USA > California > Glenn County > History of Colusa and Glenn counties, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the counties who have been identified with their growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 68
USA > California > Colusa County > History of Colusa and Glenn counties, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the counties who have been identified with their growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 68
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In 1901, the Berens Brothers formed a partnership, and leas- ing the Davis ranch of a full section, besides another half section near by, engaged together in the raising of grain. Later they leased the Lutts estate of nine hundred sixty acres, and six hun- dred forty acres in the hills. Here they farmed to grain and raised stock until coming to their present place in 1909. They are men- bers of the Lutheran Church, and in politics are Republicans.
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On November 22, 1905, Peter Volquart Berens married Dora Caroline Martens, who was born in Colusa County, on April 6, 1878. Two children brighten their happy home, Leona Anna Mar- garetha, and Lenus Martens Berens. Johannes J. Berens is unmar- ried, and makes his home with his brother. The brothers have a wide circle of friends in their community, who admire them for their public spirit, and their many good qualities of mind and heart.
RALPH T. JONES
Prominent among the younger generation of ranchers of Glenn County is Ralph T. Jones, who has brought to bear in his work the progressive ideas and enterprise which have formed so important a factor in the development of this section. He is a native son of the state, his birth having occurred in Sacramento, September 30, 1871. His father, Richard Jones, was a native of Toronto, Canada, who came to the United States, and thence by way of Cape Horn to California in 1856. He worked in the mines of Feather River, and with the means thus acquired pur- chased property consisting of ten hundred fifteen acres, just opposite St. John, Glenn County. This extensive property he farmed until 1868, when he sold out to his favorite brother, Samuel Jones, whom he brought to this state after he had made a start here. Later, he gave his attention to the retail and whole- sale grocery business in Sacramento, and carried on an extensive and successful business until his death, which occurred in Sep- tember, 1884, at the age of fifty years. His wife, whom he married in Canada while on a trip there, was formerly Anna Taylor. She was born in Toronto, Canada, and died in Sacramento, Cal., leaving a family of two sons and two daughters, of whom Ralph T. Jones is the second in order of birth, and with his sister, Mrs. Etta Florence King, of Toronto, is the only survivor of the family.
Reared in California, Ralph T. Jones received his preliminary education through the medium of the common schools of the state, after which he returned to the home of his parents, and from 1880 to 1883 took a course in the Upper Canada College. Upon com- pleting the course in this college, he returned to California and assumed charge of the old Jones ranch, comprising seventeen hundred acres. Here he has given much attention to the raising of stock, having at present one hundred fifty head of cattle and a like number of hogs. He has met with the best of results in his work, and is recognized as one of the most enterprising and sub- stantial citizens of this section.
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The home of Mr. Jones is presided over by his wife, formerly Eva Glenn Wilson, a native of Marysville, Yuba County, Cal., with whom he was united in marriage in Sacramento. They have one daughter, Florence. Mr. Jones is prominent in fraternal circles. He is a member of the Chico Lodge, No. 111, F. & A. M .; Chico Chapter, No. 42, R. A. M .; Chico Commandery, No. 12, K. T .; and Islam Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., of San Francisco; and is also identified with the Elks of Chico. Politically, he casts his ballot with the Republican party. He is now serving as clerk of the school board of the Walsh district.
FREDERICK WILLIAM AND EDWARD HENRY WHYLER
Natives of California, and born in Sutter County, the Whyler brothers have grown up with this part of the state and represent that pioneer element, the forerunners of civilization on the Coast, who crossed the plains with ox teams in 1852. That year their father, John Whyler, a native of England, came to California and took up his residence one mile west of Yuba City, on a quarter section of government land. After his arrival in the United States, he remained for a time in Cleveland, Ohio; and there he was married. To John and Anna May Whyler were born four boys and two girls. Mrs. Whyler was a woman of German parentage. Mr. Whyler conducted a store in Ohio, but after coming to California he became a rancher. In 1877, he moved from his Sutter County ranch to Tehama County, and settling on Cottonwood Creek, farmed there until his death in 1878. His wife passed away in June, 1868. One of his brothers, Edward Whyler, had been a farmer in this state for years, and died in 1892, at an advanced age.
Frederick William Whyler was born on October 1, 1860; and Edward Henry Whyler, on September 10, 1862. Their educations were received in the public schools in Sutter and Tehama Coun- ties. They lived at home on the ranch and did all they could to aid their father, until his death. In 1880, after the estate had been adjusted, the brothers came to Colusa (now Glenn) County, and in the vicinity of Orland engaged in the raising of grain and stock. Their next move was made in 1892, when they leased the Mills ranch near Willows, on which they continued in their chosen occupation. Eight years later they came to the home place. There they reaped good harvests until 1906, when they decided to give their attention to the stock business. On their present place they are raising fine cattle, mules, sheep and hogs, which
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bring excellent prices in the markets. Besides raising stock, they also buy and sell. At one time they were among the leading raisers of grain in the Willows section, having five sections of land devoted to its cultivation. They still have from six hundred to twelve hundred acres in grain annually, and are joint owners of eighteen hundred acres. The brothers have always worked together in harmony, widening their influence and standing year by year, until they are now counted among the foremost stock- men and farmers of Glenn County. In politics, they endorse the principles of Democracy.' Both belong to the Odd Fellows, and Edward Whyler has passed all the chairs of the order. He married Anna Frances Buler, who was born in Dixon, Cal., of German ancestry. Her father was a native of Illinois; and her mother, of California. Of this marriage four children have been born: William Henry, Gladys May, Elizabeth Hazel and Ellsworth Howard. Frederick William Whyler is unmarried. Together with his brother and his brother's family, he enjoys the con- fidence and good-will of a large circle of friends in Glenn County.
WILBUR WARREN BOARDMAN
The present incumbent of the office of Supervisor of Colusa County, for District No. 3, is Wilbur Warren Boardman, of Lees- ville. Mr. Boardman possesses an enviable reputation for sterling character, and has also a high degree of business ability. It was but natural, therefore, that the citizens of Supervisoral District No. 3 should seek him out and insist upon his candidacy for this responsible post, to which he was elected in the fall of 1916. He was born on August 24, 1853, in Wheatland Township, Will County, Ill. His father, Franklin Boardman, was born near Bur- lington, Vt., the son of Amos Boardman, who was descended from old New England stock. Franklin Boardman was married in Ver- mont to Mindwell Bates, of the same state; and they removed to Wheatland, Will County, Ill. Here his uncle, Capt. Harry Board- man, had settled in 1833. He was at one time in command of the old Fort Dearborn, now the site of Chicago. Franklin Boardman was among the first settlers on the prairies of Will County, and broke the virgin prairie soil with ox teams, improving a farm there and becoming a substantial farmer. He and his wife resided on the farm till their death. Of the family of four children, Wil- liam Warren was the third. He grew up on his father's farm, and received his early education in the public schools. Later he at- tended the old Jennings Seminary, at Aurora, and Northwestern
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College, at Naperville, Ill. He remained on his father's farm until he was about twenty-three years old, when he decided to seek his fortune in the Golden State, and came to Leesville, where his uncle Cornelius resided. He rented a tract of nine hundred sixty acres in Indian Valley, near Leesville; and here he remained for three years, raising stock and grain. In 1884 he purchased the nucleus of his present farms, and now owns two large ranches, upon which he has made valuable improvements, until today they are considered among the most up-to-date ranches in the district. For forty years Mr. Boardman has been very influential in the agricultural development of this section. Although he arrived in Colusa County with little or no means, he is today one of its most promi- nent and successful ranchers. Like most pioneers, he bravely faced trials and surmounted difficulties ; and by hard work and in- dustrious habits he attained to his present prosperous position.
In 1877, Wilbur Warren Boardman was married to Sarah E. Netzly, a native of Naperville, Ill. This union was blessed by four children, as follows: Lulu, Mrs. Boughton, of Chicago; Anna, the wife of F. A. Nason, of Leesville; Mina, the wife of Rev. Robert Webb, a minister in the Presbyterian Church; and a son, Frank D., also of Leesville.
Upon Mr. Boardman's election to the responsible office of county supervisor, he incorporated into the conduct of the county's affairs the same efficient business methods that have characterized the successful operation of his large ranches. He has conducted the business of the county with such satisfaction to his constituents and such credit to himself, that his friends anticipate for him his reelection, if he should again desire to seek the office upon the ex- piration of his present term. His name is a synonym for honesty, prosperity and conservatism ; and he is a citizen of whom any com- munity might well be proud.
CHARLES HANSEN
In the Butte City section of Glenn County, Charles Hansen's influence for the good of the community has been felt in many ways, through his hearty cooperation with all movements for the public welfare. He was born on the Island of Fyen, in Denmark, October 20, 1872, and attended the common schools there until he was eleven years old. He began his early training on a farm at the age of nine, and there became used to hard work, and learned how to take care of cattle and sheep as it is done in his native country. Many of his countrymen had migrated to Amer- 41
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ica; and their reports were so glowing as to the advantages offered in this country, that he was induced to leave home and seek his fortune here.
In 1889, Mr. Hansen sailed for New York, landing there with just fifty cents in his pocket, and a ticket to Rochester, Olmsted County, Minn., where he arrived in due time. In Decem- ber of that year, he came on to California, and for five years worked for wages on ranches near Chico, Butte County. He was quick to learn, and it was not long before he had mastered English and learned how to do successful farming under local conditions; and as a consequence he commanded good wages. By 1894 he had saved enough to make a start; and he then bought two hundred forty acres of land ten miles north of Chico. In 1898, he came to Glenn County, and, leasing four thousand acres, engaged in the raising of grain on a large scale. As he succeeded, he purchased two thousand acres of the J. Crouch estate, which has since been sold to the Dodge Rice Company, of San Francisco, and is one of the largest tracts farmed to rice in the county at the present time. Mr. Hansen has four hundred acres in his home place, and rents fifteen hundred acres adjoining. He raises grain, cattle, sheep and hogs, having as high as three thousand sheep at one time. He bought the home place in 1916, and is developing it into a very productive and attractive ranch.
The marriage of Mr. Hansen united him with Miss Alice D. Miller, daughter of W. Frank Miller, of Butte City. As a public- spirited citizen Mr. Hansen supports good roads, good schools, and good government. He was reared in the Danish Lutheran Church, in which he was confirmed after his school days were over. He is independent in politics, supporting men rather than party. Mr. Hansen is a thirty-second-degree Scottish Rite Mason, a mem- ber of the Blue Lodge, Chapter, and Commandery, and of Islam Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., of San Francisco; and he is also a member of the Chico Lodge of Elks. He was one of the organizers of Wild Rose Chapter, O. E. S., at Princeton, of which he is Past Patron.
GEORGE M. BUCKNER
The manager of the Packer Island Orchards, which he is supervising in an efficient and capable manner, George M. Buckner is one of the progressive ranchers of his section of the state. Born in Polk County, Mo., Jannary 20, 1870, he attended the pub- lic schools of that vicinity; and being raised on a farm, he early received the training necessary for the making of a successful
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tiller of the soil. In 1892 he came to California and took up agri- culture for himself, in Santa Clara County, where he farmed to grain. Later he put in fruit, specializing in prunes for ten years. At the end of that time he sold out and went to San Francisco. There he engaged in an entirely different occupation, being em- ployed as a motorman by the United Railway Co. for five years.
In 1909 Mr. Buckner came to Colusa County and purchased twenty acres of land, part of the Boggs tract. This he partly put under cultivation, and then sold the place in 1912. The next year he became manager for Morse & Langdon, taking charge of the Packer Island Orchards. He has improved sixty acres of the property since becoming manager. In all, two hundred acres of the land are under cultivation. The original orchard is thirty- two years old. In connection with the orchard, Mr. Buckner operates a drier; and in 1915 two hundred seventeen tons of dried prunes were marketed from about fifty-three acres of the ranch. Some years the total amount has gone as high as three hundred thirty tons. Mr. Buckner is also interested in the cultivation of rice, a comparatively new industry in California. With T. J. Dawson and Harry Boyes, he leased two hundred acres of the Boggs tract in Colusa County; and they are having it planted out to rice this year (1917).
In Polk County, Mo., on July 3, 1898, Mr. Buckner was united in marriage with Miss Myrtle May Davis; and they are the parents of one son, Fred Sherman.
Mr. Buckner is a man of progressive ideas, and is meeting with deserved success. His varied work keeps him occupied; but he still finds opportunity to take an active interest in all matters pertaining to the public welfare, in the furtherance of which he is always willing to do his share.
. LEON SPEIER
If there be one thing of which, more than of another, Cali- fornians may be justly proud, it is the rank and file of their public officials, not the least important of whom are the county supervisors, to whom are entrusted matters of much moment, par- ticularly those relating to county property and the public high- ways. Prominent among the supervisors of the state is Leon Speier, chairman of the Glenn County board, who is located at Willows. He was born at San Francisco in 1878, attended the excellent grammar schools of the northern metropolis, and in 1896 graduated from the San Francisco high school.
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Mr. Speier's first business experience was with the hardware firm of Dunham, Carrigan & Hayden, at San Francisco. From there he went, in 1900, to the United States Government Transport Service to the Philippines, where he was for two years quarter- master's clerk. In 1903, he assisted in the formation of the Mid- land Pacific Railroad, acting as assistant secretary; and the fol- lowing year he came to Willows and entered the employ of Hoch- heimer & Company, at first taking the post of assistant book- keeper. In 1910 he severed his connection with the company, at which time he was general sales manager of the store.
Since that date Mr. Speier has been grain-buyer for the firm of M. Blum & Company, of San Francisco, having for his terri- tory all of Glenn County. He also has charge of the Glascock ranch, a property of three hundred fifty-seven acres; and he deals largely in wool.
Mr. Speier has served as foreman of the grand jury of Glenn County. He was elected supervisor in 1914, and has made good in all his pledges to his constituents. Popular socially, he is a wel- come figure in the circles of the Masons, being a member of the Blue Lodge.
JOHN W. HALTERMAN
When to take hold, but quite as important, when to let go, is a lesson learned by J. W. Halterman, the well-known contractor and builder of Willows. He was born in Jasper County, Ill., June 23, 1872. At fifteen, he commenced to learn the trade of a carpenter, in Colorado, and later contracted for building in the Cripple Creek district. Then, for five years, he had charge of construction work for the Ajax Mining Company in the same section. In 1904, he came to Nevada, and was one of the early settlers who saw Goldfield grow from a mining camp of two hundred to a city of thirty thousand. There he entered the real estate field, and also engaged in mining. Three years later he settled at Reno, where he estab- lished a home, and operated extensively in mining deals. Mr. Halterman named Bonanza Mountain at Bullfrog, having been among the first to be interested in mining there. He also opened up the first investment and brokerage business at Manhattan. Both at Goldfield and at Reno he made fortune after fortune; but in the same places he lost much of what he had, and this experience led him to decide to enter a field where business conditions were more stable. IIe concluded that a growing agricultural district would be a more desirable place in which to settle; after looking around in Oregon and in various parts of California, he decided upon
Andrew J. black
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the town of Willows as the most promising community he had anywhere found, and decided to make it his home.
On Christmas Day, in the year 1910, Mr. Halterman arrived in Willows. Since his arrival in Glenn County, success has steadily attended his building operations, for which from the first he has drawn his own plans. He began by building a dozen houses in Willows and two in Orland, and as fast as he had finished them he disposed of the houses to those who were waiting. Then he con- tracted for others, designing and erecting the homes of Curry French, Walter Steele, C. T. Dillard, Charles Lambert, Jr., the Rev. Mr. Williamson, and Nick Hanson, for whom he recently built at Glenn a beautiful structure costing five thousand dollars. He also built the Jacinto school building, and the Cordora school building, for which twelve thousand dollars was expended, and which is one of the best structures of the kind in the state. In addition, he has put up many ranch houses and farm buildings. In spite of the hard times, such has been his care in designing and his judgment in estimating, that his operations have met with financial success.
In 1897, Mr. Halterman married Miss Eva Fulwider, of In- diana, by whom he has had two children, Hazel and Olive. Mr. Halterman is a Mason, and belongs to the Eastern Star, of which Mrs, Halterman is also an active member.
ANDREW JACKSON CLARK
The son and namesake of one of Colusa County's earliest pio- neers, who settled in the southern part of the county in the early fifties, Andrew Jackson Clark is a native of Colusa County and can rightfully claim a share in its development. His father, An- drew Jackson Clark, who settled in the southern part of the county in the early fifties, was born in Ohio. After locating here, he be- came a successful farmer and quite an extensive landowner. He died in the month of January, 1866, when his namesake was two and one half years old. The mother, Martha Grimes, was born in Aberdeen, Brown County, Ohio, the daughter of Henry and Susan Ann (Grant) Grimes, natives of Pennsylvania. Her father, who was a tanner, removed from Aberdeen, Ohio, to Maysville, Ky., and still later to St. Albans, W. Va., where he operated a large tannery. His son, Cleaton Grimes, who was a pioneer of Califor- nia, had returned home for a visit; and in 1860 the family came via Panama to Grimes, Colusa County, where the parents resided until their death. Susan Ann (Grant) Grimes was the favorite
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aunt of General U. S. Grant, she and General Grant's father, Jesse R. Grant, being brother and sister. Martha Grimes came to California, as stated, via Panama in 1860. She was first married to A. J. Clark; and some years after his death, she married Hay- den Strother, a native of Kentucky, who was reared in Missouri. In 1849, he crossed the plains to California in the same train with Dr. Hugh Glenn. Mr. and Mrs. Strother followed farming near Grimes until his health failed, when they retired to Berkeley; and there he died in 1909. His widow still makes her home there. An- drew Jackson was her second child by Mr. Clark, the others being Mrs. C. W. Lovelace, of Maxwell, and L. W. Clark, who resides in Petaluma, operating a large hatchery there. By her second hus- band she had two children: H. Preston Strother, who resides with her in Berkeley, and one child who died in infancy.
Andrew Jackson Clark was born near Grimes, July 13, 1863, and grew up on the home farm, attending the public schools, and later Pierce Christian College for a term of two years. On finish- ing his education he spent one year in the mines and one year in Sonoma County, after which time he returned to Colusa County, where he has been farming successfully ever since. Mr. Clark spe- cializes in growing grain and alfalfa, and also raises hogs and operates a dairy. He rents the Strother estate, which still re- mains undistributed. This estate comprises three hundred forty- three acres, situated two miles north of Grimes. Mr. Clark has a practical knowledge of the business he is engaged in, gained while he was growing to manhood on this same ranch. To this knowl- edge he has added by a thorough study of new conditions and methods from year to year, and now ranks as one of the progres- sive and successful agriculturists in the county. In addition to operating the large acreage above mentioned, he owns and oper- ates forty-two acres of land near Grant Island, originally a part of the River Garden Farms.
The marriage of Mr. Clark, which united him with Miss Ber- tha E. Howe of Santa Cruz, took place in San Francisco, Novem- ber 20, 1909. Two children have been born to them: Florence Elizabeth, and Andrew Jackson, Jr. Mrs. Clark was born in Santa Cruz, the daughter of Ira and Mary A. (Hoag) Howe, na- tives of New York State. They came to California, where Mr. Ilowe was a contractor and builder. He died in Kelseyville, No- vember 27, 1880. The mother spent her last years with Mrs. Clark, and died on March 5, 1916. Mrs. Clark was engaged for some years in the millinery business with her sisters.
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GEORGE LAMBERT ABEL
A man who has made his influence felt in the community where he has resided for many years is George Lambert Abel, of Colusa County. He was born in Fond du Lac, Wis., on September 17, 1863, and is a son of John F. Abel, of whom mention is made on another page of this volume. George L. Abel was brought to California by his parents, who came via the Isthmus of Panama in 1867, when he was only four years of age. He was reared in Colusa County and attended the public schools, after which he spent one year in Pierce Christian College, at College City. From a lad he made himself useful on the home ranch, and after his school days were over he threw his whole energy into the farm work, assisting his father and other members of the family to develop and cultivate a large acreage, and aiding materially in making the ranch a successful enterprise. He remained with his father until he was thirty-two years old, when he married and began for himself.
In 1896, Mr. Abel leased his present farm from his father; and he has been engaged in a successful ranching enterprise ever since. Nine hundred seventy acres of his land is located on the Colusa plains; and eleven hundred acres, in Antelope Valley. The former ranch is devoted to the raising of grain, and the latter to the raising of stock. He has sunk a well and installed a pump- ing plant, and by this means is enabled to raise fine crops of alfalfa. He raises about four hundred fifty acres of grain each year, using a forty-five horse power caterpillar engine to put in the crops, and employing other modern implements in his ranch- ing operations.
Mr. Abel was united in marriage on March 25. 1896, with Miss Annie A. Henneke, a native of California, born in San Francisco. She is the daughter of William G. Henneke, a snc- cessful rancher in his young days, and a musician. In this latter capacity, Mr. Henneke served in the Civil War. He played at the inauguration of President Lincoln, and also at the funeral of the martyred President. He traveled over many parts of the United States, eventually becoming a settler in California. For a time he was engaged in ranching in Yolo County, and afterwards in Indian Valley, where he improved a place and set out an orchard of pears that has since become a fine and profitable bear- ing orchard. He is now living retired in the town of Williams. Mr. and Mrs. Abel have had seven children: Allen R., who was educated at the Oakland Polytechnic, and is now assisting his
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