In February of 1906 it was determined that Rural Route No. 1 would be established at Fairfax on April 2.  It would serve 104 houses and 520 folks living in the rural area of eastern Gregory County near the Missouri River.

Later that same year The Mitchell Capital in a story at the top of the front page told of an interesting dispute involving the title of the Gregory townsite.   This same story appeared in a number of papers in South Dakota and Nebraska.  Proof to the townsite had already been made by Edwin M. Starcher of Fairfax, who was engaged in the practice of law and the abstract business.  He also served as County Judge.  His proof of townsite was accepted by the commissioner of the general land office in Chamberlain.

The proof made at the Chamberlain land office nearly two years before would have been approved by the commissioner had it not been for the filing of protests by individuals from Gregory.  The second time proof was offered at the Mitchell land office by F. M. Ziebach who represented the Gregory Board of Trustees.

The Mitchell land office decided against Mr. Ziebach, denied all his protests, and rejected his application to make proof for the townsite.  That decision was affirmed by the commissioner of the general land office.

The case was appealed to the Secretary of the Interior, who would be required to decide whether the receipt would be issued to the Board of Trustees of the town or to Judge Starcher.  Pending a decision upon the appeal, which it was determined would not be rendered for a year or more, holders of lots in Gregory were unable to secure title to their lots.

It appears that for Judge Starcher his proof of townsite filing was simply an investment to make a profit.  At that time, the townsite company was responsible for issuing titles which could result in a tidy profit at the expense of those seeking title to their land.

At the same time, because of the rush to acquire land on the reservation between Norfolk and the Wyoming border, Federal troops patrolled the reservation borders.  The Norfolk Weekly News-Journal of May 25, 1906 reported:  “Troops are near at hand and right now soldiers are patrolling the reservation’s edge to keep sooners from entering the land in order to prospect it.”

Later that summer, a story in the Omaha Daily Bee told of a 93 year old man by the name of Morrison who had set a new record in the pedestrian category as far as age is concerned.  He had walked from Butte, Nebr. to Fairfax, S.D., a distance of about eleven miles.  He was on his way to visit old acquaintances who resided in the ceded portion of the Rosebud Indian reservation.  He had a homestead in North Dakota where he lived and he proudly displayed a Grand Army of the Republic button on his shirt.

That fall, the school census reports for the 1906 – 07 school year showed an increase in the school population over the previous year.  The counties in the south-eastern part of the state showed a loss of 526 students.  On the other hand, the counties of Butte, Lyman, Stanley, Gregory, Pennington, and Meade showed an increase of 1,682.  Lyman and Gregory counties showed the largest increase — Lyman 566 and Gregory 432.

Finally, in December of 1906, a decision was made on the issue of which proof of townsite for Gregory would be approved by the Department of the Interior.  The Norfolk Weekly News-Journal on December 14, 1906 reported:  “Although the town of Gregory came into existence on August 8, 1904, at the time the ceded portion of the Rosebud Indian reservation in Gregory county was opened to settlement, it was not until the last few days that litigation involving the townsite came to an end, enabling the proper authorities to go ahead and give the residents deeds to the lots which many of them have been holding since August 8, 1904.”

Judge Starcher had submitted a final proof of townsite on Sept. 16, 1904 which was rejected by the U. S. land office.  He submitted another final proof in November of 1905; however, in the meantime the town had incorporated which left the matter of proof with the town authorities.

The commissioner of the general land office decided that the proof should be made by the town authorities.  Judge Starcher appealed this decision to the Secretary of the Interior, where the matter rested for months.  There was considerable frustration and anger on the part of the residents of Gregory toward Starcher.  Eventually he decided to withdraw his appeal and ended the litigation.  After more than two years of waiting, the lot holders were given the deeds to their lots.

The Gregory County Commissioners in April of 1907 accepted a proposition from Fairfax to erect a foundation for the county court house.  The county was asked to erect and furnish a $20,000 structure; however, the new part of the county was up in arms and vowed to “fight every inch of the way until the county seat is removed to Herrick or Burke.”

The Butte Gazette had this editorial comment: “Gregory County is on the verge of a county seat fight.  Poor child, she knows not the depth of grief and sorrow she is about to encounter.”

Miss Lotta Baily, the County Superintendent, in September of 1907 announced that there were about a dozen schools in Gregory County without teachers.  Salaries ranged from $40 to $50 per month ($1,107 to $1,384 in 2021).

Herrick and Burke were beginning to make plans for the 1908 fight!

 

Author Clarence Shoemaker, originally published in the Gregory-Times Advocate on January 20, 2021