A.C. early ranching days |
Friction between ranchers and the federal government over the use of public lands recently witnessed in the news is nothing new in our history. Prominent Meadville businessman and Civil War veteran, Arthur Clarke (A. C.) Huidekoper had a running feud with the government over the fencing of public lands near his cattle and horse ranches in the badlands of North Dakota. A. C., who built in Holland Hall along Terrace Street, first visited North Dakota during a trip to Bismarck in the fall of 1879.
The untamed beauty and wildness of the territory captivated A. C. who returned in 1881 to hunt buffalo near the small outpost town of Medora. Recognizing the area’s potential, A. C. purchased land in southern Billings County from the Northern Pacific Railway Company the following year to establish the Custer Trail Ranch. Among his ranching neighbors was an adventurous French nobleman and cavalry officer by the name of Marquisde Mores, and a young, energetic, politician from New York City who was part owner of the Maltese Cross Ranch, Theodore Roosevelt.