Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1906-09-20
BIRTH OF NEW TOWNS
YEAR HAS SEEN MANY BORN
IN NORTHWEST.
Map shows 1876 New Ones, Most of
Them in the Dekotas-New Meth
cd of Boom Surveys
Fix Sites.

New towns are being born in the
Northwest at the rate of one every third
DAY, writes a correspondent Of the Chi
cago Daily News During the past twelve
months a total of 136 new dots have APP
peared on the map, most of them in the
Dakotas. According to figures obtained
from railroad officials, twenty-seyen have
been built along extensions of the Mime
apolis and St Paul railroad. thirty-three
along the Great Northern, seven on the
Milwaukee and St Paul, forty-nine on
the 500 lines. twelve on the Northwestern,
four on the Burlington, ten On the Du-
luth, Rainy Lake and Winnipeg and five
on the Minnesota and International. All
these roads have under construction or in
contemplation extensions that will add a
hundred more towns before the close of
1907.
Ordinarily it is the railroad official who
puts his finger on the spot on the map
where the new town is to be. But the
railroad official is not the first to go into
the new country. Into the inland pro-
ceeds a diminishing advance guard
of men who would speculate on the town
sites. These real pioneers select what
they think will be a town site and then
await the railroad.
Move When 1t Doesn't Come.
And when the railroads surveyors come
along and fix the town few miles away
as is often done, occurs the most remark
able spectacle of all this busy business of
making a new country. In years gone
by the town off the line would have tried
to bride the railroad to come its way, or,
failing, to build a spur. But that fashion
| has gone out of style.
Nowadays the town off the line very
calmly puts business and residence houses
on wheels or skids, hooks them to forty
horse teams or big threshing engines and
begin a procession across the prairie to
where the railroad town site has been
marked out At such times the newcomer
must not be surprised to see a completely
equipped bank going along the great
kings highway of unbounded rolling land
in tow of a thresher, its employees trans
acting business as they go.
Nor must the visitor be surprised if,
| passing along the unseamed prairie he
| should suddenly come across a group of
| signs in the middle of a wheat field an
nouncing John Smith will open a gen
eral store on this lot" or This is where
the Farmers bank will soon be doing
| business" These legends mean that this
is the spot where the town trailing across
the prairie will stop. For the town sites
are always laid out weeks in advance of
| the coming of the railroad. Towns were
moved in this way in the case of Platte,
S. D., which was snaked thirty miles
| across country, and, only a few weeks
ago, by Dallas, which moved all its be-
longings over to Gregory, on the railroad
| line, in the Bonesteel reservation.
Railroads Are Arbitrary.
The railroads are decidedly arbitrary
about where they put the new towns.
Their town site department handles the
sale of lots and opening of business, but
the sites are fixed largely by the survey
ors. Usually the towns average ten miles
apart. Level places are preferred for
them, as then the trains will not be in
danger of "stalling" on a grade. The
town site determined upon, the lots are
| laid out The plaza usually marked out
for the modern town of the West is sight
| ly. Ordinarily the town is on the north
side of the railroad, to act as a snow
break in winter. When the proper time
arrives the lots are advertised for sale al
an auction.
On DAYS of town site sales the scene
takes on the appearance of a Fourth Of
July celebration. People come for man!
miles. There are picnic parties on the
grass, ball games in the wheat stubblt
or on the virgin prairie, foot races ant
other vents" characteristic of a gala day
All over a certain price paid for the
lots is donated to the public improve
rnent fund. Lots about the plaza usually
sell for $500, the price running down t
$50 at distance from the center of the
town. Lots are decided to future board:
of trustees for the building of public
schools and to the extension department.
of church organizations, regardless o
creed. Lots often are donated to cream
cries, -four mills and minor institutions
to induce them to locate and help tht
town For the railroad companies ar,
usually as much interested in seeing thes
towns prosperous as are the settlers.
Many Of the investors in these town.
are salaried men from cities. who prefe
to take their chances of growing rich witt
the new country. These men pay small
balances down and the remainder is GOV
cred by mortgage The prosperity o
these new towns is indicated by the fac
that one railroad that sold 1000 lots
handling 100000 in twenty-seven new
towns in the last year, had only two de
faults of contract Out of these sam
twenty-seven towns, twenty reached tn
800 mark within the year and most o