History of New Rockford: January 29, 2024

On Aug. 25, 1906, the founder of “The Transcript,” Joseph W. Hays, was in for a short visit; it was the first time he had been in New Rockford since he left in 1886.

On Sunday, Aug. 26, Phillips Academy principal L.J. Aldrich preached in Harvey; he returned on Aug. 28.

On Aug. 27, James Lahart came up from Jamestown to look after business interests. State Scale Inspector D.B. Wellman was in town greeting friends. Miss Gertrude O’Connell returned from Minneapolis. Lumberman Matt Fritz’s father arrived from Ashton, Iowa for a visit. At 2 p.m., the stockholders of the Farmers’ Elevator met at the court house.

On Aug. 28 William Starke brought in the first load of new wheat and sold it to J.A. McAuley of the Dakota Elevator; it graded #1 Northern and yielded 22 bushels per acre. Clayton Hall received his new 30 h.p. Avery threshing engine; it was the first of the “locomotive” type in the area. Isaac Hartson came in from Minnesota to visit his daughter Mrs. E. Starks and her husband. That afternoon, Frank Gregory came up from Barlow. John Monahan returned from St. Paul, where he had delivered a carload of fat cattle the previous week. Mrs. Charles Hartson and daughter Miss Alice arrived to visit relatives, including daughter Miss Ruby Hartson. Mrs. H.W. Wilson and children went to Leal, N.D., [in Barnes County 20 miles northwest of Valley City] to visit for a couple weeks; Mr. Wilson spent Aug. 31 to Sept. 2 with them. That afternoon, William Steinbach purchased and left town with a 46x64 Garr Scott separator; he expected to begin harvesting in two days.

On Aug. 29, Frank Prouty brought in a load of wheat which he sold to J.E. Bennett of the Great Western Elevator; it graded #1 Northern and weighed 57 lbs. to the bushel. Martin Walsh came in on business; he expected to start his threshing rig on Sept. 3. Mr. and Mrs. D.H. Fowler returned from Minneapolis and the encampment. C.A. Parker, George Pincott and Hiram Carr returned from a business trip to Devils Lake. Miss Eleanor VanDuzer stopped in New Rockford to visit Mrs. Granville Egbert, her husband and other friends; she was on her way from her home in Decatur, Mich. to Rolla, where she would again be the assistant school principal. Herman Lundquist, the oldest brother of Olof Lundquist, arrived from New York for a visit; it had been 19 years since all the Lundquist brothers (Herman, Olof, Conrad and Hjalmar) had been together. Mrs. H.G. Hudson and son Lester left for a visit with relatives at Dawson. Mrs. Lila Brown left for her Iowa home after visiting relatives and friends in the county. Miss Olive Couch went to Jamestown to meet her mother, who was returning from a visit to Iowa and would go on to her home in Bismarck; Miss Couch returned to New Rockford the next day. That afternoon, A.J. Clure and his father drove to Harvey on business; they returned the next evening. Also that afternoon, Clayton Hall started up his big threshing rig. On the morning of Aug. 30, Whitman and Winslow started their threshing rig and worked on “some feed stuff;" “Transcript” editor A.C. Olsen was invited to eat in their cook car. They moved out the next day to begin harvest work. Joseph Christ and W.G. Carter were in for harvest supplies. Miss Elizabeth Trainor returned from her claim near Turtle Lake. A.D. Smith returned from Indiana. James G. Dailey started his big threshing outfit; a number of threshing rigs were already at work. That afternoon, Ed Stitzel got his threshing rig busy harvesting. Also that afternoon, two tramps got into a fight on the depot platform and one was quite seriously hurt. When Sheriff George Fahrer appeared, the winner took to his heels, but Fahrer, disregarding any dangerous weapon the man might have, gave chase and cornered him in the Powers lumberyard, where he tried to hide under a pile of lumber. Fahrer arrested him and deposited him in the jail. That evening, Mr. and Mrs. John Von Almen entertained sixteen young people at a party in honor of Miss Vera Tyler, Mrs. Von Almen’s niece [in another edition, she is described as a sister]; the card game “progressive peanut” was played and light refreshments were served.

The Aug. 31, 1906, “Transcript” was Vol. XXV No. 1. That edition complained that several merchants were leaving their empty dry goods boxes on the sidewalks, allowing hardly enough room for pedestrian use.

The brickwork on the Farmers and Merchants Bank building was complete and contractor Clark was busy finishing other work. The Powers Elevator Co. was putting up a series of 16x72 coal sheds east of the tracks and opposite the Powers Elevator.

In addition to his regular blacksmith business, John Olson was doing a lot of repairing of threshing machines and engine boilers. Blacksmith Nathan Stanton and his assistant Roy Greitl were similarly busy. Wagonmaker R.U. Austin had a force of four men and was still behind in completing his work. Olof Lundquist and his two brothers Conrad and Hjalmar were repairing eight threshing machines.

F.C. Davies was walking with a limp, the result of a fall from the building he was putting up for his cement block factory.

On a recent afternoon, Mrs. C.H. Babcock and Mrs. M.R. Fritz planned a lawn party for 35 young ladies in honor of Misses Katherine and Doris Maddux, but a light rain interfered and the party was moved to the Opera House; music, first attempts at learning the waltz and refreshments enlivened the party.

F.H. Dutee from Morris had purchased a new Buffalo Pitts separator. James MacLachlan had recently sold a two-year old driving mare to people in Carrington.

During the week Vice President Hart of the Streeter & Cooling Land Co. had been showing land to potential buyers from Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. S.D. Packard of Bradford, Ill., had been visiting his sister Mrs. B.W. Rantz and family and checking out some land he had purchased.

The previous week, Mrs. Ellen Abernatha arrived from St. Paul and was visiting her daughter Mrs. Elmer King and family. Mrs. May Keime and Miss Wanda returned from a visit with Mr. and Mrs. S.P. Boileau [sp.?] and family in Kidder County; Mrs. Keime was Mrs. Boileau’s aunt.

On Aug. 31, Miss Dora Beer returned from Valley City, where she had attended the summer school. Thomas Hunt, clerk at the NP depot, returned from a visit to Boston. Mr. and Mrs. M.E. Williams and baby arrived from Minneapolis and moved into the Hotel Mattson until they could find a residence. Hardware owner Frank Hays went to Brinsmade and spent a week looking after the operation of two threshing rigs in which he had an interest. Miss Vera Tyler went to Jamestown, where she would teach in the city schools. That afternoon Miss Nellie O’Connor left for Pisek in Walsh County, where she would teach the Primary grades.