James T. Jacobson 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 807-808

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

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JAMES T. JACOBSON, a wealthy farmer of Aurora county, South Dakota, who 
has been one of the state's substantial farmers from its pioneer days, 
was born near Stavanger, Norway, September 25, 1854. His present home 
is located on the northwest quarter of section 35, in Palatine 
township. 

Mr. Jacobson was the seventh child of a family of eight born to Ole T. 
and Gurena ( Jensen) Jacobson. His father died in 1 894 at the age of 
sixty-eight, and his mother is at present living in Illinois. In 1864 
the family embarked on the sailing vessel "Eriass," and after a voyage 
of over three weeks landed at Quebec and soon afterward proceeded to 
LaSalle county, Illinois. They had no funds and met with many struggles 
for existence, but father and sons together kept the family from want. 
They removed to Ogle county, Illinois, and in the fall of 1864 located 
in Livingston county of the same state, and the following spring the 
father started farming on a small scale, his sons assisting him, and, 
although they had but one team and an old set of harness, managed to 
crop considerable land during the season. Our subject worked on a farm, 
and when but eleven years of age began bearing the burden 
proportionately with the other members of the family, which he 
continued to do until about twenty-three years of age, when he rented 
land and began farming for himself, and in the spring of 1882 moved to 
Dakota and located in Aurora county. He had but one team and a wagon 
and a few farming implements and had borrowed two hundred and fifty 
dollars, and after paying the rent on the land and the freight on his 
effects and building, a 10 x 12 shanty, his funds were exhausted. He 
began at once breaking land, and the first season raised enough sod 
corn for seed, and during the winter months did freighting and at the 
beginning of his second year began stock-raising and the cultivation of 
rove land, so that within three years he had sixty acres cropped. Mr. 
Jacobson added to his acreage from time to time and now owns nine 
hundred and sixty acres of fine land and has about two hundred under 
cultivation each year. He deals extensively in cattle and keeps from 
ten to twenty milch cows, and with recent improvements, including an 
artesian two-inch well, sunk in 1894 to a depth of four hundred and 
twenty-three feet at. a cost of two hundred and twenty five dollars, he 
has made his farm valuable for stock raising. Mr. Jacobson was married 
in 1885 to Miss Isabel Johnson, daughter of John Q. and Carrie 
(Mitchell) Johnson. Mrs. Jacobson is a native of Illinois. They have 
been blessed with three children, upon whom they have bestowed the 
following names: Grace, Clara and Embrozei. 

Mr. Jacobson is a Republican and equal suffragist, and he is a member 
of the board of supervisors, and has held other important offices in 
the township, all of which he has filled to the eminent satisfaction of 
the people. He worships at the Scandinavian Lutheran church. His 
education was obtained after he was seventeen years of age, but what he 
lost in schooling in his early days was made up by inheriting from his 
parents an earnest, active and observing mind, which enabled him to 
fight life's battles most successfully, and he is well versed on the 
topics of the day and is a thorough going citizen.