James Martin Pendroy was born in Albany (Delaware County) Indiana in 1834. With his parents he moved to Marion County Iowa in 1849. Assisting his father and older brother in improving a new farm in new country, sharing the hardships of the first immigrants of that day.

Read Published Obituary and Tribute of James Martin Pendroy

He was married to Sarah J. Baldwin in 1857. In August, 1862 he enlisted in Co. H. 40th Iowa infantry and started for the front to assist in maintaining the Union and helping to put down the rebellion.

Leaving a wife and three little boys to endure the anxiety and hardships incident to the absence of husband and father, he was at the front battling for the flag of this country, where he remained until the the close, with his regiment.

He was at the siege of Vicksburg and passed through many exciting scenes, enduring many hardships while tramping through the swamps of the states of Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas. He returned home in September, 1865, after which he turned his attention to farming and raising cattle. Selling his farm in Iowa in 1882, he came to Bismarck, and after looking that country over he decided to locate on the Mouse River, McHenry County in town 154. range 78.

In this spring of 1883, with his wife and four sons: John, Levi, James and Perry, all locating claims where he again engaged in raising horses, cattle land sheep, and in farming. In 1884 he took an active part in the organization of McHenry County, was one of the first county commissioners elected, and filled that office for a number of years. He has always voted the Republican ticket, and is now a candidate on that ticket for the office of County Judge.

Mr. Pendroy states the following facts relative to the early history of McHenry County at Pendroy. The first to settle at this point were Louis Robinson, Ole Hovind, Iven Gjellstade, Lewis Larson and Ole Westgard, all from Minnesota, taking up claims in the spring of 1882. Sometime in August, J.M. Pendroy, J. A. Pendroy and T.F. Berry arrived, traveling over-land with team from Guthrie County, Iowa, a distant of 800 miles.

J.B., a son of J.M., came by rail, and joined the party at Bismarck. After building a log cabin on the claim of J. M. Pendroy, they returned to Bismarck. J. M. and J. A. Pendroy taking train for home while T. F. Berry and J.B. Pendroy remained at Bismarck. In the spring of 1883 J. M. Pendroy and family, with their teams and household goods, shipped by rail to Bismarck, while J. A. Pendroy and family drove through overland driving their cattle and those of J. M. Pendroy with them arriving at Pendroy, ND  August 2nd.

Marion Pace and T. S. Donnell came by rail to Bismarck in the spring, while John P(???) (Author note - probably "Pace") and Dan Mosier joined J. A. Pendroy at Elk Point S.D. and drove through, bringing Pace's cattle with them. Ben Reed, and John and Frank Marlenee arrived in this spring of 1883 from Guthrie County, Iowa, taking up claims 15 miles up the river, all locating with a view of engaging in the raising of horses, cattle and sheep, which they have found to be a profitable business.

With the great variety of the wild and nutritious grasses that abound here, and a vast amount of hay to be made in the Mouse River Valley, they were enabled to raise horses, cattle and sheep very cheaply, in fact at merely nominal cost. At present they can have a steer fed and cared for from calfhood to maturity, three years, for the sum of $12 to $13.

Most of the early immigrants locating at Pendroy were men of limited means, but most of them have built up comfortable and happy homes, and have means for old age, having fine herds of horses, cattle and sheep about them. All had to undergo the usual hardship of first settlers. Bismarck was their nearest trading point, and was 110 to 120 miles distant, over an unsettled country. They had to draw all of their supplies, seed grain and and horse feed from that point.

It was not infrequent to see a settler start out to Bismarck in the winter time to procure supplies for their family, though a difficult and dangerous undertaking at that season of the year. To illustrate that: John B. and James A. Pendroy started out December 11th, 1883 to Bismarck, with two wagon loads of Mouse River fish which they had caught with hook and line by cutting holes through the ice. After selling their fish at Bismarck and investing the proceeds in flour and other provisions for their families, they started for home, but near Turtle Lake they were overtaken with a fearful snowstorm and had a hard pull from there home, traveling three days and two nights without sleep, stopping only long enough to feed the teams.

They were all day and half the night going from Strawberry Lake to the Dog Den, a distance of seven miles, encountering many snow drifts, and very cold weather. Their friends became very anxious about them, but the evening of December 24th, they hove insight, wending their way through the deep snow.

The mother was first to see them. She exclaimed at the top of her voice ; "The boys are coming! they are safe!"

James Martin Pendroy was elected County Judge of McHenry County North Dakota shortly before his death.

Pendroy, North Dakota Post Office, the 2nd one in the county, was established in June 1883, and J. M. Pendroy was commissioned as Post Master and still holds the office.

The first sermon preached in the English language was delivered by Rev. E. P. Royce at the house of J. M. Pendroy, December 30 1885.

The first public school taught in this Oak Valley District, was by Mrs. Eliza Masteller, and Miss Janey Strong in 1886, there being two school houses erected in the district that year.

The first public printing done over for the county was done by Perry A. Pendroy on a hand press in June 1885. His bill for printing and stationary amounting to $19.00. Perry soon abandoned the printing business and turned his attention to a more lucrative business, that of raising calves.