Holt County, Missouri - Chapter 10, 1917

One of the most important and interesting problems with which the people of Holt County have to deal is that of the drainage of the swamp and overflowed lands. An idea of its importance may be gained from a comparison of the area of bottom lands with those of the hills and higher ground. Holt County has about 462 square' miles, of which 272 square miles are upland, leaving 180 square miles in the bottoms, of the Missouri and Nodaway Rivers, nearly all along the Missouri.

It is said that the entire length of the Missouri River has nowhere as wide a section of bottom land as is found in Holt County, from opposite Rulo, Nebr., to what is known as Blair's Lane below Mound City. The Missouri bottom is here about eleven miles wide. This soil is of the very best quality, and when not overflowed produces large and bountiful crops. The one drawback has been the overflow of the Missouri River and the several streams which flow into it.

In the early days the Missouri was much to be feared, as the June rise often inundated the entire bottom. The flood of 1881 is still remembered with a pang of sorrow by many farmers who lost much, if not all, of their personal property. But in more recent years the trouble has not come from the Missouri, but from the overflow of Holt County streams. It is against the devastation caused by these water courses that the efforts of the drainage people have been directed. While there is no way for any county to control the waters of the Missouri, there are ways of caring for the local streams so that the water will pass on into the river, causing little or no damage under ordinary weather conditions.

Numerous plans for dealing with the problem have been proposed during the last forty years. Many of them have proven effective, but others were designed only for temporary relief. Viewed in the light of the experience of several years it seems that efforts in this direction would have been more effective had the ditches been made larger when constructed and the silt, which the water brings from the uplands, removed at intervals, thereby combatting the tendency to lessen the size of the ditch, which naturally would destroy its efficiency.

The first ditch proposed was known as the Corning ditch, petitioned for by Horace Martin, John Hollenbeck, Henry Roselius, F. W. Walter, Henry Dankers and Holland Bardwell. Their petition was filed with the county court at the August term, 1872. The court named William M. Morris, D. Van Wormer and George Kerschner as commissioners. They reported the scheme as impracticable and they were discharged. The case was re-opened, a new set of commissioners named and at the December term the work was ordered.

Joel Hester was surveyor at the time and by reason of a mistake of 10,000 yards in his estimate much litigation followed. The ditch tapped the Dankers and Walters Lakes and ran thence southwesterly to the Schulte lake. It was about a mile and a half in length. The county at that time paid its portion of the expense, amounting to about $1,000.

The second ditch proposed was known as the Sheridan Ditch, petitioned for by Patrick Fitzmaurice and sixty-five others, at the September term, 1874. Joel Hester, Jeptha Martin and J. M. Ford were appointed commissioners. It began at the north channel of the outlet of Tarkio Lake ; continued northwest around the west point of Kimsey's Island, west of Fitzmaurice's ; thence northwest to the quarter section corner of the south side of Section 11, Township 60, Range 39; thence northwest as far as necessary to drain that part of the county overflowed by the Penny Lake.

Then came the Forbes Ditch, which is termed a dry land ditch, to carry water to the Missouri River. This was a small surface ditch and answered the purpose for which it was made.

Later came Craig Ditches Nos. 1 and 2. Ditch No. 1 is still in good condition and carries the water from the Little Tarkio. Ditch No. 2 has passed into history, but the Tarkio Drainage district, one of the most important projects of the kind in the county is the outcome of this effort on the part of interested farmers.

Then came the digging of a private ditch, some time in the early '90's from the Little Tarkio, west of Forest City, through nearly three miles of slough, ponds and low lands, to reach an outlet in the Missouri River. The late Thomas Cottier and F. L. Zeller, afterwards county clerk, obtained the right of way for this improvement. The waterway was 100 feet wide and was dug by the interested gentlemen with the assistance of some others who contributed money or labor to the enterprise.

In 1891 a survey was made for a ditch where Squaw Creek enters the bottom above Mound City, a distance of some fourteen miles to the Missouri River below Forest City. So much opposition was shown that the project was abandoned, and the petition before the county court was withdrawn.

In 1900 the Big Tarkio Drainage District was incorporated and a partial system of drainage was adopted. There was, of course, more or less opposition, and, after much litigation, it was disincorporated. Out of this beginning, however, came, a few years later the Big Tarkio drainage scheme, which was put into effective operation.

The Squaw Creek Drainage District No. 1, the first really big project in the county, dates its legal existence from May 22, 1900, when Judge Gallatin Craig granted a decree of incorporation. The district included about 20,000 acres of land. The purpose of the ditch was to carry away the waters from Squaw Creek, Davis Creek, Cannon's Branch, Kinsey Creek and Porter's Creek. The work was commenced in February, 1905, and finished July 31, 1906. The cost of the main ditch was $80,000, for which bonds were issued bearing date of July 1, 1904. The interested land owners held their first election June 18, 1900, and selected the following named as the board of supervisors: E. A. Brown, of Bigelow; John E. Slater, of Fortescue; John S. Smith, of Mound City; A. W. Van Camp, of Napier and F. L. Zeller of Forest City. The first named was elected president and Mr. Zeller was chosen secretary, a position which he held for several succeeding years.

Like most enterprises of this kind the project had to run the gauntlet of the courts. There were objectors and they were full of legal fight. The matter went to the supreme court, which tribunal on November 26, 1902, affirmed the decision of the lower court. C. G. Landon the engineer, filed his report, containing maps, surveys and estimates, November 23, 1903. The general plan was for one main ditch from the point where Squaw Creek enters the bottom above Mound City, south and southeast to Wing Lake, passing under the railroad at that point; thence southeast and south to the Missouri River. A second main ditch was included, from Davis Creek on the range line at Mound City south and southwest intersecting Squaw Creek ditch northeast of Napier. Aside from these main ditches a number of laterals were provided for covering as much of the adjacent territory as could be brought under the general drainage system.

Promising as this enterprise seemed at the outset, experience proved that it was not adequate to the needs of the community it was intended to serve. In time the ditch filled considerably and when the floods came it did not serve its purpose. It was evident to the farmers that something would have to be done. As the ditch had been found to be of insufficient size it was thought best to enlarge it. In January, 1916, a petition was filed asking for the re-incorporation and enlargement of the territory of the Squaw Creek Drainage District, the incorporation to extend for fifty years. A plea in jurisdiction was filed

It then became necessary to vote on the proposition of reincorporating and extending the boundaries of the enterprise. The election was held July 7, 1916, at Bigelow. Of the 19,553 acres in the district, 10,444 voted in favor of the change. As a result the case got into court again in October, 1916, and January 22, 1917, the court granted the re-incorporation as petitioned.

In 1904 came the proposition of organizing the Nodaway Drainage District No. 1, but it was not incorporated until the August term, 1905. J. W. Patterson was the first president and William M. Morris, secretary. The contract for the work was let in July, 1906, to John Gilligan, the price being $40,000. The ditch is about seven miles long and drains lands in Holt, Nodaway and Andrew Counties. It begins in Section 27, Township 62, Range 37 and runs south along the river. One of the purposes of this ditch was to straighten the channel of the Nodaway River.

While the work was going on in District No. 1 land owners further south organized Nodaway Drainage Ditch No. 2. The greater portion of the land in this district is in Andrew County and the court proceedings were had in Savannah. This district is about nine miles long and bonds to the amount of $21,000 were issued to pay for the work.

Mill Creek Drainage District was incorporated at the August term, 1907, of the circuit court. It starts a short distance north of Curzon and runs southeast to the Missouri River, and is four miles in length. Its cost was $40,000, including several lateral ditches. The first board of commissioners was composed of A. D. Taylor, A. J. Jimison, Peter Sipes, Philip Schlotzhauer and J. A. Williamson. Taylor was elected president and Williamson secretary. William M. Morris was the engineer in charge and the contract was let in April, 1908. The ditch is 50x40 feet and is one of the most successful drainage schemes in the county.

The Little Tarkio Drainage District No. 1 came into existence by reason of a decree of incorporation issued by Judge Trimble of Clay County, who heard the case, September 22, 1908. A change of venue had been taken from Judge Ellison of this judicial circuit and the case sent to Judge Trimble. The objectors appealed the matter to the supreme court, where the decision of the circuit court was sustained. The board of commissioners included Art Sharp, C. D. Graves, Charles Sandall. O. D. Scribner and A. D. Cunningham. They employed J. W. Krusor to make the survey which was completed in the spring of 1910. Work was begun and part of the water course had been dug when litigation put a stop to further operations for a time. The differences were adjusted at a meeting held in the court house September 30, 1911, and the work was started again. The bonds, amounting to $45,000, which had been previously authorized, were, by the board of supervisors, ordered sold, at a meeting held at the residence of Art Sharp, October 2, 1911. The district embraces about 6,000 acres, which had been suffering from the overflow of the Little Tarkio River. The ditch is about five miles long, thirty-six feet wide and ten feet deep, with levees and laterals.

Perhaps the largest and most important drainage proposition in the county is known as the Big Tarkio Drainage District. Its purpose is to make tillable 25,000 acres of bottom land and the cost of the work, at the outset, was estimated at $150,000.

The initial steps to create the Big Tarkio Drainage District were taken at a meeting held in Craig July 7, 1909, when a number of representative owners of land in that section of country near Bigelow, Craig and Corning met for a serious discussion of the bottom land question. But two crops had been raised on this land in the previous eight years and the concensus of opinion at the meeting was that the time for action had come. Frank K. Allen was chairman. He named the following committee to investigate the matter of the consolidation of drainage districts embracing Big Tarkio territory: S. A. Sharp, A. D. Cunningham, W. J. Randall, Harmon Ohlensehlen, F. W. Walter, J. F. Bridgemon, Sam Kahn and John Hall.

This committee reported at a meeting held July 25, the same year that 13,000 acres had been pledged and it was decided to take up the question of organization at once. The following named were appointed a committee to define the territory to be included in the petition: F. W. Walter, John A. Buck, J. F. Bridgemon, W. J. Randall, Sam Kahn and W. H. Richards. The petition asking for the incorporation of the project was filed in January, 1911. There were objectors present and they secured a change of venue to Andrew County, where Judge A. D. Burnes heard the case March 5, 1910. The court issued the decree, after excluding from the district certain small tracts of land.

Then came the meeting for organization, which was held at the Center school house April 9th, 1910. Isaac Minton served in the capacity of chairman of the meeting and George W. Pointer was the secretary. The board of commissioners elected comprised: Lot Brown, John A. Buck, John E. Slater, Thomas F. Pebley, F. B. Cunningham. John E. Slater was chosen president of the board and Lot Brown, secretary-treasurer. At a meeting held in Craig April 13, 1910, the contract for the engineering was let to the Seitz-Peterman Engineering Company of St.

The Big Tarkio ditch taps the Big Tarkio River a few miles above Corning and near the Atchison County line. Its course is southwest and passes between Corning and Craig, emptying its mighty volume of water to the southwest of Craig, where old Marietta used to be located. While termed a ditch it is really a bed for the Big Tarkio River. Its length is about seven miles, with a width of 100 feet and a depth of six to sixteen feet. Immense levees approximately ten feet high are located on each side.

Among the very earliest schemes to protect the bottom lands of Holt County from overflow was known as the Forest City Levee. The initial steps were taken at the spring term of the county court in 1872. Its purpose was to protect certain lands south of Forest City from the overflow of the Missouri River. The estimated cost was $5,085 and the benefit to the county was placed at $700. Like the drainage propositions of later years, there was opposition and much litigation.

The first levy for taxes to make payment on the contract was made in 1875. Many land owners refused to pay the tax and the county collector endeavored to enforce collection. He brought suit and some of the lands were sold and brought barely enough to pay the tax and costs of the suit.

From time to time warrants had been issued which were seemingly legal tender, and were taken by William Zook and other Forest City merchants. Suit was finally brought by these warrant holders to compel the county court to levy a tax for their payment. Judge Anthony refused to issue the writ of mandamus and an appeal was taken to the supreme court, where the case was reversed and the tax was finally levied and collected.