An illustrated history of Lyon County, Minnesota, Part 37

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Marshall, Minn. : Northern History Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 726

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Early in 1901 a newspaper bearing a Russell date line made its appearance, printed in an outside office. In May of the same year W. J. Huddleston took a plant to the little town and established the Russell Review, which he conducted until October, 1905. Then he purchased an interest in the Cottonwood Current

publieation of the paper was continued by the parties holding the bill of sale, who not only controlled the office and business, but seized the subscription list and demanded and received the mail of the late editor. Mr. Smith now brings suit against his successors for damages, claiming that the bill of sale was confined to the material of the office."-Marshall News- Messenger, October 25, 1907.

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IHISTORY OF LYON COUNTY.

and left Russell without a newspaper. After a lapse of three weeks the Russell Review was revived. C. P. Eastman purchased Mr. Huddleston's interests, picked up a plant by purchase from several offices, and early in November got out his first issue. It was up-hill work publishing a paper in a village the size of Russell, b'ut he kept it alive until December, 1906, when he moved the plant to Osakis, Minnesota.

Russell was not long without an organ of publicity. On May 16, 1907, L. H. Rairdon founded the Russell Anchor. He conducted it until March, 1909, and it was then purchased by two Russell business men, F. S. Purdy and B. Leknes. Those gentlemen were the pub-

lishers until July 29, 1909, when the present owner, Fred E. Child, purchased the plant. Mr. Child has made a success of the business and has a well equipped office. The Anchor is a six-column quarto, of which four pages are printed in the home office.

After retiring from the Balaton Trib- une, C. H. Smith moved to Garvin and on August 16, 1907, launched the Garvin Leader. It was founded as a six-column folio and that has ever since been the size. Mr. Smith sold the Leader in June, 1911, to ten business men of the village. Since that time the publishers have been John Holden, Jr., and F. D. Pinckney and the editor has been E. M. Jones.

THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY

ASTOR, LENOX AM TILDER FOUNDATIONA

CHAPTER XIX.

REMINISCENT.

I N gathering data for a volume of this kind one runs across many stories of the early days for which no place can be found in the historical part but which are truly interesting and in many instances throw vivid light on early day conditions. These have been preserved and are here incorporated under the chapter heading "Reminis- cent." Some of the stories have been written by early day residents; some are taken from the files of the local press; others are original, prepared by the author from data gathered from personal interviews.

THE PRAIRIE FIRES.

Those who lived in Lyon county dur- ing the years of its early settlement, and up into the eighties, will never forget the alarm caused by the approach of a prairie fire. Many of the present generation are skeptical of the dangers to life and property from this source. Others can but marvel at the conditions that made a prairie fire dangerous or even possible. But conditions in the early days differed greatly from those of the present time. Then there were vast stretches of sparsely settled and un- broken prairie, covered with a dense growth of grass, which in the low places often grew to a great height. In the

fall the grass died and formed a thick covering of highly inflammable material, which "burned like a prairie fire" when it beeame ignited.

When a heavy wind accompanied one of these conflagrations the effect was thrilling. The flames would race over the prairie with the speed of the wind. leaping, bounding, rushing on their fiery way. By day the air would be filled with smoke and cinders and the atmosphere would become hazy; at night the heavens would be illumined by the blaze, and the bright lines of the raging fires could be seen, often miles in length. After the passing, the prairie would be left a blackened waste.

The few scattered settlers were in great danger of loss when one of these fires approached. Many settlers lost their whole belongings, and but few eseaped without loss from this source. "Firebreaks," made by plowing furrows around the buildings or hay stacks, sometimes served as a check to the flames, but with a strong head wind the flames often jumped hundreds of feet, and in such cases the breaks were no protection. The favorite method of fighting fires was by "baek-firing." When one of the terrors of the prairie was seen approaching with the wind, a fire would be set near the property to be saved. This, small at first. could be

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controlled and whipped out on the lee- ward side, leaving the flames to slowly eat their way windward to meet the coming lurid destroyer. Sometimes a space of sufficient width was thus burned over in time to prevent the destruction. In case of a big con- flagration, fire fighting companies would be organized to go out and contend with the flames, using dampened sacks, quilts, or whatever was handy, to whip out the blaze.

Prairie fires continued a menace to the people of Lyon county many years, or until the county had become quite thickly settled and subdued. Seldom did an autumn pass in the early days without one or more disastrous con- flagrations in some part of the county. Several times the villages were threat- ened with destruction, and companies had to be formed to go out and fight the approaching flames.

One of the most destructive of the early day fires occurred in the fall of 1871. It was started in Lyons town- ship, where a homesteader set a fire to burn refuse hay. It spread rapidly, ex- tending south to the Cottonwood river, north to the Yellow Medicine river, and east as far as Redwood Falls. The hay and grain of practically all the settlers in the burned district were consumed and the homes of some of the settlers were destroyed. A little patch of frost- bitten grass was found that had been protected by the river, and the home- steaders cut that to keep their stock through the winter.

The fourteen-year-old daughter of James Armstrong, who lived close to where Marshall was later built, had died the day before of scarlet fever, and preparations for the first funeral in the community were being made when the fire came. The following account of the

fire and the funeral is from the Marshall News-Messenger of September 16, 1887:

C. H. Whitney made the coffin, conducted the funeral, and made the remarks the occasion demanded. The affair was peculiarly sad. The girl died September 28, 1871, and on the follow- ing day a terrible prairie fire raged, burning over the whole country. A few who could gather fought the flames until exhausted. Mr. Whitney was taken to his sod shanty more dead than alive, and the fire swept away everything he had. He had just got the frame of his new house erected and the lumber was on the ground for its completion. All this was de- stroyed, together with all his grain and hay, the fruits of his first year of pioneer life.

That morning he had begun to make a coffin for the body awaiting burial; at night he was so prostrated as to be unable to proceed with the work of the morning, and the night was passed by Mrs. Whitney in caring for her husband and with her own hands finishing the work upon the coffin. The funeral was held the following day, amid the calamities of the loss to settlers by the great fire and the grief at the loss of the first of the little band. To add to the gloom, the atmosphere was yet so dense with smoke from the fire of the previous day and the now distant burning of the prairie that respiration was difficult, and the somberness of the night over- spread the country.

A large tract of country was burned over in August, 1873, and several people lost their homes and other property. This was the first experience with the dreaded racing flames for many of the residents of Lyon county, and a great many were badly frightened.

Another fire of great fierceness and covering considerable area swept the western part of Lyon county about the middle of September, 1877. It started near Sioux Falls and was driven by a strong southwest wind. It ran down both sides of the Redwood river as far as Marshall and was one of the most destructive fires in the county's history.

Illustrative of the velocity with which it traveled: Messrs. H. P. Sanden, E. K. Ronning, C. P. Myran and Christo- pher Johnson, of Shelburne township, had finished threshing and started for Marshall, each hauling a load of wheat to market with ox teams. When they started from home there was no sign of

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HISTORY OF LYON COUNTY.

fire, but they had proceeded only so far as the present site of Russell when the blazing fire was seen approaching, and within a short time the prairies were a blackened waste.

One life was lost in this conflagration. At the C. P. Myran home, near where the village of Florence is now, were Mrs. Myran and two children and Mrs. Henrick Jorgenson, wife of a newcomer who was building on his homestead near by. When the flames approached, the two women went out to the south to "back-fire" and protect the property. The flames came with such speed that the women were unable to accomplish their purpose but were forced to flee for protection. Mrs. Myran reached the dug-out and safety, but Mrs. Jorgenson was overcome at the straw stable and was burned to death.

The straw buildings, threshed grain, hay, chickens and everything except the dug-outs on the C. P. Myran and Christopher Johnson homesteads were destroyed, and those families were robbed of the fruits of their year's labor-the first year of their residence in the county that the grasshoppers had not taken the crop. E. K. Ronning and H. P. Sanden, their neighbors, gener- ously shared their grain with the un- fortunate families and assisted them in rebuilding.

The village of Marshall was in danger from a fire on October 3, 1879, and heroic efforts were necessary to save the town. Illustrative of the methods em- ployed in overcoming the demons of the prairie is the following account of the checking of this fire, published in the Lyon County News of October 8, 1879:

Quite an excitement was created by the sudden appearance of a large fire last Friday afternoon in the vicinity of J. M. Lockey's brick kiln, south of town. It will be remem- 'bered that the wind blew violently at the time

from the south and very many during the day spoke of the difficulty with which a fire could be managed should it once get started. In fact, every one in town had his eyes and ears wide open for an emergency of this kind, and in less than ten minutes after "fire" was yelled, hun- dreds of men were on the spot, armed with brooms, wet rags, shovels, pitchforks, rakes, hoes and everything they could seize hold of and were welting the flames. One man had the tailboard of a lumber wagon, but each used his weapon with a vengeance and the flames were soon cut off. The first two or three, though, who reached the spot were the ones who did the most effective work. ... Now the village is out of danger from fires from that quarter.

During the latter part of October, 1888, prairie fire : were very destructive in several parts of the county and many grain stacks and buildings were burned. Near the newly established station of Russell, on October 31, occurred a very stubborn fire and a human life was sacrificed to its fury. A number of people were fighting the flames on the bluff near the home of Daniel Fellon, and among the number was Mrs. Fellon. The men rushed to head off the flames that were going around a back-fire, leaving Mrs. Fellon behind. The lady's clothing caught fire and she was so badly burned that she died the following day.

GAME IN EARLY DAYS.

In the days before white men came, Lyon county was the home of several species of big game, including bison, elk and deer, and many fur bearing animals. On hunting and trapping expeditions the aborigines visited the county from time immemorial, and later, when settle- ment had been extended to the frontier regions, white trappers were wont to visit the streams with their traps and were richly rewarded.

Small game was abundant-so abun- dant, in fact, that it is not safe to give a truthful account of its abundance at this late day. C. F. Case in the Lyon County Reporter of February 4, 1899,

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told how easy it was to replenish the larder when Lyon county was young. as follows:

A man of resources had little trouble to live on the Minnesota frontier at that time. The air was full of meat. Dueks and geese were frequently so thiek that even we could shoot toward heaven and bring down this manna. The first goose that fell a victim to our sporting habits met with a flat refusal from our better half to eook the bird, for she insisted it must be siek or we never could have shot it. This prejudice died out later when we came home from a hunt and reported that three of us had shot fourteen geese at one shot. That was good hunting, and we felt a very natural delieaey for many months against confessing that when the fourteen fell our gun didn't go off.

The bison was among the first of the big game to depart after the arrival of settlers. The very first settlers occa- sionally saw stray members of this noble animal of the prairies and many evidences of his former presence in the shape of wallows and his bleaching bones scattered over the prairie. A stray buffalo was killed by two Norwegian boys in 1869 at the point in Westerheim township where the two branches of Yellow Medicine river join. The boys were hunting chickens, and the monarch of the plains met his death with charges of bird shot. The elk also departed early, although a few were seen by the Lyon county pioneers. The last of that species of big game was killed on the shore of Lake Marshall in 1870 by Alex Demars, a half-breed.

Deer remained in the county for a longer period. and had their habitat in the woods along the streams. After the October blizzard in 1880 three were shot in the Lynd woods, and at other times during that winter of deep snow several deer were seen in the county.

EARLY COURTS OF JUSTICE. (BY W. M. TODD.)

The early history of Marshall presents nothing more amusing than the first judicial proceedings.

Before the village was organized a certain township justice of the peace issued a summons in a civil process. He took delight in telling of the coming suit and always added that he could not understand why they brought the case before him, for he had heard nothing about it and knew nothing of the par- ticulars. He did not know that his professional ignorance constituted his sole qualification.

After the case had been called and the complaint filed, the attorney for the defendant made a motion to dismiss, on the ground that "the complaint did not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action." After a moment's silence the learned justice assumed an air of judicial dignity and said: “A motion has been made to dismiss; does anyone second the motion?"

During the years I wore the judicial erinine many amusing incidents hap- pened, some of which will never be forgotten.

On a certain occasion I performed a marriage ceremony under quite extra- ordinary circumstances. One day in May I was cleaning up the room, which was used in turn for limber office, court room, council meeting room, etc. The day was intensely warm and I had re- moved coat, vest and collar and rolled up my sleeves; my hands were dirty. my hair disheveled, and drops of per- spiration were trickling over a dust- begrimed face.

While in this condition a Norwegian couple appeared upon the scene to be married. It was about eleven o'clock and I told them that I would go to dinner early, clean myself, and be ready for the ceremony about one o'clock. This would not answer at all. They wanted to be married then and there, without delay. I pleaded in vain for a

PLOWING IN LYON COUNTY

The Machine is Owned by Peter Hanson of Russell.

TRAPPERS AND THEIR CATCH

Furs Taken by Charles and Mynard Burt, Coon Creek Township, in Five Weeks of the 1910 Season. There are Eighty Mink, Thirty-four Skunk, Four Hundred Fifty Rats, One Fox and Twelve Weasels.

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HISTORY OF LYON COUNTY.

-hort postponement and finally told them that in any event I must go home and wash and put on some clean clothes. They would not agree even to that and demanded that the ceremony be per- formed at once.

* I was hardly able to conceal my dis- pleasure at their unreasonable haste and lack of consideration for my em- barrassed appearance, and I jumped up before them and told them to stand up and take hold of hands. Then, turning to the woman, I said: "Do you like him?" She coyly answered "yes." Next addressing the man, I said: "Do you like her?" He blushingly said "yes." "Then go to it." That was the only ceremony and it occupied less than half a minute. The whole party was actually dazed and somewhat dissatisfied over its brevity and lack of formality.

DERIVATION OF "BLIZZARD."

The word blizzard. synonymous with the terrible winter storm of the prairies, was coined during the early settlement of the Northwest. In the early eighties the newspapers of the country filled columns giving the "original" derivation of the word, which then came into general use and in time found its way into the dictionaries. There is evidence that the word was coined in Marshall during the memorable storm of January, 1873. Concerning this, the Lyon Coun- ty News of March 2. 1883, said:

The word blizzard was first used in Marshall, Minnesota, by an American settler, now residing in Iowa. It was in the storm of 1873, at Charles H. Whitney's hotel, and the man was Deacon Seth Knowles, who was a settler of Lyon county near this village. The deacon was a fine German scholar, and while discussing the terrible storm raging without one speeker said no word could express its severity, whereupon the deacon said: "It's a blitzard !"

So the great storm of 1873 was locally known, and with recurring storms the term spread through the state. During late years it has been generally adopted for squalls in the eastern states, which as compared with a genuine

blizzard are no more than zephyrs. The deacon knew what he was talking about and adapted the term to the terrors of the storm. A German witnessing one of these overpowering storms would say:

"Der Sturm kommt blitzartig,"

which, translated into English, would be: "The storm comes lightning-like."

The transition from blitzartig to blizzard is natural and easy, while no word could better describe the oncoming snow and wind storm, -and certainly there is no English word to fill the bill. The newness of the term and its pronunciation led the deacon to step to the counter of the hotel and write the word for the benefit of his friends.

THE LONG WINTER.

A book could be filled with the ad- ventures and unpleasant features of the long winter of deep snows, 1880-81. For weeks the people of Lyon county were isolated, without mail and seantily supplied with fuel, provisions and many other necessities of life. The incon- veniences. were borne good naturedly as a general thing, and the humor of the situation was often manifested.

During the last days of March, 1881, when not a train had been run for more than two months, an effort was made to open the road at Marshall, and an engine which had been "dead" there for many long weeks was fired up with wood that had been the coaling plat- form. C. C. Whitney, of the News, told of the effect on the people of the sound of the locomotive's whistle and bell, as follows:

Wednesday afternoon the good people of Marshall were amazed and somewhat alarmed at hearing loud, shrill and frightful shrieks, and only those knowing to the facts could account therefor. Children ran to their mothers, women were almost speechless, and the sterner sex trembled with fear, many calling to mind Mother Shipton's prophecy that in 1881 the world would come to an end. But there was no call for such consternation, in reality.

In other countries and even in some parts of America, it is said, they have what are called locomotives, a kind of huge machine, which is made to run with steam, and these so-called iron horses draw coaches through the country at a rapid rate of speed. To alarm people of their approach these locomotives have attached a large bell and whistle.

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HISTORY OF LYON COUNTY.

It was one of these strange machines, running about near the river and blowing its terrible whistle, which caused the alarm to our people. We understand these machines are quite harm- less, unless a person gets in front of them, and that they run along very fast in good weather, but that they are afraid of snow and ean only be used in portions of the country where no snow falls. It is hinted that some time next summer, the Lord willing, some of these loco- motives will be used to draw coaches and freight through this section of country. But we haven't much faith in such notions and think the old-fashioned way of having horses to draw the passengers, freight and mail from Sleepy Eye far more reliable, take it all the year around.

A PIONEER MINISTER.

Rev. W. T. Ellis played an important part in the early affairs of Lyon county. He was one of the founders of Lynd and Camden, a pioneer minister, store- keeper and promoter, and a leader in early day affairs. In a way he was a character and many stories have been told of hi; doings. The following de- scription of Rev. Ellis is from the pen of C. F. Case, written in 1898:

Probably this Rev. Ellis was for a time the most celebrated man in the county. We re- member him as a preacher of some talent and a good deal of originality. Governed almost en- tirely by impulse, it was a wild guess what might be expected of him next. At a revival meeting he would make the pictures on the wall weep for the sins of the world, and as a Sunday School teacher he would fire the pupils with ambition to walk in the footsteps of Moses and the prophets, but he would also run horses on Sunday for the whisky, beat his best friend in a trade, and swear like a Spanish pirate when he got mad. Being overheard once by a lady damning his cattle away up in G, he apologized by saying that he had bought them from a very profane man and that he had to quote the language they were aceustomed to before they thought his admonitions in earnest. Since eaving here he has been illustrated in the Police Gazette for trying to break up a seditious church meeting by pounding the congregation with the pulpit Bible.

In business Rev. Ellis was governed by the same impulsiveness. If dried apples were cheap in his opinion and for sale on time, he bought a ton of them and other goods with the same reckless abandon. It is said that one of his dried apple loads, topped out with half a ton of codfish, was caught in a heavy shower on its way from New Ulm and raised so high that he could only take the prairie road to Lynd and had to spread his load over forty acres to dry again in the sun. The addition to this story,

which we once made, that the Flandreau Indians smelled the drying codfish and, thinking it the camp of a Chippewa enemy, went on the warpath, we here admit was imtrue. The odors did not reach farther than Lake Benton.

A RAILROAD STRIKE.

When the Dakota Central railroad was being constructed in the summer of 1879, the workmen engaged in a strike which created great excitement and necessitated a visit from the governor and the calling out of the militia. The wildest rumors were sent out concerning depredations committed by the strikers. but as a matter of fact very little damage was done.

On the morning of June 16, 1879. thirty-one shovelers working four miles west of Tracy struck and demanded in- creased wages. Their employer refused the demands and told the men to go to Tracy and get their pay. The workmen at the next camp to the west also struck when they heard of the action-of the others, and a large number of the strikers started west to incite the other camps and make the strike general.

Nearly all the workmen joined the strikers and those that were inclined otherwise were forced to join the ranks. The several construction crews became a mob. The march to the west con- tinued until nightfall and camp was pitched on the Redwood river. On the morning of the seventeenth the mol) continued the march toward Lake Ben- ton. All except the camp farthest west suspended work and the army of strikers began the march back to Tracy. Many were mounted, and when some of those forced into the strike attempted to escape they were run down and again made to join the ranks.

The foreman in charge of the con- struction work was making a tour of inspection near Lake Benton when the trouble occurred. He eluded the strikers

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by taking a circuitous route and reached Tracy early on the morning of Tuesday. the seventeenth. He at once asked aid from the county authorities.

Sheriff Hunter was informed that the strikers were waging war on the settlers, contractors, boarding house keepers and others and that a general riot was feared. The peace officer at once swore in about twenty deputies, who, armed with rusty muskets, took the noon train for the seat of trouble. The sheriff sent out a mounted scouting party to reconnoitre and they reported an army of 200 strikers to be fifteen miles west of Tracy. It was feared the sheriff's company would not be strong enough to cope with the mob and a call was sent for the state militia.

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An illustrated history of Lyon County, Minnesota, Part 37

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970 Publication date: 1912 Publisher: Marshall, Minn. : Northern History Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 726

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Marshall, Minn. : Northern History Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 726