When coming West, a person is truly leaving everything behind: family, friends, and the comforts of society. If they were lucky to enjoy any of them, surely these comforts will be missed. So what drives a person to Hargrove? Truthfully, it could be any number of things: the thirst for adventure, the promise of a good future, the chance for a different life, or the need for knowledge of the unknown. Wherever they come from and whyever they come, the remoteness and chance at something better is there. Is there greater opportunity in Hargrove than anywhere else in Elan? So many wouldn’t be coming if there wasn’t.
Founded in 1878 by the first successful expedition through the Girdle Mountains by Ryan J. Hargrove, the town of Hargrove is owned and operated by the Dauntless Railroad Company. The railroad resettled it in 1891 when the first settlers, the expedition members, disappeared. And by 1892, Hargrove was ready to accept members of the public. Some may be employed by Dauntless, or their close partner Silver Pines, or even the Church - but there are also those who come simply to be part of the town. These people are greatly needed as no outpost can become a successful hub of civilization without a thriving community.
Hargrove acts as the railroad’s hub and starting point for projects exploring the Thorpe Territory’s interior. As such, it receives special attention from the Dauntless Board in terms of incentivizing people to start new lives there. Everyone who comes to Hargrove and settles there only does so at the pleasure of the Dauntless Railroad Company. That’s just how a company town is. Whether this will cause friction or ease depends on the person who comes and their intentions. But in all honesty, without Dauntless there would be no true option to go beyond the Girdle Mountains. It’s just how things are.
Although living in Hargrove means a lot of hard work and long days, even for those only coming to be settlers, there’s a draw that can’t be denied. Locals enjoy the ability to build a life from almost nothing, to carve out an existence and its benefits. The resources afforded to the locals are better than those in many company towns. Indeed, although many have stepped off the train here in town, few to none have headed back over the mountains yet. It’s as though everyone in town has the same curious feeling - that of excitement, and of potential. The future seems closer, and the townsfolk are eager to step forward into it.
The people coming to Hargrove have many backgrounds, with histories ranging from prominent to paltry. Hargrove doesn’t differentiate - everyone is equal when they step off that train. All who enter are stripped of their previous authority and class, their sordidness and poverty - all of that doesn’t matter now. That’s the double edged sword of the chance to start anew. It’s merit and character that will determine if a person can establish themselves. Well, that and the organizations who run the town.
Regardless of authority, there are plenty of positions that need filling that don’t involve anything more than the skills and crafts that people come to town with. Some come to make an honest living. Others come to set themselves up with something more grandiose. Regardless, all these varied people who come to Hargrove are unified by one goal: to create a home, a community, and a way of life. To make a town out of a settlement in the wilderness takes grit, ambition, and bravery. It remains to be seen what this Hargrove becomes. But all new towns are founded on dreams, aren’t they? Somewhere between salvation and fortune, between vice and virtue, that’s where a town truly lies. Hargrove is no different.
As a company town, what the Director and the Foreman and the Purser say is to be followed at all times. However, beyond that is the Sheriff. The Sheriff keeps the laws that the company puts down. They uphold the guidelines, the rules, the unbending needs. There is no tangle of judge and jury - only what the Sheriff and their deputies catch you doing and the way the Director sees fit to execute punishment. The Sheriff does much to support Dauntless, but a true Sheriff also is bent on serving the town. It’s a fine line to walk, between corporation and population. Where a person falls is often up to how they keep the peace and how they keep production moving along.
For more information, please see: Hargrove and Company Towns