Jim received a letter in January, 1878 from his brother, John. He had settled in the Black Hills of Dakota Territory in the spring of 1877. Mary read the letter to the entire family. John described the benefits of the Hills and told Jim it was a good country. He offered to come back to help Jim relocate. Jim's financial situation had become bad during the previous year. Jim decided to sell his two farms and take the family further west. He wrote to John and told him to come to Illinois to help them move. By the middle of May the situation had worsened. The sheriff had to sell one of Jim's teams in front of the hotel in Pecatonica. John came back to Pecatonica in early June, 1878 to aid in selling the land and property. In addition, John handled the financial affairs, as Jim was not "well in his mind" and illiterate. This later proved to be a terrible mistake.
Over the next days they sold 99,000 pounds of hogs, 13 steers, plus other goods. Jim and Mary quickly sold the two farms and signed the papers concluding the sale on 19 June 1878. Soon after, Jim, with sons, Will, Frank, and George took two railroad cars loaded with horses, Durham cattle, farm machinery, and household goods to Sioux City, Iowa on 26 June 1878. Mary stayed with a friend in Pecatonica until 29 June, when she took Hattie, Alice, Libbie, and Maggie on the train to Sioux City in company with her brother-in-law, John. Their son, John Herbert; daughter, Jane; and her husband, Monroe Ferguson, went to the Black Hills later.
They stayed the next few days at the hotel in Sioux City while they equipped themselves for the long trek ahead. They stockpiled clothes, groceries, and supplies in preparation for the trip to Pierre and the wagon trip across western Dakota. They sent some of their freight, including extra groceries, ahead to Pierre on the steamboat. Jim had the old wagon repaired that was shipped from Pecatonica and purchased a new wagon. On 3 July 1878 they left Sioux City by wagon, horse, and foot. Everyone headed the wagons and cattle on the trail to Yankton, sixty-seven miles away.
About a mile out of Sioux City, John decided to go back. Jim had told him in Pecatonica that he needed some more cattle. John assured him that he could buy them cheaper for him in Nebraska. He went to Ponca, Nebraska, where he earlier had sold his homestead rights. While he was in Ponca, he concluded some business with John McKinley, and purchased cattle for Jim. He met the rest of the family in Yankton on the morning of 7 July 1878. John told them the Missouri River was too high to bring the cattle he bought for Jim. He and the boys would come back for them later.
From Yankton, they proceeded to Pierre. They bartered and made last minute preparations for the last leg of the rugged trip across Indian country. Pierre would be the last town for 150 miles. Finally, after ten days of waiting and getting ready, they were ready to cross the "Mighty Missouri" to Fort Pierre. Jim paid Napoleon, the ferryman, to take them across the river. The next road would be the most difficult and perilous part of their journey.
They took the Fort Pierre-Deadwood Trail. The newly opened wagon road crossed through Sioux Indian lands most of the way to the Black Hills. The Treaty of 1877 gave whites the right to use the trail to the Black Hills. Even so, occasional bands of hostile Sioux who had not surrendered still attacked pioneer travelers, regardless of any treaties. Hattie and Alice usually drove the two wagons, as Jim and the boys herded the cattle and brood mares across the frontier.
Soon after they left Fort Pierre, their horses were stolen. Jim, Will, Frank, and Uncle John set out to recover them. While they searched for the missing horses, Indians forced their way into the camp. The intruders horrified Mary and the girls as they pilfered the camp, ripped boxes open, and took food and supplies. One brave took George's red boots with copper toes, recently purchased in Sioux City. Sixteen-year-old Alice jumped up and grabbed the boots back from under his arm. The Indians would kill them on the spot thought Mary. Instead, the Sioux warriors just laughed out respect for Alice's audacious bravery and let her keep the boots.
Will and Frank tracked the horses to American Island on the Missouri and discovered Indians had stolen the stock. They compelled Jim to pay a $15 ransom through the Indian agent at Pierre to get the horses back. When they returned to camp, Mary and the girls told them of their terrifying experience in the men's absence.
The family started towards the Hills again. While in Pierre, Jim had bartered for a pony. It was for eleven-year-old George to use in herding the cattle and other stock. When they reached Willow Creek, a Sioux brave stopped the party. He claimed that the pony was his. He soon returned with several warriors. They confirmed his story, so Jim gave him back the pony.
The encounter left young George afoot once again. The red boots Alice so boldly saved for him were too small. He had to walk barefoot over the rough hills the rest of the way. It was George's task to keep the stray cattle with the herd. A couple of the large Durham cows made the situation even more painful for him. They got into every prickly pear cactus patch they could find along the trail.
From Willow Creek, they continued along the north side of the Bad River, which the Sioux called the Wakpa Schicka, towards the Black Hills. Many creeks and streams fed into the Bad River. The family had to ford each of them, as the route had no bridges. Jim's grandson, John McFarland, said they crossed the Cheyenne River about five miles upstream from present day Wasta. From there, John said they took the Fort Pierre-Deadwood Cutoff, which followed the Box Elder Divide. On the night of 31 July 1878 they camped at the Melchert Ranch. A nearby lake provided water for the trail driven stock.
After almost two hundred miles and many long hot days from Pierre, they reached the Black Hills. On 2 August 1878 they settled just outside of Sturgis where the Black Hills National Cemetery is now located. Jim purchased a share of the place from John. He had bought the squatter's rights the year before from Thomas Moore who had driven stakes to mark the boundaries of the property. Immediately the family began to get settled. Jim and Mary camped in tents along the Sidney Stage Road with the children. John lived nearby in a small eight-by-ten foot cabin that had a sod roof and dirt floor. It was a dirty, vermin-infested hovel. It was here that Mary and the girls usually had to do their cooking. Jim and John also had a stage barn for eight horses on the ranch to serve the needs of passing freighters and the Sidney Stage Company.
The Sidney Stage Road Years