ELWYN B. ROBINSON DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
CHESTER FRITZ LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA
GRAND FORKS, NORTH DAKOTA 58202

JOSEPHINE SIMON HAYDEN PAPERS

COLLECTION: OGL #177

DATES: 1910-1968

SIZE: One folder

INTRODUCTION

ACQUISITION: The Josephine Simon Hayden Papers were deposited in the Orin G. Libby Manuscript Collection by Josephine Simon Hayden on June 30, 1968.

ACCESS: Open for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Department of Special Collections.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

Josephine Simon Hayden was born on her family’s farm near Thompson, North Dakota on May 25, 1890. Her father, Nicholas Simon, moved from Watertown, Wisconsin to Grand Forks County, North Dakota in 1879. He homesteaded in Americus Township on a quarter section of land. He opened a blacksmith shop in 1880, one of the first businesses in Thompson, which remained open for several years. Josephine later moved to Buchanan, Michigan, where she died in July 1978.

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Pascoe moved from Silver Islet, Ontario to Grand Forks County in 1879. They homesteaded near Thompson and later built a house on the bank of the coulee at the south end of Pacific Avenue in Thompson. Thomas was janitor at the schoolhouse for many years, and Mrs. Pascoe was active in the temperance movement.

Source:

Trydahl, Gladys Morrow and Anna M. C. Weber, eds. Memories of Yesterday: Thompson Centennial, 1881-1981, June 26-27-28, Thompson, North Dakota. Grand Forks, ND: Tri- County Press, 1981.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The Josephine Simon Hayden Papers consist of handwritten notes by Josephine about pioneers in the Thompson, ND area, including the Thomas Pascoe and Nicholas Simon families. A four page historical sketch of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Pascoe’s pioneer experiences was written in the 1920s from notes taken by Josephine during a 1910 interview with Mrs. Pascoe. Topics include homesteading, blizzards, agriculture, neighbors, and the sundries of rural life. A three page sketch of Nicholas Simon’s experiences describe his move to North Dakota, business dealings, agriculture, and neighbors. A two page letter gives further information about the Simon family. Two pages of notes describe the process employed by the Simon family to make lye soap.

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