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It was in 1695 that a young
Dutch orphan boy by the name
of Herbert Dekker came to the
new world colonies to seek
peace, solitude and the freedom
to be on his own. By the spring
of 1703 he felt that the colonies
were getting restrictive and over
populated. During the eight
years he had been here he had
learned how to hunt, fish, farm,
forage off the land and how to
build a respectable shelter from
the materials at hand.
So it was in that, that he asked
the community to support him
by supplying him with the
essential necessities to exist on
his own. Because he had worked
with the community to make it
thrive, they reluctantly agreed to
help him leave, even thou they
would miss him. So it was that
Herbert left 'civilization' with all
implements that he thought he
would need on two pack mules
and a horse that he and his cat
rode, looking for a more
serene life.
Herbert, and his cat, named
Companion, headed west and a
little south. Days turned
into weeks, weeks turned into
months as he meandered further
and further. During his travels
Herbert met and made friends
with the natives who were
curious about this lone white
man in the wilderness. Some
told him of a far away place
where nothing seemed to live.
This he thought would be the
land for him.
By late in the year of 1703
Herbert believed that he had
found the land that he was
looking for. It was quiet. Very
quiet. No birds, no animals. The
land had low rolling hills, trees
and rocky ground. By and by he
found a creek. This, he was sure,
would be his new home.
He and Companion got down
and went to the creek. The cat quickly
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drank from the creek
and suddenly died. Herbert
found out why the natives, birds
and animals did not live here.
The water in the creek was
poisonous. He was very
depressed at the loss of
Companion, but decided that
this would be the place he would
live.
He buried Companion and found
a suitable location to build his
homestead a few miles from the
creek, which he named Kat Kill.
Herbert's new home would be in
the center of an area that
measured approximately six
miles by six miles with Kat Kill
at the southern boundary of his
land.
Over the years that followed,
Herbert Dekker was very happy.
He survived off of the land with
his skills as a woodsman.
Hunting and fishing was done
far from his home. Farming was
difficult in the rocky ground,
but the soil was rich and his
food grew bountifully. It was
not an easy life, but it was a
good life for him. Once or twice
a year, strangers would pass by.
They would move on when
Herbert told them about the land
and his desire to be alone. Many
, as time went on, settled outside
of his property, as they also
liked the peace and solitude of
the land.
Over fifty years passed and now
many settlers had gathered into a
community outside of Herbert's
land known as Kat Kill. By now
he even welcomed the settlers,
because they felt as he did and
he was now an old man. One
day there was a terrible fire in
the woods and many homes
were destroyed, and many
settlers died. But as miracles do
happen from time to time, a
Dalmatian Dog saved a baby
from the fire. The dog brought
the child to Herbert's home. In
the days that followed the
tragedy, no one knew the
identity of the child.
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Herbert agreed to adopt the child if
another would raise it, for he
was an elder at 72. He had
prospered and lived a long time
and wanted to give something
back to the growing community.
He also kept the dog to replace
his long lost Companion.
Herbert decreed that on August
3, 1754 that there should be a
party for the baby and the dog,
and that the entire community
should celebrate. During the
party he announced the baby's
name shall be Phillip Herbert,
and that to honor the heroic dog
he was changing the name of his
reserve to Dalmatian, and that
Kat Kill would be no more.
As Dalmatian came together to
raise the child and Herbert
provided for all the needs, a
strange thing happened. The
water in the creek was somehow
purified and was cold, sweet and
very delicious. Fish grew and
were plentiful. Wild life came to
the woods and hunting was easy.
The stones in the ground were
found to be shallow and easily
removed. Crops grew swiftly.
There was prosperity for all, and
the community grew.
As more years passed, the child
grew and learned. Herbert, now
87, was a very old man, but he
had joy and happiness over what
was happening. Dalmatian was a
kind Village, then a Town, and
later became a City.
Herbert died at the age of 88, in
1774, just as it looked like the
Colonies would seek their
Independence from all rulers
beyond the shores of the new
world. After the War of
Independence,this area grew
rapidly. Before long Dalmatian
was the hub of this growing
community. It became a city
with a reputation of great
splendor. The city of Dalmatian became the seat of the county of East Cupcake, in what was later
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