AN UNBLEMISHED LAND

The government of the United States was essentially financed for about 50 years of its existence by the sale of public lands. In concept the idea was simple enough; the federal government owned the land–the individual pioneers wanted it and were willing to pay the standard $1.25 an acre for it. But, there were complications to the this simple plan.

No land could be sold or occupied until the land was cleared from the Indians. The Indians held no title to the land, but it was considered a good policy to purchase the land from them. Second, no land was to be sold until after it had been surveyed, and while this was expedited as rapidly as possible, it was not done quickly enough to satisfy eager settlers. Third the land had to be purchased at government land offices and paid for in gold. The land office that covered land that would be Hardin county, was in Dubuque. And gold was not something the average pioneer had a lot of.

A typical new arrival picked out a suitable area and “made his claim.” This was accomplished, according to custom, by driving stakes or blazing trees at the corners; by erecting some kind of a shelter; and by starting the cultivation of a portion of land. When the survey arrived it was often necessary to readjust his borders, and perhaps even to exchange some tracts with his neighbors in order to make his claim conform to the survey. Subsequent to the survey a claim could be accurately described and defended, but still the pioneer did not own anything. Ownership was confirmed by registering a claim to the land at the government office and paying the $1.25 per acre in gold.

This simple route to land ownership was subject to many detours. The land office was far away, and there was no real hurry. Most of the pioneers didn’t have $200 in gold and it was hard to come by. Those who did were at a great advantage.

Things did not always go smoothly. On occasion claim jumpers would come along and try to enter land that had been improved by the labor of someone else.

Some settlers tried to put off making final settlement either because of lack of funds, or the distance to the land office. At some point however, it became necessary, or at least highly desirable, for the pioneer to complete his purchase. At this point some sold out and tried to make a fresh start; or he might sell part of his claim and chattels in order to make entry on the balance.

There were usury (lending) laws which limited interest on borrowed money. A system called “time entry” was devised to avoid usury laws that limited the rate of interest a lender could charge. Instead, the loan shark bought the land in his name, at the government price, and gave a bond to the squatter, promising to convey the title to him in one year at $1.75 per acre, or in two years at $2.50 per acre. This amounted to 40 or 50 percent interest. And there were no problems with foreclosure, since the loan shark already held the title.

Early entries show much central Iowa land was purchased this way, and there is no real record of how much was lost this way. Certainly this type of “banking” was the basis for some of the great fortunes of the day.

Evidence indicates that fewer than half who employed this method of paying for their land ever obtained the land described.

This is not to say that all the pioneers were an impecunious lot. Many came with money, or had it sent to them by friends or relatives. Others were frugal enough, or lucky enough, to have their claim produce enough to pay for itself. Still others did not entirely depend on their claim–they were lawyers, doctors, merchants or craftsmen who were able to earn money on the side, and pay for their land.

At the same time another type of investor was on the scene. He did not live here, probably had never been in central Iowa, but employed a land buyer, or “bird dog,’ who was supposed to smell out good parcels of land and purchase them on behalf of his employer. These were the rich land speculators, and a good deal of Hardin county land was first owned by such speculators.

During all wars, (War of 1812, Mexican, Civil, and Indian wars), including the minor Indian skirmishes part-payment was made to the soldiers in the form of land warrants which were as good as gold at the regional land office. At first these warrants were nontransferable, but the rules were changed and speculators combed the eastern states, purchasing these warrants from the veterans at whatever price they would accept.

Some speculators used the warrants to purchase land for themselves, but in many cases they sold them to the pioneers at a profit. An Iowa City land agent advertised warrants at a price of 84 cents an acre for cash in the early 1850’s. In total more Iowa land was purchased with warrants than with gold.

Correlation between early settlement and early land entry was rather poor. Early entries do not show half the actual settlers. The names listed are those of lenders, speculators, or of absentee owners. For this reason it is impossible to reconstruct an accurate list of all of the first settlers in what would be Clay township.