Background and History of Willard Velie's father-in-law, Daniel A,G.Flowerree. Annie (Flowerree) Velie's father was a Montana pioneer and one of the first men to engage in the cattle business in Montana. Daniel Flowerree was born in Missouri on may 19,1835 and died in Atlanta, Nov.22,1912. He passed from his carefree boyhood days into early manhood in his native state of Missouri.He fostered the belief that the west offered many advantages over those of the east or midwest. He married Elizabeth Wethers and had four children in Missouri. Daniel Flowerree's wife died in 1882.On Feb.4 1885 he married Elizabeth Cornelius of Missouri. They had one son Dan Jr.
In 1864 he set out for Montana. He made the trip across the plains at a time when the path of the traveler was beset by many hazards, the country being alive with Indians, many of them hostile and mischief bent.The journey was made by stage coach via Salt Lake City,and on march 16,1864 Mr Flowerree arrived at Virginia City. Here he passed some little time in the business of prospecting for auriferous deposits, more familiarity know in common parlance as "PAY DIRT"..Gold! This was during the time that Virginia City"s unscrupulous Sheriff Plummer was robbing and killing people for there gold and money! ( Or was it the Vigilantes? Check out the Civil War in Montana webpage}
In 1865 he came to Helena, then called "last Chance Gulch".He was looking for more "PAY DIRT", but not gold. This time he was after cattle. He has the distinction of having built the first shingled roofed house in Virginia City. The house in Helena,was without doubt the first two-story house to be erected in Montana. He was one of the largest stock growers in the northwest at the time of his death.
In 1865 he brought a herd of cattle from Missouri, and in 1870 and 1873 brought fifteen hundred more from Texas. In 1883 he brought a band of horses from Oregon and a mammoth herd of cattle. His holdings of ranch property was of considerable magnitude,consisting of four counties at the time of his passing. Daniel Flowerree had a mansion on Dearborn ave. in Helena that was destroyed by an earthquake.The house on Monroe Ave.was built in 1913,one year after Daniel Flowerree died. Mrs Flowerree hired Robert C.Reamer,an architect from Cleveland, Ohio, whose previous work in Montana was the Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone Park.
Twenty miles north of Great Falls there is a little hamlet (smaller than a village), named after Daniel Flowerree. All the state road maps spell Flowerree with one ("R") even the road sign outside of Flowerree has one ("R") in it. Yours truly was raised on a farm next to Flowerree. Annie's brother William took over the cattle business when their father died. William Flowerree's house in Great Falls is on 4th ave.north and 9th st. It was built in 1913.Mr. Daniel Flowerree has a street named after him in Helena.
