The Dickinson press., 1913-01-18
A BIT OF EARLY HISTORY
IN BLACK BUTTE COUNTRY

Last weeks issue of the Hettinger
County Herald had an hi s~torical article
contributed by G. S. Cryne. extracts of
which follow:
In the month of January. 1882, j. H.
Hoffman. official photographer of the
Northern P acifc Railway Company,
made a trip through the buffalo range
country south of the railway, and just
east OF. the Bad Lands. for the purpose
of obtaining views of the wild life of
the plains, and also the interesting
data for publishing one of the rail-
ways scenic pamphlets.
Hoffman departed from Sully Springs
for the range, and made such points of
interest as Buff lo Springs, 1nyan Kara,
the large coal deposit on Sand Creek.
Indian Creek and Black Butte and on
his return to the railroad made Glad
fstone his objective point.
Near Black Butte Hoffman found the
Emmett brothers-Bob. Pat and Jim.
where they had established their camp
ing place early in the fall of 81. AT
this place was a n%ever-failing spri &
of water and previous to this had been
a camping place. probably the place
where Capt. Powell and a company of
people were beseised by the Sioux In
dams about the time the u. S. forces
came up the Cannon Ball river on the
way to their encounters with the In
dams. This old corral or stockade had
been made by digging two trenches in
a circular form about a foot apart and
into these setting small trees with
their butts downward. Their tops we've
withed together and the space between
the ows packed as tightly with buch-
brush as vas possible.
The Emmett brothers were hunters and
had a good smoking and drying outfit
and unlike the hunters at that time.
utilized the most of the meat they
slaughtered. They frequently employed
Sioux squaws to help them with the
skinning and established several outpost
camps for the sake of getting where the
game was more plentiful.
This winter of 1882 when Hoffman
visited the Emmett brothers camp the
weather was equal to that of the pres
ent season for salubrity and remained
fine nearly all winter: construction of
water tanks and other buildings by the
railway were carried on all winter with
out hindrance or discomfort. and many
tales are told of the doings of the pion-
GERS during this ,phenomenally warm
winter al some of the few places where
men had ~congregated waiting for some
thing to happen when the railway COM
pany resumed construction the spring of
.'82.
Black Butts is situated on sec. ii,
twp. 135. range 81. Hettinger county,
and is a most picturesque sight. espec-
tally from a distance. looking as the
name implies. black to the eye in con-
trast to the usual appearance of a butte
at q considerable distance.
Among the views procured by Hoff-
man was McQuarrie's blacksmith shop,
the only one in that whole country at
that time. Another was Of George Muz-
zey's outfit Of mules and sheeted freight
wagons. 1t vas claimed at one time that
George Muzzey was the first white settler
in Hettinger county. but it was later
found that his du9out was just across the
line in Billings county and the late
William Colerove was really the first
white mar to settle in that county.
Thus the precarious existence of the
hunter plainsman and earlier pioneer
has given place to the modern appli-
canoes Of the farmer. and the bones Of
Pat Emmett are moulderins back to
dust on the little hillside just where
the prairie doe town begins south Of
the ranch house at Black Butte spring.