Page:History of Goodhue County, Minnesota.djvu/203

 HISTORY OF GOODHUE COUNTY 151 charge of designating the townships. This, at the request of the state authorities, was changed to Milton, by reason of the fact that there was another Union in the state. The same objection was urged against the name of Milton, and in 1862 the name became Burnside. the name of the general who at that time was winning fame in the early campaigns of the Civil War. In the fall of 1853 there came to this township a clergyman,. who looked over the land and decided upon a suitable location for a claim. Authorities differ as to whether this clergyman was the Rev. David Wright or the Rev. Resin Spates. At any rate, the three brothers, John. Resin and Charles Spates, settled here the following summer, and during the same year Andrew Cottar, John Leason, Matthew Streetor, James Shaw, John Bronson, and with the widow of the Rev. David Wright and her family. In 1855 came John E. Eggleston, Joseph Eggleston, Willard Wood, Kingsley Wood, Rev. J. C. Johnson, Marshall Cutter, and prob- ably Leland Jones, Rev. Norris Hobart and several others. These settlers were scattered over the township, but in those early days were considered near neighbors. The wife of David Bronson died in the spring of 1855. In July of the same year Flora Cutter (or Cora Cutler) was born, also John H. Spates. The first marriage ceremony performed was that of J. P. Enz to Mary F. "Wright, in October, 1855. Another early marriage was that of William H. Wright and Mary Chamberlain, in 1859. the ceremony being performed by Justin Chamberlain, a justice of Hie peace. The first school in the town was taught by J. E. Eggleston. during the winter of 1756-57. The first sermon was preached by the Rev. Resin Spates at the house of John Leason, in 1854. The Rev. Hancock relates an interesting incident of the early days: "The widow of Rev. David Wright, with six children, had removed from Illinois and settled on the place that, previous to his death, her husband had selected on Spring creek, near where John Leason ^located his claim. They occupied a log house which was divided into suitable rooms for sleeping and family use; the four boys sleeping in the two rooms of the upper floor, while the two girls and the mother occupied the lower floor. They were comfortably arranged for the night of June 11. L855, when a storm of lightning and rain came on with such terrific peals of thunder as to awaken the family. One of the older boys was so much frightened that he left the bed and went downstairs. While he was being told that there was no more danger in one place than another by his sisler. Susan, a sudden crash came, which frightened everyone in the house. Mrs. Wright, the mother, was the first to regain consciousness. She saw the flames devouring the bed where lay her two daughters, still unconscious. Pres-