Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1910-08-30
NAVIGATION IN
PIONEER DAYS
ACCOUNT IS FOUND OF HOW THE
FORCING OF RIVER TRAFFIC
TOOK PLACE
OPENED THE DAMS
Edwin Manning Ordered Captain o
Boat to Throw Gates in Stream
and From That Tint Boating
Continued For Years.

While the government engineers
are surveying the Des Moines river a
little side light into early history Of
the stream will not go amiss. The
days Of the pioneer in Iowa, when
what chance did exist for navigation
OF the Des Moines river was frustrated
by the mill owners having dams
across the stream, led some of those
Of the earlier days, whose names are
yet recalled as men who have achieved
a place in the history Of the state
to break up this system. Among
these was the late Edwin Man
ming, father of Calvin Manning Of
Ottumwa and perhaps the best known
man of his time in southeasterH Iowa.
Mr.. Manning in an early day while
expanding his growing business In
terests, actually, forced navigation OF
the Des Moines, and for long time
shipped large quantities Of goods OF
various kinds up and down the river
from st. Louis and other points.
Tells Story Himself.
But the story as to hoW he forced
the navigation of the Des MONIES
was told by Mr.. Manning a third OF a
century ago. It was at a melting held
by the Old Settlers of Van Buren,
county on the 18th of August, 1871
And these we're substantially his re
marks on that occasion, which will
be interesting to large number of
the readers of the Courier. He said:
He was sojourning in Missouri dur
ing the winter and fall of 1887 with
Captain 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 FIT. Madison, and visited old
Black Hawk at his camp, located just
below the town.
The country at that time was nearly
all vacant. The settlements were con-
fined to the streams. Claims had
been made and even occupied up the
Des Moines for nearly . hundred
miles.
A Pioneer Trader.
Mr.. Manning's first trade in Iowa
was for a half breed claim, which con-
sisted of several acres of handsome
twenty-five town lots in Keokuk-the
whole costing about $50.
In touching upon the different epochs
of the county's history, ne sta1ed the
first land sales were made in 1888.
The court house in Keosauuua was
steamboating to Raccoon Forks in
The navigation Of the Des Moines
was obstructed by dams until 1851.
Flatboating from 1916 to 1851.
The speaker could boast that ne
bought and sent from Van Buren,
County, ou the first drove Of cattle.
It was himself and Uncle Sam
wright" who had the honor of buying
and sending to st. Louis the first
drove Of hogs.
He also opened out the first stock Of
goods in the valley in 1899. and IN Al
he contracted to supply the govern
ment fort at Des Moines with prov1s-
ions. which he did by charterlng a
boat at st. Louis aand bringing his
purchases by steam.
Indians Appreeiative.
The upper country in and around
Raccoon Fork, was then, peopled by
, indians. In return for the honor con-
ferred in giving the Indian chiefs q
free ride, the head men Of the nation
came afterwards and paid their re-
spects by favoring the white men with
a war dance. This was done on mag
nificent SCALE no less than 300 OF the
best brave Sacs and Foxes assembled.
gorgeously adorned with bells ana
To-, mol nj
the presence Of their adrniring spec
tators performed the most wonderful
feats ever witnessed in western life.
Flatboating was the next venture,
and this to him, the speaker said,
proved to be the most successful oper-
alton In the whole Oalley.
Having built few good seaWortny
crafts, he essayed to get them into
market, and although he sank the first
boat twice before it reached its des-
tination, it only gave notoriety to his
enterprise
After a time navigation was sus-
nended until AT, at which period the
cry arose "Out with the dams!' Mr..
Manning, never 10th to undertake what
! he was sure would pay, proceeded at
once to st. Louis and contracted with
Captain Allen to load the Jenny Lind
and a barge for Keosauqua and Ed
dyyille. Having favorable wafer tney
arrived in Keokuk in due time. elated
with success, and there learned to their
utter establishment that they could not
navigate the Des Moines. Mr.. Manning,
however, with his usual determination,
would make the effort even II he lost
his entire shipment The captain, hear
ing his resolve pushed on, and In a
few hours they arrived at Pennington
covered with glory.
| All seemed delighted with their sue
cess except the mill owners. Here
gain came the tug of war. 1t was fight
or die. They must not stop. The gates
were closed and an entrance was, OF
course, impossible.
| Remove tho Gates.
! Mr.. Manning said to Captain Allen:
81 brought you here to do my work. My
order is that you at once remove those
I gates"
No sooner said than all on board lay
hold of the offending gates and hurled
them down the stream.
nv this little experiment Mr.. Man
I ming was, he said. more 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 Superceded by