Gage County, Nebraska - Chapter 31: People Who Have Done Their Part in Making Gage County, 1918 (part 15 of 29)

RICHARD ROSSITER. - In according recognition to the early pioneer settlers of Gage county mention should be made in this publication of Richard Rossiter, who came with his family to Nebraska in the early territorial days. Mr. Rossiter was bom in Somersetshire, England, where he married Mary Green and where two of their children were born. About 1856 he came with his family to America and settled in Illinois, where he obtained employment on a dairy farm. In the spring of 1862 he moved with his family to Nebraska and obtained a homestead claim of one hundred and sixty acres of virgin prairie land in Gage county, eight miles northwest of Beatrice, which city at that time was unmarked by a single building. On this land he built a log cabin of the true pioneer type, with a dirt floor, and then turned himself vigorously to reclaiming his land to cultivation. He was at the time one of the very few men in the county owning a team of horses, and he always prided himself thereafter upon keeping good horses. A man of strong individuality, sterling character, and mature judgment, he made good use of the opportunities here presented, and at the time of his death he was the owner of a valuable landed estate of more than seven hundred acres, comprising four well improved farms in Gage county. Mr. Rossiter had never attended school a day in his life, but his mental alertness enabled him in large measure to overcome this youthful handicap, and he was known as a man of superior business judgment and acumen. In the early days he raised live stock, and his -children assisted in herding the cattle on th^ plains, there having been at the time no restrictions on the use of government land. This strong and worthy pioneer continuea his residence in Gage county until his death, Tvhich occurred January 7, 1902, and he Tvas at the time eighty-three years of age. His widow, -who remains on the old homestead, -celebrated the ninety-third anniversary of hei birth in October, 1917. She is not only one of the revered but undoubtedly also one of the most venerable pioneer women of this which she has seen developed from a frontier wild to its present state of prosperity. Mr. and Mrs. Rossiter became the parents -of seven children, of whom the following brief data are given : Charles is a prospector and"miner in British Columbia ; Frances is the wife of F. E. Quackenbush, of Keota, Colorado; Anna is the wife of Prather Dolan, a farmer living near Hoag, Gage county ; Sarah is the widow of George M. Morey and resides at Pleasanton, Iowa; Edgar is a prosperous farmer in Gage county, and concerning him a record appears elsewhere in this volume; and Hattie and Sidney reside with their widowed mother on the old homestead in Gage county. Mrs. Rossiter's maiden name was Mary Green and she, like her husband, was born in Somersetshire, England.

JOHN W. EHMEN was born and reared on the farm which is now the stage of his successful activities as an agriculturist and stock-grower, and he is the fortunate owner of this valuable and well improved landed estate of two hundred acres, in Section 27, Hanover township. He was born February 10, 1882, and is a son of William and Emke (Johnson) Ehmen, of whom specific mention is made on other pages, in the sketch of their son Henry W. In the same connection are given portraits of the parents, the insertion of the same being made as a filial tribute on the part of John W. Ehmen.

John W. Ehmen has from his boyhood been associated with the activities of the farm of which he is now the owner and his early education was acquired in the public schools of Hanover township. He takes loyal interest in all things pertaining to the communal welfare, has given efifective service as road overseer,- is a Republican in politics, and both he and his wife hold membership in the Lutheran church. In 1905 Mr. Ehmen wedded Miss Emke Busboom, who was born in the state of Kansas and whose father, John Busboom, is now a prosperous farmer of Gage county, in Filley township. Mr. and Mrs. Ehmen have five children, - William, John, Emke, Tida and Henry.

EARE C. JEWELL. - True versatility, as well as progressive and well directed business policies, has been manifested by Mr. Jewell in his independent career as a representative of farm enterprise in his native county. In Sections 19 and 20, Grant township, he is now the owner of a well improved landed estate of two hundred acres. In 1902 he began raising pure-bred Duroc-Jersey swine, and his discrimination and good judgment have brought him to the front as one of the most successful exponents of this line of farm enterprise in this section of Nebraska. Further interest attaches to his career by reason of his being a scion of a family that has given honored and influential pioneers to Gage county and that was founded in America in the colonial period of our national history, the Jewell lineage tracing back to staunch English origin.

On his father's old homestead farm in Grant township, this county, Mr. Jewell was born July 29, 1886, and he is the youngest of the four children of George W. and Martha (Carpenter) Jewell. William, firstborn of the children, died in infancy and the second, to whom was given the same name, William, now owns and resides upon the old home farm ; Bertha is the wife of William Mc Junkin, of Dewitt, Saline county.

George W. Jewell was born in Ohio and was sixty-three years of age at the time of his death, which occurred November 21, 1910. Staunchly patriotic, when the Civil war was precipitated upon the nation he went forth as a loyal young soldier of the Union, his service having been as a member of Company E, Second Illinois Cavalry, with which gallant command he lived up to the full tension of the conflict through which the integrity of the Union was preserved. After the war he continued his residence in Grundy county, Illinois, until 1870, when, accompanied by his wife and their one child, he drove overland with team and wagon to Gage county, Nebraska. He became one of the pioneer settlers of Grant township and developed one of the fine farms of that part of the county, his old homestead being eligibly situated near the village of Dewitt. He was a Republican in politics and was affiliated with the Grand Army of the Republic- His cherished and devoted wife was likewise born in Ohio and she was about fifty-two years of age at the time of her death, in 1902, both having been earnest members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

Earl C. Jewell was reared on the old homestead farm and his early educational advantages were those afforded in the public schools of Grant township. He continued to be associated with his father in farm industry until the death of the latter and about two years later, in 1912, he purchased his present farm, from his uncle, Samuel V. Jewell, another of the sterling pioneers of the county. He has since made numerous improvements on the place, which is three-fourths of a mile east of Dewitt, Saline county, and here, in connection with diversified agriculture, he has become specially prominent and succesful in the raising of fine live stock and poultry. On his exhibits of Barred Rock poultry he has won ribbons at poultry shows held in the Nebraska cities of Lincoln, Grand Island, Hastings, Omaha and Kearney, as well as at St. Joseph, Missouri, and in 1917 he made a splendid exhibit at the great poultry show in the city of Chicago. Among the prizes he has won on poultry and Dtiroc-Jersey swine may be noted five silver cups and a five-piece silver tea set. His interest in poultry-breeding has been unwavering since his boyhood days, he has made a close and careful study of the same, uses the best of modern facilities and scientific methods in his poultry enterprise, and his success in the same has been of unequivocal order. As a progressive and liberal citizen he takes active interest in public affairs, especially those of a local order, and is a staunch supporter of the cause of the Republican party. Both he and his wife hold membership in the Methodist Episcopal church at Dewitt and they are popular factors in the social activities of the community.

September 21, 1907, recorded the marriage of Mr. Jewell to Miss Clara Foster, who was born at Dewitt, Saline county, and is a daughter of William H. and Margaret (Reinwald) Foster. Mr. Foster was born and reared in Illinois and in the pioneer days came with his widowed mother and her three other children to Saline county, Nebraska, where he has since maintained his home, he and his wife being now residents of Dewitt. Mrs. Foster was born in the Province of Ontario, Canada, and there her marriage was solemnized May 24, 1882, Mrs. Jewell being the eldest of the three children. Mr. and Mrs. Jewell have two children, - Lucille, who was born June 25, 1908, and Vivian, who was born July 28, 1915.

JOHN LENERS has been a resident of Gage county since 1878 and though his financial resources were most limited at the time of his immigration from Illinois to Nebraska he had the most generous measure of energy, ambition, and self-reliance, so that he has achieved large and worthy success through his association with farm enterprise in this county, where he is now the owner of a valuable farm estate of three hundred and twenty acres, in Logan and Filley township, his attractive homestead, improved with handsome buildings erected by him, being situated in Section 1, Logan township.

Mr. Leners was born in the Province of Hanover, Germany, November 21, 1853, and is a son of Renken and Etta Leners, who came to America in 1858 and settled in Adams county, Illinois, where they passed the remainder of their lives and where the father

John Leners waS' five years of age at the time of the family immigration to the United States and was reared and educated in Adams -county, Illinois. There he continued to be associated with farm industry until 1878, when, at the age of twenty-four years, he came to 'Gage county, in company with his brother Henken. For a few years he here carried on farm activities on rented land, and the splendid advancement which he has made in the intervening years is shown significantly in his ownership of one of the model farm estates of the county. Here he gives his attention to -diversified agriculture and to the raising of excellent types of live stock. In the early days Mr. Leners had his full quota of struggle in overcoming obstacles and adverse conditions, over which he has triumphed, and in -contradistinction to the high prices paid for food products at the present period of world it is interesting to note that in the pioneer days Mr. Leners sold his corn for ten cents a bushel and hogs at less than two dollars per hundredweight. His political allegiance is given to the Republican party and he and his wife are active members of the Lutheran church.

In Adams county, Illinois, in 1874, Mr. Leners wedded Miss Marie Schuster, who was born in Germany, a daughters of Mene Schuster, her parents having been pioneers in Gage county, where they settled in 1865, about - two years prior to the admission of Nebraska to the Union. Mr. and Mrs. Leners became the parents of a fine family of twelve children, of whom the firstborn, Etta, met a tragic she having been killed by lighting when sixteen years of age; Grace is the wife of J. 'G. Carstens, of Hanover township; Renken J. is a farmer in Holt township ; Menne died at the age of twenty-eight years ; Henry is a farmer in Filley township; Amanda died at the age of eight ; Annie is the wife of Menne Zimmerman, of Hanover township; Etta (second of the name) is the wife of M. Eckerly, of Beatrice ; Johanna is the wife of George -Schmidt, of Hooker township; and Amanda,

JOHN SINGLETON. - No man living in Gage county has the honor of being an earlier settler on what was once the Otoe Indian reservation than John Singleton, who is now living retired in the village of Odell. He also has the distinction of being a son of parents who were among the early families in a new country. He was the first white child born in Fremont county, Iowa, where his birth occurred October 25, 1842. He is the son of Andrew Jackson Singleton and Elizabeth (Hanna) Singleton, the former born in Kentucky and the latter in Tennessee.

Andrew J. Singleton married in Indiana and in 1841 he and his wife moved to Fremont county, Iowa, where they were among the first settlers. Mr. Singleton engaged in farming and followed that vocation throughout his life.

John Singleton spent his boyhood days on the Iowa farm and was married in that state. In 1873 he came to Nebraska and took squatter's claim to one hundred and sixty acres of land in the Otoe Indian reservation, this land being later included in what is now Glenwood township. Gage county. His first house was built of logs and was fourteen by sixteen feet in dimensions. Here he and his wife lived for more than three years. Mr. Singleton eventually built a good frame house, and he and his wife remained on the farm until 1892, when they moved to Odell. Up to about ten years ago Mr. Singleton continued his active association with farm enterprise but since that time he has lived a retired Hfe- Mr. Singleton and his brother-in-law were the first two settlers in Glenwood township, and at that time there were but three houses between Mr. Singleton's place and the town of Beatrice. Mrs. Singleton has also a very interesting pioneer record. She was Miss Sarah F. Good and was born May 12, 1844, at Fort Cofifey, on the Arkansas river, in the Indian Territory. Her father. Rev. W. H. Good, was a Methodist minister connected with the Indianapolis conference and was sent as missionary to the

Indians: he located in Indian Territory in 1843. Later he returned to Indiana, whence he was sent as a misionary to the Indians in Nebraska. His last days were spent in Indiana. His wife, whose maiden name was Sarah Pearson, was born in Indiana, and she was a resident of her native state at the time of her death.

Mr. and Mrs. Singleton were married in Fretnont county, Iowa, and she accompanied her husband to Gage county, Nebraska, where she shared his pioneer experiences. They became the parents of five children : Maggie is the wife of E. T. Joy, of University Place, Nebraska; Bessie is the wife of P. B. Laird, of Tabor, Iowa; Frances is the wife of T. H. Ellis, of Eugene, Oregon; William resides at Fairbury, Nebraska; and Eleanor is the wife of Anton Beza, a merchant at Odell, Gage county.

Mr. Singleton and his wife are enjoying the evening of life in a comfortable home in Odell. He is a man of distinguished bearing, typical of the southern reared gentleman. Mr. Singleton's grandfather was a slave-holder in Missouri in the early days. Mr. Singleton is a Democrat, and he and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

CHRIST J. MEINTS, whose well improved homestead farm is situated in Section 26, Hanover township, has by his own ability and energy achieved large success in connection with farm enterprise in this county and, now venerable in years, he is living virtually retired from the arduous labors which so long marked his career- Mr. Meints was born in East Friesland, province of Hanover, Germany, on the 28th of December, 1834, and there he was reared and educated. In the same province was solemnized his marriage to Miss Rika Dorn, and they came to America in 1865, arriving at Golden, Illinois, two weeks prior to the assassination of President Lincoln. In his native land Mr. Meints had learned the carpenter's trade and this he followed after establishing his home in Illinois, besides which he did expert service in brick-laying and plastering in that state until 1883, when he came to Gage county, Nebraska, which state he had previously visited, this action having been prompted by a request made to him by former residents of Illinois who wished him to do some building work for them. He finally became so favorably impressed that he decided to establish his home in the county - an action that he has never regreted. He purchased one hundred and sixty acres of unimproved land in Section 26, Hanover township, where he has since maintained his home, and his ability as a carpenter is shown in the substantial and attractive type of the buildings which he has erected on his home farm. He brought to bear marked energy and business sagacity in his activities as a farmer and eventually accumulated a valuable estate of five hundred and sixty acres, a considerable portion of which he retains, the remainder having been sold to his sons. His devoted wife passed to eternal rest in 1907, a devout member of the Lutheran church, as is he also. Of their children the eldest is Henry, a prosperous farmer in Logan township ; Maggie is the wife of Broer Gronewold, of Dawson county; John was a resident of Holt township at the time of his death ; Bruno is a suc'cessful farmer in Logan township ; Christina is the wife of Ben Aden, of Dawson county; Heye is a substantial farmer in Holt township ; Addie is the wife of Louis Stevens, of Hanover township.

Though he has passed the age of four score years Mr. Meints is hale and active and continues to find occasion for practical service about his farm, as may be inferred when it is noted that recently he used a trowel actively and effectively in the construction of a cement floor in one of the buildings on his farm. His son-in-law, Louis Stevens, has the active management of the farm and is more specifically mentioned in appending paragraphs.

Louis Stevens was born in the province of Hanover, Germany, January 29, 1878, and has been a resident of Gage county since 1895. In 1901 was solemnized his marriage to Miss Addie Meints, and they have seven children -

Mr. Stevens is a progressive exponent of farm enterprise, is a Republican in politics and he and his wife are active communicants of the Lutheran church.

JOHN H. ZIMMERMAN. - Eligibly situated in Section 22, Blakely township, is the excellent farm which is being successfully operated by Mr. Zimmerman and that is a part of the estate of his honored father, the late John A. Zimmerman, who was one of the sterling pioneers of Gage county.

John H. Zimmerman was born on the old liomestead farm of his father, in Blakely township, this county, April 3, 1883, and is the eldest of the children of John A. and Helen (Riesen) Zimmerman, brief record concerning the other children being here given : Mary is the wife of Henry vonSteen, of Blakely township; Anna is the wife of Dr. H. G. Peniier, a representative physician and surgeon of Plymouth, Jefferson county; John H. is farming the old homestead place, where also remain the widowed mother and the daughters, Helen and Alice; Louis E., the youngest of the number, died in infancy- John A. Zimmerman was born near the city of Dantzic, western Prussia, on the 6th of September, 1857, and he came to the United. States in the summer of 1876. He first located at Mount Pleasant, Iowa, but in the following year, in company with his parents, he became a member of the staunch Mennonite colony that established residence in Gage county, Nebraska. He and his father obtained land in Sections 29 and 30, Blakely township, and with the passing years he gained place as one of the substantial agriculturists and stock-growers of the county. He was a citizen of upright character and splendid energy, so that he achieved large and worthy success, the while he commanded the confidence of all who knew him. He was the owner of a valuable landed estate of four hundred and twenty-five acres at the time of his death, which occurred July 10, 1914, and was an earnest member of the Mennonite church, as is also

John H- Zimmerman acquired his earlier education in the district schools and supplemented this by attending the pubhc schools in the city of Beatrice. He has traveled through various states of the west and south but his observations have only caused him to be the more appreciative of his native county and its attractions and advantages, so that after his marriage, in 1907, he here initiated his independent career as a farmer and stock - grower, in which field of industrial enterprise he is fully upholding the high prestige of the family name. He is a member of the school board of his district, is a Republican in politics, and is an alert and progressive citizen and farmer of the younger generation in his native county.

November 21, 1907, recorded the marriage of Mr. Zimmerman to Miss Marie Penner, who was born and reared in this county and is a daughter of Gerhard and Anna (Eroese) Penner, sterling pioneer citizens who now maintain their home in the city of Beatrice. Mrs. Zimmerman was graduated in the Beatrice high school and prior to her marriage had been a successful and popular teacher in the district schools of her native county. Mr. and Mrs. Zimmerman have three children- - Carl H., Robert G., and Hugo J.

ALBERT C. PFEFFERMANN, a farmer of Lincoln township, was born January 7, 1873, in Livingston county, Illinois, and he is a son of Stormeus and Sarah T. (Thomas) Pfeffermann.

Stormeus Pfeffermann was born in Germany, in December, 1833. He was a tailor by trade and before coming to America worked at his trade in Germany. In 1862 Mr. Pfeffermann came to the United States and settled in Livingston county, Illinois, but within a short time thereafter he enlisted in the defense of the Union in the Civil war. He continued in service until the close of the war and upon his return to IlHnois he engaged in farming. He there continued his farm enter- prise until 1892, when he came with his family to Gage county, Nebraska, and bought three hundred and twenty acres of land in Lincoln township, besides which he became the owner of an additional tract of land near Diller, Jefferson county. For this land Mr- Pfeffermann paid from ten to fourteen dollars an acre. During the intervening years, between 1892 and 1918, this land has increased in value more than ten times its cost at time of purchase, and Mr. Pfeffermann is still the owner of about six hundred and forty acres.

Albert C. Pfeffermann was educated in the public schools of Illinois. As a young man he applied himself to farm work in that state until 1892, when he came with his parents to Nebraska. In 1894 Albert C. and his brother, Edward, began farming on the home place, in Lincoln township. They were thus associated one year and Albert C. Pfeffermann then returned to Illinois. In his native state he remained only a short time, however, and he then came again to Nebraska and to the home place upon which he now resides.

On March 9, 1898, Albert C. Pfeffermann was united in marriage to Ada Seabert, of Livingston county, Illinois, and to them have been born five children - Elma, Floyd, Dorothy, Sadie, and Bernetta.

Mr. Pfeffermann is a Republican in politics and at one time he was -assessor of Lincoln township. He was one of the organizers of the Ellis State Bank, in 1907, and is now vicepresident of that institution. He is also a stockholder and director of the Farmers' Elevator Company of Ellis.

THOMAS C. HAGERMAN came to Gage county forty years ago and has here won substantial success through his long and energetic association with agricultural and live-stock industry, of which he has been a representative exponent in Filley township, where he owns a well improved and valuable landed estate of eleven hundred and twenty-five acres - one of the best farm properties in this part of the county. Since 1910 he has lived retired in the village of Filley, where he owns an attractive and modern residence property, the fine

Mr. Hagerman was born in Washington county, Maryland, January 7, 1851, and is a son of William A. and Hettie (Mickley) Hagerman, both natives of Pennsylvania, the latter having been born in Adams county, near the city of Gettysburg. The father was a brickmaker by vocation in earlier years but eventually became one of the substantial farmers of Maryland, where both he and his wife passed the closing years of their lives. Thomas C. Hagerman was reared on the old home farm in Maryland and is indebted to the public schools of his native county for his early educational discipline. In 1878, as a young man of twenty-seven years, he came to Gage county, Nebraska, and purchased one hundred and sixty acres of raw prairie land in Filley township. Within a short time thereafter he returned to Maryland, but in 1883 he came again to Gage county, where he began the developm.ent and improvement of his farm. A few years later he purchased an adjoining tract of three hundred and twenty acres, and after living on this place a few years he returned to his original farm, in order to be in the Filley school district and permit his children to attend the village schools. He continued his vigorous and successful operations as an agriculturist and stock-grower until his retirement to the village of Filley, as previously noted, and he gave special attention to the raising of high-grade swine, in which department of farm enterprise he was particularly successful.

In the year 1872 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Hagerman to Miss Mary Hutzell, who likewise was born and reared in Maryland, and concerning the children of this union the following record is given. Nannie is the wife of J. J. Williamson and they reside near Merriman, South Dakota; Alice became the wife of E. W. Starlin, and is now deceased ; Ada is the wife of Earl Norcross, of Filley ; Luther resides upon and has charge of the old home farm, the maiden name of his wife having been Eva Clark ; and W. C, who married Joyce Clark, resides on one of his father's farms.

Mr- Ha^erman, a man of sterling character and marked ability, has shown distinctive loyalty and public spirit as a citizen, is a Republican in politics and is serving, in 1917-1918, as mayor of the village of Filley, besides which he held for twelve years the position of member of the school board. Both he and his wife are earnest members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

JOHN G. CARSTENS, whose excellent farm, of one hundred and sixty acres, is in Section 14, Hanover township, is a progressive exponent of agricultural and live-stock industry and is one of the representative citizens of his community. He was born in Adams county, Illinois, September 12, 1873, and is a son of George and Juliana (Bauer) Carstens, both of whom were born in Germany - the former in the year 1828 and the latter on the 22d of December, 1841. Both passed the closing years of their lives in Gage county, Nebraska, where the father's death occurred in October, 1909, and that of the mother on the 9th of February, 1917. George Carstens came to the United States in the year 1857 and settled in Illinois. After having there been employed for a time as a farm hand he purchased a small farm in Adams county, and he continued his residence in Illinois until 1890, when he came with his family to Nebraska and purchased three hundred and twenty acres of land in Gage county. He made this one of the fine farm properties of Hanover township and continued to be associated with its management until the time of his death. He was a Democrat in his political adherency and both he and his wife were communicants of the Lutheran church. Of their eight children all are living except one: Minnie is the wife of George Ortgiesen, a farmer in Franklin county, this state ; Richard is now a resident of Madison county ; Herman is engaged in farming three and one-half miles east of Beatrice ; John G., of this review, was the next in order of birth ; Christopher resides on his farm in Saline county; Paul lives on his father's old homestead farm and his sister Mary remains with him.

John G. Carstens acquired his youthful education in the public schools of Illinois and was sixteen years of age at the time of the family removal to Nebraska. On the old home place in Hanover township he continued to assist his father in the operation of the farm until he was twenty-four years of age, when he began his independent operations as an agriculturist and stock-grower, a field of industrial enterprise in which his success has been on a parity with the energy and progressiveness that have marked his course.

In the year 1899 Mr. Carstens wedded Miss Maggie Leners, who was, born and reared in this county and whose parents still reside on their old home farm, in Logan township. Mrs. Carstens is a daughter of John Leners, who was born in Germany and who came to Gage county in the '70s, becoming one of the pioneer settlers in Logan township. Mr. and Mrs- Carstens have seven children, all of whom still remain members of the gracious home circle, namely: Juliana, Marie, George, John, William, Ranken, and Anna.

A loyal supporter of measures and movements advanced for the general good of the community, Mr. Carstens maintains an independent attitude in politics, and he has been called upon to serve as township assessor, as well as a member of the school board of his district. He has made many excellent improvements on his farm, including the erection of an attractive house of modern design and appointments, and also a barn that meets the requirements of an up-to-date farm, this latter building having been erected in 1915.

HARM M. DeBUHR. - From East Friesland, a picturesque district in the extreme northwestern angle of the province of Hanover, Germany, have come an appreciable number of well known and representative citizens of Gage county, both in the present and earlier generations. In that district of Germany Harm M. DeBuhr was born June 12, 1865, and he was ten years of age at the time of the family immigration to America. The generous measure of his achievement is demonstrat- - ed in his ownership of a fine landed estate of four hundred and twenty acres in Gage county, and his attractive homestead farm is situated in Section 22, Hanover township. He is a son of Menne J. and' Jennie (Harms) De- Buhr, both natives of Germany, where the letter passed her entire life. Menne DeBuhr was born December 30, 1822, and was a resident of the state of IlHnois at the time of his -death, in 1887. After the death of his wife Tie continued to be identified with business in East Friesland until 1875, when he came with his children to the United States and established a home in Champaign county, Illinois, in which state he passed the remainder his life, he having been a wagonmaker by tiade. Of the five children three are living, the subject of this sketch being the youngest; Rixty is the wife of George E. Zimmerman, -of Hanover township, who is individually menlioned on other pages ; and Antye is the wife of Martin Hendricks, a farmer in Illinois. The parents were lifelong members of the Lutheran church.

Harm M. DeBuhr gained his rudimentary education in his native land and was ten years old when he accompanied his father to America, his educational training having been completed in the public schools of Illinois. In that state he continued his association with farm enterprise until 1885, when he came to Nebraska and established his home in Gage 'County. Here he farmed on rented land for nine years, and he then purchased eighty acres in Hanover township, after having accumulated sufficient money to partially pay for the same- Later he sold this property and purchased his present homestead place, which then comprised one hundred and sixty acres and to which he has gradually added until he now owns a valuable farm estate of four hundred and twenty acres in Hanover township. Mr. DeBuhr has erected good farm buildings on his homestead, the small house that was on the place when he purchased the property having been supplanted by a commodious and attractive modern residence, and scrupulous care having been given to keeping the farm property up to the best standard throughout. While thus furthering through well directed industry and enterprise his personal advancement, Mr. DeBuhn has at all times been mindful of his civic responsibilities and has given his cooperation in the furtherance of those things that have tended to conserve the general wellbeing and progress of the community. He is independent in politics, is now serving as a member of the school board of his district, has been road overseer in his precinct and his high place in popular confidence and esteem is indicated by his being the incumbent, in 1917-1918, of the office of township treasurer. He is a vigorous and successful exponent of agricultural and live-stock industry and is essentially one of the representative citizens of Hanover township. He and his wife are zealous communicants of the Lutheran church.

In 1889 Mr. DeBuhr wedded. Miss Minnie Ehman, whose father, the late William Ehman, was numbered among the honored pioneers of Gage county, adequate data concerning the family being given on other pages, in the record concerning Henry W. Ehman, a brother of Mrs. DeBuhr. In the concluding paragraph of this article is given brief record concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. De- Buhr:

Menne, who is a prosperous farmer in Hanover township, married Miss Katie Walken, and they have two children. Harm and Trinty; William, a representative farmer 'of the younger generation in Hanover township, wedded Johannah Zimmerman; John is a farmer in Hanover township and the maiden name of his wife was Bena Huls; Henry, Amka, Jergen, Bernhard, Trinty, and Martin remain at the parental home.

FRANK W. MUMFORD was born and' reared on the fine old homestead farm to the management of which he is now giving his effective attention, the same comprising three hundred and twenty acres, in Section 4, Logan township, in which township he individually owns also eighty acres aside from the undivided family estate. He is a scion of a sterling pioneer family that was founded in Gage county prior to the admission of Nebraska to state-

Frank W. Mumford was born August 17, 1868, and was reared under the conditions that marked the early pioneer era in Gage county history- He profited by the advantages of the district schools of the locality and period, and he has become one of the representative exponents of agricultural and live-stock industry in his native township, besides which he has been for a score of years successfully identified with the buying and shipping of live stock, the specific executive management of this enterprise being vested in his partner, who maintains headquarters in the village of Pickrell. In the early days Mr. Mumford herded cattle on the open prairies, his activities in this line having been initiated when he was a boy and having continued about six years, during which he moved the cattle about over a radius of many miles. He has retained the deepest interest in fine live stock in the varied lines and he and his cousin, George L., are associated in the ownership of the fine pacing stallion, "Budweiser," nine years old (1918), sired by Roy Norval and the dam by Dr. Vincent. Mr. -Mumford purchased this animal in 1913, from a man named Bud Weiser, at Pickrell, the stallion having at the time been in service on a rural mail route. The new owners put the stallion into training and in the first year, in turf competitions, he won eight out of the twelve races in which he was entered. In the season of 1917, at Springfield, Illinois, he made a record of 2:07^.

Mr. Mumford is a progressive and up-todate farmer, is a Democrat in politics, served four years as assessor of Logan township, and for twenty years as school director of his district.

December 18, 1895, Mr. Mumford wedded Miss Bertha Hansbearry, who was born in Nemaha county, this state, and they have three children - Luther Warren, Frank Morris, and John William Walter. The sons are attending, in 1918, the public schools in the city of Beatrice.

FRED D. VAN LIEW, who owns and operates a farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Section 13, Rockford township, was born in Jerseyville, Illinois, July 17, 1871. He is a son of Fred and EHzabeth (Stout)' Van Liew. His paternal grandparents were Jeremiah and Becky Van Liew, who became residents of Jerseyville, Illinois, when the father of our subject was about seventeen years of age. There he grew to manhood and there he was engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1879, when he came to Gage county, Nebraska, and purchased two hundred acres of land one mile south of Beatrice, in Riverside township. Nine years later he moved to Beatrice, where he resided until his death, at the age of seventy-two years- His wife also passed away in Beatrice, when about the same age as was her husband at the time of his death. They became the parents of seven children, three of whom died in childhood.. The four surviving children are John, of Pawnee county, Nebraska; Mrs. J. B. Smith,, of Platte City, Missouri; Fred D., subject of this review ; and Frank, of Beatrice, this county-

Fred D. Van Liew came to Gage county wh^n a lad of seven years. Pioneer conditions were still in evidence on every hand. Beatrice, the county seat, was only a small village. He attended school in Beatrice and when a young man worked by the month on a farm. Then for four years he was employed in the mechanical department of the Atchison,. Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad. Five years ago he purchased his present farm, to the improvement and cultivation of which he is devoting his energies with good success.

Mr. Van Liew chose as a wife and helpmeet Miss Jennie Nemec, a native of Pawnee county, Nebraska, and a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Nemec, who still reside in that . county'. The home of Mr. arid Mrs. Van Liem has been blessed with two children whose names are Frances and William- The parents are members of the Baptist church.

JOHN L. WILSON is an honored and representative citizen whose memory and experience touch the pioneer conditions and experiences of Gage county history, and he resides on his fine homestead farm, in Section 33, Hanover townshiy

John Leander Wilson was born in Lawrence Ohio, December 24, 1846, and is a son of John and EHzabeth (Pethoud) Wilson, the former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Ohio. As a young man John Wilson followed the trade of moulder but eventually he became associated with agricultural industry in Ohio, where he remained until 1858, when he came with his family to Nehraska Territory and settled in Gage county, as one of the earliest pioneers of what is now Logan township. In Section 4, that township, he became the owner of one hundred and sixty acres of land, which he obtained by buying a land warrant issued by the government to a soldier who had served in the Mexican war. John Wilson and his family lived up to the full tension of frontier life and eventually he effected the reclamation and improvement of his pioneer farm, which is now owned by the subject of this review. The original family domicile was a primitive log house, and this was utilized several years, a more pretentious dwelling being then provided. John Wilson here continued to reside until his death, October 26, 1867, the. year that marked the admission of Nebraska to statehood, and his widow attained to venerable age, her death having occurred June 22, 1892, both having been earnest members of the Methodist Episcopal church. This revered pioneer couple became the parents of twelve children : Mary, who became the wife of Frederick Hansen, died in 1916, her home having been in the state of Iowa; Eliza is the widow of Louis Graves and lives in Colorado; John L., immediate subject of this sketch, was the next in order of birth; Alexander is a resident of Colorado and Thomas of Oregon; Sarah, whose death occurred in 1907, in Missouri, was the wife of Oliver Hansen; Maria, the wife of George Gates, died in 1876; Francis M. was a resident of Brown, Nemaha county, Nebraska, at the time of his death ; Andrew J. is a resident of Clay Center, Kansas; James I. maintains his home at Goldfield, Colorado; Joseph died in Gage county, in June, 1917, aged fifty-two, years; Rebecca is the wife of James William Pell and they reside in the state of Iowa.

John L. Wilson was a youth of eleven years at the time of the family removal to the wilds of Nebraska Territory and was reared under the conditions and influences of the pioneer farm in Gage county, the while he attended the primitive schools of Gage county when opportunity offered. The years 1877 and 1878 he passed in freighting operations in localities farther to the west, and upon his return to Gage county he purchased eighty acres of land in Section 33, Hanover township, where he has since maintained his residence and where he has developed one of the well improved farm estates of the county, as a successful agriculturist and stock-grower. His home farm comprises one hundred and sixty acres and he owns also the old homestead farm of his father, in Logan township, this place, likewise having an area of one hundred and sixty acres.

In the year 1883 Mr. Wilson married Miss Lucy Wilson, who was bom in Ohio and is a daughter of William and Elizabeth (Steine) Wilson, the former a native of Maryland and the latter of Virginia. From Ohio the parents of Mrs. John L. Wilson removed to Iowa, as pioneers of that state, and in 1881 they came to Gage county and settled "in Rockford township, where they passed the remainder of their lives. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson became the parents of five children, of whom two died in early childhood, the surviving children, Lee, Glenn, and Neola, remaining at the parental home and being representatives of the third generation of the Wilson family in this county.

and in the best of health, has no desire to lay aside the labors and responsibilities incidental to the management of his farm, and continues to take vital interest in community affairs. In politics he is an independent Democrat, and .in the past he has given effective service as a member of the county board of supervisors, as well as the board of trustees of Hanover township. After serving .forty years as a member of the school board of his district he relinquished the office,,, by refusing again to appear as a candidate for the same. There are few citizens of Gage county who have lived as great a number of years within its borders as has Mr. Wilson, and he has contributed his full quota to civic and industrial progress and prosperity in this now favored section of the state. He is one of very few remaining territorial pioneers of the county, is well known and has a host of friends.

CHARLES W. KING. - The late Charles Willis King was born in Wayne county, Michigan, on the 1st of December, 1824, and was a son of C. F. and Harriet (Norfhrup) King. He attended the common schools of Michigan and was a boy when he accompanied his parents to Illinois, the family home being established in Rock island. In Illinois Mr. King was reared to manhood, and there was solemnized his marriage to Miss Candace Stansell, a daughter of James and Catherine (Brittain) Stansell, natives of Michigan, where Mrs. King was born July 31, 1849.

Charles Willis King farmed in Illinois until 1876, when he came with his family to Gage county, Nebraska, and located on one hundred and sixty acres of wild land in Filley township. This property he developed into a productive farm and here he and his wife lived for manj years. f.CChey finally sold the farm and bought land near Beatrice, the county seat. There they remained 'Until nine years' ago, when Mr. King sold the property and moved to Beatrice, where he established his home at 1015 Market street. He was in very poor health at the time, as he was afflicted with asthma. He made several trips to California and other places in the west in search of health. While on one of these trips Mr. King purchased some land in Montana, and this his widow still owns. In the summer of 1915, while attending to his affairs in Montana, Mr. King's health became worse and he returned to Beatrice, where he died on December 12th of that year.

In early life Mr. King was a member of the Methodist church, but during the latter years of his life he belonged to no church organization, though he always held family prayers in his home and was a great reader of his Bible. He was a good Christian man and was very highly respected in the community in which he lived.

Mr. and Mrs. King became the parents of twelve children: Chester F. resides in Filley, this county ; Bertha died at the age of nine years ; Jesse J. is a farmer in Filley town- " ship; Lemuel resides in Beatrice; Charles is a farmer in Filley township ; Fred is in Montana ; Hattie is the wife of Thomas Armstrong, of Beatrice; Myrtle is the wife of Oscar Wemm, of Beatrice; Edward is a farmer in Sherman township ; Albert resides in Beatrice ; Gertrude died at the age of three years; and Daisy died at the age of two years.

Mrs. Charles W. King has continued to make her home in Beatrice since the death of her husband, and is a noble woman who is loved and esteemed by all who know her. She IF a member of the Methodist church.

CHARLES' HENTGES is another of the honored pioneer citizens who, after winning through association with productive farm industry a large measure of success, has found it his good fortune to have a pleasant home in the attractive city of Beatrice, where in retirement from active labors he is living in ease and comfort, secure in the independence that is : justly his due.

Mt. Hentges is a native of the historic -, Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, which has been , at different periods been under the domination t of Germany, Spain, France, Austria, and the Netherlands, and which became a Belgian , province in 1830. In this now independent and interesting province of Europe Mr. Rent- ges was born January 16, 1839, a son of Matthias and Anna Mary (Stumpf) Hentges, who there passed their entire lives- Reared and educated in his native land, Mr. Hentges there continued his residence until 1869, when, at the age of thirty years, he immigrated to the United States. A stranger in a strange land, but well endowed with ambition and selfreliance, he made his way to the state of Illi- Tiois, where he found employment at farm work, at wages ranging from eighteen to twenty dollars a month. After being thus engaged four years he rented land in Livingston county, that state, where he continued independent farm enterprise until 1877, when he came to Gage county, Nebraska, his arrival in Beatrice taking place shortly before Christmas of that year. In thus preparing himself to assume pioneer responsibilities Mr. Hentges brought with him a team and wagon, a few household goods and fifty dollars in money. He was accompanied by his wife and their two small children, and it may well be understood that without delay productive activity became imperative on his part. He rented a farm in Midland township, but as he could not gain possession of either the house or the land, he and his family installed themselves in an old shanty in the vicinity. This flimsy shelter was soon afterward subjected to the forces of a heavy blizzard, and the roof, covered merely with building paper, finally became so weighted with snow that it fell in, though the members of the family fortunately -escaped more than minor injuries through the -accident. In the bleak little building the only fuel obtainable was green wood, which was burned in the cook stove, and Mr. Hentges relates as one of his experiences at this time that he and his faithful wife would each take one of their little children on their laps and hold the tiny feet in the oven of the stove to keep the youngsters warm. Four years after coming to Gage county Mr. Hentges and his brother Nicholas each purchased one hundred acres of land in Hanover township, and he then turned his energies to breaking the raw and bringing the land under cultiva- :tion. His first house on the new farm was a board shanty of two rooms, and this continued to be the family domicile for six years. He then made an appreciable addition to the building and with increasing prosperity he purchased an additional tract of one hundred acres. He diligently applied himself to farm industry on this place for ten years, at the expiration of which he sold the property and bought a well improved farm in Misland township. After remaining about eight years on this place Mr. Hentges and his wife removed to the city of Beatrice, where he has since lived practically retired, and they own their attractive home property, at 1503 Court street. Mr. Hentges still owns a valuable farm of two hundred and forty acres in Midland township, the same being in charge of his sons, and the family estate includes also another farm, of one hundred and sixty acres, in the same township, the same having been purchased with money which Mrs. Hartges inherited from her father's estate in Illinois.

In the year 1871, at Pontiac, Livingston county, Illinois, Mr. Hentges married Miss Anna Baumann, on whose father's farm her husband found his first employment upon coming to America. Mrs. Hentges likewise was born in Luxemburg, Germany, and she was a child at the time her parents came to the United States and settled in Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Hentges became the parents of five children, the first born, Anna, having become the wife of Frederick Winkle and their home having been at Beatrice at the time of her death; Katie is the widow of Hanson Day, who met his death in an automobile accident, in the summer of 1917, and she now resides in Beatrice; Charles and Theodore have the active management of their father's fine farm in Midland township ; and Emma is the wife of John Benton, of Midland township. Mr. and Mrs. Hentges point with justifiable pride to the fact that they now (1918) have nine grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Both are devout communicants of the Catholic church and in politics he gives his support to the cause of the Democratic party. This venerable couple bore their full share of hardships and perplexities in the pioneer days. In coming to Gage county from Illinois they brought as provisions a sack of beans and a quantity of ham. They extended their credit in securing two bushels of wheat, had the same ground in the old mill at Beatrice, and these meager provisions constituted virtually the entire contents of the family larder during the first winter and spring - until. Mr. Hentges could raise sorrie produce on the farm which he rented. In tlie early days the revered pioneer physician, Dt. Huff, attended the Hentges family in case of illness and as there was no available money to pay his moderate fees the doctor kindly consented to take his pay in wheat. Mr. Hentges retains splendid mental and physical vigor, but his wife is in impaired health, as she has endured two strokes of paralysis. Their home is known for its generous and unpretentious hospitality and they are always ready to extend welcome to their host of friends, especially those who with them endured the trials of the pioneer days-

HENRY REMMERS is proving himself one of the vigorous and successful exemplifiers of farm enterprise in his native county and township, and has made excellent improvements on his farm of one hundred and sixty acres, in Section 24, Hanover township, the same being an integral part of the landed estate of his father, Thomas Remmers.

Henry Remmers was born on his father's old homestead farm in Hanover township, and the date of his nativity was January 4, 1874. He gained his youthful education in the local schools and continued to be associated with the work of the home farm until he attained to his legal majority, when he initiated independent operations on his present farm, on which he has erected a modern house and more recently a large barn of the best type. His political support is given to the Democratic party and he and his wife hold membership in the Lutheran church.

In 1896 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Remmers to Miss Kate Parde, who was born in Illinois, and whose father, William Parde, is made the subject of individual mention on other pages of this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Remmers have eight children, Thomas,, Matilda, William, John Benjamin, Henry,, Heye, Diedrick, and Alfred. All of the children remain at the parental home except the one daughter, who is the wife of John Busboom, of Logan township.

SAMUEL H. McKINNEY was born at Lanora, Kansas, on the 2d of May, 1885, and is a son of William and Elizabeth (Decker) McKinney. William McKinney was born at Sandusky, Ohio, October 14, 1840, and is now living retired in the city of Beatrice, Nebraska. His wife, who was born at Dayton,. Ohio, April 10, 1842, was about forty-five years of age at the time of her death, which occurred at Lanora, Kansas. The parents of William McKinney were Thomas E. and Mary (Adams) McKinney, the former having been of Irish and the latter of German descent. They came from their native countriesto the -United States when they were youngfolk, and eventually they settled in Buchanan county, Iowa, five miles distant from the siteof the present fine little city of Independence. On his father's farm in Iowa William McKinney grew to manhood, and he was a youth of" nineteen years at the outbreak of the Civil war. His youthful loyalty and patriotism were not. long to lack definite expression, for, on the 11th of August, 1862, he enlisted in Company H, Twenty-seventh Iowa Volunteer Infantry,, with which he went forth in defense of the Union. After serving six months, he received an incidental injury, at Memphis, Tennessee,, and was discharged for disability. On his recovery he again enlisted, this time in Company- D, Forty-seventh Iowa Volunteer Infantry. At the expiration of his one hundred days' enlistment he received an honorable discharge,, at Davenport, Iowa, and returned to his old home in Buchanan county. There he was engaged in farming until 1876, when he removed to Norton county, Kansas, remaining thereuntil he came to Nebraska, about thirty years ago. He settled in Beatrice, where he has since resided. His wife died before he left- Kansas, leaving a family of seven children, all.

but one of whom, Axie, the eldest daughter, are living. William A. resides in Beatrice, Nebraska; Nancy Edith is the wife of William Moore, of North Platte, Nebraska ; Earl, a Methodist minister, resides at Edmonton, Canada ; L. L. is a farmer near Logan, Nebraska; Charles A. is a resident of Beatrice; and Samuel H-, subject of this review, is superintendent of the Gage county poor farm, Three of these sons, Earl, L. L., and Charles A., saw service in the Philippine war. Their father, who is now blind and receives a pension of thirty-six dollars a month from the government, resides with his son, Charles, in Beatrice.

. Samuel H. McKinney spent his early years on a farm. His educational advantages were few and, added to this seeming misfortune, his mother died when he was only three years of age. Sometimes, however, by our very lack of those things which seem most desirable we are being fitted for our place in life. When Mr. McKinney took charge of the Gage county poor farm, in March, 1917, his former life had peculiarly trained him for the position. His sympathies had been broadened by the privations of his childhood, and his efficiency in handling the material side of his work had been developed by his service of seven years as custodian of the Beatrice National Bank Building, at Beatrice, this county, where his work was so satisfactory that no complaint was ever entered during the entire time of his service. For the two years following this, and immediately prior to entering upon his present duties, he had charge of the largest cell rooms in the Canyon City prison in Colorado, where he had under his care three hundred prisoners. In this way he was enabled to know at first hand the modern methods of caring for a public institution. His work here also was so satisfactory as to be commended by Warden John Cleghorn. At the Gage county poor farm, which consists of one hundred and sixty acres, and which houses about fourteen inmates at the present time, Mr. McKinney has seen the lack of many conveniences which he feels the public owes to those unfortunate enough to be made its charges. For, as he says, "The nation, state, and county provide quite comfortable quarters for those who by their own acts of wilfulness have been taken in charge and confined in prisons and jails as punishment for crimes committed. Why should the public not be willing to make comfortable the unfortunate ones who, not by choice, but often from circumstances not of their own making, are obliged to be* inmates of alms houses?" It is largely due to his influence that as many of the improvements as the community feels able to provide are now being made.

On August 27, 1903, in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Mr- McKinney wedded Miss Emma Jane Dillon, daughter of Zecharia and Nannie (Harper) Dillon who now reside at Benton City, Missouri. Mr. and Mrs. McKinney have four children: Harry William, Pearl Etta, Thomas Wallace, and Ralph Emerson. His wife is a member of the Baptist church, and Mr. McKinney is a Master Mason, a member of Beatrice Lodge, No. 26. It need not be repeated that any man capable of filling the position occupied by I*Ir. McKiriney is of value in any community.

JOHN FOSSLER, JR., is the owner of a well improved farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Section 10, Logan township, and stands representative of the energy and progressiveness that make for substantial success in connection with the basic industries of agriculture and stock-growing. On other pages adequate record concerning the family is given in the sketch of the career of his father, John Fossler, Sr.

Mr. Fossler was born in Germany, on the 1st of December, 1866, and was about one year old at the time of the family immigration to the United States, his mother, whose maiden name was Ehe Jansen Liiken, having died six weeks after the family home had been established in the state of Missouri, within a short time after arrival in this country. The infant son John, of this review, was taken inthe home which the father had established. After the lapse of a few years the father contracted a second marriage and when the son was about seven years old he was taken into the home of which the father had established. It was a singular condition that came into evidence at this juncture, for in thy interval of separation the boy had learned the German spoken by the family by which he had been reared to that age and the same was so different from that spoken by his father that he was not able to understand the latter's conversation. He was seven years old when he accompanied his father to Nebraska and remained at the home in Nemaha county until he had attained to the age of seventeen year's, when he came with his father to Gage county, his education in the meanwhile having been that afforded in the common schools. His independent activities as a farmer in Gage county began by his effecting a Scully lease, and with success attending his well directed energies he finally purchased his present farm, upon which he has made good improvements. In local affairs he is not restricted by partisan lines, as he gives his support to men and measures that meet the approval of his judgment, but for president he votes for the Republican candidate. He and his wife hold membership in the Hanover Lutheran church- April 11, 1890, recorded the marriage of Mr. Eossler to Miss Gretje Leners, who was born in Hancock county, Illinois, August 1, 1871, and whose parents removed to Gage county in 1878, she having here been reared and educated ; of her father, Renken Leners, special mention is made elsewhere in this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Fossler have iive children: John, who is engaged in farming in Hooker township, married Miss Sophie Radeniacher; Amanda is the wife of John Rademacher, likewise a farmer in that township ; and Renken, Ehe Emma and Etta Mary are the younger members of the parental home circle.

GEORGE B. REYNOLDS is another of the venerable and revered pioneers who have played a worthy part in the development and progress of Gage county, where his activities have included both mercantile enterprise and farm industry, and since 1900 he has lived in well earned retirement, his pleasant home being at 1005 Market street in the city of Beatrice. He came to Gage county in the year following that of the admission of Nebraska to statehood, and in all the long intervening years he has here stood exponent of the best type of citizenship.

Mr. Reynolds was born in Sullivan county. New York, August 19, 1834, his parents having been pioneer settlers of that section of the Empire state, where his father reclaimed a productive farm from the forest. Mr. Reynolds is a son of Andrew and Catherine (Van Benschoten) Reynolds, both likewise natives of the state of New York, the latter having been a daughter of Garrett Van Benschoten, who was a scion of one of the sturdy Holland Dutch families early founded in that commonwealth and who was a valiant soldier of the Continental line in the war of the Revolution. The parents of Mr. Reynolds passed the closing period of their lives on their old homestead, in Fallsburg township, Sullivan county, where the father died in 1876, at the age of eighty-four years, and the mother in the following year, at the age of eighty-three years, both having been members of the Baptist church. The subject of this review is the youngest son in a family of five sons and three daughters, and is the only member of the family now living, Dr. H. M. Reynolds, of whom specific mention is made on other pages, was a member of the townsite company that founded the now vital and prosperous city of Beatrice, Nebraska.

In the common schools of his native county George B. Reynolds acquired his earlier education, which was supplemented by higher academic study in a well ordered institution at Bethany, Pennsylvania. He was an ambitious student and at the age of eighteen years he began teaching in the schools of his native state, his pedagogic service having continued during several winter terms of school- On the 28th of December, 1858, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Reynolds to Miss Stella B. Sherwood, who likewise was a native of Sullivan county. New York, where she was born August 22, 1837, the eldest daughter of

Bradley B. and Eliza (Burr) Sherwood, natives of Connecticut and early settlers of Sullivan county. New York. Mr. and Mrs. Sherwood came to Gage county, Nebraska, about 1880, and both passed the closing years of their lives at Beatrice, Mrs. Sherwood having been past seventy years of age at the time of her death and her husband having lived to be more than eighty years of age.

After his marriage Mr. Reynolds continued his residence in his native county until the autumn of 1868, when, in company with his wife and two sons he came to Nebraska and numbered himself as one of the pioneer merchants of Beatrice. In the capital town of Gage county he built up a large and prosperous general merchandise business, and this he conducted until 1883, having in the meanwhile taken up a homestead of eighty acres and having perfected his title to the same, this property being that on which the thriving village of Cortland is now established. Upon retiring from the mercantile business Mr. .Reynolds purchased an unimproved farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Section IS, Lincoln township, and he reclaimed this land, made the best of improvements on the place and there continued his activities as a progressive agriculturist and stock-grower for seventeen years. He purchased the property for twelve and one-half dollars an acre and in 1900 sold the same for one hundred and twenty dollars an acre. In the latter year he and his wife removed to Beatrice, where he has since lived retired, and the supreme loss and bereavement in his life came when his devoted companion, who had been his true helpmeet for more than half a century, passed to the life eternal, Mrs. Reynolds' death having occurred February 2, 1915, and her memory resting as a benediction upon all who had come within the compass of her gentle and gracious influence. She was a devout member of the Presbyterian church, of which her husband likewise has been an active member for many years. Of their six children only one is now living, Stella E., who is the widow of' Harry Davis and who now remains with her father in their pleasant home in Beatrice.

In politics Mr. Reynolds was for many years afhliated with the Republican party, but in later years he has given his allegiance to the Democratic party. Under the old supervisor system he represented Uincoln township on the county board of supervisors, and he served one term as city treasurer of Beatrice. His earnest desire to further true democratic government led him^ to identify himself with the Farmers' Alliance and the People's Independent party during the period when these organizations were influential in the west. He has lived and labored to goodly ends and may look back with satisfaction upon a career marked by earnest and worthy endeavor.

DORR D. BRAINARD. - One of the younger men of Gage county who has won a place in the business circles of his community is Dorr D. Brainard, manager of an undertaking and furniture business at Odell, Nebraska. A native of Seward county, Nebraska, he was born September 8, 1880. His parents, Everett and Eliza (Osborne) Brainard, were natives of Galesburg, Illinois, and came to Seward county in 1880. They cast in their lot with the pioneers of that county, where Mr. Brainard was a successful farmer until he retired. They still make their home in the county.

Dorr D. Brainard was reared on a farm in his native county, and after attending the country school he continued his studies in the Tamora high school. Mr. Brainard's initial work in the business world was as a clerk for S. R. Anstine, with whom he remained three years. He then gave his attention to farming until 1909, when he became a clerk for W- W. S'cott, of Beatrice, Nebraska, where he was employed for five years and learned all the phases of the business. On April 14, 1914, Mr. Brainard was called to take charge of the business of Henry Kasparek, at Odell, Mr. Kasparek having passed away on the 8th day of that month. Mr. Brainard demonstrated his ability to such an extent that his services have since been retained as manager of the business. He is thoroughly famiHar with every detail of the furniture business, and the concern by which he is employed, as well as the community he serves, has profited by his abiHty in his chosen field. The finest automobile hearse in Gage county is the one owned by Mrs. Kasparek, and it is called to serve a wide territory in the southwest part of Gage county.

Mr. Brainard was united in marriage to Miss Jeanette Atherton, of Winfield, Kansas. She lived at Wilber, Nebraska, at the time of her marriage. She and her husband are members of the Methodist church and he is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America.

CHARLES HUGHES is a member of that sterling contingent of retired farmers living in the city of Beatrice and has been a resident of Gage county for nearly thirty years, - a statement that indicates clearly that he is entitled to pioneer honors.

Mr. Hughes was born in New York city, September 18, 1857, a son of Henry and Isabella (Sutters) Hughes, the former a native of the old Empire state and the latter of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. The subject of this review was a child when his parents removed to Illinois and settled in Will county, where he was reared to adult age and where he was afforded the advantages of the public schools. In 1879 he came to Gage county, Nebraska, and purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land in Filley township, not the least improvement having been made on the place and the survey of the township having not yet been completed. Applying himself with characteristic energy and nerve, Mr. Hughes made each successive year count in the improving of his farm property and in making his well ordered farm enterprise productive of returns. He developed one of the valuable farms of Filley township, and in later years gave much attention to stock-raising in connection with his agricultural activities- When he came to the county, Filley township was traversed by no railroad and the present city of Beatrice was but a small village. Mr. Hughes remained on his farm until 1912, since which time he has lived practically retired in the city of Beatrice, where he and his wife have an attractive home, at 601 Eleventh street. He is the owner of two farms, - two hundred acres in Logan township and two hundred and forty in Filley township. He is a stockholder of the Beatrice State Bank and is one of the substantial citizens of the county, a man who has achieved success through his own well directed endeavors. His political support is given to the Republican party and he is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and Benevolent & Protective Order of Elks.

In 1886 Mr. Hughes wedded Miss Ada Cowen, who was born in Illinois, a daughter of the late John and Ruth Cowan. She came to Gage county in 1876, with her mother, and settled in Filley township. The venerable mother now lives in Johnson county. Mr. and Mrs. Hughes have but one child, Frank D., who is serving as deputy clerk of the district court of Gage county: he married Miss Inez Sloneger and they have one child, Ruth Elizabeth.

JOHN LE POIDEVIN, retired farmer, of Odell, Nebraska, is one of the old pioneers of Nebraska and Gage county. The present generation is enjoying the fruits of the labors of the early men and women who came to till the soil and build the villages and cities. These men struggled and labored with nature, to wrest from her the treasures of wheat and corn and to give to their posterity broad and fertile lands to till. One of these men who braved the hardships of pioneer days is John Le Poidevin. He was born April 19, 1842, on the island of Guernsey, in the English Channel, England, and is the son of Job and Rachel (Cohn) Le Poidevin. (See Thomas Le Poidevin sketch in this volume for the family history.)

The early years of Mr- Le Poidevin's life were spent on a farm, where he was continuously learning the art and industry of agriculture, thus fortifying himself for the duties and responsibilities of later life. In 1868 he came to Beatrice, Nebraska, where he worked as a laborer. It was here, March 19, 1873, he married OpheHa A. Martin. After their marriage, these two young persons, with hearts full of hope and courage, took a homestead in Saline county and began to develop this tract of unbroken prairie. They remained on this homestead fifteen years, and then, in 1888, they purchased from the government one hundred and sixty acres of land on the Otoe Indian reservation, later buying an additional forty acres and bringing the total area up to two hundred acres. They improved this land, building their house, barns, fences and outbuildings, and soon had the pleasure of seeing acres of waving grain where formerly wide stretches of prairie had been. Mr. Le Poidevin specialized in Chester White hogs. They retired from active farming in 1913 and moved to Odell, where Mr. Le Poidevin owns a pleasant home. Mrs. Ee Poidevin shared in all of the labors of her husband and her untiring energy and helpfulness at all times made it possible for him to be successful in his work. She was born in Essex, New York, December 3, 1855, and came to Beatrice in 1870. Htere she lived with her brother until she married John Le Poidevin. Her death occurred September 11, 1916. Ten children were born to this union as follows : Lillie B. and Alfred, both deceased ; Clem, who married Nellie Zugmier and lives in Glenwood township; Mrs. Minnie M- Showers, of Odell; Phoebe A., wife of W. Zugmier, of Odell; Etta, who died in infancy ; Bertha R., who is deceased ; Herbert, who is farming in Glenwood township ; Job E. who married Hazel Edington, and is farming the old homestead of his father; and Grace, who is the wife of 0. Martin, of Lincoln, Nebraska.

The Democratic party receives the support of Mr. Le Poidevin. He has sought no political honors, but devoted his entire time to his farm and family. He is a shareholder in grain-elevator and lumber company of Odell and is a citizen who has given of his life to the creation of a great agricultural community.

JOSEPH SHALLA. - The farmers of our nation are the men who constitute the basic element in our industrial and commercial life. Joseph Shalla, a farmer of Barneston township, owns five hundred and eighty acres of land, well improved and in a high state of cultivation, and is bearing his share of the responsibilities incidental to providing the necessities of life. He has a farm that is well improved with a comfortable house and the various buildings requisite for the care of his livestock and agricultural products. Mr. Shalla was born December 28, 1866, in Iowa county, Iowa, the son of Vencil and Barbara Shalla. For a complete history of this farmily see John Shalla sketch in another portion of this volume.

In 1876 Joseph Shalla's parents established their home in Gage county and in this locality they reared their children. Joseph attended the district school and when he reached manhood he continued his alliance with farm industry. In 1890 he purchased eighty acres of land, and, in consonance with his means and opportunities, he has since added to his land until he is now the owner of five hundred and eighty acres of land in Barneston township.

In 1888 Joseph Shalla married Miss Emma Roch, a daughter of John Roch, who was an early settler of Saline county and who later, in 1887, took up his residence upon a farm in Gage county. His daughter Emma was born in Saline county, and continued her education in Gage county, where was solemnized her marriage to Mr. Shalla and they are the parents of four children : Bessie, the first born, is now the wife of William Phlhal, who is a farmer in Liberty township. Next in order is Emma, who is the wife of Fred Wier, a farmer of Liberty township. Elsie and Mabel are still under the parental roof and doing their share of the home duties.

Mr. Shalla was brought up in the Catholic church, in which he has been a communicant all these years, and his children attend the Baptist Sunday school. The Republican party receives the vote of Mr. Shalla and he is a progressive farmer who has won success in life by dint of hard labor and faithfulness to work.

was born at Des Moines, Iowa, February 23, 1860, a son of James and Dorcas (Sherwood) Gafford, natives of Maryland and New York, respectively. The marriage of the parents was solemnized in Ohio, and the father thereafter was engaged in the furniture and undertaking business in Des Moines, Iowa; Indianapolis, Indiana; and Hiawatha, Kansas. He died in Kansas, at the age of eighty-four years, and his wife was seventy-two years of age when she was called to her final rest. Dr. Charles C. Gafford was one of a family of eleven children and his boyhood days were spent largely at Hiawatha, Kansas, where he attended the pubhc schools. He prepared for his profession at the Keokuk Medical College, Keokuk, Iowa, in which institution he was graduated in 1881- In that year he came to Wymore, then a new town, and here he had the distinction of becoming the first physician and surgeon of the vital little village, which has been developed into a fine community.

Dr. Gafford has taken a keen interest in all civic affairs of the community and has served as mayor of Wymore. In 1887-1888 he represented Gage county in the lower house of the state legislature, in which he served as chairman of the committee on asylums. Along strictly professional lines he is a member of the American Medical Association, the Gage County Medical Society and the International Association of Railroad Surgeons. For thirty-six years Dr. Gafford has been division surgeon for the Burlington Railroad, and this is a longer continuous service than that of any other Burlington surgeon west of the Missouri river.

JACOB TAYLOR. - The late Jacob Taylor was born in Lancashire, England, September 3, 1827, a son of John and Ann (Greenhalgh) Taylor, who spent their entire lives in their native land, as did all of their ten children except their son Jacob, the honored subject of this memoir. Jacob Taylor acquired his education in the schools of his native land and as a young man he there learned the carpenter's trade, under the instruction of his father. Later he became a machinist and as such he .was employed until he came to America. He sailed from Liverpool on the 15th of October, 1858, and after a voyage of six weeks he landed at New Orleans. Going from there to Peoria, Illinois, he stayed for a time with an uncle, John Greenhalgh, and then proceeded to Wyoming, Stark county, Illinois. His financial resources at the time were summed up in the amount of about sixty dollars. He became a successful farmer and the owner of a valuable Illinois farm. In 1876 he came to Gage county, Nebraska, where he invested in land, his older son coming here and taking charge of the property. In 1882 Mr. Taylor came with his family to this county and engaged in agricultural pursuits in Sicily township. Later he retired to Wymore. There he built the large house, opposite the old Touzalin Hotel, and in this pleasant home he and his wife spent the remaining years of their lives.

In England was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Taylor to Miss Alice Howarth, and they became the parents of seven children - Mrs. John L. Dawson, of Wymore; Mrs. J. E. Kelly, of University Place, Nebraska ; Edwin, residing in Elk county, Kansas; Albert, of Kansas City, Missouri ; Sherman, of Wymore ; John, of Lincoln, Nebraska; and James, deceased.

Mr. Taylor possessed those sterling qualities of character that won for him many friends, all of whom held him in the highest esteem. He displayed keen discrimination in business, and became a man of affluence, owning over one thousand acres of land in Gage county. He voted the Republican ticket and took an active interest in the political, social, and educational welfare of the county, where members of his family still reside and are upholding the honors of the name.

er of to-day and of the future must be familiar with the latest and most improved methods of intensive cultivation and animal husbandry, besides giving a businesslike management of his debits and credits. Such a one, who has received the education necessary to carry on his farming operations in a businesslike manner, is George Reiff, of Section 26, Rockford township.

Mr. Reiff was born in Woodford county, Illinois, December 28, 1882, and is the son of Andrew and Catherine (Mast) Reiff. Andrew Reifif was born August 4, 1855, and died June 11, 1911. His wife was born January 1, 1860, and is a daughter of Abraham and Barbara (Apple) Mast.

Andrew Reiff was a son of Joseph Reiff, who was a farmer in Illinois and Gage county, as well. He owned considerable land in Gage county and died at Beatrice. Andrew Reiff was married in Illinois to Catherine Mast and for a number of years farmed eighty acres of land there. After selHng this property, in 1884, he came to Gage county and purchased two hundred acres of land in Rockford township, from Esquire Alberts. From time to time he purchased more of the fertile land, until he owned one thousand acres. On the farm where he resided he built a beautiful home and it is surrounded with evergreens, making the cool shade in summer and breaking the "northwester" of the winter. His widow, at the present time, lives in Beatrice. They were the parents of five children, as follows: Frank was killed D'ecember 11, 1912 by a tree which he was felling : his widow, Maude (Shock) Reifif and their two children, Eunice and Andrew, reside in Beatrice; George W. is the subject of this sketch; William lives north of Holmesville; Alice, is the wife of Joseph Nickey, living in Monticello, Minnesota, a farmer, also a graduate of an agricultural college ; Pearl is at home with her mother, in Beatrice.

Andrew Reifif had started life with practically nothing and at his death was a man of wealth, gained through his industry and carefulness in every detail. His religious faith

George ReifT was educated in the educational institutions of Gage county, graduating in the district school and also the Northwestern Business College at Beatrice. His education was rounded out by his attending the Nebraska Agriculutural College, at Lincoln.

February 5, 1908, Mr. Reifif was married to Clara Lewis, who was born March 26, 1885, in Richardson county, Nebraska. She is a daughter of John and Anna (Williams) Lewis, who are farming in Blue Springs township, where they located after coming from Yates Center, Kansas.

Mr. and Mrs. ReifT are the parents of one child, Grace, born in 1912. They are members of the Methodist church and attend the services in Holmesvile. Mr. Reiff votes the Republican ticket. His farming operations, in Section 26, Rockford township, are along general lines with the exception of the full blooded Rhode Island Red poultry which he raises and of which he is justly proud.

L. L. McKEEVER, who is engaged in general farming in Sicily, township, was born in Woodford county, Illinois, May 22, 1874, and is a son of J. H. and Harriet (Burley) McKeever.

J. H. McKeever was born in K'irkville, Ohio, and removed to Woodford county, Illinois, in 1866, in company with his wife and their two children. At the outbreak of the Civil war Mr. McKeever enlisted in an Ohio regiment of volunteers and served four years, leaving his wife and two children at home while he was thus gallantly serving in defense of the nation's integrity. After the war Mr. McKeever was engaged in farming in Woodford county, Illinois, until 1882, when he came to Nebraska with team and covered wagon and settled on one hundred and twenty acres of land which he had purchased, in what is now Section 33, Sicily township. This land he bought from a Mr. McGinnis, who had homesteaded it. Later he bought additional land, and at one time he owned four hundred and twenty acres in this county. In 1893

Mr. and Mrs- McKeever retired and moved to Wymore, Nebraska, where they lived until the death of Mrs. McKeever, which occurred in 1915. Afterward Mr. McKeever, not caring to live alone, went to the National military home at Leavenworth, Kansas, where he now resides. He was one of Gage county's early settlers and highly respected citizens. Mr. and Mrs. McKeever were the parents of six children, the first two having been born in Ohio and the others in Illinois : Charles is living in Arkansas ; Ida resides in Colorado ; Mary died September 2, 1894; L. E. is the subject of this review; and Laura is the wife of Thomas Sipe, of Colorado.

L. L. McKeever came to Nebraska with his parents as a child and has passed most of his life on the farm which is now his home. He received his early education in the public schools of Gage county and has always followed farming. Mr. McKeever chose as his wife Miss Lettie Clarridge, of Fairfield, Iowa. Mrs. McKeever is a daughter of Mace and Louise Clarridge, who were born in Ohio and passed the closing years of their lives in Iowa, where the father was a successful farmer and honored pioneer. Mr. and Mrs- McKeever have had five children, of whom those living are: Helen, Lester, Ross, and Raymond.

Eighteen years ago Mr. McKeever came into possession of the home farm, on which he has since lived. This is one of the finest farms in Sicily township, well improved and equipped with a good house and other excellent farm buildings. Mr. McKeever is a Republican, but holds no political office, devoting his entire time to his farm, on which he is making a success. He is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and both he and his wife are members of the adjunct organization, the Daughters of Rebekah.

LENHARD KOENIG. - One of the fine landed estates of Blakely township is that owned by Mr. Koenig, the same comprising two hundred acres and being eligibly situated in Section 15, about six miles distant from the city of Beatrice. He is one of the energetic and successful agriculturists of Gage county and is a substantial and popular citizen specially entitled to recognition in this work. The fifth in order of birth of the nine children of Theodore and Margaret Koenig, Lenhard Koenig was born in Maryland, on the 12th of September, 1870. His father was born in Germany and came to America when fourteen years of age. He became a skilled workman at the cooper's trade and followed the same in Maryland for a long term of years. In 1877 he came with his family to Gage county and here he purchased a pioneer farm in Blakely township. He reclaimed his land to cultivation, made good improvements on the place and there continued his activities until 1890, when he removed to Montana. There he continued operations as a farmer until his death, in 1907, at the age of seventy-nine years. His widow still resides in Montana and is a devout communicant of the Lutheran church, as was also Mr. Koenig himself, both having aided in organizing the church of this denomination in Blakely township.

Lenhard Koenig was a lad of about seven years at the time of the family removal to Gage county, where he was reared on the pioneer farm and where his early educational advantages were those afforded in the district . schools. He gained first knowledge of all details of farm work and thus fortified himself well for his independent activities of later years. At the age of twenty-eight years Mr. Koenig married Miss Hannah Buss, who was born in Adams county, Illinois, and who is a daughter of Henry G. Buss, a sterling Gage county pioneer of whom mention is made elsewhere in this volume. Mr. Koenig purchased his present farm in 1905 and upon the same he has made extensive improvements, so that it constitutes one of the model places of Blakely township. He has been one of the world's vigorous and indefatigable workers and through his well directed energies has achieved definite and well merited prosperity, the while he has so ordered his course as to retain the unqualified confidence and respect of his fellow men, his wife having been his devoted helpmeet in all that this gracious scrip- tural term implies. He is one of the leading stockholders of the farmers co-operative elevator company at Hbag- and is serving as a director of the same. Though he has manifested no ambition for political oflfice of any kind he gives loyal support to the cause of the Democratic party and as a citizen shows a true sense of the stewardship that personal success involves. He and his wife have seven children, all of whom remain at the parental home, namely: Lydia, Dora, Martha, Theodore, Albert, Lenhard, Jr., and Helen.

ELMER E. CHAMBERLIN was born in New York state, February 8, 1861, and is a son of William and Nancy Maria (Carswell) Chamberlin. William Chamberlin was born January 10, 1824 in New York state, his father, Andrew Chamberlin, having been born in New Jersey and having eventually settled in New York, where he followed agricultural pursuits until his death. His son William was reared and educated in the old Empire state and took unto himself as his wife Nancy Maria Carswell, a daughter of David and Martha Carswell, natives of New York state, where they spent their lives, as representatives of agricultural enterprise. William Chamberlin and his wife were well-to-do farming folk and gave their sons and daughters good edu-- cational advantages. William passed away January 23, 1890, and his wife, born April 21, 1828, was laid to rest January 30, 1892. Seven children were born to them, five of whom are living, as follows : Mary is the wife of H. RCleveland, a retired farmer living in Minneapolis, Minnesota; Elmer E. is the immediate subject of this sketch; James married May Terry and is farming in Blue Springs township : they have two children Marguerite and Francis ; Francis, next in order of birth of the children, is unmarried and is a school teacher at Phoenix, Arizona ; Charles is a wealthy retired farmer living at Salem, New York.

Elmer Chamberlin was reared and educated in New York state, attending the rural schools and supplementing this discipline by attending Washington Academy, at Salem, New York. In 1885 he came to Gage county, Nebraska, and rented land, having practically no financial reserve but unbounded faith in himself and the land he was tilling. For ten years he continued renting and then, in 1895, he purchased the nucleus around which his further acquisitions of land have gathered, until he is now the owner of nine hundred and sixty acres in Blue Springs township, one hundred and sixty acres in Rockford township and a section of land in Canada.

In the years that Mr. and Mrs. Chamberlin have been increasing their land holdings, sons and daughters have grown up around them and they have given all of them the best of educations. Two have graduated from Nebraska University and the three younger are now attending the same institution. They are as follows : Warren E., born in April, 1889, is farming some of his father's land in Blue Springs township; William, born in 1891, is teller of the City National Bank, Lincoln, Nebraska; Guy is athletic coach at Lexington, Nebraska; Francis and Ramona (twins) and Truman are attending the University of Nebraska at the time of this writing.

Mr. Chamberlin has devoted his time and energies to farm enterprise and has never sought any political office. He is an independent Republican in politics and he and his wife are members of the Methodist church at Blue they are valued members of their community.

LLOYD L. STROUGH is one of the enterprising farmers of the younger generation in Holt township, where he is giving his attention to agricultural and live-stock industry on a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, of which he owns eighty acres, in Section 33- He was born in Holt township, this county, on the 26th of February, 1883, and is a son of John and Sarah (Bowers) Strough, of whom mention is made on other pages of this work.

tr, and in addition to having received the advantages of the district schools and the public schools at Beatrice he also completed an effective course in the Beatrice Business College. He initiated his independent career as a farmer shortly after attaining his legal majority. He rented land from his father and in 1917 he purchased from the latter eighty acres of his present well improved farm. In addition to his successful agricultural enterprise, he is proving very successful also as a breeder and grower of Poland-China swine. His political allegiance is given to the Republican party and he and his wife hold rnembership in the Methodist church.

On the 27th of November, 1907, Mr. Strough wedded Miss May Rhodes, who was born in Pawnee county, this state, a daughter of Julius Rhodes, who is one of the substantial farmers of that county. Mr. and Mrs. Strough have two children,-^ Keith and Lauren.