Fifty Years In The Northwest

Joseph Jerome settled in the town of Haven in 1846, and is therefore among the first of the pioneers. In 1848 he sold his property to Samuel Sturgis and removed to Michigan.

Joshua O. Cater came from Stafford county, New Hampshire, and was one of the earliest settlers of the town of Haven, where he still lives.

J. F. Bean also came from New Hampshire to Sherburne county, and is now a resident of Livonia, and postmaster at Lake Fremont.

J. H. Felch, of Maine, an early settler of Livonia, is now living at Elk River.

James Brady came to Palmer in 1855. He died about 1868.

Joshua Briggs settled in Palmer in 1855, and died there in 1881.

Robert Orrock, for whom the town of Orrock was named, died at his home, at a good old age, January, 1885.

John G. Jamieson died at Elk River in 1869.

A. B. Heath removed to Oregon in 1873, where he still lives.

Dr. B. R. Palmer, for whom the town of Palmer was named, was a resident of Sauk Centre and died there in 1885.

Judge Moses Sherburne, for whom the county was named, died at Elk River in 1869.

Chas. F. George, who settled in Santiago in 1856, is at present chairman of the board of county commissioners.

Royal George, a pioneer of the same date, returned to Vermont, where he died in 1887.

W. L. Babcock, a merchant of Santiago, still resides here.

CHAPTER XVII.

BENTON COUNTY

At the organization of Minnesota Territory three counties were created, of which Benton was one. Its eastern boundary followed the course of Rum river from its mouth to its junction with the west branch and thence a line due north to the Mississippi river. The boundary line upon the west followed the windings of the Mississippi down to its junction with Rum river, making a county large and irregular in outline, extending from north to south about one hundred miles, and about forty at its widest point from east to west. The formation of new counties since that time has left it with less than eleven townships lying east of the Mississippi river and bounded on the north by Morrison, on the east by Mille Lacs, and on the south by Sherburne counties. The soil is diversified. There is black sandy loam in the plains and a black vegetable mould in the timber, with clay subsoils. It is a fair agricultural district, having groves of pine and hardwood in the east and natural meadows, prairies and oak openings in the central and western portions. It is well watered by the Mississippi and its tributaries, Elk, Little Rock and Platte rivers. It has some fine lakes, of which Mayhew, Briggs and Little Rock are the largest. A granite formation underlies most of this county and crops out in many places, furnishing valuable quarries. The granite is plain and variegated and is being worked and shipped extensively. Near the village of Watab there is a rich upheaval. The St. Paul custom house is made of the Watab granite.

The Northern Pacific railway passes through this county parallel with the channel of the Mississippi river. The Manitoba, St. Cloud & Hinckley branch passes through the southern tier of towns. The organized towns are Alberta, Gilmanton, Glendorado, Granite Lodge, Maywood, Minden, Sauk Rapids, St. George, and Watab. The villages are East St. Cloud, Foley, Oak Grove, Rice's, and Watab.

The first settlers were Philip Beaupre, in 1844; David Gilman, in 1848; Jeremiah Russell, Wm. H. Wood, James Beatty, Ellis Kling, Wm. Smith, and J. C. Mayhew, in 1849. Sauk Rapids was made the county seat, then Watab, then Sauk Rapids.

The first board of officers, qualified Jan. 7, 1850, were: Commissioners, Wm. A. Aitkin, chairman; Joseph Brown and James Beatty; assessors, Truman A. Warren and Reuben M. Richardson; attorney, W. D. Phillips. The voting precincts were at Sauk Rapids, Swan River and Crow Wing. The judges of election were: For Sauk Rapids, J. Russell, Wm. Sturgis and Curtis Bellows; for Swan River, Philip Beaupre, James Green and Duncan Stewart; for Crow Wing, Allen Morrison, Wm. Morrison and Sylvester Stateler. The first election was held at Pierre Bottineau's house, now in Sherburne county. George Egbert and Thomas Holmes were judges of election.

The first court in the county was held Nov. 11, 1850; Bradley B. Meeker, presiding. David Gilman was the first sheriff, John C. Hawley the second. The first deed recorded was from James Hitchins to Wm. F. Coblett. It bore date of Oct. 21, 1850. Taylor Dudley was register of deeds. The land conveyed was a tract lying at the foot of Sauk Rapids, being a land claim of one hundred and sixty acres, purchased from Calvin Potter.

SAUK RAPIDS

The site of the village of Sauk Rapids was judiciously chosen. It slopes gently to the river's east bank, giving a pleasant frontage to the rapids. Philip Beaupre came here first in 1844. His son, William P., was the first white child here, born May 24, 1852. Geo. O. Sweet was the second, born Aug. 22, 1852. Several Indian traders located here and at Watab. Following Mr. Beaupre came T. A. Holmes, James Beatty, J. Russell, Calvin Potter, James Hitchins, Curtis Bellows, and Charles Webb. The first plat of Sauk Rapids was made and recorded in 1854. The proprietors were J. Russell, G. M. Sweet and S. Van Nest. The surveyor was C. B. Chapman.

The village was incorporated in 1881. The commissioners appointed under the general act to effect the organization were Alphonso J. Demenles, Erasmus Cross, B. K. Knowlton. A wagon bridge built across the Mississippi at this point cost $25,000. It was greatly damaged by a storm, and partially destroyed by the cyclone of 1886.

The dam across the Mississippi at Sauk Rapids was built in 1870 at a cost of $140,000. The east wing is owned by the Commodore Davidson estate; the west, by the Sauk Rapids Manufacturing Company.

The rapids are formed by the eruption of granite ledges across the channel of the river. A flour mill built here with a capacity of three hundred barrels per day was totally destroyed by the cyclone of April 16, 1886, which was one of the most destructive on record. The estimated loss in Sauk Rapids was $300,000, of which $108,000 was made up by voluntary contributions from St. Paul, Minneapolis and other portions of the State.

The public buildings, including the court house, school buildings and several churches, were destroyed, together with many fine stores and dwellings.

Since the cyclone the village has been handsomely rebuilt. A new court house has replaced the old one at a cost of $6,000, a new school house has been built at a cost of $12,000 – a model building with rooms for five departments. There are five new church buildings, an Episcopal, Congregational, Methodist and two Lutheran.

WATAB

Watab appears to have been a noted Indian trading post from 1844 to 1855. Asa White, D. Gilman, C. W. Borup, N. Myrick, Gen. Lowry, and others were located, or had stations here. Watab was for a short time the county seat of Benton county. A bridge was once built across the Mississippi here, but it has disappeared. The village site was surveyed and platted, and a post office established in 1853. P. Lamb was postmaster. A steam saw mill was erected here, but was afterward removed. The first improved farm in Benton county was located in the vicinity. David Gilman, Benjamin Bright and George Goodhue were early settlers.

Philip Beaupre was born in Lower Canada, in 1823. As his name indicates, he is of French descent. He received a French education. He came West in 1841; entered the employ of the fur company in 1843, and located at Sauk Rapids in 1844. When he arrived there were no white inhabitants, save Indian traders, on the Mississippi north of St. Anthony. Mr. Beaupre built a log house in 1851, and was continuously engaged in trade until succeeded by his sons. He assisted in forming the county, town and village organizations, filling many offices of trust and honor. In 1880 he served as judge of the probate court, and since as collector of customs at Pembina. In 1851 he was married to Teresa de Noyes, of St. Louis, and has a family of seven sons and six daughters, all residing in Benton county.

David Gilman. – Hon. David Gilman, of Watab, was born April 29, 1812, at Saratoga, New York. He was left fatherless at the age of six months, and his mother subsequently placed him in the family of a neighbor to be brought up and cared for until the age of twenty-one. As he grew older he was not pleased with this arrangement, and at the age of fourteen left his home to adventure for himself. His opportunities for securing an education were limited. In 1836 he came to Michigan. In 1844 he married Nancy W. Lamb, of Woodstock, Vermont. In 1848 he came to Watab, Minnesota, and made him a permanent home, making himself a useful, influential and public spirited citizen, filling many positions of trust in his town, county and state governments. Amongst the offices filled by him were those of deputy United States marshal, member of the second territorial legislature, and of the constitutional convention. He was postmaster at Watab from the establishment of the office in 1849 until 1885, when he died, greatly lamented by his friends and honored by all who knew him. Mrs. Gilman and four children survive him.

James Beatty was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, April 27, 1816. When fourteen years of age he went to Cass county, Michigan. He farmed for the Winnebago Indians near Fort Atkinson, Iowa, for several years, and coming to Minnesota in 1848 located at Sauk Rapids, which he made his permanent home. He has been engaged as Indian trader, hotel keeper, merchant and farmer. He was a member of the Minnesota territorial legislatures of 1851, 1853 and 1854. He was married to Eliza Foscet, of New York, in 1854. They have three children living.

Ellis Kling was born in Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, Oct. 15, 1824. He was brought up as a farmer, and has made farming his occupation through life. He came to Sauk Rapids in 1851. In 1854 he was married to Lucy Lewis, of Belle Prairie. They have five sons and one daughter.

George W. Benedict. – Mr. Benedict was born at Rochester, New York, in 1827. He served an apprenticeship to a printer in Canada for five years. In 1851 he was married to Anna Cronk, a native of Prince Edward county, Canada. For four years he published the Tecumseh (Mich.) Herald and in 1854, having removed to Sauk Rapids, established the Frontiersman for Jeremiah Russell. This paper he conducted for three years. He then conducted the New Era for one year. In 1868 he established the Sauk Rapids Sentinel, which he conducted four years, when he started the Alexandria Post and also became a member of a company that published the St. Cloud Press, with which he was connected one year. In 1872 he re-established the Sauk Rapids Sentinel, which he sold to W. L. Nieman, but repurchased after the cyclone of 1886. Mr. Benedict was in the United States revenue service ten years, and served as a member of the state senate one term.

J. Q. A. Wood was born in Chichester, New Hampshire, in 1815. He graduated at Union College, New York, in 1843; studied law with President Franklin Pierce; was admitted to practice in 1846, and made his home at Sauk Rapids in 1854, which has been his home ever since, with the exception of some years spent in Kentucky as editor of the Southern Kentucky Shield. This paper was suppressed in 1862. Returning to Sauk Rapids in 1864, he engaged in the practice of law, in which he has since continued. During this period he served eleven years as county attorney, and also a term as probate judge. Mr. Wood was seriously injured in the great cyclone, having been buried in the debris of the court house, from which, with great difficulty, he extricated himself. Mr. Wood is a poetical writer of some reputation, many of his productions having been received with great favor. Among them we may mention "Father is Growing Old, John," "Ode to New Hampshire," and "The Wine of Cyprus." He has one son, a resident of Dakota, and one daughter, the wife of D. C. Roberts of West Superior.

William H. Wood was born in London, New Hampshire, Feb. 2, 1817. When he was fourteen years of age his father removed to Tecumseh, Michigan. He graduated at Dartmouth College in 1839 and afterward took a course in Union College, New York, graduating in 1843. He then returned to Tecumseh, Michigan, where he studied law with Judge Stacy. In 1845 he was admitted to the bar in Lenawee county, Michigan. During the presidential campaign of the year following he edited a paper in Kentucky, the Rough and Ready, advocating the claims of Gen. Taylor for the presidency. In 1848 he located in Greensburg, Kentucky, and in 1849 was married to a lady of refinement, known to the literary world under the nom de plume of "Minnie Mary Lee." In 1849 he removed to Sauk Rapids, Minnesota. He was there editor of the pioneer paper, the Frontiersman. He afterward owned, and with his gifted wife edited, the New Era, in which he was an ardent supporter of Mr. Lincoln for the presidency in 1860. Meanwhile he practiced his profession and held the office of county attorney for many years. When the land office was established at Sauk Rapids he was appointed receiver and served a number of years. He was a member of the first state legislature. In 1869 he was elected president of the New Athens College, Greensburg, Kentucky, and served a short time, when he contracted the disease that afterward terminated his earthly career. Mr. Wood was a man of more than ordinary ability, an eloquent speaker, a fluent and gifted writer, whose influence will long be felt. He left a widow and three children.

Mrs. W. H. Wood has been a liberal contributor to magazines and the author of several volumes, of which a list is here appended: "The Heart of Myrrha Lake;" "Into the Light of Catholicity;" "Hubert's Wife;" "The Brown House at Duffield;" "Strayed from the Fold;" "Three Times Three; or, Basil, Beatrice, Ethel;" "Story of Annette;" "Hazel Green's Rival."

A. de Lacy Wood, son of Mrs. W. H. Wood, edits the Two Harbor Iron Post, in Lake county.

P. H. Wood, second son of Mrs. W. H. Wood, edits the Sauk Rapids Free Press.

Rev. Sherman Hall was born in Weathersfield, Vermont; was educated at Exeter Academy, Dartmouth College and Andover Theological Seminary. He was married to Betsey Parker in 1831, and ordained the same year as a missionary to the Chippewa Indians at La Pointe. With them he remained until 1854, when he transferred his residence to Sauk Rapids and organized a Congregational church, of which he continued pastor until his death, Sept. 1, 1859. Mr. Hall made a translation of parts of the Bible into the Ojibway tongue. He was greatly beloved amongst his people for his firm, christian demeanor and publicly recognized as a man of integrity and sound judgment. He served the people of Benton county as judge of probate court and county superintendent of schools.

Jeremiah Russell was born in Eaton, Madison county, New York, Feb. 2, 1809. He received a common school and academic education, and learned to set type in the office of the Chautauqua Gazette. He subsequently taught school and worked for awhile in printing offices. Removing to Palmyra, he clerked in a store several years. In 1835 he came to Michigan, and thence to the Lake Superior country, where he superintended a copper mine for a couple of years, at Left Hand river, near the head of the lake. In 1837 he came to Fort Snelling, and in 1839 accompanied Frank Steele and others to St. Croix Falls, and engaged in building a saw mill. In 1840 he went to Pokegama mission as government farmer and blacksmith. About 1842, at the closing up of the Pokegama mission in consequence of Indian disturbances, he purchased the old Connor trading post and farm. In 1843, with Elam Greely, he went down the St. Croix and up the Mississippi and Rum rivers in a birch canoe, exploring for pine timber. They found Rum river blockaded at one place a distance of three-quarters of a mile, with drifts or rafts of trees, consolidated and held together by the roots of grasses and water willows, the accumulations apparently of ages. Around this raft they made a portage, and ascended a tributary of Rum river to its source, thence down the Kanabec or Snake river to Pokegama. In 1848 Mr. Russell came to Crow Wing, Minnesota, as agent for Borup & Oakes, Indian traders and fur dealers. In the autumn of 1849 he established himself at a point two miles above Sauk Rapids, and opened up a farm of one hundred and thirty acres. At the end of four years he moved down the river and made a land claim on the west side, including the water power of Sauk Rapids. He owned an interest also in the water power on the east side. In 1854 he was one of the company that surveyed and platted the village of Sauk Rapids. He established the pioneer newspaper, the Sauk Rapids Frontiersman.

Mr. Russell for several years held the office of county auditor and treasurer, and in 1849 was elected to the territorial legislature. His name appears in the list of members, but he was present only at the opening sessions, and voted for but a single measure. He had told his constituents before his election that he would not serve. At this time he was Democratic in politics but in later life voted the Republican ticket. Mr. Russell possessed a warm, generous nature, combined with integrity of character, which gained for him the love and esteem of his many friends. Ever ready to extend a willing hand to those in need, and, as far as lay in his power, to assist those in distress, he will ever be remembered with kindly feelings by all who knew him. Though exposed to all the temptations and vicissitudes of an early settler's life, coming in contact with all kinds of social conditions, he never departed from the path of christian rectitude, and those with whom he came in contact will ever remember him for his kind heartedness and gentlemanly bearing.

Sept. 20, 1843, he was united in marriage to Miss Sophia Oakes (daughter of the late Chas. H. Oakes), who survives him. Seven children were born unto them, but only three are now alive. These are Mrs. W. L. Nieman, Miss Julia A. and Mr. J. A. Russell. Mr. Russell died at his home in Sauk Rapids in 1885.

Edward Oscar Hamlin was born at Bethany, Wayne county, Pennsylvania, June 12, 1828. He received his preparatory education at his native place; entered Hamilton College, Clinton, New York, in 1848, and graduated in 1858, third in his class, and in three years received the degree of A.M. He read law first at Wilkesbarre, Pennsylvania, with Hon. Geo. W. Woodward (afterward one of the judges of the supreme court of Pennsylvania); at Honesdale, Pennsylvania, later with Earl Wheeler, Esq., and was admitted to the bar Sept. 7, 1852. After practicing for two years at Honesdale, he decided to go West, and in 1855 settled in Sauk Rapids. He was admitted to practice in the territorial courts, and in 1856 was admitted to practice by the supreme court. Judge Hamlin was elected the first mayor of the city of St. Cloud. He was nominated by the Democratic party for governor, and subsequently for judge of the supreme court. He was also, in 1860, appointed by Gov. Ramsey "a regent of the University of the State of Minnesota," and was subsequently an efficient and zealous member of the state board of normal instruction.

Soon after the outbreak of the Rebellion, in 1861, Gov. Ramsey tendered him the commission of major of the Seventh Regiment, Minnesota Volunteers, but his eyesight being defective, he was obliged to decline it. In 1864 Judge Hamlin was chosen by the Democratic party as one of the delegates to the Democratic national convention. He was appointed as one of the committee on platform, and openly denounced, with three others, the platform before it was adopted, because it declared the war for the Union a failure. Judge Hamlin was a war Democrat, and hung out the stars and stripes over his residence in Sauk Rapids, the first one in that town to do so. In 1873, being an only child and yielding to the solicitations of his parents, Judge Hamlin returned to his native county and opened an office in Honesdale. After a short residence there he removed to Bethany, which has since been his home. He continued the practice of his profession in Honesdale until June, 1885, when failing health compelled him to retire.

Judge Hamlin has been twice married. His first wife was Mary A., daughter of Judge Eldred, who for a quarter of a century graced the bench of Pennsylvania. She died at St. Cloud, Sept. 27, 1868. In October, 1870, Judge Hamlin married Ella F., daughter of E. B. Strong, Esq., for years clerk of the district court of Stearns county.

MORRISON COUNTY

Morrison county is somewhat irregular in outline. It is bounded on the north by Crow Wing and Cass, on the east by Mille Lacs, on the south by Benton and Stearns, on the west by Stearns and Todd counties. The portion east of the Mississippi originally belonged to Benton county, and the portion on the west side to Todd county. It contains 1,139 square miles. The eastern part is well covered with pine and hardwood forests. The west and central portions consist of oak openings and brush prairies. The groves are interspersed with poplar. The surface is generally level, but is well drained by the Mississippi and its tributaries, mostly small streams. It has some fine lakes in the northern and central parts. The soil is well adapted to farming. A granite range, an extension of the range of Sauk Rapids and St. Cloud, passes through the county.

William Nicholson was probably the first settler in this county. He first came to Swan River in 1847, in company with ten other men. They forded the Mississippi near the mouth of Swan river, made a raft and floated down the river a few miles, where they abandoned it on account of low water, and returned south, whence they came. The next summer Nicholson returned with twenty-two men, crossed the river at the same place, and cut a road through to the Winnebago agency at Long Prairie. Returning the same year to the crossing, he found Wm. Aiken had made a claim and was building a hotel and store on the east bank of the river. Mr. Nicholson remained some years in the vicinity, but is now a resident of Little Falls. Wm. Aiken permanently located at Swan River in 1848, one year after Nicholson's arrival at that point. He died in 1851, aged about sixty-five years. He had two Indian wives. They quarreled and fought savagely at the funeral as to which was entitled to the position of chief mourner, wife number one coming off victorious. James Green made a squatter's claim in 1848, and built a saw mill on the east side of the Mississippi by the island at the falls. Wm. Knowles located at the mouth of Rabbit river in 1849. John Stillwell came to Swan River in 1849. He was a carpenter and worked at his trade until 1866, when he went into the hotel business. He now resides at Little Falls. He and Nicholson are the only old settlers of Swan River remaining in the county.

At the organization of the county in 1856, Little Falls, located on the Mississippi a short distance above Swan River, became the county seat. The year before and the two years following were years of wild speculation. The chief ambition of the speculators was to found a city. During these years twenty-four village or town plats were recorded in the office of the register of deeds in Morrison. Not all, however, were located within the bounds of the county, some being platted on unsurveyed government lands. Of these towns, the only one remaining, or of note, is Fergus Falls, Otter Tail county, platted by a company from Little Falls. Of the towns located in Morrison county, every one vanished except Little Falls, though Swan River, Belle Prairie and Granite City kept up an appearance of prosperity for a time.

The early history of Morrison county is enlivened by many thrilling incidents of Indian warfare, chiefly of contests between the Sioux and Chippewas. The Sioux had claimed the territory from time immemorial, but over a hundred years ago the Chippewas had driven them westward across the Mississippi and were in possession of the soil. The tribal hostility of the two races continued to manifest itself in predatory and retaliatory raids, and from these the early settlers were often sufferers.

Nathan Richardson, the historian of Morrison county, an authority to whom we are greatly indebted, says that the country was acknowledged to be Chippewa ground before and during the settlement by the whites, but that the Sioux made frequent raids through the counties in parties of from five to twenty-five, their principal object being to possess themselves of Chippewa scalps. The Chippewas retaliated by pursuing the Sioux into their own prescribed limits. Mr. Richardson avers that the Chippewas were seldom known to treat the white settlers uncivilly, while the Sioux would kill stock to supply their wants, for which the settlers were left without compensation from Indians or government.