CHAPTER XIV.
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SIOUX FALLS IN 1862, 1866, 1870—REMINISCENSES OF MRS.
PHILLIPS—JOHN NELSON’S “INDIAN SCARE”—GILSETH’S AND AASEN’S EXPERIENCE
IN COMING TO THIS COUNTY IN 1866.
SIOUX FALLS IN 1862.
(REMINISCENCES BY JESSE B. WATSON.)
“When Company A, Dakota Cavalry, of which I
was a member, came to Sioux Falls during the summer of 1862, there were
four small houses along the river bank on the west side. One of them
was occupied by the printing press, the others were empty. Near the
present site of the Burlington deport was a small house occupied by J.B.
Amidon, and a little east of where the brewery is now, on the side hill,
was another small house occupied by G.P. Waldron, and between his house
and where the Merchants Hotel is now, a man by the name of B.C. Fowler
was living with his family. This habitation was built of stone, poles
and grass. There were also two young men by the name of Allen living
a little southeast of Amidon’s place.”
SIOUX FALLS IN 1866.
Eihardt Fleitz, who came to Sioux Falls as a member
of Company D, 22d U.S. Infantry, in 1866, has been a resident of the county
since then, has kindly given us a pretty full description of the buildings
and general appearance of things upon his arrival. He said in part:
“I came to Sioux Falls with my company, I think on the 7th day of June,
1866. It was commanded by Colonel Knox. There were just seventy-three
men in the company. Company E, 6th Iowa Cavalry left Sioux Falls
the day our company arrived. The buildings in Sioux Falls at that
time were the barracks, round house, commissary building, laundry, stable,
sutler’s store, a stone house at the foot of Ninth street, and another
on the east side of the river, opposite where the Commercial Hotel is now,
and a house called the pipestone factory near where Pankow’s foundry is
now located. The two buildings called the barracks were side by side
about twenty feet apart. The south room in the east building was
occupied as a hospital, the next room was the office, and in the next room
the soldiers slept in bunks. The south room in the west building
was occupied, after we came, by the orderly sergeant, next to his was the
kitchen, and the balance of the building was a mess room. What we
called the round house was a stone building north of the barracks.
It was called so, owing to its shape, for it was nearly round. It
was built of stone, but had no roof, and the floor was about eight feet
from the ground. It was built to go into in case of attack.
I think it was more than thirty feet in diameter. The commissary
building was of stone, and stood pretty near where the Commercial Hotel
is now. The laundry was a small log house near the west end of Eighth
street bridge, and the stable was north of this, and was dug out of the
bank for the west wall, and stone and logs next the river, and covered
with poles and hay. The stone house near the foot of Ninth street
was occupied by Dr. Nisley. The sutler’s store was a little shanty
built of cottonwood boards in part. I don’t know what the building
on the east side was built for, but we used it for an ice house.
During the summer of 1866, we built what was known as the officer’s quarters,
where E.J. Daniels now has his store. We also built a hospital between
this building and the sutler’s store, south of the Edmison-Jameson building.
It was built of logs, and was one story high. We also built a powder
house, and a building to exercise in during the winter. Our company
fenced in what we called the parade grounds, putting down posts and a rail
on top. There were thirty-five saddle horses in our company, and a detachment
was occasionally sent out scouting. We had more snow and rain then
than we have now. The highest water I ever saw in Sioux Falls was
in the spring of 1867, and I have seen the flat west and north of the city
covered with water in June. I was discharged May 7, 1869, and during
my service four men of the company died. The first one was a man
known by the name of Bolse, he died of fever; the next one, of consumption;
the third was drowned, and the fourth was frozen to death out by Frank
Forde’s farm. After about a year Colonel Knox left, and Captain John
Duffy was in command of our company. In 1868, I think it was, about
eight or ten men took up land on the military reservation along the Sioux
river north of town, and commenced cutting timber and building log houses.
A detachment of our company was sent out (and I was one of the men sent)
to arrest them and bring them in. They were arrested, brought in,
and put in the guard house for two or three days, and then Captain Duffy
let them go, after promising they would keep off the reservation.
Some of these men are now living on the same places where we arrested them.
When I came to Sioux Falls there was an old steam boiler lying on the bank
of the river west of the island, but I don’t know where it came from, and
whether it was ever in use in Sioux Falls or not. The men usually
had pretty good supplies, sometimes a little short, but were comfortable
and contented.”
Since obtaining the foregoing statement from
Mr. Fleitz, the writer met Mr. John H. Holsey of Canton. He was a
member of Company D, and said: “the company marched out of Sioux
City Sunday afternoon, June 3, 1866, camped that night five miles from
Sioux City, on the Dakota side of the Big Sioux river, Monday night camped
on Brule creek, Tuesday night at Nixon’s, Wednesday night at Pattee slough,
Thursday night at Canton, and marched into Sioux Falls Friday, June 8,
at two o’clock in the afternoon.”
OFFICERS’ QUARTERS, 1866 Photo
The cuts for this illustration and the one on
page 29 were made from photographs obtained from Amos Broughton of Tishoka,
H.Y., who procured them while on a visit at Sioux Falls in 1870.
It has been frequently said to the writer by old residents of the city
that the earliest date any photographer visited Sioux Falls was in 1872;
that the pictures of Sioux Falls claimed to have been taken in 1871 were
in fact taken in 1872, and those of 1872 taken in 1873. One thing
is certain, the soldiers were in Sioux Falls when the picture of the officers’
quarters was taken, and they left here June 18, 1869.
John Holsey, when shown our illustrations
said: “I recognize them very well. Col. Knox was down to the Missouri
river to Yankton, I think, and brought a photographer back with him in
an ambulance. In this picture of the officers’ quarters Col. Knox
is sitting in front of the door, with his orderly standing behind him.
Ed. Broughton sits facing the Colonel, and Charley Howard is sitting with
his back to the building, with his little daughter Mamie standing by him.
Mr. Howard at this time was living in Sioux City and was up on a visit
to his sutlers’ store then in charge of Ed. Broughton. The other
illustration represents the barracks as they were at that time, and the
tarpaulin covering the barrels and bags of provisions at the end of the
barracks looks familiar. The photographer took several pictures at
the time, and I feel sure these were taken in the fall of 1866, or in 1867.”
The officers’ quarters faced the east, and
was located on the south lot where E.J. Daniels’ store now stands, and
the photograph of the same must have been taken from the northeast of the
building, as the whole contour of what is now the city west of Ninth street
appears in the background. When the other picture was taken, the
camera must have been placed southwest of the officers’ quarters.
SIOUX FALLS IN 1870.
After having obtained a biographical sketch of
Mr. Fowler’s life down to the time he arrived in Sioux Falls, the remark
was made to him: “You have seen a great many changes since coming
here in 1870?” His reply to this remark was taken down by a stenographer
and is as follows: “Not many changes, but great many improvements
have been made in Sioux Falls since I came here. When I came, Colonel
Allen had a grocery store in the barracks, the post office was in his store
and he was postmaster. Cyrus Walts clerked for him and was deputy
postmaster. W.S. Bloom had a stock of hardware and groceries also
in the barracks, and C.V. Booth and John McClellan had each a room in the
same building. I worked for Jeptha Duling in his stage barn the first
winter. East of the barracks on the bank of the river a man by the
name of Moulton had a general store in an old government building; the
old government stables were a little east of this building on the bank
of the river. Frank Raymond kept hotel in what was called “Old Steve’s
House” it was on the bank of the river east of where the Emerson block
now stands. In the west tier of barracks Hiram Caldwell (who died
a few years ago at Hartford) lived with his family, and Joe Dickson and
his brother Tom lived there too. Duling was running a stage from
Sioux Falls to Yankton. Afterward, when Stevenson had this line,
I drove for him—used to drive through in a day, change horses and deliver
the mail at Turnerville, Swan Lake and Clay Creek. When I came here,
C.K. Howard had a stage line from Sioux Falls to Elk Point; there was an
express messenger on this line. There was also a pony express from
Sioux Falls to Flandreau, run by Lew Hulitt. Howard had a stock of
goods in the old sutler’s store. This store was built of logs and
fronted east, and was located east of Phillips Avenue near where the E.L.
Smith block is now. South of the store, Howard kept a hotel in the
building which has been recently used for a butcher shop, and now stands
opposite Dr. Robert’s residence on 12th street. Cash Coats and a
half-breed by the name of Mark Wells, clerked in Howard’s store.
There was a place called “The Dive,” it fronted east, and you had to go
down a step or two to get into it; it was built of stones, logs and dirt,
and was the dirtiest place on earth; this hole was north of Howard’s store.
In the spring of 1871, True Dennis came to Sioux Falls and started a blacksmith
shop in the store building Moulton had vacated. R.F. Pettigrew built
a small office that spring about opposite of where the Commercial House
is now; it was just south of the barracks. There is a little building
still standing nearly opposite the Commercial House which was built about
twenty feet south of the west barracks at that time by a man named Prescott.
In 1871 Joe Dupries built the Central House, which is still standing on
the same spot, but greatly altered and enlarged. Mr. Dupries was
a genuine Frenchman. In the fall of 1871 a Mr. Leonard taught school
in a sod shanty on the side hill near where the brewery is now. He
lived in a shanty on his claim a little west of town. He was partially
insane, and we boys used to go and stay with him nights for fear he might
commit suicide if left alone. There was an old man we called “Dutch
Charlie.” He was an old trapper and had a shanty on his claim near
where the linen mill is now. Everybody was afraid of him. James
Stevenson built a large stone house for a hotel where the brewery is now,
but he never finished it so he could occupy it. He was the Stevenson
who succeeded Duling in running the stage line to Yankton. In 1872
he had a pony livery stable—not a horse in the outfit. The same year
a man by name of Caster built a butcher shop east of the Central House.
In 1871 a lawyer by the name of McLaury built an office where the Metropolitan
block is now, but moved it off the next year, when the Episcopal church
was built there. In 1872, McLaury built a residence and an office
with a basement where the Emerson block is now; there was a meat market
in the basement and “Billy Bainbridge” was the butcher and Captain Dick
was with him. They had a good choir in the Episcopal church in those
days—I sung in it myself. Before the church was built the meetings
were held in any place where a room could be had. In 1872, a bakery
and restaurant was started in the barracks by a Mr. Boardman. He
afterwards moved north and put up a building about where the Merchants
Hotel is now. In 1872, a man by name of Dixon, who had been a clerk
in Boston came to Sioux Falls with $8,000 and bought all the land he could
see. He soon had more land than money. He built the building
on the northwest corner of Main avenue and Eighth street. J.D. Cameron
built a bank building a little north of the Cataract. C.O. Natesta
& Brother had a general store just north of Cameron’s bank. Napoleon
Boutcher, fresh from Canada, opened a shoe shop opposite to where Daniels’
store is now, and he used to charge the boys as high as $20 for a pair
of boots, but he made the finest boots I ever saw. In 1870, a Mr.
Botsford took up a claim of 40 acres where Meredith’s addition is now.
He married the cook of the Cataract Hotel. He was the first miller
that came to Sioux Falls, and he was always planning to build a mill but
could not raise the money. When I first came to Sioux Falls in the
fall of 1870, we all turned in and helped build Covell’s two-story sod
mansion, and a sod barn over 100 feet long. They were located south
of the street car track, opposite the present Covell buildings. There
was a large family of Harthorns—the old man and his wife, Frank, Dan, Jim
and Tom, his boys. Harthorn senior lived out near Clark Coats.
Frank had a pre-emption claim south and east of the culvert under the Illinois
Central railroad on the east side of the river, and he had a shanty in
the rocks a few rods northeast of the culvert. I slept with him one
night and I had to crawl in on my hands and knees. In the winter
of 1872 I taught school in the barracks. I still have a certificate
to teach school, dated December 28, 1872, signed by Cyrus Walts, superintendent.
During the winter of 1873, Frank Forde, John Forde and myself lived in
a log shanty on the bank of the river west of town. We had no knives
or forks, and used to cut our food with jack knives. I used to go
over to Fuller’s, a half a mile south, and get about three square meals
a week; got there about mealtime and they would ask me to eat with them—and
I consented. There was no work to be had that winter, and we used
to pull up maple trees in Fuller’s grove (a natural grove) and sell them
in town for what we could get. We ate a good many beavers that winter—cooked
them in the sod as we had no stove. Frank Forde took a soldier’s
black blanket, folded it and laid it on a table and cut out a pair of trousers
with a shoe knife and sewed them himself. Dressed in these, a buckskin
shirt and a pair of moccasins he used to attend the dances in town.
He made a cap from a wolfskin, with two tails attached to it, which he
wore on all occasions. I remember a little experience I had in 1871.
There was an odd character known as “Israel Putnam,” who had taken up a
claim one mile east of Dell Rapids in the bend of the river. I went
up and stayed with him a few days. The mosquitos were so bad that
we had to sleep under a wagon box. They stampeded the horses one
night and we had to go about ten miles after them the next day. There
was not a house then where the city of Dell Rapids is now located.
Well, in those days society wasn’t graded anywhere in these parts; the
Indians were about as good as anybody, and they used to come from Flandreau
to Sioux Falls in droves, and the merchants used to trust a good many of
them for goods. When I hear people now talking about hard times,
I always think of the early seventies in Minnehaha county.”
REMINISCENCES OF MRS. HATTIE C. PHILLIPS.
In an interview relative to the early days of
Sioux Falls, Mrs. Phillips informed the writer of many interesting incidents
which occurred at that period, and which are given below in her own language:
“The first sermon I heard in Sioux Falls was
preached by a Methodist minister by the name of Cuthbert. One day
I was in my kitchen and heard some one say “howdy!” I looked around
and saw a tall gentleman standing in the kitchen door, and he again said
“howdy!” I had lived south, and knew what howdy meant, so I said
“howdy!” and asked him in. He then asked me if he could hold religious
services in my house. I told him my husband would provide a place
for him somewhere in town; but he said he did not want any other place
than my house. I waited until the doctor came home, who gave him
permission to use our rooms. They were neatly carpeted, and the clerical
stranger ejected so much tobacco juice and so indiscriminately that at
last I spoke to him about it, when he apologized and said he would be more
careful. He held meetings Saturday evening, and Sunday morning and
evening, and Monday I had to go all over my carpets on my hands and knees
and clean them of tobacco juice. On Sunday I provided dinner for
himself and family, consisting of eight persons, and, as all our provisions
came from Sioux City, taking it all together, these meetings were quite
a tax upon our hospitality. In those early days a Mr. Riggs, pastor
of a Presbyterian church in Lockport, Illinois, and the Rev. Dr. Ward also
preached in Sioux Falls. The first church organized was the Episcopal,
and this organization erected the first church building. Mrs. Clark
G. Coats and myself started the first Sunday school. We had happy
times in those days. Every one went to church and Sunday school,
even Charley Howard (in his shirt sleeves).
I remember the blizzard of 1873, very distinctly.
It came without warning. The doctor had just taken the pony and started
for the river, and I was taking up dinner in the kitchen. The stove
pipe ran up through the roof in place of a chimney, and all at once something
struck that pipe with a crash. It was the blizzard. I looked
out the window, and saw the doctor a little ways from the house hanging
on to the pony. For some time he could not move away from where he
stood. It was a terrible day. I had a servant girl at the time
by the name of Foster whose brother and sister were lost in the blizzard
in Benton, where the family resided.
I remember an amusing incident, which I saw
from my window, in connection with the store building near the barracks.
Col. Allen had purchased it, but the Delaneys occupied it, and he wanted
to get them out. He tired to persuade them to give possession, and
one day he became so urgent that Mrs. Delaney, who was a large woman, picked
up a tea kettle of boiling water and started for him, and the colonel ran
away just as fast as he could.”
JOHN NELSON’S “INDIAN SCARE.”
As will be seen from this biography, Mr. Nelson
settled in Mapleton during the summer of 1866. At that time his only
neighbor was John Thompson, who lived about two miles up the river on his
claim. Mr. Nelson had erected his cabin in the woods near the Big
Sioux river, where he thought himself safely hidden from the pioneer’s
most dreaded foe, the roaming Indian. Everything was quiet for a
few months, and no unusual sound disturbed the stillness of the prairie.
But one evening during the fall, just about sundown, while he was chopping
wood near the cabin, unearthly yells and howls suddenly reached his ears.
In shorter time than it takes to tell it, he dropped his ax, ran into the
cabin, and gathering up what valuable papers he had, brought his frightened
wife and baby out of the cabin and around the bend of the river, where
they remained until quite dark. They then crossed a little valley
to a small lake surrounded by tall grass in which he hid his wife and child.
Having placed them where the thought they would not be discovered, he shouldered
his rifle and started for John Thompson’s place. Upon arriving there
he was surprised to find the family quietly eating their supper, while
he had expected to find them all butchered by the Indians. After
having briefly told of the approaching danger, he returned for his wife
and child, whom he safely brought to Mr. Thompson’s house. During
this trip he heard something moving through the grass near him. He
cocked his rifle and quietly awaited the approach of the stealthy steps
of what he thought to be an Indian, but fortunately was found to be only
a deer. It was temptingly near for a good shot, but for fear of attracting
the attention of the Indians he did not fire.
The next morning, in company with Mr. Thompson
and Ole Gilseth, he went down the river, and nearly opposite his cabin
he discovered two Indian tepees. They then got behind a tree and
called to the Indians, which seemed to greatly surprise them, and gathering
up their belongings, they hastily left the place without further trouble.
EXPERIENCE OF TWO OF THE EARLY SETTLERS IN THIS COUNTY
DURING THEIR WALK FROM REDWOOD, MINNESOTA, TO THE SIOUX VALLEY, IN THE
FALL OF 1866.
An account of this trip appeared in an issue of
the Syd Dakota Ekko in November, 1895, and thinking it would prove interesting
to the readers of this work, a translation of the same is given below.
Ole O. Gilseth and John J. Aasen, Jr., left
Goodhue county, Minnesota, in the fall of 1866, with the intention of joining
their friends, John Thompson and John Nelson, who had settled in the Sioux
Valley in Dakota during the spring of that year. Ole J. Aasen, who
then lived in the vicinity of Kenyon, in the same county, drove them to
Faribault. From there they took post horses to St. Peter, where they
found a man who was going to Redwood, and drove with him to that place.
They then continued their way on foot, each carrying a bundle of clothes
and a rifle. Thus far they had put up no provisions for their trip,
thinking they would buy some from a family they knew, who lived on a farm
some distance from Redwood. But evening came with not a house in
sight, and they spent the night on the open prairie. The next morning
it was cloudy, the sun could not be seen, and they were unable to tell
what direction to follow, but they decided to try and find the farm they
had looked for the day before, and which they believed could not be very
far off. Early in the afternoon a grove came into view, and thinking
this must be the place, they walked briskly on, hopeful of being in plenty
time for a good supper. However, the grove was farther away than
it at first appeared, and it was not until late in the evening they reached
there, only to find, instead of friends and shelter, the dreaded wigwams
of an Indian camp, with their still more dreaded occupants. Having
the terrible massacre of 1862 in the western part of Minnesota still fresh
in their minds, even starvation could not induce them to go near the Indians,
but with trembling hearts and careful steps they succeeded in reaching
the other side of the grove, without being noticed, and here they spent
the night in a large tree. Mr. Gilseth keeping vigilant watch, with
his hand on the rifle until the break of dawn, when, thankful for their
scalps though starving, they continued their wandering westward.
That day they could not even find any water. Towards evening they
noticed a storm was approaching, and it being late in the fall and quite
cold, they wrapped all their clothes about them and laid down, trying to
rest. Soon the storm broke loose. It was a terrible storm of snow
and rain, and continued until towards morning, when it cleared up and they
could see the sun again. They now took a southwesterly course, thinking
they had gone too far north. That evening they reached a few small
lakes, the shores of which were frozen, but farther out they discovered
a flock of ducks swimming about in the open water. Mr. Gilseth sent
a shot into the flock, and two big ducks was his reward. Now, at
last, there was to be a feast! Roasted duck! But again they
were doomed to disappointment. The storm had wet them through to
the skin, and their matches were useless. Consequently, no fire,
no steak; and the ducks were eaten raw.
After having rested through the night and
breakfasted on another piece of duck, they continued their journey.
During that day they discovered a wagon track, which they followed, thinking
it must lead to some settlement. It was very indistinct, and sometimes
even lost, but it was fortunately found again. Towards evening Mr.
Aasen became so weak and tired that he told Mr. Gilseth to continue his
way alone, but after having slept awhile he felt so much better that they
resumed their walk, though they were obliged to leave their bundles of
clothes, only carrying their rifles. They walked about that whole
night, and in the morning found themselves by a river which they supposed
to be the Big Sioux river. But now the question arose whether to
follow the river up or down to reach their destination. Finally they
decided to follow the river on its course downward. Soon they came
to a hay-stack, and thinking that now they must surely find some people,
they made a thorough search, but no one could be found. Later they
came to a bend in the river, which they forded in order to shorten their
way, and following the river the whole day and part of the night finally
came across some new-mown hay raked up in small piles, and near by found
a wagon box which Mr. Gilseth recognized to be the same that John Thompson
had taken with him from Goodhue county.
Encouraged by these discoveries they looked
around further, and soon found a door to a dug-out on the hillside.
Here they knocked, and this time they were not disappointed, as a friendly
voice from within bid them enter. Opening the door they found a room
occupied by two white men, who, they soon learned, were hunters stopping
there while hunting game in the vicinity. This was near where Dell
Rapids is now located. The wagon box they had seen proved to belong
to Mr. Thompson, the hunters having on their trip from Sioux Falls borrowed
the same from him. The starved and tired wanderers were well received;
the hunters abandoned their bed in their favor, and slept on the floor,
and the following morning drove them down to John Thompson’s, where they
received a hearty welcome. And thus ended their perilous journey,
and two more sturdy pioneers were added to the young settlement.
Mr. Gilseth took up land in Mapleton township,
when he gradually improved for a future home. The first three years
he only staid on his claim long enough to keep his rights under the homestead
law, the other part of his time he worked out. During this time he
came to the conclusion that “it is not good for a man to be alone,” and
in the spring of 1870, returned to Goodhue county, worked there during
the summer, and in the fall, in company with quite a number of new settlers,
came back to Minnehaha county. In this company was a Miss Anna P.
Moe. Shortly after their arrival the first marriage ceremony in this
county was performed by Pastor Christensen; and Ole Gilseth and Anna P.
Moe since then have managed the Gilseth farm in unity and concord.
Mr. Aasen took up land in sections twenty
and twenty-nine in Sverdrup township, there he still resides and has a
good, comfortable home.