U.S.S. Argosy
On August 21, 1865, the steamer, U.S.S. Argosy, (Number 3), was caught in a storm, blown aground and her boilers exploded. Ten fatalities occurred among Union soldiers returning home from was service. They were buried in a mass grave one half mile from Magnet (Rono), Indiana, where memorial markers perpetuate this burial ground.
Magnet was first called Dodson’s Landing in 1820 after John Dodson who operated a woodyard for steamboats. In the 1830s Jess Martin tookover the woodyard and it then became Martin’s Landing. He owned a widely regarded coon-dog named Rono. When the dog died it was buried near the center of the docking area. The Job Hatfield family arrived with a store boat around 1842. He became the post master when the post office opened on July 29, 1857, it was named Rono. On February 24, 1899 the name was changed to Magnet; the office was closed in early 1990s.