As we have seen, George’s was busy with his life. He had
established a trading post on the south fork of the Pine River,
then moved it to higher land, and obtained several patents for
land in the area. In July of 1878 he went to Brainerd for some
reason, probably to get supplies or do business, and took time
to go a courting. He met and married Amarilla Grace Spracklin at
a friend’s house. Amarilla had left her home near Blairstown,
Iowa and migrated to Brainerd, Minnesota sometime after the 1870
U.S. Census. Her granddaughter Miriam said Amarilla arrived
there about 1877. Amarilla had been living with her father,
step-mother and half siblings since about 1863 in Iowa. If you
look at Iowa in reference to Minnesota you would see that Iowa
is just straight south of Minnesota. Miriam writes in another
part of her notes, that Amarilla was not happy in her situation:
“Her father, Daniel Dare Spracklin had two families. Amarilla
(Ammarilla , sometimes varied it) belonged to the first family,
hated the second and le