USA > Iowa > Dubuque County > History of Dubuque County, Iowa; being a general survey of Dubuque County history, including a history of the city of Dubuque and special account of districts throughout the county, from the earliest settlement to the present time > Part 88
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HISTORY OF DUBUQUE COUNTY
P. C. MURRAY, a well-known attorney at the Dubuque bar, is a native son of Iowa, his birth occurring in Vernon Township, Dubuque County. He is a son of one of the early pioneer families of this state, his father, Patrick P. Murray, and his mother, Mary ( McLaughlin) Murray, having settled on a farm in Vernon Town- ship in the spring of 1850. Mr. Murray, Sr., immigrated to this country in 1844 and located in Pittsburg, Pa. His wife, Mary McLaughlin Murray, came to America with her parents in 1846 and also located in Pittsburg. In the fall of 1848 Patrick P. Mur- ray entered government land in Vernon Township and then returned to Pittsburg, where he was married to Mary McLaughlin in 1849, and Mr. Murray and his wife and the Mclaughlin family came to Dubuque County in the spring of 1850. Mrs. Murray's father, Peter Mclaughlin, and family located on a farm in Vernon Town- ship, two miles west of the Monastery. Like all the early pioneer families they experienced many trials and hardships, but with a steadfast determination, industry and enterprise characteristic of the early settlers, they surmounted all difficulties and became prominent families of this county. Frank Mclaughlin, a brother of Mary McLaughlin Murray, moved to Dubuque many years ago, where he became a prominent grain merchant and was afterward elected three times to the office of county auditor of Dubuque County. P. C. Mclaughlin, another brother of Mrs. Murray, be- came one of the successful farmers and stock raisers of Dubuque County and a few years ago he retired from the active business and with his sister, Miss Lizzie Mclaughlin, is now living in the city of Dubuque. To Mr. and Mrs. Patrick P. Murray were born the following named children : John B., J. J., P. C., Rose, P. H., Lizzie, Mary and Frank L., also three other children who died while in- fants. In 1888 Mr. Murray, Sr., passed away, highly respected by all who knew him, followed by his wife in 1907, and both now lie at rest in New Mellary Cemetery, near the old homestead.
Their son, P. C. Murray, the immediate subject of this memoir, attended the country schools during his early boyhood days. He afterward attended college in the city of Dubuque and later took a course in one of the colleges in Chicago, from which he was grad- uated on June 30, 1880, with the honor of valedictorian of his class He then took a course in one of the Chicago law colleges and sub- sequently studied law in the office of Judge Moran, English & Wolfe, a leading law firm of Chicago. Finding that close study and confinement did not agree with his health, Mr. Murray tempo- rarily gave up his chosen profession and for a time was connected with the Dubuque Telegraph-Herald and afterward with the Chi- cago Times. He then went on the road as a commercial traveler for seven years, during which time he transacted business in thirty- four states and territories. Mr. Murray then retired from the road and organized the well-known wholesale liquor house of P. C.
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HISTORY OF DUBUQUE COUNTY
Murray & Co. in Dubuque, Iowa, which business he successfully managed for ten years. Having a special liking for the legal pro- fession, he sold all of his commercial interests and engaged in the practice of law in the city of Dubuque. His office is in the Dubuque National Bank building, Sixth and Main streets, where he is en- joying a lucrative practice, which he has carefully built up during the past sixteen years. Mr. Murray started out in life with all the disadvantages incident to pioneer times, but through industry and determination he has surmounted all obstacles and is now recognized as a prominent citizen and successful lawyer of Dubuque. He is a close student in every sense of the word, having acquired most of his education by his individual efforts, and still continues as a close student and hard worker in everything he undertakes. Mr. Mur- ray makes a specialty of probate and real estate law and is also identified with several social and benevolent organizations. He has property interests in South Dakota and Colorado.
In 1880 he was married to Miss Agnes Houlihan, a native of Canada and a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Houlihan, a pioneer family of northeastern Iowa. To their union have been born : Irene Agnes Murray, now principal of the school in Orient. S. D., also Marshall L. Murray and Faber S. Murray, two successful young students in the Dubuque High School. There were born two other children who died in infancy. Apart from his active business cares, Mr. Murray has always taken a great interest in literature and literary compositions and has contributed articles to leading newspapers and magazines. He is a self-made man in every sense of the word and is highly regarded by all who know him.
JAMES EMERSON ALLISON, the son of Matthew and Marjorie (Emerson ) Allison, was born at Wooster, Ohio, December 6, 1853. Matthew Allison, brother of Hon. Wm. B. Allison, moved to Dubuque in 1855 and engaged in the insurance and real estate business, in which he continued through life with marked success. He was a member of the Governor's Greys and one of the active, influential citizens of Dubuque. His wife died in 1860. Two years later he was united in marriage with Miss Margaret Hervey, who died July 23. 1910, at the age of seventy-five. Mr. Allison died in 1874 when but forty-seven years old. To the first union were born two sons, John, of Burlington, Iowa, and James E .; to the second union there were born three daughters, Anna, Mary and Janet.
James E. Allison, of Scotch-Irish ancestry, was brought to this city when an infant. After the completion of his elementary educa- tion in the public schools of Dubuque he attended Lenox College, at Hopkinton, and Iowa College, at Grinnell. In 1871 he left college to accept a position in the Commercial National Bank, of Dubuque ; he began as messenger, but a few years later was promoted to the
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HISTORY OF DUBUQUE COUNTY
position of bookkeeper, which position he held till 1881, when he accepted an offer for employment in the accountant's department of the C., M. & St. P. Railroad. He remained with the railroad company for nearly two years and then went to Tucson, Arizona, to take a position in a bank of that city. After nearly three years' service in the Tucson bank he returned in 1885 to Dubuque to ac- cept a position of cashier in the Iowa Trust & Savings Bank. He retired from this position in 1901 and since that time has not been actively engaged in business. He is affiliated with the Republican party, takes a quiet, intelligent interest in public affairs, and is re- spected by all who know him. He and his three sisters named above live at 1044 Locust street.
PHILIP J. RENIER, master car builder for the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul shops in Dubuque, is a native of Belgium and the son of Philip and Johanna (LaRue) Renier. Philip Renier died while Philip J. was an infant and the mother subsequently married John Lanoye. In 1853 the family came to America, by way of New York City, and for three years Mr. Lanoye worked at his trade of carpenter in Cleveland, Ohio. In search of a home they then came West and located at De Soto, in Bad Axe County, Wisconsin, but two years later settled in Dubuque. Here Mrs. Lanoye died in 1896, followed by her husband in 1898. and both are buried in Mount Calvary Cemetery. Philip J. Renier was born November 9, 1845. He received his education in the public schools and later learned carpentering. His first employment in connection with railroad carpentering was in 1871 with the Chicago, Dubuque & Minnesota Railroad, with whom he remained until 1875. He then worked for various builders and contractors, but in 1877 returned to his old employment and worked up to the position of master car builder, his present position, the old Chicago, Dubuque & Min- nesota road having been absorbed by the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway. When Mr. Renier first entered the shops there were employed but forty men ; now the average car department working force numbers 640, and to rise to the position of master car builder speaks well for the thoroughness of Mr. Renier's work. In 1876 he married Miss Mary E. Strueber, daughter of Chris and Paulina Strueber, of Dubuque, Iowa, and to them the following named children have been born: Francis C., a Catholic priest of Ames, Iowa; Matilda M .; Fred J., a Catholic priest of Marshalltown, Iowa ; Albert H. ; Irwin C. ; Alina M. ; and Ralph V. Several of the above named are engaged in the music business in Dubuque at 1013 Main street. Mr. Renier is an adherent of the Roman Catholic faith, being a member of Sacred Heart church, a Democrat in poli- tics, and a member of the Mutual Relief Society of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul shops.
16 Han
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HISTORY OF DUBUQUE COUNTY
MATHIAS HAM, deceased, for many years occupied a prominent position in Dubuque commercial and financial circles. He was born at Knoxville, Tennessee, in the year 1805 and attended the private schools until seventeen years old, when his father died, leaving the family in rather straightened circumstances. Our subject left home with the boyish promise to his mother that he would not return until he was worth $20,000. This seemed like an Herculean task, but he possessed grit and determination in an unusual degree and later in life was able to return to his mother with his promise of years before fulfilled. He first came North to Galena, Illinois, where he constructed a small boat and as pilot of same he carried the first load of dressed pork to New Orleans ever shipped from that city. By hard work he steadily prospered and in 1833 he came to Dubuque and engaged in mining, working three different leads. He also established lime kilns and brick yards along the river bluffs and was the first to burn lime and brick in this community. He later contracted to build the first public school in Dubuque, toward which he donated the lumber nsed. He was also one of the contractors for building the Dubuque custom house. Aside from his beautiful home in Lincoln avenue, he was at one time the owner of 25,000 acres of land, extending north along the river for three miles. The first landing at Eagle Point was known as the Ham Landing. Mr. Ham was always active in public affairs and served his country during the Indian troubles of the Black Hawk war. In 1837 he returned to his old home in Knoxville and then went to Lexington. Kentucky, where he married Miss Zerelda Markland, the sweet- heart of his boyhood days. He brought her to his home in Dubuque and they lived happily together until her death in 1856. They always mantained what is known to Southerners as "open house," and among their many guests was Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe, who years ago came to Dubuque for the purpose of dedicating the female seminary. Mr. Ham was a life member of the board of trustees of Cornell College, at Mount Vernon, Iowa, and a Metho- dist in religious views. In 1889 he passed away, greatly beloved and highly respected by all who knew him. He had battled with life's adversities and had come off victorious and, although years have passed by since he was laid at rest beside his wife, his memory still lingers in the minds and hearts of the many who honored him. To his union with Miss Zerelda Markland four children were born, as follows: Lucane, of Denver, Colorado ; Thomas B., of Parsons, Kansas; Katherine M., who married H. B. Young (both now de- ceased, she having died in 1896 and he in 1901 ) ; and Sara H., still residing in the old homestead at 2241 Lincoln avenue, where she was born and has spent her entire life.
PROF. ALBERT KUHN, well-known resident of Dubuque, is a native of Switzerland, his birth occurring near Zurich, September
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HISTORY OF DUBUQUE COUNTY
20, 1874, the son of Gottfried and Elizabeth (Hess) Kuhn. His early education was secured in the public schools of the city of Wallisellen, and he then for a time attended the Gymnasium at Zurich. Succeeding this he entered the college at Neuchatel, Swit- zerland. Professor Kuhn first intended to study for the ministry, but his parents preferred a commercial career and accordingly he was for several years connected with a wholesale silk establishment at Zurich. While yet a young man he crossed the Atlantic to New York City in order to acquire fluency in the English language and while there the desire for the work of the ministry again arose in him and in consequence of this he came West to Dubuque and en- tered the German Theological Seminary. He had always been a keen student of the Latin and Greek languages, but after arriving in Dubuque relinquished Latin to a large extent and took up the study of philosophy. For two summers the professor further pur- sued his studies in the post-graduate department of the University of Chicago and also spent one semester in the University of Zurich, Switzerland, where he specialized in the study of Greek and philosophy. In the fall of 1899 he first entered the active work of the ministry, doing city mission work at St. Louis, Missouri. In 1902 at St. Paul, Minnesota, when pastor of the Bethlehem church, he was united in marriage with Miss Odelia Stilz, and two children, John and Elizabeth, have been born to them. Professor Kuhn is a member of the Ministerial Association of Dubuque, is secretary of the Western Publishing Company and is interested in some real estate properties in and around Dubuque and in Western lands.
DR. OSCAR A. KNOLL engaged in the practice of dentistry in Dubuque, was born in this county September 10, 1879, the son of Fred M. and Agnes (Stader) Knoll. The father is a native of Alsace-Lorraine and the mother of Baden, Germany. Fred M. Knoll came to America with his father in 1848 and lived in Buf- falo, New York, till 1853, when he removed to Dubuque County and in course of time became one of the best known farmers of the state. He was greatly interested in politics and held offices as fol- lows : Supervisor, ten years; assessor, sixteen years; justice of the peace, thirty-three years; and member of the State Legislature fourteen years-six years in the House of Representatives, 1862- 63, 1878-79, and 1890-91, and eight years in the Senate, 1864-71. Dr. Knoll was reared on the home farm and during boyhood days attended the common schools. He later went to Keokuk, Iowa, and in the spring of 1905 was granted the degree of D. D. S. from the dental department of Keokuk Medical College, now a part of Drake University. He immediately returned to Dubuque county and opened an office at the corner of Twelfth and Iowa streets, city of Dubuque, assuming the practice of Dr. Thrift when
HISTORY OF DUBUQUE COUNTY
he became adjutant general of the Iowa National Guard. At this time Dr. Knoll held a non-commissioned office in Company A, Fifty-third Regiment Iowa National Guard, of which Dr. Thrift was captain at the time of his promotion to the state office. Since that time Dr. Knoll has been actively and successfully engaged in the practice of his profession in Dubuque. He is a member of the Legion of Honor, now being president of the Dubuque Lodge of that order, and a trustee of the Grand Lodge. He is a past secre- tary of the Dubuque County Dental Association, is a member of the Iowa State Dental Association, the Beta Eta Chapter of the Psi Omega College fraternity, and in religion is a member of the Lutheran Church.
DR. ALONSON M. POND, the son of Orlando and Lucia (Farr ) Pond, was born at Independence, Iowa, August 24, 1869. The father was a native of Vermont and the mother of New York. They were married in October, 1851, and in the year 1857 located at Independence, where he devoted his life to commercial and man- ufacturing pursuits. He was especially interested in invention and has the honor of having made the first corn seeder and the first corn cultivator ever used. He died October 21, 1909; the mother is still living at Independence.
Dr. A. M. Pond is of English and Scotch ancestry and inherited that spirit of determination which spells love for hard work and consequent success. Very early in life he decided to become a doctor. To determine was to do, whereupon he began to work earnestly for the means to secure the necessary higher education. After completing his elementary education in the graded and high schools of Independence, he attended the Iowa Agricultural College at Ames and New York University. He graduated from the Keokuk Medical College in 1891. After doing hospital work in New York City he located in Webster City, Iowa, where he prac- ticed medicine and surgery from 1895 to 1905. The year 1905-6 he spent in England and Germany, taking clinical courses in several European hospitals. He then located in Dubuque, where he has achieved marked success in the practice of his profession. He is surgeon for the Chicago Great Western Railway Company and instructor in surgery in the Medical College of Northwestern Uni- versity at Chicago. He has written many articles for medical journals. He is a thirty-second degree Mason and a Shriner ; iden- tified with the Republican party, and associated with the Presby- terian church.
On April 3, 1890 he was united in marriage to Miss Ida Mac- bride, daughter of James and Alice Macbride, of Independence, and to this union one daughter, Dorothy L., has been born. Their home is at 1222 Locust street.
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HISTORY OF DUBUQUE COUNTY
ROBERT W. RODGERS, one of Dubuque's leading contractors and builders, is a native of this city, his birth occurring November 22, 1839. and is of notable lineage. His grandfather, Robert Rodgers, participated in the struggles of early settlers against the oppressions of the British and was killed in the struggle on Lake Erie when Captain Perry chased the invaders off the lake. The parents of Robert W. Rodgers were Robert and Jane (Read) Rodgers. The former was born on North river, New York, May 5, 1807, and learned contracting and building. In 1836 he and wife came to Dubuque. Iowa, as members of the "Philadelphia Colony," which secured from Peter A. Lorimier a deed of the land north of Tenth street. from Main to Bluff, for $200. The land was cut up into lots and prices fixed as follows: Main street, $50; Locust, $25; Bluff, $15. The lots were disposed of at a public drawing. Here he engaged at his trade for many years, some of the buildings he erected still standing as monuments to the thoroughness of his work. In the spring of 1837 he went to Prairie du Chien and built addition to the fort, which was then occupied by federal troops on account of trouble with the Indians. After a long and honor- able residence he passed away November 25, 1869; his wife died in 1878: both are at rest in Linwood Cemetery. Mrs. Rodgers was a sister of Thomas Buchanan Read, who wrote about Sheridan in his historic ride. The early Rodgers home in Dubuque was built in a corn field at what is now Tenth and Main streets. Here Robert W. Rodgers was born, and he distinctly recalls having killed a rattlesnake in the dooryard of their home. Mr. Rodgers, in a paper of reminiscences, has given us the following :
THE LATTER PART OF THE 40S AND '50S.
"I have seen as many as 200 Indians camped on what we called Little Hill those days, between II and 12 Locust street, west side. This hill was our hazelnut patch when we gathered hazelnuts for winter. Have seen as high as 600 to 700 Indians at Eagle Point at one time. Have seen drunken Indians from First street to Eagle Point laying dead drunk along the line when these 600 or 700 were camped at that point. These were Winnebagoes, I believe, under care of U. S. dragoons. Game was abundant those days-all kinds ; pigeons by the millions, island full of quail, ducks plenty in their season. Prairie chickens by the thousands. The Mississippi river was full of the finest kind of fish. I have seen sleighload after sleighload of prairie chickens come in from the country-looked like you could not get another chicken on without falling off. Later on they came in by cars by the tons for Chicago market. all having been trapped. The people used to haul all dead animals down to the foot of Peosta lake. The wolves would come over in winter on the ice to the canon and have a concert down there and have every dog in town barking. That winter was very
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HISTORY OF DUBUQUE COUNTY
cold and lots of snow. There were three feet of snow all over this part of the country and a heavy crust on top which would hold your weight. All kinds of game suffered that winter. They hunted deer on snowshoes. They would find where the deer was in tiniber groves and run them out and the deer would jump and stick in this crust and all they had to do was to come up and hit them in the head with an axe. I have seen sleighloads, all two horses could pull, and not a bullet mark on any of the deer."
During boyhood days he attended the common schools of Dubuque, and later acquired a thorough knowledge of the contract- ing and building business under the able tutelage of his father. Upon the death of the latter in 1869, Mr. Rodgers succeeded to the business and has ever since been thus engaged. He may be justly proud of the fact that during his long career, in which he has had to deal with all sorts of conditions and men, he has never been sued nor has he had occasion to resort to legal methods in his own defense. In 1865 he was united in marriage with Miss Anna E. Conkling, and one daughter. Anna Ada, who died in infancy, was born to them. Mr. Rodgers is a Republican in politics and a mem- ber of the Methodist Church. He was also a charter member of the historic Volunteer Fire Department. He and wife reside at 1129 Iowa street and are among the city's highly respected people.
EUGENE HIGGINS, prominently identified with the farming inter- ests of Washington Township, is a native of Dubuque county, born July 12. 1858, and a son of Nathaniel and Eliza ( Higgins ) Higgins. The father was born and reared near Belfast, Maine, but came west to Dubuque county at a very early date, and it is said that his wife was the first white woman to cross the prairie from Dubuque to Washington Township. Here they located on a 200-acre tract of land and Mr. Higgins built the second frame house to be erected in the township. He cleared and improved his property, and in time became one of the prosperous farmers and stock raisers of the community. His father, Jeremiah Higgins, came with his son to Dubuque county and here resided the rest of his days. Nathaniel Higgins was a staunch Democrat in his political views, and after an honorable and useful life died on September 7, 1896, at the advanced age of seventy-seven years. His wife died February 19, 1901, aged seventy-two years. To them the following named chil- dren were born: Charles, deceased: David, deceased : Alice, de- ceased : Eugene, subject of this review ; and Elizabeth, who became Mrs. Henry Niensteadt. Of these, Eugene has always resided in Dubuque county and followed the occupation of farming. He is essentially a home man, and claims that he has never been more than sixty miles away from the place of his birth. In 1884 he was united in marriage with Miss Catherine Lyons, daughter of Patrick and Hannah (Pender) Lyons. Patrick Lyons was a native of
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HISTORY OF DUBUQUE COUNTY
County Galway, Ireland, and came as a young man to America and Ohio, where he married. He and wife drove by team to Jones county, Iowa, just south of Cascade, and later located in Prairie Creek Township. Subsequently they moved to Washington Town- ship and here the father died in 1898, aged about eighty years. Hannah (Pender) Lyons was a native of Ireland and a daughter of Richard Pender. She died in 1860, aged about forty years. Their children were: Mary Ann, married Richard Lynch; Cath- erine, now Mrs. Eugene Higgins; Margaret, deceased ; Ellen, mar- ried Dan Fagan; Bridget, deceased, who married John Sheridan; James, farming in Washington Township; Anna, married Joel Alexandria ; Isabella, wife of Ed Sweeney ; Thomas, married Caro- line Duehr. To Mr. and Mrs. Higgins two children have been born, named William and Rose. Mr. Higgins was reared in a community where farming formed the principal occupation and has always fol- lowed that line of work. He also raises graded stock. Like his father before him he is a Democrat in national politics, but locally votes for the best man without regard to party affiliation.
WARREN HIGGINS, one of Washington Township's foremost farmers and stock raisers, was born November 18, 1836, near Bel- fast, Maine, a son of Joseph and Mary (Greer) Higgins and grand- son of Reuben and Betsey Higgins. The grandparents were farmers and lived and died in the state of Maine, being the parents of the following children: John, Charles, Reuben, Jedediah, Jeremiah, Joseph, Arayal, Benjamin, who was a great hunter, Sarah and Eliza. Joseph Higgins, of the above named, was married in Maine and had these children there: Jefferson, Elizabeth, Sarah, Warren, Benjamin, Mary Ellen, Nancy Jane, Franklin and Edwin. He was a farmer and lumberman by occupation, and was crippled by the loss of a hand during a Fourth of July celebration. In 1860 he and family came west to Dubuque county, Iowa, and settled on 80 acres of land, where Warren Higgins now resides. The father erected a frame house and part of this yet stands as a tribute to his famil- iarity with lumber and building. He was a Democrat in politics and took an active interest in the cause of education, and in religious views was a Baptist. In October, 1897, at the age of eighty years, he passed away after a long and honorable life. His wife, formerly Mary Greer, was one of the following named children born to James Greer : Bartholomew, John, James, who served in the War of 1812; Amos, Nathaniel, Thomas, Mary and Sarah. Mrs. Higgins died August 23, 1862, and was buried at Zwingle, where her husband is also at rest. Warren Higgins has always resided on the old homestead in section 20, to which he has added 166 acres, and is one of Dubuque county's highly respected citizens. In politics he is independent, voting for the best man regardless of party affiliation; has served as school director a number of
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