USA > Iowa > Boone County > History of Boone County, Iowa, Volume II > Part 26
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S. C. Barrett was reared and educated in Boone county, graduating from the Boone high school under Principal N. E. Goldthwaite. He was married in 1877 and subsequently located on a farin in Worth township but four years later purchased land in Colfax township, near Luther, where he remained for some time. In 1902 he acquired title to a farm which he still owns and which is easily worth two hundred to two hundred and twenty-five dollars an acre. He brought his fields to a high state of productivity and erected a number of substantial buildings, improving his property in many ways, so that it is now one of the most valuable in that neighborhood. Land prices now being about two hundred dollars per acre, it is interesting to note that Mr. Barrett acquired his first acreage at the rate of about fourteen dollars per acre.
In 1877 S. C. Barrett married Miss Mary E. Boyd, who was born April 24, 1857, in Clinton county, Iowa, near Lyons, and is a daughter of James and Mary (Sloan) Boyd, who removed to Boone county in 1869, locating in Colfax town- ship, where the father purchased one thousand acres of land, paying between seven and ten dollars per acre. This is now worth two hundred and fifty dollars per acre, the extraordinary advance in price being evidence of the progress which
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has been made in this part of the state. Byron Boyd, a brother of Mrs. Barrett, now lives in the old Boyd home, and two other brothers, George and John, also reside in Colfax township. Marion Boyd, another member of the family, died on the home farm, leaving a widow.
S. C. Barrett is a republican and has always been loyal to the principles of his party. He served as constable in Colfax township in 1892 and 1893 and for about ten years was a justice of the peace in Boone county, part of the time in Colfax township and part in Boone. Fraternally he is a charter member of Boone Lodge. No. 492, I. O. O. F., Mrs. Barrett belonging to the Rebekah degree. Both have contributed to the advancement of the city and county, being ranked among the most esteemed and respected residents of Boone, where they have many friends.
CHRIS E. CHRISTENSEN.
Chris E. Christensen, who owns a valuable farm of ninety-four acres on sec- tion 12, Beaver township, is a native of Denmark, that little kingdom of north- ern Europe which is so justly famous for its farm achievements, and it seems that he has brought with him a goodly amount of that agricultural talent which is conceded to be a gift of his race. He was born in March. 1878, and is a son of Enevold and Carrie (Jensen) Christensen, Danish people. The father followed agriculture in his native land and there farmed until he passed away in 1885. The mother died in 1890.
Chris E. Christensen enjoyed the educational advantages provided in his native land and there for a time worked as bookkeeper for a creamery company. He held this position in Denmark for three years, learning valuable business methods and becoming acquainted with the industry which is the greatest of that country. In 1904 Mr. Christensen emigrated to America and located in Wiscon- sin, there remaining for three months. He then went to Winnebago county, Iowa, for a short time and subsequently to Missouri, where for five months he hired out as a farm hand. At the end of that time he made his entrance into Boone county, continuing in the same occupation for six months. Being in- dustrious and thrifty, he had by that time acquired the means which enabled him to rent a farm in Marcy township which he operated for six years. He then bought ninety-four acres on section 12, Beaver township, and he has improved this tract to such an extent that it is now considered one of the most valuable properties of his district. Mr. Christensen is thoroughly imbued with modern ideas regarding farming and is ever ready to adopt new methods in order to increase the yield of his acres and to raise the standard of his output.
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On March 1, 1911, Chris E. Christensen married Ellen G. Rockwell, daughter of James L. and Mary E. (Tattersall) Rockwell, natives of New York. The father followed the blacksmith's trade and worked in Minnesota until the Civil war broke out, when he enlisted for one year's service with a Minnesota regi- ment. He was sent home at the end of that time with an honorable discharge which was given him on account of disability. He now makes his home with his children. His wife died in June, 1880.
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Mr. and Mrs. Christensen have a son, Paul R., two years of age. Mr. Christensen is a stockholder in the Independent Harvester Company of Plano, Illinois, and always a leader in modern agricultural thought. He has done much toward stimulating interest in his section and has introduced standards which have been adopted by others. He is a stock-raiser, giving particular atten- tion to cattle, and feeds about one car load a year. He gives his allegiance to the Methodist church and enjoys the high esteem of the community. Mr. Christ- ensen is a patriotic and public-spirited man, although he is not politically active. He has thoroughly conformed himself to American ideas and combines the thorough knowledge which he acquired in his native country with the aggressive spirit of the successful American business man.
BENJAMIN WILLIAMS.
One of the earliest pioneers of Douglas township and one to whose memory high honor is still paid by all who knew him was Benjamin Williams, who located at Elk Rapids in the spring of 1847. He was a frontiersman of the sturdy type who unflinchingly took upon his shoulders the hardest work and who carried to success all undertakings which he began. He was one of the trail blazers for the civilization that came in his wake and that made Iowa the prosperous state which it is today- the civilization that brought comfort. educa- tion and untold opportunities to those who came after the pioneer era. As regards the early history of Boone county, a niche of honor has to be con- ceded to Benjamin Williams.
Mr. Williams was born in Preble county, Ohio, in 1817 and while yet a small boy moved overland with his parents to Putnam county, Indiana. which remained his home until his early manhood. There he married Elsa Ann Strong, the young couple afterward removing to Illinois. In the fall of 1846 he came by the overland route to Iowa and in the spring of 1847 located at Elk Rapids, Douglas township. His wife died not long afterward, having borne him six children : Mrs. Sarah Risler, deceased; John, deceased ; Spencer, a Union sol- dier who died during the great conflict between the North and the South ; Mar- garet, of Colorado; Henry, deceased; and Isaac, also residing in Colorado. Subsequently Mr. Williams returned to Indiana, where he married America McIntosh, who died after four years of wedded life, at Elk Rapids, Iowa, leav- ing three children: Mrs. Mary Westbrook, of Terre Haute, Indiana ; Joseph, deceased ; and George, of Colorado. On September 13, 1857, Mr. Williams con- tracted another union, marrying in Worth township, Boone county, Mrs. Eliza- beth Goodrich, who was born in Putnam county, Indiana, August 10, 1832. There she grew to womanhood. Her first husband was Perry Goodrich, who was born in Vigo county, Indiana, and died near Bowling Green, that state, at the early age of thirty-three years. Mr. and Mrs. Goodrich had three children. Daniel B. resides in Terre Haute, Indiana. Mrs. Julia Harvey, born in Putnam county, Indiana, March 20, 1853, died in Boone, Iowa, August 22, 1912. In 1868 she married William M. Harvey, by whom she had four children: Nellie E. Harvey, of Boone, one of the most successful teachers of this county : Wil-
MR. AND MRS. BENJAMIN WILLIAMS
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liam H. Harvey, of Des Moines; Ernest Harvey, who died March 8, 1897; and Mrs. Pearl McNeil, of Boone, Iowa. Mary, the youngest child of Mr. and Mrs. Goodrich, died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Williams had ten children, of whom five died quite young. The other five were: Hannah, who passed away at the age of fourteen ; Squire B., born May 13, 1860, who died at Madrid, April 14, 1912; W. H., who was born March 7, 1863, and is a successful live-stock buyer in Madrid; Perry O., of Des Moines ; and Mrs. Alice A. Wells, who was born December 1, 1866, and died in Madrid, July 19, 1897. She married Charles E. Wells, October 17, 1884. Mr. and Mrs. Wells had three sons: Emory, born in February, 1886, who was educated in the Madrid public schools and then served four years in the United States navy, now residing at Woodward, Iowa; Vaughn H., born March 4, 1889, of Woodward; and Gail, born June 25, 1895, who is attending school at Washington, D. C. For many years these children received the loving care of their grandmother, Mrs. Benjamin Williams, and being particularly near her heart, it is but fitting and proper that their names should be embodied in this review.
When Mr. Williams came to lowa no railroads traversed the prairies. Des Moines was a hamlet of log huts, and Boone county was a wilderness. No mill, no store, no shop, no church, no schoolhouse could be found within a hun- dred miles. The nearest trading points were lowa City and Keokuk. From these facts it is not difficult to deduce what obstacles confronted the young pioneer from Indiana. That he conquered and that he won a livelihood and competence is to be ascribed to his perseverance, his industry and his sturdiness of character. As the years rolled by his material resources increased, and his thriftiness bore fruit. Moreover, he established himself in the esteem and respect of his fellow citizens, who looked up to him in admiration and turned to him for advice and counsel. Although he was a forceful man, he was tender- hearted and ever ready to extend a helping hand to those who were struggling with adverse circumstances or who had fallen by the wayside. Mr. Williams was a democrat and loyal to his political profession. He was a member of the Baptist church, to which Mrs. Williams also gives her adherence. He stood high in his church and his community and by his honorable conduet reflected honor upon his section. The betterment of individual and community was nearest his heart, and every act he undertook he considered conscientiously, judging it from the standpoint in which it would be seen by his contemporaries. He was successful and secured a competency because he put his heart in his work and because he followed honorable methods. His death was a severe hlow not only to his immediate family but to all who knew him, and his memory is kept alive because of the influence which his strong personality exerted upon the growth of his part of the state. Gathered to his fathers in the flesh, his spirit lives in the progressive works of the present generation, the accomplish- ment of which was made possible by his pioneer labors.
Mrs. Williams is passing her declining years in a handsome home in Madrid. "Aunt Betty," as she is familiarly called, is a favorite with all and a welcome visitor to all the homes of the community. She has the brave spirit of her famous ancestor, Daniel Boone, her maiden name being Boone and she being a direct descendant of the great pioneer, and this courage has enabled her to worthily perform the duties that have fallen to her lot in a long life filled with
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helpful activity. The respect and tenderness shown her by friends and relatives are hers by right, and it can be truthfully said that by her sunny disposition she has dispelled more gathering clouds than any other individual in the community.
EMMET R. GONDER.
Emmet R. Gonder, engaged in general farming on section 19, Beaver town- ship, has charge of the old homestead of the Gonder family and also cultivates an adjoining forty acres which he owns. He is yet a young man and has already achieved success that many might well envy. He is busily employed in operating two hundred and ten acres of rich and productive land, and the results obtained are gratifying.
In May, 1881, in Illinois, occurred the birth of Emmet R. Gonder, his parents being William and Ellen Jane ( Shaw ) Gonder, who were natives of Ohio. The father came to Illinois at an early day and in connection with farming engaged in teaching school. His time was thus spent until 1884, when he removed to Boone county and purchased a tract of land in Beaver township, which he developed and improved, making his home thereon until 1912. He then retired from active farm life and removed to Grand Junction, where he and his wife now reside. He long occupied a creditable place in agricultural circles of this county and is today classed among the worthy and representative citizens of Grand Junction.
Emmet R. Gonder was about two years of age when his parents came to Iowa, and in consequence he attended the public schools of Boone county. Advanced educational opportunities were accorded him, however, and he spent some time as a student in the State College at Ames, Iowa, in the Des Moines College, Des Moines, and in the Capital City Commercial College of Des Moines. He then took up the profession of teaching, which he followed for three years, having charge of the commercial department of the Iowa Business College at Des Moines. He afterward accepted a position with the Goldman-Cobacker Company, clothing merchants, being in charge of the credit department for three years. Because of failing health he returned to the farm, of which he took charge, and he has since conducted and operated it in addition to forty acres of his own, which adjoins this place, on section 19, Beaver township. He is energetic, industrious, alert and enterprising and carries forward to successful completion whatever he undertakes. The farm is well improved, and in addi- tion to cultivating the fields he makes a specialty of the raising of pure-blooded Duroc Jersey hogs. He is also a stockholder in the Beaver Cooperative Com- pany of Beaver, Iowa, and is interested in a threshing outfit. The farm which he controls comprises two hundred and ten acres, and he is leading a busy, useful and active life.
On the 30th of December, 1911, Mr. Gonder was married to Miss Josephine A. Treloar, a daughter of Joseph and Margaret ( Kendall) Treloar, the former a native of Wisconsin and the latter of Des Moines. The father was a Baptist minister and at an early day in the development of Boone county took up his
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abode within its borders and here engaged in preaching for three years. He is now living in Houston, Texas, and is still actively engaged in the work of the ministry. Mr. and Mrs. Gonder have one child, Mildred Alice, who is a year old. The parents hold membership in the Baptist church, and Mr. Gonder gives his political allegiance to the progressive party. He is serving for the second year as township clerk, but has never been ambitious in the line of office holding, preferring to concentrate his energies upon his business affairs, which, capably managed, have brought to him a substantial measure of success.
GEORGE BRUNTON.
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The name of Brunton has long been a synonym for business activity and for individual honor in Boone. George Brunton was born in this city, August 7, 1882, a son of Robert D. and Mary ( Marshall) Brunton, of whom mention is made on another page of this volume. Spending his youthful days under the parental roof, the son attended the public and high schools and in 1899 made his initial step in the business world in connection with journalism. He secured a position as reporter on the Daily News, which paper afterward purchased the Evening Republican. The two were consolidated under the name of the News Republican, which has been most liberally patronized. Entering the office in a humble capacity, George Brunton has steadily worked his way upward until he is now manager of the paper and handles practically all of the business connected with its management and publication as well as its advertising. In fact, he looks after the many divisions and details of the work and in its control displays sound judgment and enterprise. When first he entered the newspaper business he was the one especially recommended by the superintendent of schools as ready to occupy a business position, and he has proven worthy of the good words which were then spoken of him. He keeps in touch with the advancement that char- acterizes modern journalism, and during the state Grand Army encampment he alone reported the entire affair, his account thereof being creditable to himself as a journalist and highly pleasing to the blue clad veterans.
Mr. Brunton is well known socially and fraternally. He is a life member of the Eks lodge, a member of the Knights of Pythias, No. 324, and of the Poca- hontas Lodge, I. O. R. M. His name is also on the membership roll of the Coun- try Club, and he is serving as one of its directors. He is likewise a member of the board of directors of the Boone Commercial Association and is chairman of its publicity committee. Mr. Brunton is also a director of the Boone Chau- tauqua Association. His political allegiance is given to the republican party, and his religious faith is that of the Presbyterian church. He is also a member of the Methodist Brotherhood. His interest in moral progress is deep and his labors along that line effective. He has always been fond of clean sport and is inter- ested in the Young Men's Christian Association. He is known throughout Boone as the school boy's friend, always standing up for the unfortunate erring boys and assisting them to obtain an education and gain a start in the world. He believes that many youthful misdemeanors are due to environment or thoughtless- ness and that every boy should be given his chance to prove the character that is
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within him and that may be developed. The general opinion of Mr. Brunton can best be expressed in the words of a prominent business man of Boone, who said : "Whatever George says he will do he does and does exceedingly well." He is an expert with the kodak and has a most attractive collection of pictures taken on his travels. Not to know George Brunton in Boone is to argue oneself unknown. He is entirely free from ostentation or display, but it is not the distinctive and specific office of biography to give voice to a man's modest esti- mate of himself and his accomplishments, but rather to leave the perpetual record establishing his position by the consensus of public opinion and, judged in this way, George' Brunton may well be termed one of the foremost men of Boone and there are, indeed, few if any who are better liked by colleagues and contemporaries.
WILLIAM R. DYER.
William R. Dyer, who was identified with agricultural pursuits in Boone county throughout his active business career, has lived retired in Boone since 1901 and is widely recognized as an esteemed and representative citizen of the community. His birth occurred in Coles county, Illinois, on the 5th of December, 1844, his parents being William and Elizabeth (Cartwright) Dyer, both of whom were natives of Indiana. They came to Boone county, this state, in November, 1853, locating in Worth township, where the father devoted his attention to farming. He died in Boone on the 18th of December, 1890, and the community thus lost one of its substantial and respected citizens. His wife was called to her final rest in the year 1897. They became the parents of seven children, as follows: Andrew J., who is deceased; William R., of this review ; Sarah, who is the widow of J. H. Hoffman and resides in Boone: Reddick J., who has passed away ; Zimri P., living in Paskenta, California: John, of Worth township, Boone county ; and Clara E., who is the wife of John Jennings, of Oklahoma.
William R. Dyer was in his eighteenth year when he enlisted for service in the Civil war on the IIth of August, 1862, as a member of Company D, Thirty- second Iowa Volunteer Infantry, with which command he remained for three years and twenty-four days. He was mustered out at St. Louis, Missouri, and honorably discharged on the 4th of September, 1865, returning home with a most creditable military record. General agricultural pursuits claimed his atten- tion throughout his entire business career and he still owns a valuable tract of land comprising one hundred and sixty acres in this county. In 1901 he put aside the active work of the fields and purchased a residence in Boone, where he has since lived in honorable retirement, spending the evening of life in comfort and ease.
On the 18th of February, 1869, Mr. Dyer was united in marriage to Miss Almina Doran, a native of Ohio and a daughter of George and Lydia ( Steel- smith) Doran, who were born in Pennsylvania and came to Boone county, Iowa, in the '50s, locating on a farm in Des Moines township. Both have passed away. Their children were six in number, as follows: Sarah, who is deceased ; Mrs. Almina Dyer : George, who has also passed away ; Angeline,
MR. AND MRS. WILLIAM R. DYER
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who is the wife of George Bennett and resides in Oregon ; James, deceased ; and Julia, the wife of George Millard of Des Moines township, this county. George Doran was twice married, his first union being with Maria Cobb, by whom he had two children: Thomas B .; and Andrew J., a resident of Prescott, Arizona. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Dyer were born thirteen children, as follows: Arthur G., who is a resident of San Diego, California; Doran, who died in infancy: Zimri, who has passed away; Adelbert, living in Prescott, Arizona ; Alta, at home : Ruth, a high-school principal in Scranton, Iowa; Daisy, who is engaged in the profession of teaching: Paul, living in Colfax township, this county ; Arizona, the wife of Elmer Smalley, of Jackson township, Boone county ; George M., deceased; John, living in Colfax township, this county ; and Morton and Lydia, both of whom are deceased.
Mr. Dyer gives his political allegiance to the republican party and has been chosen to serve in all the township offices, his worth and ability being uniformly recognized. From 1880 until 1885 he did able service as a member of the board of supervisors. He belongs to the Grand Army of the Republic and was a member of the Soldiers Relief Commission. He is also a devoted member of the Methodist church. Mr. Dyer has many friends in the community where he has resided for more than six decades, and his excellent traits of character have gained for him the respect and regard of his fellowmen.
CHARLES G. LINDHOLM.
Charles G. Lindholm, gradually working his way upward in the business world, was for a time partner in the Schwene Hardware Company of Ogden, which he and C. E. Cook bought out April 1, 1914, the firm now being Cook & Lindholm. Theirs is a large establishment, occupying two floors and basement of one of the leading business blocks of the city. Boone county is indebted in considerable measure for its upbuilding and prosperity to its Swedish American citizens, to which class belongs Charles G. Lindholm, who was born in Sweden, June 28. 1868. He is a son of Louis and Sophia ( Erickson) Lindholm, both of whom were natives of Sweden. The father was a cabinet-maker by trade and in early life came to America. He did not tarry on the eastern coast, but made his way at once into the interior of the country. settling at Boone in the spring of 1869. There he worked at his trade for about a year, on the expiration of which period he removed to Ogden, where he resumed work as a cabinet-maker, being thus engaged throughout the remainder of his days. He passed away in 1878. His widow survives and yet makes her home in Ogden.
It was in the city where he is now located that Charles G. Lindholm was reared and educated, being indebted to its public-school system for the educa- tional opportunities which he enjoyed. When the period of his youth had passed he entered a hardware store and there learned the tinner's and plumber's trades. He worked in that way for about fifteen years and then purchased a third interest in the Schwene Hardware Company, his partners being H. E. Sanden and John F. Schwene. He and C. E. Cook now own the company. They have one of the large stores of this kind in the county, carrying an extensive stock which is dis-
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played on two floors and in the basement of a good business block built in Ogden. Here can be found everything in the line of tinware and shelf and heavy hardware and their sales reach a gratifying figure annually.
In June, 1898, Mr. Lindholm was united in marriage to Miss Susie Lindblom, a daughter of Louis and Martha (Seestrom) Lindblom, who were natives of Sweden and pioneer settlers of Boone county. The father was a hoisting engi- neer during most of his life in the coal mines and death called him in 1910, his widow surviving him until 1911. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Lindholm have been born the following children: Lester, Fern, Wendel, Carl, Thora, Rosalie and Ethel.
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