Omaha City (part 10 of 26)

Fred G. ]\loore pursued his education in the schools of his native city until he had completed the high school course, after which he won the I'.achelor of Arts degree at Dixon College in Dixon, Illinois, as a member of the class of 1898. He afterward spent a year as a student in the law department of Drake University at Des Moines, Iowa, and in 19 13 came to Omaha, where he now figures prominently in commercial circles as the secretary of the Yetter-Moore Company, carrying a large line of wall papers, draperies and decorative materials, which they sell to both the wholesale and retail trades. They have one of the leading establishments of this character not only in the city but in this section of the country, their stock showing all the latest designs and materials that the market atitords. Their patronage is steadily growing and their reliable business methods commend them to the support of the public.

At Dixon, Illinois, on the 27th of November, 1901, Mr. Moore was united in marriage to Miss Sadie U. Brubaker, a daughter of the late J. A. Brubaker, of Dixon, who for many years was connected with the Pillsbury Milling Company of Minneapolis. Mr. and Mrs. Moore have become the parents of three children: Brett Frederick, born January 23, 1904; Jessie Mildred, March 19, 1907; and John Hamilton, August 18, 1913.

In politics Air. Moore is a republican, well versed on the questions of the day but without ambition for office. He belongs to the Christian Science church and he has membership with the Rotary Club, the Commercial Club and the Sales Managers' Association. He has always studied plans and methods bearing upon trade conditions and the development of his individual business interests and in all that he undertakes is notably prompt, energetic and reliable.

Amos Thomas

This is preeminently an. age of specialization. Seldom does one at the present time attempt to cover the broad field of a profession but concentrates his energies along a particular line and thereby gains the efficiency which concentrated efl:ort brings. In keeping with this now universal custom Amos Thomas in his law practice has specialized in the field of corporation law and his practice of that character is now extensive and important.

Mr. Thomas is a native of Wisconsin, his birth having occurred in Milwaukee, August 30, 1882. Ilis father, Joseph Amos Thomas, was born in Milwaukee in 1855 and was there married to Miss Addie Margaret Xeilson, likewise a native of that city. In 1886 they came to Nebraska, settling in Tamora, where the father engaged in banking as president of the Tamora State Bank, but he has now retired from business and he and his wife have become residents of Lincoln.

In the graded schools of Tamora and the high school of Lincoln Amos Thomas pursued his preliminary education and afterward entered the Nebraska State University for the study of law, completing the course by graduation in 1909, at which time the LL. B. degree was conferred upon him. Immediately afterward he was admitted to the bar and opened an office in Omaha, where he has since remained in practice. For a time he gave his attention to general law practice but soon began concentrating his energies upon corporation law work and in that field is today active, representing many important business and commercial concerns.

Mr. Thomas has an interesting military record, having been for five or six years a member of Troop A of the Nebraska National Guard at Seward, in which he rose to the rank of second Heutenant but resigned on leaving that county. He is well known in fraternal and club circles. He is a Knight Templar Mason and in the blue lodge is serving as junior deacon. He belongs to several college fraternities, including the Phi Delta Theta, the Phi Delta Phi and Theta Nu Epsilon. He is a member of the Viking Club of Lincoln, of the University Club of Omaha and the Council Bluffs Boat Club. In politics he is a stalwart and active republican, serving as secretary of the republican state central committee in 1912 and as chairman of the republican central committee of Douglas county from 1914 until July 24, 1916. He was a delegate to the republican state conventions in both 1912 and 1914 and in 1916 was elected a member of the state central committee. While he ranks as one of the active and forceful workers in republican ranks he has never been a politician in the sense of office seeking, his efforts being prompted by his recognition of the duties of citizenship and a public-spirited devotion to the general good. His professional connections are with the Barrister's Club, the Omaha Bar Association, the Nebraska State Bar Association and the American Bar Association.

Lucien Stephens

Lucien Stephens, whose name is prominently known in connection with mercantile interests in Omaha, was born July 15, 1861, at Rocheport, Boone county, Missouri, his parents being William and Mary WiUis (Griffin) Stephens. With the removal of the family to Omaha during his boyhood days, he obtained his public school education here and afterward had' the benefit of instruction in De Pauw University at Greencastle, Indiana. Early in his business career he was employed by the Chicago, Burlington &.Ouincy and also by the Union Pacific Railway Companies, and he also engaged jil. newspaper reporting before entering upon his present mercantile venture. In .this'; connection he ha« sustained the reputation established by his father, who in 1864 became a pioneer merchant of Omaha. The name of Stephens has since been a synonym for progressiveness and enterprise along mercantile lines and the interests controlled by the family have been large and important.

On the 15th of October, 1888, in Omaha, Mr. Stephens was united in marriage to Miss Julia Bissell Smith, representing a Connecticut family. Mr. and Mrs. Stephens" are members of the Episcopal church and in his political views he is a democrat. He belongs to the Beta Theta Pi, a college fraternity, to the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and to the Omaha Club. He is interested in affairs of general moment and is now serving as a director of the Omaha public library. His interests, of a varied character, have always been such as have contributed to general development and improvement.

Dr. T. E. Simpson won his professional degree in Creighton University m 1908 and has since engaged in the practice of medicine and surgery in Omaha, his native city. He was born April 14, 1871, and was the elder of the two children of Albert E. and Mary (Burke) Simpson, both of whom were natives of New York. Coming to Omaha during the pioneer period of its development, Albert E. Simpson settled on Farnam street in 1865 and in 1868 the mpther arrived in this city, Mr. Simpson devoted his attention to the cigar business, establishing one of the first cigar factories of the city, and continued active along that line until 1881, when he sold out. He died in 1883. During the Civil war he joined the Tenth New York Regiment as a private and served for two years during ihc kilter pari of that cuntiict. Ilia widow is still living at the age of sixty-six years. The datighter of the family, Jessie M. Simpson, passed away in 1904.

Reared in Omaha, Dr. Simjjson supplemented his early education hy a course in the Creighton Medical College, from which he was graduated' in 1908. He then hegan ])ractice in his native city and has since remained a member of the medical jjrofession, in which connection he has worked his way steadily upward, his orderly progression bringing him into a prominent position, his ability being widely recognized by colleagues and contemporaries. He is identified with various hospitals and he is a member of the Douglas County, the Nebraska State and the American Medical Associations.

On the 3d of March, 1901, Dr. .Simpson was married in Omaha to Miss Anna C. Peterson, who was born in Omaha, July 13, 1873, and is a daughter of John C. and M. Peterson. Dr. and Mrs. Simpson have one child, Irene W., born in Omaha in February, 1902. and now a high school pupil.

Dr. Simpson votes with the republican party but has had neither the time nor inclination to seek public office, preferring to concentrate his energies upon his professional duties, which have been of constantly growing volume and importance. He is today one of Omaha's leading physicians, widely known and popular and enjoying a well deserved reputation. He is very conscientious in the discharge of his professional duties and possesses ready sympathy and intuition which, added to his comprehensive knowledge, make him a power in the sick room. He is a member of a number of fraternal organizations and for twenty-four years has belonged to the Masonic fraternity. He has been very active in the work of the craft, has taken both the York and Scottish Rite degrees, has been presiding officer of every Masonic body to which he belongs and in fact has received all the honors which those organizations have the power to confer upon him. He has also been a leading member of the Woodmen of the World. His wife has been prominent in the order of the Eastern Star for twenty years, during sixteen years of which time she was grand secretary of the state. She is now holding the office of associate grand matron of Nebraska.

Willard Deere Hosford

Various corporate interests profit by the cooperation of Willard Deere Hosford, whose business career has been characterized by indefatigable effort and discriminating judgment. Since 1906 he has resided in Omaha and throughout the intervening period has been connected with the John Deese Plow Company, of which he is now the treasurer. Iowa numbers him among her native sons, his birth having occurrd in Clinton in 1882. In tracing the ancestral line it is found that the family is of English origin although the grandfather, Dr. Willard Hosford, spent his entire life in New Hampshire. His son, Schiller Hosford, who was born in Orford, New Hampshire, in 1856. was married in Moline, Illinois, to Miss Floy Mabel Chapman, whose mother was a daughter of the late John Deere, a native of Massachusetts and the founder of the great farm machinery manufactory of John Deere & Company. Prior to his marriage Schiller Hosford became a resident of Clinton, Iowa, where the family remained for a number of years, but his last days were passed in New- Yorkcity, where he passed away in 19 12, having for eight years survived his wife, who died in Moline, Illinois, in 1904.

After attending the public schools of his native city Willard D. Hosford continued his education in the Phillips Exeter Academy of New Hampshire, from which he was graduated with the class of 1902. He then entered Yale ind completed his course with the class of 1906. Returning to the middle west in search of a favorable business opening, he came to Omaha and has since been identified with the John Deere Plow Company, in which relation his developing ability has brought him successive promotions. In 1910 he was made treasurer of the company and is now bending his energies to administrative direction and executive control of the mammoth interests promoted and conducted by that corporation. He has also become financially and officially interested in other important business concerns and is now a director of the McShane Lumber Company of Omaha, of the Motorist Publishing Company of Omaha and of J. C. Messing & Company, of Onawa, Iowa. His discernment in business afifairs is keen and his sagacity has prevented unwarranted risks which too frequently end in failure.

On the 24th of June, 1908, in Omaha. Mr. Hosford was married to Miss Mary Lee McShane and they have one son, Willard Deere, Jr., and one daughter, Kathryn Emma. In his political views Mr. Hosford is a republican. He belongs to the Omaha Club, the Country Club, the Automobile Club, the Rotary Club and the Commercial Club in Omaha and he is also a member of the University Club of Chicago, where he is almost as widely known as he is in his adopted city, having an acquaintance with many of the most prominent and influential residents of the western metropolis.

William David Lincoln

William David Lincoln, superintendent of transportation with the Union Pacific Railroad and president of the Bankers Savings & Loan Association of Omaha, was born in Smithville, Clay county, Missouri, in 1864. His father, Isaac Wells Lincoln, a native of Kentucky, was born near Lexington in 1830 and was a son of David Lincoln, who came from the same ancestral stock as Abraham Lincoln. At an early day Isaac W. Lincoln accompanied his parents on their removal to the Platte Purchase and subsequently they went to Clay county, Missouri. It was there that Isaac W. Lincoln was married to Miss Louise Gilkey and in i860 they became residents of St. Joseph, Missouri, where for many years the father conducted a hotel. He passed away in 1895 and is still survived by his wife.

Reared in St. Joseph, Missouri, William D. Lincoln there obtained a public school education and started upon his business career in connection with railway interests, entering the employ of the St. Joseph & Denver Railroad Company in 1879, when a youth of but fifteen years. That he was trustworthy, capable and efficient is indicated in the fact that he remained continuously with that road for a decade and advancement through intermediate positions had brought him to the place of car accountant. He resigned, how^ever. in 1889 to come to Omaha as traveling car agent for the Union Pacific Railroad and now for more than a quarter of a century he has represented that corporation, rising step by step to the position of superintendent of transportation. He has recently been appointed to fill a new position in the transportation department of the road, becoming "outside man," in which connection he has the checking of the rolling stock and equipment, while upon him also devolves the responsibility of keeping the cars moving to their capacity. The creation of this position was made necessary by the heavy freight movements that have been developing. Into other fields he has also extended his efiforts and investments, as is indicated by the fact that he is now president of the Bankers Savings & Loan Association of Omaha.

On the 2 1 St of May, 1885, in Lexington, Kentucky. Mr. Lincoln was united in marriage to Miss Ella Parker, her father being Alexander Parker a native of Kentucky. They have one son, Frank Buckingham Lincoln, who was born in Omaha in March, 1904. Mr. Lincoln's military record covers three years' service as sergeant with the Missouri State Guards at St. Joseph. In politics he has always maintainecl an iii(le[)t'ndent course, preferring to cast his ballot according to the dictates of his judgment without regard to party ties. Prominent in Masonic circles, he has taken the degrees of the York and Scottish Rites and he is also a member of Tangier Temple of the Mystic Shrine. He likewise belongs to the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and along more strictly social lines is identified with the Country and Omaha Clubs. He is a man whose worth is worthy of comment. His ability and lldelity are attested by his twentyeight years' service with the Union Pacific. They are further attested by all whom he serves or who have served under him and by all whom he has met in social relations. He has the qualities that win friendship and he is always appreciative of the good qualities of others.

Paul Wallace Horbach

Paul Wallace Horbacli, an Omaha capitalist and lifelong resident of the city, was born July 21, 1863, a son of John Abraham Horbach, mentioned elsewhere in this volume. After acquiring his early education in the schools of Omaha he entered the Polytechnic Institute at Troy, Xew York, and was graduated therefrom in 1886, on the completion of courses in civil and electrical engineering. He afterward traveled on the Continent for some months and upon his return to Omaha became connected with the Patrick Land Company, which he represented for a year. He afterw^ard spent a year in connection with the Omaha Motor Railway Company, at the end of which time he became connected with the Thomson-Houston Electric Company of Lynn, Massachusetts, with which he remained from the spring of 1889 until the following September. He then went abroad again, returning in December of that year, and in 1891 he took a position with the Union Pacific Railroad Company as civil engineer, being thus employed until July, 1892. At that date he took charge of the interests of the Beatrice (Neb.) Electric Company, with which he continued until 1896, when he returned to Omaha and assumed the management of his father's property. In 1900 he went to New' York city, where he remained for eight years actively engaged in the brokerage business. Since 1908 he has remained continuously in Omaha, directing his attention to the erection of houses and store buildings. He has extensive and important property holdings in this city and from his realty derives a very substantial and gratifying income, while in its management he displays sound judgment, keen discrimination and notable sagacity.

Mr. Horbach gives his political allegiance to the republican party. He holds membership in St. Barnabas Episcopal church and his only club is the Omaha Club. Widely known in the city in w'hich practically his entire life has been passed, he has a circle of friends that is practically coextensive with the circle of his acquaintance.

Marion F. Shafer

^Marion F. Shafer, president of the American State Bank and vice president of the firm of M. F. Shafer & Company, dealers in advertising specialties, was born in \"olcano. West \'irginia, January 23. 1870, a son of James R. Shafer, whose birth occurred in Washington county, Ohio, in 1841 and who, following the outbreak of the Civil war in i860, responded to the country's call for troops by enlisting in the Thirty-sixth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, with which he serv^ed throughout the period of hostilities, becoming ^ noncommissioned officer.

Marion F. Shafer completed his education in the State Normal School at Fairmont, West \'irginia, after which he returned to his native town and was there engaged with his father in the merchandise business until 1891. Seeking the opportunities of the middle west, he made his way to Iowa and engaged in merchandising at Henderson for seven years. In 1898 he removed to Villisca, Iowa, where he remained until 1900, being engaged in the mercantile business during that period. In 1902 he became a resident of Oskaloosa and in 1903 came to Omaha, Nebraska, where he began the manufacture of advertising specialties in connection with his brother, Ward E. Shafer. On the 12th of April, 1910, thebusiness was incorporated and on the 24th of Aiay, 191 1, articles of incorporation were amended and again on the T3th of January, 1912. The business is now being successfully conducted under the name of M. F. Shafer & Company, of which Marion F. Shafer is the vice president. He is also a prominent figure in financial circles of the city, having been one of the promoters of the American State Bank, which was organized July 18, 1916, with a capital stock of two hundred thousand dollars, its officers being: M. F. Shafer, president; John F. Mecox, vice president; and L. M. Swindler, cashier.

On the nth of October, 1893, in Sistersville, West V^irginia, Air. Shafer was united in marriage to Miss Cora B. Snider, a native of Waverly, West Virginia, and a daughter of Frank M. and Catherine (Janes) Snider. Fortunate in his selection of a wife Mr. Shafer's success has been to no small extent the result of Mrs. Shafer's valuable counsel and advice in his various business undertakings. They are members of the Christian Science church and in politics Mr. Shafer maintains an independent course. He belongs to the Commercial Club of Omaha, the Happy Hollow Club and the Omaha Athletic Club and is a York Rite Mason and a member of the Alystic Shrine. His marked traits of character are such as commend him to the confidence, goodwill and high regard of his associates and contemporaries. His business career has been marked by steady progress and he is today at the head of interests of magnitude which indicate his marked ability and spirit of enterprise.

Richard Calvin Peters

Richard Calvin Peters, a resident of Nebraska for thirty years, has made his home in Omaha since 1897, and for. a decade has been at the head of the Peters Trust Company and as such is a well known figure in financial circles of the city. He is descended from a family of Welsh extraction although representatives of the name have long been residents of America, and on his mother's side is of Scotch and English stock. His grandfather, Richard Peters, was born in Delaware county. New York, but removed to the west, becoming a pioneer settler of Michigan. It was in Petersburg, that state, that his son Charles was born in 1825 and he was there reared amid the conditions and environments of pioneer Hfe. He married Julia Ann Burnham, a native of Massachusetts, but both are now deceased.

Richard C. Peters, also a native of Petersburg, Michigan, was born April 29, 1862, and at the usual age began his education in the public schools of his native town. He afterward spent two years as a student in the Michigan State University and in the year 1886 he sought the opportunities ofifered in Nebraska, establishing his home at Westpoint. where he embarked in the real estate and loan business. There he remained for eleven years, or until 1897, when he came to Omaha, seeking a broader field of labor. Here he continued to engage in placing farm loans and in 1907 he organized the Peters Trust Company, of which he has continuously been the president and chief executive officer. This company now has a large clientage and its extensive business is of an important character. Air. Peters is also one of the directors of the Farm Mortgage Bankers Association and is serving on its executive committee. There is per- haps no one in Omaha better informed concerning farm properties and values and he has thus been able to make judicious investments for his clients.

On the 9th of lunc, 18S7. in Monticello. Illinois, occurred the marriage of Mr. Peters and Miss Margaret L. Reed and their children are: Reed C, who is a graduate of Amherst College and is now assistant secretary of the Peters Trust Company; Jane Burnham, the wife of William IL Belcher, of Memphis, Tennessee; Richard 15 nice ; and Katherine Margaret.

Mr. Peters exercises his right of franchise in support of the principles and candidates of the republican party and fraternally he is a Mason. He belongs to the Happy Hollow Club and to the University Club, of which he was the first iiresident. and that he does not neglect the higher, holier duties of life is indicated in his membership in the Presbyterian church, of which he is a trustee, and he is also a trustee of the Omaha Theological Seminary. He gives active aid and generous support to all movements that tend toward the betterment of the individual and the community and his own life has been characterized by high and honorable principles which have won him unqualified confidence and regard.

Isaac W. Miner

There are few residents of Omaha who have as wide an acquaintance or are as popular in the city as Isaac W. Miner, the secretary of the Elks lodge, occupygin the position continuously since 1908. His early identification with Omaha began on the 8th of April. 1871. when he removed to the middle west from Mystic, Connecticut, where his birth occurred on the 15th of December, 1847. Through a considerable period he was connected with newspaper interests, becoming immediately on his arrival in Omaha, city editor on the Omaha Tribune. On the loth of June, 1871, the Tribune was consolidated with the Republican and Mr. ]\Iiner was connected with that paper until 1886, it first being issued as the Tribune and Republican and later as the Republican. He occupied the position of city editor until 1877 and was then elected secretary of the company, having charge of the business office under Casper E. Yost. The paper was then sold and for a year thereafter Mr. Miner was chief clerk under J. W. Morse, general passenger agent for the Union Pacific Railway Company. Movements which have resulted beneficially to Omaha have been instituted or promoted by ]\Ir. Miner. He was the organizer of the Exposition Building Company and was a most influential factor in bringing abovit the upbuilding of that undertaking. He afterward returned to the newspaper field in connection with the Republican and spent two more years on that paper. Following the arrival of L. M. CrawTord in Omaha, at which time he leased the Exposition building and (jrand Opera House, Mr. Miner became his local manager and so continued for four years, when he was succeeded by W. J. Burgess. His identification with the theatrical interests of the city, however, continued until 1908, when he was elected secretary of Lodge No. 39, B. P. O. E., of Omaha, and has since been continued in that position. All through the period of his connection with newspaper, railroad and theatrical interests he has been keenly alive to the opportunities of the city and the trend of modern progress and improvement and has done much to further the work of upbuilding and advancement. He has studied the questions of public moment from every possible standpoint, realizing the difficulties as well as the advantages and weighing up each so as to gain a correct knowledge of the possibilities of any undertaking.

On the i6th of June, 1870, in Mystic, Connecticut, Mr. Miner was united in marriage to Miss Alice Dunham, of that state. She was born in England, but went to Mystic, when a small child, and by her marriage became the mother of two sons: Walter B., who was assistant cashier of a bank at Lewistown,

Montana, and died in 1904 ; and George D., who is now engaged in the hotel business in San Francisco, CaHfoniia. Both were born in Connecticut.

Mr. Miner is not only a most prominent and poular representative of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks but is also a member of the Ak-Sar-Ben. His political allegiance is given to the republican party and in the early '70s he served as a member of the city council but otherwise has not held nor sought public office. His work, however, has been of direct benefit to the city along many lines and Omaha's progress has been greatly promoted through his aid and cooperation.

Tinley Lionel Combs

Tinley Lionel Combs, prominently known in the commercial circles of Omaha by reason of his twenty-eight years' connection with the jewelry trade in that city, has since 1898 conducted a store of his own and today has one of the splendid jewelry establishments of the city. He was born in Fairfield, Iowa, September 8, 1870, and is a son of Andrew J. and Mary E. (Robinson) Combs. The father died in January, 1878, in Osceola, Nebraska, and the mother passed away in Brookville, Iowa, six months later, so that Tinley L. Combs was thus early left an orphan. He was then reared by his guardian, Dr. E. L. Robinson, at Silver Creek and at Clarks, Nebraska, and from the age of nine years has been dependent upon his own resources. At the time when most boys are attending the public schools he was waging a fight with the world for a living. His education was acquired in the public schools of Clarks, Nebraska, supplemented by a year and a half's study in the Nebraska Central College at Central City, Nebraska. He came to Omaha in 1889, when a youth of nineteen years, and sold jewelry from house to house, eventually winning a trade of considerable proportions, and from the money thus earned he saved a sufficient capital to enable him to embark in business on his own account. He took his initial step in that direction in 1898, in the store which he now occupies, being at that time one of four men who used the room for different lines of business. The three other men failed and left, but with true Scotch-Irish persistence, a trait inherited from his ancestors, Mr. Combs continued at his business and is today at the head of one of the finest jewelry establishments of Omaha. Aside from being president of the T. L. Combs Company, which was incorporated in 1898, he is a director of the Provident Loan Society. His prominence in business circles is indicated in the fact that he was honored by being elected by acclamation for three consecutive terms to the presidency of the American National Retail Jewelers Association and at its meeting in New York, in 191 5, he and his wife were presented with handsome gold watches, suitably engraved, to express the unusual esteem in which they were held by the five thousand members of the association. His service and travels in association work gave him a nation wide acquaintance and popularity, and he is retained on the national executive committee. He has been a close student of every condition bearing upon the trade and its development and has taken the initiative step on many occasions whereby the interests of the trade in general have been promoted.

On the 8th of September, 1897, in Omaha, Mr. Combs was joined in- wedlock to Miss Mary Florence, her father being Caleb Winter, a retired resident of Om.aha. They have two children: Claubert Morlyn, born March 13, 1901 ; and Elton Trager/ whose birth occurred on the 29th of August, 1904.

The parents hold membership in the First Methodist Episcopal church and take a very active and helpful interest in its work, Mr. Combs now serving on the official board. His political allegiance is given to the republican party and he is a very prominent Mason. He was raised in St. John's Lodge. No. 25, May 28, 1896. took the Scottish Rite degrees from 1904 to 1906, obtaining the thirty-second

(k'i^^rec March J*j, u;o6. Me is past master of his rose croix chapter atul is preceptor of his consistory now. in 1913 he was elected by the supreme council at W'ashinglon, D. C, to the Select iJody of Knights Commanders of the Court of Honor and in November, 191 5, he was crowned with the thirty-third degree. a boy he was a worker in the (lood 1Y'mi)lars, and he belongs to the Independent Order of Foresters, the Maccabees, the Mystic Legion, the Woodmen of the World and ihe Tribe of IJen Hur. He is also an active worker in the Mystic Shrine and is now assistant ral)ban of Tangier Temple. Llis public spirit is shown in his membership in the Commercial Club, of which he is a director, and his social nature finds expression through his connection with the Elks, the Omaha .\thletic Club, the Happy Hollow Club and the Seymour Lake Country Club. ( )f the last named he was president for two years and for five years has been a member of its board of governors. No man in business in Omaha today has fought a harder uphill fight to success than Mr. Combs and he has won his \ictory in the face of obstacles and difficulties that would have utterly discouraged a man of less resolute and determined spirit. What he has accomplished represents the fit utilization of his innate i)owers and integrity, combined with a ready recognition of opportunity and a profound faith in Omaha and the west.

Hon. Louis Berka

Hon. Louis Berka, ex-judge and a well known attorney of Omaha, was born in Bohemia, April 28, 1855, a son of Mathias and Maria (Vacek) Berka. The father, a native of Bohemia, came to America with his family in 1862, first settling in Wisconsin, but after a short time removed to Michigan, where he engaged in farming. Subsequently he became a resident of San Jose, California, and was there residing when death called him in 1908 at the age of eighty-one years. His wife passed away in San Jose in 1907, when eighty years of age. In the family were five children, two of whom have passed away, the others being: Frank, now residing in Santa Rosa, California; Mrs. Kate Mikan, living in Durand, Michigan ; and Louis, of this review.

The last named acquired his early education in Michigan, becoming a high school pupil in Flint, that state, after which he determined upon the practice of law as a life work, and with that end in view became a law student in the State University at Ann Arbor, from which he was graduated in 1883. He then located for practice in Omaha, where he has continuously remained in close connection with the bar for more than a third of a century. He was elected police magistrate of Omaha and so served for eleven years at difl^erent periods, first under the metropolitan system in 1887-8. He was a member of the city council for a term of three years and was president during the last year of that period, being acting mayor a portion of the time. Lie served as justice of the peace prior to becoming judge and he has made a most excellent record in the various offices which he has filled.

In August. 1878, Judge Berka was married to Miss Zela Remington, of New Haven, Michigan, and they have become the parents of seven children, of whom one is now deceased. The others are: Mrs. Grace Hill, who was born in Pontiac, Michigan, is now a resident of Kingsley, Iowa, and has one child, Doris; Mrs. Bertha Roben. who was born in (irayling, ^lichigan. now resides in Omaha and has one child ; Mrs. May Coleman, who was born in Omaha and there resides, and is the mother of three children ; Mrs. Ethel Hachten, of Omaha, who has two children; Mrs. Mabell Gross, now residing at Spalding, Nebraska; and Eloys, a pupil in the Omaha high school.

Judge Berka is a supporter of the Christian Science faith. Fraternally he is connected with the Woodmen of the World and the Knights of Pythias, while in INIasonry he has attained the commandery degrees and become a mem- ber of the Mystic Shrine. His poHtical allegiance is given to the republican party and upon that ticket he has been elected to the offices which he has filled. He has membership in the Douglas County, the Nebraska State and the American Bar Associations and he is regarded as an honored and representative member of his profession, holding to the highest ideals of professional service and at all times proving a capable and conscientious minister in the temple of justice. He gained his education through determined effort, providing the means necessary for his university training through his own labor. He has ever set his mark high and put forth every effort to raise himself to its level. His professional associates speak of him in terms of admiration and warm regard.

Dr. William H. Pruner, a prominent surgeon of Omaha, was born in Washington county, Virginia, January 15, 1885, a son of Dr. W. H. Pruner, who was a well known physician of Kennard, Nebraska, where he passed away October 19, 1915, at the age of fifty-nine years. He had won much more than local distinction in his profession. He was born in Virginia and studied in the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Baltimore, Maryland, from which he was graduated. He was selected from among several hundred students for the position of private secretary to president Miner of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute. During his college days he became a member of the Phi Kappa Alpha fraternity. In 1892 he came to Nebraska, settling at Kennard, and there through his remaining days continued in active and successful practice. He was a high Mason, having attained the thirty-second degree. He was one of the foremost citizens of Washington county, and not only a leader in his profession but a man who wielded a wholesome and important influence in public aft'airs. He was a prominent democrat and one of the advisors and counsellors of that party in his section. His acquaintance was wide and included the prominent public and professional men over the state. In early manhood he married Miss Ella Sue Hawley, who is a native of Christianburg, Virginia, and who is still living at Kennard, Nebraska, at the age of fifty-eight years.

In a family of seven children Dr. Pruner was the fourth in order of birth. In his youthful days he attended the public schools of Kennard and afterward became a student in the preparatory school of the University of Nebraska, while later he continued his education for a year in the State University. He next entered Creighton University as a medical student and won his professional degree in 1907. His initial professional experience was obtained as interne in the Omaha General Hospital, after which he was assistant to Dr. C. C. Allison for four and one-half years. In 191 2 he entered upon the private practice of medicine and has since built up his business to extensive proportions, his ability and skill being widely recognized. While not yet of middle age. Dr. Pruner has attained a high position in his profession and as a surgeon his skill has won for him a reputation that calls him into consultation over the state. His powers are constantly expanding through the exercise of effort, resulting in increased knowledge and skill. He is also continually promoting his efficiency through wide reading and close investigation. He is a man of keen discrimination, most careful diagnosis, and his judgment is seldom at fault in determining the outcome of a case. He is now a member of the staff of the Wise Memorial Hospital and he belongs to the Douglas County, the Nebraska State, the American Medical, the Elkhorn Valley and the Missouri Valley Medical Associations.

In 1908 was celebrated the marriage of Dr. Pruner and Miss Elizabeth Myrtle Newkirk, the daughter of a well known farmer of Washington county, Nebraska, and one of the early pioneers of that county, where he became an extensive

Dr. Primer votes with the democratic party and keeps well informed on the cjuestions and issues of the day but has no time nor inclination for public office. He belongs to the Phi Rho Sigma, a Greek letter fraternity, and also has mcmbershij) with the Elks. His interest, however, centers in his professional duties, which have been of growing volume and importance until he stands today among the ablest and most successful of the physicians and surgeons of Omaha.

Joseph P. Gray

Joseph P. Gray was born on a farm near Logansport, Indiana, attended the jniblic schools of his native state and graduated from the National Normal College of Lebanon, Ohio, in 1879. He taught in the graded schools iii the state of Indiana and in the meantime studied law, was admitted to the bar in Logansport, Indiana, in 1886, and afterward graduated from the law department of the University of Michigan and commenced the practice of law in Winamac, Indiana, in 1882.

In 1 89 1 he moved to Frankfort, Indiana, and continued to practice law in that city until April, 1914, at which time he removed to Omaha and continued the practice. He has never held nor sought office of any kind but has given his entire life to the study and practice of his profession, believing at all times that the profession of law is the highest possible position of trust, and since moving to Omaha has established a law office in the Omaha National Bank Building, is now the senior partner of the law firm of Gray & Brumbaugh and is engaged in the general practice.

Orla Holmes Menold

Orla Holmes Menold, agency director in Nebraska for the New York Life Insurance Company, with offices in Omaha, has become one of the best known insurance men in his part of the state, building up a business of gratifying proportions. He was born upon a farm near Viola, Mercer county, Illinois, August 20, 1866, of the marriage of William H. and Mary Grace (Robinson) Menold. The former was born in Pennsylvania in 1841 and in childhood was taken by his parents to Illinois, where he was reared upon a farm in Mercer county. It was there that he married and in 1876 he removed with his family to a farm in Sac county, Iowa, where he and his wife now reside. He is engaged in the furniture and undertaking business and is accounted one of the representative merchants in that line. Moreover, he is active and influential in political circles as a supporter of the democratic party.

Orla H. Menold began his education in the country schools of Mercer county, Illinois. Later he spent a year at Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa, and a year in the Western Normal College. He was next employed in a general store, where he worked for three and one-half years, and in 1891 he entered the employ of the New York Life Insurance Company, which he has now represented for a quarter of a century in the Central West, having been connected at various times with the company's offices at Sioux City, Des Moines, Chicago, Peoria, Illinois, and Burlington, Iowa. No higher testimonial of his fidelity and capability could be presented. He came to Omaha in 1907 as agency director for Nebraska and in this position of responsibility still continues, in which connection he has greatly extended the business of the corporation, making this state a profitable field. His great ambition is to live to see the life insurance business accorded the place in public esteem that it is really entitled to. He believes that a high standard of ethics should be conformed to in dealing with the public and feels that the time has come when no one should be permitted to represent a life insurance company unless he possesses good character, is honest and conscientious to a high degree as well as thoroughly informed on all phases of the insurance business.

On the 6th of August, 1891, Mr. Alenold was united in marriage to Miss Mae Williams, a daughter of Joseph Williams and a granddaughter of Nathan Williams, who fought in the Revolutionary war. Mr. and Mrs Menold have two children : Harry Williams, born June 11, 1894; and Marjorie lone.

Mr. and Mrs. Menold hold membership in Methodist Episcopal church and fraternally he is connected with the Masons and the Odd Fellows. In the former he has taken the York Rite and a part of the Scottish Rite degrees and has become a Noble of the Mystic Shrine. He belongs to the Omaha Field Club, to the Commercial Club and to the Ak-Sar-Ben and at the polls he gives his allegiance to the democratic party but has never been an aspirant for office. Close application has led to a thorough mastery of the work to which he directs his energies and attention, and his fideliry has been the stepping stone on which he has risen to the place of prominence that he now occupies in insurance circles in Nebraska.

Guy Harris Cox

Guy Harris Cox, an active member of the Omaha bar whose developing powers have already brought him to a creditable position among the capable lawyers of the city, comes to Nebraska- ffdrn'the neighboring state of Iowa. He was born in Harrison county, July 29, 1880, and was the eldest in a family of four children whose parents were John L. and Evelyn (Harris) Cox. The father, whose birth occurred in Harrison county, lowa^- represents one of the old pioneer families of that state of English lineage founded, however, on the soil of the new world prior to the Revolutionary war. In fact representatives of the family participated in the struggle for independence. They lived originally in West Virginia and the grandfather, Henry B. Cox, was a native of Ohio. In 1851 he emigrated westward to Iowa, becoming one of the pioneer agriculturists of that state. His son, John L. Cox, was reared in Iowa, supplementing his public school training there by study in the State Agricultural College, while later he entered the Uni'ed States Military Academy at West Point, in which he was graduated in 1878. He did not take up a military life, however, but returned to the soil and spent the greater part of his days upon the Iowa farm on which he was born. At length, however, he retired from active agricultural life and is now living in San Jose, California. His wife was born in Indiana and is also living. Their children are Guy H., Gertrude. Grace and Ben, the last named an attorney at law and a graduate of Stanford University of California.

Guy H. Cox was educated in the public schools of Missouri Valley, Iowa, in Drake University at Des Moines, which he attended for two years, and in the State University of Iowa, in which he pursued his professional course, winning the LL. B. degree upon graduation with the class of 1905. He then removed to Tacoma, Washington, and became associated with the firm of Shackelford & Hayden, leading attorneys of that city, with whom he remained for four years. He then returned to Omaha and entered the firm of McKenzie, Howell & Cox, this association being maintained until the death of Mr. Howell, Messrs. McKenzie and Cox being later joined by A. L. Sutton, so that the firm is today Sutton, McKenzie & Cox. They have a large and growing law practice that has connected them with much important litigation and Mr. Cox and his associates are regarded as strong and forceful representatives of the Omaha bar. He holds membership with the Omaha-Douglas County and Nebraska State Bar Associations and he enjoys the goodwill and respect of his professional colleagues.

On the 30th of January, 1909, Mr. Cox was married in Logan, Iowa, to Miss Lorinda McCoid, a native of that state and a daughter of George W. McCoid. They have one child, Lorinda, born September 30, 1916. Mr. Cox votes with the ropubhcan party. Fraternally he is connected with the Masons, having been initiated into the order in Lebanon Lodge of Tacoma. He is a member of the Commercial Club and the Omaha Athletic Club. During the period of his residence here he has gained many warm friends because of his fidelity to high standards of life in every relation as well as by his close conformity to the ethical principles of the legal profession.

Alfred Kimball Barnes

Alfred Kimball r>arnes, an attorney practicing in Omaha since his admission to the bar in 1907, was born in Ponca, Nebraska, May 10, 1881, a son of John B. and Ida Frances (Ilannant) Barnes. The father was born in Ashtabula, Ohio, August 26, 1846, and came to Nebraska in 1871 or 1872, his marriage occurring in this state. At the time of the Civil war he responded to the country's call for aid, joining the First Ohio Volunteer Light Artillery, with which he served during the last three years of the war. It was subsequent to his removal to Nebraska that he was admitted to the bar and he has since won distinction as a lawyer and jurist of eminent ability. He is now serving for the second term as a member of the supreme court of the state and in April, 1916, was renominated for the office, in which he has proven himself the peer of the ablest members who have represented the court of last resort. In fact his record reflects credit and honor upon the judicial history of the state, for he is most fair and impartial in the discharge of the multitudinous delicate duties which devolve upon him, while his application of legal principles to the points in litigation is most correct.

Alfred K. Barnes began his education in the public schools of Ponca, Nebraska, but when he was seven years of age his parents removed to Norfolk, Nebraska, so that he became a pupil in the public schools of the latter place. He completed his more specifically literary course by graduation from the State University at Lincoln with the degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1902. He afterward pursued a two years' course in law in the State University and in 1907 was admitted to the bar, at which time he opened an oflice in Omaha, where he has since remained in active practice, and he is now counsel for the Peters Trust Company. He has always largely specialized in corporation law and his knowledge thereof is comprehensive and exact.

On the 1st of September, 1908, in Omaha, ]\Ir. Barnes was united in marriage to Miss Minnie Fricke, a daughter of Herman Fricke. They now have two sons: John Herman, born February 15, 191 1 ; and Alfred K., born July 6, 1914.

Politically Mr. Barnes has always been a stanch republican since age conferred upon him the right of franchise. Fraternally he is a chapter Mason and his religious belief is that of the Presbyterian church. He is a director of the Omaha Bar Association and his interests are of a nature that show him to be a broad-minded man of well balanced capacities and powers.

Henry A. McCord, living retired in Omaha, enjoying a rest which should ever follow years of intense and well directed business activity, came to Nebraska in 1879 from Marshall county, Iowa. He was born in Minnesota in 1857 and was twenty-three years of age when he took up his abode in Burt county, Nebraska, where he turned his attention to farming and to the feeding and raising of stock. His business affairs in that connection were wisely and successfully managed and he was regarded as one of the prominent representatives of agricultural interests in his section of the state. He continued actively in that line of business until January, 1908, when he sold his land and all other interests in Burt county and came to Omaha, where he has since made his home. He purchased some lots and also erected bungalows, including four on Twentieth and Pratt streets. In fact he has improved several pieces of property which have added to the value and attractiveness of adjacent real estate and he still has large realty holdings in Omaha, from which he derives a most gratifying annual income. His investments have been most judiciously placed, providing him with all the comforts and many of the luxuries of life. In 1912 he erected an attractive home at No. 61 19 Florence boulevard and he now gives his entire attention to the further development of the property and grounds, having two acres -on which he is cultivating gardens and raising flowers. This constitutes both his occupation and his diversion at the present time and he is making of his place one of the beauty spots of Omaha.

Mr. McCord was united in marriage to Miss Helen C. Plummer, who came from Iowa to Nebraska in February, 1882. They attend the United Presbyterian church and in the social circles of the city occupy an enviable position. Mr. McCord's life history is an inspiring one, showing what may be accomplished through determined and intelligently directed purpose and energy, and the qualities which he has cultivated and developed are such as have gained for him the enduring respect, regard and friendship of those with whom he has been associated.

Urban B. Balcombe

Urban B. Balcombe, who died at Excelsior Springs, Missouri, March 7, 191 7, was born in Elgin, Illinois,' in 1852. His father. Saint A. D. Balcombe, removed with his family to Omaha from Winona, Minnesota, July 5, 1865. He had formerly been agent for the captured Sioux and Winnebago Indians and in 1863 removed them to St. Louis and thence to North Dakota, where he established an agency for the representatives of the two tribes. In 1865 the Winnebagos tired of their location and Mr. Balcombe took five of the Indians to Washington and they bought one-half of the Omaha agency in Nebraska. After settling the red men at their new location Mr. Balcombe brought his family to Omaha and purchased the Republican, which he continued to publish until 1875. He then disposed of his paper and office. He was then appointed to the position of United States marshal for Wyoming, which position he continued to occupy for two or three years, after which he returned to Omaha. In 1887 he was appointed chairman of the board of public works, which position he filled for two terms and remained a member of the board until 1895. He was a native of New York and he spent his last days in Omaha, where he passed away in 1904, at the age of seventy-five. His wife bore the maiden name of Anna Denning and they became the parents of five children : Urban B. ; Lesbia, who married Louis S. Reed and passed away October i. 1916; Mrs. Selma Meikle of Chicago; Mora, the wife of Charles H. Marple, of Omaha; and Mrs. Mabel Lenhardt, of New York city.

Urban B. Balcombe was a youth of thirteen when the family home was established in Omaha. His boyhood up to that time had been largely spent upon the frontier and his memory compassed many interesting incidents of pioneer life. He was associated with his father in all his undertakings in Omaha and for twenty years he held various city and county positions, acting at different times as deputy city clerk, as secretary of the board of public works, as deputy assessor under Harry Reed and in other offices, the duties of which he discharged with promptness and fidehty. At length he retired from office and afterward spent his time in the enjoyment of well earned rest save for the supervision which he gave to his real estate investments that returned to him a gratifying a^id subslaniial annual income.

In Omaha, in 1890, Mr. Balcombe was married to Miss Cora Turner, a native of Missouri Valley, Iowa. Fraternally he was connected with the Knights of Pythias and the Modern Woodmen of America, while his father was a Mason, lie followed in his father's political footsteps, becoming a stalwart advocate of the republican party, and, like his father, was well known as an honored and substantial citizen. The name of Balcombe has figured in connection with Omaha's development and with her public interests for more than a half century and has ever been a synonym for progressive citizenship.

Christopher C. Crowell, Jr

Christopher C. Crowell, Jr., one of the best known men in connection with the grain trade of the middle west, is the president of both the Crowell Lumber & Grain Company and the Crowell Elevator Company, in which capacities he is bending his efforts to constructive methods, administrative direction and executive control. Llis business training was in preparation for the duties which now engage his attention and step by step as the result of his experience, his close application and his thorough study of every phase of the trade he has advanced until he is now at the head of corporations whose assets are more than a million dollars.

Mr. Crowell was born in Blair, Washington county, Nebraska, July 6, 1874, and is a grandson of Prince S. Crowell, a native of Massachusetts, who became a prominent figure in railway circles. He married Polly D. Foster. On the paternal side the line is traced back directly to Elder Brewster. The greatgreat-grandfather of Christopher C. Crowell, Jr., was an officer of the Revolutionary war and the great-grandfather was an officer in the American army during the War of 1812. In relation to the grandfather Morton's History of Nebraska says :

"Prince S. Crowell was a man of remarkable business ability and great energy. In his youthful days he commanded one of the first merchant vessels sailing to China from American ports. While still young he retired from a seafaring life and built a number of vessels at East Dennis, his home. Later he became interested with John I. Blair and others in a construction company which built many of the railroads west of the Mississippi river in Iowa, Nebraska and other states. He was also president of two banks and on his own account transacted a large marine insurance business. He was one of the leading agitators in his locality for the present school system, was a radical abolitionist, and his home was the meeting place for such great personages as William Lloyd Garrison, Wendell Phillips, the Burleighs, Lucy Stone and many others of prominence. He was always of a retiring disposition, but his power was nevertheless a strong factor in public afi'airs. He amassed a large fortune and was ever a liberal supporter of all charitable work.

"Christopher C. Crowell, Sr., the father of Christopher C. Crowell, Jr., was born at East Dennis, Massachusetts, May 19, 1844. For many years, however, he was a resident of Nebraska, where he was a most prominent representative of the grain trade, becoming the owner of sixteen elevators, his headquarters being at Blair, where the business was established in 1869 and where the general offices of the Crowell Lumber & Grain Company were maintained. Later a removal was made to Omaha in 1909 and in the early part of 1910 Christopher C. Crowell passed away. Like his father before, he was greatly interested in work for the betterment and uplift of mankind and his influence and efforts were no less broad and no less effective than those of his honored father, Prince S. Crowell. C. C. Crowell, Sr., was a most earnest supporter of the temperance cause and did everything in his power to bring about the aboHtion of the Hquor trafihc, leaving ten thousand dollars to be used by his son and namesake to further the prohibition cause. From 1884 until his death he was a stalwart prohibitionist and was his party's candidate for treasurer of Nebraska in 1900. He was also the first full term mayor of Blair, Nebraska. On the 5th of December, 1867, he married Polly D. Foster and to them were born eight children, of whom five now survive."

With the example of his honored father to serve as an inspiration to him, Christopher C. Crowell, Jr., has continued the work in which his father and grandfather were interested - work for the betterment of his fellowmen, and at the same time has become his father's successor in business, his course proving that he i^ adequate to all the demands placed upon him. To accumulate a fortune requires one kind of genius ; to retain a fortune already acquired, to add to its legitimate increment and to make such use of it that its possessor may derive therefrom the greatest enjoyment and the public the greatest benefit requires another kind of genius. Mr. Crowell belongs to that younger generation of business men of Omaha called upon to shoulder responsibiHties differing materially from those resting upon their predecessors. In a broader field of enterprise he finds himself obliged to deal with affairs of greater magnitude and to solve more difficult and complicated financial, economic and commercial problems. His early training for his present responsibilities came to him through the Blair public schools, supplemented by a year's study in a business college in Chicago. He remained thereafter in Chicago for two years as an employe in a large retail furniture store and in 1893 he returned to Jj lair. In the following year he became connected with his father's grain efevafor business at a country- station in Nebraska, where he remained for sevdri'years; making it his purpose to thoroughly learn the business in principle and detail. After learning the field management with all its detail work concerning buying and selling, in 1901 Mr. Crowell entered the general office of the CroweU Lumber & Grain Company at Blair and with the removal of the headquarters to Omaha in 1909 became a resident of this city. His father died in 1910 and two years afterward, or in 191 2, he succeeded to the presidency of the company, which in 1885 had been incorporated under the style of the Crowell Lumber & Grain Company. He is today also president of the Crowell Elevator Company, which was incorporated in 191 1, and thus as chief executive officer of both concerns he controls most extensive interests. The business has grown in volume and the grain company now has twenty-three country elevators and ten lumberyards in Nebraska. The other officers of the company are: J. A. Linderholm, secretary; and Z. K. Doane, treasurer. These, together with Mr. Crowell as president and E. H. Benner and M. B. Copeland, constitute the board of directors.

On the 15th of September, 1897, at Newman's Grove, Nebraska, Mr. Crowell Avas united in marriage to Miss Augusta Saare. a daughter of the late Herman Saare, a native of Germany. The children of this marriage are Herman F., Christopher C, Mildred and Pauline.

Mr. Crowell is a prohibitionist in politics and a Methodist in religious faith. He is now serving on the official board of the McCabe Methodist Episcopal church, in the work of which he takes a very active, prominent and helpful part. He is equally earnest in his support of the Young Men's Christian Association and is a member of the Commercial Club. The subjective and objective forces of life are in him well balanced, making him cognizant of his own capacities and powers, while at the same time he thoroughly understands his opportunities and his obHgations. To make his native talents subserve the demands which the conditions of society impose at the present time is the purpose of his life and by reason of the mature judgment which characterizes his efforts at all times he stands today as a splendid representative of the successful merchant and capitalist to whom business is but one jjhase of life and does not exelude his aetive participation in and support of the other vital interests which go to make up human existence.

In the hisior)' of early commercial development in Omaha it is imperative that mention be made of William Stephens, Jr., for scarcely more than a decade after the first white settlement was made on the site of the present city he became identified with its commercial interests, and with the development of the metropolis he figured more and more largely in its commercial circles. A native of Missouri, he was born in Monroe county in 1843, a son of Thomas N. and Mary Stephens.

In his youthful days he became identified with mercantile interests in Missouri and was thus associated until 1864, when he came to Omaha to cast in his lot with the newdy established but rapidly developing city. He was connected with its commercial circles for many years as senior partner in the firm of Stephens & Wilcox, wholesale and retail dealers in dry goods, Indian goods, robes and furs, his trade gradually going through a transformation as the tide of emigration drifted westward and Omaha was no longer an outpost of frontier civilization. In other ways Mr. Stephens also took a prominent part in the development of Omaha, aiding largely in the establishment of the military post, of Omaha Barracks and the government supply depot. He was prominent in the promotion of all the social organizations of Omaha in the early days and his political allegiance was given to the democratic party.

Mr. Stephens was united in marriage to Miss Mary Willis Griffin and their family numbered the following children: Lucien, a resident of Omaha; Oscar Lee and Mary Ida, who are deceased ; Thomas W., the president of the Ansco Company of Binghamton, New York, and New York city ; and Henry G., who is the secretary of the Pacific Fire Insurance Company of New York. The two last named were born in Omaha, Nebraska. The death of Mr. Stephens occurred in 1883, after a residence of almost twenty years in Omaha, during which period he had made valuable contribution to its upbuilding and development.

Thomas Brown

Thomas Brown, who was successfully engaged in the quick lunch business in Omaha, was born in Wimbledon, England, in 1849 and was a graduate of Wimbledon College, of which his grandmother was one of the directors, and she was also a large landowner of London and its vicinity. It was in 1869 that Thomas Brown came to the new world, and his mother and sister, Mrs. James Bartlett, afterward crossed the Atlantic to America and the mother made her home with him in this country until her demise.

Taking up his abode in Chicago, Mr. Brown was for many years manager of the Palmer House of that city. Eventually he removed to Lincoln, where he engaged in the restaurant business, and in 1898 he became a resident of Omaha, where he established the Brown Ouick Lunch Restaurants, havino- five dififerent places, one on North Sixteenth street, 'one on South Sixteenth, one on Farnam, the fourth on Thirteenth street and the fifth on South Tenth street. He built up a business of notable proportions, having the first establishment of the kind in Omaha, and from the beginning his patronage steadily grew, making his undertaking a profitable one.

On the 1 2th of May, 1894, in Lincoln, Nebraska, Mr. Brown was united in marriage to Miss Marie Barker, a native of Yorkshire, England, and in 1904 he purchased the residence on Wirt street which his family still occupies and in 1905 purchased the flats at Twenty-first and Cass streets.' To Mr. and Mrs. Brown were born three children : Thomas J., is a graduate of the Racine (Wis.) College and of the State University at Madison, Wisconsin, and is studying military law and tactics and also preparing for work as an army surgeon. Dorothey Marie studied at Brownell Hall in Omaha and afterward completed her education at Miss Payne's School in Folkestone, England, also studying music in the Royal Academy of London; Myrtle Madeline will graduate in 1917 from Brownell Hall.

Mr. Brown was a most charitable man and was continually extending a helping hand where it was needed. At one time he was a member of the Masonic fraternity and also belonged to the Woodmen of the World. His last days were spent in Jacksonville, Florida, where he passed away November 23, 1909, his death being the occasion of deep regret to many friends as well as his immediate family.

Mrs. Brown is a graduate of the Sheffield Training School and previous to her marriage followed the profession of nursing. She is active along various lines of modern thought and development. She is one of the earnest and helpful members of Trinity Cathedral and she belongs to the Omaha Woman's Club, in which she is serving as treasurer of the social science department. She belongs also to three suffrage associations, the Omaha, the Political Equality and the Equal Franchise. Her position upon the temperance question is indicated by her membership in the Woman's Christian Temperance Union. She acted as chairman of the Syrian relief work on Saturday, October 21, 1916, and she is ever connected with some important philanthropic or social service movement which is working toward the uplift and betterment of the individual or of humanity at large.

Sidney Smith Montgomery

Through the steps of an orderly progression in railroad service Sidney Smith Montgomery worked his way steadily upward and at length in 1906 turned to other pursuits, being now engaged in real estate dealing in Omaha. He was born in Allenwick, Ontario, Canada, August 23, 1872. His father, Samuel Montgomery, was born in County Cavan, Ireland, and in his boyhood days accompanied his parents to the new world. In Ontario he wedded Lucetta Honeywell and in 1888 they removed to Beatrice, Nebraska, where both passed away, the former in 1915 and the latter in 191 1.

Sidney S. Montgomery attended the schools of Campbellford, Ontario, to the fourth grade and at the age of eleven years started out to earn his own living, since which time he has depended entirely upon his individual resources and ability and has truly earned the proud American title of self-made man. After the removal of the' family to Beatrice, Nebraska, he did any and all kinds of manual work that he could secure that would yield him an honest living, and while thus engaged he took up the study of telegraphy at night. In 1890 he obtained a place as telegrapher with the Burlington Railway and afterward was made agent, serving at various points on the Burlington until in 1896, when he resigned the position of cashier at Cheyenne, Wyoming, to enter the employ of the Union Pacific Railroad Company as extra agent in Utah and Wyoming. He thus served for a year and then went to Norfolk. Nebraska, as train dispatcher for the Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley Railroad. A year later he was transferred to Chadron. Nebraska, as train dispatcher for the same road and for nine years remained at that point or until 1906, having two years before, however, been promoted to the position of chief train dispatcher. On leavmg the railway service he came to Omaha in 1906 as manager for Nebraska of the W'ashington Life Insurance Company. He occupied that position for a year and then entered the real estate business, after which he dropped insurance and is now concentrating his energies upon his operations in the real estate field. In the intervening period he has negotiated many important property transfers and he is thoroughly informed concerning values and is acquainted with practically all the property upon the market.

In June, 1896, at Norfolk, Nebraska, Mr. Montgomery was united in marriage to Miss Gertrude M. Ijcnnett. by whom he has a daughter, Beatrice Laird Montgomery. The family attend the Congregational church. Mr. ^lontgomery votes with the democratic party but has never been an aspirant for office. He is a Master Mason and a member of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He is also identified with the Ak-Sar-Ben and his name is on the membership roll of the Happy Hollow Club. At a period when most boys are dividing their time between the duties of the schoolroom and the pleasures of the playground he was forced to take upon himself the burden and responsibilities of life and with courageous s])irit assumed his tasks. There have been indeed few idle moments in his career and his persistency of purpose combined with loyalty, integrity and determination have brought him to the creditable point which he now occupies in business circles.

Charles Frederick Weller

Charles Frederick Weller has passed the Psalmist's allotted span of three score years and ten, for he has reached the seventy-second milestone on life's journey, yet he is still a most active factor in commercial circles in Omaha, being today one of its foremost merchants as president of the Richardson Drug Company. His life record has been- such as would at all times bear the closest investigation and scrutiny, one of his marked characteristics being his spirit of fidelity to every trust, manifest in pronounced manner when he aided the country in the efifort to preserve the Union more than half a century ago. A native of Ohio, Mr. Weller was born in New Alexandria, Jefferson county, May 16, 1844, a son of Zaccheus Sherman Weller, who was born in Roxbury, Connecticut, in 1824. Removing to Ohio, he was married in that state to Mrs. Mary H. Bowers, nee Havens, who was born near Penn Yan, New York. Both have now passed away.

Charles F. Weller pursued his education in public schools of Ohio until 1857, when his father, who was a Methodist minister, was called to a pastorate in Jefferson City, Missouri, and the family accordingly removed to that place. There the son continued his education. At the time of the Civil war he finally obtained a pass from General Price and managed to get across the river into Iowa, traveling at night time and sleeping by day. He had an old horse which he sold in Washington, Iowa, for ten dollars and he soon afterward secured employment on a farm near by, digging post holes until he had blistered his hands. In this condition he was set to work at driving a team and not long afterward he passed a teacher's examination at Washington, Iowa, obtained his certificate and for three months taught school in Washington county at a salary of twenty dollars per month, boarding 'round among the families whose children were his pupils. In the following September he bought a ticket for Beaver, Pennsylvania, where his parents were then living, having been sent out of Missouri by General Price.

Charles F. Weller there attended the Beaver Institute until November, 1861, when he felt that it was necessary for him to provide for his own support and accordingly he left home in search of work. He reached W^ellsburg, West Virginia, with a dollar and a half in his pocket and near that place he obtained a school which he taught for three months. He then returned to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, expecting to attend college, but the war feeling was then so strong that in May, 1862, he enlisted as a private of Company G. Fifteenth Pennsyl- vania \^oIunteer Cavalry, which at the start was called Anderson's Cavalry. It was raised for special service, a mental as well as a physical examination being required, together with a special uniform. This resulted in a crack regiment and at the barracks in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, they were drilled by expert officers and there obtained their horses, after which they joined the Army of the Potomac and received their baptism of blood at Antietam. The regiment was then stationed at Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, for scout duty in the valley but a week after becoming encamped there was ordered to Louisville, Kentucky, subsequent to which time it vvas placed in the vanguard of the Army of the Cumberland. From that time forward Mr. Weller was with his command in active and arduous duty. He participated in the battle of Antietam and skirmishes between Louisville, Kentucky, and Nashville, Tennessee, including the engagements at Bowling Green, Perryville and Elizabethtown, Kentucky. Later he took part in both engagements at Nashville and in the battle of Stone River, following which the regiment was in camp for three months. Later he was in the battles of Stevenson and Bridgeport, Tennessee, and thence proceeded to Chattanooga. Then came the battle of Chickamauga and Mr. Weller was there serving on the stafit of General "Pap" Thomas. He was also at Missionary Ridge and later his command went to Knoxville, Tennessee, to relieve General Burnside. This was followed by the fight at Strawberry Plains, a terrific encounter, and then came other battles on the way to V'irginia. The regiment then joined General Sherman at Atlanta and just as he started on his march to the sea, the regiment to wdiich Mr. Weller belonged was ordered to Lynchburg, Virginia, being a month en route to that place. From Lynchbtirg they started for Spartanburg, South Carolina, destroying everything on the way, especially in the Yadkin valley, the granary of the Confederate army. From Spartanburg they proceeded to Savannah, Georgia, and thence back to Nashville, Tennessee, where Mr. Weller was mustered out June 30, 1865, having a most creditable military record by his brave and loyal support of the Union cause.

When the war was over Mr. Weller returned to Beaver, Pennsylvania, where his sweetheart resided, and after a brief visit with her he proceeded to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he entered Duff's College, in which he studied from the loth of July until the 20th of September, 1865, there winning his diploma together with high compliment from Peter Duff, the president of the business college, in which he had specialized as a student in business law.

Once more he went to the home of his sweetheart, Miss Kate A. McElwaine, and on the 28th of September, 1865, they were married. They removed to Macon, Missouri, where Mr. Weller established a grocery business, but after six months he sold out there and removed to Ouincy, Illinois. At that time he began traveling for a wdiolesale drug house and in 1871 was admitted to a partnership in the business, with which he was connected until 1873, when he sold his interest and removed to St. Louis. There he became connected with the wholesale drug firm of Richardson & Company, with which he continued for three years, when he returned to Quincy, Illinois, and with others embarked in the wholesale drug business, Mr. Weller becoming the silent partner in the firm, which was organized under the name of Sommer, Lynds & Company. There he continued for three years, on the expiration of which period he sold out and again went to St. Louis, once more entering into business relations with Richardson & Company, wholesale druggists, whom he represented upon the roa.d. Two years later the business was incorporated under the style of the Richardson Drug Company and Mr. Weller became one of the directors. In September, 1887, a branch house was established in Omaha and he removed to this city to assume the duties of vice president and manager. In March, 1899, o" the death of J. C. Richardson, who was president of the company, Mr. Weller succeeded to the presidency and still occupies that executive position, being at the same time general manager. He has since bought out the Richardson interests and now owns the entire business, although the name of the Richardson Drug Company is still retained. This is today one of the most important commercial enterprises of the city, carefully and wisely managed. Each department of the husiness is thoroughly systematized, and possessing- in large measure that quality which has hecn termed commercial sense, Mr. W'cller has gradually developed and broadened his interests and is today one of the foremost merchants of Nebraska's metropolis, while his ramifying trade interests cover a broad territory.

To Mr. and Mrs. Weller have been born eight children, as follows: Mary A., the wife of John W. Fisher; Harry S., who is a resident of Omaha; Olive ILlizabeth. the wife of Frederick W. Clarke, of Omaha; Charles Keyes, living in Omaha : Emma Ruth, who gave her hand in marriage to Professor Charles B. Walker, of Syracuse. New York; Alice Elvira, the wife of Ralph E. Crandell, of Chapman, Nebraska ; Agnes Garfield, who is the wife of Hugh B. Thomas, of Denver, Colorado; and Clifford R., who makes his home in Omaha. Mrs. Weller. the mother of these children, passed away April 2"], 191 1, and Mr. Weller was married again on June 29. 1912. to Mrs. Jane Adell Whittlesey, of Hartford, Connecticut.

Mr. Weller has long been a consistent member of the First Methodist I*!piscopal church and in his political views he has ahvays been a stalwart re])ublican. standing firmly by the party which was the defense of the Union during the dark days of the Civil war and has always been the party of reform and progress. His interest in community affairs is indicated by his membership in the Commercial Club and by the hearty aid and cooperation which he gives to all well devised plans and measures for the public good. He belongs also to the Happy Hollow Club and to the Omaha Club and maintains ])leasant relations with his old comrades in arms through his membership in the Cirand Army of the Republic, proudly wearing the little bronze button which is an insignia that any might well covet. He has ever been as loyal to his country in days of peace as in days of war, and while never an office seeker, has always displayed the same spirit of fidelity to his country and her best interests that he manifested when he followed the nation's starry banner o'er the battlefields of the south.

Byron Clark

Byron Clark, solicitor for the Chicago. Burlington & Quincy Railroad at Omaha and thus a well known figure in railway circles, was born on a farm in Tazewell county, Illinois, April 24, 1856. His father, Timothy Clark, was born near Amity, Pennsylvania, in 1820 and was married in Rushville, Blinois, on the 29th of August, 1845, to Anna Benninger, whose father built the first iron forge in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. They came to Nebraska on the 3d of March, 1870, settling on a farm in Cass county, where the father died November 11, 1901, having for six years survived his wife, who passed away June 25, 1895. During the Civil war. being incapacitated for active service, he acted as enrolling officer at P'ekin, Illinois.

Byron Clark acquired a common school education in his native county, supplemented by a year's preparatory course in the State University of Nebraska and also a year's study in the high school at Weeping Water, Nebraska, after leaving college. He was twenty years of age when his textbooks were put aside and he later taught school in Cass county, Nebrasl-ca. In 1879 he removed to Plattsmouth, Nebraska, and there entered the law office of Smith & Strode, under whose direction he studied. In January, 1881, he was admitted to the bar and located for practice at Papillion. Sarpy county, where he remained for two years. He next removed to Plattsmouth, w^here he entered into partnership with one of his former preceptors under the firm style of Strode & Clark. Mr. Strode being at that time district attorney, while ]\Ir. Clark acted as his deputy. The firm continued in existence for four years, at the end of which time Mr. Strode removed to Lincohi and Mr. Clark continued in practice alone at Plattsmouth until 1912, when he was appointed Nebraska and Kansas solicitor for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company with headquarters at Omaha, and to the duties of that responsible position he is now devoting his energies.

On the 5th of May, 1881, in Plattsmouth, Mr. Clark was married to Miss Mmnie C. Murphy, who was a daughter of the late Michael B. Murphy, and who died in September, 1905, at Plattsmouth. Mr. Clark was married in 1908 to Margaret T. Farley, then a teacher in the public schools at Lincoln, Nebraska. His children are: Earle, who married Ida B. Cruni, of Fancitas, Texas, and has a son Allan Byron, born in February, 1916; and Helen M., who is the wife of Herman E. Kuppinger, also of Francitas. Both are graduates of the Nebraska State University.

Mr. and Mrs. Clark are members of the Congregational church and in politics he is a republican but has never sought nor held political office save that of city attorney of Plattsmouth. He is a Knights Templar Mason and a member of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He belongs to the Commercial Club, the Omaha Club, the University, Happy Hollow and Athletic Clubs of Omaha and the Commercial Club of Lincoln. Plis acquaintance is broad and the circle of his friends almost coextensive therewith. His friends speak of him as a genial, courteous gentleman whose companionship is always an enjoyable feature on social occasions. Omaha as a railroad terminal or division point has drawn to it in this connection many men of notable ability among whom may well be numbered Byron Clark, whose labors are indeed covering a broad field for the benefit of mankind and are at all times resultant forces.

William Cooley Norris

Among those active in real estate circles in Omaha is William Cooley Norris, who en'ered that field of business in 1907 and who in 191 1 incorporated his interests under the firm name of Norris & Norris, of which company he is the president. He was born in St. Joseph, Missouri, in 1866. His father, Thomas Norris, a native of Culpeper, Virginia, was born in 1832 and in 1849 became a resident of St.- Joseph. Two years later, or in 185 1, he went to California, attracted by the discovery of gold on the Pacific slope, but later he returned to Missouri and continued to spend his remaining days in St. Joseph, where he served as a member of the Home Guards during the Civil war. He had a brother, Richard Norris, also a native of Virginia, who became a very prominent divine of the Methodist Episcopal church and spent the greater part of his life in preaching the gospel in Maryland and the District of Columbia. Following his removal to St. Joseph, Thomas Norris wedded Margaret Jane Louthan and there passed away in 1903, while his wife survived for six years, dying in 1909.

In the public schools of his native city William C. Norris pursued his education until he became a high school pupil and in 1886, at the age of twenty years, made his initial step in the business world by entering the ticket office of the Wabash Railroad in St. Joseph, where a year later he was made agent. In December, 1890, he came to Omaha, where he began business as a broker in railroad tickets and so continued until 1904, when he took up the business of general railroad contracting. He remained active in that field for three years and in 1907 began dealing in real estate, also handling insurance. The latter, however, is largely a side line, the greater part of his attention being given to his real estate operations, which are carefully and wisely directed. He thoroughly understands the real estate market, is correct in his valuations of property and has negotiated many important real estate transfers. With the growth of his business

In his political views Mr. Norris has always maintained an independent course, voting according- to the dictates of his judgment. He is a Master Mason and is also connected with the I'llks, exemplifying in his life the beneficent spirit of these orders, which recognize the brotherhood of mankind and the obligations thereby imposed.

Colonel Edward W. Getten

The record of a man who lives among us perhaps cannot be appraised at its true value. It is too near to give the right perspective, but the future will trace the tremendous effect of his labors upon society and the institutions of his time. The possibilities of high position afforded in the United States to industry and fidelity are splendidly illustrated in the case of Colonel Edward W. Getten. He came to Omaha as a youth, working for his living and dependent on his own hands for whatever the world was to bring him of enjoyment, success and honors, and he is now possessed of all those worth while things for which men strive.

He was born in Caledonia, Illinois, November 3, 1872, and comes of English ancestry. The founder of the family in the new world was Thomas Getten, who on coming to the United States from England, settled in Batavia county. New York, near Svracuse. where he conducted business as a blacksmith and farmer. Members of the family participated in the Revolutionary war, so that the present generation are all eligible to membership in the Sons and Daughters of the American Revolution. Albert C. Getten, father of Edward W. Getten, was born in New York and became a machinist. He possessed expert ability in that line and was the inventor of machinery for the manufacture of paper bags and thereby revolutionized that industry. He received royalties from his invention throughout his entire life and he was for years the general manager of the Union Bag & Paper Company of New York city, in which connection he occupied a position of notable prominence in business circles. At the time of the Civil war he espoused the cause of the Union and while in battle at the front was captured and sent to Libby prison. He was one of a company of seventeen who managed to effect their escape and, making his way northward, he joined his company. He was with Sherman on the celebrated march to the sea and participated in a number of the most hotly contested engagements. He joined the army as a private but rose to the rank of first lieutenant. At the time of his demise he was commander of the Glens Falls, New York, department of the Grand Army of the Republic. In business he was very successful and he was ever a man of high ideals whose upright life and notable achievements make his record an example well worthy of emulation. He married Julia Smith, a native of Beloit, Wisconsin, and a representative of a pioneer family of that state of Dutch descent, her ancestors having settled in the Mohawk valley at an early day. Mrs. Getten passed away in New York in 1912, at the age of sixty-six years, and Mr. Getten died in Los Angeles, California, at the age of seventy-two. They were parents of five sons: Frederick J., living in Glendale, California; Edward W., of Omaha; Ira C, of Boston, Massachusetts; Ernest A., of Hudson Falls, New York; and Francis W., of Glens Falls, New York.

Edward W. Getten largely passed his boyhood and youth in Chicago, where he attended the public schools, being graduated from the Lakeview high school with the class of 1889. He made his initial step in the business world as an employe in the wholesale grocery house of W. M. Hoyt of Chicago, entering that house with a view to learning the business. He continued in that line for two years and was later with the McCord-Brady Company of Omaha, his asso- ciation with that firm continuing for twenty years and three months, during which period he rose from the position of office boy until he was assistant manager of three departments. He arrived in Omaha on the loth of September, 1890, and in 1909 he resigned his position with the McCord-Brady Company to become manager of the Omaha branch of the wholesale cigar business of Rothenberg & Schloss of Kansas City. In 1910 he established the Getten Cigar Company, beginning business on a small scale but developing the trade until he now has the largest retail cigar stores in Omaha. In 191 1 he was joined by Paul Wickham in a partnership under the name of the Getten & Wickham Cigar Company. They conduct five of the leading retail cigar stores in the state, three in Omaha, one in Lincoln and one in Alliance, Nebraska. Their business is now very extensive and is steadily growing. In addition to his cigar trade Mr. Getten has extensive interests in various other Omaha enterprises. He is a large stockholder in the Western Druggists Supply Company, doing a wholesale business at 1806 Harney street, and is the southern manager for the Hull-Grummond Company, cigar manufacturers of New York city. He likewise has other investments and business interests and is the holder of extensive properties not only in Omaha but also in Los Angeles and elsewhere. He has a home at Hollywood, California, where he spends the winter, and he has an extensive orange grove in that section of the state. His is a notable career inasmuch as he started out in life a poor boy and came to Omaha an entire stranger to make for himself a place in its business circles. Gradually he has worked his way upward and through the steps of an orderly progression has reached a position of notable prosperity and prominence.

On the 17th of June, 1895, Mr. Getten was married in Omaha to ]\Iiss Mabelle Claire Cheney, a native of this city and a daughter of Charles C. and Margaret (Fleming) Cheney, who are still living in Omaha. To Mr. and Mrs Getten have been born two daughters : Margaret Claire, born in Omaha in June, 1897 ; and Julia Mabelle, in December, 1899. The religious faith of the family is that of the Episcopal church. In politics Mr. Getten is a democrat, interested in political and civic matters. He has attained the Knight Templar degree in Masonry, and is a noble of the Mystic Shrine, and he also belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, the Eagles, the Royal Arcanum and the United Commercial Travelers. He is also a member of the Travelers Protective Association and of the United Commercial Travelers is a past grand councilor. He has membership with the Omaha Athletic Club and for five terms he has served as colonel on the governor's staff", having filled the position through five administrations, being one of only two who have served through that entire period. In the course of his life he has attained almost everything that men covet as of value and he has won it all by his own unaided exertions. He has also found time for the finer things which our selfmade men are so prone to overlook - aid in money and personal attention to schools and churches, collection of rare objects of beauty and the artistic adornment of his city and of his home.

Frederick J. Farrington

Frederick J. Farrington, manager of the John Deere Plow Company, is a man whose constant energy and achievements are a source of wonder to his business associates and colleagues. He displays the keenest grasp of situations, accompanied by determination to accomplish the maximum in the situations offered, and along the lines indicated he has won advancement to his present position of administrative direction and executive control in connection with one of the important commercial interests of Omaha. He was born in Romeo, Michigan, August 20, 1876, his parents being Levi and Maria (Young) Far- rington. who in 1882 removed from Michigan to South Dakota, settling at Aberdeen, lloth are now deceased, the father passing away in the state of Washington in 1910, while the mother died in Omaha in 1914.

Frederick J. Farrington began his education in the schools of Aberdeen, South Dakota, and afterward attended high school at St. Thomas, North Dakota, liamline University at St. Paul, Minnesota, and also pursued a course in a business college in that city. In 1903, when a young man of twenty-seven years, he came to Omaha and entered into active connection with the John Deere Plow Company, which he has since represented. Working his way steadily upward, he has ultimately reached the position of secretary and manager and is regarded as a keen, farsighted business man.