Osage County History
Early History, 1854-1855
Excerpts from "The History of Osage County," by Hon. James Rogers, 1879
The only person living in the vicinity of where Burlingame now is, May 30,
1854, was a Shawnee Indian, who resided, in a small log-cabin, near the spring
at the north end of the city. The first white settler in the county was
John Frele, who purchased this Indian�s cabin, moved in with his family, made
an addition to his cabin, and soon after added one to his family-a son. His was
the first white child born within the limits of Osage county. Soon after Frele
came J. B. Titus, James and John Aiken, Alphonso Prentis, and a few others, and
took claims on Switzler Creek. John Skidmore, William Aiken, John Ward,
Hollam Rice, Sam. Devany, Henry Harvey and his sons, George and Samuel,
and settled on Dragoon. All of these had come in before the first of August.
On the second of August, came F. P. and Mobillon McGee, and fought out the
two whites who had married the Shawnee squaws, then living on 110 Creek.
With them came C. N. Linkenauger and Moran McGee, and located claims near
the mouth of Switzler. All these parties were pro-slavery, except Harvey and
his sons.
About this time, several parties started for the territory from the western
counties of Pennsylvania. They came principally from the counties of Bradford,
Indiana and Mercer. Among these were Joseph McDonald, better known as
�Uncle Mac," Absalom Hoover, George Bratton, and James Bothel, all of whom
still reside at Burlingame, also J. R. Stewart, Thomas Black and Samuel Allison,
since deceased. Marcus J. Rose, Wm. Howard and Wm. Cable have moved
away. These parties fell in with parties from New York and other Eastern
States at Kansas City waiting the return of the Council City Site Committee. On
their return, the whole party, numbering about one hundred, set out for Council
City. On the ninth of November, they encountered a heavy snow-storm, and on
the fourteenth, they arrived at their prospective metropolis of the West. They
soon after changed the location of their town to the divide lying between Dragoon
and Switzler. Nearly all of them located claims as closest near the proposed town site
as possible. Finding a dreary winter before them, and no place for shelter, and
nothing to do with, or to do, many of them returned to points east of the territory.
Some of the more courageous remained and dug caves in the banks of the creeks,
or put up cabins. The winter was very mild, and there was little sickness or
suffering. In the following spring, nearly all who had been here the previous
autumn and December returned.
Philip C. Schuyler came out this spring and purchased a claim comprising what is now
a large portion of the city of Burlingame. S. R. Canniff came out with
Schuyler, and bought out Frele, and squatted upon what now is Canniff's Addition.
Abel Polley and William Tillinghast took claims on Dragoon. Samuel Allison opened
the first store, in a cabin, just north of the spring across the ravine. Henry
Smith, John Smith, Ithiel Sterit, settled on Soldier Creek. Wm. Lord, A. N.
Havens, Ami Smith, on Plumb Creek. A. N. Hubbard, Abram Leonard and E. O. Perin
took claims on Dragoon, southwest of Burlingame, and erected cabins at what is
now called Superior. John Drew settled northwest of Burlingame; David Hoover,
northeast. Charles, Lucien, Edmund and William Fish took claims about two miles
east. J. G. and Henry Morrell and Victor McDonald bought out claims on Switzler
Creek. A. R. Bothel came in and took a claim on Soldier. J. M. Winchell came
this spring and succeeded Loton Smith as agent of the Council City Company. The
Fourth of July was first celebrated in the woods on what is now the County Poor
Farm. About seventy five persons were present. A postoffice, called Council City,
was established with J. M. Winchell as postmaster. James Bothel was deputy
postmaster, and the office was in Allison's store. Several deaths had up to this
time taken place, and a burying ground had been selected one mile west of the
postoffice. It turned out to be on a school section, it was afterwards abandoned,
and a new site selected.
Delegates to a Free-State Territorial Legislature were selected this year. Henry
Todd and William Toothman were elected, as delegates, from this place, to the
House, and Lucien Fish to the Senate. At the beginning of 1856, this legislature
elected P. C. Schuyler as Secretary of State, to be installed as such, provided
Congress should recognized the above body as the lawful legislature of the Kansas.
In 1855, John Lowry came to Council City, and preached three months. He was sent out
by the American Missionary Society, and was the first settled preacher. Public
worship was held at the cabins, everybody turning out, the only mode of transportation
being by ox-teams.
June 29th, 1855, the first white female child was born in the county, namely,
Miss Emma Bratton, who is now living in the city of Burlingame. Previous to
this, and on the 30th of March, 1855, the morning of the day of the first territorial
legislation, Albert Cornelius Streit was born, and on the 18th of the following
month, John, son of Absalom Hoover, was born. These were the second an
third white male children born within the limits of the county.
At the time of the first settlement of the county the land had not been surveyed.
Every squatter marked off for himself two hundred and forty acres, without
regard to latitude or longitude. A squatters� society was formed and each man
pledged himself, in writing, to protect the other in securing his claim as he had
laid it out. When the survey was made, each one found his claim cut up in all
manner of shapes. This cabin was found on one quarter, his breaking on another,
and timber on another. It was then discovered that no one could pre-empt more
than one hundred and sixty acres. and besides, he had to make oath that he had
not previously agreed to convey any portion of it, and that he desired to pro-empt
it expressly for his own use. The result was that "each man's hand was against
every other man's hand,� and law-suits and quarrels were the general order of the
day.
The first military company was organized this year, called the "Old Free state
Guards," with Henry Todd, captain; Wm. Toothmart, 1st lieut.; G. J. Drew,
2d lieutenant; and L. D. Joy, orderly sergeant. This was near the close of the
year, and the next day they were in Lawrence. Winchell, Schuyler General
Lane, Pomeroy, and old John Brown cheered their arrival lustily. They were
each armed with a six-shooting rifle, which afterwards proved to be worthless,
and soon after Loton Smith shipped them to Missouri, and representing himself
to be a friend of the pro-slavery cause, sold them for a high price, and bought
good guns, with the money, for the settlers.
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Osage Co. KHHP
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This website created Dec. 5, 2011 by Sheryl McClure.
� 2011 Kansas History and Heritage Project
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