(46) THE settlement of the county, having been commenced in the latter part of the year 1868, proceeded very rapidly on the opening of spring in 1869. By the middle of May all the most desirable lands on the north side of the river had been taken up, to a point opposite the present town of Oakdale. On the first of June settlers began to come in on the south side of the river, the settlements also continuing to proceed westward along the river valley until, by the last of June, Clearwater Creek was reached, and in August the main valley was settled on both sides of the river to some extent, throughout the county. The tributary valleys on both sides of the river also began to be settled before the close of the year 1869. Settlers continued to come in during the years 1870 and 1871, filling up the Elkhorn valley, or at least taking the best of the land and spreading out over the tributary valleys on both sides of the river. The Bazile country, in the northeastern part of the county, was also settled in the spring of 1871 by members of the Bruce colony. This colony originated in Omaha, and following up the valley of the north fork of the Elkhorn, located in Knox County at the present site of Creighton, some of its members also locating in Antelope County.

     No crops were raised in the year 1869 except sod corn and garden vegetables, but these produced well for those who were here early enough in the spring to plant. In 1870 the first wheat and corn were raised on land that had been broken up the year before. The summer of 1870 was rather dry and the crops on new ground suffered some (47) what for lack of rain, and the yield was light, but the quality was excellent, and gardens also produced well. A great deal of breaking was done in the summer of 1870. The season of 1871 proving favorable, there being sufficient rain, a good crop of corn, oats, and wheat was raised throughout the settled parts of the county. Wheat especially was good, producing from ten to twenty-five bushels per acre, and testing from sixty to sixty-two pounds. Corn and oats yielded rather a light crop, for the reason that in this country neither of these crops yields well, generally, on newly broken prairie. The quality was good, however, and there was an abundance of all kinds of root and garden vegetables and pumpkins and squashes beyond anything known in recent days, both in quality and yield. One farmer that year -- 1871 -- raised on four and one-half acres of new breaking sixty wagon loads of pumpkins and squashes, measured in an ordinary farm wagon with a top box on. Potatoes were so plentiful as to be of little value, as there were more than enough raised to supply the demand.

     In the fall of 1870 the question of county organization began to be agitated, and sometime in February, 1871, a meeting was called at the house of judge John H. Snider, on section 6, Burnett township, to take the matter under consideration. A petition was drawn up and signed by all the voters present, asking the legislature, which was then in session, to organize the territory west of Pierce and Madison counties, defining its boundaries, and giving it the name of Oakland County. This name was selected for the new county for the reason that the name was considered appropriate because it was believed that there was more oak timber in this vicinity than in any other part of the Elkhorn valley. The petition was sent through the mails and nothing more was heard of it for some time. The mails were rather infrequent in those days, the nearest post-office being at Norfolk, and it often happened that some of the settlers did not receive their mail oftener than once in two or three weeks. The matter of organization, (48) however, had already been taken up in the legislature before the petition reached that body.

     Leander Gerrard of Platte County, who represented this part of the state in the senate, had introduced a bill defining the boundaries of Antelope County, and providing for its organization. This bill was approved March 1, 1871. The territory described in this bill has already been noted in Chapter I of this history. Mr. Gerrard was not aware of the petition that had been forwarded until after his bill had passed both Houses of the legislature. It was therefore too late to give the new county the name of Oakland, as petitioned for.

     The naming of the county came about in this way. In the summer of 1867 or 1868 a number of Sioux Indians stole some horses near Columbus. Leander Gerrard and his brother, E. A. Gerrard, and S. C. Smith, and perhaps others, took up the trail of the Indians and followed them to the Elkhorn valley, near the mouth of Cedar Creek. Becoming short of provisions they encamped and, while hunting, Mr. Leander Gerrard shot a fine fat antelope. Calling this circumstance to mind when the bill was prepared, Mr. Gerrard suggested the name "Antelope" for the new county.

     In accordance with a proclamation of the governor, an election was held on the 15th of June, 1871, to elect county officers to hold until the next general election in October following. The election was held at the house of A. H. Snider. The judges were A. M. SaInave, Jeptha Hopkins, and E. R. Palmer; clerks, A. B. Elwood and A. H. Palmer. The following named officers were elected: county commissioners, L. A. Boyd, William P. Clark, E. R. Palmer; county clerk, J. W. Skiles; county judge, D. V. Coe; superintendent of schools, A. J. Leach; sheriff, Jeptha Hopkins; county treasurer, W. G. Rhodes; surveyor, A. B. Elwood; coroner, A. M. Salnave. Returns of this election were filed with the secretary of state on June 29, 1871, and commissions were immediately issued to the successful candidates. The returns do not show the number of votes (49) polled, but the highest number cast for any one office was seventy-two, and that is probably the whole number of voters participating in this election.

     Immediately after receiving their commissions, John W. Skiles, county clerk elect, issued notices to all the officials to meet at his house, on section 18, in Burnett township, and qualify for their respective offices. They all did meet and qualify, excepting W. G. Rhodes, treasurer, and A. M. Salnave, coroner, who failed to appear.

     At this time also the board of commissioners held their first meeting and proceeded to divide the county into three precincts, each precinct being also a commissioner district. The eastern precinct was named Twin Grove, and consisted of all the townships in range 5; the next was called Center, and took in all the townships in range 6; the third was named Mills, and consisted of the western half of the county. This arrangement was not at all satisfactory to the residents of the western part of the county, and before the October election the board had another meeting and changed the boundaries of the precincts as follows: Twin Grove was made up of the eastern third of the county, Center of the middle third, and Mills of the western third.

     No justice of the peace had been elected, and as County Judge Coe resided west of the center of the county it was thought best to have a magistrate in the eastern part of the county. Accordingly, at the first commissioners' meeting Robert P. Elwood was appointed justice of the peace. He immediately qualified and became the first justice of the peace in the county.

     These county officials had very little to do. There were no books in which to keep the records, no taxes to collect, and in general no records to keep. The board of commissioners had two meetings, possibly three, but if the county clerk kept any record of them he failed to turn it over to his successor in office. The county superintendent organized seven school districts, and the surveyor laid out one road. The record of the doings of this first set of county officers is made up chiefly from the memories of those (50) participating, and the recollections of other old settlers. There is one exception to this, however. The county superintendent kept a record of his work of organizing the seven school districts, in the back part of a private account book, and he still has that in his possession.