St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-05-23
DAKOTA.
Grafton.
Correspondence of the Globe.

correspondence OF the Globe.
GRAFTON, OAK, May 20.-As your en-
terprising and ably edited paper has done
much for the welfare and advancement of
Dakota, presumed that few words de-
scriptive of the advantages of one of her
most promising cities would not be unac-
ceptable to your columns. We
Grafton is the gem city of the lower Red
river valley, beautifully situated on the
south bank of the Park river, twelve miles
west from the Red, forty miles north of
Grand Forks and about the same distance
from the national boundary, skirted on the
north by heavy ranges of timber and sur
rounded by the finest wheat fields in the
world, Grafton is laying her foundations
for future greatness. It is the county seat
of Walsh county and contains about three
thousand inhabitants. All branches Of
business are well represented. 1t
has two national banks of $50,O0O
each, doing good business. 49,.
A Sc, 900 opera house is now about COM
pleted. 1t is being built by q stock COM
pany. George Foley Of Fargo is putting
in for the city a system of water works for
fire protection, to be completed Sept. 1. 80.
A SIS, 900 high school is being erected,
and 800, 900 court house and Sc, 900 jail
We are now assured of a new Compel
ing railroad which will make this place its
terminus. >. We have 400-barrel day
Touring mill which supplies the whole sur
rounding country and towns with the
choicest flour, besides making large ship
mentS to Eastern cities. We have three
large elevators, and can boast of being in
reality the largest primary wheat market in
the whole wide domain of creation. Capt.
tai can find no safer investment than here.
DakOta's Growth.
Roscoe, in the central part of Edmunds
county, is good illustration of the growth
of Dakota towns. The townste was pur-
chased with scrip by Milwaukee colonial
ton company in 1888, before the land was
open to settlement A year ago there were
three rude structures, and almost no settlers
in the vicinity. To-day there is large and
flOurishing village, the metropolis of wide
scope of country, with hundreds, if not
thousands, of settlers. 1t has twenty bust
ness houses two firSt-claSS weekly papers,
three church organizations, public reading
room, four hotels and board of trade. 1t
is sixteen miles from railroad but has a
good prospect Of one road this summer and
two OF three more in early times. There is
fine opportunity there for bank and
various kinds of business. The Magnet
says that the spring of 1885 has witnessed
one of the most remarkable immigrations to
this section that has yet taken place. Train
after train arrives at the terminus loaded
with immigrants, their families, household
goods and farm machinery, and it is not an
uncommon thing to meet a cavalcade of
teams numbering 100, bound for some por-
ton OF either Edmunds, Campbell, Wal
worth or Mcpherson counties. These
people have come to stay, they have come
to develop the country and grow up with it,
They have witnessed, at distance, the sue
cess of their old neighbors, OF their old
friends, and have come here to better their
conditions, likewise. If the present immi-
grafton continues for three months longer
there will not be vacant government quar-
ter section of land left in Central Dakota, or,
for that matter, in Southern Dakota.