Goodhue County, Minnesota - The Half-Beeed Tract, 1893

The above named tract of land, which comprised a large portion of this county, was in the early settlement often the subject of absorbing interest, but is now almost forgotten.

When the Mdewakantonwan Dakotas sold their lands along the western bank of the Mississippi to the United States by treaty they expressed a wish to reserve a portion of said land for the benefit of the mixed bloods, their relatives, who Avould, as it was supposed, desire to cultivate the same, and adopt the customs of the whites instead of going to a reservation further West.

The following described tract was accordingly set apart for the purpose: Beginning at the lower end of Barn bluff and running thence southwesterly on a line at right angles with the general course of the Mississippi river fifteen miles; thence southeasterly on a line parallel with the general course of said river, to a point fifteen miles west of the foot of Lake Pepin ; thence to the foot of said lake; thence up said lake and river to the place of beginning. As will be readily seen a large part of of this tract fell within the limits of Goodhue county, and the remainder within the limits of Wabasha county.

For some reason this laud was not laid off into townships and sections l)y the surveyors until about a year after the other part of the county had been surveyed. A few settlers however had, by permission of some relatives of the Indians, settled here. Some had purchased the rights of a mixed blood and made a claim accordingly.

I think that the United States surveyors finally completed the survey of this tract during the year 1855. It was laid off without regard to the boundaries given in the treaty, into townships and sections in conformity with the adjacent lands.

Soon after the land office was opened in Red Wing a list of the names of all persons entitled to a share of this reserved tract was made out and sent to the general land office in Washington. Scrip was immediately issued to each name designating the number of acres the person narmed was entitled to hold.

Gen. Shields brought the scrip to Minnesota for distribution. It was a matter of course that the greater portion passed into the hands of parents or guardians of children, and from them it passed into the hands of speculators. About this time there were probably two hundred families of white people settled ui)on this tract. Many of them held quit claims from individual half-breeds for a certain number of acres. But the land officers could not recognize the quit-claims. Nothing but the scrip from the general land office would avail in filing an entry upon any portion of this land. Speculators saw their opportunity and begun to take up the laud by "laying the scrip," as the act was called in the laud office. The choicest locations were already occupied by settlers, and those who held scrip could enter the lands these settlers had chosen, many of whom had made expensive improvements. The soil had been broken and crops raised; buildings and fences erected.

The actual settlers had the sympathy of all the surrounding population, but scripholders had the advantage of the situation and commenced to obtain title to farms already improved. This caused the settlers to rally in self-defence. That was an exciting time in Red Wing. The disputed tract invaded the eastern part of the town itself, and the land office was located here.

Meetings were held by the actual settlers and counsel taken as to methods of procedure. They assessed upon themselves a tax, raised money, and sent one man to Washington to demand justice in their behalf. They secured from the land office correct copies of plats of all the townships and fractional townships included in the tract. And upon whatever quarter section a settler had made his improvements, that quarter was definitely marked. Scripholders were publicly warned against filing upon such land. At a meeting of those interested in the cause of the settlers, which was held at the Kelly House in Red Wing the 17th of March, 185G, a vigilance committee was chosen to prevent any more scrip being laid upon any land already occupied. This committee was empowered to demand that in every case where scrip had been laid on actual settlers' land, said scrip should be immediately raised. This committee was composed of twenty-one members. They were men of dauntless courage and muscular power, and devoted their whole time and energy to the work appointed until it was accomplished. Two of them stood as sentinels at the land office armed with loaded revolvers constantly watching every transaction therein, being relieved by other two at stated times. In the meantime the majority of this committee were acting as detectives, arresting and bringing to trial those who had already offended.

It should be remembered that we had then no court house and no jail. Lawyers were but few and these few all on the same side, so that summary justice seemed absolutely necessary. AVe will relate the details of one case disposed of by this committee.

It was a former Indian trader who lived on Lake Pepin. He had been a member of the Territorial legislature, was a man of some notoriety, whose well known character had procured for him the appropriate name of "Bully." He had succeeded in laying some halfbreed scrip upon a settler's land before the committee was appointed. They were watching his movements; knowing that his family was entitled to a large amount of scrip, they waited for his next visit to the laud office, which was not many days after. He came as far as the door of the land office when he was taken into the custody of a strong guard of armed men whose leader commanded him to march into the office forthwith, and raise the entry he had made upon a settler's land by scrip. He utterly refused to do so, and defied the committee to compel him thus to do. He was escorted to the Tepeetonka hotel where a strong guard was kept over him for several hours. Meantime preparations were made for his trial and its consequences. Witnesses were summoned and he was convicted of refusing to obey the mandate of the committee. He was then escorted down to the river which was still covered with ice, though it was near the close of March. Very near the middle of the stream a hole had been cut large enough to put a good sized man into. He was there told to take his choice either to go immediately to the land office, and in the presence of the members of the committee, raise that entry of scrip, or be put down through the ice. He looked into the faces of those determined men a moment, and made up his mind to go and do as they had ordered in relation to the scrip. Two or three other cases of this kind were diaposed of by the committee with similar results. No personal injury was inflicted upon anyone and the committee accomplished the work which was appointed them, for the time being, in a very efficient manner. A decision from the general land office at Washington in a few weeks relieved them from their task, and gave satisfaction to all the settlers. By this decision, those who had settled upon the tract and made impi'ovements thereon, had the preemption and homestead rights, the same as on other government lands. The same decision granted to the holders of half-breed scrip the privilege of laying the same upon any other government land not previously claimed by an actual settler. All the vacant land on the halfbreed tract was taken very soon after this decision? the situation near the river enhancing its value. The distance of a few miles from market was considered a great disadvantage before we had any railroads.

None of the mixed bloods ever cared to settle on the land thus set apart for their benefit. It soon all passed into the possession of immigrants from the other states, and those who came from Europe. But the end of trouble from that half-breed scrip was not yet. Many of the resideuts of this county were subjected to the privilege of paying twice for their right to possess their farms. Tiiey first paid the parents or guardians of the chihh'en in whose names the land had been first entered, receiving a guardian's deed. A dozen or more years after, as the child arrived at majority, another payment was demanded and generally paid.

There were several cases known to the writer where a person held and cultivated the land as his own, having received a guardian's deed, for more than twelve years, Avhen a lawyer visited the place and claimed the farm with its improvements, as the attorney of some child just become of age, and now he must pay again for a quit-claim from the child or stand a law-suit. Now a law-suit is rather expensive, as all who have had one must know, and those who have not may know by attending the session of a court where a suit is pending concerning the title to a piece of land. Any farmer will sooner pay a few hundred dollars than entertain such a thing.

The people who now reside along the valley of Lake Pepin and within fifteen miles of said lake in Minnesota, are certainly to be congratulated that they enjoy more peaceful times than were granted to those who preceded them. But a very small number of that vigilance committee of twenty-one now survive. They are entitled to honor for having done their work well.

The celebrated half-breed tract was a complete farce, and likewise a very costly one to many of our early settlers. It was a trick of the Indian traders to make money for themselves and litigation for those who came from far to make homes for their families, and lay the foundations for civilized and Christian institutions in a wilderness.