USA > South Dakota > Minnehaha County > History of Minnehaha county, South Dakota. Containing an account of its settlements, growth, development and resources Synopsis of public records, biographical sketches > Part 30
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BERGERSON, OLE, was born in Norway September 27, 1844, and came to the United States with his parents in 1851. He resided in Wisconsin and Iowa until 1868, when he removed to this county. He took up 320 acres of land in section 4 in Split Rock, and 160 acres in section 24, in Brandon, and made his home on the homestead in sec- tion 4. Ole B. Iverson was the only man who settled in Split Rock prior to him, and he had only been there four days when Mr. Berg- erson arrived. During the fall of 1868, Mr. Iverson and Ole and Soren Bergerson constructed the first house in Split Rock. It was in part a dug-out, and in front of it a few posts were set up and a roof put on, and in this place Mr. Iverson, his wife, and the Berger- sons lived the following winter. It was located about thirty rods northwest of the east end of the bridge crossing the Sioux River at East Sioux Falls. They were so much pleased with the country that they made a systematic effort to induce Scandinavians to come here and settle, and through their influence quite a large number of farm- ers of that nationality located in this county. Mr. Bergerson has been very prominent in the affairs of Split Rock township, having held all of the town offices, and was also county commissioner from 1871 to 1879. He is a large property owner, and has some invest- ments in mining property in the State of Washington. He has al- ways been held in high esteem by his neighbors, and is recognized as one of the most reliable citizens in the county.
BOWMAN, S. A., is another of the old settlers. He was born in Linkoping, Sweden, in 1830; emigrated to the United States in 1869, lived in Michigan four years, and located in this county in 1873. He filed a pre-emption on the northeast quarter of section 11 in the town of Split Rock, where he still resides. He also bought and now owns 40 acres in section 2, in the same township. He has a good farm, and is a respected citizen.
CHARLESON, THOMAS, is a native of Norway, and born in 1851. He emigrated to this country and lived in Iowa for two years; re- moved to Minnehaha county in the spring of 1872, and took up the north half of the northeast quarter of section 10, and the north half of the northwest quarter of section 11, in the town of Split Rock, where he has since resided and has a good farm.
CLAUSON, CLAUS, is one of the pioneers of Minnehaha county, having lived here since June 30, 1869. He came from Winneshiek county, Iowa, where he was born December 29, 1854. He took up a homestead in section 14, and a tree claim in section 15 in Split Rock. He resides on his homestead, and is a good farmer and a good citi- zen; has been town assessor in Split Rock several years.
CLAUSON, CHRIST T., is one of the early settlers of this county, having lived on his present farm since 1872. He came from Winne- shiek county, Iowa, where he was born in 1854. He was the first as- sessor in Split Rock, and has also been a member of the town board of supervisors. His farm comprises 160 acres in sections 14 and 15. He is a good citizen and has a good farm.
OLE BERGERSON.
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HISTORY OF MINNEHAHA COUNTY.
FLORELL, ANDREW, came direct from Sweden to Dakota, and settled in this county in May, 1873. He took up as a homestead the northeast quarter of section 3, in the town of Split Rock, where he has lived ever since, and has now a good farm. He was born June 17, 1828.
IVERSON, PETER, was born in Norway in 1853. When only six years of age he emigrated with his parents to the United States, and settled in Iowa. In 1871 Mr. Iverson came to this county, where he secured as a homestead the northwest quarter of section 21, in Split Rock township. He also owns some real estate in Minnesota, but re- sides on his homestead, which is a good farm. He is a good citizen.
JACOBSON, FRED, a son of L. A. Jacobson, was born in Sweden, August 24, 1863, and came to this country with his father in 1871. He bought and now owns 160 acres in section 13, in Split Rock, where he resides. He was a member of the town board of supervis- ors in 1891, and is a good citizen.
JACOBSON, LARS ANDERS, is a native of Sweden and was born at Motala, October 17, 1829. He emigrated to the United States in 1871, lived in Illinois one year, and in Iowa, until 1875, when he re- moved to Dakota and settled in this county, where he has since been a permanent resident. Mr. Jacobson took up a homestead in section 12, in Split Rock, where he still resides and has a well improved farm with good buildings. He is a good citizen.
JACOBSON, PHILLIP, another son of L. A. Jacobson, was born in Sweden, October 18, 1864. He owns a good farm comprising 160 acres in section 24, where he resides, and also 80 acres in section 36, in Split Rock. He is a good farmer and a good citizen.
JONES, THOMAS F., was born in Anglesey, North Wales, Eng- land, October 8, 1855. He emigrated to this country and lived a few years in Mankato, Minnesota. August 20, 1888, he became a resi- dent of this county, where he has bought and now owns 80 acres in section 36, in Split Rock, one lot on east Sixth street in the city of Sioux Falls, and a house and lot in Rowena.
JOHNSON, CHARLES, was born in Stockholm, Sweden, June 25, 1834. In 1868, he emigrated to the United States, and resided at Cedar Rapids, Iowa, five years, then at Sioux City for a short time, and removed from there to Dakota in 1873 and settled in this county. He took up as a homestead the southwest quarter of section 12, in Split Rock, where he still resides and has a good farm.
KNUTSON, JOHN, was born August 10, 1843, in Norway. He emigrated to the United States, lived in Iowa for three years and re- moved to Minnehaha county in 1873. He then filed a pre-emption, which he changed to a homestead, on the northwest quarter of sec- tion 15, in the town of Split Rock, where he still resides. He after- wards bought 160 acres of land in section 17, in the same town. He is a respected citizen and an enterprising farmer.
LARSON, GEORGE, is a native of Sweden, and was born May 13, 1860. In June, 1871, he came to this county with his parents, who settled in Split Rock township. His father, Andreas Larson, who
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HISTORY OF MINNEHAHA COUNTY.
died a few years ago, took up 160 acres of land in sections 22 and 23, of which the subject of this sketch is now the owner, besides another quarter section which he also owns, and has a good farm. He has been township treasurer ten successive years, and is a good farmer and a good citizen.
LEE, MARTIN T., was born in Christiania, Norway, January 16, 1861, and came to the United States with his parents in 1867. For three years his parents resided in Iowa, but in June, 1870, removed to Split Rock in this county. They arrived on the 18th day of June, and the subject of this sketch, was old enough to remember that dur- ing the first two weeks of their residence there they lived on fish and milk. The old homestead is located on the northwest quarter of sec- tion 2 in Split Rock, and he now resides there with his father. He has bought some farm land near the homestead, and is an industrious, upright man and a good citizen. He has been town supervisor for several years.
LEE, THORSTEN A., was born near Christiania, Norway, August 11, 1846. In June, 1867, he emigrated to the United States, settled in Iowa for three years, and then came to Split Rock, arriving there June 18, 1870. He soon after took up 160 acres in section 2 in Split Rock, where he has since resided. He is a good farmer and a good citizen.
LINDSTROM, CHARLES A., is a native of Sweden. and was born on the 29th day of November, 1841. In 1853 he emigrated to the United States with his parents, and resided in Illinois and Iowa until about the first day of June, 1871, when he came to this county. He settled in Split Rock, and took up 240 acres of land in sections 17 and 20 in that township. In 1873 he was elected sheriff of the county of Minnehaha, but did not qualify. He has held school district of- fices and has been chairman of the town board. In July, 1861, he en- listed in the 42d Illinois regiment and served until January, 1866. He was wounded in the battle of Stone River, and again in the battle of Resaca, Georgia. He was sergeant two years, and when dis- charged was lieutenant in Co. I. Mr. Lindstrom is an honest, up- right citizen, and is one of the most respected farmers in the county.
LOWE, WILEY V., was born at Wheeling, West Virginia, August 13, 1865; was reared in the State of Illinois, and educated at the Nor- mal school at Stanberry, Mo .; was then employed as bookkeeper for several corporations in Iowa; came to East Sioux Falls in 1889, and took the position of bookkeeper for the East Sioux Falls Granite Co .; in 1896, he became the local manager of the East Sioux Falls Quarry Co., which position he still holds. He has been postmaster of East Sioux Falls post office for several years, and has been city auditor since 1892. Mr. Lowe is a young man of sterling worth, industrious and enterprising, and is an honest, upright citizen.
MONSON, OLIVER, has been a well known resident of this county since November 21, 1875; he came to this county from Pennsylvania, where he first located after his coming to the United States. He se- cured a homestead of 160 acres in section 19, in the town of Split
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HISTORY OF MINNEHAHA COUNTY.
Rock, where he has since resided, and has a well improved farm, with good buildings. He has held the office of justice of the peace, and has been a member of the town and school boards. He is a na- tive of Sweden and was born July 29, 1851. He is an industrious farmer and a good citizen.
NILSSON, ANDREW, was born in the province of Wermland, Sweden, on the 12th day of March, 1834. He emigrated to the United States in 1867, lived in Illinois five years, and came to Dakota in 1872, and located in this county, where he has since been a well and favor- ably known resident. He secured a homestead and tree claim in section 1 in Split Rock, and has since purchased about 200 acres of land adjoining, and has a good farm. He is also the owner of some real estate in the city of Sioux Falls. He resides on his homestead with his family, having five sons and two girls, and is a respected and good citizen. He has been treasurer of the school board in Split Rock several years.
OLANDER, CHARLES, one of the early settlers of this county, is a native of Sweden, and was born in 1844. He emigrated to the United States, lived in Michigan for some time, and located on his present homestead in 1872, which comprises the southeast quarter of section 11 in Split Rock township. He also owns land in sections 2 and 11 in the same township, and eighty acres in section 16 in Valley Springs township. He has been a member of the town board of supervisors several years, was assessor in 1888, and justice of the peace in 1891. He is one of the well-to-do farmers of the township, and is a good citizen.
PETERSON, BERNT S., one of the pioneers of Split Rock, was born in Norway June 23, 1846, emigrated to the United States in 1860, and lived in Iowa until 1869, when he located in Split Rock, where he has since remained a permanent resident. The only set- tlers in this township at that time were Ole Bergerson, Soren Berger- son and O. B. Iverson. He says he was the second man who secured a marriage license in this county, and Rev. Olson, now living at Canton, solemnized the marriage. They lived in a sod and log house for ten years, which, as prosperity advanced, gave place for more modern structures. He has been a successful farmer, and resides on his homestead in section 9, and has a well improved farm, well stocked. He was constable in 1871, has been road master for about fifteen years, and is a good citizen.
REID, ALFRED, was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1870, and emigrated to the United States and settled in this county in 1887. He took up his residence at Rowena, and engaged in the stone busi- ness until quite recently, when he opened a general store at that place. He has been town clerk two years, and town treasurer since 1897, and postmaster since December of that year, is an energetic, active citizen, and popular with his neighbors, and all who know him.
ROBERTSON, JOHN, was born in the state of New York in 1847. In 1864 he enlisted in the navy, and served until the close of the war. He then engaged in farming in Illinois and Iowa until 1884, when he
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HISTORY OF MINNEHAHA COUNTY.
removed to Dakota and settled on his present homestead, the south- east quarter of section 23, in Split Rock, where he still resides. He is a good farmer and a respected citizen.
RYDO, CHARLES, is a native of Sweden, and was born in Nerike December 18, 1835. He came to this country in 1871, and lived in Pennsylvania and Iowa until 1876, when he settled in this county. He owns the northeast quarter of the northeast quarter of section 14, and resides there.
SAMUELSON, JOHN A., is one of the first settlers in Split Rock. He was born in Sweden, June 26, 1837; emigrated to the United States in 1868, and lived one year in Iowa. In 1869 he came to Dakota and settled on his present homestead of 160 acres in section 13, in Split Rock, where he has since resided engaged in farming. He is a good citizen.
SIMONS, NELS, was born in Norway November 15, 1848, and emigrated to the United States in 1869. After having remained in Wisconsin for about two months he went to work on a steamboat on the Mississippi river. The next winter he spent in Clinton, Iowa, and in the spring of 1870 went to Sioux City and engaged in steam- boating on the Missouri river. In 1871 he came to Split Rock, this county, and took up the northeast quarter of section 35. He has since sold one-half of this land, and purchased other land near by and has now a farm of 295 acres. He resides on the west half of the northwest quarter of section 35. Until 1882 he was engaged every year in steamboating either on the Mississippi or Missouri rivers, and during two seasons since then was engaged in the same business on the upper Missouri. For fifteen years he held a license as first mate. Mr. Simons is a character. He is a good talker and takes an active part in politics, and is on one side or the other on all political questions. He has held school district and town offices and is a good official, and a republican convention in this county without his presence as a delegate would not only be noticed but regretted. He is a keen, sharp man, and maintains a good reputation as an honest, public-spirited citizen.
SWENSON, SEVER MARTIN, was born in Norway April 15, 1859. He emigrated to the United States with his parents in 1866, and located in Iowa till 1870, when they removed to this county. Some years ago he bought the southeast quarter of section 10, where he now resides, and has quite a good farm. He has held some school offices, and is a good citizen.
THOMPSON, SAMUEL, isa native of Norway, and was born August 11, 1863; attended school and worked on a farm until he emigrated to the United States with his parents in 1874. His father, Thomas Thompson, took up one hundred and sixty acres in section 29 in Split Rock township in 1874, but died two years later. A part of the homestead is within the limits of the city of East Sioux Falls, and the subject of this sketch resides in the city. He has been alderman two years, and mayor of the city five years; was nominated for repre- sentative to the legislature by the Republican party of this county in
NELS SIMONS.
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HISTORY OF MINNEHAHA COUNTY.
1898, but the fusionists were in the majority. Mr. Thompson is an energetic, enterprising citizen, and highly esteemed.
THOMPSON, THOMAS L., a brother of Samuel Thompson, was born in Norway in March, 1861, and came to this county with his parents in 1874, since which time he has been a resident of Split Rock township. He resides at East Sioux Falls, and has been alder- man of that city one term, and is a respected citizen.
TORKILDSON, IVER, has lived in Minnehaha county since 1873. He formerly resided in Iowa, where he first settled after coming to the United States. He is the owner of a good homestead on the southeast quarter of section 1, in the town of Split Rock, where he now lives. He is a native of Norway, and was born in 1848.
WEBSTER, MADISON, is a native of New York, and was born in 1840. He resided for a while in Iowa, but removed to Split Rock in this county in 1873. He took up a homestead in section 26, and since then has added to his real estate by pre-emption and purchase so that now he has 550 acres of farm land. The stone quarry near Rowena is located on land purchased from him. Mr. Webster is an industrious man and a good citizen.
WHITE. GEORGE B .. has been a resident of this county since June, 1870, at which time he came here and took up as a homestead the southeast quarter of section 35, in Split Rock. He now resides in Sioux Falls. He has been clerk of the town board, and treasurer and clerk of school district No. 6. Mr. White is a good farmer and a good citizen. He was born January 3, 1853, in Athens county, Ohio.
WOEHRLE, JOHN, came to the United States in 1880, from Wur- temberg, Germany, where he was born April 21, 1848. He owns the northwest quarter of the southwest quarter of section 6. in the town of Split Rock. He is a good citizen.
SIOUX FALLS TOWNSHIP.
101-49.)
The first settlement in the county was made in Sioux Falls town- ship. In the first chapter it appears at what time and by whom the first settlement was made; in fact, the history of the township com- prises so much of the early history of the county that it will be found interwoven with and a part of nearly all its events of importance. There is some fine land in the township; but a short distance from the Big Sioux river, especially in the northwestern part of the town- ship, there are some high bluffs where the soil is light and sandy. It is watered by the Big Sioux river, and its course in the township runs in the direction of nearly all the points of the compass. It en- ters on section five, and leaves the township on section one, after passing through not less than nineteen sections. The township lines were surveyed by W. J. Neeley in July, 1859, and the subdivisions were made by him in August and September of the same year. By this survey the township contained 23,022.83 acres of land, and what is now called Covell's lake covered eighty acres. The map of the township made by Surveyor Neeley is very interesting. It appears from this map that the first settlers intended to build the town at the foot of the falls on the west bank, as there is a plat of thirty blocks, five deep, east and west following the course of the river, and six north and south. There were fifteen blocks on each side of the sec- tion line between sections nine and sixteen. Of course, no other record was ever made of this the first plat made in the county. As appears elsewhere in this book, the first building erected in the county was called the Dubuque house, and appears on this map as being in the third block from the west, and just north of the section line mentioned above, and as near the middle of the plat as it could be placed. A small space, near where Levi Carter's residence now stands on section four, extending into section three, is designated as a field. At the southeast corner of section four there is a represen- tation of a building, with the word "Fuller's "; and a field a few rods south in sections nine and ten. There is also another field near the south line of section ten. The northeast quarter of the northeast quarter of section seventeen, what is now platted as Mcclellan's Ad- dition to West Sioux Falls, was designated as "Jarrett's farm," and a small field appears on the south line of this quarter section. This map also indicates that Gov. Masters had a house on the southeast quarter of section seventeen, and it appears to have been located as near as may be on what is now block eleven in Bennett's First Addi-
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HISTORY OF MINNEHAHA COUNTY.
tion, between Spring and Duluth avenues and Seventh and Eighth streets in the city of Sioux Falls. Another small field appears a little west and south of where the Jordan Methodist church is now located, on the east side of the river. This field is designated as "Little's field." Another small field appears in what is now Park Addition, and still another called "White's field" situated on the north side of the river in the northwest quarter of section thirty- four. There also appears to have been a stone house in the southeast corner of the southwest quarter of section twenty-two.
In 1877, the village of Sioux Falls, comprising twelve hundred acres, was carved out of this township. On the 3d day of March, 1883, the city of Sioux Falls was incorporated, comprising all the territory of the village and much more, as it took nine full sections from the township, and since that time a little more than two sections have been added to the city. Upon the incorporation of the town of South Sioux Falls three and one-half sections more were taken from the township, so that it has only about twenty-one sections left, and this portion is so covered with plats that it seems out of place to at- tempt to raise anything upon it but "garden-truck."
LIST OF OFFICERS, 1881-1899.
1881. Supervisors, H. R. Hunter, chairman, A. F. Davenport and Knut Thompson; clerk, Edward C. Currey; treasurer, G. B. Sammons; assessor, Henry Callender; constables, C. T. Jeffers and Henry Callender; justice, Frank S. Emerson. July 22, E. C. Currev resigned as clerk and C. W. McDonald was appointed in his place, and at the same time L. D. Henry was appointed justice of the peace. December 29, D. S. Glidden was appointed treasurer, G. B. Sam- mons having removed from the township.
1882. Supervisors, A. A. Grant, chairman, J. H. Stockton and Knut Thompson; clerk, C. W. McDonald; treasurer, D. S. Glidden; justices, L. D. Henry and Frank S. Emerson. April 29, McDonald not having qualified as assessor, Frank S. Emerson was appointed, and on the 6th day of July, McDonald resigned as clerk, and Frank S. Emerson was appointed to fill vacancy.
1883. Supervisors, A. A. Grant, chairman, J. H. Stockton and Knut Thompson; clerk, H. M. Avery; treasurer, H. S. Hill; assessor, F. S. Emerson; justices, L. D. Henry and E. C. Hawkins; constables, John Sundback and T. D. Quigley. May 28, D. S. Glidden was ap- pointed treasurer, and a contract was made with Cashman & Smith for building a bridge across the Sioux river at the Yankton crossing for $423.
1884. Supervisors, A. F. Davenport, C. Broughton and David Reynolds; clerk, Frank Ford; treasurer, J. S. Udell; assessor, Wm. Beckler.
1885. Supervisors, A. F. Davenport, chairman, D. Reynolds and H. Hunter; clerk, Frank Forde; treasurer, John T. Udell; as- assessor, J. D. Redding.
1886. Supervisors, A. F. Davenport, chairman, D. Reynolds and H. Hunter; clerk, Frank Forde; assessor, J. D. Redding.
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HISTORY OF MINNEHAHA COUNTY.
1887. Supervisors, A. J. Rowland, chairman, Wm. Howie, Sr., and H. C. Aldrich; clerk, W. P. Willard; treasurer, C. E. Place; as- sessor, J. T. Udell; justice, G. A. Campbell. The treasurer re- ported he had received during the year $1,958.20, and that the bal- ance on hand was $37.08.
1888. Supervisors, Wm. Howie, Sr., chairman, H. C. Aldrich and John Schaetzel; clerk, W. P. Willard; assessor, A. L. Caskev; treasurer, E. S. Carter; justice, L. A. Bullard; constables, J. D. Redding and Jacob Hawkins.
1889. Supervisors, Henry Hunter, chairman, A. C. Aldrich and John Schaetzel; clerk, W. P. Williard; treasurer, Henry Rum- mel; assessor, E. W. Tufts; justice, G. A. Campbell; constable, J. T. McGarraugh. October 12, W. P. Willard resigned the office of clerk and W. H. Heiss was appointed to fill vacancy.
1890. Supervisors, John Fortune, chairman, E. W. Tufts and A. C. Collins; clerk. W. H. Heiss; treasurer, Isaac Waring; as- sessor, J. C. Tufts; justices, J. T. McGarraugh and George Baker; constables, H. C. Aldrich and George Dukelow.
1891. Supervisors, A. C. Collins, chairman, F. H. George and E. W. Tufts; clerk, Wm. H. Heiss, Jr .; assessor, P. D. Gushard; treasurer, James A. Waring; justice, H. C. Aldrich and E. Caldwell; constables, J. T. McGarraugh and L. P. Caldwell. P. D. Gushard did not qualify for assessor, and Fred M. Carter was appointed. At a special town meeting March 19, it was decided by a vote of 71 to 37 to appropriate $5,500 for construction and repair of highways.
1892. Supervisors, A. C. Collins, chairman, W. G. Lacey and George A. Baker; clerk, W. H. Heiss, Jr .; treasurer, J. A. War- ing; assessor, Fred Carter; justices, A. M. McNaughton and J. C. Tufts; constables, J. T. McGarraugh and H. C. Aldrich.
1893. Supervisors, A. J. Hughes, chairman, W. G. Lacey and A. Caldwell; clerk, W. H. Heiss, Jr .; treasurer, Henry Truxes; as- sessor, H. J. Whipple.
1894. Supervisors, S. W. Helsen, chairman, W. G. Lacey and A. Caldwell; clerk, W. H. Heiss, Jr .; treasurer, Henry Truxes; assessor, James R. Waring.
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