Memories

After learning that ‘Tony’ Quam and his wife Maria both came from Norway, I learned that they got married in Yankton, South Dakota and moved to Deadwood, South Dakota where Tony worked for the Homestake Mining Co., in the shops. A strike by the union shut down the work and after information from Peter Sjoblor to Anton and two friends, they decided to check out the homestead land near Ekalaka.

Oh yes — June Olsen and his wife Henrietta, his daughter Beverly and son-in-law Harty T. Roberts ran the Drug Store until 1955 when they sold to Murray Emerson. This was a favorite “hideout” for all of us during our high school days.

The trio traveled to Belle Fourche, then to Camp Crook and on to Ekalaka by stage, meeting Ole Olson who was a brother to June Olson, the druggist at Ekalaka.

Peter Sjoblom had a ranch five miles west of Ekalaka and he acted as “locator” for the men who each found claims. Tony filed on a 160 acre homestead located five miles west of Ekalaka on the Little Beaver Creek.

Now the new adventure for the “homestead” families described by daughter Ruth.

“In the fall of 1911, he moved his wife and three month old son, Arthur, to his homestead by team and wagon. Besides their personal belongings and household furniture, they trailed a milk cow with them. This cow was so tired and exhausted from traveling, that it laid down for several days. This cow was the beginning of their cattle business.”

Mr. Quam had built a homestead “shack” and one of the first things to do was to buy some hay for the cow and horses He walked to the Chalk Buttes and later returned with team and wagon to get it.

“Farming and ranching was a new adventure to both of them. When spring came he borrowed a walking plow and plowed up a small patch of ground to be seeded. They had no money saved, only the $100.00 they had received from Sigurd Hanger as a wedding present, which they had saved for these two years.”

Times were tough and money short during those early homestead years and Mr. Quam earned money by operating a shoe repair shop in Ekalaka three days a week in the back of a livery stable. Mrs. Quam reports listening after dark for his whistling and singing as he came home. He also worked for other ranchers in the Ekalaka area to help develop and enlarge his holdings and support his family of seven children. One of those ranchers was Edward and Regina Heggen who both came from Norway and lived about three miles Northeast of Ekalaka.

Ruth described his working at the Heggen ranch as:

“One of the places he worked was the Ed Heggen ranch east of Ekalaka; he walked that distance too, and every week or two, on Saturday evenings he returned home to see about his own family.”

From home to the Heggen ranch my guess would be at least eight to ten miles as the crow flies. As I read this, I remembered working three springs and summers for Tom and Jo. Heggen on this ranch which was started in 1884.

More on the life of the Quam family as they had lots of hard times and needed extra income.

“He and his sons cut and hauled ice in the winter time from Beaver Creek to many businesses who had ice houses in Ekalaka and a lot of ice was stored in sawdust in a nice house on the ranch and delivered by team and wagon and later by small truck. Milk cows, chickens, pigs and turkeys were also ventures that helped bring in money.”

Don’t forget the Peck Creamery that operated at that time and cream was taken there and milk brought home to feed the pigs. Don’t forget the grain hauled to Baker with four horses and a wagon which took four days to make the trip.

More to come next time as we learn of the homestead Quam family, their neighbors, family of seven and some more on the lives of those individuals.