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Smith Family of Stickney South Dakota
**William P. Smith Family**
Introduction
The information contained in this document was originally found in the book titled “Stickney South Dakota 75th Anniversary: 1905 to 1980” printed by the Argus Printers Company of Stickney, South Dakota in 1980. Much of the information contained in this book was originally found in two different newspapers: The Stickney Argus and the Postal Card. The following information was taken verbatim from this book and has not been edited for content.
Stickney Plat Filed August 17, 1905
The original plat for the Town of Stickney was filed on August 17, 1905. About the first thing the Town Board of 1906 did was to pass some ordinances.
Page 3: The town election Tuesday passed quietly. All nominated candidates were elected (E. Furchner, trustee District No. 1; C. J. Fergen, trustee District No. 2; William Siglogh, trustee District No. 3; J. Bachmore, town clerk; John Schuldt, assessor; W. P. Smith, treasurer; N. H. Berens, justice of the peace; James Parks, overseer of highways.
Stickney in 1907: This picture appeared on a postcard in 1907. There were no Sidewalk Market Days in 1907 – nor any sidewalks except perhaps wooden ones. Some of the houses and buildings can be recognized. There is a noticeable lack of trees, but plenty of elevators.
How Stickney Looked Its Second Year
Page 4: Beginning at the west end of Main Street on the north side, there was the depot at the end of the railroad line from Tripp. North of the depot was the stockyards, and somewhere between Main Street and the depot was the Fullerton Lbr. Co. Then came a pool hall, the Groves-Stilwell Hardware and the Stickney State Bank.
Fred Haas took care of the Fullerton yard, Henry Schurtz operated the pool hall, W. C. Stillwell operated the hardware. Another hardware was run by A. K. Mooney. The meat market was C. J. Fergen’s. W. P. Smith and Roy Goodlad were in one bank; P. F. Nolan in the other. W. P. Dodson had a restaurant.
Above Picture: A view from the west side of Stickney was probably taken from the top of an elevator. The camera faces northeast. Main Street runs at an angle nearly from corner to corner of the picture with the school at the far end. The date of the picture suggests sometime between 1908 and 1910.
Stickney Highlights in Review
This is the story of how Stickney started, and grew, taken from items, published in the files of the Postal Card, and later, the Stickney Argus.
1906
Aug 2: Heard in the dark: W. P. Smith – Say, George, do you know that money talks? George Hough – Yes, I know; but all it ever said to me was “Good Bye”… (Page 6)
Aug 31: H. R. Goodlad of Blackearth, Wisc., is the newly installed bookkeeper in the Stickney State Bank, with Wm. Smith as cashier. (Page 7)
1908
July 10: The newly married couple, Mr. and Mrs. W. P. Smith, returned on last Friday from their wedding trip to Okoboji Lake. (Page 9)
1909
June 11: The Stickney State Bank lists deposits totaling $81,215.66; the First State Bank lists deposits totaling $28,950.52. (Page 11)
1910
Aug. 19: The dedication day of the Catholic Church took place on Aug. 17. (Page 11)
1914
May 1: Friday night a permanent organization for the proposed Stickney Commercial Club was perfected. The following officers were elected: S. V. Fite, president; J. E. Bachmore, secretary; J. P. Wallace, vice-president; W. P. Smith, treasurer. (Page 12)
1916
May 26: Alex Zimmer accepted a position with the Stickney State Bank as assistant bookkeeper. (Page 13)
1922
May 4: Friday evening those interested in a baseball team gathered to effect an organization. Frank Williams was elected manager; Charles Barton, captain; and W. P. Smith, treasurer. The following men are available for work this season: Dick Aszmus, Robert Aszmus, Frank Bourret, Walter Bourret, Jess Boatwright, Arehart, Monell, Bennett, Steinfeldt, Summers and a few others. (Page 15)
Above Picture: Hewitt’s Dray horses in front of Flaherty – Breer Store (with awning down). S. V. Fite Hardware to the right. Unger Store on the corner. Banker Bill Smith sitting on fire hydrant. Picture probably taken in the ‘20’s.
1925
Jan 15: The Stickney High School girls overwhelmed Hopper by a score of 32 to 4. Jane Sprick and Hilda Moller were forwards; Grace Magonegil and Mary Smith, guards. The centers were Evelyn Pattison, Lois Stout and Edith Billups. Agnes Haas started as forward, while Alice Haas finished the game as guard. (Page 15)
1933
Feb. 9: The closing of three state banks in Aurora County was reported Feb. 8: First State Bank and Stickney State Bank, of Stickney; and Case & Lathrop State Bank of Plankinton. (Page 26)
1955
August 18:
Stickney’s 50th Anniversary Celebration
Aug 18: Stickney’s 50th anniversary celebration starts Aug. 17 with kiddie parade, kittenball games, in the afternoon; band concert in the evening, preceding a program at the Fireman’s Park which included: Music by a community chorus, directed by Thos. H. Jones; instrumental duet by W. W. Sprick and Paul Hauert, accompanied by Ruth Billups; address by Rev. Marcus Walker of Murdo, former pastor of Stickney; “The Lord’s Prayer,” sung by Thos. H. Jones. E. G. Bormann announced the program. A Junior Legion baseball game followed the program.
Thursday activities (Aug. 18) included: parade in the morning; (Philip Assmus, in his 80’s, led the parade, riding his spotted pony); John W. Smith, attorney, Eureka, graduate of SHS, was the speaker in the afternoon, followed by George B. German, WNAX roving reporter; Harry Nultemeier and his trained Palomino stallion appeared at the ball park; there was a baseball game between Stickney and Plankinton, followed by a “chicken catch” at the ball park and then street sports. (Page 29)
St. Mary’s Catholic
A Catholic congregation was organized in Stickney in 1908, and till October 1909, Rev. M. Kelly, of Plankinton, served them. During his pastorate, a small church, 30 x 40 ft., was built and dedicated August 17, 1910. The bell was also consecrated at this time.
Some pioneer families were the following: J. P. Wallace, John Kelly, Wm. P. Smith, John Magonegil, Matt Bohr, Mike Zimmer, F. W. Haas, Nicholas Koch, George Unger and Joseph Steffes. (Page 64)
Picture on the Left: St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Stickney. Picture on the Right: United Brethren Church (left) and Catholic Church (right) looking west down Stickney Main Street (circa 1910). The United Brethren Church was built in 1907, the first church in Stickney.
High School Graduates Listed
Above Picture: Stickney’s First School Building, wood construction, built on the same block as the present school. Picture taken in October 1907.
Class of 1927
Agnes Haas, Clarice Moller, Evelyn Pattison, Mary Smith, Lois Stout. (Page 70)
Class of 1932
Eleanor Billups, Lucille Brooks, Marie Bruening, Samuel Comp, Donald Cooper, Howard Grandrath, Gerhard Matzner, Margaret Nelsen, Mildred Smith, Dorothy VanDeWeg, Harold Wilhite, John Wolbrink. (Page 70)
Class of 1938
Edward Assmus, Dale Barrows, Ruth Billups, Verna Boeker, Ivan Bormann, Betty Cooper, Charles Durfey, Muriel Durfey, Evelyn Klein, Vern Livingston, Evelyn Sauvage, John Smith, Vivian Teesdale, Robert Unger, Vernon Wulf. (Page 70)
Miscellany – Stickney Post Office
Stickney’s first post office was located in Sprick’s Store, started by W. F. Sprick, known as the “Post Office Store,” where Rogers’ Grocery is now located…W. P. Smith became postmaster in April 1933. He had previously been a banker. When he left the post office in 1949, N. E. Gruenzner, a Stickney businessman, succeeded him and was postmaster until his death in 1954. Cecil Barrows served as acting postmaster until LaVern Hughes became postmaster the last day of 1955.
In 1952, the post office had been moved from the side of the Unger building, where it had been transferred while Mr. Smith was postmaster, to the Steinfeldt building at the east end of the center block of Main Street, on the north side. (Page 81)
History Made Here by Stratosphere Balloon in 1935
This report was taken from the November 14, 1935, issue of the Stickney Argus:
Stickney just missed being the center of an historic episode, Armistice Day when the stratosphere balloon, carrying the intrepid altitude breakers, wafted to terra firma 17 miles southwest of here. The balloon had just set off a record of some 72,000 feet, where the crew with many unique instruments had been measuring cosmic rays, photographing the curvature of the earth’s surface.
Thousands had been following the progress of the flight by radio. As soon as the flash came, giving the location of the landing, cars began to converge from all points of the compass on the spot. Soon curio hunters were cutting off wire, rope, silk, canvas, and everything in sight, until army trucks and help arrived.
By dusk all the country roads were so thick with cars that nobody could see through the dust.
Carl Sprick, W. P. Smith and Dan Fite were among the first on hand when the balloon landed. Just a lot of persons, who had gone to the location with their noses in the air, did not know where they were when they arrived, or how to get home again.
One Nebraskan, who had pursued the elusive white speck to a point 40 miles southeast of Valentine, Nebr., then up the west side of the Missouri River, finally crossing at Wheeler Bridget and speeding this way, was reasonably out of humor when he made his appearance about 15 minutes after the gondola touched ground. (Page 87)
(Editor’s Note: John W. Smith would tell his children this story many times about how his own father was one of the first to see this balloon land.)
William P. Smith Family
William P. Smith came to Stickney (by bobsled) on March 25, 1905, from Kimball. He lived here 55 years, before he died in 1960 at age 80.
He was born April 14, 1879, in Bear Valley, Wisc., the son of “Irish John” and Susan Smith, who moved to Kimball in 1886.
After working in banks in Oacoma and Plankinton, Bill moved to Stickney at the very birth of the town, and with some partners started Stickney State Bank. He was in the banking business until 1933 when the great depression caught up with the banks. Later, he was postmaster, 1935 to 1950. He was noted for his enthusiasm for playing baseball and driving horses.
In 1908, he married Mary Turgeon, born in Charles Mix County, she died in 1966 at age 83, having lived in Stickney nearly all her life, except for the last few years at Pleasant View Home at Corsica.
The Smith children were Mary, now living in San Leandro, Calif.; Mildred, who married John Fox, she died in 1966; John Smith, who married Ruth Ryan of Kimball and was an attorney, living in Eureka when he died in 1978. The John Smiths had eight children, Tim, V.J., Terry, Steve, Ann, Wendy, Merida and Barbara.
Mildred and John Fox lived in Stickney for a short time. They had three sons, Robert, Thomas and Michael.
The William Smith children, Mary, Mildred and John all were reared in Stickney and graduated from SHS.
Additional Smith Citations found in Anniversary Book
Stickney Community Club
On May 1, 1914, a group met to form a permanent organization for the proposed Stickney Commercial Club. Officers elected were: S. V. Fite, president; J. P. Wallace, vice-president; J. E. Bachmore, secretary; and W. P. Smith, treasurer. In later years the name was changed to Stickney Community Club. (Page 77)
Carl Bruening Family (page 111)
Carl Bruening…built homes belonging to Ruth Billups (the Bruenings first home), Walter Wittig (their second home), J. O. Williams’ brick house (H. Rogers, first owner of the Argus), F. W. Haas and W. P. Smith homes.
Frank Williams Family (page 210)
Faye…worked at the Stickney Post office, starting under Postmaster W. P. Smith, later becoming a Civil Service Clerk in 1958.
Frank Grebe Family
Mavis married Clarence Meyer of Plankinton in 1951. They lived in Stickney from 1957 on, purchasing a house a block north of Main Street, from Mrs. Earlie Toland in 1963, built by William Smith some years before.