Benjamin L. Walker Biography


	This biography appears on pages 1148-1149 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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	BENJAMIN L. WALKER, farmer and stock raiser and since 1893 
treasurer and tax collector of Lyman county, South Dakota, is a native 
of Pennsylvania and the son of Abner and Lucinda (Risling) Walker, now 
living in Hutchinson county, South Dakota, the father being a retired 
farmer and stock raiser. Abner Walker moved his family to South Dakota 
in 1870 and located on a homestead near Yankton, where he lived a few 
years, subsequently changing his abode to Bon Homme county. He became a 
large land holder and well-to-do farmer and stock raiser in Bon Homme 
and after acquiring a competence moved to the town of Olivet, where, as 
stated above, he is now passing the evening of a well-spent life in 
honorable retirement. Of his four children all are living. 

	Benjamin L. Walker was born March 26, 1866, in Bedford county, 
Pennsylvania, and at the age of four years was brought by his parents to 
South Dakota, where he grew to maturity and has since lived and in the 
public school of which he received a fair education. Reared amid the 
stirring scenes of farm life and early taught the varied duties of 
agriculture, his training has been mostly of a practical character, 
acquired in the stern school of experience, by coming in contact with 
the world in different business capacities. The family came to this 
state when scattering settlements were few and far between, and he 
experienced his full share of the vicissitudes incident to life on the 
frontier. He spent his youth on the homestead near Yankton, later 
assisted his father develop and improve the latter's land in the county 
of Bon Homme, and on reaching the age when young men are expected to 
leave home and form their own plans for the future, he turned his 
attention to agriculture and stock raising, both of which callings he 
followed with success and financial profit until 1900, when he was 
elected treasurer and tax-collector of Lyman county, since which time he 
has lived in the town of Oacoma, the county seat. 

	Mr. Walker owns a fine ranch of two hundred acres, a part of which 
is under cultivation, the rest being devoted to live stock, in the 
prosecution of which business he has met with most encouraging results, 
making a specialty of the noted Hereford breed of cattle, for which 
there is always a strong demand at liberal prices. He has made a number 
of substantial improvements on his place, having good buildings, 
including a comfortable and attractive residence, which while he 
occupied was furnished with all the comforts and conveniences calculated 
to make rural life desirable. The better to attend to the duties of his 
office, he changed his residence, shortly after his election, to the 
seat of justice, where he now has a commodious home and with the 
material growth and prosperity of which town he has been actively 
identified. Mr. Walker is one of the leading Republicans of Lyman 
county, and as an energetic and able counsellor he has contributed 
greatly to the success of Republican principles in the county of Lyman 
and elsewhere. 

	In the year 1894 Mr. Walker and Miss Leila Brown, of Iowa, were 
united in marriage, Mrs. Walker's parents at this time being residents 
of Lyman county, South Dakota. Her father is a farmer and stock raiser, 
owning a valuable ranch and devoting especial attention, not only to 
raising cattle and horses, but to the buying and shipping the same, 
doing a large and thriving business and rapidly becoming one of the 
wealthy men of the section of country in which he lives. Mr. and Mrs. 
Walker have an interesting family of six children whose names are 
Loretta, Maude, Edyth, Viola, Ivan and Florence, all living and those 
old enough attending the public schools of Oacoma.