Pipestone County, Minnesota - Chapter 19, 1911

Chapter 19

FROM tiiuu immemorial Pipestone count}' was the red man's land. Foi- centuries it was the rcndezvdiis fill' all the trilies nf the ncirlhwest. For nearly two Jiundred years civilization had known ol' the existence ol" tlie Pijiestone (jiiarries and for nearly forty years white men liad been in tlie habit of visiting it on flying trips. But no move had been made looking to its recovery from the wild state that had existed since its creation - if we except the attempt of the wily pre-em]itor lo obtain title to the famed qiiaiTies in ISTl. Pipestone was behind all the jieigjilioring counties in receiving settlers. In 1870 settlements had i)een established on all sidescif it; Lyon connty was sn far develojied thai the ccmnly was organized ; in the future Lincoln county wei'c settlers, on Lake Benton and at other ]i()iid-s; there were flourishing settlements at P'landreaii and Sioux Falls; liock county had a population of i:i8 ])eople; Nobles, 117; Murray, 209. FiVen tlie great rush of homeseekers of 187'^, when all the surrounding territory was rapidly settled and developed, did not bring a single inhabitant to Pipestone connty. There was a reason.

The I'l'pulation of the (|iuirries as Indian headiiuarters. the legeiuls and traditions eonnecteil willi the spot, the writings of the explorers, the fact that within its boundaries was a reservation, all tended to delay its occupation. The very nauH' of the county suggested Indians, and the ]iioneers had not yet so complete-' l\ loigoltcn the terrible days of 1862 that tliey cared to take the chances of locating in close proximity to the treacherous Sioux. So, while the newcomers located to the north, south, east and west, the Pipestone county boundary lines were a veritable wall, over which none had the haidiliooil to climb. Not until 1874 was a human lialiilation established within the county. Even then, unreasonable fear of the savages and ignorance of the conditions prevailing held in cheek its settlement, and it was not until the iron horse - that great instrument of civilization - ,, was seen approaching that Pipestone county came into its own.

Not so timid as those who founded hiunes were the eai'ly trappers, and during the sixties and early seventies those n(uuadic jieoplc frequently found their wav to the ''Inilian country." The records they left, however, are meager. Only occasionalU do we lind evideiu^e of their opei'ations, in the form of ruins of rude

The plan for Ijrinjiiiig about the settlement of tlie country adjacent to the Pijjest<iue quarry was conceived hy, and the lirst nioveiuent toward its execution was made Ijv, C. H. Bennett. Foi- many years previous to his lii'st visit lu the (|uarrics. I\Ir. Bennett, wlio was engaged in the dru;j business at Ix'ilars. Iowa, had conteuijilated a ti'ip to the ici;iiui. aliout winch he had read, for tlie purpose of seeing the siglits and possibly of securing land for a townsitc.- .\bnut the middle of Septeml^er, 1873, llr. Bennett, accompanied by Frank Flint, then of Lcilars, and their wives and a sister of Mr. Bennett, Mrs. Silas B. Wright, and jier infant son. set out from the Iowa town for the romantic' region. They passed through Sioux Falls and over the site of the present village of Dell Rapids, whence Mr. Bennett piloted the party, over a region of unbroken prairie without road or track, to the quarries, where they arrived about dusk on September 20. The i^arty camped for the night, and the next day inspected the charms of the falls and the rocky formations. Mr. Bennett, after examining manv sites in the vicinity, selected the one on which the city of Pipestone now

*In ttie spring of ISTS tlie skeleton of a man was found under a steep bank on section 2. Rock township, by Major D. K. Runals, who was guiding a party of land seekers, including Noah Bisbj'. Charles Bisb.v. Andrew Henderson and Scott Tiu'ner. .\pparently the bod.v had lain there for years. Beside tlie skeleton were found twch-e steel traps, a tobacco box and some buttons from a soldier's Iilouse. In the left side of the skull was a short piece of iron, about one-eighth of an inch in length, wllich liad probably been a nail point inserted b\' accident >'ears befoi-e his death.

It was afterwards learned that the skeleton was that of a member of a family, three of whom met death in the blizzard of 1ST3. .\ widow li\'inp: near Lake Benton lost her husband, son RTid son-in-law in the blizzard of .January. 1S73. The husband was found frozen to deatli in Nobles count\' on his way to Worthington; the son had been to the timber at Lake Benton for a load of wood. and. returning, was caught in the storm and perished with Ills ox team; the son-in-law had started for Flandreau to trade his traps for Hour and when the storm struck h;id apparently .sought shelter in the lee of the hill where his skeleton was found in 1S78.

Only one day was spent at the ipuirries, the parly returning to LeMars by way of Luvernc and the newly founded town of Rock Jfapids. In the latter place ^Ir. I>cnuctl met several ac<juainlauccs, who wcrr destined to play a most important pail ill the future of Pipestone county. Tlir\ wci-c Haiiicl F. Sweet, D. C. Whitehead and John Lowry. Mr. Bennett intercsteil them in the new-found land, and Jlr. \\'hitcliead stated tliat for some time he had intended making such a trip.

The casual meeting between Mr. Bennett and the Rock Rapids residents resulted in the eai'lier settlement of Pipestone county than might otherwise have been the case, the plans of Mr. Bennett being delayed by illness and death of his wife and their infant boy at LeMars that spring. On March 3.-5, 1874, D. C. Whitehead, D. E. Sweet, Job Whitehead and J. F. Eckleston left Rock Rapids for the Pipestone quarries.^ At Luverne they were joined by Mike McCarthy. They encountered severe storms on the way, but spent parts of three days at tlie quarries, located some of the government stakes, and decided to take u|i their residences at t1ie inider a three-inch la.ver of sod. Tlio leather had long since rotted" away, and the instrument bore eyidence of haying lain in its resting place for many long years. It had probabl.y been lost by one of the early explorers.

-Much of the data from which I haye compiled the story of the earb' settlement of Pipestone eoiHity is secured from a thorough and reliniile accoTult written hv C. H. Bennett in 1S78 ;ind read b\- him at a Fourth of Jul.y celebration at the quarr,\' that year. This data has been supplemented by numerous inter\"icws witli Mr. Bennett and tlie perusal of numerous public and documents in his possession, as well as added to from other sources of information.

"-March 23. 1S74. started from Rock Rapids with n. r. Whitehead. Job WTiitehead and J. F. Keklcston to yisit the Pipestone quarry, where we arrived on the twenty-fourth and staved two nights." - D. E. Sweet's Diary.

"Mr. D. ('. Whitehead &- Co.. of Rock Rapids, lown. passed through this place one day this week to Pipestone county. Mr. WHiitehead informed us that they intended to establish a mission up there, organize tlie coimt.y and make numerous improvements for the benefit of generations vet unborn." - Rock County Herald CLuvcrne), March 27, 1874.

Upon the return of the |iar(\ whirh visited (he (|uarries in ]\Tarch, H. V. Whitehead wcnl (o LeMars ami cniicluded ncuiitialiiiiis wilh ('. H. BennctI, wherel'iy that jivntleinan associated hiiiiself wilh the others for the purpose nl' |ihittiii;4 a Inwnsite at the i|uarrii's and liriiigiui; ahout the settlement (d' Pipestone county. The beginninj;- of operations was not long delayed. Early in j\ra.y, 1874, C-. H. Bennett anil ]iis brother, 0. W. Bennett, went from LeMars to Rock Rapids, and on ^lay 8 they, in company with U. ('. Whitehead, .Inh Whitehead, D. E. Sweet and John Liiwry, set out for Pipestone county.'' The little caravan, traveling with two o\ teams, went by way of Tjiiverne, where (-ach of the Bennett In'others purchased a load of hiMihei', witli which to erect cabins. At Luverne John (Jillard was employed to help haul the hunbei', and he accompanied the party to Pipestone. All spent the night under the projecting sides of the granite boulders known as the "Three Maidens." Tlie next morning the whole paidy. excepting C. H. Bennett and .lobn'tiillard, set out for New Ulni, wdicre was located the government land office, to

"D. E. Sweet and party, of Rocit Rapids. Iowa, passed through this place on Monday [April 27] for Pipestone county, this state, for the purpose of making a permanent location. Mr. .Sweet informs us that twenty families will follow soon." - Rock County Herald, May 1, 1874, make filing on the claims selected. The claims were all in the vicinity of the (juar- I ies. From New I'lm Ihi' lirst Piiiestone (ounly liomesli'aders returned to their Iowa homes.

rpon the morning of Ihi' ilcpai-ture of |lic rest of the |iai-ty for New Ulm, C. II. Ilenih'tt. with the assistance of John (Jilhird, .set to wnrk to erect the first building i'\('i' |Mit up in Pipestone county.' The buihliiig was a pine shanty, six feet wide, eight feet long anil five feet high. I f had no windows ami only one small door. This pioneei- claim shanty was in the exact of section \'i. township Idfi, range Id, on the present lot fourteen of block twelve, of the original plat of Pipestone City. Otherwise described, it was the iioi-thcasf ciu-ner of the inlersccfion of Hiawatha and C'entennial streets, just east of the I'uins of the old Calumet hotel. The construction of the house is said to have taken the two men nearly the whole forenoon! They ate dinner in it and then set out for Ijuverne, Mr. Bennett continuing the journey to LeMars.

The work so far done was preliminary to actual settlement. June 4, 1874, was the first day in history on which a white person could justly lay claim to the honor of being a resident of Pipestone county. At tliat time D. E. Sweet, his wife and little son, Henry, and John Lowry, by consent of the owner, moxed into the Bennett cabin and established the fii'st fem- ]iorarv houic in the county. In Mr. Sweet's diary is this modest announcement of tlie arri\al of the fii'st settler: "June 4. iloved to Pipestone with J. Lowry." D. C. Whitehead also came at

^"May S. started on the third trip and went to New Ulm. Present, D, C. and Job Whitehead, J. Lowry, O. and C. Bennett and self. Gone nine days." - D. E. Sweet's Diary.

°"In April, 1874. there was not a soul liying in the county, nor a house or other sign that there ever liad been, save the spots which marked the camping places of Indians, trappers and tourists as they tarried a few days in their visitation of the quarries." - Pipestone County Star, June Iti, 1879, the same time, assisting Mr. Sweet in haulinn; lumijer from Luverne, but he remained only a short time. Messrs. Sweet and Lowry at once commenced the erection of a house for the former on the present lot one of block twentv-one, original plat (now occupied by Denhart's gi'ocery store on Olive street). Mr. Bennett donated the lumber in his claim shanty, which was torn down and the material used in the new home. On August 1. according to Mr. Sweet's diary, "moved in new house."'

During the month of June, while the Sweet family and Mr. Lowry were living in the Bennett cabin. Dr. W. J. Taylor, who later became, and still is, a resident of Pipestone county, came to the quarries accompanied by his brother-in-law. Rev. E. H. Bronson.' The new arrivals made iheir camp beside the shanty. Dr. Taylor became enamored of the country and determined tn make settlement at some future time. He selected as a claim the northwest quarter of section 18, Gray township, adjoining the other claims, and made his filing in August, becoming one of the earliest homesteaders of the county.

Several of those who had filed on claims sent men up to their possessions during the season of IS?! ami had breaking done. C. II. Bennett and (). \V. Bennett, together, had eighty acres hrokcii nii sections |(l. 1 I and 10. Sweet township, and 3v', Triiy townshij)," I). ('. Whitehead had ten acres plowed,'" and 1). Vl. Sweet

'The Swoot house was the first habitable and pernianetit hiiildins in Pipestone county and was orenpiefl l>.\" the family for sex'eral years. The ViuilditiK still stands and is occupied as a residence, being the second house west from the southwest corner of the intersection of r'atlin and Frances streets.

*Dr. Taylor was on a return trip to his olrl home in Wisconsin from Nebraska. He had stopped off at Beaver Creek for a visit with his sister, and there heard of the beautiful and romantic country at the Pipestone quarry and decided to visit the spot.

-These were the first pieces of land broken in Pipestone county. C. H. Bennett paid five dollars per acre for his breakinR. To pay for it he borrowed $ino of a I.eMars banker, on which he paid interest at the rate of sixty per cent a year until he paid the same.

the same amount. Xo grain was sown until the following year. Through the representations of Mr. Sweet, in August, 1874, a postoH'ice was established at Pipestone with Mr. Sweet as postmaster, and a mail route established from Liiverne to the new otfice, and thence to Lake Benton. The postotYice building being the only house of any description in Pipestone county, the mail carriers were not overburdeiKMl with woi'k. A man named King infrequently brought the mail from Lake Beiilon by ox team, but there was no regular mail service until July, 1875. Another event of the year 1874 was no less important than the erection of the county's second building, erected not far from Mr. Sweet's cabin by .John Lowry. It was completed December 8.

D. E. Sweet and family and John Lowry spent the winter of lS74-7.'> in their new homes, and they were the only persons in the county that winter, their nearest neighbors being at Flandreau. They laid in a stock of provisions for the winter, and Mr. Sweet contracted witli a man at Ijakc Benton to deliver a supply of fuel, 'i'hc fuel was not delivered, and the lonely pioneers were obliged to burn liay. ('. IT. Bennett in 1878 wrote of the experiences of his friends that long winter :

Who can picture the loneliness, tlie anxiety, tlie monotony, of such a life as they lived here tlnring the rigid winter of 1S74-75, (liuMns wliicli for two inontlis they saw only two trappers, who became lost in a storm and wandered to this place?" Few of you

"In an old hotel resistor IVIr. Sweet reconieci the names of the visitors to I'ipcstone during tliat winter and tlic next spring. TTndcr date of JaTHiary s. 1.S7.5. is this entry: "Frank T. Lambert and Ivn W. Gibson, of Worthington. - snowbound two da>'s." In the book are also recorded the facts that the last day of the year 1874 was warm enough to thaw, and that on March !1. 1S75. was a thaw, tlie first in ninety-one days. "J. K. Chamberlln. of Granite Falls, - bound for the Black Hills." was recorded imder date of April 17. lS7ii. and on June 1. IS?."), "minister's party of nine camped at Pipestone."

who are before me know anything of what it is to pioneer. For two months they had nothing to burn except hay, as it was at tlie risk of one's lite to ventnre far away from one's home, for fear of being caught in a blizzard. The spring of 1875 found the four actual settlers who had wintered in the county alive and well, and poor prospect ahead for immigration to the county.

Pipestone county'.'; jwpiilatioii was not' greatly inoroased during 1875, but events occurred tliat year which promised new settJers for 1876. Dr. W. J. Taylor, who had paid a brief visit to tiie new county in 1874 and luid spent the winter in his old home in Wisconsin, organized a party of men and in tiie spring drove to Pipestone. The new arrivals were Dr. Taylor, II. D. Sanford, Fred Rogers, Col. J. M. Bull, Hiram Flick and Mr. Main. The doctor built a cabin on his claim and l)roke some land. Some of the others took rlninis and broke land, about 100 acres bciiig iiriikcM in the county in the spring ol' is;.",. Al'lcr this work most of the |i!ii'ty, in .lune, returned to their olil bnmcs, leaving Mr. Sweet and hi.s family and Mr. Lowry the only inhabitants. I\Ir. Sweet sowed ten acres of his land on section la to corn and oats. This was the fir.st crop planted in Pipestone county ami the (inly one planted in 1875. The grasshojipers did the harvesting. In .Tulv. 1875, a weekly jnail service was established between Pipestone and Lake Benton, the mail being eai'ried under rcinti'ai-l bv a Mr. Snyilcr, of Lake Benton. During the same sununer Messrs. Sweet and Lowry made a diagonal rnad across the county, it Hu'iuing a pari (if the projected rnad from Marshall (n Sidux Falls.

When winter set in it found m Pipestone county only Mr. Sweet and his family, determined to spend the winter season in the new country aiul prevent it I'rnni being said the county was deserted, '-wini: to the stringency of the times, the head of the family was obliged to make occasional trips to adjoining neighborhoods to earn money for the maintenance of his family. During these periods Mrs. Sweet with her child renuiined alone in the lonely home, many long miles from the nearest neighbor.' -

Those wdio came to Pipestone county with the intention of later becoming permanent residents were a determined set of men, and many schemes for the advancement of the conununity were discussed. So early as 1875 D. C. Whitehead, who was interested in the proposed town at the quarries, and who the following year sold his interests to Mr. Bennett, suggested to his co-workers that they should try to secure from congress an appropriation of $50,000 fur founding an Indian school, similar to that at Carlisle, to be constructed of native stone. From this early day suggestion developed the plans which later led to the founding (if the school. Several other jjropositions which the boomers thought would tend to bring settlement to the county were seriously discus.sed. Among them was one of no less importance than the organi/.ati(i]i lit Pipestone county. It was Ibrdiigh the activities of Dr. Taylor, ('. II. Pxuinett, D. E. Swett and II. 1). San ford that I he plan developed fartbei- than S(ime of I be III hers. i\lr. Bennett spent two weeks in SI. I'aiil, Idbbying in the inteiests of a bill \\bicli provided that the county should lie organized at any time when I here wci'e twenty legal voters residing in Hie ciiuniv. The bill was intriiihiced in I he lidiise by Representati\e W, 11. Mellen. Ill' :\]urray county, and pa.ssed that IhhIv. ilr. Bennett, having been assured that the bill would pass the senate, returned to Ix!Mars, but it met defeat in the senate, owing largely to the efforts of a

Karly in tlic sprinn' of is^C scvcriil nf those who hafi hoForc (aki'U idaiins I'el limed, and several new settlers arrived. Among the number were Dr. W. J. 1'aylor, H. D. Sanford, Col. .1. M. Hull, Fred Rogers, William Brown, C. H. Bcnnetl, Job Whitehead, Miram Flick and Joseph Tilleston. Most of these came with the intentiiin of residing |)ermanently in the connty, built on their claims, broke land and pnt in crops, Messrs. Sanford and Taylor seeding more land than the others.'^ Messrs. Bennett and Whitehead brought a large number of cuttings, whieh thej' set out, starting the first groves in Pipestone county.

Although few in numbei-s, the pioneers of 18-7G were progressive and were continually planning ways to bring about the settlement and development of the community. To this end a i)ublic meeting was iicld at the home of 1). E. Sweet April 13, 187G, participated in by all who were in the county, namely, D. E. Sweet, C. H. Bennett, Col. J. M. Bull, Dr. W. J. Taylor and H. D. Sanford. The meeting had an important bearing on the future history of Pipestone county. The secretary's minutes of the meeting were in the following words:

At a meeting held at Pipestone on .-ypril 13, 187fi, Col. Bull was made oliairman, and C. H. Bennett, secretary. Motion by W. .1. Taylor, seconded by D. E. Sweet. Carried. Tliat secretary prepare a petition to [the proper authorities] for immediate mail service from Luverne to Pipestone City.

"The first grain nf the sea.son wa.s sown by H. D. Sanford .\prll 19. The exhibition of the seeder and corn planter which were used in planting the erop. twenty-five year.s later, created conslderalile interest in Pipestone.

"These early settlers realized that to bring about the settlement of Pipestone county the relations between the Indians and the whites must lie peaceable. They knew that none exc-ept the I'nitcd .States government and the Indians had rights at tbe ciuairies. and they reresolved to respect those rights and to use

Motion carried that committee consisting of chairman, H. D. Sanford and \V. J. Taylor be appointed to proceed to inquire as to the best and speediest method of providing justices of the peace, constable and assessor.

Motion carried tliat offer on behalf of the settlers in Pipestone county of Bennett & Sweet to donate a block in the townsite of Pipestone City for court house purposes be accepted.

Fiftv-two land claims of vai-io\is kinds were taken iluring 187(1, but on only a W'w were iiuprovenicnts made, and less than a dozen people spent the summer in Pipestone county. Nevertheless many items of importance occurred that year. C. H. Bennett and D. E. Sweet surveyed the Pipestone City townsite, ^Ir. Bennett erected an office building on the site in June, and the same month John T>owry, who had returned after spending the winter abroad, opened a little store in the building he had erected in 1S74. The store was conducted only a few months. As the first step toward establishing a road from Pipestone to Worthington, three of the settlers, D. E. Sweet, W. J. Taylor and C. H. Bennett, made the trip across the country to the northwestern end of the diagonal wagon road that led {<< W'uvihingliiu. erecting sod MKUind^ almig the most direct route. Weekly mail service was established beluceu l'i|)estone and Luverne the latter part id' September, the colli rati lieing secured by |)i'. Hmek.

their influence toward having thn.se who would follow take the same view. The greatest, and practically the only, difficulty encountered in inducing settlers to locate in the county was the fear of Indians. Not knowing the conditions, many people censured the men who were endeavoring to found a settlement on the edge nf an Indian reservation - only one mile .square. The promoters had to contend not only with the trials Incident to the settlement of any new eountrv, but also with the prejudices of many well-meaning people.

A Typical Sod Shanty

In Such Homes as These Hundreds of Pipestone County Residents Had Their Homes. This Was the Conly Home Near Jasper. Photograpli Talien in 1889.

Cactus Found At Thic Ph'Estgnb Quarries

So far as material atlvanccnient was concerned the year 18?G was almost a blank. In August the grasshoppers came in niyi-iads and devoured almost everything, including the grain crops, gardens, young trees, cuttings and every thing except about sixty acres of wheat on H. 1). Sanford's claim." No grain was threshed in Pipestone county that season, but (he next spring Dr. Taylor secured a machine at Luvcrne and threshed out the little grain the grasshoppers had left. He did the work more as an advertisement and to show Ihal Pipestone county was a grain |U'odiicei- than with an idea of realizing a profit. In fact, the hire of the machine amounted to more than the grain was worth. It had stood in stack all winter and was unfit for seed.

The grasshopper visitation was almost a fatal blow to the little settlement. By the last of September practically everybody had left the county. But the proprictoi-s of the new towiisite did not pro-

G. Bennett secured the contract in Jinic. 1X77. Semi-weekly service was established August 16. 1878, and that year Hamilton Wells secured the contract.

""The first sermon ever heaid in Pipcstoni' county, if we except the thrilling exordium of 'Gitche Manitou, the mighty.' when he assembled the nations on the 'mountains of the prairie,' will be delivered tomorrow (Sunday, June 25) by Rev. E. H. Bronson. We congratulate the wicked in that locality on the spread of the gospel to remote lands, and trust its much needed influence may be felt to the uttermost limits of the settlement," - Rock County Herald (Luverne). June 24. 1876.

".\t this service. Col. J. M. Bull, who later became one of the best known ministers of southwestern IVIinnesota and a presiding elder of the Methodist church, was converted.

""Although evidently incompatible with the essential attributes of anything so manlfestlv saccharine, it is nevertheless true that friend Sweet, of Pipestone City, has lots of 'sand' in nim. He watched the last hopper buckle on pose to give up tlie fight, and an arrangement was made whereby C. H. Bennett remained at Pipestone the fir.st half of the winti'r and I). K. Sweet the second half. Accordingly, .Mr. Bennett remained at Pipestone until just before Christmas, attending to the postoifice, when he departed for his old home.'" Mr. Sweet, after an extended business trip in Iowa, returned to Pipestone in January, 1877, liis wife and child having spent .several weeks as the only residents of Pi|ieston(^ county. The Sweet family were the onl\ people who sjient the entire winter iii the county. In the legislature of 187G-77 a bill for the organization of Pipestone county was again introduced, only to meet defeat. In the arguments pi'csented against, the measure it was alleged that there was a single white inhabitant in the county, and that a woman. In the house the bill received one affirmative vote. That legislature not only failed to authorize the organization of the county, it seriously considered the matter of wiping Pijiestone county off the map. The jilan of the promoters of this scheme was to divide the county in c(pial parts, by an east aiwl west line, giving the north half to i^incohi county and the south half to Rock c(nmty.-" It was argued that the population of some of the frontier counties his knapsack, pull down his vest and 'climb,' and then sat down and wrote the following: " 'Editor Herald: - Thinking you may have heard that there was a total failure of crops in Pipestone county on accovmt of the festive hopper, I wish to contradict it. The wheat crop was hurt but little, and IMr. Taylor has as good a lot of potatoes as one genei-ally sees. The greatest damage was done to the oats. Rut one or two fields of corn were damiiged. and but one of barley. - D. E. Sweet.' " - Rock County Herald. August 12, 1876.

""C. H, Bennett, tiring of the beauty of Pipestone county and becoming surfeited with the charms of the 'Three Maidens,' came down on Tuesday [December 19] and proceeded to LeMars via the new railroad." - Rock County Herald. December 22. 1876.

-""If this measure becomes a law. Pipestone City, together with the historic quarry, will fall to Rock county, and the position of our Pipestone friends will become somewhat analogous to that of our Saviour, whose persecutors parted His garments and divided the spoils." - Rock County Herald, February 2, 1877.

was so small tliat taxation for tlie support of the county organizations entailed liarclsliips upon the people; tlierefore, the counties should have more territory, and the unfortunate Pipestone county offered a field for exploitation. A petition for the division was largely signed in Lincoln county, and a bill was introduced in the legislature. By the prompt resif^tance of a few of those inlerested in Pipestone county, the hill came to an inglorious end.-'

'J'he spring of 1877 opened auspiciously, and there were indications that at last the efforts to permanently settle Pipestone county would meet with success. .1. (i. Bennett returned with his family anil put in a crop;-- A. O. Gray and wife came and heeanie jiernianent residents; Owen Whitelicail and wife arrixcil and settled on a claim: l>i-. Taylor, t'ol. Bull, C. H. Bennett ami .loh \\'liitidiead rctui'ned, set out groves on their claims, and put in crops; John Lowry returned; Duncan Stuart, with his son and daughter, Nancy, was a lU'W arrixal, brought considei-able stock, ci'ccli'il a ho\ise and founded a ue»' home;-' William It. Wheeler and Frank G. George located in the new county; among the other ari'ivals weie J. H. Nichols, William .lones, Adelbert Sisson and .\sa \'an .\llstine. At the close of the season over 100 claims had been

G. Bennett has removed to Pipestone City, where he has landed Interests. Mr, Bennett will sow Dr. Taylor's plantation with small grain, hoping to receive an abundant harvest." - Rock County Herald, .Vpril 13, 1877.

the recent arrivals of those seeking locations in this part of the west is Duncan Stuart, of Fillmore county, this state, who has secured a large tract of land near Pipestone City and will engage extensively in stock raising. Mr. Stuart brought with him forty-seven head of cows and \'oung rattle and fifteen horses, which form tlie inicleus of wliat will soon become a valuable herd of stock. Mr. Stuart purchased the necessary materials for house and filed upon, several claim shanties had been erected, and a large amount of breaking had been done. Grasshoppers did not put in an appearance, and about 300 bushels of grain were threshed in the fall. Truly, Pipestone county was on the advance. -Permanent settlement had at last eventuated."

To select local peace officers, the first election in the county was held .Tune 12, 1877, when a dozen voters east their ballots for township officers - in a townshi]) that had no legal existence.-'"' The first Fourtli of July celebration was also held in 1877. Settlers to the numlier of fifteen or twentv gathered at the quarry in an old-fasliioned picnic.

The birth of the first white child in the county occurred November Hi, 1877, when a son was born to Mr. and Mrs. A. 0. Gray at their farm three miles east of Pipestone.-" The second child born in the county was Lilly Sweet, born to Mr. and Mrs. D. E. Sweet at Pipestone November 24, 1877.

Many of the arrivals of 1877 passed the winter in their old homes, but five or six families remained in the new-roiiml land and establislicd the permanency of the settlement.

The boom iiegan in I87S. It became kii(i\\n that white people had actually I'l'- sidi'd within a stoma's throw of tlu' Inollirr builcUngs at this poinl. and .several loads went forward yesterday." - Rock Ciunity Herald. June 1.^, 1S77.

-'"The earlier settlers found here a rough and wild wilderness, and their settlement was attended with hardships, trials and tribulations sufficient to deter the most resolute. The sod shanty was their habitation, the red men their neighbors, and their sinewy arms and level heads their capital. What a transformation thev have witnessed! How like a miracle it must seem to them! Hitlier they came in hope. Behold the fruition! They were in search of a beautiful place wherein to dwell. They found it - rough and unpolished though it was" Now the.v look around and bchol'l it in all its glory." - Pipestone County Star. ISJI4,

^""Pipestone enterprise knows no bounds. This time it is an eleven pound gi-anger at the residence of A. O. Gray, of that city." - Rock Countv Hcralii. N-Qvember 24. 1877.

(lian rGservation and lived to tell the tale; became better known; government lands were all taken in neighboring counties : immigrants turned their atten- (itin to I'ipotonc connty. The newcomeri; licLiiiii aiii\iiig ill Fcbniiirv, and during ;\l;ircli. Api-il and May there was an uiiprccedeiited rush, hoinestenders seeking locations in every township. It was Jmjiossiblc to su|i]ilv accommoilations t(U' halt of those who came. During the spiing months thiity or foity new houses were erected in the cruinty. and l*ipcst(m(> City becanu' a tdwn in fact, as well as in name. Tn an address at the Fourth of -luly celebration, in 1S78, held at Pipestone falls and the quarries - the scene of the biifli of the peace pipe - C. H. Bennett told of the activities in the s]iring of that year as follows :

So tar this year 550 filings liave been made upon government lands in Pipestone county, and 247 contracts have been entered into for the purchase of railroad lands, aggregating over 5000 acres of land filed upon. Mr. Sweet and myself estimate that there have been broken on wild land (government) 5U00 acres, on railroad lands, 2500 acres, total breaking in the county this year, 7500 acres. Approximate acres in crop, 500. Approximate number of trees set out this spring, 40,000. The improvements which have taken place this spring far outweigh that which has been done in the county previously.

Most of the new settlers came by way of Luverne, among them F. L. I'ease and family, Dr. E. M. Carr, who came in :\rarch: J. H. Austin. Charles H. Smith, W. B. Brown, Dr. (1. W. Morrill. Riley French and II. I). Sanfoi'd. who returned to locate permanently. From that village to Pipestone a tri-wcckly stage and ex- ]>ress line was [lut in operation April S by J. G. Bennett and Levi Shell. The same firm kept rigs at Pipestone to convey landseekers to the surrounding countiy and did an extensive business. 'J'he following items from tlie Bock (.'ounty

March 1. For two or three years Pipestone county has been the Mecca of those in search of timber claims. It is now stated that the chances are nearly or quite all taken, and thousands of acres are being taken under the homestead law.

March 8. The house of D. K. Sweet, the bold pioneer of Pipestone county, is fairly overrun with land seekers these days, and Sweet prays for an enterprising Boniface to erect a hotel of capacity sufficient to accommodate at least a score of people, and thus relieve him of a burden that is becoming decidedly oppressive. Three in a bed, with the softest spots in the second floor preempted, is the status frequently nowadays.

May 3. Twenty-six breaking teams, with plows and camping outfits, passed through town Saturday enroute to Pipestone county, Minnesota, and Moody county, Dakota.

May 17. Parties from Pipestone City who came down yesterday report meeting no less than twenty-two covered wagons enroute to that place. . . . Two droves of cattle, ninety head in all, passed through town Monday enroute to Pipestone county, of which number sixty-nine belonged to Mr. Stuart, who has a goodly herd there, driven out last year. His herd now numbers about 150.

In the early settlement of every western county there has always been a "big year'' - one in which the dreams of the pioneers have come ti'ue. Tn Pipestone connty it was the year 1878. Before that time little headway had been made. The few who had put their faith in the new country had endured many hardships, had seen their crops destroyed, and had been considered visionary for attempting to settle the "Indian country." But tliey had clung on with the idea that better times were coming; that Pipestone county would yet be reclaimed from its wild state. Their beliefs had now been justified.

The crop of 1878 was slightly injured bv hot winds, but in general a good yield was reported. The promise of the Iniild- ing of the Southern IMinnesota railroad lhr(Uigli the c(uintv the following year added to the activities of the community, and new settlers arrived in the fall months. Without authority, the residents held an election in November and chose a set of count}' officers, and then set to worlc to secure the necessary action to brins nl>oiit