doux resorted to the process of the law, to enforce the payment of the debt; judgment was obtained and the property sold upon execution on 14th of May, 1803, and purchased by Robedoux in satisfaction of his claim.

This property in these legal proceedings was described as being about six leagues above the river Des Moines. At the time of the sale, part of this tract of land had been improved by Honori, "by building houses, planting orchards, and a small piece was under fence and in cultivation."

Robedoux died soon after he purchased the property, and by his will appointed Agusti Choteau his executor, and authorized him to dispose of his property; who, by the authority vested in him, in April, 1805, sold the property to Thomas F. Reddeck. Honori, notwithstanding the property had been sold in 1803, to pay his debts, occupied it till after it was sold to Reddeck. This claim, as first made by the Spanish Government, was a league square, but after this country came under the jurisdiction of the United States, it was reduced by the authority of the latter Government, to one mile square. This grant embraced the site on which the town of Montrose was built, and was within the limits of the Half-Breed Reservation. After the Half-Breeds sold their lands, the purchasers set up a claim to this tract of land, as being part of the Half-Breed Reservation, while the Reddeck heirs claimed a right to it by a regular chain of title from the Spanish grant. And the different claimants resorted to the law to settle their rights, and after several years of litigation, it was decided in 1839, by the Supreme Court of the United States, in favor of the Reddeck heirs.

The trading establishment near the site of Burlington was a branch of the American Fur Company, and had been under the superintendence of John W. Johnson, who was a native of Maryland. Johnson had acted in the capacity of an Indian Agent, and took up with a Sac and Fox squaw, by whom he had three daughters. Johnson was fondly attached to his children, gave them a thorough education at a Catholic convent, and all three of the girls married highly-respectable gentlemen. After leaving the Indian country, he settled in St. Louis, and in 1833 was elected Mayor of that city, which office he held for three years. He died somewhere about 1852, and left a large estate, about which there was a hard-contested lawsuit. He had married a second wife, and it was claimed that the three half-breed girls could not inherit his property, because they were bastards, and not his legitimate heirs. But it was shown before the Court that his marriage to the Indian squaw was in accordance with the Indian mode of celebrating marriages, and was decided by the Court to be valid, and the girls were held to be his legitimate heirs, and got their share of his property.

AN EARLY VISIT TO SHOK-KO-KON.

Isaac R. Campbell prepared the following account of a trip through this section, in 1821, for the "Annals of Iowa:'

"I first visited this locality in June, 1821, it being then a wilderness and inhabited by the Sac and Fox tribes of Indians. The first marks I observed indicating the proximity of the white man was at Puck-e-she-tuc, or 'Foot of Rapids,' now Keokuk. A log cabin had been erected here one year before this, under the supervision of Dr. Samuel C. Muir, a surgeon in the United States army, located at Fort Edwards, now Warsaw, Ill. The next settlement, and probably the first made by a white man in this country, was six miles above, at Lemoliese, now Sandusky, a French trader occupying this post, being engaged in traffic with the natives; his nearest neighbor, Blondeau, resided about one one mile above. Monsieur Lemoliese had a very amiable lady for a wife, who

was fond of dress. She frequently, to please him, arrayed her person in gown, bonnet and shoes, but could not be prevailed upon to continue the costume, as her native garb-the blanket and petticoat-were more congenial to her feelings and taste.

"At the head of the Rapids was Montrose, an Indian village. The chief's name, in English, was Cut Nose.' Below the creek running into the river, on the lower side of the Indian town, were the remains of a deserted tradinghouse, around which were growing a number of apple-trees.

"On the opposite side of the river (Nauvoo), was another village of the Sac tribe, Quash-quaw-me, chief. I have often heard it remarked that this dignitary originally sold all the land embraced in the State of Illinois to the United States Government. The Nauvoo mansion, formerly the residence of the prophet, Joseph Smith, occupies a portion of their grave-yard, where many a warrior's bones have long since moldered into dust.

"As we passed on up the river, the next place of attraction was old Fort Madison, ten miles above the head of the Rapids, situated on the west side, half a mile below a sand-bluff, arising almost perpendicularly from the water's edge. This fort was constructed by Col. Zachary Taylor, and named in honor of James Madison, President of the United States.

"After leaving this old fort, on the second day we arrived, by keelboat, at Shok-ko-kon (Flint Hills), now Burlington, situated on the west side of the river, about twenty miles above. Here was a trading-post, occupant's name I have forgotten, and at the mouth of Flint Creek, or River, a short distance above, was located a Fox or Musquawka village. Its ruler and law-giver was the patriarch chief, Timea. Fifteen or twenty miles further up the river, on the east side, was Oquawka (Lower Yellow Banks). This point I did not visit, and will not attempt to give any account of its early history.

"I will now retrace my steps down the river, to the North Fabius, in Lewis County, Mo.. eight miles west of Quincy, where I remained on a farm for four years. During this period, I had occasion to travel over Lee County more than once, and at one time in company with an Indian for my guide, I started for 'Cut Nose Village' (Montrose), and on arriving at the Des Moines we found it swollen so much as to compel us to swim our cattle and construct a raft to cross our wagon and load. After being securely landed on the east bank of the river, after packing up, we pursued our journey, ascending the high lands above Grave-yard Bluff (Buena Vista), and following the divide between the Mississippi and Se-sa-paw-qua-sepo (Sugar Creek). Traveling east of north, we soon came in sight of a lone tree, standing upon the margin of the bluff, two miles southwest of our destination. This familiar landmark, to my guide, assured us we were traveling in the right direction, and by increasing our speed we were soon at our journey's end, completing the first trip made through Southern Iowa by wagon and ox-team. As an account of my residence in Missouri will not interest you so much as other localities with which you are more familiar, I will next refer you to my removal and settling at Commerce (Quash-qua-me Village), in the fall of 1825.

66

Capt. James White, my father-in-law, having preceded me here some time before, purchased from Julien, a French trader, all his improvements, consisting of an old, dilapidated trading-house, and all the land embraced in the Indian village, extending one and a half miles above and below the tradinghouse on the river. In this transfer, Monsieur Julien represented to Capt. White that this claim could be held as a Spanish grant, as he (Julien) had settled here in 1805, but eventually the claimants had to pre-empt to secure a good

title. A substantial two-story stone house, the first in Hancock County, Ill., was erected by Capt. White, on the point near Ferry Landing, from Montrose. This building he gave free use of to the county, for a Court House, as no selection had then been made for county seat, and after the Black Hawk war had commenced, settlers far and near resorted to this house as a safe place of refuge. It may be of some interest to you to hear the names of some of the first settlers at Nauvoo, the most of whom have gone to the bourn whence no traveler returns.

White, Willson, Waggonner, Williams, Whitney, Gouge, Dunn, Coon, Dewey, Shoebridge, Hilderbrand, Rev. Mr. Robinson (among the first to preach the Gospel), Mr. Hibbard and Mr. Miller, who erected the first mill, which manufactured coarse meal, at the rate of three bushels per hour, its motivepower one horse.' Messrs. Forrest and Robinson were the first to teach the

young prodigies their A B's:

"While residing here, I formed my first acquaintance with Black Hawk, the Mus-quaw-ka (or Sac Brave), by agreeing with him to erect a stone wall for the sum of $8, around the remains of his daughter, buried near my house, and the compliance with this contract, upon my part, engendered a feeling of friendship for me which I reciprocated. It resulted, finally, in the strongest ties of friendship, and lasted until the day of his death. I have now many relics presented to me by him, which I hold sacred and dear-one memento in particular—a buckskin purse, made and given to me by him, the day before

his death.

He

"This renowned warrior possessed many sterling qualities, which could only be appreciated by those who knew him as intimately as myself. never had but one wife, being opposed, personally, to the custom of polygamy, although never interfering with others of his tribe who approved and practiced. this evil. His Met-a-mo (old woman) was a good housewife. The arrangement of the interior wigwam was systematic and clean, and the burnished campkettle her greatest pride.

"I tried hard to dissuade him from the war-path in 1831, but he persisted in his determination, and paid dearly for refusing to profit by my counsel. On his return after his captivity, he paid me a visit, acknowledged his error, and pledged me never again to refuse good advice, which he observed the remainder of his life. His days were ended (1838) on the east bank of the Des Moines River, at Stump Town, a point where the railroad diverges from the river below Iowaville, now Independent.

"Our commerce, from 1821 to 1832, did not increase in tonnage to any extent. I made several trips during this time on keelboats, from St. Louis to Galena, Ill. A number of these boats were owned by Capt. White, and navigated by him, as freighters, on the Upper Mississippi.

"Capt. James White informed me that his first voyage up the Mississippi was on the steamboat Mandan, being forty days en route from New Orleans to the foot of the Rapids, which she attempted to ascend, but could get no higher than Filly Rock, on account of heavy draught and the want of a correct knowledge of the channel by the pilot. He informed me that the Indians, at several localities above St. Louis, were badly frightened, running in every direction when the boat first hove in sight. As they had never witnessed the like before, many of them thought this aquatic monster was the Man-i-tou-kesuth (evil spirit or devil), coming to call them for a final reckoning. The next steamer that succeeded in ascending the Rapids was the Pike, which by many, has been considered the first steamboat that traversed the Upper Mississippi, which is correct so far being the first to go above the Des Moines Rapids.'

PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY.

The county of Des Moines is one of the most widely-known regions in the West, among scientists, because of its remarkable richness in fossils of a certain character. Palæontologists have been attracted to Burlington, and the city now claims, as a resident, the most eminent authority on the subject of paleozoic crinoidea in America, if not in the world. The fossils abound in the vicinity of Burlington more profusely than in any other locality in the world. Out of a possible number of about eleven hundred, some four hundred varieties have already been discovered here. The gentleman who has distingushed himself by devoting nearly a quarter of a century to the study of the subject, Mr. Charles Wachsmuth, has made several collections of these fossils, the most complete one consisting of eight hundred varieties. The cabinet now in process of completion, consists of many hundred specimens, from this locality and other portions of the world. The original collection was disposed of to Prof. Agassiz, for $6,000, some time before the Professor's death, and was arranged by Mr. Wachsmuth, at Cambridge, at the personal solicitation of Prof. Agassiz.

Prof. Charles White also formed a collection, which is now at Ann Arbor, Mich. Among others who have prosecuted like work are Rev. William H. Barris and Dr. Otto Thieme. Messrs. Frank Springer and James Love have gathered cabinets, the former's being a very fine one. The beauty of these fossils lies chiefly in the marvelous state of preservation in which they are found. Even the digestive system of the animal is, in many cases, plainly

defined.

There are also found six beds of fish fossils, two in each of the three groups -Kinderhook, Burlington and Keokuk formations of limestone.

In a region so famous as this, a paper on the geologic formations would be worthless, unless it were purely scientific The popular character of our work precludes the possibility of entering into such an investigation or treatment of the topic. Those who desire to inform themselves upon the subject, are referred to the several works on geology by Profs. Owen and White, and the more exhaustive works of Mr. Wachsmuth.

Des Moines lies in the second tier of counties, from the south, and is bounded on the north by Louisa County; on the east by the Mississippi River, on the south by Lee County, with Skunk River as the dividing line, and on the west by Henry County.

There are twelve civil townships, as follows:

Huron, fractional Town 72 north, Range 1 west, and the four eastern tiers of sections in Town 72, Range 2.

Yellow Springs Township, the two western tiers of Town 72, Range 2, and

Town 72, Range 3.

Washington Township, Town 72, Range 4.

Pleasant Grove Township, Town 71, Range 4.

Franklin Township, Town 71, Range 3.

Benton Township, Town 71, Range 2.

Jackson Township, fractional Town 71, Range 1.

Burlington Township, fractional Towns 69 and 70, Range 2, and islands at

mouth of Skunk River.

Flint River Township, Town 70, Range 3.

Danville Township, Town 70, Range 4.

Augusta Township, fractional part of Town 69, Range 5, which lies north of Skunk River, and fractional Town 69, Range 4.

Union Township, fractional Town 69, Range 3, with fractional Town 68, which lies north of Skunk River.

SETTLEMENT OF THE COUNTY.

INTRODUCTORY.

The original settlement of Des Moines County and the settlement of Burlington are synonymous expressions. The first efforts to improve the lands of the Black Hawk Purchase were made on the site or in the vicinity of the metropolis of Southern Iowa. It is a matter for congratulation, by both the writer and the reader, that the events attending the pioneer movement in this region are so well preserved, in authentic written form, and also in the minds of the survivors of the days when Iowa was but a wilderness.

The prosperity of Burlington was foreshadowed by the class of men who formed the advance army which invaded this section of the West. It is usually the case that the original locaters of new lands are from the "floating population of the nation-a class indispensable in the social economy of a Republic, but, nevertheless, an element noted rather for its attempts than for its accomplishments. It is not expected that the more refined and cultured people of the older regions will relinquish the comforts of society and voluntarily enter upon the laborious task of building up new centers of civilization. The vanguard of progress is ordinarily in harmony with the variety of work it is expected to perform. The operations of a natural social law govern this, nor does it detract one iota from the merit of the deed. That the work may be well done, it is necessary to place laborers in the field who are able to endure the heat and burden of the day.

But Burlington's history offers a striking exception to the general rule. The first small colony which made the primal stroke in this region was composed of men of moral and intellectual strength, and no weightier argument need be used in support of this statement than the Scriptural test, "by their fruits shall ye know them."

Burlington has furnished to the State and nation a most liberal quota of distinguished men. In fact, we may include the region west of this county in the vindication of the theory herein advanced; for from the germs planted on the western shores of the great river, has grown up a powerful community of men, wise as legislators, brave as warriors and vigorous as thinkers and doers in the many vocations of life.

at

Less than half a century has elapsed since the first cabin was erected in Des Moines County, and many of the settlers who came during the first decade of its existence still live to tell of the events of those days. But even now, this comparatively early period, some conflicts of statement occur. It is a recognized fact, that witnesses of the same scene will not relate the occurrence exactly alike, if called upon to do so. Like the blind men of the East, in the fable, who attempted to describe the elephant by feeling of him, each tells part of the story aright, while each differs from the others through some mistaken sense of the whole subject. Besides, memory at best is treacherous, and incidents are oftentimes confused with more recent matters, until men are willing to state positively as truth what others are equally ready to pronounce erroneous. is, therefore, impossible for a writer to satisfy all who contribute to his fund of information. In the preparation of these pages one rule, above all others, has been adhered to, and that is to give authorities for statements in dispute, and to