Ft. Sauerkraut, Part 3: Frightened Men Build Fort, Scouts Watch From Hilltops

Part of the reason I'm doing this story is because Hebron is located in my "area" of the country. Grant County, home of New Leipzig, abuts Morton County, home of Hebron. This photo is of Main Street (taken from the Hebron web page - link provided below the photo) in Hebron in 1910, the same year New Leipzig was established:

More photos and information on Hebron can be found here.

In all the time I lived in New Leipzig, I'd never even heard of Ft. Sauerkraut. In fact, I can remember only two times ever visiting the community of Hebron in any capacity.

One was with my Dad to pick up some bricks from the brick factory there. He intended to build a trash burner in our back yard (yes, at that time it was still legal to do so), and the only place he knew of to get them was Hebron. Prior to that, he'd used a metal barrel/oil drum to burn most of the trash. When the barrel got full, we'd empty it into the small trailer Dad had and haul it out to the town dump west and north of town. I remember Dad complaining about having to take less than half loads to the dump because the barrel wouldn't hold that much. That's why he made the enclosure out of brick. Lots bigger - lots more shoveling to clean it out. But we had full loads now and longer in between trips to the dump. Fun.

The second time in Hebron was when I was a freshman in high school. Our basketball team was undefeated. The Hebron Brickmakers were supposed to be a so-so team. Our guys (I was a benchwarmer for the varsity) weren't even cocky going into the game. In fact, I'd have to say most of them were pretty blase' about this particular game. Maybe that wasn't the best attitude to have because it turned into a real barn-burner, and we came away with our first defeat of the season. I believe it was by one point.

Long story short, Hebron wasn't a planned destination for us. When the Interstate went in, Hebron (and a few other smallish communities along the route) was bypassed and left in a more remote situation than previously. If I remember right, Old Highway 10 went through every one of them. The Interstate didn't do that. Richardton was the only one that I remember being left right on the thoroughfare.

So, when I "discovered" the story of Ft. Sauerkraut, I was fascinated. My kids in 8th grade social studies were, too.

Here's part 3 of this story:

Frightened Men Build Fort, Scouts Watch From Hilltops

All night long people continued coming into town and as the news of the Indian outbreak spread from settler to settler the panic grew, so that at daybreak nearly the entire farm population was a moving caravan hastening toward town as fast as they were able to go. Fred Schweigert, sleeping in his shoemaker shop, was aroused from sleep at about midnight and was told to get his pony and as quickly as possible ride out and notify the people in the south. He did so, going out in the neighborhood of Vetters and Kindsvogels and rode hard all night. At each place he told them in turn to arouse other neighbors farther on. By morning he was so tired that he had to go back and sleep, Indians or no Indians.

In town everything was found astir. Charles Krauth was busy among the refugees exhorting them to prepare for immediate defense. Soon he and Burkhardt had a large body of men at work on the cemetery hill hastily throwing up fortifications.

They outlined the walls of a fort to be built around the top of the hill. Its contour was somewhat elliptical, extending something over 100 yards in its north and south diameter and embraced about half a city block in area. The ground was dry and hard but the men worked with the energy of despair. Ox teams were set to work plowing for the trenches, men with spades and shovels threw up the embankments; and other teams were kept busy plowing up sod with which to lay up the walls, for there was no other materials available. Most of the men had become familiar with the art of laying up sod walls for houses by this time so rapid progress was made. The plan of the fort provided for a deep trench on the outside of the wall; and another trench not so deep on the inside. The wall itself was made about three feet thick and at suitable places and distances port holes were provided so the defenders could shoot out without being much exposed. Inside the fort and near the center of the space was constructed a shelter building with sod walls and railroad ties for a roof. This was about 100 feet long, extending north and south, with an entrance at the south end. This was intended to shelter the women and children. The entrance to the fort was through a winding and fortified passage near the south east part.

There was little time for rest that first day, and the activities on that hill were as busy as any even observed on an ant hill. Practically all the people from the Haymarsh came and helped. Wehris, Brauns, Nagels and others worked with spirit. Fred Kinnischtzke, who had served as an officer in the Franco-Prussian War, was by common consent chosen as commander in chief of the fort. Rev. Debus stoutheartedly stood with his people and helped with the work. From the Heart River country in the south and the Knife River in the north people came. Everybody brought their guns along, and those who had no arms were provided after they arrived. A requisition was sent to Ft. Lincoln for a supply of rifles and ammunition, while men were busy at Fruehaufs moulding bullets. The women were busy preparing their meager victuals for a siege.

As no Indians showed up during the day, the men became bolder and decided on sending out scouting parties to see where the Indians were. Among the scouts were Peter Treiber, Emil Kindsvogel and Herman Mees. In scouting the country they went as far south as the Heart River but failed to find any trace of hostile savages.

Scouting parties were posted on the high hills far to the south and east who were to watch day and night for the coming of the Indians. A large quantity of straw and combustibles was piled up on top of Heart Butte, and at the first sight of the Indians this was to be fired as a signal. It is said that none of the men would sleep up there on account of the numerous rattle snakes that were then there.

During the day some of the party ranged down as far as the Cannon Ball looking for signs of the Indians. After a few days their provisions ran out; there was no a settler at home where food could be obtained. They had been given the strictest orders not to fire a gun but in their necessity they at last had to shoot and roast a rabbit for food.

When the women went to Bismarck Ole Tollefson went with them and from his vantage point continued to send up messages exhorting the people here to keep up their spirits.

After the first couple of days in town the activities at the fort waned some. The walls were already about eight feet high on the outside, most of the trench digging had been done and the work of finishing did not require so many teams. It is said that Urban and Funk were the only ones who had horses working on that job, the rest being all oxen. Some people who lived close by returned to their homes during the day to look after things, returning to the safety of town again at night. When the supply of army rifles arrived from Ft. Lincoln it was found that some were defective and lacking in parts so many were not serviceable.

At night the weary people slept on the floor of the church and school where they were packed together like sardines in a can, for every house, barn and shed was crowded. The scanty meals of most of them were prepared over little fires made in improvised ovens of sod or stone out in the open air.

Ferd. Leutz had been during all this time at his Hidden Wood ranch, near the present town of Zap, where C. F. Ewald was foreman. When they heard about the Indians coming they hastened in and arrived as the fort was about finished.

They suggested that at proper intervals railroad ties be set in the ground around it on which barb wire was securely fastened and in a short time a formidable barrier fence was built all around it, while farther out short posts were set in the ground at irregular intervals and directions from which barb wires were also strung a few inches above the ground. The purpose of this was to trip up the horses in case the Indians attempted to rush the hill. Water barrels were brought up and filled and everything made ready for immediate use as soon as the Indians should come.

It was not thought probable that they would be besieged any great length of time, for just as soon as the Indians came word would be wired to Ft. Lincoln where soldiers would be in readiness to come to the rescue at once.

The main object and purpose of the fort was to have a secure place where the people could defend themselves from a furious assault of probably not more than a day or two duration and until the soldiers could get here.

In the afternoon of November 18 Peter Kastner arrived in Hebron from his former home in Russia. As he alighted from the train he wondered at the great crowd of people in town. They told him that a great army of Indians was coming to attack the town and that a fort had just been finished on the hill. He finally found Franz Berger in the crowd, recognizing him at once as a countryman from his old home town, so he got some comfort in his strange surroundings that day.

This ends part 3 of this historical story.

Ft. Sauerkraut, Part 2: Indians Reported on War Path; Frightened Settlers Flee to Town

Again, taken verbatim from a history of Morton County, ND, but do not know the name of the actual tome.

How do you say Hebron? We always said it as Hee (long e) bron (o sounds like u). The "biblical" pronunciation isn't the same from what I've heard.

Anyway, here's Part 2 of this story:

Indians Reported on War Path; Frightened Settlers Flee to Town

Coincident with the wave of religious enthusiasm or Messiah craze of the Indians there developed some dissatisfactions of a more practical nature. The Indians were getting hungry; and they knew not where to get food or clothing for the approaching winter. For years the government had pursued the policy of Gen. Sheridan who said, "the only good Indian is a dead Indian."

It took the schooled West Pointers who had conquered Lee and the southerners in four years, twenty years to overcome the able Indian strategists of the west who fought for their country as valiantly as any patriot who ever tried to keep the invader from his homeland. But little remained of the high spirit and cheerful independence which marked the Indians upon whom the first comers are said to have fallen as soon as was convenient after falling upon their knees and giving thanks for coming into the inheritance of the red man's land.

By force of numbers and superior arms the government at last succeeded in making "good Indians" of most of them, and the rest were herded into concentration camps called Reservations. Their country and hunting range was taken from them and to which they were forbidden to return. The government shamefully failed to fulfill its treaty obligations to provide for their maintenance on these reservations.

Incompetence, corruption and graft pervaded the entire Indian management. Agencies and appointments as post trader were choice political plums that went to those who had the price or the pull. Food, cattle, clothing etc., that should have gone to the Indians was sold privately and falsely reported as having been delivered.

The newspaper publicity following the Messiah dances focused some attention to the situation. The guilty and fearful officials becoming alarmed attempted to shift the blame by calling for soldiers saying the Indians were getting unruly. As the soldiers were hastened to the reservations to prevent "outbreaks" the Indians became alarmed, too, and some fled west. They were strictly watched, had to answer frequent roll calls and were forbidden to exercise their religion. In the meantime their food was getting less every day and nothing was done to relieve them. At last about the middle of November 1890 a company of half starved Indians left their camp on the Standing Rock Reservation.

As soon as this was discovered, word was sent out in all directions that the Indians had broken out. Post riders and messengers spread the news. It was telegraphed far and wide that the Indians had gone on the war path and were about to massacre all the settlers in the whole country.

The people in and around Hebron had heard some of the rumblings of the Indian excitement for some weeks, but they had no definite knowledge of what it was all about. The more the reports were repeated the more alarming they became. Every time a train came from the east a small crowd gathered at the depot to hear the latest from the train crew or passengers and their reports never felt short of what was thought appropriate, for most of the people here got their first ideas of Indian warfare from German story books in the old country. They had already been worked up to a tense feeling when suddenly about November 15 telegraph messages were sent to all the stations along the line informing the people that the Indians, bent on mischief, had broken out; that everybody should be on guard and hasten to defend themselves against attack.

Many were already in the right frame of mind to go into a panic, and this they proceeded to do at once. All ordinary work was suspended, people hurriedly talked about what was best to be done. Many women and children were hustled off on the first trains to Bismarck where they could be safe across the Missouri.

Young men were dispatched on horseback to ride out across the prairie and they, like Paul Revere of old, rode through the night spreading the alarm to every homestead, ranch and farm. People aroused from their slumbers hastily gathered a few belongings and with galloping oxen hurried towards town with their families.

Housewives gathered up their blankets and feather ticks, a few pots and pans and such food as they had on hand and throwing everything hurriedly into the wagon hastened away with their families. Bread dough was thrown into a pillow slip and brought along to be baked later. Poultry, pigs and livestock were released to shift for themselves. Wagons carrying women, children, the sick and the aged, besides a miscellaneous baggage, including sometimes a few ducks, geese, or other poultry, rattled and clattered over the rough prairie as they sped through the night fleeing from their homes to a refuge in town.

And as they went they turned fearful glances backwards to see if their homes were not already in flames, or perhaps get a glimpse of a painted savage about to overtake and scalp them. They traveled so fast that in some instances much of the baggage was strewn along the way.

Christ Salzer was then living southwest of the Birkmaier place. After the messenger came he quickly loaded his wife and child in the back of his wagon and made to town. There were no highways in those days and as the galloping beasts went through the darkness over creeks and badger holes he failed to notice that his family had bounced off, until he had gotten part way in, so he had to tun about and go back in search of them.

The Urban family east of town was aroused at midnight and soon Geo. H. Funk came running over in the greatest distress saying that all his horses were out on the prairie, that he had no way to catch any quickly and wanted to get one of theirs. They were all badly frightened, but Mrs. Urban said they should put their trust in the Lord and all would go well.

Kindsvogels had just done their fall butchering and had made a lot of sausage but not having time to take the meat along, they quickly wrapped it up and buried it hoping to recover it later. Finding no other way to get to town quickly, Mrs. John E. Haven and Mrs. Marshall walked in from the present Ketterling place.

While the alarm was being spread the people in town lost no time in making preparations for defense. By this time it was rumored that there were no less than six thousand painted and mounted warriors led by Sitting Bull on their way to massacre, scalp and burn as the Sioux had once done in Minnesota, that it was very probable that Sitting Bull would lead them to Canada as he had done once before, that Hebron lay in the exact center of their path, and that they could be expected at any moment.

Charles Krauth had been a soldier in the old country, and Louis Burkhardt had had considerable experience as a veteran in former Indian campaigns. They decided at once to fortify a place where the people might take shelter and defend themselves against attack. They rode horseback on all the hills around near town to look for the best place to build a fort and finally chose the hill northwest of town on the slope of which the cemetery is now located.

This ends Part 2 of this historical story.

In the image that follows, Ft. Sauerkraut is located almost dead center in this Google Earth image. It's the long building within the teardrop shaped road around it. 

Ft. Sauerkraut, Part 1: Ghost Dancing Among the Indians; Schweigert Awake While Others Nap

I do not know who authored the following. Again, it was taken verbatim from a book on the history of Morton County, North Dakota. If anyone knows of this tome, what it might be called, and where it could be accessed, please let me know. I'd like to give full attribution to this story.

Ghost Dancing Among the Indians; Schweigert Awake While Others Nap

The winter of 1889-90 passed without any particular change in the community life. One night, Tom Callahan and another from over south of Antelope became quite loaded up at one of the saloons and they left to go home becoming involved in a snow drift in the creek on the south edge of town and tipped over. They lay in the creek all night and the next morning they came back with faces and hands frozen a little, but after getting some more whiskey under their belts they made another start for home with better success.

By this time it had become quite a common custom for quite a number of people to get their coal supply from the railroad company's bin. One night as Murray was going home from the depot he came across an old timer getting railroad coal from the chute.

He stopped and gave him some wholesome talk about his responsibilities as agent to see that railroad property was protected. The man said he was sent over by his employer to get a gunny sack full, but that he would not do it anymore. Murray later suspected that the effect of his lecture was that the man's employer had him choose a little later hour in visiting the N.P. bin.

The Red Lodge coal used by the railroad company always made a black smoke, while ordinary lignite coal made light smoke. They used to cast about town and watch the chimneys and observe from which the black smoke issued for some had rather dark looking smoke coming out. There was dire poverty among some of the people and it is said that during this winter some men actually walked to New Salem and carried back a sack of potatoes on their backs.

A new saloon was built by Burt Cohen, said to have been an English Jew. It was located in the street between where the Columbia Hotel and Ewald Store building now stand. This building was later moved to near the alley close to the rear of the present Urban store to be closer to the center of business.

The W. Bratzel family moved from their homestead to town and purchased a small building of Leutz and Kisso that stood just north of the present Buelow house and occupied this for a residence, while he worked for Leutz & Krauth on the ranch at $20 per month. One day Bratzel and C.F. Ewald decided to make a trip out to the present Golden Valley country to visit the Wiege ranch and in order to make sure that they could find their way back threw up piles of earth on the way as guiding landmarks.

People in those days who had riding ponies which they wished available when wanted, used to picket them out where they could find plenty of grass. Fred Schweigert had a pony which he used to picket out in that way. Krauth and Leutz also had some horses around but which they did not picket. During the night these horses would wander around and look for company and coming to Schweigert's pony would sociably eat up all the grass around the picket and only move farther away after all the grass was eaten, while Schweigert's horse could not move farther away and often fell short of feed. One day Schweigert went to Krauth & Leutz and told them that he had bought a rope from them to picket his horse and he wished them to picket their horses, too; that it was necessary for him to picket his to prevent it from wandering away too far. They gave Schweigert the horse laugh saying this was a free country and they did not have to picket theirs; suggesting that he could do as he pleased with his horse but they were not going to picket theirs.

Schweigert then bethought himself and remembered that Ezekiel Chase had a fine field of wheat out near the present Spoer place. That night he led his pony out next to the wheat field and picketed it just far enough away so it could not reach the grain. That night the Krauth and Leutz horses came down to visit Schweigert's and being free banqueted on the Chase wheat. The next morning Chase came to town with kindled wrath and made Krauth and Leutz pay for the damages their horses had done. After that their horses were picketed, too.

About this time and during the summer of 1890 there was a rise of a religious movement among some of our western Indians that led up to a great deal of local excitement. Out in western Nevada there was a young Paiute Indian who during a severe illness had been befriended by the wife of a rancher. She also taught him something about the white man's Bible and religion. His name was Vo-vo-ka but was also known as Jack Wilson. As he lay with the fever he thought he saw visions and resolved, on recovering, to preach a new gospel to the Indians in which the second coming of Christ was emphasized. He preached brotherly love, taught the Indians not to fight, that they should do right, tell no lies, to hold a sacred dance at least once in six weeks and to bathe frequently in the river, that by reason of the misdeeds of the white man he had lost the divine favor and that the Lord was to make the Indians his chosen people at his second coming, if they were good.

He enjoined upon them secrecy, that they were to keep this religion to themselves and explain it to no white. He predicted an eclipse of the sun and in other ways rapidly gained for himself the reputation of a great prophet of the Messiah. Dancing among the Indians was considered as much a sacred prayer to the Great Spirit. The whites contemptuously called it Ghost dancing.

In an amazing short time this form of religion spread for hundreds of miles. Indian disciples of the Prophet varied the forms to suit the temperament of various tribes that adopted it. It had the attractions of a secret society and offered opportunities for all kinds of would-be preachers. Thus, overnight, Sitting Bull's land became Christianized. The more enthusiastic preachers figured that if dancing once in six weeks was good, then dancing every six days was better, and some notaries danced almost daily. Of course the white missionaries of long established sects would not admit that the Ghost Dance was a Christian church, for they held to the view that the white race alone held the exclusive monopoly of Christian sects.

However, it is difficult to imagine one believing in the second coming of Christ without believing in the first.

Their teachings and rituals had far more significance for Indians than any the missions could offer. The white missionaries became alarmed; they were no longer sure of their converts. They all took a stand against the new sect and denounced its ritual with pious slander. But the enthusiasm of the great Indian dance meetings could be no more abated by them than the spirit that pervades a Methodist Revival, or a meeting of the Holy Rollers, Jumpers or any other of a hundred so called christian sects. The Indians simply went on with their dancing, refusing to explain anything, while the white man's newspapers were filled with alarming descriptions and scareheads.

Sitting Bull at that time lived in retirement on the Grand River. He was an old, experienced and practical man among his people. He had lived in Canada some years, had visited Washington and other large eastern cities, had put in a season with "Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show" and with it toured the east and Europe. He had seen the multitudes of whites and knew their ruthless greed. He saw the whites disagree over the various creeds. He could not fathom it so he rejected it all. He had a system of his own that served his needs and those of his people. He thoroughly understood it while the complications of the white man's belief confused him. As a practical politician he did not oppose the new cult anticipating that the fad would die out as rapidly as it sprung up.

About 200 men with their families gathered at his camp where they carried on their dancing. He sometimes went out as a matter of curiosity to see them. He still had a great reputation as a Medicine Man, and as the winter season approached he foretold his people that he would give them such a mild winter that they could dance out in the open all the time. It turned out just as he said.

By this time the whole surrounding country was agitated and riled on account of the newspaper reports of the alleged activities of Sitting Bull whose name was world famous, and for a radius of hundreds of miles people were leaving the country, while those who remained fortified their homes in preparation of sudden attack. The world at large termed these Indians "hostiles" and very dangerous.

Fort Sauerkraut

In a lifetime ago, I was a teacher... a social studies teacher...in Mandan...Morton County...state of North Dakota. Eighth grade kids can be a challenge. Teaching North Dakota history can be a challenge. Finding anything that might be of interest to that age group is never easy. And so it was with North Dakota history.

Every state is rich in historical perspective. The difficulty lies in making it something more than just names, dates, and places.

In my high school days, the very brief sojourn into North Dakota history was focused primarily on that which happened in the eastern half of the state. Why? I can't say. But it was.

When one considers what happened in the western part of the state, particularly the Badlands with Teddy Roosevelt and the Marquis de Mores, the west has every bit as much of a "colorful" past as does the east.

But what about in between? What kind of "history" does the area around my home town of New Leipzig have to offer? The answer is "a LOT"!

Ever hear of Ft. Sauerkraut? This may just be one of those hidden, very little known "jewels" of history. I'd never personally heard of it until I started digging to find something about Morton County history that might interest my kids.

There's a lot of information, actually, about this fort, but a story that stuck out for me was the one that follows. It's actually copied from a book on Morton County that I can't even find anymore for attribution. It may still be available, but in all the research I've done online, it's nowhere to be found.

The humor related in this story is unmistakable. It makes it more real to the reader. I'm doing the story in four parts:

Part 1: Ghost Dancing Among the Indians; Schweigert Awake While Others Nap

Part 2: Indians Reported on War Path; Frightened Settlers Flee to Town

Part 3: Frightened Men Build Fort, Scouts Watch From Hilltops

Part 4:  Northern Indians Come to Rescue; Raber Holds His Scalp

And, just so you know I'm not making this stuff up, here's a link to a shorter version of the story I'm sharing: Dickinson....The Western Edge



Enjoy!