Michael Quinn Biography


	This biography appears on pages 1645-1646 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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	MICHAEL QUINN, living near Smithville, Meade county, was born in 
Ireland, but when he was four years old his parents moved to England and 
settled in Lancashire, where he grew to the age of eighteen and received 
a limited education. His life began on October 18, 1846, and in 1864 he 
came to the United States and locating at Lawrence, Massachusetts, 
worked in a cotton mill, remaining there two years. In 1866 he joined 
the Fenian raid into Canada, but, with the others who were concerned in 
that movement, he was compelled by the United States government a short 
time afterward to return to this country. He then went to St. Joseph, 
Missouri, where he made a contract to drive an ox-team from that city to 
Denver, Colorado. A few days after his arrival at Denver he secured 
employment on the construction of the telegraph line between that city 
and Salt Lake, but heavy snows made it impossible to continue this work, 
and he went to Julesburg and engaged as a freight teamster between that 
place and Fort Laramie. The severity of the weather again stopped 
operations, and he determined to winter on the Platte. Here he and his 
comrades had an exciting time, being attacked by Indians who took all 
their horses and cattle. Mr. Quinn remained in that neighborhood and 
Wyoming two years, then went to work on the Union Pacific Railroad, 
which was building through this country at that time, and continued to 
be so employed until the road reached Cheyenne. He spent a short time 
freighting and filling contracts to supply wood in Colorado, and when 
the excitement over the discovery of gold in the Black Hills broke out 
he began freighting between Cheyenne and Deadwood, making his first trip 
in the spring of 1877. Later he freighted between Rock Springs and Fort 
Friedman two seasons, then in 1878 he went to Pierre and freighted 
between that city and Fort Meade, Deadwood and Rapid City. Having teams 
of his own he did a considerable business down to 1882. In the spring of 
1881, however, he bought cattle and placed them on the Cheyenne river, 
leaving a man in charge of them, and the next year he sold out his 
freighting outfit and devoted his time to raising cattle on the 
Cheyenne. When the Sioux reservation was opened in 1892 her moved to Bad 
river, and later he took up land there which is his present home ranch. 
It is sixty-five miles east of Rapid City, which he has always made his 
trading town, and is a fine body of land, well located and adapted to 
the stock industry. His time and energies are devoted entirely to the 
cattle business, and his interests in this and in land are considerable. 
While not an active partisan in politics, he is a man of great public 
spirit and deeply interested in the enduring welfare of his county and 
state.