"Go West, Young Man, Go West "
About this time there began to be a general unrest among the menfolk. They spent much of their time talking about going west to seek their fortunes. Their loving wives were attempting to maintain what little security they now had, and the music of the country reflected this trend in such songs as "The Emigrants Song."
Oh husband, I've noticed with
sorrowful heart,
You neglected your oxen, your plow and your cart.
Your sheep are disordered, at random they run,
And your Sunday suit is now every day on.
Oh stay on your farm and you'll suffer no loss,
For the stone that keeps rolling will gather no moss."
Nathaniel Hamlin Settles Audubon County
Nathaniel Hamlin was no exception and during the winter of 1850 he and a group of friends, after much discussion decided to go west in search of better land. Early in 1851, Nathaniel Hamlin, James Hamlin, William Powell, David Edgerton and Samuel Ogden went from Mahaska County to Kanesville, now Council Bluffs, Iowa. They had heard of the new Mormon settlement and made that their objective point, but upon their arrival were not pleased with the appearance of the country; so they continued up the east side of the Missouri River, prospecting in several Western counties of the state; but still unable to find a desirable location, they turned their faces eastward again. On their return trip they crossed the Mormon Trail and decided to follow it. It took them to Lewis, then followed the Nishnabotna River to Troublesome Creek . The water was high and they crossed the creek, one at a time, in a feed box taken off the wagon. That night they camped on the south side of Pleasant Run Creek, very near the spot where Mr. Hamlin later built his house.
The following morning (the latter part of the month of March), Nathaniel Hamlin stepped off what he thought to be 160 acres and blazed the trees to mark the corners of his claim. This was before any surveys were made in the county except the lines of the east range of townships, so his claim was known as a "squatters claim." The Mormon Trail passed through his land. Well pleased with his selection, he hastened home to make preparations to move his family.
He decided to take only his oldest daughter Mary, age 10 years and return for the rest of the family after a house was built and crops planted. His brother William, Philip Decker, and John and Betsy Hoggard accompanied them. They loaded a huge Pennsylvania wagon with tools, farming equipment and the necessities for establishing homes, and drawn by seven yoke of oxen, they started for the new land. When they reached Winterset, Iowa, they met John S. Jenkins and his family of seven. They too were going west in search of a home and as they had no special destination in mind, it took very little persuading to get them to join the Hamlin party.
Upon entering Adair County, the pioneer party had to halt on account of the high water of Middle River. Logs were cut and a bridge was built before they could cross . On May 6th the weary travelers reached the Hamlin claim. The spring was early for this latitude and the new grass was several inches tall. A large herd of deer almost as tame as sheep grazed on the bottom land.
The next morning after arrival, " Uncle Natty " commenced cutting logs for his cabin. The other members of the party started out to select a site for their homes. The spring of '51 was very wet and the Troublesome was out of its banks. Before they crossed, a tree had to be cut so it would fall across the river and lodge against a tree on the other side. They used this tree as a foot-log and "crooned over" to the other side. The horses were held with a long rope and swam the river.
Click
here for a photo of the Hamlin home.
Other
Early Settlers Stake Their Claims
Mr. Jenkins rode over to where the town of Oakfield now stands and selected a spot in the beautiful timber near the "big spring." He said "It was as near heaven as one could get on this earth." To mark the sight of his claim, he blazed a basswood tree and wrote on it "this is my claim" and signed his name.
Mr. Decker selected a claim in Section 17, Exira Township, known as the Boy Herrick place and now owned by Carol Hess. It later became the site of the first steam sawmill and the town of Louisville.
The Hoggards, a brother and sister who came out to select a claim before bringing their mother, no doubt felt a little insecure and took their claim close to Natty Hamlin's and Section 26, and William Hamlin settled in Cass County.
Mr. Hamlin set about building a rude, half hewn log cabin. There were two rooms in it but these rooms had the capacity of accommodating a good many people. This house was for many years a haven to the emigrants and generous hospitality was extended to them.
After finishing the house he started breaking sod. He used seven yoke of oxen and a sod plow that turned a 24 inch furrow. His daughter Mary drove the oxen and "Uncle Natty" managed the plow. By the first of July he had succeeded in breaking 42 acres, all of which he planted to "sod corn." Seven acres of this virgin soil was sowed to buckwheat amongst the corn, besides a large amount of turnips, three crops all planted on the same land. Cultivation was unnecessary as weeds never flourish on newly broken sod.
The prairie breaking season having ended and his crops being planted, the pioneer Hamlin yoked his oxen and started back for the remainder of his family. Preparations were quickly made upon his return. Clothing, household goods and supplies of food were packed in boxes in the bottom of the wagon and the bedding piled on top. A canvas stretched over wooden hoops protected the goods from the weather, tools for farming and buckets were hung outside the wagon. He also brought a few horses and cattle on this trip. On the 13th day of September the prairie schooner pulled up in front of the little cabin in the woods, and the happy family swarmed over the place, exploring every inch. The season had been favorable and a bountiful crop was waiting to be harvested. Mr. Hamlin cut up the sod corn and carried it from the field, then cut the buckwheat, which proved to be an excellent crop, then pulled an abundant crop of turnips.
On his return trip, Mr. Hamlin
brought with him, Arthur Decker, his wife and her mother, who
was also the mother of John and Betsy Hoggard. It was a happy
reunion for the Hoggards and Deckers but the happiness was short-lived
as Mrs. Decker died in childbirth in December. This was the first
death in the county and the neighbors came to the aid of the strickened
family. A basswood tree was felled from which slabs were split
and a rude coffin was constructed. Mrs. Decker was buried on the
hill between the Boy Herrick home and the Green school house,
the exact location is unknown as the grave has been unmarked for
years.
The
Settlers Club
During the autumn of '51, several families
drifted into the territory looking for homes. After much discussion
it was decided that some rules must be made concerning the settlement
of the community. At that period, the government land was not
on the market and had not been surveyed. A Settler's Club was
formed and they drew up a set of rules and regulations regarding
individual claims. The rules provided that no individual could
take a claim of more than 160 acres.
Dr. Samuel Ballard
An important addition to the new settlement that autumn was Dr. Samuel Ballard, a wealthy man for that period and a physician. He was a native of Ohio and received his education at the Ohio Medical College . He came here from Iowa City where he had established an extensive and profitable business. He kept relays of saddle horses to carry him about the country. He would start from Iowa City and ride north several miles then west to Oxford and south to the settlements along the English river. Then to West Liberty and home, after visiting and prescribing for patients along the route. He made such trips in a single day and night and often rode asleep in the saddle. For weeks at a time he slept but four hours of 24, on an average. He often took in $200 a day.
The doctor had heard of the fine timberland along the Nishnabotna River in this county and decided to examine it personally. Arriving at Lewis, then called Indian Town, he obtained directions for reaching the new settlement and started out on foot. After traveling many miles he reached the foot of the hill south of Oakfield. He noticed a new path leading into the timber and decided to follow it. He had not gone far when he saw some white children playing under the bushes. They fled as he approached them. Continuing on his way he soon met a man with a rifle who demanded of him, "Are you for peace or are you for war?" The doctor assured him that he felt very peaceful and hungry after traveling on foot all day
The doctor introduced himself and Mr. Jenkins, (for he was the man with a rifle), invited him to his cabin and provided refreshments. Then the doctor explained the object of his visit. He said that he was seeking attractive prairie and timberland and what he had seen had pleased him if he could secure it.
Mr. Jenkins told him of the rules of the Settlers Club wherein no one could take more than 160 acres. Dr. Ballard wanted much more land than that so a meeting was called and after much discussion it was decided that they would make an exception of Dr. Ballard as it would be to the advantage of the community to have a doctor and a wealthy man in their midst. The result was that Dr. Ballard secured the beautiful tracts of prairie and timberland still known as Ballard's Timber in Exira and Oakfield townships and in the adjoining Cass County . He continued to add to his holdings as the years went by and at the time of his death he owned 3,000 acres, 800 of which was timberland. He became a very familiar figure riding about the country wearing his black plug hat, mounted on his favorite saddle horse "Old Tige" and carrying his little black satchel.
Dr. Ballard got to be the richest man in the county but he was not a public spirited citizen, his ambition being to accumulate land and property for his own selfish gain. His house was a one story building, boarded up and down with rough oak boards, and unpainted and unplastered . Everything about the house was of the most common kind, there being nothing to indicate wealth except the land. His pastures were filled with large herds of fine cattle and droves of hogs. He had many tenants who lived in the cheapest kind of dwellings and received the smallest remuneration for their labor.
He was unpopular with his
neighbors and complained of losing many cattle and hogs and large
amounts of wood and timber by thievery.
Dr. Ballard Is Robbed
During the last winter of his life, 1882-83 while sick and confined to his bed, two robbers, Northgrave and Van Winkle (as was afterward learned) entered the house, broke into the bedroom where he was sick in bed and robbed him of about $2,700 in money, which the doctor had negligently allowed to accumulate in the house. It was contained in a leather valise near his bed. The robber seized the valise containing the money and was about to get away with it when the doctor sprang from bed and grasping the retreating robber around the legs threw him to the floor and shouted for help. The wife of his hired man came to the rescue and beat the robber with the club. In the struggle the robber kicked himself loose and escaped leaving the doctor clutching a pair of suspenders with a piece of cloth attached which he had torn from the robber. It was thought that this would be a good clue to the identity of the culprits.
The following morning the cloth was examined again and seemed to resemble the pants usually worn by the doctor and which usually hung near his bed. Search was made for them without success and it was concluded that the robber had also stolen the doctor's pants and that the doctor had pulled the suspenders from his own pants in the struggle.
This proved to be true, as the valise and the pants were found later not far from the doctor's house where the robbers had discarded them. The culprits soon left the community and it was said that Roll Strahl received a fine span of horses for taking them out of the county. The money was never recovered and Dr. Ballard was soon taken to Council Bluffs where he died shortly after. Near the time of his death the doctor informed his lawyer, H. F. Andrews, that the amount of his losses by thieves in the past 20 years would total at least $20,000.
"We cross the Prairie, as
of old the Pilgrims crossed the sea,
To make the West as they the east, Homestead of the free.
We're flowing from our native Hills as our free rivers flow;
The blessings of our motherland is on us as we go.
We go to plant her common schools on distant prairie swells,
And give the Sabbath of the wilds, the music of bells."
-John Greenleaf Whittier
Early Audubon County
White settlers came to our community as snowfalls on the prairie. At first only a few flakes appear, drifting aimlessly with the wind, they eddy about, some of them melting quickly away. But more flakes fall faster and faster until they become noticeable on the ground.
So it was through the last half of the 19th century. Establishing a home in this new land required men and women with sturdy hearts and willing hands. It is impossible to realize the privations and hardships which confronted the pioneer settler. When they came here, an unbroken wilderness extended north to the Arctic Ocean . They were 20 miles from the most primitive civilization. Not a highway or bridge across streams within the limits of the county; only the trails made by the Mormons on their trek through Iowa in search of "The Promised Land." In July of 1846, 15,000 Mormons were said to be encamped or toiling westward along the Iowa trails, with 3000 wagons, 30,000 head of cattle, horses, and mules and vast numbers of sheep. One trail entered the northeast corner of Audubon township and passed the home of Nathaniel Hamlin on its way to Lewis and Council Bluffs. Another crossed the county near the present site of the county farm. It is supposed that the Mormons dropped blue grass seed there as it was found nowhere else in the county and thus the place was called Bluegrass Grove. Bluegrass Creek was also named for that reason.
Iowa was a wilderness but
it was a beautiful one. In the fertile freshness of the soil the
wild flowers bloomed in profusion. In the spring the wild crabapples
gave the hills a rosy blush and the sumac gave them fire in the
fall. Deer and elk roamed the prairie and the prairie chickens,
wild turkey and quail nested in the tall grass that grew to a
height of 18 inches on the hills and often 6 feet in the lowlands.
Early visitors stood still and listened to the silence and compared
the rolling prairie to the swells of a calm sea.
Survival in Those Early Days
The first demands on the settlers were to provide a shelter for their family. They brought only a limited supply of food and provisions, also seed for starting their crops, and the commonest articles for household use, plows and implements for farming and a few tools. They brought their trusty rifle and gunpowder for defense and to supply meat for the table.
The first cabins were built of logs and without floors. Afterward floors were made of "puncheons", split from logs and hewed to place. Rock or mud and sticks were used in the construction of the fireplace, and chimneys. The cooking was all done at the open fireplace, even the bread being baked before the fire in Dutch ovens or in tin reflectors, articles unseen or heard of by the present generation. The food was simple but in most cases ample. In the summer when the fruit was ripe it was gathered and cooked down until thick, then it was poured in flat pans and set in the sun to dry. It became hard like leather and was then rolled up and wrapped in paper. In the winter pieces were cut off and cooked with sorghum and water.
They ground their own flour in a mill owned by Mr. Hamlin. It was passed around among the neighbors at Hamlin Grove and it was used for grinding corn and buckwheat. It was called " Hamlin's portable mill " and its capacity was limited only by the amount of elbow grease it took to run it.
The year of 1852 brought five new settlers to the county. Benjamin Hyatt settled in Oakfield Township and worked for Dr. Ballard. He was elected sheriff at the first election.
David Edgerton, who made the scouting trip through Iowa with Mr. Hamlin before there were any settlements here, returned to establish a home. He staked his claim where the present town of Exira stands and built a log cabin on lot 5, section 3.
John Countryman built the first sawmill and frame house in the fall of that year. The mill was water powered and stood on the east bank of Troublesome Creek in Section 13, Exira township. The sawmill was of valuable assistance to the early settler in furnishing the first supply of sawed lumber produced within the county. It operated only a few years as steam mills began to operate in the county in 1856.
In the fall of 1852 the supply of flour and meal was very limited. Fearing to go into the winter unprepared, Mr. Jenkins, and Benjamin Hyatt started with a load of corn and buckwheat for a mill in Missouri, a distance of about 150 miles. Their route was down the Nishnabotna and on reaching Lewis they met a company Mormons who were desperate for bread stuff. The Mormons asked them to set a price on their grain and they sold the load for $2 and a half per bushel. Returning home they loaded the wagon and started again for Missouri. For three days and two nights they were out of sight of human habitation, with no road or track to guide them. At night they slept in the wagon and listened to the wolves howl . They wondered if they would make it back to their loved ones again. On arriving there they were told that there was a large amount of custom work ahead of them and that their grist could not be ground for two weeks but they finally persuaded the miller to grind it sooner.
They were gone so long the people back home were fearful that some accident had befallen them and there was much rejoicing the night they returned.
Click here
to see the giant elm on the Nathaniel Hamlin farm.
Contact
With Civilization
By far the most important event in 1852 was the establishing of the mail route from Fort Des Moines to Kanesville. The Western Stage Company established a line of coaches through Iowa by way of a Adel, Anita and Lewis . John M. Donnel, another newcomer in '52 met the stage at Adel and brought the mail to Hamlin's Grove once a week. The mail service soon established a post office at Hamlin's Grove. Mr. Hamlin was made postmaster December 5th, 1853, a job he continued to hold until the election of Abraham Lincoln, when he was removed for political reasons. The stagecoach route was later changed so as to include Hamlin's Grove and Mr. Hamlin was agent for the company. Thus all Pikes Peak and Pacific Coast travel went by the very door of our first settler.
The stage at that time left Fort Des Moines and Council Bluffs each Monday and met at Hamlin's Grove on Wednesday of each week. Driver of one of the stages was Charles Hawk, grandfather of Ivan C. Heath of Exira.
These coaches were the old fashioned closed stages, with leather braces for springs and drawn by four horses. The fare ranged from 5 cents to 7 cents a mile. Stations were located from 10 to 15 miles apart for changing horses. The drivers were veterans in their business and with their long graceful whips, they could fleck a fly from the ear of the lead horse without touching the horse.
When the roads and trails were impassable the mail would come by post riders, but the newspapers and magazines remained bogged down with the coaches. Often the stages were compelled to ford the creeks, sometimes upsetting in midstream.
In 1858 the Council Bluffs Bugle wrote; "We are sickened at the sight of every mail that arrives. When the agent is asked why this repeated occurrence of destroying the mail, they offer the same silly stereotyped reply, that the stage upset in the creek. "
The arrival of the stage was an event anywhere along the route. People gathered around waiting for letters, news from the outside world or new arrivals.
The stagecoach drivers and passengers often spent the night at the Hamlin home. During the years when the tide of immigration was at its peak, Mr. Hamlin remembered many times when 40 or 50 teams would camp in his grove on account of the high waters of Troublesome . Mr. Hamlin found a ready market for his produce, especially corn, among the emigrants who were journeying still further westward . He also kept a small stock of groceries on hand and Mrs. Hamlin would rise in the very early hours of the morning to bake bread to supply the needs of the travelers.
Mrs. Hamlin was admirably
suited to pioneer life. The hungry never left her door unfed .
No woman in Audubon County ever fed so many mouths free gratis
as did this good lady. No matter how many dropped in at mealtime
she was always equal to the occasion. On Sunday people from all
parts congregated there socially or on business and made Hamlin's
a place where the pioneers could swap stories or discuss their
problems. Travelers could also get overnight lodging in the Hamlin
home. Sometimes every available floor space was used for making
beds for the ladies and the men slept in the barn.
Peoria I. Whitted
In the spring of 1853 there were six houses in the county. During that year the following families settled in the Big Grove and Hamlin's Grove area: William H. H. Bowen, Carlos Frost, John Seiford, Samuel Hopkins, Walter Jardine, Alvin and Urbane Herrick and a young man named Peoria I. Whitted who had much to do with the organization of the county. He was a young man of 20 years but had much experience for one so young. He had attended the Methodist College at Muscatine for two years, worked in the printing office of the "Des Moines Courier" for a year, then went on a government surveying expedition to Santa Fe, New Mexico. After six months he returned to Iowa City and helped survey the Rock Island Railroad from Davenport to Iowa City. He also helped survey Omaha, Nebraska.
He continued his work as a surveyor after coming here, and most of this part of the county and the town of Exira was surveyed by him. During that time when the settlers were talking of organizing the county he walked to Iowa City and back to get information on the proper procedure. He loved to walk but some years later he bought a horse, thinking it would speed up his work. His daughter, Mrs. Nels Johnson, tells the story of how he rode over to Bear Grove on business one day and after completing his business he walked home. His wife asked him where the horse was-so he had to walk back to Bear Grove to get it.
In 1854 Daniel Harris came to this community. He was also very prominent in civic affairs and his name appears many times as the history unfolds. He was concerned about the education of his children and discussed the matter with Mr. Hamlin. They decided to build a school house and as was the custom, everyone pitched in and helped. Logs were cut and hauled and on a set day they all congregated to assist with the "log rolling." Richard Lewis, I. V. D. Lewis, William Carpenter and Peoria Whitted were ax-men, each hewing and fitting a corner . The walls were rough hewed inside and chinked, boards were brought from Iranistan, Iowa for the doors and the tops of the desks. The seats being split logs with pins for legs.
Miss Ella Northgraves of Cass
County taught the only term of school in this building. Her salary
of $16 per month was paid by Hamlin and Harris and as it was a
private school only the children of the two families attended.
The Population Increases
With each succeeding year the number of settlers doubled or tripled. They were breaking the prairie and planting crops. Mr. Hamlin seeing the need of a blacksmith, hired Charles Marsh and they did a thriving business sharpening plowshares. They mined their own coal in Guthrie County at Bear Grove . Another business that was started that year was the first general store built near the place where Oakfield now stands. Erasmus Bradley was the proprietor.
By 1855, the population was increasing rapidly and the people felt the need for a local government. In accordance with a petition of the citizens of Audubon County, the judge of Cass County issued an order authorizing a separate county organization by the election of the proper officers. Prior to this time Audubon County had been attached to Cass County for civil, judicial and election purposes.
Peoria I. Whitted was appointed organizing sheriff and called the first election. It was held April 6th, 1855, at the cabin of John S. Jenkins. 45 votes were cast and the following officers were elected: T. S. Lewis, Judge; Miles Beers, treasurer and recorder; Benjamin Hyatt, sheriff; Alvin Herrick, School Fund committee; John Beers, surveyor; and William Bowen, assessor. The following August a general election was held and new officers were elected: Daniel Harris, a county judge; Nathaniel Hamlin, treasurer and recorder; and Peoria Whitted, surveyor.
The first government was under the old county judge system, the one man power. The management of the county affairs was left in the hands of the county judge. It was his duty to locate roads, levy taxes, build bridges, courthouses, and so on, and he was accountable to no one except on election day.
Notwithstanding this almost
unlimited power and the large amount of public money left at his
disposal, the trust was seldom betrayed. During the whole time
such an office existed in Iowa there were but two or three cases
where the judges ever defaulted. It is a remarkable fact that
as a rule the county judges were held in high esteem by the people
and usually kept their office for a long term of years. This system
of government remained in Audubon County until 1861 when the board
of supervisors took over the management of the county.
Establishing a County Seat
The next thing that had to be accomplished before Audubon County could be organized was establishing a county seat. On the 22nd day of May, 1855, the judge E. H. Sears appointed three commissioners from adjoining counties to locate the county seat. They selected the east half of the northeast quarter of Section 22 Exira Township . This is located about a half mile east of the Bintner school house, on the south side of the road. The land was owned by Rev. R. C. Meek who, retaining part of the lots, gave the rest to the county. It was laid out and platted as the town of Dayton by T. S. Lewis.
The first sale of the town lots was advertised by Daniel Harris, county judge, November 22nd, 1855. At that time only one lot was sold, the price being 50 cents and the unlucky purchaser was J. L. Frost. The sale was adjourned until June 3rd, 1856, when 85 lots were sold at prices ranging from $1.50 to $9 each. News of the frontier town had spread to the east and many of the lots were sold to easterners believing it to be a good investment. They bought choice corner lots and annually remitted funds to pay their taxes until it became known that there were only two houses in the town. The residents of the town were a Mr. Archer and a Rev. Baker . They soon moved away and the sale of lots was the only business transacted at Dayton although it remained the county seat until it was moved to Exira in 1861.
Hamlin's Grove was the center of business activities and the public records were kept at the residence of the officers. At that time there were 49 dwellings, 69 voters and 701 acres of land under cultivation. About a half dozen families lived where Exira now stands and beyond that was an uninhabited prairie.
By the fall of that year (1856) it became evident that Dayton would be county seat in name only, so another town was platted by Nathaniel Hamlin and T. S. Lewis. It was called "Audubon City" and was situated on the Southwest quarter of Section 35, Exira Township. A few store buildings and shops were erected. Mr. Hamlin and his brother-in-law, H. Beck, started a general store and Daniel Harris and P. I. Whitted were instrumental in establishing the first public school there. The first newspaper was published at Audubon City in 1860. It was called the "Audubon County Pioneer" and the publishers were John C. Brown and J. J. Van Houghton. It was democratic in politics but little else is known of it as no files can now be found. When the Civil War broke out the publishers enlisted in the army and the paper was sold to Frank Whitney who moved it to Lewis, Iowa. John Brown became an officer in the first Iowa volunteers; he was killed at Milliken's Bend. His partner became captain of the Fourth Iowa Infantry . He returned to Iowa after the war but died a few years later at Lewis.
Natty Hamlin had high hopes
for the future of Audubon City . He tried to have the county seat
moved there but the county north and west had settled rapidly
and when the proposition was put before the people they did not
take kindly to the idea. They felt that the county seat should
be more centrally located, so another would-be county seat village
dwindled away and eventually lost its identity.
Saw Mills and Flour Mills
In the spring of 1856, two gentlemen named Howard Jay Green and Franklin Burnham, came to Hamlin's Grove to search for a good location for a sawmill. The fine timber along the Nishnabotna and the growing demand for lumber convinced to them that they had found the right spot. The necessary machinery was purchased in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and was shipped down the Ohio River, then up the Mississippi to Keokuk, Iowa and from there it was hauled by teams. The huge boiler was brought up the Des Moines River on a small steamer to a spot near Fort Des Moines, then brought by ox teams over the old stage road by way of Hamlin's Grove. This was the first steam mill in the county and required a lot of heavy machinery. The road through Big Grove had to be especially prepared for the heavy loads. The spot selected for the sawmill was on the bank of the stream that runs in front of the old Boy Herrick farm, now owned by Carol Hess. The mill was a success from the start and turned out about 10,000 feet of lumber a day.
Later, because of a great need, a flour mill was added and the business operated day and night, sawing lumber by day and grinding meal and flour at night. People came from Shelby, Carroll, Guthrie and Cass Counties as well as from all parts of this county for lumber and grist milling. This continued until after the railroad reached Atlantic in 1868 and was the busiest place in the county. Howard Green served as sawyer for many years, the Green School was so named because it stood on his land. He was also a member of the "Loyal Legion" in Civil War times and secured and secreted arms and ammunition in his home, for the Union army. It is also said that he assisted runaway slaves.
About the same time Dr. Ballard erected a sawmill on the east side of the Nishnabotna River in the timber near his home.
There being enough sawmills in the county by that time to produce an abundance of lumber, the people began to erect frame dwellings and a few of the more enterprising ones built frame barns . The first frame barn was built by Bryant Milliman . It was built with a 12 foot alley in the center so a load of hay could be driven inside and pitched off. The beams in the barn were about 10 inches square and hewn by hand. It was built in July 1857, when Exira was only a few months old. The neighbors came to assist in raising the barn but refused to do any work until something was provided to drink. Mr. Milliman sent his hired man to get some whiskey in Exira but the only beverage he could purchase was a tonic called "Ault's Bitters" which he bought. The bitters disappeared before he could unload his other goods and he was sent in quest of more. After the arrival of more bitters the barn went up rapidly. This barn was built of native lumber, most of it being walnut.
With the arrival of the railroad,
pine lumber was shipped to Atlantic and was much preferred to
the native lumber for building purposes. The old sawmill had served
its day in the developing of this part of the country and fell
prey to the march of progress. The boiler was sold for old iron
and as it was hauled away it broke through the bridge at Panora
and landed in the Coon River where it could probably be found
today.
The
First Fourth of July
The future looked bright for the settlers in 1856, the crops look promising and new families were settling in the county. It was the beginning of the Buchanan-Fremont campaign and they decided to stage the first Fourth of July celebration. It was held on the highest elevation in this area, at a point about 2 miles northeast of the Natty Hamlin home. A liberty poll was erected from which the "Stars and Stripes" floated proudly. The flag hung there for some time and was seen at great distances by the emigrants who were traveling westward.
Anvils were fired, a method used in those days to start things off with a "bang." An anvil was placed upside down on the ground and the cavity filled with gunpowder; another anvil was placed on top of it and a trail of gunpowder led away from it to serve as a fuse for lighting it. The trail of powder was lighted with a long rod heated red hot. When the fire reached the anvils an explosion occurred that could be heard for miles.
The celebration was not a
grand affair but a good time was had by all. Bonfires were built
and a barbecue was held, the meat being the wild animals and game
that abounded at that time. The speeches were "short and
sweet" and the music was furnished by Mrs. Trescott on her
melodeon.
The Winter of 1856
Winters of the early days were long and hard, the snows were frequent and deep. Often severe blizzards would rage for days at a time and homes would be literally buried by drifts. Anyone caught in such a storm might suffer frozen hands and feet or as sometimes happened might even be frozen to death. In such instances the body would be recovered only when the spring sun had thawed the deep snow.
The winter of 1856 was one of the worst ever recorded. The snow came early and remained on the ground until late spring. Drifts were 10 feet high and fences were completely covered. Much of the wildlife perished and game was never as plentiful after that year. The following letter, written by P. I. Whitted to his friend Judge Harris describes a blizzard which started December 1st and it raged for three days.
Exira, Iowa
December 1st, 1906
Dear Old Pard:
Do you call to mind just 50 years ago, of the terrible storm that
commenced on the morning of December 1st and raged for three days?
Do you remember that you and I were caught in it and how we fought
for our lives? Do you remember how we thanked God when we reached
that grove and how your mind went out for the safety of your wife
and children alone in the big house on the hill?
Yes, Judge, I know you remember that. At that time you were a
young man and I was a big kid. Well, Judge, I was looking over
my life of 50 years ago and I often wonder what induced you and
I to remain here and help develop the country, denying ourselves
of every comfort of life. You and I have seen many storms since
that one of 1856, but none that equaled it.
Now for the benefit of the younger generation that live in Audubon
and Cass Counties, I desire to give a partial history of the destruction
of human life and also of animal life. The storm raged for three
days and you and I remained in that grove until the morning of
the fourth day when we started for Hamlin's Grove, a distance
of perhaps 4 miles. The snow was so drifted that we abandoned
our vehicle, each one of us leading a horse.
In places the snow would be packed hard enough to bear the weight
of a horse and in some spots the crust would give away and the
horse would drop down in loose snow over his head then would come
the tug of war. However, we managed to reach the home of the judge.
The judge climbed over a high drift and bolted for the door, on
opening which he found his wife and children all safe as the snow
had packed so close to the building it kept the inside warm without
much fire. On seeing his wife and children safe he turned to me
and exclaimed, "Whit, thank God the family is safe."
On going to the outbuildings we found ten fat hogs frozen solid,
the other stock, being protected in a log barn, had weathered
the storm - as the sailors say.
Two young men by the name of Ives left Hamlin's house on the morning
of the storm to go to Holiday's Grove, a distance of 24 miles.
They were both overcome by the storm and perished. They had almost
reached the Grove.
Three young men perished in the eastern part of Pottawattamie
County. An old trapper was found frozen in his shack on the Middle
Coon in Carroll County; also two young men were lost in the same
county.
In what was known as "Indian Grove" some eight or ten
miles east of Exira, the writer found the remains of a man in
May that was supposed to have perished in the storm, and perhaps
his folks never knew what had become of him. I marked the place
where I found the remains and went to Hamlin's and reported my
find. The next day with Natty Hamlin, Urbane Herrick, Anson Brown
and George Colder, went to the place where the corpse lay and
examined the remains which were very much decomposed with one
of the feet gone.
We wrote a description of the corpse the best we could and sent
it to Iowa City and it was published in the Iowa Capital Reporter.
We buried him where we found the remains and his history will
probably be unknown till the great Judgment Day.
I have often thought if I could find the place where I buried
him.
I would like to report one more incident: William P. Hamlin, who
at that time lived in what is known as the Upper Grove on Buck
Creek, in Cass County, found some ten or twelve elk in a snow
drift near his home just after the storm. The snow was so deep
the elk were helpless. The crust was strong enough to bear the
weight of a man, so he killed them with a "tommyhawk."
They were fat and made good meat. He dressed them and hauled them
to the town of Lewis where he sold the meat. I am aware that his
statement may appear fishy to some, but I think I. V. D. Lewis
who lives six miles south of Exira remembers the incident.
The six children I speak of, of the Honorable Judge Harris, I
believe are living today. Their heads have grown white and most
of them are fathers, mothers and some have become grandparents;
but on looking back fifty years I see them in my mind as misses,
youths and babies. I have reported only a few incidents of the
results of the storm, and if Mr. Harris should see this, it will
bring things to his remembrance.
Very respectfully yours,
Peoria I. Whitted
The article above was taken from the book 100 Years in Exira: 1857-1957, pages 2-9.