The Dickinson press., 1889-02-09
Dickinson.

ceSSful town building III the faf eSI.
1t has grown steadily without the aid
of real estate speculation OF any uf the
arts of advertising SD often employed
to push new towns ahead of their sup
porting territory. In 1881 it consist
ed of IL section-house, Il ~water-t;ink
and Il single farm house. In 1882 the
first store was erected. In 1889 Il
newspaper was established, and Il des.
perate adventure it seemed at the
time, for there were hardly Il hundred
inhabitants to draw on for supports
That year the railroad company
built shops and made the town the
terminus of two freight di-
visions. The ~ farm of 1881 be-
longed to Hon. w. $. Dickinson, of
st. Lawrence County. New York. and
its success. under the management of
his cousin. attracted settlement to
the handsome rolling prairies sur
rounding the new town. The most
hopeful impetus which Dickinson re-
celved was from the cattle trade. The
place was Il convenient shipping sta
ton for IL large extent of range lying
north and northwest. on the Little
Missouri and the lower Yellowstone
and the stockmen and their COW boys
were liberal customers ut the business
houses. So trade increased, tlourished
and the town grew from year to year
until it car now count ut least Il thou
sand residents.
This is IL solid and creditable result
of sever years growth for place well
out OH the frontier of farming settle
ment i'm Western Dakota, and one
with So little developed country
around it that the sliirmish line of
pioneer farms can almost he seen
from it's streets. Surely the Dickin-
son people have good reason for pre-
dieting the expansion of their village
into a large town when the prairies
shall be filled with settlers. These
prairies are u%pheaved in wave-like
ridges, alternating with broad and
nearly level valleys. Here and there
are higher ridges with an occasional
tlattoppcd or conictl butte rising to Il
height of three or four hundred feet
above the general level. The soil is
IL brown loan, which is easy to culti-
waite and does not get sticky after
rains. There is no season of impassi-
bic roads. In two or three days after
the snow goes Off the wheeling is
everywhere good. In winter there is
ordinarially nearly three months of
sleighing. Autumn is the most agreca.
BILE season. Nine days out of ten, ut
least, are days of unclouled skies.
Flowing goes on until the middle of
November. and there are no draw.
backs to the pleasure of open-air life,
unless the wind should blow strongly
from the north and you have to face
it on il long drive.
Seeding is done i'm latter April OF
early May as soon as the ground is
free from frost for Il depth of four OF
five inches. The moisture from the
thawing ground below gives the grain
IL start. Usually there is little or nu
rain till June, when copious showers
r,l1 ;,.t ,t tln {ir,n ,nnlnl NJ,
more rain is expected until after har'
vest, unless it he a mere s%prinkling
from Il passing thunder cloud. The
annual rainfall would come far short
of being suilcient for agriculture if it
were distributed throughout the
months from April to November us in
the Eastern States, but here it is
mostly concentrated in Il few weeks
There has never been Il bad failure of
of crops in this region. Even in the
year of phenomenal drouth the set.
tiers got some return in wheat and
oats for their labor. The common be
lief is that the rainfall is increasing
This year there was enough for any
sort of a crop. Still the region is ;
little too far west and too near tho
borders of the dry region of Montana
were irrigation is essential to agricul
ture, to be regarded us Il future coln
try of large wheat farms, like the Rec
River Valley. Its advantages are 70.
stock raising and mixed farming on
comparatively small scale. 1t is
good country for Il homestead settle,
who will keep cattle, horses and sheep
putting up OIL fodder, and millet ~
we'll as wild hay, and cultivatine
! small fields of wheat, oats and barley
The climate is woderfnlly invigorat
l ing. many settlers say that the new
T. sense of robust health they enio,
more than c%ompensates them for TIN
lack of such comforts and social pleas
I urcs us are wanting on the frontier.
] Dickinson people feel proud of TIN
. handsome court house of Stark county
of their elegant public schools. of TIN
new Stark County Bank building AM
, of the steadily increasing number o
, pretty residences which tell of a set
tied home.life. Cheap fuel is an ad
vantage enjoyed in common with al
the settlements in western Dakota
An enormous vein of Ignite has re
Gently been opened near the railroa'
Il few miles east of the town at plac
called Lehigh and shipments are nov
! made to the stations east and west
The settled country only extends fiv
miles south and about seven mile
), north of town. Beyond it is all va
cant and the even-numbered section
are all open to the homestead an