USA > North Dakota > Early history of North Dakota: essential outlines of American history > Part 66
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At the first meeting the board of county commissioners voted their pay to the county. The total expense of the county up to January 5, 1874, was $89.35, and there was then a balance in the treasury of $68.05. Thomas B. Harris, who was the first station agent, was county auditor later, and Hugh McChesney, who was an employe at Fort Seward, was later judge of probate.
The Jamestown town organization was made by the county commissioners at their session of June 20, 1873, when Duncan R. Kennedy, Merritt Wiseman and T. B. Harris were appointed supervisors and F. C. Myrick clerk.
There seems to have been an aching void in the matter of office-holding in 1875 and 1876. The records do not show any meetings of the board, but then there were no taxes, and offices without taxes are not popular. In 1876 Kelliher was elected to the Legislature, but he was kicked out the last day of the session in order to give his contestant mileage and per diem. H. C. Miller was then sheriff, Ed Lohnes, who carried the mail to Fort Totten, and J. W. Goodrich, were his deputies.
In 1878 the first provision of record was made for a county building and for proper record books. Up to that time the records are on foolscap, bound with brown paper. The old courthouse was erected in 1879 by Peter Aubertin of Fargo, at a cost of $2,194. The new courthouse was built in 1883 at a cost of .$35,000. It is modeled after the courthouse of Jefferson County, Wis.
The real life of Jamestown commenced in 1878, when Edward Koffer resurveyed the townsite for the railroad company and Anton Klaus located and purchased his interests. The courthouse and all of the churches, excepting the Episcopal, are on the Klaus tract. He built the Dakota, later the Gladstone, and is entitled to be designated the father of Jamestown.
THE FIRST SETTLER AT WAHPETON
Morgan T. Rich, for whom Richland County was named, made the first settle- ment at Wahpeton July 22, 1869. Mr. Rich visited the Red River Valley in 1864, when he crossed over the plains from Fort Ridgeley, Minn., to Helena, Mont., as one of a party having 122 wagons going to the mines. They were escorted to the Missouri River by Minnesota troops, and from Fort Rice, on the Missouri River, to Glendive, Mont., by General Sully, whose command numbered about four thousand cavalry and mounted infantry, and he had a train of two hundred or more wagons of his own. Anson Northrup was his wagon master.
Arriving at Glendive, Rich's party crossed the Yellowstone, intending to go over the mountains directly from that point, but were turned back by Indian alarms, and went down the Yellowstone to old Fort Union, and from thence without escort on to Helena, on the north side of the Missouri, via Forts Peck and Benton, and Great Falls.
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Captain Rich remained in Montana till 1868, when he returned to his old home at Red Wing, and in 1869 came to the Red River Valley and located at Wahpeton, as stated. The St. Paul & Pacific Railroad had then been extended as far west as Smith Lake, in Wright County, Minn., and was pushing on toward the Red River.
Rich remained alone at Wahpeton until May, 1871, entertaining an occasional immigrant en route down the valley. His garden was known as a model, and Mr. Rich as a successful farmer in a small way. He secured a ferry charter from the commissioners of Pembina County, and by the time immigration com- menced in 1871 was ready to transfer the wanderers across the Bois des Sioux, near its confluence with the Ottertail. These streams united from the Red River. Mr. Rich operated the ferry until 1876, when a bridge was built by subscription.
In May, 1871, Mr. Rich was joined by Alvah Chezik, Matt Lawrence and Simon Woodsum, young men without families. In July, a party of forty or more settlers, en route from Yankton to the Goose River country, camped at Richville, as the place of the ferry was then called. Two of these, viz. : William Root and William Cooper, returned in a day or two, Root having purchased at McCauley- ville a claim adjoining that of Rich, on which Mr. Trott had made improvements. Rich's claim became the original plat of Wahpeton and Root's an addition. Cooper was accidentally killed while hunting. Root is still in Richland County.
Folsom Dow, J. W. Blanding, and J. Q. Burbank were the first settlers after Captain Rich, and Folsom Dow was appointed the first postmaster at Richville, as Wahpeton was at first called. It appears on the first records as Chahinkapa, signifying the end of the woods, but the name was not acceptable, and never came into general use. Valley City was then known as Wahpeton, but before its post- office was established Richville postoffice was changed to Wahpeton, taking its name from the Indian tribe of the vicinity.
In 1872, Samuel and Benjamin Taylor settled at Wahpeton and opened up farms, Samuel having a farm of 640 acres and Benjamin 960. Root had broken forty acres the season before and there was a farm of forty acres or more in connection with the military post at Fort Abercrombie. The Formanecks, father and sons, and other families related to Chezik, had come in from Wisconsin.
Major M. H. Bovée, of national reputation, from having given the republican party its name on its organization in 1856, came with D. Wilmot Smith, and Ran- som Phelps and M. P. Propper were among the early settlers. Mr. Bovée moved to Morton County.
Richland County was organized in 1873. J. W. Blanding, D. Wilmot Smith and M. T. Rich were the first county commissioners. Hugh R. Blanding was clerk and register of deeds, William Root, sheriff and assessor, Ransom Phelps, judge of Probate, Emma A. Blanding, superintendent of public instruction, John Q. Burbank, treasurer and county surveyor, Albert Chezik, constable, George B. Spink and Washington Howe, justices of the peace. Frank Herrick was overseer of Road District No. I, L. J. Moore of District No. 2, and David Lubenow of District No. 3. The county seat was located at Wahpeton, then called Chahinkapa.
In connection with his ferry, M. T. Rich laid out the townsite of Wahpeton. Next to his house, the first building erected was a store by Jacob Mourin, who was killed by lightning while washing windows, within a month from the time he opened up for business. John Kotscheaver succeeded him and remained in trade
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till 1885, when he was succeeded by his brother, Jacob. M. T. Rich and John Q. Burbank erected a building 16x22, which was used for county purposes after the organization of the county.
Miss Mary Keating, afterwards Mrs. Shea, taught the first school at Wahpeton, and Miss Sarah Rich, the second.
BURLEIGH COUNTY ORGANIZED
Burleigh County was organized by the appointment of John P. Dunn, James A. Emmons and Wm. H. H. Mercer, county commissioners, by Governor John L. Pennington. They met on July 16, 1873, and appointed as officers Dan Williams, register of deeds; J. S. Carvelle, judge of probate; John E. Wasson, county attorney; Wm. Woods, sheriff; and Dr. B. F. Slaughter, coroner. They met again on the following day and appointed Linda W. Slaughter superintendent of schools.
In the spring of 1873 Mrs. Slaughter and her sister, Miss Aidee Warfield, organized the "Bismarck Academy," which they taught gratuitously until August, when a school district organization was effected, and it became the free public school of the district and was held in the new Congregational Church then situ- ated on the present courthouse block, with Miss Warfield as teacher. This formed the beginning of the present splendid school system of Burleigh County.
The following is a list of the old settlers who came to Burleigh County before the completion of the railroad on June 5, 1873. All those marked with a * came to Burleigh County prior to May 1, 1872:
*Louis Agard, Jesse Ayers, *Wm. Anderson, Charles Archer, *P. H. Byrnes, *George Bridges, Ed Burke, *N. W. Comerford, Joe Bush, *John Coleman, J. Collins, J. S. Carvelle, *S. H. Carahoof, Joe Courtous, *Ed Donahue, John Duffee, T. P. Davis, J. A. Emmons, *Mike Foley, George Framer, A. Gilbert, *Barney Aaron, I. C. Adams, *Strong Beer, J. B. Bailey, *E. N. Corey, Geo. Cunningham, John Carnahan, R. M. Douglas, Dan Eisenberg, Robert Farrell, J. B. Ford, *C. A. Galloway, *F. F. Girard, W. Hollowbush, Wm. Howard, H. U. Holway, Peter Dupree, Joe Dowling, Fred Edgar, *Mike Feller, R. Farrell, J. M. Gilman, *A. Agard, Sam Ashton, *Harry Rose, Geo. Buswell, *C. Collins, *John Conrad, C. M. Clarck, *Joe Deitrich, *Harry Duffee, John P. Dunn, B. Egan, A. Fisher, *Chas. Gray, G. Galbraith, J. M. Guppy, *John Hogan, *L. Hunter, M. A. Hutchins, - Hildebrand, C. A. Lounsberry, *J. A. Joyce, M. H. Kellogg, Wm. Lawrence, *W. H. H. Mercer, *C. H. McCarthy, *Bernard Martin, J. C. Miller, R. R. Marsh, A. McDonald, Fred Miller, *R. O'Brien, P. Ostlund, *John H. Richards, Wm. Regan, *John Schwartz, W. B. Shaw, B. Frank Slaughter, G. G. Thomas, *E. A. Williams, James Wickerson, Ed Whalen, R. D. Gutschell, *John J. Jackman, D. R. Kagonie, *Barney Lanningan, Con Lowney, *Joe Miller, *Sam McWilliams, *J. G. Malloy, R. L. Donigal, H. M. Neil, Chris Hehli, John Mason, Thomas McGowan, E. O'Brien, J. W. Proctor, Dan Rice, Thos. Riley, *J. S. Souter, F. S. Snow, *Jos. H. Taylor, *Dan Williams, Thomas Welch, John Whalen, Lovet Gill, *Jake Houser, *Edmond Hackett, Albert Hill, Dennis Hannafin, N. H. Knappen, R. Lambert, Chas. Louis, *J. D. McCarty, *D. W. McCall, *D. W. Marshall, J. M. Marsh, John McDevitt, Mike McLear, Ed Morton, M. O'Brien, John Ostlund, John Ross, E. J. Robinson, H. N.
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Ross, *Henry Suttle, *William Smith, Pat Smith, M. Tippie, *C. W. Vandegrift, John E. Mason. * Wm. Woods, Wm. Sebrey, John Sebrey, Jerry Haly, F. C. Hol- lembeck, A. Harvey, *John Kahl, *John Luther, S. F. Lambert, *Adamı Mann, John McCarthy, *Peter Malloy, *John W. Millet, L. T. Marshall, Barney McCoy, E. McDonald, A. McNeil, P. O'Brien, *J. W. Plummes, *Frank Riley, Thos. Reynolds, J. C. Miller, *John Skelly, N. Leverane, Chas. Tobin, B. T. Williams, Alfred Walker, John White, Mike Whalen, *Geo. A. Joy.
WALSH COUNTY EARLY HISTORY
In 1862 Walsh County was included in a region known as Kittson County, and in 1867 was included in Pembina County, which then extended from the Red River west, taking in Cavalier County, and south to the Sheyenne. Voting pre- cincts were established at Park River, now in Walsh, Stump Lake, now in Nelson, Dead Island, now in Cavalier, and Sheyenne, now in Cass, the latter taking in most of Walsh, Grand Forks, Traill and Richland counties. The voting place was near Georgetown, then a Hudson's Bay post.
In 1871 the Grand Forks Precinct was established, taking in Grand Forks, and part of Walsh and Traill counties, and west to the Pembina Mountains. The voting place was at the house of James Stuart at Grand Forks. Thomas Walsh, S. C. Code and John Fadden were appointed judges of election. The northern limits of the precinct were Park River, the Goose River formed the southern boundary and the crest of the Pembina Mountains the western boundary.
WALSH COUNTY ORGANIZED
In 1873 Grand Forks and Cass counties were created from a part of Pembina, and in 1881 Walsh from parts of Grand Forks and Pembina, and was organized August 30, 1881, Governor Ordway having appointed George P. Harvey, William Code and Benjamin C. Askelson county commissioners. They appointed Jacob Reinhardt, sheriff ; E. O. Faulkner, judge of probate; K. O. Skatteboe, treasurer; Eugene Kane, surveyor; Dr. N. H. Hamilton, coroner; Dr. R. M. Evans, super- intendent of schools; John Harris, Charles Finkle, J. A. Delaney and William Richie, justices of the peace. John Ross, Thomas Trainor, G. W. Gilbert and Whitefield Durham, constables. P. J. Mclaughlin was later appointed state's attorney and John N. Nelson assessor. The judge appointed W. A. Cleland clerk of the court, and under a special act of the Legislature Edwin O. Faulkner became the first county auditor.
Settlements commenced on points on the Red River in 1870, and in 1874 title was secured to lands in Walshville in anticipation of laying out a village. A town was later laid out at Acton, then known as Kelly's Point, by Antoine Girard, and here the first mercantile interests, aside from the old Indian and Hudson's Bay posts, were established by Jacob Eshelman, William Budge and W. J. Anderson.
In 1881 and the following year settlers commenced making their homes on the Red River, on the Park and the Forest, and by 1881, when the county was created, it is estimated there were 800 people in the county. School districts and towns had been organized either as a part of Grand Forks or Pembina and Acton had become a village, and a newspaper, the Acton News, later moved to Grafton, becoming a part of the News and Times, had been established.
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Grafton was an incident of the railroad construction of 1881. The land on which it was located was entered in 1878 by T. E. Cooper, who secured the estab- lishment of a postoffice early next year, and in July, 1879, regular mail service from Acton to Sweden via Grafton was commenced. The postoffice was called Grafton, in memory of Mrs. Cooper's old home in Grafton, New Hampshire. Mr. Cooper built the first hotel at Grafton.
The first teacher in the schools of Grafton was Joseph Cleary. He was suc- ceeded by Mr. W. J. Shumway. Mr. Shumway was assisted by Mrs. E. S. Mott. Mr. Shumway was succeeded by Mr. A. McCully as principal. Mr. McCully was assisted by Mr. D. C. Ross and Miss Kate Driscoll. The schools were not thoroughly graded until the fall of 1885. The territorial Legislature of 1885 passed an act creating the City of Grafton a special independent district; the government of the schools is today under the same act, and it has been found on the whole satisfactory.
This act was approved by the governor March 9, 1885, and the first board under that was elected April 7, 1885. It consisted of five members, two at large and one member for each of the three wards. This board consisted of Messrs. William Tierney, C. A. M. Spencer, H. C. Upham, F. E. Chase and E. O. Faulk- ner. The board organized with F. E. Chase as president and E. O. Faulkner clerk. Its first business was to bond the district for $15,000 to erect the main part of the central building. This was built during the summer of 1885. It is two stories high, built of brick and contains six large school and two recitation rooms. In August, 1885, Mr. J. C. P. Miner, a graduate of Harvard University, was engaged as principal, with Misses Mary D. Mattison, Kate Driscoll and Lucy Killeen as assistants.
PARK RIVER
Park River was a wheat field in 1884 and the wheat was removed to make way for the townsite and was first known as Kensington.
The first settler in the vicinity of Park River for agricultural purposes was Charles G. Oaks, an old Hudson's Bay Company employe, who settled at what was afterward known as Kensington in November, 1878, and those who came later constituted what became known as the Scotch settlement. The next and now the recognized oldest settler, was Charles F. Ames, who settled January 16, 1879. Among the other names recalled by the old settlers were William and Alex Bruce, James Smith, George Brown, James Maloney, Ed Carman and George Kennedy. Hans Robertson was the first in the Norwegian neighborhood and dates his settlement also from January, 1879. There were no settlers west of him at that time and few indeed between what is now Park River and Grand Forks. Accompanying Hans Robertson were Andrew Y. Anderson, Thomas Thompson, Iver Iverson and Knud K. Halstad and Peter Sager. The Kensington settlers came from Canada; the Scandinavians from Iowa, stopping first, how- ever, in Traill County.
In 1879 Charles H. Honey and John Wadge, brothers-in-law, came from their Canadian home in Kensington, where they selected land.
Wadge remained and Honey came on the next season, followed by other relatives and friends. Other settlers in 1879 were Thomas Wadge, George Nick-
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lin, William, Edward and Benjamin Code, William Craig, E. O. Faulkner, John and Fred Robb, Peter Campbell, Alexander Smith, William Davis, R. B. Hunt, William Burbridge and John Baird.
The postoffice was established at Kensington in February, 1880, with E. O. Faulkner postmaster. It was served from Sweden. Later the office was moved to the home of C. H. Honey, Mr. Faulkner having become county auditor, and later it was discontinued and Park River established in its stead, when C. H. Honey became the first postmaster at Park River.
THE CANADIANS CELEBRATE JULY 4
An amusing incident is related of the first settlers in the Scotch settlement. The settlers all came from Canada and knew little of the customs of the people of the United States and still less of their traditions, but they had sworn allegiance to the Government and felt in honor bound to celebrate its natal day. Accord- ingly a preliminary meeting was held for the arrangement of a program and during the rambling discussion some one suggested that the Declaration of Inde- pendence should be read. "And what is that?" was the quick response from the crowd. Accordingly Thomas Catherwood, the settlement's first teacher, was called upon to read it for the information of the meeting. It was at once recog- nized as a fit thing to be presented on such an occasion.
In the fall of 1879 the grass was especially heavy. At some points it was higher than a horse and generally on the low lands as high as a wagon box. A dense smoke indicated a prairie fire. The settlers turned out and plowed a fire break three furrows wide and eight miles long, but it had no greater effect than a tow string toward stopping the progress of the fire. Hay stacks went up in flame when the fire apparently was still fifteen rods away. John Robb of the force making the fire breaks was caught by the flames and, unable to escape, rushed through them. His heavy beard and brows were completely burned. It was a close shave, literally, and it was a narrow escape for his life. The cattle escaped to the river and it was hours before they could be gotten from their place of refuge.
By June, 1880, almost every claim was taken, the settlers coming in in groups of all sizes, from two or three families up to twenty. The "prairie schooners" were seen moving at all times of day and in every direction the squatters were seen making the improvements necessary to hold their claims. There was no opportunity for large farms. Few indeed suceeded in securing more than one claim of 160 acres. Occasionally a son, daughter or sister, or acommodating friend used their rights to help out the family. The land was not surveyed till 1879 and not open to filing until 1880.
Most of the early settlers took claims near the river and divided up the timber partly in a spirit of accommodation and partly in order to bring the settlement closer together. Hence most of the first claims were a quarter of a mile wide and a mile long.
BOTTINEAU COUNTY
Bottineau County was created by act of Dakota Legislature, January 4, 1873. It was named for Pierre Bottineau, probably the first white child born in North .
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EARLY HISTORY OF NORTH DAKOTA
Dakota, abont 1812. He was born to a family of French voyageurs associated with the fur companies then trading with the Indians at all points in North Dakota where furs were caught or accumulated, engaging often with the Indians on the buffalo hunts. Charles Bottineau, a brother of Pierre, was the first considerable farmer in North Dakota, and as early as 1870 had a farm of about one hundred acres under cultivation at Neche, where he had been engaged in farming long before any particular attention had been attracted to the Red River Valley. Indeed the first settlement in the valley for agricultural purposes was in the fall of 1870 and spring of 1871, while the census of 1870 shows about 1,200 halfbloods in North Dakota. They practically all originated from the voyageurs and traders connected with the Hudson's Bay Company, occupying the lower Red River country, and the American Fur Company, occupying the upper Missouri River and its tributaries as well as the James. Both classes occupied the Pembina and Turtle mountains and became associated with what is known as the Turtle Mountain band of Indians now numbering about three thousand. Some of these were of Canadian origin and some of American, but whether American or Canadian they roamed over thé prairies hunting, now selling their catch to traders in the field or taking them to Fort Garry, now Winnipeg, where churches and schools were built and they were taught in the ways of civilization.
They congregated for a time at White Earth, Minn. Some of them were drawn into the Riel rebellion in Manitoba and many received land and other benefits in Canada after the settlement of that affair, even though of American origin. The real estate speculators of Winnipeg followed them to this side of the line and paid their expenses to that city and return in their efforts to get them to claim land which it was desired to buy. Many yielded, signing papers and taking money without knowing what they were doing, being called upon only to touch the pen and take the money that was offered them.
In 1870 they settled in the Turtle Mountain region and claimed under alleged treaty rights practically the whole country north of Devils Lake and west of the Red River. This was so far recognized as to assign them by executive order thirty-six townships and this was later reduced to two townships, situated just west of Rolla. The remainder was thrown open to settlement, which commenced in Bottineau County in 1883.
In 1882 there were not a dozen settlers in the county. Three years later there were 818, and the Great Northern road was soon afterwards extended to Botti- neau, the terminus of the Rugby and Bottineau branch. Then but 120 acres of land had been entered and the total wheat product of the county was but 8,016 bushels, but two years later the wheat crop was 149,079 bushels. The acres improved in 1885 were 7,215. The county early devoted attention to stock and in 1885 had sheep producing 2,554 pounds of wool. It then had nearly two thon- sand head of cattle.
Bottineau County was organized March 13, 1884, by the appointment by the governor of William F. Simerall, Albert C. Barnes and Lorenzo D. Dana county commissioners. The first meeting of the board was July 17th, when Mr. Dana was elected chairman. John W. G. Simerall was appointed register of deeds ; Louis P. LeMay, sheriff ; Alex McBain, assessor; Archibald Finlayson, treasurer ; J. B. Sinclair, surveyor ; Rev. Ezra Turner, superintendent of schools ; William Stewart and George Gagnon, justices of the peace; Peter Ferguson, Francis X.
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Junea, constables. Later J. N. Greiner was appointed justice of the peace and J. B. Sinclair, road supervisor, and Alex. C. Barnes, clerk of court.
Robert Brander entered the land on which Bottineau is situated, the home- stead of Alex. Sinclair also forming a part of the city.
ROLETTE COUNTY
Rolette County was created by act of the Legislature, January 4, 1873, when North Dakota was first divided into counties. Until then the eastern portion was known as Pembina County, while that portion east of the Missouri and west of the James was a part of what is now Buffalo County, South Dakota, which then embraced most of the northern part of what is now North Dakota. In 1883 Tower County was created from Rolette, and its boundaries were further changed and established as now, March 11, 1887. Rolette County was organized November 6, 1885, by the appointment by the governor of the following county commissioners, viz .: James Maloney, Jasper Jeanotte and Arthur Foussard. Jeanotte and Foussard failed to qualify, and Fred Schutte and Lemuel M. Mel- ton of Dunseith were appointed in their stead.
They organized at Dunseith, October 14, 1884, and Fred Schutte was chosen chairman. Courtland P. Clements was appointed register of deeds; James Elton, judge of probate; F. E. Farrell, county superintendent of schools; James D. Eaton, county treasurer ; Barney Cain, sheriff ; Dr. Stephen Howard, coroner ; Gavin Hamilton, county attorney. W. H. McKee succeeded Elton as judge of probate. Thomas Heskett, L. E. Marchand, Samuel Shreckengast and Phillip T. Metler were appointed justices of the peace, and Thomas Maloney, Lake Demo, John McFadden, Moses LaBonty and John Cain, constables.
Giles M. Gilbert, Lemuel G. Melton and C. G. Oaks were the first settlers in that part of the mountains.
The LaBarge Brothers, Edward and Edmund and Arthur, and Emile Fous- sard came in 1881, settling at St. John. They came from Brandon, Manitoba, and claim to have led all other settlers, aside from a few half-breeds who came as early as 1880.
The first entries of public lands were made when the plats were filed at the Devil's Lake land office by Giles M. Gilbert, Lemuel G. Welton and E. G. Oaks. The law requires 30 days' notice to be given to entrymen of the filing of plats and proper notice to be given of intention to make proof, but without this notice, on the day the plats were open to inspection, Colonel Courtland P. Clements, a Colorado friend of Henry M. Teller, U. S. Secretary of the Interior, presented himself at the United States land office at Devil's Lake with a letter from Secre- tary Teller to the register and receiver directing that they allow proof to be made at once on the Gilbert, Melton and Oaks tracts and the entries were accordingly completed on the day their filings were made, and the Oaks and Melton entries were transferred to M. Ohmer, in the interest of the Dunseith townsite syndicate, of which Clements, Schutte, Laubach and Ohmer were members.
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