Lyon County, Minnesota - Biographical sketches, 1912 (part 12 of 17)

Then he and his brother bought land on sections 26 and 35 and for a time farmed in partnership. Our subject left his brother in charge of the farm, went to St. Paul, and until 1905 he clerked in a hotel. That year he located in Tracy and bought grain for the Sleepy Eye Milling Company. One year later he located in Marshall and for three years was agent for the Marshall Milling Company.

In recent years Mr. Simmons has been engaged in the real estate and insurance business. He is district manager for the Central Life Insurance Company of Des Moines, his territory embracing the counties of Lyon, Redwood, Yellow Medicine, Lac qui Parle and Lincoln. He is the owner of 240 acres on section 35, Lynd township, the northeast quarter of section 2, Lyons township, and farm land in Colorado. In Marshall he owns the brick block occupied by the Birkenmeyer dry goods store and the Adair millinery store and two residence properties.

Mr. Simmons was married at Ackley, Iowa, September 18, 1907, to Anna M. Krumling, a native of the city in which she was married. Mr. Simmons is a member of the Masonic and Eastern Star lodges.

PEDER FRO LAND (1891) is one of the substantial farmers of Vallers township, being the proprietor of 200 acres of some of the finest farming land of the township. The place is well improved and Mr. Froland is engaging quite extensively in stock raising.

Our subject was born in Hjorenfjord, Norway, February 23, 1865, and is a son of Ole and Maghild (Salret) Froland, both of whom are dead. Peter was educated in his native land and lived at home with his parents, assisting with the farm work, until twenty years of age. He then came to America and located in Yellow Medicine county, Minnesota. There he worked out at farm labor three years and then purchased eighty acres and started farming for himself, renting additional land and later buying another eighty acres. The young man prospered and in 1890 sold out and made a trip back to the Fatherland.

While on this trip Peder was married to Jacobine Willi, on March 31, 1891. She was born in -Norway April 17, 1870, and is a daughter of Ole and Johanna Willi, both liv- ing in the Fatherland. Peder and his young wife returned, to America in the spring of 1S91, and he bought the northwest quarter of section 9, Vallers township, which has been his home since and to which he has added an additional forty acres. Mr. Froland is chairman of the school board of district No. 56 and is one of the progressive men of the township.

Mr. and Mrs. Froland are the parents of eight children: Margaret A., Johannah P., Odella J., Laura W., Pearl J., Bennie, Ruth C. and Frances I. S.

CELFSTE AMPE (1901), a resident of Ghent since coming to Lyon county in 1901, is proprietor of a blacksmith and wagon repair shop. He is conducting a well paying business, owns the shop he is in, and owns also two nice residence properties in the village. Mr. Ampe is a member of the Town Board of Ghent and served on the Village Council two terms.

Aluis and Lena (Cysello) Ampe, parents of Celeste, were natives of Belgium, and our subject was born there November 17, 1875. The parents never came to this country, and the father is still living in Belgium, the mother being deceased. Celeste received his school education in the land of his birth, and from the time he was fourteen until his twenty-fourth birthday he worked at home for his father. Coming to America in 1899, Celeste located at Brainerd, Minnesota, where he was employed in the Great Northern railroad shops.

In 1901 our subject came to Lyon county and located at Ghent, where he worked in a blacksmith shop eight months. He then moved to Marshall and worked in Paul Gits' blacksmith shop one year. Returning to Ghent, he purchased the Victor Mileone blacksmith shop, which he has since conducted.

Celeste Ampe was married February 6, 1906, to Nellie Moors, a native of Belgium. They are the parents of four children, Peter, Mathew, John and Alouis. Mr. Ampe is a member of the Catholic church and conductor of the C. O. F. lodge.

JAMES J. AHERN (18S2), of Eidsvold township, has been a resident of Lyon county thirty years, since he was eight years of age. He farlns 400 acres of the 560 acres of his father's estate, the home place being on the southwest quarter of section 8, adjoining the village of Taunton.

Mr. Ahern is a son of the late Garrett Ahem and Kate (Brown) Ahern. The parents came from Ireland and were early settlers of Illinois. They came to Lyon county in 1882 and took up their residence in Eidsvold township. The father died in 1897 and the mother now makes her home with the subject of this review.

To these parents, in Sangamon county, Illinois, on October 9, 1874, James J. Ahern was bora. In 1882 he came with the family to Lyon county, and his home has ever since been in Eidsvold township. He assisted in the management of the home farm until 1903 and since that time he has had full charge.

Mr. Ahern is a member of the Catholic church of Minneota, of the Knights of Columbus lodge of Marshall, and of the Modern Woodmen lodge of Taunton. Of the last named he is one of the managers. Mr. Ahern is not married. His brothers and sisters are Garrett, Philip P. and Michael, of Taunton; Thomas, of Hampden, North Dakota; William, of Eidsvold township; Josie and Nance, who live at home; Nellie (Mrs. Thomas Walsh), of Fargo, North Dakota; and Katherine (Mrs. M. J. Breen), of Minneapolis.

W. W. COOK (1900), of Marshall, is the proprietor of one of the largest department stores in Lyon county and is a man who has spent his entire life in the mercantile business. He was born in Ohio, but in 1857 located in Austin, Minnesota, where he grew to young manhood. He attended the common schools and completed his education in Oberlin (Ohio) College, after which he engaged in mercantile pursuits.

Mr. Cook clerked a few years in a dry goods store in St. Paul and then returned to Austin, where he engaged in the business for himself. The next ten years were spent in business in Chicago, and then for fourteen years he had charge of the dry goods department of a department store in St. Paul. At Duluth Mr. Cook was the manager of the Patton & Watson department store. Thereafter for several years he was in busi- ness at St. Cloud and Melrose. In 1900 Mr. Cook located in Marshall and opened a stock of goods in the Chittenden building, where he has ever since been engaged in business. He carries a large stock of dry goods, notions and shoes and his store is known as "The Big Store."

Our subject is the son of W. W. and Martha B. (Little) Cook. They were born in New York State but moved to Oberlin, Ohio, in an early day. They later settled in Austin, Minnesota, where the father died at the age of forty-five years. The mother died in Marshall in 1907.

Mr. Cook has always taken an active part in the affairs of his city, doing more than his share in the promotion of every worthy cause. He is imbued with patriotism for his home city and is an enthusiastic supporter of every institution that will add to the renown of Marshall. He is a member of the Congregational church and of the Knights of Pythias and Royal Arcanum lodges.

By his first marriage Mr. Cook has one son, William W. Cook, Jr.. who is now engaged in the mercantile business in Marshall in partnership with his father. Mr. Cook, Jr.. is a young man of great business ability and has become an important factor in the business life of the city.

GUSTAV A. DEXXIX (1882), Rock Lake township farmer and for thirty years a resident of Lyon county, was born in Germany August 27, 1872. His father, Charles Dennin, died in Germany, and his mother, Hannah Dennin, died in Dempster, South Dakota, where she had resided since coming to America in 1890.

Gustav came to America with an uncle, Gust YVendland, when a lad of ten years and resided with his uncle the next seven years, meanwhile going to school at Balaton and Tracy. At the age of seventeen he secured work with James Collins, manager of the Hunter & Able stock ranch in Murray county, and he held that position fourteen years. For about one year after that he was employed in the George Tate elevator at Balaton, returning to work for a few months on the Hunter & Able ranch in Murray county, and later working a few months in the employ of a butcher in New Ulm.

farming for himself in the spring of 1903, having bought the southeast quarter of section 4, Rock Lake, in 1907. He now owns 210 acres on section 4, and his fine herd of Polled Angus cattle is among the best in the county. All Mr. Dennin's land is in a fine state of cultivation and he has prospered. He is a shareholder in the Farmers Elevator Company and the Farmers Cooperative Company of Balaton.

Gustav Dennin and Martha Baer were joined in the holy bonds of matrimony at Balaton on June 28, 190.6. Mrs. Dennin is a native of Lyon county and was born August 28, 1887, her parents being Mr. and Mrs. Alfred Baer, of Lyons township. Mr. and Mrs. Gustav Dennin are the parents of three children, Erma, Arthur and Anna. The family are members of the German Lutheran church of Balaton.

CHRISTIAN M. DUUS (1904) is proprietor of the City Meat Market of Tracy. He is a native of Denmark and was born June 21, 1868. At eighteen years of age he came to America and located at Tyler, Lincoln county, Minnesota, where he conducted a meat market two years. He then went to Minneapolis, where he worked at his trade about thirteen years. Returning to Tyler he conducted a meat market until 1904.

In the latter year Mr. Duus came to Lyon county and located at Tracy, where he purchased the G. A. Hanson meat market, which he has since conducted. He handles all kinds of meats and canned goods and has one of the most up-to-date meat markets in Tracy, with all the latest improved machinery. Our subject is a member of the M. W. A. and A. O. U. W. lodges.

On December 5, 1895, at Minneapolis, occurred the marriage of Mr. Duus to Thoro Jacobson, a native of Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Duus are the parents of the following children: Cecelia Lydia and Raymond.

The subject of this review is a son of Peter Hanson and Catherine Duus, both of whom are deceased. They were the parents of the following children: Hans, of Lincoln county; Peter, a retired farmer; Kristan, a retired farmer of Tyler; Lars H., of Tyler: Henry, of Pine county, Minnesota: Elsie. Annie and Mary, of Minneapolis.

I'.Mxjwaimiical History

CHARLES A. ILLIAN (1900) rents a large farm in Monroe township, having charge of the east half of section 16 and 200 acres on section 9, land belonging to J. A. Hunter.

Mr. Illian was born in Prussia August 14, 1N44, being the son of Frederick William Illian and Louisa Illian. The mother died when Charles was a baby and the father died in 1858. When Charles was seven years old he came with his father to the United States and they settled in Scott county, Iowa, where the father died, and where our subject lived until May, 1864. In that month he enlisted in Company I, Forty-fourth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, and served until the following September, being detailed on skirmish duty and in guarding railways in Mississippi and Tennessee.

After the war our subject returned to Scott county and engaged in farming about six years; then he moved to Benton county, Iowa, where he farmed three years. While living in Benton county Mr. Illian was married, September 22, 1872, to Amelia Knaack, who was born in Prussia November 4, 1854. After their marriage the young couple went to Plymouth county, Iowa, where they lived on a farm until 1898, moving then to Redwood county, Minnesota, and farming two years in the vicinity of Walnut Grove. In 1900 Mr. Illian took charge of Mr. Hunter's farm in Monroe township, where he has remained.

Mr. and Mrs. Illian have eleven children living: Paulina (Mrs. Mons Larson) and Richard, of Amiret township; Otto, of O'Brien county, Iowa; Louis, Barnard and Olga (Mrs. Fred Miller), of Blackhawk county, Iowa; Oscar, of Waverly, Iowa; and Frank, Charles, Emilie and Arthur, at home. The oldest child, Fred, died at the age of thirteen months.

AUGUST PETERSON (1890) is the proprietor of a hardware store in the city of Tracy. He was born in Sweden April 2, 1873, a son of Peter and Allan (Hawkinson) Anderson. The father died in 1911, and Mrs. Anderson resides in Sweden. They were the parents of seven children, as follows: Mrs. Rettig, of Denver, Colorado;

August Peterson resided in the land of his birth until 1890, when he came to the United States and located in Lyon county. He has resided in the county almost continuously since that time. He spent one year in Minneapolis and farmed a year in Murray county, after which he moved to Tracy, and he has since lived there. He worked four years for Dr. Farrell, and then tended bar one and one-half years. Then, in company with John Lindeman, he started a saloon, which he conducted two years. Mr. Peterson spent some time as agent for the Standard Broom Company of Mankato, after which he again engaged in the saloon business for two years. On January 1, 1909, he purchased of H. E. McKenzie the hardware store he now conducts. He handles shelf and heavy hardware.

Mr. Peterson was married at Ruthton, Minnesota, August 2, 1901, to Selma Johnson. They are the parents of two children, Delpha and Bernetta.

NELS P. JOHNSON (1892) is a farmer and land owner of Coon Creek township. He was born in Denmark October 27, 1863, a son of Jens and Margaret (Anderson) Olson. He grew to manhood and received his education in the land of his birth and when nineteen years old immigrated to America. He located in Cook county, Illinois, where he worked a short time in a stone quarry and six years on a dairy farm.

In 1892 Mr. Johnson came to Lyon county and rented land east of Russell four years. He then purchased 120 acres on section 36, Coon Creek township, which he still owns and operates. He raises considerable stock, including Durham cattle and Poland China and Duroc-Jersey hogs. Mr. Johnson is a member of the Masonic and Workmen lodges. He was chairman of the school board of district No. 92 six years and has served on the Township Board three years.

Maria (Jacobson) Jergenson, and was bora July 16, 1871. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson are the parents of the following named five children: Nils Alfred, born October 30, 1889; Louis J., born November 29, 1891; George C, born March 7, 1893; Cecilia M., born March 6, 1895; Etlar A., born April 9, 1902.

LOUIS VERMEERSCH (1892) is the proprietor of a pool hall in Ghent and is interested in different business enterprises. He is a stockholder of the First State Bank and of the Ghent Farmers Elevator Company. Mr. Vermeersch is a member of the Village Council, having served three years.

Our subject was born September 6, 1860, in Belgium. His parents, Peter and Coletta (De Bert) Vermeersch, are both dead. Louis was educated in the land of his birth and later worked at the shoemaker's trade in Belgium until 1892, when he immigrated to this country. Upon his arrival he located in Marshall, resided there six months, and then moved to Ghent, where he worked at various forms of labor until 1900. He then bought lots in Ghent and engaged in truck gardening, a pursuit to which he still gives some attention. During the last few years Mr. Vermeersch has also erected the building in which he conducts his pool hall and a comfortable residence in the village. He is a member of the Catholic church.

ANDREW KELSON (1903) is the proprietor of 160 acres of well-improved farm land, the southeast quarter of section 8, Custer township. He raises considerable stock and makes a specialty of Hereford cattle and Berkshire hogs. Mr. Kelson owns shares in the Farmers Elevator Companies of Garvin and Balaton.

Our subject was born in Denmark June 17, 1S65, and at the age of six years went to live with an uncle, the boy's mother, Johanna C. (Sorenson) Kelson, having died. Andrew Kelson, the lad's father, died before Andrew was born. The youth was reared in his uncle's family and received his schooling in his native land. At the age of seventeen years he came to this country in company with a cousin, Engar Sorenson. The boys located at St. Mary's, Iroquois county, Illinois, where Andrew worked on a farm about fifteen years, later renting land and farming for himself. The fall of 1903 found Mr. Kelson in Lyon county. He bought the land in. Custer on which he has since resided.

Mr. Kelson's marriage to Mary E. Sorenson occurred at Kankakee, Illinois, February 27, 1SS8. She was born in Denmark September 26, 1869, and her mother, Annie Sorenson, is living at the age of seventy-three years. The father, Andrew Sorenson, died in 1S99 in South Dakota. Four children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Kelson. They are James, born November 25, 1889; Alfred C, born September 21, 1891; Annie C, born March 4 1893; and Louise A., born June 12, 1897.

JOHN M. ANDERSON (1891) is proprietor of the Liberty Lunch Room in Cottonwood, having purchased the business from Henry Hanson in May, 1907. He serves short orders and lunches and handles cigars, candies, ice cream and soft drinks. He has been enjoying a liberal patronage, owns his store building, and has a nice residence in the village. In May, 1912, he purchased T. Fossum's restaurant and moved to his new location June 1. He carries on the business under the old name.

Our subject was born in Crawford county, Wisconsin, January 2, 1877, and is a son of Magnus and Ingeborg Anderson, the former of whom is now a resident of Clarkfield, Minnesota, the latter having died at Cottonwood in May, 1903. John received his early education in Dakota and about four years of schooling in Lyon county after the family moved from Dakota and settled on a farm near Cottonwood.

From his eighteenth year until he attained his majority John worked on the farm and then hired out to Bolsted & Mero, liverymen of Cottonwood. He worked for that firm a while and later for George Anderson several years. He then engaged in the livery and dray business with his brother-in-law, Sam Olson, and at the end of six months bought his partner's interest in the dray line. He continued that business two and one-half years and then was- compelled by ill health to sell and cease active work. One year's rest found Mr. Anderson greatly improved and he engaged in the dairy business for a little over two years, after which he bought the Liberty Lunch Room and took charge.

John M. Anderson and Hulda Larson were married September 20, 1902, in Yellow Medicine county. The bride was born November 2 9, 1882, and is a daughter of Ole Larson, a Yellow Medicine county farmer. Mr. Anderson is a member of Silo Norwegian Lutheran Church of Cottonwood. He has served as a member of the Village Council of Cottonwood for the past two years.

PHILIP A. NELSON (1893) is the proprietor of a" well-improved half section of land three and one-half miles north of Tracy, one of the best farms in Amiret township. Besides this place Mr. Nelson owns eighty acres of land in Redwood county. He raises Shorthorn cattle extensively and may well be proud of his stock.

Mr. Nelson was born in Nicollet county, Minnesota, July 5, 1869, and is a son of C. J. and Emily (Pierson) Nelson, natives of Sweden. His parents came to America in 18 59 and remained in New York one year, where C. J. Nelson found employment. They then moved to Fillmore county, Minnesota, and after spending one year in that county settled in Nicollet county, where they had taken a homestead. It was during the family's ten year residence in that county that the subject of this sketch was born.

The Nelson family moved to Minneapolis from Nicollet county, and after one year's residence in that city they went to Redwood county, in 1873, and took preemption and tree claims. There Philip received his education, remaining at home until twenty-one years of age. He then bought eighty acres of railroad land in the county and started farming for himself, shortly after buying an additional eighty. After three years of farming our subject traded his quarter section for the southeast quarter of section 36, Amiret township, Lyon county, and has since acquired additional land.

.Mr. Nelson was married in Redwood county December 31, 189 5, to Anna Johnson. She was born in England September 7, 1871, and is a daughter of Thomas and Margaret (Charlton) Johnson, natives of England. The parents now reside in Amiret township. To Mr. and Mrs. Nelson three children have been born: William, born April 7, 1897, and Dorothy, born October 12, 1906.

FRED W. COPELAND (1874) is a painter and paperhanger of Marshall. He was born in Olmsted county, Minnesota, on October 22, 1868, a son of Dr. J. F. and Lydia (Crossman) Copeland, natives of Pennsylvania. She died in June, 1875; Mr. Copeland is a resident of Marshall. They were the parents of three children, as follows: J. L., Fred W. and Lydia A.

Fred came to Lyon county in 1874 and located at Marshall, where he has practically made his home since, receiving his education in the Marshall schools. In December, 1883, he commenced learning the trade of painter at St. Charles, Minnesota, where he resided a little less than three years. He also learned carriage and wagon painting while there. He then returned to Marshall and has since lived there, following his trade. , , Mr. Copeland was married at Minneapolis on March 14, 1906, to Mabel Crane, a native of Canada.

OTTO M. KEEHL (1893) is a man who has seen a good deal of farm life and has become well acquainted with business life in the great American city. With experience in both he seems to prefer farming good Lyon county land, and he rents the southwest quarter of section 12, Rock Lake township.

Our subject was born in Germany May 14, 187 6, and came with his parents to America in 1882. The family made their residence for some years in New York City, and there Otto received his early education in the public schools. In the fall of 1893 the family came to Lyon county, the father purchasing land in Rock Lake. Otto had preceded the family in the spring and worked on the farm of Charles Breen- ing in Rock Lake one year. After his parents located in the county, the boy worked on the home farm three years and then returned to New York City and worked at the painter's trade one year. Then enlisting in the United States army, he served six years. During that time he was stationed in various parts of the world and was advanced to the office of first sergeant.

Resigning from the army, Mr. Keehl entered business life in New York, becoming agent for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company and serving several months, later becoming assistant superintendent of the Staten Island and the Buskirk districts. For six months Mr. Keehl was home office inspector of the company. In March, 1912, our subject returned to Lyon county and rented the land which he now operates.

Otto Keehl and Margaret Schroeder were married in New York October 22, 1902. Mrs. Keehl, a native of New York City, was born November 18, 187 6, and is a daughter of Julius and Magdalene Schroeder, the former of whom is dead and the latter a resident of New York. The Keehls have one child, Mabel Lillian, born August 24, 1903. They are members of the German Lutheran church of Balaton. Mr. Keehl's parents resided in Lyon county until 1899, in which year they returned East and are now residents of New Jersey.

D. M. KING (1895) has devoted almost his entire life to railroad work and for the past seventeen years has been agent of the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad Company at Marshall.

In Orleans county, New York, on September 20, 1857, D. M. King was born. He was brought up in that county and until he was past twenty-two years of age he lived on the farm. In the spring of 1880 he came West and for one year studied telegraphy in an office at Grand Rapids, Wisconsin. He was then assigned to the office at City Point, Wisconsin, and held the office until 1888. That year he entered the employ of the Northwestern, and until he moved to Marshall in 18 95 he was agent at Stockton, Wijiona county, Minnesota.

Mr. King is a member of the Congregational church. He holds membership in the Blue Lodge, Chapter, Commandery and Eastern Star of the Masonic orders and in the Workmen and Royal Arcanum lodges.

Mattie M. Brooks became the wife of Mr. King at Oshkosh, Wisconsin, on, September 20, 1882. She is a native of the city in which she was married. Mr. and Mrs. King have two children, Erna M. and Vera.

John and Mariah (Vessey) King were Uie parents of our subject. They came from England in 1853 and lived in Orleans county, New York, until their deaths. The other children of the family are John, of Seattle, Washington; Mrs. F. J. Ames, of Penn Yan, New York; Sarah, Jennie and Alice, all of Albion, New York.

DR. F. D. GRAY (1911), a physician and surgeon, is proprietor of the Marshall Hospital and also maintains a training school for nurses in connection, the latter branch having been opened in September. 1911.

Dr. Gray is a son of Robert J. and Elizabeth A. (Porteus) Gray, the former a native of Ireland and the latter of Pennsylvania, and was born at Lisbon, New York, April 4, 1870. He grew to manhood in the town in which he was born and was graduated from the Ogdensburg Free Academy and from the University of Michigan. He then went to Chicago and entered the Medical Department of Northwestern University, from which he was graduated in 1899. He was an interne at St. Joseph's Hospital, St. Paul, for a time and then opened a hospital at Vesta, Minnesota, which he conducted nine years.

In 1911 Dr. Gray located in Marshall and in March of that year he opened the hospital. This is one of the large medical institutions of Southwestern Minnesota and has met with marked success. It was opened through the solicitation of the business men and the Commercial Club of Marshall. The hospital has a forty-bed capacity and is modern in every respect, being one of the best equipped hospitals in the state. Three hundred operations were performed during the first year after the institution was opened.

stalled a deep soft-water well, by drilling 250 feet. That supplies the hospital with all its water. An excellent system of fire protection has been installed, and every precaution has been taken to make the building as near fire-proof as possible. This, with the spacious grounds which surround the building, which is constructed of stone and brick, makes it very safe. Hot water heat, electric lights, elevator, and a modern operating room, make it an institution that Marshall and surrounding towns are proud of.

During his surgical career, Dr. Gray has operated on about tljree thousand patients. He holds membership in the county, state and national medical societies, and he is a member of the Masonic lodge.

On July 14, 1908, at Vesta, Minnesota, occurred the marriage of Dr. Gray to Nettie W. Urbach. They are the parents of two children, Elizabeth Anna and Robert Fred.

HORACE M. CLARK (1905), of Marshall, has been a resident of Lyon county only a few years, but during that time he has been prominently identified with the affairs of his city and county. The part he has played in local affairs during the seven years he has been in the county has resulted in good. His most noticeable achievement is that in connection with the Lyon County Fair Association, of which he has been secretary since 1910. To Mr. Clark and R. B. Daniel belongs much of the credit for putting the association on a paying basis and bringing the county fairs to their present high standard. Mr. Clark is richly entitled to biographical mention in this history of Lyon county.

The gentleman whose name heads this review was born in Burlington, Iowa, July 29, 1858. When the Civil War came on his father entered the Union Army and at the close of the war the family located in Washington, where the elder Clark held a government position. In the capital of the country Horace Clark spent his boyhood days and secured his primary education. In 1872 he accompanied the family to Wahoo Valley, Nebraska, where his parents homesteaded land and where our subject

Horace Clark matriculated in the University of Nebraska, but because of the ravages of the grasshoppers he was obliged to give up his studies and work to help support the family. He taught school several years in his home county and later engaged in farming and stock raising. He was successful and in time accumulated considerable land. He took an active part in politics and held several offices of trust, among them being auditor of Saunders county four years, assistant secretary of the Nebraska State Senate two terms, and superintendent of the State Industrial School for Girls from 1900 to 1905.

In 1905 Mr. Clark bought two farms in Fairview township, Lyon county, and since that date he has made his home in Marshall, devoting his time to their management and other duties. He is chairman of the Republican County Central Committee and is quite active in local politics. Mr. Clark holds membership in the Knights of Pythias, Workmen and Woodmen lodges.

At Mead, Nebraska, on March 3, 1880, occurred the marriage of Mr. Clark and Tilla Larson, she being a native of Sweden. Mr. and Mrs. Clark have six children, named as follows: Jessie, Henry, Helen, Arthur, Bernice and Thomas. Two children, Florence and Ruth, are deceased.

The parents of our subject were Thomas C. and Mary (Martin) Clark, both deceased. The former was born in Martinsville, Indiana, in 1831 and located in Burlington, Iowa, in 1834. During the War of the Rebellion he was chaplain of the Eighth Iowa Cavalry. Mrs. Clark was a native of England. The following five sons and one daughter constitute the children of this family: Horace M., William, Fred, Walter, Oscar and Lulu.

RICHARD B. DANIEL (1901), real estate dealer of Marshall, is a man who has been active in the affairs of his city and county during his eleven year residence here and one who has done much to advance the interests of his community. He has been a moving spirit in the county fair association and has assisted largely in making that popular institution a sue- cess. Perhaps his greatest claim to distinction is the success he has met in the development of corn and the interest he has aroused in its culture. For the past ten years he has expended time and energy in that direction and he has a wide reputation all over the Middle West as the "Corn Land Man" among real estate men.

The subject of this review was born at Logan, Kentucky, November 23, 1860. When he was ten months of age the family moved to Macoupin county, Illinois, and there our subject grew to manhood and made his home until 18 89. He received a good education and was graduated from the Valparaiso, Indiana, College with the class of 1888.

Mr. Daniel took up teaching as his profession and in 1889 he moved to Marble Rock, Iowa, and for two years was principal of the public schools there. Thereafter until 1901 he held like positions in the schools of Dows, Sanborn and Primghar, all in Iowa.

In 1901 Mr. Daniel became a resident of Marshall. He purchased the abstract business of L. D. Fosket, which had formerly been owned by the Lyon County National Bank, and conducted the business one year. On August 1, 1902, he entered into partnership with J. W. Humphrey and engaged in the real estate, insurance, loan and abstract business as the senior member of the firm of R. B. Daniel & Company. The partnership was dissolved in 1904 and since that date Mr. Daniel has conducted the business alone. He has met with success and has built up an enormous business.

In many lines of endeavor besides his personal business has Mr. Daniel been interested. He was one of the prime movers in the county fair organization and was made its first secretary. He resigned the office after two months' service but served again during the years 1906, 1907, 1908 and 1909 and he has since been assistant secretary. He served as alderman two terms and during his incumbency and largely through his instrumentality the city electric lighting plant was developed to its present efficiency.

of the Masonic orders and the Knights of Pythias. While a resident of Marble Rock, Iowa, he served as chancellor commander and he has been eminent commander of the Commandery at Marshall.

At Primghar, Iowa, on October 24, 1900, Mr. Daniel was united in marriage to Helen Seckerson, a native of Wisconsin and a former county superintendent of schools of O'Brien county, Iowa. She died May 3, 1904.

The second marriage of Mr. Daniel occurred at Marshall March 24, 1909, when he wedded Mrs. Hannah Olson, the widow of John G. Olson, a former clothing merchant of Marshall. By her first marriage Mrs. Daniel has one child, Agnes.

Our subject is a son of Addison N. and Mary F. (Brake) Daniel, both natives of Kentucky. The Daniel family is of Virginia stock and the Brake family were originally from North Carolina.

BOYD T. REESE (1900). One of the younger and progressive farmers of Lyon county is Boyd T. Reese, who owns and operates the southeast quarter of section 3, Lynd township. He engages in general farming and raises thoroughbred Shropshire sheep, Shorthorn cattle, Poland China hogs and Barred Plymouth Rock chickens. He has resided on his present place for the past twelve years.

Boyd Reese was born in Evansville, Wisconsin, December 3, 1878, a son of Edward and Jane (Swancutt) Reese, who still reside at Evansville. From the age of seven until fifteen our subject attended the country school near Evansville, later attended high school three years and the Evansville Seminary two years. He then worked for his father on the farm for about a year and also clerked and worked as a bookkeeper for some time in Evansville. In 1899, in company with R. L. Finn, Mr. Reese purchased the southeast quarter of section 3, Lynd township, and moved to the place the following year. In 1909 Mr. Reese purchased his partner's interest in the farm.

On January 21, 1900, Sophia Larson became the wife of our subject at Evansville, Wisconsin. She is. the daughter of Louis and Lena (Gilbertson) Larson, of

Janesville, Wisconsin. .Mr. and Mrs. Reese aii' tin' parents of the following named children: Warren, horn October 27, 1901; Leroy, horn March 25, 1 !M»4 ; Arthur, horn October 17, 1908. One child died when eleven days old.

I1ALDOR G. JOHNSON (1902) is the junior member of the firm of Johnson & Son, general merchants of Minneota. lie was born in Lincoln county, Minnesota, January 30, 1882, and grew to manhood on his father's farm in that county.

In 1903 our subject accompanied his parents to Minneota and entered the employ of G. A. Dalmann & Company. In 1908 he and his father purchased the business of Mr. Dalmann and have since conducted it under the firm name of Johnson & Son. Mr. Johnson is a member of the Masonic and Modern Woodmen lodges. He was a member of the Village Council in 1910 and is at present village recorder.

The subject of this review was married in Minneota June 14, 1911, to Martha L. Hognason, a native of Lyon county. She is a daughter of S. .Hognason, a pioneer resident of the county.

The parents of our subject are Arngrim and Johanna Johnson, natives of Iceland. The father was born August 5, 18 49, and came to the United States in 1876, locating in Westerheim township, Lyon county. He resided in that precinct one and onehalf years and then moved to Lincoln county and homesteaded land in Royal township. He resided in Lincoln county until 1902. In the fall of the latter year he moved to Minneota and in 1903 bought an interest in the general store of G. A. Dalmann. The firm name was then changed to G. A. Dalmann & Company.

In February, 19 08, Arngrim and Haldor Johnson purchased Mr. Dalmann's interest in the store, and the firm name was changed to Johnson & Son. They enlarged the store and carry a fine line, of goods. Mr. Johnson was chairman of the Township Board of Supervisors in Limestone township and a member of the board of Royal township. He also was a member of the school board in Royal township. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson are the parents of

1IATTHKW D. HAHN (1892) is a wellknown farmer of Ainiret township. He was horn in Prusen, Germany, November 2, 1.858, and is a son of Frank and Mary Hahn.

The parents of Matthew Hahn brought the boy to America when he was two and one-half years of age, and the family settled in Chicago, where the father worked at the carpenter's trade. Matthew was brought up in the city and was educated in the schools there. When eighteen years he enlisted in the United States army and served ten years. In 1886 he returned to Chicago and for six years was employed as a street car conductor.

It was in 1892 that Mr. Hahn came to Lyon county, having a short time before bought 200 acres of land on section 16, Ami ret township. There he located and lived until the fall of 1905, when he sold his land and bought the south half of the southeast quarter of section 20, where he has since resided. Mr. Hahn is a successful farmer and is devoting much time to the raising of Red Polled cattle and Poland China hogs. His Barred Rock chickens and Toulouse geese are prize winners and he has taken several first prizes with them at county fairs and at the state fair. In his general farming Mr. Hahn is making a specialty of corn and vegetables. He received first premium on potatoes and vegetables at the state fair and several county fairs in 1911. He raised fifty-four bushels of Whimple Yellow Dent corn per acre, shelled net weight, in 1911.

In Chicago, Illinois, Matthew Hahn was married to Jane O'Rourk, the ceremony taking place January 16, 188 5. His wife was born at Cedar Falls, Iowa, April 2 3, 1868, and is a daughter of Daniel and Ann (Conroy) O'Rourk, natives of Ireland. To Mr. and Mrs. Hahn have been born the following children: Mary K., born March 31, 1886; Clara, born December 16, 1889; Annie, born September 12, 1891; Matthew, born September 16, 1893; Timothy, born March 8, 1895; Frank, born December 16, 1897; Joseph, born October 4, 1899; John, born May 20, 1902; Thomas, born March

Biogkaphical History

7, 1904; and William, born June 22, 1909. Mr. Hahn is a member of the Minnesota Field Crop Breeders Association and is president of the Lyon County Corn Growers Association. He has been an active man in the affairs of the township and is a progressive farmer. Mr. Hahn's mother is still living in Chicago. Her husband died there in 1902.

L. P. SOUCY (1902) is the senior member of the firm of Marshall Furniture Company and is the manager of the company's store at Marshall. He is a native of Quebec, Canada, and was born November 2 5, 1867. When a baby he was taken to Manville, Rhode Island, and there he lived until twenty-two years of age. He then engaged in the undertaking business with a brother, Samuel, at Fall River, Massachusetts, and in 1892 he located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. After ten years spent in the undertaking business in the metropolis of Minnesota, in 1902 Mr. Soucy located in Marshall, where he has ever since resided.

Upon his arrival Mr. Soucy bought the Josh Goodwin stock of furniture, conducted the store three years, and then organized the Marshall Furniture Company. The company was incorporated May 1, 1908. by L. P. Soucy, Edward Birkner and Alfred Birkner. In August, 1910, the Birkner brothers sold their interests to Joseph Fisher and the officers of the company are now as follows: Joseph Fisher, president; Chris Rock, vice president; L. P. Soucy, secretary, treasurer and manager. Our subject has charge of the store and carries on the business. The store is one of the largest in the state outside of the Twin Cities. Large lines of household furniture, carpets, rugs, etc., are carried in stock. Undertaking parlors are also maintained.

Mr. Soucy was married at Minneapolis to Alice B. Garneau and to them have been born three children, Emile, Argerie and Blanch. Mr. Soucy is a member of the Yeomen, Knights of Columbus and Modern Woodmen lodges.

Our subject was born in North Ireland in the fall of 1850. His parents, James Leitch and Elizabeth Ann (Whiteford) Leitch, are no longer living. Henry lived in Ireland until 1872, receiving his education and helping with the farm work. Coming to the United States in 1872, he spent one year in Ohio and then moved to Winnebago county, Iowa, where he lived six years, working at farm labor. For several years thereafter he divided his time between Lyon and Blue Earth counties, in Minnesota, and in the vicinity of the town of Waseca, working on farms for the most part. In 1890 Mr. Leitch came to Lyon county, and after renting for about two years and a half he bought the land where he now resides and which he has greatly improved in late years.

Leitch was married December 28, 1898, in Monroe township, to Esther Wilson, a native of Canada. They are affiliated with the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Leitch has served on the township board, having been a member for three years.

HALVOR E. FINSETH (1898) is the senior member of the firm doing business as the Central Creamery Company of Tracy. He is a native Minnesotan and has spent a large part of his life in the creamery business.

Our subject was born in the township of Holton, Goodhue county, Minnesota, on March 17, 1867. He was educated in the public schools of Northfield and in a business college at Decorah, Iowa. At the age of nineteen years he went to Minneapolis and for the next few years was engaged in several different lines of business there, conducting a shoe store, dealing in real estate, and operating a small creamery. He was married in 1896 and the next year conducted the old home farm in Goodhue county.

In 1898 Mr. Finseth located in Tracy. For six months he was employed as buttermaker for the Success Creamery Company and during the following winter took the management of a creamery in Hawley township, Murray county. After giving up the position in Tracy Mr. Finseth devoted his entire time to the management of the Murray county institution and conducted it three years. He then located in Willmar, managed the creamery of the Farmers Co-operative Creamery Company two years, and then bought that company's plant, organized a $10,000 stock company, built a cold storage plant, combined the two enterprises, and then sold out. His next location was Early, Iowa, where he was in the machinery business a short time, and then spent a year and a half on the road for a cream separator company.

Mr. Finseth again became a resident of Tracy in 1906. The same year he organized the Central Creamery ' Company, bought a plant already established, and a year and a half later took in as a partner W. E. Westberg. The latter sold his interest in July, 1911, to John Klabunde, the butter-maker, and that gentleman and Mr. Finseth are now the proprietors. The firm manufactures butter and ice cream and deals in crushed fruits and soda fountain supplies.

Our subject is a son of Herbrand and Guri (Qui) Finseth. They were born in Norway but came to America in early life, in 1852 or 1853, and homesteaded in Goodhue county, Minnesota. The father died there in 1901; the mother still lives on the old homestead. There are five children in the family, named as follows: Halvor E., Mary, Emma, Knute and Anna.

An uncle of our subject, A. K. Finseth, who now lives a retired life in Goodhue county, has taken quite a prominent part in the political affairs of Minnesota. He served as a state senator six terms and served as state food commissioner, having been appointed by Governor Merriam.

WALTER R. CHITTENDEN (1880), of Marshall, is a native of the city in which he lives. He descends from an old colonial family with a Revolutionary War record. He is the son of pioneers of Lyon county.

Walter was born May 6, 1880, and until he reached his majority resided in the city of his birth. His primary education was secured in the Marshall public schools, and it was supplemented with a one year course in Ames College and a two years' course in Kearney Military Academy, of Kearney, Nebraska. At the age of twenty-one years he went to Oliver county, North Dakota, took a homestead, resided on the place two years, and commuted.

After obtaining title to his land Mr. Chittenden located in Ritzville, Washington, and during the next four years was a member- of the firm of Chittenden Brothers, grocery dealers. He sold his interests in the store and located in Canby, Minnesota. There he engaged in the mercantile business two years and at Gary, South Dakota, two years. Mr. Chittenden then returned to Marshall and has since been associated with his father in the real estate business. He is a member of the Masonic, Elks and Modern Woodmen lodges.

Walter Chittenden was married at Spokane, Washington, June 5, 1906, to Louise M. Dawell, a native of Sprague, Washington, and a daughter of August and Hannah Dawell, of that place. Mr. and Mrs. Chittenden have one child, Rodney D., born November 1, 1909.

OLE PAULSON (1891), Coon Creek township farmer, was born in Denmark June 15, 1860. His parents are Paul and Annie (Matson) Jenson. He received his early schooling in Denmark and worked at farm labor until twenty-five years of age, when he came to the United States. He located in Shelby county, Iowa, where he worked at farm labor two years. He then moved to Le Sueur county, Minnesota, near St. Peter, where he worked in the stone quarries and on the railroad four years, after which he came to Lyon county.

Prior to his arrival to Lyon county in 1891 Mr. Paulson had purchased the east half of the northeast quarter of section 32, Coon Creek township. That property he later sold and purchased the land he now owns and operates, the northeast quarter of section 29, of the same township. He has made all the improvements on the place and has a fine farm. When Mr. Paulson came to Lyon county he had two cows, one pair of oxen, a wagon, fifty dollars cash and had $140 paid down on his eighty acre tract. He holds stock in the Lyon County Co-operative Store Company of Russell and is a director of school district No. 7 6. He holds membership in the Modern Woodmen and Danish Brotherhood of America lodges. Mr. Paulson was married at Avoca, Iowa, on May 28, 1885, to Mary Nelson, a native of Denmark. She is a daughter of Nels and Johanna (Christenson) Mortenson and was born July 20, 1862. Mr. and Mrs. Paulson are the parents of the following named six children: Katie, born July 21, 1889; Charles J., born March 10, 1891; Chris P. and Fred M. (twins), born March 2, 1894; George W., born April 1, 1902; Magdaline, born November 1, 1903.

GEORGE GEIWITZ (1898) is the proprietor of one of the leading hardware and implement stores of Minneota and is one of the progressive citizens of that thriving town, where he has resided since 1898. He is a native of the state, having been born in Houston county August 13, 1857, where he lived until twenty-one years of age. He then moved to Lincoln county, Minnesota, and homesteaded in Limestone township, where he resided until June 6, 1898.

That year Mr. Geiwitz moved to Minneota and bought a half interest in the Peter Ferguson hardware store. The business was run under the firm name of Ferguson & Geiwitz one and a half years, when Mr. Geiwitz bought his partner's interest and ran the business two years. He then sold a half interest to Dahl & Deen, and the firm name became Geiwitz & Company. During their regime, in 19 02, the present large business block was erected. The main part is 40x7 5 feet, with a south front of 60x50 feet, and is one of the largest store buildings of the kind in the county. In 1908 Mr. Geiwitz bought the interests of his partners and took into the business his son, John G. Geiwitz. The firm is now styled Geiwitz & Son. The firm deals extensively in hardware, implements, automobiles, wagons and buggies.

Our subject was married at La Crosse, Wisconsin, March 24, 1885, to Sophia Gassert, who was born in Houston county, Minnesota. They have eight children, namely: Sarah (Mrs. O. H. Werpy), of Minneota; Edward, of British Columbia; John, of Minneota; Dora and Cora (twins), Fritz, Peter and Priscilla.

ADOLPH B. LARSON (1887) is manager of the Christianson-Innes lumber yard at Florence. He is a native of Minnesota and was born in Fillmore county March 9, 1879, a son of Borce and Carrie (Christianson) Larson. The parents came to the United States from Norway in the early sixties and settled in Fillmore county, where they resided until 1878, when they came to Lyon county. In 1910 they retired from farm life and moved to Florence to live. They have six children, as follows: Louise (Mrs. Lars Ordlock), of Florence; Adolph B., of this sketch; Carl, of Lyon county; Lena (Mrs. G. A. Ofstad), of Florence; Anton, the postmaster of Florence; and Clara, of Florence.

The man whose name heads this sketch made his home with his parents in Shelburne township and attended school until sixteen years of age. He then started hustling for himself, working at farm labor and threshing. When twenty-one years of age he engaged in the general merchandise business at Ruthton and continued that business three years. He then farmed the home place several years and in 1908 entered the employ of the Christianson- Innes Lumber Company at Florence as local manager. He is a member of the Masonic lodge and a director of the State Bank of Florence. Mr. Larson is a justice of the peace and was assessor of Shelburne township in 1908.

October 14, 1908, Mr. Larson was married to Miss Ida E. Green, a native of Lyon county and a daughter of C. F. Green, one of the older residents of the county, formerly owner of the lumber yards of which

I'.Hhjraimhcal History

OLAUS M. LARSON (1901) is manager of the Farmers Elevator Company at Lynd. He also handles farm machinery and vehicles in connection with his elevator work. Mr. Larson was born at Deerfield, Wisconsin, November 4, 1871, where he received his early education and assisted his brothers on the farm. He also taught school for three years. His mother died when he was a young man. Olaus received a high school education.

In 1901 Olaus Larson located in Lynd and a while later went to Muskoda, where he bought grain for the Federal Elevator Company. He also bought grain for the same company at Portland. He returned to Lynd in 1904 and purchased grain for the New London Milling Company two years. then went to Hereford Minnesota, and bought grain for the Federal Company. He also engaged in the same work one year at Bird Island, Minnesota, for the Columbian Elevator Company, and at Maynard one year for the Northwestern Elevator Company. Mr. Larson again took up his residence in Lynd in 1909 and has since managed the farmers' elevator there.

The Lynd Farmers Elevator Company was incorporated in 1909, organized by about seventy-five farmers of the vicinity. They purchased the Northwestern Elevator Company's building, with a capacity of 30,000 bushels. They handle grain, coal and feed. The following are the officers: President, E. E. Davis; vice president, Peter Frahm; treasurer, A. A. Sharratt; secretary, Frank Harris; manager, O. M. Larson. The following are directors: Frank Graves, Let Foster, George Madden, Frank Harris, A. A. Sharratt, Peter Frahm, E. E. Davis.

Our subject was married at Lynd on February 8, 190 5, to Belle Robertson, a native of Illinois. They have three children: Geraldine R., Wilber B. and Reolf E.

Mr. Larson is a son of Gullick and Anna (Brennberg) Larson, natives of Norway and early settlers of Deerfield, Wisconsin, where they both died. They have eight children surviving them: Martha, Lewis, John, Andrew, Nels, Dora, Albert and Olaus.

ALBERT VOLK (18S9) is a dealer in electric supplies in the city of Marshall, and has been chief of the Marshall Fire Department the past sixteen years. Albert was born at St. Peter, Minnesota, January 24, 1870, and received his education and grew to manhood in that city. He was a schoolmate of the late Governor John A. Johnson. When a young lad he learned the cigar-maker's trade and worked at it in St. Peter until 1889.

In the last named year, in company with another young man, Herman Walter, Mr. Volk came to Marshall and started a cigar factory. They had worked together in St. Peter and their object was to better their conditions. The firm name was Volk & Walter, and they continued in partnership until 19 08, when our subject sold his interest in the factory. At the same time he purchased the electric supply department of the city of Marshall and has since conducted that business. His work consists in installing electric lights, motors and domestic appliances. He employs several men and carries a large stock of electrical supplies, electric glassware, electric heating devices and motors. Mr. Volk was a member of the City Council during 1904 and 1905. He is a member of the Catholicchurch.

Albert Volk is the son of Rudolph and Louise (Lahnus) Volk, natives of Baden, Germany. They came to the United States when young and were married in Cincinnati, Ohio, moving to St. Peter in 18 68. Rudolph Volk was engaged in running a cooper shop for a number of years. He died March 2 0, 1910. Mrs. Volk died March 2 4, 1911. They were the parents of three children: Albert, of this sketch; Charles Volk, of the firm of Danby & Volk, cigar manufacturers; Lena (Mrs. William Balsted), of Minneapolis.

GUY H. KIEL (1890) is the proprietor of a grocery, crockery and china store in Marshall and has resided in Lyon county since he was four years of age. He is a native of Lafayette county, Wisconsin, and was born October 1, 18 86. He is one of a family of eight children born to Milton C. and Mary A. (Hatfield) Kiel, now residents of Marshall. The other children of the

The Kiel family came to Lyon county in 1S90 and Guy resided on the Lynd township home farm until a young man. He was graduated from the Marshall High School in 1906. During the next year he clerked in grocery stores in Marshall and in a china and crockery store at Watertown, South Dakota. He returned to Marshall in 1907 and opened the store which he has since conducted. Mr. Kiel is a member of the Elks lodge.

CHRISTINE HANSON (1885) owns and lives on a well-improved 120-acre farm on section 16, Nordland township. Miss Hanson does not farm the land but has a tenant on the place. .

She was born in Lyon county June 8, 1885, a daughter of the late Robert and Ellen (Olson) Hanson. Her parents were early settlers of the county and homesteaders of Nordland township. Miss Hanson attended the district school until seventeen years of age and resided on the farm with her parents until the fall of 1905. Her parents then moved to Minneota, where they resided until their deaths. She spent eighteen months in Logan county, North Dakota, keeping house for her brother on a claim. She returned to her native county in November, 1908, and in March, 1911, she located on her present farm. She became part owner of the property in 1909 and sole owner in the spring of 1912. Miss Hanson is a member of the Norwegian Lutheran church of Minneota.

L. M. LERWICK (1910) is cashier of the First National Bank of Minneota and is one of the substantial and popular citizens of that prosperous village. He was born in Norway on July 18, 1862, and in 18 68 he came to America. With his parents he located in Fillmore county, Minnesota, and two years later moved to Otter Tail county, Minnesota, where he grew to manhood. After an academic education, he taught school for eight years.

In 18 90 Mr. Lerwick took up his residence in Madison, Minnesota, and began his banking career. He entered the Lac qui Parle County Bank and remained with that institution three years. He then moved to Canby, Minnesota, and was connected with the Bank of Canby until 1900, when he moved to Hendricks and organized the Lincoln County State Bank, which was changed into a national bank two years later. He remained at Hendricks until 1909, when he left Minnesota and took up his residence in Morgan Hill, California. There he bought orchard lands and engaged in fruit cultivation. In July, 1910, he returned to Minnesota to accept the position of cashier of the First National Bank of Minneota, a position he has since held.

The subject of this review is the son of Iver and Rebecca (Johnson) Lerwick, natives of Norway, both of whom are dead. They have two sons living, Olie, of Dalton, Minnesota, and L. M., of this sketch; and two daughters, Hannah Olufson and Margaretha Swenson, both of Canby.

Mr. Lerwick is a member of the Blue Lodge and Scottish Rite bodies of Masonry, the Mystic Shrine, Odd Fellows and M. W. A. lodges. While a resident of Lincoln county he was chairman of the Republican County Central Committee.

CHARLES II. ANDERSON (1903) is the proprietor of a harness shop and shoe store at Balaton, where he has resided nine years. He was born in Sleepy Eye, Minnesota, on October 16, 1882. The parents of our subject were Jens P. and Johanna (Nyberg) Anderson, the former a native of Denmark and the latter of Sweden. They settled in Sleepy Eye, where Mr. Anderson died in 1885. To this union were bom two children: Charles R., of this sketch, and Frank R., of Minneapolis. After her husband's death Mrs. Anderson married H. A. Hanson, and to that union were born the following children: Louise E. (Mrs. Jens Jensen), of Sleepy Eye; Hulda C, Ferdina C. M. Hanson, of Canby.

Ijkmjkahiical History

Charles Anderson made his home with his parents at Sleepy Eye until twelve years of age, when he entered a harness shop in that village and learned the trade. For several years he worked at various places at his trade and other occupations. In May, 1903, he moved to Balaton and entered the employ of N. H. Wahlgren as a harnessmaker. In January, 1908, he purchased the business and stock of Mr. Wahlgren. He conducts a harness and repair shop and deals in shoes. He is a member of the Modern Woodmen and Royal Neighbors lodges and of the Balaton Fire Department.

Mr. Anderson was married at Balaton October 24, 1907, to Anna Griese, a native of Germany and a daughter of Albert Griese. Mr. and Mrs. Anderson are the parents of two children, Leona J. and Willard C.

JOE R. McELVAIN (1892) is superintendent of the Tracy Electric Light and Waterworks plant, a position he has held since 1905. He has been a resident of Tracy since 1892.

Mr. McElvain's parents were James and Sarah (Purcellt McElvain, the former a native of Illinois and the latter of Tennessee. They settled in Nebraska in 1858 and farmed in that state until 1863, when they moved to Worth county, Missouri. Their next move was to Idaho in 1877, where Mrs. McElvain died the following year; then her husband returned to Missouri, where he died. There are seven living children in the family: John, of Missouri; Joe R., of this sketch; Commodore B., of Colorado; Andrew, of North Dakota; Ida M. Fouts, of Allendale, Missouri; and Elmer, of West Virginia.

The subject of this review was born near Humbolt, Richardson county, Nebraska, on January 27, 1861, and when he was three years of age the family moved to Worth county, Missouri. There Joe resided with his parents until attaining the age of seventeen years; then he went to Idaho and remained two years. Returning to his old home in Missouri, he remained only a few months and then took up his residence in his native state, where he resided until 1892. During that time he engaged in farming five years, was in the well-drilling business two years, and worked at'various other occupations.

In 1892 Mr. McElvain located in Tracy and entered the railroad shops of the Northwestern Railroad Company, and for the next ten years he was employed as a machinist and engineer. In 1902 he was employed by the city as an engineer of the municipal electric light and waterworks plant. He served as engineer three years and was then promoted to the superintendency and has since satisfactorily served the city in that capacity.

The plant was built by the city in 1892 and the original plant is still operated by the city. The present capacity is two boilers of 350 horsepower and American ball engines, one of 120 and one of sixty horsepower. An all-day electric light service is maintained.

Mr. McElvain was married in Fullerton, Nebraska, November 7, 1883, to Charlotte A. Gress, a native of Illinois. They have six children, as follows: Ned O., assistant postmaster of Webster, South Dakota; Mary J., of Seattle, Washington; Mary, Jay, Floyd and Robert. Mr. McElvain is a member of the Workmen and Modern Brotherhood lodges.

MATHEW HENNEN (1883) is one of the successful farmers and large land owners of Westerheim township. His home place is the southeast quarter of section 21 and he is owner of 520 acres of land on that section and on 27. He has lived in the county since he was a child.

Mathew Hennen was born in Holland November 9, 1878. He came to the United States with his parents in 1883, and for a few months the family lived in the village of Ghent. The next four and one-half years were passed in Wisconsin, but in 1888 the family returned to Lyon county and have since been residents of Westerheim township. They located on the northeast quarter of section 21 in 1892, and on that farm Mathew worked until his marriage in 19 06.

After his marriage Mr. Hennen moved to the farm which he has ever since operated. He made all the improvements now on the farm, has prospered, and added to his holdings until he is now the owner of nearly a section of land. Mr. Hennen is a stockholder and director of the Farmers Elevator Company of Ghent. He has been township

Mathew Hennen is a son of Arnold and Helena Hennen. His mother died in 1904; his father makes his home with a daughter, Mrs. Anton Van Uden. Four children of the family are living: Leo, of Westerheim township; John, of Marshall; Marie (Mrs. Anton Van Uden), of Westerheim; and Mathew, of this review. The oldest child, Joseph, died June 20, 1903, at the age of thirty-five years. Caroline, the wife of Theodore Jensen, of Marshall, died in March, 1907. Hubert died April 1, 1902.

Amelia Engels became the wife of Mr. Hennen on September 12, 1906. She was born in Henry county, Illinois, February 21, 1882, and has lived in the county since she was one year of age. She is the daughter of Mrs. Ludovica Engels, of the same township. The following named three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Hennen: Arnold Hubert, born October 22, 1907; Marie Caroline, born June 29, 1909; and Alice Saraphine, born June 12, 1911.

CARL R. HOLDEN (1896) is the senior member of the firm of hardware dealers, Holden & Hughes, of Garvin. He was born in Goodhue county, Minnesota. April 11. 1872. A few years after his birth he accompanied his parents to Murray county, and until 1896 he made his home on his father's homestead in Lake Sarah township.

In the year last mentioned Mr. Holden set out in life for himself. He farmed one year in Custer township, Lyon county, and then located in Garvin. For a number of years he engaged in the well drilling business and in 1902 formed a partnership with Richard T. Hughes and established the present business. Holden & Hughes carry a complete line of hardware, gas engines, paints, oils, etc.

Mr. Holden was clerk of Custer township a number of years, succeeding A. G. Bumford to that position. He is a member of the local school board and belongs to the M. W. A. lodge.

Carl Holden 's parents are John J. and Karen (Peterson) Holden. They were born in Norway and were married at Madison, Wisconsin. Later they moved to Dodge county, Minnesota, and in the late seventies homesteaded land in Lake Sarah township, Murray county, where they still reside. Their children are Sophia Jacobson, Julius, Carl R., Charlotte Brown, Anna Halstensrud, John J., Jr., and Matilda Norwood.

CHARLES SCHMITZ (1896) is the proprietor of the Klondike saloon at Marshall and the leader of the Schmitz orchestra. He was born October 4, 1869, on the island on which is located the Statue of Liberty, New York. The father, who was a United States soldier, was living on the island with his family at the time of the birth of our subject. The elder Mr. Schmitz served twenty-nine years in the army, commencing his military career at the beginning of the Civil War. He was killed in 1885 at Caldwell, Kansas. He was a German by birth and was married to Tressie Schmitz, a native of Hoboken, New Jersey.

The childhood days of Charles Schmitz were spent at various army posts. The family resided at Atlanta, Georgia, for a time and later were in Montana. From 1879 to 1885 the father was stationed at El Reno, Indian Territory. Young Schmitz secured his education at the various army posts and when a boy began making his own living. When a young man he took up circus work, and for several years w^as with Barnum & Bailey's and Lemon Brothers' shows. While with the last named, in 1S96, the circus played at Tracy. There Mr. Schmitz left the show to become a permanent resident of Lyon county.

For a few years Mr. Schmitz conducted the Van Dusen elevator at Tracy and for two years conducted a restaurant in the same city. The next three years he was in Walnut Grove, Redwood county, where he was engaged in the hotel and restaurant business. During his residence in Walnut Grove he served as deputy sheriff and village marshal for three and one-half years. In 1903 Mr. Schmitz became a resident of Marshall. For a little over four years he

Besides his saloon business Mr. Schmitz conducts the Schmitz family orchestra, which is noted over a large territory. Mr. Schmitz plays the clarinet, his daughter, Lilly, the niano, his son, Charles A., the violin, and John Johnson, the trombone.

At Tracy, Minnesota, on September 30, 1898. Mr. Schmitz was married to Ida Schumacher, the daughter of Martin Schumacher, proprietor of a Tracy hotel. Mr. and Mrs. Schmitz have three children: Lilly, Esther and Charles.

CHARLES E. BLAKE (1887) is one of Grandview township's young farmers. While a young man, Mr. Blake is making a success of farming and has prospered since renting his place,' the northeast quarter of section 13.

The subject of this review was born June 15. 1SS7, in Fairview township, Lyon county, Minnesota, and is a son of Richard and Mary (Versnick) Blake. His parents were pioneer residents of the county, having come to America from their native countries of Ireland and Belgium, respectively. They located in Lyon county in 1873 and now live in Lake Marshall township.

Charles received his early education in the country school and later attended the Marshall High School one year. He then spent several months in the Marshall Business College, concluding his scholastic career at the age of seventeen years. The boy then worked for his father on the home farm and later worked one year at tiling. His first experience at farming for himself came in 1911, when he conducted his father's place one year. Since that time he has been conducting the farm which he rents in Grandview township.

The marriage of Mr. Blake to Josephine Grandpre occurred in Marshall November 15, 1910. She is a native of Fowler, Indiana, and is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Victor Grandpre, residents of Fairview township. To Mr. and Mrs. Blake was born one child, Mary Louise Vina, who died February 8, 1912, only a few days after its birth.

The others are Sylvester, Richard, Margaret, Elizabeth, Irene. William, Leonard. I'M waul and Vincent, all at home; James, a student of civil engineering at Ames, Iowa; John, a Sodus township farmer; and Mary (Mrs. William Flaig), of Sanborn, Minnesota. Our subject is a member of the Catholic church and is fraternally allied with the Modern Woodmen lodge.

F. M. BIRKEXMEYER (1910) is the manager of the F. M. Birkenmeyer & Company general merchandise store at Marshall. He was born at La Crosse, Wisconsin, April 21, 1866. At the age of seventeen years he moved to Redwood Falls, Minnesota, and was employed in general merchandise stores there until 1905. for seventeen years of that time in the employ of one firm, Francois & Schmahl, the latter of whom is now his partner. In 1905 Mi-. Birkenmeyer went to Montezuma, Iowa, and was manager of the H. G. Moore & Company store for nearly five years.

In December. 1910, Mr. Birkenmeyer located in Marshall and in partnership with H. G. Schmahl, of Redwood Falls, bought the general merchandise stock of John M. Hollo, in the Messenger Block. The firm of F. M. Birkenmeyer & Company deals in dry goods, shoes, ladies' ready-to-wear garments and groceries. Mr. Birkenmeyer is a member of the Masonic and Workmen lodges.

In Redwood Falls, on April 21, 1893, Mr. Birkenmeyer was united in marriage to Rose Lichlwarck, a native of New Ulm, Minnesota, and for a number of years a resident of Redwood Falls. They have three children: Hazel, Frank and Helen.

OLE PEDERSEN (1897) is a farmer and land owner of Clifton township and has lived in Lyon county fifteen years. He was born in Denmark July 1, 1858, and his native land was his home until he was twentythree years of age.

Upon his arrival to the New World, Ole Pedersen located in Grundy county, Iowa, and worked at farm labor two years. The next two years were spent working in the paper mills at Neenah, Wisconsin, after which he went to Brule county, South Dakota, and took a homestead claim. After proving up on the claim Mr. Pedersen returned to Wisconsin, bought a forty-acre tract of timber land in Clark county, farmed it two years, and then sold.

Our subject came to Lyon county in 1897, farmed rented land in Lake Marshall and Clifton townships until 1905, and then purchased his present farm, the southeast quarter of section 25, Clifton. He raises stock quite extensively and is a shareholder of the Farmers Elevator Company of Milroy.

J. A. LAWRENCE (1910), furniture dealer of Marshall, spent almost his entire life in Kankakee county, Illinois, moving from that county to Marshall early in 1910. His parents were Louis and Louise (Martin) Lawrence, who were born in Canada but who located in Kankakee county, Illinois, in the early forties and engaged in farming. The father went to California during the early gold excitement and made enough money to purchase a farm in his old home. He died there in 1898; the mother died two years later. »

On the farm in Kankakee county our subject was born July 18, 1859, and he made his home with his parents until twenty-eight years of age. Then for nine years he engaged in farming on his own account, after which he resided with his mother at Bourbonnais, Illinois, until her death on April 12, 1900. Mr. Lawrence then engaged in the undertaking business at Bourbonnais until his removal to Marshall February 26, 1910. He purchased a building at that time and has since been engaged in the undertaking business, dealing in furniture and musical

In Wilmington, Illinois, on May 24, 1889. Mr. Lawrence was united in marriage to Jennie Murphy. She was born in Wilmington and died eighteen months after her marriage, leaving one child, Neil Lawrence. The second marriage of our subject occurred in August, 1902, when he wedded Albina Brosseau, a native of Bourbonnais. Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence have one child, Pearl.

ALBERT O. REINKE (1904), proprietor of the southeast quarter of section 10, Rock Lake, is one of the well-to-do farmers of the township. He raises stock and ships to the St. Paul and Omaha markets. Mr. Reinke is a shareholder of the Farmers Elevator Company of Balaton.

Our subject was born in Green Lake county, Wisconsin, August 2, 1862. His parents, Carl and Wilhelmina (Miller) Reinke, both of whom are now deceased, were for many years farmers in Wisconsin. Albert received his education in Wisconsin and worked on his brother's farm until he attained the age of fifteen years. He then worked on his father's farm until 1889. In the spring of that year Albert came to Minnesota and located in Murray county, buying land and residing there until 1904.

Mr. Reinke sold his Murray county farm in 1904 and immediately resumed farming on land which he had purchased in Lyon county, and on which he has since lived. Since moving here he has taken an active interest in affairs of the township and is a progressive member of the community. He has been treasurer of school district No. 40 four years. Mr. Reinke is allied with the German Lutheran church of Balaton.

January 26, 1893, at Tracy, Minnesota, occurred the wedding of Albert Reinke and Minnie Giese, a native of Germany. Mrs. Reinke was born November 13, 1872, and her parents, Charles and Frederica (Mellenthin) Giese, settled in Murray county in 1881, where they have since resided. Mr. and Mrs. Albert Reinke have the following children, all at home with their parents:-

Olaf Gullerud's parents were natives of , Norway who came to America and settled in Goodhue county, Minnesota. The father. Michael Gullerud, died in the fall of 1902 and the mother. Karen (Lunde) Gullerud. still lives on the old home farm in Goodhue county. Olaf was born on the parental farm near Zumbrota June 19, 1876. He received a common school education, attending until the age of sixteen. Then he spent a year each at the well known Luther College of Decorah, Iowa, and at Valder's Business College.

It was the boy's ambition to enter the ministry, and the next few years of his life were spent with that end in view. A year of work on his father's farm and a year spent as clerk in a St. Paul store furnished the means for a course in the Luther Normal School of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, from which Olaf was graduated in June, 1902. After one year's teaching at Cashton, Wisconsin, the subject of our sketch at last realized his hope of attending Luther Theological Seminary at St. Paul, from which he was graduated in 1906. At his graduation a call from the charge which he now occupies was awaiting him. He accepted the call and moved to Tracy in the fall of that year.

Just previous to taking up his pastoral labors in Tracy Rev. Gullerud was married, September 12, 1906, to Sarah Tyssen, a native of Iowa and a daughter of Knute K. and Anna Tyssen, residents of that state. Rev. and Mrs. Gullerud have a son, Karl Monrad, born May 6, 1908, and a daughter, Adele Kristine, born February 15, 1910. Our subject has two brothers, John Melven and Hans Peter, living on the old Goodhue county farm, and one sister, Mary (Mrs. Rognlie), of Franklin, Minnesota.

born in Iceland November 12, 1862. When he was five years old his mother died and after the age of ten years he made his home with a minister, by whom he was educated. In 18S2 young Askdal came to America and after living in Duluth three weeks he located in Minneota. There he resided ten years, winking at the carpenter's trade. He bought his 160-acre farm on section 5, Westerheim. in 1892. At that time not a furrow had been turned on the land, it had no improvements, and he paid the railroad company eleven dollars per acre for it. He set out the grove and erected the buildings on it and now has a fine farm. Mr. Askdal breeds thoroughbred Duroc-Jersey hogs and Shropshire sheep and feeds hogs for the market.

The father of our subject, Sigurbjorn Christianson, lives in Yellow Medicine county; his mother, Oddny (Sigurdordottir) Christianson, died in Iceland in 1867. Besides our subject are two other children: Sigurbjorn, a Minneota butcher, and Ellen Horsford. Mr. Christianson was married a second time, to Willborg Einarson, and they have three children, Runa, Jona and Margaret.

Sigurdur Askdal was married at Granite Falls October 14, 1892, to Finna Gunlaugson. She was born in Iceland and came to the United States in 1879. They have four children: Sigurd M., Haraldur M. S., Lilly O. S. and Jonas S. E.

Mr. Askdal is a firm believer in education and is giving his children the advantage of village schooling. For this purpose he maintains a residence in Minneota, where his family resides during the school months. Two of his sons attend the Minneota High School and the daughter is through the second grade.

For twenty-four years Mr. Askdal has been a Mason and he now holds membership in both the Blue Lodge and the Chapter. In 1908 he was master of Equity Lodge No. 238, Minneota. For fifteen years he served as clerk of school district No. 80.

ALEXANDER J. LORD (1883) is a resident of Ghent and devotes his time to threshing, machine work and engineering. He is a native of Illinois and was born in Kankakee April 18, 1877. In 1883 he accom- panied his parents to Lyon county, locating on the father's farm in Grandview township. He resided with his parents on the farm for fifteen years, when he commenced threshing, and he has continued in that line of work since.

The parents of our subject are Edmund and Angeline (Paradis) Lord, natives of Canada who came to Illinois when children and were married there. They came to Lyon county in 1883 and resided on their , farm in Grandview township until 1905, when they moved to Marshall to reside. Mr. Lord died January 9, 1903; Mrs. Lord resides in Marshall. They were the parents of four children, as follows: George, of Marshall; Alexander J., of this sketch; Mrs. Lizzie Ryan, of Minneapolis; Mrs. Ida Bergh, of Marshall.

Alexander Lord is a member of the M. W. A. lodge and the Ghent Fire Department. He was elected assessor of the village but resigned because of his continued absence from the village.

M. D. BAIR (1895), a successful farmer of Amiret township, was born in Pennsylvania May 4, 1874. He is a son of William H. and Agnes (Coons) Bair, natives of Pennsylvania and now deceased. The father moved to North Dakota after his wife's death and took a homestead. He died in 1906.

Our subject lived in his native state until the age of twenty-one years. During that period he received his education, and when he attained his majority he was ready to start out in life for himself. The boy's mother had died the previous year, and in the spring of 1895 young Bair came to Lyon county. He worked at farm labor three years in Amiret township and then purchased the farm he now owns, the northwest quarter of section 22. He rented land in the township three years before he moved to bis present place, and during his eleven years' residence on his own farm he has several years rented and farmed additional land. His farm is well improved and is one of the best quarters in the township. Mr. Bair engages extensively in stock raising.

of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Mitchell of the township. Mr. and Mrs. Bair have two children, Esther Agnes, born September 17, 1906, and Mack Donald, born July 11, 1910.

The Bair family are members of the Presbyterian church. Our subject is a member of the Yeomen lodge of Amiret, of which he is the master of accounts. He has been a member of the Amiret Township Board the past three years and served as chairman of the board one year.

ORLANDO J. OESTERN (1900) has been the manager of the Atlantic Hotel of Marshall for the last twelve years. He is a native of Luverne, Minnesota, and was born- March 3, 1882. He received his education in the schools of that city and when a young man took a position as clerk of the old Luverne Hotel.

In 1900 Mr. Oestern moved from Luverne to Marshall and has ever since been the manager of the city's leading hotel. He is a member of the Masonic, Elks and Modern Woodmen lodges. He has taken the thirtythird degree in baseballdom and is one of Marshall's most ardent "fans."

The parents of our subject, Olof J. and Martha (Greenland) Oestern, were born in Lansing, Ohio, and Rushford, Minnesota, respectively, and were homesteaders of Rock county. The father was traveling auditor for the Walter A. Wood Harvester Company. While transacting business at a bank in Sherburn in 1896 he was shot and killed by robbers, who held up the bank. The mother of our subject resides at Alhambra, California. There is one other child in the family, Rose, an instructor in the schools of Alhambra.

DAVID LIEDTKE (1903), farmer and land owner of Lynd township, is a German by birth. His nativity occurred October 18, 1861, and his parents were David and Augusta (Weis) Liedtke.

Our subject was educated and grew to man's estate in his native land, and he served three years in the German army. He came to America in 1886 and located in Poweshiek county, Iowa. There he worked out several years and then rented land and fanned until he came to Lyon county in 1903. Upon his arrival he bought the southmoiJUAl'HICAL HISTORY.

«ast quarter of section 19, Lynd township, and resided there until 1909. Then he moved to his present home, the northwest quarter of section 26, only a short distance from the village of Lynd, which he had purchased in 1906.

Mr. Liedtke was married in Iowa in 1S92 to Bertha Weis. She was horn in Germany April 1. 1S73, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ludwig Weis. To this union the following seven children have been born: Olga, Minnie, Benno, Alma, Otto, Emma and Arnold. The family are members of the German Lutheran church.

GCXXAR B. BJORXSOX (1877), postmaster of Minneota and editor and proprietor of the Minneota Mascot, is one of the prominent and respected citizens of his village and county. As a newspaper man Mr. Bjomson ranks high, and his paper is one of the most liberally quoted of the country weeklies of the state. He is a fearless and able writer and his editorials on political, economic and social questions attract statewide attention. Mr. Bjornson is a self-made man and a Lyon county product in which its citizens take pride.

The subject of this review was born in Iceland August 17, 1872. His father, Bjom Bjornson, died in 1885; his mother, Kristin (Benjaminsdottir) Bjornson, resides with her son in Minneota. Gunnar Bjornson accompanied his mother to the United States in 1877 when a child five years of age. Until 1885 he resided on farms in the vicinity of Minneota and then moved to the village. For two years he had charge of the town herd, attending school during the winter months. Thereafter for several years he did carpenter work and clerked in stores.

In 1895 Mr. Bjornson bought a half interest in the Minneota Mascot, helped in its production less than a year, and then sold to his partner. The next year he. attended the Gem City Business College of Quincy, Illinois, and for another year had charge of a general merchandise store. He then entered the law office of C. M. Gislason and read law two and one-half years, attended to the collections and other matters.

it. He was appointed postmaster by President Roosevelt in April, 1903, and has since served in that capacity. He has been a member of the Board of Education for the last nine years, president of that body for the last four years, and several years ago served as justice of the peace. Mr. Bjornson is a member of the Lutheran church and of the A. F. & A. M., R. A. M., M. W. A., Maccabee and Yeomen lodges.

Our subject was married in Minneota March 28, 1903, to Ingebjorg Augusta Hurdal, a native of Iceland and a former resident of Winnipeg, Manitoba. They are the parents of three boys: Edward Hjalmar, Kristjan Valdimar and Gunnar Bjorn.

PHILIP P. AHERN (1883) is one of the old residents of Taunton and has been prominent in business and social circles in that village. He has served as president of the Village Council ever since Taunton was incorporated in the spring of 1900. Mr. Ahern is local manager of the C. M. Youmans Lumber Company and is interested in other lines of business.

Mr. Ahern was born in Springfield, Illinois, September 22, 18 67. When he was seventeen years of age, in 1883, he moved with his parents to Lyon county, and until he was twenty-three years old he lived with them on the farm on the west half of section 8, Eidsvold township, just north of Taunton station. Then he located in the little village and for seventeen years bought grain for O. L. Marfield, of Winona. After July, 1898, he also had the management of the C. M. Youmans Lumber Company's yard and elevator, an assistant looking after the grain department until he gave up that part of the business in 1905. Since that time Mr. Ahern has given his time to the management of the lumber yard.

In other lines of business Mr. Ahern has been interested. In the spring of 1895 he was one of the organizers of the Mutual Elevator Company, served as its secretary three years, and then severed his connection with the company. He is vice president of the State Bank of Taunton and owns a quarter section of land on section 5, Eidsvold. Mr. Ahern is a member of the

Philip Ahern is a son of the late Garrett Ahern and Catherine { Brown) Ahern, natives of Ireland. The father came to America about 18 55, the mother a short time later, and they were married at Springfield, Illinois. They settled in Eidsvold township, Lyon county, in 1883, and in that precinct Mr. Ahern died in 1899, at the age of sixty-seven years. Mrs. Ahern lives on the old home farm with her son, J. J. Ahern. Our subject is the eldest of ten children in this family, the others being as follows: Josie, William, Ellen (Mrs. Thomas Welch), of Minneota; James J., Michael F., Catherine (Mrs. Morris Breen), of Minneapolis; Thomas, assistant cashier of the Farmers Bank of Hampden, North Dakota; Garrett F., of Montana; and Annie.

Philip P. Ahern was married at Minneota in June, 1894, to Catherine Salmon, who died July 3, 1905. As a result of this union a son, Philip, was born. The second marriage of Mr. Ahern occurred at Chatfield, Minnesota, to Agnes Moore, a native of that place. To them two children have been born, named Garrett and John.

GUS KNUTSON (1903) is the proprietor of a saloon, an auctioneer, and a dealer in horses and resides in Minneota. He is a native of Norway and was born May 24, 1878. His parents are Knute and Soneva Knutson, who reside in Norway. They are the parents of the following children: T. Knutson and Knute Knutson, of Iowa; Ole and Gus, of Minneota; Ingebritson Knutson, of Norway.

Gus came to America on his sixteenth birthday and lived in Morris, Illinois, one year. He then moved to Wright county, Iowa, where he farmed until 1903, the year of his arrival to Lyon county. He located at Minneota, purchased an interest in the saloon of B. H. Cleminson, and a year later became sole proprietor. He has conducted the place since that time. Mr. Knutson is also an auctioneer, having taken up that line of work in 1909, and he has been very successful Jn that work. Another line is trading and selling horses.

On June 22, 1907, occurred the marriage of Mr. Knutson to Edna Williamson, who was born near Glencoe, Minnesota. She was a school teacher. They were married at Glencoe. Mr. and Mrs. Knutson are the parents of two children, Vivian and Dudley.

STURLAUGUR GILBERTSON (1878), manager of the Laird-Norton Yards at Minneota, is a homesteader and one of the pioneers of northwestern Lyon county. He is a native of Iceland and was born December 29, 1850, the son of Gulbrand and Sigridar Gilbertson, both deceased. He is one of a family of five children, the others being Olena, of British Columbia; Haflide, of North Dakota; and Helga and Thorsden, of Iceland.

Mr. Gilbertson came to the United States in 187 8 and direct to Lyon county. He took as a homestead claim the northeast quarter of section S, Nordland township, and resided on the farm seven years. He was one of the early settlers of that precinct, and the shack that he built, 14x16 feet, eight feet high, was considered a very comfortable dwelling in those days. He lived in that dwelling during the memorable winter of 188 0-81 with his family and experienced exceedingly hard times. The wheat he had raised had not been threshed and as he had no fuel he was obliged to borrow straw from a neighbor to burn. There was no flour to be had and the family prepared their meal by grinding wheat in a coffee-mill. His live stock consisted of a pair of oxen and a cow, which were kept in a dug-out on the bank of a ravine. This was completely covered many times during the long winter and Mr. Gilbertson had trouble in keeping them alive until spring.

After seven years on the farm Mr. Gilbertson moved to Minneota and that village has since been his home. He took a position with the Laird-Xorton Company when he located in the village in 1886 and has been with the company ever since - as manager since 1897. Mr. Gilbertson is a stockholder and director of the First National Bank. He served as president of the Village Council five years and was village recorder eight years. He is a member of the Modern Woodmen lodge.

Ukhjkaimiical History

Mr. Gilbertson was married in Iceland November 25, 1877, to Aslaug Johnson. They have four children: Gilbert, of Milwaukee; John, of Minneapolis; Holm, of North Dakota; and Frieda.

PETER A. PETERSON (1901) is the owner of a section of fine land in Coon Creek township and resides thereon. He was born December 24, 1844, in Sweden, the son of Peter Neilson. He attended school in his native land, and after finishing school worked at farm labor until 1867, when he immigrated to the United States. He first located at De Kalb, Illinois, where he worked on a farm two years, then went to Chicago, where he was a teamster three years. Returning to De Kalb, he remained there until 1880, when he moved to Sac county, Iowa, where he bought land and farmed until 18 97. In the last mentioned year he moved to Clay county, Iowa, bought land, and resided there until 1901, when he sold his land and moved to Lyon county.

Mr. Peterson has improvements on each quarter of his land, upon which his sons reside. He raises considerable stock, among other breeds, Duroc-Jersey hogs and Hereford cattle. He is a member of the Swedish Lutheran church. Mr. Peterson holds stock in the Farmers Elevator Company of Russell. He has one sister, Mrs. Andrew Larson, who resides in Chicago.

Mr. Peterson is a man of family. January 20, 1869, he was married to Annie Petersen, a daughter of Peter and Christina Petersen, natives of Sweden. Mrs. Peterson was born August 12, 1840. Our subject and his wife are the parents of the following named children: Ebenezer, born August 10, 1870; Annie (Mrs. A. P. Carver), born August 29, 1872; Julia (Mrs. H. N. Carver), born in 1875; Joseph E., born July 8, 1877; Monvil, born August 30, 1879; Martin, born September 2, 1881; Mary (Mrs. O. C. Willard), born November 18, 1883. Joseph Peterson was married October 25, 1911, to Carrie A. Nelson, a daughter of Nels and Katherine Christine Nelson, of Coon Creek township.