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Prepared for the Brittle Books Project, Preservation Department, Main Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign by Northern Micrographics Brookhaven Bindery La Crosse, Wisconsin 2015DDBUSTER Tales' of Southeastern ~ SOU TH?DAKOTA Am er ican Guide Seriesi.iBRAHv OF THE UNIVERSITY OF if I i.NOh american guide series SODBUSTERS Tales of Southeastern South Dakota Written and Illustrated by Workers of the Federal Writers* Project Works Progress Administration Mitchell, South Dakota Sponsored by SOUTH DAKOTA WRITERS' LEAGUE 1938COPYRIGHT, 1938, BY COMMITTEE OF PUBLICATIONS THE SOUTH DAKOTA WRITERS' LEAGUE LISLE REESE, ARCHER B. GILFILLAN, SADA JONES DeETTE BAILLIE, MERRILL HERB, GEORGE W. HALL Composed and printed by The South Dakota Writers' League at the Alexandria Herald, Alexandria, So. Dah. FIFTEEN CENTS A COPYIt. ■ ?> \ 3 CONTENTS Preface Foreword A Chart of Southeastern South Dakota The Sodbusters, a poem An Early-Day Editorial Growing Pains Political Shenanigans The Glassy Stare, a sketch A Duck Hunt That Made History Firewater Under the Big Muddy s Forty-Niners of "73 When Sodbusters Spurned Relief Pioneer Wives The Sodbusters' Gold Rush Flaming Youth Free Coinage of Aluminum Announcement 4 5 6 7 9 10 12 14 16 17 18 21 22 24 25 26 28 9991 10PREFACE SODBUSTERS is one of the publications written by members of the Federal Writers' Project of the Works Progress Administration. Designed primarily to give useful employment to needy unemployed writers and research workers, this project has utilized their experience and abilities in the preparation for the American people of a portrait of America — its history, folklore, scenery, cultural backgrounds, social and economic trends, and racial factors. Many books and brochures are being written for the American Guide Series. As they appear in increas- ing numbers, we hope the public will come to appreciate more fully not only the unusual scope of this undertaking, but also the devotion shown by the workers — from the humblest field worker to the most accomplished editor engaged in the final critical revision of the manuscript. The Federal Writers' Project, directed by Henry G. Alsberg, is in the Div- ision of Women's and Professional Projects under Ellen S. Woodward, Assistant Administrator. HARRY L. HOPKINS ADMINISTRATOR 4FOREWORD Southeastern South Dakota is especially proud of its fine farms, its pleasant towns, and its largest city-—Sioux Palls; but it is also extremely conscious of the passing of those pioneers who opened this region for development. The members of that home- steading cavalcade in the 1860's and '70's are becoming fewer, and to these SODBUSTERS, brawny home- steaders who first broke the prairie sod and, in a larger sense, all those hardy men and women who pioneered on a new frontier, this booklet is dedicated. Many are the stories of privations and hardships, of bumper crops and husking bees, of city slickers and country bumpkins. Only a few of the tales that might be told of southeastern South Dakota are included in this brochure, and more comprehensive treatments of this and other sections of the State appear in A SOUTH DAKOTA GUIDE and other publications prepared by the Federal Writers' Project. THE EDITORS 5ALEXANDRIA Minnehaha ICounty Hanoon County Count# SIOUX FALLS = PUMPKIN CANTON Hutchison County MiLLTowra (old trading post) ^ | Turner- County : PARKER Lincoln County CENTERV1LLE C/ay Coantk. Capitol) /anKton County VANKTON _ (Territorial Wwon County Opt fit* Mound ' ER MILLION (State University) MAP I OF Homestead j /iled EIK POINT SO UTjHEAJTERN tfOUTH DAKOTATHE SODBUSTERS 4'Break me wide," called the luscious sod, "And I'll show you how to live. Cleave me deep through the grass and clod, Nor heed the pain you give. "Turn me and tramp me in your raid, And stab to the heart my mead; And I'll rise, be fair, and reward your blade With the good loam's ripened seed." The tawny youth, like a man obsessed, Plowed grim in the fresh earth smell. At the sun and the rain and the plain's behest He smiled, for all was well. Then torrents came and blizzards broke, The locust and fire sere— But the sodbuster's will and might awoke In the hut of the pioneer. C. E. B. 7AN EARLY-DAY EDITORIAL From a Newsftafter File of Pioneer Days uWe greatly dislike to find fault with any of the customs of our beautiful city, but we must nevertheless insist that people keep their swine out from under the editorial office of the Register and Palladium. While engaged at our desk writing our leader on 'The Stability of our Territorial Institutions' for our paper this week, one of Sena- tor McBride's [razor-backed] hogs humped up its .spine and began scratching its back on :he beams under the floor, jarring the whole building and making it necessary for us to stop our work on the editorial, crawl under our office, and welt the critter along the side with a column rule. This interrupted our train of thought, and the editorial is not what we should wish." 9 iGROWING PAINS The history of the white man in eastern South Dakota began in 1838 when Jean Nicollet, an explorer and geographer, visited this section. In a sketch of his travels through the Northwest he gave a des- cription of the falls of the Big Sioux River. A copy of this sketch found its way in- to the hands of Dr. George M. Staples of Dubuque, Iowa, who was so impressed by the natural advantages of the location that in 1856 he organized the West- ern Town Company of Dubuque. His next move was to have Ezra Millard of Sioux City authorized by the new company's board of directors to explore the region and to take up, in the name of the company and under the laws of the United States, 320 acres of land adjoining the falls. Early in November 1856 Mill- ard, accompanied by D, M. Mills, ascended the Sioux River along the east bank from Sioux City, Iowa, and, with the aid of an official surveyor, took undisturb- ed possesion of a location north of the falls, naming their settle- ment Sioux Falls. Mills acquired an additional 160 acres, erected a log cabin just above the falls and then, late in 1856, returned to Sioux City for the winter. At that time the speculation in western land and town sites was at its height, and in the winter of 1856-57 the Dakota Land Company, headed by Gov- ernor Medary of Minnesota Territory, was also chartered for the purpose of locating and ac- quiring town sites in the pro- posed Dakota Territory and, especially, of establishing at the most suitable location the capital of this promising new area. The party sent out by the Dakota Land Company reached this section of the Dakotas in May 1857 where, in what is now Brookings County, they located the town of Medary, while far- ther down the river they located Plandreau. When they reached Sioux Falls, they found the Western Town Company in pos- session, but, not to be entirely outdone, they immediately laid claim to 320 acres south of the falls, erected a log cabin, and named their settlement Sioux Falls City. The combined population of Sioux Falls and Sioux Falls City at that time numbered five per- sons who, although representa- tives of rival companies, lived together in peace and harmony, and joined for defense against 10Growing Pains Indians. Late in July the Indians threatened the exter- mination of all the settlements on the Big Sioux, and the new settlers withdrew, leaving the valley deserted of white men. However, on August 27, 1857, a party of men sent by the West- ern Town Company arrived at Sioux Falls by ox team, bringing machinery for a sawmill and a large stock of provisions. Six men remained and in October seven men sent by the Dakota Land Company arrived to look after the interests of their com- pany. During the spring of 1858 a few more settlers arrived, among them the first white woman in the territory, a Mrs. Goodwin, who came early in May with her husband. In 1858 hostile Indians found the 35 settlers well fortified in their sod fort and went away without molesting them. The settlers did not know that the Indians had gone and remained within their fort until forced out by the prospects of starvation. In April 1862 a detachment of cavalry was organized and estab- lished at the fort, and in August there was an Indian uprising. After Judge J. B. Amidon and his son were killed, the settlers were escorted by the soldiers to Yank- ton, again abandoning the vil- lage. The Indians set fire to the buildings and destroyed everything they could lay their hands on. For nearly three years the Sioux Valley remained deserted, but in 1865 a military post was established and grad- ually the town of Sioux Falls was rebuilt. In considering the history of Dakota's earliest town sites, the records of the old land office indicate that the filings of two Minnesota and four Dakota town sites were made at the time that the Dakota Land Company made their locations in 1857. These four Dakota sites in their order of settlement were Medary, Flandreau, Sioux Falls City, and Emanija. Sioux Falls, which was exulored, located, and estab- lished by the Western Town Company in 1856, undoubtedly antedated both Medary and Sioux Falls City, even though there was probably no .record on the old books of Governor Medary's Minnesota land office. It seems well established, there- fore, that the Sioux Falls settlers of 1856 located the first town site in territory later to be known as South Dakota. In the spring of 1877 the Omaha railroad offered to ex- tend its line to Sioux Falls for a bonus of $20,000 from the town. The inhabitants decided to raise the money, but it was necessary to incorporate as a village to issue the necessary bonds. On March 20, 1877, the village of Sioux Falls was in- corporated and village officers were elected. At that first election 137 votes were cast for president, theSodbusters candidates being C. K. Howard and William Mason. Howard be- came the first president, and the trustees elected were J. L. Phillips, E. A. Sherman, William Van Eps, and Henry Callendar. Other officers were C. O. Na- testa, clerk; George B. Sammons, treasurer; R. P. Pettigrew, attor- ney; A. D. Cashey, marshal; H. D. Williams, street commission- er; and E. P. Dobson, engineer. POLITICAL SHENANIGANS The early settlers in eastern South Dakota came from com- munities where regular govern- ment had been established for years. It is not surprising, therefore, that they felt keenly the need of an organized and officially recognized government. In May 1858, Minnesota was admitted as a State, but that rather vaguely designated por- tion west of the Big Sioux River was not included in the new commonwealth. This immense area, lying between the Missouri and White Rivers and the Cana- dian border, and stretching westward to the crest of the Rocky Mountains, was without any form of organized govern- ment. The residents of the Sioux Valley had unlimited faith in the future of the new country, and their desire for organized govern- ment became so strong that, at a mass-meeting held on Satur- day, September 18, 1858, it was decided to hold an election on the fourth day of the following month to establish a de facto Territorial government. Since the entire territory had a total population of only thirty or forty white persons, consider- able ingenuity would be required to organize a government. The proposed elections were con- ducted in a highly novel, not to say irregular, manner. On the morning of election day, the en- tire population organized into parties of three or four, elected one another judges and clerks of election, and then started off with their teams in various directions, with more or less the air of picnic parties. Wherever a halt was called to rest the teams, which occurred frequent- ly, an election precinct was established then and there, and the votes were cast, not only of those present, but of their 12Political Shenanigans uncles, cousins, distant relatives, and friends as well, until as a result of the election, the total vote ran up into the hundreds, and was certified by the mutual- ly appointed judges. Soon after the election this self-starting legislature conven- ed, and Henry Masters was elected president of the council, and S. J. Albright, speaker. At the close of the session, Masters was chosen Governor. The ses- sion lasted only a few days, but, with due deliberation, all bills necessary for home government were introduced, discussed, and passed. A. G. Fuller was then elected to represent the Terri- tory in Washington. He passed the winter of 1858-59 at the Capital, trying to obtain recogni- tion as delegate, but to no avail. He did succeed, however, in hav- ing a post office established at Sioux Falls. This extraordinary and in- genious effort to bring order out of chaos represents, aside from similar proceedings in Tennessee in 1784, the only actual attempt in the United States to set up a government on the basis of squatter sovereignty. Dakota Territory was finally and officially organized March 2, 1861, and a regular Territorial government set up in June when William Jayne of Illinois arrived to become the first Governor. S96 mi iifj _ FIRST TERRITORIAL CAPITOL 13THE GLASSY STAKE or WHEN THE FAMILY FACED THE CAMERA Do you remember when ma primped and wore her two extra petticoats, and pa put on his .Sunday best to take the family to the photo gallery? Sister, with her hair unbraided to show a wave, leaned pensively on a skun elbow, and when the man behind the picture box shouted "Hold that pose!", baby slipped off ma's satin lap. And when he said "Smile please," no one did. 14A DUCK HUNT THAT MADE HISTORY Mahlon Gore, manager of the Vermillion "Dakota Republican", hung up his eyeshade, put on his hat,, and blew out the light. It was New Year's Eve 1862, and nearly midnight. He had worked late in the newspaper office so that he might1 have New Year's Day free for a duck hunt. The northern flight was on. There was another task to be done, however, before the hunt- ing trip, he reflected. The home- stead law was to go into effect the next day, and he wanted to file on his squatter's claim across the Big Sioux River as soon as the law went into effect. The lights were still burning in the Federal Land Office when Gore passed, so he stopped in. The two men who were there working late roomed at the same place with Gore, and at their suggestion he waited for them. "I'm going duck hunting in the morning after I get my claim filed," he told them. "The new law goes into effect immediately after midnight," one of them remarked. "Why don't you stay the remaining few minutes, sign your papers, and then you will be able to go hunting as early in the morning as you like." So at one minute after mid- night, January 1, 1863, Gore's quarter-section homestead claim was entered. It was the first claim filed in Dakota Territory. Frank Verzani, a well known settler, was the first person in the Territory to prove up on his homestead, although he was seventh to file, according to G. W. Kingsbury's "History of Da- kota Territory." When Verzani and his family crossed the Missouri River from Nebraska in 1859, they chose the abandoned site of old Fort Vermillion, established in 1836, for their home. The old log cabin and ruins of the fort had housed a group of Mormons who passed the winter of 1845-46 there, en route to Utah. The Missouri River cut into this land year after year; but it was not until about 1926 that the last of the site, covered with walnut, elm, ash, and cottonwood trees, was under- mined and carried away by the river. 16FIREWATER UNDER THE BIG MUDDY The swirling, muddy waters of the Missouri River hide innum- erable secrets, tragic and other- wise; they have caused enough damage and destruction to stagger the imagination, if the total figure could be reckoned; yet for more than 70 years they have formed an impregnable storehouse for at least one cargo that has been increasing steadily in value and potency. The heavily-laden "Leodora", bound for* Ft. Bjenton in the summer of 1866, struck a sand- bar and sank four miles north of Elk Point, South Dakota. Al- though the $65,000 cargo in- cluded some perishables, the chief item was whiskey, stored in the hold in sturdy wooden bar- rels. If, as would seem to be the case, the barrels and their contents have been safely pre- served beneath a heavy layer of silt and sand, this huge consign- ment of firewater has been aging in wood for nearly three- quarters of a century and by now should be capable of stag- gering far more than the imagination. Although the steamboat caught fire while sinking and was par- tially burned, the hold where the whiskey was stored was not damaged.} The exact spot where the wreck was buried is not known; but several attempts to salvage the cargo have been planned, only to fail from lack of funds. To salvage a boat after it has sunk in clear water is difficult, but possible; to find and raise one buried in an un- known spot on the sandy bottom of the Big Muddy is practically impossible. So this liquid treas- ure, originally headed for the dusty gullets of hard-bitten trappers, Indian fighters, and lonely sodbusters, seems unlikely ever to fulfill its destiny, un- less by some strange quirk during one" of her unpre- dictable sprees, the boisterous old Missouri suddenly regurgi- tates her hidden liquor in which case the resurrected spirits will no doubt inhabit the bodies of men. 17FORTY-NINERS OF 73 Among the many important cavalcades that trekked into Da- kota Territory in search of new farm land and new homes, there was one in 1873 which was of un- usual interest. It numbered 49 people, 11 ox- and horse-drawn covered wagons. They brought with them 85 cattle, 30 sheep, and 8 colts. The members of this outfit are often referred to as the "Forty-Niners of "73." This historic caravan reached its destination—the banks of Slip Up Creek, 10 miles north, and about 3 miles east of Sioux Falls—on June 18, 1873. A little more than a month before, it had started on its westward journey from Fillmore County, Minn. The trip had been care- fully planned for more than a year, and its 300-mile route was completed with only minor mis- haps, despite difficulties of travel due to torrential rains. In preparation for this caval- cade an advance party of five adventurers entered Dakota Ter- ritory in two covered wagons in 1872 to select a site and break the ground as homestead claims for their comrades back in Min- nesota. It was due to the courage and leadership of this small but persevering sodbuster vanguard of 1872 that the Forty-Niners of '73 made a successful settlement and gave their best efforts to the building of a new common- wealth. These pioneers and their descendants alike became note- worthy in civic leadership and educational pursuits. Regarding the entry and ex- periences of the five pioneers of 1872 into Dakota Territory, Andrew J. Berdahl, one of the group, has this to say: "About the 15th of May, 1872, five of us left our homes in Fill- more County, Minnesota, for the southern part of Dakota Terri- tory with Sioux Falls as our objective point, from where we would begin to look for Govern- ment land. The five were as follows: Lasse Bothun, Lars Brandvold, John E. Berdahl and his two sons, Andrew and Erick Berdahl. "Between us we had two horse teams and two covered wagons. We brought with us a breaking 18Forty-Niners of '73 plow, axes and spades, besides some cooking utensils and blankets for our bedding. "We found a fair wagon track all. the way west through the southern tier of counties in Min- nesota to Luverne and thence southwest to Sioux Falls, cross- ing the Sioux River first at Iversons' crossing near where later was platted Ea,st Sioux Falls, and again where now is the foot of 9th Street in Sioux Falls. "Arriving here the last week in May we found two general mer- cantile stores, those of C. K. Howard on Tenth Street and Wm. Van Eps on Eighth Street, bath on Phillips Avenue. "The soldiers' barracks extend- ing north from Eighth Street on Phillips Avenue about 100 feet, called 'The Fort' was built by soldiers in 1866. Somewhere in between the two stores, I think, was a very small frame building with a sign over the door, 'R. F. Pettigrew Law and Land Office'. "Over one of the doors in the barracks we saw a sign, 'Locat- ing Agent'. This man we engaged to show us around on vacant land, for $5.00 per day. We fur- nished the transportation and also the food. "About 10 miles out we found a section-corner stake on which the figures were sufficiently plain so we could get correct descriptions of the land each of us wanted. Having decided on our locations, we headed again for Sioux Falls, driving back after dark with the stars as our only guide." Having filed their claims at Vermillion they proceeded to their chosen quarter-sections on Slip Up Creek, where there was an abundance of clear water, and broke 25 acres of virgin sod in one parcel which extended over parts of each of their holdings. In the fall of 1872, after An- drew and Erick Berdahl and Chris O. Henjum had fulfilled the homestead requirements on their new holdings, and had made every effort to provide for the contemplated migration of the following year, they set out for their homes in Minnesota. Their trek back over the 300 miles of snow wastes was mem- orable because of the terrific blizzards they encountered. The stinging cold forced them to re- treat to wooded shelters. Each enforced retreat seemed to challenge these pioneers: "Why return to the open prairie of Dakota Territory?" O. E. Rolvaag's intense and dramatic novel, "Giants In The Earth," was based on the ex- periences of both the vanguard of 1872, and the cavalcade that followed in 1873. Rolvaag was the son-in-law of Andrew Berdahl, whom he made a character in the book, and who, in 1937, ob- served his 65th year as a member of the Sioux Falls community. It is, however, of historical importance that the names of members of the Slip Up Creek 19Sodbusters cavalcade be given here: In three covered wagons, one drawn by an ox team and two drawn by teams of horses, were John E. Berdahl and wife, their sons Andrew, Erick (and his wife), Anfin, Ole, Herman, John, and Christopher, and their daughters, Christie and Martha. Also in these wagons were Synneva Hen j urn and Christo- pher Henjum, sister and nephew respectively of Mrs. John E. Berdahl. In two covered wagons, each drawn by a team of horses, were a widow, Mrs. Powers, and her five sons, Joseph, Samuel, Charles, William, and Allen, and one daughter, Mary. With them came John Powers, cousin of the boys, and John's father, Allen. One wagon drawn by a yoke of oxen carried Thore Hermanson and wife, with their daughters Henrietta, Kaia, Hansina, Lena, and Anna. One wagon and ox team transported the elderly Mr. and Mrs. Herman Wangsness and their son, Christopher. One wagon and ox team bore Mr. and Mrs. John Loftesness and their children, Carrie, Hans, Andrew, Herman, John, and Christine. Then followed an ox team and wagon with Mr. and Mrs. Claus Jensen, with their children, Clara, Hjalmar, and Gilbert. The widow, Mrs. Lars Brandvold, with her young son, Albert, fol- lowed in a wagon drawn by a team of horses. Bill Tobin, alone in a wagon drawn by a team of horses, brought up the rear. 20WHEN SODBUSTERS SPURNED RELIEF The first legislative appropria- tion for relief in Dakota Terri- tory was made in the session of 1876 to meet a desperate need brought about by prairie fires and grasshopper infestation. In January 1875 a fire swept away nearly all of the business section of Vermillion, and, just as the farmers were beginning to reap a fine crop of wheat, grasshoppers swept over the countryside like an avalanche of destruction. Gardens were also destroyed and hard times de- scended suddenly upon the settlers. When the legislature met the next winter the representative from Clay County presented a bill appropriating $25,000 to re- lieve the situation in the de- vastated area. This money was to be used for food, feed for livestock, and seed for spring planting. The bill passed but was vetoed by Governor Penn- ington. It was again presented and this time carried over his veto. Then a strange thing happen- ed. The independent sodbusters refused to accept the money and expressed their emphatic resent- ment at the action of the legislature. Newspapers were also critical, and the "Dakota Republican" of Vermillion was especially severe in criticizing the legislature for offering charity. The money was available, but no part of it was ever used by any of the counties in the region devastated by fire and grasshoppers. Later, a relief society was formed and local subscriptions provided what was necessary. G. W. Kingsbury, early historian, records that Gen. W. H. H. Beadle made a trip through some eastern States and brought back several hundred dollars, which was accepted as the neighborly offering of a friend. However, there were certain hard-hit settlements in Dakota Territory at that time that would have very nearly starved had it not been for help from their church brethren in the East. 21PIONEER WIVES The women of the homestead- ing era stood out in their loneli- ness and courage. Added to the isolation and lack of conven- iences, they often suffered from scarcity of food, fuel, and cloth- ing. The supplies in the family larders were limited; salt pork, corn meal, wheat flour, and milk made up the daily menus. Near- ly all the butter and eggs were traded for coffee, sugar, kero- sene, and other necessities. The usual fuels were laboriously twisted hay, corncobs, and cow chips. Wood was scarce. To most of the pioneer wives who followed their husbands from eastern States the sight of an Indian was little less than terrifying, but when rumors of Indian massacres spread and danger threatened, they learned to shoot their husbands' guns. In 1857 the Spirit Lake, Iowa, massacre was followed by two raids by the renegade Inkpa- duta's band in what is now southeastern South Dakota. Dur- ing the Indian outbreak of 1862 and '63 many of the settlers of the Sioux Valley were forced to flee to the larger settlements and stockades for protection, leaving their homes and pos- sessions at the mercy of the Indians. Sioux Falls and Medary were both destroyed, and at Sioux Falls one pioneer wife and mother, Mrs. J. B. Amidon, lost both husband and son almost within sight of her doorway. On the morning of the 25th of August, 1863, Judge Amidon and his son set out to cut hay on their land a short distance north of Sioux Falls. When they did not return in the evening, Mrs. Amidon became alarmed and notified the soldiers, who at once started a search for the missing men. At dawn of the next day the bodies were discovered, the judge shot through by a bullet and his son pierced by more than a dozen arrows. However, the Indians did not abduct any women or children in this section as they did in Iowa and Minnesota. The Indian troubles were peacefully settled and the Indians had retired to their reservations before the homesteacling influx reached its peak. Probably the most terrifying of recurrent early-day calamities was the prairie fire. The long prairie grass was a valuable asset in spring and summer for live- stock feed, but in the fall it be- came dry and easily inflamma- ble. A story is told in the com- munity west of Vermillion of 22Pioneer Wives how several settlers gathered at the claim of Hans Myron to help build his log cabin. All the women had come along except one, Mrs. O. Olson, who remained at home with her baby. A prairie fire suddenly swept to- ward the home builders, who crowded into a nearby dugout and waited in safety until the flames had passed over them. Then the group rushed to the home of Mrs. Olson. They found her perched on. a ladder rung down in the well where she had lowered herself with her baby, and had watched the flames sweep over the well mouth. It is still related in Alexandria that, in 1884, when a tornado swept through that area, a farm woman who had presence of mind to gather up her children and take them into the cellar came up after the storm, lifted the trapdoor, and found the house gone. There are many sodbusters still living who recall the blizzard of 1888. On January 11 there was a heavy snowfall that con- tinued until about noon the next day. Then the wind subsided to a dead calm. About 4 o'clock, when children were on their way home from the rural schools, a howling, shrieking blizzard be- gan with blinding fury. In Turn- er County alone 28 children were frozen to death, and in Bon Homme County 19 persons lost their lives. Mothers and wives were frantic. One of the saddest cases was that of Mrs. James Kennedy and her 12-year- old son in Wayne Township of Minnehaha County. When Ken- nedy, who had gone out to repair the windlass on the well, did not return, she heroically went in search of him. When neither returned, the son went out to get them. Kennedy had managed to keep himself alive by digging into a haystack, and when, after the storm, he started for the house he found first his wife and then his son, both frozen to death. 23THE SODBUSTERS' GOLD RUSH Many early settlers of the Sioux Falls territory will remem- ber the so-called "O'Grady Gold Rush," in which they took part. These "prospectors" are gradu- ally disappearing, but in their prime they displayed a positively devilish ingenuity in hatching schemes for locating the golden treasure. A settler named O'Grady, who lived on a farm north of Sioux Falls, inherited $20,000 from a relative in "the old country" and immediately turned his fortune into gold coin. When O'Grady was mysteriously murdered, just after the conversion of his wealth into gold, his wife was accused of the murder, but the case did not come to trial as she was sent to an insane asylum, where she died. This merely served to increase the local curiosity as to the whereabouts of the gold, which was said to be hidden on the O'Grady homestead. The excite- ment developed into a fever and soon individuals and groups, young and old, drunk and sober, were vying with one another in the frantic search. This "gold rush" developed into a treasure hunt that had all other impro- vised games of that order put in the shade. Apparently every- body, or nearly everybody, thought it fair to use any means, fair or foul, to locate the fortune. Finally the hunt became so in- tense that even the plaster was torn from the walls of the house. After every square inch of ground had been gone over and the house nearly wrecked, attor- neys for the estate procured the assistance of a police guard to keep trespassers off the place. However, it seems that this supposedly trusty watchdog passed much of his time dozing in a stuffed rocker in the front room. And some of the more venturesome gold-seekers, who knew of the guard's addiction to strong drink, found ways and means of continuing the search right under his scarlet-hued nose, while the man of the law gravely believed himself to be holding the fort against all comers. Finally they persuaded Pat, the befuddled wearer of the polished star, to look into the stuffing of his trusty chair and to his choleric* amazement they uncovered $2,000 in negotiable bonds, payable to bearer. But the $20,000 in gold was never found and to this day may lie somewhere on the premises. 24FLAMING YOUTH The homesteaders, many of whom had been teachers before coming West, soon realized that their sons and daughters should have more than a country school education and sod-busting back- ground. In 1862 the first Terri- torial Legislature established a university, but it was 20 years before any funds were provided with which to build a hall or hire a teacher. In 1882 the first term of the university opened in the Vermillion courthouse. The faculty consisted of one man. It was not long before the University of South Dakota was a flourishing institution, and the student body felt a desire to remold the city in conformity with its tastes. A small group of university students organized the Vermillion Improvement As- sociation, the purpose of which was the architectural improve- ment of Vermillion. The method was the simple one of applying the torch. The organization was quite successful and the members showed much ingenuity in avoid- ing detection. Burning the old land office was the first venture in improvement; unfortunately, the blaze endangered the whole of Main Street. Next, the old blacksmith shop, across the street from two of the city's churches, was burned to ashes. It was learned later that the firebugs stood in the entry of the Methodist church waiting for the firemen and then joined the crowd when the engine arrived. Next came West Hall, men's dormitory at the university. This was a complete loss, includ- ing the museum which was housed there, and a very valua- ble library which had been stored for the summer by its owner, Prof. E. C. Perisho. Fortunately the association had chosen a July date, when school was not in session. Emboldened by their success and elated by the mystery they had created, they made plans to burn the city theater by using a timing device built from an alarm clock. Only the failure of this machine prevented another and perhaps disastrous fire. For 25Sodbusters several months the city was in a state of constant apprehension and the officials did not even suspect the culprits. During a series of revival meetings the ringleader, a Ver- million boy, was converted, and a guilty conscience forced him to confess. In doing so he im- plicated a boy from another city. Both were sentenced to the penitentiary and served out their terms. FREE COINAGE OF ALUMINUM "Pay back with his own coin" may have been invented many years ago for an apocryphal situation, but for once, at least, it could be applied with factual accuracy to a venture into "high finance" conducted by the village of Elkton, Brookings County, South Dakota, In 1893 the frontier was fac- ing a depression, wheat produc- tion was greatly in excess of the demand, and market prices were low. Added to this was a woe- ful lack of currency with which to carry on the business of the country. But instead of merely sitting back and bemoaning this sorry state of affairs, the lead- ing spirits of this little commun- ity decided to do something about it. Diagnosing the situa- tion, the Elkton business men decided, much as Bryan did three years later when he took up the battle for free coinage of silver, that what the community needed was more currency, and they proceeded to supply it with directness and aplomb. Without bothering to obtain the aid or consent of any other community, to say nothing of the Government itself, they ne- gotiated with a St. Paul concern to manufacture money for them to add to the 'hard to get' vari- ety supplied by Uncle Sam. Aluminum was chosen as the new standard of exchange and soon bright, new one- and five- cent pieces, quarters, halves, and even dollars were pouring into the community as though the U. S. Mint had declared a dividend. The new coins were made from thin strips of aluminum cut in correct sizes with one face reading "good for five cents." or whatever the denomi- nation, and the other side bear- ing the name of an Elkton business firm. When purchases 26Free Coinage of Aluminum were made with coin of the realm, the aluminum substitute was given in change on the understanding that it would be redeemed locally at any time. Its use as a medium of exchange flourished like the green bay tree, as the butcher, the baker, and the groceryman passed it merrily from hand to hand, and the total in circulation mounted to twelve or fifteen thousand dollars. Business picked up re- markably under this artificial jtimulant, and for months the "people congratulated themselves and remarked that it was almost too good to be true. Evidently it was, for one day & United States inspector drop- ped into the little town and the bubble burst with a detonation that rocked the entire commun- ity. Businessmen were notified that circulation of the aluminum money must stop at once, and that those guilty could be fined $100 for each coin passed, and if criminal intent were proved could be put in jail. On top of that, rumors that the inspector was about to confiscate all the illegal coin caused a new crop of gray hairs to sprout. The representative of the Govern- ment, however, evidently satis- fied himself that there was no criminal intent behind the scheme and soon realized that confiscation would result in a wholesale mix-up that would make a Chinese puzzle seem simple by comparison. With the merchants anxious and willing to cooperate, time was allowed for all the aluminum coin to be redeemed, the St. Paul money- making plant was quashed, and Elkton, with nothing more seri- ous than the usual hangover that follows a spree, was back on the gold standard once more. 87ANNOUNCEMENT Publications prepared by the WPA Federal Writers' Project in South Dakota. A SOUTH DAKOTA GUIDE—a 450-page official guide book to South Dakota, profusely illustrated with photographs and original drawings. Sponsored by the State of South Dakota. SODBUSTERS: Tales of Southeastern South Dakota. 15c. A VACATION GUIDE TO CUSTER STATE PARK—a 36-page lavishly illustrated booklet of tours and points of interest, sponsored by the Custer State Park Board. Free. PIONEER MITCHELL—an attractive brochure of amusing in- cidents and anecdotes related by pioneers, sponsored by the Mitchell Parent-Teachers Association. 15c. GUIDE TO PIERRE—an interesting description of the capital city and its environs, illustrated with photographs, drawings, and maps. Sponsored by the City of Pierre and Chamber of Commerce. Free. HAMLIN GARLAND MEMORIAL—an authorized biography of Hamlin Garland, with excerpts from his books written about South Dakota. Sponsored by the South Dakota Writers' League. Mimeo- graphed; free. MSS. (Manuscripts)—a monthly magazine of "after hours" con- tributions by South Dakota writers. Short stories, articles, poetry, pen sketches. 9 issues; mimeographed. Free. In Preparation UNFINISHED HISTORIES: Tales of Aberdeen and Brown County. THE GIRL WHO MARRIED A STAR, and Other Sioux Legends. WATERTOWN GUIDE—A guide to the city and Lake Kampeska. TOURS IN THE LAKE REGION—several tours in Northeast South Dakota. GUIDE TO THE BLACK HILLS—the backwoods of the Black Hills. WHAT'S IN A NAME?—How counties, cities, villages, creeks, Jakes mountains, buttes, and gulches got their names.This book is a preservation facsimile produced for the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. It is made in compliance with copyright law and produced on acid-free archival 60# book weight paper which meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (permanence of paper). Preservation facsimile printing and binding by Northern Micrographics Brookhaven Bindery La Crosse, Wisconsin 2015