BEGINNINGS OF THE RAFTING INDUSTRY 35 



the stern. All were under the direction of the pilot, 

 who hired and paid them off, and usually had fair con- 

 trol of them. 



The first trace of rafting on Black river was in 1844, 

 when Myrick and Miller sent some logs to Saint Louis, 

 but about two years before this, the Mormons had got 

 out some timber for their buildings at Nauvoo. 



This timber was sawed in the mill of Jacob Spauld- 

 ing, at Black River Falls. The mill, built in 1839, 

 seems to have been the first to begin cutting on Black 

 river. The greatest output was in 1881-250,000,000 

 feet. 



Governor C. C. Washburn, prominent in lumbering 

 on Black river, had his home in LaCrosse, Wisconsin, 

 and organized the LaCrosse Lumber Company, in 

 1 871. He was born in Maine, taught in a private school 

 in Davenport in 1839, and in 1840 was elected county 

 surveyor of Rock Island county. 



John Paul, C. L. Colman, N. B. Holway, W. H. 

 Polleys, G. C. Hixon, Abner Gile, Oran and Levi 

 Withee, Sawyer and Austin, A. W. Pettibone, P. S. 

 Davidson, G. B. Trow and McDonald Brothers, were 

 all engaged in extensive logging and lumber operations. 



The earliest lumbering was probably done on the 

 Wisconsin river. Pierre Grignon had a sawmill operat- 

 ing in 1822, and possibly earlier, on Dutchman's creek. 

 Some of the product was floated out and down the Mis- 

 sissippi, but records are very meager. By treaty with 

 the indians in 1836, Governor Henry Dodge secured 

 the rights for lumbering, and by 1840 many mills were 

 located, and some in operation. 



The first raft taken through to Saint Louis of which 

 we have reliable record, was run by Honorable Henry 

 Merrill, who took charge of it at Portage, Wisconsin, 



