Payette-Gem County ID Archives History - Letters .....Falk Store Story ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/id/idfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Patty Theurer seymour784@yahoo.com November 22, 2005, 12:25 am Book Title: Falk Store Story By Horace Arment Mr. and Mrs. Charles Toombs opened the first store in this location. It was the only store between Boise and Baker City. In 1870 A. J. McFarland, a relative of Mrs. Toombs, came to work for the merchants. In a few years Toombs sold out to McFarland who continued to operate the store throughout the pioneer period. It is McFarland who is generally remembered in connection with Falk Store, although the Falks had not yet entered the picture. In 1870 Nathan Falk opened a store in the vicinity and it 1871 a post office was established and took the name Falk Store, and a mail route to Placerville was started. Gustavis Kholberg was appointed postmaster. In 1874 James Patton became postmaster, to be succeeded by Charles Leistner, then the manager of Nathan Falk’s store. More commercial enterprises kept locating in the same locality over the years by 1877 there were two stores, a hotel, a saloon, a meat market and a blacksmith shop. About this time the fort was built with a Grange Hall on the second story. This gradual accumulation of stores and services still kept the collective name of “Falk Store” although it was comprised of several very active stores. Ruth B. Lyon has in her book “Valley of Plenty” a vicinity map designating it as “Falk Stores circa 1888 to 1892.” Some early maps show simply “Falk”. However, to the old timer, it still remains “Falk Store.” Everything that the pioneer family needed was carried in stock or could be ordered by stage from Boise. Customers came from as far as Malheur River in Oregon, Weiser River, Middle and Indian Valley in Idaho. Decedents of early settlers who traded at the store were familiar names in modern times: The Nesbitts, the Bivens’, Peter Pence, Andy Rasmussen, the Applegates, the Stroups and the Al Wilsons. In 1877 during the Indian troubles, a fortified building was erected at the store. My knowledge of the fort was told to me by “Uncle Andy Rasmussen” who helped build it. The defensive part of the fortification was built of parallel rows of 12” boards set on end and about 18 “ apart. The space between was filled with river gravel to stop a rifle bullet. Portholes were cut shoulder high at intervals with contracting sides outward, giving the defenders a wide arc of rifle fire while protecting themselves. “So we could shoot dis vay and dat vay,” said Uncle Andy, demonstrating a half circle with his hands. The fortification extended in a rectangle about 8ft. high and above was constructed a Grange Hall. The fort this covered (served) a dual purpose. According to Mrs. Annie Kennedy Hill, it was also used as a public school. Of all the pioneers of that time the only one I knew personally was Andrew Rasmussen. He was born in Denmark in 1849 and came to the United States at the age of 19. He worked in the mines in Boise Basin for a short time and then came to the lower Payette region. He took up a homestead about a half mile north of where the store was later located. He took an active part in the “Vigilantes” movement along the Payette River and helped chase out the rustlers and horse thieves from that part of the country. He was a scout in 1877-78 during the Nez Perce and Bannock-Paiute Wars and intermittent raids. There were signal fires burning on all the high hills on both sides of the valley. The whole countryside was alarmed when young Jimmie Ballentyne’s horse came home from the hills above Squaw Butte with Jimmie desperately wounded, tied to the saddle horn with his checkered jacket. He was afraid he would faint and fall off but he knew his horse would head for home. The settlers along the Malheur; the Stroups, the Emmisons, and settlers along the lower Weiser River fled to the fortification at the Falk Store. The usual procedure was routine-1-turn the cattle and hogs loose, 2-hide the most valuable and movable pieces of furniture in the sagebrush and 3-high-tail it to the fort with all the women and kids. Nothing remains of the old Falk Store. The old stage stop and hotel, after 1927, burned to the ground. The old school house was also consumed by fire a number of years later. Additional Comments: Transcribed by Patty Theurer File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/id/payette/history/letters/falkstor11gms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/idfiles/ File size: 4.8 Kb