USA > California > Merced County > A history of Merced County, California : with a biographical review of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 82
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The marriage of Mr. Cunningham united him with Miss Lucille Clough, born in Merced, and they have one daughter, Barbara. Mr. Cunningham is a Republican in politics, and fraternally belongs to Merced Lodge No. 1240, B. P. O. E .; and Yosemite Lodge No. 30, K. of P., of which he is a Past Chancellor. He is a member of the Chamber of Commerce, and is a past president of the Lions' Club of Merced.
ULYSSES GRANT FOUGHT
A retired citizen of Merced County now making his horne in Los Banos is Ulysses G. Fought, who was born in Paulding County, Ohio, on December 2, 1867. His parents were Elias and Eliza Fought, both natives of the Buckeye State, the former a blacksmith by trade and a farmer who had settled in Kansas in its frontier days. In their family were eight children, viz .: Fred (deceased), Mollie, Henry, Lucinda, Edward (deceased), Ulysses Grant and W. S., twins, and Ella.
Mr. Fought was taken to Kansas when six months old, where he grew to manhood and received his education in the common schools. At the age of twenty, in 1888, he came to California and was em- ployed in San Diego and in San Bernardino, for a short time. In 1889 he came to Merced County and located in Los Banos when that was but a struggling village. When he was able he purchased a quar- ter section of land, leased other tracts and raised grain with mod- erate success. He also was road overseer of the fifth supervisoral district in Merced County for twelve years. He is now living retired from active participation in business affairs, only looking after his personal investments, which include a five-acre tract on the edge of Los Banos which he has subdivided into building lots.
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On April 30, 1889, Mr. Fought was united in marriage with Miss Susie Watkins, daughter of John and Harriet Watkins, who came to California about 1888. Of this union there were five chil- dren : Clyde, Charles, Walter, Cecil and Hazel. Mr. Fought is a Democrat in his political convictions, and fraternally, belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows of Los Banos. Of late, he has spent considerable of his time in Santa Cruz on account of the health of Mrs. Fought, but he retains his interest in the city where he is so well known.
GLENN H. KINNEY
The changing vicissitudes of life brought Glenn H. Kinney into an intimate acquaintance with various localities before he established a permanent home in Merced County. The son of W. P. and Alvira (Lewis) Kinney, he was born in the State of Michigan, on Jan- uary 15, 1889. The parents were both born in Michigan. The father was a farmer but is now living retired with his wife, both enjoying the best of health. Glenn H. is the third in order of birth of four children, viz. : Grace, Mrs. Bruce Hutchings, and Hazel, Mrs. Fred Wilson, still reside in Michigan; Glenn H .; and Clyde, of Montana. Glenn was educated in the grammar school and had one year in high school, then in 1912 he went to Portland, Ore., and from there went to Trout Creek, Wash., where he was employed for six months. Then he came down into California and worked one winter in a box factory at Sonora, Tuolumne County; from there he came to Dos Palos and for three years was employed out on the plains. Mr. Kinney then leased a ranch and engaged in farming on his own account. He finally bought thirty acres north of town, which he sold and invested the proceeds in three acres on the edge of Dos Palos. Since 1923 he has been the distributor at Dos Palos for the Union Ice Company.
On January 17, 1915, Mr. Kinney was united in marriage with Miss Margaret John, born in Oklahoma, the daughter of A. D. and Rilda (Sears) John. When Margaret was a babe the family came to California and settled at Dos Palos, where her father farmed, also worked at the carpenter trade; and he was later engaged in the real estate and insurance business in Dos Palos and is now living retired. There were four children in the John family: Albert (de- ceased) ; Ira; Margaret, Mrs. Kinney; and Alva. Mr. and Mrs. Kinney have three boys: Hugh Erwin, Holon Oliver, and William Daily. In politics Mr. Kinney is a Republican and he is a member of Santa Rita Lodge of Odd Fellows in Dos Palos.
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RUFUS P. COVERT
A successful business man who has won the esteem and confidence of all who have had business dealings with him, is Rufus P. Covert of Merced, whose transfer and storage business has been carried on for the past thirteen years. He has contracts with the United States government for carrying mail; also with the Southern Pacific Rail- road Company and the Yosemite Valley Railroad Company; he is also engaged in a local transfer business, and also does long distance hauling, using four trucks in his business. His birth occurred in New Brighton, Pa., on March 8, 1881, a son of Charles and Margaret (Phillis) Covert. In 1893 the family came to California and lo- cated in Merced, where the father engaged in business. He and his wife are now living retired in Oakland, Cal.
Rufus P. Covert was educated in the public schools of Merced; then after a two years' business course he entered the employ of John R. Graham and for the following five years was foreman and bookkeeper for this firm. Then he became the superintendent of ice agencies for the National Ice Company; later he tried farming for a couple of years. In 1913 he established his present business, which has brought him independence.
Mr. Covert was married to Miss Hattie Whealan, a native daugh- ter of Merced County, Cal., and to them have been born seven child- ren: Sherwood, Calvin, Grace, Lester, Margie, Carroll, and Jackie. Mr. Covert is a Republican in politics and fraternally is affiliated with the Woodmen of the World. He belongs to the Chamber of Com- merce in Merced.
CYRUS WILLIAM CROOP
Among the native sons of California conspicuous for their abil- ity, enterprise and worth, is Cyrus William Croop, of Merced, who is actively and successfully engaged in the practice of law in his native city. He was born January 22, 1891, a son of Mr. and Mrs. W. B. Croop. Both parents are living retired in Santa Cruz, Cal., whither they removed in 1920.
Cyrus William Croop first attended grammar school in Merced, then spent two years in the Merced High School, and when the family removed to Santa Cruz he attended high school there. After grad- uating from high school he entered the University of California, from which he received his LL. B. degree in 1913. He returned to his native city and was associated with his father in the practice of law until January, 1919, when he was elected to the office of district attor-
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ney of Merced County; after one and and a half years in this posi- tion he resigned and became associated with the Simonson-Harrell Abstract Company in the capacity of legal adviser ; he also enjoys a lucrative private practice.
The marriage of Mr. Croop united him with Miss Tolbert Ford, also born in Merced, the daughter of the late G. W. Ford. Mr. and Mrs. Croop are the parents of one son, Cyrus William, Jr. Mr. Croop is prominent fraternally, being member and Past President of Yosemite Parlor No. 24, N. S. G. W .; Past Exalted Ruler of Mer- ced Lodge No. 1240, B. P. O. E .; and a member of Yosemite Lodge No. 30, K. of P .; Merced Lodge No. 208, I. O. O. F., and Wood- men of the World.
LEWIS R. JOHNSON
As a real estate and insurance broker, Lewis R. Johnson is add- ing his share to the business life of the city of Merced, where he ranks among the representative citizens. On September 27, 1878, he was born in Niles, Mich., a son of Hiram R. and Almeda (Simms) John- son. Hiram R. Johnson was a railroad man and passed away when our subject was fourteen years old; the mother is still living, making her home in California. Lewis R. Johnson attended school up to the tenth grade, in Niles, Mich., then took a business course, after which he became bookkeeper for the Ohio Paper Company in his native city, where he remained for six months. Then he volunteered for service during the Spanish-American War, and was a member of Company I, 33rd Michigan Volunteer Infantry. His service covered the period from May, 1898, to January, 1899, and he was in action at Santiago de Cuba, West Indies ; while in service he contracted an illness and was sent home to recuperate, which required about one year. He then entered the employ of the New York Central Rail- road Company; for the first five years he was a fireman, then for two years an engineer.
In the fall of 1905, Mr. Johnson came to California and located at Merced, where for two years he succeeded as a truck gardener. He then took the civil service examination and when rural route No. 2 was established he was put on as carrier; during this time he was elected and served as chairman of the Republican County Central Committee. In the fall of 1909 he was elected auditor of Merced County, was reelected in 1913, and served two terms with marked ability and satisfaction to the voters of the county. After complet- ing his term of office as auditor he removed to Stockton, Cal., where for a year and a half he was in the tire business, which he later sold
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and returned to Merced and engaged in his present business, which has gradually increased since its inception.
The marriage of Mr. Johnson united him with Miss Edith E. Pickard, of Indiana, and four children have been born to them: Lonetta, Leonore, Frances and Harold. Mr. Johnson is a stanch Republican and fraternally is identified with the Woodmen of the World and the U. P. E. C. of Merced.
LUTHER QUINTIN HUTCHINS
The life history of L. Q., familiarly known as "Gus" Hutchins, is one of unusual interest. He was born in Ripley, Tippah County, Miss., on August 17, 1887, the son of Walter and Jennie (Hensley ) Hutchins, the fourth in order of birth of seven children, namely : Alfred F., Erastus C .; Leland E., Luther Q., Maggie, Velma and Wilhelmina. The father migrated to Covington, Tipton County, Tenn., when his son was twelve years old.
Gus Hutchins was educated in the public schools and remained with his father until he was twenty years old. He then went to work on farms in Sumner County, Kans., and became a foreman on a large estate. From there he went to Spokane, Wash., and in 1909 came to California and for a short time was in the Sacramento Valley, but he was unsettled and soon returned to Kansas and then went to Oklahoma. Mr. Hutchins came to California again in 1912, and was employed with the Standard Oil Company at Calexico for three years. From there he went down into Lower California and was a foreman in a development project of a large tract of land.
When our country entered into the World War he responded to the call and enlisted on October 3, 1917, at El Centro, was sent to Camp Lewis, Washington, and enrolled in Company K, 364th In- fantry of the 91st Division. With this regiment he served in the major offensives and defensives until September 27, 1918, when he was twice hit by bullets from a machine gun, once in the knee and once in the hand, and became a casual. The bullet in the hand re- mained and caused him much annoyance until it was extracted after he had been out of service three and a half years. He received an honorable discharge as corporal on April 26, 1919, returned to Cali- fornia and was engaged in cotton growing on the west side of Fresno County on land leased from Miller & Lux. He was sent by this same company, as superintendent of the Bloomfield ranch near Gil- roy for a short time, and then came to the Dos Palos Colony where he has since farmed the ninety-six-acre ranch of Mrs. James Mitchell. In 1924, he purchased fifty-six acres of land which he is developing.
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On June 3, 1920, Mr. Hutchins was married to Evelyn Mitchell, daughter of James and Gertrude E. Mitchell, born at Oroloma, Fresno County, but reared and educated at Dos Palos. Her father was born at Antioch, Cal., and her grandfather was one of the pio- neers of California. James Mitchell acquired a ranch of ninety-six acres in the Dos Palos Colony, which he left to his widow upon his death, at the age of sixty-five. Mrs. Hutchins is one of a family of five children, namely : William H., Evelyn (Mrs. Hutchins), James Jr. (deceased), Gertrude (Mrs. Hansen of Kerman), Amy (Mrs. Ashley of Oakland). Mr. Hutchins carries on general farming on the Mitchell ranch which lies about two miles northwest of Dos Palos. He is not tied to any political party, voting for the best man and issues at stake. He served during 1921-1923 as a deputy tax assessor of Merced County. He belongs to Dos Palos Post No. 86, American Legion.
IRA S. HART
A man who has in many ways proved a valuable citizen of Dos Palos, Merced County, is Ira S. Hart. The movement that has placed him in high regard by his fellowmen is his activities to obtain a larger irrigation district for the West Side, taking in some 208,- 000 acres of land not now covered by canal. The son of John and Mary (Jolliff) Hart, he was born in Blackford County, Ind., on September 22, 1873. His parents were both natives of Indiana, where the father was a farmer. Later he moved the family to Kan- sas, where the children were reared in Morris, Pratt and Cherokee Counties ; later the father took up a timber claim in Nebraska. There were eleven children in the family, viz .: Ira, Alice, Jacob, Henry, Anna, Rachael, Katherine, Lee and Dora (twins), James, and John.
Ira S. Hart was only three years old when he was taken to Kan- sas. At the age of eighteen he went to work in the mines at Galena, Kans., and for the following sixteen years he prospected in Kansas and Arizona. In the fall of 1907 he came to California and worked on construction work near Willows for a couple of seasons, then in 1908, he bought a ranch in the Dos Palos Colony in Merced County, about one mile east of Dos Palos. It was an improved ranch of twenty-two and a half acres on which he raises alfalfa and vegetables and where he set out eight acres to Thompson seedless grapes.
On December 9, 1894, Ira S. Hart was married in the Shawnee Reservation, Indian Territory, to Miss Mary Price, a native of Clay County, Mo., and daughter of Robert and Mary (Stephens ) Price, both being natives of Missouri, where her father was a farmer and
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merchant in Rich Hill. The daughter, Mary, was one of five chil- dren, namely : John, Lee, Fannie, Anna Belle and Mary. There is one child, Viola, in the family of Mr. and Mrs. Hart. Mr. Hart is a Democrat in politics. He served as a deputy marshal in several strike uprisings in Kansas. He is a mechanic and has done consid- erable constructive work on large buildings in Los Banos, and he ran threshing machines in the grain and rice fields on the West Side. When young, he enlisted in Troop K, 3rd U. S. Cavalry, and trained at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, but was discharged on account of physical disability.
PETER C. HANSEN
Among the men who have contributed to the development of Merced County, Peter C. Hansen occupies a conspicuous place, for he possesses the characteristic traits of his countrymen upon which material success is founded. The son of Chris and Egidia (Peter- sen) Hansen, he was born in Ero, Denmark, November 2, 1867. His father was a farmer and spent his life in Denmark, dying at the age of sixty-eight. There were three children in the family: Hans, Bodil, and Peter C. With but an elementary schooling secured in his native place Peter C. began to make his own way at the age of fourteen, working around on different farms until 1887, when he came to America and landed eventually at Hill's Ferry, Stanislaus County. He first found employment as a ranch hand, and later worked in the lumber yards at Newman, and after working for wages for four years, began to farm on his own account, leasing a grain farm west of Volta, Merced County. For many years he raised grain on 700 to 800 acres of land leased from Simon Newman. His next move was to the Agua Fria, also known as the Hoffman ranch, of 800 acres and leased it for four years. He gave up the lease and in April, 1902, bought the ranch of forty acres he is now occupying, two miles south of Los Banos, which is under the old San Joaquin-Kings River Canal and is devoted to alfalfa and a dairy.
On January 18, 1903, in Los Banos, Mr. Hansen was married to Nellie Wright, a daughter of William W. and Corinne (Jones) Wright, the former a native of New York State and the latter of California, of Kentucky stock. Mr. Wright came to California when quite a young lad and has been a sheep grower for years and owns considerable property in the hills sixteen miles out from Los Banos. Mrs. Hansen was educated in the Mendezable district school of Merced County and they have eight children: Walter C., Wil- liam B., Margaret B., Helen E., Peter C., Nell Virginia, Lucille E.,
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and Mary Belle. Mr. Hansen is a Democrat. Fraternally, he is a member of Orestimba Lodge No. 354, I. O. O. F., of Newman, and of the Woodmen of the World, of Los Banos. Mrs. Hansen is a member of Los Olivas Lodge of Rebekahs and of the Eastern Star of Los Banos. Mr. Hansen has been chairman of the Los Banos Center of the Merced County Farm Bureau for two years and is now a director of the same.
JOSEPH WILLIAM SPAGNOLI
Distinguished as the son of a pioneer family of worth, Joseph William Spagnoli is well deserving of representation in this volume. He is now actively engaged in the contracting and building business in Merced, an occupation which so readily marks the wealth and pros- perity of the community. His birth occurred in a mining camp in Mariposa County, on September 13, 1875, a son of Joseph and Elizabeth Jane (Simmons) Spagnoli. Joseph Spagnoli, the father, came by boat from his native country of Switzerland to California in the early fifties, and mined in the mountains of Mariposa County, where he became a successful mine owner and was one of the pioneers of Mariposa County. Miss Elizabeth Jane Simmons was born in England and when a small child accompanied her parents to Australia, and was still a young girl when her parents came to California. She was married to Joseph Spagnoli at Hornitos, Mariposa County, and is still living, having reached an advanced age. The father passed away in 1915.
Joseph William Spagnoli received a grammar school education in Mariposa County. Following in his father's footsteps he turned to mining pursuits and for seventeen years was thus occupied, the greater part of which was spent as a hoisting engineer in the mines. He had also learned the carpenter's trade, and, when he located in Merced, in 1909, he turned his attention to this line of occupation, and for the past five years he has been successfully engaged in the contracting and building business.
Mr. Spagnoli was united in marriage with Miss Rose May Peard, also born in Mariposa County, Cal. Her parents were also pioneers of California, her mother, Martha Branson, crossing the plains with ox-teams in early days, while Mr. Peard came from England. Mr. and Mrs. Spagnoli have two children: Iva, Mrs. Shirley Parsons, and Donald. In politics, Mr. Spagnoli is a Democrat, and fraternally belongs to the Lodge, Encampment, Canton and Rebekahs of the Odd Fellows. For the past six years he has served as a trustee of the grammar school in Merced.
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JAMES C. IVERS
No citizen of Merced County is more highly honored and respected than James C. Ivers who, since 1914, has capably filled the office of county recorder. He has ably demonstrated his ability to handle the affairs of this office and has borne his part in the growth and advancement of his locality. He is a native Californian, born in Napa, on October 21, 1867, a son of Richard and Margaret (Tobin) Ivers. Richard Ivers came to California from Virginia in 1865, and at San Francisco, Cal., was married to Miss Margaret Tobin. They then settled in Napa County where Mr. Ivers engaged in farming until 1868, when he removed to Merced County, where he spent the remainder of his life. Both parents are now deceased.
James C. Ivers received his education in the schools of Merced and assisted his father in ranching, and also farmed independently until 1903, when he became a deputy sheriff under John Swan and served for four years; then for the next four years he was engaged in ranching. He returned to the sheriff's office, where another four years were spent, and in 1914, he was elected to the office of county recorder and since that time has been re-elected twice.
The marriage of Mr. Ivers united him with Miss Margaret Sul- livan, a daughter of Joseph Sullivan who came to Merced County with the father of our subject. Mr. and Mrs. Ivers have an adopted daughter, Anna M. Mr. Ivers is a Democrat in politics, and fra- ternally is affiliated with the Woodwen of the World, the Modern Woodmen of America, and the Native Sons of the Golden West. He belongs to the Chamber of Commerce. His interest centers in Mer- ced County, where he has been instrumental in forwarding the ad- vancement of his community and where he has won and holds the esteem of the entire section.
KNUD LAURITSEN KNUDSEN
It was on the Isle of Ero, in Denmark, on August 13, 1875, that Knud L. Knudsen was born, the son of Knud L. and Anna Marie (Albertsen) Knudsen. The father was a farmer, who lived all his life in Denmark, and died at the age of eighty-one. There were seven children in the family, namely: Albert and Erik, both still in Denmark; Hans, in British Columbia; Margaret, who died in 1898; Knud Lauritsen, our subject; Jens C., of Los Banos; and Louis, at Winton, Cal.
Knud L. started out for himself at the age of fourteen and did odd jobs until 1902, when he left his native land and set out for the
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land beyond the sea where so many of his countrymen had gone to make their fortunes. He did not stop until he had reached the western shores and he settled in Los Banos, Merced County, got a job on a dairy farm and worked three years for wages. He then leased twenty acres, and later forty acres, and farmed on leased land for seven years. By this time there was enough surplus of money to his credit to enable him to buy twenty-five acres two and a half miles south of Los Banos, where he has since carried on a dairy.
On March 1, 1905, Knud L. Knudsen was married to Anna Mar- garet Petersen, a native of the same neighborhood from which he came in Denmark, and the daughter of Hans C. and Christina Petersen, farmers in Ero. The daughter was one of six children: Anna, Maria, Sophia, Peter, Hansina, and Erik, and she was edu- cated in Denmark and came to California in 1904. Mr. and Mrs. Knudsen have six children: Emma, Margaret, Louisa H., Emmett, Helen, and Winifred. Mr. Knudsen is a Democrat in politics, is a trustee of the Center school district of Merced County, and is a member of the Woodmen of the World of Los Banos.
WALTER KING NIELSEN
A notable instance of the sterling worth which overcomes all obstacles and creates its own opportunities is presented in the career of Walter K. Nielsen, proprietor of the Arena Garage, two and one-half miles east of Livingston. A popular young man, and an engineer and machinist of ability, his personal appearance and agree- able ways win for him many stanch friends. The garage, 125x54 feet, which he built in 1919, is equipped with machinery and up-to- date appliances for all modern work, overhauling, vulcanizing, etc., and in the work of repairing, tractors, trucks and automobiles he employs three men besides himself.
Mr. Nielsen was born in San Francisco on November 4, 1896, the son of J. J. Nielsen, a native of Denmark, who is a prominent concrete contractor in the Santa Clara Valley. He built the Morgan, Hill High School building and nearly all the concrete bridges in the Santa Clara Valley. The mother, Catherine (Kling) Nielsen, was also born in Denmark and died in 1918, aged sixty-one years. While yet a youth of fifteen Walter started to work for the Union Iron Works of San Francisco and since that time he has made his own way. After four years and four months in the Union Iron Works he en- listed in 1917, in the U. S. Navy, where he made a very excellent record as assistant engineer on a dozen torpedo boats and naval craft,
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among which may be mentioned, the U. S. S. Chew, U. S. S. Kerman- shaw, a freighter; U. S. S. George Washington, a transport. He served in the Mediterranean and on the Atlantic during the war and went to Constantinople, Turkey, and was in the Black Sea. He drove the first torpedo boat of the U. S. Navy which passed through the Dardanelles after the Turkish surrender. He was honorably discharged at Mare Island on September 27, 1919, having served altogether two and a half years.
Walter King Nielsen was married in San Jose, October 28, 1919, to Miss Gertrude Hatch, a native of New York City, and they came to Arena the night after their marriage. He is a member of the American Automobile Association of Garage Owners. He is a Ma- son, belonging to Turlock Lodge No. 395, F. & A. M. Both Mr. and Mrs. Nielsen are Protestants. They reside in their home Mr. Nielsen built near his garage and dispense a kindly hospitality.
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