USA > Iowa > Pottawattamie County > History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, from the earliest historic times to 1907, Vol. I > Part 41
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erty, which is one of the most valuable farms in the county, and he resided thereon for over thirty-five years, engaging to some extent in general farm- ing but mostly raising fine stock. In 1904 he gave the farm over to the care of his sons, deciding to retire from active business, and removed to the city of Council Bluffs, where he has since lived.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Dryden were born eight children: Jessie, the wife of L. W. Morris, a farmer of Pottawattamie county; Hattie, the wife of Rev. Godell, a Methodist minister, who at one time had a charge in Council Bluffs but is now located in Nebraska; Lottie, who is principal of the high school at Glidden but makes her home with her parents in this city; Ralph, who operates the old homestead farm; Cyrus P., who is engaged in farm- ing; Gertrude, at home; Dee F., who is a student of the high school and is also under the parental roof; and Gussie, who died at the age of eighteen months.
Mrs. Dryden is a member of the Second Presbyterian church at Coun- cil Bluffs. Mr. Dryden has membership relations with the Grand Army post and in politics is a stanch republican, believing firmly in the princi- ples of the party, which was the defense of the Union in the dark days of the Civil war and which has always been the party of progress, reform and improvement. He was for over three years a member of the board of super- visors, in which capacity he rendered signal service to his fellow townsmen. He is one of the best known among the pioneers and old soldiers of the county. When he removed to the city three years ago he took up his abode on Park avenue, where he lived for two years, and about a year ago he pur- chased the present commodious and beautiful residence at No. 621 Franklin avenue, known as the Devine home. Here he has made great improve- ments and amid most pleasant and comfortable surroundings is spending his days in the enjoyment of a rest which he has justly earned and richly merits. The years have brought many changes to the county during his residence here, the pioneer conditions having long since given way before an advancing civilization which has brought with it all the comforts and conveniences of the older east. Mr. Dryden has borne his full share in the business development of the county and in the conduct of his individual interests has gained a success which is most gratifying by reason of the fact that his methods have never been such as seek or demand disguise.
JOHN N. HORN.
John N. Horn is engaged in general agricultural pursuits and stock- raising on a farm of two hundred and sixty-five acres, situated on sections 30 and 31, Neola township, and sections 25 and 36, Boomer township. He is a native son of the county, having been born here on the 12th of May. 1849. His father, John Horn, was a native of Kent, England, and was there reared and married, Miss Rebecca W. Shuttle, also a native of that locality, becoming his wife. Mr. Horn was a carpenter and joiner by trade
JOHN N. HORN.
THE NEV PUBLIC LIBRARY
ASTOR, LENOX AND TILDEN FOUNDATIONS.
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and followed that pursuit in his earlier years. On leaving England in 1847, he crossed the Atlantic to America and made his way direct to Iowa, set- tling near Council Bluffs. He assisted in building some of the first residences in Omaha and Council Bluffs and continued in active connection with building operations for a number of years. He then opened up and im- proved a farm of one hundred and ten acres in Kane township and there reared his family. Subsequently he made his home in that section of Kane township which was cut off and called Garner. Hle spent his last years in Council Bluffs, however, and owned a residence there. To him was allotted a goodly old age in which to enjoy the fruits of his former diligence and perseverance. He passed away in November, 1906, at the age of ninety- one, while his wife died about 1888 at the age of seventy-seven years. Their family numbered three sons and four daughters and with the excep- tion of two of the daughters all are yet living.
John N. Horn was reared to manhood in Pottawattamie county, which he has seen developed from pioneer conditions to its present advanced and progressive state. In the early days he frequently saw Indians liere, and there were many deer and other lesser game. Ile drove an ox team to the breaking plow in turning the virgin soil and thus contributed in substan- tial measure to the early development of the county. His educational privileges were necessarily limited, as his labors were needed on the home farm, but through experience, observation and reading he has gleaned many valuable lessons. In early life he worked by the month as a farm hand for three years and he has always manifested a spirit of unwearied industry that has constituted the basis of the success which he is now en- joying.
Mr. Horn was first married in Neola township, in 1873, to Miss Mary Ann Spencer, a sister of G. W. Spencer, who is mentioned elsewhere in this work. For three years thereafter he resided upon a rented farm and then purchased forty acres of his present place. Not a furrow had been turned or an improvement made thereon, but with characteristic energy he began its development and from time to time bought more land until he now has a large and well improved farm of two hundred and sixty-five acres, which is neat and attractive in its appearance, owing to the care and labor he bestows upon it. He erected a good residence, also two good barns, a granary, sheds and other outbuildings, furnishing ample shelter for grain and stock. He also set out an orchard and planted shade and ornamental trees. In his stock-raising he gives considerable attention to high grade shorthorn cattle and Poland China hogs. He annually feeds a large num- ber of cattle and hogs and his yearly sales of stock bring him a good finan- cial return. Aside from his farming interests he is a stockholder in the Independent Telephone Company.
On June 19, 1886, Mr. Horn lost his first wife. There were four children by that marriage: George T., John R., Fred S. and Ida B. For his second wife Mr. Horn chose Mary Hansen, who died September 8, 1896, and by whom he had a family of six children: Ernest C., Lucy R., Rosa M., Albert L., Clyde J. and Bertha. For his present wife Mr. Horn chose
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Mary C. Hansen, of Neola township, and they have four children: Elmer, Stanton, Lilly and Pearl. He lost two children of his first marriage and one by the third marriage, all dying in infancy.
Mr. Horn has always exercised his right of franchise in support of the republican party. He was elected and served for several years as road supervisor and has been a member of the school board for a number of years, the cause of education finding in him a stalwart champion and a warm friend. He has not sought to figure prominently in public life, how- ever, preferring to give his energies to his business affairs. His wife is a member of the German Lutheran church. Although Mr. Horn started out on his own account in early life without a dollar, he now owns a large and valuable farm, from which he derives a gratifying annual income. Having always lived in Pottawattamie county, he is to-day numbered among the oldest pioneer settlers, his residence here covering fifty-eight years. Look- ing at the county to-day with its splendidly developed cities and villages, its fine farms and its many advantages, it seems hardly probable that it is within the memory of living men when this was a trackless prairie, starred in June with thousands of wild flowers and covered in the winter by a glistening sheet of snow. During the youth of Mr. Horn the Indians traveled to and fro in the district, while the presence of wild game also indicated the frontier conditions. Few men have a wider acquaintance with events of pioneer times or can relate from personal experience the condi- tions of life and the mode of living prevalent a half century or more ago. All this, however, is to Mr. Horn an open book and he relates many inter- esting reminiscences of the early days.
PETER RIEF.
The history of Pottawattamie county is familiar to Peter Rief from its earliest development to the present time. Here he has lived for four decades and his mind is stored with many interesting reminiscences of pioncer times. So rapid has been the development of the great west that it seems hardly possible that it is within the memory of men living today when this district was a great unsettled region and for miles there were no homes upon the trackless, wind-swept prairie.
Mr. Rief was born in Germany. February 2. 1845, a son of Sievert and Wiebke (Schrum) Rief. The father was born at Erfde. Schleswig, which was also the birthplace of our subject, and the mother's birth occurred in Moholz. Schleswig. Twenty years a resident of the fatherland, Peter Rief then came to the new world, landing at Quebec, Canada, in the spring of 1864. He afterward went to Chicago, Illinois, and the same summer lo- cated at Valparaiso, Indiana, where during the summer he worked at the shoemaker's trade, which he had learned prior to leaving his native land. In the fall he returned to Chicago where he remained for about one year, and during that time he saw the body of Abraham Lincoln, the martyred
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president. Leaving Chicago for St. Louis, Missouri, he spent two weeks in that city and then started for Omaha, Nebraska, making most of the trip by boat. He arrived at his destination in the fall of 1865 and helped construct the first three railroad bridges across the Little and Big Pabio and Elkhorn rivers.
The spring of 1866 witnessed the arrival of Mr. Rief in Pottawattamie county and he located in Boomer township, where he purchased a small tract of land. In 1867 he sold this to his brother and bought forty acres in Hazel Dell township, to which he afterward added forty acres more. Some of this land had been previously settled by the Mormons, but most of it was still uncultivated and unimproved. In 1885 he traded this property for a stock of boots and shoes in Council Bluffs and for five years conducted that business, after which he sold out and removed to Lake Manawa, where he has since resided. He is now serving for the sixth term as justice of the peace, his re-elections proving his capability and fidelity. His decisions are strictly fair and impartial, being based upon the evidence and framed with conscientious regard to the law and the equity in the case. For one year he was postmaster of Manawa, has also been town treasurer and for about fourteen years was school director. These various offices have come to him unsought and have been the expression of public confidence in his ability and trustworthiness. He has always voted with the republican party since age conferred upon him the right of franchise and as the years have gone by he has been a stalwart champion of progressive movements and measures for the general good.
On the 12th of May, 1867, Mr. Rief was married to Miss Anna C. Thiesen, a daughter of Peter Thiesen, of Holstein, Germany. Their cliil- dren are: Rosa, wife of George Boyles, of Council Bluffs; Matilda, the wife of William Sehæning, of Woodbury, Nebraska; Josephine, the wife of Isaac Minnick, of Council Bluffs; Peter Sievert, who is married and lives in Council Bluffs; and Minnie, who died at the age of twenty-three years.
The life record of Mr. Rief is in many respects worthy of emulation. It proves what can be accomplished by determined purpose and unfaltering industry. He had no knowledge of the English language when he came to America, but within a short time had learned to read and write as well as speak the tongue and he readily adapted himself to the altered business conditions which he found in this country. He has always made good use of his opportunities and is now one of the substantial citizens of Lewis township. He is not the only member of the family who came to the new world, for at the time of his emigration he was accompanied by a cousin and later his brothers, John and Sievert, came. They are now successful farmers of Pottawattamie county. Later his cousin Henry settled in Grand Island, Nebraska, his present home. Another brother, Hans Rief, came to America, in 1867, and now resides in California. Two other brothers, Johann and Claus, also came in the later '60s, but are both deceased. When Mr. Rief reached this county, Council Bluffs was but a small town-one of the outposts of civilization. The country was wild and there were still a few deer. Wolves were numerous and wild turkeys and other feathered
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game could be found in abundance. Mr. Rief has contributed to the change which has marked the county's growth and progress and is accounted a valued citizen of his community. Both he and his wife are members of the Lutheran church and are highly esteemed by many friends.
HON. JOHN FLETCHER.
Hon. John Fletcher, mayor of Avoca and member of the Pottawattamie county bar, was born in Scott county, Iowa, January 5, 1874, his parents being John and Martha (Fletcher) Fletcher. The father's birth occurred near Londonderry, Ireland, in 1837, and there he was reared, after which he made his way to the United States at the age of twenty years. He first went to the home of an uncle, who was a' slaveholder in Delaware and with him continued for two years. On the expiration of that period Mr. Fletcher came to Iowa in 1857 and settled in Scott county, where he went to work as a farm hand. He was one of a large family in Ireland and he came to the new world empty-handed, so that his financial condition made it imperative that he find immediate employment. After a few years spent at farm labor he began the cultivation of rented land on his own account, living very frugally in order to acquire capital sufficient to purchase a farm. In 1870 he went to Kenosha, Wisconsin, to wed the woman of his choice, whom he had known in his native country and who had come to the United States about two years before. After his marriage he returned to Scott county, Iowa, and in 1881 removed to Pottawattamie county, where he purchased a farm of one hundred and sixty aeres in Valley township, on which he inade his home until 1904. He then retired from active life and removed to the village of Hancock, where he and his wife are now living, being esteemed and worthy people of that locality. In politics he is a republican, while. he and his wife are devoted members of the Presbyterian church, in which he is now serving as an elder. In their family were five children : Samuel D .; John and Jennie, twins, the latter the wife of Howard Wilson, of Avoca; Hester A., the wife of Fred Bullis, a resident farmer of Wright township; and Noble, a farmer living in Valley township.
John Fletcher was reared under the parental roof and after acquiring his carly education in the district schools attended the State Normal School at Cedar Falls, Iowa. Subsequently he taught school for one year and in November, 1896, he began reading law in the office of J. L. Blanchard at Avoca. In the fall of 1898 he entered the law department of the State Univer- sity of lowa at Iowa City and completed his course there by being admitted to the bar in May, 1899. After his admission to the bar, being undecided as to a favorable location, he spent one year on the road for the implement house of Reeves & Company, manufacturers of threshing machines and sawmills at Columbus, Indiana. He went upon the road as traveling representative from their branch house at Des Moines. However, taking up the active practice of law, he opened on office at Avoca on the 1st of May, 1900. and
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he has since built up an extensive law practice here. He is well versed in the general principles of jurisprudence and in the law applicable thereto and in the trial of his cases makes thorough and careful preparation, while in argument his thought is clear and convincing.
On the 14th of June, 1900, Mr. Fletcher was married to Miss Marie D. Schmidt, of Avoca, and unto them has been born a son, Maurice J.
In politics Mr. Fletcher is a republican with firm faith in the princi- ples of the party. He served for one term as city attorney of Avoca and in 1906 was nominated and elected to the office of mayor, so that he is now the chief magistrate of the city. The duties of the position are discharged with promptness and fidelity and with conscientious regard for the welfare of the community at large. Mr. Fletcher is a member of Mount Nebo lodge, No. 297, A. F. & A. M., of which he is the present master. He also belongs to Avoca lodge, No. 220, I. O. O. F., and to Avoca camp, No. 165, M. W. A. Socially popular and professionally prominent, he well deserves mention in this volume as one who is wielding a wide influence in community affairs, while at the same time he is never neglectful of those business opportunities which eventually lead to success, having in the trial of causes won some notable forensic victories.
ALEXANDER CLIFFORD BROWN.
Alexander Clifford Brown, engaged in the practice of osteopathy in Council Bluffs since 1901 and widely recognized as a prominent member of the profession, was born at Mediapolis. Des Moines county, Iowa, on the 12th of July, 1873. His parents were Alexander C. and Hannah (Roberts) Brown, the former a merchant and veteran of the Civil war. After the outbreak of hostilities between the north and the south, the father joined the army as a private of Company I, Second Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and participated in the battles of the regiment up to and including the engage- ment at Chickamauga, where he was in command of his company. At the close of the battle he was captured and was first incarcerated in the tobacco warehouse, known as Libby prison, was later sent to Belle Isle and lastly to Andersonville, being a prisoner of war for nineteen months. He was then exchanged and was on the steamer Sultana when she blew up near Mem- phis, Tennessee. Mr. Brown swam and floated down the river four miles, when he climbed a tree on a submerged island where he held on from one o'clock at night until ten o'clock the next morning, when with others he was rescued. There was, however, an awful loss of life from that steam- boat disaster. When the war ended he came to Iowa, where he died on the 7th of January, 1904, his death being largely caused by his army experi- ence, for his health had become broken down and he never fully recovered from the effects of his life upon the tented fields of the south. He had for some years survived his wife, who died in 1892. She was a cultured and literary
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woman and numerous articles, both prose and poetry, from her pen appeared at various times in eastern and mid-western periodicals.
Dr. Brown is one of a family of four children, the others being Anna R., who died at the age of nineteen years while attending college in Ohio; Elizabeth, the wife of Levi H. Fuller, an attorney, who holds a chair in the law department of the Northwestern University at Chicago; and Cyn- thelia Maud, the wife of Alfred C. Watts, one of the head district civil and mining engineers for the Colorado Fuel & Iron Company.
Dr. Brown acquired his early education in the public schools of his native town and afterward attended Parsons College at Fairfield, Iowa. He prepared for his profession as a student in the Still College of Osteopathy, of which he is a graduate. He also took a course at Kirksville, Missouri, in 1900, and post-graduate work in various medical colleges. Coming to Council Bluffs, he located here in 1901 and has since been successfully engaged in the practice of his chosen profession. He has secured many patrons, enjoying a generous practice and is now well established.
The Doctor is a member of the Masonic fraternity and also of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. Ile is quite well known in social circles, being a popular member of the Commercial Club and the Council Bluffs Boat Club. In the line of his profession he is connected with the Iowa Osteopathic Association, being a member of the board of trustees, and the American Osteopathic Association. His religious faith is indicated by luis membership in the First Presbyterian church, in which he is serving as elder. In politics he is a stalwart republican and when William Mc- Kinley was candidate for the presidency was living in Colorado. He was made a delegate to the state republican convention in a free silver state, where to work for a gold standard man meant to stand fearlessly in support of one's views in the face of strong opposition. Such a course, however, is characteristic of Dr. Brown. He has never wavered in his allegiance to any cause or purpose which he believed to be right. On the contrary he is ever most loyal to his convictions and stands as one who is unfaltering in his advocacy of what he believes to be for the best interests of the individual, the city or the nation.
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WILLIAM H. DUDLEY.
William H. Dudley, a stockman of Council Bluffs, was born June S, 1854, near Windsor, Vermont, a picturesque old village beautifully situated at the foot of Ascutney mountain. It was in this village that Hiram Pow- ers, the famous American sculptor. was born. The Dudley farm also lay at the foot of the mountain in a district noted for beautiful scenery. His father, Allen Dudley, was born in Vermont in 1828 and was there married to Miss Sarah E. Harrington. They became the parents of four children, of whom one died in childhood. while three are yet living. namely : William
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H .; Mary E., the wife of Henry S. Britton, of Hartland, Vermont; and Helen A., the wife of Ernest E. Martin, of Mount Holly, New Jersey.
William H. Dudley was reared on the old homestead, remaining there until he had attained his majority. He attended the public schools of Windsor and when not busy with his text-books was occupied with the labors of the farm. Wishing to see something of the world and desiring to have better business opportunities than he could secure in his native locality, he left Vermont in 1876 and made his way westward to Chicago, entering a packing house for the purpose of learning the business. There he remained for five years, conducting a packing house for John P. Squires, of Boston. In 1881 he came to Council Bluffs, where he entered the live-stock business, in which he has since been engaged. For years he has been a well known live-stock commission merchant of South Omaha, conducting extensive oper- ations in this line and winning a creditable measure of prosperity.
In 1884 Mr. Dudley was married, in Council Bluffs, to Miss Susan L. Patterson, a daughter of William L. and Mary I. (Wallace) Patterson. They have three children: Allan H., Chester P. and H. Eusebia.
Mr. Dudley belongs to the Elks lodge. He has never sought to figure prominently in public life aside from his business interests, being content to devote his time and energies to the brokerage business, in which he has met with growing success as the years have gone by. His worth is widely recognized as a man of integrity as well as industry. Each forward step he has made has brought him a broader outlook and wider opportunities and he has at all times been actuated by laudable ambition in whatever he has undertaken.
JOHN PETER MERGEN.
John Peter Mergen, well known as a brewer of Council Bluffs, his native city, was born May 26, 1876. His father, John Mergen, was born in Beezle- bach, Luxemburg, Germany, December 16, 1837, and died in Council Bluffs, July 15, 1901. On coming to America he had located in Omaha in the early '50s and there he engaged in gardening until after the outbreak of the Civil war, when he enlisted in defense of the Union cause, serving with Company B of the First Nebraska Regiment under General Thayer. At the close of the war he came to this city, where he engaged in the grocery and liquor business, in which he continued up to the time of his death. He was a man of sterling worth and attended strictly to his own affairs. He never held an elective office and took but little interest in politics but was very devoted to his family and loyal to his large circle of friends. He was married to Elizabeth Rautenkranz, in Council Bluffs, in the early '70s. She was born in Germany, December 24, 1849, and came to this country a few years prior to her marriage. She now makes her home at No. 709 South Sixth street and is a member of the Catholic church, of which her husband was also a communicant during his life. He likewise affiliated
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with the Catholic Knights of America. In their family were three chil- dren. Anna, the eldest, is the wife of Jacob M. Krug, of the Krug Brew- ing Company of Omaha. She was educated at St. Francis Academy in this city, is also a member of the Catholic church and by her marriage has be- come the mother of one daughter, Clara, born in 1907. Lena M. Mergen, born December 24, 1874, was educated at St. Francis Academy and is living with her mother.
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