Custer County, Nebraska - Founders and Builders, 1919 (part 21 of 32)

Mr. Visek was a young man of thirty years when he sought a home in the L^nited States. He found employment on a farm in \'alley county, and he continued to work for others for three years. He carefully saved his earnings and was enabled to become a farmer on his own account. The first year his crop was alinost ruined by hail, and the second year his harvests were short, owing to the drouth, but he was not discouraged to the point of giving up, and the succeeding years brought prosperity. To-day he is the owner of three well improved farms, with a total area of 1,240 acres.

marriage to ]\Iiss Frances Bartu, a daughter of Joe and Mary Bartu, early settlers of Custer county. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Visek has been made happy by the arrival of thirteen children, eight of whom are living - Frank, Jr., James, Rudolph, Ludwig. Joseph, Louis, Charlie and Emma. The eldest son, Frank, Jr., was born in Valley county, November 29, 1893. October 31, 1916, he married Miss Rosie Kokes, a daughter of John and Antonia (Badalik) Kokes, residents of Valley county. Frank Visek, Jr., is successfully engaged in farming. He and his wife have one child, Frank, born November 21, 1917.

RUPERT CLARENCE BRISTOL. - Among the homesteaders of Custer county who passed through many privations and hardships, courageously persevered in the face of discouraging situations, overcame seemingly unsurmountable obstacles, and eventually won their way to well deserved success, was the late Rupert C. Bristol, who, from the time of his arrival, in 1884, until his death, October 19, 1916, was one of his community's most reliable and highly esteemed citizens.

Mr. Bristol was born at Port Jersey, New York, August 25, 1855, the youngest of the three children of Horace and Anna (French) Bristol. His mother died when he was but three years of age and his father, who was a veteran of the Civil war, in which he served three years as captain of Company B, First New Jersey Volunteer Cavalry, married again, and in 1869 moved to Iowa, where he died in 1869. Rupert C. Bristol was educated in the public schools of New Jersey and Iowa, and in the latter state he married Miss Nancy A. Patrick, a daughter of George and Emily (Hurndon) Patrick, the former born in Kentucky and the latter in Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Patrick removed to Custer county in 1890 and here followed agricultural pursuits until their death.

After his marriage Air. liristol continued to be engaged in farming in Iowa for a number of years, but in 1884 he decided to try his fortunes in Nebraska. He accordingly packed his household effects in a wagon and, with his wife and their four children, started on the trip overland from Monona county, Iowa, in October, the journey consuming eight days. Securing a homestead in the vicinity of Ansley, he started farming under the most discouraging conditions. Conveniences of even the most meagre kind were not to be had ; the bare necessities of life were difficult to secure; and for several years the family fuel during the winter months consisted of brush and weeds that had been gathered during- the foregoing summer and then dried and put away for use. Mr. IJristol was making good progress when, in 18'X), the drouth killed his crops, and he had hardly recovered from this when a terrific hail storm wiped out his 1893 farm crops. In the following year he was again visited by a devastating drouth, but in the face of these discouragements he kept perseveringly and doggedly on, and his persistence and courage were eventually rewarded by success, as shown by the fact that at the time of his death his landed estate consisted of 480 acres of land in a good state of cultivation, and numerous modern improvements. Mr. Bristol became one of the influential and greatly respected members of his community, and took an active and helpful part in all good movements. He was particularly active in the work of the Baptist church, of which he and Mrs. Bristol were lifelong members. He taught a Bible class in the Sunday school, both in Iowa and Nebraska, and was a leader otherwise in church and Sunday school work. Originally a Democrat in [xjlitics, when the Progressive party came into being he transferred his allegiance to that organization. His death removed from his community a helpful and constructive citizen and an honorable man.

Mr. and Mrs. Bristol were the parents of eleven children : Bertha is the wife of George F. Dewey, a Custer county farmer ; Belle is the wife of Earl Hiser, of Custer county : Mrs. Clara Dobesh is the wife of a farmer of this county : Clarence R. and Ernest are engaged in agricultural pursuits in Custer county : George is likewise a resident of this county ; Myrtle E. is the wife of Grover A. Holeman. cashier of the Farmers State Bank of Ansley, a sketch of whose career apjiears elsewhere in this work ; Clyde and Cleo are twins and Clyde is on the home farm with his mother. Cleo being the wife of H. Guy Marsh, of .\nsley : Lawrence is now in the navy, at San Francisco. California; and Emma died at the age of fifteen months.

LE^VIS KIMBERUNG. police judge and village clerk of .\rnold, has been a prominent citizen of the countv for many vears and an influential factor in Republican political circles. He is a man of sterling character, enjovs the respect and confidence of his fellow citizens, and has served faithfully and with superior judgment in many public offices in the countv. .\lthough not a contitnious resident. Juchi-e Kimberling has maintained a steadv interest in

Lewis Kimberling was lx)rn February 13, 1855, in I\Iason county. West X'irginia, one of a family of twelve children lx)rn to Nathaniel and Miriam ( Craig) Kimberling. the former a native of Bath county, \'irginia and a farmer by vocation, and the latter born in Mason county, West \'irginia, a daughter of John Craig. The surviving children are: W'ilham, who lives in \\'est Virginia and who is a veteran of the Civil war; Hannah A., who lives in West \'irginia; Mrs. Nancy Williams, who lives at Jackson, Ohio; Lewis, whose name introduces this review ; and Joseph N., who lives on the old homestead in Alason county. West Virginia, where the mother died in 1890 and where the father passed away in September, 189r>, at the age of eighty-six years.

I'ntil he was twenty-two years old. Lewis Kimberling remained at home, attending school through Iwyhood and later cultivating f|uite successfully a piece of ground given him by his father. On this plot of ground he raised a crop of tobacco, and he found no trouble in disposing of it. Being gifted with a fine voice and a natural ear for music, he paid some attention to this talent and became an acceptable teacher of vocal music. Singing schools were a very popular form of amusement in those days and a great encourager of innocent sociability, and Lewis Kimberling has many pleasant memories of the gatherings when his dictum on ''harmony and voice culture," was as much law as is that of the present-<lay Maestro with an unpronouncable foreign name. In 1877, however, Mr. Kimberling left the old home and its pleasant associations and started out for himself, making his first stop in Indiana. He worked very hard that winter, splitting rails for fifty cents a hundred, and in the spring of 1878 he pushed farther west and spent the summer working on a farm in Grundy county. Missouri, where he remained until the fall of the same year when he came to the eastern part of Nebraska. In 1883 he located a claim three miles east of what is now the prosperous town of Arnold, Custer countv, and he lived on his claim five years. In the meanwhile his parents had grown feeble, and he returned home to assist in caring for them, and he remained as long as thcv survived. Mr. Kimberling then returned to Custer county and bought a farm situated one and one-half miles northeast of Arnold. There he continued to live until 1912, when he moved into Arnold, where he is very comfortably situated.

Iowa, a daughter of Amos and Malinda A. (Craig) Gamble. Mr. Gamble was born in Indiana and was a veteran of the Civil war. Judge and Mrs. Kimberling have si.x children : Odus F., who is a farmer near Gothenburg, Dawson county, Nebraska, is an Odd Fellow and a Republican. He married Josephine, daughter of James Tucker, and they have three sons. He and his wife belong to the Christian church. Ora A. is the wife of Charles Rimpley, a farmer near Logan, Nebraska, and they have three children. They attend the Baptist church. jMillie F. is the wife of John Starr, of Arnold, Nebraska, and they have three children. Eva P. is the wife of William O. Hill, a carpenter at Summit, Oregon, and they have three children. They belong to the Alethodist Episcopal church. Elbert C, who is a salesman in the Mills implement store at Arnold, is an Odd Fellow and a Republican. He married Lillie P. Blowers, a daughter of Charles ^I. Blowers, and they have five daughters. He and his wife attend the Baptist church. Malinda A. is the wife of Arthur E. Butler, a farmer near Stapleton, Nebraska, and they have two children.

For the past seventeen years Judge Kimberling has been a justice of the peace and also has been assessor of Arnold precinct. He has taken a great deal of interest in educational matters and in all else that pertains to the general welfare. He is very prominent in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and has twice passed its official chairs. He is a member of the Baptist church and is a liberal supporter of its benevolent objects.

JOHN E. WILSON, who is a representative citizen and orosoerous general farmer, owns, in the neighborhood of Loma.x Station, one of the best improved estates that can be found in the county. He is a member of one of the old Dioneer families of the state - in fact his father came before the state was organized - and it is interesting to note that through all the revolutionary changes that have taken olace in the state's affairs, the Wilson family have kept the old homestead property intact. John E. Wilson was born near Dunbar. Otoe county. Nebraska, September \5. 1863. His parents were Thomas H. and Isabella (Garrowl Wilson, the latter of whom was born in Scotland and was a daughter of Alexander Garrow. The father of i\Ir. Wilson was born in Canada and from there he came across the border into the United States, looking for a desirable situation in which to settle. He established him home in the territory of Nebraska in 1856, eleven years before it became a state of the Union, and he spent the rest of his life on his homestead, situated one mile north of where Dunbar now stands. Of his thirteen children the following survive: John E., Charles H., Edward T., Mrs. Jennie M. Hall. Mrs. Jessie B. Goodrich, Edith, Carl H., and Frank. Miss Edith Wilson is a graduate of the Peru Normal School and is a popular teacher.

John E. Wilson was reared on the old homestead in Otoe county and well remembers many boyhood adventures that came his way as he herded cattle and stock, and especially during the year that the grasshoppers destroyed every green growth, when he had forty-two head of hogs to herd. He attended the common schools during the winter seasons and thus laid a fair educational foundation. Later he spent one year as a student in the Nebraska State Normal School at Peru, in Nemaha county. Farming has been his main occupation all his life, and before coming to Custer county, in 1903, he followed farm industry very successfully in Otoe county. Mr. Wilson owns a farm of 160 acres, which is admirably situated three-fourths of a mile north of Lomax. He has put many substantial improvements here, including a handsome residence, and has brought his land to a high state of cultivation, and that without any patriotic urging in these recent days of the nation's need.

Mr. Wilson was married June 24, 1891, to Matilda Hanson, who was born in Sweden, a daughter of Hans and Anna (Pierson) Anderson, natives of Sweden. Mrs. Wilson came to the United States in the '80s. Concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. W'ilson brief record is here given : Dora B., an efficient teacher in Custer county, resides at home : Alta is the wife of Alexander Lindholm, a farmer living in Dawson county, not far from Eddyville, and they have one son : they attend the Christian church; Jennie E., who is a teacher, lives with her parents ; Anna is deceased ; and Thomas H. and John L. are yet in school. Mr. Wilson is a member of the United Evangelical church. In politics he has always given his support to the candidates of the Republican party, as does his son-in-law, Mr. Lindholm.

in Ohio, July 1'/, 1841, and married Elizabeth Cox, a native of Jasper county, Iowa. Calvin Dickson was a successful farmer 'of Jasper county, Iowa, for many years and now resides at Xewbnrg, that state, where he is serving as postmaster.

Our subject was one of two children and his sister resides in Iowa. Reared on a farm in Iowa until he reached his majority, he came to Custer county in 1882 and secured a homestead of 160 acres, in section 24, township 19, rang-e 23, and amid the pioneer conditions he erected a little sod house and began the ta,sk of conquering the wilderness. When the first "soddy" wore out he built another, which is still standing. Agriculture and stock-raising have claimed his attention from that day to this. When asked what has been the secret of his success, he answered "Hung on - hung on through the hard times, and hung on to what I made." Mr. Dickson was the possessor of a team of mules and a wagon when he came to Custer county, and to-day he is the owned of 1,100 acres of valuable land. The old homestead was his home until about one year ago, when he moved to his present place of abode, one mile from Anselmo.

Mr. Dickinson has been thrice married. His first union was with Miss Jessie Bell Gillespie, who was a native of Iowa and who died leaving one child, Jessie, the wife of Paul Hugh, of Minnesota. For a second wife Mr. Dickson chose Mrs. Mary Lehmanowsky, a native of Ohio, who became the mother of two children, Mildred and Leah. The present Mrs. Dickson was Miss Cora Scott, who for twenty years was a trained nurse. Her father. Walter Scott, was an early settler of the Anselmo neighborhood, where he established his residence in 1885. He has now passed his seventy-second birthday anniversary and for twelve vears has been an invalid, tenderly cared for by his daughter, IMrs. Dickson.

The life record of William M. Dickson shows what can be accomplished by persistent effort and laudable ambition. From the humble position in which he found himself when he came to Custer county he has reached the goal of success, and is one of the substantal men of his community.

HENRY A. KEPLER - The life record of Henry A. Kepler is one of varied activities, and as manager of the Central Granaries Company and secretan,- of the Farmers Mercantile Company he is at once placed among the influential business men of the thriving village of Anselmo.

Mr. Kepler is a native of the neighboring state of Iowa, where he was born near Mt. Vernon, Linn county, July 15, 1857. His parents were Henry and Emma (Willitts) Kepler, the former jjorn near Hagerstown, Maryland, the latter a native of Ohio. Henry Kepler was an early settler of Linn county, Iowa, where he became a prosperous farmer, later retiring to Mt. Vernon where he and his wife passed away. They were members of the Methodist church and they reared a family of nine children : L. M. died at Dorchester, Saline county, Nebraska, in 1916, at the age of seventy-eight years; M. W. resides at Dorchester ; Ira is a resident of Big Spring, Deuel county, Nebraska; Mrs. William Jordan lives at Jamestown, Minnesota; J. P. is living at Believue, Nebraska ; J. W. resides at- Omaha ; Henry A. is the subject of this sketch; Mrs. W. B. Slaughter resides in California ; and Mrs. C. H. Hoover passed away at Dorchester, Nebraska.

Henry Allison Kepler spent his boyhood days on a farm in his native county, where he divided his time between his duties in the schoolroom and his tasks about the farm. He was nineteen years of age when he took the management of the home farm, upon the retirement of his father, and he continued to conduct the place until 1880, when he came to Nebraska and settled at Dorchester, Saline county. There for several years he was at different times engaged in farming, the livery business, the buying and shipping of stock, clerking in general stores, assistant cashier in the Citizens Bank, and identified with the lumber business. In 1892 he went to Fleming, Colorado, and engaged in the lumber and coal business, but, owing to his wife's health, he returned to Nebraska, and in 1895 he became a resident of Lincoln, where he engaged in the grocery business, later spending one year as a traveling salesman. In 1902 he went to Sheridan county, Kansas, and for the next four years he conducted a ranch. In 1906 he came to Custer county and took a homestead, as did three of his children, under the Kinkaid law, and he was successfully engaged in stock-raising for several years. The family own 2.563 acres of grazing land in Custer county.

In 1908 Mr. Kepler became manager of the Anselmo branch for the Central Granaries Company, which position he still holds. For the past three years he has been secretary of the Fanners Mercantile Company of Anselmo.

ter of Daniel and Malissa (W'ilson) Travis. Mr. and Mrs. Kepler became the parents of five children: Xellie is the wife of James Boyce and they reside in Chicago; Jay died in 1916: Gertrude and D. T. are unmarried and remain at the parental home; and Lawrence is deceased.

Mr. and Mrs. Kepler are members of the Methodist church and fraternally Mr. Kepler is connected with the jModern Woodmen of America, while his political views make him a Republican.

Air. Kepler is one of the progressive business men and public-spirited men of Custer county, and he is held in the highest of esteem by all with whom he comes in contact.

JAMES H. HISER, who. after a somewhat diversified career, is now successfully engaged in the implement business at Ansley, has been the architect of his own fortunes and through his unaided efforts has reared a structure "of creditable business success. He has been a resident of Custer county since 1882 and was formerly engaged in farming, but during the greater part of his career he has been identified with the line of business which now occupies his attention.

Mr. Hiser was born near Richmond, \\'avne county, Indiana. March 23. 1855. and is a son of Jacob H. and Mary fSalters) Hiser, who were born near Dayton, Ohio, but whose marriage occurred in Wayne county, Indiana where they were early settlers. Jacob H. Hiser was a farmer in the Hoosier state until the fall of 1855, at which time he went to Illinois, where his family joined him in the following year. He continued to be engaged in farming until 1862, when he enlisted m the Union army for service in the Civil war. becoming a member of the Sixteenth Illinois Cavalry. With that organization he made a record for bravery and fidelity to duty, and he participated in all the battles' of his regiment until he was severely wounded, being shot in the left temple, and also being captured bv the enemy. For two months he was confined at Belle Isle, and he was then transferred to the awful Andersonville stockade, but after nine months he made his escape from that deathhole, and after indescribable sufl'erings and wanderings finally reached the Union lines. At the expiration of his three j-ears of service he was honorably discharged and returned to sis family. He then became a blacksmith, following that business in McLean county, Illinois, until he retired. His death occurred there, and his widow passed away in California. They were the parents c - four children : James H.^ William P., who has been street commissioned at Lexington, McLean county, Illinois, for several years ; Alice, who is the wife of John Peck, a farmer of Legington, Illinois; and Mary, who is the widow of Sam Phillips, and is a resident of Louisville, Arkansas. The parents were members of the Baptist church, and Mr. Hiser was a Democrat in politics.

James H. Hiser received his education in the public schools of Illinois and began life there on his father's McLean county farm. His marriage occurred in 1875 and thereafter he continued to farm in Illinois until December, 1882, when he came to Custer county, Nebraska, and purchased a relinquishment claim, his family joining him here in the spring. Mr. Hiser remained on his farm from 1883 until 1893, in which latter year he decided to turn his attention to mercantile pursuits and accordingly disposed of his agricultural interests and came to Ansley. For a time he was the representative at Ansley of an Omaha implement firm, but after two years, in partnersl-.ip with a Mr. Butler, he engaged in this business on his own account. He conducted an establishment until February, 1902, when he sold out. Mr. Hiser was next employed by the International Harvester Companv, during 1902. 1903 and 1904, but in the fall' of 190.5 he returned to Ansley, settled permanently, and clerked for W. S. Matley. Again, in March, 1914, he engaged in business on his own account, and in his present establishment he has achieved a decided success, so that his store is accounted a desirable and necessary community asset. He has a complete line of goods, carefully chosen, attractively displayed and moderately priced, and his patronage now extends over a wide territory, while his personal status is that of a business man of capability and integrity.

Mr. Hiser was married in Illinois, in 1875, to Miss Josephine Popejoy, who was born in McLean county, that state, and they became the parents of four children, of whom two are living: E. G.. who is engaged in farming four miles southwest of Ansley, and Marie, who is her father's assistant in conducting the implement business. The family belongs to the Alethodist Episcopal church. Air. Hiser is well known in Odd Fellowship, having passed through the chairs of his lodge three times, and is also a popular member of the Royal Highlanders. A Republican in jwlitics, at various times he has served in township offices, and has rendered the cause of education efficient service by his work as a member of the school board.

MRS. SUSIE HELMUTH. who came to Custer count)', Nebraska, with her parents thirty-three years ago, has hved here ever since and is well known and highly esteemed. She was born September 28, 1877, in Jo Daviess county, Illinois, and is a daughter of Ernest and Johanna (Kape) Schneider, both of whom were born in Germany. The father of Mrs. Helmuth came to the United States in 1861 and located in Jo Daviess county, where he worked on a farm until 1864, when he enlisted, on October 12th of that year, for service in the Civil war. He became a member of Company K, Thirty-second Illinois Infantry, and he took part in many skirmishes and marches, as well as one important engagement, the battle of Kingston, North Carolina, in March, 1865. He was mustered out of the service at Leavenworth, Kansas, September 16, 1865. Mr. Schneider then returned to Jo Daviess county and bought a farm, and in 1866 he married Miss Johanna Kape. They had the following children : Ernst, Lillie, Barbara, George, John, Lawrence, Maggie and Susie (twins), Anna and Louise.

In 1885 Ernest Schneider came with his family to Custer county, Nebraska, and located on Redfern Table, eight miles west of the present town of Oconto. The daughter Susie continued to reside at the parental home until the time of her marriage to William Helmuth, which took place September 11, 1899. Mr. Helmuth was born in Gennany, November 24, 1853. His first marriage took place there and when his first wife died she left si.x children. He came to the United States and reared the children in Nebraska, where all are now married and have children of their own. Thev are as follows: Anna is the wife of William C. Pierce, and they have four children ; Barbara is the wife of Trov Brown, and thev have one child ; Tena is the wife of T. Owen, and they have eight children : Elizabeth is the wife of Clarence Preston, and they have five children ; Lena is the wife of Albert Aldridge, and they have six children; and William j. married Isabel ^IcGuigan. their chihlrcn being two sons.

At the time of his second marriage. Mr. Helmuth was living on his claim situated about four miles southwest of Oconto, and there Mr. and Mrs. Helmuth went to housekeeping. They continued to live there about four vears, when he sold his claim and bought a fine farm of 160 acres on Redfern Table, about eight miles west of Oconto. Here a beautiful country residence was built, and comfort, content and happiness prevailed until Mr. Helmuth's health failed. About six vears ago he was stricken with paralysis and, although he has the kind and loving care of a devoted wife and their two daughters, the affliction is grievous for a man once so active and vigorous. The two living children of Mr. and Mrs. Helmuth are FayJ. and Dorothy L., both of whom are completing their educational course in the Oconto high school. Although Mr. Helmuth has been entirely helpless since he was stricken, on August 23, 1912, his farm industries are all continued very successfully, as Mrs. Helmuth has proved resourceful and exceedingly competent. She oversees the work and is assisted liy her brother, Ernst S'chneider, who resides here and has been a farmer for many vears.

EARL O. MORRIS. - Belonging to that class of workers whose practical education, quick perceptions and extensive capacity for painstaking industry have advanced them to positions of business and public prominence formerly occupied by men many years their seniors, Earl O. Morris, while reprensting the vigorous and forceful present of the west, gives promise of participating in its more enlightened future, more especially Ansley, Custer county, where he is serving in the capacity of assistant cashier of the Bank of Ansley, as well as in the offices of village and township treasurer and member of the school board. He is a native of this place and was born June 5, 1888, a son of Dr. C. H. and Lavina (\'"arney) Morris.

Dr. C. H. Morris was born near Indianapolis, Indiana, of English descent, and as a young man he adopted the profession of medicine, which he followed throughout his career. After coming to Custer count}', Nebraska, he was for a time engaged in practice at Westerville, and later at Broken Bow, and he was fast establishing a reputation when his career was cut short by his early death, an event which caused sorrow among a wide circle of friends and acquaintances. Eventually his widow, who was a native of New York, married Anthony ^^'ilkinson, an early settler of Custer county, and they now live at Grand Island, Hall county, where Mr. ^^'ilkinson is a wealthy and highly respected citizen, practically retired from active affairs. Mr. and Mrs. Wilkinson are members of the Episcopal church.

The only child of his parents, Earl O. Morris was given a good education in the graded and high schools of Ansley, following which he pursued a course in the Grand Island Business College. His career was started upon a ranch, later he was employed in a lumber yard, and thereafter was for some time a clerk in the postoffice. In 1908 he became assistant cashier of the Bank of Ansley, and he has remained in this capacity ever since. This is a strong and conservative financial institution of Ansley, and one which has the confidence and patronage of the people in the surrounding countr}-. This faith and friendship have been largely attracted by Mr. Morris, whose courtesy and gentlemanly bearing at all times have served to generate good feeling and whose evident knowledge of the banking business is being continually demonstrated in no uncertain manner.

September 1.5, 1909, Mr. Morris married Miss May Hare, daughter of Charles Hare, who was one of the early druggists of Ansley, and who died at this place. ;\Ir. and ^Irs. Morris have three children : Earl Charles, who was born September 18, 1910, is now attending the Ansley public school ; Leeta was born September 18, 1912 ; and Wayne Roger was born on July 27, 1914. Mr. and I\Irs. Morris are attendants of the Methodist Episcopal church, although Mrs. Morris belongs to the Presbyterian church. He is fraternally a thirty-second degree Mason and a member of the Mystic Shrine. He was secretary of his Masonic blue lodge four years, senior deacon one year, junior warden for a like period, and is now (1918) senior warden. He is a Republican and has been called upon to fill several offices. At present he is handling the township and village finances in a highly acceptable manner, in the capacity of treasurer. He is also greatly interested in war work and is chairman of the Liberty Loan committee of Custer countv.

DANIEL W. PREDMURE. - This title line begins the story of a Broken Bow merchant. The name has a prominent place on the roster of pioneers. In the northern half of the county there are few names more widely known than Predmorc. The records of the family always relate honorable acliievements, and for that reason the name is one much respected and highly esteemed.

William H. Predmore, father of Daniel W., is a native of Ohio, and the mother, liertha E. (Coslar) Predmore, was born in C.ermany. These estimable people have lived in Custer county since 1884 and are well and favorably known to a very wide circle of friends. William H. Predmore was, prior to this time, a merchant in Fremont, and after locating in Custer county the call of the counter and the showcase loomed large in his dreams. Accordingly, he started a new town called Walworth, located on his own homestead. The growth of the proposed town rivalled Jonah's gourd. In a few weeks buildings were going up on every hand and the new town was booming. But, again like Jonah's gourd, it was destined to a brief existence. The buildings were put on wheels and distributed up and down the ^Middle Loup valley, some going to West L'nion and some to Sargent. The Predmore store building was moved to the Walworth bridge and the Walworth postoffice established in the fall of 1885. This building and stock were afterward destroyed by fire. In the family of William H. Predmore were three children : Adaline Hall : Tames \\'. ; and Daniel \\".

Daniel W. Predmore was born March 20, 1872, at Brushcreek, Iowa. He was but four years old when his parents moved to Fremont, Nebraska, and but twelve years old when they moved to Custer county. Accordingly it will be seen that his education was received in the public schools of Nebraska. He was not more than seven years old when he began helping in his father's store, and there he laid the foundation of a business career. Merchandising has always been to Daniel an attractive occupation. When twenty years of age he purchased a hardware store in West L'nion, from Wilde & Squires, and after operating it during the summer he moved the stock to Broken Bow. Later the hardware stock was disposed of and he and his brother James resorted to mining in the Black Hills. They seemed to strike it lucky in the mining camp of Rockerville. Fortune lavished upon them her golden smiles, and then, alas, she frowned. They invested their accumulations of the summer in a stock of merchandise and the first night after they took possession, the stock and building went up in flames. The brothers barely escaped from the building and saved nothing but the clothes they had on and thirty-five dollars in money. A small calamity of this kind, however, had no power to dampen the ardor of the intrepid spirits. They went to work at the mines again and in a short time established a postoffice at Rockerville, besides starting another store. James acted as merchant while Dan operated as miner, and together they succeeded. Thev continued the Rockerville business until 1894, when Dan went to Alliance, Nebraska, where for a time he worked as clerk in a clothing store. In 1896 he returned to Rockerville and resumed operations on his mining claim. There he continued his activities for two years, and he then disposed of the claim and returned to Custer countv, where he rented one of his father's farms, near Broken Bow. Up until this time Daniel posed as a bachelor, but on November 10, 1889, he returned to Rockerville and remained long enough to claim in marriage Edna M. Carter, a daughter of John C. and Mary Carter. To this union the years have brought two children, and the daughter Gladys is the wife of John Reed, a son of the well known farmer Frank S. Reed.

For thirteen years Daniel W. Predmore, the miner and the merchant, demonstrated his ability as a farmer on one of his father's farms. Then he purchased a farm of his own. six miles northwest of Broken Bow, upon which he built a beautiful residence and provided other improvements. He made this place his residence for five years, when failing health and the scarcity of farm help caused him to leave the farm. He bought a splendid home in Broken Bow, and a little later he purchased the grocery stock of W. F. Forest, located in the Dierks block, on the south side of the public square. Mr. Predmore possesses business acumen, and will succeed in this later venture.

practice of his profession at Ansley, in 1903, John R. Rhodes has lent dignity and stability to professional affairs in his part of Custer county, and thus has maintained and even added to a reputation for ability and resourcefulness established during his residence in the state of Pennsylvania.

Judge Rhodes is a native of the Keystone state, as he was bom in Blair county, Pennsylvania, July 28, 1859. a son of John and Matilda (Forshey) Rhodes. His paternal grandfather, Abraham Rhodes, who was born in Virginia and owned a large plantation there, adopted the cause of Abolition and freed his slaves, following which he went to Pennsylvania. Henry Forshey, the maternal grandfather, was a soldier of Napoleon and was one of those who went on the ill-fated expedition to storm Moscow, and after his return to" France he immigrated to the United States. He was a man of superior intellectual and educational attainments, and when he came to America he brought with him a large and comprehensive library, his home being on the present site of Altoona, Blair county, Pennsylvania.

John Rhodes was born in 1812, in Virginia, and was eight years of age when taken bv his parents to Pennsylvania. There he grew to manhood and became a prosperous farmer, and he was a man widely known for his ability and integrity. He was a Republican in politics. He died May 6, 1864, in the faith of the Lutheran church, of which his wife also was a member. She was born in September, 1825, in Pennsylvania, and died in October, 1904. Their marriage was solemnized in 1855, and they became the parents of three children - Sarah is the wife of Thomas Grove, a farmer of Blair county, Pennsylvania : John R. is the subject of this sketch; and Kezziah, of Pennsylvania, is the widow of the late John Callahan, who for many years was an engineer on the Pennsylvania Central Lines.

After attending the public schools of Blair county, John R. Rhodes became a student at Juniata College, Martinsburg, Pennsylvania, being graduated from that institution in 1877. He next began the study of his chosen profession, in a law office, and he was admitted to the bar of Pennsylvania in 1882, continuing to practice in his native state until 1890. In that year he came to Nebraska and bought land, and in 1903 he began the practice of law at Ansley, since which time he has devoted himself chiefly to his calling, his practice having been materially extended with the passing years. He is a broad-minded and progressive practitioner, a careful observer of the courtesies and amenities of his profession, at all times seeking its most intelligent and praiseworthy compensations, and is a member of the various bodies of the calling. He has been called upon to serve in several local offices of a public character, and from 1894 to 1898 was county judge of Custer county. While he has engaged to a considerable extent in farming during his career, the law has had his main interest, and to it he gives the most of his attention. Judge Rhodes in his political support subscribes to the principles of the Republican party.

In March, 1881, Judge Rhodes married Miss Dora Patrick, who was born in Indiana, a daughter of George and Emma (Herndon) Patrick, early settlers of Indiana, who spent their last years in Nebraska. Judge and I\Irs. Rhodes are the parents of eight children : Emma Kezziah is the wife of Leslie R. Clay, a civil engineer of Craig, Colorado ; Orlando Ross is a farmer of Bushnell, Nebraska : Laura Belle is the wife of Timothy Hanley, a painter of Ansley: Marcellus Roy, who is a farmer of Ansley, married Elsa Hyatt ; Roscoe Bryan is at the time of this writing with Company A, Three Hundred and Forty-second ^Machine Gun Brigade, Sixty-eighth Division, American Expeditionary Forces in France: Edith, a graduate of Ansley high school, class of 1918, remains with her parents, as do also Maude and John R., Tr., who

JOHN M. SAMUELSON. - One of the genial and dependable spirits of Arnold and one who has made a success of both farming and business is John M. Samuelson. who was born April 18, 1863, in the province of Halland. Sweden. He is a son of John B. and Johanna (Magmuson) Samuelson, both of whom came of that sturdy Scandanavian stock which has contributed so many thrifty citizens to the western hemisphere. In the family of John B. Smuelson were three sons, all of whom are living - John M., Sander A., and Barnard A. John B. Samuelson came to the United States in 1870 and landed at Castle Garden, New York. From the national metropolis he worked his way west and found a location in Carroll county, Iowa, where he remained four years. He then removed with his family to Crawford county, that state, where they remained another four years, after which he purchased a farm in Ida county, where he still resides, having retired from active business.

John M. Samuelson relates many amusing experiences concerning his first years in this country. When he had been here but a few months he hired out to a man to help pull beans. He was then but eight years of age. Other boys working in the same field were double his age and as each boy took a row it was not long until they had left young John far behind. This so discouraged him that when night came, he threw up the job. The farmer for whom he was working gave him ten cents and a watermelon. He took the melon home but as none of the family had never seen one before, they did not know what to do with it. A young lady came to their rescue and showed them that melons were supposed to be eaten. She cut the melon and John started in by eating the rind. He found out, however, that the red ])art was better than the green and suited better both his complexion and and his digestion. Things have changed since them. Nobody has to show John to-day how to eat watermelons. When twelve years of age he went to work, and his wages were contributed to the family living. When twenty years of age he found his way into Custer county', Nebraska, and the following year. 1884, he reached his majority and located a pre-emption claim, five miles east of Arnold. After proving up on the land he returned to Iowa, but one year there was enough and he returned to Custer county, where he has made his home ever since. March 22, 1888, he married Mary E. McGuire, a daughter of John and Mar)^ (Wingoj McGuire. Mrs. Samuelson lived but two years, and she left a little girl babe, which survived her but six months. Mr. Samuelson remarried December 22, 1908. At this time he led to the marriage altar the present Mrs. Samuelson, who was then Miss Iva AI. Anson. The following, clipped from an Arnold paper, gives a brief sketch of 'Sirs. Samuelson. "Iva M., daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Franklin P. Anson, was born August 29, 1883. near Springfield, Sarpy county, Nebraska. With her parents she came to Custer county at the age of one year. After living near Mills X'alley for nine years they moved to the eastern part of the state, where they resided for a year, going to Missouri in the fall of 1894, by means of covered wagon. There they lived five years, when they returned to Arnold, to remain only two years. They then went to Missouri Valley, Iowa, where they resided until 1905, when they returned to Arnold for the third time. On December 22, 1908, she was united in marriage to John M. Samuelson."

Concerning j\lr. Samuelson's fanning and business operations the following extract, clipped from a boom edition of the Arnold Sentinel, gives an epitome of his career. "John M. Samuelson arrived in this country from Ida county, Iowa, in January, 1884, and when old enough appropriated a portion of Uncle Sam's domain for his own individual use, on which he lived about a year. He then returned to Iowa, where he remained about a year before returning to Custer county. This locality has been his home since and he expects that it will continue to be in the future, as it is just as good as any place for a man with moderate means. He farmed his place in Powell Canyon for several years and in 1904 disposed of his land and moved to Arnold, where he has since been engaged in the well, windmill, pump and plumbing business, with a fair degree of success. When first coming to this country he experienced all the disadvantages common to a new countrj'. His nearest neighbor was two miles away. Settlers were few and far between. The nearest railroad trading point was Cozad, fifty miles away, and three days were generally consumed in making the trip. He has seen this countn,- develop from almost a wilderness to a moderately settled community of as well behaved and intelligent people as can be found anywhere in the United States."

The Samuelsons live in a splendid home, modernly equipped and provided with all the comforts of the better days that have come since the pioneering period has passed. They are congenial, popular people, members of the Christian church, and j\Ir. Samuelson enjoys the distinction of being a thirty-second-degree Mason. Politically he affiliates with the Democratic party.

Mr. Samuelson relates an interesting incident that occurred in 1887. while he was residing on his place in Powell Canyon. He and his family went to Arnold to attend the Fourth of July celebration of that year. A Mexican and a white man, who had been in the neighborhood several days, made themselves very busy while the various settlers were away from home and participating in the celebration mentioned. The two miscreants went to the home of Ben Lansing, where they cooked a meal and appropriated clean clothing for the habiliments they were wearing - in short, they helped themselves to everything they wanted about the premises. Several other places were subjected to similar inspection and depredations, and at the home of Mr. Samuelson they traded running-gears on wagons, leaving their old wagon in place of a far better outfit. When the settlers arrived at their respective homes and discovered what had been done, a number of the men. including Mr. Samuelson, set out in pursuit of the outlaws. Late the next day these settlers, with others who were searching for the same malfactors, found the two men six miles north of Broken Bow. The outlaws, when thus brough to bay, resisted arrest, and in the conflict that ensued, the Mexican was killed, his companion making his escape. Reference is made to this event in Butcher's history of Custer county.

ALBERT ROHDE. - Practical industry, wisely and vigorously applied, seldom fails of attaining success, and the career of Albert Rohde, now one of the leading farmers of Custer county, is but another proof of this statement. When he started out in life he had but few advantages to assist him along the road to success, but his diligence and judicious management have brought him ample sincess as a reward for his labors.

Mr. Rohde was born in Germany, a son of Chris and Henrietta (Rickow) Rohde, who passed the greater part of their lives in Germany, where they were people of modest means but liighly respected by their neighbors. The father died here on the homestead in Custer county, when eighty-two years of age, and the mother is still living. Albert Rohde received only the advantages of a common-school education, and he remained under the home roof until he was si-xteen vears of age, when he began to shift for himself. Coming to the L'nited States, he made his way to Nebraska, and for four years he was a resident of Grand Island, but in 1887 he came to Custer county. He had been married to Minnie Sherman, of Mecklenburg, Germany, who died, and in 1888 he was again married, being united with Anna Busem, also a native of Germany. They settled on a homestead farm, where they met and overcame the usual obstacles which appeared in the paths of the early settlers, and gradually they forced their way to a position where they found firm footing on the ladder of success. From that time forward Mr. Rohde's progress was rapid, and he eventually become recognized as one of the capable and industrious men of his locality - an enterprising, pushing man of integrity who transacted business in an honorable way. Mr. Rohde is now the owner of 800 acres of good land, his home being situated in section 4, township 71, where he has a modern residence, good outbuildings, and the latest and most highly improved equipment. He follows general farming and has also been successful as a raiser of pure-blood Polled cattle, fine horses and mules, and a good grade of hogs, principally of the Poland-China breed. He has given his entire attention to farming and stock-raising, but has good investments as well, and has never been attracted to public life or to active participation in political affairs. His support of worthy movements, however, has shown his good citizenship. Mr. and Mrs. Rohde are members of the Evangelical church, and attend the church of this denomination south of Alason City.

Mr. Rohde had the following brothers and sisters : Fred, August, and Otto, all of whom are engaged in farming in Custer county, where they are the owners of valuable land and good live stock ; Herman, whose death occurred in Buffalo county, where he was engaged in farming; j\Irs. Amelia Paske, residing on a farm in Custer county ; and Elizabeth Maliage, a resident of Kansas. Mr. Rohde is the father of the following children : Mrs. Alvina Clamp, who is the wife of a Wisconsin railroad man ; Herman, who is one of the operators of the home farm ; Frank, who is with the American Expeditionary Forces in France at the time of this writing; Roland, who is engaged in cultivating a part of his father's propert)' in Custer county ; Mary, who resides with her parents : and Dora, who lives in Wisconsin. Frank, Herman, and Roland are in partnership in operating the home farm and the two last mentioned are carrying on Frank's work while he is in the service as a soldier.

JAMES WHITEHEAD is an honored Custer county pioneer who is specially entitled to recognition in this liistor\' of the county. It was his to do well his part in connection with the initial development of the county, and also to wield influence in the furthering of material and civic advancement in later years. Though he is now a resident of the city of Emporia. Kansas, he makes annual visits to the old home in Custer county, where he renews and vitalizes old acquaintanceships and also cements new friendships in the community that was the stage of his pioneer experiences.

James Whitehead was born at Yorkville, Racine county, Wisconsin, on the 27th of Atigust, 1846, and his parents, as well as all of his ancestors, so far as known, were natives of fine old Yorkshire, England, whence his father immigated to the United States in 1842. Mr. Whitehead is a son of Benjamin and Sarah (Smith) Whitehead, and upon coming to America the father settled as a pioneer in the vicinity of Racine, Wisconsin. He was a blacksmith by trade and as a skilled artisan he found much demand for his services in the pioneer community, the while he also gave his careful attention to the development and improvement of his farm. For fifty-five years he gave faithful service as a local preacher of the Methodist Episcopal church, and his life was guided and governed by lofty principles. In April, 1855, after having sold his farm in Racine county, he removed with his family to Marquette county, Wisconsin, where he passed the remainder of his life. He was summoned to the life eternal in December 1884, his devoted wife having passed awav fifteen years previously. Of their ten children James, subject of this review, is now the only survivor.

Owing to the exigencies and conditions of time and place, James Whitehead received but meager educational advantages in his vouth. After he was eleven years old he was alile to attend the district school only three months during the year and when the Civil war was precipitated, his youthful patriotism was quickened to action. On the 4th of July, 1862, somewhat more than a month prior to his sixteenth birthday anniversary, Mr. Whitehead enlisted, at Portage, Wisconsin, as a private in Company II, Twenty-seventh Wisconsin Volunteer Infantr)', subsequentlv he was transferred to the Thirteenth Regulars, from which organization he was later discharged on account of "permanent disease of the heart." He was sent home, supposedly to die, but fortunately it proved that the dictum of the surgeons was not infallible, for the gallant youth eventually recuperated his phvsical wellbeing. In the stress of conflict and the consequent demand for men, Mr. Whitehead re-enlisted as soon as he could show himself again physically eligible, and January 23, 1864, recorded his enrollment as a member of Company D, Nineteenth Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry, with which he continued in service until the close of the war.

Upon his return to civil life Mr. Whitehead resumed work on the home fann, and later he purchased the homestead on which the father of John Muir, the eminent naturalist, had settled on coming to America and which John, the future scientist, assisted in reclaiming and preparing for the plow, this farm being in Marquette county. Wisconsin.

In the Badger state Mr. Whitehead continued his association with agricultural industry until he numbered himself among the pioneer settlers of Custer county, Nebraska. In the winter of 1883-4 he came to this county and entered claim to a homestead twelve miles south of the present village of Callaway, in the district now known as Red fern Table. On the 24th of July of the same year he established his residence on this homestead, upon which he constructed a sod house, and in the following December his family joined him in this pioneer home.

In the fall of 1888 Mr. Whitehead was elected to the Nebraska legislature, and upon the close of the legislative session he returned to his homestead, in 1889. In July of the same year he received notice that he had been appointed deputy collector of internal revenue, and he forthwith entered upon the duties of this office. A new land district having been created, with its office at Broken Bow, to be opened July 1, 1890, Mr. Whitehead received information that he had been appointed receiver of this new land office, with Hon. John Reese as register. Having thus exerted large and Ijenignant influence in connection with public affairs in this part of the state, in 1892 Mr. Whitehead was made the Republican nominee for representative in congress from his district. The Populist party was then in the zenith of its strength in the district, and after a spirited campaign Mr. Whitehead met defeat at the polls - jnirely as a matter of political exigency. At the expiration of his term as receiver of the land office, he removed to Callaway, in October, 1894, in order to be near his fami, which had been leased. A year later he was informed by the Nebraska board of lands and buildings that he had been appointed state agent of the Nebraska penitentiary, the duties of which office he at once assumed, and in due time his family joined him in the city of Lin- coin. At the end of one year he resigned this office, but he continued his residence in the capital city, in order to permit his daughter to continue her studies in the University of Nebraska.

In June, 1898, while visiting in Wisconsin, Mr. Whitehead received notice that he had been appointed register of the United States land office at Broken Bow, with Frank Young as receiver, and, entering upon his duties July 1st, he continued the incumbent of this office eight years, under the administrations of Presidents McKinley and Roosevelt. At the expiration of his second term, upon receiving from physicians the advice that he must seek a lower altitude, Mr. Whitehead reluctantly left Nebraska and established his residence at Emporia, Kansas, where he has maintained his home since July 6, 1907.

Mr. Whitehead still owns the Custer county homestead which he obtained thirty-four years ago and to which he has added, by purchase, an adjacent tract of 640 acres. To this fine rural estate he returns each successive summer and here he remains from one to three months. He recalls vividly the trials and early struggles which the pioneers here encountered in contending for victory over the untried forces of a new land, and, notwithstanding the anxiety and arduous toil imposed, he looks back to those days as among the happiest of his life - a view that is fully shared by the other members of his family. But few of his old neighbors now remain, but, instead, he meets their children, now middle-aged, and they in turn introduce him to their children, to whom he and the "early days" are almost as a tradition. Referring to those stirring times, Mr. Whitehead compares them with the radical conditions that obtain at the present time. Thus he makes comparison between the present high price of farm labor - amounting at times to from three to five dollars a day - with the seventyfive cents that he, as a lad of fourteen vears, received for service in the harvest fields of W'isconsin. The farm hand of the early days worked with primitive implements. To-day are in evidence the tractors and the gang plows, and the "hired man" frequently is discovered driving about in his own automobile. In the realm of such retrospection, Mr. Whitehead is duly impressed with the fact that "the world do move," as the negro philosopher e.x-- pressed it.

In conclusion is made brief record concerning the felicitous domestic chapter in the life history of the sterling Custer county pioneer to whom this review is dedicated : On the 30th of December, 1867, was solemnized the

CHARLES S. CHRISMAN, who is one of the most favorably known and most comfortably situated of the retired farmers of Custer county, has achieved unequivocal success and prosperity through his former years of active association with the great fundamental industries of agriculture and stockgrowing, and his indefatigable and well ordered activities in past years have brought to him the merited rewards of contentment, good health, freedom from exacting cares and a gracious knowledge of work well done and service earnestly rendered in connection with the duties and responsibilities that canopy every life.

Mr. Chrisman was born in Lafayette county, Missouri, on the 6th of April, 1849, and is a son of Joseph and Jane (Chrisman) Chrisman. The genealogy traces back to staimch German origin, but Mr. Chrisman has pride in the fact that he is a scion of a family whose name has been worthily linked with American history since the colonial era. From a most interesting family record prepared by George Chrisman, a cousin of him whose name introduces this article, may consistently be taken certain data that properly find place in this review. At some time in the decade between 1720 and 1730 three brothers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob Chrisman, left their native province of Bavaria, Germany, and immigrated to America. Landing in Philadelphia, they thence made their way to the town of York, Pennsylvania, and they figure as the founders of a now numerous and honored American family. Of the three original American immigrants, Jacob figures as the ancestor of Charles S. Chrisman, of this sketch. At York, Pennsylvania, Jacob Chrisman met and married Mary Madaline Kite, a daughter of Jost Hite, who was a wealthy nobleman who left his fatherland on account of religious persecution and came to America in 1910, the voyage being made on a ship which he owned, as did he also a second ship which crossed the Atlantic at the same time, one of the ships being laden with goods and the other affording transportation to this distinguished ancestor and his people. Concerning him the following record has been given: "He settled in New York, but soon moved from there to York, Pennsylvania. There he became acquainted with William Penn, who told him of the rich land of the south branch of the Potomac river. He, with three partners, Willianis. Duff, and Green, bought 60,000 acres of this land, from Lord Fairfax, who, under a grant from the king of England, owned all of Virginia north of a line running east and west on the south line of Shenandoah county from Chesapeake Bay to the headwaters of the Potomac. He also bought 54,000 acres in the Shenandoah valley, extending from near Winchester up to Edom. In 1732 he moved to this last purchase, cutting a wagon road through the timber and brush from York to the Potomac, a short way above Harper's Ferry. Jacob Chrisman came with him and settled on a tract of 800 acres of fine land, on the road leading from Winchester to Staunton and just south of Stephen City, at a fine spring knov^-n to this day as "Chrisman Spring." Jacob Chrisman became the father of seven sons and three daughters, and of the sons John was the next in line of descent to him whose name introduces this Custer county review. John Chrisman became a soldier and distinguished ofificer of the Continental forces in the war of the Revolution, in which he held the rank of colonel. He married Elizabeth McDowell, daughter of General Joseph McDowell and Margaret (O'Neal) McDowell, the latter having been a daughter of Lord O'Neal, a most powerful Irish nobleman who left a great estate. John Chrisman left one son. Isaac, who lived on the old home estate near Stephen City. Isaac, son of John, inherited this ancestral home. Of the five daughters of Isaac Chrisman. one was Jane, who became the wife of Joseph Chrisman, and this couple figure on record as the parents of Charles S. Chrisman, to whom this review is dedicated. The above record pertains to the lineage of Mr. Chrisman on the maternal side. In the agnatic, or paternal line, he traces his ancestrv' back to the same original American progenitor. Tacob Chrisman, whose son George was a captain of the Continental Line in the Revolutionarv war. George Chrisman married Hannah Mc- Dowell and they settled near Edom, \"irginia. Their son John married Ann Harrison, and they had three children. - Joseph, George II.. and Margaret. Joseph first married Elizabeth Lincoln, and after her death he wedded Jane Chrisman. Joseph and Jane Chrisman. parents of the subject of this sketch, removed to Missouri about the year 1837. l)oth having been born and reared in the historic Old Doininion state, as the forgoing record duly indicates.

Upon their removal to Missouri Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Chrisman became pioneer settlers in Lafayette county, where Mr. Chrisman reclaimed and improved a fann and devoted the remainder of his life to agricultural pursuits. In Virginia he had served as a colonel in the state militia, and while the Civil war found him too advanced in years to render military service, he was profoundly loyal to the cause which gained his allegiance in that climacteric period of our national history. He never manifested any desire to become active in public affairs in the state of his adoption. His political support was given to the Democratic party and he and his wife were earnest members of the Presbyterian church. Of their twelve children only two are living at the beginning of the year 1919 - Virginia, who resides in the city of Chicago, she being the widow of Lee Cooper, who was a soldier of the Confederacy during the Civil war : and Charles S., whose name initiates this record.

Charles S. Chrisman acquired his early education in the common schools at Lexington, Missouri, and as a youth he gave effective aid in connection with the work of the home farm. On this homestead he eventually conducted independent operations, and there he remained until 1883, when, at the age of thirty-four years, he came to Nebraska and numbered himself among the pioneers of Custer county. Here he entered claim to a homestead and began his career as a sheep-raiser in the new countrj% after having brought a herd of sheep from Missouri. Soon afterward, however, he sold his sheep and turned his attention to the raising of cattle, hogs, and horses, in which field of enterprise he made rapid and satisfactory progress. Mr. Chrisman was so determined and persevering that he permitted no discouragements to affect him, and he was aggressive enough to overcome the obstacles which appeared in his path. While many of his neighbors were bewailing the lack of timber and the necessity of living in makeshift homes, mostly of sod, the while they sheltered their stock, grain and machiiier\- as best they could - Mr. Chrisman hitched U]) his team and made numerous trips to Kearney, whence he hauled lumber to his homestead, where he erected a comfortable house and also built good structures for the protection of his live stock and fami products, im- ]>lenients. etc. As his finances permitted, he added to his land holdings from time to time, and he is to-day the owner of 800 acres of valuable Custer county land - all accumulated through his own efforts. This estate includes his original pioneer homestead, situated twelve miles south of Ansley, in which pleasant little village he is now living virtuallv retired. As a man of inflexible in- tegrity in all of the relations of life, and as a sterling pioneer of the county, he is accounted one of the hest and most honored citizens of Ansley. He gives his allegiance to the Demo cratic party, is aiifiliated with the local camp of the Modern Woodmen of America, and both he and his wife are earnest members of the Presbyterian church.

In 1875 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Chrisman to Miss Bettie Brooks, who was born at Fayette, Howard county, Missouri, and of their five children three are living: Joseph conducts a well equipped barber shop at Mason City, this county ; Irene is the wife of Floyd Waite, a prosperous farmer of this county ; and Charles L., who is successfully conducting operations on his father's old homestead, is well upholding the industrial and civic prestige of the family name.

Mr. Wagner was born in Auglaize county, Ohio, December 20, 1856. His parents were natives respectively of Ohio and New Jersey. It was in 1873 that they started for Nebraska, spending the winter at Loup City and arriving in Custer county in the spring of 1874. Samuel W'agner secured a homestead in sections 9 and 10 and here he spent the remainder of his life. In the early days he and his son supplied the early settlers with fresh meat, as deer and antelope were plentiful. Mr. Wagner remembers when he and father were out hunting, the son had shot a deer and broken its horn. While holding the deer and waiting for the father to cut its throat the deer made a struggle to get away and the broken end of the horn caught the father's leg, tearing the flesh from the knee to the hip. Had it not been a broken horn the injury would have been much worse.

William Wagner was reared amid the pioneer conditions that existed at the time and upon reaching manhood he became a farmer. From 1894^ till 1912 Mr. Wagner resided in Cherrv' county, but he now maintains his home on a farm which he owns near Comstock.

March 20, 1886, Mr. Warner was united in marriage to Miss Clara Miller, who was born in Van Wert county, Ohio, a daughter of Tobias and Melissa (Cook) Miller. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Wagner has been made happy by the coming of seven children : Tobias Miller, deceased, married Ella De Wolt ; Roy H. is serving in the United States Nav>' ; Samuel L. is a member of the national army, "somewhere in France" at the time of this writing; Charles A. is in military training at Camp Dodge, Des Moines, Iowa ; Miss Grace P. is a teacher in the Custer county schools ; and Frank and Harland are at home.

Mr. Wagner has a vivid recollection of pioneer conditions and recalls many interesting happenings of the early days. Once when corn was scarce and hogs were plentiful he traded a load of corn to a Mr. Carr for a very fine brood sow and ten pigs. The trade was very beneficial to Mr. Wagner, as it gave him a start in the hog business with an almost pure-bred stock - a strain which was noticeable in his herd for many years. He remembers a very severe hail storm which occurred on the 4th of July, 1878 or 1879. A picnic party had been arranged, and while on the way they saw the storm approaching. They unhitched the horses and sought shelter under the wagon. The hail-stones were so large and came down with such force that in the ground were made holes as large as a man's double fist. On their wav home, in crossing a draw which had been filled with hail-stones, they had to unhitch the team. In trying to extricate the wagon one of the party. Charles Baker, froze his feet quite badly. A Mrs. Safford contracted a cold and died from the effects.

Forty- four years have passed since the Wagner family settled in Custer county and during all these years its representatives have been influential factors in the development and upbuilding of the country.

STUART B. McKENTY. - Since December, 1914, the real-estate and insurance interests of Ansley have had an able and progressive representative in the person of Stuart B. McKenty, who, prior to entering this field, had been one of the successful farmers of Custer county. Mr. McKenty was born in the Province of Quebec, Canada, August 18, 1862, and is a son of Nicholas S. and Elizabeth (Bayes) McKenty.

Nicholas S. McKenty was born in Vermont and was a tailor by trade, his work as a journeyman taking him to Quebec, where he met and married Elizabeth Bayes, who was bora in Canada, a daughter of Dr. George Bayes, a veterinary surgeon of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Some time after the birth of his only son and child, Nicholas S. McKenty returned to the United States, and the remainder of his life was passed in following his vocation in New England, his death occurring at Gorham. New Hampshire. He was an indus- trious man, intelligent, hard-working and capable, and through good management made a success of his affairs, while he won trust and friendship through his display of qualities of honesty and integrity. Mrs. McKenty was a member of the Presbyterian church.

The early education of Stuart B. McKenty was acquired in the public schools of the New England states, and as a youth he adopted the vocation of farming for his life work. The soil of New England did not appeal to him, and in 1882, he came to the west in search of his first fortune, settling first near Lincoln, but coming soon afterward, in 1883, to Custer county. Here he homesteaded a tract of land and settled down on his claim, to make his property a valuable and productive one. During almost thirty years he continued to be engaged in agricultural pursuits, and wheti he retired from the cultivation of the soil he was the owner of a full section of land, all accumulated through his own efforts. His rise has been steady and continuous and he has had to depend upon no resources other than his own in climbing up the ladder of success. In the neighborhood of his farm, Mr. Mc- Kenty built up a splendid and lasting reputation for fair dealing and honorable transactions, and to this he has added since coming to Ansley, in December, 1914. Upon his arrival here he established himself in the realestate and general insurance business, a field for which his talents seem to specially fit him, he having since engineered some of the most important real-estate deals in this section. He is shrewd and far-sighted, has a thorough knowledge of city and town land values and is well posted as to the resources and advantages at the disposal of people contemplating settlement or change of location in Ansley and its vicinity.

March 13, 1898, Mr. McKenty married Miss Minnie R. Guthrie, who was bom in Iowa, a daughter of S. S. and Nancv Guthrie. Her parents were born in New York state and became early residents of Custer county, where Mr. Guthrie died and where his widow still resides. Mr. and Mrs. IMcKenty have two children - Gordon S., who is gaining knowledge of practical pharmacy by his employment in an Ansley drug store : and Orrin H., who is a resident of Antioch. Nebraska. Mrs. McKenty is a member of the Christian church. Fraternallv, Mr. McKenty belongs to the Modern \\'oodmen of .America and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in which latter he has passed the various official chairs. His business and social success has been materially aided by that spirit of kindliness which makes the whole world kin, which appreciates

WILLIAM L. McCAXDLES'S. - The entire career of William L. McCandless, cashier of the Berwyn State Bank and treasurer of Custer county, has been passed in activities connected with financial affairs, and as a result he is one of the best known men in banking circles in Custer county. It has been his fortune to have been connected with two institutions which have held the confidence of the people, and his identification with them has been of two-fold benefit - to himself and to the banks.

A native son of Broken Bow, Nebraska. Mr. McCandless was born November 30. 18S5, his parents being Lucian and Amanda E. ( Gandy) McCandless. concerning whom more specific mention is made on other pages, in the individual review of the career of Lucian McCandless. The early education of William L. McCandless was acquired at Broken Bow, where he was a member of the high-school graduating class of 1903, following which he entered the Wesleyan University at Lincoln. He attended that well known institution from 1903 to 1906. His studies completed, he secured a position as bookkeeper in the Security State Bank, acting in that capacity from June 1. 1906, to December 26. 1906. .A.t the organization of the Berwyn State Bank, on the latter date, he was offered and accepted the cashiershi]). and this position he has since retained. This institution, which started with a capital of $5,000, now has a $13,000 capital, with surplus and undivided profits of $3,000, the deposits averaging $200,000. This is considered a sound, and substantial, safe and conservative institution, and Mr. McCandless has establi>hcd himself firmly in the confidence of the bank's patrons and that of its stockholders and his fellow officials. He is conceded to be a man of much knowledge of the banking business and his personal characteristics are of a kind to inspire faith and friendship.

Mr. McCandless was married November 20, 1912. to Miss Charlotte E. Waterbury. who was born at ^^'esterville. Custer county, and who is a daughter of H. S. and Carrie Waterbury. To this union there have been born three children, of whom two are living: William L., Jr., and Harrison S'.. the first-born child, Raymond W.. having died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. McCandless are members of the Methodist Ei)iscopal church. He is a Mason of high rank, having attained the thirty-.^ec- oncl degree of the Scottish Rite, besides which he is a noble of the ^Mystic Shrine and a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in which latter he has passed the various official chairs. A Republican in his political allegiance, he has been too busy with his banking interests and duties to be a politician, Init a desire to be of service to his community persuaded him to allow his name to be used as that of the Republican candidate for the office of county treasurer in the primaries of 1918. In the ensuing election he was victorious at the polls and he assumed his official duties in January, 1919.

CHARLES H. F. STEINMEIER. - Of the merchants who have assisted in sustaining the business integrity of Custer county, Charles H. F. Steinmeier, is worthy of special recognition as one of the most progressive and enterprising of the men who have conducted ventures here during recent years. Still a young man, he has been the founder of several establishments, in the drug line, which have reflected his untiring zeal and innate energ\'. and from a small beginning he has advanced himself to recognized place among the business citizens of Ansley and the vicinity.

Mr. Steinmeier was born at St. Paul, Minnesota, November 10. 1883, a son of C. H. and Bertha (Pankratz) Steinmeier, natives of Germany wdio came to the United States as young people and were married in Minnesota. His father was a cigarmaker by trade, and later became a manufacturer of several well known brands, having his factory in St. Paul for five years. From that city he moved to Grand Island. Nebraska, became well known in business circles and as a secretary of his district in the National Cigar Makers' Union. He w-as beginning to make a decided success of his ventures when his death occurred. He was a Democrat in politics. Mrs. Steinmeier, who survives him and makes her home at Grand Island, is a member of the Lutheran church. They were the parents of two children: Charles II. F., and William E.. the latter having died in 1916, at the age of thirtyone vcars.

The early educational advantages of Charles H. F. Steinmeier were confined to his attendance in the public schools of Grand Island, and he was still a youth when he secured emnloyment in a drug store there. It would seem as though he were possessed with inher ent ability for the drug business, for he soon mastered the mysteries of pharmacv, made rapid advancement, and within seven vears was the owner of an establishment of his own.

In 1905 he left Grand Island and came to Ansley, where he bought a drag store, and he has since been engaged in business with constantly increasing success. Later he bought an establishment at Ravenna, in Buffalo county, one at Poole, in the same county, and one at Berwyn, in Custer county, but he has since disposed of all of these, and now confines himself to the conducting of his store at Ansley and one at Chappell. Through his own efforts ^Ir. Steinmeier has forced his way to a place where he is one of the best known men in the retail drug trade of central Nebraska. He was for some time president of the State Rexall Club, and has numerous friends in and outside of the various druggists' organizations. Fraternally he is a bluelodge, chapter and thirty-second-degree Mason and a Noble of the Mystic Shrine, and he has passed the official chairs in the blue lodge. He gives his political support to the Democratic party.

In 1911 'Sir. Steinmeier was united in marriage with Miss Cora E. Harris, who was bom in Illinois, a daughter of Edward E. Harris. Mr. Harris, a contractor, came to Ansley in 1903. Mr. and Mrs. Steinmeier are the parents of one daughter: Imo, who was born July 18, 1912. Sirs. Steinmeier is a consistent member of the Christian church and is much interested in its work.

AUGUSTUS C. \'AN HORNE is one of the young financiers of Custer county who, within the short period of his connection with monetary affairs, has impressed himself favorably upon his associates as one of ability and conservative views. He is assistant cashier of the Farmers State Bank of Ansley. From the time that he left school he has been connected with banking matters, and has also engaged with a degree of success in the insurance business. Mr. Van Home was born in Pawnee county, Nebraska, March 5. 1894, and is a son of Hugh C. and Ella ( Peckham) \"an Home.

Hugh C. Van Home, now a resident of Pawnee City, has been engaged in banking since he was eighteen years of age, and at the present time is cashier of the Farmers State Bank of Pawnee City. He is widely and favorably known in banking circles, and has at various times been connected with institutions in several parts of the state, where his ability, judgment and counsel have been highly valued. He is a Knight Templar Mason, in politics a Democrat, and in religion an Episcopalian, while his wife holds membership in the Alethodist Episcojial church. They became the parents of nine children, of whom seven are living: Lucy is the wife of George Sawyer, a clothing merchant at Pawnee City ; Virgil, an invalid, lives at Pawnee City ; Edwin is engaged in the banking business at St. Joseph, Missouri; May is the wife of John Bennett, D. D. S., in the United States service at Camp Pike, Arkansas, as a dental officer, with the rank of first lieutenant ; Augustus C, of this sketch, was the next in order of birth; Myron is a banker at Pawnee City, Nebraska ; and Maurice is attending school in that city.

The public schools of Pawnee City furnished Augustus C. \^an Home with his earlv educational training, and after his graduation in the high school, in 1914, he entered a bank at St. Joseph, Missouri, where he gained his first insight into the intricacies of the vocation which he had chosen for his life work. His experience in several positions there prepared him for the office of assistant cashier of the Farmers State Bank of Ansley, the duties of which position he assumed in 1915, and which he still performs. Mr. Van Home, a young man of pleasing personality, has made numerous friends at Ansley and has retained them, particularly among the patrons of the bank. While the greater part of his attention is given to his duties at the institution which he represents, he has found the opportunity to engage also in the insurance business, a difficult field in which he has been successful, representing some of the leading companies. While he has not thought of political office, he is nevertheless well informed as to matters of local governmental import, and is a stanch supporter of the principles of the Democratic party. Fraternally he is identified with the Knights of Columbus, and he and his wife are members of Sacred Heart Roman Catholic church.

In May, 1917, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Van Home to Miss Mabel Harris, who was born at Linn Creek, Camden county, Missouri. She is a daughter of Sam and Agnes (Ryan) Harris, who came to Custer county at an early day, Mr. Harris now being a mail carrier out of Ansley. Mr. and Mrs. Van Horne have one child, Lavelle.

DR. JOHN H. MORROW is one of the leading physicians of Custer county and enjoys an enviable reputation both as a physician and as a citizen. Dr. Morrow was born in La Salle county, Illinois, August 13, 1872, and is a son of Augustus and Esther (Robinson) Morrow, who became pioneer settlers of Custer county and of whom further mention is made on other pages of this volume.

Dr. Morrow was a boy of eleven years when the home was established in Custer county, and he is quite familiar with events and conditions that existed in that pioneer period. He was reared on a farm and attended the public schools in the acquirement of his early education. Later he became a student in the University of Nebraska and he also attended Cotner University, where he graduated in the medical department. He located at Arnold, where he formed a partnership with Dr. Robinson, and he continued in practice there until August, 1902, when he came to Merna. Here he has proven his ability and has won his way into the hearts and homes of the community to such an extent as only a physician can realize.

In 1903 Dr. Morrow was united in marriage to Miss Marie Walsh, who was born in Lee county, Iowa, a daughter of William and Ann (Nolan) Walsh, pioneer settlers in the Merna neighborhood. More specific mention is made of the Walsh family on other pages of this volume. Dr. and Airs. Morrow are the parents of eight children: Charles A., William G., Esther E., Arthur J., Harry W., Mary Wilson, Martha A., and Kathleen.

Dr. Morrow is a Republican in politics and served two terms as county coroner. His name is found on the list of membership in the lodges of the Masonic fraternity, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Royal Highlanders, and the Woodmen of the World.

Dr. and Mrs. Morrow take an active interest in all afi^airs pertaining to the welfare of the community and are highly esteemed by all who know them.

PERRY M. DADY, whose residence in Custer county covers a period of more than thirty-six years, is now classed among tlie well-to-do men of the Mason City community. This fact shows him to be another one of Custer county's agriculturists who in their careers have exemplified with force the true western spirit of self-made manhood, for when he came to this state, in 1882, his worldly possessions amounted to next to nothing and throughout his career he has been called upon to depend wholly upon his own abilities and energies.

Mr. Dady was born on a farm in Mason county, Illinois, March 9, 1859. and is a son of Spencer and Adelaide (Wible) Dady. His father, a native of Pennsylvania, was born in 1835, and as a young man went to Mason county, Illinois, where he started life without assets save those represented by his inherent qualities, and where he gained some small success. He there married Adelaide W'ible, who was born in Illinois, in 1S40, and several years later they moved to Iowa, where Air. Dady became the owner of a farm. He continued to reside in the Hawkeye state until 1884, when he followed his eldest son to Custer county and took up a homestead. Here he continued to be engaged in fanning and stock-raising operations until his death, in 1890, at which -time he was considered a fairly successful man. He was industrious and honest and had the respect of his neighbors, and as to community affairs he was public-spirited. Originally a Republican, with the birth of the Populist party he transferred his allegiance to the new organization. Mrs. Dady survived him imtil 1904 and died in the faith of the Baptist church. Three of their four sons survive : Perry M., who is the subject of this review ; Quintus J., who is engaged in farming not far from Mason City : and L. L., who follows farming in Ringgold county, Iowa. The other son, N. C, died September 19, 1917, at Mason City, where he had for some years been engaged in the implement business.

Perrv M. Dady received his education in the public schools of Illinois and Iowa, and was reared to farming, a vocation which he adopted for his life work. He was twentythree years old when he came to Custer county, in 1882, and pre-empted a homestead, which forms a part of his present farm. At that time the property was destitute of improvements of any kind, and Mr. Dady lived at first in a dug-out and later in a "soddy," experiencing at the same time all the other inconveniences and hardships which the early settlers were called upon to face. As the years passed, however, and he began to secure results from his hard labor, he added to his equipment and gradually began to erect buildings, of which he now has a full set, modern, well constrticted, attractive and in perfect repair. In even,' way his property shows the presence of industry and good management. Mr. Dady carries on general farming and raises thoroughbred Red Polled cattle and Poland-China hogs. He has been successful in both departments of his farm enterprise. He has accumulated 440 acres of valuable land and in so doing has at all times maintained his reputation as a man of sterling integrity and business straightforwardness.

In 1882 Mr. Dady was united in marriage to Miss Ellen J. Beard, who was born in Marion county, Iowa, a daughter of Adam Beard, who died while ser\'ing as a Union soldier during the Civil war. \Ir. and Mrs. Dady are the parents of eight children : Pearl S.. who has a claim in the sand hills of Cherry county, Nebraska ; Jennie, who is the wife of Oscar Ruyan, a clerk in ^lason City, Nebraska ; Otis M., who assists his father in operating part of the home farm; Guy W., who is in the national army and in service in France at the time of this writing; and Monna R., Harrj- L., Myrtle C, and Lorene J., who are all residing with their parents. The family belongs to the Baptist church, which they attend at Mason City. Mr. Dady maintains an independent stand as to political questions and has not been an active politician, although on several occasions he has served efficiently in the capacity of town clerk.

FREDERICK A. REED. - If consecutively following the same line of endeavor tends to make one efficient and if there is any truth in the old saying that "practice makes perfect," to have been a salesman in the same line for thirty-nine years surely has made an expert of the man. To have been in the employ of the same firm all those years is conclusive evidence that satisfactor\' ser\'ice has been rendered ; and when the article sold is one so necessary in a home, namely, a sewing machine, at once proves that thousands of housewives are ready to sound the praises of that man, not alone because he has supplied them with something indispensable but also because he has taught them how to operate and care for the most useful article in the home. The gentleman whose name introduces this biography entered the employ of the Singer Manufacturing Company in 1881, and for thirty-nine years he has been continually in that company's employ -^ for thirty-one years in Neljraska.

For five years prexiously to taking up the line of work at which he has devoted considerably more than half of a lifetime Mr. Reed had the honor of ser\-ing as a soldier in the United States regtilar army, having enlisted in 1876, at Albany, New York, and having become a member of Company G, Eighth United States Infantn-, which command was assigned to duty at Camp Lowell, at Tucson, Arizona, during the Indian disturbances. Mr. Reed was a brave and fearless soldier, always found at his post of duty, and was present at the fight with the Indians at Pine Spring, in 1877. He received an honorable discharge at Fort Halleck, Nevada, in 1881, and from there he went to Ogden, Utah, where he found employment with the Singer Manufacturing Company, whose products he sold in Utah. Wyoming, and Colorado for eight years. He then established himself at O'Neill, Holt county, Nebraska, where he successfully conducted business for twenty-four years. Nine years ago he came to Broken Bow, and since that time he has enjoyed a liberal patronage from the people of this vicinity.

Mr. Reed is a native of the Empire state and was born at Gay Head, Greene county New York, December 3, 1852. His parents were John and Susan (Blaisdell) Reed natives of Albany county, New York, and 'both passed away m Greene county, that state where the father followed the occupation of blacksmith and shoemaker. They were members of the Methodist church, and they had a family of nine children. Levi B., who resides at Woodstock, Greene county, New York, and Frederick A. are the only surviving members of the family. _ Frederick A. Reed spent his boyhood days m his native county, amid the picturesque scenery of the Catskill mountains. When asked how he earned his first money, he told of how when a boy he hired out to pump water from the hold of a hay bargfe plying on the Hudson river between Catskill and New York city. With the money thus earned he bought an old-fashioned, patent-lever watch and a ticket_ for Robinson's circus. While attending the circus a sneak thief relieved him of his watch His next veture was to run away trom home and hire out to work on the Hudson and Delaware canal. But here he had an unpleasant experience, as his employer was an unscrupulous fellow who was given to drinking, and young Reed, after receiving a beating from his boss, was obliged to run away without receiving his pay. His next venture was to become a soldier, and of this he can alwavs feel proud. ^

At Ogden, Utah, January 27, 1882 Mr Heed was united in marriage to Miss Mamie ^. Shaw, who was born in Stratfordshire, England a daughter of Elijah and Elizabeth Shaw. Mr. and Mrs. Reed have become the parents of nine children: Levi, Harry, Erng.^Emil, Theodore, Claire, Ethel. Laurk, and

Though he has reached the age of sixtvseven years Mr. Reed appears much younger due, no doubt, to having lived an out-door,' active life and to his having a cheerful, sunn^ disposi ion. He ,s possessed of those qualifriends and which also inspire confidence on the rising institutions of Ansley, where the proprietor is known as a solid and substantial business man. Perhaps no branch of merchandising is more deliberate in its growth than the jewelry business. The reason for this lies principally in non-fluctuating values, and it follows that the men engaged in this business are as a rule of calm and non-speculative mind, reliable as to morals, definite in their purpose and not easily led from accustomed grooves. No exception to this conclusion IS found in Mr. Butler, who, in addition to jewelry, handles pianos and other musical instruments, is the owner of a valuable Custer county farm, and for several years has been a member of the city council.

Mr. Butler was born in Knox county Illinois, January 4, 1868, and is a member' of a well known family of that section which later came to Nebraska, and a complete review of which will be found in the sketch of E A Butler, elsewhere in this work. Allen L. IButler was but a lad when he was brought to Nebraska, and his education was acquired in the public schools of Seward and Lincoln in which latter city he also pursued a cours'e in a business college. His first occupation was in general merchandising at Seward, but in 1886 he came to Ansley, where, with his brothers' W E. and E. A., he opened a general store and continued in business for some time Disposing of his interests, he opened a restaurant which he conducted for four or five years He then turned his attention to an entirely new field, organizing and installing the first telephone for the Central Telephone Company at Ansley, and for five years thereafter managing the Ansley office. Mr. Butler engaged m the jewelry business in 1897. and this has grown steadily until it now assumes large proportions. A full and up-to-date stock of watches, rings, precious stones, silverware, etc., iskept on hand, as well as a modern and attractive display of pianos and other musical instruments. In business circles Mr. Butler IS .known as a man of the strictest integrity, taithfu to his engagements and observant of the highest business ethics. He has faith in the future of Custer county, and has invested some of his capital in farming land, beino- the owner of 160 acres of valuable property, on which well ordered operations are being carried on in the line of general farming and stock-raising.