The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on January 9, 1925.
 
CONSOLIDATION OF HARDWICK BANKS FOUND BENEFICIAL
 
Results Attained Following Merge Held to Justify Elimination of Double Overhead Expense.
 
In proof of the assertion that nothing is to be gained commercially or economically by too many institutions of a similar nature in a restricted field of endeavor, officers of the Farmers State Bank of Hardwick are viewing with pleasure and pointing with pride to the showing made in this bank’s latest statement of condition at the close of business on December 31st, 1924.
It will be recalled that about six months previous, or on July 5th to be exact, the consolidation of the Farmers State Bank and the Security State Bank of Hardwick was effected. But this was only accomplished after many overtures. Prior to the consolidation neither one of the institutions was really making any money, and that intangible thing, known as overhead, was consuming the accrued profits to a pronounced extent.
Under the consolidation, operating expenses were reduced practically one-half without curtailing service to patrons of either institution to any detrimental extent. The statement of the Farmers State Bank, published in these columns last week, shows that net profits were $1,263.06, and that the amount of cash reserve on hand totals $52,256.25. The bank’s total footings are given as $391,434.59.
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.

The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on December 26, 1924:
 
SHUT-DOWN AT POWER PLANT TODAY AND TONIGHT
 
No Electric Lights Or Power Will be Furnished for 24 Hours – Water and heat as Usual
 
Luverne will be without electric lights and power all of today, all of tonight and a part of tomorrow, according to announcement made Wednesday by Superintendent George DeLate. The shut-down is necessitated on account of new units being installed at the power house, as connections cannot be made with the machinery running.
Patrons of the electric plant will accordingly dig out their old kerosene lamps and lay in a supply of candles, for tonight will be a long dark night.
The public generally is requested to observe unusual caution in regard to fires during the period of the shut-down. Full water pressure will be maintained, but owing to the absence of light, fires would be extra hazardous. The central heating plant will also be kept in operation to heat the buildings connected with this system.
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.
 
 

The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on December 19, 1924:
 
C.E. OLDER, PIONEER, PAYS TRIBUTE TO C.O. HAWES
 
Recalls That He Was the Last of Several Young Men Who Went to His School in 1871-72.
 
“It is with profound regret and sorrow that I hear of the death of C. O. Hawes, who had been a personal friend for more than half a century.” C. E Older, formerly of Luverne and a pioneer resident of Rock county, writes from Los Angeles, Calif.: “Charley Hawes was the youngest student of a class I taught in the winter of 1871-72 in Luverne, the first school in Rock County.
“He is the last one, the others have all ‘passed on’ before. Ed. McKenzie, Pat Kelley and Lew Daniels, they had all been in the army, government employ (mail carrier), or logging on the Wisconsin river, and wanted to ‘pick up a little,’ as they had been out of school so long. Our school was kept in a room 10x10 ft., in the northeast corner of the Hawes house on the hill, near which E. A. Brown’s office now stands.
“Mr. Hawes had built a new house, and rented this one to Mr. Daniels, who kept what travelers came along. All the boys boarded there except Charley, and we slept in the chamber on the floor with buffalo robes above and below us.
“When a blizzard come up, which was quite often that winter, we moved down to the school room for three days and as the storm was over, we shoveled the snow through the chamber window for it was filled to the peak of the roof. These were days to try men’s souls. Mr. Abbott was nearly frozen to death that winter, and a Norwegian residing above the Mounds lost his life and was found north of Adrian a week later.”
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.

The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on July 18, 1924:
 
ROCK COUNTY AS IT WAS FIFTY YEARS AGO
 
The ill-fated year 1873 began with the most violent storm in the history of the state from the time of the first settlement to the present date. For three days beginning January 7th, the blizzard raged, extending over the whole northwest. Seventy human lives were lost in the storm in Minnesota, but by a miraculous turn of fate, none of these was in Rock county. It was the only county in the vicinity that escaped without loss of life.
Several Martin township farmers were caught in the storm while on a trip for wood on Rock river and had narrow escapes from meeting death in the storm.
One such party was composed of Ole O. Rue, Sr., Ole O. Rue, Jr., Nels Anderson, and John Goldberg. Just as they reached the edge of the timber, the storm broke. The men got their cattle within the grove and there the unfortunate men were obliged to pass the night.
Mr. Rue states that he had all he could do to keep the other members of the party on the move. They begged to be permitted to sit down and rest, which of course would have been fatal.
About daylight, Anderson and Goldberg went out of the grove to seek a place of shelter, but they could find none and returned with badly frozen faces.
At noon the weather cleared a little — enough to permit the stormbound men to see the sun and get their bearings, then they set out for the west in an effort to reach their home.
Ole O. Rue, Jr. led one yoke of oxen, and the other members of the party clung to the tails of the oxen and kept close together. In that manner they safely reached the home of Henry Martin where they secured shelter for the night.
During the night Mr. Goldberg, who was more badly frozen than the others, was in great agony, and believing himself to be dying, he bade his comrades goodbye. He subsequently recovered. All the members of the party reached home after spending the night at Mr. Martin’s.
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.

In November 1867, Mr. Hawes brought with him John Lietze and family who were to maintain a stopping place, or half-way place, as it was called on the mail route. Although both the Estey and Lietze families spent the winter of 1867-68 on the Rock river within ten miles of each other, neither knew of the presence of the other, each family believing itself to be the only one in Rock county. At Jackson, Mr. Hawes had been told that a family had been spending the winter on the route, below his station, and on January 31, 1868, while on a trip over the line he went down to see if it were true. He found that the Esteys had lost a day in the reckoning of time, and for over two months had been rigidly keeping Monday for the Sabbath day.
When once the trail has been blazed to the frontier country and actual settlement has been established, it is not long until others follow. This was the case in Rock county, and we find that during 1868, quite a number of settlers pushed to the Rock river country and builded themselves a home. Among the settlers of 1968 was Edwin Gillman who later became sheriff of Rock county.
Despite the fact that only a few had arrived in the county during the first half of the year, those were patriotic and duly celebrated the nation’s birthday. Every man, woman and child in the county excepting Charlie Hawes, who was on a trip to Yankton with the mail, was present. They were Philo Hawes and family, Mrs. Deborah Estey and family, Miss Miranda J. Skinner, Edward McKenzie, Daniel Wilmout and family, S. Teal, J. C. Phelps and family, and Charles Hillman.
The year 1829 saw considerable increase in new settlers, but lack of space forbids going into detail.
The first birth of Rock county occurred in the month of March 1869. It was a daughter, Effie Ferguson, born to Mr. And Mrs. John H. Ferguson. The second birth was also a daughter, Lorenda Bradford. The third birth also occurred the same year, a daughter, Carrie Hawes, having been born to Mr. and Mrs. Philo Hawes on August 9th.
This article will be continued next week.
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.

The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on July 18, 1924:
 
Continued from last week:
 
ROCK COUNTY AS IT WAS FIFTY ODD YEARS AGO
 
During the Autumn of 1866, Nathan C Estey and James Johnson, of Spirit Lake, Iowa, visited the county for the purpose of selecting claims on the un-surveyed lands for themselves and for Mr. Estey’s younger brothers, also having a few goods to barter with the Indians. They proceeded up Rock river into Vienna township and there built a shanty in which they lived two months.
The first attempt to establish a permanent home in Rock county was made early in the month of June, 1867, by a Mr. Towers, and was unsuccessful. During the month of June, 1867, Philo Hawes, who was to take a more active part in early day affairs of Rock than any other man, accompanied by Joe Fields, passed through the county selecting a route for a government mail line from Blue Earth City to Yankton, Dakota Territory, and arrived at Rock river, a short distance above the present site of Luverne, on June 13th, where they camped for the night. Proceeding on their way westward they arrived on the present site of Sioux Falls on the morning of June 15, 1867, where they found a military post occupied by a part of a regiment of soldiers.
The honor of making the first permanent settlement in Rock county must be accorded to Amos E. and Orville C. Estey, brothers, who arrived in Rock county the third day of August 1867, the location being section 25, Clinton township, some two miles north of the Iowa state line. The pioneer house of Rock county erected by them was nine feet wide by sixteen feet in length, seven high at the front, and sloping down at the rear until the roof was only nine inches from the ground. The frame was constructed of poles cut along the river, which were placed upon upright crotched poles. After the poles had been placed in position long slough-grass was placed over the frame, taking the place of clapboards. The grass was woven about the poles as the old-fashioned willow baskets were woven. Over all were piled brush, coarse hay, sods and loose dirt.
This pioneer home was decidedly of the frontier, the nearest family being one by the name of Kordwell at the head of Spirit Lake. To the north there were no settlers for a greater distance, and Yankton was the nearest settlement on the west, excepting the soldiers, at the falls of the Big Sioux. Jackson was the postoffice of the Estey boys, and Spirit Lake, Iowa was the point from which they secured their provisions.
It is perhaps needless to add that they did not enjoy the privileges of the rural free delivery in that day. Philo Hawes, having secured the contract for carrying mail, came out to Rock county again on Sept. 18, 1867. On Sept. 19th he moved and camped near the present site of the Rock Island depot and at this time also selected the site for his future home. The section lines had not yet been run, but he did claim under squatters rights what, when surveyed, was the east half of the northwest quarter and the south half of the northeast quarter, section eleven, Luverne township, land upon which he later filed, and later still founded the town of Luverne.
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.

The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on July 18, 1924:
 
ROCK COUNTY AS IT WAS FIFTY ODD YEARS AGO
 
Being a Paper on Pioneer Life as Read by Representative J.N. Jacobson at Hills Old Settler’s Re-Union
 
Permanent settlement began in the southwest corner of the county in 1876. A few years before that time, trappers had operated in the county, visiting streams for the taking of pelts of the fur-bearing animals which were then to be found. We have data concerning the operations of only a few of these.
Of those who later became residents of the county, one of the first white men who looked upon the soil was Robert Douglas, who passed through Rock county with the soldiers in pursuit of the Redskins, after the Indian uprising of the early ’60s. He reported many elk and deer in the county and was responsible for naming Elk Slough in Magnolia township.
James A. Rice, later sheriff of Rock county, in company with G. M. Scott, tramped along Rock river and traded with the Indians in the fall of 1866 and spent over a month within the county’s boundaries. During their stay on the river in 1866, Rice and Scott saw an occasional elk, deer and antelope and one day they saw two buffalo which had come back once more to their stamping grounds before bidding adieu forever.
The trappers liked the looks of the country, and Mr. Rice in after years told of his and his companions’ speculations as to the length of time before the country would be settled. “We knew it was as nice a country as ever laid outdoors,” he said, “but we had no idea that it would be settled in fifty years.”
(This article will continue next week.)
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.

The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on October 24, 1924:
 
COUNTY SCHOOLS RECEIVE STATE AID APPROPRIATION
County Auditor Olaf Skyberg this week received notice from State Auditor Chase as to the amount of state appropriation as school aid which Rock county will receive. This sum is $11,113.20 which makes $4 for each of the 2,640 pupils in Rock county schools.
In addition to this, the funds derived from fines and penalties makes the aid 20c more per pupil, or the combined amount, $4.20. This will be paid to the various school districts in connection with the regular November settlement.
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.

The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on October 17, 1924:
 
MANY TAKE ADVANTAGE OF PUBLIC CHEST CLINIC
 
Total of Thirty-Nine Persons Undergo Examination by Drs. Slater and Britt
 
A total of thirty-nine people took advantage of the opportunity for examination at the chest clinic held Wednesday at the Armory under the direction of Drs. Slater and Britt, of the Southwestern Minnesota sanitorium.
Fully ninety per cent of those who underwent examination were adults. This is said to be the largest number that have ever taken advantage of a similar clinic and the result of Wednesday’s event is considered most gratifying in the results disclosed and the number of patients who were really in need of such examination.
While the clinic was primarily for adults, children who live in homes occupied by persons who are or have been affected with tuberculosis infections, were also urged to attend the clinic. In a number of instances, the result of the observations were such that the patients were instructed to closely watch their own condition and to report to the county nurse for observation every few weeks.
Public Health Nurse Florence L. Green and the Misses Helen Houg, Marietta Johnson and Myrtle Collins assisted the physicians in conducting the clinic.
It is announced that another chest clinic will be held here by Dr. Slater within the next three months.
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.