Joseph Jolly Biography


	This biography appears on pages 1644 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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	JOSEPH JOLLY, of Pennington county, is one of the representative 
and forceful men of this portion of the state. He was born on December 
14, 1843, in Lafayette county, Wisconsin, and was there reared and 
educated. There also he worked at blacksmithing and followed freighting 
until 1874. He then removed to Dallas county, Iowa, and after a 
residence of about eighteen months there, started in 1876 for the Black 
Hills, making his journey by way of O'Neill to Custer City, where he 
arrived in May of that year. He then began freighting between Sidney and 
Pierre and Rapid City and Deadwood, continuing this business with 
gratifying results, although it was attended with great danger and 
considerable difficulty, until early in 1879. At that time he came to 
Rapid City to locate, and in February entered the ranch he now occupies, 
four miles south of the city, on Rapid creek. Taking up his residence on 
this place, he at once started an industry in farming and made good his 
hopes by vigorously arranging for irrigating his land. For a number of 
years his principal crop was oats, but after the construction of the 
railroad through this section he changed to alfalfa, and also began 
raising cattle and horses. He has remained on the place continuously 
since first settling on it, and has converted it into an excellent farm 
and a comfortable home. He also has much additional land on which he 
runs his stock. In fraternal relations he is an active member of the 
Masonic lodge at Rapid City and in politics he has been zealous and 
serviceable on all occasions, advocating high standards in official life 
and the broadest principles of civic and political morality. In 1889 he 
and Richard Hughes were the county's representatives in the state 
legislature, the first session of that body, and on its elevated forum 
he sustained the reputation he had earned at home for breadth of view, 
strict integrity and wise foresight in public affairs.