Custer County, Nebraska - Founders and Builders, 1919 (part 27 of 32)

Mr Williams was bom Ivlarch 17, 1856, and is a son of William and Mary (Hale) Williams. His father was a famier who m the early days of the '60s entered the service of his country and served throughout the duration of the Civil war. Little of the father's operations during the war are remembered by the son. but the honorable discharge attested a valuable service rendered. The mother died in Kentucky March 8, 1897. In the parental home were five children, three of whom are still living - Willis G. is the subject whose name is in the title line; George L. is now living at Morrill, Nebraska, where he conducts a farm, the maiden name of his wife having been Linnie Tarleton ; and Polly is the wife of John Faulkner, residing in Kentucky.

The early life of Willis G. Williams was passed in Kentncky, where he received a liberal education, and where also his farming activities commenced. He arrived in Custer countv, October 19. 1887.

March 14. 1889, Mr. Williams married Mary C. Pfrehm. a daughter of John A. and Mary (Swigart-Miller) Pfrehm. who came to this county in 1879. Mrs. Williams' father homesteaded in section 32, and this property - now belongs to his daughter Emma. He also filed on a tree claim at the same time. He was a Democrat politically, and was rated as a splendid citizen. The mother was a member of the German Lutheran church. The parents died in this county, the father m 1885, and the mother in 1899.

Twenty-seven vears ago Mr. and Mjs. Willis G. Williams boU£:ht the land on which they now have their farm home and do a general famiing and stock-raising business. This farm, however, has recently been sold, and they are undecided where tliey will effect their future location. _ .

Into the familv circle of this estimable couple have come eight children: Effie P. is living at home; Minnie A., the wife of Archie Brooks, lives on a fami near Morrill, Nebraska : Claude C. who married Hattie Barger lives on a f^rm north of Walworth; Charles R. and Arthur G., and the twins, Earl O and Essie M.. are all at home.

Mr Willims affiliates with the Democratic j party, and in local circles has been very active in evervthing that will tend to the up- ' building of 'the community. He has served

. In the family story of Mrs. Williams is an .ncdent illustrating some of the difficu ties encountered by pioneers. In the eariy period of their homesteading. the father of^Mrs Williams farmed in Lancaster county in the oi mo, while the children remained with the mother at home in Custer countTln order to complete the homestead rights On one occasion, while the father was !way the mother was herding the cattle by means of ropes, when the cattle became um^ly an3 ran

Mr7'Pfr"f "^ '^'JT' "^""^ the feet of Mrs Pfrehm, which threw her to the eround and broke her hip. This caused her to faint from the pain, and she lay on the ground Tn the hot sun from ten o'clock in the forenoon until five in the afternoon, when one of the neighbors, who became alarmed at her ab sence, went out and found her. She ne^er recovered from this injury the^st^ PENSE -Here follows in outline thl frJl seyenty-mne years, and brings to the front one of the veterans of the Civil war a man who has seen the first years of the frontier hfe and a man who has well earned the n? T J'' ^ ^^""^'-' y^t, like most of he men of his generation, he had some trade and in this instance the father had served as' apprentice and learned the cooper's trade be sides which he had occasionally worked at

now located at Scottsbluff. but who for merly hved at Westerville, Custer coumy where he conducted a furniture store vXn that tovvn was "on the map."

G. W. Pense was educated in the nubbV schools of Illinois but did not have opSr uniy to pursue his studies as long as^T sired. Nine months made up the refl school pnyileges that he enjoyed, he made he bes of these, however, and, being of an intelligent keen mind, he augmented %he fundamS principles received in the schools uni^^ S education qualified him for all the ansae tions incident to common life

Septembers, 1861, Mr. Pense married Ar. -nta Black, at Pleasant Green, II h" is A .vear later he enlisted in the a^my and he served until July 1, 1865, rendering a hard yet in some ways remarkable, service He was never wounded or taken prisoner He was in successive engagements from Perry!

tn M u^'T^l- °"^''''""^' ^"d finally got badc o Nashville Tennessee. During a per od of three months there were only five^ days in which he was not in some battle or sSmish During his eariy years he learned the bbck

In 1874 Mr Pense came f?om Illinois to Clay county, Nebraska, whsre he resumed blacksmithing. From Clay - county he ^me to Custer county in 1881 He tnri T.- u

During his early residence in Custer countv and also during a few years rS?dence £ Sherman county, Mr. Pense became ac qnainted with the Olivers, MitcheS and Ketchums, and he is familiar with many of the de ails connected with the Oliver Mi"chel

CO int of the transactions in that connection whKh in substance agrees with the Mite eU' Ketchum. and Oliver story recorded else where in this volume ecoraed else-

Mr. and Mrs. Pense became parents of ten children, nine of whom are living at the ores em time: Mrs. Monroe Freema^n and Harry Monroe Pense are the only ones living in tS

. Mr. Pense is the owner of a minine claim m the west and he is confident tha" this wiU some day be very valuable. While provhi^ up on his claim he turned his hand t^taxf dermy, m which handicraft he made a remark able showing. Some of his work makes plendid exhibition to-day in some of the eastern museums. At the time he lived in Sherman county he employed spare time and wirn'r evenings in different musical entertainments and he vvas often called upon to X fo; dances in Westerville, West Union, and in

^!? ,. u'", ^'°''"- ^'^^ ^^^^ then so small that she had to stand on a chair to reach the .The veteran and the pioneer has performed his service, has reared his family and deserves the rest that he enjoys in the years of his retirement.

citl^^^Jr- PLOVER, who is a substantial citizen of Custer county, Nebraska, a prosperous farmer and stock-raiser at a time when hese industries are, perhaps, of more importance than ever before in the history of this country, has lived continuously in Custer county for the past thirty-three years He came here in 1885, in early manhood, accompanying his father, who came here with caoital and invested in land, purchasing- the old > ayne ranch, which is one of the well known places of the county.

. ^^^'^y ^- Glover was born April 27 1863 in Livingston county, Illinois. His parents' were Samuel and Martha J. (Dunn) Glover, the father having been born near Utica, New \ork, and the mother in Erie county, Penn- Set?"- .J'^^y.^d six children, as follows: ueett IS the wife of Joseph W. McRae a tanner, and they live near La Veta, in Huerfano county, Colorado; Mary E. is the widow of Elva Potter; Grace is the widow of Eugene Spafks, who died in 1913; Henry B who is a farmer and lives on Glover's ranch' married Corda A. Johnson ; Percy D. of this sketch was next in order of birth ; and Sidney U, who IS a farmer near Westerville this county married Lena Christensen Peterson

In the public schools of Livingston county, Il.nois, Percy D. Glover obtained excellem educational training and there he worked on his fathers farm until he was twenty-two years of age. He then came to Custer county on the Payne ranch, which his father bought -Mr Glover himself bought a homestead rieht in the same vicinity and on this he lived until 1-W when he moved on his present fine farm which he has been operating ever since its' ocation being in section 12. township 17 ' He has always been a hard-working man and his honest and upright course in all neighborhood affairs has gained him the confidence and esteem of all who know him. He carries his agricultural operations according to modthat"^n°t f."^ has introduced improvements that add to the efficiencv of all his farm ativities.

marriage to Miss Augusta S. Lower, who was a daughter of Abraham and Catherine (Miller) Lower, who had twelve children Of these children the following named survive and aii are well known and respected in their renrArf/°AT"-'^'''^ Margaret is the wife of Walter Morrison, who is manager of the Country Club at Kansas City, Missouri; Albert M who IS in the real-estate business at Uwight Ilhnois, married Mary Lorigan; Le Roy, who IS a farmer in Livingston county, Illinois, and owns a garage at Campus, married Hannah Morns; Frank, who is a farmer near Dwight. Illinois, married Mary WeUer- Marietta is the wife of Cyrus Hiddleson. of ^t'Z'ru '^T^'.^^^'^^ois; Lillian is the wife of Thomas Magmre, a farmer near Campus; Grace is the wife of Ben C. Morris a farmer near Ames, Iowa; and Gertrude is [he wife of John Parsons, who is manager of a himber yard at Piper City, Illinoil Mr.^^ Glover died in May, 1914. having become the mother of sixteen children, fifte'en of whom

HENRY J. PFREHM.- Heralded in the title line is a German name that belongs to a patriotic American citizen who in all war activities and bond drives has done all that was in his power to do. He is a pioneer of the eariy days, a homesteader of the virgin soil

Henry J. Pfrehm was born in lUinois, August 10, 1865. He is a son of John A. Pfrehm, who was born at Swarzsbach, Germany, in 1821, and who came to America in 1852. The mother was a native of Wurtemberg, Germany, and born in 1832. She came to America with her parents in 1851, and settled in Petersburg, Illinois. The same fall she was married to a man by the name of Helies, who died in less than a year. Her maiden name was Mary Swigart. In 1853 she and John A. Pfrehm, father of Henry J. Pfrehm were married at Petersburg, Illinois, where they lived until 1868, when they moved to a farm. They were the parents of twelve children, all born in Menard county, Illinois - -John G., William, Lewis J., Frank A., George, Anna M., August W., Henry J., Mary, Emma E.. Dora K., and Edward P. The family lived on Indian creek until 1871 when they moved to Petersburg, and they lived in Illinois until 1879, when they moved into the vicinity of Crete, Nebraska, where they stopped but a short time, and came on, making final settlement in West Union, Custer county. Here they settled on the southwest quarter of section 32. The father filed on this homestead June 16, 1879, and then returned to Crete and brought some of the family to the new home. Part of them, however, were left on the farm at Crete, and thus they passed the first winter with the family divided, living in two places. To keep in touch with each division of the family Mr. Pfrehm was on the road traveling most of the winter. Mr. Pfrehm took sick in 1886 and died in December, 1888, his wife surviving him by ten years and passing away in 1898.

Henry J. Pfrehm was married December 21, 1893, to Maggie E. Bitter, a daughter of Louis and Marie (Shark) Bitter, who were homesteaders in this county, near Walworth. Henry J. Pfrehm and his wife have never been blessed with children. They homesteaded near Walworth and now own the claim and home of his brother Frank A., deceased. They have in their combined holdings a half-section of land, one-quarter of which is owned by the husband and one-quarter by the wife. They conduct a general fanning and stock business, have good buildings and are respected and highly spoken of by their neighbors. Mr. Pfrehm is a Democrat in politics, and both he and his wife are members of the Methodist church.

JOHN A. DIETZ. - One might travel all day and half the night without finding a more substantial or reliable farmer-citizen than the one who bears the well known name in the title line above. In the central part of the county John, as he is familiarly known by his friends and neighbors, is rated as one of the progressive spirits and foremost fanners.

Mr. Dietz was born in Green county, Wisconsin, in 1864. He is a son of Jacob and Fannie (Meacham) Dietz. The father was a native of Pennsylvania and the mother a native of New York. Both were very excellent people, and at a ripe old age they are living in comfortable retirement in the state of Wisconsin, to which commonwealth the senior Dietz and his family moved in 1856, and where, in 1861. this worthy couple were joined in holy wedlock. It was there that their children, seven of them in number, were born - Walter W. (deceased), John A., Laura L., Mary B. (deceased), Charles H., Nettie L., and Stanley J.

John A. Dietz was a young man when he came to Nebraska, and he located first in Buffalo county, where his residence terminated after two years. From that section of the state he came to Custer county and bought a half-section of land in the Custer Center community, in 1889.

In januar>' of 1888 Mr. Dietz married Jessie M. Taylor, in Buffalo county. She is a daughter of Miner Taylor and Lenora (Stearns) Taylor. In her father's family were the following children: EHsha, Louisa Wiggins, Jerome, Julia Wells (deceased). Alpha (deceased), Allan, Jessie M., Frank E., Hettie M. Jacobs, Nellie E., and Willis W. In 1890 Miner Taylor came into Custer county, where he bought a quarter-section of land near to the holdings of his son-in-law, John A. Dietz, and the two formed a sort of partnership by which they farmed together and together purchased more land until their holdings were rather extensive. The partnership, however, has been dissolved for several years and Mr. Dietz operates 343 acres of well improved land seven miles northwest of Broken Bow. The buildings on this place, including the farm home, are of the first order and make this a very desirable farm, there being none better in the central part of the county. The farming operations are of a general character. Red polled cattle are prominently featured, Poland- China hogs are bred in big-boned types, and all horses, hogs, cattle, or stock of any kind

In the community Air. Dietz is rated as unusually prominent. He is a member of the Odd Fellows and the local Grange, and for eighteen years has served as a member of the school board. Patriotic and loyal to the government, he has responded liberally to all the appeals made by different war works - a subscriber to the bond drives, to the Red Cross. to the Y. M. C. A. work, and thrift-stamp drive. In addition to this, two of his boys entered the service, and both were in France, at the time this sketch was being prepared.

In the Dietz home are seven children : Eva L., C. L. ( in the service of the United States, in France), Stacey T., Elsie F., Howard S. (in France),- Donald F.. and Delma L. The family enjoy the confidence and respect of the community in which they live, and are a credit to the county in which Mr. Dietz is a responsible citizen.

JOSEPH LEUI. - Because of the number, importance and variety of his interests, Joseph Leui is accounted one of the most prominent business men of Comstock, and for a number of years has also been largely interested in farming and stock-raising. He is president of the Stock Buying Market, and in numerous ways his connection with civic and business affairs has contributed to progress and development in this thriving community.

Mr. Leui was boni September 30, 1871, on a farm in Jefferson county, Missouri, and is a son of Balthazer and Frances (Teodorski) Leui. His father was a native of Switzerland who emigrated to the United States in young manhood and fought as a soldier during the entire period of the Civil war, participating in the battle of Gettysburg and many other famous engagements, but never being wounded or taken prisoner. When he returned from the war he adopted the vocation of agriculturist and settled in Missouri, where he married a native of that state, and resided in Jefferson county until 1874, when he moved to Saunders county, Nebraska. Here he took a homestead, on which he lived for about sixteen years, and then moved to Hayes county, which was his home until tl.e close of his life. He was a man of marked intelligence, industry and business capacity and made a decided success of his ventures. He and Mrs. Leui were the parents of ten children, of whom seven are living: Etta, who is the wife of E. B. Wooley, residing in Hayes county ; Joseph ; Catherine, the wife of Abner Moore, of Hayes county; Sarah A., the wife of George Aloore, of the same county; and Frank, LeRoy, and Fred, all residing in the same county. The father of these children was a staunch Republican in politics, and he and the mother were strongly religious people.

Joseph Leui was but three years of age when the family moved to Nebraska, and he has therefore spent practically all of his life in this state. He was educated in the schools of Saunders county for the most part, and when he began his independent career it was as a farmer, a vocation to which he is still attached in an important way. For two years after leaving Saunders county he was a resident of Brown county, but in 1910 came to Custer county, where he now owns 320 acres of fine land just west of the city of Comstock, and this is well improved and highly cultivated. In addition Mr. Leui is extensively engaged in buying and selling cattle and hogs, and is president of the Stock Buying Alarket, an organization composed of leading Comstock business men, ranchers and farmers. His standing is exceptionally high in business circles and his associates depend upon his judgment and ability in matters of importance. In the field of real estate he has important connections, and carries on a large and thriving business in partnership with E. F. Skolil, in which he has transacted some large deals. Likewise he has an interest in an implement and plumbing business at Comstock, and also is part owner, with F. J. Skolil, in an automobile and truck business. His time is thus considerably occupied with his private affairs, but he has never been one to shirk the responsibilities of citizenship, and was recentlv a candidate on the Republican ticket for supervisor of the Comstock district. Mrs. Leui is a member of the Congregational church.

Mr. Leui w-as married near David City, Nebraska, Januarj' 19, 1893, to Aliss Eva .\llen, daughter of Solomon and Anna (Whitney) Allen, who were pioneer settlers of Butler county. To this union there have been born six children : Foster A., who has been in Ivngland with the United States army, being a member of the Eighty-ninth Division of Infantry, was wounded in action November 1, 1918, and up to the time of the revision of this sketch no word had been received as to his condition ; Ralph, also a patriotic soldier, with Company B, Machine Gun Battalion, American Expeditionary Forces, in France, was killed in action November 2. 1918; and Robert IL, Harney, Bessie, and Freddie are all at home with their parents.

HARRY M. BENTLEY, who is carrying on farming and stockraising operations in a modern and successful way not far from Sargent, has been a resident of Custer county practically all of his life, and is a product of its schools. He was born at Jackson, Jackson county, Minnesota, October 24, 1877, a son of Isaac and Lucinda (Pinchin) Bentley, the former a native of Chemung county. New York, and the latter of Steuben county, in the same state.

Isaac Bentley in his young manhood learned the trade of stone mason, which he followed with some degree of success until he turned his attention to fartning, and at which he has been employed at odd times throughout his career. In 1865 he moved to Wisconsin, where he was employed on a farm for four years, and then went to Iowa, where he resided for a like period. Subsequently he took up his rseidence in Jackson county, Minnesota, and that was his home until he decided to come to Custer county, the family driving in from Iowa in a wagon. On his arrival here, the father pre-empted land in section 33, township 20, range 17, and settled down to farming, and is still the owner of his original farm, which is largely worked by his son Harry M. While Mr. Isaac Bentley is now eighty-four years of age, he still retains his strength and activity, and during 1918 stacked over 100 acres of wheat. He is also possessed of his faculties, and his memory frequently carries him back to the early days of the county, at which times he relates many interesting reminiscences. During the first four years of his residence in the county, prairie fires burned all the available wood, and the early settlers were compelled to cut heavy weeds and dry them for their winter supply of fuel. Mr. Bentley was forced to travel to Scotia, a distance of fifty miles, to reach the nearest mill, and there were numerous other discomforts and hardships, but he courageously persevered, and has lived to see his locality a prosperous and productive one. Of the five children born to Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Bentley, three are living: Byron, who married Edna Toorey, and is engaged in farming north of Taylor, Nebraska : Harry M. ; and Clara, who is the wife of Richard Brockus, of Casper, Wyoming, connected with the Standard Oil Company.

Harry M. Bentley was a child when brought by his parents to Custer county, and his education was completed here in school district No. 207, located in section 32. He has been a farmer and stock-raiser all of his life, and has been well satisfied with his vocation, which has brought him contentment and prosperity, and given him a position among his fellowmen as a substantial and reliable citizen. In addition to farming his father's land, he is the owner of a well-improved farm of eighty acres, in section 32, township 1, which is under a high state of cultivation and improved with modern buildings and equipment. In politics Mr. Harry M. Bentley is independent, and for the past five years has served his community in the capacity of school director. He is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America and both he and Mrs. Bentley belong to the Royal Neighbors.

Harry M. Bentley was married January 11. 1905, to Miss Jessie Grint, who was born near Sargent, daughter of J. E. Grint an agriculturist east of that place. To this union there have been bom three children : Ruth, bom July 9, 1908; Verna, born July 5, 1910; and Chris, born October 30, 1912.

FRED KLANECKY is one of the men of Custer county who can point with justifiable pride to their accomplishments in the fields of agriculture and stock-raising. When he entered upon his career in 1899, his equipment, aside from three horses and some antiquated farm equipment, consisted principally of his ability, self-reliance and determination; today he is one of the most prosperous farmers of the Sargent community, although he is but in the prime of life.

I\Ir. Klanecky was bom in the city of Baltimore, Maryland, August 10, 1875, and is a son of Joseph and Anna (Dolezal) Klanecky, natives of Austria. His father was a shoemaker by trade and followed that occupation in the old country, as well as in Baltimore, where he brought his family in 1874. He was making moderate progress when an epidemic of cholera struck Baltimore, after he had resided there three years, and he accordingly fled the city and went to Omaha, where he found employment in a smelter. In 1882 he cahie to Custer county and located on a homestead in sections 33 and 34, but after he had his family settled on the farm found that he must have money to buy a cow as well as to have a necesasry well sunk. As money was scarce in the family as well as in the community, he resolutely walked back to Omaha, where he was again employed in the smelter, and thus earned the money necessary to carry the family through until 'such time as the products of the farm would furnish the means of a livelihood. Eventually Mr. Klanecky became a successful and prosperous citizen of his community, developed a valuable farm, and lived to see his children all comfortably established in life and living within thirty miles of the homestead. He continued to carry on operations until his death, which occurred December 26, 1913. His first wife died at Omaha, in 1881, and he was again married, his widow, who owns the homestead, now being a resident of Sargent. He had three sons by his first wife and three sons and three daughters by his second marriage, and all the children are married except two. Mrs. Klanecky is a member of the Catholic church, to which her husband also belonged.

Fred Klanecky was seven years old when the family came to the Custer county homestead, and at that time deer were still :o be found in abundance, furnishing meat for the family larder during the first hard years. He secured his education in dugout and sod schoolhouses, and in 1899 began farming operations on his own account. At that time he was possessed of three horses, a plow and a cultivator, but went into debt for 160 acres of land and homesteaded 120 acres more. He and his wife both worked industriously and indefatigably, with the result that at the end of seventeen years they were not only free from debt, but sold their farm for $11,200. At the present time Mr. Klanecky is the owner of 425 acres of some of the best land to be found in Custer county and this he has improved with fine buildings and modern equipment of all kinds. This is in marked contrast to the early days, when his buildings were necessarily of the plainest sort and his equipment the same, and when he was forced to haul water for stock and family use over onehalf mile. Mr. Klanecky is one of the intelligent agriculturists of his region, progressive and enterprising, and a man of the highest integrity. He is a Republican in politics, and he and Mrs. Klanecky are members of the Catholic church.

On November 14, 1898, Mr. Klanecky was married to Miss Mary Benda, daughter of pioneers of 1882 in Valley county, who now live at Ord, having retired upon a well-earned competence. Three children have been born to this union, and all remain at the parental home, their names and respective dates of birth being here recorded: Anna, March 31, 1900; Frank, January 17, 1912; Agnes, September 16, 1913.

CONRAD FLEISHMAN. - Among the early settlers of Custer county who have here made good use of opportunities, mention should be made of Conrad Fleishman.

Fleishman, who spent their entire lives in Bavaria. Conrad Fleishman was reared in his native land and in 1870, when a young man of twenty-one years, to escape Prussian militarism, he came to the United States, landing in New York city. He went from there to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and as he did not have any trade he went to work on a farm, as the means of securing a living. For his services he received fourteen dollars a month as wages. On October 16, 1876, at New London, Wisconsin, Mr. Fleishman was united in niarriage to Miss ]\Iinnie Palaski. who was born in Posen, Germany, August 25, 1853. She was a young woman of nineteen when she came to America and soon after their marriage the young couple went to Door county, Wisconsin, where they bought forty acres of land and where they made their home until they came to Nebraska in 1880. On coming to this state they resided one year in Phelps county, and' in 1881 they came to Custer county and took a homestead in section 22. township 18, range 22. Not a furrow had been turned nor an improvement made, but they set to work to develop a farm and make a home. Their first Iiouse was built of sod and was ten by twelve feet in dimensions. When the family outgrew this primitive domicile, Mr. Fleishman built a second one and later was built a third sod house, which still stands. In 1905 Mr. Fleishman erected a modern, twelve-room, frame house, which constitutes as fine a home as can be found in the neighborhood. For many years he was actively engaged in farming, but he now rents his land and is living retired. He has been successful in his venture as a farmer in Custer county and to-day owns 640 acres. Mr. and Mrs. Fleishman became the parents of nine children as follows : Anna is the wife of Henry T. Michele, a farmer of Dale vallev; George is engaged in farming near the old home: Frank, John, and Theodore are deceased, all having reached young manhood ; Agnes is teaching the home school ; Matilda, now "Sister Genevieve," is in a convent at Gregory, South Dakota : Leo is in the national army at the time of this writing ; and Minnie is a teacher in the Custer county schools. The family are communicants of the Catholic church.

After becoming a citizen of the United States Mr. Fleishman had the usual experi- .ences that fell to the lot of the early settlers, but he bravely met and overcame all obstacles and helped to make Custer county a better place in which to live. Mrs. Fleishman tells of the trip from Phelps county, when they drove an ox team and wagon. Slie says the old sod house had no window when she arrived, though there was a hole left in the wall for the window. These sterling pioneers have lived to see their children all grown and takingcare of themselves in the world, and they can look back upon the past without regret and forward to the future without fear.

JAMES B. STONE. - It is not always Germany, Sweden, Bohemia or Ireland that furnishes the elementary thrift that flourishes and blossoms in the new land of the west. England, too, has furnished some of the sturdy sons who have rendered a remarkable service in county development. James B. Stone, whose name heads this paragraph, is a native of England and comes of English blood of rare and ancient lineage. He was born July 31, 1877. His parents were Henry and Sarah (Rich) Stone. The father was a farmer during most of his life, although for twelve years he worked on the Great Western R. R. in England, part of which time he was a foreman. He came to the United States in April, 1886, and made his way to Custer county, where he landed without any money. He homesteaded on Clear creek, where he made his home for twelve or thirteen years. He then moved to Lee Park, wdiere he lived for five years. He sold his homestead to Robert Stone, his brother, and moved into Valley county, where he spent the remainder of his life. He died July 20, 1918. His wife, the mother of James B., still owns the Valley county land but makes her home in Arcadia. There were five children in the family of Henry Stone. They were : Emma, wife of J. W. Christian, lives in Arcadia. Albert married Nettie Potter and is now living in Taylor, Loup county. The third born is the subject of this sketch. Simon married Fannie Jewel and is living in Washington. Fred married Vina Stevenson and is living on a farm near Arcadia, Nebraska. The senior Stone was independent in politics and both he and his wife were members of the Methodist church. Young James received part of his education in England but finished in the schools of Nebraska. With his parents he came direct from England to North Loup and was driven from North Loup to the Robert Stone homestead, east of Comstock. His parents brought with them four children of their own and three children of Thomas Stone, a brother who had lost his wife, which made them a family of seven children, to look after on the long voyage across the water. They were thirteen days in making the trip. Thomas Stone, a brother of Henry and father of the three children mentioned above, was one of the early settlers of this county. He now lives in Valley county. One of his children remained in England until she was 16 years of age.

John B. Stone was married August 24, 1904, to Minnie L. Luedtke, a native daughter of the West who was born and raised only two miles from her present residence. She is a daughter of August and Roselle (Cook) Luedtke. Her parents were Valley county pioneers. Both are now deceased. In their family circle were five children. He was a Republican in national politics, but independent in county and state.

The Stones maintain a splendid and hospitable home and are hard working and thrifty people, obliging neighbors, always ready to contribute to those who need help and lend active assistance to any worthy cause. For years James B. Stone was a noted "gizzard eater," but the last few years he passes the dainty morsels over to his immediate younger generation, which consists of two sturdy boys and two splendid, blue-eyed girls.

GEORGE FLEISHMAN. - One of the younger agriculturists of Custer county who has made a success of his undertakings is the subject of this review.

George Fleishman was born at Sister Bay, Door county, Wisconsin, September 30, 1878, and is a son of Conrad Fleishman, whose record as a pioneer will be found on other pages of this volume.

Young Fleishman was a lad of four years when the family home was established in Custer county. As a boy he watched the progress and growth, and as a young man he learned the best methods of planting and harvesting, under the guidance of his father. \\'hen he reached manhood he wisely chose the occupation to which he had been reared, and while yet under the parental roof began farming for himself. For the past ten years he has occupied his present farm, a valuable tract of 160 acres, under a high state of cultivation, with as good a set of buildings as can be found in this locality, all of which have been put here by the present owner.

For a companion and helpmate Mr. Fleishman chose Miss Anna Bader, who was born in Illinois, a daughter of Stephen and Monica (Sulzman) Bader, natives of Germany, who came to the LTnited States when young people and were married in Illinois. In 1888 the parents of Mrs. Fleishman came to Custer county, Nebraska, and took a homestead north- east of Anselmo. The mother died in this county; August 9, 1905. The father married again and is still Hving. Mrs. Fleishman was reared in Custer county, was educated in the district and Broken Bow schools and at the time of her marriage was a popular teacher in the Custer county schools. She has become the mother of three children - Monica, Theresa, and George Conrad.

R. B. SARGENT. - There are few names in Custer county more widely known than the one written above. The Sargents have been a prominent family of pioneers, as six of the boys settled here in early days.

R. B. Sargent was born in Illinois but moved to Iowa when eleven years old. Several of his sisters live there now. When he was twenty-two years old the desire to see the great, promised west led him, with his brother John, to visit this "Great American Desert." They were so well pleased with the prospects that they filed on places and returned to settle up business, and bring stock for the new land. Their glowing tales pursuaded others, and soon several of their old neiglibors were new ones.

In the spring of 1882 Mr. Sargent built his sod shanty in section 6, township 19, range 18, in what is now known as Sargent valley. Later he sold this place and bought where he now lives.

In July, 1891, Mr. Sargent was married to Lizzie Chrisman, daughter of Josepli and Lucy Clirisman, also pioneers. They have four children : Glenn, Charles, Irene, and Kenneth, and all live at home except Charles, who married Thclma Ross : they now live on their fanu.

Mr. Sargent tells of many experiences in early days, when towns were few and far away. He tells of many interesting incidents while hauling cedar posts from the "Dismal Swamps" to sell to the settlers at Westerville, the round trip requiring eight days. On one occasion he and his brother, while making the trip, were caught in a snow storm which covered the ground a foot deep with snow. It took five days to reach home, and provisions were getting scarce. On another trip one of his neighbors lost one of his horses shortly after starting on the return trip but he was equal to the occasion. He threw off half his load of posts ; tied the singletree of the one horse fast to the wagon and, carrying the

Mr. Sargent and his brother worked at the blacksmith trade in spare time and made eighty or ninety primative "antelope" breakingplows which they sold to their neighbors. With these plows was turned the soil of many of Custer county's first farms. A few of these old plows may be seen in scrapheaps yet. Mr. Sargent also made wells, and some 300 of these are scattered around the county. From 1900 to 1905 he conducted a store and was post-master at \\'alworth. This was the first store where Walworth now stands.

The Sargents are fine people and their neighbors pay them the homage due to honest, upright citizens, who have rendered their countr)' valuable service.

GEORGE V. ORVIS. - Here is a man that belongs to the north part of the county. He was born in the north garden spot known as West Union, September 15, 1880, consequently the responsibilities of active life are pressing heavily upon him. Just now in the vigor of his full manhood years, he belongs to the generation that must bear the responsibilities and manage the affairs of the present day.

He is a son of John R. and Chaney M. (Sweet) Orvis (See sketch of Bert Orvis). As his birth occurred in Custer county, his life has been lived here. The district school of the country and the high school of Broken Bow bestowed U])on him a liberal education and qualified him for all business activities of the successful farmer's career. He lived on his father's place and helped in the affairs of the farm until 1902, when he was married to Jessie C. Garrison, a daughter of George and Amanda (Maple) Garrison. The date of marriage was December 15, 1902. The bride was an accomplished young woman, coming from a well known and substantial family. Her father's people came to Custer countv in the fall of 1882 and settled north of VValworth. Her father was a man of unusual experience. He was born in 1840 in Greene county, Pennsylvania, in which her mother was born six years later. During the Civil war the father, (icorge Garrison, was a member of the Third Virginia Infantry, and he served until he lost one eye and was discharged for physical disability. After the war he was a bridge contractor for a number of years: conducting farming oi)cr;itions in Iowa, from which state they moved to this county in 1882, with horses and wagons. The mother died October 26, 1901, and the father May 10.

1908. It is remembered that the Garrison home was the first in the neighborhood that had a shingled roof. The neighbors prophesied at the time it was put on that the first wind would blow it off, but the calamity never happened.

George V. Orvis and his wife established their own home after their marriage and are now heads of a splendid family of good reputation. Of their five children four are living: Fern L., bom July 2, 1906 ; Zoe Geraldine, May 16, 1909; Dean R. and Deo V., twins born March 15, 1912. Mr. and Mrs. Orvis are still to be counted as young people, with many years of active life before them, so far as outer appearances indicate, and the same application of thrift and judgment will compel the oncoming years to bring rich reward.

D. B. EVANS. - One of the famihar spirits of Sargent, long connected with local affairs, who has contributed his part in the years past to the upbuilding of the county and who has had part in early day trials and experiences, is the man whose name spells the headline.

Mr. Evans was born in Douglas county, Illinois, November 3, 1867, the son of John W. W. and Sarah (Smith) Evans. Tho senior Evans was a native of Wales and the mother a native of Ireland. The combination of Welsh and Irish blood flows in the veins of D. B. and imparts to him the vigorous spirit that has enabled him to survive the experiences of early day life in Custer county. The father, who was a farmer most of his life, came to this country in 1871 and settled on Indian Creek, York county, Nebraska, where he died in 1878. The mother lived until March 4, 1912. They were the parents of sixteen children : ten are living at the present time, but the subject, D. B. Evans, is the only one in this county.

D. B. came to the county in 1885, preempted frmr miles east of Sargent, then homesteaded and later sold out anjd since that has made his home in Sargent. For nearly twenty-five years Mr. Evans has been road overseer and though not. posing as a moral reformer has been "mending the ways" of other people. He is counted as a good road man ; for ten years he has served as game warden. During his residence in Sargent he has been the proprietor of a meat market and has also conducted a real estate agency.

Concerning the experiences of the early years, he was once deputized by George \\'alker. constable, to go down into the Weissert neighborhood and secure a horse thief that had been shot. The thief's partner had been captured and accordingly the dead and the living were brought together. The trial of the living man was before William Sherman. The thief pleaded guilty and was taken to Brown county, where the jjroperty had been stolen and where he was afterwards taken from jail by a mob and hanged to a telegraph pole.

These years are gone, the experiences of the untamed years will never return, law abiding citizens have claimed the country. The irresponsible characters who always prey upon the unprotected settler of a frontier country have passed from the stage of action, and honor and virtue to-day reside in the citizenship, and law prevails everywhere. Any man who, like Evans, helped to bring order out of chaos has rendered a tribute to his county and service to his community.

Mr. Evans socially is a member of the Ancient Order of United Workman and the Degree of Honor. For the last few years he has affiliated with the Democratic party.

Walter S. Metcalf is a son of Augustus and Lucia Metcalf. He was bom in Wyoming county. New York, March 24, 1860. He received his education in the common schools of New York and Ohio. He was married April 2, 1884, to Eva Parker, at Dennison, Iowa. Mrs. Metcalf is a daughter of James and Julia (Smith) Parker, both of whom were natives of New York state. Her father died at the age of eight-three years, in 1905, and her mother, at the advanced age of nine-two years, is still living and makes her home with the Metcalf s.

Walter S. Metcalf came to Custer county in March, 1883, and commenced farming in the region of New Helena. A little later he homesteaded 160 acres in section 18, township 19, range 19, which is still his home and has been such ever since, excepting the three years when his daughter attended school in Broken Bow, when they moved to that place in order to give her school advantages. After that they returned to the farm. They now own 400 acres in one body, which is well improved and stocked with the best breeds of cattle and hogs. Considerable attention is paid to dairying on the Metcalf ranch and this is found to be very profitable. The general appearances on the farm speak well for the management and care that the farm has received during the years that it has been in Mr. Metcalf's possession. In local affairs the Aletcalfs are counted prominent people and he has held most of the local and precinct offices. He has been a member of the school board in district No. 13 for a number of years. In connection with this school district, Mr. Metcalf contributes a bit of valuable history. May 15, 1898, while school was in session, a cyclone swept over the building, tearing it to pieces, killing one child instantly and wounding several others. The child killed was Anna Fowler. Johnnie Olson had his jaw broken in two places, his collar bone broken in two places and several ribs fractured. Mr. and Mrs. Metcalf cared for him in their own home for a period of six weeks. Their own daughter also was badly hurt.

The Metcalf home has been blessed with one child, Mabel who is now the wife of Floyd Pumphery, making her home in Ohiowa, Nebraska. The Metcalfs are splendid neighbors, representative people, well posted in present day afifairs and have been always helpful and influential promoters of everything that in any way was calculated to benefit the community. They are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and responsible for much of the good accomplished by the Walworth Sunday-school organized in an early day.

GEORGE GROSS. - The career of George Gross, of Ansley, has been one in which perseverance has triumphed over adversity, character has overcome the disadvantages of lack of early opportunities, and industry has been rewarded in bounteous measure. Few if any of the residents of Custer county have been in greater degree the architects of their own fortunes than has this former farmer and stockman, who now, partly retired from active pursuits, is engaged in selling insurance, his attractive home being on the outskirts of Ansley.

Mr. Gross was born in Pennsylvania, August 22, 1862, and is a son of Josiah and Anna ( Dunar) Gross, the former a native of Pennsylvania, and the latter of Ireland, their marriage having been solemnized at Brooklyn, New York. The parents continued their residence in Pennsylvania, until the close of their lives, the father having there followed farming and raising cattle, and there both died when their son George was young. The father was a Republican and a member of the Baptist church, while Mrs. Gross was a Catholic. There was one other child in the family:

Thrown on his own resources at the age of thirteen years, it was but natural that the early advantages of George Gross were not numerous. His education was confined to irregular attendance at the district schools, and he early began to work out among the neighboring farmers, in order to obtain his board and clothes. After three years thus spent he began to receive wages, seven dollars a month being his stipend the first year, out of which he saved the sum of forty dollars. During the year that followed he received nine dollars a month as remuneration for his labor, and out of this managed to put by sixty dollars, with which he came to S'aunders county, Nebraska. Wages were better in his new community, for he was given seventeen dollars a month the first year and twenty dollars the second year, and when he came to Custer county, in 1884, he Iiad $285, all saved by the hardest kind of work. When he lost this money, and was compelled to make a new start, it was a blow that would have discouraged most men, but he courageously settled down to work once more and located on a homestead. In order to hold his new home, and at the same time to make a living for himself, he was forced to seek all manner of employment, but he was willing, ambitious, and capable, and finally managed to get started on his upward climb. He continued to reside on his farm, engaged in general farming and stock-raising, until 1915, by which time he had increased his property to 200 acres, which he still owns. Since the date mentioned, he has lived in partial retirement, at the edge of Ansley, where he has a comfortable home and twelve acres of land, and where he engages in selling insurance for a number of well known companies. During the time that he resided on the farm he erected substantial, modern, and attractive buildings and put in other improvements, and in various other ways contributed to the upbuilding of his community. He is a stockholder in the Security State Bank at Ansley and a director of the State Farmers Insurance Company of ( )maha, Nebraska. In writing policies he makes a specialty of fire and automobile insurance. Mr. Gross is a Republican in politics. In 1888 Miss Gross married Anna Draper, and they became the parents of two children, of whom only one, Roy, is living. Roy Gross, who is the owner of a farm six miles south of Ansley, is one of the progressive young agriculturists of his locality. In 1892 Mr. Gross married Bertha Whitney, who was born at Waterford, Pennsylvania, and they have two children : Whitney, who is engaged in cultivating his father's farm of 200 acres, and is an enterprising young agriculturist ; and Earl, who is connected with the National Refining Company, at Wahoo, Nebraska, as a warehouse man. By a former marriage, !Mrs. Gross had three daughters: ^Irs. Pearl Lawson and Mrs. Fern Chandler, residents of Wahoo; and Mrs. C. N. Harris, of Ansley. Mr. and Mrs. Gross and their children are members of the Christian church.

OLIVER L. S WICK. - Among the substantial farmers located in the fertile region of the ^Middle Loup there is none more widely known than the man whose name appears above. Mr. Swick is a native of Ohio He was born June 9, 1863. He is the son of Jesse and Eunice (^McQuisten) Swick. The parents were both natives of Beaver county, Pennsylvania, in which place thej' were married but later moved to Ohio, where they made their home until about the 3'ear 1887. Mrs. Swick died about this time and he remarried, and after his second marriage he came to Custer county and located a homestead near Merna, on which he lived many years, his death occurring at the home of his son Oscar, when he was eighty-seven years of age.

In the family of the elder Swick were nine children, Ijut the subject of this sketch and his brother Oscar are the only ones living in this county. The parents were members of the Christian church and in partisan affairs Mr. Swick was always counted a staunch Republican.

The early days of young Oliver were spent in Ohio and it was here that he received a common school education. In April of 1886 Mr. Swick came to Custer county and since that time has been one of the dependable citizens of the county. May 5, 1891, he lead to tlie marriage altar Miss Hope Gates, a daughter of Stillman and Mary E. (McNeil) Gates, whose record appears elsewhere in this volume.

Since their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Swick have maintained a hospitable home, in which have been ensconced the necessities and most of the comforts of life. It is understood, however, that together thev faced the difficulties, trials and hardships of the early days and tosfether have accomplished the success with which thev are now credited. Of their nine children eight are living:: Alta, is deceased; Harry, who married Ethel Barnes, is at the present time a successful farmer: Hazel is the wife of William Books and lives near Milburn; Arva is the wife of Earl Hatcher, living at Lilhan ; Mary, Esther, and Ruth are all at home ; Lois Olive and Louis Oliver are twins.

In the early days Mr. Swick bought a relinquishment, upon which he filed and later commuted. This became the initial holding and early home, where he lived until thirteen years ago, when he sold and came to his present domain, where he owns 1,040 acres of good land. The family are members of the Christian church and he is a member of the Masonic order, independent in politics and withal a worthy citizen held in high repute by his neighbors. Mrs. Swick recalls the scenes of early years when many difficulties presented themselves. Freight was hauled from Grand Island or Loup City. On one occasion they were out of flour for days A neighbor, George Steele, had gone to Grand Island for a fresh supply. One of the old-time blizzards pounced upon them, and next morning the windows were so full of snow that they could not tell whether it was daylight or not. During this time they ground wheat in the cofTee mill and subsisted on whole-wheat bread. Game was rather plentiful and oftentimes wild plums in the canyons made up the entire fruit supply with which the menu of that day was supplied.

GEORGE DREESSEN was born January 21, 1886, in Germany, and is a son of George C. and Matilda ( Frins) Dreesen. The ))arents were both natives of Germany. The father came to the L^nited States when sixteen years of age. Later he returned, married the wife named above, and again, in 1886, with his family, when George was but a babe, came to this coimtry to make their future home. They settled on a homestead in Cherry county, where also they entered a tree claim and pre-emption. Later they sold this land and bought near West Union, where they lived until about twelve years ago, when they moved to Grand Island, where both parents died. In their family circle were ten children, eight of them living at the present time. The father was always a Republican in politics, and the family was connected with the English Lutheran church.

George Dreessen received a common-school education in the ^^'est L'nion and Grand Island schools, and has been a fanner all of his life. He was married December 29, 1909. his wife, Agnes, having been born in 1878, at Grand Island. Air. and Mrs. Dreessen are the proud parents of three very promising children and one child is deceased : Thelma M., born November 22. 1910; .\lbert R., born

Mr. Dreessen is independent in poHtics, and is a member of the EngHsh Lutheran church. Mrs. Dreessen is a member of the Presbyterian church. They are very excellent people and religious discord does not mar the tranquility of their home.

In the possession of Margaret, sister of George Dreessen. is a family record that traces the members of her mother's family back for 450 years. This is, perhaps, the longest genealogy possessed by any inhabitant of Custer county.

PAUL H. J. CARoTilERS, M. D. - Eight years of careful and skilled attention to the health and sanitation of Mason City and its people have enlarged the work of Dr. Paul H. J. Carothers and developed it to a point where it is deservedly accounted a necessary community asset. Since beginning his practice here, in 1910, he has steadily advanced in his calling, and at the same time has contributed to the city a modern hospital and three years of service in the capacity of city physician.

Dr. Carothers was horn at Wichita, Iowa, October 23, 1881, and is a son of John H. Carothers, in whose sketch, elsewhere in this work, will be found adequate data pertaining to the family history. The early education of Paul H. J. Carothers was oI)tained in the public schools of Ansley, Custer county, and in 1900 he was graduated in the high school there. During his youth he had developed remarkable skill as a baseball player, and this was further developed while he was a member of the high-school team. After his graduation he saw a means of livelihood in this direction, and accordingly took up the national pastime as a profession, following it for si.x years. While he belonged to no regularly organized body, he became widely known as a member of independent teams, and was a general favorite with the "fans" in the various communities in which he played. During this period of his i)astiming, he carefully saved his earnings, which were not inconsiderable, for he had no idea of making baseball his life's business. He had studied privately, and in 1906 was able to enter the medical department of Cotner University, Lincoln, Nebraska, where he took a complete course and was graduated in 1910. At that time Dr. Carothers came to Mason City. All young physicians are required to pass through a certain probationary period before they accjuire a practice, but in the case of Dr. Carothers it was necessary that this period be short, as his monetary assets at the time of his arrival totaled forty dollars. He therefore applied himself industriously to his calling, and his' energy, together with a pleasing personality and a readily discernible talent for his profession, soon attracted to him a professional business that has continued to grow in size and importance to the present time.

I)r. Carothers makes a specialty of surgery, a field in which he has attained something more than local distinction and reputation. He performs all manner of major and minor operations, some of his cases having been of a most comjjlicated and highly diffi:ult character. In addition to doing post-graduate work at the Chicago Polyclinic, he has had the benefit of study and instruction luider the preceptorship of the eminent and distinguished Mayo brothers of Rochester, Minnesota. In 1915 'he built a new private hospital at Mason City, a three-story structure with basement, and here he has twenty-one rooiiis and all equipment of vthe latest type. Comfort, convenience, and the most skilled attendance are afforded the patients, and the institution is one that would be a credit to a much larger community than Mason City. Dr. Carothers keeps fully abreast of the advancements made in both medicine and surgery, and belongs to various organizations of his profession. He is serving as city physician, an office which he has held for three years, and in which he has been able to give the city the benefit of his trained skill and experience and to advocate a number of beneficial movements. Politically he is a Democrat, and his fraternal connection is with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.

Dr. Carothers was married January 26, 1913, to Miss Maybelle Chase, who was born at Mason City. She is a daughter of ITiram Chase, a pioneer of this community, where he conducted a drug store for many years - until his death, in July, 1913. Mr. and Mrs. Carothers are the parents of two children: Nadine and Maurine.

JOHN LENSTROM. - From the early days Custer county has been indebted to Sweden for some of the most thrifty blood that flows in the veins of the early pioneers. John Lenstrom is one of the Scandinavian contingent to whom the county is indebted. He was born in Sweden February 12, 1858, of Swedish parents in whose veins flowed the countless generations in that northern land.

His parents were John and Christina Swanson. The father was a carpenter by trade and in the family were five children, but John and his brother Ernest were the only two who ever came to the United States. John's boyhood days were spent in Sweden, where he received a liberal education and where, in December. 1879. he was married to Matilda Thornholm. The next year after his marriage he and his young wife started for America, which was in the fall of 1880. The first year on his homestead is one long to be remembered. There was a drouth and the crop failed. A prairie fire came rolling down on his little home and would have destroyed his home, barn and feed but for the fact that two wagon loads of people came out from Sargent and helped him fight the fire. The land was sandy and of light soil and this added to his difficulties. Then, too, there was no bridge across the river to Sargent, the nearest bridge being five miles west up the river toward West Union. When the weather was warm, it was his custom to wade the river but when it was cold he had to walk up to the bridge and back, altogether a distance of 10 miles. This he did day after day while working for different people in Sargent in order that he might support his family and get started at farming in this new country.

Speaking of those times he recalls that often he was compelled to go into debt, but it is part of the Swedish nature to meet obligations, consequently he met every dollar of his indebtedness. If he could not pay in cash, he worked for the people to whom he was indebted and in one way or another secured the means by which he started his early farming operations. Today he has a splendid farm, is comfortably situated, although not enjoying the best of health. He rejoices, however, that he lives in the United States. His early preemption of 135 acres, upon which he lived for eight years, has been sold and likewise a homestead of 120 acres southwe*;! of Conistock, upon which he lived another eight years. Since that time he has bought 160 acres and put on it splendid improvements. This is his home at the present time and upon which he has a good supply of hogs, cattle, and horses.

His children are: Martin. Esther Ellen. John, Alex, Emrick, Conrad, Joseph, and Clarence, three of whom are still at home with their parents. The Lenstroms are dependable people, highly rated as neighbors and in every way an asset to their community.

Mr. Guthrie was born in Chenango county, New York, May 1, 1878. His father, Edward Guthrie, who was a native of Ireland, was left an orphan when quite young and was sent to the home of an uncle who lived in the state of New York. There he grew to manhood and became a wagon-maker by trade. He followed his trade in New York state, and in 1884 he came to Nebraska and settled at Elm Creek, ButTalo county. In the following year he came to Custer county and took a homestead in the northwest part of the county, where he engaged in the cattle business. He died in Custer county nine years ago> at the age of seventy-four years. In New York state he married !Mary Brady, a native of the Empire state, and she now makes her home with her son Edward E. Five of the six children born to Edward and Mary (Brady) Guthrie are still living: Nellie is the wife of Joseph Rottgen, of Ohio; Charles is a farmer of Custer county; Edward E. was next in order of birth; Alice is the wife of Elijah Luce, of Merna ; and Richard Ralph is a captain in the national anny, having seen service in France, but having been sent back to the United States before the close of the war, to assist in preparing troops for serv-ice in Europve.

Edward E. Guthrie was a young man of seventeen years when he and his brother Charles engaged in the cattle business. They owned a ranch and were in partnership until 1915, when Edward E. took up farming on the place he now operates and which he had owned for several years. The property is improved with a nine-room house- and this is one of the finest homes in this part of the county. equipp)ed with steam heat, hot and cold running water, and electric lights.

Mr. Guthrie has never married and seems to prefer single blessednesS' while his mother presides over the home. The Guthrie family is well and favorablv known.

CHARLES ]\IELHAM. - Twenty-eight years of residence in Custer county have accomplished the evolution of Charles Melham from a penniless, homelecs and friendless young man with no knowledge of the American language or customs, into one of the bestinformed men of his community, a substantial farmer and land-owner, and a highly-respected and esteemed citizen. His career has been a somewhat remarkable one. and in it

Mr. Melham is a native of the little-known country of Syria, Asia, and was born in the village of Amcheete, December 4, 1866, a son of Abraham and Mary ( Swanson ) Melham. He comes of a rather remarkable family, and was born in the house in which the family had lived for 300 years, a small stone structure which had been built by his great-great-grandfather, and which had also been the birthplace of his great-grandfather, grandfather and father. The family lived on the little farm which was rented by them, but in addition to being a tiller of the soil, Abraham Melham was a man of prominence in his locality, where he held prestige by reason of being a natural astronomer, which art, in his country, called for not only a reading of the heavens and knowledge of the heavenly bodies, but the capacity to measure the corn in the field, the wheat in the crop, the nuts on the tree, etc. While it is not the usual thing in Syria to come upon large families, there were eight children in the family of Abraham Melham, but despite his large family the father was able to give his children better educational advantages than generally fall to the lot of most of those of his race. The parents never left their native land, but Charles was ambitious to better himself, and when the opportunity arose bade farewell to his parents, when twentv-four years old, and immigrated to the United States. He arrived October 24, 1890, at Fall River, Massachusetts, and remained there until the following May, when he came to Custer county, Nebraska, arriving here without a dollar and without the sliehest knowledge of the countr)''s language. His first work was to operate a medicine wagon for W'atkins Remedies Company, and while he was thus engaged one of his first tasks was the mastering of the language of his adopted country, not alone as to speech, but also as to reading and writing. During the seven years that he was employed by the medicine company he saw many houses vacated which arc now occupied bv people who have grown wealthy in the county. Mr. Melham's wants during his earlv years here were few, and he wisely and thriftily saved his earnines, which, as soon as they reached appreciable proportions, he invested in land. Soon he engaged actively in fanning and stock-raising, usine western methods, and kept on increasing his acreage. This system has brought him success, so that to-day he is the owner of 520 acres of highly improved land, on which he carries on farming, making a specialty of raising pedigreed Poland-China hogs and registered Red Polled cattle. His improvements are of the best, and at the present time he is installing an electric plant, with a fifty-light system, which will be sufficient to light his house, barns, and outbuildings. That he has been able to accomplish so much from such small beginnings denotes that Mr. Melham is a man of initiative resource and strength of character. He is an extra well read man, especially, in history, and has made a particularly close study of his adopted country's past, as he is grateful for the chance extended to him by the United States for making a success of his life. This has led him to be independent in politics, for with him country comes before party. He was bom and reared in the faith of the Moronic orthodox church, the only branch in all the world of that faith, and while he does not worship in that faith here, he believes in all religious bodies and supports their movements generously.

Mr. Melham was married March 25, 1900, to Miss Jennie M. Reynolds, a daughter of George E. and Amanda J. (Sweezey) Reynolds, pioneers of Custer county, who now reside at Bartley. To this union there have been born four children, of whom three are living: Ralph A., Leo L., and Kenneth, all at home.

OSCAR THOMPSON. - Down in the fertile region of Burr Oak and on a splendid farm that is the stage of very successful farming operations, lives the subject of this sketch, Oscar Thompson who is in middle life and the acme of his manhood years.

He was born in 1875 at Furnace. Scioto county. Ohio, and his gbod wife, Florence ( W'oodrufF) Thompson, to whom he was married in 1897, was born in the same year. Mr. Thompson is a son of Silas Thompson, who was a native of Ohio, and who departed this life when seventy-seven years of age. He was twice married, his first wife, mother of the subject of this sketch, being Hanna (Gahenej Thompson' who died when forty-two years of age. The second wife was Ellen I Humphrey) Thompson, who passed from this life in the sixty-fifth year of her age.

In the family circle of the elder Thompson were the following children : John maintains his home in Rock county, Nebraska, where he operates a ranch. David is a Custer county farmer, as is also Edgar, and these are full brothers of Oscar. Elbert is a Custer county farmer and .-Kubrey lives in .An.sley. these two being half-brothers of Oscar. Belle Schriver lives in Kentucky. Anna Benedict is in Urhana, Ohio, and Lou Houston lives at Geneva,

Nebraska. These are full sisters of Oscar Thompson, the immediate subject of this sketch. There are two half-sisters - Cora Hickman, who lives on a Custer county farm, and Maude Bass, whose home is in Omaha.

In Oscar Thompson's immediate farmily is but one child, a bright young girl, who has come to make cheerful the family fireside. This daughter, Louise, is at present a student in the high school at Geneva, Nebraska.

Mr. Thompson owns 180 acres of well improved land, but he leases additional land and is operating a farm of 300 acres. Only about fifty acres of his own land are under cultivation. His live-stock operations include the raising of hogs, horses, and cattle. He has a full equipment of farm machinery, has good buildings, and an attractive home - in fact everything that goes to make farming a profitable and comfortable occupation. Such surroundings make farm life attractive. Mr. Thompson and his family ride in a splendid motor car and have all modern conveniences. Mrs. Thompson is a member of the Presbyterian church. This is an excellent family that merits the good standing it sustains in the communitv.

ALBERT McGregor. - Any record of the capable and industrious agriculturists of Custer county who have worked their way to position and prominence would be incomplete did it not contain the name and review of Albert McGregor, who is now engaged in extensive operations on section 33, township 1, in the Sargent neighborhood. For thirty years he has been a resident of the county and during this period has run the gamut of experiences from poverty to affluence and from humble position to independence.

Mr. ^McCiregor was born in Joe Daviess county, Illinois, September 22, 1858, a son of Robert and Isabella (Bankhead) McGregor, natives of Edinburgh, Scotland. From the time that he passed boyhood, Robert McGregor was employed in the coal mines, working his way up through the various grades until the proud time when he donned the lighted cap of the full-fledged miner and was given a man's wages. He was twenty-one years of age when he came to the United States, and followed coal mining in Pennsylvania until 1848, when he went to Illinois. There he engaged in farming in Joe Daviess county and remained until 1884, in the spring of which year he came to Custer county and took a homestead in Douglas Grove, that being his place of residence until his death, in 1887. He was a Republican in politics, but never held office, while his religious faith was that of the Lutheran church, as it was also of Mrs. Mc- Gregor, who survived her husband until 1892. They were the parents of nine children, of whom five are living, but Albert and his brother William are the only ones residing in Custer county.

Albert McGregor was educated in the public schools of Illinois, and as a young man adopted the vocation of miner, which he followed until his coming to Custer county, in 1888. Here he found employment as a farm hand and blacksmith, but even with both these occupations was unable to make both ends meet, and in order that he might earn a little more money for the hard times he would walk four miles night and morning to work on an irrigation ditch, this being outside of the hours devoted to his other vocations. For this added labor he received the sum of fortyfive cents per day, and one of the stirring moments of his career was when his pay was advanced five cents per day. Eventually, through his industry and continued perseverance, he was able to get a start, and from that time to the present his rise has been steady and encouraging. He is the owner of a good property located on section 32, township 1, on on which he carries on general farming and stock-raising, in both of which departments he has shown himself skilled and well informed. He has been too busily engaged with his private affairs to enter actively into pub lie life, but is a supporter of the principles and candidates of the Republican party, and a citizen who shows his interest in civic affairs by his support of progressive movements.

Mr. McGregor was married in November, 1884, at Taylor, Nebraska, to Miss Jennie Ferritor, whose parents were pioneers of Custer county of the year 1882. in which year Mr. Ferritor pre-empted land six miles northeast of Sargent. He died in the fall of 1912, and Mrs. Ferritor is now a resident of Douglas, Wyoming. Five children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. McGregor: Hugh, the proprietor of a garasre at Sargent, who married Stella Edwards ; Earl, who married Margaret Tolen, and is now employed in the L^nited States Government's shipyards at Pascagoula. Mississippi : and Cora, Hazel, and Gilbert, who are single and reside with their parents.

ANSON B. HARTLEY, who belongs to tliat class of men who, more than any other, have a direct influence uixin the building up and development of any community - - the real estate operators - has resided in Custer county for a period of more than thirty-five years. During a large part of this time he was engaged in farming, but since 1904 he has devoted himself to real estate almost to the exclusion of other interests. He is known as one of the most successful real-estate men in Custer county, particularly at Sargent, where his activities are centered.

Mr. Hartley was born in Westchester county. New York, March 26, 1860. and is a son of Joseph W. and Mary E. (Atwood) Hartley. His father was born at Bellefontaine, Ohio, a son of Dr. Aaron Hartley, and his mother at Mount Pleasant. Iowa, a daughter of John Atwood.

Joseph W. Hartley was one of the successful, prominent, and influential men of his day and one of the best known in Custer county. From New York he removed to Lincoln, Nebraska, where he engaged in the banking business, in company with J. S'. Atwood. and continued therein until 1880, when he came to Custer county. On :\Iarch 15, 1882, he homesteaded on what was then the Jess Gandy ranch, in section 9, township 19. range 19. on the Middle Loup river. There he farmed until 1894, when he was called to Lincoln as general manager and purchasing agent for the Farmers Alliance - positions whL-h he retained to the time of his death, which occurred while he was on a visit to his son Anson B. at Sargent. He was buried at Lincoln. ]\Ir. Hartley was a Republican in politics and at one time served as supervisor for Lillian township. He was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and very active in church work, donating considerable sums to the building of the West L'nion and Walworth churches of that faith and in other ways assisting in religious movements. He was also prominent in Masonic and Odd Fellows circles. He and his wife were the parents of eight ciiildren, of whom six are living: Carrie is the wife of C. W. Gring, a traveling salesman living near Los Angeles, California ; Anson B.. of this review, was next in order of birth ; Joseph A. is a wholesale and retail dry-goods merchant of Columbus, Ohio : Russell E. is married and is engaged in the dry-goods business at Chillicqthe. Ohio: Flora B. is the wife of Charles M. Martin, who is in mercantile lines at Duluth, ^linnesota; and Edward, a bachelor, is a railroad man of Spokane. Washington.

Anson B. Hartley received his early educacation in the public schools of Lincoln, and after his graduation in the high school in that city he engaged in farming. In 1883 he settled on a Custer county homestead, the southeast quarter of section 9. township 19, range

19. and he continued to be engaged in agricultural activities with constantly increasing success until 1904. In the meantime he had been, from the time of his arrival, interested in realty dealing, and he eventually found his interests in this direction so heavy that he deemed it advisable to give his whole attention thereto. On his removal to Sargent, in 1904, he formed a partnership with O. S. Pulliam, and this association continued, with mutual satisfaction, for three years. Mr. Hartley is a heavy landholder, and besides the most beautiful home at Sargent is the owner of a large amount of personal property, all of which he has accumulated through his own efforts and by strictly legitimate means and honorable dealing. Perhaps he has done as much for Custer county in building it up and developing it as any other one man, for during a period of thirty-five years he has steadily and unceasingly sung the county's praises, in endeavoring to induce people to make their homes here and business houses to center their activities in this progressive section.

After reaching his majority, ^Ir. Hartley found that his viewp>oints in politics differed from that of his father, and he gave his support to the Democratic ]iartv. He became a somewhat influential figure during the organization of the Populist (larty. when he worked to great effect in combining the interests of the Democrats and Rejiublicans and patching up their feuds. He has been more of a worker in behalf of his friends and party tlian a seeker after personal preferment. As a citizen Mr. Hartley has always been glad to assume his responsibilities, and his name is found on the list of those supporting each movement that promises to better his community in a worthy and practical manner.

Mr Hartley was married March 6, 1884, to Miss ]\Iargie Dupray, a daughter of Fred M. Dupray, of the Gohecn valley, who settled on a homestead in Custer county in 1883. Of the children born to Mr. and Mrs. Hartley, the following record is given in conclusion of this review: Carrie E. is the wife of W. L. Probert, manager of the Farmers Gara.ge at Sargent, and a dealer in cream and farm produce; Mabel is the wife of George Christensen. an agriculturist carrying on operations about four miles north of Sargent : Alfred A., who enlisted in the aviation corps of the L'nited States army, is, at the time of this writing, in the mechanical department, American training school, at Rockwell Field, San Diego. California : May resides with her parents : Bessie is a school teacher at Casper. \\'voming: Elma B.. who is a graduate of the

Sargent schools, is engaged in teaching; Evelyn D. is the wife of William D. Jorgensen, a farmer in the locality of Minden, Nebraska ; and Grace is engaged in teaching.

EARL GLOVER, who belongs to one of the old and substantial pioneer families of county, was born May 19, 1888, near or its present site, and is a son of Percy D. and Gussie (Lower) Glover. The full history of the Glover family will be found on another page of this work.

Earl Glover has spent his life in Custer county and has always been deeply interested in its substantial development. He obtained his education in the public schools and until 1909 operated as a farmer for his father and then embarked in the same business for himself. Since 1917 he has been farming on his uncle's ranch near Comstock. This ranch is one of the best improved in Custer county and is conducted along modern lines. It contains 1040 acres, giving space and pasturage for all kinds of stock, only of the best, however. The specialties are Aberdeen Angus cattle, Percheron horses, and Poland China hogs. The money value of the shipments from this ranch is amazing. Careful, interested and trained farmers and stock-raisers are absolutely necessary in an enterprise of such magnitude, and along this line Mr. Glover easily qualifies.

Mr. Glover was married October 2, 1913, to Miss Ellen L. Johnson, who was also born in Custer county. Her father, Reuben Johnson, brought his family to Custer rountv in pioneer days and during life was a farmer on school section No. 36, near Westerville, and there both he and his wife died some years ago. Mr. and Mrs. Glover have no children. They are members of the Christian Science Church. Like his father before him, Mr. Glover has alwavs given his political support to the Republican party. He is a highly respected citizen and. like all the other Glovers in Custer county, has a wide circle of personal friends, because of pleasing personality, friendly neighborliness and sterling character.

FRANK F. GARRISON, the Walworth merchant and postmaster, has lived most of his life in Custer county and here he spent his youthful days during the pioneer times that entailed hardships and privations which tested the metal of the generation to whose lot they fell.

Frank Garrison discovered .America in Iowa, where he was born in Taylor county, September 27, 1877. He is the second son of George and Amanda (Maple) Garrison, both of whom were natives of Pennsylvania. George Garrison was in early life a cabinetmaker by trade, but in later years followed bridge building almost exclusively. He was for years in the employment of the Rio Grande and Kansas Pacific Railroads in Colorado. He built all the bridges on the Kansas Pacific line between Kansas City and Denver. He was the promoter of the Walworth bridge, which was the first built on the Middle Loup river west of North Loup. When he quit the railroad, he settled in Taylor county, Iowa, where he lived until 1882, engaged in farming pursuits. Then, putting his family into a covered wagon, he started the team westward and later landed in Custer county, where he bought a relinquishment from Walter Bedwell and where he gained possession of the land by completing the homestead rights. He engaged in general farming and stock-raising, making a specialty of Short Horn Durham cattle. He was the first man to raise Poland-China hogs in the Middle Loup section of the county. He was affiliated, generally, with the Republican party, a member of the Masonic lodge. His wife, mother of Frank F., died October 26, 1901, and George Garrison, the father, died May 10, 1908. They were the parents of four children. Besides Frank F., these were : George H., who is an engineer in the employ of the Southern Pacific Railroad. He married Miss Pollock, of Sparks, Nevada. Jessie C. married George Orvis and lives north of Walworth. Lulu M. married Bert Orvis and resides west of old West Union.

Frank F. Garrison was educated in the district schools of this county. He had the experiences common to all who have been reared in these western preserves. March 9, 1904, he married Maude A. Gattlii?, at Taylor, Ne- Ijraska. She is a daughter in a pioneer family. Her people came to North Loup in 1883, and then to Custer in 1884. Her father homesteaded north of Sargent, where he lived for several years. At his retirement he moved to Sargent, where he died, February 10, 1918. His widow, mother of Mrs. Garrison, still lives in Sargent. In the Gattliff family were seven children, six of whom survive this present day. Aside from Mrs. Garrison these are: Georgia, who married A. A. Vindege and lives at Berwyn ; Nannie, who married Roy L. Sevier and lives at Sargent ; Elsie, who married Ray Leach and lives in Taylor, Nebraska ; Nellie, who married Forest Sargent and lives at Craig, Colorado; and Charles, who married Ocia Adams and resides at Sargent.

The home that Air. and Mrs. Garrison, estabhshed at the time of their marriage has been blessed with one child, Howard W., a bright lad who was born May 7. 1912. Mr. and Mrs. Garrison made their home on the old homestead, where they conducted a general fanning and stock-raising business, until the year 1913, when he took charge of and become general manager of the Walworth general merchandise store, which he had jnirchased about two years prior to this time. He is still conducting the business and has made it a profitable country store - a convenience the neighborhood could not well do without. He is postmaster of the Walworth postoffice. is a Republican in politics and he and his good wife have many friends and are well respected in the communitv.

HENRY N. RAPP. - A substantial farmer and well known and highly respected cit'- zen of Custer county is Henry N. Rapp. who has been a resident of this section for the past twenty years and during the entire period has been engaged in general farming. Mr. Rapp came to Nebraska from Ohio and was born in Jackson county, that state. July 25. I8.18. His parents were Christopher and Mary ( Spangler ) Rapp. The father was born in Germany but the mother was born in the United States. Christopher and Mary (Spangler) Rapp were the parents of ten' children and the following eight survive : Peter, who is a farmer near Brownsville. Oregon ; John, who lives in Portsmouth. Ohio : Henry N.. whose name heads this review. Christopher, whose home is in Fayette county, Ohio: Joseph \\'., who lives in South Solon. Madi.son county, Ohio: Katie, who is the wife of Charles Smith, of Dayton. Ohio : Lena, who is the wife of Henry Wells, of Lucasville, Scioto county, C)hio: and .Anna, who is the wife of Philip Brust, of Chillicothe, Ohio. Christopher Rapj) and his wife were good. Christian people and were members of the United Brethren church. Before the Civil war he voted with the Republican party, but afterward he gave his political support to the Democratic party.

Henr>' N. Rapp attended the district schools in Ohio and assisted his father on the home farm. Since coming to Custer county he h-i-i acquired two C|uarter-sections of very fine land and has added greatly to its value by the improvements he has made. He has been an industrious man all his life and through hard work, backed by sound judgment, has developed one of the best farms in the county.

at Piketon. Ohio, to Flora Wilson, who was born in Ohio, July 11, 1865. and who died January 5, 1895. the mother of four children, the youngest being then aged two and onehalf years. Concerning the children llie following brief data are available: Carl, who reremains with his father and is associated in the work and management of the home farm, married Miss Opal Hatfield, and they have two children - Mildred H. and \'elma lone. Ernest, who resides at South Broken Bow, married Miss Esther Mauk. and they have two children - Ernest and Willa Alae. Leland, who is a resident of Spencer Park, married Miss Sylvia Simonson. Grace, whose death occurred March 7. 1918, was the wife of William Perkins, and she is survived by three children - Flora, Esther, and Harold.

In politics Mr. Rapp gives his allegiance to the Democratic party, and he has been called upon to serve in various school offices in his district, including those of director, treasurer, and moderator. He is affiliated with the Modern Woodmen of America and is a memnier of the Methodist Episcopal church.

LOYD GLOVER, who is a representative of one of the old pioneer families of Custer county that is highly respected all through this part of the state, was born on his father'> homestead near Comstock, Nebraska. December 28. 1893. He is a son of Percy D. and Gussie (Lower) Glover, an extended sketch of whom, with the family histor\-. will be found in this work.

Loyd Glover received a good, commonschool education in his native county and has been a farmer and ranchman ever since he entered business life and has always maintained his home in Custer county, where big things are done in the agricultural line. Mr. Glover is one of the experienced ranchmen employed by his uncle on his magnificent ranch of 1.040 acres, on which the finest of stock is raised and made ready for market. This ranch turns of? .Aberdeen Angus cattle. Percheron horses and Poland China hogs. The oi)eration of such a modern ranch as this is a stupendous undertaking but is not beyond the business ability of Custer county farmers, with their perfected methods and modern equipments.

parents of Mrs. Glover reside at Broken Bow, Nebraska, where Mr. Fountain is agent and telegraph operator for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. Mrs. Glover has one sister and two brothers, namely: Inez, who is the wife of Ralph Taylor, who is a ranchman near Whitman, in Grant county, Nebraska ; and Max and Roger, both of whom are serving with the American Expeditionary Forces in France. Max being a driver of an army truck, and Roger belonging to a machine gun division. In politics Mr. Glover, like his brother Earl, is a staunch Republican hut neither of them has desired any political rewards. Mr. Glover is a man of high personal standing and recognized good citizenship.

FRANK S. REED.. - All the honors of successful farming, stock-raising, and thrifty accumulation go with the nian whose name forms the title of this review. Custer county has many men who have made a remarkable success of western farming, who have by their thrift and energy, produced a competence, and have given to the world children of whom they may well be proud. One among this number, and standing in the first rank, is Frank S. Reed. He is a native of Putnam county, Illinois, in which state he was born February 7, 1866. He is a son of James and Martha (Reed) Reed. The father was a native of the Buckeye state and the mother was born in Indiana. This excellent couple had in their family four children, all of whom have been an asset to their home communities. They are Tames \V., Rose E. HuiT, Annie Baker, and Frank S.

The fortunes and misfortunes of early years seeni to have dealt severely with young Frank Reed. His mother died when he was seven years of age, and when he was only eleven years old he started out into the world to make his own living. He first hired to Aaron Newburn, for six dollars a month, and he stuck to the job for eighteen months, which was pretty good for a boy of his age. He never stopped work. In those early years he laid the foundation of his present-day thrift, and also formed the industrious habits that he has practiced all his life. When twenty-one years of age he thought it was time to take unto Iiimself a helpmeet, and accordingly, on January 31, 1877, at York, Nebraska, he married Miss Emma Jacobson, a daughter of Oscar and Zuba (Thompson) Jacobson. The young couple established a home for themselves and this was the beginning of their successful activities, which have culminated in substantial rewards for early privation, and long years of excessive toil.

To Mr. and Mrs. Reed were born eight children : Oscar married Julia HuiT and is now farming for himself, fifteen miles southwest of Broken Bow. James E., who is farming in Custer county, married Nannie Button, and they have one child, a little girl. John W. married Gladys Predmore, a daughter of Henry Predmore. They live on a farm four and one-half miles south of the county seat. Henry is one of the gallant young Custer county boys who have given service in the national army in the great world war, and he is in France at the time this sketch is in preparation. Charles married Flossie Palmer and assists on the home farm ; Frederick, aged seventeen years ; Clara, aged fourteen, and Hattie, aged eleven, are at home. The mother of this family passed away January 14, 1918, at the age of fifty-three years.