#devilslakend

Lake Region Heritage Center recently received a research request from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  Many small details were found on Franklin H. Prosser, which helped piece together his life while in Devils Lake.  He was a prominent business man in the early days of the Lake Region.

Franklin H. Prosser came to the Devils Lake region in 1882 (one year before Devils Lake was founded.)  He lived in Ohio and Indiana prior to coming to Dakota Territory.  At age 24, Franklin located a claim seven miles southeast of the city of Devils Lake, in Minnewauken Township. He moved to the city two years later but retained ownership of the land at least through 1909, where his name appears in the 1909 Ramsey County Atlas.

Along with partner Ole Serumgard, he owned farm implement businesses in Devils Lake, Webster and Starkweather.  He served as probate judge for one year in 1884, and was a member of the North Dakota State Senate in 1895.   Our library has a few city directories from the early 1900s.  These directories list the name of city residents along with their address and profession. Although he is listed as “dealer in farm machinery” in 1909, by 1916 he is listed as “attorney.”  By 1920 Franklin is retired.

He and his wife Sallie were involved in the community.  Franklin was a member of the Masons and the Knights Templar, and served on the Board of Education.  Sallie was involved in the Devils Lake Study Club.  Sallie and Franklin raised two sons, Don and Frank, Jr. A fun fact on the Prosser family is that they lived at 503 – 7th St, which still stands today.  Franklin is buried in the Grand Army of the Republic cemetery located in Devils Lake.

There are thousands of people who have a part in the history of Devils Lake.  Because of requests like this, we learn about people from the Lake Region’s past and have a deeper appreciation for our community.

Below is an ad that appeared in the Devils Lake City Directory.

It is a warm sunny day in July. The year is 1987 and Ralph J. Erickstad is thrilled. He has just been notified of his position as the new Chief Justice of the State of North Dakota. Coming from humble origins on a farm in Starkweather, one might wonder how he got here.

The story began in 1949 when Erickstad, after receiving his degree from the University of Minnesota, began a legal practice in Devils Lake.  He practiced law for over 12 years, and afterwards climbed the ladder of success, serving various positions such as Police Magistrate, State Attorney, even State Senator until he was elected to the Supreme Court in 1962.

Erickstad lived from 1922-2000. Here is a snippet from his obituary in Towner County Herald:

You'll find Chief Justice Erickstad's robe in our courtroom on the 2nd floor! 

 Blog by Emily Kenner

On this day in 1934 President Franklin Delano Roosevelt spent one short day on the shores of what was left of Devils Lake.  The president arrived at 8am and left just four hours later for St. Paul, MN.  In this short time he gave a speech to an estimated 35,000 people, rode in a parade downtown and even took a drive around the Lake Region to Sheyenne, New Rockford, Fort Totten, and Camp Grafton. 

FDR’s stop to our humble town 80 years ago was just one of several on his tour of the Great Plains.  At this point in time the Dust Bowl and drought combined with the Great Depression made a farmer’s life very difficult during the 1930s.  The president took on this tour to see for himself the issues people faced and sought to bring them some hope.  It’s hard for us to fathom today but at this time Devils Lake was only 1,407.3 feet above sea level.  That’s 47 feet lower than today’s elevation! 

The president’s speech is a reflection of the hardships the people of Devils Lake were facing.  Here are two excerpts from President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s speech that day;

“I saw some signs along the road that said: ‘You gave us beer, now give us water.’  Well, the beer part was easy. That was something that could be controlled very definitely by human agency. It was a question of what the people of this country wanted and when they made it clear they wanted beer back again, they got it. But, when you come to this water problem through here, you are up against two things. In the first place you are up against the forces of nature and, secondly, you are up against the fact that man, in his present stage of development, cannot definitely control those forces.”

“We hope that Nature is going to open the Heavens. When I came out on the platform this morning and saw a rather dark cloud, I said to myself, ‘Maybe it is going to rain.’  Well, it did not.  All I can say is, I hope to goodness it is going to rain, good and plenty.”

A full transcript can be found at http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=14736.

Eventually it did rain. And snow.  Now today we have a larger lake President Roosevelt could have imagined that brings a whole different set of problems.  As we deal with the issues in our present it is important to remember the issues of our past.  So today take a drive past the Great Northern building and just imagine all those people filling the streets to hear what our 32nd President had to say. 

Edward Lohnes, born April 21, 1844, was the first settler of the Lake Region area. That wasn’t his only claim to fame though. Lohnes would eventually become one of the members of the State House of Representatives.   His journey began at the age of 18, when he enlisted to fight on the battlefields of Virginia during the civil war. He continued to serve after the wars end, in the 31st infantry of Fort Rice. From there, his company was stationed at Fort Totten in Devils Lake. When his enlistment was through, he returned to the Fort as a civilian and mail carrier, carrying the mail between the Missouri River Forts, which was a difficult and dangerous task.

A pieces quilt that belonged to Lohnes currently on Exhibit

Upon his retirement from the mail service, Lohnes set up a homestead in Freshwater Township. His neighbors chose him as a member of the board of county commissioners. From there, he moved on to the State House of Representatives. Colonel Hale of the Indian War Veterans, who spoke of Lohnes at his funeral stated, “He did not waste much of the people’s time in long speeches but he always voted right.” Not only did Lohnes serve in the military and on the House, but without him, the school for the deaf would not be located in Devils Lake. Lohnes died on March 31, 1933 and was laid to rest with full Military rites in the Crary Cemetery.

By Emily Kenner

Lillian Wineman was known for many things during her lifetime.  She was the only child of Sam and Trina Wineman, she was an actress, she had home at Lakewood, and she was a collector.  The front room of her Lakewood home was filled with her treasures, most of which are now at the Lake Region Heritage Center.  The museum acquired her artifacts through a donation from the Pioneer Daughters of the Lake Region and a loan from the State Historical Society of North Dakota.  An exhibit dedicated to her is on display on the 1st floor of the Lake Region Heritage Center in downtown Devils Lake.

Why does Lillian have some many interesting artifacts?

There are two reasons to why Lillian’s collection is so interesting.

First, her father spoiled her.  Plain and simple, she wanted it she got it.  Lillian was the first woman to drive a car in Devils Lake.  Her father showered her with gifts and even built an Opera House on the 2nd floor of his store so she could shine in the spotlight.   Her home is filled with antiques from Europe, including a hand painted tea set from Norway that belonged to her mother. 

Second, she was fascinated by Native American beadwork.  Lillian loved to collect bandoliers, dolls, belts, and more from Native American artists.  She collected Sioux items from the Spirit Lake Reservation as well as Chippewa artifacts.  Not only did she collect Native American artifacts, she truly had a deep respect for the Native American people.  She valued their way of life.  When talking about the treatment of Native American peoples in Devils Lake she was appalled by white people’s treatment of their native neighbors.