By Jessica Gorman

The man credited with founding Minden, Carel Hansen Veeder, more commonly known as Charles Veeder, was born 1 October 1795 in Schenectady, New York to John C. Veeder and Eva Toll. His ancestors, Dutch immigrants, were among the early settlers of Schenectady in the 1660s. 

Veeder served in the War of 1812 and then enrolled at Union College in Schenectady from which he graduated in 1817. He married Ann Boyd and they had at least two children, Catherine and James Boyd, by the time they moved to Indiana.

The Veeders were there when the town of Rushville, Indiana was founded in 1821. Charles Veeder was appointed the first postmaster of Rushville, served as the second county recorder, and established the first library. He is also said to have drafted the plans for the Rush County courthouse. 

In 1822, he was admitted to the bar and began to practice law. This did not mean that he did not also find himself on the receiving end of legal action. In fact, he was involved in the first case from Rush County to be appealed to the Indiana Supreme Court. In 1825, Veeder got into a physical altercation with William Klumm. It was reported “they were in close combat, rolling on the ground.” They were indicted and found guilty by the county court. The case went to the Supreme Court where they were successful in having the verdict overturned. 

In Rush County, evidence of recurring money problems is found. Veeder was sued by Neff & Brothers to collect a debt of $566.92. His mother and brother had to step in after the death of his father and take legal action to regain property owned by John Veeder’s estate that had been lost to debt. In John Veeder’s will, he leaves only one dollar to Charles, an amount disproportionate to his siblings. I can’t help but wonder if this was confirmation that Charles wasn’t good with money and his father knew it.

From the late 1820s until he shows up in North Louisiana, evidence of Charles Veeder’s whereabouts gets a little murky. Some sources give his wife Ann’s date of death as 1830 and indicate that she died in Louisiana either in New Orleans or in Ouachita Parish. I have yet to find a primary source to confirm this. Whatever the case, Veeder married a second time to Lavinia Watkins in Livingston County, Kentucky on 15 July 1834.

A year later, the Veeders were in Claiborne Parish where their daughter, Cornelia was born. The site that was to become Minden was purchased on 8 July 1835. It had previously been the home of Adam Stewart and his family. It is said that the town was laid out the following year. In 1837, he sold over half the property to Reuben and W.A. Drake, Benjamin Frazier, and Thomas Gibbs. That same year, he also purchased property with John Cordes and John LaPlace in what is now Bienville Parish.

Minden attracted people of means and while many became very successful, Charles Veeder continued to struggle. By 1839, he and his new son-in-law, Miers Fisher, had accumulated a significant debt owed to Paul Tulane, for whom Tulane University is named. Property was sold at sheriff’s sale to satisfy the judgement against them.

It has been said that Charles Veeder simply left Minden for the Gold Rush, but the continued loss of property to satisfy debts seems to indicate that his options here had run out. Oldest daughter Catherine and her family moved to New Orleans while the rest of the family set out for California.

In California, they first settled in Vallejo where Veeder thought he was making a solid investment in a hotel to provide lodging for state officials. He wasn’t counting on the state capital moving almost immediately. In a letter to the Petaluma Argus-Courier, Veeder said this decision left him penniless.

Next, Veeder moved his hotel to Petaluma but didn’t stay long. He moved north again and founded the town of Calpella. In 1857, rumors circulated that Veeder and his family had been massacred in the Ukiah Valley, but those rumors turned out to be false. In Calpella, he worked as an attorney and notary public while also being active in politics. He ran for public office and, in 1862, was named a delegate to represent Mendocino County at the Democratic State Convention. He also made news for growing a squash that reportedly weighed in at 107 pounds.

Veeder didn’t stay in his new town but moved yet again, heading south to Bakersfield where he continued work as an attorney. Charles Veeder died the next year. On 14 September 1875, the Sacramento Bee reported his death. “Col. Veeder, a ’49 pioneer, died in Kern county last week, at the age of 79.”

(Jessica Gorman is Executive Director of the Dorcheat Historical Association Museum, Webster Parish Historian, President of the Minden Cemetery Association, and an avid genealogist.)