John D. Hutchinson 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 660-663

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

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JOHN D. HUTCHINSON. One of McCook county's general farmers, is a 
veteran of the Civil war, and can look back over an honorable military 
career spent in trying to defend the Union, as well as a life of 
usefulness and influence as a citizen. His many friends will be pleased 
to find his portrait in connection with this sketch. The father of John 
D. Hutchinson, a farmer by occupation, settled in New York state, in 
the early history of that part of the country, and died there when our 
subject was but six months of age. The family is of English extraction, 
though as far back as anything is definitely known of them, they have 
been in America. Berge Hutchinson, grandfather of our subject, was on 
Washington's staff, and after the close of the Revolutionary war he 
became a Methodist preacher. Mr. Hutchinson's mother was of Dutch 
descent and a native of the state of South Carolina. Soon after the 
death of her first husband, she was again married. 

The subject of our sketch was born in New York State in the year 1833. 
At the age of four years he left his home and spent the remainder of 
his boyhood days with other people. He was reared on a farm and 
received only one short term of schooling in a country school. At the 
age of nineteen years, he learned the harness maker's trade in 
Wisconsin, and soon after completing his apprenticeship, he moved to 
Illinois and plied his trade there until he moved to Iowa and engaged 
in the millwright business to which he devoted ten years. 

In 1862 Mr. Hutchinson enlisted in Company F, Twenty-eighth Iowa 
Infantry, which was rendezvoused at Iowa City. From there they went to 
Helena, Arkansas, and spent the following winter, making raids at 
different times, and participated in the battle of Balls Bluff, where 
they captured some artillery and also a number of prisoners. In the 
spring of 1863 this regiment joined Grant's command and participated in 
the engagements around Vicksburg, and Mr. Hutchinson was among the 
volunteers who carried the transports past the batteries at Vicksburg. 
He participated in the forty days' siege before that city and also the 
battle of Champion Hill. The Twenty-eighth Iowa then joined General 
Banks and took part in the Red River expedition, and while building the 
dam across the river Mr. Hutchinson was severely injured by the timbers 
and was laid up for a while. They then went to Washington, while Grant 
was in the Wilderness, and put up fortifications at Tinley, and then 
participated in the raid up the Shenandoah Valley. At Fishers Hill Mr. 
Hutchinson was severely wounded and sent to the hospital, and was soon 
discharged and sent to his home in Belle Plaine, Iowa. 

Upon being discharged from the service of the Union, Mr. Hutchinson 
resumed the more peaceful occupation of farming. In this venture he was 
quite successful, although he did not engage in it very extensively, 
his farm comprising only one hundred and sixty acres. In 1876 he moved 
from Iowa and took up his residence in McCook county, Dakota, and filed 
a claim to the land he has since occupied, on sections 33 and 34, 
Ramsey township. Mr. Hutchinson arrived in Dakota with no capital 
except a team and wagon, but he at once set to work to improve his farm 
and to make it a fit habitation for himself and his family; and by 
thrift, industry and economy he has not only been able to build a home 
and such barns and outbuildings as are needed in properly conducting a 
large farm, but he has added to his property by purchase until his farm 
now comprises four hundred acres. For the past five or six years, 
however, he has not been so successful on the account of low prices and 
the general depression in business. Politically Mr. Hutchinson is a 
Republican, and has been one of the leader; in the local affairs of 
that organization ever since the earliest history of McCook county 
settling here before the county was organized. He has held the position 
of count: commissioner and has performed the duties of various of the 
township offices. He is a member of the Christian church, and also of 
the Odd Fellows fraternity. 

Mr. Hutchinson was married a short time before the war, and his wife 
died soon after the close of that struggle to put down the Rebellion. 
By his first wife he had three children, one of whom is living, Alonson 
D. He subsequently remarried, his second wife being Miss Sylvia J. 
Bacon, and to this union they have had a family of seven children: 
Berge, who died in 1882; Ida H., Cassius M., John D., Jr., James E., 
Carlisle C. and Betsy A.