USA > South Dakota > Hyde County > History of Hyde County, South Dakota : from its organization to the present time > Part 2
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HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
Chicago. Mr. Lyman was killed later on in the railroad yard at Huron, where he was employed. Mr. Hamlin now resides at Highmore. He arrived there in the spring of 1883. When the Holabird contingent, as before stated, were in their shack Mr Hamlin drove by with a load of goods and was looking for his claim. He stopped and inquired of the boys where the claim was located and the information was given him. After Mı. Hamlin drove away there was quite a dis- cussion among them as to who that man was and what had been his occupation in lite. One of them thought he was a farmer changing his location, another thought he was a storekeeper and Mr. and Mrs. Geo. Hirsch, had shifted to a government claiin, but the rest insisted that he was'a Presbyterian preacher and finally bet on it, but Mr. Hamlin afterwards decided against them.
In the winter of 1882 and 3 coyotes were plenty and many of them were caught as traps were continually kept out, indeed by spring the main shack was about covered with coyote skins.
One moonlight night they set two traps about six inches apart and placed a piece of meat between them, then watched out of the window for their game. The first coyote that showed up actually lay down on the ground, reached his paw between the traps and pulled the meat out and away from them, which was such an act of cuteness and intelligence they had not the heart to shoot him, but many were shot as well as trapped. In the early days of the coun- ty, most of the settlers lived in shacks. Any kind of a habitation
24
HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
would do on the start, unless the settler was able to build extensive- ly. The shack or shanty is exclusively a western institution, at any rate it was the settler's castle, and a shack was generally 8 by 10 with a shed roof, and tar paper covering. If anyone doubted the continuous residence, the shack was pointed out as the mute but convincing evidence of settlement. A stove pipe also projected through the roof, and this useful ornament would remove all doubt
of the settler's good faith. Oc- casionally, when some shack was too long neglected, some mis- chevious o r malicious fellow would appropriate it to his own use, and the settler, if he re- turned, would find his evidence of settlement removed.
But among settlers it was re- garded, if the claim was taken in good faith, as the sacred habita- tion, the legal improven.ent of him who placed it there, and it was not well either to molest or disturb it.
Ofttimes the habitation con- A. D. WINANS sisted of a sod shanty, and some- times a dug out, which was an excavation in the ground, a hole large enough to live in, covered to shed the rain. As the settler prospered, and as he possessed thrift and economy, he would "catch on, "and his pioneer structure would be succeeded by something more commodious. If a claim was too long neglected, it would often be taken by another, jumped as we called it, but jumping claims was then a disreputable, and sometimes a serious business, unless the settler had entirely neglected his duty, and paid no attention to the requirements of the law.
25
HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
There are a few shacks now, but in a few years we can say with the poet,
" Good-by, old shack ; time's relentless rigor Has ground you up at last to shapeless dust ; But faithfully have you performed your trust, And sheltered manly worth. and moral vigor."
Along in the early days when money was scarce, and people hard up, the fuel question was quite a problem. It cost something to live through the winter and keep warm, and without coal or wood then something else must supply their place. Many peo- ple burned "Buffalo chips" and laid in quite a stock in the fall, but this method of heating was distasteful and unsatisfactory. If ever the mind of man is prolific with suggestions and theories, it is when necessity demands it. In casting about for something that would take the place of coal, there seemed to be nothing in sight, aside from the chips, but the prairie grass which was produced right here from the soil. Thi; discovery of available fuel at our v ry doors went over the country J. H. PILKINGTON like wild fire, and soon the horny hand of many a struggling homesteader was straining its muscles twisting the prairie grass into a compact form, so that it could be placed in the stove and answer all the purposes of fuel.
The hay it was true, did considerable heating, but the twist- ing and firing up took about all the time one inan could spare, and as women could not do the twisting, the head of the household had to practice, and perhaps improve upon the art with devoted indus-
26
HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
try. Ingenious ones entered the field of invention, and the brain of many an ambitious settler was racked with devices for twisting the stuff until the patent office at Washington was crowded with models, which each one furnishing them believed would revolutionize the heating forces of the world. On .: fellow's invention consisted of two upright pieces of wood, of sufficient height, manipulated the
4
FINE RESIDENCE OF B. A. FOOTE, HIGHMORE, S. D.
hay by hooks, and then a crank, which carried a roller catching the hay and winding it, until it was a solid stick of proper size for us- ing.
Fred Wareham spent manvan anxious day and night over a hay burner, which, by new devices, he thought would revolutionize the whole system of heating, but at last he gave it up in despair and pitched the thing out in the back yard.
One fellow who run for office in 1886 was nearly slaughtered in his election, because he was charged with being so "stuck up" that he would not burn hay. During those winters the shack with only
27
HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
room enough to live in, would be so filed with twisted hay, the in- mates could hardly get around themselves, and the stranger who entered it would see no room for him.
But in the time, the hay burner went out of use, the people of the county were "catching on" and money was on hand to buy the proper kind of fuel.
In September, 1882, a prairie fire swept the county, but there being not much property in the county to burn, there was but little damage. But prairie fires during the eighties were ot com- mon occurance, started principal- ly from sparks thrown from the locomotive, which resulted in damage suits against the North- western Railroad Co., but owing to the fact that the losers were generally poor men the company settled the suits satisfactory to the claimants.
July 26, 1886, a prairie fire started north of Holabird and swept on east and southeast and burned over in area what would B. A. FOOTE be about one township, and more damage would have been done but for a rainfall the next morning, which put an end to the fire. As it was D. W. Peppel lost a barn and contents, eleven tons of hay, chickens, turkeys and some wheat in the field. John McGovern, seventy-five shocks of wheat; Peter Learn, three acres of wheat and John Tobin his house barn and grain, in fact Mr. Tobin lost about all he had. Other misfortunes which came to Hyde county are mentioned elsewhere.
HYDE COUNTY GRAIN EXHIBIT AT THE STATE FAIR, HURON, S. D., SEPTEMBER 9-13, 1907.
CHAPTER III
Our readers will now pardon us if we leave Hyde county long enough to say something of the great state of South Dakota, of which we are a part, and in doing this we quote from a statement made by Ex-Gov. Elrod. It was written in January, 1907, and to an outside reader will be of much interest. The Governor said:
"The story of the growth and development of the state of South Dakota is most interesting. Its 76,850 square miles is a part of the great Louisana Purchase which Jefferson bought for a mere song, i. e., $15,000,000. South Dakota's corn crop last year brought $16,000,000. The first farms were opened in what is now the state, less than forty years ago, and settlers did not come in great num- bers until 1880 an1 1883. Dakota territory was divided in 1889 and the state of South Dakota has had a remarkably healthful growth from its admission into the union until now. For many years it was the talk among doubting Thomas's that the climate was too dry and that the state could never become an agricultural state, but our pioneer citizens have demonstrated that wherever the prairie fires are kept out, wherever the Flow goes, wherever trees are planted, rain fall increases.
Let me ask what is the matter with a state that has produced for eight consecutive years more wealth per capita than any other state? What is the matter with a state that has more money per capita in h.r banks than any sister state? What is the matter with a state that has fewer idle people than any other state and fewer people per capita in her poor house? South Dakota is the state that leads in all these things. South Dakota is neither too far . north nor too far south. Her climate is better, winter and sum- mer, than Kansas and Nebraska, or North Dakota and Montana. Kansas and Nebraska are great States, but a look at the map of the
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HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
Missouri valley convinces one that the soil, or the land, of South Dakota is better than the land o. soil of the states above mentioned. The great Missouri river crosses South Dakota from northwest to southeast and the state is watered and drained by it and its branches A look at the map shows one that the western half of South Dako- ta is peculiar for two things. It contains the Black Hills, a most interesting 100 square miles of country, famed for its rich valleys and its gold mines which pro- duced during the last year $7,- 190,000, and secondly the great- er part of the western half of the state drains to the north and east and is much better watered than our sister states to the south of us, and there is consider- able timber and probably a great supply of lignite coal. In a word those of us who have lived here for twenty-four years are just be- ginning to realize what a won- derful area of land our state con- tains.
The native grasses of the state J. C. STONER, JR .. are unsurpassed. Cattle and horses and sheep fatten without corn on the grass that produced the famous buffaloes of only forty years ago. Timothy and clover and alfalfa and Kentucky blue grass follows civilization. South Dakota does not claim to be a wheat state or a corn state. She is both, and she is more; she is a mixed farming state. She produces in great quantities wheat, corn oats, barley, flax, potatoes, horses, cattle and dairy products, sheep and wool, and hogs.
Last year the state raised 43,000,000 bushels of wheat which
31
HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
sold for $28,000,000; 51,000,000 bushels of corn worth $16,000,000, 42,000,000 busbels of oats worth $9,450,000; 20,000,000 bushels of barley worth $5,400,000; 2,250,000 bushels of flax worth $1,800,000; potatoes worth $4,250,000 and eggs and poultry worth $3,600,000. She sold 33,000 car loads of horses, cattle and hogs and sheep which put $25,000,000 into circulation in the state. It may be of interest to know that 33,000 cars, if in one line or in one train, would reach from Sioux City, Iowa, across our beautiful state of South Dakota, via Yankton, Scotland, Mitchell, Redfield, Aberdeen to Oaks in North Dakota. By the way, there is not a finer stretch of country anywhere than lies between the above named points, excepting other points in South Dakota. Illinois and Iowa and Indiana are called hog states, and Wisconsin is a cow state South Dakota is not a hog state or a cow state; HOTEL 1 she is both a hog state and a cow state. According to the figures of the United States au- thority, live stock per capita is valued at $ 160 and the rich, long settled state of Iowa is second The Formers' Friend Hotel, H. E. Tagg, Prop. with a valuation of $122. Highmore, So. Dak.
We are just beginning to raise fruit. There is one orchard in Turner county containing 130 acres that produced 24,000 bushels of apples in one season. The state is sure to become a fruit growing state, owing to the invigorating climate.
Let me ask the reader if he or she thinks there is anything ser- iously the matter with the climate, or the people of the state that produces all these things.
There are other things of equal if not greater importance than cattle and hogs and dollars.
The homes, the schools, the churches and the character of the
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HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
people of a community are the real test after all. The quality of the citizenship of the average South Dakotan is unsurpassed. The first settlers were the pluckiest boys and girls from the other states and from the nations across the ocean. They came here without means, but with the courage and determination that always insure success. The march of the pioneers of South Dakota, like the exodus of the children of Israel, has been from a wilderness into a land of beautiful homes supplied with all the necessaries and manv of the comforts of life. How I wish the renter and the small farmer of the eastern states could see what the pioneers of this state have accomplished within the last quarter of a century. If were a renter and paid annually a big rent to a rich landlord, or had but a few acres, provided always that I had backbone, I would come to South Dakota and buy a farm, if I had a part of the purchase price, and if I had no means, I would go to the end of the railroad, or ahead of it, and enter a homestead.
The writer of these lines, without money, landed at the end of the track on a construction train where the thriving little town of Clark now stands, in 1882. He still owns the land he preempted and $50 an acre wouldn't buy it and there isn't any mortgage on it. When you get a good piece of land, improve it, do not mortgage it, except for purchase money in case you buy it. Do not sell it, but keep it. It will be the safest asset you can leave your family. It will be there after the storms, after the panic, after the bank fail- ure.
The Schools of South Dakota are the pride of all our people. The common schools, the Normal schools, the School of Mines, the Agricultural College, the State University, are each and all in a healthful growing condition. The Agricultural college at Brook- ings with James Wilson, Jr., at the head of the farming department is beautifully located and is an inspiration to every stock grower who sees it. The Agricultural Experiment Farm at Highmore is the most helpful institution a state can give its farmers. It is doing
33
HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
for Hyde county and the state generally a vast amount of good.
Our permanent school funds amounts to $4,707,000 every cent of which is drawing interest at the rate of 5 per cent and we have 1,960,000 acres of choice school lands unsold.
The penal and charitable institutions of the state are modern. Neatness and economy and efficient management are characteristic of every one of them. There is neither waste nor graft in a public institution in the state.
We are just beginning to grow. Our people now have something to do with as fast as hands and money can make improvements they are being made. A sure index of a good coun- try is when railroads build in it. A thousand miles ot new railroad are being built in the state at a cost of many millions of dollars. Three or four new steel bridges are being", built across the great Missouri river that Lewis Clark as- cended a hundred years ago. O. L. WHITCHER Each will cost about $1,250,000. Along these new roads, homes and farms, towns, villages and cities will spring up and the prairies which have been known onl by the buffalo and the Indian will bring forth wheat and corn and all the products of the farm. Truly, "Man proposes, but God disposes."
The financial affairs of the state are in a most flattering con- dition. The banks are full of the people's money and there has not been a bank failure within the state during the past two years. The
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HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
state is practically out of debt. The bonded indebtedness is but $212,000 and the money is in the sinking fund to take up these bonds as soon as they are due.
For several months past the state treasurer has been trying to get the owners of these bonds to take their money, but most bond- holders only want their interest. He did succeed in getting the owner of $25,000 of these bonds to take his money and thus saved the state in interest $2000.
Come on in The Water's Fine --. SCENE ON JOHN SARVIS' FARM, HYDE COUNTY.
The state has outstanding emergency warrants in the sum of $250,000 and has cash on hand amounting to $40,000; so the in- debtedness of the state is but $212,000. Many of the counties of the state are out of debt. Money is plentiful and taxes are low. It is needless to say that the present administration stands for econ- omy. The watchword of every state institution and every depart- ment of the state is first, efficiency and secondly, economy.
South Dakota is a bee hive. There is work for every man, woman and child. What the state needs is people, and what a great many people need, is a home. There is room for thousands in South Dakota. If you are interested, come and see. The rail- roads sell half fare tickets every Tuesday. In a word, if you want
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HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
work, if you want a home, come to South Dakota; but do not come unless you are an optimist and have the blood in you that knows no defeat. Storms will come and they will come again, but the sun will shine brighter tomorrow than it does today."
Following this we will add that Hyde county lies in about the center of the state, is bounced on the north by Potter and Faulk counties, on the south by buffalo county and the Missouri river, on the east by Hand county and on the west by Hughes and Sully counties. The county con- tains eight hundred and seventy-four square miles or 552,960 acres. It is one of the youngest of Dakota counties and when these pages are per. sed its short, but eventful career will con- vince the reader that this county is one of the most progressive and inviting. It will not be long before every H. WINANS acre of wild prairie will be transformed into waving fields of agri- cultural enterprise and all will be thrifty farms and several pros- perous towns. The surface of Hyde county land is generally rolling prairie with occasional ranges of low bluffs. The prairie rolls everywhere in the county to an extent that drains the land without creating swamp or marsh. The character of the soil is such that it cannot be surpassed by any agricultural region in the United States. It is one to five feet deep and for small grain, such as
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HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
wheat, oats, barley, rye. buckwheat, etc., is well adapted, and the yield of corn and potatoes is simply enormous. The soil is rich, deep and durable, and with proper care and cultivation is almost inexhaustable. S Stock raising in Hyde county is a safe and lucra- tive business. The grass and hav producing qualities of the soil are of the highest character and any farmer here can make a great suc- cess of hogs and corn in fact many are doing it. The climite dif-
ONE OF HYDE COUNTY'S BEST FARMS, OWNED BY DR. H. H. STONER.
fers from that of eastern states in a very few particulars. The summers and winters are milder than in the east, that is to say, the heat is not so oppressive in the summer, nor are the winters so steadily cold. In the spring and autumn the mornings and evenings are delightful and refreshingly cool and the climate may be justly considered one of the most healthy, being a dry and exhilerating atmosphere well adapted to persons having catarrah, bronchial or
37
HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
lung difficulties. There is not a climate anywhere free from all ob- jectionable features, but we cannot but conclude that Hyde county possesses that which is fine and healthy.
EUGENE TIBBS AND FAMILY.
CHAPTER IV
COUNTY OFFICERS
We will now give the names of all the county officers from the time of its legal organization up to the present, omitting the names of those in the double organization as these aregiven in Chapter I so that our list commences Sept. 2, 1884, and were by appoint- ment.
-1884 ---
Register of Deeds E. O. Parker
Probate Judge.
Charles H. Price
Treasurer
.John F. Goudy
Sheriff Charles P. Jones
Sup't. of Schools . Cora M. Shober
Surveyor
D. L. Cadwalader
Coroner . B. D Foster
Assessor Charles S. McGill
L. E. Whitcher, A. E. Van Camp Supervisors
-1885-1886-
The first election in Hyde county, for county officers was in November, 1884. at which time the following persons were elected. Register of Deeds . M. G. Sinon Probate Judge John F. Goudy Treasurer Homer James Sheriff James H Lynce Simp't of Schools John F. O'Donnell County Attorney Charles H. Price
. Su veyer D. L. Cadwalader
E. J. Quinn Assessor
Coroner
B. D. Foster
Supervisors. . .. A. E. VanCam ), Divid Moore and J. W Beardsly
In the summer of 1335 the con nissioner districts were changed
-
FINE RESIDENCE OF S. DREW, HIGHMORE, SO. DAK,
41
HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
which added two more districts. The election was held May 12, 1885, for the purpose of electing two additional commissioners. In District No. 4, Robert E. Murphy was elected, and George Crose in No. 5. With these officers added to the list the next election was held Nov. 2, 1886. Officers in
-1887-1888-
Register of Deeds M. G. Sinon
Probate Judge. O. W. Beebe
Treasurer Homer James
Sheriff S. R. Meigs
County Attorney A. N. Van Camp
Sup't of Schools T. E. Price
Surveyor D. L. Cadwalader Coroner .H. H. Stoner
Commissioners. A. E. Van Camp, Wells F. Pidge, Wm. H. Triplett, R. E. Murphy and L. W. Harvey.
-1889-1890
Auditor. F. M. Barnes
Register of Deeds John H. McCord
County Judge John C. Stoner
Treasurer
J. A. Sedgwick
Sheriff S. R. Meigs
County Attorney
D. A. W. Perkins
Sup't of Schools .T. E. Price Surveyor . L. C. Hadley
Coroner
H. H. Stoner
Clerk of Courts L. Q. Jeffries
Assessor ..
Stephen Swift
Commissioners H. B. Young, G. W. Comstock, James H. Pettys Simon Fritzen, and W. W. Kingsbury
In 1890 Mr. Kingsbury and Mr. Fritzen had retired and in their places were appointed B A Foote and John D. Gray.
STEPHEN MOSS AND FAMILY
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HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
-1891-1892-
Auditor F. M. Barnes
Register of Deeds
E. O. Parker
Sheriff S. R. Meigs
County Judge A. N. Van Camp
Treasurer John A. Sedgwick
State's Attorney . . T. E. Price
John F. Gowdy Sup't of Schools
Surveyor L. C. Hadley Coroner H. C. Harris Clerk of Courts John C. Stoner, Sr.
Assessor . John M. Zemlicka
Commissioners. .. B. A. Foote, Geo. A. Tosh, G. W. Comstock, J. W. Jones and John D. Gray.
In 1892 W. D. McDonald was elected to succeed Mr. Foote. In January. 1892, John F. Gondy resigned as Superintendent of Schools and Mrs. Dora Stewart was elected by the Board to succeed him.
-1893-1894
Auditor ... . .. S. C. Traver
Register of Deeds.
E. O. Parker
Probate Jucge A. N. Van Camp
Treasurer Denton B. Thayer
Sheriff. Hiram B. Young
Sup't of Schools
Etta Bell Morton
State's Attorney G. L. F. Robinson Surveyor H. C. Harris
Coroner A. P. Stoner Clerk of Courts John C. Stoner Assessor Wm. C. Wooley Commissioners ... Henry A. Parker, Soren K. Christianson, Henry A. Parker, Win. Bottcher, Martin Bouzek.
FINE RESIDENCE OF A. N. GERHART, HIGHMORE, SO. DAK,
45
HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
-1895-1896-
Auditor .. S. C. Traver
Register of Deeds Charles P. Sawson
County Judge Eli Johnson
Treasurer
D. B. Thayer
Sheriff . . A. N. Gerhart
Sup't of School Dora C. Stewart
State's Attorney
G. L. F. Robinson
Surveyor H. C. Harris Coroner A. P. Stoner Clerk of Courts John C. Stoner, Sr
Assessor Wm. C. Wooley
Commissioners for 1895 were Albert Wells, Martin Bouzek, Reuben
Ellerton, W. D. McDonald and S. K. Christensen.
In 1895 Coroner Stoner, having resigned, Orin L. Whitcher was elected coroner by the Board.
Commissioners for 1896 were the same as 1895 except H. C. Shober and Christ Odegard were on the Board in place of W. D. McDonald and S. K. Christenson.
-1897-1898-
Auditor. . H. C. Shober
Register of Deeds B. A. Foote
County Judge
J. S. Harris
Treasurer Chas. P. Swanson Sheriff A. N. Gerhart
Sup't of Schools
Dora C. Stewart
State's Attorney Fred M. Barnes Surveyor H. C. Harris Coroner .A. P. Stoner
Clerk of Courts. E. R. Sheppard Assessor John Wooley Commissioners for 1897: R. Ellerton, E. L. Sarvis, J. M. Jensen, S.
BLACKSMITH SHOP OF W. W. YEANDLE, HIGHMORE, S. D.
47
HISTORY OF HYDE COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA
S. Meigs, C. Odegard; for 1898, the same except Arthur Lee in place of C. Odegard.
-1899-1900-
Auditor. H. C. Shober
Register of Deeds B. A. Foote
County Judge J. S. Harris
Treasurer
Charles P. Swanson
Sheriff Alphonso Winans
Sup't of Schools Clara Morford
State's Attorney Fred M. Barnes
Surveyor H. C. Harris
Coroner . C. E. Lighthead
Clerk of Courts . E. R. Sheppard Assessor Geo. H. Bottcher Commissioners for 1899; the same as 1898 except D. O. Welch in place of Reuben Ellerton. In 1900, H. T. Johnson, J. M. Jensen, J. A. McDonald, Arthur Lee and D. O. Welch.
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