Dakota Datebook: Three men on a raft

An odd story came from Fort Buford, Dakota Territory, on April 12 in 1879. The Missouri was breaking up, and as people watched ice floes rushing down the river, they spied something curious coming toward them.

As reported in The Bismarck Tribune, "A black speck was seen floating with the ice near the middle of the river, and as it came nearer it was recognized as a raft bearing a load of human fre...