In the year 1853, seventy-seven years ago, R.D. Kinney, a native of
the state of Vermont, came west into this territory as a missionary
among the Indians. At that time travel was not what it is today.
Railroads ran only as far west as the Mississippi River in Illinois.
From there to St. Paul, travel was by steamboat. From St. Paul north
all travel was by stage and dog trains. This was the route traveled by
Mr. Kinney when he arrived within the present limits of Royalton.
At that time settlers in this part of the country were few and
Indians roamed the land. Mr. Kinney preempted a quarter section of land
which according to the government survey made the previous year was
described as the southeast quarter of section 35, town 39, range 32.
That the reader may better know what part of the present village was
comprised in Mr. Kinney's holdings, we will describe the present
boundaries. Starting at the bank corner, east to the cross roads at
Skinner Corner, south to Riverside Cemetery, west to the old Catholic
cemetery, north to the place of beginning. Mr. Kinney erected a log
house near the south line of his property about 30 rods east of the old
Catholic cemetery. The house was located at this point for the reason
that at this time the military road from St. Paul to Fort Ripley passes
close to this location.
Soon after Mr. Kinney erected his house the government appointed
him postmaster of an office to be established, and the newly appointed
postmaster was asked to suggest a name for the same. In a conversation
with the writer some years ago Mr. Kinney stated that he suggested
several names, among which were "Burr Oak," "Platte River," and
"Royalton." The latter was the name of the village of his birth in
Vermont. His preference among the names submitted was Royalton and the
post office department decided on this name. Mr. Kinney retained the
post office for several years until he returned east. It was then
located in the home of some other settler until the railroad was built
in 1877, when it was located in the pump station where the Northern
Pacific crosses Platte River below town.
When the depot was erected, the post office was turned over to the
station agent. The post office having borne the name Royalton for so
many years, the railroad company gave this name to the station when
established in1878.
Mr. Kinney was the first settler in the present boundaries of the
village of Royalton. After several years residence in Cincinnati, Ohio,
he returned to this place in 1878, and in the early nineties built the
residence now occupied by John Pennie. He and his wife occupied this
home up to about 25 years ago, when they returned to Cincinnati to live
with a daughter until death called then at a ripe old age.
Early Settlements in the Vicinity of Royalton
Before going further into the early history of Royalton as a
village, we will take up briefly the history of the surrounding
territory, especially the township of Bellevue which surrounds the
corporation.
When the first white man arrived is not definitely known, but it
was about 1830, when a trading post was established by Allen Morrison on
the eas bank of the Mississippi near where the power dam northwest of
Royalton in located. Allen Morrison, from whom Morrison County derived
its name, came into norther Minnesota as early as 1820. He resided in
Crow Wing for many years, later removing to White Earth where he died on
the 28th of November, 1878. He was prominent among the early traders in
this section and was a representative in the first territorial
legislature of 1849.
The first settler to make a home in the township (Bellevue) was
William W. Warren, who was of mixed blood and arrived in the late
forties. He erected a house and cultivated land close to the
Mississippi River on the line between sections 28 and 29. In the field
notes of the government survey made in 1852, Warren's home is located
200 links west of the southwest corner of the northwest corner of
section 28. This description would bring the location very close to the
present home of Thomas McDougall. Mr. Warren was aman of education and
was elected as arepresentative to the second territorial legislature of
1851. In a copy of the "Frontierman" published in Sauk Rapids, June 7,
1855, editor, William H. Wood, as follows: "The memory of W.W. Warren,
then the best talker and most graceful writer in the territory, remains
with us, and ever will, a bright and precious treasure. We often met
him, and never shall cease to admire the reverential, thoughtful spirit,
in which he was wont to discourese of the religion, customs, and history
of the Indian. His knowledge in these matters was inexhaustilbe. He
talked and wrote much and well. But his days were few. He has gone.
That journey to the Spirit Land which he so often describe the Indian as
traveling, he, distant from home and loved ones, commenced two years
ago."
William Warren died in St. Paul in 1853, when about 30 years of
age. From all records obtainable he must be given the honor of being
the first permanent settler of Bellevue township. This township and
adjacent territory was first a part of the county of Benton, organized
in 1849, and remained as such until the organization of Morrison County
in 1856. A military road established by the U.S. Government, and known
as the Point Douglas and Fort Ripley road, passed through the township.
This road crossed the Platte River a short distance below (southwest
of)the present railroad bridge south of Royalton, and ran in a
northwesterly direction to a point one-half mile west of the school
house on the prairie, where it joined what is now called the river road
to the north.
Over this road passed all traffic from St. Paul and the far north
trading posts. It was the route taken by the famous Red River trains of
two wheel carts carrying furs to the south and returning with supplies.
The Red River carts were usually constructed entirely of wood and drawn
by a single ox, and most of the drivers were half-breeds. They came
from Pembina and other points to the north and northwest. The trains
sometimes contained as many as 150 cars, and on account of the
construction of the vehicles, their approach could be heard form miles
by the squeak of the wheels on the wooden axles.
With the flow of immigration from the east in the early fifties,
Bellevue received many settlers who came to make permanent homes. The
majority were Scotch Canadians and natives of the state of Maine, and
nearly all settled on the edge of the prairie and opened up farms;
spending the winters in the pineries to the north, cutting and hauling
logs. At that time lumbering in Minnesota was an infant industry, and
the belief was as one early historian wrote: "The pine forests of
Minnesota are inexhaustible." Today, 75 years later, the virgin pine
forests are but a memory.
Next to W.W. Warren, the earliest settler in Bellevue Township was
John McGillis, a Scotchman, who settled on the northwest quarter of
section 33 in 1852. He resided here until September, 1855, when he sold
the place to Henry Clark, a native of Maine, born in 1832.
Clark first came west in 1854, to St. Anthony, where he resided a
short time before coming to Bellevue. He first settled in the meadow
country north of the prairie, but soon left that locality to buy the
McGillis place. In 1863 he sold the place to Calhoun Hayes, a native of
West Virginia, born in 1832.
Hayes came to Minnesota in 1857, when appointed receiver of the
land office in Sauk Rapids. Later he removed to Little Falls and held
the office of register off deeds and county attorney. He lived on the
place bought of Henry Clark until 1867 when he sold to James Muncy who
arrived that year from Maine. From this time the place was know as the
James Muncy place to all residents of past and recent years.
Among the settlers to arrive in 1853 were Duncan and James
McDougall and Hugh Patterson who settled at the north end of the prairie
near the river road. Henry Meyers and John DePue also arrived that
year, the former settling on the northwest prairie, while DePue made
claim on the west bank of Platte river about a mile south of Royalton.
R.D. Kinney arrived this year and, as previously mentioned, was the
first settler in the present limits of Royalton.
In the year 1854, P.A. Green, a native of New York, arrived and
settled on section 35 and was the second settler of the territory of
what now comprises the village of Royalton. Green's holdings of 160
acres lay three forties west of First Street, and one forty north of
Center Street, west of the river. The depot and most of the business
section of Royalton are located on the original claim of Green. When
Mr. Green arrived, his family consisted of himself and wife, two sons,
Charles and Frank, and daughter Mary. The Green home was located west
of the lumber company's office, and was for many years a landmark in the
village. It was torn down about 30 years ago.
In the 1855, James Lambert and sons, William T., Richard L., Josiah
B., Isaac P., and James M., arrived from the state of Maine. The
Lambert family was prominently identified with the early history of this
territory. James, Sr., settled on section 33, engaged in farming and
lumbering for many years and in his old age retired to a home in
Royalton where he passed away in 1895. During his residence on the
prairie he kept a stopping place on the old stage road and the Lamberts
were widely known among the early travelers of this highway. Two other
sons were born after the arrival of the family in Minnesota: Mark P.
and John E. William T., the oldest son, was a soldier in the Civil war,
and was later treasurer of Morrison County. Of the seven sons of James
Lambert but three are now living: Isaac P. of White Earth, James M., of
Funkley, and John of Little Falls.
Richard Lambert, a brother of James, arrived in 1855, settled at
the north end of the prairie, and was one of the first officers of
Bellevue Township. Daniel Lambert, father of James and Richard, came
the same year and made his home with his son Richard.
Among the prominent citizens of the early days to arrive in 1855
was Sylvester Henenlotter, a native of Prussia, who settled on section
27, just west of the railroad and two miles north of Royalton. Mr.
Henenlotter was one of the early county commissioners and held many town
offices during his life. His son, Severin Henenlotter, now living here,
is the oldest living native of Bellevue.
Another settler of 1855 was Mathias Roof, who lived on what is now
the Charles Borash farm. One of Mr. Roof's daughter married Sylvester
Henenlotter, and another married Nathan Richardson of Little Falls, who
was prominent in the origination of Morrison County and one of its first
officials.
This year saw the arrival of a new settler from across the sea,
Henry Armstrong, a native of Holland, born in 1818, and a carpenter by
trade. Contrary to the usual custom, Henry Armstrong did not settle
near the prairie but went into the wilderness east of Platte River on
section 25, on the north of what is now the Nick Younk farm, and was the
first in the township of Bellevue to make a home east of the river.
After living in this location for a few years, he moved to a farm on the
south of the prairie near the Mississippi, known later as the James
Black place, and in 1866 moved to the town of Two Rivers where he lived
until his death in 1894. In the early days Mr. Armstrong followed
carpentering as well as farming, and during this time built the Peter
Green house previously mentioned as the second home in the present
boundaries of the village of Royalton. Henry Armstrong, a son, is at
present a resident of Royalton, and was a small boy when his father
settled here.
Among the pioneers who arrived in 1856 were Stephen Hill of the
state of Maine, sons Jonas, Jasper, Henry, and Stephen, Jr. E.G.,
another son, had arrived the year previous. William Trask, one of the
first commissioners of Morrison County, and sons Richard, Daniel, Mark,
and Samuel, arrived in 1856. Another arrival that year was George
Borman, a native of Ohio, born in 1812. He was the first chairman of
the board of supervisors of Two Rivers where he moved in 1865. Two of
his sons served in the Civil War, one of whom died in the service.
Other arrivals who came in 1856 were Donald McDougall, who was the
first town clerk and served in the capacity until his death in 1874,
with the exception of one year; John Frye, Joseph and John Stewart,
John Deering, and James Chapman.
James Chapman was a native of England, born in 1815. He purchased
of R.D. Kinney, the first settler of Royalton, the northwest quarter of
the southeast quarter of section 35, west of the Platte River. This
plot of about 40 acres lies east of First Street, and south of Center
Street in what is now Royalton. Mr. Chapman built his home, a log
structure, close to where the Charles Berry house now stands. Later he
added a frame addition to the original structure. Here his sons George,
Nathaniel, and William were born. James Chapman lived on this farm
until 1878, when he moved to a new farm of 320 acres in section 33,
having sold his first holding to Jewett Norris of St. Paul. The farm in
section 33 is now owned by his son William, and grandson N.P., son of
George. William Chapman is the oldest living native of the village of
Royalton.
Allen Blanchard, a native of Maine, settled in Bellevue just west
of the Henenlotter farm in 1858. He lived here until 1865 when he moved
to a farm on the west bank of the Mississippi in the town of Two Rivers,
and on the organization of that town in 1865 was one of the first town
officers. Blanchard's Rapids, the site of the present power dam, was
named in his honor. Mrs. Allen Blanchard is at this date a resident of
Royalton, and is in her 92nd year. She is the only one of the early
settlers of the fifties now living here.
The township of Bellevue was organized in 1858, and at that time
extended east to the county line. Later, other towns were formed to the
east, reducing it to the present boundaries. The territorial name of
the township was Platte River, but it was changed to Bellevue when
Morrison County was organized. The first town officers were:
Supervisors, Richard Lambert, chairman, S. Henenlotter, Duncan
McDougall; clerk, Donald McDougall; treasurer, William Trask; constable,
J.H. Hill; justice, John McGillis; assessor, John Frye.
The first school was held in the home of Jasper Hill in 1857, Mrs.
Hill being the teacher. Later a school was built at the north end of
the prairie. Mrs. R.L. Lambert, then Miss King of Anoka, now a resident
of Royalton, taught in this building, which was later moved away. Miss
King was married to the R.L. Lambert in 1869, and is among the oldest of
the settlers now living in this section.
At an early day the settlers established a township cemetery on
section 21, just south of the G.E. Brockway farm. Although in a state
of neglect, the cemetery still remains, and here is the last resting
place of many of the early residents.
Bellevue sent its full quota of soldiers to the Civil War, among
whom were Richard Lambert, who enlisted at the age of 42 years, William
T. Lambert, E.G. Hill, Stephen Hill, Jr., Jonas Hill, George Stewart,
Frank Green, Henry Meyers, Joseph Stewart (died in service), John
Deering, Frank Flint, A.A. Morrill, Louis Borman (died in service), and
George Borman, Jr.
Early Settlers and Settlements Near Royalton
No history of pioneer days would be complete without mention of
several early residents who, while not settlers within the present
limits of Royalton or Bellevue Township, were so closely identified with
the early development of the country as to deserve notice at this time.
One of these was Calvin A. Tuttle, born in Connecticut in 1811. He came
to Minnesota, then a part of Wisconsin Territory, in 1838. He was a
millwright by trade and came west to build a saw mill at the falls of
St. Croix. Later he built the first saw mill at the falls of St.
Anthony, now Minneapolis, and one for himself at Lake Minnetonka where
he was one of the first settlers. In 1854 he came to Little Falls, then
a frontier hamlet, and became a member of the Little Falls company
formed to develop the water power and erect mills.
High water in the summer of 1860 carried away the dam and mills,
and they were not rebuilt by the company. Mr. Tuttle returned to
Minneapolis, where he resided until 1867, when he located in the
township of Two Rivers. There he built a saw mill, the first in the
town, and also operated a ferry on the Mississippi where the present
bridge west of Royalton is located. His home was on the bank of the
river, west of the bridge site. Mr. Tuttle was member of the convention
of 1857 which framed and adopted the constitution of the State of
Minnesota, and from 1849 to 1853 was treasurer of Minnesota Territory.
Mrs. Belle Graham of Little Falls, an extensive holder of real estate in
Royalton, is a daughter of Mr. Tuttle.
One of the earliest settlers in this neighborhood was Robert
Russell, a native of Scotland, who settled on what is now the George
Yanitz farm two miles south of Royalton, in 1851. He was well known to
all old settlers as "Scottie." He went to the mines in Colorado in
1860, where he was killed in an accident. His eldest son, Robert L.,
carried on the old farm until 1873 when he moved to Brockway, Stearns
County, and later to Rice where he died a short time ago. Robert
Russell, Sr., was the father of W.W. and John H. Russell, early
merchants of Royalton.
One of the best know of the early settlers at the south end of the
Prairie was John Higgins, born in New York in 1836. Mr. Higgins came
west in 1854, settling near the Robert Russell place in what is now the
town of Langola, Benton County. He followed teaming as well as farming
in the early days, and during the Sioux Indian outbreak in 1862 joined
General Sibley's expedition in the war against the redskins. He was
always prominent in public affairs, and held many local offices. He was
well posted in the events of the early days, and the writer is indebted
to him for much data of this history of early settlement. Mr. Higgins
died about 25 years ago. A daughter, Mrs. M.J. Bowers, is a resident of
Royalton.
The state of Vermont furnished one of the early pioneers in the
person of Schuyler Flint, born in 1814. He came to Minnesota in 1856
and settled at the lower end of the prairie, on the bank of the
Mississippi, where he resided until his death in 1882, and was the first
person buried in Riverside Cemetery in Royalton. Mr. Flint devoted his
time to farming, and held the office of county commissioner of Benton
County for several years. He was the first chairman of the board of
supervisors of Langola, and was also town clerk and assessor. He was
the father of Francis S. Flint, a solder of the Civil War, who settled
in the township of Swan River, Morrison County, and on the organization
of that town was one of its first officers. F.S. later moved to
Langola, east of Rice, where he operated a farm. For several years
before his death he was postmaster of Rice.
Maine furnished another early resident of Langola, when Albert A.
Morrill, born in 1833, came to this town in 1856. Mr. Morrill settled
in the "lost village" of Langola, a description of which we will take up
later, based largely on information furnished by him. While a resident
of the village of Langola, Mr. Morrill was elected constable and tax
collector. During the war he enlisted in the Eleventh Minnesota
regiment, and after the war located in Brockway Township, Stearns
County. In 1875 he moved to Buckman township where he engaged in
farming, and was elected county commissioner in 1875. In 1884, he moved
to Royalton where he resided until moving to the state of Washington in
1903. The town of Morrill, Morrison County, was name in his honor.
The "Lost Village" of Langola"
Perhaps but few of the present generation know that 75 years ago
there was located at the present site of the bridge over Platte River,
two miles south of Royalton, a thriving village of which no trace is now
visible except some almost filled cellar holes and a few timbers sunk in
the bottom of the river. Here from 1854 to some time in the early
sixties was located a town first called "Platte River," but later,
"Langola." After the establishment of the place, the old stage road
crossed at this point and passed through the village. From an old plat
taken from the records of Benton County we find the town was laid out
into 26 blocks, each divided into lots, the location being given as
Section 11, Township 38, Range 32. The names of some of the streets
were Washington, Jefferson, and Jackson Avenues, Main, Oak, and Elm
Streets.
The water power on Platte River was improved by the erection of a
dam. Flour and saw mills were erected; stores, a hotel, Indian trading
post, blacksmith shop, and many residences were built, and for years it
was a thriving town. After years of prosperity high water came. Platte
River became a raging torrent, the dam broke, and the entire town, being
built on a flat but a few feet above the river was washed away. The
home of John Higgins, located on the high ground above the flat, was not
damaged. Mr. Higgins later moved his home south to a location on the
bank of the Mississippi. The town was never rebuilt, and if the curious
wish to investigate the site of the "lost village" a few depressions in
the earth will indicate where homes and business buildings once stood.
Again quoting from the "Frontierman" published at Sauk Rapids in
1855, and the first paper published in Minnesota outside of St. Paul and
St. Anthony, we find the following in reference to Langola:
"The town of Langola is situated above the mouth of the Platte
River, which is a stream of considerable importance, both on account of
the extensive pineries on its upper banks, and the fertility and
loveliness of the country through which it meanders after leaving those
pineries. The town has but just started. It has, however, an
auspicious beginning. A good grist mill is in successful operation, at
which as good flour is being manufactured as can be made at any mill in
Minnesota. Arrangements are being made by the proprietors of the town
for the erection of a substantial saw mill which, we are authorized to
say, will be ready for work during the present season. Several new
houses have recently been built, one of which is now being occupied as a
boarding house and hotel. The place is surrounded by a rich farming
country; is eligibly situated; possesses a valuable water power, and we
see no reason why, with the energy they have thus far exhibited, the
proprietory of Langola may not concentrate there considerable business
and capital, and thus add one more to the long list of thriving towns in
our county."
Such is the story of Langola. Few people now living ever saw the
town on the banks of lower Platte River. Langola was not the only early
day town in the vicinity of Royalton to pass out of existence. Seven
miles to the northwest of Royalton, on the east bank of the Mississippi
River, was located the thriving village of Swan River. Its history
dates back to 1848, when William Aitkin, one of the early Indian
traders, who had been in charge of the American Fur Company posts in
northern Minnesota since 1830, settled on the east bank of the
Mississippi, opposite the mouth of Swan River. He built a ferry on the
Mississippi, and erected a building for a trading post. His reason for
establishing his post here was that the Winnebago Indians had been
removed by the government from Iowa to the west of the Mississippi in
the vicinity of the Long Prairie River, and the road to the reservation
joined the Fort Ripley road at this point. Here he traded with the
Chippewa and Winnebago Indians and the early white settlers. Mr. Aitkin
was one of the first commissioners of Benton County, which in the early
days embraced the territory around Swan River. Aitkin County was named
for him when organized in 1872. No better idea can be gained as to the
importance of Swan River than to again quote from the comments of Editor
William H. Wood, in the "Frontierman" of 1855.
Swan River
"This has been a somewhat noted place for some time. The original
proprietor was the late William A. Aitkin, of Scotch descent - a man of
fine education, of strong will, and large business experience. He was
for many years a fur trader among the Ojibway Indians, and settled at
Swan River in 1848. There was probably more business done at that point
during his life than at any other place in the county, and more than has
ever been done there since. It was a rendezvous of all the principal
Indian traders among the Chippewas and Winnebagos, of who, up to the
period of his death, Mr. Aitkin was an active and leading spirit. The
establishing at Long Prairie of the Winnebago Agency did much for a time
toward making Swan River a place of trade by making it a depot for
Indian goods. The place at that time was always filled with strangers.
All was life and animation. The hotel was well kept and was always
crowded. Money was plentiful, and so were good liquors. There was
music and dancing, and frolicking and rollicking, never seen there
before or since. The oldest inhabitant mentions those days with a tear
in his eye at the 'Good time, not coming, but past.' We have listened
to his story many a time. It seems that all sorts of spirits gathered
there - some for fun, some for money, and all for something. Strangers
at night invariably became friends closely compact before morning. It
was like a great house, at the four corners where men coming from
different points of the compass met, had a good time, and according to
our oldest inhabitant, always left feeling better and richer than when
they came. The principal actors in the early history are gone. William
Aitkin and Duncan Stewart are dead. Joseph Brown long since removed,
and Thomas Sloan in ill health is rusticating in the South. Swan River
is not what it was in Aitkin's day. considerable business, however, is
still done there. Sloan's store is always filled with goods designed
for both the Indians and the whites. Mr. Gibson also has a store, and
we have been informed that he is doing a first rate business. The old
hotel is now occupied by James Warren. Between the hotel and Sloan's
store is the best warehouse in the county. It is a two story block
building, and good as new. The country contiguous to the town is even
and generally handsome. Now we have only further to say, that we have
passed many a pleasant hour at Swan River."
From this it would seem that Editor Wood from his experience,
considered Swan River a lively town in more ways than one. Today, one
passing this point on the river road would never suspect that a town had
existed. Not a building or sign of a building of the old town remains.
If Langola is the "lost town" of the early days, Swan River must be the
"deserted village."
Incidents of the Early Days
As before mentioned, the early settlers built their homes and
farmed near the border of the prairie. Many have wondered why this
location was chosen when heavier and better land was available farther
back. In the early day the prairie soil was very productive and could
be cultivated without the labor of removing brush and trees. The
prairie soil produced good crops, 40 bushels of wheat to the acre not
being an uncommon yield. The stock grazed on the uncultivated part of
the prairie where grass was abundant. Hay was to be had for the cutting
on the unsettled meadow land to the north.
The early settler endured hardships common to all pioneers. Not
the least of these was the grasshopper scourge which visited this
section in the summer of 1856. These pests appeared in clouds in
midsummer when crops were maturing, and the growing crops were nearly
all consumed. From the great quantities of eggs deposited, an immense
swarm appeared the following year, devouring all green growth. They
suddenly left this section early in the summer of 1857, and since that
time have not appeared in numbers to do much damage.
The early stage road which was the route to the north for all
freight and passenger traffic, changed its location after the village of
Langola sprang into existence, and erected a bridge at that point over
Platte River, which had previously been forded. From this point it
extended north past the Lambert stopping place. This road was the
location of the telegraph line of one wire that provided communication
with the south long before the railroad was built.
Religious services were held in this neighborhood as early as 1855
by Father Pierz, an early missionary among the Indians as well as the
whites. He held mass at the home of Sylvester Henenlotter, one of the
early settlers of section 27. Stephen Hill, one of Bellevue's pioneers,
held services and preached at the home of settlers in 1856, and later in
the first school house on section 21. Others who conducted religious
services in the early days were R.D. Kinney, Rev. Hoppel, and Rev. T.C.
Kinney, who arrived in the early seventies, built a home, and remained
several years. Services were held mostly in school houses, no church
building having been erected until the village of Royalton sprang into
existence. The early day post-office which we mentioned as being first
located in the home of R.D. Kinney, was moved many times. P.A. Green
and Schuyler Flint were among those to hold office of postmaster.
Execution of Indian Murderers
In the year 1857, two Indians killed a German peddler traveling on
the old stage road. Robbery was the motive, and the guilty parties
confessed the crime. We do no know just where the crime was committed,
but the old pioneers have stated that it occurred just west of Royalton.
The culprits were captured by Sheriff Jonathan Pugh near Gull Lake. He
started for St. Paul, where he expected to lodge the prisoners for
safekeeping until they could be given a trial. When just south of the
village of Langola, the sheriff and his prisoners were halted by a posse
of armed men who demanded the prisoners. Resistance was useless, so the
officer of the law gave them up to the men who had decided to take the
law into their own hands and administer speedy justice.
The two were taken back to the hotel at Swan River where they were
given a good meal, and afterwards, cigars to smoke. While enjoying the
smoke in the bar room they witnessed the preparation of the hangman's
noose on the ropes with which they were to be executed, showing no
particular interest in the proceedings. If they were interested, they
showed no sign of it. When the preliminaries were completed, the march
was resumed to a point just south of the present gold links at Little
Falls. Here a pole was suspended between two trees, to which the ropes
were attached. The Indians were placed standing on the seat of a wagon
which had brought them there, and at a signal from the leader, the
horses jumped ahead leaving the doomed men suspended in mid-air. They
were cut down and buried on the spot where they met their end. About 29
years ago a party under the direction of Nathan Richardson, an early
pioneer, opened the graves and removed some of the bones. In the grave
a few coins were also found.
The leader of the execution party, of which several early settlers
of this section were members, was Anson Northrup, a well known citizen
of the early days of Minnesota. In 1855 he lived in the township of
LeSauk, a few miles above St. Cloud. In 1856 he built and operated a
saw mill at Swan River village. He served as senator from this district
in the first state legislature of 1857-58. He had charge of the
transportation of a steamboat from the Mississippi to the Red River of
the North in 1857. On this trip he was accompanied by John Higgins, of
whom mention has been made in another chapter. On the outbreak of the
Civil War he became wagonmaster of the First Minnesota Volunteer
Infantry, serving until the summer of 1862, when he returned to the
state to fight the Sioux Indians in the outbreak of that year. Anson
Northrup was typical of the early pioneer, a man of great energy, a born
leader of men who knew how to overcome the obstacles and hardships of
the early settler.
From war time until the latter seventies, new settlers were few.
The building of the railroad brought a new influx of people seeking
homes. This period brought many settlers to the territory east of
Royalton, where the soil was better for agricultural purpose, and it
eventually became the more thickly settled portion of the country. The
grade for the railroad from Sauk Rapids to Brainerd was constructed in
1871-72. The company failed, and no further work was done on the line
until 1877, when upon reorganization, the rails were laid. During the
intervening years the settlers used the grade as a wagon road. The
first train was run from Sauk Rapids to Brainerd on November 1, 1877, in
charge of Conductor William Spaulding.
When word went out that a train would start service on that date,
it was an event in the history of this section. Settlers for miles in
every direction flocked to what is now Royalton to witness the passing
of the first train on which was later to become one of the great trans-
continental railway systems. The crowds cheered lustily as the small
wood-burning locomotive appeared, hauling a short train on its way to
the north. It was a great change from the old stage line which had been
the method of transportation from the early days. To give an idea of
the time consumed in traveling by stage we will quote from an
advertisement for the stage line as published in the "Frontierman" at
Sauk Rapids in 1855.
St. Paul, Sauk Rapids, & Fort Ripley Stage Line
"The stage leaves St. Paul every Monday morning at 8 o'clock, and
arrives at Fort Ripley on Wednesday evening, giving passengers who have
business at the land office at Sauk Rapids time to attend to it, and
take a return stage for St. Paul, where it arrives at 4 o'clock Saturday
evening."
Three days from St. Paul to Fort Ripley! This would take about
four hours with the present day automobile. The auto bus time for the
trip is about five hours, including stops at all towns.
Among the settlers who arrived to make homes after the Civil War
were Samuel Muncy and sons James, Robert, Samuel, Willard, William, and
Frank, who arrived in 1866. George W., another son, arrived later. All
made homes in this vicinity and were prominently identified with the
early development.
Peter McDougall, a native of Canada, born in 1820, arrived with his
family in 1873 and settled on the bank of the Mississippi on a farm
which had formerly been the home of John Dearing, an early pioneer. Two
son, Thomas and James McDougall, are living on the farm at the present
time. James Borden, who had been a resident of Bellevue in the fifties,
but had returned to Canada, came back in 1877 and settled on a farm
north of the McDougall place. This brings us to the time when a village
was about to come into existence, the first in this section since the
passing of Langola and Swan River. Its name was Royalton.
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