USA > Iowa > Audubon County > History of Audubon county, Iowa; its people, industries, and institutions > Part 69
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James A. Campbell is a man who thoroughly understands the science of farming. He especially understands the value of mixed farming and the value of raising thoroughbred stock. In fact, he is an extensive breeder of thoroughbred Shorthorn cattle. Moreover, he is not only a good farmer, but is a man whose influence in the community is always counted on the side of the very best things. James A. Campbell has a large number of friends in Lincoln township and Audubon county, men who know and appreciate him for his real worth.
JOHN R. HEIKEN.
In the fall of 1871 there might have been seen moving slowly across the prairie from Illinois to Iowa, the old-fashioned "prairie schooners," in which so many families came to this state about that time. The journey from Illinois to Iowa overland, via the "prairie schooner," required about three weeks in those days. In these present days, of course, a trip could be made in a single night, but railroads were not so numerous then as they are now. In one of the typical vehicles which crossed the prairie in the fall of 1871 was the family of Peter and Marie Hillers Heiken, both of whom had come to America from Germany, where the former was a laborer. With this family was a son, then about eighteen years old, John R. Heiken, who has become in recent years one of the largest landowners in Audubon county. The Heikens, after coming to America in 1867, had located first in Whiteside county, Illinois, and had again, after renting land for four years in Whiteside county, packed up their belongings and proceeded west-
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ward. Arriving in Audubon county late in the fall of 1871, the Heiken family settled in section 29 of Oakfield township, where Peter Heiken purchased eighty acres of land and where he engaged in general farming. From year to year he increased the acreage of this farm until, in 1899, when he retired and moved to Atlantic, Iowa, he owned three hundred and twenty acres. He died in January, 1902, leaving a widow, who is still living at Atlantic.
Peter and Marie Heiken had eleven children, nine of whom are now living : John R., the subject of this sketch; Maggie, Ida, Roy, Jennie, Anna, Ine, Harry and Peter.
John R. Heiken was thirteen years old when he was brought to Amer- ica by his parents and had, therefore, attended school in his native land, having been born November 27, 1854, in Oldenburg, Germany. His edu- cation was completed in Illinois and, after leaving school, he worked for a time with a construction gang on the Rock Island railroad. After being engaged in railroad work for two years, he started farming with his father, with whom he remained until he was twenty-six years old. At that time, he rented one hundred and twenty acres of land and in 1884, when he was thirty years old, purchased one hundred and twenty acres, which became the nucleus of his great fortune in real estate. The fourteen hundred acres of land which he owns in Audubon county he now rents and, aside from the supervisory interest he takes in the cultivation of this land, he devotes prac- tically all of his time to several business enterprises in which he is inter- ested, one of which is the elevator at Gates, Iowa. He is also interested at several places in the implement business.
On February 22, 1882, Mr. Heiken was married to Bertha Knopp, the daughter of Theodore and Annie Knopp. Mr. and Mrs. Heiken have five children living: Louise married George Hansen and has four children, Florence, Merrill, Leroy and Imo; Horace married Anna Knopp; John and Grover are at home and Lillian is a senior in the College of Liberal Arts at Highland Park College, Des Moines, Iowa.
Religiously, Mr. and Mrs. Heiken and family are members of the Ger- man Lutheran church. Mr. Heiken is a Democrat in politics and has always been interested in educational affairs and served thirteen years as a mem- ber of the school board in Oakfield township. At present he is a director of a lumber yard and of three different banks.
John R. Heiken deserves great credit for his progress as a farmer in this, his adopted, country. He has assisted in the great work of improving the soil and in increasing its production of grains and live stock. He has
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assisted in many ways to promote the development of the county and today is regarded as one of its leading citizens and business men, a man of remark- able intuition, having been the founder of the town of Gates. Mr. Heiken has always been highly respected and enjoys today confidence and esteem of the people of Oakfield township.
PERRY L. CARTER.
Perry L. Carter, who owned a splendid farm of four hundred and eighty acres in Melville township, but who is now living retired in Audubon, Iowa, was born on January 5, 1858, in Venango county, Pennsylvania. He is the son of Henry and Mary Ann (Watts) Carter. Henry Carter, a farmer by occupation, was reared and remained in Pennsylvania all his life. He was the father of twelve children, only three of whom, Robert M., Hannah M. and Perry L., are now living. Both Henry and Mary Ann (Watts) Carter are now deceased.
Perry L. Carter received his education in the public schools of Venango county, Pennsylvania, and after leaving school farmed with his father until he was twenty-three years of age. He then came west and located in Kansas, where he lived for a short time, and afterwards he came to Iowa and located in Audubon county. In 1880 he settled in Greeley township, where he worked on a farm. Later, he purchased eighty acres of land at seven dollars an acre, improving the place in various ways and especially by breaking the tough sod. Three years later he purchased eighty acres more and engaged in general farming in that township until 1900, when he purchased a half section and farmed for one year. In 1901 he removed to Melville township, where he purchased four hundred and eighty acres of land. Here he farmed until 1907, when he retired and moved to Audubon.
Mr. Carter was married on December 25, 1881, to Nannie K. Ness, daughter of Martin and Hannah K. Ness, and to this happy union six children were born: Clifton L. married Myrtle Pickens and they have two children, Durward B. and Bernard L .; Girt L. married Sadie McCoy; Edgar G. married Jessie Thompson, and they have two children, Margaret Evelyn and Charles Perry ; Lola H. married Charles Owen, and they have two children, Virgil and William Donald; Zenia Mae married Robert Twist and they have three children, Merle Emma, Helen Lucile and Veda Mae : Henry M. Mrs. Perry L. Carter died on February 7, 1908, and some time after
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her death Mr. Carter married Carrie D. Gardner, daughter of Jotham and Lydia F. (Appleton) Gardner. No children have been born to this second marriage.
Politically, Mr. Carter is a Republican. He has always been inter- ested in the educational affairs of Audubon county and has served as a school director in this county. Mr. Carter has been a successful farmer, an industrious worker and a good manager. He is well informed on public questions and takes an active interest in all matters that have any relation to the public welfare. He can always be found in the front ranks of those who are leading worthy public enterprises and his support can always be depended upon. He is a man of warm and sympathetic impulses, a good neighbor and a good citizen.
MATT CHRISTENSEN.
Matt Christensen, although of Danish parentage, is one of Uncle Sam's true children and with whom he is well pleased, as there is no vocation in which he is more interested, or stands ready to give his valuable advice and assistance to, than that of agriculture. No man need suffer for the want of proper instruction in conducting his farm along the most approved and up- to-date lines. All he has to do is to spend a few moments of his time, and a two-cent postage stamp, and Uncle Sam does the rest. If the necessary information is not at hand, he sees to it that same be secured and forwarded to his child of the soil, with the least possible delay.
Matt Christensen, general farmer and stockman, of Lincoln township, Audubon county, was born on November 29, 1878, in Shelby county, Iowa. He is a son of Christian Christensen and Marie Peterson, his wife. In his early youth, he attended the public schools of Shelby county, quitting school at the age of fourteen years. He farmed with his father until the age of twenty-two, when he rented a farm in Shelby county and cultivated it for two years. Giving this up, he returned to his father's farm, where he has been ever since. He has given his special attention to the raising of cattle and hogs, and his crops, principally corn and small grain, have been fed to the stock on the place. He is a member of the Danish Lutheran church, of Shelby county, and in politics he is a Republican.
The parents of the subject were born in Denmark, and married in Davenport, Iowa. His father lived on a farm of four hundred and forty
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acres in Shelby county all his life, up to 1914, when he retired and moved to Kimballton, Iowa. They were the parents of nine children, Christ, Nels, Anna, Matt, Johannes, Nels, Madia, Martha and Mary.
In 1901 Matt Christensen was united in marriage with Anna Petersen, daughter of Christ Petersen, of Shelby county, Iowa, by whom he has had four children, Matie, Christena, Laura and Mabel, the three eldest of whom are attending the county school.
HANS HANSEN.
Hans Hansen, one of the younger farmers and stock raisers of Douglas township, Audubon county, Iowa, and a native of Denmark, was born on October 7, 1879, the son of Jens C. and Nyson Hansen, also natives of Den- mark. The father was a dealer in stock in the old country, who came to this country in 1880, and after landing in New York city, proceeded to Atlantic, Iowa, where he worked in a brickyard for a time. After living here for some time he purchased forty acres of land near Elkhorn, Iowa, and within the next few years, bought and sold several farms in this neighborhood. After buying and selling forty and eighty acres near Elkhorn, he rented two hundred and eighty acres in Hamlin township, Audubon county, which he farmed for a few years and then purchased one hundred and sixty acres in Douglas township, and was living on the latter farm at the time of his retire- ment from active farm life and his removal to Audubon. He and his wife were the parents of twelve children.
Hans Hansen received his education in the public schools of Audubon county, and also attended school one year in Elkhorn, after which he began working for his father on the farm, and here he remained until twenty-one years of age, when he rented a farm southwest of Audubon, consisting of two hundred and eighty acres and started out in life for himself. After living here for two years he purchased a farm of eighty-six acres in Guthrie county, Iowa, which he owned for one and one-half years. After disposing of the farm in Guthrie county, he bought the farm comprising one hundred and twenty acres where he now lives, for which he paid fifty-two dollars an acre. In 1913 he built a thoroughly modern house equipped with waterworks and a lighting system, which is available in every part of the house and which cost about five thousand dollars. In 1914 he built a new barn at a cost of about fifteen hundred dollars. All of the grain raised on the farm is fed to live
HOME OF HANS HANSEN
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stock. Ordinarily, Mr. Hansen sells about one hundred head of hogs every year, and is very successful in the breeding and handling of live stock.
In 1901, Hans Hansen was married to Anna Hansen, the daughter of Peter Hansen, of Brayton, Iowa, and to this union have been born four chil- dren, Maggie, Agnes, Petrea and Rose, all of whom are living at home with their parents, and all of whom attend school.
Mr. and Mrs. Hansen are members of the Danish Lutheran church at Audubon, and are actively interested in the affairs of this denomination. Mr. Hansen is identified with the Republican party, but on account of his extensive agricultural interests in the county, he has taken no considerable part in the political life of his township and county, but has left the manage- ment of political situations to others. As a citizen of this great state, he has made the most of his opportunities, and is entitled to exceptional credit for his part in the agricultural development of Audubon county. Mr. Hansen is well known in the neighborhood where he lives and has a host of friends in the county.
L. PETER NELSON.
Among the thousands of foreign-born citizens of this country, who have found in many instances both fame and fortune and who, in practically every instance, have found here what they would have been unable to acquire in their native lands-a comfortable home and opportunities for their chil- dren-it is not unusual to find that elder sons have come first and that they have been followed with in a few years by their parents. Such an instance is to be found in the case of the Nelson family. L. Peter Nelson, now a retired farmer of Oakfield township, who, until a year or two ago, was one of the largest farmers in Audubon county, was the first member of his fam- ily to come to America. Finding this country all that he had hoped and expected it to be, he was followed in eight years by his parents, who also made this their home during their declining years.
L. Peter Nelson, of Oakfield township, was born on August 14, 1844, in Denmark and is the son of Hans and Christina (Larsen) Nelson, both natives of Denmark. The former, a wagonmaker by trade, followed that occupation until he came to America in 1872, when he became a farmer, first in Cass county, Iowa. After having purchased forty acres of land in Cass county, he subsequently added forty acres more and engaged in general farming in Cass and Audubon counties for five years. Before
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coming to America, he had served his time in the Danish army. Hans and Christena Nelson had six children: Catherine, Mary, Juliane, L. Peter, Nels C. and Charles F. Although L. Peter Nelson came to America in 1864, it was six years before he permanently established himself in the Hawkeye state. Before coming to this country, he had received a good education in the common schools of his native land and had been a wagon- maker, working with his father. After coming to this country, he located temporarily in Michigan, where he worked in the pineries in the winter and at carpentry in the summer. After being in Michigan two years, he went on to Minnesota and lived in Minnesota and Wisconsin for three years, or until 1870, when he moved to Cass county and purchased forty acres of land. There he farmed for six years and in 1878 he moved to Audubon county and purchased eighty acres of land, the farm upon which he is now living. Year by year his profits grew and his savings increased, and as his savings accumulated, he bought more and more land until, when he divided his land among his children, on November 26, 1914, he owned altogether eight hundred acres in Audubon and Cass counties.
Thanksgiving day of 1914 was a joyous occasion for the Nelson fam- ily, for, on that day, the loving and generous father of the Nelson children divided his eight hundred acres of land among the children, giving each child eighty acres. Mr. Nelson was married on November 12, 1866, two years after coming to America, to Mary Petersen, the daughter of Peter Petersen. To them have been born ten children: Gilbert P., who married Anna Nelson; John C., who married Rosa Nelson; Julius A., who married Elizabeth Brown; Edward M., who married Mae Jonson; Ludvig R., who married Elsie Madison; Alfred A., who married Bessie Brown; Alma C., who married Harry Traum; Christina, who became the wife of Evans Marquesen; Rosa and Martha, who are unmarried. The mother of these children died on January 14, 1908.
During his lifetime, Mr. Nelson has been a member of the Danish Lutheran church and has been identified with the Republican party, although he has never been especially active in its councils. Few men show a more commendable spirit of generosity than L. Peter Nelson, who, by his gift to his children, has thoroughly proved his keen and abiding interest in their welfare. Mr. Nelson divided 1 : property with the spirit of the father who wants to see his children enjc while he still lives, the things which, to some extent, they assisted him i accumulating. Very few fathers in Oakfield township arc more dearly loved today than the venerable L. Peter Nelson.
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HERMAN ULLERICH.
In the study of the history and habits of foreigners, who have come to America to gain their fortunes, no characteristic is so strongly presented to our view as that of restlessness. In fact, it was this very characteristic that prompted Columbus to undertake his hazardous voyage of exploration. It was in the make-up of our colonial and Revolutionary ancestors, very few of whom remained where they first settled on arrival, and the same spirit is as strong today in their descendants as it was in them. It is present in business, as well as the home, and so strong is its influence that practically few American families remain banded together after the age of maturity has been reached. This spirit is perhaps better known as "progression," masquerading under another name.
Herman Ullerich, general farmer and stockman of Lincoln township, was born on August 22, 1871. He is a son of George and Barbara (Lauer) Ullerich. His early education was secured in the schools of Lincoln town- ship, after which he attended school for one year at Milwaukee, quitting at the age of sixteeen, when he went to work for his father, with whom he remained until twenty-seven years old. He was married on November 25, 1897, to Nancy Ketelsen, daughter of Henry Ketelsen, and lived in Crawford county one year after his marriage, going from there to Man- ning, where he bought a farm of eighty acres, which he sold two years later and bought his present home place of two hundred and forty acres in section 27. He rented this place out and moved to Charter Oak, where he engaged in business.
After living here a year and a half, he went back to Manning and bought eighty acres more, on which he lived a year and then moved onto his farm in Audubon county, where he still resides and now is the owner of four hundred acres of land and is also a stockholder in the bank.
All the grain and feed for the stock is grown on the farm. He has spent between four thousand and five thousand dollars in improvements on the place and raises and feeds cattle and hogs. Both Mr. and Mrs. Ullerich are members of the German Lutheran church, while, in politics, Mr. Ullerich is a Republican. To these parents were orn the following children : Clara, Walter, Herbert, Julius, Linn, Victor, Erwin, Rose and Hugo, who died. The living children are all still at ho 11.
The parents of the subject, George and Barbara Ullerich, were both born in Germany, where they continued to reside for sixteen years after they were married. From there they came direct to Audubon county, Iowa,
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and took up a homestead of one hundred and sixty acres, paying nine dollars an acre. They came as far as Iowa City on the railroad, and there bought a team and wagon, with which they drove the balance of the way.
In the early years they had many hardships to endure, living in a sod house. Carroll, Westside, Exira and Atlantic were their nearest trading points and they had to travel thirty to thirty-five miles over the prairie with no house in sight for miles, crossing creeks where there were no bridges, and sometimes getting lost in the snow storms, so it often took three to four days before they returned. They also had to fight prairie fires to pro- tect their property.
They had eight children, namely: Lottie, who lives in Missouri; George, deceased; Anna, who lives in Crawford county, Iowa; Barbara, deceased; Carrie, who lives in Crawford county: Mary, who lives in Charter Oak; Christ, who also lives at Charter Oak, and Herman.
ALFRED WYMAN HARVEY.
Young men who begin life with no financial assistance are at a great disadvantage when their life and works are contrasted with those more fa- vored by circumstances. Yet it is a mark of especial credit and distinction when a young man who at a tender age, is thrown upon his own resources, and after living about among strangers, finds his place in the world and establishes for himself a pleasant and profitable business. Such young men, perhaps, deserve more credit for their accomplishments than any other class, and Alfred Wyman Harvey, a well-known real estate and insurance dealer, undoubtedly belongs to that class of young men who succeed in spite of the most discouraging obstacles.
Mr. Harvey was born on August 14, 1878, in Morgan county, Indiana, near Mooresville, the son of Alfred and Mary Ellen (Harrison) Harvey, who were natives of Morgan county, Indiana, and South Carolina, respect- ively. Mr. Harvey's grandfather on his paternal side was William Harvey, a native of England. His father, Alfred Harvey, was the first telegraph operator at Martinsville, Indiana.
In the spring of 1881 the family came west to Exira, Audubon county, Iowa, where the parents lived until their deaths, the father dying in 1885 and the mother in 1895. They had eight children, five of whom are living; Mrs. Nettie Cochran, of near Anita, Iowa; Arthur H., of Duluth, Minnesota;
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Mrs. Amy B. Elliott, of Los Angeles, California; Mrs. Nellie C. Jensen, of Waterloo, and Alfred Wyman, the subject of this sketch.
When Alfred Wyman Harvey was ten years old he was compelled to live among strangers, working for his board in the winter and attending school until sixteen years old, in the meantime completing the eighth grade of the common schools. In the summer he worked for what wages he was able to command. During the winter he was seventeen years old, he started in the old Stuart Bank as a general man-of-all-work, and remained in the bank continuously until the summer of 1912, a period of seventeen years, during which he held all of the offices from janitor up to and including the vice-presidency of the bank. Along with banking, he had engaged in the insurance business as early as 1896, and after leaving the bank he engaged altogether in the real estate and insurance business. About the same time he purchased a controlling interest in the Exira Drug Company, and this business has proved very profitable.
On August 15, 1897, Alfred Wyman Harvey was married to Alice Viola Williams, the daughter of Thomas Williams, a former merchant of Exira. Two children were born to this marriage, Alfred Thomas and Beatrice, the former of whom was born October 29, 1898, and the latter, on October 3, 1899. Both are now attending school at Hampton, Iowa. On October 3, 1904, Mr. Harvey was married to Genevieve Snyder, who was born on January II, 1882, in Marshall, Michigan, and who is the daughter of John and Julia H. (Clark) Snyder, natives of Pennsylvania and New York, respectively. The parents, who never came farther west than the state of Michigan, died when Mrs. Harvey was thirteen years old, and after this Mrs. Harvey and her sister Rosella, now the wife of Maurice Jensen, came west to Audubon county, where Mr. and Mrs. W. L. Curd, uncle and aunt, live. Here Mrs. Harvey lived until she was married. She has one brother and four sisters living; Horace M. Snyder lives at Augustus, Georgia; Mrs. Frank P. Shaw lives at San Diego, California ; Mrs. Blanche Pryor lives at Albion, Michigan; Mrs. T. J. Jones lives at Glenwood, Iowa, and Rosella is the wife of Maurice Jensen.
To Alfred W. and Genevieve Harvey have been born two children, Ruth Genevieve and Ethel Evelyn, the former born on December 19, 1905, and the latter, on November 18, 1907.
Fraternally, Mr. Harvey is a member of the blue lodge of Masons at Exira, the chapter and commandery at Audubon, and the Shrine at Des Moines. He is also a member of the Eastern Star at Exira, the Knights of Pythias, the Pythian Sisters, the Knights of the Maccabees, the American
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Nobles, at Exira, and the Elks at Atlantic. For many years he has been township clerk and for four years he has served as town treasurer. He is a member of the Audubon County Fair Association and, as a fancier of fine horses, is the owner of the only team of Arabian horses in Audubon county. Alfred W. Harvey is extremely popular in business, professional and social circles in Audubon county. His long residence here as an enterprising and progressive-spirited young business man has won for him a host of friends, not only in this, but in adjoining counties, where he is quite as well known. In no sense of the word is he narrow minded or bigoted, but liberal in his views, tolerant in his general attitude and cordial in his relations with his fellows.
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