Clik here to view.
Choirmaster, Musical Leader, and Operatic Composer Eugene Farner [otd 05/20]
Eugene Adrian Farner, who initiated Boise’s annual “Music Week,” was born May 20, 1888 in New York City. A child prodigy, he played his first public violin solo at the age of eight. He later became the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Richard Z. Johnson: Developer, Legislator, and Territorial Attorney General...
R. Z. Johnson. Illustrated History.Richard Z. Johnson, who served in the Idaho Territorial Council and as Attorney General, was born May 21, 1837 in Akron, Ohio. Johnson had ancestors on both sides who...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Coeur d’Alene and Other Indian Reservations Opened to Homesteading [otd 05/22]
President Taft. Library of Congress.On May 22, 1909, President William Howard Taft issued a proclamation that opened "unreserved" agricultural, grazing, and timber lands on the Coeur d'Alene Indian...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Cornerstone Laid for Idaho Soldiers Home in Boise [otd 05/23]
On May 23, 1893, dignitaries gathered in Boise City to lay the cornerstone for the new Idaho Soldiers’ Home. Meant to care for Union Army veterans of the Civil War who were “aged and in want,” the Home...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Stock Growers Offer Reward to Catch Rustlers and Horse Thieves [otd 05/24]
On May 24, 1889, the Secretary of the Idaho County Stock Growers’ Association posted a notice in the Idaho County Free Press (Grangeville): The Association would pay $100 for information leading to the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Boise Veterinarian, Horse Breeder and State Veterinary Surgeon George Noble...
Dr. George Edward Noble, Idaho’s first State Veterinarian, was born May 25, 1868 in Nashua, Iowa. (Nashua is about 100 miles west and a bit north of Dubuque.) There are conflicting accounts of his...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Idaho Territory Reduced in Size to Create Montana [otd 05/26]
On May 26, 1864, the U. S. Congress passed legislation that reduced the previously-massive Idaho Territory by creating Montana Territory and splitting off most of future Wyoming. President Lincoln...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Snake Indians Defeat U. S. Army at Battle of Three Forks [otd 05/27]
The afternoon of May 27, 1866, a force of white infantry and cavalry encountered a band of about 500 “Snake” (Shoshone-Bannock-Paiute) Indians at the Three Forks of the Owyhee River. Major Louis H....
View ArticleClik here to view.
Western Film Maker and Adventure Writer Oliver Drake [otd 05/28]
Prolific writer, producer, and director Clarence Oliver Drake was born May 28, 1903 in Boise. While not especially “wild” by that time, Idaho retained much of its Western character: Cowboys rode the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Political Operative, U. S. Senator, and Public Servant Fred Dubois [otd 05/29]
Senator Dubois. Library of Congress.Idaho Senator and political operative Fred Thomas Dubois was born May 29, 1851 in Illinois. Dubois graduated from Yale in 1872, then worked in a Chicago dry-goods...
View ArticleClik here to view.
U. S. Assay Office Added to National Register of Historic Places [otd 05/30]
On May 30, 1961, the old U. S. Assay Office in Boise took its deserved place on the National Register of Historic Places.After the discoveries of 1862, gold – dust, nuggets, and quartz ore – poured out...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Businessman, Attorney, and Idaho Legislator Lorenzo Thomas [otd 05/31]
Lorenzo Thomas. Family archives.Idaho legislator, attorney, and businessman Lorenzo R. Thomas was born May 31, 1870 in Staffordshire, England. The family moved to the United States three years later...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Water Starts Flowing Through Egin Bench Irrigation Canal [otd 06/01]
On June 1, 1883, water flowed from a pioneer canal onto Egin Bench farmland. The Bench bends for about 12-14 miles along the west side of Henry’s Fork, some 25 to 35 miles north of today’s Idaho...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Boise Replaces Volunteer Fire Department with Professional Firefighters [otd...
On June 2, 1902, Boise’s volunteer fire crew disbanded and fire protection became the responsibility of the new professional Boise Fire Department. Early Boise Fire Station. Boise Fire Dept.Boise City...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Army Doctor M. W. Wood and Spotted Fever Research [otd 06/03]
Marshall Wood. U. S. Army archives.Lieutenant Colonel Marshall William Wood, Army Medical Corps, was born June 3, 1846, in Watertown, New York, about sixty miles north of Syracuse. He enlisted as an...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Pettigrew Amendment Clarifies Forest Reserves Management [otd 06/04]
Senator Pettigrew. Library of Congress.On June 4, 1897, President William McKinley signed a "Sundry Civil Appropriations" bill, which included an amendment crucial to the development of our national...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Eleven Dead, Millions in Damages Due to Teton Dam Failure [otd 06/05]
On the morning of Saturday, June 5, 1976, observers noticed a major leak in the north abutment of the Teton Dam. This came after two days of increasing seepage. Within about three hours, a whirlpool in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Weiser Stockman and Irrigation Developer Thomas Galloway [otd 06/06]
Tom Galloway. Illustrated History.Weiser pioneer Thomas C. Galloway was born June 6, 1837 in Iowa County, Wisconsin. He was a teenager when the family emigrated along the Oregon Trail to Yamhill...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Farm Equipment Dealer and Agricultural Developer Sylvester Hill [otd 06/07]
Agricultural pioneer Sylvester Hill was born June 7, 1855 in Dekalb County, Illinois. Bolstered by a business school education, he first worked as a traveling salesman for the Deering Harvester...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Silver City Volunteers Battle Bannock Indians at South Mountain [otd 06/08]
On June 8, 1878, a loose column of Silver City volunteers moved generally southward along South Mountain Creek. Angry Bannocks led by Chief Buffalo Horn were trying to join possible allies in Oregon....
View Article