Waupaca County WI Archives History - Books .....Chapter XIV 1890
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Joy Fisher http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 June 28, 2008, 1:31 am

Book Title: History Of Waupaca Co., WI

CHAPTER XIV.

TOWN OF DAYTON—ITS HISTORY AS WBITTEN BY J. HOLMAN IN 1876—PABFEEY'S "PEPPER
MILL"—A BEAR STORY.

  In treating the Town of Dayton we can not do better than to publish entire a
sketch by J. Hol-man, written in 1876, as follows:

  "At a meeting of the County Board held at Mukwa, December 7, 1852, Township 21
north, of Range 11 east, was detached from the Town of Lind, and organized as a
distinct town, to be called Dayton. It was the first single township in the
County separately organized as a town.

  "At the same meeting, it was ordered that the first town meeting for the Town
of Dayton be held at the house of Lyman Dayton, on the se 1/4 of the ne 1/4 of
Section 15. At said town meeting, April 15, 1853, the following town officers
were elected:

  "Chairman—W. C. Carr; Supervisors—Samuel Shaw, James Lathrop; Town Clerk—John
Martin, Jr.; Treasurer—Thomas F. Thompson; Assessors —J. D. Chamberlain, S. F.
Eaton, and H. N. Waterhouse; Town Superintendent—Samuel Simcock; Justices of the
Peace—L. Dayton, Aaron Carter, and Amos D. Munger; Constables—Edwin Packard,
George Barnhart, and William J. Chamberlain.

  "J. H. Jones also was Justice of the Peace, having been elected the year
before, in Lind. Dayton, Barnhart, and Packard did not qualify.

  "It was voted that the next town meeting, in 1854, be held at the house of W.
C. Carr, Crystal Lake, ne 1/4 of Section 28. The town meeting of 1855 was held
at the house of J. H. Jones, Rural; and that of 1856 was held at Parfreyville.
Since then the town meetings have been held alternately at Rural and Parfreyville.

  "The first settler in the Town of Dayton was a Mr. Hitchcock, who built a
shanty in April, 1850, on the farm now owned by W. D. Emmons, nw 1/4 of ne 1/4
of Section 8. His family being sick, he left the next Fall, 1850.

  "Early in 1850, Samuel Shaw settled on the farm now owned by E. M. Sawyer, se
1/4 of ne 1/4 of Section 7, and about the same time Thomas F. Thompson settled
on the farm now owned by William Harden, better known as the Ashman place, ne
1/43 of se 1/4 of Section 7.

  "In May, 1850, George C. Van Horn arrived, driving the first team of horses
into the town. He settled on the farm now owned by Mrs. Van Horn, Section 7. Van
Horn built the first log house in town, on the ne 1/4 of sw 1/4 of Section 7.
The house was not ready to live in until near Fall. Before that time, their only
shelter was a carpet hung over some poles, Mrs. Van Horn doing the cooking in
the open air. Mr. Van Horn broke the first land in town, in May, 1850, on Section
7.

  "June 20, 1850, George Barnhart, Joseph Robbins, and Aaron L., John and
Anthony Forbes arrived with their families, in all twenty persons.

  "Barnhart, after living in his covered wagon about six weeks, built a shanty
on the farm now owned by E. Gallup, se 1/4 of Section 13. The same Fall, 1850,
he moved his shanty to the nw 1/4 of sw 1/4 of Section 11, on the south bank of
the river.

  "Joseph Robbins settled on the farm now owned by Mrs. H. Taloda, nw 1/4 of
Section 24.

  "Aaron Forbes settled on the farm now owned by John Clark, ne 1/4 of Section 24.

  "John Forbes settled on the ne 1/4 of se1/4 of Section 24, just where the road
from the northwest strikes the town line.

  "Anthony Forbes settled in Lind.

  "In July, 1850, Lyman Dayton arrived and settled on the farm now owned by
Norman Baker, se 1/4 of nw 1/4 of Section 15.

  "We can not ascertain that any others came in 1850.

  "Among those who came in 1851 were Robert Parfrey, Section 11, Parfreyville;
J. H. Jones, ne 1/4 of Section 10; W. Caley, se of se of Section 2, where he now
lives; J. A. Robbins, on the farm now owned by William Radley, ne of se of
Section 20; H. H. Waterhouse, on the farm now owned by John Burgoyne, ne of
Section 31; W. J. Chamberlain, on the farm now owned by R. Neil-son, nw of sw of
Section 7; S. Story, where he now lives, nw of sw of Section 8; O. Dutcher, on
the farm now owned by J. Day, se of ne of Section 14; Thomas Morgan, on the farm
now owned by F. Shoemaker, sw of sw of Section 15; and Joseph and Robert
McCrossen, on the farm now owned by A. P. Hyatt, se of se of Section 4.

  "Early in 1852 the following named persons arrived, forming what is still
called the "Crystal Lake Settlement:" W. C. and W. S. Carr, Section 28; Rev.
Samuel and William Simcock, Section 21; Chester Packard, Section 34; Edwin and
Sumner Packard, Section 27; S. Randall, Section 21; J. Conklin, Section 22; and
S. F. and W. S. Eaton, Section 34.

  "Also, in 1852, came F. Suydam, Section 31; John Martin, Jr., Section 19; A.
D. Munger, Section 6; A. Carter, Section 20; H. McLean, Section 25; Joseph A.
Lathrop, Section 1; E. Smith, Section 1; R. Rorabacher, Section 19; and Joseph
Edwards, Section 22.

  "W. D. Emmons, F. Shoemaker, G. W. Stinemates, J. Stratton, J. Day, A. Potts,
and others, came in 1853.

  "Among the many who came in 1854 were M. H. Rice, S. W. Hoyt, and R. Holman.'

  "For the first season or two provisions were not very plentiful. The settlers
could supply themselves with venison and other game without going far from their
clearings, but for flour, groceries, etc., they were obliged to go to Strong's
Landing, as Berlin was then called, and some of them went even to Sheboygan and
Milwaukee for supplies.

  "In the Fall of 1850 Mrs. Dayton was obliged to eke out her small supply of
flour with an occasional dish of soup, which she made by chopping some corn in a
bowl. About the same time, bread became very scarce at Van Horn's. Mr. Van Horn,
after putting up his log house, had gone with his team to Racine County, to work
on a threshing machine, after which he was to return with a load of supplies.
But before his return Mrs. Van Horn had got nearly to the bottom of the flour
sack; so she went to Mr. Hitchcock, on the Emmons place, to try to buy some
buckwheat, of which he had about half an acre standing in the shock. He told her
he was going to move away soon, and she could have the buckwheat if she could
use it. The next day she took her carpet for a threshing floor, and some bags,
and went down and carried the shocks together, and pounded them out with a
stick, getting six bags of grain and chaff. With the first favorable breeze she
winnowed out a half bushel of grain, and, taking it oil foot to Mr. Dayton's,
ground it in their coffee mill, and sifted it in their seive, leaving the bran
for toll.*


  *That is a fair sample of the kind of helpmates the first settlers of our
County were blessed with. Long live the memory of the pioneer women of Waupaca
County!        J. W.


  "But Dayton's coffee mill soon gave way to the "Pepper Mill," as Parfrey's
grist mill, built in 1851, was called. Parfrey's grist mill was 16 x 20 feet,
boarded up and down. The shafts were made of tamarac and oak, unhewn. The wobble
of the machinery, occasioned by crooked shafts, was counteracted by tightening
pulleys, weighted down with stones. The belts were made of bags, sewed together,
and cotton factory cloth.

  "It is well remembered that the first grinding in Parfrey's mill was one
Saturday afternoon. The next day Parfrey attended meeting at the house of Thomas
Spencer. After the sermon, and before the benediction was fairly finished,
Parfrey jumped to his feet, and, taking a handful of flour from the tail pocket
of his coat, shouted at the top of his voice, ' Here's a sample of my flour!'

  "The water power at Parfreyville was staked out and claimed by Thomas Spencer
in the Spring of 1850, and was by him given to Parfrey on condition that he
should build a mill and grind a bushel of corn before the mill then being built
at Waupaca (in 1851) should grind a kernel. Parfrey accomplished the task.

  "Custom increased rapidly, and in 1855 Parfrey took a partner into the
business, and built a large mill on the spot where the old one stood. But
Parfrey's partner and the hard times of 1857 were too much for him; so he sold
his interest in the mill at Parfreyville, and built a small mill at the foot of
Junction Lake. But, his financial embarrassment continuing, he disposed of his
mill at Junction Lake, and left the country.

  "In 1863 the mill at Parfreyville was thoroughly repaired by J. D. Kast, after
which it did a large and paying business until Christmas, 1874, when it was
burned to the ground. In the Spring of 1876 the high water, which was the
highest ever known in this stream, destroyed the dam, leaving the water to flow
in its old channel, and thus uncovering ground that had been under water since
the summer of 1851.

  "Parfrey's house, the first built in Parfreyville, was 12 x 14 feet. It was
built in March, 1851, by George Barnhart, while Parfrey was away after his
family. It stood on the south side of the river, close by the two pine trees now
standing on the bank. The pines were transplanted when very small, twenty-three
years ago. The road leading toward Crystal Lake now crosses the exact spot where
the old house stood.

  "The first frame house in town was built by J. H. Jones, early in 1851. It
stood on the south side of the river, at the foot of Junction Lake.

  "In the Fall and Winter of 1852, Jones built the house now owned by W. J.
Chamberlain, in Rural.

  "In 1856, Jones built the mill building now owned by J. and C. S. Ashman, but
the machinery was not put in operation until 1862.

  "In 1853 James A. Lathrop built a saw mill at Crystal River, which was
operated until it had exhausted the pine that grew along the streams and lakes
of Dayton and Farmington, and in the swamps of Lind.

  "In 1867, Lathrop & Palmer built a carding mill on the spot where the saw mill
stood.

  "In 1855, Lathrop & Barnum built the grist mill now owned by E. Gruner.

  "The first postoffice in town was established in 1851. 'Nepawan' was the name,
and L. Dayton was the first postmaster. In 1853, Nepawan post-office was removed
to Rural, and J. H. Jones was appointed postmaster.

  "The first public school was taught in 1852, by Miss Eunice Randall, now Mrs.
W. S. Carr, in Pleasant Valley neighborhood, in a shanty school house which
stood on the farm now owned by R. Neilson.

  "A private school was taught the same Summer (1852) by Miss Almira Dayton, in
one room of J. H. Jones' house, at Junction Lake. Miss Dayton's way of noting
the flight of time during school hours was by watching the shadow of the sash
upon the window sill, which she had marked off for the different hours of the day.

  "The first frame school house was built at Pleasant Valley, in 1854. It is
still in use. It then stood a little west from where E. M. Sawyer now lives.

  "In the Summer of 1853, Miss Eunice Randall taught the first school in the
Crystal Lake neighborhood, in the log house of Mr. Simcock. The house still
stands on the farm now owned by T. F. Fuller.

  "The first school house at Rural was the small house now occupied by William
Nickel. One of the first who taught in it was Miss Ellen Jane Jones, now Mrs. J.
Ashman.

  "The first school at Parfreyville was taught in the Summer of 1854, by Miss
Jane Lathrop, in a shanty on the lot where the school house now stands. W. S.
Carr taught in the same shanty in the Winter of 1855-56. The school house now in
use was built by W. C. Barlow in the Fall of 1856. At the present time there are
eight school houses in town.

  "The first preaching in town was by a Methodist minister by the name of
Miller, and by the Rev. Cutting Marsh, Indian missionary at Waupaca. Rev. Samuel
Simcock also preached during 1852 and for three years thereafter. John Martin,
Jr., preached occasionally at Pleasant Valley, in the house of T. F. Thompson.

  "The first funeral in town was that of a child of Joseph Robbins, Section 24,
in August, 1850. The first adult person who died in the town was the wife of
Robert Parfrey, in March, 1851.

  "The first white child born in the town was Calvin Morgan, son of Thomas and
Fanny Morgan, and grandson of L. Dayton, in February, 1851.

  "The first marriage ceremony in town was performed by J. H. Jones, Justice of
the Peace. The parties were James McCrossen and Miss Cornelia A. Jones.

  " The first public highway in town was a State road from Weyauwega, in the
direction of Stevens Point. It crossed the farm now owned by C. Sheldon, and
passed on westward by Dayton's place. The first bridge was built near Dayton's.

  "The road from the west, through Rural, Parfreyville, and Crystal River, was
laid out in 1852. The remains of the first bridge at Parfreyville can yet be
seen, just above the present bridge. Before the bridge was built, the river was
forded a few rods farther north, at the place where C. M. Jones' wagon shop now
stands.

  "The first blacksmith in town was William Caley. He had a small shop in 1851
and 1852, about thirty rods north of the bridge, at Parfreyville, on the north
bank of the river, where the house of S. H. Conklin now stands. The blacksmith
shop now in use at Parfreyville was built by R. Holman in 1854, and is the
oldest building now standing.

  "In 1852, N. P. Judson kept a small supply of groceries, etc., in a shanty on
the south side of the river, about one hundred rods west from Parfrey's. He soon
moved to Waupaca.

  "In January, 1855, S. W. Hoyt opened a store in the wing of R. Holman's house.
L. J. Hebard was Hoyt's clerk.

  "The total value of all property in town at the first assessment, in 1853, was
$9,630.75. Taxes for that year were as follows: State tax, $57.59; County tax,
$78.89; County school tax, $25; Town tax, $70; total, $231.68. The town tax
included $35 voted to pay indebtedness incurred in 1852, while connected with
Lind."

                             J. HOLMAN.

  In 1853, W. C. Carr planted the first apple tree. He raised fruit about ten
years later.

  The first winter after Mr. Carr built his house, which was 18 x 24 feet, he
had to accommodate, for several weeks, four families besides his own —people who
had made claims and were waiting to put up cabins. Besides that, he was
continually keeping travelers who were looking for land. That is the way many of
our old pioneers were forced to spend a few of the first years in this then wild
region; and we are fain to believe that the majority of them really enjoyed life
with a zest unknown after a country becomes settled and improved. At least, such
is our experience, and we often hear the same sentiment expressed by others who
have had pioneer experiences.

  We shall give a bear story, told us by Mr. Carr:

  One day Mrs. Carr went into the garden, and saw there what she took to be a
large black dog. She immediately returned, and reported what she had seen. Mr.
Carr quickly went out, and found just what he anticipated—a young bear, quite
large. As he approached it, young bruin started for the tree fence, and, as it
was going through, Mr. Carr grabbed for its foot, but missed it. He then gave
the alarm, and his son put the dogs on the track. The bear was soon treed and
shot. Carr thinks that if he could only have got hold of that bear's foot, there
would have been lively times in that garden—and we rather think the old
gentleman is right!

  The following is a list of the town officers for 1889: Chairman—P. A. Hamm;
Supervisors — N. M. Darling, A. E. Williams; Treasurer—M. E. Barton; Clerk—L. F.
Shoemaker; Assessor—E. L. Devine; Justices of the Peace—T. Court, W. S. Eaton.


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.


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