Biographical Sketches

R. M. CRALLE

R. M. CRALLE, county surveyor of Jefferson County, and deputy United States mineral surveyor, is one of the prominent residents of Boulder.  He was born in Lynchburg, Va., on December 11, 1846, the son of R. K. and Elizabeth (Morris) Cralle.  The father was a talented lawyer and at one time private secretary for the eminent John C. Calhoun.  The mother also descended from distinguished ancestry, and was a daughter of Judge Morris, of Hanover, Va.  R. M. Cralle remained in the cultured parental home, receiving there and in subscription schools a thorough preparation for the classical studies of Hampton-Sidney College, which he entered in 1860, not long to enjoy its advantages, however, for patriotism overcame the desire to early complete his education, and, in 1861, on the call for state troops, he enlisted in the first company organized in his state, the Henrico Light Dragoons.  He served through the war, and was mustered out in 1865, at the surrender of Gen. Lee at Appomattox.

Mr. Cralle then remained one year at the old home with his mother, his father having died in 1864, and was engaged as a civil engineer on the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad, in which vocation he continued until 1870.  He was then attached to the United States engineers' department for the improvement of the Tennessee river until 1876, when he moved to Kentucky and was chief engineer of the Covington, Flemingsburg & Pond Gap Railroad.  In 1877 he went to Colorado, and took part in the surveys of the Union Pacific Railroad through Colorado and Utah.  He was next resident engineer of the Northern Pacific, his field of operations lying between Terry's Landing and Billings.  In 1882 he was placed in charge of track building and bridges on the Northern Pacific, and in 1884 he went to the Coeur d'Alene mines, Idaho, and engaged in mining and the grocery business in Thompson Falls, Mont.

In 1886 Mr. Cralle came to Boulder and assumed charge of the Helena & Boulder Valley Railroad as engineer.  This position he resigned in 1888, and took up his residence in Boulder.  He was appointed county surveyor of Jefferson county in 1898, and in 1900 was elected to succeed himself.  This position he now fills with superior ability and to the satisfaction of the public.  In 1885 he was appointed postmaster of Thompson Falls, and for a number of years he has been deputy United States mineral surveyor.  During a year in 1895 and 1896 he had charge of the flume and mill at the Quiley mine in Granite county.  On April 2, 1883, Mr. Cralle was married to Miss Mary Wall, daughter of Dr. John and Elizabeth (Dudley) Wall, of Kentucky.  To Mr. and Mrs. Cralle have been born three children, Richard M., Elizabeth Wall and an infant deceased.  For a number of years Mr. Cralle was a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen. Mr. Cralle has been successful in official and social relations, and is an example of the best elements of American citizenship, while his home is a center of attraction to numerous friends. 

Source: Transcription from the book, Progressive Men of the State of Montana, author and publication date unknown; located on the website, Internet Archive (http://archive.org), accessed 13 June 2022.

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