1900 Biography - Charles E. Hurd

CHARLES E. HURD, residing in Quinby township, operates one of the most extensive stock and grain farms in Kidder county. Mr. Hurd was born in Morning Sun, Iowa, March 29, 1858. His father, J. L. Hurd, was a druggist, and a native of Vermont. The Hurd family was originally from England, and settled in Vermont prior to the Revolutionary war. The mother of our subject, whose maiden name was Nancy Green, was born in Ohio. Her father, Thomas Green, was a native of Ireland and came to America just prior to the war of 1812. He was a soldier in that war and was taken prisoner with General Hull's army.

Charles E. Hurd was the youngest in a family of six children, and was reared in the village of Morning Sun and attended the village school. At the age of eighteen years he leased land and began farming in Iowa. He sold out his chattels in 1881 and went to Burlington, Iowa, and engaged in the wood and coal business, continuing there three years. In 1884 he disposed of all his Iowa interests and came to Kidder county, North Dakota, took up government land in township 141, range 72, and erected a claim shanty and barn, the latter built of sod. He owned four horses, three of them being blind. He also had about fifty dollars worth of farm machinery. He rented land the first year, and from eighty acres of wheat harvested eighteen hundred and four bushels. He improved his farm and in 1890 turned his attention largely to stock raising. He now conducts both departments, grain growing and stock, and has made a decided success. He cultivates annually about five hundred acres, and his stock interests yield about three thousand dollars per year. He is said to have the most extensive grain farm and stock ranch in Kidder county, and all his operations are conducted on a grand scale, according to modern methods. He is the owner of eight hundred acres of land and controls limitless range for his stock. His farm is equipped with modern conveniences, has seven miles of fencing and a five-acre grove, the best in the county.

Mr. Hurd was married, in 1878, to Miss Celia Allen. Mrs. Hurd spent her girlhood days in Iowa. Her father, Alfred Allen, was one of the earliest settlers of Dakota, and was of Irish descent. Mr. and Mrs. Hurd have three children. Mr. Hurd, though reared under Republican influences, is a Democrat, and takes a deep interest in the affairs of government, and is a public-spirited and patriotic citizen. He is a member of the A. O. U. W. He was among the earliest settlers of Kidder county, and to him is due great credit for the rapid development of the community and county.

Extracted 22 Nov 2020, by Norma Hass, from Compendium of History and Biography of North Dakota published in 1900, page 1366.