The Reece Bligh Family
by Marjorie Bligh
(Transcribed by RB, with permission from the Mellette County Historical Society, from "Mellette County 1911-1986" published by the Mellette County Historical Society)
Reece Evan Bligh was born at Royal, Nebraska, December 2, 1915, the third child in a family of ten children of Willie and Sabina Thurston Bligh. His father Willie was the local blacksmith. Reece attended school at Royal through the eighth grade. Then because food was scarce and there was a large family, Reece
went to work for a neighbor for his board.
When he was seventeen years old, he climbed aboard a freight train and bummed a ride to Long Pine, Nebraska. There he found the mail carrier and got a ride to the Will Mengers ranch at Duff, Nebraska, where his brother Charles was working. Reece worked for his board and room there for a time, and finally drew wages which were sent home to help with groceries.
While working for Mengers, he came to Kary, South Dakota, where Will Mengers owned land and his brother Fred Mengers leased land. He worked at farming during the summer months for the Mengers brothers. They were called suitcase farmers because they came only part of the year to farm. Reece fell in
love with South Dakota. He thought it the most beautiful spot he'd ever seen.
In 1935, Reece migrated to Johnstown, Nebraska. There he worked for Ralph Hill on a sheep and cow ranch on the north side of Moon Lake. In April 1935, he attended a surprise birthday party for Elsie Oatman at the Oatman Ranch one mile south of Moon Lake. While there
he saw Marjorie Oatman. She was born three miles west of there
on June 30, 1921, and had lived in this small area except for two
years when her parents lived at Hermosa, South Dakota.
Reece and Marjorie were married June 30, 1940, at her
parents home, the Oatman Ranch. July 6, 1940, Mr. and Mrs.
Reece Bligh moved to Kary, South Dakota, to the Menger property.
It was a big move for the young couple. They had to go to Ainsworth,
Nebraska, to Marjorie's grandparents to get Mr. Mengers' truck to
move their few belongings with.
While there Reece walked around the house and heard Mengers
and Grandfather Oatman arguing. Grandfather was accusing Mengers of taking Reece away from them, saying, "We need him on the Oatman ranch." Mengers said, "The kind of deal I've offered him he'll be back in a year." Reece never told Marjorie of this until their fortieth anniversary. Reece said then he made up his mind he'd show them and stay. Stay he did, even though Marjorie pleaded with him many times to leave.
They took the truck, loaded up and arrived at Kary, South Dakota, July 6, 1940, in the late afternoon to a very dismal sight. It had hailed on the fifth and everything was gone. Mr. Mengers was sitting on his doorstep looking very discouraged. Reece had hired out to him to help harvest the crop and then plant, then in October to start a share deal. Mengers furnishing land and machinery, Reece furnishing the labor and dividing everything in half. As this time Mengers owned the quarter section at Kary and three quarter sections six miles south of Norris, South Dakota. One of the quarters was in Todd County. It was decided to put the buildings in Todd County because taxes were less there and there weren't any children to go to school. Mengers bought a house and granary from Jack Merritt, paying $100 for the house and $50 for the granary, which didn't get moved the six miles west to the Mengers land until late September.
Reece sat down beside Mengers that late afternoon of July 6 and talked things over. Mengers said, "I can't
pay you but you can stay. I'll board you, if Marjorie will do the cooking and you can fix fences and plant the crop." Reece decided to stay. They moved into the little 14 x 16-foot house with Mr. Mengers—not much of a honeymoon. They lived there till October 1940, then moved to the place south of Norris where the Merrit house had been moved. It was set down with big rocks under each corner and other weight-bearing spots.
The house had been built for summer suitcase farmers and was just a shelter. The snow blew in around the windows onto the window sills. Marjorie left it there as it shut off the wind. They banked dirt up around the bottom of the house but they couldn't get enough heat in there to melt the snow till spring. Reece said he kept warmer cutting wood than Marjorie did standing over the fire. In the summer, the house was as hot as it was cold in the winter. The oilcloth on the kitchen walls when the house was bought was torn off before the house was moved; it was six years before there was enough to paper those walls.
In October Will Mengers bought ten Hereford cows to milk and two five-year-old horses and a mule. The
mule was to be driven with the horses to break them. By the way, team and wagon was the only means of
transportation. The cows calved in November. Eight calves were born dead, due to brucellosis, leaving two
live steer calves to be divided.
That first year the only meat there was to eat was rabbit and prairie chicken. Jimmy Bearsheild lived a
mile northwest of Blights'. He came to Blighs' to get water every day. Jimmy was a very good friend and taught Reece and Marjorie many things. He taught Reece never to use more than one shot on the game. If you injured it, you just walked it down and hit it with the butt of the gun to kill it and save ammunition. Jimmy Bearsheild was like a grandfather to the Bligh children. They would run to meet him when he came after water. He'd stop, lift them up in the wagon and give them a ride. He taught Reece to talk Sioux language, also taught the children a little too. He also taught Reece how to rabbit dance.
John Harrison lived four miles south of Blighs'. He was a good friend and neighbor. Reece got acquainted
with John in the early thirties, at church, when he came up to work in the summers. Once a week the Blighs hitched up the horses and mule to the wagon and visited the Harrisons. Mrs. Harrison was a very good cook, very hospitable and a good friend. Marjorie helped her teach Bible school two summers.
Reece had quite a time with those horses; they were five years old and just halter broke when they were
brought to South Dakota. The mule was broke and Reece was to drive the mule with the horses to break them. That mule was something else. There was a narrow bridge across the Blackpipe Creek and that mule
would just about push a horse off the creek every time they crossed the bridge.
One Sunday morning Reece put on his clean Levi's and went to hitch the team up to go to Sunday School.
Sunday School was at the Blackpipe school house about eight miles southwest of Bligh's. Reece drove the team from the barn around to go over the wagon tongue. Baldy lined up beside the tongue instead of stepping across and lining up.
Now, it had rained the night before. Marjorie came out of the house just as Reece drew back a line and
let old Baldy have it across the rump. Baldy jumped and started running, with old Roany going right along.
Reece kept up for about ten steps when they went around the house and Reece hit a mud puddle, landing on his back. They went around the house twice before Reece could get them stopped. Marjorie was doubled over, laughing. Reece yelled, "You'd laugh if I got killed!" Then down came the line on old Baldy again and that horse stepped right across the tongue and stopped. Reece's mouth fell open. He hitched them up while Marjorie held them. By the time they got to the Blackpipe school they could brush most of the mud off. They couldn't disappoint Mrs. Harrison by not coming to Sunday School and then over for dinner. They also sold their cream to Mrs. Bertha Beard at the Blackpipe Store and got a few groceries. Bertha always had several cans of cream that needed to be poured into larger cans to ship. Reece always did this for her. She also taught them how to buy to stretch the food rationing stamps.
The next summer in, 1941, Reece's twelve-year-old sister, Alice, came out to visit and stayed most of the
summer. By this time, there was a garden and hens with chicks. Alice was there the next four summers. In the fall, Reece's father came and stayed four months. He was retired and elderly. You see, he was forty-four years old when he married.
Janet Irene was born at Kadoka on Saturday, July 31, 1942, during wheat harvest. Reece had acquired
an old car so they could make these trips.
In 1943, Marjorie joined the Norris Extension Club and was a member until 1980. She enjoyed the club and the ladies and their children very much. She served as chairman and vice chairman of the local club and
was county chairman six years and district secretary-treasurer four years.
February 4, 1945, Evan Leroy came to stay. Reece's father came out to get acquainted with his grandson
and stayed three months. Evan was such a good baby until he was six months old, then he cried constantly.
They found he was allergic to milk and eggs, the two main staples of the diet at the Bligh house.
In January 1946, Reece's brother Charles came to visit. When spring work started he stayed on to help.
Mr. Mengers had bought another section of land just west of where the Blighs lived from Mr. Moss—he was
Mrs. Harold Bradford's brother. Mengers also bought the section of land south of this, which Lester Spragg
had lost, from Bennett County. He had also put rubber tires on the old Farmall tractor instead of spade lugs. Reece was in second heaven but couldn't get all of the farming done.
In the fall of 1947, Reece's sister Alice came to stay until her baby was born. Sandra was born in March
1948. A month later Alice went to work for Florence DeRoss for two months, then went back to Neligh, Nebraska, to open up a beauty shop.
In 1948, Marjorie became the 4-H leader for the Norris Homemakers. This was a great joy to her. She worked with the girls of the community for fifteen years.
Charles went to Valentine to work for Hugh Potter in a welding shop during the winter, and came back
in the spring to help with the farming.
In 1949, Reece helped Loyd Letellier lead the Norris Stockman 4-H Club. At this time Achievement Day was held at Norris in the Norris Hall, the old Bank Building. The calves were tied to the trees in the creek behind the school house. The school house was back of the Pioneer Store by the creek. Reece went on to
lead the boys in tractor maintenance in 4-H for nine years.
In the fall of 1949, the Blighs had a big problem. Janet was six years old. The closest school was the Reece school in Todd County, eleven miles away, and roads were not maintained. Only bus roads and mail
roads were maintained. Norris was eight miles away in Mellette County. Reece finally went to the Todd County School Board. Yes, they'd pay tuition for Janet to the Norris school.
Reece took Janet to school the first day. Norris school wouldn't let her have a desk or books; she could come to school if she had these. So back to Mission to the Todd County School Board. When he came back
he had both. Happy day! She could go to school! So started the years of hauling kids to school. Finally Elmer Hanson suggested taking turns hauling kids, them one week, Blighs two. They did this until 1953, when they bought Elmer's farm from him and moved there.
When the blizzard hit in 1949 with full force it was impossible to get back and forth to Norris, so Reece took Janet and a sack of clothes on his Lady Mare and went to Norris. He talked to Margaret Jetter. Yes, she'd keep Janet during the week and send her to school. So every Monday and Friday Reece made the trip on Lady Mare. Janet stayed with Margaret three months.
In the spring Charles was back to help with the farming. That spring Reece bought a Massey Harris combine; the year before he'd gotten a Massey Harris windrower. Reece went around contracting combine jobs from the neighbors. It was perfect combine weather, 100 degrees and above every day. The men worked twenty-hour days, and they harvested 1,000 acres that year.
Lewine Wickham came out to help and Reece took Marjorie to Valentine to wait for the new baby, three long weeks. He also dealt for a new pickup, their first new vehicle. It was put on order as there weren't any
on the floor. Finally Jack Starkjohann took a message out to Reece that he should go to Valentine. You see,
Jack had the only phone.
Reece arrived at the hospital about the same time Ruth Elsie Bligh appeared on July 21, 1949, at noon.
That day he also checked on the new Ford pickup. It hadn't come but they loaned him a used one until the new one came. When Reece got home with the news of a new baby sister, Evan wasn't much interested as
he was all excited about a new pickup and was disappointed and said, "Thought you were going to get a new pickup," just like any disappointed five-year-old. Janet was very excited about a baby sister.
Three weeks after Ruth arrived, word was received that Marjorie's paternal grandmother had passed away, six weeks before her maternal step-grandmother had passed away.
On the way to the funeral, they checked on the new pickup. It had arrived. A new pickup! They switched
vehicles. Harvest was over and the harvest dust hadn't gotten into the new pickup. What joy! This was the
Blighs' first new vehicle.
Elmer Hanson sold Reece his place in 1953; it was four miles south of Norris. The Blighs moved that spring. It was a wet muddy spring—moving, calving and mumps all together made it a very difficult time. Recce moved a lot of things in the jeep. One day he pulled up to the chicken coop, threw the chickens in the jeep, climbed in, headed for the new chicken coop. He had about fifty hens on the steering wheel, his shoulders and wherever. He decided that wasn't the way to move chickens. Then in July there was a terrible rain and hail storm that blew away the brooder house that was full of fry chickens. The family dressed chickens all night. The windows were broken out of the house and the roof badly damaged and the crop was destroyed. The next two years there wasn't any crop because of drought. It took twenty years to pay for that half section.
Recce was elected to the Norris School Board in 1953, serving with Blanche Kaufman and Ken Barney. Glen Collins persuaded Reece to run in the fall election on the Independent ballot for County Commissioner. He was elected and took Glen's place on the board in January 1955. He held this office until 1982. During these twenty-eight years he served on the County Extension Board, the State Advisory Board, South Dakota Crime Commission, the South Dakota Appropriations Committee, the Fifth Planning and Development Commission and the Southern Plains Mental Health Center Board.
Reece served on the Sunshine Bible Academy Board 1965 to 1973. He was chairman of the board during
part of that time.
It was in 1956 that they finally let the Bligh kids ride on the big yellow school bus that had gone by their place all the years they lived in South Dakota. Wow! They had two extra hours for other things. There were
years that Reece checked out all of the businesses in Norris when he took kids to school so it was easy to
keep up on community happenings. The school bus was from Corncreek day school, which was moved to Norris.
Janet went to Kadoka to high school in 1956; she stayed with Mrs. Barret. The Blighs took turns with the neighbors hauling high school kids. It was a packed car every trip.
The fall of 1959, Janet and Evan went to Sunshine Bible Academy at Miller, South Dakota. Janet graduated in 1960, Evan in 1963 and Ruth in 1967.
It was 1961 that Janet married Clyde Brewer and the Blighs became grandparents in 1963. Ruth married Dale Paulson in December of 1972, and Evan married Dorothy Simons in December of 1975 and moved to the Shorty Hanna place in Todd County. Evan worked with Reece, Dorothy taught school at Longvalley. She finally quit teaching and ran the Rodeo office in her home and substitute taught and helped Evan run the ranch.
In 1975 Ambrose Monroe, an orphan Indian boy from Pine Ridge Reservation, came to live with the Blighs. He was a member of the family for three years, then went to Sunshine Bible Academy, graduating in 1963. Then he moved to Chicago, Illinois.
Reece was killed in a car-truck accident at Ethan, South Dakota, May 25, 1984, after attending their granddaughter's, Rebecca Brewer's, graduation from Faith Bible School, Mitchell, South Dakota. Marjorie stayed on at the ranch. Evan and Dorothy took over the ranch operation.
All these years, Reece had taught Sunday School classes and filled the pulpit as a lay minister. Marjorie
also taught Sunday School most of these years.
On September 14, 1985, Reece E. Bligh was inducted into the South Dakota and Western Heritage Hall of
Fame in the category of "Unsung Heroes and Good Hearts."
by Marjorie Bligh
(Transcribed by RB, with permission from the Mellette County Historical Society, from "Mellette County 1911-1986" published by the Mellette County Historical Society)
Reece Evan Bligh was born at Royal, Nebraska, December 2, 1915, the third child in a family of ten children of Willie and Sabina Thurston Bligh. His father Willie was the local blacksmith. Reece attended school at Royal through the eighth grade. Then because food was scarce and there was a large family, Reece
went to work for a neighbor for his board.
When he was seventeen years old, he climbed aboard a freight train and bummed a ride to Long Pine, Nebraska. There he found the mail carrier and got a ride to the Will Mengers ranch at Duff, Nebraska, where his brother Charles was working. Reece worked for his board and room there for a time, and finally drew wages which were sent home to help with groceries.
While working for Mengers, he came to Kary, South Dakota, where Will Mengers owned land and his brother Fred Mengers leased land. He worked at farming during the summer months for the Mengers brothers. They were called suitcase farmers because they came only part of the year to farm. Reece fell in
love with South Dakota. He thought it the most beautiful spot he'd ever seen.
In 1935, Reece migrated to Johnstown, Nebraska. There he worked for Ralph Hill on a sheep and cow ranch on the north side of Moon Lake. In April 1935, he attended a surprise birthday party for Elsie Oatman at the Oatman Ranch one mile south of Moon Lake. While there
he saw Marjorie Oatman. She was born three miles west of there
on June 30, 1921, and had lived in this small area except for two
years when her parents lived at Hermosa, South Dakota.
Reece and Marjorie were married June 30, 1940, at her
parents home, the Oatman Ranch. July 6, 1940, Mr. and Mrs.
Reece Bligh moved to Kary, South Dakota, to the Menger property.
It was a big move for the young couple. They had to go to Ainsworth,
Nebraska, to Marjorie's grandparents to get Mr. Mengers' truck to
move their few belongings with.
While there Reece walked around the house and heard Mengers
and Grandfather Oatman arguing. Grandfather was accusing Mengers of taking Reece away from them, saying, "We need him on the Oatman ranch." Mengers said, "The kind of deal I've offered him he'll be back in a year." Reece never told Marjorie of this until their fortieth anniversary. Reece said then he made up his mind he'd show them and stay. Stay he did, even though Marjorie pleaded with him many times to leave.
They took the truck, loaded up and arrived at Kary, South Dakota, July 6, 1940, in the late afternoon to a very dismal sight. It had hailed on the fifth and everything was gone. Mr. Mengers was sitting on his doorstep looking very discouraged. Reece had hired out to him to help harvest the crop and then plant, then in October to start a share deal. Mengers furnishing land and machinery, Reece furnishing the labor and dividing everything in half. As this time Mengers owned the quarter section at Kary and three quarter sections six miles south of Norris, South Dakota. One of the quarters was in Todd County. It was decided to put the buildings in Todd County because taxes were less there and there weren't any children to go to school. Mengers bought a house and granary from Jack Merritt, paying $100 for the house and $50 for the granary, which didn't get moved the six miles west to the Mengers land until late September.
Reece sat down beside Mengers that late afternoon of July 6 and talked things over. Mengers said, "I can't
pay you but you can stay. I'll board you, if Marjorie will do the cooking and you can fix fences and plant the crop." Reece decided to stay. They moved into the little 14 x 16-foot house with Mr. Mengers—not much of a honeymoon. They lived there till October 1940, then moved to the place south of Norris where the Merrit house had been moved. It was set down with big rocks under each corner and other weight-bearing spots.
The house had been built for summer suitcase farmers and was just a shelter. The snow blew in around the windows onto the window sills. Marjorie left it there as it shut off the wind. They banked dirt up around the bottom of the house but they couldn't get enough heat in there to melt the snow till spring. Reece said he kept warmer cutting wood than Marjorie did standing over the fire. In the summer, the house was as hot as it was cold in the winter. The oilcloth on the kitchen walls when the house was bought was torn off before the house was moved; it was six years before there was enough to paper those walls.
In October Will Mengers bought ten Hereford cows to milk and two five-year-old horses and a mule. The
mule was to be driven with the horses to break them. By the way, team and wagon was the only means of
transportation. The cows calved in November. Eight calves were born dead, due to brucellosis, leaving two
live steer calves to be divided.
That first year the only meat there was to eat was rabbit and prairie chicken. Jimmy Bearsheild lived a
mile northwest of Blights'. He came to Blighs' to get water every day. Jimmy was a very good friend and taught Reece and Marjorie many things. He taught Reece never to use more than one shot on the game. If you injured it, you just walked it down and hit it with the butt of the gun to kill it and save ammunition. Jimmy Bearsheild was like a grandfather to the Bligh children. They would run to meet him when he came after water. He'd stop, lift them up in the wagon and give them a ride. He taught Reece to talk Sioux language, also taught the children a little too. He also taught Reece how to rabbit dance.
John Harrison lived four miles south of Blighs'. He was a good friend and neighbor. Reece got acquainted
with John in the early thirties, at church, when he came up to work in the summers. Once a week the Blighs hitched up the horses and mule to the wagon and visited the Harrisons. Mrs. Harrison was a very good cook, very hospitable and a good friend. Marjorie helped her teach Bible school two summers.
Reece had quite a time with those horses; they were five years old and just halter broke when they were
brought to South Dakota. The mule was broke and Reece was to drive the mule with the horses to break them. That mule was something else. There was a narrow bridge across the Blackpipe Creek and that mule
would just about push a horse off the creek every time they crossed the bridge.
One Sunday morning Reece put on his clean Levi's and went to hitch the team up to go to Sunday School.
Sunday School was at the Blackpipe school house about eight miles southwest of Bligh's. Reece drove the team from the barn around to go over the wagon tongue. Baldy lined up beside the tongue instead of stepping across and lining up.
Now, it had rained the night before. Marjorie came out of the house just as Reece drew back a line and
let old Baldy have it across the rump. Baldy jumped and started running, with old Roany going right along.
Reece kept up for about ten steps when they went around the house and Reece hit a mud puddle, landing on his back. They went around the house twice before Reece could get them stopped. Marjorie was doubled over, laughing. Reece yelled, "You'd laugh if I got killed!" Then down came the line on old Baldy again and that horse stepped right across the tongue and stopped. Reece's mouth fell open. He hitched them up while Marjorie held them. By the time they got to the Blackpipe school they could brush most of the mud off. They couldn't disappoint Mrs. Harrison by not coming to Sunday School and then over for dinner. They also sold their cream to Mrs. Bertha Beard at the Blackpipe Store and got a few groceries. Bertha always had several cans of cream that needed to be poured into larger cans to ship. Reece always did this for her. She also taught them how to buy to stretch the food rationing stamps.
The next summer in, 1941, Reece's twelve-year-old sister, Alice, came out to visit and stayed most of the
summer. By this time, there was a garden and hens with chicks. Alice was there the next four summers. In the fall, Reece's father came and stayed four months. He was retired and elderly. You see, he was forty-four years old when he married.
Janet Irene was born at Kadoka on Saturday, July 31, 1942, during wheat harvest. Reece had acquired
an old car so they could make these trips.
In 1943, Marjorie joined the Norris Extension Club and was a member until 1980. She enjoyed the club and the ladies and their children very much. She served as chairman and vice chairman of the local club and
was county chairman six years and district secretary-treasurer four years.
February 4, 1945, Evan Leroy came to stay. Reece's father came out to get acquainted with his grandson
and stayed three months. Evan was such a good baby until he was six months old, then he cried constantly.
They found he was allergic to milk and eggs, the two main staples of the diet at the Bligh house.
In January 1946, Reece's brother Charles came to visit. When spring work started he stayed on to help.
Mr. Mengers had bought another section of land just west of where the Blighs lived from Mr. Moss—he was
Mrs. Harold Bradford's brother. Mengers also bought the section of land south of this, which Lester Spragg
had lost, from Bennett County. He had also put rubber tires on the old Farmall tractor instead of spade lugs. Reece was in second heaven but couldn't get all of the farming done.
In the fall of 1947, Reece's sister Alice came to stay until her baby was born. Sandra was born in March
1948. A month later Alice went to work for Florence DeRoss for two months, then went back to Neligh, Nebraska, to open up a beauty shop.
In 1948, Marjorie became the 4-H leader for the Norris Homemakers. This was a great joy to her. She worked with the girls of the community for fifteen years.
Charles went to Valentine to work for Hugh Potter in a welding shop during the winter, and came back
in the spring to help with the farming.
In 1949, Reece helped Loyd Letellier lead the Norris Stockman 4-H Club. At this time Achievement Day was held at Norris in the Norris Hall, the old Bank Building. The calves were tied to the trees in the creek behind the school house. The school house was back of the Pioneer Store by the creek. Reece went on to
lead the boys in tractor maintenance in 4-H for nine years.
In the fall of 1949, the Blighs had a big problem. Janet was six years old. The closest school was the Reece school in Todd County, eleven miles away, and roads were not maintained. Only bus roads and mail
roads were maintained. Norris was eight miles away in Mellette County. Reece finally went to the Todd County School Board. Yes, they'd pay tuition for Janet to the Norris school.
Reece took Janet to school the first day. Norris school wouldn't let her have a desk or books; she could come to school if she had these. So back to Mission to the Todd County School Board. When he came back
he had both. Happy day! She could go to school! So started the years of hauling kids to school. Finally Elmer Hanson suggested taking turns hauling kids, them one week, Blighs two. They did this until 1953, when they bought Elmer's farm from him and moved there.
When the blizzard hit in 1949 with full force it was impossible to get back and forth to Norris, so Reece took Janet and a sack of clothes on his Lady Mare and went to Norris. He talked to Margaret Jetter. Yes, she'd keep Janet during the week and send her to school. So every Monday and Friday Reece made the trip on Lady Mare. Janet stayed with Margaret three months.
In the spring Charles was back to help with the farming. That spring Reece bought a Massey Harris combine; the year before he'd gotten a Massey Harris windrower. Reece went around contracting combine jobs from the neighbors. It was perfect combine weather, 100 degrees and above every day. The men worked twenty-hour days, and they harvested 1,000 acres that year.
Lewine Wickham came out to help and Reece took Marjorie to Valentine to wait for the new baby, three long weeks. He also dealt for a new pickup, their first new vehicle. It was put on order as there weren't any
on the floor. Finally Jack Starkjohann took a message out to Reece that he should go to Valentine. You see,
Jack had the only phone.
Reece arrived at the hospital about the same time Ruth Elsie Bligh appeared on July 21, 1949, at noon.
That day he also checked on the new Ford pickup. It hadn't come but they loaned him a used one until the new one came. When Reece got home with the news of a new baby sister, Evan wasn't much interested as
he was all excited about a new pickup and was disappointed and said, "Thought you were going to get a new pickup," just like any disappointed five-year-old. Janet was very excited about a baby sister.
Three weeks after Ruth arrived, word was received that Marjorie's paternal grandmother had passed away, six weeks before her maternal step-grandmother had passed away.
On the way to the funeral, they checked on the new pickup. It had arrived. A new pickup! They switched
vehicles. Harvest was over and the harvest dust hadn't gotten into the new pickup. What joy! This was the
Blighs' first new vehicle.
Elmer Hanson sold Reece his place in 1953; it was four miles south of Norris. The Blighs moved that spring. It was a wet muddy spring—moving, calving and mumps all together made it a very difficult time. Recce moved a lot of things in the jeep. One day he pulled up to the chicken coop, threw the chickens in the jeep, climbed in, headed for the new chicken coop. He had about fifty hens on the steering wheel, his shoulders and wherever. He decided that wasn't the way to move chickens. Then in July there was a terrible rain and hail storm that blew away the brooder house that was full of fry chickens. The family dressed chickens all night. The windows were broken out of the house and the roof badly damaged and the crop was destroyed. The next two years there wasn't any crop because of drought. It took twenty years to pay for that half section.
Recce was elected to the Norris School Board in 1953, serving with Blanche Kaufman and Ken Barney. Glen Collins persuaded Reece to run in the fall election on the Independent ballot for County Commissioner. He was elected and took Glen's place on the board in January 1955. He held this office until 1982. During these twenty-eight years he served on the County Extension Board, the State Advisory Board, South Dakota Crime Commission, the South Dakota Appropriations Committee, the Fifth Planning and Development Commission and the Southern Plains Mental Health Center Board.
Reece served on the Sunshine Bible Academy Board 1965 to 1973. He was chairman of the board during
part of that time.
It was in 1956 that they finally let the Bligh kids ride on the big yellow school bus that had gone by their place all the years they lived in South Dakota. Wow! They had two extra hours for other things. There were
years that Reece checked out all of the businesses in Norris when he took kids to school so it was easy to
keep up on community happenings. The school bus was from Corncreek day school, which was moved to Norris.
Janet went to Kadoka to high school in 1956; she stayed with Mrs. Barret. The Blighs took turns with the neighbors hauling high school kids. It was a packed car every trip.
The fall of 1959, Janet and Evan went to Sunshine Bible Academy at Miller, South Dakota. Janet graduated in 1960, Evan in 1963 and Ruth in 1967.
It was 1961 that Janet married Clyde Brewer and the Blighs became grandparents in 1963. Ruth married Dale Paulson in December of 1972, and Evan married Dorothy Simons in December of 1975 and moved to the Shorty Hanna place in Todd County. Evan worked with Reece, Dorothy taught school at Longvalley. She finally quit teaching and ran the Rodeo office in her home and substitute taught and helped Evan run the ranch.
In 1975 Ambrose Monroe, an orphan Indian boy from Pine Ridge Reservation, came to live with the Blighs. He was a member of the family for three years, then went to Sunshine Bible Academy, graduating in 1963. Then he moved to Chicago, Illinois.
Reece was killed in a car-truck accident at Ethan, South Dakota, May 25, 1984, after attending their granddaughter's, Rebecca Brewer's, graduation from Faith Bible School, Mitchell, South Dakota. Marjorie stayed on at the ranch. Evan and Dorothy took over the ranch operation.
All these years, Reece had taught Sunday School classes and filled the pulpit as a lay minister. Marjorie
also taught Sunday School most of these years.
On September 14, 1985, Reece E. Bligh was inducted into the South Dakota and Western Heritage Hall of
Fame in the category of "Unsung Heroes and Good Hearts."
Mellette County, South Dakota
Family Histories & Biographies - Bligh Surname
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Bligh Surname
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Reece and Marjorie Bligh at their home at Norris
The Reece Bligh Family
Reece, Marjorie, Janet, Evan, Ruth
Reece, Marjorie, Janet, Evan, Ruth
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