Early History of Brown County, South Dakota, pages 31 - 66

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Copyright 1970 by Brown County Territorial Pioneers, Aberdeen, S.D.

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[Pxxx].



[P31]

I can still remember the ladies dressed in fine silks and satins who came to 
watch us disembark.

The train stopped at Groton since the rails hadn't reached Aberdeen. We rode in 
a lumber wagon through Aberdeen, which then boasted only one shanty, to the 
Christen Andersen home five miles northwest of Aberdeen. Our home for six weeks 
was a tent near their house. Each night we made a smudge to smoke out the 
mosquitoes so we could sleep. During this time my father was building a frame 
house and digging a well. Mother hauled the dirt out of the well and helped bank 
the house with sod.

Whenever Father went to Aberdeen, he would take his knife and cut clumps of 
grass as a trail marker to find his way home. He cut his hay with a scythe and 
the women folks used hand rakes. Before the summer was over he had his first 
oxen.

August of 1881 was a never-to-be-forgotten month. An eight-year old can stretch 
his ears to hear almost everything and the tales of prairie fires ran tingles 
down my spine. Early one morning, Father saw a wisp of smoke to the northwest. A 
brisk wind was blowing so the family began making a path around the haystack. We 
all hauled clay from the well to lay in a path. The house was surrounded with 
clay from the cellar and the well. Water was poured on the path and the clay. As 
the sky became redder, I was sent into the house while the others hurried across 
the ravine to take down a wooden calf pen. This precious lumber had to be saved. 
Our cattle pulled their ropes free to run to a little patch of plowed ground. It 
was thought that locaters might have become careless and started the fire. More 
prairie fires followed but this one seared me the most.

The winter of 1881-1882 was an open winter and I often played outdoors without a 
coat, but our neighbors could not forget the hardships of the previous year.

Spring of 1882 gladdened the heart of even a homesick Norwegian girl. The fire-
blackened ground burst forth with multi-colored shades of green dotted with all 
shades and kinds of flowers: crocuses and violets, buttercups, and later the 
anemonies, wild geraniums, and pink wild roses. Herding the cows amidst this 
wild beauty was a delight until I found underneath the tall grasses snakes and 
badger holes. But how thrilling it was to stand still and listen to the call of 
the prairie chickens and the songs of the meadowlarks."

Ole Anderson brought his family from Norway and homesteaded northwest of Wylle 
Park. It was in their home that the present Bethlehem Lutheran Church had its 
first services. A daughter, Mrs. Fred Roundy, now resides three miles north of 
the old home. Joseph Yeoman came from Wisconsin and family legend credits him as 
being one of the publicspirited young men who went to Columbia one dark night 
and transferred the county records to Aberdeen. James Cameron and Laucklan 
MacKenzie came from Canada. Frank Webb came on foot from Watertown and 
homesteaded where the stock yards are now. His father and younger brother, 
Eugene E. Webb, settled two miles south on the land where Radio Station KSDN now 
stands.

The site of Brown County Fairgrounds was the homestead of J. C. Kuney. Mrs. Mary 
Bixby and her sons came from Minnesota and lived on the land where Brookside 
School now stands west of the Foote Creek bridge. Upon their return to 
Minnesota, one of the sons became governor of that state. Their next-door 
neighbor was Horace Beals, who with his mother had come from Springfield, 
Massachusetts. Beals' Spring Water, five cents a pail, kept much of the town 
supplied with soft water for many years. David Culbert, who lived south of 
Aberdeen also sold soft water. T. C. Gage, who had a store in Aberdeen, rode out 
to his homestead west of Wylie Park every night where he slept. His daughter, 
Miss Matilda Gage, now owns the land. Andrew Melgaard's tree claim became 
Melgaard Park and he gave the land which is the site of Northern State College.

Others who came in the early 1880's included: William Avery, Fred Alley, 
Emmanuel Merten, F. O. Korte, C. J. Fischbach, Charles Holmes, Patrick Burns, 
Patrick Cully, O'Donnell, August Dally, C. W. Swift, C. M. Pleasants, George 
Weed, Rueben Rice, Jacob Lowe, Mrs. Caroline Wight and her sons Warren and 
Herbert, Andrew H. Bergh, Mrs. Mary Raedel and her family, Jacob Schaffer and 
Charles and Earl Edson who had a small greenhouse. The Edson brothers built the 
original house, later remodeled which was occupied by the Andrew Fischer family 
when the quints were born on September 14, 1963.

The Sidow and Zimmerman families came in 1882. Before they came, the Dayton 
family who owned many lots in the townsite, had gone to St. Charles, Minnesota, 
and tried to buy their claims of 1880. Julius Robert Fritsche, wife and seven 
children came from Lomira, Wisc. and lived in Frederick C. Merton's kitchen 
while they built their own house in Bath Twp.

The Sidow family lived in the north edge of town and Mrs. Lydia Meisenbach, the 
sole survivor here who lived until August, 1958, told of going over to Kline 
Street to go to school to avoid the big slough which covered much of the town. 
She also told of Mr. and Mrs. Proud, proprietors of the Park Place Hotel coming 
up for a barrel of water every day because the city water was hardly drinkable.

During the middle 80's the John Johnson family drove down from Canada and 
homesteaded near Ipswich, later moving to Aberdeen Township. Two of their sons, 
Ronald and Angus spent the balance of their lives here, and a daughter, Mrs. Mae 
Dell Somerville, now ninety and active, resides in Aberdeen.

Taming the prairie had its difficulties. Mrs. A. H. Bergh recalls the threshing 
of 1882. "The first threshing machine was a horse-power affair with no blower. 
There were four pitchers. Mother cut the straw bands on the bundles, the bundle 
feeders threw in the grain, one man kept the horses going, and others sacked the 
grain as it was threshed. We didn't have enough tables so planks were set on saw 
horses. Linen sheets helped out as tablecloths. Then 

[P32]

Father and Leonard hauled the wheat to Columbia by wagon to be milled. They left 
by early morning moonlight and I sat outdoors at night listening for the sound 
of wagon wheels. That same summer they walked to Columbia, a distance of twenty 
miles, to buy two cows."

By 1886, the township was organized into four divisions for roads and schools 
with the following officers: Township Clerk, George Weed; Treasurer, Edward 
Small; Supervisors, C. W. Swift, C. H. Pleasants, D. C. Thompson and Frank Webb, 
Chairman. On June 21, 1886, the road overseers, consisting of Walter Cook, 
William Hedley, Charles Holmes, and Jacob Britzius decided on a two mill levy 
for roads and a one mill levy for the general fund, said levy to be made on 
assessed valuations. Road overseers were instructed to collect sums assessed 
against each property through cash or labor on the road at $1.50 per day for a 
man and $3.00 for man and team, wagon or plow, said money to be used to improve 
roads and bridges in the district.

Mustard seems to have been quite a problem by this time, for on July 25, 1886, a 
bill for $18.50 was allowed for mowing and raking these weeds along the roads. 
According to the records in William Hedley's overseer's book, dated 1886, tax 
payments yielded from $2.35 to $10.50 per quarter with road taxes varying from 
550 to $1.89. The next year in District No. 3, Erastus Webb, overseer, they were 
somewhat higher, ranging from 120 to $13.61.

Land varied in value from $5.00 to $22.00 per acre, swine averaged $5.00 per 
head, oxen $35.00, horses $50.00, cattle $20.00 to $35.00. Tax lists of 1886 
listed for most residents from two to four horses, two or three oxen, five or 
six head of cattle, carriages, stages, wagons, sleighs, and farming utensils.

[Photo: Pictured is the Aberdeen Township Board. Frank Webb served on the board 
from 1886-1914; Andrew H. Bergh, 1897-1919; Harold Melgaard, 1904-1917; A. 
Zimmerman, 1912-1917; Gustav Merton, 1903-1921.]

There was also a section on statistics, acres and yields of each grain, and 
acres of natural and planted trees-ash, willow, box elder, cottonwood, elm and 
maple. One Aberdeen Township citizen owned a

[P33]

watch assessed at $40.00, another a carriage valued at $125.00. Beard Brothers 
owned 600 sheep. Aberdeen Steam Brick Works was running at capacity.

In 1887, Charles J. Eschbach received $39.00 for thirteen days of assessing. 
1888 was a busy year for township officials. Furniture was needed for their 
official meeting place which was designated as Town House. On March 5, 1888, the 
township board paid out the following amounts: one table, $4.50; one half dozen 
chairs, $3.50; 230 pounds of coal, $1.25; pen, ink, pencils, paper, 600; a 
broom, $1.25; and a ballot box, 90 cents. Evidently there was good attendance at 
board meetings for they needed more chairs and on March 20, the same year, they 
bought another half dozen at 550 each, and some window blinds. These same chairs 
are still in use (1964).

A. M. Gates, road overseer for District No. 4, which comprised the northeast 
portion of the township, received $4.75 for the following services to his 
district: buying lumber, $3.00; nails, 500; use of a borrowed saw, 250; and 
putting down bridge plank, $1.00. Bridges seemed to be high on the list of 
necessities, for on July 24, new iron bridge bolts cost $3.50. A three mill tax 
was levied for the general fund.

People apparently were not too careful of disposing of dead animals, for in July 
a bill of $29.00 was allowed for the burial of nine cattle, each critter 
carefully described, four horses, and five dogs. In 1889 a bill for $2.50, 
carefully notarized, was paid for a similar service.

The Barnes Lumber Company sold a quantity of heavy dimension materials for 
bridges, including thirteen oak posts at 150 each. Someone else got $1.50 for 
putting in a plank culvert, and another got $1.50 for taking a load of 6 x 8 
timbers to reinforce the Foote Creek bridge. Everything apparently went 
smoothly, for only nine voters came to the polls in 1890 when Andrew Melgaard 
was elected supervisor. Twelve showed up in 1892 when the supervisors authorized 
the expenditures of $404.00 for roads in the township. This is quite a contrast 
to the $7000 levy in 1956. They also served notice to the city authorities of 
Aberdeen prohibiting their using the highways of Aberdeen Township as a dumping 
ground for the garbage of the city. Other business included an allowance of five 
cents a pound for some spikes. Seventeen came out to the board meeting in 1893, 
but in 1894 the attendance jumped to twenty-eight when it was decided to spend 
$1100 for roads and bridges. The next year thirty-three attended and officials 
voted to allow themselves $3.00 per day for township meetings. Frank Webb was 
elected Township Clerk. In 1896, only twenty-six votes were cast but 1897 
brought out a larger group. Andrew H. Bergh was elected Supervisor. In 1898, 
Chairman Andrew Melgaard appointed a committee of three-Frank Webb, J. C. Kuney, 
and Jacob Britzius to locate and buy a lot for a permanent township hall. 
$400.00 was allowed for it. They found a lot, nearly a quarter of a block in 
size and very well centered in the township. Aberdeen City has grown up around 
it. The white frame building which is like an old-fashioned schoolhouse on 6th 
Avenue West, across the street from the Lincoln School is the Aberdeen Township 
Hall. It has been in continuous use since then for all township and school 
district meetings. In the early years the building was used for Sunday School 
meetings and in later years revival meetings were held there.

In 1899 finances were a bit low. An extra three mill levy was voted upon and the 
Supervisors decided to meet with the County Commissioners to try to get a bridge 
on Foote Creek at Beals' Crossing. History doesn't tell who built the bridge, 
but in 1904, M. F. Zimmerman was appointed to circulate a petition to ask the 
County Commissioners to build a bridge across the Mocassin at Melgaard's. Gustav 
Merten was elected Supervisor. The next year the board allowed $50.00 for the 
purchase of a safe which still occupies one corner of the building. A few years 
later, in 1910, a survey marking all corners of the township was authorized 
along with expenditure of $10.00 for the purchase of a desk for the township 
hall. In 1953, the old coal heater finally gave up the ghost and was replaced 
with an oil heater.

Evidently there were parking troubles in town then too, for in the minutes of a 
1911 meeting, there is a resolution which reads this way: "Resolved that the 
city of Aberdeen provide some place or places for farmers to hitch their horses 
when coming to town. This question has now reached a point where something has 
got to be done in this matter. We must have some place to tie our teams or quit 
coming to your burg. You must not kick if your farmer customers send away for 
their goods if you do not treat them white. No man can sit in his rig and do 
business from his wagon seat."

Other troubles beset the early settlers. The latter 80's and early 90's were 
extremely dry. Each spring started out beautifully green but rain failed to come 
later. Men collected buffalo bones and stones and hauled them to Aberdeen. The 
bones were shipped East and were used in the refining of sugar and the stones 
were used in house foundations. Barrels of clothing were shipped from the East.

[Photo: Mr. and Mrs. James Henry Wylie for whom Wylie Park was named.]

Wylie Park was an early tree claim which became city property very early in the 
1900's. There

[P34]

was a slough directly east of it which was dug out and enlarged somewhat at the 
same time. An artesian well was dug southeast of it and filled it with artesian 
water. This is the present lake at Wylie Park. There was a tiny island in the 
center of it and people could row out to it. Some years later a zoo was added 
and a small dance hall was built. About 1920 a large dance hall was built, 
another artesian well was dug, a bath house was built and a tall slide was 
erected on the north side of the lake. There was also a large grandstand and 
ball park on the south east side of the trees. This structure has long since 
literally gone with the wind. The park also boasted easy transportation from 
Aberdeen. It had a tiny depot to which a street car ran daily during the summer 
months. It was well patronized until the permanent departure of street car 
service from Aberdeen in the fall of 1922.

Immediately north of the park and extending southeast across Lee Park golf links 
and northwest across the prairie to Leola and beyond it past the state line is 
an old railroad grade. In the 1880's it was known as the Aberdeen, Bismarck, and 
Northwestern Railway. By the time the grade was finished the company's funds 
were gone and so the line was never ironed.

Another abandoned, unfinished railroad grade, called the Duluth, Pierre Railway 
runs in a southwesterly direction from Aberdeen toward Pierre. It crosses the 
land northwest of Radio Station KSDN. It, too, was a dream never realized.

Early school records for Aberdeen Township apparently no longer exist. There 
were three terms of three months duration each year. The first school of which 
there is any record is that built two miles west of Wylie Park. It was built 
about the year 1884 and has been in continuous use since then. It boasted the 
first slate blackboards in Brown County. It is now called Brookside and after 
two or three remodelling jobs, it is completely modern (1964). It was used as a 
rural teacher training school for Northern State College from 1920 until 1959.

[Photo: Brookside School as it looked in 1884.]

Some of the early teachers were Miss Hattie Lytle, who had a first grade 
certificate, got $40.00 a month and paid $2.00 per week for room and board, Miss 
Viola Cook, Miss Rose Seelye and Miss Winnie Perry. Textbooks included Swinton's 
History with a multitude of dates, Swinton's Readers, grammar books, geography, 
arithmetic, physiology and spelling books. Another teacher, Miss Elsie Rice, who 
lived several miles distant, stayed at the school one winter. She was a bit 
timid about staying alone, so Susanna Larson, later Mrs. A. H. Bergh, stayed 
with her during the term. During blizzards, pupils and teacher stayed at school, 
nailing the door shut against the wind.

These early schools served their neighborhoods well as community centers. They 
were used for Sunday School, lyceum meetings and even early day funerals. At the 
lyceums there were usually lawyers or other business men out from town who 
debated or discussed the politics of the day, in addition to any talent, musical 
or otherwise, which the community afforded.

Other schools of the township are Riverside, west of the cemetery; Parkway, 
south of the airport, and Plainview, east of the fairgrounds. Riverside and 
Parkway date back nearly as far as Brookside although the present buildings were 
erected in the 1920's. Plainview was built in 1921.

Early school board members included Frank Webb, Patrick Burns, Gustav Merten, 
Jacob Britzius and C. W. Swift. Serving during the first quarter of this century 
were Joseph Yeoman, Gustav Merten, Andrew H. Bergh and Harold Melgaard.

In reviewing the history of Aberdeen Township, for a period of more than three 
quarters of a century, certain names stand out because of long and continuous 
service. One of these is that of Frank W. Webb who was one of the first 
supervisors, serving from 1886 to 1894 and as township clerk from 1895 to 1914. 
He also served on the school board until his death in 1915. His place was taken 
by his son Roy Webb, who served until 1919, when he moved from this vicinity to 
Watauga, South Dakota. Eugene E. Webb, a younger brother of Frank's then served 
on one board or the other until his death in 1938. For a short period in the 
1920's his son Harold served on the school board.

Another name associated with township history is that of Andrew H. Bergh who 
served on the board of supervisors continuously from 1897 until 1919 and on the 
school board from 1911 until the time of his death in 1921. In 1935, his son, 
Gordon, became Township Clerk, a position he has held continuously until the 
present time (1964). Andrew Melgaard served as Supervisor from 1888 to 1909. 
Harold, his son, served as assessor from 1904 until 1917 and also served for a 
time on the school board. Another who served for a long period of time was 
Gustav E. Merten, who was on the board of supervisors from 1903 until his death 
in 1921. He also served for a time on the school board. Others who served on the 
township or school board for long periods of time were: Patrick Burns, Joseph 
Yeoman, Herman Wendt, and George Evans. Two men, George Zick and Herman Hein 
served on the township board for twenty-five years. Three men who served on the 
school board for many years are Clarence Lowe, Raymond Shaw, and William Bengs.

[P35]

ABERDEEN TOWNSHIP OFFICERS -- 1886-1959

CLERKS
George Weed, 1886
N. C. Johnson, 1887
C. H. Pleasants, 1888
Charles Edson, 1889
C. H. Pleasants, 1890-93
George Raedel, 1894
Frank W. Webb, 1895-1914
Roy Webb, 1915-1919
James McHugh, 1920-29
Ray Ernst, 1930-1933
Kristian Andersen, 1934
Gordon Bergh, 1935-1964

ASSESSORS
C. J. Eschbach, 1887-89
Patrick Burns, 1890-1898
W. A. Rayne, 1899
Harold A. Melgaard, 1904-1917
John Makens, 1918-1919
Alice McHugh, 1920-29
Penn Williams, 1930-35
George Evans, 1936-1938
Ward Sharp, 1939
James Callum, 1940
Alvin Werth, 1941-1943
Gerhart W. Busch, 1944
Lawrence Peck, 1945-48
John Rawson, 1949
Lawrence Peck, 1950-51
Marvin Gerharter, 1952
John Rawson, 1953-1956
Lawrence Peck, 1957
Marvin Gerharter, 1958

SUPERVISORS
Frank W. Webb, 1886-94
C. W. Swift, 1886-1892
C. H. Pleasants, 1886
D. C. Thompson, 1886-87
Andrew Melgaard, 1888-1909
C. J. Eschbach, 1892-98
Charles Edson, 1895-97
Andrew H. Bergh, 1897-1919
A. J. Cook, 1899-1901
Gustav E. Merten, 1903-1921
F. M. Wertz, 1910-1920
A. Zimmerman, 1912-17
C. M. Zick, 1913-1925
J. E. Smith, 1916-1919
George Ernst, 1919-1926
George Gambrel, 1920-28
George Zick, 1925-1930; 1937-1948
Ing Palmer, 1928-1935
Frank Rehfield, 1926-32
Joseph H. Putman, 1930-1937
August W. Sauck, 1931-1934
Donald Gambrel, 1935-41
Herman C. Wendt, 1934-1951
George Evans, 1947-1958
Alvin Werth, 1948-1954
Floyd Walberg, 1951-58
Henry Gugel, 1954-1957
Henry Arntz, 1958-1964
George Zick, 1958-1959
Robert Fessenden, 1959-1964

TREASURERS
Edward Small, 1886
George Weed, 1890-1896
Joseph Yeoman, 1897-1908
John Cavanaugh, 1909-1914
Eugene E. Webb, 1915-1927
R. A. Olson, 1928-1929
William Heller, 1930-33
Herman J. Hein, 1933-59
Raymond Shaw; 1959-64

ABERDEEN TOWNSHIP SCHOOL TEACHERS
The following is a partial list of names of the teachers of the four schools.

PLAINVIEW 1921-1959
Florence Harrison,
Marie Schrimpf, 1923-
Alice Schlong, 1927-
Genevieve Keller
Eleanor Seamonds
Carol Andersen, 1941-42
Iva McAtee, 1942-
Joyce Wood
Closed

RIVERSIDE
Winnie Perry
Miss Tallett
Florence Delaney
Adelia Britzius, 1915
Flossie Webb, 1912-1915
Julia Finley, 1927-1947
Dorothy Evelo, 1947-49
Esther Hoeft, 1949-1954
Myra Watson, 1954-1959
Dorothy Demmers, 1954-
Ione Green
Bernice Nelson

BROOKSIDE 1883-1964
May Wheaton
Hattie Lytle
Viola Cook
Rose Seelye
Winnie Perry
Elsie Rice
Miss Parrott
Flossie Webb, 1910-1912
Rose Ruby, 1912-1914
Anna Baldridge, 1916-17
Petra Swindal, 1917-1918
Iva Seaman, 1918-1919
Ethel Enberg, 1919-1920
Martha Pabst, 1920-1923
Virginia Goulet, 1923-29
Helen Bergh, 1929-1964

PARKWAY 1929-1964
Margaret Neville, 1929-1932
Annabel Mowry, 1932-36
Ann Hill, 1936-1937
Edna Jensen, 1937-1938
Evelyn Engen, 1938-1941
Margaretha Ristau, 1941-1944
Gertrude Hohler, 1944-1945
Ruth Franzen, 1945-1946
Ferdina Beck, 1951-1959
Cynthia Munger, 1959-1960
Selma Bastian, 1960-61
Miriam McQuoid, 1962-1963
Cornelia Wallace, 1963-1964

[Photo: Brookside School, Miss Flossie Webb, teacher. Pupils from the A. H. 
Bergh, Jacob Lowe, and Henry Artz families.]

[P36]



EARLY HISTORY OF ABERDEEN, SOUTH DAKOTA -- 1880-1900
by J. H. McKeever

Had it not been for an unexpected turn of events the city of Aberdeen would 
never have been settled. The great boom of Dakota Territory, 1878-1888, turned 
the eyes of the nation toward the vast and fertile land awaiting settlement and 
a flood of homeseekers set in.

Railroad management eager to share in the new development began projecting lines 
into an empire that awaited them. The Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad 
Company, terminating at the Twin Cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis, immediately 
made plans to get its share of the new wealth. A new railroad was planned from 
Minneapolis. It was to be built west across the Minnesota border at Big Stone 
Lake, continue on into Dakota Territory as far as the Andover of today. There 
the road was to turn northwest to Columbia, which was then the county seat of 
Brown County, continuing on toward Bismarck, N. D., hoping to get a share of the 
traffic the Northern Pacific was enjoying in that region.

At any townsite free land was eagerly given for the railroad right of way and 
station. But at Columbia it was different. The townsite was owned by J. D. Lavin 
and J. R. James. Convinced that the railroad plan was definite they insisted 
that the land needed be paid for and perhaps a drawbridge over the James river 
be constructed.

Columbia then was the largest town in the county and had visions of growth in 
navigation. A dam had been built in the river which created a lake and deepened 
the channel into North Dakota. For shipping there were two steamers, the Nettie 
Baldwin and the Fannie Peck. They were large enough to carry passengers and 
freight and plied between Columbia and Ypsilanti, N. D., within 30 miles of 
Jamestown. Ordway was the other town which preceded Aberdeen. It was 
immortalized in the books of Hamlin Garland and had great ambitions. It strove 
fruitlessly to become the territorial capital and was so hopeful of being the 
home of a university that foundation walls were built only to see the school 
later located at Mitchell.

Confronted by the Columbia demand for payment, the railroad changed its survey 
to meet the north and south Milwaukee line where it crossed the Chicago & 
Northwestern road at Grand Crossing, two miles south of Aberdeen. Here again 
townsite arrangements were unsatisfactory and so the survey was changed to run 
straight west from Andover.

This change left the Northwestern Railroad without the hope of a town at its 
junction and in spite it refused to recognize an Aberdeen settlement. It would 
sell tickets and ship freight only to Ordway and passengers for Aberdeen had to 
jump off the cars when the train was forced to stop by law before crossing the 
Milwaukee tracks. But many were carried by and had to find horse transportation 
back. This went on for a couple of years until the Northwestern built a station 
here to get a share of the growing traffic.

When Grand Crossing had promised to be the townsite Rice Bros. and a dozen 
settlers from Watertown hastened to it as fast as ox teams would go. A store was 
erected, and others were on the way when the bubble burst. Rice moved his store 
to the new town and at the corner of Main Street and First Avenue it was long 
occupied by J. H. Firey as a drug store.

Aberdeen was named for Aberdeen, Scotland, the birthplace of Alexander Mitchell, 
the president of the Milwaukee road. Assured by the new survey in 1880 eager 
settlers hurried to come from the railhead, among them S. H. Jumper in his wagon 
bed who is reputed to have been the first to have slept on the townsite. Other 
first arrivals included James Ringrose and William Elliot. One early wagon train 
comprised 50 horses and 75 men.

[Photo: Early Aberdeen Depots]

The first train to reach Aberdeen came in on July 6, 1881. It was then that the 
positive influx of newcomers began. Homeseekers came from the eastern states, 
particularly New England and New York. They were men and women of culture and 
education. In the new town there never was any atmosphere of pistol toting wild 
west rowdyism. These people came to establish new homes and new businesses for 
themselves and their families. As

[P37]

the town grew it became the home for emigrants from Germany, England, 
Scandinavian countries and Russian Odessa, all of the highest type. Gen. Nelson 
A. Miles visited the settlement in 1880 and being shown around by S. H. Jumper 
asked, "Where are the old men?" And the answer was that there were none.

The first thing was to plat the town. C. H. Prior, the railroad townsite agent, 
laid out sixteen blocks as bounded today by the railroad on the north and Fourth 
Avenue on the south, First Street on the west and Washington on the east. This 
plat was filed on Jan. 3, 1881, and S. H. Jumper as agent for the railroad began 
selling lots, despite the fact that much of the area was under water. The first 
lot was bought by R. S. Ellis, the present Moose lodge building across from the 
courthouse, on which he built the first hotel, a sod house.

[Photo: R. A. Mills had the first drug store in 1881, a 10 x 12 building known 
as the "pill box". The above building was erected later.]

All was hustle and bustle. With the arrival of lumber over the new railroad 
small homes were being built, for these eager settlers looked to the future and 
built for permanence. Beard Gage & Beard were in a new store. R. A. Mills is 
reputed to have erected the first frame building  for his drug store. Jumper & 
Bliss built their store first and others followed. E. O. Mead general store, W. 
J. Brewster harness dealer, Fischbein Bros., J. Hauge, Frank M. Harper, Garland 
& Randall, Cornish & Stuart were others. A. C. Witte hardware store continues to 
the present day, the oldest retail business institution in the city. O. Daly and 
a John Brock had restaurants. S. R. Cross, Bliss & Jumper established lumber 
yards.

It is reputed that the first customer at the first store asked for a washboard 
but there was none. Others in business were: Rice Bros. & Bowden, Huntington & 
Shuler, R. O. Mills, A. Hazard, C. L. Deming, E. G. Alley, H. Y. Hauser, O. A. 
Fowler, Bowman & Foley. Cornish & Stuart had the first plastered building. 
Others were D. G. Gallett and S. M. Salisbury.

The first physician was Dr. Louis F. Diefendorf, who was associated with Dr. 
Coyne. Others of the Territorial period were Dr. D. C. Fowler, Drs. Elliot & 
Webster, Dr. William Leine, Dr. C. G. McCammon, Dr. H. E. McNutt, Dr. E. B. 
Jackson, Dr. Duncan, Dr. Pine and Dr. J. W. Summers.

In 1890 the town had 230 occupied business buildings 11 of them being three 
stories high, 30 retail stores, several wholesale houses, 20 hotels and 
restaurants, 7 livery stables, 3 lumber yards, 3 brick yards, 11 farm implement 
houses, 30 lawyers and in the county 7 newspapers.

Spirits were high in the little town as it grew that first period. There must be 
a celebration for Christmas. There always had been in the homes they had left in 
the east. But in this wide sweep of prairie there wasn't a tree of any kind. 
Finally the railroad agent, W. E. Perry, shipped in a diminutive tree. A five-
foot tree was not sufficient to mark the occasion so it was set up in the Beard, 
Gage & Beard store with lengths of lath tied to its branches gay with colored 
festoons to make the joyous symbol of the day.

Before the railroad came in 1881 Aberdeen was a little nucleus of sod shanties, 
tents and frame buildings. A territorial census listed only 353 as the 
population of the whole county. Five months after the railroad came Aberdeen had 
a population of 250. By July of 1882 it had grown to 1000 population. By 1886 
the count had grown to 2500 and in 1890 the census listed 3,182. By 1900 the 
town had grown to 4,087 and by 1903 it had attained to 7,177.

Eager for permanence the citizens of the little settlement on the bare prairie 
wanted to become an organized town. They petitioned the county commissioners on 
April 4, 1882, for permission to hold an election and this was granted.

This first election was held June 5, 1882, and the following trustees were 
chosen: E. Kolterman, First Ward; E. H. Alley, Second Ward; S. H. Jumper, Third 
Ward; John Garland, Fourth Ward; and John T. McChesney, Fifth Ward. Other 
officers were: O. S. Cook, assessor; Isaac Hull, marshall; R. A. Mills, justice 
of the peace. At the first meeting of the trustees E. H. Alley was chosen 
president.

Existence under this first form of government proved unsatisfactory and at the 
1883 session of the Territorial legislature a special charter for Aberdeen was 
enacted.

The first election under the new charter was held on April 5, 1884. The 
following officers were elected: John Garland, mayor; M. J. Gordon, clerk; M. F. 
Fischbein, treasurer and the following aldermen: M. McKellop, First Ward; R. A. 
Ellis, Second Ward; E. H. Alley, Third Ward; E. T. Pierce, Fourth Ward; W. F. 
Lange, Fifth Ward. Other officers: 

[P38]

John Gracy, marshal; J. Walter Hallet, justice of the peace. Mayor Garland 
resigned after a few months in office and Phil Skilman was chosen to succeed him 
and he was re-elected the following year.

Those who have been mayor of the city through the years are: E. H. Alley, 1882-
83; W. F. Lange, acting mayor; John Garland, 1883; Phil Skilman, 1883-87; John 
T. McChesney, 1885-86; R. A. Mills, 1887-88; A. W. Pratt, 1888-89; B. F. 
Stearns, 1889-90; Robert Moody, 1890-92; A. C. Witte, 1892-94; S. H. Jumper, 
1894-96; Dighton McGlachlin, 1896-98; C. J. Hute, 1898-1900; J. E. Adams, 1900-
02; A. S. Reed, 1902-04; A. N. Aldrich, 1904-10.

At first the salary of the mayor was $10 per year and the aldermen were paid 
$5.00. The first city ordinance was to control livestock and limit traffic on 
Main street to 8 miles per hour.

Water is the life blood of any community. When the railroad came the townsite 
was located on a flat area instead of on higher ground west but it was alongside 
a slough filled with water.

To supplement the water supply the locomotives were shunted east to the James 
River, twelve miles, where a pumping station was maintained. Water in the river 
ran low and it was decided to sink an artesian well.

This railroad well was the first to tap the vast Dakota artesian basin 
underlying the townsite. It was drilled in 1882 just north of the present 
courthouse, where were located the station and coal sheds then east of Main 
Street. At a depth of 920 feet water was struck and rose with a gush of 2,000 
gallons per minute and at a pressure of 180 pounds per square inch. The water 
was yellow and mixed with slime but it was water and a pinch of alum made it 
clear and palatable. The volume was so great that it was shared with the 
townspeople and Aberdeen had its first free flowing water supply.

Ambitious to have their own well the citizens with Phil Skilman as mayor, voted 
221 for and 26 against a bond issue for $20,000 to be spent for a well and to 
lay water mains. On Jan. 21, 1884, a contract was made with Gray Bros. of 
Milwaukee to sink a well to a depth of 1000 feet at a cost of $4,000.

Work began the following month of February at a point east of the courthouse. 
What was acclaimed the greatest well in the world came in and Aberdeen became 
nationally famous. Visitors flocked in to see the world marvel and it almost 
inundated the town. Water began to flow on May 23 at 908 feet gently at first 
and then with an enormous surge. Out of the well erupted the drill rods end over 
end. Then the steel drill stem and the massive bit as the stream of water 
scattered the equipment in confusion over the well site. The six-inch stream of 
water rose 60 feet into the air discharging 2500 gallons per minute at a 
pressure of 155 pounds.

The town was aghast. There was no way to stop the flood which soon deluged the 
streets, filled basements and made Main Street a river on which rowboats plied. 
Main Street had always been low. The wooden sidewalks were three feet above the 
roadway. An immediate project was to fill the street to its present grade. A 
ditch was dug to divert the flood to the Moccasin Creek and as many as 60 wagons 
worked to carry away the sand that was part of this first eruption.

Finally a gate valve was fitted on the well to control the flow and Aberdeen had 
its first water supply. Indeed it had more than water for the force of this 
great well provided the power to operate the sewer pumps when the first sewer 
system was laid in 1888 at a cost of $38,074.

[P39]

[Photo: ABERDEEN, BROWN COUNTY, DAKOTA IN JUNE, 1883]

When the first town council met in 1883 on April 8 a petition was filed 
requesting the opening of Main Street across the railroad tracks. Mr. Prior had 
platted the town south of the tracks with no idea that it would ever go north 
but there were some homes over there. When the petition came up for action May 9 
the railroad and some southside business men objected but a majority of the 
citizens wanted the crossing opened. The controversy raged bitterly. Fire hose 
with a stream from the new well fended off the railroad workers and locomotive 
crews. The coal shed was moved out of the way but the railroad and its friends 
moved it back when most of the town was at a Fourth of July ball game. A court 
order was ignored by the railroad and at one time irate citizens anchored a 
locomotive with log chains and stopped all traffic. Later in the year an 
amicable settlement was arrived at and the crossing was opened.

Aberdeen became the county seat only after a prolonged contest of bitter rivalry 
with Columbia. When the county was organized July 30, 1880, Columbia was 
designated as county seat by the county commissioners. They were John R. James, 
Clarence D. Johnson, and D. C. McKenzie, having been appointed by Nehemiah 
Ordway, the Territorial governor. At the first election in the county the 
question of county seat was to be settled. The judges were N. M. Cole, Archie 
Baldwin and Lew Bowman, the latter Aberdeen's first lawyer. Columbia decided 
that there would be one polling place, the Howland Hotel in Columbia. There were 
two tickets, Brown County Peoples ticket and the Independent. The tickets bore 
the printed names of Columbia and Ordway with space for writing in. The count 
gave Columbia 82 votes, Ordway 11 and Aberdeen 13.

Following this first vote a special election was held in May, 1883, proposing 
that the county be divided with Columbia county seat for half and Aberdeen for 
the other half. This was defeated.

Aberdeen boosters then succeeded in having the legislature enact a law providing 
that a county seat might be moved upon a majority vote. An election was held in 
July, 1886, and Aberdeen won, 2744 votes, to Columbia's 666. The records were 
immediately moved and housed in a new courthouse which had been erected on what 
is now Aldrich park.

Columbia filed a contest of the election as to its validity and won a decision 
in the litigation that followed. Aberdeen had to vacate its possession and after 
two years the records were sent back to Columbia. In the meantime in 1885 
Columbia had voted $7,000 for the erection of a courthouse.

Aberdeen sought a new approach and on Nov. 13, 1889, succeeded in having the 
state legislature pass a law permitting the removal of the county seat if it had 
been established by less than a majority of the voters. The issue of removal, 
was again submitted at an election in 1890 and by a large majority Aberdeen 
became the county seat as it is today. The first session was held on Nov. 24, 
1890.

Education loomed large among the early residents. They were men and women from 
homes in New England, New York and half a dozen eastern states. They were well-
educated, college and university graduates, seasoned business and professional 
men, all eager to move the culture of their old homes to the town they were 
building on the raw Dakota prairie. In August of 1881, only months after the 
first settlement, Mrs. C. H. Pleasants became the first teacher when she 
gathered together 25 children in a sod shanty and held the first classes.

[P40]

[P41]

[Photo: Brown Co. Old Settler's Association, 1913]

[Photo: Lincoln Ranch]

[P42]

[Photo: Early Aberdeen Churches and Schools]

The sod house was on the site of the Central High School. In 1883 the first 
permanent school building was erected on that site, the lots having been given 
by F. H. Hagerty and William Lloyd. It was a two story brick costing $8,500 with 
$1,500 added for furniture. H. A. Way established a business school in the very 
early days prior to 1900. The Northern Normal and Industrial School, which today 
is known as Northern State College, was located here about the turn of the 
century with an enrollment of 200 students. The Catholic Sisters maintained a 
convent school for girls, and in more modern days the Presentation Sisters built 
their Junior College for girls.

Churches came through an odd bit of circumstance. In a card room in the summer 
of 1881 idle talk of this group of men brought out the fact there was no church. 
They were of the opinion that if their town was ever to amount to anything it 
must have a church. Action was needed and E. H. Alley got up from his table and 
passed the hat. In cash he got $150 and more in pledges. The next day he went up 
and down the street, in and out of business houses and saloons. No denomination 
was in mind. They just wanted a church.

[Photo: Northern Normal and Industrial School]

[P43]

[Photos: Aberdeen Churches]

[P44]

The Presbyterians built the first church in 1882, though they had been holding 
services, the first on May 1, 1881, when Rev. H. B. Johnson, a Home Missionary, 
came from Watertown and preached in the Sod Hotel. The fund the boys had raised 
became the nucleus for the new church built on lots at Kline Street and Fourth 
Avenue given by F. H. Hagerty and Wm. Lloyd. This was in 1884, a larger one was 
built in 1896 and the present church in 1927. The church was organized Jan. 1, 
1882, the charter members being Mr. and Mrs. F. H. Hagerty, C. A. Bliss, Neil 
McLean, W. F. Avery, Mrs. John Johnson, Mr. and Mrs. Dexter Wadsworth, Rev. and 
Mrs. D. T. Rowlands and Kitty Rowland. When Rev. Johnson returned to mission 
work Rev. G. A. Brandt became the first pastor in 1883.

On July 3, 1881, a little group of people held the first Methodist service in 
Brock's tent hotel. Tradition has it that planks were dragged in and placed on 
empty beer barrels to provide seating. Rev. A. O. Phillips, a missionary who had 
filed on a claim near Ordway, conducted the first service and later became the 
first pastor. His charge extended from the Sisseton Indian Reservation to the 
Missouri River. Plans were laid for a new church. The women organized the Ready 
Workers: Mrs. D. D. Jones, president; Mrs. R. L. Brown, vice president; Mrs. C. 
F. LaScelle, treasurer; and Mrs. C. G. Burnette, secretary. The chapel was built 
at Third Avenue and Jay Street in 1884 and the church formally incorporated by 
J. H. Hauser, John Proud, Alexander Hazzard, William Cassels and R. L. Brown. 
This first little chapel became too small and on Sept. 24, 1886, the first 
church was dedicated. The present church was erected in 1909 at Lincoln Street 
and Fifth Avenue.

A small group of people loyal to the traditions of the Episcopal Church gathered 
for services in the Rudolphus Burgitt home as early as 1883. This group welcomed 
a visit by The Rt. Rev. Bishop William Hobart Hare in 1884. Bishop Hare had been 
doing valiant work since 1873 among the Indians of Dakota Territory as well as 
in the white field. He promised to send a missionary minister to Aberdeen.

The Rev. G. W. Flowers arrived in May, 1885. Services were held in Berry's Hall 
which had been secured at a rent of $1.00 per Sunday by a committee consisting 
of Dr. DeWitt, C. Fowler and Mr. J. Q. A. Braden. A more suitable place was 
found later in a store building next to the U. S. Land office on Nicollet Avenue 
now known as 6th Avenue.

Plans for a church edifice to house the growing congregation, now known as St. 
Mark's, were becoming very zealous. Lots on the south side of 6th Avenue between 
Main and Lincoln were purchased. The Rev. J. M. McBride was the Rector from the 
autumn of 1886 to the spring of 1889. The corner stone for the new church was 
laid on May 19, 1887, with the most impressive ceremonies which had ever taken 
place in Aberdeen. These were under the auspices of the Grand Lodge A. F. & A. 
M. of Dakota Territory. A hundred Masons from all over the Territory attended 
dressed in full regalia. The stone was laid in accordance with ancient Masonic 
custom and was consecrated by Bishop Hare.

The first service was held on Christmas Day in 1887. In 1897 St. Mark's had a 
vested choir.

A rectory was built in 1902 just east of the church. In 1904 the church was 
visited by a fire bug and considerable damage was done to the interior. In 
making repairs it was decided to extend the chancel and to build a Guild Hall.

St. Mark's occupied this property until 1960 when they moved into a new brick 
church of contemporary architecture located on North Kline Street and the end of 
14th Avenue.

Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, the second church in the settlement, was 
established by Father Robert W. Haire, when the first mass was offered Dec. 2, 
1882, in a little church built on lots given by F. H. Hagerty, a non-Catholic. 
Aberdeen parish then extended from Springfield, Minn. to Jamestown, N. Dak. on 
the north, to the Missouri river on the west and to Huron on the south. In 1884 
the congregation was augmented by the arrival of a colony of Russian-Germans 
from Odessa and for a time service in English and German was conducted. In the 
winter of 1881 Father Haire lived at the Sherman Hotel and of a Sunday morning 
there would be 150 or more guests, claim holders, at breakfast. After the meal 
one day Margaret Ringrose (Mrs. Isaac Lincoln) arranged an altar and what was 
the first mass was offered. In 1887 Mrs. H. C. Jewett organized the Sacred Heart 
Altar Society.

With the coming of the Presentation Sisters a convent was built in 1888, with 
donations from Protestants as well as Catholics. The Knights of Labor gave the 
work and the architect the plans. In 1896 a brick church was built at Third 
Avenue and Arch Street to be succeeded by the present structure in 1935. Father 
Dermody was pastor. The school building was erected in 1913. In 1889 Father 
Haire was relieved of his pastorate but in 1901 was restored and became chaplain 
of St. Luke's Hospital. Rev. B. J. Kelly was the second pastor. Father Dunning 
succeeded him, others followed. Revs. Murphy, Browne, Paquen, Early, Railand, 
O'Hora until Rev. Michael Dermody came in 1904.

St. Mary's church was started to serve German residents on the northside in 1904 
and the school in 1911. The first priest was the Rev. Father Dahlman.

Bethlehem Lutheran Church grew from the first service for the pioneer Norwegian 
Lutheran people on Oct. 8, 1881, held in the sod house on the farm of O. C. 
Anderson. Pastor Ofstedal presided and the congregation was formally organized 
in 1884, Pastor Ofstedal serving for three years. In 1887 Pastor N. O. Gierre 
became the first resident minister. Services were held in homes or public 
buildings until the first church was erected in 1893 on the present site. Early 
in 1924 the church burned but by fall under the pastorate of Rev. A. Elmer Moe a 
new brick church was started. The present parish building was added in 1952, 
Rev. E. W. Nervig, pastor. In 1916 English was substituted for Norwegian in the 
Sunday service. In 1904 the custom of the annual ludefisk supper was instituted 
by the Ladies Aid.

Zion Lutheran Church was organized in 1882 and

[P45]

in 1885 acquired the early Presbyterian Church and in 1908 bought the former 
Methodist Church. During the pastorate of Rev. Harold O. Bomhoff plans were 
inaugurated for the imposing structure on South Main Street which was dedicated 
in 1953. Army service characterized pastors of the church Rev. William Kraushaar 
was a chaplain in World War I. Rev. Bomhoff served five years in World War II as 
chaplain, one of which was in active service. Rev. W. Spiegel resigned to enter 
Lutheran World Relief in Europe in the same war.

First Evangelical United Brethren Church had its first service April 18, 1882, 
Rev. F. C. Jenney, the first pastor, presiding. Homes of Chas. Zimmerman and 
William Sidow were meeting places until the first church was erected at a cost 
of $4000, in 1887. Among the early families were: Wolter, Glau, Bengs, Luke, 
Hasse, Fritsche, Wm. O'Neil, Merten, Evers, Korte, Rahskopf, Loebs, Werth, Zech, 
Zick, Diestler, Kuechle, Arendsee. In 1925 in the pastorate of Rev. John E. 
Booth plans were made for a new church and the present one was dedicated June 
12, 1927.

St. Paul's Evangelical Church was organized at the home of Herman Janecke, Rev. 
George Fischer presiding. Five members signed the constitution: Janecke, Anton 
Wagner, Carl Waack, Andrew Kindschi and Harry Schroeder. For 16 years services 
were held in the Janecke and Paul Froehlich homes and various churches. While 
being served by Pastor F. J. Graeber the first church was dedicated Oct. 18, 
1903, on Seventh Ave. S. W. Rev. Graeber was pastor for 47 years, the first of 
the only three resident pastors in the history of the church. The others were 
Rev. E. E. Streufert and Rev. W. J. Link. In 1910 a larger church was built to 
provide for a Saturday day school, the session later changed to Sunday, and the 
German language church service converted to English. In 1963 the present youth 
center was added.

Father Robert W. Haire came to the new settlement of Columbia in June, 1880, and 
his imprint on the community was vital and lasting. He achieved the founding of 
Sacred Heart Catholic Church, the second church in Aberdeen. When St. Luke's 
Hospital was established he served for years as chaplain and in 1886 was made 
the parish priest. As a young man he forsook the study of law to become a 
Catholic missionary. He served six years in Detroit and Flint, Mich., then 
studied in Louvain University in France and St. Mary's of the West in Cincinnati 
but his missionary spirit led him to Dakota. He filed on a homestead near 
Columbia and there with his own hands he erected a sod shanty to serve as a 
church. He was a man of deep compassion for all. He waged an unending fight for 
the equality of men. It was he who wrote the law of the initiative and 
referendum and led the movement which made it a part of the state constitution, 
the first such law and a model which other states have adopted. In his honor a 
bronze statue has been placed on the campus of Northern State College.

Before the mails came, Aberdeen depended upon Yorkville as its postoffice. This 
was a station on the James River below Tacoma Park where William York had 
established a store and ferry across the river in June of 1878. This station was 
on the stage route between Yankton and Jamestown, N. D. To get the mail to 
Aberdeen Ira O. Curtiss, later a prominent attorney, was hired to ride his horse 
out to Yorkville with his mailsack and bring in the mail for which he was paid 
$3.00 for each trip.

[Photo: Aberdeen's Main Street in 1883]

[P46]

[Photos: Aberdeen National Bank, First State Savings Bank, First National Bank, 
Brown Bros. Bank]

[P47]

Just a month after the train came in a postoffice was established on Aug. 1, 
1881. It was housed in the Jumper & Bliss Store and John H. Drake became the 
first postmaster. Other postmasters following him were: Mary E. Hannaman, 1883; 
Chas. A. Fischer, 1884; John H. Firey, 1887; Romula H. Mills, 1890; Andson W. 
Pratt, 1894; S. H. Jumper, 1898.

Through the efforts of Senator J. H. Kyle the government erected the town's most 
imposing Post Office structure in 1904.

Banking institutions quickly followed the advent of the railroad July 6, 1881. 
In the next month on Aug. 25, 1881, the first bank was opened for business in a 
part of the Jumper & Bliss Store. It was called the Bank of Aberdeen with C. A. 
Bliss as president; J. K. Siddle, vice president; and J. C. Simmons, cashier. 
Mr. Siddle was a resident of Minneapolis where he was president of the First 
National Bank.

The Brown County Bank followed closely, organized in December, 1883. Wm. F. 
Graves was president; M. E. Vinton, vice president; and John T. McChesney, 
cashier. Graves and Vinton lived in St. Paul so that the management devolved on 
McChesney. On March 27, 1885, the institution became a national bank and changed 
its name to Aberdeen National Bank. McChesney was president; William F. Graves, 
vice president; J. Q. A. Braden, secretary; Robert Moody, cashier. Others 
associated were John Perry, Frank Beard, William Tennant and Ellery Mead. Robert 
Moody became the second president serving from 1890 to 1901. The Aberdeen 
National building in 1885 was counted as the most expensive in town. It was the 
only brick building.

The Farmers & Merchants Bank was the forerunner of the First National Bank. It 
was started Jan. 2, 1883, with the following officers: S. H. Jumper, president; 
F. S. Gibson, vice president; G. L. Caldwell, cashier. The directors were: J. W. 
Pence and M. P. Stroupe. The name was changed to the First National Bank on June 
8, 1883, becoming the first federally authorized bank in the town. Mr. Jumper 
served as president until 1894 to be succeeded by C. F. Easton to 1899. At that 
time F. B. Gannon and J. H. Suttle of Ellendale, N. D., bought control and Mr. 
Gannon became president continuing until the bank was sold to the Northwest 
Bancorporation.

The Hagerty & Pierce Bank opened June 6, 1882, Pierce soon retiring, F. H. 
Hagerty was joined by Mr. Marple in September, 1883.

The Northwestern National Bank was organized in 1888 with Henry Marple as 
president and the following directors: J. W. Holt, J. H. Firey, T. C. Gage, and 
William Briggs. After four years it went out of business in 1892.

Other early banks were Brown Brothers which was liquidated several years later 
and First State Savings, Dakota National, and Citizens Trust and Savings which 
consolidated with the First National Bank.

The Home Building & Loan Association was originally the Aberdeen Building & Loan 
organized in 1886. Its first loan was for $600 to C. M. Moe for a new house. The 
charter expired in 1904 and a new charter was issued to the Home Building & Loan 
Association. The new officers were S. H. Jumper, president; T. C. Gage, 
secretary and C. F. Easton, manager. Others associated included A. C. Witte, A. 
E. Boyd, C. A. Howard, C. N. Harris, B.

[P48]

C. Lamont, W. G. Bickelhaupt, F. B. Gannon, C. J. McLeod, W. G. Wells, J. C. 
Bassett.

As a wholesale distributing center Aberdeen gained prominence when the Jewett 
Brothers, four in number, started the first wholesale business which lead to the 
city becoming a large distributing center.

Mr. C. A. Jewett and Mr. Harvey C. Jewett, who were among the very early 
arrivals in Aberdeen, started in 1883 a retail grocery business known as the Red 
Front. Within a very short time they saw the opportunity for a wholesale grocery 
for this territory and laid their plans for just such a business. They had a 
large frame building erected at the northwest corner of Main Street and Third 
Avenue which housed both the retail and wholesale business. This venture 
expanded rapidly. They disposed of the retail business in 1886 and built a large 
three story brick building for wholesale purposes only. This building was at the 
Southwest corner of Main Street and Fourth Avenue and is still (1965) standing. 
The third floor was finished off so that it could be used as a general meeting 
room for such organizations as the Masons, Odd Fellows, and A.O.U.W. lodges.

Mr. R. N. Jewett had joined in business with his brothers. In 1889 a branch was 
opened in Sioux Falls with D. C. Jewett in charge and later C. A. Jewett moved 
there.

By 1903 the Main Street location was outgrown and a very large brick building 
was constructed at Railroad Avenue and Kline Street. By this time Jewett 
Brothers had started a wholesale drug business which was long under the 
management of Carl A. Newton. In 1941 the Jewett Brothers wholesale grocery was 
sold to the Nash-Finch Company but the wholesale drug business was retained and 
is now under the management of a grandson of Harvey C. Jewett.

[Photo: Excelsior Block, home of Jackson Hardware and Olwin's Dry Goods Co.]

The Jackson Hardware Company was established in Aberdeen in 1888. John H. 
Jackson had come to Ordway in 1881 and opened a hardware store. When Ordway lost 
out to Bismarck as the territorial capital he moved to Columbia in 1883 but when 
the county seat was moved to Aberdeen he moved again. In 1888 he opened a 
wholesale and retail hardware business in the Excelsior Block on the West side 
of Main Street. In 1903 he discontinued his retail business and built a three 
story building next to his former location but by 1906 this location was 
outgrown and a big warehouse was erected on Railroad Avenue.

With one wholesale grocery house another soon followed. W. G. Wells started the 
Aberdeen Wholesale Grocery.

In 1889 Aberdeen was made a railroad terminal which had the effect of reducing 
freight rates to the advantage of the wholesale houses. This established the 
city as a distributing point.

[Photo: Aberdeen Roller Mill]

[Photo: Eagle Roller Mill]

Manufacturing became a factor in the development of the town when the Aberdeen 
Roller Mill was started Nov. 2, 1883, by C. F. Hatch, L. C. Mitchell and William 
Tennant. The ownership later reverted to Tennant and Charles A. Lum. The mill 
had a capacity of 200 barrels daily. The brand name of flour was "Snow White."

Another mill here was the Eagle Roller, their flour brand being "Daniel 
Webster".

K. O. Lee sold farm implements and steam engines. His skill in the repair of the 
latter developed a machine shop which grew into the K. O. Lee Manufacturing 
Company, now operated by his son Clifford Lee.

[P49]

A. T. Green had a metal working shop which is now the Hub City Iron Company, now 
continued under the management of his son, Paul Green.

Both of these industries have world wide markets.

An early venture to capitalize on the major resource, agriculture, was the 
Desipota factory, a pioneer project for making dessicated potato flakes. J. C. 
Neumann came to town in April, 1899, proposing a plant to employ 40 men and 60 
women. Citizens raised $16,000 for a building and 59 farmers agreed to furnish 
at least 11,000 bushels of potatoes each year. On July 8 the building was 
dedicated with a public dance and the first product was on the market in 
November. Perhaps it was too long before the taste of dehydrated potatoes had 
developed because production was discontinued after a couple of years.

Here in the heart of the wheat country it seemed logical to make something of 
the crop. W. F. T. Bushnell headed an enterprise for the manufacture of Wheat 
Hearts for a time. It was the forerunner of Cream of Wheat.

Buggy whips were made by the Wells-Bantz Company.

Famous chocolates were turned out by Ward-Owsley Candy Company.

An early venture was Lamb's brick yard. A house made from these bricks is still 
standing on First Ave. S. E.

The telephone came early to this frontier settlement. Mr. J. L. W. Zietlow, who 
had a natural bent for electrical studies and operations visioned all the little 
communities of the vast middle of Dakota Territory served by an independent 
telephone company. He organized one at Aberdeen setting up an exchange there as 
well as in 1886 building toll lines to Columbia, Bath and Groton which in 1887 
he had to maintain alone against the hazards of wind and severe winter weather.

Mr. Zietlow perfected a push-button release for harnessing the fire horses. The 
horses were trained to step into place under the overhanging harnesses which 
dropped into place.

[Photo: Dakota Central Telephone pole wagon. J. L. W. Zietlow at right.]

[Photo: Fire house with first telephone exchange on the second floor.]

Wall type crank handle boxes appeared on the walls of business places and of a 
few homes but at first people were not persuaded of the convenience of a 
telephone. There followed ten years of hardships and struggles and disputes with 
the big Bell Telephone Company which decided in the end that the territory was 
not worth fighting for. Mr. Zietlow built toll lines to other towns in the James 
River Valley and beyond. In 1896 the line to Redfield was constructed and proved 
of great value when the flood followed the big snow in the spring of 1897.

All of this grew to become the nucleus of the Dakota Central Telephone Company. 
Mr. W. G. Bickelhaupt became associated with the company in 1898.

At one time it was said that Aberdeen "led the world" in phones per person and 
the city was one of the very first to have the dial system.

The exchange was housed in various places in Aberdeen. The present building was 
completed in 1918 and in 1934 the Dakota Central was purchased by the 
Northwestern Bell Telephone Company.

[Photo: Olwin-Angell Store, 1903]

The founder of the Olwin-Hall Dry Goods Company was Mr. A. H. Olwin who traveled 
here in 1883. At first he was associated with the Jewett Brothers in the Red 
Front Grocery and purchased the Jewett interests in 1887. He went into the dry 
goods business in 1892 and the next year became the sole owner of the Olwin Dry 
Goods Company which did business in the Excelsior Block on the west side of Main 
Street. In 1897 Mr. Robert Angell joined Mr. Olwin and in 1903 they incorporated 
the firm as the

[P50]

Olwin-Angell Company at which time a two story building was erected in its 
present location and later a third floor was added. Mr. Frederick Ackley came to 
the store in 1902 and became the manager in 1919. The store is now under the 
management of Mr. Ackley's son, Olwin.

The Coe and Howard Abstract Company was organized in 1888 by C. M. Coe and 
Charles A. Howard. Officers in 1889 were S. H. Jumper, president; J. Q. A. 
Braden, vice president; C. M. Coe, secretary; Charles A. Howard, assistant 
secretary; and B. C. Lamont, treasurer. Mr. Coe left the partnership and S. C. 
Hedger joined with Mr. Howard in the title and real-estate business. Mr. Howard 
was a major in the 2nd South Dakota Battalion in the Spanish American War in the 
Philippines and was prominent in the Masonic Lodge in Aberdeen and the State.

The Park Place Hotel, later known as the Minard, was started in August, 1881, 
east of the court house by James A. Proud, who had come planning to start a mill 
and changed his mind. It became famous for the annual luncheon which Mrs. Proud 
gave for the women of the town. Mr. Proud was the first to have planted trees in 
the. barren landscape for he brought a dozen trees from the James River banks 
and planted them in front of the hotel to signify Park Place. Today the city is 
thickly wooded, every tree having been planted by hand.

The Alonzo Ward Hotel grew from the lunch counter that Mr. Ward started when he 
came from the east. Its first brick building at Main Street and First Avenue was 
destroyed by fire in November, 1926, to be replaced by the present six story 
fireproof structure.

[Photos: Aberdeen Hotels]

[P51]

The Radison Hotel was erected on Main Street by Ben Ward, a brother of Alonzo, 
after having found the new town to his liking. The big horseshoe counter in its 
restaurant became famous as the center for social and business greetings of 
business men. The excellence of its cuisine was due to the supervision of Mrs. 
Ward.

The Wisconsin house was reputed to have occupied the oldest building in 1882. 
Its owner for years was A. N. Aldrich, who later became mayor of the city.

The Empire Hotel, a three story structure on Main Street, was erected in 1899 by 
Louis Hanicker, having started a business venture at this same location in 1885.

The Commercial Hotel was erected in a later period by A. L. Larson.

A hotel called the Kennard House was a four story brick building with a tower at 
the S. W. corner of First Avenue East and Lincoln Street. L S. Haseltine was the 
proprietor. It was steam heated. It became the Aberdeen Hotel and in 1904 was 
the Commercial Club and so used for many years. It finally became the home of 
the Moose Lodge.

The city directory of 1889 lists twenty hotels and it is said that 70,000 people 
registered that year in the city's hostelries.

The Federal Land Office was moved from Watertown in 1882 so as to be nearer the 
landseekers who must file their homestead claims promptly. The Aberdeen district 
included the counties of Brown, Edmunds, McPherson, Campbell, Walworth and 
portions of Dickey, McIntosh and Emmons in North Dakota.

The earliest hotels were sod shanties giving shelter but that was about all. C. 
H. Ellis built on the corner across from the present courthouse where later a 
three-story hotel was erected. O. H. Fowler had the Alpha House west of the 
townsite. The Howland was the home of the town's bachelors. The Artesian was 
operated by C. Boyd Barrett until he had a venture in editing a newspaper. In 
1890 he became registrar of the land office.

The Sherman Hotel, a huge frame structure for its day, gave the town a gala 
occasion at the opening banquet and grand ball on Nov. 4, 1881. James Ringrose, 
the owner, was a legendary figure in the community and the hospitality of the 
house became known throughout the Territory. This was fostered by the four 
sisters of the host for they were active in the management. A boarder in another 
hotel changed to the Sherman because there he could use silver knives and forks 
instead of steel.

There was soon constructed on the west and south sides of the Sherman Hotel a 
large balcony with supporting posts on the sidewalk. From this balcony the Rev. 
James H. Kyle gave his famous address on July 4, 1890, which resulted in his 
election to the South Dakota Senate.

A brick addition was added to the hotel in 1887 and burned in 1906 and after 
another fire in 1926 the present structure was built. The hotel is now the 
property of Mr. Ringrose's son, Maurice, and his daughter, Mrs. Margaret Hart.

Eager to have the fees for publishing final proof notices of homestead land 
filings two newspapers were started. Both were dated Aug. 4, 1881. The Aberdeen 
Pioneer, D. C. Wadsworth, publisher, came out on that day, and the Dakota 
Pioneer, J. H. Drake, publisher, was out the next day. The rivalry between these 
two publishers was so bitter that it led to personal encounters enlivening the 
street scene upon occasion. Wadsworth changed the name of his paper to Aberdeen 
Republican to avoid the similarity in name of his rival. Later it was acquired 
by C. Boyd Barrett, a Confederate veteran of Lee's army, whose soldierly bearing 
and fastidious dress gave him eminence among his fellow citizens. He operated 
the paper until December, 1898, when he sold to George B. Daly, who changed the 
name to Aberdeen Democrat and it was finally absorbed by the Aberdeen News. W. 
E. Kidd, known as "Billy the Kid," for a short while operated the Aberdeen Star 
in which he carried on his very radical ideas of reform.

L. Frank Baum, who later became famous as the author of the Wizard of Oz and 
other children's books, leased the Dakota Pioneer from Colonel Drake in 1890 
when the latter was appointed by President Harrison to be U. S. Consul at Kiel, 
Germany. Baum changed the name of his paper to the Aberdeen Saturday Pioneer. He 
made it a spirited publication sparkling with wit. Its every issue was eagerly 
awaited to read the personal quips and humorous comments that his mythical "Our 
Landlady" made about local folk.

Mr. Baum with his family had arrived in Aberdeen in 1888 and started a variety 
store known as Baum's Bazaar. Here Aberdeen residents could purchase such 
luxuries as Pottery, Bohemian Glass, Japanese Goods, Toys, Bicycles, decorated 
chamber sets, Candy, Cut Flowers, and Ice Cream. The bazaar did a good business 
until the summer of 1889 when the dry weather, causing a crop failure, ended in 
disaster the last of the year at which time Mr. Baum turned to the newspaper 
business. He left Aberdeen in 1891 for Chicago and later won much fame as the 
author of children's stories and books.

The weekly news, later the Aberdeen Evening News, was launched in 1885 by C. W. 
Starling and Paul Ware. The latter soon sold his share to E. C. Torrey of the 
Ordway Tribune and the plants were consolidated.

The first issue as a daily came off the primitive power press July 26, 1886. H. 
S. Williams became a major owner and with H. C. Sessions published the paper 
until C. J. McLeod in March, 1893, acquired the Sessions interest. The ownership 
was then vested in Williams, Torrey, George Schlosser and McLeod. Out of a 
succession of changes McLeod became sole owner in 1900.

The Aberdeen American was launched in 1904 to give voice to the liberal 
Republican sentiment in the state. Tom Potwin was the first editor. When he 
retired Alfred A. Pickler and Walter Kutnewsky associated themselves with J. H. 
Holmes until 1909

[P52]

[Photo: This blotter was on the desk of the Sherman Hotel about 1890.]

[P53]

when J. H. McKeever became owner and in partnership with E. P. Neill operated 
the paper until the sale to the Ridder Bros. of New York absorbed the Evening 
News and the Journal, which had been started by Jay Reeves and M. M. Carpenter. 
Henry Schmitt is now editor and publisher.

The Dakota Farmer, now a dominant factor in the agriculture of the two Dakotas, 
was launched in Alexandria in 1881 and moved to Aberdeen in 1893, by W. F. T. 
Bushnell in association with Win. C. Campbell. In 1910 W. C. Allen acquired 
ownership.

Before the turn of the century the Zeitung, a German language weekly, was 
published in Aberdeen.

Aberdeen was only two years old when the ambition of the residents generated the 
need of a library. B. E. Hutchinson, register of the land office, led in the 
discussion that led to a meeting on Feb. 25, 1884, at which the Aberdeen Library 
association was formed. Mr. Hutchinson was chosen president; J. H. Hauser, vice 
president; Frank Beard and J. H. Perry, directors. Then the group listened to a 
lecture by H. M. Marple on "Education in Our Public Schools."

Just a month later on March 18, 1884, it was decided to incorporate as the 
Aberdeen Free Library Association. The certificate bore the names of B. E. 
Hutchinson, J. H. Hauser, F. H. Hagerty, C. A. Ozias, Frank Beard and J. H. 
Perry. At the indifference of some to the idea of a library, A. F. Milligan, who 
served later for many years on the board, is quoted as having said that everyone 
was so intent upon getting started in his own affairs they did not consider a 
library too important.

To finance the project memberships were sold at 25 cents a month or $1.50 per 
year. The list of the first subscribers was a list of early day residents. But 
funds were needed and there were donations, home talent entertainment, and 
lectures to raise money. One of the lectures was by A. C. Mellette, later 
Territorial governor. Finally in 1900 the city assumed maintenance of the 
library.

At first the maybe 100 books, many of them gifts, were housed in two rooms in 
the Hagerty & Marple Bank building, now the Hagerty Building. Miss Elnora 
Pleasants was first in charge and others in the early years were: Miss Belle 
McCrea, Miss Elva Crain, Miss Genevieve Taubman, Miss Clara Wright, and Miss 
Nellie Alley. In 1893 Miss Pleasants reported that from April 5, 1892, to July 
5, 1893, the total circulation of books had been 2599 and 2860 visitors had come 
to the reading room. The average was seven books loaned each day and eight 
visitors came daily to the reading room.

As the use of the library grew a building of its own was needed. Senator James 
H. Kyle headed a group over a period of years working to raise funds. In 1900 he 
received word from the Carnegie Foundation that it would give $15,000 toward a 
new building if the city would assure $1500 annual upkeep. There was one 
condition. It must be named for Alexander Mitchell, president of the Milwaukee 
Railroad. Carnegie and Mitchell had been boys together in their native city of 
Aberdeen, Scotland, and this was to be a mark of their friendship. Ours is the 
only one of the many libraries in the country given by Carnegie that does not 
bear the name of the donor.

[Photo: Alexander Mitchell Library]

A site for the new building was donated by C. H. Prior, the railroad townsite 
agent, 150 x 150 feet at the corner of Sixth Avenue and Lincoln Street. Plans 
were drawn by a Mr. Van Metre and in 1901 the contract was let to Andrew Fossum. 
Mayor John E. Adams appointed A. C. Witte, A. N. Aldrich and M. H. Kelly to 
superintend the construction.

The new library building was dedicated at an open house July 15, 1902. In the 
receiving line with Miss Aurora Koehler, assistant librarian, were the members 
of the board: Mrs. Louis Lager, president; R. N. Jewett, vice president; M. H. 
Kelly, secretary; and Dr. George F. Countryman, librarian, as then one board 
member was designated. When Miss Koehler resigned in 1914, Mrs. Adele Drum 
filled the position for a period of years until Miss Dorothea Heins, the first 
trained librarian came to serve until her death in 1944. To succeed her Miss 
Helen Glau, the present librarian, was appointed.

[Photo: Aberdeen Post Office]

St. Luke's Hospital came into existence as a result of a diphtheria epidemic 
which swept the community in 1900. The Presentation Sisters were teachers with 
classes in their convent. In the crisis that had arisen part of the convent was 
converted to a temporary hospital. Other Sisters went into homes to care for the 
sick until the need abated. In grateful recognition of their willing service 
physicians and citizens saw the need for a hospital and besought the Sisters to 
establish a hospital. Although their life's work was teaching, the Sisters 
consented with the approval of Bishop O'Gorman, to undertake the project. The 
original building was erected in 1901, later replaced by the present five

[P54]

story modern structure. St. Luke's has made an impressive growth in service. It 
is fully accredited with a large staff of physicians and nurses. It was here 
that the Andrew Fischer quintuplets, four girls and a boy, were born on Sept. 
14, 1963, and the hospital gained worldwide fame. This was also the birthplace 
of the Schense quads, two girls and two boys, in 1931. A School of Nursing is 
maintained in connection with the hospital. Mother M. Joseph Butler was the 
first administrator.

[Photo: St. Luke's Hospital]

The Presentation Sisters came from Georges Mills, Dublin, Ireland, to Dakota 
Territory in 1880. This small mission band was assigned to Charles Mix County 
where in a sod house they lived and taught a few French and Indian children. 
After the first winter the house fell apart and a call came for their help in 
Deadwood. In 1882 they were asked to conduct a school in Fargo, N. D. On Oct. 4, 
1886, they were offered the opportunity to open a school in Aberdeen and Mother 
Mary John, Mother Mary Aloysious and three novices set out for their new home.

[Photo: Presentation Academy]

From that early beginning the service of the Sisters has greatly grown not only 
in the hospital, the school for nurses, but also in the field of teaching and 
Classes for girls were started in the convent later to be housed in an 
impressive building north of the city known as Presentation Junior College for 
Girls. The building was started in 1952 and opened in 1954.

The greatest civic enterprise of its day was the erection of the Grain Palace in 
1893. It stood at Main Street and Fifth Avenue covering half a block with a 
seating capacity for 1600 persons. The work was all done by citizens, who gave 
labor or pledges of money. It was an ornate structure devoted to conventions, 
entertainments and an annual fall display of agricultural products. One of these 
was denominated as the state fair. At this annual exposition the festivities 
were presided over by the Grain Lady known as the Queen of Aberdeen. She was 
wholly garbed in grains and grasses, on her head a crown of the same. Her left 
hand held flowers and upon her wrist was poised a live pigeon.

[Photo: Interior view of the Grain Palace]

[Photo: Exterior view of the Grain Palace]

There was a great stage at the south end of the auditorium. The entire outside 
of the building was covered with beautiful designs and patterns all executed in 
grains and grasses grown in this vicinity. Much of the inside was similarly 
decorated. Mr. Louis Lager was the designer and superintendent

[P55]

of this work so grandly done. Mr. Zietlow supervised the electric lighting 
effects.

Grain Palace sentiment was brought to the point of action by a committee 
consisting of Rev. F. A. Burdick, Ira Barnes, George Schlosser, Robert Moody as 
president and C. F. Easton, treasurer. In the group to sell stock or take 
contributions were: H. C. Jewett, S. W. Narregang, S. H. Jumper, Isaac Lincoln, 
H. H. Saben, S. M. Salisbury, J. L. McCall and James Ringrose.

At the opening on September 11, 1893, the Fourth Regiment Band from Sioux City 
played and Gov. C. H. Sheldon spoke. Then followed thirteen days of exposition 
festival. Some other attractions at the Grain Palace were the Chicago Marine 
Band (1895), Road Shows (1897), The Andrews Opera Company (1898), The Boston 
Ladies' Symphony Orchestra (1899) as well as many local and home talent affairs. 
In May, 1894, the high school commencement exercises were held in the Palace for 
three graduates, Leon and Dana Foster and Harold Wilson.

The building burned soon after the turn of the century.

From the sod houses and tents that marked the first settlement of the town, 
frame buildings soon appeared and business houses with false fronts emphasized 
the assurance of permanence.

The great blizzard of January 12, 1888, blasted an impact upon the town that was 
never forgotten. There had been cold winters before. The first winter of 1880-
1881 brought huge drifts of snow which in melting turned Main Street into a 
river of water and mud. The three days preceding the great blizzard were cold 
with minus temperatures of 42, 35 and 32. Thursday, Jan. 12 opened clear and 
calm with a temperature that had mounted to 28 above zero. Mid-morning a gale 
wind began blowing the powdered snow in waves that obliterated everything. 
Merchants were marooned in their stores, office workers dared not venture out. 
There were deaths in the storm elsewhere in the state but none in the town. 
Newspapers of the country carried lurid accounts of the storm and Mayor A. S. 
Hewitt of New York wired Mayor R. A. Mills an offer of a carload of provisions 
to feed the sufferers. Mills told him that there was no suffering and thanked 
him. Two months later on March 14, 1888, New York had its worst winter storm and 
Mayor Mills wired an offer to send relief but Hewitt said it wasn't needed.

Courthouse employees were stranded and efforts to reach the George Perry home 
only a block away failed. Finally John Houhlihan, register of deeds, got a ball 
of heavy twine. With one end anchored this led S. C. Hedger, four other men and 
two women in a procession to safety. The only death in the county befell a young 
lady school teacher at Northville, who tried to reach her boarding place only 30 
yards away. She lost her way and her body was found half a mile distant.

[Photo: Gottschalk Opera House]

There was time for play in the growing town and summer and winter the residents 
found diversion indoors and out. The first theatre was over Frenchie's saloon. 
An opera house was built with a seating capacity of 600 and a stage big enough 
to accommodate traveling theatrical companies. Famous bands came to the Grain 
Palace. The opera house burned down May 1, 1902, to be succeeded by the 
Gottschalk rink and theatre which later also burned to the ground.

There were elaborate July 4th celebrations, there were horse races, dog races, 
baseball games with maybe a hired professional or two, dancing upon all 
occasions, mostly square dances. In the homes social life was gay with dinner 
parties, there were basket socials, sewing bees, amateur dramatics, concerts and 
women's clubs. The Wednesday and the Tourist clubs had early origin. There was a 
winter course of Lyceum entertainments sponsored by the Methodist Church and a 
summer Chatauqua under a tent. Outside the town lay a hunter's paradise for 
prairie chicken were there in countless number.

[Photo: Masonic Temple]

The first fraternal organization grew out of a meeting of a group of men in 
September, 1882, who decided to form a Masonic lodge. Aberdeen Lodge, No. 38, 
was chartered June 15, 1883, with the following memberships: R. S. Ellis, M. H. 
Dille, S. H. Jumper, W. B. McChesney, J. H. Perry, H. P. Bolles, F. L. Dille, F. 
E. Hemstreet, H. B. Johnson, D. D. Jones, W. W. Lewis, H. H. Randall, Abraham 
Slingerland, Henry Van Slyck, and J. M. Wilson. With the growth of the town 
other lodges were instituted, among them Odd Fellows, Elks, Knights of Columbus 
and others. When the Masonic Temple was dedicated in 1897 it was the fourth 
building in the

[P56]
	
nation and first in the west wholly devoted to Masonry.

Eastern Star, Minerva Chapter No. 5, was organized Oct. 9, 1888, with Mrs. J. M. 
McBride as worthy matron. Other associated with her were: Mesdames H. S. 
Williams, L. C. Dennis, C. M. Coe, J. H. Firey, C. B. Barrett, Phil Skilman, W. 
A. Ward, S. H. Jumper, William Tennant, R. A. Mills, J. B. Holt, Jessie H. 
Wendell and Miss Emily McBride. Hattie Lager and Laura T. Brown were the first 
initiates.

The A.O.U.W. Lodge was instituted in 1885. Among its early members were: Dr. H. 
E. McNutt John Proud, A. H. Olwin, C. W. Starling, W. H. Kearney, J. E. Adams, 
W. B. Windsor, C. A. Howard, J. S. Shaffer and Henry Neill.

The Y.M.C.A. was organized in 1887 with Robert Moody as president; D. G. 
Gallett, vice president; E. C. Davies, secretary; Rev. T. H. Haug was the second 
secretary and in 1889 F. H. Hagerty was president. It became inactive until in 
1915 the present board was formed.

Bounteous crops in 1882 of 40 and 50 bushels of wheat to the acre and of oats 
105 bushels, these being the only crops, raised high hopes of harvests to 
continue year after year. They fell off in the drouth years of the 1890's. In 
the fall of 1893 L. Harris and J. H. Houser were hired in a vain attempt to 
bring rain. The next summer Mayor S. H. Jumper designated June 12, 1894, as a 
day of prayer for rain. Rain came and on June 17 a service of thanksgiving was 
held in the Grain Palace.

Aberdeen acquired its sobriquet "Hub City of the Dakotas" when W. P. Butler, 
city engineer, devised a map showing rail lines radiating in nine directions 
like the spokes of a wheel. The Great Northern had built from Wahpeton, N. D. to 
the Aberdeen Fergus Falls & Pierre Railroad with visions of extension to the 
state capital. Some of that right of way was graded beyond the terminus here. 
The Minneapolis & St. Louis was extended from Watertown and the city was the 
most important rail center in the northwest. Butler's map was printed and widely 
circulated, even in Europe, and the city has been the Hub ever since.

Electric lighting for streets and homes came in 1886 when on May 1 the Aberdeen 
Electric Light company was organized. Arc lights replaced the corner gas lamps 
and the evening round of the gas lighter was ended. Capacity was limited in 
those days and the company refused to add one more street light when the city 
refused to allow street lights turned off at one o'clock in the morning.

A franchise for an electric street railway was granted to a group of optimistic 
citizens in 1886. It did not come into being.

The ambition for a street railway persisted and in 1888 another franchise was 
granted to C. T. McCoy, H. M. Marple, S. H. Jumper, F. W. Brooks, L. G. Johnson, 
J. A. Houlihan and F. H. Hagerty. L. A. Cleaver had an idea of an interurban to 
Huron but the hard times sealed the fate of a railway. In 1910 local boosters 
got behind the project and the rails were laid and cars began to run. In this 
group were: C. A. Howard, J. L. W. Zietlow, Isaac Lincoln, George Bolles, S. C. 
Hedger, J. H. Holmes, F. B. Gannon and C. A. Russell. Tracks were laid from the 
college to Wylie Park with a transfer point in the one hundred block on Main 
Street. The cars stopped running in 1922 when the multiplicity of automobiles 
diverted the riders.

[Photo: Street Railway]

A great day for the city came on Oct. 14, 1899, when Major C. A. Howard and the 
South Dakota troops came home from the Spanish American War. They had been in 
the Philippines. President William McKinley and four members of his cabinet were 
here to welcome them in the greatest crowd the city had ever known. Other 
distinguished visitors would include Susan B. Anthony, who came in January of 
1890. William J. Bryan spoke here in October, 1896. Col. Theodore Roosevelt, 
then governor of New York, came Sept. 1, 1900 and later when president in 1903. 
On Aug. 28, 1936, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was a later visitor. President 
Taft was a visitor in 1912.

Despite its location on the frontier, Aberdeen saw few Indians after Drifting 
Goose left his lodge at Armadale, so that visitors on Oct. 9, 1888, created a 
sensation. Indian Agent James McLaughlin, superintendent of the Standing Rock 
Reservation, and a band of Indian Chiefs stopped here to take the train for 
Washington. They were going to confer about rights for the Indians. In the group 
were the most noted chiefs, all in their native garb, as follows: Sitting Bull, 
John Grass, Gaul, Mad Bear, Big Head, Two Bears, Thunder Hawk, Bears Rib, Fire 
Heart, High Eagle, Gray Eagle, Hairy Chin, High Bear and Walking Eagle.

For three weeks in October, 1909, the eyes of the nation were on Aberdeen. The 
city was the location for the drawing for ownership of 10,000 farms to be had as 
the Cheyenne and Standing Rock Indian Reservations were to be opened for 
settlement. Previous to the drawing thousands of land seekers flocked to 
Aberdeen to register for a place in the drawing. Up and down Lincoln Street 
local notaries set up their desks to help make out the applications. Judge James 
W. Witten presided at the drawing which was held in the Gottschalk rink. The 
thousands of applications were tossed in a great heap upon the platform and two 
little nine-year old girls picked them up in turn. Alice Jackson, daughter of J. 
H. Jackson, and Josephine Burke, daughter of Congressman C. H. Burke of Pierre, 
did the honors.

[P57]

First choice for his quarter of land fell to William J. Engel of Butte, Neb., 
but three days before the drawing he had gone to Tripp County and filed on land 
there. Thus he became ineligible to share in the drawing. So first chance to 
pick a farm out of this two and a quarter million acres of virgin land fell to 
No. 2. He was Calvin Bowdry, a negro janitor from Bismarck, N. D. 

In the summer of 1909 the city was shocked by news of its most sensational 
crime. Emil Victor, a young lad, had murdered the Christie family and Michael 
Ronayne at Rudolph and fled. A posse was hastily formed by Sheriff Anderson and 
following his trail south he was captured that afternoon. After trial he was 
hanged on a scaffold erected beside the jail. Members of the posse served later 
on in driving from the city I.W.W. agitators bent on destroying crops.

Through the gift of Andrew Melgaard Aberdeen enjoys the beautiful Melgaard park. 
He owned the land south of the townsite. In his memory a bronze statue has been 
erected in the park. When the courthouse was moved its site became Aldrich Park. 
Wylie Park, northwest of the city, is the largest, comprising Lake Min-e-ho and 
a large buffalo pasture. With the rebirth of Moccasin Creek a recreation area 
has been developed along its banks.

[Photo: Melgaard Park]

Some of the "firsts" in the little town and its growth are:

The first boy born was a son of O. A. Fowler, born in the first sod house.

The first girl born was the daughter of John A. Proud, in January, 1882. She 
lived only 14 months and there being no cemetery, burial was made on her 
father's claim.

The first fire destroyed a livery barn on Nov. 14, 1883. Thereupon a volunteer 
fire department was organized the following month.

The first church wedding was that of Mr. and Mrs. T. C. Gage on June 1, 1885, 
the bride having come from New York for the occasion. Before that Hugh Blanding, 
one of the town's bachelors, went to Minneapolis in September of 1881 and came 
home with a bride.

[Photo: Horse Drawn Steam Pumper]

[Photo: Bay horses of first Fire Department]

First permanent store building was built of hemlock and tar paper.

The first train arrived July 6, 1881 and became the first daily train from St. 
Paul on March 24, 1882.

First teachers institute held Oct. 20, 1883 with 26 present.

First train service west of Aberdeen November 11, 1883.

First poor fund created in March, 1884, at $100 per month.

First concrete paving 1907, supplanting the wood block paving.

Brown County Bar Association organized April 15, 1884.

First annual Brown County Fair opened Oct. 2, 1884.

Aberdeen Rifles organized in January, 1885.

Aberdeen Merchants & Manufacturers Assn. formed April 1, 1886.

First funeral was in the winter of 1880 when a man named Peters died. He was 
buried in the snow north of the railroad tracks. In the spring the body was 
removed to a grave in the higher ground which

[P58]

[Photo: When Ringling Circus came to town]

is now Lee Park Golf Course. The first death was that of a railroad worker's 
child.

Ringling Bros. Circus on July 4, 1902, credited Aberdeen with its greatest one 
day receipts. The circus had returned after the city had previously barred its 
elephants and heavy trucks from the wood block paving. On this day the parade 
was diverted to pass the home of Mrs. Chauder, mother of Mrs. M. P. Stompe. She 
had been a friend of the Ringlings.

The first automobile was owned by R. L. and F. A. Brown in 1900, a Winton.

The first steam laundry was established here by Miss Elizabeth Edgoose in 1885 
and in 1886 she started the first greenhouse. In 1892 she married Richard 
Strohmeier, who had come in 1891.

There were dressmakers in the early days. In 1885 Mrs. Theresa Hofler and Mrs. 
Ella Jones were offering their services at 75 cents per day in the homes of 
their customers. They required eight yards of goods for a dress for a medium 
sized woman.

The town business men centered their activities in 1897 in a residence as the 
Aberdeen Club at the corner of Main Street and Sixth Avenue.

The first hospital was started in the "Old Cassell" house with trustees from the 
churches, Baptist, Catholic, Episcopal, Presbyterian and Methodist. This was in 
April, 1886, and it was named Good Samaritan Hospital. Later it was, helped by a 
loan of $500 and moved to a building on Eighth Avenue N. E. Finally it became 
Brown County Hospital where patients were taken care of for $8.00 per week.

Among the pioneers who spent the first winter of 1880-1881 on the townsite were: 
Thomas Boyden, Julius Bonneau, Mr. and Mrs. O. A. Fowler in their Alpha Hotel, 
Lou Bowman, Mr. and Mrs. H. Peters, W. A. Saniels, Charles Deming and Billy 
O'Neill.

A. L. Ward's restaurant had the first commercial ice cream freezer.

When the first lot sale was started C. H. Prior planned that Lincoln Street 
would be the chief business street. However the prices of lots on that street 
were so high that buyers went over to Main.

The first frame building was that of R. A. Mills drug store.

When the sewer system was installed it was a world marvel for the pumps were 
driven by the force of the water from the artesian well. A second well was sunk 
at Jay Street and Eleventh Avenue to provide the power. Visitors would feel the 
pipes to be sure they were not hot with steam.

The water from the artesian well was rather unpalatable and it took a good deal 
of getting used to

[P59]

it. Some used sugar, some giner or vinegar. The barrels of water that were 
carted around and sold to the residents were dosed with alum to settle the 
sediment. The Lennox baseball team came to play and their copious drinking of 
the water made the visitors so ill that they were an easy victim.

Early in 1881 there were 61 buildings on the townsite counting houses and stores 
and including the sod shanties.

Aberdeen long depended upon its artesian well for water. It was hard water and a 
more palatable quality of surface water was sought. This effort in 1935 
developed into the construction of a dam across Willow Creek to form a 
reservoir, a dam on the Elm River and a treatment plant at Ordway with a main to 
reservoirs in the city. The city now has ideally soft water in ample supply.

Government offices have been a factor in the growth of the city. The Internal 
Revenue Service was located here July 1, 1901, in charge of Herman Ellerman, to 
administer income tax in the two Dakotas. This was changed May 15, 1920, and 
Aberdeen became the administrative office for South Dakota.

[Photo: Wilcox Apartment House and Minard Apartments]

Another installation of size is the Bureau of Indian Affairs, supervising Indian 
Reservations in South Dakota, North Dakota and Nebraska. Other federal bureaus 
include the ASCS Office, Farmers Home Administration, Federal Crop Insurance, 
Soil Conservation Service, FBI, General Services Administration, Social Security 
Administration, U. S. District Court, Railroad Retirement Board and Selective 
Service Board.

When the state unemployment law was enacted in 1937 the headquarters were 
established in Aberdeen. Later in 1962 came the State School for the Blind.

Senator James H. Kyle was the only Aberdeen citizen to have been elected to the 
United States Senate. He was pastor of the Congregational Church. He espoused 
the cause of the Populist Party, which had inflamed the farmers and labor in 
1890 when he was elected to the state senate. During that session the 
legislature elected him U. S. Senator. It was he who authorized the law which 
established Labor Day as the first Monday in September. In 1896 he was 
reelected. He died in 1901 being a Republican at that time.

Senator Kyle was responsible for getting the first federal building built in 
town. That was in 1904 and a resolution for the erection of a postoffice at 
Aberdeen had been on the calendar for a long time. Finally Senator Kyle came 
upon Speaker Reed in a relaxed mood with the result that the Speaker shouted at 
him, "I'll let you have your blank, blank building. I'd rather spend the money 
for buildings than send it all to the Phillipines."

Multiple homes had a start when the Apartment, later known as the Wilcox, was 
erected on Kline Street at Seventh Avenue in 1888. In 1889 the occupants were: 
Mr. and Mrs. J. C. Sheldon, Mr. and Mrs. N. H. Wendell, Mr. and Mrs. S. J. 
Wright, Dr. and Mrs. Harragin, Mr. and Mrs. William Tennant, Mr. and Mrs. C. M. 
Wilson and Miss Maggie Wilson.

When death came among the pioneers there was no designated place for burials. 
Perhaps a spot was chosen on the prairie or a homestead claim. The land of E. H. 
Alley and J. Q. A. Braden near the city became a common burial ground until the 
owners prohibited such use. In January of 1886 the city bought land of John 
Shuler for $1600, which is part of the present Riverside Cemetery. It was 
platted in March of that year by W. P. Butler, city engineer. The first burials 
were made in October, 1886, Mrs. Andrew White and Mrs. Dr. Pine.

Sacred Heart Cemetery was laid out in 1883. St. Mary's Cemetery was laid out in 
the early 1900's.

Air transportation for Aberdeen had its beginning when a few young men gained 
ownership of planes and used a pasture south of the city for their field. Among 
them were Clyde Ice, H. M. Baird, Ole Fahlin, Chester Wage, Carl Swanson, Clyde 
Fulletin,

[P60]

Earl Vance. Prof. F. W. Smith of the college was manufacturing spark plugs and 
in 1910 acquired a plane. In 1921 the Brown County Fair Board established an 
airport in the fairgrounds north of the city. In 1923 this was the site of the 
first air meet in the state. Hopes were high at that time. that Aberdeen would 
become a station on the transcontinental route, but these vanished when it was 
directed through North Dakota.

Saunders Municipal Airport was created when the city voted $20,000 in bonds on 
June 10, 1930, the Swengel farm east of the city was purchased and the modern 
terminal building erected. The field was named for Gen. Luverne Saunders, a 
resident of Aberdeen, and a famous war hero of the Aviation service.

Intercity bus service was begun when Carl Swanson started his Jackrabbit Lines, 
later succeeded by Greyhound Lines.

Such is the early history of Aberdeen which owes much of its present position as 
a superior place in which to live and transact business, to the enterprise and 
enthusiasm of the pioneers who envisioned and worked for a splendid city in what 
was called "the great American garden of the James River Valley."

Grateful acknowledgment is made for assistance gained from the manuscripts of 
the following: Luke Falk, John Wade, T. C. Gage, S. M. McCall, Mrs. J. E. Kelly, 
Mattie Wendell Allen, Helen Glau, Sister Margaret Mary, Presentation Sisters, 
Jessie Ethel Proud Minard, M. M. Cleworth, Helen Hanicker Pattno, W. P. Butler, 
South Dakota Writers Project, W.P.A., Creighton A. Holstad and the Newspaper 
Files of the Aberdeen Pioneer and the Aberdeen American-News.

[Photos: Big Snow of 1897 and Resulting Flood.]

[P61]

ELIZABETH EDGOOSE STROHMEIER
by Clara Strohmeier Clark

[Photo: Miss Elizabeth Edgoose]

The following is a partial history of the life of Elizabeth Edgoose-Strohmeier, 
born November 16, 1852, Holland fen, Lincolnshire, England. The third youngest 
child of Mary Jones Edgoose and Joe Edgoose. She was one of a family of 13, born 
in a 400 year old thatch roofed house. Whose stone walls were 4 foot thick and 
the thatched roof was 2 foot thick, wherein the many birds, etc. hid their nests 
and returned there each Spring to raise their young and to make life more 
beautiful for the children who lived and grew up there. Elizabeth was always 
very small, very active, and almost always cheerful, and could see and enjoy her 
many blessings. When she was 13 years old she went to Sheffield, England to 
learn the dressmaking trade. She was very happy and tried real hard to do just 
as she was told to. The shop where she was an apprentice catered only to the 
"better class" ladies. Among them was "Lady Terry" a member of the royal family. 
Lady Terry took a very great liking to Elizabeth. She came to the shop real 
often to have some small alteration, each time asking that little Miss Elizabeth 
do the stitching. Each time she would ask as many questions as seemed prudent 
under the circumstances. After some time Lady Terry asked Elizabeth if she would 
like to come to live with her as her "ladies companion;" to accompany her on 
most of her daily trips outside of her home, as well as to help her with 
personal companionship in her home.

Lady Terry was herself a very fine needle woman. With Elizabeths consent she 
went to see Mrs. and Mr. Joel Edgoose and asked if she might have their 
permission to take Elizabeth into her home as her companion. This companionship 
lasted until the Spring of 1873. Elizabeth was, after her first few months, 
entrusted with the care of the very fine cut glass, sterling silverware, as well 
as the very dainty china, etc. Lady Terry was very anxious about "Little 
Elizabeth" when she developed a bad cough. She had her own physicians check her 
chest for symptoms of the very prevalent tuberculosis. The doctor found that 
Elizabeth did have what was termed "quick consumption." Elizabeth had heard and 
read that the climate in some parts of the United States was a very dry climate 
and if such was the case there was a possibility that Elizabeth might overcome 
the disease that was slowly destroying Elizabeth's lungs. The doctor advised 
much rest and nourishing food and to not be exposed to the foggie damp days. He 
also gave her a small lung exerciser, as he termed it. It was a small breathing 
tube.

Elizabeth had 2 sisters, Mary and Alice, also a brother John and his wife Mary 
and 3 sons, all living in Chicago, Illinois. After several months Elizabeth 
decided to take the chance on the better climate. So she packed up her 
belongings and booked passage on a steamship. She bade Lady Terry as well as her 
own parents and sisters and brothers a farewell that all felt was final, as the 
doctor expressed concern that Elizabeth would not have the strength to withstand 
the ocean voyage. The voyage took 13 days, due to the fact that they encountered 
some rough seas. Elizabeth celebrated her 21st birthday two days before landing 
at New York. Elizabeth lived in Chicago with her sister for 5 years, then went 
to Manastee, Michigan with the McElligott and Seamor families. They were English 
families that the family had known in England as well as in Chicago. There Mrs. 
McElligott and Miss Elizabeth established the first laundry.

Manastee was a small great lakes shipping town as well as a lumber town. The 
McElligotts and Miss Searmore as well as Miss Elizabeth belonged to' the 
Episcopal faith, shortly after their arrival there they contacted the Episcopal 
Mission in that area and made arrangements for Sunday services. As there was no 
church there, they offered the use of their laundry room which they scrubbed and 
cleaned each Saturday and got benches and chairs for the faithful to use. These 
services were well attended and it was not too long before there was a fund 
started towards the construction of a church. When the church was dedicated, a 
copy of Miss Elizabeth's letter for the church of England was placed in the 
corner stone there. Elizabeth lived in Manastee, Michigan for a period of 7 
years.

Shortly afterwards Miss Elizabeth again felt that she would have to get to a 
drier climate as her old cough came back and she had severe chills and fever. So 
again she packed up her personal belongings and boarded a train for the far 
west. She arrived in Aberdeen, Dakota Territory, May 1, 1885, late in the 
afternoon, very tired and very sick. After getting off the train and seeing that 
her baggage was unloaded she walked down Main Street looking for a place where 
she might obtain sleeping quarters, also board for awhile. She stepped into the 
Lockington Meat Market. She inquired of Mr. Lockington as to where she might 
find a room and after she showed him the reference letter she carried from 
Manastee business people as well as church people, Mr. Lockington had someone 
direct her to the home of Dr. McNutt. Dr. McNutt felt that Miss Elizabeth was a 
very fragile sick person and after reading her reference letter talked to his 
wife and they decided that they had a spare room that she might rent until such 
time as she could make other arrangements. Mrs. McNutt gave Elizabeth some hot 
tea and a light lunch and Elizabeth went to bed early. The following morning 
Mrs. McNutt didn't want the doctor to leave the house

[P62]

until he made certain that they still had Miss Elizabeth with them, instead of a 
corpse. When there was no sound from the room and it was getting to be almost 10 
a.m. the doctor carefully opened the door and was surprised to find that 
Elizabeth was very much alive and apologized for having slept so late.

The trip from Chicago had taken the best part of 3 days and 2 nights and the 
train was drafty and cold. Therefore a warm feather bed felt comfortable. And so 
Miss Elizabeth slept sound as well as late. After a late breakfast Elizabeth 
went for a walk to see just what kind of town she had come to and to get a 
better idea of what Aberdeen, Dakota Territory, had to offer in the way of a 
means of earning a living, etc. The first thing that she bought in Aberdeen was 
some trees from a nursery salesman who had a big wagon load of them that he 
hoped to sell to the claim settlers. As Elizabeth had not purchased any 
property, she asked Dr. McNutt's permission to dig a small ditch in his back 
yard to "hill the trees in." With his consent and the loan of a shovel, Miss 
Elizabeth proceeded to dig the ditch, much to Dr. McNutt's astonishment. She 
placed the trees in the ditch and covered the roots with loose dirt. Within a 
few days she bought a lot at what is now known as 320 South Main Street. She 
also bought the quarter block located at the corner of 5th Ave. S. W. and 3rd 
Street, took the trees to the 5th Ave. and 3rd St. location and planted them, 
deposited her remaining funds in Isaac Lincoln's bank. She made arrangements for 
a building to be erected at 320 South Main Street later that summer.

After making these arrangements, she then decided that she wanted to see the 
Missouri River--"The Big Muddy" as Mr. S. W. Narragang's real estate ads had 
read in the papers in Merry Old England. Also in the paper in Chicago, Illinois 
he had advertised--go west young men go west--To Aberdeen, Dakota Territory, 
then on out to see the "Big Muddy." They told of all the opportunities and 
wealth in this area etc. After making all necessary arrangements for the 
construction of the future "C. O. D. Laundry," Elizabeth Edgoose proprietor, she 
decided to see the Big Muddy during the time until the construction would 
actually begin. This building, by the way, still stands, naturally there have 
been some alterations, such as a new front etc., but structurally it is the 
original building.

So fortified with a government map that was marked with the mile stones, that 
were numbered, location of living springs that were safe to use water from, 
locations of settlements etc., Elizabeth decided to go to Mound City or LaGrace, 
both one and the same place in reality.

For her trip, Elizabeth obtained a splint basket, a small alcohol lamp and tea 
kettle, a cup and saucer, canned apples, soda biscuits, eggs, bacon, a long 
light pole with a string and a tin can attached, to use in dipping water from 
the water holes, as quite often the sod around the water hole was undermined and 
not safe to go too close for fear of falling into the hole. A blanket for a bed 
roll, her prayer book and a lot of faith that God would guard over her and let 
her come safely back again, she took off. She also paid up a months rent at the 
Dr. McNutt home for her room.

As she walked across the prairie the buffalo and antelope would stop and stare 
at her, then turn and run away. For hours on hours all that she could see was 
the tall buffalo grass that waved like ocean billows when the wind blew. When 
she was tired she sat down for a while or lay down and often went to sleep for 
awhile. At the first water hole she saw fresh egg shells crushed there. From 
there on that was the one thing that she noticed. Sometimes the shells seemed 
quite fresh, other places they seemed quite old, as though it had been some time 
since they had been left there. That was an indication of how long it had been 
since someone had stopped there.

After several days, clouds came up and it began to rain. That same day towards 
evening Elizabeth sighted what looked like what possibly could be a couple of 
sod shanties. As she approached them she saw several covered wagons. On 
approaching the sod house, a man came to greet her and she asked him if he could 
tell her how far to LaGrace or Mound City. He said, "Why Miss, this is Mound 
City. This is the land office. What can we do for you? Where is your party, 
etc." When she told him that she had no party, that she was alone and that she 
had walked from Aberdeen alone, he just didn't believe it, until someone came to 
the door of the sod shanty, and with a scream of "Betsy what are you doing here? 
Did I hear you say that you had walked all the way from Aberdeen? Sounds just 
like you. Oh, we are so happy to see you." It was Mr. and Mrs. Huffman and 
family, who had arrived by covered wagon the previous day along with another 
couple and family in their own covered wagon. Naturally the government land 
agent tried to interest Elizabeth in taking a claim next to the Huffmans, but 
Elizabeth told them of her investment in Aberdeen and that her journey had 
really been for the sole purpose of seeing the great Missouri. That evening she 
rented a "flop" for the sum of $2.00 on a straw tick on the clay floor along 
with Mrs. Huffman and the children. The next morning after breakfast she started 
on again and walked to the river. She just couldn't quite believe what she saw. 
The river was so small "due to the lack of spring rains" that she said to 
herself, "Why I could almost jump across that muddie stream. I had expected to 
see a roaring trembling raging river."

She spent another day with the Huffmans and early the following a.m. Mr. Huffman 
was heading for Ipswich with just the breaching of his wagon to bring back a 
load of lumber to use for a roof for his sod shanty. Mr. and Mrs. Huffman and 
their friends had taken joining claims and they would build their house so as to 
cover just the corner of each claim and in that way just have to build one roof 
with a dividing wall inside the shanty to make 2 separate homes. Elizabeth sat 
on the back join of the rear wheels and rode all day back there in the rain. 
They arrived late that evening at Ipswich. Elizabeth got lodging there that 
night and the next morning walked back to Aberdeen, very weary and much 
disappointed in the great Missouri. Again the warm feather bed

[P63]

[Photo: Miss Edgooses' Greenhouse]

was a welcome sight and she had a good sleep. Then she went about checking up on 
the construction job. Naturally nothing had been done, but soon the carpenters, 
Mr. Brandes' crew or possibly it was Mr. G. McLaughlin a local carpenter, gave 
Miss Elizabeth an order for dimensional lumber to be delivered as soon as 
possible. In the ensuing time, the ground was made level and necessary rocks 
etc. for footings were brought in and almost before folks realized it the 
building was well under way. A well had to be dug! That too, soon progressed.

Miss Elizabeth ordered some very necessary laundry equipment from the "Sinclair 
Laundry Machinery Manufacturing Co," in Chicago, hunted up an old steam boiler 
and almost before anyone knew it, the laundry was ready for the first customer. 
Until such time as the machinery arrived from Chicago, the business was taken 
care of with the aid of some extra help. Three wooden wash tubs, a wood barrel 
or two, a couple of rubbing (wash) boards, cast iron laundry stove, a gasoline 
stove, two copper wash boilers, the "flat irons" that she had brought from 
Manastee, Michigan with her. A sign C. O. D. Laundry, Miss Elizabeth Edgoose, 
Proprietor. At first it was strictly C. O. D. Later on credit slips began to 
pile up, many never were collected. Miss Edgoose let it be known at the "Sherman 
House Hotel" as well as at the other hotels etc. that she could give 24 hour 
service. Soon the traveling public brought their laundry bundles in and it was a 
flourishing business, by the time that the Laundry equipment arrived from 
Chicago.

During this time Miss Edgoose had her home erected at 216 5th Ave. S. W. where 
she had purchased 1/2 block of land and where the following year her brother and 
family, John R. Edgoose, helped erect the first greenhouse. The incentive for 
this venture being a demand for flowers for weddings, funerals, as well as 
social affairs. Having come from "the east" different people inquired of her, if 
she knew where it would be possible to obtain "Flowers."

To some, money was quite plentiful, they missed the social life that they had 
enjoyed in their former homes. John, having been a mine foreman in England, and 
a Foundry worker, carpenter, or doing different kinds of obtainable work in 
Chicago, was anything but a florist. He was very fond of plants and flowers, as 
was his wife Mary. They "shipped in" Tube rose roots, Heliotrope, Fuschias, 
Carnations, also rose plants and an assortment of house plants. One of the sons 
refused to go into the greenhouse, he said it smelled "just like a funeral" and 
he hated funerals and he was very lonesome.

During the winter of 1887-1888 Mary Edgoose, "who was not well" decided that 
they should return to Chicago. This they did in the Spring leaving the two 
eldest sons with Elizabeth.

Things managed to go along fairly well until September when Miss Edgoose finally 
advertised in the "Florist Review" paper, for a florist to manage the 
greenhouse. Several florists applied for the job. The one letter with the 
neatest handwriting was the one chosen by Miss Edgoose. Richard Strohmeier was 
the applicant. He arrived September 20, 1891 from Minneapolis. February 10, 1892 
Elizabeth and Richard were married.

The year of 1894 the laundry was sold and all attention was given to the 
greenhouse and flower business. In 1896 Mrs. Strohmeier started the first home 
Bakery Shop, on the location presently occupied by the "J. C. Penny Store" at 
4th Avenue and Main Street South. If ladies had a favorite cake or cookie 
recipe, they could bring the recipe to the bakery and the food would be prepared 
to order. After managing the bakery for several years, Mrs. Strohmeier sold the 
business to the Appleford sisters, who owned and managed the bakery for many 
years.

About 1898 Mrs. Strohmeier again started another first for Aberdeen when she 
started the "Feather Shop", the only shop of its kind between Chicago, Illinois 
and Billings, Montana. This work she was actively engaged in until the time of 
her death in 1944. Elizabeth Edgoose Strohmeier had the first Steam Laundry, the 
first Home Bakery, the first greenhouse, the first "Feather Shop" in Aberdeen, 
Dakota Territory, as well as being so far as we know, the first and only woman, 
licensed steam engineer in Dakota Territory and the only white person to walk 
the distance from Aberdeen to the U. S. Land Office at Mound City, Dakota 
Territory.

[Photo: Mrs. Elizabeth Edgoose Strohmeier]

[P64]

ALLISON TOWNSHIP
by Oscar Turnquist (Brown Co. News, Frederick)

The first log cabin in Allison Township was built by two trappers, who had left 
the place before John Turnquist came in 1879 to live on this land. This log 
cabin 14 x 16 ft. had been built with hard work by these first men. All these 
trappers brought with them to this area was a yoke of oxen, and enough lumber 
for a door and a window, a stove pipe, and a scraper. The cabin was built of 
logs. On the roof they put poles, covering them with brush, hay, and chunks of 
sod. Then they took long grass and bound it in bundles for shingles over the 
roof.

These resourceful trappers made a stove out of gumbo and rock. They then took 
the sheet iron from the bottom of the scraper, cut a hole in it, and placed it 
over the stove. On this they did their cooking. These men used some of the 
scraper iron around the stove pipe to prevent the cabin from catching fire. 
Their furniture, as well as the lumber in the cabin was made out of wood 
collected along the Elm River. Turnquist fell heir to this claim shack and "its" 
furnishings, when he accompanied James Allison here, with whom he was employed. 
Henry H. Brackett was a third man in the party. All lived at New Ulm, Minnesota, 
before coming here.

[Photo: Log house on the Elm River. Built on the Ed Allison Ranch southwest of 
Frederick, presently known as the Webster Ranch.]

Allison, for whom the township was eventually named, was a contractor who built 
railroad grades, but he was also interested in raising cattle. When the two 
trappers, already mentioned, told Allison this land would be a good place to 
start a cattle ranch because of its tall grass and the water in Elm River, these 
men were practically on their way to look the land over. This was late in 1879, 
and they took up claims with Turnquist getting the already built claim shack.

Allison and Turnquist shipped 400 head of cattle by train to Bristol, which was 
as far as the railroad went. They then drove them the rest of the way to the 
prairie, which was to become Allison's ranch. When they came to the James River 
in 1881, they loaded the cattle on a ferry boat that had no railings on the 
sides. When the boat was half way across the river, the cattle all jumped off 
and swam back to where they had started. It was necessary to put a railing on 
the ferry before the cattle could be loaded again, and taken across.

Allison told Turnquist he had heard Dakota winters are mild, so you don't need 
much hay. They put up only enough hay to last thru January. By that time, there 
was two feet of snow on the ground. So they drove these cattle down the Elm 
River to feed on the brush. Before they got the cattle that far, 300 of them 
died on a side hill on Turnquist's land. The remaining cattle were driven to the 
Forks, and all perished there from starvation and the cold. Allison and 
Brackett, with Turnquist, their hired man, acquired more cattle and ran this 
ranch for 15 years.

Henry Vernon, who took up a homestead in 1881 in this township, built a 
slaughter house along the Elm River and butchered and dressed cattle, and sold 
the meat to the Olson Butcher Shop in Frederick.

Another early settler in Allison Township was Pete Meyers, who with his partner 
(his name cannot be recalled) lived in a dugout at the Fork. "The Forks" is the 
place where the Elm River and Willow Creek meet. They came in 1880 and were 
trappers. A year later Walker Lee homesteaded here. He often told of a group of 
soldiers who came over this trail, and the captain asked Lee what he intended to 
do on this land. Lee replied, "I'm going to start farming," and the captain told 
him that he had been coming over this trail for 15 years, and he saw more dry 
years than wet ones. But this did not discourage Lee.

In 1884, after the township was organized it was voted to build four school 
houses. Two of the school houses were burned in a prairie fire but the other two 
were still standing in 1957. The  very first teacher was Miss Carrie Foss. The 
first school board had Allison, Turnquist, and a Mr. Redding as its members. So 
Mr. Redding was an early settler but no other facts can be learned about him.

A granary moved cross-country from Watertown to the Allison ranch in the early 
80's still stands.

This trail, a government trail, of which we have already written, went from Fort 
Snelling in Minnesota to the Standing Rock Reservation and crossed what is now 
Allison Township. The Indians from Sisseton used this trail when they went to 
Standing Rock Reservation in June. They would bring back ponies and many of them 
camped on Turnquist's homestead. It is known that in 1873, Custer camped here, 
too, when traveling on this trail.

There was a chance to make some money in 1883 and 1884, when a company came 
through and paid $11 a ton for buffalo bones. It took a lot of bones to make a 
ton. The bones were hauled to Frederick and shipped from there. At the end of 
two years when there seemed to be no more bones, the project folded. The bones 
were taken to sugar refineries.

[P65]

BATES TOWNSHIP
by Mrs. Raymond Johnson

In collecting material for the history of N. E. Garden Prairie, which is now 
Bates Township, the writers have endeavored to contact as many of the pioneers 
as possible. We have tried to give only such data as we know to be authentic. If 
we have made any errors in statements, or left out any pertinent facts, it is 
because we were either uninformed or misinformed.

The first settlers came in 1881. They were Mr. and Mrs. Will Weeks and son 
Robert, Mr. and Mrs. John Hite, sons Charles, Eugene, and Earnest and one 
daughter Cora, from Michigan. They located on S. W. 1/4 of Sec. 11, Twp. 121, R. 
60.

In 1882, Mr. and Mrs. Ed Phillips and son Charles came from Canada. Al and Frank 
Woodall, Joe Hurd, and Mr. and Mrs. Fritz Kuehnert came from Wisconsin. Mr. 
Kuehnert started a shoe shop in Groton, while his wife held down the claim.

The year 1883 added Mr. and Mrs. George Mereness and sons Charles, Will, and 
John and daughters Hattie, who married Lyman Strong, and Edna, who is now Mrs. 
George Potter of Groton and was born after the family came to Dakota Territory. 
There were also Mr. and Mrs. Pete Mereness and daughter Elizabeth, Mr. and Mrs. 
Andrew Cady and sons Charles and Will, and daughter Lucy, Mr. and Mrs. Fred 
Hausen and son Frank. Their second son Art, was born after they moved to Dakota 
and so far as we know is the only pioneer of the Township born in a sod shanty. 
Mr. Barlett came from New York, and Lew Wolf came from Pennsylvania that same 
year, 1883. Mr. and Mrs. S. A. Kennedy and daughters Lina and Clarabelle, Will 
and Dick Cook, Jim McDanials and Charles Matthews all came from Michigan. Mr. 
and Mrs. S. A. Keiser and Samuel Keiser and family came that year also. Mr. and 
Mrs. Andrew K. Tollefson and son Thomas came to South Dakota from Ansgar, Iowa 
sometime in April, 1883 and located on the N. E. 1/4 of Section 35, Twp. 121, R. 
60.

Other settlers in the early 80's were William Linsies, John Brices, James Hill, 
Mr. Conley, Fred and Max Bahr, the Robert Balls, one son Frank and three 
daughters Kate, Myrtle and Mattie, the Washnok family consisting of two sons, 
Henry and Gustave, two daughters Minnie and Bertha, who married Charles 
Schinkle. In later years Frank Ball married Bertha Quandahl; Mattie Ball, Ed 
Hofer; Kate Ball, George Tollefson; and Myrtle Ball, Dan Clemenson.

The year 1884 brought Mr. and Mrs. S. J. Feller and sons F. J., Jason, and Alvin 
and daughters Jennie and Ethel. Jennie married Charles V. Matthews and lived the 
greater part of her life on a farm in Bates Township and at the time of her 
death in 1942 had never been outside of South Dakota since she moved here from 
Ohio. Ethel, the only living member of this pioneer family, became Mrs. Delbert 
Ragels and lives in Groton. Mr. and Mrs. Frank Cooley came from Michigan, and 
Samuel Larson and family came from Illinois. Their three daughters Martha, now 
Mrs. Colcord of Conde, Elizabeth, now Mrs. Richard Voss, Sophia, now Mrs. 
Earnest Hite of Conde, who was born in South Dakota as also was Mary, now Mrs. 
Roy Bauman, now living in Missouri, and also three sons Thomas, Louis, and 
Henry. The latter two were born in South Dakota.

New settlers in 1885 were John Allen and daughter Agnes and Mrs. John Applegate 
from Illinois. Agnes married Chauncy Haywood who came from Michigan.

Charles Weeks, Mr. and Mrs. Henry Haywood and sons George and Mark and daughters 
Jennie, Laura and Bertha all came from Michigan. Mark is a resident of Groton, 
and George lives in California. They are the only surviving members of the 
family.

[Photo: Mr. and Mrs. I. L. Bates for whom the township was named.]

Mr. I. L. Bates came from Michigan in 1882 and built a claim shanty and proved 
up on his claim. He brought his family out in 1886 after having rented his farm 
a year or two and was back in Michigan. His son Frank became an Osteopath Doctor 
and moved to Nebraska, Sarah married Jason Feller and now lives at Salem, Oregon 
and Minnie married William Anstiss and is living in Santa Cruz, California.

Mr. and Mrs. Joe Holder and sons, George, John, and daughter Grace came from 
Michigan. Grace married Mark Haywood.

Mr. and Mrs. Lester Church and son Wilbur and daughters Lula and Ella and John 
Green, also Mrs. Roby and sons Will, Charles and Roy all came from Wisconsin. 
Charles lives in Texas and Roy in California.

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Ragels and sons Delbert

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and Claude came from Wisconsin in 1888. Mr. Ragels started up a cheese factory 
on his farm in 1889 and the farmers brought milk to the factory every morning to 
be made into cheese, which was much in demand in the community and it was also 
sold in surrounding towns.

Mr. Andrew Tollefson opened up a post office in their home where mail was 
distributed twice a week. He named the Post Office St. Ansgar after his old home 
in Iowa.

Wilbur Church and John Green had a well drilling outfit and were kept busy 
drilling wells in the community. Harry Bartlett opened the first blacksmith shop 
on his farm.

The pioneer days were full of all kinds of activities, such as literary 
societies, and debating groups, who pondered over the issues of those days. Then 
there was the organization of Township school districts. Samuel Feller was one 
of the office holders of the double Township known as Garden Prairie He was also 
one of the first board members of the combined school districts in Garden 
Prairie Township.

The early settlers had many things in common and were always ready and willing 
to render aid in all emergencies. Especially in case of sickness, there was 
always someone to summon a Doctor, or any other help needed.

Perhaps it would be in order to mention how living hands did all that was within 
their power to comfort bereaved families. On the S. E. corner of section 35, 
Twp. 121, R. 60, is an abandoned burial ground used in the early days where 
twenty-one loved ones were interred. Andrew Tollefson made the caskets and also 
conducted several of the services. On the death of a child, the services of a 
minister could not be had so Charles Matthews conducted the service, as told by 
Thomas Tollefson.

Then with poor crops, money was a very scarce article. Still through those 
difficult years they kept faithfully looking for better times. With no money for 
fuel the people gathered cow chips or buffalo chips, and if one could muster a 
ten cent piece or its equivalent, in eggs or butter, one could buy a pound 
package of good old Arbuckle Coffee, delicious to the last drop, for only ten 
cents.

You might say the early settlers were a master race, solving many of their 
problems by themselves. They also provided good wholesome entertainment for the 
young people. Many happy hours were spent in visiting and playing games which 
will be cherished memories to those of us who were the young people of that day 
and the old people of today.

In 1885 the first school, a term of three months was held that summer, in a 
claim shanty with Miss Agnes Dixon as teacher. She became Mrs. Traphagen and now 
lives in Britton. A Mr. Lindley taught the winter term in his claim shanty.

A new school house was built in 1886 on the west side of section 11, and with 
some improvements is still in use. Miss Sarah Bates was the first teacher, 
teaching the summer term and Frank Bates the winter term.

[Photo: Sarah Bates Feller, teacher of Feller School in 1886.]

S. J. Feller was instrumental in starting a Sunday School in the new school 
house in 1886, with S. A. Kennedy as Superintendent. We were served by the 
Methodist Church for a number of years. Our first minister was Rev. William Hyde 
and he was the first to serve the Groton church also.

It was a gala day for the community when a new organ was purchased for $54.40. 
This livened up the church and Sunday School very much. Weddings to be noted 
were those of F. J. Feller and Mattie Burdick in 1888, John Green and Ella 
Church in 1889 and Will Cook and Lina Stewart the same year.

In 1887 the community mourned the death of 8 year old Robert Weeks, the only 
child of Mr. and Mrs. Will Weeks of what is now known. as appendicitis. The new 
cemetery at Groton had just been laid out and Robert had wondered who would be 
the first to be buried there, he was the first. Another tragedy occurred when 
Mrs. John Hite was accidentally burned with hot tar and died several days later.

The big blizzard of 1888 was a memorable day and caused a great deal of anxiety 
especially to parents who had children in school. But our school and the 
teacher, Frank Bates braved the storm for about 40 rods and went to the John 
Hite home where they spent the night.

Among the pioneer were six G.A.R. men of the Civil War, Joe Holdor, Joe Hurd, 
George Mereness, Henry Haywood, Samuel Feller, and Isaac L. Bates.
 
This was a neighborhood of law abiding citizens, people who were religiously 
inclined.

After the territory became a state, I. L. Bates was sent to Pierre as the first 
representative and S. A. Kennedy was a Senator. Mr. Kennedy was a lawyer, who 
came to South Dakota for his health, and later practiced law in Aberdeen.

The community was very proud of its band which