Geography and Its Impact

Cottleville is situated near the basins of three great rivers: the Ohio, the Missouri, and the Mississippi. The geological setting of Cottleville was in the Glacial Plains, which, during the ice age, is where giant glaciers deposited crushed and ground rock called drift. Wind carried fine rock and pulverized soil that blanketed the area. This process transformed the land and initiated the environmental and agricultural conditions we see today. However, Cottleville is now located in what geologists call the Middle Dardenne Basin, which is only 495 feet above sea level and has a land mass of 4.5 square miles.

Cottleville is one of the oldest towns in St. Charles County, located about 10 miles west of St. Charles and the Mississippi River, butting up to the Dardenne waterway. Indian trails turned into roads leading westward through Missouri for covered wagons and stage and mail coaches. Situated about a day'sjourney from the Mighty Mississippi, many early travelers would find themselves stranded when the Dardenne River — now Dardenne Creek — would overflow.

Cottleville encompasses about 100 acres that stretch from Dardenne Creek as the northern perimeter, the Crooked Creek as the western perimeter, Gutermuth Road as the southern perimeter, and Mid Rivers Mall Dr. as the eastern perimeter. The reason settlers in the 16th century chose this specific territorial layout was due to the vast amount of available natural resources. Crooked Creek and Dardenne River (Creek) frequently over ran its boundaries, laying down fertile silt for its neighbors.

"Cottleville lies within a virtual 'Garden of Eden'. This contributed to the growth and variety of prairies, oak and hickory forest, and river ecosystems each having distinctive flora and fauna that are easily accessible and provided a wide range of foods from which to select. The rich fertile soils that were widely available made farming a very productive enterprise for prehistoric and historic inhabitants alike. This region also contained the resources needed for organic medicines, wood construction and eventually manufacturing. Wildlife was very abundant and continues to be home to many deer, turkey, geese, ducks and birds." 1.

Many years ago, a variety of cultures inhabited Missouri, which was also known as the area with "those who have dugout canoes" or the "settlement of the big canoes" or even "Big Muddy." To date, the earliest residents that came to inhabit the Cottleville region did so approximately 8000 B.C. At that time, the landscape was considerably different from what we see today. The climate was more humid and rarely reached even 80 degrees. The flood plains near the rivers were strikingly fertile as a result of the frequent shifting of the water passages. "Forest composition on the floodplain was affected by two factors. One was the frequency and duration of flooding, and the other was the type of plant succession on land being built up by sedimentation" 1. As a result, this became a prime location for the first inhabitants to establish a community.

Many archeological projects have been performed within the last 40 years by Dan Haas and Roger Boyd. Archeological excavations have uncovered mollusks in backwater areas and streams. These hard shelled mollusks appear to not only have been used as a source of food, but as tools. The shells could be ground and used as binding agents for ceramic vessels, carved into jewelry, or used as digging instruments. The number of total recorded sites within St. Charles County is over a thousand and Cottleville had its share of cultures.

A camp 100 by 50 meters on a bluff top near the Dardenne Creek, reveals projectile points. 2.

Camps found on the Dardenne Creek within this period measure: 50 by 20 meters, 180 by 160 meters, 320 x 200 meters, and 120 by 80 meters. 3

Many other projects for archeological data have been performed in the St. Charles County area, resulting in a total of 82 reported sites from the Late Archaic Period. The Cottleville area has five of these sites documented on the Dardenne and Crooked Creeks as villages, campsites and lithic scatters.

These sites were identified by Joseph Harl, Patti Wright and Joseph Nixon in 1986. 5.

An article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 12, 1966, entitled "Traces of Early Indian Village are Found in St. Charles County," told of the Late Woodland Indian presence in Cottleville. The article describes 17 dark spots in the back yard of Ambrose Schulte, native of Cottleville, which when unearthed proved to be storage and refuse holes dating to about 1000 A.D. Schulte stated, "I had knocked a couple of feet of dirt off of a knoll behind a home we're building. I noticed some arrow heads, but didn't pay any mind because they're quite common in this part of the country."

Schulte owned a 35-acre site on Gutermuth Road, which is within eye sight of Cottleville. It was soon discovered that two round houses and a rectangular house had been there and that they were part of a village dating to slightly before the culture that built Cahokia Mounds. Legend has it that an ancient Indian cemetery exists near Schulte's property. Arrow points, as well as three point and four point arrow heads were found at the site. My father, Dennis Spellmann — a Cottle descendant — owned property near the Schulte farm and we could also find arrowheads every spring when the land was tilled to put in a large garden.

"Looking to Preserve History," an article in the St. Charles Post-Dispatch dated November 29, 1988, describes the story of Gerald and Georgette Bergen. Their three-story house was built in the 1890s by a physician who used the side building as the Cottleville doctor's office. Both the Doctor's office and the 1870 home still stand in the historic district. The Bergens restored the home and spent hours digging for artifacts with great success.

Some of the first Indian tribes known to have resided in Missouri were the Missouris, Dakotas, Iowas, Osages, and Poncas. "The Missouris was the chief tribe in the area of Cottleville with villages as large as 150 to 300 acres, but were finally absorbed in to other tribes. It is estimated that there were 300,000 Indians when the white man came." St. Charles Missouri Bicentennial Historical Program Book 1769-1969. Stephen Kochanski, then chairman of the Cottleville Trustees, was quoted as saying, "We know we can't stop progress but we want to try to save the historic part of the village." St. Charles Post- Dispatch, November 29, 1988. The appreciation of Indian cultures and history became paramount to many Cottleville residents.

What goes without saying is that archaeological investigations allow us to document this rich heritage and provide us with a better understanding of the amazing accomplishments the past inhabitants had achieved. This is reinforced by Ralph Waldo Emerson, who suggested that the confluence of the Missouri River with the Mississippi made the area "the greatest cross-roads the world ever saw." 7

The first European explorers of the Cottleville area were of Spanish descent. They came in 1541 under the direction of Hernando de Soto. The first French explorers, Father Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet came from Canada in 1673 and set foot on land that would later become Missouri. In 1682, Rene-Robert Cavelier, sieur de La Salle took possession of the whole Mississippi valley in the name of King Louis XIV of France and named it Louisiana. The secret Treaty of Fontainebleau in November of 1762, ceded French territory west of the Mississippi River to Spain. Three months later, in February of 1763, the Treaty of Paris allowed the Spanish to formally obtain the Louisiana Territory from France. The first Spanish grant of "common fields" was made in 1790. France regained Louisiana from Spain under the secret Treaty of San Ildefonso in 1800.

Carlos Cardinal settled along the Dardenne River in 1789, which later became the settlement of St. Peters. Cottleville at that time was called Pin Hook, perhaps because the directionality of the creeks resembled the shape of a pin hook. Cottleville was also known as the Dardenne Township. The name Dardenne comes from Toussaint Dardenne family. Dardenne, a French trapper, bought a house along the creek that would bear his name in August of 1750. John Coontz began operating a water mill in 1790, mainly for French settlers. Coontz was a German who lived in Illinois before moving to the Dardenne Valley. Another early pioneer on the Dardenne was Jean Baptiste Blandeau, who arrived in 1796. Warren Cottle led a 40-family migration of 100 people to Dardenne in 1799. In 1803, the Louisiana Purchase transferred land to the possession of the United States. Cottleville has been under three flags as well as a center of conflict through the Civil War.

The Cottle Migration

It goes without saying that a book about Cottleville could not be made without a lengthy review of the Cottle founders and their descendents. Many families of Cottleville can walk the trail with the Cottles through their own lineage and adventurous stories. The past can touch each of us as we explore how these migrations occurred.

The family surname, Cottle, has persisted for centuries, appearing first in the time of the Roman Empire in the Latin form, Cotta. There are traces of the same root word prior to the Roman period. It is possible that the name was in existence in Egypt during the time of that great civilization, since it has been found in Egyptian carving.

Accuracy in tracing the name begins with the French Norman period of European history. In the French form the name is COUTELLE. A branch of the family migrating to Germany during the time of Charlemagne set up the name variation Cottschalk, which is simply the Germanic form of the present name COTTLE. With the Norman conquest of England, the French Knights of this name went to England. They were a virile and adventurous people, eager for wealth and power gained by the incasion under William the Conqueror. Seen after 1100 the name is recorded in England in the Anglo-French form COTTELL. John di Cothuelle, born in 1277, is an example of the middle English language period which used the suffix le. At this time in England we find the name of Roger Cotel listed on the Hundred Rolls, or tax books. The modern English language with its fixed forms of spelling was established. The variations of this name as they appear in England of that time are all vouched for as the field of proper names. The modern Doomsday Book of England carries reference to Cottle as being of the old middle English language period using Cothuelle or Cotel.

In England the early seat of the Cottle family was at Atworth, Wiltshire, near Melkham in England. On November 8, 1580, the family was admitted into the nobility of England by Queen Elizabeth I, who recognized North Taunton Cottle and possibly his brother, Samford Peverel Cottle. This coat of arms is still found in a mural on the wall of the church in Bradford-on-Avon. This coat of arms was displayed in several parishes, churches, and manor houses in Wiltshire, Somerset, and Devonshire. The Cottle coat of arms is stated by Aubrey Hoare in his "History of Wilts" 8., and by other historians to have been a shield of gold with a bend (diagonal band from the upper right to the lower left) of red and on the ducal crown a tiger sejant.

"The first Cottle of record to come to America was William Cottle (1626-1660), who was brought here on "The Confidence of London" in April, 1638. He is listed as one of four servants of a John Sanders of "Lanford" Landford, Wiltshire, England." 9. It was not uncommon for young men to be brought to America as servants or apprentices. William was only 12 years old when he arrived. After becoming of age and completing his term of service, William Cottle established himself at Salisbury near the mouth of the Merrimac River, in the colony of Massachusetts Bay and then in Newbury. William died at the age of 34 in Newbury Mass. The City of Cottleville can trace it's lineage from Edward Cottle, Jr (1628-1710), William's brother, Edward was two years younger than William. (Note: Boldfaced names in the text are bloodline relatives.)

Edward Cottle married Judith Osgood on his 21st birthday, 1650, in his hometown of Wiltshire, England, and announced their intentions to sail to the American colonies to make their home. He joined William Cottle Massachusetts in 1651. Edward then founded and lived in Amesbury (Salisbury New Town), Mannamoiett of Cape Cod, Nantucket Island, see page viii and Tisbury-Martha's Vineyard. Edward died on June 1710 at another town he founded — Chilmark, Massachusetts — at the age of 82.

Children of Edward, Jr and Judith Cottle (Osgood):

Edward. II b. January 17, 1652; d. April 15, 1653

Mary, b. November 1, 1653; m. Samuel Bickford d. May 21, 1706

Benjamin, b. March 2, 1655; d. 1710

Sarah, b. March, 1656; d. 1659

Judith, b. March 5, 1659; d. young

Hannah, b. ca. 1661; m. John Hillman d. 1728

Elizabeth, b. April 19, 1663; bound out to Thomas Barnett d.1670

Edward, b. September 28, 1666 d. November 1751; m. Esther (Daggett) (half-breed Indian, daughter of Joseph Daggett by his Indian wife, Alice Sissston, daughter of the Sachem of Sanehacantacket, an American Indian Princess); m. Abigail (Allen), b.1663; d. December 25, 1733

Ezra (son) 1662 May 5 - 1749 Oct 30

James, b. ca.1668; m. Elizabeth (Look) November 1675, d. 1750

Judith, b. April 13, 1670; no further record

Lydia, b. May 17, 1672; no further record

Ann, b. March 3, 1673 d. 1737; m. Isaac Robinson

John, b. September 7, 1675 d. October 1705; m. Jane (Look) 1700- b. December 24, 1680 d. 1756

Samuel, b. 1676; d. in 1698

Dorothy 1678-1681, Oct 1.

John Cottle bought 20 acres of land from his father, which included a mill; married Jane Look in 1700; and built a home near his father's house in Tisbury-Martha's Vineyard. Three children were born to the young couple in 1702,1704 and 1706; however, in 1705, John died leaving his pregnant wife to care for the family. Two of Edward's children eventually ran the mill: Sylvanus and John.

The Cottle boys, they ran a mill;
sometimes it went, sometimes stood still;
And when it went, it made no noise;
Because' twas run by the Cottle boys.
"An old jingle"

Children of John Cottle and Jane Cottle (Look)

Lydia, b. September 14, 1702 – d. December 30, 1725

Sylvanus, b. May 9, 1704 – d. December 9, 1785 m.

Martha (Hatch) Dec. 9, 1725 b. 1708 d. 1741, m.

Abigail (Sherman) February 18, 1745 daughter of Major William Bradford of the Mayflower

John, b. April 10, 1706 – d. February 1804 m. Zerviah Hillman 1731

Sylvanus was only 17 months old when his father died and was adopted by his aunt, Anne Cottle Robinson. Sylvanus had 13 children, eight by Martha (Hatch) and five by Abigail (Sherman), whom he married in 1745. Abigail, a granddaughter of Governor William Bradford (listed as being on the Mayflower in 1620), was born in Rochester, Massachusetts, on July 27, 1721, and was the twin of John Sherman. Sylvanus became an antipedobaptist, which did not allow for baptism of infants. Sylvanus and Abigail's children had baptismal records before the birth of Warren Cottle, but none after.

In 1760, Sylvanus moved his family and second wife from Martha's Vineyard to Rochester, New York. Abigail Sherman Cottle was from the congested Rochester area and sought more land for all of the children. The Cottle family signed what they believed to be valid land contracts, and prepared to move to the frontier. A total of 318 families constituted the original settlers in the area, but a decade of protests and injunction by King George III kept the actual population small. This changed when Vermont was officially recognized as a territory, separate from New York, in 1790. There was a great exodus from Martha's Vineyard that was contemporary to the time that Sylvanus, Abigail and Warren left the Vineyard in the 1760s.

"The sandy soil was a major factor in the island's economy for, almost without exception, the settlers were English yeomen and farmers. The soil of the Vineyard was best adapted to sheep raising-an industry which required such large acreage that it was not long before the need for more farmland was acute, a second powerful factor in family emigrations." 10

Meanwhile, the Treaty of Fontainebleau ceded territory west of the Mississippi River from France to Spain in 1762. In 1771, town records show that Sylvanus Cottle served in Joseph Marsh's Regiment of Militia. Town records also state that the brothers Sylvanus and Joseph Cottle went to Woodstock, Vermont (still within the boundaries of New York) in 1772 to explore the area. Sylvanus and Joseph moved to Woodstock and selected land for their extended family.