James Fee Biography


	This biography appears on pages 1837-1838 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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	JAMES FEE, one of the representative farmers and stock raisers of 
Dayton township, Lincoln county, is a native of county Antrim, Ireland, 
and was born in August, 1836. After the death of his parents he lived 
with friends of the family until old enough to earn his own livelihood 
when he found employment in various parts of his native county as a 
farm laborer. At the age of eighteen he took passage for the United 
States and spent some time in the city of Philadelphia. From there he 
went to Swartzville, New Jersey, where an uncle was living, and after 
devoting several years to farm work in the vicinity of that town, 
changed his location to Jackson county, Wisconsin, where he followed 
agriculture and lumbering. Disposing of his interests in the latter 
state, Mr. Fee went to Ford county, Illinois, and purchased eighty 
acres of railroad land, which he cleared and otherwise improved, and on 
which he made his home until his removal to South Dakota, in 1873. On 
coming to this state he took up land in section 10, Dayton township, 
Lincoln county, and at once proceeded to improve the same. His property 
increased greatly in value until in the course of a few years he was 
the owner of one of the finest and best located farms in the township 
of Dayton. Mr. Fee is now in comfortable circumstances and ranks with 
the leading agriculturists and stock raisers of Lincoln county. Mr. Fee 
has held a number of township offices and takes an active interest in 
public affairs, being a Populist in politics. As an earnest and 
faithful minister of the Presbyterian church, he has been untiring in 
his efforts to inculcate and disseminate a healthy religious influence 
among the people of his neighborhood.