Garvin lies in the southeast quarter of section 27, Custer Township in Lyon County. The railroad track was laid west from Tracy in 1879. In 1882, a side track was laid and was called Siding No. 7. The Aug. 11, 1882, issue of the Marshall newspaper reported: “Lyon County has a new village, located in the township of Custer, on the Dakota Central, midway between Tracy and Balaton. The company has platted a townsite and put in a side track. A depot and an elevator will be built immediately.”

In the spring of 1886, the siding became known as Terry, and the townsite was platted by the railroad company. It was surveyed by C.C. Purdor and was dedicated by Albert Keep, president of the Winona and St. Peter Railroad Co. After about one year, the name was changed to Kent, and in July 1891, the village was named Garvin, after H.C. Garvin. H.C. Garvin was the traveling freight agent of the railroad.

The original plot of the townsite was two blocks. The streets were named First, Sherman, Grant, and Sheridan. On Aug. 8, 1900, a survey by J.C.W. Cline, platted blocks three and four. The first buildings in the village were a grain flathouse built by C.W. Seefield, a general store building built by William Owens, a grain elevator, a second general store built by William Owens, and the blacksmith shop of Andrew Anderson.

In the fall of 1886, the post office was established, and it was located in the home of Postmaster William Owens. Rural postal delivery began with Carl Holden, and one of his conveyances was a Black and Decker car of about 1902 vintage. He equipped the vehicle with a hill holder device of his own invention using lengths of galvanized pipe on the hinges. At stops, he flopped the device down with the pipe digging into the ground to prevent the vehicle from moving.

School District 47 was organized on Dec. 3, 1879. A one room schoolhouse was built, and Annie C. Shand was the first teacher. A two room schoolhouse was built in 1901, and in 1911 a four room schoolhouse was built at a cost of $11,500. The photograph featured this week from the museum’s collection is the 1911 schoolhouse. Due to enrollment decreasing, on June 28, 1956, the Garvin School consolidated with Tracy. The high school grades were transferred to Tracy, and the first six grades continued to meet in Garvin. Declining enrollment led to the transfer of grades 5-6 to Tracy in 1969, and in May of 1971, the Garvin School was closed.

The Lyon County Historical Society is a non-profit, member-supported organization. For more information on membership, research, volunteering, or the museum’s collection, please contact us at 537-6580 or director@lyoncomuseum.org. Like our page and follow us on Facebook.