Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1902-10-22

unnamed grove. The pioneer was
james Laughrey. The good Madam
Laughrey gave me a bucket of fresh
spring water to place my frozen feet
in, and placed raw pounded up onions
to my frozen ears, in part considera-
ton of which. 1 then and there
named the grove Onion Grove, the
name it now retains. My two Cana
dian horses were injured during their
short lives.
On arriving here on the frontier, |
put the prices of goods and wares
down 20 per cent, and produce up Is
per cent, as you and all the ancient
pioneers of Davenport and Rock ISL
and, then called Stephenson, know.
purchased the bulk of the produce
of Scott county that year and ship
ped one lot of some $4,000 of ii by
steamer in the fall for New Orleans.
The boat was delayed by leaking and
other causes. My wheat and other
produce was injured and did not pay
the freight bill by $3.50, which l
paid.
L then built a large flat boat and
fitted it out at large cost, and
placed some $4,000 of produce on
board. and shipped the late David p.
McKown. of Rock Island. then Ste
phenson, as super cargo. Early zero
weather set in and froze the boat in
on the shore of a lonely island during
n long winter. In the spring they
ran the boat, damaged. in to st.
Louis. | gave the officers and crew
the cargo as their prize.
In 1s43 l purchased a tract of land
for farm not far distant, north of
Central park; taking in on its south
side portion of Duck creek. The
tract was one mile in length by half
mile in width. l enclosed it with four
miles of fence, and built a farm house
and barn, and planted many trees,
plowed and put crops in.
One half mile OF the south fencing
in the Duck creek bottom was of the
Pennsylvania order, constructed with
split oak rails, cut on my island, and
/ in command ran the raft down the
river rapids aided by four gentlemen
from Ireland.
\ portion of this island rail pro-
duct. that | personally RATED over the
rivers rapids, | sold to the veteran,
John Littig, now "a resident of Kirk
wood Boulevard, Davenport, Iowa,
to fence his Gilbert farm. The father
of John Littig worked for me as a
stone cutter in New Orleans in the
thirtieS. and his boy John, now of
Kirkwood. peddled Il daily journal,
the Picayune, on the streets of New
Orleans. Inc famous Picayune
IN, IL
tors Lumsdale and Kendall, long since
departed over Jordan.
There was no access to the farm,
or to the property of others. l APP
piled to the county commissioners to
Law county road from the north end
of Harrison street, at Sixth street TO
Hickory grove to be called the Hick-
orv Grove road. The road To pass
through his farm. The road was eS-
but the county had no funds
to build the Duck creek bridge, there
fore the road was useless. l. at my
own cost, as the ancient pioneers well
know. erected good and substan-
tial timber bridge equal To any in
the county. The earth filings at the
alone costing over 500.
In the tnirties of the past century.
two lines Of steam railroad were run
ming out of New Orleans: one be
tween the Mississippi river and Lake
running through the
city on Esplanade street. The steam
horse of that primitive road was the
first to drink the waters of the great
river. The second line ran
between New Orleans and Carrollton,
. A,,I 1,nx-
ing known those railroads from their
and gained knowledge. L,
after passing over the expansive prai-
ries of the west. considered the west !
to be well adapted for railroads, and
that they would build up and extend |
commerce. upon which | resolved to |
enter into the undertaking of Great |
ing a line of railroad between the At
lantic and Pacific oceans. and l felt |
that, if the undertaking was
entered on with resolve, that it could |
be accomplished.
In the last days of 1912, and the |
irst days of 1S43, after publicly speak
ng of the feasibility of the work, and |
rs a link, l procured instruments and |
took soundings for the first bridge |
erected on the Mississippi river. and
published my report in the Philadel-
phia journal. which report L now
have and which gives the nature OF
the banks and bottom; the width OF
The main channel and of the depth OF
he water. and the nature of the route
Illinois to Chicago. and west
to the Cedar river; both of which L
examined. | wrote and talked river
bridge and Pacific railroad. One meet
ng in 1915 l will name. 1t was in
the frame school house that stood
where the north end of the city hall
now stands. l there told the assem-
ply, some of whom pronounced me
visionary, that there were persons
present who would live to see a rail
road connecting the two oceans
see here the veteran Jacob Eldridge,