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CAllTEIt COUNTY. 



Carter county is next to the youngest county in the state, both Carter and 

 Wheatland having been created by the 1917 session of the state legislature. The 

 bill providing for Carter county was a special act, dividing Fallon county, making 

 Carter the county in the extreme southeastern corner of the state, with the town of 

 Ekalaka as the temporary county seat. The bill was introduced by State Senator 

 Oliver, to designate its boundaries, provide for its organization and government and 

 to change the boundaries of Fallon county to conform thereto. The bill became 

 a law and the county came into existence, February 22, 1917. 



The creation of Carter county cut off 3,318 square miles from Fallon leaving the 

 latter 1,685 square miles in area. Carter is therefore about twice the size of Fallon. 



The principal industries of the county are farming and stock raising. At the 

 present time there is less than one-tenth of the tillable land now under cultivation. 

 The biggest part of the territory being recently settled up. The development, on 

 account of the distance from railroads, has been slow, and only the past three years 

 has shown a period of marked development. Crops of all kinds do well and Carter 

 county will be one of the leading agricultural counties in the state. Cattle and sheep 

 raising is carried on extensively aad at a big profit to the producers. 



Although the mineral resources of Carter county are practically unexplored, 

 there are large deposits of lignite coal. Numerous coal mines are in operation. 

 The farmer or homesteader can go out a short distance and get any amount of 

 wood and coal. There is also a large amount of fine building stone and no doubt 

 many other mineral deposits as yet undisturbed. 



The Sioux National Forest Reserve in the northern part, includes about 40,000 

 acres of pine timber. Numerous saw-mills are in operation, furnishing nearly all 

 of the building material with the exception of finishing lumber, that is used in the 

 county. This forest is rich in scenic beauty and good roads have been cleared 

 through it. 



There are great possibilities for the homeseeker in Carter county. There is 

 still considerable land open to homestead entry. Improved and unimproved land 

 can be bought at low prices, building lumber and winter's fuel supply are easily 

 obtainable, water of the linest kind is not hard to get and numerous streams and 

 springs abound. Combined with all this, the climate is good and the growing 

 season long. 



The county seat has been temporarily located at Ekalaka, in the extreme north 

 end of the county, and 45 miles south of the Milwaukee railroad. It is the largest 

 town in the county with an estimated population of 500. It has two general stores, 

 two hotels, one bank, a garage, and two newspapers, and is a trading center for 

 the country many miles around. Just north lies the Beaver Flats, a large level 

 tract of fertile land which the Beaver Creek and its branches makes particularly 

 desirable. The surrounding country has many points of interest to the visitor or 

 tourist. The famous Medicine Rocks with their queer legends are to the north, 

 the pine forests to the east and the Chalk buttes to the south. No other country 

 furnishes a larger field of opportunities for the man with little capital or large 

 capital. 



The next principal town in Carter county is Piniele, located in the west central 

 part of the county, with a population of about 200, and an assessed valuation of 

 over $75,000.00. It has two general stores, a flour mill, drug store, bank, g;irage, 

 hotel, meat market, restaurant, one newspaper, and electric lights. 



Carter county has many wealthy residents and has the distinction of having 

 over-subscribed its allotment of the Third Liberty Loan more than six times, which 

 is a record for any county in the northwest. 



The estimated population of the county for 1918 is 5,440. 



Land Area — Carter county has an area of 3.318 square miles. There are S49.771 

 acres of unreserved and unappropriated public land, available for entry under 

 the homestead law. There are also 87,740 acres of state land that can be purchased 

 for a low price. Of the homestead lands, G2S.846 acres are as yet unsurveyed. 



The assessed valuation of the county in 191S is $4,099,990. Further information 

 in reference to the resources and possibilities of Carter county will be furnished 

 by the secretary of the Commercial Club of either Ekalaka or Piniele. 



