieth  anniversary  of  their  wedding  day. 

George  Fisher,  Sr.,  was  bom  in  Brown  County,  Ohio,  in  1807,  and  immigrated 
to  Iowa  in  1855,  settling  on  section  4,  in  this  township.  When  he  began  farming 
at  his  new  home  he  had  the  help  and  comfort  of  his  wife  and  children.  He  be- 
came one  of  the  prominent  men  of  the  community  and  brought  his  place  up  to  a 
high  state  of  improvement.  Edward  S.  Fisher,  a  son,  who  came  with  liis  father  in 
1855,  took  hold  of  the  farm  when  the  elder  Fisher  practically  retired  from  active 
affairs. 

E.  Kopp,  spoken  of  elsewhere,  was  one  of  the  German  settlers  who  came  here 
in  an  early  day  and  located  in  the  spring  of  1856  on  section  34.  In  the  same  year 
Jacob  Riegel  located  on  section  26. 

Among  other  settlers  in  this  township  of  the  early  day,  who  may  be  here 
mentioned,  were  the  Brittains,  the  Renshaws,  John  and  Adam  Shambaugh,  the 
former  of  whom  twice  represented  the  county  in  the  State  Legislature.  There 
were  also  George  Mueller  and  others,  mentioned  in  an  interesting  article  which 
follows,  prepared  by  Herman  Mueller.  There  were  A.  D.  Fletcher,  the  Brookers, 
Burgers,  Storcks  and  Cooks.  The  names  of  many  of  the  pioneers  of  Jefferson 
Township,  not  here  enumerated,  will  be  found  in  the  second  volume  of  this  work. 

No  mill  has  ever  been  built  in  Jefferson  Township  for  the  production  of  food 
stuffs,  but  a  sawmill  was  erected  in  1856  by  Jacob  Riegel,  which  was  run  by  water 
power,  on  North  Branch.  This  primitive  industry  continued  in  operation  over 
twenty  years,  under  different  ownerships,  however. 

The  Jefferson  schoolhouse  was  erected  during  the  fall  of  the  year  1858.    It  was 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  333 

the  first  building  put  up  exclusively  for  school  purposes,  out  of  the  public  funds 
of  the  township.  The  Payton  church  and  schoolhouse,  however,  was  built  before 
this  time,  with  funds  contributed  by  individuals  for  the  two  purposes,  that  is, 
for  a  Methodist  meeting  house  and  public  school.  The  Jefferson  schoolhouse 
was  a  frame  24  by  30  feet,  and  all  the  material  used  in  it  was  produced  by  the 
Eli  Cox  steam  sawmill  on  North  River,  with  the  exception  of  the  shingles,  which 
were  hand  shaven.  The  plastering  was  the  work  of  Jesse  Truitt,  of  Winterset. 
All  the  carpenter  work  was  done  by  John  P.  Clark  and  William  McCleary,  includ- 
ing the  seats  and  the  pulpit  style  of  desk  for  the  teacher.  The  contract  price  was 
$200.  For  those  times  this  building  was  considered  quite  a  grand  affair.  It  stood 
upon  a  high  hill  near  the  William  McCleary  place  and  could  be  seen  for  many 
miles  in  all  directions.  In  this  old  school  Butler  Bird,  Timothy  Adams,  later  a 
prominent  preacher,  and  Zachariah  Ross,  also  a  minister,  presided  over  the 
pupils.  Charles  Goodale,  who  for  three  terms  held  the  office  of  county  auditor, 
was  also  one  of  the  teachers.  The  winter  following  the  erection  of  the  school- 
house,  one  of  the  largest  Methodist  revivals  held  in  the  county  brought  large 
gatherings  of  people  here  for  several  days  and  nights. 

After  the  present  Jefferson  schoolhouse  No.  7  was  built  during  the  summer  of 
1874,  the  old  building  was  sold  to  the  Jefferson  Grange  No.  895  and  moved  to  the 
southeast  comer  of  northeast  quarter  southeast  quarter  section  26,  77-2^,  and 
used  for  a  hall  until  this  organization  disbanded,  about  the  year  1877-78;  Jef- 
ferson Grange  was  organized  February  18,  1873,  and  William  McCleary  was  the 
"shining  light'*  and  "guiding  star"  until  its  close.  The  building  was  sold  to  the 
Widow  Jones  and  used  for  a  stable  for  many  years  afterwards. 


THE  GERMAN    ELEMENT   IN   JEFFERSON 

By  H.  A.  Mueller  and  George  Storck 

During  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries,  when  England,  France  and 
Spain  were  exploring  and  colonizing  America,  the  German  states  being  divided 
into  petty  principalities  and  rent  with  religious  wars,  did  not  take  part  in  the 
movement  on  the  Western  Continent.  It  was  in  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth 
century  that  the  first  Germans  came  to  Pennsylvania,  encouraged  by  William 
Penn ;  hence,  there  were  more  Germans  there  than  in  any  of  the  other  colonies 
and  they  became  known  as  the  Pennsylvania  Dutch.  Palatines,  Moravians  and 
other  Germans  settled  in  Maryland,  New  York,  Virginia  and  the  Carolinas,  and 
the  Salzburgers  in  Georgia.  They  were  all  sober  and  industrious,  and  took  little 
part  in  politics  but  many  of  them  fought  in  the  Revolutionary  war.  They  had 
come  to  America  because  of  persecution  in  their  own  country,  and  were  seeking  a 
free  land.  Since  1820  one-third  of  the  immigrants  have  been  Germans.  The 
revolutionary  movements  of  1848  in  Europe  caused  emigration  in  large  num- 
bers. It  was  from  this  time  on  that  we  received  some  of  the  best  of  the  German 
refugees,  as  Hecker,  Franz  Siegel  and  Carl  Schurz. 

Some  of  these  immigrants  would  land  at  New  York  and  other  large  cities, 
and,  having  no  particular  destination,  would  remain  and  later,  possibly,  migrate 
westward.  Some  went  by  way  of  the  Erie  Canal,  Lake  Erie  to  Detroit,  and  many 
settled  in  Michigan  and  Wisconsin.    Others  took  the  Baltimore  &  Ohio  Railroad 


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334  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

to  Pittsburg,  thence  down  the  Ohio  River  and  up  the  Mississippi  and  settled  at  St. 
Louis,  Keokuk,  Burlington  and  Davenport;  from  these  points  they  went  out  and 
settled  over  Iowa.  Those  going  by  way  of  the  Erie  Canal  route,  Erie  Railroad 
and  by  steamer  on  the  lakes,  went  to  Chicago  and  points  in  Wisconsin ;  to  Mil- 
waukee, the  place  made  famous  by  its  breweries,  and  thence  to  Dubuque  and  Clay- 
ton counties.  The  Pennsylvania  Germans  and  those  in  other  states  moved  with 
the  tide  of  emigration  to  Ohio,  Indiana,  etc.,  and  thence  to  Iowa. 

Thus  we  have  the  three  routes  of  travel  by  which  most  of  the  Germans  in  the 
middle  of  the  nineteenth  century  came  to  Iowa  and  we  find  representatives  of 
most  of  them  in  this  county. 

In  Madison  County  there  are  three  distinct  German  settlements.  Mention  will 
be  made  of  the  oldest  one,  in  the  southeast  part  of  Jefferson  Township.  William 
Schoen  was  the  first  one  to  settle  here.  In  fact,  he  was  the  first  foreign  bom  set- 
tler in  Madison  County.  Two  Pennsylvania  Germans,  I.  G.  Houk  and  O.  A 
Mosier  were  in  the  county  before  him. 

William  Schoen  was  bom  September  i,  1826,  at  Grabow,  Mecklenburg- 
Schwerin,  Germany.  He  served  in  the  Schleswig-Holstein  war  against  Denmark 
from  1848  to  185 1,  enlisting  March  20,  1848,  in  Company  K,  Ninth  Battalion  of 
Infantry.  He  engaged  in  the  battle  of  Hoptmg,  July  26,  1848,  Kolding,  April  23, 
1849,  where  he  received  a  gunshot  wound  in  the  foot  and  a  bayonet  thmst  in  the 
leg;  was  in  the  battle  of  Stotert,  July  6,  1850,  and  was  made  first  sergeant  of 
Company  I.  He  was  discharged  January  i,  1851,  and  sailed  for  America  on  the 
8th  of  March  that  year,  landing  on  the  7th  of  May,  1851.  He  reached  Elm 
Grove,  Marion  County,  Iowa,  July  12,  1851,  where  he  remained  until  January, 
1852,  when  he  came  to  Winterset  and  bought  a  claim  of  John  Wilhoit,  January  7, 
1852,  on  the  south  half  of  section  35,  Jefferson  Township,  then  being  part  of  Union 
Township,  and  has  lived  there  ever  since.  Miss  Dorethea  Lorentzen  came  from 
Germany  to  Mr.  Schoen's  home,  in  the  summer  of  185 1,  and  was  married  to  him 
July  6,  1852,  by  N.  W.  Guiberson,  then  a  justice  of  the  peace  of  Union  Township. 
William  Schoen  enlisted  at  Des  Moines,  in  September,  1861,  in  Company  G,  Six- 
teenth Volunteer  Regiment  of  Iowa  Infantry ;  participated  in  the  battles  of  Pitts- 
burg Landing  and  Shiloh  and  was  discharged  September  15,  1862,  on  account  of 
rheumatism.  He  served  as  school  director  in  1873  and  justice  of  the  peace  in 
1881.  For  a  number  of  years,  from  1877  to  1890,  he  conducted  a  creamery,  which 
was  of  much  significance  to  the  farmers.  His  lovable  wife  went  to  her  reward  on 
the  6th  day  of  September,  1890.  Mr.  Schoen  died  May  6,  1910,  and  was  laid  away 
by  the  side  of  his  wife  in  Jefferson  Cemetery,  May  8,  1910. 

Along  with  Dorethea  Lorentzen  came  a  neighbor,  John  Spethman,  who  lived 
in  the  community  until  1866.  His  family  followed  him  in  1854,  and  his  son, 
Leopold,  served  in  Company  B,  Fifteenth  Iowa  Infantry.  The  next  German  set- 
tler in  this  vicinity  was  Stanislaus  Baur.  Hearing  of  Mr.  Schoen  while  at  Win- 
terset, in  July,  1854,  he  came  there  and  bought  the  land  he  owned  on  section 
25,  Jefferson  Township.  One  son,  George,  now  lives  in  Stuart,  Iowa,  and  the 
other  son,  Robert,  lives  on  an  adjoining  farm  in  Jefferson  Township.  His  only 
daughter,  Mrs.  Withrow,  died  a  few  years  ago.  Mr.  Baur  also  died  some  years 
ago.  His  widow  lives  at  the  old  homestead.  In  the  fall  of  1854,  Jacob  Riegel 
and  family,  consisting  of  twelve  children,  came  from  Davis  County  and  settled  on 
section  26.     He  was  a  Pennsylvania  German,  whose  parents  had  settled  in  the 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  335 

Keystone  State  after  the  Revolutionary  war.  Mr.  Riegel  built  an  up-and-down 
sawmill,  run  by  water  power,  in  1854-5,  on  land  now  owned  by  William  Schoen, 
and  for  several  years,  until  about  1873,  sawed  lumber  for  the  surrounding  com- 
munity. 

On  the  same  ship  with  William  Schoen  were  William  and  Theodore  Kopp,  who 
came  with  him  to  Marion  County.  In  the  fall  of  1851  they  moved  to  Pella, 
where  they  were  joined  by  their  brother,  Ernest,  in  1854.  In  the  fall  of  1854  they 
settled  in  Madison  County,  on  section  34.  William  lived  on  the  farm  now  owned 
by  August  F.  Burger  on  section  34  and  Theodore  where  William  H.  Burger  lived, 
east  half,  northeast  quartet  section  34,  77-27.  They  were  from  Stettin,  Germany, 
and  were  highly  cultured,  but  not  educated  to  do  with  their  hands,  so  were  not 
successful  in  a  new  country  as  pioneer  farmers.  In  1856  William  Kopp  went  to 
Keokuk,  to  edit  and  manage  a  German  newspaper,  and  in  1857  to  New  York 
and  later  to  Boston,  as  editor  of  the  Heinzen  Pioneer.  In  1869  he  went  to  Detroit 
as  editor  of  the  Detroit  Post  and  resided  there  until  his  death.  Mr.  Kopp  was  also 
a  talented  musician  and  wrote  several  songs,  for  which  he  composed  the  music. 

Theodore  Kopp  sold  his  first  farm  to  Gottlob  Burger  in  1859,  but  lived  in  the 
neighboring  community  until  he  enlisted  in  Company  A,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  In- 
fantry, in  1862;  he  died  at  Rome,  Georgia,  August  2^,  1864.  Theodore  was  mar- 
ried after  coming  to  Madison  County.  Three  daughters  are  living  in  Des  Moines 
— Mrs.  Charles  Budd,  Mrs.  Lottie  Dolphin  and  Mary  Kopp. 

Ernest  Kopp  Hved  more  or  less  of  the  time  with  William  Schoen  until  his 
marriage  (in  1867)  ^'^  Elwilda  Owen.  For  several  years  he  lived  on  the  west 
half  of  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  34,  Jefferson  Township,  and  about  1884 
moved  to  the  farm  on  section  2'jy  where  he  spent  the  rest  of  his  days.  Mr.  Kopp 
was  also  well  educated  in  the  schools  of  Germany  and,  from  1876  to  the  time  of 
his  death,  taught  music  throughout  the  northeast  part  of  Madison  County.  He  has 
four  children  living,  Mrs.  John  O.  McCleary,  Mrs.  Grant  Taylor,  Charles  Kopp 
and  Elizabeth  Kopp,  now  married  and  with  whom  her  mother  lives. 

About  1859  Louis  Stracke  located  in  Winterset  and  conducted  a  county  dispen- 
sary until  the  fall  of  i860,  when  he  moved  to  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  25, 
Jefferson  Township,  and  farmed  until  1866.  He  then  moved  to  Warsaw,  Illinois, 
where  he  died  a  few  years  ago. 

In  1848,  Gottlob  Burger  came  to  the  United  States  and  assisted  in  building  the 
first  railroad  in  Vermont.  Later  he  went  to  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  where  he  married 
Mrs.  Frances  Zweigla  Burger,  in  December,  1850.  Mr.  Burger  was  bom  in  Ess- 
lingen,  Wurtemberg,  January  8,  1825.  After  his  marriage  he  moved  with  his 
family  to  Keokuk,  Iowa,  where  for  a  while  he  conducted  a  bakery  business,  that 
being  his  trade  in  the  old  country.  Keokuk  being  a  landing  place,  he  later  hauled 
freight  from  the  Mississippi  steamers  and  made  several  trips  with  merchandise  to 
Winterset  in  the  '50s,  by  way  of  St.  Charles.  He  knew  Louis  Stracke,  and 
through  his  acquaintance  with  Schoen,  he  bought  the  farm  owned  by  Theodore 
Kopp  and  moved  thereon  in  1859.  Mrs.  Burger  had  been  married  to  a  cousin  of 
Gottlob  Burger  and  to  them  were  bom  five  children,  all  excepting  one  coming  to 
Madison  County,  namely:  August  F.  Burger;  Mrs.  Van  Buren  Wiggins,  who 
died  in  1900;  Mrs.  Louisa  Hoppe;  Frederich  Burger,  of  Lamar,  Colorado;  and 
Charles  Burger,  of  Des  Moines.  Those  by  her  marriage  to  Gottlob  Burger  are : 
William  H.  Burger,  of  Jefferson  Township ;  and  Mrs.  Henry  Brown,  of  Lamar, 


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336  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Colorado.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Burger  continued  to  live  on  this  farm,  where  they  reared 
their  family,  until  1891,  and  then  sold  it.  After  living  two  years  with  their  daugh- 
ter, Mrs.  Henry  Brown,  at  Hamburg,  Iowa,  they  returned  to  Jefferson  Township, 
and  bought  the  Folwell  Farm,  on  section  34.  Mrs.  Burger,  a  noble  woman,  died 
February  14,  1901.  Mr.  Burger  then  sold  his  farm  to  his  son-in-law,  Henry 
Brown,  and  since  has  been  living  with  his  children.  He  is  another  of  those 
sturdy  pioneers  who  Jielped  to  make  this  county  what  it  is  today. 

As  mentioned  above,  August  F.  Burger  came  to  the  United  States  with  his 
parents  and  to  this  county  in  1859.  He  was  bom  August  3,  1843.  When  the 
Civil  war  broke  out  he  enlisted  in  Company  B,  Fifteenth  Iowa  Infantry,  Septem- 
ber 22,  1861,  and  was  discharged  August  3,  1865.  He  took  part  in  over  fifty 
battles  and  skirmishes  and  was  in  the  Grand  Review  at  Washington.  On  his  re- 
turn he  purchased  a  part  interest  in  the  Weller  Mill,  married  Ellen  Fosher  in  1867, 
and  purchased  the  farm  on  which  he  now  lives,  once  owned  by  William  Kopp. 
In  1894  Mrs.  Burger  died  and  on  December  25,  1896,  he  married  Miss  Laura 
Mueller.    They  have  three  children,  August  F.,  Jr.,  George  and  Herman  Louis. 

William  H.  Burger  was  born  November  3,  1852,  at  Keokuk,  Iowa;  came  to 
Madison  County  with  his  parents  in  1859  ^"^  married  Albertine  Marquardt, 
March  13,  1883.  He  purchased  the  home  farm  of  his  father  in  Jefferson  Town- 
ship and  later  sold  this  farm  and  now  owns  400  acres  in  sections  22  and  27,  77-27. 
They  have  a  family  of  five  boys  and  one  girl. 

Frederick  W.  Burger,  a  second  son,  came  to  Madison  County  with  his  parents ; 
enlisted  in  Company  B,  Fifteenth  Iowa  Regiment;  on  his  return  he  married  Ellen 
Turney  and  owned  a  farm  in  Lee  Township.  Later  he  conducted  a  meat  market 
in  Winterset;  he  died  in  June,  1908,  in  Des  Moines,  and  his  remains  were  laid  to 
rest  in  the  old  neighborhood  cemetery  in  Jefferson  Township. 

Dr.  Henry  d'Duhuy,  a  brother-in-law  of  William  Schoen,  immigrated  from 
Germany  about  1,856,  and  lived  near  Ridel's  Mill.  In  1857  ^  postoffice  was  es- 
tablished, called  Bloomingdale,  and  d'Duhuy  was  its  postmaster  in  1857-8.  He 
later  moved  to  Union  Township,  in  the  Farris  neighborhood,  taught  school, 
farmed  and,  about  1863,  enlisted  as  a  surgeon  in  the  Union  army.  He  died 
a  few  years  ago  in  Kansas  City. 

Julius  Reiman  was  bom  August  23,  1842,  in  Germany,  and  came  to  Lee  Town- 
ship, Madison  County,  in  i860.  In  1866  he  rented  the  farm,  which  he  after- 
wards owned,  of  Louis  Stracke,  who  had  moved  to  Warsaw,  Illinois.  Mr.  Rei- 
man, with  his  mother,  went  to  Germany  in  the  summer  of  1869,  where  she  died 
and  he  returned  in  the  fall  of  the  same  year.  He  lived  at  various  places,  but  in 
1872  bought  a  farm  in  section  25,  Jefferson  Township,  and  in  June,  1874,  married 
Miss  Anna  Schultze.  He  lived  on  this  farm  until  his  death,  March  25,  1895. 
His  widow  and  children  live  on  the  farm,  except  one  son,  John. 

George  Mueller  was  born  September  11,  1842,  in  Hohnsheidt,  Eder  Town- 
ship,  Principality  of  Waldeck,  Germany.  He  came  to  America  when  a  young 
lad,  in  1859,  and  to  Winterset  in  i860.  He  with  his  cousin,  Louis  Stracke,  located 
in  Jefferson  Township  in  the  fall  of  i860.  In  the  winter  of  1861-62  he  went  to 
Keokuk,  Iowa,  and  then  to  Warsaw,  Illinois,  where,  in  1864,  he  married  Miss 
Katharine  Schott  and  immediately  returned  to  Jefferson  Township.  In  1866  he 
had  rented  a  part  of  the  Schoen  place  and  that  fall  bought  a  farm  in  section  2, 


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MR.  AND  MRS.  GEORGE  MUELLER 

Married  at  Warsaw,  Illinois,  August  8,  1864,  and  came  immediately 
to  Madison  County.  They  have  lived  on  their  present  farm  over  forty- 
eight  years  continuously.  Celebrated  their  fiftieth  wedding  anniversary 
August  8,  1914,  at  which  time  this  picture  was  taken. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  337 

Union  Township,  which  he  still  owns.  In  1886  he  built  a  new  house,  just  across 
the  road  from  his  old  log  cabin  and  is  living  there  today. 

Mr.  Mueller,  like  many  of  the  early  pioneers,  transformed  a  wilderness  into 
one  of  the  best  farms  in  that  community.  He  served  as  township  trustee  from 
1691  to  1907,  was  school  director  of  his  district  six  or  seven  years,  and  road 
supervisor  one  or  two  terms.  Seven  children  fell  to  his  lot,  now  all  grown  up: 
Herman  A.  Mueller  who  served  the  county  well  and  faithfully  as  auditor,  later  held 
the  position  of  cashier  in  the  Johnston  Bank  at  St.  Charles,  and  is  now  engaged  in 
the  real-estate  and  insurance  business;  Mrs.  A.  F.  Burger,  of  Winterset;  Mrs. 
Pleasant  Brittain,  of  Ransom  County,  North  Dakota;  George  E.  Mueller,  of 
Tioga,  North  Dakota,  where  he  is  farming  and  teaching  school ;  Oscar  O.  Muel- 
ler, an  attorney  at  law  at  Lewistown,  Montana;  Ernest  W.  Mueller,  in  charge 
of  the  home  farm;  and  Mrs.  Fannie  Mueller  St.  John  of  Sheridan,  Wyoming. 

At  times  there  were  Germans  who  would  live  a  few  years  in  the  settlement  and 
then  move  away.  Frederick  Thoms  worked  for  George  Mueller  in  1876  and 
owned  a  small  farm  in  section  34,  Jefferson  Township  and,  in  1877,  rented  the 
A.  F.  Burger  place.  In  1878  he  bought  a  farm  in  section  16,  where  there  was 
another  German  settlement.    About  1 881  he  sold  out  and  moved  to  Nebraska. 

Somewhere  about  1882  Emil  Mathes  worked  for  William  Schoen  in  the 
creamery,  later  sent  for  his  mother  and  sister  in  Germany,  and  lived  near  this 
vicinity  until  about  1890,  when  he  went  to  Des  Moines  and  later  to  Chicago. 

Reinhold  Kneuper  came  from  Germany  in  1871,  lived  in  this  settlement  a  few 
years  and  then  bought  a  farm  in  section  8,  Jefferson  Township.  Two  Franco- 
Prussian  soldiers,  Daniel  Wenzell  and  Henry  Walsmith,  located  here  in  1871. 
They  remained  a  year  or  so  and  then  went  to  Nebraska. 

There  is  also  a  German  settlement  in  the  northwest  part  of  Jefferson  Township, 
sometimes  known  as  the  Clayton  County  German  Settlement.  Landing  in  New 
York  from  Germany,  these  people  first  made  their  way  to  Northeastern  Iowa  but 
when  that  country  began  to  settle  up  and  land  increased  in  value,  they  sold  out 
there  and  sought  cheaper  farms.  Some  Americans  from  Clayton  County  had 
located  in  Madison  County  after  the  war,  about  1866  and  1867,  among  the 
number  being  A.  M.  Peters  and  others.  About  this  time  the  Rock  Island  Railroad 
was  being  built  through  from  Des  Moines  and  these  German  people  heard  of  this 
and  also  that  Madison  County  was  noted  for  cheap  lands  and  fertile  soil,  and  thus 
it  was  that  they  were  attracted  to  this  part  of  the  state.  George  Storck  was  the 
first  of  the  number  to  come  to  Madison  County,  the  year  of  his  arrival  being 
1868.  He  purchased  a  quarter  section  of  raw  prairie  land  on  section  13,  Madison 
Township  and  then  returned  to  his  home  in  Delaware  County.  In  January,  1870, 
he  returned  to  Madison  County,  improved  his  land  and  has  lived  here  continuously 
since,  having  in  the  meantime  acquired  520  acres  of  the  best  land  in  the  county. 
He  was  but  five  years  of  age  when  he  was  brought  by  his  parents  from  Germany 
in  1848  to  Clayton  County.  He  enlisted  in  Company  E,  Twenty-seventh  Iowa 
Infantry,  on  the  22d  of  August,  1862,  and  was  mustered  out  August  8,  1865.  He 
received  a  wound  in  the  shoulder  at  the  battle  of  Pleasant  Hill,  Louisiana,  and  was 
promoted  to  the  rank  of  corporal.  After  the  war  he  returned  to  Clayton  County 
but  in  1867  located  in  Delaware  County,  where  he  made  his  home  until  he  c^me 

to  Madison  County.   From  1883  until  1885  he  served  on  the  board  of  supervisors, 

voi.r   -22 


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338  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

and  since  1880  has  been  connected  with  the  Madison  County  Mutual  Insurance 
Company,  first  as  president  and  then  as  secretary,  which  position  he  still  holds. 

Gerhardt  Storck,  a  brother  of  George  Storck,  came  to  Madison  County  in  the 
spring  of  1870  and  settled  on  the  northeast  quarter  of  section  9,  Jefferson  Town- 
ship. He  was  the  owner  of  700  acres  of  land  in  Jefferson  Township.  He  died  a 
few  years  ago. 

Ferdinand  Marquardt,  a  brother-in-law  of  both  George  and  Gerhardt  Storck, 
came  a  single  man,  with  them  from  Clayton  County.  About  1871  he  bought  the 
southwest  quarter  of  section  3,  Jefferson  Township,  which  he  improved  and  on 
which  he  still  makes  his  home.  He  also  owns  another  farm  in  this  township  and 
one  in  Penn  Township,  near  Dexter. 

August  Bernau  came  from  Clayton  County  in  1872  and  settled  on  section  7, 
Jefferson  Township.  He  died  here  in  1883.  His  son  William  died  in  1894  and  the 
latter's  widow  now  makes  her  home  on  the  old  Bernau  homestead,  owning  200 
acres.  Another  son  of  August  Bernau,  J.  H.  Bernau,  bought  the  northeast  quar- 
ter of  section  23,  Jefferson  Township,  where  his  son,  Elbert  H.,  now  lives.  J.  H. 
Bernau  died  in  1899. 

John  Westphal  came  from  Clayton  County  in  1874  and  bought  240  acres  of 
land  in  section  3,  Jefferson  Township.  He  was  serving  as  treasurer  of  the  Farm- 
ers Mutual  Insurance  Company  at  the  time  of  his  death  in  1880.  His  widow 
owns  160  acres  of  land  here,  which  she  rents.  Her  son  Herman  also  owns  eighty 
acres  in  this  township. 

August  Ziemann  came  from  Clayton  County  in  1873  ^"d  first  located  on  land 
which  he  rented  from  L.  Renshaw.  In  a  few  years  he  purchased  a  farm  on 
section  21,  whereon  he  still  makes  his  home.    He  now  owns  280  acres. 

Charles  Wishmeyer,  who  was  born  in  Galena,  Illinois,  came  to  Madison  County 
in  187 1  and  soon  afterward  purchased  a  farm  in  Jefferson  Township.  He  died 
here  in  February,  1907. 

Carl  Marquardt  emigrated  with  his  family  from  Germany  to  Clayton  County 
in  1859  and  came  from  there  to  Madison  County  in  1873.  He  purchased  a  farm 
on  section  9,  Jefferson  Township,  which  was  his  home  until  his  death  in  1896. 
The  farm  is  now  owned  by  Gerhardt  Storck. 

H.  E.  Marquardt  came  with  his  parents  from  Clayton  County  in  1873  ^^^ 
bought  eighty  acres  of  land  on  section  9,  this  township.  He  later  sold  the  tract  to 
G.  Storck  and  bought  220  acres  on  sections  4  and  5.  He  has  served  as  secretary 
of  the  Jefferson  Township  school  board  for  several  years. 

Fred  H.  Meyers  came  here  in  1874  with  his  stepfather,  John  Westphal.  About 
1888  he  bought  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  21,  and  a  few  years  ago  pur- 
chased the  Sylvester  Renshaw  Farm,  his  possessions  now  comprising  a  half  sec- 
tion of  land. 

William  Steinhaus  and  his  son  Edward,  with  their  families,  came  direct  from 
Germany  to  Madison  County  in  1873.    In  1884  they  moved  to  Nebraska. 

August  Prochnow  came  here  from  Germany  in  1873  with  the  Steinhaus  fam- 
ilies. He  owned  160  acres  of  land  on  sections  10  and  15.  In  1903  he  died  in  a 
miser's  hut,  with  plenty  about  him. 

William  Buske  came  here  from  Clayton  County  in  1871.  He  bought  the  north- 
east quarter  of  section  8,  but  sold  his  land  about  ten  years  ago  and  is  now  living 
in  Des  Moines. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  339 

Fred  Roggmann  came  here  from  Clayton  County  in  1873.  Two  years  later, 
in  1875,  he  sold  his  land  on  section  8  to  Louis  Niendorf  and  left  the  county.  Mr. 
Niendorf,  who  came  from  Clayton  County  in  1874,  added  to  the  160  acres 
purchased  of  Buske  until  he  had  320  acres,  now  owned  by  his  heirs.  Mr.  Niendorf 
died  a  few  years  since. 

Chris  Heitman  came  to  Madison  County  in  the  early  '70s  and  bought  the 
southwest  quarter  of  section  9,  which  he  sold  in  1885  or  1886  and  moved  to 
Nebraska. 

Ferdinand  Jensen  came  to  Madison  County  in  1883  and  a  few  years  later 
bought  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  9  of  Peter  B.  Lienemann.  This  farm 
he  afterward  sold  to  N.  Boos  and  purchased  land  on  section  4,  which  has  since 
been  his  home. 

Conrad  Fundinger  came  to  Madison  County  in  1881  and  purchased  the  north- 
east quarter  of  section  16,  which  he  still  owns. 

B.  B.  Lienemann  on  emigrating  from  Germany,  first  located  in  Jackson  County, 
Iowa.  In  1882  he  came  to  Madison  County  and  bought  land  on  sections  5  and  6, 
Jefferson  Township.  He  died  about  1901.  His  son,  John,  lived  on  section  20 
for  a  few  years  and  then  moved  to  Arkansas.  Another  son,  Peter,  now  lives 
on  the  old  home  farm,  while  Brachtel  and  William  live  on  farms  near  by. 

Fred  Thoms  made  his  home  for  a  few  years  on  the  farm  which  is  now  occu- 
pied by  Conrad  Fundinger,  the  latter  purchasing  the  land  in  1881.  Mr.  Thoms 
then  went  farther  west. 

Louis  Vaudt  *  came  to  Madison  County  in  1885  from  Stuart,  Iowa.  He  first 
rented  land  for  about  a  year  and  then  bought  forty  acres  on  section  15,  his 
present  home.  He  has  since  purchased  more  land  and  now  owns  275  acres.  His 
sons,  A.  J.  and  Albert,  are  operating  the  farms,  while  another  son,  William, 
bought  land  in  the  northeast  part  of  the  township. 

Carl  Radke  came  from  Germany  to  Madison  County  in  the  early  '80s,  and  a 
few  years  later  bought  land  on  section  10,  where  his  son,  Otto,  now  makes  his 
home.  Both  Mr.  Radke  and  his  wife  are  deceased.  Herman  Radke  also  makes 
his  home  in  Jefferson  Township. 

George  Lentz  emigrated  from  Germany  to  Madison  County  in  1891  and 
lived  on  a  farm  located  in  section  10.  After  about  ten  years  spent  here  he 
and  his  son,  Henry,  moved  to  South  Dakota.  His  son,  John,  purchased  land 
of  the  Niendorf  estate,  located  on  section  8. 

Nicholas  Boos  in  1898  purchased  what  is  known  as  the  Chris  Heitman  farm 
of  Ferdinand  Jensen,  located  on  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  9,  and  has 
since  made  his  home  thereon. 

Frederick  E.  Meyer  emigrated  from  Germany  a  number  of  years  ago  and 
for  a  time  made  his  home  in  Penn  Township,  after  which  he  located  at  Van 
Meter.  About  1885  he  married  Ida,  a  daughter  of  Gerhardt  Storck,  and  lived 
on  land  belonging  to  his  father-in-law  until  his  death  about  1903.  For  several 
years  he  served  as  clerk  of  the  township. 

Henry  Wehrkampf  came  to  Madison  County  from  Clayton  County  in  the 
'80s  and  bought  land  on  section  4.  In  1898  he  sold  out  to  Ferdinand  Jensen 
and  returned  to  Clayton  County. 

*  Mr.  Vaudt  sold  out  a  few  years  ago  and  moved  to  Kossuth  County  where  he  died 
in  1914. 


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340  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Ferdinand  Dallman  came  here  from  Wisconsin  in  1875  and  later  bought  the 
north  half  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  10,  where  he  made  his  home  until 
his  wife's  death.  He  eventually  sold  his  farm  and  about  1903  or  1904,  with  his 
daughter  and  her  husband,  moved  to  Dakota. 

With  the  Dallmans  came  Ferdinand  Kading  and  August  Crtunrie.  When 
they  came  here  in  1875  they  had  one  team  and  a  wagon  and  they  are  now 
prosperous  farmers  of  Adair  County. 

William  and  Henry  Kahre  also  lived  in  the  German  settlement  in  this  township 
a  few  years  but  moved  to  South  Dakota. 

Gudliff,  John  and  George  Brooker  also  lived  in  this  community  from  about 
the  year  1868.     They  have  all  passed  away. 

LUTHERAN    CHURCH,    JEFFERSON    TOWNSHIP 

From  1872  to  1875  ministers  of  the  Lutheran  denomination  preached  to  the 
people  of  that  faith  in  Jefferson  Township,  services  being  held  in  the  Gerhardt 
Storck  Schoolhouse.  After  the  latter  year  the  Lutheran  minister  from  Dexter 
held  regular  services  here,  and  teachers  came  to  educate  the  children  of  the  neigh- 
borhood in  the  doctrines  of  this  denomination  and  to  prepare  them  to  become 
members  of  the  church.  From  1884  to  1904  this  charge  was  connected  with 
Dexter,  the  same  pastor  presiding  over  the  two  congregations.  In  the  latter 
year,  by  mutual  consent,  the  church  in  Jefferson  Township  became  an  independent 
charge  and  called  their  own  pastor  in  the  person  of  Rev.  C.  Jobst,  who  holds 
services  every  Sunday.  There  is  also  a  parochial  school  in  connection  with  the 
charge,  classes  being  conducted  by  the  pastor  four  days  in  the  week.  The  Luth- 
eran congregation  was  organized  as  such  in  1885,  being  incorporated  under  the 
laws  of  Iowa.  The  same  year  a  church  was  erected  on  the  southeast  comer 
of  section  8,  services  up  to  that  period  having  been  conducted  in  the  schoolhouse 
one  mile  north  of  the  present  church  building.  Among  the  organizing  members 
may  be  mentioned  George  Storck,  F.  Dallman,  L.  Vaudt,  C.  Radke,  Mrs.  Johh 
Westphal,  Carl  Marquardt,  R.  Kneuper,  John  Lienemann,  H.  E.  Marquardt, 
Charles  Wishmeyer,  August  Ziemann,  B.  P.  Lienemann,  F.  Marquardt  and 
William  Bemau.    Rev.  E.  A.  Brauer  is  the  present  pastor. 


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CHAPTER    XLII 
JACKSON    TOWNSHIP 

Jackson  Township  was  organized  in  May,  i860.  It  is  bounded  on  the  north 
by  Penn,  on  the  south  by  Webster,  on  the  east  by  Douglas  townships,  and  on  the 
west  by  Adair  County.  The  North  River  passes  through  it  from  west  to  east. 
Along  this  stream  the  settlers  found  abundance  of  timber  and  stone  not  only  for 
the  needs  of  this  township,  but  its  neighbor,  Penn,  which  had  little  if  any  timber 
within  its  borders.  The  general  surface  of  the  country  is  somewhat  rolling  and 
just  enough  to  make  a  delightful  farming  country.  The  soil  is  of  the  richest 
and  with  abundance  of  good  pure  water  for  both  man  and  beast  the  citizens  df  this 
township  are  doubly  blessed  and  justly  take  a  great  pride  in  their  homes,  which 
are  modem  in  character,  and  surrounding  them  are  bams  and  other  buildings 
which  harmonize  with  a  general  air  of  comfort,  thrift  and  prosperity. 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Phelon  and  Alfred  Rice  are  said  to  have  been  the 
first  settlers  in  the  township,  coming  here  in  1850.  They  were  soon  followed  by 
Samuel  Bunn,  Willis  Rose  and  O.  B.  Bissell.  Rose  and  Bunn  bought  out  the 
claims  of  Rice  and  Phelon.  John  Rose  came  from  Illinois  early  in  1852  and  set- 
tled on  the  banks  of  the  North  River.  He  married  Mary  Gilleran,  a  native  of 
Ireland,  in  1856.  His  nearest  neighbor  was  six  miles  away  and  he  was  compelled 
to  haul  logs  to  Winterset  for  lumber.  The  nearest  grist  mill  was  at  Indianola, 
and  not  being  very  reliable  as  to  its  running  days,  the  last  resort  was  hand 
ground  com  meal  with  which  to  make  bread.  For  this  purpose  a  common  tin 
grater  was  used.  When  the  township  was  organized  Mr.  Rose  was  authorized 
to  notify  the  voters  to  meet  and  hold  the  first  election.  The  number  of  votes 
cast  on  that  occasion  was  between  forty  and  fifty.  Willis  Rose  with  his  family, 
among  whom  was  a  son,  George,  settled  on  section  5,  in  1852.  The  elder  Rose 
died  in  1861  and  left  a  farm  encumbered  by  a  mortgage,  which  was  a  burden 
to  his  family,  and  especially  to  the  boy  George,  who,  however,  by  industry  and 
good  management  redeemed  the  land  and  added  many  acres  to  the  farm  besides. 

Daniel  Henderson  was  an  Ohioan  by  birth  and  moved  to  Indiana,  from 
whence  he  came  to  Madison  County  in  1853,  and  located  on  section  13,  which 
became  his  permanent  home.  There  were  but  few  families  in  the  township 
at  the  time  of  his  arrival ;  consequently,  he  became  identified  with  its  growth  and 
development. 

O.  B.  Bissell  came  into  the  township  and  took  up  a  permanent  settlement  in 
1855.  He  became  one  of  the  solid  men  of  the  county  and  so  improved  his  farm 
with  fine  buildings,  good  fences  and  systematic  cultivation  that  it  became  one 
of  the  best  in  the  county.  He  held  various  offices  of  tmst  and  was  a  member 
of  the  State  Legislature  in  1874.    He  also  served  on  the  board  of  supervisors. 

John  G.  Fox,  bom  in  New  Jersey  in  1834,  immigrated  to  this  county  in  1856, 

341 


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342  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

and  the  following  year  married  Henrietta  Ulory  of  this  county.    He  became  one 
of  the  substantial  farmers  and  citizens  of  the  community. 

James  G.  Beck,  a  native  of  Ireland,  arrived  in  the  township  in  1859  and  for 
many  years  lived  on  section  27.  He  enlisted  in  the  Seventh  Iowa  Infantry  in 
1861,  and  remained  in  the  service  during  the  war. 

Thomas  Stewart  was  one  of  the  substantial  men  of  Jackson  Township.  He 
was  a  Pennsylvanian  by  birth  and  a  blacksmith  at  the  age  of  sixteen.  Moving 
to  Illinois  he  there  engaged  in  farming  until  immigrating  to  Madison  Township 
early  in  its  history.  There  he  improved  a  farm,  with  but  few  other  settlers  within 
a  score  of  miles  of  him.  He  was  compelled  to  get  his  grinding  done  at  Panora, 
and  haul  his  lumber  from  Des  Moines.  He  located  in  Jackson  Township,  on 
section  2,  in  i860.  At  this  time  the  land  consisted  chiefly  of  wild  prairie  aad 
the  settlers  were  few  in  number.  Mr.  Stewart  was  the  father  of  fourteen  children 
and  five  of  his  sons  served  in  the  Civil  war,  one  dying  while  at  the  front,  and  four 
remaining  until  the  close  of  hostilities. 

Among  other  things  related  of  Jackson  Township  in  an  article  prepared  by 
him  for  a  local  paper,  E.  R.  Zeller  had  the  following  to  say:  "Like  Penn,  Jackson 
was  sparsely  settled  until  late  and  is  like  the  township  mentioned  in  soil  and 
population.  •  Alfred  Rice,  the  Roses  and  Samuel  Bunn  are  said  to  have  been  the 
pioneers,  while  John  Fox  and  O.  B.  Bissell  began  work  there  about  the  period 
of  which  we  write.  Mr.  Bunn*s  widow,  Mrs.  McPherrin,  still  resides  there, 
while  Bissell,  now  gone,  was  the  grange  representative  in  the  State  Legislature. 
The  Earlys  were  a  potent  force  in  the  development  of  that  part  of  the  county. 
James  was  afterward  county  treasurer  two  terms  and  Tom  has  been,  and  still  is, 
a  leading  politician  and  stock  buyer.  The  Stewart  home  has  long  been  a  land- 
mark there  and  in  that  blacksmith  shop  so  long  operated  by  Robert  Stewart,  have 
been  struck  many  of  the  effective  blows  essential  to  the  development  of  a  county. 
'Squire  Hindman  for  many  years  dispensed  justice  and  married  people,  later 
removing  to  Monroe  County,  where  he  died.  Then  there  were  the  Shermans, 
Devaults,  Robinsons,  Bairds,  Jones,  Estells,  Crawfords,  Fords,  Spears,  McCor- 
kles,  Niblos,  Meachems,  Ham  Lee  and  John  Shoflf.  Lemuel  Banker  was  a 
member  of  the  board  of  supervisors.  James  G.  Beck,  E.  G.  Perkins,  Robert 
McCalman,  John  Spence  and  Rev.  James  Sawhill  have  been  potent  forces  in 
the  moral  and  educational  affairs  of  the  county.  Beck  and  Spence  still  remain 
to  remind  us  of  the  olden  times.  Reverend  Sawhill  died  some  years  since  but  the 
force  of  his  sterling  Christian  manhood  still  goes  on  producing  good  results. 
William  Kipp  has  long  since  died  and  the  family  moved  away,  but  the  place  is  still 
known  as  the  Kipp  farm.  The  Aitchisons  and  Smiths  came  from  Jackson  County, 
Iowa,  to  Jackson  Township  in  later  times.  The  former  still  remain  but  the  latter 
are  all  gone  except  one.  Father  and  Mother  Smith  are  dead  and  the  fine  farm  they 
improved  is  now  owned  by  Mr.  Benjamin.'* 

In  the  center  of  Jackson  Township  is  a  little  hamlet,  and  scarcely  that,  named 
Pitzer,  where  there  is  a  general  store.  Close  by  is  the  United  Presbyterian 
Church  and  the  schoolhouse,  the  latter  at  the  four  comers  made  by  the  joining 
of  sections  15,  16,  21  and  22.  There  is  not  a  railroad  in  the  township  but  the 
citizens  have  easy  access  to  Winterset,  about  seven  miles  away. 

Rev.  John  E.  Darby  lived  in  Jackson  Township  in  early  years  and  taught  its 
first  school.     As  will  be  seen  by  consulting  the  general  chapter  on  schools,  this 


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EARLY  CHAPEL,  JACKSON  TOWNSHIP 


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r- 


'  I 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  343 

township  is  well  provided  with  schoolhouses  and  churches,  and  with  all  other 
modem  conveniences,  such  as  excellent  roads,  rural  free  delivery  of  mails,  the 
telephone  and  the  modem  means  of  rapid  transit — the  automobile — the  people 
are  living  in  more  than  comparative  ease,  comfort  and  prosperity. 


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CHAPTER    XLIII 
LEE  TOWNSHIP 

Lee  Township  was  created  by  the  County  Court  on  the  ist  day  of  March, 
1857,  and  given  the  name  of  Badger,  but  on  the  6th  day  of  September,  1858,  the 
name  was  changed  to  that  of  Lee,  in  honor  of  Harvey  Lee,  an  early  settler  of  the 
county. 

It  is  said  that  James  Rothill,  who  located  on  section  31,  in  1852,  was  the 
first  one  to  take  up  a  permanent  residence  in  this  township.  Within  a  very  short 
time  and  in  the  same  year,  James  Lane  arrived  in  the  commtmity  and  settled  on 
section  i,  where  he  remained  a  short  time  and  then  sold  his  claim  to  Allen  Majors 
in  1855. 

Harvey  Lee,  after  whom  the  township  was  named,  came  here  from  Indiana 
in  1856  and  located  on  section  32.  Lived  there  until  1862  and  went  back  to 
Indiana.  About  1864  he  returned  and  settled  on  section  3,  in  Union  Township, 
where  he  remained  until  his  death  in  1884. 

The  township  was  largely  made  up  of  the  sturdy  sons  of  old  Erin,  who  came 
here  early  in  the  history  of  the  county,  took  up  claims,  laid  out  farms,  cultivated 
and  improved  them,  became  prosperous  and  today  many  of  their  descendants  are 
still  living  in  this  neighborhood.  In  1853  Andrew  Hubbard  and  'Squire  Flynn 
settled  on  sections  4  and  8,  respectively.  In  the  following  year  George  W.  Roberts 
and  James  Malone  settled  in  the  township.  Malone  soon  after  sold  out  to  Thomas 
Cavenor  and  later  sold  his  interests  to  N.  W.  Johnson  in  1864.  Mr.  Johnson 
was  an  old  Connecticut  sea  captain  and  became  one  of  the  most  extensive 
farmers  in  this  locality,  owning  at  the  time  mentioned  a  block  of  land  consisting 
of  one  section  and  a  half.  He  dealt  extensively  in  live  stock  and  generally  bought 
all  the  surplus  corn  that  his  neighbors  had  to  sell. 

Andrew  Hubbard  set  out  the  first  orchard  in  Lee  Township  in  1859.  Soon 
thereafter  L.  N.  Smith,  George  W.  Roberts  and  Thomas  England  also  had  good 
orchards  bearing  fruit.  Captain  Johnson,  George  W.  Roberts  and  Emerson 
Hazen  early  became  the  most  extensive  farmers  in  the  township. 

One  of  the  pioneers  of  the  township  was  George  Roberts,  who  settled  here 
in  1854.  He  was  a  railroad  engineer,  which  probably  accounted  for  his  highly 
manifested  taste  for  machinery  on  his  farm,  of  which  he  had  the  latest  improved 
and  plenty  of  it.  He  probably  had  in  use  the  first  manure  spreader  brought 
to  the  county  and  for  years  owned  and  operated  a  threshing  machine.  Mr. 
Roberts  many  years  ago  moved  to  Missouri  and  the  large  farm  which  he  im- 
proved is  now  the  property  and  home  of  Conrad  Eichner. 

A  passing  notice  should  be  given  an  eccentric  character  from  Pennsylvania 
named  William  Heaton,  who  in  1858  laid  off  and  staked  his  land  into  lots,  with 
the  intention  of  establishing  a  town  and  building  a  seminary,  to  cost  not  less  than 

344 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  345 

$ioo,ocx).  Many  of  the  lots  were  contracted  for  at  prices  ranging  from  $50  to 
$300  each  and  in  the  summer  of  the  year  mentioned  Heaton  and  quite  a  large 
gathering  of  people  met  on  the  ground,  where  speeches  were  made  by  B.  F. 
Roberts  and  others,  setting  forth  the  advantages  of  the  locality  for  a  town  and 
the  great  importance  of  a  seminary  there.  Heaton  executed  a  bond  in  the  sum 
of  $50,000,  which  is  on  record  at  the  courthouse,  for  the  faithful  application  of 
all  moneys  accruing  tmder  certain  provisions  of  the  town  lot  contractors.  But 
for  some  reason  his  hopes  were  never  realized  and  the  stakes  were  never  driven 
to  make  the  Town  of  Heaton. 

As  the  great  body  of  early  and  later  settlers  of  this  township  were  of  the 
Irish  race,  and  their  history  later  written  by  James  Gillaspie,  what  that  venerable 
and  worthy  pioneer  has  said  of  them  follows. 

IRISH  SETTLEMENT  IN  LEE 

The  compiler  of  the  history  relating  to  the  settlements  in  Crawford  and  Lee 
townships  of  the  Irish  people,  James  Gillaspie,  is  still  living  at  a  ripe  old  age  at 
his  home,  about  five  miles  out  of  Patterson.  He  is  now  well  along  in  years 
and  admits  that  his  memory  is  not  as  reliable  as  in  days  of  yore.  In  the  prepara- 
tion of  his  articles  he  makes  the  declaration  of  his  want  of  absolute  accuracy 
as  to  the  years  in  which  many  of  the  old  settlers,  of  whom  he  speaks,  located 
in  this  township,  and  he  also  assumes  the  possibility  of  omitting  some  names 
that  should  appear  in  the  list  he  has  prepared.  If  he  is  correct  in  his  surmises, 
no  blame  should  rest  upon  him,  for  his  work  has  been  honestly  accomplished  and 
with  the  determination  to  make  it  as  complete  as  possible.  He  says  that  Allen 
Major  came  here  in  1855,  from  Warren  County,  Iowa,  and  for  some  time  has 
been  gathered  to  his  fathers.  His  son,  John,  lives  in  Iowa  but  has  left  the  old 
farm. 

John  McCarty  and  family  came  in  1855.  He  has  passed  away,  while  some 
of  his  sons  still  live  on  the  old  place. 

David  and  John  Welch,  brothers,  came  as  early  as  1855  or  1856.  David  settled 
in  Lee  Township  and  John  settled  across  the  line  in  Warren  County.  David  is 
dead  and  the  family  has  moved  away. 

Timothy  Horan  and  family  came  from  Des  Moines  in  or  about  i860.  He  is 
dead.    His  son,  James,  and  two  sisters  lived  on  the  farm. 

Daniel  Mulvihill  came  some  time  in  the  '50s.  He  died  a  few  years  ago.  His 
son,  James,  lives  on  the  farm,  and  another  son,  Daniel,  is  a  Catholic  priest  in 
Des  Moines. 

Jeremiah  Dooley  and  family  and  James  and  Patrick  Maher  were  early  settlers, 
but  I  am  not  sure  of  the  date. 

James  Lynch  and  family  also  came  early.  Mr.  L)mch  is  still  in  good  health 
and  lives  on  the  old  farm.    Michael  and  Patrick  Duffy  were  also  early  settlers. 

Peter  Laughlin  and  family  came  to  Lee  from  the  western  part  of  the  county 
sometime  near  i860.  He  has  been  dead  a  few  years.  His  son,  Thomas,  is  in 
South  Township,  while  John  still  lives  here. 

Andrew  and  James  Hanrahan  and  their  families  and  several  other  Irish 
families  moved  into  Lee  Township  in  the  early  '60s.  I  now  close  my  Lee  Town- 
ship narrative. 


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346  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

In  order  to  give  a  correct  idea  of  the  Irish  settlement,  it  is  necessary  to  name 
briefly  several  families  in  Warren  County  across  the  line  in  the  townships  ad- 
joining Crawford  and  Lee,  who  came  in  the  years  previous  to  i860.  They  are 
as  follows: 

John  Spain  and  family;  John  Cahill,  also  his  father  and  family;  Michael 
Doheny  and  family ;  Edmund  Ryan  and  family ;  William  Ryan ;  John  and  Thomas 
Bell  and  their  father's  family ;  Bernard  King ;  Niel  McElwee,  and  family ;  Anthony 
McElwee,  and  a  family  named  Friel ;  Patrick  Cassiday  and  family ;  two  brothers 
named  Michael  and  James  Kane  and  their  families;  John  Mackin  and  family; 
John  Welch  and  family;  Peter  Murray  and  family;  Pat  Walsh;  Adam  Walsh; 
William  Shay  and  family ;  Patrick  Butler  and  family ;  a  Mrs.  Gallaher  and  family, 
she  a  widow,  and  Michael  Cash  and  family.  All  the  families  here  mentioned, 
with  the  exception  of  the  following  named,  were  Catholics :  Allen  Major,  William 
Kennedy,  Anderson  McLees  and  the  McMichaels.    (See  Crawford  Township.) 

ST.  Patrick's  church 

As  may  be  seen,  the  Irish  came  from  many  places  to  the  settlement,  and  the 
name  of  the  settlement  began  to  spread  abroad  throughout  the  land,  one  following 
the  lead  of  those  who  had  gone  before.  But  here  they  were  with  no  church  and 
cemetery.  Some  were  in  favor  of  having  the  church  and  cemetery  on  the  north 
side  of  the  river;  others  on  the  south  side.  In  the  meantime,  a  stranger,  an  old 
man  and  a  government  surveyor,  returning  from  further  west,  getting  sick 
at  the  house  of  Patrick  Walsh  on  the  south  side,  died.  The  corpse  was  prepared 
for  the  grave.  Mr.  Walsh  and  some  neighboring  men  left  home  to  locate  a 
burying  ground,  when  some  half  dozen  smart  fellows  slipped  in,  took  up  the 
corpse  and  started  the  cemetery  on  the  north  side.  So  where  the  cemetery  was, 
the  church  should  be  near,  and  as  the  majority  of  the  people  were  on  the  north 
side,  the  people  built  a  good  sized  log  church  in  the  summer  of  1856.  Thomas 
Finan  gave  the  forty  acres  of  land  for  church  purposes.  The  church  stands  on 
the  southeast  quarter  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  36,  Lee  Township,  and 
the  cemetery  is  in  the  southeast  part  of  the  "forty."  Very  many  of  the  first  set- 
tlers lie  there  now,  and  also  many  of  their  children.  At  first  in  religious  ways, 
the  people  were  attended  by  missionary  priests,  going  from  place  to  place.  In 
1856  Reverend  Father  Piatt  became  parish  priest  of  Des  Moines  and  he  attended 
St.  Patrick's  once  a  month.  He  died  and  Reverend  Father  Brazill  got  an  assistant 
and  there  was  mass  in  St.  Patrick's  twice  a  month  until  about  1873,  when  a  parish 
priest  was  sent  to  reside  at  St.  Patrick's.  The  first  resident  priest  was  Reverend 
Father  Smythe,  now  at  Council  Bluflfs,  who  remained  three  years.  Then  came 
Reverend  Father  Ric6,  who  was  pastor  of  that  congregation  from  1870  to  1884. 
He  died  in  1884  and  was  succeeded  by  Reverend  Father  Moynihan,  who  was 
pastor  of  the  church  until  November,  1906.  Father  Mo)mihan  resigned  on  ac- 
count of  old  age  and  infirmity  and  was  succeeded  by  Reverend  Father  Dugan,  who 
is  pastor  of  St.  Patrick's  Church  at  the  present  writing,  February,  1907. 

The  present  frame  church  was  built  somewhere  near  the  year  1870.  I  am 
not  positive  of  the  date  but  that  is  near  to  it.  The  log  church  was  taken  away. 
There  were  some  German  families  who  attended  at  first  St.  Patrick's  Church,  viz. : 
Kasper  Weil,  Conrad  Weil,  Anthony  Weidman,  Charles  Snyder,  Julius  Reiman 
and  some  others. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  347    * 

After  the  death  of  Father  Rice,  St.  Patrick  parish  was  divided.  All  south  of 
North  River  were  stricken  into  the  parish  of  Churchville  and  now  attend  there ; 
here  they  have  a  large  congregation.  Another  part  of  St.  Patrick's  parish  is 
given  to  Cumming,  which  makes  the  congregation  the  smallest  of  the  thre'e  at 
present. 

Many  settlers  came  to  the  Irish  settlement  since  i860.  I  merely  give  their 
names  as  far  as  I  can  and  where  they  settled.  But  before  I  do  I  will  name  a  few 
who  came  in  the  early  '50s.  Patrick  Walsh,  Adam  Walsh  and  John  Cutler  came 
to  the  settlement  in  1852.  There  are  several  families  belonging  to  the  settlement 
who  came  previous  to  i860  who  live  in  the  southwest  comer  of  Polk  County. 
Among  those  are  the  Hoyes,  Malones,  Dargans  and  others.  Those  who  settled 
in  Warren  County  in  i860  and  since  are  R.  Maguire,  E.  Slavin,  Ellwood  brothers, 
John  Collins,  James  Davitt,  Mr.  Fagan,  James  Doud,  Pat  Doud,  Pat  McNemey, 
T.  Harrigan,  Pat  Breslin,  J.  Graham,  Ed  McCusker,  Peter  McDonnell,  Pat  Mc- 
Donnell, John  Linnan,  Thomas  Gallagher,  John  Mulroy,  James  Banks,  George 
Banks,  Michael  Cash.  Mr.  Cash  was  a  very  early  settler,  in  1855  or  1856;  the 
Hall  brothers^  John  and  Michael;  Joseph  Nugent,  Pat  Waldron,  P.  Brownrigg, 
William  Hayes,  Peter  Quinn,  Ed  McManus,  James  Sheehey,  Pat  Ward,  William 
Gavin,  the  McAndrew  family,  John  McGovem,  Thomas  Powers,  Neil  Enright, 
John  Keeney,  Matt  Lillis,  Thomas  James,  Daniel  Heaffey,  Robert  Kelley  and 
others.  All  the  foregoing  are  or  were  men  of  families,  with  the  exception  of 
two  or  three  who  settled  on  the  Warren  County  side  of  the  settlement  since  i860 
or  about  that  time.  In  this  list  I  do  not  mention  any  of  the  young  men  who 
grew  up  or  were  bom  here.  Some  of  those  mentioned  have  since  removed  to 
other  places.  Many  are  dead,  but  there  is,  generally  speaking,  in  most  cases, 
one  or  two  more  representatives  of  each  family. 

List  of  those  who  settled  in  Crawford  Township  since  i860:  Bemard  John- 
son, P.  Gill,  William  Costello,  John  Peters,  Thomas  Mulroy,'  John  Marrinan, 
Thomas  Linnan,  Thomas  Swift,  William  Connolly,  Robert  Morris,  William 
Conner,  Pat  Curtis,  Michael  Casey,  Thomas  Dee,  Pat  Doud,  T.  McGovem,  John 
Kelley,  John  Tieman,  Pat  Kilduflf,  the  Hogan  family,  John  Graney,  P.  Graney, 
Martin  Gavin,  John  Dillon  and  Thomas  Burke.  I 

Lee  Township  since  i860:  James  Condon,  Thomas  Glynn,  Maurice  Breen,  i 

Peter  Kelley,  M.  M.  Gilleran  and  his  father,  Martin  Waldron,  James  Brazill, 
Lawrence  King,  John  Pollard,  Stephen  Murphy,  James  Kieman,  John  Clarke,  ^ 

Michael  Dargan,  Richard  Dargan,  Michael  McNamara,  Michael  Phillips,  John 
White,  John  Roach,  Thomas  McKeon  and  Timothy  O'Herron. 

In  order  to  show  fully  the  Irish  settlement  I  must  include  part  of  Union 
Township.  Here  we  find  Ed  Monaghan,  Patrick  Nolan,  Michael  Donohue  and 
Martin  McNamara.  ■' 

The  names  of  those  who  served  in  the  Civil  war  follow:  There  were  very 
few  young  men  grown  to  man's  estate  when  the  war  of  1861-65  took  place.  The 
Irish  settlers  were  nearly  all  men  who  had  wives  and  families,  consequently  but 
few  of  them  served  in  the  army.  Among  those  who  did  serve  whom  I  know  were : 
George  Banks,  John  McWilliams,  L.  A.  Smith,  Patrick  Doud,  M.  M.  Gilleran, 
Martin  Waldron,  Thomas  Burke,  James  Gillaspie,  William  Couch,  Charles  Condon 
and  others  whose  names  I  do  not  remember. 


) 


I 

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348  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

GROWTH    OF   THE    SETTLEMENT 

It  will  now  be  seen  that  the  Irish  settlement  is  not  a  very  small  place.  From 
north  to  south  it  is  fully  twelve  miles,  and  about  the  same  number  of  miles  from 
east  to  west.  Of  course  there  are  many  people  of  different  nationalities  living 
in  their  midst:  Americans,  Germans  and  others,  all  living  in  harmony  and 
brotherly  love  together  as  all  men  should  do.  They  are,  generally  speaking, 
industrious  and  prosperous,  and  as  to  honesty,  few  will  say  that  they  have  been 
cheated  by  an  Irish  man. 

The  early  time  houses  have  all  disappeared  and  in  their  places  stand  modem 
dwellings,  substantial  and  capacious  bams  and  granaries.  Horses,  cattle  and 
swine  are  here  in  abundance,  and  cheerful  hospitality  can  be  found  among  the 
Irish  settlers  and  their  descendants,  and  as  freely  given  as  on  any  part  of  the 
globe. 

And  now  the  history  of  the  Irish  settlers  of  this  place,  known  all  over  Iowa 
as  the  Irish  settlement,  is  at  its  close.  Many  of  the  original  ones  are  in  their 
graves;  peace  to  their  memory.  Many  have  moved  to  other  places,  and  those 
of  native  Irish  birth,  who  yet  remain,  are  hastening  to  the  world  beyond  the  grave. 


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CHAPTER.  XLIV 
GRAND  RIVER  TOWNSHIP 

This  township  was  erected  by  the  County  Court  on  the  ist  day  of  March, 
1858,  and  is  the  southwest  subdivision  of  the  county,  being  bounded  on  the 
north  and  east  by  Webster  and  Monroe  townships,  respectively,  on  the  south  by 
Union  County,  and  on  the  west  by  Adair  County.  Its  surface  is  mostly  rolling 
but  there  is  a  great  deal  of  choice  prairie  land  in  this  section  of  the  county.  It 
originally  had  a  large  body  of  heavy  timber  on  the  Grand  River,  which  is  the 
principal  stream  traversing  its  domain.  These  water  courses  harbor  the  timber 
and  they  are  so  narrow  and  deep  that  they  are  hardly  visible  from  the  high 
prairies. 

•  James  Nelson  was  the  first  permanent  settler  in  the  township,  coming  in  1852. 
He  built  a  log  house  on  his  claim.  One  of  the  linn  logs  was  split  so  as  to  leave 
a  large  crack  and  this  was  the  only  provision  for  lighting  the  habitation.  This 
house  stood  on  what  was  later  known  as  the  Marley  place. 

Soon  after  Nelson  had  located,  S.  B.  Barker,  A.  J.  Hastie,  Ransom  Moon, 
J.  C.  Barker,  J.  F.  Barker  and  William  McPherson  settled  in  the  same  locality. 
J.  F.  Barker  bought  the  Nelson  claim  and  the  little  12  by  14  cabin  for  some 
time  sheltered  the  families  of  S.  B.  Barker,  A.  J.  Hastie,  J.  C.  Barker  and  Lewis 
Bragg.  It  also  became  a  hostelry  and  its  latchstring  was  always  on  the  outside 
to  bid  welcome  to  the  traveler.  The  house  at  times  was  so  crowded  that  "when 
bedtime  came  the  first  family  would  take  the  back  part  of  the  cabin  and  so  con- 
tinue filling  up  by  families  until  the  limit  was  reached.  The  young  men  slept  in 
'  the  wagons  outside.  In  the  morning  those  nearest  the  door  rose  first  and  went  out- 
side to  dress.  Meals  were  served. on  the  hind  end  of  *a  wagoo  and  consisted  of 
com  bread,  buttermilk  and  fat  pork,  and  occasionally  coffee  to  take  away  the 
morning  chill.  On  Sundays,  for  a  change,  they  had  bread  made  of  wheat  *tread 
out'  by  horses  on  the  ground,  cleaned  with  a  sheet  and  pounded  by  hand.  This 
was  the  best  the  most  fastidious  could  obtain,  and  then  only  one  day  in  seven." 

Ransom  Moon  was  the  immediate  follower  of  Nelson  into  the  township, 
coming  in  February,  1852,  and  taking  up  a  claim  in  the  timber  on  "Moon  Branch," 
where  he  built  a  pole  cabin  12  by  14  feet  square.  In  the  spring  of  that  year  he 
moved  to  a  town  near  the  center  of  the  township,  where  he  cultivated  a  farm  and 
improved  it  by  setting  out  groves  of  trees,  orchards,  building  fences  and  erecting 
necessary  farm  outbuildings.  He  became  one  of  the  substantial  business  men  of 
the  community  and  lived  on  the  old  homestead  many  years. 

Alvin  Greer  located  here  in  March,  1852,  and  took  a  clakn  on  a  beautiful 
point  of  land  between  Grand  River  and  Barker  Branch.  However,  failing  to 
secure  the  money  with  which  to  make  his  entry,  his  claim  was  "jumped,"  which 
compelled  him  to  seek  another  locality,  his  choice  being  on  the  edge  of  Adair 
County.    Greer  met  his  death  while  serving  his  country  in  the  Civil  war. 

349 


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350  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Probably  no  man  among  the  first  settlers  in  the  township  accomplished  more 
toward  settling  and  improving  the  community  than  Samuel  Barker,  a  Baptist 
minister,  a  man  of  means  and  great  energy  of  character.  With  his  three  sons, 
O.  W.  Barker,  J.  C.  Barker  and  Elihu  Barker,  and  his  brother,  J.  C.  Barker, 
together  with  A.  J.  Hastie,  the  elder  Barker  arrived  in  the  township  in  May, 
1853,  and  located  in  what  became  known  as  the  Barker  settlement.  Samuel  Barker 
entered  2,000  acres  of  land  in  the  township  and  became  one  of  its  most  valued 
citizens.  His  son,  Elihu,  served  with  distinction  as  a  soldier  in  the  Civil  war 
and  later  took  up  his  residence  in  Arkansas,  where  he  became  quite  prominent 
in  state  affairs.  O.  W.  and  J.  C.  took  up  claims  for  themselves,  improved  them 
and  long  lived  here  as  leading  citizens.  O.  W.  held  various  township  offices, 
among  which  was  that  of  supervisor,  serving  on  the  first  board  elected.  Mr. 
Barker  opened  the  first  road  in  the  township,  and  his  brother,  Capt.  E.  G.,  enlisted 
in  the  First  Iowa  Cavalry  and  served  2j4  years.  He  afterwards  enlisted  in  the 
infantry  service.    Was  county  treasurer  two  terms. 

A.  J.  Hastie,  who  came  with  the  Barkers,  was  one  of  the  substantial  men  of 
the  township,  becoming  one  of  its  principal  stock  dealers.  It  is  said  that  when 
Hastie  put  up  his  first  cabin,  he  and  his  assistant,  J.  H.  Marley,  found  the  work 
very  difficult  and  by  the  middle  of  an  afternoon,  having  lifted  logs  until  they 
were  utterly  worn  out,  were  ready  to  abandon  the  preconceived  idea  of  complet- 
ing the  work  that  day.  About  the  time  they  had  concluded  to  leave  off  from  their 
labors  a  party  of  engineers  in  the  employ  of  a  proposed  air  line  railroad  from 
Clinton  to  Council  Bluffs  approached  them.  Upon  learning  of  the  intended  im- 
provement they  were  greatly  cheered,  not  only  by  that,  but  at  the  time  it  was 
current  gossip  that  the  contents  of  an  eight-gallon  keg  in  possession  of  the  en- 
gineers might  have  done  its  part  toward  creating  somewhat  of  the  exhilaration 
the  settlers  exhibited  before  the  departure  of  their  guests. 

John  H.  Bragg,  James  Reason  and  Hiram  Pierce  settled  in  the  township  as 
early  as  1853  and  not  long  thereafter  came  Philip  Osbom,  J.  J.  Greer,  E.  Pindell, 
William  Kivitt  and  John  Grandfield. 

Wesley  Cochran,  an  Qhioan,  first  came  to  Madison  County  in  185 1.  He 
returned  to  his  old  home  in  Illinois  and  afterwards  settled  in  the  township  per- 
manently, accumulating  several  hundred  acres  of  land. 

J.  H.  Marley  was  born  in  Indiana  in  1832.  He  located  in  this  township  in 
April,  1853.  He  engaged  in  farming  and  stock  raising.  Mr.  Marley  was  one  of 
the  prominent  men  of  the  community,  held  various  offices  and  about  1878  was 
elected  as  a  member  of  the  board  of  supervisors. 

J.  Thomas  immigrated  from  Ohio  to  Iowa  in  1854  and  located  in  this  township 
with  his  bride  of  a  few  months. 

H.  C.  Wright  was  a  native  of  North  Carolina.  With  his  father  he  immi- 
grated to  Indiana  in  1840  and  came  to  this  county  in  1854,  locating  on  section  15, 
Grand  River  Township.  Mr.  Wright  enlisted  in  the  Fourth  Iowa  Infantry  and 
reenlisted  as  a  veteran  in  the  Civil  war. 

W.  M.  Kivitt  was  a  North  Carolinian  who  immigrated  to  Indiana  in  183 1  with 
his  parents.  He  arrived  in  Madison  County  and  this  township  in  1855  and  became 
one  of  the  leading  farmers  and  citizens  of  the  community. 

W.  O.  Lee,  when  first  coming  here  in  1855,  occupied  part  of  his  time  in  teach- 
ing the  children  of  the  neighborhood.    He  developed  into  one  of  the  substantial 


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GRISWOLD  MILL  ON  GRAND  RIVER,  GRAND  RIVER  TOWNSHIP 
Last  mill  in  Madison  County  operated  by  water  power 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  351 

farmers  of  the  community  and  in  i860  married  Angeline  Barker,  a  daughter  of 
one  of  the  pioneers.    Mr.  Lee  was  a  veteran  of  the  Civil  war. 

J.  C.  Grandfield  was  a  settler  in  the  township  of  the  year  1856.  He  was  a 
native  of  England  and  arrived  in  this  country  in  1855. 

A.  Bonham,  with  his  wife  and  family,  left  the  State  of  Ohio  in  1857,  and 
coming  to  Madison  County  located  on  section  23,  Grand  River  Township.  He 
raised  a  large  family  of  children  and  became  one  of  the  useful  and  prominent 
men  of  this  community.  Among  his  children  were  D.  Bonham,  Mary,  Benjamin, 
Hannah,  W.  G.  and  Samuel. 

J.  H.  Mack,  who  afterwards  became  one  of  the  leading  physicians  of  the 
county,  was  bom  in  Guernsey  County,  Ohio,  in  1837,  settled  in  Indiana  and  Illi- 
nois and  from  the  latter  state  came  to  this  county  in  1858,  making  part  of  the 
journey  up  the  river  to  Des  Moines  and  landing  at  the  mouth  of  Coon  River.  He 
came  on  foot  from  Des  Moines  to  Grand  River  Township,  where  he  engaged 
extensively  in  farming  and  accumulated  large  bodies  of  land.  Doctor  Mack 
enlisted  in  the  Forty-seventh  Iowa  Infantry  in  the  Civil  war.  Returning  to 
Grand  River  he  took  up  the  practice  of  his  profession. 

When  the  township  was  first  placed  under  the  hands  of  the  white  men  it 
offered  to  them  an  abundance  of  wild  fruits  such  as  crabapples,  plums,  cherries 
and  the  like.  Within  a  few  years  thereafter  many  orchards  had  been  planted 
and  were  producing  bountiful  crops  of  apples,  pears  and  cherries.  There  was 
also  plenty  of  wild  game  in  the  timber,  such  as  deer,  elk,  turkeys  and  smaller 
animals,  which  provided  liberally  days  of  sport  for  the  skilful  huntsman  of  that 
day,  and  added  largely  to  the  larder  of  his  good  wife.  It  is  also  related  that  wild 
hogs  were  found  in  the  timber,  long-legged  brutes,  wild  and  fleet  as  a  deer. 
Their  presence  here  was  attributed  to  the  Mormons,  who  had  lost  them  while 
wintering  at  Mount  Pizgah,  in  Union  County,  in  1847. 

Other  matters  of  interest  might  be  spoken  of  concerning  this  township,  but  it 
is  to  a  great  extent  the  same  as  the  general  history  of  the  county ,which  finds  a 
place  elsewhere  in  this  volume  and  its  companion  volume.  It  is  sufficient  to  say 
that  in  all  respects  Grand  River  Township  is  a  very  good  one  in  which  to  find 
a  permanent  home,  for  its  farms  are  at  a  high  state  of  improvement  and  its  terri- 
tory has  all  the  modem  advantages,  good  schools,  churches,  well  kept  roads, 
telephonic  communication  and  daily  mail  service  by  way  of  rural  delivery  routes. 
The  community  is  also  favored  and  blessed  by  the  location  within  its  borders 
of  one  of  the  best  little  trading  points  in  Madison  County. 

MACKSBURG 

This  little  trading  point  is  about  eighteen  miles  southwest  of  Winterset,  and 
is  on  the  divide  constituting  a  water  shed  between  the  Mississippi  and  Missouri 
rivers.  It  is  surrounded  by  a  splendid  scope  of  country  and  is  in  the  midst  of  a 
very  fertile  farming  and  stock  raising  region.  Grand  River,  worthy  of  its  name, 
wends  its  way  closely  by  the  town,  and  in  an  early  day  not  only  supplied  water 
power  for  milling  and  other  purposes  but  upon  its  banks  stretch  bodies  of  timber 
provided  by  Nature  for  the  uses  of  mankind. 

Macksburg  was  laid  out  on  sections  9,  10,  15  and  16,  March  23,  1874,  for 
the  owners  of  the  land,  W.  O.  Lee,  J.  H.  Mack,  E.  G.  Barker,  A.  J.  Hastie  and 


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352  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

John  D.  Love;  R.  A.  Patterson,  surveyor.  The  name  adopted  is  taken 
from  one  of  the  prominent  early  settlers  of  Grand  River  Township,  whose 
high  character,  indomitable  energy  and  enterprise  are  chiefly  responsible  for  the 
establishment  of  this  one  of  Madison  County's  commercial  centers.  Dr.  J.  H. 
Mack  will  long  be  remembered  for  his  own  sterling  characteristics  and  Macksburg 
will  further  serve  to  perpetuate  his  name  in  local  history. 

Near  the  town  site  of  Macksburg  a  postoffice  was  established  in  1863  ^^^ 
given  the  classic  name  of  Venus.  A.  J.  Hastie,  a  pioneer  of  the  township,  was 
installed  as  postmaster,  and  the  office  continued  in  existence  until  1870,  when  it 
was  abolished  for  the  reason  that  no  one  could  be  found  to  assume  the  onerous  (?) 
duties  of  the  establishment  imposed  by  the  Government.  However,  the  office 
was  reestablished  in  1871  and  when  Macksburg  was  founded  the  office  was 
removed  to  the  new  town  and  given  its  name,  with  Dr.  J.  H.  Mack  in  charge, 
and  from  this  time  on  Macksburg  began  to  grow  and  soon  assumed  the  propor- 
tions of  a  village  that  gave  evidence  of  one  day  being  able  to  take  its  place  in 
the  front  rank,  as  a  business  and  shipping  point. 

John  H.  Marley  and  J.  D.  Love,  both  of  whom  were  at  one  time  in  charge 
of  the  postoffice,  were  first  in  the  field  as  merchants  and  were  active  in  increasing 
the  interests  of  the  town  and  its  upbuilding.  Other  mercantile  establishments  and 
industries  secured  a  footing  in  the  "burg"  and  today  there  are  a  number  of  busi- 
ness enterprises  that  call  to  the  place  a  class  of  people  well  equipped  to  purchase 
goods  suitable  to  their  means,  which  is  saying  a  good  deal,  as  they  come  irom 
farming  districts  surrounding  the  town  that  cannot  be  surpassed  for  f ruitfulness 
and  prosperity  anywhere  in  the  State  of  Iowa. 

In  the  center  of  the  town  is  a  block  of  ground  which  was  a  donation  from 
Dr.  J.  H.  Mack  for  park  purposes.  It  is  a  pretty  spot  and  on  its  four  sides  are 
ranged  most  of  the  business  houses.  The  park  was  originally  the  site  of  a  school- 
house  and  was  secured  by  Doctor  Mack  by  trading  other  property  for  it.  Mention 
of  the  schools  will  be  found  in  another  chapter. 

While  Macksburg  does  not  have  in  her  confines  a  printing  press,  her  business 
interests,  schools,  churches  and  local  gossip  find  a  place  in  the  Macksburg  Record, 
a  five-column  quarto,  established  in  191 1.  The  paper  is  edited  by  Mrs.  Shell 
and  published  at  Lorimer. 

With  its  bank,  several  general  stores,  among  which  is  also  the  postoffice, 
implement  concerns,  lumberyards,  drug  arid  drygood  stores,  livery  stables  and 
garages,  elevator  and  recently  acquired  railroad  facilities,  Macksburg  continues 
to  retain  her  place  in  the  county's  commercial  aflfairs  and  socially  the  town  is  con- 
sidered par  excellence. 

MACKSBURG  INCORPORATED 

The  village  of  Macksburg  was  incorporated  as  a  town,  November  5,  1876. 
Dr.  J.  H.  Mack,  M.  Osbom,  J.  D.  Love,  J.  D.  Rawls  and  W.  O.  Lee  were  ap- 
pointed commissioners  to  provide  for  and  call  an  election,  which  was  held  at 
A.  J.  Mack's  store.  The  judges  of  election  were  A.  J.  Mack,  W.  O.  Lee,  M. 
Osbom ;  clerks,  George  Dudley  and  J.  D.  Love.  Dr.  J.  H.  Mack  was  elected  the 
first  mayor  of  the  newly  made  municipality.  At  this  time  the  business  interests 
were  represented  in  the  following  industries :  General  stores.  Love,  Sharp  &  Com- 


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METHODIST   CHURCH,    MACKSBURG  BAPTIST  CHURCH,  MACKSBURG 

Built  and  dedicated  in  1876.     Repaired,  re-  Built  and  dedicated  in  1874 

modeled   and   rededicated   in    1914 


PUBLIC  PARK,  MACKSBURG,  LOOKING  NORTHEAST 
Grand  River  Township 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  353 

pany,  Levi  Wolf;  hardware,  Lee  &  Lafler;  drugs,  J.  J.  Clark;  millinery,  Mrs. 
Mahan ;  insurance,  W.  O.  Lee ;  carpenter,  L.  T.  Townsend ;  shoes.  Gray  Mahan, 
A.  Kirtland;  harness,  J,  T.  Johnson;  blacksmith,  H.  L.  Harden;  wagon  maker, 
A.  Hammers;  physicians,  J.  H.  Mack,  J.  A.  Rawls,  T.  M.  Comuck;  hotel,  T.  H. 
Gilbert. 

FINANCIAL 

The  first  bank  in  Macksburg  was  established  in  August,  1902,  as  a  private 
concern,  by  L.  W.  McLennan,  of  Afton,  which  continued  under  Mr.  McLennan's 
sole  control  until  in  April,  1903,  when  the  Macksburg  National  Bank  was  or- 
ganized. The  incorporators  were  L.  W.  McLennan,  J.  M.  Wilson,  L.  T.  Town- 
send,  J.  H.  Mack,  Cass  Pindell,  I.  D.  Harrison  and  Mart  Rowe ;  and  first  officials, 
J.  M.  Wilson,  president;  J.  H.  Mack,  vice  president;  E.  O.  Klingaman,  cashier. 
Capital  stock,  $25,000. 

In  March,  1904,  W.  W.  Walker  succeeded  to  the  cashiership,  and  in  1908, 
upon  the  death  of  Doctor  Mack,  L.  T.  Townsend  was  elected  vice  president  by 
the  board  of  directors.  J.  M.  Wilson  met  an  untimely  and  tragic  death,  June  21, 
1910,  and  was  succeeded  in  the  presidency  by  L.  T.  Townsend ;  at  the  same  time 
Mr.  Harrison  went  into  the  office  of  vice  president.  The  latter  died  in  November, 
1910,  and  Martin  Rowe  became  vice  president.  Finally,  Mr.  Townsend  disposed 
of  his  stock  and  Eugene  Wilson,  son  of  J.  M.  Wilson,  was  made  president  of 
the  institution  on  February  8,  1913. 

Plans  have  been  completed  for  a  new  bank  building,  which  will  stand  on  the 
comer  of  North  and  East  streets.  The  structure  will  be  a  one-story  brick  and  it 
is  anticipated  the  new  home  of  the  bank  will  be  ready  for  occupancy  in  the  spring 
of  1915.  Present  officials:  President,  Eugene  Wilson;  vice  president,  Martin 
Rowe;  cashier,  W.  W.  Walker.  Capital,  $25,000;  surplus,  $10,000;  deposits, 
$62,000. 

RELIGIOUS  BODIES 

The  Macksburg  circuit  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  was  organized  in 
the  fall  of  1874  and  consisted  of  the  following  places:  West  Branch,  Pleasant 
View,  Hebron,  Pleasant  Valley  and  Skunk  Hollow.  The  congregations  of  the 
last  four  held  services  in  schoolhouses.  The  Macksburg  society  first  met  for 
worship  in  the  Kivitt  schoolhouse  and  continued  so  to  do  until  the  church  was 
built  in  1874.  The  dedicatory  sermon  was  preached  by  Rev.  Thomas  Berry  and 
the  regular  pastor  was  Rev.  A.  Thombrugh.  Up  to  this  time  Macksburg  was  a 
part  of  the  Winterset  circuit.  Rev.  Thomas  Berry  became  president  of  Simpson 
College  and,  in  1876,  secured  enough  subscriptions  to  meet  the  quite  heavy  indebt- 
edness of  the  society.  At  this  time  Rev.  L  M.  O'Flyng  was  the  pastor.  Ministers 
following  the  last  named  were:  D.  O.  Stuart,  September,  1878,  to  September, 
1879;  F.  D.  Funk,  1879-80;  George  M.  Jeffrey,  I880-81 ;  B.  A.  Fassett,  1-881-82; 
J.  H.  Senseney,  1882-83;  J.  D.  M.  Buckner,  1883-84;  J.  H.  Warfield,  1884-85; 
John  Webb,  1885-86;  A.  O.  Miller,  1886-87;  E.  E.  Raymon,  1887-88;  William 
Johnston,  1888-89;  J.  S.  Mason,  1889-90;  W.  E.  Harvey,  1890-92;  I.  M.  OTlyng, 

1892-94;  F.  S.  Bunting,  1894-96;  M.  H.  Ellis,  1896-97;  D.  Martin,  1897;  F.  B. 
Vol.  I— 11 


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354  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Dunn,  1899-1901;  C.  Knowl,  1901-02;  J.  G.  Duling,  1902-04;  C.  E.  Trueblood, 
1904-06;  W.  C.  Smith,  1906-07;  J.  N.  Hosier,  1907-08;  Ivan  R.  Mills,  1908-10; 
Roy  N.  Spooner,  1910-12;  L.  B.  Shannon,  1912-14;  Fred  E.  Whitney,  1914. 

This  church  has  a  membership  in  the  circuit  of  206  and  at  Macksburg  76, 
with  an  average  Sunday  school  attendance  of  80.  In  the  fall  of  1914,  the  church 
building  met  with  improvements  that  cost  about  $3,000.  On  the  lot  adjoining 
the  church  is  a  neat  and  comfortable  parsonage. 

West  Branch  society  was  organized  in  September,  1855,  by  Rev.  W.  C.  Wil- 
liams, who  delivered  the  first  sermon  at  the  home  of  Reverend  Rawlins,  a  local 
preacher.  The  succeeding  meeting  of  the  society  was  held  at  the  home  of  James 
Pearson,  and  the  members  continued  to  meet  here  the  following  four  years,  at 
the  expiration  of  which  the  Pearson  schoolhouse  was  requisitioned  for  the  pur- 
pose and  used  until  the  church  was  built  at  Macksburg.  This  appointment  was 
originally  a  part  of  the  Afton  (Union  County)  and  Ringgold  Mission  and  then 
became  identified  with  the  Afton  circuit  and  remained  therein  until  the  formation 
of  the  Macksburg  circuit  in  1874. 

Pleasant  View  society  came  into  being  in  1856,  under  the  direction  of  Rev. 
Joel  Mason.  The  initial  leader  was  S.  W.  Mulligan  and  services  were  held  at 
the  home  of  Jerub  Richmond  until  the  year  1865.  From  here  the  society  moved 
to  the  F.  M.  Walker  schoolhouse,  which  later  was  purchased,  remodeled  and 
dedicated  to  all  things  sacred.  The  appointment  originally  was  a  part  of  Brook- 
lyn, or  Ohio,  circuit  and  remained  as  such  until  1867,  when  it  became  part  of  the 
Winterset  circuit  and  then,  in  1878,  was  transferred  to  the  Macksburg  circuit. 

When  organized,  Hebron  was  one  of  the  appointments  in  the  Macksburg  cir- 
cuit and  so  remained  until  1883,  when  the  church  was  removed  2>4  miles  south, 
to  Union  schoolhouse.  No.  2.  Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner  was  in  charge.  Hebron 
was  annexed  to  Orient  circuit  in  1889. 

Skunk  Hollow  appointment  at  the  time  of  its  organization  was  a  part  of  the 
Macksburg  circuit  and  later  was  consolidated  with  Pleasant  Valley,  in  order 
the  better  to  build  Zion  Church.  The  union  of  the  two  charges,  however,  was 
never  satisfactory. 

Pleasant  Valley  society  was  organized  by  Rev.  W.  C.  Williams,  who  preached 
his  first  sermon  to  this  charge  in  the  Peters'  schoolhouse,  where  services  were 
held  the  succeeding  six  years  and  then  the  Pragg  schoolhouse  was  used  and 
the  society  came  to  be  known  as  the  Pleasant  Valley  class.  In  1881  it  was  con- 
solidated with  the  Skunk  Hollow  class  and  Zion  Church  was  built  by  them  in 
1881-82. 

Bethesda  Baptist  Church  was  organized  May  5,  1855,  at  the  home  of  Alexander 
Bamum,  who,  together  with  his  wife,  was  of  the  organizing  members.  The 
others  were  Hiram  Pierce,  the  first  pastor,  and  wife;  Dr.  J.  H.  Mack  and  wife, 
William  Kivitt  and  wife,  RaBsom  Moon,  John  H.  Bray  and  wife,  Capt.  E.  G. 
Barker  and  wife,  Robert  and  Catherine  Wilson,  John  A.  and  Sarah  N.  Marley, 
Nancy  A.  Barker,  Mary  Moore,  Elizabeth  Rawlins.  The  first  church  was  a  small 
frame  affair  that  was  built  the  year  of  the  organization,  and  stood  on  the  hill 
one-half  mile  southwest  of  town.  The  present  building,  also  a  frame,  was  erected 
in  1874  and  cost  about  two  thousand  dollars.  Its  predecessor  was  removed  to 
a  lot  subsequently  purchased  by  L.  C.  McKibben. 

Rev.  Hiram  Pierce  occupied  this  pulpit  a  number  of  years,  but  how  many 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  355 

could  not  be  learned  and  the  early  church  records  were  burned  in  191 1.  During 
the  past  four  or  five  years  the  church  has  not  been  supplied  with  a  regular  pastor 
and  the  church  membership,  at  one  time  quite  large,  has  been  decreasing  steadily, 
through  deaths,  removals  and  other  causes.  It  is  now  anticipated  that  soon  a 
resident  pastor  will  be  secured.  The  present  number  of  names  on  the  church  rolls 
is  32. 

FRATERNAL  ORDERS 

Grand  River  Lodge,  No.  406,  I.  O.  O.  F.,  was  organized  October  2,  1880. 
Macksburg  Encampment,  No.  186,  was  organized  October  21,  1902,  and  Haw- 
thorne Chapter,  No.  350,  Daughters  of  Rebekah,  was  organized  October  23,  1896. 

At  one  time  the  Grand  Army  Post  was  able  to  muster  at  its  meetings  quite  a 
large  body  of  veterans.  But  what  with  the  ravages  of  time  and  disease,  the  ranks 
of  the  post  have  so  thinned  out  that  the  organization  now  can  scarcely  muster 
a  corporal's  guard.  There  is  still  a  Woman's  Relief  Corps  that  meets  occa- 
sionally. 

Evergreen  Camp,  No.  4133,  M.  W.  A.,  was  organized  August  12,  1896. 

THE  RAILROAD 

Macksburg  has  a  railroad.  That  fact  is  certainly  worthy  of  mention  before 
the  closing  of  this  chapter.  Whether  it  always  will  have  one  or  not  is,  as  Rud- 
yard  Kipling  says,  another  story.  Be  that  as  it  may,  the  Creston,  Winterset  & 
Des  Moines  Railroad,  having  a  line  of  track  twenty-one  miles  long  and  reaching 
from  Creston  to  Macksburg,  was  built  in  1912  and  on  the  31st  of  December  of 
"that  year  the  first  train  of  cars  entered  the  town.  The  line  has  been  in  operation 
under  many  vicissitudes  practically  all  its  life,  and  it  is  said  that  unless  the  prop- 
erty is  placed  under  different  management  Macksburg  will  be  bereft  of  an 
improvement  in  which  she  took  a  great  deal  of  pride. 


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CHAPTER   XLV 
OHIO  TOWNSHIP 

It  is  easy  to  see  where  this  township  got  its  name.  As  many  of  its  first  settlers 
came  from  the  State  of  Ohio,  it  was  but  fair  to  attach  the  name  of  that  great 
commonwealth  to  this  community,  so  thereupon,  when  it  Was  organized,  March  7, 
1857,  the  name  by  which  the  township  is  now  known,  was  attached. 

Ohio  Township  is  bounded  on  the  east  by  Warren  County,  on  the  south  by 
Clarke  County,  on  the  west  by  Walnut  Township  and  the  north  by  South  Town- 
ship. Its  surface  is  drained  by  South  River  and  a  number  of  small  streams,  and 
the  general  topography  and  character  of  its  confines  is  that  of  beautiful  prairie 
land,  finely  adapted  for  agricultural  purposes.  Along  the  streams  is  a  grove  of 
timber,  and  back  of  them,  high  rolling  prairie  of  the  richest  soil.  Water  is  to 
be  found  in  abundance  and  some  of  the  springs  that  here  abound  never  cease  to 
flow.  The  Keokuk  &  Western  Railroad,  which  is  part  of  the  Burlington  system, 
enters  the  township  at  the  extreme  northwestern  comer  of  section  3,  and  taking 
a  southerly  direction,  has  a  station  at  Truro.  It  leaves  the  township  at  section  24, 
first  making  a  bend  into  section  26. 

One  of  the  first  settlers  in  Ohio  Township  was  James  McNeeley,  who  was  born 
August  16,  1816,  in  Tuscarawas  County,  Ohio,  was  married  to  Jane  Belong  in 
1840,  and  came  to  Madison  County,  settling  on  Buckeye  Prairie  in  Ohio  Township 
in  1853.  He  died  in  Winterset,  May  14,  1897.  Mrs.  Jane  McNeeley  diedJ^ebruary 
19,  1913,  and  both  are  buried  in.  the  Rock  City  cemetery  near  Winterset,  Iowa. 
Mr.  McNeeley  was  a  member  of  Company  K,  Tenth  Iowa  Infantry. 

Solomon  Delong,  the  father  of  Mrs.  Jane  McNeeley,  also  came  to  Ohio  Town- 
ship in  1853  with  a  large  family,  where  they  lived  for  many  years. 

Among  the  first  settlers  in  this  township  were  the  Holmes,  Cregers,  Bradshaws, 
Youngs,  Porters,  Belongs,  Martins  and  Parsons,  all  of  whom  came  about  the 
year  1854.  Here  is  located  the  Oak  Run  meeting  house  of  the  famous  Quaker 
settlement,  where  for  many  years  worshipped  the  Moorman,  Simmons,  Painter, 
Mitchner  and  Ellis  families.  In  more  recent  years  there  was  a  new  invasion 
from  Ohio,  when  th^  Worthing,  Mitchell  and  Patterson  families  arrived,  members 
of  which  made  their  influence  felt  on  the  politics  of  the  county,  more  particularly 
G.  W.  Patterson  and  Richard  Mitchell. 

Charles  H.  Young,  a  local  preacher  of  the  Christian  Church  for  many  years, 
was  one  of  the  most  characteristic  specimens  of  old-time  virtue,  finding  an 
abiding  place  here.  He  was  a  good  farmer  and  an  equally  expert  blacksmith 
and  pulpit  orator.  Mr.  Young  left  his  Ohio  home  in  the  fall  of  1853  and  reached 
Eddyville,  Iowa,  in  November,  remaining  there  until  June  of  the  following  year, 
when  he  reached  Madison  County  and  entered  a  tract  of  land  on  section  14,  in  this 
township. 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  357 

With  the  Youngs  when  they  left  Ohio  were  Henry  Creger  and  family,  John 
Creger  and  family,  John  Porter  and  family,  John  Creger,  son  of  Henry,  and 
family,  and  Reuben  Creger  and  family.  Samuel  Douglas,  Brown  Douglas,  a 
Mr.  Collier  and  family  and  Reverend  Douglas,  a  Presbyterian  clergyman,  were 
here  as  early  as  the  above  mentioned  settlers,  but  left  the  community  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  Civil  war. 

David  Bradshaw  was  a  Pennsylvanian  by  birth  and  removed  with  his  parents 
to  the  State  of  Ohio  when  nine  years  of  age.  From  there  he  immigrated  to  Iowa 
and  after  remaining  a  short  time  at  Eddyville,  he  located  in  this  township  on  sec- 
tion 4,  in  the  fall  of  1854.  J.  W.  Bradshaw,  who  succeeded  his  father  on  the  old 
homestead,  was  with  the  family  at  the  time  of  its  arrival. 

S.  M.  Creger  and  R.  A.  Creger  also  located  in  Ohio  Township,  in  April,  1854. 
R.  J.  Foster  was  from  Tuscarawas  County,  Ohio.  He  immigrated  to  Iowa  in  the 
fall  of  1853  and  in  the  spring  of  1855  located  on  section  12,  Ohio  Township.  He 
was  one  of  the  frugal,  industrious  men  of  the  community  and  made  a  good  record 
as  a  soldier  in  the  Civil  war. 

J.  D.  Hartman  and  family  traveled  by  wagon  from  Indiana  to  this  county  in 
1855,  and  in  1857  located  on  section  21. 

Arch  Holmes  left  Tuscarawas  County,  Ohio,  in  1854,  and  spent  two  years  in 
Wapello  County,  Iowa,  from  whence  he  came  to  Madison  County  and  located  on 
section  22,  this  township. 

Isaac  Holmes,  also  of  Tuscarawas  County,  Ohio,  left  his  home  in  the  Buckeye 
State  in  1854,  when  he  came  to  Iowa  with  his  parents  and  lived  three  years  in  Van 
Buren  County  and  then  located  in  Ohio  Township.  James  Hull  married  Miss 
Jane  Holmes  in  Tuscarawas  County,  in  1855,  then  came  to  this  county  and  located 
in  Ohio  Township  in  1857. 

Valentine  McPherson,  of  Tuscarawas  County,  Ohio,  located  here  in  May, 
1857,  and  became  one  of  the  substantial  farmers  of  the  community. 

John  Mann  was  raised  in  West  Virginia,  where  he  remained  until  seventeen 
years  of  age  and  then  came  with  his  father  to  Madison  County  in  1855,  settled 
in  this  township,  and  .in  course  of  time  was  elected  county  superintendent  of 
schools. 

Jonathan  Roby,  of  Jefferson  County,  Ohio,  located  on  section  15,  Ohio  Town- 
ship, in  1856.    His  wife  was  Lucinda  Creger,  whom  he  married  in  1854. 

James  D.  Houlette  was  another  quite  early  settler  of  Ohio  Township,  coming 
in  1867,  but  in  1879  moving  to  South  Township.  Mr.  Houlette  was  bom  Sep- 
tember 4,  1816,  in  Mercer  County,  Pennsylvania,  and  died  July  27,  1909,  in  his 
ninety-third  year.  For  sixty-five  years  there  was  not  a  death  in  his  family  of 
seven  children. 

Charles  H.  Young,  Henry  Creger  and  John  Creger  built  the  first  houses  in 
Ohio  Township.  Charles  H.  Young  established  a  blacksmith  shop  in  which  he 
worked  at  St.  Charles  from  1855  until  i860.  His  first  wife  died  in  1854,  which 
was  the  first  death  among  the  Ohioans  in  the  township.  Mr.  Young's  second  wife 
was  called  away  by  death  in  1893,  and  both  were  buried  in  the  Young  cemetery, 
where  there  are  over  one  hundred  graves. 

The  Oak  Grove  Church  of  Friends  was  organized  May  18,  1871,  with  the 
following  original  members:  T.  C.  Moorman,  R.  A.  Moorman,  Mary  Hiatt,  E. 
Hiatt,  David  Ellis,  M.  E.  Ellis,  Calvin  Ellis,  E.  Ellis,  William  Woodward,  E. 


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358  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Woodward,  J.  Simmons,  E.  J.  Simmons,  W.  H.  Bishop,  M.  Bishop,  Q.  Pierce  and 
Virginia  Pierce.  The  first  church  building,  which  had  formerly  been  a  school- 
house,  was  purchased  by  the  Friends  of  the  district  and  was  dedicated  for  religious 
purposes  in  1877. 

TRURO 

Truro  is  a  thriving  little  village  of  about  325  inhabitants,  situated  on  the  summit 
of  the  divide  between  Clanton  Creek  and  South  River,  overlooking  a  most  beau- 
tiful, fertile  and  well  improved  farming  district.  It  stands  on  section  15  and  near 
the  center  of  Ohio  Township,  on  the  line  of  the  Des  Moines  &  Kansas  City 
(Chicago  Great  Western)  Railroad,  and  was  laid  off  and  platted  August  3,  1881, 
for  the  owner,  James  Hull,  by  R.  A.  Patterson,  surveyor.  In  1902  the  town  was 
incorporated  and  the  first  mayor  was  W.  W.  Atkinson. 

This  stirring  and  progressing  little  trading  point  was  first  named  Ego,  but 
that  seemed  too  bombastic  or  egotistical  (no  pun  intended),  and  the  change  was 
made  within  a  short  time  to  the  present  name.  As  in  the  township,  the  village 
has  splendid  schools,  taught  in  a  modem  two-story  brick  building;  church  soci- 
eties, whose  places  of  worship  are  neat  in  appearance  and  commodious,  and  all 
well  attended.  As  a  trading  point  the  town  stands  high  and  with  good  railroad 
facilities  has  established  a  reputation  as  a  shipping  point  for  grain  and  live  stock. 

The  first  postoffice  was  established  February  10,  1862,  but  was  located  near 
the  west  line,  in  Walnut  Township,  in  the  vicinity  of  Ebenezer  Church.  The 
office  at  this  point  was  discontinued  in  1889.  J.  W.  Smith  and  S.  M.  Walker  per- 
formed the  duties  of  the  office,  in  the  store  of  the  place,  nearly  twenty  years,  and 
when  the  office  was  abolished  Fred  Beeler  had  been  the  postmaster  eight  years. 

An  office  was  established  in  1881  at  the  southeast  comer  of  the  northeast  quar- 
ter of  section  21,  and  named  Reed.  Isaac  Holmes  was  appointed  postmaster.  In 
1882  the  office  was  moved  to  Ego,  and  the  name  became  Truro  in  1884.  Isaac 
Holmes  remained  in  the  office  for  some  time  after  the  change.  Then  followed 
G.  N.  Skinner,  George  Patton,  J.  D.  Hillman,  Ella  Earl,  J.  W.  Smith  and 
others,  among  whom  were  the  early  business  men  of  the  town. 

Probably  the  first  person  to  engage  in  business  at  Truro  was  J.  W.  Smith.  He 
settled  in  Walnut  Township  with  his  parents,  John  and  Rebecca  Smith,  in  1854 
coming  from  Illinois  that  year.  He  married  Belle  C.  Walker  in  1870  and  for 
a  number  of  years  was  a  teacher  in  the  public  schools.  Mr.  Smith  was  elected 
county  treasurer  in  190 1  and  served  five  years,  and  afterwards  engaged  in  the 
grocery  business.  He  died  in  1914  at  East  Peru,  and  was'buried  in  the  Ebenezer 
Cemetery. 

The  Truro  Savings  Bank  is  one  of  the  institutions  of  the  town  that  has  se- 
cured a  firm  footing  in  the  confidence  of  the  community.  It  is  an  outgrowth  of 
the  Truro  Bank,  established  in  the  spring  of  1899  by  J.  W.  Likens  and  W.  M. 
Steer,  who  began  business  in  a  one-story  brick  building  erected  for  the  pur- 
pose. Here  the  business  was  continued  as  a  private  bank  until  April  10,  191 1, 
on  which  date  the  Truro  Savings  Bank  was  organized  by  J.  W.  Likens,  W.  M. 
Steer,  W.  O.  Creger,  J.  T.  Creger,  J.  C.  Reed,  C.  N.  Reed  and  Benton  Jones,  with 
a  capital  of  $20,000.  The  first  officials  were :  President,  W.  M.  Steer;  vice  presi- 
dent, J.  W.  Likens;  cashier,  J.  E.  Walker.    In  January,  1913,  J.  W.  Likens  suc- 


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METHODIST  EPISCOPAL  CHURCH,  CHRISTIAN  CHURCH,  TRURO 

TRURO 


TRURO  HIGH  SCHOOL 


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Prr,     rrr. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  359 

ceeded  W.  M.  Steer  as  president  and  J.  C.  Reed  was  elected  vice  president.  Mr. 
Reed  died  May  31,  1914,  and  was  followed  in  the  vice  presidency  by  Benton 
Jones.  The  present  official  list  is  made  up  by  J.  W.  Likens,  president ;  Benton 
Jones,  vice  president ;  J.  E.  Walker,  cashier ;  A.  C.  Holmes,  assistant  cashier.  The 
capital  stock  is  $20,000;  surplus,  $10,000;  deposits,  $105,000. 

The  Christian  Church  was  organized  in  the  winter  of  1856,  by  A.  D.  Kellison, 
at  the  home  of  Ephraim  Delong,  about  two  miles  south  of  the  present  Town  of 
Truro.  For  some  time  the  meetings  were  held  at  private  houses.  Later,  after 
schoolhouses  were  built,  the  meetings  were  held  in  the  Banner  schoolhouse,  two 
miles  northeast  of  the  center  of  Ohjo  Township.  Later,  in  the  early  '70s,  the  meet- 
•ings  were  moved  to  a  schoolhouse  one  mile  south  of  the  center  of  the  township, 
known  as  the  Hartman  schoolhouse.  In  1875-6  the  society  erected  a  church  build- 
ing 30x40  feet,  three-fourths  of  a  mile  south  of  the  center  of  the  township  and 
about  1884  the  building  was  moved  to  Truro  and  was  remodeled  in  1893.  In 
June,  1898,  the  building  was  struck  by  lightning  and  burned.  The  society  re- 
ceived $1,000  insurance  and  the  same  year  a  new  church  was  erected  and  dedicated 
in  the  spring  of  1899.  The  value  of  the  property  at  that  time  was  about  two  thou- 
sand two  hundred  dollars.  In  191 1  the  church  was  remodeled  at  a  cost  of  about 
one  thousand  two  hundred  dollars.  The  present  value  of  the  property  is  about 
three  thousand  two  hundred  dollars.  Among  the  charter  members  of  the  first 
organization  were  Ephraim  Delong,  Hannah  Delong,  Jesse  Delong,  Betsy  Delong, 
R.  A.  Creger,  Mary  A.  Creger,  Jane  McNealy,  Rhoda  Delong,  John  Creger, 
Mahala  Creger  and  Risby  Creger. 

Those  who  have  served  as  pastors  of  the  church  are :  Revs.  A.  D.  Kellison, 
William  Deal,  J.  Z.  Bishop,  J.  H.  Creger,  R.  A.  Creger,  Joseph  Anshultz,  C.  C. 
Rowley,  A.  Bradfield,  A.  H.  Chase,  S.  O.  Calvin,  W.  C.  Smith,  W.  B.  Golden,  J.  L. 
Towner,  J.  O.  Elwell,  E.  Fitzgerald,  Lamb,  P.  W.  Jellison,  John  Reed,  O.  E. 
Brown,  A.  Thomas,  William  Bagley,  A.  C.  Bumham,  D.  W.  Thompson,  A.  W. 
Ricker,  R.  C.  Helfenstein,  D.  Powell,  E.  E.  Bennett  and  F.  W.  Hagen. 

Truro  has  not  yet  given  itself  over  to  the  organization  of  fraternal  societies  to 
any  great  extent.  However,  it  has  two  or  three  which  may  be  mentioned.  There 
is  Ivy  Lodge,  No.  483,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  which  was  organized  on  the  8th  of  June, 
1887,  by  S.  M.  Creger,  who  was  the  worshipful  master ;  G.  W.  Patterson,  senior 
warden,  and  J.  E.  Worthing,  junior  warden.  Truro  Lodge,  No.  330,  K.  P.,  was 
organized  on  the  nth  of  August,  1898,  by  C.  W.  Young,  B.  R.  Rankin,  J.  W. 
Likens  and  twenty-two  others.  The  Woodmen  of  the  World  is  also  established 
here  in  Truro  Camp,  No.  9823. 


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CHAPTER  XLVI 
MONROE   TOWNSHIP 

Monroe  Township  lies  in  the  southern  tier  of  townships  and  was  organized 
in  the  year  i860.  It  is  bounded  on  the  south  by  Union  County,  on  the  west  by- 
Grand  River  Township,  on  the  north  by  Lincoln  Township  and  on  the  east  by 
Wakiut  Township.  Clanton  Creek  passes  through  the  township  near  the  center 
from  west  to  east  and  there  is  a  large  body  of  heavy  timber  on  the  stream,  es- 
pecially at  Big  Grove,  also  an  abundance  of  limestone  of  considerable  value.  The 
surface  of  the  country  is  quite  rolling  and  in  many  places  rough,  much  more  so 
than  any  other  township  in  the  county.  As  found  originally  it  had  large  tracts  of 
waste  land,  many  acres  of  which  have  been  reclaimed  by  modem  methods  of 
drainage  and  clearing  of  fields,  and  today  the  farms  in  Monroe  Township  give 
every  evidence  of  f ruitfulness  and  having  been  under  the  diligent  hand  of  good 
husbandmen.  There  are  many  small  rivulets  and  valuable  streams  in  Monroe  and 
abtmdance  of  good  range  for  stock,  which  makes  the  locality  very  desirable  for 
those  engaged  in  stock-raising,  to  which  many  farmers  resident  here  have  given 
a  great  deal  of  attention,  especially  to  the  better  grade  of  animals.  When  one 
considers  the  many  farms  which  are  splendidly  improved,  the  fairly  good  roads, 
and  the  twentieth  century  conveniences  of  the  telephone,  daily  rural  free  deliv- 
ery of  mails  and  generous  use  of  automobiles,  one  can  feel  well  assured  that  the 
Monroe  Township  farmer  is  living  pretty  much  on  a  par  with  his  neighbors  in  the 
other  townships  of  the  county,  or  anywhere  else  for  that  matter.  Monroe  has 
neither  a  trading  point  nor  postoffice  within  her  borders,  nor  a  railroad,  with  the 
exception  of  a  short  piece  of  the  Great  Western  which  cuts  across  its  extreme 
southeast  comer  on  section  36.  On  this  transportation  line  to  the  north  and  but 
five  miles  from  Monroe  is  East  Pern.  The  Winterset-Lorimor  thoroughfare  mns 
north  through  the  center  of  the  township  to  Winterset  six  miles  away  from  the 
north  township  line  and  to  the  west  is  Macksburg,  so  that  those  living  within  the 
township  have  market  places  on  all  four  sides  of  it. 

A  son  of  the  Emerald  Isle  named  Malone  is  credited  with  being  the  first  set- 
tler in  Monroe  Township,  coming  here  as  early  as  1852.  James  Brittain  and  Isaac 
Nichols  were  also  here  that  early,  but  this  claim  to  priority  has  been  disputed  in 
favor  of  Seth  Barrow  and  his  father;  Micajah  Martin,  Alfred  and  Pleasant  Brit- 
tain, A.  H.  Bertholf  and  one  Boher  and  Hicks,  who  it  is  said  came  in  185 1. 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Shipley  located  in  the  township  in  1852  and  bought  the 
claims  of  Hicks  and  Boher. 

In  the  year  1854  th^  population  of  the  township  was  increased  by  William 
Boling,  John  Bancroft,  Lewis  and  George  Linton,  Philip  and  John  Moore,  Wil- 
liam Claim,  William  Berry  and  John  Berry.  Soon  thereafter  came  Frank  Bos- 
worth,  Samuel  Hamilton,  N.  Clark  and  H.  Harris. 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  361 

John  Bancroft  immigrated  from  England  to  the  United  States  in  1847  and  set- 
tled in  Indiana,  where  he  remained  until  the  year  1853  and  came  to  this  state 
and  coimty,  settling  in  Monroe  Township.  Mrs.  Chenoweth,  whom  he  married  in 
1859,  was  his  second  wife.  Mr.  Bancroft  became  one  of  the  substantial  farmers 
and  citizens  of  the  township  and  held  various  of  the  township  offices. 

The  Berrys  came  from  Indiana  but  were  natives  of  Kentucky.  Their  names 
are  closely  identified  with  the  early  history  of  the  township. 

J.  J.  Berry  settled  in  the  county  in  March,  1854.  With  his  father,  William, 
came  Charles  Boling  to  the  township.  He  married  MoUie  Bivins  in  1878.  E.  L. 
Boling  settled  here  in  1856,  held  township  offices  and  in  1863  married  Elizabeth 
Williams.    William  Boling  for  many  years  lived  on  section  2. 

Simeon  Hamblin  was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania.  He  removed  to  Ohio  in  1831 
and  from  there  immigrated  to  the  Prairie  State  of  Iowa  in  1854  and  took  up  his 
permanent  residence  in  this  township.  He  held  various  offices  of  the  com- 
munity and  died  January  10,  1874,  leaving  seven  children,  one  of  whom  was  a 
son,  Christopher  C.,  who  enlisted  in  the  Civil  war  and  died  from  disease  in  Mis- 
sissippi. 

Another  early  settler  was  M.  Bullock.  He  came  from  Indiana  in  1855  and 
for  many  years  lived  on  section  22.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Forty-seventh 
Iowa  Infantry  and  in  1870  married  Sarah  Alexander. 

J.  C.  Foster,  an  Ohioan,  also  located  in  this  township  in  1855.  With  his 
brother,  D.  F.  Foster,  he  for  many  years  conducted  a  large  grocery  business.  He 
married  Harriet  Lake  in  1857. 

John  Lewis  located  here  in  1855,  coming  from  the  State  of  Ohio. 

John  Comelison  was  bom  in  Butler  County,  Ohio,  in  181 4.  He  removed  to 
Indiana,  from  whence  he  emigrated  to  Iowa  in  1857.  In  1859  he  located  in  Mon- 
roe Township. 

The  Brittains  lived  in  Buchanan  County,  Missouri,  before  coming  to  Madison 
County,  Iowa.  They  arrived  here  in  March,  1852.  Pleasant  Brittain  enlisted  in 
Company  A,  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry,  and  was  mustered  out  in  June,  1865. 
Returning  to  his  home  in  Douglas  Township,  he  married  Sarah  Cox  and  settled 
on  section  32,  Jefferson  Township. 

Of  Monroe  Township  and  its  people,  E.  R.  Zeller  lately  had  the  following 
to  say :  "The  Bolings  have  lived  in  Monroe  Township  from  way  back.  The  ir- 
repressible Samuel  will  soon  move  to  Lorimor.  Some  of  the  others  have  moved 
away  and  others  have  been  called  to  their  final  account.  The  Berrys  also  are,  mostly 
all  gone  and  so  are  the  Bancrofts  and  Littons.  Of  the  Sheldons,  Charles  re- 
mains, while  M.  R.  Sheldon,  who  lived  in  Winterset,  died  a  few  years  ago.  The 
above  mentioned,  together  with  the  Bullocks,  Bivins,  Edwards,  Kilgores,  J.  V. 
Kirk,  Hugh  Alexander,  D.  M.  Tomlinson,  the  Fosters  and  Palmers,  Wesley 
Wilson,  P.  M.  Rhodes  and  V.  L.  Callison,  constituted  the  men  chiefly  active  dur- 
ing the  formative  period  of  the  county.  Time  has  made  great  changes  and  the 
men  who  helped  most  to  make  Monroe  Township  are  mostly  gone.  Mr.  Cal- 
lison and  Mr.  Kirk  remain,  both  having  served  the  country  as  volunteers  in  the 
Grand  Army,  the  former  from  Illinois  and  the  latter  from  Ohio  and  at  the 
conclusion  of  their  service  came  to  a  new  country  to  conquer  homes  in  a  new  land. 
Both  became  remarkably  successful  in  business  and  long  will  be  remembered  for 
the  part  they  took  in  the  affairs  of  the  county.    Monroe  Township  has  furnished 


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362  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

three  members  of  the  board  of  supervisors — Charles  Polk,  H.  H.  Kilgore  and  M. 
O.  Brady.  H.  C.  Leasman,  a  native  of  Germany,  settled  here  at  an  early  day  and 
has  done  much  toward  the  development  of  tlie  material  resources  of  the  coimty. 
George  Frederickson,  now  of  Winterset,  put  in  many  an  eighteen-hour  day  on  a 
farm  in  Monroe  Township." 

There  are  two  well  attended  churches  in  Monroe  Township — ^the  Methodist 
Episcopal,  located  on  section  8,  and  one  on  section  22. 


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cha'pter  xlvii 
the  city  of  winterset 

Winterset  lies  in  Center  Township  and  practically  covers  that  subdivision  of 
the  county.  The  township  is  an  oblong  tract  of  land,  the  north  three-fourths  of 
which  in  equal  proportions  lie  in  the  southeast  and  southwest  comers  of  Douglas 
and  Union  Townships,  respectively;  and  the  remaining  quantity  in  the  north- 
east comer  of  Lincoln  and  northwest  comer  of  Scott  townships.  The  boundaries 
of  Center  Township  were  determined  under  an  order  of  the  County  Court,  June 
4,  i860. 

All  preliminaries  relating  to  the  location  of  Winterset  as  the  county  seat,  its 
survey  into  lots,  the  naming  of  the  seat  of  justice  and  sale  of  lots,  have  been  de- 
scribed in  a  former  chapter.  However,  it  may  be  interesting  at  this  day  to  note  the 
prices  set  by  the  Commissioners*  Court  for  the  lots  and  the  names  of  a  few  of  the 
first  purchasers.  A  comparison  between  the  value  of  town  lots  in  Winterset  in 
1849  ^"d  ^914  n^akes  very  good  reading  for  the  one  of  an  analytical  turn  of 
mind. 

The  records  show  that  Winterset,  the  original  site  of  which  was  owned  by 
John  Culbertson,  consisted  of  175  acres  of  land,  which  Culbertson  conveyed  by 
deed  to  the  County  of  Madison  for  the  insignificant  (now)  sum  of  $194.50.  The 
town  was  laid  off  and  platted  by  A.  D.  Jones,  county  surveyor,  who  was  assisted 
by  Philip  M.  Boyles  and  Enos  Berger.  The  lots  were  132  feet,  north  and  south, 
and  66  feet,  east  and  west.  A  public  square  was  located  in  the  center  of  the  plat 
and  is  four  chains  wide  east  and  west,  the  same  width  north  and  south,  and  con- 
tains 1.7  acres.    In  the  center  of  this  tract  of  land  stands  the  courthouse. 

The  following  bill  of  sale,  made  and  delivered  to  Enos  Berger,  by  E.  R.  Guib- 
erson,  agent  for  the  county,  indicates  the  method  adopted  in  alienating  the  public 
lots  in  the  county  seat : 

** August  22,  1849,  I>  Edwin  R.  Guiberson,  lot  agent  for  the  commissioners  of 
Madison  County,  Iowa,  do  hereby  certify  that  Enos  Berger  has  this  day  purchased 
of  me  lot  No.  6,  in  block  17,  in  the  town  of  Winterset,  in  said  county,  for  $30, 
and  paid  $7.50  thereon,  and  agrees  to  pay  the  balance  in  three  equal  payments  fall- 
ing due  in  six,  twelve  and  eighteen  months  from  this  day,  and  accordingly  ex- 
ecuted and  delivered  to  me  his  promissory  notes  for  the  same  of  even  date  here- 
with payable  to  the  commissioners  of  said  county.  The  further  terms  of  this 
sale  are  that  if  the  said  Enos  Berger,  or  his  assigns,  shall  punctually  pay  all  of  said 
notes  as  they  severally  fall  due,  then  the  said  commissioner  shall  make  and  exe- 
cute to  said  Enos  Berger,  or  assigns,  a  good  and  sufficient  deed  for  said  lot.  But 
if  said  notes  are  not  all  paid  on  or  before  the  day  on  which  the  last  note  becomes 
due,  then  all  former  payments  are  to  be  forfeited  to  the  county  and  said  lot  to  be 
again  subject  to  sale. 

**Given  under  my  hand  the  day  and  year  first  above  written. 

"E.  R.  Guiberson,  Town  Lot  Agent." 

363 


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364 


HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 


SALE  OF  LOTS 

Date 

1849.  Purchaser  Lot 

August  22  William  Combs 5 

August  22  J.  S.  Wallace i 

August  23  A.  D.  Jones 3 

August  23  A.  D.  Jones 5 

August  29  Mary  Danforth 3 

August  30  William   Compton 8 

August  22  A.  D.  Jones 4 

August  23  A.  D.  Jones i 

August  22  Abraham  Shoemaker 3 

August  22  Samuel  Guye 5 

August  24  S.  G.  Winchester i 

August  22  E.  H.  Baker 5 

August  22  J.  M.  Evans 7 

August  22  William  Shoemaker ^ .  7 

August  30  J.  M.  Evans i 

August  22  G.  W.  McClellan 3 

August  22  E.  Berger 8 

August  23  A.  D.  Jones 5 

August  23  A.  D.  Jones i 

August  24  A.  D.  Jones 5 

August  22  William  Shoemaker 3 

August  22  Joel  Clanton 7 


Block 

Price 

19 

$10.25 

19 

12.00 

18 

15.00 

18 

20.00 

33 

5.00 

17  . 

25.00 

17 

20.00 

24 

28.00 

24 

27.00 

24 

12.00 

26 

18.00 

II   % 

22.00 

II 

20.00 

19 

16.00 

II 

10.00 

19 

925 

20 

11.00 

4 

5.^ 

4 

300 

3 

500 

24 

27.00 

22 

11.50 

It  IS  to  be  noticed  that  lots  increased  in  value  in  Winterset  from  the  very 
outset,  although  at  first  the  increase  was  very  slight.  There  was  no  speculative 
period,  nor  were  fancy  prices  asked  or  given,  but  the  price  of  the  lots  in  town 
shows  a  steady,  healthful  growth  and  increase.  .  Herein  are  given  the  first  values 
placed  upon  town  lots  in  the  county  seat.  Purchases  made  from  six  months  to 
a  year  later  will  show  the  increase  in  value  and  aflford  an  interesting  point  of 
comparison.  The  following  table  shows  purchases  made  during  the  first  six 
months  of  1850: 


Date 

1850           Purchaser  Lot 

Feb.       I  W.  Compton   7 

Feb.       I  A.  F.  Ault ' i 

March  4  J.  A.  Pitzer i 

May      5  M.  B.  Ruby 8 

May     II  T.  K.  Evans 6 

May    30  T.  K.  Evans 5 

June    II  S.  Miller 7 

May    30  G.  Homback 7 

May    30  G.  Homback 4 

May    30  A.  D.  Jones i  and  2 

May    30  S.  Casebier 3 


Block 

Price 

17 

$30.00 

27 

42.00 

10 

10.00 

25 

30.00 

13 

10.00 

13 

10.00 

27 

8.00 

18 

52.00 

26' 

25.25 

29  ■ 

13-25 

25 

30.75 

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RESIDENCE  OF  J.  W.  MILLER,  WINTERSET 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  365 

Date 

1850          Purchaser                                Lot  Block  Price 

May    30  C.  Wright 2              26  $18.00 

June      5  E.  R.  Guiberson 5  and  6          28  6.00 

June     6  M.  B.  Ruby 11  and  18  out  lots  20.00 

June      I  M.  B.  Ruby 5              25  15.00 

June      I  J.   D.   Guiberson i  and  2          28  6.00 

July       2  I.  G.  Houk 21  out  lots  5.00 

July       2  Daniel  Campbell   6  and  8          24  45.00 

July     21  John  Garrett    7  and  8          12  30.00 

July     21  C.  F.  Fisher 7  and  8          13  16.00 

July     21  C.  Wright 5              30  5.00 

At  the  April  term,  1850,  of  the  Commissioners'  Court,  it  was 
Ordered,  That  lot  8,  in  block  14,  be  donated  to  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
and  all  other  denominations  can  have  a  lot  of  the  same  quality. 

On  July  8,  185 1,  E.  R.  Guiberson,  town  lot  agent,  made  the  following  state- 
ment of  his  official  transactions  up  to  that  date : 

Number  of  lots  sold 157 

Amount  of  sales $2,200.25 

Amount  of  orders  redeemed i>375i3 

Amount  of  notes  on  hand 1 . . .      478.00 

Amount  of  cash  on  hand 347-12 

It  may  be  said  that  Enos  Berger  built  the  first  house  in  Winterset  and  was 
the  first  settler  in  the  county  seat,  coming  in  the  spring  of  1849.  This  building 
was  fated  to  become  historical,  as  within  its  walls  the  first  stock  of  merchandise 
was  displayed  for  sale  in  the  new  town ;  the  county  commissioners  held  their  first 
session  of  court  here  and  Judge  McKay  opened  the  initial  term  of  District  Court 
for  Madison  County  in  the  storeroom.  The  structure  itself  was  built  of  logs,  and 
Berger,  in  addition  to  keeping  a  store,  entertained  travelers,  the  "Berger  House" 
(later  built)  standing  on  the  east  side  of  the  square  being  a  stopping  place  for  the 
stage.  Some  years  after  Berger  disposed  of  his  log  cabin  grocery-courthouse,  it 
was  weather-boarded  and  lost  its  original  identity  to  a  large  extent. 

The  second  house  built  in  Winterset  and  the  first  after  its  site  was  chosen 
for  the  county  seat,  was  a  log  cabin,  put  up  by  John  A.  Pitzer,  on  the  west  side  of 
the  square,  in  which  he  kept  a  store  and  the  best  one  in  the  place.  Within  a 
short  period  thereafter,  in  the  fall  of  1849,  Alfred  D.  Jones  erected  a  log  store 
building  and  about  the  same  time  the  Roberts  store  building  went  up  on  the 
north  side  of  the  public  square.  Before  the  expiration  of  that  locally  historic 
year  of  1849,  Enos  Berger,  who  seems  to  have  been  a  man  of  great  energy  and 
enterprise,  built  a  two-story  log  house,  on  the  east  side  of  the  square,  designed  for 
hotel  purposes.  The  building  was  the  largest  in  the  county  and  was  destroyed  by 
fire.  It  was  known  far  and  wide  as  the  Berger  House,  and  later  was  given  the 
name  of  the  Goe  House.  This  first  hostelry,  or  tavern,  of  Madison. County  was 
long  a  place  of  great  interest  to  the  town  and  surrounding  country,  for  here 
the  stage  stopped  for  meals  and  to  let  oflf  the  casual  traveler  who  had  arrived  at  his 
journey's  end.  And  it  was  a  good  place,  in  fact  the  best  in  the  county,  to  learn 
what  the  outside  world  happened  to  be  doing,  for  the  "newly-arrived"  was  usually 


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366  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

loaded  with  news,  or  able  and  always  willing  to  regale  his  audience  with  a  "good 
story."  The  "Old  Goe  House*'  long  was  one  of  the  principal  hotels  in  this  part 
of  the  state  and  its  large  dining  room  ofien  was  given  over  to  dances,  parties, 
^'socials'*  and  other  harmless  divertisements,  while  the  barroom  entertained 
guests  of  its  own.  In  those  days  whiskey  was  cheap  and  unadulterated  and,  it  is 
said,  "everybody  drank,*'  not  only  in  public  places,  but  had  it  in  jugs  and  kegs  at 
home.  Private  stills  were  set  up  in  the  county  and  pure  whiskey  could  be  bought 
for  20  cents  the  gallon.  But  after  the  Civil  war,  a  tax  was  placed  on  the  manufac- 
ture of  the  drug  and  the  private  still  became  a  thing  of  the  past ;  at  least  it  has 
ever  since  been  frowned  upon  and  prohibited  by  the  government. 

The  first  person  to  sell  groceries  under  a  license  issued  by  the  Commissioners' 
Court  was  William  Compton,  who  secured  the  privilege  at  the  December  term  of 
1849.  I^  is  said  that  Compton  was  without  funds  at  this  time,  and  knowing  that 
John  Wilkinson  was  going  to  Dudley  after  a  load  of  merchandise  (must  have  been 
for  Berger),  Compton  requested  him  to  ask  a  dealer  there,  named  Church,  to 
send  him  a  barrel  of  whiskey.  Church  considered  the  matter  seriously  and  de- 
cided to  let  Compton  have  eleven  gallons.  While  measuring  the  stuff  he  remarked 
that  Compton  had  been  the  victim  of  hard  luck ;  that  while  going  to  the  river  after 
a  load  of  goods  for  persons  at  Dudley,  he  had  lost  one  of  his  horses.  It  seems 
Compton  had  lived  a  while  at  Dudley  before  locating  at  Winterset,  and  he  was 
more  than  once  heard  to  say :  "That  eleven  gallons  of  whiskey  staked  me  and  out 
of  the  profits  of  its  sale  I  was  able  to  pay  for  a  whole  barrel."  Perhaps  the 
water  he  added  to  the  stimulant  helped  not  a  little  to  increase  the  profits;  as 
Compton  was  often  suspected  of  not  permitting  his  conscience  to  stand  in  the  way 
of  "good  business."    His  store  was  on  the  southeast  comer  of  the  square. 

Before  the  year  1849  ^^^  come  to  a  close,  a  crude  log  building  was  erected 
on  a  plot  of  ground  now  part  of  Monumental  Park  and  given  the  high  sounding 
title  of  courthouse.  Early  in  the  following  year  Dr.  J.  H.  Gaff  and  Dr.  L.  M. 
Tidrick  had  offices  (?)  in  a  room  of  the  courthouse  used  by  the  recorder.  It  is 
highly  probable  these  pioneer  doctors  took  up  but  a  small  space  with  nostrums  and 
instrument  cases,  for  in  that  day  the  pioneer  physician  had  little  to  do  with  and 
that  little  hardly  filled  his  saddle  bags. 

During  the  year  of  1850  the  county  seat  had  assumed  some  proportions.  In 
addition  to  those  established  and  already  mentioned  were  A.  D.  Jones,  who  had 
put  up  a  modest  building,  and  in  harmony  with  his  surroundings.  This  became 
Jones'  grocery  and  clothing  store.  On  the  same  lot  was  John  Dougherty's 
grocery  and  general  mercantile  establishment. 

The  pioneer  drug  store  was  opened  this  year  by  Joseph  K.  Evans,  in  one  end  of 
a  log  cabin.    The  other  part  was  used  for  living  purposes. 

Martin  Ruby  was  Winterset's  first  blacksmith,  opening  his  sHop  in  1850,  and 
about  the  same  time  David  Wilhoit  built  a  cabin  in  which  to  live. 

The  only  building  on  the  north  side  of  the  square  was  a  log  cabin,  built  by 
Frank  Walkup.    Here  he  maintained  a  grocery  and  dry-goods  store. 

The  first  frame  building  in  the  county  was  put  up  in  1850  by  John  A.  Pitzer 
and,  of  course,  was  the  finest  structure  in  the  community.  It  was  a  one-story 
frame,  about  24  by  30  feet  ground  dimensions,  and  had  three  rooms — a  veritable 
palace.  This  was  the  nabob's  residence  and  stood  immediately  north  of  the  old  St. 
Nicholas  Hotel,  still  holding  its  own  on  the  comer  of  Jefferson  and  West  Second 


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NORTH  SIDE  OF  SQUARE,  WINTERSET 


SOUTH  SIDE  OF  SQUARE,  WINTERSET 


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EAST  SIDE  OF  SQUARE,  WINTERSET 


WEST  SIDE  OF  SQUARE,  WINTERSET 


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}''^' 


£ — 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  367 

streets.  Not  far  away  were  the  log  cabins  of  William  Compton  and  Dr.  J.  H. 
Gaff.  And  at  this  time,  A.  D.  Jones,  not  to  be  outdone  by  his  high-toned  neigh- 
bors, had  a  log  cabin  that  would  now  about  make  a  "tolerable  like  smoke  house." 

E.  R.  Guiberson,  John  Dougherty,  George  Homback,  M.  L.  McPherson  and 
Aquilla  Smith  were  living  in  the  county  seat  in  1850  and  their  habitations  were  of 
the  log  cabin  variety.  Not  a  street  had  been  made ;  the  town  was  but  a  wide  sweep 
of  prairie,  wholly  destitute  of  trees.  The  town  remained  at  a  standstill  and  in- 
creased in  population  slowly  until  1854,  when  it  exhibited  renewed  energy  and 
many  more  houses  were  built,  some  of  them  of  frame.  Before  the  county  seat 
had  reached  the  period  of  its  incorporation,  the  native  stone  had  been  quarried, 
dressed  and  utilized  for  building  purposes,  and  today  houses  built  at  that  period 
are  standing  in  Winterset  and  performing  their  duties  as  satisfactorily  as  the  day 
they  were  put  up. 

One  of  the  first,  if  not  the  first,  tailor  to  locate  in  Winterset  was  C.  A.  Gas- 
kill,  who  located  here  in  1852,  coming  from  New  Jersey.  He  followed  his  trade 
about  three  years  and  then  engaged  in  other  piu'suits. 

I.  G.  Houk  was  a  member  of  the  famous  "Holmes  County  clique,"  coming 
from  the  Buckeye  State  in  1850  and  locating  in  Winterset  with  a  number  of 
others.  He  early  engaged  in  real-estate  operations  in  Madison  and  other  counties 
and  was  successful  in  his  undertakings.  Houk  was  one  of  the  important  men 
of  his  day  locally  and  held  various  county  offices. 

Joseph  J.  Hutchings  was  here  as  early  as  1851,  coming  to  the  state  from 
Indiana.  He  walked  from  Newton  over  the  imtracked  prairies  and  bridgeless 
streams  and  for  two  winters  taught  school.  In  1852  he  established  himself  in  the 
real-estate  business  in  Winterset  and  became  a  man  of  large  influence  in  the 
community. 

Four  years  after  the  county  seat  had  been  laid  out,  John  Leonard,  a  young 
lawyer,  arrived  here  from  the  State  of  Ohio  and  took  up  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession, in  which  he  attained  a  very  high  place. 

One  of  the  foremost  citizens  of  Winterset  and  Madison  County  was  C.  D. 
Bevington,  who  was  bom  in  Holmes  County,  Ohio,  raised  on  a  farm,  studied  law, 
took  a  course  in  medicine,  went  to  California  in  1849  and  in  1853  settled  in  Win- 
terset. Here  he  began  dealing  in  real  estate.  In  1864,  with  others,  he  organized 
the  National  Bank  of  Winterset  and  became  its  president.  He  was  always  fore- 
most in  any  enterprise  for  the  advancement  of  the  community  and  when  the  Des 
Moines,  Winterset  &  Southwestern  Railroad  was  being  constructed  he  supervised 
the  building  of  that  part  of  the  line  from  Summerset  to  Winterset,  a  distance  of 
twenty-six  miles.  He  began  life  without  a  dollar  and  died  in  1903  one  of  the 
wealthiest  men  in  this  section  of  th^  state. 

Dealing  and  speculating  in  land  was  quite  profitable  in  the  early  days  and 
this  was  the  inducement  mainly  for  the  removal  of  W.  W.  Knight  from  his 
home  in  Indiana  to  Winterset  in  1855.  He  commenced  trading  in  land  and 
followed  the  occupation  for  two  years  and  then  entered  the  mercantile  trade.  He 
was  one  of  the  substantial  men  of  early  and  later  Winterset. 

Nelson  W.  Munger  located  here  in  1854,  coming  from  the  East.  He  engaged 
in  selling  merchandise  and  in  1865,  with  J.  T.  White,  erected  the  Madison  Woolen 
Mills,  mentioned  elsewhere. 

J.  L.  Pitzer,  son  of  John  A.  Pitzer,  was  born  in  Winterset  in  185 1  and  when 


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368  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

arriving  at  manhood  followed  in  the  footsteps  of  his  father  as  a  merchant,  the 
firm  of  Pitzer  &  Taylor  being  well  known  in  this  community. 

W.  R.  Shriver  was  one  of  the  pioneer  wagon  makers  of  the  county  seat, 
settling  here  in  1854,  where  he  worked  at  his  trade  until  the  outbreak  of  the 
rebellion.  He  rose  to  the  rank  of  captain  in  the  Civil  war  and,  returning,  resumed 
the  trade  of  carriage  maker  and  became  county  clerk. 

From  1854  to  1857  was  a  period  of  continued  prosperity  for  the  little  county 
seat  town.  The  character  of  the  buildings  began  to  change  and  with  the  com- 
ing of  the  Berger- Wallace  Mill  in  1855  building  of  frame  houses  became  the 
vogue.  The  growth  was  steady  and  the  increase  in  prosperity  greater  but  sub- 
stantial in  character.  However,  it  still  was  a  little  pioneer  village,  mostly  made 
up  of  log  cabins,  without  fences  or  streets  to  speak  of.  But  in  1856  John  A. 
Pitzer,  a  man  of  considerable  means  and  unbounded  energy  and  enterprise,  erected 
the  St.  Nicholas  Hotel  Building,  then  one  of  the  largest  and  most  imposing 
structures  of  its  kind  in  the  state.  It  is  built  of  native  stone,  three  stories  in 
height  and  cost  about  twelve  thousand  dollars.  This  was  one  of  the  indications  of 
the  advancement  of  Winterset.  The  St.  Nicholas  vastly  overshadowed  the  Old 
Goe  House  and  became  known  all  over  the  southwestern  portion  of  the  state  for 
its  handsome  appearance  and  the  splendid  entertainment  received  by  the  traveling 
public.  The  old  building  still  stands  as  one  of  the  town's  landmarks  and  is 
situated  on  the  comer  of  Jefferson  and  Second  streets. 

THE  FIRST  DECADE 

The  year  1857  was  one  of  great  commercial  depression,  which  brought  on  a 
panic  that  caused  disaster  throughout  the  United  States.  The  distressful  situation 
was  keenly  felt  in  Winterset  and  business  enterprises  of  all  kinds  were  brought  to 
a  standstill.  Many  of  the  pioneer  business  men  were  ruined  and  for  some  years 
afterwards  the  cry  of  "hard  times"  was  universal.  But  by  the  year  i860,  the 
village  manifested  concrete  evidences  of  recuperation,  notwithstanding  the  dread 
wgir  clouds  that  then  hovered  over  the  Union.  At  the  expiration  of  the  year  six 
religious  societies  were  holding  services  in  their  own  churches ;  there  were  four- 
teen lawyers  ready  to  extend  their  offices  to  the  needy;  five  implement  firms;  a 
bank,  book  store,  barber,  three  shoe  stores,  five  blacksmith  shops,  a  butcher  shop, 
nine  carpenters,  a  dentist,  four  drug  stores,  seven  dry-goods  establishments, 
twelve  groceries,  as  many  as  now;  three  hardware  stores,  the  St.  Nicholas  and 
Madison  hotels ;  seven  insurance  firms,  two  furniture  stores,  two  firms  engaged  in 
real-estate  deals,  a  livery  stable,  three  millinery  shops,  two  photograph  galleries, 
ten  physicians,  two  bakeries  and  restaurants;  harness  makers,  wagon  makers, 
chairmakers,  three  saloons,  Morris  Schroeder's  brewery,  jewelers,  two  printing 
offices,  billiard  hall,  several  stone  masons,  plasterers,  brick  makers  and  layers,  a 
tailor,  a  gunsmith,  painters,  a  veterinary  surgeon,  so  that  there  was  scarcely  any 
article  of  merchandise  needed  that  the  local  merchants  were  not  able  to  supply. 
The  professions  were  abundantly  represented  and  no  one  was  permitted  to  go 
thirsty  for  lack  of  a  place  where  stimulants  were  on  tap. 

WINTERSET    INCORPORATED   IN    1 857 

By  a  special  act  of  the  Legislature,  approved  January  i6,  1857,  the  Town  of 
Winterset  was  incorporated,  and  in  April,  1857,  the  incorporation  of  the  town  was 


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ST.  NICHOLAS  HOTEL,  WINTERSET 
Built  by  Judge  Pitzer  in  1856 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  369 

perfected  by  the  election  of  the  various  officials  provided  for  in  the  act.  The 
measure  for  the  incorporation  pr6vided  that  *^the  city  shall  be  divided  into  two 
wards  as  follows,  to  wit:  The  First  ward  shall  consist  of  all  that  part  of  said 
city  lying  south  of  Court  Avenue  Street;  the  Second  ward  shall  consist  of  all 
that  part  of  said  city  lying  north  of  Court  Avenue  Street,  provided  the  said  city 
coimcil  may  unite,  divide  or  change  the  said  wards  west  of  any  of  them  when- 
ever they  deem  the  interests  of  the  city  require  it."  It  was  also  enacted  that 
"every  white  male  citizen  of  the  United  States  over  the  age  of  twenty-one  years 
and  who  shall  have  been  a  resident  of  the  state  six  months  and  of  the  city  twenty 
days  prior  to  the  date  oi  the  city  election  at  which  he  offers  to  vote,  shall  be  en- 
titled to  vote  at  all  the  elections  thereof."  As  it  would  take  up  too  much  space  to 
give  a  full  list  of  all  the  officials  of  Winterset  from  the  date  of  its  incorpora- 
tion to  the  present,  only  the  chief  executive  and  clerk  for  each  year  will  be  here 
recorded.    Their  names  follow : 

1857 — Mayor,  S.  G.  Beckwith ;  clerk,  L.  M.  Sprague;  1858 — no  record;  1859 — 
mayor,  H.  J.  B.  Cummings;  clerk,  J.  J.  Davies;  i860 — ^mayor,  J.  M.  Andrews; 
clerk,  J.  J.  Davies;  1861 — ^mayor,  L.  Mayo;  clerk,  J.  P.  Jones;  1862 — mayor, 
Samuel  Guiberson;  clerk,  C.  S.  Wilson;  1863 — no  record;  clerk,  William  P.  Hast- 
ings; 1864 — mayor,  D.  H.  Philbrick;  clerk,  WilKam  P.  Hastings;  1865 — mayor, 
James  Shepherd;  clerk,  J.  M.  McLeod;  1866 — mayor,  W.  H.  Lewis;  clerk,  J.  M. 
McLeod;  1867 — mayor,  W.  H.  Lewis;  clerk,  J.  M.  McLeod;  1868 — mayor,  S.  G. 
Ruby;  clerk,  J.  M.  McLeod;  1869 — ^mayor,  Eli  Wilkin;  clerk,  J.  M.  McLeod; 
1870 — mayor,  Eli  Wilkin;  clerk,  J.  W.  Bartlett;  1871 — ^mayor,  E.  H.  Kridler; 
clerk,  J.  W.  Bartlett;  1872— mayor,  E.  H.  Kridler;  clerk,  W.  S.  Whedon;  1873— 
mayor,  J.  M.  Andrews;  clerk,  W.  S.  Whedon;  1874 — mayor,  P.  W.  Jellison; 
clerk,  W.  S.  Whedon;  1875— mayor,  P.  W.  Jellison;  clerk,  W.  S.  Whedon;  1876 
—mayor,  E.  H.  Kridler;  clerk,  W.  S.  Whedon;  1877— mayor,  P.  W.  Jellison; 
clerk,  W.  S.  Whedon;  1878 — mayor,  J.  M.  Miller;  clerk,  James  A.  Sanford;  1879 
— mayor,  J.  R.  Chandler;  clerk,  James  A.  Sanford;  1880 — mayor,  C.  P.  Kenedy; 
clerk,  W.  S.  Whedon;  1881— mayor,  C.  P.  Kenedy;  clerk,  W.  S.  Whedon;  1882 
— mayor,  J.  M.  Butcher ;  clerk,  W.  J.  Cornell ;  1883 — mayor,  J.  H.  Wray ;  clerk, 
M.  L.  Hudson;  1884 — mayor,  A.  L.  Tullis;  clerk,  W.  J.  Cornell;  1885 — mayor, 
Leroy  Wilson;  clerk,  O.  M.  White;  1886 — mayor,  C.  C.  Goodale;  clerk,  O.  M. 
White;  1887— mayor,  F.  D.  Campbell;  clerk,  O.  M.  White;  1888— mayor,  F.  D. 
Campbell;  clerk,  O.  M.  White;  1889 — mayor,  P.  M.  Shoop;  clerk,  C.  L.  Shoop; 
i890^mayor,  P.  M.  Shoop;  clerk,  C.  L.  Shoop;  1891 — mayor,  P.  M.  Shoop; 
clerk,  A.  L.  Stout;  1892 — mayor,  P.  M.  Shoop;  clerk,  A.  L.  Stout;  1893 — mayor, 
George  Duff;  clerk,  A.  L.  Stout;  1894 — m^yor,  George  Duff;  clerk,  A.  L.  Stout; 
1895 — mayor,  George  Duff ;  clerk,  A.  L.  Stout ;  1896 — mayor,  George  Duff ;  clerk, 
A.  L.  Stout;  1897— mayor,  McK.  Miller;  clerk,  F.  G.  Ratliff ;  1898— mayor,  McK. 
Miller;  clerk,  F.  G.  Ratliff;  1899— mayor,  W.  H.  Bellows;  clerk,  Clyde  Bean; 
1900 — mayor,  W.  H.  Bellows ;  clerk,  Clyde  Bean ;  1901 — ^mayor,  John  McAndrew ; 
clerk,  Fred  Hudson;  1902 — mayor,  John  McAndrew;  clerk,  H.  S.  Ely;  1903 — 
mayor,  John  McAndrew ;  clerk,  H.  S.  Ely ;  1904 — mayor,  John  McAndrew ;  clerk, 
W.  O.  Lucas;  1905 — mayor,  I.  E.  T.  Wilson;  clerk,  W.  O. 'Lucas;  1906 — mayor, 
I.  E.  T.  Wilson ;  clerk,  W.  O.  Lucas ;  1907 — mayor,  W.  O.  Lucas ;  clerk,  W.  R. 
Scott;  1908 — mayor,  W.  O.  Lucas;  clerk,  W.  R.  Scott;  1909 — ^mayor,  W.  O. 
Lucas;  clerk,  H.  S.  Ely;  1910 — mayor,  W.  O.  Lucas;  clerk,  H.  S.  Ely;  191 1 — 


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370  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

mayor,  Emory  Nicholson;  clerk,  H.  S.  Ely;  1912 — mayor,  E.  K.  Cole;  clerk,  H.  S. 
Ely;  1913 — mayor,  Eugene  Wilson;  clerk,  H.  S.  Ely;  1914 — mayor,  Eugene  Wil- 
son ;  clerk,  H.  S.  Ely. 

THE  CITY   HALL 

Winterset  has  very  good  municipal  buildings.  The  city  hall,  which  was 
built  in  1883,  stands  on  the  northwest  comer  of  Court  and  Second  streets.  It  is 
a  two-story  brick,  and  separating  the  main  part  from  the  boiler  house  is  a  high, 
square,  brick  tower,  in  which  swings  the  fire  bell.  The  lower  floor  belongs  to  the 
fire  department,  where  is  its  apparatus  consisting  of  trucks  for  ladder  and 
hose,  and  stalls  for  two  horses.  On  the  second  floor  are  the  offices  of  the  city 
clerk,  city  engineer  and  council  chamber.  Adjoining  the  city  hall  on  the  west  is 
the  one-story  brick  building  erected  in  1885  for  the  electric  light  plant,  where  is 
installed  modem  machinery  and  equipments  for  the  city's  splendid  system  of 
lighting.  The  total  cost  of  the  city  hall  and  electric  light  system  is  approximately 
thirty  thousand  dollars. 

WATER  WORKS 

There  were  $60,000  bonds  voted  for  water  works  at  a  special  election,  held 
October  12,  1908.  The  petition  for  the  same  was  signed  by  431  qualified  voters. 
There  were  355  ladies  and  503  men  voted  for  the  proposition  as  to  52  ladies  and 
99  men  against,  or  a  majority  of  707  for  the  water  works.  The  plant  was  built 
and  completed  in  summer  of  1909.  The  actual  cost  was  a  little  in  excess  of  the 
$60,000  appropriated.  Water  is  taken  from  six  wells  located  one  mile  west  of  the 
city  limits.  These  wells  are  twelve  feet  in  diameter  and  twenty-two  feet  deep. 
There  are  ten  miles  of  mains.  The  system  is  practically  self-supporting.  This 
system  of  wells  has  not  given  the  city  all  the  water  needed,' as  following  a  drought 
the  wells  have  not  fumished  as  much  water  as  was  expected.  The  city  has  antici- 
pated a  demand  for  an  increase  in  the  water  supply,  and  so  has  taken  some 
steps  to  locate  a  more  adequate  supply  of  water  commensurate  with  the  demands. 
A  very  favorable  outlook  has  been  discovered  near  Middle  River,  about  the  same 
distance  from  town  as  the  present  wells  are  located. 

SEWERAGE 

The  city  has  no  sanitary  sewerage  system  and  is  not  likely  to  have  until  some 
way  has  been  found  to  increase  the  water  supply.  The  matter  of  sewerage  was 
taken  up  by  the  council  in  1910  and  submitted  to  engineers  for  estimates  and 
plans,  which  plans  are  now  on  file. 

STREET  PAVING 

The  first  paving  was  done  in  the  fall  of  1911.  The  resolution  of  necessity  was 
passed  June  13,  1911.  This  provided  for  four  blocks  around  the  square,  and 
the  two  blocks  north  of  the  square  to  the  depot.  The  contract  was  awarded  to  the 
Bryant  McLaughlin  Asphalt  Paving  Company  of  Waterloo,  Iowa,  August  16, 
191 1.    The  bid  was  $2.09  per  square  yard  for  asphalt  over  a  five  incl^  concrete 


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CITY   HALL   AND    POWER    HOUSE,    WINTERSET 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  371 

foundation.    Curbing  35  cents  per  foot.    The  total  cost  of  these  six  blocks  was 
$27,840.    This  paving  so  far  has  given  excellent  satisfaction. 

The  following  year  the  council  concluded  to  further  consider  paving  and 
passed  a  resolution  of  necessity  March  6,  191 2,  to  pave  about  twenty-six  blocks 
more.  This  contract  was  let  May  21,  1912,  td  R.  A.  Elzy,  of  Marshalltown,  * 
Iowa,  at  $1.71  per  square  yard  for  asphalt  over  a  concrete  foundation.  The  cost 
of  curbing  was  36  cents  per  foot.  This  paving  was  completed  about  the  first  of 
the  year  1913  and  cost,  complete,  $76,718.  In  connection  with  this  paving  was  the 
cost  of  storm  sewerage  which  is  complete  with  the  requirements  of  the  pave- 
ment. 

FIRE  DEPARTMENT 

The  fire  department  is  volunteer  and  is  composed  of  fifteen  members.  Fred 
Hudson  is  chief  of  department  and  George  Ackelson  is  driver  of  the  fire  team. 
The  matter  of  procuring  a  fire  team  and  driver  was  considered  in  September,  1910, 
and  shortly  after  they  were  installed.  The  equipment  consists  of  one  steam  fire 
engine  of  rather  ancient  pattern.  It  is  seldom  used  now.  One  chemical  engine 
not  in  use.  The  active  equipment  consists  of  a  fire  hose  wagon  and  about  800 
feet  of  hose.  Since  the  establishment  of  water  works  this  has  been  found  satis- 
factory. 

CITY  PARK 

Some  day  in  the  not  far  distant  future,  Winterset  will  have  a  very  beautiful 
park  in  a  tract  of  land  consisting  of  twenty  acres,  which  the  city  acquired  by  piece- 
meal several  years  ago.  The  park  lies  in  section  6,  Scott  Township,  at  the  south- 
east comer  of  the  corporation  line.  The  first  patch  of  land,  consisting  of  2^ 
acres,  was  purchased  of  Washington  Cassiday  and  R.  A.  Stitt,  May  21,  1869, 
for  which  the  city  paid  $57.50.  On  the  15th  day  of  October,  1872,  twelve  acres 
was  secured  of  C.  D.  Bevington  and  J.  J.  Hutchings,  in  consideration  of  $2,000, 
and  on  the  17th  day  of  September,  1875,  the  remaining  six  acres  was  bought  of 
Henry  Smith,  and  cost  $200.  The  total  amount  paid  for  the  twenty  acres  com- 
prising the  city  park  was  $2,257.50 — a  mere  bagatelle  as  compared  with  the  value 
of  the  land  at  the  present  day.  For  a  good  many  years  this  beauty  spot  was  given 
over  to  the  pasturage  of  cattle  and  it  was  but  a  few  years  ago  that  certain  persons, 
economically  inclined  to  an  inordinate  degree,  and  having  nothing  of  the  artistic 
in  their  souls,  suggested  that  the  park  be  sold,  and  the  money  turned  into  the 
general  fund  of  the  city.  This  alarmed  that  class  of  the  citizens  having  an  eye 
to  the  beautiful  and  the  essential  needs  of  a  growing  community  and  incited  them 
'to  resist  any  movement  toward  the  alienation  of  the  park  land.  Furthermore, 
certain  of  the  women  persuaded  the  council  to  desist  from  putting  the  land  to 
any  use  other  than  that  for  which  it  was  purchased  and  obtained  authority  to 
raise  funds  for  its  adornment,  beautification  and  preservation  as  a  summer  resort 
and  pleasure  ground.  With  this  object  in  view  the  women  went  ahead,  secured 
money  by  ways  and  means  peculiar  to  themselves  and  made  considerable  improve- 
ments on  the  grounds.  This  revived  the  dormant  interest  of  the  city  in  its  park 
and  it  is  now  anticipated  that  within  a  year  or  two  the  authorities  will  create  a 


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372  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

park  commission,  under  whose  administration,  with  the  appropriations  which 
will  be  sought,  the  park  will  not  only  be  one  in  name,  but  also  in  fact. 

ROCK  CITY  CEMETERY 

The  cemetery  belongs  to  the  city  and  came  into  being  in  the  year  1850,  when 
an  acre  of  ground  was  purchased  by  the  pioneer  citizens  of  Winterset  for  burial 
purposes.  The  committee  of  citizens,  of  which  A.  D.  Jones  was  chairman,  re- 
ported favorably  on  the  selection  of  an  acre  of  ground  that  had  been  examined, 
"in  the  neighborhood  of  said  town.'*  The  report  also  showed  that  the  committee 
"Resolved  that  the  Winterset  cemetery  be  located  on  or  near  the  northeast  comer 
of  the  claim  belonging  to  one  Davis,  on  a  ridge  southeast  of  Winterset,  which 
continues  out  from  the  residence  of  A.  D.  Jones,  and  consists  of  one  acre  of 
land,  lying  south  of  a  certain  oak  bush,  as  designated  by  said  committee.  All 
of  which  is  submitted  for  the  action  of  this  committee." 

The  land  was  used  and  pretty  well  taken  up  as  the  years  passed  by.  More 
space  was  needed  and  but  quite  recently  the  cemetery  was  enlarged.  This  new 
part  has  been  modernized  to  considerable  extent  by  the  construction  of  driveways 
and  cement  walks,  the  latter  leading  from  the  foot  entrance  through  the  new 
section  to  the  old.  The  presence  of  landscape  gardening  in  this  silent  city  indi- 
cates in  many  places  the  loving  care  and  remembrances  of  those  left  in  this  vale 
of  tears.  Rock  City  Cemetery  is  one  of  the  city's  cherished  possessions  and 
is  under  the  management  of  an  association  formed  for  the  purpose  of  looking 
after  its  interests. 

FIRST    NATIONAL  BANK 

Winterset  has  a  quartet  of  the  strong,  reliable  financial  institutions  that  make 
for  confidence  in  local  business  circles  and  assure  credit  and  standing  abroad. 
The  National  Bank  of  Winterset  was  the  first  bank  established,  being  organized 
under  the  new  national  banking  laws  in  1865,  by  Dr.  C.  D.  Beving^on,  Joseph  J. 
Hutchings,  W.  W.  McKnight  and  others.  C.  D.  Bevington  was  the  first  president 
and  retained  that  position  until  his  death  in  1903.  W.  W.  McKnight  took  the 
cashiership  at  the  time  of  the  organization  and  retired  therefrom  in  1877.  Judge 
Frederick  Mott  succeeded  Doctor  Bevington  in  the*  presidency  and  retired  but 
quite  recently,  to  take  up  his  residence  in  Des  Moines.  Other  men  of  prominence 
have  been  connected  with  the  institution,  of  whom  may  be  mentioned  W.  S. 
Whedon,  who  for  a  number  of  years  occupied  the  responsible  position  of  cashier. 

From  the  beginning  this  bank  has  been  a  popular  depository  and  its  business 
has  increased  as  the  years  rolled  by.  After  the  expiration  of  its  first  charter 
the  concern  was  reorganized  as  the  First  National  Bank,  and  now  has  a  capital' 
of  $50,000.  By  its  last  report,  published  October  31,  1914,  the  sum  of  $20,000 
was  shown  as  a  surplus  fund,  and  the  total  deposits  were  $276,000. 

The  home  of  the  First  National  is  on  the  comer  of  Court  and  First  streets 
and  the  officials  are:  President,  P.  J.  Cunningham;  vice  president,  J.  E.  Ham- 
ihon  :  cashier,  W.  E.  Grismer ;  assistant  cashier,  Rex  Spooner.  In  January,  191 5. 
W.  E.  Grismer  resigned  and  Eugene  Wilson  was  chosen  cashier. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  373 

CITIZENS   NATIONAL   BANK 

This  is  a  banking  house  based  upon  the  confidence  of  its  patrons  and  a  sound 
financial  system  of  conducting  business.  It  was  organized  in  1872.  J.  J.  Hutch- 
ings  was  the  first  president  and  D.  E.  Cooper  cashier.  S.  G.  Ruby,  one  of  .Madison 
County's  leading  lawyers  and  United  States  consul  to  Belfast,  Ireland,  served 
faithfully  and  well  as  president  of  the  bank  and  later  Dr.  J.  H.  Wintrode,  whose 
recent  death  was  a  sad  and  tragic  one.  James  P.  Steele,  a  leading  member  of  the 
bar  and  an  old  settler,  is  the  present  high  executive  officer,  while  Wilbur  J. 
Cornell  has  been  cashier  a  number  of  years.  The  Citizens  National  is  in  a  brick 
building  standing  on  the  northeast  comer  of  Jefferson  and  First  streets.  The 
capital  stock  is  $50,000 ;  surplus  and  undivided  profits,  $35,000;  deposits,  $377,836. 

THE  MADISON  COUNTY  STATE  RANK 

The  Madison  County  Bank  was  established  in  1889,  with  a  capital  of  $25,000. 
On  September  25,  1905,  the  bank  was  reorganized  with  a  capital  stock  of  $70,000. 
This  institution  has  a  substantial  standing  in  the  community  and  has  its  home  on 
the  southeast  comer  of  the  square.  Official  list  is  as  follows :  President,  E.  E. 
McCall;  vice  president,  Charles  McMillan;  cashier.  Nelson  Bertholf ;  assistant 
cashier,  A.  L.  Stout.  Capital  stock  has  been  increased  to  $100,000;  surplus, 
$100,000;  deposits,  $597,000.  In  January,  191 5,  the  bank  was  incorporated  as  the 
Madison  County  State  Bank. 

WINTERSET  SAVINGS  BANK 

This  bank  commenced  business  October  22,  1902,  with  A.  B.  Shriver,  presi- 
dent; Luther  Fox,  vice  president;  F.  D.  Campbell,  cashier;  W.  E.  Grismer, 
assistant  cashier.    Capital  stock,  $25,000,  which  was  increased  to  $50,000  in  1904. 

Since  its  organization  the  Winterset  Savings  Bank  steadily  increased  in  favor 
and  today,  after  its  short  existence,  its  report  required  by  the  laws  of  Iowa, 
under  which  it  operates,  shows  a  very  comfortable  condition  of  affairs.  The 
capital  is  $50,000;  surplus  and  undivided  profits,  $45,000;  total  assets,  $300,000. 
In  May,  1914,  the  bank  moved  into  a  new  home,  a  two-story  modem  brick 
building,  standing  on  the  northeast  comer  of  the  square.  This  is  the  handsomest 
business  stmcture  in  Winterset.  The  bank's  officials  are :  Luther  Fox,  president ; 
G.  N.  Skinner,  vice  president ;  M.  E.  Smith,  cashier. 

PUBLIC  LIBRARY 

The  public  library,  which  is  at  home  in  the  beautiful  building,  a  gift  from 
Andrew  Camegie  and  the  heirs  of  Dr.  Bevington,  is  remotely  the  outgrowth  of 
the  temperance  revival  of  1877,  1878  and  1879.  As  a  result  of  this  temperance 
movement,  it  was  resolved  to  establish  a  library.  J.  S.  McCaughan,  Doctor  Bev- 
ington, Henry  Wallace  and  others  subscribed  liberally  and  used  their  influence 
to  secure  other  subscriptions.  The  money  so  collected  was  invested  in  books, 
and  these  were  put  into  the  keeping  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association. 
The  books  were  kept  in  the  room  of  the  association  and  loaned  to  readers.    After 


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374  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  disbanded,  the  Woman's  Christian  Tem- 
perance Union  took  charge  of  them  and  room  was  secured  in  the  courthouse, 
Miss  Orpha  Adkinson  giving  much  of  her  time  gratuitously  to  the  care  and  loan- 
ing of  the  books.  This  association  of  ladies  also  disbanded  about  1885  and  the 
books  were  handed  over  to  E.  R.  Zeller,  then  county  superintendent.  He  kept 
the  books  in  his  office  during  the  entire  four  years  of  the  incumbency  of  that 
office  and  loaned  the  books  and  kept  trace  of  them.  About  January,  1690,  the 
movement  for  the  establishment  of  a  permanent  library  was  first  agitated  by 
Mrs.  S.  J.  Gilpin  and  Rev.  H.  C.  Herring,  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian  Church ; 
they  were  the  most  aggressive  movers  in  the  enterprise.  Subscriptions  amounting 
to  some  $500  were  received,  and  the  lots  occupied  now  by  the  Anthes  Broth- 
ers lumberyard  were  donated  by  Eli  Wilkin.  The  lots  were  sold  for  $250, 
and  a  public  entertainment  was  given  at  the  old  Knights  of  Pythias  Hall 
for  the  purpose  of  raising  more  money  and  dedicating  the  library.  Refreshments 
were  served  and  the  following  program  was  carried  out :  Remarks  by  president. 
Rev.  C.  L.  Nye;  Books  that  Build  Men  Up,  E.  R.  Zeller;  My  Novel,  A.  M. 
Welch;  Triumphs  of  the  Press,  W.  O.  Lucas;  Dedication  of  the  Library,  H.  C. 
Herring. 

Quite  a  sum  of  money  was  secured  at  this  entertainment,  a  number  present 
each  subscribing  ten  dollars,  which,  added  to  the  sum  realized  from  sale  of  tickets, 
amounted  to  some  hundreds  of  dollars.  Rooms  were  secured  in  the  second  story 
of  the  building  now  owned  by  S.  E.  Catterlin,  on  the  west  side  of  the  square. 
Mary  Cassiday,  who  had  interested  herself  in  founding  the  library,  was  appointed 
librarian,  which  position  she  has  efficiently  filled  till  the  present  time. 

Early  in  1891  the  question  of  voting  a  tax  for  the  maintenance  of  the  library 
was  agitated  and  at  the  election  in  the  following  March  of  that  year  the  proposi- 
tion was  submitted  to  the  voters  of  the  city  and  the  result  of  the  vote  was  233 
for  and  198  against  the  proposition. 

In  the  year  1900  Colonel  Cummings  erected  a  building  on  Court  Avenue,  west 
of  the  postoffice,  which  was  leased  for  the  library,  and  the  books  were  moved  there 
in  November  of  that  year. 

Some  years  ago,  when  Andrew  Carnegie  first  began  to  distribute  some  of  his 
surplus  wealth  for  the  purpose  of  erecting  library  buildings  in  various  parts  of 
the  country,  an  application  was  made  to  him  for  the  donation  of  $10,000  to  erect 
a  library  building  here.  In  course  of  time,  a  reply  was  received  agreeing  to  the 
proposition,  and  the  heirs  of  Doctor  Bevington  donated  the  ground  on  which 
to  build  it.  A  very  substantial  and  commodious  building  was  erected  in  1905, 
which  was  dedicated  with  appropriate  ceremonies  on  the  i6th  of  June.  The 
building  was  completed  and  paid  for  in  full  out  of  Carnegie's  donation,  but  the 
question  of  furnishing  it  then  confronted  the  trustees,  who  decided  to  solicit 
donations  from  the  citizens.  This  work  was  done  chiefly  by  Charles  McMillan 
and  C.  T.  Koser,  who  secured  $1,601.79.  This  sum  was  ample  to  furnish  the 
building  in  the  very  best  manner,  and  with  what  was  left  over,  quite  a  considerable 
amount  was  used  in  the  purchase  of  books. 

The  Carnegie  Public  Library  Building,  both  from  an  exterior  and  interior 
view,  is  very  pleasing  to  the  artistic  eye,  and  a  most  inviting  place  for  the  men, 
women  and  children  of  this  community.  The  management  meets  with  the  ap- 
proval of  the  city  and  all  patrons  and  the  general  interest  in  this  institution  in- 


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PUBUC  LIBRARY,  WINTERSET 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  375 

creases  daily.  For  the  past  year  as  shown  by  the  librarian's  report,  the  number 
of  volumes  loaned  totaled  the  splendid  proportion  of  14,402.  The  number  of 
volumes  now  listed  and  on  the  shelves  of  the  library  is  8,000.  The  names  of  the 
officials,  or  board  of  trustees,  follow :  Charles  McMillan,  president ;  W.  J.  Cor- 
nell, secretary ;  C.  T.  Koser,  F.  A.  Lewis,  Ed  M.  Smith,  Mrs.  J.  A.  Guiher,  Mrs. 
W.  F.  Smith,  Mrs.  John  Catterlin,  Mrs.  J.  F.  Tate;  librarian.  Miss  Mary  Cassi- 
day;  assistant  librarian.  Miss  Lama  Tate. 


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CHAPTER  XLVIII 
FRATERNAL  BODIES  OF  WINTERSET 

EVENING  STAR  LODGE,  A.  F.   &  A.    M. 

On  June  8,  1904,  Evening  Star  Lodge  celebrated  the  fiftieth  anniversary 
of  its  charter,  and  on  that  occasion  the  gifted  and  venerable  brother,  T.  C.  Gilpin, 
read  an  interesting  and  comprehensive  history  of  the  lodge  which  he  prepared. 
This  is  a  valuable  contribution,  not  only  of  the  events  transpiring  pertinent  to 
the  fraternal  organization  mentioned,  but  it  also  preserves  the  names  of  many 
pioneers  who  lived  in  Winterset  and  vicinity.  Among  them  were  early  mer- 
chants, lawyers,  physicians,  educational  instructors,  and  men  of  affairs,  both 
in  business  circles  and  on  the  farms. 

A  little  more  than  half  a  century  ago,  eight  wise  men  from  the  East  traveled 
due  west  to  find  a  home  in  and  near  the  then  little  hamlet  of  Winterset,  Iowa, — 
D.  C.  McNeil,  of  Illinois;  G.  A.  Beerbower,  of  New  Jersey;  George  Bennett, 
of  Illinois ;  John  A.  Pitzer,  of  Kentucky ;  Addison  Knight,  of  Massachusetts ;  John 
Scott,  of  Indiana;  Richard  P.  Bruce,  of  Kentucky;  and  S.  L.  Burlingame,  of 
Ohio.  These  men  having  received  Masonic  light,  and  being  bound  by  fraternal 
ties  in  their  eastern  homes,  instinctively  demanded  alliance  and  fraternity  in 
their  new  home.  For  such  purpose,  on  the  12th  day  of  August,  1853,  they  met 
in  the  back  room  of  John  A.  Pitzer's  store,  the  one-story  log  house  which  stood 
where  Brother  Cole's  jewelry  store  is  now  situated.  They  had  received  a  dis- 
pensation for  which  they  had  previously  petitioned  from  the  Grand  Lodge 
of  Iowa,  empowering  them  to  organize  a  Masonic  lodge,  to  be  called  Evening 
Star  Lodge,  under  dispensation.  The  organization  was  perfected  by  the  appoint- 
ment of  D.  C.  McNeil,  W.  M. ;  G.  A.  Beerbower,  S.  W. ;  George  Bennett,  J.  W. ; 
John  A.  Pitzer,  treasurer ;  Addison  Knight,  secretary ;  J.  G.  Scott,  S.  D. ;  R.  P. 
Bruce,  J.  D. ;  S.  L.  Burlingame,  tyler. 

Daniel  Campbell  seems  to  have  been  the  only  high  private  present,  and  Samuel 
Gorrout,  of  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  as  a  visiting  brother.  Brothers  Knight,  Pitzer  and 
Beerbower  were  appointed  a  committee  on  by-laws,  who  reported  the  same 
evening  a  code  of  by-laws,  which,  with  some  slight  amendments  since,  has  been 
signed  by  all  the  successive  members  of  this  lodge.  These  eight  worthy  brothers 
organized  for  work  and  dissemination  of  Masonic  light  to  others,  for  we  find 
that  on  this  first  evening  a  petition  for  the  degrees  was  presented  from  Leonidas 
Pendleton,  who  was  the  first  one  to  be  made  a  Mason  in  the  new  lodge.  Franklin 
Walker,  Irvin  Baum,  Joseph  J.  Hutchings  and  others  followed  by  initiation  close 
after,  and  John  Leonard,  W.  W.  McKnight,  Isaac  L.  Tidrick,  Calvin  Ballard 
and  others  on  demits  from  their  eastern  lodges,  until  a  goodly  number  of  good 
and  true  men  were  thus  associated.    That  back  room  of  the  log  house  very  soon 

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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  377 

became  too  strait  for  the  little  company,  when  the  place  of  meeting  was  changed 
to  one  room  of  the  second  story  of  a  brick  building  long  used  by  J.  E.  Smith 
as  a  grocery  store.  That  also  became  too  cramped  for  their  increasing  members 
and  again  they  removed  to  the  third  story  of  the  Pitzer  Hotel,  now  known  as  the 
St.  Nicholas.    That  was  their  Masonic  home  for  several  years. 

The  Grand  Lodge  of  Iowa,  after  examination  of  the  work  done  by  the  new 
lodge  under  dispensation,  on  June  8,  1854,  while  in  session  at  Mt.  Pleasant,  Iowa, 
granted  them  a  charter.  This  was  signed  by  James  L.  Hogin,  grand  master; 
George  Acheson,  deputy  grand  master;  I.  M.  Williams,  senior  grand  warden; 
Aylotte  R.  Cotton,  junior  grand  warden;  and  T.  S.  Parvin,  grand  secretary. 
This  charter  is  still  sacredly  preserved  and  has  been  present  at  every  meeting 
of  our  lodge  since  it  was  granted. 

The  granting  of  this  charter,  the  giving  of  the  number,  forty-three,  to  the 
lodge,  and  the  taking  off  of  the  adolescent  title  "Under  Dispensation,"  constitute 
the  principal  reasons  for  the  observance  of  this  semi-centennial. 

The  new  lodge,  under  its  charter,  did  not  reorganize  until  its  regular  meeting, 
July  7,  1854,  when  McNeil  as  W.  M.,  informed  the  lodge  that  their  charter  had 
been  received ;  that  under  Masonic  usage  the  old  officers  holding  under  dispensa- 
tion must  vacate  their  respective  offices  and  the  lodge  proceed  to  the  election 
of  new  ones.  This  resulted  in  the  election  of  the  following  persons  who  were 
to  hold  the  positions  for  one  year:  J.  G.  Scott,  W.  M.;  D.  C.  McNeil,  S.  W.; 
G.  A.  Beerbower,  J.  W.;  John  A.  Pitzer,  treasurer;  John  Leonard,  secretary; 
Franklin  Walker,  S.  D. ;  Joseph  J.  Hutchings,  J.  D. ;  Leonidas  Peiidleton,  tyler. 
These  officers  were  duly  installed  by  D.  C.  McNeil.  J.  G.  Vawter  and  D.  Lamb 
were  the  first  victims  under  the  new  regime. 

I  find  that  a  meeting  was  held  on  the  next  evening,  July  8th,  when  they 
decided  to  appoint  a  committee  to  confer  with  a  similar  committee  from  the 
order  of  the  Sons  of  Temperance,  relative  to  the  joint  use  of  the  hall.  The  record 
does  not  state  whether  such  arrangement  was  made,  but  we  may  presume  it  was, 
because  of  sundry  motions  to  collect  rental  from  the  rather  tardy  Sons. 

The  lodge  again  removed  from  their  home  in  the  Pitzer  Hotel  to  the  third 
story  of  a  brick  building,  now  a  part  of  the  Bevington  Block,  wdich  was  used 
as  a  Masonic  Hall  for  many  years. 

In  May,  1855,  a  petition  from  the  Masonic  brethren  of  Council  BluflFs,  Iowa, 
was  presented  to  our  lodge,  asking  consent  for  the  organization  of  a  Masonic 
lodge  in  that  city.  Neither  Greenfield,  Lewis,  nor  Atlantic,  were  known  Ma- 
sonically  at  that  early  date,  and  W^interset,  ninety  miles  away,  was  the  nearest 
Masonic  lodge.  I  need  hardly  say  that  their  request  was  cheerfully  granted 
and  the  grand  master  of  the  state  duly  notified  of  such  consent. 

The  furnishings  of  the  several  halls  or  rooms  occupied  by  the  lodge  in  those 
early  days  were  somewhat  primitive — quite  different  from  the  luxurious  home 
now  occupied  by  us,  and  yet  the  good  brethren  did  not  despise  the  day  of  small 
things,  but  welcomed  each  other  with  heart  and  hand  and  joined  heartily  in  the 
work.  Not  a  few  traveled  on  horseback  from  six  to  ten  miles  to  attend  the  meet- 
ings, the  records  showing  their  attendance  fully  up  to  that  of  the  local  residents. 

I  notice  a  bill  for  candles  which  was  duly  allowed  and  paid.  The  record, 
however,  fails  to  state  whether  the  janitor  used  snuffers  or  his  index  finger  and 
thumb  when  more  light  was  required.    We  smile  as  we  hear  of  the  use  of  tallow 


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378  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

dips  for  light,  and  boast  of  our  incandescent  electric  globes.  Let  us  beware — our 
method  may  be  no  less  primitive  to  the  celebrants  of  our  centennial.  May  not 
the  late  discovery  of  radium  supersede  electricity  before  1954? 

As  an  indication  of  the  busy  work  of  our  ancient  brethren,  the  record  shows 
that  on  the  evening  of  December  21,  1855,  no  less  than  seven  petitions  for  the 
degrees  were  received  and  referred  to  committees. 

dn  December  27,  1855,  the  first  Masonic  supper  was  had,  which  the  brethren 
and  their  families  attended.  Brother  B.  F.  Roberts  delivered  an  address.  The 
lodge  fund  was  not  drawn  upon  to  meet  expenses  of  the  banquet,  for  the  recofd 
says :  "Each  member  attending  to  pay  an  equal  portion  of  the  expense.*'  We 
regret  that  no  menu  of  that  banquet  has  been  preserved,  but  we  may  venture 
the  assertion  that  it  was  worthy  of  the  good  sisters  who  provided  it.  Manu- 
factured victuals,  canned  goods  and  breakfast  foods  were  unknown  then.  So 
were  ptomaine  poisoning  and  appendicitis.  Our  provisions  fifty  years  ago  were 
home  made,  wholesome  and  healthful. 

On  June  24,  1856,  occurred  the  first  public  installation,  which  was  held  in 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  W.  W.  McKnight  was  the  master  at  that 
time.  The  lodge  continued  steadily  to  grow  and  multiply  from  its  organization, 
and  on  January  16,  1875,  by  order  of  the  grand  lodge,  it  was  duly  and  l^^ally 
incorporated  under  the  laws  of  Iowa.  This  was  required  that  it  might  legally 
hold  title  to  property,  as  well  as  for  other  requisite  purposes. 

In  February,  1875,  the  Evening  Star  Lodge  Building  Association  was  or- 
ganized and  issued  over  two  thousand  dollars  of  stock  drawing  10  per  cent  interest, 
payable  annually.  The  entire  issue  was  at  once  taken  up  by  the  members  of  the 
lodge.  The  shares  were  $5  each.  Interest  due  on  the  shares  was  credited  on  the 
annual  dues  of  the  holder,  so  far  as  it  would  cancel  them ;  if  any  surplus  it  was 
paid  to  the  holder.  « 

On  May  8,  1876,  the  lodge  purchased  the  hall  and  access  to  it,  in  which  we 
now  assemble.  Our  deed  of  conveyance  required  the  lodge  to  use  the  hall  for 
at  least  ten  years,  after  which  time  they  are  at  liberty  to  rent  or  sell  their  rooms. 
Interest  on  the  stock  was  afterwards  voluntarily  reduced  to  6  per  cent. 

Within  the  past  four  or  five  years  the  last  dollar  of  the  stock  has  been  re- 
deemed by  the  lodge  and  the  title  is  now  fully  vested  in  it. 

The  original  cost  of  the  hall  was  $2,210,  exclusive  of  interest  account. 

It  appears  from  the  old  records  that  no  meetings  of  the  lodge  were  held  on 
November  22,  1861,  December  20,  1861,  January  21,  1862,  and  February  20, 
1862,  four  consecutive  months.  The  faithful  secretary  records,  "No  meeting. 
Cause,  inclement  weather."  Is  it  possible  that  the  lowering  of  the  awful  war 
cloud  over  our  fair  land  at  that  time  had  aught  to  do  with  that  inclemency?  It  is  a 
cause  of  congratulation  that  after  this  partial  lapse  our  faithful  brethren  never 
let  the  altar  fire  go  out  during  that  dark  time.  They  went  on  with  the  work, 
preparing  many,  who  on  the  field  of  battle,  in  hospital  or  as  prisoners  of  war, 
blessed  the  day  and  lodge  in  which  they  were  made  Masons.  On  September  5, 
1862,  our  old  Masonic  brother,  as  Capt.  H.  J.  B.  Cummings,  made  application 
for  the  degrees.  The  record  says  that  the  applicant  wishing  to  return  at  once 
to  the  seat  of  war,  application  was  made  to  Grand  Master  Thomas  H.  Benton,  Jr., 
for  a  dispensation  to  confer  the  degrees  at  once.  The  permission  was  given 
and  within  ten  days  the  captain  was  duly  qualified  to  travel  and  receive  wages 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  379 

as  the  colonel  of  the  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  Infantry.  We  rejoice  with  him  that  he 
found  his  way  home  and  is  with  us  to  this  day.  Dr.  William  L".  Leonard,  Fred- 
erick Mott,  O.  A.  Moser,  B.  F.  Murray,  S.  G.  Ruby,  William  Pursell.  W.  R. 
Shriver,  R.  A.  Stitt  and  M.  R.  Tidrick  were  the  fortunate  ones  who  just  prior 
to  or  during  the  war  \vere  invested  with  the  mysteries  of  the  order  and  entitled  to 
all  its  benefits  while  engaged  in  the  services  of  their  country.  Lieutenant  J.  P. 
Jones,  one  of  Nature's  noblemen,  was  made  a  Mason  in  this  lodge,  September  17, 
1862.  He  fell  and  was  buried  on  the  field  at  Allatoona,  Georgia,  on  OctoWr  5, 
1864.  The  lodge  attended  the  funeral  service  in  a  body  at  the  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church  on  Sabbath,  January  7,  1865.  Our  lodge  has  a  long  roll  of  honor 
of  those  who  were  actively  engaged  in  that  terrible  struggle  of  1861-65,  who 
were  received  after  the  close  of  the  war.  Together  we  rejoice  that  our  beloved 
land  remains  one  undivided  republic,  the  peer  of  nations. 

Honorable  mention  should  be  made  of  the  veterans  of  Masonry  whom  we 
are  glad  to  know  are  present  to  join  in  the  celebration  of  this  semi-centennial. 
Brother  Richard  P.  Bruce  is  the  only  charter  member  now  living.  He  was  bom 
in  Girard  County,  Kentucky,  on  May  15,  1818,  and  is  now  past  eighty-six  years 
of  age.  He  was  made  a  Mason,  March  6,  1849,  in  Hardin  Lodge,  No.  44,  Illi- 
nois— a  faithful  Mason  for  fifty-five  years.  All  honor  to  him.  May  he  be 
spared  to  our  lodge  and  this  community  yet  many  years. 

W.  W.  McKnight,  who  has  been  a  Mason  for  more  than  fifty  years;  T.  A. 
Duer,  for  forty-eight  years ;  Frederick  Mott,  for  fifty  years ;  and  Joseph  Stauffer 
for  more  than  fifty  years,  are  among  the  elder  Masons  and  are  with  us  today. 
We  congratulate  them  for  their  long  and  faithful  service. 

Those  who  have  been  honored  as  worshipful  masters  of  this  lodge  during  the 
past  half  century  are  as  follows:  1853,  D.  C.  McNeil;  1854,  J.  G.  Scott;  1855-56, 
W.  W.  McKnight;  1857,  J.  G.  Scott;  1858,  John  Leonard;  1859,  W.  W.  Mc- 
Knight; i860,  William  Pursell;  1861,  D.  B.  Allen;  1862,  Frederick  Mott;  1863, 
A.  J.  Kendig;  1864,  M.  R.  Tidrick;  1865-66,  V.  Wainwright;  1867,  M.  R. 
Tidrick,  1868-69,  V.  Wainwright;  1870,  H.  J.  B.  Cummings;  1871,  V.  Wain- 
wright; 1872,  T.  C.  Gilpin;  1873-76,  H.  J.  B.  Cummings;  1877,  A.  H.  Adkinson; 
1878-79,  C.  C.  Goodale;  1880-81,  T.  C.  Gilpin;  1882,  G.  W.  Hampton;  1883, 
H.  L.  Putzel;  1884-86,  V.  Wainwright;  1887-89,  J.  A.  Darnell;  1890-92,  C.  F. 
Koehler;  1893-96,  Albert  Strong;  1897-99,  A.  L.  Stout;  1900-01,  C.  A.  Eldridge; 
1902-04,  L.  Lowe. 

These  several  worshipful  masters,  with  the  assistance  of  the  wardens  and 
brethren,  have  welcomed  within  the  portals  of  this  lodge  since  its  organization, 
more  than  three  hundred  and  fifty  men,  who  with  very  few  exceptions  have 
proven  them^lves  workmen  whom  this  lodge  has  been  proud  to  call  brethren — 
who  are  marked  among  our  fellow  citizens  as  practicing  the  sublime  and  moral 
precepts  of  our  noble  order,  friendship,  morality  and  brotherly  love. 

Our  lodge  has  l^ad  representatives  in  the  legislative  halls  of  both  state  and 
nation,  in  the  grand  lodge  and  chapters  of  this  state,  at  the  bar,  on  the  judicial 
bench,  in  foreign  lands  as  the  special  representative  of  this  country,  many  in 
the  pulpit  and  in  every  honorable  calling  and  occupation;  not  one  in  the  peni- 
tentiary. It  is  a  record  of  which  we  may  well  be  proud,  as  we  run  over  the  roll 
of  members  from  1853  to  1904,  more  than  three  hundred  and  fifty  of  them,  to 


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380  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

find  not  one  of  whom  we  may  be  ashamed  to  say,  he  was  a  Mason.    So  mote  it  be 
in  the  future. 

In  1858  a  chapter  of  Royal  Arch  Masons  was  organized,  to  which  a  goodly 
number  of  this  lodge  belong,  and  a  goodly  number  have  been  made  Knights 
Templar  in  Temple  Commandery  at  Des  Moines.  A  flourishing  order  of  the  East- 
em  Star  has  also  grown  out  of  this  lodge,  where  much  of  its  wisdom  and  beauty 
is  congregated. 

Were  it  part  of  my  duty  as  necrological  instead  of  simply  historical  writer, 
it  would  be  a  pleasing,  though  sad,  duty  to  call  the  roll  of  our  honored  dead, 
giving  brief  mention  of  their  respective  lives,  the  honor  they  reflected  upon  our 
order  in  return  for  the  honor  Masonry  conferred  upon  them.  That  the  record 
of  this  lodge  has  been  so  well  sustained,  by  its  membership,  is  the  result  of  most 
careful  and  scrutinizing  inquiry  and  examination  into  the  character  and  kind  of 
material  applying  for  Masonic  honors. 

Not  every  one  who  has  sought  to  gain  admission  to  our  portals  has  been  ad- 
mitted. Many  have  knocked  at  the  outer  door  who  sought  admission  from 
imworthy  motives,  only  to  learn  that  none  but  those  who  are  worthy  and  well 
qualified  can  hope  to  pass  the  grim  tyler  who  so  faithfully  guards  the  inner 
sanctuary  of  our  mysteries.  Though  Masons  never  solicit  persons  to  become 
members  of  the  order,  they  are  ever  ready  to  welcome  the  worthy  and  just  as 
ready  to  reject  the  unworthy.  Mistakes  have  been  and  will  continue  to  be 
made,  both  in  receiving  and  rejecting  applicants,  so  long  as  judgment  and  con- 
clusions are  fallible.    It  is  better  to  err  in  rejection  than  in  reception. 

And  now  having,  to  the  best  of  my  endeavor,  performed  the  duty  of  historian 
assigned  me  by  our  worthy  master,  I  must  still  acknowledge  the  imperfection  and 
incompleteness  of  my  work.  This  has  arisen  not  from  indisposition  or  want  of 
interest  on  my  part,  but  from  difficulty  in  sifting  from  the  old  and  somewhat  di- 
lapidated records,  items  of  interest  and  importance.  I  trust  the  records  of  the 
next  fifty  years  will  be  more  carefully  preserved,  that  the  historian  of  1954  may 
not  have  laborious  search  for  whatever  hidden  treasures  he  may  desire  to  bring 
to  light  on  that  day. 

My  advanced  age,  more  than  three  score  and  eleven,  precludes  the  possibility 
that  I  shall  be  present  at  the  centennial  observance.  I  feel  assured,  however,  that 
the  historian  of  that  occasion  will  find  nothing  which  he  will  be  loth  to  present 
to  the  public,  should  the  lodge  be  as  prudent  and  discriminating  in  the  future  as 
they  have  been  in  the  past.  To  this  lodge  and  its  guests  is  thus  submitted  this 
brief  history. 

To  the  historian  of  June  8,  1954,  I  fraternally  hand  the  pen  which  I  now 
lay  down,  together  with  this  resume  of  our  first  fifty  years.  Anticipating  grasping 
his  hand  in  fraternal  greeting,  may  I  not  confidently  and  heartily  congratulate 
him  and  the  order  that  the  honorable  record  of  the  half  century  he  may  review 
will  be  in  no  wise  dimmed  or  marred  by  aught  unmasonic.  We  therefore  place 
this  little  sprig  of  acacia  at  the  head  of  the  grave  of  the  fifty  years  now  gone, 
not  with  regret  or  sorrow,  but  in  the  full  confidence  of  hope  that  some  weary 
brother,  at  the  close  of  the  next  half  century,  sitting  down  to  rest  and  refresh 
himself,  may  find  this  memento,  fresh  and  blooming,  not  without  interest  to  those 
who,  through  his  efforts,  review  the  history  of  Evening  Star  Lodge,  No.  43,  from 
1904  to  1954. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  381 

On  Wednesday  evening,  November  ii,  1914,  before  a  large  audience,  the 
most  worshipful  grand  master  of  Iowa,  Chas.  W.  Walton,  dedicated  the  new 
Masonic  Temple,  a  new  brick  structure  belonging  to  the  lodge,  on  the  east  side  of 
the  square. 

Winterset  Chapter,  No.  180,  Order  of  Eastern  Star,  was  instituted  October  23, 

1895,  with  twenty-five  charter  members.    The  membership  now  numbers  about 
one  hundred.    The  lodge  meets  Thursday  on  or  after  each  full  moon. 

Madison  Lodge,  No.  136,  Independent  Order  Odd  Fellows,  was  chartered 
July  19,  1865,  and  has  a  membership  of  about  one  hundred.  It  meets  every 
Tuesday  night. 

Rock  City  Encampment,  No.  65,  was  chartered  October  21,  1874,  with  eleven 
charter  members  and  now  has  twenty-six  members  in  good  standing.  The  lodge 
meets  the  first  and  third  Thursday  of  each  month. 

Crown  Rebekah  Lodge,  No.  360,  was  chartered  October  23  1896,  with  twenty- 
one  members,  which  has  now  grown  to  about  eighty.  It  meets  the  second  and 
fourth  Thursdays  of  each  month. 

Lotus  Lodge,  No.  48,  Knights  of  Pythias,  was  organized  July  31,  1879,  with 
thirty-three  charter  members.  Its  present  membership  is  about  ninety.  It  meets 
every  Thursday  night. 

Winterset  Temple,  No.  105,  Rathbone  Sisters,  was  chartered  August  11, 
1898,  having  sixty-one  charter  members,  with  seventy  at  the  present  time.  The 
lodge  meets  every  alternate  Tuesday  evening. 

The  last  to  appear  in  the  field  of  purely  fraternal  organizations  is  Chapter 
A.  Xj.,  p.  E.  O.,  which  was  granted  a  charter  August  24,  1892,  with  eight  charter 
members  and  has  grown  to  a  large  membership.  It  meets  every  alternate  Tues- 
day evening.  The  reader  will  notice  the  legend,  "'T.  E.  O.,"  is  not  self-explana- 
tory, for  the  reason  that  this  is  one  of  the  secrets  of  the  society. 

This  ends  the  history  of  the  strictly  fraternal  societies,  but  there  are  a  number 
of  fraternal  beneficiary  societies  that  have  done  and  are  doing  a  great  work 
in  providing  for  widows  and  orphans  of  their  deceased  members,  in  the  way  of 
life  insurance,  as  well  as  direct  charity.  The  oldest  in  this  class  in  Winterset  is 
Lodge  No.  71,  Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen,  organized  August  26,  1882, 
with  about  twenty  charter  members. 

Next  in  point  of  time  is  Winterset  Camp,  No.  302,  Modem  Woodmen  of 
America,  chartered  January  28,  1887,  with  nineteen  members.  Their  member- 
ship now  reaches  100.    They  meet  every  Monday  night. 

Auxiliary  to  the  Modem  Woodmen  is  Juniata  Camp,  No.  1428,  Royal  Neigh- 
bors of  America,  chartered  March  10,  1899,  with  twenty-three  members,  now 
numbering  fifty.    The  lodge  meets  every  Friday  evening. 

Then  comes  Backbone  Tent,  No.  54,  Knights  of  the  Maccabees,  organized 
in  September,  1895,  with  eighteen  charter  members.  They  now  number  100 
and  meet  every  Thursday  night. 

Winterset  Hive,  No.  32,  Ladies  of  the  Maccabees,  was  organized  December 
13,  1901,  with  twenty  members.  It  meets  the  first  and  third  Friday  of  each 
month. 

Madison  Camp,  No.  100,  Woodmen  of  the  World,  was  chartered  April  7, 

1896,  with  fifteen  charter  members.    It  meets  every  Wednesday. 


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382  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Boxelder  Grove,  No.  y2,  Woodman  Circle,  was  chartered  May  25,  1904,  with 
ten  members. 

Glencoe  Castle,  No.  16,  Highland  Nobles  was  chartered  May  3,  1904,  with 
eighteen  charter  members.    It  meets  every  Tuesday  night. 

Winterset  Council,  No.  219,  Knights  and  Ladies  Security,  was  organized 
February  i,  1895,  with  thirteen  charter  members.  It  meets  the  first  and  third 
Friday  of  each  month. 

CLUBS    AND    SOCIETIES 

Winterset,  in  common  with  other  cities,  has  a  large  number  of  clubs,  some 
of  them  literary,  some  social  and  a  few  athletic,  and  it  is  surprising  to  note 
how  many  people  there  are  who  have  membership  in  one  or  more  of  the  clubs. 
The  oldest  club  is  the  Current  Topic  Club,  organized  in  1891,  by  Mrs.  D.  D. 
Davisson,  who  was  its  president  until  her  death  in  1898.  There  were  six  charter 
members:  Mrs.  D.  D.  Davisson,  Mrs.  J.  W.  Cornell,  Mrs.  J.  P.  Steele,  Mrs. 
Frank  Payton,  Mrs.  Majors  and  Miss  Flora  Harris.  In  1893  ^^e  organization 
federated  with  the  other  clubs  of  the  state.  The  membership  is  now  limited  to 
twenty.  This  is  one  of  the  literary  clubs  and  a  course  of  study  is  followed  each 
year,  history,  past  and  present,  famous  writers  and  other  lines  of  study  being 
taken  up  from  time  to  time.  The  meetings  are  held  each  alternate  Friday  after- 
noon at  the  different  homes. 

The  Women's  Club  was  organized  in  January,  1899,  and  federated  about 
a  month  later.  The  membership  in  this  club  is  not  limited  in  number.  The 
object  of  the  club,  as  stated  in  the  constitution,  is  "to  promote  mutual  growth 
and  helpfulness  and  for  combined  work  in  our  cause  undertaken  for  the  general 
good.  The  literary  work  shall  be  to  review  and  discuss  any  subject  of  interest." 
Like  the  Current  Topic  Club,  the  meetings  are  held  each  alternate  Friday  after- 
noon, and  once  a  year  the  two  clubs  hold  a  union  meeting. 

In  1892,  Chapter  A  G,  of  the  P.  E.  O.  sisterhood,  was  organized  here  by 
Miss  Marie  Lyons  of  the  Waterloo  Chapter,  and  Mrs.  Jennie  Dean,  of  New 
Sharon  Chapter.  The  charter  members  were  Mrs.  W.  J.  Dean,  Mrs.  Alice 
Welch,  Miss  Ella  Nichols,  Miss  Gretchen  Kreuger,  Miss  Effie  Lyons,  Miss 
Harriet  Snyder,  and  Miss  Bertha  Wainwright.  Different  lines  of  work  are  under- 
taken by  the  P.  E.  O's.  To  the  library  the  society  has  given  several  chairs,  a 
library  table,  a  small  table,  a  picture  and  $25  in  cash.  The  meetings  are  held 
the  first  an^  third  Tuesday  evenings  of  the  month  and  a  literary  and  musical 
program  is  given. 

The  Country  Club  was  formed  here  in  1903.  The  first  year  forty  acres,  in  the 
Lucas  farm  northwest  of  town,  were  rented,  but  the  following  spring  fgrty  acres 
in  the  Stiles  farm  were  rented  and  a  nine-hole  course  laid  out  by  Tom  O'Neal,  a 
professional  player  from  Des  Moines. 

On  March  1,  1909,  W.  J.  Cornell,  for  the  club,  purchased  of  Rebecca  Stiles, 
widow  of  Capt.  Thomas  W.  Stiles,  sixty  acres  on  section  25,  in  Douglas  Town- 
ship, in  consideration  of  $5,000.  The  land  seemed  to  have  been  made  to  meet 
every  desire  of  the  club.  No  finer  golf  links  in  the  state  are  laid  out,  a  typical 
club  house  and  also  a  cottage  and  stable  for  the  caretaker  relieve  the  landscape. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  383 

Several  acres,  beautifully  wooded  and  made  doubly  picturesque  by  a  limpid 
stream  of  water,  sheltered  on  one  side  by  rugged  cliffs,  are  fitted  into  a  park,  which 
is  reached  from  the  club  house  by  a  path  extending  to  a  swinging  or  suspension 
bridge,  which  crosses  the  stream  above  mentioned.  The  Winterset  golf  links 
have  an  extended  popularity  and  reputation  and  the  Country  Club's  membership 
is  "high  class,"  in  the  business  and  social  circles  of  the  county. 

Among  the  social  clubs  are  the  afternoon  Whist  Club  gf  ladies  and  an  evening 
Whist  Club  of  ladies  and  gentlemen ;  the  Phi  Kappa  Thetas,  the  Bachelor  Maid's 
Club,  the  Birthday  Club,  the  Indian  Club,  the  Jolly  Owls,  the  Sewing  Club,  etc. 

GRAND  ARMY  POST  AND  WOMAN 's  RELIEF  CORPS 

In  1881  A.  W.  C.  Weeks  interested  himself  in  the  organization  of  a  post  of 
the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  at  Winterset.  He  soon  succeeded  in  enrolling 
the  following  twenty-three  names  of  veterans  who  became  the  charter  members 
of  the  organization:  A.  W.  C.  Weeks,  G.  G.  Clark,  J.  R.  Shannon,  S.  B.  Cherry, 
H.  M.  Roberts,  C.  T.  Jones,  H.  C.  Price,  Mel  Stone,  C.  C.  Goodale,  J.  M. 
Butcher,  C.  Danforth,  S.  F.  Hughes,  Samuel  Myers,  W.  R.  Shriver,  M.  Mc- 
Quinney,  W.  E.  Shaimon,  C.  H.  Lancaster,  Jesse  McDaniel,  T.  F.  Mardis,  E.  O. 
Burt,  Joel  OUphant,  H.  S.  Sprecher,  S.  R.  Leonard. 

The  charter  was  issued  August  25,  1881,  with  A.  W.  C.  Weeks  as  post  com- 
mander. The  post  was  named,  not  in  honor  of  Judge  Pitzer,  as  is  generally  sup- 
posed, but  of  his  son,  Leander  Pitzer,  a  member  of  the  Fourth  Iowa  Infantry, 
who  was  killed  at  the  battle  of  Chickasaw  Bayou.  The  post  was  the  fifty-fifth 
in  the  order  of  time  of  organization,  hence  the  official  title  of  the  organization  is 
Pitzer  Post,  No.  55,  Department  of  Iowa,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic.  The 
meetings  of  the  post  at  first  were  held  in  Sprague's  Hall,  at  the  southwest  comer 
of  the  square;  from  there  it  was  removed  to  Mathes  Hall  on  the  east  side,  and 
then  to  its  present  headquarters  in  the  northwest  comer  of  the  courthouse. 

Mr.  Weeks  served  for  a  number  of  years  as  commander,  when  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  D.  E.  Cooper.  The  following  have  been  the  commanders  since  then : 
L.  B.  Davis,  Eli  Wilkin,  George  Turbett,  Frederick  Mott,  E.  F.  Connoran,  T.  C. 
Gilpin,  E.  R.  Zeller,  Ezra  Brownell,  William  Brinson,  John  McAndrews,  R.  H. 
Cooper. 

The  G.  A.  R.  and  W.  R.  C.  as  organizations  have  achieved  more  than  ordinary 
reputation  from  the  fact  that  they  have  done  much  to  relieve  the  needs  of  old 
soldiers  and  their  families,  and  more  especially  for  the  very  important  work  of 
promoting  a  patriotic  sentiment  in  the  community.  On  the  22d  of  Febmary 
each  year  they  make  a  special  effort  to  instill  a  love  of  country  into  the  lives  of 
the  school  children  and  to  them  is  due  the  credit  for  a  continuous  and  proper 
celebration  of  Memorial  Day  on  the  30th  of  May  each  year.  Each  year  the 
business  men  of  Winterset  are  called  on  for  a  small  donation  and  these  two  or- 
ganizations do  the  rest. .  Decoration  Day  has  been  appropriately  observed  for 
so  many  years  the  whole  county  looks  forward  to  it  with  more  expectancy  than 
that  other  and  older  anniversary.  The  30th  of  May  and  the  4th  of  July  have 
come  to  divide  the  honors  equally,  and  neither  date  will  lose  its  significance  so 
long  as  the  G.  A.  R.  and  W.  R.  C.  survive. 


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384  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

woman's  relief  corps 
By  Jennie  Lothrop  Whedon  (1911) 

No  organized  body  of  women  in  the  world  equals  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps. 
It  realizes  and  maintains  that  what  it-  does  is  not  a  charity,  but  partial  payment  on 
an  unpayable  debt  of  justice  and  love.  We  are  created  to  give,  not  to  receive. 
Grand  Army  encampments  every  year  thrill  the  whole  country.  Drum  corps,  brass 
bands,  floating  flags  and  silken  banners  appear  everywhere;  trailing  lengths  of 
special  trains  gathering  from  every  city  and  town  in  the  United  States,  filled 
with  tens  of  thousands  of  prominent  men  and  women,  converge  toward  some 
given  point,  whose  city  has  been  twelve  months  preparing  for  its  welcome;  yet, 
we  are  frequently  asked,  "What  is  the  Grand  Army?"  and  "How  did  the 
Woman's  Relief  Corps  happen  to  be  organized  ?" 

The  minuteness  of  a  thing  when  created  gives  no  sign  as  to  what  proportion 
and  magnitude  it  may  g^row.  No  better  illustration  can  be  given  of  this  accepted 
fact  than  the  wonderful  growth  of  the  organization  I  have  the  honor  to  represent 
today.  We  know  not  when  or  where  the  first  germ  of  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps 
was  implanted,  .nor  how  long  was  the  silent  creative  power  developing  into 
life. 

It  might  have  been  when  the  first  cannon  boomed  at  Fort  Sumter,  calling 
to  arms  the  fathers  and  brothers  of  this  generation.  It  might  have  been  when 
the  sacred  feet  of  our  forefathers  touched  the  illustrious  rock  in  old  Massa- 
chusetts, charging  its  granite  with  an  electric  current  of  loyalty  so  strong  and 
enduring  that  its  impetus  has  never  been  stayed.  It  might  have  been  way  back 
when  the  morning  stars  sang  together  "in  the  beginning." 

The  War  of  the  Rebellion,  which  has  no  parallel,  was  undoubtedly  a  part  of 
God's  fixed  plan  of  action,  and  America  the  ordained  tablet  on  which  our  Maker 
justly  and  wisely  ciphers  out  the  problems  of  history  and  humanity! 

One  great  factor  in  this  problem  is  the  steady  advancement  of  woman  toward 
that  wide  plain  of  social,  moral  and  ennobling  influence  to  which  she  is  rapidly 
tending.  'Tis  to  her  warm  sympathies  and  quick  perceptions,  together  with  the 
thrilling  sense  of  that  something  indescribable  which  we  call  patriotism,  that  we 
owe  today  the  organization  we  represent,  and  through  which  so  much  "'good 
Samaritan"  work  is  being  accomplished.  In  the  struggle  of  1861  to  1865,  men 
went  forth  to  the  battle  front,  leaving  behind  families  without  a  protector  and 
bread  earner.  ,They  went  forth  to  meet  bullets  and  disease,  suffering  and  pri- 
vation. At  this  time  there  came  to  the  rescue  of  both  the  wounded  soldier  in 
service  and  his  needy  family  at  home,  an  angel  of  mercy.  Woman,  her  heart 
tender,  kind  and  loving,  instinctively  found  ways  of  assisting  to  care  for  the  sick 
and  wounded  in  the  hospitals  and  on  the  battlefields,  while  in  the  villages  and 
cities  she  was  active  in  relieving  the  wants  of  the  war  widows  and  orphans.  All 
over  the  land  were  organized  soldiers'  aid  societies,  which  were  great  sources 
of  supply  to  the  Christian  and  sanitary  commissions,  which  in  turn  were  under 
the  Government  patronage  for  collecting  and  distributing  supplies.  Large  sums 
of  money  were  raised  and  expended  and  countless  lives  were  saved  by  this  move- 
ment of  patriotic  northern  women  during  this  terrible  war. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  organized  to  promul- 
gate fraternity,  charity  and  loyalty,  and  labored  hard  to  aid  unfortunate  corn- 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  385 

rades,  but  so  small  an  organization  was  almost  powerless  before  the  great  de- 
mands upon  its  treasury. 

As  early  as  1870  the  records  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  show  that 
at  the  fourth  annual  convention,  reference  was  made  to  the  work  of  women  in 
connection  with  the  charity  work  of  the  order.  Statements  were  made  that 
there  should  be  some  recognition  of  the  service  of  the  loyal  women.  In  several 
departments  a  "Clara  Barton  degree"  had  been  established  and  at  several  subse- 
quent encampments  the  subject  was  continued  and  much  discussed. 

Ten  years  after  the  war  this  country  faced  a  great  financial  panic.  The  vet- 
erans suffered  greatly  from  failing  health,  wounds  and  other  troubles  which  follow 
war ;  everywhere  was  the  cry  for  bread,  while  soldier  widows  hunted  work  in  vain. 

Again  woman  came  to  the  rescue.  Almost  simultaneously,  Massachusetts  and 
Ohio  offered  assistance ;  Massachusetts  working  under  the  name  of  the  Woman's 
Relief  Corps;  Ohio  under  that  of  the  Post  Ladies'  Aid  Society.     This  was  in 

1878-79. 

To  Portland,  Maine,  belongs  the  honor  of  the  first  usage  of  the  name  of 
Relief  Corps  in  1869,  under  the  name  of  Bosworth  Relief  Corps,  No.  i,  which 
is  still  in  existence.  Then  at  Fitchburg,  Massachusetts,  in  1879,  ^^  Woman's 
Relief  Corps  was  formed,  and  in  1880,  the  State  Relief  Corps  of  Massachusetts 
and  New  Hampshire  united  to  form  the  Union  Board  of  Woman's  Relief  Corps. 
In  1880,  a  resolution  was  introduced  at  the  Fourteenth  National  G.  A.  R.  Encamp- 
ment, calling  attention  to  the  importance  of  an  official  woman's  auxiliary,  and 
the  committee  was  appointed  to  consider  and  report  at  the  Fifteenth  Annual 
Encampment.  The  committee's  report  was  unanimously  adopted,  approving  the 
organization  of  a  National  Woman's  Relief  Gorps  to  be  known  as  auxiliary 
to  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic, 

In  1883,  Commander-in-chief  Van  der  Voort  actively  advanced  this  organiza- 
tion. In  his  extensive  travels  he  urged  upon  all  posts  the  importance  of  these 
auxiliaries,  and  calkd  pubHc  attention  to  prominent  women  who  would  assist 
in  organizing  corps.  He  engaged  the  Washington  National  Tribune  in  the  work 
and  Kate  B.  Sherwood  was  made  editor  of  the  woman's  department.  Thus, 
under  Paul  Van  der  Voort,  in  Denver,  in  1883,  ^he  Woman's  Relief  Corps  was 
formed,  working  under  the  name.  Union  Board  of  Woman's  Relief  Corps  of  the 
Department  of  Massachusetts. 

From  this  small  band  of  workers  has  spread  an  order  which  according  to 
the  recent  report  of  the  national  president,  now  numbers  164,225 — an  increase 
of  seventy  corps  and  3,149  members  since  the  report  of  1909.  ' 

New  duties  come  to  us  as  we  grow  in  strength,  numbers  and  experience.  For 
instance,  the  sending  of  over  fifteen  hundred  dollars  to  beautify  the  graves  of 
soldiers  who  lie  in  the  southland ;  or  the  movement  to  reinstate  delinquent  post 
members,  by  the  donation  of  money  to  the  posts  for  the  payment  of  dues  for 
veterans  who  are  unable  to  meet  this  obligation. 

Then,  too,  at  Christmas  time  the  army  nurses  are  not  forgotten.  Forty-six 
needy  army  nurses  were  each  presented  with  $20,  making  $920  expended  on  those 
noble  women.  One  of  the  proteges  of  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps  has  been 
Memorial  University,  located  at  Mason  City,  Iowa.  Founded  by  the  Sons  of 
Veterans,  U.  S.  A.,  at  national  encampment  in  September,  1900,  it  is  dedicated 
to  the  veterans  and  loyal  women  of  1861-65  as  a  memorial  to  the  heroes  and 


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386  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

heroines  of  the  Civil  war.  This  university  was  located  at  Mason  City  because 
of  its  nearness  to  the  geographical  center  of  the  United  States.  In  September,* 
1902,  the  Liberal  Arts  Building  was  dedicated  and  the  institution  was  opened 
to  both  men  and  women.  The  property  is  valued  at  $180,000,  is  incorporated 
under  the  laws  of  Iowa,  governed  by  a  board  of  regents  of  twenty-five  members, 
assisted  by  an  advisory  board.  Its  especial  educational  features  are  the  teaching 
of  American  history  and  Department  of  Applied  Patriotism,  which  instructs 
the  students  as  to  their  responsibility  to  state  and  nation. 

Each  corps  sends  annually  a  tax  of  five  cents  per  member  to  support  this 
university,  so  that  we  are  doing  something  in  an  educational  way  to  inculcate 
patriotism  in  the  youth  of  our  land.  But  the  labor  to  which  we  point  with  greatest 
pride  is  the  care  of  the  Andersonville  prison  grounds.  These  grounds  were  of- 
fered for  sale  to  the  Government,  but  the  offer  was  refused,  so  the  Department 
of  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  of  Georgia,  aided  greatly  by  the  Woman's 
Relief  Corps,  bought  this  Confederate  prison,  unwilling  that  this  place,  made 
sacred  by  human  suffering  and  agony,  should  be  put  to  common  uses.  Unable 
to  improve  and  maintain  this  property,  and  realizing  that  they  must  disband 
soon  from  weakness,  the  Department  of  Georgia  offered  to  present  the  property 
to  the  National  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  who  refused,  for  lack  of  funds.  In 
1895  the  same  offer  was  made  to  the  National  Woman's  Relief  Corps,  who  accepted 
the  charge  and  nobly  responded  to  its  needs. 

An  additional  thirteen  acres  was  purchased  that  all  the  forts,  rifle  pits,  earth- 
works and  all  grounds  outside  the  stockade  that  had  been  used  for  prison  pur- 
poses might  be  taken  care  of.  This  made  88^4  acres.  Fences  were  built.  Fine 
large  entrances  were  put  up,  Bridges  built  over  the  creeks,  a  good  nine-room 
house  was  erected  and  a  new  stockade  has  been  made  on  the  line  of  the  old  one. 

The  history  of  Andersonville  prison  has  horrified  the  world,  for  no  tongue, 
pen  or  brush  can  ever  picture  the  fearful  and  unutterable  sufferings  of  the  35,000 
men  who  were  confined  there.  The  lack  of  water  was  the  Cause  of  much  disease 
and  torture  until  in  August,  1864,  when  God  certainly  answered  the  fervent 
prayer  for  water,  for  during  a  fearful  electric  storm  a  spring  burst  forth  from 
the  ground  just  inside  the  "dead  line,"  affording  great  relief.  The  prisoners 
named  it  "Providence  Spring."  On  Memorial  Day  of  1901  the  Woman's  Relief 
Corps  dedicated  a  pavilion  over  the  spring,  bearing  this  inscription :  "This  pa- 
vilion was  erected  by  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps,  Auxiliary  to  the  Grand  Army  of 
the  Republic,  in  grateful  memory  of  the  men  who  suffered  and  died  in  the  Con- 
federate prison  at  Andersonville,  Georgia,  from  February,  1864,  to  April,  1865. 

"The  prisoner's  cry  of  thirst  rang  up  to  heaven ; 
God  heard,  and  with  His  thunder  cleft  the  earth 
And  poured  His  sweetest  water  gushing  here. 

Erected   1901." 

For  the  past  five  years  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps  has  annually  set  aside  $2,000 
for  the  improvement  and  beautification  of  these  grounds.  At  Atlantic  City, 
New  Jersey,  in  September,  1910,  the  national  president  of  the  Woman's  Relief 
Corps,  Jennie  Iowa  Berry,  turned  over  to  the  Government  the  deeds  to  Ander- 
sonville prison  property.    Sixteen  years  of  labor  and  study  have  been  spent  for 


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.  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  '      387 

the  preservation  of  this  historic  place,  so  that  today  it  is  one  of  the  beautiful 
and  noteworthy  points  of  interest  of  our  land. 

Turning  to  the  work  of  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps  in  Madison  County,  I 
must  refer  to  Pitzer  Woman's  Relief  Corps,  No.  117.  On  July  19,  1887,  twenty- 
one  women  met  at  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  Hall  over  Tate's  hardware 
store.  The  meeting  was  the  result  of  a  petition  for  the  organization  of  a  corps 
in  Winterset:  The  post  commander,  L.  B.  Davis,  called  the  meeting  to  order. 
Mrs.  Minnie  Wallace  was  made  temporary  chairman,  and  Mrs.  Nettie  Leonard, 
secretary. 

The  election  of  officers  resulted  in  the  choice  of  Mrs.  Nannie  Wallace  for 
president;  Mrs.  Nettie  Leonard,  secretary;  Mrs.  Jennie  Damall,  treasurer.  On 
July  26th  the  officers  were  installed,  L.  B.  Davis  presiding.  Thus  Pitzer  Woman's 
Relief  Corps,  No.  -117,  was  organized,  with  forty-nine  charter  members.  Of 
these  forty-nine  women,  fourteen  retain  membership  here  now.  They  are  Irene 
Connoran,  Olivia  Faurote,  Ann  Lafferty,  Hattie  Zeller,  Eudora  Benge,  Josephine 
Krabiel  Bowlsby,  Frank  Peters,  Jennie  Damall,  Jennie  Whedon,  Maggie  Walker, 
Ella  Knight,  Mary  Hutchings,  Rachel  Reeder  and  Huldah  Shults. 

Five  presidents  have  been  chosen  by  Pitzer  Corps,  one  not  serving  her  year 
out.  They  are  Nannie  Wallace,  Irene  Connoran,  Caroline  Murray,  Maimee 
Miller  and  Jennie  Whedon. 

Four  secretaries  have  served  the  corps:  Nettie  Leonard,  Gertrude  Young, 
Loraine  Sumner,  Rettie  Greer. 

Ten  treasurers  have  handled  our  funds :  Jennie  Damall,  Rettie  Greer,  Sarah 
Wilkins  (now  department  president  of  Oklahoma),  Pauline  Dabney,  Josephine 
Bowlsby,  Alida  Hoff,  Vinnie  Hyder,  Ida  McDaniel,  Irene  Connoran  and  Charlena 
Seidler. 

Our  roll  shows  300  names  on  record.  From  our  early  days  we  have  been 
a  banner  corps,  numbering  over  one  hundred  in  membership.  To  us,  in  June, 
1910,  came  the  highest  honors  that  the  Department  of  Iowa  can  pay — the  be- 
stowal of  the  chief  office  of  the  state,  department  president,  upon  Pitzer  Corps' 
president,  Mrs.  Jennie  Whedon.  The  office  of  department  secretary  is  held  by 
Rettie  Greer,  present  secretary  of  Pitzer  Corps;  thus  Winterset  has  been  head- 
quarters of  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps  of  Iowa  since  June,  191 1. 

January  14,  1892,  marks  the  organization  of  John  Miller  Woman's  Relief 
Corps,  No.  242,  at  St.  Charles,  with  twenty-nine  names  on  the  charter.  Pitzer 
Corps,  under  myself  (you  must  pardon  personal  allusions  at  this  point  of  this 
paper),  organized  the  St.  Charles  Corps.  In  September,  1903,  they  entertained 
the  district  convention.  The  old  records  of  this  corps,  prior  to  1902,  were  de- 
stroyed by  fire,  so  its  history  is  incomplete.  In  October,  1903,  they  organized  a 
corps  at  Truro,  under  the  name  of  Jonathan  Roby  Woman's  Relief  Corps,  No. 
341.  In  June,  1904,  they  organized  at  New  Virginia  a  corps  known  as  Samuel 
Irwin  Corps,  No.  344.  So  I  am  personally  proud  of  all  three  of  these  corps,  who 
refer  to  me  as  their  mother  and  grandmother. 

At  Macksburg  we  have  J.  D.  Craven  Woman's  Relief  Corps,  No.  322,  or- 
ganized April  2,  1898,  with  thirty-six  charter  members.  This  corps  has  built 
and  paid  for  a  hall  of  its  own.  The  lower  story  is  used  for  a  town  hall  and  has 
a  kitchen.    The  upper  story  is  used  exclusively  for  lodge  purposes,  and  besides 


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388      '  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

the  corps'  meetings,  it  is  rented  to  the  Woodmen  and  Royal  Neighbors  of  America. 
This  corps  also  calls  me  mother,  for  I  was  responsible  for  its  organization. 

With  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps  in  1888  originated  .the  custom  of  placing 
across  the  breast  of  a  dead  comrade,  a  small  silk  flag,  while  on  each  Memorial 
Day  200,000  graves  of  soldiers  are  decorated  with  flags  by  this  order. 

The  Woman's  Relief  Corps  also  has  been  for  years  presenting  large  flags 
to  the  high  schools  of  each  city  in  which  the  annual  Department  convention  is  held. 
Thus  thirty-five  states  honor  thirty-five  cities  annually  with  these  handsome  flags. 

To  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps  belongs  the  credit  of  our  Memorial  Day  ob- 
servances to  the  memory  of  the  unknown  dead;  also  to  the  Woman's  Relief 
Corps  is  due  the  beautiful  service  of  strewing  flowers  on  the  waters  of  the  ocean 
and  inland  streams,  in  memory  of  our  naval  patriots.  The  universal  placing 
of  flags  upon  schoolhouses  is  accredited  to  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps,  while 
Flag  Day,  June  14th,  is  an  institution  of  the  Woman's  ReUef  Corps.  Hence 
one  may  readily  see  that  while  acting  as  an  auxiliary  to  the  Grand  Army  of  the 
Republic,  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps  performs  the  never  ending  task  of  per- 
petuating the  memory  of  the  defenders  of  our  nation,  of  rendering  aid  to  the 
needy  veteran  and  his  family,  and  teaching  patriotism  to  the  children  that  they 
may  swear  allegiance  to  our  flag. 

The  veterans  may  pass  away,  we  may  leave  this  earth,  but  lessons  of  patriotism 
and  loyalty  to  home  and  country  will  ever  be  taught  while  the  Woman's  Relief 
Corps  exists,  for  working  under  the  motto  of  Fraternity,  Charity  and  Loyalty, 
each  member  pledges  at  each  qieeting,  allegiance  to  the  flag.  "One  country,  one 
language,  one  flag." 


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WHERE  THE  REPOBTER  WAS  PRINTED  FOR   A  NUMBER  OF  YEARS 


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CHAPTER    XLIX 
WINTERSET  IN  1864— PIONEER  MERCHANT 

W.  H.  Lewis  made  his  first  entrance  into  Winterset  in  the  early  dawn  of  a 
September  day,  in  the  year  1864,  being  a  passenger  on  one  of  Colonel  Lothrop's 
stage  coaches.  He  describes  his  first  impressions  and  the  appearance  of  Winterset 
as  follows: 

What  I  found  on  my  arrival  it  will  be  my  effort  to  relate  in  this  paper.  The 
public  square  had  been  enclosed  in  the  early  part  of  that  year  by  a  good  strong 
fence,  and  a  row  of  trees  had  been  planted  along  the  border  of  the  square.  The 
season  was  a  very  dry  one  and  many  of  the  trees  were  dead,  but  the  enclosure 
was  occupied  by  a  very  rank  growth  of  weeds — many  of  them  higher  than  the 
fence.  The  house  on  Court  Avenue  that  marked  the  eastern  limit  of  dwellings 
was  on  the  comer  just  beyond  the  residence  of  Mr.  Wolf,  and  was  the  home  of 
William  Forster  and  his  daughter,  Mrs.  W.  R.  Shriver.  Captain  Shriver  was 
on  duty  in  the  army.  This  house  was  at  the  crossing  of  Court  Avenue  and  Walnut 
Street,  and  the  eastern  dwelling  on  Jefferson  Street  was  a  little  house  at  the 
northeast  comer  of  the  same  block.  This  house  was  far  from  neighbors  on 
the  west,  the  next  building  to  it  being  the  Methodist  Church,  standing  on  the 
present  church  site.  The  western  dwelling  on  Court  Avenue  was  on  the  lot  next 
west  of  the  residence  of  Mrs.  Jones,  at  the  crossing  of  Court  Avenue  and  West 
Street.  The  western  building  on  Jefferson  Street  stood  nearly  directly  north  of 
the  western  one  on  Court  Avenue,  at  the  comer  of  Jefferson  and  West  streets, 
where  the  residence  of  Mrs.  Hutchings  now  stands.  The  buildings  just  described 
as  being  eastern  and  western  ones  on  Jefferson  Street  were  both  out  of  repair 
and  unoccupied,  and  were  owned  by  William  Forster,  the  owner  of  the  eastern 
house  on  Court  Avenue.  The  house  marking  the  northern  limit  on  the  street 
passing  the  square  on  the  west  was  the  one  now  occupied  by  L.  O.  Carey.  The 
extreme  limit  of  the  residence  part  of  the  town  on  the  south  was  the  residence  of 
Dr.  G.  M.  Rutledge,  until  recently  occupied  by  his  widow.  In  stating  these 
limits,  it  should  be  remembered  that  the  other  streets  extending  in  the  same 
direction  were  most  of  them  without  any  houses  upon  them.  The  public  buildings 
were  very  few.  The  first  courthouse  standing  on  the  east  lot  of  the  Monumental 
Park  was  no  longer  used  as  a  courthouse,  and  the  county  clerk  had  his  office  in 
an  upper  room  on  the  west  side  of  the  square.  The  stone  building  at  the  north- 
west of  the  square,  now  known  as  the  St.  Nicholas,  then  called  the  Pitzer  House, 
held  in  its  western  part  a  hotel  kept  by  S.  M.  Holaday.  The  lower  room  of  the 
east  part  had  been  occupied  as  a  saloon,  but  was  closed  at  that  time.  The  second 
and  third  floors  were  reached  by  an  outdoor  stairway  on  the  north  side.  The 
first  room  on  the  second  floor  was  rented  by  this  writer  for  a  law  office,  and  the 
south  room  was  the  office  of  the  only  newspaper,  the  Hawkeye  Flag,  now  the 

389 


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390  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Madisonian.  On  the  third  floor  were  two  rooms ;  one  was  the  office  of  the  county 
judge,  the  other  the  office  of  the  county  treasurer  and  recorder.  There  were  no 
safes  in  any  of  the  county  offices  and  the  books  and  papers  were  kept  in  open 
cases  and  pigeon  holes.  The  sheriff  had  no  stated  office,  but  made  his  stay  in  a 
lawyer's  office  on  the  north  side  of  the  square. 

There  was  an  old  two-story  wooden  schoolhouse  on  the  lot  now  occupied  by 
the  South  Ward  schoolhouse,  but  the  windows  were  broken,  its  floors  unsafe, 
and  it  was  no  longer  used  as  a  schoolhouse,  and  there  was  no  other.  During 
the  early  summer  of  that  year  schools  were  held  in  a  room  on  the  west  side  of 
the  square  and  I  think  in  one  of  the  churches.  In  the  winter  of  1864-65,  no  public 
schools  were  maintained  in  Winterset.  This  writer  had  a  private  school  of 
forty  pupils,  in  a  little  building  where  the  Stultz  feed  bam  now  stands.  Captain 
Goshom  b^an  another  private  school  in  a  church  that  stood  on  the  lot  where 
Ben  Bare's  house  now  stands,  but  the  building  was  so  open  it  could  not  be  kept 
warm  and  he  had  to  abandon  it. 

The  Methodist  Church  stood  on  the  site  of  the  present  church,  and  C.  C. 
Mabee  was  the  pastor  in  charge.  The  Baptist  Church  was  a  stone  building  on  the 
site  now  occupied  by  the  armory.  W.  A.  Eggleston  was  the  pastor.  The  Old 
School  Presbyterian  Church  stood  on  the  site  of  the  city  hall.  I  think  they  had 
no  preacher  at  that  time.  The  New  School  Presbyterian  Church  was  on  the  site 
of  the  present  Church  of  Christ.  They  had  no  settled  pastor  at  that  time,  but 
Rev.  J.  C.  Ewing,  who  resided  here,  preached  there  most  of  the  time.  The 
Christian  Church  stood  on  its  present  site  and  N.  C.  Storrs  was  the  pastor.  The 
Disciples  Church  was  a  large  wooden  building  on  the  site  of  the  residence  of  Ben 
Bare.  They  had  no  pastor.  The  building  was  a  poorly  constructed  one  and  was 
generally  known  by  the  name  of  "God*s  barn.*'  This  was  where  Goshom  froze 
out.  The  courts  were  held  in  the  churches,  mostly  in  the  Christian  and  Old  School 
Church.  The  writer  remembers  that  the  then  famous  Stone-Ballard  case  was 
tried  in  the  Old  School  Church.  The  presiding  judge  was  taken  seriously  ill 
during  the  trial  and  directed  the  writer  to  take  his  place  for  a  part  of  the  time. 
We  sat  in  the  pulpit. 

There  were  two  banks.  Albert  West's  bank  was  on  the  west  side  of  the  square 
and  was  the  only  one  doing  business  after  my  advent.  John  Lebnard  had  a  bank 
in  a  building  on  the  site  of  the  present  Tate  hardware  store,  but  its  safe  was 
blown  open  by  burglars  in  the  early  part  of  1864  and  the  entire  banking  capital 
stolen,  and  he  went  out  of  the  business. 

There  was  but  one  building  on  the  east  side  of  the  square;  that  was  at  the 
comer  now  occupied  by  the  Bare  Building.  It  had  at  an  earlier  time  been  used 
as  a  hotel  but  was  then  occupied  as  a  residence.  Crossing  to  the  south  side  of  the 
street  there  was  a  small  one-story  building  used  by  H.  M.  Porter  as  a  harness 
shop,  and  passing  some  vacant  spaces  to  the  east  one  came  to  Sam  Snyder's 
grocery.  Retuming  westward  and  crossing  the  street  stood  a  one-story  building 
on  the  corner — a  grocery  kept  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  William  Ogden.  Going  west  were 
some  vacant  spaces  and  the  next  building  was  a  two-story  stone  stmcture — a 
general  store  by  W.  W.  McKnight.  Next  west  was  a  vacant  space  and  the  next 
a  one-story  house  in  which  C.  Ayres  &  Company  had  a  general  store.  Going  still 
farther  west  were  more  vacant  spaces,  then  a  double  front  one-story  stmcture, 
in  the  east  room  of  which  was  J.  H.  Barker's  jewelry  store  and  the  west  one  Dr. 


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THE  MADISONIAN  BUILDING, 
WINTERSET 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  391 

David  Hutchinson's  oflSce.  Next  west  was  a  one-story  house  in  which  W.  T. 
Roland  &  Company  had  a  stock  of  groceries  and  queensware.  Next  was  a  two- 
story  building,  in  which  was  the  general  store  of  White,  Munger  &  Company. 
Passing  a  narrow  vacant  space  was  the  office  and  bank  of  John  Leonard,  a  one- 
story  house  on  the  eastern  comer.  Crossing  the  street  a  little  beyond  the  comer 
to  the  west  was  the  one-story  residence  of  Dr.  D.  H.  Philbrick,  the  east  room  of 
which  he  used  as  a  dmg  store.  Returning  to  the  corner  and  crossing  the  street 
to  the  south  end  of  the  west  side  was  a  row  qf  three  one-story  buildings,  with 
gable  ends  to  the  street.  The  one  at  the  comer  held  Dr.  J.  Bartlett's  dmg  store, 
and  the  others  were  unoccupied.  The  next  building,  on  the  site  now  occupied  by 
H.  N.  Shaw,  was  a  brick  building.  The  first  and  second  stories  extended  back 
to  the  alley  as  at  present,  and  the  third  story  about  half  way.  The  lower  story 
held  the  general  store  of  Dunkle  &  Company.  The  front  room  of  the  second 
story  was  reached  by  an  outside  stairway  and  was  the  office  of  the  county  clerk. 
The  western  part  of  the  second  story  was  in  one  large  room,  reached  by  an  out- 
door stairway  at  the  alley  on  the  west.  This  room  was  known  as  Pitzer  Hall. 
A  public  school  was  held  there  in  the  early  summer,  but  in  the  autumn  it  was  un- 
occupied, except  for  occasional  dances  or  other  special  needs.  The  third  floor 
was  the  Masonic  Hall.  Next  was  a  two-story  building  occupied  by  the  general 
store  of  Smith  &  Ballard,  the  residence  of  A.  B.  Smith  on  the  second  floor.  Pass- 
ing a  vacant  space  the  next  building  was  a  double  one-story  structure,  the  south 
room  containing  the  bank  of  Albert  West,  and  the  next  one  the  hamess  shop  of 
H.  C.  Carter. 

Crossing  the  alley  the  building  next  to  it  was  a  wooden  two-story  stmcture. 
This  was  the  postoffice  and  the  postmaster  was  J.  J.  Davis,  one  of  the  kindest 
men  I  ever  knew,  always  on  the  lookout  to  help  any  one  who  might  need  help. 
He  kept  books  and  stationery  for  sale.  The  upper  room  was  the  photograph 
gallery  of  John  D.  Holbrook.  Next  was  the  meat  market  of  E.  W.  Evans,  an4  its 
next  neighbor  the  jewelry  store  of  Moses  Bailey.  There  was  an  open  space 
and  then  one  more  one-story  wooden  building,  but  I  cannot  recall  the  name  of  its 
occupant,  and  the  rest  of  the  west  side  was  vacant. 

Westward  from  here  to  the  northwest  comer  of  the  block  stood  the  jail.  It 
was  buitt  of  logs,  two  stories  high,  the  entrance  being  on  the  upper  floor,  reached 
by  an  outdoor  stairway  on  the  south  side. 

Crossing  the  street  was  the  Pitzer  House,  already  described.  Crossing  the 
street  there  was  a  wide  space  on  the  north  side  vacant,  the  first  building  being 
occupied  by  James  P.  Noel  as  a  furniture  shop.  William  R.  Danforth's  tin  shop 
was  the  next  and  then  was  the  two-story  wooden  building,  the  general  store  of 
Baxter  &  Kendig.  A.  J.  Kendig  was  the  agent  of  the  United  States  Express' 
Company  and  the  office  was  in  his  store,  and  I  think  the  Westem  Stage  Company 
had  its  office  there.  Next  east  was  a  small  one-story  building  occupied  by  S.  G. 
Ruby  as  a  law  office,  and  the  sheriff  used  it  as  a  stopping  place.  The  dmg  store 
of  I.  L.  Tidrick  was  next  and  on  the  comer  was  the  grocery  of  Andrew  Crawford. 

Crossing  the  street  eastward  and  passing  two  vacant  lots  one  came  to  a  one- 
story  building  formerly  used  as  the  postoffice,  but  then  vacant.  Crossing  to  the 
south  side  of  the  street  was  the  fumiture  shop  and  dwelling  of  John  Young, 
and  from  there  to  the  north  end.of  the  east  side  of  the  square  and  on  southward 
to  the  starting  point  was  vacant. 


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392  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

t 

The  men  then  in  business  were :  Dry  goods  and  general  merchandise,  W.  W. 
McKnight,  Smith  &  Ballard,  Baxter  &  Kendig,  White,  Munger  &  Company,  C. 
Ayres  &  Company,  W.  T.  Roland  &  Company,  and  John  Dunkle;  grocers,  Sam 
Snyder,  A.  Crawford  and  William  Ogden ;  druggists,  D.  H.  Philbrick,  I.  L.  Tid- 
rick  and  J.  Bartlett;  meat  market,  E.  W.  Evans;  jewelers,  J.  H.  Barker  and  Moses 
Bailey ;  hardware  and  tin  shop,  W.  R.  Danf orth ;  shoemaker,  John  S.  White ;  phy- 
sicians, L.  M.  Tidrick,  G.  M.  Rutledge,  D.  D.  Davisson,  David  Hutchinson  and 
S.  B.  Cherry ;  attorneys,  John  Leonard,  V.  Wainwright,  B.  F.  Murray,  S.  G.  Ruby 
and  Lewis  Mayo.  There  were  others  whose  homes  were  here  but  they  were  away 
on  duty  in  the  army.  Col.  C.  B.  Lothrop  and  John  Acklin  were  stage  agents. 
John  D.  Holbrook  was  the  photographer  and  Albert  West  the  only  banker  doing 
business.  The  furniture  makers  were  John  Young  and  James  P.  Noel ;  wagon 
makers,  William  Eberle  and  Samuel  Betts ;  blacksmiths,  Harry  Bond,  Nat  Ander- 
son and  John  H.  Bishir;  harness  makers,  H.  M.  Porter  and  H.  E.  Carter;  printer, 
H.  M.  Ewing.  In  these  callings,  not  coimting  employes,  fifty-one  men  were 
engaged. 

There  were  no  sidewalks  in  Winterset  then  except  those  next  the  square  and 
but  very  few  people  wore  overshoes  then,  and  the  woman  who  was  hostess  in 
muddy  weather  had  a  job  of  cleaning  her  floors  and  carpets. 

There  were  two  pianos  in  Winterset  then,  one  organ  in  the  Baptist  Church 
and  one  in  a  private  house,  and  one  melodeon,  and  I  am  very  confident  there  was 
not  one  other  such  instrument  elsewhere  in  Madison  County.  As  to  violins  and 
other  minor  musical  instruments  this  writer  sayeth  not. 

There  were  at  that  time  very  few  shade  trees  in  Winterset.  Nearly  every 
tree  in  Winterset  or  on  the  open  prairie  in  Madison  County  has  been  planted 
since  1864. 

PIONEER    MERCHANT    AND    STORE 

The  records  of  the  Commissioners'  Court  indicate  that  to  William  Compton 
was  issued  the  first  license  to  conduct  a  grocery  in  Winterset.  But  it  appears  he 
was  not  first  in  the  field  in  the  sale  of  merchandise  at  this  place,  as  will  be  seen 
by  the  following  article  prepared  by  Mr.  Hoisington.  It  is  well  known  that  Enos 
Beiiger  came  to  Winterset  in  the  spring  of  1849  and  at  once  completed  a  log 
cabin,  that  had  been  partially  erected  the  preceding  fall,  at  the  southeast  comer 
of  the  (present)  square.  In  this  he  lived  and  replenished  the  stock  of  merchan- 
dise left  by  his  predecessor  and  ^rtner,  one  Porter. 

The  first  house  or  building  of  any  kind  on  what  is  now  the  platted  portion  of 
Winterset  was  begun  about  the  isth  of  November,  1848,  by  Porter  Roberts.  In 
Savannah,  Missouri,  long  resided  Porter  Roberts,  a  young  man,  and  Enos  Bergen 
Both  proposed  going  to  the  *^Three  River  country"  in  Iowa.  An  agreement  was 
made  between  them,  by  which  Roberts  was  to  go  to  Madison  County,  where 
several  families  from  about  Savannah  had  settled,  and  get  a  claim  as  near  as  he 
thought  the  county  seat  might  be  located  and  start  a  grocery,  and  made  a  deal 
with  a  man  to  haul  a  load  of  groceries  for  them.  The  township  lines  having  just 
been  run,  the  exact  center  of  the  county  was  known,  so  Roberts  took  the  southeast 
quarter  of  section  36  in  (now)  Winterset,  the  east  half  of  which  the  very  next 
year  became  the  west  half  of  the  original  plat  of  the  town.    He  went  to  work 


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STONE  HOUSE   Bl'lLT  BY  JUDGE  GL'IBERSOX   IN   1856 

Here  his  widow  lived  until  the  time  of  her  death  a  few  years  ago. 
It  then  became  the  property  of  her  grand-daughter,  Miss  Kittie  Shannon, 
who  had  it  torn  down  in   1913. 


FRAME  HOUSE   BUILT   BY  JUDCiE  (4U1BERS0N   IN   1853 
Still  standing  in  \Vinter8et 


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ARCADE  HOTEL 

Built  in  1856  by  Dr.  J.  H.  Gaff,  the  first  physician  in  Winterset.    Later  the 
home  of  Judge  Pitzer  until  his  death  in  1876. 


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,  I 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  393 

vigorously  and  with  help  got  up  an  unhewn  log  house  i6  by  i6,  but  it  remained 
uncovered  until  the  next  spring.  This  was  intended  for  a  living  house  for  Berger. 
But  Roberts  hurried  the  completion  of  an  addition,  or  lean-to,  and  this  was  12  by 
16  feet.  He  got  this  covered  and  enclosed,  chinked  and  daubed,  and  his  groceries 
in  about  December  ist.  He  boarded  with  Joshua  Casebier,  who  lived  a  short  dis- 
tance southwest  of  the  (afterward)  Bevington  home.  He  had  but  a  small  supply 
of  groceries  and  no  whiskey,  so  that  the  sales  were  very  light  during  the  winter 
and  he  was  altogether  disgusted  with  business  in  Madison  County.  When  Berger 
arrived  in  the  early  spring  Roberts  lost  no  time  in  getting  away.  He  turned  over 
the  remnants  of  his  stock  and  the  incomplete  building  to  Berger,  and  as  Berger 
had  furnished  the  capital  there  was  little  settlement  to  make.  Berger  finished 
the  building,  moved  in,  replenished  the  stock  (had  brought  with  him  a  barrel  of 
whiskey),  and  with  his  jolly  disposition  and  German  thrift  prospered  from  the 
first.  He  soon  had  all  he  could  do.  The  county  had  been  organized  January  i, 
1849,  and  the  county  seat  was  located  in  June  and  platted  in  July.  Of  course  he 
gave  without  a  word  the  east  eighty  of  his  claim  to  the  county  and  with  equal 
liberality  to  himself  kept  the  west  eighty.  The  second  term  of  the  County  Com- 
missioners' Court  was  lield  in  April  (before  the  location  of  the  county  seat)  in 
the  grocery  room  of  this  building  and  some  following  terms.  That  year  was 
held  the  first  term  of  the  District  Court  of  Madison  in  the  same  grocery  room. 
Judge  McKay  was  much  opposed  to  the  whole  liquor  business  and  was  a  dignified 
and  very  proper  young  man,  but  he  had  to  hold  court  in  this  room  and  did  use 
the  whiskey  barrel  for  his  judicial  seat.  Of  course  no  whiskey  was  sold  over 
the  counter  during  sessions  of  the  court.  Berger  had  other  arrangements  on  the 
side  to  satisfy  the  unquenchable  thirst  of  the  needy  ones.  He  sold  most  of  a  barrel- 
ful  of  the  stuff  that  term  of  court  and  the  term  was  very  short  at  that. 

FIRST    STEAM    MILL 

William  Wallace  was  with  Berger  a  short  time  during  the  fall  of  1849.  In 
the  spring  of  1855,  as  Mr.  Wallace  remembers,  he  formed  a  partnership  with 
Berger  for  the  purpose  of  erecting  and  conducting  a  sawmill.  That  spring  the  firm 
bought  machinery,  boiler  and  engine  at  Burlington,  and  hauled  it  from  that  place 
to  Winterset,  on  a  wagon  made  in  Indiana  and  drawn  by  four  horses,  without  any 
mishap  other  than  the  breakage  of  an  axle  an'd  the  tongue.  After  crossing  Middle 
River  at  Compton's  Mill  with  his  heavy  load,  Wallace  pulled  across  the  branch 
to  the  east  ridge  north  of  the  river,  and  unloaded  as  close  to  the  stream  as  pos- 
sible. The  mill  was  put  together  and  the  nine-horse  power  engine  set  up.  While 
sawing  out  boards  for  a  mill  shed,  two  suspicious  persons,  presumably  *'land 
sneaks,"  were  noticed  in  the  brush  dodging  about,  in  an  effort  to  avoid  discovery 
of  their  presence  and  object.  Wallace  was  up  to  their  game  and  immediately  went 
into  Winterset,  where  he  offered  John  A.  Pitzer  $20  an  acre  for  the  lo-acre  tract 
on  which  the  mill  stood,  which  was  readily  and  gladly  accepted,  as  the  sum  offered 
was  a  big  one  for'  that  day.  However,  ''Berger  like  to  have  swallowed  a  big  cud 
of  tobacco  in  a  fit  over  the  price,  but  he  was  quieted  when  I  offered  to  take  the 
land  for  myself ^  and  Berger's  share  in  the  mill."  Soon  after,  Berger  &  Wallace 
made  the  whole  price  of  the  land  out  of  four  trees  that  stood  on  it,  and  as  the  ten 
acres  were  heavily  timbered  the  speculation  was  a  profitable  one. 


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394  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Wallace  managed  the  mill  the  summer  of  1855  day  and  night,  with  two  shifts 
of  men,  and  cut  as  high  as  8,000  feet  each  twenty-four  hours.  He  made  a 
splendid  ''nm"  on  shingles  and  lath,  doing  this  kind  of  work  mostly  at  night.  At 
the  time,  there  was  a  great  demand  for  lumber,  as  log  houses  were  rapidly  being 
replaced  by  frame  buildings  here  and  throughout  the  county.  Wallace,  it  is  said, 
counted  the  day  lost  that  he  failed  to  clear  $25  at  the  mill. 


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JOHNNY  McKIBBEN  AND  MIKE 
DAVIS 

Two  familiar  figures  on  the  streets 
of  Winterset  thirty  years  ago. 
Johnny  MeKibben  was  36  inches  high 
and  Mike  Davis,  6  feet  10  inches  in 
height.  It  has  been  told  that  while 
traveling  with  a  show  they  repre- 
senteii  themselves  as  twin  brothers. 


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"All       i    > 


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CHAPTER  L 
MISCELLANEOUS 

THE  GERMAN  SETTLEMENT  IN  PENN  TOWNSHIP 

By  Chas.  F.  Koehler,  of  Hollywood,  California 

On  or  about  the  i6th  day  of  March,  1868,  I  in  company  with  Henry  Holder- 
baum  and  J.  M.  Hochstetler,  put  foot  on  Madison  County  soil,  having  walked 
from  Des  Moines  to  Redfield,  and  thence  to  Penn  Township.  Having  thoroughly 
inspected  it,  we  concluded  to  settle  there.  Holderbaum  returned  east  to  his 
home.  Hostetler  and  I  purchased  a  farm  each.  I  worked  for  David  Stanton 
until  the  deed  for  my  land  was  returned  from  Indiana.  In  the  meantime,  I  wrote 
a  letter  home  (Holmes  County,  Ohio)  to  my  brother  what  I  concluded  to  do,  and 
gave  a  pretty  thorough  account  of  the  land,  its  productive  qualities  and  advantages 
and  probable  result  in  the  near  future,  etc.  That  letter  was  read  by  dozens  of 
old  friends  of  mine,  many  who  sold  out  and  settled  in  Penn,  some  without  ever 
coming  out  to  see  it  beforehand.  My  brother,  William  L.  Koehler,  made  arrange- 
ments to  move,  and  while  so  doing,  Mr.  Nicholas  Schlarb  and  family  concluded 
to  come  also.  They  chartered  a  car  and  loaded  it.  While  so  doing,  an  uncle  of 
Mr.  Schlarb  with  his  family  and  one  nephew  arrived  fresh  from  Germany,  and 
when  they  found  that  Nick,  as  he  was  familiarly  called,  was  moving  to  Iowa,  they 
put  their  effects  in  the  same  car  and  all  arrived  in  due  time  in  Des  Moines,  Iowa, 
the  latter  part  of  March  or  the  first  of  April,  of  the  same  year.  I  think  though 
that  it  was  in  the  month  of  April. 

In  the  fall  of  1868  John  and  David  Lenocker,  sons  of  Christian  Lenocker, 
bought  land  and  settled  here.  The  following  spring  their  parents  and  balance  of 
family  arrived.  Then  came  Fred  Imboden  and  family.  In  March,  1869,  G.  F. 
Lenocker  and  family  arrived  from  Illinois.  The  same  month  Eli  Snyder  and 
family  arrived  from  Ohio;  also  Henry  Holderbaum  and  family  from  Indiana. 
The  next  year,  1870,  Michael  Holderbaum,  Sr.,  and  family  arrived  from  Ohio,  and 
Mr.  P.  Fett  and  family,  Mr.  Shumacher  and  family,  Mr.  Michael  Holderbaum, 
Jr.,  and  family,  Jacob  Lenocker  and  family  from  Illinois.  The  next  year,  1871, 
Wm.  Bast  and  family  from  Ohio;  Wm.  Weitrich  and  family,  Indiana;  Isaac 
Piper  and  family,  Ohio ;  also  Philip  Lenocker  and  family.  In  that  year  the  Ger- 
mans of  Penn  and  Dexter,  Dallas  County,  and  other  contiguous  territory,  or- 
ganized a  German  Lutheran  Church.  The  minister  that  was  called  was  Reverend 
Horn  and  family  from  Ohio,  who  lived  a  short  time  in  Penn  and  then  moved  to 
Dexter.  There  were  a  few  more  families  added  to  the  year  1875-6;  among  them 
were  Ed  Scarr  and  K.  J.  Kaufman.  There  may  have  been  a  few  others,  but  I 
cannot  now  recall  them.  All  these  settled  on  farms  and  were  recognized  among 
the  best  farmers  and  citizens  of  that  township.    Some  of  these  original  settlers 


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396  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

have  passed  into  the  beyond,  j^nd  many  are  still  living  on  their  farms ;  a  few  have 
moved  to  other  climes. 

When  that  goodly  land  was  first  settled,  land  was  bought  very  cheap.  In  the 
year  1868  we  bought  it  for  $6.50  per  acre.  When  the  settlers  commenced  to  come 
in,  the  agents  advanced  it  to  $10,  $12  and  even  $15  inside  of  a  year  and  a  half. 
This  of  course  was  for  raw  prairie,  as  no  improved  land  was  for  sale — what 
little  there  was  improved.  That  year  of  1868  there  were  but  seven  improved 
farms  on  the  Penn  Center  Road,  and  west  one-half  of  township  but  one  single 
house.  The  extreme  east  was  then  settled  by  Quakers,  to  the  number  of  a  dozen 
families. 

I'll  never  forget  the  first  4th  of  July  (1868)  that  we  celebrated.  Word  was 
sent  out  in  every  direction  for  ten  miles  radius  that  the  settlers  would  have  a 
grand  basket  picnic  at  Francis  Grove  on  the  4th  of  July.  The  morning  came, 
a  beautiful  day,  and  with  it  came  between  fifty  and  sixty,  old  and  young,  all  get- 
ting acquainted  easily,  no  stiflF  formalities  like  unto  the  present  time.  All  happy 
and  full  of  life  and  enthusiasm.  The  meeting  in  due  time  was  called  to  order  by 
the  president  of  the  day,  Dan  Francis.  The  invocation  was  pronounced  by  Rev- 
erend Armstrong.  The  declaration  was  read  by  William  Ross.  The  main  orator 
of  the  day  was  Reverend  Armstrong.  After  that  others  were  called  on,  among 
them  the  writer,  who  reminded  them  of  the  peculiar  conditions  then  existing 
in  this  celebration.  The  fact  was  this :  Philipp  Schlarb  was  a  skilled  accordion 
player.  He  had  brought  his  instrument  with  him,  and  having  no  other  kind  of 
musical  instrument,  we  pressed  him  into  service. 

The  marshal  of  the  day  formed  the  whole  crowd,  men,  women  and  children, 
into  a  line  two  by  two,  with  the  flag  and  the  accordion  player  at  the  head,  marched 
around  the  grove  several  times  to  Dutch  tunes,  mostly  waltzes  and  schottisches. 
He  being  a  recent  arrival  from  Germany,  knew  no  American  tunes,  but  we 
marched  just  as  enthusiastically  after  "Zu  Lauterbach  hab'  ich  mein  Strumpf  ver- 
loren"  and  "Ich  bin  der  Doctor  Isenbarth  willi  willi  ba  bump**  as  if  it  had  been 
the  "Star-Spangled  Banner"  or  the  "Union  Forever.*' 

He  was  a  great  player,  and  he  regaled  the  crowd  all  day  with  his  music,  be- 
tween speeches — another  Dutch  tune  and  still  more  Dutch  music — until  late  in 
the  evening.  Among  the  many  Fourth  of  July  celebrations  that  I  participated  in 
while  in  Iowa,  there  is  none  that  looms  up  so  pronounced  and  has  left  such 
an  indelible  impression  on  my  mind  as  this  first  one. 

All  the  people  were  neighbors — though  ten  miles  apart.  They  were  friends, 
although  strangers.    They  were  hospitality  to  the  limit. 

SOME  REMINISCENCES  OF  THE  EARLY  SETTLEMENT  OF  MADISON  COUNTY,  IOWA 

By  Rev.  J.  G.  Bishop,  D.  D.,  of  Dayton,  Ohio 

On  the  19th  day  of  June,  1847,  ^Y  father,  David  Bishop,  George  McClellan, 
Doc  Whited  and  Bud  Whited,  with  their  families,  landed  in  Madison  County, 
coming  in  their  ox  wagons,  by  the  way  of  Des  Moines,  up  the  divide  between  the 
North  and  Middle  rivers,  striking  camp  on  the  narrows  about  six  miles  a  little 
north  of  east  from  where  Winterset  now  stands.  The  writer  was  at  that  time 
about  fourteen  years  of  age,  had  walked  all  the  way  from  Burlington  on  the 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  397 

Mississippi,  helping  to  drive  the  loose  cattle — and  has  some  very  vivid  recollec- 
tions of  those  early  times. 

George  McClellan  settled  on  the  narrows  where  the  party  first  struck  camp. 
David  Bishop's  mind  seemed  drawn  to  see  what  was  on  the  south  side  of  the 
Middle  River.  So,  with  gun  and  ax  in  hand,  he  started  alone  on  an  exploring 
expedition,  felling  a  tree  on  which  to  cross  the  river.  The  only  enemy  encoun- 
tered was  a  big  rattlesnake ;  this  enemy  was  conquered  by  the  first  shot  from  the 
rifle.  After  two  days'  explorings,  father  decided  to  locate  on  the  south  side. 
But  how  to  get  across  the  river?  Drove  westward  along  the  skirts  of  the  bluflfs; 
found  a  place  where  we  could  get  the  wagon  down  the  bluflfs ;  crossed  the  river 
at  a  ford  near  where  the  bridge  now  stands  on  the  road  leading  from  Winterset 
to  St.  Charles ;  wound  up  the  ridge  and  out  on  the  prairie,  which  father  christened 
*'Hoosier  Prairie,''  his  being  the  first  Hoosier  family  that  had  come  to  seek  a 
home  on  its  beautiful  and  attractive  borders.  But  of  course  we  must  get  at  the 
edge  of  or  near  the  timber,  for  the  prairies  could  never  be  settled  more  than  one 
or  two  miles  out  from  the  timber  ( ?).  And  so,  striking  an  Indian  trail  running 
through  the  high  grass,  we  proceeded  eastward,  stopping  where  what  was  after- 
ward known  as  the  Runkle  farm  is  located,  the  family  living  in  a  tent,  and 
out  doors,  until  we  could  put  up  a  log  cabin,  which  we  did,  riving  out  the  boards 
with  a  frow  with  which  to  cover  it,  by  Saturday  evening.  Sunday  morning 
father  cut  a  hole  in  one  side  for  a  door  and  the  family  moved  in.  The  cutting 
out  that  door  was  about  the  only  Sunday  work  I  ever  saw  my  father  do. 

The  Whiteds  moved  over  on  our  side  of  the  river,  Bud  Whited  taking  a 
claim  next  west  of  father's,  building  near  where  the  Union  Church,  or  Chapel, 
now  stands,  and  Doc  Whited  a  little  further  west. 

At  this  time  there  ws^s  not  a  survey  line  through  the  county,  and  less  than 
twentv  families  in  the  county,  who  had  come  in  some  months  before.  William 
Smith  and  Mr.  Esty  had  settled  on  Middle  River  in  the  eastern  part  of  the 
county;  Isaac  and  Joel  Clanton,  and  Caleb  Clark,  near  where  St.  Charles  now 
stands;  Mr.  John  Carroll,  at  the  edge  of  the  Jones  Creek  timber,  some  two 
miles  southwest  from  our  place;  Mr.  Henry  McKinzie  and  Ephraim  Bilder- 
back,  at  the  edge  of  the  timber  a  little  west  of  where  the  Rogers  schoolhouse 
afterwards  stood;  Mr.  John  Butler,  and  I  think  another  family,  on  the  river 
near  where  the  Compton's  mills  were  afterwards  built;  one,  and  I  think  two, 
families  of  the  Guyes,  and  perhaps  another  family  or  two  on  Cedar  Creek  and 
North  River.    These  were  the  settlers  in  the  county  previous  to  our  coming*, 

Our  nearest  store,  postoffice  and  mill  for  the  first  year  was  on  Middle  River, 
in  Warren  County,  about  thirty  miles  from  our  place.  But  for  over  a  year  we 
had  nothing  to  grind  if  there  had  been  a  mill.  For  the  first  summer  we  had  to 
go  for  breadstuflf  to  Oskaloosa,  about  eighty  miles.  The  first  few  years  the 
only  kind  of  transportation  was  the  ox  wagon,  and  "walkers'  express."  The 
goods  were  hauled  in  the  same  ox  wag'ons,  from  Keokuk,  some  two  hundred  miles. 

The  first  winter — winter  of  1847-48 — we  got  along  nicely.  It  was  not  very 
cold  and  but  little  snow.  The  cattle  wintered  on  the  prairie  hay  that  had  been 
provided,  and  provisions  for  the  family  were  secured  from  a  distance.  But  the 
second  winter — winter  of  1848-49 — whew!  It  commenced  snowing  early,  and 
continued,  by  spells.  We  saw  but  little  of  mother  earth  until  April..  After  the 
snow  had  become  about  two  feet  deep  there  was  formed  a  crust  oii  it  so  it  would 


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398  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

bear  a  footman,  but  not  the  ox.  There  were  not  enough  people  to  keep  the 
roads,  where  there  were  roads,  broken.  We  were  "snowed  in*'  for  much  of  the 
winter.  Aside  from  the  paths  kept  broken  around  the  homes  and  feeding  places, 
there  was  going  nowhere  except  as  we  walked  on  the  crust  of  the  snow. 

Straits.  We  had  raised  some  vegetables  and  some  com.  A  corn-cracker 
mill  had  been  started  where  Compton's  mill  was  afterwards  built,  but  there  was 
no  way  of  reaching  it  from  our  place  except  by  foot  on  the  snow  crust.  The 
meal  gave  put,  and  there  was  no  Elijah  near;  the  vegetables  gave  out  or  froze 
out;  everything  eatable  for  the  family  gave  out  but  the  com  and  some  soup 
beans.  The  family  subsisted,  absolutely,  for  about  two  months  on  soup 
beans,  with  no  seasoning  except  a  little  salt  (salt  cost  $5.00  for  fifty  pounds) 
and  corn  hominy.  My!  but  wouldn't  we  children  have  danced  for  joy  at  the 
sight  of  a  com  dodger?  The  hay  gave  out  and  from  the  first  of  Febmary  until 
grass,  my  business  was  to  chop  down  red  elm  and  linn  timber  that  the  cattle 
might  browse  off  the  buds.  By  this  means  a  few  of  the  cattle  were  brought 
through  until  grass,  though  the  most  of  them  perished.  By  the  second  winter 
we  had  a  few  hogs.  Everything  gave  out  that  we  could  feed  the  hogs,  except 
the  com  and  beans  that  were  necessary  to  keep  the  family.  We  tolled  the  hogs 
along  the  path  that  was  kept  open  to  the  nearby  grove,  and  cutting  down  the 
small  elms,  would  scale  the  small  logs  and  limbs,  the  hogs  soon  learning  to  gnaw 
the  bark ;  and  so  we  got  a  few  hogs  through  on  elm  bark ! 

Snakes?  Yes,  there  were  snakes,  genuine  rattlesnakes.  Indeed,  our  prin- 
cipal neighbors  for  the  first  few  years  were  rattlesnakes  and  prairie  wolves.  The 
first  two  or  three  springs,  as  the  snakes  would  begin  to  crawl  out  of  their  dens, 
snake  hunting  was  in  order.  The  most  successful  hunt  in  which  the  writer  en- 
gaged resulted  in  the  killing  of  122  rattlesnakes  in  one  day;  of  the  blue  racers, 
which  denned  with  the  rattlers,  we  kept  no  account. 

The  first  election  in  the  county  was  for  the  election  of  an  "organizing  sheriff." 
The  candidates  were  Ephraim  Bilderback,  democrat,  and  a  Mr.  Guye,  whig.  The 
electors  assembled,  out  of  doors,  of  course — ^the  writer  was  present,  though  not 
old  enough  to  vote.  A  line  was  drawn,  the  candidates  took  their  positions,  one 
on  each  side  of  the  line.  The  voters  then  took  their  positions  on  the  side  of 
their  favorite  candidate,  and  noses  were  counted  by  the  honorable  judges  ap- 
pointed for  the  occasion.    The  democratic  candidate  was  elected. 

The  next  election,  which  was  the  first  legally  called  election  in  the  county, 
was  to  elect  two  justices  of  the  peace — at  large  for  the  whole  county.  David 
Bishop  and  Mr.  John  Butler  were  elected.  All  I  remember  of  the  official  acts 
of  these  dispensers  of  justice  is,  that  Mr.  Butler  married  the  first  couple  that 
were  married  in  the  county,  and  my  father  married  the  second  couple.  Madison 
County  was  at  this  time  attached  to  Marion  County.  The  license  was  secured 
from  Knoxville ;  but  how,  I  do  not  know.  But  I  do  know  that  the  justice  who 
solemnized  the  marriage  rode  on  horseback  to  Knoxville,  fifty  miles  (crossing 
Warren  County,  of  course)  to  make  due  returns  of  the  marriage;  that  he  was 
about  four  days  making  the  trip — and  received  fifty  cents  for  the  whole  job. 

The  next  election  held  in  the  county,  as  I  remember  it,  was  for  the  purpose 
of  electing  three  county  commissioners  who  were  to  constitute  the  County  Court, 
to  transact  the  county  business,  the  county  now  being  organized  to  do  its  own 
business  independent  of  Marion  County.    The  commissioners  elected  were  David 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 


399 


Bishop,  William  Combs  and  William  Gentry.  The  township  lines  have  now  been 
surveyed  and  the  state  commissioners  have  located  the  county  seat  on  the  bare 
prairie  at  the  center  of  the  county.  There  is  a  log  cabin  standing  about  one- 
fourth  of  a  mile  west  of  where  the  courthouse  now  stands. 

The  Name.  It  is  a  cold,  blustery  February  day.  The  honorable,  the  County 
Court,  was  in  session  in  this  log  cabin,  drawing  the  plat  of  the  town,  arranging 
for  selling  the  lots,  etc.  The  question  of  a  name  for  the  county  seat  was  under 
discussion.  The  state  conmiissioners,  when  locating,  had  given  it  a  name,  but  it 
did  not  seem  satisfactory  to  this  court.  Various  names  were  suggested.  Among 
them  my  father  suggested  the  name  "Summerset."  On  his  pronouncing  Summer- 
set, William  Combs,  who  was  looking  out  of  the  window,  the  wind  blowing  and 
a  snow  squall  prevailing,  with  a  shiver  bom  of  the  occasion,  pronounced  after 
him,  "Summerset !  I  think  you  had  better  say  Winterset !"  The  others  at  once 
took  it  up,  pronouncing  "Win-ter-set,  Win-ter-set."  Winterset  is  just  as  true  to 
nature  as  Sunmierset ;  besides,  there  was  not  a  town  or  postoffice  anywhere  of  this 
name,  so  far  as  they  knew ;  and  so  within  a  few  minutes  it  was  mutually  agreed 
to  give  the  county  seat  of  Madison  County,  Iowa,  the  unique,  euphonious  name 
Winterset. 

The  writer  would  only  add:  We  spent  twenty-two  years  in  Iowa,  the  most 
of  that  time  in  Madison  County,  and  several  years  in  Winterset,  since  which, 
though  we  have  lived  in  several  states,  traveled  in  nearly  all  the  states,  as  well 
as  some  in  the  Orient,  we  have  never  found  a  place  that  has  g^own  nearer  and 
dearer  to  our  heart  than  the  town  of  Winterset,  in  the  County  of  Madison,  and 
State  of  IOWA. 

Dayton,  Ohio,  April  14,  1905. 

first  census  taken  in  madison  county  in  1849,  as  reported  by  the 
commissioners'  clerk 


Heads  of  Families  No.  of 

A.  D.  Jones 3 

Ephraim  Bilderback 3 

William  Stephenson  3 

Jonathan  C.  Casebier 8 

Samuel  B.  Casebier 3 

Alfred  Rice ? 

Daniel  Chenoweth 3 

John  Butler   12 

Absalom  McKenzie 2 

James  Brewer 5 

Valentine  Johnson 4 

John  R.  Short 2 

Thomas  N.  Boyles 3 

William  Sterman 10 

John  B.  Sterman 4 

Taylor  Sargent   4 

David  Cracraft 12 

John  Cracraft   i 


Heads  of  Families                  No.  of 

John  S.  Howerton i 

Benjamin  Hillman   5 

Charles  C.  Mendenhall 2 

Clabom  Pitzer 11 

Edward  Wood 2 

Sarah  Finler 3 

Lewis  Brinson 7 

Robert  Oneal 5 

William  Brunk i 

Sarah  Henshaw 5 

James  Brown 11 

Anderson  W.  Moor 5 

Samuel  Brownfield 3 

John  B.  Beedle .' 7 

Major  Farris 3 

John  Carrol 6 

James  Folwell  5 

E.  R.  Guiberson 10 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 


Heads  of  Families                       No.  of 

Amos  W.  Case  3 

David  S.  Bowman i 

John  Vanhouten   8 

Samuel  Crawford 7 

David  D.  Henry 8 

John  Willhoit- 5 

James  Thornbrugh 8 

Samuel  Fleener 7 

David  Fleener i 

Andrew  Evans 7 

Thomas  Steward 5 

Seth  Adamson 9 

Calvin  Randall    3 

Philip  Esley ; 9 

Leonard  Bowman 7 

Samuel  Guye ,. . .  9 

William  Combs  -.  4 

Jacob  Combs  6 

William  Gentry 10 

Asa  Mills  6 

Rebecca  Ann  Eles 4 

Joseph  R.  Moor 3 

Enos  Burger  6 

Joseph  Baker 2 

William  Harman 9 

William  Pbipps 10 

Reuben  Thanner 3 

Joshua  C.   Casebier 4 

Absalom  Thomburg 7 

Daniel  Vancel  8 

Charles  Wright 4 

Lemuel  Thornbrugh 6 

Thomas  Cason ' 10 

David  Smith   2 

William  Smith 6 

David  Worley  9 

George  W.  McClellan 3 

Joseph  Bishop 3 

Dr.  Whited 7 

Samuel  Bishop 9 

Noah  Bishop  4 

David  Bishop 9 

John  Wilkinson 10 

Henry  McKenzie 10 

Irvin  Baum 6 


Heads  of  Families  No.  of 

A.  J.  Hart  4 

Jackson  Casebier 3 

A.  Q.  Smith 11 

Alfred  Wiggans 9 

William  Allcock  4 

Emanuel  Hinkley  i 

Silas  Barnes 9 

Joseph  T.  Wright 3 

Henry  Rice 5 

Rachel  Waymire 6 

Andrew  Waymire 3 

Joel  Gams 10 

Nathan  Vina 6 

S.  M.  Watson 5 

David  Simmerman  8 

Joseph  B.  Evans 5 

John  M.  Evans 2 

M.  W.  Jones 8 

Robert  Deshaser 7 

David  Brinson 7 

Joel  M.  Clanton 6 

Isaac  Clanton 9 

Joshua  Wickley 3 

Elijah  Perkins i 

Samuel  Peter 'T . .-. . .  7 

Hiram  Hurst 5 

Stephen  Trimble 5 

Joseph  Trimble i 

Thomas  Ansbery 5 

Henry  Simmons  6 

Elizabeth  Bens    5 

O.  M.  Boyle 3 

William  Compton  5 

N.  S.  Allcock 9 

George  Smith 6 

Isaac  Smith   7 

Reuben  Lea  . . : 4 

Caleb  Clark 9 

Charles  Qanton 8 

Pleasant  Bollans  5 

Asberry  Bums 5 

A.  J.  Shank 5 

John  Donnel   8 


Total 


.701 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  401 

I  do  hereby  certify  the  within  to  be  a  true  and  correct  copy  of  the  census  of 
Madison  County,  Iowa,  as  returned  to  my  office  by  the  assessor  of  said  county 
on  oath. 

In  testimony  whereof  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and  affixed  the  temporary 
seal  of  the  Board  of  County  Commissioners,  this  the  6th  day  of  October,  A.  D. 
1849.  James  Thornbrugh,  Commissioners*  Clerk. 

[County  Commissioners'  Seal] 

INCIDENTS  OF  EARLY  IOWA  TRANSPORTATION 

(Paper  read  by  Mrs.  Charity  Lothrop  Kellogg,  before  Madison  County 

Historical  Society.) 

I  am  pleased  to  meet  and  greet  you.  You  are  sustaining  the  reputation  of 
lowans. 

An  authority  says:  "From  the  foundation  of  Iowa  the  character  of  lowans 
is  such  as  was  rare  to  meet  in  a  new  territory.  With  few  exceptions,  there  was 
not  a  more  orderly,  industrious,  energetic  or  intelligent  people.  They  were  not 
surpassed,  as  a  body,  by  any  equal  number  of  citizens  in  any  country  in  the 
world."  Our  symbolic  name  is  "Hawkeye/'  from  the  name  of  one  of  the  noblest 
Indian  chiefs,  and  our  state  very  appropriately  named  "This  is  the  land !" 

Our  territorial  birth  was  July  4,  1838,  but  eight  years  before  that  birthday 
we  built  a  schoolhouse,  1830,  where  Keokuk  now  stands. 

July  4,  1834,  three  flags  waved  over  the  "to  be"  state.  An  Irishman  named 
Nicholas  Carroll,  living  in  the  vicinity  of  Dubuque,  first  unfurled  the  Star- 
Spangled  Banner  in  Iowa.  It  was  made  by  a  black  woman  who  was  a  slave,  and 
cost  $10.  It  was  run  up  at  12  o'clock  in  the  morning.  The  other  two  were  at 
Davenport  and  Burlington.    They  were  raised  soon  after  sunrise. 

The  beginnings  of  transportation  were  similar  throughout  our  country.  The 
first  requisite  was  roads.  It  is  said  that  we  form  our  estimate  of  the  compara- 
tive degree  of  the  civilization  and  enterprise  of  a  country  by  its  roads.  The 
ancients*  roads  were  principally  for  military  purposes;  ours  are  for  peaceful 
intercourse. 

Our  fathers  determined  the  most  feasible  routes  by  marking  trees  to  guide 
until  a  path  was  worn  and  became  a  carriage  road;  and  these  roads  were  later 
followed  by  the  engineers  in  laying  our  great  wagon  and  railroad  routes  to  the 
far  West.  We  couldn't  blaze  trees.  Our  state  consists  of  broad,  ocean-like, 
treeless  prairies,  but  we  first  traveled  on  horseback  over  the  whole  state — ^more 
often  without  a  compass  than  with  one— fording  the  streams,  or  improvising 
ferry-boats  out  of  canoes.  Sometimes  the  traveler  would  ride  in  canoe  and  the 
horse  swim,  or  lash  two  canoes  together  and  the  horse  be  taken  aboard,  his  fore 
feet  in  one  canoe,  his  hind  feet  in  the  other.  The  Mormons  did  us  a  good  turn 
in  the  early  day.  It  was  before  their  heaven-sent  polygamous  message,  but  we 
were  kind  to  them.  When  they  were  persecuted  in  Illinois  and  Missouri  they 
sought  refuge  in  our  state.  Word  was  sent  to  our  governor  from  Washington, 
D.  C,  not  to  allow  them  to  stay.  He  replied  that  as  long  as  they  were  law- 
abiding  citizens  he  should  not  join  their  persecutors.  Their  objective  point  was 
Salt  Lake,  and  many  perished  on  the  way.  It  was  recommended  that  a  few 
families  should  stop,  build  sod  or  log  houses  and  bams,  and  raise  crops,  at  stated 


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402  HISTORY  OF  MAWSON  COUNTY 

intervals  of  thirty  or  fifty  milds,  and  in  thait  way  pJlay  the  /'good  Samaritan"  to 
all  whp  should  pass.their  way  •  but  later  M^ien  the  state  became. more  populous 
the  Mormons  became  a  little  exclusive,  and  if  the  applicants  for  shelter  were  not 
Qftteir  creed  *^there  was  ho  rdom  in  the  inn."*  With  the  other*, settlers  it  was 
seldom,  if  ever,  that  a  traveler  was:;told  to  *'move  on,"  without  regard  to  the  hour 
of  day  ojr^ilight  or  the  number  of  applicants.    They  were  sharers  of  all  their  store. 

Some  of  our  road  making  was  unique.  We  thought  Ben  Franklin  did  well 
when  he  set  up  milestones  from  Philadelphia  to  New  York,  but  we  surpassed 
that.  When  Iowa  City  was  chosen  as  the  capital,  there  were  no  roads  leading  to  it. 
The  site  was  on  a  big  prairie,  on  which  was  one, log  cabin.  A  man  named  Lyman 
Dillon  started  from  that  place  with  his  huge  breaking  plow,  drawn  by  five  yoke 
of  oxen,  a  two-horse  emigrant  wagon,  carrying  provisions,  cooking  utensils  and 
bedding  for  the  journey  following  him.  For  nearly  one  hundred  miles  he  marked 
the  way  to  the  Misrfssippi  River,  the  longest  furrow  on  record.  There  was  soon 
a  beaten  road  beside  the  furrow,  made  by  the  white-topped  prairie  schooners  of 
the  coming  settlers.  The  town  built  up  fast,  but  there  was  no  established  mail 
between  the  new  capital  and  the  outside,  world.  Letters  and  papers  were  brought 
from  Muscatine  by  anyone  who  happened  there  on  business.  In  1846  a  weekly 
mail  was  carried  on  horseback. 

Inland  transportation  was  largely  by  water.  The  first  settlers  in  the  south- 
western part  of  the  state  went  down  the  Ohio  and  then  up  the  Missouri  River. 
Hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars  were  spent  on  the  Des  Moines  River  to  make 
it  navigable. 

Our  men  began  to  talk  and  plan  for  railroads  as  early  as  1833 ;  none  mate- 
rialized until  1856.  When  in  1853  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  began  to  be  con- 
structed across  unsettled  prairies,  lowans  kept  their  hawk-eyes  on  the  work  and 
progress.  March  14,  1853,  a  passenger  train  on  the  C,  R.  I.  &  P.  Railroad 
began  to  run  daily,  Sundays  excepted^  to  La  Salle,  there  to  connect  with  steamers 
to  St.  Louis;  and  with  stage  coaches  to  Davenport,  Iowa,  north  to  Dixon,  Galena 
and  Dubuque.  Our  men's  minds  were  full  of  plans  on  a  large  scale,  and  three 
lines  were  planned  east  and  west  across  our  state.  The  Chicago,  Rock  Island 
reached  Rock  Island  in  1852,  bridged  the  Mississippi  River  in  two  years,  and  we 
were  ready  with  a  railroad  track  to  Iowa  City  in  1856,  and  within  five  years 
we  had  393  miles  of  railroad  in  Iowa. 

'  In  1850  began  staging  as  we  knew  it.  We  gave  it  the  name  of  "stage"  coach 
because  the  stage  line  was  divided  into  short  distances,  or  stages.  The  first  stage 
routes  in  Iowa  were  in  the  early  '40s  on  the  Mississippi  River,  and  one  on  the 
Missouri  River  from  Council  Bluffs  to  Kansas  City.  The  first  mail  contractor 
was  Ansel  Briggs,  afterwards  Governor  Briggs.  The  first  mail  stage  Jine  was 
from  Davenport  to  Dubuque;  the  second  from  Davenport  to  Iowa  City. 
This  latter  line  in  1855  extended  across  the  state.  When  on  our  jour- 
ney into  Iowa,  we  accompanied  the  stage  on  this  route  to  Des  Moines, 
it  took  eight  days  to  make  the  trip.  The  mud  was  a  yard  deep  in  some 
places ;  many  of  the  large  creeks  were  not  bridged,  and  the  old-fashioned  sloughs 
were  very  much  in  evidence,  and  at  their  worst  we  thought  that  Skunk  Bottom 
ought  to  have  been  called  Skunk  "Bottomless."  Father  walked  most  of  the  way. 
The  stage  coach  was  a  few  rods  ahead  of  us,  and  kept  us  informed  as  to  the 
depth  of  the  mud.    In  the  coach  were  four  men,  two  women  and  a  bird-cage.    It 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  403 

seemed  as  if  every  third  woman  that  took  a  coach  carried  her  bird  in  a  big  cage, 
and  if  the  coach  upset  or  swung  so  as  to  throw  the  passengers  together,  some- 
one's face  was  cut  or  mutilated  by  that  bird-cage.  Those  four  men  both  paid 
for  and  worked  their  passage,  for  they  walked  miles  every  day,  carrying  rails  on 
their  shoulders  to  pry  the  coach  wheels  out  of  the  mud,  while  the  driver  un- 
mercifully lashed  his  four  horses.  Sometimes  a  horse  lunged,  sunk  in  the  mud 
to  his  body;  that  frightened  the  other  horses,  and  then  the  men  at  the  end  of 
the  rails  dropped  them  and  sprang  for  the  horses,  While  another  assured  the 
women  that  there  was  really  no  cause  for  alarm.  So  it  went  every  day.  We 
didn't  become  stalled ;  we  were  "fore-armed."  Often  our  horses  were  unhitched 
and  used  to  help  pull  out  a  stalled  prairie  schooner. 

It  was  not  long  after  this  that  mails  were  carried  from  Des  Moines  to  Adel, 
Fort  Dodge  (father  ran  a  hack  to  Fort  Dodge  weekly),  Winterset  and  Indianola, 
mostly  on  horseback,  then  in  small  open  buggy  and  buckboard.  In  the  times  of 
bad  roads  or  high  water  the  weekly  mail  was  doubled,  two  weeks. 

In  1861,  father  (Colonel  Lothrop)  contracted  for  the  mail  line  from  Keokuk 
to  Fort  Kearney.  The  roads  across  this  state  were  bad  enough,  but  across  "the 
plains"  were  fierce!  The  Platte  River  changed  its  bed  every  day.  The  stage 
was  often  "held  up,"  the  driver  knocked  off  and  told  to  "Git !"  while  the  passen- 
gers were  relieved  of  their  valuables.  The  poor  horses  suffered  the  most.  Two 
months  were  as  long  as  a  horse  could  do  his  work  there ;  then  he  had  to  be  brought 
home  and  recuperated.  This  was  the  last  straw.  They  used  to  joke  father  about 
his  horse-frames.  He  re-let  the  line  from  Lewis  to  Fort  Kearney.  I  couldn't 
learn  when  the  Great  Western  Stage  Company  put  on  a  daily  from  Des  Moines 
to  Winterset,  but  I  think  it  was  i860.  That  road  had  portions  that  were  dreaded 
by  all  who  passed  over  it.  Tip-overs  were  common,  although  the  road  was  being 
worked,  for  Iowa  is  no  laggard  on  road  making.  Father  had  the  route  from 
De  Soto  when  cars  reached  that  point.  On  the  way  was  a  hill  that  was  a  terror 
to  the  people  who  had  to  drive  down  it.  In  times  of  bad  roads,  father  often  went 
along  to  pilot  and  teach  the  men  how  to  make  a  certain  curve  in  the  road  so  as 
not  to  tip  over.  That  route  came  the  nearest  to  keeping  him  awake  nights  of 
anything  I  ever  knew  of.  In  these  years  I've  seen  loaded  wagons  stalled  on  the 
east  and  west  sides  of  the  square.  In  '61  I  cannot  recall  a  foot  of  sidewalk  in 
this  city!  There  was  none  in  front  of  the  St.  Nicholas — just  big  cobblestones 
sunk  in  the  mud,  from  which  your  feet  often  slipped  into  the  mud  ankle  deep. 

But  it  was  a  bustling  town,  with  a  good  many  young  people.  We  had  jolly 
times — but  we  girls  didn't  go  to  meet  the  stage  as  girls  meet  the  trains  now; 
but  when  the  crack  of  the  driver's  whip  and  the  rumbling  of  the  coach  wheels 
over  the  stony  road  announced  the  approaching  stage  coach,  men  and  boys  could 
be  seen  hurrying  toward  the  hotel,  where  it  made  its  first  stop,  from  all  direc- 
tions, from  all  points  of  the  compass ;  so  by  the  time  the  coach  was  swept  up  to 
the  hotel,  the  galloping  horses  reined  in  "all  of  a  sudden,"  there  was  quite  an 
audience.  The  passengers  climbed  clumsily  down  from  the  high  coach,  hobbled 
over  the  cobblestones  into  the  hotel,  and  Sam  Holiday  asked  them  "what  they 
wanted."  The  agent  was  in  the  meantime  promptly  yelling  to  the  driver  to 
"Hand  down  that  way-bill !"  Eight  persons  could  ride  comfortably  in  the  coach, 
but  there  was  often  a  boisterous  command  from  the  agent  to  "make  room  for 


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404  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

three  more  in  there!"    "Pleases"  and  "beg  pardons'*  didn't  permeate  our  sen- 
tences as  at  present. 

The  driver  was  a  man  of  note,  often  notorious.  The  skill  with  which  he 
cracked  his  long-lashed  whip  was  the  envy  of  the  boys.  His  whole  arm  move- 
ment fascinated  them.  They  spent  hours  practicing,  which  kept  ladies'  nerves  on 
edge.  The  regular  stage  driver's  "make-up"  was  striking.  When  equiK)ed  to 
mount  his  throne,  he  usually  wore  a  light  slouched  hat,  a  wee  bit  on  one  side, 
his  face  adorned  with  a  big  mustache,  out  of  which  protruded  a  cigar,  for  he 
had  much  attention — treats  of  various  sorts.  He  sported  a  gray  cravat,  woolen 
shirt,  turn-down  collar,  plaid  coat,  his  feet  encased  in  big,  long-legged,  red-topped 
boots,  into  which  his  pants  were  tucked ;  over  all  a  long  fur  coat,  in  winter,  and 
"tippet"  of  three  or  four  yards  in  length,  wound  several  times  around  his  neck, 
one  end  thrown  gracefully  over  the  right  shoulder  and  streaming  bravely  out 
behind;  he  also  sported  large  gauntlet  gloves.  His  position  while  driving  was 
impressive.  With  reins  between  his  fingers,  leaning  to  one  side,  his  elbows 
bowed,  every  lineament  of  his  bpdy  expressed  his  satisfaction.  He  exempli- 
fied one  driver's  answer  to  a  critical  passenger,  "While  I  drive  this  coach  I  am 
the  whole  United  States." 

At  the  time  of  our  war,  draft  stage  drivers  were  exempt,  as  already  being 
in  their  country's  service,  and  many  cowards  were  sworn  in  as  stage  drivers, 
who  couldn't  have  mounted  a  coach  and  driven  two  blocks  without  an  accident. 
This  law  was  so  abused  that  it  was  soon  repealed.  Father  had  one  southerner 
who  had  sneaked  north  and  taken  advantage  of  this  act.  He  was  a  good  driver ; 
his  horses  he  kept  in  good  order,  but  at  the  repeal  of  the  "exempt"  law  he  hur- 
ried to  Canada,  and  from  there  on  to  the  ocean.  After  he  had  gone,  they  found 
that  he  had  done  what  they  called  "doped"  his  horses,  and  it  took  some  time  to 
bring  them  back  to  their  normal  condition. 

The  stage  line  entered  Madison  County  at  the  southeast,  stopping  at  St. 
Charles,  which  was  a  worse  mudhole  than  Winterset.  The  first  stop  west  of 
Winterset  was  out  seven  miles — a  postoffice,  I  think,  kept  by  a  McHockenberry. 
In  those  days  the  mail  bag  was  dragged  into  the  house,  unlocked,  and  its  con- 
tents poured  on  the  floor  as  you'd  empty  a  sack  of  flour.  Some  made  quick  work 
of  finding  their  portion,  while  in  other  places  the  whole  family  knelt  around  the 
mail  matter,  and  each  one  examined  every  letter  and  package,  shaking  the  letters 
to  learn  if  there  was  any  money  in  them.  Such  place  received  all  the  driver's 
spare  time,  by  request  of  mail  contractor.  McHockenberry  wasn't  of  this  sort. 
He  could  be  depended  on  for  prpmpt  action.  It  don't  take  much  space  to  say, 
"That  man  attends  to  his  business,"  but  it  means  a  long.parag^ph. 

Fourteen  miles  out  of  Winterset  was  Arbor  Hill,  where  driver  and  horses 
were  changed.  The  drivers  and  agents  were  too  often  changed  to  remember 
their  names.  One  I  knew  was  John  Dennison.  He  was  a  -large,  good-natured, 
knowing  man.  His  wife  was  a  fine  cook.  When  greenbacks  first  became  a  "legal 
tender,"  father  went  over  the  road  to  "pay  up,"  and  laid  out  the  greenbacks.  Mr. 
Dennison  said:  "What's  them  things.  Colonel?"  Father  explained.  "No,  you 
don't  get  me.  I  won't  have  nothin'  but  gold!"  More  explanations  followed. 
"Don't  make  no  diflFerence — I  won't  take  nothin'  but  gold."  Father's  patience 
was  tried ;  he  sprang  to  the  door,  called  in  the  driver  and  said*  "See  here,  Bill 
I  call  you  to  witness  that  I  oflFer  this  man  this  money.    Now,  Mr.  Dennison,  I've 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  405 

fulfilled  the  law,  and  you  can  take  this  money  or  your  nothin'."  He  took 
greenbacks. 

The  next  was  a  postoffice  at  Greenfield.  We  usually  went  through  there 
in  the  ni^ht.  Fontanelle  was  the  next  point.  It  was  a  small  but  growing  town, 
with  a  good  hotel,  grocery,  blacksmith  shop  and  a  nice  large  schoolhouse,  in 
which  they  had  preaching  occasionally.  The  town  was  not  very  devout.  Here 
again  was  change  of  driver  and  horses.  No  one  was  anxious  for  this  stage,  as  it 
included  a  sixteen-mile  prairie,  without  one  house  to  break  the  monotony.  The 
out  trip  across  it  was  made  during  the  night.  To  lose  the  road  was  too  common 
for  comment.  Father  would  often  come  in  saying:  "Get  me  my  big  blanket.  I 
must  go  up  the  road.  The  driver  at  Fontanelle  wants  to  quit*' — or  is  a  new  one, 
or  a  horse  is  sick,  lame,  or  it's  too  dark,  muddy  or  snowy  to  trust  a  driver  alone 
across  that  prairie.  One  night  the  snow  had  covered  the  ground,  and  three  times 
the  driver  called,  "Colonel,  Fm  oflF  the  road !"  Father  would  get  out,  walk  back 
and  forth  in  opposite  directions  of  the  road,  and  so  find  it.  One  of  the  passen- 
gers remarked :  "Who  is  that  accommodating  fellow  ?  They  would  find  the  road 
themselves  for  all  me!"  After  the  sixteen-mile  prairie  came  Whitneyville. 
Frank  Whitney  and  his  little,  pretty  and  deaf  wife  owned  a  fine  farm  there. 
Frank  became  ambitious  and  laid  out  a  town  on  it,  built  a  good  schoolhouse, 
hired  a  young  lady  teacher  at  $35  a  month,  as  there  was  plenty  of  money  in  the 
school  fund  for  the  three  pupils  in  the  school  district.  Last  I  knew  of  the  town 
there  had  been  two  houses  built.  The  last  stop  and  "Face  about !"  was  Lewis. 
There  were  very  good  people  there — no  saloons,  but  one  grocery  sold  beer. 
There  were  no  licenses  then. 

All  along  the  stage  line  the  stage  coach  was  a  pleasing  feature  to  the  people, 
and  any  family  felt  quite  "sot  up"  if  the  stage  swung  up  to  their  gate  with  a 
package  or  message.  The  whole  family — ^to  the  last  dog  and  cat — came  out  with 
smiling  greeting.  It  broke  the  monotony  of  their  life.  We  were  not  flushed  with 
amusements  in  those  days. 

The  arrival  of  the  coach  took  on  greater  interest  during  the  war.  It  was 
watched  for,  and  as  it  neared  the  postoffice,  from  every  direction  came  people, 
many  of  them  women  whose  husbands  were  in  the  army.  They  came  through  the 
fields,  along  the  wayside  and  road,  often  with  babies  in  their  arms,  leading  an- 
other, while  one,  two,  three  or  four  followed,  trotted  ahead  or  ran  a  race  with  the 
coach.  It  was  a  pathetic  scene  after  the  stage  had  gone.  There  was  always 
some  sonorous-voiced  man  who  delighted  to  read  a  late  paper  to  the  gathering. 
He  often  stumbled  over  the  big  words,  but  the  listeners  were  too  interested  to 
note  small  defects  if  they  sensed  it.  No  wonder  that  this  country  is  so  patriotic  t 
They  inherited  it  from  both  parents. 

I  am  sorry  an  old  stage  coach  cannot  talk.    What  interesting  tales  we'd  hear ! 

There  came  a  time  when  the  coach  was  loaded  to  its  limit  with  men  all  in  blue, 
who,  without  a  quiver,  went  to  face  death  for  home  and  native  land.  Later, 
many  a  wife  and  mother  received  their  wounded  and  sick  soldier  from  the  same 
stage  coach.  He  hadn't  been  crowded  on  his  return  trip.  The  pompous  agent 
was  as  tender  as  a  woman.  The  driver  couldn't  have  been  hired  to  crack  his  whip. 
Long  stops  were  made  for  the  sick  soldier  to  rest.  The  long  grass  on  the  sixteen- 
mile  prairie  made  a  downy  couch.    The  mail  on  time?    It  was  not  considered. 


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406  HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY 

Uncle  Sam's  mail  took  the  second  place  to  Uncle  Sam's  boys  in  blue.     That 
soldier  boy  was  to  them  the  whole  United  States. 

THE  EVOLUTION  OF  FENCING 

(Read  Before  the  Madison  County  Historical  Society  by  Sidney  Wilkinson.) 

The  mode  of  fencing  has  passed  through  several  changes  since  this  county 
was  settled.  The  reason  for  this  was,  first,  the  failure  of  the  native  supply  of 
material,  and  then  the  advance  of  civilization  and  arts  created  a  desire  for  better 
conditions  than  prevailed  in  the  days  of  "Auld  Lang  Syne." 

The  first  fencing  in  this  country,  as  everyone  knows,  was  the  old-fashioned 
rail  fence,  but  when  well  done  made  a  very  formidable  barrier  against  unruly, 
stock.  The  timber  was  first  cut  into  logs  usually  ten  feet  long,  then  split  into 
rails  and  afterwards  hauled  to  the  place  where  needed  and  built  into  fence.  Rail- 
splitting  was  pretty  hard  work;  a  good  hand  in  fair  timber  would  cut  and  split 
from  one  hundred  to  two  hundred  rails  in  a  day.  Some  extra  hands  would  do 
considerably  better  than  that,  while  the  timber  was  unculled  and  they  had  the 
pick  of  the  trees.  The  speed  in  rail-making  depended  to  some  extent  on  the 
time  of  year — the  timber  worked  better  in  the  fall  and  spring  than  when  the 
frost  was  in  the  trees.  A  fence  eight  rails  high,  staked  and  ridered,  provided  it 
was  four  and  a  half  or  five  feet  high  and  the  lower  cracks  about  four  inches,  was 
considered  a  lawful  fence.  The  rail  fence  was  all  the  fence  used  for  several  years, 
until  the  sawmills  came  in,  then  there  was  some  board  fences  made,  but  the  board 
fence  was  not  much  used  until  the  railroads  began  to  bring  the  pine  lumber  from 
the  pineries,  and  by  that  time  the  supply  of  rail  timber  of  the  county  was  pretty 
well  exhausted. 

The  board  fence  was  always  an  expensive  fence  to  build,  and  when  it  hegaLti 
to  break  it  was  not  as  easily  repaired  as  the  rail  fence ;  consequently  it  was  never 
as  popular  as  the  rail  fence  was  in  its  time,  as  a  conmion  farm  fence.  A  lawful 
board  fence  was  five  six-inch  boards  to  the  panel,  nailed  on  to  good  posts  with 
lower  cracks  about  four  inches — height  of  fence  at  first  fifty-four  inches,  after- 
wards forty-eight  inches. 

Just  before  the  Civil  war  they  began  to  plant  osage  for  a  hedge  fence,  and 
a  few  years  after  the  willow  fence  was  introduced,  neither  of  which  made  a 
satisfactory  hedge  fence. 

A  short  time  before  i860  the  people  of  this  county  became  interested  in 
a  more  economical  mode  of  fencing,  and  the  hog  law,  as  it  was  called,  was  voted 
on,  and  the  winter  before  the  first  vote  on  the  hog  law  the  question  was  pretty 
thoroughly  discussed  in  the  little  lyceums  at  the  schoolhouses  in  the  county.  I 
remember  in  one  instance  one  man,  in  his  argument  against  the  law,  said  they 
had  a  hog  law  in  Indiana,  where  he  lived,  and  that  a  man  was  liable  to  a  fine  for 
allowing  his  hogs  to  run  at  large.  He  said  his  hogs  broke  out  one  time  and  he 
was  afraid  to  inquire  for  them  for  fear  some  of  his  neighbors  would  inform  on 
him  and  have  him  fined,  and  some  one  on  the  other  side  that  knew  claimed  he  was 
just  as  popular  with  his  neighbors  in  Indiana  as  he  was  in  Iowa.  But  the  idea  of 
a  hog  law  was  very  unpopular  at  that  time  and  when  the  vote  came  it  was  defeated 
by  a  large  majority  and  once  or  twice  afterwards  it  suflfered  the  same  fate,  but 
each  time  with  less  opposition. 


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HISTORY  OF  MADISON  COUNTY  407 

About  1870,  or  may  be  a  little  later,  most  of  the  counties  of  the  state  being  very 
largely  imder  herd  law  conditions,  especially  in  the  west  and  north,  the  legislature 
passed  a  general  hog  and  sheep  law.  This  law  came  into  force  about  the  time  the 
barb  wire  fence  was  introduced  and  in  a  few  years  the  three-barb-wire  fence 
became  the  most  common  fence  of  the  county  and  it  has  been  many  times  asserted 
that  it  has  killed  and  crippled  enough  stock  to  pay  the  expense  of  fencing  the 
whole  county  with  a  better  type  of  fence.  Soon  after  the  hog  law  was  passed  a 
large  part  of  the  people  became  interested  in  a  general  stock  law,  but  they  were 
not  able  to  get  a  majority  in  its  favor  until  shortly  after  the  year  1890. 

At  that  time  the  land  in  the  county  was  all  fenced  up  and  the  stock  in  the  lanes 
had  become  such  a  nuisance  that  the  general  stock  restrain  law  was  voted  by  the 
people  hf  a  large  majority.  Some  types  of  fence  appeared  in  the  evolution  of 
fencing  in  this  county  that  were  not  of  such  magnitude  as  to  call  for  an  extensive 
mention  here.  In  different  parts  of  the  county  we  found  a  very  little  stone  fence 
and  on  a  good  many  farms  the  picket  or  slat  and  wire  fence  appeared  some  years 
ago,  about  the  time  the  woven  wire  fence  was  first  introduced. 

The  woven  wire  fence  is  the  best  fence  for  the  money  we  have  ever  had  and  is 
destined  in  a  short  time  to  supplant  most  of  the  former  types  as  a  farm  fence. 
I  do  not  know  what  the  law  is  in  regard  to  woven  wire  fence,  but  if  we  take  almost 
any  of  the  different  kinds  found  on  the  market,  say  from  thirty  to  forty  inches 
high  or  more,  and  have  our  comer  posts  well  set  in  cement  or  otherwise  to  make 
them  perfectly  firm  in  the  ground  and  have  them  well  braced,  then  stretch  our 
fence  well  and  staple  it  on  to  good  posts  set  about  one  rod  apart  and  supplement 
the  woven  part  with  from  two  to  four  barb  wires  on  top  properly  spaced,  I  do  not 
think  our  neighbors  will  complain  of  our  not  having  a  lawful  fence. 

The  prevailing  scarcity  of  material  for  fence  posts  is  becoming  a  serious 
problem. 

The  destruction  of  the  old  hedge  fences  in  the  county  of  late  years  has  sup- 
plied a  vast  number  of  excellent  posts,  but  that  supply  will  soon  be  exhausted  and 
some  other  means  will  have  to  be  found  to  supply  the  demand. 

The  cement  post  is  now  on  trial,  and  from  present  indications  the  cement  post 
is  destined,  in  a  great  measure,  to  become  the  fence  post  of  the  future. 


\ 


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INDEX 


A.  F.  &  A.  M. 

Model  Lodge,  No.  315 

Madison  Lodge,  No.  568 

Ivy  Lodge,  No.  483 

Evening  Star  Lodge  of  Winterset .... 

Afton  Bridge  Mill,  The 

Agriculture,  Indian    

Agricultural  Sogiety  of  Madison  County 

Officers  of  

A.  O.  U.  W.,  Winterset  Lodge,  No.  71. . 

Appraisement  of  Lots 46,  47,  48,  49, 

As  a  Boy  Saw  It 

Attorneys,  County,  ft-om  1887  to  1915 
Auditors,  County,  from  1869  to  1915. 


B 


Backbone  Mill,  The 

Bank  of  Earlham 

Bank  of  Macksburg 

Baptist  Churches. 95, 

Bar,  The 

Early  Members   

Present  Members   

Barker  Mill,   The 

Barney,  Village  of 

Barrow  Mill,  The  Seth 

Battle  of  Union  Township 

Bedsteads,  Pioneer   

Bench,  The   

Bertholf  Mill,  The  Andrew 

Bertholf  Mill,  The  James 

Bethany  Limestone,  The 

Bevington,  Village  of 

Bishop,  Rev.  J.  G.,  Reminiscences  of 

Black  Hawk,  Chief 

Bluff^Road,  The  Famous 

Bountiful  Crops  in  1846 

Breaking  out  a  Farm 

Bridges  

Bridge  Warrants  


Buffalo  Mill,  The 152 

Buffalo  Mills    284 

Burials,  Early   163 

264 

328  .  C 

359 

376      California  Trails   166 

153      Call  for  Volunteers,  Civil  War 185 

15      Campbell  Mill,  The 152 

244      Camp  Meetings,  The  First 91 

246      Carboniferous  Age,  The 4 

381      Carpenters  and  Joiners,  Early 162 

,  55      Catholic  Churches 94,  346 

281      Cement 10 

72      Cemeteries,  Indian    : .     15 

71      Census,  The  First,  in  1849 399 

Chautauqua  Association,  Madison  County  218 

Chicago,  Burlington  and  Quincy  Railroad  175 

Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railroad  }73 

^.^      Chicago,  St.  Paul  and  Kansas  City  Rail- 

22^  road    174 

ggg      Christian  Churches :95,  359 

«-^      Church  of  Christ  Churches.. 97,  261,  298,  328 

Church,   The   First 90 

jQg      Churches 

- -^  Baptist   93,  354 

jg^  Catholic    94,346 

2^2  Christian    95,  359 

j5 J  Church  of  Christ 97,  261,  298,  328 

-  2g  Episcopal    94 

j5g  Friends   98,  223,  226 

104  German  Lutheran   340 

.go  Methodist  Episcopal 92,  261,  353 

^  Presbyterian    93,  261 

United  Brethren    97 

United  Presbirterian 96,  259 

305 

Circuit  Court,  Abolishment  of 72 

^^^  Citizens  National  Bank  of  Winterset...  373 

^^      Citizens  State  Bank  of  Earlham 327 

^''1      City  Hall,  Winterset 370 

24      City  Park,  Winterset 371 

158  Civn  War  Period 

172  Call   for  Volunteers 185 

173  Enlistments    188 

409 


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410 


INDEX 


Madison  County  Acts 186 

Roll  of  Honor 190 

Caaim  Club,  The  Madison  County 126 

aanton  Family,  The 22 

aark's,  Caleb,  Stories 292 

Clayton  County  Comes  to  Madison 228 

Clerks  of  Commissioners'  Court 70 

Clerks   of  District  Court   from   1849   to 

1915    70 

Coal  Measures,  Middle  River  Valky... .       4 

Combs  Mill,  The 151 

Commissioners'  Court 

First  Meeting    36 

Clerks   of    70 

Proceedings    36 

Second  Meeting 38 

Commissioners,   Board   of   County 69 

Company  G,  Fifty-fifth  Regiment,  N.  G.  I.  220 
Coroners,  County,  from  1849  to  1915 . . .     71 

Country   Club,  Winterset 382 

County  Buildings   57 

County  Fairs   244 

The  First 244,  248 

County  Farm,  The 65 

County  Government,  Systems  of 34 

County   Judges    70 

County  Officials 

The  First    30 

From  1849  to   1914 69 

County,  Organization  of 29 

County  Seat,  Selection  of 31 

Naming  of    33 

Courthouse,  A  Bit  of  History 62-65 

Coui'thouse,  Dedication  oif 61 

Courthouse,  The  Old  Log 57 

Courthouse,   The  Present 60 

Crawford  Township    300 

Creston,  Winterset  &  Des  Moines  Rail- 
road     175,   355 


Daughters  of  Rebecca 

Crown  Lodge,  No.  360 381 

Hawthorne  Chapter,  No.  350 355 

Marguerite  Lodge,  No.  233 329 

No.  469,  of  St.  Charles 264 

Des  Moines,  Winterset  &  Southern  Rail- 
road      174 

District  Court,  The  First 104 

District  Judges 

The  First    106 

Those  that  Followed 107 

Douglas  Township    288 

Douglas  Township,  The  Land  of  Poetry.  294 

Drake  Ford  Mill,  The 153 


E 

Earlham  Academy    326 

Earlham,  City  of 

Electric   System    325 

Financial    327 

Fraternal    328 

Incorporation    324 

Park   326 

Religious    327 

Schools    326 

Waterworks    325 

Early  Acts  of  Madison  County,  Civil  War  186 

Early  Settlement,  Reminiscences  of 396 

Early  Settlers,  The 22,  24,  27,  228 

Early  Settlers  from  Clayton  County 229 

Early  Transportation,  Incidents  of 401 

East  Peru,  Village  of 309 

Reminiscent    * 311 

Echo,  The  Earlham 116 

Educational  78 

Elections 

Early    t 25 

The  First 25,  66 

The  First  in  Center,  South  and  Union 

Townships 68 

Enlistments,  Civil  War. 186 

Episcopal   Churches    . .  .*. 94 

F 

Fairs,  County 244 

The    First 244,  248 

Farmers'  Institute,  Madison  County 243 

Officers    of    243 

Farmers  Mutual  Insurance  Company...  243 

Fencing,  Evolution  of 406 

Fidler,    Cemetery    274 

Fife,  Samuel,  Recollections  of 265 

Fifteenth   Infantry    195 

Fifth   Cavalry 213 

Fight  between  Guye  and  Jones 130 

Fire  Department,  Winterset 371 

First  Bank  in  Winterset,  The 367 

First  Cavalry 209 

First   Census,   The 399 

First   Decade,   The 368 

First  Marriage  in  the  County,  The 25 

First- National  Bank  of  Winterset 372 

First  Settler,   The.., 20 

First  Settler  in  Winterset,  The 365 

First  Steam  Mill,  The 393 

Formations,  Geological    3 

FQrty:eighth  Infantry   208 

Forty-seventh  Infantry   206 

Fourth  Cavalry   . . r  •      ;  • : 210 

Fourth  Infantry   191 

Friends  Churches 98,  223,  226 


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INDEX 


411 


G.  A.  R. 

John  Miller  Post,  No.  158 263 

Pitzer  Post,  No.  55 383 

General    Assembly,    Members    of,    from 

Madison  County   74 

German  Element  in  Jefferson  Township.   333 

German  Lutheran  Churches 340 

German  Settlement  in  Penn  Township..  395 

Gilpin,  Judge,  Reminiscences  of 110 

Glacier   Age,   The. 7 

Good  Roads  Association 220 

Gordon  Band,  The 299 

Grand  River  Toisnship 349 

Guye  Family,  The 14,  22 

Guye  Schoolhouse,  The 273 

H 

Hartman   Mill,   The 155 

Hawkeye,  The  St.  Charles 116 

Hiatt  and  Brown  Mill,  The 154 

Highland  Nobles 

Glencoe  Castle,  No.  16 382 

Historical  Society,  Madison  County 217 

Hockenberry  Mill,  The 154 

Hoosicr  Prairie   282 

Horseback  Riding  in  the  Early  Days...  167 

Huglin   Mill,   The 152 

Hurst,  Hiram,  The  First  Settler 20 

I 

Incorporation  of   Winterset 368 

Indians 

Agriculture   15 

Cemeteries   15 

Chief   Blackhawk    19 

Religious   Views    19 

Method  of  Burial 17 

Removal  of  13 

Treaty  of  1842 13 

Villages 12,  13,  14,  16 

I.  0.  O.  F. 

St.  CSiarles  Lodge,  No.  416 264 

Madison   Encampment,  No.   146 264 

Earlham  Lodge,  No.  546 323 

Grand  River  Lodge,  No.  406 355 

Macksburg  Encampment,  No.  186 355 

Madison  Lodge,  No.  136 381 

Rock  City  Encampment,  No.  63 381 

Irish  Settlement  in  Crawford  Township  302 

Irish  Settlement  in  Lee  Township 345 

Growth   of 348 


Jackson  Township    .*  341 

Jail,  The  first ". 58 

The  Present  60 

Jefferson   Township    330 

Judges,  County   70 


K 


K.  and  L.  S. 

Winterset  Council,  No.  219 382 

Kansan  Drift,  The 7 

Kentucky  Colony  in  Scott  Township...  280 

Keokuk  &  Western  Raitroad 175 

K.  O.  B.,  Backbone  Tent,  No.  54 381 

K.  P. 

Truro  Lodge,  No.  330 359 

Lotus  Lodge,  No.  48 381 

L 

Lee   Township 344 

Legal  Profession,  The. 108 

Light  Artillery    214 

Limestone 10 

Lincoln  Township   296 

Loess,  or  Topsoil,  The 9 

Log  Houses,  Pioneer 156 

Raisings   157 

L.  O.  M.,  Winterset  Hive,  No.  32......  381 

Lot  Sale  in  Winterset 364 


M 


Macksburg,  Village  of 

Financial   353 

Fraternal    355 

Incorporation    352 

Railroad 355 

Religious    '. 353 

Settlement  of    351 

Madison  County  State  Bank  of  Winterset  373 

Madison  Township   320 

Madisonian,  The  Winterset 114 

Marriage,    The   First 123 

Marriages,   Early    123 

Mayors  of  Winterset,  List  of 369 

Medical  Profession,  The 99 

Medical  Society,  The  M^ison  County. .  102 

Method  of  Burial,  Indian 17 

Methodist  Episcopal  Churches ...  92,  261,  353 
Middle   River  Valley,  Geological   Struc- 
ture of   ...:.......  4 

Mill,  The  First 150 

MiUs  and  Mill  Sites 

150,  151,  152,   153,  154,  155 


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412 


INDEX 


Miscellaneous  Enlistments,  Civil  War. .  214 

Monroe  Township 360 

M.  W.  A. 

Camp  No.  2890,  of  St.  Charles 264 

Earlham  Camp,  No.  2162 329 

Evergreen  Camp,  No.  4133 355 

Truro  Camp,  No.  9823 359 

Winterset  Camp,  No.  302 381 

N 

News,  The  Winterset 115 

News,  The  St.  Charles 116 

Newspaper,  The  First 114 

Newspapers 

Echo,  The  Earlham 116 

Hawkeye,  The  St.  Charles 116 

Madisonian,  The  Winterset 114 

News,  The  St.  Charles 116 

News,   The   Winterset 115 

Record,  The  Macksburg 116 

Reporter,  The   Winterset 115 

Watchman,  The  St.  Charles 116 

Ninth  Cavalry   213 

0 

O.  E.  S. 

Model  Chapter  of  St.  Charles 264 

Earlham  Chapter    328 

Winterset  Chapter,  No.  180 381 

Officials,. County,  from  1849  to  1914... 69-74 

Ohio   Township    356 

Old  Settlers'  Association 220,  262 

Organization  of  the  County 29 

P 

Patrons  of  Husbandry 240 

Patterson,   Village   of 304 

Penn   Center  Picnic. ; 319 

Penn  Township  316 

P.  E.  O.,  Chapter  A.  G.,  of  Winterset. 381,  382 

Petitions,  Early  Road 170 

Phipps    Mill,  The 155" 

Physicians 

The  First    99 

Pioneer    99 

Present   Day    102 

Those  That  Came  Later 100 

Pioneer  Life " 156 

Pioneer  Merchant  and  Store 392 

Pioneer  Merchants  of  Winterset 366 

Political   66 

Political  Meetings,  Early 235 

Population    248 

Postmaster,  The  First 117 


Postoffice,  The  First 117 

PostofBces 

Bevington    118 

Discontinued 118,  119,  120,  121,  122 

Earlham    118 

East   Peru    118 

Macksburg    122 

Patterson 118 

St.  Charles 118 

Truro    122 

Winterset    117 

Prairie   Fires    165 

Prairie   Grass,  Harvesting 162 

Preacher,  The  First - .     90 

Precincts    66,  67 

Presbyterian  Churches 93,  261 

Press,  The    114 

Primitive  School,  A 255,  290 

Public  Library,   Winterset 373 


Q 


Quakers,  Contention  and  Division 226 

Quaker  Meeting  Houses 223 

Quaker  Settlement  in  Madison  County. .  221 

Quakers,   The   First 221 


Railroads 

Chicago,  Burlington  &  Quincy 175 

Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific 173 

Chicago,  St.  Paul  &  Kansas  City 174 

Creston,  Winterset  &  Des  Moines.  175,  355 

Des  Moines,  Winterset  &  Southern ...  174 

Keokuk  &  Western 175 

Rathbone  Sisters 

Winterset  Temple,  No.  105 381 

Recollections  of  Samuel  Fife 265 

Record,  The  Macksburg 116 

Recorders,  County,  from  1849  to  1915..  70 

Reeves  War,  The 134 

Reigle  Mill,  The 150 

Religious  Organizations 90-98 

Religious  Views  of  Indians 19 

Reminiscences  of  Judge  Gilpin 110 

Reminiscences  of  Rev.  J.  G.  Bishop 396 

Reminiscent,   East  Peru 311 

Reminiscent,  South  Township 254 

Reporter,   The   Winterset 115 

Republican    Party,    Organization    of    in 

Madison  County 75-77 

Roads,  Early   169 

Road  Petitions,   Early 170 

Rock  City  Cemetery,  Winterset 372 

Roll  of  Honor 

Fifteenth  Infantry   195 


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INDEX 


413 


Fifth  Cavalry 213 

First   Cavalry    209 

Forty-eighth  Infantry   208 

Forty-seventh    Infantry    206 

Fourth  Cavalry   210 

Fourth  Infantry    191 

Miscellaneous    214 

Light  Artillery    214 

Ninth  Cavalry   213 

Sixteenth  Infantry   196 

Tenth  Infantry   194 

Third  Infantry    190 

Thirty-fourth  Infantry   206 

Thirty-ninth  Infantry   201 

Twenty-third  Infantry    196 

Veteran  Corps,  Tenth  Infantry 208 

Roll  of  Honor,  Civil  War. 190 

Removal  of  the  Indians,  The 13 

Royal  Neighbors 

Earlham  Camp,  No.  2439 329 

Juniata  Camp,  No.  1428,  of  Winterset  381 


8 


St.  Charles,  City  of 

Financial   258 

Incorporation    257 

Location     256 

Religious    259 

Schools    259 

St.  Charles  Park  &  Improvement  Asso- 
ciation      262 

St.  Charles  Savings  Bank 258 

School  Laws,  Early 79 

School,  The  First 78,  233 

School  Districts,  The  First 79-84 

School  System,  Free,  Beginnings  of 234 

Schools,  Development  of 84-89 

Schools,   Earlham    326 

Schools,  Early   233 

School,  The  First  in  Union  Township . . .   272 

Scott  Township   279 

Sensational  Wake,  A 274 

Settlers,.  Early    228 

Settlers,  Early,  from  Clayton  County . .   229 

Settler,  The  First 20 

Sewerage,  Winterset    370 

Sheriffs,  County,  from  1849  to  1915 70 

Shoemakers  and  Repairers,  Pioneer 161 

Sixteenth  Infantry   196 

Snake  Hunt  of  1848 236 

Societies,  Fraternities  and  Clubs 

A.  F.  &  A.  M 264,  328,  359,  376 

A.  O.  U.  W 381 

Chautauqua  Association   218 

Company  G,  Fifty-fifth  Regiment,  N. 
G.  1 220 


Country  Club,  Winterset 382 

Daughters  of  Rebekah . .  264,  329,  355,  381 

Farmers'  Institute    243 

G.  A.  R 263,  383 

Good  Roads  Association 220 

Highland    Nobles    382 

Historical  Society  217 

L  O.  O.  F 264,  328,  355,  381 

K.  &  L.  S 382 

K.  O.  B 381 

K.  P. 359,  381 

L.  0.  M 381 

Madison  County  Agricultural  Society  244 

Madison  County  Medical  Society 102 

M.  W.  A 264,  329,  355,  359,  381 

O.  E.  S 264,  328,  381 

Old  Settlers'  Association 220,  262 

Patrons   of  Husbandry 240 

P.  E.  0 381,  382 

Rathbone   Sisters    381 

Royal   Neighbors 329,   381 

Woodmen   Circle    382 

W.  0.  W 381 

Woman's  Qub  of  Winterset 382 

W.  R.  C 355,  358,  384,  387 

Yeomen    265 

Soldiers'  Monument    215 

South  Township    250 

Speculators'  Lands   133 

Statement  of  Lots  Sold  and  Funds  on 

Hand,  1851   53 

Stone  Quarry  in  Madison  Township 321 

Street  Paving,  Winterset 370 

Sugar  Groves 180,  181,  182 

Sugar  Trees  and  Camps 179 

Sulgrove  MUl,  The 151 

Superintendent  of  Schools,  County,  from 

1849  to  1915 71 

Supervisors,  Board  of  County,  from  1861 

to  1915    72 

Surveyors,  County,  from  1849  to  1915..     71 
Swamp  Lands,  Sale  of 138 


Taxpayers  in  1850 256 

Teacher's  Certificate,  An  Old 88 

Teachers'  Institute   88 

Tenth  Infantry    194 

Third  Infantry 190 

Thirty-fourth  Infantry   206 

Thirty-ninth  Infantry   201 

Townsites,  Lost  and  Forgotten 144-149 

Transportation    169 

Transportation,  Incidents  of  Early 401 

Treasurers,  County,  from  1865  to  1915 . .     70 
Treaty  of  1842 13 


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414 


INDEX 


Truro  Savings  Bank 358 

Truro,  Village  of 

Financial    358 

First   Settlement    358 

Fraternal   359 

Religious   359 

Twenty-third  Infantry    196 

U 

Underground  Railroad,  The 183 

Underground   Station   Agents. .    ... 183 

Union  Township   269 

United  Presbyterian  Churches 96,  259 

United  Brethren  Churches 97 

V 

Veteran  Corps,  Tenth  Infantry. 208 

Vigilants,  The   134 

Villages,  Indian 12,  13,  14,  16 

W 

Walnut   Township  307 

Warrants,  Bridge   173 

Watchman,  The  St.  Charles 116 

Waterworks,  Winterset 370 

Webster  Mill,  The 154 

Webster  Township   313 

Webster,  Village  of 314 

Weller  Mill,  The 152 

When  the  Stove  Came 160 

Wild  Animals   176 

Wild  Fruits  and  Nuts 178 

Wild  Turkeys    177 


Winterset,  City  of 

City  Hall    370 

aty  Park 371 

Clubs  and  Societies 382 

Financial   372 

Fire  Department   371 

First   Decade    368 

First   Settler    365 

First   Steam  Mill 393 

Fraternal    376 

Incorporation    368 

Location    363 

Mayors,  List   of 369 

Pioneer  Merchants 366,  389 

Public    Library    373 

Rock  Hill  Cemetery 372 

Sale   of   Lots 364 

Sewerage   370 

Street  Paving    370 

Waterworks    370 

Winterset  in    1864 389 

Winterset  Savings  Bank  of  Winterset . .  373 

Woman's  Cluh  of  Winterset 382 

Woodmen  Circle 

Boxelder  Grove,  No.   72 382 

Wood's  Mill,  The 151 

W.  O.  W.,  Madison  Camp,  No.  100 381 

W.  R.  C. 

Pitzer  Corps,  No.  117 384 

John  Miller  Corps,  No.  242 387 

Jonathan  Roby  Corps,  No.  341 358 

Samuel  Irwin  Corps,  No.  344 387 

J.  D.  Craven  Corps,  No.  322 355,  387 


Yeomen,  St.  Charles  Homestead,  No.  200,  265 


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