Unit 4: Set 2. Pioneer Farms - Estella's Letter to Frantie

Eckelson May 24th 18/83

Dear Frantie,

I now take the pleasure to write a few lines we are all well and hope to hear you are all the same. We are now settled at Eckelson it is 76 miles west of Fargo and 20 miles east of Jamestown it is a beautiful place when we reached here there was only seven houses a store and saloon and now there is 18 and is going to be two more stores a hotel depot it is a quarter of a mile from Lake Eckelson it is a beautiful Lake it is seven miles long they are going to have sail boat this summer but we will have splendid times a bathing. Oh. I think this is a beautiful country I would not go back to Penn. to live for a good [d]eal. I like it much better out here than I did there but then I would like to be there and see the folks. Oh how I would like to go to church there. there is a nice school house here it cost $3000 and last Sunday there was preaching in the school house I did not go I stayed with the sick there is a little girl twelve years old she has been very sick and I stayed with her while her folks went and I was going to stay all this weak we are going to have a church here soon. The ground is just covered with flowers. Frantie do you remember Pa’s nephew that was to our house a year ago last winter from Illinois. well we stoped to his house and stayed a weak and he come out here with us and we stayed to Wheatland from Thursday until Monday morning our good[s] have not got here yet but we have herd that they was to Wheatland and will be here in a few day they are all there but the organ and we don’t know where that is but Pa’s going to make the railroad company hunt it up and our sewing machine is all stove to pieces so it aint worth hardly any thing. Pas foot isent so he can step on it yet but will be soon I guess. while I was to Illinois had a present of a canary bird and cage it is just as pretty as it can be there hasent any of us been home sick yet and we all like it here. we had our picture taken with all of our things that we had in the [railroad] cars beding satchel lunch basket and bird they are comical Pa has got a 105 acres of land and it is splendid and a town lot and a house most built a barn, a pair of mules, harness and wagon. they will give any one a town lot that will build so we have got one and that is more than we had in Penn. Oh last sunday there was 6 ladies went out rideing in a lumber wagon and we had chairs to set in and Ma had a upholstered chair and she went to move her chair and she wen[t] rite down in the bottom of the wagon and we did have shows. we got some flowers out of the garden of Eden as we called it. Oh there is such sites of wild geese duck and all kinds of wild games we can go out in the field and pick up a buffaloe head eny time, I would like some of Mrs. Kingsleys maple sugar now Frantie answer this as soon as you get it for I am anxious to hear from Smithfield and to hear all the news I will close this time for I have riten a long letter so good by from Estella S.

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Eckelson
Barnes County
Dakota T.

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