The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1906-12-14
PIERCE COuNTY.

flerce county, as is we'll known by
the old settlers, was formed of what
was once old DeSmit county with
portion of Bottineau, Rolette and Nc
Henry counties superadded, the old
DeSmit county comprising but strip
of land twelve miles wide east and
west and about thirty miles wide north
and south.
The land was surveyed in 1884, and
placed on the market for settlement in
March, 1885. The first actual settler
was Frank Creek, who worked with
the surveying crew in 1884 and squatted
on section &c, township 157, range %,
in February, 1885. In April of the
same year his three sisters arrived
from the East and filed on adjoining
claims, and for several months they
were the only representatives of the
fair sex With possibly one exception,
to be found between the Mouse river
and the settlement in the Mauvaas of
Big Coulee, which empties into Devils
Lake. Closely following them came
John o. Anderson, E. H. Mcbride,
James Moffett, Chas. Erickson, Karl
Julsrud, Thos. Walsh, VIM. Hamilton,
Hag'bart Hermanson and George w.
Sewell, who was we'll known as "the
rustler," because Of his active dispo-
sition. The majority of these gentle
men arrived during the months of May
and June, and the early settlement of
Antelope valley and what is now Pierce
county was fairly established.
Practically all these sturdy pioneers
set to work turning the virgin soil
with determination to win, and their
success can be judged from the appear
ance of the county at this time and
from the large farms which are owned
by these hardy pioneers, most of whom
are still living in the county. They
are not a class of men who become
discouraged at the sight of possible
failure, for If they had been they would
not have been here today, and the
county would still be the home of the
Buffalo. They turned the virgin soil
with breaking plows drawn by oxen,
and sowed their seed only to have 1t
devoured by the gophers, the young
grain scorched by the hot sun in dry
weather, or the nearly maturei grain
taken by the frost before it could
be of any value. This was their ex-
perience for several years, but they
held faith in the future of the county
and labored on. They raised fair
crop in 1887, and were rewarded by
typical North Dakota bumper crop
few years later-1891.
Their nearest railroad station was
Devils Lake on Minnewaukan, and the
nearest postoffce was Newport, located
about one mile west Of the present
site of Towner. With a team of oxen
it was long, weary road to market
and not made very frequently.
In1S8 6 the st. Paul, Minneapolis &
Manitoba railroad (now the Great Nor
thern) was extended from Devils Lake
to Minot which passed through Pierce
county from east to west, and branch
line was also built from Rugby juno
ton to Bottineau, which made thirty
eight miles of railroad in the county.
The growth of any country can best
be shown by a comparative statement
of the amount of business done in the
Office of the reigester of deeds and the
increase in the assessed valuation of
both real and personal property. For
the first ten years in the history of
the county there were but GAG papers
filed for record in the office of the
register Of deeds. From April /, 1899