William R. Borst Biography


	This biography appears on pages 825-826 in "History of South 
	Dakota" by Doane Robinson, Vol. I (1904) and was scanned, 
	OCRed and edited by Maurice Krueger, mkrueger@iw.net.

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	WILLIAM R. BORST was born in Marquette county, Wisconsin, on the 
15th of January, 1860, and is a son of Daniel and Emma (Kelly) Borst, 
the former of whom was born in Pennsylvania and the latter in Ireland. 
R. Borst, the grandfather of the subject, was born in Germany, whence 
he emigrated to America and settled in Pennsylvania, where he made his 
home for a number of years, after which he removed with his family to 
Wisconsin, becoming one of the sterling pioneers of that state, where 
he engaged in farming. Eventually he removed to Caldwell county, 
Missouri, where he bought land and also a flouring mill, the latter 
being located in the village of Kingston. There he passed the remainder 
of his life, his death occurring in 1866, and later his widow removed 
to Valparaiso, Indiana, where she died at the venerable age of ninety-
two years. The father of the subject continued to be engaged in 
agricultural pursuits in South Dakota until 1886, when he removed to 
the state of Washington, where he has since been engaged in general 
farming and cattle raising. It should be noted that he was numbered 
among the pioneers of what is now the state of South Dakota, since he 
came here in 1869, taking up land in Minnehaha county, three miles west 
of old Fort Dacotah, and there developing a good farm, upon which he 
continued to reside until his removal to Washington, as previously 
noted. In his family were nine children, of whom eight are living at 
the present time.  

	William O. Borst secured his rudimentary education in the public 
schools of Wisconsin and was a lad of about nine years at the time of 
the family removal to South Dakota, where he was reared to manhood on 
the homestead farm and under the conditions of the pioneer era, in the 
meanwhile continuing his educational work as opportunity presented. In 
the spring of 1877 he came to Fort Pierre, and from this point and 
Cheyenne and Bismarck, engaged in freighting to the Black Hills, in 
which connection he met with a number of hazardous experiences. In the 
fall of 1877 his cousin, Curtis Borst, who was likewise a freighter, 
was murdered near Frozen Man creek, robbery undoubtedly being the cause 
which led to his death. Attempts were made to apprehend and convict the 
murderers, but all proved futile, owing to the lack of conclusive 
evidence. Our subject himself met with several narrow escapes, and he 
was upon the scene shortly after the massacre of the family at Bear 
Butte. The atrocities of the Indians led the residents of the Black 
Hills district to offer a reward of one hundred dollars a head for 
every Indian killed west of the Cheyenne river, but the wily savages 
learned of this and thereafter confined their operations to the country 
east of that stream. Mr. Borst continued to be actively engaged in the 
freighting business until 1883, when he secured and opened up the ranch 
now occupied by C. K. Howard, on the Cheyenne river, in Meade county. 
He there remained four years, giving his attention principally to the 
raising of live stock. In 1889 he disposed of his cattle and ranch 
property to Mr. Howard and located in the northeastern part of Ziebach 
county, adjoining the Big Foot camp, where occurred the trouble with 
the Indians in connection with the battle at Wounded Knee, and the post 
office of Pedro is located on the site of the Indian village which was 
there at the time the subject came to the locality. Here he has since 
continued to be engaged in the raising of cattle upon an extensive 
scale having at times as many as thirty-five hundred head, and being 
known as one of the progressive and successful stock growers of this 
section, while he has made good improvements upon his ranch and 
controls an excellent grazing range. In May, 1903, Mr. Borst 
established himself in the hardware business in the city of Pierre, 
also handling farming implements and machinery, and the enterprise has 
proved a successful one, while he still gives a general supervision to 
his cattle business. He has maintained his home in Pierre since 1896, 
and his is one of the attractive residences of the place. His principal 
object in removing to the capital city was that his children might 
secure better educational advantages. In politics he gives his 
allegiance to the Republican party and fraternally is identified with 
the Knights of Pythias and the Ancient Order of United Workmen, while 
he is held in high regard in both business and social circles.  

	On the 12th of October, 1889, Mr. Borst was united in marriage to 
Miss Matilda A. Mason, who was born and reared in Minnehaha county, 
this state, the date of her nativity having been February, 1871, and so 
far as can be learned she has the distinction of being the first white 
child born in said county. She is a daughter of William and Mary 
(Powell) Mason, sterling pioneers of the state, who now reside in the 
city of Sioux Falls. Mr. and Mrs. Borst have three children, Olney H., 
Margaret and Jessie.