By Doris Bronaugh
Just before the time when Dakota Territory became a state, the eastern end of Foster County began to be settled. This area would become the township and village of Glenfield. Staking tree claims and homestead claims, immigrants came from Norway, Sweden, Iowa, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania and settled on the barren countryside.
Among the first were Iver Elvrum, who arrived in 1886 and settled on Section 12, Township 145 N, R62W, and Valmer P. Horn who settled on Section 14 the same year. In 1890 came Torsten Elvron and, in 1891, William and Robert Bradford, John Hoggarth and Evoy Horn. By 1900, all the even-numbered sections were taken and by 1910 every section in the township had been settled. Names of the people who were to remain and to keep the lands were the Bradfords, John Dybwad, Ira Bunnell, H.S. Halverson, Carl McDaniel, Conrad Thiede, H.M. Tucker, A.H. Berg, William Thurlow, H.J. Bond, Dan Clancy, A.W. Johnson, William Turner, T.E. Hutchinson, Carl Erickson, and Herman and Anton Johnson.
On June 30, 1906, thirty voters in this township petitioned the Board of Commissioners to make this Congressional township a civil one, and so was passed the resolution "€ that the Congressional township 146, 62W is hereby organized as a civil township to be known as Glenfield Township and the first township meeting is called for August 4, 1906."
Thus was organized the governing body which has been responsible for the township ever since. Among those who have served the longest over the years on this board are:
Arnold McDaniel
LeRoy Johnson and
Lars Walen
Current members are:
Barton Johnson, Tommy Edland, and Jerome Eli, supervisors
Ray Walen, clerk and treasurer and
Lowell Lutz, assessor
To serve the needs of the farmers in this new township in eastern Foster County, it was necessary that a more convenient business district be established. On May 16, 1912, appeared the following notice in the Carrington paper: "Third new town started, Glenfield: Lots go on sale Monday. The following businesses will be established: two lumberyards, two general stores, restaurant and hotel, blacksmith shop, bank, hardware store. It will be located in the center of Glenfield Township about twenty miles from Carrington. "
And so, chartered in 1912 and established in the newly-laid Great Northern Surrey Cut-off on Section 21, the new town Glenfield (named, like the township in which it is located, from the topography of the area) sprang up, almost like magic.
The first merchant was Dave Syverson, who moved a building in from nearby Courtenay and began a general store. He was immediately joined by Carl McDaniel (general store), Melvin Hardin (Hardware store), T.J. McCanley (pool hall), and Pete Adolph (barbershop). Before the year was out, Glenfield also had a restaurant, a confectionery store (Gusta Johnson's), an implement shop (A.W. Johnson), a lumber company (Crane Johnson), a dray line, a livery and feed barn (Garrett Johnson), and a butcher shop.
The First State Bank, with Frank J. Heaney as cashier, opened on June 13th (it was to close later during the economic crash of 1929).
The Congregational Church was built, with the Rev. Kellogg the first pastor. The Farmers Elevator, with Paul Engstrom as manager, opened in October; and the Minneapolis Elevator Company, with Elmer Walen as buyer, opened the same fall. Grain came in at the rate of 10,000 bushels per day during the very first threshing season.
Although a post office had been established in this area on December 15, 1886, with Robert Clendenning as postmaster, but discontinued October 31, 1902, now Lottie Posey was commissioned postmaster in this new town of Glenfield, receiving her commission on December 30, 1912. She was to serve in this capacity until her retirement 46 years later. During most of these 46 years, she combined the post office with her confectionery business and was one of Glenfield's very staunchest supporters.
New businesses continued to be added. Mr. Meinke opened a meat market in the Thiede building, which had been moved to Main Street in 1914, and E.L. Buck moved a building from Courtenay and opened a blacksmith shop the same year Jay Robinson began operating the first garage in 1916 and Mr. Olinger opened a pool hall in the first hardware store in 1917.
The Glenfield Cooperative Company organized a fuel and lumberyard in 1918, with Ole Hedgeland manager. Some changes were also made, the meat market being sold to Henry Brown, the hardware store to William and Albert Alley, who made a grocery and general store of it, and the Syverson store sold to Alfred Loken in 1922. Indeed business flourished and Glenfield prospered.
In 1923 Andrew I. Sharpe of Shepard and John Berg of Cooperstown bought the Farmers Elevator, renaming it the Glenfield Grain Company. This purchase was a boon to the village, as Mr. Sharpe added generators to the elevator's steam engines and began furnishing electricity to the entire town (from dark until midnight and all day Mondays and Tuesday- laundry days). This would be the town's source of electricity until Rural Electrification would bring the medium to both farms and villages in the late 1930's. This elevator, after several changes - the last purchase by the Peavey Elevator Company - and many, many additions; became one of the very largest grain-buying centers in the Northwest. A.I. Sharpe was the manager until his retirement 34 years later. Harland Erickson was manager from that date (1957) until 1982.
During the early 1920's, two state highways, No. 7 (now 200) and No. 20, were surveyed, built, and graveled, their intersection placed at Glenfield. Carl Nierenberg opened the town's first filling station at this point in 1926.
Glenfield gained a bit of notoriety throughout the state, and visitors flocked in droves to see the tall derrick-type oil well that was drilled in 1927. Although a water flow of 2,000,000 cubic feet, laced with a bit of oil, was reached at 3,000 feet in March 1928, the well had to shut down in July when Precambrian rock strata prevented further drilling.
Another newsworthy event occurred in 1928, when the First State Bank was robbed of $800 at gunpoint. Bert Urban, the cashier, and Lee Dunbar, a customer, were found locked in the vault the next morning.
Although the economic crash of 1929 with subsequent depression followed by drought, ceaseless winds, and unequaled record heat waves meant disaster for the farming communities, somehow this town of Glenfield continued to grow. Charley Thompson opened a harness shop in 1929 and A.J. Smith of Carrington opened a hardware store in 1931, with William R. Bronaugh as manager.
But then on May 10, 1932, the worst disaster of all struck as fire destroyed six buildings on Main Street: The Anderson Eat Shop, Smith's Hardware, Robichaud's Pool Hall and Barber Shop, Loken's Store, the Pramhus Cafe, and Thompson's Harness Shop. The little town never did quite recover, though a few hardy individuals did start up new business in spite of the severe depression. Alfred Loken moved a building into town for his grocery store
William Bronaugh brought an old building over from Melville and started his own hardware store
Myrl Posey set up a cream station and
Frank Glassner opened a barbershop. Years later, and in better times, two liquor stores were added to Main Street€ž and Andrew Sharpe built a new building for his insurance business.
The indomitable spirit of the pioneer has been a vital characteristic of the businessmen in this little community throughout its history, and that is undoubtedly why it survived economic crash and depression, drought, fire, and transportation improvements that took trade to larger centers. The first of several promotional organizations was the Glenfield Community Club organized in 1934, with Lester Roach, Superintendent of Schools, as president.
In 1936 a Commercial Club was organized, its object to help make Glenfield Township and the village of Glenfield a more progressive community and sell ideas of cooperation and fellowship not only to local residents but to others in the surrounding territory." E.E. Monagin was the first president
Ed Anderson the first "Tail-Twister" or "emissary of good will" - in other words, in charge of advertising and promotion.
A group of Glenfield townsmen were also instrumental in the organization and establishment of the Tri-County Rural Electric Association which would make electricity available to rural residents of three counties (Foster, Eddy and Stutsman) hence its name. It was incorporated on February 7, 1938, with its headquarters located in Glenfield in a small white frame building north of the elevators. Five years later the headquarters would be moved to Carrington, a more centralized location. Local men who devoted many hours and much effort to obtaining loan money from the Federal Rural Electrification Association to establish the local cooperative included A.I. Sharpe, W.R. Bronaugh, LeRoy Alfson, and Fred Berger. A.I. Sharpe, in recognition of his great efforts in promoting and establishing the project, was named the first manager; he also served as a director for 25 years. On the original Board of Directors were:
C.F. Bohner, W.R. Bronaugh, Jos. Kreps, Kermit Olsen, F.W. Stafford, Anton Stene, and Charles Hazlett. It is almost hard to imagine in today's energy-driven world, what a miracle that the first available electricity would seem to farmers in their trade- and, in fact, to all people in their day-to-day lives.
Following several years of planning and promotion, Glenfield was incorporated as a village in 1953, the first council members- Christ Christiansen, Andrew I. Sharpe, and James Bronaugh- being elected in 1954. Upon the resignation of Christiansen, Lawrence Utke was elected to the council and was then named mayor in 1957. He served as mayor until his death in 1972, and Harland Erickson, appointed in his place, has served as mayor ever since. John Halvorson presently serves as auditor.
The tax benefits of being incorporated as a village have been many to Glenfield. They have meant improvements like mercury street-lighting, improved grading and graveling of streets (finally hard surfaced in 1982), city well- and sewage-systems (meaning modern plumbing for all the homes), city fire department, low-cost housing units, and improvements on its beautiful city park (the same park that was plotted by Lars Walen and planted by John Overbeck and Andrew Sharpe during the 1920's).
A Town and Country Club was organized in 1962, the promotion of community and good will its main goal. It is known throughout the neighboring counties and over many states for the Harvest Festival it sponsors each July. Kenneth Walen was the first president and Lawrence Utke the first secretary treasurer. Currently LeRoy Johnson serves as president and Pamela Kolpin as secretary treasurer.
A Community Development Corporation was formed in 1975, its object to channel and to make use of federal funds for establishing new business in local communities. Under its sponsorship these new industries have added to the growth of Glenfield: E&J Repair Shop, the Tufte Brothers, Manufacturing Company, and Wayne's Market. Kenneth Walen is chairman of the corporation and Darold Anderson, Milton Walen, Herman Johnson, and Theodore Johnson serve on the board.
Another bond that has cemented the community and kept its life-blood flowing is the intense interest in education from the earliest times and on. The Glenfield School District was organized in May 1899, with three One-room School houses to be built on Sections 8, 11, and 29 of those treeless plains. By order of the County Commissioners, the first election was in October 1890, with Joseph Hoggarth chosen the first school board president. Earliest records show that the school terms were short and held during the spring, summer, and fall months, with Maggie Walker, Alida Olson, and Ada Swank among the first teachers. The first pupils listed were:
School No. 1- Hilda, Ida, Clara, and Alma Ryum
Bert, Elsie, Ralph and Paul Bonny
Dena, Lena, and Clarence Sandvold
Wesley, Flossie, John, Grave, and Edward Thurlow
School No. 2- Harry Walker
Agnes, Minnie, and Willie Johnson
Esther and Elvira Erickson
Thea and Thorvel Thompson
Martin, Mabel, Thea and Anne Torgerson
Amy, Isa, and Mattie Harding
Robert and William Turner and
Herbert Strong
School No. 3- Velma, Verna, Sarah, and Harry McDaniel
Joe, Lizzie, Alice, Elmer, and Tommie Ahern and
Nellie Cupps
After several years of short and indefinite terms of school, it was decided that now, with Glenfield a thriving community, consolidating the three rural schools into one large one would provide better education for the children. Following an election in June 1913, the Thiede School was moved into town and used as the first consolidated school of Glenfield School District. The first term was conducted from January until June 1914, and by November 1914, a new, imposing brick structure was ready for all the children in Glenfield Township. Lottie Posey, postmaster, was hired to teach the first and second grades
Minnie Moffit, the upper grades; and in January 1915, Percy Heaney was added to the staff. To provide transportation to school for the outlying rural students, horse-drawn buses were implemented- wagons in the spring and fall, and sleighs in the winter.
Two years of high school were added in 1918, with Esther Johnson the teacher. A third year was added in 1927-28, and in 1930 the first senior class was graduated. Members of this first class were Dorothy Dunbar, Clara Halvorson, Elva Hendrickson, Margaret Johnson, and Hazel Martin.
As the population of the community increased, so did the enrollment grow, and the original schoolhouse became too small. The first of several additions was built in 1928, and in 1930 the old Congregational Church across the road was purchased for use as a gymnasium. In 1952 a new gymnasium, which at long last meant modern facilities for the entire schoolhouse, was added, built largely through the volunteer labor of deeply interested patrons.
Reorganization of school districts in North Dakota became the trend in the 1950's, and Glenfield, with its now-dwindling enrollment, was no exception. A final election in 1961 combined the school districts of Glenfield and neighboring Sutton into one, the first six grades placed in Sutton and grades 7-12 in Glenfield. A modern, well-equipped addition was built at Glenfield with curriculum, activities, and facilities greatly expanded. Glenfield-Sutton earned an accredited rating among the schools of North Dakota, which it has maintained ever since. Ray Starks was the superintendent through these years of change and improvement.
Because of still-declining enrollments and scarcity of money, further changes have had to be made these last years. The grades at Sutton were moved to Glenfield in 1978, and in 1980 the school began a trial merger with the McHenry School District, the grades being located in McHenry and the high school classes in Glenfield. The Glenfield-Sutton-McHenry School (G-S-M) is still offering excellent education to its children.
Historically, every change made in the school has been done with the children in mind. Providing them with the best possible education within their means has been the responsibility of the consecutive school boards- Joseph Hoggarth was president of the board when the school district was organized
John Dybwad, August Johnson, and Carl Erickson were board members when the district was first consolidated. Pat Biggerstaff, Andrew Sharpe, Lars Walen, and Elmer Walen were board members who served the district the greatest number of years. Harland Erickson, who has been clerk continuously since 1946, has served the greatest number of years of all.
As education was important, so has been the church in providing strength and stability to the community throughout its history. Although the Congregational Church did not survive, the Lutheran Church did, and it remains a vital spiritual entity today. Meeting first in the schoolhouse, the Lutherans had their church built in 1917, calling-it the Glenfield Lutheran Church. The first board was composed of John Broten, John Dybwad, Lars Walen, and Elmer Walen. These families, plus the Andrew Dybwads, the A.L. Walens, the Henry Walens, Adolph Walens, and Christ Larsons comprised the list of charter members. Because the congregation was so small, it was served by ministers from neighboring parishes like Cooperstown, Binford, and McHenry, and regular Sunday services were difficult to maintain. When the Reverend M.B. Ordahl moved to Glenfield in 1934, services were conducted more regularly, but keeping the minister in Glenfield lasted but a few years.
In 1957, however, following the organization of a new three-point parish, the churches of Glenfield, Grace City, and James River purchased a home in Glenfield to be used as a parsonage, and a minister has lived in town ever since. The first minister to serve these three churches was the Reverend Harry Tuff, and it was during his ministry that a new church was built. An attractive, modern structure seating 175 at a cost of $40,000 was voted upon in July 1959, and completed by the end of the year. The Reverend Don Newman is the present pastor of this strong and thriving congregation. In all areas, growth and improvement have been the hallmark of the Glenfield people and the Glenfield community.
In a final retrospective, then, this brief look at the history of Glenfield, seemingly such a small dot on the vast North Dakota prairies, can be seen, in reality, to be a mirror of the broader history of all Foster County- and America in general. It is a history of people who came to a barren plains and built progressive, thriving towns and lush grain bearing fields. It is a story of poor, non-English-speaking immigrants who established schools and churches and newspapers and libraries that their children might be among the best-educated in today's world. It is a tribute to the spirit and courage and determination of these pioneers who made a better life for themselves and a better world for all of us.
Source: A History of Foster County 1983 Page 295