The Bellevue war : mandate of justice or murder by mob? : a true--and still controversial--story of Iowa as the Wild West

Abbreviations
Preface

Prologue. THE BELLEVUE WAR: Mandate of Justice or Murder by Mob?

I. SETTING THE STAGE: The People, the Place, the Times

BELLEVUE: The 1840s Frontier
Why Bellevue?
It Started with Lead
First Settlers
Permanent Claims
The Early Landscape
The Early Lifestyle
Transportation
Housing
Food
Social Gatherings
Financial Hardship
Honor and Endurance
The Months Before the War: Bellevue, 1839–1840

EARLY POLITICS, EARLY JUSTICE
Early Politics
Evolution of a Territory
Creation of the Territory of Iowa
Establishment of Government
Early Justice
System of Justice
Other Officials of the Law and the Courts

GOOD GUYS, BAD GUYS: Friends or Enemies?
Early Settlers
Prominent Citizens
Pivotal Characters
William A. Warren
William W. Brown

II. THE BELLEVUE WAR

THE BELLEVUE WAR: The “Pioneer Times” Version of William A. Warren

MANDATE OR MURDER? The Aftermath Begins
Letters, Articles, and Legal Papers
Spring 1840 District Court: Indictment vs. Exoneration
Executors, Inventories, and Accusations: Untangling of the William W. Brown
Estate Begins

BELLEVUE SPEAKS
May 1, 1840: “Statement of Facts”
July 1, 1840: “Trial of James C. Mitchell”
Smaller Voices: The Frenzy Subsides

CONTROVERSY CONTINUES: Settling the Brown Estate, 1840–1844
Part I—April to December 1840
The April 28 / June 19, 1840, Inventory: Interesting Debtors
Probate and District Courts: Claims Made, Sides Drawn
Sudden Exit: Family Emergency, Frustrated Escape, or Fraud?

Part II—December 1840 to June 1841
The December 12, 1840, Inventory: Financial Crisis, Checking Up on
Mrs. Brown, or Greed?
1841: Mounting Court Claims, Major Changes
Seeing It Through

Part III—July 1841 to September 1844
Autumn 1842: A Final Appraisement and Sale of Personal Property
April 3, 1843: Selling the Site of the Bellevue War
Final Settlement, Future Controversy

THE FIRE SLOWLY DIES: 1840–1879
Matters of State
The “Bad Guys”
The “Good Guys”

FINAL FLAMES, FRESH SPARKS: 1879–1897
Controversy Flares Again
William A. Warren Writes Once More
Slowly…Silence
End of an Era
Legacy of Impressions and Inquiries

III. QUESTIONS. ANSWERS?

QUESTIONS THEN: The Embers Fanned, 1897–1913
1897–1903: James Ellis and the Maquoketa Record
The Beginning of 20th-Century Controversy
Joseph Henrie
The Jackson County Historical Society
Anna E. Wilson: Anniversary Contradictions
Annals of Jackson County, 1905–1913 / AJC #2: The Bellevue War Revisited
John Seeley: “Farmer Buckhorn”
AJC #2: Anson H. Wilson
AJC #2: Harvey Reid
The “Farmer Buckhorn” Series, 1906–1907
Final Observations: Anson Wilson, 1907
The Era Ends: Other Writers and the 1910 History of Jackson County
No One to Answer
The Discovery of a Secret, 1911
Ghostly Names; History Gone Awry
Distorted Legend, Demolished Landmark: The Last Vestige of Brown’s Hotel

11. QUESTIONS NOW. ANSWERS AT LAST?
Part I: Questions of Occurrence
Which Story Is Correct?
Overt Errors
Which Story?
The Six Primary Sources: Conflicts, Questions
Was There a Gang?
Gangs on the Early Frontier
Gangs on the Midwest Frontier
A Gang in Bellevue?

12. QUESTIONS NOW. ANSWERS AT LAST?
Part II: Questions of Conduct
Was the Bellevue War Legal?
Vigilantism in America
Vigilantism on the American Frontier
Vigilantism in the Territory of Iowa
The Bellevue War: Vigilantism or Mob Violence?
Procedural Conduct
Morality of Motives
What Legacy, the Bellevue War?
Why Still the Debate?

13. QUESTIONS NOW. ANSWERS AT LAST?
Part III: Questions of Innocence
William W. Brown: Innocent or Outlaw?
Betsy Brown: Accomplice or Innocent?
William A. Warren: Heroic or Human?
Good Guys, Bad Guys—Shades of Gray
The Final Answer
Epilogue

Appendix 1. Methodology
Appendix 2. The Loyal West
Appendix 3. Early Court Stories And Other Anecdotes
Appendix 4. “ABOU BEN ADHEM”
Notes
Select Bibliography with Annotations
Index
Figures

Midwest Book Review, March 2003 ...a fascinating glimpse into the West as it really was.... an original and very highly recommended addition.... Book Description This history shows Iowa and adjacent areas as the early American Wild West, circa 1833-1850. Based on historical writings, documents, and records, it offers the definitive account of a gunfight between approximately 100 vigilantes and outlaws that occurred in Bellevue, Iowa Territory, on April 1, 1840, along the Mississippi River--the fate of the prisoners decided by a vote of colored beans. The book also explores settlement patterns and daily life on the trans-Mississippi frontier; organized crime as it moved with settlement across America; the coexistence of vigilantism and statute law in early America; more than 150 years of controversy surrounding the Bellevue War; and the lives of major people involved, including men who influenced the territory, state, and nation. From the Publisher Featured on the Iowa Public Television series, "Living in Iowa," in May and November 2006. In public, private, and academic libraries worldwide, including the: New York Public Library, Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library, University of Chicago Library, Harvard University Library, Hamline University School of Law Library, University of Montana Jameson Law Library, State Historical Society of Iowa libraries, Wisconsin State Historical Society Library, University of Alabama Law School Library, University of Iowa School of Law Library, Iowa State University Library, University of Northern Iowa Library, Utah State University Library, San Jose State University Library, University of Colorado at Boulder Library, University of Texas at El Paso Library, and Goettingen State and University Library (Germany). From the Inside Flap The Wild West to most people is the far West of 1870 to 1890, from soon after the Civil War until the closing of the American frontier. Yet Iowa in an earlier period, 1833-1850, also was the American West. And Iowa, too, abounds with tales of frontier settlement, events, and intrigue equal to anything that the Far West has to offer. One of the most intriguing--and enigmatic--of these stories comes from Bellevue, a picturesque, northeast Iowa community, founded in 1836 between majestic bluffs along the Mississippi River. The story begins in the spring of 1837 and climaxes on April 1, 1840, in a mass gunfight that involved approximately 100 men. The gunfight--which immediately ignited impassioned controversy and eventually national attention--became known as the "Bellevue War." And the story has been told and debated since it occurred. But, what is the real story of the Bellevue War? Was the Bellevue War retaliation by settlers against an alleged band of outlaws working for the charismatic William W. Brown, local hotel owner and entrepreneur? Was it revenge--led by a young, enterprising sheriff, William A. Warren, and an ambitious, alcoholic surveyor and politician, Thomas Cox--against the suave Brown's apparent success during difficult times? Was it something else? Now, for the first time, the complete story of the Bellevue War is told--in the words of participants, contemporaries, and historians--analysis is made, and conclusions are drawn. Included is information not seen since the 1800s and never seen before as a complete body of evidence. In the process, The Bellevue War: Mandate of Justice or Murder by Mob tells of: - Iowa Territory and surrounding areas as important to early American settlement and important parts of the American Wild West. - Life on this early frontier--social, economic, physical--enlivened by settlers' own words, and the complex ways that early settlers' lives became interwoven in efforts to survive on the edge of civilization. - A three-year invasion of early Iowa and surrounding areas by an alleged criminal gang whose activities--including thievery, rustling, counterfeiting, espionage, robbery, murder, and assault, including rape--resulted in the gun battle that "cost more in human lives than any other battle on Iowa soil except the Spirit Lake massacre." - A vote of colored and white beans taken to decide the fate of prisoners--and its surprising result. - Engrossing personalities, especially William Warren--a handsome 30-year-old Kentucky-born sheriff--and William W. Brown--a dashing hosteler, merchant, entrepreneur, and aspiring community leader who came to Bellevue from Michigan with his wife, young daughter, and several questionable associates. - Surprising relationships between individuals on both sides of the Bellevue War--in which Brown was a criminal mastermind according to some, but a victim according to others. - The mix of people who entered early Iowa, including individuals central to the early settlement and government of Iowa and some later influential in national government. - Tensions among settlers from varied ethnic backgrounds and geographical regions. - Organized crime as it moved with the American frontier. - Law and vigilantism as two opposing, yet interactive, responses to crime in frontier Iowa and frontier America. - The controversy that followed the Bellevue War, immediately and well into the 20th century--with abundant newspaper articles and excerpts that also offer unique insights into journalism, politics, and ethics of the times. - Opinions about the Bellevue War by individuals who influenced Iowa and U.S. history--including the first governor of Iowa, Robert Lucas, and Elihu B. Washburne, secretary of state for Ulysses S Grant. - Evidence that still speaks from original writings, court dockets, business records, estate papers, and legal statutes. - A link to the murder of Colonel George Davenport, founder of Davenport, Iowa. _____________ 50 photographs, drawings, and original maps. Excerpts of original writings and records. About the Author Susan K. Lucke is a native of Bellevue, Iowa. She holds a magna cum laude degree in English and social science from Marycrest College and has more than 25 years career experience in writing and publishing.