Full Text of "75 Years of Sully County History, 1883 - 1958", pages 1-16 This file contains the full text of a part of "75 Years of Sully County History", edited by Mrs. E. L. Thompson. Scanning and OCR by Joy Fisher, http://www.rootsweb.com/~archreg/vols/00001.html#0000031 This file is part of the SDGENWEB Archives. If you arrived here inside a frame or from a link from somewhere else, our front door is at http://www.usgwarchives.net/sd/sdfiles.htm This book was produced by the Onida Watchman and is not copyrighted. Reproduction of all editorial and pictorial matter is explicitly permitted. EDITOR MRS. E. L. THOMPSON TYPIST MISS KAREN LUDWIG CONTRIBUTORS Mrs. George Beckett James E. Brooking Mrs. Howard Brown Mrs. Forrest Byrum Mrs. Oliver Byrum Mrs. Jack Donahue Clinton Dunlap Extension Club Committee Floyd Falkenhagen L. A. Fosness Mrs. L. A. Fosness Benny Gross Mrs. Darryl Hofer Mrs. Alvin Joachim Melvin F. Johnson Edward Klix Maynard Knox Mrs. Leo Lemmel Father Marbach Mrs. Elmer Mosiman Mrs. Luther Nelson G. E. Olerud Mrs. Hollie B. Olson Matilda Peterson Mrs. G. C. Reynolds Will G. Robinson Mrs. W. R. Ruckle Mrs. Frank Schultz Mrs. Coleman Smith Mrs. Gertrude Snell Mrs. James Sutton Mrs. John Sutton, Sr. Mrs. Clifford Thompson Mrs. L. S. Thompson Mrs. George Trumble Mrs. Jesse Venner Mrs. Leonard Venner David G. Vetter Mrs. Jake Walter Mrs. Howard A. Weischedel Mrs. G. T. Westphal Harold E. Wood RESEARCH Mrs. Earl Hardwick Mrs. Bertha Haverly M. C. Hyde Mrs. Bessie B. Lumley Agnes Noste Mrs. Vern Palmer ============================= Dedication Our anniversaries remind us that some adventurous and inspired folk in the past planned, pursued and accomplished. Quite proper are these observances, especially if we accept the challenge they imply and emulate the notable examples of people of other years and eras. Certainly we must be impressed with the spirit of the pioneers who blazed the trails, worked out experiments in fields of endeavor and offered something new and untried. Such were the pioneers in the early history of Sully County. They possessed stability, stamina and mastered the fine art of finding a way to succeed. Often their tools were crude and inadequate. The hardships were severe, but their pluck and determination to overpower their hindrances, and their trust in Providence, carried them forward to many accomplishments. The pioneers of Sully County worked according to plan. They had a goal, and adversity, no matter how complex, did not alter their stubborn tenacity. Their decisions, for the most part, were wise. We, the people of today, have inherited the benefits of the pioneers' work. Many burdens have been lightened, and progress in many fields is ours to enjoy. May we also inherit some of the same rugged spirit of our pioneers. To the cherished memory of the pioneering men and women who came to Sully County in the early 1880's, and started a new life and home and developed this area of open prairie into a wealth of supernatural attainments . . . this book is dedicated. ============================ [Drawing -- The Spirit of the Pioneer Woman] ============================ Foreward Entwined into the elements of time during the past seventy-five years, are countless incidents and events that have influenced the lives of the people of Sully County. Many have enjoyed lush years with abundant crops and well - fed cattle; and many also recall years of drought and depression. Those were the years that tried men's souls, but courage and perseverance triumphed over adversities. It has been the sole intention of those responsible for this book to depict a true and concise picture of the development of this area through the years, and of the people who, through toil and trial, have made Sully County what it is today. ============================================================= ONIDA'S DIAMOND JUBILEE .... King and Queen [photo - Luther Nelson] [photo - Bessie B. Lumley] Luther Nelson It seems fitting that the citizens of today express deep admiration and respect to those early pioneers who braved the unknown hazards of a virgin country and, as time passed, developed it as it is today. Symbolic of those early pioneers is Luther Nelson, who has been chosen "Onida's Diamond Jubilee King," thereby representing those courageous people who helped to make this fine heritage possible. Luther was born in Sweden, on October 24, 1880, and at that time his father, Lars P. Nelson, had already made plans to come to America. Three of his older sons had made the trip to the United States in 1878 and 79, and had urged the family to come too, so that they could all go together to the newly opened territory of Dakota. In April of 1881, when Luther was about six months old, the family arrived in New York, and came by train to Redfield. The rails ended there, so they traveled by stoneboat from Redfield to a pre-emption in Spink County. After selling this land in March, 1883, they packed up the stoneboat and moved on West to Blaine Township in Sully County where they filed on a homestead and tree claim. Mr. Nelson built a three-room sod house in which his family lived for six years. Their first frame house, moved to the homestead from Blunt, burned to the ground, and another house was moved in from the northeast part of the county which became Luther's home for many years. Luther attended Blaine grade school and received his high school academic education at Huron College. During the three years that he was a student there, he participated in the extra-curricular activities and was a letterman on the first college football squad. After teaching three seven-month terms in Blaine Township from 1904 to 1906, Luther married Bessie Coquillette of Miller, whom he had met while he was a student at Huron. After their marriage in January of 1907, Luther gave up teaching and Purchased the Barber place, now the, Wayne Nelson home, and moved there with his bride that same month. Just one year later their house burned and was a complete loss. Luther rebuilt on the same place and it was in this house that their son, Wayne, was born. Luther's wife passed away about two years later and shortly afterwards, he sold the farm to Jack Doherty and moved back to the home place in Blaine Township with his young son. Luther repurchased the farm just east of Onida in 1947. During the next few years Luther was kept busy with his farming operations and community activities. He was a member of the Blaine School board for over 10 Years, and it was during that time the present schoolhouse was built. In February of 1924, Luther married Ereka Eke Eller, who had taught in the new Blaine School. They purchased the old David Hall place, just across the road from the family homestead, and lived there until 1943. Then they moved to Onida and settled in the Adele Nelson home which Luther had previously purchased, continuing his farming and ranching operations with hired help. During the past 15 years that Luther has been a resident of Onida, he has given generously of his time and talents to the good of the community and to the state as a whole. He was a member of the State Legislature for the two sessions of 1941 and 1943, and is still an active Republican. He has been a member of the Presbyterian Church in Onida for 60 years and an elder for 25 years. In 1954, he was a delegate to the National Synod, representing the Onida Church and the Huron Presbytery, and was on the building committee for the present church. He is a charter member of the Sully County Farm Bureau, the Weed Board, Crop Improvement Association, Fair Board and Oneidians, and has held offices in these organizations at various times. He is Sully County Chairman of the South Dakota Bond sales Department, a member of the Stock Growers Association and was chairman of the Hospital Committee that raised the first $20,000 towards the present Onida Hospital. Much credit is given to his wife, Ereka, who has been a wonderful influence and has worked beside her husband in all of his enterprises. She has always been as enthusiastic about Sully County as has Luther. He loved Sully County through blizzards, dust and depression, war and prosperity, and instilled those feelings into the hearts of his son, Wayne; his daughter-in-law, Sady; granddaughter, Julie (Mrs. James Sutton, Jr.), and two great grandchildren, Teri and Steven Sutton, all residing in Sully County and will be a living memorial to Luther. Luther Nelson has made a name for himself and his family that will long be remembered in the annals of South Dakota history. Without men of this calibre, Sully County could not be what it is today. Bessie B. Lumley To record the life history of a pioneer lady, whose eighty years of fruitful living and interesting experiences, such as those of Bessie B. Lumley, would fill a book. Therefore, the events in the four-score years of Onida's Diamond Jubilee Queen are merely highlighted. Bessie Bagby was born in Atwood, Kentucky, on February 5, 1879. She was the second child and oldest girl in a family that was to grow to have thirteen children. In March of 1884, the Bagby family left their home in Kentucky, and headed for Dakota Territory. They stopped at Pierre, where a livery man took them on to Fairbank, a thriving little village with hotel, stores and a number of new homes. Soon after, word was received that the proposed railroad extension would not cross the Missouri River at. Fairbank, as had previously been planned. It did not take the families long to move out and in a very short time Fairbank became a ghost town. The Bagby family then moved to West Grandview Township where Mr. Bagby acquired a pre-emption homestead and tree claim. He made a home for the family in a large three-room dugout. The rooms were lined with lumber and lighted by windows arranged horizontally above the level of the ground. They were warm in winter, cool in summer and secure against the tornadoes that swept the land. Bessie and her sisters and brothers went to school three months every fall and three months in the spring. During one of the terms, it was necessary for her and the other children to stay all night in the schoolhouse during the blizzard of 1888. Bessie's father was afraid the teacher, Ike McGannon, might let the children start home, so he set out on foot with food, crawling on his hands and knees a good part of the way. He found the children and teacher in the schoolhouse and he sat up all night with the teacher to keep fires burning while the children slept on the benches. Bessie started teaching school at the age of 17 on a permit. She taught spring and fall terms between 1896 and the spring of 1902 in nearly all of the schools in the west end of Sully County. She earned from $28 to $35 per month and was able to save enough money to buy an old hotel building in the village of Okobojo, and had it moved to land that her father had bought at this time in East Grandview Township, to be used as a home for the large family. She paid $150 for the eight-room, two story building and $100 to have it moved up the Okobojo hill. It took 24 horses to pull it, mounted on wagons. After teaching for seven years, Bessie married George W. Lumley, Jr., in 1902. They went to Little Bend as newlyweds and lived there for five years, later moving to Okobojo. Mr. Lumley took over the Gas Belt Telephone Company, he maintaining the lines and equipment, and she tending the switchboard and keeping the books, in addition to her duties as housekeeper and mother of three children: Gladys, now Mrs. Louie Bartels, of Gettysburg; George, Jr., who owns a drug store in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and John, a civilian Personnel Director at MacDill Field, Tampa, Florida. After eleven years in Okobojo, the Lumleys moved to Onida and took over the telephone exchange until 1941, when the system went "dial". Those were dark days for Mrs. Lumley; she lost her job and her husband that same year. In the spring of 1942, Bessie entered the race for the office of clerk of courts. She was elected and held that office continuously until she retired in 1958-a period of sixteen years. She was honored at a dinner given by the courthouse employees, and presented a tea apron, cleverly fashioned with 21 rosettes made of pleated dollar bills, a gift from the group. During the seventy-four years that Bessie has lived in Sully County, she has seen the covered wagon and prairie trails change to automobiles and hard surfaced roads. Buffalo chips and twisted hay have grown dim in her memory as she sees automatic heat in rural homes. And running water, taken as a commonplace in farm kitchens, strikes her as a far cry from hauling water for the family and cattle in barrels. As to whether human beings have improved themselves at the same rate, she is not sure-she is noncommittal. One thing sure, however, she loves people. Because Bessie has always taken a keen interest in people of all walks of life, she has always been very active in organizations. She joined the Order of Eastern Star in 1907, and was Worthy Matron of the Capitol City Chapter in Pierre in 1913 and 1914, and was honored on five different occasions by the Grand Chapter of South Dakota. On April 2, 1931, she affiliated with the Onida Chapter, and on December 9, 1957, was presented a "50 Year" pin at the reception given in her honor. She also belongs to the American Legion Auxiliary and the Red Cross, besides local groups for community advancement and sociability. She was president of the Old Settlers' Association of Sully County in 1939, at which time she chose as her project the task of getting the Sully County History printed. She went to the county commissioners and told them that if they would lend her five hundred dollars to get the books printed, she would see they were paid back as the books were sold. The money was loaned, the books were printed and sold, and the county repaid. When she was president of the Community Church Social Circle, in Onida, she undertook the job of getting the road graveled leading to their cemetery. Again she went to the county officials, asking this time for the use of the county road building equipment for one day. Citizens donated labor and trucks; the women's group served a free dinner and a happy day was spent. Bessie has always made a practice of visiting shut-ins, and is known, far and wide, for her good cooking and warm hospitality. She has a philosophy that one can have only what one gives. Accordingly, she will be abundantly rewarded. ============================================================== In The Beginning Onida first dotted the map on March 28, 1883, when H. C. Alexander, a surveyor, certified that at the request of Charles H. Agar, of Sully County, Dakota Territory, he plat into blocks and lots, streets and alleys, part of the Northwest Quarter of the Northeast Quarter of Section 11, Township 114, Range 77, West of the Fifth Principal Meridian, in Sully County, Dakota Territory, containing forty acres, for the purpose of laying out a townsite which he chose to call Onida after his home town in New York. In the fall of 1882, Mr. Agar, Charles W. Holmes and Frank Brigham, all from Oneida, New York, came to central Sully County, which was then on the map, but still unsettled and unorganized, to look over the land and select a site for a town. Before returning to New York, both Agar and Holmes made a homestead entry and a tree claim, which entitled each of them to 320 acres of land-160 for the homestead, and 160 for a tree claim. Mr. Agar's homestead was located on what is now the Josh J. Hofer farm, and Mr. Holmes' was on what was later called the old Spencer place. After the three men had looked over the country and taken care of their business they returned to New York. In March of the following year, Mr. Agar and his two daughters, Jessie and Minnie, and Mr. Holmes and his family left their Oneida, New York, home with all their belongings and started for Dakota Territory on an excursion train. They met up with M. B. Knight, who was also headed for Dakota Territory and G. W. Everts, an Ohio man, who promised to join in the development of the new town by starting a weekly newspaper. Mr. Agar planned to build a hotel, and with such broad ideas as making that town a county seat and expecting that one or more railroads would be built through the town, no wonder enthusiasm ran high among the newcomers. However, it was on April 14, 1881, that Charles H. Agar gained control of the forty acres which later became the townsite of Onida, and which transaction was recognized by the United States of America. Control of this land was gained by Agar as an assignee of the legal representatives of Isreal Dodge, deceased, whose original claim was unsatisfied. Although Mr. Agar had taken steps to prove his right and claim by having this forty acres of land platted as a townsite, the Patent was not signed by President Chester A. Arthur until October 11, 1884. Sale of Lots On July 9, 1883, Charles H. Agar sold to Laver A. Agar, Lots 1, 2 and 3, Block 3, Original Onida; on May 25, 1883, Charles H. Agar sold to John J. Williams, Lot 28, Block 2, Original Onida; on July 9, 1883, Charles H. Agar sold to Frank A. Everts, Lot 5, Block 3, Original Onida, and on July 9, 1884, Charles H. Agar sold to Weyand & Brier, Lot 1, Block 4, Original Onida. Original Onida included blocks one through four, platted, March 28, 1883; First Addition to Onida included blocks five through 12, platted May 18, 1886; Second Addition to Onida, blocks .13 through 24, platted November 16, 1888; Cole's Addition, blocks 25 through 36, platted July 8, 1909, and Hyde's Addition, blocks one through 12, platted October 18, 1909. Boardwalk Business During the first week in April, 1883, Charles H. Agar, with the help of M. B. Knight and several other first settlers, constructed the very first building on the lot where the Onida Bank is now located. This building served' as a lodging place for the land-seekers. Almost every evening several teams of newcomers would arrive from Blunt and want a night's lodging. One evening, in the early part of April, several teams drove up and John N. Garner, W. E. Garner, Romeo Garner, Thomas Gibson And William H. Shepherd asked if they could stay for the night. They had their own supplies and cooked their supper. Work on the building had been pushed and the interior was in fairly good shape when Mr. and Mrs. Joe McDonald took possession of the new hotel about May 1st. At the same time the hotel was being constructed, two young men from Brighton, Iowa, Weyand and Brier, erected a store building on the present site of the Mosiman Hotel, stocked it with groceries and hardware, later adding dry goods. On May 2, B. F. Brier was appointed postmaster and he maintained the postoffice in the store. When the county seat moved to Onida, the county purchased this building, which served as the Sully County courthouse for 25 years. After selling their quarters to the county, the partners built again on the corner where Onida Electric is now located. Another building erected at this time was the J. R. Lorenzen Store, next to the first Weyand and Brier Store. This was also stocked with groceries. Some years later this building was moved across the street and became the home of the Farmers Bank until it burned to the ground. [photo - The first building to be erected in Onida, a hotel, is presently known as the Kimbell Apartments.] The first building to be completed, on May 6, was the office of the Onida Journal, located on the empty lot justsouth of the present postoffice. E. W. Everts was the first publisher of the Journal. The Everts family arrived here on May 6. There were no houses to rent, so the newcomers, nine in all, made their home in the printing office until Mr. Everts built a house on his farm a mile south of town. [photo - First Courthouse in Onida This building served as the Sully County courthouse from the time the county seat was moved to Onida in 1885 until the completion of the present courthouse in 1912. Pictured left to right-Walter Spencer, Dr. Kendall, M. H. Quimby, J. N. Garner, Robert Coleman, 1. L O'Donnell, T. L. Mitchell and Robert J. Courtney.] E. W. Blake, another business man, erected a building on the east side of the street, south of the Weyand and Brier Store, and had it stocked with groceries by May 24. Another building erected the first year was the Hanson Provision Store, located on the west side of the street, south of the Onida Hotel. The first three livery stables in Onida, belonging to G. W. Everts, Frank Brigham and the Hotel, which was located directly in back, were all demolished in the freak windstorm of June 20. More Settlers Dr. E. J. Loughlen and Joe McDonald, both from New York, came to the new townsite with one of the many parties of land-seekers. Others who journeyed West to secure free farm homes and build a town were E. W. Blake, James Otis, E. J. Schofield, Wallace Lilly, Asa Luther, Allen Starks, Dan Starks, Frank Brigham, Henry Sprague, Luther Downing, Frank Becker, George Stortz, D. Q. Jordan, Albert A. Snow, Giles Maxwell, Herbert Reeves, Elmer Anderson and a Mr. McGraw. The last two mentioned each brought a yoke of oxen to the country and did considerable early breaking for settlers who wanted small patches of ground broken. Mrs. McDonald and Mrs. Brigham shared the honor of being pioneer ladies of the new village. Locating the Village Well Water supply was the first serious problem confronting the early settlers of Onida, as there had been no preparation made for this important essential. Fortunately there was a lakebed north of the village that had filled with crystal clear water from the heavy rains during the spring of 1883. Water was hauled from there for human consumption, but for a short time only, as hundreds of teams of horses and oxen had been driven into it for watering by travelers going north into Potter and Walworth counties. It then became necessary to haul water from Blunt and every team going that way carried a supply of jugs, bottles and other receptacles that would hold water. One day G. W. Everts returned from Blunt with a Jersey cow-the first cow in Onida and Onida Township. The Everts family, as well as the entire settlement, greeted the new arrival with joy, and begged for just a cupful of milk. It was rationed out carefully as the most precious of fluids, and everyone, as far as possible, received a portion. Prior to this a well had been located in back of the hotel and a small amount of water had been found at a depth of about ninety feet. However, provisions for walling in the well had been neglected until after the water was found, and began to cave in, making it necessary to obtain water from another source. Bu where? Finally, the willow wand was resorted to, and Mrs. Wallace Lilly was responsible for locating the site for the first permanent well, near the present Mosiman Hotel She followed one vein running north and south, and a second vein, running east an west, crossing the first vein on the main street just a few feet south of Weyand Brier's Store. Work was begun at once by a Mr. Jenkinson, who had dug the first well. Many anxious days followed and by the time Mr. Jenkinson had reached ninety feet with no sign of water, it seemed hopeless. However, those persistent pioneers were determined to find water, and as no better location could be suggested, they instructed the underground artist to continue digging. Miracles did happen even back those days of hardships and heartaches At ninety-one feet, Jenkinson noticed an unusual amount of moisture on one side of the hole, so he immediately smoothed off the floor of the well. As he pulle his pick out from where he had observe moisture, a stream of water gushed out, rising far above his head. He screamed for help and the hoisting box was lowered as quickly as possible. He emerged from the well looking white as a ghost. Th water rose about ten feet in ten minutes and continued to rise until at the end of an hour, it stood at a depth of fourteen feet. The sound of the running water could be heard almost a half a block away. Wind Plays Freakish Pranks A terrific storm of wind and rain struck Onida square in the face on the morning of June 20, 1883. There was one continual flash of lightning all across the horizon for almost two hours before the storm really broke, with the wind blowing briskly from the southeast. A dense cloud hung over the Missouri Buttes and no one expected any serious damage from that direction. About noon the wind subsided and the storm seemed to have spent its fury. However, the storm from the buttes turned into a southeast course and apparently met the storm from the opposite direction. For a time the rain poured in a deluge and the wind increased to hurricane velocity. The large livery stable west of the hotel was demolished and also the stable of G. W. Everts, and the thousand fragments were scattered for almost a quarter of a mile. The five horses, which were in the stable at the time, escaped with just a few cuts and bruises. The stable belonging to Frank Brigham was also demolished, but none of the six horses within were even scratched. The Onida Hotel, which was over forty feet in length and two stories high, with a wing of about thirty feet, was carried several feet, but remained intact-just slightly out of line. The debris from the livery barn struck the Journal office with such force that one board coming endwise completely cut off a studding. The entire front was blown off east, and the west end carried around several feet, but owing to some solid board partitions the building remained intact. Eleven persons were sleeping in the hotel at the time of the storm, but none were hurt. The window of Hanson's provision store was blown out and the roof damaged considerably. Weyand and Brier's storeroom and Blake's grocery store were the only buildings not damaged. The claim shanties of Merritt Knight and Charley Tibbits were demolished, as well as others nearby. When the gale subsided and it was found that no one was hurt, there was considerable relief among the residents. The County Seat Controversy In the early spring of 1883, the forty acres constituting the original townsite of Onida was visited by early settlers who filed claims adjacent thereto. As it was a new county in a new country, these settlers were vitally interested from the start in making Onida the county seat. At first Carson, another new town farther west, was the only contestant in the controversy, and its claims were given little weight. Accordingly the first settlers in 1883 regarded the county seat decided upon. About this time, however, the Territory of Dakota had for its governor a man who had the reputation of disposing of county seats for a consideration. A board of commissioners was appointed by him, all reputable men and settlers of western Sully, and it was at once rumored that the governor was in some way connected as a silent partner in a new townsite to be located with the county seat in view. When the commissioners visited Onida the latter part of May, it was rumored that inquiries were made concerning certain inducements. The reply was a negative one, so there was no surprise indicated when in a day or two afterwards, Onida people learned that a new townsite, called Clifton, had been located about eight miles west of Onida, and the county seat located there. These tales were generally believed, although the fact was that the charges were never investigated and nothing ever transpired that would have confirmed them. Onida, however, believing in the justice of her cause, kept her settlement intact and resolved to battle for her spoils. Both contestants had about the same strength; however, Clifton may have had a slight lead in size. The issue was voted on by the electorate in the fall election of 1884. Onida won out by the small majority of five votes. The total vote cast showed Clifton 499 and Onida 504. The struggle in this campaign was intense and excitement ran high, but as far as was known, not a single fraudulent vote was cast. Unfortunately nine men failed to vote in the county and all those votes, had they been cast, would have been in favor of Clifton, for all those men lived in the western section of the county. The question was at once taken to the courts for decision. However, Onida did not wish to wait that long, so one of the commissioners, who was in command of the Onida forces, signed a contract, together with representative Onidans, that if the records were removed they would return them to Clifton if the decision of the court be in her favor, without expense to the county. Although the board of commissioners were supposed to favor Clifton two to one, the contract was accepted. The board was in session at Clifton on April 9, 1885, and recessed at 11 a.m., to meet again in the afternoon. Unforeseen to Clifton, a large delegation of Onida supporters, appeared in Clifton and marched off with the safe and records before the people of Clifton could offer any resistance. The "spoils" were brought to Onida and deposited in the office of the Onida Hotel-Onida held the county seat! A few days later, another crowd in charge of the county sheriff, who was a Clifton supporter, suddenly appeared in Onida. Within minutes an anxious group, triple that of the Cliftonites, soon gathered. Resistance was proposed, but word was passed around that a conference to decide action would be held. The leaders of the Onida group assembled in a guarded room of the Onida Hotel. Mr. Eakin, the favorable commissioner to Onida's cause, acted as spokesman of the secluded group. He expressed his extreme certainty that someone would be injured or possibly killed if the two factions clashed. Also, if the court decided in favor of Clifton, the signers of the contract would be obliged to return the records personally, which would be humiliating, to say the least. If Clifton took them back, the contract would be released, and if the court decided in favor of Onida, Clifton would be outwitted a second time. His advice was heeded and the meeting adjourned-not one hand was lifted to oppose Clifton's action. The spirits of the Onidans rose and volumes of gratuitous advice were given as to the, best methods of procedure, even a pulley and tackle were loaned them to load the safe. The Clifton spirits fell inversely for they realized that some action had been decided upon of which they had no inkling. The unknown was more dreaded than the known. The assurance of the crowd and the doubt of when or where the bolt would strike possessed them. The victory had been too easy - they knew their crowd had been outnumbered. They sensed there was something behind the hush-hush of their opponents. That night the records reposed in a mud hole on a farm just about midway between the two towns. Onida knew it but had made their decision and the records remained there untouched. A couple of weeks after this the case came up for hearing in the district court in Pierre. The judge decided that the nine blank votes were blank and could not be counted. It was late in the day and the crowd from both sides retired to the hotel, gathering in the lobby to while away the time until the court reconvened next morning. That is, all but one person. He slipped out the back door unobserved and ran post-haste up the alley to a livery stable where he hired a team and drove to Blunt and then on to Onida, arriving about ten o'clock that night. Late as it was, runners dispatched the news far and wide to trusty adherents. Early next morning these men met in Onida and a goodly sized cavalcade departed for Clifton with evil intent. The story is told of a Mr. Murray, a Clifton supporter, who was hitching up team of mules and seeing the Onidans, jumped into the wagon and lashed team into a furious gait toward Clifton. The Onida crowd, seeing the funny side, fell in behind as fast as possible, cheering and yelling until they reached their destination in a cloud of dust and noise resembling a stampeding herd of cattle with Mr. Murray in the lead. This was the first news of the court's decision to reach Clifton. There were barely a half dozen men in the town at the time-all the rest were on the road home from Pierre. Less than two hours saw the safe and records loaded and just leaving town when over the hill to the south could be seen those who had attended the court proceedings, winding their way back home. They were completely surprised, but too late to prevent. Clifton fought bravely on, and it was not until seven years later that the conclusive act was enacted. During all these years, Clifton had a majority of the commissioners in sympathy with her cause. One of these men eventually married a fine young lady in Onida, and with this contract passed the balance of power in the contest, for in a short time the newly married man was a convert to Onida and its interests. Thus ended the Sully County seat controversy. Most of the population in Clifton having by that time been reconciled to the end. =============================================== Merrit B. Knight of Onida and Miss Carrie S. Cowan of Beaver Falls, Pa., were united in marriage on December 27, 1892 at the residence of Dr. Cowan in Chicago, Illinois. ===============================================