Omaha daily bee., 1909-12-15
LANRO HAS MOVE IN SIGHT
lnty Seat Of Trip Must Change
Site to Get to Railroad.
SURVEY MISSES IT TWO MILES
Interesting Fight Under Way he
tween TOvnsite Men-TwO New
Towns MAY BE the
ReauIt.

momentous one in Trip county. the por-
ton Of the Rosebud reservation recently
opened to settlement
As a result Of this weeks happenings the
thriving young city Of Lamro, designated
at the June election as the county seat Of
Trip county, and now a prosperous COM
munity containing about nifty business
buildings and many spick and span new
residences, will probably remove to a newly
selected site two miles north Of Its present
location and a fourth Of a mile from the
proposed townsite of Winner, the foster F!
child Of the Northwestern railroad and
the Western Townsite company OF Dallas,
For more than two years Lamro has been
steadily growing and expanding on tho
theory that its geographical location in
the almost exact center of the new county
would bring to It not only the court house
but the extension OF the Northwestern rail
road when II should leave Dallas on its
ultimate way to the Black Hills country.
Lamro was founded by the Lamoureaux
brothers Iolfvsr and wnliam), who are
Of French and Indian extraction. on a
site which their sire had many years ago
proclaimed as the natural location for a
large and prosperous settlement.
brOtneFa TOOK IN OnAF FeWs
Their corporation was a close one and
they admitted only II. +. Slaughter of
Gregory, refusing other white men a share
in their undertaking. From the first Il
appeared slated for a successful future, and
soon lots were selling at a merry pace and
buildings we're springing up as If by magic.
A 5000 hotel. a large general store, two
livery barns and other ventures which
we're initiated in the fall Of 1907 were fol-
lowed in the two succeeding years by a
multitude Of business establishments, until
the elimination Of its hopes and anxieties
appeared to have been reached with the
erection of the court house and Jail and
big public school building last summer
That the railroad would come to Lamro
was the firm opinion OF the Lamroites
and despite the fact that the Northwestern
surveyed two miles to the north building
operations have never ceased for a day
and are still being pursued.
Meanwhile Ernest A. Jackson, president
OF the Western Townsite company OF Dali
IAA, has been quietly and persistently at
work gathering up land for townsite pur-
poses along the survey of the Northwest
ern and negotiating with the Northwestern
officials for exclusive townslte privileges.
80 ANe1Ab v ~ INV Bab
lished announcement of less than two
weeks ago that ne had perfected an agree
ment with the Pioneer Townsite company,
representing the Northwestern Railroad
company, whereby the Western Townsite
company OF the Dallas IL to control three
townsites on the extension of the road-all
north and west of Colome, the first town
west OF Dallass.
Hunt New sites.
The first was ocRted on section 2O-two
miles north and a half mile east of Lamro
the cost of the site being SO, 900 for s+C
acres OF raw prairie land.
The second and third are to be farther
west and do not interfere With any es.
tablished towns except Witten, which IL
ten miles from the nearest.
The lot sales were announced for
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of this
week-and with the announcement began
q struggle for the commercial and political
control of the county which bids fair tc
entail a long and bitter fight. Strong
financial interests being involved as vel
as the fate OF two cities and the remova.
OF a court house and county seat, the con.
test promises interesting developments.
Naturally the people OF Lamro wer,
panic stricken by the announcement tina
the railroad had thrown them down anC
were supporting the movement to estab
llsh another townsite at their very door
and before they had recovered their equi
poise Mr.. Jackson and his cohorts wer,
upon them with the alternative OF pullin,
up stakes and looming across" to thei
new town of Winner.
When they had sufficiently recovere,
from the shock, however, they resented thi
proposition and sought relief by purchas
ing from Chester Slaughter, the Dalla
banking rival of the Jacksons, Chri
Colombo and W.. II. Tackett, a quartz
section Of land two miles north Of thel
present location and just a quarter mil
west OF Mr.. Jackson's proposed Whine
townslte, This, too. is on the railroa
survey and in a strategically importan
position under the circumstances. II tn
road passes through one 1t must Of neces
sity pass close to the other,
NewLamrO.
The deal was quickly contaminated an
II is now anticipated that New Lamro wi
prove the haven OF refuge TO which a
loyal LamToities will fly.
With them they hope to carry the Lamr
postoffice. court house, school, three lars
general merchandise stores, four liver
barns, fOur banks, three hotels an
restaurants, several saloons and innumeI
able poolrooms, real estate offices, hare
ware stores, lumber yards. meat market
drug stores, blacksmith shops, aut
garages, the newspaper and other bus
ness utilities which viii make theirs II
real town and thus obviate either the nece
sitE or deslrabllity OF having anoth,
toWpslte located in that vicinity and dl
courage newcomers from locating there.
The fate OF the TOWNSHIP OF Winner seem
therefore, as much In the balance at tn
moment as does that OF Old Lamro.
With the lot sale at Winner schedule
for Wednesday OF this week excitement
rife and there Is an uneasy feeling amor
those who had been planning confident
on seeing the Lew town of Winner beeon
the only railroad town In the center OF II
county
And now the Lamroites are beginning
threaten retaliation measures by propo
inE to establish other towns farther we:
which will also be on the railroad surv,
and thus mix" the situation for the Yves