| Cottonwood
incorporated in October of 1901
Cottonwood Incorporation The October 17, 1901 Idaho County Free Press (Grangeville) reported that “A meeting was held at Cottonwood last week to take steps for the incorporation of that village. W. L. Brown, H. H. Nuxoll, A. B. Rooke, S. J. Peterson and S. Goldstone were recommended to the county commissioners as trustees.” (Photo: Cottonwood, 1889. Rootsweb image, no attribution/provenance supplied.) Cottonwood, located about 13 miles northwest of Grangeville, began in 1862 as a way station on the road from Lewiston to the mining districts south of Mount Idaho (near the future Grangeville). The town grew slowly in its first few years, but it had developed enough to be an important supply point during the Nez Perce War in 1877. A decade later, the town had become a major focal point for the flourishing cattle and sheep industry in the region. Contemporary accounts describe a huge corral, a notable landmark in the community. There, stockmen could assemble herds for drives out of the state. Later, particularly after the railroad came in 1908, Cottonwood became a substantial shipping point for grain, a role it has played ever since. Reference: An Illustrated History of North Idaho, Western Historical Publishing Company (1903). Re-posted by permission of Southfork Companion blog. Shared by Don Nuxoll. 
Cottonwood in 1889. It appears to be looking west along Main Street. |
 |