Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1929-01-17
STRANGE ORIGIN
OF UTICA NAME
FOUR NEW YORK PROSECUTORS BE
LIEVED THEMSELVES CRAZY FOR
COMING TO SPOT
Quartet Recalls Tina Insane Asylum Is
Located in Utica, N. ", and Give That
Name to Spot That Became Supply
Point for YOgO Mine Rush
BY MRS. c. O. PHELPS

There is more romance connected
with Utica han with any other town
I'm the Judith Basin. Older han Fer
gus county even, 1t stands today a relic
Of the past. Many original buildings
still stand but with the coming of the
railroad and later the automobile 1t has
fallen into decay and all that remains
Is the judith Basin Mercantile COM
pany which also houses the small post
office, q few dwellings, and the large
community hall and the filling station
both of the latter being of a later vint-
age. The church Is closed and It's
membership scattered.
The school, originally a log cabin near
the cemetery, taught by Mrs. Dawkins.
grew to a four room building, with an
enrolment of 1875 pupils. but 1T has
shrunk to two teachers, with less h
so pupils. The old blacksmith show fs
falling to pieces and the hotel is closed,
YOgO Mine Rush
Utica settlement began when miners
made the rush to Yogo. There was not
enough gold for all so some took up land
and began q settlement. -Four of the
earliest settlers were j. D. Waite, Frank
Wright, o h Murphy and Joseph Cut
ting, all from near Utica, N. Y, whence
the new own got its name.
The story is told hat during a par
ticularly bad blizzard these men decided
that they must have been crazy to come
to this region n named the settlement
for Utica, N. Y, because an insane asy-
lum is located there.
In 1879 or 1880, MIR. Cutting started
the first store there in a little log build
ing, which also housed the p~ostofftce.
John Ferguson, Brethett Gray, George
Heiseman, Jakey Hoover. c. c. David, P.
w. Korell, l.. B. Divers and c. M Belden
were later settlers.
I1fira mac tho hpQdnI1arfprc for tho
Judith roundup. There was a storehouse
here, where the roundup kept saddles
and brides from year TO year and when
the numerous riders came to town with
500 horses this was the liveliest place in
central Montana.
Changes Hands often
The late Frank Wright, whose widow
lives at LeWistown became the partner
of Cutting In the store but Cutting died
and Wright was elected county treasurer
OF Fergus county, so he disposed Of the
store to Charles Lehman in 1885. Leh-
man later sold out the business to
George j. Bach. In 1898 the store was
taken over by the t. c.. Power company,
q corporation composed of T C. Power,
John Power, S. S. Hobson, Mrs. M. NJ.
Erickson, George j.. Weideman, w. D..
Finch and George j. Bach.
This was FOR a number of years the
largest store In the Basin, handling a
complete department store line as well as
hardware. Families often came so miles
to do their trading here. 1t continued
as a business center even after the rail
road came into Hobson but the advent
OF the automobile has affected it as 1t
has affected almost every other small
town store in the country.
No story OF Utica is complete without
mention of the fact that 1t was the
stamping ground Of the late Charles Rus
sell, the cowboy artist. The little cabin
where he spent his first winter In Mon
tar With Jakey Hoover is still standing
several miles above town. He rode night
herd here for q number of years INC
some OF the old settlers have specimens
of his work. p. w. Korell has some OF
his earliest sketches, Mrs. Zella Messner
Cowan, now OF Chicago, has a ive-foot
painting on a smoothed plank showing
the antelope hunt, and Mrs. c.. M. Bel
den has an oil painting depicting an In
dian scene called Sunrise"