Bio
John Dickinson Hall was a pioneer in business and ranching in South Dakota. During the gold rush in the Black Hills, Hale established freighting operations from Nebraska to Deadwood, expanding the business until it included seven eight-yoke teams of oxen and 17 wagons.
In 1879, he purchased a ranch near Tilford, South Dakota. He stocked it with 3,000 sheep.
He was elected to the state House of Representatives four times and four times to the state Senate.
His ranch became known for its Percheron stallions. He supplied horses to Fort Meade. He also provided the horse that won an overland race between Chadron, Nebraska and Chicago.
In 1905, he and friends from the Dakotas, Montana and Wyoming rode in President Theodore Roosevelt’s inaugural parade.