From History of Reedsburg and the Upper Baraboo Valley, by Merton Edwin Krug, Publ. February 1929 by the author. Printed by Democrat Printing Company, Madison, Wis., Page 297-304

Township Histories - Dellona

"SLIGO" is the name of a county in northeastern Ireland, overlooking the Donegal Bay to the north; a stretch of old Erin, bounded by County Mayo on the east, Roscommon on the south, and Leitrim on the west, with seventy-five or eighty miles of ragged coastline bordering the bay. It is a very small county, not more than thirty miles across at its greatest breadth.

We are in doubt as to why its name was selected by the earliest Irish immigrants as the one to be applied to the locality they settled, in the town now known as Dellona, yet it was, and many settlers of recent memory knew Dellona in its early days as Sligo. And the fact that that name was given to the locality bears well when we recall that a man in that locality, was, at an unknown date, made postmaster, and that mail came to the Irish settlers addressed to Sligo.

Nor do we know when the "postoffice" was discontinued. But the postmaster was Mr. Patrick Hickey, said to have been the first settler in the present confines of the town of Dellona.

The first character to be introduced then, in telling the story of pioneer days in Dellona, will be Mr. Patrick Hickey. This gentleman, a native of Ballycroy, County Mayo, Ireland, was born in 1809, son of Martin and Mary (Barrett) Hickey, and came to America in company with his brother Michael, in 1837. In New York, Maine and Chicago, they found employment for several years, but they were tillers of the soil, and in 1845 set out, with a party of land-seekers, from Chicago, with the Baraboo Valley as their ultimate destination.

At that time there were but two settlements in the locality (James W. Babb and Don Carlos Berry were here) and they had no difficulty in selecting a suitable homestead. They chose a tract in the west central part of Dellona, what is still known as the Hickey farm and occupied by a daughter, Miss Anna Hickey, of Dellona. Here, on this unimproved homestead, they camped two weeks, during which time they erected a rude shanty, the first dwelling in the township.

The rest of the party, not believing in the future of the Baraboo Valley, returned to Chicago. This was the first settlement in Dellona, and the death of Michael Hickey, into the 27th year of his age, on the 14th day of June, 1850, was the first mortality in the town. His body was buried on a part of the Hickey farm, which part was afterward given to the All Saints Catholic Church for a building site and cemetery.

Patrick Hickey improve his tract and built a home; then he married Catherine Crowley, daughter of Dennis Crowley, in 1855, and reared a family of six children, four representatives of which, Mary (widow of William Hayes of Dellona), Martin and John of Reedsburg and Anna, on the home place, have long been influential personages in the life of Dellona and Reedsburg.

Possibly the next family to settle in Dellona was that of Mr. and Mrs. Peter Horkan. Peter Horkan was born in County Mayo, Ireland, in 1825, and resided there until his immigration to the Untied States. His wife, whom he married in Ireland, was Bridget _______, born in 1816 and died December 25th, 1894.

They came first to Toronto, Canada, and there their first child, George, was born. During the season of 1846 they removed to Sligo (Dellona), settling there shortly after on the Hickey family, on the farm now owned by Mrs. John Horkan of Reedsburg, where the remainder of their years were spent. He died April 3, 1872. They were the parents of six children, George, Ellen, James, Mary, William, and John.

The first named married Bridget Davenport, and located on the farm now occupied by his grandson, Glen Horkan, in Dellona; besides Glen, George and Ellen Horkan, had eleven children: James Horkan, who married to Catherine Timlin, resided on the homestead, now occupied by their son, Glen; Frank Horkan, who, married to Catharine Welch, occupies the farm formerly owned by James Riley, in Dellona; Mary, wife of Edward Donahue, resides on the old Donahue farm in Dellona; Steve, married to Theresa Hayes, now living in Baraboo; George, married to Helena Welch, residing in Reedsburg; Nellie, wife of Nelson Winnie, (deceased); Adelia, Carrie, and Theresa of Chicago; and Katharine, wife of John H. Croal, deceased, formerly of Reedsburg.

James Horkan, son of Peter and Bridget, married Mary Gallagher, daughter of James and Mary (McHugh) Gallagher, and located in Winfield on the farm now owned by John and Patrick Horkan, sons. They had four other children: James, Mina, Peter and Patrick. Peter J. Horkan married Nellie McCabe, daughter of Edward and Mary (McConen) McCabe, of Winfield, and located on the Michael McCabe farm in Winfield, Edward and Michael McCabe, being brothers.

John, youngest child of Peter and Bridget Horkan, married Mary Ellen Mullarkey, and settled on a part of the Peter Horkan farm in Dellona, where their eleven children were born, four of whom live in the locality; William, married to Alice Taylor of Mauston, and residing on the O'Malley farm; Walter, married to Lorine Houghton, residing on his father's farm; and Joseph, residing on the Charles Pelton, Jr., farm and Francis.

Dennis Donahue, Sr., grandfather of Edward Donahue, previously mentioned, was a native of County Cork, Ireland, and is said to have settled in the Sligo settlement, simultaneously with the Hickeys and the Horkan, and to have come hither from Old Erin in company with the family of Dennis Crowley, 1846. His daughter, Mary Crowley, born in Ireland, at an early date married Dennis Donahue, Sr. and they settled in Western Dellona. They had a numerous family, and among others, three sons, Michael, Dennis Jr. and Edward.

Michael Donahue married Anna Carey, and located on the farm now owned by his son, Edward Donahue. They had nine children: Edward, married Mary Horkan; John; James; Francis; Mary, now Mrs. James Small of Mukwonago, Wisconsin; Anna, wife of Dr. John Mortell of Oshkosh; Seta, a teacher of Salt Lake City, Utah; Bon, of Houston, Texas; and Zina, wife of Smith IVIS, of Redfield, S.D.

Dennis Donahue, Jr., married Margaret Mulligan, and resided upon the old Donahue homestead in Dellona. For an account of the descendants of this couple see family sketch printed elsewhere in this volume.

Several families appear to have come to Sligo during the following year, 1847, but we are able to make mention of only two: that of Mrs. Margaret Hooben, a widowed woman, who brought her family hither from County Galway, Ireland. A granddaughter, Mrs. Frank Darrenogue, now resides in Reedsburg. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Timlin also came that year, 1847. The year of 1848 brought two other families into Sligo, those of James Slaven and Patrick Mulligan. Of these, possibly the Slaven family were first, for one record states that they came as early as 1847, while another places the date as 1848.

James Slaven, a native of County Tyrone, Ireland, was of French ancestors, who to escape the persecutions, fled to Ireland, during the early 1600's, where for several generations, they remained, and the man whose name introduces this paragraph was the only one of his name to come to Sauk County. He was born December 25, 1788, and died April 28, 1872. His wife, whom he married in Ireland, was Mary Denny. She was born August 15, 1818, and died October 11, 1873, and was a native of Kings County, Ireland.

The family came to America at a very early date, and settled in Dane County, Wisconsin, prior to coming to Dellona. They located on the farm later owned and occupied by their son John Slaven. They were the parents of five children, three of whom, Mrs. Casey, Lyndon, John, just mentioned and Mary, who became the wife of Francis Burns of Ironton, were lifelong residents of this community.

The first representative of the Mulligan family to come to Dellona was Mr. Patrick Mulligan. He was a native of County Mayo, Ireland, born in 1810, and came to America in 1837. He came in company with a party of relatives, and they located near Caledonia, Ontario Province, Canada, where they dwelt for a number of years. The party consisted of his brother and wife, James and Margaret (Mulligan) Mulligan, Eliza, sister of Margaret Mulligan, and Mathew, their brother. The ladies had a brother, Anthony, who had preceded them to Ontario, and it was with him that they first stopped. Mrs. Mulligan, mother of the ladies, was also in the party.

Shortly after coming to Canada, Mr. Patrick Mulligan married Eliza Mulligan, previously mentioned, and in 1848 (according to the best authority) brought his family to Dellona, where they settled and afterward made their home. His family consisted of his wife, and three sons: Thomas, John and William. Two children were born in Dellona, Eliza and James. John, married Ellen Hurley, and still resides in Dellona. His children are: Mary, married Eugene Murray, and died in early life; Frank, of Dellona,; Elizabeth (Mrs. Ed. Murray); Catharine, who became the second wife of Eugene Murray; Theresa, married Mr. Thomas Foley, Janesville; Margaret, Dellona. Eliza Mulligan married George Donley and lives in Dellona. James married Mary Ann Hurley, daughter of Thomas and Isabelle (Dockery) Hurley.

They always resided in Dellona where their five children were born: William P., married first, Clara Stein, and second, Catherine O'Keefe, and now is president of the Farmer's and Merchant's Bank at Kilbourn; James, Kilbourn; Ellen (Nellie), married Spencer (S. C. ) Fish of Winfield; Thomas married Marion Murray and resides in the town of Delton; Arthur, Dellona.

In 1863 James Mulligan, the immigrant, moved his family to Dellona locating on the farm which was later occupied by Charles Pelton, Jr., and at the present time by Joe Horkan. There were in this family eleven children, all natives of Canada: Mary; Thomas; Ellen; James; John; Eliza; Jane; Frank; (Reedsburg), Margaret, who married Dennis Donahue and who now, widowed, makes her home in Reedsburg; Anthony; William, married Maud Raymond and went to Loyal, Clark County, Wisconsin.

Possibly the first of eastern settlers to come to Dellona was Silas James Seymour. He was a native of Pompeon, N.Y., his parents being James and Susan (Ostrander) Seymour. In May 1849, leaving the civilization of the East behind, he came to Fort Atkinson where he had an uncle living. From there he set out for the Baraboo Valley and reached Portage, or as it was then known, Fort Winnebago.

From there he was able to command a view far across the great reaches of eastern Sauk County, and selected a row of tall pines far in the distance, as his destination. (These were the pines which grew on the bluff known later as Pine Knob, northeast of the Seymour farm.) Duly arriving in the vicinity he went to the house of Patrick Mulligan where he took his first meal in Sauk County. After searching several days in Winfield, on Babb's Prairie, and in Dellona for a desirable location, he selected land in Glen Valley, and departed for Mineral Point to enter same.

While enroute he was thrown in contact with a gentleman riding overland horseback to enter land for some speculators. Reaching their destination together, Mr. Seymour went immediately to the land warden's office where he entered his claim, while his mounted companion went to a tavern to dispose of his horse. A few minutes later, the latter entered the office and stating the description of his desired locations, mentioned first the identical tract that the warden had just written a grant for in favor of Silas J. Seymour. Which proves its better sometimes to be afoot than horseback!

Mr. Seymour spent the winter of '49-50 in a log shack six by eight feet, east of the present boundary of the farm, but from an old letter, it is evident that he started to build upon the present homestead that same fall. In the spring of 1851 he went back to New York and married, returning to Dellona with his bride in August, of that year. His wife's maiden name was Mary Ann Conine, and she will be remembered as a woman of considerable learning.

Mr. and Mrs. Seymour were the parents of five children: Ellen Augusta; Ida Jane; Merton Eugene, married Blanche Jeffris of Baraboo, and occupied the homestead, where he still resides; Walter F., who became a Presbyterian Medical Missionary and spent thirty-five years in China, where he was shot during the Revolution of 1928; Arthur, who is a noted scholar and at the present time at the head of the foreign language department of the Woman's State College, Tallahassee, Florida.

Another family of 1849 was that of Mr. and Mrs. William Montgomery. Mr. Montgomery was a native of Courtland County, New York. The Montgomery family located in the extreme southern part of the town, most of their land lying across the border in Excelsior. Mrs. Montgomery was William Montgomery's second wife. The Montgomery family consisted of several members and two sons, Lyman B., by the first marriage, and John by the second, who have always been representative farmers, are widely known for their local residences.

Lyman married Achsah Peck, daughter of Newman and Sarah (Cone) Peck, very early pioneers of Excelsior, just south of the Dellona-Excelsior boundary line; they were the parents of three children: Lyman Eugene, of Dellona; Charles of Excelsior; and Sarah Achsah, widow of George Fish, Kilbourn, of whom personal sketches appear elsewhere in this volume. John Montgomery married Lucy Hirst and now resides in Winfield; sketch also.

Andrew Camp was a settler of 1849. He was born in Canada West and came to Sauk County in December of that year. Three years after his arrival he married Jane E. Buck, also, of Canadian birth. Their children were: John A., James E., Francis H., and Freeman L. After the death of his wife, Mr. Camp married Miss Juliette Brown, a niece of John Brown of Harper's Ferry renown.

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