The Winona Republican-Herald from Winona, Minnesota • Page 9

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 1949 THE WINONA REPUBLICAN-HERALD, WINONA, MINNESOTA ta I mu Bitter Fight Marked Staking of Claims for Winona Five Men Divided Prairie Into Strips One bleak November morning--98 years ago--five men knotted themselves near the small bushes that skirted the Mississippi river not far Irom where the Burlington bridge now crosses the river. They looked across a vast sandy prairie, covered principally with a stunted growth of wild grass about 18 inches high and just one lone tree. With dissension obvious among them, a stake was driven into the ground at this eastern extremity of the prairie. an( st. Paul lor more than 15 years jth the several steamboats that he had owned and commanded a that he had owne an comma One of the men then drew outi an( he was we aw are that Waba- a tape line and the quintet mea- sha pra i i was the.

most desirable sured a half mile to the westward. At that point another siake was driven. Then, following some heated dls-j cusslon, the men measured off another half mile and drove another stake. This procedure was followed for three miles, the men so having i i Wabasha prairie into half-mile claim strips, each running back from the river to (he bluffs. That staking out one morning in mid-November.

1851, was the beginning of Winona. This beginning was, somewhat premature, sin 1 time the U. S. government wasi still negotiating with the Sioux place along the Upper Mississippi on which to build a town. He knew, too, that the prairie was to be taken over by the United States government under a treaty," Lands Ship With these things in mind Captain Smith decided to pre-empt the prairie.

Accordingly, one night in the middle of October, 1851, he bridge, with food supplies and the winter. A small shanty of three sides still negotiating wiiii biic Indians for acquiring lands west i was at once put up against the of the Mississippi, and, in fact, I high bank of the river down there Chief Wapasha and his band of These men were, ostensibly, to cut 300 or 400 Sioux or Dakota Indians wood on the Wisconsin side of the SSV.SS,TM Boning of Town but In But legal or not, this was H- Jonnsorlj the ship carpenter, un- beginning of the white mans iti TifGc tn sharp veiopment of this prairie as a community dwelling place. There's a little background to this staking out, and the background is indelibly linked to the Mississippi, just as Winona still der the arrangement was to share in the town-site, which he did. Nash Remains iNasn jveiimuia associates river. By 1851 itself with the great steamboats were busy plying the Upper Mississippi.

As a matter of fact, as early as 1824 Captain Orrin Smith, the founder of Winona, ran a batteau up to Galena, El. and soon thereafter he was running a boat from Galena to St. Paul via the Fever river which once emptied into the Mississippi a short distance below what is now East Dubuque, HI. This is important because during those earliest steamboat runs steamboat men and travelers looked favorably on the Wabasha prairie, or Winona, as they passed It. Prosperous City In his "Incidental Sketches of Minnesota" John P.

Owens says, "It was decided by the steamboat man and the traveler years before the original the soil divested proprietors themselves the title thereto, that this prairie would some day be the location of a prosperous city. Captain Orrin Smith, of Galena, a veteran navigator of this Upper Mississippi, had viewed this promised land from his hurricane deck during many a weary night-watch, and had made up his mind to go north and Original Plat of Winona cussion, Johnson consented allow the newcomers to share the prairie, and it was decided to measure off the prairie in half-mile strips running back from the river. The staking out procedure then! began, Captain Smith was given! claim No. 1, Nash No. 2, Stevens 1 No.

No! 3, Johnson No. 4, Hamilton 5 and Clark No. 6, although nell that the claim belonged to him and that he intended to hold the claim. Bunnell tried to scare Johnson by telling that the Sioux Indians were already talking of driving the half-dozen settlers off the prairie. He did not succeed in scaring Johnson, so left for home vowing that he would help the Indians drive the settlers away.

this last half-mile was not measured out that day. Mr Stevens then built a shanty "Soon after Bunnell came up to in which Clark and Hamilton lived the prairie again and brought along during the winter, but he went a couple of fine-looking young Sioux Indian 'bucks' rigged out to paint, beads and feathers. He called on gun, and Immediately demolished the log hut or shanty, cutting the logs and lumber Into firewood. "When Bunnell learned what had been done to his claim shanfy, lie swore and sent word to Johnson that he would whip him the next time that he could find him. And sure enough he did.

Disarms Johnson "Bunnell, accompanied by a man named Harrington, came up one evening and going to Johnson's shanty hit and disarmed Johnson before he could reach his gun. Ed Hamilton, who was sitting and visiting with Johnson, got out andj away as fast as his legs could carry him. "Hamilton ran up to the Stevens- shanty and asked Clark and Nash to come down and give Johnson I some help. On the way to the Johnson home they met Johnson, who (though rather badly hurt, was able I to get around on bis own power. "He accompanied Clark and Nash- back io his claim where he found his shanty demolished and the remnants and contents thrown out on the ice of the river.

"Thus was the first claim shanty of the new town razed. Threatens to Shoot "Johnson was laid up for a while for repairs, but when recovered he sent word to Bunnell that he would shoot him on sight if he ever came around his place again. "Bunnell had found he couldn't jump Johnson's claim and get away with it, and so abandoned all at- back to La Crosse. In December of that year Johnson brought Allan Gilmour and, George Wallace to the prairie to help in the wood-cutting for the that would land for him. The other, Caleb Nash, remained for some time on the prairie but lost out and was assisted, what later, in taking a boat down the river, never to be seen here again.

Near the middle of the month of November, Silas Stevens, a small lumber businessman at La Crosse who had learned of Captain Smith's actions, came to Wabasha prairie, bringing with him George W. Clark and Edwin Hamilton. They were landed on what is now the present levee about midnight and not a light of any kind was to be seen. These men first followed the river shore until they reached the slough about where the Youmans Brothers and Hodglns saw mill was located for many years. place at who had founded Homer, began to think at Willard Bunnell 's Homer, and Bunnell, Abner S.

Goddard, up to the prairie on the ice. Founder of Homer to Some of those persons stopped Johnson and told him that the In dians were getting dissatisfied about settlers taking possession of their lands without permission and that there would soon be trouble if something wasn't done to prevent them. "And he added that if given the John claim he would arrange matters what -he was going ohnson tempts to get a foothold on the prairie. "Directly after his run-in with Bunnell, Johnson built a much larger shanty near where the corner of Front and Center streets now are, and In the early summer of 1852 built another on the Orrin Smith claim at the eastern end of the prairie. "Wabasha prairie originally had little to recommend it for a town- site.

It was only a sandy plain, except in and around where the Yahnke ice house now stands and up in the neighborhood of the very west part of Fourth, street, and was covered iof grass. A Bucks Uninterested were growing in scattered locations Bunnell had had a few drinksjon the prairie, small bushes lined, This Was Winona in 1861--shows the intersection of Third and Main streets. Growing Pains In Old Winona Nearly 100 years ago, Winonans were complaining of material shortages caused by the rapidly expanding population of the pioneer vil lage. An editorial in the Winona Republican April 8, 1856 observed thai "Winona has 24 stores occupied which were well-filled with goods last autumn but now present a spectacle of empty shelves, our demand the past winter being more than the supply. The outcry of overstocking is not heard in our streets and people from the interior are obliged frequently to return to their homes without then- bills being half filled out.

However, our merchants pro- us a traveler. In June, 1854, we ramped from Wlnona'to Richland, ter we left this prairie." and was loud and noisy in threat, did not seem to be at all disturbed or even Interested. "Bunnell promised to foundea Momer, negan to mint. a.uu ----that Wabasha prairie was all right, ening Johnson but the young bucks Years afterward, these events 1 n. .11 were recorded by the late Orrin F.

Smith, whose mother, Mrs. Goddard, married Captain Smith after her husband's death. male child bom In Winona, Mr. Smith wrote before his death here in 1939 at the age of 85: 0 the river bank and one lone was in evidence down in a little "The seven hotels, now open, lull and unless the new ones In trouble for Johnson and the rest of the settlers as he drove away. "Later Bunnell came bringing a couple of men with him.

They built a small log shanty about six Washington-Kosciusko schoolhouse make site." 1 J.SJS at uie age ui ov- "He (Bunnell) came up, after feet square and left one of the over, decided I men, whose name was Myers, to Old Indian Mound In Heart of City Block 20 on which now stands Winona's post office, the armory 4 to him an Bonn eU told Johnson that clata would take possession. UD nis miiiu wj iiuAioj --M--. possess it long before the Sioux son, who had visions of claiming treaty was made. fnr nantaln "Captain Smith had plied the Mississippi between Galena, STttT inS steps! N. 4 occupied and that he to where the boat had landed and "nation, continued down along the river bank until they reached the shanty occupied by Johnson and Nash.

The Stevens party was admitted to this cabin lor the. night. In the morning, however, the fight began when Stevens declared that he knew all about the proposed townsite and they wanted "in." Naturally, displeased John decWedmen, na guard the shanty Not beingiand the William's hotel was once taligit molested for about week, Myers, the site of an Indian mound, or thinking the matter set-jso claimed some of the communi- pralrle for Smith and himself. After considerable heated dls- Bigger'n'Better ever for convenience and comfort f-- Join the millions who will visit the CHICAGO RAILROAD PAIR this year. See this big exposition, packed with railroading on the breeze-cooled shores of Lake Michigan.

If you saw the Fair in 1948, plan to go again--there 11 be many exciting new features! If you missed it last year, by all means go this year. These Attractions and Many More A-Rolllng-a wf- Old Faithful G.y.r-Burnnaton'. octual door drama of railroading I Cowboyi, Indians and actual tralnt of the pait ond preientt Deadwood Ctnfral Rnllrood--hlitorfc narrow-gauge tralni that you and your family con ridel Big free Weitern rodeo thow--hoonof thrilU every day at Burlington't old corrall wor ki modal of thb wonder with a 45-foot of waterl dlcmmot of tpotsj FnnHtr Old Wwt, In full- repHeol Radio and HUvlilen broadcaitil Old-Kim and modwn 100 yean of railroading progiwl PACKAGE TOURS TO THE FAIR as Jow as Include travel to and from Chicago on air-conditioned train; two admissions to the Fair, one admission to Wheels A-Rolhng; four-hour sightseeing tour of Chicago; fine hotel accommodations; three-hour evening boat trip on Lake Michigan. Information Tklnh P. V.

TkVe Burlington DtpX home a taite posseosiun. --Johnson promptly told Bun- I "Johnson saw him leave with his ties earliest settlers. The mound supposedly was the burial place of the children of Chief Wabasha. construction are completed are fearful that they will I be overstocked. Added to the above Winona boasts of a larger number of offices for various purposes numerous mechanics shops, large warehouses, three IWery stables, i steam mill, two newspapers and upwards of private residences." One year earlier, the editoria writer commented, "Winona boastec four stores, two hotels, three mechanic shops, one newspaper and abou' 30 "The country back was sparsely settled, only here and there a house or claim shanty to greet the eye o.

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