Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1892-12-08
IN THE EARLY DAYS.
Experience of Pioneer Presby-
terrain Minister in South
Dakota
He Recalls His Numerous
Thoughts On Entering the
New Country.

I
Early history is always interesting.
More so if local and always so If of
ones country, state, county or town.
Rev. j. b. Currens, founder OF the
Presbyterian church of Woonsocket
writes to the Church Bulletin, the
Official organ of the Presbyterians,
the following "reminiscences of
Dakota:
''The history of the early days in
eastern Dakota Is a ~ohderous story.
No country was ever settled Sc
quickly, except perhaps Oklahoma.
The railroads were built and people
came pouring in all at once. Whole
counties were settled In a single
season. Sanberh C5uhty had forty
school houses built in one year and
Woonsocket grew to 1000 people in
twelve months. When l came to
Dakota in May, 1879, she had but one
railroad-the ore from Sioux City to
Yankton. There was no Parker,
Mitchell, PlankintOn or Chamber
lain; no Woonsocket, Howard or
Madison; no Brookings, Pierre,
Huron, Redfield or Aberdeen, Yank-
ton, the territorial capital, was a
place of perhaps 1000, and Sioux
Falls a village of 700. There was
not a state institution located, or a
college in the country except a small
normal school at Springfield.
1--WE held our FIRST territorial Sun
day school convention that summer
at Sioux Falls, but there was neither
conference, presbytery or association
for perhaps two years after that
There were perhaps not a half dozen
ministers Of tall denominations in the
state. Two Presbyterian churches
had been organized, one at Swan
Lake, and one at Dell RAPIDS. Only
two Presbyterian ministers were in
the territory, Rev. Ticiare of Dell
Rapids and W. S. Peterson of Beloit.
1.-THE population was confined TO a
narrow strip along the Missouri and
Sioux rivers. l felt az if I could
stand on the Iowa hills and throw a
STONE almost to the last settler on
the Dakota side. / well remember
my impression when j landed at the
end of the track at Beleit5 H., on the
railroad then building from Sioux
City TO Sioux Falls. After supper /
! walked across the bridge on the
| Sioux river, and as l set foot on
Dakota SOIL the field OF my future
labors, l said TO myself: Now you
are out of the United States, YOU
! are Oh the verge of civilization, on
the very ragged edge
81 climbed the hills to get a good
view and looked with straining eyes
over the treeless waste toward the
| setting sui, and wondered what there
could be out there for a missionary to
do: and then when l came to Swan
Lake and Cameron, county seats of
Turner and McCook counties-which
two counties composed my parish
with less than a dozen Houses, / said
to myself. Well, the board of home
missions has made a mistake this
time. Here is a man wasted and all
that will be paid him. There are no
peopIe here, what did they send me
here fur~- Z rad been very Jealous for
home missions, and as to achoice of a
field out in Iowa or Dakota, l had
chosen the front. i was going for a
missionary for all there was IN it, but
| this was too much for me, and /
was greatly cast down when ! saw my
field.
ut was useless -foolishness-a
dream to think of being useful here
but l could not go tack for / had not
money enough. / suppose | would
have been on the frst train If l had.
However, it was well / had not, for /
soon got into the spirit of the country
and imbibed that wonderful faith in
the future which brought the
thousands OF settlers and built the
cities the railroads and the colleges
of a great state. The Northwestern
and Milwaukee railroads were just
building and the people came pour.
ing in everywhere. / became so
enthusiastic that l wanted to speak
all over the country l had seven
appointments in as many different
neighborhoods and frequently rode
forty miles and preached three times
on the Sabbath to reach the people
with the gospel.
after four years at Parker, and
starting the work where there are
now six churches, l came to Woon-
socket. Two other Presbyterian
ministers had occupied Forestburg
and organized churches there and at
Denton or Diana or Artesian City, as
it is called now; they had also held
services at Milwaukee Junction a
temporary town built on the prairie
a few miles northeast of Woon-
socket-where the two railroads were
expected to cross. / came to take up
the work of Woonsocket, Forestburg
and Diana"