The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1910-11-11
THE OCTOBER
BLIZZARD Of 1880
SPUCk HUTCHlNS, A FORMER
DAKOTAN, WRITES AN IN
TERESTING STORY.
MANY LIVES LOST IN STORM
Tells of His Personal Experieace in
Running Hotel ON Short
Isatious.

winter following. written by w. T..
Doolittle for the Argus-Leader, and
copied in today's Journal, brings to
mind vivid recollections of the I'M
timely three-days' storm referred to
and the hard winter following. l was
resident Of Lake Herman, Lake
county, S. D., at that time. and kept
the little hostelry known as the
Lake View" house The blizzard
struck us about 10 O'Clock in the
forenoon of October IA beginning
with slight mist ! had a house
full of guests and for three days and
nights, had my hands full to keep
them fed and warm. My stock OF
provisions, especially meats, was get
ting low, and towards the last salt
Goldfish was served as last resort
in place of meat. At last, after three
dismal days and nights the storm
broke, and the most of my storm
bound guests departed for their
homes as best they could.
Jim" Longley, who was postmas-
ter at Longley, and also kept little
store on his ranch in Miner county,
about midway between where How
ard and Villas now stand, was on the
way home from Dell Rapids with a
load of supplies for his store, when
he landed at Herman in the blizzard
and hitched up his team and made a
start for home, but did go but few
miles from the hotel until he found
himself stuck in snow bank, so he
gave up the idea of making home
with his load and started for home
on foot. twenty miles west, which he
reached that night by following the
G. M. Il st. P. railroad grade nearly
the whole distance, the snow being
from one to three feet deep, with oc-
casional drifts much deeper. A week
later, after the roads became more
passable, Mr.. Longley succeeded in
reaching home with his load of sup
plies.
Lots Of stock persisted in this
storm by being either covered with
drifting snow and smothered, or chill
led to death. Down in Skunk Val
$50 head out Of one herd in which
William Van Fps, of Sioux Falls was
part owner, was lost.
After the blizzard there was no
unusual weather experienced until
about the middle of January, when
snow fell in abundance and all wa
gon and railroads were pretty much
blocked for traffic. l moved to the
new town Of Madison early in De
cember, the Chicago, Milwaukee &
st. Paul road having gone back on
their verbal agreement to give Lake
Herman station in return for right
of-way, etc, and most of the build
ings at Herman were later moved
to Madison also.
The Chicago, Milwaukee & ST.
Paul road was completed to Madi-
son on January I, 1881. Two or
three freight trains reached there
early in the month and one in Feb
ruary. after the whole town had
turned out and helped dig out some
snow-tilled cuts east Of town. and
then not another came until about
- INu al hC
bridges had been rebuilt that the
floods had carried ont when the snow
melted off Fuel and provisions were
scarce. and for weeks at a time nc
mail arrived from Sioux Falls. j
II, Hutchins Everybody In Siou'
Fails knows "Jim") was the stage
owner. but he couldn't find horses
with legs long enough to successfully
wade through tho drifts.
A man named Zclinsky. n Polish
man, who took u claim about twelve
Mtlee northwest Of Howard. IN Mine,
ts,unty, and Ind settled there viii
hts family. corsiatinx OF wife nnt
seSvrNl ANAL children. took his old
eat has, lad OF about twelve years
VI SaeA and With A yoke OF oxen ant
slast etAstea oNe day In tho latte
MART " alnnary Tor Longley's stor'
sSr uyavta,aaa, ,aat h,a way. wander
ina aver the teaeklena prairie for tw'
daye ana n,setp, and finally turnrt
M IN a,aht at Alexandria. In Nanso'
county, The haS'u feet we're -
bad,y tpNsen that hath feet had to b.
AMputated, After resting a day tn
father started back tawards home
hut never reached there, What WA
suppaaea to I've HIS hanea were foun'
aame years later The oxen. attll u
the yoke, Mere found near Salem
one dead and tho other nearly fan,
iahet. standing beaite hG lifeles