- The First Seventy-five Years in the Sanborn Community (1878-1953) -

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Dedication

We dedicate this History to the Pioneers living in Sanborn and vicinity, to the memory of the hardy Pioneers who chose this spot for their homes in those days when it was almost a wilderness, who by their labor, diligence and judgment converted it into the rich inheritance we enjoy today, to the Pioneers who have sought other fields for their homes, and to all the people of Sanborn and surrounding country on its Diamond Jubilee September 10 and 11, 1953.

Historical Committee.

The Pioneer of O'Brien County

He came, he saw, he toughed it through.

He roamed the prairie wild,

He plucked the wild sweet williams rare,

This early roving child.

He broke the sod, he twisted hay,

He lingered through those years;

Grasshoppers were the reapers then,

His children oft in tears.

He fought with debts, chewed rosin gum;

His wife built chicken coops,

And from the tumble weeds she made

Those dainty ox-tail soups.

The homestead shanty was his home,

For beast a grass-thatched barn,

And yet to him ‘twas “Home Sweet Home.”

Where wife his socks did darn.

He had no coal, he had no wood.

For fuel he burned hay.

And when the hay gave out he burned

Machine notes he did pay.

The skies cleared off and land went up,

The sun shone on this spot;

When the discovery was made

‘Twas Eden’s garden spot.

The railroad screeched and blew,

And yelled, “Where is that town?”

That town sprang up while it passed through,

And held that railroad down.

The elm, the ash, the maple twigs,

They grew and grew and grew.

For wind breaks, groves and park and shade,

When wind it blew and blew.

The modern house and barn were built,

The auto hove in sight,

And then the pioneer was glad

He’d fit that scrappy fight.

Now when, at last, at heaven’s gate.

You seek that heavenly rest,

Of all that’s good and great and grand,

Iowa boasts the best.

When for this best the state you roam,

In O’Brien you’ll find your town.

Just keep your eyes a squintin’ ‘cause

Sanborn holds that railroad down.

- Copied from O’Brien County History (with exception of last stanza).

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