Israel Janney

https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?q1=mccloud;id=wu.89065990335;vi...

SOUTHWESTERN WISCONSIN: OLD CRAWFORD COUNTY

PAGE 1312

WRITTEN BY ISRAEL JANNEY, WHO CAME TO BUENA VISTA IN 1846

• * * Mineral Point was our post office for a time, and later, Franklin or Highland in Iowa County. Our supplies had to come from Mineral Point. - Richland County at this time was a wilderness, where the Indians and wild beasts of the forest roamed at will; such as the lynx, elk, deer, bear and wolf; the three latter were very plentiful. Our animal food consisted chiefly of deer and bear meat. The hunting of them was very pleasant and exciting as well as profitable. Fish were very plentiful in the small streams. We found trout and the larger varieties in the Pine and Wisconsin rivers. They furnished fine sport and amusement in securing, as well as an important article of food; and the hunting of the wild bee was interesting and profitable. They were very plentiful and yielded a large amount of honey, which took the place of sugar and syrup for all sweetening purposes, so that we were not with- out some amusement and pleasure to mix with the troubles and trials incident to pioneer life. About three weeks after our arrival, Philip Miller, a very promising young man, died of typhoid fever, which cast a gloom and sorrow over the small settle- ment; and we were admonished of the truth, notwithstanding our journey of hundreds of miles, that the messenger of death was near, and would find us sooner or later.

The winter of 1846-7 was one of the coldest and hardest that I have experienced in the county; the snow fell very deep, and soon after thawed sufficiently to form a heavy crust that would almost bear a man up; but about the time he would straighten up, down he would go, and would continue to repeat it for a short distance, until he found himself played out. The result was we had to keep close quarters, and had often to eat what we called Irish supper—venison, potatoes and salt. We had an early spring. It turned warm and remained so; and it was not long until we laid aside our troubles caused by the winter, and were delighted with the prospects the country presented. The bold bluffs and beautiful valleys, with their cool springs, brooks and creeks, with the surrounding forest, made up a view beautiful and grand; and the thought occurred that there were none to dispute our rights to this beautiful country. But we were disappointed; the Red man of the forest made his appearance with claims, and gave us considerable trouble; and on several occasions we were compelled to collect with our families at one house, for safety and protection, until the Indians were disposed of. The McCloud brothers had been absent for several days from the village (Muscoda) early in the spring of 1846, looking at different parts of Richland County, and on their return home, found the people in the village in a fight with the Indians. They were called on for help, and responded by hurrying to the scene of action. There were four of the Indians killed and one wounded by the McClouds. The Indians then fell back into a heavy under- growth of pine timber, taking their dead and wounded with them. The whites called a council and decided to send a messenger to Gov. Dodge, and runners to the different settlements for help, believing the Indians would renew the conflict as soon as they could collect their forces. By morning there were a large num- ber of whites on the ground, and fully as many Indians. They seemed determined on mischief. But the whites acted strictly on the defensive until they could hear from the governor, which was soon answered by his presence in person; and after a careful investigation of the facts, he sustained the people in what they had done and complimented the McClouds very highly for the brave and decisive action they took in the matter. The Indians were sent to their reservation by Gov. Dodge, with orders not to remove; but the orders were often violated and they gave the different settlements more or less trouble, but more particularly the McCloud settlement; they were determined to have the scalps of those two men, and made many attempts to secure their ob- ject; and the numbers they lost in the raids they made will prob- ably never be known. They finally disappeared and left the Mc- Clouds to enjoy their new homes in peace. * *

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http://www.usgenweb.info/wirichland/books/chap21.htm

"The following, from the pen of Israel Janney, graphically describes the settlement of Buena Vista, Richland Co., WI:

"In the fall of 1846 my brother Phineas and myself, with our families, left Logan Co., Ohio, for Wisconsin, and on the 27th day of September we crossed the Wisconsin river with our families in an Indian canoe, about one mile above the mouth of Bear creek, at a point since known as Hurst's ferry. Before crossing the river, we found it necessary to send our teams back by the way of Highland and Dodgeville to Helena. At this point there had been a shot tower erected, and the company operating this tower owned a flat boat for their own convenience, and they were engaged to ferry our teams across the river. We were landed on the north bank of the river near where Spring Green is now located, and traveled across the prairie to Bear creek. I mention these facts to show the inconvenience of traveling in the early settlement of the county. "

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http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~richlandwi/Richla...

JANNEY, Israel 1820 1895 10-17-1820 02-09-1895 O.P.3 6

    LS with his wife, their 4 children, his mother and brother.

    Married Elizabeth Clark Miller December 3, 1840. 

    Son of Lot Tavenner & Sophia (Holmes) Janney. 

JANNEY, Elizabeth Clark MILLER 1824 1886 10-14-1824 02-03-1886 O.P.3 6

    LS with husband, their 4 children, mother-in-law & brother-in-law.

    Married Israel Janney on December 3, 1840.  Aged 61Ys 3Ms 20Ds 

JANNEY, George K. 1852 1853 08-17-1852 07-14-1853 O.P.3 6

    LS with his parents, 3 siblings, grandmother and an Uncle. Aged 11Ms

    Son of Israel & Elizabeth Clark (Miller) Janney. 

JANNEY, Israel Miller 1858 1940 11-15-1858 06-30-1940 O.D. 50

    Married Lillian May Sweet-Hart on March 1, 1877. 

    Son of Israel & Elizabeth Clark (Miller) Janney. 

JANNEY, Jacob 1849 1925 12-17-1849 06-25-1925 C.P. 96

    Married Augusta Susan Hoskins on April 6, 1871. "Father" 

    Son of Israel & Elizabeth Clark (Miller) Janney. 

JANNEY, Josephine 1868 1896 02-25-1868 07-05-1896 O.P.3 6

    LS with her parents, 3 siblings, grandmother and an Uncle. 

    Daughter of Israel & Elizabeth Clark (Miller) Janney.