Moving to Dakota Territory

Moving to Dakota Territory

When my brothers were old enough so they thought they could do a man’s work, they were given their time and went off for themselves. My brother, John, though younger than the others, taught school winters, so he got ahead somewhat faster than the others. In March, 1878, he was married and rented a farm in the neighborhood. He was able to buy a team and wagon and a few other needed things. One year as a renter, however, convinced him that this was not his type of job, and he began looking for another opening.

A neighbor of ours had a brother who had moved to Dakota territory in the spring of 1878, and with his two sons and two sons-in-law and settled between the village of Oakwood and Lake Poinsett. He began sending back to Wisconsin glowing accounts glowing accounts of the richness of the soil, the fine climate, and of the large half section farms the government would give to the settlers. One thing that was emphasized was that the land did not have to be cleared, but all that was necessary was to go on and plow and your farm was ready for cultivation and cropping.

Brother John decided to go west, so in the spring of 1879 I helped him to put a waterproof cover on his wagon and loaded up his few belongings. With his wife and three months old baby, he started to Dakota. Two weeks later while skirting the north shore and looking for a good place to camp, they stopped to ask a man if they could camp there.

“Sure,” the man said, “make yourselves right at home and if there is anything you want that you haven’t got, just hollar.”

In order to get acquainted, the man asked where they were from and John told him from Kilbourn, Wisconsin. The man got excited right away and said he had a brother living near there and said his name was Bob Ramsey. [Transcription note in the original: The name is Rob is this line. In the next lines it is Bob. Which is correct is unknown.] John told him Rob Ramsey was his father’s neighbor. Turning to the house, the man called, ”Hey, ma, here’s folks from brother Rob’s neighborhood in Wisconsin. Come out and make them welcome.” This was on Friday and they were unable to get away from those good people until the following Monday.

From Lake Benton on there were no roads-just a trail across the prairie. Mudholes and creeks had to be waded through, but at last they got through and found the friends were they were looking for. These friends helped them find a claim about two miles from Lake Poinsett. The nearest railroad was 35 miles away, but a store at Oakwood could supply them with most of their needs. Lumber was secured and a small one room house was built. Twenty acres of sod was broke in and later in the summer hay was put up and a sod stable built.

During the winter of 1878-1879, my two other brothers were married. Tom had been working in eastern Minnesota for several years and went back there in the spring of 1879. Jim rented a farm in Wisconsin for that year and in the spring of 1880 they both went to Dakota and got claims near their brother, John. We were getting many letters that summer from the West, and my folks were pleased that their boys were doing well, but my mother pined a little that they were so far away. I, too, became a little dissatisfied and longed for the larger opportunities offered in that newer country.

In June a man came into our neighborhood from Ohio and it soon became known that
he would buy a small farm if he found one to suit him. My parents talked the matter over and decided to offer our farm to the man, and, of course my sister and I were strong for this. Much to our surprise, the man decided to buy the farm and the deal was soon made. We began making preparations for our move to the West. We had to stay and harvest our crop and had many other plans to make, so its early October before we were ready to start. My brothers had been advised of our plans, and while they were glad to have us come, they were a little worried if people as old as my parents could stand the hardships of pioneering. My fatherand mother were not worried at all about this. If they could have their family all near, they could stand anything. Amnyway, I was young and taough and was supposed to take most of the hard knocks.