There could be some conjecture that Green County owes Iowa County some money from a bill dating back to the 1830s.
According to the account of settler J.W. Stewart, whose story is part of the "History of Green County," published in 1884, the first meeting of the Wisconsin Territorial Legislature in January 1838, split Green County from Iowa County.
At that time, Iowa County had some debt and the legislature ruled that "the mother county of Iowa for a proportion of the old county indebtedness" could bill Green County. However, according to Stewart, the collection of the bill by Iowa County did not go smoothly.
"Notwithstanding the solemnity and force of legislative law, the people of Green, although often sued in the courts of the state, have refused (whether justly or not, I will not here digress to say,) to pay the whole, or any part, of said indebtedness," according to Stewart.
The inability of Iowa County to collect this debt was one of the few disagreements that came out of the formation of Green County. It's one tiny tidbit in a collection of history that can be found at the Green County Historical Society, 1617 9th St., Monroe. The historical society's webpage is www.greencountywihistoricalsociety.org.
Looking back on Green County history is a fun and educational practice.
The county was named "Green," according to Stewart, due to the "bright color of the vegetation of this region." A member of the first state legislature suggested it should be named "Greene" after Revolutionary War General Nathanael Greene. The beautiful nature of the land itself won out in that argument.
Stewart's historical account of the early days of this place recalls times well before the county's formation.
Between 1827 and 1832, a handful of settlers came to this place. The first of whom were in search of lead ore. One of the area's first prominent structures was a log smelting furnace, erected in 1827, to create lead for sale and distribution. This furnace was constructed by John B. Skinner and Thomas Neal at Skinner's Creek, 5 miles northwest of Monroe.
Many of the early lead miners worked claims at what was referred to as Sugar River Diggings. The entire white population of the county lived in Sugar River prior to 1828. American Indians were in the county in the 1820s in abundance and they grew corn and had an "extensive encampment" here each summer.
Andrew Clarno's settlement was the first major agricultural improvement in the county by white settlers. Stewart remembered Clarno as "a man of a warm and generous heart," who Stewart knew well.
When the Black Hawk War broke out in 1832, the white settlers in the area fled to more secure areas. Settlers Joseph Payne and William Wallace, who had built a cabin near Clarno, fled from their homes with their families and the Clarno family on May 5, 1832. On the same day they deserted their homes, American Indians burned the cabins to the ground. On May 5, the Clarno, Payne and Wallace families spent a tense night hiding in the area where Monroe now stands.
Stewart's history says the settlers "occasionally heard the savage whoop of the blood-thirsty Indians, but were lucky enough to get off undiscovered, with a quick and light tread, in the morning, in the direction of Hamilton's settlement." After spending one night there, they traveled west to "Fort Gratiot," where they remained until the end of the war.
The language used in the history is accurate to what was said in the report, but it's inappropriate for our times. We have to remember that it was the white settlers who were invading the territory of the American Indians. It hasn't been until the middle part of the last century that more mainstream thought has considered the plight of the American Indian. Western expansion and settlements by immigrants caused indescribable and not fully-documented acts of genocide. It is appropriate to discuss and remember this horrific chapter of the history of this place.
Stewart's account of the growth of Green County points toward a slower process than other Wisconsin counties. Green County residents, from the start, have been considered "a more industrious, enterprising and thrifty population." This goes along with the mindset of the Swiss settlers who eventually made up the bulk of the population in the second half of the 1800s. Wealth was considered to be divided equally among the citizenry. Green County has always been an agricultural community.
One benefit to the early residents of Green County is that timber was in abundance. In those early years, according to Stewart, walnut, ash, oak and sugar trees existed in abundance. This allowed for the construction of buildings and "all kinds of wooden wares."
When Stewart wrote his history in 1857, the county had a population of nearly 15,000. Today it's more than twice that at 37,000 as of 2015. Monroe's population was about 2,000 and Decatur, Brodhead, Albany and Dayton were considered "flourishing" nearby villages.
Looking back into the accounts of settlers uncovers gems of history that are worth regularly revisiting.
- Matt Johnson is publisher of the Monroe Times. His column is published Wednesdays.
According to the account of settler J.W. Stewart, whose story is part of the "History of Green County," published in 1884, the first meeting of the Wisconsin Territorial Legislature in January 1838, split Green County from Iowa County.
At that time, Iowa County had some debt and the legislature ruled that "the mother county of Iowa for a proportion of the old county indebtedness" could bill Green County. However, according to Stewart, the collection of the bill by Iowa County did not go smoothly.
"Notwithstanding the solemnity and force of legislative law, the people of Green, although often sued in the courts of the state, have refused (whether justly or not, I will not here digress to say,) to pay the whole, or any part, of said indebtedness," according to Stewart.
The inability of Iowa County to collect this debt was one of the few disagreements that came out of the formation of Green County. It's one tiny tidbit in a collection of history that can be found at the Green County Historical Society, 1617 9th St., Monroe. The historical society's webpage is www.greencountywihistoricalsociety.org.
Looking back on Green County history is a fun and educational practice.
The county was named "Green," according to Stewart, due to the "bright color of the vegetation of this region." A member of the first state legislature suggested it should be named "Greene" after Revolutionary War General Nathanael Greene. The beautiful nature of the land itself won out in that argument.
Stewart's historical account of the early days of this place recalls times well before the county's formation.
Between 1827 and 1832, a handful of settlers came to this place. The first of whom were in search of lead ore. One of the area's first prominent structures was a log smelting furnace, erected in 1827, to create lead for sale and distribution. This furnace was constructed by John B. Skinner and Thomas Neal at Skinner's Creek, 5 miles northwest of Monroe.
Many of the early lead miners worked claims at what was referred to as Sugar River Diggings. The entire white population of the county lived in Sugar River prior to 1828. American Indians were in the county in the 1820s in abundance and they grew corn and had an "extensive encampment" here each summer.
Andrew Clarno's settlement was the first major agricultural improvement in the county by white settlers. Stewart remembered Clarno as "a man of a warm and generous heart," who Stewart knew well.
When the Black Hawk War broke out in 1832, the white settlers in the area fled to more secure areas. Settlers Joseph Payne and William Wallace, who had built a cabin near Clarno, fled from their homes with their families and the Clarno family on May 5, 1832. On the same day they deserted their homes, American Indians burned the cabins to the ground. On May 5, the Clarno, Payne and Wallace families spent a tense night hiding in the area where Monroe now stands.
Stewart's history says the settlers "occasionally heard the savage whoop of the blood-thirsty Indians, but were lucky enough to get off undiscovered, with a quick and light tread, in the morning, in the direction of Hamilton's settlement." After spending one night there, they traveled west to "Fort Gratiot," where they remained until the end of the war.
The language used in the history is accurate to what was said in the report, but it's inappropriate for our times. We have to remember that it was the white settlers who were invading the territory of the American Indians. It hasn't been until the middle part of the last century that more mainstream thought has considered the plight of the American Indian. Western expansion and settlements by immigrants caused indescribable and not fully-documented acts of genocide. It is appropriate to discuss and remember this horrific chapter of the history of this place.
Stewart's account of the growth of Green County points toward a slower process than other Wisconsin counties. Green County residents, from the start, have been considered "a more industrious, enterprising and thrifty population." This goes along with the mindset of the Swiss settlers who eventually made up the bulk of the population in the second half of the 1800s. Wealth was considered to be divided equally among the citizenry. Green County has always been an agricultural community.
One benefit to the early residents of Green County is that timber was in abundance. In those early years, according to Stewart, walnut, ash, oak and sugar trees existed in abundance. This allowed for the construction of buildings and "all kinds of wooden wares."
When Stewart wrote his history in 1857, the county had a population of nearly 15,000. Today it's more than twice that at 37,000 as of 2015. Monroe's population was about 2,000 and Decatur, Brodhead, Albany and Dayton were considered "flourishing" nearby villages.
Looking back into the accounts of settlers uncovers gems of history that are worth regularly revisiting.
- Matt Johnson is publisher of the Monroe Times. His column is published Wednesdays.
