USA > Idaho > History of Idaho, the gem of the mountains, Volume II > Part 111
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Mr. Gray was a veteran of the Civil war. In 1861 he enlisted at Pattonsburg, Missouri, as a member of Company E, Twenty-third Regiment of Missouri Volun- teers, and served for three years, six months and ten days. He participated in many hotly contested engagements, including the battles of Missionary Ridge, Lookout Mountain, Chattanooga and others, and also went with Sherman on the celebrated march from Atlanta to the sea, which proved that the strength of the Confederacy was almost exhausted, the troops having been drawn from the interior to defend the border. When the war was over Mr. Gray returned to his home in Missouri with a most creditable military record. In 1875 he removed with his wife to Idaho.
In his political views Mr. Gray was a democrat, interested in the success of his party because of his firm belief in its principles. He filled the office of county commissioner for six years. Fraternally he was connected with the Masons and was a faithful follower of the beneficent teachings and purposes of the craft. He passed away September 25, 1894, honored and respected by all who knew him and most of all by those who knew him best, indicating that his was an upright and honorable life. Mrs. Gray still makes her home in Cassia county, where she bas now lived for forty-five years, and is esteemed as one of the worthy pioneer women of this part of the state.
JOHN W. HARDIN.
John W. Hardin, identified with both farming and grain interests, being now manager of the Kimberly elevator at Kimberly, Twin Falls county, was born on a farm about twelve miles from Springfield, in Sangamon county, Illinois, February 13, 1872, his parents being R. T. and Mary C. (Starr) Hardin, both of whom are now living at Taylorville, Illinois. The Hardins are an old Kentucky family, promi- nent in that state, where the grandfather of John W. Hardin followed farming in early life and afterward removed to Illinois. His wife belonged to the Baird family, also well known in Kentucky from pioneer times, and both passed away in Illinois.
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R. T. Hardin was born near Lexington, Kentucky, and was six years of age when his parents left that state, removing to Menard county, Illinois, where he was reared to manhood. He took up farming as a life work and later removed to Sanga- mon county, where he wedded Miss Mary C. Starr. They have continued residents of Illinois to the present time, now making their home in Taylorville.
John W. Hardin obtained his early education in Sangamon county, Illinois, and was reared to farm life, passing through the usual experiences of the farm- bred boy. He early began work in the fields, assisting his father in the develop- ment of the home farm, and he also taught school. In the spring of 1907 he left his native state and removed to Spink county, South Dakota, where he purchased four hundred and eighty acres of land, which he cultivated for three years. In the spring of 1910 he removed to Kimberly, Idaho, and purchased a ranch a half mile east of the town, comprising eighty acres. His attention was devoted to farm- ing alone until the fall of 1916, when he accepted his present position as manager of the Kimberly elevator, and at the same time he still conducts his farm of eighty acres and also cultivates a tract of forty acres south of Twin Falls. He is an energetic man, wisely utilizing every opportunity that comes to him, and his per- sistency of purpose and keen sagacity in business affairs are bringing to him sub- stantial success.
In 1894 Mr. Hardin was married to Miss Emma Jacobs, a native of Christian county, Illinois, and a daughter of S. J. and Frances (Smith) Jacobs, both of whom passed away in Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Hardin have become the parents of three children, J. R., Herbert and Wayne. The second son joined the officers training school of the Eighth Division at San Francisco during the World war.
Fraternally Mr. Hardin is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and his political allegiance is given to the republican party. He stands loyally in support of all those plans and projects which he deems of worth to the community, and his cooperation can be counted upon at all times to further public progress. He is an alert and progres- sive business man, thoroughly reliable, and Kimberly counts him as a valued addi- tion to its citizenship.
MIKKEL FROSIG.
Mikkel Frosig, engaged in the wholesale grocery and produce business at Wilder, was born in Denmark, November 27, 1871. He came to the United States in 1897, when twenty-six years of age, and took up the occupation of farming in Audubon county, Iowa, where he remained until 1903. He then removed westward to Dillon, Beaver- head county, Montana, where he devoted his attention to the dairy business, supplying the town of Dillon with dairy products for twelve years. He arrived there in February, 1903, and on the 22d of December, 1915, left that place for California. He did not find what he considered suitable conditions in California, however, and went to Washing- ton, where he was equally unsuccessful in search of a location. He therefore returned to Montana and spent some time in making a trip through Yellowstone Park, finally selecting some land in the Teton basin. It was necessary to go to Boise, Idaho, in order to get the information necessary for further proceedings in regard to the land and while in Idaho he found his present location and decided to remain in this state. He bought eighty acres a mile and a half from Wilder and has since owned and devel- oped the property. In 1916, associated with J. C. Jacobson, of Idaho Falls, he estab- lished a wholesale produce business in Wilder, and in 1919 they extended the scope of their activities by the establishment of a wholesale grocery department. In order to house their business they have erected a two-story building, of which a section forty by forty feet is used for the wholesale grocery, while the remainder, sixty by forty feet, is used for the produce business, with the second floor utilized as a rooming house.
In the fall of 1918 Mr. Frosig disposed of his farm, as he found it necessary to devote his entire time to his growing wholesale business. On the 1st of April, 1919, he opened a retail department and is now enjoying an excellent trade. He is devoting his entire attention at the present time to the grocery and provision business. When he arrived in Wilder in 1916 the town was very small, but owing to climatic conditions and the nature of the soil here he predicts a great future for the place. Land that then sold at from fifty to one hundred and fifty dollars per acre is now selling at from one
MIKKEL FROSIG
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hundred to five hundred dollars per acre. Mr. Frosig has met with substantial success in the conduct of his business, has erected a handsome bungalow and expects to make Wilder his future home.
On the 25th of January, 1918, Mr. Frosig was married to Miss Nina Boiles, of Wilder, and they are the parents of a daughter, Ina Caren. Mr. Frosig is an energetic and enterprising business man who readily recognizes and utilizes opportunities. He has for sixteen years lived in the west and the spirit of western development and pro- gressiveness finds expression in his career. What he undertakes he carries forward to successful completion and he is now one of the representative business men of Canyon county.
LEO EDWARD MARSTERS.
Leo Edward Marsters is identified with farming and auctioneering in Ada county, being the junior partner in the firm of E. Marsters & Son of Meridian. The father resides upon a fine and highly improved ranch a mile and a half north of Meridian, comprising sixty acres of land, while the son is living on a ranch of one hundred and twenty-two acres four miles north of Meridian. He was born in Jefferson county, Nebraska, May 22, 1886, and is the only son of Colonel Elias Marsters, who is mentioned at length on another page of this work. Leo E. Marsters came to Idaho with his parents in 1897, when a lad of eleven years, and his education, which was begun in the public schools of his native state, was continued in Idaho. He became a student in the Boise high school, from which he was graduated, and later he entered the University of Idaho. After his textbooks were put aside he became an active factor in ranching and on attaining his majority his father gave to him one hundred and twenty-two acres of land which he had purchased on removing to this state in 1897. He also received training from his father in the work of auctioneering and the firm of E. Marsters & Son is now well known not only throughout Ada county but also throughout southern Idaho and southeastern Oregon, where they conduct many sales. In fact it is said that they have ninety per cent of the sales of Ada county. He received his training under his father and his father had in turn been instructed in auctioneering methods by his father, and thus three generations of the family have carried on the business.
On the 3d of February, 1911, Mr. Marsters was married to Miss Edith Huntley, of Nampa, Idaho, who was born in Kansas, October 9, 1887. They have three children: Clyde; Gladys; and Leo Elias, who is six years of age.
Mr. Marsters is a member of the Masonic fraternity and is a loyal follower of the craft. He has recently completed upon his ranch a fine modern country home, adding several thousand dollars to its value. The ranches which are owned and occupied by himself and father are excellent properties, the land being of rich fertility and responding readily to the care and labor bestowed upon it. They have good buildings of every kind, including silos, barns and sheds thoroughly adequate to the shelter of grain and stock, and there is much fruit and beautiful shrubbery upon their places, making them fine country homes.
W. F. RINGER.
A well improved dairy farm of fifty acres situated about a mile west of New Plymouth, is the property of W. F. Ringer, who is meeting with well deserved success in his business interests. He was born in Nova Scotia, January 1, 1869, and is a son of A. C. and Sarah M. (Merrett) Ringer, who were also natives of Nova Scotia, where the father followed the occupation of farming. In 1880 he removed with his family to Chicago, Illinois, and there, with the assistance of his son, W. F. Ringer, he engaged in the ice business for eighteen years, selling to both the whole- sale and retail trades.
W. F. Ringer had acquired his education in the schools of his native country and was actively connected with the ice business in Chicago until 1901, when he disposed of his interest there and came to New Plymouth, his father and mother
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having preceded him four years. His father died in New Plymouth in 1905. The family numbered eight children.
On coming to this state W. F. Ringer settled about a mile west of the town of New Plymouth and there still makes his home. He has fifty acres of land and is conducting a dairy ranch, having fifteen head of milk cows. He has just installed a milking machine and is building a ninety-two ton silo. In connection with his farm work he has followed well drilling for many years, recently selling his drilling outfit to his sons, Wilford and Ernest.
Mr. Ringer was twenty years of age when he married Louise McCumber, of Chicago, who was born in Michigan. They became the parents of eight children. Wilford, twenty-seven years of age, was a member of the marines during the World war. Violet L. is the next of the family. George A., twenty-two years of age, is a first class petty officer in the United States navy. Hazel M., Ernest R., Milton I. and Bertha May are at home. Phoebe R. is attending school. The mother of these children passed away in 1906 and Mr. Ringer was later married to Meta Day, a native of England. They have become parents of two children, May and Frederick William.
When Mr. Ringer arrived in Idaho everything was in a crude condition and even making a living was a problem. He has witnessed the work of development here as the transformation of Idaho into a rich and productive state has been accomplished, and he has borne his full share in the work of progress in Payette county, where he has won a substantial measure of success, being one of the largest hay shippers of the state, while his dairy interests are also bringing to him sub- stantial profits.
BYRON J. DUNTEN.
Byron J. Dunten is occupying an excellent property of twenty acres of highly improved land at Onweiler Station, one mile north of Meridian, known as the old George Rogers place. It is a fine country home, modern to the last word and in- dicating the progressive and enterprising spirit of the owner, who is a well known resident of Ada county. He came to Idaho from Grant county, Oregon, in 1915 and purchased the place upon which he has since resided. Oregon numbers him among her native sons, his birth having occurred in Lane county, September 3, 1884, his parents being Thomas Jefferson and Martha (Williams) Dunten, both of whom are now deceased. The father was born in the city of New York, December 25, 1830, and went to California with the gold rush in 1849, making the trip across the plains from the state of Indiana. He was then a young man of nineteen years. Later he proceeded northward to Oregon territory from California and spent his remaining days in Lane county, that state, being there engaged in farming and in the cultivation of hops, becoming one of the prominent representatives of the hop industry of the state. At one time he served as deputy sheriff of Lane county and he also filled the position of marshal in Eugene, Oregon. He died June 21, 1892, and for fifteen years was survived by his wife, who was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, August 7, 1843, and passed away in Lane county, Oregon, October 14, 1907.
Byron J. Dunten was the youngest in a family of ten children, six sons and four daughters, eight of whom are yet living, the three in Idaho being: Mrs. Lola May Hillegas, of Boise; Roy G. and Byron J., the former residing about a half mile north of the latter.
Byron J. Dunten was reared upon the old home farm in Lane county, Oregon, where he acquired a good common school education. Throughout his entire life he has followed farming and cattle raising, being formerly extensively engaged in the latter pursuit in Grant county, Oregon. At times he had large herds of cattle and his business was one of extensive proportions, yielding substantial profits. In 1914 he closed out his cattle interests, selling one thousand head of cattle and twelve hundred acres of hay land. He then came to Ada county, Idaho, and pur- chased the highly improved twenty-acre ranch a mile north of Meridian upon which he now resides, and here he has one of the finest country homes of this section of the state. The residence is thoroughly modern and in its equipment is equal to that of any city home, containing electric light, bath, hot and cold water system, furnace and electric motor. There is a large amount of fruit upon the place and the lawn
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is adorned with beautiful shade trees and shrubbery. In fact it is a home that in every line and feature expresses comfort and convenience. His orchards are a very profitable source of income, for he has splendid apple trees which are now in their best bearing stage. His former success has enabled him to make large and profit- able investments in bonds, notes and other valuable commercial paper and he is now one of the men of affluence in his section of the state.
On the 27th of May, 1914, at Nampa, Idaho, Mr. Dunten was united in mar- riage to Miss Maudie A. Hyde, who was born at Prineville, Crook county, Oregon, December 28, 1879. Her parents were John and Mary (Bunton) Hyde, the former a native of Harrisburg, Oregon, while the latter was also born in that state. Mr. Hyde is still living, but his wife passed away October 17, 1915, at the age of fifty- six years and sixteen days. Mr. and Mrs. Dunten now have a daughter, Pauline, who was born on the 3d of November, 1918.
Mr. Dunten is a Master Mason and in politics is a republican. His has been an active and useful life, fraught with honorable purposes, and his indefatigable energy and industry have been the basis of the prosperity which is now his.
THOMAS OWEN KING.
Thomas Owen King, a retired ranchman residing at Almo, Cassia county, has now passed the eightieth milestone on life's journey. He has led an active, busy and useful life and it is meet that in the evening of his days he should rest from further labor. He was born in Cambridgeshire, England, April 27, 1840, and Is a son of Thomas and Hannah (Tapfield) King. He was but twelve years of age when his parents came with their family to the United States in 1853 as passengers on the Golconda, a sailing ship that dropped anchor in the harbor of New Orleans. They then proceeded up the Mississippi river to St. Louis, where they outfitted for further travel westward. They next made their way to Keokuk, Iowa, where Thomas King, Sr., put his wagons together and purchased oxen, and they proceeded with a company of fifty wagons across the country to Council Bluffs, Iowa. He crossed the Missouri river and proceeded westward over the plains until he arrived in Salt Lake City on the 28th of September, 1853. He purchased a farm west of Salt Lake City, on the Jordan river, obtaining eighty acres which he cultivated and developed, but made his home in the city. Both the father and mother died at Salt Lake City, Mr. King in 1875, when seventy-five years of age, while the mother passed away on the 25th of September, 1886, at the age of seventy-nine years.
In May, 1855, Thomas Owen King, then a lad of but fifteen years, was ap- pointed one of the guards to escort Orson Hyde from Salt Lake City to the Carson valley to hold court, and in the fall of the same year was sent with a party to capture a murderer, Alfred Hawes, whom they caught. In the fall of 1856 he went on a gov- ernment survey trip, proceeding to Nephi and south to the Sevier river, then up the river and back to Sanpete county, Utah, surveying the Sanpete valley. From that point they returned to Salt Lake City. In 1857 he again went on a government sur- veying trip which consumed six weeks, surveying the lower part of the Sevier river and the surrounding country, returning then to Salt Lake City. In the following May he went out with Young's Express Company to Deer Creek, seventy-five miles west of Fort Laramie, on the North Platte river, and built forty-six houses in the form of a fort and stockade for the protection of the settlers against the Indians. During President Buchanan's administration he ordered United States troops to Salt Lake City, being misinformed concerning the condition of the Mormon people. Brigham Young. then governor of Utah territory, sent out a number of men to intercept the soldiers and among this number was Mr. King. In 1858 Mr. King was in the employ of Major Brockie in putting up government hay in the Cache valley of Utah. In 1859 he engaged in trading with the Indians and immigrants at Hawes Fork, now known as Granger. In 1860 he rode the pony express from the Weber river in Utah to a point twelve miles beyond Fort Bridger and later rode from Salt Lake City to Bear river. In the fall of the same year he went to Eng- land on a mission, crossing the plains with mule teams and arriving in England in the following December, there continuing his labors until June 3, 1864. When released from his mission he returned to Salt Lake City, again making the trip westward by ox team and acting as guard to the cattle at night, for there were
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plenty of hostile Indians along the road, rendering life and property somewhat unsafe. In the year 1864 the Indians were very aggressive and hostile.
In 1865 Mr. King followed farming in the Cache valley of Utah and in 1866 engaged in the commission and trading business at Salt Lake City, selling his prod- ucts at various points in Utah. Later he bought a farm on the Bear river in Utah, now called Collinston, and subsequently he went to Salt Lake City, where he was employed by Zion's Cooperative Mercantile Institution until 1878. In the latter year he made his way to the narrows on Raft river for Governor Emery of Utah to act as foreman on his ranch, being thus employed until the spring of 1880, when Mr. King homesteaded a ranch property of two hundred and forty acres under the Desert act. Later he built a log house of six rooms and began the task of developing and improving his ranch, which he still owns. He makes his home, however, at the pres- ent time in Almo. He has given his attention to the raising of cattle and sheep and his ranching interests have been carefully and successfully conducted. He is now largely living retired and occupies a comfortable brick residence at Almo.
In 1868 Mr. King was married to Miss Dorcas Dehenham, a daughter of Henry and Sarah (Larter) Debenham and a native of England. She came to the United States in early life with friends, crossing the Atlantic in 1864 and making her way to Salt Lake City, where later she was married. Her parents came to the new world in 1868 and they, too, settled at Salt Lake City. Mr. and Mrs. King have seven children: Thomas O., Louis D., Georgiana, Harold T., Nellie H. L., Andrew and Hannah T.
Mr. King has always remained a faithful follower of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and for more than twenty years he served as bishop in Cassia county. His political endorsement has always been given to the republican party. There is no phase of pioneer life and development in this section of the country with which he is not familiar and his life history, if written in detail, would give an accurate picture of pioneer conditions here. In 1867 he participated in a battle with the Indians at South Pass, the head of Sweetwater river, Wyoming. He was associated with Myron B. Durfee in naming the town of Almo, which was built by the Mormons of this state in 1904. In 1867 Mr. King and William Corless went out to the South Pass, taking passengers with them, and were surrounded by a band of Crow Indians. Four of the party were killed and thirty head of their horses were driven away by the red men. Mr. King early became acquainted with the Indian methods of warfare and knew what it was for many years to remain constantly on the alert, fearing Indian attack. He has witnessed the entire growth and development of this section of the country and has horne his part in the work of general progress and improvement. His memory forms a connecting link be- tween the primitive past, with all of its attendant hardships and privations, and the progressive present with its opportunities and advantages.
FRANK E. JOHNESSE.
Frank E. Johnesse, whose forcefulness and resourcefulness are manifest in the substantial success which he has attained as a mining engineer and promoter of mining interests in Idaho, is now field engineer and general manager of the Metals & General Development Company and makes his home in Boise. He was born on the 1st of September, 1869, in Montrose, Iowa, a son of W. M. and Adaline (Johnson) Johnesse. The father was of early Canadian French ancestry and the paternal grandfather of Frank E. Johnesse served in the French revolution. W. M. Johnesse became a ship carpenter and contractor and for many years was identified with the building of Mississippi river steamboats. He became a resident of Iowa during the early '50s and there remained until called to his final rest. At the time of the Civil war he put aside all business and personal considerations and responded to his country's call for military aid, serving for four years as a member of the Tenth Illinois Regiment. He was married at Fort Montrose, Iowa, to Miss Adaline Johnson, a native of Wheel- ing, West Virginia, whose parents were pioneer settlers of that place, locating there during the early '40s.
Frank E. Johnesse, the third of the children of W. M. and Adaline Johnesse, ac- quired his early education in the public schools of Iowa and then in the continuance of his studies made a specialty of applied science, particularly chemistry and mineral
FRANK E. JOHNESSE
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analysis. Turning for the practice of his chosen profession to the west, he soon became well known as a mining engineer. He first mined in the Black Hills of South Dakota, acquiring an early experience that constituted the foundation upon which he has built his later progress and success. From 1889 until 1893 he was employed in that district on a salary and then left the Black Hills for mining regions farther west. He first made his way to the Wood River district of Idaho, where for a year he en- gaged in mining and then spent a similar period as plateman and engineer with the Hailey Sampling Works. On leaving Hailey he went to Silver City, where he had charge of the machinery of the Tip-Top Mining Company, and with the development of the mining boom at Cripple Creek, Colorado, he became a prospector in that region and also followed his profession. After six months, however, he returned to the Idaho fields and through the greater part of the intervening period his labors have been directed in this state. He followed mining in the Elk City country of northern Idaho until 1902 but in the meantime made several trips to the Cripple Creek fields of Colorado and to the mining district of Silver City, New Mexico, as well as to various other mining towns. In 1898 he was connected with the Buffalo Hump ex- citement and was at Thunder Mountain in 1902. In the latter year he became a per- manent resident of Boise, where he has since made his home, practicing as a mining engineer, and he is well known also as field engineer and general manager of the Metals & General Development Company. He has also been called upon to fill various offices of public trust, largely along the line of his profession. In 1904 Governor Morrison appointed him superintendent of the Wagon Road construction and in 1905 he or- ganized the Blue Jacket Mining Company on the Snake river, in Idaho county. This was formed for the purpose of developing the copper mines of that region, resulting in one of the largest and most practical mining enterprises in central Idaho. He received federal appointment to the position of mineral inspector and capably served in that capacity from 1909 until 1911 inclusive. In December of the latter year, how- ever, he resigned the position to give his attention to mining projects in which he is directly interested. The Metals & General Development Company, with which he is so intimately and actively connected, was organized for the development of the mining industry in the northwest, with offices at Boise. The purpose of the com- pany includes the exploiting and mining of all kinds of gems and minerals in the state, the development of its own mining properties and the development on contracts of mining properties of other corporations. Mr. Johnesse as representative of the company purchased the Rock Flat placer mines in Idaho and at once began work in the development of its gold and silver deposits and gems.
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