USA > Iowa > O'Brien County > Past and present of O'Brien and Osceola counties, Iowa, Vol. II > Part 46
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FRED FRISBEE.
Among the worthy citizens of Sheldon, Iowa, whose residence here has contributed in no small degree to the prestige of the vicinity is Fred Frisbee, for, while laboring for his individual advancement, he has never forgotten his obligations to the public and his support of such measures and move- ments as have been made for the general good has always been depended upon. Although his life has been a busy one, his private affairs making heavy demands upon his time, he has never allowed it to interfere with his obliga- tions as a citizen or in his duties as mayor of Sheldon. He has always been interested in the public affairs of his city, and is now serving as mayor in a
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manner acceptable to all classes of citizens irrespective of political affiliations. Through the long years of his residence in this locality, he has ever been true to the trusts reposed in him, whether of a public or private nature, and his reputation in a business way has been unassailable. Possessing in a marked degree those sterling traits which have commanded uniform confidence and regard, he is today honored by all who know him, and is numbered among the representative men of his section of the state.
Fred Frisbee was born July 6, 1849, at Geneva Lake, Wisconsin. His parents were Chester and Emeline (Stevens) Frisbee, both of whom were natives of Oneida county, New York. Chester Frisbee and his family came to Walworth county, Wisconsin, in 1845. In 1851 he bought a farm in Dane county, near Madison, Wisconsin, the capitol of the state, and lived there until 1881, when he came to Sheldon, where he lived the remainder of his days. Mr. and Mrs. Chester Frisbee were the parents of eight children: Mrs. Eliza- beth Vaughn, who died in San Diego, California, in 1812; Adeline, who died at the age of twenty-five in Wisconsin; Mrs. Ruth Fox, who died in 1907; Jennette, who died in 1908; Bessie, the wife of Frank Webster, of Sheldon ; James, who came to O'Brien county in the fall of 1870, and died in 1892 in Sheldon ; he homesteaded on the southwest part of section 14 in Carroll township and farmed it for many years, retiring to Sheldon a short time before his death: Frank, of Sheldon, who homesteaded on the northwest quarter of section 14. Carroll township, in April, 1871; Fred, whose history is herein presented, is the youngest child.
Fred Frisbee received his preliminary education in the district schools of Wisconsin and later attended the State University at Madison. At the age of twenty-two he came to Iowa and homesteaded in Osceola county, settling on the northwest quarter of section 18, in Baker township, one-half mile west and one mile north of Melvin. Here he suffered all of those hard- ships which were peculiar to the early settlers of this county, yet, with grim determination and persistence, he stayed on his section until he had it in a good condition. Oftentimes a year would pass without any crops at all and he went through the grasshopper war of 1876, 1877 and 1878. He built a cabin, twelve by sixteen, of boards on end and in this lived for several years, doing and living the same life which hundreds of other sturdy young men did in this and adjoining counties. Later he came to Sheldon and he and his brother, Frank, opened a livery stable, and for the next twenty years managed this business with an increasing income annually. As they saved money from this busness, the brothers invested it in land, while it was cheap,
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at prices varying from six to fifty dollars an acre. He and his brother. Frank, own three thousand acres, of which eighteen hundred is in O'Brien and Osceola counties, Iowa. and Moody county. South Dakota. eleven hundred in other counties in Iowa and seven hundred in South Dakota. Mrs. Frisbee owns one thousand acres in O'Brien and Osceola counties. This land now averages one hundred and twenty dollars an acre in value and some of it is worth as high as one hundred and seventy-five dollars per acre. After entering the livery business, Mr. Frisbee never returned to active farming, although he has always rented his farms out and had general supervision over them.
For the past twenty-five years Mr. Frisbee has been largely interested in the banking business. He organized the Pringhar Bank with J. L. E. Peck and George W. Schee: has been a director of the First National Bank of Sheldon for twenty years and one of the largest stockholders : was formerly connected with the Hartley State Bank: a director in the First National Bank of Hartley : a stockholder in the Sanborn Savings Bank, the Ocheyedan Savings Bank, the Sibley State Bank and the Boyden Savings Bank. In addition, he has been interested in several other banks of the state, among them being the Ames Savings Bank.
Mr. Frisbee is a Republican in politics and has always been actively in- terested in affairs of his party. He has never allowed his large business and agricultural interests to hinder him from taking his share of the responsibil- ity of public life, and for seventeen years served on the city council of Shel- don. In March, 1912, he received the highest honor the citizens of Sheldon could confer upon one of their number, by being elected mayor of the city. During his administration the streets have been paved and the boulevard lights installed, thereby enhancing the beauty of the property as well as in- creasing its value. He and the members of his family are attendants of the Congregational church of Sheldon and contribute liberally to its support. He is a prominent member of the Knights of Pythias and Pythian Sisters.
Mr. Frisbee was married in 1879 to Idelle Haseltine, the daughter of Joseph Haseltine and wife. Joseph Haseltine was a native of Hamilton county, Ohio, and spent his boyhood days near Cincinnati. He was a pre- empter and pioneer of Green county. Wisconsin, not coming to O'Brien county until his latter years. Mr. and Mrs. Frisbee have two interesting sons, Willis, who graduated from the University of Minnesota and is now an automobile salesman at Sheldon, and Lawrence, who graduated from the Sheldon high school and is now a sophomore in the University of Minne- sota. Mr. and Mrs. Frisbee have a large, fine residence situated in very at- tractive ground. The mayor owns city property in addition to his home, in-
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cluding the three-story brick building on Main street used for business and lodge purposes. Mr. Frisbee is a man of splendid personality and is public spirited in his attitude toward all movements for the advancement of the best interests of his city. Because of his public-spiritedness and his many good qualities, he enjoys the esteem of his city and county.
ROBERT ALEXANDER MATEER.
Among the honorable and influential citizens of O'Brien county, Iowa, is the subject of this review, who has here maintained his home for many years, winning a definite success by means of the agricultural industry, to which he has devoted his attention during the years of an active business life. His career has been without shadow of wrong or suspicion of evil, and thus he has ever commanded the confidence and esteem of his fellow men.
Robert Alexander Mateer was born February 5, 1859, in Pike county, Illinois, the son of George and Margaret ( Murray ) Mateer. George Mateer was born in Ireland in 1826, and received his education in the land of his birth. As a young man he worked at different things in his own land and when he came to America he worked for awhile in Pennsylvania, after which he went to Illinois in 1852, where he followed the vocation of farming, and during the time he was working in this line he also bought and sold farms. In 1855 he returned to his home country and went across to Scotland, where he was married to Margaret Murray, and to this union were born nine chil- dren : Mrs. Mary Umpleby, a resident of Illinois; Mrs. Susan Denton, who also lives in Illinois; George, a farmer of North Dakota: John, living in Illinois : Mrs. Sarah Gallagher, who lives in Illinois; James, a farmer living in Montana: Mrs. Rosa Grimes, living in Illinois; William, of Illinois, and Robert .A., with whom this narrative deals.
Robert A. Mateer remained with his parents in Illinois until he was twenty-one years of age, when he came to O'Brien county, Iowa, where he worked at farm labor throughout the county. He married and then rented land for about six years, and in 1887 bought three hundred and twenty-seven acres of raw land for thirteen dollars an acre. He has four acres of orchard. which he has set out himself since coming to this farm. He has made exten- sive improvements in the way of buildings, tiling and fencing and has made a success of agriculture. In addition to the raising of all the crops common to this section of the country. he keeps registered stock of various kinds and
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finds a ready sale for all of his surplus stock. He owns a large share of stock in the Farmers Elevator Company at Archer, Iowa, and is a director in the company.
Mr. Mateer was married in 1884. in O'Brien county, Iowa, to Mattie Bonderman, and to this union have been born eleven children, Walter, Susan, Frank, Mabel, Ernest, Faye, George, Florence, Robert, Milo and Scott. Susan is the only one of these children who is married. She married Mr. Peterson and lives in this county. Mabel graduated from the Sheldon high school and is now teaching in Montana, where her brother, Frank, is now operating a farm. The other children are still with their parents on the home farm.
Politically, Mr. Mateer is an independent voter, but is strongly in favor of progressive measures of all kinds. He and his family are regular and faithful attendants of the Methodist Episcopal church and contribute liberally of their means to its support. Fraternally. Mr. Mateer is a member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons at Primghar, Iowa. He has always taken a deep interest in educational affairs, and for the past twelve years has been school director of his township. He is a fine example of the sturdy Scotch- Irish emigrant who has made a success of agriculture in this county. While a native of this country, yet he inherits all of those characteristics which are found in his father's race. He is a genial and sociable man and has a host of friends throughout the community who admire him for his many good quali- ties. He has been a good citizen and has given of his time and means to the support of such enterprises as give promise of the betterment of his com- munity.
CHARLES E. APPLETON.
A man's reputation is the property of the world, for the laws of nature have forbidden isolation. Every human being either submits to the con- trolling influence of others or wields an influence which touches, controls, guides or misdirects others. If he be honest and successful in his chosen field of endeavor, investigation will brighten his fame and point the way along which others may follow with like success. The reputation of Charles E. Appleton, one of the leading farmers of O'Brien county, Iowa, having been unassailable all along the highways of life, according to those who have known him best, it is believed that a critical study of his career will be of benefit to the reader, for it has been one not only of usefulness but of honor also.
Charles E. Appleton, a retired farmer of Sheldon, O'Brien county,
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lowa, was born in 1870 in Madison county, Iowa, the son of Abel and Mary Ann (Bridgford) Appleton. The father was born in 1838 in Butler county, Ohio, and lived in that county until the outbreak of the Civil War, when he enlisted in Company B, One Hundred and Sixty-seventh Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served until he was discharged on September 8, 1864, after which he went to Madison county, lowa, where he purchased eighty acres of timber land and cleared and improved the tract in such a way as to realize a handsome profit when he sold it a few years later. He first came to O'Brien county, Iowa, on April 19, 1871, and immediately set- tled on the northwest quarter of section 36. He improved this one hundred and sixty acres and rendered it a very valuable piece of property. He set out five acres of orchard and forest trees in accordance with the custom of all the farmers of this section of the state. He was an extensive stock raiser and added much to his income each year from his sale of stock. He died in 1901 and is buried at Sheldon. Abel Appleton was married January 2, 1868, to Mary Ann Bridgford, who was a native of Ohio, her birth having occurred in that state in 1853, in Butler county, and to this union there were born nine children : William, who lives in Spencer, Iowa; Mrs. Lulu Bils- land, who is a resident of this county; Robert, deceased: Addie, of Sheldon, Iowa : Clarence, of this county : Thomas E., deceased ; Mrs. Erma Watson, of this county ; Ray Chester. a farmer living in South Dakota, and Charles F., whose life is here presented to the reader.
Charles E. Appleton received a good education in the schools of O'Brien county. He was only one year of age when his parents moved from Madison county to O'Brien county and has spent his life since then in this county. When twenty-five years of age he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land and has added to his first land holdings until he is now the owner of three hundred and twenty acres of well improved land in the county. He has put in an extensive system of scientific drainage, which adds not a little to the productivity of the farm, as well as the value of the land. He has always been an extensive cattle feeder and derives a large part of his income from the sale of his stock. In addition to his agricultural interests, he has an interest in the Farmers Elevators at Archer and the Lumber Company at the same place.
Mr. Appleton retired from the active labor of the farm in 1913 and is now living in Sheldon, Iowa. Politically, he is independent, belonging to that large class of citizens who are not blind to the fact that all of the good men are not in one party, and if every American citizen should exercise his right as well as his privilege and vote for the best men, irrespective of
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party lines, the political millenium would soon be here. He is an attendant of the Congregational church and contributes liberally to the support of that denomination. Fraternally. he is a member of the Ancient Free and Ac- cepted Masons at Primghar. Iowa, and is also a member of the consistory at Sioux City, Iowa. No man in his locality has possessed to a greater degree the absolute confidence and regard of the people generally and in all that constitutes true manhood, good citizenship and sterling integrity of character. he is a worthy example. and his career so far has been characterized by duty well performed.
RUBEN W. YOUNG.
The subject of this article is one of the best known men in Union town- ship. having long been a resident in this locality and having held various posi- tions of responsibility and trust. In whatever capacity we hear of Mr. Young. we find him spoken of with the highest respect and utmost confidence in his ability, judgment and integrity. His birth occurred in the year 1854, in Jackson county. Ohio, he being the son of George D. Young, who was born in Center county, Pennsylvania. in the year 1814. The father. in his youth, was taught the use of needle and shears, and he readily mastered the art of the expert tailor. For many years his time was devoted to this voca- tion in the state of Pennsylvania, and later in Ohio.
In the year 1851 Mr. Young was united in marriage to Caroline Rider, whose birth occurred in the state of Ohio in the year 1833: and four years later the couple journeyed westward, locating in Boone county. Iowa. As the years passed he desired to leave the confines of the shop and engage in the pursuit of agriculture, and in 1862 his wish was realized and he found himself actively engaged in the tilling of the soil. Very successful he proved in this vocation, and for twenty years he found his pleasure and his profit in the production of bountiful harvests. As he advanced in years, however. he looked forward to the time when he should enjoy the fruits of his toil, and accordingly, in 1882. he retired from active labor and moved, with his family, into the town of Boone, Iowa. and here his remaining days were passed, until death called him in 1894.
Seven children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Young, four of whom are now living, a source of great comfort to the mother, who resides with her daughter. Mrs. Mary Hodges. These children were Agnes ( Mrs. Wagner), now deceased : Francis, a successful carpenter of Boone, Iowa ; James, whom
RUBEN W. YOUNG
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death called in infancy, and John, also deceased ; Charles, an insurance agent in Minneapolis, Minnesota : and Mary, now Mrs. Hodges, of Carroll, Iowa
Ruben, the immediate subject of this article. attended the schools of Boone county, Iowa, and, as he grew in stature and strength, assisted his father in the various activities of the farm; but when he reached the age of maturity he rented land for his own use and for three years he labored assiduously in its cultivation. At the expiration of this period he emigrated 10 O'Brien county and here also, in Union township, a tract of land was rented. . At this time there were but four families residing in the township, and the young man found all the loneliness and privation of a pioneer's life awaiting him: but he labored cheerfully and enthusiastically to improve the tract which he had rented, and at the expiration of six years he was enabled to purchase a quarter section of prairie land. This was soon plowed and planted, trees were planted in numbers, including one and one-half acres of walnut. Later eighty acres additional was purchased, and the place was stocked with choice live stock. He was particularly successful as a breeder of Clydesdale horses, and his exhibits of these animals at county fairs brought him prizes.
In the year 1877 Mr. Young was united in marriage to Mary V. Smith. whose birth occurred in 1856 at Decatur, Iowa, and henceforth his efforts for success were continued and increased. In the year 1905 his holdings here were disposed of and the following year the family moved to Paullina, and this has since been their residing place. Six years later he purchased the tile factory of this place, and with characteristic energy set about to increase the output of the concern. Now a full line of cement products of various kinds is manufactured and Mr. Young is constantly adding to his line and introducing new ideas in its designs.
Ten children have blessed the home and lives of Mr. and Mrs. Young, as follows: Orrin and George, who are residents of the state of Oregon: Lee, a farmer of Union township. O'Brien county: Ethel. now Mrs. Carnahan, of Larrabee, Iowa: Charles, who is his father's able assistant in the manu- facturing plant : Inez, now Mrs. Beebe, a resident of Paullina ; Myrtle, a trained nurse, graduated from the Methodist hospital of Des Moines : Mae, teaching school at Cedar Falls, Iowa ; and Ralph and Francis, who still enjoy the privileges and protection of the parental roof.
Mr. Young is a firm adherent of the principles of the Democratic party, and a prominent member of the Methodist church of Paullina. He is also affiliated with the order of Yeomen of that place. The confidence of his fellow men in his sound judgment and integrity has been evidenced in many
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ways. He was selected as one of three school trustees of Union township, and served as secretary of the school board of the locality. He was also for a time assessor of the township, and is now president of the school board. In each capacity Mr. Young has given unsparingly of his time and energies, serving the people who selected him with the same diligence and fidelity which he has evinced in the carrying on of his private business projects.
Mr. Young's life throughout has been one of service, and all movements for the betterment of the community have had his encouragement and inter- est, and now, in the autumn of his life, he possesses in fullest measure the esteem and confidence of his many friends throughout the county.
MAHLON HARVEY.
Among the successful, self-made men of a past generation in Osceola county, Iowa, whose efforts and influence contributed to the material up- building of the community, the late Mahlon Harvey occupied a conspicuous place. Being ambitious from the first, but surrounded with none too favor- able environment, his early youth was not especially promising, but, reso- lutely facing the future, he gradually surmounted the difficulties in his way and in due course of time rose to a prominent position in the commercial, agricultural and financial circles of his community, besides winning the con- fidence and esteem of those with whom he came in contact, either in a business or a social way, and for years he stood as one of the representative citizens of the locality honored by his citizenship. Strongly in contrast with the hum- ble surroundings of his youth was the high position which he eventually filled in the life of his community. He realized early that there is a purpose in life and that there is no honor not founded on worth and no respect not founded on accomplishment. His life and labors were worthy because they contributed to a proper understanding of life and its problems. The strongest characters in our national history have come from the ranks of the self-made men to whom adversity acts as an impetus for unfaltering effort, and from this class came the lamented gentleman whose name initiates this memorial.
The late Mahlon Harvey, a distinguished citizen of his county and a representative to the state Legislature at the time of his death, was born August 26, 1844, in Potsdam, St. Lawrence county, New York, and died on December 21, 1912, eleven days before the expiration of his third term in the
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Legislature. His parents, Freeman and Evelyn ( Copland) Harvey, were of Scotch descent and natives of New York state.
Mr. Harvey was given a good, common school education and early in life taught school for a time. He learned the cheese-making trade in his native state and upon coming to Iowa, in 1875, he followed that trade for a time. He also taught school in Iowa for a time after coming to the state, and made his first purchase of land in section 28, East Holman township, buying one hundred and sixty acres, at a cost of three dollars an acre. land which is today easily worth one hundred and fifty dollars an acre. After buying his farm and making some temporary improvements he returned to New York state and brought his family back the next year. When he first came to Iowa he experienced the same trouble which befell all of the settlers in the northwestern part of Iowa in the latter seventies. He had to contend with the grasshoppers, which were so thick that they practically ate all of the crops. Many of the farmers became discouraged and left the county, but Mr. Harvey had the foresight to see that the land would one day become very valuable and stayed with his farm. He has always been a heavy breeder of sheep and has always had from three to five hundred head of sheep on the farm. At one time he branched out into the breeding of pure bred hogs, but later decided to devote his attention to his sheep.
Mr. Harvey was twice married. His first wife, Helen Houghton, died in 1889, leaving two children, Mabel and Elmer, the former of whom died before her father, while the son is now living upon his father's farm. Elmer married Jeannette Buchan, and has one son, Lloyd. In 1893 Mr. Harvey was again married to Alice Harvey, his cousin, who was born August 6, 1864, in Colton, St. Lawrence county, New York, and is the daughter of Norman and Adelia ( Blount ) Harvey. In 1892 she came to Iowa as a school teacher and a year later was married to Mahlon Harvey. To this second union was born one daughter, Rachel, who died at the age of thirteen years.
Mahlon Harvey always made his home on the farm and was regarded as one of the most progressive farmers of the county. He was a public-spirited man in the fullest sense of the word and was highly respected by every one who knew him. In politics he adhered to the Republican faith and received several offices at the hands of his party. Having been a school teacher early in life, it was natural that he should be interested in educational work. Ac- cordingly, he was school director and was secretary and treasurer of the school board of his township for more than twenty years. In 1896 he was
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nominated by his party as state representative from his county and was elected. He gave such excellent satisfaction that he was re-elected for two more terms, holding from 1906 until 1912. While in the Legislature he was particularly interested in all the bills of an educational nature. He was the father of the bill forbidding treating in saloons. He was a strong advocate of every bill which he felt would benefit the general welfare of the people of the state. He was a sturdy exponent of clean living and high thinking and exerted a wholesome influence in the community where he spent so many active years. He gave to the world the best of an essentially loyal and noble nature. He was true to the highest ideals and principles of life and was one of the world's noble army of workers.
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