Henry Hays; commissioners, Samuel Haworth, Alexander Grindler and Daniel Barker. In September of the same year the first court was held in a log school-house by Judge McKay at which Barlow Granger was district attorney. A log court-house was built at Indianola in 1851 which for several years was used also for church services, public meetings, political conventions and schools. A newspaper was established at Indianola by John W. Murphy who issued the first number of the Republican on the 24th of August, 1855. It survived less than a year and was succeeded by the Indianola Visitor, published by J. H. Knox. The Methodists organized the first church in Indianola in 1850. At the annual conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church held at Indianola, in August, 1860, steps were taken to establish a seminary under the auspices of that denomination, which in 1867 became “Simpson Centenary College.”
Carlisle was laid out in the northern part of the county by Jerry Church and Daniel Moore in 1851. Norwalk was laid out by George M. Swan the same year near the northwest corner of the county. The first railroad built was a branch of the Rock Island running from Des Moines to Indianola which was completed to that place in October, 1871. The first movement of the citizens of Warren County to secure a railroad was made as early as 1853. Efforts continued for nearly eighteen years before the county-seat became connected with the railroad lines of the country.
WASHINGTON COUNTY, when first created, was given the name of “Slaughter” in January, 1838. On the 25th of January, 1839, the name was fortunately changed to Washington and the boundaries arranged as they now exist. This is the second county west of the Mississippi River in the third tier north of Missouri and embraces five hundred sixty-six square miles.
The first white settler was an Indian trader, Joseph
