© 2017 by Edward G. Langer. All rights reserved.
Clyman Township was originally settled primarily by Irish settlers. The original patent holder of the Langer farm was Hugh Dervin who acquired 200 acres in Section 27 of Dodge County from the United States as two parcels in 1844 and 1847 at a cost of $1.25 an acre [farm abstract]. This was a large sum of money since a year’s wages for an unskilled laborer was about $200.00. Dervin purchased not only the Langer farm but also the farm directly to the north. He resold the 40 acres to the north sometime prior to the marking of the 1859 plat map. Also in 1848 a Mary Jane Dervin bought 40 acres adjacent to the main Langer farm from the United States. The relationship between Mary Jane Dervin and Hugh Dervin has yet to be determined though some of Hugh Dervin’s relatives also settled in Clyman Township per their obituaries.
Hugh Dervin (1808 – 1880) was born in County Roscommon, Ireland probably in the village of Elfin. His wife, Ann (1820-1895), was also born in County Roscommon, Ireland and they married in New York City.
She worked for a wealthy family there as a governess or child’s nurse. At age sixteen, Hugh was a carriage boy for a wealthy family who owned a shoe factory. He was treated as a member of the family; they promised him that for every dollar he saved, they would match it. As a result, he could afford a wagon with a team of oxen to go west to Wisconsin.
They had at least six children: Mary Jane (Ca. 1845 – ?), Bridget (1846 – ?), Richard (1850 – 1830), Ellen (1848 to about 1850), Ann Adelaide (1852 – ?), and Hugh (ca 1856 – 1902). All the children were born in Wisconsin, and at least the three youngest were born on the Langer farm. [Data from the Federal censuses.]
When the Dervins moved to this farm, it is unlikely they brought much with them — some work animals, a plough, saws, yokes, harnesses, simple tools, clothes, household goods, etc. There first priority would be to build a simple log cabin for themselves and their livestock. The materials were on hand; all that was needed was to do the back-breaking work of cutting the trees and building the simple structures. Then they would turn to till the soil using their oxen and a plow.
It is not known why the Dervins left Ireland though it was probably due to poor economic conditions. Hugh Dervin did not forget his roots for in August, 1848 he contributed $1.00 to the Dodge County Irish Relief Society.
By the time of the 1850 census, Dervin had made great strides in clearing the land and beginning an operating farm. (For the details of the census see Appendix A). Dervin reported on that census that he had 40 acres of improved land, which presumably means cleared. The census data suggests that the operation was not much beyond a subsistence level. In 1850, the most substantial crop was 60 bushels of potatoes. Only 20 bushels of wheat were grown and this probably went for bread and to feed the livestock. 250 pounds of butter was likely beyond the needs of the family and so they probably sold some of this.
The buildings on the farm in 1850 were probably simple, a log cabin, a shed and a barn to shelter their 3 cows, 4 oxen, 6 swine and s head of other cattle. The oldest building from that period to survive into the second half of this century was the west shed (aka the bicycle shed).
ADD PICTURES
The joists supporting the floor of the south end of this shed consist of small tree trunks. No attempt was made to cut them into planks. The size of the doors on this shed and the height of the basement indicate that it was used for small animals such as swine and young stock, not the oxen and cattle.
It is believed that the original log cabin was located at the site of the building the tractor shed which was next to the original shed. This is based upon a statement in the Dervin family history that in 1947 the old log cabins were still standing and being used for corn cribs, etc.
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It appears that the original foundation of the log cabin was used when this unused building was changed to an agricultural function.
A barn was probably constructed by 1850 to house these animals. No trace of this survived into this century though it was believed to have been south of the house.
By 1860 it appears that Hugh Dervin had moved from subsistence agriculture in 1850 to a market-oriented farming operation by 1860 given the total acres cleared, grain production and animals in use. Since the Chicago and Northwestern Railway put down the tracks from Watertown to Clyman to Fond du Lac in 1859, he was able to ship his products to market in Watertown.
- By 1860, Dervin had cleared 100 of the 160 acres of the farm. Due to the difficulty in draining the substantial amount of wetlands on the farm, only a little over 100 acres were able to be cleared. The remaining woods, which consisted of 6 to 8 acres, were needed to supply lumber and fuel. The land cleared was well beyond what the Dervins needed to supply them with fruits and vegetables, as indicated by the fact that in 1880 the Dervins raised all the potatoes they needed on just one-half acre of land.
- From 1850 to 1860, grain production had increased from 20 bushels to 700 bushels, again far beyond the personal needs of the Dervin family. By 1870, grain production was at 1450 bushels, where it appeared to stabilize. It is likely that the wheat crop was being sold at a market by 1860.
- 1 US bushel = 2 150.42011 cubic inches
- 2150 X 1450 bushels is 3,117,500 cubic inches
- 3,117, 500 cubic inches divided by 1728 = 1804 cubic feet
In Francis’ depreciation book is there any total for grains production??
- As noted above, oxen were used to clear land and to break sod. After the land had been broken to the plow, it was possible to use horses for agricultural purposes. Thus, the move from oxen to horses is a rough measure of economic development. Here, the number of oxen had dropped from four in 1850 to two in 1860, while during the same period, the number of cleared acres went from 40 to 100 acres. By 1870, no oxen remained on the farm.
The data also suggests that by 1860 a number of additional buildings were required to house this farming operation. The north end of the west shed was probably added by 1860, since the size of the Dervins’ farming operation in terms of animals and grain production appears to have peaked by 1870. Between 1850 and 1860, the Dervins started raising sheep (17) and had also started producing sizeable amounts of grain (600 bushels of wheat). It is likely that these activities would have necessitated the construction of the granary by 1860 to store grain as well as shelter smaller livestock. In contrast to the primitive joists in the south end of the west shed, the joists in the north end of this shed and the granary are rough-cut, though they do not appear to be milled. (It should be noted that the original granary was smaller than the existing building, since the Langers added the western part of that building.)
Of uncertain date are the smoke house and the tractor shed, although both are rather primitive in construction, suggesting that they would have been built during the tenure of Hugh Dervin. I suspect that the tractor shed was built on the foundation of the Dervin log cabin since the Dervin family history states that in 1947 the old log cabins were still standing and being used for corn cribs, etc. During much of the twentieth century, there was an orchard south of the house where the pole barn is now sited. It is not known when these trees were planted. The Dervins reported having an orchard in 1860 and so they may have planted it.
On March 9, 1861, Dervin deeded three of the acres of his farm to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee. A church was built that year and the parish of the Holy Assumption organized. A parsonage was built in 1873. In 1896, Edward Collins donated an additional half acre of land which is on the north end of the premises. Services were held there until 1908, when the church was destroyed by fire. The cemetery remains. The parsonage was sold to Emil Richter who moved it to Clyman to use as his residence. This is why the current farm is only 157 acres.
It is likely that the house was build in the last half of the 1860s since it appears that Dervin refinanced the farm in 1864.
[The farm abstract contains a noticeable anomaly. On November 16, 1864, Hugh Dervin and his wife Ann deeded part of the farm to Joseph Smith. Exactly three years later, on November 16, 1867, Joseph Smith deeded the land back to Hugh Dervin and his wife Ann. On February 13, 1869, Hugh and Ann Dervin deeded 80 acres to Mrs. Francis Duffy. Later, when this 80 acre part of the farm was deeded to Johann Langer, the grantors were Francis Duffy and Ann Dervin. (Hugh had died in the interim on June 10, 1880). If this was truly a sale, Ann Dervin would not have been a grantor of the property. This suggests that these deeds were not actual conveyances of the property but were rather in the nature of a mortgage, also termed a ‘deed of trust’.]
Also, the value of the farm increased from $3000 in 1860 to $8000 in 1870, even though there was no sizeable increase in herd size or grain production warranting the construction of large farm buildings. None of the agricultural buildings if actually built during the 1860s appear to be expensive enough to cause such a marked increase in the value of the farm. This suggests that the farmhouse was built in the late 1860s.
[OR IS THIS RELFECTIVE IN CHANGE OF FARM VALUES]
The house design is a fairly common type of house known as a “gabled-ell”. The house has a two-story upright section with its gabled end facing the road. A smaller attached wing with a front porch is attached to the left of the upright and also faces the road. Generally, the two-story upright had a parlor in the front and pantry and/or bedroom along with the stairs behind it. The wing contained the combined kitchen-family room. Normally there was an attached summer kitchen.
[See Eiseley and Tishler, The Honey Creek Swiss Settlement in Sauk County, 73 Wisconsin Magazine of History 3 (Autumn 1989)]
BRICK CONSTRUCTION — brickyard in Watertown – train went to Clyman as of 1859
A drawing of the original house is attached hereto. It should be noted that the wing of the original house did not contain a second story. The function of the rooms in the house appears to correspond with the pattern for the area. The original kitchen was probably separate from the actual living room and was located on the south end of the house in what was later used as a bedroom. I base this statement in part on the fact that when the second floor apartment was added at the turn of the century, a room of the same size and in the same location was intended to serve as a kitchen. There is also a chimney base on that end of the house. The large room in the two-story upright section probably served as a parlor. The northwestern room was probably a bedroom. The southwestern room of the two-story upright section probably served as a pantry. It is likely that the children slept in the loft area on the second floor.
Another major industry that emerged during Wisconsin’s Gilded Age was the production of cheese. The agricultural shift to dairying led to an increased production of cheese. The first cheese factory in Wisconsin opened in 1872. Shortly after, a group of dairymen organized the Wisconsin Dairymen’s Association. This group came together to improve cheese production technology, science, and advertising. In order to compete with the cheese industry of New York, they shipped their cheese in refrigerated railroad cars. By 1890, more than 1,000 cheese factories produced 53,708,595 pounds of cheese worth over $4 million. [citation?]
In April 1879, the Dervins joined with a group of neighbors to file articles of incorporation for the Union Cheese Association which built a cheese factory at the corner of Clymet Road and Highway M (Juneau Road). Although Hugh Dervin was listed as an incorporator, his son Richard signed the articles of incorporation.
Hugh Dervin died on June 10, 1880 and was buried in Saint Bernard’s Cemetery in Watertown, Wisconsin. He was survived by his widow, Ann and five children: Richard, Mary Jane, Bridget, Ann, and Hugh. A will had been prepared shortly before his death and on June 9, he signed it with an “X”. A petition to probate the estate of Hugh Dervin was filed on July 6, 1880. The petition represented that the goods, chattels and personal property of the estate of the deceased amounted to about $700.00 and the real estate to about $8000.00. The inventory of October 29, 1880 valued the farm at $3200.00 and the other personal estate at $561.00, as follows:
| Item | Value $ |
|---|---|
| Household Furniture | 30.00 |
| One span of horses, about 17 years old | 100.00 |
| One span of horses, one about 4 and another 17 years old | 125.00 |
| One yearling colt | 30.00 |
| Five cows, each worth $15 | 75.00 |
| Two heifers, each at $12 | 24.00 |
| Four head of cattle at $8 | 32.00 |
| Five calves at $4 | 20.00 |
| Fourteen sheep | 21.00 |
| Nine hogs at $3 | 27.00 |
| Two wagons at $10 | 20.00 |
| One reaper | 20.00 |
| One seeder | 20.00 |
| One sleigh | 5.00 |
| One drag and two ploughs | 10.00 |
| Forks and rakes | 2.00 |
A review of this inventory show how labor-intensive Dervin’s farm operation was. It is likely that the only real improvement in the mechanization of agriculture on the farm from 1850 to 1880 was the addition of the reaper and seeder. The wagons, sleigh, drag and plow were likely used early in the operation of the farm.
The farm stayed in the Dervin family for two and a half years after Hugh’s death. It is not known why none of the children took over the farm operation. After it was sold, the widow and children moved to Omaha, Nebraska where Richard bought a farm.
© 2017 by Edward G. Langer. All rights reserved.