pg 168

Closely related to Finances and Taxes is the subject of swamp land and drainage.

This matter has been of considerable importance to Louisa county from a comparatively early date. Our first County Judge. Wright Williams, seems to have made the first move in the matter, soon after the first swamp land legislation was enacted by the Iowa Legislature. We next find that County Judge, Francis Springer interested himself in the matter, and the records contain a copy of a letter addressed by him to the commissioner of the general land office at Washington, complaining of the fact that the swamp land selections for Louisa County were not made available to the county. It seems from the letter, that ...

pg 169

... the land office had adopted a rule not to confirm the swamp land selections for any of the counties in Iowa until reports had been received from all of the counties. The letter points out that at that time a large part of the state was sparsely settled, and many of the counties not yet fully organized. It is stated in this letter that the swamp land selections in Louisa county embraced some 46.000 acres. This letter was dated April 20, 1865.

About 1857 the county began to realize something from its swamp lands. It is difficult to get at the exact facts and figures. A part of the confusion is due to the fact that the Swamp Land Act passed by Congress September 28, 1850. under which the State of Iowa secured title to the swamp lands, was at first believed only to include such tracts as were designated on the plats of the government surveys as swamp lands and unfit for cultivation. This was the form of the bill as originally reported, but it had been amended to include overflowed lands without reference to their description on the government plats. While the country was settling up, thousands of acres of lands which were in fact subject to overflow, but which were not designated as swamp land on the government plats, were settled upon. Of course these lands afterward were selected as swamp lands and claimed by the various counties in which they were situated. Several thousand acres of swamp lands in Louisa county were settled upon prior to their selection, and many others had been sold by the government for cash. Eventually the county was compensated for these lands, compensation for those sold by the government was in cash, and other lands were granted to Louisa county in lieu of the Louisa county swamp lands which had been sold before the selection. Most of these lands .were situated in Emmet and Hancock counties, and were afterwards sold by the county for prices ranging from $1.25 to $2.50 per acre.

Under the act of Congress it was contemplated that the proceeds of the sales of swamp lands should be used toward reclaiming them and for making roads and bridges. The first enterprise of this kind undertaken by the county was in Eliot township. The matter was brought to the attention of Francis Springer, County Judge, by a petition signed by William Stewart and a number of other residents of that locality; at this time Alexander Ross was Drainage Commissioner, and on July 7, 1857, he issued a notice stating that in accordance with an order of the County Court, the work on Section number one of the swamp land improvement in Louisa county would be to let to the lowest bidder on August 8, 1857; the work was described as being the construction of an embankment commencing 2,000 feet west of the Iowa slough on the south side of the Iowa river, and running east and north three miles according to the report of the county surveyors then on file: or so much thereof beginning at the initial point at the west end as the means at the disposal of the County Court would allow. Contract for the work was let on August 8, 1857, to Michael Buckley & Co. at 17 1/2 cents per cubic yard. The surveying was done by engineers G. P. Sherwood, W. S. Kremer, T. W. Bailey and A. B. Miller at different times, the principal part of the surveying seems to have been done by G. P. Sherwood.

The amount expended by Louisa County on this particular improvement was about $9,262.85. On May 17, 1858, the County Judge notified Michael Buckley & Co., that the means at the disposal of the County Court for the construction of the Eliot township levee were exhausted and that they should discontinue work.

pg 170

On September II, 1858, it was reported to the Court that a continuance of the swamp land improvement in Section One would enhance the value of lands in Des Moines county, and that Des Moines county, at its expense, would build three fourths of a mile of said improvement commencing at Station 128 of the original survey. An order was made permitting Des Moines county to continue the work.

About this same time, that is, in 1857 and 1858, the county expended nearly $15,000.00 in building a levee on Muscatine Island; and also expended about $1,400.00 on the road between Toolsboro and Burris City, and something like $1,000 or $1,200.00 in Wapello and Morning Sun townships. These items together aggregate nearly $27,000.00 of the swamp land fund which was expended by this county in 1856, 1857 and 1858. The lands which the county received in the northern part of the state were not sold until about 1870; it appears that the county realized from these lands and a few scattering pieces of swamp lands still left in this county, about $28,000.00 more, and a considerable part of this money was expended in drainage projects in the various townships which contained swamp lands, other than Eliot and Port Louisa. The expenditures for this purpose at this time, were about, as near as can be ascertained from the records, $18,000.00.

A Swamp Land Commissioner was appointed for each of the various townships where money was to be expended. T. M. Parsons was the first commissioner for Jefferson township, and was succeeded by Asher Sillick. Jesse Harris was the commissioner for Wapello township, William Bell for Morning Sun, H. P. Pike for Marshall, James Higbee for Elmgrove, S. E. Wilson, for Columbus City, S. S. Wilcox for Union, Phillip Thompson for Concord and Milton Carpenter in Oakland township.

Drainage work was practically at a standstill in this county from this time until the passage of the new drainage law by the 30th General Assembly which inaugurated a new drainage era. A large number of drainage districts have been organized in Louisa County under this law and the amendments that have since been made to it, and we append hereto a brief reference to those of importance. We had hoped to be able to give the figures for each of these districts showing the amounts expended for different purposes, but they are not yet available for any but No. 4 which are given.

On September 16. 1903, the board of supervisors established what has since been known as Drainage District No. 1, which included all that portion of sections 23, 24, 25 and 26, township 73 north, range 2 west, lying within the corporate limits of the town of Oakville. This took in practically all of the town of Oakville. The total cost of the work done in this district was about $2,000.03.

Drainage District No. 2 was established on the petition of W. S. Gunnels, March 22, 1906, to include about 2,717 acres. The engineer was J. A. Shriner and his original estimate of the cost was $11,311.20. The engineer originally reported that the main ditch in this district should be six feet deep, with a bottom width of twenty feet and the top width twenty-four feet, and the first assessment of the costs was made on this basis. Later it was agreed by all parties that the ditch be only twenty feet wide at the top and five feet deep, and six feet wide at the bottom, and the assessment was made at $9,355, the basis being at a rate of about $4 an acre for land benefited one hundred per cent. It was found afterwards that it was necessary to raise something like two or three thousand dollars ...

pg 171

... additional. This district was situated southwest of Wapello in sections 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9, of township 73 north, range 3 west, and in sections 1, 12, 31 and 32 of township 74-3.

District No. 4 was a joint district, situated in Louisa and Des Moines counties. The part in Louisa county was situated entirely in Eliot township and about three fourths of the land in the entire district was situated in Louisa county. Petition for this district was filed by G. W. Gale and others on June 20, 1907, and J. A. Shriner was appointed engineer. His first report seems to have been filed, February 20, 1908, and his estimate of the number of acres included in the district was 16,750, and his estimate of the cost was as follows:

For excavation of ditches	$2,619
Removal of obstruction in channels	1,000
Boiler, engine, pumps and fixtures	2,7189
Buildings and sitting machinery	5,000
Preliminary expenses, superintendents, etc	3,550
Total	$39,388

M. J. Deihl, of Louisa county, and Gust A. Bergston, of Des .Moines county, were appointed commissioners and they in conjunction with the engineer went over the ground and these commissioners approved the engineer's report with the addition of a number of tile drains, which would cost as estimated by the engineer, $2,926, making the probable cost of the improvements, $42,314, as estimated by these commissioners. As originally contemplated, this district included the town of Oakville, comprising District No. 1, already established and also about 4,000 acres contiguous to Oakville, mostly on the south and southwest, and a little of it immediately north of Oakville. The landowners of this part of the proposed district objected to its being taken in. with the result that when the district was established on June 24, 1908, this land was left out of the district.

On June 27, 1908, the joint boards appointed Jacob A. Harmon engineer, and required him to give bond in the sum of $5,000 and entered into a contract with him. providing for him to do all the work required as engineer and to employ such additional labor as might be necessary and that the compensation therefor should be as follows: For Jacob A. Harmon, $10 per day for the time actually employed by him in such work and his necessary and reasonable traveling expenses. For assistant engineers and draftsmen $5 per day; for recorders, $3 per day, ten hours to be a day's work in the field, and for all other labor employed on such work, the actual cost thereof. It was also agreed that said engineer Harmon should be paid in installments as the work progressed, five per cent of the cost of constructing the levee and ditches, and five per cent of the cost of the pumping plant, machinery, etc. Engineer Harmon made elaborate plans for the entire work and the same was completed at a total cost of $131,664.34. The principal items of this cost are as follows:

Pumping plant complete, including machinery	$46,521.31
Open ditches	31,579.81
Tile ditches	15,525.91

pg 172

Engineer's residence	1,980.09
Attorney's fees	1,280.00
Miscellaneous	1,102.27
Printing	694.25
Damages	8,447.00
Engineering expenses	24,543.70
Total actual cost	$315,674.34
Estimated when established	42,314.00

The amount stated for engineering expenses may not be entirely correct, but it is the nearest approximation that can be made from the records in the Auditor's office of Louisa county. The share of all the expense of District No. 4 borne by Louisa county was three-fourths, or practically that, and the Auditor has a record so made that it shows the various amounts paid by Louisa 'county for the various purposes, as above stated, except that there is an item of $6,246.52 being Louisa county's share of the preliminary expenses, which is not thus separated. The amount paid by Louisa county, including this last item is $98,755.76, and Des Moines county's share would be about $32,918.58 making a total cost of $131,674.34.

It is possible that there were a few hundred dollars in the preliminary expense account that would not properly be chargeable to the engineering expenses, but it is safe to say that the engineering expenses of this drainage district have already amounted to considerable more than one half of the original estimate for the whole enterprise. Whatever else may be said of Drainage District No. 4, its history at least shows the wisdom, from the engineer's standpoint, of having a contract whereby his compensation will be, in addition to his per diem, five per cent of all that he can make the work cost the district.

The amount given for miscellaneous expense includes some extra work in the Auditor's office of the two counties, surveying, notices, pay of commissioners, etc.

In regard to the amount of $8,447.00 given as damages, it is probable that something like $4,000.00 of that was for the purchase of the farm which the supervisors have been leasing since that time.

Soon after the establishment of District No. 4, two levee districts were established, being Nos. 5 and 6. The two together included all of the levee on the Mississippi and Iowa river referred to so far as it protected any of the lands in Drainage District No. 4. At a somewhat later period the entire levee constructed by the United States government near the mouth of Flint creek was included in one levee district, being Louisa and Des Moines District, No. 16, and this latter district absorbed the levee districts 5 and 6.

The next district established in Louisa county was Levee District No. 8, petitioned for by J. N. Dutton and others. This levee was along the east side of the Iowa river southeast of Wapello and north of Oakville. and commenced near the quarter section corner on the south side of section 22, 73-2, and extended about five and a quarter miles to the north to a point on the bluff a little south and west of section 8, 73-2. This district included about 2.600. J. A. Shriner...

pg 173

... was appointed engineer and he estimated the cost of the levee and the outlet pipe for the interior waters of the district to be $23,279.57. The contract for the work in this district was let to W. P. Bumgardner, of Wapello, and he sub-let the same to Phelps & Peterson. The improvement was completed for about the original estimate. The order of the board establishing this district was made September 28, 1908, and the work was completed within about a year.

The next district was Levee District No. 9, and was petitioned for by J. E. Dennis and others, December 29, 1906, and included the land in Oakland township known as Marsh or the Big Marsh, lying in sections 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 15 and 16, in township 76, range 5, and included about 890 acres. W. S. Kremer was appointed engineer of this district. He afterward resigned and J. A. Shriner succeeded him. Mr. Kremers original estimate of the cost of the improvement to be made in this district was $4,300. The contract for this work was taken by some of the landowners interested in it, and the total cost was not far from the original estimate.

The petition for Levee District No. 10, signed by H. B. Brock and others was filed May 11, 1908, and J. A. Shriner was appointed engineer. He made his report July 18, 1908, favoring the establishment of the district and showing that it comprised a total of 2,346 acres, all in the north part of Oakland township, and that the probable cost including outlet pipes, etc., should be $3,890.25. This district was established on March 4, 1909, and the contract was let to W. P. Bumgardner, of Wapello. The total cost of the improvement in this district was S5.300.

The next district is Levee District, No. 11, which includes 3,421 acres of land immediately across the Iowa river from Wapello. J. A. Shriner was appointed engineer. The petition for this district was signed by John G. Grim and others, and filed January 4, 1909. J. A. Shriner was appointed engineer and estimated the probable cost to be $35,467.25. The district was established on May 21, 1909, and the contract was let to R. H. McWilliams, of Mattoon, Illinois. The commissioners who were appointed to assess the costs and damages in this district reported that the items for which the assessments were made were as follows:

For work under contract	$25,000.00
For culverts	2,000.00
For land damages	3,000.00
For preliminary, legal and engineering and contingencies	3,446.31
Total	$33,446.31

The actual amount of tax levied in this district was $34,108.28 and it will require about $1,700 more to finish paying.

The next district established was Drainage District, No. 12, which takes in about 13,000 acres west and southwest of Wapello. The petition was filed May 26, 1909, signed by J. A. Hale and others and J. A. Shriner was appointed engineer. Mr. Shriner recommended the establishment of the district, stating two plans upon which the work might be done and estimated the probable cost on plan No. 1 at $73,855, and on plan No. 2, $64,716.84. The following estimated items of the cost were included in each of the two plans, namely:

pg 174

Land damages	$6,000
Railroad crossings	4,000
Preliminary and legal expenses, etc	6,000

This district was established by order of the board on January 7, 1910. The contract was let to Chapman Brothers, at that time residents of Muscatine. The total cost of the improvements made in this district was about $90,000.

Levee District No. 14 was petitioned for November 11, 1909, by H. O. Weaver and W. E. Shew, and J. A. Shriner was appointed engineer. This district included about a thousand acres on the east side of the Iowa river, immediately north of Hogback. Mr. Shriner's estimate of the probable cost of the improvements was:

Levee 47,000 cubic yards at 20c	$9,400
Outlet pipes	500
Ditch 6,000 cubic yards at 20c	1,200
Engineering, legal and other expenses	1,110
Total	$12,210

The next district established was No. 13, a joint district in Louisa and Muscatine counties. The petition was filed by W. H. Hurley and others, March 11, 1910, and a commission was appointed by the boards of the two counties, consisting of J. W. Garner, Louisa county, and J. C. Park, Muscatine county, and these commissioners selected Engineer F. A. McDonald as the third member of the commission. This district was located on Muscatine Island, about one-third being in Muscatine county and about two-thirds being in Louisa county, and is said to contain about 30,000 acres. The commission estimated the total expense of the improvements proposed in this district at $201,106.45. Included in this estimate is $85,000 for a pumping plant; $8,500 for engineering; and $9,338 for contingencies.

On June 14, 1911, the boards of supervisors appointed Jacob A. Harmon, engineer, to make a survey of the proposed district, with plans and an estimate of the cost. Mr. Harmon's report suggested a modification of the plans by eliminating the construction of a levee along the Mississippi river from Port Louisa to Toolesboro, recommending that that levee be constructed by a separate levee district to be organized for that purpose, and suggesting a different location for the pumping plant and certain modifications due to that change. Mr. Harmon's estimate is as follows:

For the necessary ditches	$49,830
Pumping plant, machinery and building	110,000
Sluice way, incidental engineering, court costs, etc	12,670
Total	$172,500

Mr. Harmon's report estimated the total area of land within the proposed drainage district to be 15,900 acres, and that the average cost would be $10.90 per acre.

pg 175

This district was established by the supervisors of Louisa and Muscatine counties on October 24, 1911, and on the next day a contract was made by them with Jacob A. Harmon of the Harmon Engineering Company of Peoria, Illinois, as engineer, which contract provides in substance that Mr. Harmon should have $25.00 per day for his time on said work, and in addition thereto, five per cent of what he succeeded in making it cost the district; and also $10.00 per day for assistant engineers, $6.00 per day for instrument men, $4.00 per day for recorders and $6.00 per day for draughtsmen and computers, and also pay for all other labor, traveling and living expenses while on the work away from the home office at Peoria. It is hardly necessary to say that the supervisors who made such munificent provision for the engineer were not expecting to have to pay any part of it out of their own pockets. This contract means that the engineer will not merely get big pay for all his time on the job, and the same for all his assistants, but in addition to this he will get $5,500 for preparing the plans of the pumping plant, and nearly $2,000 for making specifications and profiles of the ditches, etc. If, as is sometimes the case, the plans and specifications of the pumping plants are furnished in advance by the bidders, the tax-payers might be inclined to characterize this contract by a harsher word than we have used.

There was some work done by M. L. Jamison on Muscatine Island in 1883, in building a levee which had been petitioned for by land owners of Muscatine and Louisa Counties. The contract price for the work was something like $30,000. Quite a number of the taxpayers resisted the project; the first tax levied was set aside by the court, and it required a long series of litigation and an act of the Iowa Legislature to enable Mr. Jamison to get his pay.

This matter of drainage is one which has created considerable controversy in the county, due largely to the manner in which the law has been administered. The benefits which accrue from necessary drainage, are recognized by everybody, but it is undoubtedly true that some of the drainage projects put through in Louisa County have cost the tax-payers far more than they should. It so happens that of the dozen or more drainage and levee districts in the county which have been established by the Board of Supervisors, there is not a member of the Board who has any land in any of these districts. This probably accounts for the fact that the engineers have been given practically absolute power to determine the kind and character of the work to be done.

In two of the districts viz: No. 4 and No. 13, the contracts made with the engineer are so drawn as to make it to his pecuniary interest to see that the most expensive kind of improvements shall be made. In addition to this, his contract provides that he shall have a certain amount per day for his different assistants ranging from $10.00 to $3.00. The contract is open to the construction that he is to receive these amounts for his assistants whether they cost him that much or not. It has been openly charged in regard to District No. 4, that the bills filed by the engineer include pay for various assistants, of amounts from 50 to 100 per cent greater than the amount actually paid by the engineer. At one time at a joint session of the Des Moines and Louisa County Boards this matter was brought to their attention, while the engineer was being examined, but they refused to allow it to be inquired into. It may be that these charges were entirely unfounded but the taxpayers as well as the impartial observer will be likely to think that if this were so, it could have been shown in the same length of time that was required ...

pg 176

... for the supervisors to deliberate upon, and sustain a technical objection. The drainage law is lamentably lame in that it does not provide some way whereby the taxpayers protect themselves from extravagance, carelessness or incompetency of those who control drainage projects. The people of Eliot township have been taxed nearly $100,000, by the six men who compose the Boards of Supervisors of this and Des Moines county, while the voters of Eliot township have no opportunity to vote for or against but one of these six men. If this is the kind of government our forefathers fought for, they might well have saved some of their blood and treasure.

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