Omaha City (part 15 of 26)

Stonewall Jackson Henderson was the seventh son in a family of ten children. He pursued his education in the public schools of Parkersburg, West Virginia, and of Marietta, Ohio, and when seventeen years of age started out to earn his own living, being first employed as clerk on an Ohio river steamboat. He devoted about three years to that work and subsequently became a traveling salesman in mercantile lines, devoting fifteen years to that pursuit. He became a resident of Waterloo, Iowa, where for seven years he successfully engaged in the insurance business, and in 1906 he removed to Omaha, where he opened an insurance office, and has since won a large clientage in this connection.

One of the interesting chapters of his life record covers his efforts to develop the Henderson Alfalfa Seed Farms near Benkelman, Nebraska, a work in which he has gained splendid success. He has thoroughly demonstrated the possibilities for profitable alfalfa growing in the west and he handles the Grimm alfalfa seed. His nonirrigated farms are situated about a mile south of Benkelman, in the beautiful Republican valley, where the soil and climate are rich with the elements that are necessary to produce vigorous alfalfa seed. Mr. Henderson has had twenty years' experience in the growing of alfalfa and after a thorough study of ihe question he became convinced that for the production of vigorous, hardy seed that will germinate freely one must have cold winters and long, hot, dry summers interspersed with extreme sudden changes. He found the necessary conditions in Dundy county and there acquired his farms, which are now devoted to alfalfa seed production, specializing in Grimm alfalfa because of its superior hardiness and yield. The government and state agricultural farms have made careful tests of the various strains of alfalfa in order to ascertain which is the hardiest and in practically every case where a thorough test has been made Grimm alfalfa has proven to be superior in hardiness, in quality and in yield. Moreover, it sprouts earlier and furnishes later pasture in the fall. Mr. Henderson's success in this undertaking is notable and it has meant much to the farmers of Nebraska and the west.

. In Bloomfield, Iowa, in 1890, Mr. Henderson was married to Miss Belle Carruthers, a native of Iowa and a daughter of the late Hon. Samuel S. Carruthers, a prominent lawyer and judge of Davis county, Iowa. Her mother bore the maiden name of Lucretia Kenaga. Mr. and Mrs. Henderson have one son, Sam C, who is also engaged in the insurance business in Omaha.

In his political views Mr. Henderson is a democrat, somewhat active in the party, and he won his title of colonel by service on Governor Morehead's staff for four years. Recently he has been appointed for similar service on the staff of Governor Neville. He belongs to the Masonic fraternity, in which he has attained the Knight Templar degree, and he also has membership with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and the Omaha Athletic Club, associations that indicate much of the character of his interests and the rules which govern his conduct. His has been a well spent life fraught with high ideals and honorable purposes and the results which he has achieved are most substantial and gratifying. Moreover, with his material prosperity has come that good name which is rather to be chosen than great riches.

Thomas Alfred Fry

Thomas Alfred Fry, financier and merchant, has been closely associated not only with interests which have contributed to the business development of Omaha but also with interests which have advanced municipal progress and promoted high standards of citizenship. The spirit of western progress and enterprise which has been a dominant factor in the upbuilding of the middle west has ever been manifest in his career. He is a western man by birth, training and preference. He was born in Lawrence, Kansas, September 3, i860, a son of Samuel and Matilda (Peters) Fry, both of whom were natives of England, where they were reared and married. The father was born in 1832 and it was about 1852 that he crossed the Atlantic to the new world, establishing the family home in Lawrence, Kansas, in 1854. During the period of the Civil war he served as a member of the Home Guards and was on one occasion captured by. troops under General Price but managed to make his escape. For many years he engaged extensively in business as a railroad contractor and was directing the building of a railroad in Texas when he passed away in 1873, his widow surviving until 1884.

Thomas A. Fry, having completed the course of instruction in the schools of Lawrence, Kansas, afterward spent two winter seasons as a student in Selleck's Military Academy at Norwalk, Connecticut, and still later he entered the State University of Kansas, where he completed the work of the junior year in 1876. He then went to St. Louis, where he spent two years with an uncle in the oyster business. In 1879 he entered the employ of A. Booth & Company, the most prominent oyster dealers of the country and continued with that firm and its successors at their St. Louis branch from 1879 ""til 1887. In the latter year he came to Omaha for the firm, opening a branch house in this city, of which he was made manager, continuing uninterruptedly in that business until 1912, when he resigned. In the meantime, however, larger responsibilities were entrusted to his care, for in 1902 he was given charge of all of the interests of the A. Booth Company west of the Mississippi river and managed the vast volume of business done in that territory for an entire decade. In 1908 he was made receiver for the company in connection with nearly all of their business west of the Mississippi river. On the ist of October, 1912, Mr. Fry became president of the Cole & Fry Company, dealers in fish and oysters, and so continued until June 26, 1915. He has never concentrated his efiforts along a single line, however, and his powers have proven adequate to the demands for successful management in connection with various important business concerns. He has been continuously engaged in the retail shoe trade in Omaha since 1894 and is now president of the Drexel Shoe Company, the Fry Shoe Company, the Stryker Shoe Company and the Shoe Market. He is likewise an influential factor in financial circles and for sixteen years has been a director of the United States National Bank and since 1896 has been president of the Nebraska Savings & Loan Company.

On the 2ist of May, 1884, in St. Louis, Mr. Fry was married to Miss Betha B. Milford, a daughter of Richard Milford, of England, and to them were born the following named: Elizabeth M. ; Anna C. ; AHce; Daisy Jane; Ethel M. : and Helen Marie, who died August 18, 1913, at the age of twelve years.

The parents hold membership in the Good Shepherd Episcopal church, of which Mr. Fry is a vestryman. His political endorsement is given to the republican party and while he has never been active in the public life of the com- munity as an office holder he has done effective and far-reaching work for the beneht of the city in many ways. He w^as one of the organizers of the Ak-Sar- Ben, of which he served as president for eight years, and in that connection he did much to exploit Omaha and its advantages, lie is also serving on the Omaha school board, of which he has been a very active and helpful member, and through his identification wath the Commercial Club he has supported many well formulated plans looking to the upbuilding of the city, the expansion of its trade interests and the development of those projects which are working toward a bigger and better Omaha. He has membership wath the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and also belongs to the Omaha Club, the University Club, the Country Club and the Happy Hollow Club. His life record contains many chapters of interest, showing what may be accomplished when enterprise and laudable ambition lead the way. His connection with any undertaking ensures a prosperous outcome, for it is in his nature to carry forward to successful completion everything with which he becomes associated. He has earned for himself an enviable reputation as a careful man of business and in his dealings is known for his prompt and reliable methods, wdiich have won for him the deserved and unbounded confidence of his fellowmen.

Fred L. Nesbit

Fred L. Nesbit, president of the Standard Furnace & Supply Company of Omaha, was born in Herrick township, Bradford county, Pennsylvania, August lo, 1862, his parents being William and Mary Ann (Daugherty) Nesbit. The father, a native of Ireland, was taken to Pennsylvania by his father when but six months old and the mother became a resident of that state when a little maiden of twelve summers. They were married in the Keystone state and there Mr. Nesbit engaged in farming, remaining in the same locality throughout the entire period of his married life save for two years which he spent in Nebraska. He came to this state in 1886 and after living for two years near Fremont returned to Pennsylvania, where he died March 22, 1914, at the age of eighty-five years, his birth having occurred December 12, 1828. His widow, who was born June 19, 1830, is now^ in Omaha, living with her son who was the second of their three children, the other two being now deceased.

Fred L. Nesbit pursued his education in a little old red schoolhouse, common in those days in Pennsylvania and afterward worked upon his father's farm until he decided to try his fortune in the west and made his way to Stanwood, Iowa, where he was employed at farm labor for six months. In September, 1884, he went to Fremont, Nebraska, and for three years was employed in the H. J. Lee hardware store, on the expiration of wdiich period he came to Omaha in 1887. Here he secured a position with the Rector & Wilhelmy Company and after spending two months in the house traveled upon the road for six months. He then returned to Fremont and purchased an interest in a hardware store, continuing active in its management and control from June, 1888, until 1894, when the firm lost everything. Mr. Nesbit then proceeded to Chicago and for three years was an employe of Horton, Gilniore, McWilliams & Company. He was afterward upon the road for the Wells & Nellegar Company for a year and then worked for Giblin & Company of Utica, New York, selling warm air heaters over the territory west of the Mississippi river. On the ist of January, 1900, he returned to Omaha, continuing with the same company until January i, 1906, when he removed to Minneapolis and became manager for the D. M. Gilmore Company. On the ist of January, 1907, however, he once more came to Omaha and became sales manager for the company with which he had previously been connected, his territory covering the United States and Canada. He thus continued until 19 lo, when he resigned in order to engage in business for himself, handling a line of furnaces, his stock being stored in a warehouse.

On the 1st of June, 191 1, he organized the Standard Furnace & Supply Company, of which he became president and manager. The other officers of the company are W. E. Nesbit, vice president; George Harms, of Peoria, Illinois, secretary; and C. A. Owens, of Omaha, treasurer. This company handles the Nesbit and Weir furnaces, the Nesbit furnace being made in Cleveland, Ohio, and the Weir furnace in Peoria, Illinois. The company acts as western agent for the Weir all-steel furnaces, which are sold in the western territory from central Iowa to the Pacific coast, while the Nesbit furnaces are sold throughout the entire country. The Standard Furnace & Supply Company is a wholesale house that specializes in a complete heating system, complete in every detail both as regards equipment and quality. In addition to its furnaces the. company distributes the most complete line of registers in the world. On account of the large variety of sidewall and floor registers carried in stock, it is necessary to have an immense assortment of fittings, and many of these are made by the company in Omaha. Tests made by fire experts show these fittings to be the safest made and therefore there is a constant demand from all parts of the country. Although the company has been in business in Omaha for but five years, its trade has grown so rapidly that three moves have been made necessary. After two years spent in a small room on Farnam street, quarters almost twice as large were secured and later the company came to its present location at Nos. 411 and 413 South Tenth street. The five floors of the building are all devoted to the stock and salesrooms and manufacturing plant of the company, containing a floor space of twenty-seven thousand, seven hundred and twenty s^quare feet. The office and factory force numbers ten, while three salesmen are kept constantly upon the road. The company has in contemplation the erection of an entire new plant on Jones street, which will increase their facilities at least three times. , .

On the loth of October, 1888, Mr. Nesbit was married to Miss Katie Mead, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Mead, early settlers of Fremont. There Mrs. Nesbit passed away August 25, 1895, leaving a son, W. E. Nesbit, who was born in Fremont in August, 1889, and is a high school graduate of Omaha. He was married in June, 1914, to Bertha Maynard of Omaha. Qn the 4th of July, 1898, Fred L. Nesbit was married in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Miss Adelaide Case, of Chicago.

Mr. Nesbit served on the board of education while residing in Fremont and is interested in all those projects which work for the upbuilding and bettermient of his community. He is a York Rite Mason and a Shriner, and also is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, belonging to both the subordinate lodge and encampment. He likewise has membership in the Commercial Club, the Omaha Association of Credit Men, the Rotary Club and the Seymour Lake- Club, and is a member of the Nebraska Manufacturers' Association. Alert and enterprising, he quickly recognizes and utilizes an opportunity and he has based his success upon the principles of common sense in serving his patrons. He has made an enviable record in commercial circles, both by reason of the line which he handles, giving full value received, and also by reason of the honorable and straightforward methods which he employs in all of his dealings.

L. Ross Newkirk

L. Ross Newkirk, senior member of the law firm of Newkirk & May, of Omaha, was born September 8, 1890, in Ouincy, Illinois, a son of the Rev. George R. and Mary Elizabeth (Hall) Newkirk, who are also natives of that state. The mother represents a pioneer family of Illinois, of English lineage.

The ancestors of the Rev. Newkirk were, pioneers of lUinois and of Ohio and were of Dutch descent, the ancestral Hne being traced back to 1650, when settlement was made by one of the name in the state of New York. Rev. George R. Newkirk has long been an active and prominent minister of the Methodist Episcopal church. He was graduated from the Illinois Wesleyan University in 1893 but for three years previous to that date had been engaged in preaching the gospel. In 1909 he became a citizen of Nebraska and is now residing at Sutherland. In the family were but two sons, the younger being De Forest Newkirk.

L. Ross Newkirk began his education in the public schools of Illinois and afterward entered the Nebraska Wesleyan University, in which he pursued a liberal arts course, winning the Bachelor of Arts degree in 1912. Mr. Newkirk was at one time a candidate for a Rhodes scholarship, having successfully passed the qualifying examination in 1910. For professional training he entered the Nebraska State University and won his LL. B. degree in 191 5. He immediately afterward entered upon active practice in Omaha and in the fall of that year was joined by Albert E. ]\Iay in forming the present firm of Newkirk, & May. They engage in general practice and already the firm has been accorded a gratifying and growing clientele. Mr. Newkirk to a great extent worked his own way through the university, performing various I^inds of labor in order to replenish his exchequer. His father w^ould have assisted him more but he felt that it would be more advantageous if he won his education with as little assistance as possible and the elemental strength of character which he thus displayed has constituted a force in his subsequent practice and is making for him a most creditable name and place. Mr. Newkirk is a member of Everett fraternity and of the Nebraska Wesleyan University and also of the Order of the Coif, an honorary legal fraternity of American law schools. He likewise belongs to Phi Delta Phi. to the Barristers Club and to the Omaha Bar Association and the Nebraska State Bar Association. Among fraternal orders he is connected with the Woodmen of the World and he holds to the religious faith in which he was reared - that of the Methodist Episcopal church. He is recognized as a young man of many substantial qualities and admirable traits of character which have gained for him high personal regard, while his ability is winning for him a substantial position in legal circles.

John A. Gentleman

John A. Gentleman, an Omaha undertaker well known in his city and highly esteemed by those with whom he has been brought in contact in business or social relations, was born August 6, 1881, in the city where he still makes his home. His father, Thomas Gentleman, came to Omaha in 1869 and was in the employ of the Union Pacific Railroad for thirty-seven years. He was a machinist and molder and made the first machine to turn out castings in this section of the countr}^ He is now living retired on Sherman avenue in Omaha, enjoying a rest which follows long years of active connection with business. He is recognized as a citizen of genuine worth and has ever commanded and enjoyed the respect and good will of all with whom he has come in contact in social or business relations. His family numbered seven children, but three of the number died in one week of whooping cough.

John A. Gentleman, the only son, pursued his education in the public schools of Omaha, passing through consecutive grades to the high school and later entering Creighton University. He started upon his business career as a clerkin the employ of the Union Pacific Railroad and the Missouri Pacific Railroad and retired from railroad activities to engage in the undertaking business, having pursued a course of study in the Philadelphia Training School for Embalmers, from which he was graduated on the 9th of October, 1906. He had started in business in January of that year at Sixteenth and Webster streets and he removed to his present location at the corner of Leavenworth and Twenty-seventh streets in May, 191 3. He has a well appointed chapel, fine show rooms, motor hearses, and in fact a fully and elegantly equipped establishment. He has just added a four thousand dollar automobile hearse to his equipment and is prepared to take care of funerals in the most approved manner.

On the 1 6th of June, 1909, Mr. Gentleman was united in marriage to Miss Anna Dietl, of Dubuque, Iowa. He belongs to the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, the Modern Woodmen of America, the Ancient Order of United Workmen and the Royal Arcanum. He is a young man of genuine personal worth who is making good. A lifelong resident of Om.aha, he has many friends in this city, his stanchest friends being those who have known him from his boyhood to the present, a fact indicative of a well spent life.

William J. Pulte

William J. Pulte, engineer in charge of the water works at Florence, was born in Westphalia, Germany, June 7, 1862, a son of Joseph Pulte, also of that place, who was engaged in farming there throughout his entire life. His family numbered four sons and three daughters of whom William J. Pulte is the second. He acquired his education in the public schools of his native country and early manifested skill and ingenuity along mechanical lines. He began working in connection with machinery and had developed much skill ere he came to America when nineteen years of age, arriving in this country in 1881. He first secured employment on the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad in South Dakota and after four months came to Omaha, .where he was employed in the smelting works. In 1885 he entered the employ cxf;jthe city of Omaha in connection with the water works at Eighth and Burt streets.: Cki the ist of January, 1886, the previous manager was succeeded by Captatri'-'Era'hk""Reynolds and Mr. Pulte continued under him until the death of Mr. Reynolds in 1896. He was then retained by his successor, Henry Rusten. who died the following March. In 1886 the American Waterworks Company had bought out the Omaha Water Company and started in 1887 to build the present Mi'mie^Lusa water works at Florence. When the plant was ready to begin operation Captain Frank Reynolds was made chief engineer and Mr. Pulte became his first assistant. The plant was started with two engines and had a capacity of fourteen million gallons per day. Following the death of Mr. Rusten, Mr. Pulte became engineer in charge. During his incumbency in this office the plant has been materially developed and improved. There is an Allis-Chalmers triple expansion engine with a capacity of eighteen million gallons per twenty-four hours and one Allis-Chalmers triple expansion with a capacity of twenty million gallons per day. This is one of the largest.if not the largest pumping engine in the world. Three engines of large capacity pump the water from the settling basins to Greater Omaha and the pump has a capacity of twenty million gallons, which pumps from the Missouri to the settling basins, and two others of fourteen million gallons capacity each, which also pump from the river to the settling basins. In addition to all these there is a thirty million centrifugal steam turbine engine with a speed of six thousand revolutions per minute, also pumping from the river to the settling basins. The total capacity from the river to the settling basins is seventy-eight million gallons and from basin to city fifty-six million gallons per diem. All the pumping engines, machinery etc are under Mr. Pulte's care as engineer in charge. Mr. Pulte is a thoroughly competent man and the plant is kept up to the highest degree of perfection. Absolute cleanliness in all parts of the plant seems to be his motto The boders. ten of them four hundred horse i)ower each, are upright water tube boilers, hour of these arc fired by hand and the other six by mechanical stokers. The coal is unloaded from the cars into the coal pit (six thousand tons capacity) by locomotive crane, and later this coal is carried to the coal bunkers over the boilers by the locomotive cranes and then is fed automatically to the six boilers. The plant also includes two dynamos directly connected, which furnish light for the plant and also power for the circulating pump which pumps the water from the condensers to the basin. There is no point in all this complex machinery with wdiich Mr. Pulte is not thoroughly familiar from the most important feature to the minutest detail, and he is sijiendidiy equipped for the duties which devolve upon him.

On the i8th of January, 1890, Mr. Pulte was united in marriage to Miss Bertha Arnoldi. of Westphalia, Germany, her father being John Arnoldi, an old resident of Omaha. They have two sons, namely : Fred, who is engineer at the Poppleton avenue pumping station in Omaha ; and Earl, a college student. During his residence in Florence Mr. Pulte has become widely and favorably known and he is regarded as one most competent in the discharge of his duties.

Hon. Joseph Crow

Hon. Joseph Crow, attorney at law of Omaha, was born in Greencastle, Indiana, April 21, 1856, a son of Joseph H. and Mary (Farrow) Crow', who were both natives of Kentucky. The father represents an old southern family well known in ^laryland, Virginia and Kentucky, of Scotch descent and founded in America prior to the Revolutionary war, in which representatives of the name participated. The mother was born in Mount Sterling, Kentucky, February 17, 1829, and is a daughter of Colonel Alexander S. Farrow, a pioneer of Kentucky and a contemporary of Schuyler Colfax in the Indiana constitutional convention. He was a member of the Kentucky senate at the age of twenty-one years and ranked with the distinguished law makers of the south. Joseph H. Crow became a prosperous merchant of Greencastle, Indiana, where he resided for many years, but eventually removed to Cheyenne county, Kansas, where he lived retired until about a year prior to his death, which occurred in 1890, when he was sixty-three years of age. He belonged to a local reserve cavalry regiment during the Civil war but was not called upon for active service. He belonged to the Methodist church but was very liberal in his religious views, and fraternally he was connected with the Masons. His widow survives at the age of eighty-eight years and is now^ living with her daughter, Mrs. M. E. Kilbourne, at No. 3868 California street in Omaha. She is enjoying excellent health notwithstanding her advanced years. In the family were three sons and two daughters : William H., an attorney at law now living at Hugo, Colorado; Mrs. Lafayette Council, of Springfield, Missouri; Joseph; Mrs. M. E. Kilbourne of Omaha; and Dr. C. R. Crow, deceased, late of Indianapolis, Indiana.

After attending the public schools of Greencastle, Indiana, Joseph Crow there entered De Pauw University, from which he was graduated in 1876 with the Bachelor of Science degree. When twenty years of age he took up the profession of teaching, which he followed for two years in Indiana, and during that period devoted his leisure hours to the study of law. He was admitted to practice on the 23d of April, 1877, when twenty-one years of age, and opened a law office in Greencastle, where he successfully followed his profession until 1886. In 1881 he was elected city attorney, which position he acceptably filled for three terms, when he resigned and went west to Cheyenne, Kansas. There he assisted in the organization of Cheyenne county and served as its first county attorney, acting in that capacity for one term. He continued there until 1889, when he came to Omaha and has since been engaged in active practice in this city, covering a period of twenty-eight years. He has a comprehensive knowledge of the principles of jurisprudence and is correct in their application to the points in litigation. For a time he was a law partner of the late United States Senator John AI. Thurston, this association continuing for two years, or until the death of Senator Thurston in August, 1916. Mr. Crow prepares his cases with thoroughness and care and the strength of his argument is based upon logical reasoning and a clear presentation of the facts. While his father was at one time a very successful business man, through the misfortunes of others for whom he stood financially responsible he forfeited the greater part of his savings and at the time of his death while in fairly comfortable circumstances was no longer a man of wealth. Joseph Crow has consequently never received any aid beyond that of a good education and the training of a cultured home and moral instruction, which constitutes the basis of character.

At Newcastle, Indiana, October 27, 1886, Mr. Crow was married to Miss Helen Jennings, a native of Ohio and a daughter of Levi A. Jennings, who was a prominent and prosperous furniture manufacturer and lumberman of Newcastle, Indiana. He married Alartha Coffin, a representative of a distinguished old family of Massachusetts. Her death occurred in 1913 and ]\Ir. Jennings passed away April 15, 1914, leaving a large fortune. Mrs. Crow inherited one-half of this estate, constituting valuable realty holdings in Newcastle, and since the death of her father Air. Crow has devoted much of his time and attention to the management of the property. Mr. and Mrs. Crow have become the parents of five children: Hazel, the wife of James C. Ewell, of Chicago; Arthur Jennings, a leading stockman of Lincoln county, Colorado; Chester J., who was graduated in art in Chicago and is a distinguished commercial artist of New York ; Donald F., who is connected with the Goodyear Rubber Tire Company at Omaha ; and Charles Thurston, who was graduated from the Omaha high school in 19 17. There are also three grandchildren: James Ewell; Helen, the daughter of Arthur Crow; and Joseph Richard, son of Donald F. Crow.

Mr. Crow belongs to the Nebraska State Bar Association and fraternally is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. His political allegiance has always been given to the republican party, in the work of which he has taken a very active and helpful part. Recognition of his ability and publicspirited citizenship on the part of his fellow townsmen led to his election to the state legislature in 1894 and again in 1896, while in 1898 he was chosen to represent his district in the state senate, in which he served until 1899, when he resigned and was appointed postmaster of Omaha by President McKinley. He continued in that position until February, 1904, when he resumed the practice of law. Upon his retirement from the postmastership at Omaha the employees of the postoffice presented Air. Crow with a chest of solid silver valued at five hundred dollars in appreciation of his consideration of them and his instrumentality in securing an increase in wages and a substantial increase in both the clerical and the carrier forces. As lawyer and law maker he has left the impress of his individuality upon the history of city and state and in every relation of life he has borne himself with such signal dignity and honor as to win the highest respect and confidence of his fellowmen.

Walter S. Stillman

Walter S. Stillman, attorney, was born in Chicago, Illinois, on the 13th of August, 1868, his parents being Walter Deming and Sarah Ann (Birch) Stillman. who were natives of Illinois and New York state respectively. In 1871 Walter D. Stillman removed to Council Bluflfs, Iowa, where he remained in the successful practice of medicine and surgery until his death, which occurred in 1S89. when he was fifty-one years of age. At the outbreak of the Civil war he was a student at Antioch College, which institution was then under the direction of Horace Mann. Enlisting for service in that struggle, Walter D. Stillman was first a member of the Second Ohio Regiincut aiul later served as surgeon of the One Hundred and Fifty-hrst llHnois Regiment, receiving his appointment soon after his graduation from medical college. He attained to high professional rank, his ability constantly tleveloping by reason of his broad reading and study. His widow sui^vived him until 1908 and passed away at the age of seventy years. In their family were two sons, the elder being George H., a well known attorney of Carrington, North Dakota.

Walter S. Stillman spent his youthful days as a pupil of the public schools of Council I')lufi's and afterward continued his education in the University of Michigan, being graduated from the arts department in 1890. He also spent a year as a law student there and at Harvard Law School and in 1891 was admitted to practice at the Iowa bar, after which he opened an office in Council Bluffs. In 1898 he took charge of the commercial work of the Edson Rich law office in Omaha and a year later purchased the interest of Mr. Rich and has since carried on the business for himself. He belongs to the American Bar Association, to the Iowa and the Nebraska State Bar Associations and also to the Omaha and Council Bluffs liar Associations. He has comprehensive knowledge of the principles of jurisprudence and is seldom wrong in his application thereof.

In Davenport, Iowa, on September 20, 1893, Mr. Stillman was married to Miss Nan Martin. She is a daughter of Nathan C. Martin, formerly clerk of the city of Davenport, Iowa. Four children have been born to them: Walter Martin, born in Council Bluffs, November 13, 1894, pursued his preparatory course in Creighton Academy, and afterward entered Columbia University, from which he was graduated in 191 5 after pursuing the arts course. He was also a law student there for a year and later at Creighton University and the University of Iowa. Mary Birch, born in Council Bluffs, January 30, 1896, is a graduate of the Council Bluffs high school and is now attending the University of Chicago. Hugh Deming, born in Council Bluffs on the 26th of January, 1902, is attending the high school. Anna Johnston, born in Council Bluffs on the 31st of March, 1904, is a student in the graded schools.

Mr. Stillman has been a member of the Omaha Club since 1896 and is a charter member of the University Club. He has also been a member of the Council Pjluffs Rowing Association since its organization. He is a member of the Patriotic Society of the Sons of the American Revolution. Fraternally he is a Master Mason and an Elk. His religious faith is that of the Episcopal church and his political belief that of the republican party. He has had opportunities many times to enter politics but has never sought nor desired office, preferring to concentrate his energies upon his professional and business duties. He is well known and popular in both Iowa and Nebraska as a lawyer, a business man and a citizen, and his life record indicates what may be attained through individual effort and laudable ambition when wisely directed.

Will H. Wood

Will H. Wood is one of the leading men of the Union Stock Yards and president of one of the leading firms of live stock commission brokers in the Exchange building in South Omaha, which city has become a center of the live stock industry, rising rapidly to prominence in that connection. He was born in Chicago, Illinois, January 13, 1866, a son of John H. and Mary E. (McDonald) Wood, who were natives of Scotland but who came to America in early life. After two years' residence in Chicago the father, in i860, established one of the first live stock commission brokerage businesses at the stock yards in that city and therefore was one of the pioneer commission men at the Union Stock Yards in Chicago. The work which he did in this connection constituted an initial step in a movement that has been of untold value and worth in making Chicago the radi- ating center of the live stock interests of the country. He kept abreast with the times in the development of the business there, remaining in active connection therewith until his death, which occurred in 1909, when he had reached the age of seventy-four years. His widow still survives and now makes her home in Chicago at the age of eighty years. In their family were seven children, of whom four are yet living: John E., now living in Chicago; James, also of that city ; and Mrs. Hazel Kirkendall, of Chicago.

Will H. Wood, who was the third of the family, attended the public schools of Chicago in early boyhood and afterward became a student in the Allen Academy, thus completing his educational training. He then entered into^ business with his father and acquainted himself with the live stock industry' both in principle and detail. In 1897 he decided to start out independently and came to Omaha, representing the Evans, Snider & Buel Company, in which he was a stockholder and director. He continued to conduct the affairs of the company in Omaha, operating at the Union Stock Yards with offices in the Live Stock Exchange building. He was thus engaged until the company sold out this branch of the business to him, at which time the firm of Wood, Oswald & Company was formed on the ist of January, 191 3. It has since been in existence and the business has been a thriving one from the beginning until the firm occupies a commanding and enviable position among the companies having headquarters in the Exchage building at the Union Stock Yards in South Omaha.

Mr. Wood wedded Miss Alarie Louise Gwennap, of Chicago, on the 26th of September, 1889. She died leaving two children. Gwendolin Louise is now the wife of Timothy Sullivan, of Chicago. She was born in that city and is a graduate of the Sacred Heart convent there. By her marriage she has become the mother of two children, James Sullivan and Dbrothj'' Sullivan. Loring J. Wood, a native of Chicago, is now a student in the electrical department of the State University of Iowa at Ames, from which h& will graduate in the summer of 1917. Mr. Wood's second marriage was to Miss Lillian P. Rice, of Chicago, who died in Omaha in 1901. Having lost his second wife, Mr. Wood was married to Miss Ida L. Becker, of Omaha, in December, 1903. She is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Becker and heR.nT,a.ther is 'nbw living in San Jose, California. '^ '" -

Mr. Wood exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the republican party and fraternally is a prominent Alason, having taken the degrees of the lodge, chapter and consistory. He has also crossed the sands of the desert with the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He belongs to the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, to the Royal Arcanum and to the North American Union and he likewise has membership in the Omaha Field Club, the Omaha Athletic Association and the Omaha Commercial Club. His religious faith is evidenced by his membership in the Episcopal church. Thorough training and experience, combined with laudable ambition and indefatigable energy, have brought Mr. Wood to the creditable and prominent position w^iich he now occupies in the business circles of Omaha in connection with the live stock industry, and while standing high in commercial circles, he ranks equally well in the social life of Omaha and in citizenshp. In a word, he has displayed many admirable traits that are worthy of all praise and commend him to the confidence and goodwill of those who know him.

John A. Bruce

John A. Bruce, city engineer of Omaha, was born July 7, 1875, in Fredericksburg, Sweden, but is of Scotch descent in the paternal line, his ancestors having gone' to Sweden from Scotland more than a century ago. His parents, Peter O. and Mary Bruce, came to the United States in 1879, making their way first to

Chicago. In 1880 they settled on a farm in Saunders county, Nebraska, where they remained until 1892 when the father passed away at the age of fifty-five years. The mother, who was born in March, 1842, is still living with her son in Omaha. They were the parents of eight children of whom four survive: John A. ; Alfred P., living in Kalispell, Montana ; Mrs. Alma Lindburg, of Seattle ; and Hemian S., of Los Angeles, California.

John A. Bruce, who was the seventh of the family, attended country schools of Saunders county up to the age of nineteen years, when he entered Luther Academy at W'ahoo, Nebraska, pursuing a preparatory course during three winter seasons. He afterward taught school for three years and then entered upon a general scientific course in the University of Nebraska, from which he was graduated in 1903. He afterward became connected with the Illinois Central Railroad as track apprentice at a salary of one dollar and twenty-five cents per day. He remained there only two months and then became assistant in the engineering department of the ^Mobile, Jackson & Kansas City Railroad at an advance in wages. He was thus engaged in railroad location for three months and after leaving the location department he became instrument man on construction work, spending five months in that way. Later he was made resident engineer and in that position his salary was doubled. He finished forty miles of construction work, and on Christmas day of 1904 he came to Omaha where he entered the service of the Union Pacific as assistant engineer in charge of construction in Kansas. On December 25, 1905, he was transferred to Cheyenne, Wyoming, where he remained until February, 1906. He then went to work for the Denver Northwestern & Pacific Railway (the Moffatt Line) and was thus engaged until 1907, when he again came to Omaha and entered the city engineers office as assistant engineer on paving and sewer work. His duties of that character claimed his attention and energies until April, 191 1, when ho entered upon the private practice of his profession in which he still continues. On the ist of August, I9I5_, he was appointed city engineer and is now discharging the duties of that position in a most capable and efficient manner. His practical experience has been broad, covering almost every phase of railroad building and engineering work, and he is thus well qualified for the onerous duties which devolve upon him.

On the 27th of December, 1905, in Omaha, Mr. Bruce was married to Miss Nelhe Neilsen, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Neilsen, pioneer residents of Omaha of 1866. Mr." and Mrs. Bruce have two sons : Philip R., born in January, 1907; and John F., born in August, 1908. Mr. Bruce is well known as a Scottish Rite Mason and a member of the Mystic Shrine. He also belongs to the Con> mercial Club and his standing in professional circles is indicated by his membership in the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Dr. Rudolph Rix, physician and surgeon of Omaha, was born in Washington county, Nebraska, December 28, 1870, a son of Nicholas and Maria (Hagadorn) Rix, both of whom were natives of Germany. Coming to America in 1852, they settled in Clinton, Iowa, traveling by ox team to Washington county _ in 1857. There the father engaged in farming but at the present time is living retired at Fort Calhoun, Nebraska, at the age of eighty-six years. His wife died in 1907, at the age of seventy-seven years. In their family were eight children : Henry ; Emil ; Emma ; Minnie, living at Fort Calhoun ; Rudolph ; and three who have passed away.

Of this family Dr. Rudolph Rix was the seventh in order of birth. In early life he attended the country schools and devoted four years to college work in Shenandoah, Iowa, and Lincoln, Nebraska, after which he began preparation for the practice of medicine as a student in the Creighton Medical College of Omaha, from which he was graduated in 1899. His first practical experience came to him as interne in St. Joseph's Hospital and in 1900 he began private practice in Omaha, where he has since remained. In 191 1 he went to Baltimore, Maryland, for post graduate work in the Johns Hopkins University and he has also pursued other courses elsewhere, thus keeping in close touch with the trend of modern scientific thought and investigation. He belongs, to the County, State and American Medical Associations and he has the high respect and goodwill of his fellow practitioners, who recognize him as an able member of the profession and one who is most careful to conform his practice to a high standard of professional ethics. He has charge of the gynecological department of the Creighton Medical College and in his professional capacity is a representative of the St. Joseph, St. Catherine's and Douglas County Hospitals.

. On the 17th of September, 1903, Dr. Rix was married to Miss Louise Arnold, of Logan, Iowa, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J. G. McMaster, well known residents of Logan. The two children born of this marriage are Margaret and Robert, born in 1905 and 1907 respectively and now attending the Omaha schools. Dr. Rix is a firm believer in Omaha and her future destiny and does everything in his power to upbuild her interests. He is identified with a number of fraternal organizations, has membership with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and in Masonic circles has attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite, while with the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine he has crossed the sands of the desert. His is one of the bright minds of the medical profession in Omaha and wide reading has made him one of the best informed physicians and surgeons, while practical experience has constantly augmented his skill.

George H. Alwine, a dealer in building supplies in Omaha, is one of the most public-spirited residents and enthusiastic supporters: of ..this city, convinced of its advantages and of its further opportunities through frequent visits to all of the large cities between New York and Denver, If all of her townsmen would give to Omaha the same loyal support her possibilities would be unlimited. Mr. Alwine is a native of Pennsylvania, his birth having occurred in Greensburg, Westmoreland county, September 16, 1880. His father, Samuel Alwine, a native of Pennsylvania, represented an old pioneer family of that state, of German descent. He engaged in mechanical pursuits and is still active along that line in Greensburg. During the Civil war, while too young to become an enlisted man, he assisted in the transportation of troops then being conveyed by wagon and other means to various points of enlistment. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Jessie B. Null, was born in Pennsylvania, of German and French parentage and by their marriage they became the parents of seven children, of whom George H. was the third.

While spending his youthful days in his father's home George H. Alwine attended the public and high schools of Greensburg, completing his course by graduation with the class of 1899. He next entered Western University at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and on attaining his majority started out in the busniess world, entering upon an apprenticeship in the Westinghouse shops in East Pittsburgh for the purpose of acquainting himself with the work of mechanical engineering. He served a four years' apprenticeship, after which he resigned his position there and made his way to the west, going first to a ranch at Dennison, Colorado, on which he remained for a year largely for the benefit and experience that he would derive from cowboy life. He afterward returned to Pittsburgh, where he took up civil engineering with the Jones & Laughlin Steel Company. He next went to Chicago and was employed by the Illinois Steel Company in an engineering capacity, remaining in that connection for a year. He next came to

Omaha for Swift & Company to superintend the construction of their first reinforced concrete buikhng-. He arrived on Labor day of 1906 and when his contract had been completed he left this city for the Black Hills, removing to Deadwood, South Dakota, as a representative of the 1 Hack I lills Development & Financial Company. He was there engaged in developing the old Iron Hill mine, but the company failed and Mr. Alwine returned to Omaha. Here he became connected with the Union Stock Yards Company as assistant chief engineer in the development of their water plant. Lie spent two years with that company and was next with Sunderland Brothers, who were engaged in handling building materials and supplies. He continued with that firm for a year in the capacity of specialty salesman, after which he established his present business under the name of the G. H. Alwine Company, handling building materials and contractors' supplies. They sell the usual materials used in construction Vv^ork in all kinds of buildings, from the small home to the skyscraper, and represent many leading manufacturers of the east. Within a brief period Mr. Alwine has in this connection built up a very satisfactory and growing business and today has one of the leading concerns of the kind in Omaha.

On the 27th of October, 1908, in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Mr. Alwine- was married to Miss Helen M. Keenan, who was born at Rapid City, South Dakota, a daughter of H. J. and Ada (Scherer) Keenan, who were pioneers of that state. Mr. Alwine is a republican and fraternally is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks at Deadwood, South Dakota. From the age of fifteen years dependent upon his own resources, his determination and ability have enabled him to overcome obstacles and surmount difficulties and step by step he has advanced until he is now in control of a large and profitable business. He beheves that Omaha offers excellent opportunities and he champions and supports eveiy movement tending to upbuild the city and extend its trade relations. He believes as well in the maintenance of high civic standards and endorses every measure that works for a greater and a better city.

Arthur C. Storz

Arthur C. Storz, secretary and treasurer of the Western Auto Supply Company, is one of the enterprising young business men of Omaha, his native city. His parents, Gottlieb and Emma (Buck) Storz, were natives of Germany and in early life came to America, settling in Omaha in 1870. Here the father afterward engaged in the brewing business. In 1865 Joseph Baumann had established a small brewery on Sherman avenue and upon his death in 1876 his widow succeeded to the business with Gottlieb Storz as foreman, the latter conducting the business in that connection until 1884, when he and J. D. Her purchased the property and under the firm style of, Storz & Her carried on the brewing business. They enlarged and improved the building and machinery, securing the latest facilities to promote the manufacture of their output. In May, 1891, Mr. Her sold his interest and a corporation known as the Omaha -Brew^ing Association was formed with Gottlieb Storz as the president, Frederick Stuhbendorf as vice president and Louis Schroder as secretary and treasurer. The business was_ capitalized for more than one million dollars, thirty per cent being paid up. This company has now erected on Sherman avenue, between Clark and Grace streets, a newbrewery, the structure being of brick, iron and cement and with its equipment of the latest improved machinery it cost about five hundred thousand dollars. It is one of Omaha's largest breweries and Gottlieb Storz is still active in the management of the business at the age of sixty-five years. To him and his wife were born six children, Mrs. E. A. Higgins, Adolph, Arthur C, Olga, Louis and Robert, all of Omaha.

Missouri, being graduated from Macon College with the class of 1907. He afterward devoted three years to the brewing business in connection with his father and then turned his attention to the automobile business under the name of the Arthur Storz Automobile Supply Company. This was in January, 191 1. He managed his interests in that way until the spring of 1914, when he consolidated his business with that of E. A. Pegau and they now have one of the largest accessories supply houses in the state.

In April, 1912, in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Mr. Storz was united in marriage to Miss Clara Hart, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Hart, of Omaha. She met an accidental death June 8, 1916. In politics Mr. Storz is a democrat and fraternally is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He is well known in Omaha, where the greater part of his life has been passed.

John Bondesson

John Bondesson, city clerk of Florence, was born in Helsingborg, Sweden, on the 24th of December, 1841, a son of Bonder Johnson and Anna Ringstead, the latter the daughter of a soldier who spent six years in the army of Russia, fighting against the troops under Napoleon. This was from 1809 until 181 5. He was at the battle of Leipzig and also at Waterloo with the cavalry forces. On one occasion he had his horse shot from under him but escaped injury himself and returned to Sweden. Bonder Johnson, a native of Helsingborg, w^as a farmer by occupation and resided on the old homestead that is now occupied by one of his sons. This farm had been in the possession of the family for many

John Bondesson is the eldest of a family of eight children and in his youthful days attended the local schools. At the age of thirteen years he was sent to the town of Landskrona to attend the higher schools and a year later became a student in the Real school at Lund, from which he was graduated two and onehalf years later. He next attended the university at Lund and subsequently wa.5 sent to Stockholm, where he became a student in the Polytechnic Institute. A year later, owing to his father's death, he returned home. His education had been most liberal and well qualified him for life's practical and responsible duties.

Not very long after his return home Mr. Bondesson was married in 1864 to Miss Bendicta Olson, of Helsingborg, whose father was a farmer. To them have been born nine children, as follows: Ida Christina, who is now the wife of C. A. Victors and resides in Portland, Oregon ; Anna Erika, who is the widow of Nels Seieroe and resides in Omaha; Otto, who is employed in the smelter at Omaha; Gerda Marie, the wife of Jacob Webber, of Florence; Augusta Barnhardt, office manager for the Pabst Brewing Company of Omaha; Signe Katinka, wife of J. B. Brengle, of Omaha; Lillian Eitel, who is the wife of B. H. Graff and lives in San Francisco; Helen Vera, who is now Mrs. Lyman Walker, of Detroit ; and Rene Violet, the wife of J. F. Hamblet, of Florence.

Subsequent to his marriage Mr. Bondesson engaged in the tannery business with his brother-in-law at Helsingborg, there remaining for nine years, when ho withdrew from that connection ?nd turned his attention to the grocery trade, in which he continued for a year. He came to America in 1877, making his way direct to Omaha, where he first rented the General Lowe farm of George P. Bemis. For several years he engaged in the cultivation of rented land, so continuing until 1886, when he removed to Florence, where he has since made his home. He engaged in farming and fruit raising and in his agricultural and horticultural pursuits has been quite successful. He is a fine type of the Swedish- American citizen who, liberally educated, has remained throughout life a great reader and student. He is a man of culture and most pleasing address and a man of unquestioned integrity and honor in every relation of life. His political allegiance is given to the republican party but on all questions of moment he maintains the standpoint of a broad-minded man. For the past eight years he has been city clerk of Florence and over the record of his official career there falls no shadow of wrong or suspicion of evil.

Jay D. Foster

Jay D. Foster, president of the Foster-Barker Company, a leading insurance firm of Omaha, ranks with those citizens who feel a deep responsibility in relation to public afifairs, and gives active and helpful support to all practical plans and rneasures for the upbuilding and development of civic interests. He was born in Galesburg, Illinois. October 9, 1861, a son of Franklin P. and Zerviah (Porter) Foster. The paternal grandfather, Elias Foster, was born in Ohio, was a representative of one of the oldest families of that state, and passed away in Canton, Illinois, in the year 1835. The paternal grandmother, Phoebe (Reeve) Foster, was born in Plattsburg, New York, July 2, 1800, and was a granddaughter of Major John Addoms (Adams), who served as an of^cer. in the war of the Revolution and w^ho was related to President John Adams. Phoebe (Reeve) Foster died at Clarinda, Iowa, in 1893.

The maternal grandfather, Colonel Harry Porter, was born in New York state, September 28, 1793, and died at Farmington, Illinois, February 16, 1866. He served as colonel in the War of 181 2. He was married to Elizabeth Bassett February 12, 1814. They became pioneer settlers of Fulton county,- Illinois, where they established their home at Farmington in the year 1835. The maternal grandmother, Elizabeth (Bassett) Porter, died at Farmington, Illinois, November 26, 1855.

Franklin P. Foster, the father of Jay D. Foster, was born near Columbus, Ohio, in 1828, and in early youth accompanied his parents on their removal to Canton, Illinois, where he later followed merchandising. His last days were spent in Clarinda, Iowa, where he died in the year 1884. He was married to Zerviah Porter, November 8, 1849. Zerviah (Porter) Foster was born at Clarkson Corners (near Rochester), New York, on the 19th day of March, 1833, and passed away in Los Angeles, California, August 8, 1902.

Jay D. Foster pursued his education in the schools at Farmington, Illinois, and first came to Omaha in 1876. He secured employment with the hardware firm of Milton Rogers & Son Company in 1878, remaining in the store until 1884, as accountant, and later acting as traveling salesman for that firm in Nebraska.

He next went to Chicago and in 1886 made his initial step there in the insurance business, being connected with a prominent fire insurance agency for a period of three years. In July, 1889, he returned to Omaha, where, in the intervening period of twenty-eight years he has been continuously engaged in the fire insurance business, being today one of Omaha's prominent insurance representatives. For many years Mr. Foster was associated with the insurance firm of H. E. Palmer Son & Company, of which he was an active member and founder. In 1908 the Foster-Barker Company w^as incorporated, succeeding the firm of H. E. Palmer Son & Company. Mr. Foster is now president, with Joseph Barker as vice president. They handle every known kind of insurance save life insurance, and their clientage is now extensive - the total volume of business transacted placing them in the list of the leading insurance agencies in the west, which is a splendid tribute to Mr. Foster's untiring energy, extending over a period of nearly three decades.

On the 17th of June, 1891, in Los Angeles, California, Mr. Foster was married to Miss Leonora Smith, a daughter of the late Evert Van Ness Smith.

Mr. Smith came to Omaha in 1855, and took up government land - his farm later being platted by Mr. Smith and known as E. V. Smith's Addition and the streets, Grace and Clark, being named for Mrs. Smith, whose maiden name was Grace Clark. Mrs. Foster js a native Nebraskan, having been born in Omaha.

Mr. Foster is well known in club circles, holding membership in the Omaha Club, University Club, Elks Club, Omaha Field Club, Omaha Country Club and Omaha Athletic Club, and he is one of the oldest members of the Omaha Commercial Club, having in the past served as a member of its executive committee. In 1905 Mr. Foster occupied the presidency of the Omaha Field Club, and was a member of the first board of directors of the Omaha Auditorium.

He is non-partisan in his political views, reserving to himself the privilege of supporting such men as in his judgment are best fitted for the office. However, in national politics he has generally affiliated with the republican party.

A representative of the business interests of Omaha for twenty-eight years, and a resident of the city for nearly forty years, Mr. Foster is widely and favorably known, the high regard entertained for him being indicative of the fact that his has been a well spent life.

Charles H. Gratton

Charles H. Gratton, president and manager of the Pacific Storage & Warehouse Company, was born in Syracuse, New York, January 4, 1859, his parents being George and Mary Jane (Egar) Gratton, who were natives of Ireland but in early life became residents of the state of New York. They afterward removed to Baltimore and in 1868 became residents of Omaha. The father engaged in the manufacture of shirts for a time and afterward became colonization and immigration agent for the Union Pacific Railway, continuing his residence in this city until his death, which occurred in 1881, when h6 had reached the age of fifty-six years. His widow long survived him and died in Omaha in 1910, at the advanced age of eighty years. In their family were two sons,_ the elder being William E. Gratton, who is extensively engaged in fruiter awing at Brandsville, Missouri.

Charles H. Gratton was a lad of but nine years when the family home was established in Omaha and here he attended the public schools, passing through consecutive grades to the high school, after which he secured a position with the Union Pacific in the ticket office under E. K. Long. He there remained for five years, after which he went to the west and secured the position of clerk with the Pacific Hotel Company. He spent nine years in that connection and in 1894 he established the Pacific Storage & Warehouse of Omaha, developing a business that has grown to large proportions. Since 1894 he has been the president and manager of this business, which aft'ords exceptional faciHties for storage, the company owning a huge warehouse at Nos. 1007 to lOii Jones street, in the heart of the wholesale district of the city. The building is a six story structure, ideally located for the storage of merchandise awaiting shipment and distribution The company has good trackage facilities, enabling it to place the goods on cars at the time required, and delays and aggravating features that often enter into the moving of merchandise are eliminated through efficient systems evolved bv Mr Gratton and his associates. The erection of a new building by the company gives them a floor space of more than sixty-five thousand square feet. _

On the ^d of October, 1888, Mr. Gratton was married to Miss Carrie E. Brown, of Chicago, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. George P. Brown. The father was a well known dry goods merchant at No. 1116 Farnam street, Omaha. In his death the community lost one of its valued business representatives. Mr. and Mrs. Gratton have a son, George E., born in Omaha in 1906 and now attending the Miller Park school.

The parents are members of the I'irst Presbyterian church and occupy an enviable social position. Mr. Gratton is very prominent as a Mason, having taken the Knight Templar and Consistory degrees, while with the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine he has crossed the sands of the desert. He belongs to the Commercial Club, the Rotary Club and the Prettiest Mile Club, and he gives his political allegiance to the republican party. His influence is always on the side of progress and improvement. For three years he has served as a member of the Omaha board of education, being called to the office in 1896. Pie, in connection with the superintendent of schools, was instrumental in bringing about the excellent showing made by the Omaha schools at the Trans-Mississippi Exposition. This school exhibit created widespread interest throughout the country and received much favorable notice from the press, while many magazine articles were written concerning it. Mr. Gratton has always been aligned with the progressive element in Omaha's citizenship and at the same time has been a potent factor in the business life. He belongs to that class of men who accomplish what they undertake, and their achievements are far-reaching and important, touching the general interests of society as well as promoting individual welfare.

Joseph T. Votava

Joseph T. Votava, attorney and bank president, was born on a farm near Edholm, Nebraska, in 1885, a son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Votava, who are natives of Bohemia and in 1876 crossed the Atlantic to the United States, making their way to Nebraska. They are still residents of Edholm.

To the public school system of Butler county, Nebraska, Joseph T. Votava is indebted for his early educational opportunities. He afterward entered the State University, from which he was graduated in 191 1 on the completion of a classical course and also of the law course. He had thus prepared for the bar and at once entered upon active practice. In 191 3 he was called to the office of deputy county attorney of Douglas county and at the present time he is concentrating his attention upon the private practice of law, in which he has made steady progress. In this calling advancement depends entirely upon individual merit and realizing this fact, he is ever a close student of his profession, thoroughly preparing his cases and displaying the most careful analysis in reasoning from cause to effect. He is identified with financial interests as president of the Nebraska State Bank at Loma.

On August 17, 1916, Mr. Votava was married in Omaha to Miss Anna Louise Dusatko, of Clarkson, Nebraska. She is a graduate of the University of Nebraska. He is a member of the Catholic church and the Knights of Columbus. His political allegiance is given to the democratic party and he spends many a pleasant hour in the University Club, in which he holds membership, while in the Commercial Club, of which he is a representative, he gives aid to all the movements which are seeking to promote Omaha's best interests.

Willard W. Slabaugh

Willard W. Slabaugh, practicing at the Omaha bar, has made a creditable record as lawyer and jurist. He was born in Locke township, Elkhart county, Indiana, February 29, 1856, and was a son of the late Amos Slabaugh, a representative of an old Pennsylvania family of Swiss and German descent. The family was established in America about the time of the Revolutionary war, settlement being made in eastern Pennsylvania, whence later representatives of the name mierated to Indiana and afterward to Ohio. Amos Slabaugh was a thrifty farmer whose industry and perseverance won him a substantial measure of success. He resided in Randolph, Ohio, for many years and passed away in Akron, that state, in 19 10, at the age of eighty-five. For only a few months had he survived his wife, who was seventy-five years of age at the time of her demise. She bore the maiden name of Julia France and was born in Stark, Ohio, representing an old Ohio family of French and German lineage, her ancestors coming from the Alsace- Lorraine district.

Willard W. Slabaugh was the second in a family of four sons and two daughters and after acquiring his elementary education in the district schools of Randolph, Ohio, he continued his studies in Valparaiso, Indiana, Mount Union (Ohio) College and in Hiram College of Ohio, from which he was graduated in 1883 with the degree of Bachelor of Science. That institution has since conferred upon him the Master of Arts degree. His educational course was not continuous, for at intervals he taught school. Flis early life was spent upon the home farm and he then took up the vocation of teaching, which he followed in district and select schools and afterward in the Hiram and Mount Union Colleges for a period of ten years. He studied law in Ravenna, Ohio, and in August, 1885, was admitted to practice at Omaha, having become a resident of this city in the previous month. He arrived in Nebraska, however, in October, 1884, and taught school in Sarpy county prior to removing to Omaha. After passing the required state examination he entered upon the active work of his profession in connection with C. A. Baldwin, an old practitioner of this city, and later he became a partner of E. C. Lane under the firm name of Slabaugh & Lane. They were afterward joined by Sylvester Rush and in that connection the business of the firm was conducted. Mr. Rush has for years been assistant to the United States attorney general at Washington, D. C. Mr. Slabaugh now engages in general practice in Omaha and has a practice of large and distinctively representative character. His is a natural discrimination as to legal ethics, and he is so thoroughly well read in the minutiae of the law that he is able to base his arguments upon thorough knowledge of and familiarity with precedents and to present a case upon its merits, never failing to recognize the main point at issue and never neglecting to give a thorough preparation. His pleas are always characterized by a terse and decisive logic. The offices which he has filled have been in the direct path of his profession. He was deputy county attorney from 1892 until 1894 inclusive and in 1895 was chosen district judge, serving upon the bench for eight years, in which connection his rulings were strictly fair and impartial and his decisions were characterized by a masterfull grasp of every problem presented for solution. In 1905 he was called to the office of county attorney, which he filled for two years. He belongs to the Douglas County Bar Association and the Nebraska State Bar Association and of the former is the vice president and chairman of the executive council.

On the 15th of October, 1890, in Omaha, Mr. Slabaugh was married to Miss Anna C. Clayton, a native of Hannibal, Missouri, and a daughter of Dr. Charles F. and Anna (Hayes) Clayton both now deceased. The father was a prominent physician of Marion county. Mr. and Mrs. Slabaugh have four children : Willard Clayton, engaged in the real estate investment business in Omaha; Ruth; Grace ; and Eleanor.

When Mr. Slabaugh came to Omaha he had a cash capital of twenty dollars. His success is due to his own efforts. He entered a profession in which advancement is won only through merit and ability, and step by step he has worked his way upward until his record as a lawyer and jurist is most commendable. His political allegiance has always been given to the republican party, in the ranks of which he is an active worker. He belongs to the Royal Arch chapter in Masonry and has membership with the Knights of Pythias, the Modern Woodmen of America, the Woodmen of the World, the Happy Hollow Club and the Commercial Club. He is also a member of the Christian church and for twenty years has served on its board of trustees. Both he and his wife take a most active and helpful interest in all those projects which work for the benefit of the individual and the community and are concerned in various social service projects. Air. Slabaugh is now president of the Child Saving Institute of Omaha and his wife is a member of the nursery committee of that institution, while in various church and charitable projects she takes an active and helpful part. Mr. Slabaugh was also one of the organizers of the Associated Charities and of the City Playgrounds and he is closely studying those questions which are to the statesman and the man of affairs of deepest import - the questions which afifect the political, economic and sociological conditions of the courlfry.

The tendency of the age in all lines of endeavor is toward specialization and no field of labor is more highly specialized than that of medical practice and at the same time no field of labor is less commercialized. There early came to the medical profession a recognition of the fact that after having mastered the basic principles the physician can achieve the greatest good if he concentrates along a single line rather than trying to attain efficiency in the various departments of practice. In keeping with this tendency Dr. Tyler has largely specialized in X-ray work and has attained notable success and distinction therein.

A native of Illinois, he was born in Logan county, March 14, 1881. His father, George W. Tyler, a native of Indiana, came of English ancestry who settled in New England in 1648, three brothers coming to America at that early period in the colonization of the new world. The branch of the family of which Dr. Tyler is a representative was founded by William Tyler, whose son, the first American born Tyler, became a rector of the Episcopal church and was buried in the chapel at Cambridge. He was one of the first graduates of Yale University. George W. Tyler, the father of Dr. Tyler, became a prosperous farmer of Illinois and in 1886 removed to Nebraska, his home being now in Lincoln, where he is living retired, enjoying the fruits of a well spent life. When the country became involved in civil war he joined the One Hundred and Sixth Illinois Infantry, with which he served for three years. While at the front he was taken prisoner and for six months was confined at Little Rock. Arkansas. He married Sarah Jane Tracey, a native of Baltimore. Maryland, and of English lineage. She removed to Illinois and in Logan county became the wife of George W. Tyler. They became the parents of nine children, seven of whom reached adult age.

Dr. Tyler, the seventh in order of birth, was educated in the country schools of Thayer county, Nebraska, and in the Wesleyan University at Lincoln, Nebraska, being graduated with the B. S. degree in 1904. He prepared for a professional career in the Creighton Medical College of Omaha, winning his M. D. degree in 1907. For a year thereafter he was interne in the Omaha General Hospital, after which he entered upon private practice as first assistant to Dr. J. P. Lord, with whom he remained for six years. He then took up X-ray work, establishing a laboratory in the City National Bank building, where he specialized exclusively in this branch of the medical profession. After eighteen months he admitted Dr. Norman C. Prince to a partnership under the firm style of Tyler & Prince. Dr. Tyler is a member and the vice president of the Omaha-Douglas County Medical Society and belongs also to the Nebraska, Missouri Valley, Sioux Valley and Elkhorn Valley Medical Societies and the American Medical Association. He is likewise a member of the American Roentgen Ray Society and he has been president of the Omaha Roentgen Ray Society for three years.

On the 23d of September, 1908, in Omaha, Dr. Tyler was married to Miss Ellen Charlotte Roe, a native of this city and a daughter of the late Rev. John P. Roe, a pioneer ]^Iethodist minister of Nebraska, who w^as among the first to build a church in this state. He was born in England in 1825, came to the new world in 1844 and passed away in Omaha in 1905. His daughter, Mrs. Tyler, won the A. B. degree from the Nebraska Wesleyan University in 1904 and the ]\Iaster of Arts degree was conferred upon her by Goucher College of Bahimore, Maryland, in 1908. Dr. and Mrs. Tyler have two children : Albert Edward, who was born October i, 1909, in the same room where his mother's birth occurred; and Ellen Jean, born in Omaha, May 13, 191 1.

Both Dr. and Mrs. Tyler are prominent in club and social circles of the city. He belongs to the University, Rotary and Omaha Athletic Clubs and he gives his' political allegiance to the republican party. His wife is a member of the West Omaha [Mothers Club and was an organizer of the Doctors' Wives Club. Both are active members in the Walnut Hill Methodist church, in which Dr. Tyler is serving as president of the Brotherhood, occupying that position for the past three years. They take a most helpful interest in the various church activities and charities and for a year prior to her marriage Mrs. Tyler was connected Avith settlement work in New York. They are deeply interested in all that tends to uplift humanity and make the world better and their labors and influence have been far-reaching and, resultant along those lines.

Anson Hardin Bigelow

Anson Hardin Bigelow, an attorney practicing at the Omaha bar and law lecturer at Creighton University, was born in Buckley, Illinois, August 23, 1867, and is descended from the well known Bigelow family of Massachusetts, in which state his grandfather was born. Hi-sfalher, Anson H. Bigelow, was a native of Rochester, New York, born in 1833, and' in that city he wedded Mary Brazeil. In the year 1881 they removed to ' Nebraska, settling on a farm in Wheeler county, where they spent their remaining days, the mother passing away in 1886, while the father survived until 1914,, his death occurring in Omaha. ; ;; ' -

Anson H. Bigelow pursued his educaticai in* tfie schools- of Chicago, Lamoille. Illinois, and Omaha, becoming a high sdhool pupil in this city. He completed his course by graduation with the class of 1884 and then pursued his more specifically literary course in the University of Nebraska, being numbered among its alumni of 1887. He took up the profession of teaching and for twenty-two years was a \vell known educator of Iowa, South Dakota and Nebraska, spending seven years as a teacher in South Dakota, four years in Iowa and eleven in this state. He was the author of a work on the "Elements of Business Arithmetic," published in 191 1 by MacMillan & Company, of New York. His pronounced ability broug'ht him prominence in that field but a desire to enter upon the active practice of law led him to matriculate in the law department of Creighton University at Omaha, from which he was graduated with the class of 1912. He then opened an office and has since practiced in this city, where his clientage has steadily grown and developed. That he is recognized as an able attorney is indicated by the fact that he has been chosen as lecturer on real and personal property and on parliamentary law in the Creighton Law School. In October, 1916. he formed a law partnership with Charles F. Schrempp, formerly of Omaha and later a member of the bar at Seneca, Kansas, and they are now practicing in Omaha under the firm name of Bigelow & Schrempp. Mr. Bigelow also has some business connections outside of his profession, being secretary of the Nebraska Mausoleum Company and a director and attorney for the Western Construction Company.

On the 1st of January, 1891, in Omaha, Mr. Bigelow was married to Miss Margaret Hynes, a daughter of Patrick Hynes. She died in March, 1913, and in 1914 Mr. Bigelow wedded Harriet Pearl Le Master, a daughter of the late Henry Le Master. By his first marriage he has a daughter, Ellen Lucile.

Mr. liigelow holds mcml)crship in the Preshytcrian church and is also identified with the llenevolent I'rotective Order of Elks. He exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the republican party and in 191 1 he was elected on that ticket to the house of representatives in the South Dakota legislature from Lawrence county and served for one term. He has delivered various lectures upon important themes, especially those relating to his profession and he wrote a most instructive article on The Relation of Directors of a Corporation to Individual Stockholders for the Central T>aw Journal of October 8, 19 15. It has been reissued in pamphlet form and indicates wide study of others' opinions upon the question, keen insight into the real situation and clear discernment as to every pl>ase of the question. It is an illuminating article upon a subject that has created many diverse opinions.

Everett S. Dodds

Everett S. Dodds, an architect who has been the designer and builder of many of the fine residences and bungalows of Omaha as well as public buildings, schoolhouses and apartments, was born in Northfield, Minnesota, March 7, 1886. His father, Dr. Robert M. Dodds, of Mankato, Minnesota, was a prominent physician and surgeon and the author of various medical works of value. He was born in Kelso, Scotland, and was a graduate of the Edinburgh University. In 1850 he came to America, settling in Northfield, Minnesota, as one of its pioneers. He married Sophie Simpson, a native of Illinois and a descendant of Jonathan Edwards, William CuUen Bryant and Roger Williams, the founder of the colony of Rhode Island. One of her grandfathers was William Cullen Snell, a noted divine who for a period of sixty years was minister of a Congregational church in Boston, ^Massachusetts. Mrs. Dodds is yet living, her home being now in Mankato, Minnesota. She had a family of eight children, of whom Everett S. was the sixth.

At the usual age Everett S. Dodds became a pupil in the schools of Northfield. Minnesota, and afterward continued his studies in the schools of Mankato until graduated from the high school with the class of 1908. He then took up the study of architecture and was employed in several offices of leading architects of Minnesota and of Nebraska, coming to this state in 19 10. Entering into partnership with Fred" Peterson, the firm of Peterson & Dodds was thus formed, but since the early part of 1913 Mr. Dodds has conducted the business alone. He has been in continuous and successful practice in Omaha and there stand as evidences of his skill and handiwork many of the finest structures of the city, including a large number of Omaha's beautiful homes and bungalows. Mr. Dodds has also drawn up the plans and superintended the erection of many of the public buildings, schools and apartment houses. He is the architect of the Prettiest Mile Club House, also of the Masonic Temple of Red Oak, Iowa, the Bosworth apartments of Omaha and numerous other buildings, and he is regarded as a valued member of the Nebraska Association of Architects.

On the 28th of Tuly, 191 3, Mr. Dodds was married in Mankato, Minnesota, to Miss Mabel Schoelkopf, a native of that state and of German descent, her parents being C. P. and Amelia (Lay) Schoelkopf, the latter a native of Wisconsin and of French descent. She was a descendant of the family of Jacob de Leye, a French nobleman who on coming to this country dropped the prefix de, while the family has since adopted the name of Lay. Mrs. Dodds' maternal grandmother was a descendant of the Von Engler family of Switzerland, also connected with the nobility of that country. Mr. and Mrs. Dodds have become parents of a son, Everett Loren, born July 2, 1914.

^It. Dodds gives his political allegiance to the republican party. He holds membership in the First Presbyterian church of Mankato, Minnesota, of which at one time he was treasurer. He also belongs to the Royal Arcanum and to the Commercial Club of Omaha. He came to this city a comparative stranger but is well satisfied with the progress that he has made here, as a liberal patronage has been accorded him in recognition of his professional merit and worth.

Dr. Joseph Aloysius Henske, successfully practicing in Omaha, was born in St. Louis, Missouri, April 2, 1886. His father, Dr. Andrew Adolphus Henske, is a prominent physician and surgeon of St. Louis. He was born Januar}^ 2, 1852. in Paderborn, Prussia, and was graduated from a gymnasium in his native country. In 1871 he came to the United States and located in St. Louis, Missouri. He studied medicine at the St. Louis Medical College, which conferred upon him the degree of M. D. in 1875, and in the following year he took a post graduate course at the medical department of New York University, while in 1877 he took post graduate work in the medical department of Harvard University. The degree of Master of Arts was conferred upon him by San Franciscus Salarnus College of New York city and that of Doctor of Philosophy by the St. Louis University of St. Louis, Missouri. In 1877 he began the practice of medicine in St. Louis. He served as professor of gynecology in the old St. Louis College of Physicians .md Surgeons and for twenty-six years, or frotii 1879 to 1905. he was in charge of St. Ann's Lying-in Hospital at St. Louis. He has made obstetrics and gynecology his specialties and is recognized as an authority in those fields. In 1881 he was married to Miss Theresa Klaran, 1 native of St. Louis and of German descent. She is still living and the ten children born to their union all yet survive.

Dr. Joseph A. Henske was the third of the family. In the pursuit of his education he attended successively parochial schools of St. Louis, the St. Louis University, the St. Francis Solanus' College at Ouincy, Illinois, and the Barnes Medical College of St. Louis, from which he was , graduated in 1907 with the M. D. degree. He served both as junior and" senior interne in the St. Louis City Female Hospital, and afterward became house surgeon in the Missouri Pacific Railroad Hospitals and in Kansas City and St. Louis, thus continuing for four vears and six months. In November, 1913^ he was appointed division surgeon for the Missouri Pacific Railroad. Leaving St. Louis he removed to Oniaha and took charge of professional work in northern Kansas and Nebraska for the Missouri Pacific Railroad Company. In addition he conducted a general practice with offices in the Brandeis building.

On the 3d of November, 191 5, Dr. Henske was married in Omaha to Miss Katherine E. McClanahan. a daughter of Dr. Harry M. McCIanahan, and they have one child, Katherine E.. who was born in Omaha. November 12, 19 16. Dr. Henske is a life member of the Omaha Athletic Association. He also has membership with the Masons and the Elks. He is identified with the St. Louis City Hospital alumni, the Douglas County Medical Society, the Nebraska State Medical Association and the American Association of Railroad Surgeons.

Walter A. George

Walter A. George is the president of the National Security Fire Insurance Company of Omaha. The family name has long figured prommently not only in Nebraska but throughout New England for many generations and has ever stood for growth and development of the country. It has become a synonym for fidelity in public and private life and for progress in the busmess world.

The first representative of the family on this side the Atlantic came from England early in the seventeenth century and settled in the English colony of New Hampshire, where ancestors of Walter A. George figured prominently in the public life of the colony. His great-grandfather was an early shoe manufacturei and won his business by taking orders in the neighboring towns, villages and countryside, after which he would return to his home and manufacture the products ordered, later delivering to his customers. In such a way was the great shoe manufacturing business of New England started. Later the George family removed to Massachusetts and founded one of the first shoe factories in that state. In the early '70s Truman Q., father of Walter A, George, and six of his brothers, Lorenzo D,, James, Thomas B., Horace W., John S. and Andrew George, decided to emigrate to a new country. Six of the number made their way to Nebraska, while the last named, Andrew George, settled in Wisconsin, where he died at an early date. The brothers who came to Nebraska took up their abode in Buffalo county in 1871, when that region was practically virgin territory, very few white men having dared the dangers of the early days, so that they were far outnumbered by the red men. There were many kinds of wild animals, including wolves, buffaloes, elks and deer. For a time they lived in box cars, but as soon as possible they built homes. Their troubles did not terminate when they became installed in their new homes, for they faced many dangers which were bravely met, and in Nebraska as in New England they became dominant factors in molding the new country and developing a w'ell regulated civilization on the wild western frontier. Of the seven brothers who started from their home in Massachusetts but one now remains. Horace W. George, who is in his seventy-eighth year and resides with his nephew, Walter A. George. His hearing and his mental faculties are unimpaired and he relates many inteiesting incidents of the pioneer days of the state.

Walter A. George, president and organizer of the National Security Fire Insurance Company of Omaha and president and promoter of several of the leading banking institutions of western Nebraska and other business enterprise:^ of the state, displays the same qualities tha<- made his forefathers dominant factors in the growth and development of New England. He w^as born in Danvers, Massachusetts, May 12, 1861, a son of Truman Quinby and Abbie M. (Gilford) George, natives of Sandwich, New Hampshire, and Danvers, Massachusetts, respectively. In young manhood the former removed to the old Bay state, w^here like most of his forefathers he became a shoe manufacturer, continuing in that line until the failing health of his wife necessitated a change of climate. This prompted him and his brothers to emigrate to the west and in June, 1871, he arrived in Buffalo county, Nebraska, where they established a lumber, implement and machinery business which prospered from the beginning. In 1873 Truman O. George homesteaded in the Buckeye valley and there lived with his family until 1879, becoming a prosperous rancher and cattle man. A fall from a ladder while building a barn caused injuries which ultimately resulted in his death in Kearney, Nebraska, in 1902, when he was sixty-eight years of age, and his wife passed away in 1904, when sixty-five years of age. They had a family of four daughters and tw^o sons : Mrs. Etta M. Wheeler, of Gibbon, Nebraska, now deceased ; Mrs. Clara Tallesen, whose husband is manager of the Gilchrist Lumber Company of Kearney; Mrs. Emma Knepper, of Kearney; Walter A., of Omaha ; W. D., residing in Dinuba, California ; and Mrs. Hattie Pigman, of Denver, Colorado.

Walter A. George, after attending the district schools, continued his education in the Gibbon Academy and in his youthful days worked on his father's farm. He afterward became associated with his father in a mercantile business in Buffalo county in the spring of 1885 and later he located on a ranch at Georgetown, on the South Loup river in Nebraska, there remaining until he was elected to office. He served as county supervisor for three terms and in 1902 was chosen county treasurer, which position he filled for two terms. He then disposed of his ranch and purchased the Security State Bank at Broken Bow, Nebraska. In 1905 he became president of that institution and has since so continued. In 1907 he established the Berwyn State Bank, of which he yet remains the president, and for more than a decade he has figured very prominently in financial circles of the state. The high standing which he gained as a banker and his record as a public-spirited citizen led to his election in 1910 to the office of state treasurer, and so excellent was his record during his first term that he was reelected for a second term of two years. In 1916 he was candidate for governor of Nebraska at the primaries. Upon' his retirement from the treasurership he organized the National Security Fire Insurance Company of Omaha, with a paid up capital of five hundred thousand dollars. He is a director of the Bankers Mortgage & Loan Company of Omaha and of many other important business projects and institutions of the state.

In 1881 Mr. George was married to Miss Hannah Bray, who died in Gibbon, Nebraska, in 1883, leaving two children, Abby and Annie. The former, born in Gibbon, Nebraska, in 1882, is on the Wood ranch in Custer county and is the wife of Frank Wood, by whom she has two children, Leo and Claude Wood. The daughter Annie is the wife of Fred Knowlton, of Wenham, Massachusetts, and they have three children: Walter, Louise and a baby boy. On the nth of February, 1885, Mr. George wedded Miss Flossie M. George, of Kearney, Nebraska, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. H. W. George.

^Ir. George is a republican, giving stalwart support to the party, and for three terms he served as mayor of Broken Bow. He belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Woodmen of the World and the Modern Woodmen of America and he also has membership with the Omaha Athletic Club and the Commercial Club. Fortunate in possessing character and ability that inspire confidence in others, the simple weight of his character and ability has carried him into important public and business relations. He stands among those who have been active in framing the history of the state and developing its policy and, moreover, his life record should serve as a source of inspiration to others, showing what may be accomplished when effort is stimulated by laudable ambition and when energy falters not in the attainment of success.

James H. Callahan

Tames H. Callahan, who was long an active representative of the Union Pacific Railroad in Omaha, came to this city in 1865, only eleven years after the first white family had taken up their abode on the present site of the city. He removed to the middle west from New York, where he had been residmg for three years. He was a native, however, of Ireland. With his arrival m Douglas county he became foreman with the Union Pacific Railroad Company in the work of unloading ties and remained with that corporation for a considerable period. He afterward acted as foreman of construction work at the time of the building of the Douglas street bridge, a task that required between two and three years. He afterward went to Texas, where he was engaged m railroad work for a time, and following his return to Omaha he resumed connection with the Union Pacific and represented that company throughout his remaining days, covering a period of thirty-two vears. during which he was foreman of the blacksmithing department. He bought his first property at Eleventh street, becoming owner of five buildings which he afterward sold to the gas company. Later he became owner of four or five buildings at Fourteenth and Webster streets and these in time were sold to the Northwestern Railway Company. In pioneer times he took up considerable land near Calhoun. Washington county, Nebraska, which his widow still owns and which returns to her a considerable income In his investments he displayed good judgment and was very successful.