History of Davenport and Scott County Iowa, Volume II, Part 35

Author: Downer, Harry E
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago : S.J. Clarke
Number of Pages: 1166


USA > Iowa > Scott County > Davenport > History of Davenport and Scott County Iowa, Volume II > Part 35


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In 1879 occurred the marriage of W. P. Bettendorf and Miss Mary Wort- man, of Peru, Illinois, a daughter of John and Etta Wortman. They became parents of two children, Etta and Henry, but the mother and both the children have passed away, Mrs. Bettendorf dying in August, 1901. In 1908 Mr. Bet- tendorf was again married, his second union being with Mrs. Elizabeth Staby. Mr. Bettendorf is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks but the extent and importance of his business interests leaves him little leisure for activity in fraternal circles. He stands today as a splendid example of what may be accomplished when one has determination and energy. Opportunities that others have passed by heedlessly he has noted and improved. Modest


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and unostentatious in demeanor, he is nevertheless spoken of in terms of ad- miration and respect, for his life work has been so varied in its scope, so hon- orable in its purposes and so far reaching in its effects that it has become an integral part of the history of Davenport. In all of his business career he has held to high standards and should he at once retire from business the extent and importance of his activities thus far would leave the indelible impress of his individuality upon the history of the state.


HENRY H. HORST.


Henry H. Horst, a prominent and representative agriculturist of Scott county, owns a fine farm of one hundred and seventy-seven and a half acres in Daven- port and Sheridan townships and devotes his energies to the work of farming and threshing with gratifying results. He was born on the 31st of October, 1867, and the place on which he now resides has been his home from his birth to the present time.


His parents, Claus and Ida (Hahn) Horst, were both natives of Germany, the former being born on the 30th of December, 1819, and the latter on the 20th of February, 1828. Hans and Margaret (Goetch) Horst, the paternal grandparents, both passed away in Germany. Claus Horst, the father of our subject, obtained his education in the schools of his native land and was a young man of twenty-eight when in 1847 he crossed the Atlantic to the United States. After landing at New Orleans he made his way up the Mississippi river as far as St. Louis and there spent the winter. The following spring witnessed his arrival in Scott county, Iowa, and here he was employed at breaking prairie, etc., receiving a wage of ten dollars per month. In 1850 he was married and purchased a tract of eighty acres of prairie land in Davenport township, which is now in possession of his son Henry and on which he built a small house. As the years passed by he brought the farm under a high state of cultivation and improvement and gradually added to his landed holdings by additional pur- chase from time to time until at his death he owned five hundred and sixty acres of rich and productive land. In 1880 he went to New York city for medical treatment, as his health had been broken down by his many years of unremitting toil, but died in the eastern metropolis on the 24th of May, 1881. His remains were interred at Davenport, where his widow has made her home since 1889. The latter, a daughter of John and Margaret Hahn, lost her father in 1845. Her mother afterward married again, becoming the wife of Oswald Maas, with whom she came to Scott county in the year 1847. A sketch of Mrs. Ida Horst appears on another page of this volume. She was the mother of six children, as follows : Louisa M., who is the widow of Herman Voss; Adolph J., living in Sheridan township; Theresa A. C., the widow of Henry Horst; Edward N., who is a resident of Sheridan township; Henry H., of this review; and one who died in infancy.


Henry H. Horst acquired his early education in the district schools and later pursued a course of study in the business college at Davenport. Since


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putting aside his text-books he has devoted his attention to the work of farming and for the past fifteen years has also been engaged in threshing, meeting with a well merited and creditable measure of success in his undertakings. His home farm comprises one hundred and seventy-seven and a half acres in Daven- port and Sheridan townships and he is likewise the owner of a quarter section of land in Dakota.


On the 25th of February, 1891, Mr. Horst was united in marriage to Miss Emily Sueverkrüebbe, a native of Germany and a daughter of Claus and Kath- erine (Ames) Sueverkrüebbe, who crossed the Atlantic to the United States and took up their abode in Scott county in 1881. The father still survives and is a worthy and respected resident here, but the mother was called to her final rest on the 29th of April, 1904. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Horst have been born five children, namely: Martha, Herbert, Alfred, Elmer and Malinda, all of whom are at home with exception of Malinda who is deceased.


Since age conferred upon him the right of franchise Mr. Horst has given his political allegiance to the men and measures of the republican party. The' cause of education has ever found in him a stalwart champion and he has served as president of the school board since 1893. His entire life has been passed in this county, where he is now widely known, and the fact that many of his warmest friends are those with whom he has been acquainted since his boy- hood days indicates that his career has always been upright and honorable.


CHARLES L. SCHIELE.


The fourteen hundred acres of excellent farm land in Cedar county, Iowa, and the fine town residence on Main street, Davenport, are an indication of the success which attended the agricultural operations of Charles L. Schiele. He has been closely identified with the public affairs and although America is but the country of his adoption, he was one of those who offered his life in suppport of the Union during the years of the great struggle between the north and south.


Mr. Schiele was born in Prussia, Germany, December 16, 1840, a son of Carl and Wilhelmina (Waltenburg) Schiele. The father, who was born in 18II, served in the German army and followed the baker's trade in his native land. In 1854 he started upon his journey to the United States with his family, disembark- ing at New Orleans. They traveled up the Mississippi river to Davenport, where they landed June 20, 1854, and then went to Muscatine county, Iowa, almost imme- diately for Mr. Schiele had friends there who persuaded him to buy eighty acres of timber land. With the help of his sons he built thereon a log cabin, which remained the family home for several years. Later he bought eighty acres more and again eighty acres in the same township, upon which he lived until his death in 1887. After his demise the mother lived with her son Otto until her death in 1907 when she was ninety-four years of age. They were the parents of five children : Charles L .; Frederick, deceased ; Wilhelmina, deceased ; Julius, who lives on the old homestead in Montpelier township, Muscatine county ; and Otto, who lives near Durant in Cedar county.


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. HISTORY OF SCOTT COUNTY


Charles L. Schiele attended the public schools of Germany before the family came to this country. Being but fourteen years of age, however, at the time of their arrival, he was enrolled as a pupil in the public schools of Muscatine county, but during the progress of the Civil war he decided to join the forces of the north. Accordingly, in the fall of 1864, he enlisted in Company C, Second Tennessee In- fantry, at St. Louis, Missouri, whence he went to Nashville, Tennessee, participat- ing in the famous battle there. Then he went to Franklin Crossroads, where he became infected with typhoid fever and was sent back to the hospital at Nashville. He remained there several months and, having recovered, was discharged May 10, 1865. Thereupon he returned to his home, where he remained until 1869.


In the meantime, Mr. Schiele and his brother rented one hundred and sixty acres of land from their father, which they operated until about 1867, when Mr. Schiele bought a wild tract of equal area in Farmington township, Cedar county. The year 1868 he spent in breaking it and preparing it for cultivation, and in 1869 he married, built a house upon his land and took up his residence there. It re- mained his home for thirty-six years, but in the meantime, as the result of his unceasing labor and his economy, he had accumulated the fourteen hundred acres which he still owns. While this is the record of the success he gained in his pri- vate life it affords no indication of the respect and confidence he has won from his fellow citizens, who have witnessed his advancement. They elected him on the democratic ticket as county supervisor and assessor and he also served as justice of the peace for sixteen years. After his removal to Davenport in the spring of 1907, he was elected trustee of the city, holding the position to the present.


-On the Ist of June, 1869, Mr. Schiele wedded Miss Elizabeth Barneck, who was born in Germany and is a daughter of Moritz and Elizabeth Barneck, of Mus- catine county. They have become the parents of six children. Charles, the eld- est, married Emma Miller and lives in Cedar county. They have two children, Carl and Helen. Gustavus, who lives upon the old home place in Cedar county, married Bertha Clawson and they have three sons, Otto, Richard and John. Mor- ris resides in Chicago, Illinois. Richard is deceased. Rudolph married Stella Carl and lives in Cedar county. Clara E. lives with her parents.


Faithful in the performance of his duties and endowed with the noble qualities of honesty and integrity, Mr. Schiele deserves the high regard in which he is held by those with whom he has come in contact. His success in his vocation redounds to the agricultural prosperity of the state of Iowa, while his life record is a high tribute to the citizenship of Davenport.


HENRY SINDT.


Few men have won a more marked success from years of persistent cultiva- tion of the soil than has Henry Sindt, who owns two hundred and forty acres of fine farm land in Hickory Grove township but has now retired from active life and lives in Davenport. He was born in Holstein, Germany, March 29, 1821, a son of Hans and Anna Sindt. He received his education in the public schools of his native land and when he reached manhood rendered the military


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service exacted of all German born males. He served in the Holstein war with Denmark and at the expiration of his period of enlistment he came to the United States.


It was in 1851 that Mr. Sindt landed at New Orleans, where he took a boat upon the Mississippi river to St. Louis. There he remained two days and then reembarked upon the river and came to Davenport. Twelve weeks had elapsed from the time he left the old country until he reached his destina- tion. Upon his arrival here he secured work as a farm laborer, but after a little experience he decided to rent land and himself obtain the compensation for his own toil. He was industrious and thrifty, besides being ambitious, and in 1856 he was able to buy one hundred and sixty acres of prairie land in Hick- ory Grove township. He built a house thereon, to which he brought his wife, and it remained his home until 1894, when he retired from the active pursuits of farming. In the course of years, however, he had invested heavily in land until he owned three hundred and twenty acres at one time. Fifteen years ago he bought the excellent town property where he now makes his home and has since lived in the enjoyment of a well earned rest.


Shortly after his arrival in this country Mr. Sindt was united in marriage to Miss Bertha Weisi, June 26, 1852. She, like her husband, is a native of Hol- stein, Germany, where she was born in January, 1823. . Seven children were born to them. Johannes, who is living in Lyon county, Iowa, married Katie Klindt, and they have three children: Hugo, Theodore and Carolina. Heinrich, also a resident of Lyon county, married Miss Augusta Baldt, and they have four children: Hugo, Herbert, Amanda and Malona. Celia became the wife of Henry Klindt, of Scott county, and they have three children: Albert, Meta and Henry. Emma is the wife of Henry Lage, and they have seven children : Theo- dore, Laura, Mary, Hattie, Anna, Emma and Lura. Alvina is the wife of Theo- dore Meyer, of Hickory Grove township, and has become the mother of six children : Emil, Alma, Grover, Martha, Frank and Stella. Edward, a farmer of Hickory Grove township, wedded Miss Bertha Croft, and they have three children. Gustave, residing in California, married Miss Helena Kroft, and they have two daughters.


In the half century or more of his residence in Scott county, Mr. Sindt took an active part in local affairs, serving as school director and road super- visor for long periods. He was faithful in the performance of his duties and gained the good will of his fellow citizens.


PATRICK T. WALSH.


Who does not know and like Patrick T. Walsh? The root of the uniform regard in which he is held is found in his own life, sterling traits of character winning him the confidence and good will of the rich, his kindliness and charity the friendship and gratitude of the poor. Perhaps the real test of a man is found in his relation to his employes. The opportunity of overbearance and for strict and inconsiderate regulations is his as well as the opportunity for the


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Patrick TWalsh


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exercise of a spirit of fraternal appreciation and helpfulness. In this Patrick T. Walsh has chosen the better part and no greater loyalty is to be anywhere found than is manifest toward him by his employes from the humblest to the highest. In the business world he is known as the head of ten construction companies operating throughout the entire country on various lines of construc- tion work. Wealth and success have crowned him in his later years, but his early experiences brought him want and hardships. It is this perhaps that has made him sympathetic and helpful toward those who are undergoing a struggle similar to that which he experienced.


Davenport is proud to number him as a citizen and as a native son. He was here born March 17, 1855, his parents being John and Mary (Burns) Walsh, both of whom were natives of County Clare, Ireland. The father came to this city from the old country in 1848, having crossed the Atlantic on a sailing vessel which was six weeks in completing that voyage. He landed at New Orleans and made his way up the Mississippi river to Davenport. Both he and his wife were members of the Catholic church. His death occurred in 1887, when he was seventy-seven years of age. In their family were eight children, of whom only two are now living, the sister being Margaret, the wife of John Cody, of Davenport.


The surviving son, Patrick T. Walsh, was educated in Father Pelamorgour's Catholic school and when eleven years of age began work in the French and Davies sawmill, where he spent two summers in packing shingles and later car- ried water on the big cut in west Davenport for one summer. He next became an apprenticed stonecutter on the Rock Island arsenal. He remained at the ar- senal for eleven years and then occurred a circumstance which forced him to seek other employment. It was in the '8os that the stonecutters of Davenport and vicinity determined to make a stand for eight hours per day and Mr. Walsh became a leader among his fellow workmen. The men succeeded at last in win- ning that for which they were contesting, but Mr. Walsh at the end of the time was labeled as an agitator and was forced to seek other employment. It was this that eventually led him into the construction business. He had not planned to enter the field but, when losing his position at Rock Island, he turned his at- tention to any work that he could find, doing such minor and unpretentious jobs as digging cellars, running drains, digging sewers and street work generally. Gradually he extended his efforts and in the course of years has built up one of the notable successes of the country. To the opportunity then presented there was supplemented the sterling character of the man of pluck, that quality which scales barriers and wins victories on every field of human endeavor. Gradually his business extended, and it was not long before he had gained a foothold in the construction field. To him was awarded a contract for a "fill" on the Chi- cago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad at Galva, Illinois, and since that time he has had many gangs of steam-shovel men at work. It has ever been char- acteristic of Mr. Walsh that he has promoted his men as they have shown capa- bility and fidelity, and many who entered his service as shovel men have become high-class superintendents and master mechanics. Among the things in which he takes especial delight is the substantial advance made by his faithful subor- dinates. He has awakened unfaltering support by his belief in his men, has


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constantly spoken to them words of encouragement and appreciation and the men on their part give to him the utmost fidelity and the best service of which they are capable. Possibly it is owing to this factor that the Walsh Construction Company can afford to give better terms than many of its competitors. Zeal and loyalty count in a construction proposition as well as in other walks. The growth of the business has continued year by year until interests are conducted under ten separate corporations, of all of which Mr. Walsh is the president, and every one of the various adjuncts has grown up under his fostering care and careful guidance. The relationship which exists in a well ordered family only adequately reflects the harmony and understanding that dwells in this great or- ganization, which is doubtless the keynote to its big success. At the present these construction companies are engaged in building railroads from coast to coast. Mr. Walsh has been awarded many contracts for the erection of build- ings, the one in which he takes special pride being the Sacred Heart Catholic Cathedral of Davenport, Iowa. There are a few industries of Davenport of any importance that have not felt the stimulus of his cooperation and have benefited by his assistance and counsel. He is also connected with the Scott County Bank and three other banking institutions.


On the Ist of June, 1881, Mr. Walsh was married to Miss Catherine Beecher, and they have five living children : Mary, the wife of E. J. Walsh; Thomas, who is with his father in business; Katherine, Gertrude and Edward, at home. He and his family are members of the Catholic church.


It is known that Mr. Walsh favors every project for the public good and cooperates liberally and influentially in support of movements that have been of the utmost benefit to the city. He is of a kindly nature, of genial and jovial disposition, and like many self-made men is easy to approach and displays thoughtful consideration of others. His life experiences have made him a phil- osopher. A trade magazine comments on this phase of his life in the following words: "He is simple and unaffected in manner yet deep and profound in his conclusions on important topics. Speaking of gaining success in life, he said success can be classified as that quality which prompts the average individual to 'move up' as he enters the crowded street car of life. 'About the entrance the crowd huddles together and the congestion is being gradually added to by the incoming passengers,' said Mr. Walsh. 'Finally some one gets aboard whose disposition and temperament is to "move up" where there is more room, and, while he bumps some of the passengers and gets jostled himself, he reaches the place where there is more room and a better atmosphere and really makes it more satisfactory for the crowd he passed on his way to comfort.' How true this is."


The same paper in commenting upon other features in his life history says: "The example set by the Walsh Construction Company in providing so generously for its employes has set a standard which other companies have had approxi- mately to reach, so that a benefit has been conferred upon the whole line of the dirt-moving contingent. Treating men with consideration for their needs and supplying them with the best that is going is a big factor in maintaining efficiency, and with a force working at a high pitch results obtained are often a subject of wonderment even to those interested.


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"Mr. Walsh has put many a discouraged man on his feet and he has given the hand of recognition to the forlorn which gave them a new start in life. His influence has been shown in encouraging a civic pride in Davenport and many of the city's developments owe a great deal to his timely interest and broad generosity."


DAVID J. CLAPP.


The agricultural interests of Scott county find a worthy representative in David J. Clapp, who owns and operates a fine tract of two hundred acres of arable land in Sheridan township, near the village of Eldridge. He is well known in his locality, where he has spent his entire life and is a worthy son of one of the pioneers of this section of the state, for his father, Charles F. Clapp, came to Scott county in 1854. He was born in Fulton county, Illinois, February 28, 1838, his parents being Spencer and Tilma (Bond) Clapp. The Clapp family came originally from Europe, being established on American soil many years ago by three brothers, from whom all of the name in this country are descended. In 1869 a reunion was held in Massachusetts and it was then discovered that there were more than twelve hundred members of the family here, many of whom left their eastern home and are now numbered among the early settlers of the middle west.


Spencer Clapp, the grandfather of David J. Clapp, and his father, Selah Clapp, came west as far as Ohio in 1820, settling in Portage county, where the latter bought a farm, which is still in the possession of his descendants. There Spencer Clapp grew to manhood, learning the shoemaker's trade, and there he was married and lived until 1837, when he and his wife and his brother-in-law, Seldon Bond, went by wagon to Fulton county, Illinois. There he secured one hundred and sixty acres of government land and Mr. Bond three hundred and twenty, for which they paid one dollar and a quarter an acre. Upon it they built a house, made other improvements and lived until 1839, when Mr. Clapp was called to Ohio by the ill- ness of his father. Upon the latter's death he sold his property in Fulton county, Illinois, and operated the old homestead in Portage county, Ohio, until 1854, when he came to Scott county, Iowa, taking up his residence in Davenport. There, on Locust street, near Brady, he built a house, which by the way is still standing, and rented ten acres near where Central Park is now situated, which he planted in corn. The next year he rented forty acres more, agreeing to give Dr. Hall, the landlord, two-fifths of the crops. For the next three years he lived in Davenport, in which time he sold the house he had built first, put up another on a lot he had purchased on Main street, and then traded that for forty acres in Sheridan town- ship. After moving his family to the farm, putting up a house and establishing his home there, it was discovered that the title to the land was defective, and they lost their property. They kept the house, however, for with thirty-two yoke of cattle and the assistance of friends and neighbors Mr. Clapp moved it into the road. There he and his family lived for about a year.


Charles F. Clapp, who had accompanied his father upon his several removals, married about that time and his first home was that house standing in the middle


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of the road. He had been able to get two crops from the land before the mortgage was foreclosed. Later, in 1863, he bought forty acres from Mr. Hartzel, built thereon a house, and then as he was drafted into the army he sold his place for twelve hundred dollars. He was not called into service, however, and with his money he bought eighty acres of land in Sheridan township, which is now included in the farm of his son, D. J. Clapp. He engaged in other real-estate transactions, buying finally one hundred and sixty acres of land in Sheridan town- ship, on which he lived until 1896, when he retired from active life. He is now living in Davenport but still retains his interest in agricultural pursuits, as he owns two hundred and forty acres in that township.


On Christmas day, 1860, Mr. Clapp wedded Miss Elizabeth Knouse, who was born near Carlisle, Pennsylvania, January 28, 1842. Her parents were David and Mary (Stump) Knouse, who came to Scott county in 1850. Mr. and Mrs. Clapp have had nine children, namely : Samuel, who is living at Aredale, Iowa, and is the father of six children; Anna, who married L. B. Guy, of Davenport, and has three children; Emma, the deceased wife of George Marti; Bertha, the deceased wife of Milton Drenter; Seldon, who resides in St. Joseph, Missouri, and is the father of two sons; David J. and Charles S., who are twins, the former being mentioned below and the latter living upon the old home place in Sheridan town- ship; Archie, who is a physician of Muscatine, Iowa ; and Nellie, who is living with her parents. Mr. Clapp served as road supervisor and as school director for about ten years, and fraternally is identified with the Ancient Order of United Workmen and with the Modern Woodmen of America. In 1854 he joined the Christian church of Davenport and is now the oldest member of the congregation. He was treasurer of the church for a number of years, and wherever he is known he is respected as a man of sterling integrity and noble life.




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