Chapter 10 cont. LE CLAIRE TOWNSHIP. The history of this township is brought down to 1863 by Mr. Barrows, but some things he omits, that became of importance later on, are here included in bringing this sketch of LeClaire township up-to-date. The stone found at LeClaire is of a fine quality and is now quarried by Bremer & Abel, a Davenport firm.  The quarry is located on land north of the town settled by Eli Smith, one of the pioneers of Scott county.  LeClaire township was the birthplace of the noted Indian scout and showman, William F. Cody, better known all over the world as "Buffalo Bill."  His father came to Scott county in 1839, from Cincinnati, Ohio, and entered a tract of land in LeClaire township upon which he made improvements and also opened a small general store in Parkhurst.  Early in 1841 he returned to Cincinnati and brought back with him his wife and little girl, in the spring of 1842.  On his way he met Dennis Barnes, at St. Louis, and persuaded Mr. Barnes to accompany him to Iowa, which he did, and upon arriving in LeClaire township he entered a tract of land near Mr. Cody's and at once made improvements thereon and began farming.  A near neighbor to the Barnes and Codys was Eleazer Parkhurst, the first to open a farm here, which is now in the possession of Julius Woler, and it was on February 26, 1845, on the Cody farm, that the future famous "Buffalo Bill" was born.  Later the elder Cody and his friend Barnes joined the stampede for the gold fields of California and, forming a partnership for better or worse, disposed of their property and in the spring of 1850, with their families, made ready to start overland for the new Eldorado.  Stories of Indians massacres and depredations upon caravans moving across the prairies cooled the ardor of their desire to reach the gold fields, so that having dispossessed themselves of their lands and farming implements, by force of circumstances they retired to the villages, Barnes to LeClaire and Cody to Parkhurst.  Finally, in 1852, Mr. Cody took his family to the territory of Kansas, where the boy, William, grew up and acquired a great fondness for horses, over which he had a wonderful control, and at the age of ten years became a "pony express" rider, carrying mail and despatches over the plains and gaining that knowledge of the Indians and skill with a rifle that made his fame worldwide and in later years made him much sought after by the United States government to act as guide, and also by the nobility of foreign lands visiting America and venturesome enough to trust their lives in the then "wild and woolly west." In the old steamboat days LeClaire was the headquarters for a large number of river men and furnished many pilots and engineers for the numberous craft then plying the waters of the Mississippi.  But of course, with the advent of the railroad, transportation by water had dwindled away, but there are a few of these river men still in the business who made their homes at LeClaire:  Captain I. S. Spinsby, of the U. S. Mac; Captain E. J. Lancaster, of the Eclipse; Captain George Tromley; J. W. VanSant.  Also Pilots Orrin Smith, Zach Suite and D. F. Dorrance. The schools of LeClaire always had first place in the hearts and thoughts of her people and have always been kept at a high standard of proficiency.  Such men as Judges Barnes and Linderman, were pupils at these schools and many others made places for themselves of distinction at the bar, who received their early educational training in LeClaire.  Among them may here be mentioned W. D. Kalsey, now of Colorado; G. M. Boyd, Chicago; A. P. VanDuzer, California; Henry McCaffrey; the Hanley boys, and others. When the Civil war broke out in 1861 LeClaire was quick to come to "attention" and respond to "Honest Abe's" proclamation for volunteers to put down the rebellion, and sent a number of her best young men to the front and, in 1862, Captain S. B. Byram organized what later became Company K of the Twentieth Iowa Infantry, which made a splendid record, details of which appear on another page of this history.  But a short time after the organization of Company K other recruits from LeClaire were assigned to Company A, Fourteenth Iowa Infantry, and still others joined the Second Iowa Cavalry, all of whom are given honorable mention in the chapter herein devoted to Scott county in the Civil war. Debbie Clough G-erischer G-erischer Family Web Site http://gerischer.rootsweb.com/ Assistant CC, Iowa Gen Web, Scott County http://www.celticcousins.net/scott/ List Manager for: IASCOTT-L * G-erischer-L * D-encker-L Fitzpatirck-L * V-lerebome-L * Huntington-L * Otis-L * Algar-L EIGS-L * Pickens-L * McNab-L * Patris-L - Rankin-L