Montana, its story and biography; a history of aboriginal and territorial Montana and three decades of statehood, Volume III, Part 69

Author: Stout, Tom, 1879- ed
Publication date: 1921
Publisher: Chicago, American Historical Society
Number of Pages: 1144

USA > Montana > Montana, its story and biography; a history of aboriginal and territorial Montana and three decades of statehood, Volume III > Part 69

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Lewis E. Newlon was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, December 15, 1878, but he knows no other home than Montana. He was a factor on his father's ranch until past his majority, and was twenty-five years of age when he entered a claim in section 8, township 24 north, range 60 east, beginning his activities there by building a shack, erecting this cabin before the land had been surveyed. It was built of sawed logs, dirt covered, and was a com- fortable abode of five rooms and had the distinc- tion of being the first house built on the townsite of Fairview. Even . in that early day Mr. Newlon had in mind the building of a town on this loca- tion, for the lay of the country was such as to en- courage railroad building. In 1903, about the time he erected his residence, lie also established himself in the mercantile business, thus performing the first act toward the building of a town. The store, which was really finished before the Newlon home, was also built of logs and is now doing duty as the Farmers Store in Fairview. His first stock of goods was a small one of general merchandise, and he was without a competitor until 1905, when a second store was established. Two years after this, in 1907, Mr. Newlon disposed of his business interest and turned his entire attention to the development and growth of Fairview.

He platted three blocks on the east line of his homestead, bordering on the Dakota line, as a town- site, and gave it the name of Fairview. This was in January, 1904, and he offered a business lot for one dollar to any one who would erect a business house. The offer stimulated building to some ex- tent, several lots having exchanged hands on this basis, and the town's growth continued slowly. Vari- ous lines of industry were represented hefore the real impetus was given the town by the coming of the railroad. A gift of ninety-six acres of land to the railroad company, to be used as right-of-way, shops and round houses, was made as an induce- ment, and January 4, 1912, the first steel was laid into the village and within a weck traffic with the

outside world was carried on by rail instead of by freight as before.

At the time Mr. Newlon gave up his mercantile interests to become a town promoter he erected an office and platted his first addition to Fairview, May 15, 1909. A second addition was filed February 12, 1913, and upon this the greater part of the town has been built. Mr. Newlon also erected one of the business houses, first occupied by the Maxson Mercantile Company, and became a stockholder in the establishment of the Security State Bank and in the Delaney Brothers Bank, now the First Na- tional Bank of Fairview. He also became a stock- holder in the Albert Hotel Company. In the year 1913 Fairview was incorporated, and Mr. Newlon was elected the first mayor of the little city. During his administration the principal streets were graded and some sidewalks were laid and other important in- terests were effected. After three terms as Fair- view's first mayor, he was succeeded in office by Doctor Perkins.

Among the conspicuous homes of the town the most noticeable perhaps is that of L. E. Newlon. It stands upon an elevation west of the town, and from it a birdseye view of the entire city may be had. This home was built in 1913-4. It faces Fourth Street, and stands about forty feet above the town. It is stucco finished, contains eight rooms and a base- ment, and is completely and modernly equipped in every detail.

In Dickinson, North Dakota, April 8, 1907, Mr. Newlon was married to Miss Clementine Dundas, who was born in Bismarck, North Dakota, March 13. 1889, a daughter of Lewis and Mary (O'Lough- lin) Dundas. Her father, a native of Edinburgh, Scotland, came to the United States when eighteen years of age, and spent the remainder of his life as a rancher in Montana, owning a large amount of land at Wibaux. He married at St. Paul, Minne- sota, a native daughter of that state, born at French Lake, and both are still living and residents of Mis- soula, Montana. The five children of Mr. and Mrs. Dundas are : · Mrs. Newlon; Harold F., whose home is in Fairview; Miss Marion, of Missoula ; Ronald. a student in the Montana University ; and Wallace, who is attending the Missoula schools. Two sons have been born to the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Newlon: William Gifford, whose birth occurred August 21, 1915, and Lewis Edson, born September 4. 1919.

Mr. Newlon began voting as a republican, giving his first presidential ballot to William Mckinley in 1900, and Mrs. Newlon also gave her first presiden- tial vote to a republican representative, voting first in 1916. She is the vice president of the Woman's Club of Fairview, and served on a committee of the Red Cross during the country's participation in the World war. Two of Mr. Newlon's brothers offered their services to their country as soldiers in that re- cent conflict. Ellis E. Newlon served as foreman of the shipyards at Portland, Oregon, and Jesse L. Newlon was a soldier of infantry overseas for six- teen months. He was in the heavy artillery, and participated in some of the engagements which started the Germans back toward home. He was twice wounded in the service, and brought as many scars home as a reminder of valorous and honored service in his country's cause.

CLARK A. BROOKS is the senior member of the mercantile firm of Brooks and Patterson at Savage. and his name has also appeared prominently in con- nection with the gricultural development of this community. He arrived in Glendive on the 3Ist of March, 1891, seeking employment, which he found

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HISTORY OF MONTANA

in the shops on the Northern Pacific Railroad Com- pany and later as a brakeman in the train service. But after eight months of railroad employment he turned his activities into an entirely different direc- tion and became an employe of the Douglas Mead Company. Subsequently he was in the employ of Mr. Hollecker as a bookkeeper until the spring of 1910, when he came to the then newly organized Town of Savage and established himself in busi- ness as a member of the firm of Brooks and Pat- terson.

As their initial movement toward urban develop- ment Brooks and Patterson built for their use a business house in Savage, and about the 16th of May, 1910, opened the general store which they have since conducted without interruption. Mr. Brooks in time identified himself with farm de- velopment near Savage, acquiring a tract of valley land which he has since placed under a splendid system of irrigation. He obtained possession of this ranch when it was in its virgin state, covered with grass and untouched by the hand of man. His improvements have been substantial, constituting the best of the region, and 154 acres of the tract are irrigated and have demonstrated the adaptability of growing alfalfa in this section of the country. During the dry year of 1919 Mr. Brooks' yield of this crop was very large, and he received splendid profits for his labor expended. A bunch of milch cows graze this pasture, and his cream has returned also large values.

Mr. Brooks came into Montana from South Da- kota, where in the vicinity of Iroquois as a child he had spent a number of his years on a farm. His birth, however, occurred in Fayette County, Iowa, May 21, 1871, and he is a son of David Brooks, a native of Canada. The father spent his life as a farmer. His death occurred at Iroquois, South Dakota, and his wife died at Glendive, Montana. She bore the maiden name of Lucretia Hendrick- son and was born in Ohio, a daughter of Samuel Hendrickson. The children born of this union are : Mrs. J. C. Brooks, who died near Intake, Mon- tana; Mrs. John Kennedy, whose home is in Glen- dive; Milo A., who was a ranchman at Intake, Mon- tana, until his death on March 3, 1919, left two children by his wife, nee Lydia Berry; and Clark A. is the youngest of the children.

Clark A. Brooks was married in Savannah, An- drew County, Missouri, January 3, 1903, to Julia C. Powell, who was born in that county. Her father, Clarence Powell, was an Englishman who was chiefly identified with the real estate business. Mrs. Brooks is the only surviving child of her parents. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Brooks has been blessed by the birth of four children, Donald, Charles, Lois and Florine. When Mr. Brooks' father reached the age of maturity he gave his political allegiance to the democratic party, and continued to support the principles of that party for many years. Clark A. Brooks supported Mr. Mc- Kinley in the presidential race, and since then has been a republican voter.

WILLIAM B. GIBBS, well and favorably known to the community of Savage as a ranchman, farmer, bank official and as a public spirited and progres- sive citizen, was born in Hancock County, Illinois, September 22, 1854, a son of Elias Gibbs, who came from his native State of New Jersey when a young man and located near Carthage, Illinois, where he spent the remainder of his active and vigorous life. His death, however, occurred in Pasadena, Cali- fornia, where he spent the last ten years of his

life, passing away in 1897, at the age of seventy- seven years.

Elias Gibbs married Sarah Bader, who was born in Preble County, Ohio, a daughter of Jere Bader. She also passed away at Pasadena, California, but survived her husband. Of the seven children of this marriage to reach years of maturity six are still living, namely: Henry, of Schuyler County, Illinois; Smith J., of Fresno County, California ; Carl, whose home is in Old Mexico; William B., of Savage, Montana; Mrs. Libbie G. Cook, also a resident of Fresno; and Mrs. Nettie Coke, who is in Spain at the present time. She is a lawyer- traveler. During the Boer war she was living in South Africa, and for ten years had a law office at Johannesburg. On returning to the United States she established an office in San Francisco.

William B. Gibbs spent the early years of his life on a farm, remaining at home with his parents until he reached the age of eighteen, when he went to Southern Texas and began work on a cattle ranch. He was employed at different periods by Tony Day, Burke Burnett and John Slaughter on Big Elm in Cooke County, spending seven years in all in the Lone Star State. From there he went into the Indian Territory and became foreman of the "Circle R" ranch at Skyatook, his employer being the well known Governor Rogers, governor of the Cherokee Nation, and leaving there made his way to the Cherokee Strip and worked for the Comanche Pool outfit. From the Indian country he went to Cedar County, Missouri, where he farmed and handled cattle. for several years.

It was in August of 1900 that Mr. Gibbs became a factor in Montana's history. He settled in the region of Wibaux, between that place and the Blue Mountains, assuming charge of the "DK" ranch for Kansas City men. It was a cattle ranch, and Mr. Gibbs continued its management for one year, after which he moved to the Savage com- munity in Richland County, and exercised his home- stead right by entering a claim in the Yellowstone Valley, two miles south of where Savage now stands. His financial standing was at that time at the lowest ebb, and he worked for wages as a general rancher, two years passing by before he became able to maintain himself financially at his own enterprise.

On his claim Mr. Gibbs built a cabin of cotton- wood logs from the Yellowstone, and he moved his family into this four-room dwelling, dirt covered, and it continued to shelter the household for some years. He entered slowly into both the raising of horses and cattle, first purchasing a cow and calf, representing an outlay of $35, and his first team comprised two yearling colts, valued at $15, and from this small nucleus he gradually became recog- nized as one of the community's important stock raisers. His cattle were merged into the Black Galloways and White Faces, and his horses were of the Percheron stock. Mr. Gibbs adopted the brand "Ill." on the right ribs for his cattle and the "Lazy YK" on the left jaw of his horses. The cattle brand represented his native State of Illi- nois, but there was no special significance in his brand for horses.

Both the property and stock interests of Mr. Gibbs grew rapidly in volume and importance and spread over much territory adjacent to his own. He purchased an adjoining section, 240 acres of which are now under cultivation and irrigated. During his years spent in Montana he has had abundant opportunity to compare dry land farming with irri- gation, for a ditch was not built through this region for some years after he located here. He has found

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that under the old regime, when rainfall was de- pended upon entirely, he obtained probably one crop out of four planted, while under the system of irrigation he has harvested a crop each time it was planted. There is also a vast difference in the acre yield of crops in the two systems of farm- ing, the irrigation method outdoing dry land farm- ing very materially.

In 1904 Mr. Gibbs left the ranch in the care of his two sons and moved into Savage. He is con- nected with the First National Bank of Savage as its vice president. This institution was established as a state bank in 1911, and in the following year Mr. Gibbs became a stockholder therein and was a member of its organization when it was chartered as a national bank. Its capital is $25,000, its sur- plus $5,000 and its deposits reach $90,000. The pres- ident of the bank is George E. Towle, of Minne- apolis, and S. L. Hood is the cashier, the officers constituting a part of the board of directors, which include as its other members John S. Tucker, of Minneapolis; John T. Neese, of Savage; and A. S. Newcomb, of Mondak, Montana.

Mr. Gibbs was a member of the first Board of County Commissioners of the newly organized County of Richland, serving with John Bawden and C. P. Collins, and much business came up be- fore this first board, including the institution of the business of the county, the establishment of a place for the county records, and supplying equipment for the county officers. They also placed the contract for the transcribing of the records of the old coun- ties from which Richland was drawn. Mr. Gibbs served as a member of this pioneer Board of Com- missioners from May until the ist of January, when he retired from the office. He has always been a republican voter, stanch in his adherence of the party's principles, and his first presidential vote was cast for Rutherford B. Hayes in 1876, and he has never missed a presidential election since that time.

Mr. Gibbs was married in Bates County, Missouri, to Miss Ella McCoy, a daughter of Lewis McCoy, and they became the parents of the following chil- dren: Dora D., wife of Warren Lane, of Engle- wood, California; Lucien M., a ranchman near Savage; and Clyde E., who is associated with his brother in the Savage ranch. This younger son en- listed for service in the World war at the first call made for troops by the United States, and trained at Camp Lewis, Washington. He became a mem- ber of the Ninety-first Division, and was sent over- seas with his command in June, 1918. He took part in the famous battle of Argonne Forest, where for eighteen days he was under the fire of the German guns. He later served in Belgium, and was in that country when the armistice was signed. Although his services carried him into the heaviest fighting of the war, where for days bullets fell faster than hail, he was never wounded in battle or otherwise injured.

William B. Gibbs married liis present wife in Chicago in 1911. She was Miss Isabel G. Stevens, a native of Wisconsin, and before her marriage she was both a trained nurse and teacher. Mr. Gibbs was made a Mason in Sidney, Montana, and is now a member of the Blue Lodge there, a mem- her of the Glendive Chapter, Commandery and Council, and is also a member of Helena Consistory and of Algeria Temple. He completed this work in Masonry in 1917.

CHARLES C. TUBBS has been prominently iden- tified with the business interests of Harlem and its vicinity for a number of years. He was born at Buffalo, New York, December 18, 1875. His father

was Henry Charles Tubbs, who spent the final years of his life with the Erie Railroad Company as depot master at Buffalo, and died when his son Charles was eleven years of age. He was born at Conneaut, Ohio, and was married at Buffalo, New York, to Susan E. Guild, who was born in Massachusetts, a daughter of Harrison Guild. The children of this union were: Hattie Belle, who married J. E. Hitch- cock and resides at Long Beach, California; Charles C., the Harlem business man; Sarah A., the wife of Bert Bernard, of Buffalo, New York; Olive, the wife of Charles Sneider, a resident of Palo Alto, California; Harrison C., who died on the ranch at Woody Island, Montana, and who married Elvira Balentine and, at his death, left a daughter, Sarah.

Charles C. Tubbs spent the early years of his life in his native City of Buffalo, and when but twelve years of age began working and contributing to the family treasury. At the age of fourteen he left the parental home and drove a milk wagon in the city for Charles Mayers, and was later in the em- ploy of dairyman Wiedmann. During all this time he gave his wages to his mother and when he left Buffalo for the West he had little more than enough to bring him to Montana, arriving at Glasgow with a cash capital of but 50 cents and with one excep- tion with no acquaintance in the place.

It was on the Ist of March, 1893, that Mr. Tubbs left the train at Glasgow. He was then a youth approaching his majority, and he first secured work with Mr. McVey, and remained in his employ until he came to Harlem. He had no intention of locat- ing permanently in Harlem when he stopped here on his way to the mountains with a companion, but while resting their horses they heard of work to be had on the irrigation dam then being built by Mr. Everett, and taking advantage of this op- portunity for work Mr. Tubbs became a resident of Harlem. He spent three years with Mr. Everett, and then entered upon an independent business career.

Entering a homestead on the river near Harlem, he secured a patent for it, exchanged it later for thoroughbred Shorthorn cattle and took up a ranch on Woody Island Creek, where for a time he was engaged in breeding blooded cattle, but during the winter of 1906-07 had the misfortune to lose more than half of his herd. In the following year he disposed of the remainder of his cattle and con- tinued the raising of horses until 1911, when he sold his ranch and stock interests and bought the Charles Reed livery barn at Harlem, and has since been engaged in the livery, feed and dray business.

In addition to being the drayman and the popular liveryman of Harlem Mr. Tubbs also spent several years as agent of the Mutual Oil Company here, and in 1920 established the Tubbs Oil Company, a station for the sale and distribution of petroleum products. In this enterprise he is associated with the following stockholders and representative men : F. J. Lake, of Minneapolis; E. P. Ekegren and A. E. Boe. Mr. Lake is the president of the company, Mr. Tubbs is its manager, and Mr. Boe holds the office of secretary and treasurer.

Mr. Tubbs was married at Chinook, Montana, August 28, 1898, to Miss Maloney McDaniel, who was born on Rogue River near Medford, Oregon, February 23, 1877, a daughter of John and Priscilla E. (French) McDaniel. The father went from Iowa to California during the gold rush to that state, and finally settled on Rogue River in Oregon. From there he came by wagon to Montana in 1892, and is now a resident of Harlem. The following chil- dren were born to Jolin and Priscilla McDaniel, namely: Mrs. Polly Gates, who is now deceased ;

Chas & Lubbo

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HISTORY OF MONTANA

William, of Spokane, Washington; Mrs. Julia Buckley, wife of Mike Buckley, of Harlem; Mrs. Tubbs; Frank, a farmer on Woody Island Creek in Blaine County; Isabel, wife of David McCon- nell, of Canada; Andrew, who resides at Great Falls, Montana; Charles P., of Harlem; Elva, who is Mr. Tubbs' bookkeeper; and Zora, who is the youngest of the children. Mr. and Mrs. Tubbs have one daughter, Susan E.

Mr. Tubbs is a republican voter in national pol- itics. For a number of years he has served Harlem as an alderman, and this has been his only official service. He has taken all the degrees in Masonry in both branches, save the thirty-third and honorary degree, and is also a member of the fraternal order of Odd Fellows.

JOSEPH H. NEVINS. During the past ten years Joseph H. Nevins has stood at the head of the Sid- ney schools, and in this time the educational sys- tem of Richland County has gained a high order of efficiency. When he assumed charge of the Sid- ney schools a four-room building occupying the site of the present high school served as the temple of learning, and three teachers in addition to the su- perintendent were employed. In the following fall Superintendent Nevins introduced the first year of high school work, five pupils responding and en- rolling their names: Florence Vaux, who is now the schools home economics teacher; Gwendolin Staffanson; Marjorie Cravath, now the wife of Jack Gordon, of Bozeman; Luella and Estella Blake, sis- ters, the former now Mrs. McDonald and the latter Mrs. Hayden, of Carlyle, Montana.

During the second year of Mr. Nevin's supervi- sion another teacher was added to the faculty and the second year of high school work installed, but on the 5th of December, 1912, the schoolhouse burned and during the remainder of the year the high school occupied the basement of the Congregational Church and the grades were distributed about the town. In the fall of 1912 the board erected a tem- porary five-room building, Mr. Vaux furnishing the lumber and carpenters, Earl Varco one-half of the roof and Doctor Beagle the other half, Lossie Dawe furnished the teams to haul the lumber to the site, and Walter D. Kemmis donated the land, located across the street west of the Gem City Garage. The lumber reached the lot on Friday morning, the car- penters beginning work about nine o'clock, and on the following day the school furniture was moved to the building and the school was all but ready to begin work. On the following Monday morning the neighbors came with brooms and swept out the building and school was called at nine o'clock. School was regularly maintained in this structure until the 5th of November, 1914, when the central part of the present brick building was occupied.

The autumn of 1914 marked the third year of the superintendency of Joseph H. Nevins, and at that time B. B. Brown and Miss Ribble were employed as assistants in the high school, the former intro- ducing athletics and the latter taking charge of the music. In March, 1915, it became necessary to fur- nish one room in the basement for grade purposes, and during the following summer the remaining basement rooms were furnished and occupied by the grades. In the fall of 1916 a four-room annex was built to accommodate the increased enrollment, while two years later two wings were added to the high school building, and that year also marked the addition to the high school curriculum of courses in domestic science, manual training and normal training. These additions completed the Sidney

high school building as it stands at the present time and provides twenty-nine rooms available for school work. In 1919 the school board further added a Smith-Hughes agricultural course, ten pupils enroll- ing for the work of the course, and near the holiday season a three-day farmers short course was held with an enrollment of 350 from among actual farm- ers and with a total attendance upon the sessions of 750.

In IgII the high school enrollment aggregated but 11 pupils, in 1912 it increased to 22, in 1913 16 enrolled for the work, in 1914 there were 45 pupils who placed their names upon the high school rolls, in 1915 this was increased to 60, in 1916 to 81, in 1917 to 118, in 1918 to 117, in 1919 to 130, and the total enrollment in the middle of the year was 508 pupils. In 1916 the first class graduated from the high school, 'the class consisting of George Ahl- quist, who lost his life as a soldier in France Oc- tober 20, 1918, as a second lieutenant; Enid Dawe, now deputy county treasurer of Richland County ; Eulalia Blake, now the wife of a professor of Ham- lin University, St. Paul; Nina Hanchett, a teacher in Kalispell, Montana; and Gwendolin Staffanson, the wife of Walt Jorgenson, of Missoula, Montana. The total number of graduates in May, 1920, reached the number of fifty-two.

The Sidney schools furnish employment to twenty- three teachers, nine of whom give full time to high school work, and for grade work it is required that teachers shall be advanced normal graduates, and all high school teachers of academic subjects must be college or university graduates. For the won- derful progress which the schools of Sidney have made in this comparatively short period of time much credit is accorded the superintendent, Joseph H. Nevins. He has been indefatigable in his efforts to place the school in the forefront of the educa- tional system of the country, and his diligence and skill have been rewarded.

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Montana, its story and biography; a history of aboriginal and territorial Montana and three decades of statehood, Volume III, Part 69

Author: Stout, Tom, 1879- ed Publication date: 1921 Publisher: Chicago, American Historical Society Number of Pages: 1144

Author: Stout, Tom, 1879- ed
Publication date: 1921
Publisher: Chicago, American Historical Society
Number of Pages: 1144