The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1920-08-06
SCENES OF PAST REVIVED
JUDGE LORlN CRAY READ
INTERESTING PAPER
Recalled the Days When Indians
Were Making Trouble For
Settlers

The following interesting historical
sketch was, read by Judge Lorin Cray
Saturday evening at Dunham's Falls
at the outing OF the Blue Earth County
Historical society, which. gathered
there and recounted events OF long
ago, when this part OF the state was
on the edge OF civilization. Mr.. Cray
told in a most interesting manner or
the building of sod fort at Judson
fifty-seven years ago. Over half a
.>ntury of summer l.nd winter storms
have not fully obliterated the marks
of the fort, the lines OF which can be
traced over the ground to- day. Judge
Cray helped to erect this fort.
About three hundred or four
hundred yards east OF Judson station
in this county the wagon road passes
through what appears to be ridges OF
earth two or three feet high forming
a rectangle about one hundred and
fifty feet square. 1t is not known by
MANY that this is the remains OF a
fort which was built in the spring of
1863 during the Sioux Indian trou-
bles.
when on August 10, 1862, the In
dian outbreak occurred, the 9Th Min
nesota Volunteers was being organ
lied as a regiment at Fort Smelling.
Very soon thereafter Company h COM
manded by Captain Dane, and with
Lieutenants Keysor and Roberts, was
ordered to Judson, which was then
merely a country postoftice, and Com
pany d of the same regiment was Or
dered to st. Peter.
Captain Danes company spent the
greater part OF the winter, which was
very severe one, at Judson, being
Quartered in some vacant building
there, scouting and doing picket duty.
I'm the very early spring OF 1855
Company e was ordered away from
Judson and Company ID was sent from
st. Peter to Judson. The offlcers OF
this Company were Captain Skaro
and Lieutenants Patton and Walker.
Captain Skaro was retained at st.
Peter as Commander of the post and
as drill master, and the Company
while at Judson was under the COM
mand of Lieutenants Patton and
Walker.
Awaiting For Grass.
at was expected that as soon as the
grass started sufficiently 20 furnish
food for their ponies that the Indians
would again be on the war path, and
the ground it was determined to build
fort at~Judson.
1T was at first attempted to build
fort OF limestone Of which there was
quite free outcroppings, and work was
was begun; but the stones were
heavy, and could not well be handled
without tools or machinery, and this
effort was abandoned, and places
were selected where tough sod could
be gotten and with a team and plow
this was broken up in burrows about
fourteen inches wide and four inches
in thickness and was then cut into
strips about eighteen inches in length
and carried to the selected place.,
some in wheelbarr Tvs and some by
those sods. 1t was begun with the
walls about four feet in thickness at
hand and this fort was built with
the base, and was mario vel to about
eighteen inches at he top, anil was
carried up about ten feet. Round
holes were made and strong double
gates of oak planks were provided on
the east and west sides, and the fort
was a really serviceable fertilization
as against such weapons as were car
ried by the Indians.
while the fort was being built,
which, was slow process at best,
word was received on several occa-
sions of renewed disturbances, and on
J1eSo OCCdS lOlS ofCiy dfdlduiC uldlh
was placed on picket duty, forming a
line from the. river on the north to the
high lands and prairie on the south,
the pickets being required to keep
their posts unrelieved from sunset
until sunrise. On one of these &C.
'casions l was one of three thrown out
In advance of the line where each of
us stood alone the entire night.
Provisions were brought by team
from st. Peter and taken across the
river at Judson on a rickety ferry
across the river, which rope on sew
Ieral occasions broke allowing the fer
ry boat to float down until it could
be stranded or landed.
This company was recruited very
largely from the country from Blue
Earth City to st. Peter, the greater
number being farmer boys, and with
a very few exceptions they were rig
idly temperate and had but little
patience with one who INDUCED in
drink to excess.
AT one time while this fort was be-
ing built, Lieutenant Patton went to
st. Peter for supplies, and it was re-
ported in the company quarters that
while there he drank to excess.
These young soldiers knew they
did not want to be commanded by an
Incorporate officer, but they knew
but very little about military disci-
pline, and they proceede to sign and
send to the Lieutenant petition
that he resign, upon the grounds that
he was disqualified to hold his office
because of his Incorporate habits.
1.-The result was that the colonel of
the regiment ordered all of the COM
pany under arrest and reduced all of
the non commissioned officers to the
ranks. This left no one to build the
fort, do the guard duty, cook the bacon
and distribute the hard tack and
things could not go on in this way
long with Indians on one side an den
ragged parents, wives, and other rela-
tives on the other; SO after a few
days the private soldiers were re-
leased from arrest, and the non COM
missioned officers were reinstated in
office.
During this time Lieutenant Patton
had remained at st. Peter, but now
he returned to the partially con-
structed fort at Judson. The mem
bers of the company, all still on the
warpath, heard of his coming, and
every man deserted the fort, and took
to the woods, and when the Lieuten-
ant arrived not man was to be seen.
He soon returned to ST. Peter and
"~~'"~od n drty there, and peace
reigned once more.