Gage County, Nebraska - Chapter 31: People Who Have Done Their Part in Making Gage County, 1918 (part 26 of 29)

county, Pennsylvania, September 1, 1827, and was one of the venerable pioneer citizens of Gage county, Nebraska, at the time of his death, June 3, 1900. His wife, who was born in Bedford county, Pennsylvania, August 24, 1832, died March 8, 1893, she having been a Dunkard in her religious faith and a member of a family that was founded in America in the early colonial period of our national history. Jacob Nicewonger removed from the old Keystone state to Illinois and engaged in farming in Ogle county. There he remained until 1873, when he came with his family to Gage county, Nebraska, making the overland trip with team and covered wagon, and in numbering himself among the pioneer farmers of the county he purchased eighty acres of school land two miles southeast of the present village of Pickrell. He reclaimed and improved this farm, in Holt township, and in later years he purchased an additional eighty acres. About fifteen years prior to his death he retired from the active labors that had long been his portion and he passed the closing years of his life in the village of Pickrell.

Daniel Nicewonger was about seven years old at the time of the family removal to Gage county, where he was reared on the pioneer farm and profited J)yjhe advantages offered in the district schoolg'.io^^Holt township. He continued to assist in the work and management of the home farm until after he had attained to his legal majority and he then began farm operations in an independent way. He continued as one of the successful exponents of farm industry in Holt township until 1891, when he became associated with his brother William H. in establishing a general merchandise business at Pickrell. The brothers built up a prosperous enterprise and continued their partnership about five years. Daniel Nicewonger then purchased his brother's interest, after which he individually continued the business until 1901, when he sold the same. He has since lived virtually retired at Pickrell. He is a stockholder in the Dempster Manufacturing Company. In 190.S he purchased eighty acres of land in Section 28, Holt township, and this property, for which he paid fifty-five hundred dollars, he sold in 1916, for a consideration of ten thousand dollars. He is the owner of two business buildings at Pickrell, as well as of his fine residence property in this village, where he is honored as a loyal and public-spirited citizen and where he has served for the past four years as a member of the village board of trustees. He is a Republican in politics and he and his wife are active members of the United Brethren church, Mrs. Nicewonger being also a member of the wartime organization of the Red Cross in the city of Beatrice.

April 12, 1893, Mr. Nicewonger wedded Miss Alta Robinson, who was born in Piatt county, Illinois, a daughter of Isaac and Isabel (Watson) Robinson, natives respectively of Ohio and Illinois. From Illinois Mr. and Mrs. Robinsori removed to Missouri and from the latter state they came to Gage county in 1891, establishing their hofne at Pickrell, Mr. Robinson having been about seventy-four years of age at the time of his death and his, venerable widow being now a resident of the city of Beatrice. Of their three children [ Mrs. Nicewonger was the second in order of birth ; Ernest is a resident of northwestern Canada and Carl is engaged in the teaming business at Beatrice. No children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Nicewonger, but they greatly enjoy extending the hospitality of their pleasant home to the young folk of the community, as well as to their many friends of their own generation.

I.EWIS M. WARFORD. - In attempting to preserve the life records of the men of Gage county who have contributed to the welfare of the community in which they lived, mention should b,e made of Lewis M. Warford. In his passing from earthly activities, on the 1st of May, 1908, his family lost a loving husband and father and his neighbors a loyal citizen and good friend.

Mr. Warford was born near Toledo, Ohio, October 8, 1849, and was a boy when his parents removed to Red Oak, Iowa. Here he was reared on a fann and attended the public schools. He engaged in farming pursuits and as a youth went to Andrew county, Missouri, where he remained until 1885, when he came to Gage county. In 1892 he purchased land in Section 10, Rockford township, whicii was his home until his death.

Mr. Warford was united in marriage, August 20, 1868, to Miss Sarah E. Dobbs, a daughter of Russell E. and Cynthia (Hurst) Dobbs. Mrs. Warford was bom in Andrew county, Missouri, May 22, 1851, and is a cousin of Hugh J. Dobbs, the author of this history of Gage county.

Mr. and Mrs. Warford became the parents of six children: Clarence T. of Curtis, Nebraska; Sylvester P. of Lincoln, Nebraska; Fletcher L., of Chappell, this state; May, the wife of EeRoy Brugh, of Midland township ; Eunice, the wife of Milo Brugh, of Beatrice; and one who died in infancy.

Mrs. Sarah E. (Dobbs) Warford still resides on the home farm in Rockford township and owns also a farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Cheyenne county, Kansas. She has long been an earnest member of the Christian church, and still retains affiliation with the church of this denomination in Andrew county, Missouri, the place of her birth. Her husband was a Republican in politics.

BENJAMIN C. ALBERT. - Farm industry in Gage county has many successful exponents who can claim the county as the place of their nativity, and of this number Benjamin C. Albert is one. He is giving his energetic and effective activities to the management of a fine farm of one hundred and sixty acres which he rents from his father, in Clatonia township, and on other pages of this volume is given an interesting review of the career of his father, Henry Albert, so that a repetition of the family data is not demanded in this connection.

Mr. Albert was born on the old homestead farm, in Clatonia township, August 16, 1880, and after having duly profited by the advantages of the public schools of the locality he completed a course in the Beatrice Business College, in which he was graduated as a member of the class of 1901. For one year thereafter he held the position of bookkeeper in the office of the Duluth Van & Transfer Company, in the city of Duluth, Minnesota, but his absence did not cause him to abate his appreciation of the attractions and advantages of his native state and county, as evidenced in his having returned to Gage county in 1903 and having initiated independent enterprise as an. agriculturist and stock-grower on his present farm. His success offers the best voucher for his ability and progressive policies in connection with farm enterprise and in his home county his circle of friends is limited only by that of his acquaintances. He is one of the stockholders in the farmers' co-operative grain elevator at Clatonia, he is independent in politics, and he is known as a liberal and public-spirited citizen.

On the 11th of October, 1909, Mr. Albert wedded Aliss Leona Gielday, of Lawton, Oklahoma. She was bom in Lincoln, Nebraska, and is a daughter of Joseph and Irene (Rutherford) Gielday, who were bom in Germany, Mr. Gielday having come to Nebraska and having thereafter served a number of years as a locomotive engineer on the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad. He filed entry on a timber claim in Red Willow county, this state, and there he died as the result of injuries received while in railway service, his widow being now a resident of Torrington, Laramie county, Wyoming. Mr. and Mrs. Albert have two children - Donald Henry and Morris Byron.

POPE FRERICHS is a member of one of the well known families long identified with farm industrj' and civic advancement in Gage county, and he is well upholding the prestige of the name which he bears, as he is a progressive and successful agriculturist and stockgrower, with operations staged on a farm of one hundred and sixty acres belonging to his father, in Section 14, Logan township. Of the family history due record is made on other pages of this work, in the sketch dedicated to L. W. Frerichs, father of him whose name introduces this paragraph.

Illinois, August 30, 1875, and was six years old at the time when the family home was established in Gage county. Here he was reared on his father's farm and gained his youthful education in the district schools. He has been engaged in independent farm enterprise since he was eighteen years of age and his farm is improved with good buildings. He utilizes also an adjoining tract of eighty acres, which he owns.

In politics Mr. Frerich is aligned in the ranks of the Democratic party and the popular estimate placed upon his character and ability was shown in his having been called ujx)n to serve in the office of township clerk, of which position he was the incumbent seven years. Both he and his wife are active members of the Lutheran church.

In 1900 Mr. Frerichs married Miss Matilda Zimmerman, daughter of Tamme Zimmerman, who is individually mentioned on other pages. They have no children.

CURTIS O. MARTIN. - In Section 26, Nemaha township, resides Curtis O. Martin, who is one of Gage county's most prosperous farmers and who is the owner of six hundred acres of land in the county, all well improved. Mr. Martin was born December 12, 1868, in Marshall county, Indiana, a son of Jacob and Sarah E. (Groves) Martin.

Jacob Martin, father of our subject, was a native of Ohio. He was born April 5, 1846. He received his early education in the public schools of his native state and as a young man he followed farming in that state. When the Civil war broke out Mr. Martin enlisted in the Indiana Volunteer Infantry and served for some time. After his term of service in the Union army he returned to Indiana and farmed until 1872, when he came with his family to Gage county, Nebraska. They came by train to Nebraska City and thenCe drove to a point one-half mile north of the town of Adams, Nebraska, where Jacob Martin rented what was known as the Stephen Disher farm. The same year he bought eighty acres in Section 14, Nemaha township, where he remained the balance of his life. Mr. Martin was a very successful farmer, and from time to tirrte bought additional land until at the time of his death he was the owner of one thousand acres of good agricultural land. He passed away September 28, 1910. His wife was born in Indiana January 4, 1845, and died September 3, 1907. Mr. and Mrs. Martin were the parents of two children - Curtis O., the subject of this review; and Harry I., who resides in Sheridan, Wyoming.

Curtis O. Martin received his education in the district schools of Nemaha township, Gage county, and assisted his father on the farm. Upon the death of his father he inherited six hundred acres of the estate. This he has greatly improved and he now owns one of the most valuable and well improved farm properties in the township. In politics Mr. Martin is a Republican, and he is now serving as township clerk and as treasurer of the district school board.

On March 2, 1904, was recorded the marriage of Curtis O. Martin and Miss Mae Culp, a native of Ohio and daughter of Andrew J. and Sophia (Maddox) Culp, who also were natives of Ohio. The Culp family came to Nebraska in 1888, and settled in Lancester county. Later they moved to Gage county. Mr. Culp passed away on April 13, 1915, and his widow now makes her home in l4ncoln, Nebraska. Mr. and Mrs. Martin are the parents of eight children, as follows: Thelma, Orville, Irene, Bethel, Kenneth, Harold, Keith, and Glenn all at home.

RALPH G. ELLIS has proved himself the possessor of those qualities of manhood which have enabled him to become one of the useful young farmers of Midland township. He is a native of Illinois, born in Woodford county, that state, in 1883. He is a son of Thomas and Laura J. (Billinger) Ellis, a record of whom is to be found on another page of this history.

Ralph G. Ellis was nine years old when he came with his parents to Gage county. His boyhood days were spent on the farm, where he received instructions from his father as to best methods of planting and caring for crops.

He attended the public schools and also took a complete course at Beatrice Business College. On February 23, 1905, Mr. Ellis married Miss Lillian F. Wilson, a daughter of Robert and Mary (Reed) Wilson, a record of whom appears elsewhere in this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Ellis have three children : Francis, Howard B., and Marion W.

Mr. Ellis is the owner of one hundred and sixty acres of valuable land, is engaged in general farming and is meeting with success in his undertakings. He and his wife are members of the Baptist church and in politics he is a Republican.

WILLIAM F. CRANGLE. - At this time, during the greatest conflict the world has ever known, we honor more and more the remaining members of the famous old guard that saved our Union in the '60s. These men, who were then in the flush of their young manhood, and who fought to preserve the integrity of the nation, are to-day well past the three-score years arid ten, but their hearts still beat with ardent loyalty and patriotism as they see the young men of the present generation responding to their country's call. Mr. Crangle served all through the Civil war and made a record that shall ever reflect honor upon his name. He enlisted as a private in Company A, Forty-second Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and ere he was mustered out, in 1864, he had been promoted to the rank of corporal. He immediately re-enlisted in the Sixth Regiment United States Veteran Volunteers, in which he attained the rank of seargent and with which he served during the closing period of the war. He received his honorable discharge August 6, 1866.

After these years spent in his country's service, Mr. Crangle returned to Illinois, where he tilled the soil until 1873, when he received from the government a homestead in Adams county, Nebraska, near the little town of Glenville. He spent a few years of hard pioneer life there and then returned to Illinois, but in March, 1883, he came again to the fertile land of Nebraska, this time locating in Gage county. He purchased three hundred and twenty acres of land in Sections 23 and 25 Rockford township. This place was his home until he gave up active farming and retired, in 1905, to Beatrice, the county seat, in which city he now makes his home.

Mr. Crangle is a native of Saxony, Germany, where he was born October 2, 1841, and he came to this country with his mother and step-father, Levi Ehrlich, in 1853. Mr. and Mrs. Ehrlich settled in Henry county, Illinois, where they passed the remainder of their lives. Mrs. Ehrlich died at the age of fortyeight years and her husband was sixty years . of age at the time of his death.

The marriage of William Crangle and Mrs. Abby J. Sears, widow of Allen Sears, formerly of Wisconsin, was solemnized March 3, 1870. To this union were born six children: Lora E. is the wife of J. H. McKinney, of Springfield, Arkansas; Schuyler C. lives at Mankato, Kansas; Fred N. is a resident of Blue Springs, Gage county; Aurelia A. is the wife of J. B. Graves, of Ogden, Utah; Mina is deceased; and Chester is a resident of Ogden, Utah. Mrs. Crangle passed to the life eternal November 11, 1891.

August 25, 1893, recorded the marriage of Mr. Crangle to Miss Anna Rothrock, daughter of George and Catherine (Warwick) Rothrock, natives of Indiana. This union has been blessed with three children, Lila E., Bertha A., and Neta N., all of whom are with their parents, in Beatrice.

Politically Mr. Crangle votes the Republican ticket and is a member of the Grand Army Republic, Rawlins Post, No. 35 at Beatrice. He is a member of the Baptist church.

FRED H. BARNES. - The men who are the sons of pioneers look with pride upon their ancestry, and it is well that they do, as all of the progress of the world has been stimulated by the pioneers - be they pioneers of a country or industry or principle. Fred Hall Barnes, whose life review we are scanning, is .the sou of Francis M. and Mary Jane (Dripps) Barnes. Francis Barnes was born May 1, 1833, in the city of .Baltimore, Maryland, and in 1842 he was taken to the city of St. Louis

Francis M. Barnes attended the St. Louis public schools and laid the foundation upon which he built the structure of his life and principles. In 1854 he went to Kansas City, where he engaged in the transfer business, and in 1858 he came to Richardson county, Nebraska. Thereafter he was engaged in freighting from the Missouri river to the mountains until 1870, when he removed his home and family and settled at what is now the town of Barneston, which was named in his honor. Upon his arrival upon the Otoe Indian reservation lands he forthwith became aware of the fact that there were more redskins than "pale-faces" and had soon established a trading post to barter with the Indians . for the things which they had in exchange for the beads and clothing which the white. man had. He developed a prosperous mercantile and live-stock" business.

November 16, 1856, in Kansas City, Missouri, was solemnized the marriage of Francis Barnes and Miss Mary Jane Dripps, who was born at Bellevue, Nebraska, November 15. 1827, the daughter of Major Andrew and Mary Dripps, the latter having been an Otoe Indian woman. Major and Mrs. Andrew Dripps moved to Missouri and purchased land which to-day is the site of the modern city of Kansas City. Mr. Dripps was associated with the men who banded themselves into a corporation to plat the land of his farm into lots and sell to the people who were rushing to the west. Mr. Dripps realized that this was a strategic point on the Missouri river for a thriving city, but it is possible to believe that he never had any Utopian ideas of Kansas City as it is to-day. Mrs. Mary Jane Barnes is now past ninety years old and has the distinction of being the oldest Uving person born on Nebraska soil. Her home is made in Barneston, from which her companion passed away August 18, 1916, after sixty-one years of happy companionship. They were the parents of the following children : Gertrude died at the age of twelve years ; William is living retired at Guthrie, Oklahoma; Charles G. is retired and lives at Red Rock, Oklahoma ; Emmett F. is a farmer near Ponca City, Oklahoma; Katie is the wife of Lymond Dickie, Ottawa, Kansas ; and Fred Hall Barnes is the subject of this review. Of the parents further mention is made in the historical department of this volume - specially in connection with the record of Barneston.

As intimated above, Francis M. Barnes was honored by the little city of Barneston being named in commemoration of himself. For many long years he was allied with all of the civic, religious, and social life of his community and was instrumental in giving his support to many worthy causes. He was a charter member of the first lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows organized in Kansas City and he was also an honored member of the Masonic fraternity.

Fred Hall Barnes, the son of this illustrious couple who allied themselves with so many of the first things of our western country's history, was born near St. Deroin, in Richardson county, Nebraska, July 2, 1868, and came with his parents to Gage county in 1870. He has grown up with the country and is familiar with all of the varying changes which have come during his life. The education which he received in the Barneston schools was supplemented by study at St. Benedict's College at Atchison, Kansas, and the Blake Private School at Beatrice. From the years 1892 to 1898 he was connected with the bank at Barneston, first as bookkeeper and finally as president of the institution. He severed his connections with this business in 1898. He and his venerable mother have about four hundred acres of land in Barneston and Liberty townships and this is rented.

The political sentiments of Mr. Barnes are in harmony with the principles of the Republican party. He was once elected town treasurer, but did not accept the position. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, including the chapter of Royal Arch Masons, and also is identified with the Ancient Order of United Workmen.

MICHAEL KRUEGER. - The story of a nation is indissolubly linked with and made up of the individual stories of the men who make up the composite whole. Likewise the history of one nation is linked with the history of another. The United States has been the haven of the poor and the oppressed, either religiously or economically, from the Old World. The Old World countries have been settled so long and their farming land cultivated so intensively that there are no great opportunities for advancement for the individual person, such as the United States affords. That many men have attested to this is seen in the fact that millions of immigrants flock to our shores.

The German immigrant is agriculturally inclined and does his work in a highly productive manner. One of these men who came here to secure a livelihood such as his native land could not give, was the late Michael Krueger. His birth date was October 3, 1853, and he was bom in Stettin, Germany, where the first seventeen years of his life were spent. In 1870 his parents and their children left their native land and located in Michigan City, Indiana, where they lived until coming to Nemaha township. Gage county, Nebraska.

In Michigan City Michael Krueger worked in the car shops, then he removed to Sycamore, Indiana, where he was employed by a harvester company. But he was not content to work as a laborer, nor were his brothers, so they decided to come to Nebraska and buy the wild lands and go to farming. Consequently, the year 1876 found the Krueger family on their way to Gage county, Nebraska. The land in Section 9, Nemaha township, was se^ lected after many days of looking over the lands and their respective advantages throughout the country. They paid nine dollars an acre for the land and the three brothers, Gottlieb, August, and Michael, decided to farm the land in partnership. Their father and mother also settled on this section, but the father was not able to farm, as he had lost his left leg.

The one-room shanty was soon built and they had to prepare for the breaking of the land. Michael Krueger and his brother August went on foot to Kansas City, Missouri, to purchase a team of horses. They slept wherever night overtook them. In a haystack or strawstack was the best shelter from the wind and cold. Their journey home was not so long or tedious, as they were able to ride horseback.

The parents of Michael Krueger virere August and Dorothy (Doring) Krueger. They were both born in Germany and spent their latter years on their farm in Nemaha township. August Krueger was bom April 10, 1812, and died in 1890. His wife was bom October 3, 1814, and died February 22, 1886. They were the parents of the following children : William is deceased ; Gottfried married a sister of Mrs. Michael Krueger, and she lives in Nemaha township; Mrs. Mary Amdt .resides at Michigan City, Indiana; Mrs. Minnie Hanson lives in Orange, CaHfornia; Michael, with whom this sketch deals, is deceased; August is living at Firth, Nebraska.

In 1882 Michael Krueger married Miss Marie Ruter, and eight children were born to this union: William is living at Sidney, Nebraska; Carl resides in Nemaha township. Gage county; John resides in Section 5, Nemaha township; Anna is the wife of R. Wilcox, of Nemaha township; Michael remains in Nemaha township ; Maggie is at the maternal home ; Fred is running the home farm for his mother; and Katherine is likewise at home.

The mother of this interesting family was born in Westphalia, Germany, October 22, 1859. In 1881 she came to the United States in company with her sister, Mrs. Pape. They came to Gage county, where, in 1882, she married Mr. Krueger. Her parents remained in their native land and after her mother's death her father, William Ruter, came to Nemaha township, in 1885. Here he remained until his death, in 1911. He was born in 1820 and was an old man upon his arrival in this country but lived to be ninety-one years old. He had a family of seven children, three of whom are in Nemaha township - Mrs. H. Pape, Mrs. Michael Krueger, and Mrs. Gottfried Krueger.

Mrs. Michael Krueger is a very energetic woman and very businesslike. Her youngest son, Fred, is running the farm for her, and keeps good grade of cattle and hogs. In 1916 Mrs. Krueger built a large bam, fifty by fiftytwo feet in dimensions, and in this way they are able to accommodate a large number of cattle and to store their hay.

Mr. and Mrs. Krueger early professed the faith of the Lutheran church, of which they became communicants. They labored hard in this land of their adoption and at the time of Mr. Krueger's death he owned eight hundred acres of land, which has been divided among the children.

WILLIAM M. KERK is a prosperous farmer in Nemaha township who came to Gage county when a mere lad, and who has become the owner of five hundred and twenty acres of well improved land.

Youth is well said to be the springtime of life. It is then that the blood runs warm in the veins, when obstacles are met with the fresh courage that is ready to conquer them. If it were not for the youth in the world there would be no progress, and no new lands opened up, as middle age is content to remain in one place and condition.

William Kerk was bom in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, December 16, 1865, and is the son of John K. and Sarah (Fowler) Kerk. John Kerk was a farmer and bird-cage maker. Philadelphia, the city which was founded by William Penn, was the birthplace and abiding place of John Kerk until 1877, when he went with his family to southern Texas, where he expected to farm. But death intervened and his life was snuffed out, in August, 1877, shortly after his arrival in Texas. He was born, in August, 1821, in Philadelphia, and was a son of a German immigrant who had come to this country in the early part of the nineteenth century. His wife, Sarah A. (Fowler) Kerk, was bom November 10, 1837, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After her husband's death, in Texas, she took her family of nine children and returned to Philadelphia. She lived to see her family as grown men and women in homes of their own, then she was called up higher. Her death occurred the morning after the sinking of the Maine in Havana harbor, in 1898. Her parents were emigrants from the Emerald Isle.

William Kerk was a lad of eleven years when the big adventure of going to Texas was laid. This ended unhappily, but the lad William had imbibed the wanderlust and was no more content to stay in prosaic Philadelphia. In 1882, when only seventeen years of age, he came to Gage county, Nebraska, and for a number of years he worked as a farm laborer in the vicinity of Cortland. Many a day has he shucked corn on the treeless prairie when the snow was knee-deep - and this for the munificent sum of two and one-half cents a bushel. He also remembers the herds of sheep he cared for on the wild prairie for Frank Plolt, in whose honor Holt township was named.

In 1887 Mr. Kerk rented land in Nemaha township, north of Pickrell, and he farmed this land for three years, saving enough money to buy land for himself. He purchased his first land in Lancaster county, Nebraska, near Hickman. It was wild, uncultivated land and had no improvements on it. He had to build his own house, a shelter for his cattle and start the long, tedious task of turning wild land into broad, productive acres. This he accomplished, and for twenty-two years he lived on this farm. In 1912 he sold this farm and purchased his present farm, in Nemaha township. Gage county. He has made improvements on the land to make it more comfortable and useful for his work. In 1917 he purchased two hundred acres of land from Z. S. Branson, making five hundred and twenty acres of land that he is farming.

The marriage of William Kerk and. Louisa C. Koontz was solemnized March 2, 1888. Mrs. Kerk was born July 22, 1868, in Galena, Illinois. Her parents, Frank and Julia (Beal) Koontz, came to Lancaster county, Nebraska, in 1867 and homesteaded. They were associated with all of the early endeavors of development, taking an active interest in all things for the upbuilding of a great agricul- tural county. When the first railroad was built into Lincoln, Mr. Koontz helped in its construction. This railroad was the Burlington, and it still continues its way into Lincoln, Nebraska. Mr. and Mrs. Koontz, who are now both deceased, were the parents of nine children. Louisa Koontz was born and educated in Lancaster county and has been a devoted helpmeet to her husband, aiding him in all of the ways in which a good woman knows how to assist. One child, Irene, bom in 1911, is the light of their home.

Mr. Kerk is a breeder of Hereford cattle, beginning his herd of thoroughbred stock in 1916. His farm is very advantageously situated, so that he is able to feed many cattle for the market. He has a spring of running water where the cattle can get pure, fresh water at all times of the year. This spring has been visited by the farmers during the drouths in years past, when their own wells refused to give water for their cattle.

In politics, Mr. Kerk is an independent thinker, but he feels that Democratic principles are the truest. He is a man who, when a mere lad, grasped the opportunity of his day and has worked faithfully to overcome the obstacles which came in his way.

THOMAS S. ELLIS. - In the death of Thomas S. Ellis, which occurred in Beatrice, May 7, 1915, Gage county lost one of its representative citizens and extensive land-owners. A native of New Jersey, he was born in Somerset county, and when four years old he was taken by his parents to Illinois, where he received a common-school and college education and became a farmer. He attended college at Naples, Illinois.

On June 5, 1874, Mr. Ellis was united in marriage to Miss Laura J. Billinger, a daughter of William and Sarah (McManus) Billinger. In 1892 he came to Gage county, Nebraska, and purchased land in Section 18, Midland township. He was successfully engaged in farming until his death. He prospered, and added to his land holdings, being the owner of four hundred and eighty acres. His parents were John and Mary Ellis, who came to Gage county in 1890, and the father passed away, at Beatrice, in December of that year, the mother's death occurring in December, 1891.

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas S. Ellis became the parents of three children: John T. is a successful farmer in this county ; Ralph G. is a farmer in Midland township; and Mary E. resides in Beatrice.

Mrs. Ellis makes her home in Beatrice, at 822 North Eleventh street. She is a member of the Christian church. Mr. Ellis was a Republican in politics and he devoted all of his active life to farm enterprise.

William and Sarah (McManus) Billinger, parents of Mrs. Ellis, were united in marriage in the year 1841. He was bom at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, April 1, 1819, and his death occurred April 9, 1911. His wife was bom in Butler county, Ohio, October 1, 1819. After their marriage they removed to Illinois, the journey being made with a team and covered wagon. They settled in McLean county, that state, where Mr. Billinger was engaged in farming for some time. Removal was then made to Woodford county, IlHnois, where he became a prosperous farmer and honored citizen. He and his wife were members of the Presbyterian church. Of their ten children six are living in 1918.

ARTHUR C. SONDEREGGER, of Beatrice, Nebraska, was born in Jefiferson county, this state, on the 23d of October, 1888, and is a son of Carl Sonderegger, of whom mention is made on other pages of this volume.

Arthur C. Sonderegger received his early education in the public schools of Jefferson county and later went with his brother Ernest to Europe, where they studied for two years, taking a special course in German and studying the nursery and seed business in Germany and Switzerland. Upon returning to the United States Mr. Sonderegger became associated with his father and brothers in the nursery and seed business in Beatrice, where they own and conduct the Sonderegger Nursery and Seed House, one of the largest of its kind in this part of the country.

On October 20, 1915, Mr. Sonderegger was united in marriage to Miss Ruth Atwater, of Beatrice, she being a daughter of William Atwater, who is engaged in the house-moving business in that city. Mr. and Mrs. Sonderegger are the parents of one child, Phyllis. Mrs. Sonderegger is a member of the Presbyterian church and her husband of the Christian church. They are very highly respected in the community in which they live, and are numbered among the influential families in this part of the state.

HENRY JURGENS is the owner of a valuable farm property of eight hundred acres in Gage county and the same represents the tangible results of his own ability and energy as applied to agricultural and live-stock industry, for when he established his residence in the county his financial resources were notable only for their absence and at first he found employment at farm work. Such a story of success and advancement as has marked his career in Nebraska is a matter for general as well as individual satisfaction and pride. The fine homestead place of Mr. Jurgens is situated in Section 11, Logan township. He was born in Hanover, Germany, January 20, 1859, and is a son of T. H. and Annie (Duitsman) Jurgens, who were numbered among the pioneer settlers of Gage county, where the father became a prosperous farmer and where he still resides, at the venerable age of eighty-four years (1918), his wife having passed to eternal rest several years ago. Of their five children four are living. Mr. Jurgens is a Republican in politics and is an earnest member of the Lutheran church, as was also his wife.

Henry Jurgens acquired his early education in the schools of his native land and has been a resident of Gage county since 1881. For three years he was here employed at farm work by the month, and for the ensuing five years he farmed on rented land. He then purchased one hundred and sixty acres, on which he was able to make partial payment, . and with increasing prosperity he continued to buy more land until he now has one of the large and valuable farm properties of the county. On his homestead place he has erected excellent buildings, including the spacious and attractive house, which he built in the year 1890. His estate is situated in Logan, Hooker, and Nemaha townships. Mr. Jurgens is essentially liberal and public-spirited as a citizen, is an independent Republican in politics, and both he and his wife are zealous communicants of the Hanover German Lutheran church, he having been a member of the building committee that had in charge the erection of the present fine church edifice.

In 1884 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Jurgens to Miss Mary Kruse, who had come to this county in the preceding year. She was bom and reared in Germany and is a daughter of Martin Kruse, who there passed his entire life. In conclusion is given brief record concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. Jurgens : Thea has active charge of his father's farm in Hooker township; Rena is the wife of John Ideus, of Logan township; Annie is the wife of Thomas Schuster, of Logan township; Theada is the wife of Christ Meints and they reside on her father's farm in Nemaha township; Martin remains at the parental home; Fannie is the wife of George Paben, of Logan township; and Grace and Henry are the younger members of the parental home circle.

JOHN J. CLANCY is a farmer owning one hundred and sixty acres of land in Section IS, Elm township. He is of Irish parentage, his parents coming from Ireland. America has ever received of the best blood of the Old World and Ireland has given of her sons as liberally as the rest.

John J. Clancy was bom in Mason county, Illinois, July 31, 1863, and is a son of John and Catherine (Devin) Clancy. John Clancy, Sr., was born in County Water ford, Ireland, in 1831 and when twenty-two years of age he started to seek his fortune in the New World, arriving in Illinois in 1853. Before farming for himself he served his apprenticeship as a farm employe. His wife, Catherine (Devin) Clancy, came from the Emerald Isle when a young lassie and settled with her parents in Peoria, Illinois. After her marriage to John Clancy she remained his faithful companion until his death, which occurred in 1896, and she then came to Beatrice, Nebraska, spending the remainder of her days with her son John. She was born in 1821 and died in 1901. Mr. and Mrs. Clancy were members of the Catholic church. Of the three children born to them, only John J., the subject of this review, survives.

John J. Clancy was born on the home farm in Illinois, received his early education in the rural schools and as a youth assisted his father on the farm. In 1888 he came to Gage county, Nebraska, settling in Elm township, where he . rented his present farm of one hundred and sixty acres for twenty-five years. He purchased this land, from the Schock estate, in 1914. He has made improvements on the farm, erected a large, modem barn and has otherwise made many other provisions to make his work more efficient.

February 16, 1890, John J. Clancy took Miss Ella Hood as his wife. She was born in Mason county, Illinois, and is a daughter of Martin and Ellen (Horan) Hood. Her parents were both bom in Ireland. Her father, Martin Hood, was bom in 1829, in County Galloway, Ireland. He farmed in Illinois previously to his coming to Elm township. Gage county, in 1884. He spent his later years in Beatrice, where he died, in 1912, aged eighty-three years. His wife, Ellen (Horan) Hood, was born near Aughrim, County Galloway, Ireland, in 1835, and she died in .1893. They were devout, God-fearing, industrious people of the Catholic faith.

Mrs. Clancy was educated in the high school of Creston, Iowa, and the Business College of Beatrice, Nebraska. For six years prior to her marriage she taught school in Gage and Jefferson counties.

Mr. Clancy is shareholder of the Farmers' Elevator Company at Diller, Nebraska. Outside of this his interests have centered in his home and farm. He and his wife are communicants of the Catholic church, and he votes the Democratic ticket. He is a successful farmer and a valued member of his community.

FRANK J. HUBKA, a progressive farmer living in Elm township, is a native of Nebraska. He was born in Pawnee county, and is a son of Bohemian parents, who came to the United States and settled in Pawnee county in the very earliest days for the settling of Nebraska. These parents, Albert and Mary (Kovanda) Hubka, are mentioned elsewhere in this volume.

Frank J. Hubka was bom December 28, 1869, in Pawnee county, and received the education of the district schools. His early years,, up- to his marriage, were spent with his father in the tilling of the soil. In 1892 he rented land from his father, and by dint of hard labor and sacrifice he was eventually able to purchase land for himself. This was his present four hundred and eighty acres of land in Elm township. Gage county. At the time^ of this purchase he went into debt for seven thousand dollars, but he knew what Nebraska land was and knew that in a very short while he would be able to cancel his indebtedness. He stocked his farm with the well known Hereford cows and from every dollar's worth of corn that he fed them he realized a good profit. In this way he has been able to meet his obligation and to broaden out his estate to include one hundred and sixty acres of land in Section 15, Elm township. On this broad acreage Mr. Hubka is enabled to feed many cattle for market every year.

On the 13th day of Febraary, 1892, Frank J. Hubka married Anna Vavruska, who has shared with him, in his work and civic activities, as well as all of his hardships and joys. Three children have come to bless their marriage: Emily is the wife of John S. Bures, living in Elm township; Rudolph is at home; and Albert is attending business college at York, Nebraska, in 1918.

1871, in Marshall county, Kansas, near Marysville, the county seat. Her parents, John and Katharine (Janacek) Vavruska, were natives of Bohemia, joining a great migration of their people to this section of the country. They were farmers, but are now retired, living in Wilber, Nebraska.

Mr. Hubka has taken more than a casual interest in his township. While he is kept very busy in the managing of his farm he is able to devote a portion of his time to the interests of the township at large. Upon his arrival in the township he was made a director of the school board of his district and he has filled that position all of these years. He at one time was the township clerk and for the past four years has served as township treasurer. He is independent in politics, voting for the right man for the place rather than the party's man.

GEORGE W. STEINMEYER. - A native son of Gage county who is making good use of his opportunities and who is contributing in no small way to the development of the natural resources of this great state is George W. Steinmeyer. He was born in Clatonia township, December 29, 1877, a son of John H. Steinmeyer, of whom mention is made on other pages of this volume. He was reared on the farm, his early education being supplemented by attendance at Wesleyan University, at Lincoln. On returning from school he became assistant cashier of the Farmers & Merchants Bank at De Witt. In 1905 he organized and became cashier of the State Bank of Holmesville, continuing in that position until 1911. In 1910 he became associated with others in erecting and equipping the hydroelectric plant at Holmsville, which furnishes electricity to Wymore, Blue Springs, and Beatrice. This concern has been under his supervision since it was established. This enterprise is of inestimable value to the communities which it serves and the promoter, Mr. Steinmeyer, deserves much credit.

Mr. Steinmeyer represented his county in the state legislature in 1915 and is a staunch Republican. Fraternally he belongs to the Ancient Free & Accepted Masons, and the Benevolent & Protective Order of Elks.

FRANK F. PARE. - One of Gage county's prosperous tenant farmers is Frank F. Pape, residing on Section 7, Nemaha township, where he farms two hundred and forty acres of land. Mr. Pape was born February 16, 1883, in Gage county, Nebraska, and is a son of Henry and Charlotte (Rueter) Pape. He was the eldest of three children, his sister Lena, wife of William Hasenohr, living near Beatrice, and his brother, Charles, being at home with his parents. Henry Pape, the father of our subject, was born November 24, 1850, in Prussia, Germany, and is a son of Henry and Charlotte (Buschman) Pape. Henry Pape was a farmer, and miner in his native land until 1880, when he immigrated to America, and settled in Gage county, Nebraska, where he purchased eighty acres of railroad land, for which he paid ten dollars an acre. He had but little money and the purchase of this land put him pretty badly in debt, but by hard work and strict economy he was finally able to clear off the encumbrance, and from time to time he has bought additional farm land until at the present time he is the owner of three hundred and thirty-three acres of good agricultural land. Mr. Pape is also a stockholder in the Farmers Cooperative Association of Cortland, Nebraska. He made extensive improvements on his farms and in 1914 he retired. By a previous marriage, in 1874, to Margaret Schafifer, a native of Germany, who died in 1880, Mr. Pape had three sons : Henry and William, of Nemaha township, and Fred, in the implement business at Pickrell, this county.

Frank S. Pape was educated in the district schools of Nemaha township, and assisted his father on the farm until he started farming on his own account. On December 25, 1913, Mr. Pape was united in marriage to Miss Marie L. Remmers, a native of Nemaha township. Gage county, and a daughter of John E.

Remmers, of whom a record will be found on other pages of this publication. Mr. and Mrs. Pape are members of the German Lutheran church, and in politics Mr. Pape is an independent voter.

HIRAM P. CROCKER. - In this semicentennial history of Nebraska and Gage county is is specially gratifying to accord merited recognition to the sterling and honored pioneer citizen whose name initiates this paragraph and who is now living virtually retired. Mr. Crocker came to Gage county first in 1874, and in that year he here secured a tract of unimproved land, but not until two years later did he here establish his home. His financial resources when he located in the county were summed up in twenty-five dollars, aside from the landed investment, and he thus lived up to the full tension of pioneer life during the period of reclaiming his land and bringing the same into effective cultivation. Further interest attaches to his career by reason' of the fact that he is a scion of an honored family that was founded in New England in the early colonial period of our national history.

The original American progenitors of the Crocker family were William and John Crocker, and the subject of this review is a lineal descendant of William Crocker. William and John set sail from the south of England for America in the year 1634, and the little vessel on which they took passage lost its way and was greatly delayed in the voyage across the Atlantic. The brothers established their residence in the historic Cape Cod district of Massachusetts, and the name has long been one of prominence and influence in that section of the old Bay state. William Crocker married and reared a large family of children. He became one of the extensive land owners on Cape Cod and history records that the first law suit tried in that district was that in which he successfully brought charge against a man for stealing certain property from him. The culprit was convicted and his penalty was being flogged, the verdict of the court being in the application of a designated number of lashes to the back of the malefactor. Samuel Crocker, a grandson of William, was a gallant soldier of the Continental lyine in the war of the Revolution, in which he served as colonel of a regiment of Massachusetts troops.

Hiram P. Crocker was born in Erie county. New York, on the 22d of July, 1839, and is a son of Oscar F. C. and Abigail (Weatherlow) Crocker, both of whom passed their entire lives in the old Empire state, where the former was born July 10, 1810, and the latter about the year 1815, her parents having been of German ancestry. Oscar F. C. Crocker learned in his youth the trade of tanner, but eventually he abandoned the work of his trade to turn his attention to agricultural pursuits. Of the family of two sons and two daughters Hiram P., of his review, is the eldest, and he remained at the parental home until he had attained to the age of thirteen years, when he became a member of the family circle of his maternal grandfather, in the same township. He remained with his grandfather seven years, and in the meanwhile continued to attend the common schools when opportunity afforded. This educational discipline was supplemented by a course of study in an academy at Yorkshire, Cattaraugus county. New York. After leaving the academy he was for three years employed by the month, by two of his maternal uncles, and he then assumed charge of his father's homestead farm.

On the 6th of October, 1864, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Crocker to Miss Ella L. Cheney, who was bom at Holland, Erie county. New York, March 20, 1846, a daughter of Joseph and Sylvia E. (Pickard) Cheney. Mr. Cheney was bom at Freedom, Cattaraugus county. New York, on the 28th of June, 1819, and his wife was bom in Springfield, Otsego county, that state, March 5, 1824. His death occurred June 9, 1884.

Soon after his marriage Mr. Crocker became actively associated with the management of the homestead farm of his father-in-law, and there he remained until 1869, when he removed to Warren county, Illinois. There he continued to be engaged in farming until the spring of 1874, when he came to the new state of Nebraska and, after a survey of different localities, decided in favor of Gage county, where he purchased six hundred and forty acres of land in Section 16, Filley township, the township having then been known by the name of Mud Creek. After securing this property Mr. Crocker returned to Illinois, but in the spring of 1876 he came with his family to Gage county, where he rented a partially improved farm, near Beatrice, until he could prepare his own land for cultivation and there erect a house and other necessary buildings. Within the first year Mr. Crocker broke one hundred and thirty acres of the virgin prairie soil of his farm, besides erecting a small house in the spring of 1877, at which time the family home was here established. With the passing years he made each successive season give forth bounties from his farm, and developed the place gradually until it is now one of the model farms of the county. In the winter of 1883-1884 he sold three hundred and twenty acres of the land, but he is still the owner of three hundred and twenty acres of finely improved farm land in Gage county. His character and ability have been so appreciated that he has been frequently importuned to become a candidate for local office of public trust, but he has declined to give favorable consideration to such overtures, though he has been an active and loyal supporter of the cause of the Republican party from the time when he cast his presidential vote, in support of Abraham Lincoln. He is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity, and his wife, who was his devoted companion and helpmeet for almost fifty years, was a zealous member of the Christian church, their gracious companionship having been severed when the loved wife and mother was summoned to .eternal rest, her death having occurred on the 30th of September, 1912. Mr. Crocker is now living retired and in his venerable years he resides in the home of his son Lloyd, at Beatrice, where he is accorded the fullest measure of filial solicitude. Of the three children the eldest, Frank resides upon and has charge of the old homestead farm; Lloyd is individually mentioned in an article immediately following this ; and Dr. Dorr Crocker is a representative physician and surgeon at Centralia, Washington.

LLOYD CROCKER. - In the foregoing context' has been given a succinct review of the career of Hiram P. Crocker, father of him whose name introduces this article, and thus it is unnecessary to give further recapitulation of the family history. Lloyd Crocker has been a resident of Gage county from the time of his birth and in addition to having the distinction of being a scion of one of the honored pioneer families of this favored section of the state he has also made for himself secure vantage-ground as one of the representative members of the bar of his native county, with a large and important practice, and with residence and professional headquarters in the city of Beatrice, the attractive capital and metropolis of the county.

On the old homestead farm in Filley township, this county, Mr. Crocker was bom on the 3d of December, 1879, and his boyhood and early youth were compassed by the invigorating influences of the home farm, the while he continued his studies in the public schools until he had completed the curriculum of the high school in the village of Filley. In pursuance of higher academic discipline he then entered Wesleyan University, at Lincoln, Nebraska, and in this institution he was graduated in 1902, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. In preparation for his chosen profession he then was matriculated in the law department of the University of Nebraska, and in 1906 he received from this university the degree of Bachelor of Laws, with virtually concomitant admission to the bar of his native state. In July of the following year Mr. Crocker formed a partnership with Samuel Killen, with whom he was associated in practice at Beatrice for the ensuing year. Since that time he has conducted an individual law practice, and has been concerned with much important litigation in the courts of this section of the state, with a record that marks him as one of the resourceful trial lawyers and able counselors at the bar of Gage county. As a staunch supporter of the cause of the Republican party Mr. Crocker was with the minority organization in Gage county the year he ran for county attorney, and thus normal political exigency compassed his defeat, as it did also on the two occasions when he was its candidate for county judge.

In 1906 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Crocker to Miss Maude Bowen, who was born in Pottawattamie county, Iowa, her father, Richard Bowen, a native of Wales, having become a prosperous farmer in Iowa, whence he eventually came to Gage county, Nebraska, where he was associated with the same fundamental industry until his death. Mr. and Mrs. Crocker have three children - Rachel, Arlo, and Eloise. The family is one of prominence and distinctive popularity in the social activities of Gage county and its attractive judicial center.

EILERT HARMS has, after years of tilling the soil and undergoing the privations necessary to own and operate the number of acres of land that he does, removed to Firth, Nebraska, and is successfully conducting a leading lumber business in this thriving town. The early years of Mr. Harms' life were spent in the crudest of surroundings and under the most simple conditions. A life of this kind always makes strong minds and bodies that are able to cope with the problems that confront men. Eilert Harms' parents were German immigrants who came to this land of opportunity in 1856. 'i'hey settled in Petersburg, Menard county, Illinois, remained there a few years and then started for the fertile lands of Missouri. They homesteaded land in Atchison county, where they remained the rest of their lives. Ten children were born to them. Eilert, with whom this sketch directly deals, and Mrs. Fannie Johnson, living in Franklin county, Nebraska, are the only ones who survive. The parents, John O. and Matilda (Rodemaker) Harms, were born in Germany. John O. was bom in 1825 and died in 1907: his wife was born in 1826 and died in

1906. They were industrious people, they reared a large family of children, and they labored to forward the march of civilization in Missouri.

Eilert Harms was born in Menard county, Illinois, shortly after his parents' arrival in this land of opportunity. As a lad he went with his parents to Atchison county, Missouri. There was very little opportunity for education in those early days. There were no schools in these new districts and even where one was built, the boys were given very little opportunity to attend. Mr. Harms thus received little education of the kind learned from books. He remained with his parents, learning the art of farming at his own father's home, and when he decided on a vocation for himself he was equipped with the knowledge necessary to become a successful farmer.

In 1881 Mr. Harms purchased land in Section 6, Adams township. Gage county, although he did not come to live on and improve his land until 1885. With a good, strong team of mules he made the journey and upon his arrival he built his shanty and bought the necessary implements for farming. When all this was done he had not money left to do any more. But his heart was young, his young wife was at his side to share his hardships and his joys, and they bravely set to work to win the wild lands to productivity. During all of the intervening years Mr. Harms has continued to increase his land holdings, until to-day he owns six hundred and forty acres of land, in Gage and Lanca^ster counties.

Eilert Harms was married in August, 1884, to Anna Hackman, who was born December 12, 1864, in Nemaha county, Nebraska. Her parents, who were of German birth, settled in Nemaha county when land values were low and when hard labor was required to gain the necessities of life. Mrs. Harms' father, Charles Hackman, was born in Germany and died in 1865, in Nemaha county, Nebraska. His widow, Louisa Hackman, lives near Filley. Gage county.

Three children have been bom to Mr. and Mrs. Harms : Lulu is the wife of A. Krueger, on the old home place in Adams townirrSTORY OF GAGE COUNTY, NEBRASKA ship; John E., who is in the lumber business at Firth, Lancaster county, married Miss Fannie Graff; Harry H., who resides in Lancaster county, married Miss Goldie Burchman.

These children have all received good educational advantages. Mr. and Mrs. Harms wanted their children to have the opportunities of education which they were not able to get in their own youth. After finishing their work in the district schools the sons and daughter were allowed to go to the high school. To do this properly and with the proper surroundings Mr. Harms moved to Firth, in 1907, and gave his children every chance for advancement. When he first came to Firth he did not devote himself to any work outside of the supervision of his farms until 1911, when he purchased the business of the Farmers' Lumber Company, which he is now successfully conducting with his son, John E. Mr. and Mrs. Harms are members of the Lutheran church, which receives liberally of their support. The principles of the Democratic party are upheld by the vote of Mr. Harms.

JOHN G. WIEBE. - Among the pioneer business men of Beatrice who have been called from earthly activities mention should be made of John G. Wiebe. He was- bom in Germany, January 16, 1835. He came to America in August, 1876, and after a short stay at Mount Pleasant, Iowa, he came to Beatrice, in 1877, and established himself in the lumber business. He conducted this enterprise until his death, which occurred January 20, 1911. The firm still retains the name of its founder.

In April, 1864, Mr. Wiebe was united in marriage to Miss Lisette Penner, a native of Germany, and a daughter of Andreas Penner, the Penner family coming to America at the same time Mr. Wiebe did : they were members of the Mennonite colony which came to this country on account of religious persecution.

John G. Wiebe was a good business man and a good citizen. His passing was a loss to his family and to the community. He was a devoted member of the Mennonite church and in poHtics was a Republican. His son Henr>' was born in Danzig, Germany, January 6, 1871. He was educated in the Beatrice public schools and entered the lumber business with his father. He and William Hamm are now the owners of the business conducted under the title of the J. G. Wiebe Lumber Company.

JOHN L. DAWSON. - When we hear the name of a famous general or a titled soldier our thoughts instantly revert to the inspiring scenes of the particular battlefield on which he distinguished himself as a commander; but the honored title expresses still more than the military prowess and skill of the bearer - it is a still broader term and marks the loyal devotion and dauntless courage of thousands of brave men without whose daring deeds the title could never have been won. A general may possess military genius, but if his commands do not fall on the ears of tried and true men, men of intrepid daring and unconquerable zeal, of devotion to cause and utter disregard of self, then his genius avails him naught. One of the bravest of the brave soldiers who helped maintain the honor of the famous generals during the Civil war, and forever placed a grateful country under obligations to him because of his zeal in her behalf, is the gentleman in whose honor we write this sketch. He has distinguished himself not only by his honorable and ardent career as a soldier but he has also proved himself in every sense a noble, patriotic, industrious, intelligent, and progressive citizen - one whose name deserves to be handed down in history.

Mr. Dawson was born on a farm in Stark county, Illinois, September 9, 1840. His parents were William and Amelia (Dorman) Dawson, the former of Irish descent and the latter a native of Maryland. They accompan- ied their respective parents to Ohio and there met and married. In 1836 they became pioneer settlers of Henry county, Illinois, and later moved to Stark county, where they spent the remainder of their lives. They crossed the Illinois river at Peoria when that place contained but one store, a blacksmith shop, and a few shanties. Here John L. Dawson was reared and when a young man he responded to his country's call and enlisted, July 6, 1862, as a private in Company E, One Hundred and Twelfth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. For three years he served with this regiment and he was mustered out of service at the expiration of his term of enlistment, at Greensboro, North Carolina, June 30, 1865. Some of the important conflicts in which he participated were the siege of Knoxville and the engagements at Camp Arthur, Resaca, Utah Charge, Franklin, and Nashville. After the last named engagement his regiment was sent to Alexandria, near Washington, where they camped until they were transferred to Fort Fisher. There they remained until the close of the war. He was a good soldier, always found at his post of duty, and when the war was over he returned to his father's home in Stark county, Illinois. In that county he engaged in farming and became the owner of one hundred and forty acres of land.

In 1888 Mr. Dawson came to Gage county, Nebraska, and purchased four hundred acres of land, in Wymore and Sicily townships. An orchard and a little shanty were the only improvements, but he set himself to building and improving, and for twenty-eight years he successfully carried on his agricultural pursuits. He then retired to Wymore, where he now resides in a beautiful home, surrounded by the necessities and luxuries which he justly deserves.

In Stark county, Illinois, on the 2d of February, 1871, Mr. Dawson was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Taylor, a native of England. She is a daughter of Jacob Taylor, whose record appears elsewhere in this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Dawson have become the parents of three children : William A., a furniture dealer of Wymore; Jacob S., a farmer of Sicily township; and Ethel, wife of Charles Rossiter, of Wymore.

The family attend the Methodist church, of which Mrs. Dawson is a member. In politics Mr. Dawson votes with the Republican party, which he considers to have always been the party of progress and reform. The lapel of his coat is adorned with the bronze emblem which signifies that the wearer not only served his country as a soldier but maintains association with his army comrades as a member of the Grand Army of the Republic. He belongs to Coleman Post, No. 115, of Wymore. Like many other defenders of the nation in the Civil war, Mr. Dawson has felt the effects of service. In his own words : "Six months at a stretch living on fat pork and hard tack did not do me any good." To those brave boys of 1861-1865 the nation owes a debt of gratitude that never can be paid. Mr. Dawson has been as loyal to duty and citizenship in days of peace as when he followed the stars and stripes on the battlefields of the South.

THOMAS VASEY, a successful farmer of Sicily township, is a native of England, who immigrated to this country with his parents in 1883 and he has since become one of the influential farmers and citizens of Gage county.

Thomas Vasey was born in Scarborough, England, January 9, 1857, and is a son of Thomas and Hannah (Dowsland) Vasey. Thomas Vasey, Sr., was born in England, November 23, 1822, and his wife, Hannah (Dowsland) Vasey, was likewise a native of England, where she was born October 17, 1822. They had become the parents of eight children ere they left their native land to cast in their fortunes with the people of the United States. In the spring of 1883 they took passage for our shores, and after their arrival they remained in Illinois for the summer months: in the fall they located in Gage county, Nebraska, where Thomas Vasey, Sr., rented land. September 13, 1888, the loved wife and mother passed to the life eternal, and July 11, 1894, Thomas Vasey, Sr., was laid to rest. Concerning their children the following brief record is consistently entered : William died in England; Jane died in Oklahoma ; George is a farmer of Alma, Nebraska ; Frank is a retired farmer residing in Beatrice, Gage county, Dowsland is a farmer in Liberty township, this county; Mary is the widow of David Akers and resides in Illinois; John is in the dairy business at Beatrice; Elizabeth is the wife of James Langdale, an employe of the Union Pacific Railroad, at Beatrice, and he has three sons in the war service in which the United States is taking prominent part; and Thornas is the immediate subject of this sketch.

Thomas Vasey received his education in the schools of England and attended the rural school of Holmesville for three months after his arrival in Gage county. April 6, 1897, he married Miss Cordelia Jones, who' was born in Wales and who is a daughter of George U. and Anna (Cooper) Jones. Mr. Jones was born in the Cymrian district of Wales, July 13, 1842, and his wife was born in Flint, Wales, the place of her nativity having been in Hope parish and the date of her birth July 29, 1842. Their marriage was solemnized at Chester, Wales, September 10, 1865, and in 1871 they came to the United States. Mr. Jones first located at Shenandoah, Schuylkill county, Pennsylvania, where he remained ten years. He then removed to Racine, Wisconsin, but about six months later he located in Ohio, where, as a carpenter and builder he found employment in connection with work on the state capitol, in the city of Columbus. He continued his activities as a contractor and builder until he came to Gage county, Nebraska, where he purchased land. He gradually added to his landed estate, by buying land near Wymore, and in this part of the county he passed the remainder of his life, his death having occurred November 13, 1906. Mr. Jones was a very well educated man and never ceased adding to his fund of knowledge by wide reading and keeping abreast of the times. In Wales, before he sailed for this country, he was contributing some of his original poetry and other writings to a local paper.

He served Gage county in the legislature from 1897 to 1901. His parents, Ellis and Jane Jones, were born in the town of Flint, Hope parish, and spent all of their lives in their native land. His wife, Anna (Cooper) Jones, is a daughter of Captain William Cooper, an Englishman, and Elizabeth (Davis) Cooper, who was of Welsh parentage. Mrs. Jones is still living and resides in the home of Mrs. Vasey.

No children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Vasey. Giving close attention to his farming interests, Mr. Vasey does a general farming business on eighty acres, which he purchased in 1909 the same being in Section 13, Sicily township. Mr. Vasey has served for the past six years as road overseer. His political views are in harmony with the tenets of the Republican party, which receives his vote. He is a member of the United Brethren church, while his wife is a member of the Presbyterian church.

ARTHUR T. TART. - The business success achieved by Arthur T. Tart, proprietor of the "All Night and All Day Garage," 112-14- 16-18 North Seventh street, Beatrice, is an illustration of what can be accomplished by the individual who grasps the opportunities of his day.

Mr. Tart was born August 9, 1873, in Kankakee, Illinois, and is a son of Stephen and Nettie (Hughes) Tart, of whose two children he is the firstborn ; the younger. Belle A., was born in 1874 and died in 1893.

Stephen Tart, father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Alburg, Vermont, December 6, 1839. He was a son of Peter and Roslia (Terrien) Tart. Peter Tart was descended from French ancestors who, in the early history of the New World, when both religious and economic oppression in the Old World forced so many to leave, came to Canada to live. After he had participated in the Revolutionary war in Canada Peter Tart came over into the United States. Suffering from a wound which he had received, he was captured, but later he made his escape. For years after the war he farmed in Vermont.

The latter part of his life was spent in Kankakee, Illinois, where, just before rounding out a century of years, he passed to his reward. He was ninety-nine years of age and his wife ninety-eight at the time of their death.

Stephen Tart, the father of Arthur T. Tart, received his early education in Bourbonnais, Illinois, a French settlement two miles north of Kankakee. In 1861, when Civil war rent our nation in twain, he responded to the call to arms. He was a member of Battery I, First Illinois Light Artillery, having enlisted at Chicago. In the battle of Shiloh he was wounded, but later he was able to again render active service in the preservation of the integrity of the nation.

After the war Stephen Tart engaged in the hotel business, which he successfully conducted. Politics soon absorbed a good deal of his time and attention. In 1889 he was elected county assessor and collector in Kankakee county, Illinois. He was a staunch Republican, faithfully voting that ticket. December 6, 1870, he married Miss Nettie Hughes, a daughter of Henry Hughes, at Joliet, Illinois. Mrs. Tart was born in New York city, in 1852. In 1901 Mr. Tart removed with his family to Beatrice, Nebraska, and here his death occurred in 1906. His wife survives him and is living with her son Arthur. Mrs. Tart is a member of the Episcopal church. She is a sister of Charles Hughes, in whose biography, on other pages, is given a full account of the Hughes family.

Arthur T. Tart was reared in Kankakee, Illinois, where he received his early education in the parochial schools. Later he supplemented this discipline by attending a private college in Bourbonnais, Illinois. When he was twenty years old he was a traveling salesman for a wholesale merchandise firm of Lynn, Massachusetts: this was in 1893. From 1898 to 1901 he was employed by the ^government, in the forest-reserve department.

As early as 1883 Mr. Tart had been to Beatrice, Nebraska, to visit his uncles, Charles and Edward Hughes. In 1901, when contemplating a change in his business life, he located at Beatrice, with his parents. At this time he was employed as a salesman for a firm in Kansas City, Missouri.

June 30, 1904, recorded the marriage of Arthur Tart to Miss Emily E. Floyd, of Goodland, Kansas. She was the mother of two children, Arthur F. H. and Henry S., who are at home with their father. Mrs. Tart's death occurred in 1910. Louise Floyd, the sister of Emily Floyd, both daughters of H. H. and Amanda (Mahan) Floyd, became the wife of Mr. Tart in 1915. She was born at Abilene, Kansas. One child, Emily Isabelle, has come to bless this union.

Arthur T. Tart has had long years of experience as a salesman, having traveled and sold goods in every state in the Union. His experience along this line made him see the fKJSsibilities of an all-night and all-day garage, and in August, 1916, he opened the first all-night garage in Beatrice, where his dream of success in this line of enterprise has been realized. He installed an all-night force and soon demonstrated the fact that night work was as important as day work. He has a large building, one hundred by one hundred and forty feet, fronting on North Seventh street. In this he is able to meet all the needs of his patrons as to storage, repairs, gasoline, accessories, etc. He carries a well stocked line of accessories and electrical goods.

Mr. Tart is an independent voter, exercising his franchise in support of the man and not the party. He is affiliated with the Modem Woodmen of America, the Elks, and United Commercial Travelers. He is a member of the Episcopalian church.

Mr. Tart is well known for his many excellent qualities, his genial disposition, and sound business principles. He saw the opportunity and grasped it, and he now has a well established business that is worthy of his time and talent.

JOSEPH LEGGETT. - The late Joseph Leggett was one of the gallant soldiers of the Union in the Civil war, was an early transcontinental freighter, was a successful farmer in Gage county, and was a valued citizen of his community. The story of the pioneers of the west is an interesting one, full of thrills, and marked by as many blood-curdling scenes as those depicted in any moving-picture play, so dear to the hearts of the "movie fans."

Mr. Eeggett, in his work as a freighter from Omaha to Salt Lake City, Utah, drove a good, sturdy team of oxen. Most of the time on his journeys to and from Salt Lake City he had only the elements to contend with - -the oppressive heat in summer and the severe cold and the snow storms in winter. But occasionally the Indians interfered with the white man's trespassing on their happy hunting grounds. It was a band of this sort of Indians that surprised and captured Mr. Leggett on one of his journeys, just as he was reaching the top of the mountains. He made his escape from them in a very novel manner. They were taking him, on foot back to their camp, and when they came to a ravine he pretended that he did not know how to cross, motioning them that they should go first. This they did, without any questions, and ere they knew what had happened he had shot three of them. The other two raced for their lives, and Mr. Leggett was left to find his way back to his wagon and oxen. Again, on another occasion, an Indian furtively stole upon him while he was feeding his oxen in a grassy meadow. They looked into each other's eyes at the same moment. The Indian wounded Mr. Leggett in the arm before he could reach for his firearm, but, nevertheless, the life of the Indian was the forfeit, as Mr. Leggett's aim was true and deadly. Such experiences as these were of common occurrence in the early days, and Mr. Leggett loved to recount them.

Joseph Leggeft was bom in Ohio, February 20, 1841. His parents, Joseph and Mahala (Puffunbarger) Leggett, had crossed the mountains from Maryland to farm the fertile lands of Ohio, where they reared seven children in their pioneer home. Joseph Leggett was the third child and was reared with his brothers and sisters in the old Buckeye state,

When the Civil war rent our nation asunder Mr. Leggett responded to the call of patriotism and fought throughout the conflict that preserved the Union. After the war he established his residence in Illinois.

The marriage of Joseph Leggett to Eliza C. Magee was solemnized at Springfield, Illinois, February 3, 1870. They settled on a farm, and they continued to pursue agricultural activities in Illinois until their coming to Gage county, Nebraska. Upon their arrival here, October 9, 1883, they purchased eighty acres of land in Glenwood township, three miles northwest of Odell. This was wild prairie land, and here they made their home for a number of years, reclaiming the wild prairies to fruitfulness and improving their farm with a good house, barn, and other buildings. When Mr. Leggett sold this farm he purchased one hundred and sixty acres in Section 4 of the same township, and here he continued his farm operations until his retirement to Odell, in 1908. In this village his death occurred the 26th day of August, 1910.

Mrs. Eliza C. Leggett, the widow of Joseph Leggett, was born in Chillicothe, Ohio, August 23, 1853. Her parents, Ezekiel and Elizabeth (Grey) Magee, were born and reared in Ohio and thence removed to Illinois in 1856. Mrs. Leggett was a small child at the time of this removal and she was reared and educated in Illinois, where she remained until she came with her husband to Gage county, Nebraska.

Mrs. Leggett is spending many hours a day knitting for our soldiers boys "somewhere in France." In this connection it is interesting to note that she did knitting for the "boys in blue" during the Civil war. Her half-brother and an uncle, James Grey, fought in defense of the Union. Her uncle was captured by the enemy and was incarcerated in Andersonville Prison, where so many soldiers were starved to death. He finally succeeded in making his escape from the prison by swimming for five miles up a stream. When his escape was him, but they went down stream instead of up, noted, posses of men were sent to recapture and thus he was enabled to get a good start of his captors.

Eight children were bom to Mr. and Mrs. Leggett: George H., who was born November 26, 1872, is living at Diller, Jefferson county; Joseph L., who was born February 1, 1874, resides at Odell, Gage county; James W., born May 1, 1877, is living at Elk City, Kansas ; Ida M., born May 3, 1879, is the wife of F. Novotny, of Elm township; Nina O., born August 23, 1881, if the wife of Edward Novotny, of Elm township; Truda A., born October 7, 1883, is the wife of George Saffell, of Elm township; Emma, born March 25, 1885, became the wife of William Novotny, and is now deceased; and Everett, born January 14, 1890, lives at Fairbury, Jefferson county.

Mr. Eeggett was a Democrat in politics and was always a loyal and public-spirited citizen. Mrs. Leggett is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.

HENRY E. HARMS. - Agriculture is the foundation of all prosperity, and among the men of Adams township who are following every requirement as tillers of the soil, mention should be made of Henry E. Harms, who owns and operates one hundred and sixty acres of land in Section 14. He was four years old when brought to Gage county, and his boyhood days were spent on a farm in Hanover township. After he became a man he worked as a laborer in Adams for six years. He then became a farmer on Bear creek and successfully tilled the soil as a renter, carefully saving his earnings until he was able to purchase his present farm, in 1909. This is one of the well improved farms in this section of the county, and the modern house and other substantial buildings have all been put here by the present owner.

Henry E. Harms was born in Holt county, Missouri, May 24, 1877, and is a son of Weike and Mary (Thieman) Harms, natives of Illinois. The mother died in Missouri. The father came to Gage county in 1881, and was a farmer in Hanover township until his death, in 1884, at the age of forty-two years. Weike Harms was married three times and became the father of seven children - John, deceased; Henry E., of this sketch; Herman, a resident of Johnson county, Nebraska; Eilert, of Oklahoma; John, of Chase county, Nebraska ; Louise, deceased ; and a daughter who died in infancy.

Henry E. Harms completed his arrangements for a home of his own by his marriage, on October 14, 1897, to Miss Johanna Rapp, who was born in Iowa, a daughter of Garret and Dina (Klein) Rapp, the former a native of Holland, the latter of the state of Iowa: they were early settlers in Gage county, where they still make their home. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Henry E. Harms has been made happy by the birth of four children, as follows : Weike, Garret, Fred, and Henry.

Mr. Harms is a good farmer and a good neighbor. His prosperity has come to him through his own efforts and, with a good wife and fine children, he has every reason to be a happy man.

WILLIAM HAMM. - The business interests of Beatrice have a worthy representative in the gentleman whose name introduces this review and who is senior member of the J. G. Wiebe Lumber Company. A native of Germany, he was bom April 11, 1859. His parents were Peter and Emily (Siemens) Hamm, who came from their native land in 1880 and were making their home in Beatrice at the time of their death, which occurred November 26, 1882, both being suffocated by coal gas. The father was bom in 1820, and was a merchant in Germany. The date of the mother's birth was July 30, 1832. They were parents of five children: Agatha, William, and John, all unmarried, reside in Beatrice; Emily is the wife of Dr. S. K. Mosiman, president of Bluffton College, at Bluffton, Ohio - and Helen is the wife of William Penner, of Gage county.

The subject of this sketch was reared and educated in his native land, where also he gained experience in the general merchandise business. In 1879 he came to America and in 1880 he entered the employ of J. G. Wiebe. After seven years of faithful service he was made a member of the firm. In 1900 J. G. Wiebe retired from business and his son, Henry Wiebe, succeeded him as a member of the firm, William Hamm and Henry Wiebe being now sole proprietors. Out of deference and respect to the founder of the business the firm name remains the same as it has been for over forty years. Mr. Hamm is familiar with all phases of the lumber business and is a valued member of commercial life of his adopted city. His religious belief is that of the IJifennonite church, which was the church of his fathers. In politics he is a Republican.

CH^I^ES C. SONDEREGGER, of Beatrice, was bom in Jefferson county, Nebraska, April 15, 1877, and is a son of Carl Sondereg^r, of whom mention is made on other pages of this history. The subject of this sketch vy^as educated in the public schools of Jefferson county, and after leaving school he engaged in the nursery business with his father, in Beatrice, where they now have a large nursery known as the Sonderegger Nursery and Seed House. This nursery is one of the largest ih the state, and they enjoy a very prosperous business.

November 8, 1904, .,Mr. Sonderegger was united in marriage to Miss Anna M. Jones, who was bom in Winterset, Iowa. She is a daughter of Morris Jones, ' who came with his family to Nebraska a numbver of years ago and settled in Saline county, ^r. and Mrs. Sonderegger are the parents of two children : Carl, born April 4, 1909, and Moirris, born February 21, 1912. Mrs. Sonderegg».^r is a member of the Methodist church and heishusband of the Christian church. He is a me, Tiber of the Benevolent & Protective Order ai Elks and of the Beatrice Commercial Club, having served on the official board of the last named organization for four years. In politics Mr. Sonderegger is a Republican, but he has no desire for political office, preferring to devote his entire time to the nursery and seed business.

JOHN HEETLAGE, who owns and operates a splendid farm of eighty acres in Section 17, Adams township, is in every respect a self-made man. A native of Germany, he was born November 30, 1861. His parents were Meinert and Fannie (Beurkmeyer) Heetlage, and both passed their entire lives in Germany. Of their five children three are still living. John was the only one of the family to come to America. He left his native land in 1883 and after two years spent in Michigan he came to Nebraska and worked as a farm hand, later renting land and engaging in farming. In 1901 he bought his present farm. A nice house and other farm buildings which he has erected make this a desirable place to live.

On the 16th of March, 1890, Mr. Heetlage was united in marriage to Miss Dena Van Engen, who was bom in Holland, a daughter of Garret and Gertrude (Shoemaker) Van Engen. To this union have been bom three children, Marion, Grace, and Frederick, the son being deceased. The family are members of the Dutch Reformed church at Pella, Nebraska, the teachings of which are the guiding motives of their daily life.

Mr. Heetlage casts his vote for the Republican party. A stranger in a strange land, with willing hands and determination to succeed, he has every reason to be proud of his own accomplishment as well as of the land where such achievements are possible. By industry and good management he has arrived at a position in the affairs of his adopted country which commands for him the respect and esteem of all who know him.

HARRY T. F. DAVIS. - The late Harry Davis was a successful and representative farmer of Elm township, where from his youth he gave himself vigorously and loyally to the basic industries of agriculture and stockgrowing. In 1889 Mr. Davis first rented from his father the farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Section 6, Elm township, and in 1893 he purchased one hundred and sixty acres in Section 7. He continued to farm these two tracts of land until 1905, when he sold the land in Section 7 and purchased the land which he had previously rented and which had been owned by his father. In connection with agricultural enterprise Mr. Davis was an extensive buyer and feeder of cattle, which he sent by the carload to the city markets. He remained actively in charge of his farm until his death, which occurred August 14, 1907.

Mr. Davis was born March 5, 1867, in Utica, New York, and was a son of Edward F. and Helen (Ferguson) Davis. (See sketch in this volume for complete history of this family.) Harry Davis was nine years old when his parents moved to Beatrice, Nebraska. In the public schools of Beatrice he received his early education, and he was well known to the older settlers. In his youth he built a sand boat - said to be the first one launched upon the Blue river at Beatrice.

The marriage of Mr. Davis and Gladys Lillie was solemnized October 20, 1894, and concerning their children the following record is given : Hazel is the wife of W. Patton, a farmer living at Diller, Jefferson county ; Ruth, who is a graduate of the Diller high school, is teaching school near Odell, Gage county, at the time of this writing; Elizabeth, a graduate of the Diller high school, remains at home ; and Fay is attending school at Steele City, Jefiferson county.

Mrs. Gladys (Lillie) Davis was born June 8, 1873, in Ogle county, Illinois, and is a daughter of Jacob and Maria (Harleman) Lillie. Jacob Lillie was born in 1836, in Pennsylvania. He was a cabinetmaker aid after I locating at Rochelle, Illinois, he built a shop for his headquarters in making furniture, coffins, and wagons. He was an expert painter and found use for his talent outside of the shop. In 1878 there came to Mr. Lillie the lure of nature and a desire to go back to the soil. Accordingly he and his family started across the prairies with team and a covered wagon, to locate in Gage county. His farm was in Section 1, Elm township, but he lived only one year after his arrival. He was a well known member of the Masonic fraternity. Upon his death his widow, Mrs. Maria Lillie, was left with her children in a strange country and among strangers, but she remained to see them all grown to maturity and established in homes of their own. She was bom in Pennsylvania, in 1832, and died in 1898, aged sixty-five years. Three of her four children are living : Dexter Lillie, of McDonald, Kansas, owns in that locality an entire section of land and is well known as a breeder and grower of thoroughbred live stock; Stella is the wife of Fred Reynolds, who is employed in machine shops at Steele City, Nebraska; and Gladys is the widow of the subject of this memoir.

Mr. Davis took loyal interest in community affairs and was a Republican in politics. Mrs. Davis holds to the Lutheran faith and is a communicant of Trinity Lutheran church in the city of Beatrice.

FERNANDO HOYLE, a successful farmer of Logan township, was born in Dupage county, Illinois, September 15, 1872. His parents, William and Sarah (Mommart) Hoyle, were natives of Pennsylvania. His father was bom in 1827 and died in Gage county, Nebraska, in 1891. His mother was born in 1831 and died in Gage county, Nebraska, in 1911. William Hoyle moved from Pennsylvania to Illinois many years ago and in 1876 came to Gage county, Nebraska, with his family, in a covered wagon. He settled in Midland township, where he bought one hundred and sixty acres of land and later eighty acres additional, all of which he owned at the time of his death.

Mr. and Mrs. Hoyle were the parents of ten children, six of whom are now living: Mary, wife of S. T. Turner, of South Dakota; Ezra, of Beatrice; Fannie, wife of Isaac Stewart, of Alvin, Texas; Fernando, of Beatrice; Ira, of Oklahoma; and Emory, of Sioux City, Iowa.

Fernando Hoyle was educated in the public schools of Gage county. He has always followed farming, renting land for several years. Some years ago he purchased eighty acres of land in Midland township, but this he later sold, and bought one hundred and sixty acres in Section 32, Logan township. This farm he has improved, building a good house, barn and other farm buildings.

In 1898 Mr. Hoyle was united in marriage to Miss Grance Hileman, a native of Tecumseh, Johnson county, Nebraska. Mrs. Hoyle was bom February 24, '1876, and is the daughter of Milton and Delphine (Hudson) Hileman.

Milton Hileman was born in Pennsylvania, moved to Indiana many years ago and from there to Illinois, whence he later came to Nebraska. Mr. and Mrs. Hileman now make their home in Colorado.

Mr. and Mrs. Fernando Hoyle became the parents of five children, three of whom are living: Theodore, "born March 4, 1904: Vivian, born February 13, 1908; and Evelyn, born March 19, 1914. Roland and Eunice are deceased.

Mr. and Mrs. Hoyle are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Hoyle is a Republican. He served as clerk of Logan township two years and has been a member of the school board for the past nine years. He is a very successful farmer - one who by honesty, economy, and hard work has prospered.

HENRY ESSAM, a farmer of Riverside township, was born in Fulton county, Illinois, April 13, 1861, and is a son of James Essam, a sketch of whom is to be found elsewhere in this volume.

Henry Essam attended school in Fulton and Schuyler counties, Illinois, and later in Gage county, Nebraska. He came to Nebraska with his parents when a youth of nineteen years and remained at home until 1887, when he went to Colorado, where he took a pre-emption claim. After proving up on this land he returned to Gage county, Nebraska, and farmed his father's land. In 1902 Mr.