History of South Dakota, Vol. I, Part 117

Author: Robinson, Doane, 1856-1946. cn
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: [Logansport? IN] : B. F. Bowen
Number of Pages: 998

USA > South Dakota > History of South Dakota, Vol. I > Part 117

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Captain Leach was born in Cambridgeshire, England, on the 7th of March, 1849, and is a son of William and Susan (Edwards) Leach, who were likewise born and reared in the "tight little isle," where the former was engaged in merchan- dising until 1851, when he came with his family to America, the voyage being made on a sailing vessel and the trip consuming a period of eight weeks. Landing in New York, he soon after- ward made his way westward to Cook county, Illinois, and purchased a farm in the district now covered by the beautiful suburb of Washington Heights, the property which he thus owned being now worth millions of dollars. He was there en- gaged in farming until 1857, when he came to what is now Sioux City, Iowa, the largest and most imposing building in the little frontier vil- lage at the time being the barn of the Northwest- ern Stage Company. He crossed the Missouri river on the 7th of June, 1857, and took up gov- ernment land where now is located South Sioux City. Upon his claim he constructed as the first family residence a rude dugout of the type so common in the early days in that section, as also at a later date in the Dakotas, and he developed and improved a good farm, becoming one of the well-to-do and honored citizens of that locality. Privations and hardships of other orders were the portion of the family during the formative era, and at times it was impossible to secure flour and other commodities now considered absolutely es- sential, and the first flour which he purchased cost twenty dollars for one hundred pounds. Wil- liam Leach continued to reside in Nebraska until his death, which occurred in 1869, and his widow still resides on the old homestead farm, in Da- kota county, Nebraska, having attained to the venerable age of seventy-six years (1904). She has long been a devoted member of the Presby- terian church, as was also her husband, and he was a stanch Republican in politics, having iden- tified himself with the party at the time of its organization. Of the thirteen children in the family our subject was the eldest, and only he and his sister are now living, she being married and a resident of Chicago, Illinois.

Captain Leach was about two years of age

at the time of his parents' immigration to the United States, and he attended school for a short time in Cook county, Illinois, being but cight years old when the family came to Nebraska. It is needless to say that in the pioneer locality scholastic advantages were notable chiefly for their absence, so that he received but little school- ing after coming to the west. This deprivation has not proved a serious handicap, however, for under the direction of that wisest of all head mas- ters, experience, he has gained a wide and varied fund of practical knowledge and is a well in- formed man of mature judgment. The Captain left the parental roof at the age of eleven years and began to fight the battle of life on his own responsibility. For five months he was engaged in driving stage between Covington and Onidie, Nebraska, and then entered the employ of the firm of Bozler & Hedges, who were engaged in the freighting business, for whom he drove a bull team for the ensuing eighteen months, after which he was employed in the office of the firm and later their general store at Sioux City, Iowa. He remained with the firm for three years and then remained one year at the home farm. At the age of seventeen he inaugurated his career in connection with steamboat transportation on the Missouri river, securing a position on the steamer "Miner," commanded by Captain Haw- ley, and plying between Sioux City and Fort Benton, Montana. He thus penetrated the vari- ous sections of the northwest during the early pio- neer epoch when the venturesome prospectors were making their way into the mountain fast- nesses of Montana in search of gold, while buf- faloes were to be seen by thousands and wild game of all sorts were abundant and the Indians obstinately disputed the encroachments of the white men. He continued to be thus identified with the navigation of the Missouri for a few years, and upon attaining his legal majority he started in the agricultural, grain and commission business at Covington, Nebraska, where he con- tinued operations until 1875, having been success- ful in his efforts. It should be noted in passing that he first came into what is now South Dakota in June, 1859. when he accompanied his

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father here with a load of produce, for which they received the sum of three hundred forty dollars, which practically paid for the farm in Nebraska. After retiring from business in Covington, Nebraska, the Cap- tain removed to Dixon county, that state, where he erected the first grain elevator and established the first lumber yard in the village of Ponca. In 1877 he traded his properties there for mining properties in the Black Hills, to which section he made his way, being there engaged in pros- pecting for a short time, after which he returned to Nebraska, where he remained until 1878, when he came again to the Hills. bringing about fifteen buggies and harness, of which he disposed at a good profit, and upon his return to Nebraska he engaged in contracting for ties, supplying the Sioux City, Columbus & Black Hills Railroad, which was then in process of construction. To this enterprise he gave his attention for one year and then, in 1882, he built the steamer "Little Maude." which he put into requisition in connec- tion with his wood trade, securing the product from his land on the river and selling the same in the markets at Sioux City. In the following year he entered the employ of the Chicago, Mil- waukee & St. Paul Railroad Company. trans- porting passengers and baggage with his boat. and on the 24th of August, 1883. he arrived at what is now his home village of Running Water, Bon Homme county, where he has ever since re- sided, while he has built up a large and important transportation business of general order on the Missouri river, while he has been the owner and operator of the ferry across the river from this point to Niobrara, Nebraska, from 1883 to the present time. In 1893 he chartered the steamer "Last Chance," which he utilized for transporta- tion purposes until 1898, when he built the steamer "South Dakota," which continued in serv- ice until May 10. 1902, when it was burned to the water's edge, at the dock in Hiles Landing, entailing a loss of twenty thousand dollars, with- ont insurance. In January, 1903. Captain Leach purchased the steamer "Bachelor." which he now · utilizes, having also in requisition the steamer "Little Mande," both of which are operated by

the company of which he is president, the stock of the concern being owned in its entirety by his family. The Missouri River Transportation Company, of which he is president and general manager, was incorporated under the laws of the state in 1902, and does a general freight and pas- senger transportation business, having landings at the following named points: St. Helena, Yankton, Lyter, Springfield, Santee, Running Water, Niobrara, Yankton Agency, Iron Post, Scalp Creek and Wheeler. His son, Captain Jo- seph, Jr., is general superintendent of the com- pany ; while the other two sons of the official corps are William A., who is secretary, and Paul Clifford, who is treasurer. The company handles a large annual business and affords fa- cilities which are of great value. In 1893 the Captain purchased what is known as the Chalk Cliff ranch, in this county, and he made many improvements on the place, which is one of the best in this section. He disposed of this property in 1901. In 1889 he erected his present fine resi- dence in Running Water, the same being one of the most attractive homes in the county, while it is a recognized center of social life and is notable for its gracious hospitality. He is also the owner of a general merchandise store at Perkins, this county, and is known as one of the progressive business men and loyal citizens of the state in which he has made his home for so many years and in which his circle of friends coincides with that of his acquaintances. In politics he gives an uncompromising allegiance to the Republican party and is well fortified in his convictions on matters of public polity, as is he also in the other and varied relations of life. He has been an ac- tive and influential factor in public affairs and has been honored with offices of distinctive trust and responsibility. In 1895 he served as a member of the state legislature, and in 1900 was elected to represent the seventh district in the state senate, making an excellent record in both assemblies and gaining the unqualified endorsement of his constituents. He is an appreciative and honored member of the Masonic fraternity, having been a charter member of Mt. Vernon Springfield Lodge, No. 7, Ancient Free and Accepted Ma-

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sons, at Niobrara, Nebraska, where he is also affiliated with the other York Rite bodies, and he has also attained the thirty-second degree in the Scottish Rite, being affiliated with Yankton Consistory, at Yankton.

At Covington, Nebraska, on the 2d of Sep- tember, 1871, was solemnized the marriage of Captain Leach to Miss Minnie Seeley, who was born in New York. She was reared and edu- cated at Waterloo, Iowa, being a daughter of Clinton F. and Mary Seeley, who is now deceased, her father having been a successful contracting mason and now living at Anaconda, Montana, aged seventy-five years. Mrs. Leach is a member of the Congregational church in Running Water and is prominent in its work and also in the social life of the community. Of the ten children of Captain and Mrs. Leach we enter the following brief record in conclusion of this sketch : Joseph, Jr., the general superintendent of the company of which his father is president, is captain of the steamer "Bachelor:" Minnie C. is the wife of Marion A. Farver, who has charge of the sub- ject's mercantile establishment at Perkins ; George is engineer of the steamer "Bachelor :" Paul C. is clerk on the steamer "Bachelor ;" Wil- lard A. is secretary of the Missouri River Trans- portation Company, as has been previously noted ; Susan B. is a member of the class of 1903 in All Saints' College, at Sioux Falls ; Arthur died at the age of two years ; and Vera, Minnie and Maude are at the parental home.

JAMES P. COOLEY, who is a represent- ative of Bon Homme county in the state senate at the time of this writing, is one of the leading citizens of the county mentioned and his precedence and personal popularity are indicated in the important office to which he has been called and in which he is serving his constituency and the state with signal ability.

Mr. Cooley is a native of the state of Mary- land, having been born in Cecil, Cecil county, 011 the 26th of February, 1845, one of the eight children of Corbin and Mary (Shaw) Cooley, and being the eldest of the four surviving, the

others being as follows: Mary S., who is the wife of Robert Christy, of Cecil county, Maine; and Charles and Emma, who are twins, the former being a prominent physician of Madelia, Minnesota, while the latter is the wife of David W. Hutchinson, of East Dowington, Pennsyl- vania. The father of the subject was born in Hartford county, Maryland, on the 12th of August, 1799, being a son of Samuel Cooley, who was a valiant soldier in the Continental line during the war of the Revolution, the family name having been long identified with the an- nals of American history. Daniel and Charles Cooley, sons of Samuel, also served their coun- try with distinction, having been active partici- pants in the war of 1812, and they were in Fort Henry at the time when Key and another prisoner there composed the famed national ode, "The Star Spangled Banner." The father of the subject passed his entire life in Maryland. where he died at the age of seventy-six years. He devoted his life to agricultural pursuits, and was a man of marked intellectuality and in- dividuality, his scientific methods of farming having placed him far in advance of his time, while he was a successful grower of live stock and a man of influence in his community, his advice being frequently sought by his neighbors in regard to business affairs and matters of local concern in a public way. His wife passed away at the age of eighty-two years.

James P. Cooley, the immediate subject of this sketch, was reared on the homestead farm and under the direction of his able and honored father gained that knowledge of business prin- ciples which has so signally conserved his suc- cess in temporal affairs, while his educational training was secured in the common schools and in the academy at West Nottingham, Cecil county, Maryland. He continued to reside in his native state until the year 1870, when he came to what is now the state of South Dakota, becoming one of the pioneers of Bon Homme county, where he has ever since maintained his home. Here he took up a pre-emption claim of one hundred and sixty acres, while later he added homestead and timber claims, while he has since

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HISTORY OF SOUTH DAKOTA.

added to the area of his landed estate by pur- chase of adjoining tracts and is now the owner of ten hundred and forty acres in the home farm, while his holdings in the county include an additional two thousand one hundred and fifteen acres, so that he is one of the extensive landed proprietors of this favored section of the state, the property last mentioned being eligibly located near the town of Springfield, while his fine home farm is located ten miles from Tyndall, the county seat. He raises cattle upon an ex- tensive scale and has been most successful in his operations in connection with this important line of industry, being a man of indefatigable energy and one whose policy is ever a progressive one. He is one of the heavy stockholders ,in the Se- curity Bank of Tyndall, and a member of its directorate, while his course has been such as to retain to him the highest measure of popular confidence and esteem in the county and state in which he has so long maintained his home.

Mr. Cooley is endowed with fine mental powers and marked business acumen, and he has ever shown a definite interest in public affairs. He gives his allegiance to the Democratic party but is liberal in his political views and ever shows the courage of his convictions, in which he is amply fortified. He served as a member of the territorial legislature of 1872-3, and in 1902 he was elected to his present dignified office as a member of the state senate. He is in no sense a politician but is intrinsically loyal to the duties of citizenship and is thus ready to serve the public with fidelity and to the full extent of his powers, while his present official preferment shows the appreciative estimate placed upon his services by the people of the county. He was a member of the board of county commissioners for four years, and no resident of the county is better known or held in more uniform respect.

In March, 1872, Mr. Cooley was united in marriage to Miss Mary McCollum, of this county, whither she came with her parents from Coon Rapids, Iowa, where she was born and reared. Of the twelve children of Mr. and Mrs. Cooley all but two are still living, and of them we enter the following brief record: Jessie re-

mains at the parental home; Emma is the wife of C. C. Torrence, of Tabor, this county; Mary is at the present time a student in Vermillion University ; Lucille is the wife of Lewis Barber, of West Point, Nebraska; Addie is likewise a student in Vermillion University, as is also Ralph; and Corbin, Morris, Charles and George are still beneath the parental roof.

ALEXANDER A. SHOEMAKER was born in Keokuk, Iowa, on the 18th of June, 1849, being a son of Jesse and Henrietta (Hur- ley) Shoemaker, who removed to that state in 1842, becoming pioneers of Keokuk county, their nearest neighbors at the time being ten miles distant. In 1849, the ever memorable year of the great exodus of gold seekers to California, the father of the subject started with his family to cross the plains to the new Eldorado. The Indians were on the warpath and this fact, to- gether with the condition of the mother of the subject, which was such that she was not able to continue the journey, caused them to stop at Council Bluffs and to return to their homestead. The maternal grandfather of the subject con- tinued onward with the wagon train, however, and they finally reached California in safety, having had several skirmishes with the Indians while enroute. Mr. Hurley remained in Cali- fornia about three years and was very successful in his mining operations. In 1857 Jesse Shoe- maker removed with his family and located within a short distance of the present city of Omaha. There he remained until 1865, when he moved up the Platte river to Fort Kearney, where he started a ranch and road house, the same becoming a stopping place and outfitting point for parties enroute to Montana and other parts of the west. The emigrants were com- pelled to wait at this point until they had re- cruited a sufficient number to form a train and thus secure more effective protection from the Indians and border outlaws. Mr. Shoemaker there continued to reside until 1877. and he and his wife passed the closing years of their lives in Pennington county, South Dakota.

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The subject of this sketch was reared on the frontier of civilization and accompanied his par- ents on their various removals. The conditions were such that his early educational advantages were very meager, but he has ably overcome this handicap by the lessons of experience and by personal application. Prior to 1877 he had many freighting trips, with ox teams, from Texas to Montana, Colorado and other points, and in that year he came to the Black Hills of Dakota, making the trip by the Kearney route and through the Sioux Indian reservation. In the party were twenty-five men, and their equipment comprised fifteen wagons in the train. They were stopped by the Indians a number of times but escaped serious difficulty, the wife of the subject being the only woman in the company. They reached Hayward, Pennington county, on the 4th of July, 1877, where they participated in the rousing celebration in honor of the day in the ragged little mining town. There the com- pany divided, and Mr. Shoemaker and his wife proceeded to Rapid City, to which point and Deadwood he engaged in freighting from Fort Pierre during the summer, and from Sydney, Nebraska, in the winter, making the venture a success financially. The Indians attempted on several occasions to stampede his stock, but were not successful in their efforts. At one time he and his partner, James Arbuckle, held off the hostile Indians for four hours, on Rapid creek, the same party of savages having killed an emigrant family at Bear Butte about two days prior to this. In 1880 Mr. Shoemaker removed! to a ranch on Rapid creek, eight miles below Rapid City, and was there engaged in farming and stock raising until 1884. He then removed to Hermosa, Custer county, and there established himself in the livery business, while he also dealt in and raised horses, having a number of horses on the ranch, which he still retained in his pos- session. He was very successful in his efforts and continued in business at Hermosa until 1893, when he took up his residence on a ranch ninety miles distant from Fort Pierre, on the Bad river. There he gave his attention to the raising of horses and cattle, having an excellent

supply of water and a good range, and he re- mained there until 1902, when he purchased a ranch, almost adjoining his former property, and has since made his home on the same, having a well improved place of three hundred and twenty acres and raising cattle and horses on an ex- tensive scale. He has an average of about a thousand head of Hereford cattle on his range each season, while he is one of the leading horse raisers of this section, having some thoroughbred stock and raising standard-bred trotting horses and light driving horses, for which he finds a ready demand at excellent prices. In politics Mr. Shoemaker is a stanch Democrat, and while re- siding in Custer county he served as deputy sheriff, in which connection he met with a num- ber of hazardous experiences. In 1889-90, dur- ing the outbreak of the Sioux at the time when Sitting Bull and Big Foot were killed, he served as a government scott, and also as lieutenant under Colonel Day, and when the Wounded Knee massacre took place he was engaged in scouting duty. Eighteen out of the company volunteered to go to the Bad Lands and discover how many Indians were in the camp, this being some three days prior to the battle. Mr. Shoe- maker served as commander of this brave little band, under the title of lieutenant, and after they had approached to within ten miles of the camp the Indians discovered them and made an at- tempt to surround them, but the company man- aged to escape, falling back to the Cheyenne river, where the remainder of their company came to their support. They entrenched then- selves in a log corral and gave battle to their wily foes, twenty-two Indians being killed, but none of the company being badly injured. They afterward had several other spirited encounters with the savages. In 1900 the subject was elected a member of the board of county com- missioners, serving one term, and he has also been a member of the school board of his dis- trict. Fraternally, he is a Master Mason.

On the 18th of June, 1874. Mr. Shoemaker was united in marriage to Miss Anna Lawson, who was born and reared in Iowa, and of their children we enter the following brief record :

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F. A. is a successful young stock grower, his place being near the home ranch; H. W. is likewise engaged in the stock business on the Bad river; Jessie is the wife of H. J. Baird, of Wallace, North Dakota; and Kate and Leo re- main at the parental home.

THE GOLD BROTHERS .- The progress- ive spirit and initiative power so typical of the men who have built up a splendid civilization in the great northwest are significantly shown forth in the careers of the Gold brothers, five in num- ber, who have been for many years closely asso- ciated in their business operations and who now control interests of broad scope and marked im- portance not only in South Dakota but also in Minnesota.

Sidney R. Gold, the eldest of the five, was born in Northampton county, Pennsylvania, on the 7th of March. 1857. The Gold family is of German lineage and was founded in the Key- stone state in its early settlement, though the re- ligious faith of the family was that of the Re- formed Lutheran church instead of that of the Society of Friends. The parents of these five brothers were Aaron and Ellen (Cahoon) Gold, both of whom were born and reared in Pennsyl- vania, the latter being of English extraction and a representative of one of the old families of Penn- sylvania. Of the family of thirteen children, five sons and five daughters are still living. The names of the five brothers are Sidney R., Frank O., James A., John T. and William H. They are engaged in the banking business at Big Stone City and Albee, South Dakota, and also in Renn- ville. Wabasso, Revere, Belview, Vesta, Red- wood Falls, and Marietta, Minnesota, while they also conduct an extensive business in real-estate loans, having agencies at Milbank, South Dakota, and at Redwood Falls, Minnesota. The old fam- ily home was located in eastern Pennsylvania, eighty miles west of New York city, and thence the parents came to Illinois in 1857, becoming pio- neer settlers of Stephenson county. From Illi- nois each of the five sons crossed over the Missis- sippi into Iowa ere he had attained his legal ma-

jority, and there all became associated in their business operations, following various pursuits until 1887, when they all moved on to the extreme western section of Minnesota and eastern South Dakota, with whose interests they have since been prominently identified, contributing mate- rially. to the march of progress. Here they began to purchase and improve farming lands and finally to loan money for New England capitalists. In the year 1894 they established a banking in- stitution in Big Stone City, and they now own or have the controlling interests in banks in the various towns mentioned. They also have con- trolling interest in three land and loan compan- ies, the Gold-Stabeck Land and Credit Company. of Renville, Minnesota : Gold Brothers Land and Investment Company, of Big Stone City ; and a branch of the latter at Indian Head, Assiniboia. Northwest Territory. They own and have un- der cultivation about fifteen thousand acres of land, mostly in South Dakota, and are also largely engaged in the raising of high-grade live stock. They are the owners of the Gold Brothers Brick Company, of Big Stone City, which could dispose of an output many times greater than the present capacity of the plant, which is kept constantly in operation, affording employment to about twenty men. They were also identified with the organ- ization of the Inter-State Chautauqua Associa- tion, whose assemblies are held at Big Stone Lake, and also with the improvement of Simpson Park, which is used by the association and which is pronounced the largest and handsomest sum- mer resort in the northwest. From a brochure describing this park we quote as follows : "There is a large auditorium and pavilion used for public meetings, lectures, etc., the former having a seat- ing capacity for about two thousand persons. There are also seventy-five cottages in the park that can be secured on the grounds. This park is situated on the banks of the finest and most picturesque lake in the northwest, its length be- ing between thirty-five and forty miles, while it varies in width from one-half to two miles. Its banks and islands are beautiful and pleasing to the eye, being fringed with groves, and numerous stony points may be seen as you sail over the pla-

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History of South Dakota, Vol. I, Part 117

Author: Robinson, Doane, 1856-1946. cn Publication date: 1904 Publisher: [Logansport? IN] : B. F. Bowen Number of Pages: 998

Author: Robinson, Doane, 1856-1946. cn
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: [Logansport? IN] : B. F. Bowen
Number of Pages: 998