Haile Chisholm, the son of William H. and Eunice Diana (Fillmore) Chisholm, was born October 22, 1851 at Chazy, New York.  At the age of 10 he began learning the blacksmith trade from his father and at the age of 14 went to work for a smithy.  He moved his family to Fargo and worked for Northern Pacific until 1902 when the shops moved to Dilworth.  That fall he became Instructor in Forging and Metal Works at the North Dakota Agricultural College where he remained until retiring in 1937 at the age of 85.  Mr. Chisholm gained wide fame as a metal design craftsman.  He created the main gates at the College, the Roosevelt memorial gate, as well as other works at the College and North Dakota towns.  In recognition of his artistry and work he received, on February 24, 1931, the honorary degree of Master of Artisans from the North Dakota Agricultural College as well as honors from the North Dakota Legislature, State Supreme Court, and State Board of Higher Education.

The Chisholm collection consists of some correspondence, diaries, various autobiographies, poetry and various subject files.  The correspondence, all incoming, is very scattered with the 1931 letters consisting of congratulations on his receiving the Master of Artisans degree.  The diaries, covering the period 1940 to 1949, are quite complete and relate mainly weather and daily occurrences.  The autobiographies are typewritten ranging between 49, and 71 pages.  They are all basically the same, but with various small additions or deletions.  They cover from his childhood through retirement recounting events in his life.  The poetry collection is typed copies of his many compositions on a great variety of subjects. 
 

Personal and Family Papers