HISTORY: Boone County, Iowa From the A.T. Andreas Illustrated Historical Atlas of the State of Iowa, 1875 ************************************************* Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.netcopyright.htm ************************************************* BOONE COUNTY. This county is in the middle tier a little west of the center of the state, is twenty-four miles square, and contains five hundred and seventy-six square miles. The principal stream is the Des Moines River, which entering the county a little west of the middle of the northern line, flows in a southeasterly direction, dividing the county nearly equally, and passes out some three miles east of the center of the southern boundary line. It has an average width of over one hundred yards, receiving several small tributaries, the largest of which are Bluff Creek on the west, and Honey Creek on the east. Squaw Creek, from the Sioux word E-qui-wa, meaning Woman's Creek, waters the northeast, while Beaver-- or, as the Indians called it, Am-a-qua Creek-rises in the north part of the county, and running south admirably waters and drains the western portion of the county. These, with other smaller streams and branches, distribute a plentiful supply of never failing stock water to nearly every portion of the county. Springs are found in many places along the streams, and good well water is easily obtained on the prairies. TIMBER. A fine body of timber from four to five miles wide extends along the Des Moines River, entirely across the county, while some fine groves are found on Squaw Creek in the northeast, and on Beaver in the southwest, which embraces most of the varieties indigenous to this state, among which are white, black and burr oak, white and black walnut, hard and soft maple, linn, elm, ash, hackberry, honey locust, cottonwood, etc., etc. The hard maple, or sugar tree, is quite abundant along the Des Moines River, and large quantities of maple sugar were formerly made, but many of the groves have been cut to supply cord wood for Boone and Boonsboro markets, and for the railroad. As Boone County was included in what was called the "neutral grounds," and was seldom ventured upon by the Indians, it was a paradise of all kinds of wild game for several years before its settlement by whites. The great belt of Des Moines timber extending across the county from north to south, so nearly dividing it equally, is a peculiar advantage that Boone possesses over many others. In the south part of the county, where the Des Moines with its heavy timber bears somewhat eastward, the deficiency in the southwest part is compensated by some fine groves along Beaver Creek. In the north part, where the Des Moines timber is nearest the west, the deficiency is supplied by groves along Squaw Creek. SURFACE AND SOIL. The general character of the surface is rolling or undulating, and in some parts, especially along the Des Moines River, is somewhat rough and broken. Most of this broken ground is, however, covered with a heavy growth of hard timber. A singular chain of hills, called Mineral Ridge, extends across the north part of the county from west to east, and is so called from the fact that the early surveyors discovered that in crossing the ridge the magnetic needle always became deranged and refused to settle truly. On the west side of the Des Moines there is a prominent spur called Pilot Mound, the summit of which overlooks the surrounding country for many miles in every direction. There is a tradition of a great Indian battle having been fought near Pilot Mound, and the plowshare of the farmer frequently turns up bones of the slain in that vicinity, while a large number of skeletons have been exhumed on the top of the mound. Opposite the mouth of Honey Creek there is a chain of artificial mounds, nine in number, the largest one being fifteen feet high. They have the same general appearance and characteristics as other mounds scattered throughout the West, and were doubtless burial places of the dead. The soil of the Des Moines River bottoms is a deep, rich alluvial deposit, and in its natural condition is generally covered with a heavy growth of timber. In this timber the early settlers have made many fine farms. This land produces the most luxuriant crops of corn. Though the soil is not so deep on the prairies, it produces excellent crops, and is well adapted to farming purposes. COAL, STONE, ETC. According to the authority of the State Geology, the whole of Boone County lies within the recognized limits of the coal fields, yet as far as known coal has only been discovered at a few points near the center, which is doubtless in a great measure due to the great depth of the drift which covers the strata of the county, and also in part to a supposed general depression of all the strata, so that the sub-carboniferous as well as the lower strata of the lower coal-measures are brought somewhat beneath the level of the bed of the Des Moines River along the whole length of the county. Banks have been extensively worked near Boonsboro and Moingona upon the line of the Chicago & Northwestern Railway, and large quantities of coal have been shipped by this road to Council Bluffs and Omaha, to supply local demands and for the use of the Union Pacific Railroad. There are two distinct beds, the principal one being the lowest and is some four feet thick, while the upper one is from two and a half to three feet thick, the quality of the coal in both veins being the same, though the lower one is most extensively worked. Being the only mines yet opened on the line of this road in Iowa, they are of great value and importance both to the county and the railroad company. There is no reasonable doubt but that there are other beds equally valuable, that may yet be reached by sinking shafts from the prairie surface in different parts of the county. There is good building stone in the south part of the county at Elk Rapids, from which some of the stone used in the foundation of the court house at Des Moines were taken. Stone is also found in many places, and brick have been extensively manufactured in the vicinity of Boone and Boonsboro. Underlying the vein of coal now being worked, is a bed of good fine brick clay, which is inexhaustible in quantity. There is another bed of the same material, but containing less sulphur, above the coal. Some iron ore has been discovered, but not in sufficient quantities to be made available. Mineral ridge, in the north part of the county, is supposed from various indications to contain a deposit of iron ore. EARLY HISTORY. The first settlement was made in May, 1846, at a place known as "Peas' Point," a neck of prairie extending into the timber on the east side of the Des Moines River, just south of where Boonsboro is located. The pioneers who composed the little band were John Pea, James Hull, Jr., John M. Crooks, S. H. Bowers and Thomas Sparks. About the same time, or a little later, C. W. Gaston, Montgomery McCall, S. Clark, and several families of Swedes settled near a place called Elk Rapids, in the south part of the county. In the Spring of 1847, McCall and Clark removed and settled near the present site of Boonsboro. For several years, as usual, the early settlers had to undergo many privations, often being obliged to go fifty miles to mill. The nearest post office was Fort Des Moines, forty miles distant. About 700 Pottawattamie Indians spent the Winter of 1846-7 in the county, but maintained amicable terms with their pale-faced neighbors. The first birth of a white child was that of a son of John Hull, Sr. The first death was that of a boy named Milton Lott, who was frozen to death about the 18th of December, 1846. He was buried on the Des Moines River, near where Myer's mill now stands. The second death was that of John McCall, who died at the house of his uncle, Montgomery McCall, in the Spring of 1848, from the effects of some poisonous substance which he drank from a newly opened spring of water. The lad Milton Lott, whose death is mentioned as the first in the county, was the son of a man named Henry Lott, who, after stopping a short time in Boone County, had moved up and settled at the mouth of Boone River, in what is now Webster County, his object being to trade with the Indians. They, however, regarded him as an intruder, and gave him a certain time to leave their hunting ground. Failing to comply, at the expiration of the time the Indians returned and commenced the destruction of his property. At this time Lott and his step-son were some distance from the cabin, but could see the Indians killing cattle, and also fancied that they were tomahawking the family and setting fire to the cabin. Being unarmed, they started for "Peas Point" for assistance, that being the nearest settlement, where they reported that the Sioux had murdered the family. The settlers at "Peas Point" and Elk Rapids, with some friendly Indians who were hostile to the Sioux, immediately organized an expedition, and started for the scene of the supposed massacre. When they arrived there they were agreeably disappointed to find that Lotts' family had not been massacred, although left by the Indians in a destitute condition. But the most melancholy part of the affair is this; After the departure of Lott and his step-son for the settlement, a younger lad, Milton Lott, made his escape from the cabin, and attempted to follow his father and half-brother. He followed down the Des Moines River on the ice, crossing the points where there were bends, as shown by his tracks in the light snow which covered the ground. He was found about three miles from where Boonsboro is now located, where, unable to proceed any further, he had frozen to death. He was about twelve years of age. The circumstances related above have the greater importance from the fact that out of them probably grew the Spirit Lake Massacre of 1857. In the Winter of 1852-3, Lott and his son having removed to what is now Humboldt County, in retaliation inhumanly butchered Sim-an-e-do-lah, the old chief of the Sioux, with his family of women and children. It was undoubtedly to revenge this act that Ink-pa-du-ta, who was a brother of the old chief killed, perpetrated the massacre at Spirit Lake. The first marriage in the county was Henry Holcomb to Mary Jane Hull, January 17, 1850, by Pembroke Gault, a justice of the peace for Boone County. ORGANIZATION. Boone County was formed by the first State Legislature, during the session of 1846-7, and was so named in honor of Captain Nathan Boone, of the First Regiment United States Dragoons. He was a relative of Daniel Boone, of Kentucky fame, and before any settlement was made in the county by the whites, with a company of dragoons, explored this portion of Iowa, and obtained a correct knowledge of its topography. Up to 1849 the county remained attached to Polk for election, judicial, and revenue purposes. By authority of an act of the Legislature, Samuel B. McCall was appointed Organizing Sheriff, by Honorable William McKay, Judge of the Fifth Judicial District. The act provided for the organization of Pottawattamie and other counties, including Boone. The necessary steps for the new order of things were taken at the August election of 1849. The County Commissioners elected were Jesse Hull, Jonathan Boles, and John Boyles. The other county officers elected at the same time were; Reuben S. Clark, Commissioners' Clerk; John M. Wayne, Clerk of the District Court; John M. Crooks, Recorder and Treasurer; Samuel H. Bowers, Sheriff; Thomas Sparks, Surveyor; and W. C. Hull, Prosecuting Attorney. There were ninety votes cast at this election, the county being divided into three civil townships or voting precincts-Pleasant, Boone and Boone River, each comprising a strip eight miles across the county from east to west. At this time there was not a town or village in the county, and the commissioners fixed upon the house of John Bayles, in Boone Township, as the place of their first meeting. Their first order was that Reuben S. Clark purchase two dollars worth of writing paper for the use of the county officers, to be paid out of the first county funds not otherwise appropriated. The next business was an allowance of seventy-five cents to S. B. McCall for an order book. The eagle side of an American half dollar was made the temporary county seal. The commissioners ordered that their next meeting be at the house of John M. Wayne, in Boone Township, October 13, 1849. At this second meeting they fixed upon the house of John M. Crooks, where they continued to hold their meetings until April, 1851, when they met in the school house. At the same time the county was divided into school districts. The first road was located in March, 1850; the commissioners appointed to locate the same being Mathias White, Colonel John Rose, and Vickers Preston; S. C. Wood was the Surveyor. It was located from Fisher's Point to intersect the road leading from Panoach to Dallas County, near Boles' mill. A legislative enactment for the location of the county seat was approved January 18, 1851, which was the "rainy season," so that with great difficulty and many adventures in swimming rivers and swollen streams, two of the commissioners, David Sweem, of Marion County, and S. K. Scovell, of Dallas, came together about the 1st of July, and proceeded to discharge their duty, and on the 6th of the same month drove a stake about where the court house now stands in Boonsboro, and informed the citizens that there should be their county seat, which they named Boonsboro at the suggestion of S. B. McCall. By an order of the county commissioners, Thomas Sparks, County Surveyor, proceeded to lay off the town into lots, a sale of which was ordered to take place on the first Monday in October, 1851, notice being given in the Fort Des Moines and Oskaloosa papers. The first term of the District Court convened in Boonsboro, October 6, 1851, Judge William McKay presiding, the county being embraced in the Fifth Judicial District. James Lacy was the Sheriff. Madison Young was appointed Prosecuting Attorney; James Corbin, Bailiff; and Wesley C. Hull was admitted to practice law. COUNTY OFFICIALS FOR 1875. LUKE L. SAWYER, Auditor. PHIL. LIVINGSTON, Clerk of Courts. GEORGE E. JONES, Treasurer. JOHN F. BRETT, Recorder. JEHILE B. HURLBURT, Sheriff. THOMAS P. COIN, Supt. Common Schools. CHARLES WESTON, Chairman Board of Supervisors. THE PRESS. The first newspaper ever published in the county was the Boone County News, established in July, 1856, at Boonsboro, by Capron & Sanders. It was a neat paper, Republican in politics, and was conducted by them some four years. It has since passed through many changes in proprietorship and name, having been called the Times, Advocate, Herald, and was changed back to nearly its original name by its present proprietors, Evans & Rickard, who are making it a paper well worthy of being the descendant of the first paper issued in the county. The Boone Standard is a handsome nine column sheet, Republican in politics, and was established by William H. Gullup, in the Spring of 1865, who managed it for some two years, and then sold the establishment to Holt & Ballon; re-purchased it in 1868, and in September, 1869, sold to the present proprietor, J. M. Brainard, who has since conducted it in such a manner as to secure a liberal patronage, and wield a wide and powerful influence in the county. The Boone County Democrat made its appearance in 1868, with L. Ragent as editor and publisher. It is a reliable and spicy local sheet, independent in politics, ably edited and managed by J. Hornstein, and has been adopted as the organ of the Grangers of Boone County. The Boone County Republican was established in 1865, by O. C. Bates, and having passed through several changes in proprietorship, is now successfully conducted by Means & Downing, who, with new presses and material, are publishing a handsome, readable paper, that is constantly and steadily growing in influence and patronage. The Ogden Reporter, established in 1874, is a neat, local newspaper published at Ogden, by Earl Billings. BOONSBORO. This place is pleasantly situated east of the Des Moines River, with a fine timber protection on the north, west, and south. The location is rolling and well drained, and there is an abundance of coal and timber in the immediate vicinity. The first house was erected by W. C. Hall, and was built of hewed logs, two stories high, and was located on the lot now occupied by the Park House, on the east side of the public square. Among the first settlers of the town were—W. P. Hull, J. A. McFarland, John Houser, William and Wesley Carroll, S. B. McCall, Doctors J. F. Rice and D. S. Holton. The town contains good schools, while the leading religious denominations have organizations and handsome churches. BOONE. This is an enterprising, driving business town, containing a population of about twenty-five hundred, situated on the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad, immediately east of Boonsboro, of which it might almost be considered a part. It was laid out and the first sale of lots took place in 1865, being originally called Montana. The first business house was a building removed from Boonsboro, May 3, 1865, by C. V. Nelson. In it he opened a stock of groceries two days later. The first residence was built by—Craft, and the second by J. E. Evans early the same spring. About the first of July building commenced in earnest, and from that time forward its growth has been steady and substantial. It is at the end of the eastern and western divisions of the Iowa portion of the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad, which company have erected expensive improvements, consisting of a large round house, machine, engine, and blacksmith shops, and a large freight house which contains the telegraph and division offices of the company. MOINGONA is located on the railroad just west of the Des Moines River, and about five miles southwest of Boone. It is noted as a coal mining town, and large shipments are made both East and West. It was laid out in July, 1866. OGDEN is an important shipping point on the railroad, some five miles west of Moingona.