George Buckingham Biography


	This biography appears on page 1643 in "History of South 
	Dakota" by Doane Robinson, Vol. II (1904) and was scanned, 
	OCRed and edited by Maurice Krueger, mkrueger@iw.net.

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GEORGE BUCKINGHAM, of Pennington county, one of the few remaining 
pioneers of the Black Hills, whose extensive ranch of one thousand acres 
on Rapid creek, fourteen miles from Rapid City, is one of the valuable 
and attractive country homes of this region, was born in Devonshire, 
England, on February 27, 1856, and began his education there. While he 
was yet a youth his parents emigrated to the United States and settled 
at Morristown, New Jersey, where he attended school one term, then 
worked on a farm two years. In 1873 he went to Philadelphia, and during 
the next three years was employed in railroading. In the spring of 1876 
he came to the Black Hills by way of Cheyenne, arriving at Custer City 
on April 10th. From there he went to Castleton, a mining camp on Castle 
creek, and after prospecting there a short time, moved to Silver City, 
on Rapid creek, where he remained until 1880 prospecting and mining. In 
March of that year he took up a ranch on this creek eleven miles from 
Rapid City and engaged in ranching and raising stock, following this 
line of industry there until 1897. He then sold that ranch and bought 
the one he now occupies, two miles farther down the creek, on which he 
has since made his home. Here he has continued his farming and stock 
operations and greatly improved his land. His ranch comprises one 
thousand acres, the principal product of which is hay, and he has 
extensive herds of well-bred and high-grade cattle. With plenty of water 
for irrigation, and the greater part of his land well supplied with it, 
he need never fear a shortage in his crop, and his success is well 
established and of a commanding character. 

On December 25, 1889, Mr. Buckingham was married at Rapid City to 
Miss Emma Botney, a native of Norway, who died on September 3, 1902. She 
was one of the remarkable women of this part of the country and had a 
career of inspiring interest and usefulness here. She came with a party 
from Minnesota to Deadwood in 1878, but after a short residence there 
returned to her former home. In 1883, however, she came again to the 
hills, this time to remain. Being a woman of unusual force of character 
and business capacity, she engaged in freighting with a bull-team 
between Deadwood and Pierre, Sidney and Cheyenne,—the only woman who 
ever conducted a freighting business in this section on her own 
account,—and it should be said that she was very successful in the 
enterprise.