Cooper County, Missouri - Chapter 2: Explorations, 1919

Various Claims To Missouri

THE NEW WORLD - PONCE DE LEON - DE SOTO - CORONADO - MARQUETTE AND JOLIET - LA SELLE - FRENCH SETTLEMENTS - TREATY OF ILDEFONSO - PURCHASE OF LOUISIANA TERRITORY - ORGANIZATION OF TERRITORY - VARIOUS CLAIMS TO MISSOURI.

When the new world was discovered and had wonderfully revealed itself to the adventurers and daring men of the Old World, the enterprize of Europe was startled into action. Those valiant men. who had won laurels among the mountains of Andalusia, on the fields of Flanders, and on the battlefields of Albion, sought a more remote field for adventure. The revelation of a new world and a new race, and communication between the old and the new, provided a field for fertile imagination. The fact was as astounding to the people then as it would be to us should we learn that Mars is peopled and that communication could be established between that planet and the earth.

The heroes of the ocean despised the range of Europe as too narrow, offering to their extravagant ambition nothing beyond mediocrity. Ambition, avarice, and religious zeal were strangely blended, and the heroes of the main sailed to the west, as if bound on a new crusade, for infinite wealth and renown were to reward their piety, satisfy their greed, and satiate their ambition.

Amei-ica was the region of romance where their heated imagination could indulge in the boldest delusions, where the simple ignorant native wore the most precious ornaments, the sands by the side of the clear runs of water, sparkled with gold. Says the historian of the ocean, these adventui-ous heroes speedily prepared to fly by a beckoning or a whis-

To win provinces with the sword, divide the wealth of empires, to plunder the accumulated treasures of some ancient Indian dynasty, to return from a roving expedition with a crowd of enslaved captives and a profusion of spoils, soon became ordinary dreams. Fame, fortune, life and all were squandered in the visions of wealth and renown. Even if the issue was uncertain, success, greater than the boldest imagination had dared, was sometimes attained.

It would be an interesting story to trace each hero across the ocean to the American continent, and through the three great gateways thereof, through which he entered the wilds of the great west. The accounts of the explorations and exploitations into the great west read like a romance. The trials through which the explorers passed were enough to make the stoutest hearts quail and to test the endurance of men of steel.

Juan Ponce de Leon, an old comrade of Christopher Columbus in his second voyage across the Atlantic, spent his youth in the military service of Spain, and shared in the wild exploits of predatory valor in the Granada. He was a fearless and gallant soldier. The revelation of a new world fired within him the spirit of youth and adventure. He was an old man, yet age had not tempered his love of hazardous enterprise to advance his fortune by conquest of kingdoms, and to retrieve a reputation, not without blemish. His cheeks had been furrowed by years of hard service, and he believed the tale which was a tradition, credited in Spain by those who were distinguished for intelligence, of a fountain which possessed the virtue to renovate the life of those who drank of it or bathed in its healing waters. In 1513, with a squadron of three ships fitted out at his own expense, he landed on the coast of Florida, a few miles north of St. Augustine. Here he remained for many weeks, patiently and persistently exploring and penetrating the "deep, tangled wildwood," searching for gold and drinking from the waters of every stream, brook, rivulet, and spring and bathing in every fountain. The discoverer of Florida seeking immortality on earth, bereft of fortune and broken inspirit, found the sombre shadow of death in his second voyage in 1521. Contending with the implacable fury of the Indians, he died from an arrow wound received in an Indian fight. He was laid to rest on the island of Cuba.

Hernando De Soto, who had been with Pizarro in his conquest of Peru in 1533, inspired with the same hopes and ambitions as Ponce de Leon, and undismayed by his failure, and inspiring others with confidence in his plans, collected a large band of Spanish and Portuguese cavaliers. In 1538, his splendidly equipped six or seven hundred men, among whom were many gentlemen of position and wealth, set sail in nine vessels for the wonderful Eldorado. In addition to his men, he carried three hundred horses, a herd of swine, and some bloodhounds. It would be interesting to follow this expedition in its hazardous wanderings, but to do so in this sketch, would be going "far afield." His route was in part through the country already made hostile by the cruelty and violence of the Spanish invader, Narvaez. On April 25, 1541, De Soto reached the banks of the great Mississippi, supposed to be near the Lower Chickasaw Bluffs, a few miles below Memphis, thus achieving for his name immortality.

Here he crossed the river and pursued his course north along its west bank into the region in our own State now known as New Madrid. So far as the historian can determine, he was the first European to set foot on Missouri soil, and thus he strengthened the claim to the vast wilds of the far west. He reached a village called Pocaha, the northernmost point of his expedition, and remained there forty days, sending out various exploring parties. The location of Pocaha cannot be identified.

He explored to the northwest, but if he did really penetrate what is now the central part of the state, how far he went is but speculation. The country still nearer to the Missouri was said by the Indians to be thinly inhabited, and it abounded in bison in such numbers that maize could not be cultivated. We have in this story no further interest in De Soto's exploration and wanderings, save to say that the white man, with his insatiable greed, injustice, and cruel adventure, was made known to the red man of the far west. Because of the white man's traits, a hatred arose on the part of the Indians, which by succeeding outrages ripened in after years to a venom that cost the lives of thousands of harmless settlers. Other explorations followed in succession, and though the experiences would read like a romance, the scope of this work precludes an account, even of the wonderful exploits of Coronada about the same period. Upon the result of these expeditions Spain based her claims of the Louisiana Province, afterwards acknowledged by European precedent, to be justly founded.

Coronado. - The expedition consisted of three hundred Spanish adventurers, mostly mounted, thoroughly armed, richly caparisoned, and well provisioned. They started their march with flying colors and boundless expectations. The Vice-roy of Mexico, from whence they started, accompanied them for two days on the march. Never had so chivalrous adventurers gone forth to hunt the wilderness for kingdoms. Every officer seemed fitted to lead an expedition wherever danger threatened or hope lured. More young men of the proudest families of Spain, than had ever before acted together in America, rallied under the banner of Coronado.

An Indian slave had told wonders of the seven cities of Cibola, the land of buffaloes that lay at the north between the oceans and beyond the deserts. He represented this country as abounding in silver and gold beyond the wildest dreams. The Spaniards, in what was then called New Spain, trusting implicitly in the truth of this story and hundreds of others equally mythical, burned with ambition to subdue the rich provinces. Several historians who were participants in this expedition have preserved the events of the adventurous march, and it would seem that with so much written evidence based on what the participants of the expedition saw and experienced, at least the course pursued, the routes followed, and the distances traveled by Coronado and his army, ought to be free from doubt. This, however, is far from being the case, and the entire matter is left largely in doubt.

It seems to be well authenticated, however, that Coronado entered Missouri in the southern part, but how far north he went, we do not know. Some have claimed, and with some reason, that he reached the Missouri River in the central part of the State.

Cruelty of Spanish Explorers. - Coronado and De Soto both treated the Indians with barbarous cruelty. Their great hopes of limitless riches and conquered province became as ashes in their hands. Their men, after long marches for months through the wilderness, became tattered, disgruntled and surly. They were burdens upon the red men whom they visited in the different villages, and consumed their maize. The Indians were distrustful and suspicious, and an inborn hatred for the white man insistently grew in their breasts, and was handed down by tradition with growing rancor, to future generations. The fabled cities of Cibola were found to be miserable mud huts. Indian guides lured them from place

It is related that a heroic young Zuni brave represented that he was not a Zuni, but an enemy of that tribe, and belonged to the country of Quivera far to the north. In a glowing word picture he described his country and insisted that the Spaniards visit there, in these words: "Come with me, 0 mighty chief, to my country, watered by the mighty river Quivera. wherein are fishes as large as the horses you ride, and upon whose currents float large and beautiful boats with many colored sails, in which rest the lords of the country at ease, on downy couches and canopies rich with gold. Come, see our gardens of roses, where our great ones take their siesta under the spreading trees that pierce the very heavens in their towering height. There gold and silver are but as stones on a rocky way. Precious jewels and riches beyond the dreams of avarice, 0 mighty chief, is yours for the asking. What you can take is but as a cup of water from the great lake. Come. 0 mighty chief, and follow me, for I will guide thee to the land of riches and plenty."

Tradition has it that Coronado, arriving near the Missouri, the Zumi brave said to him, "I have lied to you. I am a Zumi. I witnessed your cruelties to my people, and I have brought you here. I hope you will perish before you reach your home. I am satisfied, and now I am ready to die."

The French claim to the Louisiana Province was based on the discoveries of Marquette and Joliet in 1673. Marquette was of the patrician "Marquettes of Laon", thought to have been descendants of Celtic nobles whom Rome, in her wise policy, attached to her standard by leaving them in possession of their ancestral territory, but nominally dominated by the "eternal city."

Father Marquette and Joliet. - Father Marquette was 29 years of age when his feet first touched American soil. From all the contemporary accounts of the expedition it is evident that Father Marquette was its leader, its very soul. But as an ecclesiastic he could not take command of an army, however small; as an ambassador of Christ to foreign heathen nations, he could not act as the agent of a king of France. It was accordingly arranged that Sieur Joliet, a native of Canada, should

They left the connecting strait between Lakes Michigan and Huron on the 17th day of May, 1673. In the language of Marquette, "We were embarking on a voyage the duration of which we could not foresee. Indian corn, with some dried meat, was our only provisions. With this, we set out in two bark canoes. M. Joliet, five other men and I firmly resolved to do all and suffer all for a glorious enterprise."

On the 17th day of June, 1673, they, with their attendants in two bark canoes, reached the Upper Mississippi. They followed in their frail barks the swift current of the river to the mouth of the Illinois, and thence into the mouth of the Missouri, called by Marquette, Pekitonoui, that is, Muddy Water.

Shea in his "Discovery of the Mississippi Valley", says that Pekitonoui, or "Muddy Water", prevailed until Marest's time (1712), when it was called Missouri, from the name of a tribe of Indians known as Missouris, who inhabited the country at its mouth. More than 100 years after DeSoto discovered the Mississippi the claim of the French was founded. Until 1762 these two great nations contended for the right of sovereignity of the wilderness west of the Mississippi.

The limits of this work forbid following the varying fortunes of any of the explorers, and reference is made to them sufficient only to show the claims of France and Spain to that expanse of territory of which the present Cooper County was a part.

La Salle. - Continuing these references we must advert to La Salle. On the 14th day of July, 1678, with Tonti, an Italian, and about 30 other men, he arrived in Quebec. In September, he sailed from Rochelle, France, and was joined by Louis Hennepin, a Franciscan friar. After leaving Frontenac, in Nov., 1678, they spent about 18 months among the Indian tribes exploring the northern lakes and rivers. They experienced many hardships. After returning to Canada for additional supplies, La Salle, with about 20 Frenchmen, 18 Indian braves and 10 Indian women, descended the Illinois to the Mississippi, which they reached on the sixth of Feb., 1662. On the fifth of April, La Salle accomplished the purpose of his expedition, which was to discover the three mouths of the Mississippi through which its great volume of water is discharged into the Gulf of Mexico.

in the name of Louis XIV of France, in whose honor the country was named Louisiana. And here on an elevation La Salle, amid the solemn chants of hymns of thanksgiving, planted a cross, with the arms of France ; and in the name of the French king took possession of the river, of all its branches, and of the territory watered by them. The notary drew up an authentic act, which all signed with beating hearts. A leaden plate upon which were the arms of France and the names of the discoverers, was, amid the rattle of musketry, deposited in the earth. The plate bore this inscription, "Louis le Grand Roi de France et de Navarre, Regne; le Neuvieme Auril, 1682." Standing near the planted cross, La Salle proclaimed with a loud voice, that in the name of the most high, mighty, invincible and victorious Prince, Louis the Great, by the grace of God, King of France and Navarre, 14th of the name, this ninth day of April, 1682, he took possession of the country of Louisiana, comprising almost indefinite limits and including, of course, the present territory of Missouri.

The colonial policy of the Spaniards was not based on theory or fancy, although at this period, less enlightened than the French, they had the advantage of larger experience. The English by reason of their indomitable perseverance and fixedness of purpose had, in these respects, an advantage over their rivals. Yet the French, by their superior attitude in assimilating with the savages, and adroitness in winning confidence, had a clear advantage over both.

French Settlements. - The only settlements at that time in what is now Missouri, were Ste. Genevieve and St. Louis. There were at least five settlements in what is now Illinois. These settlements were situated along the east bank of the Mississippi, for about 75 miles extending from near the mouth of the Missouri river to the mouth of the Kaskaska. They were Kaskaskia, with a white population of about 400; Prairie View Rocher. with about 50 inhabitants; Fort Chartres. about 100; Philippe, about 20; Kahoki, about 100, making a total of 670 whites. The negro population was about 300, which brings the total up to nearly 1,000.

These settlements were made by the French. It seems unreasonable to assume that these adventurers, seeking fame and fortune, did not explore the Missouri River far beyond the limits of Cooper County.

Early in the 18th century the French sent men into what is now Missouri to search for silver, and although they failed, they did a great deal of exploring in this region. Again the French settlers in Kaskaskia, and other Illinois settlements, which were established in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, soon made their way on hunting and exploring expeditions up the Missouri. Naturally this activity on the part of the French aroused the fears of the Spanish at Santa Fe, which resulted in their fitting out an expedition in 1720 for exploration. This expedition is popularly known as the "Great Caravan." It consisted of a large number of soldiers, artisans, and farmers, together with their families, flocks and herds.

But Houck in his "History of Missouri", says that recent investigations seem to make it clear that there were not more than 50 soldiers in the expedition, and while there may have been helpers they were not intending settlers. However that may be, the expedition failed completely, owing to an attack made by hostile Indians. Only one man belonging to the ill-fated expedition escaped with his life to relate the story of the disaster.

It is claimed that this attempt of the Spanish to establish a post on the Missouri in 1720, led directly to the founding of Fort Orleans by the French in 1723.

De Bourgmont, who previously spent some years trading with the Indians along the Missouri, was captain and commandant of Missouri in 1720. The exact site of Fort Orleans cannot be definitely determined. It has been claimed that it is on the south bank of the Missouri near what is now Malta Bend in Saline County. Recently the ruins of an old fort, and the remains of French weapons, have been unearthed near Malta Bend. These finds are taken by some as evidence supporting the claim that Fort Orleans was on the south bank of the Missouri at that point. These facts ?ra important because they establish a foundation upon which a reasonable inference can be drawn that what is now Cooper County was invaded by the white man, and that trade had been carried on with the Indians long years before we have positive record of exploration by the white man.

Treaty of Ildefonso. - From 1763 to 1800, Spain held undisputed sovereignty over the Louisiana province. In 1800, Europe was a seething caldron of contention and diplomacy. There were wars and rumors of wars. Napoleon Bonaparte was at the zenith of his glory. With the iron hand of power, guided by a wily diplomatic policy, and jealous ot the growing sovereignty of Spain and England in the New World, Napoleon forced Spain into the treaty of Ildefonso, Oct. 1 , 1800, by which she ceded to France all the territory known as Louisiana, west of the Mississippi in consideration that the son-in-law to the King of Spain should be established in Tuscany.

This treaty took its name from the celebrated palace of St. Ildefonso which was the retreat of Charles V of Spain when he abdicated his throne in favor of his son. It was situated about 40 miles north of Madrid in an elevated ravine in the mountains of Gaudarruma.

Purchase of Louisiana Territory. - Napoleon Bonaparte in 1803, forseeing that Russia, in conjunction with Austria and England, was preparing to send clown her Muscovite legions into France, realized that he could not hold his possessions in America and determined to dispose of them to the disadvantage of England. The treaty of Ildefonso, in 1800, whereby Spain ceded to France all of the Louisiana Province, had been kept a profound secret until 1803. Thomas Jefferson, then president of the United States, was informed of the contents of this treaty. He at once dispatched instructions to Robert Livingston, the American minister to Paris, to make known to Napoleon that the occupation of New Orleans by the French government would bring about a conflict of interest between the two nations, which would finally culminate in an open rupture. He urged Mr. Livingston not only to insist upon the free navigation of the Mississippi, but to negotiate for the purchase of the city and the surrounding country, and to inform the French government that the occupancy of New Orleans might oblige the United States to make common cause with England, France's bitterest and most dreaded enemy.

Mr. Jefferson, in so grave a matter, appointed Mr. Monroe, with full power to act in conjunction with Mr. Livingston in the negotiation. Before taking final action in the matter, Napoleon summoned his ministers and addressed them as follows : "I am fully aware of the value of Louisiana, and it was my wish to repair the error of the French diplomats who abandoned it in 1763. I have scarcely recovered it before I run the risk of losing it ; but if I am obliged to give it up, it shall hereafter cost more to those who force me to part with it, than to whom I sell it. The English have despoiled France of all her northern possessions in America, and now they covet those of the south. I am determined that they shall not have the Mississippi. Although Louisiana is but a trifle compared to their vast possessions in other parts of the globe, yet, judging from the vexation they have manifested on seeing it return to the power of France, I am certain that their first object will be to gain possession of it. They will probably commence the war in that quarter. They have twenty vessels in the Gulf of Mexico, and our affairs in St. Domingo are getting worse since the death of LeClerc. The conquest of Louisiana might be easily made, and I have not a moment to lose in getting out of their reach. I am not sure but that they have already begun an attack upon it. Such a measure would be in accordance with their habits ; and, if I were in their place I should not wait. I am inclined, in order to deprive them of all prospect of ever possessing it, to cede it to the United States. Indeed, I can hardly say that I cede it, for I do not yet possess it ; and if I wait but a short time, my enemies may leave me nothing but an empty title to grant to the Republic I wish to conciliate. I consider the whole colony as lost, and I believe that in the hands of this rising power it will be more useful to the political and even commercial interests of France than if I should attempt to retain it. Let me have both your opinions on the subject."

One of Napoleon's ministers agreed with him, and the other dissented. Ever quick to think and to act, the next day he sent for the minister who agreed with him, and thus expressed himself:

"The season for deliberation is over. I have determined to renounce Louisiana. I shall give up not only New Orleans, but the whole colony, without reservation. That I do not undervalue Louisiana, I have sufficiently proved, as the object of my first treaty with Spain was to recover it. But though I regret parting with it, I am convinced that it would be folly to try to keep it. I commission you, therefore, to negotiate this affair with the envoys of the United States. Do not await the arrival of Mr. Monroe, but go this very day and confer with Mr. Livingston. Remember, however, that I need ample funds for carrying on the war, and I do not wish to commence it by levying new taxes. For the last century France and Spain have incurred great expense in the improvement of Louisiana, for which her trade has never indemnified them. Large sums have been advanced to different companies, which have never been returned to the treasury. It is fair that I should require repayment for these. Were I to regulate my demands by the importance of the territory to the United States, they would be unbounded ; but, being obliged to part with it, I shall be moderate in my terms. Still, remember, I must have fifty millions of francs, and I will not consent to take less. I would rather make some desperate effort to preserve this fine country."

The negotiations were completed satisfactorily to both parties to the contract. Mr. Livingston said, "I consider that from this day the United (4)

Napoleon Bonaparte, seemingly as well pleased said, "By this cession of territory, I have secured the power of the United States, and given to England a rival, who in some future time will humble her pride. How prophetic were the words of Napoleon. Not many years after in the very territory of which the great Corsican had been speaking the British met their signal defeat by the prowess and arms of the Americans.

On Dec. 20, 1803, the Stars and Stripes supplanted the tri-colored flag of France at New Orleans. March 10, 1804, again the glorious banner of our country waved at St. Louis, from which day the authority of the United States in Missouri dates.

The great Mississippi, along whose banks the Americans had planted their towns and villages, now afforded them a safe and easy outlet to the markets of the world.

Organization of Territory. - In the month of April, 1804, Congress, by an act, divided Louisiana into two parts, the territory of Orleans, and the district of Louisiana, known as Upper Louisiana. Upper Louisiana embraced the present state of Missouri, all the western region of country to the Pacific Ocean, and all below the 49th degree of north latitude not claimed by Spain.

On March 26, 1804, Missouri was placed within the jurisdiction of the government of the territory of Indiana, and its government put in motion by Gen. William H. Harrison, then governor of Indiana, afterwards president of the United States. In this he was assisted by Judges Jacob, Vandenburg and Davis who established in St. Louis what was called Courts of Common Pleas.

On March 3, 1805, the district of Louisiana was organized by Congress into the territory of Louisiana, and President Jefferson appointed General James Wilkinson, governor; and Frederick Bates, secretary. The legislature of the territory was formed by Governor Wilkinson, Judges R. J. Meiger and John B. C. Lucas.

In 1807, Governor Wilkinson was succeeded by Captain Merriwether Lewis, who had become famous by reason of his having made the expedition up the Missouri with Clark. Governor Lewis committed suicide in 1809, under very peculiar and suspicious circumstances, and the President appointed General Benjamin Howard of Lexington. Kentucky, to fill his place.

Captain William Clark, of Lewis and Clark's expedition, was appointed governor in 1810, to succeed General Howard ; he remained in office until the admission of the state into the Union in 1821.

For purposes of purely local government, the settled portion of Missouri was divided into four districts. Cape Girardeau was the first, and embraced the territory between Pywappipy Bottom and Apple Creek ; Ste. Genevieve, the second, embraced the territory of Apple Creek to the Merrimac River ; St. Louis, the third, embraced the territory between the Merrimac and the Missouri ; St. Charles, the fourth included the settled territory between the Missouri and the Mississippi Rivers. The total population of these districts at that time, including slaves, was 8,670. The population of the district of Louisiana when ceded to the United States was 10,120.

Various Claims to Missouri. - The soil of Missouri has been claimed or owned as follows: First, from the middle of the sixteenth century to 1763, by both France and Spain. Second, in 1763, it was ceded to Spain by France. Third, in 1800, it was ceded from Spain back to France. Fourth, April 30, 1803, it, with other territory, was ceded by France to the United States. Fifth, October 31, 1803, a temporary government was authorized by Congress for the newly acquired territory. Sixth, October, 1804, it was included in the "District of Louisiana." then organized with a separate territorial government. Eighth, June 4, 1812, it was embraced in what was then made the "Territory of Missouri." Ninth, August 10. 1821, admitted into the Union as a state.

When France, in 1803, vested the title to this vast territory in the United States, it was subject to the claims of the Indians. This claim our government justly recognized. Therefore, before the government of the United States could vest clear title to the soil in the grantees, it was necessary to extinguish title by purchase. This was accordingly done by treaties made with the Indians at various times.

When Missouri was admitted as a territory in 1812 by James Madison, it embraced what is now the state of Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, west of the Mississippi, Oklahoma, North and South Dakota, Nebraska. Montana, and most of Kansas, Colorado and Wyoming. It has therefor.1 been truly said that Missouri is the mother of all the great west.