St. Charles Republican intelligencer. (St. Charles [Charles City], Iowa) 1856-1857, 1857-04-16
From the Milwaukee Eaily Sentinel
IOWA AND MINNESOTA
THEIR RELATIONS TO MILWAUKEE,.

THEIR RELATIONS TO NJ ILwAUKEE.
MEssRs. ED1roRs TO appreciate ex.
actly the true position of Milwaukee,
and to prophecy for her future
more brilliant than her most sanguine
friends now hope for, it is necessary
that her advantages should be studied
from points so truely tributary to her
as Northern Iowa and Minnesota. AS
but little attention has ever been di-
rected this way, and as this section is
so little known, | will endeavor to
convey truthful impression of this
rich and beautiful country.
The position of Northern Iowa and
Minnesota, in estimating the resources
of Milwaukee, has never been fairly
understood, in fact scarcel y ever taken
into consideration from the Missis-
sippi westward not an acre of unavail-
able land is met with, nothing but
what is susceptible of the highest
state of cultivation. No marshes, nor
low unhealthy grounds but an aver
age level of 600 feet above the Mis-
sissippi, with rapid. running streams
and clear beautiful water. Prairie
and timber follow each other in sue
cession, and there is no soil or country
that offers SO many inducements in
beauty and fertility to the enterpris-
ing emlgrant
Rapidly, yet silently this country
has been filling up with a sterling
and energetic class of inhabitants,
and the time has now come when
they demand a Railroad communica
tion with the East
The building of the McGrcgor, ST.
Peters and Missouri River Railroad, a
continuation of the Milwaukee and
Mississippi Railroad through Northern
Iowa and branch to Mankato on the
St. Peters River, are the enterprises
they propose to take hold of and carry
out enterprises of paramount i'm
portance to Milwaukee, for by them
she will secure the enormous trade
and traffic which this section of
country will afford and which already
is exciting the attention of Dubuque
and Galena, who have projected routes
to cut off this trade from its Legitimate
market.
On reference to the map of Iowa,
we find that McGregor, opposite
Prairie du Chem is situated twenty
six miles on a line of longitude west
of Dubuque, and thirty-six miles north,
and therefore occupies decidedly the
finest position with respect to the
country, north and west of it. Du-
buque is 1873 miles from Lake Michi-
gan at Chicago, and McGregor 100
miles from the Lake at Milwaukee,
and as the terminus of the Milwaukee
& Mississippi River Railroad is twen-
ty-six miles west of the terminus of
the Chicago and Galena Road, we
draw the conclusion that all that
country lying on the line of equal dis
tances from Dubuque and McGregor is
twenty-four miles nearer Lake Michi-
gan, and that the country North of
that line fairly and honorably belongs
to Milwaukee. Of course the light
grades and superior facilities for do
ing business at Milwaukee and Prairie
du Chem gives the Mil. & Miss. r. Il.
an advantage equally as great as the
actual number of miles saved. On
the opening of the Detroit and Milwau-
kee K. II. a direct communication is
then had with the East and its superb
ority in distance over any other route
is so apparent that it is unnecessary to
draw any comparison.
The following statement of Up Riv-
er Business for 1856, is from the
North Iowa Times arrivals at
St. Paul s37, being an increase OF
267 over the year '55, freight delivery
above Dubuque not less than $50, 900
tons and passengers estimated at
10000. Estimating the tonnage at
an average of $l5, and calling the
average passenger fare 81, we have a
total of 81 millions of dollars paid to
the steamboat interests, by country
that has been few years only known
to the inhabitants Of the Atlantic
States.
The annual increase Of up river
business, for the past five years, has
been so per cent per annum. Taking
this as the increase for 1851 and con-
sidering that the largest portion OF
this business comes from the East, and
that it will be of the most unprece-
dented and unexpected character.
have given in a previous article a
statement of the practicability Of a
Railroad west from McGregor, and
although the river business seems to
be large and important it must not bt
estimated too highly when brought il