USA > Iowa > Howard County > History of Chickasaw and Howard counties, Iowa, Volume II > Part 33
USA > Iowa > Chickasaw County > History of Chickasaw and Howard counties, Iowa, Volume II > Part 33
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cative of the excellent care which he bestows upon the farm and he has made the property profitable to both himself and the owner. His career is an interesting one, for at the age of seventeen years he left home with the intention of seeing some- thing of the world before settling down in life. He visited every state of the Union and in 1902 enlisted in the regular army and while in the service was in China, Japan, the Philippines and the Hawaiian islands. His wide travels have given him a broad view of life and have supplemented his meager school opportunities. An eminent thinker has said that a year's travel abroad is equal to a four year's college education, so that it is easy to see that Mr. Caudill is a well informed man.
To Mr. and Mrs. Caudill have been born two children, Earl A. and Leo J. The parents are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and Mr. Caudill is identified with Maple Leaf Lodge, No. 528, A. F. & A. M., of Elma, with Lovington Lodge, No. 593, I. O. O. F., of Lovington, Illinois, and the Modern Woodmen camp at Elma. His political endorsement is given to the republican party and his position upon vital questions of citizenship and public concern is never an equivocal one as he stands loyally by what he believes to be right and for the best interests of the country at large.
JOHN HEIT.
John Heit, a dealer in agricultural implements, machinery, automobile tires and accessories and in fact handling everything in connection with farm machinery, has won a place among the leading business men of Ionia. He has always made his home in Chickasaw county and throughout his life has been actuated by the spirit of west- ern enterprise and progress. He was born in New Hampton township, September 19, 1878, and is a son of William and Margaret (Pappenheim) Heit, the former a native of Germany, while the latter was born in Wisconsin. The father was brought to the United States when a child of but two years by his parents, who landed at New Orleans, where they remained for a brief time. Subsequently they made the trip up the Mississippi and Ohio rivers to Cincinnati, Ohio, and a year or so later removed to Iowa, establishing their home at Dyersville. There the father occupied the position of section boss on the railroad for sixteen years. William Heit, the father of John Heit, spent his early life at Dyersville, Iowa, and as a youth worked as a clerk in a general store. In 1870, at the age of eighteen years, he removed to Nashua, Iowa, his father having previously purchaser a farm in Chickasaw county. William Heit walked from Nashua to the farm-a distance of sixteen miles, and taking up his abode thereon, made it his home for forty-five years, being long classed with the representative agriculturists of his section of the state. At length he removed to New Hampton in 1915 and has there since lived retired, enjoying a rest which he has truly earned and richly merits. He still owns two hundred and forty acres of land in New Hampton township, which is one of the well improved farm prop- erties of that section of the county.
John Heit was educated in the district schools and in a business college at New Hampton, after which he returned home and assisted in the further development and improvement of his father's farm for four years. On the 12th of November, 1903, he was united in marriage to Miss Lizzie Kleinfehn, of New Hampton town- ship, and they began their domestic life upon a farm of eighty acres adjoining his father's place. This Mr. Heit had previously purchased and thereon he engaged in farming for ten years. In 1913 he purchased the implement business of Dominick Gilbert of Ionia and took possession thereof in October of that year. In the inter- vening years he has prospered and has built up the business to one of the leading commercial interests of Ionia, his sales reaching a large figure annually. He handles agricultural implements and everything that has to do with farm machinery, also automobile tires and accessories, and his trade is of a most substantial character.
To Mr. and Mrs. Heit have been born three sons: Gallus, Roman and Virgil. In his political views Mr. Heit is a democrat where national questions and issues are
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involved, but is somewhat liberal and votes independently of party ties at local elec- tions. He served for five years as assessor of New Hampton township while upon the farm and has served as assessor of Ionia for two years, while at the present writ- ing he is a member of the town council. He and his family are members of the Catholic church and he is one of the directors of the church. He also belongs to the Knights of Columbus and the Catholic Order of Foresters. His life has been actuated by a progressive spirit that has brought about substantial results in his business career, while in matters of citizenship his aid and influence are ever given on the side of advancement and improvement.
CHARLES I. VOPAVA.
An excellent farm property of two hundred and forty acres is being carefully cultivated and developed by the owner, Charles I. Vopava. The place is situated on section 5, New Oregon township, Howard county, and its excellent appearance is the visible evidence of the life of thrift and enterprise which the owner is leading. He is one of Iowa's native sons, his birth having occurred in Winneshiek county, August 31, 1887, his parents being Jacob A. and Elizabeth A. (Jarosh) Vopava. 'His grand- parents were among the first settlers in Winneshiek county and contributed to the pioneer development and upbuilding of that section of the state. The parents of Charles I. Vopava are still living and yet occupy the old homestead property in Win- neshiek county.
It was there that Charles I. Vopava was reared and educated. At the usual age he became a pupil in the public schools of Winneshiek county and afterward had the benefit of instruction in a business college at Oelwein, Iowa, in which he spent three months. During the period of his boyhood and youth and after his schooldays were over he worked upon his father's farm, being thus employed until five years ago. Since that time he has conducted the farm on his own account and is numbered among the progressive agriculturists of the district. What he has accomplished represents the fit utilization of his innate talents.
On the 30th of June, 1913, Mr. Vopava was united in marriage to Miss Emma Markovetz, a daughter of Antone and Katherine (Kostohayz) Markovetz, who were among the first settlers of Howard county. Mr. and Mrs. Vopava have become the parents of two children, Irene and Georgina. The parents attend the Congregational church at Cresco and Mr. Vopava belongs to the Woodmen of the World and the Modern Woodmen of America and is loyal to the teachings and purposes of those or- ganizations. In politics he is a democrat but has never sought or desired office, pre- ferring that his public duty shall be done as a private citizen. He is loyal to every interest committed to his care and stands at all times on the side of progress and improvement in relation to everything that has to do with the general interests of society.
FRANK J. MARUSKA.
Frank J. Maruska, a hardware dealer of the Maruska-Smith Company and a member of the city council of Cresco, is keenly interested in all plans and projects having to do with the upbuilding and development of his section of the state. He was born in Fort Atkinson, Iowa, October 20, 1878, a son of Frank and Maggie (Rausch) Maruska, the former a native of Bohemia, while the latter was born in Fort Atkinson, Iowa. The father came to the United States about 1870, when a young man of twenty-one or twenty-two years, and made his way directly westward to Iowa, establishing his home in Winneshiek county. He was there married and in 1888 removed to Howard county, where he rented the Bullis farm and later invested his savings in eighty acres of farm land north of Lourdes. There he has
F.g. Maruska.
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since resided, his time and attention being successfully given to general agricultural pursuits. His first wife died in Winneshiek county, Iowa, and he was later married in Howard county to his present wife.
Frank J. Maruska was educated in the district schools and at the age of nineteen years started out upon an independent business career. He went first to Elma, Iowa, and began work in the implement house of Frank Smart, with whom he remained through the summer. He then accepted a clerkship in the general mer- chandise establishment of William Deikmann, with whom he remained for a year. He afterwards worked a short time for the Gilchrist Elevator Company at Elma, Iowa, and then went to Alta Vista, where he entered the employ of Timmermans Brothers, general merchants, with whom he continued for two years. Following this he went to work for E. C. Brenner, a general merchant of the same town, and continued with him for seven years at two different periods. Between these two periods, or in the fall of 1906, he went to Dickinson, North Dakota, to take charge of the grocery section of a department store but in the following year went to the Twin Cities and for four months was employed by the St. Paul Railway Company. He then returned to Alta Vista and again became an employe of Mr. Brenner, with whom he remained until 1910, when he came to Cresco. In July of that year he entered the employ of Peterson Brothers, hardware merchants, with whom he con- tinued until November, 1914. In January, 1915, the Maruska-Smith Company was organized and on the 30th of the month its doors were thrown open for business. Since that time the firm has remained active in the trade circles of the city and they have built up a very substantial patronage. They carry a large line of shelf and heavy hardware and their reasonable prices, straightforward dealing and earnest efforts to please their customers have been the salient forces in the attain- ment of their success.
In 1901 Mr. Maruska was united in marriage to Miss Clara Ruzicka, of Howard county, and to them have been born six children, as follows: Mildred, Regina, Clarence, Mabel, Agnes and Roger.
In his political views Mr. Maruska is a democrat and in 1912, through the solicitation of his friends, he allowed his name to be placed on the ticket for county clerk of the courts, but he was not desirous of the office and made no effort to be elected. However, notwithstanding the big republican majority in the county, he was defeated by only twenty-two votes, his support indicating his personal popularity and the confidence reposed in him. In the spring election of 1918 he was elected a member of the city council of Cresco and is now serving in that body, exercising his official prerogatives in support of all interests for the public good. He is a member of the Catholic Order of Foresters and also of the Knights of Columbus and both he and his wife hold membership in the Catholic church. He ranks with the representative citizens of Cresco and is highly esteemed as a man of genuine worth, thoroughly reliable in matters of business and in citizenship.
ADOLPH ARNDT.
Adolph Arndt, busily engaged in agricultural pursuits in Howard county, his home being on section 18, Afton township, was born in Germany, October 20. 1863, and is a son of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Arndt, who in the year 1868 came with their family to the I'nited States. They took up their abode in Mitchell county, Iowa, where they resided for a year, the father working on a farm during that period. He then brought his family to Howard county in 1869 and established his home in Afton township, where he rented a farm, on which he lived for five years. He was very desirous of owning property, liow- ever, and the family practiced economy as well as industry in order to gain a start. About 1874 therefore the father was enabled to purchase land. becoming the owner of a farm on which his son Adolph now resides. He and his wife continued to occupy that place until they were called to their final rest, the father passing away in 1912, while the mother's death occurred in 1909.
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By the terms of his father's will Adolph Arndt came into possession of the old home- stead property and has by an active, useful and well spent life justified his right to be classed with the representative farmers of this section of the state. He was only five years of age at the time of the emigration and a little lad of six years when the family arrived in Howard county. Here he has lived through the intervening period, covering a half century, and has been an interested witness of the development and improvement cf this section of the state and has at all times given active aid and cooperation to projects for the public good. His education was acquired in the public schools and his home training made him thoroughly familiar with the best methods of carrying on farm work. On his father's death he took over the management of the old home place, which he now owns and which is an excellent tract of land of one hundred and fifty-seven acres, situated on section 18, Afton township.
In 1899 Mr. Arndt was married to Miss Mary Hohn and they have become the par- ents of nine children, namely: Arthur, Walter, Gertie, Hedwig, Edith, Elbert, Marty, Edward and Minnie, all of whom are yet with their parents. The religious faith of the family is that of the German Lutheran church, their membership being in the church at Riceville. Mr. Arndt votes with the republican party and is a student of political questions and conditions, so that he is able to support his position by intelligent argu- ment. He ranks with the substantial men and representative citizens of Afton township and with its history is largely familiar, for through fifty long years he has witnessed the changes that have occurred and the work that has been wrought as Howard county has been placed upon a par in its opportunities and advantages with the counties of the older east.
WESLEY O. SWENSON.
Among the attractive mercantile establishments of Cresco is the jewelry store of Wesley O. Swenson, who in the conduct of his business displays marked enterprise and progressiveness, utilizing every means at hand that will bring him legitimate success and basing his efforts largely upon his earnest desire to please his customers. He is a native son of Cresco, his birth having here occurred on the 23d of October, 1872, his parents being Ole and Almeda (Sloan) Swenson. The father was born in Skeen, Norway, in 1836 and was but four years of age when in 1840 he was brought to the United States on a sailing vessel by his parents, the voyage covering nine weeks. After reaching an American port they made their way westward by way of the Great Lakes to Milwaukee and proceeded thence to North Cape, Racine county, Wisconsin. There he remained until the outbreak of the Civil war, when, loyal to the cause of his adopted country, he donned the nation's blue uniform and went to the front as a member of the Union army. He was assigned to duty with Company C of the Fifteenth Regiment of Wisconsin Infantry, with which he remained until honorably discharged on the 31st of December, 1864, at Chattanooga, Tennessee. He participated in many hotly contested engagements, including the siege of Island No. 10 in the Mississippi river on the 10th of April, 1862; the battles of Jacinta and Iuka, Mississippi, on the 9th of September, 1862; of Champions Hill and Lancaster, Ken- tucky, Knox Gap, Tennessee, Stone river, Chickamauga, Georgia on the 19th and 20th of September 1863; the battle of Missionary Ridge on the 26th of November of the same year; the battle of Charlestown, Tennessee, of Tunnel Hill, Georgia, Dalton and Resaca, of Big Shanty, of Kenesaw Mountain and of Atlanta, Georgia. He was also in the engagement at Jonesboro and in others of minor importance. He participated in a very large percentage of the important battles of the war, however, and always proved a valorous and loyal soldier, patriotically doing his duty, whether called to the firing line or stationed on the lonely picket line. For a considerable period he was under the command of General Sherman. At the battle of Stone river he was taken prisoner on the 31st of December, 1862, by General Joe Wheeler's Texas Rangers but was recaptured by a regiment of United States Cavalry. He took part in eighteen battles altogether and his military record is a most creditable one. Since the 16th
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of August, 1883, he has been a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and de- lights in meeting with his old army comrades and recalling the scenes and incidents of the Civil war, when with the "Boys in blue" he followed the nation's starry banner on the battlefields of the south. He is a Mason and is a loyal exemplar of the craft.
After the close of the Civil war Ole Swenson returned to his home in Wisconsin and in 1866 established a jewelry store at Waterford, that state. There he carried on business for about a year but in 1867 sold out and removed to Cresco, where he also opened a jewelry establishment, remaining in active connection with the business throughout his entire life in this city. He was regarded as a thoroughly reliable and progressive merchant and commanded at all times the confidence and good will of his fellowmen. He married Miss Almeda Sloan, a native of Indiana, and they became the parents of ten children, Etta, Wesley, William, Ole, Mae, Mabel, Winnie, Freddie, George and Emma. The family circle was broken by the hand of death when on the 15th of June, 1906, the father passed away at his home in Cresco, his demise being deeply regretted by all who knew him. His widow survives and yet makes her home in Cresco, where she has so long resided.
Wesley O. Swenson whose name introduces this review has been a lifelong resi- dent of Iowa. Born in Cresco, he began his education in its public schools and after mastering the branches of learning taught in successive grades he attended the De- corah (Ia.) Business College. He afterward returned to his father's farm near Cresco, to the development and improvement of which he devoted his energies for six years, after which he became identified with his father in the jewelry business, that associa- tion being maintained until 1890. In 1899 he removed to the building which he now occupies and afterward purchased it. He has here remained for twenty-seven years and is today the owner of the finest jewelry store in northern Iowa. It is most at- tractive in its appointments, with fine showcases and furnishings, and a most exten- sive and beautiful line of goods is carried, while the reasonable prices and straight- forward business methods of the owner insure to him a continually growing patronage.
Mr. Swenson is a republican in his political views and he has membership in the Masonic lodge and the Eastern Star. He is also a charter member of the A. U. R. J. A. of America and of the Iowa State Jewelers Association. He has always lived in Howard county and the record which he has made places him among its repre- sentative citizens. The name of Swenson has long been associated with the jewelry trade in Cresco and the business which was instituted by his father at an early day has been carried forward by Mr. Swenson and for twenty-seven years he has con- ducted his commercial interests alone, following principles and methods which neither seek nor require disguise, but which on the other hand will bear the closest investi- gation and scrutiny. He is prompted by a progressive spirit in all that he does and is constantly seeking to upbuild his trade by the adoption of advanced ideas that will add to the attractiveness of his establishment. All who know him speak of him as a most representative, honorable and honored business man of Cresco.
CHARLES SIGLER.
Charles Sigler, a well known farmer of Saratoga township, Howard county, was born on the 11th of May, 1860, on the farm on section 20, where he still resides. His father, Jared Sigler, was a native of Pennsylvania. his birth occurring near Mckees- port, November 8, 1813. At the age of eight years, in 1821, he lost his mother and soon afterward accompanied his father and two brothers, Charles and Henry, on their removal to Gallia county, Ohio. It was in that county that he became acquainted with Miss Rhoda Ripley, who subsequently became his wife. She was born in Gallia county, March 6, 1814, and they continued to reside there until 1853, when they came to Iowa, locating first at Nashua, Chickasaw county. Two years later, however, they removed to Saratoga township, Howard county, at which time their worldly posses- sions consisted of only three cows and three calves and one gold dollar in money and they were unfortunate in having one of the calves killed by a party of hunters from
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Lime Springs, who mistook it for a bear. Mr. Sigler preempted one hundred and sixty acres of land, which he purchased at the government price of a dollar and a quarter per acre, and erected thereon a log house in which the family lived for some time. He continued to reside upon his homestead until shortly before his death, which occurred in May, 1888. His wife survived him for some years, passing away in April, 1901. To them were born thirteen children but only three of this number are now living, these being: Mrs. Margaret Payne, of Jamestown township, Howard county; Mrs. I. H. Berg, a resident of Los Angeles, California; and Charles, of this review.
Upon the home farm Charles Sigler grew to manhood, attending the district schools of Saratoga township in the acquirement of his education. Throughout his life he has followed farming to more or less extent but for about twenty-five years also worked at the carpenter's trade. On the old homestead he was married March 20, 1880, to Miss Eliza A. Nemires, whose parents were natives of New York state. Her father died in the Civil war and in 1870 her mother, accompanied by three daughters and one son, came to Howard county, Iowa, and located in Saratoga township, where Mrs. Sigler was reared and educated. After a happy married life of twenty-one years she passed away on the 24th of February, 1901. Of the eight children born to our subject and his wife seven are still living, namely: Florence Mae, the wife of W. E. Pickett, of Preston, Minnesota; Clara Belle, at home; Olive Mae, the wife of Frank Pickett, of Preston, Minnesota; Rose V., who is married and resides in Los Angeles, California; Roy, who is married and is operating the home farm; Mrs. Winnie Robinson, a resi- dent of Upton, Wyoming; and Mrs. Hazel Robinson, of Waltham, Minnesota.
Mr. Sigler is not affiliated with any political organization, preferring to give his support to the men whom he believes best qualified to fill the offices regardless of party ties. Since 1893 he has been a member of the Modern Woodmen of America and takes great interest in the work of that order. His fellow citizens, recognizing his worth and ability, have called upon him to fill several official positions and he has served as assessor of Saratoga township for the past nine years. He was also a member of the board of trustees for one year and has been school treasurer for the past four or five years. He is a man honored and respected wherever known.
WILBUR W. ROSE.
Wilbur W. Rose is the proprietor of the Golden Sunset Farm, situated on section 34, Deerfield township, Chickasaw county. His landed holdings embrace one hundred and sixty acres, which he has brought to a high state of cultivation and to which he has added many improvements. His business enterprise and intelligently directed efforts liave gained him place among the substantial agriculturists of his section of the state.
He was born in Columbus county, Wisconsin, April 20, 1858, a son of Samuel and Eliza (Cunningham) Rose. The father was a native of Binghamton, New York, and the mother was also born in the Empire state. There they were reared and married and soon afterward they removed to Wisconsin, where they resided until 1866 and then came to Chickasaw county, Iowa, taking up their abode upon the farm where their son Wilbur W. now resides. The father at once began the development and improvement of the property and continued its cultivation until his death, which occurred December 24, 1894. He had for almost three decades been numbered among the representative agriculturists of the community and was highly esteemed by reason of his sterling personal worth as well as his business enterprise.
Wilbur W. Rose was reared on the old homestead and has resided thereon continu- ously for a period of fifty-three years. At the usual age he became a pupil in the district school near his father's home and thus acquired his education. After his marriage he took charge of the home farm, which he operated on crop payments. Following his father's death he bought eighty acres of the place and still lives upon the old homestead. He has erected modern buildings and converted this into one of the highly improved farm properties of the township. He has also acquired another eighty acre tract on section 35, so that his farm lands now embrace one hundred and sixty acres. He is very diligent
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