of
Muscatine County Iowa
1879
| History of Muscatine County Iowa 1879 | |
Source: History of Muscatine County Iowa, Historical Section, 1879, pages 385-393
ADVANCING CIVILIZATION. As it is necessary for the architect to design the foundation-walls of his proposed edifice, so is it essential for the historian to 'reach far out and gather together the remotest threads of fact, to the end that the fabric woven by him may be symmetrical and complete in all its parts. Although this work is chiefly local in its character, it is important that the record of events should be made exhaustive enough to explain the reasons why this particular locality was chosen for settlement at the time indicated, and to trace the growth of civilization from its weakest germ to the present time.
A few sentences will serve to cover the two centuries intervening between the original discovery of this region by white men and the period when the practical development of its multiform resources began.
Two hundred years ago, in 1673, the beautiful land of Iowa was first revealed to the delighted eyes of white men. The discovery of the American Continent by Columbus stimulated the venturesome explorers of Europe, and rich, indeed, were the rewards of their persistent labors. Within the half- century following Columbus' victory, the Atlantic coast was largely explored; the Pacific Ocean gladdened the eyes of the devoted adventurer; the Mississippi was gazed upon by him who soon slept beneath its bosom; Mexico and Peru fell before the rapacious conquerer; the St. Lawrence and the Amazon were opened up to the inquisitive forces of the Old World, and the two great continents of the New became dominions of the mighty crowns of Europe. The dissensions of Church and State within the boundaries of their own domains, however, prevented the European nations from profiting by the discoveries of the early explorers. One hundred and thirty-two years elapsed after De Soto beheld the Lower Mississippi before the lost knowledge was regained. Vague limits, it is true, were given to numerous streams, and absurd speculations were indulged in by Spanish geographers relative to the great stream, during that long period; but of accurate knowledge, the scientists possessed none.
It was reserved for the French to discover the Upper Mississippi. The self-denying followers of Jesus sought to establish missions in the New World, and thereby implant the seeds of religion in virgin soil. In 1625, the colonies were located on the banks of the St. Lawrence, and in forty years the missions were extended to the remotest shores of Lake Superior. The commendable desire on the part of those who controlled those missions to embrace still wider domains led to the discovery of this region. We quote from a paper read before the State Historical Society, on the commemoration of the two hundredth anniversary of the discovery of Iowa, by Rev. William Salter, of Burlington, who briefly but successfully epitomized those important events:
"James Marquette was born in Laon, France, seventy-four miles northeast of Paris, in 1637, of an ancient and respected family. Entering the Society of Jesus in his seventeenth year, he pursued a full course of study and discipline, and embarked, in 1666, for New France, to labor for the conversion of the Indians. In 1668, he left Quebec for the country about Lake Superior, commenced a mission at Sault St. Marie and spent the winter of 1669-70 at La Pointe, near the western extremity of the lake. From Indians of different tribes, and particularly from those bearing the name of Illinois, who came to this station, which was not more than fifty miles from the headwaters of the St. Croix and Chippewa Rivers, important tributaries of the Mississippi, he heard of the great river, the river of all the waters, was invited to go thither, and was fired with a generous zeal to prosecute discovery and establish missions upon its banks. Subsequently, he conducted a prosperous mission for two years at Mackinaw, upon the mainland, near the island which now bears that name. In writing to his Superior (Dablon) from this mission, he reports many encouraging facts, and adds:
"'I am ready, however, to leave it in the hands of another missionary, and go on your order to seek new nations toward the southern sea, who are still unknown to us, and teach them of our great God.'
"At the same time, the authorities at Quebec were earnestly intent upon exploration, and appointed Louis Joliet to go upon a voyage of discovery. He was a native of that city, where he had been educated in the Jesuit College. He had taken minor orders at the age of eighteen, but, after a few years, abandoned all ideas of the priesthood, and embarked in the adventures of the fur trade, in which he established a reputation for energy, sagacity and force of character. He was now twenty-seven years of age, and, proceeding on his way, reached the mission at Mackinaw on the 8th day of December, 1675, and gladdened the heart of Marquette with the good news that they had been designated to pursue the discovery together. It was a grateful reflection in the mind of the pious missionary, that this very day was the feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin, whose favor he had been constantly supplicating, that he might have grace to visit the nations on the Mississippi. He placed the enterprise under her protection, and promised that if she gave them grace to discover the great river, he would name it Conception, and also give that name to the first mission he should establish among the new nations. As the winter wore away, they gathered what information they'could from Indians who had frequented those parts, and from their accounts traced a map of the country, marking down the rivers and names of nations, and the course of the great river. They were not long in preparing their outfit of corn and dried meat, which constituted their whole stock of provisions, and set out with resolute hearts, on the 17th day of May, 1673, having five Frenchmen in their company.
"They played their paddles joyously along the shores of Lake Michigan and Green Bay, so happy that they had been chosen for this expedition, says Marquette's ingenious and beautiful narrative, as to sweeten the labor of rowing from morn till night. Ascending Fox River, they reached an Indian village on its banks on the 7th of June. This was the limit of the discoveries made in that direction by the French. Here they held a friendly conference with the chiefs, and, explaining to them that Joliet was sent to discover new countries, and that Marquette's mission was to enlighten them in the Gospel, they procured two Miami guides to conduct them to a portage, over which they might cross to the Wisconsin River. The guides led them along the marshes and little lakes through which the Fox River here meanders, and assisted in transporting the canoes from the waters which flow toward the St. Lawrence, to those that should bear the adventurers to strange lands. The guides then returned, leaving us alone, says Marquette, 'in an unknown country, in the hands of Providence.' Before embarking again, they began a new devotion to the Virgin, offering special prayers for her protection, and for the success of their voyage. Thus encouraging one another, they sailed down the river for seven days, a distance of seventy leagues, as they estimated it, or two hundred and ten miles, when they reached the mouth of the Wisconsin, and, on the 18th of June, glided into the gentle current of the Mississippi, 'with a joy that I cannot express,' says Marquette."
Thus, for the first time in authentic history, did the eyes of white men behold the land, now so richly developed, in the valley of the Upper Mississippi. As the voyagers floated down the stream they beheld no traces of human life for fifteen days. At that time they discovered footprints leading from the bank, near the southern boundary of the present State of Iowa. The little band followed this path until they came to a village of Illinois Indians. The exact locality of this first landing is in dispute. Some writers argue that the site was not far from the Flint Hills, below Burlington, while others claim that the honor belongs to Lee County. Be that as it may, it is positively known that a landing was effected in the territory subsequently included in the county of Des Moines, as established by the Michigan Territorial Legislature, and of which the county of Muscatine was a part.
Long fellow has invested the reception of the explorers by the Indians with a romantic and poetic halo which time cannot efface. In his "Song of Hiawatha" he describes the scene thus;
"Came a people, In 1680, Hennepin, a Franciscan missionary, passed along the whole eastern shore of Iowa, ascending the Mississippi from the Illinois River. He was the first explorer of the Mississippi above the Wisconsin River. Two years later, La Salle entered the Mississippi from the Illinois River, and passed down to the Gulf of Mexico. On the 9th of April, 1682, he unfurled the banner of the King of France at the mouth of the great river, and in the name of his sovereign took formal possession of the whole country watered by it, and by all the rivers that flow into it. In this act he named the country Louisiana, and the Mississippi, Colbert River, in honor of Louis XIV, and his distinguished minister of finance; names that Hennepin also used in his "Description of Louisiana," published at Paris, in 1683. Marquette, in his map, fulfilled his promise, and named the Mississippi Conception River, though his journal always speaks of it as the Mississippi.
From the distant land of Wabun;
From the farthest realms of morning
Came the Black-Robe chief, the Prophet,
He the Priest of prayer, the Pale-face,
With his guides and his companions."And the noble Hiawatha,
With his hands aloft extended,
Held aloft in sign of welcome,
Cried aloud and spake in this wise:
'Beautiful is the sun, O strangers,
When you come so far to see us!
All our town in peace awaits you,
All our doors stand open for you;
You shall enter all our wigwams,
For the heart's right hand we give you.
Never bloomed the earth so gayly,
Never shone the sun so brightly,
As to-day they shine and blossom
When you come so far to see us."And the Black-Robe chief made answer,
Stammered in his speech a little,
Speaking words yet unfamiliar:
'Peace be with you, Hiawatha,
Peace be with you and your people,
Peace of prayer, and peace of pardon,
Peace of Christ, and joy of Mary!'"Then the generous Hiawatha
Led the strangers to his wigwam,
Seated them on skins of bison,
Seated them on skins of ermine,
Brought them food in bowls of bass-wood,
Water brought in birchen dippers,
And the calumet, the peace-pipe,
Filled and lighted for their smoking.
All the old men of the village,
All the warriors of the nation,
Came to bid the strangers welcome;
'It is well,' they said, 'O brother,
That you came so far to see us.'"
For 130 years after its discovery, the territory now comprising the State of Iowa, remained under the dominion, first of France, and then of Spain. At only two points in Iowa are any traces left of the dominion of the Spaniard, viz., at Dubuque and Montrose.
Julien Dubuque was a native of Canada, and came to Prairie du Chien when a young man, and obtained permission of the Fox Indians about the year 1788, to work the mines surrounding the city that now bears his name. In 1795 the Spanish Governor, Carondelet, it is reported confirmed the privilege. Here Dubuque spent his life, engaged in mining and trade, until his death in 1810. No grant of land was made him, and a claim to a grant was decided adversely by the Supreme Court of the United States, in 1854.
Toward the close of the last century, Lewis Tesson (alias Honore), a Canadian, came down from Prairie du Chien to the head of the lower rapids, among the Sacs and Foxes, at their invitation, and established a trading-post. The Lieutenant Governor of Upper Louisiana (Zenon Trudeau), gave him permission (St. Louis, March 30, 1799) to settle there, with the concessions of a sufficient space "to make the establishment valuable and useful to the commerce of peltries, to watch the Indians, and keep them in the fidelity they owe to their Majesty." He lived there with his family for several years, surrounded his establishment with picket and rail fences, erected buildings and a trading-house, planted gardens; and an orchard of a hundred trees. Falling in debt at St. Louis, the whole property was seized (March 27, 1803), under the Spanish law, and sold at public sale at the door of the parish church, in St. Louis, at the conclusion of high mass, the people coming out in great number, after due notice given, in a high and intelligible voice by the public crier of the town, on three successive Sundays (May 1, 8 and 15, 1803). On the first Sunday, the only bid for the property was $25. On the second Sunday, $30 was bid. On the third Sunday, at the third and last adjudication, $100 was bid, and subsequently $150, by Joseph Robidoux, Tesson's creditor, "which was repeated until 12 o'clock at noon; and the public retiring, the said Robidoux demanded a deed of his bid. It was cried at 1 o'clock, at 2 o'clock, and at 3 o'clock, and no other persons presenting themselves, the said land and appurtenances were adjudged to him for the mentioned price of $150, which sum, having to receive himself; he gave no sccurity."
This grant and sale constitute the oldest legal title to land in Iowa, and are the only acts under the Spanish administration and law that have affected the disposition of any portion of its soil. They were confirmed by the United States, and sustained by the Supreme Court, against those holding under other claims, in 1852.
In 1803, the United States Government purchased the Louisiana Territory from France, for $15,000,000. In 1805, Lieut. Pike explored the Mississippi, under authority of the Government. In 1816, Lieut. Col. William Lawrence, with eight hundred men, built Fort Armstrong on Rock Island.
Trading-posts were established, by consent of both the Government and the Indians, at various points along the Mississippi, after the establishment of the fort on Rock Island. Among the earliest within the old county of Des Moines was one near the present site of Burlington. This was a branch of the American Fur Company, and was under the management of John W. Johnson.
The Indian name for Flint Hills, or Burlington, as it is now called, was "Shok-ko-kon." As that subsequently became the capital of this region, being the first point in date of settlement, we quote a letter from Isaac R. Campbell, descriptive of a visit to that region in 1821. The statement concerning the first steamboat which ascended the Upper Mississippi is disputed. It is claimed, by one authority, that the first boat to pass above the Rapids of the Des Moines was the "Virginia," of Wheeling, which made the trip to Galena, in May, 1823. Still another authority declares that the " Mexico," for Fort Snelling, was the first. We give Mr. Campbell's letter in full, and do not assume the responsibility of affirming all his statements. The main purpose is to secure as full a description of the original settlements as is possible. He wrote thus: "I first visited this locality in June, 1821, it being then a wilderness and inhabited by the Sac and Fox tribes of Indians. The first marks I observed indicating the proximity of the white man were at Puck-e-she-tuc, or 'Foot of Rapids,' now Keokuk. A log cabin had been erected here one year before this, under the supervision of Dr. Samuel C. Muir, a surgeon in the United States Army, located at Fort Edwards, now Warsaw, Ill. The next settlement, and probably the first made by a white man in this country, was six miles above, at Lemoliese, now Sandusky, a French trader occupying this post, being engaged in traffic with the natives; his nearest neighbor, Blondeau, resided about one mile above. Monsieur Lemoliese had a very amiable lady for a wife, who was fond of dress. She frequently, to please him, arrayed her person in gown, bonnet and shoes, but could not be prevailed upon to continue the costume, as her native garb---the blanket and petticoat---were more congenial to her feelings and taste.
"At the head of the Rapids was Montrose, an Indian village. The chief's name, in English, was 'Cut Nose.' Below the creek running into the river, on the lower side of the Indian town, were the remains of a deserted trading-house, around which were growing a number of apple-trees.
"On the opposite side of the river (Nauvoo), was another village of the Sac tribe, Quash-quaw-me, chief. I have often heard it remarked that this dignitary originally sold all the land embraced in the State of Illinois,to the United States Government. The Nauvoo mansion, formerly the residence of the prophet, Joseph Smith, occupies a portion of their grave-yard, where many a warrior's bones have long since moldered into dust.
"As we passed on up the river, the next place of attraction was old Fort Madison, ten miles above the head of the Rapids, situated on the west side, half a mile below a sand-bluff, arising almost perpendicularly from the water's edge. This fort was constructed by Col. Zachary Taylor, and named in honor of James Madison, President of the United States.
"After leaving this old fort, on the second day we arrived, by keelboat, at Shok-ko-kon (Flint Hills), noW Burlington, situated on the west side of the river, about twenty miles above. Here was a trading-post, occupant's name I have forgotten, and at the mouth of Flint Creek, or River, a short distance above, was located a Fox or Musquaka village. Its ruler and law-giver was the patriarch chief, Timea. Fifteen or twenty miles further up the river, on the east side, was Oquawka (Lower Yellow Banks). This point I did not visit, and will not attempt to give any account of its early history.
"I will now retrace my steps down the river, to the North Fabius, in Lewis County, Mo., eight miles west of Quincy, where I remained on a farm for four years. During this period, I had occasion to travel over Lee County more than once, and at one time in company with an Indian for my guide, I started for 'Cut-Nose Village' (Montrose), and on arriving at the Des Moines we found it swollen so much as to compel us to swim our cattle and construct a raft to cross our wagon and load. After being securely landed on the east bank of the river, after packing up, we pursued our journey, ascending the high lands above Grave-yard Bluff (Buena Vista), and following the divide between the Mississippi and Se-sa-paw-qua-sepo (Sugar Creek). Traveling east of north, we soon came in sight of a lone tree, stand upon the margin of the bluff, two miles southwest of our destination. This familiar landmark, to my guide, assured us we were traveling in the right direction, and by increasing our speed we were soon at our journey's end, completing the first trip made through Southern Iowa by wagon and ox-team.
"While residing at Commerce, Ill., where I located in 1825, I formed the acquaintance of Black Hawk, by agreeing with him to erect a stone wall for the sum of $8, around the remains of his daughter, buried near my house, and the compliance with this contract, upon my part, engendered a feeling of friendship for me which I reciprocated. It resulted, finally, in the strongest ties of friendship, and lasted until the day of his death. I have now many relics presented to me by him, which I hold sacred and dear---one memento in particular---a buckskin purse, made and given to me by him, the day before his death.
"This renowned warrior possessed many sterling qualities, which could only be appreciated by those who knew him as intimately as myself. He never had but one wife, being opposed, personally, to the custom of polygamy, although never interfering with others of his tribe who approved and practiced this evil. His Met-a-mo (old woman) was a good housewife. The arrangement of the interior wigwam was systematic and clean, and the burnished camp-kettle her greatest pride.
"I tried hard to dissuade him from the war-path in 1831, but he persisted in his determination, and paid dearly for refusing to profit by my counsel. On his return after his captivity, he paid me a visit, acknowledged his error, and pledged me never again to refuse good advice, which he observed the remainder of his life. His days were ended (1838) on the east bank of the Des Moines River, at Stump Town, a point where the railroad diverges from the river below Iowaville, now Independent.
"Our commerce, from 1821 to 1832, did not increase in tonnage to any extent. I made several trips during this time on keelboats, from St. Louis to Galena, Ill. A number of these boats were owned by Capt. White, and navigated by him, as freighters, on the Upper Mississippi.
"Capt. James White informed me that his first voyage up the Mississippi was on the steamboat " Mandan," being forty days en route from New Orleans to the foot of the Rapids, which she attempted to ascend, but could get no higher than Filly Rock, on account of heavy draught and the want of a correct knowledge of the channel by the pilot. He informed me that the Indians, at several localities above St. Louis, were badly frightened, running in every direction when the boat first hove in sight. As they had never witnessed the like before, many of them thought this aquatic monster was the Man-i-tou-ke- suth (evil spirit or devil), coming to call them for a final reckoning. The next steamer that succeeded in ascending the Rapids was the "Pike," which, by many, has been considered the first steamboat that traversed the Upper Mississippi, which is correct so far as being the first to go above the Des Moines Rapids."
The last statement is open to discussion, as is almost everyone relating to priority.
Capt. Clark, at one time Harbor-master at St. Louis, says that he commanded the first steamer that ever ascended the Upper Mississippi. It was the "Mexico," and was laden with stores for Fort Snelling, and the trip was made in 1826 or 1827. The boat was a low-pressure steamer. In the vicinity of Prairie du Chien, the Winnebago Indians attacked the boat, and the assault was reported to Col. Snelling, who supplied the boat with muskets and two barges, to resist an attack on the return trip. The journey occupied three months. Upon descending the river, the Indians again made a savage onslaught, in forty canoes. A fierce fight ensued, and the crew was, at one time, reduced to only seven available men. The Indians ran out of ammunition, and so ended the fight. Subsequently, Gen. Cass, while in command of Fort Crawford, sent 1,600 soldiers to punish the Indians for this assault. Gen. Atkinson commanded the troops. He captured a large number of Indians, and executed eighteen of them, while others were retained as hostages.
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