Dane County WI Archives History - Books .....Cambridge 1877 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/wi/wifiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com April 27, 2006, 4:19 am Book Title: Madison, Dane County And Surrounding Towns... CAMBRIDGE. BY HON. GEO. DOW AND A. B. CARPENTER. CAMBRIDGE village is situated on the extreme eastern part of the county, in the township of Christiana, and about twenty-four miles southeast of Madison. It is beautifully situated on both sides of the Koskonong creek, with picturesque surrounding of oak openings and prairie lands. Immediately south of the village the country was very marshy, but now sufficiently improved to be used for pasturage; though in the early settlement of the town and before a road was made through, it was almost impassible in wet weather, and here it is said Black Hawk and his people took refuge in 1832, after passing through Fort Atkinson, on his way to the Mississippi. On the dry spots between Cambridge and Clinton, he and his people could camp safe and dry, while the difficulty of access precluded any possibility of his being molested by the troops. Here, Black Hawk says, his sufferings were very great, as there was but very little game or fish to be had, and his people were obliged to dig roots and bark the trees to satisfy their hunger, many of the old people dying from actual want. The marching and countermarching of the troops deceived them so much that it deterred the young men from separating to hunt or fish, although abundance of both game and fish were to be found immediately outside of their surroundings. Since these times, considerable change has taken place in the character of the land in the vicinity of Cambridge, as also in other parts of our county, the results of cultivation and the extensive destruction of forest trees without supplying their place with other timber. Many of the early settlers can remember localities where were rapid flowing streams, that are now highly cultivated fields. In 1847, Joseph Keyes (father of E. W. Keyes, of political fame), Abel Keyes, and A. B. Carpenter, now of Beloit, purchased the water power and land forming the village, and surveyed and laid it out in July of the same year, and, early in the following fall, built the first dwelling house. During the same year they built the inevitable adjunct of an American village, a saw and grist mill, together with a store for the sale of merchandise. The same year the Hon. Geo. Dow and Mr. Wheeler built a hotel (the Cambridge House), and another store, and there also were several trades establishments. In 1856 Mr. Dow brought a carding machine into the village for the preparing of wool. At the close of the first year, the village grew so rapidly, and daily receiving additions, that it numbered about 500 inhabitants, and celebrated its anniversary with that of the nation's on July 4th, 1848, on which occasion there were delegates from Madison, Lake Mills, Jefferson, Fort Atkinson and other adjoining towns, numbering about 3,000 persons. The procession formed in front of the Cambridge House, and was preceded to the stand by the Cambridge Rifle Company and the Madison Brass Band. Prayer was offered by Rev. Wm. Cargen, the Declaration read by Wm. Welch, Esq., of Madison, and the oration by Dr. L. Ravella Humphrey, of Beloit. The first store in the village was kept by A. B. Carpenter and Norman Dutcher, under the firm name of A. B. Carpenter & Co. The upper part of the store was used as a dwelling house, and access obtained by a ladder which, for better protection, was swung up at night. For several years the Indians were rather troublesome from their begging propensities, but were never hostile except in some of their drunken carousals, when it was then deemed unsafe to either encounter or have them near the village. When Cambridge was first laid out, the surrounding land was still unentered, and could be purchased at government figures, and Mr. A. B. Carpenter at that time entered 1,000 acres, which has proved to be among the richest and most fertile lands in the state. The laying out of the village was done under an assurance from the Milwaukee and Prairie du Chien Railroad that they would pass through there; a promise which they never kept, but toward which the early settlers spent large amounts of money in expectation of their so doing. Wheat in those days brought 25 cents a bushel, and oats 10 cents, and had to be marketed in Milwaukee, where merchandise was brought back in exchange, sometimes packed in flour barrels, that cost at that time 55 cents each, empty, and were again returned full of flour. In 1864, Hon. George Dow built a woolen mill, and a large amount of superior woolen goods have been manufactured there, and sold throughout both the county and state. In 1874, a cheese factory was also started by Mr. Dow, and has met with merited success. The scenery around Cambridge is beautifully diversified by prairie, woodlands, cultivated farms and small lakes, the principal one of which is Ripley, or Dow's Lake. It is of considerable depth, and embraces a circuit of four miles in circumference; its water pure and clear as crystal, and, together with the other lakes abounding in the numerous varieties of fish to be found in the lakes around Madison, as also all kinds of game, in fact, the country around Cambridge was noted at one time as the hunter's paradise. Mr. Dow recollects seeing as many as 200 deer in a, drove, and often 75 to 100. There are two churches in the village, one Methodist and one Presbyterian. In early times, the people attended church in an old log cabin; and for want of better, sat on fence boards laid across stakes of wood. The Methodist church was organized in 1848, and the present pastor is Rev. Mr. Hansen. The Presbyterian Church in 1847, and its present pastor, the Rev. John Patterson. The village is also the residence of the celebrated surgeon, Dr. J. C. Dundas, whose reputation as one of the most skillful surgeons, is well and widely known throughout all the northwest. He studied his profession in Europe among the universities of England, Holland, Germany, Russia and Norway, and entered the Holland service as a surgeon, was for over two years in that capacity in the empires of China and Japan. Dr. L. C. Clark is also a physician and surgeon in the village, with a good wide practice throughout the township and those adjoining, where he is highly esteemed for his professional ability and courtesy. The present population of Cambridge is about 400 inhabitants, and the business is principally confined to supplying the wants of the surrounding country. Among those engaged in business are the following: S. H. Butler, cabinetmaker; Messrs. George Dow & Son, commission merchants; Thomas Overson, hardware dealer; A. H. Krogh, manufacturer of artificial limbs; Thomas Slagg, drugs and groceries; James T. Gilbert & Brother, hotel keepers; Olson & Hodges, merchants; J. C. Dundas, physician and surgeon; L. C. Clark, physician and surgeon; Hans Anderson, boot and shoe maker; John Johnson, tailor; P. A. England, and Samuel Irwin, blacksmiths; T. N. Save, boot and shoe maker, Hovey, Bros. &, Co., merchants; and David Schoe, manufacturer of agricultural machinery. Additional Comments: Extracted from: Dane County Towns Section MADISON, DANE COUNTY AND SURROUNDING TOWNS; BEING A HISTORY AND GUIDE TO PLACES OF SCENIC BEAUTY AND HISTORICAL NOTE FOUND IN THE TOWNS OF DANE COUNTY AND SURROUNDINGS, INCLUDING THE ORGANIZATION OF THE TOWNS, AND EARLY INTERCOURSE OF THE SETTLERS WITH THE INDIANS, THEIR CAMPS, TRAILS, MOUNDS, ETC. WITH A COMPLETE LIST OF COUNTY SUPERVISORS AND OFFICERS, AND LEGISLATIVE MEMBEES, MADISON VILLAGE AND CITY COUNCIL. ILLUSTRATED, MADISON, WIS.: PUBLISHED BY WM. J. PARK & CO., BOOKSELLERS, STATIONERS AND BINDERS, 11 KING STREET. 1877. COPYRIGHT. WM. J. PARK & CO. 1877. DAVID ATWOOD, STEREOTYPER AND PRINTER, MADISON, WIS. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/wi/dane/history/1877/madisond/cambridg33nms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/wifiles/ File size: 8.3 Kb