ginia, on the 11th of May, 1856. They have four sons: Thomas A., who is a lawyer at Trenton; William Wirt, also a lawyer at Trenton; Evermont Ward, a medical student, having attended one full course of lectures at the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Keokuk, Iowa; and Robert Pickett, now in his thirteenth year.

CHAPTER XXII.

LINCOLN TOWNSHIP.

Its Municipal Boundary—Woodland, Prairies and Running Waters-Its First SettlersThe Bain Settlement-Death of Riason Bain-Union Church-Trading with the Indians-The First School and School-house-The First Church-New Settlers-War Period-When Organized-Public Servants-Incidents-A Memorable Tramp-A Solid Note-Assessed Valuation-Biographies.

MUNICIPAL BOUNDARY.

Lincoln township, the most central township in the county, is bounded on the north by Franklin; east by Myers and Liberty; south by Trenton, and west by Harrison. It is six miles north and south, eight miles east and west, and has 30,720 acres of land.

The Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad passes through it from north to south, about two miles from its western border. It is watered by the Weldon River and by Muddy and Honey creeks. The Weldon River on the west, the Muddy in the center, and Honey Creek on the east. These streams pass entirely through the township north and south. A few springs are found, and the township, as may be seen, is well watered.

The land is very rich, easy of cultivation, and generous in its yield. It has some fine timber, and is composed of three-fifths wooded and of twofifths prairie land.

It is the banner township for grapes and wine making, and has in it some of the finest apple orchards, both in size and in quality of the fruit, to be found in the county. The orchard of William P. Martin is especially worthy of notice for its size and its splendid quality of fruit.

Much of the history of the township will be found in the general history of the county, and in this special record there may be more or less of imperfection. The old pioneer has forgotten many interesting incidents of those early days, and in many cases has forgotten a portion of others. While the general collection of facts will be found of interest and of a reliable nature, we could have wished to present a more perfect record of their early trials. The author will here mention the names of Mr. Jesse Bain,

P. W. Bain, Capt. and Mrs. Jarvis Woods, B. B. Cornwell and Jacob Bain, for their great kindness and assistance rendered him in his search for facts.

The township of Lincoln was first settled in 1837. The first settlers pitching their tents November 12th of that year. The colony consisted of the following five families: Riason Bain, Samuel Kelso, Jesse Bain, Henry Foster and William Dille. Their camping ground was on the northwest quarter of section twenty-two, about 300 yards east of the Bain school-house and about forty rods northeast of the residence of Jesse Bain. They trav eled many hundred miles to reach their new home, and were water-bound and compelled to remain encamped several days on Shoal Creek, in Livingston county, on account of high water. They spread their tents on a beautiful wooded ground, not far from the waters of the Big Muddy, within a short distance of each other. Here for six weeks they lived until their combined assault on the forest had secured them the timber for cabin homes placed upon their selected lands-each of the settlers having staked out a claim of 160 acres of government land.

. This band of pioneers had come from Ohio and Indiana; had left their native States, social life, the fertile soil and all the comforts of civilization, to make an habitation and a name in the then wilderness of the West. They made a home, and yet that spot of camping ground is still a wooded dell, and, in that section, is held almost sacred by the settlers. It is a portion of the farm of Mr. Jesse Bain, and lies within about 300 yards of the Bain school-house.

The lands as selected made them neighbors, and the settlers passed the first winter, as all were passed in those early times, in hardship and hard work. They had a hand corn-mill which had been purchased of Daniel Devaul at Moore's settlement, on their way to their new home, and that was the only way they had to grind their corn, the principal article of food, unless they went to the nearest horse-mill, then located some twenty-six miles distant in Daviess county, at a place called Millport, which was also a post-office and a sort of trading-post, kept by Jesse Mornan. There was another mill at Navetown, in Livingston county, now called Spring Hill, twenty miles away, and started soon after the settlement of the up country. The few hand-mills to be found in the different colonies were limited in their operations. The demand became greater as families moved in, and Millport and Navetown began to loom up in importance.

Navetown was a sort of trading-post and post-office, and at that time the only one that received a patronage. North of Livingston, county the trading was done with the currency of the country, which consisted principally of deer skins, venison hams, honey, beeswax, muskrat and mink skins, with here and there a Spanish quarter or a Mexican dollar thrown in by way of variety. This was the situation for the first year. Some few families were

heard of in the east, but not near enough for neighbors. In the fall of 1838 some ten more families had gathered around the Bain-Kelso settlement, and the clearing began to assume the appearance of civilization. That fall James Bunch put up a horse-mill in the Thompson settlement, about seven miles distant, and over the river. This was better than going twenty miles to mill, and the settlers took prompt advantage of this great accommodation. Mr. Bunch furnished the mill but the pioneers had to produce the motive power. The first hitched his horse to it, and ground out his bag of corn, then the next, and so on. The mill was a pretty stout affair and Mr. Bunch's principal business was to take in the toll during the grinding season. In the Mormon war, which broke out in Daviess county, that fall, a few recruits were called for and Jesse Bain and Samuel Kelso, Daniel Devaul and some others volunteered. They came back safe after seeing the Mormons scattered. The settlers were now hard at work, new comers rapidly appeared and the Big Muddy was flanked on both sides with a hardy and progressive people. A new settlement had been building up rapidly on the east side, and farms had been staked out. The Kirkendalls, Stokes, Cochrans, Moores and Woods had made their homes there during the spring and summer of 1838. The farmers now began to feel at home. The government had surveyed the land and the settlers were ready and anxious to enter the claims they had preëmpted, pay for the same and secure the deeds for their new homes. For the want of school-houses and churches, the settlers, in the spring of '38, united and under the lead of Mr. Riason Bain held class-meetings. This continued until late in summer, when the services of Rev. Thomas Peery were secured, who preached the first sermon ever heard in what is now Lincoln township, and at the house of Riason Bain. In August, 1839, Mr. Riason Bain died, and from that time on the Methodist organization began to decline, preaching only taking place occasionally. Soon after the Methodists had secured the services of Dr. Peery, the Presbyterians, under the lead of Mr. Samuel Kelso, engaged the Rev. Wm. Clark to preach for them. His first sermon was delivered at the house of Samuel Kelso. This service was continued until a church was built in 1855, generally once a month and always at Mr. Kelso's house. Camp-meetings were begun in 1840, and the ground these meetings, or one of them, were held on, was a part of the original camping ground of the first settlers. Some few log huts were built for the purpose and puncheon seats were made in the open air and under trees for the accommodation of visitors. These meetings generally lasted about ten days, or if the spirit moved them lively, and it became extremely interesting, the sessions would hold for two weeks. This camp-meeting ground was used as such for many years. These gatherings were immense social affairs, and the camp-meeting was a necessity of the times. The friendly Indians of the Sacs and Iowa tribes used to make these camp-meeting huts their headquarters in winter,

for they still roamed the valley of the Grand River as a hunting ground. The chiefs of these hunting parties were Poweshiek, of the Iowas, Wapello, of the Foxes, Totomah and Tucqua, belonging to the Sacs tribes. These tribes made their homes in this valley up to 1837.

The United States survey, which took in all the lands in the county, was made by General Lisbon Applegate, and one of his assistants in the survey of some twenty-four congressional townships was Capt. Jarvis Woods, yet an honored resident of Lincoln township.

From Captian Wood we learned of his first settlement and something of pioneer life in those days. Settlers being few and far between, each one had to rely on himself, and the more he was able to assume the position of jack-of-all-trades, the less of trials and vexation and more of success awaited him. The captain brought his own corn-mill, but it was no easy job for one man to turn it, although it was called a hand-mill. Flour could be purchased at Glasgow for the modest sum of sixteen dollars per barrel, hauling free to the seller, but as it was about ninety miles to Glasgow, and money hadn't got to growing on trees in those times, flour was not so plentiful as to make it one of the common necessaries of life, but was considered a luxury. Mrs. Wood used to tend garden, milk the cow, hoe potatoes, and when she hadn't anything else to do, went into the field and dropped corn. And this was what the pioneer women all did. They were not behind their husbands, fathers or brothers in their allotted work.

Wm. F. Cornwell moved to this township in October, 1838. His son, B. B. Cornwell, one of the best farmers in all that section, who is living to-day, came with him. He located one of the finest farms on the Big Muddy. The son is now living within a mile and a half of the old homestead, and has lived on the present farm thirty-one years. The settlers in those early days carried on quite a trade with the Indians. The latter were well provided with amunition, furnished by Government traders, and the settlers got nearly all the powder and lead they used from them. The Indians bought skins from the settlers, and not only paid in powder and lead, but often had notions which they traded. This saved the old pioneers many a long, weary tramp, or ride, while it was in the Indian's line of business. It has been supposed by many that the whites sold the Indians their war and hunting supplies, but here are cases well vouched for that show it was the Indians who sold to the whites. These parties of friendly Indian hunters were well provided, and were able in many instances to take all the skins the settlers had to sell.

The first death in this township was that of Miss Emily M. Cochran, a young girl twelve years of age. The first coffin made held her remains. It was made of black walnut, the logs split, and then dressed with a broad-axe. After being put together it was waxed all over, the cracks filled in, then

smoothed and dressed with a hot iron. She was buried near the residence of B. B. Cornwell, in 1840.

The settlers in the township had got pretty well advanced. They had secured their homes, had made rapid headway in clearing their land, had in fact been a band of brothers, helping each other by times. They were raising food enough for themselves and for their horses and cattle; the hogs roamed the woods, lived and fatted on mast, and it did begin to look as if a really prosperous future was before them. They began to think about schoolhonses and churches. The children had often been gathered at the houses or cabins of the neighbors to study, and had progressed in many instances so as to spell and read, but the want of schools was severely felt.

THE FIRST SCHOOL.

The first school taught in Lincoln township was by Amos Dille, a brother of Wm. Dille. His education was limited but he was capable of imparting the rudiments of education, or, as it was called in those days, their A B C's, and to read, write and cipher. He taught for three months in the falls of 1839-40. The following summer there was no school, but in the winter of 1840-41 Jefferson Forrest taught a session of three months. In the summer of 1841 John Sutton made his appearance and, being capable, was called upon to teach during the summer months; this he did to the general satisfaction. In the winter of 1841-42 another arrangement was made, and Jefferson Forrest coming back he was engaged to teach that winter and also the winter of 1842-43. All of these schools had been taught in the old deserted cabins of the settlers. The schools were now kept pretty regularly. Robert Houston followed Jefferson Forrest in the summer and fall of 1843, and the fact of his teaching is fresh in the minds of many of the boys of those days now grown to manhood. Those old forsaken and rudely-constructed huts still did duty as the seats of learning for several years. Henry Foster's was the first of these cabins which became known as an institution of learning, but there were several and all were free. Mr. Robert Speers came after Mr. Houston in 1847-48. Such is the record of Lincoln township's school days of early times. It was not much the children of those days had to brag of in the way of education, but what little time and opportunity came within their reach they improved.

FIRST SCHOOL-HOUSE.

The first school-house was built in the fall of 1849. It was located on the west bank of Muddy Creek, on section fifteen, east side, and about the center of the section north and south. There was nothing of beauty in the simple structure, it was rather substantial, but primitive in its style of archiThe logs were round, or nearly so, and dressed in their native bark; the windows were holes inade and fenced around with logs; the fire

tecture.