Thursday, November 10, 2016

South Dakota 1889




Formed a new state the same year as North Dakota, the expansion of the country  continued.  The Homestead Act of 1862 provided incentive for the the grants of land to railway companies, and laws providing for the quick sale of timber and mineral lands lead to rapid settlement.  Farmers, miners, prospectors, cattlemen and lumbermen, with or without families poured into the Western territories.

For the JONES surname, Thomas J. Jones of South Dakota was one of the early folks.  It is given that in 1850 he was born in Wales, but brought to the States by his parents when only two years of age.  He grew up in Wisconsin.  He married Mary Ellen Morris in 1879 and moved to Aurora County, S.D.  Farming became his occupation.  No date of death is recorded.  Any folks out there related?

Taken from: Jones Journeys, Vol. VII, p. 220.  It is stated that this information is from: Compendium of Local Biography - Central South Dakota.