Prominent among the early settlers of Austin is Abraham Dickerson, who came here in 1857. He was born in New York on May 4, 1823, and lived with his parents in Michigan, Illinois and Iowa before he came to this state. Nearly all the land to the southwest of Austin was then vacant and he bought an eighty four miles to the south. To the west the country was one vast slough.

Mr. Dickerson bought two lots in Austin and has always owned more or less city property. He, unlike many pioneers, had means, so did not experience the hardships of many of the early settlers. His first breaking cost him five dollars per acre and his first seed grain one dollar per bushel. He yearly continued to break until he had 500 acres. He made money in wheat, every year raising between 2,000 and 3,000 bushels, which brought a good price in the early history of the settlement of Mower county.

Cedar City was started the year he came, with great expectations for future growth. A saw mill, grist mill and post-office were instituted, but a freshet came and swept away the mills leaving only the name of the would-be city. Mr. Dickerson had cut a hundred logs at Moscow and floated them down Turtle Creek, but lost them all. An ice gorge thirty feet high had formed and when it broke it swept everything before it.

In July, 1858, another freshet more disastrous, especially to farmers, came and many families lost heavily. At the time everything was very high. Mr. Dickerson remembers paying ten cents for a darning needle and everything else in proportion. He has served in town offices many times. For fifteen years he was town treasurer. He has five children and as each daughter married he gave her an eighty. He has rented his farm and is trying to enjoy life all he can.

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Submitted to MnGenWeb by Darrel K. Waters