The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1919-11-20
A FOOT OF SNOW
and EARLY WINTER
Early Fall of Snow Starts Old Timers
to Recall Record Years

9Th central South Dakota received a
iment that piled up drifts everywhere,
and tied UP all work and traffic. For
two days the railroads abandoned
trains. wagon roads were practically
passable, building operations ended,
and corn was left in the Yields.
This was early winter with q ven.
geance, and many people believed il
was the beginning of another long,
severe winter occasionally experience
ed in the prairie states.
The 3S year pioneers of this locality
know of only two such winters. The
first was in the winter of 1880 and
1881. That fall some three or four
feet Of snow covered the prairies, but
there were few settlers here then.
The c. g. N. w. railroad had gone
through to Pierre in the summer Of
1880. The three sidings established
in this locality we're Siding two at
Washington, Siding 3, at st. Lawrence,
and Siding 4 at Rec Heights, with a
section man at each place. In addi-
tion to these there were probably only
three or four settlers in Hand county.
At Siding 3, now st. Lawrence, Char
les Sheppard was section boss, and
at Siding 4, now Rec Heights, John
O'Brien vas section boss. Their fam
lilies passed the winter with them.
Their railroad work was easy, because
no trains got through for about three
months, but they had quite a struggle
to obtain food and fuel. Mr.. Shep-
pard still residing at st. Lawrence,
and Mr.. OBrien lives at Long Beach,
Calf. There was no Miller at that
time.
Another pioneer of that winter is
still alive, and resides at Washington.
He is Judge Levi Hubert, who passed
the winter at his ranch in the Wes-
sington Hills.
The second winter Of record began
about October 2Sth, 1896, with a snow
storm that tied up everything just a
week before the close of the historical
presidential campaign between Nc
kinney and Bryan, when the great
financial issues were fought out by
republicans and democrats.
That first heavy snow never left un-
til the following spring, and was in
creased to a depth of three feet on
the level. However it did not remain
on the level very long, as it was
whirled into drifts twelve to fifteen
feet high.
The state legislature was in session
that winter at Pierre, and the c. &
n. w. railroad made g desperate CT
fort to keep the road open-to furnish
passes to the legislators.
"The Rotary Is Comm"
The drifts were too deep, and too
tightly packed in cuts for the ordinary
bucking snow piows, SO the railroad
company brought in three big rotary
plows. With these they managed to
get one passenger and one freight
train through a week. Then the cuts
would fill up tight again SO that a
team AID sled could drive over them,
and II rotaries had to cut their way
throu. again.
These big mountain plows were
such curosities to the prairie people,
that as soon as the word went out
1.-The Rotary's comm" everybody who
could booked to the railroad track to
see it work.
Severe Winter on Stock
The railroad just about managed TO
supply the snow-covered country with
coal and provisions, but the stockmen
of this locality had a fierce time in
pulling their livestock through.
Those who were caught short of feed
by the early fall of snow lost many
cattle and sheep, and some horses.
The latter, however, were better able
to rustic for themselves. Even those
with plenty of hay in stack had a
very difficult task to hand it in to the
feed lots The passageways from
house to barn and o~utbuildings were
shoveled out so many times that they
became deep bitches above head high.
Is This To Be a Third One!
When a foot of snow fell SO early
this year everybody wondered If we
were facing a third record winter.
While we all hope not, yet nobody
knows. 1t can be-as proven by two
others. so each Christian and layman
may well offer UP an appeal to spare
US a repetition of these two former
wintcrs-while they make ready for
any contingency.
Three or four days Of mild weather
has greatly reduced the snow. and Out
door work has been resumed. The
"old timer" recalls one fall. some 81