An illustrated history of Nobles County, Minnesota, Part 37

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970
Publication date: 1908
Publisher: Worthington, Minn. : Northern History
Number of Pages: 738

USA > Minnesota > Nobles County > An illustrated history of Nobles County, Minnesota > Part 37

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

The farmer in the older states east and south can dispose of an eighty acre farm, and with the proceeds purchase a quarter section in Nobles county, and in making the change he will lose none of

291

HISTORY OF NOBLES COUNTY.

the advantages and conveniences enjoyed. There will be no frontier hardships to endure, no years of lonely toil in a sparsely settled country, nothing lack- ing in the way of social pleasures or the advantages of schools and churches.

Another advantage in Nobles county that must not be lost sight of is its proximity to the great primary market. It is within easy reach of the great Minneapolis, St. Paul, Sioux City, Oma- ha and Chicago markets. Their near- ness and the low freight rates in effect insure high prices for farm products sold there and low prices for commodi- ties purchased there.

Nobles county holds most alluring prospects for farmers who are in search

of rich and productive lands close to markets, where they may establish homes amid schools and churches and congen- ial surroundings. There are some tracts of land yet to be put under cultivation, and there are large farms that may be subdivided, while other farms that are now in the hands of renters might be improved by resident owners.

The county is capable of supporting more than three times as many farmers as it now has. The local creameries want more eream, the merchants want more eggs and poultry, the elevators want more grain, the stock buyers want more cattle and hogs, and all around is a demand for the products of Nobles county that will never be filled.

CHAPTER XXIV.

REMINISCENT.

A PRAIRIE FIRE.

Those who lived in Nobles county during the years of its early settlement will never forget the alarm caused by the approach of a prairie fire. Many of the present generation are sceptical 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 day. Then there were vast stretches of sparse- ly settled and unbroken prairie, covered with a dense growth of rank 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 inflam- mable material, which "burned like a prairie fire" when it became 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 its fiery way. By day the air would be filled with smoke and cinders and the atmos- phere 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 the greatest danger when one of these fires approached. Many settlers lost the. whole belongings, and but few escaped without loss from this source. "Fire- breaks," 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 ease the breaks were of no use. The favorite method of fighting tire was by "back-firing." When one of the ter- rors of the prairie was seen approach- ing with the wind, a fire would be set near the property to be saved. This, small at first, could be controlled and whipped out on the leeward side, leaving the flames to slowly cat their way windward to meet the oncoming lurid destroyer. Sometimes a space of suffi- cient width would thus be burned over in time to prevent the destruction. In case of a big conflagration 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 Nobles county many years or until the county had been settled and subdued. Seldom did a fall pass in the carly days without one or more disas- trous conflagrations in some part of

293

201

HISTORY OF NOBLES COUNTY.

the county. The story of one of these tires will be given as an illustration.

On Saturday afternoon, October 16, 18:5, a dense smoke extending north- ward for several miles was seen rising above the prairie to the west of Worth- ington, then practically the ouly vil- lage of the county. It was evident that an extensive prairie fire was raging at some point miles away. As night came on the bright lines of the fire became visible, and by ten o'clock the fires had approached so near the town as to be thought dangerous. Several squads of men went out from Worthington and fought the fire at points where the prairie in the immediate vicinity of town was exposed. The fire approached to within one mile of the village from the west.

The fire had started on the west side of the Kanaranzi. It jumped the creek and burned the whole country from that point to Worthington, burning over the greater portions of Olney, Dewald, Summit Lake and Worthington townships. The damage to property was about $5,000. The greatest loss was sustained by Mr. Thom, who had about 200 bushels of wheat in the stack burned. A number of persons lost hay, ranging in quantity from one to twenty tons cach.

In the early days the starting of a prairie fire, whether intentionally or otherwise, was a crime, and stops were at oner taken to apprehend the guilty party. The origin of the fire was soon learned. Spencer Maxwell stated that he had come in from the west during the day and that he had soon the beginning of the fire. lle had seen a trainster start a fire for the purpose of cooking his dinner at a point just be- yond the Kanaranzi, that the lire got beyond his control and soon covered acres of ground. A stiff breeze was blowing

from the west and the flames spread with great rapidity.

John Alley, who did more than any other man in the community to im- press upon the public the importance of preventing prairie fires, insisted that the party should be promptly arrested Sheriff Bullis, accompanied by Spencer Maxwell, was soon on his way westward to seek the teamster. The officer went as far as Valley Springs, Dakota, where he learned that the man wanted was on the road south of the main traveled Sioux Falls road. He hastened in the direction indicated and arrested the man in Martin township, Rock county.

A Norwegian by the name of Nels Nel- son proved to be the man. He was tak- en to Worthington on the eighteenth and there arraigned before Justice of the Peace Bennett. Nelson pleaded guilty and was fined $60 and costs, bringing the total up to $90. Imprisonment in the Blue Earth county jail for ninety days was the alternative of paying the fine. Nelson's story of the start of the fire was as follows: He was engaged in team- ing for a Sioux Falls party, and on Saturday was returning to that town from Worthington. After crossing the Kanaranzi he drove aside from the main road into a by-road and started a fire to cook a meal. lle whittled some pine shavings and lighted them, when a gust of wind scattered them among the prairie grass, and in a mo- ment the fire was beyond his control.

The story and the evidence of others went to show that the fire was the result of carelessness merely, and that the case was an unfortunate one. Nelson claim- ed that there was enough money due him in Sioux Falls to pay his fine and the costs, and the court did not impose sen- tence at once. Ile was permitted to go to work in Worthington with the under-

295

HISTORY OF NOBLES COUNTY.

standing that he was to pay the fine as was in fact an athlete of no mean pro- portion.

soon as the money could be collected. Ile was pardoned by the governor in Novem- ber. upon the recommendation of a number of the citizens of the county. Mr. Maxwell received $100 offered by the county for information leading to the conviction of the guilty party.

"THE WILD GIRL."

The history of Nobles county would be incomplete without a word about Caroline Harrison, "the wild girl," who came to the Graham Lakes country with the early settlers and there lived the rude life of the trappers for a few years. Many stories of her doings-most of them of imaginative origin-have been told, to the effect that she was in reality a wild girl, that she lived alone in the timber on the lake, and that on one occasion she drove a party of surveyors out of the country at the point of a rifle.

Miss Harrison was the eldest daughter of Benjamin Ilarrison, one of the com- missioners appointed by Governor Hor- are Austin to organize Nobles county. Her mother died when she was quite young and Caroline became the com- panion of her father. Hunting and trap- ping, living on the frontier and denied the society of her own sex, she was at home in the company of the frontiers- men. She could play the violin, shoot, trap, chew tobacco and occasionally swear. While she was short in stature sho weighed perhaps 180 pounds, and. notwithstanding her weight, could walk thirty or thirty-five miles in a day. lift a twenty-five pound sack .of shot from one shoulder to the other, swim a mile or more without apparent fatigue, and

Her rough manners were the result of her association, as was demonstrated when she began her association with the neighbor women. She then began to check her rude habits, and before she left the county she had given up all except the violin. She afterward fell heir to a small sum of money and had the good sense to use it in obtaining an education.

WORTHINGTON'S FIRST SALOON.

All the old-timers are familiar with the efforts put forth to make Worthing- ton a temperance town, which efforts were successful for several years during the early history of the town. However. numerous efforts were made by several diferent parties to sell liquor, which ef- forts generally resulted disastrously. We have the story of the first saloon-if it may be so termed-which opened in Worthington from one who was a resi- dent of the village at the time. From the facts regarding this first attempt we may form the opinion that this initial "drunk shop" did very little harm.

One of the enterprising business men, in the fall of 18:1, shipped in a tive gallon jug of whiskey. Then came the blockade, and no more could be procured until late the next spring. but this did not prevent the storekeeper from doing a thriving business in his side line. There were two residents of Worthing- ton who were regular patrons of this five gallon jug. who were wont to toss a coin several times a day to decide who should "buy."

Knowing that it was impossible that any more should have been shipped in and that the supply at the start was

246

HISTORY OF NOBLES COUNTY.

limited as stated, these two gentlemen, along in the spring. began to make cal- culations and found to their great sur- prise that they must have consumed at least forty gallons of the liquor. This was a stunner and hard to reconcile with the facts. It began to dawn upon these gentlemen that perhaps the liquor had Wwwen adulterated, and they called upon a friend to investigate the matter. The friend was one who did not drink, and his judgment was asked for that reason. They figured that, as they had been ac- customed to drinking the liquor, their taste might have become perverted, and that the non-drinking friend would be a better judge of the liquid than they who had become so accustomed to it.

So they asked him to sample the li- quor and ascertain if he could find any trace of whiskey 'in it. This the friend consented to do. First he smelled the cork, and then tasted the contents of the bottle. After several trials he gave it as his opinion that the cork had a per- ceptible odor of whiskey, but that he could detect no trace in the bottle. And so it proved to be. When a quart of whiskey had been sold a quart of rain- water had taken its place, and so grad- ual had been the change that the tastes of the customers had been educated up to drinking rainwater.

This is a true story.

BATTLE OF STONY POINT.

In 1896 some Worthington gentlemen found in lake Okabena an old-fashioned single-barreled shot gun of the style in use years ago. The barrel of the gun was deeply encrusted with rust, and the stock, which was of black walnut. was badly caten and washed thin by inces-

sant contact with the waves of more than a quarter of a century. How the old gun came to be there was of course an unsolved mystery, but the Worthington llerald editor had a dream and printed it. Here is the story he wove about the old gun :

"AAway back in the early sixties, so the story runs, a party of Sioux Indians be- longing to the band of the ferocious and blood thirsty Inkpadutah, who conducted the massacre at Spirit Lake, were en- camped at Stony Point [on West Oka- bona lake] laying in a supply of fish. This was but a few days after the Spirit Lako butchery, and United States cav- alry was scouring the country in search of the terrible chief and his band.

"While the Indians were quietly fish- ing a detachment of soldiers suddenly appeared behind them, deployed in a semi-circle, so that escape to the north, south and east was impossible. In this predicament the Indians phinged into the lake, which was very deep in those days, and by swimming under water all but one managed to elude the bullets of their. pursuers and escape in safety to the other side. They took their weap- ons with them. The one mentioned. when abont two hundred yards from the shore, raised himself from the water to yell defiance at the troops on the bank. It was his last yell on earth. A sharp crack from a musket, a short struggle in the water, and the Sioux brave sunk to a watery grave. Finding it useless to continue the pursuit, the soldiers took the back trail to the eastward."

THE DIAGONAL ROAD.

One of the best known publie thor- oughfares of southwestern Minnesota is the diagonal wagon road which extends

THE RAGING KANARANZI

RELIC OF THE EARLY DAYS

The above is a picture of a pine box, five inches wide, six inches long, and two inches deep, covered with a shingle, which for many years was the only piece of furniture that adorned the postoffice at Hebbard and later at Adrian. In it were kept the stamps and small change of the Hebbard office, and when the postoffice was moved to the new town of Adrian the primitive postoffice box was taken along. Many west end residents will recognize this reminder of pioneer days. The box is now in the possession of A. J. Rice, having been presented to him by Thomas H. Childs in 1891. The latter succeeded Sam Hebbard as postmaster of Hebbard office and became Adrian's first postmaster.

THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY

ASTOR LENOX ANM T'DAFY NDA ONC.

297

HISTORY OF NOBLES COUNTY.

from Worthington due northwest, diag- onally across the sections, for a distance of about fourteen miles, ending a mile and a half east of Wilmont. To realize the importance of this road in the early days it must be remembered that up to recent years the whole of northwestern Nobles county-a rich and productive territory-was without a railroad and far from market. Until the Worthing- ton & Sioux Falls railroad was built and Adrian and Rushmore were founded the trade of this whole northwest country came to Worthington, and after that event much of it went to the county seat town. The building of the diagonal road shortened the route to market several miles and proved of great benefit to the farmers and the business men of Worth- ington.

To B. W. Lyon belongs, primarily, the credit for the making of the road. It was he who conceived the idea, aud he who drew up the petitions and circular- ed them. The county commissioners took favorable action and formally establish -. . ed the road as county road No. 9. Sur- veyor B. W. Woolstencroft laid out the road, in which he was assisted by Mr. Lyon. The latter was the first to drive a team (an ox team) over the proposed road, which he did without making a single detour from a straight line. The railroad company donated the land of its sections over which the road passed and took a friendly interest in the pro- cecdings. Efforts to make the diagonal road a thing of beauty as well as useful were made. The railroad company of- fered free of charge willow shoots to line the road if the farmers and others would planl them. Along only a short distance of the road were the trees planted.

The diagonal road was kept in repair and became the most traveled thorough -. fare of the county. After the building

of the Burlington road, however, and markets had been established at several points in northwestern Nobles county, the old road lost much of its usefulness. Then the northwestern end had little ex- cept "through" travel on it, and it was kept in repair under protest. In 190% a petition was presented to the county board, signed by many farmers along the road who considered the land of more value for farming than for road pur- poses, asking that it be abandoned. Re- monstrance's poured in protesting against any such action, as much from senti- ment, possibly, as from any other cause. The action of the board is related by the commissioners' journal of November 20, 1902:

"On motion the petition was rejected on account of the overwhelming remon- strances. The petition was not reason- able on its face." .

A MIRAGE.

The year of the arrival of the Na- tional colonists to Nobles county was one of interest in many respects, and not the least item of interest were the mirages which occurred. The autumn of that year, from the middle of Sep- tember to the middle of October, was a genuine Indian Summer. The nights were crisp and frosty, but the days were soft and crystal clear, and the hum of the thresher could be heard for miles.

On some mornings the looming mir- age cast a glamour over the prairies and changed them into an enchanted land. People at first doubted their senses and feared for their reason when they saw the country for tifly miles in all directions raised into view, lakes,

HISTORY OF NOBLES COUNTY.

the villages, not ordinarily visible, appearing hke apparitions invoked by sony enchanter's wand.

The most wonderful phenomenon of do- nature occurred October 1, 1872. The mirage lasted until nearly an hour after - inre and was witnessed by many people. Upon those who saw it. it had almost a weird effect and threw a sort of poetic glamour over the whole region which lasted a long time after the vision was gone. So clear was the atmosphere and so distinct were remote objects that the houses in the village of Hersey, not ordinarily visible from Worthington, were revealed almost to their foundations, The timber on Gra- ham lakes appeared like a grove half way between Worthington and the hori- zom, and as far north as the ave could reach there were dim outlines of more timber. probably on lake Shetek. be- tween thirty and forty miles distant. The Time of timber along Des Moines over could be traced from Jackson to Window. Groups of houses stood out on the prairie in every direction, look- ing like small villages. It certainly was a fairy land upon which the carly ettlers gazed in wonder.

THE FIRST CIRCUS.

Things of small importance in them- "we are sometimes treasured in the memory because of association. So it happens that the coming of a circus the first in the county -= is remembered by many of the carly settlers, It was in the summer of 1973 that Barnum & Bailey's sirens exhibited in the little town of Worthington and thereby added to the carly history of the village.

That place was selected for an exhi- bition point for a two-fold reason- tir-t. because the long "jumps" between show towns on the western frontier made necessary a stop at some smaller town, and second. because of the fact that the lake at Worthington offered a splendid wallow for the animals of the menagerie. It was a big day for Worth- ington, and the little village was lilled to overflowing. From Dakota, lowa. and southern Minnesota points people by the hundreds came to see the cir- cus. many making a two and three days' trip.

AN OLD STOVE.

In several places in this volume, mention has been made of a party of Scandinavian railroad laborers who in Isil took claims near the Bigelow-In- dian Lake township line and became carly and permanent settlers. - Those men became identified with the part of the county in which they located, and near- ly all of them are residents of the county today.

Four members of the party. Hans Ny- strom, Brick Malberg. (. .. Wickstrom and Peter Wiekstrom, have the honor of having bought the first stove in No- bles county. In the fall of 1871 these gentlemen went to Worthington and in partnership invested thirty dollars in a cook slove. Inying from H. W. Kim- ball, who had just opened his hardware store, the first one in the county. Dur- ing the list winter all members of the party made their homes at the house of E. Nordquist, in Indian Lake lown- ship, and there the stove was initiated to the rigors of a Minnesota winter climate.

299

IIISTORY OF NOBLES COUNTY.

In the spring of 1812 each of the settlers moved onto his own claim, and the stove was purchased by Hans Ny- strom. In his pioneer home it saw service many years, and into its fire- box were stuffed many thousand twists of hay-the fuel in general use in carly days. The old stove was on duty at the Nystrom home until three years ago, and then, its days of usefulness having passed, it passed into the hands of a junk dealer.

TRIBULATIONS.

Viany stories-some of amusing na- ture now, but of a serious nature at the time-have been toki of cary day hfe m Nobles county. During the terrible grasshopper scourge the settlers suf- tered unrecorded trials. The stories of such alone would fiff a volume of this size.

Indicative of the times, it has been related that a prominent and, later, successful farmer of Summit Lake town- smtp was one winter's day hauling a load of hay to Worthington, with the pro- cerds from the sale of which he ex- pected to buy provisions. The weather was unpleasant and the snow was deep. Over miserable roads he was having anything but a pleasant time and sue- cessful trip, and on seven occasions the load tipped over. On one such he was assisted in getting the load to rights by D. W. Chute, another Summit Lake farmer. The unfortunate owner of the hay was disgusted and exclaimed :

"If we were not out of flour I would set fire to the d- load."

THE FIRST DEMOCRAT. -

Almost without exception the first settlers of Nobles county were repub-

the twully ias iol gul over it to lilis

latedMinDasiy updbileall tilat uit asl- ing Of d utchain iWe was ad twin.

At the eicetion of 1011, out of a total Vote of to, there was only one democratic barfot. horace Austin, re- and winthrop Young, aumocrat, re- cenved one vote, and so on down the state ticket, for lieutenant governor, sec- retary of state, treasurer, attorney gen- oral and associate justices of the su- preme court. The lone democrat was Michael siagune, of Graham Lakes township, who then, and ever since has, "voted it straight." He is the father of the democratic party of Nobles county.

Far trom the centers of political strife, the little community on Graham lakes took no great interest in anything but local pohties, but a few of the leaders took it upon themselves to do a little elec- tioneering for the state ticket. Mr. Ma- guire at that time had no hide-bound party affiliation, but it was surmised he had leanings toward democracy. A few of the influential men of the community argued long and persistently with Jir. Maguire on the infallibility of the re- publican party and the shortcomings of the opposition.

"They hounded me alnost to death." said Mr. Maguire when asked about the incident, "talking their politics, and ! finally made up my mind to vote the democratic ticket to spite them. They made a democrat of me for good."

INCIDENT OF THE SIXTIES.

The following account of an inci- dent connected with the early days in

300

HISTORY OF NOBLES COUNTY.

Grata Make- town-taip was written by of a willow, which must have been sever- Juge B. W. Wookteneroft in 1877, al feet under water at the time he was drowned. eight years after the event described : "When we first came to Nobles county dr marest market was Jackson, thirty miks thistant, and the nearest flouring mill was at Garden City. eighty miles away. We were often on the road in Vere weather and had many a narrow tape from the blinding snow or high water in the stream>.

"Early in the spring of 1869 John Freeman and E. J. Clark started to Jackson for provisions. They had a team of horses belonging to Stephen Muck. On arriving at Heron lake out- let they found the stream terribly swollen with the recent thaw. but, nothing daunted, John took a fresh chew of tobacco to float on' and drove in. When half way across the stream the wagon turned over. precipitating them into the water. Clark, though an indifferent swimmer, got ashore, Imt Freeman was drowned. His body was found some days afterward about sixty rods down the stream, where he had caught hoki

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

An illustrated history of Nobles County, Minnesota, Part 37

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970 Publication date: 1908 Publisher: Worthington, Minn. : Northern History Number of Pages: 738

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970
Publication date: 1908
Publisher: Worthington, Minn. : Northern History
Number of Pages: 738