The Bismarck Tribune Newspaper, September 14, 1922, Page 9

PAGENT EDITION SECTION FRONTIER TOWN MADE CAPITAL OF STATE, GROWS STEADILY, AND FACES FUTURE WITH CONFIDENCE “Pioneers of 1872 Who Visioned Bismarck as Center of Great Territory Find Relief Well Founded as Town Becomes " Modern City, Center gf State's Government and _ Politics, Retail gnd‘ Distribution Center, And Beautiful ‘City in Which 7 > To Live , Bes A i Fifty years of memorable achievement have passed for Bismarck. It is her Golden Jubilee! y ne. % In the ‘short span of half a century a prairie fastness. has been mould- ed‘into /the bread basket of the nation”; the shacks and muddy pathways traversed by pioneers have passed and there has sprung the modern hundi- work of architects'and builders. . \ + It was fifty years ago that the original townsite of Bismarck was’ chos- eh—to be exact,)May"14, 1872. S A past rich’ in history, in stories ‘of hardship, excitement, adventure, and courage lies, behind the city. ‘A future made easiér by the pioneers who braved the'dangere‘and endured. the hardships’ lies ahead.. } A panorama of Bismarck’s past reveals her history as‘a stage upon which many of the famous characters of western life have played their part.. It was over the rolling prairies near now happy Bismarck firesides that the Verendryes, the French Voyageurs, pushed their way in an effort to. dis- cover the “Great Salt Waters” of which the Indians had spoken in awe.. It was on the waters. of the Missouri near Bismarck that the intrepid Lewis and+Clark came in their history-making exploration to the Pacific. As the restless white man came on in the age-long migration westward Bismarck became the outpost-of the white man’s country. It was from old Fort Abra- ham Lincoln that General Custer and his men rode to the terrible massacre and'it was from Bismarck that the word went out which filled the country with horror and sadness; Bismarck became the goal of financiers who vi- sioned the country as it is today when they pushed steel rails across, a barren land to the waters of the Missouri. % Story of \Early Life Very Real to Pionecrs Still Here Today The story of Bismarck and western North Dakota reads like fiction, but to the pioneers who were here when Bismarck was born and are with us to- day it’is the story of unceasing struggle for advancement, halted now and then, and a struggle won only by toil and faith and vision. Many of these pioneers are here and others will return as Bismarck and Mandan celebrate the latest achievement of her citizens—the mammoth new vehicular bridge across the Missouri. They will be accorded. the honor that is due them, and their counsel and their experience will be a guide to the citizens of todav and tomorrow upon whose shoulders falls the burden of development of the community.® The location’ of Bismarck was not accidental. With a limitless; expanse of territory to choose fram the bench near the banks of the Missouri was finally chosen as the permanent site for the city. With the Missouri river as one artery southward into the heart of the country, and a railroad then piercing eastward, the city from its foundation, was destined to be the hub of a great region of the Northwest. Development of the territory has. prov- ed the wisdom of the choice of the railroad builders, of the pioneers, and increased transportation facilities has, placed the city in a.position to’ ad- vance in the next fifty years of her life in far greater measure than in the ast. ¢ Z oe eae u Seven railroaéslines*wow form: a network’ in every! direction from the “Hub of the Slope.” Beyond the city life the greatest coal deposits in the United States, just in the infancy of development. Enveloping the city, and its greatest asset, is a wide expanse of fertile land, increasing in its pro- duction of wealth and happiness as population increases and .new, methods increase production. wn City is Ideally Situated To Be a Jobbing Center Situated a little less than 500 miles from Minneapolis and St. Paul. Bismarck is the ‘natural center for the development ofa great distribution. system, and already ranks among the first cities in the state in this res ect. 7 The new bridge removes the last barrier toa new method of transpor- tation; the increasing number of good roads brings Bismarek's neighbors closer and closet to her. fe : As the capital of the state Bismarck stands before the world as the city HE BIS BISMARCK, HUB OF MI ~ PROGRESS IN FIFTY ¥ K TRI f BISMARCK, NORTH DAKOTA, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 1922, BUNE ‘ PAGENTEDITION SECTION II EARS OF COLORFUL H SSOURI SLOPE, MAKES GREAT | ISTORY' o ti WILL THE AIRPLANE BE NEXT? The first ‘settlers to Bismarck came » up the Missouri river in a steamboat, in the days when the steamboat was the greatest agency of travel on the river. Even’ after the railroad came to Bis- marck steamboat arrivals were frequent and the levee was a noted place. The Northern Pacific’s steel railroads, apd the bridge built across the Missouri er 40 years ago making possible fast transcontinental transportation was the next step in the development of trans- ‘ portation., In the last few years the automobile has taken its place in trans-continental travel, and the new vehicular bridge is : a-link in the National Parks Highway (Red; Trail),.a trans-centinental high- way.: ‘The bridge is expected to be an: ’ \ jmrétus to’ travel.on: this-highways.: > -~ 3/7 ‘Will the airplane be the next step in transportation? ° \ ; o— - : ' called Buffalo county; and in the fall of 1872, an election was held in Ed- winten and Hon. £. A. Williams ‘was elected to the Territorial legislature as.a member from Buffalo county. To get to the capitol of the territory which was then at Yankton, he had to drive by team all the way from Edwinton and following down the east side of the Missouri river. It 1877, no trains ran into Bismarck. Operations on the road closed in Novem- ber.and remained closed until spring. Merchants had to stock up heavy in the fall before the road closed for the winter, so as to have goods enough | to last until the roads opened up in the spring. During these long winters typical of a great commonwealth, and as the duty of her cjtizens to the | there was only one mail a week, the government cartied the mail from Far- commonwealth is ever-present, so the increasing development bf the. state adds to the importance of the Seat of government. Already the hub of distribution for a large territory, having a retail trade territory greater than thousands of other cities, a hospital center for nearly half the state, ggat of the state’s government and center of her poli- tical life, with fatatal adyangaees and untold possibilities, the city fgces the future ¢onfidently and’ with expectation of steady growth and advance- ment. i. Sketehes of Early History Are Given by Pioneer: Ever mindful of the fature, the citizens of Bismarck are’ at this time turning eyes backward’ to review:the story of the city’s life.. And‘ so the story’ of the city’ is-told byioné\who has helped to build it.“ William. A. Falconer’s sketch of, Bismarck’s early history follows: Fifty years ago, or tebe exact, on May 14, 1872, what is known as the original town site of the:city of Bismarck, was surveyed in thg interest of the Lake Superior and Pugent Sound Land Company. This company was an auxiliary of the Northern Pacific Railroad Company, and the officers of |- this company were stockholders and were directly interested in the affairs of the Northern, Pacific Railroad Company. Thomas H. Canfield was the president of the Lake Superior and Pugent Sound Land Company. The purpose or object. of this company was to locate and establish townsites along the line of/the Northern Pacifi¢.Railroad. It wag the original inten- tion of the Lake Superior and Pugent Sound Land Company to locate 9 townsite near the. Missouri river, on the land now owned by John J. Jack- man, known as the Jackman farm. Mr. Jackman, had been working with the engineers of the Northern Pacific Railroad company who were running the line from the Red river to the Missouri river, across Dakota Territory. Mr. Jackman had information, and knew of the location selected by the Townsite Company where the rail- road was to cross the Missouri river. Early in May 1872, Jackman hired a team at the crossing ‘of the. Red river, now Fargo, and he, together with John H. Richards, E, N. Carey, William Woods, and George G. Sanborn, made a race for the Missouri river. Jackman won, and a few days later.-when Geotge W. Sweet, who was the attorney for the Lake Superior and Puget Sound Land Company, arrived.on the scene, he found Jackman holding down the land that his company had selected for a townsite. Sweet afterwards selected the land. known'as the original plat of the city of: Bismarck, had it surveyed and platted into lots, and Sweet, as proprietor of the land, in Feb.‘ 1874, filed a plat, designated as the townsite of Edwinton. The name “Edwinton” was given in honor of Edwin F, Johnson who was chief engineer of the Northern Pacific Railroad Company. -Dr. W. A. Burleigh, whom Burleigh county was named for, had the contract, to build fifty miles of the railroad grade from the Missouri river east. The grade extended across the bottom south of town, touching the Missouri river at a point opposite 6ld Fort Lincoln i In 1872 there was a small settlement on the south side ,of this grade | near where new Fort Lincoln is situated called Burleightown. There wab | another small settlement at the end of the grade on the east‘bank of the |-Missouri, called Carelton city. Later it was called Pleasant Point, on ac- | count of the pleasant surroundings but the soldiers gave it a more appro> priate name, that of “whiskey point.” 4 In April 1872 General Terry who commanded the department of Dakota with headquarters at St. Paul, Minn., appointed a board of officers consist- ing of Col. D. S. Stanley, Capt. J. W. Scully, Capt. D. W. Heap, whose duty it was to select and recommend for adoption a site for the location of a new post to be constructed on the west bank of the Missouri, at or in the immediate vicinity of the point where the Northern Pacific railroad would cross the river, and later a’ post was constructed on top of the hill on the west side of the river, and directly across from:where the Northern Pacific grade touched the east bank of the river. This post was called Fort Mc- Kean, but later the name was changed to “Fort A. Lincoln. Some of the trees that were planted on the hill are still there, and can be: plainly seen from Bismarck. Camp: Hancock Established On Site of Weather Bure: In August 1872, Camp, Hancock was established and buildings were erected on the ground now used and owned by the government'as a weather bureau. Capt. Clark and Lieuts. Chance and Humbert, were the officers in charge. Camp Hancock was garrisoned for a number of years, and I re- member distinctly the calls of the sentinel as they rang out on the cold night air: “10 o’clock and all’s well.” Both Fort McKean and Camp Hancock were constructed and garrisoned so as to protect the men who were engaged in building the railroad across Dakota Territory. Work on grading the road east of Bismarck was sus- pended in October 1872, on account of a heavy snow storm that fell during that month, The whole north western portion of Dakota Territory was | go to Fort A. Lincoln. -Some enterprising persons would come from Min- nesota with loads of dressed poultry and hogs for Thanksgiving and Christ- mas holidays. There was orily one stopping place between Jamestown and Bismarck, that was at Crystal Springs, and was kept by a man by the name of Samuel McWilliams, i‘ ry Bly and Predcott of Brainerd, Minn. had a sawmill near the mouth of Apple Creek. They furnished cottonwood lumber for the buildings that were erected in Edwinton. Dr. Burlgigh built the first building in Edwin- ton. It was on the corner of Main\and Third Streets where the Brown and {Jones Grocery store is now located). John Yegen was engaged in business ‘in 1873, and he is the only one of the many who were engaged in business in those days who is still in business. However, Rey P. Logan has contin- ued the business conducted by his father, Austin Logan, in a creditable man- ner, on the same ground, but in a more commodious establishment. There is a conflict of opinion among the early pioneers as to who was the first white woman to arrive in Bismarck or Edwinton. : Many Differ As to the First White Woman in Bismarck There is difference of opinion as to who was the first white woman to arrive in Bismarck. Louis Larson says when he was coming up the river on the steamer Sioux City, on his way/to Fort Buford, a woman by the name of Alice La Shay got off the boat at Bismarck. She was afterwards known as Alice Pennell. This was the latter part of May, 1872. Mrs. John P. Dunn believes that a Mrs. Anderson was the first woman here, while William Cook thinks Mrs. Bob Soctt, wife of a livery stable keeper, was the first. M. H. Jewell’s directory of 1879 gives Mrs. John W. Plummer as the first white woman: 2 : Re “Joseph Dietrich came on the steamboat Ida, Rees in 1869, landed at County.’ When grading of the road started across the bottom, Mr. Dictrich ‘|left. Painted Woods where he had a wood yard, and came down ahd settled at Carelton city, and later at Burleightown. He says that either Alice La Shay, or Alice Pennell was the first white woman in Bismarck. Mr. Dietrich has faced many a blizzard in his time, but today physica!- ly, Joe is one of the youngest men in Bismarck. Of the pioneer women who came to Bismarck in 1873, with their husbands ‘s, Dunn and Mrs. Ward are the only two that are living in Bismarck today. The Northern. Pagific grade into Bismarck was completed in the spring of 1873. The railroad abandoned the grade that ran across the bottom and never ironed it. 4 new line or grade was run from a point about where the penitentiary now stands directly into Bismarck. This left. the people who had settled at Burleightown out in the cold, and in a few days, there was i nothing left of Burleightown; they had all moved to Edwinton. The name Edwinton was changed to Bismarck in May 1873, by the officials of the Northern Pacific Railroad, in order to attract German capital towards | building the road. The rails or tracks were ‘laid into Bismarck, June 4, 1873, and Bismarck remained the terminus of, the road until 1879. Burleigh County Named After Builder of Part pf Railroad Burleigh county which was named after Dr. Burleigh was created out \of Buffalo county. Mr. Williams introduced the bill for the organization of Burleigh county, which was organized July 9, 1873 and, at Mr. Williams request, John P. Dunnj James A. Emmons and Wiliiam H. H. Mercer were appointed commissioners of Burleigh county by Governor Burbank, or their names were incorporated into the bill that Mr. Williams introduced. ‘The railroad was not graded west of the river in 1873 on account of the financial pani¢ of thatiyear, and the failure of Jay Cooke and Co. who were interested in financing the road. The stock of the road that year sold as low as eight cents on the dollar. General Rosser who was the chicf engi- neer of the Northern Pacific railroad company, made a survey in 1873, from the mouth of the Heart river to the Yellowstone, but no grading was done on this line until six years’later. In the months of July and August 1874 General Custer was ordered to make. an investigation of the Black Hills country, Sending troops into the Black Hills was in direct’ violation of a treaty made by the government with the Indians in 1868. Custer returned to Fort Lincoln about September 1st, and he made a most glowing report of the Black Hills country. Custer said in his report: “In no public or private park have I’ever seen such a profuse*display of flowers. Every step of our march was amidst flowers of the mbst ex- quisite colors and perfume. Through this beautiful Valley meanders a stream of crysta] water, so cold as to render ice undesirable even at noon day.” : att Custer named this beautiful place Floral Valley. Custer also reported that gold was found along the streams in the hills. When Custer’s report was published a rush was made for the Black Hill; and it was then that trouble began, and you can not blame the Indians for fighting ta retain their land. One writer said: “As long as the Black Hills were regarded as Painted Woods, and was one of the first white men to settle in Burleigh | worthless, the Indians were allowed to retain mem. As soon as it was dis | covered that gold was there, all restraints of treaties, were thrown aside. It is a sad and humiliating confession to be made, but the irresistible logic of truth compels it, that all the subsequent trouble of the Sioux war really sprang from the deliberate violation by the United States government of its’own freely plighted faith when Custer was ordered to lead his column from Fort Lincoln to the Black Hills.” To the credit of our government however, I will say, that it sent troops into the Black Hills, arrested the intruders and drove them out of the Hills, and tried to keep them out. But you might as well try to turn back the waters of the mighty Missouri, as to try and keep the miners out of the Black Hills. Gold was there and they knew it. The matter ended by Congress passing a bil] authorizing the Pre- sident to name a commission to treat with the Indians for the purchase ot the Black Hills country. It was the Custer expedition of 1874 that led to the permanent development and settlement of the Black Hills country and started the tide of immigration that poured in over the plains of northern Dakota Territory, and contributed greatly to the upbuilding of Bismarck as an out fitting point for the immense traffic with that region from 1875 to 1879. . Presses and Type Came in With the Railroads Often the press and type went forward with the first shipment of goods to the chosen site in the new land of promise. And in many cases the press was on the ground in advance of the school and church, and took a promi- nent part in the development of the great West,'and often before conditions gave reasonable assurance of even meagre support. The press and ma- terial for the Bismarck Weekly Tribune came through on the first train to reach Bismarck, and the first issue of the paper was on July 6, 1873, the second on July 11. The Tribune was the first newspaper published in what is now North Dakota. ; In the summer of 1873 there were about 150 buildings in the city of Bismarck, many of these buildings were made of cottonwood lumber or cottonwood logs, but as John A. McLean used to say, “Half of the houses were tents you know.’ In the fall of 1874 Mr. Williams was again elected to the legislature. and during that session he introduced a bil] incorpor- ating the city of Bismarck, the city limits of which extended to the center of the main channel of the Missouri river. In the same hill that incorpor- ated the city, the bill named the first city officers. Edmond Hackett was named in the bill as the Mayor of the city of Bismarck. In April 1875, at the first city election, John A. McLean was elected Mayor,,and later McLean as mayor, made a filing or entry at the United States Land office, of the Jand claimed by the Lake Superior and Puget Sound Land Company, for and on behalf of the occupants of the city. There was much litigation, which retarded the growth of the city. Finally a compromise was entered into between Thomas H. Canfield as president of the Lake Superior and | Puget Sound Land Company and John A. McLean as mayor of the city of | Bismarck. Later the patent was issued to John A. McLean as mayor of the | city of Bismarck in trust for the several use and benefits of the occupants of the city. In March 1875 the sheriff and deputy sherjff of Burleigh coun- | Phoebe Marsh, Mrs. Lucy Bailey, Mrs. FIRST PICTURES OF BISMARCK AND NEW BRIDGE FROM AIRPLANE taken from Eng‘ehart’s when, light orable. VIEWING CITY FROM SKY The Tribune presents the first pic- tures of Bismarck and the new bridge were snapped by Adolph Englehart on Sunday, September 10, from the air- plane y-iloted by “Fish” Hassell. It was about the-scenery, strapped one leg to the seat, and then leaned far over the side of the airplane with camera pointed toward :the ground waiting for the pilot to steady the plane and. yell “shoot.”, The expedition was a success in every way except that views obtained of Man- dan-did not devélop satisfactorily. _A fine impression is had of the Capital City in this view taken last Sunday an airplane. ' The pictures first’ ride,’ but he forgot conditions were most fav- ;—-Photos copyright by Finneys. PIONEER WOMEN MET HARDSHIPS Editor’s note—The bravery ‘of the Indian fighters and the scouts who invaded the old west has been praised in song and story. The story of the heroism of the pioneer women of the west has often ben lost in the stories of the Indian battlefield. Following is qn interview with Mrs. John P. Dunn of Bismarck, one of the two women now living who were in Bismarck 5U years ago, in which she describes the condi- tions that the pioneer women faced. ~ When the women of 1872 arrived in Bismarck, or Edwinton, as it was then called, they found only a cluster of shacks, Indians and buffaloes ran shacks. Safety’ was to’ be found out in the vicinity of the military forts, Fort McKean, which afterwards became Fort A. Lincoln, and Camp Hancock, which occupied the spot on which the weather bureau now stands, The few white people who were then here were connectea with the military posts, the compa- nies of surveyors, or steamboat lines. There were probably a few hardy ad- venturers to be found, but for the most part this was a wild, uninhabit- ed prairie, Among the women who braved the dangers and hardshpis of this wild new country were Mrs. Linda W. Slaughter, wife of B. F. Slaughter, army surgeon at Fort Hancock; Mrs. T. P. Davis and Mrs, J. A. Emmons, Although none of them are now liv- ty, Mr. McCarty and Mr. Miller were drowned in the Missouri river at a | point about one mile above the railroad bridge. They had gone up the river | to serve subpoenas on some wood choppers, and in coming back in the | night time they drove into an air hole, the team and cutter going down, un- der the ice. The cap of one of the men was the only thing that was found. | It was lying on top of the ice. Efforts were made to recover the bodies, | y were never found. Ladi ‘People Brought in Gold Dust From Black Hills ? the summer of 1875 peonle were going to and returning from Id bring in buckskin bags filled with gold dust Id exchange for supplies. ane. mereyan allow $20 per ounce for the gold dust. Many the ounce I have weigh- ari Seis for goods, in the old McLean and MacNider store. There were number of fights with the Indians and several persons were killed en- route to the Black Hills. In the fall of 1875, the people were startled by hearing that John Wright had been killed by the Indians on Burnt Creek. Wright was employed by N. P. Clark as a herder, and the day he was kill- | ed he was herding cattle along Burnt Creek near the Phil Harvey farm. Mr. McLean who was the Mayor of the city, wired to Fort Lincoln for as- sistance and Captain Yates came over with a Troop of the 7th Cavalry, but he could not catch the Indians who had killed Wright. Troops Departed on Ill-fated Expedition With Light Heart On May 17, 1876, the ill-fated Custer expedition left Fort A, Lincoln for its campaign against the hostile Sioux. This was the centennial year, and many of the officers said, “We are going out to bring in the centen- nial.” Poor fellows, many of them During the Black Hills miners wou and gold nuggets, which they wou! never returned. When the steamer For West arrived at the river landing at 11 o'clock on the-night of July 5, 1876, she brought down the wounded, and ‘the first news of the battle. Col. Lounsberry who was then the editor of the Weekly Tribune got out an ex: | tea on the morning of July Gth which sold on the street, of Bismarck at 25 cents a copy. Lounsberry sent 14 columns of the news to the New York Herald, which made the biggest newspaper scoop of those times. Jack Lyons of this city has one of the Tribune extzas which gives a full account of the Custer tragedy. Jack's extra is probaly the only one in existence. | Many noted scuts visited Bismarck in the rarly days among them were (Continued on Page 2 | various eastern papers and maga- | zines. She was the first superintend- | | ened attacks from hostile Indians. | Once the town and camp narrowly ing, all had a share in the building of the community. Mrs. Linda W. élaughter was the literary genius of the new settle-| ment. She ‘was correspondent for ent of the Burleigh coanty sehvols; | she was the mother of suffrage in| this prairie country; she was the or- ganizer of the first Sunday school ever held in Bismarck. | In writing for “The Record” of January, 1897, Mrs, Slaughter speaks | of “Our First Year at Bismarck,” August, 1872 to August, 1873, in the following words : “Many were the alarms felt during the summer from actual and threat- escaped destruction from prairie fire, and the wolves howled nightly around the outskirts of the baby city. Several soldiers ured of fever in the post hospital, and the dead bodies of the herders who had been killed by Indians were several times brought in from the Burnt Creck and Apple Creek ranges. Still the summer passed pleasantly enough, with friend- | ly visits from Generals Sheridan and Hancock, Governor McGoffin of Ken- tucky, and others, “The mosquitoes were almost un-| endurable, and Ganeral Sheridan, ob- IN BISMARCK IN THE EARLY *70' serving that we had no mosqui. bars in our tents, kindly sent me / handsome one on his return east.’ “The terrible issation of the en- quring winter cannot be desdribed. There were then no settlements be- tween the Missouri and Red rivers, and the military mails were brought up from Yankton by relays of Indian scouts. The deep snows rendered the mail infpracticable, and with the de- parture of the last steamboat from the river no mail was received for several months.” In speaking of her organization o. the: first Sunday school class ever held Bismarck, Mrs. -Slaughter saysivorn. “My Mttle Sunday school was for- mally organized :as the ‘Bismarck Union Sunday sch yol,: with myself as superintendent, C.a. Lounsberry, sec- retary; James A. Examons, treasurer; W. H. White, librusian, and John W. * Fisher, teacher of Bible class; C, F. Hobart, teacher of intermediate class, and Miss Aidee Warfield of the pri- mary. Father Keller, Father Genin, Rev. H. N. Gates, Rev. D. C. Lyan and Rev. I, 0. Sloan were also here and. did efficient work for their re- spective churches In time our Union Sunday school hecame the Presby- terian Sunday, school of Bismarck. “In the sprifg of 1873, with my sis- ter, Miss Aidee Warfield, I had organ- ized my Sunday school pupils int a select school called the “Bismarc: Academy,” which we taught gratui tously’ in a room in our house on t>. corner of Main 8.4 Second streets, until, August when a school district | organization was effected, and it be- came the free public school of the district and was held in the new Congregation. church then sit- uated on the present court house block, with Miss Warfield as teacher. This formed the beginning of the present splendid school system of Burleigh county.” A Log House Hotel. Mrs. Bailey, 01 ‘Aunt Lucy,” as she was affectionately called by everybody, kept a log house hotel where the McKenzie hotel now standa. Most of these early pioneer women are rememberd onty as loyal friends in a wild commvaity where friend- ship had a value above gold. In the group of women who came to Bismarck in 1473 only two—Mrs. John P. Dunn and Mra. Florence Ward are now ving. Mrs. Dunn, who came as the 17-year-old bride of Dr. John P. Dunn, started on hes journey from Minneapolis to Bis- marck by Pulman, but concluded it in a lumber wagon. Mrs. Ward and her family came from Albert Lea, Minn., in a prairie schooner, camped for a week on a spot near the pres: ent Northern Pacific station, and liv- ed on a claim which included the ground on which Wildwood pavilion at Apple Creek is now located. (Continued on Page 2)