Henry D. Giard

Of the handful of visible gravestones in Peck cemetery, two, although broken, are very legible.  One of those stones belongs to Mary A. Rounding, and information on her life can be found in the previous blog post.  She was in Dakota Territory for only a year and a half, making it challenging to find information on her.  Even more challenging is Henry D. Giard, whose stone is also very legible.  But Henry was in Dakota Territory a mere 4 months before he passed away at the age of 31 - not long enough to leave a good paper trail.

However, an article in the Dakota Huronite (Huron, SD) mentions his arrival in Beadle county in the March 08, 1883 edition.  "H. D. Giard, Levi Giard, Adolph Giard and Dan'l Bottum, who with their families comprise a party of 13, have arrived in the city from Cohoes, N.Y.  The gentlemen are all bright looking, energetic young men who appear to be firm in their determination to make their western venture a success.  They cannot well help succeeding."  Levi and Adolph are documented as brothers, and Daniel Bottom is the husband of their sister, so it's a reasonable assumption, barring the absence of any hard evidence, that Henry is a brother to Levi and Adolph.

Further circumstantial evidence is their choice of land.  Adolph and Levi had cash purchase of land in Cornwall township, as did Henry.  The location of their land, in relation to each other, also suggests a close family tie.  Henry and his wife Alice homesteaded their land, and Alice "proved up" on the claim Dec. 13, 1889, as a widow.

The map above, shows the land of the Giards, NE of Hitchcock, South Dakota.  The blue marker shows the location of Peck cemetery, and to the NE of that marker is where the Giard lands are located.  The Green "L" is Levi's land; the blue "H" is Henry's land, and the red "A" is Adolph's land,

In March, 1883, the brothers and their brother-in-law arrived in Dakota Territory.  In July, 31 year old Henry was laid to rest in Peck cemetery.  What, exactly, happened in those four months may be lost to history.  

Henry and Alice had two children - Blanche, b. 1881 in New York, and Boyd, b. 1883.  Alice appeared to have remarried William Goodman, and left South Dakota.