Blue Earth County, Minnesota - Biographical sketches, 1901 (part 11 of 15)

PALMEE, WILLTAil H. - The genealogical records of the Palmer family trace their lineage back to England whence some of the namu crossed the ocean to America during the early history of the colonies. From that time forward for several generations the descendants were identified with the agricultural development of New England. Somewhere near the beginning of the nineteenth century John Palmer was born in Maine. There he passed the uneventful years of boyhood, there he embarked upon agricultural pursuits and there he established domestic ties through his marriage to Cordelia Morrison likewise a native of Maine, of English extraction. AYhile they -svere living on a farm in Maine their son, William H., was born September 17, 1843. During the year 1849 the family followed the tide of emigration that drifted steadily toward the unknown west. The state of Wisconsin was the objective point of their journey and soon after their arrival they secured land near Oshkosh, wh.ere they spent many busy and useful years. The father died there April 9, 1868, and was survived by his wife for fifteen years. Of their five sons and four daughters, four sons and one daughter are now living.

The eldest member of the family circle was V.'illiam H. Palmer, who was six years of age at the time of removing to Wisconsin. While lie had very meagre opportunities for acquiring an education, lie liecanic well-informed through habits of. reading and observation. Nothing occurred to mark the years of youth until the outbreak of the Civil war, when he enlisted in Company K, Eighth Wisconsin Infantry, accompanied his regiment to the front, participated in its struggles, hardships, forced marches and encounters the enemy, remaining in the army until the expiration of his term of three years. At the close of the war he came to Minnesota and took up one hundred and sixty acres of government land in Nicollet county, v.'here he engaged in farming until 1879. From the farm he came to Mankato and secured employment in the old oil mill, but after seven years he resigned that position in onler to identify himself with tlie Hnbbard flour mill. Some three years later he and his brother engaged in business for themselves, having a number 'of threshing outfits through the ivheat country. Up to the time of his death, which occurred September 10, 1905, he continued the business activities which netted him a fair income and left his family in comfortable circumstances at his demise. To a man of his temperament politics presented no attractions, and it is not strange therefore that he took no part in tlic same. However, he was well posted concerning the national issues and always voted the Republican ticket. In fraternal relations he held membership with the Masons and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and in religion he was an active worker in the Baptist church.

The marriage of William H. Palmer occurred March 16, 186G, and united him with Miss Alwilda J. Ballenger, eldest daughter of John E. and Theresa (Oyler) Ballenger, natives of Indiana, and descended from old Virginian famhes of English extraction. The grandparents left the Old Dominion about 1816 and sought the opportunities of the then undeveloped western frontier, becoming among the earliest settlers of the Hosier state. The land they then purchased remained in the hands of their descendants and became very valuable. To the union of Mr. and Mrs. Palmer there were born four children who attained muturity, namely, John, who died June 30, 1900 i Erve, now engaged in the jeweli-y business at Grand Eorks, North Dakota; Ellsworth, who has a jewelry store at Manksto; and George, who resides in Mankato and is engaged in the dental profession.

PARKS, WILLIAM S. - The family represented by this influential farmer of Blue Earth county comes of Irish extraction and was founded in the United States by John Parks, a native of Londonderry, Ireland, who crossed the ocean about 1810. Fext in line of descent ^^as Robert Parks, born January 18, 1809, and one year of age at the time the family came to America. The last-named married Louise Ketchum, who was born in Canada February 3, 1812. Thej became the parents of the following named Sarah A., now deceased; Richard D., who enlisted in the One Hundred and Eighteenth. Few York Infantry at the opening of the Civil war and was killed in the battle of the Wilderness; John S., who was born at Quebec, Canada, April 24, 1835, and was one year old at the time the family removed to New York state; William S , 'ivho was born in Clinton county. New York, January 31, 1841; Eliza J., Mrs. Nelson Lattin; Henry H., living in Slinnesota; Zadie M., who married J. H. Davis and resides in Pasadena, California; Edward S., who remains in the old homestead in New York; and Frank, Mrs. F. 0. Pearl, of North Dakota.

At one time Robert Parks thought seriously of coming west but his plans were changed and he remained in New York state, continuing on the original farm and owning another in the same vicinity. There his death occurred April 29, 1857. His son, John S., went to Connecticut in the spring of 1861, but soon came west to Wisconsin and in 1863 removed to Minnesota, where he took up land on section twenty-six, Pleasant Mound township. Blue Earth county. Prom that place he removed in 1905 to Amboy, where now he lives in retirement. In March of 1864 he married Helen M. Cra}', a sister of Judge Lorin Cray. They are the parents of five children, namely: R. D., who is a traveling salesman and resides at Lake Crystal, Minnesota; Walter M., a teacher near Sioux City, Iowa; Elmer Lorin, now in North Dakota; Ray D. and Roy L., (twins), graduates of a splendid business college in ^linneapolis. For thirty-seven years John S. Parks served as postmaster, besides which he was census-taker, member of the town board and also a member of the school board.

When twenty-five years of age William S. Parks came to ]\[innesota and spent several months in Blue Earth county, but the ties of kindred and old associations were sufficiently strong to lure him iiack to New York state, where he remained for twelve years at the old home. In 1879 lie came to Blue Earth county as a permanent resident. For a time he rented land in Pleasant ^lound Township, but in 1883 he purchased his present property on section twentynine of that township, where he has one hundred and sixty acres of -well-irapToved land, suitably equipped for the raising of crops adapted to the soil and climate. Good grades of horses, cattle and hogs are to be found on the place. A specialty is also made of fruit business. Apples are grown in large quantities, cherries and plums also are grown, as well as the different kinds of small fruits.

The marriage of William S. Parks took place March 11, 1870, and united' him with Cornelia Pearl of Clinton county, Kew York, daughter of Almon Pearl, member of an honored colonial family of the east; when quite advanced in years I\rr. Pearl came to Minnesota to make his home with his daughter, Mrs. Parks, who died November 9th, 1892, caused by paralysis, her father surviving her till 1897. The family of Mr. and ifrs. Parks corprises the following children: Zelphia, Mrs. Arthur Langman, a resident of Truman, Martin county, Minnesota; Zadia, who married Charles Eoe and lives in Martin county; Ada, Mrs. William Sharp of Faribault county; Robert M., who is married and resides at Shell Lake, Wisconsin; Mellie, wife of Clarence Smith, of Winnebago City, Minnesota; Emma, who marred L. Doolittle, of Martin county; Harry and Pearl, who reside with their parents, the latter being engaged in teaching school; Edward, who makes his home at present with his sister, Mrs. Sharp; and Catherine, who is with her father on the old homestead.

PAEMELEE, BENSOIST C - Mr. Parmelee, whose long and creditable experience in the implement business has earned him a responsible position with the branch of the great International Harvester Company, as superintendent of warehouses and repair rooms, and shipping and receiving of goods, has been a familiar figure in this line to the agricultural communities of Minnesota for the past thirty years. He has been a valued resident of Mankato for the past eight years, coming here as an employee of the Deering Harvester Company. Mr. Parmelee is of old English origin, the family having its distinctive coat of arms, and his individual traits of persistency and solid, common sense, are typical of his people. His parents, Egbert and Melina D. (Koise) Parmelee, were natives of Chenango County, Xew York, and in 1858 removed to Dodge County, Wisconsin, where their son, Benson C, was born on the 10th of March, 1859. The father was a farmer and a nurseryman and died in Wisconsin in 1866, while the widow and mother came to Mankato, where she still resides. Of their five children, the following four are living: Benson C; Martin E., residing in Knoxville, Tennessee; Charles M., of Minneapolis, Minnesota; and Orpheus M., of Chicago. Elizabeth, the fifth child, died in 1875, at the age of thirtyfour.

^Ir. Parmelee attended the public schools of his native town of Oak Grove, Wisconsin and also received a high school education there, but he was early employed in the grain and machinery business, and in April, 1877, removed to Waseca, Minnesota, where he engaged in the sale of farm implements and machinery in partnership with C. A. Wright, under the firm name of Parmelee & Wright. Later Mr. Wright sold his interest to Eudolph Eoesler, and Parmelee & Eoesler continued in business until 1895, when the former entered the employ of the Deering Harvester Company and removed to Mankato. He continued with that company until its consolidation with the International Harvester Company, when he was appointed to his present responsible position.

Married in November, 1882, to Miss Eletha Hull of Juneau, Wisconsin, Mr. Parmelee lost his first wife by death in April, 1892, she having born him four children as follows; Bessie L., now Mrs. J. E. Powell, of Savannah, Illinois; Egbert Nelson, married and living in Chicago, Illinois; Horace E., married and living in North Yakima; and Charles B., married and living in Mankato. His second marriage in June, 1893, was to Mrs. Lillie Barnes of Waseca, Minnesota, she had one child, Laura E., who became the wife of C. W. Dunkelberger, of Clinton, Iowa. By his second marriage Mr. Parmelee had one child, Mildred M.

PATTERSON, LESTER. - In Lester Patterson is foimd a representative of that much needed class of men who start out right in the world, who keep going right, and who therefore reaci^ the end of their business career while still theiv faculties are unimpaired and their capacity for enjoyment keen. The ability to see the end as well as the beginning of his association with opportunities has been a salient feature of his many sided success. ]\Ir. Patterson has browsed pleasantly and profitabl}' in many a fertile financial pasture, but when he has put up the bars behind him has always left the soil in good condition for his successors. jMany have acquired ^vealth and influence through his instrumentality, aiid his own competence has not been amassed a< the expense of either principle or his fellow men. He has been a creator rather than a destructionist, and as a result has carried with him to his present sun kissed California home, the good will of the people of every community in which his social and commercial lot has been cast.

Manlcato has profited substantially by Mr. Patterson's identification with its affairs. His life began on a farm near Alliance, Mahoning county, Ohio, December 24, 1841, and for twenty-two years he shared in the duties, advantages and pastimes of his native locality. He then was variously employed until his marriage, in 186."). to Melissa A. Kibler, of Palmyra, Oliio, and the following year he moved to Deerfield, Ohio, and until 1873, engaged in the manufacture of tow from flax straw. At Yan Wert, the same state, he conducted a similar business, and at the same time engaged in several lines of activity which materially redounded to the prestige of the community. He was a director of tlie First National Bank at Yan Wert, and one of the incorporators of the Cincinnati, Yan Wert & Michigan Railroad, now an important transportation line. Thinking to enjoy a wider range of opportunity, he moved to Clncago in 1881, and there engaged in the boiler plate jobbing business until h& location in Mankato in 1884.

Mr. Patterson's standing with his former business associates became apparent during his early business career in ]\Iankato, for he succeeded in interesting Van Wert financiers in the Mankato

Before his arrival here, he began to plan for the large wholesale grocery business opened in April, 1884, in a two story building on South Front street. Two years later removal was made to a three story building at 214 South Front street and which was destroyed by fire in May, 1897. This was immediately replaced by the four story and basement brick building now occupied by the Company and which houses one of the most widely known wholesale grocery enterprises in the state of Minnesota, being owned and controlled by himself and his two sons. Mr. Patterson recently has opened a large wholesale grocery at Bismarck, North Dakota, in which also his sons, H. A. and Eugene L., are interested. He is a director and one of the heaviest stock holders in the Citizens' Bank, of Mankato, and has heavy land interests in North Dakota and northern Minnesota, owned by the Patterson Land Company of which he is president with offices in St. Paul. There are few enterprises of note in the community which in some way have not profited by the direct qr indirect influence of this prince of promoters. He favors everything which tends to the greatest usefulness and the greatest happiness of the race, and his ethics, business methods, and general principles are conceived and maintained with wisdom, consistency and forethought. While in Mankato he occupied a self constructed residence which materially adds to the architectural grace and substantiality of the city; built in 1887.

PATTRIDGE, ABEL J. - After years of un- ^vearied labors in farming pursuits Mr. Pattridge retired from agricultural activities and now makes his home in the Yillage of Yernon Center retaining, however. 1he ownership of considerable land, and supervision of which occupies much of his time. While he has disposed of the old homestead, he still owns four Inmdred and ninetyfive acres, of which one-quarter section lies in Canada and the balance is located in Cottonwood and Brown counties. In addition to the farm property he has real estate in town. The accumulation of this estate represents a lifetirne of intelligent energy and entitles him to the enjoyment of the comforts which a competency gives to the afternoon of his busy existence.

Born in Pennsylvania February 16, 1841, A. J. Pattridge is a son of Charles A. and Maria A. (Tullar) Pattridge, natives respectively of New Hampshire and Kew York. In an early day the parents removed to Wisconsin and took up land in Dodge county, where the father improved a farm and remained until his death in 1876. Later the widowed mother became an inmate of the home of her son, A. J., and here she was surrounded by every comfort until she passed away in 1890, at his home in Pleasant Mound township. Six children comprised her family, but two O'f these died in infancy. The oldest son, John M., died Oct 25, 1908, in Jackson county, Wisconsin. The eldest daughter, Emily, m.akes her home with her brother, A. J. The younger sister, Sophronia, Mrs. Mackintosh, is a resident of Massachusetts, where her husband follows the trade of a carpenter and joiner. During early life Charles A. Pattridge voted the Whig ticket and upon the disintegration of that party he became an advocate of Republican principles, which afterward he supported until his death.

Educated in the common school of Wisconsin, A. J. Pattridge remained in that state and made his home in Dodge county for a considerable period. In 1869 he married Sarah A. O'Connor, who was born July 30, 1838, in the shire of Somerset, England, and accompanied her mother to the United States, settling in Waukesha county, Wisconsin and moved to Dodge county in 1854. During 1871, Mr. and Mrs. Pattridge came to Blue Earth county and settled in Pleasant Mound township, where they resided until 1899, the date of their retirement from farming and their removal to Vernon Center. They are the parents of four children, of whom the eldest, George, is living at Spokane, Washington, Lulu, Mrs. P. D. Dewey, and Olive C, Mrs. M. B. Harrison, live upon farms in Cottonwood county, Minnesota. Archie, the youngest of the family, is a farmer in Brown county, Minnesota. During early life Mr. Pattridge was a member of the lodge of Good Templars and always has been a strict believer in the principles of p]-ohibition to which he gives the influence of hir example and precept. In former years he has held school offices. A gratifying degree of prosperity has come to him as a reward of his diligent application and wise investments, and he now deservedly occupies a prominent position among the successful retired farmers of the county.

PAY, BENJAMIN D. - Had he the descriptive skill of a Cooper, Benjamin D. Pay might fashion out of the events of his own life a narrative of absorbing interest and adventure, an authoritative chronicle of the turbulent events of the third quarter of the last century which marked the iinal subduing of the Indian in Blue Earth county. This prominent business man and natural fighter, whose terms as deputy sheriff during the Civil war was unequalled for excitement and amount of good accomplished, has been a resident of this part of Minnesota since October, 1856. In his veins runs the blood of courageous English sires, but he himself is essentially American, having arrived only at his fifth year when he was brought to America from Dover, England, where his birth occurred October 3, 1831. His parents, William, and Susanna (Pilcher) Pay, also were natives of England, and upon reaching this country in 1837, settled in Watertown, New York, where the father engaged in the bakery and cracker business for the balance of his active life.

Educated in the public schools of Watertown, New York, Benjamin D. Pay learned his father's business from the bottom up, in time representing his father on the road as a traveling salesman. In 1851 he went to Watertown, Wisconsin, and traveled for a cracker- factory Iraewn as, George Head & Bro., of that town, and in November, 1853 was united in marriage to Mary A., daughter of Horatio and Anna (Eeed) Eoper, of Juneau, Wisconsin. In the summer of 1854 Mr. Pay engaged in the livery business at Horicon, Wisconsin, and in 1856 sold his business and located on a claim on the Watonwan river, in Vernon township. He devoted most of that winter to teaming between Mankato and St. Paul and the winter of 1857 and 1858 was spent in logging at Mankato. For a short time he operated a livery in ilankato during the spring of 1858, returning then to the farm in ^"ernon township; upon the improvement of which he was working at the time of the Sioux outbreak in 1863. Then it was that the courage and strength of character of Mr. Pay received practical recognition by his appointment as deputy sheriff, an office in which h'^" evinced a high degree of initiative and efficiency. His keen insight into human motives, especially of those which animated the breasts of the deadly Sioux, stood him in good stead, and he was always ready to do anything in his power to assist in the capture and prosecution of desperadoes. He assisted in furnishing material for the erection of the gallows where occurred the execution of thirty-eight Indians, December 26, 1868, and he helped secure the conviction of the half-breed, John Campbell, for the murder of the Jewett family in Eapidan township, May 2, 1865. The half-breed was hung on evidence furnished by himself in the shape of clothing taken off of him by Mr. Pay, and taken by Mr. Pay and Mr. Charles Slocom, then editor of "The Union" to the families of Mr. Tyler and Mrs. Benjamin Evans of Garden City, who identified it as formerly belonging to the Jewett family. Subsequently, it was the untiring efforts of Mr. Pay which brought about the expulsion from the timber back of Mankato to the consciousless companions of the murderer. During these terrible times Mr. Pay was subject to almost continous danger, and his escapes from death in the open and in ambush, were many and miraculous. He never faltered in his purpose however, and a recital of his deeds and daring must always inspire profound admiration in the hearts of all who ever hear of them. Day and night he was in the saddle or wagon intent upon some important detail of his business, entirely forgetful of self, and working always for the welfare of the supplanting white brethren.

While deputy sheriff, Mr. Pay engaged in the livery business in Mankato with sheriff D. H. Tyner, but their barn was destroyed by fire during the winter of 1863 and 1864, and the partnership dissolved. Soon after, Mr. Pay established a livery business of his own, which he continued until 190'3, in 1888 taking his son, W. H. Pay, in as a partner. In 1902 father and son sold their livery and opened a candy factory at Mankato, which they eince have conducted with characteristic energy and success. Mr. Pay has been a stanch promotor of Eepublican politics, and not only has been deputy sheriff under several administrations, but has served as alderman and chief of the fire department. Mr. and Mrs. Pay are tlie parents of four children; William Horatio, his father's business partner; Benjamin P., of the firm of Powler & Pay, of Mankato; Nellie E., of the firm of Porter & Pay, of Mankato; and Mary L., with Fowler & Pay.

Through his intimate association with events in the past, no less than his active participation with the substantial business interests of the present, Mr. Pay is enrolled among the citizens of broadest view and greatest usefulness in the history of Blue Earth county.

PEAESON, WILLIAM. - More than forty years with their eventful changes have come and gone since William Pearson, then a young man about thirt}' years of age, landed in Mankato, a stranger amid a strange environment, far from the home of his childhood. It was on the 20th of Maj', 1866, that he walked over the gangplank of the steamer, MoUie Mohler, and made his advent into Mankato, at that time an insignificant village set on the brow of the hill overlooking the river. Of those whom he met on the eventful morning of his arrival he recalls only one, and that was John Page, who had his pony and dray at the landing and drew up the hill the first sofa brought into the village. Kindly greetings were given to the stranger on every hand, and soon he came to feel at home in the midst of these hospitable westerners. In those days Second street was little more than a cow pasture. State street a cornfield, while Pleasant, Grove and Clark streets were a tangle of hazel brush and fallen timber. In the absence of railroads, steamboats were largely utilized by travelers, while for those journeying overland the Bur^ bank stage line was a help, and in addition many traveled on the 'Gopher' train, drawn by twenty-

In Spencerville, Canada, William Pearson was born October 28, 1836, being a son of John and Agnes (Murray) Pearson, natives of Scotland, but after 1830 residents of Canada. The father, a miller by occupation, died in Canada at the age of sixty-nine years, and the mother passed away when thirty-six. As far back as the records can be traced the Pearsons were millers or millwrights, while the male members of the Murray family followed the sea. Out of eight children forming the family of John Pearson five sons survive, namely: James, a resident of Mountain View, Oklahoma; William, of Mankato; John, of Syracuse, JSTew York; Murray, of Mankato, who lives a retired life; and Prank, living in Mankato township. Under the supervision of his father William Pearson learned the miller's trade immediately after leaving school and this he followed until his removal to the United States. Here, finding opportunities for the same kind of work, he continued at the trade with which he was most familiar. For many years he conducted what is known as the Eed Jacket mill in Mankato township in partnership with C. P. Halley. Eetiring from that business in 1876 he became connected with the Hubbard & Palmer mill at Mankato, where he remained for ten years. Owing to the ill health of his wife he finally deemed it advisable to give up business activities and twenty years, until death relieved her from her sufferings, he gave her his entire time and the most devoted care. She was Abigail, daughter^ of Jacob Smith, of Elizabethtown, Canada, where they were married April 1, 1856. At the time of her death in 1903 she had attained the age of seventy-three years. Seven children were born of their union, but four died in infancy. Three sons survive, namely : John, living in Mountain View, Oklahoma; Lewis S., who makes his home in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and Lorin C, now living in the west.

For many years Mr. Pearson has been identified with the Masonic order, and likewise he has been interested in other movements for the benefit of humanity and the extending of philanthropies. He carried the first brick and mortar used in the erection of the Methodist Episcopal church. Many of the early enterprises for th,e development of the village received his gratuitous aid and practical help. It has never been a source of regret to him that he came to Mankato, although fortune has brought him no alluring rewards in return for his labors. Bravely doing his part, he received in recompense enough for his needs, and his only grievance has been tha,t his wants are few and his tastes so simple as to be easily gratified. In the twilight of his life, retired from private cares or public duties, he sees a second generation at the van of progress, while a third generation is now growing up in preparation for the work of the future! Watching these with the interest of a warm friend, he rejoices in each upward step that brings prosperity to his city and success to its citizens.

PEEEIN, HOEACE B. - Hon. Horace B. Perrin. Secretary and General manager of the Citizens' Fire Association, of' Mankato and long identified with the vehicle business in this section of the state, is at the same time an old soldier, an ex-member of the Legislature and altogether one of the best known and most honorable citizens of southern Minnesota. He comeb of an old and substantial N'ew England family, whose first members located in Sekouk, Massachusetts, as early as 1635, 'coming from the Old World in the good ship "Safety." N"oah Perrin, grandfather of Horace B., was the fifth generation in the United States, and became a settler of Vermont in 1800. His son, William Perrin, married Martha Green, also a native of the Green Mountain State, and the son who is of chief interest in the progress of this narrative was born to them on the 16th of January, 1843. In 1857 the family came to Wisconsin, and five years later removed to Shelby Township, Blue Earth County, where for many years its different members continued to do honor to themselves andtheir ancestors. William Perrin reached a position of considerable public influence, serving for twenty years as chairman of the Township Committee and finally was sent to the State Legislature. He died in 1903, at the advanced age of eighty-six years, and his wife, who passed away in 1898, had spanned her eighty-one years of life.

To this honorable and venerable couple had been born three children - Horace B., the first; Willis L., connected with the Postoffice Department at Washington, D. C. ; and Ada, the widow of T. L. Eice, of Mankato.

Horace B. Perrin cajne with his parents to Wisconsin and obtained his education in the district schools and at Lawrence University, and during the second year of the Civil war removed with the family to Shelby Township, this county, where he assisted his father on his farm until August 1, 1864. That was the date of his enlistment in Company C, Eleventh Minnesota Infantry, and he served for one year as corporal with faithfulness and honor, returning then to Shelbyville. At Amboy, this county, he conducted a vehicle establishment for twelve years, and upon his removal to Mankato, in 1894, continued in that line assisted by his son, Harry H., the firm of Perrin & Son being widely and favorably known to the agricultural communities and the principal centers of population in Southern Minnesota.

On January 1, 1898, Mr. Perrin became Secretary and Manager of the Citizens' Fire Association of Mankato, and has since devoted his time almost exclusively to its interests, which, under his control, have been much expanded. The association, which was only organized in 1894, does a business which amounts to four and a half million dollars. Mr. Perrin is also a Eepublican of prominence, serving as a member of the Legislature in 1889, and is influential in all matters of public moment. He is president of the Mankato Cemetery Association and prominently identified with other institutions.

Mr. Perrin was married in 1866 to Miss Alice L. Holmes, of Kenton, Ohio, and they had three children, Minnie, Harry H. and Alice, all residing in Mankato.

PEEEIN, HAEEY H. - Harry H. Perrin, jrmior member of the firm of H. B. Perrin & Son, dealers in wag-ons and agricultural implements, is a native of Pleasant Mound, Blue Earth County, Minnesota, born March 11, 1876, the son of Horace B. and Alice L. (Holmes) Perrin, of Mankato, a biography of the former also appearing in this work. The business conducted by this firm, which has been under active management of Harry. H. Perrin since 1898, is now one of the most important in Mankato, and is a credit to liis energy, enterprise and good judgment. He was educated in the public schools of Amboy this county, at the Sioux Falls Baptist University and the Sioux Falls Business University, coming to Mankato in 1894, and engaging with his father in the vehicle business. Four years afterward his father withdrew from active participation in it, which, as stated, has since been managed by the junior partner.

Mr. Perrin was united in marriage in 1897 to Miss Edith S. Esgar, who is a native of England, and they have become the parents of Dorthia and Burnham H. He is an active member of the Commercial Club, which has done a useful work in the development of Mankato's business and industrial interests, and is also identified with the Eoyal Arcanum and the United Order of Foresters. In more ways than have been mentioned Mr. Perrin is one of the brightest and most progressive young business men of the city, and is a most worthy representative of his family.

PETEESEN, NICHOLAS. - Since his arrival in Mankato in the fall of 1878, Nicholas Petersen has made his name a respected one, and as the years have passed has evidenced increasing business aptitude, and capacity for discharging those ci\'ic obligations which directly affect the entire community. Born in Schleswig-Holstein, the storm center of modern Danish history, January 26, 1851, he gained the rudiments of education in a neighboring school, and developed a far seeing mind keenly conscious of its surrounding limitations. At the age of sixteen he embarked in a sailing vessel bound for America, and after a stormy voyage walked down the gang plank at the New York docks, soon after securing a position in the eastern metropolis as clerk in a grocery store. From New Y^ork he went to St. Louis, remained there three months, then spent a year in a grocery store in New Orleans.

From 1869 until 1875 Mr. Petersen lived in Chicago, Illinois, during that time availing himself of clerking and other wage earning resources.

He had kept his eyes open and karned considerable of American business^ had parted with much of his foreign brogue^ but his heart beat . loyally for the relatives and friends whom he had left behind in the fatherland. What seemed a small fortune had been accumulated through his faculty of self denial and saving, and a part of this went into transportation back to Sehleswig-Holstein, where familiar faces greeted him, and familiar voices soon wished him God-speed on his journey back to the adopted land. Settling in Mankato, he conducted a cigar factory for three years, then established the business of bottling soda and mineral waters in which he since has been engaged. He was one of the organizers of the Standard Brewing Company, and has been identified with other enterprises of the town and county, at the present time being vice president of the Citizens Telephone Company.

In politics Mr. Petersen takes a commendable interest in the local undertakings. In 1891 he was elected alderman of Mankato, and for six years ably discharged the responsibilities of that ofEice. In 1901 he was elected mayor of the town, and held the position until 1903. The city has known no more conscientious and practical public servant.

The marriage of Mr. Petersen and Marie Bode, of Chicago, occurred September 24, 1874. Of this union there is a daughter, Anna, who is the wife of A. W. Paegel, of Mankato. Fraternally Mr. Petersen is identified with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He is a vigorous and energetic man, of pleasing manner and personality, and popular with all classes with whom he comes in contact.

PBTRICK, A. W. - The business interests of the village of Vernon Center have a capable representative in A. W. Petrick, who has been long and honorably associated with the commercial life of the place and in many ways has left the impress of his forceful personality upon local progress. The postofllice building and other village property, including a neat residence, belong to him, and in addition he owns a stock of general merchandise, having conducted a store at this point for about twenty-five years. During

1886 the postoffice was brought to his building and since then he has officiated as postmaster. For twenty years or more he has kept the only stock of drugs in the village, this being maintained as a department of the store.

More than fifty years ago Fred and Mollie (\^'einkauf} Petrick left their native land of Prussia and crossed the Atlantic to the United States. While they were still on the ocean, on the last day of May, 1854, a son was born, and he it is whose name introduces this article. The family settled in Green Lake county, Wisconsin, where the father entered a claim and began to improve a farm. While by trade he was a tailor, he principally followed agricultural pursuits. During 1867 he came to Minnesota and settled in Wabasha county, ^\-here he died in 1891 on the farm which he had developed from a wilderness. At this writing the widowed mother makes her home with her youngest son in Elgin, this state. The family consisted of ten children, and eight of these are still living, A. W. being the firstborn. He received a fair common-school education in Minnesota and in 1876 had the privilege of a course of study in the university at Rochester, this state. During 1882 he came to Vernon C^enter township, Blue Earth county, and settled in the village where since he has made his home.

The year after coming to Vernon Center A. W. Petrick married Augusta Kopischke, who died in 1888. His second marriage took place in 1892 and united him with Pauline, daughter of August and Ernestina (Wodsky) Wojahn. In his family there are four children. The eldest daughter, Sophia C, is now studying music in Rochester, New York. The other children, Selma, Hobart W. and Valeria, are yet with their parents. In addition to their own children Mr. and Mrs. Petrick have taken into their home an adopted child, Marie Z. Felson. The family arc identified with the German Lutheran church and contribute generously to movements for the benefit of the people' religiously and morally. The political views of Jlr. Petrick bring him into afl'iliation with the Republican party. Frequently he has been asked to fill local offices of trust, for his fellow-citizens realize that he possesses qualities necessary to the efficient office-holder. For thirteen years he served as town clerk, besides which he filled the offices of town treasurer and reeorder. For two years he was justice of the peace and for seventeen j'ears he was a notary public. Interested in educational matters, he has been a warm supporter of the local schools and during a service of seven years as director aided in promoting the usefulness of the schools of his village.

PPAU, ALBERT R. - To have never known father or mother is to have taken from one's life a lasting joy and inspiration; but, to be left an orphan in infancy and, bereft of all the memories and encouragements of the home circle, to persistently and successfully fight one's way to the front and to an honorable place in the world, as husband, father and public man - this is an achievement which is placed to the everlasting credit of Alfred R. Pfau, the able lawyer and leading citizen of Mankato. He is a native of Prussia, born February 14, 1847, and when he was two years of age his parents started with him for America. Both, however, died on shipboard, and the baby was left an orphan; but he was reared and educated by friends in New York State, and in his youth studied law in the office of Judge R. S. Hart.

In the spring of 1868, when he had barely passed his majority, Mr. Pfau removed to Wisconsin, where he was admitted to the bar, and in the following year came to Mankato. His progress here, in his profession and in the best paths of American citizenship, has been continuous and noteworthy. He has served for seven years as County Attorney, one year as City Attorney and four years as Mayor, and at the present time is local attorney for the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul and the Chicago & Northwestern Railway companies. Most of the thirty-six years of his career as a practicing attorney in Mankato have been occupied in independent practice, but for some time past he has been associated with his second son, Albert R., under the firm style of Pfau & Pfau.

Professionally, Albert E. Pfau is a lawyer of marked ability - prompt, vigorous and thorough in the prosecution of cases, as well as in the general conduct of all litigation entrusted to him; and possessed of an eminently ready mind to grasp legal propositions. Personally, he is sociable, obliging and generous. Politically, he is a Democrat, and there is none in thi.s locality whose influence is stronger or better.

In ISTl, Mr. Pfau was married to Miss Cornelia Brown, daughter of the late Judge Brown, of Mankato, and their children are James F., Albert R., Jr., Caroline, Mrs. L. Pendergast; Edith and Mary.

PIHALE, JOHN J. - The best possible proof of a man's worth is to earn respect and substantial standing in the locality of his birth, to achieve an honorable position in his own country, where all his acts and his entire character are under review and subject to judgment, froju first to last. John J. Pihale, the well known feed merchant, of ilankato, has run the gauntlet and emerged from the ordeal strong, honored and successful. He was born in the citj-, October 27, 1872, son of George and Theresa (Bruska) Pihale, his parents being natives of South Germany. His father, who was a tailor by trade, was born in 1833; married May 13, 18G0; came to Mankato the same year and industriously continued his trade until his death in April, 1906, at the age of sixty-three years. His widow still survives, the mother of five children of whom three are living and John J., the third in order of birth.

John J. Pihale is well educated, having attended both the public and parochial schools and pursued a business course in a commercial college. In his earlier years he assisted his father, and in 1894 was employed by Bennett & Hertzog in their mill and feed business. Later he was connected with A. C. Rockey, in the same line, and in August, 1896, bought his business which he has since successfully conducted as proprietor. His establishment was originally on Main street, but was moved to the corner of Second and Walnut streets, where its growing business is still transacted. Although it naturally consumes most of his strength and ability, he is interested in all local affairs and creditable movements, which promise to advance Mankato as a city and benefit her people.

Mr. Pihale was married May 16, 1900, to Mist liosa Schuttle, daughter of Henry Schuttle, of Lime township, and they have one child, Florence M. He is a member of the German Catholic church, and he carries his religion and his morality into his business and all the other activities of his life.

PEATT, MAETIN M. - During the era of seventeenth century development in America there came to the shores of the new world two brothers, Boyle and Job Pratt, who became the founders of the family on this side of the Atlantic ocean. The pioneer instinct seemed inbred in the race and successive generations contributed their quota toward the transforming of the wilderness into fertile farms. One of the family, Peter Pratt, became the first white settler on the river in Cattaraugus, county New York, where lie had purchased a large tract lying in the Holhmd purchase. A nephew of this pioneer, Darius Pratt, was born in Cheshire, Massachusetts, and in 1833, removed from Montgomery county. New York, to Cattaraugus county, that state, ivhere he engaged in farm pursuits until his death. Meanwhile he cleared from the wilderness a tract of two hundred and fifty acres, erected farm buildings, made substantial improvements on the farm, and kept a dairy herd of forty cows. In early manhood he married Jeannette Morrow, who was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, and whose maternal grandfather, Eobert Currie, was the first to establish a mill on the Schoharie river, that being about the time of the Eevo- Intionary war.

Pive sons and five daughters comprised the family of Darius and Jeannette Pratt, and of these Martin M., the eldest son, was born in Montgomery county. New York, October 29, 1827. During boyhood days he walked two and one-half miles to school and in a building of logs he studied the blue-backed speller, with other text books characteristic of the day. As might be inferred, the broad information he now possesses has been obtained from self-culture and observation rather than from attendance at school. In November, of 1850, he married Carljde A. Orr, a native of Cattaraugus county. New York, and a daughter of Hugh Orr, who removed to that state from Vermont. The children born of their union are as follows: Ella, Mrs. G. Bentley Lamp, of Sterling township; Ida, Mrs. Jackson J. Buel, of Amboy, Minnesota; Homer, deceased; Jennie, Mrs. Milton Wood, of Salt Pork township. Grant county, Oklahoma; and Howard, who remains with his father.

Taking up agricultural pursuits near the old family homestead in Cattaraugus county, Mr. Pratt continued there busily engaged at his tasks until the Civil war threw its shadows over the country. In response to calls for volunteers he enlisted August 2, 1862, in Company B, One Hundred and Fifty-fourth New York Infantry, under Colonel D. B. Allen. The company was mustered in at Elmira, New York, and ordered to Arlington Heights, Virginia, thence to Haymarket, and remaining there until ordered to Fredericksburg. On the return of General Ambrose E. Burnside they joined him in his march. May 1, 1863, they took part in the battle of Chancellorsville. Later they were in the engagement at Gettysburg that lasted three days. From there they were transferred under General Hooper to Chattanooga to reinforce Eosecrans. The latter was superseded by General U. S. Grant, under whom th.ey took part in the battles of Lookout Mountain and Mission Eidge. In the spring of 1864, they took part in the memorable march of General Sherman to the sea. In the first battle, on the 8th day of May, at Eocky Face mountain, so terrible was the carnage that the regiment to which Mr. Pratt belonged lost one hundred and fifty-four men in less than twenty minutes. Of this number six were color-bearers. At the conclusion of the march they proceeded to Wilmington, North Carolina and from there to Gouldsburg, where they remained some time, moving oat to follow General Joseph Johnson near Ealeigh, where they heard of Lee's surrender. Proceeding into Ealeigh, they witnessed the surrender of Johnson to Sherman. Later they marched to Washington and took part in the grand review, after which June 11, 1865, Mr. Pratt received an honorable discharge from the army, at Batonsburg, Maryland. Eeturning to his old home he sold his farm in October of the same year and came to Minnesota, arriving at Mankato October 29 and proceeding to Sterling, where be bought a farm. Prom that time until 1895, he engaged in agricultural pursuits and then removed to Mapleton, Blue Earth county, where he has since lived in retirement.

Por twenty years Mr. Pratt was a member of the school board and he also has held various township ofiiees. Fraternally he belongs to the blue lodge of Masons and is also warmly interetted in- Sam Louden Post No. T-l, Grand Army of the Republic, of which he has been honored with the office of commander. In December of 1895, he lost his first wife. He was again married April ly, 1898, his wife being Mrs. Julia Hamm, a native of Wisconsin, and a daughter of Daniel and Mary (Taylor) Rasey, formerly of Lake George, New York. One of the greatest pleasures of Mr. Pratt's life he enjoyed in 1895, when at the close of the national encampment of the Grand Army at Buffalo, he returned to the scenes of his boyhood and early manhood, where he participated in a reunion of the descendants of the Pratt and Morrow families. More than one hundred and fifty relatives were seated at one table on the occasion of the reunion. Among those present was a brother of Mr. Pratt who for twelve years or more has officiated as judge of probate at Fairmont, Minnesota. A picture \ras taken of these two brothers, together with two other brothers, and four sisters, who at that time survived out of the original family of ten. Another photograph was taken, which Mr. Pratt also prizes highly and which shows the entirt aesomblage as they appeared at the reunion.

PRICE, REV. ROBERT D. - More than fifty years have come and gone, bringing 'with them remarkable changes to the commonwealth and its people, since Rev. Robert R. Price first came to Minnesota as a pioneer worker in the spiritual interests of the Welsh race in the state, and ever since then he has been a leader among his fellowcountrymen here. Advancing years placed him in the superannuated list, but did not cause him nor did it weaken his desire to promote the spiritual welfare of the race. Now in retirement from ministerial duties, he passes his time quietly at his home in Blue Earth county and continues, as his strength permits, his association with movements for the uplifting of humanity.

The shire of Caernarvon, in the northern part of Wales, is the native home of Robert D. Price, and he was born in Conway August 21, 182 T, being a son of Robert and Margaret (Davis) Price, natives and lifelong residents of Wales. Although by trade a blacksmith and a worker at that occupation in early life, later Robert Price gave his attention to farming and was appointed o\erseer of two large estates in Wales, the supervision of which he continued until his death. In his family there were nine children, namely: Robert D., John, Edwin, Thomas, Hugh, Josiah, Ellen, Louisa and Elizabeth. The eldest member of the family circle, Robert D., received a fair education in his native country and learned the trade of a blacksmith under his father. When twenty years of age he began to preach the Gospel in his home neighborhood. From the first he showed a deep consecration of spirit and a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. Much of his preaching was done gratuitously, and he continued to earn a livelihood as a blacksmith.

A voyage of six weeks and three daj's brought Mr. Price to America in 1850. Landing in New York City on the 15th of September, he started at once for the west. His first location was Cambria, Wisconsin, and for two years he worked at his trade about six miles from that city. During the two following years he had charge of the Welsh mission at Cambria, after which he superintended a similar work at Dodgeville, Wisconsin, and from there in 1856 he came to Blue Earth county, being transferred from the Wisconsin conference to that of Minnesota. On coming to this county he took charge of the South Bend Welsh mission and continued to preach in the county until 1878, when he resigned. While living at Cambria, Wisconsin, he there married, April 7, 1853, Miss Ann Roberts, who was born in the shire of Caernarvon, Wales, March 4, 1832, and in 1845 came to the United States with her parents, John and Catharine (Thomas) Roberts, settling in Dodge county, Wisconsin. ]\Irs. Price passed from earth November 2, 1898, leaving to her husband and children the memory of a pure life, amiable disposition, affectionate ministrations to loved ones and a self-sacrificing Christian character. Ten children had been born of her marriage, namely : John R.,

Josiah W., Margaret C, Louisa A.^ Edwin C, Abraham L., Jane E.^ Thomas A.^ David A. P. and Lizzie H. Of these Margaret^ Jane and Lizzie are deceased^ and tlie others are established in lionies oi; their own.

PUGH, JOHN B. - In studying 'the lives of the pioneers of Blue Earth county we find a, certain similarity. All were constrained by the same lofty purpose to secure homes for themselves and aid their children in securing a start in the world. Alike they labored in storm and wind and snow, resolute in the midst of adversity, heroic when confronted by danger. Under their self-sacrillcing efforts the wilderness was made to bloom and blossom as the rose, neat houses and substantial barns, with the equipment of a modern farm, broke the monotony of the prairie landscape, and a foundation was laid for the prosperity of the present generation. Such in brief was the life of John E. Pugh, who was a pioneer of 1855, in this county, developed a valuable farm, and finally removed to Mankato, there spending his last days in comfortable retirement.

Die native place of John E. Pugh was in tht shire of Montgomery, Wales, where he was born in August of 1831. As a boy he lived on a farm owned by his parents, who were prosperous and honored members of their community. At the age of thirteen yeard, in 1844, he accompanied his parents to the United vStates, proceeded direct to Wisconsin, and settled at Watertown, where he attended the common schools whenever possible. Seeking to secure a farm in the regions where land was yet to be secured from the government, he came to Minnesota in 1855 and settled in Blue Earth county where he pre-empted a quarter section. Upon this tract he undertook general farm pursuits. The land was in the primeval state of nature. The entire task of subduing the soil and bringing it under profitable cultivation fell upon his shoulders. Working with unremitting zeal, he gradually made possible the cultivation of the tract, also built fences and cross-fences, and erected such buildings as were needed for the storage of the crops and the .shelter of the stock, besides building a neat cottage for the family.

The marriage of John E. Pugh took place August 15, 1859, and united him with Miss Janes Jones, who was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, June 29, 1844, being a daughter of John and Eleanor (Jones) Jones, natives of South Wales. The father, who was a shoemaker by tiade, crossed the ocean with the family in 1838, and settled at Pittsburgh, where he followed his trade with unfaltering fidelity. While still a young man he died in Pittsburgh in 1849, and soon afterward his wife went to Ohio to make her home with relatives; her death occurred in that state three years after the demise of her husband. Mrs. Pugh attended school in childhood, but her early marriage took her from the schoolroom and placed her at the head of a home. Ten children were born of her marriage, but only five are now living, namely: John, David, Katherine, Harriet and Dora. David married Miss Ida Ma-yer of Mankato, and Dora became the wife of Charles K. Mayer, a twin brother of Ida Mayer.

After having devoted more than forty years to active farm pursuits with considerable success, ifr. Pugh eventually rented his farm and bought a residence in ]\Iankato, where afterward he made his home until his death. May 34, 1905. His family held membership in the Welsh Presbyterian church and maintained a deep interest in religious movements. All through life he remembered with affection his childhood home in "Wales, yet he was a true and loyal American, and never desired to exchange the new home for the old. In politics he voted- with the Republican party. The only official position which he held was that of member of the school board, in -which capacity he served with efficiency for a number of years. Educational affairs always aroused his interest and he was a champion of the public school system, which he believed of vital importance to the well-being of our country. As a result of his industrious life his widow now enjoys an income sufficient for her needs, and his cljildren received the educational opportunities he so keenly desired for them. When it is recalled that he was orphaned in youth and had no one to aid him in his struggle for a livelihood, his success is especially praiseworthy.

PTJGH, HON. T. M. - Although the demands of extensive husiness interests elsewhere necessitated the removal of Senator Pugh from Blue Earth count}-, yet he retains for his old home a feeling of aflfection and intimacy caused by long residence and endearing tics of blood and friendship. Nor is he forgotten by his old associates; on the contrary, no name is more often mentioned among old settlers than his, and the present generation of boys and girls are often interested in tales of his services in the Indian wars, where he courageously defended the lives and properties of the frontier farmers. It has been his privilege to witness the remarkable agricultural development of Minnesota and to contribute to the same; furthermore, he has had the honor of representing his district in the house and senate, where his influence always has been given to bills and measures for the welfare and benefit of the people.

To the development of Minnesota the little country of Wales has contributed of its brain and brawn, and a fair proportion of the men who aided in the early progress of our commonwealth came from that rugged and mountainous land. There, in the shire of Montgomery, occurred the birth of T. M. Pugh September 10, 1831. His parents, Hugh and Mary (Dodges) Pugh, were natitves of Wales, the father born in 1800, the mother in 1803. On the paternal side the ancestors were purely Welsh, while on the maternal side they came from Scotland. Throughout their entire lives the parents remained in Wales, where both died. All of their seven children have passed away excepting the subject of this narrative. He was reared on a farm and received a fair Welsh education. During 1849 he took passage on a sailing vessel and after a voyage of five weeks landed in the United States in New York harbor, whence he proceeded to Watertown, Wisconsin, to make his home with an uncle. In order to acquire a knowledge of English he attended school for a time after his arrival.

After two years at Watertown, Mr. Pugh removed to Dodgeville, Wisconsin, and secured employment in the mines. In 1855 he came to Minnesota and pre-empted a claim of government land in South Bend township, Blue Earth co-untj'^, his claim lying about five miles southwest of ilankato. The land was in the primeval condition of nature. Xot a furrow had been turned in the rich soil. Its productive capacity was unknown. By dint of arduous and protracted effort' he brought the land under cultivation and converted it into one of the finest farms in the entire county. To him belongs the distinction of having raised the first crop of wheat in the entire county, and this crop he cut with an old-fashioned scythe, threshing it with a flail. Other farm work of a pioneer nature was done by him in those early days. As machinery began to be introduced he quickly appreciated its usefulness and availed himself of its aid.

The marriage of T. M. Pugh was solemnized in Blue Earth county Jan. 30th, 1868, and united him with itiss Ellen Williams, daughter of Eobert E. and Winifred (Eoberts) Williams, of whom mention will be found in the sketch of William E. Williams in this volume. Mrs. Pugh was born in Cleveland, Ohio, Feb. 15th, 1846, and in 1855 came to IMinnesota with her parents, settling in Blue Earth county. Of her marriage there are two sons, Edward Hugh and John Thomas, both of whom reside in Duluth, ilinnesota, being members of the board of trade of that city and successful grain-dealers.

For some time after his marriage Mr. Pugh made his home on the farm in South Bend township. During 185"', after the massacre at Spirit Lake, Iowa, he enlisted in the ^Minnesota state militia and engaged in active service in subduing the savages. During what is known as the Sioux massacre in 1863 he again took a very active part in quelling the red men and aided in bringing to iMankato ten of the Indians, who were later hanged for their outbreaks. At the close of his service in the war he was appointed provost-marshal and continued in that capacity during the balance of the struggle between the north and south. In 18T4 he was appointed receiver of the land office at Fargo, North Dakota, and continued in that capacity for nine years, serving with honor to himself and satisfaction to the general public. Meanwhile he continued to make his home at Fargo, where in 1885 he was elected to represent the district in the legislature of Dakota territory and took part in the first session held at Bismarck. At the expiration of his term he returned to Blue Earth county and resumed agricultural affairs, continuing on the farm until 1894, when he removed to Duluth in order to engage in business with his sons in that city.

In political views Mr. Pugh has been a stanch Eepublican ever since the organization of that party and served as a delegate to the first convention of the party in Blue Earth county. Three years after his removal to Duluth he was elected to represent his district in the Minnesota house of representatives and in 1899 he was re-elected to the position, in which he served for four j^ears altogether. So satisfactory was his service that in 1901 he was honored with election to the state senate and in 1905 he was again chosen to represent the people in the senate. It is scarcely necessary to add that his service has been eminently satisfactory to his constitutents, who repose the greatest confidence in his judgment and have found by long experience that no one could be more loyal to the people's welfare than is Senator Pugh.

PUTEAH, P. J. - The genealogy of the Putrah family shows that they come from French-Canadian ancestry, the original immigrants to America having come from France in a very early day and settled among the Frenchspeaking colonies of Canada. Joseph and Margaret (Parazcau) Putrah were born and reared in a Canadian province and both descended from prominent families of that country. While still young in years they crossed into ISTew York state and while living on a farm there a son, P. J., was born in 1853. "When this son was three years of age the family took up the journey toward the frontier and settled among the pioneers of Wisconsin, where they improved and developed a farm. Eventually they disposed of the property there and in 1870 sought a home still further toward the frontier, removing to Canton, South Dakota, where Mrs. Putrah passed away in 1895. Since her death Mr. Putrah has continued to make his home in Canton and now is in the enjoyment of excellent health, notwithstanding his eighty useful years.

The children of Joseph Putrah were named as follows: Mary, P. J., George, Ada, Margaret and Theresa. All are still living with the exception of George. The son whose name introduces this article had meagre opportunities in boyhood and gained his education almost wholly from self-culture and habits of close observation. In 187G he was united in marriage with Miss Lena Eew, daughter of Ira and Zilphia (Harrison) Eew, natives of Allegany county, Few York, and pioneers of 1866 in Blue Earth county, .settling in Eapidan township, where they engaged in farming until death. Four children blessed the union of P. J. and Mrs. Putrah, namely: Grace, who was taken by death at the age of eighteen years; Bert, who married Margaret Mc- Call and is now engaged in the hardware business at Garden City, Blue Earth county; Jessie, deceased; and Lida, at home.

Coming to Blue Earth county during the year 1872 Mr. Putrah secured work as a farm hand by the month in Eapidan township and by careful saving of his wages secured a start in the world. After purchasing the necessary equipment he engaged in digging wells and for six years continued in that business. Eventually he sold out and turned his attention to agricultural pursuits, which have since occupied his time and thought. Since 1901 he has resided on a farm of one hundred and ninety-one and one-half acres lying on the Blue Earth river in Eapidan township. The acquisition of this property represents a lifetime of toil and unremitting industry, and proves him to be a man of thrift and economy. The land is given over to the raising of crops suited to the soil and locality. Cattle are kept on the place, also some fine hogs of the Poland- China strain. All of the improvements, with the sole exception of the house, have been placed there by the present owner, who has devoted constant thought and intelligent attention to the best cultivation of the property and the securing of the most satisfactory returns from his investment. He has served his neighbors in the offices of school director and path master and in politics has been stanch in his allegiance to the Eepublican party. Fraternally he is connected with Camp No. 2198 at Garden City, Modern Woodmen of America.

QUIGGLE, C. M. - The history of the Quiggle family is similar to that of many other colonial families of America in that it records the gradual transplanting of the race from its original eastern home through the central states toward the fertile lands of the vast western regions. The Pennsylvania-Dutch stock that formed the ancestry of the present generation possessed the frugality, industry and perseverance necessary to nation-builders. In an early day the family removed lo Ohio, where George Quiggle was born March 3, 1819, and where his father died at a ripe old age. Lured to the west by the possibility of securing cheap lands, in 1853 George and Cordelia (Silliman) Quiggle removed to Wisconsin and settled in Green Lake county, where he took up unimproved lands. In the spring of 1868 he followed the westward tide of emigration and settled in Blue Earth county, Minnesota, where he bought from William Seward a tract of land adjacent to Amboy, twenty acres of which is now in the corporate limits of the village. Agricultural pursuits engaged his attention until his death, which occurred in 1903 at the age of eighty-three years. He was a progressive citizen who maintained an active interest in the development of the township and was a strong advocate of the building of the railroad, toward which he donated a right of way. The village also received his encouraging influence and he generously donated ten acres to the town site.

Out of a family comprising five sons and one daughter only two are now living, namely: Wallace, a resident of Winnebago City, Faribault county; and C. M., who was born in Trumbull county, Ohio, July 5, 1851, received his early education in Wisconsin and later attended the schools of Blue Earth City, Minnesota. The original homestead is now his property, and under his supervision every detail is attended to with dispatch and energy. A substantial modern residence adds to the value of the estate. The other buildings are well adapted to their varied needs. The entire appearance of the place proves the owner to be a man of orderly spirit, with a love for neatness and thrift.

Amboy December 22, 1903. Three children were born of that union, namely: Mabel, who married Oscar Robinson and I'ostdes at Amlioy; Corde, wife of C. M. Cornell, also of Amboy; Wayne, who remains with his father; and Clayton, deceased. Mrs. May Quiggle was a daughter of Thomas Jefferson Cross and a sister of D. E. Cross, an influential citizen of Amboy and the present postmaster of the village. In January of 1906 Mr. Quiggle was united in marriage with Miss Effie Reed, , a native of Sterling township. Blue Earth county, where her father, A. B. Reed, was an early settler and an honored resident. For years Mr. Quiggle has been warmly interested in educational work and at this writing he holds the office of treasurer of the school board. In fraternal relations he is a Master Mason and has passed through the chairs in the Amboy lodge-, Independent Order of Odd Fellows. One of Mr. Quiggle's pleasures is in travel, and he has visited many sections of our country, going as far south as Texas, but in his journeys he has found no place as dear to him as the old family homestead nor any state possessing greater attractions than does Minnesota.

RASDALL, DIWXE F. - So earnest and painstaking an exponent of scientific farming and rational, intelligent country life as Duane F. Rasdall, could find no more satisfying opportunity for the exercise of his ability than the old Rasdall farm in section 16, McPherson township, where he owned two Imndred and ninety-six acres of fine land, all of it under cultivation. This farm, a part of the old Winnebago Reservation, is eloquent with reminders of a tribe of Redmen now but sparcely represented, and chief of these evidences of early occupation is the old brick house built for the- Indians by the United States government. The efforts of the late owner of the property are distinctly modern in character, and the old and new shoulder each other in comparative harmony of action. Mr. Rasdall was engaged in general farming and stock-raising, and he was past master of the science which has outstripped the slow and laborious methods of his forefathers.

Born in Madison, Wisconsin, December 4. 1846, ilr, Rasdall was the son of Able and Lydia Ann Rasdall, the former of whom was a farmer and millwright, and mention of whom may be found in the sketch of M. B. Rasdall, in another part of this work. 'Mr. Rasdall had the usual advantages of the boys of his time and place, and while working hard on the home farm in the summer, -ivelcomed the diversion of attending the district schools during the leisure of the winter. Came to Minnesota in 1863. April 19, 1868, he was united in marriage to Alice J. Paley, and of the union there are two sons and two daughters: Jessie, wife of H. Thielman; Charles, a farmer in ]\IcPherson township ; Grace, wife of Prank Chase, of St. Clair; and Mark, engaged in the transfer business in Montevideo. Mr. Rasdall passed away October 17, 1908.

In political affiliations Mr. Rasdall was a Democrat, and among other offices held by him was that of chairman of the town board for eighteen years. He was a director in the Farmers' Pire Insurance Company, a director of the St. Clair State Bank, and was otherwise connected with local undertakings. Religiously he was connected with the Congregational church. He was ever ready to help in all good works, and has ever held out a helping hand to those whose fortunes were less happily placed than his own.

RASDALL, MELVIN B. - Reminiscences of the early settlement of the central northwest cluster thickly around the name of Rasdall, and through the efforts of those who now maintain the prestige of the family in Minnesota, will as surely be regarded by posterity as importantly allied with the present era of progress. The gift of successful pioneering seemed a special prerogative of Kentuckians during the first half of the last century, and Able Rasdall was no exception to the rule. The lure of the unsettled lake region drew him hither in early manhood, and he became a cabin builder in Wisconsin while still tlie wigwam and trail were predominating features of the landscape. He passed through the Black Hawk war as a captain, and he built the first lodge house in Madison thus becoming the unconscious civic father of that now flourishing metropolis. In this house his son, Melvin B. Rasdall, was born November 13, 1848. Mr. Rasdall, and also his two other sons, all of whom are prominent in the business life of Blue Earth county. Mr. Rasdall also erected the City Hotel, of Madison, in 1849, and he built the grist mill twelve miles north of the village, where he met an untimely death in 1856. He married Lydia Pitcher, a native of 'New York state, and who died in St. Clair this state, in 1882.

A varied experience has projected Melvin S. Rasdall among the prosperous business men of St. Clair. He was educated in the public schools, and subsequently became interested in the printing business which he continued until the third year of the Civil war. He enlisted in 1864 in Company P, First Minnesota Heavy Artillery, under Captain Owens, and thereafter did garrison duty until the reestablishment of peace, in 1865. For the following five years he was variously employed as a wage earner, thus paying his way through the Normal School, and he then engaged in general merchandising for about three vears. At the expiration of that time he spent a year in the west, and in 1877 established the drug business which, on and off, he has conducted ever since. He is variously identified with local undertakings, is politically a Republican and has served as postmaster several years, and as township assessor six years. He is fraternally prominent and popular, and a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he is Past Master, and the Masons. He also is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic. Mr. Rasdall is a genial and approachable gentleman, thoroughly conversant with the drug business, and connected, commercially and socially with the best element in the county.

REYNOLDS, CAPT. IRA B. - The Reynolds family became established in America some time prior to the Revolutionary war, the original immigrant having been Silas Reynolds of England, who enlisted on the side of his adopted country in its struggle against his native land. George, a son of this Revolutionary verteran, .was born at Highgate, Franklin county, Vermont, August 15, 1803, and married Seraph Pond, a native of Ver- mont, born in 1810. The latter's mother was a member of the well-known Bateman family and her father, Ira Pond, was one of twelve brothers and in weight w-ds the liglitest of them all, although he tipped the scales at two hundred and twenty pounds. During the residence of George Reynolds at Canton, St. Lawrence county, New York, his son, Ira B., was born April 31, 1841. Pour years later the family became pioneers of Wisconsin and settled near ilayville. Dodge county. At the age of eight years the son received his first educational advantages, being then sent to a school held in an old log cabin that burned down before the term had been completed. During 1850 a cousin, George P. Reynold.-;, later a minister of the Wisconsin conference of the ilethodist Episcopal denomination, came from Xew York and began to teach in the Sager school house, near Mayville, where he taught for a number of winters. In addition, at the close of the winter term, he was accustomed to open a select school,, charging $2 per month per pupil, and under his able instruction Ira B., then a youth of about seventeen years, gained an excellent knowledge of the common branches.

The great revival that swept over the United States during 18.57-.58 numbered Ira B. Reynolds among its converts, and he was baptized by Rev. I. W. Bolton, of the j\Iethodist Episcopal church, in Lamberson Creek, Dodge county, July 4, IS-^S; among the others baptized at the same time being George P. Reynolds, "Milo Boyingtnn, G. W. Burcb, and the Misses Louisa and Adea Reynold^. Prom that time to the present Mr. Reynolds has never lost his conviction of conversion or his membership in that denomination.

Seven days after the first call for volunteers made by President Lincoln, 'Mt. Reynolds, then a young man of twenty years, enlisted in the service of the Union, and at Mayville, Dodge county, was accepted as a private in Company E. Third Wisconsin Infantry, with which be remained until the spring of 1864. During the battle of Chancellorsville, ]\Iay .S, 1863, his left arm was broken at the wrist and an operation was necessary for the removal of nine pieces of bone from the arm. He was sent to Chestnut hill hospital, and N"ovember 1, 186.3, was transferred to the Si.\t3--ninth Invalid Corps, under Captain Chand- ler. Afterward he was assigned to Company E, Nineteenth Veteran Reserve Corps, stationed at Mnrtinville barracks, city of Wiisliington, and he was appointed postmaster of the regiment. It was his good fortune to have the freedom of the city and to attend many official receptions at the White House, where he had the pleasure of meeting and shaking hands with President Lincoln.

Receiving from ]\Iajor Foster permission to appear before General Casey's board, in the spring of 1864 Mr. Re3'nolds was examined for a commission in a colored regiment and was given a first-class captain's commission and assigned to Company I, Porty-third United States Colored Troops, Camp William Penn, Philadelphia, commanded by Colonel (afterward General) Lewis Wagner for a time and later by Colonel Yeomans. The regiment joined General Grant's command and accompanied him to Petersburg and Richmond, later Company P was sent to guard workmen engaged in rebuilding a bridge between Philadelphia and Baltimore that had been burned by the Confederate troops. When in 1865 General Grant made his last move to capture General Lee, the Porty-third was north of the James river, six miles from Richmond. On the morning of April 3, they marched over the Confederate barracks into the city, the lower half of which was burning, with the sole exception of Libby prison. Following General Lee in his hasty retreat, the Portj'-third captured that day fifteen hundred prisoners and thirty pieces of cannon. On the 4th Captain Reynolds received a pass to visit Libby and found the prison filled with Confederates, who were being fed the rations they had prepared for their captives. From there the captain went to the capital, where he procured a number of Confederate documents that he still has in his possession, some of these bearing the signatures of Jefferson Davis and the other Confederate officials.

At the close of the Civil war the Forty-third regiment was sent to the southern border. It had been ascertained that the Frencli were endeavoring to establisli a government in Mexico. Accordingly the United States government sent General Sheridan with thirty thousand soldiers to the south for the purpose of operating as necessary.

The Forty-third was stationed at Brownsville, Texas, just across from Matamoras, Mexico, and remained there until being mustered out of the service September 20, 1865. While the regiment had been stationed in camp at Stafford Courthouse, Virginia, in 1864, Captain Reynolds purchased a small tract of timber land in Minnesota. On leaving the army he came hither, arriving on the 20th of December, 1865, and found his father, mother and two sisters occupying a log house, built by a brother, Alvin P., in 1857, located on the east one hundred acres of the southeast quarter of section twenty-one, township one hundred and eight, range twenty-five west.

In the spring of 1866 Captain Reynolds entered Lawrence university at Appleton, Wisconsin, with the intention of studying for the Methodist ministry, but the failure of his eyesight obliged him to discontinue his studies and seek an outdoor life. Meanwhile his mother had been attacked by cancer of the tongue and from this she died in February of 1867. On the 11th of July, 1867, Captain Reynolds was united in marriage with Miss Susan Anderson, at Tivoli, Blue Earth count}', and their first ride after the wedding ceremony was taken in a lumber wagon drawn by a yoke of oxen. After his marriage he settled upon one hundred acres in the town of LeRay, Blue Earth county, and there he made his home for more than thirty-eight years, the only change meanwhile being the removal of the little log cabin to the substantial frame house. On that farm two sons and two daughters were born, namely: George A., October 1, 1868; Belle Reynolds Charlesworth, February 17, 1873; Arthur A., April 8, 1879 ; and Daisy, November 27, 1886.

Only ten acres of the farm had been cleared when Captain Reynolds brought his bride to the home. The balance was in heavy timber. During his long residence on the farm he cleared the land, cutting wood with an axe, making ties for tlie railroad, splitting rails for fences, and dig- ' ging out stumps. When the ground had been thus prepared, almost any kind of crop could be raised, for the soil was very rich. The principal products were wheat, barley, oats, rye, peas, corn, potatoes and all kinds of root crops. The small grain was cut with a cradle. The grass was cut with a scythe and raked by hand. Many of the young wives Joined their husbands in raking the grain into bundles for binding. Wheat was threshed with a flail and cleaned by the wind, after which it was carried many miles to the mills to be ground into flour. With later years improved machinery was introduced. The cradle was replaced by the dropper, that by the self-rake, next came the harvester, and finally the binder. The mowing machine took the place of the scythe and the horse rake superseded the hand rake. The walking plow gave way to the riding plow, and on every hand better machinery came into general use.

All of these changes Captain Reynolds witnessed during the long period of his residence on the farm. While living there he was elected town clerk in 1867, receiving every vote polled in the town (fifty-two in number). In addition he served as justice of the peace, chairman of the LeRay township board, and member of the school board of districts fifty and one hundred and twenty-seven. In May of 1905 he sold the home farm of one hundred and forty acres for $8,400, and removed to Eagle Lake, where he owns and occupies a residence surrounded by six acres of grounds. His first presidential vote was cast for Abraham Lincoln for the second term, and he has voted either the Republican or Prohibition ticket ever since. At the time that General Baker ran for congress. Captain Reynolds was nominated by the Prohibition party for congressman and received more than fourteen hundred votes.

It is a pleasure to Captain Reynolds to contrast the comforts and prosperity of the present with the privations of the past, and no one rejoices more than he in the development of the country. During the early part of the sixties the township of LeRay was a wilderness. A few settlers scattered through the big woods were bravely trying to earn a livelihood. The south two miles of the town was in reservation known as the Winnebago agency. The Sioux Indians were roaming at will through the woods and over the wide prairies south of the town. Settlers, young ami old, were busily engaged in digging gentian, and some men dug from forty to sixty pounds a day. Captain Reynolds has killed as many as thirty-five rattlesnakes in one-half day while mo\\'ing grass near his house, but at the present time not one could be found in the entire township. Wild game was plentiful in the woods. Fish aboimded in the lakes. Most of Madison lake, all of Eagle, Alice, Indian and ;\Iud lakes, and other small lakes, were in LeEay township. During the first twenty years of his residence in the township Captain Eeynolds aided in building its seventy-two miles of public highway and in opening the same for travel. In 1872-73 the Winona and St. Peter railroad was built through the township, coming in at Smith's Mill, Waseca county, and going out at Eagle Lake. The advent of the railroad started a new industry, the cutting of wood and ties for purchase by the company, which was the means of clearing the entire timber from the land. Fields of wheat and corn have taken the place of the timber, so that not enough timber is left to supply the actual needs of the fifteen hundred residents of the town, and as a result, where formerly wood was the only fuel, now many of the farmers have adopted coal as their principal fuel. In 1866 Captain I. B. Eeynolds was licensed afi an exborter in the Methodist Episeopal church, and later given a local preacher's license which he has held ever since.

EEYNOLDS, JOSEPH E. - The associate, editor of the ]\[ankato Daily Free Press was born in Lockport, New York, Xovember 1, 1863, and has been connected with newspaper work since boyhood years. His. father. Professor B. M. Eeynolds, was superintendent of some of the most advanced and important city schools in ISTew York, Illinois, Wiscons'n and Minnesota, and for some years officiated as superintendent of schools of Eice county. Through all of his mature years he has been an educator and his work in the line of his specialty has brought him into prominence.

After having gained a practical knowledge of the newspaper business through work in various offices, in 1887, Joseph E. Eeynolds became the telegraph editor of the Daily Xcws of ilshland, Wisconsin. The following year he bought out the Pioneer of Wadena, Minnesota, which he published until 1891, and then sold out in order to accept a position with the Fargo Argus. From 1892 until 1896 he was connected with the Great Falls Leader, during which period, in 1894, he was elected to the Montana legislature. In May, of 1896, he came to Mankato, and was engaged as city reporter for the Daily Eeview until the summer of 1902, since which time he has been editorially connected with the Daily Free Press. While living in Wisconsin he was married at Oshkosh, in ISS.'), to iliss Alice A. Lewis, and they are now the parents of two children, Wilfred Denver and Marv Grace.

EOBB, JOHX B. - John B. Eobb, local manager of the ^lankato branch of the Creamery Package ;Manuf acturing Company, one of the most important industries in Blue Earth County, has reached his position of responsibility by persistent and intelligent work and natural ability, both executive and mechanical. After being employed for five years by the Mankato Manufacturing Company, in the fall of 1882 he became general foreman of the Creamery Package Manufacturing Company, at the Yan Brunt Street plant, Mankato, and has since continued in that position, having at all times been an active factor in the unusual development of its business and the extension of its works. He has ably assisted, especially in all the details of removal and building, and the general establishment of the new plant in West Mankato, which began operations January 21, 1907. ITis duties include not only a supervision of the manufacture of the tubs, but the operation and necessary repairing of the machinery; in fact, he is in general charge of the practical work of the entire establishment, and what this means may be inferred from these facts concerning the plant.

The dimensions of the warehouse are 200x60 feet; factory, 100x40; shed, 60x8; dry kiln, 26x40, and engine room, 26x30. The boiler is of one hundred horse power and the engine of forty. Altogether the plant covers nearly a city block, and the daily output of tubs is twenty-five hundred. The company aims to have from seventy-five thousands to one hundred thousand tubs on hand at the time of greatest demand, in sum- mer, which accounts for the large warehouses of the plant; notwithstanding which large quantities of the packages are stored in Minneapolis and Sioux Falls.

ROBEBTS, EUGENE. - While America was in the colonial period of its history the Eoberts family became identified with the pioneers established along the bleak shores of the north Atlantic and from that time forward the name was honorably associated with the agricultural development of the country. Industrious in times of peace, they were no less active during epochs of war and gave true patriots to the service of the colonies during the Eevolutionary struggle. Later Shadrach Eoberts, a native of Massachusetts, took part in the war of 1813. Eive of his brothers-in-law, who bore the family name of Hobling, enlisted during the first war with England and one of them died during this war. Many years after the period of his service in the army Shadrach Eoberts met with business reverses in ISTew York and for that reason sought to start anew in the regions further west. Accompanied by his family he journeyed westward, partly traveling by wagon and partly sailing on the great lakes. On his arrival in Wisconsin he selected a location and took up the difficult task of transforming an uncultivated tract into a productive farm. Pioneer work filled the remaining years of his life and eventually he passed away on the place which owed its development to his unwearied industry.

Charles Henry Eoberts was born in Utica, ISTew York, and was the son of Sharach Eoberts. Coming west with the family he assisted in bringing a Wisconsin farm under cultivation. While ]\rinnesota was still largely in the primeval condition of nature he came to this state as a pioneer and secured land in Mapleton township. Blue Earth county. Somewhat later he took up the homestead still occupied by the family. Here he spent his remaining da3's engaged in general farming pursuits and winning the confidence of acquaintances through his superior education, recognized ability and high principles of honor. At the age of eiglity-two year.'^, in 1903, he passed from the scenes of his activities, since which time

All of the family of Charles Henry Roberts, comprising ten children, are still living. Ella married George Ackerman and makes her home in Sterling township. Clara is the wife of Frederick Ackerman of Sterling township. Augusta remains on the old homestead. Mary married Julius Borchardt and lives in Lyra township. AUie E., now Mrs. Leslie Cooper, is a resident of Vernon, this state. Frederick is living in Sterling. Eugene, whose name heads this narrative, was born in Sterling township, in 1872, and remains at the old homestead. Mabel married Eoy Fale}', a steam fitter, and lives in Duluth. Bessie and William continue with their mother at the old home farm. The children were educated in district schools and the public schools of J\Iankato, and on the home farm were trained to habits of industry and usefulness. In social circles they are honored for the sterling qualities of heart and mind that win and retain friends among the most refined people of any community. The homestead gives evidence of their industry, efficient management and energy. The residence furnishes them with a comfortable home provided with modern appointments. General farming operations are conducted and the returns from the raising of crops and the feeding of stock form a revenue of no inconsiderable amount.

ROBERTS, HUMPHREY J._Wherever the Welsh plant their standard they establish a church if there is not one already there. So when the father of Humphrey J. Roberts settled in Judson Township with his family over half a century ago he found that his scattered countrymen had no way to jointly worship and soon had organized the first Welsh church in that part of Blue Earth County. Both he and his brother (the uncle after whom Humphrey J. is named) were settlers of 185.'), and were among the first dozen to locate in the to.wnship, for years making it their prime business to extend a cordial and brotherly welcome to all new comers. They were of the highest type of pioneers, for they not only did their full share in developing the material resources of their section but also gave of their strength and substance to further the cause of morality and religion.

Of such a famil}' Humphrey J. Eoberts was born in Wales on the 24th of February, 1848^ the son of Owen and Catherine (Jones) Eoberts, both natives of Anglesey. His parents came to America when he was two years of age, first making the family home at Bridgeport, Ohio, and later removing it to Mason Citj-, West Virginia. In 1855 they came to Minnesota, pre-empting a claim in what is now section 32, Judson Township, where they resided for the balance of their lives. The mother died in 1890, at the age of sixty-eight years, the father surviving her until August 8, 1906, when he too passed away, aged eighty years. As stated, Owen Eoberts established the first Welsh church in his locality, it being at his home on section 5, and the date July 11, 1858. Services were first held there and afterward in other houses of the neighborhood until 1865, when a log church was built, the latter being used until the erection of the present structure on Section 6, at Judson, in 1871. This was knoAvn as Jersalem Calvinistic Church, and Eev. William M. Jones was its first pastor. Humphrey Jones, the maternal uncle of Humphrey J. Eoberts, previously mentioned, settled in Judson Township April 11, 1855.

During the early period the settlers wore much alarmed over threatened Indian raids, and upon one occasion the Eoberts family was obliged to actually vacate their farm for three weeks, turning the cattle loose notwithstanding the certainty that they would destroy much of their crops. In the family of eight children brought up amid such God-fearing, yet hard conditions, Humphrey J. was the second, and, besides himself, one is still living - Henry E., of Lake Crystal, ilinnesota.

As a boy Mr. Eoberts attended the district schools of Judson Township and the Commercial College, at St. Paul. He afterwards engaged in farming and after reaching his majority purchased a farm in Butternut Valley Township, which he conducted to sucli good advantage that in 1887, he became the owner of the farm which his uncle Humphrey Jones had pre-empted on section 5, Judson Township. To the latter he removed, cultivating and improving it until 1897, when, having acquired a competency, he retired to enjoy a period of well earned leisure and rest in Mankato.

Since he was eighteen years of age J\Ir. Eoberts has been a member of the Welsh Calvinistic Methodist Church, and even before that he had passed through a brief experience as a soldier of the Civil war, in 1866 enlisting as a scout under Captain Eobert H. Hughes. The second day out he was accidently shot through the arm with the bullet from a revolver, and w-as obliged to return home. While a resident of Judson Township he was honored with several local offices, serving as treasurer of the School Board and Supervisor. On Xovember 3, 1876, he was married to Miss Catherine J. Jones, daughter of Evan E. Jones, and they have become the parents of nine children, four of whom still survive : ^ aomi, Catherine Eleanor, John H., and Evan H. ; those deceased are Gononony 0., who died in 1896, at the age of seventeen years, Llewelyn H., Euth; Evan E., and Eichard N., who died in infancy. Mr. Eoberts is a man of practical ability and high honor and the family represent the substantial pioneer element of the county, which the rising generations are commencing to respect and revere more deeply as it is gradually fading into the past.

EOBINTSOiS', ANDEEW S. - For more than a quarter of a century Mr. Eobinson occupied a farm in Pleasant Mound township that ranked among the finely-improved estates of Blue Earth county. On coming to the township in 1875 he purchased land on section thirty-five and here he devoted himself assiduously to the cultivation of the soil and the making of needed improvements that would enhance the permanent value of the property. A fair degree of success rewarded his painstaking efforts. As the years passed by he gained an increasing reputation for sagacity, keen perception, wise methods in rotating crops and a profitable knowledge of the stock business. Eventually he retired from the heavy care.- incident to farm work and removed to Amboy, where he erected and now occupies a handsome and commodious residence containing modern improvements.