In the late 1860s, Jim Hill was a $75 a month freight clerk for a warehouse along the Mississippi River at St. Paul, Minnesota.
William Kahlow, 1890 settler in the Okanogan Valley, knew Jim Hill as the fastest receiving clerk on the Mississippi. The job involved directing the wharfmen unloading freight from the riverboats to the proper space in the warehouse for each consignee.
Kahlow recalled competitions between Jim Hill and other freight clerks. Jim Hill always won. “If they bet on Jim Hill they didn’t lose their wagers.” Jim Hill had lost an eye to a childhood accident but that didn’t slow down his work or his ambitions.
It was during those years that freight clerk Jim Hill met Mississippi riverboat captain Alexander Griggs. The two men formed a friendship that would last as long as their lives.
Hill knew how to move freight and Griggs knew riverboats. Captain Griggs thought there was money to be made hauling freight on the Red River of Minnesota.
In 1872 he convinced his friend, Jim Hill, to invest with him to build a riverboat to ply the Red River. The Selkirk cost $22,000 to build but paid for itself in the first year of operation.
That changed Jim Hill’s life. No longer a freight clerk, he added a middle initial to his name and became James J. Hill, shipping magnate.
He soon concluded that the future of shipping was not in riverboats but in railroads.
In 1873, Hill took his substantial profits from the Red River Transportation Co. and bought a controlling interest in the St. Paul and Pacific Railroad.
There was a national financial panic and the railroad was in trouble. Hill paid 25 cents a share for the stock. He immediately began expanding his line west to reach more towns and more population.
Hill demanded much from his crews. He expected a mile and a half of new track each day.
Bu hikaye The Good Life dergisinin May 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye The Good Life dergisinin May 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Nita Paine
‘I love that we provide an outlet to people to express themselves, to find out who they are’
Looking at life from a different angle now
Bout with cancer, plus pandemic made couple wonder: Why wait to really live?
Keeping family ties strong
Twelve months of COVID makes for a long year away from kids and grandkids
It's a kick to be a zebra — or a canary
When making the call is your calling
Saved family letters tell of war horrors, peacetime hopes and dreams
Loving letters from long ago
Varied Thrush: Making a bold statement
Globally, the thrush family contains 169 viable species; three other thrush species are now extinct.
Clean shots
For real estate photographer, the art is in the uncluttered details
Visiting the glory years of our parents
Obituaries – They’re really NOT for the dead
Going deep with Dan Feil
Warm crystal clear water, incredible fish, spectacular scenery, why not jump off a boat in the tropics?
Bringing a glow to the night
Who says outside lights are just for Christmas time? Drivers on Maple Street in Wenatchee will now see lights year-round.