Waupaca County WI Archives History - Books .....Chapter IX 1890 ************************************************ 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 http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 June 26, 2008, 4:36 am Book Title: History Of Waupaca Co., WI CHAPTER IX. CHARGES AGAINST MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN—VOTE ON COUNTY SEAT—FIRST MEETING OF THE COUNTY BOARD AT WEYAUWEGA—RESOLUTIONS OF THE BOARD ON THE COUNTY SEAT QUESTION. MEETING AT MUKWA. November 14, 1854, a meeting of the County Board was held at Mukwa. It was called to order by James Smiley, Chairman of Mukwa, Mellen Chamberlain, the Clerk of the Board, having refused to call the Board to order. George E. More, of Royalton, was elected Chairman. Charges were then presented against Mellen Chamberlain, Clerk of the Board, for wilful neglect of duty. A copy of the charges were served on him, and evidence produced before the Board to support them. On motion of James Smiley, the question of removing Mr. Chamberlain from office was put to a vote with the following result: Yeas—James Smiley, M. G. More, E. Stanley, J. Erickson, G. E. More, Carr Barker, Thomas Gore. Refusing to vote—W. C. Carr, and ______, representative from Waupaca. The Clerk was declared removed from office, and John Fordyce, of Weyauwega, was elected to act as Clerk of the Board. The chairmanship of the Town of Lind being claimed by J. J. Jones and J. W. Chandler, a vote was taken, resulting in Mr. Chandler's favor. The following officers were declared elected at the November election: O. E. Dreutzer, Register of Deeds; James H. Jones, Clerk of the Court; James Smiley, Clerk of the Board; Lucius Taft, County Treasurer; A. V. Balch, County Surveyor; A. Redfield, Coroner; George A. La Dow, District Attorney. For removal of County seat, 41; against removal, 341. The Clerk was authorized "to use the eagle side of a ten-dollar gold piece for a seal" until another should be procured. The Board adjourned, to meet at the house of William Martin, Weyauwega, at 12 o'clock m., November 28. MEETING IN 1855, AT MUKWA. November 13, 1855, the County Board of Supervisors met at Mukwa. George E. More was elected Chairman. Supervisors present—Caledonia, Thomas Gore; Weyauwega, Louis Bostedo; Lind, G. M. Pope; Royalton, George E. More; Mukwa, James Smiley; Lebanon, M. G. More; Little Wolf, J. F. Sterns. Absent — Representatives from Dayton, Farmington, Waupaca, and Scandinavia. The canvassers reported as follows: For Member of Assembly, Louis Bostedo received 604 votes in the County, and William Brenquest received 64. The following persons were declared elected: Clerk of the Court, Henry Mumbrue; Clerk of the Board, James Smiley; Register of Deeds, Charles L. Gumaer. The whole number of votes cast for and against the removal of the County seat to Weyauwega was 818, of which number 753 were for removal, and 65 against removal. C. C. Kinsman was granted a charter for a ferry at Fremont, and Ira Brown for one at Northport. TOWN OF BEAR CREEK FORMED. Townships 24 and 25, Range 14, and Township 24, Range 15, were set off into a town by the name of Bear Creek; the first election to be held at the house of Welcome Hyde. SPECIAL MEETING AT WEYAUWEGA. April 17, 1856, the County Board of Supervisors met in special session at Weyauwega. Supervisors present—Lind, George M. Pope; Weyauwega, Duncan Baxter; Caledonia, Thomas Gore; Mukwa, B. F. Phillips; Royalton, George E. More; St. Lawrence, C. S. Ogden; Little Wolf, J. F. Stevens; Lebanon, Patrick Murphy. Absent — Representatives from Dayton, Waupaca, Farmington, Scandinavia, and Iola. George M. Pope, of Lind, was elected Chairman. A committee was appointed to draft resolutions expressive of the sense of the Board in the County difficulties. The committee reported the following resolutions, which were adopted: RESOLUTIONS ON THE COUNTY SEAT QUESTION. " Resolved, That, in the opinion of the Board of Supervisors of Waupaca County, Weyauwega is in law the County seat of Waupaca County, having been so declared by the Board of Supervisors after canvassing the votes given on the question of County seat, at the place of meeting of said Board of Supervisors, and that it is in fact the County seat, having received a majority of the votes given on the question of removal of the County seat. "Resolved, That said Board represent that at the meeting of the County Board of Supervisors of the County of Waupaca, in the fall of 1854, every town comprised in the County of Waupaca was represented, except the Town of Farmington ; and at said meeting of the Board of Supervisors, among other things, Mellen Chamberlain was removed from the office of Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, and John Fordyce elected in his place; that the Towns of Iola and St. Lawrence were organized; and that the Board adjourned its next annual meeting at Mukwa, after levying the taxes for the County. That the Towns of Lind, Dayton, Farmington, and Waupaca at that time refused to pay their taxes, but have since levied the taxes as directed by the County Board, at aforesaid meeting in November, 1854; and that said Board did, also, at said meeting in November, 1854, declare Mukwa to be the County seat of Waupaca County, after the votes on the question of County seat had been canvassed. That the west part of this County, consisting of the Towns of Dayton, Farmington, and Waupaca, have acquiesced in the action of the Board, as aforesaid, by levying their taxes as directed by the Board as aforesaid in November, 1854, and giving the Supervisors from the Towns of Iola and St. Lawrence seats in the Board that assembled at Waupaca in 1855. And we, the Board of Supervisors, draw this conclusion,—that admitting a part of the acts of the Board of Supervisors in November, 1854, admits the whole; and admitting the Supervisors for the Towns of Iola and St. Lawrence to seats in the Board, admits John Fordyce to have been legally the Clerk of this Board. And we further state that the said John Fordyce, Clerk, at the County seat, the place fixed upon the year before for the meeting of the Board, after canvassing the votes given on the question of removal of the County seat, declared Weyauwega to have received the majority of all votes given on the question of removal of the County seat to Weyauwega, at the election in November, 1855; and further state that the above conclusions are arrived at after a careful investigation of the previous proceedings of the County Board, and of the election held in November, 1855. "Resolved, That the Judge of the Circuit Court be directed to hold the next term of the Circuit Court, for this County, at the Village of Weyauwega; and that La Dow's Hall be the Court House; that the Sheriff, Clerk of the Court, Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, Register of Deeds, and other County officers required to hold their offices at the County seat, are hereby directed and ordered to hold their offices at the Village of Weyauwega, the County seat of Waupaca County. "Resolved, That the Board find, from an investigation of the returns of the election in November, 1855, that the vote on the question of removal of County seat showed a majority of 53 in favor of the removal of the County seat to Weyauwega." Additional Comments: Extracted from: HISTORY OF WAUPACA COUNTY, WISCONSIN. By J. WAKEFIELD, Historian of Old Settlers' Society of Waupaca County. WAUPACA, WIS.: D. L. STINCHFIELD, 1890. COPYRIGHT, 1890, BY J. WAKEFIELD AND D. L. STINCHFIELD. Printed by D. L. STINCHFIELD, Waupaca, Wis. Bound by W. B. CONKEY, Chicago. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/wi/waupaca/history/1890/historyo/chapteri55nms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/wifiles/ File size: 8.0 Kb