HARD WINTER BITS © nansie cleaveland PIONEERGIRL.COM MUSKRAT HOUSES ARE VERY LARGE, WHICH OF COURSE INDICATES A COLD WINTER. CORN HUSKS ARE THIN, WHICH MEANS A MILD WINTER. IT IS A DEAD LOCK. – De Smet Leader, September 27, 1884. 1-8-8-1 DE SMET January 18: last passenger and freight train, no mail taken out until March 19 February 16: letters brought by six men and handsled (Tracy to Pierre) February 18: supply of flour gone. Wheat ground from now until May 6 March 1: snow too soft for horses; men followed railroad grade March 4: next mail delivery, including papers and letters, by team and sled March 6: pleasantest day in months, thawed a little March 15: snow over top of barn on two sides, horses snowed in, hens commenced laying March 15 - April 15: horses and loads driven on crust of snow; drifts 6-10 feet March 19: mail taken out by sled/team March 29: estimated mail delivery in 2 weeks April 12: again estimated mail delivery in 2 weeks April 12: took until noon to feed/water two horses; drifts and snowing some April 13: writer traded 18 eggs for 3 pounds of sugar April 15: wild geese in large flocks April 16: last sleigh ride of 7 miles; snow soft and 20 inches deep April 23: snow all gone April 25: prairie fires May 1: First mail by railroad May 6: in the middle of sowing wheat & oats & planting potatoes 1-8-8-0 May 6, 1880 [Brookings Co. D.T. PRESS] – Wheat fields begin to look green and the outlook for a good crop thus far is very favorable. --- Mr. Charles E. Simmons, land commissioner of the C&NW Railroad, was on the train Monday evening and was very much pleased with our town (Aurora), and remarked about its healthy appearance and substantial buildings. --- Fred and John Gehm, who worked on the section here (Aurora) during the winter have taken homesteads and timber claims out in Kingsbury county, and are moving their shanty out there. --- Dirt is flying between Lake Preston and De Smet and Saturday night will see the grade finished to our town. (De Smet News) --- Huron was surveyed Monday, and in less than twenty minutes twenty-six lots were located by as many different parties. So we are informed by parties just in from that place. That’s one of the towns that’s going to boom. --- Show us a State or Territory where the local press is doing more for the interests of their part of the country that is the press of Dakota. Dakota may attribute a great deal of her rapid development to the generous and telling work of printer’s ink. (Roscoe EXPRESS) pioneergirl.com May 6, 1880 [Winona Daily Republican] (from Edwin Wheeler at Huron) At De Smet… we met Mr. Hopp, of the Press of Brookings and Times of De Smet, who says he will positively be on the ground with a seven column paper inside of ten days. May 12, 1880, Wednesday [New Ulm MN Weekly Review] – This vicinity was visited last week by no less than four hail storms. Considerable window glass was broken in some localities. --- As the building being erected at Tracy for the U.S. Land Office will not be completed, by a few days, as soon as was expected the office will not open for business at that place until Saturday, May 22d. The office will be closed at this place today as announced. HARD WINTER BITS -1- © PIONEERGIRL.COM May 13, 1880. Thursday. The Redwood Gazette, Redwood Falls, Minnesota – The tree from which the Big Cottonwood river derives its name is described at length in the Lamberton COMMERCIAL of the 6th. Its trunk is 24 feet in circumference, and its lowest limbs about fifty feet from the ground. The tree is located about five miles northwest of Lamberton, and is described as towering above the bluffs of the vicinity. --- New Ulm celebrates the 25th anniversary of its settlement on Sunday, May 23rd, by a picnic at the City Garden, the proceeds to be applied to the cemetery monument fund. --- The Winona & St. Peter Railroad Company has given official notice that the station heretofore known as Burns is changed to Springfield, to correspond with name of the post-office of that place. --- The Lamberton COMMERCIAL notes the damage done in that vicinity by the storms of last week. --- There is a very great increase in the foreign immigration to this country this year. The arrivals at New York during April were 46,148, which is 3,405 more than during April, 1873, the largest number ever before landed at that port in any one month. The total arrivals at New York for the first four months of 1880 amount to 81,262, against 22,814 during the same period last year. It is expected that even this enormous increase will be exceeded the present month. About 60 per cent. of this immigration is destined for the West, Minnesota receiving the largest number. A striking characteristic of the immigration this year is the large proportion of hardy young people, many of them Scandinavians, who come chiefly from agricultural districts, prepared to purchase lands in the West. May 13, 1880 [Brookings Co. D.T. PRESS] – Mr. J.C. Stebbins, one of the grading sub-contractors, was here this week, looking over the line westward, on which he has a contract. A force of his graders went out to the work Tuesday. Mr. Stebbins has turned over the first sod west of the Jim and proposes to have fifty teams at work within a week. (Huron Settler). --- A long train, drawn by two engines, broke into three sections as it came over the hill, east of town, last Monday. The middle section had no brakeman upon it, and was absolutely free to run as fast as it chose. Down the grade came the head section with its two engines, followed closely by the “wild” piece. They shot through town at a thundering pace, causing men, women and children to rush out and see the chase. Down the grade they went four miles to the Sioux River, through the bridge like an arrow, only to stop in their mad career where the grade on the other side checked the speed of the hindmost section. No damage done. May 19, 1880, Wednesday [New Ulm MN Weekly Review] – The effects of the U.S. Land Office at this place were packed up and shipped to Tracy last Wednesday, but the office will not be opened for business at that point until next Saturday, May 22d. --- The Lamberton Commercial is informed that the prayer of the petitioners for a new post office midway between Springfield and Lamberton has been granted by the Post Office Department, and the post office will be known as Sanborn. [named for Sherburn Sanborn] --- Severe storm last Wednesday night. May 20, 1880. Thursday. The Redwood Gazette, Redwood Falls, Minnesota – Showery and cool during the week. --- A cheap barometer. Put a small quantity of finely pulverized alum in a long half-ounce vial, and fill it with spirits of wine. When the atmosphere is dry and clear the spirits will be clear as crystal, but on the approach of rain or bad weather the alum will raise in the center in the form of a spiral cloud, which is said to be an infallible indication of rain or bad weather. --- W.H. Owens is listed as a County Commissioner. May 20, 1880 [Brookings Co. D.T. PRESS] – Hon. N.G. Ordway, of New Hampshire, was appointed Governor of Dakota Territory. Settlers were not happy, wanting a Dakota man for the job. --- Seed corn sells at $1.50. Potatoes sell at thirty five cents. --- Somewhat windy weather lately. --- De Smet boasts of the longest side track along the line. --- They claimpioneergirl.com to have “struck ile” (Petroleum) near De Smet. --- An item going around says the Dakota Central is built one hundred miles west of Nordland. Our road don’t want any more change that it is entitled to. Knock off fifty miles of that story and it will be about correct. But the other fifty will be done in thirty days. May 26, 1880, Wednesday [New Ulm MN Weekly Review] – Last Sunday was another rainy day. --- The passenger travel on the Winona & St. Peter railroad just now is immense. Nearly every train has from one to three extra coaches attached. --- The depot at Herron Lake was struck by lightning and burned to ashes last week. The HARD WINTER BITS -2- © PIONEERGIRL.COM warehouse at Sibley was also similarly burned. A man and team at Walnut Station were struck, but only a colt was killed. [Marshall Messenger] May 27, 1880. Thursday. The Redwood Gazette, Redwood Falls, Minnesota – Thunder showers and measles prevail extensively. --- A cyclone passed through Mitchell, D.T., Monday evening last, doing much damage and killing several people. --- The Chicago & Northwestern railway company have put in force a new set of rules to govern news agents which will give travelers relief from their importunities to a certain extent. They must be clean and neat in their attire, and polite to passengers and others. Only one agent will be allowed on each train. They will not be permitted to individually importune passengers, but they may announce in a low tone, at intervals not exceeding three times in each car, the article that they may have for sale. They will not be permitted to deposit papers, books, etc., on the seats of the cars, or in the laps of the passengers.