1933: Jefferson G. Dawes succumbs…

J.G. Dawes in about 1900 – 1902

Jefferson G. Dawes came to Pine River about 1899 for business reasons. He was a flour salesman. He ended up staying in Pine River and helping Amarilla manage her store and other businesses. He also got involved with the murder investigation for George A. Barclay’s death by testifying at the grand jury trial. Apparently J.G. made a move to try to get Pine River made the county seat in 1901. We know that George Barclay was not happy with Walker being selected. An article appeared in the Saint Paul Globe:

New County, Maybe. Cass Lake to be the prospective Seat of Government

Cass Lake, Minn, April 9, 1901, First Edition, page 3 – During the past week, the plans of a number of the residents of the southern portion of Cass county to move the county seat from Walker to Pine River, the southern residents in return to assist in creating a new county with Cass Lake as the county seat, have been made public. J.G. Dawes, a resident of Pine River, was here for several days and broached the subject to a number of prominent citizens. 

He appears with Amarilla in the 1900 U.S. Federal Census as store clerk. In 1902 and they married in Minneapolis. He became mayor of Pine River and he and Amarilla platted the city of Pine River.  He built the house in 1904 for Amarilla which still exists. He ventured out to Longville, about this time, and platted that town and built a hotel there.

Source: Jefferson was listed with Amarilla in the 1905 Minnesota State Census, in Pine River, Walden Twp., Cass Co., Minnesota, enumerated 1-2 June, 1905 by Daniel Kline, Line 11, Dawes Jefferson G, Pine River, Male, 56, W, born New York, parents born in England, 29, 1, 9, 4, Retired. Dawes, Ammarilla, Pine River, F, 46, W, born Iowa, parents born Ohio, 28, 3, 28, 3, Retired.

After 1905, I have not been able to show that Amarilla or J.G. were together. So what happened to J.G. Dawes from about 1905 to 1919 when I pick up his trail again. Well J.G. Dawes, being the salesman he was, got a long just fine. Here are some articles about J.G. from the newspapers that I found very interesting.

The Brainerd Daily Dispatch, Friday, March 20, 1908, page 3, J.G. Dawes Back From Mexico, J.G. Dawes, of Pine River, in Brainerd on His Way Home from a Two Month’s Visit in Southwest. J.G. Dawes, for many years a prominent business man of Pine River, is in Brainerd on his way home from a two months’ visit to New Mexico. He also visited Mexico while there…He also visited Texas…

The Brainerd Dispatch on Tuesday, May 19, 1914, page 5 J.G. Dawes impresses visitors from Duluth, B.J. Madden and J.D. Campbell, large stockholders in the Cuyuna-Mille Lacs mine – In the city they met J.G. Dawes former mayor of Pine River, who now makes his headquarters in Brainerd and who is selling agricultural lands and stirring up immigration for Crow Wing county. He has some of the best kind of land for stock raising. 

The Brainerd Dispatch on Friday, May 14, 1915 page 23 had an advertisement for the Dawes Farm Land Company, J.G. Dawes, Manager.

J.G. Dawes Company in Brainerd, the AD

The Brainerd Dispatch on Monday Nov. 6, 1916, page 5 – Value of Farms Lands Increase, J.G. Dawes of the Dawes Farm Land Agency, Gives Reasons Why an Advance is Due. Now is the Best time to Buy, Prices for Farm Products are the Highest Since the Civil War, Land at Bottom Price.  This is a long article with J.G. giving his opinion about agricultural lands and it is quite interesting, here is a little bit: “In an interview accorded the Dispatch, J.G. Dawes, head of the Dawes Farm Land Agency, stated that now was the time to buy land, as in his opinion the bottom had been reached in prices, etc…But now the fear of war has vanished, and the political campaign will be over in a few days. With the prices of farm products still at such a high notch and stocks of all kinds of farm products so far below normal it will take at least three good average crops to replace our stocks to a normal condition….He goes on to encourage people to buy. 

The Brainerd Dispatch presents another article on Tuesday, Sept. 9, 1919, page 5  with J.G. Dawes’ Plan Selling Farms, In These Days of Over Inflation of Land Values, Mr. Dawes has the Sanest Selling Plan. No Options are Allowed, Substantial First Payments are required on Land, Owner Continues Tenancy for Period….J.G. Dawes of the Dawes Land Co. of Brainerd has a plan which is conservative and just alike to buyer and seller, protecting especially the farmer wishing to sell his land.”  The article is very detailed and went on about how the plan works.

The Brainerd Dispatch reports on in another very detailed article on Tuesday, August 25, 1925, page 1 that J.G. interacts with Chicago Big Capitalists. These men were taking options at Rocky Point on Gull Lake with an additional 400 acres adjacent. “As stated by J.G. Dawes, the difficulty of securing the options was negotiated by Wrigley’s agent hinges on acquiring additional land so as to get an acreage of 800 acres. The eventual price, it is claimed is between $50,000 and $60,000. Cottages are to be built for fifty Chicago millionaires, says Mr. Dawes…”

So we see from the above that J.G. Dawes was making his way in the world and doing well.

Stepping back in time a little we review that on 18 August, 1909 Amarilla was granted a divorce from J.G. Dawes. J.G. didn’t contest it even though he felt it was unfair.  The terms of the divorce was divorce by cruel and inhuman manner which is a catch-all for just about any reason to get a divorce back then. In today’s world we have some form of no fault divorce. 

I could not find J.G. in the 1910 census but he is tracked down by the Special Examiner for Civil War Pensions. This man found J.G. Dawes living in Brainerd in 1919 which is confirmed by the above articles from the newspaper. This places J.G. Dawes in the 1920 U.S. Federal Census there and he has not remarried.

Source: Jefferson G. Dawes, 1920 U.S. Federal Census, City of Brainerd, Crow Wing. Co., Minnesota, Vol. 15, ED 122, Sheet 18, Line 93, M1569, Roll #31, D200.

Jefferson G. Dawes, white, age 71, divorced, birth place New York, living on 6th street, in-house 2215, living alone, father born in Ohio, mother in England. Occupation: Sales, [real estate].

J.G. Dawes is still in Brainerd in 1930 but he is now 83 years old.

Source:  J.G. Dawes, 1930 U.S. Census, Brainerd, Crow Wing Co., Minnesota, ED#18-1, SD#5, Sht#5A, enumerated on April 4, 1930 by a Mrs. Margaret I. Henderson.

Line 35, 30, 62, Dawes, Jefferson G, Head, R, 5, No, M, W, 83, S, No, Yes, born New York, father born Ohio, mother Canada English, yes, no occupation. 

Jefferson G. Dawes died on October 4, 1933 in Brainerd, Crow Wing Co., Minnesota. He was 86 years old.

Source: Jefferson G. Dawes (Daws), Certificate of Death, #3082 – Oct 4, 1933, FHL#2242330.

Died in Brainerd, Crow Co., Minnesota. Residence 404 4th Ave NE., died on Oct. 4, 1933. Male, white, single. Born Mar 7, 1847 (1874 crossed out), 86 yrs, 6 mos. 27 days, occupation laborer, born in New York, father was James Daws and mother was Mary Ann Sooderhaus (spelling unclear). Birthplaces of both parents unknown. Information was a Mrs. M. Hall B…….Place of burial Brainerd on Oct. 6, 1933, signed by undertaker D.E. Whitney, filed 10/10/1933. He died of Cardiac Insufficiency and other complications.

A brief obituary appeared in the Crow Wing County Review about J.G. Dawes:

Aged Resident of City Succumbs, October 6, 1933, page 1.  

J. G. Dawes, aged resident of Pine River and Brainerd died after a long illness Tuesday evening at the Brainerd City home. Funeral services were not announced yesterday. Mr. Dawes was well known resident of the area, having lived in Pine River for many years since, in fact, the early lumber days in this vicinity, and was involved in some of the early events of the community. He had been residing for some time in Brainerd, and for several years had made his home in the municipal home in Northeast Brainerd.

Another brief article appears in the Brainerd Dispatch on 4 Oct. 1933 pg. 8, c.3

Funeral arrangements were being completed today for Jefferson G. Dawes, 86, who died in the city home early today. The deceased was born in New York, March 7, 1847.

Brainerd Journal Press, front page 1.

On October 6, 1933 this appears:  Jefferson Dawes Dead, Jefferson Dawes, 86 year old, a familiar figure in Brainerd for the past few years, formerly being in the real estate business here, passed away Wednesday and the funeral was held today. Mr. Dawes was born in New York, March 7, 1847.

After searching, I was unable to locate a probate or estate record in the Crow Wing Court records for J.G. Dawes, which I find as odd. I now feel that I would like to do deed search on J.G. Dawes to see where it lead him.  I was focusing on the Barclay’s so I had not really sought out J.G. Dawes.

On one of my trips to Minnesota, I visited the Evergreen Cemetery in Brainerd and sought out J.G. Dawes’ burial location and tombstone. Unfortunately, I was unable to find a tombstone for J.G. but he is buried there.  The picture below is the approximate location of his grave.  This cemetery is well-kept but even with the best care a stone can disappear.  Whether he had one originally it is hard to say.

There is a Find A Grave memorial for Jefferson Dawes with some links.

He is in Sec NWC L17 B31 – Evergreens Directory of the Dead just go to Google and put in Evergreen Cemetery and you should be able to find the Directory.   http://www.brainerd.net/~evergreencem/dotdnames_d.html

J.G. Dawes, Evergreen Cemetery in Brainerd, MN.

A PAGE at the top of this blog had a table of contents of the posts written about Amarilla and J.G. Dawes is listed as well. You will have to scroll down to find his section but remember you might need to read about Amarilla from about 1898 on so that you can understand how J.G. fits into the events of the town of Pine River.

I wish I could have learned more about his background, parents and family.  I suspect that he had a sister living in Brainerd, maybe that is the Mrs. Hall in the death certificate?  If his parents came from England this means he is a newer line of the Dawes Family.

Amarilla and J.G. Dawes go their Separate Ways! 1910

About the time of George A. Barclay’s murder in 1898, J.G. Dawes entered into Amarilla’s life. He became her second husband.  He join her in business activities.  He became mayor of the town of Pine River and helped to plat the town.  J.G. Dawes also built her a house in Pine River.  About 1905 he started building a hotel in Longville and expanding his business interests.

Part of the Divorce Decree of Amarilla and J.G. Dawes

After 1905, J.G. Dawes and Amarilla started to go their separate ways.  I do not know exactly when J.G. made the break and left Pine River for good.

In 1909 Amarilla filed for divorce. There were three documents.  The divorce was not friendly and both made unkind statements towards the other. Here is a summary of the contents and I have chosen not to include some of the language. You will note that her name is spelled in the documents with the two “m’s.”

J.G. called her “Rilla.”

The first is a Serving of the Complaint to Jefferson G. Dawes by the Sheriff of Hennepin Co., Minnesota, Otto S. Langum on 10 December 1909.

The next is a two page document called a Complaint between the two parties, stating that Ammarilla is 51 years old and J.G. is 57 years old. That they were married on the 2nd day of September in 1902 in the city of Minneapolis, MN. That the plaintiff, Ammarilla, has been living in the state of Minnesota for more than one year. That the plaintiff was treated in a cruel and inhuman manner….. There are no children issued from this marriage. That the plaintiff has real and personal property valued at $7000. That the plaintiff demands Judgment to dissolve the marriage between the two parties.

On the second page of the document, Ammarilla is sworn to truth and the document is notarized on the 8th day of December 1909. Below is a summons to J.G. Dawes to answer the complaint and if he does not do so in 30 days, judgment will be rendered.

The third and final document is the Divorce Decree itself. Apparently J.G. Dawes did not appear or contest the divorce and it was granted to Ammarilla on 1 February, 1910 in Cass County, Minnesota.

“The Court, by virtue of the power and authority therein vested and in pursuance of the Statute in such cases made and provided, does order, adjudge and decree the marriage between the said plaintiff Mrs. Ammarilla Dawes and the Defendant Jefferson G. Dawes be dissolved and the same he hereby dissolved according, and the said parties are and each of them is freed and absolutely released from the Bonds of matrimony and all the obligations.”

I don’t know why this makes me sad. I like J.G. Dawes even though he may have been a big talker and told a good tale. He was still a very interesting person and I wish I knew more about him and where he came from so I could judge his character.  Some articles that appeared in the newspaper about him, that I have posted in past posts on this blog,  suggest he was a little arrogant.

The story of what happened to Jefferson G. Dawes is not yet over and he will appear in future posts.  His time with Amarilla had ended and they both moved on.  Amarilla would be on her own for nine years before she decided to remarry for the third time.

J.G. Dawes – Longville Days

Around 1904 or 1905 J.G. Dawes decided to expand his business interests and headed to the Longville, Minnesota area.

The book “The History of Longville, MN 1906-2006″ shares this information about J.G. Dawes and Amarilla’s involvement in the growth of Longville.

“The hustling new town was laid out on the banks of Girl Lake by J.G. Dawes of Pine River in 1904.  In the fall, he had the hotel and store building constructed by George Oleson and A.D. Fuller. He rented the hotel to Tom Nash and Frank Wetherell…In May of 1905, Wideman and Company rented Mayor Dawes new building at Longville and opened a general store.” page 17. 

On Dec. 22, 1905 a copy of the town of Longville’s first council meeting minutes was published in the Pine River Sentinel, Dec. 22, 1905.  “Mr. Dawes, in his remarks, said he could hardly realize that it was scarce three years since he purchased the property on which the village stands and which, at this time, contained only one small log hut.” page 18.

Mr. Dawes stated that he had given and option on his town site at Longville (Dec. 3, 1909). page 20. 

In July 1916, the big general store occupied by Bert Fuller was totally destroyed by fire, together with contents…This big store building was erected by J.G. Dawes in 1905.  The building was a total loss. page 20. 

J.G. Dawes received promises of an appropriation to build a road from Mule Lake to Longville, this making a completion of the mail route between Pine River and Longville. Also an appropriation for the extension of the road from Longville to Thunder Lake, bridging the narrows of Inguadona Lake. He also secured an appropriation to comment work on the road between Pine River and Pillager, with the understanding that whatever amounts were paid out from time to time, it would be divided equally at each end of the road, until it was completed…. From the Pine River Sentinel Feb. 17, 1905), page 24.

Postal service to the community of Longville was instigated in 1904 by James A. Long. Jefferson G. Dawes was confirmed as Longville’s first postmaster on April 11, 1904 [to about October 5, 1905], page 173.

J.D. Dawes hired Albert Daniel Fuller, James Bert Fuller, and George Oleson to build the Hotel Dawes in 1904 on Lots 19, 20 and 21 in Block 5.  It was a two-story building with a large kitchen and dining room and eight sleeping rooms upstairs, page 213.  It looks like about 1908 Dawes must have sold the hotel. 

The land for the Longville School was purchased from Amarilla and J.G. Dawes for $1.00 in September 1905. , pg. 387.”

Apparently J.G. saw opportunity in the Longville area and built his hotel which required postal service but I think by about 1908 he had moved on.  When I did my research I was concentrating on Amarilla and George’s land transactions, it might be interesting to see how many deeds J.G. was involved with.