Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1877-08-29
Iowa COLLEGE, (Grinnell, Iowa)
Fall term begins Sept. 5, 1877. WI
The Pioneers.

The "Old settlers" of Van Buren,
County, (by the way can anyone tell
us what has become of our old set
tiers society p had reunion at Keo-
sauqua on the 18th inst, at which
Hon. Ed Manning made the follow
ing remarks:
"He was sojourning in Missouri du-
ring the winter and fall of '37, he said
with Capt. Hall and other friends. all
looking for homes in the west. The
Captain and himself engineered a
jumper ride on the river from St.
Francisville up over the smooth ice
and snow until they reached Keosau-
qua, which to their Imagination, held
in embryo, fortune for the ingenious
Yankee-hence the location of a town
here. But this was not all. They
made a trip across the half-breed
tract to Fort Madison, and visited old
Black Hawk at his camp, located just
below the town.
The county, at that time, was near.
ly all vacant. The settlements were
confined to the streams. Claims had
been made and even occupied up the
Des Moines for nearly q hundred
miles.
Mr.. Manning's first trade in lows
was q half breed claim, which con.
sisted Of several acres of land and
some twenty-fi town lots in Keokuk
tho whole costing about fifty dol
lars.
In touching upon the different
epochs of the county's history, he sta
ted the first land sales were made in
1888.
The court house was built in lS4l.
Steamboating to Raccoon Forks in
1871.
The navigation of the Des Moines
river was obstructed by dams until
1851.
Flatboating from As to 81.
The speaker could boast that he
bought and sent from Van Buren,
county the first drove of cattle.
1t was himself and "Unclc Sim
Wright" who had the honor of buy
ing and sending to st. Louis the first
drove of hogs.
He also opened out the first stock
of goods in the Valley in 1889, and in
AL he contracted to supply the gov
eminent fort at Des Moines with pro-
visions, which he did by chartering a
boat 1t st. Louis and bringing his
purchases by steam.
The upper country, in and around
Raccoon Fork, was then peopled
wholly by Indians. In return for the
honor conferred by giving the In
dian chiefs free ride, the head men
of the nation came afterward and
paid their respects by favoring the
white men with a war dance. This
was done on q magnificent scale, not
not less than three hundred Of the
best brave Sacs and Foxes assembled,
gorgeously adorned with bells and
feathers and radiant with paint, and,
in the presence of their admiring
spectators, performed the most won
derful feat ever witnessed in western
life.
Flatboating was the next venture,
and this to him, the speaker said
proved to be the most successful OPP
Grafton in the whole Valley.
Having built few good sea worthy
crafts, he essayed to get them into
market, and, although he sunk the
first boat twice before it reached its
destination, it only gave notoriety to
his enterprise.
After time navigation was sus-
pended until al, at which period the
cry arose, "Out with the dams I" Mr..
Manning,never 10th to undertake what
he was sure would pay, proceeded at
once to st. Louis and contracted
with Capt. Allen to load the Jenny
Lind and a barge for Keosauqua and
Eddyville. Having favorable water
they arrived in Keokuk in due time,
elated with success, and there learn
ed to their utter establishment that
they could not navigate the Des
Moines. Mr.. Manning resolved, how
ever, with his usual determination, to
make the effort, even if he lost his
entire shipment. The Captain hear
ing his resolve pushed on, and in q
few hours they arrived at Farming
ton, covered with glory.
All seemed delighted with their
success, except the mill owners. Here
again came the tug of war. 1t was
fight or die. They must not stop.
The gates were closed and an en-
trance was, of course, impossible.
Mr.. M. said to Capt. A., ~ brought
you here to do my work. My order
is, that you at once remove those
gatesl"
No sooner said than all on board
lay hold of the offending gates and
hurled them down the stream.
BY this little experiment Mr.. Man.
ming was, he said, moro than compen-
stated in his own limited business, and
what it did for him, it did for the
whole valley, for the navigation thus
opened did not suspend until SUPER
ceeded by rail.
The next grand hope was the Des
Moincs river Improvement, and
through it all had confident expecta-
tons of becoming enriched during
their natural lives.
This grant was procured by Gener-
al Dodge in the days of the Demo-
cracy, but, 40 the state failed to aid
and foster the enterprise, it anguish
ed and finally was abandoned.