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Shelby County |
Home 1915 History Index |
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Shelby County |
Home 1915 History Index |
CHAPTER VIII - REMINISCENCES OF THE PIONEERS (CONT'D)
[Mrs. Goodyear, a daughter of Jonathan Wyland, came to Shelby county with her husband in 1860. A very bright and entertaining lady, she recalls very vividly some of the severe hardships and experiences of pioneer days in Shelby county, as well as some of the happier and more fortunate events that helped to brighten the arduous and isolated life of that time. Mrs. Goodyear now resides in Omaha, Nebraska. –EDITOR.]
My husband and I came to Shelby county from Kansas in 1860. About two years after we came here I bought, in the city of Indianapolis, Indiana, a Singer sewing machine and also five dollars’ worth of thread, since it was necessary in those days to lay in a liberal supply, for trips to market were few and far between. I received word that my sewing machine had arrived at Grinnell, Iowa, which was then the western terminus of the railroad. I began to plan how I was to get possession of that machine. My brother, T. J. Wyland, had an Indian pony which was very tricky and had thrown most men and all of the women in the neighborhood who had attempted to ride it. My brother “Jeff” was the person who knew exactly how to manage that pony. I determined, however, to learn from him the secret of how to manage the animal, as I had heard that there was a family at Wood’s Grove north of Kirkman who intended to make an overland trip to Grinnell where they had some household goods which they wished to secure. My brother consented to let me have the pony for a cross-country ride, which was over open prairie, a distance of probably ten miles. He told me that when the pony pretended to be tired and attempted to lower his head I must hold his head up by means of the rein and must tie it to the saddle horn, if necessary. Sure enough, away out on the prairie the pony pretended great fatigue. I, however, held his head up and put the whip to him and was successful in getting him over his fatigue. The journey then went through Wood’s Grove to Grinnell ran by way of Bowman’s Grove and Exira into Audubon county and thence east. I finally received my sewing machine and for a number of years I am sure this was the only sewing machine in Shelby county. It did a great deal of sewing for people widely scattered. For instance, men in the neighborhood unable, or course, to pay for overcoats made by tailors, were in the habit of going to Council Bluffs, employing a tailor there to cut out the cloth for overcoats and then bringing the pieces home for me to sew together on the machine. In the sixties nearly every farmer had a few sheep. The wool was taken first to Red Oak where there were woolen mills. I remember that my father, Jonathan Wyland, brought a number of sheep from Canada, of the large Leicester breed. They were brought on the railroad to Grinnell and driven across from Grinnell to Shelby county. One of the early settlers coming with my father in 1856 was Henry Snyder, who settled in what was afterward called “Tow-Head” Grove. There were four men who came about this time: Mr. Snyder, just mentioned, my cousin, my father, Jonathan Wyland, and my eldest brother. In 1857 Washington Wyland came. John C. Harris, father of C. J. Harris, came about 1865 and Eli Jarvis came during the war. My husband and I had gone by way of Quincy, Illinois, across Missouri to Kansas in the late fifties. This was the time of the great excitement with reference to slavery and many of the Missourians regarded us with suspicion and distrust as they thought we were going to Kansas for the purpose of encouraging the anti-slavery sentiment. So strong was this feeling that we could not buy anything in Missouri. We traveled overland in a Schuttler covered wagon. Many a night on our journeys overland I remained awake all night cooking provisions for the next day. We took our milch cows with us and got along very nicely. My husband was a carpenter and was so busy building houses for other people that we had no place to live for a good many months after we came to Shelby county. Even after we had a house, the floor of which was made of walnut boards, I remember that when an old gentleman, Mr. Dalton, died, my husband, and another man took some of the boards off our floor for the purpose of making a casket. One of our houses was infested with snakes, which did not make very pleasant companions. In the early sixties my brother Jasper, who later died in the Union army, took sick. At that time there was no doctor in the country except Dr. W. J. Johnston, of Cuppy’s Grove, who was called. He told us that he could do nothing further for my brother without additional medicines which he did not have. My brother, Chris Wyland, took a horse at sun-up one morning, made the trip to Council Bluffs overland and was again at home by sun-up the next morning. About the only stopping place between our home and Council Bluffs was at Beard’s who lived at Keg creek. When my brother reached Beard’s he hired a horse and learned that Doctor McMahon, for whom he had made the trip, had gone to Missouri Valley. Jacob Shiflett also rode a horse to Missouri Valley and there got Doctor McGavern, who came across the country on horseback. He remained with my brother all night and next morning wrote out very complete directions as to the treatment of the inflammation or fever with which my brother was afflicted, writing out what changes would come in his condition, and then returned home. My brother was in bed one week or ten days and recovered. One of the experiences of Mr. Shiflett in making the trip across for the doctor, was the leading of his horse across a foot bridge, the regular wagon bridge having been swept away. Mr. Shiflett decided that if both he and the horse went into the stream he, at least, would have a chance to swim out. Another thrilling trip for a doctor, made to Council Bluffs, earlier known as Kanesville, was made by John Long in a terrible blizzard of 1865. James M. Long, uncle of John Long, was seriously sick with lung fever, as we called it then. The young man, who had just returned from the army, hardy from four years of service, volunteered to go to Council Bluffs, but finally reaching that point, the doctor declared that although Long might be fool enough to go out in such a storm he, the doctor, would not risk it. The doctor, however, prescribed for the patient and John Long brought medicine back. He saved himself to some extent by keeping the horse between him and the driving storm, and although the trip killed the horse, it undoubtedly saved the life of the patient, who, in any event, recovered. My husband usually brought home a load of flour at a time and for the purpose of securing flour he made trips to Council Bluffs, to Big Grove in Pottawattamie county, and also a few times to Panora in Guthrie county. We made much use of the wild fruit and also of sorghum, since sugar was very scarce. We gathered the wild crab apples in the fall and placed them in our cellars, where they would keep all winter. We made sauce and preserves from them. We also made much use of the wild plums, and also of the gooseberries, which were plentiful in Shelby county and of excellent quality. During war times we used sorghum almost entirely in preparing these fruits for use. In 1860 Isaac Wyland ran a rude sorghum mill and made sorghum molasses.v We held church in the schoolhouses. One of the early ministers at Bowman’s Grove was the Methodist Episcopal minister from Big Grove, Pottawattamie county. I remember that at the time Chatburn’s mill was being built, about the year 1867, a dance was held at the mill. My husband was helping to build the mill at the time. Music was furnished by my husband and by Thomas W. Chatburn, both playing the violin. E. W. Davis was then a resident of Harlan and was very much interested in having a church built, and it had been decided that the proceeds arising from this dance at the mill should be donated to the building of the first church in Harlan, which turned out to be the Methodist Episcopal church. We had many interesting times. I remember one night two young men, who had taken two young ladies to a party, became lost on the prairie and were forced to remain wandering about driving the sled over the prairie all night. The young folks finally reached our home and the boys went to bed in one of our rooms and the girls in the other, sleeping until the following noon. There were many thrilling adventures and experiences with the wild animals. Isaac Wyland, while riding horseback from Harlan, was annoyed by a wolf which appeared very hungry and saucy. Mr. Wyland tried to get his horse to jump the animal, but could not force it to do so. He finally got off his horse and, pulling off one of his boots, killed the wolf with the heel of his boot. I remember, also, while living near Windy Knoll, on what was long known as the Shipp farm, there was an interesting hunt for wild turkeys. One day towards evening when my husband was away to mill, a trip which often took three or four days, I was alone with my little girl, then two years old, staying at the home of Eli Jarvis. I had gone, towards evening, to my own home to do the chores, when I saw a drove of wild turkeys walking on the prairie, apparently hunting a place to roost. I followed them on foot. I saw them cross the Nishnabotna, which I then forded at a place where it was shallow and saw the turkeys work their way through the weeds to a large dead tree, upon which they established themselves for the night. I went back to Jarvis’ and told him about the turkeys. He had no gun or ammunition, but, getting a horse, rode to my brother’s, William Wyland’s, at Bowman’s Grove, and borrowed a gun. At daybreak he and I started out to get some of these turkeys and, of course, we had to ford the stream again. It was necessary for me to go to point out the location of the birds. Mr. Jarvis was very successful in this hunt, as he secured five out of the flock, which in all numbered seven.”
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