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August 13, 1838, the County Commissioners
Ordered, That a tax of five mills on the dollar be levied for county purposes, and a tax of one cent for road purposes.
October 15, 1838, the tax for road purposes was reduced to five mills on the dollar, when it was
Ordered, That the act numbered 76 be so far repealed as to read that the tax for road purposes be five mills on the dollar.
January 18, 1840, the records show the following settlements to have been made with E. E. Edwards, County Treasurer, and George McCoy, Sheriff:
E. E. Edwards, Treasurer.
| | Dr. |
| To cash from District Court Clerk | $12.87 |
| " Orders 13 and 94 unpaid, not handed in | 13.00 |
| " Fine received of H. Hardman | 5.00 |
| " Order 118 unpaid, not handed in | 3.00 |
| " Order 96 unpaid, not handed in | 7.00 |
| " Order 111unpaid, not handed in | 8.00 |
| Balance due on Order 32 unpaid, not handed in | 14.38 |
| Amount of taxes from Sheriff | 399.83—$463.83 |
| | |
| Contra. | Cr. |
| By paid Orders Nos. 1, 105 and 106 | $9.10 |
| By paid Orders No. 32 | 7.08 |
| By paid Orders No. 79 | 1.00 |
| By paid Orders account of Order No. 111 | 7.00 |
| By paid Orders account of Order No. 190 | 15.88 |
| By paid Orders in full, Sheriff's receipt | 399.83 |
| By balance due the county | 23.69 —$463.58 |
| Balance to debit E. E. Edwards on new account | $23.69 |
| |
Settlement made with G. McCoy, Sheriff.
| G. Mccoy. | Dr. |
| To amount of tax list, 1838 | $160.71 |
| To amount of tax list, 1839 | 299.65 1/2—$460 36 1/2 |
| | |
| Contra. | Cr. |
| By Arrowsmith's ferry license, uncollected | $10.00 |
| By Delinquent list, 1838 | 13.03 |
| By Delinquent list 1839 | 7.40 1/2 |
| By Ten per cent, paid Sheriff on $429.93 | 42.99 —$73.42 1/2 |
| | $386.94 |
| | |
Ordered, That the Sheriff be excused from furnishing duplicate tax list in consideration of his charging but seven per cent, for collecting tax.
Ordered, That Elisha Henry receive three dollars, in full for use of room for Commissioners' Court. Issued Order No. 190.
Ordered, That the Clerk be authorized to procure a complete set of weights and measures, agreeable to law.
Ordered, That the Clerk furnish the Supervisors with duplicate lists of lands in their districts.
Ordered, That this Board adjourn sine die
.
Signed,
WILLIAM MILLER,
JOHN G. Foy
.
The following statement shows the financial condition of the county Saturday, January 18, 1840:
| County Commissioners. | Dr. |
| To amount of Orders issued by former Board | $429.88 3/4 |
| To amount of Orders issued by this Board | 384.52 3/4—$814.41 1/2 |
| &nbps; | |
| Contra. Cr | Cr. |
| By amount of taxes and fines on record previous to this Board $99.17 |
| By Treasurer's account 468.58 —$562 75 |
| | |
| Rochester, January 18, 1840. $251 66 1/2 |
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The next session of the County Commissioners was held on the 16th of March, 1840, when the report of the Commissioners to re-locate the county seat of Cedar County, was received and considered, a detailed account of which will be found in the history of the county seat war, commencing on page 335.
When Cedar and the other counties were set off from Dubuque County by act of the Territorial Legislature, at the session of 1837-38, the debt of Dubuque County amount to $2,850. On Monday, the 23d day of December, 1839, the County Commissioners of Dubuque County apportioned the amount of that indebtedness among the several new counties, assessing the amount against Cedar County at $133. February 12, 1840, George W. Ames was appointed by the Dubuque County Commissioners to visit Cedar County and present the claim for settlement. Monday, March 23, 1840, the Commissioners of Cedar County being in session, Mr. Ames appeared and presented the claim, and requested action thereon. The account was received and placed “on file to obtain advice from the District Attorney,” and agreed to report their conclusions at the next meeting of the Board. April 6th, the Commissioners
Ordered, That the account presented by Dubuque County at last meeting of the Board be not accepted, and that the Clerk return the same by mail.
May 18, 1840, the Clerk of the Dubuque Board was directed to address a communication to the Clerk of the Board of Commissioners of Cedar County, requesting a specified statement of the objections held against the payment of the claim. Saturday, August 1st, the Commissioners
Ordered, That the Clerk address the Board of Commissioners of Dubuque County in reply to their letter of the 6th of June, agreeable to the tenor of a letter from S. Wheeler to this Board, and the relation of Muscatine county in regard to Dubuque county at the time of division.
This is the last reference to this matter to be found on the records in the Cedar County Auditor’s office—at least it was the last trace of it the writer could find. Whether the demand was ever paid is a question we will not undertake to answer. But the Commissioners of Dubuque County were not disposed to relinquish their claim, for the records in the Auditor’s office in that county show that on the 14th of September, 1840, I. A. Bradford was appointed by the Dubuque Commissioners as agent to settle with Cedar and the other counties against which similar assessments had been made.
April 25th, the Commissioners directed the Clerk to advertise the first sale of Town lots in Tipton for the third Monday (the 15th) of June, and that the advertisements by published in the Territorial Gazette, at Burlington, Iowan, at Davenport, and Iowa News, at Dubuque, until the 7th of June, the terms of the sale—one-fourth cash on the day of sale, one-fourth in six months, one-fourth in twelve months, and one-fourth in eighteen months—to be mentioned in the advertisement. Failure to meet either of the deferred payments involved the forfeiture of money paid. At the same meeting of the Board it was
Ordered, That the sealed proposals be received until Saturday, the 19th day of May, for the building of a jail. Proposals will be received for furnishing the timber at so much per square foot, and building said jail, plans to be seen on an application to the Clerk.
It was also
Ordered, That the Clerk give notice of an election for township officers, agreeable to Sections 1 and 2 of Chapter 37, of the laws of Iowa, 1839-40, and that those in favor of such organization shall write “organization,” and those to the contrary shall write “no organization” on their tickets, and that a separate ballot box shall be kept for the same.
On the 1st of June, proposals for building the jail were received from James Fay at $2,500; William Green, $2,700; P. McVicker, $2, 475. The plan submitted to the consideration of the Board at the last meeting by J. J. Tomlinson was . . .
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. . . adopted, and the proposal of P. McVicker was accepted as the lowest and best. The plan of Tipton, as made by J. J. Tomlinson, Surveyor, was also submitted, duly acknowledged by the County Commissioners and placed in the recorder’s office for record. McVicker entered into contract with the Board for the erection of the jail, giving bond in the sum of $3,000, with Joseph K. Snyder and Charles M. Jennings as security. The Commissioners also gave bond in the sum of $3,000 for faithful payment, according to the terms of the contract.
August 1st, the Commissioners changed their place of meeting to the house of Charles M. Jennings, he having agreed to lease them the use of a room in his house for the Clerk's office free of charge. The Board also ordered that the October election should be held at the same place, and that the next term of the District Court should be held therein, at $2.00 per day for the time the Court remained in session.
From the time of the adjournment of the August session of the Board of County Commissioners until January 1, 1841, there was but little business of an important nature to claim the attention of the Commissioners or render long or frequent sessions necessary. On the 10th of January, the Board ordered that all that district of country west of Cedar River, and within the limits of the County, "shall be known as Township No. 1, and that it shall be called Iowa Township; that all east of Cedar River shall be known as Township No. 2, and called Freeman Township; that all east of Cedar River, Township 80, and the two southern tier of sections in Township 81, Range 2 west, be known as Township No. 3, and called Center Township; that Townships 81 and 82 north, Range 1, and the four northern tier of sections in Township 81, of Range 4, be known as Township No. 4, and called Wapsipinicon Township, and that Townships 81 and 82, Range 3, and Townships 81 and 82, Range 4, be known as Township No. 5, and called Linn Township."
The Commissioners then issued an order for an election for township officers, to be held in the several townships thus established on the first Monday in April. They directed that in Iowa Township the election should be held at the house of Elisha Henry; in Freeman Township, at the house of Stephen Toney, in Rochester; in Center Township, at the house of John Culbertson; in Wapsipinicon Township, at the house of Porter McKinstry, and in Linn Township, at the house of William Mason.
At their next meeting, Friday, February 12, the Clerk of the Board was directed to write to the District Attorney, giving him extracts from the District Court records, and request him to prosecute or not, as in his judgment might seem best, the case of the U. S. vs. H. E. Switzer, for assault against an officer of the court. Switzer was one of the so-called outlaws of the county, and in attempting to serve a process against him, the officer was assaulted and resisted, and hence this order.
On the 24th of February, a contract was made with John Culbertson for the erection of a house for county purposes. The building here referred to was erected on the lot now occupied by the City Hall building. The upper part of this building was used for the Fall term (1841) of the District Court, and as a court room until the jail was completed. The Culbertson building was subsequently used as a hotel, and was known as the Beatty House. It was destroyed by fire in April, 1870.
May 20th, ordered that the northern tier of sections in Township No. 80, Range 1 west, be added to Wapsipinicon Township, and that the name of the said township be called Springfield.
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July 6th, the resignation of James W. Tallman, as Probate Judge, was accepted, and the Clerk was directed to give notice that an election would be held on the first Monday in August to fill the vacancy.
