CITY OF NEILLSVILLEHISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION
NEILLSVILLE, WISCONSIN
HISTORICAL SKETCH
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Neillsville, Clark County, Wisconsin, was first settled by three brothers, James, Henry and Alexander O’Neill, in 1844. These three men were born and raised in the town of Lisbon, St. Lawrence County, New York, about nine miles below Ogdensburg, on the river St. Lawrence. They had left their home some years before, and had been prospecting in the West with varying success. James had spent some time in Louisiana and Mississippi. James and Alexander O’Neill left Prairie du Chien in September, 1839, in a large canoe, and came up the Mississippi and the Black rivers, arriving at what is now Black River Falls, in the same month. They located and built a saw mill three miles below the Falls, on a creek on the east side of the river. The mill was operated by them for about eight years.
In 1844, Henry O’Neill and E. L. Brockway started up the river prospecting, and selected, for a mill site, the spot on O’Neill Creek where Neillsville is now situated, being the northwest quarter of section fourteen, town twenty-four, range two, west of the fourth principal meridian. Brockway still lives at Little Falls, Jackson County, Wisconsin. These three O’Neills immediately set to work building a mill on the same spot where the saw mill now stands. The creek was then much narrower than it is now, the action of the water having worn away the banks, and made what is now a large pond. The first building erected in Neillsville was a log house about eighteen by twenty-four feet, built on the bank of the creek, near the mill. It stood about midway between what is now G. A. Austin & Co’s mill, and the slide in the dam for the passage of logs. This house was occupied about two years, when a frame house was built where the residence of James O’Neill now is. Soon after the water undermined the banks, and the first building tumbled into the creek.
A small clearing was made in the fall of 1844 on the banks of the creek; the timber was got out, and the mill was completes in the fall of 1845. It was twenty-two feet wide by forty-four feet long, and stood where the saw mill now stands. It remained about fifteen years, during which time certain additions were made. Its capacity was about three thousand feet of lumber in twelve hours. Pine logs of first quality were to be obtained easily, all along O’Neill Creek, and could be floated directly down to the mill. Government had then made no survey of the lands into sections, and stumpage cost very little. The lumber was rafted in platforms at the foot of the mill, then run to the mouth of the creek, about one hundred rods, where ten platforms were arranged in a more compact and solid manner, and combined in rafts which usually contained about ten thousand feet. There are many rapids between Neillsville and Black River Falls, and the rafts were sometime smashed to pieces. Having reached the Falls, these rafts, were then combined into large ones, containing from forty to fifty thousand feet, and thence run to the Mississippi River. The rafts on the Mississippi sometimes contained half a million feet. James O’Neill, who was then unmarried, spent a part of his time at Neillsville, and the other part at the Falls. Henry lived at Neillsville, and Alexander kept a lumber yard at Burlington, Iowa. For three years these three brothers continued the business in this way. Lumber in Burlington brought them about ten dollars per thousand; quite a contrast between those prices and the prices to-day.
In 1858, James O’Neill bought out the interest of his brothers in the business at Neillsville. Henry and Alexander then removed to what is now Chippewa City, and built a mill there. Some years afterward they sold out to Manahan & Lockhart. The same mill property is now owned by the Stanley Brothers. Both of these old settlers of Clark County died many years ago.
During those early days, game of all kind was abundant; deer, wolves, otter, mink, beaver, marten, and partridges were very plenty. Deer could be shot from the door of O’Neill’s house, and wolves would frequently chase them around into the clearing, the deer sometimes taking refuge in the creek behind the barn. Partridges were almost as plenty as chickens in a farmer’s barn-yard.
The Indians who inhabited what is now Clark County, were the Chippewas. The dividing line between them and the Winnebagoes on the south, was nearly at the confluence of the East Fork with the Black River. They brought in deer skins and moccasins and traded them for pork and flour. They excelled the Winnebagoes in cleanliness and intelligence; they were not vicious nor dangerous, and their chief sometimes boasted that none of his tribe ever shed white man’s blood. They were given to stealing, and had to be closely watched on this account.
In those days, provisions of all kinds were brought up Black River in boats. Gradually time was found to clear up farms, and to raise grain, but for many years, boats poled up the rapids, were the means of conveying supplies.
The first dance ever held in Clark County was on the evening of Christmas, 1846. It was held in a frame house, which stood where James O’Neill’s residence now is. This was the first frame house of the place, and was twenty-two feet wide by thirty feet long; The cellar was walled up with red-oak timber, some of which, much decayed, now lies near the mill pond. Nearly all the people on Black River attended this dance, which was given by James O’Neill, who was still unmarried. One Kennedy and his wife kept the house. Among those present were the following: W. T. Price, Jacob Spaulding, Thomas, Robert, and Mark Douglas, Jonathan Nichols, Mr. Yeatman, Mr. Van Austin, Joseph Stickney and Alonzo Stickney, Thomas Sturges, B. F. Johnson, Ben and Samuel Wright and their two sisters, Levi Avery, who now keeps a furniture store at Black River Falls, Susan Stickney, Mrs. Van Austin and daughter, Jane Van Austin, Lucinda Nichols, Isabella and Jane Douglas. Hudson Nichols and Jim Bennett were the fiddlers. Some came as far as from where Melrose, Jackson County now is. Robert and Thomas Douglass had a farm there, and came in sleighs on the ice up Black River. Having danced all night and breakfasted, Mr. O’Neill hitched up his team and “went home with the gals in the morning,” or, in a more prosaic form, drove with the party to Black River Falls. It is to be presumed that, as the sleighs glided down beneath the branches, which, silvered with frost, over-reached Black River, on that lovely Christmas morning, the maidens were as happy, and their lover’s hearts were as strongly moved by the tender passion, as are those of lovers today, when the forests have given way to beautiful farms and thriving villages. Heaven is within us, not without.
The nearest post office at that time was Prairie du Chien, Whenever any one came from that place he brought the mail for all his friends.
In 1846, Hamilton, McClure &Beebe built a saw mill on Cunningham Creek, two miles below Neillsville. In 1847, Jonathan Nichols built a saw mill on what is now called Cauley Creek, three miles above Neillsville. Merrick, Miller and Dibble built a mill on the main river, eleven miles below Neillsville, in 1847, and the next year, I think, Leander Merrill, Ben Merrill and John Lane built another mill, one mile below the latter place, and John Morrison built still another mill about the same time. During the same year, Van Dusen & Waterman built a mill eighteen miles above Neillsville, on the Black River. All these proved bad speculations, as the expense of getting the lumber to the Mississippi was very great, and the price was low. Of these lumbermen mentioned, it is believed that James O’Neill is the only one remaining in Clark County. Leander and Ben Merrill still live at Merrillan, which was named after them. They have amassed considerable wealth, and are extensively engaged in business at the latter place. SamuelFerguson, an old settler, a blacksmith by trade, still resides at Neillsville. Nearly all the others named are dead.
The mill on Cunningham Creek was purchased by Moses Clark. An altercation between Clark and one William Paulley, took place in Neillsville, in the store of Clinton & Quail. Paulley shot Clark, who lingered some time, but who finally died at Plattville, Grant County, Wisconsin, whither he had been taken for surgical treatment. Paulley was indicted for manslaughter, tried and convicted. He served out his sentence at Waupun, and afterwards died at Black River Falls.
In 1850, there was only fifty acres cleared where Neillsville now stands. This clearing extended up the hill including the ground where the school-house now stands, and where the residences of R. J. Mac Bride and George C. Farnham are situated. The growth since then has been steady and parallel with the development of the county. It will be impossible for the writer to follow a strictly chronological plan in the present sketch, and the reader, therefore, will not expect it. An attempt will simply be made to throw together some information, which may be interesting to old settlers and to the young, who would know something of the early history of the place.
Neillsville has always been a lumbering town, and a centre of operations for lumbermen. An immense amount of pine has been cut from the forests of the county, which has all found its way out the Black River and its tributaries. This business has, necessarily brought much money to Neillsville. Indeed, until very lately, the entire business of the place may be said to have been founded upon lumbering. As we have before said, lumber already sawed was run down Black River before logs. These rafts frequently meeting with accidents, another plan was taken. The logs were ripped into cants about six inches thick and floated down the river in this form. Logs were first run in 1853, the cants then became mixed with the logs so that it was difficult to separate them, the running of the former was discontinued. Previous to that time there had been quite a trade in shingles, which was more profitable than the running of either logs or cants, because they always found a ready market.
The county of Clark was organized in 1853. Neillsville was laid out, and plotted in 1855, by a surveyor named Allen Boardman, James O’Neill being the proprietor. In 1853, Samuel Weston came from Maine, and engaged in running logs down Black River. A village was started two miles above Neillsville, on Black River, and named Weston, in his honor. By some maneuvering of Weston, in the act organizing the county, the place named for him, not Neillsville, was named the county seat. A Mr. Gibson was at that time the member of assembly representing Clark County, and he was very friendly to Mr. O’Neill, and through him an act of the legislature was passed, authorizing the people to voter on a change of the county seat from Weston to the northwest quarter of section fourteen, town twenty-four, range four, west, where Neillsville is now situated.
The election took place in November, 1854. There was naturally a great struggle between O’Neill and Weston, for it was evident that the relative prominence of the two places would depend very much upon the results of the election. There was then but one town in the county, Pine Valley; There were, however, two polling places, one at Neillsville, the other at the house of one Parker, who kept a hotel about eleven miles below Neillsville, on Black River. There was no bridge across O’Neill Creek, and the voters crossed on the dam. It is said that one, B. F. French, who is probably still remembered by some of the old settlers, suggested an excellent plan of operation to secure a majority vote for Neillsville. His idea finely conceived, was to place a barrel of whiskey on the north bank of O’Neill creek, just at the end of the dam. Weston’s men would all come that way, and it was believed would not resist the temptation to indulge in the ardent before voting. By judicious management, they could be made so merry that it would be dangerous to navigate the narrow dam, and so the men would remain on the north side, and not be able to cast their votes. The writer hereof will not insist, as a matter of history, that Neillsville owes it present importance to French’s whiskey barrel schemes, but merely mentions the idea as a tradition still current, and as illustrative of the shrewdness which has always characterized the esteemed gentlemen referred to. It is presumed some voters were imported on both sides, as quite a large number of men were then in the county temporarily working in the camps. I. S. Mason and C. W. Hutchinson had camps on Wedge’s creek, and their men all came in and voted in favor of the location at Neillsville. The number of votes cat at the latter place was one hundred and four, and resulted in a majority of four for Weston. The whole vote cast at Parker, twenty-one, was in favor of Neillsville, and decided the issue, making the majority in favor of the latter place seventeen. While Neillsville would have been a center of operations for lumbermen, regardless of its being so selected, yet it is doubtless very true that its prosperity has been much increased by its being the county seat.
Clinton & Quail were the first merchants in the place, locating in 1856. In the same year, Reuben Roik started the first hotel. The growth of the place since then has been steady, until it reached the dimensions which we see to-day. In the further progress of our narrative, we shall abandon the chronological and adopt a plan referring more to things and their necessary connection with each other than to time. This, it os believed, will be more interesting to the (226) reader, and will certainly save much time and trouble to the writer. We shall first proceed to notice some of the early settlers, and in doing so we foresee that it will be impractical to notice all, and it is very possible that when we have concluded our sketch, we shall be guilty in sins of omission, rather than commission.
The founder of the place, and the one who has done more than any body else to make Neillsville what it is, has already received considerable notice. As his biography is to form a part of the contents of the current number of the
SKETCH BOOK,
it will be unnecessary to say much further of him in this connection. It may be remarked that his daughter Belle, now the wife of W. S. Covill, Esq., was the first white child born in Neillsville and in Clark County. She was born March 6
, 1849. Mr. O’Neill has done much to increase the prosperity of the place by gifts of grounds for the court house, school house and Methodist church, and by building a large and commodious hotel which bears his name.
----Source: An American Sketchbook - Neillsville and Claire (Clark Co) Wisconsin by: Bella French - 1875
