Cut Bank pioneer press. [volume] (Cut Bank, Mont.) 1909-current, 1916-12-29
FEW DAYS AGO there died in

N Missoula at the age of 49,,
~ Judge Frank H. Woods, VINO
came to Montana before any man
now living. He entered the
borders of what is now Mon
tana in 1856, driving a team OF
oxen, and when he arrived at the site
of Missoula, he found an encampment
of 800 Indian lodges where the city
was to rise. He became the first may
or of Missoula, and from 1855 to
1880 served as county clerk and re-
corder, which, in the later years, was
combined with the post of probate
judge. In 1859 he was elected a
member of the ter. ftorial legislature
for the counties of Missoula and Deer
Lodge, but as there raj doubt of the
legality of the session that followed
he did not attend. He lived for SO
years in the same house in Missoula,
which was situated co~nsecutively in
the territory Of Washington, the ter
ritory of Idaho, the territory of Mon
tana and eventually in the state of
Montana. AS a matter of fact, he in
forms us in a memorandum he left
that he really lived in four territories
and one state, while yet within the
boundaries of Montana.
when I first came to what is now
Montana" he wrote, land lived in
Grass valley, within eight miles of
what is now the city of Missoula, the
country was then Washington terri
tory. 1 then went to Bannack, in
1852, at that time in the territory of
Dacotah; then in 1854, I came back
to He'll Gate, five miles below the
present city of Missoula, which was
in the Idaho territory; then it became
Montana territory and then the state
of Montana"
In 1859, MI. Woody, with the as
sistance of Henry Brooks and James
Holt, made a pillow that turned the
first furrow ever made in the He'll
Gate valley-or in Montana with the
exception of the missionary settle
ment in the Bitter Root valley.
Many Months of Hardship.
1t was only after many months of
hardship that Judge Woody succeed
ed in making his way overland to
Montana. While he was in Utah
he was obliged to walk 100 miles for
a job, living as besc he could on the
Mormons enroute. He afterwards
oolu " hlLAoOAL II ~ ShN
two companions of this trip: 81 think
we were the first three original
tramps in the United States" His
associates were Jim Kingsley, from
Indiana, who had joined the Mormon
church in hope that living thereby
would be made easier; and Sam
Ballingee, a native of Kentucky.
I'VE had a consultation" wrot'
Judge Woody in telling of that ex
perience, land I might say formed
trust. Sam put in his rifle an
pouch and powder-horn, Jim his blan
ket, and I, my experience. Afte
some discussion, we agreed we woul,
subsist on the Mormons by passin
ourselves off as Mormons and beg
ging our way. We drew straws t
see who should attempt to get some
: thing to eat, and the one to whor
the lot fell to do this was to continu
}. in that business during that day.
think We were the first three origila
tramps in the United States, and W
: followed the methods very closet
that are pursued by the tramps of tn
. present day.
Meat an Unknown Quantity.
"The houses along the road wer
scattered, but we. never passed on
without asking for something to ca
Occasionally we would get a sma
piece of bread, but never any mea'
that being an unknown quantity wit
us at that time. In this way we SUI
ceeded in getting enough bread t
keep our hunger down to a certai
= extent and finding some place wher
we could lodge, which was usually i
an clubhouse.
If "After walking Is or 20 miles, "
stopped one day, just efter noon, {
quite a farm house on the side of tn
h road for the purpose of trying to @,
something to eat. This was Jim
W day to provide. We went to til
is house and found three or four ladit
and a number of children, but no ma
was seen. Now Jim had gall the equ;
of any man I ever saw. He wei
4 around to the kitchen and il,
told that we wanted somethir
to eat. One of the ladies sal
they did not have anything
give us, that they were short
provisions themselves and peop
IF were travelling by all the time ar