Andalusia
Daniel Webster
In 1827-1829 there were no white families in Iowa so Benjamin Clark built a log house at the creek at the west end of Andalusia with logs he had hauled across the ice from Davenport. His house was the only home between Joshua Van Druff's at the foot of Black Hawk's Tower and Erasmus Dennison at the Upper Yellow Banks, now New Boston.
Capt. W. L. Clark, son of Capt. Benjamin W. Clark of Rock Island, settled in Andalusia in 1833. He built and ran the ferry to Buffalo, Iowa.
John Vanatta had a house that was later bought by Jonathan Buffum.
In 1834 Dunlap, Dan and John Edgington came and settled lands north of where Edgington is now. They returned to Steubenville, Ohio for their families. Clark ordered 500 apple trees for them to bring back with them.
In 1835 the Edgingtons returned with Mr. McNutt, his son John, who was a carpenter, Moses Titterington, Charles and two other brothers and their families. Charles and Harry Eberhart brought their families as did Adolph Dunlap, a gunsmith.
The land around Andalusia was valuable and beautiful. The ferry was below the Rock River making it easier to reach Black Hawk's purchase. Clark could have claimed the area where Davenport is, but he liked Andalusia better. Timber was abundant, and there were coal resources near the creeks.
Settlers here used split rail fences for many years.
In 1833 B. W. Clark moved to Black Hawk's purchase. Here he ran a ferry until 1836 when he sold it for $17,000 to Col. Stevenson, W. W. Hamilton and Mr. Whiteside of Galena.
These three laid out the town of Rockport. They took the map to Washington City (D.C.) where they sold thousands of dollars worth of town lots to Daniel Webster and other easterners.
Rockport died a natural death and eventually was sold for taxes to Napolean Bonaparte Buford who laid out the town of Andalusia. In 1845 his wife, Katherine, suggested they name the town Andalusia, because it was a pretty name.
During its heyday Andalusia had three warehouses in operation. They took in 100 wagon loads of grain a day throughout the fall. A rush of teams would arrive by 10:00 a.m. Workers would stop for lunch at 2:00. During the winter they would receive corn which they would ship to the South. One shipment of 25,000 bushels would take a week to load.
EARLY SETTLERS PIONEERS HISTORY CLARKS FERRY OLD TOWN ANDALUSIA
POST OFFICE MILITARY SOCIETIES ROLL OF HONOR SCHOOLS
CHURCHES TOWNSHIP SUPERVISORS BISINESS DIRECTORY
TOWNSHIP OFFICALS AND VILLAGE OFFICERS
ANDALUSIA MEMORIAL AND HISTORICAL ASSOCIATIONS
Submitted by Diane Alm
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