History of New Rockford: Aug. 26, 2019

From Aug. 15 to Aug. 18, 1902, Mrs. Will Carroll and Miss Helen Oliver were in from Lake Washington to visit relatives and friends.

On the afternoon of Aug. 16, the Republican county convention was held in the court house. George Gillette and George A. Lovell came in as delegates. The chairman of the central committee, E.B. Thomson, called the convention to order. James Hackney and R.M. Kennedy were elected temporary chairman and secretary respectively. J.D. Carroll, a candidate for the North Dakota Senate, and Matt Mattson, candidate for the North Dakota House, were given the privilege of naming the delegates [unnamed] to the Legislative Convention.

Nominations were opened for county offices: A.J. Ford nominated W.C. Schwoebel for county auditor; J.T. Shauers nominated J.R. Winslow, who declined the nomination; Schwoebel was then nominated unanimously.

Other candidates were nominated with no opposition: J.E. Bennett for sheriff; A.G. Gardner for register of deeds; Ole Hendrickson for county treasurer; E.T. Quam for county surveyor; Dr. William Bartley for county coroner.

W.C. Beardsley was nominated for county judge over J.L. Kinnaird 33 to 23.

Grace B. Putnam was nominated by a vote of 34 to 21 for county superintendent of schools over A.J. Ford.

It was a three-way race for clerk of court with C.J. Stickney emerging as the winner with 33 votes over E.R. Davidson with 16 and W.C. Hayes with seven.

Nominated for justices of the peace were J.R. Winslow, R.M. Kennedy, C.C. Manning, and Henry Heiple.

For constables it was Joseph Christ, F.C. Davies, C.A. Peterson, and George Setz.

J.G. Dailey was nominated as County Commissioner for the First District and James B. Dafoe for the Third District.

Nominated for assessors were S.O. Lee, First District; John Schaefer, Second District; Hjelmer Sylling, Third District.

The following were named to the county central committee: J.R. Winslow, New Rockford; F.L. Kermott, Sheyenne; William Cornish, Tiffany; J.D. Carroll, Colvin; Gullick Gullicks, Pitt; Clayton Hall, Rocky Mountain; Frank Hawthorn, Dutee; E.J. Horn, Fay; James Hackney, Hall; W.H. Chamberlain, Sheldon; and P.M. Mattson, chairman and committeeman-at-large.

That day A.H. Johnson drove down from Sheyenne. John O’Connell returned from a month in Minneapolis, accompanied by his daughter Miss Della, who would remain several weeks. O.H. Foster was in from his farm northeast of New Rockford on business. John Henry was in town. Peter Harrington came in from Cartwright, Wisc., to visit his brother Patrick Harrington. Mr. and Mrs. John F. Goss returned from an eastern trip which included a stop in their old home town of Marseilles, Ill. Miss Pearl Henry returned from the Teachers’ Training School held in Fessenden. That evening Con Ulrich, a young German living in eastern Wells County, was run over by a separator which grazed the side of his body and seriously injured his head. Dr. C.J. McNamara was called to attend to his wounds.

On Sunday, Aug. 17, Father W.A. Gallahue celebrated Mass. W.H. Neimeyer, cashier of the First State Bank of McHenry, visited in New Rockford. Ben Fay ran a rusty nail through his foot, which laid him up for several days.

On the morning of Aug. 18, Alec Pottner took over as manager of the Great Western Elevator. Misses Martha Pomranke and Mayme [Mamie?] Clark went to the Teachers’ Training School in Fessenden. That evening George Mansfield of McHenry and McHenry merchant R.J. Howden became Second Degree Masons.

Also that evening the New Rockford School Board hired E.R. Thomas as the principal; Mrs. E.R. Thomas as the assistant principal; Miss Caroline Trainer for the intermediate department; and Miss Harriet A. Jefferson for the second primary. Still to be filled was the position for the first primary. The Board also passed a resolution adopting a series of readers, spellers, and geography texts, published by Rand, McNally, at a special price; the old books would be used as a partial payment. Exchanges by patrons could be made at the Buck & Couch Central Drug Store.

On Aug. 18 to 19, Misses Caroline and Harriet Waters were in New Rockford from the Hall farm northeast of town. Mr. and Mrs. J.C. Smith were over from McHenry. Miss Anderson came down from Sheyenne. Dr. and Mrs. Charles MacLachlan were in Esmond.

On Aug. 19, Rudolph Indergaard was in from his farm southeast of town. Henry B. Johnson was in from Plainview and John Shannon was in from the McHenry area, both on business. Charles O’Connell left for Minneapolis after several weeks visiting his parents west of town. Miss Hazel Oliver went to McHenry to take a position in the new bank. That afternoon Hotel Mattson chef Tillie Smestad left for Oxfordville, Wisc., where her brother was very ill; she returned on Sept. 4. Mrs. L.J. Brown left for a visit to her old home in Iowa for a couple months. Asenath Gardner returned to her home in New Auburn, Minn., after visiting her son A.G. Gardner and family. That evening despite a heavy rain, a number of her young friends gave Miss Pearl Anderson a surprise party at her home northeast of town. There were games, dancing and refreshments at midnight. Guests included Charles Baird, Ida Belcher, Mont Biggs, Blanche Brownell, Fred Davies, Hattie Davidson, George Dunham, Ruby Hartson, Ray Hester, Clarence Kennedy, Stella Pike, Guy Thompson, Albert West and Sarah West. Also that evening the 14-month old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Carlson died of cholera infantum. That evening a thief broke into W.J. Miller’s tailor shop on South Chicago Street and stole two suits.

On Aug. 20, there was a hearing before U.S. Commissioner C.J. Maddux for Gustav Kruger and Sam Somerville [one report listed the name as McIver] of eastern Eddy County on charges of perjury in making false statements against homestead claimants on an affidavit; they had been arrested by a U.S. marshal on Aug. 15. Mike Mulligan of Emerado was in to testify in the case. Somerville and Kruger were bound over to the federal district court. George B. Winship, editor of the “Grand Forks Herald” and register of the land office in Grand Forks, was in town for the case. John Dutee was in from eastern Eddy County. P.J. Boyle from the McHenry country, Fred Fife of the Fife & Turner store in Barlow, and Martin Anderson from Plainview were all in town on business, as was John Welsh. Jacob Portz was in from northeast of town. S.P. Pisel was in from his farm; several hundred acres of his flax were so hail-damaged he was not going to harvest them. Attorney R.P. Allison returned from his trip to Fargo and northern Minnesota. Mrs. Charles Culp returned from visiting her mother at Oberon. Miss Laura Conn, on her way from Butte, Mont., to her home in Keokuk, Iowa, stopped off to visit her friend Mrs. H.G. Hudson and family. Mrs. A.W. Cady returned from a trip to Minneapolis, where she had purchased her fall millinery line; Mrs. Cady had also bought the stock and business of Mrs. L.J. Brown. Mrs. E.R. Davidson went to Carrington to visit her mother a few days; she returned on Aug. 28. Mrs. M.H. Murphy and her mother Mrs. Dudgeon left for their home in Crookston, Minn., after visiting Mr. and Mrs. P.J. Hester and family.