History of Adams County, Iowa

Excerpts from the "The History of Iowa", by Benjamin F. Gue. Copyright 1903
Transcribed by Sue Soden .

Copyright © 1998 by Sue Soden.

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ADAMS COUNTY, IOWA
1851 created
1853 organized
COUNTY SEAT: Corning
PARENT COUNTY: Taylor

Adams County is the third east of the Missouri River in the second tier
north of the Missouri State line. It contains twelve Congressional
townships, embracing within its limits four hundred thirty-two square
miles. The county was created in 1851 from territory formerly within Des
Moines County and was named for John Adams, second President of the United
States.

The county-seat was located by commissioners a little north of the center
of the county and named Quincy, for John Quincy Adams, the sixth President.
The land upon which the county-seat was located belonged to Jacob M. B.
Miller who laid out the town and deeded to the county all even numbered
lots and a public square. J. R. Holbrook built the first house in August,
1853, in which he opened a store. The first white man known to have settled
in the county was Elijah Walters who, in 1849, took a claim two miles south
of Quincy. Samuel Baker, Morgan Warren and Samuel Hardesty made claims and
built cabins soon after.

At the election held in April of that year, Samuel Baker was chosen county
judge and John H. Calvin recorder. In 1853 a French colony composed of
socialists purchased about 3,000 acres of Government land near the East
Nodaway River. The people were followers of Etienne Cabet, a French
philosopher. The community located here to make the experiment of owning
property in common and governing themselves in accordance with the
socialistic theories of their leader. They organized a local government
consisting of a general assembly composed of the male members of the
community over twenty-one years of age. All property was owned in common
and controlled by a board of directors consisting of a president,
secretary, treasurer and a director of agriculture, industry and clothing.
New members were admitted upon consent of three-quarters of the male
members twenty-one years of age. All were required to surrender their
property to the community, give their services in consideration of living,
sharing equally the benefits. No money compensation was given for any kind
of service. There was no religious creed and no form of worship but the
members of the colony professed the religion of primitive Christians.
Sunday was a day of recreation and amusement and in all respects held to be
no more sacred than any other day. The membership after an existence of
nearly half a century numbers about fifty.

In 1855 a town was laid out by D. N. Smith about five miles south of Quincy
which was named Corning, in honor of a New York politician and capitalist,
Erastus Corning. It is on the main line of the Burlington Railroad and has
become the county-seat. The first church in the county was organized at
Quincy in 1856 by the Methodists. In 1859 they organized a seminary at
Brookville and in the same year the first newspaper was established at
Corning by D. N. Smith, with L. Raguet as editor, and named the Corning
Sentinel.

Adams County has an undulated surface and is well watered by the East and
West Nodaway rivers and their branches. One-tenth of the county was
originally covered with forests. Coal, limestone and good building stone
abound in portions of the county and it lies in the famous blue grass
region.

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representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb
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