Page:The Government of Iowa 1911.djvu/32

10 New Boston, have disappeared and yielded up their sites to the cultivation of corn.

Whence came the Iowa Pioneers. — Whence the early settlers came has been the subject of some lively discussion. There has long been a tradition that Iowa was settled for the most part by New Englanders. On the other hand, it is well known that southeastern Iowa was settled largely by Southerners. In fact, the early settlers of Iowa came from all parts of the Union. Now it is reasonable to suppose that where government is in the hands of the people, the nativity of those in charge of the activities of government would be a pretty safe guide to the nativity of the population. This seems to be especially true in a pioneer community. The first Constitutional Convention of Iowa, which met in 1844, was composed of 72 members. Of these, one was born in Germany, one in Scotland, and one in Ireland. Of those born in the United States, thirteen were from Pennsylvania, eleven from Virginia, nine from New York, eight from Kentucky, eight from Ohio, six from North Carolina, six from Vermont, and one each from Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Maine, New Jersey, Tennessee, Indiana, and Illinois. The early settlers of Iowa represented the whole Union and not any one section of it.

The Growth of Population. — In 1838 the Territory of Iowa had a population of 22,859; by 1844 this number had increased to 75,152. This rapid growth in population represents the pioneer scramble for cheap land in a fertile region. When Iowa was admitted into the Union in 1846