Hawkins Taylor Autobiographical Sketch (1880s)

Historical Introduction

Hawkins Taylor, a prominent citizen of early Lee County, Iowa, history, was quite prolific in his later years. Publishing dozens of articles in newspapers and in the Annals of Iowa, Taylor became something of a historian of Lee County. Thus, it is no surprise that when Caleb F. Davis began collecting his reminiscences for his multivolume collection of the history of Keokuk, Iowa, that he reached out to Taylor for an entry. There is no date on Taylor’s entry in the Davis Collection, but he most likely wrote it in the mid-1880s, as he says here that he had lived in Washington, D.C., for twenty years and that four of his six children and his wife have died.

Prior to writing this, however, in 1876, Taylor had written the longer account of his life printed above. Perhaps recognizing that his longer account already existed, Taylor used this entry in the Davis Collection to focus more on details relating to Keokuk, which was what Davis was wanting to preserve. Some of the episodes and details included here are also found in the 1876 autobiography, where background information and footnotes are given. Occasionally, some details in the two accounts do not agree, but those differences are usually minor.

Because the content here is generally similar than the content of the 1876 autobiography, editing and referencing was kept minimal in this document. For more on the historical context of events discussed by Taylor herein, see the 1876 autobiography below.

Document Transcript

[Early Life; Visiting St. Louis and Galena]

[p. 41] Hawkins Taylor was born in Barren County Kentucky, on the 15^th day of November 1811. There was no public and few private schools in that part of the state at that time, and all the education received was less than four months.

In April 1831 he emigrated to Missouri expecting to stop at St. Louis where he had a cousin then sheriff of St. Louis County. Up to that time he had never seen a town of more than a few hundred people and finding St. Louis a city of some six thousand inhabitants he concluded that it was too large a city to stop in, and he went up the River on horseback to Hannibal & worked that fall in a brick yard & through the winter in clearing land in the country at about $10 per month.

In the Spring of 1832 he went to Galena and worked in the lead mines until the Black Hawk War, drove the miners into Galena. He then went back to Hannibal and in the fall went to Sangamon County in Illinois & in November voted for Henry Clay for president.

[Moving to Moving to West Point, Fort Madison, and Keokuk, Iowa]

[p. 42] From 1833 to April 1836 he engaged in farming, when in company with Col. Mr. Patterson, A. H. Walker and Greene Casey he went to Iowa & the party bought the claim and laid out the town of Westpoint in Lee County, in the fall of 1840 he removed to Fort Madison. In the spring of 1843 he removed back to Westpoint & in 1846 he removed to Keokuk.

In 1861 (Nov) he went to Washington to get General Fitzberg Warren made a brigadier General not expecting to remain but a few weeks but like many other unfortunates, he has never got away from Washington.

[Official Positions]

In Kentucky, he was elected lieutenant of a military company.

In Illinois, he was elected Constable.

In 1837, he was one of three delegates from Lee County to a delegate convention that met at Burlington to memorialize congress for the division of the Territory & the creation of the Territory of Iowa, for a preemption law and for the settlement of the disputed boundary between the Territory & Missouri. The convention was a full one & Congress that winter granted the petitions.

In 1838 he was elected to the first Iowa Territorial legislature. He was elected [p. 43] Sheriff of Lee County in 1840.

[Iowa–Missouri Border Conflict]

In 1839 the county court of Clark county Missouri levied a tax on the people of Van Buren Co in the disputed Territory, and when Gregory, the Sheriff attempted to collect the tax the sheriff of Van Buren County, arrested him and put him in jail. When the Clark County court called on Governor Boggs for troops to enable them to collect the taxes, Boggs called for 3000 troops & ordered them to Waterloo to report to the co. court. Governor Lucas of Iowa to meet the invasion called out every able bodied man in the Territory and ordered them to report at Farmington. I went with Col. Patterson from West Point to Burlington and got the legislature there to pass a resolution asking the Mo. Authorities to suspend the collection of the taxes until Congress or the courts could settle the question of jurisdiction over the disputed territory. From Burlington we went to Waterloo, met the court and affected a peace.

[Public Service in Keokuk and Family]

He was Marshall of the City of Keokuk. 1846 he was alderman in Keokuk in [unclear] he was Mayor of Keokuk in 1857, he was Alderman of Keokuk in 1860, he was mail agent in 1861. And official mail agent in 1864, and was chairman of the commission constituted by congress in 1862–3 to settle the pay of the “Home Guards” called in to serve in Missouri to defend the Union in 1861” and he was Sgt. at arms for the first Iowa legislative (state) and a Justice of the peace at Westpoint under Wisconsin [p. 44] [illegible] being a Liut. & enrolled in the militia at Galena & in the Missouri war, he was in the Mormon War and in the battle at Nauvoo, but he has not been pensioned. He married Malinda Walker in 1834 in Illinois. She died in 1861. He married Elizabeth D. Johnson in 1863. He had by his first wife six children four of them are dead and by the last wife one & one now living, This is a rememory history of his life, but it is not amiss to go more into particulars so far as his residence in Keokuk.

[Early Encounters in Keokuk]

His first light of Keokuk was in April 1832, he slatted for Galena on the Steamboat Chieftain but after battering at the rocks on the lower chain on the rapids, two days she exchanged his freight with the Dove that had just crossed the rapids from above. The Dove was commanded by Capt. James May still liony and hearty, all that there was of Keokuk then was what was afterwards “Rat Row,” the row was then occupied by the traders and officers of the . . . and American Fur Company and their row was carefully cared for, the, Keokuk trading port furnished no doubt her full share of the Astor Estate now . . . millions annually in rents.

[p. 45] The next time I visited Keokuk except passing down the river in the night in 1832 was in May 1837. At that day no one supposed that any heavy freight would be transported by Rail Roads and Keokuk’s position at the foot of the Rapids gave her a national reputation as the future great city of the upper Mississippi. To be built up as soon as the titles to the lots could be perfected. Dr. Isaac Galland representing the New York company, and the owners of Half Breed interests in St. Louis united in a flaming advertisement for the sale of lots in Keokuk, declaring that they were the owners of the land and could make a perfect title. The result was that thousands of people attended the sale, two steamboats were chartered at St. Louis to go to Keokuk & return & fund the passengers for the round trip, a steamboat from above advertised to remain over at Keokuk for the late Doctor R. H. Bacrect and many others from Illinois after did. The natives denounced the sale as a fraud. Bill Price was on hand with a bag such as hunters use for holding their game, filled with pistols & he had a belt with knife & pistols and [p. 46] a rifle. He was full of bad whiskey & swearing that he would shoot any man that would bid on a lot. Bill had half a dozen or more of his desperadoes in his crowd but the real leader of the opposition to the sale was Peter A. Lebaunne of St. Louis. Labeanne was six feet four inches, finely proportioned with Tuffed shirt & finely dressed, he was a fluent speaker, he was full of bad whiskey and was eloquent in his denunciation of the part managing the sale. In the afternoon Gamlele of St. Louis made a platform on a wagon box on the back of the old Austin Mill, and attempted to make a speech in favour of the title proposed to be sold, there was an [immense] crowd mainly below him, to hear the speech, but just as he commenced, a horse of certain Smith’s broke loose and commenced an attack on another horse, when the crowed below supposed it to be the commencement of the free fight that had been expected all day, and they stampeded down the steep bank not many being out there far when they reached the foot of the hill, no one was dangerously hurt but hats & clothes fared badly and that was the end of the speech. Only one lot was sold that [p. 47] was bought in by Dr. Galland, it was the corner lot on the level below main street.

In 1840 when a candidate for sheriff I did not visit Keokuk. There was at that time about 35 votes in the Township but at the election Gillock the old sheriff got 75 and I got 3 votes. I dreaded the place it was in the hand of desperadoes there was good citizens, but the desperadoes ruled. L. B. Fleak who had just been appointed justice of the peace and Valercomt Vanorsdall and Col Miller with me entered into a compact to rid the place of her desperadoes. Fleak was to commit when convicted of crime before him and to refuse to accept any one a bail except Vanorsdall or Willis, and were to refuse to go bail, and I was to see that they did not break jail, but a few months before the prisoners had burnt the jail at Fort Madison and escaped, under this compact it was but a few months until I had seven of the worst of them in the cellar of the penitentiary with a log chain shackled to their ankle, three of them were sent to the penitentiary the others after being chained in that cellar for six months and barely escaping the penitentiary were desperadoes no more. From that day on the law and order party has been master of the situation in Keokuk.

[Sheriff of Lee County]

[p. 48] To give my adventures during the time that I was sheriff of Lee County would fill a book but I will give a few of them. A man by the name of Plumb living where Charleston is now located stole a horse and went to Illinois and sold the horse, a few weeks later H. M. Swazy of Farmington found the horse and got out a writ for Plumb a Mormon and about sun down we left Fort Madison but Plumb had been advised of his danger and had left before we got to his home. We went to a friend of his near Farmington but not finding him we went down the river to St. Francisville getting there at early breakfast and we found that Plumb had crossed the River about day light. We followed him hearing of him every few miles. When we got within some the miles of Palmyra we learned that the Mormons had been in strong force in the bottom above Hannibal stealing Negros and that three of the party had been caught and placed in the jail in Palmyra and that the people had turned out in force to capture the others. We at once concluded that Plumb was one of the party of Negro stealers and that we would find him about Palmyra, when we were about three miles from Palmyra we met a man in size & dress and riding a horse such as Plumb rode. It was then getting dark supposing it to be Plumb returning to get assistance, we stopped and attempted to inquire [p. 49] about our fugitive but the fellow laid whip to his horse and passed us, we turned and pursued, the man hollering murder & Swazy who had a powerful voice hollering stop the thief. We ran half a mile through a lane an even race the runaway got about twenty yards the start and retained that distance Swazy dropping behind I had my pistol cocked intending to shoot if he attempted to hide in the timber at the end of the lane but in place of taking the timber he turned down a lane and ran through an open gate and up through a small gate to a large fine brick home, and there was out in front of the home a man with a gun and three or four Negro men with hand spikes in battle array. The young man had in the race lost his hat and saddlebag, & he fairly rolled off his horse and ran into the home. I at once saw my danger Swazy had fell behind in the race. It was clear that the man we had pursued was not Plumb but a coward. The only safety was in a bold move and I galloped up with in ten feet of the man with the gun. I had my pistol and did not intend to let him shoot first. The mother of the coward was the first to speak she cried out “My God, what does this mean?” I told her that we were pursuing a horse thief. She said her son was no horse thief. I told her that it was not her son [p. 50] that we had pursued, that it was a mistake and his own fault. About that time the young man came on and began to state his case. I stopped him and stated the facts of the case the mother and brother accepted the explanations and they urged us to stay all night. We [were able] to get to Palmyra and excused ourselves and went on but our horses were so used up that we stopped at the next farmhouse one night and went in to Palmyra the next morning at day light. Put up at the hotel when I went to see the sheriff an old Kentucky friend of mind to enlist him. When I got to his home, he was in the act of leaving for the upper part of the county, but he stopped long enough to go with me to the jail to see the prisoners, hoping to learn something of Plumb.

When we got to the jail there was fifty people following us, the excitement about the Mormons attempt to steal their Negroes was intense. When we went into the jail I knew one of the prisoners he had spent the winter at Fort Madison preaching in the town and at Denmark in the neighborhoods. He belonged at the abolition college back of Quincy. I shook hands with him, he inquired about brother Clark, Rupell, and others of Fort Madison. I asked him if the other two belonged with him in the Danite situation. He said that they did, and sending his love to friends, I left him. When we got out of the jail, I told the sheriff (Montgomery) that the prisoners were not [p. 51] Mormons but abolitionists; but the sheriff mounted his horse and rode off. The rabble that had followed us to the jail spread the news rapidly that we were Mormons. To clinch the theory, a leading citizen of Palmyra who had moved into Clark Co near Farmington had married a Miss Swazey and she had a drunken brother Joe Swazey who had joined the Mormons & he was the man that was of the party to steal the Negroes and murder the women.

I got back to the hotel and we eat our breakfast and by that time the town was full of horsemen. The news had spread all over the county that the Mormons had come into the county to kill and rob and the number of them was placed all the way from one hundred to one thousand and I saw that we were suspected of being of the party. I then realized our danger and the misfortune of going to the jail as I did. We had ordered our horses but I had them put back in the stable and told Swazey that we would soon be arrested and told him not to say a word but let me do the talking and at that time if he could have been back at Farmington he would have agreed to do without talking for a long time. A gentleman came to me and told me that we would be arrested he expected. I answered “I know it.” About ten O clock we were arrested and taken to the courthouse for the trial. The courthouse was packed and not half the [p. 52] people could get in. The two justices of the peace were gentlemen. The charge: young Frances, the man we had pursued the night before, had been induced to make was assault with intent to rob him. I only answered questions and did not allow Swazey to speak. There was a crowd of lawyers. Glover, now the great St. Louis lawyer was then living in Palmyra. The justice asked if we did not want a lawyer. I told him not. I never saw so black and desperate countenances as, at that time, one Mormon would have been [happy] to place a halter around our necks. The justice was kind and did not hurry. He asked if I was acquainted with anyone in town, “Yes I know the sheriff but he is gone. I know Billy McDonald the president of the Bank” but he was at his farm in the county. “I know Tom Anderson” but he is gone to Washington. “I know Churchill a bank director” a subpoena was issued but at the end of an hour the constable returned the subpoena “not found” every person that I named were a leading citizen and that saved us it was true that none were found but the naming of them changed the countenance of the crowd changed in our favor showing that even the naming of men of character had a good influence.

When I saw that the faces began to relax I took out my pocket book in which I carried my writs and executions and it so happened that I had twenty or thirty of them and handed them to the justice and within a few minutes they were scattered all over the crowd.

I was then questioned by Glover [p. 53] about men and places that he knew in Clark County. The prosecution was conducted by a young lawyer from Richmond Virginia, a new comer and one of the chivalry. The justice offered to send to the country for McDonald but I told him not to do so. Frances the prosecuting witness swore that he had been all day with a party in the bottom hunting for the Mormon kidnappers, and when he met us that he was scared and feared that we wanted to rob him and ran. He swore that his brother snapped his gun at me, which was a mistake. Otherwise he told the truth. During his testimony the change of the countenance of the crowed was to me most gratifying from ferocity towards the prisoners it turned to contempt for the lawyers and witness. The lawyers seeing us win left before the witness was through. amongst the writs that I had given the court was the one against the horse thief, who was a Mormon. At the end of the testimony, we were released and the crowd organized as a public meeting. Swazey made them a speech, others spoke and they naturally adjourned to a saloon. I did not join them, but Swazey did. I went to the hotel. I had seen Archer there in the morning and on enquiry I found that [p. 54] he stopped there. It was the only time in my life that I was crazy from madness. I said not one word to anyone except to answer questions. I made no threats but I was determined to kill Archer. I remained until after breakfast the next morning but Archer did not come to his meals or leave the house or his room, and by that time I had recovered my horse and left for home. I was then young and to be arrested charged with an attempt to commit highway robbery and harm, for hours to face such a mob as we did when the chances of being lynched was then to one against us was a terrible ordeal to pass through, and well calculated to make any man desperate. Archer, who for personal popularity got Frances to make the charge, started across the plains in [18]49 or 50 and perished on the road.

When I crossed the Des Moines River returning home the ferry man told me that Martin one of the desperadoes who had been shut up by Fleak, but who had professed sickness and got the warden of the penitentiary, who was acting as jailor to allow him to walk around in the cellar but in plan of walking he ran leaving the country for a few week. Martin was from Tennessee[?] and he belonged to the disparate Murrell gang of the south a set of desperadoes equal to the James[?] [p. 55] Brothers.

When they were broken up Martin went to Missouri and then settled on the mound [that] was [called] Buenavista. The ferry man who did not know me, said that Martin had threatened Col Miller and Val Vanorsdall, saying that he meant to kill somebody and then leave the county. I got to Keokuk about dark, there had been a public meeting there that day and there had been a terrible fistfight between Morgan Anderson and a bully, the bully was badly whipped. I had my horse fed and got my supper and got Vanorsdall and a man by the name of Wilson. Wilson was a trusty fellow he was Fleak’s man of all work, quite a [illegible] and we started for Martins.

It was about the 20th of July [18]41 and as dark and hot a night as I ever saw. Neither Val nor Wilson had a weapon. Weapons were not common then. Martin lived in one of two double log cabins clapboard door and one window no glass. Between the two cabins was a wide hall and in that hall there was several savage dogs. Just before we got to the home I gave Val my bowie knife to cut him a good club. He did not know that I had a pistol. At the gate we hitched [p. 56] our horses and I sent Wilson to the window to guard that, while Val and I went in. At the door, I lit a candle and broke in the door. There had not been a growl from a dog and Martin and his family were sound asleep when we broke in. The candle was soft and I set it down on the Aurlan[?]. The clothing on both Martin and his wife was very scant. Martin said nothing but the wife was furious, and terribly so against Val for coming to help arrest his neighbour. Val supposing that two would be no danger said, “I will bring in Wilson” and stepped out of the door, and the moment that he stepped out, Martin sprang to his feet with a big horse pistol and drew a . . . I had my pistol behind me when I went in and I fired first. Martin fell and the blood gushed out covering the white sheet. The moment that the pistol shot was fired Val rushed in, he supposing that Martin had shot me. Martin was scarcely down until he was up again with his pistol in his left hand. I drew my Booeknife and would doubtless have killed him but just then Val coming in I took his club and hit Martin a terrible lick on [p. 57] the head, cutting to the skull. That laid him out and every breath I expected to be the last, but after waiting a few minutes I told Wilson to see where he was shot. On examination it was found that he was cut across the breast and through the right arm, and when I found that he was not killed it was the happiest moment of my life. Wilson dressed his wounds, and got the blood washed off and clean clothes on him. Martin then let on to be in desperate misery and not able to go with us, but I told him that he had to go and told Wilson to take hold of him. When he threw himself out of the little window at the back of the bed, head foremost, we ran out of the door, but he crossed the fence before we could catch him, and the moment that he crossed the fence the timber was thick and it [was] night, pitch dark, and we lost him. When he crossed the fence, he stumbled and fell hitting the sharp end of a log that had been cut off, splitting his face badly, but he lay still until we left, when he waded the River and [p. 58] from a neighbor and friend in Missouri by the name of Sturgeon, I think, he got a horse and left. His family followed and he settled and died near Grafton above Alton. Soon after Bill Price died and that ended the desperadoes near Keokuk. During the time that I was sheriff I had many escapes but Val in the Martin scrape was the only man that volunteered to go in when he was out.

I took a good many prisoners from Nauvoo at different times and was no doubt often in danger, but I was never in fear but once. I was there to arrest one of the leading Danites by the name of Richardson who had robbed a store in Farmington. Richardson was a brother in law of Corsillel[?] Falkner[?], afterwards sheriff of Lee County and a leading and popular man at Nauvoo. Bishop Miller of Nauvoo had promised that if I would get from the Governor of Illinois a requisition for Richardson that he would see that he was arrested. I got the requisition and crossed the river and staid all night in the back part of the city and went to Millers before daylight and showed him the writ of the Governor. Miller excused himself under the plea that he had another engagement and avised me to go to the chief of police. I denounced Miller [for] not keeping his promise and went direct to Richardson’s house and fortunately for [p. 59] me he saw me and escaped the back way. I was afterwards told by a kinsman of his there with him, that they would have killed me if I had got into the house before he left and I have no doubt they would, if they had got the first shot.

An hour later Miller started forty police to hunt Richardson. I then denounced Miller bitterly telling him that he did not desire nor intend to arrest Richardson. I had writs for several Mormons there in Nauvoo, for small stealings in Iowa but they did not pretend to keep out of my way. I was satisfied that nothing but the fear of after consequences saved me from mob violence. A crowd followed me wherein I went and in the afternoon when standing at the corner of the Nauvoo House, a rabbit ran up from the river and turned the corner and ran down near the hotel stable and squatted down. When I took out a pistol and shot the rabbit hitting the back of its head between the ears. It was a good shot. The rabbit was distant at least fifty yards. A merchant a Tennessean who had a Mormon wife cried out that is a grand shot. This man had been with me most of the day hunting Richardson.

I left and felt better when I got across to Montrose. After I left, the crowd got a rope to hand [hang?] my Tennessee friend but his wife got some of the leaders to stop it and saved his life.

The next time I went to Nauvoo was at the time of the battle.

[p. 60] I have now lived in Washington for the last twenty years, and during that time have been a close observer of men and especially of the different congresses. During the war and for a half dozen years after the . . . there was great ability in both houses, men of . . . earnest humility, and earnest self sacrificing patriots, but for the last ten or twelve years there has been a notable change for the worse, and I am safe in saying that from the citizens of Keokuk from 1850 to 1860, this or any one of the late congresses (lower house), the list of members at the lower house could have been more than duplicated in good sum and honest industry and honest convictions.

In conclusion, in a long active life mixing with the men who control public sentiment and make laws and execute laws, I must say that it is most fortunate that the people know so little of what the great leaders do. If they did, there would be a revolution in public sentiment so far as many great men are concerned. We old people think that the world is going to the bad. But I suppose that it is only we that fall behind the lightning speed of the present day.

Hawkins Taylor

[p. 61]

Death of Hawkins Taylor.

Hawkins Taylor died at his residence, No. 56 B Street, Northeast, Washington, D.C. Tuesday November 7th 1893.

A brief notice of his death is given in “The Gate City,” of Nov. 11th /93

Burlington Sab. . . .

Post. Nov. 18th/93

HAWKINS TAYLOR DEAD.

A bit of intensely interesting news that has lately come straggling back from Washington is to the purport that venerable Hawkins Taylor is dead. To the readers of The Post, as well as to all the old resident of Iowa, the name is a familiar one. In his day Hawkins Taylor was a great man in Iowa. By birth he was an Eastern man, but his citizenship in Iowa began as early as the landsales around Burlington. He is described by those who knew him in the days of his lusty manhood as a character of exceptional courage and prowess. He held positions of responsibility both under National and State administrations. He was at one time we think, a United States marshal in Iowa. He belonged to Keokuk more nearly than to any other Iowa city, being mayor of that town for a term. For many years previous to his death he had lived at Washington, but his eyes and his thoughts were always upon Iowa: he loved the State sincerely and with an abiding affection. Until a short while ago, when his growing feebleness denied him that privilege and solace, Mr. Taylor was a constant contributor to the columns of Iowa newspapers. He knew a great deal of the history of the State and could relate it with singular clearness and modesty. In his historical writing he was far too conscientious to be either partisan or vindictive, and so he enjoyed the confidence of a wide circle of readers. It is said that he has left in manuscript a book dealing with the early history of Iowa. If so it should be secured and placed for safe-keeping in the Aldrich Collection at Des Moines.