Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1884-06-18


county, and about 100 people in Austin.
The first deed for the conveyance of
real estate in Mower county is now on
file st the Office Of the Register Of Deeds
Tor Goedhue county, in the city of Red
corded in Houston county, and q few
years ago William Carey Snow, then
Deputy Register Of Deeds for Mower
county, went to Caledonia and copied
such deeds upon our records.
On the 18th day of April, 1856, there
might have been seen some of the tallest
running and driving for Frankfort, the
then county seat. of Mower county, that
waa ever witnessed in the northwest, on
the part of j.. B. Yates and v. p. Lewis,
party of one part, and Washington Mason
and Chauncy Lsverich, party Of the other
part, to see who should file for record the
first plat of Austin. BY the judges sta
toned at frankfort it was declared that
Yates and Lewis came out two lengths
ahead. At any rate their plat of Austin
was filed two hours before Leyerich's and
Mason's plat was 6led. But Mason
and ran the entire distance he would
have come in ahead had he known
fully what was up.
In the year 1855 the total assessment of
Mower county was about $500, 900. To-
day it is nearly SO, OOO, 600. The tax
levy in 1856 was about $4,000. Now it is
over 500, 600. In the year 1857 the val
uatiOn had increased to about 81, 600, 600,
and the amount of taxes levied to about
In 1856 there were no church edifices, no
school houses, no bridges, all was ferma-
tive and new. But in the year 1857 the
cross of Christ, towering DER the wrecks
of time, around whose sacred head sub
lime, has gathered all the light of sacred
story, was brought in and set up in
Mower county.
The first minister that ever preached a
sermon in Austin was the Rev. Mr.. Mapes,
then stopping for a short time neal
was a sermon by the Rev. Mr.. Phelps.
These sermons were both by Methodist
ministers, and both preached in the Snow
& Wilbour hotel. Rev. Stephen Cook,
John F. Cooks father, a Congregational
minister, was the third person to preach
in Austin. He preached during August,
1856, and the succeeding few months in
a small house, Their used as q school room
and IN the spot where Thomas Riley's
dwelling house now stands. During the
winter of 1867 Rev. E. F. Quincy and
Stephen Cook preached in private houses
about town as they were invited. Mrs.
Leverich, whose husband had beer killed
q short time before, entertained the con-
gregation occasionally. The murder of
her husband, Chauncy Leverich, took
place in the latter part of August, 1856, at
a saloon on the spot where D. B. Smiths
Office is now located, and he was buried
just back, and at the corner of the saloon.
| FNI,So -yno Tim GwoA nrrnln~ 11rr.kl 49,
Mower county. The parties committing
liam Oliver. This brought on the first
law suit ever had in the county. Silvers
and Oliver were both fined, the first $50,
and the latter $40. The aus was pros.
ecuted by John Tiff and Levi Watrous,
and defended by Everest and Allen, the
parties, being arrested and prematurely
brought to trial. Leverich did not die
until 5 or 6 days after the ARRAY, which
gave the counsel for defendants (not hav-
ing any good reasons to assign why their
clients should not be fined for a breach of
the peace) to read the Court and audience
some long lectures on the evils of intern
perance and liquor traffic.
The first Board of County Commits
sioners were Phillip Howell, George
White and William Russell, who were
appointed by the territorial authorities.
On the first Monday in April, 1856, the
County Commissioners met in the log
store of David Prayer at Frankfsrd, and
by a vote, of which they neve made any
record, located the county seat at Frank
Register of Deeds, G. D. Sherman Sheriff,
Lewis Patchin County Treasurer, Moses
K. Armstrong Surveyor, and G. J. Felch
| Probate Judge. who held their Offices until
January i, 1851. ''''N ~ '''' '''''
In the fall of 1855, there was the first
election ever held in the county. This
was for legislative and county officers,
in which the east and west sides of the
county were sharply arrayed against each
other. The west side put into the field
what was called the peoples ticket, with
out reference to any party lines, and was
composed of John NJ. Berry for Repre-
sentative, now Judge Berry of the Su-
preme Court, Rufus L. Kimball for
Register of Deeds, J. B. Yates for Sheriff,
s. P. Bacon County Treasurer, n. p.
Todd Surveyor, VIM. B. Spencer George
H. Bemis and Horace Blodgett County
Commissioners, A. B. Vaughan Judge Of
Probate, DR.. O. Allen Coroner. The east
Thes. II. Armstrong for Representative,
now living at Albert Lea, W. B. Covill
Register of Deeds, J. s.. Pierson Sheriff,
G. P. Covill County Treasurer, Moses K.
Armstrong Surveyor, VIM. B. Spencer of
| Leroy, G. F. Hardy of Red Rock, and
Naaman Goodsell of frankfort, County
Commissioners, C. J. Felch, Judge of
Probate, J. Person, Coroner.
The people s, or west side ticket, was
| elected by a majority of as votes out of
34 votes cast, with the exception of Todd,
of Leroy, who was defeated by II ma
jority. Heretofore the east side held all
the offices except 8 minor ones. But in
this election the west side had gained the
balance of power. And on the assembling
of the new Board of County Commission
ers IN January, 1857, they could net find
that the county seat had ever been located
anywhere, there being no record of such
location. Hence the Board at once pro.
ceeded to locate the county seat, and
after a long and exhaustive investigation
of the matter, concluded that the best
interests of Mower county would be sub
served by locating the county seat at
Austin; out of which location and
removal of the county seat grew what
has since been known in history as the
Frankfort war, in which war ]. B. Yates
was commander in chief, and A. B.
Vaughan, G. H. Bemis and Horace
Blodgett aides for the west side.
The county seat, consisting then of 9
%peddler's tin box, which could be carried
in one hand, was spirited away from
Frankfort, and after many narrow es,
capes was hid for a time at High Forest
and then brought to Austin, and fo1
several days until blood could cool q
llttle) hid in a cellar in Austin, covered
by a pile of potatoes, and when that pile
of potatoes, consisting of some Is or 20
bushels, had been opened from the tor
and the small trunk or tin box put in thu
centre thereof, and the potatoes carelesslJ
thrown VI thesbox, that was one of the
most innocent-looking pile of potatoe.
you ever saw
The contest over this county seat mat
ter for a few days looked very %portentious
and threatening, but calmer council.
finally prevailed, and the matter ended il
a few arrests and still fewer parties being
bound owe to appear to answer at thl
next term of the District Court to be helC
in Fi11mnro COUNTY Gr,f0o IN r. IN COW mr.