Former counties of South Dakota

The following link will take you to a group of former counties in South Dakota. Many were simply annexed by another county. You will see a birth and death of said counties. 

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_South_Dakota_county_seats

Day 4: July 20,1894

Here she does mention a new setting. It's amazing that it would take them a "whole day" to get from county to county.

They left Bridgewater, McCook County, South Dakota and entered Hutchinson County at midmorning (10 O'Clock in the morning).  In McCook County Laura mentions how all the wells have windmills. She further states in all the years of bad weather, this is the first time it has greatly affected McCook County. So for the first time, they are seeing bad crops. 

Official site for Bridgewater. The city was named by or for the railroad workers who had I carry water across the bridge. (http://www.bridgewatersd.com)

(http://www.bridgewatersd.com/images/bridgewaterimage.pdf) aerial map of the city. 

Notable person is Sparky Anderson. "Hall of Fame baseball manager" as stated in Wikipedia, referenced from October 19, 2012 baseball almanac. Mr. Anderson was born in Bridgewater. Here is another website with his biography. 
(http://www.biography.com/people/sparky-anderson-31656)

Currently Bridgewater and Emery share a school site. I don't know if it's always been that way. Maybe I'll send an email and inquire. I sent an email of to the Bridgewater Tribune. In looking them up on the internet I have discovered a website that claims "Bridgewater, Sparky Anderson's Hometown".

Hutchinson County  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hutchinson_County,_South_Dakota)


They found a Russian settlement there. Their homes were built long and back from the roads. 

Tbc...

South Dakota historical archive

http://history.sd.gov/Archives/forms/exhibits/SD%20Towns.pdf

A listing of South Dakota towns and cities. When they were incorporated. When they got their first post office. 

Proposed town/city: Laurent, McCook County, South Dakota

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laurent,_South_Dakota Laurent, South Dakota 2008

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/21/national/21deaf.html?_r=1& NYTIMES article 

http://www.gallaudet.edu/clerc_center/welcome/laurent_clerc_the_man.html

     Who is Laurent Clerc? Read his biography here at the Gallaudet website. 

Laurent city was proposed, planned and funded, but never executed. There were pros and cons on both sides of the issue of a "'signing' town". The city was to be a city of and for the deaf and hard of hearing. The National Association of the Deaf(pro American Sign Language) supported a signing town. The Alexander Graham  Bell association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing(pro Oralists) were against it.