The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1917-09-14
EARLY DAY MURDER
FRED REEVE, OF THE HOWARD
DEMOCRAT. RELATES HIS
TORY OF LONG AGO CRIME.

Yankton, Aug. 31.-Thirty-fiye
years g a man named Hanson.
brought here for trial for numbering
a man up country, escaped from jail,
heavily ironed and was never seen
afterward. How the man ever got
away loaded down with chains as he
was has always been a mystery. This
week. in paving an alley, the old
irons we're found a foot under
ground. Hanson had pounded them
off with a stone and buried them.
The irons are now heavily e%ncrusted
with rust, and are an object of much
interest here TO old pioneers.
Howard Democrat: The above
item from Yankton recalls to the
writer the first murder case in this
section of the country. The Hanson
spoken of came to old Madison and
stopped for a few days at a hotel run
by Bill Lee. who was also sheriff Of
Lake county. Miner county at that
time not being organized. A fellow
by the name of Sorenson came 10 old
Madison, also stopping at the Lee
hotel. He had a good span OF horses.
wagon and camping outfit. also about
$500 in money. MAIDS Hanson. that
was the murderer's name. proposed
to S%orenson that they drive west and
look over the country. with a view
of taking land. They started and
the first night out camped at the
spring on the Shimerda place just
south Of Howard. In the night. when
Sorenson lay asleep. Hanson arose,
taking the heavy neckyoke and beat
out the brains of Sorenson. throwing
the body partly into the spring. He
took the money. hitehed up the team
and made his way out of the coun-
try. A few days after the murder a
party from the town of Herman.
headed by "Spuck" Hutehins. drove
this way on a prospecting expedition,
and while making camp at the spring
discovered the body. They at once
returned and notified the Lake coun
ty authorities of the murder. Joe
Walter. an old pioneer of Miner coun-
ty. and formerly a resident of How
ard, was o of Lake county at
the time and Joe, in company with
Bill Lee. the sheriff. and other par
ties came here, held a sort OF an in
quest and buried the remains i'm a
shallow grave on the west bank OF
the river. Just south of the spring
Bill Lee at once suspected Hanson
and after a diligent search he was
found with the team in his posses
sion. He was arrested and taken TO
Yankton. as this was the only jail in
this section of the territory. At the
time of his Incarceration he swore
that IL he ever got out he would kill
Bill Lee, and soon after he escaped
as above stated. Lee was on the
lookout for him again, and when old
Bill Lee got after a criminal those
days, he generally got him. He
found Hanson in Nebraska and rela-
tives and friends swore he had not
been out of the that state for a num-
Der of years, so Bill was Obliged to
let him go. Not long after Hanson
died. The grave of Sorenson can yet
be seen and several years ago parts
of the remains and clothing had beer
dug up by wolves and dogs and lay
exposed on top the ground near the
grave. At the time OF this murder
there was only one or two settlers in
what is now Miner county and none
at that time near the spring. Matt
Moore had filed on the land the sum-
mer before, gone back east and did
not return until shortly after the
murder.