A history of Montana, Volume II, Part 67

Author: Sanders, Helen Fitzgerald, 1883-
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1002

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William A. Allen was born in Summerfield, Noble county, Ohio, September 2, 1848, and is a son of Robert T. and Rachel (Guiler) Allen, and a grandson of John and Mary (Blundle) Allen. John Allen was the son of Sir John Allen, of England, a cousin of Ethan Allen, the famous Revolutionary patriot, and was first a sea- faring man and later a farmer. Dr. Allen's maternal grandparents were William and Mary (Franklin) Guiler, the former a native of Ireland and the latter a cousin of Benjamin Franklin.

Dr. William A. Allen is one of the oldest and most honored among the dental practitioners of Mon- tana, and now has his home office in the First Na- tional Bank building in Billings. After leaving the public schools of Summerfield, Ohio, in 1866, he en- tered the Normal school there, and on completing his studies learned the trade of a blacksmith, a vocation which he followed in connection with working as a gun- smith until 1877. Early in that year he started for the Black Hills, and at Spearfish, Dakota, joined a party of two hundred and fifty persons. On the morning of June 4, 1877, a party of citizens from Deadwood were attacked by Indians within sight of the camp of Dr. Allen's party, and eight people, including a woman and a deputy sheriff, were massacred. The bodies were brought in and buried, and Dr. Allen with twenty picked men followed the Sioux Indians down the Spearfish to a small stream known as Hay Creek, where the Indians were surprised in their camp and eleven were killed, while their horses, twenty-two in number, were destroyed. While this party was ab- sent from the camp of the whites, eight wagons had left it and started for the Red Water Crossing, where they were surrounded by the hostile Indians and were . in a most precarious position until relief came. The Doctor and his band returning from Hay Creek met Calamity Jane, who informed them that the Nickel- son party was surrounded by Indians at Red Water Crossing, and the story of the rescue and the sub- sequent experiences of the party is here given in the words of the doctor, as follows: "We had seen sig- nals sent out to the north during the previous night, and knew the Sioux were planning mischief. Calamity Jane was carrying mail to a new camp to the south, so we hurried along and when we reached camp found that Nickelson, Lions and others of the party had left for Red Water. We set out hurriedly for that place and reached the Crossing at 3:30. Just as the day began to streak the eastern horizon the Indians came with their horrible yell, painted and ready for battle. But we were lying in ambush waiting their attack and

when they cleared the brow of the rim rock we poured the contents of twenty-eight rifles into their unsuspecting midst. The hail of lead soon told its story and fourteen of the band lay on the flat among the stones, while the remainder fled to the hills. The women became very much excited, and we were soon on the return to Spearfish, where we met our former comrades. Two of our party were wounded, myself and another, and a trapper who did not belong to our party was killed. Just below the crossing two others were killed on the previous day. Their horses were stolen and their outfits burned, and the charred re- mains of the wagon was all that remained. At this juncture the train camped, and having combined two factions, we came very near to settling the old grudge with rifles. Lions had told certain of his crowd where a large placer deposit was located on the Stink- ing Water, and others of the crowd stoutly disputed the existence of any such gold deposit on a large val- ley with a clear stream running through it. I was compelled to go on with the gold searching party, but I knew there was no gold in any such formation as we were located, but to please my partner I went. We accordingly separated, about half the party going up the Stinking Water and the remainder going to Boze- man. When we had made about one hundred miles of the distance our cattle and horses gave out, and we found ourselves out of provisions and even without salt in a mountain country, with apparently no food for our stock. To make a bad matter worse, November clouds augured unpleasant weather conditions. Here we held a council, and each man seemed to hold a distinctly separate idea as to what was the best course to take. I talked to Nickelson saying: 'Tom, this country is no place for us to winter in, so we had better put our stock down on that sage flat; the cat- tle will soon be fresh again and we can kill some elk and jerk it and get out of these Bad Lands. If it should turn wet, we should find ourselves 'as good as glued in here.' My argument had weight with the party, and the next day we killed five large bull elk, fat and perfect. We jerked the meat and prepared for our trip out. Six days later we assembled and found that our party had split and one faction wanted to stay and wolf hunt for the winter. Accordingly Nickel- son and our party started back on another trail. We were almost without clothes and were wearing elk skins on our feet, sleeping on the sand and alkali, and eating elk meat straight. When about thirty miles from camp we saw with our field glasses that the remainder of the train were pulling out. We knew then why our companions had been so intent upon hunt- ing and wolfing in the Bad Lands that winter: We were to go ahead and break the trail, build the bridges and endure all the hardship which they knew must attend getting out of the country, and they would fol- low after and reap the benefits of our labors, laughing at us for our gullibility. We were compelled to build a bridge of timber, the material for which we hauled from a small gulch about five miles distant. The tim- ber was so scarce that the building of the bridge util- ized the last twig. We were two days in building it, and when we crossed our fellow travelers who had been following at a distance were within three miles of us. When we crossed and saw the nearness of the following party, I took a certain pleasure in burning the bridge and leaving them to build another as best they could. The result was that they were delayed three weeks in their trip. Our cattle soon gained strength on the salt sage and we pushed along, shoe- ing their feet with old boot leather. We crossed the Stinking Water, and striking the old Bozeman trail above the Crow Agency, crossed country and landed on the Yellowstone at Deer Creek, where we found an old Indian by the name of Soose. Here we first procured onions, potatoes, cabbage and white tail deer

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in abundance. We camped for four days and enjoyed all the luxuries of the land, as well as trout, geese and ducks from the waters of the Yellowstone. From here we went to Benson's Landing, near where Liv- ingston is located and there camped for a time, catch- ing trout and killing mountain sheep from the canyon and deer from the valley, thence to Bozeman and across the Bridger range, where we encountered civilization for the first time in nine months. Our company here disbanded in the little mountain city, never to meet again, each taking his own course for a life in the new world. Some located in Bozeman and others took un the trail to the north, but my dearest friends of that party I never saw again."

At Bozeman Dr. Allen engaged in the blacksmith business with Frank Harper, and was later employed as blacksmith for the Bozeman and Miles City stage line, acting as express messenger in the winter of 1877, and subsequently becoming government blacksmith at Fort Custer. In 1879 he went in a skiff down the Big Horn river to Fort Buford to meet his family, who came back with him and he then located on Canyon creek, engaging in stock-raising and blacksmithing. In 1882 he removed to Coulson, where he continued at his trade for some months, removing eventually to Billings, which was then dotted with canvas tents and rude cabins. Here he erected the first house in the Yellowstone valley which boasted a shingled roof.

Prior to this western experience Dr. Allen had worked to some extent at dentistry, and to perfect himself in this profession he went to Chicago in 1884, where he took a full course with Dr. Crouse, president of the American Dental Association. Returning to Billings, Dr. Allen engaged in the practice of dentistry, and on January 1, 1886, was presented with a gold medal by his patients and friends of Buffalo, Wyom- ing. In 1896 he took a course in Haskell's Post-Grad- ute School of Dentistry, and he has since acquired a widespread· reputation as an expert dentist in both surgical and mechanical branches. One of his most prized possessions is a gold medal which is inscribed as follows: "In Appreciation of his Professional Serv- ices. Presented to Dr. W. A. Allen for Efficiency in Operative Dentistry, Class of 1897, by the Faculty of the Kansas City College of Dental Surgery." His spe- cialty, in which he has achieved eminent success, is in the treatment of pyorrhea, one of the most dreaded diseases known to the profession.

Dr. Allen's activities, however, have not been con- fined to the practice of his profession, as he is largely interested in stock raising. and in company with John L. Guiler in 1892 founded the town of Allendale, at the mouth of Clark's Fork; they also built the first flouring mill of any note in the valley, at a cost of $15,000. Dr. Allen is a supporter of Prohibition prin- ciples, but is in no wise bigoted in his view points and is always ready to respect the opinions of others. Charity has found a large place in his activities, but thie assistance he has given those he deemed worthy of a helping hand has been given in such a quiet, unostenta- tious manner that it is doubtful if the full extent of his philanthropies will ever be known. He and his wife are faithful members of the Methodist church, and are among its most liberal supporters.

Dr. Allen was married in Ohio in 1874 to Miss Josephine Houston, the daughter of John Houston, who died from illness contracted during the Civil war. In 1887 his second marriage took place, when he was united with Miss Mollie Finkelnburg, a daugh- ter of Hon. A. Finkelnburg, of Fountain City, Wis- consin, who represented his county in both bodies of the Wisconsin legislature. Two children were born to the first union: William O. and Robert T., both of whom are associated with their father in the prac- tice of dentistry, and the only child of the second mar- riage is a daughter, Leah.

Dr. Allen's career as a hunter of big game has been full of adventure. He has killed forty-nine bears, some of them being typical Bad Lands grizzlies which fol- lowed the large buffalo herds in the Bad Lands in the spring of the year. The old bulls were whipped out of the herds and became an easy prey to these monsters of the plains. Dr. Allen's partner, Hiram Stewart, was killed in a fight near Box Elder with one of these grizzlies while hunting buffalo meat for Hoskins & Mc- Girl at Huntley, Montana, then the frontier supply station for hunters and trappers. In 1879 Dr. Allen made a voyage down the Little Horn to the Big Horn and through the Yellowstone to Fort Buford, making the trip in an open boat alone among the Sioux and Cheyennes. He had a fight with a gang of horse thieves at the mouth of the Tongue river, but escaped capture.

In 1892 Dr. Allen issued a friendly challenge to shoot a match for a gold medal on big game with any man in America. A match was arranged for the shoot from the Ist to the Ioth of October, and the competitor was a Mr. Jennings from the Steak Plains of Texas. The hunt came off as scheduled in the vicinity of the Ten Sleep mountains of Wyoming, and the rules were "no game animal to be shot at under two hundred yards, and the game to be running at full speed." At the end of ten days the results stood: Mr. Jennings, one black tail deer. Dr. Allen, five black tail deer, three elk, one wolf. This ended one of the most inter- esting hunts ever enjoyed by a party consisting of Mr. Jennings, Edward Chapple, Mr. Fender and Dr. Allen,

His record as an Indian fighter of distinction and as a hunter whose excursions led him into many thrilling experiences has given Dr. Allen much interesting mate- rial to work into books and magazine articles. For a number of years such magazines as the American Field and Forest and Stream have eagerly sought liis contributions, which are recognized as authorities on their subjects. In 1903 he published "Adventures With Indians and Game," or "Twenty Years in the Rocky Mountains," which bore the simple dedication: "To my Mother." The favor with which this volume was received by both press and public could have been naught but gratifying to its author, who was encour- aged to publish another work, now being completed.

Dr. Allen is a man who stands for all that is virile and manly, and all that is typical of Montana and its "old timers." He may look back over a career that has been useful to himself, to his fellow men and to his adopted state, satisfied with a work well and faith- fully done, and feel content to meet with what the future will bring. No man is held in higher confidence or esteem and none can boast of a wider circle of warm personal friends than he.

ROBERT AITCHISON. Romance in its most daring productions cannot excel the true tales of the men who practically subjugated Montana, men who, through their daring and enterprise, brought civilization, com- . fort and safety to this grand and beautiful section of the United States. Many of these men still live to tell. to enthralled listeners their thrilling story of ad- ventures, of savage Indian warfare. of stampeding buf- falo on the almost limitless plains, of the eastern hordes in their mad search for mineral wealth, and of the wild storms that swept down upon travelers when no possible relief could be secured, hundreds of miles intervening between the travelers and civiliza- tion. Interest centers in every one of these rela- tions. Modest as many of these tellers of tales may be as regards their own personal experiences, the least of them show that the courage and resourcefulness of those who so surely wrought out the destiny of Mon- tana entitles them to high regard from a younger gen- eration and of other environment. Before he ever reached Montana, Robert Aitchison, who is one of the

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big men of the state in the cattle business and a valued resident of Miles City, had already taken part in border warfare and has journeyed for hundreds of miles through a practically trackless wilderness. He was born mid the peaceful surroundings of his fa- ther's homestead . in Nickel township, Wellington county, Ontario, Dominion of Canada, March 12, 1852, and is a son of Thomas and Jane (Scott) Aitchison.

The parents of Mr. Aitchison were both born in Scotland, the father in Gallieshields and the mother in the city of Edinburgh. The father died in 1867, but the mother lived until almost eighty years of age, passing away in 1904. They were married in Ontario, and four sons and three daughters were born to them, the survivors being: Jane, who is the widow of An- drew Forester; Robert, Peter and William, all of whom reside in Montana; and Thomas, who still lives in Ontario. Anne and Betsey are deceased, the former dying in 1912, when aged sixty-five years, survived by her husband. James Elge. The father of Mr. Aitchison was a very early settler in the province of Ontario and developed his fine farm from a virgin state. He reared his family in the faith of the Presby- terian church.

Robert Aitchison assisted his father until he en- tered into railroad work, becoming a freight brakeman of the Great. Western, now the Grand Trunk Railroad, later serving for six years as baggage master on the Canada Southern Railroad and subsequently as pas- senger brakeman. In 1876 he joined a party for Dead- wood,, Dakota, going by rail to Yankton, by steam from there to Fort Pierre and then by freight outfit to Rapid City, Dakota, in the meanwhile having had trouble with the unfriendly Indians, four of the men in the party having been shot by the savages. After two days of outfitting at Rapid City the party started for Deadwood, and on the first night out met a group of men returning to Rapid City with the body of Cap- tain Dodge, who had been killed by the Indians on the previous night on Elk creek. Notwithstanding this ominous beginning, Mr. Aitchison and his party kept on into the Black Hills and came on through to the Little Missouri river in Montana with the first gold stampede. Late in the fall he returned to the Black Hills, and during the winter hunted elk, selling the meat at Deadwood.

On July 14, 1877, Mr. Aitchison left Deadwood by way of the old Fort Reno trail up into the Bighorn mountains, again in search of gold, going on by Little Goose creek over the mountains, then down to Paint Rock, crossing No Wood creek on the west slope. He continued prospecting up Gray Bull creek and on up Stinking Water and down again and then crossed the Bighorn mountains to Fort Custer. He arrived at the fort on the night following a raid made by horse thieves, who stole seventy-five head of horses, the leader of the thieving gang being known as Big Nose George. From Fort Custer, Mr. Aitchison went down the Yellowstone river and reached Miles City in 1877. He then assisted in building the sutler's store at Fort Keogh, and during the following winter, with two other men, engaged in hunting elk and buffalo on the Rosebud river, selling the meat in Miles City. In March, 1878, Mr. Aitchison with two other men went up Tongue river prospecting, and again engaged in hunting on Pumpkin creek. While looking the country over they were caught in one of the storms for which Montana is justly famous, and for eight days the party was snow bound. As they were veteran travelers and hunters, they were able to meet the situation better than strangers to the dangers surrounding could have done, but as it was they were in danger of starva- tion, as for seven days they were without food. In the meanwhile they found that their shack on the Tongue river had been occupied by a band of Indian

scouts who had been making themselves comparatively comfortable.

In 1878 Mr. Aitchison took up his homestead claim on Tongue river, on which he had erected the above mentioned shelter. After getting back to Miles City he secured the beef contract from Clark Tingley to supply Fort Keogh and afterward cut hay for the United States government. In the fall of 1878 he once more joined the stampede to the gold regions, in the Bighorn mountains, near the National Park, and on this trip had an exciting combat with a bear, which resulted in bear meat for the camp. Late in the fall he came back once more to Miles City and in the following winter started for Bismarck, Dakota, with two companions. On the way down they encountered Colonel Rice and Lieutenant Sibley, with twelve sol- diers as an escort for a Mr. Kahn, who was carrying the sum of $3,400. Road agents stopped the party and secured Mr. Kahn's money, the watches belonging to the others and one of the best horses. On this trip it took Mr. Aitchison sixteen days to reach Bismarck and thirty-six to return to Miles City. After this he devoted the larger part of his time to freighting until 1882 between Bismarck, Miles City, Fort Beauford, Billings and Fort Custer, and in the fall of 1880 he took two four-horse loads of Buffalo meat to Bis- marck and the same to Fort Meade, the round trip . back to Miles City covering sixty-five days. In 1882 he settled on his own land and engaged in freighting for the ranchmen and also assisted in building the government roads and continued to live on his home- stead until Igor, when he settled at Miles City, where he went into the feed and livery business, but has never disposed of his ranch, and since 1887 has been extensively concerned in the cattle and horse business. In 1904 he built new barns at Miles City and also the salesyards now the property of the A. B. Clark Horse Sales Company, and not only sold the property to this company but also sold them the first horses they ever bought in Montana.

Mr. Aitchison was married in February, 1882, to Miss Christianna McClean, who was born in Ontario, Canada, and they have had eight children, as fol- lows: Therma, Robert, Jr., Mabel, Earl, Walter, Dor- othy, and two who died in infancy. The eldest daugh- ter is the wife of John Sykes. Mr. Aitchison is a member of Yellowstone Lodge, No. 26, A. F. & A. M. . Politically he is a Republican.

ENSIGN SIMEON SWEET. One of the successful finan- ciers of Chouteau county, Ensign Simeon Sweet is widely known as president of the First National Bank of Chinook, and as a man of sterling ability and in- tegrity. A son of Hiram Sweet, he was born, October 14, 1854, at Momence, Illinois, but was brought up in Iowa.

Born and reared in New York state, Hiram Sweet, with the restless spirit characteristic of the Americans, migrated to Illinois when young, and after living for a time in Kankakee county, Illinois, followed the march of civilization still further westward, going, in 1855, to Fayette county, Iowa. A successful business man, he acquired title to many acres of land, owning several large tracts, and ere his death, which occurred at Fay- ette, Iowa, in 1907, was classed with the leading cap- italists of his community. He was twice married, first to Diana M. Sweet, who was born in Washington county, New York, and died in Fayette county, Iowa, August 12, 1869, leaving two children, namely: Ensign Simeon, the special subject of this sketch; and Stella. wife of Theodore Kemmerer, of Davenport, Iowa.

On November 9, 1887, Mr. Sweet was married to Miss Agnes Ellen, daughter of Dudley Perley and Lucy Ellen (Warren) Clark. of Unity, Maine. and to them was born a son, Lloyd Dudley Sweet. Hc was born at Utica, Montana, October 16, 1889, and is now in his

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senior year at Leland Stanford University. Mrs. Sweet is a member of "Dorothy Q" Chapter, D. A. R.

Less than a year old when his parents moved to Iowa, Ensign Simeon Sweet was educated in the pub- lic schools of Fayette, where, at the age of twenty years, he embarked in the mercantile business, con- ducting a general store three years. Naturally enter- prising and venturesome, he then sold out his business in that place, and sought a new location in the wilds of Montana. Settling in the Judith basin, Mr. Sweet embarked in stock raising on a small scale, and in the undertaking met with very gratifying success. In 1890 he was forced to move his cattle, on account of the excessive dry seasons, to Chouteau county, land in the Judith basin being then opened to farming. Mr. Sweet purchased land in Chouteau county, where he continued cattle raising for four years, when he disposed of all of his cattle and started in another industry of a similar nature-raising sheep and horses, instead of cattle. In 1901 Mr. Sweet moved into Chinook, becoming in that year one of the directors of the First National Bank of that place. In 1907 he was elected president of this bank, and has since managed its affairs most satisfactorily to all concerned. Politically, he is iden- tified with the Republican party.

ROBERT S. H. McGINNESS, has been a resident of the state of Montana since he was twenty years of age, and of Harlem since the year 1903. He is a native of the state of Missouri, born there on August 29, 1857, and is the son of James R. and Susie B. (Hale) McGinness. The father and mother were both natives of Kentucky, who migrated to Missouri in their young life and there passed the remainder of their days. The father was a farmer and he lived to see eighty-seven years of life, while the mother passed away in 1877 at the age of fifty-eight. They were the parents of seven children, here named in the order of their birth: Thomas, a farmer in Oklahoma; Cassie, the wife of William B. Leach, residents of Kearney, Missouri, the home town of the family; Sarah, the wife of Isaac Harrel, of Mormemec, Oklahoma; Robert S. H., of this review; Strother H., a farmer and dairyman of prominence in Excelsior Springs, Missouri; James, deceased; William M., a hotel proprietor of Culbert- son, Montana.

Robert McGinness received the advantage of a liberal education in his younger days, graduating from the high school of his native town and later attending William Jewell College, Liberty, Missouri, from which he was graduated in the literary course in 1877. On leaving college he took up the study of pharmacy, and he has devoted his life thus far to that work. In 1877 Mr. McGinness came to Helena and secured employ- ment with the R. S. Hale Drug Company, and he re- mained in their service for ten years, or until 1903, when they went out of business. During this period he became manager and finally closed out the $100,000 stock carried by the company.

Mr. McGinness' health failed as a result of the close, confining work connected with the drug business, and he went into the mines as manager for Mr. Hale, by way of gaining some outside employment, and he re- mained thus occupied for two years, at the end of which time his health was completely restored to its former vigor. Following that experience lie went to White Sulphur Springs and opened a drug store. After some little time he sold a half interest in the store to his brother, William M., later disposing of his remaining interest in the same manner, and re- turned to Helena where he became manager for the Hale Drug Company. He continued in that capacity until 1903, in which year, as stated, he closed out the business for Mr. Hale and came to Harlem where he opened a drug store for himself, beginning in a modest way as befitted his capital and the demands of the

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A history of Montana, Volume II, Part 67

Author: Sanders, Helen Fitzgerald, 1883- Publication date: 1913 Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1002

Author: Sanders, Helen Fitzgerald, 1883-
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1002