Maude and Alfred Waters, Part Three

May 14, 2026May 21, 2026 MRW2 Comments

Maude and Alfred Waters were travellers – for pleasure, for business and for civic responsibilities (such as the trips Alfred made, mentioned in Part Two, to Portland, Oregon and Kansas City, Missouri as a delegate to the Trans-Mississippi Commercial Congress). During the nearly twenty years of his first marriage, Alfred and his wife Josie made frequent trips to their hometown in New York, where Alfred as a real estate agent often convinced friends and acquaintances to resettle in Kingsbury County.¹ After Maude and Alfred married, their first journey together was reported in the May 1904 news article announcing their marriage. The article stated that the wedding guests left “the banquet hall only in time to accompany the happy couple to the train to see them started upon a trip to the eastern cities, which is to occupy about two weeks’ time.”² The depot from which they departed is not the depot that currently stands in the town of De Smet. The original two-storey building stood on the north side of the railroad tracks. Nearly a year after the Waters took their wedding trip, that building burned to the ground on Easter Sunday, April 1905.³ A one-storey train station was built in 1906 on the south side of the railroad tracks. The latter building no longer serves as a train station, it is presently an historical museum, Depot Museum.

Some of Maude and Alfred’s trips which were recorded in the local newspaper include the following:

May 30, 1905 A trip to Winona, Minnesota for a short visit with friends.⁴
July 16, 1909 A week visiting the John Hayden family near Wasta, a town in western South Dakota.⁵ Mrs. Hayden was Alfred’s cousin, nee Ella M. Fairchild. Alfred’s and Ella’s mothers were sisters.
November 1, 1909 A trip to Wisconsin to visit friends.⁶
May 26, 1911 The return from an extended trip to the Pacific coast.⁷
September 16, 1916 A train trip to Chicago, using the Rock Island rail line.⁸

News item in the Kingsbury County Independent
May 26, 1911

About seven years after the first trip that Maude and Alfred made together, the local newspaper reported that they had begun a trip by auto, rather than by train, on July 17, 1911.⁹ Alfred had registered a 40-horsepower Buick with a horn and lights on September 15, 1909.¹⁰ Those accompanying the Waters on the automobile trip were Mr. and Mrs. George Moody and Miss Bertha Eggleston. George Moody and his wife Margaret arrived in Kingsbury County about 1882, not long after Alfred had arrived. For a number of years George worked as a field representative for Alfred’s real estate business.¹¹ During this auto trip, the party drove to Big Stone and stayed for a day or two, then drove to Detroit Lake, where they joined Dr. Coulter, of Winnipeg, and his family, who were vacationing. Big Stone was on the border of South Dakota and Minnesota, approximately 110 miles northeast of De Smet. Detroit Lake was another 130 miles northeast in northwestern Minnesota. Their trip to and from Detroit Lake took about two weeks.

In the summer of 1912, the Waters and a recently graduated high school student, Edith Mitchell, completed “a three-month automobile tour back to Alfred Waters’s boyhood home in Durham, New York. Driving over roads that much of the way consisted of nothing more than dirt paths and stopping at nearly every town to obtain directions to the next one made the excursion quite an adventure.”¹² The Waters were described as Edith Mitchell’s benefactors. A birthday party for Edith had been held in the Waters home in March 1912 (see a photograph of the guests gathered in the Waters’ home in Part One). In addition, the Waters enabled Edith to attend university.

Seven years after the Waters made their automobile trip to New York, Maude’s brother Herbert Bevers embarked with his family on an automobile journey from Watertown, South Dakota to Raymondville, Texas. It took 27 days to travel on primarily unpaved auto trails that had been designated during the 1910s. On their first day of travel, they took a transcontinental highway named Meridian Highway to Black and Yellow Trail, a road which passed through De Smet, connecting Chicago with Yellowstone National Park. The Bevers family did not enter De Smet, which was several miles west of the intersection where they arrived at the Black and Yellow Trail, rather they turned east toward Arlington. Herbert’s wife Lena kept a travel log during their trip which can be seen on the Legacy Page entitled: 1919 Lena Huppler Bevers’ Travel Log. To read about re-tracing the approximately 1900-mile journey in 2019, see the blogposts listed on the Legacy Page entitled: 2019 Retracing Lena Bevers’ Travel Log.

An historian of South Dakota and the Midwest has described the setting of the time and place in which the Waters lived as follows:

De Smet itself … stood unknowingly on the brink of a new era. In 1912, the town still retained many of the characteristics of an “island community,” which, according to historian Robert Wiebe, had dominated American society after the Civil War. Local affairs and concerns overshadowed events in distant urban areas. People felt remote from cities, comfortable within the cocoons they spun around themselves. Agriculture constituted the lifeblood of the community as people’s activities moved to the rhythms of seasonal agricultural processes. Citizens could easily assume that what happened in far-off cities and factories bore little relevance for them. The isolation that characterized little towns like De Smet in 1912, however, would soon recede as the national culture began to bear down upon the local.¹³

The above photograph was probably taken during the Old Settlers’ Day festivities on June 10, 1914. The audience is giving their attention to speakers who are standing on the steps of Waters Land and Loan Building at the intersection of Calumet Avenue (the main street) and Second Street, De Smet. (Photo credit: Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society)

In May 1916, Maude and her sister Gertrude made a trip to Mitchell, South Dakota, to attend the wedding of their sister Ada’s son, W. Arthur Mankey.¹⁴ The wedding was held in the home of the bride, Birdella Carhart, and the officiating minister was the bride’s father, Rev. A. E. Carhart. Also, in attendance were Arthur’s brother G. Floyd Mankey and his cousin Lester Mankey.

In a previous blogpost about Maude and her sisters, it was noted that Maude’s grandfather, father and sisters were involved in the temperance movement (see Ada, Gertie and Maude). Now we learn that her husband may have had a role to play – or he may not have – in a related public debate, the regulation of liquor sales. First some background: when the South Dakota constitution was created in 1889, its Article 24 banned individuals and corporations from manufacturing intoxicating liquor and from selling intoxicating liquor as a beverage. It did not address personal possession or consumption. Only seven years later, in 1896, the voters of South Dakota repealed Article 24. The following year, in order to regulate alcohol in the state, a local option law was adopted which “prohibited the sale of alcoholic beverages within the limits of an incorporated city, town, or township without a license from the municipal government. Local governments could issue liquor licenses only with the approval of voters at a municipal general election.”¹⁵

Nearly twenty years later, the controversy over alcohol use and commerce in South Dakota was still highly debated, as well as in the nation. The voters in South Dakota were evenly matched, dry voters favoring prohibition of alcohol and wet voters opposing prohibition.¹⁶ For the election in November 1916, the voters were asked to consider a referendum regarding a state constitutional amendment, which was referred to as Amendment 7. “The measure sought to end the ‘sale, manufacture for sale, transportation for sale, importation for sale, and exportation for sale of intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes.’ The amendment did not address personal possession and consumption ….”¹⁷

In the lead-up to the election, an organization presenting the wet argument and an organization presenting the dry argument vied for the voters’ attention by submitting advertisements to local newspapers. The wet organization, called South Dakota Local Option League, supported the existing local option law. S. D. Local Option League “distributed literature in 1916 urging voters to reject state prohibition and leave alcohol regulation a matter of local jurisdiction.”¹⁸ An advertisement printed in a county adjacent to Kingsbury County listed A. N. Waters as the president of the Kingsbury County branch of S. D. Local Option League.¹⁹ The advertisement claimed that the local option law was a temperance measure, and at its adoption in 1897 the local option law was supported by clergymen and businessmen. The advertisement also stated that under prohibition prior to 1897 “the illegal sale of liquor was a common practice in nearly every city and town in South Dakota” and the enforcement of the prohibitory law in small towns was impossible “because of the domination of illegal dealers over the law enforcement officials.²⁰

The argument in favor of prohibition was presented by the Anti-Saloon League. “While total prohibition was the organization’s ultimate goal, it preferred to work gradually. As its name indicated, the league focused on eliminating saloons, thereby avoiding the much more divisive issue of regulating personal alcohol consumption.”²¹

The uncertainty about whether Waters was publicly participating in the debate about alcohol regulation arises because S. D. Local Option League apparently used questionable tactics when declaring who was in support of its argument. The list of the county presidents of S. D. Local Option League was not entirely truthful. An article in the Brookings Register stated:

Some of the men whose names are given as officers of the so-called Local Option League are denying any connection with that organization. Hugo Cook, whose name has been printed in the ads as county president of Turner county, says, in a signed article in the Marion Record: “I want to say most emphatically that I have no connection with this organization in any manner whatsoever, and that the use of my name by them in the manner above mentioned, or in any other manner was and is done without my knowledge or consent and contrary to my wishes, and I have already taken steps, through my attorney, to bring legal action against the parties responsible for this fraud and imposition upon myself and the public. And I wish to state, further, that I am not in sympathy with the campaign methods employed by this organization and they need expect no assistance from me or any of my friends.”²²

Amendment 7 passed with 55% of the votes cast.²³ The next step was for the state legislature to create a law to regulate alcohol. Even though Amendment 7 was not a strict prohibition referendum, in that it did not prohibit personal possession and consumption of alcohol, in February 1917, the state legislature, which had been pressured by advocates of prohibition, created a law that banned liquor in commercial settings and also prohibited personal possession of liquor. This was followed nationally by both houses of Congress passing an amendment to the United States Constitution in December 1917. The national amendment prohibited manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes, as well as importation and exportation of intoxicating liquor. It was ratified by three-fourths of the states in January 1919. Prohibition of the alcohol industry was outlawed in the United States until 1933. It is the only amendment of U. S. Constitution that has been repealed.

The First World War had broken out in Europe in 1914 and the United States entered the war in April 1917. Maude’s nephews, Edgar and Clarence Bevers, sons of her brother Herbert, registered for the draft about June 1917. Edgar served in the military from July 1918 to October 1919. Clarence also served in the military. Herbert’s son, Arthur registered for the draft in September 1918, but the war came to an end in November 1918.

On Friday, May 4, 1917, representatives of the Brookings Chapter of Red Cross motored to De Smet in order to address “a mass meeting in the Episcopal Guild hall, called to organize a chapter of Red Cross. The meeting was well attended and much interest and enthusiasm were shown by both men and women in De Smet.”²⁴ Temporary officers of an organizing committee were chosen at this meeting. Maude was chosen to be the treasurer. Later she would hold the office of secretary.²⁵ One month prior to this meeting there was only one chapter of Red Cross in South Dakota. The following text about the Brookings Chapter provides information about the challenges that the chapter was facing, the De Smet Chapter would have faced the same challenges:

The [Brookings] chapter’s attention has been called to the appeal from headquarters for home knitted woolen socks for our soldiers in training. The home-made woolen socks are easier on the feet while on the march and wear better. It seems to be the general impression both among our people and our merchants that sock knitting has become a lost art among the women of our population. Woolen yarn has advanced so much in price and quotations for the winter have advanced so much over old prices that the Brookings Chapter does not feel warranted at the present time in making any extensive purchase of woolen yarns, without knowing how many women would pledge themselves to do the knitting. …

The efficiency and value of our local chapter will depend upon the means at their command. The prices of cotton and woolen goods for the hospital and trench supplies are so high it will be necessary to find some means of raising revenue, or the loyal and patriotic women willing to sew and knit and roll bandages will soon run out of materials.²⁶

News item in the Sioux Falls newspaper, *Argus-Leader*
May 21, 1917

The United States census taken in January 1920 recorded that the Waters’ residence was on “Second Street South Side.”²⁷ Alfred was 64 years old and he was working on his own account in the occupation of real estate. Maude was 44 years old and did not have an occupation. She was a naturalized citizen. Besides Maude and Alfred there was a servant living at their home, named Kirstin Lunde, who was an alien from Norway. She was 27 years old and single, she could read and write, and she spoke English.

For several years prior to 1921, Maude’s father had suffered from an illness that initially confined him to a wheelchair and later confined him to his bed.²⁸ Eventually, Alfred Bevers was moved to the Waters’ home, and Maude and her sister Gertrude cared for him. His illness was severe for about a year and he died on Monday, September 19, 1921. Possibly after her father’s death, Maude took possession of his walking stick and the Bevers Family Bible. (See more: Bevers Family Bible and Alfred & Mary Bevers Bible.)

In May 1922, Brookings Register reported: “Tuesday morning a large delegation of P. E. O. members from De Smet stepped off the passenger train and spent the day in Brookings as guests of the local chapter.”²⁹ Maude was among this group of 15 women who were members of Chapter R of the Philanthropic Educational Organization sisterhood, which had been formed in De Smet in November 1920.³⁰ This organization was an international women’s organization of the Methodist Church. A news article seven years later announced that Maude was vice-president of the chapter and explained:

The De Smet chapter of the P. E. O. is neither a lodge nor a club, … although it has some of the ear-marks of both. … They take a decided interest in educational progress and have a large … educational fund that is constantly growing. This fund is available to girls meeting certain requirements, at a small rate of interest, to finish their higher education and to date 2,796 girls have received loans of varying amounts. …

The chapter has a number of social events during the year but the one they feature most prominently is their annual Mother’s party in May when they entertain their mothers and others.³¹

As Waters health declined in the 1920s, he spent more time at home. “He called it ‘the western office,’ and there he met business callers the latter years of his life. From that living room he directed business, encouraged others and planned for the future looking to the good of the community, politically, morally and financially.”³² One of the transactions he very likely handled at home was an extension of the lease of the post office. On January 30, 1925, Waters Land and Loan Company, with Waters as President, made a five-year lease with the United States of America. The consideration was $900.00 per annum for the occupation of the “one story brick premises known as the Waters Building situated in the north side of Second Street between Calumet and Joliet Avenues.”³³ The lease was signed by the Post Master General and the Post Office Department seal was attached. There has also been a report made of another transaction occurring that year: “Waters deeded the property [their home on Second Street] to his second wife Maude Waters on June 8, 1925, in consideration of love and affection.”³⁴

Waters took ill on Thursday morning, August 25, 1927, sleeping peacefully part of the day and dying that afternoon. His funeral was held at the Waters’ home on Sunday, August 28. The officiating minister was Reverend Marcus Chase, who was the minister of De Smet Episcopal Methodist Church, the congregation of which Maude was a member. Philo Hall, a long-time friend of Waters and a former U. S. congressman from South Dakota, gave a tender funeral address.

Some of Waters’ friends and business associates who attended the funeral were:

Merle Sasse – a pharmacist in De Smet whose father arrived in the town a year after Waters did
Otto Altfillisch – the full-time secretary of Waters Land and Loan and the person who made the funeral arrangements
D. A. Crawford – a director of Waters Land and Loan when it was incorporated twenty years earlier
Delbert W. Wilmarth – one of the early owners of a merchandise store in De Smet
Charles L. Dawley – one of Waters’ partners of Dakota Loan and Investment Company and Kingsbury County Abstract Company, both of which were founded in the 1880s
Charles H. Tinkham – the owner of the furniture and houseware store in De Smet, which opened in 1880
Frank Schaub – early harness-maker and general merchant of De Smet
John H. Hall – a dentist whose office was in the building owned by Waters Land and Loan Company
Henry Hinz – owner of a billiard hall in De Smet
Carter P. Sherwood – the publisher of a local newspaper since 1885

Attendees from out of town included:

Herbert and Lena Bevers – Maude’s brother and his wife who lived in Clear Lake, South Dakota
Edgar and Charlotte Bevers – Herbert Bevers’ son and his wife who lived in Watertown, South Dakota
Joseph B. Fairchild and wife – A son of a sister (Juliette Newman Fairchild) of Waters’ mother, who lived in Bryant, South Dakota
Harry Fairchild –Joseph B. Fairchild’s son, who lived in Watertown, South Dakota
John and Jessie Glendenning – who lived in Arlington, South Dakota; Jessie was a granddaughter of Maude’s mother’s brother (James Bridges).
Burt Glendenning, an acquaintance who had been a student at South Dakota Agricultural College while Maude attended there; Burt was John Glendenning’s younger brother

Maude and Alfred Waters’ gravestones, De Smet Cemetery
(Photograph taken by M. Wilson, June 28, 2021)

The De Smet News gave Waters a lengthy tribute, recounting his contributions to the county and town since their foundings.

A. N. Waters, Pioneer, Laid to Rest Here Sunday.
Death came suddenly to Mr. Waters after years of ill health; active in development of county and large holder of farm lands.

A. N. Waters died at his home here last Thursday afternoon without warning of a serious condition of health. He had not felt well that morning and a physician had been called. The day was spent in bed, asleep part of the time. Mrs. Waters talked with him during a waking spell in the afternoon and some time later he passed away quietly in his sleep. Death is attributed to heart trouble.

Mr. Waters was laid to rest in the local cemetery Sunday afternoon after services at the home, with the Rev. Marcus Chase officiating. Philo Hall of Brookings delivered a funeral address. The funeral was the occasion for a gathering of friends from many points in this state, and from others.

Death came at the age of 71 years and closed a lifetime spent in this community. Mr. Waters came here a young man, prospered in real estate, served his community in many ways, and even when ill health forced him from active business, he continued his home here. He was a factor for development in Kingsbury County and will be remembered as one of the town’s biggest men.

Alfred N. Waters came to De Smet from the East, born at Cornwallsville, N. Y., November 15, 1855. His mother died when he was but a few weeks old and he was reared by her people, the Newman family. Supreme Court Judge Alfred W. Newman of Wisconsin was his uncle. In a later marriage Mr. Waters’ father had a son and daughter. His childhood chums, however, were his cousins, two of whom, Mrs. John Hayden [nee Ella M. Fairchild] of this city and Joe [Joseph] Fairchild of Bryant, he came to cherish more as sister and brother.

Mr. Waters was graduated from Albany Law School and admitted to the bar, but when he came to Dakota Territory in August, 1880, it was development and not law that attracted him and he devoted himself to real estate.

Life in the pioneer torn appealed to the young lawyer from the East. He spent his first night in the [Amos] Whiting shanty on the farm six miles east of town. Later he boarded with the Arthur Sherwood family, “Sixteen of them in a house sixteen feet square,” he called it. He lived here through the Hard Winter and in the spring of 1881 made his famed hike along the railroad track in company with a brother of Mrs. Arthur Sherwood. The whole country had been snow-bound for months and the two young men struck out for the East, hauling a sled, and in four days reached Tracy, secured a team and floundered thru to Sleepy Eye, where they were again disappointed in train service and Mr. Waters continued on alone to New Ulm.

The trip east was for his marriage, which occurred in April, 1881, to Josie E. Humphrey, who died in 1900. He was married to Miss Maude Bevers of De Smet on May 11, 1904.

In engaging in real estate Mr. Waters first had Will E. Whiting associated with him. Later there was A. A. Anderson, and in 1885 the Dakota Loan and Investment company was formed, with C. L. Dawley and Al Thomas as associates. Two years later the Kingsbury County Abstract Company was formed, with J. C. Gibson, A. W. Mullen, Mr. Dawley, Mr. Thomas and Mr. Waters as members. It was this company that built the brick building occupied by the Peoples State Bank and Waters Land & Loan company today.

The present company was organized in 1905, with John Diamond and D. A. Crawford as associates, Mr. Waters being president. Tom Tandy, George Moody and C.L. Dawley were among those who took stock. D. A. Crawford and I.F. Altfillisch successively served as secretary before Otto Altfillisch became full-time secretary.

The company and Mr. Waters in his personal holdings became the largest holders of real estate in Kingsbury County. Its president was recognized as one of the leaders in promotion of immigration and development of the new state and his company years ago attained the position of the town’s leading institution. Mr. Waters served as vice president of the De Smet National Bank, but never actively engaged in banking.

Mr. Waters served his town as mayor and against considerable opposition he fathered the institution of city gas and water and the parkings along De Smet streets. Later he lent his efforts in the sewer project and improvement of water system. He served the creamery company as president, a community service. In later years he was one of a small group, including Mrs. Waters, who brought about the improvement of the cemetery.

“Judge” was the title applied to Mr. Waters by some friends. He served as probate judge, elected in 1889. A Republican and interested in politics, he had no political aspirations. He was a member of the A. O. U. W. and Elk orders.

The Waters residence was built in 1905 and has been maintained as one of the city’s best homes. In addition to the building that houses his company’s office Mr. Waters built the post-office building, and the excavation fronting on two streets is evidence of his further ambition in building De Smet.

It was to his home that Mr. Waters went a few years ago as his health failed him. He called it “the western office,” and there he met business callers the latter years of his life. From that living room he directed business, encouraged others and planned for the future looking to the good of the community, politically, morally and financially.

It was a life-long friend and admirer, Philo Hall, who paid tribute to Mr. Waters Sunday. The former congressman spoke feelingly of De Smet’s pioneer, as he stood in the home on the sad occasion, surrounded by others who had come to pay respects to the memory of a man with whom they had enjoyed business and social associations.

Active pallbearers Sunday were J. R. Andrews, F. W. Wright, Merle E. Sasse, James McCaskell, Wm. Robinson, Wm. H. Warren. Otto Altfillisch was in charge of funeral arrangements.

Honorary pallbearers were John T. Stafford, A. L. Fisher, Judge Nicholson, Dr. J. B. Egan, Al Johnson, A. H. Cornwell, C. H. Clay, from out of town, and D. A. Crawford, D. W. Wilmarth, C. L. Dawley, C. H. Tinkham, Ed Whalen, Frank Schaub, J. H. Hall, Henry Hinz, C. P. Sherwood, Hod Perry, from De Smet.

Out of town people at the A. N. Waters funeral were: Mr. and Mrs. H. J. Bevers, of Clear Lake, S.D.,; Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Bevers, Harry Fairchild, Judge John F. Nicholson and wife, and A. H. Cornwell, from Watertown; Mr. and Mrs. J. B. Fairchild, of Bryant; Mr. and Mrs. John Glendenning, Burt Glendenning and Mrs. Hopkins, Arlington; Mrs. A. L. Fisher, Madison, Wis.; Mr. and Mrs. W. F. Brennan, Miss Molly Brennan, Miss Mary Brennan and Waters & Anderson, Attorneys at Law. A. A. Anderson married a sister of Sarah Lyngbye, who married David A. Gilbert, Mrs. Leighton, Lake Preston; Mr. and Mrs. Walter Webb, of Mitchell; Mr. and Mrs. C. H Clay, Karl and Louise Clay, of Bancroft; Mr. Strand, of Clark; Mrs. V. D. Bassart, Brookings; Mrs. Frank Warring, Yankton; John T. Stafford, of Rock Island; and Dr. J. B. Egan and wife, from Dell Rapids.³⁵

The final years of Maude Waters’ life will be the topic of the next blogpost.

1 Nancy S. Cleaveland and Gina Terrana, Waters (2015): http://www.pioneergirl.com/waters_cemetery.pdf.

2 “Waters-Bevers Nuptials,” Kingsbury County (South Dakota) Independent (May 13, 1904), in Nancy S. Cleaveland and Gina Terrana, Waters (2015): http://www.pioneergirl.com/waters_cemetery.pdf.

3 Nancy S. Cleaveland, “depot/station,” Laura Ingalls Wilder A-Z, http://www.pioneergirl.com/blog/archives/6910.

4 _____, Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), June 2, 1905, 5, Newspapers.com.

5 _____, Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), July 16, 1909, 5, Newspapers.com.

6 _____, Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), November 5, 1909, 5, Newspapers.com.

7 _____, Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), May 26, 1911, 5, Newspapers.com.

8 _____, Argus-Leader (Sioux Falls, South Dakota), September 16, 1916, 3, Newspapers.com.

9 _____, Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), July 14, 1911, 4, Newspapers.com.

10 South Dakota State Historical Society, “Motor Vehicle Registration/Automobile Dealer License,” https://history.sd.gov/archives/data/autolicense/85133/Motor%20Vehicle%20Registration%2019051911lastname.pdf.

11 Nancy S. Cleaveland, “James Glover family,” Laura Ingalls Wilder A-Z, http://www.pioneergirl.com/blog/archives/8403.

12 John E. Miller, “End of an Era: De Smet High School Class of 1912,” South Dakota History Volume 20 Number 3 (South Dakota Historical Society Press, September 26, 1990): 202, https://www.sdhspress.com/journal/south-dakota-history-20-3/end-of-an-era-de-smet-high-school-class-of-1912/vol-20-no-3-end-of-an-era.pdf.

13 Miller, “End of an Era:” 192.

14 _____, “Society,” Mitchell (South Dakota) Capital, May 4, 1916, 5, Newspapers.com.

15 Chuck Vollan, “Bone Dry” (Pierre, South Dakota: South Dakota State Historical Society, 2015): 193-94, https://www.sdhspress.com/journal/south-dakota-history-45-3/bone-dry-south-dakotas-flawed-adoption-of-alcohol-prohibition/4503_bone-dry_vollan.pdf.

16 Chuck Vollan, “Bone Dry:” 190.

17 Chuck Vollan, “Bone Dry:” 197-98.

18 Chuck Vollan, “Bone Dry:” 203.

19 _____, “South Dakota Local Option League,” Brookings (South Dakota) Register, September 7, 1916, 2, Newspapers.com.

20 _____, “South Dakota Local Option League,” September 7, 1916.

21 Chuck Vollan, “Bone Dry:” 205.

22 _____, Brookings (South Dakota) Press, September 28, 1916, 2.

23 Chuck Vollan, “Bone Dry:” 211.

24 _____, “Red Cross Notes,” Brookings (South Dakota) Register, May 10, 1917, 11, Newspapers.com.

25 _____, Argus-Leader (Sioux Falls, South Dakota), May 21, 1917, 10, Newspapers.com.

26 _____, “Red Cross Notes,” Brookings (South Dakota) Register.

27 “United States, Census, 1920”, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M6JQ-V9W : Wed Jan 15 12:36:57 UTC 2025), Entry for Alfred Waters and Maude Waters, 1920.

28 _____, De Smet (South Dakota) News, September 23, 1921 in Nancy S. Cleaveland and Gina Terrana, Waters (2015): http://www.pioneergirl.com/waters_cemetery.pdf.

29 Brookings (South Dakota) Register, May 11, 1922, 5, Newspapers.com.

30 _____, “PEO” in De Smet Yesterday and Today by Caryl Lynn Meyer Poppen, ed. (De Smet, South Dakota: De Smet Bicentennial Committee, 1976): 379.

31 _____, “De Smet P. E. O. Has Helped School Girls,” Daily Plainsman (Huron, South Dakota), November 23, 1929, 7, Newspapers.com.

32 _____, “A. N. Waters, Pioneer, Laid to Rest Here Sunday,” De Smet (South Dakota) News (September 2, 1927) in Nancy S. Cleaveland and Gina Terrana, Waters (2015): http://www.pioneergirl.com/waters_cemetery.pdf.

33 The Heritage House, LLC, “Abstract of Title,” Transfer Number 32.

34 Mike Siefker, “Hof’s stately home has history as a hospital,” Kingsbury Journal, May 4, 2022, 13.

35 _____, “A. N. Waters, Pioneer, Laid to Rest Here Sunday,” in Waters: http://www.pioneergirl.com/waters_cemetery.pdf.

Aunt Gertie, An Active Methodist

October 12, 2024November 30, 2025 MRW4 Comments

Born in August 1872, Gertrude Mary Bevers was the eighth child of Alfred C. and Mary N. (nee Bridges) Bevers, although at the time of her birth only three of her siblings had lived past the age of one. She was born in a small town in England and during her childhood her family moved every few years, including emigrating to the United States when she was 12 years old. (A summary of the young lives of Gertrude and her sisters can be found in Ada, Gertie and Maude Bevers, and an article about her brother George is found in George C. Bevers, Bookkeeper.)

There is evidence that at a young age Gertrude began following in the footsteps of her parents. One example is that at the age of 15, Gertrude along with her 20 year-old sister Ada embraced a tenet of her father and her father’s father, William Bevers, who “had been a total abstainer over 60 years … [and] was an ardent temperance advocate.”¹ Gertrude’s father participated in the temperance movement in England by giving lectures, one of which proposed that alcohol gave no assistance to the health of one’s body.² When Gertrude’s family was living in Wolsey, South Dakota, she and Ada were involved in the Hope of Wolsey, an offshoot of a temperance organization that had risen up in England called the Band of Hope. (More about the Band of Hope’s history and mission can be found in Ada, Gertie and Maude Bevers.) In April 1888, Gertrude was issued a certificate of membership in the Hope of Wolsey, which was signed by Ada. It certified that she had made a pledge of temperance, which was printed on the certificate: “I hereby solemnly promise to abstain from the use of all intoxicating liquors, including wine, beer and cider, as a beverage, and from the use of tobacco in every form, and from all profanity.” Appendix 1 below provides the text of the certificate.

Gertrude’s certificate of membership in the temperance organization Hope of Wolsey

In the year that Gertrude turned 26 years-old, she moved with her parents and younger sister Maude to De Smet, South Dakota, where she would reside for the rest of her life, about 55 years. Their residence in 1900 was on First Street.³ The town of De Smet had been established when the Dakota Central Railway Company laid tracks through Kingsbury County. (Soon afterward, in 1881, the railroad was bought by Chicago Northwestern Railroad Company).⁴

“The first family of De Smet was that of Charles P. Ingalls. He was the timekeeper for the railway construction crew at his camp on the shore of Silver Lake, a mile east of where De Smet was to be built. As construction work ceased in the fall of 1879, he and his wife, along with four daughters remained in the timekeeper’s building through the winter and spring and built what was to become Ingalls’ store.

“By 1883, De Smet was a typical early prairie town. De Smet had about 60 buildings including grocery and provision stores, wagon shops, lumber yards, banks, a drug store, newspaper companies, a flour mill, a church, a school, an elevator, two attorneys, a harness shop, one hotel and two real estate dealers.”⁵

One of the early real estate dealers was Alfred N. Waters, who would be a prominent land developer and citizen of the town. Two decades after establishing himself in De Smet, he would marry Gertrude’s sister Maude.

On November 26, 1898, Gertude with her parents and sister were received, by letter from the Willow Lake congregation, into membership of First Methodist Episcopal Church of De Smet.⁶ The De Smet congregation was small, having dropped in size from 100 members in 1891 to 60 members in 1900.⁷ The history of the church traces its beginning to the founding of the town.

“In 1880, all of the Protestant people of this area met for their worship services in the Chicago & Northwestern Railway depot, part of the time in the town’s public school house. Many families of the community cooperated to build a church edifice in 1882 under the chartered name of First Congregational Church and this was used by both Methodist and Baptist organizations for services, by alternating Sundays and hours.

“The Methodist organization, including the Ladies’ Aid Society, was formed in 1881 under the leadership of V. P. Neary. A separate building was not erected until 1885. It was then The Methodist Episcopal Church. …”⁸

Never marrying, Gertrude’s role would be housekeeper while living in her parent’s home, as well as while living in her sister’s home after her parents passed away.^9,10 In the community, Gertrude was active in several organizations. Some of what is known about her life has been extracted from minutes of meetings of women’s groups. Known as Gertie in the records of the Ladies Aid Society, she is found on its membership roll as of May 19, 1899, along with her mother. Sometimes Gertie served as the secretary or secretary pro tem of the aid society. She also served as its treasurer in 1902. Her name and her parents’ names were often mentioned in the minutes, as seen in these summarized examples:

July 11, 1899. “The Ladies Aid of the First M. E. Church met with Mrs. Crane.”

The scripture reading was Psalm 115. Mrs. Bevers gave the opening prayer. It was moved “that the Ladies serve a gallon of ice-cream each day at the church, during Institute.” Gertie seconded the motion and she signed the minutes of the meeting as the “sec pro tem.” There were 21 in attendance, not including children. Lastly, ice cream and cake were served.

August 23, 1899. “The Ladies Aid met with Mrs. O. E. Sterns.”

Gertrude signed the minutes of the meeting as secretary. The scripture reading, John 15:18, and opening prayer were given by Rev. Bevers. It was moved and carried that the society give Brother Akers, their minister, $5.00 for his salary. Rev. Bevers on behalf of the society presented Sister Akers, the minister’s wife, with a monetary gift ($5.00) for her birthday, and he sang a birthday song at the end of his presentation of the gift. This was followed by music and a social time. There were 10 members, seven visitors and eight children present.

News item in *Kingsbury County Independent*
May 20, 1904

One of the aims of the Ladies Aid Society was to raise money for the church. According to the 1965 history of the Methodist Church of De Smet: “The money paid in for the minister’s salary was never enough, so the Ladies’ Aid Society always put on big public chicken suppers. The group published a cook book, Kitchen Echoes, in 1909 with tried recipes from the women of the town. This brought in quite a bit of money for the church.” Both Gertie and Maude contributed recipes which were printed in Kitchen Echoes, which sold for 50 cents per copy.

“Potato Salad.—Two teacups cold sliced potato, two hard boiled eggs, one good sized onion. Dressing for same: one egg, two tablespoons sugar, one-half cup vinegar, one tablespoon of butter, one teaspoon of mustard dissolved in a little milk, a pinch of salt. Heat until it thickens, but do not let it boil.—Gertie Bevers.”

“Sugar Cookies.—Two cups sugar, one cup butter, one cup sour cream, two eggs, one teaspoon soda, one teaspoon essence of lemon, flour to mix just stiff enough to roll easily.—Gertie Bevers”

News item in *Kingsbury County Independent*
April 7, 1911

Another organization in which Gertie held an office was the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (W. C. T. U.). Although this organization was originally established to advocate for temperance, it later adopted the stance that local branches could advocate for other social causes, such as women’s suffrage. In April 1905, the Kingsbury County Independent announced the re-organization of the chapter in De Smet by Miss Grace Van Vleet, who was the state secretary of Y. W. C. T. U. (the young women’s branch) and a temperance lecturer. Gertie was elected to be the Correspondence Secretary of the local chapter.¹¹ In March of the following year, the district convention of W. C. T. U. was held in De Smet.¹² Most of the meetings on the 27^th and 28^th were held at the Methodist Episcopal Church.

News item in *Kingsbury County Independent*
April 21, 1905

A third organization in which Gertie participated was the Epworth League, which had been founded in 1889 as a merger of several young people’s organizations of Methodist Episcopal churches.¹³ Epworth League was made up of primarily young adults. There were six departments of social service: Spiritual Life, Social Work, Literary Work, Correspondence, Mercy and Help, and Finance. At the Methodist Episcopal church in De Smet, there were two Epworth League meetings held on Sundays, one was called the junior league and the other was the senior league.¹⁴ Gertie at the age of 39 was a delegate to an Epworth League convention in Brookings, South Dakota in September 1911.¹⁵

Additionally, Gertie was a dues-paying member of the Methodist women’s group. She served on a committee in 1902 and was assistant to the 1^st Vice in 1905. She held a supper at her house in December 1910 to raise funds, $4.60 was collected. On December 26, 1911, the minutes recorded: “Resolved Miss Bevers assist Evelyn in social work.” She held another supper in April 1912, which raised $3.85.

On May 11, 1904, Gertie was a bridesmaid at her sister’s wedding. Maude married her employer Alfred N. Waters, whose first wife had passed away in 1900.¹⁶ One of the earliest businessmen of De Smet, Waters was the president of Waters Land and Loan, as well as being the mayor of De Smet. He had hired Maude to be his stenographer in 1898.¹⁷ The groomsman at the wedding was Professor C. E. Swanson, who was the superintendent of the De Smet schools, and the officiating minister was Rev. Henry Preston of the Methodist church. The wedding was held at Syndicate Hotel which had opened in De Smet in 1887. After an addition to the hotel was constructed in 1902, it was one of the largest hotels in South Dakota.¹⁸

As of the date of this blogpost, digitized versions of the issues of Kingsbury County Independent are only available for the years 1904 to 1929, which is when the Independent merged with the De Smet News.¹⁹ The succeeding issues are not available online. From the issues that are digitized some of Gertie’s personal life can be envisioned because the local newspapers often reported on the events and travels of the Bevers family.

Sometimes Gertie’s sister Ada or her children made a trip to visit the Bevers family, but during the latter half of June 1906, Gertie spent two weeks with Ada, who lived with her husband William Mankey on a farm near Garden City, South Dakota.²⁰ When the 1910 United States census was taken, Gertie was 37 years-old and still living with her parents who were 72 and 69.²¹ That year, Gertie’s mother passed away on July 14, and a lengthy obituary was published.²² It explained that Mary had had an operation six years earlier, from which she never fully recovered. A couple of years later, she developed diabetes, and during this illness, Gertie and her family lovingly cared for Mary until her death. Soon after the funeral, Gertie accompanied her father to Arlington, South Dakota to visit friends.²³ And a month later, Mrs. James Bridges (the wife of Gertie’s mother’s nephew) came from Minneapolis to spend five days as a guest at the Bevers’ home.²⁴ Shortly after that, both Gertie and her father took trips, in part separately and partly together. Gertie went to Arlington for two weeks, then joined her father at Ada’s home.²⁵

News item in *Kingsbury County Independent*
Aug. 26, 1910

In March 1911, Gertie went again to Arlington to visit friends,²⁶ and in August 1911, Mrs. John Glendenning came from Arlington to visit Gertie.²⁷ Mrs. Glendenning was the daughter of Mrs. James Bridges and the granddaughter of Mathias Bridges, who was Gertie’s mother’s brother. A month later, the newspaper reported about an experiment that Gertie conducted with an Easter lily she had purchased.²⁸

News item in *Kingsbury County Independent*, September 15, 1911

Gertie and Maude made a trip to Mitchell, South Dakota, in May 1916 to attend the wedding of their nephew W. Arthur Mankey, who was their sister Ada’s son.²⁹ The wedding was held in the home of the bride, Birdella Carhart, and the officiating minister was the bride’s father, Rev. A. E. Carhart. Also, in attendance were Arthur’s brother G. Floyd Mankey and his cousin Lester Mankey.

When Gertie was in her thirties and forties, suffrage for women was a fiercely contended political issue on both the state and federal levels. In 1918, the men of South Dakota were asked to consider the question of amending the South Dakota state constitution, granting women the right to vote. That November the amendment passed by approximately 63% of the vote.³⁰ Six months later, the congress of the United States passed a suffrage amendment. During subsequent months, the individual states either ratified or rejected the amendment. South Dakota ratified it “without a dissenting vote in either house on Dec. 4, 1919, being the 21^st state to act.”³¹ Ratification by the final state that was needed to adopt the 19^th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States occurred on August 18, 1920. The next day, a newspaper in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, declared, “Thus the political freedom for which women have contended since the founding of the republic has been attained and 27,000,000 women, half the population of the United States, accorded the right to vote under the constitution.”³²

In January 1920 when the United States census was taken, 47-year-old Gertie and her 82-year-old father were living on Second Street in De Smet.³³ Gertie’s father lived nearly two more years. A news article dated September 23, 1921 included the following:

“For a number of years, the elderly gentleman had been in poor health, first being confined to a wheel chair, but later to his bed. His continued illness made it advisable for him to be moved from the Bevers home to A.N. Waters’ home, where his two daughters, Mrs. Waters and Gertrude Bevers, have cared for him.”³⁴

A couple of Gertie’s correspondences have survived for about 100 years. In December 1922, she mailed a postcard to her nephew Willis Bevers, son of her brother Herbert. Willis and his parents and six of his siblings had gone to southern Texas in the fall of 1919. The travel log of Willis’ mother has also survived. After finding that they didn’t like farming in Texas, his parents with most of his siblings returned to South Dakota in 1920. Willis stayed in Texas for another year but also returned to South Dakota about 1921.

Front of a Christmas postcard mailed by Gertie in December 1922

Back of a Christmas postcard mailed by Gertie in December 1922

In 1927, apparently, Gertie made a cross-country trip to visit her sister Ada. Ada with her husband and two daughters had moved to Virginia, near Remington, between 1915 and 1920. Gertie’s trip is known because she mailed a Christmas greeting from Remington to Mr. and Mrs. Willis Bevers who were living in Hazel, South Dakota. Postage for the letter was two cents and it took five days to travel from Virginia to Watertown, South Dakota.

Small envelope addressed by Gertie in December 1927

Small greeting card enclosed in the envelope mailed in December 1927

Little is known about Gertie’s personal life during the remaining years of her life. In 1930, 1940 and 1950, when the United States censuses were taken, she was living with her widowed sister Maude, whose house was on 3^rd Street in De Smet. In 1930, Gertie was 57 years-old, Maude was 54 years-old and both of them were naturalized citizens.³⁵ In 1940, both of them were engaged in home housework and they both received “income of $50 or more from sources other than money wages or salary.”³⁶ Gertie’s brother George passed away in June 1943 in Los Angeles, California, and a month later Ada passed away in Washington, D. C. About a year and a half later, her brother Herbert died in November 1944 in Watertown, South Dakota.

One miscellaneous item known about Gertie is that she continued to be active in the community in her sixties and seventies. She and Maude were members of the Friendly Garden Club in De Smet. In May 1939, they each participated in the program of the garden club by reading papers to the group. Gertrude read “Garden Verse” and Maude read “Gardening in all Countries and All Ages.”³⁷ Nearly 10 years later, the sisters hosted a garden club meeting at Maude’s house.³⁸

News item in *The Daily Plainsman*
October 1, 1948

In April 1950 the record of the United States census designates Gertie and Maude’s residence as Block 2 of “Original Town” of De Smet City.³⁹ They were 77 and 74 years-old, respectively. To the question, “What was this person doing most of last week – working, keeping house, or something else?” the answer for both of them was keeping house. Gertie was selected to answer additional questions. Her responses included that she was living in the same house a year earlier. Her education level was recorded as “S7” (seventh grade), and she didn’t finish that grade. She had not worked any weeks outside of her home in the previous year. She didn’t receive money by working as an employee, or by working in her own business. And to the question, “How much money did he receive from interest, dividends, veteran’s allowances, pensions, rents or other income (aside from earnings)?” she answered “none.”

Aunt Gertie passed away in De Smet on October 3, 1953, at the age of 81, after a “lingering illness” of stomach cancer.⁴⁰ Her remains are buried in De Smet Cemetery beside her parents. Nearby, her sister Maude and her brother-in-law Alfred N. Waters are also buried.

APPENDIX 1

Text of the certificate of membership of the Band of Wolsey:

Thy Word is Truth

This is to certify that

Gertrude M. Bevers

Having signed the subjoined Pledge, has become a member of the

Hope of Wolsey

BAND OF HOPE

PLEDGE

I hereby solemnly promise to abstain from the use of all intoxicating liquors, including wine, beer and cider, as a beverage, and from the use of tobacco in every form, and from all profanity.

Thy Sign the Triple Pledge

BECAUSE

Drunkenness is a sin.
The Bible says no drunkard shall enter heaven
Moderation tends to drunkenness, while total abstinence is perfectly safe.
The first drink is a long step toward drunkenness.
Those who do not resist the temptation to take the first drink, are not likely to resist the temptation to drink to excess.
We can never tell, when we commence the habit of drinking, how it will end.
Intoxicating drinks do us no possible good.
They are the means of great injury to our health and character.
The habit of drinking leads to many other evil habits.
Drinking always leads to misery.
Drinking usually leads to poverty.
Drinking oftentimes leads to crime.
Sixty thousand persons are ruined every year by the evils of drink.
It is a Christian duty to deny ourselves for the good and happiness of others.
While millions repent of drinking, none ever repent of abstaining.
The habit of drinking is supremely foolish.
The use of tobacco leads to an appetite for drink.
Using tobacco is a filthy and costly habit, which does no good.
Swearers and drinkers go together.
God has said, “Swear not.”

Published by the Revolution Temperance Publishing House, David C. Cook, Manager, 13 & 15 Washington st., Chicago.

Bible verses printed in each corner of the certificate:

Proverbs 23:29 Who hath woe? Who hath sorrow?

II Corinthians 7:1 Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness.

Proverbs 23:32 At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.

Matthew 5:34 Swear not at all.

1 “RIPON. Death of an Old Temperance Advocate,” The Yorkshire Herald and the York Herald (York, North Yorkshire, England), February 17, 1894, page 11, Newspapers.com.

2 “Longwood Temperance Society,” Weekly Examiner (Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England), April 24, 1869, page 6, Newspapers.com.

3 “United States Census, 1900”, , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MMRW-TKS : Sat Aug 17 18:09:29 UTC 2024), Entry for Alfred C Peevers and Mary N Peevers, 1900.

4 City of De Smet, South Dakota, “Depot Museum / Harvey Dunn School,” https://cityofdesmet.com/depot-museum.

5 Caryl Lynn Meyer Poppen, ed., excerpt from De Smet Yesterday and Today “Little Town on the Prairie” in “History,” De Smet, South Dakota, https://desmetsd.com/history.

6 First Methodist Church of DeSmet, “Record of Members.”

7 First Methodist Church, “A History of the Church,” Consecration Service of the Remodeled First Methodist Church (De Smet, South Dakota: First Methodist Church, September 26, 1965).

8 First Methodist Church, “A History of the Church.”

9 “South Dakota State Census, 1905”, , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MM42-JWN : Sun Mar 10 20:39:28 UTC 2024), Entry for Gertrude M Bevers.

10 “United States Census, 1940”, , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V19L-5LM : Fri Mar 08 09:56:34 UTC 2024), Entry for Maude Waters and Gertrude Bevers, 1940.

11“Local News,” Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), April 21, 1905, page 5, Newspapers.com.

12 Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), March 23, 1906, page 4, Newspapers.com.

13 Case Western Reserve University, “Epworth League,” Encyclopedia of Cleveland History, https://case.edu/ech/articles/e/epworth-league.

14 “Church Services,” Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), September 15, 1911, page 5, Newspapers.com.

15 “Local News,” Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), September 15, 1911, page 5, Newspapers.com.

16 Nancy S. Cleaveland, “Alfred N. Waters,” Laura Ingalls Wilder A-Z, http://www.pioneergirl.com/blog/archives/7204.

17 “College News,” The Brookings Register (Brookings, South Dakota), March 29, 1898, page 2, Newspapers.com.

18 Nancy S. Cleaveland, “Syndicate Hotel,” Laura Ingalls Wilder A-Z, http://www.pioneergirl.com/blog/archives/9165.

19 Library of Congress, Kingsbury County Independent (Desmet, Kingsbury County, S.D.) 1894-1929, https://www.loc.gov/item/sn00065130/.

20 “Local News,” Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), June 15, 1906, page 5, Newspapers.com.

21 “United States Census, 1910”, , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MPX1-9J6 : Sun Mar 10 11:44:32 UTC 2024), Entry for Alfred C Bevers and Mary N Bevers, 1910.

22 Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), July 22, 1910, page 4, Newspapers.com.

23 “Local News,” Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), July 22, 1910, page 5, Newspapers.com.

24 “Local News,” Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), August 19, 1910, page 5, Newspapers.com.

25 “Local News,” Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), August 26, 1910, page 5, Newspapers.com.

26 “Local News,” Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), March 24, 1911, page 5, Newspapers.com.

27 Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), August 11, 1911, page 4, Newspapers.com.

28 “Local News,” Kingsbury County Independent (De Smet, South Dakota), September 15, 1911, page 5, Newspapers.com.

29 “Society,” Mitchell Capital (Mitchell, South Dakota), May 4, 1916, page 5, Newspapers.com.

30 Forest City Press (Forest City, South Dakota), December 5, 1918, page 2, Newspapers.com.

31 Argus-Leader (Sioux Falls, South Dakota), August 19, 1920, page 4, Newspapers.com.

32 Argus-Leader, August 19, 1920.

33 “United States Census, 1920”, , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M6JQ-J85 : Thu Mar 07 04:17:06 UTC 2024), Entry for Alfred C Bevers and Gertrude Bevers, 1920.

34 Nancy Cleaveland and Gina Terrana, Waters (2015), http://www.pioneergirl.com/waters_cemetery.pdf.

35 “United States Census, 1930”, , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XQVH-29Z : Thu Jul 11 05:02:51 UTC 2024), Entry for Maude A Waters and Gertrude V Bevers, 1930.

36 “United States Census, 1940”, Entry for Maude Waters and Gertrude Bevers, 1940.

37 The Daily Plainsman, (Huron, South Dakota), May 12, 1939, page 5, Newspapers.com.

38 The Daily Plainsman, (Huron, South Dakota), October 1, 1948, page 5, Newspapers.com.

39 “United States Census, 1950”, , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6F9N-CQQP : Wed Oct 04 18:17:08 UTC 2023), Entry for Agnes Maude Katers and Gertrude M Bevers, 10 April 1950.

40 K. and M. Bevers, notes attached to Gertrude Mary Bevers in Ancestral Quest program file dated June 29, 2022.

Ada and William Mankey

December 7, 2023 MRW1 Comment

It was probably in the fall of 1885 that 18 year-old Ada Bevers met William Mankey. Ada had immigrated from England only about 10 months prior. William, having immigrated from England in 1875¹ and having worked (as of 1880) in a mine in Deer Park Township, La Salle County, Illinois,² by 1882 had obtained a tract of land in Clark County, Dakota Territory.³ In October 1885 Ada’s father, Alfred C. Bevers, was assigned to be the supply pastor of the Henry Methodist Episcopal (M. E.) Church in southwestern Codington County, Dakota Territory.⁴ The charge may have included a congregation located in Garden City as well, which was about 12 miles to the northwest of Henry, over the county line in Clark County. It is known that in 1888, William and his mother were members of the Garden City congregation and William was also a steward of the Henry Charge.⁵

Ada’s family lived in Henry for two years, then her father was assigned to Wolsey M. E. Church and the following year he was assigned to Bradley M. E. Church. Around this time period, Alfred submitted a claim for a homestead in Phipps Township, in western Codington County, about 10 miles northeast of Garden City. When Alfred and his wife Mary celebrated their 25^th wedding anniversary in September 1889 at their small home on the homestead, it is believed that William attended the gathering. (See a photograph of the group attending the celebration in Ada, Gertie and Maude).

Ada and William would eventually marry on October 28, 1891.⁶ During the next decade, they lived on their farm in Clark County and they would have three children born to them. Their first child, Florence Gertrude, was born on October 16, 1892.⁷ Her namesakes were Ada’s sisters, Florence who had died as an infant and Gertrude who was still living with Ada’s parents. On April 13, 1894, Ada gave birth to William Arthur,⁸ named after his father of course and one of Ada’s deceased brothers Arthur. On June 7, 1897, George Floyd was born, named after Ada’s eldest brother George, who was living in Philadelphia.⁹ By 1898, Ada’s parents and sisters Gertrude and Maude had moved to De Smet, the county seat of Kingsbury County, about 50 miles to the south of William and Ada’s farm.

When the 1900 United States census was taken, 32-year-old Ada and 42-year-old William had been married for eight years.¹⁰ They were living on the farm that they owned in Eden Township, Clark County. William was a farmer and a naturalized citizen, having lived in the United States for 25 years. The census recorded that Ada had immigrated in 1884 and had been in the United States for 16 years. She was not a naturalized citizen (although she had submitted her intention to become a citizen in 1889.)¹¹ Seven year-old Florence had attended five months of school that year. W. Arthur was six years-old and G. Floyd was two years old. On the section to the east of William and Ada’s farm, William’s mother Mary lived with his brother Tobias, his sister Margaret Minor and Margaret’s three children.¹² William’s father Thomas had passed away in 1899 and is buried in Garden City Cemetery.¹³

The quarter section in Eden Township that William and Ada owned can be found on a 1900 map of Clark County; the farm is about a mile north of Garden City and labeled with Ada’s name.¹⁴ Adjacent to Ada and William’s farm, the map shows the quarter section owned by Mary Mankey, and to the east of her farm, William’s brother Thomas Mankey held a quarter section. Not far away in Maydell Township to the north were the farms of William’s brothers Tobias and James Mankey.

Cropped from a map of Clark County, South Dakota, dated ca. 1900.

William and Ada added another daughter to their family, Hazel Maude, on September 14, 1904.¹⁵ She was named after Ada’s youngest sister Maude. When the South Dakota census was taken in 1905, the Mankey family was still living at the same location in Eden Township. Four years later, William’s mother passed away in 1909 and was buried with his father in Garden City Cemetery.¹⁶

In late winter 1909, Ada made a trip to De Smet to visit her parents for several days. Possibly she traveled by train. The Chicago, Milwaukee and Saint Paul Railway had an extension which had stations at Garden City and Lake Preston, a town ten miles to the east of De Smet. A year and a half after this visit, Ada’s mother, who had been afflicted with diabetes for nearly four years, passed away in July 1910.¹⁷ Shortly afterwards, Ada’s father spent a month at Ada’s home and her sister Gertrude joined them after visiting some friends.

Reported in *Kingsbury County Independent*, March 5, 1909

Reported in *Kingsbury County Independent*, August 26, 1910

When the 1910 United States census was taken, Ada and William were still living on a farm in Eden Township.¹⁸ Florence (age 17), W. Arthur (age 16) and G. Floyd (age 12) had all attended school that year. Hazel at five years-old had not attended school. While in high school, W. Arthur made a glider from plans published in the magazine Popular Mechanics.¹⁹

Both the 1900 and the 1910 censuses asked women how many children they had and how many of them were alive. Ada had given birth to four children and all of them were alive. This was unlike her mother, who had born 11 children, six of which passed away in their first or second year of life. In England early childhood mortality (deaths of children between the age one and five) had begun to decline about 1870, but infant mortality (deaths of children before the age of one) didn’t decline until around the turn of the twentieth century.²⁰ Ada’s mother was living in England and bearing children when infant mortality was high. Ada’s children were born during a period of steady decline in child mortality in the United States.²¹

In 1915 when the South Dakota state census was taken, Florence and Hazel were at home with Ada and William.²² W. Arthur was attending his second year of college at Dakota Wesleyan University (DWU) in Mitchell, South Dakota.²³ He was studying Engineering and Math.²⁴ The census records identify the family’s religion as “M. E.” (Methodist Episcopal). It is not known where G. Floyd was at the time of this census, but according to the 1930 United States census he was a veteran of “the World War,”²⁵ which would be World War 1. He was a seaman in the United States Navy from May to December 1918.²⁶

The first of William and Ada’s children to marry was W. Arthur. He married Birdella A. Carhart in April 1916 in Mitchell,²⁷ where they had met while he was attending DWU. The officiating clergyman was Birdella’s father, A. E. Carhart, who was a minister in the M. E. Church. A year and a half after their marriage, W. Arthur and Birdella had their first child, born in December 1917, giving William and Ada their first grandchild. By then, W. Arthur and Birdella were living in Washington, D. C.²⁸ They would give Ada and William their second and third grandchildren in July 1921 and January 1924.

By the time the United States census was taken in January 1920, William and Ada had purchased and lived on a dairy farm outside of Remington, Fauquier County, Virginia, about 60 miles southwest of Washington, D. C.²⁹ William was 61 years-old, a naturalized citizen and a dairy farmer. Ada was 52 years-old and she was also naturalized. Their 27 year-old daughter Florence and 15 year-old daughter Hazel were living with them, and Hazel was attending school. W. Arthur, Birdella and their child were in a rented place in Washington, D. C.³⁰ W. Arthur was a draftsman, working for the Navy Department. G. Floyd was possibly lodging in Washington, D. C. and working as an automobile salesman.³¹ A year after the census was taken, back in DeSmet, South Dakota, Ada’s father passed away in September 1921.³²

In the early 1920s, W. Arthur would move to southern California and embark on a career in aviation engineering. During the next several decades he would play a role in the advancement of the aviation field and in its regulation. One of his first accomplishments was modifying an airplane wing which with one further modification became the wing of Colonel Charles Lindbergh’s plane, the Spirit of Saint Louis.³³ In 1927, the Spirit of Saint Louis was the first plane to be successfully flown across the Atlantic Ocean.

At noon on November 21, 1923, a wedding was performed at Ada and William’s “Fairview Farm.”³⁴ Florence married Grant B. Bruce, a widower employed by the Government Forestry Department in Washington, D. C. The city directory provides additional information: He was a statistician for the Department of Agriculture.³⁵ Upon settling in Grant’s home in northwest Washington, D. C., Florence would host lodgers in their home for the next couple of decades. Many of the lodgers worked for the United States government.

Reported in *Richmond Times-Dispatch*, December 1, 1923

Two more weddings occurred in the 1920s. Hazel married James H. Weeks in October 1924,³⁶ and G. Floyd, who had moved to San Francisco in the mid-1920s, married Lucia Neira, an Italian immigrant, in May 1927.³⁷

In December 1927, Ada’s sister Gertrude mailed a Christmas greeting card from the town of Remington, Virginia. The card was addressed to one of her brother Herbert’s sons and his wife, Willis and Elizabeth Bevers, in Hazel, South Dakota. Presumably Gertrude was visiting Ada and her family.

According to the 1930 United States census, 61 year-old Ada and 71 year-old William were living on a dairy farm that they owned, still in Fauquier County. William was a farmer and he had worked on the day before the census taker visited their home.³⁸ He was not a veteran. They did not own a radio set. Florence and Grant were living at the same location in Washington, D. C.³⁹ W. Arthur and his family had left California and were living in Detroit, Michigan. W. Arthur was an aeronautical engineer, working in the auto products industry.⁴⁰ George and Lucille were in San Francisco and George was working as an automobile salesman.⁴¹ They owned a radio set. Hazel and James were living with her in-laws on her father-in-law’s dairy farm which was not far from Ada and William.⁴² They had two children by this time, giving Ada and William a total of five grandchildren. Three years later, Florence would give them their sixth grandchild.

In 1935, Ada and William still lived on a farm outside of Remington.⁴³ Florence and Grant with their child were living at the same address as previously in Washington, D. C.⁴⁴ W. Arthur and his family had moved to Santa Monica, California.⁴⁵ Hazel and James were on a farm in Lee, Virginia.⁴⁶ George and Lucille still lived in San Francisco,⁴⁷ but by 1937, they would move to southern California where Lucille gave birth to Ada and William’s seventh grandchild.⁴⁸

Tragedy struck Ada and Florence within a single day of each other. Florence’s husband died on April 30, 1938. Grant had worked for the federal government for about 37 years and had been “in charge of all map records of the United States Forest Service” for 25 years before his retirement in May 1937.⁴⁹ The day after Grant died, William at nearly 80 years-old passed away on May 1, 1938. His death certificate states that he worked as a dairy farmer “to time of death.”⁵⁰ William is buried in Remington Cemetery, Remington, Virginia.

The 1940 United States census record indicates that 72 year-old Ada was a lodger in Washington, D. C. and in the previous year she had received more than $50.00 that was not money wages or salary.⁵¹ Florence, at 46 years-old was continuing to live at the same residence which she owned in Washington, D. C.; also at the residence was her seven year-old child and three lodgers.⁵² W. Arthur had returned to the east coast, he and his family were living in Baltimore County, Maryland.⁵³ He was an aeronautical engineer at an airplane factory. George and Lucille had moved to Montebello, Los Angeles County and he was working as a house roofer.⁵⁴ Hazel and her family were still living on a farm in Lee, Virginia.⁵⁵ Her father-in-law lived with them and they had two children. There was also a lodger and a servant living with them.

During the last years of Ada’s life, her eighth and ninth grandchildren were born, the children of Hazel and James, born in 1940⁵⁶ and 1943.⁵⁷ At the age of 75, Ada’s last days were spent in Warrenton Hospital, Fauquier County and she died there on Monday, July 19, 1943. She is buried in Remington Cemetery with her husband.

Reported in Washington, D. C.’s *Evening Star*, July 21, 1943

1 Ancestry.com, New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 (Provo, Utah, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010): http://www.Ancestry.com.

2 “United States Census, 1880”, database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MXV4-9J7 : Mon Sep 18 07:00:43 UTC 2023), Entry for Thomas Mankey and Mary Mankey, 1880.

3 “United States Bureau of Land Management Tract Books, 1800-c. 1955,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89WS-ZB44?cc=2074276&wc=M7WS-8ZC%3A356164401%2C356186301 : 14 October 2022), Dakota Territory > Vol 32 > image 54 of 254; Records Improvement, Bureau of Land Management, Washington D.C.”

4 United Methodist Church, Dakotas Conference, Commission on Archives and History, personal communication with M. R. Wilson (June 20, 1995).

5 J. G. Palmer, Palmer’s Directory of the Methodist Episcopal Church for Dakota Conference, “Henry” (1888): 128.

6 K. & M. Bevers, marriage note attached to William Mankey in Ancestral Quest program file dated June 29, 2022.

7 South Dakota Department of Health, “South Dakota Birth Records With Birth Dates Over 100 Years,” [Birth Information for Florence Mankey, State File Number: 599515]: https://apps.sd.gov/PH14Over100BirthRec/resultDetail.aspx?args=B7173D5000910C4994EA3F8456480222D6E12B84CB216B4C0933C9B568E36E1D0E715C23B1B77D480BE3E15CB8FC342C.

8 K. and M. Bevers, record of William Arthur Mankey, Ancestral Quest program file dated June 29, 2022.

9 South Dakota Department of Health, “South Dakota Birth Records With Birth Dates Over 100 Years,” [Birth Information for George Mankey, State File Number: 571260]: https://apps.sd.gov/PH14Over100BirthRec/resultDetail.aspx?args=B7173D5000910C4994EA3F8456480222567A6332A151C9247E16A4E0455BC1DD47D4462802BD74BF1CB49DF6E38B4573.

10 “United States Census, 1900,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-6PQ9-455?cc=1325221&wc=9BW8-7MH%3A1031648401%2C1030694601%2C1032143801 : 5 August 2014), South Dakota > Clark > ED 89 Eden, Elrod & Maydell Townships > image 5 of 16; citing NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

11 United States of America, “First Naturalization Paper of Ada N. Bevers,” (Codington County, Dakota Territory: USA, May 22, 1889).

12 “United States Census, 1900,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-6PQ9-QHQ?cc=1325221&wc=9BW8-7MH%3A1031648401%2C1030694601%2C1032143801 : 5 August 2014), South Dakota > Clark > ED 89 Eden, Elrod & Maydell Townships > image 6 of 16; citing NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

13 South Dakota State Historical Society, online cemetery search, “Thomas Mankey,“ https://apps.sd.gov/dt58cemetery/.

14 Peterson, E. F., and S. Wangersheim. Map of Clark County, South Dakota: compiled and drawn from a special survey and official records (Vermillion, S.D.: E. Frank Peterson, 1900): https://www.loc.gov/item/2012593005/.

15 South Dakota Department of Health, “South Dakota Birth Records With Birth Dates Over 100 Years,” [Birth Information for Hazel Mankey, State File Number: 599514]: https://apps.sd.gov/PH14Over100BirthRec/resultDetail.aspx?args=B7173D5000910C4994EA3F845648022241EB9E32217A5B880C0B80F399C73EA3C6FFD3355FD484F8AC6A0AC2E2AEC648.

16 South Dakota State Historical Society, online cemetery search, “Mary Mankey,“ https://apps.sd.gov/dt58cemetery/.

17 Kingsbury County Independent, “Mrs. Alfred C. Bevers,” (DeSmet, South Dakota: July 22, 1910): 4.

18 “United States Census, 1910,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9TD2-CVC?cc=1727033&wc=QZZH-XC3%3A133638201%2C133675901%2C133835401%2C1589089262 : 24 June 2017), South Dakota > Clark > Eden > ED 108 > image 3 of 8; citing NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

19 K. & M. Bevers, biographical note attached to W. A. Mankey.

20 University of Cambridge, Populations Past – Atlas of Victorian and Edwardian Population, https://www.populationspast.org/about/.

21 Statista, Child mortality rate (under five years old) in the United States, from 1800 to 2020, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1041693/united-states-all-time-child-mortality-rate/.

22 “South Dakota State Census, 1915,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-6917-3R9?cc=1476041&wc=MJQL-MNL%3A1041735101 : 21 May 2014), 004245361 > image 1948, 1970, 1972 & 1997 of 3079; State Historical Society, Pierre.

23 “South Dakota State Census, 1915,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-691Q-K1F?cc=1476041&wc=MJQL-MNL%3A1041735101 : 21 May 2014), 004245361 > image 1953 of 3079; State Historical Society, Pierre.

24 K. & M. Bevers, biographical note attached to W. A. Mankey.

25 “United States Census, 1930,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GR4N-9Y7?cc=1810731&wc=QZFS-M82%3A648807101%2C651480501%2C651480502%2C1589283887 : 8 December 2015), California > San Francisco > San Francisco (Districts 1-250) > ED 134 > image 40 of 43; citing NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002).

26 “United States Headstone Applications for U.S. Military Veterans, 1925-1949,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-994Q-YRD4?cc=1916249&wc=MDBG-K68%3A205942901%2C213448601 : 26 April 2021), 1941-1949 > Mangum, Tully-Marks, Edward > image 136 of 2371; citing NARA microfilm publication M1916 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

27 Ancestry.com, South Dakota, U. S., Marriages, 1905-2018 (Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.: Lehi, Utah, USA, 2005).

28 The Mitchell Capital (Mitchell, South Dakota, December 13, 1917): 3.

29 “United States Census, 1920,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GRFW-4QZ?cc=1488411&wc=QZJT-FXV%3A1038215501%2C1038273601%2C1036505301%2C1589332367 : 14 September 2019), Virginia > Fauquier > Lee > ED 47 > image 19 of 42; citing NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

30 “United States Census, 1920,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9R69-46Q?cc=1488411&wc=QZJG-FM7%3A1036474401%2C1036474402%2C1036476301%2C1589335824 : 10 September 2019), District of Columbia > Washington > Washington > ED 317 > image 18 of 28; citing NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

31 “United States Census, 1920”, , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MNLV-Z7N : Thu Oct 05 15:18:14 UTC 2023), Entry for George F Mauky, 1920.

32 The Tabor Independent (Tabor, South Dakota, October 6, 1921): 6.

33 The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California, April 20, 1985): 61.

34 Richmond Times-Dispatch (Richmond, Virginia, December 1, 1923): 4.

35 Ancestry.com, Boyd’s Directory of the District of Columbia 1923, U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995 [database on-line] (Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011).

36 K. & M. Bevers, biographical note attached to Hazel Maude Mankey, Ancestral Quest program file dated June 29, 2022.

37 Ancestry.com, “California, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1843-1999” [Naturalization record of Lucille Mankey, Naturalization Records/i. National Archives at Riverside, Peris, California] (Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014).

38 “United States Census, 1930,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GRZF-38K?cc=1810731&wc=QZFW-811%3A648805201%2C650224701%2C648825601%2C1589282415 : 8 December 2015), Virginia > Fauquier > Lee > ED 7 > image 30 of 38; citing NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002).

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48 Ancestry.com, “California, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1843-1999.”

49 Evening Star (Washington, District of Columbia, May 1, 1938): 14.

50 Commonwealth of Virginia, Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, certificate of death of William Mankey.

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