Two Sides to the Story in 1862 - Myron Coloney's Lake Ida homestead burned.

(photo: a Minnesota log cabin)Myron Coloney wrote: "Manomin : a rhythmical romance of Minnesota, the great rebellion, and the Minnesota massacres"
It is dedicated to Andreas Darling, early settler in Alexandria, Douglas County, on the shores of Lake Darling. He was murdered in Missouri after the Civil War. The intro to the book explains what happened, from Myron Coloney's point of view.
The rest of the book is an epic poem, written in the style of Longfellow, popular at the time, about life on Lake Ida and in Douglas County. It of course has a hero, and a beautiful Indian maiden. Proceeds from the book were to go for Andreas Darlings body to be shipped back to Alexandria for burial. A Darling descendant and family researcher, Jean Tomlinson, believes that he is still buried at Rolla, Missouri, the location of the Union Farm, as it was renamed by Myron Coloney. (Hamilton Lennox Plantation)

The full text of the book Manomin (meaning wild rice) is found here:

http://www.archive.org/stream/manominroma00colorich/manominroma00colorich_djvu.txt

As for the burning of his home on Lake Ida, Myron Coloney writes that while he was away from his homestead on Lake Ida, and in Chicago during 1862:

"When the Sioux massacres commenced I was fortunately away from home. My wife had gone to Chicago to visit her parents, and I was travelling through Indiana purchasing sheep. My house and its contents were burned and several of the neighbors, living higher up the road, were killed."

This is another version of the story, published locally:

http://www.cpinternet.com/dwagner2/genie/genmil24.htm

from "Alexandria Post News" © Thursday, August 19, 1897 Page 1

"Editor Post News -- Our old settlers will remember the first piano brought into Douglas county. It was the property of Mrs. Myron Colony and was brought from Chicago in 1860. It was a source of delight to the young Alexandrians of those days, as was also Mr. Colony's fine library. Both piano and library went up in smoke on the shore of lake Ida while the family was absent in Chicago. J. F. Dicken was "batching it" (that was before he found a Darling) and looking after the place. One morning on going out to the hay field he took the trouble to change his best boots for a pair decidedly the worse for wear, and coming back toward evening found that a timber fire had run in and burned up house, boots and all. We believe Jim mourns for those boots yet."

It was common at that time, when logging, to cut off all the branches and brush, and leave them in the woods. This dry tinder fueled timber fires quite readily.

The actual cause of the fire is not noted.