NYPL RESEARCH LIBRARIES
3 3433 08192089 8
HISTORY
OF
MILLS COUNTY, IOWA
CONTAINING
A HISTORY OF THE COUNTY, ITS CITIES, TOWNS, ETC.
A BIOGRAPHICAL DIRECTORY OF MANY OF ITS LEADING CITIZENS, WAR
RECORD OF ITS VOLUNTEERS IN THE LATE REBELLION, GENERAL AND
LOCAL STATISTICS, PORTRAITS OF EARLY SETTLERS AND PROMI-
NENT MEN, HISTORY OF IOWA AND THE NORTHWEST, MAP OF
MILLS COUNTY, CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE OF IOWA,
REMINISCENCES, MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS, ETC.
I L L U S T R A T JE D .
DES MOINES:
STATE HISTORICAL COMPANY.
1881.
> ' > 1 1 ' ' ->
■> > « -i V ' »
T\/^
THE NEW YORK
PUELlL LIBRARY
95196
ASTOR, LENOX AND
TILDEN FOUNDATIONS.
1898.
*^ * c i ' ' i ' «' 1 »
PREFACE.
There is no proper place in history for the element of fiction. In the
correct delineation of a landscape the artist judiciously employs both
lights and shades; so the historian must need contrast the true and the
false, that the eternal beauty and symmetry of truth appear, but draw
upon the imagination, he may never. As in the landscape, the true out-
line of objects is obscured in the shadows, requiring the full blaze of day
to bring them into proper view, so history brings out the facts partially
obscured in the haze of tradition — itself never history.
The history of the growth of any branch of knowledge has a double
interest; that which comes to it from the knowledge itself, and that which
comes from its relations to the history of the operation of the human
mind. Men think under the limitations of their times; they reason on
such material as they have; they form their estimate of changes from the
facts immediately known to them. What Matthew Arnold has written
of man's thoughts as he floats adown the " River of Time," is most true.
Says he:
" As is the world on the banks,
So is the mind of man.
Only the track where he sails
He wots of: only the thoughts
Raised by the objects he passes, are his."
Impressions thus received the mind will modify and work upon, trans-
mitting the products to other minds in shapes that often seem new, strange
and arbitrary, but which yet result from processes familiar to our experi-
ence, and to be found at work in our own individual consciousness. And
this is the necessity that renders history, as entirely distinct from tradition,
imperative. Here the province of the historian begins. It is imperative
on him that he record facts as they are, freed from the gloss given them
by verbal transmissions.
We know the present status of Mills county; know that it ranks among
the first in political influence, and is not a whit behind in the intelligence
of its people and its jealous regard for education; know that its material
resources are practically unlimited, and the promise for its future ever
brightening. Now, to clearly understand this happy present, its glories
and its greatness, its opportunities and its wonders, it is our dut}^ to look
back to their sources. We shall find that the seeds which have so aus-
piciously born fruit in this present generation, were sown by men tried
and true; men who deserve to be remembered, not merely as historic
names, but as men in whose broad breasts beat the noblest hearts, and
within whose rustic homes were to be found the very bone and sinew of
IV PREFACE.
this western world; men whose sterling worth and integrity have contrib-
uted very largely to its present high position.
The whole history of this county is one of surpassing interest, and the
more it is studied the clearer does it become that underlying its records
are certain truths which afford a clew to the causes that have contributed
so powerfully to bring it to its present marked prominence. They will
be found identical with those which have influenced the history of the
nations during many centuries. Albeit, they do not possess that far-reach-
ing influence which groups the centuries into eras, yet to those immedi-
ately interested they are not a whit less tragical. To narrate these facts
is the objects of these pages; with what success this has been done we
do not presume to say. It has been our aim to learn and present the truth
without favor or prejudice.
It has heretofore been possible for the scholar, with leisure and a com-
prehensive library, to trace out the written history of his county by patient
research among voluminous government documents and dustv records,
sometimes old and scarce; but these sources of information and the time
to study them are not at the command of most of those who are intelli-
gently interested in local history, and there are many unpublished facts to
be rescued from the faihng memories of the oldest residents, who would
soon have carried their information with them to the grave; and others to
be obtained from the citizens best informed in regard to the various pres-
ent interests and institutions of the county which should be treated of in
giving its history. This service of research and record, which very few
could have undertaken for themselves, the publishers of this work have
performed; while a few unimportant mistakes may, perhaps, be found in
such a multitude of details, in spite of the care exercised in the produc-
tion of the volume, they still confidently present this result of many weeks
labor, as a true and orderly narration of all the events in the history of
the county which were of sufficient interest and value to merit such a
record.
Authenticity is alwa3^s difficult in history; much passes for history
which is mere anecdote, and that domain is always doubtful. Other facts,
again, come to us through the prejudices and colours of personal narra-
tion. Great care has therefore been necessary to prevent publishing
misconcepdons as history. There has been admitted no statement of fact
without ample authority, and mentioned not even the slightest incident
without the support of creditable testimony. Attention is called to one
feature considered of special value — the introduction of the original rec-
ords for all transactions directly affecting the interests of the county.
Concerning the first records aud the facts they teach, litde or nothing
need be said. Of this period in the county's history there have been
explored for evidence every known early document, and where not muti-
PREFACE.
lated they have been presented in full. If among the pages devoted to
early settlers and settlements, the sentences seem short and broken, and
the method of treatment faulty, it should be borne in mind that the nature
of the data renders any other method of presentment impossible. Accu-
racy, rather than finish, has been the object held steadily in view.
In the preparation of this volume the oldest residents and others have
cheerfully volunteered their services in the undertaking, adding largely to
the value of the results obtained. Special thanks are due to the following
named persons, w^ho have not only aided us by placing at our disposition
much valuable matter,* but have themselves devoted much time to search-
ing records, and afforded every opportunity in their power to perfect the
chronological sequence and accuracy of the data used: County Auditor,
S. C. Osborn; County Recorder, M. H. Byers; Seth Dean, Surveyor;
A. D. French, Treasurer; J. E. Robinson, Clerk; William Alton, Deputy
Recorder and abstractor; A.J. Hight, Deputy Auditor; William Kemp-
ton, Esq., Hale, Stone & Proudfit, a firm of legal gentlemen; Miss M.
Maude Archibald, county superintendent of schools; William H. Taft
Mrs. J. W. Coolidge, Mr. Charles Croney, of The Glenwood Ofinion\
Mr. Sherman, of The 'Journal; and to The Hastings Plaindcaler^ Mills
County Chronicle, Mills County Republican, Paeijic J unction Gazette,
for numerous favors and notices. Throughout the county are many
impossible to name here, who have freely given what of history they had.
The clergy and other church officers, and those of civic associations, have
been universally obliging in placing at our command the needed statistics
of their several societies.
Under the sway of cause and effect, historic events cannot stand alone,
— thev form an unbroken chain. The history of so Hmited a territory as
a couniy in Iowa has its roots not only in remote times, but in distant
lands, and cannot be justly written out without consulting the influence
of such a foreign element; nor can such a county history be understood
in all its relations, without a historic review of at least the state of which
the county is a part; hence, we feel that in giving such an outline we have
been more faithful to the main purpose of the work, while we have added
an element of independent interest and value. We little doubt that this
book wall be a welcome one to the inhabitants of the county, for all take
a just pride in whatever calls to mind the scenes and incidents of other
days. It is presented in the assurance that the work done will meet with
the heartiest approval of our readers; and if, through that commendation,
it awakens an earnest spirit of enterprise and emulation among the
younger citizens of the county, it will be a source of just pleasure and con-
gratulation to
The Publishers.
CONTENTS.
Page.
The Northwest Territory 19
Geographical Position 19
Earl}^ Explorations 30
Discovery of the Ohio 32
English Explorations and Settle-
ment 34
American Settlements 59
Division of the Northwest Territory 65
Tecumseh, and the war of 1812. ... 69
Black Hawk, and the Black Hawk
War 73
Present Condition of the Northwest 79
The Early History of Illinois. . . 88
Early Discoveries 88
First French Occupation 91
Genius of La Salle 92
Early Settlements 94
The "Compact of 1787" 95
Physical Features of Prairie States 99
Progress of Development 101
Material Resources of the State 102
Coal is King 103
The Religion and Morals 106
Education 107
The State op Iowa 109
Geographical Situation 109
Topography 109
Drainage System 110
Rivers Ill
Lakes 118
Springs 119
Origin of the Prairies 120
Geology 120
The Azoic System 121
Lower Silurian Sy.stem 122
Upper Silurian System 123
Devonian System 123
Carboniferous System 124
Sub-carboniferous System 124
The Coal-measure Group 127
Cretaceous System 129
Peat 130
Gypsum 131
Minor Deposits of Sulphate of Lime 135
Sulphate of Strontia 136
Sulphate of Baryta 137
Sulphate of Magnesia 137
Climatology 137
The History of The State of Iowa 139
Discovery and Occupation 139
The Original Owners 147
Pike's Expedition 151
Indian Wars 152
Page
The Black Hawk War 157
Indian Purchases, Reserves and
Treaties 159
Spanish Grants 163
The Half-breed Tract 164
Early Settlements 166
Territorial History 173
The Boundary Question 177
State Organization 181
Growth and Progress 185
The Agricultural College and Farm 186
The State University 187
State Historical Society 193
The Penitentiary 194
Additional Penitentiary 195
Iowa Hospital for the Insane 195
Iowa College for the Blind 197
Institution for the Deaf and Dumb 199
Soldiers' Orphans' Homes 199
State Normal School 201
Asylum for Feeble Minded Children 201
The Reform School 202
Fish Hatching Establishment 203
The Public Lands 204
The Public Schools 218
Political Record 223
War Record 229
Infantry 238
Cavalry 244
Artillery 247
Miscellaneous 248
Casualties among Officers of Iowa
Regiments during the War 250
Casualties among Enlisted IMen of
Iowa Regiments during the War 252
Number of Troops Furnished by the
State of Iowa, etc 254
Population of Iowa 255
Illinois 257
Indiana 259
Iowa 260
Michigan 263
Wisconsin 264
Minnesota 266
Nebraska 267
Constitution of the United States and
its Amendments 269
Vote for Governor, 1879, and Prcrsi-
dent, 1876 283
Vote for Congressmen, 1876 283
Practical Rules for every day Use. . . . 284
U. S. Government Land Measure. . . . 287
Surveyor's Measure 288
CONTENTS.
Vll
Page.
How to keep Accounts ... 288
Names of the States of the Union, and
their significations 290
Population of United States 291
Population of Fifty Principal Cities 291
Population of Principal Countries of
the World 292
Abstract of Iowa State Laws .... 293
Bills of Exchange and Notes 293
Interest 293
Descent 293
Wills and Estates 294
Taxes 295
Jurisdiction of Courts 297
Limitation of Actions 297
Jurors 297
Capital Punishment 298
Married Women 298
Exemptions from Execution 298
Estrays 299
Wolf Scalps 300
Marks and Brands 300
Damages from Trespass 300
Fences HOO
Mechanic's Liens 301
Roads and Bridges 302
Adoption of Children 303
Surveyors and Surveys 303
Support of Poor 303
Page
Landlord and Tenant 304
Weights and Measures 305
Definitions of Commercial Terms. . .. 305
Notes 306
Orders 306
Receipts 306
Bills of Purchase 306
Confession of Judgment 306
Articles of Agreement 307
Bills of Sale 308
Notice to Quit 309
Form of Will 309
Codicil 310'
Satisfaction of Mortgage 310
Forms of Mortgage 311
Form of Lease 312
Form of Note 313
Chattel Mortgage 314
"Warranty Deed 314
Quit Claim Deed 315
Bond for Deed 315
Charitable, Scientific and Religious
Associations , 316
Intoxicating Liquors 317
Suggestions to those Purchasing
Books by Subscription 319
Statistics of Agriculture of Iowa
(Census of 1875) 320'
Constitution of Iowa 3
HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
Introduction 321
Name and Position 323
Drainage and Surface Character 324
Soil 327
Streams 329
Lakes 331
Climate 332
Geology 334
Loess .... 335
Drift 336
Cretaceous 338
Coal Measures 338
Mineral Resources 340
Natural History 341
Avidae 342
Notes 351
Plants 359
General Flora 362
Medicinal Plants 363
Reptilia 365
Ophidia 365
Batrachia 366
Mollusca 368
Fresh Water Mollusks 368
Land Mollusks 369
Mammalia 370
Rocky Mt. Locust 373
Indian Aftairs 376
County Organization 380
Oflacials, Bonds of 381
Court Records of 383
The District Courts 384
Judge Sears' Charge to the Grand
Jury 390
An Incident of the District Court. . . 393
Judicial Districts and Judges 395
First Circuit Court 396
Records of 397
First Land Entries 400
Documents, concerning 401
Some Early Legal Documents 402
Early Mortgages 403
Quit Claim 404
Curious Documents 405-
First Real Estate Mortgage 406
First Warrantee Deed 407
First Chattel Mortgage 408-
Qualification Certificate 408
Estray Affidavit 409
Scalp Bounty Certificate 409
First Will 409
First Marriage License 411
Other Early Marriages 412^^
County Finances 412
Report of Commissioner 413
Census for 1856 415
Assessment for 1880 417
The Poor Farm 418
Documents concerning 419
The Jail 420
Documents concerning 422^
The Watkins Ditch 423
Documents ooncerning 423
The Court House 424
Fair Associations 424
Mills County Agricultural Society. 426
Agricultural and Mechanical Asso-
ciation 427
Council Bluft's Medical Society 428
The Early Ferries 429
Vlll
CONTENTS.
Pnsre.
Docniiu'nts concerning 430
Ruilromls 4;?2
C, B. &St. J. 11. K 433
C, B..V:. Q. K. R 438
Nebraska VWy & Sidney R. R 440
Hastings & Avoca R. R 440
Statistics 441
Swamp Land Troubles 443
Railroad Grant (U.S.) 442
Railroad Grant (State) 443
Petition in Suit for 441!
Supreme Court Decision 447
ComprcMuise 4(i0
Second Suit 4li2
Supreme Court Decision 4(!4
Supreme Court U. S 4()5
Political History 405
First Votes 466
Election of ISaG 407
Missouri Compromise 4()8
Statistics 409
Official Vote of 1880 479
Mills Ct>unty in the General As-
sembly 480
Mills County in the Camp and on the
Field 481
President's Proclamation 483
Atlairs at Home 483
The Fourth Infantry 484
The Fifteenth Infantry 488
The Tweutv-ninth Infantry 493
The Forty-sixth Infantry 490
The Fourth Cavalry 497
The Fifth Cavalry.' 498
The Eighth Cavalry 500
Artillery Companies 500
General History 503
Township Boundaries 503
The Pioneer (poem) 505
To the Present 507
Early Settlers and Settlements 511
The Mormons 513
Their Exodus 513
In the County 514
Settlements of 515
The year 1847 510
The year 1848 5i7
The year 1849 518
The year 1850 519
The year 1851 530
The year 1853 532
The year 1853 533
The year 1854 533
The years following 534
The County Press 535
The Firs't Paper 530
The First Poem 537
Glenwood Opinion 530
Hastings Plaindealer 531
Mills County Chronicle.' 531
Mills County Republican 531
Mills County Journal 532
Page-
Pacific Junction Gazette 533
History of Education 533
Statistics of 539
Temperance 540
Reli gious History 543
Tlie First Church 545
United Brethren 545
M. P. Church 540
Latter Day Saints 546
Fairview jM E. Church 547
St. Bouefatzins 547
Evangelical Lutheran 547
M. E.^Church (Rawles). . ; 547
M. E. Church (White Cloud) 547
Elm Grove Church 548^
Crimiual History 548
The Lawn Boys 549
Murder of Kretzinger 549
Killing of King and Palmer 555
The Creech-Johnson Case 557
Cities and Towns 558
Glenwood 558
Schools 560
Churches 501
Civic Societies 503
Asylum 505
Corporations 577
Business Interests 579
Malvern 579
Civic Societies 580
Corporations 583
Chnrches 583
Schools 584
Emerson 585
Civic Societies 580
Churches 586
Silver City 587
Churches 588
Societies 588
Hastings 588
Churches 589
East Plattsmouth 590
Henderson 590
Pacific Junction 590
Pacific City 590
Biographical Sketches 593
Center Township 594
Rawles Township 003
Lyons Township 030
silver Creek Township 638
Malvern Township 031
St. Mary's Township 043
White Cloud Township 046
Platteville Township 656
Oak Township 005
Glenwood Township 071
Iniiraham Township 091
Deer Creek Township 699
Anderson Township 701
• Indian Creek Township 706
Errata » 73^
THE CONSTITUTION OF IOWA.
We, the people of the state of Iowa, grateful to the Supreme Being for
the blessings hitherto enjoyed, and feeling our dependence on Him for
a continuation of those blessings, do ordain and establish a free and inde-
pendent government, by the name of the state of Iowa, the boundaries
whereof shall be as tbllows:
Beginning in the middle of the main channel of the Mississippi river, at a
point due east of the middle of the mouth of the main channel of the
Des Moines river; thence up the middle of the main channel of the
said Des Moines river, to a point on said ri^•er where the northern boun-
dary line of the state of Missouri — as established b}- the constitution of
that slate, adjc:)pted June J2, IS2(> — crosses the said middle of the main
channel of the said Des Moines river; thence west wardl}- along the said
northern boundary line of the state of Missouri, as established at the
time aforesaid, until an extension of said line intersects the middle of
the main chaimel of the Missouri river; thence up the middle of the
main channel of the said Missouri- river to a point opposite the middle
of the main channel of the Big Sioux river, according to Nicollett's
map; thence up the mam channel of the said Big Sioux river, according
to the said map, until it is intersected by the parallel of forty-three
degress and thirty minutes, north latitude; thence east along said
parallel of forty-three degrees and thirtv minutes, until said parallel
intersects the middle of the mam channel of the Mississippi river: thence
down the middle of the main channel of the said 'Mississippi ri\'er to the
place of beginning.
ARTICLE I.— BILL OF RIGHTS.
Section 1. x\ll men are, by nature, free and equal, and have certain
inalienable rights, among which are those of enjoying and defending life
and liberty, acquiring, possessing and protecting property, and pursuing
and obtaining safety and happiness.
Sec. 2. All political power is iniierent in the people. Government is
instituted for the jirotection, security and benefit of the people, and they
have the right, at all times, to alter or reform the same, whenever the
public good may require it.
Sec. 3. The general assembly shall make no law respecting an estab-
lishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; nor shall any
person be compelled to attend any place of worship, pay tithes, taxes or
other rates, for building or repairing jilace of worsiiipj, or the maintenance
of any minister or ministr}'.
Sec. 4. No religious test shall be required as a qualification for any
office of public trust, and no person shall be deprived of an}' of his rights,
privileges or capacities, or disqualified from the performance of any of his
public or private duties, or rendered incompetent to give evidence in any
court of law or equity, in consequence of his opinions on the subject of
religion; and any party to anv judicial proceeding shall have the right to
use as a witness, or take the testimony of, any other person, not disqualified
on account of interest, who may be cognizant of any fact material to the
case; and parties to suits may be witnesses, as provided by law.
Sp:c. .5. Any citizen of this state, who may hereafter be engaged,
either directl}- or indirectly, in a duel, either as principal or accessory
before the fact, shall forever be disqualified from holding any office under
the constitution and laws of this state.
4 CONSTITUTION OF IOWA.
Sec. 6. All laws of a general nature shall have a uniform operation;
the general assembly shall not grant to any citizen or class of citizens,
privileges or immunities, which upon the same terms shall not equally
belong to all citizens.
Sec. 7. Every person may speak, write and publish his sentiments on
all subjects, being responsible for the abuse of that right. No law shall
be passed to restrain or abridge the liberty of speech, or of the press. In
all prosecutions or indictments for libel, the truth may be given in evidence
to the jury, and if it appear to the jury that the matter charged as libelous
was true, and was published with good motives and for justifiable ends,
•the party shall be acquitted.
Sec S. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses
papers and effects, against unreasonable seizures and searches, shall not be
violated; and no warrant shall issue but on probable cause, supported by
oath or affirmation, particularly describing the place to be searched, and
the persons and things to be seized.
Sec. U. The right of trial by jury shall remain inviolate; but the gen-
eral assembly may authorize trial by a jury of a less number than twelve
men in inferior courts; but no person shall be deprived of Hfe, liberty or
property, without due process of law.
Sec 10. In all criminal prosecutions, and in cases involving the life or
liberty of an individual, the accused shall have a right to a speedy and
public trial by an impartial jury; to be informed of the accusation against
him; to have a copy of the same when demanded; to be confronted with
the witness against him; to have compulsory process for his witnesses;
and to have the assistance of counsel.
Se.c 11. All offences less than felony, and in which the punishment
does not exceed a fine of one hundred dollars, or imprisonment for thirty
days, shall be tried summarih- before a justice of the peace, or other offi-
cer authorized bylaw, on information under oath, without indictment or the
intervention of a grand jury, saving to the defendant the right of appeal;
and no person shall be held to answer for any higher criminal ofience,
unless on presentment or indictment by a grand jury, except in cases aris-
ing in the army or navy, or in the militia, when in actual service in time
of war or public clanger.
Sec 12. No person shall, after acquittal, be tried for the same ofience.
AH persons shall, before conviction, be bailable by sufficient sureties, except
for capital ofienses, where the proof is evident or the presumption great.
Sec 18. The writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended or refused,
when application is made as required by law, unless in case of rebellion
or invasion the public safety ma}' require it.
Sec 1J-. The military shall be subordinate to the civil power. No
standing army shall be kept up by the state in time of peace; and in time
of war, no appropriation for a standing army shall be for a longer time
than two years.
Sec 15. No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house
without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, except in the man-
ner prescribed by law.
Sec lf>. Treason against the state shall consist only in levying war
against it, adhering to its enemies, or giving them aid and comfort. No
person shall be convicted of treason, unless on the evidence of two wit-
nesses to the same overt act, or confession in open court.
Sec 17. Excessive bail shall not be required; excessive fines shall not
be imposed, and cruel and unusual punishment shall not be inflicted.
CONSTITUTION OF IOWA. 5
Sec. is. Private property shall not be taken for public use without
just compensation first being made, or secured to be made, to the owner
thereof, as soon as the damages shall be assessed by a jury, who shall not
take into consideration any advantages that may result to said owner on
account of the improvement for which it is taken.
Sec. 19. No person shall be imprisoned for debt in anv civil action on
mesne or final process, unless in case of fraud; and no person shall be
imprisoned for a militar}^ fine in time of peace.
Sec. 20. The people have the right freely to assemble together to
counsel for the common good; to make known their opinions to their rep-
resentatives, and to petition for a redress of grievances.
Sec. 21. No bill of attainder, ex-post-facto law, or law impairing the
obligation of contracts, shall ever be passed.
Sec. 22. Foreigners who are, or may hereafter become residents of
this state, shall enjoy the same rights in respect to the possession, enjoy-
ment, and descent of property, as native born citizens.
Sec. 23. There shall be no slavery in this state; nor shall there be
involuntary servitude, unless for the punishment of crime.
Sec. 2-1:. No lease or grant of agricultural lands, reserving any rent or
service of any kind, shall be valid for a longer period than twenty years.
Sec. 25. The enumeration of rights shall not be construed to impair
or den}^ others, retained by the people.
ARTICLE II— RIGHT OF SUFFRAGE.
Section 1. Every white male citizen of the United States, of the age
of twenty-one years, who shall have been a resident of this state six-
months next preceding the election, and of the county in which he claims
his vote, sixt}' days, shall be entitled to vote at all elections which are now
or hereafter may be authorized by law.
Sec. 2. Electors shall, in all cases except treason, felony or breach of
the peace, be privileged from arrest on the days of election, during their
attendance at such elections, going to and returning therefrom.
Sec. 3. No elector shall be obliged to perform military duty on the
day of election, except in time of war or public danger.
Sec. 4. No person in the militar}', naval or marine service of the
United States shall be considered a resident of this state by being stationed
in any garrison, barrack, or military or naval place or station within the state.
Sec. 5. No idiot or insane person, or person convicted of any infamous
crime shall be entitled to the privilege of an elector.
Sec. f). All elections by the people shall be by ballot.
ARTICLE III— OF THE DISTRIBUTION OF POWERS.
Section 1. The powers of the government of Iowa shall be divided
into three separate departments: The Legislative, the Executive and the
Judicial; and no person charged with the exercise of powers properly
belonging to one of these departments shall exercise any function apper-
taining to either of the others, except in cases hereinafter expressly
directed or permitted.
LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT.
Section 1. The legislative authority of this state shall be vested in
a general assembly, which shall consist of a senate and house of represen-
tatives; and the style of everv law shall be: " Be it enacted by the gen-
eral assembly of the state of Iowa.''''
Sec. 2. The sessions of the general assembly shall be biennial and
shall commence on the second Monda}' in January next ensuing the election
of its members; unless the governor of the state shall, in the meantime,
convene the general assembly by proclamation.
6 CONSTITUTION OF IOWA.
Sec. 3. The members of the house of representatives shall be chosen
every second 3'ear, by the qualified electors of their respective districts, on
the second Tuesday in October, except the years of the presidential elec-
tion, when the election shall be on the Tuesday next after the first Monday
in November; and their term of office shall commence on the first day of
January next after their election, and continue two years, and until their
successors are elected and qualified.
Sec. 4. No person shall be a member of the house of representatives
who shall not have attained the age of twentv-one years, be a free white
male citizen of the United States, and shall have been an inhabitant of
this st;ite one vear next preceding his election, and at the time of his elec-
tion shall have had an actual residence of sixty days in the county or dis-
trict he may have been chosen to represent.
Sec 5 Senators shall be chosen for the term of foiir 3^ears,. at the same
time and place as representatives; they shall be twenty five years of age
and possess the qualifications of representatives as to residence and citi-
zenship.
Sec. 6. T]ie number of senators shall not be less than one-third nor
more than one-half the representative body; and shall be so classified by
lot that one class, being as nearl}' one-half as possible, shall be elected
every two years. When the number of senators is increased, they shall
be annexed by lot to one or the other of the two classes, so as to keep
them as nearly equal in numbers as practicable.
Sec. 7. Each house shall choose its own officers, and judge of the
qualification, election and return of its own members. A contested elec-
tion shall be determined in such manner as shall be directed by law.
Sec 8. A majority of each house shall constitute a quorum to transact
business; but a smaller number mav adjourn from day to day, and may
compel the attendance of absent members in such manner and under such
penalties as each house may provide.
Se:c 9. Each house shall sit upon its own adjournments, keep a jour-
nal of its proceedings, and publish the same; determine its rules of pro-
ceedings, punish members for disorderly behavior, and, with the consent
of two-thirds, expel a member, but not a second time for the same offense;
and siiall have all other powers necessary for a branch of the general
assemblv of a free and independent state.
Sec. 10. Every member of the general assembly shall have the liberty
to dissent from or protest against any act or resolution which he may
think injurious to the public or an individual, and have the reasons for his
dissent entered on the journals; and the yeas and nays of the members of
either house, on any question, shall, at the desire of any two members
present, be entered on the journals.
Sec 11. Senators and representatives, in all cases, except treason, fel-
ony or breach of the peace, shall be privileged from arrest during the ses-
sion of the general assembly, and in going to and returning from the same.
Sec 12. When vacancies occur in either house, the governor, or the
person exercising the functions of governor, shall issue writs of election
to fill such vacancies.
Sec 13. The doors of each house shall be open, except on such occa-
sions as, in the opinion of the house, may require secrecy.
Sec 11-. Neither house shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn
for more than three days, nor to any other place than that in which they
mav be sittingr.
CONSTITUTION OF IOWA.
Sec. 13. Bills may originate in either house, and may be amended,
altered or rejected by the other; and ever^v bill having passed both houses,
shall be signed by the speaker and president of their respective houses.
Sec. 16. Every bill which shall have passed the general assembly shall,
before it becomes a law, be presented to the governor. If he approve, he
shall sign it; but if not, he shall return it, with his objections, to the house
in which it originated, which shall enter the same upon their journal, and
proceed to reconsider it; if, after such reconsideration, it again pass both
houses, by yeas and navs, by a majorit}' of two-thirds of the members of
each house, it shall become a law, notwithstanding the governor's objec-
tions. If any bill shall not be returned within three days after it shall have
been presented to him, (Sunday excepted) the same shall be a law in like
manner as if he had signed it, unless the general assembly, by adjourn-
ment, prevent such return. Any bill submitted to the governor for his
approval during the last three davs of a session of the general assembly,
shall be deposited by him in the office of the secretary of state, within
thirty days after the adjournment, with his approval, if approved b}^ him,
and with his objections if he disapproves thereof.
Sec. 17. No bill shall be passed unless by the assent of a majority of
all members elected to each branch of the general assembly, and the
question upon the final passage shall be taken immediately upon its last
reading, and the yeas and nays entered upon the journal.
Sec. 18. An accurate statement of the receipts and expenditures of the
public monev shall be attached to and published with the laws at every
regular session of the general assembly.
Sec. 19. The house of representatives shall havet-he sole power of im-
peachment, and all impeachments shall be tried by the senate. When sit-
ting for that purpose, the senators shall be upon oath or affirmation; and
no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the
members present.
Sec. 20. The governor, judges of the supreme and district courts, and
other state officers, shall be liable to impeachment for anv misdemeanor or
malfeasance in office; but judgment in such cases shall extend only to
removal from office, and disqualification to hold any office of honor, trust
or profit, under this state; but the party convicted or acquitted shall never-
theless be liable to indictment, trial and punishment according to law. All
other civil officers shall be tried for misdemeanors and malfeasance in
office, in such manner as the general assembly may provide.
Sec. 21. No senator or representative shall, during the time for which
he shall have been elected, be appointed to any civil office of profit under
this state, which shall have been created, or the emoluments of which
shall have been increased during such term, except such offices as may be
filled by elections by the people.
Sec. 22. No person holding any lucrative office under the United
States, or this state, or any other power, shall be eligible to hold a seat in
the general assembly. But offices in the militia to which there is attached
no annual salary, or the office of the justice of the peace, or postmaster
whose compensation does not exceed one hundred dollars per annum, or
notary public, shall not be deemed lucrative.
Sec. 2?). No person w^ho may hereafter be a collector or holder of pub-
lic moneys, shall have a seat in either house of the general assembly, or
be eligible to hold any office of trust or profit in this state, until he shall
have accounted for and paid into the treasur}' all sums for which he may
be liable.
8 CONSTITUTION OF IOWA.
Sec. 24. No money shall be drawn from the treasury but in conse-
quence of appropriations made by law.
Sec. 25. Each member of the first general assembh- under this con-
stitution shall receive three dollars per diem while in session; and the
further sum of three dollars for every twenty miles traveled in going to
and returning from the place where such session is held, by the nearest
traveled route; after which they shall receive such compensation as shall
be fixed by law; but no general assembly shall have the power to increase
the compens.ition of its members. And when convened in extra session
they shall receixe the same mileage and per diem compensation as fixed
by law for the regular session, and none other.
Sec. ^(I. No law of the general assembly, passed at a regular session,
of a public nature, shall take effect until the fourth day of July next after
the passage thereof. Laws passed at a special session shall take effect
ninety days after the adjournment of the general assembly b}^ which they
were passed. If the general assembly shall deem any law of immediate
importance, they may provide that the same shall take effect by publica-
tion in newspapers in the state.
Sec. 27. No divorce "shall be granted by the general assembly.
Sec. 28. No lottery shall be authorized by this state; nor shall the sale
of lottery tickets be allowed.
Sec. 20. Ever}' act shall embrace but one subject, and matters properly
connected therewith; which subject shall be expressed in the title. But
if any subject shall be embraced in an act which shall not be expressed in
the title, such act shall be void only as to so much thereof as shall not be
expressed in the title.
Sec. 30. The general assembly shall not pass local or special laws in
the f olio win o- cases :
For the assessment and collection of taxes for state, county or road pur-
poses ;
For laying out, opening and working roads or highways;
For changing the names of persons;
For the incorporation of cities and towns;
For vacating roads, town plats, streets, alleys, or public squares;
For locating or changing county seats;
In all the cases above enumerated and in all other cases where a gen-
eral law can be made applicable, all laws shall be general, and of uniform
operation throughout the state; and no law changing the boundarv lines
of any county shall have effect until upon being submitted to the people of
the counties affected by the change, at a general election, it shall be
approved by a majority of the votes in each county, cast for and against it.
Sec. 31. No extra compensation shall be made to anv officer, public
agent or contractor, after the service shall have been rendered, or the con-
tract entered into; nor shall any money be paid on any claim, the subject
matter of which shall not have been provided for by pre-existing laws,
and no public money or property shall be appropriated for local or pri-
vate purposes, unless such appropriation, compensation or claim be
allowed by two-thirds of the members elected to each branch of the gen-
eral assemblv.
Sec. 32. Members of the general assembly shall, before they enter
upon the duties of their respective offices, take and subscribe to the fol-
lowing oath or affirmation: "I do solemnl}' swear (or affirm, as the case
may be) that I will support the constitution of the United States, and the
CONSTITUTION OF IOWA. 9
constitution of the state of Iowa, and that I will faithfull}- discharge the
duties of senator, (or regresentative, as the case may be) according to the
best of my ability." And members of the general assembly ai^e hereby
empowered to administer to each other the said oath or afhrmation.
Sec. 3o. The general assembly shall, in the year one thousand eight
hundred and Iift3^-nine, one thousand eight hundred and sixt3'-three, one
thousand eight hundred and sixty-tive, one thousand eight hundred and
sixty-seven, one thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, and one thousand
eight hundred and seventy five, and every ten 3ears thereafter, cause an
enumeration lo be made ol all the inhabitants of the state.
Sec. 34. The number of senators shall, at the next session tbllowing
each period of making such enumeration, and the next session following
each United States census, be fixed by law, and be apportioned among the
several counties according to the numbers of inhabitants in each.
Sec. 35. The senate shall not consist of more than fifty members, nor
the house of representatives of more than one hundred ; and they shall
be apportioned among the several counties and representative districts of
the state according to the number of inhabitants in each, upon ratios
to be fixed by law; but no representativ^e district shall contain more than
four organized counties, and each district shall be entitled to at least one
representative. iLvery count}' and district which shall have a number of
inhabitants equal to one-half of the ratio fixed by law, shall be entitled to
one representative; and any one county containing in addition to the
ratio fixed by law one-half of that number, or more, shall be entitled to
one additional representative. No floating district shall hereafter be formed.
Sec. 36. At its first session under this constitution, and at every subse-
quent regular session, the general assembly shall irix the ratio of represen-
tation, and also Ibrm into representative districts those counties which will
not be entitled singly to a representative.
Sec. 37. When a congressional, senatorial, or representative district
shall be composed of two or more counties, it shall not be entirel}* sepa-
rated by any county belonging to another district; and no county shall be
divided in forming a congressional, senatorial, or representative district.
Sec. 38. In all elections by the general assembly, the members thereof
shall vote viva-voce; and the votes shall be entered on the journal.
ARTICLE IV.— EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT.
Section 1. The supreme executive power of this state shall be vested
in a chief magistrate, who shall be styled the governor of the state of Iowa.
Sec. 2. The governor shall be elected by the qualified electors at the
time and place of voting for members of the general assembly, and shall
hold his oflice two years, from the time of his installation, and until his
successor is elected and qualified.
Sec. 3. There shall be a lieutenant governor, who shall hold his ofiice
two years, and be elected at the same time as the governor. Jn voting for
governor and lieutenant governor, the electors shall designate for whom
they vote as governor and for whom as lieutenant governor. The returns
of every election for governor and lieutenant governor shall be sealed up
and transmitted to the seat of government of the state, directed to the
speaker of the house of representatives, who shall open and jniblishth em
in the presence of both houses of the general assembly.
Sec. -4. Persons respectively having the highest number of votes,
for governor and lieutenant governor, shall be declared duly elected; but
in case two or more persons shall have an equal, and the highest number
10 CONSTITUTION OF lO.WA.
of votes for either office, the general assembly shall, by joint vote, tbrth-
with proceed to elect one of said persons governor, or lieutenant gover-
nor, as the case may be.
Sec. 5. Contested elections for governor, or lieutenant governor, shall
be determined by the general assembly in such manner as may be pre-
scribed bv law.
Sec. (5. No person shall be eligible to the office of governor, or lieu-
tenant governor, who shall not have been a citizen of the United States,
and a resident of the state two years next preceding the election, and
attained the age of thirty years at the time of said election.
Sec. 7. The governor shall be commander-in-chief of the militia, the
army and navy of this state.
Sec. 8. He shall transact all executive business with the officers of gov-
ernment, civil and military, and may require information in writing from
the officers of the executive department upon any subject relating to the
duties of their respective offices.
Sec. 9. He shall take care that the laws are faithfully executed.
Sec. 10. When any office shall, from any cause, become vacant, and no
mode is provided by the constitution and laws for filling such vacancy, the
governor shall have power to fill such vacancy, by granting a commission,
which shall expire at the end of the next session of the general assembly,
or at the next election by the people.
Sec. 11. He may, on extraordinary occasions, convene the general
assembly by proclamation, and shall state to both houses, when assem-
bled, the purpose for which they shall have been convened.
Sec. 12. He shall communicate, by message, to the general assembly
at every regular session, the condition of the state, and recommend such
matters as he shall deem expedient.
Sec. 1 o. In case of disagreement between the two houses with respect
to the time of adjournment, the governor shall have power to adjourn the
general assembly to such time as he may think proper; but no such
adjournment shall be beyond the time fixed for the regular meeting of the
next general asst- mbly.
Sec. 1-1. No person shall, while holding any office under the authority
of the United States, or this state, execute the office of governor, or lieu-
tenant governor, except as hereinafter expressly provided.
Sec. 1.5. The official term of the governor, and lieutenant governor,
shall commence on the second Monda}' of January next after their elec-
tion, and continue for two years, and until their successors are elected and
qualified. The heutenant governor, while acting as governor, shall receive
the same pay as provided for governor; and while presiding in the senate,
shall receive as compensation therefor, the same inileage and double the
per diem pay provided for a senator, and none other.
Sec. 10. The governor shall have power to grant reprieves, commuta-
tions and pardons, after conviction, for all offences except treason and cases
of impeachment, subject to such regulations as may be provided by law.
Upon con\'iction for treason, he shall have power to suspend the execu-
tion of the sentence until the case shall be reported to the general assem-
bly at its next meetmg, when the general assembly shall either grant a
pardon, commute the sentence, direct the execution of the sentence, or
grant a further reprieve. He shall have power to remit fines and forfeit-
ures, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law; and shall
report to the general assembly, at its next meeting, each case of reprieve.
CONSTITUTrON OF IOWA. 11
commutation, or pardon granted, and the reason therefor; and also all per-
sons in whose favor remission of fines and forfeitures shall have been
made, and the several amounts remitted.
Sec. 17. In case of the death, impeachment, resignation, removal from
office, or other disability of the governor, the powers and duties of the
office for the residue of the term, or until he shall be acquitted, or the
disabilit}- removed, shall devolve upon the lieutenant governor.
Sec. is. The lieutenant governor shall be president of the senate, but
shall only vote when the senate is equally divided; and in case of his
absence or impeachment, or when he shall exercise the office of governor,
the senate shall choose a president -pj-o tcmf>orc.
Sec. It). If the lieutenant governor, while acting as governor, shall be
impeached, displaced, resign or die, or otherwise become incapable of per-
forming the duties of the office, the president _^rc teni-porc of the senate
shall act as governor until the vacancy is filled, or the disability removed,
and if the president of the senate, for any of the above causes, shall be
rendered incapable of performing the duties pertaining to the office of
governor, the same shall devolve upon the speaker of the house of repre-
setatives.
Sec. 20. There shall be a seal of this state, which shall be kept by the
governor, and used by him officially, and shall be called the great seal of
the state of Iowa.
Sec. 21. All grants and commissions shall be in the name and by the
authority of the people of the state of Iowa, sealed with the great seal of
the state, signed bv ihe governor,and countersigned by the secretary of state.
Sec. 22. A secretary of state, auditor of state, and treasurer of state,
shall be elected by the qualified electors, who shall continue in office two
years, and until their successors are elected and qualified, and perform
such duties as may be required by law.
AHTICLK v.— JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT.
Section 1. The judicial power shall be vested in a supreme court,
district court, and such other courts, inferior to the supreme court, as the
general assembly may, from time to time, establish.
Sec. 2. The supreme court shall consist of three judges, two of whom
shall constitute a quorum to hold court.
Sec. 3. The judges of the supreme court shall be elected by the quali-
fied electors of the state; and shall hold their court at such time and place
as the general assembly may prescribe. The judges of the supreme court
so elected shall be classified so that one judge shall go out of office every
two years; and the judi4;e holding the shortest term of office, under such
classification, shall be chief justice of the court during his term, and so on
in rotation. After the expiration of their terms of office, under such clas-
sification, the term of each judge of the supreme court shall be six years,
and until his successor shall have been elected and qualified. The judges
of the supreme court shall be inelibible to any other office in the state dur-
ing the term for which thev have been elected.
Sec. 4. The supreme court shall have appellate jurisdiction only in
cases in chancery, and shall constitute a court for the correction of errors
at law, under such restrictions as the general assembly may by law^ pre-
scribe; and shall have power to issue all writs and process necessary to
secure justice to parties, and exercise a supervisor}- control over all infer-
ior judicial tribunals througout the state.
Sec. 5. The district court shall consist of a single judge, who shall be
12 CONSTITUTION OP" IOWA.
elected by the qualified electors of the district in which he resides. The
judge of the district court shall hold his office for the term of four years,
and until his successor shall have been elected and quahfied; and shall be
ineligible to any other office, except that of judge of the supreme court,
during the term for which he was elected.
Sec. 6. The district court shall be a court of law and equity, which
shall be distinct and separate jurisdictions, and have jurisdiction in civil and
criminal matters arising in their respective districts, in such manner as
shall be prescribed b\' law.
Sec. 7. The judges of the supreme and district courts shall be con-
servators of the peace throughout the state.
Sec. S. The style of all process shall be, '*The state of Iowa," and all
prosecutions shall be conducted in the name and by the authority of the
same
Sec y. The salary of each judge of the supreme court shall be two
thousand dollars per annum; and that of each district judge one thousand
six hundred dollars per annum, until the year eighteen hundred and sixty;
after which time they shall severally receive such compensation as the
general assembly may, by law, prescribe; which compensation shall not
be increased or diminished during the term for which they shall have been
elected.
Sec. lU. The state shall be divided into eleven judicial districts; and
after the year eighteen hundred and sixty, the general assembly may
reorganize the judicial districts, and increase or diminish the number of
districts, or the number of judges of the said court, and ma}^ increase the
number of judges of the supreme court; but such increase or diminution
shall not be more than one district, or one judge of either court, at any
one session ; and no reorganization of the districts, or diminution of the
number of judges, shall have the effect of removing a judge from office.
Such reorganization of the districts, or any change in the boundaries
thereof or increase or diminution of the number of judges, shall take
place every four years thereafter, if necessary, and at no other time.
Sec. 11. The judges of the supreme and district courts shall be chosen
at the general election ; and the term of office of each judge shall com-
mence on the first day of January next after his election.
Sec 12. The general assembly shall provide, by law, for the election
of kn attorney general by the people, whose term of office shall be two
years, and until his successor shall have been elected and qualified.
Sec 13. The qualified electors of each judicial district shall, at the
time of the election of district judge, elect a district attorney, who shall
be a resident of the district for which he is elected, and who shall hold
his office for the term of four years, and until his successor shall have
been elected and qualified.
Sec 14. It sliall be the dut}' of the general assembly to provide for
the carrying into effect of this article, and to provide for a general system
of practice in all the courts of this state.
ARTICLE VI.— M 1 LITI A.
Section 1 . The militia of this state shall be composed of all able-bodied
male citizens, between the ages of eighteen and forty-five years,
except such as are or may hereafter be exempt by the laws of the United
States, or of this state; and shall be armed, equipped, and trained, as the
general assembly ma}^ provide by law-
Sec 2. No person or persons conscientiously scrupulous of bearing
CONSTITUTION OF IOWA. 13
arms shall be compelled to do military dut}^ in time of peace; provided,
that such person or persons shall pay an equivalent for such exemption
in the same manner as other citizens.
Sec. o. All commissioned officers of the militia (stafl" officers excepted)
shall be elected h\' the persons liable to perform military duty, and shall be
commissioned by the governor.
ARTICLE VII.— STATE DEBTS.
Section 1. The credit of the state shall not, in any manner, be given
or loaned to, or in aid of, any individual, association, or corporation; and
the state shall never assume or become responsible for, the debts or liabili-
ties of any individual, association, or corporation, unless incurred in time
of war for the benefit of the state.
Sec. 2. The state may contract debts to supply casual deficits or fail-
ures in revenues, or to meet expenses not otherwise provided for; but the
aggregate amount of such debts, direct and contingent, whether contracted
by virtue of one or more acts of the general assembly, or at ditlerent
periods of time, shall never exceed the sum of two hundred and fifty
thousand dollars; and the money arising from the creation of such debts-
shall be applied to the purpose for which it was obtamed, or to repay the
debts so contracted, and to no other purpose whatever.
Sec. 3. All losses to the permanent school, or university fund of this
state, which shall have been occasioned by the defalcation, mismanage-
ment, or fraud of the agents or officers controlling or managing the same,
shall be audited by the proper authorities of the state. The amount so
audited shall be a permanent funded debt against the state, in favor of the
respective fund sustaining the loss, upon which not less than six per cent
annual interest shall be paid. The amount of liability so created shall not
be counted as a part of the indebtedness authorized by the second section
of this article.
Sec. 4. In addition to the above limited power to contract debts, the
state may contract debts to repel invasion, suppress insurrection, or defend
the state in war; but the money arising from the debts so contracted shall
be applied to the purpose for which it was raised, or to repay such debts,
and to no other purpose whatever.
Sec. 5. Except the debts hereinbefore specified in this article, no debt
shall be hereafter contracted by or on behalf of this state, unless such
debt shall be authorized by some law for some single work or object, to
be distinctly specified therein; and such law shall imjiose and provide for
the collection of a direct annual tax, sufficient to pay the interest on such
debt, as it falls due, and also to pay and discharge the principal of such
debt, within twenty years from the time of the contracting thereof; but no
such law shall take eflect until at a general election it shall have been sub-
mitted to the people, and have i-ecei\'ed a majority of all the votes cast for
and against it at such election; and all monev raised by authority of such
law% shall be applied onl}^ to the specific object therein stated, or to the
payment of the debt created thereby ; and such law shall be pubHshed in
at least one newspaper in each county, if one is published therein, through-
out the state, for three months preceding the election at wdiich it is sub-
mitted to the people.
Sec. (). The legislature mav, at any time after the approval of such
law by the people, if no debt shall not have been contracted in pursuance
thereof, repeal the same; and may at any time forbid the contracting of
any further debt or liability under such law; but the tax imposed by such
14 CONSTITUTION OF IOWA.
law, in proportion to the debt or liabilit}' which may have been contracted
in pursuance thereof, shall remain in force and be irrepealable, and be
annually collected, until the principal and interest are full}' paid.
Sec. 7. Every law which imposes, continues, or revives a tax, shall
distinctly state the tax, and the object to which it is to be applied; and it
shall not be sutRcient to refer to any other law to fix such tax or object.
ARTICLE YI II.— CORPORATIONS.
Section 1. No corporation shall be created by special laws; but the
general assembly shall provide, by general laws, for the organization of
all corporations hereafter to be created, except as hereinafter provided.
Sec. 2. Ttie property of all corporations for pecuniary profit, shall be
subject to taxation, the same as that of individuals.
Sec. o. The state shall not become a stockholder in any corporation,
nor shall it assume or pay the debt or liability of any corporation, unless
incurred in time of war, for the benefit of the state.
Sec. 4. No political or municipal corporation shall become a stock-
holder in any banking corporation, directly or indirectly.
Sec. .5. No act of the general assembly, authorizing or creating corpo-
rations or associations with banking powers, nor amendments thereto,
shall take effect, or in any manner be in force, until the same shall havp
been submitted, separately, to the people, at a general or special election,
as provided by law, to be held not less than three months after the passage
of the act, and shall have been approved by a majority of all the electors
voting for and against it at such election.
Sec. 6. Subject to the provisions of the foregoing section, the general
assembly may also provide for the establishment of a state bank, with
branches.
Sec. 7. If a state bank be established, it shall be founded on an actual
specie basis, and the branches shall be mutually responsible for each
other's liabilities upon all notes, bills and other issues intended for circula-
tion as money.
Sec. 8. If a general banking law shall be enacted, it shall provide for
registry and countersigning, by an officer of state, of all bills or paper
credit designed to circulate as money, and require security to the full
amount thereof, to be deposited with the state treasurer, in United States'
stocks, or in interest-paying stocks of states in good credit and standing,
to be rated at ten per cent below their average value in the city of New
York, for the thirty days next preceding their deposit; and in case of a
depreciation of any portion of such stocks, to the amount of ten per cent
on the dollar, the bank or banks owning said stock shall be required to
make up said deficiency by depositing additional stocks; and said law
shall also provide for the recording of the names of all stockholders in
such corporations, the amount of stock held by each, the time of any
transfer and to whom.
Sec. 9. Every stockholder in a banking corporation or institution shall
be individually responsible and liable to its creditors, over and above the
amount of stock by him or her held, to an amount equal to his or her
respective shares so held, for all of its liabilities, accruing while he or she
remains such stockholder.
Sec. 10. In case of the insolvency of any banking institution, the bill
holders shall have a preference over its other creditors.
Sec. 11. The suspension of specie pa3-ments by banking institutions
shall never be permitted or sanctioned.
CONSTITUTION OF IOWA. 15
Sec. 12. Subject to the provisions of this article, the general assembly
shall have power to amend or repeal all laws for the organization or crea-
tion of corporations, or granting of special or exclusive privileges or immu-
nities, by a vote of two-thirds of each branch of the general assembly;
and no exclusive privileges, except as in this article provided, shall ever be
fj-ranted.
^ ARTICLE IX— EDUCATION AND SCHOOL LANDS.
[Sections 1 to 15, inclusive, creating the board of education for the government of com-
mon schools, are omitted, the board having been abolished by the general assembly, as by
authority conferred by section 15.]
SECOND — SCHOOL FUNDS AM) SCHOOI. LANDS.
Section 1. The educational and school funds and lands shall be under
the control and management of the general assembly of this state.
Sec 2. The university lands, and the proceeds thereof, and all moneys
belonging to said fund shall be a permanent fund for the sole use of the
state university. The interest arising from the same shall be annually
appropriated for the support and benefit of said university.
Sec 3. The general assembly shall encourage, by all suitable means,
the promotion of intellectual, scientific, moral and agricultural improve-
ment. The proceeds of all lands that have been, or hereafter may be,
granted by the United States to this state, for the support of schools, which
may have been or shall hereafter be sold, or disposed of, and the five hun-
dred thousand acres of land granted to the new states, under an act of
congress, distributing the proceeds of the public lands among the several
states of the Union, approved in the year of our Lord one thousand eight
hundred and forty-one, and all estates of deceased persons who may have
died without leaving a will or heir, and also such per cent as has been or
may hereafter be granted by congress, on the sale of lands in this state,
shall be and remain a perpetual fund, the interest of which, together with
all rents of the unsold lands, and such other means as the general assem-
bly may provide, shall be inviolably appropriated to the support of com-
mon schools throughout the state .
Sec. 4. The money which may have been or shall be paid by persons
as an equivalent from exemption from military duty, and the clear pro-,
ceeds of all fines collected in the several counties for any breach of the
penal laws, shall be exclusively applied in the several counties in which
such money is paid, or fine collected, ainong the several school districts
of said counties, in proportion to the number of youths subject to enunier-
ation in such districts, to the support of common schools, or the establish-
ment of libraries, as the board of education shall from time to time provide.
Sec 5. The general assembly shall take measures for the protection,
improvement or other dispositions of such lands as have been or may here-
after be reserved, or granted by the United States, or any person or per-
sons, to this state, for the use of the university, and the funds accruing
from the rents or sale of such lands, or from any other source for the pur-
pose aforesaid, shall be, and remain, a permanent fund, the interest of
which shall be apphed to the support of said university, for the promotion
of literature, the arts and sciences, as maybe authorized by the terms of
such grant. And it shall be the duty of the general assembly as soon as
may be, to provide effectual means for the improvement and permanent
security of the funds of said university.
Sec 6. The financial agents of the school funds shall be the same
that by law receive and control the state and county revenue, for other
civil purposes, under such regulations as may be provided by law.
It) CONSTITUTION OF IOWA.
Sec. 7. The money subject to the support and maintenance of common
schools shall be distributed to the districts in proportion to the number of
youths between the ages of five and twenty-one years, in such manner as
may be pro\'ided by the general assembly.
ARTICLP] X.— AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION.
Section 1. Any amendment or amendments to this constitution may be
proposed in either house of the general assembly; and if the same shall
be agreed to bv a majority of the members elected to each of the two
houses, such proposed amendment shall be entered on their journals, with
the yeas and nays taken thereon, and leferred to the legislature to be
chosen at the next general election, and shall be published, as provided by
law, for three months previous to the time of making such choice; and it,
in the general assembly so next chosen as aforesaid, such proposed amend-
ment or amendments shall be agreed to by a majority of all the members
elected to each house, then it shall be the duty of the general assembly to
submit such proposed amendment or amendments to the people in such
manner, and at such time as the general assembly shall provide; and il
the people shall approve and ratify such amendment or amendments by a
majority of the electors qualified to vote for members of the general
assembly, voting thereon, such amendment or amendments shall become
a part of the constitution of this state.
Sec 2. If two or more amendments shall be submitted at the same
time, they shall be submitted in such manner that the electors shall vote
for or against each of such amendments separately.
Sec. 8. At the general election to be held in the year one thousand
eight hundred and seventy, and in each tenth year thereafter, and also at
such times as the general assembly may by law provide, the question,
"Shall there be a convention to revise the constitution, and amend the
same?" shall be decided by the electors qualified to vote for members of
the general assembly; and in case a majority of the electors so qualified,
voting at such election for and against such proposition, shall decide in
favor of a convention for such purpose, the general assembly, at its
next session, shall provide by law for the election of delegates to such con-
vention.
ARTICLE XI.— MISCELLANEOUS.
Section 1. The jurisdiction of justices of the peace shall extend to all
civil cases, (except cases in chancery, and cases where the question of title
to real estate may arise), where the amount in controversy does not exceed
one hundred dollars, and by the consent of parties may be extended to any
amount not exceedino- three hundred dollars.
Sec 2. No new countv shall be hereafter created containing less than
four hundred and thirty-two square miles, nor shall the territory of any
organized county be reduced below that area, except the county of Worth,
and the counties west of it, along the northern boundary of this state, may
be organized without additional territory.
Sec 3. No county, or other political or municipal corporation, shall be
allowed to become indebted, in any manner or for any purpose, to an
amount, in the aggregate, exceeding five per centum of the value of the
taxable property within such count}- or corporation — to be ascertained by
the last state and county tax lists, previous to the incurring of such indebt-
edness.
Sec 4. The boundaries of the state may be enlarged, with the consent
of congress and the general assembly.
CONSTITUTION OV IOWA. 17
Sec. 5. Every person elected or appointed to an}- office, shall, before
entering upon the duties thereof, take an oath or affirmation to support
the constitution of the United States, and of this state, and also an oath of
office.
Sec. 6. In all cases of elections to fill vacancies in office occuring- before
the expiration of a full term, the person so elected shall hold for the resi-
due of the unexpired term; and all persons appointed to fill vacancies in
office, shall hold until the next general election, and undl their successors
are elected and qualified.
Sec T. The general assembly shall not locate any of the public lands
which have been, or may be granted by congress to this state, and the
location of which may be given to the general assembly, upon lands actu-
ally settled, without the consent of the occupant. The extent of the claim
of such occupant so exempted shall not exceed three hundred and twenty
acres.
Sec 8. The seat of government is hereby permanently established, as
now fixed by law, at the city of Des Moines, in the county of Polk; and
the State University at Iowa City, in the count}^ of Johnson.
ARTICLE XII.— SCHEDULE.
Section 1. The constitution shall be the supreme law of the state,
and any law inconsistent therewith shall be void. The general assembly
shall pass all laws necessary to carry this constitution into efiect.
Sec 2. All laws now in force and not inconsistent with this constitu-
tion shall remain in force until they shall expire or be repealed.
Sec .3. All indictments, prosecutions, suits, pleas, plaints, process, and
other proceedings pending in any of the courts, shall be prosecuted to
final judgment and execution; and all appeals, writs of error, certiorari,
and injunctions, shall be carried on in the several courts, in the same maii-
ner as now provided by law, and all ofienses, misdemeanors and crimes
that may have been committed before the taking effect of this constitution,
shall be subject to indictment, trial and punishment, in the same manner
as they would have been had this constitution not been made.
Sec 4. All fines, penalties or forfeitures due, or to become due, or
accruing to the state, or to any county therein, or to the school fund,
shall inure to the state, county, or school fund, in the manner prescribed
by law.
Sec 5. All bonds executed to the state, or to anv officer in his official
capacit}^ shall remain in force and inure to the use of those concerned.
Sec 7. The first election under this constitution shall be held on the sec-
ond Tuesday in October, in the year one thousand eight hundred and fifty-
seven, at which time the electors of the state shall elect the governor and
lieutenant governor. There shall also be elected at auch election the suc-
cessors of such state senators as were elected at the August election in
the year one thousand eight hundred and fifty-four, and members of the
house of representatives, who shall be elected in accordance with the act
of apportionment, enacted at the session of the general assembl}' which
commenced on the first Monday of December, one thousand eight hun-
dred and fifty-six.
Sec 7. The first election for secretary, auditor and treasurer of state,
attorney-general, district judges, members of the board of education, dis-
trict attorneys, members of congress, and such state officers as shall be
elected at the April election in the year one thousand eight hundred and
18 CONSTITUTION OF IOWA.
fifty-seven, (exxept the superintendent of public instruction,) and such
county officers as were elected at the August election in the year one
thousand eight hundred and tifty-six, except prosecuting attorneys, shall
be held on the second Tuesday of October, one thousand eight hundred
and fifty-eight: Provided, that the time for which any district judge or
other state or count}^ officer elected at the April election in the year one
thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, shall not extend beyond the time
fixed for filling Hke offices at the October election in the year one thousand
eight hundred and fifty-eight.
Sec. 8. The first election for judges of the supreme court, and such
bounty officers as shall be elected at the August election in the year one
thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, shall be held on the second Tues-
day of October, in the year one thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine.
Sec. 0. The first regular session of the general assembly shall be held
in the ^xar one thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, commencing on
the second Mondav of Tanuarv of said year.
Sec. 10. Senators elected at the August election in the year one thou-
sand eight hundred and fifty-six shall continue in office until the second
Tuesday of October, in, the year one thousand eight hundred and fifty-
nine, at which time their successors shall be elected as may be prescribed
by law.
Sec. 11. Every person elected by popular vote, by a vote of the gen-
eral assembly, or who may hold office by executive appointment, which
office is continued by this constitution, and every person who shall be so
elected or appointed to any such office, before the taking effect of this con-
stitution, (except as in this constitution otherwise provided) shall continue
in office until the term for which such person has been or may be elected
or appointed shall expire; but no such person shall continue in oftice after
the taking effect of this constitution, for a longer period than the term of
such office, in this constitution prescribed.
Sec. 12. The general assembly, at the first session under this constitu-
tion, shall district the state into eleven judicial districts, for district court
purposes; and shall also provide for the appointment of the members of
the general assembly in accordance with provisions of this constitution.
Sec. 13. This constitution shall be submitted to the electors of the state
at the August election, in the 3-ear one thousand eight hundred and fift}'-
seven, in the several election districts in this state. The ballots at such
election shall be written or printed as follows: Those in favor of the con-
stitution, " New Constitution — Yes." Those against the constitution,
" New Constitution — No." The election shall be conducted in the same
manner as the general elections of the state, and the poll-books shall be
returned and canvassed as piovidedin the twenty-fifth chapter of the code,
and abstracts shall be forwarded to the secretarv of state, which abstracts
shall be canvassed in the manner provided for the canvass of state officers.
And if it shall appear that a majority of all the votes cast at such election
for and against this constitution are in favor of the same, the governor
shall immediately issue his proclamation stating that fact, and such con-
stitution shall be the constitution of the state of Iowa, and shall take effect
from and after the publication of said proclamation.
The Northwest Territory.
GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION.
When the Northwestern Territory was ceded to the United States
by Virginia in 1784, it embraced only the territory lying between the
Ohio and the Mississippi Rivers, and north to the northern limits of the
United States. It coincided with the area now embraced in the States
of Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and that portion of
Minnesota lying on the east side of the Mississippi River. The United
States itself at that period extended no farther west than the Mississippi
River ; but by the purchase of Louisiana in 1803, the western boundary
of the United States was extended to the Rocky Mountains and the
Northern Pacific Ocean. The new territory thus added to the National
domain, and subsequently opened to settlement, has been called the
" New Northwest," in contradistinction from the old " Northwestern
Territory."
In comparison with the old Northwest this is a territory of vast
magnitude. It includes an area of 1,887,850 square miles ; being greater
in extent than the united areas of all the Middle and Southern States,
including Texas. Out of this magnificent territory have been erected
eleven sovereign States and eight Territories, with an aggregate popula-
tion, at the present time, of 13,000,000 inhabitants, or nearly one third of
the entire population of the United States.
Its lakes are fresh-water seas, and the larger rivers of the continent
flow for a thousand miles through its rich alluvial "valleys and far-
stretching prairies, more acres of which are arable and productive of the
highest percentage of the cereals than of any other area of like extent
on the globe.
For the last twenty years the increase of population in the North-
west has been about as three to one in any other portion of the United
States.
(19)
c
20 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
EARLY EXPLORATIONS.
In the year 1541, DeSoto first saw the Great West in the New
"World. He, however, penetrated no farther north than the 35th parallel
of latitude. The expedition resulted in his death and that of more than
half his army, the remainder of whom found their way to Cuba, thence
to Spain, in a famished and demoralized condition. DeSoto founded no
settlements, produced no results, and left no traces, unless it were that
he awakened the hostility of the red man against the white man, and
disheartened such as might desire to follow up the career of discovery
for better purposes. The French nation were eager and ready to seize
upon any news from this extensive domain, and were the first to profit by
DeSoto's defeat. Yet it was more than a century before any adventurer
took advantage of these discoveries.
In 1616, four years before the pilgrims " moored their bark on the
wild New England shore," Le Caron, a French Franciscan, had pene-
trated through the Iroquois and Wyandots (Hurons) to the streams which
run into Lake Huron ; and in 1634, two Jesuit missionaries founded the
first mission among the lake tribes. It was just one hundred years from
the discovery of the Mississippi by DeSoto (1541) until the Canadian
envoys met the savage nations of the Northwest at the Falls of St. Mary,
below the outlet of Lake Superior. This visit led to no permanent
result ; yet it was not until 1659 that any of the adventurous fur traders
attempted to spend a Winter in the frozen wilds about the great lakes,
nor was it until 1660 that a station was established upon their borders by
Mesnard, who perished in the woods a few months after. In 1665, Claude
AUouez built the earliest lasting habitation of the white man amono- the
Indians of the Northwest. In 1668, Claude Dablon and James Marquette
founded the mission of Sault Ste. Marie at the Falls of St. Mary, and two
years afterward, Nicholas Perrot, as agent for M. Talon, Governor Gen-
eral of Canada, explored Lake Illinois (Michigan) as far south as the
present City of Chicago, and invited the Indian nations to meet him at a
grand council at Sault Ste. Marie the following Spring, where they were
taken under the protection of the king, and formal possession was taken
of the Northwest. This same year Marquette established a mission at
Point St. Ignatius, where was founded the old town of Michillimackinac.
During M. Talon's explorations and Marquette's residence at St.
Ignatius, they learned of a great river away to the west, and fancied
— as all others did then— that upon its fertile banks whole tribes of God's
children resided, to whom the sound of the Gospel had never come.
Filled with a wish to go and preach to them, and in compliance with a
THE NORTHWEST TEEEITOitT. 21
request of M. Talon, who earnestly desired to extend the domain of his
king, and to ascertain whether the river flowed into the Gulf of Mexico
or the Pacific Ocean, Marquette with Joliet, as commander of the expe-
dition, prepared for the undertaking.
On the 13th of May, 1673, the explorers, accompanied by five assist-
ant French Canadians, set out from Mackinaw on their daring voyage of
discovery. The Indians, who gathered to witness their departure, were
astonished at the boldness of the undertaking, and endeavored to dissuade
them from their purjDose by representing the tribes on the Mississippi as
exceedingly savage and cruel, and the river itself as full of all sorts of
frightful monsters ready to swallow them and their canoes together. But,
nothing daunted by these terrific descriptions, Marquette told them he
was willing not only to* encounter all the perils of the unknown region
they were about to explore, but to lay down his life in a cause in which
the salvation of souls was involved ; and having prayed together they
separated. Coasting along the northern shore of Lake Michigan, the
adventurers entered Green Bay, and passed thence up the Fox River and
Lake Winnebago to a village of the Miamis and Kickapoos. Here Mar-
quette was delighted to find a beautiful cross planted in the middle of the
town ornamented with white skins, red girdles and bows and arrows,
which these good people had offered to the Great Manitou, or God, to
thank him for the pity he had bestowed on them during the Winter in
giving them an abundant " chase." This was the farthest outpost to
which Dablon and Allouez had extended their missionary labors the
year previous. Here Marquette drank mineral waters and was instructed
in the secret of a root which cures the bite of the venomous rattlesnake.
He assembled the chiefs and old men of the village, and, pointing to
Joliet, said: " My friend is an envoy of France, to discover new coun-
tries, and I am an ambassador from God to enlighten them with the truths
of the Gospel." Two Miami guides were here furnished to conduct
them to the Wisconsin River, and they set out from the Indian village on
the 10th of June, amidst a great crowd of natives who had assembled to
witness their departure into a region where no white man had ever yet
ventured. The guides, having conducted them across the portage,
returned. The explorers launched their canoes upon the Wisconsin,
which they descended to the Mississippi and proceeded down its unknown
waters. What emotions must have swelled their breasts as they struck
out into the broadening current and became conscious that they were
now upon the bosom of ths Father of Waters. The mystery was about
to be lifted from the long-sought river. The scenery in that locality is
beautiful, and on that delightful seventeenth of June must have been
clad in all its primeval loveliness as it had been adorned by the hand of
22
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
Nature. Drifting rapidly, it is said that the bold bluffs on either hand
" reminded them of the castled shores of their own beautiful rivers of
France." By-and-by, as they drifted along, great herds of buffalo appeared
on the banks. On going to the heads of the valley they could see a
country of the greatest beauty and fertility, apparently destitute of inhab-
itants yet presenting the appearance of extensive manors, under the fas-
tidious cultivation of lordly proprietors.
SOURCE or THE MISSISSIPPI.
On June 25, they went ashore and found some fresh traces of men upon
the sand, and a path which led to the prairie. The men remained in the
boat, and Marquette and Joliet followed the path till they discovered a
village on the banks of a river, and two other villages on a hill, within a
half league of the first, inhabited by Indians. They were received most
hospitably by these natives, who had never before seen a white person.
After remaining a few days they re-embarked and descended the river to
about latitude 33°, where they found a village of the Arkansas, and being
satisfied that the river flowed into the Gulf of Mexico, turned their course
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 23
up the river, and ascending the stream to the mouth of the Illinois,
rowed up that stream to its source, and procured guides from that point
to the lakes. " Nowhere on this journey," says Marquette, •' did we see
such grounds, meadows, woods, stags, buffaloes, deer, wildcats, bustards,
swans, ducks, parroquets, and even beavers, as on the Illinois River."
The party, without loss or injury, reached Green Bay in September, and
reported their discovery— one of the most important of the age, but of
which no record was preserved save Marquette's, Joliet losing his by
the upsetting of his canoe on his way to Quebec. Afterward Marquette
returned to the Illinois Indians by their request, and ministered to them
until 1675. On the 18th of May, in that year, as he was passing the
mouth of a stream — going with his boatmen up Lake Michigan — he asked
to land at its mouth and celebrate Mass. Leaving his men with the canoe,
he retired a short distance and began his devotions. As much time
passed and he did not return, his men went in search of him, and found
him upon his knees, dead. He had peacefull}^ passed away while at
prayer. He was buried at this spot. Charlevoix, who visited the place
fifty years after, found the waters had retreated from the grave, leaving
the beloved missionary to repose in peace. The river has since been
called Marquette.
While Marquette and his companions were pursuing their labors in
the West, two men, differing widely from him and each other, were pre-
paring to' follow in his footsteps and perfect the discoveries so well begun
bv him. These were Robert de La Salle and Louis Hennepin.
After La Salle's return from the discovery of the Ohio River (see
the narrative elsewhere), he established himself again among the French
trading posts in Canada. Here he mused long upon the pet project of
those ages — a short way to China and the East, and was busily planning an
expedition up the great lakes, and so across the continent to the Pacific,
when Marquette returned from the Mississippi. At once the vigorous mind
of LaSalle received from his and his companions' stories the idea that by fol-
lowing the Great River northward, or by turning up some of the numerous
western tributaries, the object could easily be gained. He applied to
Frontenac, Governor General of Canada, and laid before him the plan,
dim but gigantic. Frontenac entered warmly into his plans, and saw that
LaSalle's idea to connect the great lakes by a chain of forts with the Gulf
of Mexico would bind the country so wonderfully together, give un-
measured power to France, and glory to himself, under whose adminis-
tration he earnestly hoped all would be realized.
LaSalle now repaired to France, laid his plans before the King, who
warmly approved of them, and made him a Chevalier. He also received
from all the noblemen the warmest wishes for his success. The Chev-
24
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
alier returned to Canada, and busily entered upon his work. He at
once rebuilt Fort Frontenac and constructed the first ship to sail on
these fresh-water seas. On the 7th of August, 1679, having been joined
by Hennepin, he began his voyage in the Griffin up Lake Erie. He
passed over this lake, through the straits beyond, up Lake St. Clair and
into Huron. In this lake they encountered heavy storms. They were
some time at Michillimackinac, where LaSalle founded a fort, and passed
on to Green Bay, the " Bale des Puans" of the French, where he found
a large quantity of furs collected for him. He loaded the Griffin with
these, and placing her under the care of a pilot and fourteen sailors,
LA SALLE LANDING ON THE SHORE OF GREEN BAY.
Started her on her return voyage. The vessel was never afterward heard
of. He remained about these parts until early in the Winter, when, hear-
ing nothing from the Griffin, he collected all the men — thirty working
men and three monks — and started again upon his great undertaking.
By a short portage they passed to the Illinois or Kankakee, called by
the Indians, "Theakeke," ivolf, because of the tribes of Indians called
by that name, commonly known as the Mahingans, dwelling there. The
French pronounced it Kiakiki, which became corrupted to Kankakee.
"Falling down the said river by easy journeys, the better to observe the
country," about the last of December they reached a village of the Illi-
nois Indians, containing some five hundred cabins, but at that moment
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 25
no inhabitants. The Seur de LaSalle being in want of some breadstuffs,
took advantage of the absence of the Indians to help himself to a suffi-
ciency of maize, large quantities of which he found concealed in holes
under the wigwams. This village was situated near the present village
of Utica in LaSalle County, Illinois. The corn being securely stored,
the voyagers again betook themselves to the stream, and toward evening,
on the 4th day of January, 1680, they came into a lake which must have
been the lake of Peoria. This was called by the Indians Pim-i-te-wi, that
is, a place where there are many fat beasts. Here the natives were met
with in large numbers, but they were gentle and kind, and having spent
some time with them, LaSalle determined to erect another fort in that
place, for he had heard rumors that some of the adjoining tribes were
trying to disturb the good feeling which existed, and some of his men
were disposed to complain, owing to the hardships and perils of the travel.
He called this fort " Crevecoeur'"' (broken-heart), a name expressive of the
very natural sorrow and anxiety which the pretty certain loss of his ship.
Griffin, and his consequent impoverishment, the danger of hostility on the
part of the Indians, and of mutiny among his own men, might well cause
him. His fears were not entirely groundless. At one time poison was
placed in his food, but fortunately was discovered.
While building this fort, the Winter wore away, the prairies began to
look green, and LaSalle, despairing of any reinforcements, concluded to
return to Canada, raise new means and new men, and embark anew in
the enterprise. For this purpose he made Hennepin the leader of a party
to explore the head waters of the Mississippi, and he set out on his jour-
ney. This journey was accomplished with the aid of a few persons, and
was successfully made, though over an almost unknown route, and in a
bad season of the year. He safely reached Cana<ia, and set out again for
the object of his search.
Hennepin and his party left Fort Crevecoeur on the last of February,
1680. When LaSalle reached this place on his return expedition, he
found the fort entirely deserted, and he was obliged to return again to
Canada. He embarked the third time, and succeeded. Seven days after
leaving the fort, Hennepin reached the Mississippi, and paddling up the
icy stream as best he could, reached no higher than the Wisconsin River
by the 11th of April. Here he and his followers were taken prisoners by a
band of Northern Indians, who treated them with great kindness. Hen-
nepin's comrades were Anthony Auguel and Michael Ako. On this voy-
age they found several beautiful lakes, and " saw some charming prairies."
Their captors were the Isaute or Sauteurs, Chippewas, a tribe of the Sioux
nation, who took them up the river until about the first of May, when
they reached some falls, which Hennepin christened Falls of St. Anthony
26
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
in honor of his patron saint. Here they took the land, and traveling
nearly two hundred miles to the northwest, brought them to their villages.
Here they were kept about three months, were treated kindly by their
captors, and at the end of that time, were met by a band of Frenchmen,
BUFFALO HUNT.
headed by one Seur de Luth, who, in pursuit of trade and game, had pene-
trated thus far by the route of Lake Superior ; and with these fellow-
countrymen Hennepin and his companions were allowed to return to the
borders of civilized life in November, 1680, just after LaSalle had
returned to the wilderness on his second trip. Hennepin soon after went
to France, where he published an account of his adventures.
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 27
The Mississippi was first discovered by De Soto in April, 1541, in his
vain endeavor to find gold and precious gems. In the following Spring,
De Soto, weary with hope long deferred, and worn out With his wander-
ings, fell a victim to disease, and on the 21st of May died. His followers,
reduced by fatigue and disease to less than three hundred men, wandered
about the country nearly a year, in the vain endeavor to rescue them-
selves by land, and finally constructed seven small vessels, called brig-
antines, in which they embarked, and descending the river, supposing it
would lead them to the sea, in July they came to the sea (Gulf of
Mexico), and by September reached the Island of Cuba.
They were the first to see the great outlet of the Mississippi; but,
being so weary and discouraged, made no attempt to claim the country,
and hardly had an intelligent idea of what they had passed through.
To La Salle, the intrejDid explorer, belongs the honor of giving the
first account of the mouths of the river. His great desire was to possess
this entire country for his king, and in January, 1682, he and his band of
explorers left the shores of Lake Michigan on their third attempt, crossed
the Portage, passed down the Illinois River, and on the 6tli of February
reached the banks of the Mississippi.
On the 13th they commenced their downward course, which they
pursued with but one interruption, until upon the 6th of March they dis-
covered the three great passages by which the river discharges its waters
into the gulf. La Salle thus narrates the event:
" We landed on the bank of the most western channel, about three
leagues (nine miles) from its mouth. On the seventh, M. de La Salle
went to reconnoiter the shores of the neighboring sea, and M. de Tonti
meanwhile examined the great middle channel. They found the main
outlets beautiful, large and deep. On the eighth we reascended the river,
a little above its confluence with the sea, to find a dry place beyond the
reach of inundations. The elevation of the North Pole was here about
twenty-seven degrees. Here we prepared a column and a cross, and to
the column were affixed the arms of France with this inscription :
" Louis Le Grand, Roi de France et de Navarre, regne ; Le neuvierae April, 1682."
The whole party, under arms, chanted the Te Deum^ and then, after
a salute and cries of " Vive le Roi^''' the column was erected by M. de
La Salle, who, standing near it, proclaimed in a loud voice the authority of
the King of France. La Salle returned and laid the foundations of the Mis-
sissippi settlements in Illinois ; thence he proceeded to France, where
another expedition was fitted out, of which he was commander, and in two
succeeding voyages failed to find the outlet of the river by sailing along
the shore of the gulf. On the third voyage he was killed, through the
28
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
treachery of his followers, and the object of his expeditions was not
accomplished until 1699, when D'Iberville, under the authority of the
crown, discovered, on the second of March, by way of the sea, the mouth
of the " Hidden River." This majestic stream was called by the natives
^'' Malbouclda^'" and by the Spaniards, " Za Palissade,^^ from the great
feiii;i(lMi)i,lr;^iimii'
TRAPPING.
number of trees about its mouth. After traversing the several outlets^
and satisfying himself as to its certainty, he erected a fort near its western
outlet, and returned to France.
An avenue of trade was now opened out which was fully improved.
In 1718, New Orleans was laid out and settled by some European colo-
nists. In 1762, the colony was made over to Spain, to be regained by
France under the consulate of Napoleon. In 1803, it was purchased by
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 29
the United States for the sum of fifteen million dollars, and the territory
of Louisiana and commerce of the Mississippi River came under the
charge of the United States. Although LaSalle's labors ended in defeat
and death, he had not worked and suffered in vain. He had thrown
open to France and the world an immense and most valuable country ;
had established several ports, and laid the foundations of more than one
settlement there. " Peoria, Kaskaskia and Cahokia, are to this day monu-
ments of LaSalle's labors ; for, though he had founded neither of them
(unless Peoria, which was built nearly upon the site of Fort Crevecceur,)
it was by those whom he led into the West that these places were
peopled and civilized. He was, if not the discoverer, the first settler of
the Mississippi Valley, and as such deserves to be known and honored."
The French early improved the opening made for them. Before the
year 1698, the Rev. Father Gravier began a mission among the Illinois,
and founded Kaskaskia. For some time this was merely a missionary
station, where none but natives resided, it being one of three such vil-
lao-es, the other two being Cahokia and Peoria. What is known of
these missions is learned from a letter written by Father Gabriel Marest,
dated " Aux Cascaskias, autrement dit de I'lmmaculate Conception de
la Sainte Vierge, le 9 Novembre, 1712." Soon after the founding of
Kaskaskia, the missionary, Pinet, gathered a flock at Cahokia, while
Peoria arose near the ruins of Fort Crevecceur. This must have been
about the year 1700. The post at Vincennes on the Oubache river,
(pronounced Wa-ba, meaning summer cloud moving siviftli/) was estab-
lished in 1702, according to the best authorities.* It is altogether prob-
able that on LaSalle's last trip he established ^the stations at Kaskaskia
and Cahokia. In July, 1701, the foundations of Fort Ponchartrain
were laid by De la Motte Cadillac on the Detroit River. These sta-
tions, with those established further north, were the earliest attempts to
occupy the Northwest Territory. * At the same time efforts were being
made to occupy the Southwest, which finally culminated in the settle-
ment and founding of the City of New Orleans by a colony from England
in 1718. This was mainly accomplished through the efforts of the
famous Mississippi Company, established by the notorious John Law,
who so quickly arose into prominence in France, and who with his
scheme so quickly and so ignominiously passed away.
From the time of the founding of these stations for fifty years the
French nation were engrossed with the settlement of the lower Missis-
sippi, and the war with the Chicasaws, who had, in revenge for repeated
♦ There Is considerable dispute about this date, some asserting it was founded as late as 1742. When
the new court house at Vincennes was erected, all authorities on the subject were carefully examined, and
ym fixed upon as the correct date. It was accordingly engraved on the corner-stone of the court house.
30 THE NORTHWEST TEKEITORY.
injuries, cut off the entire colony at Natchez. Although the company
did little for Louisiana, as the entire West was then called, yet it opened
the trade through the Mississippi River, and started the raising of grains
indigenous to that climate. Until the year 1750, but little is known of
the settlements in the Northwest, as it was not until this time that the
attention of the English was called to the occupation of this portion of the
New World, which they then suj^posed they owned. Vivier, a missionary
among the Illinois, writing from " Aux Illinois," six leagues from Fort
Chartres, June 8, 1750, says: "We have here whites, negroes and
Indians, to say nothing of cross-breeds. There are five French villages,
and three villages of the natives, within a space of twenty-one leagues
.situated between the Mississippi and another river called the Karkadaid
(Kaskaskias). In the five French villages are, perhaps, eleven hundred
whites, three hundred blacks and some sixty red slaves or savages. The
three Illinois towns do not contain more than eight hundred souls all
told. Most of the French till the soil; they raise wheat, cattle, pigs and
horses, and live like princes. Three times as much is produced as can
be consumed ; and great quantities of grain and flour are sent to New
Orleans." This city was now the seaport town of the Northwest, and
save in the extreme northern part, where only furs and copper ore were
found, almost all the products of the country found their way to France
by the mouth of the Father of Waters. In another letter, dated Novem-
ber 7, 1750, this same priest says : " For fifteen leagues above the
mouth of the Mississippi one sees no dwellings, the ground being too low
to be habitable. Thence to New Orleans, the lands are only partially
•occupied. New Orleans contains black, white and red, not more, I
think, than twelve hundred persons. To this point come all lumber,
bricks, salt-beef, tallow, tar, skins and bear's grease ; and above all, pork
and flour from the Illinois. These things create some commerce, as forty
vessels and more have come hither \his year. Above New Orleans,
plantations are again met with ; the most considerable is a colony of
Germans, some ten leagues up the river. At Point Coupee, thirty -five
leagues above the German settlement, is a fort. Along here, within five
or six leagues, are not less than sixty habitations. Fifty leagues farther
up is the Natchez post, where we have a garrison, who are kept prisoners
through fear of the Chickasaws. Here and at Point Coupee, they raise
excellent tobacco. Another hundred leagues brings us to the Arkansas,
where we have also a fort and a garrison for the benefit of the river
traders. * * * From the Arkansas to the Illinois, nearly five hundred
leagues, there is not a settlement. There should be, however, a fort at
the Oubache (Ohio), the only path by which the English can reach the
Mississippi. In the Illinois country are numberless mines, biit no one to
THE NORTHWEST TEREITOKY.
31
"work them as they deserve." Father Marest, writing from the post at
Vincennesin 1812, makes the same observation. Vivier also says : " Some
individuals dig lead near the surface and supply the Indians and Canada.
Two Spaniards now here, who claim to be adepts, say that our mines are
like those of Mexico, and that if we would dig deeper, we should find
silver under the lead ; and at any rate the lead is excellent. There is also
in this country, beyond doubt, copper ore, as from time to time larga
pieces are found in the streams."
MOUTH OF THE MISSISSIPPI.
At the close of the year 1750, the French occupied, in addition to the
lower Mississippi posts and those in Illinois, one at Du Quesne, one at
the Maumee in the country of the Miamis, and one at Sandusky in what
may be termed the Ohio Valley. In the northern part of the Northwest
they had stations at St. Joseph's on the St. Joseph's of Lake Michigan,
at Fort Ponchartrain (Detroit), at Michillimackanac or Massillimacanac,
Fox River of Green Baj', and at Sault Ste. Marie. The fondest dreams of
LaSalle were now fully realized. The French alone were possessors of
this vast realm, basing their claim on discovery and settlement. Another
nation, however, was now turning its attention to this extensive country.
82 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORYo
and hearing of its wealth, began to lay plans for occupying it and for
securing the great profits arising therefrom.
The French, however, had another claim to this country, namely, the
DISCOVERY OF THE OHIO.
This " Beautiful " river was discovered by Robert Cavalier de La-
Salle in 1669, four years before the discovery of the Mississippi by Joliet
and Marquette.
While LaSalle was at his trading post on the St. Lawrence, he found
leisure to study nine Indian dialects, the chief of which was the Iroquois.
He not only desired to facilitate his intercourse in trade, but he longed
to travel and explore the unknown regions of the West. An incident
soon occurred which decided him to lit out an exploring expedition.
While conversing with some Senecas, he learned of a river called the
Ohio, which rose in their country and flowed to the sea, but at such a
distance that it required eight months to reach its mouth. In this state-
ment the Mississippi and its tributaries were considered as one stream.
LaSalle believing, as most of the French at that period did, that the great
rivers flowing west emptied into the Sea of California, was anxious to
embark in the enterprise of discovering a route across the continent to
the commerce of China and Japan.
He repaired at once to Quebec to obtain the approval of the Gov-
ernor. His eloquent appeal prevailed. The Governor and the Intendant,
Talon, issued letters patent authorizing the enterprise, but made no pro-
vision to defray tlie expenses. At this juncture the seminary of St. Sul-
pice decided to send out missionaries in connection with the expedition,
and LaSalle offering to sell his improvements at LaChine to raise money,
the offer was accepted by the Superior, and two thousand eight hundred
dollars were raised, with which LaSalle purchased four canoes and the
necessary supplies for the outfit.
On the 6tli of July, 1669, the party, numbering twenty-four persons,
embarked in seven canoes on the St. Lawrence ; two additional canoes
carried the Indian guides. In three days they were gliding over the
bosom of Lake Ontario. Their guides conducted them directly to the
Seneca village on the bank of the Genesee, in the vicinity of the present
City of Rochester, New York. Here they expected to procure guides to
conduct them to the Ohio, but in this they were disappointed.
The Indians seemed unfriendly to the enterprise. LaSalle suspected
that the Jesuits had prejudiced their minds against his plans. After
waiting a month in the hope of gaining their object, they met an Indian
THE NORTHWEST TEKEITORY.
33
from the Iroquois colony at the head of Lake Ontario, who assured them
that they could there find guides, and offered to conduct them thence.
On their way they passed the mouth of the Niagara River, when they
heard for the first time the distant thunder of the cataract. Arriving
lUGII BRIDGE, LAKE BLUFF, LAKE COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
among the Iroquois, they met with a friendly reception, and learned
from a Shawanee prisoner that they could reach the Ohio in six weeks.
Delighted with the unexpected good fortune, they made ready to resume
their journey ; but just as they were about to start they heard of the
arrival of two Frenchmen in a neighboring village. One of them proved
to be Louis Joliet, afterwards famous as an explorer in the West. He
34 THE NOKTHWEST TEREITORY.
had been sent by the Canadian Government to explore the copper mines
on Lake Superior, but had failed, and was on his way back to Quebec.
He gave the missionaries a map of the country he had explored in the
lake region, together with an account of the condition of the Indians in
that quarter. This induced the priests to determine on leaving the
expedition and going to Lake Superior. LaSalle warned them that the
Jesuits were probably occupying that field, and that they would meet
with a cold reception. Nevertheless they persisted in their purpose, and
after worship on the lake shore, parted from LaSalle. On arriving at
Lake Superior, they found, as LaSalle had predicted, the Jesuit Fathers,
Marquette and Dablon, occupying the field.
These zealous disciples of Loyola informed them that they wanted
no assistance from St. Sulpice, nor from those who made him their patron
saint ; and thus repulsed, they returned to Montreal the following June
without having made a single discovery or converted a single Indian.
After parting with the priests, LaSalle went to the chief Iroquois
village at Onondaga, where he obtained guides, and passing thence to a
tributary of the Ohio south of Lake Erie, he descended the latter as far
as the falls at Louisville. Thus was the Ohio discovered by LaSalle, the
persevering and successful French explorer of the West, in 1669.
The account of the latter part of his journey is found in an anony-
mous paper, which purports to have been taken from the lips of LaSalle
himself during a subsequent visit to Paris. In a letter written to Count
Frontenac in 1667, shortly after the discovery, he himself says that he
discovered the Ohio and descended it to the falls. This was regarded as
an indisputable fact by the French authorities, who claimed the Ohio
Valley upon another ground. When Washington was sent by the colony
of Virginia in 1753, to demand of Gordeur de St. Pierre why the French
had built a fort on the Monongahela, the haughty commandant at Quebec
replied : " We claim the country on the Ohio by virtue of the discoveries
of LaSalle, and will not give it up to the English. Our orders are to
make prisoners of every Englishman found trading in the Ohio Valley."
ENGLISH EXPLORATIONS AND SETTLEMENTS.
When the new year of 1750 broke in upon the Father of Waters
and the Great Northwest, all was still wild save at the French posts
already described. In 1749, when the English first began to think seri-
ously about sending men into the West, the greater portion of the States
of Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota were yet
under the dominion of the red men. The English knew, however, pretty
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 35
conclusively of the nature of the wealth of these wilds. As early as
1710, Governor Spotswood, of Virginia, had commenced movements to
secure the country west of the Alleghenies to the English crown. In
Pennsylvania, Governor Keith and James Logan, secretary of the prov-
ince, from 1719 to 1731, represented to the powers of England the neces-
sity of securing the Western lands. Nothing was done, however, by that
power save to take some diplomatic steps to secure the claims of Britain
to this unexplored wilderness.
England had from the outset claimed from the Atlantic to the Pacific,
on the ground that the discovery of the seacoast and its possession was a
discovery and possession of the country, and, as is well known, her grants
to the colonies extended " from sea to sea." This was not all her claim.
She had purchased from the Indian tribes large tracts of land. This lat-
ter was also a strong argument. As early as 1684, Lord Howard, Gov-
ernor of Virginia, held a treaty with the six nations. These were the
great Northern Confederacy, and comprised at first the Mohawks, Onei-
das, Onondagas, Cayugas, and Senecas. Afterward the Tuscaroras were
taken into the confederacy, and it became known as the Six Nations.
They came under the protection of the mother country, and again in
1701, they repeated the agreement, and in September, 1726, a formal deed
was drawn up and signed by the chiefs. The validity of this claim has
often been disputed, but never successfully. In 1744, a purchase was
made at Lancaster, Pennsylvania, of certain lands within the " Colony of
Virginia," for which the Indians received <£200 in gold and a like sum in
goods, with a promise that, as settlements increased, more should be paid.
The Commissioners from Virginia were Colonel Thomas Lee and Colonel
William Beverly. As settlements extended, the promise of more pay was
called to mind, and Mr. Conrad Weiser was sent across the mountains with
presents to appease the savages. Col. Lee, and some Virginians accompa-
nied him with the intention of sounding the Indians upon their feelings
regarding the English. They were not satisfied with their treatment,
and plainly told the Commissioners why. The English did not desire the
cultivation of the country, but the monopoly of the Indian trade. In
1748, the Ohio Company was formed, and petitioned the king for a grant
of land beyond the Alleghenies. This was granted, and the government
of Virginia was ordered to grant to them a half million acres, two hun-
dred thousand of which were to be located at once. Upon the 12th of
June, 1749, 800,000 acres from the line of Canada north and west was
made to the Loyal Company, and on the 29th of October, 1751, 100,000
acres were given to the Greenbriar Company. All this time the French
were not idle. They saw that, should the British gain a foothold in tbs
West, especially upon the Ohio, they might not only prevent the French
D
36 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
settling upon it, but in time would come to the lower posts and so gain
possession of the whole country. Upon the 10th of May, 1774, Vaud-
reuil. Governor of Canada and the French possessions, well knowing the
consequences that must arise from allowing the English to build trading
posts in the Northwest, seized some of their frontier posts, and to further
secure the claim of the French to the West, he, in 1749, sent Louis Cel-
eron with a party of soldiers to plant along the Ohio River, in the mounds
and at the mouths of its principal tributaries, plates of lead, on which
were inscribed the claims of France. These were heard of in 1752, and
within the memory of residents now living along the " Oyo," as the
beautiful river was called by the French. One of these plates was found
with the inscription partly defaced. It bears date August 16, 1749, and
a copy of the inscription with particular account of the discovery of the
plate, was sent by DeWitt Clinton to the American Antiquarian Society,
among whose journals it may now be found.* These measures did not,
however, deter the English from going on with their explorations, and
though neither party resorted to arms, yet the conflict was gathering, and
it was only a question of time when the storm would burst upon the
frontier settlements. In 1750, Christopher Gist was sent by the Ohio
Company to examine its lands. He went to a village of the Twigtwees,
on the Miami, about one hundred and fifty miles above its mouth. He
afterward spoke of it as very populous. From there he went down
the Ohio River nearly to the falls at the present City of Louisville,
and in November he commenced a survey of the Company's lands. Dur-
ing the Winter, General Andrew Lewis performed a similar work for the
Greenbriar Company. Meanwhile the French were busy in preparing
their forts for defense, and in opening roads, and also sent a small party
of soldiers to keep the Ohio clear. This party, having heard of the Eng-
lish post on the Miami River, early in 1652, assisted by the Ottawas and
Chippewas, attacked it, and, after a severe battle, in which fourteen of
the natives were killed and others wounded, captured the garrison.
(They were probably garrisoned in a block house). The traders were
carried away to Canada, and one account says several were burned. This
fort or post was called by the English Pickawillany. A memorial of the
king's ministers refers to it as " Pickawillanes, in the center of the terri-
tory between the Ohio and the Wabash. The name is probably some
variation of Pickaway or Picqua in 1773, written by Rev. David Jones
Pickaweke."
* The following is a translation of the inscription on the plate: "In the year 1749, reign of Louis XV.,
King of France, we, Celeron, conimandant of a detachment by Monsieur the Marcjuis of Gallisoniere, com-
niancler-in-chief of Now France, to establish tranquility in certain Indian villages of these cantons, liave
buried this plate at the confluence of the Toradakoin, this twenty- ninth of July, near the river Ohio, otherwise
Beautiful Kivw, as a monument of renewal of possession which we have taken of the said river, and all its
tributaries; inasmuch as the preceding Kings of France have enjoyed it, and maintained it by their arms and
treaties; especially by those of Ryswick, Utrecht, and Aix LaChapelle."
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY, 37
This was the first blood shed between the French and English, and
occurred near the present City of Piqua, Ohio, or at least at a point about
forty-seven miles north of Dayton. Each nation became now more inter-
ested in the progress of events in the Northwest. The English deter-
mined to purchase from the Indians a title to the lands they Avished to
occupy, and Messrs. Fry (afterward Commander-in-chief over Washing-
ton at the commencement of the French War of 1775-1763), Lomax and
Patton were sent in the Spring of 1752 to hold a conference with the
natives at Logstown to learn what they objected to in the treaty of Lan-
caster already noticed, and to settle all difficulties. On the 9th of June,
these Commissioners met the red men at Logstown, a little village on the
north bank of the Ohio, about seventeen miles below the site of Pitts-
burgh. Here had been a trading point for many years, but it was aban-
doned by the Indians in 1750. At first the Indians declined to recognize
the treaty of Lancaster, but, the Commissioners taking aside Montour,
the interpreter, who was a son of the famous Catharine Montour, and a
chief among the six nations, induced him to use his influence in their
favor. This he did, and upon the loth of June they all united in signing
a deed, confirming the Lancaster treaty in its full extent, consenting to a
settlement of the southeast of the Ohio, and guaranteeing that it should
not be disturbed by them. These were the means used to obtain the first
treaty with the Indians in the Ohio Valley.
Meanwhile the powers beyond the sea were trying to out-manoeuvre
each other, and were professing to be at peace. The English generally
outwitted the Indians, and failed in many instances to fulfill their con-
tracts. They thereby gained the ill-will of the red men, and further
increased the feeling by failing to provide them with arms and ammuni-
tion. Said an old chief, at Easton, in 1758: " The Indians on the Ohio
left you because of your own fault. When we heard the French were
coming, we asked you for help and arms, but we did not get them. The
French came, they treated us kindly, and gained our affections. The
Governor of Virginia settled on our lands for his own benefit, and, when
we wanted help, forsook us."
At the beginning of 1653, the English thought they had secured by
title the lands in the West, but the French had quietly gathered cannon
and military stores to be in readiness for the expected blow. The Eng-
lish made other attempts to ratify these existing treaties, but not until
the Summer could the Indians be gathered together to discuss the plans
of the French. The}^ had sent messages to the French, warning them
away ; but they replied that they intended to complete the chain of forts
already begun, and would not abandon the field.
Soon after this, no satisfaction being obtained from the Ohio regard-
38 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
ing the positions and purposes of the French, Governor Dinwiddie of
Virginia determined to send to them another messenger and learn from
them, if possible, their intentions. For this purpose he selected a young
man, a surveyor, who, at the early age of nineteen, had received the rank
of major, and who was thoroughly posted regarding frontier life. This
personage was no other than the illustrious George Washington, who then
held considerable interest in Western lands. He was at this time just
twenty-two years of age. Taking Gist as his guide, the two, accompanied
by four servitors, set out on their perilous march. They left Will's
Creek on the 10th of November, 1753, and on the 22d reached the Monon-
gahela, about ten miles above the fork. From there they went to
Logstown, where Washington had a long conference with the chiefs of
the Six Nations. From them he learned the condition of the French, and
also heard of their determination not to come down the river till the fol-
lowing Spring. The Indians were non-committal, as they were afraid to
turn either way, and, as far as they could, desired to remain neutral.
Washington, finding nothing could be done with them, went on to
Venango, an old Indian town at the mouth of French Creek. Here the
French had a fort, called Fort Machault. Through the rum and flattery
of the French, he nearly lost all his Indian followers. Finding nothing
of importance here, he pursued his way amid great priv^iions, and on the
11th of December reached the fort at the head of French Creek. Here
he delivered Governor Dinwiddie's letter, received his answer, took his
observations, and on the 16th set out upon his return journey with no one
but Gist, his guide, and a few Indians who still remained true to him,
notwithstandino- the endeavors of the French to retain them. Their
homeward journey was one of great peril and suffering from the cold, yet
they reached home in safety on the 6th of January, 1754.
From the letter of St. Pierre, commander of the French fort, sent by
Washington to Governor Dinwiddie, it was learned that the French would
not give up without a struggle. Active preparations were at once made
in all the English colonies for the coming conflict, while the French
finished the fort at Venango and strengthened their lines of fortifications,
and gathered their forces to be in readiness.
The Old Dominion was all alive. Virginia was the center of great
activities ; volunteers were called for, and from all the neighboring
colonies men rallied to the conflict, and everywhere along the Potomac
men were enlisting under the Governor's proclamation — which promised
two hundred thousand acres on the Ohio. Along this river they were
gathering as far as Will's Creek, and far beyond this point, whither Trent
had come for assistance for his little band of forty-one men, who were
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 39
working away in hunger and want, to fortify that point at the fork of
the Ohio, to which both parties were looking with deep interest.
" The first birds of Spring filled the air with their song ; the swift
river rolled by the Allegheny hillsides, swollen by the melting snows of
Spring and the April showers. The leaves were appearing ; a few Indian
scouts were seen, but no enemy seemed near at hand ; and all was so quiet,
that Frazier, an old Indian soout and trader, who had been left by Trent
in command, ventured to his home at the mouth of Turtle Creek, ten
miles up the Monongahela. But, though all was so quiet in that wilder-
ness, keen eyes had seen the low intrenchment rising at the fork, and
swift feet had borne the news of it up the river ; and upon the morning
of the 17th of April, Ensign Ward, who then had charge of it, saw
upon the Allegheny a sight that made his heart sink — sixty batteaux and
three hundred canoes filled with men, and laden deep with cannon and
stores. * * * That evening he supped with his captor, Contrecoeur,
and the next day he was bowed off by the Frenchman, and with his men
and tools, marched up the Monongahela."
The French and Indian war had begun. The treaty of Aix la
Chapelle, in 1748, had left the boundaries between the French and
English possessions unsettled, and the events already narrated show the
French were determined to hold the country watered by the Mississippi
and its tributaries ; while the English laid claims to the country by virtue
of the discoveries of the Cabots, and claimed all the country from New-
foundland to Florida, extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The
first decisive blow had now been struck, and the first attempt of the
English, through the Ohio Company, to occupy these lands, had resulted
disastrously to them. The French and Indians immediately completed
the fortifications begun at the Fork, which they had so easily captured,
and when completed gave to the fort the name of DuQuesne. Washing-
ton was at Will's Creek when the news of the capture of the fort arrived.
He at once departed to recapture it. On his way he entrenched him-
self at a place called the " Meadows," where he erected a fort called
by him Fort Necessity. From there he surprised and captured a force of
French and Indians marching against him, but was soon after attacked
in his fort by a much superior force, and was obliged to yield on the
morning of July 4th. He was allowed to return to Virginia.
The English Government immediately planned four campaigns ; one
against Fort DuQuesne ; one against Nova Scotia ; one against Fort
Niagara, and one against Crown Point. These occurred during 1755-6,
and were not successful in driving the French from their possessions.
The expedition against Fort DuQuesne was led by the famous General
Braddock, who, refusing to listen to the advice of Washington and those
40 J^HE JS'OUTHWEST TERRITORY.
acquainted with Indian warfare, suffered such an inglorious defeat. This
occurred on the morning of July 9th, and is generally known as the battle
of Monongahela, or " Braddock's Defeat." The war continued with
various vicissitudes through the years 1756-7 ; when, at the commence-
ment of 1758, in accordance with the plans of William Pitt, then Secre-
tary of State, afterwards Lord Chatham, active preparations were made to
carry on the war. Three expeditions were planned for this year : one,
under General Amherst, against Louisburg ; another, under Abercrombie,
against Fort Ticonderoga ; and a third, under General Forbes, against
Fort DuQuesne. On the 26th of July, Louisburg surrendered after a
desperate resistance of more than forty days, and the eastern part of the
Canadian possessions fell into the hands of the British. Abercrombie
captured Fort Frontenac, and when the expedition against Fort DuQuesne,
of which Washington had the active command, arrived there, it was
found in flames and deserted. The English at once took possession,
rebuilt the fort, and in honor of their illustrious statesman, changed the
name to Fort Pitt.
The great object of the campaign of 1759, was the reduction of
Canada. General Wolfe was to lay siege to Quebec ; Amherst was to
reduce Ticonderoga and Crown Point, and General Prideaux was to
capture Niagara. This latter place was taken in July, but the gallant
Prideaux lost his life in the attempt. Amherst captured Ticonderoga
and Crown Point without a blow ; and Wolfe, after making the memor-
able ascent to the Plains of Abraham, on September 13th, defeated
Montcalm, and on the 18th, the city capitulated. In this engagement
Montcolm and Wolfe l)oth lost their lives. De Levi, Montcalm's successor,
marched to Sillery, three miles above the cit}^ with the purpose of
defeating the English, and there, on the 28th of the following April, was
fought one of the bloodiest battles of the French and Indian War. It
resulted in the defeat of the French, and the fall of the City of Montreal.
The Governor signed a capitulation by which the whole of Canada was
surrendered to the English. This practically concluded the war, but it
was not until 1763 that the treaties of peace between France and England
were signed. This was done ontJslOthof February of that year, and
under its provisions all the country east of the Mississippi and north of
the Iberville River, in Louisiana, were ceded to England. At the same
time Spain ceded Florida to Great Britain.
On the 13th of September, 1760, Major Robert Rogers was sent
from Montreal to take charge of Detroit, the only remaining French post
m the territory. He arrived there on the 19th of November, and sum-
moned the place to surrender. At first the commander of the post,
BeletrC; refused, but on the 29th, hearing of the continued defeat of the
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 41
French arms, surrendered. Rogers remained there until December 23d
under the personal protection of the celebrated chief, Pontiac, to whom,
no doubt, he owed his safety. Pontiac had come here to inquire the
purposes of the English in taking possession of the country. He was
assured that they came simply to trade with the natives, and did not
desire their country. This answer conciliated the savages, and did much
to insure the safety of Rogers and his party during their stay, and whila
on their journey home.
Rogers set out for Fort Pitt on December 23, and was just one
month on the way. His route was from Detroit to Maumee, thence
across the present State of Ohio directly to the fort. This was the com-
mon trail of the Indians in their journeys from Sandusky to the fork of
the Ohio. It went from Fort Sandusky, where Sandusky City now is,
crossed the Huron river, then called Bald Eagle Creek, to " Mohickon
John's Town" on Mohickon Creek, the northern branch of White
Woman's River, and thence crossed to Beaver's Town, a Delaware town
on what is now Sandy Creek. At Beaver's Town were probably one
hundred and fifty warriors, and not less than three thousand acres of
cleared land. From there the track went up Sandy Creek to and across
Big Beaver, and up the Ohio to Logstown, thence on to the fork.
The Northwest Territory was now entirely under the English rule.
New settlements began to be rapidly made, and the promise of a large
trade was speedily manifested. Had the British carried out their promises
with the natives none of those savage butcheries would have been perpe-
trated, and the country would have been spared their recital.
The renowned chief, Pontiac, was one of the leading spirits in these
atrocities. We will now pause in our narrative, and notice the leading
events in his life. The earliest authentic information regarding this
noted Indian chief is learned from an account of an Indian trader named
Alexander Henry, who, in the Spring of 1761, penetrated his domains as
far as Missillimacnac. Pontiac was then a great friend of the French,
but a bitter foe of the English, whom he considered as encroaching on his
hunting grounds. Henry was obliged to disguise himself as a Canadian
to insure safety, but was discovered by Pontiac, who bitterly reproached
him and the English for their attempted subjugation of the West. He
declared that no treaty had been made with them ; no presents sent
them, and that he would resent any possession of the West by that nation.
He was at the time about fifty years of age, tall and dignified, and was
civil and military ruler of the Ottawas, Ojibwas and Pottawatamies.
The Indians, from Lake Michigan to the borders of North Carolina,
were united in this feeling, and at the time of the treaty of Paris, ratified
February 10, 1763, a general conspiracy was formed to fall suddenly
42
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
PONTIAC, THE OTTAWA CHIEFTAIN.
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 43
upon the frontier British posts, and with one blow strike every man dead.
Poutiac was the marked leader in all this, and was the commander
of the Chippewas, Ottawas, Wyandots, Miamis, Shawanese, Delawares
and Mingoes, who had, for the time, laid aside their local quarrels to unite
in this enterprise.
The blow came, as near as can now be ascertained, on May 7, 1763.
Nine British posts fell, and the Indians drank, " scooped up in the hollow
of joined hands," the blood of many a Briton.
Pontiac's immediate field of action was the garrison at Detroit.
Here, however, the plans were frustrated by an Indian woman disclosing
the plot the evening previous to his arrival. Everything was carried out,
however, according to Pontiac's plans until the moment of action, when
Major Gladwyn, the commander of the post, stepping to one of the Indian
chiefs, suddenly drew aside his blanket and disclosed the concealed
musket. Pontiac, though a brave man, turned pale and trembled. He
saw his plan was known, and that the garrison were prepared. He
endeavored to exculpate himself from any such intentions ; but the guilt
was evident, and he and his followers were dismissed with a sever©
reprimand, and warned never to again enter the walls of the post.
Pontiac at once laid siege to the fort, and until the treaty of peace
between the British and the Western Indians, concluded in August, 1764,
continued to harass and besiege the fortress. He organized a regular
commissariat department, issued bills of credit written out on bark,
which, to his credit, it may be stated, were punctually redeemed. At
the conclusion of the treaty, in which it seems he took no part, he went
further south, living many years among the Illinois.
He had given up all hope of saving his country and race. After a
time he endeavored to unite the Illinois tribe and those about St. Louis
in a war with the whites. His efforts were fruitless, and only ended in a
quarrel between himself and some Kaskaskia Indians, one of whom soon
afterwards killed him. His death was, however, avenged by the northern
Indians, who nearly exterminated the Illinois in the wars which followed.
Had it not been for the treachery of a few of his followers, his plan
for the extermination of the whites, a masterly one, would undoubtedly
have been carried out.
It was in the Spring of the year following Rogers' visit that Alex-
ander Henry went to Missillimacnac, and everywhere found the strongest
feelings against the English, who had not carried out their promises, and
were doing nothing to conciliate the natives. Here he met the chief,
Pontiac, who, after conveying to him in a speech the idea that their
French father would awake soon and utterly destroy his enemies, said :
" Englishman, although you have conquered the French, you have not
44 THE NORTHWEST TERRITOEY.
yet conquered us ! We are not your slaves ! These lakes, these woods,
these mountains, were left us by our ancestors. They are our inheritance,
and we will part with them to none. Your nation supposes that we, like
the white people, can not live without bread and pork and beef. But you
ought to know that He, the Great Spirit and Master of Life, has provided
food for us upon these broad lakes and in these mountains."
He then spoke of the fact that no treaty had been made with them,
no presents sent them, and that he and his people were yet for war.
Such were the feelings of the Northwestern Indians immediately after
the English took possession of their country. These feelings were no
doubt encouraged by the Canadians and French, who hoped that yet the
French arms might prevail. The treaty of Paris, however, gave to the
English the right to this vast domain, and active preparations were going
on to occupy it and enjoy its trade and emoluments.
In 1762, France, by a secret treaty, ceded Louisiana to Spain, to pre-
vent it falling into the hands of the English, who were becoming masters
of the entire West. The next year the treaty of Paris, signed at Fon-
tainbleau, gave to the English the domain of the country in question.
Twenty years after, by the treaty of peace between the United States
and England, that part of Canada lying south and west of the Great
Lakes, comprehending a large territory which is the subject of these
sketches, was acknowledged to be a portion of the United States ; and
twenty years still later, in 1803, Louisiana was ceded by Spain back to
France, and by France sold to the United States.
In the half century, from the building of the Fort of Crevecoeur by
LaSalle, in 1680, up to the erection of Fort Chartres, many French set-
tlements had been made in that quarter. These have already been
noticed, being those at St. Vincent (Vincennes), Kohokia or Cahokia,
Kaskaskia and Prairie du Rocher, on the American Bottom, a large tract
of rich alluvial soil in Illinois, on the Mississippi, opposite the site of St.
Louis.
By the treaty of Paris, the regions east of the Mississippi, including
all these and other towns of the Northwest, were given over to England;
but they do not appear to have btan taken possession of until 1765, when
Captain Stirling, in the name of the Majesty of England, established him-
self at Fort Chartres bearing with him the proclamation of General Gage,
dated December 30, 1764, which promised religious freedom to all Cath-
olics who worshiped here, and a right to leave the country with their
effects if they wished, or to remain with the privileges of Englishmen.
It was shortly after the occupancy of the West by the British that the
war with Pontiac opened. It is already noticed in the sketch of that
chieftain- By it many a Briton lost his life, and many a frontier settle-
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 45
ment in its infancy ceased to exist. This was not ended until the year
1764, when, failing to capture Detroit, Niagara and Fort Pitt, his confed-
eracy became disheartened, and, receiving no aid from the French, Pon-
tiac abandoned the enterprise and departed to the Illinois, among whom
he afterward lost his life.
As soon as these difficulties were definitely settled, settlers began
rapidly to survey the country and prepare for occupation. During the
year 1770, a number of persons from Virginia and other British provinces
explored and marked out nearly all the valuable lands on the Mononga-
hela and along the banks of the Ohio as far as the Little Kanawha. This
was followed by another exploring expedition, in which George Washing-
ton was a party. The latter, accompanied by Dr. Craik, Capt. Crawford
and others, on the 20th of October, 1770, descended the Ohio from Pitts-
burgh to the mouth of the Kanawha ; ascended that stream about fourteen
miles, marked out several large tracts of land, shot several buffalo, which
were then abundant in the Ohio Valley, and returned to the fort.
Pittsburgh was at this time a trading post, about which was clus-
tered a village of some twenty houses, inhabited by Indian traders. This
same year, Capt. Pittman visited Kaskaskia and its neighboring villages.
He found there about sixty-five resident families, and at Cahokia only
forty-five dwellings. At Fort Chartres was another small settlement, and
at Detroit the garrison were quite prosperous and strong. For a year
or two settlers continued to locate near some of these posts, generally
Fort Pitt or Detroit, owing to the fears of the Indians, who still main-
tained some feelings of hatred to the English. The trade from the posts
was quite good, and from those in Illinois large quantities of pork and
flour found their way to the New Orleans market. At this time the
policy of the British Government was strongly opposed to the extension
of the colonies west. In 1763, the King of England forbade, by royal
proclamation, his colonial subjects from making a settlement beyond the
sources of the rivers which fall into the Atlantic Ocean. At the instance
of the Board of Trade, measures were taken to prevent the settlement
without the limits prescribed, and to retain the commerce within easy
reach of Great Britain.
The commander-in-chief of the king's forces wrote in 1769 : " In the
course of a few years necessity will compel the colonists, should they
extend their settlements west, to provide manufactures of some kind for
themselves, and when all connection upheld by commerce with the mother
country ceases, an independency in their government will soon follow."
In accordance with this policy, Gov. Gage issued a proclamation
in 1772, commanding the inhabitants of Vincennes to abandon their set-
tlements and join some of the Eastern English colonies. To this they
46 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
strenuously objected, giving good reasons therefor, and were allowed to
remain. The strong opposition to this policy of Great Britain led to its
change, and to such a course as to gain the attachment of the French
population. In December, 1773, influential citizens of Quebec petitioned
the king for an extension of the boundary lines of that province, which
was granted, and Parliament passed an act on June 2, 1774, extend-
ing the boundary so as to include the territory lying within the present
States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Michigan.
In consequence of the liberal policy pursued by the British Govern-
ment toward the French settlers in the West, they were disposed to favor
that nation in the war which soon followed with the colonies ; but the
early alliance between France and America soon brought them to the side
of the war for independence.
In 1774, Gov. Dunmore, of Virginia, began to encourage emigration
to the Western lands. He appointed magistrates at Fort Pitt under the
pretense that the fort was under the government of that commonwealth.
One of these justices, John Connelly, who possessed a tract of land in the
Ohio Valley, gathered a force of men and garrisoned the fort, calling it
Fort Dunmore. This and other parties were formed to select sites for
settlements, and often came in conflict with the Indians, who yet claimed
portions of the valley, and several battles followed. These ended in the
famous battle of Kanawha in July, where the Indians were defeated and
•driven across the Ohio.
During the years 1775 and 1776, by the operations of land companies
«,nd the perseverance of individuals, several settlements were firmly estab-
lished between the Alleghanies and the Ohio River, and western land
â– speculators were busy in Illinois and on the Wabash. At a council held
in Kaskaskia on July 5, 1773, an association of English traders, calling
themselves the " Illinois Land Company," obtained from ten chiefs of the
Kaskaskia, Cahokia and Peoria tribes two large tracts of land lying on
the east side of the Mississippi River south of the Illinois. In 1775, a mer-
chant from the Illinois Country, named Viviat, came to Post Vincennes
as the agent of the association called the " Wabash Land Company." On
the 8th of October he obtained from eleven Piankeshaw chiefs, a deed for
37,497,600 acres of land. This deed was signed by the grantors, attested
by a number of the inhabitants of Vincennes, and afterward recorded in
the office of a notary public at Kaskaskia. This and other land com-
panies had extensive schemes for the colonization of the West ; but all
were frustrated by the breaking out of the Revolution. On the 20th of
April, 1780, the two companies named consolidated under the name of the
*' United Illinois and Wabash Land Company." They afterward mada
THE NORTHWEST TEBRITORY. 47
strenuous efforts to have these grants sanctioned by Congress, but all
signally failed.
When the War of the Revolution commenced, Kentucky was an unor-
ganized country, though there were several settlements within her borders.
In Hutchins' Topography of Virginia, it is stated that at that time
" Kaskaskia contained 80 houses, and nearly 1,000 white and black in-
habitants — the whites being a little the more numerous. Cahokia con-
tains 50 houses and 300 white inhabitants, and 80 negroes. There were
east of the Mississippi River, about the year 1771 " — when these observa-
tions were made — " 300 white men capable of bearing arms, and 230
negroes."
From 1775 until the expedition of Clark, nothing is recorded and
nothing known of these settlements, save what is contained in a report
made by a committee to Congress in June, 1778. From it the following
extract is made :
" Near the mouth of the River Kaskaskia, there is a village which
appears to have contained nearly eighty families from the beginning of
the late revolution. There are twelve families in a small village at la
Prairie du Rochers, and near fifty families at the Kahokia Village. There
are also four or five families at Fort Chartres and St. Philips, which is five
miles further up the river."
St. Louis had been settled in February, 1764, and at this time con-
tained, including its neighboring towns, over six hundred whites and one
hundred and fifty negroes. It must be remembered that all the country
west of the Mississippi was now under French rule, and remained so until
ceded again to Spain, its original owner, who afterwards sold it and the
country including New Orleans to the United States. At Detroit there
were, according to Capt. Carver, who was in the Northwest from 1766 to
1768, more than one hundred houses, and the river was settled for more
than twenty miles, although poorly cultivated — the people being engaged
in the Indian trade. This old town has a history, which we will here
relate.
It is the oldest town in the Northwest, having been founded by
Antoine de Lamotte Cadillac, in 1701. It was laid out in the form of an
oblong square, of two acres in length, and an acre and a half in width.
As described by A. D. Frazer, who first visited it and became a permanent
resident of the place, in 1778, it comprised within its limits that space
between Mr. Palmer's store (Conant Block) and Capt. Perkins' house
(near the Arsenal building), and extended back as far as the public barn,
and was bordered in front by the Detroit River. It was surrounded by
oak and cedar pickets, about fifteen feet long, set in the ground, and had
four gates — east, west, north and south. Over the first three of these
48 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
gates were block houses provided with four guns apiece, each a six-
pounder. Two six-gun batteries were planted fronting the river and in a
parallel direction with the block houses. There were four streets running
east and west, the main street being twenty feet wide and the rest fifteen
feet, while the four streets crossing these at right angles were from ten
to fifteen feet in width.
At the date spoken of by Mr. Frazer, there was no fort within the
enclosure, but a citadel on the ground corresponding to the present
northwest corner of Jefferson Avenue and Wayne Street. The citadel was
inclosed by pickets, and within it were erected barracks of wood, two
stories high, sufficient to contain ten oflGcers, and also barracks sufficient
to contain four hundred men, and a provision store built of brick. The
citadel also contained a hospital and guard-house. The old town of
Detroit, in 1778, contained about sixty houses, most of them one story,
with a few a story and a half in height. They were all of logs, some
hewn and some round. There was one building of splendid appearance,
called the " King's Palace," two stories high, which stood near the east
gate. It was built for Governor Hamilton, the first governor commissioned
by the British. There were two guard-houses, one near the west gate and
the other near the Government House. Each of the guards consisted of
twenty-four men and a subaltern, who mounted regularly every morning
between nine and ten o'clock. Each furnished four sentinels, who were
relieved every two hours. There was also an of&cer of the day, who per-
formed strict duty. Each of the gates was shut regularly at sunset,
even wicket gates were shut at nine o'clock, and all the keys were
delivered into the hands of the commanding officer. They were opened
in the morning at sunrise. No Indian or squaw was permitted to enter
town with any weapon, such as a tomahawk or a knife. It was a stand-
ing order that the Indians should deliver their arms and instruments of
every kind before they were permitted totpass the sentinel, and they were
restored to them on their return. No more than twenty-five Indians were
allowed to enter the town at any one time, and they were admitted only
at the east and west gates. At sundown the drums beat, and all the
Indians were required to leave town instantly. There was a council house
near the water side for the purpose of holding council with the Indians.
The population of the town was about sixty families, in all about two
hundred males and one hundred females. This town was destroyed by
fire, all except one dwelling, in 1805. After which the present " new "
town was laid out.
On the breaking out of the Revolution, the British held every post of
•importance in the West. Kentucky was formed as a component part of
Virginia, and the sturdy pioneers of the West, alive to their interests,
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 49
and recognizing the great benefits of obtaining the control of the trade in
this part of the New World, held steadily to their purposes, and those
within the commonwealth of Kentucky proceeded to exercise their
civil privileges, by electing John Todd and Richard Gallaway»
burgesses to represent them in the Assembly of the parent state.
Early in September of that year (1777) the first court was held
in Harrodsburg, and Col. Bowman, afterwards major, who had arrived
in August, was made the commander of a militia organization which
had been commenced the March previous. Thus the tree of loyalty
was growing. The chief spirit in this far-out colony, who had represented
her the year previous east of the mountains, was now meditating a move
unequaled in its boldness. He had been watching the movements of the
British throughout the Northwest, and understood their whole plan. He.
saw it was through their possession of the posts at Detroit, Vincennes,
Kaskaskia, and other places, which would give them constant and easy
access to the various Indian tribes in the Northwest, that the British
intended to penetrate the country from the north and soutn, ana annihi-
late the frontier fortresses. This moving, energetic man was Colonel,
afterwards General, George Rogers Clark. He knew the Indians were not
unanimously in accord with the English, and he was convinced that, could
the British be defeated and expelled from the Northwest, the natives
might be easily awed into neutrality ; and by spies sent for the purpose,
he satisfied himself that the enterprise against the Illinois settlements
might easily succeed. Having convinced himself of the certainty of the
project, he repaired to the Capital of Virginia, which place he reached on
November 5th. While he was on his way, fortunately, on October 17th,
Burgoyne had been defeated, and the spirits of the colonists greatly
encouraged thereby. Patrick Henry was Governor of Virginia, and at
once entered heartily into Clark's plans. The same plan had before been
agitated in the Colonial Assemblies, but there was no one until Clark
came who was sufficiently acquainted with the condition of affairs at the
scene of action to be able to guide them.
Clark, having satisfied the Virginia leaders of the feasibility of his
plan, received, on the 2d of January, two sets of instructions — one secret,
the other open — the latter authorized him to proceed to enlist seven
companies to go to Kentucky, subject to his orders, and to serve three
months from their arrival in the West. The secret order authorized him
to arm these troops, to procure his powder and lead of General Hand
at Pittsburgh, and to proceed at once to subjugate the country.
With these instructions Clark repaired to Pittsburgh, choosing rather
to raise his men west of the mountains, as he well knew all were needed
in the colonies in the conflict there. He sent Col. W. B. Smith to Hoi-
50 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
ston for the same purpose, but neither succeeded in raising the required
number of men. The settlers in these parts were afraid to leave their
own firesides exposed to a vigilant foe, and but few could be induced to
join the proposed expedition. With three companies and several private
volunteers, Clark at length commenced his descent of the Ohio, which he
navigated as far as the Falls, where he took possession of and fortified
Corn Island, a small island between the present Cities of Louisville,
Kentucky, and New Albany, Indiana. Remains of this fortification may
yet be found. At this place he appointed Col. Bowman to meet him
with such recruits as had reached Kentucky by the southern route, and
as many as could be spared from the station. Here he announced to
the men their real destination. Having completed his arrangements,
and chosen his party, he left a small garrison upon the island, and on the
24th of June, during a total eclipse of the sun, which to them augured
no good, and which fixes beyond dispute the date of starting, he with
his chosen band, fell down the river. His plan was to go by Avater as
far as Fort Massac or Massacre, and thence march direct to Kaskaskia.
Here he intended to surprise the garrison, and after its capture go to
Cahokia, then to Vincennes, and lastly to Detroit. Should he fail, he
intended to march directly to the Mississippi River and cross it into the
Spanish country. Before his start he received two good items of infor-
mation : one that the alliance had been formed between France and the
United States ; and the other that the Indians throughout the Illinois
country and the inhabitants, at the various frontier posts, had been led to
believe by the British that the " Long Knives" or Virginians, were the
most fierce, bloodthirsty and cruel savages that ever scalped a foe. With
this impression on their minds, Clark saw that proper management would
cause them to submit at once from fear, if surprised, and then from grati-
tude would become friendly if treated with unexpecfed leniency.
The march to Kaskaskia was accomplished through a hot July sun,
and the town reached on the evening of July 4. He captured the fort
near the village, and soon after the village itself by surprise, and without
the loss of a single man or by killing any of the enemy. After sufficiently
working upon the fears of the natives, Clark told them they were at per-
fect liberty to worship as they pleased, and to take whichever side of the
great conflict they would, also he would protect them from any barbarity
from British or Indian foe. This had the desired effect, and the inhab-
itants, so unexpectedly and so gracefully surprised by the unlooked
for turn of affairs, at once swore allegiance to the American arms, and
when Clark desired to go to Cahokia on the 6th of July, they accom-
panied him, and through their influence the inhabitants of the place
surrendered, and gladly placed themselves under his protection. Thus
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. t 51
the two important posts in Illinois passed from the hands of the English
into the possession of Virginia.
In the person of the priest at Kaskaskia, M. Gibault, Clark found a
powerful ally and generous friend. Clark saw that, to retain possession
of the Northwest and treat successfully with the Indians within its boun-
daries, he must establish a government for the colonies he had taken.
St. Vincent, the next important post to Detroit, remained yet to be taken
before the Mississippi Valley was conquered. M. Gibault told him that
he would alone, by persuasion, lead Vincennes to throw off its connection
with England. Clark gladly accepted his offer, and on the 14th of July,
in company with a fellow-townsman, M. Gibault started on his mission of
peace, and on the 1st of August returned with the cheerful intelligence
that the post on the " Oubache " had taken the oath of allegiance to
the Old Dominion. During this interval, Clark established his courts,
placed garrisons at Kaskaskia and Cahokia, successfully re-enlisted his
men, sent word to have a fort, which proved the germ of Louisville,
erected at the Falls of the Ohio, and dispatched Mr. Rocheblave, who
had been commander at Kaskaskia, as a prisoner of war to Richmond.
In Octgber the County of Illinois was established by the Legislature
of Virginia, John Todd appointed Lieutenant Colonel and Civil Governor,
and in November General Clark and his men received the thanks of
the Old Dominion through their Legislature.
In a speech a few days afterward, Clark made known fully to the
natives his plans, and at its close all came forward and swore alle-
giance to the Long Knives. While he was doing this Governor Hamilton,
having made his various arrangements, had left Detroit and moved down
the Wabash to Vincennes intending to operate from that point in reducing
the Illinois posts, and then proceed on down to Kentucky and drive the
rebels from the West. Gen. Clark had, on the return of M. Gibault,
dispatched Captain Helm, of Fauquier County, Virginia, with an attend-
ant named Henry, across the Illinois prairies to command the fort.
Hamilton knew nothing of the capitulation of the post, and was greatly
surprised on his arrival to be confronted by Capt. Helm, who, standing at
the entrance of the fort by a loaded cannon ready to fire upon his assail-
ants, demanded upon what terms Hamilton demanded possession of the
fort. Being granted the rights of a prisoner of war, he surrendered to
the British General, who could scarcely believe his eyes when he saw the
force in the garrison.
Hamilton, not realizing the character of the men with whom he was
contending, gave up his intended campaign for the Winter, sent his four
hundred Indian warriors to prevent troops from coming down the Ohio,
E
52 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
and to annoy the Americans in all ways, and sat quietly down to pass the
Winter. Information of all these proceedings having reached Clark, he
saw that immediate and decisive action was necessary, and that unless
he captured Hamilton, Hamilton would capture him. Clark received the
news on the 29th of January, 1779, and on February 4th, having suffi-
ciently garrisoned Kaskaskia and Cahokia, he sent down the Mississippi
a " battoe," as Major Bowman writes it, in order to ascend the Ohio and
Wabash, and operate with the land forces gathering for the fray.
On the next day, Clark, with his little force of one hundred and
twenty men, set out for the post, and after incredible hard marching
through much mud, the ground being thawed by the incessant spring
rains, on the 22d reached the fort, and being joined by his " battoe," at
once commenced the attack on the post. The aim of the American back-
woodsman was unerring, and on the 24th the garrison surrendered to the
intrepid boldness of Clark. The French were treated with great kind-
ness, and gladly renewed their allegiance to Virginia. Hamilton was
sent as a prisoner to Virginia, where he was kept in close confinement.
During his command of the British frontier posts, he had offered prizes
to the Indians for all the scalps of Americans they would bring to him,
and had earned in consequence thereof the title " Hair-buyer General,"
by which he was ever afterward known.
Detroit was now without doubt within easy reach of the enterprising
Virginian, could he but raise the necessary force. Governor Henry being
apprised of this, promised him the needed reinforcement, and Clark con-
cluded to wait until he could capture and sufficiently garrison the posts.
Had Clark failed in this bold undertaking, and Hamilton succeeded in
uniting the western Indians for the next Spring's campaign, the West
would indeed have been swept from the Mississippi to the Allegheny
Mountains, and the great blow struck, which had been contemplated from
the commencement, by the British.
" But for this small army of dripping, but fearless Virginians, the
union of all the tribes from Georgia to Maine against the colonies misfht
have been effected, and the whole current of our history changed."
At this time some fears were entertained by the Colonial Govern-
ments that the Indians in the North and Northwest were inclinino- to the
British, and under the instructions of Washington, now Commander-in-
Chief of the Colonial army, and so bravely fighting for American inde-
pendence, armed forces were sent against the Six Nations, and upon the
Ohio frontier. Col. Bowman, acting under the same general's orders,
marched against Indians within the present limits of that State. These
expeditions were in the main successful, and the Indians were compelled
to sue for peace.
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 53
During this same year (1779) the famous " Land Laws" of Virginia
were passed. The passage of these laws was of more consequence to the
pioneers of Kentucky and the Northwest than the gaining of a few Indian
conflicts. These laws confirmed in main all grants made, and guaranteed
to all actual settlers their rights and privileges. After providing for the
settlers, the laws provided for selling the balance of the public lands at
forty cents per acre. To carry the Land Laws into effect, the Legislature
sent four Virginians westward to attend to the various claims, over many
of which great confusion prevailed concerning their validity. These
gentlemen opened their court on October 13, 1779, at St. Asaphs, and
continued until April 26, 1780, when they adjourned, having decided
three thousand claims. They were succeeded by the surveyor, who
came in the person of Mr. George May, and assumed his duties on the
10th day of the month whose name he bore. With the opening of the
next year (1780) the troubles concerning the navigation of the Missis-
sippi commenced. The Spanish Government exacted such measures in
relation to its trade as to cause the overtures made to the United States
to be rejected. The American Government considered they had a right
to navigate its channel. To enforce their claims, a fort was erected below
the mouth of the Ohio on the Kentucky side of the river. The settle-
ments in Kentucky were being rapidly filled by emigrants. It was dur-
ing this year that the first seminary of learning was established in the.
West in this young and enterprising Commonwealth.
The settlers here did not look upon the building of this fort in a
friendly manner, as it aroused the hostility of the Indians. Spain had
been friendly to the Colonies during their struggle for independence,
and though for a while this friendship appeared in danger from the
refusal of the free navigation of the river, yet it was finally settled to the
satisfaction of both nations.
The Winter of 1779-80 was one of the most unusually severe ones
ever experienced in the West. The Indians always referred to it as the
"Great Cold." Numbers of wild animals perished, and not a few
pioneers lost their lives. The following Summer a party of Canadians
and Indians attacked St. Louis, and attempted to take possession of it
in consequence of the friendly disposition of Spain to the revolting
colonies. They met with such a determined resistance on the part of the
inhabitants, even the women taking part in the battle, that they were
compelled to abandon the contest. They also made an attack on the
settlements in Kentucky, but, becoming alarmed in some unaccountable
manner, they fled the country in great haste.
About this time arose the question in the Colonial Congress con-
cerning the western lands claimed by Virginia, New York, Massachusetts
54 THE NORTI^EST TERRITORY.
and Connecticut. The agitation concerning this subject finally led New
York, on the 19th of February, 1780, to pass a law giving to the dele-
gates of that State in Congress the power to cede her western lands for
the benefit of the United States. This law was laid before Congress
during the next month, but no steps were taken concerning it until Sep-
tember 6th, when a resolution passed that body calling upon the States
claiming western lands to release their claims in favor of the whole body.
This basis formed the union, and was the first after all of those legislative
measures which resulted in the creation of the States of Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. In December of the same
year, the plan of conquering Detroit again arose. The conquest might
have easily been effected by Clark liad the necessary aid been furnished
him. Nothing decisive was done, yet the heads of the Government knew
that the safety of the Northwest from British invasion lay in the capture
and retention of that important post, the only unconquered one in the
territory.
Before the close of the year, Kentucky was divided into the Coun-
ties of Lincoln, Fayette and Jefferson, and the act establishing the Town
of Louisville was passed. This same year is also noted in the annals of
American history as the year in which occurred Arnold's treason to the
United States.
Virginia, in accordance with the resolution of Congress, on the 2d
day of January, 1781, agreed to yield her western lands to the United
States upon certain conditions, which Congress would not accede to, and
the Act of Cession, on the part of the Old Dominion, failed, nor was
anything farther done until 1783. During all that time the Colonies
were busily engaged in the struggle with the mother country, and in
consequence thereof but little heed was given to the western settlements.
Upon the 16th of April, 1781, the first birth north of the Ohio River of
American parentage occurred, being that of Mary Heckewelder, daughter
of the widely known Moravian missionary, whose band of Christian
Indians suffered in after years a horrible massacre by the hands of the
frontier settlers, who had been exasperated by the murder of several of
their neighbors, and in their rage committed, without regard to humanity,
a deed which forever afterwards cast a shade of shame upon their lives.
For this and kindred outrages on the part of the whites, the Indians
committed many deeds of cruelty Avhich darken the years of 1771 and
1772 in the history of the Northwest.
During the year 1782 a number of battles among the Indians and
frontiersmen occurred, and between the Moravian Indians and the Wyan-
dots. In these, horrible acts of cruelty were practised on the captives,
many of such dark deeds transpiring under the leadership of the notorious
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
56
frontier outlaw, Simon Girty, whose name, as well as those of his brothers,
was a terror to women and children. These occurred chiefly in the Ohio
valleys. Cotemporary with them were several engagements in Kentucky,
in which the famous Daniel Boone engaged, and who, often by his skill
and knowledge of Indian warfare, saved the outposts from cruel destruc-
INDIANS ATTACKING FKONTIEKSMEN.
tion. By the close of the year victory had perched upon the American,
banner, and on the 30th of November, provisional articles of peace had
been arranged between the Commissioners of England and her uncon-
querable colonies. Cornwallis had been defeated on the 19th of October
preceding, and the liberty of America was assured. On the 19tli of
April following, the anniversary of the battle of Lexington, peace was
56 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
proclaimed to the army of the United States, and on the 8d of the next
September, the definite treaty which ended our revolutionary struggle
was concluded. By the terms of that treaty, the boundaries of the West
were as follows : On the north the line was to extend along the center of
the Great Lakes ; from the western point of Lake Superior to Long Lake ;
thence to the Lake of the Woods ; thence to the head of the Mississippi
River; down its center to the 31st parallel of latitude, then on that line
east to the head of the Appalachicola River ; down its center to its junc-
tion with the Flint ; thence straight to the head of St. Mary's River, and
thence down along its center to the Atlantic Ocean.
Following the cessation of hostilities with England, several posts
were still occupied by the British in the North and West. Among these
was Detroit, still in the hands of the enemy. Numerous engagements
with the Indians throughout Ohio and Indiana occurred, upon whose
lands adventurous whites would settle ere the title had been acquired by
the proper treaty.
To remedy this latter evil. Congress appointed commissioners to
treat with the natives and purchase their lands, and prohibited the set-
tlement of the territory until this could be done. Before the close of the
year another attempt was made to capture Detroit, which was, however,
not pushed, and Virginia, no longer feeling the interest in the Northwest
she had formerly done, withdrew her troops, having on the 20th of
December preceding authorized the whole of her possessions to be deeded
to the United States. This was done on the 1st of March following, and
the Northwest Territory passed from the control of the Old Dominion.
To Gen. Clark and his soldiers, however, she gave a tract of one hundred
and fifty thousand acres of land, to be situated any where north of the
Ohio wherever they chose to locate them. They selected the region
opposite the falls of the Ohio, where is now the dilapidated village of
Clarksville, about midway between the Cities of New Albany and Jeffer-
sonville, Indiana.
While the frontier remained thus, and Gen. Haldimand at Detroit
refused to evacuate alleging that he had no orders from his King to do
so, settlers were rapidly gathering about the inland forts. In the Spring
of 1784, Pittsburgh was regularly laid out, and from the journal of Arthur
Lee. who passed through the town soon after on his way to the Indian
council at Fort Mcintosh, we suppose it was not very prepossessing in
appearance. He says :
" Pittsburgh is inhabited almost entirely by Scots and Irish, who
live in paltry log houses, and are as dirty as if in the north of Ireland or
even Scotland. There is a great deal of trade carried on, the goods being
bought at the vast expense of forty-five shillings per pound from Phila-
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 57
delphia and Baltimore. They take in the shops flour, wheat, skins and
money. There are in the town four attorneys, two doctors, and not a
priest of any persuasion, nor church nor chapel."
Kentucky at this time contained thirty thousand inhabitants, and
was beginning to discuss measures for a separation from Virginia. A
land office was opened at Louisville, and measures were adopted to take
defensive precaution against the Indians who were yet, in some instances,
incited to deeds of violence by the British. Before the close of this year,
1784, the military claimants of land began to occupy them, although no
entries were recorded until 1787.
The Indian title to the Northwest was not yet extinguished. They
held large tracts of lands, and in order to prevent bloodshed Congress
adopted means for treaties with the original owners and provided for the
surveys of the lands gained thereby, as well as for those north of the
Ohio, now in its possession. On January 31, 1786, a treaty was made
with the Wabash Indians. The treaty of Fort Stanwix had been made
in 1784. That at Fort Mcintosh in 1785, and through these much land
was gained. The Wabash Indians, however, afterward refused to comply
with the provisions of the treaty made with them, and in order to compel
their adherence to its provisions, force was used. During the year 1786,
the free navigation of the Mississippi came up in Congress, and caused
various discussions, which resulted in no definite action, only serving to
excite speculation in regard to the western lands. Congress had promised
bounties of land to the soldiers of the Revolution, but owing to the
unsettled condition of affairs along the Mississippi respecting its naviga-
tion, and the trade of the Northwest, that body had, in 1783, declared
its inability to fulfill these promises until a treaty could be concluded
between the two Governments. Before the close of the year 1786, how-
ever, it was able, through the treaties with the Indians, to allow some
grants and the settlement thereon, and on the 14th of September Con-
necticut ceded to the General Government the tract of land known as
the " Connecticut Reserve," and before the close of the following year a
large tract of land north of the Ohio was sold to a company, who at once
took measures to settle it. By the provisions of this grant, the company
were to pay the United States one dollar per acre, subject to a deduction
of one-third for bad lands and other contingencies. They received
750,000 acres, bounded on the south by the Ohio, on the east bj-^ the
seventh range of townships, on the west by the sixteenth range, and on
the north by a line so drawn as to make the grant complete without
the reservations. In addition to this. Congress afterward granted 100,000
acres to actual settlers, and 214,285 acres as army bounties under the
resolutions of 1789 and 1790.
58
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
While Dr. Cutler, one of the agents of the company, was pressing
its claims before Congress, that body was bringing into form an ordinance
for the political and social organization of this Territory. When the
cession was made by Virginia, in 1784, a plan was offered, but rejected.
A motion had been made to strike from the proposed plan the prohibition
of slavery, which prevailed. The plan was then discussed and altered,
and finally passed unanimously, with the exception of South Carolina.
By this proposition, the Territory was to have been divided into states
PRESENT SITE OF LAKE STKEET BlUDGE, CHICAGO, IN 1833.
by parallels and meridian lines. This, it was thought, would make ten
states, which were to have been named as follows — beginning at the
northwest corner and going southwardly : Sylvania, Michigania, Cher-
sonesus, Assenisipia, Metropotamia, Illenoia, Saratoga, Washington, Poly-
potamia and Pelisipia.
There was a more serious objection to this plan than its category of
names, — the boundaries. The root of the difficulty was in the resolu-
tion of Congress passed in October, 1780, .which fixed the boundaries
of the ceded lands to be from one hundred to one hundred and fifty miles
THE NORTHWEST TERKITOKY. 59
square. These resolutions being presented to the Legislatures of Vir-
ginia and Massachusetts, they desired a change, and in Jul^, 1786, the
subject was taken up in Congress, and changed to favor a division into
not more than five states, and not less than three. This was approved by
the State Legislature of Virginia. The subject of the Government was
again taken up by Congress in 1786, and discussed throughout that year
and until July, 1787, when the famous "Compact of 1787" was passed,
and. the foundation of the government of the Northwest laid. This com-
pact is fully discussed and explained in the history of Illinois in this book,
and to it the reader is referred.
The passage of this act and the grant to the New England Company
was soon followed b}'- an application to the Government by John Cleves
Symmes, of New Jersey, for a grant of the land between the Miamis.
This gentleman had visited these lands soon after the treaty of 1786, and,
being greatly pleased with them, offered similar terms to those given to the
New England Company. The petition was referred to the Treasury
Board with power to act, and a contract was concluded the following-
year. During the Autumn the directors of the New England Company
were preparing to occupy their grant the following Spring, and upon the
23d of November made arrangements for a party of forty-seven men,
under the superintendency of Gen. Rufus Putnam, to set forward. Six
boat-builders were to leave at once, and on the first of January the sur-
veyors and their assistants, twenty-six in number, were to meet at Hart-
ford and proceed on their journey westward ; the remainder to follow as
soon as possible. Congress, in the meantime, upon the od of October,
had ordered seven hundred troops for defense of the western settlers, and
to prevent unauthorized intrusions ; and two days later appointed Arthur
St. Clair Governor of the Territory of the Northwest.
AMERICAN SETTLEMENTS.
The civil organization of the Northwest Territory was now com-
plete, and notwithstanding the uncertainty of Indian affairs, settlers from
the East began to come into the country rapidly. The New England
Company sent their men during the Winter of 1787-8 pressing on over
the Alleghenies by the old Indian path which had been opened into
Braddock's road, and which has since been made a national turnpike
from Cumberland westward. Through the weary winter days they toiled
on, and by April were all gathered on the Yohiogany, where boats had
been built, and at once started for the Muskingum. Here they arrived
on the 7th of that month, and unless the Moravian missionaries be regarded
as the pioneers of Ohio, this little band can justly claim that honor.
60
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
Gen. St. Clair, the appointed Governor of the Northwest, not having
yet arrived, a set of laws were passed, written out, and published by-
being nailed to a tree in the embryo town, and Jonathan Meigs appointed
to administer them.
Washington in writing of this, the first American settlement in the
Northwest, said : " No colony in America was ever settled under
such favorable auspices as that which has just commenced at Muskingum.
Information, property and strength will be its characteristics. I know
many of its settlers personally, and there never were men better calcu-
lated to promote the welfare of such a community."
A PIONEER DWELLING.
On the 2d of July a meeting of the directors and agents was held
on the banks of the Muskingum, " for the purpose of naming the new-
born city and its squares." As yet the settlement was known as the
"Muskingum," but that was now changed to the name Marietta, in honor
of Marie Antoinette. The square upon which the block -houses^stood
was called '■'■Campus Martins ;'' square number 19, ''• Capitolium ;'' square
number 61, "•Cecilia;''' and the great road through the covert way, " Sacra
Via." Two days after, an oration was delivered by James M. Varnum,
who with S. H. Parsons and John Armstrong had been appointed to the
judicial liench of the territory on the 16th of October, 1787. On July 9,
Gov. St. Clair arrived, and the colony began to assume form. The act
of 1787 provided two district grades of government for the Northwest,
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 61
under the first of which the whole power was invested in the hands of a
governor and three district judges. This was immediately formed upon
the Governor's arrival, and the first laws of the colony passed on the 25th
of July. These provided for the organization of the militia, and on the
next day appeared the Governor's proclamation, erecting all that country
that had been ceded by the Indians east of the Scioto River into the
County of Washington. From that time forward, notwithstanding the
doubts yet existing as to the Indians, all Marietta prospered, and on the
2d of September the first court of the territory was held with imposing
ceremonies.
The emigration westward at this time was very great. The com-
mander at Fort Harmer, at the mouth of the Muskingum, reported four
thousand five hundred persons as having passed that post between Feb-
ruary and June, 1788 — many of whom would have purchased of the
"Associates," as the New England Company was called, had they been
ready to receive them.
On the 26th of November, 1787, Symmes issued a pamphlet stating
the terms of his contract and the plan of sale he intended to adopt. In
January, 1788, Matthias Denman, of New Jersey, took an active interest
in Symmes' purchase, and located among other tracts the sections upon
which Cincinnati has been built. Retaining one-third of this locality, he
sold the other two-thirds to Robert Patterson and John Filson, and the
three, about August, commenced to lay out a town on the spot, which
was designated as being opposite Licking River, to the moulh of which
they proposed to have a road cut from Lexington. The naming of the
town is thus narrated in the "Western Annals " : — " Mr. Filson, who had
been a schoolmaster, was appointed to name the town, and, in rfespect to
its situation, and as if with a prophetic perception of the mixed race that
were to inhabit it in after days, he named it Losantiville, which, being
interpreted, means : ville, the town ; anti, against or opposite to ; os, the
mouth ; L. of Licking."
Meanwhile, in July, Symmes got thirty persons and eight four-horse
teams under way for the West. These reached Limestone (now Mays-
ville) in September, where were several persons from Redstone. Here
Mr. Symmes tried to found a settlement, but the great freshet of 1789
caused tlie " Point," as it was and is yet called, to be fifteen feet under
water, and the settlement to be abandoned. The little band of settlers
removed to the mouth of the Miami. Before Symmes and his colony left
the " Point," two settlements had been made on his purchase. The first
was by Mr. Stiltes, the original projector of the whole plan, who, with a
colony of Redstone people, had located at the mouth of the Miami,
whither Symmes went with his Maysville colony. Here a clearing had
62
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
been made by the Indians owing to the great fertility of the soil. Mr.
Stiltes with his colony came to this place on the 18th of November, 1788,
with twenty-six persons, and, building a block-house, prepared to remain
through the Winter. They named the settlement Columbia. Here they
were kindly treated by the Indians, but suffered greatly from the flood
of 1789.
On the 4th of March, 1789, the Constitution of the United States
went into operation, and on April 30, George Washington was inaug-
urated President of the American people, and during the next Summer,
a,n Indian war was commenced by the tribes north of the Ohio. The
President at first used pacific means ; but these failing, he sent General
Harmer against the hostile tribes. He destroyed several villages, but
LAlvE BLUTF.
The frontage of Lake Bluff Grounds on Lake XichiRan, witli one hundred and seventy feet of gradual ascent.
was defeated in two battles, near the present City of Fort Wayne,
Indiana. From this time till the close of 1795, the principal events were
the wars with the various Indian tribes. In 1796, General St. Clair
was appointed in command, and marched against the Indians ; but while
he was encamped on a stream, the St. Mar}^ a branch of the Maumee,
he was attacked and defeated with the loss of six hundred men.
General Wayne was now sent against the savages. In August, 1794,
he met them near the rapids of the Maumee, and gained a complete
victory. This success, followed by vigorous measures, compelled the
Indians to sue for peace, and on the 30th of July, the following*year, the
treaty of Greenville was signed by the principal chiefs, by which a large
tract of country was ceded to the United States.
Before proceeding in our narrative, we will pause to notice Fort
Washington, erected in the early part of this war on the site of Cincinnati.
Nearly all of the great cities of the Northwest, and indeed of the
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 63
whole country, have had their nuclei in those rude pioneer structures,
known as forts or stockades. Thus Forts Dearborn, Washington, Pon-
chartrain, mark the original sites of the now proud Cities of Chicago,
Cincinnati and Detroit. So of most of the flourishing cities east and west
of the Mississippi. Fort Washington, erected by Doughty in 1790, was a
rude but highly interesting structure. It was composed of a number of
strongly-built hewed log cabins. Those designed for soldiers' barracks
were a story and a half high, while those composing the officers quarters
were more imposing and more conveniently arranged and furnished.
The whole were so placed as to form a hollow square, enclosing about an
acre of ground, with a block house at each of the four angles.
The logs for the construction of this fort were cut from the ground
upon which it was erected. It stood between Third and Fourth Streets
of the present city (Cincinnati) extending east of Eastern Row, now
Broadway, which was then a narrow alley, and the eastern boundary of
of the town as it was originally laid out. On the bank of the river,
immediately in front of the fort, was an appendage of the fort, called the
Artificer's Yard. It contained about two acres of ground, enclosed by
small contiguous buildings, occupied by workshops and quarters of
laborers. Within this enclosure there was a large two-story frame house,
familiarly called the " Yellow House," built for the accommodation of
the Quartermast^- General. For many years this was the best finished
and most commodious edifice in the Queen City. Fort Washington was
for some time the headquarters of both the civil and military governments
of the Northwestern Territory.
Following the consummation of the treaty various gigantic land spec-
ulations were entered into by different persons, who hoped to obtain
from the Indians in Michigan and northern Indiana, large tracts of lands.
These were generally discovered in time to prevent the outrageous
schemes from being carried out, and from involving the settlers in war.
On October 27, 1795, the treaty between the United States and Spain
was signed, whereby the free navigation of the Mississippi was secured.
No sooner had the treaty of 1795 been ratified than settlements began
to pour rapidly into the West. The great event of the year 1796 was the
occupation of that part of the Northwest including Michigan, which was
this year, under the provisions of the treaty, evacuated by the British
forces. The United States, owing to certain conditions, did not feel
justified in addressing the authorities in Canada in relation to Detroit
and other frontier posts. When at last the British authorities were
called to give them up, they at once complied, and General Wayne, who
had done so much to preserve the frontier settlements, and who, before
the year's close, sickened and died near Erie, transferred his head-
Q\ THE NOETHWEST TERRITORY.
quarters to the neighborhood of the lakes, where a county named after
him was formed, which included the northwest of Ohio, all of Michigan,
and the northeast of Indiana. During this same year settlements were
formed at the present City of Chillicothe, along the Miami from Middle-
town to Piqua, while in the more distant West, settlers and speculators
began to appear in great numbers. In September, the City of Cleveland
was laid out, and during the Summer and Autumn, Samuel Jackson and
Jonathan Sharpless erected the first manufactory of paper — the " Red-
stone Paper Mill" — in the West. St. Louis contained some seventy
houses, and Detroit over three hundred, and along the river, contiguous
to it, were more than three thousand inhabitants, mostly French Canadians,
Indians and half-breeds, scarcely any Americans venturing yet into that
part of the Northwest.
The election of representatives for the territory had taken place,
and on the 4th of February, 1799, they convened at Losantiville — now
known as Cincinnati, having been named so by Gov. St. Clair, and
considered the capital of the Territory — to nominate persons from whom
the members of the Legislature were to be chosen in accordance with
a previous ordinance. This nomination being made, the Assembly
adjourned until the 16th of the following September. From those named
the President selected as members of the council, Henry Vandenburg,
of Vincennes, Robert Oliver, of Marietta, James Findlay and Jacob
Burnett, of Cincinnati, and David Vance, of Vanceville. On the 16th
of September the Territorial Legislature met, and on the 24th the two
houses were duly organized, Henry Vandenburg being elected President
of the Council.
The message of Gov. St. Clair was addressed to the Legislature
September 20th, and on October 13th that body elected as a delegate to
Congress Gen. Wm. Henry Harrison, who received eleven of the votes
cast, being a majority of one over his opponent, Arthur St. Clair, son of
Gen. St. Clair.
The whole number of acts passed at this session, and approved by
the Governor, were thirty-seven — eleven others were passed, but received
his veto. The most important of those passed related to the militia, to
the administration, and to taxation. On the 19th of December this pro-
tracted session of the first Legislature in the West was closed, and on the
30th of December the President nominated Charles Willing Bryd to the
office of Secretary of the Territory vice Wm. Henry Harrison, elected to
Congress. The Senate confirmed his nomination the next day.
THE NOKTHWEST TERRITORY. 65
DIVISION OF THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. .
The increased emigration to the Northwest, the extent of the domain,
and the inconvenient modes of travel, made it very difificult to conduct
the ordinary operations of government, and rendered the efficient action
of courts almost impossible. To remedy this, it was deemed advisable to
divide the territory for civil purposes. Congress, in 1800, appointed a
committee to examine the question and report some means for its solution.
This committee, on the 3d of March, reported that :
" In the three western countries there has been but one court having
cognizance of crimes, in five years, and the immunity which offenders
experience attracts, as to an asylum, the most vile and abandoned crim-
inals, and at the same time deters useful citizens from making settlements
in such society. The extreme necessity of judiciary attention and assist-
ance is experienced in civil as well as in criminal cases. * * * * Xo
minister a remedy to these and other evils, it occurs to this committee
that it is expedient that a division of said territory into two distinct and
separate governments should be made ; and that such division be made
by a line beginning at the mouth of the Great Miami River, running
directly north until it intersects the boundary between the United States
and Canada."
The report was accepted by Congress, and, in accordance with its
suggestions, that body passed an Act extinguishing the Northwest Terri-
tory, which Act was approved May 7. Among its provisions were these :
" That from and after July 4 next, all that part of the Territory of
the United States northwest of the Ohio River, which lies to the westward
of a line beginning at a point on the Ohio, opposite to the mouth of the
Kentucky River, and running thence to Fort Recovery, and thence north
until it shall intersect the territorial line between the United States and
Canada, shall, for the purpose of temporary government, constitute a
separate territory, and be called the Indiana Territory."
After providing for the exercise of the civil and criminal powers of
the territories, and other provisions, the Act further provides:
" That until it shall otherwise be ordered by the Legislatures of the
said Territories, respectively, Chillicothe on the Scioto River shall be the
seat of government of the Territory of the United States northwest of the
Ohio River ; and that St. Vincennes on the Wabash River shall be the
seat of government for the Indiana Territory."
Gen. Wm. Henry Harrison was appointed Governor of the Indiana
Territory, and entered upon his duties about a year later. Connecticut
also about this time released her claims to the reserve, and in March a law
66 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
was passed accepting this cession. Settlements had been made upon
thirty rfive of the townships in the reserve, mills had been built, and seven
hundred miles of road cut in various directions. On the 3d of November
the General Assembly met at Chillicothe. Near the close of the year,
the first missionary of the Connecticut Reserve came, who found no
township containing more than eleven families. It was upon the first of
October that the secret treaty had been made between Napoleon and the
King of Spain, whereby the latter agreed to cede to France the province
of Louisiana.
In January, 1802, the Assembly of the Northwestern Territory char-
tered the collesre at Athens. From the earliest dawn of the western
colonies, education was promptly provided for, and as early as 1787,
newspapers were issued from Pittsburgh and Kentucky, and largely read
throughout the frontier settlements. Before the close of this year, the
Congress of the United States granted to the citizens of the Northwestern
territory the formation of a State government. One of the provisions of
the "compact of 1787" provided that whenever the number of inhabit-
ants within prescribed limits exceeded 45,000, they should be entitled to
a separate government. The prescribed limits of Ohio contained, from a
census taken to ascertain the legality of the act, more than that number,
and on the 30th of April, 1802, Congress passed the act defining its limits,
and on the 29th of November the Constitution of the new State of Ohio,
so named from the beautiful river forming its southern boundary, came
into existence. The exact limits of Lake Michigan were not then known,
but the territory now included within the State of Michigan was wholly
within the territory of Indiana.
Gen. Harrison, while residing at Vincennes, made several treaties
with the Indians, thereby gaining large tracts of lands. The next year is
memorable in the history of the West for the purchase of Louisiana from
France by the United States for $15,000,000. Thus by a peaceful mode,
the domain of the United States was extended over a large tract of
country west of the Mississippi, and was for a time under the jurisdiction
of the Northwest government, and, as has been mentioned in the early
part of this narrative, was called the "New Northwest." The limits
of this history will not allow a description of its territory. The same year
large grants of land were obtained from the Indians, and the House of
Representatives of the new State of Ohio signed a bill respecting the
College Township in the district of Cincinnati.
Before the close of the year, Gen. Harrison obtained additional
grants of lands from the various Indian nations in Indiana and the present
limits of Illinois, and on the 18th of August, 1804, completed a treaty at
St. Louis, whereby over 51,000,000 acres of lands were obtained from the
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 67
aborigines. Measures were also taken to learn the condition of affairs in
and about Detroit.
C. Jouett, the Indian agent in Michigan, still a part of Indiana Terri-
tory, reported as follows upon the condition of matters at that post :
" The Town of Detroit. — The charter, which is for fifteen miles
square, was granted in the time of Louis XIV. of France, and is now,
from the best information I have been able to get, at Quebec. Of those
two hundred and twenty-five acres, only four are occupied by the town
and Fort Lenault. The remainder is a common, except twenty-four
acres, which were added twenty years ago to a farm belonging to Wm.
Macomb. * * * A stockade incloses the town, fort and citadel. The
pickets, as well as the public houses, are in a state of gradual decay. The
streets are narrow, straight and regular, and intersect each other at right
angles. The houses are, for the most part, low and inelegant."
During this year, Congress granted a township of land for the sup-
port of a college, and began to offer inducements for settlers in these
wilds, and the country now comprising the State of Michigan began to
fill rapidly with settlers along its southern borders. This same year, also,
a law was passed organizing the Southwest Territory, dividing it into two
portions, the Territory of New Orleans, which city was made the seat of
government, and the District of Louisiana, which was annexed to the
domain of Gen. Harrison.
On the 11th of January, 1805, the Territory of Michigan was formed,
Wm. Hull was appointed governor, with headquarters at Detroit, the
change to take effect on June 30. On the 11th of that month, a fire
occurred at Detroit, which destro3^ed almost every building in the place.
When the officers of the new territory reached the post, they found it in
ruins, and the inhabitants scattered throughout the country. Rebuild-
ing, however, soon commenced, and ere long the town contained more
houses than before the fire, and many of them much better built.
While this was being done, Indiana had passed to the second grade
of government, and through her General Assembly had obtained large
tracts of land from the Indian tribes. To all this the celebrated Indian,
Tecumthe or Tecumseh, vigorously protested, and it was the main cause
of his attempts to unite the various Indian tribes in a conflict with the
settlers. To obtain a full account of these attempts, the workings of the
British, and the signal failure, culminating in the death of Tecumseh at
the battle of the Thames, and the close of the war of 1812 in the Northwest,
we will step aside in our story, and relate the principal events of his life,
and his connection with this conflict.
68
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
TECUMSEH, THE SHAWANOE CHIEFTAIN.
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 69
TECUMSEH, AND THE WAR OF 1812.
This famous Indian chief was born about the year 1768, not far from
the site of the present City of Piqua, Ohio. His father, Puckeshinwa,
was a member of the Kisopok tribe of the Swanoese nation, and his
mother, Methontaske, was a member of the Turtle tribe of the same
people. They removed from Florida about the middle of the last century
to the birthplace of Tecumseh. In 1774, his father, who had risen to be
chief, was slain at the battle of Point Pleasant, and not long after Tecum-
seh, by his bravery, became the leader of his tribe. In 1795 he was
declared chief, and then lived at Deer Creek, near the site of the
present City of Urbana. He remained here about one year, when he
returned to Piqua, and in 1798, he went to White River, Indiana. In
1805, he and his brother, Laulewasikan (Open Door), who had announced
himself as a prophet, went to a tract of land on the Wabash River, given
them by the Pottawatomies and Kickapoos. From this date the chief
comes into prominence. He was now about thirty-seven years of age,
was five feet and ten inches in height, was stoutly built, and possessed of
enormous powers of endurance. His countenance was naturally pleas-
ing, and he was, in general, devoid of those savage attributes possessed
by most Indians. It is stated he could read and write, and had a confi-
dential secretary and adviser, named Billy Caldwell, a half-breed, who
afterward became chief of the Pottawatomies. He occupied the first
house built on the site of Chicago. At this time, Tecumseh entered
upon the great work of his life. He had long objected to the grants of
land made by the Indians to the whites, and determined to unite all the
Indian tribes into a league, in order that no treaties or grants of land
could be made save by the consent of this confederation.
He traveled constantly, going from north to south ; from the south
to the north, everywhere urging the Indians to this step. He was a
matchless orator, and his burning words had their effect.
Gen. Harrison, then Governor of Indiana, by watching the move-
ments of the Indians, became convinced that a grand conspiracy was
forming, and made preparations to defend the settlements. Tecumseh's
plan was similar to Pontiac's, elsewhere described, and to the cunning
artifice of that chieftain was added his own sagacity.
During the year 1809, Tecumseh and the prophet were actively pre-
paring for the work. In that year. Gen. Harrison entered into a treaty
with the Delawares, Kickapoos, Pottawatomies, Miamis, Eel River Indians
and Weas, in which these tribes ceded to the whites certain lands upon
the Wabash, to all of which Tecumseh entered a bitter protest, averring
TO THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
as one principal reason that he did not want the Indians to give up any
lands north and west of the Ohio River.
Tecuraseh, in August, 1810, visited the General at Vincennes and
held a council relating to the grievances of the Indians. Becoming unduly
angry at this conference he was dismissed from the village, and soon after
departed to incite the southern Indian tribes to the conflict.
Gen. Harrison determined to move upon the chief's headquarters at
Tippecanoe, and for this purpose went about sixty-five miles up the
Wabash, where he built Fort Harrison. From this place he went to the
prophet's town, where he informed the Indians he had no hostile inten-
tions, provided they were true to the existing treaties. He encamped
near the village early in October, and on the morning of November 7, he
was attacked by a large force of the Indians, and the famous battle of
Tippecanoe occurred. The Indians were routed and their town broken
up. Tecumseh returning not long after, was greatly exasperated at his
brother, the prophet, even threatening to kill him for rashly precipitating
the war, and foiling his (Tecumseh's) plans.
Tecumseh sent word to Gen. Harrison that he was now returned
from the South, and was ready to visit the President as had at one time
previously been proposed. Gen. Harrison informed him he could not go
as a chief, which method Tecumseh desired, and the visit was never
made.
In June of the following year, he visited the Indian agent at
Fort Wayne. Here he disavowed any intention to make a war against
the United States, and reproached Gen. Harrison for marching against his
people. The agent replied to this ,• Tecumseh listened with a cold indif-
ference, and after making a few general remarks, with a haughty air drew
his blanket about him, left the council house, and departed for Fort Mai-
den, in Upper Canada, where he joined the British standard.
He remained under this Government, doing effective work for the
Crown while engaged in the war of 1812 which now opened. He was,
however, always humane in his treatment of the prisoners, never allow-
ing his warriors to ruthlessly mutilate the bodies of those slain, or wan-
tonly murder the captive.
In the Summer of 1813, Perry's victor}'- on Lake Erie occurred, and
shortly after active preparations were made to capture Maiden. On the
27th of September, the American army, under Gen. Harrison, set sail for
the shores of Canada, and in a few hours stood around the ruins of Mai-
den, from which the British army, under Proctor, had retreated to Sand-
wich, intending to make its way to the heart of Canada by the Valley of
the Thames. On the 29th Gen. Harrison was at Sandwich, and GeUo
McArthur tpok possession of Detroit and the territory of Michigan.
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
71
On the 2d of October, the Americans began their pursuit of Proctor,
whom they overtook on the 5th, and the battle of tlie Thames followed.
Early in the engagement, Tecumseh who was at the head of the column
of Indians was slain, and they, no longer hearing the voice of their chief-
tain, fled. The victory was decisive, and practically closed the war in
the Northwest.
;.ae^^=P^__.j\,i2
INDIANS ATTACKING A STOCKADE.
Just who killed the great chief has been a matter of much dispute ;
but the weight of opinion awards the act to Col. Richard M. Johnson,
who fired at him with a pistol, the shot proving fatal.
In 1805 occurred Burr's Insurrection. He took possession of a
beautiful island in the Ohio, after the killing of Hamilton, and is charged
by many with attempting to set up an independent government. His
plans were frustrated by the general government, his property confiscated
and he was compelled to flee the country for safety.
72 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
In January, 1807, Governor Hull, of Michigan Territory, made a
treaty with the Indians, whereby all that peninsula was ceded to the
United States. Before the close of the year, a stockade was built about
Detroit. It was also during this year that Indiana and Illinois endeavored
to obtain the repeal of that section of the compact of 1787, whereby
slavery was excluded from the Northwest Territory. These attempts,
however, all signally failed.
In 1809 it was deemed advisable to divide the Indiana Territory.
This was done, and the Territory of Illinois was formed from the western
part, the seat of government being fixed at Kaskaskia. The next year,
the intentions of Tecumseh manifested themselves in open hostilities, and
then began the events already narrated.
While this war was in progress, emigration to the West went on with
surprising rapidity. In 1811, under Mr. Roosevelt of New York, the
first steamboat trip was made on the Ohio, much to the astonishment of
the natives, many of whom fled in terror at the appearance of the
" monster." It arrived at Louisville on the 10th day of October. At the
close of the first week of January, 1812, it arrived at Natchez, after being
nearly overwhelmed in the great earthquake which occurred while on its
downward trip.
The battle of the Thames was fought on October 6, 1813. It
effectually closed hostilities in the Northwest, although peace was not
fully restored until July 22, 1814, when a treaty was formed at Green-
ville, under the direction of General Harrison, between the United States
and the Indian tribes, in which it was stipulated that the Indians should
cease hostilities against the Americans if the war were continued. Such,
happily, was not the case, and on the 24th of December the treaty
of Ghent was signed by the representatives of England and the United
States. This treaty was followed the next year by treaties with various
Indian tribes throughout the West and Northwest, and quiet was again
restored in this part of the new world.
On the 18th of March, 1816, Pittsburgh was incorporated as a city.
It then had a population of 8,000 people, and was already noted for its
manufacturing interests. On April 19, Indiana Territory was allowed
to form a state government. At that time there were thirteen counties
organized, containing about sixty-three thousand inhabitants. The first
election of state officers was held in August, when Jonathan Jennings
was chosen Governor. The officers were sworn in on November 7, and
on December 11, the State was formally admitted into the Union. For
some time the seat of government was at Corydon, but a more central
location being desirable, the present capital, Indianapolis (City of Indiana),
was laid out January 1, 1825.
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. ^ 73
On the 28th of December the Bank of Illinois, at Shawneetown, was
chartered, with a capital of $300,000. At this period all banks were
under the control of the States, and were allowed to establish branches
at different convenient points.
Until this time Chillicothe and Cincinnati had in turn enjoyed the
privileges of being the capital of Ohio. But the rapid settlement of the
northern and eastern portions of the State demanded, as in Indiana, a
more central location, and before the close of the year, the site of Col-
umbus was selected and surveyed as the future capital of the State.
Banking had begun in Ohio as early as 1808, when the first bank was
chartered at Marietta, but here as elsewhere it did not bring to the state
the hoped-for assistance. It and other banks were subsequently unable
to redeem their currency, and were obliged to suspend.
In 1818, Illinois was made a state, and all the territory n(5rth of her
northern limits was erected into a separate territory and joined to Mich-
igan for judicial purposes. By the following year, navigation of the lakes
was increasing with great rapidity and affording an immense source of
revenue to the dwellers in the Northwest, but it was not until 1826 that
the trade was extended to Lake Michigan, or that steamships began to
navigate the bosom of that inland sea.
Until the year 1832, the commencement of the Black Hawk War,
but few hostilities were experienced with the Indians. Roads were
opened, canals were dug, cities were built, common schools were estab-
lished, universities were founded, many of which, especially the Michigan
University, have achieved a world wide-reputation. The people were
becoming wealthy. The domains of the United States had been extended,
and had the sons of the forest been treated with honesty and justice, the
record of many years would have been that of peace and continuous pros-
perity.
BLACK HAWK AND THE BLACK HAWK WAR.
This conflict, though confined to Illinois, is an important epoch in
the Northwestern history, being the last war with the Indians in this part
of the United States.
Ma-ka-tai-me-she-kia-kiah, or Black Hawk, was born in the principal
Sac village, about three miles from the junction of Rock River with the
Mississippi, in the year 1767. His father's name was Py-e-sa or Pahaes ;
his grandfather's, Na-na-ma-kee, or the Thunderer. Black Hawk early
distinguished himself as a warrior, and at the age of fifteen was permitted
to paint and was ranked among the braves. About the year 1783, he
Went on an expedition against the enemies of his nation, the Osages, one
74
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
BLACK HAWK, THE SAC CHIEFTAIN.
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 75
of whom he killed and scalped, and for this deed of Indian bravery he was
permitted to join in the scalp dance. Three or four years after he, at the
head of two hundred braves, went on another expedition against th,e
Osages, to avenge the murder of some women and children belonging to
his own tribe. Meeting an equal number of Osage warriors, a fierce
battle ensued, in which the latter tribe lost one-half their number. The
Sacs lost only about nineteen warriors. He next attacked the Cherokees
for a similar cause. In a severe battle with them, near the present City
of St. Louis, his father was slain, and Black Hawk, taking possession of
the " Medicine Bag," at once announced himself chief of the Sac nation.
He had now conquered the Cherokees, and about the year 1800, at the
head of five hundred Sacs and Foxes, and a hundred lowas, he waged
war against the Osage nation and subdued it. For two years he battled
successfully with other Indian tribes, all of whom he conquered.
Black Hawk does not at any time seem to have been friendly to
the Americans. When on a visit to St. Louis to see his " Spanish
Father," he declined to see any of the Americans, alleging, as a reason,
he did not want two fathers.
The treaty at St. Louis was consummated in 1804. The next year the
United States Government erected a fort near the head of the Des Moines
Rapids, called Fort Edwards. This seemed to enrage Black Hawk, who
at once determined to capture Fort Madison, standing on the west side of
the Mississippi above the mouth of the Des Moines River. The fort was
garrisoned by about fifty men. Here he was defeated. The difficulties
with the British Government arose about this time, and the War of 1812
followed. That government, extending aid to the Western Indians, by
giving them arms and ammunition, induced them to remain hostile to the
Americans. In August, 1812, Black Hawk, at the head of about five
hundred braves, started to join the British forces at Detroit, passing on
his way the site of Chicago, where the famous Fort Dearborn Massacre
h:'^ a few days before occurred. Of his connection with the British
'o, c .ernment but little is known. In 1813 he with his little band descended
the Mississippi, and attacking some United States troops at Fort Howard
was defeated.
In the early part of 1815, the Indian tribes west of the Mississippi
were notified that peace had been declared between the United States
and England, and nearly all hostilities had ceased. Black Hawk did not
sign any treaty, however, until May of the following year. He then recog-
nized the validity of the treaty at St. Louis in 1804. From the time of
signing this treaty in 1816, until the breaking out of the war in 1832, he
and his band passed their time in the common pursuits of Indian life.
Ten years before the commencement of this war, the Sac and Fox
76 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
Indians were urged to join the lowas on the west bank of the Father of
Waters. All were agreed, save the band known as the British Band, of
which Black Hawk was leader. He strenuously objected to the removal,
and was induced to comply only after being threatened with the power of
the Government, This and various actions on the part of the white set-
tlers provoked Black Hawk and his band to attempt the capture of his
native village now occupied by the whites. The war followed. He and
his actions were undoubtedly misunderstood, and had his wishes been
acquiesced in at the beginning of the struggle, much bloodshed would
have been prevented.
Black Hawk was chief now of the Sac and Fox nations, and a noted
warrior. He and his tribe inhabited a village on Rock River, nearly three
miles above its confluence with the Mississippi, where the tribe had lived
many generations. When that portion of Illinois was reserved to them^
they remained in peaceable possession of their reservation, spending their
time in the enjoyment of Indian life. The fine situation of their village
and the quality of their lands incited the more lawless white settlers, who
from time to time began to encroach upon the red men's domain. From
one pretext to another, and from one step to another, the crafty white
men gained a foothold, until through whisky and artifice they obtained
deeds from many of the Indians for their possessions. The Indians were
finally induced to cross over the Father of Waters and locate among the
lowas. Black Hawk was strenuously opposed to all this, but as the
authorities of Illinois and the United States thought this the best move, he
was forced to comply. Moreover other tribes joined the whites and urged
the removal. Black Hawk would not agree to the terms of the treaty
made with his nation for their lands, and as soon as the military, called to-
enforce his removal, had retired, he returned to the Illinois side of the
river. A large force was at once raised and marched against him. On
the evening of May 14, 1832, the first engagement occurred between a
band from this army and Black Hawk's band, in which the former were
defeated.
This attack and its result aroused the whites. A large force of men
was raised, and Gen. Scott hastened from the seaboard, by way of the
lakes, with United States troops and artillery to aid in the subjugation of
the Indians. On the 24th of June, Black Hawk, with 200 warriors, was
repulsed by Major Demont between Rock River and Galena. The Ameri-
can army continued to move up Rock Rivei- toward the main body of
the Indians, and on the 21st of July came upon Black Hawk and his band,
and defeated them near the Blue Mounds.
Before this action, Gen. Henry, in command, sent word to the main
army by whom he was immediately rejoined, and the whole crossed the
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 77
Wisconsin in pursuit of Black Hawk and his band who were fleeing to the
Mississippi. They were overtaken on the 2d of August, and in the battle
which followed the power of the Indian chief was completely broken. He
fled, but was seized by the Winnebagoes and delivered to the whites.
On the 21st of September, 1832, Gen. Scott and Gov. Reynolds con-
cluded a treaty with the Winnebagoes, Sacs and Foxes by which they
ceded tO the United States a vast tract of country, and agreed to remain
peaceable with the whites. For the faithful performance of the provi-
sions of this treaty on the part of the Indians, it was stipulated that
Black Hawk, his two sons, the prophet Wabokieshiek, and six other chiefs,
of the hostile bands should be retained as hostages during the pleasure-
of the President. They were confined at Fort Barracks and put in irons.
The next Spring, by order of the Secretary of War, they were taken
to Washington. From there they were removed to Fortress Monroe,
"there to remain until the conduct of their nation was such as to justify
their being set at liberty." They were retained here until the 4th of
June, when the authorities directed them to be taken to the principal
cities so that they might see the folly of contending against the white
people. Everywhere they were observed by thousands, the name of the
old chief being extensively known. By the middle of August they
reached Fort Armstrong on Rock Island, where Black Hawk was soon
after released to go to his countrymen. As he passed the site of his birth-
place, now the home of the white man, he was deeply moved. His village
where he was born, where he had so happily lived, and where he had
hoped to die, was now another's dwelling place, and he was a wanderer.
On the next day after his release, he went at once to his tribe and
his lodge. His wife was yet living, and with her he passed the remainder
of his days. To his credit it may be said that Black Hawk always re-
mained true to his wife, and served her with a devotion uncommon among
the Indians, living with her upward of forty years.
Black Hawk now passed his time hunting and fishing. A deep mel-
ancholy had settled over him from which he could not be freed. At all
times when he visited the whites he was received with marked atten-
tion. He was an honored guest at the old settlers' reunion in Lee County,
Illinois, at some of their meetings, and received many tokens of esteem.
In September, 1838, while on his way to Rock Island to receive his
annuity from the Government, he contracted a severe cold which resulted
in a fatal attack of bilious fever which terminated his life on October 8.
His faithful wife, who was devotedly attached to him, mourned deeply
during his sickness. After his death he was dressed in the uniform pre-
sented to him by the President while in Washington. He was buried in
a grave six feet in depth, situated upon a beautiful eminence. " The
78 THBI NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
body was placed in the middle of the grave, in a sitting posture, upon a
seat constructed for the purpose. On his left side, the cane, given him
by Henry Clay, was placed upright, with his right hand resting upon it.
Many of the old warrior's trophies were placed in the grave, and some
Indian garments, together with his favorite weapons."
No sooner was the Clack Hawk war concluded than settlers began
rapidly to pour into the northern parts of Illinois, and into Wisconsin,
now free from Indian depredations. Chicago, from a trading post, had
grown to a commercial center, and was rapidly coming into prominence.
In 1835, the formation of a State Government in Michigan was discussed,
but did not take active form until two years later, when the State became
a part of the Federal Union.
The main attraction to that portion of the Northwest lying west of
Lake Michigan, now included in the State of Wisconsin, was its alluvial
wealth. Copper ore was found about Lake Superior. For some time this
region was attached to Michigan for judiciary purposes, but in 1830 was
made a territory, then including Minnesota and Iowa. The latter State
was detached two years later. In 1848, Wisconsin Avas admitted as a
State, Madison being made the capital. We have now traced the various
divisions of the Northwest Territory (save a littie in Minnesota) from
the time it was a unit comprising this vast territory, until circumstances
compelled its present division.
THE KOBTHWEST TERRITORY.
7^
PRESENT CONDITION OF THE NORTHWEST.
Preceding chapters have brought us to the close of the Black Hawk
war, and we now turn to the contemplation of the growth and prosperity
of the Northwest under the smile of peace and the blessings of our civili-
zation. The pioneers of this region date events back to the deep snow
OLD FOBT DEARBORN, 1830.
of 1831, no one arriving here since that date taking first honors. The
inciting cause of the immigration which overflowed the prairies early in
the '30s was the reports of the marvelous beauty and fertility of the
region distributed through the East by those who had particijDated in the
Black Hawk campaign with Gen. Scott. Chicago and Milwaukee then
had a few hundred inhabitants, and Gurdon S. Hubbard's trail from the
former city to Kaskaskia led almost through a wilderness. Vegetables.
and clothing were largely distributed through the regions adjoining the
HO
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
lakes by steamers from the Ohio towns. There are men now living in
Illinois who came to the state when barely an acre was in cultivation,
and a man now prominent in the business circles of Chicago looked over
the swampy, cheerless site of that metropolis in 1818 and went south
ward into civilization. Emigrants from Pennsylvania in 1830 left behind
LINCOLN MONUMENT, SPKINGFIELD, ILLINOIS.
them but one small railway in the coal regions, thirty miles in length,
and made their way to the Northwest mostly with ox teams, finding in
Northern Illinois petty settlements scores of miles apart, although the
southern portion of the state was fairly dotted with farms. The
water courses of the lakes and rivers furnished transportation to the
second great army of immigrants, and about 1850 railroads were
pushed to that extent that the crisis of 1837 was precipitated upon us,
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
81
from the effects of which the Western country had not fully recovered
at the outbreak of the war. Hostilities found the colonists of the prairies
fully alive to the demands of the occasion, and the honor of recruiting
mmsm
1 ! :'ii#y''''''^w;a^^.'''''''^^ â– '-â–
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the vast armies of the Union fell largely to Gov. Yates, of Illinois, and
Gov. Morton, of Indiana. To recount the share of the glories of the
campaign vron by our Western troops is a needless task, except to
mention the fact that Illinois gave to the nation the President who saved
82
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
it, and sent out at the head of one of its regiments tne general who led
'ts armies to the final victory at Appomattox. The struggle, on the
CO
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whole, had a marked effect for the better on the new Northwest, gi dng
it an impetus wliicli twenty years of peace would not have produced.
In a large degree this prosperity was an inflated one, and with the rest
of the Union we have since been compelled to atone therefor by four
THE NORTHWEST TEREITORY. 83
years of depression of values, of scarcity of employment, and loss of
fortune. To a less degree, however, than the manufacturing or mining
regions has the West suffered during the prolonged panic now so near its
end. Agriculture, still the leading feature in our industries, has been
quite prosperous through all these dark years, and the farmers have
cleared away many incumbrances resting over them from the period of
fictitious values. The population has steadily increased, the arts and
sciences are gaining a stronger foothold, the trade area of the region is
becoming daily more extended, and we have been largely exempt from
the financial calamities which have nearly wrecked communities on the
seaboard dependent wholly on foreign commerce or domestic manufacture.
At the present period there are no great schemes broached for the
Northwest, no propositions for government subsidies or national Avorks
of improvement, but the capital of the world is attracted hither for the
purchase of our products or the expansion of our capacity for serving the
nation at large. A new era is dawning as to transportation, and we bid
fair to deal almost exclusively with the increasing and expanding lines
of steel rail running through every few miles of territory on the prairies.
The lake marine will no doubt continue to be useful in the warmer
season, and to serve as a regulator of freight rates; but experienced
navigators forecast the decay of the system in moving to the seaboard
the enormous crops of the West. Within the past five years it has
become quite common to see direct shipments to Europe and the West
Indies going through from the second-class towns along the Mississippi
and Missouri.
As to popular education, the standard has of late risen very greatly,
and our schools would be creditable to any section of the Union.
More and more as the events of the war pass into obscurity will the
fate of the Northwest be linked with that of the Southwest, and the
next Congressional apportionment will give the valley of the Mississippi
absolute control of the legislation of the nation, and do much toward
securing the removal of the Federal capitol to some more central location.
Our public men continue to wield the full share of influence pertain-
ing to their rank in the national autonomy, and seem not to forget that
for the past sixteen years they and their constituents have dictated the
principles which should govern the country.
In a work like this, destined to lie on the shelves of the libfary for
generations, and not doomed to daily destruction like a newspaper, one
can not indulge in the same glowing predictions, the sanguine statements
of actualities that fill the columns of ephemeral publications. Time may
bring grief to the pet projects of a writer, and explode castles erected on
a pedestal of facts. Yet there are unmistakable indications before us of
34 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
the same radical change in our orreat Northwest which characterizes its
history for the past thirty years. Our domain has a sort of natural
geographical border, save where it melts away to the southward in the
cattle raising districts of the southwest.
Our prime interest will for some years doubtless be the growth of
the food of the world, in which branch it has already outstripped all
competitors, and our great rival in this duty will naturally be the fertile
plains of Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado, to say nothing of the new
empire so rapidly growing up in Texas. Over these regions there is a
continued progress in agriculture and in railway building, and we must
look to our laurels. Intelligent observers of events are fully aware of
the strides made in the way of shipments of fresh meats to Europe,
many of these ocean cargoes being actually slaughtered in the West and
transported on ice to the wharves of the seaboard cities. That this new
enterprise will continue there is no reason to doubt. There are in
Chicago several factories for the canning of prepared meats for European
consumption, and the orders for this class of goods are already immense.
English capital is becoming daily more and more dissatisfied with railway
loans and investments, and is gradually seeking mammoth outlays in
lands and live stock. The stock yards in Chicago, Indianapolis and East
St. Louis are yearly increasing their facilities, and their plant steadily
grows more valuable. Importations of blooded animals from the pro-
gressive countries of Europe are destined to greatly improve the quality
of our beef and mutton. Nowhere is there to be seen a more enticing
display in this line than at our state and county fairs, and the interest
in the matter is on the increase.
To attempt to give statistics of our grain production for 1877 would
be useless, so far have we surpassed ourselves in the quantity and
quality of our product. We are too liable to forget that we are giving
the world its first article of necessity — its food supply. An opportunity
to learn this fact so it never can be forgotten was afforded at Chicago at
the outbreak of the great panic of 1873, when Canadian purchasers,
fearing the prostration of business might bring about an anarchical condition
of affairs, went to that city with coin in bulk and foreign drafts to secure
their supplies in their own currency at first hands. It may be justly
claimed by the agricultural community that their combined efforts gave
the nation its first impetus toward a restoration of its crippled industries,
and their labor brought the gold premium to a lower depth than the
government was able to reach by its most intense efforts of legislation
and compulsion. The hundreds of millions about to be disbursed for
farm products have already, by the anticipation common to all commercial
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. 85
nations, set the wheels in motion, and will relieve us from the perils so
long shadowing our efforts to return to a healthy tone.
Manufacturing has attained in the chief cities a foothold which bids
fair to render the Northwest independent of the outside world. Nearly
HirXTIXG PRAIRIE WOLVES IX AX EARLY DAY.
our whole region has a distribution of coal measures which will in time
support the manufactures necessary to our comfort and prosperity. As
to transportation, the chief factor in the production of all articles excep "^
food, no section is so magnificently endowed, and our facilities are yearly
increasing beyond those of any other region.
86 THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY. ,
The period from a central point of the war to the outbreak of the
panic was marked by a tremendous growth in our railway lines, but the
depression of the times caused almost a total suspension of operations.
Now that prosperity is returning to our stricken country we witness its
anticipation by the railroad interest in a series of projects, extensions,
and leases which bid fair to largely increase our transportation facilities.
The process of foreclosure and sale of incumbered lines is another matter
to be considered. In the case of the Illinois Central road, which formerly
transferred to other lines at Cairo the vast burden of freight destined for
the Gulf region, we now see the incorporation of the tracks connecting
through to New Orleans, every mile co-operating in turning toward the
northwestern metropolis the weight of the inter-state commerce of a
thousand miles or more of fertile plantations. Three competing routes
to Texas have established in Chicago their general freight and passenger
agencies. Four or five lines compete for all Pacific freights to a point as
as far as the interior of Nebraska. Half a dozen or more splendid bridge
structures have been thrown across the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers by
the railways. The Chicago and Northwestern line has become an aggre-
gation of over two thousand miles of rail, and the Chicago, Milwaukee
and St. Paul is its close rival in extent and importance. The three lines
running to Cairo via Vincennes form a through route for all traffic with
the states to the southward. The chief projects now under discussion
are the Chicago and Atlantic, which is to unite with lines now built to
Charleston, and the Chicago and Canada Southern, which line will con-
nect with all the various branches of that Canadian enterprise. Our
latest new road is the Chicago and Lake Huron, formed of three lines,
and entering the city from Valparaiso on the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne
and Chicago track. The trunk lines being mainly in operation, the
progress made in the way of shortening tracks, making air-line branches,
and running extensions does not show to the advantage it deserves, as
this process is constantly adding new facilities to the established order
of things. The panic reduced the price of steel to a point where the
railways could hardly afford to use iron rails, and all our northwestern
lines report large relays of Bessemer track. The immense crops now
being moved have given a great rise to the value of railway stocks, and
their transportation must result in heavy pecuniary advantages.
Few are aware of the importance of the wholesale and jobbing trade
of Chicago. One leading firm has since the panic sold $24,000,000 of
diy goods in one year, and they now expect most confidently to add
seventy per cent, to the figures of their last year's business. In boots
and shoes and in clothing, twenty or more great firms from the east have
placed here their distributing agents or their factories ; and in groceries
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY.
87
Chicago supplies the entire Northwest at rates presenting advantages
over New York.
Chicago has stepped in between New York and the rural banks as a
financial center, and scarcely a banking institution in the grain or cattle
regions but keeps its reserve funds in the vaults of our commercial insti-
tutions. Accumulating here throughout the spring and summer months,
they are summoned home at pleasure to move the products of the
prairies. This process greatly strengthens the northwest in its financial
operations, leaving home capital to supplement local operations on
behalf of home interests.
It is impossible to forecast the destiny of this grand and growing
section of the Union. Figures and predictions made at this date might
seem ten years hence so ludicrously small as to excite only derision.
KTNZIE HOUSE.
Early History of Illinois.
The name of this beautiful Prairie State is derived from Illim, a
Delaware word signifying Superior Men. It has a French termination,
and is a symbol of how the two races — the French and the Indians —
were intermixed during the early history of the country.
The appellation was no doubt well applied to the primitive inhabit-
ants of the soil whose prowess in savage warfare long withstood the
combined attacks of the fierce Iroquois on the one side, and the no less
savage and relentless Sacs and Foxes on the other. The Illinois were
once a powerful confederacy, occupying the most beautiful and fertile
region in the great Valley of the Mississippi, which their enemies coveted
and struggled long and hard to wrest from them. By the fortunes of
war they were diminished in numbers, and finally destroyed. " Starved
Rock," on the Illinois River, according to tradition, commemorates their
last tragedy, where, it is said, the entire tribe starved rather than sur-
render.
EARLY DISCOVERIES.
The first European discoveries in Illinois date back over two hun-
dred years. They are a part of that movement which, from the begin-
ning to the middle of the seventeenth century, brought the French
Canadian missionaries and fur traders into the Valley of the Mississippi,
and which, at a later period, established the civil and ecclesiastical
authority of France from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the Gulf of Mexico,
and from the foot-hills of the Alleghanies to the Rocky Mountains.
The great river of the West had been discovered by DeSoto, the
Spanish conqueror of Florida, three quarters of a century before the
French founded Quebec in 1608, but the Spanish left the countiy a wil-
derness, without further exploration or settlement within its borders, in
which condition it remained until the Mississippi was discovered by the
agents of the French Canadian government, Jolietand Marquette, in 1673.
These renowned explorers were not the first white visitors to Illinois.
In 1671 — two years in advance of them — came Nicholas Perrot to Chicago.
He had been sent by Talon as an agent of the Canadian government to
88
HISTORY OP THE STATE OF ILLINOIS.
89
90 HISTORY OF THE STATE OP ILLINOIS.
call a great peace convention of Western Indians at Green Bay, prepara-
tory to the movement for the discovery of the Mississippi. It was
deemed a good stroke of policy to secure, as far as possible, the friend-
ship and co-operation of the Indians, far and near, before venturing upon
an enterprise which their hostility might render disastrous, and which
their friendship and assistance would do so much to make successful ;
and to this end Perrot was sent to call together in council the tribes
throughout the Northwest, and to promise them the commerce and pro-
tection of the French government. He accordingly arrived at Green
Bay in 1671, and procuring an escort of Pottawattamies, proceeded in a
bark canoe upon a visit to the Miamis, at Chicago. Perrot was there-
fore the first European to set foot upon the soil of Illinois.
Still there were others before Marquette. In 1672, the Jesuit mis-
sionaries, Fathers Claude Allouez and Claude Dablon, bore the standard
of the Cross from their mission at Green Bay through western Wisconsin
and northern Illinois, visiting the Foxes on Fox River, and the Masquo-
tines and Kickapoos at the mouth of the Milwaukee. These missionaries
penetrated on the route afterwards followed by Marquette as far as the
Kickapoo village at the head of Lake Winnebago, where Marquette, in
his journey, secured guides across the portage to the Wisconsin.
The oft-repeated story of Marquette and Joliet is well known.
They were the agents employed by the Canadian government to discover
the Mississippi. Marquette was a native of France, born in 1637, a
Jesuit priest by education, and a man of simple faith and of great zeal and
devotion in extending the Roman Catholic religion among the Indians.
Arriving in Canada in 1666, he was sent as a missionary to the far
Northwest, and, in 1668, founded a mission at Sault Ste. Marie. The
following year he moved to La Pointe, in Lake Superior, where he
instructed a branch of the Hurons till 1670, when he removed south, and
founded the mission at St. Ignace, on the Straits of Mackinaw. Here
he remained, devoting a portion of his time to the study of the Illinois
language under a native teacher who had accompanied him to the mission
from La Pointe, till he was joined by Joliet in the Spring of 1673. By
the way of Green Bay and the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers, they entered
the Mississippi, 'which tliey explored to the mouth of the Arkansas, and
returned by the way of the Illinois and Chicago Rivers to Lake Michigan.
On his way up the Illinois, Marquette visited the great village of
the Kaskaskias, near what is now Utica, in the county of LaSalle. The
following year he returned and established among them the mission of
the Immaculate Virgin Mary, which was the first Jesuit mission foutided
in Illinois and in the Mississippi Valley. The intervening winter be
had spent in a hut which his companions erected on the Chicago River, a
few leagues from its mouth. The founding of this mission was the last
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS. 91
act of Marquette's life. He died in Michigan, on his way back to Green
Bay, May 18, 1675.
FIRST FRENCH OCCUPATION.
The first French occupation of the territory now embraced in Illi-
nois was effected by LaSalle in 1680, seven years after the time of Mar-
quette and Joliet. LaSalle, having constructed a vessel, the " Griffin,"
above the falls of Niagara, which he sailed to Green Bay, and having
passed thence in canoes to the mouth of the St. Joseph River, by which
and the Kankakee he reached the Illinois, in January, 1680, erected Fort
Crevecoeur^ at the lower end of Peoria Lake, where the city of Peoria is
now situated. The place where this ancient fort stood may still be seen
just below the outlet of Peoria Lake. It was destined, however, to a
temporary existence. From this point, LaSalle determined to descend
the Mississippi to its mouth, but did not accomplish this purpose till two
years later — in 1682. Returning to Fort Frontenac for the purpose of
getting materials with which to rig his vessel, he left the fort in charge of
Touti, his lieutenant, who during his absence was driven off by the Iro-
quois Indians. These savages had made a raid upon the settlement of
the Illinois, and had left nothing in their track but ruin and desolation.
Mr. Davidson, in his History of Illinois, gives the following graphic
account of the picture that met the eyes of LaSalle and his companions
on their return :
" At the great town of the Illinois they were appalled at the scene
which opened to their view. No hunter appeared to break its death-like
silence with a salutatory whoop ot welcome. The plain on which the
town had stood was now strewn with charred fragments of lodges, which
had so recently swarmed with savage life and hilarity. To render more
hideous the picture of desolation, large numbers of skulls had been
placed on the upper extremities of lodge-poles which had escaped the
devouring flames. In the midst of these horrors was the rude fort of
the spoilers, rendered frightful by the same ghastly relics. A near
approach showed that the graves had been robbed of their bodies, and
swarms of buzzards were discovered glutting their loathsome stomachs
on the reeking corruption. To complete the work of destruction, the
growing corn of the village had been cut down and burned, while the
pits containing the products of previous years, had been rifled and their
contents scattered with wanton waste. It was evident the suspected
blow of the Iroquois had fallen with relentless fury."
Tonti had escaped LaSalle knew not whither. Passing down the
lake in search of him and his men, LaSalle discovered that the fort had
been destroyed, but the vessel which he had partly constructed was still
92 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS.
on the stocks, and but slightly injured. After further fruitless search,
failing to find Tonti, he fastened to a tree a painting representing himself
and party sitting in a canoe and bearing a pipe of peace, and to the paint-
ing attached a letter addressed to Tonti.
Tonti had escaped, and, after untold privations, taken shelter among
the Pottawattamies near Green Bay. These were friendly to the French.
One of their old chiefs used to say, " There were but three great cap-
tains in the world, himself, Tonti and LaSalle."
GENIUS OF LaSALLE.
We must now return to LaSalle, whose exploits stand out in such
bold relief. He was born in Rouen, France, in 1643. His father was
wealthy, but he renounced his patrimony on entering a college of the
Jesuits, from which he separated and came to Canada a poor man in 1666.
The priests of St. Sulpice, among whom he had a brother, were then the
proprietors of Montreal, the nucleus of which was a seminary or con-
vent founded by that order. The Superior granted to LaSalle a large
tract of land at LaChine, where he established himself in the fur trade.
He was a man of daring genius, and outstripped all his competitors in
exploits of travel and commerce with the Indians. In 1669, he visited
the headquarters of the great Iroquois Confederacy, at Onondaga, in the
heart of New York, and, obtaining guides, explored the Ohio River to
the falls at Louisville.
In order to understand the genius of LaSalle, it must be remembered
that for many years prior to his time the missionaries and traders were
obliged to make their way to the Northwest by the Ottawa River (of
Canada) on account of the fierce hostility of the Iroquois along the lower
lakes and Niagara River, which entirely closed this latter route to the
Upper Lakes. They carried on their commerce chiefly b}^ canoes, pad-
dling them through the Ottawa to Lake Nipissing, carrying them across
the portage to French River, and descending that to Lake Huron. This
being the route by which they reached the Northwest, accounts for the
fact that all the earliest Jesuit missions were established in the neighbor-
hood of the Upper Lakes. LaSalle conceived the grand idea of opening
the route by Niagara River and the Lower Lakes to Canadian commerce
by sail vessels, connecting it with the navigation of the Mississippi, and
thus opening a magnificent water communication from the Gulf of St.
Lawrence to the Gulf of Mexico. This truly grand and comprehensive
purpose seems to have animated him in all his wonderful achievements
and the matchless difficulties and hardships he surmounted. As the first
step in the accomplishment of this object he established himself on Lake
Ontario, and built and garrisoned Fort Frontenac, the site of the present
HISTORY OP THE STATE OF ILLINOIS. 93
city of Kingston, Canada. Here he obtained a grant of land from the
French crown and a body of troops by which he beat back the invading
Iroquois and cleared the passage to Niagara Falls. Having by this mas-
terly stroke made it safe to attempt a hitherto untried expedition, his
next step, as we have seen, was to advance to the Falls with all his
outfit for building a ship with which to sail the lakes. He was success-
ful in this undertaking, though his ultimate purpose was defeated by a
strange combination of untoward circumstances. The Jesuits evidently
hated LaSalle and plotted against him, because he had abandoned them
and co-operated with a rival order. The fur traders were also jealous of
his superior success in opening new channels of commerce. At LaChine
he had taken the trade of Lake Ontario, which but for his presence there
would have gone to Quebec. While they were plodding with their barK
canoes through the Ottawa he was constructing sailing vessels to com-
mand che trade of the lakes and the Mississippi. These great plans.
excited the jealousy and envy of the small traders, introduced treason and
revolt into the ranks of his own companions, and finally led to the foul
assassination by which his great achievements were prematurely ended.
In 1682, LaSalle, having completed his vessel at Peoria, descended
the Mississippi to its confluence with the Gulf of Mexico. Erecting a
standard on which he inscribed the arms of France, he took formal pos-
session of the whole valley of the mighty river, in the name of Louis
XIV., then reigning, in honor of whom he named the country Louisiana.
LaSalle then went to France, was appointed Governor, and returned
with a fleet and immigrants, for the purpose of planting a colony in Illi-
nois. They arrived in due time in the Gulf of Mexico, but failing to
find the mouth of the Mississippi, up which LaSalle intended to sail, his^
supply ship, with the immigrants, was driven ashore and wrecked on
Matagorda Bay. With the fragments of the vessel he constructed a
stockade and rude huts on the shore for the protection of the immigrants,
calling the post Fort St. Louis. He then made a trip into New Mexico,
in search of silver mines, but, meeting with disappointment, returned to
find his little colony reduced to forty souls. He then resolved to travel
on foot to Illinois, and, starting with his companions, had reached the
valley of the Colorado, near the mouth of Trinity river, when he was.
shot by one of his men. This occurred on the 19th of March, 1687.
Dr. J. W. Foster remarks of him : " Thus fell, not far from the banks
of the Trinity, Robert Cavalier de la Salle, one of the grandest charac-
ters that ever figured in American history — a man capable of originating
the vastest schemes, and endowed with a will and a judgment capable of
carrying them to successful results. Had ample facilities been placed by
the King of France at his disposal, the result of the colonization of this
continent might have been far different from what we now behold."
94 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS.
EARLY SETTLEMENTS.
A temporary settlement was made at Fort St. Louis, or the old Kas-
kaskia village, on the Illinois River, in what is now LaSalle County, in
1682. In 1690, this was removed, with the mission connected with it, to
Kaskaskia, on the river of that name, emptying into the lower Mississippi
in St. Clair County. Cahokia was settled about the same time, or at
least, both of these settlements began in the year 1690, though it is now
pretty well settled that Cahokia is the older place, and ranks as the oldest
permanent setliement in Illinoiai, as well as in the Mississippi Valley.
The reason for the removal of the old Kaskaskia settlement and mission,
was probably because the dangeroas and difficult route by Lake Michigan
and the Chicago portage had been almost abandoned, and travelers and
traders passed down and up the Mississippi by the Fox and Wisconsin
River route. They removed to the vicinity of the Mississippi in order
to be in the line of travel from Canada to Louisiana, that is, the lower
part of it, for it was all Louisiana then south of the lakes.
During the period of French rule in Louisiana, the population prob-
ably never exceeded ten thousand, including whites and blacks. Within
that portion of it now included in Indiana, trading posts were established
at the principal Miami villages which stood on the head waters of the
Maumee, the Wea villages situated at Ouiatenon, on the Wabash, and
the Piankeshaw villages at Post Vincennes ; all of which were probably
visited by French traders and missionaries before the close of the seven-
teenth century.
In the vast territory claimed by the French, many settlements of
considerable importance had sprung up. Biloxi, on Mobile Bay, had
been founded by DTberville, in 1699 ; Antoine de Lamotte Cadillac had
founded Detroit in 1701 ; and New Orleans had been founded by Bien-
ville, under the auspices of the Mississippi Company, in 1718. In Illi-
nois also, considerable settlements had been made, so that in 1730 they
embraced one hundred and forty French families, about six hundred " con-
verted Indians," and many traders and voyageurs. In that portion of the
country, on the east side of the Mississippi, there were five distinct set-
tlements, with their respective villages, viz. : Cahokia, near the mouth
of Cahokia Creek and about five miles below the present city of St.
Louis ; St. Philip, about forty-five miles below Cahokia, and four miles
above Fort Chartres ; Fort Chartres, twelve miles above Kaskaskia.-
Kaskaskia, situated on the Kaskaskia River, five miles above its conhu-
ence with the Mississippi ; and Prairie du Rocher, near Fort Chartres-
To these must be added St. Genevieve and St. Louis, on the west side
of the Mississippi. These, with the exception of St. Louis, are among
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS. 95
the oldest French towns in the Mississippi Valley. Kaskaskia, in its best
days, was a town of some two or three thousand inhabitants. After it
passed from the crown of France its population for many years did not
exceed fifteen hundred. Under British rule, in 1773, the population had
decreased to four hundred and fifty. As early as 1721, the Jesuits had
established a college and a monastery in Kaskaskia.
Fort Chartres was first built under the direction of the Mississippi
Company, in 1718, by M. de Boisbraint, a military officer, under command
of Bienville. It stood on the east bank of the Mississippi, about eighteen
miles below Kaskaskia, and was for some time the headquarters of the'
military commandants of the district of Illinois.
In the Centennial Oration of Dr. Fowler, delivered at Philadelphia,
by appointment of Gov. Beveridge, we find some interesting facts with
regard to the State of Illinois, which we appropriate in this history :
In 1682 Illinois became a possession of the French crown, a depend-
ency of Canada, and a part of Louisiana. In 1765 the English flag was
run up on old Fort Chartres, and Illinois was counted among the treas-
ures of Great Britain.
In 1779 it was taken from the English by Col. George Rogers Clark.
This man was resolute in nature, wise in council, prudent in policy, bold
in action, and heroic in danger. Few men who have figured in the his-
tory of America are more deserving than this colonel. Nothing short of
first-class ability could have rescued Vincens and all Illinois from the
English. And it is not possible to over-estimate the influence of this
achievement upon the republic. In 1779 Illinois became a part of Vir-
ginia. It was soon known as Illinois County. In 1784 Virginia ceded
all this territory to the general government, to be cut into States, to be
republican in form, with " the same right of sovereignty, freedom, and
independence as the other States."
In 1787 it was the object of the wisest and ablest legislation found
in any merely human records. No man can study the secret history of
THE " COMPACT OF 1787,"
and not feel that Providence was guiding with sleepless eye these unborn
States. The ordinance that on July 13, 1787, finally became the incor-
1 porating act, has a most marvelous history. Jefferson had vainly tried
to secure a system of government for the northwestern territory. He
was an emancipationist of that day, and favored the exclusion of slavery
from the territory Virginia had ceded to the general government; but
the South voted him down as often as it came up. In 1787, as late as
July 10, an organizing act without the anti-slavery clause was pending.
This concession to the South was expected to carry it. Congress was in.
96 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS.
session in New York City. On July 5, Rev. Dr. Manasseh Cutler, of
Massachusetts, came into New York to lobby on the northwestern terri-
tory. Everything seemed to fall into his hands. Events were ripe.
The state of the public credit, the growing of Southern prejudice,
the basis of his mission, his personal character, all combined to complete
one of those sudden and marvelous revolutions of public sentiment that
once in five or ten centuries are seen to sweep over a country like the
breath of the Almighty. Cutler was a graduate of Yale — received his
A.M. from Harvard, and his D.D. from Yale. He had studied and taken
degrees in the three learned professions, medicine, law, and divinity. He
had thus America's best indorsement. He had published a scientific
examination of the plants of New England. His name stood second only
to that of Franklin as a scientist in America. He was a courtly gentle-
man of the old style, a man of commanding presence, and of inviting
face. The Southern members said they had never seen such a gentleman
in the North. He came representing a company that desired to purchase
a tract of land now included in Ohio, for the purpose of planting a colony.
It was a speculation. Government money was worth eighteen cents on
the dollar. This Massachusetts company had collected enough to pur-
chase 1,500,000 acres of land. Other speculators in New York made
Dr. Cutler their agent (lobbyist). On the 12th he represented a demand
for 5,500,000 acres. This would reduce the national debt. Jefferson
and Virginia were regarded as authority concerning the land Virginia
had just ceded. Jefferson's policy wanted to provide for the public credit,
and this was a good opportunity to do something.
Massachusetts then owned the territory of Maine, which she was
crowding on the market. She was opposed to opening the northwestern
region. This fired the zeal of Virginia. The South caught the inspira-
tion, and all exalted Dr. Cutler. The English minister invited him to
dine with some of the Southern gentlemen. He was the center of interest.
The entire South rallied round him. Massachusetts could not vote
against him, because many of the constituents of her members were
interested personally in the western speculation. Thus Cutler, making
friends with the South, and, doubtless, using all the arts of the lobby,
was enabled to command the situation. True to deeper convictions, he
dictated one of the most compact and finished documents of wise states-
manship that has ever adorned any human law book. He borrowed from
Jefferson the term " Articles of Compact," which, preceding the federal
constitution, rose into the most sacred character. He then followed verv
closely the constitution of Massachusetts, adopted three years before.
Its most marked points were :
1. The exclusion of slavery from the territory forever.
2. Provision for public schools, giving one township for a seminary,
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS. 97
and every section numbered 16 in each township ; that is, one-thirty-sixth
of all the land, for public schools.
3. A provision prohibiting the adoption of any constitution or the
enactment of any law that should nullify pre-existing contracts.
Be it forever remembered that this compact declared that " ReHgion,
morality, and knowledge being necessary to good government and the
happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall always
be encouraged."
Dr. Cutler planted himself on this platform and would not yield.
Giving his unqualified declaration that it was that or nothing — that unless
they could make the land desirable they did not want it — he took his
horse and buggy, and started for the constitutional convention in Phila-
delphia. On July 13, 1787, the bill was put upon its passage, and was
unanimously adopted, every Southern member voting for it, and only one
man, Mr. Yates, of New York, voting against it. But as the States voted
as States, Yates lost his vote, and the compact was put beyond repeal.
Thus the great States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Wis-
consin — a vast empire, the heart of the great valley — were consecrated
to freedom, intelligence, and honesty. Thus the great heart of the nation
was prepared for a year and a day and an hour. In the light of these eighty-
nine years I affirm that this act was the salvation of the republic and the
destruction of slavery. Soon the South saw their great blunder, and
tried to repeal the compact. In 1803 Congress referred it to a committee
of which John Randolph was chairman. He reported that this ordinance
was a compact, and opposed repeal. Thus it stood a rock, in the way
of the on-rushing sea of slavery.
With all this timely aid it was, after all, a most desperate and pro-
tracted struggle to keep the soil of Illinois sacred to freedom. It was
the natural battle-field for the irrepressible conflict. In the southern end
of the State slavery preceded the compact. It existed among the old
French settlers, and was hard to eradicate. The southern part of the
State was settled from the slave States, and this population brought their
laws, customs, and institutions with them. A stream of population from
the North poured into the northern part of the State. These sections
misunderstood and hated each other perfectly. The Southerners regarded
the Yankees as a skinning, tricky, penurious race of peddlers, filling the
country with tinware, brass clocks, and wooden nutmegs. The North-
erner thought of the Southerner as a lean, lank, lazy creature, burrowing
in a hut, and rioting in whisky, dirt and ignorance. These causes aided
in making the struggle long and bitter. So strong was the sympathy
with slavery that, in spite of the ordinance of 1787, and in spite of the
deed of cession, it was determined to allow the old French settlers to
retain their slaves. Planters from the slave States mi^ht bring their
98 HISTORY OF TBHE STATE OF ILLINOIS.
slaves, if they would give them a chance to choose freedom or years
of service and bondage for their children till they should become
thirty years of age. If they chose freedom they must leave the State
in sixty days or be sold as fugitives. Servants were whipped for offenses
for which white men are fined. Each lash paid forty cents of the fine. A
negro ten miles from home without a pass was whipped. These famous
laws were imported from the slave States just as they imported laws foi'
the inspection of flax and wool when there was neither in the State.
These Black Laws are now wiped out. A vigorous effort was made
to protect slavery in the State Constitution of 1817. It barely failed.
It was renewed in 1825, when a convention was asked to make a new
constitution. After a hard fight the convention was defeated. But
slaves did not disappear from the census of the State until 1850. There
were mobs and murders in the interest of slavery. Lovejoy was added
to the list of martyrs — a sort of first-fruits of that long life of immortal
heroes who saw freedom as the one supreme desire of their souls, and
were so enamored of her that they preferred to die rather than survive her.
The population of 12,282 that occupied the territory in A.D. 1800,
increased to 45,000 in A.D. 1818, when the State Constitution was
adopted, and Illinois took her place in the Union, with a star on the flag
and two votes in the Senate.
Shadrach Bond was the first Governor, and in his first message he
recommended the construction of the Illinois and Michisran Canal.
The simple economy in those days is seen in the fact that the entire
bill for stationery for the first Legislature was only $13.50. Yet this
simple body actually enacted a very superior code.
There was no money in the territory before the war of 1812. Deer
skins and coon skins were the circulating medium. In 1821, the Legis-
lature ordained a State Bank on the credit of the State. It issued notes
in the likeness of bank bills. These notes were made a legal tender for
every thing, and the bank was ordered to loan to the people $100 on per-
sonal security, and more on mortgages. They actually passed a resolu-
tion requesting the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States to
receive these notes for land. The old French Lieutenant Governor, Col.
Menard, put the resolution as follows: " Gentlemen of the Senate : It is
moved and seconded dat de notes of dis bank be made land-office money.
All in favor of dat motion say aye ; all against it say no. It is decided
in de affirmative. Now, gentlemen, I bet you one hundred dollar he
never be land-office money!" Hard sense, like hard money, is always-
above par.
This old Frenchman presents a fine figure up against the dark back-
ground of most of his nation. They made no progress. They clung to
their earliest and simplest implements. They never wore hats or cap*-
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS. 99
They pulled their blankets over their heads in the winter like the Indians,
with whom they freely intermingled.
Demagogism had an early development. One John Grammar (only
in name), elected to the Territorial and State Legislatures of 1816 and
1836, invented the policy of opposing every new thing, saying, " If it
succeeds, no one will ask who voted against it. If it proves a failure, he
could quote its record." In sharp contrast with Grammar was the char-
acter of D. P. Cook, after whom the county containing Chicago was
named. Such was his transparent integrity and remarkable ability that
his will was almost the law of the State. In Congress, a young man,
and from a poor State, he was made Chairman of the Ways and Means
Committee. He was pre-eminent for standing by his committee, regard-
less of consequences. It was his integrity that elected John Quincy
Adams to the Presidency. There were four candidates in 182-1, Jackson,
Clay, Crawford, and John Quincy Adams. There being no choice by the
people, the election was thrown into the House. It was so balanced that
it turned on his vote, and that he cast for Adams, electing him ; then
went home to face the wrath of the Jackson party in Illinois. It cost
him all but character and greatness. It is a suggestive comment on the
times, that there was no legal interest till 1830. It often reached 150
per cent., usually 50 per cent. Then it was reduced to 12, and now to
10 per cent.
PHYSICAL FEATURES OF THE PRAIRIE STATE.
In area the State has 55,410 square miles of territory. It is about
150 miles wide and 400 miles long, stretching in latitude from Maine to
North Carolina. It embraces wide variety of climate. It is tempered
on the north by the great inland, saltless, tideless sea, which keeps the
thermometer from either extreme. Being a table land, from 600 to 1,600
feet above the level of the sea, one is prepared to find on the health
maps, prepared by the general government, an almost clean and perfect
record. In freedom from fever and malarial diseases and consumptions,
the three deadly enemies of the American Saxon, Illinois, as a State,
stands without a superior. She furnishes one of the essential conditions
of a great people^ — sound bodies. I suspect that this fact lies back of
that old Delaware word, Illini, superior men.
The great battles of history that have been determinative of djmas-
ties and destinies have been strategical battles, chiefly the question of
position, Thermopylae has been the war-cry of freemen for twent3^-four
centuries. It only tells how much there may be in position. All this
advantage belongs to Illinois. It is in the heart of the greatest valley in
the world, the vast region between the mountains — a valley that could
100 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS.
feed mankind for one thousand years. It is well on toward the center of
the continent. It is in the great temperate belt, in which have been
found nearly all the aggressive civilizations of history. It has sixty-five
miles of frontage on the head of the lake. With the Mississippi forming
the western and southern boundary, with the Ohio running along the
southeastern line, with the Illinois River and Canal dividing the State
diagonally from the lake to the Lower Mississippi, and with the Rock and
Wabash Rivers furnishing altogether 2,000 miles of water-front, con-
necting with, and running through, in all about 12,000 miles of navi-
gable water.
But this is not all. These waters are made most available by the
fact that the lake and the State lie on the ridge running into the great
valley from the east. Within cannon-shot of the lake the water runs
away from the lake to the Gulf. The lake now empties at both ends,
one into the Atlantic and one into the Gulf of Mexico. The lake thus
seems to hang over the land. This makes the dockage most serviceable ;
there are no steep banks to damage it. Both lake and river are made
for use. •
The climate varies from Portland to Richmond ; it favors every pro-
duct of the continent, including the tropics, with less than half a dozen
exceptions. It produces every great nutriment of the world except ban-
anas and rice. It is hardly too much to say that it is the most productive
spot known to civilization. With the soil full of bread and the earth full
of minerals ; with an upper surface of food and an under layer of fuel ;
with perfect natural drainage, and abundant springs and streams and
navigable rivers ; half way between the forests of the North and the fruits
of the South ; within a day's ride of the great deposits of iron, coal, cop-
per, lead, and zinc ; containing and controlling the great grain, cattle,
pork, and lumber markets of the world, it is not strange that Illinois has
the advantage of position.
This advantage has been supplemented by the character of the popu-
lation. In the early days when Illinois was first admitted to the Union,
her population were chiefly from Kentucky and Virginia. But, in the
conflict of ideas concerning slavery, a strong tide of emigration came in
from the East, and soon changed this composition. In 1870 her non-
native population were from colder soils. New York furnished 133,290 ;
Ohio gave 162,623 ; Pennsylvania sent on 98,352; the entire South gave
us only 206,734. In all her cities, and in all her German and Scandina-
vian and other foreign colonies, Illinois has only about one-fifth of her
people of foreign birth.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS. IQl
PROGRESS OF DEVELOPMENT.
One of the greatest elements in the early development of Illinois is
the /llinois and Michigan Canal, connecting the Illinois and Mississippi
Rivers with the lakes. It was of the utmost importance to the State.
It was recommended by Gov. Bond, the first governor, in his first message.
In 1821, the Legislature appropriated $10,000 for surveying the route.
Two bright young engineers surveyed it, and estimated the cost at
$600,000 or $700,000. It finally cost $8,000,000. In 1825, a law was
passed to incorporate the Canal Company, but no stock was sold. In
1826, upon the solicitation of Cook, Congress gave 800,000 acres of land
on the line of the work. In 1828, another law — commissioners appointed,
and work commenced with new survey and new estimates. In 1834—35,
George Farquhar made an able report on the whole matter. This was,
doubtless, the ablest report ever made to a western legislature, and it
became the model for subsequent reports and action. From this the
work went on till it was finished in 1848. It cost the State a large
amount of money ; but it gave to the industries of the State an impetus
that pushed it up into the first rank of greatness. It was not built as a
speculation any more than a doctor is employed on a speculation. But
it has paid into the Treasury of the State an average annual net sum of
over $111,000.
Pending the construction of the canal, the land and town-lot fever
broke out in the State, in 1834-35. It took on the malignant type in
Chicago, lifting the town up into a city. The disease spread over the
entire State and adjoining States. It was epidemic. It cut up men's
farms without regard to locality, and <fiut up the purses of the purchasers
without regard to consequences. It is estimated that building lots enough
were sold in Indiana alone to accommodate every citizen then in the
United States.
Towns and cities were exported to the Eastern market by the ship-
load. There was no lack of buyers. Every up-ship came freighted with
speculators and their money.
This distemper seized upon the Legislature in 1836-37, and left not
one to tell the tale. They enacted a system of internal improvement
without a parallel in the grandeur of its conception. They ordered the
construction of 1,300 miles of railroad, crossing the State in all direc-
tions. This was surpassed by the river and canal improvements.
There were a few counties not touched by either railroad or river or
canal, and those were to be comforted and compensated by the free dis-
tribution of $200,000 among them. To inflate this balloon beyond cre-
dence it was ordered that work should be commenced on both ends of
102 HISTORY OP THE STATE OF ILLINOIS.
each of these railroads and rivers, and at each river-crossing, all at the
same time. The appropriations for these vast improvements were over
112,000,000, and commissioners were appointed to borrow the money on
the credit of the State. Remember that all this was in the early days of
railroading, when railroads were luxuries ; that the State had whole
counties with scarcely a cabin ; and that the population of the State was
less than 400,000, and you can form some idea of the vigor with which
these brave men undertook the work of making a great State. In the
light of history I am compelled to say that this was only a premature
throb of the power that actually slumbered in the soil of the State. It
was Hercules in the cradle.
At this juncture the State Bank loaned its funds largely to Godfrey
Oilman & Co., and to other leading houses, for the purpose of drawing
trade from St. Louis to Alton. Soon they failed, and took down the
bank with them.
In 1840, all hope seemed gone. A population of 480,000 were loaded
with a debt of $14,000,000. It had only six small cities, really only
towns, namely : Chicago, Alton, Springfield, Quincy, Galena, Nauvoo.
This debt was to be cared for when there was not a dollar in the treas-
ury, and when the State had borrowed itself out of all credit, and when
there was not good money enough in the hands of all the people to pay
the interest of the debt for a single year. Yet, in the presence of all
these difficulties, the young State steadily refused to repudiate. Gov.
Ford took hold of the problem and solved it, bringing the State through
in triumph.
Having touched lightly upon some of the more distinctive points in
the history of the development of Illinois, let us next briefly consider the
MATERIAL RESOURCES OF THE STATE.
It is a garden four hundred miles long and one hundred and fifty
miles wide. Its soil is chiefly a black sandy loam, from six inches to
sixty feet thick. On the American bottoms it has been cultivated for
one hundred and fifty years without renewal. About the old French
to^wns it has yielded corn for a century and a half without rest or help.
It produces nearly everything green in the temperate and tropical zones.
She leads all other States in the number of acres actually under plow.
Her products from 25,000,000 of acres are incalculable. Her mineral
wealth is scarcely second to her agricultural power. She has coal, iron,
lead, copper, zinc, many varieties of building stone, fire clay, cuma clay,
coinmon brick clay, sand of all kinds, gravel, mineral paint — every thing
needed for a high civilization. Left to herself, she has the elements of
all greatness. The single item of coal is too vast for an appreciative
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF H^LINOIS. 103
handling in figures. We can handle it in general terms like algebraical
signs, but long before we get up into the millions and billions the human
mind drops down from comprehension to mere symbolic apprehension.
When I tell you that nearly four-fifths of the entire State is under-
laid with a deposit of coal more than forty feet thick on the average (now
estimated, by recent surveys, at seventy feet thick), you can get some
idea of its amount, as you do of the amount of the national debt. There
it is ! 41,000 square miles — one vast mine into which you could put
any of the States ; in which you could bury scores of European and
ancient empires, and have room enough all round to work without know-
ing that they had been sepulchered there.
Put this vast coal-bed down by the other great coal deposits of the
world, and its importance becomes manifest. Great Britain has 12,000
square miles of coal; Spain, 3,000; France, 1,719; Belgium, 578; Illinois
about twice as many square miles as all combined. Virginia has 20,000
square miles ; Pennsylvania, 16,000 ; Ohio, 12,000. Illinois has 41,000
square miles. One-seventh of all the known coal on this continent is in
Illinois.
Could we sell the coal in this single State for one-seventh of one cent
a ton it would pay the national debt. Converted into power, even with
-the wastage in our common engines, it would do more work than could
be done by the entire race, beginning at Adam's wedding and working
ten hours a day through all the centuries till the present time, and right
on into the future at the same rate for the next 600,000 years.
Great Britain uses enough mechanical power to-day to give to each
man, woman, and child in the kingdom the help and service of nineteen
untiring servants. No wonder she has leisure and luxuries. No wonder
the home of the common artisan has in it more luxuries than could be
found in the palace of good old King Arthur. Think, if you can conceive
of it, of the vast army of servants that slumber in the soil of Illinois,
Impatiently awaiting the call of Genius to come forth to minister to our
comfort.
At the present rate of consumption England's coal supply will be
exhausted in 250 years. When this is gone she must transfer her dominion
either to the Indies, or to British America, which I would not resist ; or
to some other people, which I would regret as a loss to civilization.
COAL IS KING.
At the same rate of consumption (which far exceeds our own) the
deposit of coal in Illinois will last 120,000 years. And her kingdom shall
be an everlasting kingdom.
^ Let us turn, now from this reserve power to the annual 2>roducts of
lOi HISTORY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS.
the State. We shall not be humiliated in this field. Here we strike the
secret of our national credit. Nature provides a market in the constant
appetite of the race. Men must eat, and if we can furnish the provisions
we can command the treasure. All that a man hath will he give for his
Hfe.
According to the last census Illinois produced 30,000,000 of bushels
of wheat. That is more wheat than was raised by any other State in the
Union. She raised In 1875, 130,000,000 of bushels of corn — twice as
much as any other State, and one-sixth of all the corn raised in the United
States. She harvested 2,747,000 tons of hay, nearly one-tenth of all the
hay in the Republic. It is not generally appreciated, but it is true, that
the hay crop of the country is worth more than the cotton crop. The
hay of Illinois equals the cotton of Louisiana. Go to Charleston, S. C,
and see them peddling handfuls of hay or grass, almost as a curiosity,
as we regard Chinese gods or the cryolite of Greenland ; drink your
coffee and condensed milk ; and walk back from the coast for many a
league through the sand and burs till you get up into the better atmos-
phere of the mountains, without seeing a waving meadow or a grazing
herd ; then you will begin to appreciate the meadows of the Prairie State,
where the grass often grows sixteen feet high.
The value of her farm implements is !$211,000,000, and the value of
her live stock is only second to the great State of New York. in 1875
she had 25,000,000 hogs, and packed 2,113,845, about one-half of all that
were packed in the United States. This is no insignificant item. Pork
is a growing demand of the old world. Since the laborers of Europe
have gotten a taste of our bacon, and we have learned how to pack it dry
in boxes, like dry goods, the world has become the market.
The hog is on the march into the future. His nose is ordained to
uncover the secrets of dominion, and his feet shall be guided by the star
of empire.
Illinois marketed $57,000,000 worth of slaughtered animals — more
than any other State, and a seventh of all the States.
Be patient with me, and pardon my pride, and I will give you a list
of some of the things in which Illinois excels all other States.
Depth and richness of soil ; per cent, of good ground ; acres of
improved land ; large farms — some farms contain from 40,000 to 60,000
acres of cultivated land, 40,000 acres of corn on a single farm ; number of
farmers ; amount of wheat, corn, oats and honey produced ; value of ani-
mals for slaughter ; number of hogs ; amount of pork ; number of horses
— three times as many as Kentucky, the horse State.
Illinois excels all other States in miles of railroads and in miles of
postal service, and in money orders sold per annum, and in the amount of
lumber sold in her markets.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF LLLIKOIS. 105
Illinois is only second in many important matters. This sample list
comprises a few of the more important : Permanent school fund (good
for a young state) ; total income for educational purposes ; number of pub-
lishers of books, maps, papers, etc.; value of farm products and imple-
ments, and of live stock ; in tons of coal mined.
The shipping of Illinois is only second to New York. Out of one
port during the business hours of the season of navigation she sends forth
a vessel every ten minutes. This does not include canal boats, which go
one every five minutes. No wonder she is only second in number of
bankers and brokers or in physicians and surgeons.
She is third in colleges, teachers and schools ; cattle, lead, hay,
flax, sorghum and beeswax.
She is fourth in population, jn children enrolled in public schools, in
law schools, in butter, potatoes and carriages.
She is fifth in value of real and personal property, in theological
seminaries and colleges exclusively for women, in milk sold, and in boots
and shoes manufactured, and in book-binding.
She is only seventh in the production of wood, while she is the
twelfth in area. Surely that is well done for the Prairie State. She now
has much more wood and growing timber than she had thirty years ago.
A few leading industries will justify emphasis. She manufactures
$205,000,000 worth of goods, which places her well up toward New York
and Pennsylvania. The number of her manufacturing establishments
increased from 1860 to 1870, 300 per cent.; capital employed increased 350
per cent., and the amount of product increased 400 per cent. She issued
5,500,000 copies of commercial and financial newspapers — only second to
New York. She has 6,759 miles of railroad, thus leading all other States,
worth $636,458,000, using 3,245 engines, and 67,712 cars, making a train
long enough to cover one-tenth of the entire roads of the State. Her
stationl*are only five miles apart. She carried last year 15,795,000 passen-
gers, an average of SQ^ miles, or equal to taking her entire population twice
across the State. More than two-thirds of her land is within five miles of
a railroad, and less than two per cent, is more than fifteen miles away.
The State has a large financial interest in the Illinois Central railroad. •
The road was incorporated in 1850, and the State gave each alternate sec-
tion for six miles on each side, and doubled the price of the remaining
land, so keeping herself good. The road received 2,595,000 acres of land,
and pays to the State one-seventh of the gross receipts. The State
receives this year $350,000, and has received in all about $7,000,000. It
is practically the people's road, and it has a most able and gentlemanly
management. Add to this the annual receipts from the canal, $111,000,
and a large per cent, of the State tax is provided for.
106 HISTORY OF THE STATE OP ILLINOIS.
THE RELIGION AND MORALS
of the State keep step with her productions and growth. She was born
of the missionary spirit. It was a minister who secured for her the ordi-
nance of 1787, by which she has been saved from slavery, ignorance, and
dishonesty. Rev. Mr. Wiley, pastor of a Scotch congregation in Randolph
County, petitioned the Constitutional Convention of 1818 to recognize
Jesus Christ as king, and the Scriptures as the only necessary guide and
book of law. The convention did not act in the case, and the old Cove-
nanters refused to accept citizenship. They never voted until 1824, when
the slavery question was submitted to the people; then they all voted
against it and cast the determining votes. Conscience has predominated
whenever a great moral question has been submitted to the people.
But little mob violence has ever been felt in the State. In 1817
regulators disposed of a band of horse-thieves that infested the territory.
The Mormon indignities finally awoke the same spirit. Alton was also
the scene of a pro-slavery mob, in which Lovejoy was added to, the list of
martyrs. The moral sense of the people makes the law supreme, and gives
to the State unrufiQed peace.
With $22,300,000 in church property, and 4,298 church organizations,
the State has that divine police, the sleepless patrol of moral ideas, that
alone is able to secure perfect safety. Conscience takes the knife from
the assassin's hand and the bludgeon from the grasp of the highwayman.
We sleep in safety, not because we are behind bolts and bars — these only
fence against the innocent ; not because a lone oflBcer drowses on a distant
corner of a street ; not because a sheriff may call his posse from a remote
part of the county ; but because conscience guards the very portals of the
air and stirs in the deepest recesses of the public mind. This spirit issues
within the State 9,500,000 copies of religious papers annually, and receives
still more from without. Thus the crime of the State is only one-fourth
that of New York and one-half that of Pennsylvania.
Illinois never had but one duel between her own citizens. In Belle-
ville, in 1820, Alphonso Stewart and William Bennett arranged to vindi-
cate injured honor. The seconds agreed to make it a sham, and make
them shoot blanks. Stewart was in the secret. Bennett mistrusted some-
thing, and, unobserved, slipped a bullet into his gun and killed Stewart.
He then fled the State. After two years he was caught, tried, convicted,
and, in spite of friends and political aid, was hung. This fixed the code
of honor on a Christian basis, and terminated its use in Illinois.
The early preachers were ignorant men, who were accounted eloquent
according to the strength of their voices. But they set the style for all
public speakers. Lawyers and political speakers followed this rule. Gov.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS. 107
Ford says: "Nevertheless, these first preachers were of incalculable
benefit to the country. They inculcated justice and morality. To them
are we indebted for the first Christian character of the Protestant portion
of the people."
In education Illinois surpasses her material resources. The ordinance
of 1787 consecrated one thirty-sixth of her soil to common schools, and
the law of 1818, the first law that went upon her statutes, gave three per
cent, of all the rest to
EDUCATION.
The old compact secures this interest forever, and by its yoking
morality and intelligence it precludes the legal interference with the Bible
in the public schools. With such a start it is natural that we should have
11,050 schools, and that our illiteracy should be less than New York or
Pennsylvania, and only about one-half of Massachusetts. We are not to
blame for not having more than one-half as many idiots as the great
States. These public schools soon made colleges inevitable. The first
college, still flourishing, was started in Lebanon in 1828, by the M. E.
church, and named after Bishop McKendree. Illinois College, at Jackson-
ville, supported by the Presbyterians, followed in 1830. In 1832 the Bap-
tists built Shurtleff College, at Alton. Then the Presbyterians built Knox
College, at Galesburg, in 1838, and the Episcopalians built Jubilee College,
at Peoria, in 1847. After these early years colleges have rained down.
A settler could hardly encamp on the prairie but a college would spring
up by his wagon. The State now has one very well endowed and equipped
university, namely, the Northwestern University, at Evanston, with six
colleges, ninety instructors, over 1,000 students, and $1,500,000 endow-
ment.
Rev. J. M. Peck was the first educated Protestant minister in tne
State. He settled at Rock Spring, in St. Clair County, 1820, and left his
impress on the State. Before 1837 only party papers were published, but
Mr. Peck published a Gazetteer of Illinois. Soon after John Russell, of
Bluffdale, published essays and tales showing genius. Judge James Hall
published The Illinois Monthly Magazine with great ability, and an annual
called The Western Souvenir^ which gave him an enviable fame all over the
United States. From these beginnings Illinois has gone on till she has
more volumes in public libaaries even than Massachusetts, and of the
44,500,000 volumes in all the public libraries of the United States, she
has one-thirteenth. In newspapers she stands fourth. Her increase is
marvelous. In 1850 she issued 5,000,000 copies; in 1860, 27,590,000 ; in
1870, 113,140,000. In 1860 she had eighteen colleges and seminaries ; in
1870 she had eighty. That is a grand advance for the war decade.
This brings us to a record unsurpassed in the history of any age,
H
THE STATE OF IOWA.
GEOGRAPHICAL SITUATION.
The State of Iowa has an outline figure nearly approaching that of a rec-
tangular parallelogram, the northern and southern boundaries being nearly due
east and west lines, and its eastern and western boundaries determined by
southerly flowing rivers — the Mississippi on the east, and the Missouri, together
with its tributary, the Big Sioux, on the west. The northern boundary is upon
the parallel of forty-three degrees thirty minutes, and the southern is approxi-
mately upon that of forty degrees and thirty-six minutes. The distance from
the northern to the southern boundary, excluding the small prominent angle at
the southeast corner, is a little more than two hundred miles. Owing to the
irregularity of the river boundaries, however, the number of square miles does
not reach that of the multiple of these numbers ; but according to a report of
the Secretary of the Treasury to the United States Senate, March 12, 1863,
the State of Iowa contains 35,228,200 acres, or 55,044 square miles. When it
is understood that all this vast extent of surface, except that which is occupied
by our rivers, lakes and peat beds of the northern counties, is susceptible of the
highest cultivation, some idea may be formed of the immense agricultural
resources of the State. Iowa is nearly as large as England, and twice as large
as Scotland ; but when we consider the relative area of surface which may be
made to yield to the wants of man, those countries of the Old World will bear
no comparison with Iowa.
TOPOGRAPHY.
No complete topographical survey of the State of Iowa has yet been made.
Therefore all the knowledge we have yet upon the subject has been obtained
from incidental observations of geological corps, from barometrical observations
by authority of the General Government, and levelings done by railroad en-
gineer corps within the State.
Taking into view the facts that the highest point in the State is but a little
more than twelve hundred feet above the lowest point, that these two points are
nearly three hundred miles apart, and that the whole State is traversed by
109
110 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
gently flowing rivers, it will be seen that in reality the State of Iowa rests
wholly within, and comprises a part of, a vast plain, with no mountain or hill
ranges within its borders.
A clearer idea of the great uniformity of the surface of the State may be
obtained from a statement of the general slopes in feet per mile, from point to
point, in straight lines across it :
From the N. E. corner to the S. E. corner of the State 1 foot 1 inch per mile.
From the N. E. corner to Spirit Lake 5 feet 5 inches per mile.
From the N. W. corner to Spirit Lake 5 feetO inches per mile.
From the N. W. corner to the S. W. corner of the State 2 feet inches per mile.
From the S. W. corner to the highest ridge between the two
great rivers (in Ringgold County)...- 4 feet 1 inch per mile
From the dividing ridge in the S. E. corner of the State 5 feet 7 inches per mile.
From the highest point in the State (near Spirit Lake) to the
lowest point in the State (at the mouth of Des Moines
River) 4 feet inches per mile.
It will be seen, therefore, that there is a good degree of propriety in regard-
ing the whole State as a part of a great plain, the lowest point of which within
its borders, the southeast corner of the State, is only 444 feet above the level of
the sea. The average height of the whole State above the level of the sea is
not far from eight hundred feet, although it is more than a thousand miles
inland from the nearest sea coast. These remarks are, of course, to be under-
stood as applying to the surface of the State as a whole. When we come to
â– consider its surface feature in detail, we find a great diversity of surface by the
formation of valleys out of the general level, which have been evolved by the
action of streams during the unnumbered years of the terrace epoch.
It is in the northeastern part of the State that the river valleys are deepest ;
consequently the country there has the greatest diversity of surface, and its
physical features are most strongly marked.
DRAINAGE SYSTEM.
The Mississippi and Missouri Rivers form the eastern and western bounda-
ries of the State, and receive the eastern and western drainage of it.
The eastern drainage system comprises not far from two-thirds of the en-
tire surface of the State. The great watershed which divides these two systems
is formed by the highest land between those rivers along the whole length of a
line running southward from a point on the northern boundary line of the State
near Spirit Lake, in Dickinson County, to a nearly central point in the northern
part of Adair County.
From the last named point, this highest ridge of land, between the two great
rivers, continues southward, without change of character, through Ringgold
County into the State of Missouri ; but southward from that point, in Adair
County, it is no longer the great watershed. From that point, another and
lower ridge bears off more nearly southeastward, through the counties of Madi-
son, Clarke, Lucas and Appanoose, and becomes itself the great watershed.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. Ill
RIVERS.
All streams that rise in Iowa rise upon the incoherent surface deposits^
occupying at first only slight depressions in the surface, and scarcely percept-
ible. These successively coalesce to form the streams.
The drift and bluff deposits are both so thick in Iowa that its streams not
only rise upon their surface, but they also reach considerable depth into these
deposits alone, in some cases to a depth of nearly two hundred feet from the
general prairie level.
The majority of streams that constitute the western system of Iowa drainage
run, either along the whole or a part of their course, upon that peculir deposit,
known as bluff deposit. Their banks are often, even of the small streams,
from five to ten feet in height, quite perpendicular, so that they make the
streams almost everywhere unfordable, and a great impediment to travel across
the open country where there are no bridges.
The material of this deposit is of a slightly yellowish ash color, except
where darkened by decaying vegetation, very fine and silicious, but not sandy,
not very cohesive, and not at all plastic. It forms excellent soil, and does not
bake or crack in drying, except limy concretions, which are generally dis-
tributed throughout the mass, in shape and size resembling pebbles ; not a.
stone or pebble can be found in the whole deposit. It was called " silicious
marl" by Dr. Owen, in his geological report to the General Government, and.
its origin referred to an accumulation of sediment in an ancient lake, which
was afterward drained, when its sediment became dry land. Prof. Swallaw
gives it the name of "bluff," which is here adopted ; the term Lacustral would,
have been better. The peculiar properties of this deposit are that it will stand
securely with a precipitous front two hundred feet high, and yet is easily
excavated with a spade. Wells dug in it require only to be walled to a point just
above the water line. Yet, compact as it is, it is very porous, so that water
which falls on its surface does not remain, but percolates through it; neither
does it accumulate within its mass, as it does upon the surface of and within
the drift and the stratified formations.
The bluff deposit is known to occupy a region through which the Missouri
runs almost centrally, and measures, as far as is known, more than two hun-
dred miles in length and nearly one hundred miles in width. The thickest
part yet known in Iowa is in Fremont County, where it reaches two hundred
feet. The boundaries of this deposit in Iowa are nearly as follows : Com-
mencing at the southeast corner of Fremont County, follow up the watershed
between the East Nishnabotany and the West Tarkio Rivers to the southern
boundary of Cass County ; thence to the center of Audubon County ; thence
to Tip Top Station, on the Chicago & Northwestern Railway ; thence by a
broad curve westward to the northwest corner of Plymouth County.
This deposit is composed of fine sedimentary particles, similar to that
which the Missouri River now deposits from its waters, and is the same which
112 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
that river did deposit in a broad depression in the surface of the drift that
formed a lake-like expansion of that river in the earliest period of the history
of its valley. That lake, as shown by its deposit, which now remains, was
about one hundred miles wide and more than twice as long. The water of the
river was muddy then, as now, and the broad lake became filled with the sedi-
ment which the river brought down, before its valley had enough in the lower
portion of its course to drain it. After the lake became filled with the sedi-
ment, the valley below became deepened by the constant erosive action of the
waters, to a depth of more than sufficient to have drained the lake of its first
lyaters ; but the only eifect then was to cause it to cut its valley out of the de-
posits its own muddy waters had formed. Thus along the valley of that river,
.so far as it forms the western boundary of Iowa, the bluifs which border it are
composed of that sediment known as bluif deposit, forming a distinct border
along the broad, level flood plain, the width of which varies from five to fifteen
miles, while the original sedimentary deposit stretches far inland.
All the rivers of the western system of drainage, except the Missouri itself,
are quite incomplete as rivers, in consequence of their being really only
branches of other larger tributaries of that great river , or, if they empty into
the Missouri direct, they have yet all the usual characteristics of Iowa rivers,
from their sources to their mouths.
Cliariton and G-rand Rivers both rise and run for the first twenty-five miles
•of their courses upon the drift deposit alone. The first strata that are exposed
by the deepening valleys of both these streams belong to the upper coal meas-
ures, and they both continue upon the same formation until they make their
â– exit from the State (the former in Appanoose County, the latter in Ringgold
County), near the boundary of which they have passed nearly or quite through
the whole of that formation to the middle coal measures. Their valleys gradu-
ally deepen from their upper portions downward, so that within fifteen or twenty
miles they have reached a depth of near a hundred and fifty feet below the gen-
eral level of the adjacent high land. When the rivers have cut their valleys
down through the series of limestone strata, they reach those of a clayey com-
position. Upon these they widen their valleys and make broad flood plains
(commonly termed "bottoms"), the soil of which is stiff" and clayey, except
where modified by sandy washings.
A considerable breadth of woodland occupies the bottoms and valley sides
along a great part of their length ; but their upper branches and tributaries are
mostly prairie streams.
Platte River.— Th.m river belongs mainly to Missouri. Its upper branches
pass through Einggold County, and, with the west fork of the Grand River,
drain a large region of country.
Here the drift deposit reaches its maximum thickness on an east and west
line across the State, and the valleys are eroded in some instances to a depth of
two hundred feet, apparently, through this deposit alone.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. H
The term " drift deposit " applies to the soil and sub-soil of the greater part
of the State, and in it alone many of our wells are dug and our forests take
root. It rests upon the stratified rocks. It is composed of clay, sand, gravel
aud boulders, promiscuously intermixed, without stratification, varying in char-
acter in different parts of the State.
The proportion of lime in the drift of Iowa is so great that the water of all
our wells and springs is too " hard " for washing purposes ;• and the same sub-
stance is so prevalent in the drift clays that they are always found to have suffi-
cient flux when used for the manufacture of brick.
One Hundred and Two River is represented in Taylor County, the valleys
of which have the same general character of those just described. The country
around and between the east and west forks of this stream is almost entirely
prairie.
Nodaway River. — This stream is represented by east, middle and west
branches. The two former rise in Adair County, the latter in Cass County.
These rivers and valleys are fine examples of the small rivers and valleys of
Southern Iowa. They have the general character of drift valleys, and with
beautiful undulating and sloping sides. The Nodaways drain one of the finest
agricultural regions in the State, the soil of which is tillable almost to their very
banks. The banks and the adjacent narrow flood plains are almost everywhere
composed of a rich, deep, dark loam.
Nishnahotaiiy River. — This river is represented by east and west branches,
the former having its source in Anderson County, the latter in Shelby County.
Both these branches, from their source to their confluence — and also the main
stream, from thence to the point where it enters the great flood plain of the
Missouri— run through a region the surface of which is occupied by the bluff
deposit. The West Nishnabotany is probably without any valuable mill sites.
In the western part of Cass County, the East Nishnabotany loses its identity
by becoming abruptly divided up into five or six different creeks. A few
good mill sites occur here on this stream. None, however, that are thought
reliable exist on either of these rivers, or on the main stream below the
confluence, except, perhaps, one or two in Montgomery County. The
valleys of the two branches, and the intervening upland, possess remarkable
fertility.
Boyer River. — Until it enters the flood plain of the Missouri, the Boyer
runs almost, if not quite, its entire course through the region occupied by the
bluff" deposit, and has cut its valley entirely through it along most of its pas-
sage. The only rocks exposed are the upper coal measures, near Reed's mill, in
Harrison County. The exposures are slight, and are the most northerly now
known in Iowa. The valley of this river has usually gently sloping sides, and an
ndistinctly defined flood plain. Along the lower half of its course the adjacent
upland presents a surface of the billowy character, peculiar to the bluff" deposit.
The source of this river is in Sac County.
114 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
Soldier River, — The east and middle branches of this stream have their
source in Crawford County, and the west branch in Ida County. The whole
course of this river is through the bluflf deposit. It has no exposure of strata
along its course.
Little Sioux River. — Under this head are included both the main and west
branches of that stream, together with the Maple, whifch is one of its branches.
The west branch and the Maple are so similar to the Soldier River that they
need no separate description. The main stream has its boundary near the
northern boundary of the State, and runs most of its course upon drift deposit
alone, entering the region of the bluif deposit in the southern part of Cherokee
County. The two principal upper branches, near their source in Dickinson
and Osceola .Counties, are small prairie creeks, with indistinct valleys. On
entering Clay County, the valley deepens, and at their confluence has a depth
of one hundred feet, which still further increases until along the boundary line
between Clay and Buena Vista Counties, it reaches a depth of two hundred
feet. Just as the valley enters Cherokee County, it turns to the southward and
becomes much widened, with its sides gently sloping to the uplands. When the
valley enters the region of the bluff deposit, it assumes the billowy appearance.
No exposures of strata of any kind have been found in the valley of the Little
Sioux or any of its branches.
Floyd River. — This river rises upon the drift in O'Brien County, and flow-
ing southward enters the region of the bluff deposit a little north of the center
of Plymouth County. Almost from its source to its mouth it is a prairie stream,
with slightly sloping valley sides, which blend gradually with the uplands. A
single slight exposure of sandstone of cretaceous age occurs in the valley near
Sioux City, and which is the only known exposure of rock of any kind along
its whole length. Near this exposure is a mill site, but farther up the stream
it is not valuable for such purposes.
Rock River. — This stream passes through Lyon and Sioux Counties. It
was evidently so named from the fact that considerable exposures of the red
Sioux quartzite occur along the main branches of the stream in Minnesota, a
few miles north of our State boundary. Within this State the main stream and
its branches are drift streams, and strata are exposed. The beds and banks of
the streams are usually sandy and gravelly, with occasional boulders intermixed.
Big Sioux River. — The valley of this river, from the northwest corner of
the State to its mouth, possesses much the same character as all the streams of
the surface deposits. At Sioux Falls, a few miles above the northwest corner
of the State, the stream meets with remarkable obstructions from the presence
of Sioux quartzite, which outcrops directly across the stream, and causes a fall
of about sixty feet within a distance of half a mile, producing a series of cas-
cades. For the first twenty-five miles above its mouth, the valley is very broad,
with a broad, flat flood plain, with gentle slopes occasionally showing indistinctly
defined terraces. These terraces and valley bottoms constitute some of the finest
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 115
agricultural land of the region. On the Iowa side of the valley the upland
presents abrupt bluffs, steep as the materials of which they are composed will
stand, and from one hundred to nearly two hundred feet high above the stream.
At rare intervals, about fifteen miles from its mouth, the cretaceous strata are
found exposed in the face of the bluffs of the Iowa side. No other strata are
exposed along that part of the valley which borders our State, with the single
exception of Sioux quartzite at its extreme northwestern corner. Some good mill
sites may be secured along that portion of this river which borders Lyon County,
but below this the fall will probably be found insufficient and the location for
dams insecure.
Missouri River. — This is one of th^ muddiest streams on the globe, and its
waters are known to be very turbid far toward its source. The chief pecul-
iarity of this river is its broad flood plains, and its adjacent bluff deposits.
Much the greater part of the flood plain of this river is upon the Iowa side, and
continuous from the south boundary line of the State to Sioux City, a distance
of more than one hundred miles in length, varying from three to five miles in
width. This alluvial plain is estimated to contain more than half a million acres
of land within the State, upward of four hundred thousand of which are now
tillable.
The rivers of the eastern system of drainage have quite a different character
from those of the western system. They are larger, longer and have their val-
leys modified to a much greater extent by the underlying strata. For the lat-
ter reason, water-power is much more abundant upon them than upon the
streams of the western system.
Des Moines River. — This river has its source in Minnesota, but it enters;
Iowa before it has attained any size, and flows almost centrally through it from
northwest to southeast, emptying into the Mississippi at the extreme southeast-
ern corner of the State. It drains a greater area than any river within the
State. The upper portion of it is divided into two branches known as the east
and west forks. These unite in Humboldt County. The valleys of these
branches above their confluence are drift-valleys, except a few small exposures
of subcarboniferous limestone about five miles above their confluence. These
exposures produce several small mill-sites. The valleys vary from a few hun-
dred yards to half a mile in width, and are the finest agricultural lands. In the
northern part of Webster County, the character of the main valley is modified
by the presence of ledges and low cliffs of the subcarboniferous limestone and
gypsum. From a point a little below Fort Dodge to near Amsterdam, in Ma-
rion County, the river runs all the way through and upon the lower coal-meas-
ure strata. Along this part of its course the flood-plain varies from an eighth
to half a mile or more in width. From Amsterdam to Ottumwa the subcarbon-
iferous limestone appears at intervals in the valley sides. Near Ottumwa, the sub-
carboniferous rocks pass beneath the river again, bringing down the coal-measure
strata into its bed ; but they rise again from it in the extreme northwestern part
116 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
of Van Buren County, and subcarboniferous strata resume and keep their place
along the valley to the north of the river. From Fort Dodge to the northern
part of Lee County, the strata of the lower coal measures are present in the
valley. Its flood plain is frequently sandy, from the debris of the sandstone
and sandy shales of the coal measures produced by their removal in the process
of the formation of the valley.
The principal tributaries of the Des Moines are upon the western side.
These are the Raccoon and the three rivers, viz.: South, Middle and North Riv-
ers. The three latter have their source in the region occupied by the upper
coal-measure limestone formation, flow eastward over the middle coal measures,
and enter the valley of the Des Moines upon the lower coal measures. These
streams, especially South and Middle Rivers, are frequently bordered by high,
rocky cliffs. Raccoon River has its source upon the heavy surface deposits of
the middle region of Western Iowa, and along the greater part of its course it
has excavated its valley out those deposits and the middle coal measures alone.
The valley of the Des Moines and its branches are destined to become the seat
of extensive manufactures in consequence of the numerous mill sites of immense
power, and the fact that the main valley traverses the entire length of the Iowa
coal fields.
Skunk River. — This river has its source in Hamilton County, and runs
almost its entire course upon the border of the outcrop of the lower coal meas-
ures, or, more properly speaking, upon the subcarboniferous limestone, just where
it begins to pass beneath the coal measures by its southerly and westerly dip.
Its general course is southeast. From the western part of Henry County, up
as far as Story County, the broad, flat flood plain is covered with a rich deep
clay soil, which, in time of long-continued rains and overflows of the river, has
made the valley of Skunk River a terror to travelers from the earliest settle-
ment of the country. There are some excellent mill sites on the lower half of
this river, but they are not so numerous or valuable as on other rivers of the
eastern system.
Iowa River. — This river rises in Hancock County, in the midst of a broad,
slightly undulating drift region. The first rock exposure is that of subcarbon-
iferous limestone, in the southwestern corner of Franklin County. It enters
the region of the Devonian strata near the southwestern corner of Benton
County, and in this it continues to its confluence with the Cedar in Louisa
County. Below the junction with the Cedar, and for some miles above that
point, its valley is broad, and especially on the northern side, with a well
marked flood plain. Its borders gradually blend with the uplands as they slope
away in the distance from the river. The Iowa furnishes numerous and valua-
ble mill sites.
Cedar River. — This stream is usually understood to be a branch of the
Iowa, but it ought, really, to be regarded as the main stream. It rises by
numerous branches in the northern part of the State, and flows the entire length
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 117
of the State, through the region occupied by the Devonian strata and along the
trend occupied by that formation.
The valley of this river, in the upper part of its course, is narrow, and the
sides slope so gently as to scarcely show where the lowlands end and the up-
lands begin. Below the confluence with the Shell Rock, the flood plain is more
distinctly marked and the valley broad and shallow. The valley of the Cedar
is one of the finest regions in the State, and both the main stream and its
branches afford abundant and reliable mill sites.
Wapsipinnicon River. — This river has its source near the source of the
Cedar, and runs parallel and near it almost its entire course, the upper half
upon the same formation — the Devonian. In the northeastern part of Linn
County, it enters the region of the Niagara limestone, upon which it continues
to the Mississippi. It is one hundred miles long, and yet the area of its drain-
age is only from twelve to twenty miles in width. Hence, its numerous mill
sites are unusually secure.
Turkey River. — This river and the Upper Iowa are, in many respects, un-
like other Iowa rivers. The difference is due to the great depth they have
eroded their valleys and the diff'erent character of the material through which
they have eroded. Turkey River rises in Howard County, and in Winnesheik
County, a few miles from its source, its valley has attained a depth of more than
two hundred feet, and in Fayette and Clayton Counties its depth is increased to
three and four hundred feet. The summit of the uplands, bordering nearly the
whole length of the valley, is capped by the Maquoketa shales. These shales
are underlaid by the Galena limestone, between two and three hundred feet
thick. The valley has been eroded through these, and runs upon the Trenton
limestone. Thus, all the formations along and within this valley are Lower
Silurian. The valley is usually narrow, and without a well-marked flood plain.
Water power is abundant, but in most places inaccessible.
Upper Iowa River. — This river rises in Minnesota, just beyond the north-
ern boundary line, and enters our State in Howard County before it has attained
any considerable size. Its course is nearly eastward until it reaches the Mis-
sissippi. It rises in the region of the Devonian rocks, and flows across the out-
crops, respectively, of the Niagara, Galena and Trenton limestone, the lower
magnesian limestone and Potsdam sandstone, into and through all of which,
except the last, it has cut its valley, which is the deepest of any in Iowa. The
valley sides are, almost everywhere, high and steep, and cliffs of lower magne-
sian and Trenton limestone give them a wild and rugged aspect. In the lower
part of the valley, the flood plain reaches a width sufficient for the location of
small farms, but usually it is too narrow for such purposes. On the higher
surface, however, as soon as you leave the valley you come immediately upon a
cultivated country. This stream has the greatest slope per mile of any in Iowa,
consequently it furnishes immense water power. In some places, where creeks
come into it, the valley widens and affords good locations for farms. The town
118 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
of Decorah, in Winnesheik County, is located in one of these spots, which
makes it a lovely location ; and the power of the river and the small spring
streams around it offer fine facilities for manufacturing. This river and its
tributaries are the only trout streams in Iowa.
Mississippi Rive7-. — This river may be described, in general terms, as a broad
canal cut out of the general level of the country through which the river flows.
It is bordered by abrupt hills or bluffs. The bottom of the valley ranges from
one to eight miles in width. The whole space between the bluffs is occupied by
the river and its bottom, or flood plain only, if we except the occasional terraces
or remains of ancient flood plains, which are not now reached by the highest
floods of the river. The river itself is from half a mile to nearly a mile in
•width. There are but four points along the whole length of the State where the
bluffs approach the stream on both sides. The Lower Silurian formations com-
pose the bluffs in the northern part of the State, but they gradually disappear
by a southerly dip, and the bluffs are continued successively by the Upper
Silurian, Devonian, and subcarboniferous rocks, which are reached near the
southeastern corner of the State.
Considered in their relation to the present general surface of the state, the
relative ages of the river valley of Iowa date back only to the close of the
glacial epoch ; but that the Mississippi, and all the rivers of Northeastern Iowa,
if no others, had at least a large part of the rocky portions of their valleys
eroded by pre-glacial, or perhaps even by palaeozoic rivers, can scarcely be
doubted.
LAKES.
The lakes of Iowa may be properly divided into two distinct classes. The
first may be called drift lakes, having had their origin in the depressions left
in the surface of the drift at the close of the glacial epoch, and have rested upon
the undisturbed surface of the drift deposit ever since the glaciers disappeared.
The others may be properly termed fluvatile or alluvial lakes, because they have
had their origin by the action of rivers while cutting their own valleys out from
the surface of the drift as it existed at the close of the glacial epoch, and are now
found resting upon the alluvium, as the others rest upon the drift. By the term
alluvium is meant the deposit which has accumulated in the valleys of rivers by
the action of their own currents. It is largely composed of sand and other
coarse material, and upon that deposit are some of the best and most productive
soils in the State. It is this deposit which form the flood plains and deltas of
our rivers, as well as the terraces of their valleys.
The regions to which the drift lakes are principally confined are near the
head waters of the principal streams of the State. We consequently find them
in those regions which lie between the Cedar and Des Moines Rivers, and the
Des Moines and Little Sioux. No drift lakes are found in Southern Iowa.
The largest of the lakes to be found in the State are Spirit and Okoboji, in
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 119
Dickinson County ; Clear Lake, in Cerro Gordo County ; and Storm Lake, in
Bunea Vista County.
Spirit Lake. — The width and length of this lake are about equal , and it
contains about twelve square miles of surface, its northern border resting directly
on the boundary of the State. It lies almost directly upon the great watershed.
Its shores are mostly gravelly, and the country about it fertile.
Okohoji Lake. — This body of water lies directly south of Spirit Lake, and
has somewhat the shape of a horse-shoe, with its eastern projection within a few
rods of Spirit Lake, where it receives the outlet of the latter. Okohoji Lake
extends about five miles southward from Spirit Lake, thence about the same
distance westward, and then bends northward about as far as the eastern projec-
tion. The eastern portion is narrow, but the western is larger, and in some
places a hundred feet deep. The surroundings of this and Spirit Lake are very
pleasant. Fish are abundant in them, and they are the resort of myriads of
water fowl.
Qlear Lake. — This lake is situated in Cerro Gordo County, upon the
watershed between the Iowa and Cedar Rivers. It is about five miles long,
and two or three miles wide, and has a maximum depth of only fifteen
feet. Its shores and the country around it are like that of Spirit Lake.
Storm Lake. — This body of water rests upon the great water shed in Buena
Vista County. It is a clear, beautiful sheet of water, containing a surface area
of between four and five square miles.
The outlets of all these drift-lakes are dry during a portion of the year, ex-
cept Okoboji.
Walled Lakes. — Along the water sheds of Northern Iowa great numbers of
small lakes exist, varying from half a mile to a mile in diameter. One of the lakes
in Wright County, and another in Sac, have each received the name of " Walled
Lake," on account of the existence of embankments on their borders, which are
supposed to be the work of ancient inhabitants. These embankments are from
two to ten feet in height, and from five to thirty feet across. They are the
result of natural causes alone, being referable to the periodic action of ice, aided,
to some extent, by the force of the waves. These lakes are very shallow, and
in winter freeze to the bottom, so that but little unfrozen water remains in the
middle. The ice freezes fast to everything upon the bottom, and the expansive
power of the water in freezing acts in all directions from the center to the cir-
cumference, and whatever was on the bottom of the lake has been thus carried
to the shore, and this has been going on from year to year, from century to
century, forming the embankments which have caused so much wonder.
SPRINGS.
Springs issue from all formations, and from the sides of almost every valley,
but they are more numerous, and assume proportions which give rise to the
name of sink-holes, along the upland borders of the Upper Iowa River, owing
120 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
to the peculiar fissured and laminated character and great thickness of the strata
of the age of the Trenton limestone which underlies the whole region of the
valley of that stream.
No mineral springs, properly so called, have yet been discovered in Iowa,
though the water of several artesian wells is frequently found charged with
soluble mineral substances.
ORIGIN OF THE PRAIRIES.
It is estimated that seven-eighths of the surface of the State was prairie
when first settled. They are not confined to level surfaces, nor to any partic-
ular variety of soil, for within the State they rest upon all formations, from
those of the Azoic to those of the Cretaceous age, inclusive. Whatever may
have been their origin, their present existence in Iowa is not due to the influ-
ence of climate, nor the soil, nor any of the underlying formations. The real
cause is the prevalence of the annual fires. If these had been prevented fifty
years ago, Iowa would now be a timbered country. The encroachment of forest
trees upon prairie farms as soon as the bordering woodland is protected from
the annual prairie fires, is well known to farmers throughout the State.
The soil of Iowa is justly famous for its fertility, and there is probably no
equal area of the earth's surface that contains so little untillable land, or whose
soil has so high an average of fertility. Ninety-five per cent, of its surface is
tillable land.
GEOLOGY.
The soil of Iowa may be separated into three general divisions, which not
only possess difierent physical characters, but also difier in the mode of their
origin. These are drift, bluff" and alluvial, and belong respectively to the
deposits bearing the same names. The drift occupies a much larger part of the
surface of the State than both the others. The bluff" has the next greatest area
of surface, and the alluvial least.
All soil is disintegrated rock. The drift deposit of Iowa was derived, to a
considerable extent, from the rocks of Minnesota ; but the greater part of Iowa
drift was derived from its own rocks, much of which has been transported but a
short distance. In general terms the constant component element of the drift
soil is that portion which was transported from the north, while the inconstant
elements are those portions which were derived from the adjacent or underlying
strata. For example, in Western Iowa, wherever tnat cretaceous formation
known as the Nishnabotany sandstone exists, the soil contains more sand than
elsewhere. The same may be said of the soil of some parts of the State occu-
pied by the lower coal measures, the sandstones and sandy shales of that forma-
tion furnishing the sand.
In Northern and Northwestern Iowa, the drift contains more sand and
gravel than elsewhere. This sand and gravel was, doubtless, derived from the
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA
121
cretaceous rocks that now do, or formerly did, exist there, and also in part
from the conglomerate and pudding-stone beds of the Sioux quartzite.
In Southern Iowa, the soil is frequently stiff and clayey. This preponder-
ating clay is doubtless derived from the clayey and shaly beds which alternate
with the limestones of that region.
The bluff soil is that which rests upon, and constitutes a part of, the bluflf
deposit. It is found only in the western part of the State, and adjacent to the
Missouri River. Although it contains less than one per cent, of clay in its
composition, it is in no respect inferior to the best drift soil.
The alluvial soil is that of the flood plains of the river valleys, or bottom
lands. That which is periodically flooded by the rivers is of little value for
agricultural purposes ; but a large part of it is entirely above the reach of the
highest floods, and is very productive.
The stratified rocks of Iowa range from the Azoic to the Mesozoic, inclu-
sive ; but the greater portion of the surface of the State is occupied by those
of the Palaeozoic age. The table below will show each of these formations in
their order:
SYSTEMS.
AGES.
Cretaceous
Carboniferous..
Devonian
Upper Silurian
Lower Silurian
Azoic
GROaPS.
PERIODS.
rPost Tertiary
Lower Cretaceous.
Coal Measures.
Subcarboniferous.
{
FORMATIONS.
EPOCHS.
Hamilton
Niagara
Cincinnati .
Trenton.
Primordial.
Huronian
Drift
Inoceramous bed
Woodbury Sandstone and Shales..
Nishnabotany Sandstone
Upper Coal Measures
Middle Coal Measures
Lower Coal Measures
St. Louis Limestoae
Keokuk Limestone...
Burlington Limestone
Kinderhook beds
Hamilton Limestone and Shales.
Niagara Limestone
Maquoketa Shales
Galena Limestone
Trenton Limestone
'St. Peter's Sandstone
Lower Magnesian Limestone
Potsdam Sandstone
ISioux Quartzite
THICKNESS.
IN FEET.
10
to 200
50
130
100
200
200
200
75
90
196
175
200
350
80
250
200
80
250
300
50
THE AZOIC SYSTEM.
The Sioux quartzite is found exposed in natural ledges only upon a few
acres in the extreme northwest corner of the State, upon the banks of the Big
Sioux River, for which reason the specific name of Sioux Quartzite has been
given them. It is an intensely hard rock, breaks in splintery fracture, and a
color varying, in different localities, from a light to deep red. The process of
metamorphism has been so complete throughout the whole formation that the
rock is almost everywhere of uniform texture. The dip is four or five degrees
to the northward, and the trend of the outcrop is eastward and westward. This
122 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
rock may be quarried in a few rare cases, but usually it cannot be secured in
dry forms except that into which it naturally cracks, and the tendency is to
angular pieces. It is absolutely indestructible.
LOWER SILURIAN SYSTEM.
PRIMORDIAL GROUP.
Potsdam Sandstone. — This formation is exposed only in a small portion of
the northeastern portion of the State. It is only to be seen in the bases of the
bluffs and steep valley sides which border the river there. It may be seen
underlying the lower magnesian limestone, St. Peter s sandstone and Trenton
limestone, in their regular order, along the bluffs of the Mississippi from the
northern boundary of the State as far south as Guttenburg, along the Upper
Iowa for a distance of about twenty miles from its mouth, and along a few of
the streams which empty into the Mississippi in Allamakee County.
It is nearly valueless for economic purposes.
No fossils have been discovered in this formation in Iowa,
Lower Magnesium Limestone. — This formation has but little greater geo-
graphical extent in Iowa than the Potsdam sandstone. It lacks a uniformity
of texture and stratification, owing to which it is not generally valuable for
building purposes.
The only fossils found in this formation in Iowa are a few traces of crinoids,
near McGregor.
>S'^. Peter s Sandstone. — This formation is remarkably uniform in thickness
throughout its known geographical extent ; and it is evident it occupies a large
portion of the northern half of Allamakee County, immediately beneath the
drift.
THENTON GROUP.
Trenton Limestone. — With the exception of this, all the limestones of both
Upper and Lower Silurian age in Iowa are magnesian limestones — nearly pure
dolomites. This formation occupies large portions of Winnesheik and Alla-
makee Counties and a portion of Clayton. The greater part of it is useless for
economic purposes, yet there are in some places compact and evenly bedded
layers, which afford fine material for window caps and sills.
In this formation, fossils are abundant, so much so that, in some places, the
rock is made up of a mass of shells, corals and fragments of tribolites, cemented
by calcareous material into a solid rock. Som» of these fossils are new to
science and peculiar to Iowa.
The Galena Limestone. — This is the upper formation of the Trenton group.
It seldom exceeds twelve miles in width, although it is fully one hundred and
fifty miles long. The outcrop traverses portions of the counties of Howard,
Winnesheik, Allamakee, Fayette, Clayton, Dubuque and Jackson. It exhibits
its greatest development in Dubuque County. It is nearly a pure dolomite,
with a slight admixture of silicious matter. It is usually unfit for dressing,
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 123
though sometimes near the top of the bed good blocks for dressing are found.
This formation is the source of the lead ore of the Dubuque lead mines. The
lead region proper is confined to an area of about fifteen miles square in the
vicinity of Dubuque. The ore occurs in vertical fissures, which traverse the
rock at regular intervals from east to west ; some is found in those which have
a north and south direction. The ore is mostly that known as Galena, or sul-
phuret of lead, very small quantities only of the carbonate being found with it.
CINCINNATI GROUP.
Maquoketa Shales. — The surface occupied by this formation is singularly
long and narrow, seldom reaching more than a mile or two in width, but more
than a hundred miles in length. Its most southerly exposure is in the bluffs of
the Mississippi near Bellevue, in Jackson County, and the most northerly yet
recognized is in the western part of Winnesheik County. The whole formation
is largely composed of bluish and brownish shales, sometimes slightly arena-
ceous, sometimes calcareous, which weather into a tenacious clay upon the sur-
face, and the soil derived from it is usually stiff and clayey. Its economic
value is very slight.
Several species of fossils which characterize the Cincinnati group are found
in the Maquoketa shales ; but they contain a larger number that have been
found anywhere else than in these shales in Iowa, and their distinct faunal char-
acteristics seem to warrant the separation of the Maquoketa shales as a distinct
formation from any others of the group.
UPPER SILURIAN SYSTEM.
NIAGARA GTtOUP.
Niagara Limestone. — The area occupied by the Niagara limestone is nearly
one hundred and sixty miles long from north to south, and forty and fifty miles
wide.
This formation is entirely a magnesian limestone, with in some places a con-
siderable proportion of silicious matter in the form of chert or coarse flint. A
large part of it is evenly bedded, and probably affords the best and greatest
amount of quarry rock in the State. The quarries at Anamosa, LeClaire and
Farley are all opened in this formation.
DEVONIAN SYSTEM.
HAMILTON GROUP.
Hamilton Limestone. — The area of surface occupied by the Hamilton lime-
stone and shales is fully as great as those by all the formations of both Upper
and Lower Silurian age in the State. It is nearly two hundred miles long and
from forty to fifty miles broad. The general trend is northwestward and south-
eastw5»-rd.
Although a large part of the material of this formation is practically quite
•worthless, yet other portions are valuable for economic purposes ; and having a
124 , HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
large geographical extent in the State, is one of the most important formations,
in a practical point of view. At Waverly, Bremer County, its value for the
production of hydraulic lime has been practically demonstrated. The heavier
and more uniform magnesian beds furnish material for bridge piers and other
material requiring strength and durability.
All the Devonian strata of Iowa evidently belong to a single epoch, and re-
ferable to the Hamilton, as recognized by New York geologists.
The most conspicuous and characteristic fossils of this formation are bra-
chiopod, mollusks and corals. The coral Acervularia Davidsoni occurs near
Iowa City, and is known as " Iowa City Marble," and " bird's-eye marble."
CARBONIFEROUS SYSTEM.
Of the three groups of formations that constitute the carboniferous system,
viz., the subcarboniferous, coal measures and permian, only the first two are
found in Iowa.
SUBCARBONIFEROUS GROUP.
The area of the surface occupied by this group is very large. Its eastern
border passes from the northeastern part of Winnebago County, with consider-
able directness in a southeasterly direction to the northern part of Washington
County. Here it makes a broad and direct bend nearly eastward, striking
the Mississippi River at Muscatine. The southern and western boundary is to
a considerable extent the same as that which separates it from the coal field.
From the southern part of Pocahontas County it passes southeast to Fort Dodge,
thence to Webster City, thence to a point three or four miles northeast of El-
dora, in Hardin County, thence southward to the middle of the north line of
Jasper County, thence southeastward to Sigourney, in Keokuk County, thence
to the northeastern corner of Jefferson County, thence sweeping a few miles
eastward to the southeast corner of Van Buren County. Its area is nearly two
hundred and fifty miles long, and from twenty to fifty miles wide^
The Kinderhook Beds. — The most southerly exposure of these beds is near
the mouth of Skunk River, in Des Moines County. The most northerly now
known is in the eastern part of Pocahontas County, more than two hundred
miles distant. The principal exposures of this formation are along the blufis
which border the Mississippi and Skunk Rivers, where they form the eastern
and northern boundary of Des Moines County, along English River, in Wash-
ington County ; along the Iowa River, in Tama, Marshall, Hamlin and Frank-
lin Counties ; and along the Des Moines River, in Humboldt County.
The economic value of this formation is very considerable, particularly in
the northern portion of the region it occupies. In Pocahontas and Humboldt
Counties it is almost invaluable, as no other stone except a few boulders are
found here. At Iowa Falls the lower division is very good for building pur-
poses. In Marshall County all the limestone to be obtained comes from this
formation, and the quarries near LeGrand are very valuable. At this point
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 125
some of the layers are finely veined with peroxide of iron, and are wrought into
ornamental and useful objects.
In Tama County, the oolitic member is well exposed, where it is manufac-
tured into lime. It is not valuable for building, as upon exposure to atmosphere
and frost, it crumbles to pieces.
The remains of fishes are the only fossils yet discovered in this formation
that can be referred to the sub-kingdom vertebrata ; and so far as yet recog-
nized, they all belong to the order selachians.
Of ARTICULATES, Only two spccics have been recognized, both of which
belong to the genus phillipsia.
The sub-kingdom mollusca is largely represented.
The RADIATA are represented by a few crinoids, usually found in a very im-
perfect condition. The sub-kingdom is also represented by corals.
The prominent feature in the life of this epoch was molluscan ; so much so
in fact as to overshadow all other branches of the animal kingdom. The pre-
vailing classes are : lamellihranchiates, in the more arenaceous portions ; and
brachiopods, in the more calcareous portions.
No remains of vegetation have been detected in any of the strata of this
formation.
The Burlington Limestone. — This formation consists of two distinct calca>
reous divisions, which are separated by a series of silicious beds. Both divi-
sions are eminently crinoidal.
The southerly dip of the Iowa rocks carries the Burlington limestone down,
so that it is seen for the last time in this State in the valley of Skunk River,
near the southern boundary of Des Moines County. The most northerly point
at which it has been recognized is in the northern part of Washington County.
It probably exists as far north as Marshall County.
This formation affords much valuable material for economic purposes. The
upper division furnishes excellent common quarry rock.
The great abundance and variety of its fossils — crinoids — now known to be
more than three hundred, have justly attracted the attention of geologists in all
parts of the world.
The only remains of vertebrates discovered in this formation are those of
fishes, and consist of teeth and spines ; bone of bony fishes, like those most
common at the present day, are found in these rocks. On BuflBngton Creek, in
Louisa County, is a stratum in an exposure so fully charged with these remains
that it might with propriety be called bone breccia.
Remains of articulates are rare in this formation. So far as yet discovered^
they are confined to two species of tribolites of the genus phillipsia.
Fossil shells are very common.
The two lowest classes of the sub-kingdom radiata are represented in the
genera zaphrentis, amplexus and syringapora, while the highest class — echino-
derms — are found in most extraordinary profusion.
126 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
The Keokuk Limestone. — It is only in the four counties of Lee, Van
Buren, Henry and Des Moines that this formation is to be seen.
In some localities the upper silicious portion of this formation is known aa
the Geode bed. It is not recognizable in the northern portion of the formation,
nor in connection with it where it is exposed, about eighty miles below Keokuk.
The geodes of the Geode bed are more or less spherical masses of silex,
usually hollow and lined with crystals of quartz. The outer crust is rough and
unsightly, but the crystals which stud the interior are often very beautiful.
They vary in size from the size of a walnut to a foot in diameter.
The economic value of this formation is very great. Large quantities of its
stone have been used in the finest structures in the State, among which are the
post offices at Dubuque and Des Moines. The principal quarries are along the
banks of the Mississippi, from Keokuk to Nauvoo.
The only vertebrate fossils found in the formation are fishes, all belonging
to the order selachians, some of which indicate that their owners reached a
length of twenty-five or thirty feet.
Of the articulates, only two species of the genus philUpsia have been found
in this formation.
Of the mollusks, no cephalopods have yet been recognized in this formation in
this State ; gasteropods are rare ; brachiopods and polyzoans are quite abundant.
Of radiates, corals of genera zaphrentes, amplexus and aulopera are found,
but crinoids are most abundant.
Of the low forms of animal life, the protozoans, a small fossil related to the
sponges, is found in this formation in small numbers.
The St. Louis Limestone. — This is the uppermost of the subcarboniferous
group in Iowa. The superficial area it occupies is comparatively small, because
it consists of long, narrow strips, yet its exten* is very great. It is first seen
resting on the geode division of the Keokuk limestone, near Keokuk. Pro-
<;eeding northward, it forms a narrow border along the edge of the coal fields
in Lee, Des Moines, Henry, Jeff'erson, Washington, Keokuk and Mahaska
Counties. It is then lost sight of until it appears again in the banks of Boone
River, where it again passes out of view under the coal measures until it is
next seen in the banks of the Des Moines, near Fort Dodge. As it exists in
Iowa, it consists of three tolerably distinct subdivisions — the magnesian, arena-
<;eous and calcareous.
The upper division furnishes excellent material for quicklime, and when
quarries are well opened, as in the northwestern part of Van Buren County,
large blocks are obtained. The sandstone, or middle division, is of little
economic value. The lower or magnesian division furnishes a valuable
and durable stone, exposures of which are found on Lick Creek, in Van Buren
County, and on Long Creek, seven miles west of Burlington.
Of the fossils of this formation, the vertebrates are represented only by the
remains of fish, belonging to the two orders, selachians and ganoids. The
\
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 127
articulates are represented by one species of the trilobite, genus phiUipsia, and
two ostracoid, genera, cythre and beyricia. The monusks distinguish this
formation more than any other branch of the animal kingdom. Radiates are
exceedingly rare, showing a marked contrast between this formation and the
two preceding it.
The rocks of the subcarboniferous period have in other countries, and in
other parts of our own country, furnished valuable minerals, and even coal, but
in Iowa the economic value is confined to its stone alone.
The Lower Silurian, Upper Silurian and Devonian rocks of Iowa are largely
composed of limestone. Magnesia also enters largely into the subcarbon-
iferous group. With the completion of the St. Louis limestone, the
production of the magnesian limestone seems to have ceased among the rocks of
Iowa.
Although the Devonian age has been called the age of fishes, yet so far as
Iowa is concerned, the rocks of no period can compare with the subcarbon-
iferous in the,abundance and variety of the fish remains, and, for this reason,
the Burlington and Keokuk limestones will in the future become more
famous among geologists, perhaps, than any other formations in North
America. *
It will be seen that the Chester limestone is omitted from the subcarbon-
iferous group, and which completes the full geological series. It is probable
the whole surface of Iowa was above the sea during the time of the
formation of the Chester limestone to the southward about one hundred
miles.
At the close of the epoch of the Chester limestone, the shallow seas in
which the lower coal measures were formed again occupied the land, extending
almost as far north as that sea had done in which the Kinderhook beds were
formed, and to the northeastward its deposits extended beyond the subcarbon-
iferous groups, outlines of which are found upon the next, or Devonian rock.
THE COAL-MEASURE GROUP.
The coal-measure group of Iowa is properly divided into three formations,,
viz., the lower, middle and upper coal measures, each having a vertical thick-
ness of about two hundred feet.
A line drawn upon the map of Iowa as follows, will represent the eastern
and northern boundaries of the coal fields of the State : Commencing at the
southeast corner of Van Buren County, carry the line to the northeast corner
of Jefferson County by a slight easterly curve through the western portions of
Lee and Henry Counties. Produce this line until it reaches a point six or
eight miles northward from the one last named, and then carry it northwest-
Avard, keeping it at about the same distance to the northward of Skunk River
and its north branch that it had at first, until it reaches the southern boundary
of Marshall County, a little west of its center. Then carry it to a point
/
128 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
three or four miles northeast from Eldora, in Hardin County ; thence west-
ward to a point a little north of Webster City, in Hamilton County ; and
thence further westward to a point a little north of Fort Dodge, in Webster
County.
Loiver Coal Measures. — In consequence of the recedence to the southward
•of the borders of the middle and upper coal measures, the lower coal measures
alone exist to the eastward and northward of Des Moines River. They also
occupy a large area westward and southward of that river, but their southerly
dip passes them below the middle coal measures at no great distance from the
river.
No other formation in the whole State possesses the economic value of the
lower coal measures. The clay that underlies almost every bed of coal furnishes
a large amount of material for potters' use. The sandstone of these measures
is usually soft and unfit, but in some places, as near Red Rock, in Marion
County, blocks of large dimensions are obtained which make good building
material, samples of which can be seen in the State Arsenal, at Oes Moines.
On the whole, that portion of the State occupied by the lower coal measures,
is not well supplied with stone.
But few fossils have been found in any of the strata of the lower coal meas-
ures, but such animal remains as have been found are without exception of
marine origin.
Of fossil plants found in these measures, all probably belong to the class
acrogens. Specimens of calamites, and several species of ferns, are found in
all of the coal measures, but the genus lepidodendron seems not to have existed
later than the epoch of the middle coal measures.
Middle Coal Measures. — This formation within the State of Iowa occupies
«, narrow belt of territory in the southern central portion of the State, embrac-
ing a superficial area of about fourteen hundred square miles. The counties
more or less underlaid by this formation are Guthrie, Dallas, Polk, Madison,
Warren, Clarke, Lucas, Monroe, Wayne and Appanoose.
This formation is composed of alternating beds of clay, sandstone and lime-
stone, the clays or shales constituting the bulk of the formation, the limestone
occurring in their bands, the lithological peculiarities of which offer many con-
trasts to the limestones of the upper and lower coal measures. The formation
is also characterized by regular wave-like undulations, with a parallelism which
indicates a widespread disturbance, though no dislocation of the strata have
been discovered.
Generally speaking, few species of fossils occur in these beds. Some of the
«hales and sandstone have afforded a few imperfectly preserved land plants —
three or four species of ferns, belonging to the genera. Some of the carbonif-
erous shales afibrd beautiful specimens of what appear to have been sea-weeds.
Radiates are represented by corals. The mollusks are most numerously repre-
sented. Trilohites and ostraeoids are the only remains known of articulates.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 129
Vertebrates are only known by the remains of salachians, or sharks, and
ganoids.
Upper Coal Measures. — The area occupied by this formation in Iowa is
very great, comprising thirteen whole counties, in the southwestern part of the
State. It adjoins by its northern and eastern boundaries the area occupied by
the middle coal measures.
The prominent lithological features of this formation are its limestones, yet
it contains a considerable proportion of shales and sandstones. Although it is
known by the name of upper coal measures, it contains but a single bed of coal,
and that only about twenty inches in maximum thickness.
The limestone exposed in this formation furnishes good material for building
as in Madison and Fremont Counties. The sandstones are quite worthless. No
beds of clay for potter's use are found in the whole formation.
The fossils in this formation are much more numerous than in either the
middle or lower coal measures. The vertebrates are represented by the fishes
of the orders selachians and ganoids. The articulates are represented by the
trilobites and ostracoids. Mollusks are represented by the classes cephalapoda,
gasteropoda, lamelli, branchiata, brachiapoda and polyzoa. Radiates are more
numerous than in the lower and middle coal measures. Protogoans are repre-
sented in the greatest abundance, some layers of limestone being almost entirely
composed of their small fusiform shells.
CRETACEOUS SYSTEM.
There being no rocks, in Iowa, of permian, triassic or Jurassic age, the
next strata in the geological series are of the cretaceous age. They are found
in the western half of the State, and do not dip, as do all the other formations
upon which they rest, to the southward and westward, but have a general dip
of their own to the north of westward, which, however, is very slight.
Although the actual exposures of cretaceous rocks are few in Iowa, there is
reason to believe that nearly all the western half of the State was originally
occupied by them ; but being very friable, they have been removed by denuda-
tion, which has taken place at two separate periods. The first period was
during its elevation from the cretaceous sea, and during the long tertiary age
that passed between the time of that elevation and the commencement of the
glacial epoch. The second period was during the glacial epoch, when the ice
produced their entire removal over considerable areas.
It is difficult to indicate the exact boundaries of these rocks ; the following
will approximate the outlines of the area :
From the northeast corner to the southwest corner of Kossuth County ;
thence to th£ southeast corner of Guthrie County; thence to the southeast
corner of Cass County ; thence to the middle of the south boundary of Mont-
gomery County ; thence to the middle of the north boundary of Pottawattamie
County ; thence to the middle of the south boundary of Woodbury County ;
130 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
thence to Sergeant's bluffs ; up the Missouri and Big Sioux Rivers to the
northwest corner of the State; eastward along the State line to the place of
beginning.
All the cretaceous rocks in Iowa are a part of the same deposits farther up
the Missouri River, and in reality form their eastern boundary.
Nishnahotany Sandstone. — This rock has the most easterly and southerly
extent of the cretaceous deposits of Iowa, reacliing the southeastern part of
Guthrie County and the soutlicrn part of Montgomery County. To the north-
ward, it passes beneath the Woodbury sandstones and shales, the latter passing
beneath the inoceramus, or chalky, beds. This sandstone is, with few excep-
tions, almost valueless for economic purposes.
The only fossils found in this formation are a few fragments of angiosper-
mous leaves.
Woodbury Sandstones and Shales. — These strata rest upon the Nishna-
hotany sandstone, and have not been observed outside of Woodbury County,
hence their name. Their principal exposure is at Sergeant's Bluffs, seven
miles below Sioux City.
This rock has no value except for purposes of common masonry.
Fossil remains are rare. Detached scales of a lepidoginoid species have
been detected, but no other vertebrate remains. Of remains of vegetation,
leaves of salix meekii and sassafras cretaceum have been occasionally found.
Inoceramus Beds. — These beds rest upon the Woodbury sandstones and
shales. They have not been observed in Iowa, except in the bluffs which
border the Big Sioux River in Woodbury and Plymouth Counties. They are
composed almost entirely of calcareous material, the upper portion of which is
extensively used for lime. No building material is to be obtained from these
beds ; and the only value they possess, except lime, are the marls, which at
some time may be useful on the soil of the adjacent region.
The only vertebrate remains found in the cretaceous rocks are the fishes.
Those in the inoceramus beds of Iowa are two species of squoloid selachians,
or cestratront, and three genera of teliosts. Molluscan remains are rare.
PEAT.
Extensive beds of peat exist in Northern Middle Iowa, which, it is esti-
mated, contain the following areas :
Counties. Acres. ^
Cerro Gordo 1,500
Worth 2,000
Winnebago 2,000
Hancock 1,500
Wright 500
KosButh 700
Dickinson 80
Several other counties contain peat beds, but the character of the peat is
inferior to that in the northern part of the State. The character of the peat
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 131
named is equal to that of Ireland. The beds are of an average depth of four
feet. It is estimated that each acre of these beds will furnish two hundred and
fifty tons of dry fuel for each foot in depth. At present, owing to the sparse-
ness of the population, this peat is not utilized ; but, owing to its great distance
from the coal fields and the absence of timber, the time is coming when their
value will be realized, and the fact demonstrated that Nature has abundantly
compensated the deficiency of other fuel.
GYPSUM.
The only deposits of the sulphates of the alkaline earths of any economic
value in Iowa are those of gypsum at and in the vicinity of Fort Dodge, in
Webster County. All others arc small and unimportant. The deposit occupies
a nearly central position in Webster County, the Des Moines River running
nearly centrally through it, along the valley sides of which the gypsum is seen
in the form of ordinary rock cliff and ledges, and also occurring abundantly in
similar positions along both sides of the valleys of the smaller streams and of
the numerous ravines coming into the river valley.
The most northerly known limit of the deposit is at a point near the mouth
of Lizard Creek, a tributary of the Des Moines River, and almost adjoining
the town of Fort Dodge. The most southerly point at which it has been
found exposed is about six miles, by way of the river, from this northerly point
before mentioned. Our knowledge of the width of the area occupied by it is
limited by the exposures seen in the valleys of the small streams and in the
ravines which come into the valley within the distance mentioned. As one goes
up these ravines and minor valleys, the gypsum becomes lost beneath the over-
lying drift. There can be no doubt that the different parts of this deposit, now
disconnected by the valleys and ravines having been cut through it, were orig-
inally connected as a continuous deposit, and there seems to be as little reason
to doubt that the gypsum still extends to considerable distance on each side of
the valley of the river beneath the drift which covers the region to a depth of
from twenty to sixty feet.
The country round about this region has the prairie surface approximating
a general level Avhich is so characteristic of the greater part of the State, and
which exists irrespective of the character or geological age of the strata beneath,
mainly because the drift is so deep and uniformly distributed that it frequently
almost alone gives character to the surface. The valley sides of the Des Moines
River, in the vicinity of Fort Dodge, are somewhat abrupt, having a depth there
from the general level of the upland of about one hundred and seventy feet,
and consequently presents somewhat bold and interesting features in the land-
scape.
As one walks up and down the creeks and ravines which come into the
valley of the Des Moines River there, he sees the gypsum exposed on
either side of them, jutting out from beneath the drift in the form of
132 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
ledges and bold quarry fronts, having almost the exact appearance of
ordinary limestone exposures, so horizontal and regular are its lines of
stratification, and so similar in color is it to some varieties of that rock. The
principal quarries now opened are on Two Mile Creek, a couple of miles below
Fort Dodge.
The reader will please bear in mind that the gypsum of this remarkable
deposit does not occur in "heaps " or " nests," as it does in most deposits of
gypsum in the States farther eastward, but that it exists here in the form of a
regularly stratified, continuous formation, as uniform in texture, color and
quality throughout the whole region, and from top to bottom of the deposit
as the granite of the Quincy quarries is. Its color is a uniform gray, result-
ing from alternating fine horizontal lines of nearly white, with similar lines
of darker shade. The gypsum of the white lines is almost entirely pure, the
darker lines containing the impurity. This is at intervals barely sufficient in
amount to cause the separation of the mass upon those lines into beds or layers,
thus facilitating the quarrying of it into desired shapes. These bedding sur-
faces have occasionally a clayey feeling to the touch, but there is nowhere any
intercalation of clay or other foreign substance in a separate form. The deposit
is known to reach a thickness of thirty feet at the quarries referred to, but
although it will probably be found to exceed this thickness at some other points,
at tlie natural exposures, it is seldom seen to be more than from ten to twenty
feet thick.
Since the drift is usually seen to rest directly upon the gypsum, with noth-
ing intervening, except at a few points where traces appear of an overlying bed
of clayey material without doubt of the same age as the gypsum, the latter
probably lost something of its thickness by mechanical erosion during the
glacial epoch; and it has, doubtless, also suffered some diminution of thickness
since then by solution in the waters which constantly percolate through the
drift from the surface. The drift of this region being somewhat clayey, partic-
ulary in its lower part, it has doubtless served in some degree as a protection
against the diminution of the gypsum by solution in consequence of its partial
imperviousness to water. If the gypsum had been covered by a deposit of sand
instead of the drift clays, it would have no doubt long since disappeared by
being dissolved in the water that would have constantly reached it from the sur-
face. Water merely resting upon it would not dissolve it away to any extent,
but it rapidly disappears under the action of running water. Where little rills
of water at the time of every rain run over the face of an unused quarry, from
the surface above it, deep grooves are thereby cut into it, giving it somewhat the
appearance of melting ice around a waterfall. The fact that gypsum is now
suffering a constant, but, of course, very slight, diminution, is apparent in the
fact the springs of the region contain more or less of it in solution in their
waters. An analysis of water from one of these springs will be found in Prof.
Emery's report.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 133
Besides the clayey beds that are sometimes seen to rest upon the gypsum,
there are occasionally others seen beneath them that are also of the same
age, and not of the age of the coal-measure strata upon which they rest.
Age of the Gypsum Deposit. — In neither the gypsum nor the associated
clays has any trace of any fossil remains been found, nor has any other indica-
tion of its geological age been observed, except that which is afforded by its
stratigraphical relations ; and the most that can be said with certainty is that it
is newer than the coal measures, and older than the drift. The indications
afforded by the stratigraphical relations of the gypsum deposit of Fort Dodge
are, however, of considerable value.
As already shown, it rests in that region directly and unconformably upon
the lower coal measures ; but going southward from there, the whole series of
coal-measure strata from the top of the subcarboniferous group to the upper
coal measures, inclusive, can be traced without break or unconformability.
The strata of the latter also may be traced in the same manner up into the
Permian rocks of Kansas; and through this long series, there is no place dr
horizon which suggests that the gypsum deposit might belong there.
Again, no Tertiary deposits are known to exist within or near the borders
of Iowa to suggest that the gypsum might be of that age ; nor are any of the
palaeozoic strata newer than the subcarboniferous unconformable upon each
other as the other gypsum is unconformable upon the strata beneath it. It
therefore seems, in a measure, conclusive, that the gypsum is of Mesozoic age,
perhaps older than the Cretaceous.
LitJiological Origin. — As little can be said with certainty concerning the
lithological origin of this deposit as can be said concerning its geological age,
for it seems to present itself in this relation, as in the former one, as an isolated
fact. None of the associated strata show any traces of a double decomposition
of pre-existing materials, such as some have supposed all deposits of gypsum to
have resulted from. No considerable quantities of oxide of iron nor any trace
of native sulphur have been found in connection with it ; nor has any salt been
found in the waters of the region. These substances are common in association
with other gypsum deposits, and are regarded by some persons as indicative of
the method of or resulting from their origin as such. Throughout the whole
region, the Fort Dodge gypsum has the exact appearance of a sedimentary
deposit. It is arranged in layers like the regular layers of limestone, and the
whole mass, from top to bottom, is traced with fine horizontal laminae of alter-
nating white and gray gypsum, parallel with the bedding surfaces of the layers,
but the whole so intimately blended as to form a solid mass. The darker lines
contain almost all the impurity there is in the gypsum, and that impurity is
evidently sedimentary in its character. Frcn these facts, and also from the
further one that no trace of fossil remains has been detected in the gypsum, it
seems not unreasonable to entertain the opinion that the gypsum of Fort Dodge
originated as a chemical precipitation in comparatively still waters which were
134 HISTORY OF THE S^ATE OF IOWA.
saturated with sulphate of lime and destitute of life ; its stratification and
impurities being deposited at the same time as clayey impurities which had been
held suspended in the same waters.
Physical Properties. — Much has already been said of the physical proper-
ties or character of this gypsum, but as it is so different in some respects from
that of other deposits, there are yet other matters worthy of mention in connec-
tion with those. According to the results of a complete and exhaustive anal-
ysis by Prof Emery, the ordinary gray gypsum contains only about eight per
cent, of impurity ; and it is possible that the average impurity for the whole
deposit will not exceed that proportion, so uniform in quality is it from to top
to bottom and from one end of the region to the other.
When it is remembered that plaster for agricultural purposes is sometimes
prepared from gypsum that contains as much as thirty per cent, of impurity, it
will be seen that ours is a very superior article for such purposes. The impu-
rities are also of such a character that they do not in any way interfere with its
value for use in the arts. Although the gypsum rock has a gray color, it
becomes quite white by grinding, and still whiter by the calcining process nec-
essary in the preparation of plaster of Paris. These tests have all been practi-
cally made in the rooms of the Geological Survey, and the quality of the plaster
of Paris still further tested by actual use and experiment. No hesitation,
therefore, is felt in stating that the Fort Dodge gypsum is of as good a quality
as any in the country, even for the finest uses.
In view of the bounteousness of the primitive fertility of our Iowa soils,
many persons forget that a time may come when Nature will refuse to respond
so generously to our demand as she does now, without an adequate return.
Such are apt to say that this vast deposit of gypsum is valueless to our com-
monwealth, except to the small extent that it may be used in the arts. This
is undoubtedly a short-sighted view of the subject, for the time is even now
rapidly passing away when a man may purchase a new farm for less money
than he can re-fertilize and restore the partially wasted primitive fertility of the
one he now occupies. There are farms even now in a large part of the older
settled portions of the State that would be greatly benefited by the proper
application of plaster, and such areas will continue to increase until it will be
difficult to estimate the value of the deposit of gypsum at Fort Dodge. It
should be remembered, also, that the inhabitants of an extent of country
adjoining our State more than three times as great as its own area will find it
more convenient to obtain their supplies from Fort Dodge than from any other
source.
For want of direct railroad communication between this region and other
parts of the State, the only use yet made of the gypsum by the inhabitants is
for the purposes of ordinary building stone. It is so compact that it is found
to be comparatively unaffected by the frost, and its ordinary situation in walls
of houses is such that it is protected from the dissolving action of water, which
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 135
can at most reach it only from occasional rains, and the effect of these is too
slight to be perceived after the lapse of several years.
One of the citizens of Fort Dodge, Hon. John F. Buncombe, built a large,
fine residence of it, in 1861, the walls of which appear as unaffected by
exposure and as beautiful as they were when first erected. It has been so long
and successfully used for building stone by the inhabitants that they now prefer
it to the limestone of good quality, which also exists in the immediate vicinity.
This preference is due to the cheapness of the gypsum, as compared with the
stone. The cheapness of the former is largely due to the facility with which it
is quarried and wrought. Several other houses have been constructed of it in
Fort Dodge, including the depot building of the Dubuque & Sioux City Rail-
road. The company have also constructed a large culvert of the same material
to span a creek near the town, limestone only being used for the lower courses,
which come in contact with the water. It is a fine arch, each stone of gypsum
being nicely hewn, and it will doubtless prove a very durable one. Many of
the sidewalks in the town are made of the slabs or flags of gypsum which occur
in some of the quarries in the form of thin layers. They are more durable
than their softness would lead one to suppose. They also possess an advantage
over stone in not becoming slippery when worn,
The method adopted in quarrying and dressing the blocks of gypsum is
peculiar, and quite unlike that adopted in similar treatment of ordinary stone.
Taking a stout auger-bit of an ordinary brace, such as is used by carpenters,
and filing the cutting parts of it into a peculiar form, the quarryman bores his
holes into the gypsum quarry for blasting, in the same manner and with as
great facility as a carpenter would bore hard wood. The pieces being loosened
by blasting, they are broken up with sledges into convenient sizes, or hewn
into the desired shapes by means of hatchets or ordinary chopping axes, or cut
by means of ordinary wood-saws. So little grit does the gypsum contain that
these tools, made for working wood, are found to be better adapted for working
the former substance than those tools are which are universally used for work-
ing stone.
MINOR DEPOSITS OF SULPHATE OF LIME.
Besides the great gypsum deposit of Fort Dodge, sulphate of lime in the
various forms of fibrous gypsum, selenite, and small, amorphous masses, has
also been discovered in various formations in different parts of the State, includ-
ing the coal -measure shales near Fort Dodge, where it exists in small quanti-
ties, quite independently of the great gypsum deposit there. The quantity of
gypsum in these minoi' deposits is always too small to be of any practical value,
and frequently minute. They usually occur in shales and shaly clays, asso-
ciated with strata that contain more or less sulphuret of iron (iron pyrites).
Gypsum has thus been detected in the coal measures, the St. Louis limestone,
the cretaceous strata, and also in the lead caves of Dubuque. In most of these
cases it is evidently the result of double decomposition of iron pyrites and car-
136 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
bonate of lime, previously existing there ; in which cases the gypsum is of course
not an original deposit as the great one at Fort Dodge is supposed to be.
The existence of these comparatively minute quantities of gypsum in the
shales of the coal measures and the subcarboniferous limestone which are exposed
within the region of and occupy a stratigraphical position beneath the great
gypsum deposits, suggests the possibility that the former may have originated as
a precipitate from percolating waters, holding gypsum in solution which they
had derived from that deposit in passing over or through it. Since, however,
the same substance is found in similar small quantities and under similar con-
ditions in regions where they could have had no possible connection with that
deposit, it is believed that none of those mentioned have necessarily originated
from it, not even those that are found in close proximity to it.
The gypsum found in the lead caves is usually in the form of efflorescent
fibers, and is always in small quantity. In the lower coal-measure shale near
Fort Dodge, a small mass was found in the form of an intercalated layer, which
had a distinct fibrous structure, the fibers being perpendicular to the plane of
the layer. The same mass had also distinct, horizontal planes of cleavage at
right angles with the perpendicular fibers. Thus, being more or less transpa-
rent, the mass combined the characters of both fibrous gypsum and selenite.
No anhydrous sulphate of lime {anhydrite) has been found in connection with
the great gypsum deposit, nor elsewhere in Iowa, so far as yet known.
SULPHATE OF STRONTIA.
{^Celestine.)
The only locality at which this interesting mineral has yet been found in
Iowa, or, so far as is known, in the great valley of the Mississippi, is at Fort
Dodge. It occurs there in very small quantity in both the shales of the lower
coal measures and in the clays that overlie the gypsum deposit, and which are
regarded as of the same age with it. The first is just below the city, near Rees'
coal bank, and occurs as a layer intercalated among the coal measure shales,
amounting in quantity to only a few hundred pounds' weight. The mineral is
fibrous and crystalline, the fibers being perpendicular to the plane of the layer.
Breaking also with more or less distinct horizontal planes of cleavage, it resem-
bles, in physical character, the layer of fibro-crystalline gypsum before men-
tioned. Its color is light blue, is transparent and shows crystaline facets upon
both the upper and under surfaces of the layer ; those of the upper surface
being smallest and most numerous. It breaks up readily into small masses
along the lines of the perpendicular fibers or columns. The layer is probably
not more than a rod in extent in any direction and about three inches in maxi-
mum thickness. Apparent lines of stratification occur in it, corresponding with
those of the shales which imbed it.
The other deposit was still smaller in amount, and occurred as a mass of
crystals imbedded in the clays that overlie the gypsum at Cummins' quarry in
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 137
the valley of Soldier Creek, upon the north side of the town. The mineral is
in this case nearly colorless, and but for the form of the separate crystals would
closely resemble masses of impure salt. The crystals are so closely aggregated
that they enclose but little impurity in the mass, but in almost all cases their
fundamental forms are obscured. This mineral has almost no real practical
value, and its occurrence, as described, is interesting only as a mineralogical
fact.
SULPHATE OP BARYTA.
{Barytes, Heavy Spar.)
This mineral has been found only in minute quantities in Iowa. It has
been detected in the coal-measure shales of Decatur, Madison and Marion
Counties, the Devonian limestone of Johnson and Bremer Counties and in the
lead caves of Dubuque. In all these cases, it is in the form of crystals or small
crystalline masses.
SULPHATE OF MAGNESIA.
[Epsomite.)
Epsomite, or native epsom salts, having been discovered near Burlington,
we have thus recognized in Iowa all the sulphates of the alkaline earths of
natural origin ; all of them, except the sulphate of lime, being in very small
quantity. Even if the sulphate of magnesia were produced in nature, in large
quantities, it is so very soluble that it can accumulate only in such positions as
afford it complete shelter from the rains or running water. The epsomite
mentioned was found beneath the overhanging cliff of Burlington limestone,
near Starr's mill, which are represented in the sketch upon another page, illus-
trating the subcarboniferous rocks. It occurs in the form of efflorescent encrus-
tations upon the surface of stones and in similar small fragile masses among the
fine debris that has fallen down beneath the overhanging cliff. The projection
of the cliff over the perpendicular face of the strata beneath amounts to near
twenty feet at the point where epsomite was found. Consequently the rains
never reach far beneath it from any quarter. The rock upon which the epsom-
ite accumulates is an impure limestone, containing also some carbonate of mag-
nesia, together with a small proportion of iron pyrites in a finely divided con-
dition. It is doubtless by double decomposition of these that the epsomite re-
sults. By experiments with this native salt in the office of the Survey, a fine
article of epsom salts was produced, but the quantity that might be annually
obtained there would amount to only a few pounds, and of course is of no prac-
tical value whatever, on account of its cheapness in the market.
CLIMATOLOGY.
No extended record of the climatology of Iowa has been made, yet much of
great value may be learned from observations made at a single point. Prof. T.
S. Parvin, of the State University, has recorded observations made from 1839
to the present time. Previous to 1860, these observations were made at Mus-.
138 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
catine. Since that date, they were made in Iowa City. The result is that the
atmospheric conditions of the climate of Iowa are in the highest degree favor-
able to health.
The highest temperature here occurs in August, while July is the hottest
month in the year by two degrees, and January the coldest by three degrees.
The mean temperature of April and October most nearly corresponds to the
mean temperature of the year, as well as their seasons of Spring and Fall,
while that of Summer and Winter is best represented in that of August and
December.
< The period of greatest heat ranges from June 22d to August 31st ; the next
mean time being July 27th. The lowest temperature extends from December
16th to February 15th, the average being January 20th — the range in each
case being two full months.
The climate of Iowa embraces the range of that of New York, Pennsyl-
vania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. The seasons are not characterized by the
frequent and sudden changes so common in the latitudes further south. The
temperature of the Winters is somewhat lower than States eastward, but of other
seasons it is higher. The atmosphere is dry and invigorating. The surface of
the State being free at all seasons of the year from stagnant water, with good
breezes at nearly all seasons, the miasmatic and pulmonary diseases are
unknown. Mortuary statistics show this to be one of the most healthful States
in the Union, being one death to every ninety-four persons. The Spring,
Summer and Fall months are delightful ; indeed, the glory of Iowa is her
Autumn, and nothing can transcend the splendor of her Indian Summer, which
lasts for weeks, and finally blends, almost imperceptibly, into Winter.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
DISCOVERY AND OCCUPATION.
Iowa, in the symbolical and expressive language of the aboriginal inhab-
itants, is said to signify " The Beautiful Land," and was applied to this
magnificent and fruitful region by its ancient owners, to express their apprecia-
tion of its superiority of climate, soil and location. Prior to 1803, the Mississippi
River was the extreme western boundary of the United States. All the great
empire lying west of the " Father of Waters," from the Gulf of Mexico on the
south to British America on the north, and westward to the Pacific Ocean, was
a Spanish province. A brief historical sketch of the discovery and occupation
of this grand empire by the Spanish and French governments will be a fitting
introduction to the history of the young and thriving State of Iowa, which,
until the commencement of the present century, was a part of the Spanish
possessions in America.
Early in the Spring of 1542, fifty years after Columbus discovered the New
World, and one hundred and thirty years before the French missionaries discov-
ered its upper waters, Ferdinand De Soto discovered the mouth of the Mississippi
River at the mouth of the Washita. After the sudden death of De Soto, in
May of the same year, his followers built a small vessel, and in July, 1543,
descended the great riv^r to the Gulf of Mexico.
In accordance with the usage of nations, under which title to the soil was
claimed by right of discovery, Spain, having conquered Florida and discovered
the Mississippi, claimed all the territory bordering on that river and the Gulf of
Mexico. But it was also held by the European nations that, while discovery
gave title, that title must be perfected by actual possession and occupation.
Although Spain claimed the territory by right of first discovery, she made no
effort to occupy it ; by no permanent settlement had she perfected and held her
title, and therefore had forfeited it when, at a later period, the Lower Mississippi
Valley was re-discovered and occupied by France.
The unparalleled labors of the zealous Frt ncli Jesuits of Canada in penetrating
the unknown region of the West, commencing in 1611, form a history of no ordi-
nary interest, but have no particular connection with the scope of the present
â– work, until in the Fall of 1665. Pierre Claude Allouez, who had entered Lake
Superior in September, and sailed along the southern coast in search of copper,
had arrived at the great village of the Chippewas at Chegoincegon. Here a
grand council of some ten or twelve of the principal Indian nations was held.
The Pottawatomies of Lake Michigan, the Sacs and Foxes of the West, the
Hurons from the North, the Illinois from the South, and the Sioux from the
land of the prairie and wild rice, were all assembled there. The Illinois told
140 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
the story of their ancient glory and about the noble river on the banks of which
they dwelt. The Sioux also told their white brother of the same great river,
and Allouez promised to the assembled tribes the protection of the French
nation against all their enemies, native or foreign.
The purpose of discovering the great river about which the Indian na-
tions had given such glowing accounts appears to have originated with Mar-
quette, in 1669. In the year previous, he and Claude Dablon had established
the Mission of St. Mary's, the oldest white settlement within the present limits
of the State of Michigan. Marquette was delayed in the execution of his great
undertaking, and spent the interval in studying the language and habits of the
Illinois Indians, among whom he expected to travel.
About this time, the French Government had determined to extend the do-
minion of France to the extreme western borders of Canada. Nicholas Perrot
was sent as the agent of the government, to propose a grand council of the
Indian nations, at St. Mary's.
When Perrot reached Green Bay, he extended the invitation far and near ;
and, escorted by Pottawatomies, repaired on a mission of peace and friend-
ship to the Miamis, who occupied the region about the present location of
Chicago.
In May, 1671, a great council of Indians gathered at the Falls of St.
Mary, from all parts of the Northwest, from the head waters of the St. Law-
rence, from the valley of the Mississippi and from the Red River of the North.
Perrot met with them, and after grave consultation, formally announced to the
assembled nations that their good French Father felt an abiding interest in their
welfare, and had placed them all under the powerful protection of the French
Government.
Marquette, during that same year, had gathered at Point St. Ignace the
remn ants of one branch of the Hurons. This station, for a long series of
years, was considered the key to the unknown West.
The time was now auspicious for the consummation of Marquette's grand
project. The successful termination of Perrot's mission, and the general friend-
liness of the native tribes, rendered the contemplated expedition much less per-
ilous. But it was not until 1673 that the intrepid and enthusiastic priest waa
finally ready to depart on his daring and perilous journey to lands never trod by
white men.
The Indians, who had gathered in large numbers to witness his departure,
were astounded at the boldness of the proposed undertaking, and tried to dis-
courage him, representing that the Indians of the Mississippi A^alley were cruel
and bloodthirsty, and would resent the intrusion of strangers upon their domain.
The great river itself, they said, was the abode of terrible monsters, who could
swallow both canoes and men.
But Marquette was not to be diverted from his purpose by these fearful re-
ports. He assured his dusky friends that he was ready to make any sacrifice,
even to lay doAvn his life for the sacred cause in which he was engaged. He
prayed with them ; and having implored the blessing of God upon his undertak-
ing, on the 18th day of May, 1673, with Joliet and five Canadian-French voy-
ageurs, or boatmen, he left the mission on his daring journey. Ascending
Green Bay and Fox River, these bold and enthusiastic pioneers of religion and
discovery proceeded until they reached a Miami and Kickapoo village, where
Marquette was delighted to find " a beautiful cross planted in the middle of the
town, ornamented with white skins, red girdles and bows and arrows, which
these good people had oSered to the Great Manitou, or God, to thank Him for
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 141
the pity He had bestowed on them during the Winter, in having given them
abundant chase."
This was the extreme point beyond which the explorations of the French
missionaries had not then extended. Here Marquette was instructed by his
Indian hosts in the secret of a root that cures the bite of the venomous rattle-
snake, drank mineral water with them and was entertained with generous hos-
pitality. He called together the principal men of the village, and informed
them that his companion, Joliet, had been sent by the French Governor of Can-
ada to discover new countries, to be added to the dominion of France ; but that
he, himself, had been sent by the Most High God, to carry the glorious religion
of the Cross ; and assured his wondering hearers that on this mission he had
no fear of death, to which he knew he would be exposed on his perilous journeys.
Obtaining the services of two Miami guides, to conduct his little band to the
Wisconsin River, he left the hospitable Indians on the 10th of June. Conduct-
ing them across the portage, their Indian guides returned to their village, and
the little party descended the Wisconsin, to the great river which had so long
been so anxiously looked for, and boldly floated down its unknown waters.
On the 25th of June, the explorers discovered indications of Indians on the
west bank of the river and landed a little above the mouth of the river now
known as Des Moines, and for the first time Europeans trod the soil of Iowa.
Leaving the Canadians to guard the canoes, Marquette and Joliet boldly fol-
lowed the trail into the interior for fourteen miles (some authorities say six), to
an Indian village situate on the banks of a river, and discovered two other vil-
lages, on the rising ground about half a league distant. Their visit, while it
created much astonishment, did not seem to be entirely unexpected, for there
was a tradition or prophecy among the Indians that white visitors were to come
to them. They were, therefore, received with great respect and hospitality, and
were cordially tendered the calumet or pipe of peace. They were informed that
this band was a part of the Illini nation and that their village was called Mon-
in-gou-ma or Moingona, which was the name of the river on which it stood.
This, from its similarity of sound, Marquette corrupted into Des Moines
(Monk's River), its present name.
Here the voyagers remained six days, learning much of the manners and
customs of their new friends. The new religion they boldly preached and the
authority of the King of France they proclaimed were received without hos-
tility or remonstrance by their savage entertainers. On their departure, they
were accompanied to their canoes by the chiefs and hundreds of warriors.
Marquette received from them the sacred calumet, the emblem of peace and
safeguard among the nations, and re-embarked for the rest of his journey.
It is needless to follow him further, as his explorations beyond his discovery
of Iowa more properly belong to the history of another State.
In 1682, La Salle descended the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico, and in
the name of the King of France, took formal possession of all the immense
region watered by the great river and its tributaries from its source to its mouth,
and named it Louisiana, in honor of his master, Louis XIV. The river he
called " Colbert," after the French Minister, and at its mouth erected a column
and a cross bearing the inscription, in the French language,
"Louis the Great, King of France and Navarre,
Reigning April 9th, 1682."
At the close of the seventeenth century, France claimed, by right of dis-
covery and occupancy, the whole valley of the Mississippi and its tributaries)
including Texas, as far as the Rio del Norte.
142 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
The province of Louisiana stretched from the Gulf of Mexico to the sources
of the Tennessee, the Kanawha, the Allegheny and the Monongahela on the
east, and the Missouri and the other great tributaries of the Father of Waters
on the west. Says Bancroft, " France had obtained, under Providence, the
guardianship of this immense district of country, not, as it proved, for her own
benefit, but rather as a trustee for the infant nation by which it was one day to
be inherited."
By the treaty of Utrecht, France ceded to England her possessions
in Hudson's Bay, Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. France stijl retained
Louisiana ; but the province had so far failed to meet the expectations of the
crown and the people that a change in the government and policy of the country
was deemed indispensable. Accordingly, in 1711, the province was placed in
the hands of a Governor General, with headquarters at Mobile. This govern-
ment was of brief duration, and in 1712 a charter was granted to Anthony
Crozat, a wealthy merchant of Paris, giving hira the entire control and mo-
nopoly of all the trade and resources of Louisiana. But this scheme also failed.
Crozat met with no success in his commercial operations ; every Spanish harbor
on the Gulf was closed against his vessels; the occupation of Louisiana was
deemed an encroachment on Spanish territory ; Spain was jealous of the am-
bition of France.
Failing in his efforts to open the ports of the district, Crozat "sought to
develop the internal resources of Louisiana, by causing trading posts to be
opened, and explorations to be made to its remotest borders. But he
actually accomplished nothing for the advancement of the colony. The only
prosperity which it ever possessed grew out of the enterprise of humble indi-
viduals, who had succeeded in instituting a little barter between themselves
.and the natives, and a petty trade with neighboring European settlements.
After a persevering effort of nearly five years, he surrendered his charter in
August, 1717."
Immediately following the surrender of his charter by Crozat, another and
more magnificent scheme was inaugurated. The national government of France
was deeply involved in debt ; the colonies were nearly bankrupt, and John Law
appeared on the scene with his famous Mississippi Company, as the Louisiana
branch of the Bank of France. The charter granted to this company gave it a
legal existence of twenty-five years, and conferred upon it more extensive powers
and privileges than had been granted to Crozat. It invested the new company
with the exclusive privilege of the entire commerce of Louisiana, and of New
France, a ad with authority to enforce their rights. The Company was author-
ized to monopolize all the trade in the country; to make treaties with the
Indians ; to declare and prosecute war ; to grant lands, erect forts, open mines
of precious metals, levy taxes, nominate civil officers, commission those of the
army, and to appoint and remove judges, to cast cannon, and build and equip
ships of war. All this was to be done with the paper currency of John Law's
Bank of France. He had succeeded in getting His Majesty the French King
to adopt and sanction his scheme of financial operations both in France and in
the colonies, and probably there never was such a huge financial bubble ever
Wown by a visionary theorist. Still, such was the condition of France that iC
was accepted as a national deliverance, and Law became the most powerful man
in France. He became a Catholic, and was appointed Comptroller General of
Finance.
Among the first operations of the Company was to send eight hundred
emigrants to Louisiana, who arrived at Dauphine Island in 1718.
HISTORY OP THE STATE OF IOWA. 143
In 1719, Philipe Francis Renault arrived in Illinois with two hundred
miners and artisans. The war between France and Spain at this time rendered
it extremely probable that the Mississippi Valley might become the theater of
Spanish hostilities against the French settlements ; to prevent this, as well as to
extend French claims, a chain of forts was begun, to keep open the connection
between the mouth and the sources of the Mississippi. Fort Orleans, high up
the Mississippi River, was erected as an outpost in 1720.
The Mississippi scheme was at the zenith of its power and glory in January,
1720, but the gigantic bubble collapsed more suddenly than it had been inflated,
and the Company was declared hopelessly bankrupt in May following. France
was impoverished by it, both private and public credit were overthrown, capi-
talists suddenly found themselves paupers, and labor was left without employ-
ment. The effect on the colony of Louisiana was disastrous.
While this was going on in Lower Louisiana, the region about the lakes was
the theater of Indian hostilities, rendering the passage from Canada to Louisiana
extremely dangerous for many years. The English had not only extended their
Indian trade into the vicinity of the French settlements, but through their
friends, the Iroquois, had gained a marked ascendancy over the Foxes, a fierce
and powerful tribe, of Iroquois descent, Avhom they incited to hostilities against
the French. The Foxes began their hostilities with the siege of Detroit in
1712, a siege which they continued for nineteen consecutive days, and although
the expedition resulted in diminishing their numbers and humbling their pride,
yet it was not until after several successive campaigns, embodying the best
military resources of New France, had been directed against them, that were
finally defeated at the great battles of Butte des Morts, and on the Wisconsin
River, and driven west in 1746.
The Company, having found that the cost of defending Louisiana exceeded
the returns from its commerce, solicited leave to surrender the Mississippi
wilderness to the home government. Accordingly, on the 10th of April, 1732,
the jurisdiction and control over the commerce reverted to the crown of France.
The Company had held possession of Louisiana fourteen years. In 1735, Bien-
ville returned to assume command for the King.
A glance at a few of the old French settlements will show the progress made
in portions of Louisiana during the early part of the eighteenth century. As
early as 1705, traders and hunters had penetrated the fertile regions of the
Wabash, and from this region, at that early date, fifteen thousand hides and
skins had been collected and sent to Mobile for the European market.
In the year 1716, the French population on the Wabash kept up a lucrative
commerce with Mobile by means of traders and voyageurs. The Ohio River
was comparatively unknown.
In 1746, agriculture on the Wabash had attained to greater prosperity than
in any of the French settlements besides, and in that year six hundred barrels
of flour were manufactured and shipped to New Orleans, together with consider-
able quantities of hides, peltry, tallow and beeswax.
In the Illinois country, also, considerable settlements had been made, so that,
in 1730, they embraced one hundred and forty French families, about six
hundred " converted Indians," and many traders and voyageurs.
In 1753, the first actual conflict arose between Louisiana and the Atlantic
colonies. From the earliest advent of the Jesuit fathers, up to the period of
which we speak, the great ambition of the French had been, not alone to preserve
their possessions in the West, but by every possible means to prevent the
slightest attempt of the English, east of the mountains, to extend their settle-
144 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
ments toward the Mississippi. France was resolved on retaining possession of
the great territory which her missionaries had discovered and revealed to the
world. French commandants had avowed their purpose of seizing every
Englishman within the Ohio Valley.
The colonies of Pennsylvania, New York and Virginia were most affected by
the encroachments of France in the extension of her dominion, and particularly
in the great scheme of uniting Canada with Louisiana. To carry out this
purpose, the French had taken possession of a tract of country claimed by Vir-
ginia, and had commenced a line of forts extending from the lakes to the Ohio
River. Virginia was not only alive to her own interests, but attentive to the
vast importance of an immediate and effectual resistance on the part of all
the English colonies to the actual and contemplated encroachments of the
French.
In 1753, Governor Dinwiddle, of Virginia, sent George Washington, then a
young man just twenty-one, to demand- of the French commandant " a reason
for invading British dominions while a solid peace subsisted." Washington met
the French commandant, Gardeur de St. Pierre, on the head waters of the
Alleghany, and having communicated to him the object of his journey, received
the insolent answer that the French would not discuss the matter of right, but
would make prisoners of every Englishman found trading on the Ohio and its
waters. The country, he said, belonged to the French, by virtue of the dis-
coveries of La Salle, and they would not withdraw from it.
In January, 1754, Washington returned to Virginia, and made his report to
the Governor and Council. Forces were at once raised, and Washington, as
Lieutenant Colonel, was dispatched at the head of a hundred and fifty men, to
the forks of the Ohio, with orders to "finish the fort already begun there by the
Ohio Company, and to make prisoners, kill or destroy all who interrupted the
English settlements."
On his march through the forests of Western Pennsylvania, Washington,
through the aid of friendly Indians, discovered the French concealed among the
rocks, and as they ran to seize their arms, ordered his men to fire upon them, at
the same time, with his own musket, setting the example. An action lasting
about a quarter of an hour ensued ; ten of the Frenchmen were killed, among
them Jumonville, the commander of the party, and twenty-one were made pris-
oners. The dead were scalped by the Indians, and the chief, bearing a toma-
hawk and a scalp, visited all the tribes of the Miamis, urging them to join the
Six Nations and the English against the French. The French, however, were
soon re-enforced, and Col. Washington was compelled to return to Fort
Necessity. Here, on the 3d day of July, De Villiers invested the fort with
600 French troops and 100 Indians. On the 4th, Washington accepted
terms of capitulation, and the English garrison withdrew from the valley of
the Ohio.
This attack of Washington upon Jumonville aroused the indignation of
France, and war was formally declared in May, 1756, and the " French and
Indian War" devastated the colonies for several years. Montreal, Detroit
and all Canada were surrendered to the English, and on the 10th of February,
1763, by the treaty of Paris — which had been signed, though not formally ratified
by the respective governments, on the 3dof November, 1762 — France relinquished
to Great Britian all that portion of the province of Louisiana lying on the east
side of the Mississippi, except the island and town of New Orleans. On the
same day that the treaty of Paris was signed, France, by a secret treaty, ceded
to Spain all her possessions on the west side of the Mississippi, including the
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 145
whole country to the head waters of the Great River, and west to the Rocky
Mountains, and the jurisdiction of France in America, which had lasted nearly
a century, was ended.
At the close of th6 Revolutionary war, by the treaty of peace between Great
Britain and the United States, the English Government ceded to the latter
all the territory on the east side of the Mississippi River and north of the thirty-
first parallel of north latitude. At the same time, Great Britain ceded to
Spain all the Floridas, comprising all the territory east of the Mississippi and
south of the southern limits of the United States.
At this time, therefore, the present State of Iowa was a part of the Spanish
possessions in North America, as all the territory west of the Mississippi River
was under the dominion of Spain. That government also possessed all the
territory of the Floridas east of the great river and south of the thirty-first
parallel of north latitude. The Mississippi, therefore, so essential to the pros-
perity of the western portion of the United States, for the last three hundred
miles of its course flowed wholly within the Spanish dominions, and that govern-
ment claimed the exclusive right to use and control it below the southern boun-
dary of the United States.
The free navigation of the Mississippi was a very important question during
all the time that Louisiana remained a dependency of the Spanish Crown, and
as the final settlement intimately affected the status of the then future State
of Iowa, it will be interesting to trace its progress.
The people of the United States occupied and exercised jurisdiction over
the entire eastern valley of the Mississippi, embracing all the country drained
by its eastern tributaries ; they had a natural right, according to the accepted in-
ternational law, to follow these rivers to the sea, and to the use of the Missis-
sippi River accordingly, as the great natural channel of commerce. The river
was not only necessary but absolutely indispensable to the prosperity and growth
of the western settlements then rapidly rising into commercial and political
importance. They were situated in the heart of the great valley, and with
wonderfully expansive energies and accumulating resources, it was very evident
that no power on earth could deprive them of the free use of the river below
them, only while their numbers were insufficient to enable them to maintain
their right by force. Inevitably, therefore, immediately after the ratification of
the treaty of 1783, the Western people began to demand the free navigation
of the Mississippi — not as a favor, but as a right. In 1786, both banks of
the river, below the mouth of the Ohio, were occupied by Spain, and military
posts on the east bank enforced her power to exact heavy duties on all im-
ports by way of the river for the Ohio region. Every boat descending the
river was forced to land and submit to the arbitrary revenue exactions of the
Spanish authorities. Under the administration of Governor Miro, these rigor-
ous exactions were somewhat relaxed from 1787 to 1790 ; but Spain held it as
her right to make them. Taking advantage of the claim of the American people,
that the Mississippi should be opened to them, in 1791, the Spanish Govern-
ment concocted a scheme for the dismembership of the Union. The plan was
to induce the Western people to separate from the Eastern States by liberal land
grants and extraordinary commercial privileges.
Spanish emissaries, among the people of Ohio and Kentucky, informed them
that the Spanish Government would grant them favorable commercial privileges,
provided they would secede from the Federal Government eaiSt of the mountains.
The Spanish Minister to the United States plainly declared to his confidential
correspondent that, unless the Western people would declare their independence
146 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA,
and refuse to remain in the Union, Spain was determined never to grant the
free navigation of the Mississippi,
By the treaty of Madrid, October 20, 1795, however, Spain formally stip-
ulated that the Mississippi River, from its source to the Gulf, for its entire width,
should be free to American trade and commerce, and that the people of the
United States should be permitted, for three years, to use the port of New
Orleans as a port of deposit for their merchandise and produce, duty free.
In November, 1801, the United States Government received, through Rufus
King, its Minister at the Court of St. James, a copy of the treaty between Spain
and France, signed at Madrid March 21, 1801, by which the cession of Loui-
siana to France, made the previous Autumn, was confirmed.
The change offered a favorable opportunity to secure the just rights of the
United States, in relation to the free navigation of the Mississippi, and ended
the attempt to dismember the Union by an effort to secure an independent
government west of the Alleghany Mountains. On the 7th of January, 1803,
the American House of Representatives adopted a resolution declaring their
" unalterable determination to maintain the boundaries and the rights of navi-
gation and commerce through the River Mississippi, as established by existing
treaties."
In the same month. President Jefferson nominated and the Senate confirmed
Robert R. Livingston and James Monroe as Envoys Plenipotentiary to the
Court of France, and Charles Pinckney and James Monroe to the Court of
Spain, with plenary powers to negotiate treaties to effect the object enunciated
by the popular branch of the National Legislature. These envoys were in-
structed to secure, if possible, the cession of Florida and New Orleans, but it
does not appear that Mr. Jefferson and his Cabinet had any idea of purchasing
that part of Louisiana lying on the west side of the Mississippi. In fact, on
the 2d of March following, the instructions were sent to our Ministers, contain-
ing a plan which expressly left to France "all her territory on the west side of
the Mississippi." Had these instructions been followed, it might have been that
there would not have been any State of Iowa or any other member of the glori-
ous Union of States west of the " Father of Waters."
In obedience to his instructions, however, Mr. Livingston broached this
plan to M. Talleyrand, Napoleon's Prime Minister, when that courtly diplo-
matist quietly suggested to the American Minister that France might be willing
to cede the whole French domain in North America to the United States, and
asked how much the Federal Government would be willing to give for it. Liv-
ingston intimated that twenty millions of francs might be a fair price. Talley-
rand thought that not enough, but asked the Americans to "think of it." A
few days later. Napoleon, in an interview with Mr. Livingston, in effect informed
the American Envoy that he had secured Louisiana in a contract with Spain
for the purpose of turning it over to the United States for a mere nominal sum.
He had been compelled to provide for the safety of that province by the treaty,
and he was " anxious to give the United States a magnificent bargain for a
mere trifle." The price proposed was one hundred and twenty-five million
francs. This was subsequently modified to fifteen million dollars, and on this
basis a treaty was negotiated, and was signed on the 30th day of April, 1803.
This treaty was ratified by the Federal Government, and by act of Congress,
approved October 31, 1803, the President of the United States was authorized
to take possession of the territory and provide for it a temporary government.
Accordingly, on the 20th day of December foll-^wing. on behalf of the Presi-
dent, Gov. Clairborne and Gen. Wilkinson took possession of the Louisiana
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 147
purchase, and raised the American flag over the newly acquired domain, at New
Orleans. Spain, although it had by treaty ceded the province to France in
1801, still held quasi possession, and at first objected to the transfer, but with-
drew her opposition early in 1804.
By this treaty, thus successfully consummated, and the peaceable withdrawal
of Spain, the then infant nation of the New World extended its dominion west
of the Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean, and north from the Gulf of Mexico to
British America.
If the original design of Jefferson's administration had been accomplished,
the United States would have acquired only that portion of the French territory
lying east of the Mississippi River, and while the American people would thus
have acquired the free navigation of that great river, all of the vast and fertile
empire on the west, so rich in its agricultural and inexhaustible mineral
resources, would have remained under the dominion of a foreign power. To
Napoleon's desire to sell the whole of his North American possessions, and Liv-
ingston's act transcending his instructions, Avhich was acquiesced in after it was
done, does Iowa owe her position as a part of the United States by the
Louisiana purchase.
By authority of an act of Congress, approved March 26, 1804, the newly
acquired territory was, on the 1st day of October following, divided : that part
lying south of the 33d parallel of north latitude was called the Territory of
Orleans, and all north of that parallel the District of Louisiana, which was placed
under the authority of the officers of Indiana Territory, until July 4, 1805, when
it was organized, with territorial government of its own, and so remained until
1812, when the Territory of Orleans became the State of Louisiana, and the
name of the Territory of Louisiana was changed to Missouri. On the 4th of
July, 1814, that part of Missouri Territory comprising the present State of
Arkansas, and the country to the westward, was organized into the Arkansas
Territory.
On the 2d of March, 1821, the State of Missouri, being a part of the Terri-
tory of that name, was admitted to the Union. June 28, 1834, the territory
west of the Mississippi River and north of Missouri was made a part of the
Territory of Michigan ; but two years later, on the 4th of July, 1836, Wiscon-
sin Territory was erected, embracing within its limits the present States of
Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota.
By act of Congress, approved June 12, 1838, the
TERRITORY OF IOWA
was erected, comprising, in addition to the present State, much the larger part
of Minnesota, and extending north to the boundary of the British Possessions.
THE ORIGINAL OWNERS.
Having traced the early history of the great empire lymg west of the Mis-
sissippi, of which the State of Iowa constitutes a part, from the earliest dis-
covery to the organization of the Territory of Iowa, it becomes necessary to
give some history of
THE INDIANS OF IOWA.
According to the policy of the European nations, possession perfected title
to any territory. We have seen that the country west of the Mississippi was first
discovered by the Spaniards, but afterward, was visited and occupied by the
French. It was ceded by France to Spain, and by Spain back to France again,
K
148 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
and then was purchased and occupied by the United States. During all that
time, it does not appear to have entered into the heads or hearts of the high
contracting parties that the country they bought, sold and gave away was in
the possession of a race of men who, although savage, owned the vast domain
before Columbus first crossed the Atlantic. Having purchased the territory,
the United States found it still in the possession of its original owners, who had
never been dispossessed ; and it became necessary to purchase again what had
already been bought before, or forcibly eject the occupants; therefore, the his-
tory of the Indian nations who occupied Iowa prior to and during its early set-
tlement by 'the Avhites, becomes an important chapter in the history of the State,
that cannot be omitted.
For more than one hundred years after Marquette and Joliet trod the virgin
soil of Iowa, not a single settlement had been made or attempted ; not even a
trading post had been established. The whole country remained in the undis-
puted possession of the native tribes, who roamed at will over her beautiful and
fertile prairies, hunted in her woods, fished in her streams, and often poured out
their life-blood in obstinately contested contests for supremacy. That this State
so aptly styled ''The Beautiful Land," had been the theater of numerous,
fierce and bloody struggles between rival nations, for possession of the favored
region, long before its settlement by civilized man, there is no room for doubt.
In these savage wars, the weaker party, whether aggressive or defensive, was
either exterminated or driven from their ancient hunting grounds.
In 1673, when Marquette discovered Iowa, the Illini were a very powerful
people, occupying a large portion of the State ; but when the country was again
visited by the whites, not a remnant of that once powerful tribe remained on
the west side of the Mississippi, and Iowa was principally in the possession of
the Sacs and Foxes, a warlike tribe which, originally two distinct nations,
residing in New York and on the waters of the St. Lawrence, had gradually
fought their way westward, and united, probably, after the Foxes had been driven
out of the Fox River country, in 1846, and crossed the Mississippi. The death
of Pontiac, a famous Sac chieftain, was made the pretext for war against the
Illini, and a fierce and bloody struggle ensued, which continued until the Illinois
were nearly destroyed and their hunting grounds possessed by their victorious
foes. The lowas also occupied a portion of the State for a time, in common
with the Sacs, but they, too, were nearly destroyed by the Sacs and Foxes, and,
in "The Beautiful Land," these natives met their equally warlike foes, the
Northern Sioux, with whom they maintained a constant warfare for the posses-
sion of the country for many years.
When the United States came in possession of the great valley of the Mis-
sissippi, by the Louisiana purchase, the Sacs and Foxes and lowas possessed
the entire territory now comprising the State of Iowa. The Sacs and Foxes,
also, occupied the most of the State of Illinois.
The Sacs had four principal villages, where most of them resided, viz. :
Their largest and most important town — if an Indian village may be called
such — and from which emanated most of the obstacles and difficulties encoun-
tered by the Government in the extinguishment of Indian titles to land in this
region, was on Rock River, near Rock Island ; another was on the east bank of
the Mississippi, near the mouth of Henderson River ; the third was at the
head of the Des Moines Rapids, near the present site of Montrose, and the fourth
was near the mouth of the Upper Iowa.
The Foxes had three principal villages, viz. : One on the west side of the
Mississippi, six miles above the rapids of Rock River ; another about twelve
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 149
miles from the river, in the rear of the Dubuque lead mines, and the third on
Turkey River.
The lowas, at one time identified with the Sacs, of Rock River, had with-
drawn from them and become a separate tribe. Their principal village was on
the Des Moines River, in Van Buren County, on the site where lowaville now
stands. Here the last great battle between the Sacs and Foxes and the lowas
was fought, in which Black Hawk, then a young man, commanded one division
of the attacking forces. The following account of the battle has been given :
<' Contrary to long established custom of Indian attack, this battle was commenced in the day
time, the attending circumstances justifying this departure from the well settled usages of Indian
warfare. The battle field was a level river bottom, about four miles in length, and two miles
wide near the middle, narrowing to a point at either end. The main area of this bottom rises
perhaps twenty feet above the river, leaving a narrow strip of low bottom along the shore, covered
with trees that belted the prairie on the river side with a thick forest, and the immediate bank of
the river was fringed with a dense growth of willows. Near the lower end of this prairie, near
the river bank, was situated the Iowa village. About two miles above it and near the middle of
the prairie is a mound, covered at the time with a tuft of small trees and underbrush growing on
its summit. In the rear of this little elevation or mound lay a belt of wet prairie, covered, at that
time, with a dense growth of rank, coarse grass. Bordering this wet prairie on the north, the
country rises abruptly into elevated broken river bluffs, covered with a heavy forest for many
miles in extent, and in places thickly clustered with undergrowth, affording a convenient shelter
for the stealthy approach of the foe.
" Through this forest the Sac and Fox war party made their way in the night and secreted
themselves in the tall grass spoken of above, intending to remain in ambush during the day and
make such observations as this near proximity to their intended victim might afford, to aid them
in their contemplated attack on the town during the following night. From this situation their
spies could take a full survey of the village, and watch every movement of the inhabitants, by
which means they were soon convinced that the lowas had no suspicion of their presence.
' ' At the foot of the mound above mentioned, the lowas had their race course, where they diverted
themselves with the excitement of horse racing, and schooled their young warriors in cavalry
evolutions. In these 'exercises mock battles were fought, and the Indian tactics of attack and
defense carefully inculcated, by which meansa skill in horsemanship was acquired rarely excelled.
Unfortunately for them this day was selected for their equestrian sports, and wholly uncon-
scious of the proximity of their foes, the warriors repaired to the race ground, leaving most of
their arms in the village and their old men and women and children unprotected.
" Pash-a-po-po, who was chief in command of the Sacs and Foxes, perceived at once the
advantage this state of things afforded for a complete surprise of his now doomed victims, and
ordered Black Hawk to file off with his young warriors through the tall grass and gain the cover
of the timber along the river bank, and with the utmost speed reach the village and commence
the battle, while he remained with his division in the ambush to make a simultaneous assault on
the unarmed men whose attention was engrossed with the excitement of the races. The plan
was skillfully laid and most dexterously executed. Black Hawk with his forces reached the
village undiscovered, and made a furious onslaught upon the defenseless inhabitants, by firing
â– one general volley into their midst, and completing the slaughter with the tomahawk and scalp-
ing knife, aided by the devouring flames with which they enveloped the village as soon as the
fire brand could be spread from lodge to lodge.
" On the instant ot the report of fire arms at the village, the forces under Pash-a-po-po
leaped from their couchant position in the grass and sprang tiger-like upon the astonished and
unarmed lowas in the midst of their racing sports. The first impulse of the latter naturally led
them to make the utmost speed toward their arms in the village, and protect if possible their
wives and children from the attack of their merciless assailants. The distance from the place of
attack on the prairie was two miles, and a great number fell in their flight by the bullets and
tomahawks of their enemies, who pressed them closely with a running fire the whole way, and
the survivors only reac bed their town in time to witness the horrors of its destruction. Their
whole village was in flames, and the dearest objects of their lives lay in slaughtered heaps
amidst the devouring element, and the agonizing groans of the dying, mingled with the exulting
shouts of the victorious foe, filled their hearts with maddening despair. Their wives and children
who had been spared the general massacre were prisoners, and together with their arms were in
the hands of the victors ; and all that could now be done was to draw off their shattered and
defenseless forces, and save as many lives as possible by a retreat across the Des Moines River,
which they effected in the best possible manner, and took a position among the Soap Creek
Hills."
The Sacs and Foxes, prior to the settlement of their village on Rock River,
had a fierce conflict with the Winnebagoes, subdued them and took possession
150 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF lOAVA.
&f their lands. Their village on Rock River, at one time, contained upward of
sixty lodges, and was among the largest Indian villages on the continent. In
1825, the Secretary of War estimated the entire number of the Sacs a^d Foxes
at 4,600 souls. Their village was situated in the immediate vicinity of the
upper rapids of the Mississippi, where the beautiful and flourishing towns of
Rock Island and Davenport are now situated. The beautiful scenery of the
island, the extensive prairies, dotted over with groves ; the picturesque bluffs
along the river banks, the rich and fertile soil, producing large crops of corn,
squash and other vegetables, with little labor; the abundance of wild fruit,
game, fish, and almost everything calculated to make it a delightful spot for an
Indian village, which was found there, had made this place a favorite home of
the Sacs, and secured for it the strong attachment and veneration of the whole
nation.
North of the hunting grounds of the Sacs and Foxes, were those of the
Sioux, a fierce and warlike nation, who often disputed possession with their
rivals in savage and bloody warfare. The possessions of these tribes were
mostly located in Minnesota, but extended over a portion of Northern and
Western Iowa to the Missouri River. Their descent from the north upon the
hunting grounds of Iowa frequently brought them into collision with the Sacs
and Foxes ; and after many a conflict and bloody struggle, a boundary line was
established between them by the Government of the United States, in a treaty
held at Prairie du Chien, in 1825. But this, instead of settling the difficulties,
caused them to quarrel all the more, in consequence of alleged trespasses upon
each other's side of the line. These contests were kept up and became so unre-
lenting that, in 1830, Government bought of the respective tribes of the Sacs
and Foxes, and the Sioux, a strip of land twenty miles in width, on both sides
of the line, and thus throwing them forty miles apart by creating between them
a "neutral ground," commanded them to cease their hostilities. Both the
Sacs and Foxes and the Sioux, however, were allowed to fish and hunt on this
ground unmolested, provided they did not interfere with each other on United
States territory. The Sacs and Foxes and the Sioux were deadly enemies, and
neither let an opportunity to punish the other pass unimproved.
In April, 1852, a fight occurred between the Musquaka band of Sacs and
Foxes and a band of Sioux, about six miles above Algona, in Kossuth County,
on the west side of the Des Moines River. The Sacs and Foxes were under
the leadership of Ko-ko-wah, a subordinate chief, and had gone up from their
home in Tama County, by way of Clear Lake, to what was then the "neutral
ground." At Clear Lake, Ko-ko-wah was informed that a party of Sioux were
encamped on the west side of the East Fork of the Des Moines, and he deter-
mined to attack them. With sixty of his warriors, he started and arrived at a
point on the east side of the river, about a mile above the Sioux encampment,
in the night, and concealed themselves in a grove, where they were able to dis-
cover the position and strength of their hereditary foes. The next morning,
after many of the Sioux braves had left their camp on hunting tours, the vin-
dictive Sacs and Foxes crossed the river and suddenly attacked the camp. The
conflict was desperate for a short time, Ijut the advantage was with the assail-
ants, and the Sioux were routed. Sixteen of them, including some of their
women and children, were killed, and a boy 14 years old was captured. One
of the Musquakas was shot in the breast by a squaw as they were rushing into
the Sioux's camp. He started to run away, when the same brave squaw shot
him through the body, at a distance of twenty rods, and he fell dead. Three
other Sac braves were killed. But few of the Sioux escaped. The victorious
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 151
party hurriedly buried their own dead, leaving the dead Sioux above ground,
and made their way home, with their captive, with all possible expedition.
pike's expedition.
Very soon after the acquisition of Louisiana, the United States Government
adopted measures for the exploration of the new territory, having in view the
conciliation of the numerous tribes of Indians by whom it was possessad, and,
also, the selection of proper sites for the establishment of military posts and
trading stations. The Army of the West, Gen. James Wilkinson commanding,
had its headquarters at St. Louis. From this post, Captains Lewis and Clark,
with a sufficient force, were detailed to explore the unknown sources of the
Missouri, and Lieut. Zebulon M. Pike to ascend to the head waters of the Mis-
sissippi. Lieut. Pike, with one Sergeant, two Corporals and seventeen privates,
left the military camp, near St. Louis, in a keel-boat, with four months' rations,
on the 9th day of August, 1805. On the 20th of the same month, the expe-
dition arrived within the present limits of Iowa, at the foot of the Des Moines
Rapids, where Pike met William Ewing, who had just been appointed Indian
Agent at this point, a French interpreter and four chiefs and fifteen Sac and
Fox warriors.
At the head of the Rapids, where Montrose is now situated, Pike held a
council with the Indians, in which he addressed them substantially as follows :
"Your great Father, the President of the United States, wished to be more
intimately acquainted with the situation and wants of the diiferent nations of
red people in our newly acquired territory of Louisiana, and has ordered the
General to send a number of his warriors in different directions to take them by
the hand and make such inquiries as might afford the satisfaction required."
At the close of the council he presented the red men with some knives, whisky
and tobacco.
Pursuing his way up the river, he arrived, on the 23d of August, at what ia
supposed, from his description, to be the site of the present city of Burlington,
which he selected as the location of a military post. He describes the place as
being " on a hill, about forty miles above the River de Moyne Rapids, on the
west side of the river, in latitude about 41° 21' north. The channel of the
river runs on that shore ; the hill in front is about sixty feet perpendicular ;
nearly level on top ; four hundred yards in the rear is a small prairie fit for
gardening, and immediately under the hill is a limestone spring, sufficient for
the consumption of a whole regiment." In addition to this description, which
corresponds to Burlington, the spot is laid down on his map at a bend in the
river, a short distance below the mouth of the Henderson, which pours its waters
into the Mississippi from Illinois. The fort was built at Fort Madison, but from
the distance, latitude, description and map furnished by Pike, it could not have
been the place selected by him, while all the circumstances corroborate the
opinion that the place he selected was the spot where Burlington is now located,
called by the early voyagers on the Mississippi, "Flint Hills."
On the 24th, with one of his men, he went on shore on a hunting expedition,
and following a stream which they supposed to be a part of the Mississippi, they
were led away from their course. Owing to the intense heat and tall grass, his
two favorite dogs, which he had taken with him, became exhausted and he left
them on the prairie, supposing that they would follow him as soon as they
should get rested, and went on to overtake his boat. Reaching the river, he
waited some time for his canine friends, but they did not come, and as he deemed
it inexpedient to detain the boat longer, two of his men volunteered to go in pur-
152 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
suit of them, and he continued on his way up the river, expecting that the two
men would soon overtake him. They lost their way, however, and for six days
were without food, except a few morsels gathered from the stream, and might
have perished, had they not accidentally met a trader from St. Louis, who in-
duced two Indians to take them up the river, and they overtook the boat at
Dubuque.
At Dubuque, Pike was cordially received by Julien Dubuque, a Frenchman,
who held a mining claim under a grant from Spain. Dubuque had an old field
piece and fired a salute in honor of the advent of the first Americans who had
visited that part of the Territory. Dubuque, however, was not disposed to pub-
lish the wealth of his mines, and the young and evidently inquisitive officer
obtained but little information from him.
After leaving this place, Pike pursued his way up the river, but as he passed
beyond the limits of the present State of Iowa, a detailed history of his explo-
rations on the upper waters of the Mississippi more properly belongs to the his-
tory of another State.
It is sufficient to say that on the site of Fort Snelling, Minnesota, at the
mouth of the Minnesota River, Pike held a council with the Sioux, September
23, and obtained from them a grant of one hundred thousand acres of land.
On the 8th of January, 1806, Pike arrived at a trading post belonging to the
Northwest Company, on Lake De Sable, in latitude 47°. At this time the
then powerful Northwest Company carried on their immense operations from
Hudson's Bay to the St. Lawrence ; up that river on both sides, along the great
lakes to the head of Lake Superior, thence to the sources of the Red River of
the north and west, to the Rocky Mountains, embracing within the scope of
their operations the entire Territory of Iowa. After successfully accomplishing
his mission, and performing a valuable service to Iowa and the whole Northwest,
Pike returned to St. Louis, arriving there on the 30th of April, 1806.
INDIAN WARS.
The Territory of Iowa, although it had been purchased by the United States,
and was ostensibly in the possession of the Government, was still occupied by
the Indians, who claimed title to the soil by right of ownership and possession.
Before it could be open to settlement by the whites, it was indispensable that
the Indian title should be extinguished and the original owners removed. The
accomplishment of this purpose required the expenditure of large sums of
money and blood, and for a long series of years the frontier was disturbed by
Indian wars, terminated repeatedly by treaty, only to be renewed by some act
of oppression on the part of the whites or some violation of treaty stipulation.
As previously shown, at the time when the United States assumed the con-
trol of the country by virtue of the Louisiana purchase, nearly the whole State
was in possession of the Sacs and Foxes, a powerful and warlike nation, who
were not disposed to submit without a struggle to what they considered the
encroachments of the pale faces.
Among the most noted chiefs, and one whose restlessness and hatred of the
Americans occasioned more trouble to the Government than any other of his
tribe, was Black Hawk, who was born at the Sac village, on Rock River, in
1767. He was simply the chief of his own band of Sac warriors, but by his
energy and ambition he became the leading spirit of the united nation of Sacs
and Foxes, and one of the prominent figures in the history of the country from
1804 until his death. In early manhood he attained some distinction as a
fighting chief, having led campaigns against the Osages, and other neighboring
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 153
tribes. About the beginning of the present century he began to appear prom-
inent in affairs on the Mississippi. Some historians have added to the statement
that " it does not appear that he was ever a great general, or possessed any of
the qualifications of a successful leader," If this was so, his life was a marvel.
How any man who had none of the qualifications of a leader became so prom-
inent as such, as he did, indicates either that he had some ability, or that his
cotemporaries, both Indian and Anglo-Saxon, had less than he. He is said
to have been the " victim of a narrow prejudice and bitter ill-will against the
Americans," but the impartial historian must admit that if he was the enemy
of theAmericans, it was certainly not without some reason.
It will be remembered that Spain did not give up possession of the country
to France on its cession to the latter power, in 1801, but retained possession of
it, and, by the authority of France, transferred it to the United States, in 1804.
Black Hawk and his band were in St. Louis at the time, and were invited to be
present and witness the ceremonies of the transfer, but he refused the invitation,
and it is but just to say that this refusal was caused probably more from
regret that the Indians were to be transferred from the jurisdiction of the
Spanish authorities than from any special hatred toward the Americans. In
his life he says : "I found many sad and gloomy faces because the United
States were about to take possession of the town and country. Soon after the
Americans came, I took my band and went to take leave of our Spanish father.
The Americans came to see him also. Seeing them approach, we passed out
of one door as they entered another, and immediately started in our canoes for
our village, on Rock River, not liking the change any more than our friends
appeared to at St. Louis. On arriving at our village, we gave the news that
strange people had arrived at St. Louis, and that we should never see our
Spanish father again. The information made all our people sorry."
On the 3d day of November, 1804, a treaty was concluded between William
Henry Harrison, then Governor of Indiana Territory, on behalf of the United
States, and five chiefs of the Sac and Fox nation, by which the latter, in con-
sideration of tAvo thousand two hundred and thirty-four dollars' worth of goods
then delivered, and a yearly annuity of one thousand dollars to be paid in
goods at just cost, ceded to the United States all that land on the east side of
the Mississppi, extending from a point opposite the Jefferson, in Missouri, to
the Wisconsin River, embracing an area of over fifty-one millions of acres.
To this treaty Black Hawk always objected and always refused to consider
it binding upon his people. He asserted that the chiefs or braves who made it
had no authority to relinquish the title of the nation to any of the lands they
held or occupied ; and, moreover, that they had been sent to St. Louis on quits'
a different errand, namely, to get one of their people released, who had been
imprisoned at St. Louis for killing a white man.
The year following this treaty (1805), Lieutenant Zebulon M. Pike came up
the river for the purpose of holding friendly councils with the Indians and select-
ing sites for forts within the territory recently acquired from France by the
United States. Lieutenant Pike seems to have been the first American whom
Black Hawk ever met or had a personal interview with ; and he was very much
prepossessed in Pike's favor. He gives the following account of his visit to
Rock Island :
" A boat came up the river with a young American chief and a small party
of soldiers. We heard of them soon after they passed Salt River. Some of our
young braves watched them every day, to see what sort of people he had on
board. The boat at length arrived at Rock River, and the young chief came on
154 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
shore with his interpreter, and made a speech and gave us some presents. We
in turn presented them with meat and such other provisions as we had to spare.
We were well pleased Avith the young chief. He gave us good advice, and said
our American father Avould treat us well."
The events which soon followed Pike's expedition were the erection of Fort
Edwards, at what is now Warsaw, Illinois, and Fort Madison, on the site of the
present town of that name, the latter being the first fort erected in Iowa. These
movements occasioned great uneasiness among the Indians. When work was
commenced on Fort Edwards, a delegation from their nation, headed by some of
their chiefs, went down to see what the Americans were doing, and had an in-
terview with the commander ; after which they returned home apparently satis-
fied. In like manner, when Fort Madison was being erected, they sent down
another delegation from a council of the nation held at Rock River. Accord-
ing to Black Hawk's account, the American chief told them that he was build-
ing a house for a trader who was coming to sell them goods cheap, and that the
soldiers were coming to keep him company — a statement which Black Hawk
says they distrusted at the time, believing that the fort was an encroachment
upon their rights, and designed to aid in getting their lands away from them.
It has been held by good American authorities, that the erection of Fort
Madison at the point where it was located zvas a violation of the treaty of 1804.
By the eleventh article of that treaty, the United States had a right to build a
fort near the mouth of the Wisconsin River ; by article six they had bound
themselves "that if any citizen of the United States or any other white persons
should form a settlement upon their lands, such intruders should forthwith be
removed." Probably the authorities of the United States did not regard the
establishment of military posts as coming properly within the meaning of the
term "settlement," as used in the treaty. At all events, they erected Fort
Madison Avitliin the territory reserved to the Indians, who became very indig-
nant. Not long after the fort was built, a party led by Black Hawk attempted
its destruction. They sent spies to watch the movements of the garrison, who
ascertained that the soldiers were in the habit of marching out of the fort every
morning and evening for parade, and the plan of the party was to conceal them-
selves near the fort, and attack and surprise them when they were outside. On
the morning of the proposed day of attack, five soldiers came out and were fired
upon by the Indians, two of them being killed. The Indians were too hasty in
their movement, for the regular drill had not yet commenced. However, they
kept up the attack for several days, attempting the old Fox strategy of setting
fire to the fort with blazing arrows; but finding their eiforts unavailing, they
soon gave up and returned to Rock River.
When war was declared between the United States and Great Britain, m
1812, Black Hawk and his band allied themselves with the British, partly
because he was dazzled by their specious promises, and more probably because
they had been deceived by the Americans. Black Hawk himself declared that
they were "forced into the war by being deceived." He narrates the circum-
stances as follows : " Several of the chiefs and head men of the Sacs and
Foxes were called upon to go to Washington to see their Great Father. On
their return, they related what had been said and done. They said the Great
Father wished them, in the event of a war taking place with England, not to
interfere on either side, but to remain neutral. He did not want our help, but
wished us to hunt and support our families, and live in peace. He said that
British traders would not be permitted to come on the Mississippi to furnish us
with goods, but that we should be supplied with an American trader. Our
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 155
chiefs then told him that the British traders always gave them credit in the
Fall for guns, powder and goods, to enable us to hunt and clothe our families.
He repeated that the traders at Fort Madison would have plenty of goods ;
that we should go there in the Fall and he would supply us on credit, as the
British traders had done."
Black Hawk seems to have accepted of this proposition, and he and his
people were very much pleased. Acting in good faith, they fitted out for their
Winter's hunt, and went to Fort Madison in high spirits to receive from the
trader their outfit of supplies. But, after waiting some time, they were told by
the trader that he would not trust them. It was in vain that they pleaded the
promise of their great father at Washington. The trader was inexora.ble ; and,
disappointed and crestfallen, they turned sadly toward their own village. ''Few
of us," says Black Hawk, "slept that night; all was gloom and discontent. In
the morning, a canoe was seen ascending the river ; it soon arrived, bearing an
express, who brought intelligence that a British trader had landed at Rock
Island with two boats loaded with goods, and requested ua to come up imme-
diately, because he had good news for us, and a variety of presents. The
express presented us Avith tobacco, pipes and wampum. The news ran through
our camp like fire on a prairie. Our lodges were soon taken down, and all
started for Rock Island. Here ended all hopes of our remaining at peace,
having been forced into the war by being deceived."
He joined the British, who flattered him, styled him " Gen. Black Hawk,"
decked him with medals, excited his jealousies against the Americans, and
armed his band ; but he met with defeat and disappointment, and soon aban-
doned the service and came home.
With all his skill and courage. Black Hawk was unable to lead all the Sacs
and Foxes into hostilities to the United States. A portion of them, at the head
of whom was Keokuk ("the Watchful Fox"), were disposed to abide by the
treaty of 1804, and to cultivate friendly relations with the American people.
Therefore, when Black Hawk and his band joined the fortunes of Great
Britain, the rest of the nation remained neutral, and, for protection, organized,
with Keokuk for their chief. This divided the nation into the " War and the
Peace party."
Black Hawk says he was informed, after he had gone to the war, that the
nation, which had been reduced to so small a body of fighting men, were unable
to defend themselves in case the Americans should attack them, and having all
the old men and women and children belonging to the warriors who had joined
the British on their hands to provide for, a council was held, and it was agreed
that Quash-qua-me (the Lance) and other chiefs, together with the old men,
women and children, and such others as chose to accompany them, should go to
St. Louis and place themselves under the American chief stationed there.
They accordingly went down, and were received as the "friendly band" of the
Sacs and Foxes, and were provided for and sent up the Missouri River. On
Black Hawk's return from the British army, he says Keokuk was introduced
to him as the war chief of the braves then in the village. He inquired how he
had become chief, and was informed that their spies had seen a large armed
force going toward Peoria, and fears were entertained of an attack upon the
village ; whereupon a council was held, which concluded to leave the village
and cross over to the west side of the Mississippi. Keokuk had been standing
at the door of the lod^e where the council was held, not beino; allowed to enter
on account of never having killed an enemy, where he remained until Wa-co-me
came out. Keokuk asked permission to speak in the council, which Wa-co-me
156 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
obtained for him. Keokuk then addressed the chiefs ; he remonstrated against
the desertion of their village, their own homes and the graves of their fathers,
and offered to defend the village. The council consented that he should be
their war chief. He marshaled his braves, sent out spies, and advanced on the
trail leading to Peoria, but returned without seeing the enemy. The Americans
did not disturb the village, and all were satisfied with the appointment of
Keokuk.
Keokuk, like Black Hawk, was a descendant of the Sac branch of the
nation, and was born on Rock River, in 1780. He was of a pacific disposition,
but possessed the elements of true courage, and could fight, when occasion
required, with a cool judgment and heroic energy. In his first battle, he en-
countered and killed a Sioux, which placed him in the rank of warriors, and he
was honored with a public feast by his tribe in commemoration of the event.
K.eokuk has been described as an orator, entitled to rank with the most
gifted of his race. In person, he was tall and of pbrtly bearing ; in his public
speeches, he displayed a commanding attitude and graceful gestures ; he spoke
rapidly, but his enunciation was clear, distinct and forcible ; he culled his fig-
ures from the stores of nature and based his arguments on skillful logic. Un-
fortunately for the reputation of Keokuk, as an orator among white people, he
was never able to obtain an interpreter who could claim even a slight acquaint-
ance with philosophy. With one exception only, his interpreters were unac-
quainted with the elements of their mother-tongue. Of this serious hindrance
to his fame, Keokuk was well aware, and retained Frank Labershure, who had
received a rudimental education in the French and English languages, until the
latter broke down by dissipation and died. But during the meridian of his
career among the white people, he was compelled to submit his speeches for
translation to uneducated men, whose range of thought fell below the flights of
a gifted mind, and the fine imagery drawn from nature was beyond their power
of reproduction. He had sufiicient knowledge of the English language to make
him sensible of this bad rendering of his thoughts, and often a feeling of morti-
fication at the bungling efforts was depicted on his countenance while speaking.
The proper place to form a correct estimate of his ability as an orator was in
the Indian council, where he addressed himself exclusively to those who under-
stood his language, and witness the electrical effect of his eloquence upon his
audience.
Keokuk seems to have possessed a more sober judgment, and to have had a
more intelligent view of the great strength and resources of the United States,
than his noted and restless cotemporary. Black Hawk. He knew from the first
that the reckless war which Black Hawk and his band had determined to carry on
could result in nothing but defeat and disaster, and used every argument against
it. The large number of warriors whom he had dissuaded from following Black
Hawk became, however, greatly excited with the war spirit after Stillman's
defeat, and but for the signal tact displayed by Keokuk on that occasion, would
have forced him to submit to their wishes in joining the rest of the warriors in
the field. A war-dance was held, and Keokuk took part in it, seeming to be
moved with the current of the rising storm. When the dance was over, he
called the council to prepare for war. He made a speech, in which he admitted
the„justice of their complaints against the Americans. To seek redress was a
noble aspiration of their nature. The blood of their brethren had been shed by
the white man, and the spirits of their braves, slain in battle, called loudly for
vengeance. " I am your chief," he said, " and it is my duty to lead you to bat-
tle, if, after fully considering the matter, you are determined to go. But before
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 157
you decide on taking this important step, it is wise to inquire into the chances of
success." He then portrayed to them the great power of the United States,
against whom they would have to contend, that their chance of success was
utterly hopeless. " But," said he, " if you do determine to go upon the war-
path, I will agree to lead you, on one condition, viz.: that before we go, Ave will
kill all our old men and our wives and children, to save them from a lingering
death of starvation, and that every one of us determine to leave our homes on
the other side of the Mississippi."
This was a strong but truthful picture of the prospect before them, and W£U3
presented in such a forcible light as to cool their ardor, and cause them to aban-
don the rash undertaking.
But during the war of 1832, it is now considered certain that small bands of
Indians, from the west side of the Mississippi, made incursions into the white
settlements, in the lead mining region, and committed some murders and dep-
redations.
When peace was declared between the United States and England, Black
Hawk was required to make peace with the former, and entered into a treaty
at Portage des Sioux, September 14, 1815, but did not " touch the goose-quill
to it until May 13, 1816, when he smoked the pipe of peace with the great
white chief," at St. Louis. This treaty was a renewal of the treaty of 1804,
but Black Hawk declared he had been deceived ; that he did not know that by
signing the treaty he was giving away his village. This weighed upon his mind,
already soured by previous disappointment and the irresistible encroachments of
the whites ; and when, a, few years later, he and his people were driven from
their possessions by the military, he determined to return to the home of his
fathers.
It is also to be remarked that, in 1816, by treaty with various tribes, the
United States relinquished to the Indians all the lands lying north of a line
drawn from the southernmost point of Lake Michigan west to the Mississippi,
except a reservation five leagues square, on the Mississippi River, supposed then
to be sufficient to include all the mineral lands on and adjacent to Fever River,
and one league square at the mouth of the Wisconsin River.
THE BLACK HAWK WAR.
The immediate cause of the Indian outbreak in 1830 was the occupation of
Black Hawk's village, on the Rock River, by the whites, during the absence of
tbe chief and his braves on a hunting expedition, on the west side of the
Mississippi. When they returned, they found their wigwams occupied by white
families, and their own women and children were shelterless on the banks of
the river. The Indians were indignant, and determined to repossess their village
at all hazards, and early in the Spring of 1831 recrossed the Mississippi and
menacingly took possession of their own cornfields and cabins. It may be well
to remark here that it was expressly stipulated in the treaty of 1804, to which
they attributed all their troubles, that the Indians should not be obliged to
leave their lands until they were sold by the United States, and it does not
appear that they occupied any lands other than those owned by the Government.
If this was true, the Indians had good cause for indignation and complaint.
But the whites, driven out in turn by the returning Indians, became so clamorous
against what they termed the encroachments of the natives, that Gov. Reynolds, of
Illinois, ordered Gen Gaines to Rock Island with a military force to drive the
Indians again from their homes to the west side of the Mississippi. Black Hawk
says he did not intend to be provoked into war by anything less than the blood of
158 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
some of his own people ; in other words, tliat there Avouldbe no war unless it should
be commenced by the pale faces. But it was said and probably thought by the mili-
tary commanders along the frontier that the Indians intended to unite in a general
war against the whites, from Rock River to the Mexican borders. But it does not
appear that the hardy frontiersmen themselves had any fears, for their experi-
ence had been that, when well treated, their Indian neighbors were not danger-
ous. Black Hawk and his band had done no more than to attempt to repossess the
the old homes of which they had been deprived in their absence. No blood
had been shed. Black Hawk and his chiefs sent a flag of truce, and a new
treaty was made, by which Black Hawk and his band agreed to remain forever
on the Iowa side and never recross the river without the permission of the
President or the Governor of Illinois. Whether the Indians clearly understood
the terms of this treaty is uncertain. As was usual, the Indian traders had
dictated terms on their behalf, and they had received a large amount of pro-
visions, etc., from the Government, but it may well be doubted whether the
Indians comprehended that they could never revisit the graves of their fathers
without violating their treaty. They undoubtedly thought that they had agreed
never to recross the Mississippi with hostile intent. However this may be, on
the 6th day of April, 1832, Black Hawk and his entire band, with their women
and children, again recrossed the Mississippi in plain view of the garrison of
Fort Armstrong, and went up Rock River. Although this act was construed
into an act of hostility by the military authorities, who declared that Black
Hawk intended to recover his village, or the site where it stood, by force ; but
it does not appear that he made any such attempt, nor did his apearance
create any special alarm among the settlers. They knew that the Indians never
went on the war path encumbered with the old men, their women and their
children.
The Gfalenian, printed in Galena, of May 2, 1832, says that Black Hawk
was invited by the Prophet and had taken possession of a tract about forty
miles up Rock River ; but that he did not remain there long, but commenced
his march up Rock River. Capt. W. B. Green, who served in Capt. Stephen-
son's company of mounted rangers, says that " Black Hawk and hvs band
crossed the river with no hostile intent, but that his band had had bad luck in
hunting during the previous Winter, were actually in a starving condition, and
had come over to spend the Summer with a friendly tribe on the head waters of
the Rock and Illinois Rivers, by invitation from their chief. Other old set-
tlers, who all agree that Black Hawk had no idea of fighting, say that he came
back to the west side expecting to negotiate another treaty, and get a new
supply of provisions. The most reasonable explanation of this movement, which
resulted so disastrously to Black Hawk and his starving people, is that, during
the Fall and Winter of 1831-2, his people became deeply indebted to their
favorite trader at Fort Armstrong (Rock Island). They had not been fortunate
in hunting, and he was likely to lose heavily, as an Indian debt was outlawed
in one year. If, therefore, the Indians could be induced to come over, and the
fear's of the military could be sufficiently aroused to pursue them, another treaty
could be negotiated, and from the payments from the Government the shrewd
trader could get his pay. Just a week after Black Hawk crossed the river, on
the 13th of April, 1832, George Davenport wrote to Gen. Atkinson : " I am
informed that the British band of Sac Indians are determined to make war on
the frontier settlements. * * * From every information that I have
received, I am of the opinion that the intention of the British band of Sac
Indians is to commit depredations on the inhabitants of the frontier." And
HISTORr OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 159^
yet, from the 6th day of April until after Stillman's men commenced war by
firing on a flag of truce from Black Hawk, no murders nor depredations were
committed by the British band of Sac Indians.
It is not the purpose of this sketch to detail the incidents of the Black
Hawk war of 1832, as it pertains rather to the history of the State of Illinois,
It is sufficient to say that, after the disgraceful affair at Stillman's Bun, Black
Hawk, concluding that the whites, refusing to treat with him, were determined
to exterminate his people, determined to return to the Iowa side of the Missis-
sippi. He could not return by the way he came, for the army was behind him,
an army, too, that would sternly refuse to recognize the white flag of peace.
His only course was to make his way northward and reach the Mississippi, if
possible, before the troops could overtake him, and this he did ; but, before he
could get his women and children across the Wisconsin, he was overtaken, and a
battle ensued. Here, again, he sued for peace, and, through his trusty Lieu-
tenant, "the Prophet," the whites were plainly informed that the starving
Indians did not wish to fight, but would return to the west side of the Missis-
sippi, peaceably, if they could be permitted to do so. No attention was paid to
this second effort to negotiate peace, and, as soon as supplies could be obtained,
the pursuit Avas resumed, the flying Indians were overtaken again eight miles
before they reached the mouth of the Bad Axe, and the slaughter (it should not
be dignified by the name of battle) commenced. Here, overcome by starvation
and the victorious whites, his band was scattered, on the 2d day of August,
1832. Black Hawk escaped, but was brought into camp at Prairie du Chien
by three Winnebagoes. He was confined in Jefferson Barracks until the
Spring of 1833, when he was sent to Washington, arriving there April 22. On
the 26th of April, they were taken to Fortress Monroe, where they remained
till the 4th of June, 1833, when orders were given for them to be liberated and
returned to their own country. By order of the President, he was brought
back to Iowa through the principal Eastern cities. Crowds flocked to see him
all along his route, and he was very much flattered by the attentions he
received. He lived among his people on the Iowa River till that reservation
was sold, in 1836, when, with the rest of the Sacs and Foxes, he removed to
the Des Moines Reservation, where he remained till his death, which occurred
on the 3d of October, 1838.
INDIAN PURCHASES, RESERVES AND TREATIES.
At the close of the Black Hawk War, in 1832, a treaty was made at a
council held on the west bank of the Mississippi, where now stands the thriving
city of Davenport, on grounds now occupied by the Chicago, Rock Island &
Pacific Railroad Company, on the 21st day of September, 1832. At this
council, the United States were represented by Gen. Wmfield Scott and Gov.
Reynolds, of Illinois. Keokuk, Pash-a-pa-ho and some thirty other chiefs and
\varriors of the Sac and Fox nation were present. By this treaty, the Sacs and
Foxes ceded to the United States a strip of land on the eastern border of Iowa
fifcy miles wide, from the northern boundary of Missouri to the mouth of the
Upper Iowa River, containing about six million acres. The western line of the
purchase was parallel with the Mississippi. In consideration of this cession,
the United States Government stipulated to pay annually to the confederated
tribes, for thirty consecutive years, twenty thousand dollars in specie, and to
pay the debts of the Indians at Rock Island, which had been accumulating for
160 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
seventeen years and amounted to fifty thousand dollars, due to Davenport &
Farnham, Indian traders. The Government also generously donated to the
Sac and Fox women and children whose husbands and fathers had fallen in the
Black Hawk war, thirty-five beef cattle, twelve bushels of salt, thirty barrels of
pork, fifty barrels of flour and six thousand bushels of corn.
This territory is known as the " Black Hawk Purchase." Although it was
not the first portion of Iowa ceded to the United States by the Sacs and Foxes,
it was the first opened to actual settlement by the tide of emigration that flowed
across the Mississippi as soon as the Indian title was extinguished. The treaty
was ratified February 13, 1833, and took effect on the 1st of June following,
when the Indians quietly removed from the ceded territory, and this fertile and
beautiful region was opened to white settlers.
By the terms of the treaty, out of the Black Hawk Purchase was reserved for
the Sacs and Foxes 400 square miles of land situated on the Iowa River, and in-
Icuding within its limits Keokuk's village, on the right bank of that river. This
tract was known as " Keokuk's Reserve, ' and was occupied by the Indians until
1836, when, by a treaty made in September between them and Gov. Dodge, of
Wisconsin Territory, it was ceded to the United States. The council was held
on the banks of the Mississippi, above Davenport, and was the largest assem-
blage of the kind ever held by the Sacs and Foxes to treat for the sale of lands.
About one thousand of their chiefs and braves were present, and Keokuk was
their leading spirit and principal speaker on the occasion. By the terms of the
treaty, the Sacs and Foxes were removed to another reservation on the Des
Moines River, where an agency was established for them at what is now the
town of Agency City.
Besides the Keokuk Reserve, the Government gave out of the Black Hawk
Purchase to Antoine Le Claire, interpreter, in fee simple, one section of land
opposite Rock Island, and another at the head of the first rapids above the
island, on the Iowa side. This was the first land title granted by the United
States to an individual in Iowa.
Soon after the removal of the Sacs and Foxes to their new reservation
on the Des Moines River, Gen. Joseph M. Street was transferred from the
agency of the Winnebagoes, at Prairie du Chien, to establish an agency
among them, A farm was selected, on which the necessary buildings were
erected, including a comfortable farm house for the agent and his family, at
the expense of the Indian Fund. A salaried agent Avas employed to superin-
tend the farm and dispose of the crops. Two mills were erected, one on Soap
Creek and the other on Sugar Creek. The latter was soon swept away by a
flood, but the former remained and did good service for many years. Connected
with the agency were Joseph Smart and John Goodell, interpreters. The
latter was interpreter for Hard Fish's band. Three of the Indian chiefs. Keo-
kuk, Wapello and Appanoose, had each a large field improved, the two former
on the right bank of the Des Moines, back from the river, in what is now
" Keokuk's Prairie," and the latter on the present site of the city of Ottumwa.
Among the traders connected with the agency were the Messrs. Ewing, from
Ohio, and Phelps & Co., from Illinois, and also Mr. J. P. Eddy, who estab-
lished his post at what is now the site of Eddyville.
The Indians at this agency became idle and listless in the absence of their
natural and wonted excitements, and many of them plunged into dissipation.
Keokuk himself became dissipated in the latter years of his life, and it has
been reported that he died of delirium tremens after his removal with his
tribe to Kansas.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 161
In May, 1843, most of the Indians were removed up the Des Moines River,
above the temporary line of Red Rock, having ceded the remnant of their
lands in Iowa to the United States on the 21st of September, 1837, and on the
11th of October, 1842. By the terms of the latter treaty, they held possession
of the "New Purchase" till the Autumn of 1845, when the most of them
were removed to their reservation in Kansas, the balance being removed in the
Spring of 1846.
1. Treaty with the Sioux — Made July 19, 1815 ; ratified December 16, 1815. This treaty-
was made at Portage des Sioux, between the Sioux of Minnesota and Upper Iowa and the United
States, by William Clark and Ninian Edwards, Commissioners, and was merely a treaty o^ peace
and friendship on the part of those Indians toward the United States at the close of the war of
1812.
2. Treaty ivith the Sacs. — A similar treaty of peace was made at Portage des Sioux, between
the United States and the Sacs, by AVilliam Clark, Ninian Edwards and Auguste Choteau, on the
loth of September, 1815, and ratified at the same date as the above. In this, the treaty of 1804
was re-aflSrmed, and the Sacs here represented promised for themselves and their bauds to keep
entirely separate from the Sacs of Rock River, who, under Black Hawk, had joined the British
in the war just then closed.
3. Treaty with the Fuzes. — A separate treaty of peace was made with the Foxes at Portage
des Sioux, by the same Commissioners, on the 14th of September, 1815, and ratified the same as
the above, wherein the Foxes re-affirmed the treaty of St. Louis, of November 3, 1804, and
agreed to deliver up all their prisoners to the officer in command at Fort Clark, now Peoria,
Illinois.
4. Treaty with the lowas. — A treaty of peace and mutual good will was made between the
United States and the Iowa tribe of Indians, at Portage des Sioux, by the same Commissioners
as above, on the 16th of September, 1815, at the close of the war with Great Britain, and ratified
at the same date as the others.
5. Treaty with the Sacs of Rock River — Made at St. Louis on the 13th of May, 1816, between
the United States and the Sacs of Rock River, by the Commissioners, William Clark, Ninian
Edwards and Auguste Choteau, and ratified December 30, 1816. In this treaty, that of 1804
was re-established and confirmed by twenty-two chiefs and head men of the Sacs of Rock River,
and Black Hawk himself attached to it his signature, or, as he said, " touched the goose quill."
6. Treaty of 182A — On the 4th of August, 1824, a treaty was made between the United
States and the Sacs and Foxes, in the city of Washington, by William Clark, Commissioner,
wherein the Sac and Fox nation relinquished their title to all lands in Missouri and that portion
of the southeast corner of Iowa known as the " Half-Breed Tract" was set oif and reserved for
the use of the half-breeds of the Sacs and Foxes, they holding title in the same manner as In-
dians. Ratified January 18, 1825.
7. Treaty of August 19, 1S25. — At this date a treaty was made by William Clark and Lewis
Cass, at Prairie du Chien, between the United States and the Chippewas, Sacs and Foxes, Me-
nomonees, Winnebagoes and a portion of the Ottawas and Pottawatomies. In this treaty, in
order to make peace between the contending tribes as to the limits of their respective hunting
grounds in Iowa, it was agreed that the United States Government should run a boundary line
between the Sioux, on the north, and the Sacs and Foxes, on the south, as follows :
Commencing at the mouth of the Upper Iowa River, on the west bank of the Mississippi,
and ascending said Iowa River to its west fork ; thence up the fork to its source ; thence cross-
ing the fork of Red Cedar River in a direct line to the second or upper fork of the Des Moines
River ; thence in a direct line to the lower fork of the Calumet River, and down that river to its
junction with the Missouri River.
8. Treaty of 1S30. — On the 15th of July, 1830, the confederate tribes of the Sacs and Foxes-
ceded to the United States a strip of country lying south of the above line, twenty miles in width,
and extending along the line aforesaid from the Mississippi to the Des Moines River. The Sioux
also, whose possessions were north of the line, ceded to the Government, in the same treaty, a
like strip on the north side of the boundary. Thus the United States, at the ratification of ihv\
treaty, February 24, 1831, came into possession of a portion of Iowa forty miles wide, extend
ing along the Clark and Cass line of 1825, from the Mississippi to the Des Moines River. Thi?
territory was known as the " Neutral Ground," and the tribes on either side of the line were
allowed to fish and hunt on it unmolested till it was made a Winnebago reservation, and th*
Winnebagoes were removed to it in 1841.
9. Treaty with the Sacs and Foxes and other Tribes. — At the same time of the above treaty re-
specting the " Neutral Ground" (July 15, 1830), the Sacs and Foxes, Western Sioux, Omahas,
lowas and Missouris ceded to the United States a portion of the western slope of Iowa, the boun-
daries of which were defined as follows : Beginning at the upper fork of the Des Moines River,
and passing the sources of the Little Sioux and Floyd Rivers, to the fork of the first creek that
falls into the Big Sioux, or Calumet, on the east side ; thence down said creek and the Calumet
162 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
River to the Missouri River ; thence down said Missouri River to the Missouri State line above
the Kansas ; tlience along said line to the northwest corner of said State ; thence to the high lands
between the waters falling into the Missouri and Des Moines, passing to said high lands along
the dividing ridge between the forks of the Grand River ; thence along said high lands or ridge
separating the waters of the Missouri from those of the Des Moines, to a point opposite the source
of the Boyer River, and thence in a direct line to the upper fork of the Des Moines, the place of
beginning.
It was understood that the lands ceded and relinquished by this treaty were to be assigned
and allotted, under the direction of the President of the United States, to the tribes then living
thereon, or to such other tribes as the President might locate thereon for hunting and other pur-
poses. In consideration of three tracts of land ceded in this treaty, the United States agreed to
pay to the Sacs three thousand dollars ; to the Foxes, three thousand dollars ; to the Sioux,
two thousand dollars; to the Yankton and Santie bands of Sioux, three thousand dollars; to the
Omahas, two thousand five hundred dollars ; and to the Ottoes and Missouris, two thousand five
hundred dollars — to be paid annually for ten successive years. In addition to these annuities,
the Government agreed to furnish some of the tribes with blacksmiths and agricultural imple-
ments to the amount of two hundred dollars, at the expense of the United States, and to set apart
three thousand dollars annually for the education of the children of these tribes. It does not
appear that any fort was erected in this territory prior to the erection of Fort Atkinson on the
Neutral Ground, in 1840-41.
This treaty was made by William Clark, Superintendent of Indian afifairs, and Col. Willoughby
Morgan, of the United States First Infantry, and came into effect by proclamation, February
24, 1831.
10. Treaty with the Winnebagoes. — Made at Fort Armstrong, Rock Island, September 15, 1832,
by Gen. Winfield Scott and Hon. John Reynolds, Governor of Illinois. In this treaty the Win-
nebagoes ceded to the United States all their land lying on the east side of the Mississippi, and
in part consideration therefor the United States granted to the Winnebagoes, to be held as other
Indian lands are held, that portion of Iowa known as the Neutral Gi'ound. The exchange of the
two tracts of country was to take place on or before the 1st day of June, 1833. In addition to
the Neutral Ground, it was stipulated that the United States should give the Winnebagoes, begin-
ning in September, 1833, and continuing for twenty-seven successive years, ten thousand dollars
in specie, and establish a school among them, with a farm and garden, and provide other facili-
ties for the education of their children, not to exceed in cost three thousand dollars a year, and
to continue the same for twenty-seven successive years. Six agriculturists, twelve yoke of oxen
and plows and other farming tools were to be supplied by the Government.
11. Treaty of 1S33 with the Sacs and Foxes. — Already mentioned as the Black Hawk purchase.
12. Treaty of 1S36, with the Sacs and Foxes, ceding Keokuk's Reserve to the United States;
for which the Government stipulated to pay thirty thousand dollars, and an annuity of ten thou-
sand dollars for ten successive years, together with other sums and debts of the Indians to
various parties.
13. Treaty of 1837.— On the 21st of October, 1837, a treaty was made at the city of Wash-
ington, between Carey A. Harris, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, and the confederate tribes of
Sacs and Foxes, ratified February 21, 1838, wherein another slice of the soil of Iowa was obtained,
described in the treaty as follows: "A tract of country containing 1,250,000 acres, lying west
and adjoining the tract conveyed by them to the United States in the treaty of September 21,
1832. It is understood that the points of termination for the present cession shall be the north-
ern and southern points of said tract as fixed by the survey made under the authority of the
United States, and that a line shall be drawn between them so as to intersect a line extended
westwardly from the angle of said tract nearly opposite to Rock Island, as laid down in the above
survey, so far as may be necessary to include the number of acres hereby ceded, which last
mentioned line, it is estimated, will be about twenty-five miles."
This piece of land was twenty-five miles wide in the middle, and ran off to a point at both
ends, lying directly back of the Black Hawk Purchase, and of the same length.
14. Treaty of Relinquishment. — At the same date as the above treaty, in the city of Washing-
ton, Carey A. Harris, Commissioner, the Sacs and Foxes ceded to the United States all their
right and interest in tlie country lying south of the boundary line between the Sacs and Foxes
and Sioux, as described in the treaty of August 19, 1825, and between the Mississippi and Mis-
souri Rivers, the United States paying for the same one hundred and sixty thousand dollars.
The Indians also gave up all claims and interests under the treaties previously made with them,
for the satisfaction of which no appropriations had been made.
15. Treaty of 18//.2. — The last treaty was made with the Sacs and Foxes October 11, 1842;
ratified March 23, 1843. It was made at the Sac and Fox agency (Agency City), by John
Chambers, Commissioner on behalf of the United States. In this treaty the Sac and Fox Indians
" ceded to the United States ail their lands west of the Mississippi to which they had any claim
or title." By the terms of this treaty they were to be removed from the country at the expira-
tion of three years, and all who remained after that were to move at their own expense. Part
of them were removed to Kausas in the Fall of 1845, aod the rest the Spring following.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 163
SPANISH GRANTS.
While the territory now embraced in the State of Iowa was under Spanish
rule as a part of its province of Louisiana, certain claims to and grants of land
were made by the Spanish authorities, with which, in addition to the extinguishment
of Indian titles, the United States had to deal. It is proper that these should
be briefly reviewed.
Dubuque. — On the 22d day of September, 1788, Julien Dubuque, a French-
man, from Prairie du Chien, obtained from the Foxes a cession or lease of lands
on the Mississippi River for mining purposes, on the site of the present city of
Dubuque. Lead had been discovered here eight years before, in 1780, by the
wife of Peosta Fox, a warrior, and Dubuque's claim embraced nearly all the lead
bearing lands in that vicinity. He immediately took possession of his claim and
commenced mining, at the same time making a settlement. The place became
known as the "Spanish Miners," or, more commonly, "Dubuque's Lead
Mines."
In 1796, Dubuque filed a petition with Baron de Carondelet, the Spanish
Governor of Louisiana, asking that the tract ceded to him by the Indians might
be granted to him by patent from the Spanish Government. In this petition,
Dubuque rather indefinitely set forth the boundaries of this claim as " about
seven leagues along the Mississippi River, and three leagues in width from the
river," intending to include, as is supposed, the river front between the Little
Maquoketa and the Tete des Mertz Rivers, embracing more than twenty thou-
sand acres. Carondelet granted the prayer of the petition, and the grant was
subsequently confirmed by the Board of Land Commissioners of Louisiana.
In October, 1804, Dubuque transferred the larger part of his claim to
Auguste Choteau, of St. Louis, and on the 17th of May, 1805, he and Choteau
jointly filed their claims with the Board of Commissioners. On the 20th of
September, 1806, the Board decided in their favor, pronouncing the claim to be
a regular Spanish grant, made and completed prior to the 1st day of October,
1800, only one member, J. B. C. Lucas, dissenting.
Dubuque died March 24, 1810. The Indians, understanding that the claim
of Dubuque under their former act of cession was only a permit to occupy the
tract and work the mines during his life, and that at his death they reverted to
them, took possession and continued mining operations, and were sustained by
the military authority of the United States, notwithstanding the decision of the
Commissioners. When the Black Hawk purchase was consummated, the Du-
buque claim thus held by the Indians was absorbed by the United States, as the
Sacs and Foxes made no reservation of it in the treaty of 1832.
The heirs of Choteau, however, were not disposed to relinquish their claim
without a struggle. Late in 1832, they employed an agent to look after their
interests, and authorized him to lease the right to dig lead on the lands. The
miners who commenced work under this agent were compelled by the military to
abandon their operations, and one of the claimants went to Galena to institute
legal proceedings, but found no court of competent jurisdiction, although he did
bring an action for the recovery of a quantity of lead dug at Dubuque, for the
purpose of testing the title. Being unable to identify the lead, however, he was
non-suited.
By act of Congress, approved July 2, 1836, the town of Dubuque was sur-
veyed and platted. After lets had been sold and occupied by the purchasers,
Henry Choteau brought an action of ejectment against . Patrick Malony, who
164 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
held land in Dubuque under a patent from the United States, for the recovery
of seven undivided eightli parts of the Dubuque claim, as purchased by Auguste
Choteau in 1804. The case was tried in the District Court of the United States
for the District of Iowa, and was decided adversely to the plaintiff. The case was
carried to the Supreme Court of the United States on a writ of error, when it
was heard at the December term, 1853, and the decision of the lower court was
affirmed, the court holding that the permit from Carondolet was merely a lease
or permit to work the mines ; that Dubuque asked, and the Governor of Louisiana
granted, nothing more than the " peaceable possession " of certain lands obtained
from the Indians ; that Carondelet had no legal authority to make snch a grant
as claimed, and that, even if he had, this was but an " inchoate and imperfect
title."
Giard. — In 1795, the Lieutenant Governor of Upper Louisiana granted to
Basil Giard five thousand eight hundred and sixty acres of land, in what is now
Clayton County, known as the "Giard Tract.'' He occupied the land during
the tim^e that Iowa passed from Spain to France, and from France to the United
States, in consideration of which the Federal Government granted a patent of
the same to Giard in his own right. His heirs sold the whole tract to James H.
Lockwood and Thomas P. Burnett, of Prairie du Chien, for three hundred dollars.
Honori. — March 30, 1799, Zenon Trudeau, Acting Lieutenant Governor of
Upper Louisiana, granted to Louis Honori a tract of land on the site of the
present town of Montrose, as follows: " It is permitted to Mr. Louis (Fresson)
Henori, or Louis Honore Fesson, to establish himself at the head of the rapids
of the River Des Moines, and his establishment once formed, notice of it shall be
given to the Governor General, in order to obtain for him a commission of a space
sufficient to give value to such establishment, and at the same time to render it
useful to the commerce of the peltries of this country, to watch the Indians and
keep them in the fidelity which they owe to His Majesty."
Honori took immediate possession of his claim, which he retained until 1805.
While trading with the natives, he became indebted to Joseph Robedoux, who
obtained an execution on which the property was sold May 13, 1803, and was
purchased by the creditor. In these proceedings the property was described as
being " about six leagues above the River Des Moines." Robedoux died soon
after he purchased the proprerty. Auguste Choteau, his executor, disposed of
the Honori tract to Thomas F. Reddeck, in April, 1805, up to which time
Honori continued to occupy it. The grant, as made by the Spanish government,
was a league square, but only one mile square was confirmed by the Uuited
States. After the half-breeds sold their lands, in which the Honori grant was
included, various claimants resorted to litigation in attempts to invalidate the
title of the Reddeck heirs, but it was finally confirmed by a decision of the
Supreme Court of the United States in 1839, and is the oldest legal title to any
land in the State of Iowa.
THE HALF-BREED TRACT.
Before any permanent settlement had been made in the Territory of Iowa,
white adventurers, trappers and traders, many of whom were scattered along
the Mississippi and its tributaries, as agents and employes of the American Fur
Company, intermarried with the females of the Sac and Fox Indians, producing
a race of half-breeds, whose number was never definitely ascertained. There
were some respectable and excellent people among them, children of men of
some refinement and education. For instance : Dr. Muir, a gentleman educated
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 165
at Edinburgh, Scotland, a surgeon in the United States Army, stationed at a
military post located on the present site of Warsaw, married an Indian woman,
and reared his family of three daughters in the city of Keokuk. Other exam-
ples might be cited, but they are probably exceptions to the general rule, and
the race is now nearly or quite extinct in Iowa.
A treaty was made at Washington, August 4, 1824, between the Sacs and
Foxes and the United States, by which that portion of Lee County was reserved
to the half-breeds of those tribes, and which was afterward known as " The
Half-Breed Tract." This reservation is the triangular piece of land, containing
about 119,000 acres, lying between the Mississippi andDes Moines Rivers. It is
bounded on the north by the prolongation of the northern line of Missouri.
This line was intended to be a straight one, running due east, which w^ould have
caused it to strike the Mississippi River at or below Montrose ; but the surveyor who
run it took no notice of the change in the variation of the needle as he proceeded
eastward, and, in consequence, the line he run Avas bent, deviating more and more
to the northward of a direct line as he approached the Mississippi, so that it
struck that river at the lower edge of the town of Fort Madison. *' This errone-
ous line," says Judge Mason, "has been acquiesced in as well in fixing the
northern limit of the Half-Breed Tract as in determining the northern boundary
line of the State of Missouri." The line thus run included in the reservation
a portion of the lower part of the city of Fort Madison, and all of the present
townships of Van Buren, Charleston, JeiTerson, Des Moines, Montrose and
Jackson.
Under the treaty of 1824, the half-breeds had the right to occupy the soil,
but could not convey it, the reversion being reserved to the United States. But
on the 30th day of January, 1834, by act of Congress, this reversionary right
was relinquished, and the half-breeds acquired the lands in fee simple. This
was no sooner done, than a horde of speculators rushed in to buy land of the
half-breed OAvners, and, in many instances, a gun, a blanket, a pony or a few
quarts of whisky was sufficient for the purchase of large estates. There was
a deal of sharp practice on both sides ; Indians would often claim ownership of
land by virtue of being half-breeds, and had no difficulty in proving their mixed
blood by the Indians, and they w^ould then cheat the speculators by selling land
to which they had no rightful title. On the other hand, speculators often
claimed land in which they had no ownership. It was diamond cut diamond,
until at last things became badly mixed. There were no authorized surveys,
and no boundary lines to claims, and, as a natural result, numerous conflicts and
quarrels ensued.
To settle these difficulties, to decide the validity of claims or sell them for
the benefit of the real owners, by act of the Legislature of Wisconsin Territory,
approved January 16, 1838, Edward Johnstone, Thomas S. Wilson and David
Brigham were appointed Commissioners, and clothed with power to eifect these
objects. The act provided that these Commissioners should be paid six dollars
a day each. The commission entered upon its duties and continued until the
next session of the Legislature, when the act creating it was repealed, invalidat-
ing all that had been done and depriving the Commissioners of their pay. The
repealing act, however, authorized the Commissioners to commence action against
the owners of the Half-Breed Tract, to receive pay for their services, in the Dis-
trict Court of Lee County. Two judgments were obtained, and on execution
the whole of the tract was sold to Hugh T. Reid, the Sheriff executing the
deed. Mr. Reid sold portions of it to various parties, but his own title was
questioned and he became involved in litigation. Decisions in favor of Reid
166 . HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
and those holding under him were made by both District and Supreme Courts,
but in December, 1850, these decisions were finally reversed by the Supreme
Court of the United States in the case of Joseph Webster, plaintiff in error, vs.
Hugh T. Reid, and the judgment titles failed. About nine years before the
"judgment titles " were finally abrogated as above, another class of titles were
brought into competition with them, and in the conflict between the two, the
final decision was obtained. These were the titles based on the " decree of
partition ' ' issued by the United States District Court for the Territory of Iowa,
on the 8th of May, 1841, and certified to by the Clerk on the 2d day of June of
that year. Edward Johnstone and Hugh T. Reid, then law partners at Fort
Madison, filed the petition for the decree in behalf of the St. Louis claimants of
half-breed lands. Francis S. Key, author of the Star Spangled Banner, who
was then attorney for the New York Land Company, which held heavy interests
in these lands, took a leading part in the measure, and drew up the document in
which it was presented to the court. Judge Charles Mason, of Burlington, pre-
sided. The plan of partition divided the tract into one hundred and one shares
and arranged that each claimant should draw his proportion by lot, and should
abide the result, whatever it might be. The arrangement was entered into, the
lots drawn, and the plat of the same filed in the Recorder's ofiice, October 6,
1841. Upon this basis the titles to land in the Half-Breed Tract are now held.
EARLY SETTLEMENTS.
The first permanent settlement by the whites within the limits of Iowa was
made by Julien Dubuque, in 1788, when, with a small party of miners, he set-
tled on the site of the city that now bears his name, where he lived until his
death, in 1810. Louis Honori settled on the site of the present town of Mon-
trose, probably in 1799, and resided there until 1805, when his property passed
into other hands. Of the Giard settlement, opposite Prairie du Chien, little is
known, except that it was occupied by some parties prior to the commencement
of the present century, and contained three cabins in 1805. Indian traders,
although not strictly to be considered settlers, had established themselves at
various points at an early date. A Mr. Johnson, agent of the American Fur
Company, had a trading post below Burlington, where he carried on traffic with
the Indians some time before the United States possessed the country. In
1820, Le Moliese, a French trader, had a station at what is now Sandusky, six
miles above Keokuk, in Lee County. In 1829, Dr. Isaac Gallaud made a set-
tlement on the Lower Rapids, at what is now Nashville.
The first settlement in Lee County was made in 1820, by Dr. Samuel C.
Muir, a surgeon in the United States army, who had been stationed at Fort
Edwards, now Warsaw, 111., and who built a cabin where the city of Keokuk
now stands. Dr. Muir was a man of strict integrity and irreproachable char-
acter. While stationed at a military post on the Upper Mississippi, he had
married an Indian woman of the Fox nation. Of his marriage, the following
romantic account is given :
The post at which he was stationed was visited by a beautiful Indian maiden— ^whose native
name, unfortunately, has not been preserved — who, in her dreams, had seen a white brave un-
moor his canoe, paddle it across the river and come directly to her lodge. She felt assured,
according to the superstitious belief of her race, that, in her dreams, she had seen her future
husband, and had come to the fort to find him. Meeting Dr. Muir, she instantly recognized
him as the hero of her dream, which, with childlike innocence and simplicity, she related to
him. Her dream was, indeed, prophetic. Charmed with Sophia's beauty, innocence and devo-
tion, the doctor honorably married her ; but after a while, the sneers and gibes of his brother
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 167
officers — less honorable than he, perhaps — made him feel ashamed of his dark-skinned wife, and
when his regiment was ordered down the river, to Bellefontaine, it is said he embraced the
opportunity to rid himself of her, and left her, never expecting to see her again, and little
dreaming that she would have the courage to follow him. But, with her infant child, this in-
trepid wife and mother started alone in her canoe, and, after many days of weary labor and a
lonely journey of nine hundred miles, she, at last, reached him. She afterward remarked, when
speaking of this toilsome journey down the river in search of her husband, " When I got there
I was all perished away — so thin ! " The doctor, touched by such unexampled devotion, took her
to his heart, and ever after, until his death, treated her with marked respect. She always pre-
sided at his table with grace and dignity, but never abandoned her native style of dress. In
1819-20, he was stationed at Fort Edward, but the senseless ridicule of some of his brother
oflBcers on account of his Indian wife induced him to resign his commission.
After building his cabin, as above stated, he leased his claim for a term of years to Otis
Reynolds and John Culver, of St. Louis, and went to La Pointe, afterward Galena, where he
practiced his profession for ten years, when he returned to Keokuk. His Indian wife bore to
him four children — Louise (married at Keokuk, since dead), James, (drowned at Keokuk), Mary
and Sophia. Dr. Muir died suddenly of cholera, in 1832, but left his property in such condition
that it was soon wasted in vexatious litigation, and his brave and faithful wife, left friendless and
penniless, became discouraged, and, with her children, disappeared, and, it is said, returned to
her people on the Upper Missouri.
Messrs. Reynolds & Culver, who had leased Dr. Muir's claim at Keokuk,
subsequently employed as their agent Mr. Moses Stillwell, who arrived with
his family in 1828, and took possession of Muir's cabin. His brothers-in-law,
Amos and Valencourt Van Ansdal, came with him and settled near.
His daughter, Margaret Stillwell (afterward Mrs. Ford) was born in 1831,
at the foot of the rapids, called by the Indians Puch-a-she-tuck, where Keokuk
now stands. She was probably the first white American child born in Iowa.
In 1831, Mr. Johnson, Agent of the American Fur Company, who had a
station at the foot of the rapids, removed to another location, and, Dr. Muir
having returned from Galena, he and Isaac R. Campbell took the place and
buildings vacated by the Company and carried on trade with the Indians and
half-breeds. Campbell, who had first visited and traveled through the southern
part of Iowa, in 1821, was an enterprising settler, and besides trading with the
natives carried on a farm and kept a tavern.
Dr. Muir died of cholera in 1832.
In 1830, James L. and Lucius H. Langworthy, brothers and natives of
Vermont, visited the Territory for the purpose of working the lead mines at Du-
buque. They had been engaged in lead mining at Galena, Illinois^ the former
from as early as 1824. The lead mines in the Dubuque region were an object
of great interest to the miners about Galena, for they were known to be rich in
lead ore. To explore these mines and to obtain permission to work them was
therefore eminently desirable.
In 1829, James L. Langworthy resolved to visit the Dubuque mines. Cross-
ing the Mississippi at a point now known as Dunleith, in a canoe, and swim-
ming his horse by his side, he landed on the spot now known as Jones Street
Levee. Before him spread out a beautiful prairie, on which the city of Du-
buque now stands. Two miles south, at the mouth of Catfish Creek, was a vil-
lage of Sacs and Foxes. Thither Mr. Langworthy proceeded, and was well re-
ceived by the natives. He endeavored to obtain permission from them to mine
in their hills, but this they refused. He, however, succeeded in gaining the con-
fidence of the chief to such an extent as to be allowed to travel in the interior
for three weeks and explore the country. He employed two young Indians as
guides, and traversed in different directions the whole region lying between the
Maquoketa and Turkey Rivers. He returned to the village, secured the good
will of the Indians, and, returning to Galena, formed plans for future opera-
tions, to be executed as soon as circumstances would permit.
168 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
In 1830, with his brother, Lucius H., and others, having obtained the con-
sent of the Indians, Mr. Langworthy crossed the Mississippi and commenced
mining in the vicinity around Dubuque.
At this time, the lands were not in the actual possession of the United States.
Although they had been purchased from France, the Indian title had not been
extinguished, and these adventurous persons were beyond the limits of any State
or Territorial government. The first settlers were therefore obliged to be their
own law-makers, and to agree to such regulations as the exigencies of the case
demanded. The first act resembling civil legislation within the limits of the
present State of Iowa was done by the miners at this point, in June, 1830. They
met on the bank of the river, by the side of an old cottonwood drift log, at
what is now the Jones Street Levee, Dubuque, and elected a Committee, con-
sisting of J. L. Langworthy, H. F. Lander, James McPhetres, Samuel Scales,
and E. M. Wren. This may be called the first Legislature in Iowa, the mem-
bers of which gathered around that old cottonwood log, and agreed to and re-
ported the following, written by Mr. Langworthy, on a half-sheet of coarse, un-
ruled paper, the old log being the writing desk :
We, a Committee having been chosen to draft certain rules and regulations (laws) by
which we as miners will be governed, and having duly considered the subject, do unanimously
agree that we will be governed by the regulations on the east side of the Mississippi River,* with
the following exceptions, to wit :
Article I. That each and every man shall hold 200 yards square of ground by working
said ground one day in six.
Article II. We further agree that there shall be chosen, by the majority of the miners
present, a person who shall liold this article, and who shall grant letters of arbitration on appli-
cation having been made, and that said letters of arbitration shall be obligatory on the parties so
applying.
The report was accepted by the miners present, who elected Dr. Jarote, in
accordance with Article 2. Here, then, we have, in 1830, a primitive Legisla-
ture elected by the people, the law drafted by it being submitted to the people
for approval, and under it Dr. Jarote was elected first Governor within the
limits of the present State of Iowa. And it is to be said that the laws thus
enaoted were as promptly obeyed, and the acts of the executive officer thus
elected as duly respected, as any have been since.
The miners who had thus erected an independent govei*nment of their own
on the Avest side of the Mississippi River continued to work successfully for a
long time, and the new settlement attracted considerable attention. But the
west side of the Mississippi belonged to the Sac and Fox Indians, and the Gov-
ernment, in order to preserve peace on the frontier, as well as to protect the
Indians in their rights under the treaty, ordered the settlers not only to stop
mining, but to remove from the Indian territory. They were simply intruders.
The execution of this order was entrusted to Col. Zachary Taylor, then in com-
mand of the military post at Prairie du Chien, who, early in July, sent an officer
to the miners with orders to forbid settlement, and to command the miners to
remove within ten days to the east side of the Mississippi, or they Avould be
driven off by armed force. The miners, however, Avere reluctant about leaving
the rich "leads" they had already discovered and opened, and were not dis-
posed to obey the order to remove with any considerable degree of alacrity. In
due time, Col. Taylor dispatched a detachment of troops to enforce his order. The
miners, anticipating their arrival, had, excepting three, recrossed the river, and
from the east bank saw the troops land on the western shore. The three Avho
had lingered a little too long Avere, however, permitted to make their escape
* Establiehed by the Superintendent of U. S. Lead Mines at Fever Kirer.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 169
unmolested. From this time, a military force was stationed at Dubuque to
prevent the settlers from returning, until June, 1832. The Indians returned,
and were encouaged to operate the rich mines opened by the late white
occupants.
In June, 1832, the troops were ordered to the east side to assist in the
annihilation of the very Indians whose rights they had been protecting on the
west side. Immediately after the close of the Black Hawk war, and the negotia-
tions of the treaty in September, 1832, by which the Sacs and Foxes ceded to
the United States the tract known as the "Black Hawk Purchase," the set-
tlers, supposing that now they had a right to re-enter the territory, returned
and took possession of their claims, built cabins, erected furnaces and prepared
large quantities of lead for market. Dubuque was becoming a noted place on
the river, but the prospects of the hardy and enterprising settlers and miners
were again ruthlessly interfered with by the Government, on the ground that
the treaty with the Indians would not go into force until June 1, 1833, although
they had withdrawn from the vicinity of the settlement. Col. Taylor was again
ordered by the War Department to remove the miners, and in January, 1833,
troops were again sent from Prairie du Chien to Dubuque for that purpose.
This was a serious and perhaps unnecessary hardship imposed upon the settlers.
They were compelled to abandon their cabins and homes in mid-winter. It
must now be said, simply, that "red tape" should be respected. The purchase
had been made, the treaty ratified, or was sure to be ; the Indians had retired,
and, after the lapse of nearly fifty years, no very satisfactory reason for this
rigorous action of the Government can be given.
But the orders had been given, and there was no alternative but to obey.
Many of the settlers recrossed the river, and did not return ; a few, however,
removed to an island near the east bank of the river, built rude cabins of poles,
in which to store their lead until Spring, when they could float the fruits of
their labor to St. Louis for sale, and where they could remain until the treaty
went into force, when they could return. Among these were James L. Lang-
worthy, and his brother Lucius, who had on hand about three hundred thousand
pounds of lead.
Lieut. Covington, who had been placed in command at Dubuque by Col.
Taylor, ordered some of the cabins of the settlers to be torn down, and wagons
and other property to be destroyed. This wanton and inexcusable action on
the part of a subordinate clothed with a little brief authority was sternly
rebuked by Col. Taylor, and Covington was superseded by Lieut. George Wil-
son, who pursued a just and friendly course with the pioneers, who were only
waiting for the time when they could repossess their claims.
June 1, 1833, the treaty formally went into effect, the troops were withdrawn,
and the Langworthy brothers and a few others at once returned and resumed
possession of their home claims and mineral prospects, and from this time the
first permanent settlement of this portion of Iowa must date. Mr. John P.
Sheldon was appointed Superintendent of the mines by the Government, and a
system of permits to miners and licenses to smelters was adopted, similar to that
which had been in operation at Galena, since 1825, under Lieut. Martin Thomas
and Capt. Thomas C. Legate. Substantially the primitive law enacted by the
miners assembled around that old cottonwood drift log in 1830 was adopted and
enforced by the United States Government, except that miners were required to
sell their mineral to licensed smelters and the smelter was required to give bonds
for the payment of six per cent, of all lead manufactured to the Government.
This was the same rule adopted in the United States mines on Fever River in
170 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
Illinois, except that, until 1830, the Illinois miners were compelled to pay 10
per cent. tax. This tax upon the miners created much dissatisfaction among
the miners on the west side as it had on the east side of the Mississippi. They
thought they had suffered hardships and privations enough in opening the way
for civilization, without being subjected to the imposition of an odious Govern-
ment tax upon their means of subsistence, when the Federal Government could
better afford to aid than to extort from them. The measure soon became unpop-
ular. It was difficult to collect the taxes, and the whole system was abolished
in about ten years. â–
During 1833, after the Indian title was fully extinguished, about five hun-
dred people arrived at the mining district, about one hundred and fifty of them
from Galena.
In the same year, Mr. Langworthy assisted in building the first school house
in Iowa, and thus was formed the nucleus of the now populous and thriving
City of Dubuque. Mr. Langworthy lived to see the naked prairie on which he
first landed become the site of a city of fifteen thousand inhabitants, the small
school house which he aided in constructing replaced by three substantial edifices,
wherein two thousand children were being trained, churches erected in every
part of the city, and railroads connecting the wilderness which he first explored
with all the eastern world. He died suddenly on the 13th of March, 1865,
while on a trip over the Dubuque & Southwestern Railroad, at Monticello,
and the evening train brought the news of his death and his remains.
Lucius H. Langworthy, his brother, was one of the most worthy, gifted and
influential of the old settlers of this section of Iowa. He died, greatly lamented
by many friends, in June, 1865.
The name Dubuque was given to the settlement by the miners at a meeting
held in 1834.
In 1832, Captain James White made a claim on the present site of Montrose.
In 1834, a military post was established at this point, and a garrison of cavalry
was stationed here, under the command of Col. Stephen W. Kearney. The
soldiers were removed from this post to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, in 1837.
During the same year, 1832, soon after the close of the Black Hawk War,
Zachariah Hawkins, Benjamin Jennings, Aaron White, Augustine Horton,
Samuel Gooch, Daniel Thompson and Peter Williams made claims at Fort
Madison. In 1833, these claims were purchased by John and Nathaniel
Kn»pp, upon which, in 1835, they laid out the town. The next Summer, lots
were sold. The town was subsequently re-surveyed and platted by the United
States Government.
At the close of the Black Hawk War, parties who had been impatiently
looking across upon " Flint Hills," now Burlington, came over from Illinois
and made claims The first was Samuel S. White, in the Fall of 1832, who
erected a cabin on the site of the city of Burlington. About the same time,
David Tothero made a claim on the prairie about three miles back from the
river, at a place since known as the farm of Judge Morgan. In the Winter of
that year, they were driven off by the military from Rock Island, as intruders
upon the rights of the Indians, and White's cabin was burnt by the soldiers.
He retired to Illinois, where he spent the Winter, and in the Summer, as soon
as the Indian title was extinguished, returned and rebuilt his cabin. White
was joined by his brother-in-law, Doolittle, and they laid out the original town
of Burlington in 1834.
All along the river borders of the Black Hawk Purchase settlerswere flocking
into Iowa. Immediately after the treaty with the Sacs and Foxes, in Septem-
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 171
ber, 1832, Col. George Davenport made the first claim on the spot where the
thriving city of Davenport now stands. As early as 1827, Col. Davenport had
established a flatboat ferry, which ran between the island and the main shore of
Iowa, by which he carried on a trade with the Indians west of the Mississippi.
In 1833, Capt. Benjamin W. Clark moved across from Illinois, and laid the
foundation of the town of Buffalo, in Scott County, which was the first actual
settlement within the limits of that county. Among other early settlers in this
part of the Territory were Adrian H. Davenport, Col. John Sullivan, Mulli-
gan and Franklin Easly, Capt. John Coleman, J. M. Camp, William White,
H. W. Higgins, Cornelius Harrold, Richard Harrison, E. H. Shepherd and
Dr. E. S. Barrows.
The first settlers of Davenport were Antoine LeClaire, Col. George Daven-
port, Major Thomas Smith, Major William Gordon, Philip Hambough, Alexan-
der W. McGregor, Levi S. Colton, Capt. James May and others. Of Antoine
LeClaire, as the representative of the two races of men who at this time occu-
pied Iowa, Hon. C. C. Nourse, in his admirable Centennial Address, says :
" Antoine LeClaire was born at St. Joseph, Michigan, in ^ 1797. His father
was French, his mother a granddaughter of a Pottowatomie chief. In 1818,
he acted as official interpreter to Col. Davenport, at Fort Armstrong (now Rock
Island). He was well acquainted with a dozen Indian dialects, and was a man
of strict integrity and great energy. In 1820, he married the granddaughter
of a Sac chief. The Sac and Fox Indians reserved for him and his wife two
sections of land in the treaty of 1833, one at the town of LeClaire and one at
Davenport. The Pottawatomies, in the treaty at Prairie du ^ Chien, also
reserved for him two sections of land, at the present site of Moline, 111. He
received the appointment of Postmaster and Justice of the Peace in the Black
Hawk Purchase, at an early day. In 1833, he bought for $100 a claim on the
land upon which the original town of Davenport was surveyed and platted in
1836. In 1836, LeClaire built the hotel, known since, with its valuable addi-
tion, as the LeClaire House. He died September 25, 1861."
In Clayton County, the first settlement was made in the Spring of 1832,
on Turkey River, by Robert Hatfield and William W. Wayman. No further
settlement was made in this part of the State till the beginning of 1836.
In that portion now known as Muscatine County, settlements were made in
1834, by Benjamin Nye, John Vanater and G. W. Kasey, who were the first
settlers. E. E. Fay, William St. John, N. Fullington, H. Reece, Jona Petti-
bone, R. P. Lowe, Stephen Whicher, Abijah Whiting, J. E. Fletcher, W. D.
Abernethy and Alexis Smith were early settlers of Muscatine.
During the Summer of 1835, William Bennett and his family, from Galena,
built the first cabin within the present limits of Delaware County, in some
timber since known as Eads' Grove.
The first post office in Iowa was established at Dubuque in 1833. Milo H.
Prentice was appointed Postmaster.
The first Justice of the Peace was Antoine Le Claire, appointed in 1833, as
" a very suitable person to adjust the difficulties between the white settlers and
the Indians still remaining there."
The first Methodist Society in the Territory was formed at Dubuque on
the 18th of May, 1834, and the first class meeting was held June 1st of that
year.
The first church bell brought into Iowa was in March, 1834.
The first mass of the Roman Catholic Church in the Territory was celebrated
at Dubuque, in the house of Patrick Quigley, in the Fall of 1833.
172 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
The first school house in the Territory was erected by the Dubuque miners
in 1833.
The first Sabbath school was organized at Dubuque early in the Summer
of 1884.
The first woman who came to this part of the Territory with a view to per-
manent residence was Mrs. Noble F. Dean, in the Fall of 1832.
The first family that lived in this part of Iowa was that of Hosea T. Camp,
in 1832.
The first meeting house was built by the Methodist Episcopal Church, at
Dubuque, in 1834.
The first newspaper in Iowa was the Dubuque Visitor, issued May 11th, 1836.
John King, afterward Judge King, was editor, and William C. Jones, printer.
The pioneers of Iowa, as a class, were brave, hardy, intelligent and
enterprising people.
As early as 1824, a French trader named Hart had established a trading
post, and built a cabin on the blufis above the large spring now known as
"Mynster Spring," within the limits of the present city of Council Bluffs, and
had probably been there some time, as the post was known to the employes of
the American Fur Company as Lacote de Hart, or " Hart's Bluff." In 1827,
an agent of the American Fur Company, Francis Guittar, with others, encamped
in the timber at the foot of the bluffs, about on the present location of Broad-
way, and afterward settled there. In 1839, a block house was built on the
blufi" in the east part of the city. The Pottawatomie Indians occupied this part
of the State until 1846-7, when they relinquished the territory and removed to
Kansas. Billy Caldwell was then principal chief. There were no white settlers
in that part of the State except Indian traders, until the arrival of the Mormons
under the lead of Brigham Young. These people on their way westward halted
for the Winter of 1846-7 on the west bank of the Missouri River, about five
miles above Omaha, at a place now called Florence. Some of them had
reached the eastern bank of the river the Spring before, in season to plant a
crop. In the Spring of 1847, Young and a portion of the colony pursued their
journey to Salt Lake, but a large portion of them returned to the Iowa side and
settled mainly within the limits of Pottawattamie County. The principal settle-
ment of this strange community was at a place first called "Miller's Hollow,"
on Indian Creek, and afterward named Kanesville, in honor of Col. Kane, of
Pennsylvania, who visited them soon afterward. The Mormon settlement
extended over the county and into neighboring counties, wherever timber and
water furnished desirable locations. Orson Hyde, priest, lawyer and editor, was
installed as President of the Quorum of Twelve, and all that part of the State
remained under Mormon control for several years. In 1846, they raised a bat-
talion, numbering some five hundred men, for the Mexican war. In 1848, Hyde
started a paper called the Frontier Guardian, at Kanesville. In 1849, after
many of the faithful had left to join Brigham Young at Salt Lake, the Mormons
in this section of Iowa numbered 6,552, and in 1850, 7,828, but they were not
all within the limits of Pottawattamie County. This county was organized in
1848, all the first officials being Mormons. In 1852, the order was promulgated
that all the true believers should gather together at Salt Lake. Gentiles flocked
in, and in a few years nearly all the first settlers were gone.
May 9, 1843, Captain James Allen, with a small detachment of troops on
board the steamer lone, arrived at the present site of the capital of the State,
Des Moines. The lone was the first steamer to ascend the Des Moines River
to this point. The troops and stores were landed at what is now the foot of
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 173
Court avenue, Des Moines, and Capt* Allen returned in the steamer to Fort
Sanford to arrange for bringing up more soldiers and supplies. In due time
they, too, arrived, and a fort was built near the mouth of Raccoon Fork, at its
confluence with the Des Moines, and named Fort Des Moines. Soon after the
arrival of the troops, a trading post was established on the east side of the river,
by two noted Indian traders named Ewing, from Ohio.
Among the first settlers in this part of Iowa were Benjamin Bryant, J. B.
Scott, James Drake (gunsmith), John Sturtevant, Robert Kinzie, Alexander
Turner, Peter Newcomer, and others.
The Western States have been settled by many of the best and most enter-
prising men of the older States, and a large immigration of the best blood of
the Old World, who, removing to an arena of larger opportunities, in a more
fertile soil and congenial climate, have developed a spirit and an energy
peculiarly Western. In no country on the globe have enterprises of all kinds
been pushed forward with such rapidity, or has there been such independence
and freedom of competition. Among those who have pioneered the civiliza-
tion of the West, and been the founders of great States, none have ranked
higher in the scale of intelligence and moral worth than the pioneers of Iowa,
who came to the territory when it was an Indian country, and through hardship,
privation and suffering, laid the foundations of the populous and prosperous
commonwealth which to-day dispenses its blessings to a million and a quarter
of people. From her first settlement and from her first organization as a terri-
tory to the present day, Iowa has had able men to manage her affairs, wise
statesmen to shape her destiny and frame her laws, and intelligent and impartial
jurists to administer justice to her citizens ; her bar, pulpit and press have been
able and widely influential ; and in all the professions, arts, enterprises and
industries which go to make up a great and prosperous commonwealth, she has
taken and holds a front rank among her sister States of the West.
TERRITORIAL HISTORY.
By act of Congress, approved October 31, 1803, the President of the United
States was authorized to take possession of the territory included in the
Louisiana purchase, and provide for a temporary government. By another act
of the same session, approved March 26, 1804, the newly acquired country was
divided, October 1, 1804 into the Territory of Orleans, south of the thirty-third
parallel of north latitude, and the district of Louisiana, which latter was placed
under the authority of the officers of Indiana Territory.
In 1805, the District of Louisiana was organized as a Territory with a gov-
ernment of its own. In 1807, Iowa was included in the Territory of Illinois,
and in 1812 in the Territory of Missouri. When Missouri was admitted as a
State, March 2, 1821, " Iowa," says Hon. C. C. Nourse, "was left a political
orphan," until by act of Congress, approved June 28, 1834, the Black Hawk
purchase having been made, all the territory west of the Mississippi and north
of the northern boundary of Missouri, was made a part of Michigan Territory.
Up to this time there had been no county or other organization in what is now
the State of Iowa, although one or two Justices of the Peace had been appointed
and a post office was established at Dubuque in 1833. In September, 1834,
however, the Territorial Legislature of Michigan created two counties on the
â– west side of the Mississippi River, viz. : Dubuque and Des Moines, separated
by a line drawn westward from the foot of Rock Island. These counties were
174 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
partially organized. John King was appointed Chief Justice of Dubuque
County, and Isaac Leffler, of Burlington, of Des Moines County. Two
Associate Justices, in each county, were appointed by the Governor.
On the first Monday in October, 1835, Gen. George W. Jones, now a citi-
zen of Dubuque, was elected a Delegate to Congress from this part of Michigan
Territory. On the 20th of April, 1836, through the efforts of Gen. Jones,
Congress passed a bill creating the Territory of Wisconsin, which went into
operation, July 4, 1836, and Iowa was then included in
THE TERRITORY OF WISCONSIN,
of which Gen. Henry Dodge was appointed Governor; John S. Horner, Secre-
tary of the Territory ; Charles Dunn, Chief Justice ; David Irwin and William
C. Frazer, Associate Justices.
September 9, 1836, Governor Dodge ordered the census of the new Territory
to be taken. This census resulted in showing a population of 10,531 in the
counties of Dubuque and Des Moines. Under the apportionment, these two
counties were entitled to six members of the Council and thirteen of the House
of Representatives. The Governor issued his proclamation for an election to be
held on the first Monday of October, 1836, on which day the following members
of the First Territorial Legislature of Wisconsin were elected from the two
counties in the Black Hawk purchase :
Dubuque County. — Council: John Fally, Thomas McKnight, Thomas Mc-
Craney. House : Loring Wheeler, Hardin Nowlan, Peter Hill Engle, Patrick
Quigley, Hosea T. Camp.
Des Moines County. — Council: Jeremiah Smith, Jr., Joseph B. Teas,
Arthur B. Ingram. House: Isaac Lefiier, Thomas Blair, Warren L. Jenkins,
John Box, George W. Teas, Eli Reynolds, David R. Chance.
The first Legislature assembled at Belmont, in the present State of Wiscon-
sin, on the 25th day of October, 1836, and was organized by electing Henry T.
Baird President of the Council, and Peter Hill Engle, of Dubuque, Speaker of
the House. It adjourned December 9, 1836.
The second Legislature assembled at Burlington, November 10, 1837.
Adjourned January 20, 1838. The third session was at Burlington; com-
menced June 1st, and adjourned June 12, 1838.
During the first session of the Wisconsin Territorial Legislature, in 1836,
the county of Des Moines was divided into Des Moines, Lee, Van Buren, Henry,
Muscatine and Cook (the latter being subsequently changed to Scott) and defined
their boundaries. During the second session, out of the territory embraced in
Dubuque County, were created the counties of Dubuque, Clayton, Fayette,
Delaware, Buchanan, Jackson, Jones, Linn, Clinton and Cedar, and their boun-
daries defined, but the most of them were not organized until several years
afterward, under the authority of the Territorial Legislature of Iowa.
The question of a separate territorial organization for Iowa, which was then
a part of Wisconsin Territory, began to be agitated early in the Autumn of
1837. The wishes of the people found expression in a convention held at Bur-
lington on the 1st of November, which memorialized Congress to organize a
Territory west of the Mississippi, and to settle the boundary line between Wis-
consin Territory and Missouri. The Territorial Legislature of Wisconsin, then
in session at Burlington, joined in the petition. Gen. George W. Jones, of
Dubuque, then residing at Sinsinawa Mound, in what is now Wisconsin, was
Delegate to Congress from Wisconsin Territory, and labored so earnestly and
successfully, that " An act to divide the Territory of Wisconsin, and to estab-
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 175
lish the Territorial Government of Iowa," was approved June 12, 1838, to take
effect and be in force on and after July 3, 1838. The new Territory embraced
" all. that part of the present Territory of Wisconsin which lies west of the Mis-
sissippi River, and west of a line drawn due north from the head water or
sources of the Mississippi to the territorial line." The organic act provided
for a Governor, whose term of office should be three years, and for a Secretary,
Chief Justice, two Associate Justices, and Attorney and Marshal, who should
serve four years, to be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate. The act also provided for the election, by the white
male inhabitants, citizens of the United States, over twenty-one years of age,
of a House of Representatives, consisting of twenty-six members, and a Council,
to consist of thirteen members. It also appropriated $5,000 for a public library,
and $20,000 for the erection of public buildings.
President Van Buren appointed Ex-Governor Robert Lucas, of Ohio, to be
the first Governor of the new Territory. William B. Conway, of Pittsburgh,
was appointed Secretary of the Territory; Charles Mason, of Burlington,
Chief Justice, and Thomas S. Wilson, of Dubuque, and Joseph Williams, of
Pennsylvania, Associate Judges of the Supreme and District Courts ; Mr. Van.
Allen, of ISIew York, Attorney; Francis Gehon, of Dubuque, Marshal; Au-
gustus C. Dodge, Register of the Land Office at Burlington, and Thomas Mc-
Knigbt, Receiver of the Land Office at Dubuque. Mr. Van Allen, the District
Attorney, died at Rockingham, soon after his appointment, and Col. Charlea
Weston was appointed to fill his vacancy. Mr. Conway, the Secretary, also
died at Burlington, during the second session of the Legislature, and Jame»
Clarke, editor of the Gazette, was appointed to succeed him.
Immediately after his arrival, Governor Lucas issued a proclamation for the
election of members of the first Territorial Legislature, to be held on the 10th
of September, dividing the Territory into election districts for that purpose, and
appointing the 12th day of November for meeting of the Legislature to be
elected, at Burlington.
The first Territorial Legislature was elected in September and assembled at
Burlington on the 12th of November, and consisted of the following members:
Council. — Jesse B. Brown, J. Keith, E. A. M. Swazey, Arthur Ingram^.
Robert Ralston, George Hepner, Jesse J. Payne, D. B. Hughes, James M.
Clark, Charles Whittlesey, Jonathan W. Parker, Warner Lewis, Stephen
Hempstead.
House. — William Patterson, Hawkins Taylor, Calvin J. Price, James
Brierly, James Hall, Gideon S. Bailey, Samuel Parker, James W. Grimes,
George Temple, Van B. Delashmutt, Thomas Blair, George H. Beeler,'*'
William G. Coop, William H. Wallace, Asbury B. Porter, John Frierson,
William L. Toole, Levi Thornton, S. C. Hastings, Robert G. Roberts, Laurel
Summers,! Jabez A. Burchard, Jr., Chauncey Swan, Andrew Bankson, Thomas
Cox and Hardin Nowlin.
Notwithstanding a large majority of the members of both branches of the
Legislature were Democrats, yet Gen. Jesse B. Browne (Whig), of Lee County,
was elected President of the Council, and Hon. William H. Wallace (Whig), of
Henry County, Speaker of the House of Representatives — the former unani-
mously and the latter with but little opposition. At that time, national politics
* Cyrus S. Jacobs, who was elected for Des Moines County, was killed in an unfortunate encounter at Burlington
â– before the meeting of the Legislature, and Mr. Beeler was elected to fill the vacancy.
t Samuel B. Murray was returned aa elected from Clinton Oountj, but hie seat was successfully contested l^y
Burchard.
176 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
were little heeded by the people of the new Territory, but in 1840, during the
Presidential campaign, party lines were strongly drawn.
At the election in September, 1838, for members of the Legislature, a Con-
gressional Delegate was also elected. There were four candidates, viz. : William
W. Chapman and David Rohrer, of Des Moines County ; B. F. Wallace of
Henry County, and P. H. Engle, of Dubuque County. Chapman was elected,
receiving a majority of thirty-six over Engle.
The first session of the Iowa Territorial Legislature was a stormy and excit-
ing one. By the organic law, the Governor was clothed with almost unlimited
veto power. Governor Lucas seemed disposed to make free use of it, and the
independent Hawkeyes could not quietly submit to arbitrary and absolute rule,
and the result was an unpleasant controversy between the Executive and Legis-
lative departments. Congress, however, by act approved March 3, 1839,
amended the organic law by restricting the veto power of the Governor to the
two-thirds rule, and took from him the power to appoint Sheriffs and Magistrates.
Among the first important matters demanding attention was the location of
the seat of government and provision for the erection of public buildings, for
which Congress had appropriated $20,000. Governor Lucas, in his message,
had recommended the appointment of Commissioners, with a view to making a
central location. The extent of the future State of Iowa was not known or
thought of Only on a strip of land fifty miles wide, bordering on the Missis-
sippi River, was the Indian title extinguished, and a central location meant some
central point in the Black Hawk Purchase. The friends of a central location
supported the Governor's suggestion. The southern members were divided
between Burlington and Mount Pleasant, but finally united on the latter as the
proper location for the seat of government. The central and southern parties
were very nearly equal, and, in consequence, much excitement prevailed. The
central party at last triumphed, and on the 21st day of January, 1839, an act
was passed, appointing Chauncey Swan, of Dubuque County ; John Ronalds,
of Louisa County, and Robert Ralston, of Des Moines County, Commissioners,
to select a site for a permanent seat of Government within the limits of John-
son County.
Johnson County had been created by act of the Territorial Legislature of
Wisconsin, approved Decembeu 21, 1837, and organized by act passed at the
special session at Burlington in June, 1838, the organization to date from July
4th, following. Napoleon, on the Iowa River, a few miles below the future
Iowa City, was designated as the county seat, temporarily.
Then there existed good reason for locating the capital in the county. The
Territory of Iowa was bounded on the north by the British Possessions ; east, by
the Mississippi River to its source; thence by a line drawn due north to the
northern boundary of the United States; south, by the State of Missouri, and west,
by the Missouri and White Earth Rivers. But this immense territory was in un-
disputed possession of the Indians, except a strip on the Mississippi, known as
the Black Hawk Purchase. Johnson County was, from north to south, in the
geographical center of this purchase, and as near the east and west geographical
center of the future State of Iowa as could then be made, as the boundary line
between the lands of the United States and the Indians, established by the
treaty of October 21, 1837, was immediately west of the county limits.
The Commissioners, after selecting the site, were directed to lay out 640
acres into a town, to be called Iowa City, and to proceed to sell lots and erect
public buildings thereon, Congress having granted a section of land to be
selected by the Territory for this purpose. The Commissioners met at Napo-
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 177
leon, Johnson County, May 1, 1839, selected for a site Section 10, in Town-
ship 79 North of Range 6 West of the Fifth Principal Meridian, and immedi-
ately surveyed it and laid oif the town. The first sale of lots took place August
16, 1839. The site selected for the public buildings was a little west of the
geographical center of the section, where a square of ten acres on the elevated
grounds overlooking the river was reserved for the purpose. The capitol is
located in the center of this square. The second Territorial Legislature, which
assembled in November, 1839, passed an act requiring the Commissioners to
adopt such plan for the building that the aggregate cost when complete should
not exceed $51,000, and if they had already adopted a plan involving a greater
expenditure they were directed to abandon it. Plans for the building were designed
and drawn by Mr. John F. Rague, of Springfield, 111., and on the 4th day of July,
1840, the corner stone of the edifice was laid with appropriate ceremonies.
Samuel C. Trowbridge was Marshal of the day, and Gov. Lucas delivered the
address on that occasion.
When the Legislature assembled at Burlington in special session, July 13,
1840, Gov. Lucas announced that on the 4th of that month he had visited Iowa
City, and found the basement of the capitol nearly completed. A bill author-
izing a loan of $20,000 for the building was passed, January 15, 1841, the
unsold lots of Iowa City being the security offered, but only $5,500 was
obtained under the act.
THE BOUNDARY QUESTION.
The boundary line between the Territory of Iowa and the State of Missouri
was a difficult question to settle in 1838, in consequence of claims arising from
taxes and titles, and at one time civil war was imminent. In defining the
boundaries of the counties bordering on Missouri, the Iowa authorities had fixed
a line that has since been established as the boundary between Iowa and Mis-
souri. The Constitution of Missouri defined her northern boundary to be the
parallel of latitude which passes through the rapids of the Des Moines River.
The lower rapids of the Mississippi immediately above the mouth of the Des
Moines River had always been known as the Des Moines Rapids, or "the
rapids of the Des Moines River." The Missourians (evidently not well versed
in history or geography) insisted on running the northern boundary line from
the rapids in the Des Moines River, just below Keosauqua, thus taking from
Iowa a strip of territory eight or ten miles wide. Assuming this as her
northern boundary line, Missouri attempted to exercise jurisdiction over the
disputed territory by assessing taxes, and sending her Sheriffs to collect them by
distraining the personal property of the settlers. The lowans, however, were
not disposed to submit, and the Missouri ofiicials were arrested by the Sheriffs
of Davis and Van Buren Counties and confined in jail. Gov. Boggs, of
Missouri, called out his militia to enforce the claim and sustain the ofiicers of
Missouri. Gov. Lucas called out the militia of Iowa, and both parties made
active preparations for war. In Iowa, about 1,200 men were enlisted, and
500 were actually armed and encamped in Van Buren County, ready to defend
the integrity of the Territory. Subsequently, Gen. A. C. Dodge, of Burlington,
Gen. Churchman, of Dubuque, and Dr. Clark, of Fort Madison, were sent to
Missouri as envoys plenipotentiary, to effect, if possible, a peaceable adjustment
of the difficulty. Upon their arrival, they found that the County Commissioners
of Clarke County, Missouri, had rescinded their order for the collection of the taxes,
and that Gov. Boggs had despatched messengers to the Governor of Iowa proposing
178 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
to submit an agreed case to the Supreme Court of the United States for the
final settlement of the boundary question. This proposition was declined, but
afterward Congress authorized a suit to settle the controversy, which was insti-
tuted, and which resulted in a judgment for Iowa. Under this decision,
William G. Miner, of Missouri, and Henry B. Hendershott were appointed
Commissioners to survey and establish the boundary. Mr. Nourse remarks
that " the expenses of the war on the part of Iowa were never paid, either by
the United States or the Territorial Government. The patriots who furnished
supplies to the troops had to bear the cost and charges of the struggle."
The first legislative assembly laid the broad foundation of civil equality, on
which has been constructed one of the most liberal governments in the Union.
Its first act was to recognize the equality of woman with man before the law by
providing that " no action commenced by a single woman, who intermarries
during the pendency thereof, shall abate on account of such marriage." This prin-
ciple has been adopted by all subsequent legislation in Iowa, and to-day woman
has full and equal civil rights with man, except only the right of the ballot.
Religious toleration was also secured to all, personal liberty strictly guarded,
the rights and privileges of citizenship extended to all white persons, and the
purity of elections secured by heavy penalties against bribery and corruption.
The judiciary power was vested in a Supreme Court, District Court, Probate
Court, and Justices of the Peace. Real estate was made divisible by will, and
intestate property divided equitably among heirs. Murder was made punishable
by death, and proportionate penalties fixed for lesser crimes. A system of free
schools, open for every class of white citizens, was established. Provision was
made for a system of roads and highways. Thus under the territorial organi-
zation, the country began to emerge from a savage wilderness, and take on the
forms of civil government.
By act of Congress of June 12, 1838, the lands which had been purchased
of the Indians were brought into market, and land offices opened in Dubuque
and Burlington. Congress provided for military roads and bridges, which
greatly aided the settlers, who were now coming in by thousands, to make their
homes on the fertile prairies of Iowa — " the Beautiful Land." The fame of the
country had spread far and wide ; even before the Indian title was extinguished,
many were crowding the borders, impatient to cross over and stake out their
claims on the choicest spots they could find in the new Territory. As
soon as the country was open for settlement, the borders, the Black Hawk
Purchase, all along the Mississipi, and up the principal rivers and streams, and
out over the broad and rolling prairies, began to be thronged with eager land
hunters and immigrants, seeking homes in Iowa. It was a sight to delight the
eyes of all comers from every land — its noble streams, beautiful and picturesque
hills and valleys, broad and fertile prairies extending as far as the eye could
reach, with a soil surpassing in richness anything which they had ever seen. It
is not to be wondered at that immigration into Iowa was rapid, and that within
less than a decade from the organization of the Territory, it contained a hundred
and fifty thousand people.
As rapidly as the Indian titles were extinguished and the original owners
removed, the resistless tide of emigration flowed westward. The following extract
from Judge Nourse's Centennial Address shows how the immigrants gathered
on the Indian boundary, ready for the removal of the barrier :
In obedience to our progressive and aggressive spirit, the Government of the United States
made another treaty with the Sac and Fox Indians, on the 11th day of August. 1842, for the
remaining portion of their land in Iowa. The treaty provided that the Indians should retain
HISTORY OF TPIE STATE OF IOWA. 179
possession of all the lands thus ceded until May 1, 1843, and should occupy that portion of the
ceded territory west of a line running north and south through Redrock, until October 11, 1845.
These tribes, at this time, had their principal village at Ot-tuin-wa-no, now called Ottumwa. As
soon as it became known that the treaty had been concluded, there was a rush of immigration to
Iowa, and a great number of temporary settlements were made near the Indian boundary, wait-
ing for the 1st day of May. As the day approached, hundreds of families encamped along the
line, and their tents and wagong gave the scene the appearance of a military expedition. The
country beyond had been thoroughly explored, but the United States military authorities had
prevented any settlement or even the making out of claims by any monuments whatever.
To aid them in making out their claims when the hour should arrive, the settlers had placed
piles of dry wood on the rising ground, at convenient distances, and a short time before twelve
o'clock of the night of the 30th of April, these were lighted, and when the midnight hour arrived,
it was announced by the discharge of firearms. The night was dark, but this army of occupa-
tion pressed forward, torch in hand, with axe and hatchet, blazing lines with all manner of
curves and angles. When daylight came and revealed the confusion of these wonderful surveys,
numerous disputes arose, settled generally by compromise, but sometimes by violence Between
midnight of the 80th of April and sundown of the 1st of May, over one thousand families had
settled on their new purchase.
While this scene was transpiring, the retreating Indians were enacting one more impressive
and melancholy. The Winter of 1842-43 was one of unusual severity, and the Indian prophet,
who had disapproved of the treaty, attributed the severity of the Winter to the anger of the Great
Spirit, because they had sold their country. Many religious rites were performed to atone for
the crime. When the time for leaving Ot-tum-wa-no arrived, a solemn silence pervaded the Indian
camp, and the faces of their stoutest men were bathed in tears; and when their cavalcade was
put in motion, toward the setting sun, there was a spontaneous outburst of frantic grief from the
entire procession.
The Indians remained the appointed time beyond the line running north and south through
Redrock. The government established a trading post and military encampment at the Raccoon
Fork of the Des Moines River, then and for many years known as Fort Des Moines. Here the
red man lingered until the 11th of October, 1845, when the same scene that we have before
described was re-enacted, and the wave of immigration swept over the remainder of the " New
Purchase." The lands thus occupied and claimed by the settlers still belonged in fee to the Gen-
eral Government. The surveys were not completed until some time after the Indian title was
extinguished. After their survey, the lands were publicly proclaimed or advertised for sale at
public auction. Under the laws of the United States, a pre-emption or exclusive right to purchase
public lands could net be acquired until after the lands had thus been publicly offered and not
sold for want of bidders. Then, and not until then, an occupant making improvements in good
faith might acquire a right over others to enter the land at the minimum price of $1.25 per
acre. The " claim laws" were unknown to the United States statutes. They originated in the
" eternal fitness of things," and were enforced, probably, as belonging to that class of natural
rights not enumerated in the constitution, and not impaired or disparaged by its enumeration.
The settlers organized in every settlement prior to the public land sales, appointed officers,
and adopted their own rules and regulations. Each man's claim was duly ascertained and
recorded by the Secretary. It was the duty of all to attend the sales. The Secretary bid off the
lands of each settler at $1.25 per acre. The others were there, to see, first, that he did his duty
and bid in the land, and, secondly, to see that no one else bid. This, of course, sometimes led to
trouble, but it saved the excitement of competition, and gave a formality and degree of order
and regularity to the proceedings they would not otherwise have attained. As far as practicable,
the Territorial Legislature recognized the validity of these " claims " upon the public lands, and
in 1889 passed an act legalizing their sale and making their transfer a valid consideration to sup-
port a promise to pay for the same. (Acts of 1843, p. 456). The Supreme Territorial Court
held this law to be valid. (See Hill v. Smith, 1st Morris Rep. 70). The opinion not only con-
tains a decision of the question involved, but also contains much valuable erudition upon that
" spirit of Anglo-Saxon liberty" which the Iowa settlers unquestionably inherited in a direct
line of descent from the said " Anglo-Saxons." But the early settler was not always able to pay
even this dollar and twenty-five cents per acre for his land.
Many of the settlers had nothing to begin with, save their hands, health and
courage and their family jewels, "the pledges of love," and the "consumers of
bread." It was not so easy to accumulate money in the early days of the State,
and the "beautiful prairies," the "noble streams," and all that sort of poetic
imagery, did not prevent the early settlers from becoming discouraged.
An old settler, in speaking of the privations and trials of those early days,
says:
Well do the "old settlers ' of Iowa remember the days from the first settlement to 1840.
Those were days of sadness and distress. The endearments of home in another land had been
18^ HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
broken up ; and all that was hallowed on earth, the home of childhood and the scenes of youth
r thrwillows"*^ ""^ ^""^ ^^ '^^ ^^""^^^ ^^^^""^ ""^ '''''â– ''''^^^ "^^''' ^"""^ ^^'^"^ " liung our harps
, Another, from another part of the State, testifies :
There was no such thing as getting money for any kind of labor. I laid brick at $3.00
r^nv >!'nrK^ 'v"", A% r^^ ^^^ i^ anything I could eat or wear. I built the first Methodist
Church at Keokuk, 42x60 feet of brick, for $600, and took my pay in a subscription paper, part
in(^ n /^''!'i collected, and upon which I only received $50 00 in money. Wheat was hkuled
100 miles from the interior, and sold for 37^ cents per bushel.
Another old settler, speaking of a later period, 1843, says :
1 ^k"1 ^^^J ^everything had gone down in value to almost nominal prices. Corn and oats
could be bought for six or ten cents a bushel ; pork, |] .00 per hundred ; and the best horse a
man could raise sold lor $..0.00, Nearly all were in debt, and the Sheriff and Constable, with
egal processes were common visitors at almost every man's door. These were indeed "the times
that tried men s souls. •
"A few," says Mr. Nourse, "who were not equal to the trial, returned to
their old homes, but such as had the courage and faith to be the worthy founders
of a great State remained, to more than realize the fruition of their hopes, and
the reward of their self-denial."
On Monday, December 6, 1841, the fourth Legislative Assembly met, at
the new capital, Iowa City, but the capitol building could not be used, and the
Legislature occupied a temporary frame house, that had been erected for that
purpose, during the session of 1841-2. At this session, the Superintendent of
Public Buildings (who, with the Territorial Agent, had superseded the Commis-
sioners first appointed), estimated the expense of completing the building at
$33,330, and that rooms for the use of the Legislature could be completed^ for
$15,600,
During 1842, the Superintendent commenced obtaining stone from a new
quarry, about ten miles northeast of the city. This is now known as the " Old
Capitol Quarry," and contains, it is thought, an immense quantity of excellent
building stone. Here all the stone for completing the building was obtained,
and It was so far completed, that on the 5th day of December, 1842, the Legis-
lature assembled in the new capitol. At this session, the Superintendent esti-
mated that it would cost $39,143 to finish the building. This was nearly
$6,000 higher than the estimate of the previous year, notwithstanding a large
sum had been expended in the meantime. This rather discouraging discrep-
ancy was accounted for by the fact that the officers in charge of the work were
constantly short of funds. Except the congressional appropriation of $20,000
and the loan of $5,500, obtained from the Miners' Bank, of Dubuque, all the
funds for the prosecution of the work were derived from the sale of the city
lots (which did not sell very rapidly), from certificates of indebtedness, and from
scrip, based upon unsold lots, which was to be received in payment for such lots
when they were sold. At one time, the Superintendent made a requisition for
bills of iron and glass, which could not be obtained nearer than St. Louis. To
meet this, the Agent sold some lots for a draft, payable at Pittsburgh, Pa., for
which he was compelled to pay twenty-five per cent, exchange. This draft,
amounting to $507, that officer reported to be more than one-half the cash
actually handled by him during the entire season, when the disbursements
amounted to very nearly $24,000.
With such uncertainty, it could not be expected that estimates could be very
accurate. With all these disadvantages, however, the work appears to have
been prudently prosecuted, and as rapidly as circumstances would permit.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 181
Iowa remained a Territory from 1838 to 1846, during which the office of
Governor was held by Robert Lucas, John Chambers and James Clarke.
STATE ORGANIZATION.
By an act of the Territorial Legislature of Iowa, approved February 12,
1844, the question of the formation of a State. Constitution and providing for
the election of Delegates to a convention to be convened for that purpose was
submitted to the people, to be voted upon at their township elections in April
following. The vote was largely in favor of the measure, and the Delegates
elected assembled in convention at Iowa City, on the 7th of October, 1844.
On the first day of November following, the convention completed its work and
adopted the first State Constitution.
The President of the convention, Hon. Shepherd Leffler, was instructed to
transmit a certified copy of this Constitution to the Delegate in Congress, to be
by him submitted to that body at the earliest practicable day. It was also pro-
vided that it should be submitted, together with any conditions or changes that
might be made by Congress, to the people of the Territory, for their approval
or rejection, at the township election in April, 1845.
The boundaries of the State, as defined by this Constitution, were as fol-
lows :
Beginning in the middle of the channel of the Mississippi River, opposite mouth of the
Des Moines River, thence up the said river Des Moines, in the middle of the main channel
thereof, to a point where it is intersected by the Old Indian Boundary line, or line run by John
C. Sullivan, in the year 1816 ; thence westwardly along said line to the " old " northwest corner
of Missouri ; thence due west to the middle of the main channel of the Missouri River ; thence
up in the middle of the main channel of the river last mentioned to the mouth of the Sioux or
Calumet River ; thence in a direct line to the middle of the main channel of the St. Peters River,
where the Watonwan River— according to Nicollet's map — enters the same ; thence down the
middle of the main channel of said river to the middle of the main channel of the Mississippi
River ; thence down the middle of the main channel of said river to the place of beginning.
These boundaries were rejected by Congress, but by act approved March 3,
1845, a State called Iowa was admitted into the Union, provided the people
accepted the act, bounded as follows :
Beginning at the mouth of the Des Moines River, at the middle of the Mississippi, thence
by the middle of the channel of that river to a parallel of latitude passing through the mouth of
the Mankato or Blue Earth River; thence west, along said parallel of latitude, to a point where
it is intersected by a meridian line seventeen degrees and thirty minutes west of the meridian
of Washington City ; thence due south, to the northern boundary line of the State of Missouri;
thence eastwardly, following that boundary to the point at which the same intersects the Des
Moines River ; thence by the middle of the channel of that river to the place of beginning.
These boundaries, had they been accepted, would have placed the northern
boundary of the State about thirty miles north of its present location, and would
have deprived it of the Missouri slope and the boundary of that river. The
western boundary would have been near the west line of what is now Kossuth
County. But it was not so to be. In consequence of this radical and unwel-
come change in the boundaries, the people refused to accept the act of Congress
and rejected the Constitution at the election, held August 4, 1845, by a vote of
7,656 to 7,2.35.
A second Constitutional Convention assembled at Iowa City on the 4th day
of May, 1846, and on the 18th of the same month another Constitution for the
new State with the present boundaries, was adopted and submitted to the people
for ratification on the 3d day of August following, when it was accepted ; 9,492
votes were cast "for the Constitution," and 9,036 "against the Constitution."
182 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
The Constitution was approved by Congress, and by act of Congress approved
December 28, 1846, Iowa was admitted as a sovereign State in the American
Union.
Prior to this action of Congress, however, the people of the new State held
an election under the new Constitution on the 26th day of October, and elected
Oresel Briggs, Governor ; Elisha Cutler, Jr., Secretary of State ; Joseph T.
Fales, Auditor ; Morgan Reno, Treasurer ; and members of the Senate and
House of Representatives.
At this time there were twenty-seven organized counties in the State, with
a population of nearly 100,000, and the frontier settlements were rapidly push-
ing toward the Missouri River. The Mormons had already reached there.
The first General Assembly of the State of Iowa was composed of nineteen
Senators and forty Representatives. It assembled at Iowa City, November 30,
1846, about a month before the State was admitted into the Union,
At the first session of the State Legislature, the Treasurer of State reported
that the capitol building was in a very exposed condition, liable to injury from
storms, and expressed the hope that some provision would be made to complete
it, at least sufficiently to protect it from the weather. The General Assembly
responded by appropriating $2,500 for the completion of the public buildings.
At the first session also arose the question of the re-location of the capital. The
western boundary of the State, as now determined, left Iowa City too far toward
the eastern and southern boundary of the State ; this was conceded. Congress
had appropriated five sections of land for the erection of public buildings, and
toward the close of the session a bill was introduced providing for the re-location
of the seat of government, involving to some extent the location of the State
University, which had already been discussed. This bill gave rise to a deal of
discussion and parliamentary maneuvering, almost purely sectional in its character.
It provided for the appointment of three Commissioners, who were authorized to
make a location as near the geographical center of the State as a healthy and
eligible site could be obtained ; to select the five sections of land donated by
Congress ; to survey and plat into town lots not exceeding one section of the
land so selected ; to sell lots at public sale, not to exceed two in each block.
Having done this, they were then required to suspend further operations, and
make a report of tlieir proceedings to the Governor, The bill passed both
Houses by decisive votes, received the signature of the Governor, and became a
law. Soon after, by "An act to locate and establish a State University,"
approved February 25, 1847, the unfinished public buildings at Iowa City,
together with the ten acres of land on which they Avere situated, were granted
for the use of the University, reserving their use, however, by the General
Assembly and the State officers, until other provisions were made by law.
The Commissioners forthwith entered upon their duties, and selected four
sections and two half sections in Jasper County, Two of these sections are in
what is now Des Moines Township, and the others in Fairview Township, in the
southern part of that county. These lands are situated between Prairie City
and Monroe, on the Keokuk & Des Moines Railroad, which runs diagonally
through them. Here a town was platted, called Monroe City, and a sale of
lots took place. Four hundred and fifteen lots were sold, at prices that were
not considered remarkably remunerative. The cash payments (one-fourth)
amounted to $1,797,43, while the expenses of the sale and the claims of the
Commissioners for services amounted to |2,206.57. The Commissioners made
a report of their proceedings to the Governor, as required by law, but the loca-
tion was generally condemned.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 183
When the report of the Commissioners, showing this brilliant financial ope-
ration, had been read in the House of Representatives, at the next session, and
while it was under consideration, an indignant member, afterward known as
the eccentric Judge McFarland, moved to refer the report to a select Committee
of Five, with instructions to report " how much of said city of Monroe was under
water and how much was burned." The report was referred, without the
instructions, however, but Monroe City never became the seat of government.
By an act approved January 15, 1849, the law by which the location had been
made was repealed and the new town was vacated, the money paid by purchas-
ers of lots being refunded to them. This, of course, retained the seat of govern-
ment at Iowa City, and precluded, for the time, the occupation of the building
and grounds by the University.
At the same session, $3,000 more were appropriated for completing the
State building at Iowa City. In 1852, the further sum of $5,000, and in 1854
$4,000 more were apppropriated for the same purpose, making the whole cost
$123,000, paid partly by the General Government and partly by the State, but
principally from the proceeds of the sale of lots in Iowa City.
But the question of the permanent location of the seat of government was
not settled, and in 1851 bills were introduced for the removal of the capital to
Bella and to Fort Des Moines. The latter appeared to have the support of the
majority, but was finally lost in the House on the question of ordering it to its
third reading. •
At the next session, in 1853, a bill was introduced in the Senate for the
removal of the seat of government to Fort Des Moines, and, on final vote,
was just barely defeated. At the next session, however, the effort was more
successful, and on the 15th day of January, 1855, a bill re-locating the capital
within two miles of the Raccoon Fork of the Des Moines, and for the appoint-
ment of Commissioners, was approved by Gov. Grimes. The site was selected
in 1856, in accordance with the provisions of this act, the land being donated
to the State by citizens and property-holders of Des Moines. An association of
citizens erected a building for a temporary capitol, and leased it to the State at
a nominal rent.
The third Constitutional Convention to revise the Constitution of the State
assembled at Iowa City, January 19, 1857. The new Constitution framed by
this convention was submitted to the people at an election held August 3, 1857,
when it was approved and adopted by a vote of 40,311 " for " to 38,681
" against," and on the 3d day of September following was declared by a procla-
mation of the Governor to be the supreme law of the State of Iowa.
Advised of the completion of the temporary State House at Des Moines, on
the 19th of October following. Governor Grimes issued another proclamation,
declaring the City of Des Moines to be the capital of the State of Iowa.
The removal of the archives and offices was commenced at once and con-
tinued through the Fall. It was an undertaking of no small magnitude; there
was not a mile of railroad to facilitate the work, and the season was unusually
disagreeable. Rain, snow and other accompaniments increased the difficulties ;
and it was not until December, that the last of the effects — the safe of the State
Treasurer, loaded on two large " bob-sleds " — drawn by ten yoke of oxen was de-
posited in the new capital. It is not imprudent now to remark that, during this
passage over hills and prairies, across rivers, through bottom lands and timber,
the safes belonging to the several departments contained large sums of money,
mostly individual funds, however. Thus, Iowa City ceased to be the capital of
the State, after four Territorial Legislatures, six State Legislatures and three
184 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
Constitutional Conventions had held their sessions there. By the exchange,
the old capitol at Iowa City became the seat of the University, and, except the
rooms occupied by the United States District Court, passed under the immedi-
ate and direct control of the Trustees of that institution.
Des Moines was now the permanent seat of government, made so by the
fundamental law of the State, and on the 11th day of January, 1858, the
seventh General Assembly convened at the new capital. The building used
for governmental purposes was purchased in 1864. It soon became inadequate
for the purposes for Avhich it was designed, and it became apparent that a new,
large and permanent State House must be erected. In 1870, the General
Assembly made an appropriation and provided for the appointment of a Board
of Commissioners to commence the work. The board consisted of Gov. Samuel
Merrill, ex officio. President ; Grenville M. Dodge, Council Bluffs ; James F.
Wilson, Fairfield; James Dawson, Washington; Simon G. Stein, Muscatine;
James 0. Crosby, Gainsville ; Charles Dudley, Agency City ; John N. Dewey,
Des Moines ; William L. Joy, Sioux City ; Alexander R. Fulton, Des Moines,
Secretary.
The act of 1870 provided that the building should be constructed of the
best material and should be fire proof; to be heated and ventilated in the most
approved manner; should contain suitable legislative halls, rooms for State
officers, the judiciary, library, committees, archives and the collections of the
Sta*e Agricultural Society, and for all purpoees of State Government, and
should be erected on grounds held by the State for that purpose. The sum first
appropriated was $150,000 ; and the law provided that no contract should be
made, either for constructing or furnishing the building, which should bind the
State for larger sums than those at the time appropriated. A design was drawn
and plans and specifications furnished by Cochrane & Piquenard, architects,
which were accepted by the board, and on the 23d of November, 1871, the cor-
ner stone was laid with appropriate ceremonies. The estimated cost and present
value of the capitol is fixed at $2,000,000.
From 1858 to 1860, the Sioux became troublesome in the northwestern
part of the State. These warlike Indians made frequent plundering raids upon
the settlers, and murdered several families. In 1861, several companies of
militia were ordered to that portion of the State to hunt down and punish the
murderous thieves. No battles were fought, however, for the Indians fled
when they ascertained that systematic and adequate measures had been adopted
to protect the settlers.
" The year 1856 marked a new era in the history of Iowa. In 1854, the
Chicago & Rock Island Railroad had been completed to the east bank of the
Mississippi River, opposite Davenport. In 1854, the corner stone of a railroad
bridge, that was to be the first to span the "Father of Waters," was laid with
appropriate ceremonies at this point. St. Louis had resolved that the enter-
prise was unconstitutional, and by writs of injunction made an unsuccessful
effort to prevent its completion. Twenty years later in her history, St. Louis
repented her folly, and made atonement for her sin by imitating our example.
On the 1st day of January, 1856, this railroad was completed to Iowa City.
In the meantime, two other railroads had reached the east bank of the Missis-
sippi — one opposite Burlington, and one opposite Dubuque — and these were
being extended into the interior of the State. Indeed, four lines of railroad
had been projected across the State from the Mississippi to the Missouri, hav-
ing eastern connections. On the 15th of May, 1856, the Congress of the
United States passed an act granting to the State, to aid in the construction of
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 185
railroads, the public lands in alternate sections, six miles on either side of the
proposed lines. An extra session of the General Assembly was called in July
of this year, that disposed of the grant to the several companies that proposed
to complete these enterprises. The population of our State at this time had
increased to 500,000, Public attention had been called to the necessity of a
railroad across the continent. The position of Iowa, in the very heart and
center of the Republic, on the route of this great highway across the continent,
began to attract attention, Cities and towns sprang up through the State as
if by magic. Capital began to pour into the State, and had it been employed
in developing our vast coal measures and establishing manufactories among us,
or if it had been expended in improving our lands, and building houses and
barns, it would have been well. But all were in haste to get rich, and the
spirit of speculation ruled the hour,
" In the meantime, every effort was made to help the speedy completion of
the railroads. Nearly every county and city on the Mississippi, and many in
the interior, voted large corporate subscriptions to the stock of the railroad
companies, and issued their negotiable bonds for the amount." Thus enormous
county and city debts were incurred, the payment of which these municipalities
tried to avoid upon the plea that they had exceeded the constitutional limit-
ation of their powers. The Supreme Court of the United States held these
bonds to be valid ; and the courts by mandamus compelled the city and county
authorities to levy taxes to pay the judgments. These debts are not all paid
even yet, but the worst is over and ultimately the burden will be entirely
removed
The first railroad across the State was completed to Council Bluffs in Jan-
uary, 1871. The others were completed soon after. In 1854, there was not
a mile of railroad in the State. In 1874, twenty years after, there were 3,765
miles in successful operation.
GROWTH AND PROGRESS.
When Wisconsin Territory was organized, in 1836, the entire population of
that portion of the Territory now embraced in the State of Iowa was 10,531.
The Territory then embraced two counties, Dubuque and Des Moines, erected
by the Territory of Michigan, in 1834. From 1836 to 1838, the Territorial
Legislature of Wisconsin increased the number of counties to sixteen, and the
population had increased to 22,859. Since then, the counties have increased
to ninety-nine, and the population, in 1875, was 1,366,000. The following
table will show the population at different periods since the erection of Iowa
Territory :
Year. Population. Tear. Population.
1838 22,589 1852 230,713
1840 43,115 1854 826,013
1856 519.055
1859 638,775
1860 674,913
1863 701,732
1865 754,699
1867 902,040
The most populous county in the State is Dubuque. Not only in popula,-
tion, but in everything contributing to the growth and greatness of a State has
Iowa made rapid progress. In a little more than thirty years, its wild but
beautiful prairies have advanced from the home of the savage to a highly civ-
ilized commonwealth, embracing all the elements of progress which characterize
the older States.
1844 75,152
1846 97,588
1847 116,651
1849 152,988
1850 191,982
1851 204,774
Year. Population.
1869 1,040,819
1870 1,191,727
1873 1,251,333
1875 1,366,000
1876
1877
186 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
Thriving cities and towns dot its fair surface ; an iron net-work of thou-
sands of miles of railroads is woven over its broad acres ; ten thousand school
houses, in which more than five hundred thousand children are being taught
the rudiments of education, testify to the culture and liberality of the people;
high schools, colleges and universities are generously endowed by the State ;
manufactories spring up on all her water courses, and in most of her cities
and towns.
Whether measured from the date of her first settlement, her organization as
a Territory or admission as a State, Iowa has thus far shown a growth unsur-
passed, in a similar period, by any commonwealth on the face of the earth ;
and, with her vast extent of fertile soil, with her inexhaustible treasures of
mineral wealth, with a healthful, invigorating climate ; an intelligent, liberty-
loving people; with equal, just and liberal laws, and her free schools, the
future of Iowa may be expected to surpass the most hopeful anticipations of her
present citizens.
Looking upon Iowa as she is to-day — populous, prosperous and happy — it
is hard to realize the wonderful changes that have occurred since the first white
settlements were made within her borders. When the number of States was
only twenty-six, and their total population about twenty millions, our repub-
lican form of government was hardly more than an experiment, just fairly put
upon trial. The development of our agricultural resources and inexhaustible
mineral wealth had hardly commenced. Westward the " Star of Empire "
had scarcely started on its way. West of the great Mississippi was a mighty
empire, but almost unknown, and marked on the maps of the period as " The
Great American Desert."
Now, thirty-eight stars glitter on our national escutcheon, and forty-five
millions of people, who know their rights and dare maintain them, tread
American soil, and the grand sisterhood of States extends from the Gulf of
Mexico to the Canadian border, and from the rocky coast of the Atlantic to
the golden shores of the Pacific.
THE AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE AND FARM.
Ames, Story County.
The Iowa State Agricultural College and Farm were established by an act
of the General Assembly, approved March 22, 1858. A Board of Trustees was
appointed, consisting of Governor R. P. Lowe, John D. Wright, William Duane
Wilson, M. W. Robinson, Timothy Day, Richard Gaines, John Pattee, G. W.
F. Sherwin, Suel Foster, S. W. Henderson, Clement Coffin and E. G. Day ;
the Governors of the State and President of the College being ex officio mem-
bers. Subsequently the number of Trustees was reduced to five. The Board
met in June, 1859, and received propositions for the location of the College and
Farm from Hardin, Polk, Story and Boone, Marshall, Jefferson and Tama
Counties. In July, the proposition of Story County and some of its citizens
and by the citizens of Boone County was accepted, and the farm and the site
for the buildings were located. In 1860-61, the farm-house and barn were
erected. In 1862, Congress granted to the State 240,000 acres of land for the
endowment of schools of agriculture and the mechanical arts, and 195,000 acres
were located by Peter Melendy, Commissioner, in 1862-3. George W. Bassett
was appointed Land Agent for the institution. In 1864, the General Assem-
bly appropriated $20,000 for the erection of the college building.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 187
In June of that year, the Building Committee, consisting of Suel Foster,
Peter Melendy and A. J. Bronson, proceeded to let the contract. John Browne,
of Des Moines, was employed as architect, and furnished the plans of the build-
ing, but was superseded in its construction by C. A. Dunham. The $20,000
appropriated by the General Assembly were expended in putting in the foun-
dations and making the brick for the structure. An additional appropriation
of $91,000 was made in 1866, and the building was completed in 1868.
Tuition in this college is made by law forever free to pupils from the State
over sixteen years of age, who have been resident of the State six months pre-
vious to their admission. Each county in the State has a prior right of tuition
for three scholars from each county ; the remainder, equal to the capacity of the
college, are by the Trustees distributed among the counties in proportion to the
population, and subject to the above rule. All sale of ardent spirits, wine or
beer are prohibited by law within a, distance of three miles from the college,
except for sacramental, mechanical or medical purposes.
The course of instruction in the Agricultural College embraces the following
branches : Natural Philosophy, Chemistry, Botany, Horticulture, Fruit Growing,
Forestry, Animal and Vegetable Anatomy, Geology, Mineralogy, Meteorology,
Entomology, Zoology, the Veterinary Art, Plane Mensuration, Leveling, Sur-
veying, Bookkeeping, and such Mechanical Arts as are directly connected
with agriculture ; also such other studies as the Trustees may from time to time
prescribe, not inconsistent with the purposes of the institution.
The funds arising from the lease and sale of lands and interest on invest-
ments are sufficient for the support of the institution. Several College Societies
are maintained among the students, who publish a monthly paper. There is
also an " out-law " called the " ATA^ Chapter Omega."
The Board of Trustees in 1877 was composed of C. W. Warden, Ottumwa,
Chairman ; Hon. Samuel J. Kirkwood, Iowa City ; William B. Treadway,
Sioux City ; Buel Sherman, Fredericksburg, and Laurel Summers, Le Claire.
E. W. Starten, Secretary ; William D. Lucas, Treasurer.
Board of Instruction. — A. S. Welch, LL. D., President and Professor of
Psychology and Philosophy of Science ; Gen. J. L, Geddes, Professor of Mili-
tary Tactics and Engineering; W. H. Wynn, A. M., Ph. D., Professor of
English Literature; C. E. Bessey, M. S., Professor of Botany, Zoology, Ento-
mology ; A. Thompson, C. E., Mechanical Engineering and Superintendent of
Workshops; F. E. L. Beal, B. S., Civil Engineering; T. E. Pope, A. M.,
Chemistry; M. Stalker, Agricultural and Veterinary Science; J. L. Budd,
Horticulture ; J. K. Macomber, Physics ; E. W. Stanton, Mathematics and
Political Economy ; Mrs. Margaret P. Stanton, Preceptress, Instructor in
French and Mathematics.
THE STATE UNIVERSITY.
Iowa City, Johnson County.
In the famous Ordinance of 1787, enacted by Congress before the Territory
of the United States extended beyond the Mississippi River, it was declared
that in all the territory northwest of the Ohio River, " Schools and the means
of education shall forever be encouraged." By act of Congress, approved July
20, 1840, the Secretary of the Treasury was authorized "to set apart and re-
serve from sale, out of any of the public lands within the Territory of Iowa, to
which the Indian title has been or may be extinguished, and not otherwise ap-
propriated, a quantity of land, not exceeding the entire townships, for the use
188 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
and support of a university within said Territorry when it becomes a State, and
for no other use or purpose whatever ; to be located in tracts of not less than an
entire section, corresponding with any of the large divisions into which the pub-
lic land are authorized to be surveyed."
William W. Dodge, of Scott County, was appointed by the Secretary of the
Treasury to make the selections. He selected Section 5 in Township 78, north
of Range 3, east of the Fifth Principal Meridian, and then removed from the
Territory. No more lands were selected until 1846, when, at the request of the
Assembly, John M. Whitakerof Van Buren County, was appointed, who selected
the remainder of the grant except about 122 acres.
In the first Constitution, under which Iowa was admitted to the Union, the
people directed the disposition of the proceeds of this munificent grant in ac-
cordance with its terms, and instructed the General Assembly to provide, as soon
as may be, effectual means for the improvement and permanent security of the
funds of the university derived from the lands.
The first General Assembly, by act approved February 25, 1847, established
the " State University of Iowa " at Iowa City, then the capital of the State,
"with such other branches as public convenience may hereafter require."
The " public buildings at Iowa City, together with the ten acres of land in which
they are situated," were granted for the use of said university, provided, how-
ever, that the sessions of the Legislature and State offices should be held in the
capitol until otherwise provided by law. The control and management of the
University were committed to a board of fifteen Trustees, to be appointed by the
Legislature, five of whom were to be chosen bienially. The Superintendent
of Public Instruction was made President of this Board. Provisions were made
for the disposal of the two townships of land, and for the investment of the funds
arising therefrom. The act further provides that the University shall never be
under the exclusive control of any religious denomination whatever," and as
soon as the revenue for the grant and donations amounts to $2,000 a year, the
University should commence and continue the instruction, free of charge, of fifty
students annually. The General Assembly retained full supervision over the
University, its officers and the grants and donations made and to be made to it
by the State.
Section 5 of the act appointed James P. Carleton, H. D. Downey, Thomas
Snyder, Samuel McCrory, Curtis Bates, Silas Foster, E. C. Lyon, James H.
Gower, George G. Vincent, Wm. G. Woodward, Theodore S. Parvin, George
Atchinson, S. G. Matson, H. W. Starr and Ansel Briggs, the first Board of
Trustees.
The organization of the University at Iowa City was impracticable, how-
ever, so long as the seat of government was retained there.
In January, 1849, two branches of the University and three Normal
Schools were established. The branches were located — one at Fairfield, and
the other at Dubuque, and were placed upon an equal footing, in respect to
funds and all other matters, with the University established at Iowa City.
"This act," says Col. Benton, "created three State Universities, with equal
rights and powers, instead of a 'University with such branches as public conven-
ience may hereafter demand,'' as provided by the Constitution."
The Board of Directors of the Fairfield Branch consisted of Barnet Ris-
tine. Christian W. Slagle, Daniel Rider, Horace Gaylord, Bernhart Henn and
Samuel S. Bayard. At the first meeting of the Board, Mr. Henn was elected
President, Mr. Slagle Secretary, and Mr. Gaylord Treasurer. Twenty acre*
of land were purchased, and a building erected thereon, costing $2,500.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 189
This building was nearly destroyed by a hurricane, in 1850, but was rebuilt
more substantially, all by contributions of the citizens of Fairfield. This
branch never received any aid from the State or from the University Fund,
and by act approved January 24, 1853, at the request of the Board, the Gen-
eral Assembly terminated its relation to the State.
The branch at Dubuque was placed under the control of the Superintendent
of Public Instruction, and John King, Caleb H. Booth, James M. Emerson,
Michael J. Sullivan, Richard Benson and the Governor of the State as
Trustees. The Trustees never organized, and its existence was only nominal.
The Normal Schools were located at Andrew, Oskaloosa and Mount
Pleasant, respectively. Each was to be governed by a board of seven Trustees, to
be appointed by the Trustees of the University. Each was to receive $500 annu-
ally from the income of the University Fund, upon condition that they should ed-
ucate eight common school teachers, free of charge for tuition, and that the citizens
should contribute an equal sum for the erection of the requisite buildings.
The several Boards of Trustees were appointed. At Andrew, the school was
organized Nov. 21, 1849; Samuel Ray, Principal; Miss J. S. Dorr, Assist-
ant. A building was commenced and over $1,000 expended on it, but it was
never completed. At Oskaloosa, the Trustees organized in April, 1852. This
school was opened in the Court House, September 13, 1852, under the charge
of Prof. G. M. Drake and wife. A two-story brick building was completed in
1853, costing $2,473. The school at Mount Pleasant was never organized.
Neither of these schools received any aid from the University Fund, but in
1857 the Legislature appropriated $1,000 each for those at Oskaloosa and
Andrew, and repealed the law authorizing the payment of money to them from
the University Fund. From that time they made no further effort to
continue in operation.
At a special meeting of the Board of Trustees, held February 21, 1850,
the " College of Physicians and Surgeons of the Upper Mississippi," established
at Davenport, was recognized as the " College of Physicians and Surgeons of
the State University of Iowa," expressly stipulating, however, that such recog-
nition should not render the University liable for any pecuniary aid, nor was
the Board to have any control over the property or management of the Medical
Association. Soon after, this College was removed to Keokuk, its second ses-
sion being opened there in November, 1850. In 1851, the General Assembly
confirmed the action of the Board, and by act approved January 22, 1855,
placed the Medical College under the supervision of the Board of Trustees of
the University, and it continued in operation until this arrangement was termi-
nated by the new Constitution, September 3, 1857.
From 1847 to 1855, the Board of Trustees was kept full by regular elec-
tions by the Legislature, and the Trustees held frequent meetings, but there was
no effectual organization of the University. In March, 1855, it was partially
opened for a term of sixteen weeks. July 16, 1855, Amos Dean, of Albany,
N. Y., was elected President, but he never entered fully upon its duties. The
University was again opened in September, 1855, and continued in operation
until June, 1856, under Professors Johnson, Welton, Van Valkenburg and
Guffin.
In the Spring of 1856, the capital of the State was located at Des Moines;
but there were no buildings there, and the capitol at Iowa City was not vacated
by the State until December, 1857.
In June, 1856, the faculty was re-organized, with some changes, and the
University was again opened on the third Wednesday of September, 1856.
190 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
There were one hundred and twenty-four students — eighty-three males and
forty-one females — in attendance during the year 1856-7, and the first regular
catalogue Avas published.
At a special meeting of the Board, September 22, 1857, the honorary de-
gree of Bachelor of Arts was conferrei on D. Franklin Wells. This was the
first degree conferred by the Board.
Article IX, Section 11, of the new State Constitution, which went into force
September 3, 1857, provided as follows :
The State University shall be established at one place, without branches at any other place ;
and the University fund shall be applied to that institution, and no other.
Article XI, Section 8, provided that
The seat of Government is hereby permanently established, as nov7 fixed by law, at the city
of Des Moines, in the county of Polk ; and the State University at Iowa City, in the county of
Johnson.
The new Constitution created the Board of Education, consisting of the
Lieutenant Governor, who was ex ofiicio President, and one member to be elected
from each judicial district in the State. This Board was endowed with
" full power and authority to legislate and make all needful rules and regula-
tions in relation to common schools and other educational institutions," subject
to alteration, amendment or repeal by the General Assembly, which was vested
with authority to abolish or re-organize the Board at any time after 1863.
In December, 1857, the old capitol building, now known as Central Hall of
the University, except the rooms occupied by the United States District Court,
and the property, with that exception, passed under the control of the Trustees,
and became the seat of the University. The old building had had hard usage,
and its arrangement was illy adapted for University purposes. Extensive repairs
and changes were necessary, but the Board was without funds for these pur-
poses.
The last meeting of the Board, under the old law, was held in January,
1858. At this meeting, a resolution was introduced, and seriously considered,
to exclude females from the University ; but it finally failed.
March 12, 1858, the first Legislature under the new Constitution enacted
a new law in relation to the University, but it was not materially different from
the former. March 11, 1858, the Legislature appropriated $3,000 for the re-
pair and modification of the old capitol building, and $10,000 for the erection
of a boarding house, now known as South Hall.
The^ Board of Trustees created by the new law met and duly organized
April 27, 1858, and determined to close the University until the income from its
fund should be adequate to meet the current expenses, and the buildings should
be ready for occupation. Until this term, the building known as the " Mechan-
ics' Academy" had been used for the school. The Faculty, except the Chan-
cellor (Dean), was dismissed, and all further instruction suspended, from the close
of the term then in progress until September, 1859. At this meeting, a reso-
lution was adopted excluding females from the L^niversity after the close of the
existing term ; but this was afterward, in August, modified, so as to admit them
to tlie Normal Department.
_ At the meeting of the Board, August 4, 1858, the degree of Bachelor of
Science was conferred upon Dexter Edson Smith, being the first degree con-
erred upon a student of the University, Diplomas were awarded to the mem-
bers of the first graduating class of the Normal Department as follows : Levi
/, Aylworth, Cellina H. Aylworth, Elizabeth L. Humphrey, Annie A. Pinney
and Sylvia M. Thompson.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 191
An "Act for the Government and Regulation of the State University of
Iowa," approved December 25, 1858, was mainly a re-enactment of the law of
March 12, 1858, except that changes were made in the Board of Trustees, and
manner of their appointment. This law provided that both sexes were to be
admitted on equal terms to all departments of the institution, leaving the Board
no discretion in the matter.
The new Board met and organized, February 2, 1859, and decided to con-
tinue the Normal Department only to the end of the current term, and that it
was unwise to re-open the University at that time ; but at the annual meeting
of the Board, in June of the same year, it was resolved to continue the Normal
Department in operation ; and at a special meetmg, October 25, 1859, it was
decided to re-open the University in September, 1860. Mr. Dean had resigned
as Chancellor prior to this meeting, and Silas Totten, D. D., LL. D., was elected
President, at a salary of $2,000, and his term commenced June, 1860.
At the annual meeting, June 28, 1860, a full Faculty was appointed, and
the University re-opened, under this new organization, September 19, 1860
(third Wednesday) ; and at this date the actual existence of the University may
be said to commence.
August 19, 1862, Dr. Totten having resigned. Prof. Oliver M. Spencer
was elected President and the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws was conferred
upon Judge Samuel F. Miller, of Keokuk.
At the commencement, in June, 1863, was the first class of graduates in
the Collegiate Department.
The Board of Education was abolished March 19, 1864, and the office of
Superintendent of Public Instruction was restored ; the General Assembly
resumed control of the subject of education, and on March 21, an act was ap-
proved for the government of the University. It was substantially the same as
the former law, but provided Ihat the Governor should be ex officio President of
the Board of Trustees. Until 1858, the Superintendent of Public Instruction
had been ex officio President. During the period of the Board of Education,
the University Trustees were elected by it, and elected their own President.
President Spencer was granted leave of absence from April 10, 1866, for
fifteen months, to visit Europe; and Prof. Nathan B. Leonard was elected
President pro tern.
The North Hall was completed late in 1866.
At the annual meeting in June, 1867, the resignation of President Spencer
(absent in Europe) was accepted, and Prof Leonard continued as President pro
tern., until March 4, 1868, when James Black, D. D., Vice President of Wash-
ington and Jefferson College, Penn., was elected President. Dr. Black entered
upon his duties in September, 1868.
The Law Department was established in June, 1868, and, in September fol-
lowing, an arrangement was perfected with the Iowa Law School, at Des Moines,
which had been in successful operation for three years, under the management
of Messrs. George G. Wright, Chester C. Cole and William G. Hammond, by
which that institution was transferred to Iowa City and merged in the Law De-
partment of the University. The Faculty of this department consisted of the
President of the University, Hon. Wm. G. Hammond, Resident Professor and
Principal of the Department, and Professors G. G. Wright and C. C. Cole.
Nine students entered at the commencement of the first term, and during
the year ending June, 1877, there were 103 students in this department.
At a special meeting of the Board, on the 17th of September, 1868, a Com-
mittee was appointed to consider the expediency of establishing a Medical De-
192 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
partment. This Committee reported at once in favor of the proposition, the
Faculty to consist of the President of the University and seven Professors, and
recommended that, if practicable, the new department should be opened at the
commencement of the University year, in 1869-70. At this meeting, Hon.
Ezekiel Clark was elected Treasurer of the University.
By an act of the General Assembly, approved April 11, 1870, the "Board
of Regents " was instituted as the governing power of the University, and since
that time it has been the fundamental law of the institution. The Board of
Regents held its first meeting June 28, 1870. Wm. J. Haddock was elected
Secretary, and Mr. Clark, Treasurer.
Dr. Black tendered his resignation as President, at a special meeting of the
Board, held August 18, 1870, to take effect on the 1st of December following.
His resignation was accepted.
The South Hall having been fitted up for the purpose, the first term of the
Medical Department was opened October 24, 1870, and continued until March,
1871, at which time there were three graduates and thirty-nine students.
March 1, 1871, Rev. George Thacher Avas elected President of the Univer-
sity. Mr. Thacher accepted, entered upon his duties April 1st, and was form-
ally inaugurated at the annual meeting in June, 1861.
In June, 1874, the " Chair of Military Instruction" was established, and
the President of the United States was requested to detail an officer to perform
its duties. In compliance with this request, Lieut. A. D. Schenck, Second Artil-
lery, U. S. A., was detailed as "Professor of Military Science and Tactics,"
at Iowa State University, by order of the War Department, August 26, 1874,
who reported for duty on the 10th of September following. Lieut. Schenck
was relieved by Lieut. James Chester, Third Artillery, January 1, 1877.
Trpasurer Clark resigned November 3, 1875, and John N. Coldren elected
in his stead.
At the annual meeting, in 1876, a Department of Homoeopathy was
•established.
In March, 1877, a resolution was adopted affiliating the High Schools of
the State with the University.
In June, 1877, Dr. Thacher's connection with the University was termi-
nated, and C. W. Slagle, a member of the Board of Regents, was elected Pres-
ident.
In 1872, the ex officio membership of the Superintendent of Public Instruc-
tion was abolished ; but it was restored in 1876. Following is a catalogue of
the officers of this important institution, from 1847 to 1878 :
TRUSTEES OR REGENTS.
PRESIDENTS.
FROM TO
James Harlan, Superintendent Public Instruction, ex officio 1847 1848
Thomas H. Benton, Jr,, Superintendent Public Instruction, ex officio 1848 1854
James D. Eads, Superintendent Public Instruction, ex officio 1854 1857
Maturin L. Fisher, Superintendent Public Instruction, ex officio 1857 1858
Amos Dean, Chancellor, ex officio 1858 1859
Thomas H. Benton, Jr 1859 18()3
Francis Springer 1863 1864
William M. Stone, Governor, ex officio 1864 1868
Samuel Merrill, Governor, ex officio 1868 1872
Cyrus C. Carpenter, Governor, ex officio 1872 1876
Samuel J. Kirkwood, Governor, ex officio 1876 1877
Joshua G. Newbold, Governor, ex officio 1877 1878
John H. Gear 1878
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 193
VICE PRESIDENTS. FROM TO
Silas Foster 1847 1B51
Robert Lucas 1851 1853
Edward Connelly 1854 1855
Moses J. Morsman 1855 1858
SECRETARIES.
Hugh D. Downey 1847 1851
Anson Hart 1851 1857
Elijah Sells 1857 1858
Anson Hart 1858 1864
William J. Haddock 1864
TREASURERS.
Morgan Reno, State Treasurer, ex officio 1847 1850
Israel Kister, State Treasurer, ex officio 1850 1852
Martin L. Morris, State Treasurer, ex officio 1852 1855
Henry W. Lathrop 1855 1862
William Crura 1862 1868
Ezekiel Clark 1868 1876
John N. Coldren 1876
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY.
Amos Dean, LL. D 1855 1858
Silas Totten, D. D., LL. D I860 1862
Oliver M. Spencer, D. D.* 1862 1867
James Black, D. D 1868 1870
George Thacher, D. D 1871 1877
C. W. Slagle 1877
The present educational corps of the University consists of the President,
nine Professors in the Collegiate Department, one Professor and six Instructors
in Military Science ; Chancellor, three Professors and four Lecturers in the
Law Department ; eight Professor Demonstrators of Anatomy ; Prosector of
Surgery and two Lecturers in the Medical Department, and two Professors in
the Homoeopathic Medical Department.
STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
By act of the General Assembly, approved January 28, 1857, a State His-
torical Society was provided for in connection with the University. At the
commencement, an ^.ppropriation of $250 was made, to be expended in collecting,
embodying, and preserving in an authentic form a library of books, pamphlets,
charts, maps, manuscripts, papers, paintings, statuary, and other materials illus-
trative of the history of Iowa; and with the further object to rescue from
oblivion the memory of the early pioneers ; to obtain and preserve various
accounts of their exploits, perils and hardy adventures ; to secure facts and
statements relative to the history and genius, and progress and decay of the
Indian tribes of Iowa; to exhibit faithfully the antiquities and past and present
resources of the State ; to aid in the publication of such collections of the Society
as shall from time to time be deemed of value and interest ; to aid in binding
its books, pamphlets, manuscripts and papers, and in defraying other necessary
incidental expenses of the Society.
There was appropriated by law to this institution, till the General Assembly
shall otherwise direct, the sum of $500 per annum. The Society is under the
management of a Board of Curators, consisting of eighteen persons, nine of
whom are appointed by the Governor, and nine elected by the members of the
Society. The Curators receive no compensation for their services. The annual
194 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
meeting is provided for by law, to be held at Iowa City on Monday preceding
the last Wednesday in June of each year.
The State Historical Society has published a series of very valuable collec-
tions, including history, biography, sketches, reminiscences, etc., with quite a
large number of finely engraved portraits of prominent and early settlers, under
the title of " Annals of Iowa."
THE PENITENTIARY.
Located at Fort Madison, Lee County.
The first act of the Territorial Legislature, relating to a Penitentiary in
Iowa, was approved January 25, 1839, the fifth section of which authorized the
Governor to draw the sum of $20,000 appropriated by an act of Congress ap-
proved July 7, 1838, for public buildings in the Territory of Iowa. It provided
for a Board of Directors of three persons elected by the Legislature, who should
direct the building of the Penitentiary, which should be located within one mile
of the public square, in the town of Fort Madison, Lee County, provided Fort
Madison should deed to the directors a tract of land suitable for a site, and assign
them, by contract, a spring or stream of water for the use of the Penitentiary.
To the Directors was also given the power of appointing the Warden ; the latter
to appoint his own assistants.
The first Directors appointed were John S. David and John Claypole. They
made their first report to the Legislative Council November 9, 1839. The citi-
zens of the town of Fort Madison had executed a deed conveying ten acres of
land for the building site. Amos Ladd was appointed Superintendent of the
building June 5, 1839. The building was designed of suflicient capacity to con-
tain one hundred and thirty-eight convicts, and estimated to cost $55,933.90.
It was begun on the 9th of July, 1839 ; the main building and Warden's house
were completed in the Fall of 1841. Other additions were made from time to
time till the building and arrangements were all complete according to the plan
of the Directors. It has answered the purpose of the State as a Penitentiary
for more than thirty years, and during that period many items of practical ex-
perience in prison management have been gained.
It has long been a problem how to conduct prisons, and deal with what are
called the criminal classes generally, so as to secure their best good and best
subserve the interests of the State. Both objects must be taken into considera-
tion in any humaritarian view of the subject. This problem is not yet solved,
but Iowa has adopted the progressive and enlightened policy of humane treat-
ment of prisoners and the utilization of their labor for their own support. The
labor of the convicts in the Iowa Penitentiary, as in most others in the United
States, is let out to contractors, who pay the State a certain stipulated amount
therefor, the State furnishing the shops, tools and machinery, as well as the
supervision necessary to preserve order and discipline in the prison.
While this is an improvement upon the old solitary confinement system, it
still falls short of an enlightened reformatory system that in the future will
treat the criminal for mental disease and endeavor to restore him to usefulness
in the community. The objections urged against the contract system of dis-
posing of the labor of prisoners, that it brings the labor of honest citizens into
competition with convict labor at reduced prices, and is disadvantageous to the
State, are not without force, and the system will have no place in the prisons of
the future.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 195
It is right that the convict should labor. He should not be allowed to live
in idleness at public expense. Honest men labor ; why should not they? Hon-
est men are entitled to the fruits of their toil ; why should not the convict as
well ? The convict is sent to the Penitentiary to secure public safety. The
State deprives him of his liberty to accomplish this purpose and to punish him
for violations of law, but, having done this, the State wrongs both itself and the
criminal by confiscating his earnings ; because it deprives his family of what
justly belongs to them, and an enlightened civilization will ere long demand
that the prisoner in the penitentiary, after paying a fair price for his board, is
as justly entitled to his net earnings as the good citizen outside its walls, and
his family, if he has one, should be entitled to draw his earnings or stated portion
of them at stated periods. If he has no family, then if his net earnings should
be set aside to his credit and paid over to him at the expiration of his term of
imprisonment, he would not be turned out upon the cold charities of a somewhat
Pharisaical world, penniless, with the brand of the convict upon his brow, with
no resource save to sink still deeper in crime. Let Iowa, " The Beautiful Land,"
be first to recognize the rights of its convicts to the fruits of their labor ; keep
their children from the alms-house, and place a powerful incentive before them
to become good citizens when they return to the busy world again.
ADDITIONAL PENITENTIARY.
Located at Anamosa, Jones County.
By an act of the Fourteenth General Assembly, approved April 23, 1872,
William Ure, Foster L. Downing and Martin Heisey were constituted Commis-
sioners to locate and provide for the erection and control of an additional
Penitentiary for the State of Iowa. These Commissioners met on the 4th of
the following June, at Anamosa, Jones County, and selected a site donated by
the citizens, within the limits of the city. L. W. Foster & Co., architects, of
Des Moines, furnished the plan, drawings and specifications, and work was
commenced on the building on the 28th day of September, 1872. May 13,
1873, twenty convicts were transferred to Anamosa from the Fort Madison
Penitentiary. The entire enclosure includes fifteen acres, with a frontage of
663 feet.
IOWA HOSPITAL FOR THE INSANE.
Mount Pleasant, Henry County.
By an act of the General Assembly of Iowa, approved January 24, 1855,
$4,425 were appropriated for the purchase of a site, and $50,000 for building
an Insane Hospital, and the Governor (Grimes), Edward Johnston, of Lee
County, and Charles S. Blake, of Henry County, were appointed to locate the
institution and superintend the erection of the building. These Commission-
ers located the institution at Mt. Pleasant, Henry County. A plan for a
building designed to accommodate 300 patients, drawn by Dr. Bell, of Massa-
chusetts, was accepted, and in October work was commenced under the superin-
tendence of Mr. Henry Winslow. Up to February 25, 1858, and including an
appropriation made on that date, the Legislature had appropriated $258,555.67
to this institution, but the building was not finished ready for occupancy by
patients until March 1, 1861. The Trustees wfere Maturin L. Fisher, Presi-
dent, Farmersburg; Samuel McFarland, Secretary, Mt. Pleasant; D. L.
N
196 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
McGugin, Keokuk; G. W. Kincaid, Muscatine; J. D, Elbert, Keosauqua;
John B. Lash and Harpin Riggs, Mt. Pleasant. Richard J. Patterson, M. D.,
of Ohio, was elected Superintendent; Dwight C. Dewey, M. D., Assistant
Physician; Henry Winslow, Steward; Mrs. Catharine Winslow, Matron.
The Hospital was formally opened March 6, 1861, and one hundred patients
were admitted within three months. About 1865, Dr. Mark Ranney became
Superintendent. April 18, 1876, a portion of the hospital building was
destroyed by fire. From the opening of the Hospital to the close of October,
1877, 3,584 patients had been admitted. Of these, 1,141 were discharged
recovered, 505 discharged improved, 589 discharged unimproved, and 1 died ;
total discharged, 2,976, leaving 608 inmates. During this period, there were
1,384 females admitted, whose occupation was registered "domestic duties ;"
122, no occupation; 25, female teachers; 11, seamstresses; and 25, servants.
Among the males were 916 farmers, 394 laborers, 205 without occupation, 39
cabinet makers, 23 brewers, 31 clerks, 26 merchants, 12 preachers, 18 shoe-
makers, 13 students, 14 tailors, 13 teachers, 14 agents, 17 masons, 7 lawyers,
Y physicians, 4 saloon keepers, 3 salesmen, 2 artists, and 1 editor. The pro-
ducts of the farm and garden, in 1876, amounted to $13,721.26.
Trustees, 1S77 :—T. Whiting, President, Mt. Pleasant; Mrs. E. M. Elliott,
Secretary, Mt. Pleasant; William C. Evans, West Liberty; L. E. Fellows,
Lansing ; and Samuel Klein, Keokuk ; Treasurer, M. Edwards, Mt. Pleasant.
Resident Officers: — Mark Ranney, M. D., Medical Superintendent; H. M.
Bassett, M. D., First Assistant Physician; M. Riordan, M. D., Second Assistant
Physician ; Jennie McCowen, M. D., Third Assistant Physician ; J. W. Hender-
son, Steward : Mrs. Martha W. Ranney, Matron ; Rev. Milton Sutton,
Chaplain.
HOSPITAL FOR THE INSANE.
Independence, Buchanan County.
In the Winter of 1867-8, a bill providing for an additional Hospital for the
Insane was passed by the Legislature, and an appropriation of $125,000 was
made for that purpose. Maturin L. Fisher, of Clayton County ; E, G. Morgan,
of Webster County, and Albert Clark, of Buchanan County, were appointed
Commissioners to locate and supervise the erection of the Building. Mr. Clark
died about a year after his appointment, and Hon. G. W. Bemis, of Indepen-
dence, was appointed to fill the vacancy.
The Commissioners met and commenced their labors on the 8th day of
June, 1868, at Independence. The act under which they were appointed
required them to select the most eligible and desirable location, of not less than
320 acres, within two miles of the city of Independence, that might be offered
by the citizens free of charge to the State. Several such tracts were offered,
but the Commissioners finally selected the south half of southwest quarter of
Section 5 ; the north half of northeast quarter of Section 7 ; the north half of
northwest quarter of Section 8, and the north half of northeast quarter of Sec-
tion 8, all in Township 88 north, Range 9 west of the Fifth Principal Meridian.
This location is on the west side of the Wapsipinicon River, and about a mile
from its banks, and about the same distance from Independence.
Col. S. V. Shipman, of Madison, Wis., was employed to prepare plans,
specifications and drawings of the building, which, when completed, were sub-
mitted to Dr. M. Ranney, Superintendent of the Hospital at Mount Pleasant,
who suggested several improvements. The contract for erecting the building
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 197
was awarded to Mr. David Armstrong, of Dubuque, for $88,114. The con-
tract was signed November 7, 1868, and Mr. Armstrong at once commenced
work. Mr. George Josselyn was appointed to superintend the work. The
main buildings were constructed of dressed limestone, from the quarries at
Anamosa and Farley. The basements are of the local granite worked from the
immense boulders found in large quantities in this portion of the State.
In 1872, the building was so far completed that the Commissioners called
the first meeting of the Trustees, on the 10th day of July of that year. These
Trustees were Maturin L. Fisher, Mrs. P. A. Appleman, T. W. Fawcett, C.
C. Parker, E. G. Morgan, George W. Bemis and John M. Boggs. This board
was organized, on the day above mentioned, by the election of Hon. M. L.
Fisher, President; Rev. J. G. Boggs, Secretary, and George W. Bemis, Treas-
urer, and, after adopting preliminary measures for organizing the local govern-
ment of the hospital, adjourned to the first Wednesday of the following Septem-
ber. A few days before this meeting, Mr. Boggs died of malignant fever,
and Dr. John G. House was appointed to fill the vacancy. Dr. House was
elected Secretary. At this meeting, Albert Reynolds, M. D., was elected
Superintendent; George Josselyn, Steward, and Mrs. Anna B. Josselyn,
Matron. September 4, 1873, Dr. Willis Butterfield was elected Assistant
Physician. The building was ready for occupancy April 21, 1873.
In the Spring of 1876, a contract was made with Messrs. Mackay & Lundy,
of Independence, for furnishing materials for building the outside Avails of the
two first sections of the south wing, next to the center building, for $6,250.
The carpenter work on the fourth and fifth stories of the center building was
completed during the same year, and the wards were furnished and occupied by
patients in the Fall.
In 1877, the south wing was built, but it will not be completed ready for
occupancy until next Spring or Summer (1878).
October 1, 1877, the Superintendent reported 322 patients in this hospital,
and it is now overcrowded.
The Board of Trustees at present (1878) are as follows : Maturin L.
Fisher, President, Farmersburg; John G. House, M. D., Secretary, Indepen-
dence ; Wm. G. Donnan, Treasurer, Independence ; Erastus G. Morgan, Fort
Dodge ; Mrs. Prudence A. Appleman, Clermont ; and Stephen E. Robinson,
M. D., West Union.
RESIDENT OFFICERS.
Albert Reynolds, M. D., Superintendent ; G. H. Hill, M. D., Assistant
Physician ; Noyes Appleman, Steward ; Mrs. Lucy M. Gray, Matron.
IOWA COLLEGE FOR THE BLIND.
Vinton, Benton County.
In August, 1852, Prof Samuel Bacon, himself blind, established an Insti-
tution for the Instruction of the Blind of Iowa, at Keokuk.
By act of the General Assembly, entitled " An act to establish an Asylum
for the Blind," approved January 18, 1853, the institution was adopted by the
State, removed to Iowa City, February 3d, and opened for the reception of pupils
April 4, 1853, free to all the blind in the State.
The first Board of Trustees were James D. Eads, President ; George W,
McClary, Secretary ; James H. Gower, Treasurer ; Martin L. Morris, Stephen
Hempstead, Morgan Reno and John McCaddon. The Board appointed Prof.
198 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
Samuel Bacon, Principal ; T. J. McGittigen, Teacher of Music, and Mrs. Sarah
K. Bacon, Matron. Twenty-three pupils were admitted during the first term.
In his first report, made in 1854, Prof. Bacon suggested that the name
should be changed from " Asylum for the Blind," to that of " Institution for
the Instruction of the Blind." This was done in 1855, when the General As-
sembly made an annual appropriation for the College of $55 per quarter for
each pupil. This was subsequently changed to $3,000 per annum, and a charge
of $25 as an admission fee for each pupil, which sura, with the amounts realized
from the sale of articles manufactured by the blind pupils, proved sufficient for
the expenses of the institution during Mr. Bacon's administration. Although
Mr. Bacon was blind, he was a fine scholar and an economical manager, and
had founded the Blind Asylum at Jacksonville, Illinois. As a mathematician
he had few superiors.
On the 8th of May, 1858, the Trustees met at Vinton, and made arrange-
ments for securing the donation of $5,000 made by the citizens of that town.
In June of that year, a quarter section of land was donated for the College,
by John W. 0. Webb and others, and the Trustees adopted a plan for the
erection of a suitable building. In 1860, the plan was modified, and the con-
tract for enclosing let to Messrs. Finkbine & Lovelace, for $10,420.
In August, 1862, the building was so far completed that the goods and fur-
niture of the institution were removed from Iowa City to Vinton, and early in
October, the school was opened there with twenty-four pupils. At this time.
Rev. Orlando Clark was Principal.
In August, 1864, a new Board of Trustees were appointed by the Legisla-
ture, consisting of James McQuin, President; Reed Wilkinson, Secretary; Jas.
Chapin, Treasurer; Robert Gilchrist, Elijah Sells and Joseph Dysart, organized
and made important changes. Rev. Reed Wilkinson succeeded Mr. Clark as
Principal. Mrs. L. S. B. Wilkinson and Miss Amelia Butler were appointed
Assistant Teachers ; Mrs. N. A. Morton, Matron.
Mr. Wilkinson resigned in June, 1867, and Gen, James L. Geddes was
appointed in his place. In September, 1869, Mr. Geddes retired, and was
succeeded by Prof. S. A.Knapp. Mrs. S. C. Lawton was appointed Matron,
and was succeeded by Mrs. M. A. Knapp. Prof. Knapp resigned July 1,
1875, and Prof. Orlando Clark was elected Principal, who died April 2,
1876, and was succeeded by John B. Parmalee, who retired in July, 1877,
when the present incumbent. Rev. Robert Carothers, was elected.
Trustees, 1877-8. — Jeremiah L. Gay, President ; S. H. Watson, Treasurer;
H. C. Piatt, Jacob Springer, C. L. Flint and P. F. Sturgis.
Faculty. — Principal, Rev. Robert Carothers, A. M. ; Matron, Mrs. Emeline
E. Carothers; Teachers, Thomas F. McCune, A. B., Miss Grace A. Hill,
Mrs. C. A. Spencer, Miss Mary Baker, Miss C. R. Miller, Miss Lorana Mat-
tice. Miss A. M. McCutcheon ; Musical Director, S. 0. Spencer.
The Legislative Committee who visited this institution in 1878 expressed
their astonishment at the vast expenditure of money in proportion to the needs
of the State. The structure is well built, and the money properly expended ;
yet it was enormously beyond the necessities of the State, and shows an utter
disregard of the fitness of things. The Committee could not understand why
$282,000 should have been expended for a massive building covering about two
and a half acres for the accommodation of 130 people, costing over eight thou-
sand dollars a year to heat it, and costing the State about five hundred dollars
a year for each pupil.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 199
INSTITUTION FOR THE DEAF AND DUMB.
Council Bluffs, Pottawattomie County.
The Iowa Institution for the Deaf and Dumb was established at Iowa City
by an act of the General Assembly, approved January 24, 1855. The number
of deaf mutes then in the State was 301 ; the number attending the Institution,
50. The first Board of Trustees Avere: Hon. Samuel J. Kirkwood, Hon. E.
Sells, W. Penn Clarke, J. P. Wojd, H. D. Downey, William Crum, W. E.
Ijams, Principal. On the resignation of Mr. Ijams, in 1862, the Board
appointed in his stead Mr. Benjamin Talbot, for nine years a teacher in the
Ohio Institution for the Deaf and Dumb. Mr. Talbot was ardently devoted to
the interests of the institution and a faithful worker for the unfortunate class
under his charge.
A strong effort was made, in 1866, to remove this important institution to
Des Moines, but it was located permanently at Council Bluffs, and a building
rented for its use. In 1868, Commissioners were appointed to locate a site for,
and to superintend the erection of, a new building, for which the Legislature
appropriated $125,000 to commence the work of construction. The Commis-
sioners selected ninety acres of land about two miles south of the city of Coun-
cil Bluffs. The main building and one wing were completed October 1, 1870,
and immediately occupied by the Institution. February 25, 1877, the main
building and east wing were destroyed by fire; and August 6 following, the
roof of the new west wing was blown off and the walls partially demolished by
a tornado. At the time of the fire, about one hundred and fifty pupils were in
attendance. After the fire, half the classes were dismissed and the number of
scholars reduced to about seventy, and in a week or two the school was in run-
ning order.
The Legislative Committee which visited this Institution in the Winter of
1857-8 was not well pleased with the condition of affairs, and reported that the
building (west wing) was a disgrace to the State and a monument of unskillful
workmanship, and intimated rather strongly that some reforms in management
were very essential.
Trustees, 1S77-8. — Thomas Officer, President ; N. P. Dodge, Treasurer ;
Paul Lange, William Orr, J. W. Cattell.
Superintendent, Benjamin Talbot, M. A. Teachers, Edwin South wick,
Conrad S. Zorbaugh, John A. Gillespie, John A. Kennedy, Ellen J. Israel,
Ella J. BroAvn, Mrs. H. R. Gillespie ; Physician, H. W. Hart, M. D. ; Steward,
N. A. Taylor; Matron, Mary B, Swan.
SOLDIERS' ORPHANS' HOMES.
Davenport, Cedar Falls, Glenivood.
The movement which culminated in the establishment of this beneficent in-
stitution was originated by Mrs. Annie Wittenmeyer, during the civil war of
1861-65. This noble and patriotic lady called a convention at Muscatine, on
the 7th of October 1863, for the purpose of devising measures for the support
and education of the orphan children of the brave sons of Iowa, Avho had fallen
in defense of national honor and integrity. So great was the public interest in
the movement that there was a large representation from all parts of the State
on the day named, and an association was organized called the Iowa State Or-
phan Asylum.
200 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
The first officers were : President, William M. Stone ; Vice Presidents, Mrs.
G. G. Wright, Mrs. R. L. Cadle, Mrs. J. T. Hancock, John R. Needham, J. W.
Cattell, Mrs. Mary M. Bagg ; Recording Secretary, Miss Mary Kibben ; Cor-
responding Secretary, Miss M. E. Shelton ; Treasurer, N. H. Brainerd; Board
of Trustees, Mrs. Annie Wittenmeyer, Mrs. C. B. Darwin, Mrs. D. T. Newcomb,
Mrs. L. B. Stephens, 0. Fayville, E. H. Williams, T. S. Parvin, Mrs. Shields,
Caleb Baldwin, C. C. Cole, Isaac Pendleton, H. C. Henderson.
The first meeting of the Trustees was held February 14, 1864, in the Repre-
sentative Hall, at Des Moines. Committees from both branches of the General
Assembly were present and were invited to participate in their deliberations.
Gov. Kirkwood suggested that a home for disabled soldiers should be connected
with the Asylum. Arrangements were made for raising funds.
At the next meeting, in Davenport, in March, 1864, the Trustees decided to
commence operations at once, and a committee, of which Mr. Howell, of Keo-
kuk, was Chairman, was appointed to lease a suitable building, solicit donations,
and procure suitable furniture. This committee secured a large brick building
in Lawrence, Van Buren County, and engaged Mr. Fuller, of Mt. Pleasant, as
Steward.
At the annual meeting, in Des Moines, in June, 1864, Mrs. C. B. Baldwin,
Mrs. G. G. Wright, Mrs. Dr. Horton, Miss Mary E. Shelton and Mr. George
Sherman were appointed a committee to furnish the building and take all neces-
sary steps for opening the "Home," and notice was given that at the next
meeting of the Association, a motion would be made to change the name of the
Institution to Iowa Orphans' Home.
The work of preparation was conducted so vigorously that on the 13th day
of July following, the Executive Committee announced that they were ready to
receive the children. In three weeks twenty-one were admitted, and the num-
ber constantly increased, so that, in a little more than six months from the time
of opening, there were seventy children admitted, and twenty more applica-
tions, which the Committee had not acted upon — all orphans of soldiers.
Miss M. Elliott, of Washington, was appointed Matron. She resigned,
in February, 1865, and was succeeded by Mrs. E. G. Piatt, of Fremont
Countv.
The " Home " was sustained by the voluntary contributions of the people,
until 1866, when it was assumed by the State. In that year, the General
Assem bly provided for the location of several such "Homes" in the diiferent
counties, and which were established at Davenport, Scott County; Cedar Falls,
Black Hawk County, and at Glenwood, Mills County.
The Board of Trustees elected by the General Assembly had the oversight
and management of the Soldiers' Orphans' Homes of the State, and consisted
of one person from each county in which such Home was located, and one for
the State at large, who held their office two years, or until their successors wei'e
elected and qualified. An appropriation of $10 per month for each orphan
actually supported was made by the General Assembly.
The Home in Cedar Falls was organized in 1865, and an old hotel building
was fitted up for it. Rufus C, Mary L. and Emma L. Bauer were the first
children received, in October, and by January, 1866, there were ninety-six in-
mates.
October 12, 1869, the Home was removed to a large brick building, about
two miles west of Cedar Falls, and was very prosperous for several years, but
in 1876, the General Assembly established a State Normal School at Cedar
Falls and appropriated the buildings and grounds for that purpose.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 201
By " An act to provide for the organization and support of an asylum at
Glenwood, in Mills County, for feeble mindtd children," approved March 17,
1876, the buildings and grounds used by the Soldiers' Orphans' Home at that
place were appropriated for this purpose. By another act, approved March 15,
1876, the soldiers' orphans, then at the Homes at Glenwood and Cedar Falls,
were to be removed to the Home at Davenport within ninety days thereafter,
and the Board of Trustees of the Home were authorized to receive other indigent
children into that institution, and pi'ovide for their education in industrial
pursuits.
STATE NORMAL SCHOOL.
Cedar Falls, Black Hawk County.
Chapter 129 of the laws of the Sixteenth General Assembly, in 1876, estab-
lished a State Normal School at Cedar Falls, Black Hawk County, and required
the Trustees of the Soldiers' Orphans' Home to turn over the property in their
charge to the Directors of the new institution.
The Board of Directors met at Cedar Falls June 7, 1876, and duly organ-
ized by the election of H. C. Hemenway, President ; J. J. Toleston, Secretary,
and E. Townsend, Treasurer. The Board of Trustees of the Soldiers' Orphans'
Home met at the same time for the purpose of turning over to the Directors the
property of that institution, which was satisfactorily done and properly receipted
for as re(j[uired by law. At this meeting, Prof. J. C. Gilchrist was elected
Principal of the School.
On the 12th of July, 1876, the Board again met, when executive and
teachers' committees were appointed and their duties assigned. A Steward
and a Matron were elected, and their respective duties defined.
The buildings and grounds were repaired and fitted up as well as the appro-
priation would admit, and the first term of the school opened September 6, 1876,
commencing with twenty-seven and closing with eighty-seven students. The
second term closed with eighty-six, and one hundred and six attended during
the third term.
The following are the Board of Directors, Board of Officers and Faculty :
Board of Directors. — H. C. Hemenway, Cedar Falls, President, term
expires 1882 ; L. D. Lewelling, Salem, Henry County, 1878 ; W. A. Stow,
Hamburg, Fremont County, 1878 ; S. G. Smith, Newton, Jasper County,
1880 ; E. H. Thayer, Clinton, Clinton County, 1880 ; G. S. Robinson, Storm
Lake, Buena Vista County, 1882.
Board of Officers. — J. J. Toleston, Secretary; E. Townsend, Treasurer;
"William Pattes, Steward ; Mrs. P. A. Schermerhorn, Matron — all of Cedar
Falls.
Faculty. — J. C. Gilchrist, A. M., Principal, Professer of Mental and
Moral Philosophy and Didactics ; M. W. Bartlett, A. M., Professor of Lan-
guages and Natural Science ; D. S. Wright, A. M., Professor of Mathematics ;
Miss Frances L. Webster, Teacher of Geography and History ; E. W. Burnham,
Professor of Music.
ASYLUM FOR FEEBLE MINDED CHILDREN.
Glemvoody Mills County.
Chapter 152 of the laws of the Sixteenth General Assembly, approved
March 17, 1876, provided for the establishment of an asylum for feeble minded
children at Glenwood, jNIills County, and the buildings and grounds of the
202 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
Soldiers' Orphans' Home at that place were to be used for that purpose. The
asylum was placed under the management of three Trustees, one at least of
whom should be a resident of Mills County. Children between the ages of 7
and 18 years are admitted. Ten dollars per month for each child actually sup-
ported by the State was appropriated by the act, and ^2,000 for salaries of
officers and teachers for two years.
Hon. J. W. Cattell, of Polk County ; A. J. Russell, of Mills County, and
W. S. Robertson, were appointed Trustees, who held their first meeting at
Glen wood, April 26, 1876. Mr. Robertson was elected President; Mr. Russell,
Treasurer, and Mr. Cattell, Secretary. The Trustees found the house and farm
which had been turned over to them in a shamefully dilapidated condition. The
fences were broken down and the lumber destroyed or carried away ; the win-
dows broken, doors off their hinges, floors broken and filthy in the extreme,
cellars reeking with offensive odors from decayed vegetables, and every conceiv-
able variety of filth and garbage ; drains obstructed, cisterns broken, pump
demoralized, wind-mill broken, roof leaky, and the whole property in the worst
possible condition. It was the first work of the Trustees to make the house
tenable. This was done under the direction of Mr. Russell. At the request
of the Trustees, Dr. Charles T. Wilbur, Superintendent of the Illinois Asylum,
visited Glenwood, and made many valuable suggestions, and gave them much
assistance.
0. W. Archibald, M. D., of Glenwood, was appointed Superintendent,
and soon after was appointed Secretary of the Board, vice Cattell, resigned.
Mrs. S. A. Archibald was appointed Matron, and Miss Maud M. Archibald,
Teacher.
The Institution was opened September 1, 1876 ; the first pupil admitted
September 4, and the school was organized September 10, with only five pupils,
which number had, in November, 1877, increased to eighty-seven. December
1, 1876, Miss Jennie Van Dorin, of Fairfield, was employed as a teacher and
in the Spring of 1877, Miss Sabina J. Archibald was also employed.
THE REFORM SCHOOL.
Eldora, Hardin County.
By "An act to establish and organize a State Reform School for Juvenile
Offenders," approved March 31, 1868, the General Assembly established a
State Reform School at Salem, Lee (Henry) County ; provided for a Board of
Trustees, to consist of one person from each Congressional District. For the
purpose of immediately opening the school, the Trustees were directed to accept
the proposition of the Trustees of White's Iowa Manual Labor Institute, at
Salem, and lease, for not more than ten years, the lands, buildings, etc., of the
Institute, and at once proceed to prepare for and open a reform school as a
temporary establishment.
The contract for fitting up the buildings was let to Clark & Haddock, Sep-
tember 21, 1868, and on the 7th of October following, the first inmate was
received from Jasper County. The law provided for the admission of children
of both sexes under 18 years of age. In 1876, this was amended, so that they
are now received at ages over 7 and under 16 years.
April 19, 1872, the Trustees were directed to make a permanent location
for the school, and $45,000 was appropriated for the erection of the necessary
buildings. The Trustees were further directed, as soon as practicable, to
organize a school for girls in the buildings where the boys were then kept.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 203
The Trustees located the school at Eldora, Hardin County, and in the Code
of 1873, it is permanently located there by law.
The institution is managed by five Trustees, who are paid mileage, but no
compensation for their services.
The object is the reformation of the children of both sexes, under the age
of 16 years and over 7 years of age, and the law requires that the Trustees
shall require the boys and girls under their charge to be instructed in piety and
morality, and in such branches of useful knowledge as are adapted to their age
and capacity, and in some regular course of labor, either mechanical, manufac-
turing or agricultural, as is best suited to their age, strength, disposition and
capacity, and as may seem best adapted to secure the reformation and future
benefit of the boys and girls.
A boy or girl committed to the State Reform School is there kept, disci-
plined, instructed, employed and governed, under the direction of the Trustees,
until he or she arrives at the age of majoi'ity, or is bound out, reformed or
legally discharged. The binding out or discharge of a boy or girl as i"eformed,
or having arrived at the age of majority, is a complete release from all penalties
incurred by conviction of the offense for which he or she was committed.
This is one step in the right direction. In the future, however, still further
advances will be made, and the right of every individual to the fruits of their
labor, even while restrained for the public good, will be recognized.
FISH HATCHING ESTABLISHMENT.
Hear Anamosa, Jones County.
The Fifteenth General Assembly, in 1874, passed " An act to provide for
the appointment of a Board of Fish Commissioners for the construction of
Fishways for the protection and propagation of Fish," also "An act to provide
for furnishing the rivers and lakes with fish and fish spawn." This act appro-
priated $3,000 for the purpose. In accordance with the provisions of the first
act above mentioned, on the 9th of April, 1874, S. B. Evans of Ottumwa,
Wapello County ; B. F. Shaw of Jones County, and Charles A. Haines, of
Black Hawk County, were appointed to be Fish Commissioners by the Governor.
These Commissioners met at l)es Moines, May 10, 1874, and organized by the
election of Mr. Evans, President ; Mr. Shaw, Secretary and Superintendent,
and Mr. Haines, Treasurer.
The State was partitioned into three districts or divisions to enable the
Commissioners to better superintend the construction of fishways as required by
law. That part of the State lying south of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific
Railroad Avas placed under the especial supervision of Mr. Evans ; that part be-
tween that railroad and the Iowa Division of the Illinois Central Railroad, Mr.
Shaw, and all north of the Illinois Central Railroad, Mr. Haines. At this
meeting, the Superintendent was authorized to build a State Hatching House ;
to procure the spawn of valuable fish adapted to the waters of Iowa ; hatch and
prepare the young f^sli for distribution, and assist in putting them into the waters
of the State.
In compliance with these instructions, Mr. Shaw at once commenced work,
and in the Summer of 1874, erected a "' State Hatching House" near Anamosa,
20x40 feet, two stories ; the second story being designed for a tenement ; the
first story being the "hatching room." The hatching troughs are supplied
with water from a magnificent spring four feet deep and about ten feet in diam-
eter, afibrding an abundant and unfailing supply of pure running water. During
204 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
the first year, from May 10, 1874, to May 10, 1875, the Commissioners distributed
within the State 100,000 Shad, 300,000 California Salmon, 10,000 Bass,
80,000 Penobscot (Maine) Salmon, 5,000 land-locked Salmon, 20,000 of
other species.
By act approved March 10, 1876, the law was amended so that there should
be but one instead of three Fish Commissioners, and B. F. Shaw was appointed,
and the Commissioner was authorized to purchase twenty acres of land, on
which the State Hatching House was located near Anamosa.
In the Fall of 1876, Commissioner Shaw gathered from the sloughs of the
Mississippi, Avhere they would have been destroyed, over a million and a half of
small fish, which were distributed in the various rivers of the State and turned
into the Mississippi.
In 1875-6, 583,000 California Salmon, and in 1877, 303,500 Lake Trout
were distributed in various rivers and lakes in the State. The experiment of
stocking the small streams with brook trout is being tried, and 81,000 of the
speckled beauties were distributed in 1877. In 1876, 100,000 young eels were
distributed. These came from New York and they are increasing rapidly.
At the close of 1877, there were at least a dozen private fish farms in suc-
cessful operation in various parts of the State. Commissioner Shaw is en-
thusiastically devoted to the duties of his office and has performed an important
service for the people of the State by his intelligent and successful operations.
The Sixteenth General Assembly passed an act in 1878, prohibiting the
catching of any kind of fish except Brook Trout from March until June of each
year. Some varieties are fit for food only during this period.
THE PUBLIC LANDS.
The grants of public lands made in the State of Iowa, for various purposes,,
are as follows :
1. The 500,000 Acre Grant.
2. The IGth Section Grant.
3. The Mortgage School Lands.
4. The University Grant.
5. The Saline Grant.
6. The Des Moines River Grant.
7. The Des Moines River School Lands.
8. The Swamp Land Grant.
9. The Railroad Grant.
10. The Agricultural College Grant.
I. THE FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND ACRE GRANT.
When the State was admitted into the Union, she became entitled to
500,000 acres of land by virtue of an act of Congress, approved September 4,
1841, which granted to each State therein specified 500,000 acres of public land
for internal improvements ; to each State admitted subsequently to the passage
of the act, an amount of land which, with the amount that might have been
granted to her as a Territory, would amount to 500,000 acres. All these lands
were required to be selected within the limits of the State to which they were
granted.
The Constitution cf Iowa declares that the proceeds of this grant, together
with all lands then granted or to be granted by Congress for the benefit of
schools, shall constitute a perpetual fund for the support of schools throughout
the State. By an act approved January 15, 1849, the Legislature established.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 205
a board of School Fund Commissioners, and to that board was confided the
selection, care and sale of these lands for the benefit of the School Fund. Until
1855, these Commissioners were subordinate to the Superinteudent of Public
Instruction, but on the 15th of January of that year, they were clothed with
exclusive authority in the management and sale of school lands. The ofiice of
School Fund Commissioner was abolished March 23, 1858, and that ofiicer in
each county was required to transfer all papers to and make full settlement with
the County Judge. By this act, County Judges and Township Trustees Avere
made the agents of the State to control and sell the sixteenth sections ; but no
further provision was made for the sale of the 500,000 acre grant until April
3d, 1860, when the entire management of the school lands was committed to
the Boards of Supervisors of the several counties.
II. THE SIXTEENTH SECTIONS.
By the provisions of the act of Congress admitting Iowa to the Union, there
was granted to the new State the sixteenth section in every township, or wliere
that section had been sold, other lands of like amount for the use of schools.
The Constitution of the State provides that the proceeds arising from the sale
of these sections shall constitute a part of the permanent School Fund. The
control and sale of these lands were vested in the School Fund Commissioners
of the several counties until March 23, 1858, when they were transferred to the
County Judges and Township Trustees, and were finally placed under the
supervision of the County Boards of Supervisors in January, 1861.
III. THE MORTGAGE SCHOOL LANDS.
These do not belong to any of the grants of land proper. They are lands
that have been mortgaged to the school fund, and became school lands when bid
oiF by the State by virtue of a law passed in 1862. Under the provisions of the
law regulating the management and investment of the permanent school fund,
persons desiring loans from that fund are required to secure the payment thereof
with interest at ten per cent, per annum, by promissory notes endorsed by two
good sureties and by mortgage on unincumbered real estate, which must be
situated in the county where the loan is made, and which must be valued by
three appraisers. Making these loans and taking the required securities was
made the duty of the County Auditor, who was required to report to the Board
of Supervisors at each meeting thereof, all notes, mortgages and abstracts of
title connected Avith the school fund, for examination.
When default was made of payment of money so secured by mortgage, and
no arrangement made for extension of time as the law provides, the Board of
Supervisors were authorized to bring suit and prosecute it with diligence to
secure said fund; and in action in favor of the county for the use of the school
fund, an injunction may issue without bonds, and in any such action, when
service is made by publication, default and judgment may be entered and
enforced without bonds. In case of sale of land on execution founded on any
such mortgage, the attorney of the board, or other person duly authorized, shall,
on behalf of the State or county for the use of said fund, bid such sum as the
intere'='ts of said fund may require, and if struck off to the State the land shall
be held and disposed of as the other lands belonging to the fund. These lands
are known as the Mortgage School Lands, and reports of them, including
description and amount, are required to be made to the State Land Ofiice.
206 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
IV. UNIVERSITY LANDS,
By act of Congress, July 20, 1840, a quantity of land not exceeding two
<»ntire townships was reserved in the Territory of Iowa for the use and support
of a university within said Territory when it should become a State. This land
was to be located in tracts of not less than an entire section, and could be used
for no other purpose than that designated in the grant. In an act supplemental
to that for the admission of Iowa, March 3, 1845, the grant was renewed, and it
was provided that the lands should be used "solely for the purpose of such
university, in such manner as the Legislature may prescribe."
Under this grant there were set apart and approved by the Secretary of the
Treasury, for the use of the State, the following lands :
ACRES.
In the Iowa City Land District, Feb. 26, 1849 20,150.49
In the Fairfield Land District, Oct. 17, 1849 9,685.20
In the Iowa City Land District, Jan. 28, 18-50 2,-571.81
In the Fairfield Land District, Sept. 10, 18-50 3,198.20
In the Dubuque Land District, May 19, 1852 10,-5-52.24
Total 45,957.94
These lands were certified to the State November 19, 1859. The University
lands are placed by law under the control and management of the Board of
Trustees of the Iowa State University. Prior to 1865, there had been selected
and located under 282 patents, 22,892 acres in sixteen counties, and 23,036
acres unpatented, making a total of 45,928 acres.
V. — SALINE LANDS.
By act of Congress, approved March 3, 1845, the State of Iowa was
granted the use of the salt springs within her limits, not exceeding twelve.
By a subsequent act, approved May 27, 1852, Congress granted the springs
to the State in fee simple, together with six sections of land contiguous to each,
to be disposed of as the Legislature might direct. In 1861, the proceeds of
these lands then to be sold were constituted a fund for founding and support-
ing a lunatic asylum, but no sales were made. In 1856, the proceeds of the
saline lands were appropriated to the Insane Asylum, repealed in 1858. In
1860, the saline lands and funds were made a part of the permanent fund of
the State University. These lands were located in Appanoose, Davis, Decatur,
Lucas, Monroe, Van Buren and Wayne Counties.
VI. — THE DES MOINES RIVER GRANT.
By act of Congress, approved August 8, 1846, a grant of land was made
for the improvement of the navigation of Des Moines River, as follows :
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in
Congress assembled, That there be, and hereby is, granted to said Territory of Iowa, for the
purpose of aiding said Territory to improve the navigation of the Des Moines River from its
mouth to the Raccoon Fork (so called) in said Territory, one equal moiety, in alternate sections,
of the public lands (remaining unsold and not otherwise disposed of, incumbered or appropri-
ated), in a strip five miles in width on each side of said river, to be selected within said Terri-
tory by an agent or agents to be appointed by the Governor thereof, subject to the approval of
the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States.
Sec. 2. Aiid be it further enacted. That the lands hereby granted shall not be conveyed
or disposed of by said Territory, nor by any State to be formed out of the same, except as said
improvement shall progress ; that is, the said Territory or State may sell so much of said lands
as shall produce the sum of thirty thousand dollars, and then the sales shall cease until the Gov-
ernor of said Territory or State shall certify the fact to the President of the United States that
one-half of said sum lias been expended upon said improvements, when the said Territory or
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 207
State may sell and convey a quantity of the residue of said lands sufficient to replace the amount
expended, and thus the sales shall progress as the proceeds thereof shall be expended, and the
fact of such expenditure shall be certified as aforesaid.
Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That the said River Des Moines shall be and forever
remain a public highway for the use of the Government of the United States, free from any toll
or other charge whatever, for any property of the United States or persons in their service
passing through or along the same : Provided always, That it shall not be competent for the said
Territory or future State of Iowa to dispose of said lands, or any of them, at a price lower than,
for the time being, shall be the minimum price of other public lands.
Sec. 4. And be it further enacted. That whenever the Territory of Iowa shall be admitted
into the Union as a State, the lands hereby granted for the above purpose shall be and become
the property of said State for the purpose contemplated in this act, and for no other : PrevideS
the Legislature of the State of Iowa shall accept the said grant for the said purpose." Approved
Aug. 8, 1846.
By joint resolution of the General Assembly of Iowa, approved January 9,
1847, the grant was accepted for the purpose specified. By another act, ap-
proved February 24, 1847, entited "An act creating the Board of Public
Works, and providing for the improvement of the Des Moines River," the
Legislature provided for a Board consisting of a President, Secretary and
Treasurer, to be elected by the people. This Board was elected August 2,
1847, and was organized on the 22d of September following. The same act
defined the nature of the improvement to be made, and provided that the work
should be paid for from the funds to be derived from the sale of lands to be
sold by the Board.
. Agents appointed by the Governor selected the sections designated by "odd
numbers" throughout the whole extent of the grant, and this selection was ap-
proved by the Secretary of the Treasury. But there was a conflict of opinion
as to the extent of the grant. It was held by some that it extended from the
mouth of the Des Moines only to the Raccoon Forks ; others held, as the
agents to make selection evidently did, that it extended from the mouth to the
head waters of the river. Richard M. Young, Commissioner of the General
Land Office, on the 23d of February, 1848, construed the grant to mean that
" the State is entitled to the alternate sections within five miles of the Des
Moines River, throughout the whole extent of that river within the limits of
Iowa." Under this construction, the alternate sections above the Raccoon
Forks would, of course, belong to the State; but on the 19th of June, 1848,
some of these lands were, by proclamation, thrown into market. On the 18tli
of September, the Board of Public Works filed a remonstrance with the Com-
missioner of the General Land Office. The Board also sent in a protest to the
State Land Office, at which the sale was ordered to take place. On the 8th of
January, 1849, the Senators and Representatives in Congress from Iowa also
protested against the sale, in a communication to Hon. Robert J. Walker, Sec-
retary of the Treasury, to which the Secretary replied, concurring in the
opinion that the grant extended the whole length of the Des Moines River in
Iowa.
On the 1st of June, 1849, the Commissioner of the General Land Office
directed the Register and Receiver of the Land Office at Iowa City " to with-
hold from sale all lands situated in the odd numbered sections within five miles
on each side of the Des Moines River above the Raccoon Forks." March 13,
1850, the Commissioner of the General Land Office submitted to the Secretary
of the Interior a list "showing the tracts falling within the limits of the Des
Moines River grant, above the Raccoon Forks, etc., under the decision of the
Secretary of the Treasury, of March. 2, 1849," and on the 6th of April
following, Mr. Ewing, then Secretary of the Interior, reversed the decision of
Secretary Walker, but ordered the lands to be withheld from sale until Con-
208
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
gress could have an opportunity to pass an explanatory act. The Iowa author-
ities appealed from this decision to the President (Taylor), who referred the
matter to the Attorney General (Mr. Johnson). On the 19th of July, Mr.
Johnson submitted as his opinion, that by the terms of the grant itself it ex-
tended to the very source of the Des Moines, but before his opinion Avas pub-
lished President Taylor died. When Mr. Tyler's cabinet was formed, the
question was submitted to the new Attorney Ge'neral (Mr. Crittenden), who. on
the 30th of June, 1851, reported that in his opinion the grant did not extend
above the Raccoon Forks. Mr. Stewart, Secretary of the Interior, concurred
with Mr. Crittenden at first, but subsequently consented to lay the whole sub-
ject before the President and Cabinet, who decided in favor of the State.
October 29, 1851, Mr. Stewart directed the Commissioner of the General
Land Office to "submit for his approval such lists as had been prepared, and to
proceed to report for like approval lists of the alternate sections claimed by the
State of Iowa above the Raccoon Forks, as far as the surveys have prof^ressed,
or may hereafter be completed and returned." And on the following day, three
lists of these lands were prepared in the General Land Office.
The lands approved and certified to the State of Iowa under this grant, and
all lying above the Raccoon Forks, are as follows :
By Secretary Stewart, Oct. 30, 1851 81,707.93 acres.
March 10, 1852 143* 908.37 "
By Secretary McLellan, Dec. 17, 1853 33 142 48 '<
Dec. 30, 1853 12,'813.'51 "
Total 271,572.24
acres.
The Commissioners and Register of the Des Moines River Improvement, in
their report to the Governor, November 80, 1852, estimates the total amount of
lands then available for the work, including those in possession of the State and
those to be surveyed and approved, at nearly a million acres. The indebtedness
then standing against the fund was about $108,000, and the Commissioners
estimated the work to be done would cost about $1,200,000.
January 19, 1853, the Legislature authorized the Commissioners to sell
" any or all the lands which have or may hereafter be granted, for not less than
.$1,300,000." ^
On the 24th of January, 1853, the General Assembly provided for the elec-
tion of a Commissioner by the people, and appointed two Assistant Commission-
ers, with authority to make a contract, selling the lands of the Improvement
for $1,300,000. This new Board made a contract, June 9, 1855, with the Des
Moines Navigation & Railroad Company, agreeing to sell all the lands donated
to the State by Act of Congress of August 8, 1846, which the State had not
-sold prior to December 23, 1853, for $1,300,000, to be expended on the im-
provement of the river, and in paying the indebtedness then due. This con-
tract was duly reported to the Governor and General Assembly.
By an act approved January 25, 1855, the Commissioner and Register of
the Des Moines River Improvement were authorized to negotiate with the Des
Moines Navigation & Railroad Company for the purchase of lands in Webster
County which had been sold by the School Fund Commissioner as school lands,
but which had been certified to the State as Des Moines River lands, and had,
therefore, become the property of the Company, under the provisions of its
contract with the State.
March 21, 1856, the old question of the extent of the grant was again raised
and the Commissioner of the General Land Office decided tho. it was limited to
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 209
the Raccoon Fork. Appeal was made to the Secretary of the Interior, and by
him the matter was referred to the Attorney General, who decided that the grant
extended to the northern boundary of the State ; the State relinquished its
claim to lands lying along the river in Minnesota, and the vexed question was
supposed to be finally settled.
The land which had been certified, as well as those extending to the north-
ern boundary within the limits of the grant, were reserved from pre-emption
and sale by the General Land Commissioner, to satisfy the grant of August 8,
1846, and they were treated as having passed to the State, which from time to
time sold portions of them prior to their final transfer to the Des Moines Navi-
igation & Railroad Company, applying the proceeds thereof to the improve-
. ment of the river in compliance with the terms of the grant. Prior to the final
sale to the Company, June 9, 1854, the State had sold about 327,000 acres, of
which amount 58,830 acres were located above the Raccoon Fork. The last
certificate of the General Land Office bears date December 30, 1853.
•After June 9th, 1854, the Des Moines Navigation & Railroad Company
carried on the work under its contract with the State. As the improvement
progressed, the State, from time to time, by its authorized officers, issued to the
Company, in payment for said work, certificates for lands. But the General
Land Office ceased to certify lands under the grant of 1846. The State
had made no other provision for paying for the improvements, and disagree-
ments and misunderstanding arose between the State authorities and the
Company.
March 22, 1858, a joint resolution was passed by the Legislature submitting
a proposition for final settlement to the Company, which was accepted. The Com-
pany paid to the State ^20,000 in cash, and released and conveyed the dredge boat
and materials named in the resolution ; and the State, on the 3d of May, 1858,
executed to the Des Moines Navigation & Railroad Company fourteen deeds
or patents to the lands, amounting to 256,703.64 acres. These deeds were
intended to convey all the lands of this grant certified to the State by the Gen-
eral Government not previously sold ; but, as if for the purpose of covering any
tract or parcel that might have been omitted, the State made another deed of
conveyance on the 18th day of May, 1858. These fifteen deeds, it is claimed,
by the Company, convey 266,108 acres, of which about 53,367 are below the
Raccoon Fork, and the balance, 212,741 acres, are above that point.
Besides the lands deeded to the Company, the State had deeded to individual
purchasers 58,830 acres above the Raccoon Fork, making an aggregate of 271,-
571 acres, deeded above the Fork, all of which had been certified to the State
by the Federal Government.
By act approved March 28, 1858, the Legislature donated the remainder of
the grant to the Keokuk, Fort Des Moines & Minnesota Railroad Company,
upon condition that said Company assumed all liabilities resulting from the Des
Moines River improvement operations, reserving 50,000 acres of the land in
security for the payment thereof, and for the completion of the locks and dams
at Bentonsport, Croton, Keosauqua and Plymouth. For every three thousand
dollars' worth of work done on the locks and dams, and for every three thousand
dollars paid by the Company of the liabilities above mentioned, the Register of
the State Land Office was instructed to certify to the Company 1,000 acres of
the 50,000 acres reserved for these purposes. Up to 1865, there had been pre-
sented by the Company, under the provisions of the act of 1858, and allowed,
claims amounting to $109,579.37, about seventy-five per cent, of which had
been settled.
210 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
After the passage of the Act above noticed, the question of the extent of the
original grant was again mooted, and at the December Term of the Supreme Court
of the United States, in 1859-60, a decision was rendered declaring that the
grant did not extend above Raccoon Fork, and that all certificates of land above
the Fork had been issued without authority of law and Avere, therefore, void
(see 23 How., 66).
The State of Iowa had disposed of a large amount of land without authority,
according to this decision, and appeal was made to Congress for relief," which
was granted on the 3d day of March, 1861, in a joint resolution relinquishing
to the State all the title which the United States then still retained in the tracts
of land along the Des Moines River above Raccoon Fork, that had been im-
properly certified to the State by the Department of the Interior, and which is "
now held by bona fide purchasers under the State of Iowa.
In confirmation of this relinquishment, by act approved July 12, 1862,
Congress enacted :
That the grant of lands to the then Territory of Iowa for the improvement of the Des Moines
River, made by the act of August 8, 1846, is hereby extended so as to include the alternate sec-
tions (designated by odd numbers) lying within five miles of said river, between the Raccoon
Fork and the northern boundary of said State; such lands are to be held and applied in accord-
ance with the provisions of the original grant, except that the consent of Congress is hereby given
to the application of a portion thereof to aid in the construction of the Keokuk, Fort Des Moines
& Minnesota Railroad, in accordance with the provisions of the act of the General Assembly of
the State of Iowa, approved March 22, 1858. And if any of the said lands shall have been sold
or otherwise disposed of by the United States before the passage of this act, except those released
by the United States to the grantees of the State of Iowa, under joint resolution of March 3,
1861, the Secretary of the Interior is hereby directed to set apart an equal amount of lands within
said State to be certified in lieu thereof; Provider^, that if the State shall have sold and conveyed
any portion of the lands lying within the limits of the grant the title of which has proved invalid,
any lands which shall be certified to said State in lieu thereof by virtue of the provisions of this
act, shall inure to and be held as a trust fund for the benefit of the person or persons, respect-
ively, whose titles shall have failed as aforesaid.
The grant of lands by the above act of Congress was accepted by a joint
resolution of the General Assembly, September 11, 1862, in extra session. On
the same day, the Governor was authorized to appoint one or more Commis-
sioners to select the lands in accordance with the grant. These Commissioners
Avere instructed to report their selections to the Registrar of the State Land
Ofiice. The lands so selected were to be held for the purposes of the grant, and
were not to be disposed of until further legislation should be had. D. W. Kil-
burne, of Lee County, Avas appointed Commissioner, and, on the 25th day of
April, 1864, the General Land Officer authorized the selection of 300,000 acres
from the vacant public lands as a part of the grant of July 12, 1862, and the
selections were made in the Fort Dodge and Sioux City Land Districts.
Many difficulties, controversies and conflicts, in relation to claims and titles,
grcAv out of this grant, and these difficulties were enhanced by the uncertainty
of its limits until the act of Congress of July, 1862. But the General Assem-
bly sought, by wise and appropriate legislation, to protect the integrity of titles
derived from the State. Especially was the determination to protect the actual
settlers, who had paid their money and made improvements prior to the final
settlement of the limits of the grant by Congress.
VII. — THE DES MOINES RIVER SCHOOL LANDS.
These lands constituted a part of the 500,000 acre grant made by Congress
in 1841; including 28,378.46 acres in Webster County, selected by the Agent of
^he State under that grant, and approved by the Commissioner of the General
L;ind Office February 20, 1851. They were ordered into the market June 6,
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 211
1853, by the Superintendent of Public Instruction, who authorized John ToL
man, School Fund Commissioner for Webster County, to sell them as school
lands. Subsequently, when the act of 1846 was construed to extend the Des
Moines River grant above Raccoon Fork, it was held that the odd numbered
sections of these lands within five miles of the river were appropriated by that
act, and on the 30th day of December, 1853, 12,813.51 acres were set apart
and approved to the State by the Secretary of the Interior, as a part of the
Des Moines River grant. January 6, 1854, the Commissioner of the General
Land Ofiice transmitted to the Superintendent of Public Instruction a certified
copy of the lists of these lands, indorsed by the Secretary of the Interior.
Prior to this action of the Department, however, Mr. Tolman had sold to indi-
vidual purchasers 3,194.28 acres as school lands, and their titles were, of course,
killed. For their relief, an act, approved April 2, 1860, provided that, upon
application and proper showing, these purchasers should be entitled to draw
from the State Treasury the amount they had paid, with 10 per cent, interest,
on the contract to purchase made with Mr. Tolman. Under this act, five appli-
cations were made prior to 1864, and the applicants received, in the aggregate,
$949.53.
By an act approved April 7, 1862, the Governor was forbidden to issue to
the Dubuque & Sioux City Railroad Company any certificate of the completion
of any part of said road, or any conveyance of lands, until the company should
execute and file, in the State Land Ofiice, a release of its claim — first, to cer-
tain swamp lands ; second, to the Des Moines River Lands sold by Tolman ;
third, to certain other river lands. That act provided that "the said company
shall transfer their interest in those tracts of land in Webster and Hamilton
Counties heretofore sold by John Tolman, School Fund Commissioner, to the
Register of the State Land Office in trust, to enable said Register to carry out
and perform said contracts in all cases when he is called upon by the parties
interested to do so, before the 1st day of January, A. D. 1864.
The company filed its release to the Tolman lands, in the Land Office, Feb-
ruary 27, 1864, at the same time entered its protest that it had no claim upon
them, never had pretended to have, and had never sought to claim them. The
Register of the State Land Office, under the advice of the Attorney General,
decided that patents would be issued to the Tolman purchasers in all cases
where contracts had been made prior to December 23, 1853, and remaining
uncanceled under the act of 1860. But before any were issued, on the 27th of
August, 1864, the Des Moines Navigation & Railroad Company commenced a
suit in chancery, in the District Court of Polk County, to enjoin the issue of
such patents. On the 30th of August, an ex parte injunction was issued. In
January, 1868, Mr. J. A. Harvey, Register of the Land Office, filed in the
court an elaborate answer to plaintiffs' petition, denying that the company had
any right to or title in the lands. Mr. Harvey's successor, Mr. C. C. Carpen-
ter, filed a still more exhaustive answer February 10, 1868. August 3, 1868,
the District Court dissolved the injunction. The company appealed to the
Supreme Court, where the decision of the lower court was affirmed in December,
1869.
VIII. SWAMP LAND GRANT.
By an act of Congress, approved March 28, 1850, to enable Arkansas and
other States to reclaim swampy lands within their limits, granted all the swamp
and overflowed lands remaining unsold within their respective limits to the
several States. Although the total amount claimed by Iowa under this act
o
212 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
docs not exceed 4,000,000 acres, it has. like the Des Moines River and some
of the Umd grants, cost the State considerahle trouble and expense, and required
a deal of legislation. The State expended large sums of money in making the
selections, securing proofs, etc., but the General Government appeared to be
laboring under the impression that Iowa was not acting in good faith ; that she
had selected a large amount of lands under the swamp land grant, transferred
her interest to counties, and counties to private speculators, and the General
Land OHice permitted contests as to the character of the lands already selected
by the Agents of the State as "swamp lands." Congress, by joint resolution
Bee. 18, 185G, and by act March 3, 1857, saved the State from the fatal result
of this ruinous policy. Many of these lands w-ere selected in 1854 and 1855,
immediately after several remarkably wet seasons, and it was but natural that
some portions of the selections would not appear swampy after a few dry seasons.
Some time after these first selections were made, persons desired to enter
parcels of the so-called swamp lands and offering to prove them to be dry. In
such cases the General Land Office ordered hearing before the local land officers,
and if they decided the land to be dry, it was permitted to be entered and the
claim of the State rejected. Speculators took advantage of this. Affidavits
were bought of irresponsible and reckless men, who, for a few dollars, would
confidently testify to the character of lands they never saw. These applica-
tions multiplied until they covered 3,000,000 acres. It was necessary that
Congress should confirm all these selections to the State, that this gigantic
scheme of fraud and plunder might be stopped. The act of Congress of
March 3, 1857, was designed to accomplish this purpose. But the Commis-
sioner of the General Land Office held that it was only a qualified confirma-
tion, and under this construction sought to sustain the action of the Department
in rejecting the claim of the State, and certifying them under act of May 15,
1856, under which the railroad companies claimed all swamp land in odd num-
bered sections within the limits of their respective roads. This action led to
serious complications. When the railroad grant was made, it was not intended
nor was it understood that it included any of the swamp lands. These were
already disposed of by previous grant. Nor did the companies expect to
receive any of them, but under the decisions of the Department adverse to the
State the way was opened, and they were not slow to enter their claims. March
4, 1862, the Attorney General of the State submitted to the General Assendjly
an opinion that the railroad companies Avere not entitled even to contest the
right of the State to these lands, under the swamp land grant. A letter from
the Acting Commissioner of the General Land Office expressed the same
opinion, and the General Assembly by joint resolution, approved April 7, 1862,
expressly repudiated the acts of the railroad companies, and disclaimed any
intention to claim these lands under any other than the act of Congress of
Sept. 28, 1850. A great deal of legislation has been found necessary in rela-
tion to these swamp lands.
IX. — THE RAILROAD GRANT.
One of the most important grants of public lands to Iowa for purposes of
internal improvement was that known as the "Railroad Grant," by act of
Congress approved May 15, 1856. This act granted to the State of Iowa, for
the purpose of aiding in the construction of railroads from Burlington, on the
Mississippi River, to a point on the Missouri River, near the mouth of Platte
River ; from the city of Davenport, via Iowa City and Fort Des Moines to
HISTORY OF THE STx\.TE OF IOWA. 213
Council Bluffs ; from Lyons City northwesterly to a point of intersection with
the main line of the Iowa Central Air Line Railroad, near Maquoketa ; thence
on said main line, running as near as practicable to the Forty-second Parallel ;
across the said State of Iowa to th^ Missouri River ; from the city of Dubuque
to a point on the Missouri River, near Sioux City, with a branch from the
mouth of the Tete des Morts, to the nearest point on said road, to be com-
pleted as soon as the main road is completed to that point, every alternate section
of land, designated by odd numbers, for six sections in width on each side of
said roads. It was also provided that if it should appear, when the lines of those
roads were definitely fixed, that the United States had sold, or right of pre-
emption had attached to any portion of said land, the State was authorized to
select a quantity equal thereto, in alternate sections, or parts of sections, within
fifteen miles of the lines so located. The lands remaining to the United States
within six miles on each side of said roads were not to be sold for less than the
double minimum price of the public lands when sold, nor were any of said lands
to become subject to private entry until they had been first offered at public
sale at the increased price.
Section 4 of the act provided that the lands granted to said State shall be
disposed of by said State only in the manner following, that is to say : that a
quantity of land not exceeding one hundred and twenty sections for each of said
roads, and included within a continuous length of twenty miles of each of said
roads, may be sold ; and when the Governor of said State shall certify to the
Secretary of the Interior that any twenty continuous miles of any of said roads
is completed, then another quantity of land hereby granted, not to exceed one
hundred and twenty sections for each of said roads having twenty continuous
miles completed as aforesaid, and included .within a continuous length of twenty
miles of each of such roads, may be sold ; and so from time to time until said
roads are completed, and if any of said roads are not completed within ten
years, no further sale shall be made, and the lands unsold shall revert to the
United States."
At a special session of the General Assembly of Iowa, by act approved July
14, 1856, the grant was accepted and the lands were granted by the State to
the several railroad companies named, provided that the lines of their respective
roads should be definitely fixed and located before April 1, 1857 ; and pro-
vided further, that if either of said companies should fail to have seventy-five
miles of road completed and equipped by the 1st day of December, 1859, and
its entire road completed by December 1, 1865, it should be competent for the
State of Iowa to resume all rights to lands remaining undisposed of by the
company so failing.
The railroad companies, with the single exception of the Iowa Central Air
Line, accepted the several grants in accordance with the provisions of the above
act, located their respective roads and selected their lands. The grant to the
Iowa Central Avas again granted to the Cedar Rapids & Missouri River Railroad
Company, Avhich accepted them.
By act, approved April 7, 1862, the Dubuque & Sioux City Railroad Com-
pany was required to execute a release to the State of certain swamp and school
lands, included within the limits of its grant, in compensation for an extension
of the time fixed for the completion of its road.
A careful examination of the act of Congress does not reveal any special
reference to raih'oad companies. The lands were granted to the State, and the
act evidently contemplate the sale of them b^ the State, and the appropriation
of the proceeds to aid in the construction of certain lines of railroad within its
214 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
limits. Section 4 of the act clearly defines the authority of the State in dis-
posing of the lands.
Lists of all the lands embraced by the, grant were made, and certified to the
State by the proper authorities. Under aft act of Congress approved August 3,
1854, entitled ''An act to vest in the several States and Territories the title in
fee of the lands which have been or may he certified to them,'' these certified lists,
the originals of which are filed in the General Land Ofiice, conveyed to the State
"the fee simple title to all the lands embraced in such lists that are of the char-
acter contemplated " by the terms of the act making the grant, and "intended
to be granted thereby ; but where lands embraced in such lists are not of the
character embraced by such act of Congress, and were not intended to be granted
thereby, said lists, so far as these lands are concerned, shall be perfectly null
and void; and no right, title, claim or interest shall be conveyed thereby."
Those certified lists made under the act of May 1-5, 1856, were forty-three in
number, viz.: For the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad, nine ; for the
Mississippi &. Missouri Railroad, 11; for the Iowa Central Air Line, thirteen;
and for the Dubuque & Sioux City Railroad, ten. The lands thus approved to
the State were as follows :
Burlington & Missouri River R. R 287,095.34 acres.
Mississippi & Missouri River R. R 774,674.30 "
Cedar Rapids & Missouri River R. R 775,454.19 "
Dubuque & Sioux City R. R 1,226,558.32 "
A portion of these had been selected as swamp lands by the State, under
the act of September 28, 1850, and these, by the terms of the act of August 3,.
1854, could not be turned over to the railroads unless the claim of the State to
them as swamp was first rejected. It was not possible to determine from the
records of the State Land Oflfice the extent of the conflicting claims arising under
the two grants, as copies of the swamp land selections in some of tlie counties
were not filed of record. The Commissioner of the General Land OiEce, however,
prepared lists of the lands claimed by the State as swamp under act of September
28, 1850, and also claimed by the railroad companies under act of May 15,
1856, amounting to 553,298.33 acres, the claim to which as swamp had been
rejected by thQ Department. These were consequently certified to the State as
railroad lands. There was no mode other than the act of July, 1856, prescribed
for transferring the title to these lands from the State to the companies. The
courts had decided that, for the purposes of the grant, the lands belonged to the
State, and to her the companies should look for their titles. It was generally
accepted that the act of the Legislature of July, 1856, was all that was neces-
sary to complete the transfer of title. It was assumed that all the rights and
powers conferred upon the State by the act of Congress of May 14, 1856, were
by the act of the General Assembly transferred to the companies ; in other
words, that it was designed to put the companies in the place of the State as the
grantees from Congress — and, therefore, that which perfected the title thereto
to the State perfected the title to the companies by virtue of the act of July,
1856, One of the companies, however, the Burlington & Missouri River Rail-
road Company, was not entirely satisfied with this construction. Its managers
thought that some further and specific action of the State authorities in addition
to the act of the Legislature was necessary to complete their title. This induced
Gov. Lowe to attach to the certified lists his official certificate, under the broad
seal of the State. On the 9th of November, 1859, the Governor thus certified
to them (commencing at the Missouri River) 187,207.44 acres, and December
27th, 43,775.70 acres, an aggregate of 231,073.14 acres. These were the only
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 215
lands under the grant that were certified by the State authorities with any
design of perfecting the title already vested in the company by the act of July,
1856. The lists which were afterward furnished to the company were simply
certified by the Governor as being correct copies of the lists received by the
State from the United States General Land Office, These subsequent lists
embraced lands that had been claimed by the State under the Swamp Land
Grant.
It Avas urged against the claim of the Companies that the effect of the act
of the Legislature was simply to substitute them for the State as parties to the
grant. 1st. That the lands were granted to the State to be held in trust for the
accomplishment of a specific purpose, and therefore the State could not part
with the title until that purpose should have been accomplished. 2d. That it
was not the intention of the act of July 14, 1856, to deprive the State of the con-
trol of the lands, but on the contrary that she should retain supervision of them
and the right to withdraw all rights and powers and resume the title condition-
ally conferred by that act upon the companies in the event of their failure to
complete their part of the contract. 3d. That the certified lists from the Gen-
eral Land Office vested the title in the State only by virtue of the act of Con-
gress approved August 3, 1854. The State Land Office held that the proper
construction of the act of July 14, 1856, when accepted by the companies, was
that it became a co7iditional contract that might ripen into a positive sale of the
lands as from time to time the work should progress, and as the State thereby
became authorized by the express terms of the grant to sell them.
This appears to have been the correct construction of the act, but by a sub-
sequent act of Congress, approved June 2, 1864, amending the act of 1856, the
terms of the grant were changed, and numerous controversies arose between the
companies and the State.
The ostensible purpose of this additional act was to allow the Davenport &
Council Bluffs Railroad "to modify or change the location of the uncompleted
portion of its line," to run through the town of Newton, Jasper County, or as
nearly as practicable to that point. The original grant had been made to the
State to aid in the construction of railroads within its limits and not to the com-
panies, but Congress, in 1864, appears to have been utterly ignorant of what
had been done under the act of 1856, or, if not, to have utterly disregarded it.
The State had accepted the original grant. The Secretary of the Interior had
already certified to the State all the lands intended to be included in the grant
within fifteen miles of the lines of the several railroads. It will be remembered
that Section 4, of the act of May 15, 1856, specifies the manner of sale of
these lands from time to time as work on the railroads should progress, and also
provided that " if any of said roads are not completed within ten years, no fur-
ther sale shall be made, and the lands unsold shall revert to the United States."
Having vested the title to these lands in trust, in the State of Iowa, it is plain
that until the expiration of the ten years there could be no reversion, and the
State, not the United States, must control them until the grant should expire
by limitation. The United States authorities could not rightfully require the
Secretary of the Interior to certify directly to the companies any portion of
the lands already certified to the State. And yet Congress, by its act of June
2, 1864, provided that whenever the Davenport & Council Bluffs Railroad Com-
pany should file in the General Land Office at Washington a map definitely
showing such new location, the Secretary of the Interior should cause to be cer-
tified and conveyed to said Company, from time to time, as the road progressed,
out of any of the lands belonging to the United States, not sold, reserved, or
216 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
otherwise disposed of, or to which a pre-emption claim or right of homestead had
not attached, and on which a bona fide settlement and improvement had not
been made under color of title derived from the United States or from the State
of Iowa, within six miles of such newly located line, an amount of land per
mile e(j[ual to that originally authorized to be granted to aid in the construction
of said road by the act to which this was an amendment.
The term " out of any lands belonging to the United States, not sold, re-
served or otherwise disposed of, etc.," would seem to indicate that Congress did
intend to grant lands already granted, but when it declared that the Company
should have an amount per mile equal to that originally authorized to be granted,
it is plain that the framers of the bill were ignorant of the real terms of the
original grant, or that they designed that the United States should resume the
title it had already parted with two years before the lands could revert to the
United States under the original act, which was not repealed.
A similar change was made in relation to the Cedar Rapids & Missouri
Railroad, and dictated the conveyance of lands in a similar manner.
Like provision was made for the Dubuque & Sioux City Railroad, and the
Company was permitted to change the location of its line between Fort Dodge
and Sioux City, so as to secure the best route between those points ; but this
change of location was not to impair the right to the land granted in the orig-
inal act, nor did it change the location of those lands.
By the same act, the Mississippi & Missouri Railroad Company Avas author-
ized to transfer and assign all or any part of the grant to any other company or
person, " if, in the opinion of said Company, the construction of said railroad
across the State of Iowa would be thereby sooner and more satisfactorily com-
pleted ; but such assignee should not in any case be released from the liabilities
and conditions accompanying this grant, nor acquire perfect title in any other
manner than the same would have been acquired by the original grantee."
Still further, the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad was not forgotten,
and was, by the same act, empowered to receive an amount of land per mile
equal to that mentioned in the original act, and if that could not be found within
the limits of six miles from the line of said road, then such selection might
be made along such line within twenty miles thereof out of any public lands
belonging to the United States, not sold, reserved or otherwise disposed of, or
to which a pre-emption claim or right of homestead had not attached.
Those acts of Congress, which evidently originated in the "lobby," occa-
sioned much controversy and trouble. The Department of the Interior, how-
ever, recognizing the fact that when the Secretary had certified the lands to the
State, under the act of 1856, that act divested the United States of title, under
the vesting act of August, 1854, refused to review its action, and also refused
to order any and all investigations for establishing adverse claims (except in
pre-emption cases), on the ground that the United States had parted with the
title, and, therefore, could exercise no control over the land.
May 12, 1864, before the passage of the amendatory act above described,
Congress granted to the State of Iowa, to aid in the construction of a railroad
from McGregor to Sioux City, and for the benefit of the McGregor Western
Railroad Company, every alternate section of land, designated by odd numbers,
for ten sections in width on each side of the proposed road, reserving the right
to substitute other lands whenever it was found that the grant infringed upon
pre-empted lands, or on lands that had been reserved or disposed of for any other
purpose. In such cases, the Secretary of the Interior was instructed to select, in
lieu, lands belonging to the United States lying nearest to the limits specified.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 217
X. — AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE AND FARM LANDS.
An Agricultural College and Model Farm was established by act of the
General Assembly, approved March 22, 1858. By the eleventh section of the
act, the proceeds of the five-section grant made for the purpose of aiding in the
erection of public buildings was appropriated, subject to the approval of Con-
gress, together with all lands that Congress might thereafter grant to the State
for the purpose, for the benefit of the institution. On the 23d of March, by
joint resolution, the Legislature asked the consent of Congress to the proposed
transfer. By act approved July 11, 1862, Congress removed the restrictions
imposed in the "five-section grant," and authorized the General Assembly to
make such disposition of the lands as should be deemed best for the interests of
the State. By these several acts, the five sections of land in Jasper County
certified to the State to aid in the erection of public buildings under the act of
March 3, 1845, entitled " An act supplemental to the act for the admission of
the States of Iowa and Florida into the Union," were fully appropriated for
the benefit of the Iowa Agricultural College and Farm. The institution is
located in Story County. Seven hundred and twenty-one acres in that and
two hundred in Boone County were donated to it by individuals interested in
the success of the enterprise.
By act of Congress approved July 2, 1862, an appropriation was made to
each State and Territory of 30,000 acres for each Senator and Representative
in Congress, to which, by the apportionment under the census of 1860, they
were respectively entitled. This grant was made for the purpose of endowing
colleges of agriculture and mechanic arts.
Iowa accepted this grant by an act passed at an extra session of its Legis-
lature, approved September 11, 1862, entitled "An act to accept of the grant,
and carry into execution the trust conferred upon the State of Iowa by an act
of Congress entitled ' An act granting public lands to the several States and
Territories which may provide colleges for the benefit of agriculture and the
mechanic arts,' approved July 2, 1862." This act made it the duty of the
Governor to appoint an agent to select and locate the lands, and provided
that none should be selected that were claimed by any county as swamp
lands. The agent was required to make report of his doings to the Governor,
who was instructed to submit the list of selections to the Board of Trustees of
the Agricultural College for their approval. One thousand dollars were appro-
priated to carry the law into effect. The State, having two Senators and six
Representatives in Congress, was entitled to 240,000 acres of land under this
grant, for the purpose of establishing and maintaining an Agricultural College.
Peter Melendy, Esq., of Black Hawk County, was appointed to make the selec-
tions, and during August, September and December, 1863, located them in the
Fort Dodge, Des Moines and Sioux City Land Districts. December 8, 1864,
these selections were certified by the Commissioner of the General Land Office,
and were approved to the State by the Secretary of the Interior December 13,
1864. The title to these lands was vested in the State in fee simple, and con-
flicted with no other claims under other grants.
The agricultural lands were approved to the State as 240,000.96 acres ; but
as 35,691.66 acres were located Avithin railroad limits, which were computed at
the rate of two acres for one, the actual amount of land approved to the State
under this grant was only 204,309.30 acres, located as follows:
In Des Moines Land District 6,804.96 acrea.
In Sioux City Laud District 59,02.5.37 "
Tn Fort Dodge Land District 1.38,478.97 "
218 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
By act of the General Assembly, approved March 29, 18G4, entitled, " An
act authorizing the Trustees of the Iowa State Agricultural College and Farm
to sell all lands acquired, granted, donated or appropriated for the benefit of
said college, and to make an investment of the proceeds thereof," all these lands
were granted to the Agricultural College and Farm, and the Trustees were au-
thorized to take possession, and sell or lease them. They were then, under the
control of the Trustees, lands as follows :
Under the act of July 2, 1852 204,309.30 acres.
Of the live-section grant 3 200.00 "
Lands donated in Story County 721.00 "
Lands donated in Boone County 200.00 "
Total 208,430.30 acres.
The Trustees opened an office at Fort Dodge, and appointed Hon. G. W-
Bassett their agent for the sale of these lands.
THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
The germ of the free public school system of Iowa, which now ranks sec-
ond to none in the United States, was planted by the first settlers. They had
migrated to the " The Beautiful Land " from other and older States, where the
common school system had been tested by many years' experience, bringing
with them some knowledge of its advantages, which they determined should be
enjoyed by the children of the land of their adoption. The system thus planted
was expanded and improved in the broad fields of the West, until now it is
justly considered one of the most complete, comprehensive and liberal in the
country.
Nor is this to be wondered at when it is remembered humble log school
• houses were built almost as soon as the log cabin of the earliest settlers were
occupied by their brave builders. In the lead mining regions of the State, the
first to be occupied by the white race, the hardy pioneers provided the means
for the education of their children even before they had comfortable dwellings
for their families. School teachers were among the first immigrants to Iowa.
Wherever a little settlement was made, the school house was the first united
public act of the settlers; and the rude, primitive structures of the early time
only disappeared when the communities had increased in population and wealth,
and were able to replace them with more commodious and comfortable buildings.
Perhaps in no single instance has the magnificent progress of the State of Iowa
been more marked and rapid than in her common school system and in her school
houses, which, long since, superseded the log cabins of the first settlers. To-
day, the school houses which everywhere dot the broad and fertile prairies of
Iowa are unsurpassed by those of any other State in the great Union. More
especially is this true in all her cities and villages, where liberal and lavish
appropriations have been voted, by a generous people, for the erection of large,
commodious and elegant buildings, furnished with all the modern improvements,
and costing from $10,000 to $60,000 each. The people of the State have ex-
pended more than $10,000,000 for the erection of public school buildings.
The first house erected in Iowa was a log cabin at Dubuque, built by James
L. Langworthy and a few other miners, in the Autumn of 1833. When it was
completed, George Cabbage was employed as teacher during the Winter of
1833-4, and thirty-five pupils attended his school. Barrett Whittemoro taught
the second term with twenty-five pupils in attendance. Mrs. Caroline Dexler
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 219
commenced teaching in Dubuque in March, 1836. She was the first female
teacher there, and probably the first in Iowa. In 1839, Thomas H. Benton,
Jr., afterward for ten years Superintendent of Public Instruction, opened an
English and classical school in Dubuque. The first tax for the support of
schools at Dubuque was levied in 1840.
Among the first buildings erected at Burlington was a commodious log school
house in 1834, in which Mr. Johnson Pierson taught the first school in the
Winter of 1834-5.
The first school in Muscatine County was taught by George Bumgardner,
in the Spring of 1837, and in 1839, a log school house was erected in Musca-
tine, which served for a long time for school house, church and public hall.
The first school in Davenport was taught in 1838. In Fairfield, Miss Clarissa
Sawyer, James F. Chambers and Mrs. Reed taught school in 1839.
When the site of Iowa City was selected as the capital of the Territory of
Iowa, in May, 1839, it was a pei'fect wilderness. The first sale of lots took
place August 18, 1839, and before January 1, 1840, about twenty families had
settled within the limits of the town ; and during the same year, Mr. Jesse
Berry opened a school in a small frame building he had erected, on what is now
College street.
The first settlement in Monroe County was made in 1843, by Mr. John R.
Gray, about two miles from the present site of Eddyville; and in the Summer
of 1844, a log school house was built by Gray, William V. Beedle, C. Renfro,
Joseph McMullen and Willoughby Randolph, and the first school was opened
by Miss Urania Adams. The building was occupied for school purposes for
nearly ten years. About a year after the first cabin was built at Oskaloosa, a
log school house was built, in which school was opened by Samuel W. Caldwell
in 1844.
At Fort Des Moines, now the capital of the State, the first school was
taught by Lewis Whitten, Clerk of the District Court in the Winter of 1846-7,
in one of the rooms on " Coon Row," built for barracks.
The first school in Pottawattomie County was opened by George Green, a
Mormon, at Council Point, prior to 1849 ; and until about 1854, nearly, if not
quite, all the teachers in that vicinity were Mormons.
The first school in Decorah was taught in 1853, by T. W. Burdick, then a
young man of seventeen. In Osceola, the first school was opened by Mr. D.
W. Scoville. The first school at Fort Dodge was taught in 1855, by Cyrus C.
Carpenter, since Governor of the State. In Crawford County, the first school
Iiouse was built in Mason's Grove, in 1856, and Morris McHenry first occupied
it as teacher.
. During the first twenty years of the history of Iowa, the log school house pre-
vailed, and in 1861, there were 893 of these primitive structures in use for
school purposes in the State. Since that time they have been gradually dis-
appearing. In 1865, there were 796 ; in 1870, 336, and in 1875, 121.
Iowa Territory was created July 3, 1838. January 1, 1839, the Territorial
Legislature passed an act providing that " there shall be established a common
school, or schools in each of the counties in this Territory, which shall be
open and free for every class of white citizens between the ages of five and
twenty-one years." The second section of the act provided that "the County
Board shall, from time to time, form such districts in their respective counties
whenever a petition may be presented for the purpose by a majority of the
voters resident within such contemplated district." These* districts were gov-
erned by boards of trustees, usually of three persons ; each district was required
220 ' HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
to maintain school at least three months in every year ; and later, laws were
enacted providing for county school taxes for the payment of teachers, and that
whatever additional sura might be required should be assessed upon the parents
sending, in proportion to the length of time sent.
When Iowa Territory became a State, in 1846, with a population of 100,-
000, and with 20,000 scholars within its limits, about four hundred school dis-
tricts had been organized. In 1850, there were 1,200, and in 1857, the
number had increased to 3,265.
In March, 1858, upon the recommendation of Hon. M. L. Fisher, then Su-
perintendent of Public Instruction, the Seventh General Assembly enacted that
" each civil township is declared a school district," and provided that these should
be divided into sub-districts. This law went into force March 20, 1858, and
reduced the number of school districts from about 3,500 to less than 900.
This change of school organization resulted in a very material reduction of
the expenditures for the compensation of District Secretaries and Treasurers.
An eifort was made for several years, from 1867 to 1872, to abolish the sub-
district system. Mr. Kisst-ll, Superintendent, recommended, in his report of
January 1, 1872, and Governor Merrill forcibly endorsed his views in his annual
message. But the Legislature of that year provided for the formation of inde-
pendent districts from the sub-districts of district townships.
The system of graded schools was inaugurated in 1849 ; and new schools, in
which more than one teacher is employed, are universally graded.
The first official mention of Teachers' Institutes in the educational records
of Iowa occurs in the annual report of Hon. Thomas H. Benton, Jr., made
December 2, 1850, who said, "An institution of this character was organized a
few years ago, composed of the teachers of the mineral regions of Illinois,
Wisconsin and Iowa. An association of teachers has, also, been formed in the
county of Henry, and an effort was made in October last to organize a regular
institute in the county of Jones." At that time — although the beneficial
influence of these institutes was admitted, it was urged that the expenses of
attending them was greater than teachers with limited compensation were able
to bear. To obviate this objection, Mr. Benton recommended that " the sum of
$150 should be appropriated annually for three years, to be drawn in install-
ments of $50 each by the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and expended
for these institutions." He proposed that three institutes should be held annu-
ally at points to be designated by the Superintendent.
No legislation in this direction, however, was had until March, 1858, when
an act Avas passed authorizing the holding of teachers' institutes for periods not
less than six working days, whenever not less than thirty teachers should desire.
The Superintendent was authorized to expend not exceeding $100 for any one
institute, to be paid out by the County Superintendent as the institute might
direct for teachers and lecturers, and one thousand dollars was appropriated to
defray the expenses of these institutes.
December 6, 1858, Mr. Fisher reported to the Board of Education that
institutes had been appointed in tAventy counties within the preceding six months,
and more would have been, but the appropriation had been exhausted.
The Board of Education at its first session, commencing December 6, 1858,
enacted a code of school laws which retained the existing provisions for teachers'
institutes.
In March, 1860, the General Assembly amended the act of the Board by
appropriating " a sum not exceeding fifty dollars annually for one such institute,
held as provided by law in each county."
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 221
In 1865, Mr. Faville reported that "the provision made by the State for the
benefit of teachers' institutes has never been so fully appreciated, both by the
people and the teachers, as during the last two years."
By act approved March 19, 1874, Normal Institutes were established in
each county, to be held annually by the County Superintendent. This was
regarded as a very decided step in advance by Mr. Abernethy, and in 1876 the
Sixteenth General Assembly established the first permanent State Normal
School at Cedar Falls, Black Hawk County, appropriating the building and
property of the Soldiers' Orphans' Home at that place for that purpose. This
school is now " in the full tide of successful experiment."
The public school system of Iowa is admirably organized, and if the various
officers who are entrusted with the educational interests of the commonwealth
are faithful and competent, should and will constantly improve.
" The public schools are supported by funds arising from several sources.
The sixteenth section of every Congressional Township was set apart by the
General Government for school purposes, being one-thirty-sixth part of all the
lands of the State. The minimum price of these lands was fixed at one dollar
and twenty-five cents per acre. Congress also made an additional donation to
the State of five hundred thousand acres, and an appropriation of five per cent,
on all the sales of public lands to the school fund. The State gives to this
fund the proceeds of the sales of all lands which escheat to it ; the proceeds of
all fines for the violation of the liquor and criminal laAvs. The money derived
from these sources constitutes the permanent school fund of the State, which
cannot be diverted to any other purpose. The penalties collected by the courts
for fines and forfeitures go to the school fund in the counties where collected.
The proceeds of the sale of lands and the five per cent, fund go into the State
Treasury, and the State distributes these proceeds to the several counties accord-
ing to their request, and the counties loan the money to individuals for long
terms at eight per cent, interest, on security of land valued at three times the
amount of the loan, exclusive of all buildings and improvements thereon. The
interest on these loans is paid into the State Treasury, and becomes the avail-
able school fund of the State. The counties are responsible to the State for all
money so loaned, and the State is likewise responsible to the school fund for all
moneys transferred to the counties. The interest on these loans is apportioned
by the State Auditor semi-annually to the several counties of the State, in pro-
portion to the number of persons between the ages of five and twenty-one years.
The counties also levy an annual tax for school purposes, which is apportioned
to the several district townships in the same way. A district tax is also
levied for the same purpose. The money arising from these several sources
constitutes the support of the public schools, and is sufficient to enable
every sub-district in the State to afford from six to nine months' school
each year."
The taxes levied for the support of schools are self-imjiosed. Under the
admirable school laws of the State, no taxes can be legally assessed or collected
for the erection of school houses until they have been ordered by the election of
the district at a school meeting legally called. The school houses of Iowa are
the pride of the State and an honor to the people. If they have been some-
times built at a prodigal expense, the tax payers have no one to blame but
themselves. The teachers' and contingent funds are determined by the Board of
Directors under certain legal restrictions. These boards are elected annually,
except in the independent districts, in which the board may be entirely changed
every three years. The only exception to this mode of levying taxes for support
223 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
of schools is the county school tax, which is determined by the County Board
of Supervisors. The tax is from one to three mills on the dollar ; usually,
however, but one. Mr. Abernethy, who was Superintendent of Public Instruc-
tion from 1872 to 1877, said in one of his reports :
There is but little opposition to the levy of taxes for the support of schools, and there
â– would be still less if the funds were always properly guarded and judiciously expended. How-
ever much our people disagree upon other subiects, they are practically united upon this.
The opposition of wealth has long since ceased to exist, and our wealthy men are usually the
most liberal in their views and the most active friends of popular education. They are often
found upon our school boards, and usually make the best of school officers. It is not uncommon
for Boards of Directors, especially in the larger towns and cities, to be composed wholly of mea
â– who represent the enterprise, wealth and business of their cities.
At the close of 1877, there were 1,086 township districts, 3,138 indepen-
dent districts and 7,015 sub-districts. There were 9,948 ungraded and 47G
graded schools, with an average annual session of seven months and five days.
There were 7,348 male teachers employed, whose average compensation was
$34.88 per month, and. 12, 518 female teachers, with an average compensation
of $28.69 per month.
The number of persons between the ages 5 and 21 years, in 1877, was
567,859; number enrolled in public schools, 421,163; total average attendance,
251,372 ; average cost of tuition per month, $1.62. There are 9,279 frame,
671 brick, 257 stone and 89 log school houses, making a grand total of 10,296,
valued at $9,044,973. The public school libraries number 17,329 volumes.
Ninety-nine teachers' institutes were held during 1B77. Teachers' salaries
amounted to $2,953,645. There was expended for school houses, grounds,
libraries and apparatus, $1,106,788, and for fuel and other contingencies,
$1,136,995, making the grand total of $5,197,428 expended by the generous
people of Iowa for the support of their magnificent public schools in a single
year. The amount of the permanent school fund, at the close of 1877, was
$3,462,000. Annual interest, $276,960.
In 1857, there were 3,265 independent districts, 2,708 ungraded schools,
and 1,572 male and 1,424 female teachers. Teachers' salaries amounted to
$198,142, and the total expenditures for schools was only $364,515. Six hun-
dred and twenty-three volumes were the extent of the public school libraries
twenty years ago, and there were only 1,686 school houses, valued at $571,064.
In twenty years, teachers' salaries have increased from $198,142, in 1857,
to $2,953,645 in 1877. Total school expenditures, from $364,515 to
$5,197,428.
The significance of such facts as these is unmistakable. Such lavish expen-
ditures can only be accounted for by the liberality and public spirit of the
people, all of whom manifest their love of popular education and their fiiith in
the public schools by the annual dedication to their support of more than one
per cent, of their entire taxable property ; this, too, uninterruptedly through a
series of years, commencing in the midst of a war which taxed their energies and
resources to the extreme, and continuing through years of general depression in
business — years of moderate yield of produce, of discouragingly low prices, and
even amid the scanty surroundings and privations of pioneer life. Few human
enterprises have a grander significance or give evidence of a more noble purpose
than the generous contributions from the scanty resources of the pioneer for the
purposes of public education. ,
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 223
POLITICAL RECORD.
TERRITORIAL OFFICERS.
Grovernors — Robert Lucas, 1838-41 ; John Chambers, 1841-45 ; James
Clarke, 1845.
Secretaries — William B. Conway, 1838, died 1839 ; James Clarke, 1839 ;
0. H. W. Stull, 1841 ; Samuel J. Burr, 1843 ; Jesse Williams, 1845.
Auditors— Jesse Williams, 1840 ; Wm. L. Gilbert, 1843 • Robert M.
Secrest, 1845.
Treasurers — Thornton Bayliss, 1839 ; Morgan Reno, 1840.
Judges — Charles Mason, Chief Justice, 1838 ; Joseph Williams, 1838 ;
Thomas S. Wilson, 1838.
Presidents of Council — Jesse B. Browne, 1838-9 ; Stephen Hempstead,
1839-40; M. Bainridge, 1840-1; Jonathan W. Parker, 1841-2; John D.
Elbert, 1842-3 ; Thomas Cox, 1843-4 ; S. Clinton Hastings, 1845 ; Stephen
Hempstead, 1845-6.
Speakers of the House — William H. Wallace, 1838-9 ; Edward Johnston,
1839-40 ; Thomas Cox, 1840-1 ; Warner Lewis, 1841-2 ; James M. Morgan,
1842-3 ; James P. Carleton, 1843-4 ; James M. Morgan, 1845 ; George W.
McCleary, 1845-6.
First Constitutional Convention, 1844- — Shepherd Leffler, President ; Geo.
S. Hampton, Secretary.
Second Constitutional Convention, 184-6 — Enos Lowe, President ; William
Thompson, Secretary. ,
OFFICERS OF THE STATE GOVERNMENT.
Governors — Ansel Briggs, 1846 to 1850 ; Stephen Hempstead, 1850 to
1854; James W. Grimes, 1854 to 1858 ; Ralph P. Lowe, 1858 to 1860; Sam-
uel J. Kirkwood, 1860 to 1864 ; William M. Stone, 1864 to 1868 ; Samuel
Morrill, 1868 to 1872 ; Cyrus C. Carpenter, 1872 to 1876 ; Samuel J. Kirk-
wood, 1876 to 1877; Joshua G. Newbojd, Acting, 1877 to 1878; John H.
Gear, 1878 to .
Lieutenant Crovernor — Office created by the new Constitution September 3,
1857— Oran Faville, 1858-9 ; Nicholas J. Rusch, 1860-1 ; John R. Needham,
1862-3: Enoch W. Eastman, 1864-5; Benjamin F. Gue, 1866-7; John
Scott, 1868-9; M. M. Walden, 1870-1; H. C. Bulis, 1872-3; Joseph Dy-
sart, 1874-5 ; Joshua G. Newbold, 1876-7 ; Frank T. Campbell, 1878-9.
Secretaries of State — Elisha Cutler, Jr., Dec. 5, 1846, to Dec. 4, 1848 ;
Josiah H. Bonney, Dec. 4, 1848, to Dec. 2, 1850; George W. McCleary, Dec.
2, 1850, to Dec. 1, 1856 ; Elijah Sells, Dec. 1, 1856, to Jan. 5, 1863 ; James
Wright, Jan. 5, 1863, to Jan. 7, 1867 ; Ed. Wright, Jan. 7, 1867, to Jan. 6,
1873; Josiah T. Young, Jan. 6, 1873, to .
Auditors of State— Joseph T. Fales, Dec. 5, 1846, to Dec. 2, 1850 ; Will-
iam Pattee, Dec. 2, 1850, to Dec. 4, 1854 ; Andrew J. Stevens, Dec. 4, 1854,
resigned in 1855; John Pattee, Sept. 22, 1855, to Jan. 3, 1859; Jonathan
W. Cattell, 1859 to 1865; John A. Elliot, 1865 to 1871 ; John Russell, 1871
to 1875 ; Buren R. Sherman, 1875 to .
Treasurers of State — Morgan Reno, Dec. 18, 1846, to Dec. 2, 1850 ;
Israel Kister, Dec. 2, 1850, to Dec. 4, 1852 ; Martin L. Morris, Dec. 4, 1852,
to Jan. 2, 1859 ; John W. Jones, 1859 to 1863 ; William H. Holmes, 1863 to
224 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
1867 ; Samuel E. Kankin, 186T to 1873 ; William Christy, 1873 to 1877 ;
George W. Bemis, 1877 to .
Superintendents of Public Instruction — Office created in 1847 — James Harlan,
June 5, 1845 (Supi-eme Court decided election void) ; Thomas H. Benton, Jr.,
May 23, 1844, to June 7, 1854 ; James D. Eads, 1854-7 ; Joseph C. Stone,
March to June, 1857 ; Maturin L. Fisher, 1857 to Dec, 1858, when the office
was abolished and the duties of the office devolved upon the Secretary of the
Board of Education.
Secretaries of Board of Education — Thomas H. Benton, Jr., 1859-1863 ;
Oran Faville, Jan. 1, 1864. Board abolished March 23, 1864.
Superintendents of Public Instruction — Office re-created March 23, 1864 —
Oran Faville, March 28, 1864, resigned March 1, 1867 ; D. Franklin Wells,
March 4, 1867, to Jan., 1870 ; A. S. Kissell, 1870 to 1872 ; Alonzo Abernethy,
1872 to 1877 ; Carl W. Von Coelln, 1877 to .
State Binders — Office created February 21, 1855 — William M. Coles, May
1, 1855, to May 1, 1859; Frank M. Mills, 1859 to 1867; James S. Carter,
1867 to 1870; J. J. Smart, 1870 to 1874; H. A. Perkins, 1874 to 1875;
James J. Smart, 1875 to 1876 ; H. A. Perkins, 1876 to .
Registers of the State Land Office — Anson Hart, May 5, 1855, to May
13, 1857 ; Theodore S. Parvin, May 13, 1857, to Jan. 3, 1859 ; Amos B.
Miller, Jan. 3, 1859, to October, 1862 ; Edwin Mitchell, Oct. 31, 1862, to
Jan 5, 1863 ; Josiah A. Harvey, Jan. 5, 1863, to Jan. 7, 1867 ; Cyrus C.
Carpenter, Jan. 7, 1867, to January, 1871 ; Aaron Brown, January, 1871, to
to January, 1875; David Secor, January, 1875, to -.
State Pri7iters — Office created Jan. 3, 1840 — Garrett D. Palmer and
George Paul, 1849; William H. Merritt, 1851 to 1853; William A. Hornish,
1853 (resigned May 16, 1853); Mahoney & Dorr, 1853 to 1855; Peter
Moriarty, 1855 to 1857; John Teesdale, 1857 to 1861; Francis W. Palmer,
1861 to 1869; Frank M. Mills, 1869 to 1870; G. W. Edwards, 1870 to
1872 ; R. P. Clarkson, 1872 to .
Adjutants G-eneral — Daniel S. Lee, 1851-5 ; Geo. W. McCleary, 1855-7 ;
Elijah Sells, 1857 ; Jesse Bowen, 1857-61; Nathaniel Baker, 1861 to 1877;
John H. Looby, 1877 to .
Attorneys G-eneral — David C. Cloud, 1853-56 ; Samuel A. Rice, 1856-60 '■>
Charles C. Nourse, 1861-4 ; Isaac L. Allen, 1865 (resigned January, 1866) ;
Frederick E. Bissell, 1866 (died June 12, 1867); Henry O'Connor, 1867-72;
Marsena E. Cutts, 1872-6 ; John F. McJunkin, 1877.
Presidents of the Senate — Thomas Baker, 1846-7 ; Thomas Hughes,
1848; John J. Selman, 1848-9; Enos Lowe, 1850-1; William E. Leffing-
well, 1852-3 ; Maturin L. Fisher, 1854-5 ; William W. Hamilton, 1856-7.
Under the new Constitution, the Lieutenant Governor is President of the
Senate.
Speakers of the House — Jesse B. Brown, 1847-8; Smiley H. Bonhan,
1849-50 ; George Temple, 1851-2 ; James Grant, 1853-4 ; Reuben Noble,
1855-6 ; Samuel McFarland, 1856-7 ; Stephen B. Sheledy, 1858-9 ; John
Edwards, 1860-1 ; Rush Clark, 1862-3 ; Jacob Butler, 1864-5 ; Ed. Wright,
1866-7 ; John Russell, 1868-9 ; Aylett R. Cotton, 1870-1 ; James Wilson,
1872-3 ; John H. Gear, 1874-7 ; John Y. Stone, 1878.
Neiv Qonstitutional Convention, 1859 — Francis Springer, President ; Thos.
J. Saunders, Secretary.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 225
STATE OFFICERS, 1878.
John H. Gear, Governor; Frank T. Campbell, Lieutenant Governor; Josiah
T. Young, Secretary of State; Buren R. Sherman, Auditor of State; George
W. Bemis, Treasurer of State; David Secor, Register of State Land Office;
John H. Looby, Adjutant General; John F. McJunken, Attorney General;
Mrs. Ada North, State Librarian ; Edward J. Holmes, Clerk Supreme Court ;
John S. Runnells, Reporter Supreme Court; Carl W. Von Coelln, Superintend-
ent Public Instruction; Richard P. Clarkson, State Printer; Henry A. Perkins,
State Binder; Prof. Nathan R. Leonard, Superintendent of Weights and
Measures; William H. Fleming, Governor's Private Secretary; Fletcher W.
Young, Deputy Secretary of State; John C. Parish, Deputy Auditor of State;
Erastus G. Morgan, Deputy Treasurer of State; John M. Davis, Deputy Reg-
ister Land Office; Ira C. Kling, Deputy Superintendent Public Instruction.
THE JUDICIARY.
SUPBEME COURT OF IOWA.
Chief Justices. — Charles Mason, resigned in June, 1847 ; Joseph Williams,
Jan., 1847, to Jan., 1848; S. Clinton Hastings, Jan., 1848, to Jan., 1849; Joseph
Williams, Jan., 1849, to Jan. 11, 1855; Geo. G. Wright, Jan. 11, 1855, to Jan.,
1860 ; Ralph P. Lowe, Jan., 1860, to Jan. 1, 1862 ; Caleb Baldwin, Jan., 1862, to
Jan., 1864; Geo. G. Wright, Jan., 1864, to Jan., 1866 ; Ralph P. Lowe, Jan., 1866,
to Jan., 1868; John F. Dillon, Jan., 1868, to Jan., 1870; Chester C. Cole, Jan.
1, 1870, to Jan. 1, 1871; James G. Day, Jan. 1, 1871, to Jan. 1, 1872; Joseph
M.^Beck, Jan. 1, 1872, to Jan. 1, 1874; W. E. Miller, Jan. 1, 1874, to Jan. 1,
1876; Chester C. Cole, Jan. 1, 1876, to Jan. 1, 1877; James G. Day, Jan. 1,
1877, to Jan. 1, 1878; James H. Rothrock, Jan. 1, 1878.
Associate Judges. — Joseph Williams; Thomas S. Wilson, resigned Oct.,
1847; John F. Kinney, June 12, 1847, resigned Feb. 15, 1854; George
Greene, Nov. 1, 1847, to Jan. 9, 1855; Jonathan C. Hall, Feb. 15, 1854, to
succeed Kinney, resigned, to Jan., 1855; William G. Woodward, Jan. 9, 1855;
Norman W. Isbell, Jan. 16, 1855, resigned 1856; Lacen D, Stockton, June 3,
1856, to succeed Isbell, resigned, died June 9, 1860; Caleb Baldwin, Jan. 11,
1860, to 1864; Ralph P. Lowe, Jan. 12, 1860;^ George G. Wright, June 26,
1860, to succeed Stockton, deceased; elected U. S. Senator, 1870; John F. Dil-
lon, Jan. 1, 1864, to succeed Baldwin, resigned, 1870; Chester C. Cole. March
1, 1864, to 1877; Joseph M. Beck, Jan. 1, 1868; W. E. Miller, October 11,
1864, to succeed Dillon, resigned; James G. Day, Jan. 1, 1871, to succeed
Wright
SUPREME COURT, 1878.
James H. Rothrock, Cedar County, Chief Justice; Joseph M. Beck, Lee
County, Associate Justice; Austin Adams, Dubuque County, Associate Justice;
William H. Seevers, Oskaloosa County, Associate Justice; James G. Day, Fre-
mont County, Associate Justice.
CONGRESSIONAL REPRESENTATION.
UNITED STATES SENATORS.
(The first General Assembly failed to elect Senators.)
George W. Jones, Dubuque, Dec. 7, 1848-1858 ; Augustus C. Dodge, Bur-
lington, Dec. 7, 1848-1855; James Harlan, Mt. Pleasant, Jan. 6, 1855-1865;
James W. Grimes, Burlington, Jan. 26, 1858-died 1870 ; Samuel J. Kirkwood,
Iowa City, elected Jan. 13, 1866, to fill vacancy caused by resignation of James
226 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
Harlan ; James Harlan, Mt. Pleasant, March 4, 1866-1872 ; James B. Howell,
Keokuk, elected Jan. 20, 1870, to fill vacancy caused by the death of J. w!
Grimes— term expired March 3d ; George G. Wright, Des Moines, March 4,-
1871-1877; William B. Allison, Dubuque, March 4, 1872; Samuel J. Kirk-
wood, March 4, 1877.
MEMBERS OF HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
Tiventy-ninth Congress— 1846 to 1847.~S. Clinton Hastings; Shepherd
Leffler.
Thirtieth Congress— 184? to 1849.— First District, William Thompson:
Second District, Shepherd Leffler.
Thirty-first Oongress-lS^O to I851.—Yivst District, First Session, Wm.
Thompson ; unseated by the House of Representatives on a contest, and election
remanded to the people. First District, Second Session, Daniel F. Miller.
Second District, Shepherd Leffler.
Thirty-second Congress— 1851 to 1853.—Y\Yst District, Bernhart Henn.
Second District, Lincoln Clark.
Thirty-third Congress— 1853 to 1555.— First District, Bernhart Henn.
Second District, John P. Cook.
Thirty-fourth Congress— 1855 to 1857.— Yirst District, Augustus Hall.
Second District, James Thorington.
Thirty-fifth Congress— 1857 to 1859.—Y\r&t District, Samuel R. Curtis.
Second District, Timothy Davis.
Thirty-sixth Congress— 1859 to 1861.— First District, Samuel R. Curtis.
Second District, William Vandever.
Thirty-seventh Congress— 1861 to 1863.— First District, First Session,
Samuel R. Curtis.* First District, Second and Third Sessions, James F. Wil-
son. Second District, William Vandever.
Thirty-eighth Congress — 1863 to 1865. — First District, James F. Wilson.
Second District, Hiram Price. Third District, William B. Allison. Fourth
District, Josiah B. Grinnell. Fifth District, John A. Kasson. Sixth District
Asahel W. Hubbard.
Thirty-ninth Congress — 1865 to 1867. — First District, James F. Wilson ;
Second District, Hiram Price; Third District, William B. Allison; Fourth
District, Josiah B. Grinnell ; Fifth District, John A. Kasson ; Sixth District,
Asahel W. Hubbard.
Fortieth Congress— 1867 to 1869.— First District, James F. Wilson ; Sec-
ond District, Hiram Price ; Third District, William B. Allison, Fourth District,
William Loughridge; Fifth District, Grenville M. Dodge; Sixth District,
Asahel W. Hubbard.
Forty-first Congress— 1869 to 1871.— First District, George W. McCrary ;
Second District, William Smyth ; Third District, William B. Allison ; Fourth
District, William Loughridge ; Fifth District, Frank W. Palmer ; Sixth Dis-
trict, Charles Pomeroy.
Forty-second Congress — 1871 to 1873. — First District, George W. Mc-
Crary ; Second District, Aylett R. Cotton ; Third District, W. G. Donnan ;
Fourth District, Madison M. Waldon ; Fifth District, Frank W. Palmer ; Sixth
District, Jackson Orr.
Forty-third Congress— 1873 to 1875.— First District, George W. McCrary;
Second District, Aylett R. Cotto'h ; Third District, William Y. Donnan : Fourth
District, Henry 0. Pratt; Fifth District, James Wilson; Sixth District,
* Vacated seat by acceptance of commisBioD ae Brigadier General, and J. F. Wilson chosen his successor.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 229
â– William Loughridge; Seventh District, John A, Kasson ; Eighth Districc,
James W. McDill ; Ninth District, Jackson Orr.
Forty-fourth Congress— 1875 to i5'77.— First District, George W. Mc-
Crary ; Second District, John Q. Tufts ; Third District, L. L. Ainsworth ;
Fourth District, Henry 0. Pratt ; Fifth District, James Wilson ; Sixth District,
Ezekiel S. Sampson; Seventh District, John A. Kasson; Eighth District,
James W. McDill ; Fifth District, Addison Oliver.
Forty-fifth Congress— 1877 to 1879.—Y\Ysi District, J. C. Stone; Second
District, Hiram Price ; Third District, T. W. Burdick ; Fourth District, H. C.
Deering ; Fifth District, Rush Clark ; Sixth District, E. S. Sampson ;
Seventh District, H. J. B. Cummings ; Eighth District, W. F. Sapp ; Ninth
District, Addison Oliver.
WAR RECORD.
The State of Iowa may well be proud of her record during the War of the
Rebellion, from 1861 to 1865. The following brief but comprehensive sketch of
the history she made during that trying period is largely from the pen of Col. A.
P. Wood, of Dubuque, the author of '' The History of Iowa and the War," one
of the best works of the kind yet written.
"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, or in the wisdom and efficiency with which her civil administration 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,
responsive to that of the President, calling for volunteers to compose her First
Regiment, Avas 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 oifered by company com-
manders 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 an answer to this request, he conditionally
accepted a sufficient number of companies to compose tAvo 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 State reported that upward of one
hundred and seventy companies had been tendered to the Governor to serve
against the enemies of the Union.
" Much difficulty and considerable delay occured 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
diffei'ent 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.
Meantime, an extra session of the General Assembly had been called by the
Governor, to convene on the loth of May. With but little delay, that body
authorized a loan of ^800,000, to meet th^ extraordinary expenses incurred, and
to be incurred, by the Executive Department, in consequence of the new emer-
gency. A wealthy merchant of the State (Ex-Governor Merrill, then a resident
of McGregor) immediately took from the Governor a contract to supply a com-
plete 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 con-
230 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
tract he executed to the letter, and a portion of the clothing (which was manu-
factured in Boston, to his order) was delivered 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 regiment, 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 the national troops."
Other States also clothed their troops, sent forward under the first call of
President Lincoln, with gray uniforms, but it was soon found that the con-
federate forces were also clothed in gray, and that color was at once abandoned
by the Union troops. If both armies were clothed alike, annoying if not fatal
mistakes were liable to be made.
But while engaged in these efforts to discharge her whole duty in common with
all the other Union-loving States in the great emergency, Iowa was compelled
to make immediate and ample provision for the protection of her own borders,
from threatened invasion on the south by the Secessionists of Missouri, and
from danger of incursions from the west and northwest by bands of hostile
Indians, who were freed from the usual restraint imposed upon them by the
presence of regular troops stationed at the frontier posts. These troops were
withdrawn to meet the greater and more pressing danger threatening the life of
the nation at its very heart.
To provide for the adequate defense of her borders from the ravages of both
rebels in arms against the Government and of the more irresistible foes from
the Western plains, the Governor of the State was authorized to raise and equip
two regiments of infantry, a squadron of cavalry (not less than five companies)
and a battalion of artillery (not less than three companies.) Only cavalry were
enlisted for home defense, however, "but," says Col. Wood, "in times of special
danger, or when calls were made by the Unionists of Northern Missouri for
assistance against their disloyal enemies, large numbers of militia on foot often
turned out, and remained in the field until the necessity for their services had
passed.
" The first order for the Iowa volunteers to move to the field was received
on the 13th of June. It was issued by Gen. Lyon, then commanding the
United States forces in Missouri. The First and Second Infantry immediately
embarked in steamboats, and moved to Hannibal. Some two weeks later, the
Third Infantry was ordered to the same point. These three, together with
many other of the earlier organized Iowa regiments, rendered their fijst field
service in Missouri. The First Infantry formed a part of the little army with
which Gen. Lyon moved on Springfield, and fought the bloody battle of Wilson's
Creek. It received unqualified praise for its gallant bearing on the field. In
the following month (September), the Third Iowa, with but very slight support,
fought with honor the sanguinary engagement of Blue Mills Landing ; and in
November, the Seventh Iowa, as a part of a force commanded by Gen. Grant,
greatly distinguished itself in the battle of Belmont, where it poured out its
blood like water — losing more than half of the men it took into action.
" The initial operations in which the battles referred to took place were fol-
lowed by the more important movements led by Gen. Grant, Gen. Curtis, of
this State, and other commanders, which resulted in defeating the armies
defending the chief strategic lines held by the Confederates in Kentucky, Tenn-
nessee, Missouri and Arkansas, and compelling their withdrawal from much of
the territory previously controlled by them in those States. In these and other
movements, down to the grand culminating campaign by which Vicksburg was
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 231
captured and the Confederacy permanently severed on the line of the Mississippi
Rivei', Iowa troops took pai't in steadily increasing numbers. In the investment
and siege of Vicksburg, the State was represented by thirty regiments and two
batteries, in addition to which, eight regiments and one battery were employed
on the outposts of the besieging army. The brilliancy of their exploits on the
many fields where they served Avon for them the highest meed of praise, both
in military and civil circles. Multiplied were the terms in which expression
was given to this sentiment, but these words of one of the journals of a neigh-
boring State, 'The Iowa troops have been heroes among heroes,' embody the
spirit of all.
" In the veteran re-enlistments that distinguished the closing months of 1863
above all other periods in the history of re-enlistments for the national armies,
the Iowa three years' men (who were relatively more numerous than those of any
other State) wei*e prompt to set the example of volunteering for another term of
equal length, thereby adding many thousands to the great army of those Avho
gave this renewed and practical assurance that the cause of the Union should
not be left without defenders.
" In all the important movements of 1864-65, by which the Confederacy
was penetrated in every quarter, and.its military power finally overthrown, the
Iowa troops took part. Their drum-beat was heard on the banks of every great
river of the South, from the Potomac to the Rio Grande, and everywhere they
rendered the same faithful and devoted service, maintaining on all occasions their
wonted reputation for valor in the field and endurance on the march.
" Two Iowa three-year cavalry regiments were employed during their whole
term of service in the operations that were in progress from 1863 to 1866
against the hostile Indians of the western plains. A portion of these men were
among the last of the volunteer troops to be mustered out of service. The State
also supplied a considerable number of men to the navy, who took part in most
of the naval operations prosecuted against the Confederate power on the Atlantic
and Gulf coasts, and the rivers of the West.
" The people of Iowa were early and constant workers in the sanitary field,
and by their liberal gifts and personal efiorts for the benefit of the soldiery,
placed their State in the front rank of those who became distinguished for their
exhibitions of patriotic benevolence during the period covered by the war.
Agents appointed by the Governor were stationed at points convenient for ren-
dering assistance to the sick and needy soldiers of the State, while others were
employed in visiting, from time to time, hospitals, camps and armies in tlie field,
and doing whatever the circumstances rendered possible for the health and
comfort of such of the Iowa soldiery as might be found there.
" Some of the benevolent people of the State early conceived the idea of
establishing a Home for such of the children of deceased soldiers as might be
left in destitute circumstances. This idea first took form in 1863, and in the
following year a Home was opened at Farmington, Van Buren County, in a
building leased for that purpose, and which soon became filled to its utmost
capacity. The institution received liberal donations from tlie general public,
and also from the soldiers in the field. In 1/S65, it became necessary to pro-
vide increased accommodations for the large number of children who were
seeking the benefits of its care. This was done by establishing a branch
at Cedar Falls, in Black Hawk County, and by securing, during the same
year, for the use of the parent Home, Camp Kinsman near the City of
Davenport. This property was soon afterward donated to the institution, by
act of Congress.
232 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA,
" In 1866, in pursuance of a law enacted for that purpose, the Soldiers'
Orphans' Home (which then contained about four hundred and fifty inmates)
became a State institution, and thereafter the sums necessary for its support were
appropriated from the State treasury. A second branch was established at
Glenwood, Mills County. Convenient tracts were secured, and valuable improve-
ments made at all the different points. Schools were also established, and em-
ployments provided for such of the children as were of suitable age. In all
ways the provision made for these wards of the State has been such as to chal-
lenge the approval of every benevolent mind. The number of children who
have been inmates of the Home from its foundation to the present time is
considerably more than two thousand.
" At the beginning of the war, the population of Iowa included about one
hundred and fifty thousand men presumably liable to render military service.
The State raised, for general service, thirty-nine regiments of infantry, nine
regiments of cavalry, and four companies of artillery, composed of three years'
men ; one regiment of infantry, composed of three months' men; andfuir regi-
ments and one battalion of infantry, composed of one hundred days' men. The
original enlistments in these various organizations, including seventeen hundred
and twenty-seven men raised by draft, numbered a little more than sixty-nine
thousand. The re-cnlistments, including upward of seven thousand veterans,
numbered very nearly eight thousand. The enlistments in the regular army
and navy, and organizations of other States, will, if added, raise the total to
upward of eighty thousand. The number of men who, under special enlistments,
and as militia, took part at different times in the operations on the exposed
borders of the State, was probably as many as five thousand.
'' Iowa paid no bounty on account of the men she placed in the field. In
some instances, toward the close of the war, bounty to a comparatively small
amount was paid by cities and towns. On only one occasion — that of the call
of July 18, 1864 — was a draft made in Iowa. This did not occur on account of
her proper liability, as established by previous rulings of the War Department,
to supply men under that call, but grew out of the great necessity that there
existed for raising men. The Government insisted on temporarily setting aside,
in part, the former rule of settlements, and enforcing a draft in all cases where
subdistricts in any of the States should be found deficient in their supply of
men. In no instance was Iowa, as a whole, found to be indebted to the General
Government for men, on a settlement of her quota accounts."
It is to be said to the honor and credit of Iowa that while many of the loyal
States, older and larger in population and wealth, incui-red heavy State debts
for the purpose of fulfilling their obligations to the General Government, Iowa,
while she was foremost in duty, while she promptly discharged all her obligations
to her sister States and the Union, found herself at the close of the war without
any material addition to her pecuniary liabilities incurred before the war com-
menced. Upon final settlement after the restoration of peace, her claims upon
the Federal Government were found to be fully equal to the amount of her bonds
issued and sold during the war to provide the means for raising and equipping
her troops sent into the field, and to meet the inevitable demands upon her
treasury in consequence of the war.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 233
INFANTRY.
THE FIRST INFANTRY
was organized under the President's first proclamation for volunteers for three
months, with John Francis Bates, of Dubuque, as Colonel ; William H. Mer-
ritt, of Cedar Rapids, as Lieutenant Colonel, and A. B. Porter, of Mt. Pleas-
ant, as Major. Companies A and C were from Muscatine County ; Company
B, from Johnson County; Companies D and E, from Des Moines County;
Company F, from Henry County; Company G, from Davenport; Companies
H and I, from Dubuque, and Company K, from Linn County, and were mus-
tered into United States service May 14, 1861, at Keokuk. The above com-
panies were independent military organizations before the war, and tendered
their services before breaking-out of hostilities. The First was engaged at the
battle of Wilson's Creek, under Gen. Lyon, where it lost ten killed and fifty
wounded. Was mustered out at St. Louis Aug. 25, 1861.
THE SECOND INFANTRY
was organized, with Samuel R. Curtis, of Keokuk, as Colonel ; Jas. M. Tuttle,
of Keosauqua, as Lieutenant Colonel, and M. M. Crocker, of Des Moines, as
Major, and was mustered into the United States service at Keokuk in May,
1861. Company A was from Keokuk; Company B, from Scott County; Com-
pany C, from Scott County ; Company D, from Des Moines ; Company E, from
Fairfield, Jefferson Co. ; Company F, from Van Buren County ; Company G,
from Davis County ; Company H, from Washington County ; Company I, from
Clinton County ; and Company K, from Wapello County. It participated in the
following engagements : Fort Donelson, Shiloh, advance on Corinth, Corinth,
Little Bear Creek, Ala.; Tunnel Creek, Ala.; Resaca, Ga.; Rome Cross Roads,
Dallas, Kenesaw Mountain, Nick-a-Jack Creek, in front of Atlanta, January 22,
1864 ; siege of Atlanta, Jonesboro, Eden Station, Little Ogeechee, Savannah,
Columbia, S. C. ; Lynch's Creek, and Bentonsville. Was on Sherman's march
to the sea, and through the Carolinas home. The Second Regiment of Iowa
Infantry Veteran Volunteers was formed by the consolidation of the battalions
of the Second and Third Veteran Infantry, and was mustered out at Louisville,
Ky., July 12, 1865.
THE THIRD INFANTRY
was organized with N. G. Williams, of Dubuque County, as Colonel ; John
Scott, of Story County, Lieutenant Colonel ; Wm. N. Stone, of Marion County,
Major, and was mustered into the United States service in May, 1861, at
Keokuk. Company A was from Dubuque County ; Company B, from Marion
County ; Company C, from Clayton County ; Company D, from Winneshiek
County ; Company E, from Boone, Story, Marshall and Jasper Counties ; Com-
pany F, from Fayette County ; Company G, from Warren County ; Company H,
from Mahaska County ; Company I, from Floyd, Butler Black Hawk and
Mitchell Counties, and Company K from Cedar Falls. It was engaged at Blu«
Mills, Mo. ; Shiloh, Tenn. ; Hatchie River, Matamoras, Vicksburg, Johnson,
Miss., Meridian expedition, and Atlanta, Atlanta campaign and Sherman's
march to Savannah, and through the Carolinas to Richmond and Washington.
The veterans of the Third Iowa Infantry were consolidated with the Second,
and mustered out at Louisville, Ky., July 12, 1864.
234 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
THE FOURTH INFANTRY
was organized with G. M. Dodge, of Council Bluifs, as Colonel ; John
Galligan, of Davenport, as Lieutenant Colonel ; Wm. R. English, Glenwood,
as Major. Company A, from Mills County, was mustered in at Jefferson Bar-
racks, Missouri, August 15, 1861 ; Company B, Pottawattamie County, was
mustered in at Council Bluffs, August 8, 186] ; Company C, Guthrie County,
mustered in at Jefferson Barracks, Mo., May 3, 1861 ; Company D, Decatur
County, at St. Louis, August 16th ; Company E, Polk County, at Council
Bluffs, August 8th ; Company F, Madison County, Jefferson Barracks, August
15th ; Company G, Ringgold County, at Jefferson Barracks, August 15th ;
Company H, Adams County, Jefferson Barracks, August 15th; Company I,
Wayne County, at St. Louis, August 31st; Company K, Taylor and Page
Counties, at St. Louis, August 31st. Was engaged at Pea Ridge, Chickasaw
Bayou, Arkansas Post, Vicksburg, Jackson, Lookout Mountain, Missionary
Ridge, Ringgold, Resaca, Taylor's Ridge; came home on veteran furlougl;i
February 26, 1864. Returned in April, and was in the campaign against
Atlanta, and Sherman's march to the sea, and thence through the Carolinas
to Washington and home. Was mustered out at Louisville, Kentucky, July
24, 1865.
THE FIFTH INFANTRY
was organized with Wm. H. Worthington, of Keokuk, as Colonel ; C. Z. Mat-
thias, of Burlington, as Lieutenant Colonel; W. S. Robertson, of Columbus City,
as Major, and was mustered into the United States service, at Burlington, July
15, 1861. Company A was from Cedar County; Company B, from Jasper
County ; Company C, from Louisa County; Company D, from Marshall County ;
Company E, from Buchanan County ; Company F, from Keokuk County ; Com-
pany G, from Benton County ; Company H, from Van Buren County ; Company
I, from Jackson County ; Company K, from Allamakee County ; was engaged at
New Madrid, siege of Corinth, luka, Corinth, Champion Hills, siege of Vicks-
burg, Chickamauga ; went home on veteran furlough, April, 1864. The non-
veterans went home July, 1864, leaving 180 veterans who were transferred to
the Fifth Iowa Cavalry. The Fifth Cavalry was mustered out at Nashville,
Tennessee, Aug. 11, 1865.
THE SIXTH INFANTRY.
was mustered into the service July 6, 1861, at Burlington, with John A.
McDowell, of Keokuk, as Colonel ; Markoe Cummins, of Muscatine, Lieuten-
ant Colonel ; John M. Corse, of Burlington, Major. Company A was from
Linn County; Company B, from Lucas and Clarke Counties; Company C,
from Hardin County ; Company D, from Appanoose County ; Company E,
from Monroe County ; Company F, from Clarke County ; Company G, from
Johnson County ; Company H, from Lee County ; Company I, from Des
Moines County ; Company K, from Henry County. It was engaged at Shiloh,
Mission Ridge, Resaca, Dallas, Big Shanty, Kenesaw Mountain, Jackson, Black
River Bridge, Jones' Ford, etc., etc. The Sixth lost 7 officers killed in action, 18
wounded ; of enlisted men 102 were killed in action, 30 died of wounds, 124 of
disease, 211 were discharged for disability and 301 were wounded in action,
which was the largest list of casualties, of both officers and men, of any reg-
iment from Iowa. Was mustered out at Louisville, Kentucky, July 21, 1865.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 235
THE SEVENTH INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service at Burlington, July 24, 1861,
•with J. G. Lauman, of Burlington, as Colonel ; Augustus Wentz, of Daven-
port, as Lieutenant Colonel, and E. W. Rice, of Oskaloosa, as Major. Com-
pany A was from Muscatine County ; Company B, from Chickasaw and Floyd
Counties ; Company C, from Mahaska County ; Companies D and E, from Lee
County ; Company F, from Wapello County ; Company G, from Iowa County ;
Company H, from Washington County ; Company I, from Wapello County ;
Company K, from Keokuk. Was engaged at the battles of Belmont (in which
it lost in killed, wounded and missing 237 men), Fort Henry, Fort Donelson,
Shiloh, siege of Corinth, Corinth, Rome Cross Roads, Dallas, New Hope
Church, Big Shanty, Kenesaw Mountain, Nick-a-Jack Creek, siege of Atlanta,
battle on 22d of July in front of Atlanta, Sherman's campaign to the ocean,
through the Carolinas to Richmond, and thence to Louisville. Was mustered
out at Louisville, Kentucky, July 12, 1865.
THE EIGHTH INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service Sept. 12, 1861, at Davenport,
Iowa, with Frederick Steele, of the regular army, as Colonel ; James L. Geddes,
of Vinton, as Lieutenant Colonel, and J. C. Ferguson, of Knoxville, as Major.
Company A was from Clinton County ; Company B, from Scott County ;
Company C, from Washington County ; Company D, from Benton and Linn
Counties ; Company E, from Marion County ; Company F, from Keokuk
County ; Company G, from Iowa and Johnson Counties ; Company H. from
Mahaska County ; Company I, from Monroe County ; Company K, from Lou-
isa County. Was engaged at the following battles : Shiloh (where most of the
regiment were taken prisoners of war), Corinth, Vicksburg, Jackson and Span-
ish Fort. Was mustered out of the tJnited States service at Selma, Alabama,
April 20, 1866.
THE NINTH INFANTRY
was mustered into the L^nited States service September 24, 1861, at Dubuque,
with Wm. Vandever, of Dubuque, Colonel ; Frank G. Herron, of Dubuque,
Lieutenant Colonel ; Wm. H. Coyle, of Decorah, Major. Company A was
from Jackson County ; Company B, from Jones County ; Company C, from Bu-
chanan County ; Company D, from Jones County ; Company E, from Clayton
County ; Company F, from Fayette County ; Company G, from Black Hawk
County ; Company H, from Winneshiek County ; Company I, from Howard
County and Company K, from Linn County. Was in the following engage-
ments : Pea Ridge, Chickasaw Bayou, Arkansas Post, siege of Vicksburg,
Ringgold, Dallas, Lookout Mountain, Atlanta campaign, Sherman's march to
the sea, and through North and South Carolina to Richmond. Was mustered
out at Louisville, July 18, 186^..
THE TENTH INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service at Iowa City September 6, 1861,
with Nicholas Perczel, of Davenport, as Colonel ; W. E. Small, of Iowa City,
as Lieutenant Colonel ; and John C. Bennett, of Polk County, as Major. Com-
pany A was from Polk County ; Company B, from Warren County ; Company
C, from Tama County ; Company D, from Boone County ; Company E, from
Washington County ; Company F, from Poweshiek County ; Company G, from
236 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
Warren County ; Company H, from Gieene County ; Company I, from Jasper
County ; Company K, from Polk and Madison Counties. Participa'^ed in the
following engagements : Siege of Corinth, luka, Corinth, Port Gibson, Ray-
mond, Jackson, Champion Hills, A^icksburg and Mission Ridge. In Septem-
ber, 1864, the non-veterans being mustered out, the veterans were transferred
to the Fifth Iowa Cavalry, where will be found their future operations.
THE ELEVENTH INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service at Davenport, Iowa, in September
and October, 1861, with A. M. Hare, of Muscatine, as Colonel ; Jno. C. Aber-
crombie, as Lieutenant Colonel ; Wm. Hall, of Davenport, as Major. Com-
pany A was from Muscatine ; Company B, from Marshall and Hardin Counties ;
Company C, from Louisa County ; Company D, from Muscatine County ; Com-
pany E, from Cedar County ; Company F, from Washington County ; Company
G, from Henry County ; Company H, from Muscatine County ; Company I
from Muscatine County ; Company K, from Linn County. Was engaged in the
battle of Shiloh, siege of Corinth, battles of Corinth, Vicksburg, Atlanta cam-
paign, battle of Atlanta, July 22, 1864. Was mustered out at Louisville, Ky.,
July 15, 1865.
THE TWELFTH INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service November 25, 1861, at Dubuque,
with J. J. Wood, of Maquoketa, as Colonel ; John P. Coulter, of Cedar Rapids,
Lieutenant Colonel ; Samuel D. Brodtbeck, of Dubuque, as Major. Company
A was from Hardin County ; Company B, from Allamakee County ; Company C,
from Fayette County; Company D, from Linn County ; Company E, from Black
Hawk County ; Company F, from Delaware County ; Company G, from Winne-
shiek County ; Company H, from Dubuque and Delaware Counties ; Company
I, from Dubuque and Jackson Counties ; Company K, from Delaware County.
It v/as engaged at Fort Donelson, Shiloh, where most of the regiment was
captured, and those not captured were organized in what was called the Union
Brigade, and were in the battle of Corinth ; the prisoners were exchanged
November 10, 1862, and the regiment re-organized, and then participating in
the siege of Vicksburg, battle of Tupelo, Miss.; White River, Nashville and
Spanish Fort. The regiment was mustered out at Memphis, January 20, 1866.
THE THIRTEENTH INFANTRY
was mustered in November 1, 1861, at Davenport, with M. M, Crocker, of Des
Moines, as Colonel ; M. M. Price, of Davenport, Lieutenant Colonel ; John
Shane, Vinton, Major. Company A was from Mt. Vernon ; Company B, from
Jasper County ; Company C, from Lucas County ; Company D, from Keokuk
County ; Company E, from Scott County ; Company F, from Scott and Linn
Counties ; Company G, from Benton County ; Company H, from Marshall County ;
Company I, from Washington County ; Company K, from Washington County.
It participated in the following engagements : Shiloh, siege of Corinth, Corinth,
Kenesaw Mountain, siege of Vicksburg, Campaign against Atlanta. Was on
Sherman's march to the sea, and through North and South Carolina. Was
mustered out at Louisville July 21, 1865.
THE FOURTEENTH INFANTRY
was mustered in the United States service October, 1861, at Davenport, with
Wm. T. Shaw, of Anamosa, as Colonel ; Edward W. Lucas, of Iowa City, as
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 237
Lieutenant Colonel ; Hiram Leonard, of Des Moines County, as Major. Com-
pany A was from Scott County ; Company B, from Bremer County ; Company
D, from Henry and Van Buren Counties ; Company E, from Jasper County ;
Company F, from Van Buren and Henry Counties ; Company G, from Tama and
Scott Counties; Company H, from Linn County; Company I, from Henry
County ; Company K, from Des Moines County. Participated in the follow-
ing engagements : Ft. Donelson, Shiloh, Corinth (where most of the regiment
were taken prisoners of war), Pleasant Hill, Meridian, Ft. De Russey, Tupelo,
Town Creek, Tallahatchie, Pilot Knob, Old Town, Yellow Bayou, etc., etc.,
and was mustered out, except veterans and recruits, at Davenport, Iowa, No-
vember 16, 1864.
THE FIFTEENTH INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service March 19, 1862, at Keokuk, with
Hugh T. Reid, of Keokuk, as Colonel ; Wm. Dewey, of Fremont County, as
Lieutenant Colonel; W. W. Belknap, of Keokuk, as Major. Company A was
from Linn County ; Company B, from Polk County ; Company C, from Mahaska
County ; Company D, from Wapello County ; Company E, from Van Buren
County ; Company F, from Fremont and Mills Counties ; Company G, from
Marion and Warren Counties ; Company H, from Pottawattamie and Harrison
Counties ; Company I, from Lee, Van Buren and Clark Counties ; Company K,
from Wapello, Van Buren and Warren Counties. Participated in the battle of
Shiloh, siege of Corinth, battles of Corinth, Vicksburg, campaign against At-
lanta, battle in front of Atlanta, July 22, 1864, and was under fire during
the siege of Atlanta eighty-one days ; was on Sherman's march to the sea, and
through the Carolinas to Richmond, Washington and Louisville, where it was
mustered out, August 1, 1864.
• THE SIXTEENTH INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service at Davenport, Iowa, December 10,
1861, with Alexander Chambers, of the regular army, as Colonel ; A. H.
Sanders, of Davenport, Lieutenant Colonel ; Wm. Purcell, of Muscatine,
Major. Company A was from Clinton County ; Company B, from Scott
County; Company C, from Muscatine County ; Company D, from Boone County;
Company E, from Muscatine County ; Company F, from Muscatine, Clinton and
Scott Counties ; Company G, from Dubuque County ; Company H, from Du-
buque and Clayton Counties ; Company I, from Black Hawk and Linn Counties ;
Company K, from Lee and Muscatine Counties. Was in the battles of Shiloh,
siege of Corinth, luka, Corinth, Kenesaw Mountain, Nick-a-Jack Creek, battles
around Atlanta; was in Sherman's campaigns, and the Carolina campaigns.
Was mustered out at Louisville, Ky., July 19, 1865.
THE SEVENTEENTH INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service at Keokuk, in March and April,
1862, with Jno. W. Rankin, of Keokuk, Colonel ; D. B. Hillis, of Keokuk,
as Lieutenant Colonel; Samuel M. Wise, of Mt. Pleasant, Major. Company
A was from Decatur County; Company B, from Lee County; Company C,
from Van Buren, Wapello and Lee Counties ; Company D, from Des Moines,
Van Buren and Jefferson Counties; Company E, from Wapello County; Com-
pany F, from Appanoose County; Company G, from Marion County; Com-
pany H, from Marion and Pottawattamie Counties ; Company I, from Jefferson
and Lee Counties; Company K, from Lee and Polk Counties. They were in
238 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
the following engagements: Siege of Corinth, luka, Corinth, Jackson, Cham-
pion Hills, Fort Hill, siege of Vicksburg, Mission Ridge, and at Tilton, Ga.,
Oct. 13, 1864, most of the regiment were taken prisoners of war. Was mus-
tered out at Louisville, Ky., July 25, 1865.
THE EIGHTEENTH INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service August 5, 6 and 7, 1862, at Clin-
ton, with John Edwards, of Chariton, Colonel ; T. Z. Cook, of Cedar Rapids,
Lieutenant Colonel ; Hugh J. Campbell, of Muscatine, as Major. Company
A, was from Linn and various other counties ; Company B, from Clark County ;
Company C, from Lucas County; Company D, from Keokuk and Wapello
Counties ; Company E, from Muscatine County ; Company F, from Appanoose
County ; Company G, from Marion and Warren Counties ; Company H, from
Fayette and Benton Counties ; Company I, from Washington County ; Com-
pany K, from Wapello, Muscatine and Henry Counties, and was engaged in
the battles of Springfield, Moscow, Poison Spring, Ark., and was mustered out
at Little Rock, Ark., July 20, 1865.
THE NINETEENTH INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service August 17, 1862, at Keokuk, with
Benjamin Crabb, of Washington, as Colonel ; Samuel McFarland, of Mt. Pleas-
ant, Lieutenant Colonel, and Daniel Kent, of Ohio, Major. Company A was
from Lee and Van Buren Counties; Company B, from Jefferson County; Com-
pany C, from Washington County; Company D, from Jefferson County; Com-
pany E, from Lee County; Company F, from Louisa County; Company G,
from Louisa County; Company H, from Van Buren County; Company I, from
Van Buren County; Company K, from Henry County. Was engaged a Prairie
Grove, Vicksburg, Yazoo River expedition, Sterling Farm, September 29, 1863,
at which place they surrendered ; three officers and eight enlisted men were
killed, sixteen enlisted men were wounded, and eleven officers and two hundred
and three enlisted men taken prisoners out *of five hundred engaged; they
were exchanged July 22d, and joined their regiment August 7th, at New Or-
leans. Was engaged at Spanish Fort. Was mustered out at Mobile, Ala., July
10, 1865.
THE TWENTIETH INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service August 25, 1862, at Clinton, with
Wm. McE. Dye, of Marion, Linn Co., as Colonel : J. B. Leek, of Davenport, as
Lieutenant Colonel, and Wm. G. Thompson, of Marion, Linn Co., as Major.
Companies A, B, F, H and I were from Linn County ; Companies C, D, E, G
and K, from Scott County, and was engaged in the following battles : Prairie
Grove, and assault on Fort Blakely. Was mustered out at Mobile, Ala., July
8, 1865.
THE TWENTY-FIRST INFANTRY
was mustered into the service at Clinton in June and August, 1862, with
Samuel Merrill (late Governor of Iowa) as Colonel ; Charles W. Dunlap, of
Mitchell, as Lieutenant Colonel ; S. G. VanAnda, of Delhi, as Major. Com-
pany A was from Mitchell and Black Hawk Counties ; Company B, from
Clayton County ; Company C, from Dubuque County ; Company D, from
Clayton County ; Company E, from Dubuque County ; Company F, from Du-
buque County ; Company G, from Clayton County ; Company H, from Dela-
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA." 239
ware County ; Company I, from Dubuque County ; Company K, from Delaware
County, and was in the following engagements : Hartsville, Mo. ; Black River
Bridge, Fort Beauregard, was at the siege of Vicksburg, Mobile, Fort Blakely,,
and was mustered out at Baton Rouge, La., July 15, 1865.
THE TWENTY-SECOND INFANTRY
was mustered into the United States service Sept. 10, 1862, at Iowa City, with
Wm. M. Stone, of Knoxville (since Governor of Iowa), as Colonel ; Jno. A.
Garrett, of Newton, Lieutenant Colonel ; and Harvey Graham, of Iowa City,
as Major. Company A was from Johnson County ; Company B, Johnson
County ; Company C, Jasper County ; Company D, Monroe County ; Company
E, Wapello County ; Company F, Johnson Countv ; Company G, Johnsoa
County ; Company H, Johnson County ; Company I, Johnson County ; Com-
pany K, Johnson County. Was engaged at Vicksburg, Thompson's Hill, Cham-
pion Hills, Sherman's campaign to Jackson, at Winchester, in Shenandoah Val-
ley, losing 109 men, Fisher's Hill and Cedar Creek. Mustered out at Savannah,,
Ga., July 25, 1865.
THE TWENTY-THIRD INFANTRY
was mustered into United States service at Des Moines, Sept. 19, 1862, with
William Dewey, of Sidney, as Colonel ; W. H. Kinsman, of Council Bluffs, as
Lieutenant Colonel, and S. L. Glasgow, of Corydon, as Major. Companies
A, B and C, were from Polk County; Company D, from Wayne County; Com-
pany E, from Pottawattamie County ; Company F, from Montgomery County ;,
Company G, from Jasper County; Company H, from Madison County; Com-
pany I, from Cass County, and Company K, from Marshall County. Was in
Vicksburg, and engaged at Port Gibson, Black River, Champion Hills, Vicks-
burg, Jackson, Milliken's Bend, Fort Blakely, and was mustered out at Harris-
burg, Texas, July 26, 1865
THE T^VENTY-FOURTH
was mustered into LTnited States service at Muscatine, September 18, 1862,
with Eber C. Byam, of Mount Vernon, as Colonel; John Q. Wilds, of Mount
Vernon, as Lieutenant Colonel, and Ed. Wright, of Springdale, as Major.
Company A was from Jackson and Clinton Counties ; Companies B and C,
from Cedar County; Company D, from Washington, Johnson and Cedar
Counties; Company E, from Tama County; Companies F, G and H, from
Linn County ; Company I, from Jackson County, and Company K, from Jones
County. Was engaged at Port Gibson, Champion Hills, Gen. Banks' Red
River expedition, Winchester and Cedar Creek. Was mustered out at Savan-
nah, Ga., July 17, 1865.
THE TWENTY-FIFTH INFANTRY
was organized with George A. Stone, of Mount Pleasant, as Colonel ; Fabian.
Brydolf as Lieutenant Colonel, and Calom Taylor, of Bloomfield, as Major,
and was mustered into United States service at Mount Pleasant, September 27,
1862, Companies A and I were from Washington County; Companies B and
H, from Henry County ; Company C, from Henry and Lee Counties ; Com-
panies D, E and G, from Des Moines County ; Company F, from Louisa
County, and Company K, from Des Moines and Lee Counties. Was engaged
at Arkansas Post, Vicksburg, Walnut Bluff, Chattanooga, Campain, Ring-
240 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
gold, Ga., Resaca, Dallas, Kenesaw Mountain, battles around Atlanta, Love-
joy Station, Jonesboro, Ship's Gap, Bentonville, and on Sherman's march
through Georgia and the Carolinas, to Richmond and Washington. Was
mustered out at Washington, D. C, June 6, 1865.
THE TWENTY-SIXTH
was organized and mustered in at Clinton, in August, 1862, with Milo Smith,
of Clinton, as Colonel ; S. G. Magill, of Lyons, as Lieutenant Colonel, and
Samuel Clark, of De Witt, as Major. Company A was from Clinton and
Jackson Counties ; Company B, from Jackson County ; Companies C, D, E,
F, G, H, I and K, from Clinton County. Was engaged at Arkansas Post,
Vicksburg, Snake Creek Gap, Ga., Resaca, Dallas, Kenesaw Mountain, De-
catur, siege of Atlanta, Ezra Church, Jonesboro, Lovejoy Station, Ship's Gap,
Sherman's campaign to Savannah, went through the Carolinas, and was mus-
tered out of service at Washington, D. C, June 6, 1865.
THE TWENTY-SEVENTH
was mustered into United States service at Dubuque, Oct. 3, 1862, with James
I. Gilbert, of Lansing, as Colonel ; Jed Lake, of Independence, as Lieutenant
Colonel ; and G. W. Howard, of Bradford, as Major. Companies A, B and I
were from Allamakee County ; Companies C and H, from Buchanan County ;
Companies D and E, from Clayton County; Company F, from Delaware
County ; Company G, from Floyd and Chickasaw Counties, and Company K,
from Mitchell County. Engaged at Little Rock, Ark., was on Red River ex-
pedition. Fort De Russey, Pleasant Hill, Yellow Bayou, Tupelo, Old Town
Creek and Fort Blakely. Was mustered out at Clinton, Iowa, Aug. 8, 1865.
THE TWENTY-EIGHTH
was organized at Iowa City, and mustered in Nov. 10, 1862, with William E.
Miller, of Iowa City, as Colonel; John Connell, of Toledo, as Lieutenant Colonel,
and H. B. Lynch, of Millersburg, as Major. Companies A and D were
from Benton County ; Companies B and G, from Iowa County ; Companies
C, H and I, from Poweshiek County; Company E, from Johnson County;
Company F, from Tama County, and Company K, from Jasper County. Was
engaged at Port Gibson, Jackson and siege of Vicksburg ; was on Banks' Red
River expedition, and engaged at Sabine Cross Roads ; was engaged in Shen-
andoah Valley, Va., and engaged at Winchester, Fisher's Hill and Cedar Creek.
Was mustered out of service at Savannah, Ga., July 31, 1865.
THE TWENTY-NINTH
was organized at Council Bluffs, and mustered into the United States service
December 1, 1862, with Thomas H. Benton, Jr., of Council Bluffs, as Colonel ;
R. F. Patterson, of Keokuk, as Lieutenant Colonel; and Charles B. Shoe-
maker, of Clarinda, as Major. Company A was from Pottawattamie County;
Company B, from Pottawattamie and Mills Counties ; Comuany C, from Harrison
County ; Company D, from Adair and Adams Counties , Company E, from
Fremont County ; Company F, from Taylor County ; Company G, from Ring-
gold County. Was engaged at Helena, Arkansas and Spanish Fort. Was
mustered out at New Orleans August 15, 1865.
HISTOKV OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 241
THE THIRTIETH INFANTRY
was organized at Keokuk, and mustered into the United States service September
23, 1862, with Charles B. Abbott, of Louisa County, as Colonel; Wm. M. G. Tor-
rence, of Keokuk, as Lieutenant Colonel ; and Lauren Dewey, of Mt. Pleasant, as
Major. Companies A and I were from Lee County ; Company B, from Davis
County ; Compan;y C, from Des Moines County ; Company D, from Van Buren
County ; Companies E and K from Washington County ; Company F, from
Davis County ; and Companies G and H, from Jefferson County. Was
engaged at Arkansas Post, Yazoo City, Vicksburg, Cherokee, Ala., Ringgold,
Resaca, Kenesaw Mountain, Atlanta, Lovejoy Station, Jonesboro, Taylor's
Ridge; was in Sherman's campaigns to Savannah and through the Carolinas to
Richmond ; was in the grand review at Washington, D. C, where it was mus-
tered out June 5, 1865.
THE THIRTY-FIRST INFANTRY
was mustered into the service at Davenport October 13, 1862, with William
Smyth, of Marion, as Colonel ; J. W. Jenkins, of Maquoketa, as Lieutenant
Colonel; and Ezekiel Cutler, of Anamosa, as Major. Company A was from
Linn County ; Companies B, C and D, from Black Hawk County ; Companies
E, G and H, from Jones County; Companies F, I and K, from Jackson County.
Was engaged at Chickasaw Bayou, Arkansas Post, Raymond, Jackson, Black
River, Vicksburg, Cherokee, Lookout Mountain, Mission Ridge, Ringgold,
Taylor's Hills, Snake Creek Gap, Resaca, Dallas, New Hope Church, Big
Shanty, Kenesaw Mountain, Atlanta, Jonesboro ; was in Sherman's campaign
through Georgia and the Carolinas, and was mustered out at Louisville, Ken-
tucky, June 27, 1865
THE THIRTY-SECOND INFANTRY
was organized at Dubuque, with John Scott, of Nevada, as Colonel ; E. H.
Mix, of Shell Rock, as Lieutenant Colonel, and G. A. Eberhart, of Waterloo,
as Major. Company A was from Hamilton, Hardin and Wright Counties ;
Company B, from Cerro Gordo County ; Company C, from Black Hawk
County ; Company D, from Boone County ; Company E, from Butler County ;
Company F, from Hardin County ; Company G, from Butler and Floyd Coun-
ties ; Company H, from Franklin County ; Company I, from Webster County,
and Company K, from Marshall and Polk Counties, and was mustered into
the United States service October 5, 1862. Was engaged at Fort De Russey,
Pleasant Hill, Tupelo, Old Town Creek, Nashville, etc., and was mustered out
of the United States service at Clinton, Iowa, Aug. 24, 1865.
THE THIRTY-THIRD INFANTRY
was organized at Oskaloosa, with Samuel A. Rice, of Oskaloosa, as Colonel ;
Cyrus H. Maskey, of Sigourney, as Lieutenant Colonel, and Hiram D. Gibson,
of Knoxville, as Major. Companies A and I were from Marion County; Com-
panies B, F and H, from Keokuk County ; Companies C, D, E and K, from
Makaska County, and Company G, from Marion, Makaska and Polk Counties,
and mustered in October 1, 1862. Was engaged at Little Rock, Helena, Sa-
line River, Spanish Fort and Yazoo Pass. Was mustered out at New Orleans^
July 17, 1865.
242 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
THE THIRTY-FOURTH INFANTRY
was organized with George W. Clark, of Indianola, as Colonel ; W. S. Dungan,
of Chariton, as Lieutenant Colonel, and R. D. Kellogg, of Decatur County, as
Major, and mustered in at Burlington, October 15, 1862. Companies A and I
were from Decatur County ; Companies B, C and D, from Warren County ; Com-
pany E, from Lucas County; Company F, from Wayne County; Company G,
from Lucas and Clark Counties; Company H, from Madison and Warren
Counties, and Company K, from Lucas County. Was engaged at Arkansas
Post, Ft. Gaines, etc., etc. Was consolidated with the Thirty-eighth Infantry,
January 1, 1865, and mustered out at Houston, Texas, August 15, 1865.
THE THIRTY-FIFTH INFANTRY
was organized at Muscatine, and mustered in the United States service Sep-
tember 18, 1862, with S. G. Hill, of Muscatine, as Colonel ; James H. Roth-
rock, as Lieutenant Colonel, and Henry O'Conner, of Muscatine, as Major.
Companies A, B, C, D and E, were from Muscatine County; Company F,
from Muscatine and Louisa Counties ; Companies G, H and I, from Muscatine
and Cedar Counties, and Company K, from Cedar County. Participated in
the battles of Jackson, siege of Vicksburg, Bayou Rapids, Bayou de Glaze,
Pleasant Hill, Old River Lake, Tupelo, Nashville, etc. Was mustered out at
Davenport, August 10, 1865.
THE THIRTY-SIXTH INFANTRY
was organized at Keokuk, with Charles W. Kittredge, of Ottumwa, as Colonel ;
F. M. Drake, of Union ville, Appanoose County, as Lieutenant Colonel, and T.
C. Woodward, of Ottumwa, as Major, and mustered in October 4, 1862 ; Com-
pany A was from Monroe County; Companies B, D, E, H and K, from
Wapello County, and Companies C, F, G and I, from Appanoose County.
Was engaged in the following battles: Mark's Mills, Ark.; Elkins' Ford,
Camden, Helena, Jenkins' Ferry, etc. At Mark's Mills, April 25, 1864, out
of 500 engaged, lost 200 killed and wounded, the balance being taken prisoners
of war ; was exchanged October 6, 1864. Was mustered out at Duvall's BlulF,
Ark., August 24, 1865.
THE THIRY-SEVENTH INFANTRY (OR GRAY BEARDS;
was organized with Geo. W. Kincaid, of Muscatine, as Colonel ; Geo. R. West,
of Dubuque, as Lieutenant Colonel, and Lyman Allen, of Iowa City, as Major,
and was mustered into United States service at Muscatine December 15, 1862.
Company A was from Black Hawk and Linn Counties ; Company B, from
Muscatine County ; Company C, from Van Buren and Lee Counties ; Company
D, from Johnson and Iowa Counties ; Company E, from Wapello and Mahaska
Counties ; Company F, from Dubuque County ; Company G, from Appanoose,
Des Moines, Henry and Washington Counties ; Company H, from Henry and
Jefferson Counties ; Company I, from Jasper, Linn and other counties, and
Company K, from Scott and Fayette Counties. The object of tha Thirty-
seventh was to do garrison duty and let the young men go to the front. It was
mustered out at Davenport on expiration of three years' service.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 243
THE THIRTY-EIGHTH INFANTRY
was organized at Dubuque, and mustered in November 4, 1862, with T>. H.
Hughes, of Decorah, as Colonel ; J. 0. Hudnutt, of Waverly, as Lieutenan,
Colonel, and Charles Chadwick, of West Union, as Major. Companies A, Ft
G and H were from Fayette County ; Company B, from Bremer County ; Com-
pany C, from Chickasaw County ; Companies D, E and K, from Winneshiek
County, and Company I, from Howard County. Participated in the siege of
Vicksburg, Banks' Red River expedition, and on December 12, 1864, was
consolidated with the Thirty-fourth Infantry. Mustered out at Houston, Texas,
August 15, 1865.
THE THIRTY-NINTH INFANTRY
was organized with H. J. B. Cummings, of Winterset, as Colonel; James Red-
field, of Redfield, Dallas County, as Lieutenant Colonel ; and J. M. Griffiths,
of Des Moines, as Major. Companies A and F were from Madison County ;
Companies B and I, from Polk County ; Companies C and H, from Dallas
County ; Company D, from Clark County ; Company E, from Greene County ;
Company G, from Des Moines and Henry Counties ; and Company K, from
Clark and Decatur Counties. Was engaged at Parker's Cross Roads, Tenn.;
Corinth, Allatoona, Ga.; Resaca, Kenesaw Mountain, Atlanta, Sherman's march
to Savannah and through the Carolinas to Richmond, and was mustered out at
Washington June 5, 1865.
THE FORTIETH INFANTRY
was organized at Iowa City November 15, 1862, with John A. Garrett, of
Newton, as Colonel; S. F. Cooper, of Grinnell, as Lieutenant Colonel; and
S. G. Smith, of Newton, as Major. Companies A and H were from Marion
County; Company B, from Poweshiek County; Company C, from Mahaska
County ; Companies D and E, from Jasper County ; Company F, from Ma-
haska and Marion Counties ; Company G, from Marion County ; Company I,
from Keokuk County ; and Company K, from Benton and other counties. Par-
ticipated in the siege of Vicksburg, Steele's expedition, Banks' Red River
expedition, Jenkins' Ferry, etc. Was mustered out at Port Gibson August 2,
1866.
THE FORTY-FIRST INFANTRY,
formerly Companies A, B and C of the Fourteenth Infantry, became Compa-
nies K, L and M of the Seventh Cavalry, under authority of the War Depart-
ment. Its infantry organization was under command of John Pattee, of Iowa
City. Company A was from Black Hawk, Johnson and other counties ; Com-
pany B, from Johnson County ; and Company C, from Des Moines and various
counties.
THE FORTY-FOURTH INFANTRY (100 DAYS)
was organized at Davenport, and mustered in June 1, 1864. Company A was
from Dubuque County ; Company B, Muscatine County ; Company C, Jones,
Linn and Dubuque Counties ; Company D, Johnson and Linn Counties ; Com-
pany E, Bremer and Butler Counties ; Company F, Clinton and Jackson
Counties ; Company G, Marshall and Hardin Counties ; Company H, Boone
and Polk Counties ; Companies I and K, Scott County. The Forty-fourth
did garrison duty at Memphis and La Grange, Tenn. Mustered out at Daven-
port, September 15, 1864.
,241 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
THE FORTY-FIFTH INFANTRY (100 DAYS)
was mustered in at Keokuk, May 25, 1864, with A. II. Bereman, of Mount
Pleasant, as Colonel ; S. A. Moore, of Bloomfield, as Lieutenant Colonel, and
J. B. Hope, of Washington, as Major. The companies were from the following
counties : A, Henry ; B, Washington ; C, Lee ; D, Davis ; E, Henry and
Lee ; F, Des Moines ; G, Des Moines and Henry ; H, Henry ; I, Jeiferson,
and K, Van Buren. Was mustered out at Keokuk, September 16, 1864.
THE FORTY-SIXTH INFANTRY (100 DAYS)
was organized with D. B, Henderson, of Clermont, as Colonel ; L. D. Durbin,
of Tipton, as Lieutenant Colonel, and G. L. Tarbet, as Major, and was mus-
tered in at Dubuque, June 10, 1864. Company A was from Dubuque ; Com-
pany B, from Poweshiek ; C, from Dallas and Guthrie ; D, from Taylor and
Fayette ; E, from Ringgold and Linn ; F, from Winneshiek and Delaware ; G,
from Appanoose and Delaware ; H, from Wayne ; I, from Cedar, and K, from
Lucas. Was mustered out at Davenport, September 23, 1864.
THE FORTY-SEVENTH INFANTRY (100 DAYS)
was mustered into United States service at Davenport, June 4, 1864, with
James P. Sanford, of Oskaloosa, as Colonel; John Williams, of Iowa City, as
Lieutenant Colonel, and G. J. Wright, of Des Moines, as Major. Company
A was from Marion and Clayton Counties; Company B, from Appanoose
County ; Company C, from Wapello and Benton Counties ; Company B, from
Buchanan and Linn Counties ; Company E, from Madison County ; Company
F, from Polk County ; Company G, from Johnson County ; Company H, from
Keokuk County; Company I, from Mahaska County, and Company K, from
Wapello.
THE FORTY-EIGHTH INFANTRY — BATTALION — (100 DAYS)
was organized at Davenport, and mustered in July 13, 1864, with 0. H. P.
Scott, of Farmington, as Lieutenant Colonel. Company A was from Warren
County ; Company B, from Jasper County ; Company C, from Decatur County,
and Company D, from Des Moines and Lee Counties, and was mustered out at
Rock Island Barracks Oct. 21, 1864.
CAVALRY.
THE FIRST CAVALRY
was organized at Burlington, and mustered into the United States service May
3, 1861, with Fitz Henry Warren, of Burlington, as Colonel ; Chas. E. Moss,
of Keokuk, as Lieutenant Colonel ; and E. W. Chamberlain, of Burlington,
James 0. Gower, of Iowa City, and W. M. G. Torrence, of Keokuk, as Majors.
Company A was from Lee, Van Buren and Wapello Counties ; Company B,
from Clinton County ; Company C, from Des Moines and Lee Counties ; Com-
pany D, from Madison and W^arren Counties; Company E, from Henry
County ; Company F, from Johnson and Linn Counties ; Company G, from
Dubuque and Black Hawk Counties ; Company H, from Lucas and Morrison
Counties ; Company I, from Wapello and Des Moines Counties ; Company K,
from Allamakee and Clayton Counties ; Company L, from Dubuque and other
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 245
counties; Company M, from Clinton County. It was engaged at Pleasant
Hill, Mo.; Rolla, New Lexington, Elkins' Ford, Little Rock, Bayou Metoe,
Warrensburg, Big Creek Bluffs, Antwineville, Clear Creek, etc. Was mustered
out at Austin, Texas, February 15, 1866.
THE SECOND CAVALRY
was organized with W. L. Elliott, of the regular army, as Colonel ; Edward
Hatch, of Muscatine, as Lieutenant Colonel ; and N. P. Hepburn, of Marshall-
town, D. E. Coon, of Mason City, and H. W. Love, of Iowa City, as Majors,
and was mustered into the United States service at Davenport September 1,
1861. Company A was from Muscatine County ; Company B, from Marshall
County ; Company C, from Scott County ; Company D, from Polk County ;
Company E, from Scott County; Company F, from Hamilton and Franklin
Counties ; Company G, from Muscatine County ; Company H, from Johnson
County ; Company I, from Cerro Gordo, Delaware and other counties ; Com-
pany K, from Des Moines County ; Company L, from Jackson County, and
Company M, from Jackson County. The Second Cavalry participated in the
following military movements : Siege of Corinth, battles of Farmington, Boone-
ville, Rienzi, luka, Corinth, Coffceville, Palo Alto, Birmingham, Jackson,
Grenada, Collierville, Moscow, Pontotoc, Tupelo, Old Town, Oxford, and en-
gagements against Hood's march on Nashville, battle of Nashville, etc. Was
mustered out at Selma, Ala., September 19, 1865.
THE THIRD CAVALRY
was organized and mustered into the United States service at Keokuk, in Au-
gust and September, 1861, with Cyrus Bussey, of Bloomfield, as Colonel; H.
H. Bussey, of Bloomfield, as Lieutenant Colonel, and C. H. Perry, H. C. Cald-
well and W. C. Drake, of Corydon, as Majors. Companies A and E were from
Davis County ; Company B, jfrom Van Buren and Lee Counties ; Company C,
from Lee and Keokuk Counties; Company D, from Davis and Van Buren
Counties ; Company F, from Jefferson County ; Company G, from Van Buren
County ; Company H, from Van Buren and Jefferson Counties ; Company I,
from Appanoose County ; Company K, from Wapello and Marion Counties ;
Company L, from Decatur County, and Company M, from Appanoose and De-
catur Counties. It was engaged in the following battles and skirmishes :
Pea Ridge, La Grange, Sycamore, near Little Rock, Columbus, Pope's Farm,
Big Blue, Ripley, Coldwater, Osage, Tallahatchie, Moore's Mill, near Monte-
vallo, near Independence, Pine Bluff, Botts' Farm, Gun Town, White's Station,
Tupelo, Village Creek. Was mustered out of United States service at Atlanta,
Ga., August 9, 1865.
THE FOURTH CAVALRY
was organized with Asbury B. Porter, of Mount Pleasant, as Colonel ; Thomas
Drummond, of Vinton, as Lieutenant Colonel ; S. D. Swan, of Mount Pleas-
ant, J. E. Jewett, of Des Moines, and G. A. Stone, of Moisnt Pleasant, as
Majors, and mustered into United States service at Mount Pleasant November
21, 1861. Company A was from Delaware County; Company C, from Jef-
ferson and Henry Counties ; Company D, from Henry County ; Company E,
246 HISTOKY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
from Jasper and Poweshiek Counties ; Company F, from "Wapello County ;
Company G, from Lee and Henry Counties ; Company H, from Chickasaw
County ; Company I, from Madison County ; Company K, from Henry
County ; Company L, from Des Moines and other counties ; and Company M,
from Jefferson County. The Fourth Cavalry lost men in the following engage-
ments : Guntown, Miss,; Helena, Ark.; near Bear Creek, Miss.; near Mem-
phis, Tenn.; Town Creek, Miss.; Columbus, Ga.; Mechanicsburg,Miss.; Little
Blue River, Ark.; Brownsville, Miss.; Ripley, Miss.; Black River Bridge,
Miss.; Grenada, Miss.; Little Red River, Ark.; Tupelo, Miss.; Yazoo River,
Miss.; White River, Ark.; Osage, Kan.; Lick Creek, Ark.; Okalona, Miss.;
St. Francis River, Ark. Was mustered out at Atlanta, Ga., August 10, 1865.
THE FIFTH CAVALRY
was organized at Omaha with Wm. W. Lowe, of the regular army, as Colo-
nel ; M. T. Patrick, of Omaha, as Lieutenant Colonel ; and C. S. Bernstein,
of Dubuque, as Major, and mustered in September 21, 1861. Companies A,
B, C and D were mostly from Nebraska ; Company E, from Dubuque County ;
Company F, from Des Moines, Dubuque and Lee Counties ; Company G, from
Minnesota ; Company H, from Jackson and other counties ; Companies I and
K were from Minnesota ; Company L, from Minnesota and Missouri ; Com-
pany M, from Missouri ; Companies G, I and K were transferred to Minnesota
Volunteers Feb. 25, 1864. The new Company G was organized from veterans
and recruits and Companies C, E, F and I of Fifth Iowa Infantry, and trans-
ferred to Fifth Cavalry August 8, 1864. The second Company 1 was organ-
ized from veterans and recruits and Companies A, B, D, G, H and K of the
Fifth Iowa Infantry, and transferred to Fifth Iowa Cavalry August 18, 1864.
Was engaged at second battle of Fort Donelson, Wartrace, Duck River Bridge,
Sugar Creek, Newnan, Camp Creek, Cumberland Works, Tenn.; Jonesboro,
Ebenezer Church, Lockbridge's Mills, Pulaski, Cheraw, and mustered out at
Nashville, Tenn., August 11, 1865.
THE SIXTH CAVALRY,
was organized with D. S, Wilson, of Dubuque, as Colonel ; S. M, Pollock, of
Dubuque, as Lieutenant Colonel ; T. H, Shephard, of Iowa City, E. P. Ten-
Broeck, of Clinton, and A. E. House, of Delhi, as Majors, and was mustered
in at Davenport, January 31, 1863. Company A was from Scott and other
counties; Company B, from Dubuque and other counties; Company C, from
Fayette County; Company D, from Winneshiek County; Company E, from
Southwest counties of the State; Company F, from Allamakee and other
counties ; Company G, from Delaware and Buchanan Counties ; Company H,
from Linn County ; Company I, from Johnson and other counties ; Company
K, from Linn County ; Company L, from Clayton County ; Company M, from
Johnson and Dubuque Counties. The Sixth Cavalry operated on the frontier
against the Indians, Was mustered out at Sioux City, October 17, 1865,
THE SEVENTH CAVALRY
was organized at Davenport, and mustered into the United States service April
27, 1863, with S. W. Summers, of Ottumwa, as Colonel ; John Pattee, of Iowa
City, as Lieutenant Colonel; H, H, Heath and G. M, O'Brien, of Dubuque,
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 247
and John S. Wood, of Ottumwa, as Majors. Companies A, B, C and D, were
from Wapello and other counties in immediate vicinity; Companies E, F, G
and H, were from all parts of the State ; Company I, from Sioux City and
known as Sioux City Cavalry; Company K was originally Company A of the
Fourteenth Infantry and afterward Company A of the Forty-first Infantry, was
from Johnson and other jounties ; Company L was originally Company B, of
the Forty-first Infantry and afterward Company B, of the Forty , and
was from Johnson County; Company M was originally Company C, of the
Fourteenth Infantry, and afterward Company C, of the Forty-first and from Des
Moines and other counties. The Seventh Cavalry operated against the Indi-
ans. Excepting the Lieutenant Colonel and Companies K, L and M, the regi-
ment was mustered out at Leaveuworth, Kansas, May 17, 1866. Companies
K, L, and M were mustered out at Sioux City, June 22, 1866.
THE EIGHTH CAVALRY
was organized with J. B. Dorr, of Dubuque, as Colonel ; H. G. Earner, of
Sidney, as Lieutenant Colonel ; John J. Bowen, of Hopkinton, J. D. Thompson,
of Eldora, and A. J. Price, of Guttenburg, as Majors, and were mustered in at
Davenport September 30, 1863. The companies were mostly from the follow-
ing counties : Company A, Page ; B, Wapello ; C, Van Buren ; D, Ring-
gold ; E, Henry ; F, Appanoose ; G, Clayton ; H, Appanoose ; I, Marshall ;
K, Muscatine; L, Wapello ; M, Polk. The Eighth did a large amount of duty
guarding Sherman's communications, in which it had many small engagements.
It was in the battles of Lost Mountain, Lovejoy's Station, Newnan, Nashville,
etc. Was on Stoneman's cavalry raid around Atlanta, and Wilson's raid
through Alabama. Was mustered out at Macon, Ga., August 13, 1865.
THE NINTH CAVALRY
was mustered in at Davenport, November 30, 1863, with M. M. Trumbull, of
Cedar Falls, as Colonel ; J. P. Knight, of Mitchell, as Lieutenant Colonel ; E.
T. Ensign, of Des Moines, Willis Drummond, of McGregor, and William Had-
dock, of Waterloo, as Majors. Company A was from Muscatine County ;
Company B, Linn County; Company C, Wapello and Decatur Counties ; Com-
pany D, Washington County ; Company E, Fayette County ; Company F,
Clayton County ; Companies G and H, various counties ; Company I, Wapello
and Jefferson Counties ; Company K, Keokuk County ; Company L, Jasper
and Marion Counties ; Company M, Wapello and Lee Counties. Was mustered
out at Little Rock, Ark., February 28, 1866.
ARTILLERY.
THE FIRST BATTERY OF LIGHT ARTILLERY
was enrolled in the counties of Wapello, Des Moines, Dubuque, Jefi"erson,
Black Hawk, etc., and was mustered in at Bui-lington, Aug. 17, 1861, with C. H.
Fletcher, of Burlington, as Captain. Was engaged at Pea Ridge, Port Gibson,
in Atlanta campaign, Chickasaw Bayou, Lookout Mountain, etc. Was mus-
tered out at Davenport July 5, 1865.
248 HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
THE SECOND BATTERY OF LIGHT ARTILLERY
was enrolled in the counties of Dallas, Polk, Harrison, Fremont and Pottawat-
tamie, and mustered into United States service at Council Bluffs and St. Louis,
Mo., Aug. 8 and 31, 1861, with Nelson T. Spear, of Council Bluffs, as
Captain. Was engaged at Farmington, Corinth, etc. Was mustered out at
Davenport, Aug. 7, 1865.
THE THIRD BATTERY OF LIGHT ARTILLERY
was enrolled in the counties of Dubuque, Black Hawk, Butler and Floyd, and
mustered into United States service at Dubuque, September, 1861, with M.
M. Hayden, of Dubuque, as Captain. Was at battle of Pea Ridge, etc., etc.
Was mustered out at Davenport, Oct. 23, 1865.
THE FOURTH BATTERY OF LIGHT ARTILLERY
was enrolled in Mahaska, Henry, Mills and Fremont Counties, and was mus-
tered in at Davenport, Nov. 23, 1863, with P. H. Goode, of Glenwood, Cap-
tain. Was mustered out at Davenport, July 14, 1865.
MISCELLANEOUS.
THE FOURTH BATTALION
Company A, from Fremont County, W. Hoyt, Captain ; Company B, from
Taylor County, John Flick, Captain; Company C, from Page County, J.
Whitcomb, Captain.
THE NORTHERN BORDER BRIGADE
was organized by the State of Iowa to protect the Northwestern frontier,
James A. Sawyer, of Sioux City, was elected Colonel. It had Companies A,
B, C, D and E, all enlisted from the Northwestern counties.
THE SOUTHERN BORDER BRIGADE
was organized by the State for the purpose of protecting the Southern border
of the State, and was organized in counties on the border of Missouri. Com-
pany A, First Battalion, was from Lee County, Wm. Sole, Captain; Company B,
First Battalion, Joseph Dickey, Captain, from Van Buren County; Company
A, Second Battalion, from Davis County. Capt. H. B. Horn; Company B, Sec-
ond Battalion, from Appanoose County, E. B. Skinner, Captain; Company A,
Third Battalion, from Decatur County, J. H. Simmons, Captain; Company B,
Third Battalion, from Wayne County, E. F. Estel, Captain; Company C,
Third Battalion, from Ringgold County, N. Miller, Captain.
THE FIRST INFANTRY AFRICAN DESCENT— (SIXTIETH U. S.)
was organized with John G. Hudson, Captain Company B, Thirty-third Mis-
souri, as Colonel; M. F. Collins, of Keokuk, as Lieutenant Colonel, and J. L.
Murphy, of Keokuk, as Major. Had ten companies, and were mustered in at
various places in the Fall of 1863. The men were from all parts of the State
and some from Missouri.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA. 249
During the war, the following promotions were made by the United States
Government from Iowa regiments:*
MAJOR GENERALS
Samuel E. Curtis, Brigadier General, from March 21, 1863.
Frederick Steele, Brigadier General, from November 29, 1863.
Frank J. Herron, Brigadier General, from N'ovember 39, 1863.
Grenville M. Dodge, Brigadier General, from June 7, 1864.
BRIGADIER GENERALS.
Samuel R. Curtis, Colonel 3d Infantry, from May 17, 1861.
Frederick Steele. Colonel 8th Infantry, from February 6, 1862.
Jacob G. Lauman, Colonel 7th Infantry, from March 21, 1863.
Grenville M. Dodge, Colonel 4th Infantry, from March 31, 1863.
James M. Tuttle, Colonel 2d Infantry, from June 9, 1862.
Washington L. Elliott, Colonel 2d Cavalry, from June 11, 1863.
Fitz Henry Warren, Colonel 1st Cavalry , from July 6, 1862.
Frank J. Herron, Lieutenant Colonel 9th Infantry, from July 30, 1862.
Charles L. Matthies, Colonel 5th Infantry, from November 29, 1863.
William Vandever, Colonel 9th Infantry, from November 29, 1862.
Marcellus M. Crocker, Colonel 13th Infantry, from Nov. 29, 1863. (Since died.)
Hugh T. Eeid, Colonel 15th Infantry from March 13, 1863.
Samuel A. Rice, Colonel 33d Infantry, from August 4, 1863.
John M. Corse, Colonel 6th Infantry, from August 11, 1863.
Cyrus Bussey, Colonel 3d Cavalry, from January 5, 1864.
Edward Hatch, Colonel 2d Cavalry, from April 27, 1864.
Elliott W. Rice, Colonel 7th Infantry, from June 20, 1864.
Wm. W. Belknap, Colonel 15th Infantry, from July 30, 1864.
John Edwards, Colonel 18th Infantry, from September 36, 1864.
James A. Williamson, Colonel 4th Infantry, from January 13, 1864.
James I. Gilbert, Colonel 37th Infantry, from February 9, 1865.
BREVET MAJOR GENERALS.
John M. Corse, Brigadier General from October 5, 1864.
Edward Hatch, Brigadier General, from December 15, 1864.
Wm. W. Belknap, Brigadier General, from March 13, 1865.
W. L. Elliott, Brigadier General, from March 13, 1865.
Wm. Vandever, Brigadier General, frona June 7, 1865.
BREVET BRIGADIER GENERALS.
Wm. T. Clark, A. A. G., late of 13th Infantry, from July 22, 1864.
Edward F. Winslow, Colonel 4th Cavalry, from December 12, 1864.
S. G. Hill, Colonel 35th Infantry, from December 15, 1864. (Since died.)
Thos. H. Benton, Colonel 29th Infantry, from December 15, 1864.
Samuel L. Glasgow, Colonel 23d Infantry, from December 19, 1864.
Clark R. Wever, Colonel 17th Infantry, from February 9, 1865.
Francis M. Drake, Lieutenant Colonel 36th Infantry, from February 22, 1865.
George A. Stone, Colonel 25th Infantry, from March 13, 1865.
Datus E. Coon, Colonel 3d Cavalry, from March 8, 1865.
George W. Clark, Colonel 34th Infantry, from March 13, 1865.
Herman H. Heath, Colonel 7th Cavalry, from March 13, 1865.
J. M. Hedrick, Colonel 15th Infantry, from March 13, 1865.
W. W. Lowe, Colonel 5th Cavalry, from March 13, 1865.
♦Thomas J. McKean was appointed Paymaster in U. S. A. from Iowa, and subsequently promoted Brigadier General,
to date from Nov. 21, 1861.
250
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
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HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
253
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254
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
NUMBER OF TROOPS FURNISHED BY THE STATE OF IOWA
DURING THE WAR OF THE REBELLION,
TO JANUARY 1, 1865.
No. Regiment.
1st
2d
3d
4th
5th
6th
7lh
8th
9th
10th
11th
12th
13th
14th
15th
16th
17th
18th
Iflth
20th
21st
22d
23d
24th
25th
2Cth
27th
28th
29ih
30th
31st
32d
33d
34th
35th
30th
37th
38th
Iowa Infantry.
No. of
men.
1
959
1,247
1,074
1,184
1,037
1.013
1,138
1,027
1,090
1,027
1,022
981
989
840
196
919
956
875
985
925
980
1,008
961
979
995
919
940
956
1,005
978
977
925
985
953
984
986
914
910
No. Regiment.
[No. of
men.
39th Iowa Infantry
40th '• ■'
41st Battalion Iowa Infantry..
44th Infantry (100-days men J
45th " " "
46th " "
47th " "
48th Battalion '• "
1st Iowa Cavalry
9fl i< II
3d " "
4th " "
5th " "
6th " "
7th " "
8th " "
9th " "
Sioux City Cavalry*
Co. A, 11th Penn. Cavalry
1st Battery Artillery
2d •' "
â– .'d " "
4th " "
1st Iowa African Infantry, 60th U. Sf..
Dodge's Brigade Band
Band of 2d Iowa Infantry
Enlistments as f;ir as reported to Jan. 1,
1864, for the older Ioi\a regiments
Enlistments of Iowa men in regiments
of other States, over
933
9C0
294
867
912
892
884
346
1,478
1 394
1,360
1,227
1,245
1,125
562
1.234
1.178
93
87
149
123
142
152
903
14
10
2,765
2,500
Total
Re-enlisted Veterans lor tlitterent Regi-
ments
Additional enlistments
Grand total as far as reported up to Jan,
1, 1865
61,653
7,202
6,664
75,519
This does not include those Iowa men who veteranized in the regiments of other States, nor
the names of men who enlisted during 1864, in regiments of other States.
* Afterward consolidated with Seventh Cavalry.
^ f Only a portion of this regiment was credited to the State.
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
255
POPULATION OF IOWA,
By Counties.
COUNTIES.
AGGREGATE. .
1875.
1870.
1860.
1850.
1840.
Voters.
Adair
7045
7832
19158
17405
2370
28807
22913
17251
13220
17315
3561
3982
4614
17868
16456
1212
22454
21706
14584
12528
17084
1585
984
1533
12237
11931
454
8496
8244
4232
4915
7906
67
1616
Adams
1727
AlliiniJikeL'
777
3131
3653
At)T)!iiiuose
3679
Audubon
527
Benton
672
135
735
4778
Black Hawk
4877
Boone
3515
Bremer
2656
Buchanan
517
3890
Buena Vista
817
Buncombe*
Butler
11734
3185
5760
10552
17879
6685
424<'
11400
10118
3559
27184
34295
6039
14386
15757
13249
16893
35415
1748
43845
1436
20515
13100
6558
13719
7028
8134
9638
7701
1482
15029
11818
21594
7875
3455
794
17456
23061
24128
17127
24654
19168
9951
1602
2451
5464
19731
4722
1967
10180
8735
1523
27771
85357
2530
12019
15565
12018
17432
27256
1389
38969
1392
16973
10768
4738
11173
4627
6399
7061
6055
999
13684
8931
21463
6282
2596
226
16644
22619
22116
17839
24898
19731
3724
147
281
1612
12949
940
58
4336
5427
52
20728
18938
383
6244
13764
8677
11024
19611
180
31164
105
12073
3744
1309
6074
1374
793
3058
1699
179
5440
3621
18701
3168
332
43
8029
18493
9883
15038
17573
13306
2598
Calhoun
681
Carroll
1197
Cass
2422
Cedar
3941
1253
3934
Cerro Gordo
1526
Cherokee
1001
Chickasaw
2392
Clarke
79
2213
Clay
868
3873
2822
1101
821
5272
5569
1244
Dallas
854
7264
965
1759
12988
3170
3448
Dpcatiir
2882
168
6577
3662
Des Moines
6654
394
10841
3059
8759
299
Favette
825
4637
2884
1374
1244
29^8
1622
1525
Guthrie
2339
1455
303
/ir..,..
3215
2658
8707
••■.3772
4641
1712
695
Ida
172
822
7210
1280
9904
4472
3007
'\ 357i6
1411
.' ^4901
' "5239
2773
1491
471
8721
^ttiJUk
Jones
â– '^m.
* In 1862, name changed to Lyon.
256
HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA.
POPULATION OF IOWA— Concluded.
COUNTIES.
AGGREGATE.
187.-5.
1S70.
1860.
1850.
1840.
Toters.
20488
3765
33913
31815
12499
11725
1139
16030
23718
24094
19629
10555
11523
2267
12811
10389
21623
2349
1778
14274
2728
5282
2249
31558
21665
16482
7546
2873
39763
5664
3120
13111
18771
10418
8827
16980
23865
18541
19269
13978
13114
2986
24233
8568
4908
3244
19434
3351
38210
28852
12877
10388
221
13884
22508
24436
17576
8718
9582
3654
12724
5934
21688
715
1327]
416
29232
18947
10370
6766
4822
4202
ICrmmitVi ..
773
Lee *
18861
5444
4939
471
6093
1373
1927
7274
7509
2899
2464
287
Af QfliqoTl
7339
14816
16813
6015
4481
3409
832
8612
1256
16444
8
1179
5989
5482
338
3632
5287
4988
4445
Mills
2365
Mitchell
2338
1292
2884
2743
IVTnntornniprv
2485
Muscatine
5731
1942
6588
O'Brien ..
595
498
9975
1336
2199
1446
27857
16893
15581
5691
1411
38599
2540
576
11651
16131
6989
6986
17672
22346
17980
18952
11287
10484
1562
23570
6172
2892
2392
4419
132
148
103
11625
4968
5668
2923
246
25959
818
10
4051
5285
3590
2012
17081
14518
10281
14235
6409
2504
168
13942
1119
756
653
651
3222
Palo Alto
556
1136
464
Polk
4613
7828
615
6842
Prittawjiltomie
4392
3634
1496
Sac
657
Scott
5986
2140
7109
Shelby
1084
637
Storv
2574
Tama
8
204
3911
Taylor ..
2282
Union
1924
Van Buren
12270
8471
961
4957
340
6146
3893
5346
Warren
4168
Washington
1594
4168
Wayne
2947
^Vehsf er
2747
"Wirinphn (TO .- ......... .
406
546
4117
1776
â– yVorth
763
Wright
694
Total
1353118
1191792
674913
192214
43112
284557
THE NORTHWESTERN STATES. 257
' ILLINOIS.
Length, 380 miles, mean width about 156 miles. Area, 55,410 square
miles, or 35,462,400 acres. Illinois, as regards its surface, constitutes a,
table-land at a varying elevation ranging between 350 and 800 feet above
the sea level ; composed of extensive and highly fertile prairies and plains.
Much of the south division of the State, especially the river-bottoms, are
thickly wooded. The prairies, too, have oasis-like clumps of trees
scattered here and there at intervals. The chief rivers irrigating the
State are the Mississippi — dividing it from Iowa and Missouri — the Ohio
(forming its south barrier), the Illinois, Wabash, Kaskaskia, and San-
gamon, with their numerous affluents. The total extent of navigable
streams is calculated at 4,000 miles. Small lakes are scattered over vari-
ous parts of the State. Illinois is extremely prolific in minerals, chiefly
coal, iron, copper, and zinc ores, sulphur and limestone. The coal-field
alone is estimated to absorb a full third of the entire coal-deposit of North
America. Climate tolerably equable and healthy ; the mean temperature
standing at about 51° Fahrenheit As an agricultural region, Illinois takes
a competitive rank with neighboring States, the cereals, fruits, and root-
crops yielding plentiful returns ; in fact, as a grain-growing State, Illinois
may be deemed, in proportion to her size, to possess a greater area of
lands suitable for its production than any other State in the Union. Stock-
raising is also largely carried on, while her manufacturing interests in
regard of woolen fabrics, etc., are on a very extensive and yearly expand-
ing scale. The lines of railroad in the State are among the most exten-
sive of the Union. Inland water-carriage is facilitated by a canal
connecting the Illinois River with Lake Michigan, and thence with the
St. Lawrence and Atlantic. Illinois is divided into 102 counties ; the
chief towns being Chicago, Springfield (capital), Alton, Quincy, Peoria,
Galena, Bloomington, Rock Island, Vandalia, etc. By the new Consti-
tution, established in 1870, the State Legislature consists of 51 Senators,
elected for four years, and 153 Representatives, for two years ; which
numbers were to be decennially increased thereafter to the number of
six per every additional half-million of inhabitants. Religious and
educational institutions are largely diffused throughout, and are in a very
flourishing condition. Illinois has a State Lunatic and a Deaf and Dumb
Asylum at Jacksonville ; a State Penitentiary at Joliet ; and a Home for
(90)
258
THE NORTHWESTERN STATES.
Soldiers' Orphans at Normal. On November 30, 1870, the public debt of
the State was returned at $4,870,937, with a balance of $1,808,833
unprovided for. At the same period the value of assessed and equalized
property presented the following totals : assessed, $840,031,703 ; equal-
ized $480,664,058. The name of Illinois, through nearly th^ whole of
the eighteenth century, embraced most of the known regions north and
west of Ohio. French colonists established themselves in 1673, at
Cahokia and Kaskaskia, and the territory of which these settlements
formed the nucleus was, in 1763, ceded to Great Britain in conjunction
with Canada, and ultimately resigned to the United States in 1787.
Illinois entered the Union as a State, December 3, 1818 ; and now sends
19 Representatives to Congress. Population, 2,539,891, in 1870.
THE NORTHWESTERN STATES.
INDIANA.
259
The profile of Indiana forms a nearly exact parallelogram, occupy-
ing one of the most fertile portions of the great Mississippi Valley. .The
greater extent of the surface embraced within its limits consists of gentle
undulations rising into hilly tracts toward the Ohio bottom. The chief
rivers of the State are the Ohio and Wabash, with their numerous
affluents. The soil is highly productive of the cereals and grasses — most
particularly so in the valleys of the Ohio, Wabash, Whitewater, and
White Rivers. The northeast and central portions are well timbered
with virgin forests, and the west section is notably rich in coal, constitut-
ing an offshoot of the great Illinois carboniferous field. Iron, copper,
marble, slate, gypsum, and various clays are also abundant. From an
agricultural point of view, the staple products are maize and wheat, with
the other cereals in lesser yields ; and besides these, flax, hemp, sorghum,
hops, etc., are extensively raised. Indiana is divided into 92 counties,
and counts among her principal cities and towns, those of Indianapolis
(the capital). Fort Wayne, Evansville, Terre Haute, Madison, Jefferson-
ville, Columbus, Vincennes, South Bend, etc. The public institutions of
the State are many and various, and on a scale of magnitude and
efficiency coijimensurate with her important political and industrial status.
Upward of two thousand miles of railroads permeate the State in all
directions, and greatly conduce to the development of her expanding
manufacturing interests. Statistics for the fiscal year terminating
October 31, 1870, exhibited a total of receipts, $3,896,541 as against dis-
bursements, 13,532,406, leaving a balance, $364,135 in favor of the State
Treasury. The entire public debt, January 5, 1871, $3,971,000. This
State was first settled by Canadian voyageurs in 1702, Avho erected a fort
at Vincennes ; in 1768 it passed into the hands of the English, and was
by the latter ceded to the United States in. 1783. From 1788 till 1791,
an Indian ware fare prevailed. In 1800, all the region west and north of
Ohio (then formed into a distinct territory) became merged in Indiana.
In 1809, the present limits of the State were defined, Michigan and
Illinois having previously been withdrawn. In 1811, Indiana was the
theater of the Indian War of Tecumseh, ending with the decisive battle
of Tippecanoe. In 1816 (December 11), Indiana became enrolled among
the States of the American Union. In 1834, the State passed through a
monetary crisis owing to its having become mixed up with railroad,
canal, and other speculations on a gigantic scale, which ended, for the
time being, in a general collapse of public credit, and consequent bank-
ruptcy. Since that time, however, the greater number of the public
260 THE NORTHWESTERN STATES.
works which had brought about that imbroglio — especially the great
Wabash and Erie Canal — have been completed, to the great benefit of
the State, whose subsequent progress has year by year been marked by
rapid strides in the paths of wealth, commerce, and general social and
political prosperity. The constitution now in force was adopted in 1851.
Population, l,6S0,6dl.
IOWA.
In shape, Iowa presents an almost perfect parallelogram; has a
length, north to south, of about 300 miles, by a pretty even width of 208
miles, and embraces an area of 55,045 square miles, or 35,228,800 acres.
The surface of the State is generally undulating, rising toward the
middle into an elevated plateau which forms the " divide " of the
Missouri and Mississippi basins. Rolling prairies, especially in the south
section, constitute a regnant feature, and the river bottoms, belted with
woodlands, present a soil of the richest alluvion. Iowa is well watered ;
the principal rivers being the Mississippi and Missouri, which form
respectively its east and west limits, and the Cedar, Iowa, and Des
Moines, affluents of the first named. Mineralogically, Iowa is important
as occupying a section of the great Northwest coal field, to the extent of
an area estimated at 25,000 square miles. Lead, copper, zinc, and iron,
are also mined in considerable quantities. The soil is well adapted to
tlie production of wheat, maize, and the other cereals ; fruits, vegetables,
and esculent roots ; maize, wheat, and oats forming the chief staples.
Wine, tobacco, hops, and wax, are other noticeable items of the agricul-
tural yield. Cattle-raising, too, is a branch of rural industry largely
engaged in. The climate is healthy, although liable to extremes of heat
and cold. The annual gross product of the various manufactures carried
on in this State approximate, in round numbers, a sum of $20,000,000.
Iowa has an immense railroad system, besides over 500 miles of water-
communication by means of its navigable rivers. The State is politically
divided into 99 counties, with the following centers of population : Des
Moines (capital), Iowa City (former capital), Dubuque, Davenport, Bur-
lington, Council Bluffs, Keokuk, Muscatine, and Cedar Rapids. The
State institutions of Iowa — religious, scholastic, and philanthropic — are
on a par, as regards number and perfection of organization and operation,
with those of her Northwest sister States, and education is especially
well cared for, and largely diffused. Iowa formed a portion of the
American territorial acquisitions from France, by the so-called Louisiana
purchase in 1 803, and was politically identified with Louisiana till 1812>
"^^^uc libhaky/
' Aaron, lenox an»
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THE NORTHWESTERN STATES. 263
when it merged into the Missouri Territory; in 1834 it came under the
Michigan organization, and, in 1836, under that of Wisconsin. Finally,
after being constituted an independent Territory, it became a State of
the Union, December 28, 1846. Population in 1860, 674,913 ; in 1870,
1,191,792, and in 1875, 1,353,118.
MICHIGAN.
United area, 56,243 square miles, or 35,995,520 acres. Extent of the
Upper and smaller Peninsula — length, 316 miles ; breadth, fluctuating
between 36 and 120 miles. The south division is 416 miles long, by from
50 to 300 miles wide. Aggregate lake-shore line, 1,400 miles. The
Upper, or North, Peninsula consists chiefly of an elevated plateau,
expanding into the Porcupine mountain-system, attaining a maximum
height of some 2,000 feet. Its shores along Lake Superior are eminently
bold and picturesque, and its area is rich in minerals, its product of
copper constituting an important source of industry. Both divisions are
heavily wooded, and the South one, in addition, boasts of a deep, rich,
loamy soil, throwing up excellent crops of cereals and other agricultural
produce. The climate is generally mild and humid, though the Winter
colds are severe. The chief staples of farm husbandry include the cereals,
grasses, maple sugar, sorghum, tobacco, fruits, and dairy-stuffs. In 1870,
the acres of land in farms were : improved, 5,096,939 ; unimproved
woodland, 4,080,146 ; other unimproved land, 842,057. The cash value
of land was 1398,240,578 ; of farming implements and machinery,
$13,711,979. In 1869, there were shipped from the Lake Superior ports,
874,582 tons of iron ore, and 45,762 of smelted pig, along with 14,188
tons of copper (ore and ingot). Coal is another article largely mined.
Inland communication is provided for by an admirably organized railroad
system, and by the St. Mary's Ship Canal, connecting Lakes Huron and
Superior. Michigan is politically divided into 78 counties ; its chief
urban centers are Detroit, Lansing (capital), Ann Arbor, Marquette,
Bay City, Niles, Ypsilanti, Grand Haven, etc. The Governor of the
State is elected biennially. On November 30, 1870, the aggregate bonded
debt of Michigan amounted to $2,385,028, and the assessed valuation of
land to 1266,929,278, representing an estimated cash value of $800,000,000.
Education is largely diffused and most excellently conducted and pro-
vided for. The State University at Ann Arbor, the colleges of Detroit
and Kalamazoo, the Albion Female College, the State Normal School at
Ypsilanti, and the State Agricultural College at Lansing, are chief among
the academic institutions. Michigan (a term of Chippeway origin, and
R
264 THE NOKTHWESTERN STATES.
signifying " Great Lake), was discovered and first settled by French
Canadians, who, in 1670, founded Detroit, the pioneer of a series of trad-
ing-posts on the Indian frontier. During the " Conspiracy of Pontiac,"
following the French loss of Canada, Michigan became the scene of a
sanguinary struggle between the whites and aborigines. In 1796, it
became annexed to the United States, which incorporated this region
with the Northwest Territory, and then with Indiana Territory, till 1803,
when it became territorially independent. Michigan was the theater of
warlike operations during the war of 1812 with Great Britain, and in
1819 was authorized to be represented by one delegate in Congress ; in
1837 she was admitted into the Union as a State, and in 1869 ratified the
15th Amendment to the Federal Constitution. Population, 1,184,059.
WISCONSIN.
It has a mean length of 260 miles, and a maximum breadth of 215.
Land area, 53,924 square miles, or 34,511,360 acres. Wisconsin lies at a
considerable altitude above sea-level, and consists for the most part of an
upland plateau, the surface of which is undulating and very generally
diversified. Numerous local eminences called mounds are interspersed
over the State, and the Lake Michigan coast-line is in many parts char-
acterized by lofty escarped cliffs, even as on the west side the banks of
the Mississippi form a series of high and picturesque bluffs. A group of
islands known as The Apostles lie off the extreme north point of the
State in Lake Superior, and the great estuary of Green Bay, running far
inland, gives formation to a long, narrow peninsula between its waters
and those of Lake Michigan. The river-system of Wisconsin has three
outlets — those of Lake Superior, Green Bay, and the Mississippi, which
latter stream forms the entire southwest frontier, widening at one point
into the large watery expanse called Lake Pepin. Lake Superior receives
the St. Louis, Burnt Wood, and Montreal Rivers; Green Bay, the
Menomonee, Peshtigo, Oconto, and Fox ; while into the Mississippi
empty the St. Croix, Chippewa, Black, Wisconsin, and Rock Rivers.
The chief interior lakes are those of Winnebago, Horicon, and Court
Oreilles, and smaller sheets of water stud a great part of the surface.
The climate is healthful, with cold Winters and brief but very warm
Summers. Mean annual rainfall 31 inches. The geological system
represented by the State, embraces those rocks included between the
primary and the Devonian series, the former containing extensive
deposits of copper and iron ore. Besides these minerals, lead and zinc
are found in great quantities, together with kaolin, plumbago, gypsum.
THE NORTHWESTERN STATES. 265
and various clays. Mining, consequently, forms a prominent industry,
and one of yearly increasing dimensions. The soil of Wisconsin is of
varying quality, but fertile on the whole, and in the north parts of the
State heavily timbered. The agricultural yield comprises the cereals,
together with flax, hemp, tobacco, pulse, sorgum, and all kinds of vege-
tables, and of the hardier fruits. In 1870, the State had a total number
of 102,904 farms, occupying 11,715,321 acres, of which 5,899,343 con-
sisted of improved land, and 3,437,442 were timbered. Cash value of
farms, $300,414,064 ; of farm implements and machinery, $14,239,364.
Total estimated value of all farm products, including betterments and
additions to stock, $78,027,032 ; of orchard and dairy stuffs, $1,045,933 ;
of lumber, $1,327,618 ; of home manufactures, $338,423 ; of all live-stock,
$45,310,882. Number of manufacturing establishments, 7,136, employ-
ing 39,055 hands, and turning out productions valued at $85,624,966.
The political divisions of the State form 61 counties, and the chief places
of wealth, trade, and population, are Madison (the capital), Milwaukee,
Fond du Lac, Oshkosh, Prairie du Chien, Janesville, Portage City,
Racine, Kenosha, and La Crosse. In 1870, the total assessed valuation
reached $333,209,838, as against a true valuation of both real and personal
estate aggregating $602,207,329. Treasury receipts during 1870, $886,-
696 ; disbursements, $906,329. Value of church property, $4,749,983.
Education is amply provided for. Independently of the State University
at Madison, and those of Galesville and of Lawrence at Appleton, and
the colleges of Beloit, Racine, and Milton, there are Normal Schools at
Platteville and Whitewater. The State is divided into 4,802 common
school districts, maintained at a cost, in 1870, of $2,094,160. The chari-
table institutions of Wisconsin include a Deaf and Dumb Asylum, an
Institute for the Education of the Blind, and a Soldiers' Orphans' School.
In January, 1870, the railroad system ramified throughout the State
totalized 2,779 miles of track, including several lines far advanced toward
completion. Immigration is successfully encouraged by the State author-
ities, the larger number of yearly new-comers being of Scandinavian and
German origin. The territory now occupied within the limits of the
State of Wisconsin was explored by French missionaries and traders in
1639, and it remained under French jurisdiction until 1703, when it
became annexed to the British North American possessions. In 1796, it
reverted to the United States, the government of which latter admitted
it within the limits of the Northwest Territory, and in 1809, attached it
to that of Illinois, and to Michigan in 1818. Wisconsin became independ-
ently territorially organized in 1836, and became a State of the Union,
March 3, 1847. Population in 1870, 1,064,985, of which 2,113 were of
the colored race, and 11,521 Indians, 1,206 of the latter being out of
tribal relations.
266 THE NORTHWESTERN STATES.
MINNESOTA.
Its length, north to south, embraces an extent of 380 miles ; its
oreadth one of 250 miles at a maximum. Area, 84,000 square miles, or
54,760,000 acres. The surface of Minnesota, generally speaking, con-
sists of a succession of gently undulating plains and prairies, drained by
an admirable water-system, and with here and there heavily- timbered
bottoms and belts of virgin forest. The soil, corresponding with such a
superfices, is exceptionally rich, consisting for the most part of a dark,
calcareous sandy drift intermixed with loam. A distinguishing physical
feature of this State is its riverine ramifications, expanding in nearly
every part of it into almost innumerable lakes — the whole presenting an
aggregate of water-power having hardly a rival in the Union. Besides
the Mississippi — which here has its rise, and drains a basin of 800 miles
of country — the principal streams are the Minnesota (334 miles long),-
the Red River of the North, the St. Croix, St. Louis, and many others of
lesser importance; the chief lakes are those called Red, Cass, Leech,
Mille Lacs, Vermillion, and Winibigosh. Quite a concatenation of sheets
of water fringe the frontier line where Minnesota joins British America,
culminating in the Lake of the Woods. It has been estimated, that of
an area of 1,200,000 acres of surface between the St. Croix and Mis-
sissippi Rivers, not less than 73,000 acres are of lacustrine formation. In
point of minerals, the resources of Minnesota have as yet been very
imperfectly developed; iron, copper, coal, lead — all these are known to
exist in considerable deposits ; together with salt, Hmestone, and potter's
clay. The agricultural outlook of the State is in a high degree satis-
factory ; wheat constitutes the leading cereal in cultivation, with Indian
corn and oats in next order. Fruits and vegetables are grown in great
plenty and of excellent quality. The lumber resources of Minnesota are
important ; the pine forests in the north region alone occupying an area
of some 21,000 square miles, which in 1870 produced a return of scaled
logs amounting to 313,116,416 feet. The natural industrial advantages
possessed by Minnesota are largely improved upon by a railroad system.
The political divisions of this State number 78 counties ; of which the
chief cities and towns are : St. Paul (the capital), Stillwater, Red Wing,
St. Anthony, Fort Snelling, Minneapolis, and Mankato. Minnesota has
already assumed an attitude of high importance as a manufacturing State ;
this is mainly due to the wonderful command of water-power she pos-
sesses, as before spoken of. Besides her timber-trade, the milling of
flour, the distillation of whisky, and the tanning of leather, are prominent
interests, which in 1869, gave returns to the amount of $14,831,043»
THE NORTHWESTERN STATES. 26T
Education is notably provided for on a broad and catholic scale, the
entne amount expended scholastically during the year 1870 being $857,-
816 ; while on November 30 of the preceding year the permanent school
fund stood at $2,476,222. Besides a University and Agricultural College,
Normal and Reform Schools flourish, and with these may be mentioned
such various philanthropic and religious institutions as befit the needs of
an intelligent and prosperous community. The finances of the State for
the fiscal year terminating December 1, 1870, exhibited a balance on the
right side to the amount of $136,164, being a gain of $44,000 over the
previous year's figures. The earliest exploration of Minnesota by the
whites was made in 1680 by a French Franciscan, Father Hennepin, who
gave the name of St. Antony to the Great Falls on the Upper Missisippi.
In 1763, the Treaty of Versailles ceded this region to England.
Twenty years later, Minnesota formed part of the Northwest Territory
transferred to the United States, and became herself territorialized inde-
pendently in 1849. Indian cessions in 1851 enlarged her boundaries, and,
May 11, 1857, Minnesota became a unit of the great American federation
of States. Population, 439,706.
NEBRASKA.
Maxiinum length, 412 miles ; extreme breadth, 208 miles. Area,
75,905 square miles, or 48,636,800 acres. The surface of this State is
almost entirely undulating prairie, and forms part of the west slope of
the great central basin of the North American Continent. In its west
division, near the base of the Rocky Mountains, is a sandy belt of
country, irregularly defined. In this part, too, are the " dunes," resem-
bling a wavy sea of sandy billows, as well as the Mauvaises Terres, a tract
of singular formation, produced by eccentric disintegrations and denuda-
tions of the land. The chief rivers are the Missouri, constituting its en-
tire east line of demarcation ; the Nebraska or Platte, the Niobrara, the
Republican Fork of the Kansas, the Elkhorn, and the Loup Fork of the
Platte. The soil is very various, but consisting chiefly of rich, bottomy
loam, admirably adapted to the raising of heavy crops of cereals. All
the vegetables and fruits of the temperate zone are produced in great
size and plenty. For grazing purposes Nebraska is a State exceptionally
well fitted, a region of not less than 23,000,000 acres being adaptable to
this branch of husbandry. It is believed that the, as yet, comparatively
infertile tracts of land found in various parts of the State are susceptible
of productivity by means of a properly conducted system of irrigation.
Few minerals of moment have so far been found within the limits of
268 THE NORTHWESTERN STATES.
Nebraska, if we may except important saline deposits at the head of Salt
Creek in its southeast section. The State is divided into 57 counties,
independent of the Pawnee and Winnebago Indians, and of unorganized
territory in the northwest part. The principal towns are Omaha, Lincoln
(State capital), Nebraska City, Columbus, Grand Island, etc. In 1870,
the total assessed value of property amounted to $53,000,000, being an
increase of $11,000,000 over the previous year's returns. The total
amount received from the school-fund during the year 1869-70 was
877,999. Education is making great onward strides, the State University
and an Agricultural College being far advanced toward completion. In
the matter of railroad communication, Nebraska bids fair to soon place
herself on a par with her neighbors to the east. Besides being inter-
sected by the Union Pacific line, with its off-shoot, the Fremont and Blair,
other tracks are in course of rapid construction. Organized by Con-
gressional Act into a Territory, May 30, 1854, Nebraska entered the
Union as a full State, March 1, 1867. Population, 122,993.
CONSTITUTIOii OF THE UNITED STATES 209
CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
AND ITS AMENDMENTS.
We, the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union,
establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common
defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty
to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution
for the United States of America.
Article I.
Section 1. All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in
a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and
Mouse of Representatives.
Sec. 2. The House of Representatives shall be composed of mem-
bers chosen every second year by the people of the several states, and the
electors in each state shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of
the most numerous branch of the State Legislature.
No person shall be a representative who shall not have attained to the
age of twenty-five years, and been seven years a citizen of the United
States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that state in
which he shall be chosen.
Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the sev-
eral states which may be included within this Union, according to their
respective numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole
number of free persons, including those bound to service for a term of
years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three-fifths of all other persons.
The actual enumeration shall be made within three years after the first
meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subse-
quent term of ten years, in such manner as they shall by law direct. The
number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty thousand,
but each state shall have at least one Representative ; and until such
enumeration shall be made the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled
to choose three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode Island and Providence Plan-
tations one, Connecticut five. New York six, New Jersey four, Pennsylva-
nia eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten. North Carolina five,
and Georgia three.
When vacancies happen in the representation from any state, the
Executive authority thereof shall issue writs of election to fill such
vacancies.
The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker and other
officers, and shall have the sole power of impeachment.
Sec. 3. The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two
Senators from each state, chosen by the Legislature thereof for six years ;
and each Senator shall have one vote.
Immediately after they shall be assembled in consequence of the first
election, they shall be divided as equally as may be into three classes.
The seats of the Senators of the first class shall be vacated at the expira-
270 AlID ITS AMENDMENTS.
tion of the second year, of the second class at the expiration of the fourth
year, and of the third class at the expiration of the sixth year, so that
one-third may be chosen every second year; and if vacancies happen by
resignation or otherwise, during the recess of the Legislature of any state,
the Executive thereof may make temporary appointments until the next
meeting of the Legislature, which shall then fill such vacancies.
No person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the age
of thirty years and been nine years a citizen of the United States, and
who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that state for which he
shall be chosen.
The Vice-President of the United States shall be President of the
Senate, but shall have no vote unless they be equally divided.
The Senate shall choose their other officers, and also a President 'pro
tempore, in the absence of the Vice-President, or when he shall exercise
the office of President of the United States.
The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeachments. When
sitting for that purpose they shall be on oath or affirmation. When the
President of the United States is tried the Chief Justice shall preside.
And no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds
of the members present.
Judgment, in cases of impeachment, shall not extend further than to
removal from office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of
honor, trust, or profit under the United States ; but the party convicted
shall nevertheless be liable and subject to indictment, trial, judgment,
and punishment according to law.
Sec. 4. The times, places and manner of holding elections for Sen-
ators and Representatives shall be prescribed in each state by the Legis-
lature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by law make or alter
such regulations, except as to the places of choosing Senators.
The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such
meeting shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they shall by
law appoint a different day.
Sec. 5. Each house shall be the judge of the election, returns, and
qualifications of its own members, and a majority of each shall constitute
a quorum to do business; but a smaller number may adjourn from day to
day, and may be authorized to compel the attendance of absent members
in such manner and under such penalties as each house may provide.
Each house may determine the rules of its proceedings, punish ita
members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of two-thirds,
expel a member.
Each house shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and from time to
time publish the same, excepting such parts as may, in their judgment,
require secrecy ; and the yeas and nays of the members of either house
on any question shall, at the desire of one-fifth of those present, be entered
on the journal.
Neither house, during the session of Congress, shall, without the
consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other
place than that in which the two houses shall be sitting.
Sec. 6. The Senators and Representatives shall receive a compen-
sation for their services, to be ascertained hj law, and paid out of the
treasury of the United States. They shall in all cases, except treason,
CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES ^71
felony, and breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during their
attendance at the session of their respective houses, and in going to and
returning from the same ; and for any speech or debate in either house
they shall not be questioned in any other place.
No Senator or Representative shall, during the time for which he was
elected, be appointed to any civil office under the authority of the United
States, which shall have been created, or the emoluments whereof shall
have been increased during such time ; and no person holding any office
under the United States, shall be a member of either house during his
continuance in office.
Sec. 7. All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of
Representatives ; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments
as on other bills.
Every bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and
the Senate, shall, before it becomes a law, be presented to the President
the United States ; if he approve he shall sign it ; but if not he shall
return it, with his objections, to that house in which it shall have origi-
nated, who shall enter the objections at large on their journal, and
proceed to reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration two-thirds of that
house shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with the objec-
tions, to the other house, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if
approved by two-thirds of that house, it shall become a law. But in all
such cases the votes of both houses shall be determined by yeas and nays,
and the names of the persons voting for and against the bill shall be entered
on the journal of each house respectively. If any bill shall not be returned
by the President within ten days (Sundays excepted), after it shall have
been presented to him, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if he
had signed it, unless the Congress, by their adjournment, prevent its
return, in which case it shall not be a law.
Every order, resolution, or vote to which the concurrence of the
Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary (except on a
question of adjournment), shall be presented to the President of the
United States, and before the same shall take effect shall be approved by
him, or, being disapproved by him, shall be re-passed by two-thirds of
the Senate and House of Representatives, according to the rules and lim-
itations prescribed in the case of a bill.
Sec. 8. The Congress shall have power —
To lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts,
and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United
utates ; but all duties, imposts, and excises shall be uniform throughout
the United States ;
To borrow money on the credit of the United States ;
To regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several
States, and with the Indian tribes ;
To establish a uniform rule of naturalization, and uniform laws on
the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United States ;
To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and
fix the standard of weights and measures ;
To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and
current coin of the United States;
To establish post offices and post roads ;
272 AND ITS AMENDMENTS.
To promote the progress of sciences and useful arts, by securing,
for limited times, to authors and inventors, the exclusive right to their
respective writings and discoveries ;
To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court ;
To define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high
seas, and offenses against the law of nations ;
To declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules
concerning captures on land and water ;
To raise and support armies, but no appropriation of money to that
use shall be for a longer term than two years ;
To provide and maintain a navy ;
To make rules for the government and regulation of the land and
naval forces ;
_ To provide for calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the
Union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions ;
To provide for organizing, arming and disciplining the militia, and
for governing such part of them as may be employed in the service of the
United States, reserving to the states respectively the apDointment of the
officers, and the authority of training the militia according to the disci,
pline prescribed by Congress ;
To exercise legislation in all cases whatsoever over such district (not
exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular states, and the
acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United
States, and to exercise like authority over all places purchased by the
consent of the Legislature of the state in which the same shall be, for
the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dock yards, and other needful
buildings ; and
To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying
into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this
Constitution in the government of the United States, or in any depart-
ment or officer thereof.
Sec. 9. The migration or importation of such persons as any of the
states now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited
by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight,
but a tax or duty may be imposed on such importation, not exceeding ten
dollars for each person.
The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended,
unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may
require it. r j j
No bill of attainder or ex post facto law shall be passed.
No capitation or other direct tax shall be laid, unless in proportion
to the census or enumeration hereinbefore directed to be taken.
No tax or duty shall be laid on articles exported from any state.
No preference shall be given by any regulation of comm'erce or rev-
enue to the ports of one state over those of another; nor shall vessels
bound to or from one state be obliged to enter, clear, or pay duties in
another. "^
No money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in consequence of
appropriations made by law ; and a regular statement and account of
the receipts and expeditures of all public money shall be published from
time to time.
CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES 273
No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States : and no
person holding any office of profit or trust under them, shall, without the
consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office, or title
of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state.
Sec. 10. No state shall enter into any treaty, alliance, or confeder-
ation ; grant letters of marque and reprisal ; coin money ; emit bills of
credit ; make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of
debts ; pass any bill of attainder, ex post facto law, or law impairing the
obligation of contracts, or grant any title of nobility.
No state shall, without the consent of the Congress, lay any imposts
or duties on imports or exports, except what may be absolutely necessary
for executing its inspection laws, and the net produce of all duties and
imposts laid by any state on imports or exports, shall be for the use of the
Treasury of the United States \ and all such laws shall be subject to the
revision and control of the Congress.
No state shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any duty on
tonnage, keep troops or ships of war in time of peace, enter into any
agreement or compact with another state, or with a foreign power, or
engage in war, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent danger as wil)
not admit of delay.
Article II.
Section 1. The Executive power shall be vested in a President of
the United States of America. He shall hold his office during the term
of four years, and, together with the Vice-President chosen for the same
term, be elected as follows :
Each state shall appoint, in such manner as the Legislature thereof
may direct, a number of Electors, equal to the whole number of Senators
and Representatives to which the state may be entitled in the Congress ;
but no Senator or Representative, or person holding an office of trust or
profit under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector.
[ * The Electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by
ballot for two persons, of whom one at least shall not be an inhabitant of
the same state with themselves. And they shall make a list of all the
persons voted for, and of the number of votes for each ; which list they
shall sign and certify, and transmit, sealed, to the seat of the government
of the IJnited States, directed to the President of the Senate. The Pres-
ident of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Rep-
resentatives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be counted.
The person having the greatest number of votes shall be the President,
if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed ;
and if there be more than one who have such majority, and have an equal
number of votes, then the House of Representatives shall immediately
choose by ballot one of them for President ; and if no person have a ma-
jority, then from the five highest on the list the said House shall in like
manner choose the President. But in choosing the President, the vote
shall be taken by states, the representation from each state having one
vote ; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members
from two-thirds of the states, and a majority of all the states shall be
necessary to a choice. In every case, after the choice of the President,
* This clause between .brackets has been superseded and annulled by the Twelfth.amendment,
:274 AND ITS AMENDMENTS.
the person having the greatest number of votes of the Electors shall be
the Vice-President. But if there should remain two or more who have
equal votes, the Senate shall choose from them by ballot the Vice-Presi-
dent.]
The Congress may determine the time of choosing the Electors, and
the day on which they shall give their votes ; which day shall be the same
throughout the United States.
No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United
States at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible
to the office of President ; neither shall any person be eligible to that
office who shall not have attained the age of thirty -five years, and been
fourteen years a resident within the United States.
In case of the removal of the President from office, or of his death,
resignation, or inability to discharge the powers and duties of the said
office, the same shall devolve on the Vice-Pi;esident, and the Congress
may by law provide for the case of removal, death, resignation, or inabil-
ity, both of the President and Vice-President, declaring what officer shall
then act as President, and such officer shall act accordingly, until the dis-
ability be removed, or a President shall be elected.
The President shall, at stated times, receive for his services a com-
pensation which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the
period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive
within that period any other emolument from the United States or any of
them.
Before he enters on the execution of his office, he shall take the fol-
lowing oath or affirmation :
" I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the
office of President of the United States, and will, to the best of my ability,
preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States."
Sec. 2. The President shall be commander in chief of the army and
navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several states, when
called into the actual service of the United States ; he may require the
opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive
departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective
offices, and he shall have power to grant reprieves and pardon for offenses
against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.
He shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the
Senate, to make treaties, provided two-thirds of the Senators present con-
cur; ai)d he shall nominate, and by and with the advice of the Senate,
shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of
the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the United States whose
appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be
established by law ; but the Congress may by law vest the appointment
of such inferior officers as they think proper in the President alone, in
the courts of law, or in the heads of departments.
The President shall have power to fill up all vacancies that may
happen during the recess of the Senate, by granting commissions which
shall expire at the end of their next session.
Sec. 3. He sliall from time to time give to the Congress information
of the state of the Union, and recommend to their consideration such mea-
sures as he shall judge necessary and expedient ; he may on extraordinary
CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES 275
occasions convene both houses, or either of them, and in case of disagree-
ment between them, with respect to the time of adjournment, he may
adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper ; he shall receive
ambassadors and other public ministers ; he shall take care that the laws be
faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers of the United
States.
Sec. 4. The President, Vice-President, and all civil ofittcers of the
United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and con-
viction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.
Article III.
Section I. The judicial power of the United States shall be vested
in one Supreme Court, and such inferior courts as the Congress may from
time to time ordain and estabUsh. The Judges, both of the Supreme and
inferior courts, shall hold their offices during good behavior, and shall, at
stated times, receive for their services a compensation, which shall not be
diminished during their continuance in office.
Sec. 2. The judicial power shall extend to all cases, in law and
equity, arising under this Constitution, the laws of the United States, and
treaties made, or which shall be made, under their authority ; to all cases
affecting ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls ; to all cases of
admiralty and maritime jurisdiction ; to controversies to which the United,
States shall be a party ; to controversies between two or more states ;
between a state and citizens of another state ; between citizens of differ-
ent states ; between citizens of the same state claiming lands under grants
of different states, and between a state or the citizens thereof, and foreign
states, citizens, or subjects.
In all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls,
and those in which a state shall be a party, the Supreme Court shall have
original jurisdiction.
In all the other cases before mentioned, the Supreme Court shall
have appellate jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with such exceptions
and under such regulations as the Congress shall make.
The trial of all crimes, except in cases of impeachment, shall be by
jury ; and such trial shall be held in the state where the said crimes shali
have been committed ; but when not committed within any state, the
trial shall be at such place or places as the Congress may by law have
Sec. 3. Treason against the United States shall consist only in levy-
ing war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid
and comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the tes-
timony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open
court.
The Congress shall have power to declare the punishment of treason^
but no attainder of treason shall work corruption of blood, or forfeiture,
except during the life of the person attainted.
Article IV.
Section 1. Full faith and credit shall be given in each state to the
public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state. And
276 AND ITS AMENDMENTS.
the Congress may, by general laws, prescribe the manner in which snch
acts, records, and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect thereof.
Sec. 2. The citizens of each state shall be entitled to all privileges
and immunities of citizens in the several states.
A person charged in any state with treason, felony, or other crime,
who shall flee from justice and be found in another state, shall, on demand
'of the executive authority of the state from which he fled, be delivered
up, to be removed to the state having jurisdicf.on of the crime.
No person held to service or labor in one state, under the laws thereof
escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or regulation
therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but shall be delivered
up on the claim of the party to whom such service or labor may be due.
Sec. 3. New states may be admitted by the Congress into this Union ;
but no new state shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any
other state ; nor any state be formed by the junction of two or more states,
or parts of states, without the consent of the Legislatures of the states
concerned, as well as of the Congress.
The Congress shall have power to dispose of and make all needful
rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property belonging
to the United States ; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed
as to prejudice any claims of the United States or of any particular state.
Sec. 4. The United States shall guarantee to every state in this
Union a republican form of government, and shall protect each of them
against invasion, and on application of the Legislature, or of the Execu-
tive (when the Legislature can not be convened), against domestic vio-
lence.
Abticle V.
The Congress, whenever two-thirds of both houses shall deem it
necessary, shall propose amendments to this Constitution, or, on the ap-
plication of the Legislatures of two-thirds of the several states, shall call
a convention for proposing amendments, which, in either case, shall be
valid to all intents and purposes as part of this Constitution, when rati-
fied by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several states, or by con-
ventions in three-fourths thereof, as the one or the other mode of ratifi-
cation may be proposed by the Congress. Provided that no amendment
which may be made prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and
•eight shall in any manner affect the first and fourth clauses in the ninth
section of the first article ; and that no state, without its consent, shall
be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate.
Article VI.
All debts contracted and engagements entered into before the adop-
tion of this Constitution shall be as valid against the United States under
this Constitution as under the Confederation.
This Constitution, and the laws of the United States which shall be
made in pursuance thereof, and all treaties made, or which shall be made,
under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the
land ; and the Judges in every state shall be bound thereby, anything in
the Constitution or laws of any state to the contrary notwithstanding.
The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the mem-
CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES
277
bers of the several state Legislatures, and all executive and judicial offi-
cers, both of the United States and of the several states, shall be bound
by oath or affirmation to support this Constitution ; but no religious test
shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under
the United States.
Article VII.
The ratification of the Conventions of nine states shall be sufficient
for the establishment of this Constitution between the states so ratifying
the same.
Done in convention by the unanimous consent of the states present, the
seventeenth day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand
seven hundred and eighty-seven, and of the independence of the
United States of America the twelfth. In witness whereof we have
hereunto subscribed our names.
GEO. WASHINGTON,
President and Deputy from Virginia.
New Hampshire.
John Langdon,
Nicholas Gilman.
Massachusetts.
Nathaniel Gorham,
RuFus King.
Connecticut.
Wm. Sam'l Johnson,
Roger Sherman.
Delaware.
Geo. Read,
John Dickinson,
Jaco. Broom,
Gunning Bedford, Jr.,
Richard Bassett.
Maryland.
James M' Henry,
Danl. Carroll,
Dan. of St. Thos. Jenifer.
New Yorh.
Alexander Hamilton.
New Jersey,
WiL. Livingston,
Wm. Paterson,
David Brearley,
JoNA. Dayton.
Virginia.
John Blair,
James Madison, Jr.
North Carolina,
Wm. Blount,
Hu. Williamson,
Rich'd Dobbs Spaight.
Pennsylvania.
B. Franklin,
RoBT. Morris,
Thos. Fitzsimons,
James Wilson,
Thos. Mifflin,
Geo. Clymer,
Jared. Ingersoll,
Gouv. Morris.
South Carolina.
j. rutledge,
Charles Pinckney,
Chas. Cotesworth Pinckney,
Pierce Butler.
Creorgia.
William Few,
Abr. Baldwin.
WILLIAM JACKSON, Secretary.
278 AND ITS AMENDMENTS.
Articles in Addition to and Amendatory or the Constitution
OP THE United States of America.
Proposed hy Congress and ratified hy the Legislatures of the several states^
pursuant to the fifth article of the original Constitution,
m
• Article I.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,
or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of
speech, or of the press ; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble,
and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Article II.
A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free
state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.
Article III.
No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house without
the consent of the owner, nor in time of war but in a manner to be pre-
scribed by law.
Article IV.
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers,
and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be vio-
lated ; and no warrants shall issue but upon probable cause, supported by
oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched
and the persons or things to be seized.
Article V.
No person shall be held to answer for a capital or otherwise infamous
crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in
cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia when in actual
service in time of war or public danger ; nor shall any person be subject
for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb ; nor shall
be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be
deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law ; nor
shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.
Article VI.
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a
speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district
wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have
been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and
cause of the accusation ; to be confronted with the witnesses against him;
to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor ; and to
have the assistance of counsel for his defense.
Article VII.
In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed
twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact
THE NEW YORK'
PUBLIC LIBRARY
ArrOR, LENOX AND
TUACN FOUNOATIONS.
'/^^ze
CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES 281
tried by a jury shall be otherwise re-examined in any court of the United
States than according to the rules of the common law.
Akticle VIII.
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed,
nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
Article IX.
The enumeration, in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be
construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.
Article X.
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution,
nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively,
or to the people.
Article XI.
The judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to
extend to any suit in law or equity commenced or prosecuted against one
of the United States by citizens of another state, or by citizens or sub-
jects of any foreign state.
Article XII.
The Electors shall meet in their respective states and vote by ballot
for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an
inhabitant of the same state wit! themselves ; they shall name in their
ballots the person to be voted for as president, and in distinct ballots the
person voted for as Vice-President, and they shall make distinct lists of
all persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-
President, and of the number of votes for each, which list they shall sign
and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the United
States, directed to the President of the Senate. The President of the
Senate shall, in presence of the Senate and House of Representatives,
open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be counted. The person
having the greatest number of votes for President shall be the President,
if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed ;
and if no person have such majority, then from the persons having the
highest number not exceeding three on the list of those voted for as
President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately, by
ballot, the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall be
taken by States, the representation from each state having one vote; a
quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two-
thirds of the states, and a majority of all the states shall be necessary to
a choice. And if the House of Representatives shall not choose a Presi-
dent whenever the right of choice shall devolve upon them, before the
fourth day of March next following, then the Vice-President shall act as
President, as in the case of the death or other constitutional disability of
the President. The person having the greatest number of votes as Vice-
President, shall be the Vice-President, if such number be the majority
of the whole number of electors appointed, and if no person have a major-
282 AND ITS AMENDMENTS.
ity^ then from the two highest numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose
the Vice-President ; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of two-thirds
of the whole number of Senators, and a majority of the whole number
shall be necessary to a choice. But no person constitutionally ineligible
to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the
United States.
Article XIII.
Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a
punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted,
shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their juris-
diction.
Sec. 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appro-
priate legislation.
Article XIV.
Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States and
subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States, and
of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law
which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United
States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property,
without due process of law, nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction
the equal protection of the laws.
Sec. 2. Representatives shall be appointed among the several states
according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of per-
sons in each state, excluding Indians not taxed ; but when the right to
vote at any election for the choice of ^lectors for President and Vice-
President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the execu-
tive and judicial officers of a state, or the members of the Legislature
thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such state, being
twenty-one years of age and citizens of the United States, or in any way
abridged except for participation in rebellion or other crimes, the basis of
representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the num-
ber of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens
twenty-one years of age in such state.
Sec. 3. No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress,
or Elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or
military, under the United States, or under any state, who, having previ-
ously taken an oath as a Member of Congress, or as an officer of the
United States, or as a member of any state Legislature, or as an execu-
tive or judicial officer of any state to support the Constitution of the
United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the
same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may
by a vote of two-thirds of each house, remove such disability.
Sec. 4. The validity of the public debt of the United States author-
ized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and boun-
ties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be ques-
tioned. But neither the United States nor any state shall pay any debt
or obligation incurred in the aid of insurrection or rebellion against the
United States, or any loss or emancipation of any slave, but such debts,
obligations, and claims shall be held illegal and void.
CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES.
283
Article XV.
Section 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not
be denied or abridged by the United States, or by any State, on account of
race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
VOTE FOR GOVERNOR, 1877, AND PRESIDENT, 1876.
Counties.
1877.
Governor.
1876.
President.
Counties.
1877.
Governor.
]'876.
President.
Bep.
Dem.
Gr.
Pro.
Rep.
Dem.
Bep.
Dem.
Gr.
Pro.
Bep.
Dem.
Adair
982
876
1547
11G5
410
1432
1780
1612
1180
1290
747
1453
418
633
1592
1315
903
562
1279
1054
517
1873
2444
898
1541
893
1269
1226
2315
197
1587
213
1933
1233
1.311
1250
1031
909
1160
842
340
1492
1348
1770
551
382
321
1132
1619
1977
1396
101
397
1540
1049
352
712
nil
981
582
769
192
758
75
744
839
1093
348
74
1107
267
16
1770
2327
651
215
1231
961
1143
1384
8
3415
28
1067
208
336
1331
215
504
496
265
95
661
86 i
424
647
149
54
1120
1966
1154
753
581
485
69
729
26
567
95
466
196
725
161
19
171
141
116
206
72
383
37
813
20
66
286
19
1241
803
310
32
767
15
38
36
32
1334
1376
1709
1711
427
2901
2979
2018
1737
2227
770
1828
622
799
1876
2328
1274
864
1574
1405
567
2662
3654
1043
2136
1586
1647
2233
3325
259
2798
246
3029
2032
1178
1658
1310
1099
1434
1187
281
2152
15.57
2809
1194
523
212
1870
2126
3375
2166
593
620
1646
1419
.352
1356
1592
1305
757
1416
200
780
196
771
979
1445
448
175
1090
816
94
2621
3398
638
752
1631
128-2
1466
2917
48
4977
36
1709
751
379
1682
510
417
629
425
99
980
1386
1485
600
183
57
1348
2485
1804
1449
Johnson
1884
1868
1772
463
2157
2524
1328
1203
261
1792
1823
1976
1448
1435
1396
580
1034
1122
1753
306
295
1166
311
779
370
3171
2223
1496
964
656
3031
888
436
1260
1426
1325
899
1490
1710
1726
1687
1.316
850
544
2074
1109
628
391
2345
1218
1526
236
2863
2316
817
804
17
1077
1086
1866
837
1102
459
119
928
441
1775
21
40
508
357
487
93
1885
2059
882
71
128
1963
639
132
344
833
293
516
1305
1029
944
1221
832
127
40
1009
867
132
166
18
14
322
13
350
75
89
103
9
616
1011
760
389
98
35
432
247
532
171
201
13
348
273
68
105
89
299
685
108
12
14
56
696
95
504
28
36
9
20
47
387
14
33
293
3
39
36
94
121
346
47
13
37
16
2345
2591
2364
638
3160
4331
1920
1478
262
2246
3221
2736
3056
1452
1663
713
1418
1749
2523
463
329
2243
343
835
374
4321
2505
2509
1246
661
3819
897
439
1843
2337
1727
1238
2113
2582
2439
2467
1692
1299
498
2759
1034
703
674
3563
Adams = .
Jones
1763
1862
Appanoose
Audubon
Kossuth
227
Lee
S682
Benton
449
244
10
1
223
20
95
74
11
30
446
40
86
94
19
67
167
66
111
80
12
19
625
6
12
53
Linn
2917
Black Hawk
1008
Boone
Lucas
1044
Bremer
Lvon
46
Buchanan
Madison
1538
1701
Butler
Marion
2304
1189
OarroU
Mills
1165
â– Oass
Mitchell
671
304
1246
Montgomery
759
2075
Clark
O'Brien
116
Clay
Osceola
59
861
Olinton
Palo Alto
333
77
44
1353
218
420
671
177
309
3
49
644
196
868
830
301
1265
742
303
404
1421
602
Dallas
Pocahontas
Polk
141
2382
Pottawattamie....
2414
1083
T)9H Moines
Rin ceroid
422
Sac -
Scott
166
2853
Dnbunue
406
KmniAtt,
Shelby
631
Tayette
889
162
16
334
551
27
30
10
220
Floyd
Story
187
133
579
Franklin
Tama
1317
Fremont...
Taylor
676
27
8
21
57
2
154
19
140
519
64
63
130
290
101
112
3
47
795
Grundy ...
Van Buren
1661
364
422
29
238
523
1041
201
115
104
642
224
1018
576
2412
Hamilton
Warren
1315
Haiicock
Washington
1508
1341
Harrison ... .
Webster
987
39
Howard
Winneshiek
Woodbury
279
226
8
117
238
9
14
98
1617
997
Ida
Worth
149
228
15
268
109
Wright
184
Totals
121.546
42193
79353
34228
10639
171332
59211
11212J
Jefferson
Majorities
Total vote, 1877, 245,766 , 1876 {including^949 Greenback), 292,943.
VOTE FOR CONGRESSMEN, 1876.
District.
Rep.
Dem.
R. Maj.
Total.
Maj. '74.
District.
Rep.
Dem.
R. Maj.
Total.
Maj. '74.
I
17188
16439
n't 23
2077O
19274
18778
14814
14083
16100
9379
11154
14719
2374
1756
1323
11391
8120
4059
32002
31122
33523
30149
30428
33497
D. 1803
B. 657
D. 63
R. 3824
R. 5243
B. 2724
VII
19496
19358
19563
11688
15236
10583
7808
4122
8980
31184
34594
30146
B 2300
II .
VIII
B 2127
Ill
IX
R 5849
IV
V
168289
118356
49933
*292111
VI
Total vote, 1874, 184,640 ; aggregate Republican majority, 24,524. *Including 5,466 Greenback votes.
Practical Rules for Every Day Use.
How to find the gain or loss per cent, when the cost and selling price
are given.
Rule. — Find the difference between the cost and selling price, which
will be the gain or loss.
Annex two ciphers to the gain or loss, and divide it by the cost
price ; the result will be the gain or loss per cent.
How to change gold into currency.
Rule. — Multiply the given sum of gold by the price of gold.
How to change currency into gold.
Divide the amount in currency by the price of gold.
How to find each partner's share of the gain or loss in a copartnership
business.
Rule. — Divide the whole gain or loss by the entire stock, the quo-
tient will be the gain or loss per cent.
Multiply each partner's stock by this per cent., the result will be
each one's share of the gain or loss.
How to find gross and net weight and price of hogs.
A short and simple method for finding the net weight, or price of hogSy
when the gross weight or price is given, and vice versa.
Note.— It is generally assumed that the gross weight of Hogs diminished by 1-5 or 20 per cent.
of itself gives the net weight, and the net weight increased by K or 25 per cent, of itself equals the
gross weight.
To find the net weight or gross price.
Multiply the given number by .8 (tenths.)
To find the gross weight or net price.
Divide the given number by .8 (tenths.)
How to find the capacity of a granary, bin, or wagon-bed.
Rule. — Multiply (by short method) the number of cubic feet by
6308, and point off one decimal place— the result will be the correct
nswer in bushels and tenths of a bushel.
For only an approximate answer, multiply the cubic feet by 8, and
point off one decimal place.
How to find the contents of a corn-crib.
Rule. — Multiply the uumber of cubic feet by 54, short method, or
(284)
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION. 285
by 4i ordinary method, and point off one decimal place — the result wiD
be the answer in bushels.
Note.— In estimating corn in the ear, the quality and the time it has been cribbed must be taken
Into consideration, since corn will shrinlc considerably during the Winter and Spring. This rule generally holds
good for corn measured at the time it is cribbed, provided it Is sound and clean.
Sow to find the contents of a cistern or tank.
Rule. — Multiply the square of the mean diameter by the depth (all
in feet) and this product by 5681 (short method), and point off one
decimal place — the result will be the contents in barrels of 31^ gallons.
How to find the contents of a barrel or cask.
Rule. — Under the square of the mean diameter, write the length
(all in inches) in reverssd order, so that its units will fall under the
TENS ; multiply by short method, and this product again by 430 ; point
off one decimal place, and the result will be the answer in wine gallons.
How to measure hoards.
Rule. — Multiply the length (in feet) by the width (in inches) and
divide the product by 12 — the result will be the contents in square feet.
How to measure scantlings, joists, planks^ sills, etc.
Rule. — Multiply the width, the thickness, and the length together
(the width and thickness in inches, and the length in feet), and divide
the product by 12 — the result will be square feet.
How to find the number of acres in a body of land.
Rule. — Multiply the length by the width (in rods), and divide the
product by 160 (carrying the division to 2 decimal places if there is a
remainder) ; the result will be the answer in acres and hundredths.
When the opposite sides of a piece of land are of unequal length,
add them together and take one-half for the mean length or width.
How to find the number of square yards in a floor or wall.
Rule. — Multiply the length by the width or height (in feet), and
divide the product by 9, the result will be square yards.
How to find the number of bricks required in a building.
Rule. — Multiply the number of cubic feet by 22^.
The number of cubic feet is found by multiplying the length, height
nd thickness (in feet) together.
Bricks are usually made 8 inches long, 4 inches wide, and two inches
thick ; hence, it requires 27 bricks to make a cubic foot without mortar,
but it is generally assumed that the mortar fills 1-6 of the space.
How to find the number of shingles required in a roof.
Rule. — Multiply the number of square feet in the roof by 8, if the
shingles are exposed 4i inches, or by 7 1-5 if exposed 5 inches.
To find the number of square feet, multiply the length of the roof by
twice the length of the rafters.
286 * MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION.
To find the length of the rafters, at one-fourth pitch, multiply the
width of the building by .56 (hundredths) ; at one-third pitch, by .6
(tenths) ; at two-fifths pitch, by .64 (hundredths) ; at one-half
pitch, by .71 (hundredths). This gives the length of the rafters from
the apex to the end of the wall, and whatever they are to project must be
taken into consideration.
Note.— By Ji or K pitch is meant that the apex or comb of the roof is to be )<^ or X the width of the
building Iiig:her than the walls or base of the rafters.
How to reckon the cost of hay.
Rule. — Multiply the number of pounds by half the price per ton,
and remove the decimal point t,hree places to the left.
Sow to measure grain.
Rule. — Level the grain ; ascertain the space it occupies in cubic
feet ; multiply the number of cubic feet by 8, and point off one place to
the left.
Note.— Exactness requires the addition to every three hundred bushels of one extra bushel.
The foregoing rule may be used for finding the number of gallons, by
multiplying the number of bushels by 8.
If the corn in the box is in the ear, divide the answer by 2, to find
the number of bushels of shelled corn, because it requires 2 bushels of ea*
corn to make 1 of shelled corn.
Rapid rules for measuring land tvithout instruments.
In measuring land, the first thing to ascertain is the contents of any
given plot in square 3'ards ; then, given the number of yards, find out the
number of rods and acres.
The most ancient and simplest measure of distance is a step. Now,
an ordinary-sized man can train himself to cover one yard at a stride, on
the average, with sufficient accuracy for ordinary purposes.
To make use of this means of measuring distances, it is essential to
walk in a straight line ; to do this, fix the eye on two objects in a line
straight ahead, one comparatively near, the other remote ; and, in walk-
ing, keep these objects constantly in line.
Farmers and others hy adopting the following simple and iyigenious con-
trivance, may alivays carry with them the scale to construct a correct yard
measure.
Take a foot rule, and commencing at the base of the little finger oi
the left hand, mark the quarters of the foot on the outer borders of the
left arm, pricking in the marks with indelible ink.
To find hoiv many rods in length will make an acre, the width being given.
Rule. — Divide 160 by the width, and the quotient will be the answer.
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION. 287
How to find the number of acres in any plot of land, the number of rods
being given.
Rule. — Divide the number of rods by 8, multiply the quotient by 5,
and remove the decimal point two places to the left.
The diameter being given, to find the circumference.
Rule. — Multiply the diameter by 3 1-7.
How to find the diameter, when the circumference is given.
Rule. — Divide the circumference by 3 1-7.
To find how many solid feet a round stick of timber of the same thick-
ness throughout will contain when squared.
Rule. — Square half the diameter in inches, multiply by 2, multiply
by the length in feet, and divide the product by 144.
General rule for measuring timber, to find the solid contents in feet.
Rule. — Multiply the depth in inches by the breadth in inches, and
then multiply by the length in feet, and divide by 144.
To find the number of feet of timber in trees with the bark on.
Rule. — Multiply the square of one-fifth of the circumference in
inches, by twice the length, in feet, and divide by 144. Deduct 1-10 to
1-15 according to the thickness of the bark.
Howard's new rule for computing interest.
Rule. — The reciprocal of the rate is the time for which the interest
on any sum of money will be shown by simply removing the decimal
point two places to the left ; for ten times that time, remove the point
one place to the left; for 1-10 of the same time, remove the point three
places to the left.
Increase or diminish the results to suit the time given.
Note.— The reciprocal of the rate is found by inverting: the rate ; thus 3 per cent, per month, in-
verted, becomes J^ of a month, or 10 days.
f When the rate is expressed by one figure, always write it thus : 3-1,
three ones.
Hulefor converting English into American currency.
Multiply the pounds, with the shillings and pence stated in decimals,
by 400 plus the premium in fourths, and divide the product by 90.
U. S. GOVERNMENT LAND MEASURE.
A township — 36 sections each a mile square.
A section — 640 acres.
A quarter section, half a mile square — 160 acres.
An eighth section, half a mile long, north and south, and a quarter
of a mile wide — 80 acres.
A sixteenth section, a quarter of a mile square — 40 acres.
288 MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATIOK.
The sections are all numbered 1 to 3G, commencing at the north-east
corner.
The sections are divided into quarters, which are named by the
cardinal points. The quarters are divided in the same way. The de-
scription of a forty acre lot would read : The south half of the west half of
the south-west quarter of section 1 in township 24, north of range 7 west,
or as the case might be ; and sometimes will fall short and sometimes
overrun the number of acres it is supposed to contain.
The nautical mile is 795 4-5 feet longer than the common mile.
SURVEYORS' MEASURE.
7 92-100 inches make 1 link.
25 links " 1 rod.
4 rods " 1 chain.
80 chains " 1 mile.
Note. — A chain is 100 links, equal to 4 rods or 66 feet.
Shoemakers formerly used a subdivision of the inch called a barley-
corn ; three of which made an inch.
Horses are measured directly over the fore feet, and the standard of
measure is four inches — called a hand.
In Biblical and other old measurements, the term span is sometimes
used, which is a length of nine inches.
The sacred cubit of the Jews was 24.024 inches in length.
The common cubit of the Jews was 21.704 inches in length.
A pace is equal to a yard or 36 inches.
A fathom is equal to 6 feet.
A league is three miles, but its length is variable, for it is strictly
speaking a nautical term, and should be three geographical miles, equal
to 3.45 statute miles, but when used on land, three statute miles are said
to be a league.
In cloth measure an aune is equal to li yards, or 45 inches.
An Amsterdam ell is equal to 26.796 inches.
A Trieste ell is equal to 25.284 inches.
A Brabant ell is equal to 27.116 inches.
HOW TO KEEP ACCOUNTS.
Every farmer and mechanic, whether he does much or little business,
should keep a record of his transactions in a clear and systematic man-
ner. For the benefit of those who have not had the opportunity of ac-
quiring a primary knowledge of the principles of book-keeping, we here
present a simple form of keeping accounts which is easil}' comprehended,
and well adapted to record the business transactions of farmers, mechanics
and laborers.
MISCELLA^SfEOUS lUFOEMATION.
289
1875.
A. H. JACKSON.
Dr.
Cr.
Jan.
10
li
17
Feb.
4
u
4
March
8
Cl
8
((
13
ii
27
April
9
9
May
6
24
July
4
To 7 bushels Wheat ...at $1.25
By shoeing span of Horses
To 14 bushels Oats.^ at $ .45
To 5 lbs. ButtA-.. at .25
By new Harrow
By sharpening 2 Plows
By new Double-Tree
To Cow and Calf
To half ton of Hay
By Cash
By repairing Corn-Planter
To one Sow with Pigs
By Cash, to balance account _ _.
$8
75
$2
6
30
1
25
18
2
48
00
6
25
25
4
17
50
35
$88
188
05
50
00
40
25
00
75
15
05
1875.
CASS A MASON.
Dr.
Cr.
March 21
a
21
ii
23
May
1
1
June
19
((
26
July
10
29
Aug.
«
12
12
Sept.
1
By 3 days' labor ..at $1.25
To 2 Shoats at 3.00
To 18 bushels Corn .at .45
By 1 month's Labor
To Cash
By 8 days' Mowing at $1,50
To 50 lbs. Flour
To 27 lbs. Meat at $ .10
By 9 days' Harvesting at 2.00
By 6 days' Labor at 1.50
To Cash
To Cash to balance account
8
10
2
2
20
18
$67
00
10
00
75
70
00
20
75
S3
25
12
18
9
$67
75
00
00
00
00
75
INTEREST TABLE.
A Simple Kulk pok Acccratklt Computing Interest at Any Givkn Pkr Cent, j-or Any
Length op Time.
Multiply the principal (amount of money at Interest) by the time reduced to days; then divide this product
tiythequotient obtained by dividing 360 (the number of days in the interest year) by the per cent, of interest,
andt/ie quotient thus obtained will be the required interest.
illustration.
Solution.
S462.50
Requlrethelnterestof $462.50 for one month and eighteen days at 6 per cent. An
interest month is 30 days ; one month and eighteen days equal 48 days. 1462.50 multl- .48
pliedby .48 gives $222.0000; 360 divided by 6 (the per cent, of interest) gives 60, and
|222.0000aividedby 60 will give von the exact interest, whicli is $3.70. If the rate of 370000
Interest in the above example were 12 per cent., we would divide the $222.0000 by 30 6)360 \ 185000
(because 360 divided by 12 gives 30); if 4 per cent., we would divide by 90; if 8 per )
cent., by 45: and in like manner for any other per cent. 60/$232.0000($3.70
180
420
420
"oo
MISCELLANEOUS TABLE.
12 units, or things, 1 Dozen.
12 dozen, 1 Gross.
20 things, 1 Score.
196 pounds, 1 Barrel of Flour.
200 pounds, 1 Barrel of Pork.
56 pounds, 1 Firkin of Butter.
24 sheets of paper, 1 Quire.
20 quires paper 1 Ream.
4 ft. wide, 4 f^ high, and 8 ft. long, 1 Cord Wood.
290 MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION.
NAMES OF THE STATES OF THE UNION, AND THEIR SIGNIFICATIONS.
Virginia. — The oldest of the States, was so called in lionor of Queen
Elizabeth, the "Virgin Queen," in whose reign Sir* Walter Raleigh made
his first attempt to colonize that region.
Florida. — Ponce de Leon landed on the coast of Florida on Easter
Sunday, and called the country in commemoration of the day, which was
the Pasqua Florida of the Spaniards, or " Feast of Flowers."
Louisiana was called after Louis the Fourteenth, who at one time
owned that section of the country.
Alabama was so named by the Indians, and signifies " Here we Rest."
Mississippi is likewise an Indian name, meaning " Long River."
Arkansas., from Kansas, the Indian word for "smoky water." Its
prefix was really arc, the French word for " bow."
The Carolinas were originally one tract, and were called "Carolana,"
after Charles the Ninth of France.
Creorgia owes its name to George the Second of England, who first
established a colony there in 1732.
Tennessee is the Indian name for the " River of the Bend," i. e., the
Mississippi which forms its western boundary.
Kentucky is the Indian name for " at the head of the river."
Ohio means " beautiful ; " Iowa, " drowsy ones ; " Minnesota, " cloudy
water," and Wisconsin, "wild-rushing channel."
Illinois is derived from the Indian word illini, men, and the French
suffix ois, together signifying "tribe of men."
Michigan was called by the name given the lake, fish-weir, which was
so styled from its fancied resemblance to a fish trap.
Missouri is from the Indian word " muddy," which more properly
applies to the river that flows through it.
Oregon owes its Indian name also to its principal river.
Cortes named California.
Massachusetts is the Indian for " The country around the great hills.'*
Connecticut, from the Indian Quon-ch-ta-Cut, signifying "Long
River."
Maryland, after Henrietta Maria, Queen of Charles the First, of
England.
New York was named bv the Duke of York.
Pennsylvania means " Penn's woods," and was so called after William
Penn, itsorignal owner.
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION.
291
Delaware after Lord De La Ware.
New Jersey^ so called in honor of Sir George Carteret, who was
Governor of the Island of Jersey, in the British Channel.
Maine was called after the province of Maine in France, in compli-
ment of Queen Henrietta of England, who owned that province.
Vermont, from the French word Vert Mont, signifying Green
Mountain.
New Hampshire, from Hampshire county in England. It was
formerly called Laconia.
The little State of Rhode Island owes its name to the Island of
Rhodes in the Mediterranean, which domain it is said to greatly
resemble.
Texas is the American word for the Mexican name hy which all that
section of the country was called before it was ceded to the United States. •
POPULATION OF THE
UNITED STATES.
States and Territories.
Alabama
Arkansas
California
Connecticut
Delaware
Plorida
Georgia
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Xouisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts....
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire.
New Jersey
New York .
North Carolina ..
Ohio
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina...
Tennessee
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Total States.,
Arizona
t'olorada
Dakota
District of Columbia.
Idaho
Montana
New Mexico
Utah
Washington
Wyoming
Total
Population.
Total Territories.
Total United States 38,555,983
996.
484,
560,
537,
125,
187,
1,184,
2,539,
1,680,
1,191,
364,
1.321,
726,
636,
780,
1,457,
1,184,
439,
837,
1,731,
133
43!
318.
906.
4.382.
1,071,
2,66.5.
90,
3,531,
217,
705,
1,258,
818,
330.
1,225,
443,
1,054,
992
471
247
454
015
74 8
109
891
637
792
399
Oil
915
915
894
351
059
706
922
295
993
491
300
096
759
361
260
923
791
3.53
606
530
579
551
163
014
670
38.113,253
9,658
39.864
14,181
131.700
14,999
20,595
91,874
86.786
23,955
9.118
442,7.30
POPULATION OF FIFTY
PRINCIPAL CITIES.
Cities.
New York, N. T
Philadelphia, Pa...
Brooklyn, N. Y
St. Louis, Mo
Chicago, 111
Baltimore, Md
Boston, Mass
Cincinnati, Ohio
New Orleans, La. .,
San Francisco, Cal.
Butfalo, N. Y
Washington, D. C.
Newark, N. J
Louisville, Ky
Cleveland, Oliio
Pittsburg, Pa
.Jersey City, N. J ...
Detroit, Mich
Milwaukee, Wis
All)any, N. Y
Providence, R. I
Rochester, N. Y
Allegheny, Pa
Riciimonil, Va
New Haven, Conn.
Ch^irleston, S. C
Indianapolis, Ind..,
Troy, N. Y
Syracuse, N. Y
Worcester, Mass...
Lowell, Mass
Memphis, Tenn
CamlMidge, Mass..,
Hartford, Conn
Scranton, Pa ,
Reading, Pa
Paterson, N.J
Kansas City, Mo...
Mobile, Ala
Toledo. Ohio
Portland, Me
Columbus, Ohio
Wilmington, Del...
Dayton, Ohio
Lawrence, Mass
Utica, N. Y
Charlestown, Mass
Savannah, Ga
Lynn. Mass
Fall River, Mass...
Aggregate
Population.
942
674
396,
310
298:
267
250
216,
191,
149,
117
109,
105
100,
92
86,
82,
79,
71,
69,
68,
63
53
51,
50,
48
48
46
43
41
40
40
39
37
35
33
33
33
32
31
31
31
30,
30,
28,
28,
28,
28,
28,
26,
,292
,032
099
,864
977
354
,536
239
418
473
714
199
059
753
839
076
546
577
440
432
,904
386
180
038
,840
,956
244
465
051
,105
,928
236
634
180
093
,930
579
260
,034
584
,413
,274
841
473
.931
,804
,323
,235
,233
766
292
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION.
POPULATION OF THE UNITED STATES.
States and
Territories.
States.
Alabama 50
Arkansas.. 52,
Califariiia 188,
Connecticut 4
Delaware 2,
Florida 59.
Georgia 58
Illinois 55
Indiana 33
Iowa 55,
Kansas 81,
Kentucky 37,
Louisiana 41,
Maine ,31,
Maryland 11,
Massacliusetts.. . 7,
Michigan* 56,
Minnesota g-S,
Mississippi 47,
Missouri ()5,
Neljraska 75
Nevada 112,
New Hampsliire. 9,
New Jersey Z
New York 47,
North Carolina.. 50,
Ohio 39,
Oregon ' 95,
* Last Census of
Area in
square
Miles.
,722
198
981
674
120
268
,000
410
,809
045
318
600
346
776
184
800
451
531
156
350
995
090
280
320
000
704
964
244
Population.
1870.
996,992
484,471
560.247
537,454
125,015
187,748
.184,109
;,539,891
.680.637
,191,792
364,399
,321,011
726,915
626,915
780,894
,457,351
.184,059
439,706
827,922
,721,295
123,993
42,491
318.300
906,096
,382,759
,071,361
,665,260
90,923
1875.
1,350,544
528,349
857.039
1.651,912
1,334.031
598,429
246,280
52,540
1,026,502
4,705,208
Miles
R. R.
1872.
1,671
25
1,013
820
227
466
2,108
5,904
3,529
3.160
1,760
1,123
539
871
820
1,606
2,235
1,612
990
2,580
828
593
790
1,265
4,470
1,190
3,740
lo9
Michigan taken in 1874.
States and
Territories.
States.
Pennsylvania...
Rhode Island...
South Carolina.
Tennessee
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
West Virginia...
Wisconsin
Total States.
Territories.
Arizona
Colorado
Dakota
Dist. of Columbia.
Idaho
Montana
New Mexico
Utah
Washington
Wyoming
Total Territories.
Area in
square
Mil
iles.
46,000
1,306
29,385
45.600
237.504
10,212
40,904
23,000
53,924
1,950,171
113,916
104.500
147,490
60
90,932
143.776
121,201
80,056
69,944
9.3,107
965,032
Population.
1870.
3,521,791
217,353
705,606
1,258,520
818,579
330,551
1,225,163
442,014
1,054,670
38,113,253
39,
14,
131,
14
20,
91
86,
23,
9,
658
864
181
700
999
595
874
786
955
118
442,730
1875.
258,239
925,145
1,236,729
Miles'
R. R.
1872.
5,113
136
1,201
1,520
865
675
1,490
485
1,725
59,587
392
375
'498
1,265
Aggregate of U. S.. 2,915,203 38,555,983 60,852
• Included in the Railroad Mileage of Maryland.
PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES OF THE WORLD
Population and Area.
Countries.
China
British Empire
Russia
United States with Alaska! '.
France
Austria and Hungary .'.
Japan
Great Britain and Ireland. '.
German Empire
Italy
.Spam
lirazii \\
Turkey [[
Mexico ,',
•Sweden and Norway .'.
Persia
Belgium ',
Bavaria
Portugal '
Holland
>* ew Grenada
Chili
Switzerland
Peru
Bolivia ]
Argentine Republic '.
Wurtemburg
Denmark
Venezuela
Baden
<}reece [',
<Juatemala ','
Ecuador ]
Paraguay \[
Hesse
Lilieria ',[
San Salvador
Hayti
N icaragua ',,
Uruguay
Honduras
San Domingo "
Costa Rica "
Hawaii
Population.
446,
226:
81
38,
36
35
34
31
29
27
16
10
16,
9,
5,
5,
5,
4,
3,
3,
3,
2,
2,
2,
2,
1,
1,
1
I
1
1,
1.
1
1,
500,000
817,108
,925,400
925,600
1,469,800
.904,400
,785,300
.817,100
i, 906, 092
.439,921
,642,000
1.000,000
,463,000
,173,000
,921,500
,000,000
,021,300
,861,400
,995,200
,688,300
,000,000
,000,000
,669,100
,500,000
,000,000
,812,000
,818,500
,784,700
500,000
461,400
457,900
180,000
.300,000
,000,000
823,138
718,000
600,000
572,000
3.50,000
300,000
350,000
136,000
165.000
62,950
Date of
Census.
1871
1871
1871
1870
1866
1869
1871
1871
1871
1871
1867
1869
1870
1870
1869
1871
1868
1870
1870
1869
1870
1871
'1869
1871
1870
'isVi
1870
1871
'1871
'1871
1871
'1871
1871
1871
"isfo
Area in
Square
Miles.
3,741,846
4,677,432
8,003,778
2,603,884
204,091
240, .348
149,399
121,315
160,207
118,847
195,775
3,253,029
672,621
761,526
292,871
635,964
11,373
29,292
34,494
12,680
357,157
132.616
15,992
471,838
497,321
871,848
7, .533
14.753
368,238
5,912
19,353
40,879
218,928
63,787
2,969
9,576
7,335
10,205
58,171
66,722
47,092
17,827
21,505
7,633
Inhabitants
to Square
Mile.
119.3
48.6
10.2
7.78
178.7
149.4
232.8
262.3
187.
230.9
8b.
3.07
24.4
20.
7.8
441.5
165.9
115.8
290.9
8.4
15.1
166.9
5.3
4.
2.1
241.4
120.9
4.2
247.
75.3
28.9
5.9
1.5.6
277.
74.9
81.8
56.
6.
6.5
7.4
7.6
7.7
80.
Capitals.
Pekin
London
St. Petersburg
Washington
Paris
Vienna
Yeddo
London
Berlin
Rome
Madrid
Rio .Janeiro
Constantinople ...
Mexico
Stockholm
Teheran
Brussels ..
Munich
Lisbon
Hague
Bogota
Santiago
Berne
Lima
Cluiquisaca
Buenos Ayres
Stuttgart
Copenhagen
Caraccas
Carlsruhe
Athens
Guatemala
Quito
Asuncion
Darmstadt
Monrovia
Sal Salvador
Port au Prince
Managua ,
Monte Video
Comay agua
San Domingo
.San Jose
Honolulu
Population.
,648,800
,251,800
667,000
109,199
,825,300
833,900
,554,900
,251,800
82,5,400
244,484
332,000
420.000
,075,000
210.300
136,900
120,000
314,100
169„500
224,063
90.100
45.000
115,400
36,000
160,100
25,000
177,800
91,600
162,042
47,000
36,600
43,400
40.000
VO.OOO
48.000
30,000
3,000
15,000
20,000
10,000
44,500
13,000
20,000
2,000
7,633
ABSTRACT OF IOÂ¥A STATE LAWS.
BILLS OF EXCHANGE AND PROMISSORY NOTES.
Upon negotiable bills, and notes payable in this State, grace shall be allowed
according to the law merchant. All the above mentioned paper falling due on
Sunday, New Year's Day, the Fourth of July, Christmas, or any day appointed
or recommended bv the President of the United States or the Governor of the
State, as a day of fast or thanksgiving, shall be deemed as due on the day pre-
vious. No defense can be made against a negotiable instrument (assigned before
due) in the hands of the assignee without notice, except fraud was used in
obtaining the same. To hold an indorser, due diligence must be used by suit
against the maker or his representative. Notes payable to person named or to
order, in order to absolutely transfer title, must be indorsed by the payee.
Notes payable to bearer may be transferred by delivery, and when so payable,
every indorser thereon is held as a guarantor of payment, unless otherwise
expressed.
In computing interest or discount on negotiable instruments, a month shall
be considered a calendar month or twelfth of a year, and for less than a month,
a day shall be figured a thirtieth part of a month. Notes only bear interest
when so expressed ; but after due, they draw the legal interest, even if not
stated.
INTEREST.
The legal rate of interest is six per cent. Parties may agree, in writing,
on a rate not exceeding ten per cent. If a rate of interest greater than ten
per cent, is contracted for, it works a forfeiture of ten per cent, to the school
fund, and only the principal sum can be recovered.
DESCENT.
The personal property of the deceased (except (1) that necessary for pay-
ment of debts and expenses of administration ; (2) property set apart to widow,
as exempt from execiition ; (3) allowance by court, if necessary, of twelve
months' support to widow, and to children under fifteen years of age), including
life insurance, descends as does real estate.
One-third in value (absolutely) of all estates in real property, possessed by
husband at any time during marriage, which have not been sold on execution
or other judicial sale, and to which the wife has made no relinquishment of her
right, shall be set apart as her property, in fee simple, if she survive him.
(293j
294 ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
The same share shall be set apart to the surviving husband of a deceased
•wife.
The widow's share cannot be affected by any will of her husband's, unless
she consents, in writing thereto, within six months after notice to her of pro-
visions of the will.
The provisions of the statutes of descent apply alike to surviving husband
or surviving wife.
Subject to the above., the remaining estate of which the decedent died
siezed, shall in absence of other arrangements by will, descend
First. To his or her children and their descendants in equal parts ; the
descendants of the deceased child or grandchild taking the share of their
deceased parents in equal shares among them.
Second. Where there is no child, nor descendant of such child, and no
widow or surviving husband, then to the parents of the deceased in equal parts ;
the surviving parent, if either be dead, taking the whole ; and if there is no
parent living, then to the brothers and sisters of the intestate and their descend-
ants.
Third. When there is a widow or surviving husband, and no child or chil-
dren, or descendants of the same, then one-half of the estate shall descend to
such widow or surviving husband, absolutely ; and the other half of the estate
shall descend as in other cases where there is no widow or surviving husband,
or child or children, or descendants of the same.
Fourth. If there is no child, parent, brother or sister, or descendants of
either of them, then to wife of intestate, or to her heirs, if dead, according to
like rules.
Fifth. If any intestate leaves no child, parent, brother or sister, or de-
scendants of either of them, and no widow or surviving husband, and no child,
parent, brother or sister (or descendant of either of them) of such widow or
surviving husband, it shall escheat to the State.
WILLS AND ESTATES OF DECEASED PERSONS.
No exact form of words are necessary in order to make a will good at law.
Every male person of the age of twenty-one years, and every female of the age
of eighteen years, of sound mind and memory, can make a valid will ; it must
be in writing, signed by the testator, or by some one in his or her presence, and
by his or her express direction, and attested by two or more competent wit-
nesses. Care should be taken that the witnesses are not interested in the will.
Inventory to be made by executor or administrator within fifteen days from
date of letters testamentary or of administration. Executors' and administra-
tors' compensation on amount of personal estate distributed, and for proceeds of
sale of real estate, five per cent, for first one thousand dollars, two and one-half
per cent, on overplus up to five thousand dollars, and one per cent, on overplus
above five thousand dollars, with such additional allowance as shall be reasona-
He for extra services.
Within ten days after the receipt of letters of administration, the executor
or administrator shall give such 7iotice of appointment as the court or clerk shall
direct.
Claims (other than preferred) must be filed within one year thereafter, are
forever barred, unless the claim is pending in the District or Supreme Court, or
unless peculiar circumstances entitle the claimant to equitable relief.
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS. 295
Claims are classed and payable in the following order :
1. Expenses of administration.
2. Expenses of last sickness and funeral.
3. Allowance to widow and children, if made by the court.
4. Debts preferred under laws of the United States.
5. Public rates and taxes.
6. Claims filed within six months after the first publication of the notice
given by the executors of their appointment.
7. All other debts.
8. Legacies.
The award, or property which must be set apart to the widow, in her own
right, by the executor, includes all personal property which, in the hands of th^
deceased, as head of a family, would have been exempt from execution.
TAXES.
The owners of personal property, on the first day of January of each year,
and the owners of real property on the first day of November of each year, are
liable for the taxes thereon.
The following property is exempt from taxation, viz. ;
1. The property of the United States and of this State, including univer-
sity, agricultural, college and school lands and all property leased to the State ;
property of a county, township, city, incorporated town or school district when
devoted entirely to the public use and not held for pecuniary profit ; public
grounds, including all places for the burial of the dead ; fire engines and all
implements for extinguishing fires, with the grounds used exclusively for their
buildings and for the meetings of the fire companies ; all public libraries,
grounds and buildings of literary, scientific, benevolent, agricultural and reli-
gious institutions, and societies devoted solely to the appropriate objects of these
institutions, not exceeding 640 acres in extent, and not leased or otherwise used
with a view of pecuniary profit ; and all property leased to agricultural, charit-
able institutions and benevolent societies, and so devoted during the term of such
lease ; provided, that all deefls, by which such property is held, shall be duly
filed for record before the property therein described shall be omitted from the
assessment.
2. The books, papers and apparatus belonging to the above institutions;
used solely for the purposes above contemplated, and the like property of stu-
dents in any such institution, used for their education.
3. Money and credits belonging exclusively to such institutions and devoted
solely to sustaining them, but not exceeding in amount or income the sum pre-
scribed by their charter,
4. Animals not hereafter specified, the wool shorn from sheep, belonging to
the person giving the list, his farm produce harvested within one year previous
to the listing ; private libraries not exceeding three hundred dollars in value ;
family pictures, kitchen furniture, beds and bedding requisite for each family,
all wearing apparel in actual use, and all food provided for the family ; but no
person from whom a compensation for board or lodging is received or expected,
is to be considered a member of the family within the intent of this clause.
5. The polls or estates or both of persons who, by reason of age or infirm-
ity, may, in the opinion of the Assessor, be unable to contribute to the public
296 ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
revenue ; such opinion and the fact upon which it is based being in all cases
reported to the Board of Equalization by the Assessor or any other person, and
subject to reversal by them.
6. The farming utensils of any person who makes his livelihood by farming,
and the tools of any mechanic, not in either case to exceed three hundred dollars
in value.
7. Government lands entered or located or lands purchased from this State,
should not be taxed for the year in which the entry, location or purchase is
made.
There is also a suitable exemption, in amount, for planting fruit trees or
forest trees or hedges.
Where buildings are destroyed by fire, tornado or other unavoidable casu-
alty, after being assessed for the year, the Board of Supervisors umy rebate
taxes for that year on the property destroyed, if same has not been sold for
taxes, and if said taxes have not been delinquent for thirty days at the time of
destruction of the property, and the rebate shall be allowed for such loss only
as is not covered by insurance.
All other property is subject to taxation. Every inhabitant of full age and
sound mind shall assist the Assessor in listing all taxable property of which
he is the owner, or which he controls or manages, either as agent, guardian,
father, husband, trustee, executor, accounting officer, partner, mortgagor or
lessor, mortgagee or lessee.
Road beds of railway corporations shall not be assessed to owners of adja-
cent property, butehall be considered the property of the companies for pur-
poses of taxation ; nor shall real estate used as a public highway be assessed
and taxed as part of adjacent lands whence the same was taken for such public
purpose.
The property of railway, telegraph and express companies shall be listed
and assessed for taxation as the property of an individual would be listed and
assessed for taxation. Collection of taxes made as in the case of an individual.
The Township Board of Equalization shall meet first Monday in April of
each year. Appeal lies to the Circuit Court.
The County Board of Eqalization (the Board of Supervisors) meet at their
regular session in June of each year. Appeal lies to the Circuit Court.
Taxes become delinquent February 1st of each year, payable, without
interest or penalty, at any time before March 1st of each year.
Tax sale is held on first Monday in October of each year.
Redemption may be made at any time within three years after date of sale,
by paying to the County Auditor the amount of sale, and twenty per centum of
such amount immediately added as penalty, with ten per cent, interest per
annum on the whole amount thus made from the day of sale, and also all sub-
sequent taxes, interest and costs paid by purchaser after March 1st of each
year, and a similar penalty of twenty per centum added as before, with ten per
cent, interest as before.
If notice has been given, by purchaser, of the date at which the redemption
]S limited, the cost of same is added to the redemption money. Ninety days'
notice is required, by the statute, to be published by the purchaser or holder of
certificate, to terminate the right of redemption.
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS 297
JURISDICTION OF COURTS
DISTRICT COURTS
have jurisdiction, general and original, both civil and criminal, except in such
cases where Circuit Courts have exclusive jurisdiction. District Courts have
exclusive supervision over courts of Justices of the Peace and Magistrates, in
criminal matters, on appeal and writs of error.
CIRCUIT COURTS
have jurisdiction, general and original, with the District Courts, in all civil
actions and special proceedings, and exclusive jurisdiction in all appeals and
writs of error from inferior courts, in civil matters. And exclusive jurisdiction
in matters of estates and general probate business.
JUSTICES OF THE PEACE
have jurisdiction in civil matters where $100 or less is involved. By consent
of parties, the jurisdiction may be extended to an amount not exceeding $300.
They have jurisdiction to try and determine all public offense less than felony,
committed within their respective counties, in which the fine, by law, does not
exceed ^100 or the imprisonment thirty days.
LIMITATION OF ACTIONS.
Action for injuries to the person or reputation; for a stutute penalty; and
to enforce a mechanics' lien, must be brought in two (2) years.
Those against a public officer within three (3) years.
Those founded on unwritten contracts; for injuries to property ; for relief
on the ground of fraud ; and all other actions not otherwise provided for, within
five (5) years.
Those founded on written contracts; on judgments of any court (except
those provided for in next section), and for the recovery of real property, within
ten (10) years.
Those founded on judgment of any court of record in the United States,
within twenty (20) years. *
All above limits, except those for penalties and forfeitures, are extended in
favor of minors and insane persons, until one year after the disability is removed
— time during which defendant is a non-resident of the State shall not be
included in computing any of the above periods.
Actions for the recovery of real property, sold for non-payment of taxes,
must be brought within five years after the Treasurer's Deed is executed
and recorded, except where a minor or convict or insane person is the owner,
and they shall be allowed five years after disability is removed, in which to
bring action.
JURORS.
All qualified electors of the State, of good moral character, sound judgment,
and in full possession of the senses of hearing and seeing, are competent jurors
in their respective counties.
United States officers, practicing attorneys, physicians and clergymen,
acting professors or teachers in institutions of learning, and persons disabled by
T
298 ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
bodily infirmity or over sixty-five years of age, are exempt from liability to act
as jurors.
Any person may be excused from serving on a jury when his own interests
or the public's will be materially injured by his attendance, or when the state of
his health or the death, or sickness of his family requires his absence.
CAPITAL PUNISHMENT *
was restored by the Seventeenth General Assembly, making it optional with
the jury to inflict it or not.
A MARRIED WOMAN
may convey or incumber real estate, or interest therein, belonging to her ; may
control the same or contract with reference thereto, as other persons may con-
vey, encumber, control or contract.
She may own, acquire, hold, convey and devise property, as her husband
may.
Her husband is not liable for civil injuries committed by her.
She may convey property to her husband, and he may convey to her.
She may constitute her husband her attorney in fact.
EXEMPTIONS FROM EXECUTION.
A resident of the State and head of a family may hold the following prop-
erty exempt from execution : All wearing apparel of himself and family kept for
actual use and suitable to the condition, and the trunks or other receptacles nec-
essary to contain the same ; one musket or rifle and shot-gun ; all private
libraries, family Bibles, portraits, pictures, musical instruments, and paintings
not kept for the purpose of sale ; a seat or pew occupied by the debtor or his
family in any house of public worship ; an interest in a public or private burying
ground not exceeding one acre ; two cows and a calf; one horse, unless a horse
is exempt as hereinafter provided ; fifty sheep and the wool therefrom, and the
materials manufactured from said wool ; six stands of bees ; five hogs and all
pigs under six months ; the necessary food for exempted animals for six months ;
all flax raised from one acre of ground, and manufactures therefrom ; one bed-
stead and necessary bedding for every two in the family ; all cloth manufactured
by the defendant not exceeding one hundred yards ; household and kitchen fur-
niture not exceeding two hundred dollars in value ; all spinning wheels and
looms ; one sewing machine and other instruments of domestic laber kept for
actual use ; the necessary provisions and fuel for the use of the family for six
months ; the proper tools, instruments, or books of the debtor, if a farmer,
mechanic, surveyor, clergyman, lawyer, physician, teacher or professor; the
horse or the team, consisting of not more than two horses or mules, or two yokes
of cattle, and the wagon or other vehicle, with the proper harness or tackle, by
the use of which the debtor, if a physician, public officer, farmer, teamster or
other laborer, habitually earns his living ; and to the debtor, if a printer, there
shall also be exempt a printing press and the types, furniture and material nec-
essary for the use of such printing press, and a newspaper office to the value of
twelve hundred dollars ; the earnings of such debtor, or those of his family, at
any time within ninety days next preceding the levy.
Persons unmarried and not the head of a family, and non-residents, have
exempt their own ordinary wearing apparel and trunks to contain the same.
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS. 299
There is also exempt, to a head of a family, a homestead, not exceeding forty
acres ; or, if inside city limits, one-half acre with improvements, value not
limited. The homestead is liable for all debts contracted prior to its acquisition as
such, and is subject to mechanics' liens for work or material furnished for the same.
An article, otherwise exempt, is liable, on execution, for the purchase
money thereof.
Where a debtor, if a head of a family, has started to leave the State, he shall
bave exempt only the ordinary wearing apparel of himself and family, and
other property in addition, as he may select, in all not exceeding seventy-five
•dollars in value.
A policy of life insurance shall inure to the separate use of the husband or
-wife and children, entirely independent of his or her creditors.
ESTRAYS.
An unbroken animal shall not be taken up as an estray between May 1st
and November 1st, of each year, unless the same be found within the lawful
enclosure of a householder, who alone can take up such animal, unless some
other person gives him notice of the fact of such animal coming on his place ;
and if he fails, within five days thereafter, to take up such estray, any other
householder of the township may take up such estray and proceed with it as if
taken on his own premises, provided he shall prove to the Justice of the Peace
such notice, and shall make affidavit where such estray was taken up.
Any swine, sheep, goat, horse, neat cattle or other animal distrained (for
damage done to one's enclosure), when the owner is not known, shall be treated
as an estray.
Within five days after taking up an estray, notice, containing a full descrip-
tion thereof, shall be posted up in three of the most public places in the town-
ship ; and in ten days, the person taking up such estray shall go before a Justice
of the Peace in the township and make oath as to where such estray was taken
up, and that the marks or brands have not been altered, to his knowledge. The
estray shall then be appraised, by order of the Justice, and the appraisement,
description of the size, age, color, sex, marks and brands of the estray shall be
entered by the Justice in a book kept for that purpose, and he shall, within ten
days thereafter, send a certified copy thereof to the County Auditor.
When the appraised value of an estray does not exceed five dollars, the
Justice need not proceed further than to enter the description of the estray on
his book, and if no owner appears within six months, the property shall vest in
the finder, if he has complied with the law and paid all costs.
Where appraised value of estray exceeds five and is less than ten dollars, if
no owner appears in nine months, the finder has the property, if he has com-
plied with the law and paid costs.
An estray, legally taken up, may be used or worked with care and
moderation.
If any person unlawfully take up an estray, or take up an estray and fail to
comply with the law regarding estrays, or use or work it contrary to above, or
work it before having it appraised, or keep such estray out of the county more
than five days at one time, before acquiring ownership, such offender shall foifeit
to the county twenty dollars, and the owner may recover double damages with
costs.
If the owner of any estray fail to claim and prove his title for one year after
the taking up, and the finder shall have complied with the law, a comnlete title
vests in the finder.
300 ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
But if the owner appear within eighteen months from the taking up, prove
his ownership and pay all costs and expenses, the finder shall pay him the
appraised value of such estray, or may, at his option, deliver up the estray.
WOLF SCALPS.
A bounty of one dollar is paid for wolf scalps.
MARKS AND BRANDS.
Any person may adopt his own mark or brand for his domestic animals, and
have a description thereof recorded by the Township Clerk.
No person shall adopt the recorded mark or brand of any other person
residing in his township.
DAMAGES FROM TRESPASS.
When any person's lands are enclosed by a lawful fence, the owner of any
domestic animal injuring said lands is liable for the damages, and the damages
may be recovered by suit against the owner, or may be made by distraining the
animals doing the damage; and if the party injured elects to recover by action
against the owner, no appraisement need be made by the Trustees, as in case of
distraint.
When trespassing animals are distrained within twenty-four hours, Sunday
not included, the party injured shall notify the owner of said animals, if known ;
and if the owner fails to satisfy the party within twenty-four hours thereafter,
the party shall have the township Trustees assess the damage, and notice shall
be posted up in three conspicuous places in the township, that the stock, or part
thereof, shall, on the tenth day after posting the notice, between the hours of 1
and 3 P. M., be sold to the highest bidder, to satisfy said damages, with costs.
Appeal lies, within twenty days, from the action of the Trustees to the Cir-
cuit Court.
Where stock is restrained, by police regulation or by law, from running at
large, any person injured in his improved or cultivated lands by any domestic
animal, may, by action against the owner of such animal, or by distraining such
animal, recover his damages, Avhether the lands whereon the injury was done
were inclosed by a lawful fence or not. .
FENCES.
A lawful fence is fifty-four inches high, made of rails, wire or boards, with
posts not more than ten feet apart where rails are used, and eight feet where
boards are used, substantially built and kept in good repair ; or any other fence
which, in the opinion of the Fence Viewers, shall be declared a lawful fence —
provided the lower rail, wire or board be not more that twenty nor less than six-
teen inches from the ground.
The respective owners of lands enclosed with fences shall maintain partition
fences between their own and next adjoining enclosure so long as they improve
them' in equal shares, unless otherwise agreed between them.
If any party neglect to maintain such partition fence as he should maintain,
the Fence Viewei-s (the township Trustees), upon complaint of aggrieved party,
may, upon due notice to both parties, examine the fence, and. if found insuf-
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS. 301
ficient, notify the delinquent party, in writing^ to repair or re-build the same
within such time as they judge reasonable.
If the fence be not repaired or rebuilt accordingly, the complainant may do
so, and the same being adjudged sufficient by the Fence Viewers, and the
value thereof, with their fees, being ascertained and certified under their hands,
the complainant may demand of the delinquent the sum so ascertained, and if
the same be not paid in one month after demand, may recover it with one per
cent a month interest, by action.
In case of disputes, the Fence Viewers may decide as to who shall erect or
maintain partition fences, and in what time the same shall be done ; and in case
any party neglect to maintain or erect such part as may be assigned to him,
the aggrieved party may erect and maintain the same, and recover double
damages.
No person, not wishing his land inclosed, and not using it otherwise than in
common, shall be compelled to maintain any partition fence ; but when he uses
or incloses his land otherwise than in common, he shall contribute to the parti-
tion fences.
Where parties have had their lands inclosed in common, and one of the
owners desires to occupy his separate and apart from the other, and the other
refuses to divide the line or build a sufficient fence on the line when divided,
the Fence Viewers may divide and assign, and upon neglect of the other to
build as ordered by the Viewers, the one may build the other's part and
recover as above.
And when one incloses land which has lain uninclosed, he must pay for
one-half of each partition fence between himself and his neighbors.
Where one desires to lay not less than twenty feet of his lands, adjoining
his neighbor, out to the public to be used in common, he must give his neighbor
six months' notice thereof.
Where a fence has been built on the land of another through mistake, the
owner may enter upon such premises and remove his fence and material withn
six months after the division line has been ascertained. Where the material to
build such a fence has been taken from the land on which it was built, then,
before it can be removed, the person claiming must first pay for such material
to the owner of the land from which it was taken, nor shall such a fence be
removed at a time when the removal will throw open or expose the crops of the
other party ; a reasonable time must be given beyond the six months to remove
crops.
MECHANICS' LIENS.
Every mechanic, or other person who shall do any labor upon, or furnish
any materials, machinery or fixtures for any building, erection or other improve-
ment upon land, including those engaged in the construction or repair of any
work of internal improvement, by virtue of any contract with the owner, his
agent, trustee, contractor, or sub-contractor, shall have a lien, on complying
with the forms of law, upon the building or other improvement for his labor
done or materials furnished.
It would take too large a space to detail the manner in which a sub-
contractor secures his lien. He should file, within thirty days after the last of
the labor was performed, or the last of the material shall have been furnished,
with the Clerk of the District Court a true account of the amount due him, after
allowing all credits, setting forth the time when such material was furnished or
labor performed, and when completed, and containing a correct description of
302 ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
the property sought to be charged with the lien, and the whole verified by
affidavit.
A principal contractor must file such an affidavit within ninety days, as
above.
Ordinarily, there are so many points to be examined in order to secure a
mechanics' lien, that it is much better, unless one is accustomed to managing
such liens, to consult at once with an attorney.
Remember that the proper time to file the claim is ninety days for a princi-
pal contractor, thirty days for a sub-contractor, as above ; and that actions to
enforce these liens must be cotnmenced within two years, and the rest can much
better be done with an attorney.
ROADS AND BRIDGES.
Persons meeting each other on the public highways, shall give one-half of
the same by turning to the right. All persons failing to observe this rule shall
be liable to pay all damages resulting therefrom, together with a fine, not exceed-
ing five dollars.
The prosecution must be instituted on the complaint of the person wronged.
Any person guilty of racing horses, or driving upon the public highway, in
a manner likely to endanger the persons or the lives of others, shall, on convic-
tion, be fined not exceeding one hundred dollars or imprisoned not exceeding
thirty days.
It is a misdemeanor, without authority from the proper Road Supervisor, to
break upon, plow or dig within the boundary lines of any public highway.
The money tax levied upon the property in each road district in each town-
ship (except the general Township Fund, set apart for purchasing tools, machin-
ery and guide boards), whether collected by the Road Supervisor or County
Treasurer, shall be expended for highway purposes in that district, and no part
thereof shall be paid out or expended for the benefit of another district.
The Road Supervisor of each district, is bound to keep the roads and bridges
therein, in as good condition as the funds at his disposal will permit ; to put
guide boards at cross roads and forks of highways in his district ; and when noti-
fied in writing that any portion of the public highway, or any bridge is unsafe,
must in a reasonable time repair the same, and for this purpose may call out
any or all the able bodied men in the district, but not more than two days at
one time, without their consent.
Also, when notified in writing, of the growth of any Canada thistles upon
vacant or non-resident lands or lots, within his district, the owner, lessee or
agent thereof being unknown, shall cause tlie same to be destroyed.
Bridges when erected or maintained by the public, are parts of the highway,
and must not be less than sixteen feet wide.
A penalty is imposed upon any one Avho rides or drives faster than a walk
across any such bridge.
The manner of establishing, vacating or altering roads, etc., is so well known
to all township officers, that it is sufficient here to say that the first step is by
petition, filed in the Auditor's office, addressed in substance as follows :
The Board of Supervisors of County : The undersigned asks that
a highway, commencing at and running thence and terminating
at , be established, vacated or altered (as the case may be.)
When the petition is filed, all necessary and succeeding steps will be shown
and explained to the petitioners by the Auditor.
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS. 303
ADOPTION OF CHILDREN.
Any person competent to make a will can adopt as his own the minor child
of another. The consent of both parents, if living and not divorced or separ-
ated, and if divorced or separated, or if unmarried, the consent of the parent
lawfully having the custody of the child ; or if either parent is dead, then the
consent of the survivor, or if both parents be dead, or the child have been and
remain abandoned by them, then the consent of the Mayor of the city where
the child is living, or if not in the city, then of the Clerk of the Circuit Court
of the county shall be given to such adoption by an instrument in writing,
signed by party or parties consenting, and stating the names of the parties, if
known, the name of the child, if known, the name of the person adopting such
child, and the residence of all, if known, and declaring the name by which the
child is thereafter to be called and known, and stating, also, that such child is
given to the person adopting, for the purpose of adoption as his own child.
The person adopting shall also sign said instrument, and all the parties shall
acknowledge the same in the manner that deeds conveying lands shall be
acknowledged.
The instrument shall be recorded in the office of the County Recorder.
SURVEYORS AND SURVEYS.
There is in every county elected a Surveyor known as County Surveyor,
who has power to appoint deputies, for whose official acts he is responsible. It
is the duty of the County Surveyor, either by himself or his Duputy, to make
all surveys that he may be called upon to make Avithin his county as soon as
may be after application is made. The necessary chainmen and other assist-
ance must be employed by the person requiring the same to be done, and to be
by him paid, unless otherwise agreed ; but the chainmen must be disinterested
persons and approved by the Surveyor and sworn by him to measure justly and
impartially. Previous to any survey, he shall furnish himself with a copy of
the field notes of the original survey of the same land, if there be any in the
office of the County Auditor, and his survey shall be made in accordance there-
with.
Their fees are three dollars per day. For certified copies of field notes,
twenty-five cents.
SUPPORT OF POOR.
The father, mother and children of any poor person who has applied for aid,
and who is unable to maintain himself by work, shall, jointly or severally,
maintain such poor person in such manner as may be approved by the Town-
ship Trustees.
In the absence or inability of nearer relatives, the same liability shall extend
to the grandparents, if of ability without personal labor, and to the male grand-
children who are of ability, by personal labor or otherwise.
The Township Trustees may, upon the failure of such relatives to maintain
a poor person, who has made application for relief, apply to the Circuit Court
for an order to compel the same.
Upon ten days' notice, in writing, to the parties sought to be charged, a
hearing may be had, and an order made for entire or partial support of the poor
person.
304 , ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
<
Appeal may be taken from such judgment as from other judgments of the
Circuit Court.
When any person, having any estate, abandons either chiklren, wife or hus-
band, leaving them chargeable, or likely to become chargeable, upon the public for
support, upon proof of above fact, an order may be had from the Clerk of the
Circuit Court, or Judge, authorizing the Trustees or the Sheriff to take into
possession such estate.
The Court may direct such personal estate to be sold, to be applied, as well
as the rents and profits of the real estate, if any, to the support of children,
wife or husband.
If the party against whom the order is issued return and support the per-
son abandoned, or give security for the same, the order shall be discharged, and
the property taken returned.
The mode of relief for the poor, through the action of the Township
Trustees, or the action of the Board of Supervisors, is so well known to every
township officer, and the circumstances attending applications for relief are so
varied, that it need now only be said that it is the duty of each county to pro-
vide for its poor, no matter at what place they may be.
LANDLORD AND TENANT.
A tenant giving notice to quit demised premises at a time named, and after-
ward holding over, and a tenant *6r his assignee willfully holding over the prem-
ises after the term, and after notice to quit, shall pay double rent.
Any person in possession of real property, with the assent of the owner, is
presumed to be a tenant at will until the contrary is shown.
Thirty days' notice, in writing, is necessary to be given by either party
before he can terminate a tenancy at will ; but when, in any case, a rent is
reserved payable at intervals of less than thirty days, the length of notice need
not be greater than such interval between the days of payment. In case of
tenants occupying and cultivating farms, the notice must fix the termination of
the tenancy to take place on the 1st day of March, except in cases of field
tenants or croppers, whose leases shall be held to expire when the crop is har-
vested ; provided, that in case of a crop of corn, it shall not be later than the
1st day of December, unless otherwise agreed upon. But when an express
agreement is made, whether the same has been reduced to writing or not,
the tenancy shall cease at the time agreed upon, Avithout notice.
But where an express agreement is made, whether reduced to writing or
not, the tenancy shall cease at the time agreed upon, without notice.
If such tenant cannot be found in the county, the notices above required
may be given to any sub-tenant or other person in possession of the premises ;
or, if the premises be vacant, by affixing the notice to the principal door of the
building or in some conspicuous position on the land, if there be no building.
The landlord shall have a lien for his rent upon all the crops grown on the
premises, and upon any other personal property of the tenant used on the
premises during the term, and not exempt from execution, for the period of one
year after a year's rent or the rent of a shorter period claimed falls due ; but
such lien shall not continue more than six months after the expiration of the
term. •
The lien may be effected by the commencement of an action, within the
period above prescribed, for the rent alone ; and the landlord is entitled to a writ
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
305
of attachment, upon filing an affidavit that the action is commenced to rcover
rent accrued within one year previous thereto upon the premises described in the
affidavit.
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.
Whenever any of the following articles shall be contracted for, or sold or
delivered, and no special contract or agreement shall be made to the contrary,
the weight per bushel shall be as follows, to-wit :
Apples, Peaches or Quinces, 48
Cherries, Grapes, Currants or Gooseberries, 40
Strawberries, Raspberries or Blackberries, 32
Osage Orange Seed 32
Millet Seed 45
-Stone Coal 80
Lime 80
Corn in the ear 70
Wheat 60
Potatoes 60
Beans 60
Clover Seed 60
Onions 57
Shelled Corn 56
Rye 56
Flax Seed 56
•Sweet Potatoes 46
Penalty for giving less than the above standard is treble damages and costs
and five dollars addition thereto as a fine.
Sand 130
Sorghum Seed 30
Broom Corn Seed 30
Buckwheat 62
Salt 50
Barley 48
Corn Meal 48
Castor Beans 46
Timothy Seed 45
Hemp Seed 44
Dried Peaches 83
Oats 33
Dried Apples 24
Bran 20
Blue Grass Seed 14
Hungarian Grass Seed 45
DEFINITION OF COMMERCIAL TERMS.
I means dollars, being a contraction of U. S., which was formerly placed
before any denomination of money, and meant, as it means now, United States
Currency.
£ means poMnc?s, English money.
@ stands for at or to ; lb for pounds, and bbl. for barrels ; '^ for per or hy
the. Thus, Butter sells at 20^30c f S), and Flour at |8@$12 f bbl.
fo for per cent.^ and # for number.
May 1. Wheat sells at |1.20@$1.25, " seller June." Seller June means
that the person who sells the wheat has the privilege of delivering it at any
time during the month of June.
Selling short, is contracting to deliver a certain amount of grain or stock,
at a fixed price, within a certain length of time, when the seller has not the
stock on hand. It is for the interest of the person selling "short" to depress
the market as much as possible, in order that he may buy and fill his contract
at a profit. Hence the ''shorts " are termed "bears."
Buying long, is to contract to purchase a certain amount of grain or shares
of stock at a fixed price, deliverable within a stipulated time, expecting to make
a profit by the rise in prices. The " longs " are termed " bulls," as it is for
their interest to "operate" so as to "toss" the prices upward as much as
possible.
306 ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
NOTES.
Form of note is legal, worded in the simplest way, so that the amount and
vjne of payment are mentioned :
1100. Chicago, ni., Sept. 15, 1876.
Sixty days from date I promise to pay to E. F. Brown or order, one hun-
dred dollars, for value received. ' L. D. Lowry.
A note to be payable in anything else than money needs only the facts sub-
stituted for money in the above form.
ORDERS.
Orders should be worded simply, thus :
Mr. F. H. Coats : Chicago, Sept. 15, 1876.
Please pay to H. Birdsall twenty-five dollars, and charge to
F. D. SiLVA.
RECEIPTS.
Receipts should always state when received and what for, thus :
1100. _ ^ Chicago, Sept. 15, 1876.
Received of J. W. Davis, one hundred dollars, for services
rendered in grading his lot in Fort Madison, on account.
Thomas Brady.
If receipt is in full, it should be so stated.
BILLS OF PURCHASE.
W. N. Mason, Salem, Illinois, Sept. 18, 1876.
Bought of A. A. Graham.
4 Bushels of Seed Wheat, at $1.50 $6 00
2 Seamless Sacks " 30 60
Received payment, $6 60
A. A. Graham.
CONFESSION OF JUDGMENT.
-, Iowa, , 18 — .
after date — promises to pay to the order of , dollars,
at , for value received, with interest at ten per cent, per annum after
until paid. Interest payable , and on interest not paid when due,
interest at same rate and conditions.
A failure to pay said interest, or any part thereof, within 20 days after due, shall cause the
whole note to become due and collectable at once.
If this note is sued, or judgment is confessed hereon, $ shall be allowed as attorney fees.
No. — . P. 0. , .
confession of judgment.
vs. — . In Court of County, Iowa, , of
County, Iowa, do hereby confess that justly indebted to †” , in the
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS. 30T
sum of dollars, and the further sum of $ as attorney fees, with
interest thereon at ten per cent, from , and — hereby confess judgment
against as defendant in favor of said , for said sum of $ ,
and I as attorney fees, hereby authorizing the Clerk of the Court of
said county to enter up judgment for said sum against with costs, and
interest at 10 per cent, from , the interest to be paid .
Said debt and judgment being for .
It is especially agreed, however. That if this judgment is paid within twenty
days after due, no attorney fees need be paid. And hereby sell, convey
and release all right of homestead we now occupy in favor of said so
far as this judgment is concerned, and agree that it shall be liable on execution
for this judgment.
Dated , 18—. •
The State of Iowa, "I
County, j
being duly sworn according to law, depose and say that the forego-
ing statement and Confession of Judgment was read over to , and that —
understood the contents thereof, and that the statements contained therein are
true, and that the sums therein mentioned are justly to become due said
as aforesaid.
Sworn to and subscribed before me and in my presence by the said
this day of , 18—. , Notary Public.
ARTICLES OF AGREEMENT.
An agreement is where one party promises to another to do a certain thing
in a certain time for a stipulated sum. Good business men always reduce an
agreement to writing, which nearly always saves misunderstandings and trouble.
No particular form is necessary, but the facts must be clearly and explicitly
stated, and there must, to make it valid, be a reasonable consideration.
GENERAL FORM OF AGREEMENT.
This Agreement, made the Second day of June, 1878, between John
Jones, of Keokuk, County of Lee, State of Iowa, of the first part, and Thomas
Whiteside, of the same place, of the second part —
WITNESSETH, that the said John Jones, in consideration of the agreement
of the party of the second part, hereinafter contained, contracts and agrees to
and with the said Thomas Whiteside, that he will deliver in good and market-
able condition, at the Village of Melrose, Iowa, during the month of November,
of this year. One Hundred Tons of Prairie Hay, in the following lots, and at
the following specified times ; namely, twenty-five tons by the seventh of Nov-
ember, twenty-five tons additional by the fourteenth of the month, twenty-five
tons more by the twenty-first, and the entire one hundred tons to be all delivered
by the thirtieth of November.
And the said Thomas Whiteside, in consideration of the prompt fulfillment
of this contract, on the part of the party of the first part, contracts to and agrees
with the said John Jones, to pay for said hay five dollars per ton, for each ton
as soon as .delivered.
SOP ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
In case of failure of agreement by either of the parties hereto, it is hereby
stipulated and agreed that the party so failing shall pay to the other, One Hun-
dred dollars, as fixed and settled damages.
In witness whereof, we have hereunto set our hands the day and year first
above written. John Jones,
Thomas Whiteside.
agreement with clerk for services.
This Agreement, made the first day of May, one thousand eight hundred
and seventy-eight, between Reuben Stone, of Dubuque, County of Dubuque,
State of Iowa, party of the first part, and George Barclay, of McGregor,
County of Clayton, State of Iowa, party of the second part —
WITNESSETH, that Said George Barclay agrees faithfully and diligently to
work as clerk and salesman for the said Reuben Stone, for and during the space
of one year from the date hereof, should both live such length of time, without
absenting himself from his occupation ; during which time he, the said Barclay, in
the store of said Stone, of Dubuque, will carefully and honestly attend, doing
and performing all duties as clerk and salesman aforesaid, in accordance and in
all respects as directed and desired by the said Stone.
In consideration of which services, so to be rendered by the said Barclay, the
said Stone agrees to pay to said Barclay the annual sum of one thousand dol-
lars, payable in twelve equal monthly payments, each upon the last day of each
month ; provided that all dues for days of absence from business by said Barclay,
shall be deducted from the sum otherwise by the agreement due and payable by
the said Stone to the said Barclay.
Witness our hands. Reuben Stone.
George Barclay.
BILLS OF SALE.
A bill of sale is a written agreement to another party, for a consideration to
convey his right and interest in the personal property. The purchaser must
take, actual possession of the property^ or the bill of sale must be acknowledged
and recorded.
COMMON FORM OF BILL OF SALE.
Xnow ALL Men by this instrument, that I, Louis Clay, of Burlington,
Iowa, of the first part, for and in consideration of Five Hundred and Ten
Dollars, to me paid by John Floyd, of the same place, of the second part, the
receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, have sold, and by this instrument do
convey unto the said Floyd, party of the second part, his executors, administra-
tors and assigns, my undivided half of ten acres of corn, now growing on the
arm of Thomas Tyrell, in the town above mentioned ; one pair of horses,
sixteen sheep, and five cows, belonging to me and in my possession at the farm
aforesaid ; to have and to hold the same unto the party of the second part, his
executors and assigns forever. And I do, for myself and legal representatives,
agree with the said party of the second part, and his legal representatives, to
warrant and defend the sale of the afore-mentioned property and chattels unto
the said party of the second part, and his legal representatives, against all and
every person whatsoever.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto affixed my hand, this tenth day of
October, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-six.
Louis Clay.
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS. 30f
NOTICE TO QUIT.
To John Wontpay :
You are hereby notified to quit the possession of the premises you now
occupy to wit :
\_Insert Description.^
on or before thirty days from the date of this notice.
Dated January 1, 1878. Landlord.
[_Iieverse for Notice to Landlord.^
GENERAL FORM OF WILL FOR REAL AND PERSONAL
PROPERTY.
I, Charles Mansfield, of the Town of Bellevue, County of Jackson, State
of Iowa, being aware of the uncertainty of life, and in failing health, but of
sound mind and memory, do make and declare this to be my last will and tes-
tament, in manner following, to-wit :
First. I give, devise and bequeath unto my eldest son, Sidney H. Mans-
field, the sum of Two Thousand Dollars, of bank stock, now in the Third
National Bank, of Cincinnati, Ohio, and the farm owned by myself, in the
Township of Iowa, consisting of one hundred and sixty acres, with all the
houses, tenements and improvements thereunto belonging ; to have and to hold
unto my said son, his heirs and assigns, forever.
Second. I give, devise and bequeath to each of my two daughters, Anna
Louise Mansfield and Ida Clara Mansfield, each Two Thousand Dollars in bank
stock in the Third National Bank of Cincinnati, Ohio; and also, each one
quarter section of land, owned by myself, situated in theTownship of Fairfield,
and recorded in my name in the Recorder's office, in the county where such land
is located. The north one hundred and sixty acres of said half section is
devised to my eldest daughter, Anna Louise.
Third. I give, devise and bequeath to my son, Frank Alfred Mansfield, five
shares of railroad stock in the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, and my one hundred
and sixty acres of land, and saw-mill thereon, situated in Manistee, Michigan,
with all the improvements and appurtenances thereunto belonging, which said
real estate is recorded in my name, in the county where situated.
Fourth. I give to my wife, Victoria Elizabeth Mansfield, all my household
furniture, goods, chattels and personal property, about my home, not hitherto
disposed of, including Eight Thousand Dollars of bank stock in the Third
National Bank of Cincinnati, Ohio, fifteen shares in the Baltimore & Ohio
Railroad, and the free and unrestricted use, possession and benefit of the home
farm so long as she may live, in lieu of dower, to which she is entitled by law
— said farm being my present place of residence.
Fifth. I bequeath to my invalid father, Elijah H. Mansfield, the income-
from rents of my store building at 145 Jackson street, Chicago, Illinois, during
the term of his natural life. Said building and land therewith to revert to
my said sons and daughters in equal proportion, upon the demise of my said
father.
Sixth. It is also my will and desire that, at the death of my wife, Victoria
Elizabeth Mansfield, or at any time when she may arrange to relinquish her
310 ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
life interest in the above mentioned homestead, the same may revert to my
above named children, or to the lawful heirs of each.
And lastly. I nominate and appoint as the executors of this, my last will
and testament, my wife, Victoria Elizabeth Mansfield, and my eldest son, Sidney
H. Mansfield.
I further direct that my debts and necessary funeral expenses shall be paid
from moneys now on deposit in the Savings Bank of Bellevue, the residue of
such moneys to revert to my wife, Victoria Elizabeth Mansfield, for her use for-
ever.
In witness whereof, I, Charles Mansfield, to this my last will and testament,
have hereunto set my hand and seal, this fourth day of April, eighteen hundred
and seventy-two.
» Charles Mansfield.
Signed, and declared by Charles Mansfield, as and for his last will and tes-
ment, in the presence of us, who, at his request, and in his presence, and in
the presence of each other, have subscribed our names hereunto as witnesses
thereof. Peter A. Schenck, Dubuque, Iowa,
Frank E. Dent, Bellevue, Iowa.
CODICIL.
Whereas I, Charles Mansfield, did, on the fourth day of April, one thousand
eight hundred and seventy-two, make my last will and testament, I do now, by
this writing, add this codicil to my said will, to be taken as a part thereof.
Whereas, by the dispensation of Providence, my daughter, Anna Louise,
has deceased, November fifth, eighteen hundred and seventy-three ; and whereas,
a son has been born to me, which son is now christened Richard Albert Mans-
field, I give and bequeath unto him my gold watch, and all right, interest and
title in lands and bank stock and chattels bequeathed to my deceased daughter,
Anna Louise, in the body of this will.
In witness whereof, I hereunto place my hand and seal, this tenth day of
March, eighteen hundred and seventy-five. Charles Mansfield.
Signed, sealed, published and declared to us by the testator, Charles Mans-
field, as and for a codicil to be annexed to his last will and testament. And
we, at his request, and in his presence, and in the presence of each other, have
subscribed our names as witnesses thereto, at the date hereof.
Frank E. Dent, Bellevue, Iowa,
John C. Shay, Bellevue, Iowa.
[Form No. 1.)
SATISFACTION OF MORTGAGE.
â– ss.
State of Iowa, 1
~ County, J '
I, , of the County of , State of Iowa, do hereby acknowledge
that a certain Indenture of , bearing date the day of , A. D.
18 — , made and executed by and , his wife, to said on
che following described Real Estate, in the County of , and State of
Iowa, to-wit : (here insert description) and filed for record in the office of the
Recorder of the County of , and State of Iowa, on the day of ,
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAAVS. 311
A. D. 18 — , at o'clock . M, ; and recorded in Book of Mortgage
Records, on page , is redeemed, paid off, satisfied and discharged in full.
. [seal.]
State of Iowa, \
County, j
Be it Remembered, That on this day of , A. D. 18 — , before
me the undersigned, a in and for said county, personally appeared ,
to me personally known to be the identical person who executed the above
(satisfaction of mortgage) as grantor, and acknowledged signature
thereto to be voluntary act and deed.
Witness my hand and seal, the day and year last above
written. .
ONE FORM OF REAL ESTATE MORTGAGE.
Know all Men by these Presents : That , of County, and
State of , in consideration of dollars, in hand paid by of
County, and State of , do hereby sell and convey unto the said
the following described premises, situated in the County , and State of
, to wit : (here insert description,) and do hereby covenant with the
said that lawfully seized of said premises, that they are free from
incumbrance, that have good right and lawful authority to sell and convey
the same ; and do hereby covenant to warrant and defend the same against
the lawful claims of all persons whomsoever. To be void upon condition that
the said shall pay the full amount of principal and interest at the time
therein specified, of certain promissory note for the sum of dollars.
One note for | , due , 18 — , with interest annually at per cent.
One note for $ , due , 18 — , with interest annually at per cent.
One note for $ , due , 18 — , with interest annually at per cent.
One note for $ , due , 18 — , with interest annually at per cent.
And the said Mortgagor agrees to pay all taxes that may be levied upon the
above described premises. It is also agreed by the Mortgagor that if it becomes
necessary to foreclose this mortgage, a reasonable amount shall be allowed as an
attorney's fee for foreclosing. And the said hereby relinquishes all her
right of dower and homestead in and to the above described premises.
Signed to day of , A. D. 18 — .
[Acknowledge as in Form No. 1.]
SECOND FORM OF REAL ESTATE MORTGAGE.
This Indenture, made and executed by and between of the
county of and State of , part of the first part, and of the
county of and State of party of the second part, Witnesseth, that the
said part of the first part, for and in consideration of the sum of dollars,
paid by the said party of the second part, the receipt of which is hereby
acknowledged, hat^e granted and sold, and do by these presents, grant, bargain,
sell, convey and confirm, unto the said party of the second part, heirs and
312 ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
assigns forever, the certain tract or parcel of real estate situated in the county
of and State of , described as follows, to-wit:
[Here insert description.)
The said part of the first part represent to and covenant with the part of
the second part, that he have good right to sell and convey said premises,
that they are free from encumbrance and that he will warrant and defend
them against the lawful claims of all persons whomsoever, and do expressly
hereby release all rights of dower in and to said premises, and relinquish and
convey all rights of homestead therein.
This Instrument is made, executed and delivered upon the following con-
ditions, to-wit :
First. Said first part agree to pay said or order
Second. Said first part further agree as is stipulated in said note, that if
he shall fail to pay any of said interest when due, it shall bear interest at the
rate often per cent, per annum, from the time the same becomes due, and this
mortgage shall stand as security for the same.
Third. Said first part further agree that he will pay all taxes and
assessments levied upon said real estate before the same become delinquent, and
if not paid the holder of this mortgage may declare the whole sum of money
herein secured due and collectable at once, or he may elect to pay such taxes or
assessments, and be entitled to interest on the same at the rate of ten per cent,
per annum, and this mortgage shall stand as security for the amount so paid.
Fourth. Said first part further agree that if he fail to pay any of said
money, either principal or interest, within days after the same becomes
due ; or fail to conform or comply with any of the foregoing conditions or agree-
ments, the whole sum herein secured shall become due and payable at once, and
this mortgage may thereupon be foreclosed immediately for the whole of said
money, interest and costs.
Fifth. Said part further agree that in the event of the non-payment of either
principal, interest or taxes when due, and upon the filing of a bill of foreclosure
of this mortgage, an attorney's fee of dollars shall become due and pay-
able, and shall be by the court taxed, and this mortgage shall stand as security
therefor, and the same shall be included in the decree of foreclosure and shall
be made by the Sherifi" on general or special execution with the other money,
interest and costs, and the contract embodied in this mortgage and the note
described herein, shall in all respects be governed, constructed and adjudged
by the laws of , where the same is made. The foregoing conditions
being performed, this conveyance to be void, otherwise of full force and virtue.
[Acknowledge as in form No. 1.]
FORM OF LEASE.
This Article of Agreement, Made and entered into on this day of
A. D. 187-, by and between , of the county of , and
State of Iowa, of the first part, and , of the county of •
and State of Iowa, of the second part, witnesseth that the said party of the first
ABSTRACT OF lOAVA STATE LAWS. ux3
part has this day leased unto the party of the second part the following described
premises, to wit :
[5ere insert description.'^
for the term of from and after the — day of , A. D. 187- a:^
the rent of dollars, to be paid as follows, to wit :
\^JIere insert Terms-^
And it is further agreed that if any rent shall be due and unpaid, ,or if
default be made in any of the covenants herein contained, it shall then be law-
ful for the said party of the first part to re-enter the said premises, or to destrain
for such rent; or he may recover possession thereof, by action of forcible entry
and detainer, notwithstanding the provision of Section 3,612 of the Code of
1873 ; or he may use any or all of said remedies.
And the said party of the second part agrees to pay to the party of the first
part the rent as above stated, except when said premises are untenantable by
reason of fire, or from any other cause than the carelessness of the party of the
second part, or persons family, or in employ, or by superior force
and inevitable necessity. And the said party of the second part covenants
that will use the said premises as a , and for no other purposes
whatever ; and that especially will not use said premises, or permit the
same to be used, for any unlawful business or purpose whatever ; that will
not sell, assign, underlet or relinquish said premises without the written consent
of the lessor, under penalty of a forfeiture of all rights under this lease, at
the election of the party of the first part ; and that will use all due care
and diligence in guarding said property, with the buildings, gates, fences, trees,
vines, shrubbery, etc., from damage by fire, and the depredations of animals ;
that will keep buildings, gates, fences, etc., in as good repair as they now
are, or may at any time be placed by the lessor, damages by superior force,
inevitable necessity, or fire from any other cause than from the carelessness of
the lessee, or persons of family, or in employ, excepted ; and that
at the expiration of this lease, or upon a breach by said lessee of any of the said
covenants herein contained, will, without further notice of any kind, :^uit
and surrender the possession and occupancy of , said premises in as good condi-
tion as reasonable use, natural wear and decay thereof will permit. '"?,amages by
fire as aforesaid, superior force, or inevitable necessity, only excepted.
In witness whereof, the said parties have subscribed their names on the date
first above written.
In presence of
FORM OF NOTE.
, 18—.
On or before the — day of , 18 — , for value received, I promise to
pay or order, dollars, with interest from date until paid,
at ten per cent, per ann\im, payable annually, at . Unpaid interest
shall bear interest at ten per cent, per annum. On failure to pay interest
within days after due, the whole sum, principal and interest, shall become
due at once.
u
?.14 ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
CHATTEL MORTGAGE.
Know all Men by these Presents : That of County, and
State of in consideration of dollars, in hand paid by , of
County and State of do hereby sell and convey unto the said the
following described personal property, now in the possession of in the
county and State of , to wit :
\_nere insert Description.']
And do hereby warrant the title of said property, and that it is free from
any incumbrance or lien. The only right or interest retained by grantor in
and to said property being the right of redemption as herein provided. This
conveyance to be void upon condition that the said grantor shall pay to said
grantee, or his assigns, the full amount of principal and interest at the time
therein specified, of certain promissory notes of even date herewith, for
the sum of dollars,
One note for $ , due , 18 — , with interest annually at per cent.
One note for $ , due , 18 — , with interest annually at per cent.
One note for ^ , due , 18 — , with interest annually at per cent.
One note for | , due , 18 — , with interest annually at per cent.
The grantor to pay all taxes on said property, and if at any time any part
or portion of said notes should be due and unpaid, said grantee may proceed by
sale or foreclosure to collect and pay himself the unpaid balance of said notes,
whether due or not, the grantor to pay all necessary expense of such foreclosure,
including $ Attorney's fees, and whatever remains after paying off said
notes and expenses, to be paid over to said grantor.
Signed the day of , 18 — . .
[Acknowledged as in form No. 1.] .
WARRANTY DEED.
Know all Men by these Presents : That of County and
State of , in consideration of the sum of Dollars, in hand paid by
of , County and State of , do hereby sell and convey unto
the said and to heirs and assigns, the following described premises,
situated in the County of , State of Iowa, to-wit ;
\_IIere insert description.']
And I do hereby covenant with the said that — lawfully seized in fee
simple, of said premises, that they are free from incumbrance ; that — ha good
right and lawful authority to sell the same, and — do hereby covenant to war-
rant and defend the said premises and appurtenances thereto belonging, against
the lawful claims of all persons whomsoever ; and the said hereby re-
linquishes all her right of dower and of homestead in and to the above described
premises.
Signed the day of , A. D. 18 — .
in presence of
[Acknowledged as in Form No. 1.]
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS. 315
QUIT-CLAIM DEED.
Know all Men by these Presents : That , of County,
State of , in consideration of the sum of dollars, to — in hand
paid by , of County, State of , the receipt whereof — do
hereby acknowledge,have bargained, sold and quit-claimed, and by these presents
do bargain, sell and quit-claim unto the said and to — heirs and assigns
forever, all — right, title, interest, estate, claim and demand, both at law and
in equity, and as well in possession as in expectancy, of, in and to the following
described premises, to wit : [here insert description] with all and singular the
hereditaments and appurtenances thereto belonging.
Signed this day of , A. D. 18 — .
Signed in Presence of
[Acknowledged as in form No. 1.]
BOND FOR DEED.
Know all Men by these Presents: That of County,
and State of am held and firmly bound unto of County, and
State of , in the sum of Dollars, to be paid to the said , his
executors or assigns, for which payment well and truly to be made, I bind myself
firmly by these presents. Signed the day of A. D. 18 — .
The condition of this obligation is such, that if the said obligee shall pay to
said obligor, or his assigns, the full amount of principal and interest at the time
therein specified, of — certain promissory note of even date herewith, for the
sum of Dollars,
One note for $ , due , 18 — , with interest annually at — per cent.
One note for | , due , 18 — , with interest annually at — per cent.
One note for $ , due , 18 — , with interest annually at — per cent.
and pay all taxes accruing upon the lands herein described, then said oblio-or
shall convey to the said obligee, or his assigns, that certain tract or parcel* of
real estate, situated in the County of and State of Iowa, described as fol-
lows, to wit : [here insert description,] by a Warranty Deed, with the usual
covenants, duly executed and acknowledged.
If said obligee should fail to make the payments as above stipulated, or any
part thereof, as the same becomes due, said obligor may at his option, by notice
to the obligee terminate his liability under the bond and resume the posses-
sion and absolute control of said premises, time being the essence of this
agreement.
On the fulfillment of the above conditions this obligation to become void,
otherwise to remain in full force and virtue ; unless terminated by the obligor
as above stipulated.
[Acknowledge as in form No. 1.]
31S ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
CHARITABLE, SCIENTIFIC AND RELIGIOUS ASSOCIATIONS.
Any three or more persons of full age, citizens of the United States,
a majority of whom shall be citizens of this State, who desire to associate
themselves for benevolent, charitable, scientific, religious or missionary pur-
poses, may make, sign and acknowledge, before any officer authorized to take
the acknowledgments of deeds in this State, and have recorded in the office of
the Recorder of the county in which the business of such society is to be con-
ducted, a certificate in writing, in which shall be stated the name or title by
which such society shall be known, the particular business and objects of such
society, the number of Trustees, Directors or Managers to conduct the same, and
the names of the Trustees, Directors or Managers of such society for the first
year of its existence.
Upon filing for record the certificate, as aforesaid, the persons who shall
have signed and acknowledged such certificate, and their associates and success-
ors, shall, by virtue hereof, be a body politic and corporate by the name
stated in such certificate, and by that they and their successors shall and may
have succession, and shall be persons capable of suing and being sued, and may
have and use a common seal, which they may alter or change at pleasure ; and
they and their successors, by their corporate name, shall be capable of taking,
receiving, purchasing and holding real and personal estate, and of making by-
laws for the management of its affairs, not inconsistent with law.
The society so incorporated may, annually or oftener, elect from its members
its Trustees, Directors or Managers at such time and place, and in such manner
as may be specified in its by-laws, who shall have the control and management
of the affairs and funds of the society, a majority of whom shall be a quorum
for the transaction of business, and whenever any vacancy shall happen among
such Trustees, Directors or Managers, by death, resignation or neglect to serve,
such vacancy shall be filled in such manner as shall be provided by the by-laws
of such society. When the body corporate consists of the Trustees, Directors or
Managers of any benevolent, charitable, literary, scientific, religious or mis-
sionary institution, which is or may be established in the State, and which is or
may be under the patronage, control, direction or supervision of any synod, con-
ference, association or other ecclesiastical body in such State, established
agreeably to the laAvs thereof, such ecclesiastical body may nominate and
appoint such Trustees, Directors or Managers, according to usages of the appoint-
ing body, and may fill any vacancy which may occur among such Trustees,
Directors or Managers ; and when any such institution may be under the
patronage, control, direction or supervision of two or more of such synods, con-
ferences, associations or other ecclesiastical bodies, such bodies may severally
nominate and appoint such proportion of such Trustees, Directors or Managers
as shall be agreed upon by those bodies immediately concerned. And any
vacancy occurring among such appointees last named, shall be filled by the
synod, conference, association or body having appointed the last incumbent.
In case any election of Trustees, Directors or Managers shall not be made
on the day designated by the by-laws, said society for that cause shall not be
dissolved, but such election may take place on any other day directed by such
by-laws.
' Any corporation formed under this chapter shall be capable of taking, hold-
ing or receiving property by virtue of any devise or bequest contained in any
last will or testament of any person whatsoever ; but no person leaving a wife,
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS. 317
child or parent, shall devise or bequeath to such institution or corporation more
than one-fourth of his estate after the payment of his debts, and such device or
bequest shall be valid only to the extent of such one-fourth.
Any corporation in this State of an academical character, the memberships
of which shall consist of lay members and pastors of churches, delegates to any
synod, conference or council holding its annual meetings alternately in this and
one or more adjoining States, may hold its annual meetings for the election of
officers and the transaction of business in any adjoining State to this, at such
place therein as the said synod, conference or council shall hold its annual meet-
iniTs ; and the elections so held and business so transacted shall be as leo-al and
binding as if held and transacted at the place of business of the corporation in
this State.
The provisions of this chapter shall not extend or apply to any association
or individual who shall, in the certificate filed with the Recorder, use or specify
a name or style the same as that of any previously existing incorporated society
in the county.
The Trustees, Directors or stockholders of any existing benevolent, char-
itable, scientific, missionary or religious corporation, may, by conforming to the
requirements of Section 1095 of this chapter, re-incorporate themselves or con-
tinue their existing corporate powers, and all the property and effects of such
existing corporation shall vest in and belong to the corporation so re-incorporated
or continued.
INTOXICATING LIQUORS.
No intoxicating liquors (alcohol, spirituous and vinous liquors), except wine
manufactured from grapes, currants or other fruit grown in the State, shall be
manufactured or sold, except for mechanical, medicinal, culinary or sacramental
purposes ; and even such sale is limited as follows :
Any citizen of the State, except hotel keepers, keepers of saloons, eating
houses, grocery keepers and confectioners, is permitted to buy and sell, within
the county of his residence, such liquors for such mechanical, etc., purposes
only, provided he shall obtain the consent of the Board of Supervisors. In
order to get that consent, he must get a certificate from a majority of the elec-
tors of the town or township or ward in which he desires to sell, that he is of
good moral character, and a proper person to sell such liquors.
If the Board of Supervisors grant him permission to sell such liquors, he
mast give bonds, and shall not sell such liquors at a greater profit than thirty-
three per cent, on the cost of the same. Any person having a permit to sell,
shall make, on the last Saturday of every month, a return in writing to the
Auditor of the county, showing the kind and quantity of the liquors purchased
by him since the date of his last report, the price paid, and the amount of
freights paid on the same ; also the kind and quantity of liquors sold by him
since the date of his last report ; to whom sold ; for what purpose and at what
price ; also the kind and quantity of liquor's on hand ; which report shall be
sworn to by the person having the permit, and shall be kept by the Auditor,
subject at all times to the inspection of the public.
No person shall sell or give away any intoxicating liquors, including wine or
beer, to any minor, for any purpose whatever, except upon written order of
parent, guardian or family physician ; or sell the same to an intoxicated person
or a person in the habit of becoming intoxicated.
318 ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS.
Any person who shall mix any intoxicating liquor with any beer, wine or
cider, by him sold, and shall sell or keep for sale, as a beverage, such mixture,
shall be punished as for sale of intoxicating liquor.
But nothing in the chapter containing the laws governing the sale or pro-
hibiting the sale of intoxicating liquors, shall be construed to forbid the sale by
the importer then of of foreign intoxicating liquor, imported under the author-
ity of the laws of the United States, regarding the importation of such liquors,
and in accordance with such laws ; provided that such liquor, at the time of the
sale by the importer, remains in the original casks or packages in which it was
by him imported, and in quantities not less than the quantities in which the
laws of the United States require such liquors to be imported, and is sold by
him in such original casks or packages, and in said quantities only.
All payment or compensation for intoxicating liquor sold in violation of the
laws of this State, whether such payment^ or compensation be in money, goods,
lands, labor, or any thing else whatsoever, shall be held to have been received in viola-
tion of law and equity and good conscience, and to have been received upon a
valid promise and agreement of the receiver, in consideration of the receipt
thereof, to pay on demand, to the person furnishing such consideration, the
amount of the money on the just value of the goods or other things.
All sales, transfers, conveyances, mortgages, liens, attachments, pledges and
securities of every kind, which, either in whole or in part, shall have been made
on account of intoxicating liquors sold contrary to law, shall be utterly null and
void.
Negotiable paper in the hands of holders thereof, in good faith, for valuable
consideration, without notice of any illegality in its inception or transfer, how-
ever, shall not be affected by the above provisions. Neither shall the holder of
land or other property who may have taken the same in good faith, without
notice of any defect in the title of the person from whom the same was
taken, growing out of a violation of the liquor law, be affected by the above
provision.
Every wife, child, parent, guardian, employer, or other person, who shall be
injured in person or property or means of support, by an intoxicated person, or
in consequence of the intoxication, has a right of action against any person who
shall, by selling intoxicating liquors, cause the intoxication of such person, for
all damages actually sustained as well as. exemplary damages.
For any damages recovered, the personal and real property .(except home-
stead, as now provided) of the person against whom the damages are recovered,
as well as the premises or property, personal or real, occupied and used by him,
with consent and knowledge of owner, either for manufacturing or selling intox-
icating li((uors contrary to law, shall be liable.
The oaly other exemption, besides the homestead, from this sweeping liability,
is that the defendant may have enough for the support of his family for six
months, to be determined by the Township Trustee.
No ale, wine, beer or other malt or vinous liquors shall be sold within two
miles of the corporate limits of any municipal corporation, except at wholesale,
for the purpose of shipment to places outside of such corporation and such two-
mile limits. The power of the corporation to pi'ohibit or license sale of liquors
not prohibited by law is extended over the two miles.
No ale, wine, beer or other malt or vinous liquors shall be sold on the day
on which any election is held under the laws of tliis State, within two miles of
the place where said election is held ; except only that any person holding a
permit may sell upon the prescription of a practicing physician.
ABSTRACT OF IOWA STATE LAWS. 319
SUGGESTIONS TO THOSE PURCHASING BOOKS BY SUBSCRIP-
TION.
The business of publishing hooks hy subscription, having so often been
brought into disrepute by agents making representations and declarations not
autliorized by the publisher, in order to prevent that as much as possible, and
that there may be more general knowledge of the relation such agents bear to
their principal, and the law governing such cases, the following statement is
made:
A subscription is in the nature of a contract of mutual promises, by which
the subscriber agrees to pay a certain sum for the work described ; the consid-
eration is concurrent that the publisher shall publish the book named, and
deliver the same, for which the subscriber is to pay the price named. The
nature and character of the work is described by the prospectus and sample
shoivn. These should be carefully examined before subscribing, as they are
the basis and consideration of the promise to pay, and not the too often exag-
gerated statements of the agent, who is merely employed to solicit subscriptions,
for which he is usually paid a commission for each subscriber, and has na
authority to change or alter the conditions upon which the subscriptions are
authorized to be made by the publisher. Should the agent assume to agree to
make the subscription conditional or modify or change the agreement of the
publisher, as set out by the prospectus and sample, in order to bind the princi-
pal, the subscriber should see that such condition or changes are stated over or
in connection with his signature, so that the publisher may have notice of the
same.
All persons making contracts in reference to matters of this kind, or any
other business, should remember that the law as written is, that they can not be
altered, varied or rescinded verbally, but if done at all, must be done in writing.
It is therefore important that all persons contemplating subscribing should
distinctly understand that all talk before or after the subscription is made, is not
admissible as evidence, and is no part of the contract.
Persons employed to solicit subscriptions are known to the trade as can-
vassers. They are agents apjjointed to do a particular business in a prescribed
mode, and have no authority to do it any other way to the prejudice of their
principal, nor can they bind their principal in any other matter. They can not
collect money, or agree that payment may be made in anything else but money.
They can not extend the time of payment beyond the time of delivery, nor bind
their principal for the payment of expenses incurred in their business.
It would save a great deal of trouble, and often serious loss, if persons,
before signing their names to any subscription book, or any written instrument,
wbuld examine carefully what it is ; if they can not read themselves call oa
some one disinterested who can.
STATISTICS OF AGRICULTURE OF IOWA (CENSUS OF 1875.)
COUNTIES.
Appanoose
Alamakee
Audubon
Adams
Adair
Buena Vista .
Benton
Boone
Butler
Bremer
Black Hawk..
Buchanan
Clay
Cherokee
Cass
Crawford
Cedar
Cerro Gordo. .
Clayton
Clinton
Chickasaw
Carroll
Clarke
Calhoun
Davis
Decatur
Dubuque
Des Moines
Delaware
Dickinson
Dallas
Emmet
Floyd
Fayette
Franklin
Fremont
Grundy
Green
Guthrie
Hardin
Humboldt
Howard
Harrison
Hancock
Hamilton
Henry
Ida
Iowa
Jackson
Johnson
Jasper
Jones
Jefferson
Keokuk
Kossuth
Lee
Lucas
Lyon
Linn
Louisa
Mitchell
Mahaska
Marion
Mills
Madison
Monroe
Marshall
Monona
Muscatine
Montgomery.. .
O'Brien
Osceola
Polk
Pochahontas...
Pottawattomie
Powesheik
Page
Plymouth
Palo Alto
Kinggold
Scott
Story
Shelby
Sioux
Sac
Taylor
Tama
Union
Van Buren
"Wayne
Warren
"Wlnnesheik
Woodbury
Worth
Washington ...
Webster
Winnebago
Wright
Wapello
No. of
Acres
of Im-
proved
Laud.
Totals.
No. of
Acres
Unim-
proved
Land.
161059
134T6'
21146
65459
83182
33118
297518
156987
149498
145967
213025
19056
37059
54638
110864
58058
248869
529S0
212291
299855
96504
58065
98694
26996
150938
115751
187831
143665
472029
15770
132435
9989
147098
179504
69359
1159U7
1460S9
59940
87259
128831
29114
115828
94848
10462
63966
182080
7292
191041
193290
241021
278881
208907
167389
208123
31550
183S32
108952
15872
281118
151007
126384
232398
199669
141512
161998
102215
223735
52242
178945
104633
33626
18190
207689
21928
124630
203989
156782
58233
18517
18400
235515
148649
53180
39824
31336
102861
255182
57005
153674
147766
194265
246140
44179
48927
225176
97238
17589
35516
150209
161083
156821
23819
43735
55680
37034
53911
71810
58908
47001
150881
71418
39919
28974
45304
283414
41417
309895
151908
5733'
94772
309744
50487
116003
87172
98561
58165
62305
29850
57765
255S6
32130
98156
43U46
19883;
47926
49838
47220
39930
36906
171018
337451
341615
39935
50249
9494
8935"
142401
7125:
179752
63298
66979
98999
48793
78692
59757
318841
62649
52022
70176
122490
82779
53604
188709
78206
47552
56278
48832
50607
32070
31406
56841
35572
419489
48697
175471
51912
82225
58S29
19123
43874
39326
367394
47201
235515
90222
33216
99;
66795
167178
131670
5709'
4595'
55652
61744
30625
32387
63491
No. of
Acres
under
Culti-
vation
in 1874.
125188
109388
15986
54355
66265
27010
239408
108642
124877
104810
181256
157240
33375
45412
92785
45262
16648.=-
48648
173622
74104
39159
78803
26618
13159'
9527;
146244
97618
161357
11961
114625
8387
110708
133758
65590
103039
135108
52823
76892
97765
27013
61871
7228'
9005
52050
110831
6514
158488
142401
193019
216949
140684
125590
149672
28835
133580
88857
12766
175655
100066
94133
150368
153214
9983
137979
917.30
117303
39844
129(!99
86026
26131
14651
140450
19219
90679
171588
115184
44379
16679
50S73
185742
99387
47230
83515
24179
79442
214941
45826
113263
117689
153737
259169
33097
32157
157884
70910
12421
28957
135173
Spring Wheat.
No. of
Bushels
Harv'l'd
No. of
Acres.
9606
61880
6876
17947
27550
15514
99406
32505
57907
48878
89361
64291
17481
31698
40123
24000
4046
28199
86883
68688
40162
26756
17968
11040
5378
8211
49240
10615
60401
5701
29256
3911
62067
60779
31096
13229
67384
19391
27489
38464'
120461
36115
23948
48891
206761
15026
3108
48410!
43515
45306
79926
36090
16237
33278
10798
10851
13954
8132
52178
.ym
65534
34362
45136
24385
37553
116.38
69395
15334
32375
1381
14904
8769
37686
7434
33369
57312
22689
33621
8606
10926
47698
26658
22029
22996
11056
15446
97013
10.-)S6
7455
103
42175
112175
15243
23092
41646
.30554
8939
13629
17368
77789
937639
89235
281376
435014
162787
1343666
429257
779167
644795
1108024
812342
153159
40150'
676209
324894
640544
415463
1305125
1010345
643519
340161
217090
109631
30993
77169
634135
11.3396
71728
25822
445848
1510
941439
863670
455909
206901
976607
257760
393574
497251
20902
582S03
143701
70006
294682
180220
48811
67024'
550000
666779
1107170
462478
164904
368528
13139
72624
1.5,3587
76742
656597
189939
1083811
395532
529663
312961
628314
101418
1125382
183811
416471
551539
157526
74757
563389
80774
588971
762826
355792
442736
23208
78851
762315
330897
317944
251286
110094
206S13
1437807
141188
58808
76346
654679
1813465
278875
410487
469879
391051
162281
196166
157535
Winter Wheat.
No. of
Acres.
I No. of
I Bushels
Harv't'd
Indian Corn.
Oats.
No. of
Acres.
1049
181
10
7
70
7
11
20
10838
1964
97
174
3500
280
84
700
26
1347
21030
12
428
.S
63
3
20
7
55
10
150
5379
56405
817
12239
84
1720
8688
117310
5
50
46
841
2
22
84
9041
36
491
100
31
6192
148
140
15400
31
12
205
189
32
25
263
21
63
8
21
63
1220
10
325
125
40
8
244
.53
10928
143
61
1439
5
U
1617
295
186
.968
16625
44
360
1200
113203
1080
7942
1274
409
66739
1363
200407
329
54
160
16267
2697
2212
543
484
5584
200
629
166
394
475
20235
160
1762
618
20
10
3068
960
121854
1236
910
14193
270
16159
12627850 8410435 9854905 3690711 4266973l| 69188 759277 4700176 136284542 982994 29144352|$131536747
64871
24325
9225
25474
30860
7888
83244
46151
38685
28754
56592
48831
8797
9459
40582
17957
78224
9512
37948
89297
16821
16014
39066
10656
62127
50484
67118
102924
56150
3183
57652
2197
26462
37091
24066
73845
40175
783037
38902
41304
9998
9916
44720
2067
20441
62672
2301
62518
53962
77142
100217
65423
55061
75697
9781
59863
470'22
2645
91773
49642
11274
83775
84630
59543
69494
45575
67699
21577
54760
39251
6379
2510
77497
8981
47258
8S743
71386
10097
6641
35613
59071
51273
17674
6780
8662
48260
73251
24063
50211
65625
80280
27185
14647
3530
73265
28713
1374
10089
57035
No. ol .^ f No. of
Bushels! J*i*- °/ Bushels
Harv't'd Acres. Harv't'd
2385243
905920
394655
969777
1402128
228231
3328921
1595752
1270878
1026641
1939590
1811250
180120
815215
1901062
648658
2845921
265443
1471263
3061338
514279
550041
1580260
351120
2115569
1763140
1702391
23079.38
1690335
44455
2484898
14273
642448
1296480
75S9S3
1703985
1482582
783027
1669134
1379961
297381
307912
1620192
57S99
670781
2415670
108465
271.38.30
1665518
8158178
4525*^^9
1909534
1695510
3327282
119777
2190306
1902530
10396
8439923
21846,58
41 1.61
S768;'.«
S835l/'>3
1533976
2953630
17.38916
2808256
818.388
1715978
1441467
106052
17279
3272040
229263
1750038
8571105
2239043
175778
142957
1145937
2226346
1783477
689556
82038
279716
1419680
2842859
1130930
1823622
2405187
3561365
977316
490371
12'2291
2832241
917911
524'25
281821
2143791
13756
12776
788
8951
4455
2791
15490
10401
13827
14259
16804
17431
4436
8545
9079
2902
20243
7199
20024
23704
11744
3238
123,37
2993
13648
10555
25115
9242
20577
2403
9937
1549
15461
20770
9532
5419
11786
4227
4145
10982
8974
10210
3462
â– 1.353
5108
13393
455
11756
23652
17760
15267
18260
14005
15582
5143
11817
12665
3477
22670
6792
14078
.6646
10937
o528
8--.'3
■l„i:;
:36n
2304
18',J87
5322
8107
1890
12188
2541
5278
11416
9758
4161
2979
9118
15915
11278
2254
4591
a)35
8718
18574
6127
12596
18242
8391
24807
8072
4445
15701
7491
1327
4134
::570
Value of
Products
of Farm
in
Dollars.
387346
442829
88283
141293
159739
67069
445070
404620
421719
518571
538196
556'209
98766
115595
176281
99158
6758S7
228097
669895
702059
446300
107577
367648
73182
845707
344551
643322
287392
682113
37282
335124
3241
487729
70440'
328679
179645
401948
120948
153505
356915
90944
340268
69140
48816
168262
358221
14060
819071
521156
52219'
532239
464824
446128
447603
27857
279069
342164
18789
585648
175755
542662
496248
335746
232639
285103
241081
46.5245
66475
405562
201685
53931
26829
431841
40494
168081
833565
34650
12043'
46859
255007
528868
343265
71676
45096
6,599
269657
884469
187748
853698
867396
281510
8216508
9164
161557
453320
207493
45109
185176
293590
/.
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History of Mills County.
INTRODUCTION.
How a nation grows; how from central points its population spreads
itself and forms new political communities; what may be the incentives
that prompt to removal, and the outcome of all attempts to turn to man's
advantage the wilderness; all present to the interested person, fruitful
themes for reflection. They, too, present the peculiarity of becoming
ever more interesting, the more they are studied; and the longer they are
critically viewed the more replete with suggestion are they found to be.
History, as such, cannot reproduce the life of a people in all the infinite
variety of its details; it must be content with exhibiting the development
of that life as a whole. The doings and dealings, the thoughts and
imaginings of the individual, however strongly they may reflect the char-
acteristics of the national mind, form no part of history. While it may be
argued, and correctly, that the life of the individual is intimately bound up
in that of the state or nation, and that the former must frequently be
noticed in describing the latter, it may be argued, on the other hand, that
the nation exists only through the unit}' of its individual members, and
that it is not the exact counterpart of individual views, but the results of a
harmonious and intelligent combination of opinions — often originally
directly at variance with each other. No department of human action
or thought could long remain unaflected when opposing interests clash.
Change — certain far-reaching, radical — is written plainly on the face of
opposition — a change that affects not the individual, or a class of indi-
viduals, but the united whole. It is this feature that renders history pos-
sible — that places it far beyond the scope of mere biography, that admits
of those broad, deep, generalizations which men call laws, and which are
the very foundation stones of the philosophy of history, and without which
there can be no intelligent comprehension of the development and sequence
of events, and the results to which they lead.
What is true of the state is equally true of its separate parts. There
are no true laws that are of limited application. To be truly philosophi-
1
322 HISTORY OF MfLLS COUNTY. ,
cal deductions they should be general enouejh to warrant broad inferences
and specific enough to apply to the minutiae of the smallest political sub-
division. While, it is true, the histor}- of a single county — embracing, as
it does, but a limited territor}- and a meager population — may present
none of those grander laws in obedience to vs'hich nations exist and flour-
ish, and by which their power is felt, nevertheless, those principles which
make histor}' possible, are found in every communit}^ and find a harbor
in every heart. Then there is the added fact, that the history of the
county comes nearer to the individual life and'character of its citizens than
does that of the state, or of the nation of which the state forms a part.
The spread of population merely, the political progress of a people and
the military annals, are a part only of our historv, and that part which is
most easily discerned. The American of the present day wants to know
how his ancestors hved, how the}' looked, what clothes they wore, on what
they fed, what were their daily tasks and conversation, and how life dealt
with them. This is the most difficult part of history to reproduce accurately,
but it is after all that which gives us the clearest and most vivid insight into
the spirit of the past. This important element should never be overlooked,
for in no other manner can the intellectual growth of the people, the ame-
lioration of manners, the changes in habits and customs, the advance in
science and art, the progress of invention, the relation of classes, the in-
crease of prosperity, or the want of it, the moral condition of society, and
the every-day life of the people be understood and made to subserve the
interests of the present. The events that are recorded are such as occurred
at our very doors, were compassed by men whom we know, and which
affect our individual interests for woe or for weal. It is not only while
these events are fresh in the memory that one may form accurate estimates
of their relative importance, and be impartial and candid in forming his
judgments; but he may also from present circumstances which have an
origin in remote times, and which are historical in the largest, fullest, truest
sense, freed from myth, or conjecture, or uncertain tradition, read the prom-
ise of the future. It is beyond doubt true that those most closely identified
with great or sudden revolutions in opinion or in government are least
competent to decide on their value; they make history ; the student of after
years, decides, the correctness of their theories, or the justice of their cause
and decides, too, under circumstances which preclude the bias of partisan
feeling. There is that entire originality of work, that subtlety of thought,
that carefulness of observation, that catholicity of views, that honest, kind,
perhaps keen criticism of events and men, in the work of those who write
years after events have transpired, which they who lived at the time, and
contributed to them, are unable to exercise.
The history of a county exhibits a much more limited series of facts in
HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY. 323
their proper connection, of which, indeed, each individual one is interest-
ing in its proper place — doubly interesting, perhaps, because it marks the
progress of thinking, toiling men, in our very presence; men who have
lived in the same moral and social atmosphere, struggled for the same
ends for which we have struggled, acquired their experience and reputa-
tion in the same manner, and exhibited the same loves and hates, the same
proclivities and sympathies. This is the purely biographical element of
history — that element which opens to us the sources of human activity,
and enables us to read how far and in what manner the views of individ-
uals became impressed on public life and morals. It enables us to know
the kind of 'men who become leaders, to note the conditions and results of
their successes or defeats. This is the part of history directly affecting
the individual man, for from it does he select his type of character, of
thought, and of conduct. The remark of Plutarch is most applicable to
the realization of individual hopes and wishes, for it depicts the true con-
ditions of success.
Says he: "Whenever we begin an enterprise, or take possession of a
charge, or experience a calamity, we place before our eyes the example
of the greatest men of our own or of by-gone ages, and we ask ourselves
how Plato or Epaminondas, Lycurgus or Agesilaus, would have acted.
Looking into these personages as into a faithful mirror, we can remedy
our defects in word or deed. Whenever any perplexit}- arrives, or any
passion disturbs the mind, the student of philosophy pictures to himsfcif
some of those who have been celebrated for their virtue, and the recol-
lection sustains his tottering steps and prevents his fall." Such inspiring
examples as these are the kind that have given to the world names in
every walk of life that will never die.
NAME AND POSITION.
The county of Mills is so named in memory of Frederick Mills, a brave
young officer, of Burlington, Iowa, who was killed in one of the battles of
the Mexican war. Foremost in the conflict he was seen, among the first
to fall. The battle-field was searched and researched b}^ his comrades,
but his body was never found. The heroic bravery of young Mills, and
the mysterious disappearance of his remains excited general interest and
sympathy, and when the county came to be organized, the tragic storv
of the gallant officer readily suggested a name, and thus will the memory
of Frederick Mills be perpetuated, when monuments of marble have
yielded to the ravages of time.
The county to which the name of Mills is given, lies in the extreme
west of the second tier, with the Missouri river for its western boundar3^
The counties bounding it are Pottawattamie on the north, Montgomery
324 . HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
on the 'east, and Fremont on the south. It comprises two hundred
eighty-eight thousand acres, or about four hundred forty square miles,
thus classing it among the smallest counties in the state. From the nor-
thern to the southern boundary it is but eighteen miles, and in its widest
part about twenty-four miles from west to east. Its western boundary is
irregular, rendered so by the sinuous course of the great river which
there bounds it.
DRAINAGE AND SURFACE CHARACTERS.
The general dip of the county — averaging two feet to the mile — as
indeed of the remaining portions of southwestern Iowa, is a little west of
south, its surface waters finding their way to the Missouri — the "Big
Muddy." The entire eastern portion of the county is drained by the
Nishnabotna, along the valley of which some beautiful scenery is to be
found, and which enters the county in section three, Anderson township,
and leaves it in section thirty-two, White Cloud township. The central por-
tions of the county are drained by Silver creek, entering it in section six,
Ingraham township, and discharging its waters into the Nishnabotna, in
section sixteen, White Cloud township. Indian Creek drains the greater
portion of the township of that name, entering on section twenty-five,
from Montgomery county, its water being thus tributary to the JNishna-
botna. There are numerous other small streams, many of them dry the
greater portion of the year, in the east and central parts of the county.
West of Silver Creek the most considerable stream in the county is Keg
Creek * which enters the county on sections three of Ingraham and five
of Oak township. It pursues a very sinuous course, sometimes doubling
on itself before it passes through the blufts and reaches the bottom land
along the Missouri. It approaches the course of the latter river in sec-
tion seven of Lyons township, and after a course of six miles in the
county, finally leaves it to enter Fremont county on section thirty-two of
the same township. The most considerable tributary to Keg creek is
Pony creek, which rises in section two of Oak township and empties its
waters in section sixteen of Platteville township. Its course is nearly a
straight one from north to south. Mosquito Creek, in the extreme north-
west, is a tributary to the Missouri and drains the greater portion of the
small township of St. Marys, flowing in a course which is almost circular.
There remains but one other stream of any importance, Wahbonsie Creek,
which leaves this to enter Fremont county on section thirty-six of Lyons
*This stream, on old maps of the county and state is called " Five Barrel Creek," taking
that name from the. circumstance of so many half barrels of whisky having been found
by the United States dragoons, buried in its banks near the present town of Glen wood.
They had been secreted there by persons carrying on a contraband trade with the Indians.
HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY. 325
m
township, having flowed in a southerly course from its place of rising
just west of Hillsdale. The name is given it in memory of a celebrated
chieftain of the Pottawattamies, an account of whose legal trials may be
elsewhere found. The drainage of the Missouri consists almost entirely
of small creeks and ravines — the latter yearly growing deeper and larger
— through which the waters of the upland regions reach its flood plain,
and in which they are lost, none of them flowing through the land in the
ordinary manner of streams of running water, but reaching the Missouri
by percolation through the earth. The heavily wooded sections are on
the west third of the county, while the streams of the eastern side are
less heavily wooded, and partake more of the true character of prairie
streams.
The surface of the county is uneven, gently undulating with hills and
valleys, such as is characteristic of rolling prairie. Here, as in every
other part of the world, there is a most intimate connection between the
configuration of the surface and the geological structure of any particular
district, and it will be shown in the chapter devoted to the geology of this
county that every peculiarity in its topography is due to the nature of the
underlying strata, modified by those agencies which are to-day operating
to change the entire aspect of Nature. Nowhere in this county are there
eminences of material height, nor is it true that its several water-shed's
are marked by distinct ridges, easily recognized. The county is situated
on the western slope of the great divide between the " Big Muddy " and
the " Father of Waters," and though so near the former, it has still a
much higher elevation than the counties along the Mississippi — the differ-
ence being hvo Jmndred and sixty-three feet above the level of low water
in the last named river. A most striking feature in the topography of
this county is the region of prairies — a term first applied by the early
French setders, and now almost universally adopted, to designate natural
grass lands."^ The prairie occupies the whole of the higher portion of
*The following by Capt. Basil Hall, an intelligent English traveler, is highly descriptive
of the prairie:
" The charm of a prairie consists in its extension, its green, floivery carpet, its undulat-
ing surface and the spirt of forest whereby it is surrounded; the latter being of all others,
the most significant and expressive, since it characterizes the landscape and defines the
form and' boundary of the plain. If the prairie is little its greatest beauty consists in tlie
vicinity of the encompassing edge of forests, which may be compared to the shores of a
lake, being intersected with many deep inward bends, as so many inlets, and, at intervals,
projecting very far, not unlike a promontory, or protruding arm of land. These projec-
tions sometimes so closely approach each other, that the traveler passing through between
them, may be said to walk in the midst of an alley overshadowed by the forest, before he
enters again upon another broad prairie. Where the plain is extensive the delineations of
the forests in-the far background appear as would a misty coast at some distance upon the
ocean The eye sometimes surveys the green prairie without discovering on the illimitable
plain a tree or bush or any object, save the wilderness of flower and grass, while on other
326 HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
the county, with here and there the exception of an isolated group of
trees, standing like an island in the midst of the ocean.
In ascending from the level of a river to the high land in its vicinit}^, we
first cross the "bottom land" or "bottom," the portion of the valley which
is level, and being but little elevated above the surface of the stream is
usually liable to overflow, especially at the time of the spring freshets.
These bottom lands are almost always heavily timbered and with a vari-
ety of trees, among which the elm, Hnden, black walnut, black and burr
oak, poplar and ash are the most common. The breadth of the bottom
may be variable, in some places from six to eight miles, and in others
occasions the view is enlivened by the groves, dispersed like islands over the plain, or by a
solitary tree rising above the wilderness. The resemblance to the sea, whicli some of these
prairies exhibited, was really most striking. 1 had heard ot this before, but always sup-
posed the account exaggerated. There is one spot in particular, near the middle of Grand
Prairie, if I recollect rightly, where the ground happened to be of the rolling character,
above alluded to, and where, excepting in the article ot color, and that was not widely dif-
ferent from the tinge of some seas, the similarity was so striking that I almost forgot where
I was. This deception was heightened by a circumstance which I had often heard men
tioned, but the farce of which perhaps none but a seaman could fully estimate; I mean the
appearance of the distant isolated trees as they gradually rose above the horizon, or receded
from our view.
"In spring, when the young grass has just clothed the soil with a soddy carpet of
the most delicate green, especially when the sun, rising behind a distant elevation of the
ground, its rays reflected by myriads ot dew-drops, a more pleasing and more eye-benefit-
ting view cannot be imagined. You see the fallow deer quietly feeding on the herbage;
the bee flies humming through the air; the wolf, with lowered tail, sneaks away to its dis-
tant lair, with the timorous pace of a creature only too conscious of having disturbed the
peace of Nature; prairie-fowls, either in entire tribes, like our own domestic fowls, or in
couples, cover the surface; the males rambling, and, like turkeys or peacocks, inflating
their plumage, make the air resound with a drawled, loud, and melancholy cry, resembling
the cooing of a wood-pigeon, or still more, the sound produced by rapidly rubbing a tam-
bourine with the finger
******** ••!:***
"On turning from the verdant plain to the forests or groups of high-grown timber, the
eye, at the said se.ison, will find them clad also in the most livelj' colors. The rich under
and brushwood stands out in full blossom. The andromedas, the dog-wood, the wood-
apple, the wild plum and cherry, grow exuberantly in the rich soil, and the invisible blos-
som of the wild vine impregnates the air with itsdelicious perfume. The variety of the wild
fruit-trees, and of blooming bushes is so great, and so immense the abundance of the
blossoms they are covered with, that the branches seem to break down under their weight.
"The delightful aspect of the prairie, its amenities, and the absence of that sombre awe
inspired by forests, contribute to forcing away that sentiment of loneliness which usually
steals upon the mind of the solitary wanderer in the wilderness, for although he espies no
habitation, and sees no hum.m being, and knows himself to be far off from any settlement
of man, he can scarcely defend himself from believing that he is traveling through a land-
scape embellished by hum m art. The flowers are so delicate and elegant as apparently to
be distributed for mere ornament over the plain; the groves and groups of trees seem to be
dispersed over the prairie to enliven the land.scape, and we can scarcely get rid of the
impression invading our imagination of the whole scene being flung out and created for
the satisfaction of the sentiment of beauty in refined man."
HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY. 327
again with hardly more than room for the stream itself to pass between
the bluffs. These latter are usually met with just after leaving the bot-
tom land, and rise on either hand from one hundred to two hundred and
fifty feet. The blufls which border the broad flood-plain or bottom land
of the Missouri river along all that part of its course which forms the
western boundary of Iowa, are so peculiar in character and appearance,
that they cannot fail to attract the attention of every one who sees them
for the first time. Their strangely and beautifully rounded summits, oc-
casionally mingled with sharply-cut ridges, smooth and abruptly retreat-
ing slopes, and the entire absence of rocky ledges, except in rare instances,
where they appear only at their base, cause them to present a marked con-
trast with those of the Mississippi and other rivers of the eastern part of
the state where rocky ledges support and compose the greater part of
their bulk. From the mouth of the Big Sioux to the southern boundary
of the state, these bluffs present a continuous, serrated and buttressed front
to the flood-plain of the great river, from which they rise abruptly to a
maximum height in different parts of the line, varying from one hundred to
little less than three hundred feet. Although the front they present is so
definite and continuous, it is nevertheless frequently and deeply cleft, not
only by the tributaries of the great river, but also by small creeks and
short ravines that drain the surface-water from the up-lands beyond, in
which the bluffy character is soon lost. Sometimes the bluft'range, de-
parting a little from the general direct line, presents a full crescentic front
to the plain with an arc of several miles in length. At these places their
peculiar outlines are shown in an interesting manner, and the form and
arrangement of the numerous rounded prominences presents views of
impressive beauty as they stretch away in the distance, or form bold curves
in the line of hills; while the broad flood-plain of the Missouri river, level
as a floor, stretches miles away to the westward to meet the turbid stream
near the line of bluffs which borders the western, as those of Iowa do the
eastern side. Trees often fill the sides of the deeper ravines or skirt their
bases, but usually their only covering is a growth of wild grasses and an-
nual plants; and, as the mound-like peaks and rounded ridges jut over
each other, or diverge in various directions, while they reach upward to
the upland, the setting sun throws strange and weird shadows across
them, producing a scene quite in keeping with that wonderful history of
the past of which they form a part.
The wealth of Mills county is due to the prevalence of the deposit
known as the "bluff' deposit," and which covers its entire surface. The
origin and nature of this material may be fully learned from the geological
history of the county. It forms, however, one of the richest of the rich
soils for which Iowa is so famous. Analyses of its composition show it
328 HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
to have a ver}^ small per centage of clay, and a very great per centage of
purely silicious material. The county is peculiarly adapted to the growth
of those cereals and fruits that contribute to the maintenance of man, and
well deserves its appellation of "the garden of Iowa." Its fertility is suffi-
ciently well indicated by the rank, luxuriant growth of prairie grass, and
the strength of most of the common wild plants. For centuries the earth
has been giving of its substance to the nourishment of plant life — but the
return it has gleaned only adds to its powers. The humus — soil contain-
ing the remains of vegetation — seems almost endowed, not only with the
life-sustaining but a life-producing principle. The broad acres of Mills
were not subjected to the wonderful changes which have passed over their
face without a purpose, and that purpose is sufficiently clear to need no
comment. For ages the earth has brought its increase, and for ages more
the process of growth and decay may go on, without destro3ang the fer-
tilit}' of this wonderful soil.
The nature of the soils of a given district is sufficiently distinct to ad-
mit of a kind of rude classification, which serves the double purpose of
nomenclature, and indicates their value. To two of the three classes into
which they are usually divided — namely, drift, bluff, and alluvial — the soil
of Mills county belongs, and to the two last named. As has been said,
the bluff deposit or soil covers the surface of the entire count}- to a depth
varying from five feet to one hundred feet. In the " bottom" lands, how-
ever, is to be found the so-called "alluvium," a soil, which, from the nature
of its origin, is probably the very richest material known. This latter is
the residue or fine sedimentary matter left by the waters of a stream
when at its highest flood. Rushing down decHvities the waters of both
the ancient and modern streams w^ore away their soft embankments, car-
rying the material thus derived to the lower lands, depositing them at all
points w^here the waters were comparatively at rest. These constitute
the "flat " or "bottom land," — the present flood plains of the county's
rivers. Beneath this bluft^ deposit, the probable origin of which wall be
indicated further on, is found the " drift," a most fertile material, the dis-
cussion of the origin of which also properly belongs to the chapter on
geologv. Not only will the physical peculiarities of these two formations
serve to distmguish them, but the ditTerent characters of their vegetations
will make an excellent criterion. TheJJoi'u of the deeply wooded valleys
will be found to differ in many essential points from that of the prairies,
each of which is characteristic. This feature is a most noticeable one in
Mills county, especially on its western side, which is infinitely diversified
with hills and vallevs strangely and confusedly mingled together in the
wildest manner. Ridino- vvest from Glenwood toward the Missouri bot-
torn, many valleys are crossed and hills surmounted — valleys and hills that
HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY. 329
were formed b}' great streams that raged through these narrow passes
ages ago — and the wonderful and rapid changes in vegetation, from a
prairie to a woodland flora, is a sufficiently plain indication of the changes
in the formations on which they flourish. This remarkable adaptability
to certain plants in particular regions, whereas in others their very exist-
ence is critical, has induced a vast amount of speculation and experiment
as to the adaptabilit}- of Iowa soils for the growth of forest trees. What
is true of this great state as a whole, is true of the county of Mills. Dr.
White's admirable summary of discussions on this much mooted pv)int,
has demonstrated that notwithstanding the fact that the distance from the
northern to the southern limits of the state is more than three degrees of
latitude, in consequence of the slight difference in surface elevation, and
the great degree of uniformity in the character of the soil, there is a strik-
ing uniformity in the character of the native vegetation ; for the same rea-
sons also there is an equal uniformity in the adaptability of the soil and
climate to the production of cultivated crops. There are indeed, many
species of indigenous plants restricted to certain parts of the state, and
others that are found only in habitats rendered congenial by moisture, dry-
ness, barrenness, unusual fertility, etc., as the case may be; yet these are
only exceptions to the general uniformity throughout the state, of all indi-
genous vegetation, including the forest trees. The subject of the distri-
bution of indigenous vegetation is a very suggestive and interesting one
in all its bearings, but especially when applied to the growth of forest
trees, it becomes one of unusual practical importance to every citizen of
Iowa. The great importance which attaches to this part of the subject is
apparent from the fact that the wood of forest trees for fuel, no less than
for other purposes, is an indispensable element in the prosperity, and even
the inhabitation of any country, not to mention the beneficial effects of
forests upon the climate, the beautifying and adornment of its landscapes,
and the shading and sheltering of its homes. Dr. White continues: "If
there is really an unfitness of prairie soil for the growth of forest trees,
then at least one-third of our state is worthless indeed. But this is not
the case, for personal observation in all parts of the state, extending
through a period of thirty years, has established a knowledge of the fact
that all varieties of our indigenous forest trees will grozv thriftily upon all
varieties of our soil; even those whose most congenial habitat is upon the
alluvial soil o/ our river valleys, or upon the rugged slopes of tiie valley
sides.
As has been previously indicated, this county is remarkably well drained;
on the east by the Nishnabotna, and west by the numerous small streams,
the waters of which ultimately find their wa}^ to the Missouri. The char-
acter of these streams is determined by the nature of the surface over
330 ' HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
which they flow. The clear, sparkling rills and the dancing blue waves
of New England streams are all wanting in the waters of Mills. These
latter flow throughout their entire courses in this county, in narrow,
sinuous, ditch-like depressions in their flood plains, and over the materials
previously mentioned as " bluft'" and "alluvial." This is the cause of their
excessive muddiness. Notwithstanding the fact that the beds of the Nish-
nabotnas dip in the direction of their courses at the average rate of 2.68
feet per mile, their sinuosity is so great, and the specific gravity of their
waters so largelv increased by reason of the finely comminuted material
held in suspension, that they are excessively sluggish, and it would seem
decidedly inappropriate to dignify them with the title of river. Yet there
are times when it would seem that in their rage, during heavy rains or the
floods of spring, they defy the power of the very hills to withstand them.
Then are they seen in their full force and in all their destructiveness; then,
if at all, can be appreciated the mighty eroding power of water, that
power which shall ultimatel}^ level the mountains, and carry away the
lands to be swallowed up in the dark recesses of the sea. Observing one
of these streams at high flood, no one will longer wonder how they be-
come such an important factor in earth sculpture, and how the deep valleys
and lofty bluffs of Mills county came to be as they are. On the extreme
west of the county flows the Missouri, to-day as patiently rolling its earth-
laden waters onward to the sea as when it first began the great work of
digging its own valley. Grand, silent, majestic, it sweeps ever onward in
its course, as quietly now as hundreds of centuries ago when its waters
expanded scores of miles to the east and west, forming a great inland sea,
the bottom of which was the surface of Mills county. "The only dis-
cussion of this remarkable river that can be given in this report must
relate alone to the character of the stream and its valley along that part of
its course which goes to form the western boundary of Mills county. We
have no information of the amount of water anually flowing past the state
of Iowa in this great river, because no detailed hydrographic survey of it
has been made along our border.
"It is, however, one of the muddiest streams on the globe, audits waters
are known to be very turbid far toward its source. Two collections of
its water have been made from its channel at Council Bluffs, and the solid
contents determined by Prof. Emery. One parcel was collected at low
water, on November 9, 1868, and the other on July 5, 1868, when the
river was just bank-full. The amount of sediment filtered out of the water
in both instances v.'as as tbllows: Lotv zuater, 462 grains in one liter=52
grains in one gallon; high zvater, 5.672 grains in one liter=404 grains in
one gallon, from which it is readily seen that the amount of suspended
sediment at times of high water is more than twelve times as great as it
is at low water." — Ifhite.
HISTORY OF" MILLS COUNTY. 331
A further discussion of the history of the Missouri is reserved for
another page.
There are within the Hmits of this county no bodies of water which could
be properly desi;(nated as lakes. There is, however, a single one popu-
larly called a lake, situated in sections 34 and 35 of Lyons township —
Lake Wahbonsie.* This lake— or pond — lies partly in Fremont county,,
and is at the best not a very conspicuous feature. It difters widely from
the clear blue waters of Lakes Ontario or Superior, and can nowhere be
easily approached by reason of the dense growth of flags and marsh
grass which grow even to the water's edge. It is properly a fluviatile
lake, owing its existence to the change which has occurred in the course
of the Missouri, and of the ancient bed of which it is a relict. The broad
bottom land of the Missouri has been caused by the vibration of the great
stream from side to side during which it alternately occupied and aban-
doned all portions of it successively. During the last of these recessions
to the westward the waters formed a bar or natural dike, and within
this was imprisoned the waters, at first foirming a "bayou" or pond»
Annually overflowing its banks the supply of water was kept up until, in
the course of time, from the circumjacent hills in times of flood caused
by melting snow or storms the water supply was maintained. Resting,
as Lake Wahbonsie does, upon alluvial material, there can be no reasona-
ble doubt but that such has been its history. The time is not far distant
when the lake, which has shrunk very largely from its former size, will
cease to be; its site will be one vast slough, and, perhaps, in some distant
day, where now its waters rest will be found fields of waving grain. It
marks, to-day, where once the Missouri ran, and as an index to certain
wonderful changes now occurring in the physical aspect of Nature is not
without interest and value. The lake has no outlet, its waters being dissi-
pated both by evaporation and by percolation through the soil.
Climate is one of those most importanc things about which men inquire
least. Few realize the fact that all the changes in wind and storm, rain
and drouth take place in obedience to fixed laws. It is important to every
resident of the county to know at least their effects, even though they
take little interest in the laws themselves. Climatic extremes in this
county are few. The winters are not excessively cold, and the summers
are not intolerably hot. Heavy falls of snow are of extremely rare occur-
rence, and the annual fall of rain is somewhat less than that of the east-
ern portions of the state in the same latitude. The prevailing winds dur-
ing the winter are from the northwest, and are rarely of that bitterly cold
* There seems to be ro generally recognized — at least none has been adopted — way of
spelling this name. Like all proper names it is purely arbitrary. Among the various
orthographies may be mentioned " Wahboncey," " Wahaboncey," " Wahabonsy," and as
will be seen from an interesting legal document on another page " Waubonchey."
332 HISTORY OF MILI.S COUNTY.
nature which residents in the northern portion of the state denote the
^'bUzzard." In the spring the character of the winds suddenly changes
to that of a heahhful and mellow nature. They then change their quar-
ter, blowing from a southernl}^ direction until the late fall months, when
again they blow from the north. There never have been made any
meteorological observations extending through a sufficient length of time
from which may be gathered the statistics of the climatic conditions of
the county since its settlement and organization. It differs but immateri-
ally, however, from the conditions at Council Blufife, where observations
have been made through a long series of years, in pursuance of a plan
devised by the general government, dating back to 1819. The following
table of mean temperatures for each season, compiled from data gathered
at the last named place, ranging from the year 1820 to 1843 inclusive, will
aid in forming a general conclusion on the cHmate of this count}-:
Latitude 41 degrees, 30 minutes
Longitude 95 " 48 "
Elevation, in feet 1350
Mean spring temperature 49.3
Mean summer " 74.7
Mean autumn " 51.4
Mean winter " 21.7
The year 49.3
From this table it will be seen that the mean temperature for the year
is exactly that of the spring.
A series of observations extending over a period of nineteen years,
(1850-69), on the direction of the prevailing winds, give the following
interesting facts:
Direction
z
m
*
if.
•J.
z
z
Spring ...
Summer
19.0
15.3
17.3
17.0
19.9
23.1
19.5
14.4
22.2
53.1
25.1
24.1
28.8
18.0
Autumn
29.2
Winter
37.8
Year
17.5
19.0
2fi.2
28.5
From this table it will be seen that for three Juuidred and sixty da3's
of the year there are perceptible winds blowing in the county. To rightly
estimate their value as climatic modifiers, there must be considered many
HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY. 333
important factors, such as the distribution of heat through their agency,
the distribution of moisture, and their force, questions into which it is not
the purpose of this sketch to enter. They are of the greatest benefit to
the sanitary condition of the county, as they prevent the accumulation of
malaria which arises from the decay of the rich masses of vegetation with
which the prairies are covered. Another agent, active in preventing the
origination and spread of disease by absorbing large quantities of noxious
gasses, is the annual fall of rain, which for a period of twenty years
(1850-69) gave the following in inches:
Winter, total 117.29; mean 5.86
Spring " 237.11 ; mean 11.85
Summer " 278.0f) ; mean 13.90
Fall " 216.93; mean 10.83
From which it will be seen that both the total and mean fall in summer
exceeds that of either the other three seasons. The deductions from these
statistics, that the climate is a healthful one, is further strengthened by the
general elevation of the greater part of the surface of the county. In all
elevated lands the air is invigorating and bracing at all seasons, under the
same conditions that prevail elsewhere. The human race has not only
degenerated by dwelHng in low, unhealthy places, but it is again and
again decimated by the pestilences generated in them. As Dr. Farr well
remarks, " it is destroyed now periodically by five pestilences — cholera,
remittent fever, yellow fever, glandular plagues and influenza. The ori-
gin or chief seat of the first is the Delta of the Ganges. Of the second,
the African and other tropical coasts. Of the third, the low west coast
around the Gulf of Mexico, or the Delta of the Mississippi, and the West
India Islands. Of the fourth, the Delta of the Nile and the low sea-side
cities of the Mediterranean. Of the generating field of influenza nothing
certain is known; but * * -x- * * -x-
"The history of the nations on the Mediterranean, on the plains of the
Euphrates and the Tigris, the Deltas of the Indus and the Ganges, and
the rivers of China, exhibit this great fact: the gradual descent of races
from the highlands, their estabhshment on the coasts in cities, sustained
and refreshed for a season by immigration from the interior, their degra-
dation in successive generations under the influence of the unhealthy earth,
and their final ruin, effacement or subjugation by new races of conquerors.
The causes that destroy individual men, lay cities waste, which, in their
nature, are immortal, and silently undermine eternal empires.
"On the highlands men feel the loftiest emotions. Every tradition places
their origin there. The first nations worshipped there; high on the Indian
Caucasus, on Olympus, and on other lofty mountains the Indians and the
334 HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
Greeks imagined the abodes of their highest gods, while thev peopled the
low, underground regions, the grave-land of mortality, with infernal dei-
ties. Their myths have a deep signification. Man feels his immortality
in the hills." * While this may not be considered as bearing directly on
the climate of Mills county, it is nevertheless a cognate theme. These
are the things which have no little influence on mental and physical organ-
ization, and through them modify all the conditions of national develop-
ment. Health and intelligence, intelligence and good morals, good mor-
als and excellent government are sisters three without which neither nations
nor men may live and prosper; while it is true there are no highlands
proper in this county, its whole surface is sufficiently elevated to outgen-
eral disease and stay the ravages of pestilence.
GEOLOGY.
The geological history of Mills county is one of peculiar interest, and
affords some very suggestive facts relative to its past vicissitudes. It
extends in point of time over many thousands of years, and embraces
periods of repose, and periods of remarkable change. Its history, cli-
matologically, has been one of deep interest, and embraces changes so
radical and so directly at variance with one another as to be almost
incredible. There have been long ages when it basked under a torrid sun,
and then these ages gave place to others equally as remarkable for polar
frosts. Life, in all the variety and luxuriance of a tropical climate, gave
place to the desert wastes of an arctic zone. Nor were these changes
sudden. They are there, stamped in the very rocks at 3^our door, and
limned upon the landscape of your valleys, not as great and far-reaching
catastrophes, but as gradual transitions, indisputably marked as such by
the fossil forms that roll out from the rock you crush, or see traced with
a delicacy no draughtsman can imitate. There have been times when
Old Ocean, heedless of his doings, dashed against the rocky barrier that
dared dispute his sway, or rolled in solemn, conscious might above its high-
est point; times when a beautiful and varied _/for« thrived on its surface;
and times when there was naught save a waste of desert matter. We strike
our pick in the shales on the hillside, and behold! there in the coal that
gives us warmth and drives our engines, are the fairy forms that made
the fern paradise of the coal period — beautiful arguments, those, of
changes that thousands of years, as we measure time, would not com-
pass. In presenting the following principal facts in the geology of Mills
* P. xciv., Report of Wm. Farr, Esq., to the Registrar-General of England, 1853.
HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY. 335
county, enough only of the lithological characters of the various rock
strata have been given to enable the interested reader to identify them.
Man}' points of interest from a geological standpoint have necessarily been
omitted; their introduction would have unduly lengthened the chapter,
and scarcely possessed any general interest. To trace, briefly, the changes
that have occurred, and to note their probable causes, are the main pur-
poses of this sketch.
The surface of the county is entirely covered with the deposit before
referred to as the " bluft" deposit," but perhaps more correctly the loess.
It lies next above the drift and varies in depth, in different parts of the
county, from five to one hundred feet. In appearance the deposit is pecu-
liarly characteristic, presenting substantially the same features in what-
soever part of the globe it is found. Its material is of a slightly 3^ellow-
ish ash color, Except where darkened by decaying vegetation, very fine
and silicious but not sandy, " not ver}' cohesive and not at all plastic."
Along the Missouri bottom the formation is exposed in the most favorable
manner for study. Those bold, high escarpments stand out as monu-
ments — not very endurable, to be sure — to mark the great changes that
have occurred in the surface features of this county. Mixed throughout
this material are to be found various species of land and fresh water shells
that seem to furnish the clue to a solution of the problem concerning its
origin. Relative to this point, it is sufficient for present purposes to sim-
ply indicate the more prominent points in the theories broached, of which
there are two principal ones. The first, and, to speak within bounds, a
most novel one, is the theorv of Baron von Richthofen. The Baron's
theory, based principally upon the study of the loess of China, is substan-
tiall}' this: " that loess, certainly in China, and probably in all continents,
is a sub-aerial deposit collected on dry grassy areas by the action of fierce
winds. For the formation of such a region he supposes a central undrained
elevated area, from which nearly all moisture is excluded by surrounding
mountain chains."* >
To this theor}- is opposed what is called the sub-aqiieous theory, which
the reader will at once notice is diametrically opposite to that of the Baron.
Without entering into the details of the various arguments advanced by
those who maintain the last named theory, it is sufficient to say that the
lacustrine origin of the loess is now a quite generally conceded point. Such
an origin involves radical changes in our conceptions of the physical aspect
of the count}'. We must conceive the present level of the land to be some-
what lowered, the waters of the Missouri barred on their way to the ocean,
spreading eastward and westward until they assumed the proportions of
a great inland sea, two hundred or more miles in length. Far away to
*Prof. J. E. Todd, ia Proc. A. A. A. S. , Vol . XXVII, 1878.
336 HISTORY OF MILLS COUNTY.
the northwest the upper Missouri is plowing its way through the land,
wearing away its boundaries and hurrying onward with them to the com-
paratively quiet waters below. The depression of the land meant also
the northward extension of the Gulf of Mexico, which, then as now, became
the final recipient of the waters of the Missouri. In the great Lake
Missouri the finely comminuted material held in suspension by its waters
was deposited as a blanket of silt over the bottom of the lake —the former
surface of the land. Then came those giant throes which lifted again the
partially submerged continent, hurled the encroaching waves of the ocean
back to their former dominion, and allowed the waters of the ancient
Lake Missouri to gradually reach the sea. Then began a period of ero-
sion, not yet ended, by means of which the great river has plowed out its
present valley through the land. The abrading process still continues on
a scale so enormous as to excite our wonder, and it is the immediate cause
that renders so treacherous and uncertain the navigation of the stream.
Through sediment of its own deposition in centuries far back in the his-
tory of time the river is cutting its way, changing its channel ever and
anon, and carrying in its turbid waters much of the land of Mills to make
fertile the broad acres along its lower course
The lake the river formed in that far off past was not a lake of an hour,
nor one of a season of floods, but for centuries reigned where now the
farmer guides his plow. It contained life-forms, many of which, or
closely allied ones, are living to-day. Among them flourished shells of
the genera Physa, Liimiophysa, Planorbis, and perhaps Ancylus. These
are found throughout the Loess mingled with land shells of the genera
Mesodon^ Succinea, Zonites and others. Prof. J. E. Todd, in the Proceed-
ings of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Vol.
XXVII, reports twenty-seven species from the Loess of Fremont county.
Prof. Samuel Aughey reports a list of one hundred and twenty-three, of
which seventy-eight at least are incorrectly determined. Not more than
forty-five of all the forms he has listed in his " Sketches of the Physical
Geography and Geology of Nebraska," p. 287, can possibly stand. Is it
questioned how came these land shells here? They were brought down
by floods from the higher and wooded sections forming the boundaries of
the lake, and at length sinking to the bottom were covered with silt in a
manner similar to that which entombed their allied brethren of the fresh
water forms. These remains are in themselves almost conclusive proof
of the fresh water origin of the Loess, and help to solve some of the
questions of the surface geology of Mills.
Immediately beneath the Loess is found the Drift, though rarely seen
in Mills county, and then only in deep railroad cuts or in the valleys of
those streams which have eroded their courses to a great depth. The
HISTORY OF MILI.S COUNTY. 337
term "drift," as it is commonly employed in geology, "includes the sand,
gravel, clay and boulders occurring over some parts of the continents,
which are without stratification or order of arrangement, and have been
transported from places in high latitudes by some agency which (1) could
carry masses of rock hundreds of tons in weight, and which (2) was not
always dependent for motion on the slopes of the surface." {Hall.) This
agency was ice, either in the form of an extensive glacier or d 
