The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1910-08-17
FOLLOWING PATH
OF MARQUETTE
E. NJ. lnserso;' Believes He Knows
the Spot Whore the Indians
And Jesuits Held
Meeting.
NOT KEoKUK's CAMP
Ideal Spot on Sugar Creek, Short
Distance Above keokuk on
the Des Mones
River.
NOT KEoKUK's CAMP

KEOKUK, Iowa, Aug. Ito the
Editor of The Gate City: When
came to Keokuk in 1886 there were
old Indian trails that could be easily
followed through the woods and
across unimproved lands in Jackson
township. Those old trails were
much used by the very early settlers
in going from place to place on foot
or on horseback.
My uncle, Joe Ingersoll, took the
Indian trial for i. the night he stole
old Solomon Atchison's little four
teen year old daughter in Nauvoo,
and ran away with her on horseback
to Alexandria where they were mar
ried in 1886. Alexandria was then a
little colony called Sweet Home.
There were some old trails in the
neighborhood of Sandusky. Historians
agree that Marquette and Joliet land
ed at the mouth of Lemolese creek
when journeying down the MISSISSIPPI
pi river in 1878. They found human
footprints in the sand, going back
from the river, a little further they
heard human voices Going a little
further they found the Indians. Mar
quette talked with them in their own
language. They accompanied the In
dians for about two leagues, equal to
six miles, In a southwestern direc-
ton where they came to beautiful
stream, with an Indian village on the
easterly side Of it and another on
the west side. Lemolese is the creek
entering the Mississippi river at San
dusky. Starting at Sandusky and 60
ing two leagues or six miles in a
southwesterly direction you come to
Sugar Creek bridge on the ST. Fran
cisville road certainly an ideal
place for an Indian village, a beauti-
FL stream III beautiful valley, with
high bluffs on three sides of it, max
( ing a sheltered place in the winter,
plenty of fire wood and five or six
good springs of water. have found
what | believe to be the old Indian
trail on both sides of the creek at
that point. My Investigations lead
me to believe that the old trail struck
section IL near the southeast corner
and continued along the south line Of
said section to the half section line,
running north and south, thence in
southwesterly direction across Sec
ton Is, and across the Des Moines
river somewhere between the mouth
of Sugar Creek and the Bates ferry.
Some people have gotten the idea
that the explorers must have landed
at Prices Creek and that the Indian
village on the Des Moines river near
! the yellow banks was the village re-
ferred to. think this is mistake;
| that village was the home of Keokuk
and his tribe hundred years ago.
/ Chief Moses Keokuk told us all
about that when he was here to our
! Fourth of July celebration about thir-
ty years ago. He told us that that
was the home of their tribe and he
lived there until he was fourteen
years of age Chief Moses made
speech in his own language at HUI
/
the Sac and Fox Indians when lit
| tie boy, / learned some of their Ian
guage. | learned mostly from my ia
| Their and my older brother. knew
enough of the language to know that
Chief Keokuk WAS making a
speech, but that the interpreter that
| he had brought with him was not CIV
| ing it to us in good English. At the
suggestion of Rev. John Burgess l
helped the reporter who was on the
ground to prepare the speech for
publication.
Chief Moses Keolsuk told us he
had not been here since he went
away with his tribe when he was
fourteen years of age until he came
on this occasion to help the white
brothers celebrate the Fourth of July.
He was greatly surprised to see the
great changes that had taken place.
He thought the Great Spirit had
greatly blessed and prospered his
white brothers He was greatly pleas
ed to see the beautiful city named af-
ter his father. He thanked the COM
mittee for sending him an invitation
to come and thanked the people for
their kindness and hospitality since
he arrived. He said it was the hap
piest day of his life. He said num-
Der of nice complimentary things
about the white brothers and the
white father at Washington.
think | have found where Mar
quette and Joliet found the Indian
village. The place is the right dis
lance and the right direction from the
mouth of the Lemolese creek, and
just such a place as described by
Marquette and Joliet, and there is
evidence to show that the springs
| l.rr he Ind nbn