the levee, and on ground fully six feet higher than the ground at that place at this time. The old log cabins built by the Frenchmen in 1826, on the river front and in the West Kansas bottoms, were all washed away, and that was about all there was of Kansas City at that time. During the flood steamboats ran up to Mr. Chick's warehouse door, which shows that they were floated over our present levee at an altitude fully six feet above the present level of the street.

This flood had no material effect on the course of trade, as it did no damage at Blue Mills, at which point most of the Indian and Santa Fe trade was then effecting its exchange between boats and wagons, and it did not cause any of the warehouse business that was being done here, to drift away. It was of material advantage, however, in a local way, for two of the leading warehouses were below what was then the town, which diverted trade to that point. These were Chouteau's and Ewing's, and by the washing away of these, the trade was drawn to Chick's warehouse, which was in town. Thus this great calamity was an advan tage to what was then Kansas City, and every great calamity since, except the war, has equally redounded to her advantage, as the sequel will show.

OTHER EVENTS OF 1843 TO 1846.

In 1844, H. M. Northrup, now a banker at Wyandotte, Kansas, came to Kansas City with the largest stock of merchandise that had yet been offered here, if not, in fact, the largest stock that had yet been offered at any place near this angle of the river. He made an effort at once to do a jobbing trade with the traders in western and southwestern Missouri and the Indian country, and was very successful in establishing that kind of a trade; so much so that he soon became an important jobbing merchant, and shipped goods to local traders two hundred miles down the border of Missouri. This was the first attempt at a jobbing trade in Kansas City or on this border, and was the fitting super-position of a civilized distributive trade upon the old distributive trade of the French with the Indians; and preserved that distinctive feature of trade as Kansas City passed from the FrenchIndian era into an era of civilized commerce. Mr. Northrup was a most important element in the early development of Kansas City, and in the building up of his business did more than any other man of that time, to build up the town.

In 1845, James H. McGee made some brick on his farm south of the then town, and built the first brick house ever built in Kansas City. From this lot of brick J. C. McCoy, who then conducted the ferry at this place, built the L part of a brick house, which still stands on the bluff, between Grand avenue and Walnut street. These were the first brick made in Kansas City, and the first laid here.

RENEWAL OF THE MEXICAN TRADE.

In 1845 the Santa Fe trade was resumed with larger proportions than before, and with many new men engaged in it. By this time steamboatmen had become better acquainted with the river and had come to appreciate the natural rock landing at the town of Kansas, which was then superior to that of Blue Mills or Wayne City. The traders had also come to appreciate the advantages of this as a starting point. Before the suppression of the trade in 1843 they had learned the advantage of herding their teams on the prairie across the line in the Indian country, and to a considerable extent had adopted the custom of keeping their teams there, making their own headquarters at Westport, then the nearest town, and waiting until their goods arrived at Blue Mills, when they would hitch up and go after them. To this fact Westport owed whatever share of the trade she enjoyed prior to that suppression. This custom was established with the re-establishment of the trade in 1845, and then the hardship of going twelve miles after their goods through a wooded country had been greatly increased by the settlements and cutting up of the country into farms, hence there arose a more urgent necessity for a

nearer landing. Messrs. Bent and St. Vrain, who were among the oldest Indian traders on the plains, and who understood the advantages of this point better than many others who had engaged in the Santa Fe trade, landed a cargo of goods here this year, which, it is stated in Spalding's "Annals of Kansas City," published in 1858, was the first cargo of goods that ever went from this point in a train to Santa Fe. Others followed their example, so that in 1846 the people of Kansas City had what they regarded as a fair show of the trade

THE EFFECT OF THE MEXICAN WAR.

During the winter of 1845 and 1846, the Mexican war was impending, and preparations were being made at Fort Leavenworth and all along the border, for the expeditions that were to be started out in the spring. This gave a great impulse to the trade and prosperity of the border towns; for now, more than ever was the advantages of this angle of the river as a point of departure for the southwest appreciated. It was the nearest point, to the scene of the struggle, that could be reached by water: To stop below was to increase the wagon transportation over bad roads, and to go above was to increase the distance. Besides, at this angle of the river was the best landing and the best roads leading to Mexican territory. This locality, therefore, became the focus of outfitting and departure. Recruiting offices were opened in the border towns, and suttlers and quartermasters outfitted at them. Westport landing then became much more important than it ever had been before, as a place for transferring goods from steamboats to wagons, though it was not enough of a place to do much in the way of outfitting. Weston, Parkville and Liberty, but more particularly Independence and Westport, were greatly benefited by this trade; the latter two places enjoying the largest part of the outfitting business Westport was chiefly benefited, and at that time got an impulse that speedily raised it to rank with Independence. However, Kansas City felt the impulse of the preparations that were being made during the winter, and from the anticipation of the large amount of warehousing, and receiving and forwarding of military and suttler's goods, outfits and supplies, soon to occur, it acquired new and improved prospects. These facts, united with the tendency the Mexican trade had shown the previous year to come to this place, led the town company to adjust their differences, and lay anew the foundation of the future city.

CHAPTER VI..

KANSAS CITY REDIVIVUS.

Reorganization of the Town Company-The First Great Sale of Lots-An Interesting Record-Bad Titles-Further Surveys and Sales- The Company Dissolved—Town Development-The California Emigration-The Concentration of the Santa Fe and Indian Trades at Kansas CityCholera and its Direful Effects-Municipal Organization—The First Newspaper-Revival After the Cholera.

The events chronicled in the last chapter concerning the movement and development of trade, together with the settlement of the question concerning the title of the town company to the Prudhomme estate led to a revival of the town building feeling. A meeting was held on the 28th of February, (1846), at the house of Wm. B. Evans, at which time were present Messrs. William Gillis, Fry, P. McGee, Jacob Ragan, Wm. B. Evans and John C. McCoy. These gentlemen, together with Robert Campbell and H. Jobe now held the fourteen original shares, some of the original parties having sold out to some of their associates or to the new parties here introduced into the company. The fourteen shares always existed so long as the company existed, but some members held two or more. The record of this meeting is as follows:

"On motion of F. P. McGee, ordered that a sale of lots be advertised to take place on Thursday, the last day of April, next, and to be sold on twelve months credit, reserving the title of said lots until the money is paid, and to bear interest from due until paid at the rate of ten per cent per annum from due until paid."

"On motion of Wm. Gillis ordered that the above sale be advertised in the following newspapers."

The names of the newspapers do not appear however in the record.

A settlement of the sales of 1836 was now made with the purchasers of lots at that sale. Interest was charged on the purchase price at ten per cent for six years, making the total for that sale, $11,482.88; the money was collected and titles made, the deeds being signed by each member of the company and the wife of each member, which was an expensive and laborious way of making titles.

While the sale ordered at this meeting in February was being advertised a new survey was made by John C. McCoy. At this time he adopted the survey of 1838, and extended it back to the township line and east half a block beyond Grand avenue, then called Market street, and west three hundred feet beyond Wyandotte street.

THE FIRST GREAT SALE OF LOTS.

The sale was held as advertised, and the original records of the company show that one hundred and twenty-seven lots were sold singly and two whole blocks together, Robert Campell being the purchaser of the two blocks, for which he paid three hundred dollars. These two blocks were those lying between Fourth and Fifth streets and Wyandotte and Main streets, now the center of Kansas City's Jobbing Trade. The highest price paid for any one lot sold at this sale was three hundred and forty-one dollars, paid by Wm. M. Chick for lot No. 9. A few others in the same vicinity on the levee between Wyandotte and Walnut streets sold for between two and three hundred dollars, but most of them went below one hundred. The amount for which some of the lots were sold

is not carried out in the original record, but the total of those carried out is $8,137.42. A copy of this record made at a later date foots up the sale $8,643.62. Spaldings Annals states this aggregate at $8,625, and the average at $55.65, but the records of the company do not appear to contain the data for such calculations.

AN INTERESTING RECORD.

A very interesting feature of the record of this sale is that it gives the vocation of most of the purchasers, as well as their names, and this shows what kinds of business prevailed here at that time, as well as who lived here. Thus it is shown that there were seven farmers among the purchasers, Jacob Ragan, N. Ross, W. G. Barkley, F. P. McGee, John Park, Peter McGee and Thomas A. Smart; four merchants, H. M. Northrup, W. M. Chick, P. M. Chouteau and Thos. Elliott; three butchers, John Javins, H. Javins and Thos. Javins; three doctors, Jos. O. Boggs, Benoist Troost and S. G. Harlan; two carpenters, Henry Jobe and M. Walden; two grocers (saloon keepers in these times), Geo. Hudson and A. G. Yancy; two traders, F. H. Booth and B. Linkingfelter; two laborers, Henson Javins and Peter Belanger; two brick makers, Wm. B. Pruddy and Jas. Pruddy; two brick layers, Wm. Champagne and Franklin Barnes; one landlord, Wm. B. Evans; one pilot, Chas. Dripps; one lawyer, L. Kaufman; one broker, Chas. Horning; one stone mason, D. Edgerton; one Santa Fe trader, B. Pruitt; one surveyor, John C. McCoy; one tailor, J. A. Stull; one gunsmith, Gabriel Phillebert, one wheelwright, Moise Belmar; one school master, Lott Caufman; one Indian, Isaac Zane, and one gentleman, Wm. Gillis. A "gentleman" in those days signified a man who had no regular business, and lived without labor. There were also among the purchasers Robert Campbell, formerly of the Rocky Mountain Fur Company, Thos. Breeze, Edward F. Hand, Lewis Ford, David McWilliams, Robert Hudgins, Elijah Jackson S. D. Ray and Mr. Parsons, whose vocations are not stated in the record.

Notwithstanding the inability of the company to make titles or sell lots between 1838 and 1846, the tendency of trade to transfer itself to this point, caused an accumulation of people here for various purposes, so that at the time of this sale, in April, 1846, it was estimated that the town had already a population of not less than three hundred.

BAD TITLES.

Notes were taken for lots sold in 1846, having fallen due in 1847, on the 1st May, of that year, P. M. Chouteau, son of Francois Chouteau, was appointed by the company to collect the money. On the 3d of May, Fry P. Mc Gee was also appointed to collect. At this time, of course, titles had to be given to the lots, as the notes were collected, and the method employed the previous year-that of each member of the company and his wife signing the deed--was too slow and cumbersome to be re-adopted, hence a power of attorney was given to Mr. Chouteau to sign the deeds for the company. This he did, but signed them by his own name as attorney-in-fact," without signing the name of the company by himself as "attorney in-fact." This was afterward found to be irregular, and it gave rise to much trouble in adjusting titles.

While referring to this subject, it may be as well to mention another fact which subsequently arose to cause some litigation and trouble. A posthumous daughter was born to Gabriel Prudhomme after preceedings for sale in partition had been initiated by the other heirs. In this situation the order of court naming the heirs among whom the proceeds of sale were to be divided did not mention her, and hence the commissioner paid her nothing. She afterward became the wife of Col. M. J. Payne, now president of the Kansas City Gas Company, and suit was brought for her portion. This suit was not successful in its object, but for a long time it caused a cloud to rest upon the title to every lot in the Prudhomme estate.

FURTHER SURVEYS-THE COMPANY DISSOLVE.

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In May, 1847, the company decided to lay off the balance of their land into lots Accordingly, a contract was made for the clearing of the land east of Market street (Grand avenue) to Phillibert's Branch," about Campbell street, running back to Fifth street; and John C. McCoy was employed to lay off the balance of the land into lots. All this having been done, another sale of lots was held July 17, 1847, at which twenty-three lots were sold for an aggregate of $1,475.30

On this same day--July 17th-the company decided to close up its affairs, and divide proceeds. Accordingly, Messrs. McGee, Gillis and Evans were appointed to make a survey of the assets of the company, preparatory to such action. On the 30th of September following, the division was made, lots and notes being apportioned to each share in the company, in as nearly equal values as possible. The company appears here to have practically gone out of existence, as the record shows no further proceedings, except some business transacted for it by McCoy and Gillis, in disposing of a few lots overlooked by the committee, in the division of the proceeds.

TOWN DEVELOPMENT.

At the time of the first sale above referred to, April 30, 1846, it was estimated that there were about three hundred people in the new town, nearly all settled along the river front. However, under the impulse of the Mexican war and Santa Fe trade, added to the Indian trade already existing, the place grew rapidly, and before the close of the year, the population was estimated at seven hundred. New warehouses and outfitting houses were established, trade facilities became much enlarged, and the tendency of the Santa Fe and Mexican war trades to concentrate at this point largely increased.

The next year, 1847, Colonel Charles E. Kearney, now of this city, located in Westport, and went into business with W. R. Bernard, still a citizen of that place. Mr. Bernard was at that time engaged with Colonel A. G. Boone, in Indian trading, and Colonel Kearney had been for some years previous trading in Old Mexico, from southern points. The new firm opened a large outfitting house for the Santa Fe traders, and thus supplied the only lacking facility for transferring the trade to the border, and obviating the eighteen miles haul and the bad roads, and the rendezvous twelve miles from the depot of supply. Kansas City, in her new warehouses, in her unequaled natural steamboat landing, and her near proximity, supplied all the balance. For the next three years Westport was the headquarters of the trade, but Kansas City was rapidly absorbing it.

CALIFORNIA EMIGRATION.

The excitement incident to the revival of the Santa Fe trade and the Mexican War, was supplemented by the California gold excitement in 1849. The progress of Kansas City meantime was rapid, for a new town against older, more populous, and better known towns. Still, she had not, up to this time, advanced to a point where she could successfully compete with Westport and Independence for this new trade, and while it lasted they had the lion's share of it. The emigration was large through this locality, for it was soon found that on the more northern routes the springs were later, and the winters came earlier, not giving emigrants time to get through. Besides, the routes up the valley of the Kansas River, or over the prairies toward Santa Fe, were by far the best for the emigrants. Many of them came by boat to this place, and outfitted here. It was useless to go higher up the river, for they got no nearer to California by doing so, besides which they lost their time, and approached the latitude of shorter seasons. Here again this locality vindicated its natural advantages, and again Kansas City