Decatur County History

BURRELL, MORGAN, HAMILTY, NOTON, UJHAZY, MAYTHENYI, VARGA, MADARAXA, DRAHOS, MOAD, MCKAY, SALES, ALLEN, STANLEY, CHILDERS, PARSONS, HAINER

Posted By: Sharon R Becker (email)
Date: 5/1/2015 at 13:15:16

The Leon Journal-Reporter
Leon, Decatur County, Iowa
Thursday, July 14, 1938

IOWA TERRITORIAL CENTENNIAL EDITION

Decatur County

Decatur County, one of the southern Iowa's border counties, was created a county by an act of the legislature and approved on January 13, 1846. It was organized as a county April 1, 1850.

The first meeting of the board of supervisors was May 16 of the same year, the board being composed of Asa Burrell, Josiah Morgan, and William Hamilton. Henry B. Noston was the clerk.

Two months after this meeting the commissioners met again and divided the county into four townships, Burrell, Morgan, Hamilton and Garden Grove.

From an old history the following mention is made of the county's old settlers.

In the autumn of 1849 a body of Mormons, who were on their great journey across the plains to Utah, stopped at what is now Garden Grove for the winter. The greater part of them moved on west in the spring, a few remaining to raise stock and provisions, they, too, leaving in 1851.

In 1850, L. Ujhazy, who was civil governor of the Fortress Kossuth in Hungary, came to the United States and settled on the left bank of Grand river, and occupying lands on the right bank where the town of Davis City now stands. A post office was established to which he gave the name of New Buda after the capitol city of Hungary, Budapest. He was appointed postmaster. With him were five or six Hungarians and it was known as a Hungarian colony. In 1851 L. Madarasz with his son, Joseph Maythenyi with his son Theodore, Francis Varga, and Ernest Drahos, all Hungarian exiles and who had held important positions during the revolutionary struggle in Hungary, settled in Decatur county. Governor Ujhazy lost his wife in the fall of 1851 and moved to Texas with his family.

The first district court was held at the residence of Daniel Moad six miles southeast of where Leon now stands. William McKay was the presiding judge.

In the month of July, 1851, F. M. Sales and Henry Allen were commissioned by the legislature to establish a county seat.

A contract was let to John Stanley to erect a courthouse, the structure to be composed of hewn logs and 20x22 feet in size for $375. This was located at Decatur. Two years later the legislature ordered an election for a further decision on the location of the county seat. The result was the removal of the county seat to Independence, now Leon. In June of that year a contract was let to Andrew Childers and F. Parsons to build a two-story brick county building, 24x40. The contract price was $1,700. This building stood until March 31, 1874, when with its entire contents was destroyed by fire.

This made room for a second building later constructed.

Ignace Hainer with his family and some other Hungarian exiles settled near New Buda in 1853.

When Governor Ujhazy left he sold his claim to a German colony who came from Prussia. They sent out a number of men in advance to prepare homes for their families scheduled to come the next year. Very little was done during the winter and when the colonists arrived the next year they found no homes ready. They became discouraged and sickness took away some. Most of the others moved away. They left their lands settled by Americans.

The progress of Decatur county has since been steady. It is one of the best bluegrass counties in the middle west.

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, April of 2015