USA > Iowa > Sac County > History of Sac County, Iowa > Part 50
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90
Charles F. Brobeil was the youngest of this family of children, all of whom were born in Polk county, Iowa, except the three eldest, who were born in Erie, Pennsylvania. Charles was educated in the district schools of his community until he was fourteen years old, when he became a student at the Des Moines schools. When old enough he learned carpentering with his father. In 1882 he attended the lowa Business College at Des Moines, paying his tuition by doing janitor work, and then found employment with a Des
CHARLES F. BROBEIL
521
SAC COUNTY, IOWA.
Moines wholesale firm as bookkeeper, shipper and collector, where he re- mained for a short time. He then went to Fort Dodge, Iowa, and found em- ployment, but in July, 1884, his employer transferred him to Chicago, where he spent one year, followed by a year's work on a farm. In 1887 his former employer removed to Davenport, Iowa, and Mr. Brobeil assisted him in closing out his stock, and then again went on a farm, where he worked for the next two years. In the fall of 1889 he sold his effects at public sale and removed to Crocker, Iowa, where he engaged in the mercantile business and remained eleven years, making a substantial success. He was postmaster there for four years under President Cleveland. In the fall of 1900, Mr. Brobeil came to Lytton, Sac county. He purchased a business lot where his store is now located for three hundred and twenty-five dollars. He then . bought the next lot adjoining and then the third lot adjoining. The town was just starting, and he built a combined store and dwelling house. His enterprise was successful from the start, showing the wisdom of his judg- ment in the selection of a location, and his business ability and tact in estab- lishing and maintaining a large and important store. In 1906 Mr. Brobeil bought a fine residence in Lytton and moved his family into it. The house is thoroughly modern throughout and the most attractive in Lytton.
Charles F. Brobeil was married in 1886 to Dora Buth, formerly of Polk county, Jowa, daughter of Franz Buth, of Orient, South Dakota. They are the parents of three children. Frank J., who was born in 1889, assists his father in the store. He was educated in the public schools, where he was a fine student, earning a free scholarship, given by the county in 1901, in Tobin College at Fort Dodge, Iowa, and also a scholarship in the University of Omaha and in Buena Vista College. He studied in Iowa Business College, completing the prescribed course and entering his father's store. Minnie K., the second child, is the wife of Frank J. Berkler, and is twenty years old. They were married in December, 1912, and live on a farm in Calhoun county, Iowa. Russell Roy is ten years old. Frank J. is a member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and a member of the Za-Ga-Zig Temple of Mystic Shriners at Des Moines.
Mr. Brobeil has the largest general store in Lytton. He carries a stock of groceries, dry goods, hardware and general merchandise. This stock is housed in a two-story building twenty-four by sixty feet for the main store and a one-story room, fifteen by eighty feet, for hardware stock. The upper floor of the main building is used for clothing, shoes and rubber goods. He carries an unusually large and varied stock, valued at eighteen to twenty
522
SAC COUNTY, IOWA.
thousand dollars. He has another store building which he rents for an im- plement store. He also handles poultry and flour, having a department for each, and also one for produce and eggs. His business has grown from a small stock of goods placed in Lytton in 1900 to the largest and best assort- ment in the eastern part of Sac county.
Mr. Brobeil owns a half interest in a fine half section of land in Cedar township. Sac county, which is one of his best assets. He is one of the stock- holders and directors of the Sac County Fair Association. Politically. he is a Democrat, and is a member of the Lytton city council and a member of the local school board. He is a member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons and the Mystic Shrine, and attends the Presbyterian church, of which Mrs. Brobeil is a member. Mr. Brobeil is a charter member of Lytton Lodge No. 336, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he is past noble grand. and has been secretary of the lodge for the past seven years.
In manifold ways Mr. Brobeil has touched with effectiveness the civic and business activities of Lytton and Sac county. He possesses in marked degree the power of initiative, and his career has shown the wise application of definite subjective forces and the control of objective agencies in such a way as to obtain results of a large and appreciable value. Progressive and energetic in the management of his business affairs, he is also public spirited as a citizen and holds an enviable place in popular esteem.
J. F. McDONALD.
Practical industry, wisely and vigorously applied, never fails of success. It carries a man onward and upward, brings out his individual character and acts as a powerful stimulus to the efforts of others. The greatest results in life are often attained by simple means and the exercise of the ordinary qualities of common sense and perseverance. The every-day life, with its cares, necessities and duties, affords ample opportunities for acquiring ex- perience of the best kind and its most beaten paths provide a true worker with abundant scope for effort and self-improvement.
J. F. McDonald, of Cedar township, Sac county, Iowa, was born in the good old Hoosier state of Indiana in Fayette county, April 14, 1853. His parents, Simon and Anna (Kenna) McDonald, are both natives of the En- erald Isle, born, reared and married in the land of their nativity. They came
523
SAC COUNTY, IOWA.
to New Orleans first, and after two years came to Indiana and settled in Con- nersville, Fayette county, where J. F. was born. In 1855 Simon McDonald and his family went to Stark county, Indiana, and two years later moved over into Jasper county, Indiana. From there they moved to Macon county, Illinois, and bought a farm and lived there the remainder of their days, Simon McDonald dying in 1891 and his widow in 1904. They reared a family of fifteen children, seven of whom are still living: J. F., whose his- tory is portrayed in this connection: John T., of Hamilton county, Iowa; W. H., of Calhoun county, Iowa ; Mrs. Mary A. Nice, of Valparaiso, Ne- braska: Mrs. Clara Bigger, of Varina, Pocahontas county, Iowa: Daniel, of Beeson, Illinois: Elnora, of Rapid City, Illinois, and Isabel, who died at the age of eighteen years.
J. F. McDonald was educated in the country schools of Indiana and Illinois, and at the age of twenty-one rented a farm of two hundred and eighty acres in Illinois and for the next thirty years lived on this rented farm. He made money and, what is more important, saved it, with the re- sult that when he came to Iowa in 1896, he was able to purchase two hun- dred and forty acres of his present farm. He left his brother in charge of the farm and returned to Illinois, where he stayed until March, 1907. He then moved his family to Sac county, where he is still residing. He has erected a large barn and other outbuildings and has done considerable tiling. His farm is now worth at least two hundred dollars an acre. In 1913 he had one hundred and twenty acres of corn which averaged fifty bushels to the acre. His year's production of live stock included one hundred head of hogs, thirty-five head of cattle and twelve head of horses and mules.
Mr. McDonald has been twice married, his first marriage being to Mary Nice, of Illinois, in 1876. She died in December, 1894, leaving four children : S. F., of Oklahoma; J. T., of Cedar township, Sac county, Iowa ; Elmer. of Chicago, and Mrs. Abbie Krick, of Chicago. In 1896 Mr. Mc- Donald was married to Minnie Terry, of Clinton, Illinois, and to this second marriage have been born two children, Rex and Donald.
While Mr. McDonald has always taken an active interest in Democratic politics, yet he has never been a seeker for any public office. He is a mem- ber of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of Sac City and also belongs to the chapter and commandery. His wife is a member of the Christian church and gives it her earnest and loyal support. The industry, energy and high moral traits of integrity which have characterized Mr. McDonald since he came to this county have placed him among the prominent citizens of
524
SAC COUNTY, IOWA.
his locality. He has lived a life which measures up to a high standard of citizenship, and his influence has ever been on the side of light and for the best interests of his community.
HENRY KASTNER.
The subject of this review is one of those strong, self-reliant and determined characters who are occasionally met with and who are of such a distinct type as to seem to be born leaders of their fellow men. Not that Mr. Kastner courts that distinction, for he is entirely unassuming, but his great force of character and his zeal and energy in whatever he undertakes maturally place him at the head of the crowd. He has been a potent factor in the development of Sac county, where he has long maintained his home and where he is well known to all classes for his honorable and industrious life. in both private and public relations.
Henry Kastner, a retired farmer of Wall Lake, Sac county, Iowa, was born January 25, 1843, in Germany. His parents were Gottfried and Oreka Kastner, who came to America in 1869, settled in Benton county, Iowa, after which the mother soon died. Gottfried Kastner then went to Nebraska, where he took up a homestead and lived until his death.
Henry Kastner was reared and educated in his native country, and came to the United States in 1869, when he was twenty-six years of age. He first settled in Benton county, Iowa, where he worked for four years as a farm laborer. In 1873 he went to Crawford county, this state, where he followed farming for two years, and at the expiration of that time came to Sac county and settled in Wall Lake township, where he has since con- tinned to reside. He first purchased one hundred and ninety-five acres of land, and later bought forty acres adjoining his first farm. He proved a very successful farmer and, with true German thrift and frugality, has been enabled to pay for his land and improve it in a way which has greatly enhanced its value. In 1913 he sold his farm at a good price and retired to Wall Lake, where he is now living a life of honorable retirement. sur- rounded by the comforts and conveniences which his former years of hard labor have secured for him.
Mr. Kastner was married in 1870 to Margaret Nelson, who died in 1896, and to this marriage were born eight children, all of whom are living: Mrs. Mary Henson, who lives in Holstein, Iowa; Ferdinand, of Saskatche-
525
SAC COUNTY, IOWAA.
wan, Canada; Mrs. Matikla Peper, of Wall Lake township, this county; William, also of Saskatchewan; Edward, of Saskatchewan; Mrs. Martha Watts, of Holstein, this state; Charles, also of Holstein; Mrs. Margaret Schotte, of Holstein. Mr. Kastner was married a second time on November 20, 1901, to Minnie ( Behrens ) Hausmann, who was a native of Germany, her birth having occurred in that country on September 26, 1852. and she came to America when she was twenty-six years of age in 1878. leaving Germany October 22d.
Politically, Mr. Kastner is a Democrat, but his activities have been such as to prevent hin from taking an active part in the game of politics. He and the members of his family have all been stanch adherents of the German Lutheran church and have rendered it loyal service. The life which Mr. Kastner has led in this county has been characterized by honesty and sterling integrity, and for this reason he holds a high place in the estimation of his friends and neighbors.
JOHN G. WAGNER.
Some of the best men of broad and stalwart character are those who are self-educated very largely, and in many instances a large part of their best training came to them through the study they gave to the biographies of great men. The study of the lives of enterprising men, especially of good men, are surely instructive, acting as guides and incentive to others. They furnish examples of steady purpose and steadfast integrity which strongly illustrate what is in the power of each of us to accomplish if we will but bend every effort of our will to the attainment of some worthy aim. The instances of success in the face of difficulties would almost seem to justify the conclusion that self-reliance, with a half chance, can accomplish any reasonable object. The man whose life history is herewith outlined is a man who has lived to good purpose and achieved splendid success. By a straight- forward and honorable course he has won for himself a competence an l takes his place among the enterprising and successful men of Sac county, lowa, who have met success in the vocation of farming and stock raising.
John G. Wagner, a farmer of Richland township, this county, where he owns three hundred and seventy-five acres of land, is a native of Ger- many, born July 23, 1867, the son of George and Elizabeth Wagner. In 1885 the subject and his sister, Martha, now Mrs. Langworth, of Chicago,
526
SAC COUNTY, IOWA.
Illinois, left their home in Germany and came to America, believing there were broader opportunities for them in this country than in their native land. The father came to this country and to Sac county in about 1887 and still lives here, the mother having died in Germany. When the subject first came to this country he located in Lee county, Illinois, where for eight years he worked at farm labor. In 1893 he came to Sac county and for one year worked for C. H. Rinehart. Then he rented the Helsell farm, where he lived for sixteen years. During this time he was prospering in a gratifying manner and purchasing land in various places. In 1909 he sokl eighty acres of land which he owned in this county, also one hundred and sixty acres which he had in South Dakota, and purchased his present home comprising three hundred and seventy-five acres in Richland township. This land is all new, in an excellent state of cultivation and all buildings have been erected within the last few years. The dwelling is modern and com- modious, convenient in every sense of the word and shelters an interesting family. At the present time, Mr. Wagner has thirty-five head of cattle and raises for the market about sixty head of hogs annually. The raising of stock is a side line with him, as he devotes most of his attention to his crops, in which he is highly successful.
Mr. Wagner was married on June 18, 1896, to Mary Weitzel and to their union have been born nine children: Elma, Esther, Arthur, Frances. Ralph. Raymond. Alice, Helen and Glenn. These young people are being carefully reared in all that is essential to noble and useful manhood and womanhood. They are members of the Reformed church and in politics Mr. Wagner is a Republican of the old school. He is a man of excellent quali- ties and his conduct in every relation of life has been above reproach. Such honest and industrious lives are the warp and woof of the stability of a nation and in their increasing mimbers its hope for the future lies.
FRANK L. DUNKIN.
Man really has but three wants on this earth, namely, food, clothing and shelter, and it is the farmer alone who is able to supply these wants. A total cessation of the agricultural interests of the United States for one year wonkl demoralize the whole country in every way, so dependent is the nation upon the product of the farm. There can be no question but that every industry is dependent more or less upon the success of the farmer, and for this reason the farmer is rightly the bulwark of our nation.
527
SAC COUNTY, IOWA.
Frank L. Dunkin, of Clinton township, Sac county, Iowa, was born on September 17, 1859, in Clinton county, lowa, and is the son of Oliver Perry and Mary Jane ( Clark ) Dunkin. Oliver Perry Dunkin was born January 21. 1826, in Brown county, Ohio, and died July 2, 1907, in Sac county, lowa. He came to Iowa while it was yet a territory, and located in Jack- son county, near Magnoketa. In this county he was married, on November 12. 1854. to Mary Jane Clark, who was born March 23, 1830, in Newark, New Jersey. In her early childhood, the Clark family removed from New Jersey to New York, and subsequently to Ohio. From Ohio they came to Clinton county, Iowa. in 1853, and a year later she married Mr. Dunkin. She was a lineal descendant of Thomas Clark, who came to this country in the "Mayflower," and one of her uncles, Alvin Clark, has the honor of mak- ing the great telescopes which are used in the Lick Observatory in California and the Yerkes Observatory at Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Mrs. Dunkin died February 16, 1914. Oliver P. Dunkin and wife celebrated their golden wedding anniversary on November 12, 1004. They were the parents of five children: Frank L., whose history forms the theme of this narrative; Mrs. Sarah Southwell, of McCook, Nebraska; William W., of Clinton county, this state: George S., of Clinton township, Sac county; and Fred, who died March 22, 1906.
Frank L. Dunkin was educated in the schools of Clinton county, Iowa, and also attended school after coming to this county. He was sixteen years of age when his parents came from Clinton county to Sac county and settled in Clinton township. He assisted his father on the home farm of three hundred and twenty acres until his marriage, his father giving him eighty acres of the old home place when he reached his majority. On this farm he has built a fine home and other buildings and has improved the farm in various ways.
Mr. Dunkin was married April 3. 1889, to Magdalina Angel, who was born September 5. 1865. in Germany, and came to America when she was two years of age. She was the stepdaughter of Conrad Meyer, an old resi- dent of Odebolt. To Mr. and Mrs. Dunkin were born five children: Rose M., born March 14. 1890: Anna A., born September 3. 1891 : Ida M., born December 9. 1894: Katharine S., born September I. 1903; Oliver P., born January 3. 1906.
Politically, Mr. Dunkin is allied with the Republican party and has taken an intelligent interets in the success of his party at the polls. He has al- ways been interested in the educational affairs of the township, and has served as school director, a position in which he was eminently well qualified to
528
SAC COUNTY, IOWA.
serve. He is a charter member of the Lake View lodge of Odd Fellows, and has taken a deep interest in the affairs of this fraternal organization. Mr. Dunkin has a host of friends in his community and owing to his honesty in business and his upright social and private life, he is much admired by all who know him for his wholesome living, as well as for his interests in the various public enterprises.
EDWIN M. YOUNG.
The science of agriculture-for it is a science as well as an art-finds an able demonstrator as well as successful practitioner in the person of Edwin M. Young, who is widely known in Sac county, maintaining a very productive and desirable farm in Cedar township. He comes of a very highly honored family of Ohio, members of which came to this county a third of a century ago, and became substantial citizens of the state.
Edwin M. Young, a prosperous farmer of Cedar township. in this county. was born March 13, 1870, in Nelsonville, Athens county, Ohio. His parents were McKindree and Susan ( Sheffield) Young. both of whom were natives of Athens county. Ohio. The Young family came to Sac county. lowa, in 1883, leaving their native state on March 13. the birthday of Edwin M., whose history is herein recorded. The Young family first settled in Jackson town- ship, but later made their permanent residence in Cedar township, where Mc- Kindree Young died January 15. 1911. at the age of seventy-three. His wife died March 17, 1892. Mr. and Mrs. McKindree Young were the parents of four children : Mrs. Jane Martin, of Seattle, Washington : Mrs. Huldah A. Baier, of Seattle, Washington : Edwin M., and one who died in infancy.
Edwin M. Young was educated in the schools of his home county in Ohio and also attended the schools in Sac county, after his parents moved to this state. Upon his mother's death, in 1892. he married and went to work on the home farm and has continued to reside there until the present time. Ile became the sole owner of the farm in the fall of 1905. and since then has improved the farm in many ways, and has brought it to a state of pro- ductivity where it ranks with any in his township. In 1913 he had thirty acres of corn which would average sixty bushels to the acre, a yield which is very satisfactory for this part of the state. In addition to his general farming, he also raises considerable live stock and thus adds a comfortable sum to his annual income from the farm.
Mr. Young was married April 10. 1892, to Minnie D. Whitney. the
MR. AND MRS. EDWIN M. YOUNG
529
SAC COUNTY, IOWA.
daughter of Oscar F. and Martha E. Whitney, old settlers of Sac county. To this marriage have been born seven children, four of whoni are living. The children, in the order of their birth, are as follows: An infant, born January 3, 1895, who lived ten days ; Cecil I., born June 7, 1897; Agnes Maggie, born July 30, 1899; Lillian Fern, born October 31, 1902; Edwin Bigelow, born March 21, 1907. and Earl and Irma. twins, born January 6, 1910, deceased.
Mr. Young is a Progressive in politics and takes an active interest in the principles of the new party. He attends the Baptist church with his family and takes an earnest interest in the various organizations of the church. Fraternally, he is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- lows, Knights of Pythias and the Daughters of Rebekah. Mr. Young is a man of pleasing appearance and has a host of friends throughout the com- munity who admire him for his many good qualities.
MARTIN A. MESSER.
One of the best known and enterprising of the younger generation of agriculturists of Sac county is Martin A. Messer, now in the very prime of life and usefulness, and his influence as an honorable, upright citizen is productive of much good upon all with whom he comes in contact. His past success gives assurance of something yet to come, and he is evidently des- tined to continue a potent factor for substantial good for many years to come. He is the owner of fine farming lands in Sac county, which he con- ducts in a manner that stamps him as fully abreast of the times.
Martin A. Messer, the owner of a fine section of land in Richland township, Sac county, Iowa, was born January 24, 1880, in Benton county, this state, the son of Adam and Emma (Gresie) Messer, who were both natives of Germany, who first settled in Illinois upon coming to this country. Adam Messer was a carpenter and followed that trade in Illinois for some years. He then came to Benton county, Iowa. where he purchased eighty acres of land and in that county met his wife, Emma Gresie. In 1881 Adam Messer sold his land in Benton county and bought one hundred and sixty acres in Richland township, Sac county, and so successful was he in his agricultural operations that he was able to buy additional land from time to time until he is now the owner of six hundred and forty acres in this township. Mr. and Mrs. Adam Messer are the parents of seven children :
(33)
:
SAC COUNTY. IOWA.
530
Mrs. Kate Hoefling, a resident of Richland township, this county: Mrs. Minnie Sudegar, of Lyon county, Iowa ; Harry, of Correctionville, this state ; Charles, a resident of Jackson county, Minnesota: Pearl, of Colorado Springs, Colorado; Mrs. Edna Konradi and Martin A.
Martin A. Messer was educated in the district schools of Richland town- ship, where his parents moved when he was about one year old. When he was twenty years of age he went to Brookings county, South Dakota, and operated his father's farm in that state for five years. He then returned home and worked out for three years, moving on to his present farm March I, 1913. He is now operating a farm of two hundred and forty acres, which is well improved in every way and one of the most productive farms of the township. His annual income from the farm is divided between his grain and stock interests. In 1913 he raised on his farm twenty-eight head of cattle, forty-six head of hogs and ten head of horses.
Mr. Messer was first married September 13, 1903, to Minnie Stanley. and to this marriage were born three children, Pearl. Iva and Ruby. Mr. Messer's second marriage occurred January 22, 1913, his wife being Ruth Mead, the daughter of Hugh H. Mead.
Politically, Mr. Messer is affiliated with the Democratic party, but has never yet been an aspirant for any political office. Religiously, his faith is that of the Presbyterian church, to which he and his wife both belong. Mr. Messer is a young farmer and has a long and prosperous career before him. . With the start which he has already made, it is safe to predict that in the years to come he will be one of the most substantial farmers of the county.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.