My parents, Joseph William Harris, who married Mayme Lucinda Merriman on April 15, 1908, came by train to Hannaford, North Dakota, from Indiana in 1909 or 1910.  They settled on the farm one mile west of town.

Four brothers to Joseph William Harris also came to Hannaford about the same time.  Their names were Charley, Lee Ota, Roy Everett, and Henry (Hank).  They were the sons of Edward Harris of Hamilton County, Indiana, and Celia Moore who were married August 26, 1886.  They lived on a farm close to Warren, Indiana.

My mother, Mayme Lucinda Merriman was the daughter of Tracy Merriman who married Lucinda Spake who died in 1886.  Mayme was born in 1884, and was raised by her father near Liberty Center, Indiana.  This is all of the information I have of her early life.

Born to Joseph William and Mayme L. Harris were nine children.  Two of these nine didn't survive and were buried in the little cemetery just west of town.  The names of the seven other children are Deane M., Cart H., Ruth L., twins Glenn and Glenna, Ruby and Gladys.

We all walked to school in town except for two years when we lived four and a half miles west on the "Margah" farm and attended Bartley School.  We later lived in town for about a year and a half.

In 1927, we left Hannaford and moved to Anaconda, Montana.

All of the children and their families are:

Deane M., born 1909, married Ivy Marris of Anaconda, Montana.   Their children are Marie, Arnold, Allyn and Gene.

Ruth L., born 1911, married George Gates in 1933.  They now reside in Corvallis, Montana.   Their children are Shirley, Eileen, Donald, Dorothy, Ernest and Hazel.

Carl L., born 1912, married Helen Dudack, had one daughter, Dorothy.  Carl died in about 1956, and Helen died a few years later.

Glenn J., born 1913, married Frances Beckman about 1935.  Their children are Richard and Duane.

Glenna L., born 1913, married Julian Ulstad about 1935.  They had one daughter, Delores.  Julian died about 1985.

Ruby I., born July 28, 1915, married William Everett Perkins in 1933.  Their children are William J., Gary W., Joan E., and Carol L. Everett died in 1983.

Gladys, born July 4, 1920, married Gene Harwood of Anaconda, Montana  Their children are Larry, Sharon and Donna.  They were later divorced and both remarried.  Gladys and husband, George Donich, lost their lives in an automobile accident in August 1981.

Joseph William Harris died September  28, 1952; and Mayme L. Harris died April 22, 1970.

We, Ruby and Everett Perkins, in company with my brother, Deane and his wife, Ivy, visited in Hannaford in 1981, to attend a 75-year celebration.  I enjoyed this visit very much as it was the first time I had been there since leaving 54 years ago, when I was 12 years old.  I recognized a lot of the older buildings and houses.  The small school adjacent to the newer high school had been built before we left there.  I also recognized the "Claus Jackson" store building built of stone, two stone bank buildings, the old Mercantile and a small building that was the telephone company.

I remembered how terrified we would be when the fire bell rang signaling a fire.  We even could hear it at home.  I thought it was interesting to see the old bell mounted on the corner of the lot of the new fire hall.

I walked around some and read the information in front of some of the older homes.  One was the former home of Chris Reite.  I remember Marion Reite from school.  Another house was a newer one built from the old Great Northern section house.  How well I remembered it as my Uncle Ota and Aunt Merle lived in it.

The railroad yards looked some different as all of the buildings and yards were gone.  We had to walk through the yards to get to school and I remember many times having to crawl through a freight train to get to school on time.

While there in 1981, we parked our camper down by the creek where the old bath houses still stood.  I spent many of my younger days playing in the old swimming hole.

We drove up to the farm where my brothers and sisters and I were all born.  The stone barn was the only building still standing that I recognized.  We also drove on west and visited the little cemetery we had walked to when I was a small child.  We drove on past the Beattie farm and the Sonju farm.  We saw the big slough.  We also drove past the Margah farm where I had lived in about 1924 and 1925.  The house was all that was left there.

I enjoyed visiting with several people we had known when we lived there.  They were Lloyd Harland, Jeannette Lerum, Evelyn Rasmusson, three Brudwick sisters, Glenn Richardson and wife, formerly Gladys Holmgren, Claude Freer and others.

I enjoyed seeing slides that were shown in Hannaford while I was there.  They were of old timer and my Uncle Hank.  He ran a service station and bulk plant there.

Lee Ota Harris, born December 3, 1892, married Merle Richardson of Hannaford, on December 16, 1914, died July 4, 1977.  Their children are Howard (Bing) Harris, Ione May Harris, Rachel Harris, twins Marion and Maryjeane Harris.  Also born to them were two small babies who died about 1924, in a scarlet fever epidemic and are buried in the small cemetery west of town.

Charley Harris, born April 3, 1889, married Constance Thompson on January 13, 1915, died October 22, 1962.

Ray Everett Harris, born February 7, 1896, married Evalina Roberts on April 3, 1916, died September  8, 1924.

Charley and family and Ray Everett had a couple of children and returned to Indiana.

Lee Ota worked as a Great Northern section foreman through the 1920s.  About 1929, they moved to Anaconda, Montana, and later to Ringling, Montana, and worked on the Milwaukee Railroad.  They retired and moved to Bellingham, Washington, where they lived out their lives and are buried there.  The rest of the family still reside thereabouts I think, but I haven't heard of them for several years.

The one more recently to be remembered there was Henry (Hank) Harris who lived out his life in Hannaford.  He was born August 1, 1894, and died March 12, 1975, and is buried there and was never married.

Source:  Hannaford Area History North Dakota Centennial 1889 - 1989 Page 130