The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1916-05-29
J. j. HILL DEAD
AFTER A BUSY LIFE
(Continued from page ~
were with Hill when he died. although
Hill was not Catholic.
A Busy Life.

A Busy Life.
A history of the life of James Jer-
ONE Hill is history Of the develop
ment OF the northwest. His was per-
haps the most thorough influence in
the development of this vast expanse
Of almost half a continent over which
his railroads extend. Fifty years
ago today Hill was dock clerk In
St. Paul-practically penniless. To
day his fortune is millions.
He was born near Guelph, Ont /,
September Is, 1888. His parents,
James and Anne HILL were plain, hard
working Scottish and north of Ire
land stock, whose best asset was
their ability and willingness to work.
This trait they transmitted to their
son.
Hill wanted to be great surgeon.
This hope was blasted by the death
Of his father when he was fifteen. He
went to work and the actual strug-
giles against the conditions Of life in
the thirties in Canada, gave him the
ruggedness of the pioneer, taught
him the doctrine of work and fur
nished him with the physical vigor
that made 1t possible for him to ma
terialize so easily.
Hill came to St, Paul in July, 1850.
Without technical preparation Of any
sort, he took a job as clerk with q
steamship company. He held this job
for nine years.
Two years later he married and
went into the general fuel and trans
portation business tor himself He
was the first man to bring mineral
oh he sol a
time he got his first experience in
railroad work when he accepted po-
sition as station master on the only
railroad entering st. Paul. When he
came to ST. Paul the railroad system
of the northwest ended at Galena,
ILL.,, just 271 miles from st. Paul.
Communication with that point was
by stage coach in winter and by
steamboat on the Mississippi in tho
summer.
In 1870 Hill organized the Red Riv-
er Valley Transportation company
and began the development Of the
great Red River valley. Out of this
plan grew syndicate that finally
took over the ST. Paul and Pacific
railroad, out Of which grew the Great
Northern railroad.
A railroad running from the pres
emit site of st. Paul to what is now
Minneapolis, a distance Of about ten
miles. was the foundation upon which
the great system Of Hills railways
was built.
This was the Minnesota and Pacific
railroad which ran between st. Paul
and ST. Anthony, a city that occupied
the present site of Minneapolis.
The 1857 panic halted the compile
ton of the road. In 1860 the road
went into the hands Of the state, who
turned 1t over to Edmund Rice. 1t
went into the hands Of the receiver
again In 1873, with seven mortgages
aggregating $33,O0O.GOo against it..
Holland capitalists held the interests
and they desired to unload. George
Stephen, now Lord Mount Stephen:
Donald A. Smith, afterward Lord
Strathcona and Norman w. Kittson
bought the defaulted bonds from the
Dutch holders, and placed Hill in
charge as general manager.
The three promoters raised much
money, and in May 1879 organized
the st. Paul. Minneapolis and Mani
toba railroad with capital Of $15,-
100000. The Red River and the
wonderful commercial possibilities of
Winnipeg were the immediate goal OF
Hill. But the enormous influx from
Minnesota, pushing over it's western
boundaries into the Dakotas, caused
the road to be pushed in that direc-
ton, as well as toward Winnipeg.
Branches and feeders were thrown
out. These lines today form the net
work of lines in Minnesota and the
Dakotas.
In 1889 the Great Northern was or
ganized, to merge all the branches
and feeders that had become too
large for the limitations OF the Mani:
toba line. The same year, the line
under Hills direction, was pushed to
Puget Sound The same year branches
Of the Hill controlled road nosed into
the ore producing country OF northern
Minnesota. Organization Of steam
ship companies, operating with the
orient, through Seattle, and in con-
junction with Hills trans-continental
railroad system was the next step in
his building career. In the meantime,
the Northern Pacific, second ST.
Paul to the coast road, had been put
through.
But a Chicago TO the coast line was
needed and in 1901 the Hill interests,
n