George T. Elliott Biography


	This biography is from "Memorial and biographical record; an illustrated
 	compendium of biography, containing a compendium of local biography,
	including biographical sketches of prominent old settlers and 
	representative citizens of South Dakota..." Published by G. A. Ogle & 
	Co., Chicago, 1899. Pages 1069-1070

	Scan, OCR and editing by Maurice Krueger,mkrueger@iw.net, 1998. 

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GEORGE T. ELLIOTT, one of the rising young farmers of Brown county, 
owns in partnership with his brother, William T. Elliott, a fine farm 
in Gem township and is a pioneer settler of that region. He has been a 
resident of Dakota since 1881, and has been closely identified with the 
advancement and development of that great agricultural district. He 
makes his home on section 8, township 122, range 63, and is 
successfully engaged in general farming and stock raising. 

George T. Elliott was born near Goderich, Ontario, Canada, January 22, 
1863, and was one of a family of five sons and three daughters, as 
follows: Mary A., William T., James A., Marshall R., who was a 
physician, is now deceased; George T., Lizzie, residing with her 
brother, John W., state veterinary surgeon, practicing in Aberdeen; and 
Cissy, who died in infancy. The parents of our subject were Robert and 
Mary Ann (Anderson) Elliott. The father died on the home place in 1889, 
and the mother survives and makes her home with her son, John W., in 
Aberdeen. The father was a farmer, and all of the children were raised 
on the farm, attending the district schools of the neighborhood. 

Our subject assisted his father on the farm until he reached his 
majority, when he decided to try farming for himself in a new country. 
His brother, William T., left home in 1889, and made a tour of Dakota 
territory, now North and South Dakota, prospecting for a good location 
for farming purposes. He filed a pre-emption claim to one hundred and 
sixty acres, in the northeast quarter of section 5, in Gem township, 
Brown county, and then returned to Canada to spend the winter. In the 
spring of 1881 when William T. went to Dakota the second time, our 
subject and his brother, James A., went with him, and they landed at 
Fargo with five carloads of horses, which were disposed of readily, and 
our subject and his brother William T. reserved about a dozen head of 
the best and took them to Brown county, shipping them from Fargo to 
Valley City, on the Northern Pacific railroad. At this place they 
loaded their wagons, which they had brought from Canada, with plows, 
lumber, etc., which they secured in Valley City, and journeyed overland 
one hundred and fifty miles to their new home, the trip occupying ten 
days. It was the wet season and traveling was hard, and they arrived at 
their destination May 5, 1881. They immediately proceeded to erect a 
frame dwelling, 16 x 12 feet, in which they still reside, and they have 
a good barn, granary, shelter for stock, and a bountiful supply of good 
water drawn from a depth of thirty feet by windmill power. The brothers 
together have a herd of full-blooded Durham and graded cattle, about 
seventy-five head, and about forty head of horses, good roadsters of 
the Hambletonian breed, and Clydesdale and Shire horses for farm work. 
They own a section of land in Gem township, and rent a section for hay 
and pasture. The land they own is under cultivation, and is given 
mostly to wheat raising, with some corn, oats, millet, etc. They raise 
Poland China hogs, and at present have about fifty head. The brothers 
entered the new home together, and in co-partnership have suffered the 
privations incident to pioneer life, but they have succeeded in 
surmounting those difficulties, and now have a comfortable competence. 
William T. owns a threshing machine and extends his business beyond the 
state into Minnesota. There was plenty of game in the country when they 
first went to Brown county, buffalo, antelope, a few deer, wild ducks, 
and geese innumerable, but even at that early date game was shy. 

George T. Elliott is a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen of 
Aberdeen. He is intelligent and progressive, and has a prosperous 
future before him in South Dakota.