Pembina Ferry Command Video

Although mislabeled, the video below is indeed a very brief clip of a Ferry Command operation, towing planes across the US/Canadian border at Pembina ND/Emerson MB.  We didn't know it existed until recently.  A real treasure of a find!

The man in the long coat at the beginning of the film is Harry Wood, of Pembina ND, as identified by his granddaughter, Lori Wood Goertzen.

Excellence in Local History Award

Wonderful news arrived in today's mail.  The work here on this blog has been recognized and awarded the Excellence in Local History award by the State Historical Society of North Dakota.

It is an amazing honor to be chosen for this award.  It is my hope that this award will bring further recognition to the amazing local history of my hometown, its neighbors, and the surrounding communities which are so interrelated.  The individuals that make up these communities are related by blood, marriage, and culture, and their shared histories deserve not only to be recognized, but remembered...

Obituary: William H. Moorhead

Apprentice Carpenter. Land Agent. Indian Trader. Trading Post Clerk. Buffalo Hunter. Undertaker. Farmer. Tavern Keeper.

Below is the obituary of an extraordinary man, one of our area's true pioneers.  I have left all the spelling as it appeared in the original article of the newspaper just as I found them, to give you a flavor of how common it was.  Some of the errors may have been due to misspellings or incorrect typesetting, but just as often there was no consistent agreed-upon spelling conventions for some words - Sometimes they just had to make their best guess!

PIONEER DEAD

William H. Moorhead Died Yesterday Morning at His Home In Pembina.

HAD BEEN ILL SIX MONTHS

And Underwent a Surgical Operation Here About Two Weeks Ago

Mr. Moorhead was One of the leading Characters in the Early Settlement of the Valley and was a Typical Frontiersman —"High Water Bill" was the Name by which He was Best Known— The Funeral Occurs Tomorrow.

Pembina, N.D., July 3.—(Herald Special)— William H. Moorhead, better known during later years as "High Water Bill," died at his home in this city this morning, after an illness extending more or less over the past six months. This sobriquet he gained by his numerous prophecies as to just how high the water in the Red river would rise each year, and, be it said, his predictions were usually not far astray. As an incident in this line - it is said that this spring, before the snow melted, as he was lying in his bed on the lower floor of his house talking "high water" to a visitor, he reached down about half way on one of his bed posts and said. "You'll see the water up to this spot when the snow melts," and his prediction was verified. He refused to be carried upstairs until the water came in on the floor.

Floods had been known to fill the Red River Valley with snowmelt runoff. The earliest pioneers remembered the flood of 1861. That spring, the Red River Valley was under so much water that it was called the “largest body of fresh water in the world” – for a few weeks, anyway.   -   North Dakota Studies, FLOODS

Wm. H. Moorhead was born in Freeport, Pa., Sept. 26, 1832. He left Pittsburgh where he received a common school education, April 1, 1852, and arrived in St. Paul, a month later, where he worked at his trade—that of a carpenter—for two years.

The summer of '54 and the following winter he spent at Sauk Rapids trading with the Winnebagos, when they were removed to Blue Earth county. He then returned to St. Paul and organized a company to lay out paper townsites in northern Minnesota and Red River Valley.

In August, '57, he came to Pembina in company with Joe Rolette to build a store building for a trading post for St. Paul parties. He completed the building and remained as clerk to February, '58, when he made a trip to St. Paul with a dog train, not seeing a single house between the two points. He returned to Pembina soon after, having some fearful blizzard experiences on the way.

On June 8th of the same year he left Pembina on a buffalo hunt and returned in August with 15 Red river carts laden with furs, hides and Pemican.

After the high water of '61 which was the flood, according to his tell, he moved out to Walhalla. Here he lived on very friendly terms with the Indians until hostilities broke out which ended in the Minnesota massacre and because he refused to sell ammunition to the hostiles, he had to leave. He moved near Devils Lake and pursued his trading.

In 1862 he married Lizzie Rivier, who with her five children still survives him. About this time he moved to Pembina, where he has since resided.

Source:  Google Books

Mr. Moorhead has long enjoyed the distinction of being the second oldest white settler in the valley. Hon. Chas. Cavileer, of this city, being the oldest having come in 1841. When the Historical society of North Dakota was created in 1895, Gov. Allin appointed Mr. Moorhead a member of it and he has collected considerable information for it since.

Mr. Moorhead was a typical frontiersman and a general favorite. The history of the Red River Valley would be far from complete without an interesting reference to a man who was known far and wide for his genial good nature, and interesting stories of the pioneer's life in the northwest.

Mr. Moorhead has been a member for years of Pembina lodge No. 2, A. F. and A. M., and the funeral, which will take place Monday afternoon at 4 o'clock, will be under the auspices of that order.

[July 04, 1897, Grand Forks Herald]

1878 Photo of St. Vincent & Pembina

VERY large scan of an 1878 stereograph of St. Vincent and Pembina, taken from Minnesota side of the Red River of the North.

Note the two railroad tracks merging into one, going along the the high bank of the Red River of the North.  This is on what is the far west side of town, as the river curves north.  There is no slope or erosion as there is now, let alone river woods all up and down the banks as we're used to, today. And take a close look at Pembina in the background - Click on the image to open, then click on it again to maximize it, to see as much detail as possible.

This is the earliest known photograph of our St. Vincent and Pembina that I am aware of.  I am hoping to print this in the size of a stereograph and view it in one of my stereoscopes, in hopes that seeing it in 3-D might bring further clarity to the details...

Final Resting Places: Brown & Kabernagle

Sheriff Charley Brown's grave site is in the north section of the Pembina Cemetery;  his stone reads:

Charles J. Brown

Oct 4, 1884

Aged 39 years

Sgt. Co. I 20th U.S. Infantry

I took this photo when surveying for BillionGraves

Charley sadly had a short, yet amazing life...

Another smaller foot stone acknowledges his service 

as a soldier in the Civil War, but it doesn't attest to 

his time as a POW in Andersonville... 

Buried in the same section is Charley's business partner:

John Kabernagle
Born
Jan 8, 1853
Died
Dec 20, 1893
Aged
40 Yrs, 11 Mos,
& 17 Dys

It's sad that both John - friend and business partner to Charley
Brown - died young around the same age as Charley did...

Another old-timer that was well-known for his many services rendered the town - and his colorful character - is in the SW section of the cemetery:

William Moorhead

Who Settled in Dakota 1867

Died July 9, 1897

63 yr 10 mo 17 d

One of our area's true pioneers - Land Agent, Indian 

Trader, Trading Post Clerk, Buffalo Hunter, 

Undertaker, Farmer, and Flood Prognosticator... 

Charley's grave is also marked with a G.A.R. star,
signifying him as a Union veteran of the Civil War. 

Followup to GUESS WHO story

We can now confirm that the Guess Who played many times in Hallock, and we have it from the great Donny Hunt, who was a musician in his own right. Don was a music promoter who booked the Guess Who.

From a Facebook exchange...

Before Who: Deverons (1962) 

Michael Rustad: Donald, finally I have a chance to thank you for all of the ways you made growing up in Kittson County wonderful in the 1960's. What I remember is how lively and fun it was to be a teenager because of the dances you organized in Hallock. You were definitely formative for all of us and we all owe you a big debt! Thinking back, is it true that we had top bands from Winnipeg at the City Hall? Do you have any memory of whether the Guess Who played at Hallock? It is a memory I have but I may be wrong. Only you can confirm. We would love to have any information on the bands you organized! 

Donald Hunt: Thank you.  That makes those memories sweeter. Yes, they played there many times. And the Question Mark, the Mysterians, Shadows of Night, The Uglies...and many others. We did have fun. Jack Reese and I have been playing a little of the old Sabers and Ravalons music for fun. Maybe one more time next summer. It's good to hear from you.  

Early Guess Who (1966)

Michael Rustad: Don, glad to hear that you and Jack continue to rock on. It was amazing to have the Guess Who and those other groups you mentioned. My memory is that every dance was packed! I would also come home from college because your dances were superior to any promoter in Grand Forks. Rock on Don!

Mansion on the Prairie

[Courtesy:  Kittson County History Center & Museum]

At the Zenith of its production years, the early elevated view seen above of the mansion and surrounding farm buildings - taken from the top of the farm's nearby grain elevator - comprised the 'Northcote Division' of the Humboldt bonanza farm.  At its height, J.J. Hill owned over 45,000 acres of Kittson County farm land, and had over half of it under cultivation at any given time. 

Elevated view looking over Northcote, Minn. bonanza farm.  Visible is a
large two-story brick house with hip roof, several barns, and a water tower.
[Source: Institute for Regional Studies, NDSU, Fargo, ND (2023.42.11)]

Swathing & Bundling during harvest, at the Hill Farm
[Source:  Minnesota Historical Society]

Hill's personal train, often used to travel to Northcote farm
[Source:  Minnesota Historical Society]

Until I track down interior photos of the Walter Hill home (hopefully in its prime, before modifications), my old school friend Dee Dee Giffen Bakken has graciously agreed to share her memories of inside the mansion:

I cleaned for Marva and Byron Hanson who owned the house [until 2004]. 

The front of the house as you come to it from the road is actually the back of the house. When Walter Hill lived there the road came to what is now the back close to the river and came around in a circular drive. That face of the house is the grand entrance with a fancy little roofed porch. 

You enter into an entry with the staircase facing going upstairs. to your left is the great room with a fireplace, a very large room. Behind that is a porch which was open in Walter's day but is now enclosed. To the north of it is an office and bathroom. To your right of the entrance is the dining room with a beautiful chandelier and wood paneling. 

Almost all of the woodwork in the house has unfortunately been painted as Marva told me there were many different varieties of wood used on the doors, paneling, trim and so on. I don't think the paneling in the dining room is painted, but don't remember for sure. 

Beyond the dining room to the east is a sun room which overlooks where the pool was. Going north from the dining room is a huge kitchen which in Walter's day was sectioned off with part of it being the butler's pantry where the food was prepared for serving. It is now a homey big kitchen with a table. 

To the west of the kitchen is an entry where guests come in now with beautiful old tile floors. The entry also has a door going to the hallway which leads to the bathroom, and an office to the north of the great room with some built in closets. The kitchen is now linoleum.  I don't know what it was before [possible wood flooring originally]. In the kitchen as well is a door that leads to a staircase upstairs; this was once a servant's staircase that now leads to a small sewing room and bathroom. Originally, this would have been a servant's bedroom. 

As you go up the grand staircase to the upstairs, you come to a landing which goes to your left then rises to the top floor. As you go to your left you can go northeast which goes  to the servants bedroom. Direct left is the master bedroom with a beautiful fireplace with tiles from either Belgium or Italy. Off this room to the east is a sun porch.  To the north is a huge walk-in closet. To the west is the master bath with a shower made of marble. It is walk-in and huge. There is a tub the size of a Buick and old fashioned toilet and pedestal sinks. The floor is white octagon tile. 

To the right of the staircase is a den or possible bedroom. I think it may have been the library. Down the hall at the end is a woman's bedroom with a fireplace with blue tiles of sailing ships (I think) that came again from either Belgium or Italy. I believe the library had a fireplace too. It's a large room with a walk-in closet. A door to the north leads to a sun porch that is shared by another large bedroom that has a huge bathroom that is attached to it. Again, there is a Buick sized tub and old sinks and white tiles. 

I don't remember how you get up to the attic from the upstairs, it's been a long time. But I was up there a few times and it is as big as the house. Marva told me the boys in Walter's family slept up there and there is a big space in the middle that they held dances in I think. There is a huge basement where they have a pool table from the old pool hall in Hallock here. (Of course I forget the name but I think it was Blado's Billards & Restaurant. It was in the basement of a building near where our business is today.) 

The window wells for the basement have squares of amethyst. Sadly, many people have chipped pieces out for souvenirs over the years. 

Marva's son Marvin was a Minnesota state senator.  In conjunction with his political activities, they held parties at the mansion; even Hubert Humphrey was once there for an event.

NOTE:  The Hanson family moved to the Hill farm in 1967 and their grand daughter Kate lives there part-time, to this day. Check here for more photographs and information about the farm itself...

The amethyst glass blocks are still over the basement window wells
at the Northcote Hill Mansion to this day, a very innovative design

A brief overview of the farm the mansion was part of:

The J.J. Hill Mansion was really Walter Hill's mansion (J.J.'s son) although J.J. Hill probably financed it. Northcote Hill farm was a subdivision off of the Humboldt Farm or Humboldt Division (subdivided in 1910). Before that, it was part of Humboldt Farm.

There is a dam on the Two Rivers, west of the house, downriver. It is small and old, and beginning to fall apart, but still working. By it on the north bank is a falling-down brick building, possibly a mill house.

Over the basement windows were coverings of concrete and glass with a brass sign labeling it as made by the American Luxfer Prism Co (Boston, New York, & Chicago)

UPDATE 10/5/2019:

Found in an old issue of a regional small press paper, "Our Northwest Corner"
recently, is the only interior photograph of the Northcote J.J. Hill mansion...

Recently discovered by collector Brandon Lee Legvold, this 1909 RPPC
shows what appears to be the same image as the one from NDSU shown
at the top of this post, although more complete and it has more clarity. 
Still not a perfect copy, but definitely better!  

PROFILE: Dr. Alexander B. Campbell

Dr. Campbell was a versatile man, with credentials as a Dentist as 
well as a Physician, from the Eclectic Medical Institute of Cincinnati
[Source:  Google Books]

Alexander B. Campbell, Surgeon was a local physician living in St. Vincent from approximately 1880 onward.  

OUR History!

This video says it so well. It's how I feel about history period, whether it is my own, my family's, or my town's. I urge you to watch it, and get excited about OUR history! :)

Post by Minnesota Historical Society.

Saloon Manslaughter: The Rest of the Story

It all started with a trade:  One hat, for one bottle of whiskey...

If there's one thing I've learned writing this blog, it's that history often reveals itself slowly, despite doing what you feel at the time is due diligence researching a subject.  New records become available that were not present the first time around. People come forward with information only they were privy to.  Etc.

Such is the case concerning a particular murder that occurred in St. Vincent in 1899.  The new records came in the form of old newspaper accounts now available through the Library of Congress.  The new information came from an old friend of this site, Jim Benjaminson, of the Pembina County Historical Society.

When you read the accounts below - along with the links to earlier posts on this subject - you will get something very rare for local history of a small town nature:  As complete a picture about the subject as could be expected.  A rare treat, indeed...
_______________

George Bates Murdered While Intoxicated

Wednesday morning (March 8, 1899) the news went mouth to mouth that George Bates had been found dead in his house. The details as they began to develop were highly sensational. Mr. Bates was addicted to excessive drinking. When under the influence of liquor he was apt to quarrel with his family. On Wednesday afternoon he had trouble of this kind. Later, he went to St. Vincent. What happened there is still somewhat contradictory at this writing. 

Wednesday morning, Mrs. George Bates came downstairs and found her husband lying on the floor with every evidence of having been severely pounded. She hastily summoned Register of Deeds Chisholm from the office nearby and upon examination it was found that Bates was dead. He had a hole in his skull near the right temple from the effects of a blow of some kind and his face was badly bruised and had been bleeding profusely. As nearly as the facts can be gotten at they are as follows: