GRANDFATHER SID BILLINGTON

SIDNEY ALBERT BILLINGTON:  September 17, 1892--August 12, 1945.

Sidney was born in Spearfish, South Dakota.  He was the third son born to D.S. Billington and Estella Loring Boyden. The brothers, Leo and Lester were only 5 and 4  years old when Sid was born. Four sisters were born to the family after Sidney: Hazel, Cecil, Jean, and Estelle.

Sid was known as a hard worker which he learned from his father. The boys had learned all about horses from their Dad’s livery business.  His mother and his sister Jean died when he was only 13 years old. His Dad hired a black neighbor lady, Mrs. Curry, to help raise the family of six.

Sid was expected to help at the livery stable along with his brother Les, but more often than not he would wander off to be with his friends.  He was a popular kid and happy-go-lucky.  Around town people would say to him, “Hey Sid, your Dad’s lookin’ for ya!” and his typical response was always, “Maybe if I lay low, he’ll find Les first!”

School records show him attending at the local Jones school, until age 20, with all of his brothers and sisters. About age 20 an incident happened that changed the course of his life. One day a town store owner accused Sid of stealing something from his store and of course his Dad got after him for that.  It could have been apples from the apple barrel. Sid claimed it wasn’t true and was upset that his Dad would think that he might have stolen something.  As a result, Sid left town and wasn’t heard from for many years. Most likely he hopped a train and left without even knowing where he was going.  His Dad regretted the incident and the many years of lost contact with his son.  Later, it was found that the same store owner accused other boys of the same thing and they all denied the allegations.  It seems the general store owner told all the parents in town the same “story” just to keep all the boys away from his store.

Sidney Albert Billington 1893

Sid about  1897

Sid in wooly chaps with unnamed friends

Sid in 1912

Sid with Elfred Robertson

In 1912,  Sid worked in the Roundhouse in St. Paul, Minnesota
for about 6 months. http://www.mtmuseum.org/?div=jsr   His
friend there was Elfred Robertson. He then became a fireman
for the Chicago Great Western Railroad Company.  He resigned
in 1913 but again worked for them in 1916. He later worked for
the Northern Pacific Railway in the Montana Division as a
locomotive fireman from 1917 to 1919. His US Military Draft
registration from May of 1917 states he is living in
Livingston, Montana at the time he was employed as a Locomotive
Fireman. There is a record of his time there on an “Employe’s
Watch Comparison Card” dated 1918. His employment record
can be found here:

http://www.railroads-of-montana.com/Employee_Search_NP1882-1980.htm

The railroad route went from Minnesota to Livingston, Montana.  It was
at the “Grill,” in the Livingston Train Depot where he often ate dinner,
that he met Eva Sutton.  She was working there as a waitress.  For their
dates they often went to the nearby roller-skating rink after dinner.

Livingston Train Depot

panaramic view of Linvingston in 1922

On June 28, 1919 they were married in a little Methodist Church in Livingston. 
They went to Yellowstone National Park for their honeymoon.   At first they lived
in Livingston on D Street (1920 census). Sid worked as a mechanic. Then Sid
worked as ranch hand on several cattlemen’s ranches near Livingston.
Besides being an expert with horses, Sid enjoyed working with cattle, and even
went “rodeo’n” as often as he could.  He had a good sense of humor and
everyone enjoyed his warm, personal manner.  Eva wore her gold wedding
band with pride, but Sid also gave her a lavalier necklace, which she adored.

Sid and Eva 1919- Yellowstone

Sid and Eva Billington at Yellowstone
June 1919

In the first six years of marriage their children arrived quickly: Wilbur, (Billy), Estella (Stella), Elvira (Blondie), Elfred ( ElDee) and Georgia (Jo).  The Bodine Ranch near Brackett Creek, between Clyde Park and Bozeman, was one place they lived where Sid was a ranch hand. (1930 Census )  Eva was the cook for all the ranch hands.   The last three children,  Donna, Carol (Kelly), and Sid, Jr. (Jack) completed the family. Carol was born at home, and Jack in the Missoula hospital.  All the kids learned to work from their Dad.  Whenever a newborn arrived, Sid not only continued his outside chores, but took over the cooking chores for Eva.  The kids all looked forward to his cooking as he was just as good of a cook as their mom.  Sid helped with dinners whenever he could.  Most often he volunteered to peel the potatoes.  He had his favorite peeler and …he was quick!  He joked with family while they worked together to get the dinner done.   The kids and Eva all called him Daddy and he was a great dad, not showing any favoritism toward any one, but loved them all equally. Together they also worked the fields, the gardens, the animals..whatever it took.  For fun the family liked to go to Bozeman Hot Springs or on Sundays to a community pot luck.  Everyone in the area came and shared food, talked, and played all day.  Sid was aware of his neighbors and often brought them along to the local pot luck picnics.

Sunday Pot Luck

Jo  Blondie  Sid    and ? in back
Charlene  Stella  Eva  Mrs. Hallen   August 1930

Sid and Stella on Smokey 193

Winter at Brackett Creek was very cold.  Blondie tells the story of the time
Sid drove the sleigh to the school,, dropped off the kids and proceeded onto
the post office.The post office had a thermometer that showed -35 degrees.
Sid had no idea it was that cold, since they did not have a thermometer at
home. He drove back to the school and picked up the kids telling them
they were going to stay home for a while,

One December day, Sid took his sleigh to the Post Office in Clyde Park.
An orange crate from California had been waiting for him, saved near the pot
belly stove so it would not freeze.  It was a Christmas gift from his brother
who lived in California. He put it under blankets in the sleigh,
hurried home, then stored it near the wood burning stove until Christmas
morning. The family expected to have juicy California oranges for breakfast,
but when he opened the crate, it was hard Christmas Ribbon Candy..now
all melted into one big piece! Sid just grabbed his hammer and chisel and
laughed as he chiseled off chunks of candy for all the kids.  Blondie
tells us they were still getting chunks of candy into March.
       

 They moved from ranch to ranch in Western Montana, stayed in Dixon in 1935, then in 1936 rented the King's place, then Doc Smith place near Arlee.  They finally bought a ranch of their own just outside Arlee, the old Sonders place.  As the kids grew up they all pitched in to help with the ranch chores. ( Census 1940)   

On one occasion, a friend of Sid’s, Elfred Robertson, visited Dee back in
Spearfush,S.D,and told him that Sid was now living in Montana and had a family.
So Dee wrote and Sid wrote back, and that was the beginning of the
re-acquaintance. Les had married and moved to California, but when he came
back to Spearfish for a visit, he talked Dee and Estelle into driving to Montana
with them to give Sid a “surprise visit.” Estelle thought he should be warned that
they were coming, but they wanted to see the look on his face when they
all arrived on his doorstep. Sid got to see that his little sister, Estelle,
didn’t turn out so spoiled after all.  They loved Sid’s wife, Eva, and their kids.
Sid and his dad reconciled and this visit became one of their most treasured moments.
Sid's sister Hazel and her husband Joe Colaw also visited the family in Arlee.

ElDee Bill Blondie Hazel Sid
Eva Donna Jo Stella Carol

Sid once leased land from Henry Moss near Arlee.  Henry often came around when he needed something and he’d often bring his son Frankie.   Henry would make Frankie play the guitar and sing.  Sid always invited them in.  Typically, Sid seemed to take time for everyone even though he had a ton of chores and he worked from dawn to dusk every day.

Hard ranching brought many mishaps to the family.  Sid had many a broken bones from riding bucking broncos. They did a lot of haying on the ranches which brought on a lot of muscle strains, bumps and bruises.  One August, Sid got bit behind his knee by a rattlesnake. El Dee brought him back to the ranch, cut the bite, and sucked the venom and blood out of his wound.  Then Sid was given whiskey and whisked off to the doctor in Missoula.  He recovered from that episode.

Sid and Kelly 1938

Sid with his team Smokey and ?

Feb 8, 1942  Sid and Eva  Arlee

                                                                                 

Sid and Bill 1944

Sid and Jack   Arlee 1944

Sid raised honey bees on the ranch and he had a complete bee-keeper’s outfit.  He was stung, no doubt, many times, but the one time he was stung on the end of his finger, he nearly died.  It was the August after the rattlesnake episode.  Eva was going to take him to Missoula to the doctor, but the car wouldn’t work for her, so they called the police who drove him into town where he recovered.

The following August, Sid had bruised his left wrist while working on the columbine.  He had been irrigating the pea fields and had to finish the irrigating even with pain in his chest because he just wanted to get it done so the boys wouldn’t have to do it.  Kelly remembers standing on the running board of the truck for a long time, waiting for Eva to drive him to Missoula.  Kelly wanted so much to give him a kiss goodbye because she knew he would not return.  She remembers he smiled lovingly at her before they left.  A blood clot formed in his wrist and moved to his heart.  Sadly, he died in Missoula on August 12, 1945 at age 52.  Eva and the family were in shock for a long period of time. The Jocko area was also saddened with the loss of their most respected citizen and friend. Community neighbors such as Letty and Bill Russell helped with the ranch after Sid died. They had been friends since the Livingston days. Eventually, Eva sold the ranch and moved into Arlee to work at the Log Cabin as a cook.  The community friends and family members will long remember Sid as an outstanding, honest, fun-loving, father and leader. 

 His youngest daughter, Carol, shared her thoughts:  "I absolutely loved my Dad. 
 If I could be  there,  I was there; I followed him everywhere. He was wonderful to me
 and to  everybody;  so nice to be around.  He was laid back but well-mannered.  
 Manners  were important  to him. You didn't want to get "that look" of disappointment 
 from him.  He was respectful to  everyone.   He had empathy for everyone. He
 especially adored Mom.  He loved all  of his kids.  There has never been another 
 Dad like My Dad."  




********************************************************************
Any comments, additional stories, facts or corrections to this blog spot, send them to my email and I will add them to the next blog entry....lana.rankin@yahoo.com