THE DREAM OF A TOWN

According to The History of Hardin County, 1883, Isaac Lesh, Charles Boyle and John Royal called on John Shepherd, the first county surveyor in Hardin county to lay out the town in the spring of 1855.

John Shepherd, arrived in the county from Kentucky in 1851. He erected a log cabin that was only fourteen feet square, with greased paper for windows.

He lived in this cabin with his family of seven, often entertaining travelers who needed lodging for a night.

Isaac Lesh, owned the land west of the river and Charles Boyle, and John Royal were the original owners of the town site on the east bank of the Iowa river.

It is inconceivable what gave them the foresight to do what they did that day in May, when they put their dreams down on paper. Their Ideas came together to form a well planned up-to-date town. The north and south streets are all nicely numbered. Those running east and west have all of the usual names of former presidents and native trees.

In the south part of town they set aside one square called “Seminary Square” but ironically the school house was later built on “Washington square.” A large portion of the town that never materialized was laid out south of Market Street and on the west side of the river.

A square west of the river was also designated as “Franklin Square.” Early county fairs were held there. Later, band concerts. picnics, and community celebrations. But today Washington Square is all but forgotten.

A portion of the east end of present day Steamboat Rock was not included in the original plat of the town. Sometime later Moses Robinson who owned this land had it surveyed and platted by Robert Allison, deputy county surveyor.

Robinson, was the first pastor of the Presbyterian Church in Steamboat, organized in 1857. Later he also served two different terms as postmaster.

His motives were not clear for wanting to make an addition to the still not fully developed community.

Perhaps several people were anxious to build here and wanted to be part of the town, or perhaps Robinson wanted to make a name for himself. All is speculation at this point. Robinson had his plat filed for record and it became an official part of the town called the “Robinson Addition.”

Writing in the Eldora Ledger at the time of the Steamboat Rock Centennial, William Leverton who’s grandfather was an early pioneer of Clay Township, wrote jokingly, “He (Robinson) got hold of everyone in the end because he included the cemetery (in his plat).”Only a few homes ever materialized in this portion of the town until the late 1950’s to the 1970’s when several homes were built.

The first person to locate in the town of Lithopolis after it was laid out was a man by the name of Sanford Baldwin. He bought a log house that had been built by Isaac Lesh, in December of 1855. This house was west of the river. Until the time that he sold the house to Baldwin, Lesh had filled it with a stock of goods and operated a small store there. This was considered the first stock of goods, or general store in the town.

There is some question if Sanford Baldwin did not have more involvement in the creation of the town than history books give him credit for. Many abstracts of buildings on market street including that of the library list Baldwin along with Lesh, Boyle and Royal as owners of the town plat.

It can also be speculated that Baldwin was a brother-in-law to Isaac Lesh. His wife’s maiden name was Baldwin. These are only speculations on my part. There is no mention of him as a member of the founding fathers in any of the written material that I found. If not a founder, he certainly was involved with the building of the town.

These ideas were just sinking in when I came across the following:

In an interview given by Mr. A. S. Root in the Steamboat Rock Echo, January 7, 1898 he gave a beautiful description of the town as it was just before the turn of the century. He also gave the following description of the town’s beginnings, “Steamboat Rock is one of the oldest towns in the county. It was founded in 1855…

“Isaac Lesh, Sanford Baldwin, John Royal, and Moses Robinson owned the farms which adjoined at the present school house corner of the town.”

“The place had appearance of an excellent site for a town, the possibility of a water power being exceptionally good. These men clubbed together and laid out in town lots over a quarter section of land around the schoolhouse corner.”

This article gives fuel to the notion that Mr. Baldwin was one of the founders. It on the other hand leaves out Charles Boyle.

The difficult question is which is truly accurate. Isaac Lesh wrote a portion in the History of Hardin County and while it was not that portion about the founding, he no doubt knew what was written. At the same time he was a friend of A.S. Root who came to Steamboat Rock in 1857 and certainly had every opportunity to get the story straight.

Both scenarios are presented here since there is no concrete information that will substantiate one or the other. Two versions are not in such great contrast that they cannot be presented together.

The house that Sanford Baldwin bought from Isaac Lesh, a short time later, and he built a new cabin East of the river.

Joseph Furry succeeded Mr. Lesh in the mercantile business, but only for a short time.

Clay township was organized in October, 1855, and its first election was held in what would be Steamboat Rock. The first officers: Porter Estabrook, Samuel L. Higenbotham and Isaac Fail, Trustees; Samuel H. Rathbone, Town Clerk.

Just as hoped, the business men, craftsmen and various merchants came.

Two types of mills began to spring up along the Iowa River soon after the first settlers arrived. They were the grist mill, for grinding grain, and the sawmill for lumber.

The grist mill was very important for grinding corn and wheat into meal and flour. The sawmill became no less important in providing shelter by helping the settlers in constructing their houses and barns.

In the fall of 1851, Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas Rice and family settled on land east of what is now Steamboat Rock. His son, Jacob Rice had come to the area earlier in 1851, and had written back glowing accounts of this section of Iowa. As far as they knew there were only five other families in the county at the time: Jacob Rice, J. Kidwiler, Jonathan Congar, Samuel Smith and Reuben King.

In 1853, Nicholas Rice and his family moved north and opened a sawmillon the river between Hardin City and Steamboat Rock (neither town existed as of this time). This was the first sawmill on the river north of Iowa City.

Settlers came to the county in great numbers in 1852 and 1853, and many families settled along the river from Steamboat Rock, north, where they could get logs for their houses, and firewood.

The sawmill often ran night and day to supply lumber to the settlers. Much of the timber land at this time was owned by speculators in the east, but no one thought it wrong to cut logs and fuel wherever they could. Every man who came to the mill jokingly said he had a “forty “ of timber. Once an Irishman was asked where his “forty” was located. His answer was, “It extends two miles up the river and two miles down”.

One enterprising man living near the mill obtained a lathe and made furniture for the settlers. Everything from walnut tables, walnut chests, to rolling pins made from red cedar were made.