48 Siouao City Academy of Science and Letters. 



BANQUET AT TBEMONT HOUSE. 



I well remember Thanksgiving Day of 1857 because 

 of a dinner which I attended at the Tremont house, a 

 new hotel built in central Sioux City. Mrs. Hagy kept 

 the hotel. I was made chairman of the evening because 

 I came from the president's state. On my right sat J. 

 P. Allison; on my left H. W. Tl-acey. Some of the others 

 present were: L. C. Sanborn, Jerome E. White, J. B. 

 Flagg, Al Lovering, Chas. Warren, Col. Means and L. H. 

 Kennerly. All are dead now [1904] except Kennerly, 

 Allison and myself; perhaps Kennerly is, but he was not 

 a year or two ago.^ 



This dinner I have good reason to remember vividly. 

 We had a great old time. Mr. White and I were the only 

 men present who did not drink. We were the only sober 

 ones in the crowd, and sometimes I suspected White. 



Each one had to sing a song or tell a story. Some 

 of the boys got up onto the table and walked back and 

 forth over it. You will find this dinner reported in the 

 Sioux City Weekly Eagle, Vol. I.i 



The Sioux City Eagle was the first paper published 

 here. It was edited by Seth W. Swiggett, who died a 

 few years ago in Chicago. In politics the Eagle was 

 neutral with democratic leanings. Its first issue was 

 put out on July 4th, 1857. About two years later it 

 was superceded by the Sioux City Register, "Gov." F. M. 

 Ziebach, editor. 



SIOUX CITY AS A LAND OFFICE TOWN. 



As I said before, Sioux City was, in the early days, 

 a land office town. The U. S. Government Land Office, 

 where claims were received and recorded, was situated 

 here, as well as many private real estate agents. 



Land sold generally at $1.25 per acre, except when 

 competitive bidding ran it up higher. Men bought not 

 only for themselves, but for friends who were not on the 

 grounds and also for speculation. 



An agent was allowed to enter five or six quarter 

 sections at a time. His commission on a quarter was 



1. The Eagle under date of November 28, 1857, gives a column 

 to the report of this banquet. Nineteen men are named as having 

 been present, Mr. Sanborn's name not being among the list. 



