buggy days, perhaps a bit old fashioned compared to the fast moving scenes of the present, but they brought out the best that was in men and women.
In the '80's this was a sportsman's or rather a hunter's paradise. Ducks, geese, brants, plover and snipe were shot from the lake shore. The men from Maine, who came here in the employ of Wilson in 1883, had a wonderful time. They built sail and row boats for the lake which had 15 feet of water. When fall came the boys had a building about l2x14 on the lake shore and it was literally filled with brants, geese and ducks. They were shot in the freezing days of the fall and kept until the holidays.
The first depot agent was Chas. Bragdon. J. W. Bragdon was the first postmaster. J. W. Parshall was the first school teacher, walking in four miles from his farm nearly every morning. Ted Humble was the first lumber man. The first Christmas tree was a bare ash from Bear Lake. The willows along
First airplane to fly in Murray County, June 1915
Otto Timms of Windom was the pilot. There was a canvas placed around the plane after the flight and a fee of 10 cents was charged to see the new machine.
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the lake shore were planted by M. E. Lang and H. Uebesigitzig in 1884. Bill Sabin was the first man to work in Lake Wilson; he helped dig the first cellar. The first postoffice was located on the Flannery place west of town. The postmaster was Wm. Luce. The first religious service in Lake Wilson was held in the third story of the big store building. This hall was also used for dances, parties, and lodges. Amusements were simple, consisting of literary societies, which always included a debate, taffy pulls, dances (sometimes a one man fiddle affair), stringing the cranberries and popcorn for the Christmas tree, the Christmas programs, quilting bees and skating and sleighing parties. When death came to a home, the shades were pulled down and the neighbors in pairs, took turns in sitting up with the corpse. The revivalist held down the school house for two weeks and sometimes we had some of our own who soon forgot and started chewing tobacco and cussing the minute the revivalists had gone. We used to have a pool as to who would be the first to backslide.
Magic lantern shows would make the town once a year and a phrenologist would hold forth at the schoolhouse for a couple of nights reading our heads. In the early '80's a picturesque looking foreigner would make the rounds with a dancing bear who climbed the telephone pole, danced and wrestled with the keeper. Hunting did not take up much time in the fall. There were no game laws and everybody had all the game he wanted. The lake has been dry at three different periods (that is, completely dry). The earliest was before the '60's (so an Indian told Hans Nelson, pioneer resident). Train service especially in the winter was terrible. One winter in the late '80's we had no service here from December until April. The wheat was green in the fields by the time the train came. We got our mail and merchandise from Chandler that winter. Bill Sabin was mail carrier. Bids were taken for the job. When the bids were opened, Bill's bid was ninety cents so he had the job.
When sickness came, doctors came from Slayton and Pipestone; not very often, though, as it cost money, something we did not have to burn.
Groceries all came in barrels or boxes, no cartons. At first there were no paper sacks and we had to pour the sugar out on
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