Gage County, Nebraska - Chapter 31: People Who Have Done Their Part in Making Gage County, 1918 (part 12 of 29)

Mr. Ozman was born at Lansing, Tompkins county, New York, in the year 1837, and was reared to manhood in the old Empire state, where he received the advantages of the common schools and where, at the age of eighteen years, he entered upon an apprenticeship to the trade of harnessmaker, in which he became a skilled workman. Mr. Ozman is doubly appreciative of the pariotism manifested by the young men of America at the present time, when they are giving themselves earnestly to making up the fine national army for the Country's participation in the great European war, and this attitude on his part can not but recall vividly to his mind the time when, as a young man of twenty-five years, he subordinated all personal interests to respond to the call of patriotism) by tendering his services in defense of the Union, In 1862 he enlisted as a private in Company G, One Hundred and Ninth New York Volunteer Infantry, with which he proceeded to the front and took part in various engagements, including the first battle of the Wilderness. Shortly after this historic engagement he was attacked with illness and thereafter he remained incapacitated for active service until January, 1865, when he rejoined his regiment, with which he took part in the battle of Petersburg on the 2d of the following April, being one of the last of the important battles of the great internecine conflict. After the surrender of Generals Lee and Johnston Mr. Ozman took part in the Grand Review of the victorious troops in the city of Washington, where he received his honorable discharge. He then returned with other members of his regiment to New York state, and shortly afterward he established himself in business as harnessmaker, at Ithaca, that state. In 1866 he sold his business and went to Wheatland, Vernon county, Wisconsin, where he continued in the same line of business until 187L In the year last mentioned Mr. Ozman became a resident of Gage county, Nebraska, where he obtained a homestead claim of one hundred and sixty acres of land, in Section 6 Highland township. He was one of the early setders of that part of the county, and recalls that at the time Indians were still much in evidence in this section of the state, the while deer and antelope still roved the prairies. He gave himself vigorously to the reclaiming and improving of his pioneer farm and eventually developed the same into one of the productive and valuable landed, domains of the county. In character and ability he was well fitted for leadership in community affairs, and he was active in the furtherance of measures and undertakings that conserved both civic and industrial advancement and prosperity. He and his devoted wife assisted earnestly in the organizing of the first Sunday school in Highland township, and he was influential in the establishing and activities of the Gage county grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, as well as the Farmers' AlHance of later years. He was able also to give effective service as one of the pioneer teachers of this section of the state, and while improving his homestead he taught eleven terms of school, in Gage and Lancaster counties, his service in the pedagogic profession having been given during the winter terms, while he devoted the intervening summer seasons to the affairs of his farm.

Mr. Ozman has never abated his deep interest in his old comrades of the Civil war or in promoting lofty ideals of patriotism, in which connection it is pleasing to note that on the occasion of the old soldiers' reunion held at Beatrice in 1876, in connection with the centennial anniversary of our national independence, he was chosen to deliver the patriotic address, a duty which he discharged with characteristic ability and earnestness. In all ways has this sterling pioneer stood exemplar of loyal and progressive citizenship, and none has commanded a greater degree of popular confidence and good will. The political proclivities of Mr. Ozman are indicated in the staunch support which he accords to the Republican party, and he and his family hold membership in the Methodist Episcopal church, in which he has been active and zealous for many years. He has been affiliated with the time-honored Masonic fraternity since 1866 and is one of the honored and veteran members of Rawlins Post, No. 35, Grand Army of the Republic, at Beatrice.

In Wisconsin, Mr. Ozman wedded Miss Mary A. Phillips, who was born in England and who was a girl when she accompanied her parents on their immigration to America. A woman of strong character and high ideals, Mrs. Ozman shared with her husband the trials and vicissitudes of pioneer life in Gage county, and she was the first woman to live on their old homestead in Highland township, where she was the gracious and efficient chatelaine of the pioneer home and where she died at the age of forty-seven years, being survived by six children, concerning whom the following brief record is given : Elizabeth Etta is the wife of Lincoln Paine, of Caldwell, Idaho ; Edmund Grant, who is now one of the prosperous farmers of Gage county, served in the command of General Colby in the Indian war that culminated in the battle of Wounded Knee, South ' Dakota ; Agnes Nevada is the wife of Mr. LaGrange and they maintain their home in the state of Oklahoma; Mary Ella became a missionary of the Methodist Episcopal church and as such was in service in South America for tj^phree years preceding her death; Roscoe C, who was graduated in the law department of the University of Nebraska, engaged in the practice of his profession at Lincoln,, capitol of the state, and he thereafter had the distinction of serving three years as city clerk, besides which he well upheld the patriotic honors of the family name by enlisting for service in the Spanish-American war, in which connection he was assigned to duty in the Philippine Islands, where he took part in various engagements, in one of which he was wounded in the right wrist: in 1917 he wedded Miss Edna Demming, one of his youthful schoolmates, and they now maintain their home on one of the fine farms of Colorado ; Alfred Blaine, the youngest of the children, married Miss Ida Brown, of Beatrice, and he is one of the progressive farmers of Holt township, this county.

April 5, 1899, William L. Ozman contracted a second marriage, the maiden name of his wife having been Luetta May Kitchen. Mrs. Ozman was born and reared in Jasper county, Iowa, a representative of one of its well known pioneer families, and she makes the pleasant home of the family one notable for its generous hospitality and good cheer. Mr. and Mrs. Ozman have two children, - Earl John and Theodore R., both of whom remain at the parental home and are students in the public schools of Beatrice.

FREDERICK J. SMITH left a definite and worthy impress in connection with civic, industrial and business advancement in Gage county, commanded the high regard of all who knew him and it is but due that a tribute to his memory be incorporated in this volme.

Mr. Smith was born in the district of East Friesland, in the extreme northwestern part of Germany, and the date of his nativity was December 22, 1850. He was a scion of one of the old and sterling families of that historic section of Germany, a district formerly a part of the Netherlands, and was a son of Jergen and Etta (Goldenstein) Schmidt, concerning whom more specific mention is made on other pages, in the memoir of John Carstens, who married their daughter Mary. Mr. Smith was reared and educated in his native land and was about seventeen years of age when he came to America, in 1868, he having found it expedient to change the original spelling of the family name to the English form after he had here established his home. At Rushville, Illinois, he has associated with the business conducted by his uncle until 1872, when he came to Gage county, after having previously purchased a homestead near Clatonia. Such was his intellectual ability that he was called upon to teach school in one of the districts of Clatonia township, and his ambition led him, about 1874, to take a higher course of study, in Wesleyan University at Warrenton, Missouri. Thereafter, he continued his successful service as a teacher in Clatonia township until his marriage, in 1880, after which he engaged in farming, six miles west of Cortland. In 1885 he removed with his family to the village of Cortland, where he engaged in the general merchandise business and built up a substantial and prosperous trade. He continued his activities as a representative merchant of Cortland until his death, which occurred January 21, 1913. He was the owner of a well improved farm in Clatonia township and also of another, in Rooks county, Kansas. He was a stockholder of the Farmers' State Bank of Cortland and also of the Farmers' . Elevator Company of that place. He was loyal and public-spirited as a citizen, his course was guided and governed by the highest principles, and he held the inviolable confidence of those with whom he came in contact in the varied relations of life. His political support was given to the Republican party, he served a number of years as a valued member of the board of education at Cortland, he was affiliated with the Ancient Order of United Workmen, and he was a zealous member of the German Methodist Episcopal church, as is also his widow, who still resides at Cortland. He aided much in the organization of the church of this denomination at Cortland and in the erection of the church edifice, besides having served as an officer of the same.

On the 1st of April, 1880, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Smith to Mrs. Maria (Wendt) Pothast, widow of Simon Pbthast, whose death occurred when he was about thirty-two years of age, in Illinois, and who is survived by four sons, - Henry, who is engaged in the real-estate business in the city of Lincoln, Nebraska ; David, who is a retired farmer in Colorado; Edward, who is cashier of the Farmers' State Bank at Cortland ; and Frederick L., who is cashier of the Farmers' State Bank at Pickrell and is individually mention on other pages of this work. Mr. and Mrs. Smith became the parents of six children: Rosetta and Anetta died in early childhood; Lillie is the wife of Professor H; G. Eeast, of Mount Pleasant, Iowa; Elsie is the wife of J. H. Wehrli, of Haxton, Colorado; Setta died at the age of three years, of membranous croup; and Euella remains with her widowed mother at Cortland.

Mrs. Maria (Wendt) Smith was born in Germany, October 10, 1850, and in 1868 she accompanied her parents on their immigration to America, the family home having been established in Illinois, where her first marriage was solemnized, and her parents having eventually come to Gage county, Nebraska, where they passed the remainder of their lives. Mrs. Smith is a daughter of Philip and Helen (Kentsche) Wendt, both natives of Germany, where the former was born in 1830 and the latter in 1828. Mr. Wendt was a shoemaker by trade, and resided at Davis, Illinois, until he came to Gage county, in 1886. Here he worked at his trade and clerked in the general store of F. J. Smith & Co. He died in 1892, and his venerable widow passed the closing years of her life in Cortland,' where she died in 1903. Of their four children two are living, - Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Helena Lucka, who likewise resides at Cortland, this county.

JAMES R. WILSON is numbered among the progressive business men and influential citizens of the village of Pickrell, where he is a stockholder in and general manager of the Farmers' Elevator Company, besides which his association with agricultural enterprise is further shown by his ownership of an excellent farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Thomas county, this state.

Mr. Wilson was born on a farm near Springfield, capital city of Illinois, on the 20th of April, 1870, and is a son of Robert and Mary E. (Reed) Wilson, of whose seven children he is the firstborn ; Clara is the wife of P. G. Stanley, of Cheyenne Wells, Colorado; Rilla is the wife of E. T. Locke, of Wichita, Kansas ; Lena is the wife of J. J. Sherman, of Doniphan, Hall county, Nebraska; Lillian is the wife of Ralph G. Ells, a successful farmer in Blakely township. Gage bounty;

Robert Wilson was born near the city of Liverpool, England, June 8, 1838, and was reared and educated in his native land. There he was associated with farm enterprise until about 1868, when he came to the United States and engaged in farming near Springfield, Illinois. In 1878 he came with his family to Nebraska and established his residence on a farm which he rented from Judge Parker, south of Beatrice, the judicial center of Gage county. Later he purchased land on the old Indian reservation, in Liberty township, where he reclaimed and developed a fine farm and where he continued to reside until 1900, when he sold the property. He then paid a visit to his son James R., of this review, after which he set forth to visit his old home in England, his intention teing to return to America and purchase land in Canada. Mystery and probable tragedy are all that can be conjectured concerning him since that time, as none of his family has heard from him since he left Gage county and no trace of him has been obtained from any source. His wife, whose death occurred in 1902, was born near Springfield, Illinois, in June, 1846.

James R. Wilson was a lad of eight years when he accompanied his parents to Gage county, where he was reared to manhood and made good use of the advantages afforded in the public schools. He continued thereafter to. be associated with productive farm enterprise until 1911, in April of which year he assumed his present office, that of manager of the Farmers' Elevator Company at Pickrell.

On the 20th of March, 1895, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Wilson to Miss Rosa M. Renfro, who was born in southern Missouri, June 21, 1877, a daughter of J. T. and Martha (Boyd) Renfro, both likewise natives of Missouri, representatives of the Renfro family having been clergymen of the Baptist church in two or more generations. Upon leaving Missouri the parents of Mrs. Wilson removed to western Kansas, where her father took up a homestead claim, but within a comparatively short time he came with his family to Pawnee county, Nebraska. He and his wife now reside at Peru, Nemaha county, where he is living retired, save that he gives his supervision to his fruit orchard, which is a small but productive one. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson have three children, - Ray, who is assistant manager of the grain elevator at Pickrell, as his father's valued aid; Harry, who is a student in the high school at Beatrice, and Frank, who is the youngest member of the home circle.

A wide-awake and progressive citizen and business man, Mr. Wilson has been specially influential in public and community affairs at Pickrell, and he was prominently identified with the organization and incorporaitori of the village. In 1914 he was elected mayor, and of this municipal office he has since continued the incumbent, - a fact that attests alike his personal popularity and his effective administration. He has been progressive in his official policies and under his regime great improvements have been made in the village, especially in establishing the system of electric street lighting and the construction of cement sidewalks. His political allegiance is given to the Democratic party and he is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Ancient Order of United Workman.

SILAS A. SEYMOUR is another of the honored Nebraska pioneers who has shown his appreciation of the advantages and attractions of the city of Beatrice by here establishing his home after retirement from productive activities as a farmer.. He was born in Herkimer county. New York, on the 4th of November, 1843, and is a son of Tompkins and Hannah (Dodge) Seymour, both likewise natives of the old Empire state, where they passed their entire lives and where the father became a substantial farmer and influential citizen of Herkimer county. He also was a successful merchant and contractor for a term of years. His father, Silas Seymour, was born and reared in New York state, his parents having been natives of England, and he was a soldier in the war of 1812. His

-yvife's father, Amasa Dodge, was a representative of one of the old and honored families of the Mohawk valley of New York. Tompkins Seymour -was originally a Democrat in politics, but finally he transferred his allegiance to the Republican party. He was a man of broad mental ken and mature judgement and he commanded the high esteem of all who knew him. He was called upon to serve in various township offices, and he and his wife were active members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Of their five children the subject of this sketch is the only one living.

Silas A. Seymour acquired his preliminary education in the district schools of Oswego county. New York, and thereafter attended Pulaski Academy, at . Pulaski, that state, besides pursuing higher academic studies in Falley Seminary, at Oswego. He enlisted in 1864 as a member of Company E, One Hundred and Eighty-ninth New York Volunteer Infantry, and with this command he was in active service until the close of the Civil war, he having been with his regiment at Appomattox at the time of the surrender of General , Lee and having taken part in numerous engagements that occurred within the final year of the great conflict. In later years he has .vitalized his interest in his old comrades in arms by maintaining affiliation with the Grand Army of the Republic.

After the close of the war Mr. Seymour attended Falley Seminary, as noted above, and in 1867 he numbered himself among the pioneer settlers of Blackhawk county, Iowa, where he engaged in farm enterprise and where he continued his residence until 1871. In that year, with team and covered wagon, he made the overland journey to Jefferson county, Nebraska, and the same primitive method of transportation was used when he brought his family to the new home, in the following year. He purchased in Jefferson county a quarter section of land, minor improvements having previously been made on the place, including the erection of a house fourteen by sixteen feet in dimensions and built of Cottonwood lumber. On this farm be continued his residence fourteen years.

within which period he brought the land under effective cultivation, enlarged and remodeled the house and erected other requisite farm buildings. He was successful in his vigorous activities as an agriculturist and stock-grower and in 1885 he came with his family to Beatrice, where he purchased property and established his permanent home. Here he has since lived practically retired during the intervening years and in the enjoyment of the peace and prosperity that fittingly crown a life of earnest and fruitful endeavor.

On the 2d of January, 1868, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Seymour to Miss Elizabeth Porter, who was born and reared in the state of New York, a daughter of Nelson B. Porter, and certain of whose ancestors were patriot soldiers in the war of the Revolution, so that she is eligible for and actively affiliated wjth the Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Mr. and Mrs. Seymour have two children. Florence, a graduate of the Beatrice high school, remains at the parental home and is popular and active in connection with the social life of the community. Gertrude is the wife of Verne H. Burnette, who is engaged in the printing business in the city of St. Joseph, Missouri, as a member of the Roubidoux Printing Company. The elder daughter is a skilled stenographer and has been employed as such for several years.

Mr. Seymour is found arrayed as a loyal supporter of the cause of the Republican party, he is affiliated with the Modern Woodmen of America and the Knights and Ladies of Security and he and his wife are active members of the Congregational church. He finds ample demands upon his time and attention in his activities as a fancier and raiser of fancy poultry, in which field of enterprise he raises fine Rhode Island Reds, his exhibit of which at the Gage county fair in 1917 brought to him majority of the blue ribbons on this type of poultry.

who is giving special attention to the breeding and raising of Hereford cattle and Poland- China swine, is a member of one of the honored pioneer families of Gage county and was born on the old homestead of his father, in Section 15, Clatonia township, July 26, 1882, being fourth in a family of six children; Henry is the eldest of the family and remains with his mother; Anna is the wife of John Krauter, of Clatonia township; Emma is the wife of Henry Heller, of Lancaster county; Nina is the wife of Henry Horn, of Gering, Scotts Bluff county; and Daniel, who lives with his mother, is a farmer in Clatonia township.

Henry Theasmeyer, father of the subject of this review, was born in Detmold, Principality of Lippe, Germany, February 21, 1850, and was one of the honored pioneer citizens of Gage county at the time of his death, December 27, 1914. In early childhood he was left an orphan and he was reared by kinsfolk, the while he began to provide in a degree for his own maintenance when he was but ten years old, by doing farm work within the compass of his physical powers. His educational advantages were limited and in his native land he applied himself diligently until he was nineteen years old, when he determined to come to America, where he felt that he could find better opportunities for advancement. In 1869 he embarked, at Bremen, on a sailing vessel, and in due time he landed in New York city. He thence went forthwith to Stephenson county, Illinois, where he found work on a farm and wheiie his efficient services won for him a noteworthy advance in wages within the ensuing six years. There, on the 21st of April, 1875, he married Miss Susan Lauber, who was born in Stephenson county, Illinois, July 30, 1852, and who now maintains her home in the village of Clatonia. Shortly after his marriage Mr. Theasmeyer came, in the spring of 1875, to Gage county, where he purchased eighty acres of railroad land, in Section 15, Clatonia township. A plentitude of success attended his earnest activities during the long years that marked the general development and progress of Gage county, and he became one of the most substantial farmers of Clatonia township. He and his wife bravely met the vicissitudes and trials of the pioneer days and in their kindliness and uprightness gained the high regard of all who knew them. At the time of his death, December 27, 1914, Mr. Theasmeyer was the owner of a valuable landed estate of eight. hundred and eighty acres. He and his wife aided in the organization of the German Methodist Episcopal church at Clatonia and became charter members of the same, Mrs. Theasmeyer being still an active member. In politics Mr. Theasmeyer was a staunch Republican and he took a lively and intelligent interest in governmental affairs, both national and local.

George E. Theasmeyer has been associated with farm enterprise in Clatonia township from the time of his boyhood, and a portion of his present farm came to him as a heritage from his father's estate, while the remainder he purchased from his widowed mother. He made good use of the advantages afforded in the public schools and this was fostered by influences that made for development of both brain and brawn and that admirably fortified him for the duties and responsibilities of life. He is one of the energetic and successful agriculturists and stock-growers of his native county and as a liberal and progressive citizen is fully upholding the honors of the family name. His political allegiance is given to the Democratic party and he and his wife are members of the German Methodist church.

March 24, 1904, recorded the marriage of Mr. Theasmeyer to Miss Frances Heller, who was born in Lancaster county, this state, February 6, 1883, a daughter of Joseph and Rosa (Liesech) Heller, who now reside at Hallan, that county. Mr. and Mrs. Theasmeyer have four children - Herbert, Hayward, Helen, and Dale.

JOHN T. JURGENS, who is numbered among the substantial citizens and representative farmers of Hanover township was born at Aurich, in the province of Hanover, Germany, March 3, 1871, and is a son of Thee H. and

Anna (Dutzman) Jurgens, both natives of that section of the German empire, where the former was born in 1833 and the latter in 1830, her death having occurred in 1913. In 1881 Thee H. Jurgens came with his family to Gage county and after farming several years on rented land he purchased eighty acres, in Hanover township. He continued his active and successful association with farm enterpise until 1894, when he retired, and he now resides in the home of his son John T., of this review, - being known as one of the sterling pioneer citizens of the county, his political support being given to the Republican party and his religious faith being that of the German Eutheran church, of which his wife likewise was a devoted communicant. They became the parents of five children: Henry is a prosperous farmer in Eogan township; Wilke died when about fifty years of age; Thee T. is a farmer in Hanover township ; Grace is the wife of Ehme Waldman, of Logan township; and the subject of this sketch is the youngest of the number.

John T. Jurgens was ten years old at the time when the family home was established in Gage county, and here he was reared to the sturdy discipline of the farm, the while he made good use of the advantages aflforded by the district schools. He finally purchased his father's farm, to which he has added until it now comprises three hundred and twenty acres of land, in Hanover township. His success has been won with integrity and honor and by close application and good management. He has made excellent improvements on his farm property, including the erection of his present large and attractive house, in 19J0, and his large barn, in 1911.. He is liberal and loyal as a citizen, is a Republican in politics, has served fifteen years as a member of the school board of his district, besides having given equally efficient service as road overseer and as a member of the official board of the township of Hanover. In connection with diversified agriculture he gives special attention to the raising of good live stock, and he has bred from four full-blood Short-horn bulls that have been owned by him.

In 1896 Mr. Jurgens wedded Miss Elsche Francen, who was born in Champaign county, Illinois, and reared in Gage county, Nebraska. She is a daughter of Harm Francen, who came from Germany and settled in Illinois, where he remained until 1882, when he settled in Gage county. Mr. and Mrs. Jurgens are active communicants of the German Lutheran churfch. They have eight children, all of whom remain members of the gracious home circle - Thee, Harm, Henry, Grace, Wilke, John, Dick, and Anna Y.

O. J. LYNDES. - The greater number of the pioneers of Gage county were of fine, sturdy stock - generous-hearted, resourceful, courageous and optimistic, - and such attributes have significantly denoted the sterling pioneer citizen to whom this sketch is dedicated.' Mr. Lyndes is now living virtually retired in the city of Beatrice, but is here associated with his son-in-law, George Mayborn, in the conducting of a well equipped meat market, under the firm name of Mayborn & Lyndes.

Mr. Lyndes was born at Grafton, Lorain couiity, Ohio, March 6, 1848, and is a son of Orville and Mary (Turner) Lyndes, the former a native of Massachusetts and the latter of Vermont. Orville Lyndes was a scion of fine old Puritan New England ancestry on both the paternal and maternal sides and after his' removal to Ohio he became a prosperous farmer in Lorain county, both he and his wife having continued their residence in the old Buckeye state until their death. Three of their sons were valiant soldiers of the Union in the Civil war. Anson served more than three years and after being captured by the enemy was confined in a Confederate prison for somewhat more than six months ; Frederick was in the Union ranks for more than three years and was with General Sheridan in the historic Shenandoah campaign ; and John, whose military career covered four years, was assigned the greater part of the time to the guarding of Confederate prisoners at Columbus, Ohio- farm and gained his early education in the common schools of his native county. At the age of eighteen years he went to Lee county, Illinois, where he found work on a farm and where later he engaged in farm enterprise in an independent way. There he continued his residence until 1879, when he came to Gage county, Nebraska, being accompanied by his wife and their infant child and bringing a small supply of household effects to equip the new home, his cash capital at the time of his arrival in Beatrice having been three hundred and fifteen dollars. He purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land on the Indian reservation and now included in Glenwood township. Fort twenty-five dollars he bought a breaking plow from the pioneer firm of Wagner & Lamb; from J. B. Lester he obtained a wagon, for which he paid twenty dollars; and for ninety-nine dollars Samuel Wymore transferred to him a yoke of oxen. Much of his available cash was thus expended for equipment, for his land and for incidental expenses of the family, so that he was glad to add to his resources by breaking prairie land for others, at two dollars an acre. In the autumn of 1880 Mr. Lyndes built on his pioneer farm a frame house fourteen by twenty feet in dimensions, and the freezing of his lime made it impossible for him to plaster the rooms until the following spring. The little house was weather-boarded with one-half inch lap, and in order to make the building snug he covered the interior with building paper, in lieu of plaster. The ensuing winter was the coldest yet known in the history of Gage county, and Mr. Lyndes, his wife and their two children endured the rigors of the winter by living in their primitive little house, which had but onehalf of an inch of protective material between the inside and the exterior surface. For his land Mr. Lyndes paid three and one-half dollars an acre, and later he purchased an adjoining tract of one hundred and twenty acres. With valiant energy and perseverance he carried forward the reclaiming and developing of his farm and there he continued his activities as an agriculturist and stock-grower for thirty years, at the expiration of which he sold the well improved property at the rate of one hundred and ten dollars an acre. After selUng his farm Mr. Lyndes and his wife, who had shared with him in the vicissitudes of the pioneer days, removed to the city of Beatrice, where they now occupy their attractive residence at 1336 Elk street. Since 1910 Mr. Lyndes has been associated with George jMayborn in the meat-market business, and their establishment, at 1220 Court street, receives a substantial and representative patronage, Mr. Lyndes giving but minor attention to the business.

At Dixon, Illinois, in the year 1877, Mr. Lyndes wedded Miss Clara Lindeman, who was born and reared in Lee county, that state, a daughter of Harmon and Nancy (Fritz) Lindeman, the former of whom is deceased and the latter of whom is now a resident of Dixon, Illinois, she having attained to most venerable age. Mr. and Mrs. Lyndes became the parents of five children : Harry has for fully fifteen years been employed by an important chemical manufacturing company in the city of Denver, Colorado; Gertrude became the wife of George Mayborn and is now deceased; Jay G. is a successful farmer near Powell, Wyoming; Mary Ethel is the wife of Earl Martin, of Sterling, Illinois; and Edna is the wife of John Wilson, a successful farmer in Midland township.

Mr. Lyndes relates many interesting incidents pertaining to the pioneer period of Gage county history, and his reminiscences are especially graphic. Mr- Lyndes has stated that he has had no happier period in his life than that when he and his family lived in their bleak little house during the frigid winter of 1881, for he realized that he had good prospects for establishing a home and had the devoted companionship of his wife, who encouraged him in his determination to win independence and prosperity in the county of their adoption.

Mr. Lyndes was alert and loyal in support of all things tending to advance the communal welfare of the township in which he was one of the first settlers, and was specially prominent in effecting the organization of the school district in his locality,, he having been one of its first directors. He served in 1892-1893 as a member of the county board of supervisors and in 1893 he was candidate for county sheriff, but met defeat with the rest of his party's candidates in that election. He and his wife are zealous members of the Christian church, of which he has been an elder about six years. He assisted in organizing the church and Sunday school in his township,' besides' becoming the first superintendent of the Sunday school. In a basic way he! gives- his support to the Republican party, but in local affairs he is not constrained by strict partisanship. He is affiliated with the Masonic fra^ ternity and he and his wife are known and honored as sterling pioneer citizens of Gage county,' where they have a host of friends.

"JOHN Q. REED was a young man when he came with his parents to Gage county and thus can claim pioneer prestige, besides which he is one of the prosperous business men and popula;r citizens of Beatrice, where he and his brother Eiither have for a score of years conducted a well equipped feed and sales stable' which represents one of the undivided properties of the Reed family estate.

Mr. Reed was born in Butler county, Ohio,; January 29, 1845, and is a son of David and Mary A. (Cochran) Reed, the former a native of Ohio and the latter of Kentucky. In 1852 David Reed removed with his family to Sangamon county, Illinois, and there he continued his residence until 1871, when he came with his family to Nebraska, his arrival in Beatrice having occurred April 13th of that year. In Riverside township he purchased one hundred and Sixty acres of unimproved land, and there he developed a productive farm, the while he was known and honored as one of the" sterling pioneer citizens of the county. He finally retired from the farm and both he and his wife passed the closing years of their lives in Beatrice, both having been zealous members of the Presbyteri&ri church, in which he' served as elder. Of the six children three are living: Luther is associated with the subject of this review in conducting the feed and sales stable in Beatrice, as previously noted; John Q. is the next younger; and Nancy, who is the widow of Richard Lowe, likewise resides in Beatrice; Fannie became the wife of Newton Weatherald and both are now deceased; William was a resident of Beatrice at the time of his death; and David Gibson died in childhood, in. Ohio.

Johti Q. Reed is indebted to the schools of Illinois for his early educational training and was twenty-six years of age when he cafne with his parents 'to Gage county- Here for several years he did a successful business'>in the feeding and shipping of cattle, and for five years he purchased cattle for the government, the stock being for the use of the- Indians on the Otoe reservation in this county. For the past twenty years he and his! brothet have been associated in business in Beatrice, as previously noted, and he in the meanwhile gave a most efficient administra:tion in the office of chief of the Beatrice police department, a position of which he continued- the incumbent four years. For fifteen years' lie held the office of cdunty coroner, and he retained this post until the office was abolished, his final-' term having terminated January 1, 1917. Mr. Reed has seen Beatrice develop from a frontier village to a fine city of metropolitan- appearance and facilities, and he takes satisfaction in designating himself as one of the "old-timers" of Gage county. His political allegiance is given to the Republican party and he has given active service in its behalf in his home cciunty.

October 8, 1884 Mr. Reed wedded Miss Elizabeth A. Fairbanks, who vvas born and reared in Indiana, and who is a coUsiri of the late Charles N. Fairbanks, former vice-president of the United States. Mr. and Mrs. Reed have one daughter Mary Elizabeth, at home.'-

LEMUEL P. GESSELL. - From a modest' inception Mr. Gessell has built up in th6 city of Beatrice a most substantial and' prosperous job-printing business and his establishment is now throughly metropolitan in its equiprnent and facilities, so that he caters most acceptably to a 'large!' and representative patronage. He keeps his stock of type-faces up to the best modern standard at all times and in its selection makes provision for the handling of all kinds of artistic job work, both large and small. His battery of presses comprises three modern job presses and he now gives employment to an efficient corps of three assistants.

Mr- Gessell was born in Delaware county, Indiana, on the 8th of January, 1867, and is a son of John and Sarah (Brooke) Gessell, both of whom were born and reared in Fairfield county, Ohio, members of pioneer families of that section of the old Buckeye state. Soon after their marriage John Gessell and his wife removed to Indiana, where he gave considerable attention to the work of his trade, that of shoemaker. In 1869, about two years after the admission of Nebraska to statehood, he came with his family to Gage county and entered claim to a homestead of one hundred and twenty acres, in what is now Grant township. H'e reclaimed and developed one of the productive farms of the county, was influential in community affairs in the pioneer days and was a Democrat in his political proclivities, both he and his wife having been charter members and earnest communicants of the Trinity Lutheran church at Beatrice. John Gessell had the most meager of financial resources when he numbered himself among the pioneers of the new state of Nebraska, but he so applied his energies in developing the admirable resources of Gage county that he achieved a substantial competency. He was sixty-four years of age at the time of his death and his wife passed to eternal rest at the age of ninety-six years - sterling pioneers whose memories are revered by all who knew them. Of their thirteen children only four are now living: Elmer is a printer by trade and now lives in the city of Dallas, Texas; Jesse is a popular salesman in one of the leading grocery stores of Beatrice ; Lemuel P., of this review, was the next in order of birth ; and Oscar, a clergyman of the Methodist Episcopal church, holds at the time of this Writing, in 1918, a pastoral charge at Enterprise, Kansas.

Lemuel P. Gessell was about three years of age at the time when his parents came from Indiana and established their home on the pioneer farm in Gage county. As a boy he gained full fellowship with farm work and in the meanwhile he broadened his mental horizon by attending the schools of the locality and period. He continued his studies in the public schools at intervals until he was about sixteen years of age, and his first work after leaving the parental home was as a farm hand. At the age of sixteen years, however, he entered upon a practical apprenticeship to the printer's trade, in the office of the Beatrice Weekly Express, at Beatrice. He continued to work at his trade - principally in the city of Beatrice - until 1909, when he here opened a little printing establishment of his own. His technical skill in the execution of job work, combined with his personal popularity, gained him an appreciative support, and each year witnessed a substantial development in his business, which is now one well estabHshed and 6i prosperous order, as noted in an earlier paragraph of this article.

Mr. Gessell takes loyal interest in all things pertaining to the welfare of the county that has represented his home from childhood and while he has had no ambition for political office he accords staunch support to the cause of the Republican party, both he and his wife holding membership in the Methodist Episcopal church and he being affiUiated with the Fraternal Aid Union.

In the year 1889 was solemnized the- marriage of Mr. Gessell to Miss Elizabeth Kelly, who was born on the Isle of Man, in the Irish sea, and who was a child at the time of her parents' immigration to America. Mr. and Mrs- Gessell have one child, Annie, who is a member of the class of 1919 in the Beatrice high school.

STEPHEN BULL was a gallant young veteran of the Civil war when, in 1869, he came to Nebraska and numbered himself among the pioneers of Gage county. Here he achieved independence and stable prosperity through his 'active association with farm in- dustry, did well his part in the furtherance of civic and material progress in the pioneer days, and, now venerable in years, he is one of the honored pioneer citizens of Beatrice, his pleasant home in this city being at 1505 Grant street.

Mr. Bull was born at Camden, Oneida county. New York, September 20, 1844, and is a son of John S. and Lydia Bull. Stephen Bull "vas reared to the sturdy discipline of the farm and profited duly by the advantages afforded in the common schools of the locality and period. He was but. a youth at the inception of the Civil war but his patriotism and loyalty found exemplification on the 24th of August, 1864, when, at the age of twenty years, he enlisted, from Oswego county, New York, for a term of twelve months. On the 7th of the following month he was mustered in as a private in Company C, (Captain Edward Swan) of the One Hundred and Eighty-sixth New York Volunteer Infantry, commanded by Colonel Bradley W. Winslow, the organization of this command having been perfected at Sackett's Harbor, New York. The regiment left for the front September 28, 1864, being assigned to the Second Brigade, Second Division, Ninth Corps, Army of the Potomac. Of the admirable record of this gallant regiment the following data have been obtained; During its period of service the One Hundred and Eighty-sixth New York Infantry participated in the following engagements and skirmishes: Before Petersburg, Virginia, October 1,

1864, ^nd April 2, 1865 ; Hatcher's Run, Virginia, October 27-28, 1864; Fort Steadman, Virginia, March 25, 1865 ; Appomattox campaign, Virginia, March 28 - April 8, 1865 ; fall of Petersburg, April 2, 1865. "The regiment performed brave and valiant service at all times, and lost one hundred and eighty officers and men, in killed, wounded, and missing, during its term of service. It was honorably discharged and mustered out June 2, definite details have been given in the following official statement: "The said Stephen Bull was wounded during the assault on Fort Steadman, Petersburg, Virginia, April 2, 1865, while outside the fort, a minie ball having shattered his lower right arm and elbow. He walked from the fort to the Union lines with his injured arm swinging, entered an ambulance and was taken to the field hospital, where the arm was amputated, five inches below the shoulder point. Two days later he embarked at City Point, Virginia, and proceeded to Fairfax Seminary general hospital, at Alexandria, Virginia, where he remained until June 16, 1865, when he received an honorable discharge, by reason of surgeon's certificate of disability on account of loss of arm. Mr. Bull was constantly with his command during its service as outlined until he was wounded; he bore a gallant part in all its engagements and rendered faithful and meritorious service to his country." In the present decade of the twentieth century, when nearly all of the civilized world is aflame with war, it is interesting to revert to the gallantry and sacrifice of Mr- Bull during his period of service as a loyal young soldier of the Union, and he pepetuates the more gracious memories and association of his military career by his affiliation with Rawlins Post, No. 35, Grand Army of the Republic, at Beatrice, in which noble organization he has passed all of the official chairs, including that of commander, of which office he was the incumbent in 1907.

After the close of the war Mr. Bull continued his residence in the state of New York until 1869, when he came to the new state of Nebraska and gallantly arrayed himself among the pioneers of Gage county. He purchased land in Midland township and, notwithstanding his physical infirmity, in the loss of his right arm, he proved himself resourceful and a master of industrial expedients, so that he reclaimed and developed one of the fine farms of the county. He continued his successful association with farm enterprise until February, 1901, since which time he has lived vir^ tually retired, in the city of Beatrice.

On the 23d of March, 1868, at Williamstown, New York, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Bull to Miss Polly Louisa Park, who was born at Waterbury, Connecticut, Novem- ber 20, 1847, and who was reared and educated in the state of New York. In the year succeeding that of their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Bull came to Gage county and took up the burdens and responsibilities of pioneer life. In this county were born all of their children, - three sons and six daughters, and two of the number, George Frederick and Musadora, preceded their mother to the life eternal. In all that makes for gracious and noble womanhood Mrs. Bull was preeminent, and she went through life trailing the beatitudes of her train, so that her memory is revered by all who came within the compass of her gentle influence. She continued as the devoted companion and helpmeet of her husband for nearly half a century, and the gracious ties were severed by her death, which occurred August 7, 1915. Mrs. Bull was a most earnest member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and was one of the loved members of the Centenary church of this denomination in Beatrice during the entire period of her residence in this city. She identified herself actively with the various women's societies of this church and was also affiliated with the Woman's Relief Corps organized as an adjunct of Rawlins Post of the Grand Army of the Republic, besides which she was affiliated with several fraternal societies. Until impaired health made it impossible, Mrs. Bull was a prominent and loved factor in connection with the best social life of the Gage county metropolis, and her memory rests like a benediction upon her venerable husband and her surviving children, concerning whom the following brief record is consistently entered: Nora E. is 'the wife of Charles Lash, of Des Moines, Iowa; Emma A- resides in Beatrice and for fifteen years has followed the profession of trained nurse; Charles A. resides in Beatrice ; Rev. Albert S. is, in 1918, pastor of the Methodist Episcopal church at Tekama, Nebraska; Harriet N. is the wife of Fay Shottenkirk, of Beatrice ; Lydia V. is the widow of Frank Wing, of Steele City, Nebraska; and Mary E. is the wife of Robert Shedler, of Casper, Wyoming. September 20, 1916, Mr. Bull married Henrietta Miller of Beatrice.

In politics Mr. Bull gives unwavering allegiance to the Democratic party and he has always shown a loyal interest in communal affairs, as a liberal and progressive citizen. He. holds membership in the Centenary Methodist Episcopal church of Beatrice and while he has never been animated by ambition for public office he served as deputy sheriff of Gage county in 1890-1891. A resident of this county for more than half a century, he is well known to its citizens and his circle of friends is limited only by that of his acquaintances.

JOHN KRAPP. - To have attained to the success and status that mark the operations of Mr. Krapp as an agriculturist and stockgrower implies the concentrating of fine ability and energies in the achievement of definite ends. He is the owner of a valuable and well improved landed estate of eight hundred acres, all in Highland township, and his attractive home place, of one hundred and sixty acres, is situated in Section 10. His progressiveness may be said to denote him fully as a native of the great empire of the west, and he is a scion of a sterling pioneer family of Minnesota- In Wabasha county, that state, he was born April 18, 1864, a son of Joseph and Mary (Vollert) Krapp, of whose seven children Saloma, the first, and Peter, the youngest, are deceased, the subject of this review being the eldest son ; Mary became the wife of August Heidecker and was a resident of Hallam at the time of her death ;' Lena is the wife of J. H. Doolittle, of Nemaha township. Gage county; Frances is the wife of Philip O'Brien, of Princeton, Lancaster county, Nebraska; and Charles F. is one of the prosperous farmers of Highland township, Gage county.

Joseph Krapp was born in Germany, in 1828, and as a young man he came to the United States and became a pioneer settler in Wabasha county, Minnesota. There he continued his activities as a farmer until 1872, when he came with his family to Nebraska and established his home in Gage county, where he found ample opportunity for expanding his pioneer experience. He had visited Nebraska several years previously and incidentally had formed the acquaintance of Joseph Graff, one of the well known pioneers of Gage county. On coming with his family to this state Mr. Krapp made the journey from Minnesota with a team and a covered wagon, and he had not made any definite decision as to his location in the west. In Gage county his friend Mr. Graff persuaded him not to continue his journey further but here to make permanent location. Mr. Graff so effectively presented the claims of the county as a desirable place for successful enterprise that Mr. Krapp decided to establish his home within its borders. Accordingly he took up a homestead of eighty acres in Section 10 Highland township, and the same now constitutes a part of the fine landed estate of his son John, of this review. In his initial operations as a farmer in this county he received assistance and counsel from Mr. Graff, whose friendship he greatly valued. He proved successful as a farmer and remained upon his old homestead until his death, which occurred in 1914, and he developed and improved one of the excellent farm properties of Highland township. His brother John accompanied the family to Gage county and he likewise took a homstead of eighty acres. John Krapp was a man of most kindly and unselfish nature and lived until his death in the home of his brother Joseph, whose children accorded to their bachelor uncle the deepest affection. John Krapp met a sudden death, as the result of organic desease of the heart, and was about seventy years of age at the time- Mrs. Mary (Vollert) Krapp was born in Germany, in 1828, and her marriage was solemnized in Minnesota. She preceded her husband to the life eternal, her death having occurred in 1900.

John Krapp, immediate subject of this sketch, was a lad of seven years when the family made the long overland journey to Gage county, and his parents unloaded their wagons on the site of the barn on his present homestead. By hard work and good management he has pressed forward to the goal of success, and his early education was gained in the pioneer schools of this county. At the age of sixteen years he made his first investment in land, by purchasing eighty acres of railroad land in Highland township, this tract lying adjacent to the present village of Cortland. With increasing prosperity Mr. Krapp continued to make judicious investment in Gage county land, and he made each successive purchase carefully, waiting until he had accumulated sufficient capital to justify such action. His present fine estate comprises seven hundred and twenty acres and includes fully six different farms in Highland township. He has wisely ordered his farm enterprise in all departments, and has been enterprising both as an agriculturist and as a grower of live stock. He is a stockholder of the Farmers' State Bank of Cortland, is a Republican in politics, and both he and his wife are communicants of the Catholic church.

On the ISth of September, 1903, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Krapp to Miss Clara Doyle, who was born and reared in this county and who is a daughter of Edward and Ellen (O'Neill) Doyle. Mr. Doyle was born in Ireland, in 1842, was a child when he came to the United States and was reared by a spinster aunt. Miss Ann Coleman, on a farm near Woosing, Ogle county, Illinois, he having been about six years old when he came to America in company with his older brother, Michael, his mother having died when he was an infant. He went forth as a valiant soldier of the Union in the Civil war, August, 1861, having recorded his enlistment as a member of Company D, Thirty-fourth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and he continued in active service until the close of the war, save for a period of about two weeks during which he was confined in the historic L,ibby Prison, after his capture at the time of the battle of Stone's River, in which he took part. In January, 1867, he married Miss Ellen O'Neill, of Illinois, and in 1873 they came to Gage county, Nebraska, where he improved a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, in Section 30 Highland township. There he atid his wife passed the remainder of their lives, as sterling pioneers of this county. They became the parents of eight children, of whom eight are

JOHN F. KRAUTER, whose attractive homestead farm is situated in Section 3, Clatonia township, has by his own ability achieved noteworthy success as a representative of agricultural and live-stock enterprise in his native county, and this is attested by his ownership of a valuable estate of five hundred and twenty acres of the excellent land of Gage county. He was born on his father's farm in Clatonia township, February 11, 1875 and is a member of a family of twelve children. He is a son of George and Caroline (Wolf) Krauter, both natives of Germany, the former having been born in Bavaria, December 5, 1833, and the latter a native of the province of Alsace: their marriage was solemnized in 1853. In the year that recorded his marriage George Krauter came to America, making the voyage on a sailing vessel that did not arrive in the port of New York till after the lapse of about nine weeks. In Orange county, New York, he was employed at farm work about two years and thereafter he was located for a brief period in the vicinity of Sing Sing, that state. He then removed with his wife to Iowa and established his residence at Burlington, which was then a mere village. There he was identified with the lumber business several years, and he then engaged in farm enterprise in that vicinity- In 1871 he came with his family to Gage county, Nebraska, and took up a homestead of eighty acres, in Section 3, Clatonia township. As one of the sterling pioneers of that township he won success and independence through his activities as a farmer, and in this township both he and his wife passed the remainder of their lives, he having been the owner of more than four hundred acres of land in the township at the time of his death, which occurred in November, 1914, his wife having passed away in 1908. He was a Republican in politics, liberal and influential in community affairs, served in various local offices of minor order, and both he and his wife were earnest members of the German Methodist Episcopal church.

John F. Krauter was reared on the pioneer farm and received his early education in the district schools of Clatonia township. He continued to assist his father in the work of the home farm until he had attained to the age of nineteen years and upon reaching his legal majority he initiated farm enterprise in an independent way, handicapped by a debt of one hundred dollars and having as virtually his principal equipment only one horse. In 1897 he purchased his present home farm, of one hundred and twenty acres, and he has not only made this one of the model farms of the township but has shown equal progressiveness in the developing of his other farms, his ability and energy having enabled him to accumulate a valuable landed estate of five hundred and twenty acres. Mr. Krauter has always shown loyal interest in all things tending to advance the welfare of his home community and native county, is a Republican in his political adherency and is serving in 1917 - 1918 as a member of the school board of his district. He and his wife are active members of the German Methodist church.

April 17, 1902, recorded the marriage of Mr. Krauter to Miss Anna Theasmeier, who was born in this county on the 28th of August, 1878, a daughter of Henry Theasmeier, a well known pioneer of whom more specific mention is made on other pages, in the sketch of his son George. Mr. and Mrs. Krauter have four children, - Edmund S., born January 19, 1903; Raymond, born December 21, 1905; Orris, born March 27, 1910; and Eorrine, born January 31, 1916.

PETER C. THOM was a self-reliant, ambitious and sterling pioneer who contributed in large measure to civic and industrial advancement in Gage county, where he established his home in the year 1868, within a few months after the admission of Nebraska to statehood, and he and his noble wife endured their full share of the vicissitudes and trials incidental to the development of a productive farm in a frontier country. They lived and labored to goodly ends and were numbered among the venerable and honored pioneer citizens of the county at the time of their death, their beautiful old homestead farm, in Section 20, Sherman township, being still the place of residence of their son, James A, who has kindly consented to supply the data on which is based this memoir to his parents.

Peter C. Thom was born on a pioneer farm near Tiffin, Seneca county, Ohio, May 4, 1838, the eldest in a family of six sons and five daughters born to Charles and Mary E. (Weber) Thom, both natives of the Kingdom of Bavaria, Germany. Charles Thom .was born March 24, 1809, and in his native land he received excellent educational advantages. In Bavaria he was employed as an expert accountant until 1837, when, as a young man of twenty-eight years, he came to America and settled in Seneca county, Ohio, where he became a prosperous farmer and where both he and his wife passed the residue of their lives. Mrs. Thom was born September 15, 1816, a daughter of Michael and Catherine Weber, with whom she came from Bavaria to the United States in 1835, the family home being established in Ohio, where her marriage was solemnized about two years later. Peter C. Thom acquired his early education in the common schools of the Buckeye state, and at the age of fifteen years he began an apprenticeship to the trade of blacksmith, in Union county, Ohio. He became a skilled workman and continued to follow this sturdy trade about fifteen years.

At the age of twenty-one years Mr. Thom wedded Miss Delilah Dailey, who was borr in Washington county, Indiana, August 24, 1838, a daughter of James and Elizabeth (Feeler) Dailey, natives respectively of North Carolina and Virginia. Mr. Dailey was born in 1808 and his wife in 1810, their marriage having been solemnized in 1836. Soon afterwards they settled in Washington county, Indiana, whence they later removed to Clinton county,' that state, where they passed the remainder of their lives. Within a few years after his marriage Mr. Thom left his home to give service as a soldier of the Union in the

On August 16, 1862, Mr. Thom enlisted as a private in Company H, Eighty-sixth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and with his command he proceeded to Kentucky, with General Burnside. At Crab Orchard he was attacked with illness of such severity that he was incapacitated and sent to the hospital. Upon measurably recuperating he was assigned to detailed duty as steward of Hospital No. 6, at Bowling Green, Kentucky, and later he was transferred to similar service at Hospital No. 5, in Nashville, Tennessee. A short time prior to the battle of Missionary Ridge he joined his command in that locality, and he took part in the historic battle at that place. In the spring of 1864 he was detailed to a pioneer brigade, and with the same he continued in active service until the close of the war, he having been mustered out June 6, 1865. It may be noted at this juncture that in later years Mr. Thom manifested his continued interest in his old comrades in arms by maintaining affiliation with the Grand Army of the Republic, as a member of Scott Post, Blue Springs, Gage county.

After a record of loyal service as a soldier of the republic Mr. Thom returned to Indiana and established a blacksmith shop in the village of I^exington. There he continued in the work of his trade until 1868, on the 10th of August of which year he set forth with his family for Nebraska, the entire journey having been made with team and wagon and the sojourners having arrived in Gage county about the 1st of September. Mr. Thom located a homestead of one hundred and sixty acres, in Section 20, Sherman township, and the pioneer dug-out which he constructed on the pioneer farm continued to be the family home about nine years. Hardships and privations were encountered by Mr. and Mrs. Thom, and to make provision for his family he did more or less work at his trade, including about two months of such service on the Otoe Indian reservation. He eked out the family living the first winter by trapping mink, from the sale of the skins of which he was able to add somewhat to his available financial resources. For a time also he was engaged in freighting between Beatrice and Nebraska City, and in the meanwhile he was vigorously carrying forward the reclamation and development of his frontier farm. A high type of judgment and progressiveness was his, and one of his splendid achievements in the early days was the planting of a large number of forest trees on his farm and also an orchard. With the passing years abundant success crowned his earnest endeavors as an agriculturist and . stock-grower, and at the time of his death he was the owner of a well improved and valuable landed estate of four hundred acres in Gage county. Mr. Thom passed from the stage of life's mortal activities on the 7th of December, 1894, and his widow survived him by seventeen years, she having been called to the life eternal on the 16th of December, 1911, the names and memories of both meriting a tribute of honor in this history of the county in which they so long maintained their home and in which they commanded unqualified popular esteem. Mr. and Mrs. Thom became the parents of five children: Mary Elizabeth died in childhood, having succumbed to an attack of diphtheria while the father was serving as a soldier in the Civil war. Harriet died in infancy. Sarah Adeline resides on her farm estate, in Section 32, Sherman township. Charles is supposed at the time of this writing to be with the American military forces in active service in the great European war, and his only son, James Dale Thom, likewise is in the military service of the nation, hebeing, in the spring of 1918, stationed at Camp Lewis, Washington, and having won the rank of second lieutenant. This loyal and patriotic young man has received exceptional educational advantages - at Sioux City and Grinnell, Iowa ; Chicago and Springfield, Illinois ; and in the law school of historic old Harvard University, where he was a student at the time when he volunteered for service in the United States army. James A., a representative farmer of Sherman township, is individually mentioned on other pages.

A man of broad views and mature judgment, Mr. Thom was well fortified for leadership in community sentiment and action, and he was specially influential in public affairs in Sherman township, where he served as town^ ship supervisor and township treasurer, as well as a member of the school board. He was a stalwart supporter of the principles of the Republican party and he and his wife were earnest members of the Methodist Episcopal church. He gave to his children the best of educational advantages, including instruction in the Normal School at Peru, and all three have given added honors to the family name. Miss Sarah A. Thom, who gives her personal supervision to the management of her fine farms, comprising five hundred and sixty-three acres, attended the public schools of Beatrice and was for five years a student in the Nebraska Normal School at Peru. For five years she was an efficient and popular teacher in the .schools of Gage county, and she is a gracious gentlewoman whose friends are in number as her acquaintances.

WIUvIAM F. LILLIE is a: scion of a well known family that was founded in Gage county about three years before the Tesrritory of Nebraska gained the dignity and prerogatives of statehood, and he has been a resident of the county since he was a lad of twelve years, so that his memory forms an indissoluble link between the pioneer days and the present period of opulent prosperity in this favored section of the state. He is now one of the prosperous agriculturists and stock-growers of Rockford township, where he is the owner of a well improved farm estate of forty acres, his home being in Section 14.

William Franklin Lillie was born in the vicinity of the now important industrial city of Akron, Ohio, December 14, 1852, and is a son of Henry D. and Susanna (Phillips) Lillie, the former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Ohio. In 1864 Henry D. Lillie came with his family to Nebraska Territory, the journey having been made with a team and wagon, and he became a pioneer settler in Gage county, where he took up a homestead of one hundred and sixty acres, in Section 14, Rockford township. His first house was . constructed principally from his wagon-box, but in the autumn of the same year he constructed the walls of a substantial stone house, though for several years the roof of the building was of the sod or dirt order so common to the pioneer days. He reclaimed his farm and bore his. full share of the burdens incidental to life on the frontier. He was fifty-nine years of age at the time of his death, in 1882, and his widow still resides on the old homestead, she having celebrated the eighty-second anniversary of her birth and being one of the honored pioneer women of the county- She is an earnest member of the Church of the Brethren, as was also her husband. Of the five children the subject of this review is the eldest ; David Sylvester is a resided of Fairbury ; Belinda is the widow of Jo^ seph Benson and remains with her venerable mother on the old homestead ; George is a resident of Fairbury; and of James the address is unknown to the other members of the family at the time of this writing.

William F. Lillie acquired his early education principally in the common schools of Ohio and after the family removal to Nebraska he attended school three terms in a little log school house that was established by the pioneers of Rockford township. He assisted his father in the reclamation and general activities of the home farm and at the age of twenty-two years he initiated his independent operations as a farmer, though he had virtually no financial resources to fortify him and depended entirely upon -his own energy and ability in gaining a start in the world. His first land was acquired when he bought forty acres of Hugh J. Dobbs, and this constituted the necleus around which he has developed his present farm property, his original purchase having been made in 1883, prior to which year he had farmed on rented land- In 1874 Mr. Lillie married Miss Sarah L,. Richards, who was born in Rock Island county, Illinois, and who died on the 10th of March, 1884. Of the five children of this union only one is living, William E., who is a progressive farmer in Rockford township. In 1887

Mr. Lillie contracted a second marriage, when Miss Eva May Leming became his wife. She is a daughter of John and Margaret (Lukemires)- Lemingi who were early settlers in Gage county. At this juncture is given brief record concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. Lillie: Clara is the wife of James Wilson, a .prosperous farmer in Franklin county; Henry D. is engaged in farm enterprise in Rockford township ; Susan is the wife of Roy Graves, of Kansas City, Missouri; Altheia is the wife of Harry Wenrick, a member of the Dempster department in the city of Beatrice; Earl A., Carrie and John A. remain at the parental home; and Bessie died at the age of fifteen months.

Mr. Lillie has had no desire for political preferment or public office of any kind, but he gives a staunch support to the cause of the Democratic party. His wife and their son John hold membership in the Church of the Brethren.

CALVIN K. HIGGINS is another of the sterling pioneers who has achieved independence and liberal prosperity through many years of active association with farm industry in Gage county, and his admirably improved farm home, in Section 35, Midland township, is in close proximity to the city of Beatrice, - ^ a fine rural demesne that gives full evidence of the thrift and good management that have been brought to bear in its development.

Mr- Higgins is a scion of the staunchest of New England stock in both the paternal and maternal lines and a representative of families early founded in the Pine Tree state, his paternal grandfather, Ephraim Higgins, having been born at Mount Desert, Maine, on the shores of the Atlantic, and having become one of the substantial farmers of his native state,, where he passed his entire life, a number of his brothers having become seafaring men. Calvin K. Higgins was born in the town of Pittsfield, Somerset county, Maine, on the 17th of June, 1844, and is a son of Heman and Betsy (Tibbetts) Higgins, who passed their entire lives in the old Pine Tree state, where the father was a farmer by occupation. Mr. Hig- gins is the eldest in a family of four children ; Charity, who became the wife of William Dyer, continued to reside in Maine until her death; George is a prosperous farmer at CHnton, that state; and Mary, the widow of Henry Lancaster, resides at Pittsfield, Maine. In connection with his farm enterprise the father was for a number of years engaged in lumbering operations, felling the timber and running the logs down the streams to the mill. He was a Democrat in politics.

Calvin K. Hjggins was not denied in his youth a full measure of experience in connection with the work of the somewhat austere New England farm, and that he made good use of the advantages afforded in the common schools is shown by the fact that as a young man he became a successful and popular teacher in the rural schools of his native state. He taught five winter terms, and during the intervening seasons continued his association with farm work. In 1872 he went to Lowell, Massachusetts, where for one year he was employed as a watchman in a large cotton mill, and in 1875 he came to Nebraska and numbered himself among the ambitious young pioneers of Gage county. His resources were such that he was able to purchase forty acres of unimproved land, in Midland township. In the primitive little shanty which he built on his farm he maintained "bachelor's hall," and success attended his activities. He finally sold this place and purchased his present fine farm estate, which comprises one hundred and eighty-four acres and which he had improved with excellent buildings and accessories that mark it as one of the most attractive homesteads of the township, the land being now exceptionally valuable. On his first farm, near Holmesville, he continued to maintain sway as a bachelor for six years and he then took unto himself a companion and helpmeet who has been his earnest coadjutor during the long intervening period and who has shared with him in the joys and sorrows that are the common lot of humanity.

Wisconsin, April 3, 1857, and who is a daughter of Emanuel and Ellen (Newson) Murgatroyd. Her parents were born and reared in England, where their marriage was solemnized. They became pioneer settlers in Gage county, Nebraska, where they passed the remainder of their lives- Of their ten children only four are now living. Mr. and Mrs. Higgins have six children: May is the wife of Harvey Essam and they reside in Logan township; Charles, a graduate of the Beatrice high school, remains at the parental horne and has active management of the farm ; Pansy likewise continues a member of the home circle; Edith was graduated in the University of Nebraska, was for two terms a teacher in the schools of her native state and is now in the employ of the government, at Washington, D. C, engaged in the scientific testing of seeds; Grace remains at the parental home; and Julia was graduated in the Nebraska Agricultural College as a member of the class of 1918.

A man of strong mentality and well fortified opinions, Mr. Higgins has been well fortified for leadership in community sentiment and action and has been known as one of the progressive and public-spirited citizens of Gage county. He has not been ambitious for public office but has rendered efficient service as a member of the school board of his district and i.s a Republican in his political allegiance. In connection with his general operations as an agriculturist and stock-grower he has developed a fine dairy herd of Jersey cows, and the milk from the same is sold to appreciative customers in the city of Beatrice.

CHARLES P. HORN,' general manager of the well ordered and prosperous lumber business conducted by the S. A. Foster Company in the village of Pickrell, was born at Wood River, Hall county, Nebraska, October 25, 1881, a son of Charles M. and Elizabeth (Schultz) Horn. Of the other children the following brief data are available: Margaret is the wife of O. H. Abraham, of Sterling, Colorado; Anna remains with her widowed m.other at Wood River; Henry W. is a resident of Gering, Scotts Bluff county ; and Otto

Charles M. Horn was born in Germany, November 28, 1840, was there reared and educated and was about nineteen years old when he came to America and landed in New York city, in 1859- There he remained until he was moved to manifest his loyalty to the land of his adoption by tendering his services as a soldier of the Union in the Civil war. He enhsted, in 1862, in the Sixty-eighth New York Volunteer Infantry, and with this command he served until the close of the war, - a participant in many important battles besides numerous engagements of minor order. In the early '70s he made his way to Arizona Territory, after having previously worked at his trade, that of shpemaker, in a boot and shoe establishment at St. Joseph, Missouri. About the year 1879, Mr. Horn came to Nebraska and established himself in the work of his trade at Wood River. He became one of the successful business men and honored citizens of that place and there remained until his death, which occurred in 1913. His widow still resides at Wood River and through her has been gained the information here recorded concerning his career. He was a man whose intrinsic modesty caused him to say but little concerning his career or the family history, and thus more ample data could not be given for the preparation of this review. Mrs. Horn was born in Germany about 1858, came with her parents to America in the early 70s and the family home was established in Hall county, Nebraska, where she has since resided, her marriage having there been solemnized in 1875.

In the public schools of Wood River Charles P. Horn continued his studies until his graduation in the high school, as a member of the class of 1899. In the same year he found employment in a lumber yard in his native village, but in the autumn of the following year he came to Gage county and entered the employ of the Foster Lumber Company, in the yards which it then conducted at Cortland. In 1902 he was made the manager of the Pickrell lumber yards of the S. A. Foster Company, a position of which he has since continued the efHcient and popular incumbent.

September 25, 1907, recorded the marriage of Mr. Horn to Miss Lena E. Lawson, who was born at Beatrice, this county where her parents, William W. and Esther M. (McElroy) Lawson, still maintain their home. Mr. and Mrs Horn have three children, - Lois E., Charles Lawson, and Leon H.

Mr. Horn is known and valued as one of the most alert and progressive young business men of Pickrell and as a loyal and public-spirited citizen. He has given efficient service as a m.ember of the municipal council of the village and also as a member of the board of education. He is a Republican in his political allegiance and is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity. In the preparation of this history of Gage county Mr. Horn has shown much interest and as a member of the advisory board which has passed upon the various chapters of the history he has given most effective co-operation.

CLARENCE B. KNOX. - At this juncture is consistently accorded recognition to a vigorous and resourceful young business man who is one of the popular citizens of Beatrice and who claims the distinction of being a native son of Nebraska, where he is a scion of the third generation on both the paternal and maternal sides. His energies are well employed in his control of a substantial and prosperous business in the buying and shipping of horses and mules, his activities as a buyer covering a large area of country in this section of the state and the large volume of his business being indicated by the statement that in the fall and winter of 1917 he shipped an average of three or more carloads of horses and mules weekly.

Mr. Knox was born in Seward county, Nebraska, on the 11th of June, 1883, and is a son of Charles D. and Arlepha (Hickman) Knox, who were young folk at the time of the immigration of the respective families to Seward county, where they were reared to maturity and where their marriage was solemnized. They now reside in the city of Beatrice, where the father conducts a prosperous taxicab and transfer business. Of the four children the subject of this sketch is the eldest; Clara is the wife of Herbert Hand, a successful farmer in Seward county; Fern remains at the parental home ; and Eva is the wife of Radford Shelley, proprietor of a well ordered business college at Beatrice. Charles D- Knox is recognized as one of the substantial and representative business men of Beatrice, and concerning him individual record is made in other pages of this volume.

Clarence B. Knox was reared to the sturdy discipline of a pioneer farm in Seward county and his initial experience in independent lines was acquired through his continued association with agricultural and live-stock enterprise. After being thus engaged in independent farming in Seward county for three years he removed to the county seat, Seward, where for two years he was engaged in the livery business. The following two years found him again identified with farm enterprise in that county and he then came to Beatrice and engaged in the buying and shipping of horses and mules, with which line of enterprise he has since continued his successful connection, his energy and progressive policies having enabled him to develop a large and important business in which his personal popularity and fair and honorable dealings constitute definite assets. His early education was obtained in the public schools of his native county and has been effectively supplemented by that gained in the practical school of experience. He is a Republican and takes loyal interest in public affairs, especially those of local significance.

The year 1906 recorded the marriage of Mr. Knox to Miss Ada Wickersham, of Seward, this state, and their only child is a fine littfe son. Bayard Charles, who was born in the year 1909.

hundred and twenty-five acres which he rents from the Steinmeyer estate, and he is the owner of a farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Lincoln county, Nebraska, as well as of property in the village of Clatonia.

Mr. Wayman was born at Longrun, Licking county, Ohio, on the 9th of May, 1872, a son of Henry and Sophia (Heisner) Wayman, the former of whom died in Holt county, Nebraska, in 1907, at the age of eighty-two years and eleven months, and the latter of whom still resides in that county, she being sixtyeight years of age in 1918.

Henry Wayman was born and reared- in Germany and was a young man when he came to America and settled in Ohio. In that state he continued his residence until 1884, when he came with his family to Nebraska and established his home at Centerville, Lincoln county. Later he came to Gage county and engaged in farming in Grant township, where he remained until his removal to Holt county. His first wife died when comparatively a young woman and of their children six are now living, namely: William, a resident of Arizona; Mrs. Mary Emerich, of Sedaiia, Missouri; Frederick, a resident of Colorado; Eliza, wife of John Spellman, of Adams county, Nebraska; Mrs. Lizzie Pelzer, of Holt county, this state; and Henry J-, who is a prosperous farmer of Holt county. Of the children of Henry and Sophia (Heisner) Wayman the eldest is Agusta, who is the wife of George Bohl, of Antelope county, Nebraska; John R., subject of this review, was the next in order of birth; Louis is a resident of Holt county; Flora died in childhood; and Charles is a resident of Antelope county. The twin sister of Augusta died in infancy.

John H. Wayman was about twelve years of age at the time of the family removal to Nebraska and he was reared principally on his father's farm in Clatonia township. Gage county, where in the meanwhile he profited by the advantages of the district schools. He has exceptional mechanical ability and in earlier years he gave niuch of his attention to work at the carpenter's trade, though as. early as 1894 be began independent farm operations.

on rented land. In 1911 he rented his present farm and here he has Continued his successful activities as an agriculturist and stock-grower, the while he gives also a general supervision to the improving and directing of the farm which he owns in Lincoln county. He has had no desire for political activity of any kind but gives his allegiance to the Republican party.

November 2, 1893, recorded the marriage of Mr. Wayman to Miss Katherine Menke, who was born in Ohio, and who came as a child to Nebraska, she being a daughter of Henry and Eliza ( Knapp) Menke, the former of whom is deceased and the latter of whom' remains on the old home farm, near Clatonia, this county. Mr. and Mrs. Wayman became the parents of five children, of whom the firstborn, August, died at the age of twenty months ; Albert, who became associated in the work of the home farm, is in the cantonment of the national army at San Antonio, Texas, in the spring of 1918, making ready to go to the battlefields of Europe ; Harvey died at the age of three years; and Ellen and Henry are members of the gracious home circle.

CARL HA WES. - One of the fine farm properties of Grant township is that to which Mr. Hawes is giving his careful and effiective supervision, the same comprising two hundred and forty acres, in Section 28, and constituting property that was inherited by his mother from the estate of her father. With him on the homestead remain his younger brothers and sisters and in his independent activities as an agriculturist and stock-grower he has definite classification among the successful and progressive farmers of the younger generation in his native county.

Mr. Hawes was born on his present homestead farm, February 1, 1894, and is a son of the late John and Jane E. (Plucknett) Hawes, of whose ten children he was the fifth in order of birth, brief data concerning the other children being here offered : Mary is the wife of Wright Truesdell, of Fort Madison, Iowa; Ada is the wife of Daniel Morford, of Omaha; Alexander is now a resident of northwest Canada; William resides at Fairfield, Clay county, Nebraska; Robert is associated with the subject of this review in the work and management of the home farm, while their sister Ruth graciously directs the domestic economies of the home, with the aid of her younger sister, Clara; and Lloyd and Frank are the younger members of the family circle- John Hawes was born at Glenwood, Mills county, Iowa, June 18, 1853, and was a member of one of the sterling pioneer families of the Hawkeye state. He was a son of Thomas and Isabelle (Stevens) Hawes, the former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Illinois, in which last mentioned state their marriage was solemnized. Thomas Hawes became one of the early settlers in Mills county, Iowa, where he reclaimed a farm from the virgin prairie, but after a number of years he came with his family to Nebraska and numbered himself among the pioneers of Saline county. There he entered claim to a homestead, southwest of Wilber, and he became one of the representative farmers of that locality, his wife having died at Dewitt, Saline county, and he having been a resident of Oklahoma at the time of his death, so that his pioneer experience had touched three of the now great and prosperous states of the Union.

John Hawes was the eldest in a family of five children and was a lad of nine years at the time of the family removal to Nebraska Territory, in the early '60s. He was reared under the discipline of the pioneer farm in Saline county, where eventually he became the owner of land and engaged in independent farm enterprise. Later he had the management of the farm inherited by his wife in Gage county and he was one of the substantial farmers and highly esteemed citizens of Grant township at the time of his death, which cocurred June 1, 1908. He was affiliated with the Ancient Order of United Workmen and the Knights of Phythias and both he and his wife were active communicants of the Protestant Episcopal church, his political support having been given to the Republican party. Mrs. Jane E. (Plucknett) Hawes was born ii! Grant township, this county, December 7, 1863, and was summoned to eternal rest on the 29th of August, 1914. She was a daughter of William and Caroline (Hawlett) Plucknett, both natives of England and both numbered among the prominent and honored pioneers of Gage county, where Mr. Plucknett developed one of the largest and best landed estates in the county: he was at one time the owner of about two thousand acres of land, principally in Grant township, and was known and valued as one of the strong, worthy and influential pioneer citizens of this section of Nebraska, he having established his residence in Gage county in 1861, and both he and his wife having here passed the closing years of their lives, after having previously gained pioneer experience in the state of Iowa.

Carl Hawes has been actively associated with farm enterprise from his early youth, was afforded the advantages of the public schools, and since the death of liis mother he has had the active management of the splendid farm of two hundred and forty acres, which is given over to diversified agriculture and stock-growing and is a part of one of the historic pioneer estates of Gage county. He is a Republican in politics and he and his brothers and sisters retain the ancestral religious faith - that represented in America by the Protestant Episcopal church.

THOMAS MAYBORN, who is now living retired in the city of Beatrice, gained independence and substantial prosperity through his association with farm enterprise in Gage county and is a citizen who commands the fullest measure of popular confidence and good will. Lasting honor shall rest upon his name by reason of the service which he gave as a gallant soldier of the Union in the Civil war, and he is one of the valued members of Rawlins Post, No. 35, Grand Army of the Republic, in the city of Beatrice.

Mr. Mayborn was born in Dover, England, not far distant from the city of London, and the date of his nativity, was November 19, 1844. He is a son of Thomas and CaroHne (Harding) Mayborn, members of sterling old

English families^ and he was a lad of about four years at the time of his parents' immigration to the United States, settlement being first made in Oneida county. New York, but about eighteen months later removal being made to Stark county, Illinois, where the father engaged in farm enterprise and where his death occurred when the subject of this review was but seven years of age. Both he and his wife were communicants of the established Church of England and upon coming to the United States naturally affiliated themselves with its American exponent of the same faith, the Protestant Episcopal church. Of the six children three are living, Thomas, of this review, being the eldest of the number ; James isa substantial farmer in Washington county, Kansas; and Alfred is president of the Diller State Bank, at Diller, Jefferson county, Nebraska- Thomas Mayborn, Sr., was about forty-five years of age at the time of his death and his widow passed the closing period of her life with her sons, in Gage county, Nebraska,, where she died at the venerable age of eightyone years.

He whose name initiates this review acquired his early education in the public schools, of Illinois and was a mere lad when he began to apply himself earnestly in aiding in the support of his widowed mother and the othermembers of the family, he having been the eldest of the children. He was actively associated with farming operations in Illinois at the timeof the outbreak of the Civil war and promptly showed his intrinsic loyalty by tendering his services in defence of the Union. On the 25th. of September, 1861, while on a visit in the old' Empire state, he enlisted as a private in Company A, Fourteenth New York Volunteer Infantry, with which command he proceeded tothe front. At the battle of Malvern Hill, Virginia, July 1, 1862, he was wounded in the right thigh, by a minie ball, and while lying helpless on the battlefield he was captured by the enemy. He was taken to Libby Prison, of infamous historical record, but fortunately was released from this bastile after he had there been held as a prisoner of war for twentyseven days,. The effects of his wound inca- pacitated him for further service in the field, and, much to his regret, he was compelled to retire from the army, an honorable discharge having been given to him in December, 1862. He then returned to Stark county, Illinois, and for more than a year thereafter he was unable to do any active work.