Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-07-20
|SOne1hingAbOutthe Deceased
Millionaire From An Old
Time BisIRarcker
David Stewart Writes From
Chehalis, Wash, Giving
Personal ReCOIleCtiOns
Chehalis, Wash, July Is, 1907.

send you a clipping from the Port
land Oregonian of July 18th, 1907,
concerning the death of Peter Larson
of Helena, Mont, who was well
known to many Of the old timers Of
] Bismarck. 55sS5
ISfirst became acquainted with Pet
i er Larson at Brainerd, Minnesota,
in the summer Of 1872 or 1873. At
that time he was the owner of what
would then be called a team of plug
q horses, n and old wagon and harness..
and the total value of the whole out.
fit was not more than $3.50. He was
engaged in hauling freight from
Brainerd to the Leech Lake Indian
Agency.
met him three or four times dur
ing the years mentioned but do
not know what he was engaged in
I from 1873 until he came to Bismarck
In 1877. In the latter year the North
western Stage and Transportation
Company had made Bismarck its
headquarters, and was running a line
of stages to the Black Hills, and trans
Il porting freight with its own oxen
mules and horses, and also let con-
II tracts to individuals who furnished
II their own teams and wagons.
Peter Larson arrived in Bismarck
II to engage in freighting to the Black
Hills early in the sumner of 1877,
land at that time he had a team of
horses, a team Of mules and two Wag-
0ns, and I think his whole possess
sfons would not have sold for more
than nine hundred dollars. think
there were probably more than a
hundred men in Bismarck who could
shave bought all Lafson's property
without straining their bank accounts
While Larson was freighting to the
BLACK Hills he made Bismarck his
Headquarters, and the article enclos-
led is in error wherein it states that
he went to the Black Hills and en-
Egaged in freighting.. During that
q period hesWas always known as 4Pete
Larson
Soon after his arrival at Bismarck
4 The engaged in freighting to the
IB1ack Hills for the Northwestern
IStage Company, and Pete" drove
/ the horse team, and a man whom he
drought with him whose Christian
name was Jim, Z but whose surname
d I cannot now recall, drove the mules.
Jim was his right hand man for a
number of years Larson was mod
erately successful in freighting and
Il out of the first profits bought more
a teams ana wagons. T had business
transactions with him during all the
time he was In the neighborhood of
Bismarck, and from what he told
me I understood that he had to en-
Il dure hard toll and suffer severely
II from exposure. One spring on ac-
count of a severe and long continued
sickness brought on by exposure, and
b the bad codnitions of the roads which
lprevented his teams from earning
q anything, ne was in danger Of losing
a all the property he had, He had
bought some Of his teams and wagons
q from the stage conn any, and it al
q ways found it safe to trust him and
Z help him when needed. s
81 Freighting from Bismarck to the
IBlaek Hills practically ceased by the
& spring Of 1880. and at that time, by
q purchase and trade, Larson had &C
aIquired about seven or eight teams
land some heavy freighting wagons.
& The Northern Pacific Railroad Com
,sIpany then commenced to build west
s ward from Bismarck, and Larson
Invent into partnership with Mr..
q Shields, who had also been freight
8 ling to the Black Hills, and also had
E some experience In railroad constrnc-
I,tion, and the firm of Larson 8 Shields
Z took a subcontract of grading, and ]
think their first grading was about
twelve mics west of Mandan. I think
sILarson & Shields continued In part
I snership for consid eraDle time, and
-sEgthey moved westward as construction
progressed.
From the FIRST time I met him he
Twas good accountant and wrote 2
-lgood business hand for a person who
Ilahored as hard and endured SO many
ri bardshirs as{ hns did Nh DerSon cotil I'd
-Ithen have anticipated that he would
TIhave developed into one Of the abiest
i and most successful CAPTAINS Of In
dustry that the northwest has pro.
81 duced
He was temperate, economical and
Industrious, but thousands of men
who then, and since. were engaged IN
deyeloping the rest had all these quail
tiles. and the same opportunities. SO
we must conclude that Iii addition
= I r., fiss good lftias pf,ssessed by ga