Distinguished:
Charles B. Kennedy
Part
2
To the Territory of Dakota
In early March of 1878, Kennedy came to Dakota Territory, and made his
way to Lake County. The Kennedy family were some of the early pioneers in Lake County and
using only a compass to guide them found their way to Lake Madison after
crossing miles of prairie. They came to the north side of the Lake and
found a little skirt of timber surrounding the lake.
On the south shore of Lake Madison there were a few scattered houses and a
hotel operated by Bill Lee. They were told there was one trail that was
two miles south of Lake Madison and it led to Deadwood.
Kennedy decided to homestead in Lake County and secured a
timer claim of three hundred and twenty acres. On this land, he started a
stock farm. Part of this land was later called Madison. His homestead was
located as follows: on the western boundary was Egan Avenue, running south
to a line between Seventh and Eight Streets and as far north as Fourteenth
Street and as far East as Washington Avenue. The main street of Madison
ran through the center of his original farm. Two years later the railroad
came to Dakota Territory and cross through Kennedy’s land.
Kennedy was known as a leader in the ranks of the Republican Party. In
November of 1880, he was elected a representative of Lake County in the
territorial legislature and within the succeeding sessions introduced and
secured the enactment of a bill locating the State Normal School in
Madison.
His generosity and public spirit were further shown by his donating to
the state the twenty acres of land upon which all the buildings of this
institution are located.
From 1884 and for a number of years he was in the farm real-estate loan
business and soon added insurance and banking to this business. In 1884,
he was one of the promoters of the First National Bank in Lake County and
its charter president. The following year Kennedy established the Kennedy
Brothers Bank, which later merged into the Madison State Bank. Also in
1889, he organized the Northwestern Loan and Banking Company. He was also
president of this company and into which he merger his real estate business, conducting a
bank and dealt largely in real estate mortgages.
Kennedy retired from the Banking business in December of 1909 and started
spending winters in Los Angeles, California. The last trip he made to Lake
County was in October 1915.
Charles B. Kennedy passed away on August 18, 1917 in Los Angeles,
California. He was survived by his wife and two sons LeRoy & Dean of
Los Angeles and two brothers; C.E. Kennedy and William F. Kennedy.
Dakota State University • All rights Reserved
Completed by Spring 2004 Class of English 401
Last updated Spring 2004