General area of Pendroy, Montana in Choteau County, Montana
Pendroy, Montana, once had over 400 but about 100 people now.
Go to page about the current town of Pendroy Montana.
Click here to view a map of the area of Pendroy,
Montana.
After the civil war many Pendroy extended families, mostly the
extended families of Jacob Andrew (called Andrew or Uncle Andy), and Margaret
(Brown) Pendroy, the James M. Pendroy and 4 sons
and other Pendroy families left Marion County, Iowa and went
west in covered wagons. In general, all of this group were descendents of (old)
Jacob and Margaret (Boots) Pendroy.
This Pendroy family founded what was originally referred to as the Pendroy
Colony in the North Dakota Territory which became Pendroy,
North Dakota near the current towns of Velva and Towner N. D. in the Souris
(called Mouse) River area in north central North Dakota. (McHenry County).
Concerning Pendroy, Montana
- two members of this group - Levi Boots Pendroy and James Andrew Pendroy later on founded the present day town of
Pendroy, Montana.
According their own family branch, both James Andrew Pendroy and Levi
Boots Pendroy started the town of Pendroy, Montana. I base this on the written comment in 1941 biography of James (b 1862) Martin
Pendroy, written by his son Charles Pendroy in 1941.
Then Levi B. Pendroy later had the town of Pendroy, Montana named after
him in 1916, primarily because of his association with the railroad that went to Pendroy,
Montana..
The following information was published in the publication "Pendroy, a Wide Spot
In The Road", 1991, Pendroy Book Committee, Griggs printing and Publishing: Page 3,
Author Diane Bingham:
"In 1916 the Great Northern Railroad announced the extension of their north -
south railroad line from Bynum to Porter bench. It was at this point that Pendroy, Montana was born.
Levi Boots Pendroy & Wife Jessie (Robinson)
In these early years Louis W. Hill, son of James Hill, was president of the Great
Northern Railroad. James Hill met L.B. Pendroy west of Devil's lake, Dakota Territory
in 1885 while he was scouting this country for a possible route for his
railroad."
Pendroy was one of the early pioneer homesteaders and businessmen of Teton County,
Montana. LB had been a surveyor and associate of James Hill the builder of The Great
Northern railroad. When this line pushed their branch north of Choteau in 1916, they named
the terminus Pendroy to honor LB.
The Choteau Montana county paper ran an article in 1955 on the death of
James M. Pendroy's son Levi Boots Pendroy at age 93 also stating this.
The full text of the 1955 Choteau county Montana paper article from 1955 contains a
picture of the elderly Levi B. Pendroy.
(Here is the full unaltered text of the newspaper article about
Levi B. Pendroy.)
Late L.B. Pendroy Worked for Jim Hill.
Article from 1955 "The Acantha" newspaper - Teton County
Montana (Choteau)
Levi Boots Pendroy, 93 - Teton County pioneer and one-time associate of Jim Hill, died
Jan. 25 at long Beach, Calif., and was entombed in the Los Angeles Abbey Mausoleum Feb. 2.
Pendroy was born in Otley, Ia., and as a young man in
company with his fathers and three brothers, traveled in a covered wagon to the Mouse
River of North Dakota and settled in that area. Later a post office was established and
named Pendroy, North Dakota.
Subsequently L.B. Pendroy joined in building the Great Northern Railroad through North
Dakota and his daughter, Mrs. Patricia M. of Long Beach, Calif., writes The Acantha that,
"Dad was Jim Hill's right hand man. He helped him survey, and many nights slept under
a tree or any other shelter he could find with Jim Hill." Hill was the world famous
builder of the Great Northern Railway.
When this line pushed north of Choteau at a later date, they named the terminus
Pendroy, in honor of L.B. Pendroy, as he was one of the early homesteaders and businessmen
of that area of Teton County.
In 1911, Pendroy brought a huge Rumley engine out on the bench and broke sod, planting
flax and wheat on the virgin land.
-End-
