Chapter XI
In the fall of 1871 S. J. Cram came from
Allamakee County and settled on a part of Section 32, in what is
now Wilson Township, and still resides here. W.W. Cram, a brother
of S. J., also came in 1871 and filed on a part of Section 14, in
West Holman Township. He left here in 1882, and now lives at
Butte, Nebraska. A.H. Clark also filed the same year on Section
32, in Wilson Township. In Holman Township at this early day,
S. A. Wright settled on a claim, also the Halsteads, father and
son, F. R. Cole, O. C. Staplin and the Widow Rosenbury, and
Randolph Kinney on Section 28, in Wilson Township. S. A. Wright
was Treasurer of the County one term, and now lives at Beatrice,
Nebraska. O. C. Staplin still lives in the County on the original
claim, and is one of our pushing farmers. S. H. Westcott came from
LeMars to Osceola County and filed on a claim in the fall of 1871
on the southeast quarter of Section 22, Township 99, Range 41.
Mr. Wescott has held township and County offices, and now lives
in Sibley. In April 1871, there came from Allamakee County to
Osceola, Mr. E. Morrison, R. O. Manson, F. M. Robinson, W.W. Cram,
Myron Churchill and Thomas Parlan; these came to file on land,
and with them to see the country was Mr. McFarland. Mr. Morrison
settled on a part of Section 10 in Township 99, Range 42; Mr.
Manson on northwest quarter of Section 24, West Holman; F. M.
Robinson on ------, West Holman; Myron Churchill on a part of
Section------; and Parlan on --------, while Mr. Crum has
heretofore been described in his location. Mr. Morrison now
resides in Sibley, having been here since his first settlement,
except to return for his family in the fall of 1871. Mr. Manson
still resides on the claim originally taken.
After these incoming settlers had got here from Allamakee County,
they looked around and decided upon the claims they wanted. A
part of them then started for Sioux City to file, while Mr.
Morrison drove to LeMars to get some groceries, for there were no
provisions left, and it was a long ways to market. When Morrison
got to the Huff shack he found that Mrs. Huff was out of bread
and no flour to make any; he then had to drive to Orange City, or
where Orange City now is, before he could get anything for
himself or team. In the meantime he had left Robinson, Manson and
McFarland at Frank Stiles' habitation. This consisted of an old
stagecoach, approximating the Deacon's one-house shay when it fell
to pieces. Stiles had hauled it to his claim and placed it there
as a settlement which the law required. At this stage coach
Morrison left the three parties above named, they to wait until
Morrison returned with something to eat, but hunger got the
better of them, so they started on southeast to find somebody or
something to eat, and came across a shack near the Ocheyedan,
where Mr. Miller lived, but here there was nothing to eat so they
returned again to Frank Stile'' cottage on wheels. After about
forty-eight hours' absence Morrison returned, and by this time
Robinson, Manson and McFarland were in about the same condition
that Greeley was when discovered in the Artic regions. They were
handed out some bread, and the loaves disappeared about as fast
as water in a gopher hole, they couldn't wait for butter or
anything else, but soon the boys felt better with a satisfied
appetite.
W. A. Morrison, a brother of E. Morrison, came in July 1872, and
made settlement here, but left the county a few years ago and now
resides in Kettle Falls, Washington.
In June 1871 Rev. Smith Aldrich arrived in the county and settled
on Section 30, west Holman. When it became known that Aldrich was
a preacher, it was thought best to have services the following
Sunday, so E. Morris and some others went around to what few
there were and gave out the notice. The preaching was in Morrison
and Churchill's shack. There were about twenty-five present, and
the sermon, no doubt, was the first preached in the county,
though W.W. Webb claims that some other was the first. In the
fall of 1871 Mrs. Aldrich, wife of the reverend gentleman, died
on their claim. This was the first death in the county, and at
that time the undertaker's shop was far away so that Mr. A.M.
Culver made the coffin and Mrs. John Douglass stained it with
grape juice. The simple service and the funeral were impressive,
for Mrs. Aldrich was a woman much respected. Her body was removed
east some time after its burial here, and Mr. Aldrich himself
went away after remaining here a few years.
Mr. Wallace Rea came here in the spring of 1872 and settled on
the southeast quarter of Section 14, Township 99, Range 41. He is
now at the Soldiers' Home. At the first school election held in
the Rea district there were only three present; ---- Rea, O. C.
Staplin and J. S. Reynolds. Staplin was Chairman, Rea the
Secretary and Reynolds the people. A ballot was taken, and the
vote stood: Rea, 1; Staplin, 1, Reynolds, 1. On the second ballot
Staplin was elected. Reynolds declares that on the first ballot
he voted for Staplin and Staplin for Reynolds. At that time there
was much eagerness for the establishment of a school, and it was
all right in that feeling of personal anxiety for a fellow to
vote for himself as school officer.
Of the early settlers in Township 100, Range 41 (now Wilson
Township), but few remain. Will Thomas still owns the original
claim, and in this township he still retains his residence. On
Section 26 in this township are two early settlers. Mr. John
Klampe took the northeast quarter about twenty years ago, and
still occupies it. On the southeast quarter, Benj. Davis settled
in 1872, and has borne the burden and heat of the day from that
time to the present, farming the same piece of land. Mr. R. S.
Eakin also came to this township about twenty years ago, and
first settled on Section 8. He now owns 240 acres on Section 28.
On the southwest quarter of Section 14, Mr. Jacob Widman has
lived since about 1873. He has made very fine improvements, and
on his place there is a spring of very nice water, which we
believe is the only spring in the township.
On Section 32 lives C. P. Reynolds, who settled there in 1872, and
has lived there continuously since. He has good improvements, and
has been a member of the County Board of Supervisors.
The north tier of sections in Wilson, as in other townships on
the north bordering the Minnesota line, are clipped off, or
rather the surveyors run out of land when they reached the line;
or, as some one with bar-room proclivities remarked
""hey were lost in the shuffle." The absence of
this north tier of sections has been the cause of trouble to
some, as well as a loss of money, and has brought others to
grief. Some years ago several sharpers, who were of that class of
men constantly seeking opportunities to perpetrate a swindle,
actually made conveyance of some of these quarter sections which
had no existence, to innocent and unsuspecting parties, who took
the deeds all right and paid for the land, only to soon find out
they had bought nothing, and couldn't buy what the deed described
if they wanted to. Some of these villainous grantors were
apprehended and made to languish in the penitentiary, and to
suffer punishment for the crime which was involved in this method
of conveyance.
Allen Cloud filed in 1872 on the northwest quarter of Section 34,
and lived there until he died in January 1884, and was buried in
the Wilson Township Cemetery. His widow now lives in Sibley.
The only old settlers still living in Wilson Township are Will
Thomas and W. A. Cloud.
Mr. C. E. Yates, on Section 10, went there about ten years ago;
James Zweeck, on Section 14, about five years ago, and Mr. H. A.
Cramer, on the same section, two years ago. The Makee boys, on
the northwest quarter of Section 15, have been there some time.
Mr. Joseph K. Shaw, on Section 18, was reasonably early in
settlement, as he filed on a claim and made final proof in 1876,
and still resides there. On this same section resides Fred Theise
and Mons Sorem. On Section 22, the northwest quarter, W. J. Miller
filed, and still owns the land. The balance of this section
belongs to the Thomas family, with Clifford Ling as renter. F. J.
and J.D. Engle are living on the west half of Section 23, and on
the northeast quarter John Ackerson resides. Other parties in the
township, and among Wilson's best farmers, not before mentioned
are Terkark Benezek, on Section 24, and F. A. Klampke, on Section
25. Mr. Klampke has 320 acres, and has lived there about 14
years. The east half of Section 27 is owned by Claus Klepka, who
has lived in the township about two years. Mr. Comstock lives on
the southwest quarter of Section 29; also, on the same section is
H. S. Lindsey.
J. N. Robinson, on the northwest quarter of section 30, owns the
land, and has lived there about six years. On Section 31, Mr.
W. C. Connor owns the northeast quarter, and on this same section
lives Charles Hoffman.
Mr. A. B. Evarts is the owner of a part of section 32 and has
lived there seven years. W. A. Cloud is on section 33. This
gentleman has been in the township seventeen years, and would
pass for an old settler. On the northeast quarter of section 34
lives E. A. Beaston, while the southwest is owned by J. W. Kaye of
Sibley, and upon which there lives at present, Mr. H. S. Lindsey.
Mr. N.W. Williams who settled in O'Brien County in 1871, has
recently purchased the southeast quarter of section 36 and will
soon be a resident of Wilson. In 1871 W. N. Bull settled on the
northwest quarter of section 26. Mr. Bull still resides in the
county at Sibley.