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Weyauwega
Chronicle 24
August 1887 Waupaca
County History MR. EDITOR: - At a
special meeting of the Board of Supervisors of Waupaca County, held in June
1887, a resolution was offered by Paul Browne, one of the supervisors of
Waupaca City, to appropriate the sum of five hundred dollars to purchase one
thousand copies of Dana Dewey’s Early History of Waupaca County, for general
distribution, but through prejudice or parsimony, or for some other reason, it
was rejected by the board. Now it would seem that
a board of supervisors, having the control of the monetary affairs of the
county, that did not hesitate to spend thousands of dollars of the people’s
money in a senseless quarrel over the building of a Co. lunatic asylum, might
have had magnanimity and liberality enough to appropriate the paltry sum of
five hundred dollars to aid in perpetuating the history of important events,
known to but a very few of the present residents of the county; and to serve as
an encouragement to Waupaca’s oldest inhabitant and the only real author of a
book that this county has ever produced. Mr.
Dewey was one of the earliest settlers in the county, and has constantly
resided for more than a third of a century within the present limits of the
present city of Waupaca, and therefore is (or ought to be,) better acquainted
with the events and transactions in the city and surrounding country than any
other person; and his extraordinary memory and peculiar style of describing the
scenes through which he has passed should certainly entitle him to a place in
the front rank among the historians and story tellers of the county. But interesting and
instructive as Mr. Dewey’s history is, we believe a revision and little
correction of some statements therein contained, would add to its truthfulness,
if not to its interests in other respects; and with your permission, in another
chapter we will endeavor to review and correct some of the “facts” therein set
forth. VERITAS WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY 21
August 1887 Mr. Dewey starts in
upon his early history by referring to a letter published in the Waupaca
Republican, and then proceeds to contradict some of the statements therein
contained, but produces no evidence to sustain his position. On the contrary, on
page 8 of his book, he copies a law passed by the legislature, signed by the
proper officers, and approved by the Governor February 17, 1851, organizing the
County of Waupaca, that we the people, have always considered the organic law,
which corroborates every statement in the letter referred to, which he denies
or attempts to controvert. He then says
“Beginning at the organization of the county under the organic act,” etc. Now what is the organic act to which he
refers? I have never seen any other
organic act for Waupaca county except the one on page 8 of his famous history. He then says “In the
spring of 1848, Outagamie county was surveyed and annexed to Brown county for
judicial purposes. At the same time
Waupaca county was annexed to Winnebago county for judicial purposes.” Now the fact is
neither of them was at that time annexed for judicial purposes. They were each a component part of their
respective counties, not only for judicial purposes, but for all other
purposes, and never detached in any manner, until, by laws passed in 1851,
Outagamie county was organized and temporarily attached to Brown county for
judicial purposes, and Waupaca county
by the organic law copied on the 8th page of Mr. Dewey’s history, was also
organized and similarly attached to Winnebago county. At the same session of the legislature Waushara county was
organized and attached to Marquette county in the same manner. If Mr. Dewey would put
on his “thinking cap” he might recollect that in the summer of 1850, Alexander
Spaulding, then deputy U.S. marshal for Winnebago county, took the U.S. census
in this part of Winnebago county, and while so engaged, spent two nights at the
hotel in Waupaca kept by the Rev. Mr. Baxter and his two daughters. The same Mr. Spaulding was register at the
Land Office in Menasha, in the fall of 1852, when Mr. Dewey and Mr. Charles L.
Bartlett had some special dealings at the Land Office. But to return to the
record. He says “In the spring of 1848,
Outagamie county was surveyed out,” etc.
Now the last of the government surveys in that county were made in 1845,
and much of the land in the east part of the county was surveyed and entered
long before that time. He next says “By the
organic act, the surveyors were instructed to locate for two years, the county
seat at some point on Wolf river.” It must be that when
Mr. Dewey wrote that his intellect was a little muddled. If there ever was any organic act for this
county than the one referred to, we would thank Mr. Dewey to show it, or give
information where it can be found.
Assuming that the act referred to is the organic act, we look in vain
for any instruction or authority to the surveyors to locate county seats or do
any other thing. VERITAS WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
III. 7
September 1887 With regard to Mr.
Dewey’s statement that “the surveyors located the county seat at Mukwa,” there
are many facts to show the fallacy of any such proceeding. 1st, The surveyors of
government lands are employees of the general government, and have no concern
or jurisdiction in any state or county affairs, and frequently (as was the case
of those making the public surveys in this county) are not citizens or
residents of the state where they are engaged.
At the time of the survey of the public lands in this county, George B.
Sergeant, a resident of the state of Iowa, was Surveyor General for the states
of Iowa and Wisconsin, and most if not all the parties having contracts for
making surveys in this county, on the west side of Wolf river, were residents
of the state of Iowa. The township lines in
ranges 11 and 12 were run in June, 1851, by Ira Cook and James M. March, the
subdivision lines by John E. Davidson in the fall of the same year. The township lines in ranges 13 and 14 were
run in 1852 by John M. Smith, and the subdivision lines by Samuel Perrin in the
winter of 1852 and 1853, not one of them being a resident of Waupaca
county. From these facts it must be
evident that Mr. Dewey is a little off in his position that the surveyors had
anything to do with locating the county seat. Another reason is the
fact that all county organizations are governed by the laws of the state; that
in all cases where a new county is formed; the organic law provides for the
location of the county seat, either permanently, or, as was the case in this
county, temporarily, with a proviso that at a future time it should be settled
by vote of the electors of the county. In the extent and
boundaries of the county, Mr. Dewey seems to be about as wild as in the
location of the county seat. He says
“All the towns now in this county, and five towns of range 10 in Portage
county, joining Waupaca county on the west, and four towns of range 15, joining
Waupaca county on the east, were formed as one town, called Waupaca.” Then on the next page he copies the “act to
incorporate the county of Waupaca,” and to be strictly just we will give the
boundaries as there described, verbatim. “Beginning at the
north line of towns numbered twenty; at a point where the range line between
ranges 14 and 15 crosses said line:
thence north to the north line of towns twenty-four; thence east to Wolf
river; thence up the channel of said river to the north line of towns
twenty-five; thence to the line dividing ranges 10 and 11; thence south to the
north line of towns twenty; thence east to the first mentioned point.” Thus it will be seen
that no part of range 11 is included within these boundaries, or any part of
range 15 except that part of town 25 which lies west of Wolf river, and the
only change ever made in these boundaries is in the line described as running
east between towns 24 and 25, instead of running to Wolf river, it runs to the
range line between ranges 15 and 16; thence, instead of running up the channel
of said river, it runs north on said range line to the north line of town 25;
thence as described heretofore. At the organization of
Shawano Co. Feb. 16, 1853, town 25 of range 15 was included within the
boundaries by the organic act but a subsequent legislature discovered that the
act detaching it from Waupaca county, was a violation of section 7 of Article
13 of the constitution of the state of Wisconsin, and promptly repealed the act
and restored it to Waupaca county again. It is true that at the
time there were two sets of county officers; in order to make a show of
strength in the west part of the county, the five towns in range 10 did send
representatives to Waupaca, and they were recognized as members of that county
board, but there was no law or authority for any such proceeding, and after
1854 nothing more was heard of range 10 as a part of Waupaca county. VERITAS. WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
IV. 21
September 1887 Mr. Dewey next
says: “The surveyors located the county
seat at Mukwa, at which place the electors of the town were to meet on the
first Tuesday in April 1850, to vote for town and county officers, who should
have their own offices for two years, or until their successors were elected
and qualified. At the same place and at
the same time, a vote was to be taken on the permanent location of the county
seat.” In the last chapter we
attempted to show, and we think successfully, the fallacy and inconsistency of
Mr. Dewey’s statement that the surveyors located the county seat. The assertion that an
election was held at the house of Horace Ralph in Mukwa, in April, 1850, is
still more inconsistent, as will appear from the following statement of facts,
which will be fully corroborated by applying to any person who was acquainted
with the locality at that time. On the first Tuesday
in April, 1850, the place since called Mukwa, was designated as the crossing of
Wolf river at the mouth of the Little Wolf.
There was neither hotel, post office, or a human habitation within a
mile of the place. During the next
summer, after Mr. Dreutzer commenced carrying the mail on this route from Green
Bay to Plover, crossing Wolf river at this point, Horace Ralph claimed a small
fraction of the south east corner of the school section, which lay on the east
side of the river, built a house upon it, and moved there in the fall; circulated
a petition for a post office, which was established late in the years, and
called Mukwa. About the same time
Benjamin F. Phillips and August Grignon surveyed and platted the village of
Mukwa, on land adjoining the tract claimed by Ralph, and at once commenced
figuring for the organization of a new county, with Mukwa for the county seat. At the session of the
legislature in ‘51, there was a great scramble in this part of the state for
new counties and county seats. Benjamin
F. Phillips was principal owner of the new village of Mukwa, and Thomas I.
Townsend purchased a tract in Section 36, town 18, range 13, and laid out a
village called Sacramento. This tract
was in the extreme south east corner of the proposed new county, (Waushara) on
the south side of Fox river, where there was only about one section that was
surveyed and entered, all the rest of the county being unsurveyed Indian land,
lying north of the river. Theodore Conkey, who
had been employed by the government to survey much of the land in Brown county,
and had a large interest in the new village of Appleton on Fox river, also had
an “ax to grind.” He was elected
senator from Brown county in the fall of 1850, and Edward Eastman was
assemblyman from Winnebago county. When the legislature
met in 1851, Mr. Phillips and Mr. Townsend had special business in Madison. Mr.
Conkey, as senator, had great influence in the organization of new
counties. The result was a majority of
the legislators were convinced that the interest of the people demanded the
immediate organization of the three new counties, and also that it would be
highly improper if not impossible to establish a county seat at any place
except where the land was surveyed and a village platted; so each of the
parties succeeded in getting county boundaries as he wished, and a county seat
located on his own land. Appleton has become a
thriving business city, and is still the county seat, but Mukwa and Sacramento
as county seats or as villages are known no more. VERITAS. WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
V. 28
September 1887 As there has been so
many erroneous and contradictory reports circulated about the proceedings at
the first election held in the county, the time when it occurred, the officers
elected, &c., and as Mr. Dewey’s popular
history appears to be lightly tinctured with a sort of local lunacy,
which seems to indicate that his narration of circumstances and events are
somewhat unreliable, we propose braving the danger of being considered too
elaborate and tedious, to recite in minute detail, the facts and circumstances
pertaining to that event. After the passage of
the law of Feb. 17, ‘51, providing for the organization of the town and county
of Waupaca, describing the boundaries; the time and place of holding the first election
for town and county officers; their terms of office under such election, which
for the town officers was one year, and for the county officers until the first
day of January, following and in each case until their successors should be
elected and qualified; A report was circulated in the south and west part of
the county, that a few individuals about Mukwa (some of them having lately
removed from the vicinity of Oshkosh,) were preparing to conduct the election
so as to secure a set of town and county officers in their interest, which
would give them complete control in the affairs of the county. In consequence of this report, a
consultation was had among the settlers in Waupaca, Lind, and Little River, and
arrangements made to attend the election in sufficient numbers to frustrate
such design, if possible, should such report prove to be correct. Accordingly every
legal voter was urged to show his patriotism by giving the time necessary to
attend the election, which would require not less than three days, and which
actually took four days for every man that went from the south and west part of
the county. At the first
consultation there was a wonderful amount of zeal and interest manifested and
it appeared as though the turnout would be so general that nobody but women and
children would be left in the settlements.
But during the few days intervening between the discussion and the time
to start, obstacles in the way seemed to multiply tremendously, (some real and
some imaginary) and by the time Monday morning came, it seemed as though we
should hardly muster a “corporal’s guard” for the occasion. Not more than one half of those we
confidently expected to go were ready to start on the journey. The names of those
from the south and west part of the county, twelve in number, were: Wm. G. Cooper, Wm. B. Hibbard, I. B. Hibbard
and Edwin Buell from Waupaca Falls; John M. Vaughn, John W. Chandler and Simon
C. Dow, who lived on the route between Waupaca and Weyauwega; Tyler Caldwell, G. Taggart and Hiram P. Sexton
from the Wallawalla settlement, and J. Boyd, A. V. Rud from Little River. VERITAS. [Conclusion of this chapter next week.] WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY 28 September 1887
ANSWER
TO “VERITAS” EDITOR REPUBLICAN; - I
beg to ask the use of your columns to answer Veritas in the Weyauwega
Chronicle. He claims that I was not at
Mukwa at the time the vote was taken in 1850, I claim I was. In accordance with a paper issued from
Madison in the March previous, which stated we were to vote at the house of H.
Ralph, on the first Tuesday in April, 1850.
I, with ninety-nine others, was on hand to put in my ballot for town and
Co. officers, and vote for the permanent location of the county seat. My “Early Days” reminiscences explains the
matter in full. The voting, the
majorities given, etc., was just as is there stated: Waupaca receiving a majority of sixty for county seat. I was told a few years ago by a son of the
late ex-county clerk, W. C. Carr, that his father told him that he saw the
election papers buried in a hole in the ground under a tree in Mukwa on the
above named date, while the most of the voters, especially those from the
western side of the county, were eating dinner. And there, Mr. “Veritas,” you will find the records, if time has
not obliterated them. For any other
matters pertaining to the early reminiscences, I stand by my book, and you are
at liberty to construe them as you desire. I did not state
anything about the “first” survey of Outagamie county. I only mentioned the fact of a survey being
made in 1848, and that Outagamie county was annexed to Brown county for
judicial purposes, and at the same time Waupaca county was attached to
Winnebago county for judicial purposes. The act of
incorporation in Feb. ‘51, was a repetition or a proposed ratification of what
had already been done. DANA
DEWEY WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
V. 5
October 1887 These parties all met
at Weyauwega in the forenoon of Monday, and started on their line of march
through the woods in single file, and on foot, the only possible way to get
through the thickets, windfalls and
swamps. The route Mr. Dewey
claims to have traveled with ox teams the year before, we failed to discover. After a very tedious
and wearisome tramp, we came about sunset to the lower sawmill, about two miles
from the mouth of the Little Wolf river, then called Gordon’s mill, and
afterwards the Phillips mill. Here we
found seven or eight lumbermen running the mill, with N. B. Millard as superintendent,
the same man who for many years was well known through all the county about
Wolf river and Lake Winnebago as “Bone Millard.” Here we also
unexpectedly found a very efficient assistant to the accomplishment of our
plans to carry the election, in the shape of a ponderous well filled jug. It being so late, and
the pilgrims too tired to go any further, we stayed at the mill overnight. When we reported to the lumbermen what we
had heard of the intentions of the few voters at Mukwa, they at once fell in
with our plans, and agreed to assist us to frustrate the schemes of the Mukwa
crew. It did not require much
persuasion to induce Mr. Millard to close his mill for one day, and turn out
with all hands, to attend the election. Immediately after
breakfast in the morning, we all, about twenty in number, started for
Mukwa. We had to walk about two miles
to the mouth of the Little Wolf, and then cross Wolf river. The only ferry boat was a small skiff
calculated to hold two persons. We at
first put in two besides the ferryman, but after two or three loads got safely
over, we piled in another, making four in a boat only intended for two, but all
got safely over. When we got up the
river bank and to the hotel, we found we had not been misinformed and were soon
convinced that “the half had not been told.”
We found five or six persons standing around with one William N. Davis,
who appeared to be the leader, preparing to open the polls of the
elections. They had procured tickets at
Oshkosh, with their names printed for the most important offices, and had left
blank spaces to write in such names as might be proposed for the rest of the
offices.
[WAUPACA COUNTY HISTORY] CHAPTER
VI. (5 October 1887 continuing) After we got together
the first proceeding was to organize a caucus to make nominations for town and
county officers. Mr. Davis and his
party made serious objections to such proceedings, for the reason that they had
already selected several of the candidates, but they were willing that we
should name the persons to fill out the rest of the ticket. This was not satisfactory to us, and having
a majority of more than two to one, we assumed the right to dictate the whole
matter, and make tickets to suit ourselves. On their ticket Mr.
Davis was candidate for chairman of supervisors, and James Smiley for register
of deeds. These we ignored entirely,
but adopted some of the other nominations they had made. After completing the
nominations, we proceeded to chose inspectors and clerks of election. For inspectors were chosen G. W. Taggart,
chairman, John W. Chandler and Tyler Caldwell.
For clerks, Wm. G. Cooper and Simon C. Dow. To be fully equipped
for business, we carried with us a ballot box and a pamphlet copy of the
election laws, but we found that Mr. Davis had also prepared a ballot box, and
had a copy of the revised statutes of 1849.
We needed the two ballot boxes however, one for the town and one for the
county election. After proclamation was
made declaring the polls open, the first man that offered his vote was Hiram P.
Sexton of Lind, which was promptly challenged by one of the Mukwa party. Mr. Sexton promptly took the necessary oath,
the vote was received, and though some of the disappointed candidates were
rather cross and sour, there was no further trouble. There was one
occurrence during the forenoon that afforded considerable amusement to some of
the party. Mr. Davis, in preparing to
open the polls, had his statute lying on the table. The pamphlet law we had carried was there also. In the course of business a legal question
arose, and we proposed to refer to the law, but neither the statute or the
pamphlet law could be found. One of the
bystanders had seen Mr. Davis carry away the statute with the pamphlet inside
of it. No one supposed any wrong was intended, and a man was requested to step
into the store, and ask Mr. Davis for it.
He did so and came back with a reply that was neither courteous or
civil. There was great excitement, but
the whole board of inspectors rose to their feet, and leaving the ballot boxes
in charge of the clerks, walked into the store followed by ten or a dozen
stalwart men. The chairman as
spokesman, promptly informed Mr. Davis it might be conducive to the safety of
himself and his premises to produce that pamphlet law. After looking the crowd over, he quietly
went behind the counter, took the book from under a bale of goods, and handed
it over. After this everything
went smoothly till nearly night, when it was discovered that we had failed to
vote for any clerk of the board of supervisors. It was proposed to elect Mr. Smiley to the office, and two
persons were found who had not voted the county ticket, and they voted for
him. About this time one Ransom
Nichols, a candidate on the Mukwa ticket, who had been very ill-humored all
day, and refused to vote, concluded that he would like the office, came
forward, voted for himself, and found another of the disappointed ones who
voted for him. Thus it remained until
it was time to close the polls, when one of the board discovered an object
moving among the trees some distance away, and requesting the board not to
close till he returned, started out on a voyage of discovery. He found it was one Armstrong, who was
carrying the mail for O. E. Dreutzer, just coming into Mukwa where he stayed
over night. He voted for Smiley, and
that secured his election. The
county officers elected were: David
Scott, Chn. of supervisors, Peter Meiklejohn and Tyler Caldwell. These composed the board for the transaction
of both town and county business.
Treasurer, Simon C. Dow; clerk of the board, James Smiley; surveyor, G.
W. Taggart. John M. Vaughn received the
votes for sheriff, though it was well understood that our county was not
entitled to such an officer, but it was intended as a recommendation for the
office of deputy sheriff, which we believed our county was entitled to. No votes were given for clerk of the court. The town officers
elected were, S. F. Ware of Waupaca, Albion Brandy of Mukwa, and John Boyd of
Little River, Justices of the peace; Ira Brown of Mukwa, assessor; J. B.
Hibbard of Waupaca; Atwood Vetie of Little River, and Chauncey Foster of Mukwa,
constables. Charles L. Gumaer of
Weyauwega, was elected town clerk, instead of the clerk of the court as Mr.
Dewey says, but instead of qualifying and holding on “like a puppy to a root,”
as he expresses it, he declined to accept or have anything to do with the
office, and Smiley acted as clerk of the board in the transaction of both the
town and county business. Thus ends the first
and only election for the town and county of Waupaca ever held east of Wolf
river. We did not concluded the
business and establish the county seat in the forenoon as they did at Mr.
Dewey’s election, neither did we have the hundred voters he had at his election. VERITAS. WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER VII. 19
October 1887 After the polls were
closed and the votes canvassed, and we were ready to make out the returns, we
found that the paper we had provided in the morning was exhausted. One of the board went to Mr. Davis’ store to
get some, but he would not let us have a scrap, either for “love or
money.” We began to think we were in a
bad predicament, but Mr. Smiley generously came to our relief by bringing forward
a blank book, which supplied us with all the paper we needed. By the time we got
through with the business, it was late in the evening, and no one thought of
starting for home that night. As full
half of our party had been elected t some office, the next thing was to execute
official bonds and oaths of office, which were required by law to be filed at
the county seat, and we concluded the easiest way would be to have it done
before we went home as it would require at least another day to accomplish it. Accordingly, every one
who had been elected to any office, made out and filed the proper papers by
signing each others bonds as security. Fortunately we were
not required to make affidavit as to the amount of property we possessed, or
there might have been trouble to find bondsmen of sufficient responsibility,
for all the land on our side of the river was government land, and unsurveyed
at that. So it was extremely doubtful
whether any one of our party was worth a dollar besides what was covered by the
exemption law. But the question was
never raised, and we got along without any difficulty. Every man that could write his name was just
as good a bondsman as though he was worth a million. After all the official
papers were executed and filed, our register of deeds and treasurer elect found
themselves in a tight place. They were
required by law to hold their offices at the county seat, but there were no
buildings to be had either for offices or residences, and if there had been
buildings to rent, the income of their offices would not pay the rent, to say
nothing of other expenses. There were but three
buildings in the place; one was owned and occupied by Mr. Davis, part for a
dwelling, the other part for a store; Horace Ralph had a comfortable building,
used as a hotel, and Mr. Smiley had an unfinished building, part of which he
converted into an office, the rest occupied as a dwelling with his family. In this emergency Mr.
Smiley was again called on for relief, and importuned to accept a deputyship,
by both the treasurer and register of deeds, which consented to do. And thus, in the case of Mr. Smiley, were
the words of the Psalmist, “The stone which the builder rejected has become the
headstone of the corner,” more than verified, for he was not only the headstone
of the corner but it may truthfully be said that he was nearly the entire
fabric, for he had control of all the important offices in the county at the
same time and in every public position he ever occupied, he proved himself to
be a worthy, capable and efficient officer, which can not with truth be said of
all his successors in the same positions.
He has ever since been a resident of the town of Mukwa, and is now
enjoying a quiet and honorable old age. VERITAS. ------------- TO MR. DANA DEWEY OF
WAUPACA, WIS. - In a late number of the Waupaca Republican, appears a letter
addressed to Veritas, with your signature attached, in which you claim, that in
accordance with a paper issued from Madison in the previous March, you, with
ninety-nine others, attended an election at the house of H. Ralph in Mukwa, in
April, 1850, and voted for town and county officers, and also for the location
of the county seat, and you endeavor to substantiate your position by certain
information given you by Charles Carr, a son of the late county clerk, W. C.
Carr. We beg leave to ask you a few
questions concerning the statements therein contained, and in return will give
you liberty to catechize us and criticize our assertions to your heart’s
content. By whom and by what
authority was such a paper issued? To whom was it
addressed, and by whom received? Was it a public
document or a private letter? What public notice was
given to secure the attendance of a hundred voters at your election? Who were the
inspectors and clerks of your election? Please give us the
names of as many as you can recollect of your ninety-nine associates at that
election. Now,
we will give you a few pointers that may assist you in your pursuit after
correct information about the early settlers in the county and their history. W. C. Carr was never
county clerk, nor was he the father of Charles Carr. He came from Winneconne in the spring of 1851 and settled in the
west part of what is now the town of Dayton.
He established the Crystal Lake post office in 1852, represented Waupaca
county in the assembly in 1859, and died a few years ago at a ripe and
honorable old age. He had one son,
Warner S. Carr, who for several years past has resided in Waupaca city, and is
now engaged in developing the granite quarry in Helvetia. Wm. D. Carr was the
father of Chas. Carr, and was county clerk for two terms. He was never in Mukwa or Waupaca county
until May 1857, a little more than seven years after your election, so it is
not very likely that he assisted in burying a ballot box at Mukwa in April
1850. Now,
for your gratification we will admit that there was an election held in 1850,
within the limits of the present town of Mukwa, but instead of April it was
held in November, and instead of Waupaca county it was a precinct established
by the authorities of Winnebago county.
It was held at Gordon’s mill, two miles from the mouth of Little Wolf
river. At that time there
were a good many men employed at Gordon’s mill, and another mill, owned by
Caleb and Edwin Hobart, located where the village of Ostrander now is, and all
being considered citizens of Winnebago county a precinct was established and a
poll opened for their accommodation.
The votes given were canvassed, and returns made to Winnebago county. It would seem entirely
unnecessary to say more to establish the fact that Waupaca county had no
existence until the passage of the organic law of Feb. 17, 1851, neither was
any election held for either town or county officers ‘til April 1851. In
a letter published in the Weyauwega Chronicle August 31st. we showed that in the summer of 1850, the U.S. marshal for
the county of Winnebago, took the census in this district, and returned the
inhabitants as residents of that county; then on Sept. 7th we showed the egregious
errors you made in describing the boundaries of the original town and county;
then in the next chapter, Sept. 21st, we stated that in April 1850, there was
neither hotel, post office, or any white man’s habitation within a mile of the
place. Not one of these statements has
ever been controverted or denied, and we will close this letter by adding, that
at the time you claim to have held your election, neither John Phelps, one of
your supervisors, or James Smiley, your register of deeds, were then, or ever
had been, residents of the county. In conclusion we will
give you the names of a few persons that were residents in 1850, and are still
living in the county, and advise you to call on them to substantiate your
assertions, instead of depending on second-hand supposed statements of one who
never saw the county till seven years after the date referred to. We will refer you to
S. S. Chandler, senior, Evan Townsend, Mrs. Ware and her three sons, of
Waupaca; Jas. S. Potter and Augustus Chandler, of Lind; Horace Baldwin of
Royalton; James Smiley of Mukwa; Columbus Caldwell of Little Wolf, and Peter
Meiklejohn of Weyauwega, one of the first board of supervisors elected in
April, 1851. Yours, with due respect, VERITAS. WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
VIII. 26
October 1887 Early in June, 1851,
supervisors Meiklejohn and Caldwell held a meeting for the transaction of
public business, (Capt. Scott, the chairman, not having been in the county
since the election.) They divided the
town into eight road districts, and appointed overseers of highways for each
district; and as the electors had failed to elect any town treasurer, they
appointed G. W. Taggart to that office, but there being no town funds on hand
and no good prospect of any being collected, he like C. L. Gumaer, the town
clerk elect, failed to qualify for an office that was nothing but an empty
name. The division lines of
road districts were very indefinite, as there were no survey lines or any other
division lines except rivers, so they made divisions and appointments to
accommodate the different neighborhoods that made application for them. After Mr. Scott
returned home late in the summer, another meeting of the supervisors was held
with a full board, at which provision was made for election precincts at
Waupaca, Weyauwega, Lind, Centreville and Mukwa for the election to be held in
November to choose county officers, whose term of office should commence on the
1st of January, 1852. Petitions were
also received and acted upon for laying out and establishing several public
highways; one from Waupaca through Greenwood and Weyauwega to the Wolf river at
Gills Landing; one from Weyauwega by the way of Lind to the south line of the
county near Cedar Lake, with a branch from Lind by way of Dayton’s place to the
west line of the county, near Frank King’s place, and many others. At the election in
November, 1851, Simon C. Dow was re-elected county treasurer, Mellen
Chamberlain clerk of the board of supervisors, James Smiley register of deeds,
and Ira Sumner surveyor. At the meeting
of the board held in November after the election, the towns of Mukwa,
Centreville, Weyauwega, and Lind were organized, and provision made for the
election of officers in each of the five towns. In 1852 each town elected its own officers. The
county board of supervisors held their meetings at Mukwa, the county seat, as
provided by organic law. There was no
discord or disturbance of any kind. Two
new towns were organized, one by dividing the town of Lind, and forming the
town of Dayton. The other we cannot
name at this time. Mr. Dewey, in his
history, says the eastern part of the county receded from the organization for
themselves, and goes on to describe a very eccentric line from north to south
through the county, all of which “facts” are the creation of his own fertile
imagination. The county seat question
was never raised till the annual town meeting in April, 1853. In another chapter we will endeavor to give
some facts concerning the removal of the Co. seat; the
manner in which it was effected, and the difficulties that grew out of the
proceeding. Yours, VERITAS. WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
X. 16
November 1887 After Mr. Smiley and
Mr. Dow were released from jail, they returned to their offices at Mukwa, and
were not molested during the remainder of their term, which lasted until
January 1st, 1854. At the session of the
legislature in February, 1853, a law was passed organizing Waupaca county for
judicial purposes, and providing for holding an election on the first Tuesday
in April following, to elect a sheriff, clerk of the court and register of
deeds, and Caleb E. P. Hobart county judge. Mr. Dewey claims that
Jones was elected in 1852, and M. Chamberlain clerk of the court in 1853, and
that he was the only officer voted for at that election, when in fact in 1852
the county was not organized for judicial purposes; we had no such officer as
clerk of the court, nor were we entitled to one; and that Mellen Chamberlain
was never elected to that office or a candidate for it. Mr. Hobart never
qualified as county judge, and the next year S. F. Ware of Waupaca, was elected
to that office. After the election in
the spring of ‘53 commenced what was termed the “double barrel” arrangements in
the county. James Smiley had been
elected register of deeds in November ‘51, for two years from Jan. 1st ‘52, and
in accordance with the laws of 1853, Charles Redfield was elected to the same
office, his term to commence immediately.
Mr. Smiley continued his office at Mukwa, and Mr. Redfield opened his at
Waupaca. Mellen Chamberlain had been
elected clerk of the board of supervisors, and held his office at Waupaca. Some
of the towns considered Waupaca the county seat, made their election returns to
that office, and the supervisors of such towns met there for the transaction of
county business; but a majority of the towns in the county took the position
that the votes cast in the spring of 1852, and the other proceedings for
removal of the county seat from Mukwa, were illegal and void; claiming that the
elections that had been held in the county up to that time had been in strict
conformity to law, and that there was no authority to legislate one man out of
office, and another into the same office, without any charge of malfeasance or
any mismanagement in the office. The
supervisors of these towns held their meetings at Mukwa for the canvas of votes
and the transaction of other business.
Mr. Chamberlain, the clerk, refusing to attend the meetings at Mukwa,
John Fordyce was appointed clerk of the board.
We never had but one sheriff or one treasurer at the same time. VERITAS. WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
XI. 30
November 1887 According to Mr.
Dewey’s history, there were serious troubles in conducting elections in
consequence of outside interference, such as stealing and destroying ballot
boxes, and thus frustrating the expressed wishes of the electors. First at his famous election in 1850 after
they had elected a full set of officers, both for town and county, and given
eighty votes for the county seat at Waupaca, and only twenty in opposition,
“all in one forenoon,” some miscreant, in defiance of the laws of the state or
the rights of civilized society, and especially of the eighty voters from
Waupaca, in a sly and surreptitious manner stole the ballot box and buried it
under a tree, and thereby nullified the whole proceeding. Then, again, when the five towns in range 10
“voted to come into this county, but interested parties stole the ballot box
and that ended their efforts to become part of Waupaca county.” It is to be regretted
that Mr. Dewey did not describe more particularly the circumstances attending
this election, the time when it was held, and the manner of conducting it;
whether more than one poll was held, or whether all the towns voted at one place,
and who were the interested parties that were suspected of stealing the ballot
box. Now we will venture
the assertion that there has never been an instance in any of the towns in
Waupaca Co., of any interference by any one or more persons outside of the board
of inspectors and clerks of election, nor was there ever a ballot box stolen or
destroyed in the county. There was one case of
stealing an office in the town of Lind, but it was not through any frauds or
irregularities at the election, but by dishonest proceedings of certain
official s sometime afterwards. In the fall of 1859 J.
J. Jones, (afterwards better known as Monkey Jones) became a resident of the
town of Lind. He was practicing
dentistry, assumed the title of Doctor Jones, dressed in better style than the
average of the squatters upon the Indian land, in a suit of black, plug hat,
shining boots, and carrying a fancy cane, claimed to have a vast store of legal
knowledge, and took great interest in public affairs. The next spring, who but he was competent to manage the affairs
of the town? The decision of a town
caucus of about half a dozen voters, decided that he was the man, and he was
nominated and afterwards elected chairman of supervisors and town superintendent
of schools. The rest of the ticket
nominated at the caucus was elected except the candidate for town clerk, Jarvis
L. Rice, who was called by some irreverent persons “Jones’ right bower,” failed
to get votes enough to elect him, and one Thomas Marshal, living on section 7,
was elected. This
was a terrible blow to the aspirations of some parties who had calculated to
make a great amount of political capital by their management of the town
affairs during the year, and some scheme must be devised to effect a change. Accordingly a certain pecuniary
consideration was offered to Marshal to induce him to resign and let Rice have
the office, but he, being an honest conscientious Irishman, refused to accept
the bribe. Their next move was to
commence a suit before Elihu Higgins, a justice of the peace in Waupaca on some
frivolous pretext. E. Avery, a
constable of the town of Lind, and a particular friend of Jones and Rice,
served the writ, and took possession of all books and papers in the office, and
presented them in court. After
investigation the justice found the whole proceedings to be fraudulent,
dismissed the case, and made an order directing the constable to return the
books and papers to Marshal. Constable Avery,
instead of returning the books to Marshal on his way home from Waupaca, took
them to his own house with the intention, as he averred, of carrying them up to
Marshal’s the next day; but what was his surprise when he awoke the next
morning to find that the books and papers had all disappeared, and no trace of
them could be found. The conclusion was
that while he and his family were asleep, some thief had entered the house,
stolen and carried them away, but where no one could imagine, and it did not
appear that any efforts were made to find them, though terrible threats were
made of punishment that awaited the guilty parties if they should ever be
discovered. A few weeks afterwards
the supervisors met at the house of Jarvis L. Rice, and found him fully
prepared to act as town clerk, with all the books and stationary in his possession;
but whether any investigation was made or any questions asked as to how he
obtained them, the records do not show.
Mr. Marshal was so disgusted with what he termed the dastardly
proceedings of the Jones and Rice clique, that he refused to make any effort to
regain possession of the books or the office, and Rice served as town clerk
during the balance of the year. Thus was accomplished
the actual stealing of an office from one who was fairly and legally elected,
and had peaceable possession of the office. Two
years afterwards the same Mr. Jones was an active abettor with Wm. A. Barstow
in stealing the office of governor of Wisconsin. VERITAS. [WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY] APPRECIATED. 7
December 1887 The Early History of
Waupaca County by Veritas, now running through the CHRONICLE, is destined to be
preserved in the archives of Wisconsin, as evidenced by the following letter
from the librarian of the State Historical Society; MADISON,
DEC. 1, 1887 A. L. HUTCHINSON, Esq Weyauwega DEAR
SIR: - We would like to have a duplicate set of your paper which has the
“Waupaca Co. History” in them. The last
copy we had from you for the library file is chapter 11. We wish to cut out the articles and have
them mounted and make a pamphlet of them for the library. If you have extra
copies of the paper, please send them and those that may follow as issued, for
which the Society will pay by your sending a bill of the same. The regular file you
send will as usual be preserved and bound, but the extra copy containing these
articles will be very useful preserved with other Wisconsin local history. Yours truly, Daniel
S. Durrie, Librarian WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
XII. 14 December 1887
In our last chapter we
made the statement that there was never an instance of any interference with
the ballot box in any town in this county by any parties outside of the
regularly appointed inspectors and clerks of the election. This was done with a full understanding that
it is a negative assertion, and as such liable to criticism and contradiction;
and if Mr. Dewey or any of his friends can cite us to an instance of the kind,
with affirmative testimony to prove the time, place and particulars, we will
cheerfully back down and acknowledge the error. Not that we would
claim that all the elections that have been held in the county were fairly and
honestly conducted, for we know that such has not always been the case. We will report one case which happened in
the town of Farmington several years subsequent to the time of the transaction
referred to in our previous chapter. The
office of the town had been held by a few active politicians for several years,
and many of the citizens had become convinced that the affairs of the town were
so managed as to benefit a few officials, at the expense of the taxpayers, and
after consultation they resolved to make an effort to effect a complete change
of officers at the next annual town meeting, and accordingly they nominated an
entire new ticket. The old ring (as
they were called,) also had their ticket in the field, and they had a very warm
election. Before the canvas of
votes commenced some of the old party were very sanguine that their party had
prevailed, and offered to make large bets that they would have a majority of
the votes, but did not find any of their opponents disposed to take their
bets. As the old officers composed the
election board, and had the ballot box in their possession during the day, some
vague suspicions were aroused that by “accident” some of the votes might have
changed during the hour of adjournment for dinner, though no one had the
audacity to intimate such a thing in an audible manner, but concluded it would
be safe to take no pecuniary risk on the result. After the canvas was
completed, what was the surprise of all parties to find a large majority for
the office holders ticket. Then
commenced a series of charges of one against another of treachery, violation of
pledges, being bought, &c., which were uniformly denied. Every man who was pledged to support the new
ticket, claimed to have voted it straight, till at length a considerable
majority of all who voted that day, either did or were ready to make oath that
they had voted the ticket that was counted out. Those
in possession of the offices in a very pleasant, smiling manner, inquired what
are you going to do about it? After
employing counsel, the defeated candidates decided to have the matter
investigated and writs of quo warranto were issued and served upon all those in
possession of the offices. After this,
behold what a change! Now the smiles
appear upon the countenances of the other fellows, and those who were so happy
in the possession of the offices a short time ago, now deprecated the great
trouble and expense of a long and tedious lawsuit for a petty town office, and
at length proposed to compromise by a general resignation of the offices, and
having a new election called, which was finally agreed to, and at the next
election the new ticket was elected by a good majority. MR. EDITOR: Some
slight typographical errors appear in some of the preceding chapters, which
would lead to erroneous conclusions.
Whether the fault is in the copy or the type is immaterial, but a little
correction is necessary to convey the ideas intended by the writer. In the latter part of
chapter 10, in referring to the votes cast in the spring of 1852, should be
read in the spring of 1853, and in chapter 11, the time that Mr. Jones became a
resident in the town of Lind, should read in the fall of 1852 instead of 1859. Resp’t
Yours, VERITAS WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
XIII. 21
December 1887 At the legislative
session in 1853, an act was passed to organize a new judicial circuit, to be
known as the seventh judicial circuit, which included the counties of Adams,
Portage, Waupaca, Waushara and Marathon.
James S. Albon of Plover, represented the 2d senatorial district, and
George W. Cate of Amherst, the assembly district, composed of the counties of
Portage and Marathon. The act provided
for the election of a circuit judge on the first Tuesday in April 1854. A representative of
Waupaca county visiting Madison in March 1853, a few days after the passage of
the act, was informed by some members of the legislature that the district was
organized for the purpose of making an opening for Mr. Cate to be elected
circuit judge. As soon as it was
generally known that such election was to be held, the few voters living in the
district commenced looking about for a suitable person to fill the office. The only persons that made any prominent
show as candidates were Geo. W. Cate and Luther Hanchet, a son-in-law of
Senator Alban, both residents of Portage county. Notwithstanding
the claim that political partisanship should be entirely ignored in all
judicial elections, it is notorious that in the choice of officers of any kind,
where there are two candidates of opposite political sentiments, other
considerations being equal, voters will uniformly support that one whose views
are in accord with his own. Of
the candidates for circuit judge, it was represented that Mr. Cate was a
democrat and Mr. Hanchet a Whig. A very
thorough canvas of the district was made by the friends of both candidates. In Waupaca and the immediate vicinity Mr.
Hanchet appeared to be the favorite.
Some parties from an adjoining town being at Waupaca about a week before
the election, were told by prominent politicians of the place that all the
voters in that place would vote for Hanchet, but three, (giving their names,)
who were such rabid democrats they would not vote for a Whig under any
circumstances. When
the election returns were examined we were much surprised at the discovery that
the town of Waupaca had voted almost unanimously for Mr. Cate, and that he was
elected. When questioned about the
cause of their sudden conversion, the explanation made was, that they, like Joe
Strang, the Mormon prophet at Voree, had received a new revelation, and were
bound to obey the voice of God. What
that revelation consisted of was supposed to be discovered some time
afterwards. The
election of circuit judge was the only election held in the spring of 1854,
except for town officers in the different towns. Mr. Dewey says a vote was taken at this time on the Co. seat
question, which resulted as did all his elections in a majority of sixty for
Waupaca, but does not tell us whether any votes were given for any other
place. Then he goes on to report the
election of James Smiley for register of deeds, and Lyman Dayton for sheriff at
the same time, and thinks there was a record from the east part of the county
showing that Robert Meiklejohn had 117 votes to Lyman Dayton 9, but he knows
that Dayton was declared elected. We will endeavor to
give some “facts” concerning that election in a future chapter. VERITAS. WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY TO
VERITAS. 28
December 1887 I will now tell you of
our first election. It was held in 1850
as I said, and the same men were elected and their majority the same as I have
stated before. Charley Carr told me
that his father told him the records were buried under a tree while we were in
to dinner. You say that Carr was
not in the country. How could he tell
this if he was not? You say too, that
range 15 was never in this county. Now
there was a man named Williams that ran for chairman in range 15, against
Scott, and Scott beat him thirty-five votes.
You say that range 10 was never in this county. We elected John Phelps supervisor for that
range in 1850. Mr. Nelson of Amherst,
told E. L. Browne that if he would get them back in this county he would give
him five hundred dollars out of his own pocket. I will show you that you don’t
know everything yet. You told me to see S.
S. Chandler, Evan Townsend and Mrs. Ware, and her boys. Mrs. Ware was not in the county until late
in 1850. S. F. Ware came Feb. 12, 1850,
and went to work building a house and getting ready for his family when they
came. Now
for the house that we ate our dinner in at that election. It was a board shanty, about 16 feet east
and west, and 28 or 30 feet north and south with a battened door hung on wooden
hinges. There was no floor, and sticks
were driven in the ground and strips nailed to them with boards on top for a
table. The table was about 24 feet long
and had long benches on each side for seats.
A shanty off from this was used to do the cooking in. The cook shanty stood a little southeast
from the one we ate our dinner in. We
stood outdoors a little northeast from the shanty and did our voting. Lyman Thompson has described the shanties and
voting place without being asked to do so. S.
S. Chandler says he was at that first election, but don’t remember whether it
was in 1850 or 1851, but that it was down below the mouth of the Little Wolf
river on a little knoll. Evan
Townsend says that Mr. Taggart went back to New York in 1849, and did not come
back till June 1850, so Mr. Taggart can see why he does not remember the
election in the spring of 1850. He has
carried the idea that he was here so the Clintonville Tribune can see how near
he gets to the truth. I challenge you
Mr. Taggart to tell of any different shanty there than the ones I have
described. There was not a log in the
pond nor a board about the mill. There
were nine saws hanging up in the mill.
It is what is called Phillips Mills.
I stayed in that new house across the river from the mill, and lay on
the floor with nothing but a blanket for a bed and a stick of wood and a pocket
handkerchief for a pillow. I got up
between 12 and 1 o’clock and walked about the rest of the night. As Mr. Taggart wants everything “just so,” I
will refer him to the article “One who knows” and to my book for the
balance. Mr. Taggart told Henry Mumbrue
that the Register’s books were secreted in the woods and Mr. Smiley released
from the trial. That is so, but we were
not organized till 1854. Now we elected
Judge Cate circuit judge, and his first term of court here was in the spring of
1854. We sued James Smiley to bring
those books to Waupaca. He came and
agreed with the people here that if we would re-elect him and release him from
the trial, he would come over and be one with us. After he had satisfied the people here we released him from the
trial, and elected him register in 1854.
He brought the books to Waupaca and got the loan of O. E. Druetzer’s
name, and put his name instead of his own at the foot of page in 1854. In 1855 he took the books and went back to
Mukwa, and went to recording deeds there. S.
A. Oaks says he had deed recorded in Mukwa in 1855. Why did you, Mr. Taggart, tell Mr. Mumbrue the thing just as it
occurred. Now I will say that the only
time G. W. Taggart was ever surveyor in this county was when he was elected by
the east side in 1851, and the names of David Scott, Taylor Caldwell, S. C. Dow
and John M. Vaughn that were on that ticket were there without their
consent. I heard them all talk it over
in Scott’s office in 1851. Columbus
Caldwell says he can remember the time his father went to Mukwa when he was
elected supervisor. You have said a great
deal about this 1850 election, but you don’t tell what the western towns and
Fremont did to you that you separated from us in 1857, and gave the county two
sets of county officers. Now I will
tell one thing. The officers you
elected were all you dared elect. You
didn’t DARE elect a county judge or a justice of the peace or a constable. If you had you would have heard from Judge
Ware. Mr. Townsend says that
Mr. Caldwell and Squire Warner were here all winter and bought a barrel of salt
for seven dollars and paid in lumber, and that it was the first lumber sold
here, and that it was in 1849 so you can see that Mr. Caldwell was here at the
election in the spring of 1850. Veritas says that this
first election was at Ostrander’s in the fall of 1851, and that he had a well
filled jug and that you stayed all night.
I don’t doubt it in the least.
It is likely he had two. Mr. Thompson and Mr.
Chandler saw no jugs or bottles, they saw no store and if the saw mill was
running they would know it. I think a
man who is not afraid of his birth right should have as much credit as one who
is ashamed of it and signs his name “Veritas.”
Mr. Caldwell says his father went to the first election. This was in 1850 and we came home together
to a place near Mr. Beadleston’s and talked a good deal about the papers being
destroyed. DANA
DEWEY WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY 11
January 1888 TO DANA DEWEY, Esq., Waupaca: In your communications
published in the Waupaca Post of December 22d, you address me personally, and I
will reply to you in the same manner. You still persist in
your assertion that you had an election at Mukwa in 1850, and repeat the
Charlie Carr story (about what his father told him of records being buried
under a tree) which I supposed was effectually refuted when I informed you that
Wm. D. Carr was never in Waupaca county till May 1857, and of course could have
no knowledge of affairs that happened seven years before that time. As I do not intend to make any assertions
that I cannot substantiate, I will give you as proof of what I say the material
contents of a letter addressed to me by one of Mr. Carr’s family, omitting the
name of the writer. “Mr. G. W.
Taggart: William D. Carr came to Fond
du Lac in the fall of 1854, was married May 1 1855, started for New York the same
day, lived there two years and returned to Mukwa in May 1857.” I think you need better evidence than
Charlie Carr to prove transactions that you say occurred several years before
he was born. You
next charge me with saying that range 15 was never in this county. I said that no part of range 15 except town
25, ever belonged to Waupaca county. I
say so now, and I challenge you to find a shadow of proof to the contrary. I said too that range 10 never legally
belonged to this county. In chapter 3
of Waupaca county history the following statement is made: “It is true that at the time there were two
sets of county officers. In order to
make a show of strength in the west part of the count, some of the towns in
range 10 did send representatives to Waupaca, and they were recognized as
members of that county board, but there was no law or authority for any such
proceeding.” If this statement is not
true, bring on your evidence to the contrary. In
reply to your former letter published in the Republican, in which you stated
that your election in 1850 was in accordance with a paper issued from Madison
in the March previous, you were requested to give information as to who issued
such paper, and who received it, whether it was a public document or a private letter;
also the names of the inspectors and clerks at such election; and then to give
the names of as many other parties who attended that election as you could
remember. Not one of these queries have
you replied to in any manner, but you have gone on a tangent with a long
rigmarole describing the place where (you say) you got your dinner, and saw
nine saws hanging up in the mill, which facts, (if they are facts) have no
bearing on the question that I can discover. The
parties I referred you to in my previous letter were all residents of the
county in 1850. Mr. Chandler and Mr.
Townsend were here in 1849, and Mrs. Ware was here on the 7th of June 1850,
which was the first time I ever saw her.
If Mr. S. S. Chandler says he attended an election held at Mukwa, he is
mistaken; the only one of the name that was there was his brother John W.
Chandler. In chapter 5 of Veritas’
history you will find the names of all that went from this side of the county. You
seem to be quite elated at the information that I was not in the county in
April, 1850. I came up in October 1849,
and made a claim in the town of Lind, then went back, not to New York as Mr.
Townsend says, but to Rochester in this state; came up again in March 1850,
spent a few days in Lind, and March 20 went to Waupaca, and stayed over night,
and started the next morning towards Appleton, crossing Wolf river below the
mouth of the Little Wolf. The only name
by which the place was known at the time was White Bear, a name given to it by
the Indians on account of some tradition, but what I do not know. In the latter part of the year, I think in
October, a petition was circulated to have a post office established and the
name Mukwa was selected, which was said to be the Indian name for white
bear. The only building within a mile
of this crossing was an old log stable, very much dilapidated, that had once
been used as an ox stable by some lumbermen. I then went home to Rochester by
way of Appleton, Fond du Lac, Port Washington and Racine, and commenced preparations
to move with my family to the Indian land.
Tyler Caldwell, who was my nearest neighbor in Rochester, and who was
one of our first company of six to visit the Indian land in 1849, was, when I
got home, at work preparing to move, and from about the first of April to the
26th of May we worked together every day getting ready to start with our
families for our new homes. We started
on our journey May 27th, and got to Lind June 6th. Neither Mr. Caldwell or myself were in Waupaca county in April or
May 1850, so you will have to admit that your yarn about going home from
election with Mr. Caldwell in 1850, and your talk with him near Beadleston’s is
all a myth. You say Taggart told
Henry Mumbrue about the register’s books being secreted in the woods, etc. I never told him, or any other person any
such thing, for I neither knew or cared anything about it, and if I had, what
bearing would it have on the matters under consideration. I must give you a
little more information about Mukwa. I
had occasion to travel that way about the 20th of July, 1850, crossing the Wolf
at the same place, and found little change since I was there in March
previous. The same log stable was
there, but no Horace Ralph and no place to hold an election, and no shanty such
as you describe to eat in. If you want
any further proof of the appearance of the place at that time, I will refer you
to Mr. Debius Hutchings on, who now lives in Weyauwega. He was engaged during the summer of 1850, at
work on the Hobart mill that was built on the Little Wolf where Ostrander now
is, and crossed the Wolf at that place nearly every week during the summer and
fall. You next say we were
not organized till 1854. In this
assertion you are wrong as usual. If
you will examine chapter 7 of the laws of 1853, you will see that section 1
reads as follows: “From and after the
first day of April next the county of Waupaca shall be fully organized for
judicial purposes, and shall enjoy the rights and privileges appertaining to
other counties so organized in this state.”
Sec. 4 of the same chapter provides for the election on the first
Tuesday in April 1853, of county officers. You
then make the astounding announcement that G. W. Taggart was never elected
surveyor in the county except when elected by the east side in 1851. Who pretended that he was ever elected at
any other time? and whether by the east or west side, he got every vote cast
for that office, and there were as many voters present from Waupaca as from any
other place in the county. You
next make the assertion that the names of David Scott, Tyler Caldwell, S. C.
Dow and John M. Vaughn were put on the ticket without their consent; that you
heard them all talk it over in Scott’s office in 1851. Now that story is as far as the last three
are concerned is manufactured without a shadow of foundation. David Scott was not in the state at the time
of the election, but when he got home and was apprised of his election he
seemed pleased, accepted the place, and made a very efficient officer. The
other three were all present, assisted in making the nominations and conducting
the election. Tyler Caldwell was one of
the inspectors and S. C. Dow one of the clerks of the election. All were voted for with their knowledge and
consent, and all were declared elected to their respective offices. Mr. Caldwell and Mr. Dow executed and filed
their official papers before they came home.
Mr. Vaughn did not qualify for his office for the reason that our county
not being organized for judicial purposes we were not entitled to any sheriff. You
say we elected all the officers that we dared to elect, that we did not dare to
elect a county judge, a justice of the peace, or a constable, for if we had we
would have heard from Judge Ware. We
did not elect a county judge for the reason that an unorganized county was not
entitled to any; but if you will read chapter 6 of Veritas’ history you will
find that we did elect three justices, of which S. F. Ware was one, and three
constables. ‘Tis true we did hear from
S. F. Ware (he was not judge at that time) and he expressed much gratification
at his election as justice of the peace, qualified for the office and served
through the term. You say Mr. Townsend
says that Mr. Caldwell and Squire Warner were here all winter, &c. Instead of Squire Warner it was Jarvis L.
Rice that was in Lind during the winter of 1849 and 1850. They were both young men, Caldwell being
only 18 years of age. Your next egregious
error is in asserting that Veritas says that this first election was at
Ostrander’s in the fall of 1851, when he does not say any such thin. He says the first and only election for the
town and county of Waupaca ever held was at the house of Horace Ralph in Mukwa
in the SPRING of 1851. He does not say,
neither does he believe that any town or county election was ever held at
Ostrander’s. When the county election was held in the fall of 1851, the county
was divided into five precincts and polls were opened at Mukwa, Waupaca, Lind,
Centreville and Weyauwega. As to the
well filled jug to which reference is made, you may be assured great joy was
manifested at its discovery, and a portion of its contents proved a healing
balm to the aching limbs and sore toes of the weary pilgrims who had been all
day perambulating through the wilderness without even an ox team to render them
any assistance. Since the foregoing
was written I have received a letter by mail addressed to me individually, and
though not intended for publication I will take the liberty to add an extract
from it. MADISON,
Wis., Dec. 26, ‘87 MR. TAGGART: - I see in the Waupaca Post that
Dana Dewey uses my name in reference to the early history of Waupaca. Now I do not remember ever telling Mr. Dewey
anything in regard to the matter, and my father never told me to my remembrance
that the books were buried while (as Mr. Dewey says) we were at dinner. My father first came west in 1854, when he
was married near Fond du Lac, returned to New York, and came to Mukwa in ‘58. I never remember hearing my father say
anything about the historical data of Waupaca. The name Charles F.
Carr is signed to the letter. Now Mr. Dewey if at
any time you want any information about the early history of Waupaca county, I
shall be happy to furnish it to you free of all expense. Respectfully
Yours, Geo.
W. Taggart WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY 18 January 1888 TO DANA DEWEY, Waupaca, Wis.: I have just had an
opportunity to make a cursory examination of a book purporting to have been
written by you, entitled Early History of Waupaca county, in which I discover
so many mistakes and gross errors that I feel constrained to make some
corrections in your record, especially some of your statements which refer
particularly to myself as an individual, and as a public officer. First,
your record of an election at the tavern of Horace Ralph in Mukwa, on the first
Tuesday in April 1850, in which among other officers then and there elected my
name appears as register of deeds. Now
let me tell you that I never had a residence in Mukwa or in Waupaca county
until the 19th of March, 1851, and of course could not be elected to an office
in 1850; and further, that having been at that place in the preceding summer, I
know that in the month of July 1850, neither Horace Ralph or any other white
man had any residence there. You next say “Mr.
Smiley says that the spring election was held in 1851, &c.” In reply to a letter from O. T. Hambleton in
April ‘84, I did say that on the first Tuesday in April ‘51, an election for
county officers for Waupaca county, was held at Mukwa, and that W. G. Cooper
was elected register of deeds, and appointed me deputy, which statement I have
never head contradicted. I might also
have said that at the same time Simon C. Dow was elected county treasurer, and
appointed me his deputy, but did not say so. You next allude to
certain transactions “after Smiley was released from Portage county jail.” It would seem to me that to make a connected
and intelligent history of the events that transpired, it would have been proper
and rather necessary to have related the cause and the circumstances of his
going to jail, the crime with which he was charged, &c., but as you have
failed to make any such record, I beg leave to give you a few facts, which you
are at liberty to copy in the next edition of your valuable history. The provision in the
organic act, that “two years from the next annual election the voters of said
county shall vote for the permanent location of the county seat,” meant the
fall of 1853, and there was not an intelligent man in the county but so
understood it. But in the spring of ‘53
two of the towns in the county cast a few votes for removal of the county seat
to Waupaca. No public notice was given
of any such election, and no votes were given on the question in any of the
other five towns. At the first meeting
of the board of supervisors after this election, a resolution was passed
declaring Waupaca the county seat, and directing all the county officers to
remove their offices to that place. Simon C. Dow and Co. treasurer, and I as
register of deeds, with the advice of the best legal counsel we could obtain,
refused to obey the order, and I was arrested on a writ issued by Justice S. F.
Ware, and taken to Waupaca, where I was held in custody for three days, during
this time many propositions were made to induce me to remove my books and
office to that place; among them was a clear title to one-fourth part of the
plat of Waupaca village, and an assurance of any county office I might choose. After they found that neither persuasion or
threats had the effect to change my resolution, I was taken to the jail in
Portage count, where I remained ten days, when John Fordyce came up from
Weyauwega, and I was released on a writ of habeas corpus and permitted to go
home. A short time afterwards when I
attempted to bring an action for illegal arrest and detention, not a vestige of
any record could be found to show that any arrest or any complaint had ever
been made, and the matter was dropped.
I continued to hold my office at Mukwa during the rest of my term
unmolested. You
then say “this was the last Waupaca saw of the records till Smiley was elected
in the spring of 1854, when he brought them to Waupaca.” In reply I will inform you that no register
of deeds in this county was ever elected in the spring, except at the first
election in 1851; and that Smiley never carried a record book to Waupaca in
1854, or at any other time. When I gave
up the register’s office I turned over all the books to C. L. Gumaer of
Weyauwega, who had been elected as my successor. You next refer to me
and some others as an august assemblage of wise heads from the east side of the
county, who sent a constable for Mellen Chamberlain, and turned him out of
office on no other pretext than that he was unfortunate enough to be a resident
of the western part of the county. The
only reply I have to make to these statements is to denounce them as willful
and malicious falsehoods form beginning to end, as no such proceedings ever
had, and if the narrator had half the wisdom in his head that he attributes to
the other parties, he would never have made such foolish and fictitious
charges. In conclusion, from an
examination of your history from the commencement down to 1855, from my own
knowledge of public affairs, I must pronounce it a tissue of errors and
mis-statements from beginning to end. With
due respects, Yours, JAMES
SMILEY, Northport ------------------- IS
THE QUESTION SETTLED? (From
the “Weyauwegain,” April 25th, 1856.) In another column will
be found the proceedings of a special meeting of the Board of Supervisors of
this County, which we re-publish this week.
The meeting was called by request of a majority of the board, and, as
will be seen by referring to the report of the proceedings, eight of the
thirteen organized townships were represented, and took part in the
proceedings. This is a significant
fact, and points, with unerring certainty, in the direction in which public
opinion is tending, respecting the expression of the popular will on the
question of the removal of the county seat. This is the fourth
time the Waupaca junto have tried to defraud the people and keep the county
seat from being located elsewhere than at Waupaca; but this time they played
too heavy a game - larger than they could manage decently, and they lost. The fraud was too manifest to succeed, and
too monstrous to be cheated in. Not
content with polling 300 votes more than there are voters in the township,
after the votes were counted and the result declared, another hundred were
added, to make greater their iniquity.
This fact was proven in the Supreme Court, in the Gubernatorial trial. Another fraud in the
county matter was the admission of two towns in range 10, into the Waupaca
canvass last fall, when those towns do not belong to this county, and never
have. The towns in that range were
annexed to Portage county some two or three years ago, and in the division of
Portage county this last winter, they were confined to her; consequently they
had no more business to act in our county board than had Shawano and Marquette
counties, and a couple of Menominee Indians could have claimed a seat there
with equal grace and propriety. Notwithstanding
such iniquity, Weyauwega has a majority, for the county seat, any way it can be
counted, after deducting the vote of range 10 from the Waupaca canvass, which
was admitted there, and giving to Waupaca all of the votes which they polled,
legal and illegal, and counting all of the votes cast in Dayton. Taking the vote of last fall, as cast, and
Weyauwega has a majority of 53 - (See supervisors report.) Taking the vote of Waupaca and Weyauwega at
the late town meeting as a basis for their vote of last fall, and Weyauwega has
a majority of 140. Leaving out the two
rival towns altogether, and counting the votes of all the others, Weyauwega has
a majority of 48. In the face of these
facts, we, the people of Weyauwega, claim with due modesty that we are entitled
tot he county seat, and believing our claims to be just, shall push it wherever
and whenever it shall be necessary to secure it. In the meantime we
would ask every citizen of the county to take these facts into serious
consideration. 1st. It has been proven that the Waupaca Falls
canvass was returned to Madison with one hundred more votes attached to it than
were canvassed, and declared to have been cast in that town. 2d. It is a well known fact that 388 males of
all ages cannot justly poll what they claim to have legally cast at Waupaca
Falls - 520 votes. 3d. That range 10, a part of Portage county, was
admitted to the Waupaca board to involve our county in further difficulties and
confusion; they not having the shadow of a claim to a seat there; and further,
that Waupaca Falls was not the county seat, the place where such meeting should
be held. 4th. That the present board of supervisors, seven
of whom are new chairman, have given the matter a fair and unbiased
examination, and have come to the unanimous conclusion that Weyauwega received
a majority of all the votes cast for the removal of the county seat. WAUPACA COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER XV. THE COUNTY SEAT QUESTION 25
January 1888 According to Mr.
Dewey’s history the location of the county seat has been a matter of contention between Waupaca and Weyauwega since
the spring of 1850, one year before the county was organized, when in fact it
was not supposed or pretended by any body that Weyauwega had any claim to the
county seat till after the vote was taken in 1855. The proceedings at Waupaca
in the spring and summer of 1853 were considered by a majority of the towns and
a majority of the voters as fraudulent and illegal, and it was claimed by all
parties except a few at Waupaca that the county seat still remained at Mukwa. Dewey says “in 1854 we
elected David Scott member of assembly and Judge Alban senator. Weyauwega not being satisfied with the
previous votes on location of county seat, got David Scott to get an act
through the legislature to the effect that we take a vote on that question in
the spring of 1854. This he
accomplished for them. The vote was
taken in the spring of 1854, and Waupaca carried the day by 60 majority. David Scott was
elected member of assembly in the fall of 1853, and served during the session
of 1854. Judge Alban was not senator at
that time. Judge Alban and Mr. Scott
were never in the legislature at the same time. “Weyauwega not being satisfied with previous votes,” &c. There had never been but one vote on the
question previous to the passage of the act of 1854, and only two towns out of
seven in the county participated in that election. It is true that Weyauwega was not satisfied with the former vote,
neither was any other town in the county, not even Waupaca herself, as will
appear evident by an examination of the act, which he says David Scott got
through for them, referring to Weyauwega.
We think a careful perusal of the act would not go far to substantiate
the assertion that Mr. Scott procured the passage of the law at the
solicitation and in the interest of Weyauwega.
Let us look at the record.
Section one of said record reads as follows: Sec. 1. At the annual election to be held in the
month of November next, the qualified electors of the county of Waupaca may
vote upon the question of removal of the county seat of said county from Mukwa
to Waupaca therein; which place last named is hereby fixed as the point to
which it is proposed to move said county seat. Sec. 3. All votes given upon the question aforesaid,
shall be by ballot upon which shall be written or printed the words “For
removal of county seat” or “Against removal of county seat.” Said ballots shall be deposited by the
inspectors of elections in a separate box, to be by them for that purpose prepared. Section 3 provided for
the canvass and return of votes, and for recording the same. This act was approved
March 30, 1854. Now, after an
examination of the foregoing law, it appears to our weak and frail judgment
that it was intended more to promote the interest of Waupaca than Weyauwega,
from the fact that Weyauwega is not mentioned in the act; and further that
under the provisions of the act, if a majority of all the votes cast had been
for a removal to Weyauwega, it would not have changed the result, as they could
only have been counted as negative votes on the proposition to remove Mukwa to
Waupaca, and notwithstanding Mr. Dewey’s record that this vote was taken at a
spring election, and that Waupaca carried the day by 60 majority, the facts are
that the election was held in November as provided in the act, and there was a
large majority of votes against the removal. We must credit Mr.
Scott with more candor and honesty than those who managed the affairs at
Waupaca in the spring and summer of 1853, for by the terms of the bill
introduced by him providing for the removal of the county seat from Mukwa it
was virtually conceded that the county seat was at Mukwa, and consequently all
claims or pretense that it was already removed to Waupaca were fraudulent and
void. The canvass of votes
given at this election resulted as did every canvass for some years. Those towns which made returns to Waupaca as
the county seat gave a majority in favor of the removal, while those that made
returns to Mukwa gave a greater majority against the removal; which, if there
had been a fair canvas of all the votes cast in the county would have shown a
fair majority against the removal. VERITAS. WAUPACA COUNTY
HISTORY
CHAPTER
XVI. 15
February 1888 Mr. Dewey’s next
victory was in the spring of 1855, when he says: “In the spring of 1855 we elected town officers as usual, having
elected out county officers the year previous, Weyauwega voted on the county
seat, not having authority for so doing.
She took particular pains to hide her acts from us, but her scheme did
not work, for Ezra Fortner happened to go to Weyauwega, and discovering their
plans hastened back to Waupaca and informed us that they were voting for the
removal of the county seat. At this
notice a great rally was made, and every voter in the town was brought
out. At night when the votes were
canvassed, it was found that Waupaca had a handsome majority, and Weyauwega was
beaten at her own game.” He then breaks
out with great enthusiasm, saying “As cats cling to life so did Weyauwega to
the county seat matter.” We are not prepared to
positively deny that Waupaca was surprised and frightened by a report that
Weyauwega was voting on the county seat question I the spring of 1855, or to
contradict Mr. Dewey’s report of the proceeding sat Waupaca, but we can safely
say that no votes were given on the question at Weyauwega, or in any other part
of the county, and we are very sanguine in the opinion that this great contest
is only a creature of his imagination. After the canvass of
the votes upon the question of the removal of the county seat from Mukwa to
Waupaca in the fall of 1854, from all the towns in the county, which resulted
in a good majority against the removal, an effort was made by the inhabitants
in Weyauwega and the other towns in the eastern part of the county, to procure
the passage of an act at the next session of the legislature for the removal of
the county seat to Weyauwega, which was successful, and notwithstanding the
numerous triumphs over Weyauwega in a contest for the county seat, recorded by
Mr. Dewey in his famous history, the first and only votes ever cast for the
removal to Weyauwega were in accordance with this law, passed in 1855, and the
election was held in November of that year. At that session of the
legislature Joseph F. Lay of DePere represented the 2d senatorial district,
which included Waupaca county, and Perry H. Smith of Appleton, the assembly
district, which included the counties of Oconto, Outagamie and Waupaca. The act is chapter 194 of the private and
local laws of 1855, and is entitled “An act to provide for the removal of the
county seat of Waupaca county.” Section 1 read: That at the annual election to be held in
the month of November next, the qualified electors of the county of Waupaca
shall be, and they are hereby authorized to vote for the removal of the county
seat of said county to the village of Weyauwega in said count; and if a
majority of the votes on that subject at such election be in favor of such
removal of said county seat to said village of Weyauwega, then the said village
of Weyauwega shall be the permanent county seat of said county. The remaining sections
describe the form of ballot to be used, the manner of conducting the election,
the canvass of the votes, making records, returns, &c. The act was approved March 20, 1855. It will be observed
that this act provides for the removal of the county seat to Weyauwega without
designating any place from which it was to be moved. In conformity with the
provisions of this law a general election notice was published, and a vote was
taken in which every town in the county participated. In all the towns except Waupaca and Weyauwega the election were
supposed to be legally and fairly conducted, but in these two towns a vast
amount of fraud and dishonesty was practiced to swell the votes beyond all
reasonable limits. There were probably
about 150 votes in Waupaca and something like 200 in Weyauwega. To substantiate our estimate of the number
of voters in these two towns, let us make some comparisons. According to the state census which was
taken in June ‘55, the town of Lind had 650 inhabitants, the town of Waupaca
674, and the town of Weyauwega, (which included the settlements at Little River
and Fremont) about 1,000. The town of
Lind at that time had by actual count 136 votes, which at the same ratio would
give Waupaca about 142, and Weyauwega about 200. The manner of
conducting the election at Waupaca is so graphically described by Mr. Dewey,
who was an eyewitness and an active participant in the proceedings, that we
will report it in his own language. “The place of voting
in this town was the old Exchange tavern, then run by L. I. Jones. The polls were just inside the front window,
and the ballots were handed through he window.
The center pane of glass in the lower sash had been removed, and through
the hole the ballots were handed. All
the rest of the window was closely curtained, so that the only portion of
voters seen was that visible through one pane of a window. ‘According to instructions’ men would step
up and vote the first time giving their real names, and in a few minutes they
would return and vote under an assumed name.
One man in particular I remember to have voted eighteen times under as
many different names, beginning with John Oleson, and ending up with Peter
Hooper.” We cannot give as
complete a description of the transactions of that day at Weyauwega as Mr.
Dewey gives of their proceedings at Waupaca, for none of the parties engaged
therein have seen fit to furnish us with particular details. Mr. Dewey says that forty-five boys under
ten years of age voted at that place for the removal of the county seat, before
seven o’clock in the morning, and gives Luther Hanchet as his authority. We are not prepared either to corroborate or
to deny this statement, but from the number of votes returned at the final
canvass, we are convinced that some system of addition or multiplication was
resorted to, or they never could have got the number of votes indicated by
their figure. The returns from Waupaca
showed 612 votes. Weyauwega returned
only 530. Some of the voters in that
place opposed the removal, and if they did not vote in the negative, gave their
influence in that direction which may account for the fact that Weyauwega did
not return as many votes in proportion to the population as Waupaca. The canvass of the
votes at this election was conducted in the same manner as in the last two
years, Waupaca and four other towns returning their votes to Waupaca where they
were canvassed, showing a large majority against the removal, and the other
eight towns making returns to Mukwa, where they were canvassed, showing a large
majority in favor of the removal to Weyauwega. Thus matters remained
until the next spring, when an application was made by a majority of all the
supervisors elected in the county, to call a meeting of the board at Weyauwega
for the transaction of business, which meeting was held at Weyauwega, April 17,
1856. VERITAS. ---------------- WAUPACA,
Feb. 11, ‘88 To The Editors WEYAUWEGA CHRONICLE, CLINTONVILLE
TRIBUNE, et al. GENTLEMEN. - You say I
am editing the Waupaca papers. In
justice to the brilliancy of their respective corps, I am bound to say, I have
not done an atom of editorial work for either paper for years. I did write a ‘resume’ or report of court
proceedings for the Republican, and also gave an account of the moon’s
performance the other night when she ought to have been at home, together with
a few minor happenings; and I have contributed one or two communications to the
Post, to which I took pains to sign my name.
Gentlemen, there is something wrong in your upper story. Please let me hear from you by return mail,
for if you do not care to publish my denial of the crime you charge on me, I
shall print my copy of this letter in the Waupaca papers, and vindicate the
editors. Respectfully, CHARLES
ROLLIN BRAINARD, P.S. - Please remember that verse in the revised
edition: “Hell
hath no fury Like
the fury of a Waupaca editor scorned.” WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
XVIII. 14
March 1888 In our last chapter we
attempted to prove, and we believe with success, that instead of the entire
session of the county board being held at Weyauwega in 1854, as Mr. Dewey says,
that their meeting was held at Mukwa, that every town in the county, except
Farmington, was represented, that all the ordinary county business was
transacted, including the canvass of the votes given on the question of removal
of the county seat from Mukwa to Waupaca, levying the taxes for the year,
organizing two new towns, (Iola and St. Lawrence) making out a jury list, and
auditing such accounts as were presented, &c. On completing the canvass of the votes on removal of the county
seat, it was found that a majority of the votes given on the question were
against such removal, which was so declared, and that Mukwa was still the
county seat, and when that meeting adjourned it was resolved that the next
annual meeting of the board should be held at that place. The next annual
meeting of the board in 1855, (instead of being held in Weyauwega, and after
transacting a small amount of business adjourning to Waupaca, as Mr. Dewey
says,) was held at Mukwa in accordance with the resolution adopted by the board
the year before, and all the regular business of the count was transacted,
including the canvas of votes given on the question of removal of the county
seat to Weyauwega, which canvass resulted in a majority in favor of such
removal, of fifty-three. If Mr. Dewey had been
disposed to make a correct report of the county affairs, and taken any pains to
consult official public records, he would never have made the assertion that
“the board met at Weyauwega, and after transacting a small amount of business
adjourned to Waupaca where it has since held its meetings.” The county records now
preserved in the county clerks office show that the first meeting of the board
after the regular meeting in November, ‘55, was the special meeting called by
the clerk on application of a majority of the supervisors, which was held at
Doty’s hall in Weyauwega, April 17, 1856, being the first meeting ever held at
Weyauwega. The principal business
transacted at the meeting was reported in our last chapter. The next regular meeting of the board in
November 1856, was held at the same place, and the ordinary county business for
the year transacted. A special meeting
was held December 22, ‘56, for the
transaction of special business. Another special
meeting was held May 4, ‘57, for the transaction of special business, and on
Nov. 10, ‘57, the regular annual session was held at the same place, at which
meeting every town in the county was represented. At this session the town of Union was organized, which included Town
25 of Range 12, and Towns 24 and 25 of Range 13, and every other item of
business that usually comes before the board at its annual session was
transacted. John M. Vaughn represented
the town of Waupaca, George Lord the 1st ward, and E. J. Putnam the 2d ward of
the village. Geo. M. Pope of Lind was
elected chairman, and Jas. H. Jones of Dayton, county clerk. The board of canvassers were J. H. Jones,
county clerk, Frederick Streit of Lind and Carl Barker of Weyauwega justices. The next special
meeting of the board was a special meeting called by the clerk, which was held
September 20 and 21, 1858, to take some action on equalization of the
assessment in the county. The regular annual
meeting for the year 1858 commenced Nov. 9.
At this meeting, besides the transaction of the ordinary county business,
a special committee was appointed to consider as to the propriety and
expediency of building a county jail, with instructions to report during the
session. Robert Perry of Mukwa, James
Shaw of Lind and W. W. Benedict of Farmington, were appointed as said
committee, who after due consideration of the subject made their report in
favor of having the jail built on certain lots in block 19, in the village of
Weyauwega, which they had selected for a site, and recommended an appropriation
of $300 towards its construction. Their
report was unanimously adopted by the board, and the job of building the jail
was let to Wm. W. Barnes and Warren Jenny of Weyauwega, who got the building
constructed and ready for occupancy by the close of the year, and this building
was used as the county jail from the 1st of January, ‘59, t the 1st of January,
‘68. At
the annual meeting of the board commencing Nov. 15, ‘59, the ordinary business
was transacted by the full board of supervisors. At
the annual meeting in Nov. ‘60, in addition to other county business,
arrangements were made to take a vote of the electors in the county, on the
question of adopting the county system of supporting the poor, and purchasing a
farm on which to build a poorhouse, which vote was taken in April, ‘61, and
decided in the negative by a good majority. November 12, ‘61, the
full board met at Weyauwega, organized and adjourned to the office of M. F.
Sorenson, the clerk elect in the village of Waupaca. This was the first meeting of the full board of supervisors ever
held in Waupaca, all the other meetings from the annual meeting in Nov. ‘55,
having been held at Doty’s hall in Weyauwega. These records show
conclusively that Weyauwega was recognized as the county seat by the different
boards of supervisors for more than five years by holding all their meetings
and transacting all the county business at that place. VERITAS. WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
XIX. 4
April 1888 In chapter 17 of our
history, we reported the resolution adopted by the board of supervisors at
their meeting in April, 1856, directing the judge of the circuit to hold the
next term of the circuit court at La Dows hall in Weyauwega; also the sheriff,
clerk of the court, clerk of the board of supervisors, register of deeds, and
other county officers, to hold their offices at the village of Weyauwega, the
county seat of Waupaca county. Then in chapter 18 we
reported that every meeting of the board of supervisors from April, 1856, to
November 1861, was held at Doty’s hall in Weyauwega, and all the business of
the county was transacted at that place.
The only exception to a full and complete recognition of Weyauwega as
the county seat, was, that the judge of the circuit court persistently refused
to obey the directions of the county board and hold his court at Weyauwega. Mr. Dewey says: “In the fall of 1885, a portion of the
county board served a notice on Judge G. W. Cate, to hold court at Weyauwega,
the count seat ‘as they called it.’ At
the time of the serving of the notice Judge Cate was holding court in the old
Methodist church of this place. M. H.
Sessions, learning what was in the air, took the judge for a pleasure walk up
Main street. During this walk he
convinced the judge that only a minor portion of the board had issued the
order, and that Waupaca was rightly the county seat. When, after their return the judge called the court, he
said: ‘Gentlemen, I have been notified
by the county board to hold my court at Weyauwega, but such notice coming only
from a minor part of the board, I shall not comply with the demand.” Wm. Waterhouse, with great bustle, reached
for his hat, left the room, and was overhead to say as he left the building,
‘Sold by G-d.’” In
this recital Mr. Dewey is so much nearer correct than he usually is, that it
seems almost a pity to spoil his story by contradicting any part of it, still a
little change in his report will make it more truthful if not more
satisfactory. In the first place the
proceedings to which he refers happened at the time of court held in May or
June 1856, after the first meeting of the board in Weyauwega, instead of 1855,
and if Mr. Sessions convinced the judge that only a ‘minor portion’ of the
board had issued the order, and that Waupaca was rightfully the county seat, it
was a very clear case of misplaced confidence. The board from which
this order emanated consisted of the supervisors from eight towns out of
thirteen in the county, and they had explicitly declared that Weyauwega was
rightfully and legally the count seat by virtue of a majority of votes cast on
that question and duly canvassed in November, 1855. The report of Mr. Waterhouse’s proceedings on the occasion we are
not prepared to dispute, as such a course would be very natural under such
circumstances. When Judge Cate so
positively refused to obey the order of the board of supervisors and hold his
court at Weyauwega, a supposed discovery was made of the ‘animus’ of the “new
revelation,” which so suddenly appeared to the voters of Waupaca on the eve of
the judicial election in the spring of 1854.
The only course for Weyauwega to pursue appeared to be to bring an
action in the supreme court to compel the judge to comply with the instructions
of the board, and as Dewey says, eminent counsel was employed, and the citizens
of Weyauwega were very sanguine in the belief that the supreme court would set
matters right, as had already been done in the late election for governor of
the state, in which Wm. A. Barstow had been declared elected through fraudulent
returns of votes, of which a good portion had been manufactured at Waupaca; but
when they attempted to show irregular transactions on the part of Waupaca,
their own fraudulent proceedings at the election in 1855, stared them in the
face at every turn of the case, and the final result was the suit was withdrawn
without any decision by the court. Had the election at
Weyauwega in 1885 been honestly and legally conducted, so that a fair record
could have been shown in court, there is no doubt but a decision would have
been given in their favor, and the county seat established there instead of it
remaining at Waupaca. VERITAS. WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
XX. 9 May 1888 Having reported in our
last chapter the unsuccessful efforts of the people of Weyauwega to obtain, by
a decision of the Supreme court, what they considered their just rights to the
location of the county seat at that place, according to the vote given on that
question at the election of 1855, and the reasons for such failure. We now propose to show a little more “sharp
practice” during that election and the canvass of the votes ‘purporting’ to
have been given for state officers. The
irregularities at that election and canvas were not confined to the inhabitants
of Waupaca county; but some of the prominent citizens of the county were said
to be conspicuous in managing the election and the canvas of the votes. Mr. Dewey says “all
the records of what had been done in connection with the county in question
before 1854 were given to M. H. Sessions, and he went to Madison to see what
could be done.” He did go to Madison as
Mr. Dewey says, after the county canvas in November and remained there till
after the state canvas in December. This
was a general election held throughout the state, not only for officers of the
different counties, but for a complement of state officers. Up to this time the Democrats had a large
majority in the state, also in most of the organized counties, giving them the
complete control of all the state officers as well as in the majority of the
counties, and the opposition or Whig party was obliged to submit to the
dictation of the majority whether pleased or displeased with their
management. There were occasional
mutterings of discontent and fault finding, but no tangible proof of dishonesty
or gross mismanagement in any of the offices appeared till after the election
in 1853, and the inauguration in January 1854 of Wm. A. Barstow as governor;
James T. Lewis, lieut-governor; D. W. Jones, secretary of state; Edward H.
Jansen, state treasurer; Geo. B. Smith, attorney-general. These last three officers, the secretary of
state, state treasurer and attorney general composed the state land department,
having the management and disposal of all school and other state lands and were
also the state board of canvassers. Soon after the
inauguration of the state officers in 1854, some vague rumors were set afloat
that there was some crookedness in the transaction of some of the public
business under the management of “Barstow and the balance,” as they were
designated, which rumors in process of time grew into definite and specific
charges of dishonesty and malfeasance in the offices, especially in the school
land department. In 1852 an act was
passed providing for the apprisal and sale of all the school lands in thirteen
counties in the new and sparsely settled part of the state, the counties of
Outagamie, Waupaca and Waushara among the rest. The apprisers of these lands were required to report to the
secretary of the state their apprisal, and a minute description of every tract
examined by them, thus giving to the parties who had access to these records a
complete knowledge of the location and prospective value of each tract. These lands were generally surrounded by
unsold government lands which were held at $1.25 per acre, and were apprised at
the same figures, except such as were settled and improved, in which case the
parties owning the improvements had the exclusive preemption right to purchase
their tracts at the apprised value. One
great inducement to purchase school lands was the fact that only one-tenth of
the purchase money had to be paid at the time; the balance might remain on
interest at 7 per cent per annum for an indefinite length of time. A person wishing to
purchase any of these school lands, made application to the office of the
secretary of state, and paid ten per cent of the purchase money, and if the
tract was not disposed of, he was entitled to a certificate of state. Then by paying the taxes and annual interest
on the balance of the purchase money, he had full possession for an indefinite
length of time without any further payment. As
time progressed, and these lands became valuable and more sought for, it began
to be whispered, and at length openly asserted, that favoritism was practiced
in the disposition of them, and that the business of the office was managed in
the interest of the officers and employees about the capital, and not for the
public benefit. As the time approached
for the selection of candidates to be supported for the next term, the charges
of dishonesty and fraud in he management of the public business was boldly
proclaimed by the opposition party, and evidence produced that seemed to
convince many conscientious democrats that there was some grounds for suspicion
that all was not right. A democratic
convention was called to nominate a state ticket. Wm. A. Barstow was nominated for re-election. The rest of the candidates on the ticket
were all new men, and unobjectionable except on political grounds. The opposition party nominated Coles
Bashford of Oshkosh for governor; Charles C. Sholes of Kenosha, for lieut.
governor; Samuel D. Hastings of Madison, secretary of state; Charles Roeser,
state treasurer, and A. W. Randall, attorney general; a ticket composed of as
competent and reliable men as could be found in the state. Though not of the democratic party, yet
nearly all of them have been prominent in state offices since that term. There commenced one of
the most exciting political campaigns ever held in the state. The administration of “Barstow and the
balance” was most bitterly denounced and was stigmatized by the opposition
press and public speakers as the administration of the forty thieves, and it
was boldly asserted that there was abundant evidence to prove the charges. When the election was
over and the smoke cleared away, it appeared that the democratic ticket was
elected by a good majority except the governor, and that was in doubt. Between the 13th of November, the day for
the county canvas, and the 15th of December, the day of the state canvas, all
was uncertainty. One day it would be
reported that one was surely elected, and probably by the next day it would be
as positively stated that the other was successful. After the conclusion of the state canvas, Mr. Sessions returned
to Waupaca and exultingly proclaimed that Mr. Barstow was elected and would be
governor in spite of all opposition. The sequel to these
proceedings we will leave for another chapter. VERITAS. WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER
XXI. 30
May 1888 In our last chapter appears one erroneous statement, which in justice
to the parties interested should be corrected.
In giving the names of the state officers elected in 1853 on the state
ticket, with Wm. A. Barstow for governor, Alexander T. Gray should have been
reported as secretary of state, instead of David W. Jones. Mr. Jones was elected in 1855, and
re-elected two years afterward. Mr. Dewey says “Mr.
Sessions went to Madison to see what could be done.” We will endeavor to report some of the things that were done, and
first let us examine the canvas of votes given for some of the candidates voted
for at that election. Two different
canvasses were held, each ‘purporting’ to be the canvass of the votes for
Waupaca county, one at the town of Waupaca, at which the votes of that town and
four others were canvassed, Mellen Chamberlain acting as clerk, and Wm. B.
Hibbard and Elihu Higgins as justices.
This board returned 1001 votes for the office of governor, 723 for
Barstow, and 376 for Bashford. The candidates for
senator in the 2d district were Luther Hanchett of Plover, Portage county, and
Perry H. Smith of Appleton, Outagamie county. The candidates for
member of assembly in the district composed of the counties of Oconto,
Outagamie, and Waupaca, were Mr. Brunquest of Waupaca, and Louis Bostedo of
Weyauwega. No report of votes for
senator or assemblymen is given except for the town of Waupaca, which gave 456
for Hanchett, and 50 for Smith for senator, and 523 for Brunquest and none for
Bostedo for assemblyman. Upon
investigation it appears that no oath or affirmation was ever attached to the
returns of that election made at Waupaca. The other canvass was
held at Mukwa, at which the votes of the other eight towns in the county were
canvassed. John Fordyce acted as clerk,
and Albion Brandy and Wm. F. Waterhouse as justices. The number of votes for governor was 665 of which Barstow
received 269, and Bashford 396. We
cannot state the exact number of votes given to each candidate for senator and
assemblyman, but a very large majority were for Smith for senator, and for
Bostedo for the assembly. One
of the sharp things done by the Waupaca managers was to manipulate the canvass
in the assembly district so as to secure the certificate of election to Mr.
Brunquest instead of Bostedo, which was accomplished by piling up 523 votes
(mostly fraudulent) in the town of Waupaca for Brunquest to naught for Bostedo,
and rejecting the votes of the eight towns that were canvassed at Mukwa, which
gave a large majority for Bostedo. But their triumph and
exultation over the matter was of short duration. When the legislature met in January, Mr. Bostedo was on hand with
the evidence of the fraudulent manner in which the certificate was obtained,
and the assembly very promptly relieved Mr. Brunquest of his honorable position
and gave Mr. Bostedo the seat. The 2d senatorial
district then comprised the counties of Brown, Door, Outagamie, Oconto,
Waupaca, Marathon and Portage, and the eastern part of the district gave votes
enough for Smith to make a good majority for him over all that were cast for
Hanchett, whether legal or illegal. Soon after Mr.
Sessions returned from Madison with the news of Barstow’s election, it began to
be whispered, and in a short time it was boldly asserted that there was some
very suspicious, if not very crooked work at the state canvass, and the more
the proceedings were examined and investigated, the stronger the evidence
appeared that there must be something that the public generally were not
acquainted with, to authorize the canvassing board to count a majority of votes
for Barstow and give him a certificate of election. The official returns
of votes from nearly all the towns and counties had been published in the
newspapers, and interested parties had spent much time and brain work in
figuring on the result from the reports received; and the general conclusion
had been that Bashford was elected by a small majority. When it was publicly announced that Mr. Barstow
was declared elected, the people generally were astonished by the result. Mr. Bashford and his friends had been very
sure that he was elected, and many of the other party had conceded that he had
received a majority of the votes. Mr. Bashford and his
friends immediately went to work to see whether sufficient positive evidence of
fraud and irregularities could be discovered to justify the commencement of an
action in the courts to contest with Mr. Barstow the right to the office of
governor. In his search for evidence of
illegal and dishonest proceedings by the canvassing board, he was eminently
successful, having discovered many and various irregular proceedings, such as
adding to some returns, subtracting from others, and in several instances manufacturing
returns that were wholly fictitious, purporting to come from places where no
elections had ever been held; and with such evidence in his possession, he
decided to bring an action of ‘quo warranto’ in the supreme court to contest
the right of Mr. Barstow to the office of governor of the state of Wisconsin. VERITAS. WAUPACA
COUNTY HISTORY CHAPTER XVII. 29
February 1888 Mr. Dewey says “that
in 1854 the county board held an entire session at Weyauwega.” Then on the next page he says “the county
board met again at Weyauwega, and after transacting a small amount of business
adjourned to Waupaca where it has since held its meetings.” Now we make the
assertion that the county board never held a meeting at Weyauwega in 1854 or in
1855. The first meeting ever held at
that place was the one referred to in our last chapter, on April 17, ‘56, which
was called by the clerk on the application of a majority of all the supervisors
in the county. To substantiate our
position, we will quote at some length the proceedings of that meeting from the
official records. At this meeting George
M. Pope of Lind, was elected chairman.
On motion a special committee was appointed to draft resolutions
expressive of the sense of the board on the county difficulties. The following resolutions were presented and
adopted: 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 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 ‘54, every town in the county of Waupaca represented except the town of
Farmington, and at said meeting of the board of supervisors, among other things
the towns of Iola and St. Lawrence were organized, and that the board adjourned
its next meeting to 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 according to the directions of the
county board at the aforesaid meeting in November, 1854, and that said board
did also at said meeting declare Mukwa to be the county seat of Waupaca county
after the vote on the question of county seat had been canvassed; that the west
part of the county, consisting of the towns of Dayton, Farmington and Waupaca
have acquiesced in the action of the board as aforesaid in November, ‘54, and
giving the supervisors from the towns of Iola and St. Lawrence, admits John
Fordyce to have been legally the clerk of the board and we further conclude
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 the removal of the county seat, declared Weyauwega to have
received a majority of all the votes given on the question of the 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, and of the elections held in
November, ‘55. Resolved: That the Judge of the circuit court be
directed to hold the next term of the circuit court for the 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, ‘55, that the vote stood on the question of removal of county
seat, there was cast a majority in favor of removal of county seat to
Weyauwega, ‘Fifty-three.’ The above resolutions
were ordered printed in the Waupaca Spirit and the Weyauwegian. }
GEO. M. POPE, Chn. Board Signed } JAS. SMILEY, Clk. Board, by } JOHN FORDYCE, deputy Clk. From these official
records it appears that instead of Waupaca, and the other towns acting with
her, being triumphant in the election in 1854, and 1855, and securing Mr.
Dewey’s regular sixty majority, they were beaten on both occasions and as the
result of the first election it was declared by the county board that the
county seat still remained at Mukwa, and of the last that there was a majority
of fifty-three votes in favor of the removal to Weyauwega. VERITAS.
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