An Old Settler Gone

(Quoted from Griggs Courier 1885)

“Wednesday morning about 5 o’clock Omund Nelson Opheim or “Pioneer Nelson” was found in his wagon at his farm on the river (Sheyenne) dead. His horses had become entangle in a wire fence and stopped. The body was lying face down, while the face was beaten into an unrecognizable mass. He had left town (Cooperstown) in the evening before eight o’clock. His team was seen running at various points on the river road without a driver; and at one point, his body was pounding on the wagon bed, as the horses jumped. This wild ride was over the Sheyenne bridge and through Mardell to his place on the river. It is now discovered that the deceased was suffering from rheumatism and to alleviate his misery, had while in town, been drinking considerably, although he was not a drinking man. The coroner's jury composed of H.P. Smart, Andrew Johnson, Julius Stevens, H. Retzlaff, H. G. Pickett and F. Thompson, found that he came to his death from apoplexy, heart disease, or both; but the coroner thinks the pounding he received while the horses were running, sufficient to account for the death, concussion producing apoplexy. Mr. Nelson Opheim leaves a wife and children, also grandchildren and a comfortable property. He was the first settler in Griggs County and was unanimously respected by all who knew him. His funeral occurred Thursday and was largely attended from Cooperstown and the county.”

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