He returned to Council Bluffs and found a company forming with a view to settling the interior of Nebraska if found suitable. On the second day of October, this party which consisted of B. R. Folsom, W. N. Byers, J. W. Patterson, H. C. Purple, John Young, Jerry Folsom, Mr. Maynard, a Mr. White and Wm. T. Raymond, nine men, all well armed, crossed the Missouri river to explore a part of Nebraska and to locate in the interior of the country. They camped the first night on the site of the old Mormon winter quarters, (since Florence,) examined the country in a westerly course as far as the north bend of Platte River, thence back re-crossing the Elkhorn river and following it up to the mouth of Logan creek, thence up the Logan to a point nearly west of Decatur. Not finding the country and limber such as they expected they changed their course and explored the country in a southeasterly direction to the south branch of Tekamah creek and seeing a large body of timber on the Missouri river concluded to examine it. They found a large body of fine timber on the Nebraska side of the river. The party were all highly pleased and decided to locate at once.
   On the sixth day of October, 1854, the present townsite of Tekamah was located. It was the first town located in Burt county. The party then went back to Council Bluffs for supplies and to prepare for surveying and locating claims. A squatters claim was 320 acres.
   They returned to Tekamah in a few days with an accession to their number of 23 men, making 32 in all. While camping here the party were enumerated and registered, October 15th as voters preparatory to the approaching first election. An oath was administered to the effect that they were here for the purpose of making homes for themselves and their families as required by the acting Governor.
   The counties were first designated by Gov. Cummings. Bert was bounded on the east by the Missouri river, south by the White Bow creek near Fort

 
Calhoun, west by the Rocky Mountains and north as now bounded which was then Blackbird county.
   The first election was held in December, 1854, and all who had taken the oath came back to vote. Blackbird county, now the Omaha reserve, was joined with Burt in the election and were entitled to two members of the House of Representatives and one Councilman jointly. At this election B. R. Folsom was elected to the Council and Gen. Robertson and H. C. Purple to the House.
   As no houses were yet put up the party were compelled to return to Iowa during the winter of 1854 and 1855. Contracts had been made with different parties to build a Town house and ten other buildings in Tekamah, but owing to the difficulty in getting material and annoyances from Indians, were not fulfilled.
   About the middle of April, 1855, John R. Folsom, of New York, in company with Wm. N. Byers, F. W. Goodwill, Miles Hopkins, L. B. Wilder and N. R. Folsom arrived at Tekamah and commenced cutting, hewing and hauling timber for two houses. The timbers were sawed in two or divided with a whip-saw for the walls and floor, the roof being cotton-wood bark.
   About the last of April. the same year, Dedrick Fees with his wife, the first white woman in Burt county, arrived at Tekamah, also F. E. Lange and W. B. Beck.
   July, 1855, Rev. Wm. Bates and his son Edwin Bates arrived at Tekamah. July 18th, 1855, Geo. M. Peterson, T. Thompson, John Oak and Geo. Erickson, with their families, household goods and effects, twenty-four souls in all, arrived at Tekamah. They were the first settlers in Burt county who took claim's and entered upon them with their families and became permanent residents. The Peterson colony took claims north of Silver Creek moved onto them and commenced getting out building material, they had hardly began