Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1890-02-21
EARLY DAYSlN DAKOTA
TRIALS AND TItIBULATlOSS OF THE
PIONEERS.

l1ONS OE IllE
PIONEERS.
The Sioux Valley in observation-disclosures
Ir%dians-Tie First White Woman in
DaSota-A Primitive Flag Made from
Red and White Shirts-The First Ser
mon-Clay County in the Way Back.
n. kolken, of Volga, who is gathering
data for a history OF the Sioux valley, is in
receipt OF the following letters in regard to
pioneer times. j. w. Evans writes from
his present. home, Crawford, Neb.:
Our colony, under the name of the Dn-
kota Land company, pulled out from st.
Paul, Mimi, for Dakota, Sept. 81, 1857,
under the guidance Of Maj. f. j.. Dewitt
and A.. q. Fuller. They now live
at Aankton, S. D., with their fam
! lilies. There were twenty one persons,
all told, eleven of whom were left at
Medary. Their names 1 have forgot.
ten-eScept Brown, Dingley, Merritt and
30 Lessee, our interpreter, a Chippewa
half breed. There We're also three lett at
Flandreau, Merritt and Koe-the other
name l do not remember. The remaining
seven went to Sioux Falls, reaching there
Oct. l3, 1857. Their names and former
homes We're: David Mcbride, Lafayette,
Ind; J. L.. Fisk, same place: James NJ.
alleA' S4eNeliuu, W., DUNES w. MCCALL,
Minnesota; VIM. Little, Maine; Henry
Merrill, Illinois; James W. Evans, Ak
ron, ..
Our first trouble with the Indians, the
Yanktonais Sioux, was June -, 1858. 1t
was then when Medary and Flandreau were
sacked and burned, the colonists barely
escaping with their lives-and stock, suf-
fering many hardships in the stampede.
Then was when Fort Dakota at Sioux
Falls was built of sods and logs, eight feet
high, four feet at base and two feet at top
of wall, with port hoes every few feet. \
flag staff Was raised from which was I'M
furled the stripes aud stars made from
shirts of red and white by the first white
woman in Dakota, Mrs. Goodwin. L
donated two shirts and D. Mcbride one.
The stars were made of blue calico.
The flag and the port holesin the sod wall
had quite a soothing influence on the ma
raudels who decamped in double quick, l.
kept the pioneer flag until a few years ago
when, on a Fourth of July occasion, I
foolishly loaned it and have not seen it
since.
Mrs. Goodwin accompanied her husband
to Julesburg on the Union Pacific railroad.
He was shortly after killed by someone.
Mrs. Goodwin was an excellent woman
kind and charitable toward all. She pos
oes'ea lnoAe lIan "oEidnlS courage. que
always saw that her shotgun vas loaded
and ready for the approaching redskin, and
no one could use it better than she.
The Western Town Site company, of
Dubuque, was also represented at Sioux
Falls by eleven men under pay to hold their
town site and do the work necessary.
Judge w. w. Brookings, now at Sioux
Falls, was their agent. They brought with
them q portable saw mill which supplied us
with lumber. Their names wese: Two
Brookings, brothers Of Judge Brookings,
l.. B. Atwood, Albert Kilgore, DIR. j. L.
Phillips, all from the state of Maine, near
Bangor; John Mcclellan, ireland; Smith
r Kingsley, Dubuque, H.; three others,
: whose names | don't remember. Kilgore
| and the brothers of Judge Brookings re-
| lips died at Sioux Falls. John Mcclellan
lives at Sioux Falls. Smith Kingsley re-
9 turned to Dubuque.
. In the early spring and summer of 1855
l we received an addition to our number
about twenty persons, mostly from Mime
sofa. Mr.. White, wife ard infant daugh.
: ter, Ella White. came in June, 1858. Mr.
l White, 1t is supposed, was surprised ant
murdered by white men for his money
9 about 5000, and a line horse he rode at the
. time. Mrs. White died in Yankton. Til
: uuuRulef Llla married soHle years ago, Du,
l don't know her name nor where she re-
sides. q.
Henry Masters succeeded Judge Brook
ings as western town site agent. lie was
elected provisional governor Of the squat
. ter legislature, of which body [ was 8
member, in October, 1858. Mr.. Masters
preached the first sermon at Sioux Falls
that was ever preached in Dakota. His
sermon was in support of the Sweden
borgian faith. He sickened and died and
} was buried ON the bluff Immediately west
of the island above the cataract. He was
also the first white man to die a natural
death in Dakota.
Our entire party left Sioux Falls Aug.
%, 1862, after the loss of two mem. L.
Amidon and his son, Willie Amidon, who
, were killed by Indians. We buried their
| bodies and left three days afterward fol
; lankton, where We fortified and drove the
Indians back.
Tjeran a. johnson writes from DeForest,
? Wis.,: lt
+ In June, 1862, 1 came to Clay creek,
in Clay county, which is about four
est daughter, Anna Maria, was born
the 18th Of November of that year. In
August. however. we were driven
= away by Indians and had to flee to Sioux
City, where We staid a month. We then
returned to Clay Creek and were there I'M
til March, 1868. AS our %neighbors did not
return to Clay Greek, my wife and L did
not have the courage to place ourselves in
jeopardy a second time, for which reason
we found it most sensible to leave what
little property we had brought with us and
return to Wisconsin.