| Summary: | Laura Kyes and Carl Woods at Winchester. Cheese factory in background. WINCHESTER Winchester was a townsite promoted by Charles Bumstead and Nathaniel Gillett in Section 3,132-77, close to Beaver Creek and near the center of the county. Some believe it was named to honor Judge Walter H. Winchester, District Court Judge; and others believe that Benjamin Losey, father-in-law of Mr. Bumstead, who had come in 1884 from New York where he worked as a gunsmith, named it for the Winchester Repeating Rifle. Mr. Losey filed the first deed of the County on Mar. 24, 1884 in 3-132-77. The post office was established Aug. 21,1884 with N. Gillett as postmaster. Al Morrison was a mail carrier at Winchester for many years, carrying the mail by horse and buggy in the summer and, in the winter when the snow was deep, hitching his pony to a sort of toboggan. When the Petrie sisters, Cash and Annie, came to Emmons County in 1886, Winchester was a town of great expectations. It then consisted of Robert Maxwell's store which housed the post office, a vacant building later stocked with merchandise by Mr. Bumstead and managed by his father-in-law, Frank Devan's blacksmith shop, the school house, and a building put up for a hotel but never used as such. Later, in 1889, the Petrie sisters bought the Bumstead store. A Mr. A. A. Matthews thought this part of the county could have an industry of its own, so put up a building in 1884 near Beaver Creek with the idea of making a cheese factory. Matthews sold it to John Parker, lawyer, preacher, Civil War Army officer from Iowa, who had come into possession of cheese-making equipment as part of a legal fee. He set up his equipment in the basement and, for a time, turned out some pretty good cheese. Power for his industry was furnished by a large windmill. The Winona Times carried an item in 1891 stating that "John Parker's cheese factory at Winchester is a success. He makes about 100 lbs a day." The county's first big Fourth of July celebration was at Winchester in 1887 with pony and steer races featured in the day's events and a grand ball in the evening. Over 200 people enjoyed the hospitality of the public-spirited citizens of the village. In 1889 A. Lincoln Geil became postmaster and opened a general store. In a letter he stated: "My business is big now. I sometimes take in in one day $80 to $90. I have been adding to my stock until I have about $2,300 in the business". That year a Winchester Farmers Alliance group and a Beaver Valley Improvement Ass'n were formed. A meeting was also held to organize a post of the G.A.R. Linton's designation as county seat killed Winchester. Geil sold his store, the stock of the Petrie store was transferred to a new store built in Linton. Most of the other buildings were sold and moved to neighboring ranches or to the new county seat. The post office was discontinued Dec. 15, 1909. EMMONSBURG This Missouri River settlement on Sec. 14, 132-79 at the mouth of the Big Beaver Creek was named for its county. The postoffice was established Oct. 17, 1883 with Harmidas A. Archambault, postmaster. He also had a store, dance hall and ran a toll bridge crossing the creek. Other postmasters were Dr. Wm. Muench, Wm. MacNider, Mary Lee, Jennie Johnson and Alta King. Mr. Kupitz, in searching for a suitable stage depot in the Emmonsburg area, found a large log house on Section 23 that was ideal. This house had been built by Nate S. Shorman who had rafted logs down the Missouri River from Glencoe, then up Beaver Creek. It was an L-shaped structure with a 30-foot square dance hall, a barn and saloon also being nearby. This depot was operated by W. B. Lee, who soon converted the old saloon into a harness and machine shed. Dances continued to be held in the house, as it had the only room of such proportions for miles around. Mr. Lee also operated the 1/2-mile race track about a mile east of the buildings, and horse racing became popular. Competition for owning the best animals was keen, and many purebred animals were brought into the county. The Indians, too, had good horses and often came to compete. For variety, boxing matches were arranged in conjunction with the dances or races. Emmonsburg post office was discontinued Nov. 30, 1912 and mail sent to Hartford. It was re-established Sept. 3, 1924 as a Star Route with Mrs. Sophie Ketchum as postmistress. Presently, the mail is handled at the Livona Rural Station, Bismarck. The first auto death of the county occurred on Aug. 25, 1912 when a car turned over on a trip to Eureka, killing little Anola, daughter of A. N. Junge. THE EMMONSBURG STAGE STOP SHOWING HOUSE ON LEFT AND MACHINE SHED ON RIGHT. The last occupants were the Jake Walthers until it burned in the early 1930's. 74 Scanned with a Zeutschel Zeta book scanner at 300 dpi. Edited with Multi-Page TIFF Editor.
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