Daily press and Dakotaian. [volume] (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1875-1880, 1880-02-06
uprHe I'M
Maxwell City and 10 Surroundings-olivst
and lOsyend.

and osyead.
midtown. Tee Duslasss lastltutasns. Jts
improvements and Prospects,, aud
-Four miles east Of Scotland, on the Jim
river, 10 Maxwell City, named in honor .oi
John Maxwell, the pioneer settler. Here
is the Touring mill Of Parmenter 4 Max.
we'll. which has 0 plenty Of water and
is doing = prosperous business. Around The
mill is a cluster Of houses, among them the
store Of A. w. Lavender. the merchan,
prince Of the place, and . building
to which is attached . gaudy sign conveying
the information that Schlits's celebrated
Milwaukee beer can be Obtained by apply.
ing within. In front Of this building are /,
score OF more of diminctivs transplauted
trees, two or three of which would cast a
shadow the size Of y whip stalk, and in the
foreground a large sign board, bearing in
prominent letters the legend "Summer beer
garden" As snow was falling rapidly and
mercury occupied an humble petition some
distance below the freezing point, this sum
mer resort did not present sufficient attrac.
lions to interrupt the journey Of the stage
driver and his solitary passenger.
The country around Maxwell is we'll set.
tied with good farmers, whose improvement.
and other surroundings bear the impress Of
thrift. si
At Maxwell the road crosses the river
on the mill dam, which nswer the pur.
pose Of a bridge, and continues on the cas-,
side Of the river to Olivet where the river
is recrossed on q bridge erected'a year OF
TWO ago by the county. About two mile.
above Maxwell the Milwaukee road emer.
ges from q narrow %ravine, crosses the river
on q bridge Of first class appearance, the
narrow valley on a succession of EN-.
bankments and tressel work and disappears
in another ravine in the direction OF
Scotland.
Olivet, the county seat Of Hutchinson
county, having been missed by the railroad
and not being favored by any special advan.
tage to give it a boom, has not made any
noticeable progress of late. 1t is, however
surrounded by a we'll settled and very ex.
cellent farming country and will always re.
main a distinctive feature of the Jim river
valley.
Fifteen miles above Olivet is Milltowp,
the capital of Armstrong county, and is
reached over a magnificent stretch of rolling
prairie land. Six years ago there was not a
house or an acre Of land broken between
Olivet or Scotland and Milltown. Now the
land is all claimed, and a majority Of it &C.
cupied BY actual settlers, whose improve.
ments dot the landscape in every direction.
There is a postofice, midway between
Olivet and Milltown, at the house of Mr..
Bellen, who is the postmaster. The princi.
pal business features of Milltown are the
Touring mill and a large mercantile estab.
lishment, both owned by our townsman, NJ.
7. Woolley. The former is managed by
Dave Spencer and the latter by George
Miner, both former Y%anktonians. The
mill was erected by Daniel shearer, the
pioneer settler in this portion of the valley,
and, w believe, he still owns an inter.
est in it, from which he receives
q rental from Mr.. Woollev. The store.
which is the only one in the town, is sup
piled with a large stock of all kinds of
goods demanded by q farming community.
and as the mill attracts farmers from 6 large
and tolerably we'll settled area of country,
it is doing a large and profitable business.
Another store building. constructed of stone
from the qusrries which abound 10 the
vicinity, is nearly completed and will be
occupied as a drug store by Mr.. Spooner,
deputy treasurer of Armstrong county.
DIR. Wixon. of Yankton. We were informed.
will soon remove I, Milltowu open an Office
10 the drug store aud attend to the ills
that flesh is heir to 10 that portion of the
valley. A c%ommodious church building,
for the use of the United Brethren society,
is In course of construction and will be
completed early 10 the spring. A contrac,
has been let BY the county commissioners
to David Shearer for the building Of q
bridge across the Jim at Milltown. This
will Re q great convenience to the
people in that section and will bring Ia
Milltown during the summer season a larger
amount o trade of the settlers on the east side
Of the river than it has heretofore enjoyed
Although Milltown's hopes of getting the
Milwaukee road were not realized, it is by
NO means played out. It presents signs o
vigorous life, and when the inevitable rail.
road is built along the valley it will receive
its boom which will place it in the from,
rank of the future cities of the Jim river
valley.
From Milltown northward the road lies
in the valley and brings the traveller in view
of all the settlements along the river. Two
miles ont is the postofice Of Martells and