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![]() The article "Pendroy Post Office" from the McHenry History 1885-1985 is quoted extensively below along with pictures submitted to them by Mrs. F. C. Peters. Also "North Dakota Place Names" by Douglas Wick, and additional research by Mike Peterson.
![]() Pendroy the second post office in McHenry County, was established on 23 May 1884 with James Martin Pendroy as Postmaster at his home in Falsen Township, Section 17, three miles north of Verendrye. Following the death of James M. Pendroy, Thomas Donnel became Postmaster, closing the facility on 31 October 1903 with mail to Velva.
![]() Although never classified a town, the post office area was the center of a large settlement of some thirty families who had come from Iowa during the years from 1882 to 1884 and taken land along the Mouse River. Also in 1884 a colony of Negroes from Chicago arrived. After the first winter only J. H. Vaughn chose to remain, operating his general store. He died in 1886, having become a most beloved citizen of the community, and was buried with honors in the local cemetery [Note: this writer was unsuccessful in locating his grave; initially buried on his homestead but reinterred at Verendrye.]
The settlement itself was typical of every pioneer settlement that sprang into being as the American frontier
pushed westward. The people were self reliant and prepared for the privations that come with living at least a hundred miles from the nearest town. Andrew Pendroy was a succesful bone setter and good at teeth extraction while James had some knowledge of homeopathic medicine and had brought medicines with him. Probably due to the clean air and pure water of Dakota and the simple, nourishing food they raised, there was little illness in the settlement but Mrs. Ivar Gjellstad [Sesel Marie] who lived nearby was trained in Norway as a practical nurse and midwife
and was always willing to assist in illness and childbirth. Mrs. Thomas Donnel [Margaret] usually accompanied her in the Iowa colony and though neither could understand the others' language, such was their friendship that they understood each other perfectly.
![]() Pioneer life could be very lonely, especially for the women who had left family and friends behind, and so every house or barn built was a community affair. The men "raised" the building and the women brought the dinners and the children and usually the evening ended in a dance. A day of wood sawing, butchering or any work
would bring a big dinner, a quilting party, or a mending, sewing or knitting party for the women. Birthday and holidays could bring fifty to a hundred guests and distance was no issue, so great was the pleasure of companionship. Bible Study and Sunday School was held in the homes.
![]() On 30 December 1885, Rev. P. E. Royce, a Methodist minister sent by the North Dakota conference, delivered the first English sermon at the Pendroy post office. Rev. Royce remained in the area and held services in Newport, Villard, Wallace, Nichols, Mouse River and Burlington as well as at Pendroy, In the beginning services
were held in the homes but as school houses were built and towns grew, religious services were held in the schools and other public buildings.
![]() The settlers formed a literary society where books and magazines were exchanged, debates were held, recitations and skits were given and news from home shared.
![]() While the community as a whole could share each others joys and sorrows, help with the work and provide their own amusements, there were times when individual strength and endurance was called for. On 11 December 1883, Johnnie and Jim Pendroy took 
two wagon loads of Mouse River fish to Bismarck. The weather was warm and what snow had fallen in November had melted away so there was no trouble following the wagon trail. In Bismarck the men sold their fish, purchased flour and other supplies and prepared for the trip
home. Near Turtle Lake they were overtaken by a "fearful snowstorm" and traveled two nights and three days, stopping only long enough to feed their teams. They were all one day and half the night going from Strawberry Lake to the Dog Den, a distance of seven miles, encountering deep snow drifts and very cold weather. The trip took thirteen days and they arrived safely home on Christmas Eve.
![]() There were also times when pioneering required some very innovative thinking as evidenced by Ivar Gjellstad. The Gjellstad family had run out of flour in the spring of 1884 while the Mouse River was flooded, filling the whole valley with water and making it impossible to get a team across to go to Devils Lake for supplies. What few neighbors there were, were in much the same circumstance and there was just no flour to spare. But Mr. Gjellstad was equal to the occasion. He went to his neighbor, Lewis Larson, and together the two men caulked a wagon box, making it water tight. Then Gjellstad made his way across the river at its narrowest point which may have been two miles wide, and from there walked four miles to the Pendroy post office where, although he spoke no English and the Pendroys did not understand Norwegian, he made them understand by gestures that his family had had no bread for three days. The Pendroys were low on flour too, but since they lived on the south side of the river, they knew their chances of getting to Bismarck for supplies were much better than his. When Mr. Gjellstad realized he had been understood, he swung the big sack of flour over his shoulder and, bent under its weight, hurried the four miles back to where he had left his "boat" and made his way safely across the river again to his family.
![]() The Pendroy post office continued until 1899 when James M. Pendroy died, then Thomas Donnel became postmaster and the post office was moved to his home in the same Township, Section 30. It remained there until the Donnel family moved to Washington in 1903.
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