History of Idaho, the gem of the mountains, Volume II, Part 113

Author: Hawley, James Henry, 1847-1929, ed
Publication date: 1920
Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1024

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On the 24th of December, 1889, Mr. Conner was married to Miss Elizabeth Lemp, daughter of the late John Lemp, who is mentioned elsewhere in this work. Mr. Conner belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in which he has filled all of the chairs and is a past noble grand. His political allegiance is given to the republican party but he has never been a candidate for office, preferring to con- centrate his attention upon his business interests. Aside from his clothing store he is active in agricultural lines, he and his wife having a four hundred acre ranch about nine miles west of Boise, on the Boise bench, of which two hundred acres is planted to wheat. He also raises alfalfa and hogs and bis careful conduct of his farming interests has made the ranch property a very profitable one. Mr. Conner deserves much credit for what he has accomplished. His entire success is the direct outcome of. his industry and perseverance, for he started out empty- handed and has earned the prosperity which is now his.

JAMES H. BOOR.

Six miles southwest of Fruitland is a farm property of one hundred and twenty acres that is owned by James H. Boor. The land was raw sagebrush when it came into his possession, but through patient labor he has made it a beautiful field of alfalfa. A spirit of undaunted industry and perseverance has actuated him at every point in his career and steadily he has worked his way upward, advancing step by step until he is now one of the prosperous farmers of the district. He was born in Missouri, October 30, 1873, a son of J. W. and Mary E. (Slocum) Boor. The father, a native of Indiana, removed to Missouri with his parents when a youth of eighteen years and there engaged in farming with his father, who passed away in 1894. In 1907 J. W. Boor removed to Idaho and passed away at his home near Fruitland in 1918. The mother survives and is now living with her daughter, Mrs. L. E. Wells, near Fruitland.

James H. Boor spent his youthful days on the old home farm in Missouri, but attracted by the opportunities of the northwest, came to Idaho in 1904, when thirty years of age. He first took up his abode east of Fruitland, where he carried on farming for six years, and then purchased his present place of one hundred and twenty acres six miles southwest of Fruitland. His labors have wrought a marked transformation in the appearance of the place, which was all wild and undeveloped land when it came into his possession. Today he raises large crops of alfalfa and also devotes considerable attention to the raising of Holstein cattle, keeping a registered bull for breeding purposes. He also carries on dairying. With the assistance of two men he cleared and seeded ninety acres of his land the first year and he has since continued the work of development with excellent results until he now has a splendidly improved property.

In 1899 Mr. Boor was married to Miss Nancy L. Horton, of Iowa, a daughter of E. B. and Sarah Jane ( Davenport) Horton, who were pioneers of the Hawkeye state. Mr. and Mrs. Boor have five children: Carl H., fourteen years of age; Florence M .; James William, aged seven; Howard D., aged five; and Mabel I.

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In community affairs Mr. Boor takes a deep and helpful interest and is widely known as a champion of the public school system. He has been chairman of the school board and assisted in organizing the school district, doing everything in his power to advance and uphold the standards of education. He is a very large man and of marked force of character and has proven a dynamic power in the agricul- tural development of the region in which he lives.

HANS P. LARSEN.

Hans P. Larsen, who is engaged in ranching and stock raising at Rock Creek in Twin Falls county, was born in Denmark, February 25, 1862, a son of Lars and Ellen M. Larsen. The parents were natives of Denmark, where they were reared and married. The father was a weaver by trade and was also a musician. In 1863 he came with his family to the United States and settled in the Cache valley of Utah, where he homesteaded land and carried on farming until the spring of 1877. He then started across the country with La Grande, Oregon, as his destination hut met some of his country men on Rock Creek, in Twin Falls county, and they persuaded him to remain in this district. He secured one hundred and sixty acres, on which he built a log house and then began the improvement of the farm, which he converted into a rich and productive tract, continuing his residence thereon to the time of his death, which occurred in 1905, when he had reached the age of seventy-four years. His wife survived until 1908 and thus passed away two of the worthy pioneer residents of their section of the state.

Hans P. Larsen passed his boyhood upon the ranch on Rock Creek and obtained his education in the schools near his father's farm. In his youth he worked as a farm hand for others and afterward took up a tract of land six miles north of his present ranch, comprising eighty acres. This he cultivated and improved for a period of five years and then made investment in his present ranch property, containing two hundred and sixty acres. He has erected thereon new buildings and has greatly improved the farm. The land, owing to the care and cultivation which he has bestowed upon it, has hecome rich and productive and all of the equipments and accessories of a model farm property have been added.

On the 2d of January, 1888, Mr. Larsen was married to Miss Mary Jensen, a daughter of Christian and Anna M. Jensen and a native of Denmark, whence she came to the United States with her parents when but eight years of age. The fam- ily home was first established in Utah and later a removal was made to Rock Creek, Idaho, in 1876. The father passed away at Evanston, Wyoming, while the mother died on Dry creek. Mr. and Mrs. Larsen have become parents of five chil- dren: Ellen, Anna, Howard, Florence and Russell.

Mr. Larsen has membership with the Modern Woodmen of America. His polit- ical allegiance is given to the democratic party, which he has supported since age conferred upon him the right of franchise, but he neither seeks nor desires office, preferring to concentrate his efforts and undivided attention upon his ranching interests, which have constantly developed in importance, making him one of the representative farmers of Twin Falls county.

HON. SAMUEL W. ORME.

Hon. Samuel W. Orme, member of the state senate from Fremont county, his home being on a ranch near Wilford, is a native of Utah. He was born at Tooele City, Tooele county, Utah, September 19, 1858, a son of Samuel W. and Sarah (Cross) Orme, both of whom have passed away. The father was born in Ohio, July 4, 1832, but when he was a mere child his parents returned with their family to England, from which country they had come to the United States. There the grandfather died but in 1856 Samuel W. Orme, Sr., accompanied by his mother, again came to the new world and made his way to Tooele, Utah, where his mother spent her remaining days. Samuel W. Orme, Sr., was a farmer hy occupation and continued a resident of Tooele county, Utah, to the time of his death, which occurred when he had reached the age of fifty-seven years.

HON. SAMUEL W. ORME

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His son and namesake, Samuel W. Orme of this review, was reared upon his father's ranch and pursued his education in the public schools nearby, He, too, took up the occupation of farming and stock raising and has followed that pursuit through- out his entire life. He remained a resident of Utah until 1897 and since then has made his home in Fremont county, Idaho. Here he purchased a good ranch near Wil- ford and is today the owner of a valuable farm property of one hundred and sixty acres, devoted chiefly to the cultivation of wheat and the raising of sheep. He also carries on dry farming on adjacent land which he leases. His business affairs have always been carefully and successfully managed and he is regarded as one of the rep- resentative agriculturists of the community.

In February, 1885, Mr. Orme was married in Salt Lake City to Miss Mary A. Smith, a native of Utah, and they have become the parents of nine living children, five sons and four daughters, namely: Samuel J., Mary A., Milo S., Joseph R., Sarah C., Edwin D., Luetta, Elva and Reed. Of these Samuel, Mary, Milo and Sarah are all married and there are now eight grandchildren.

Mr. Orme has always been fond of horseback riding and although now past sixty years of age can take a ride of sixty miles without any ill effects. He has adhered to the religious faith in which he was reared, that of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and served for fourteen years as bishop of Wilford ward. In politics he is a republican and has served for one term as county commissioner. He was also a school trustee and a member of the local canal board. On the 5th of Novem- ber, 1918, he was elected state senator from his county and is serving as chairman of the committee on county boundaries and lines. He is also a member of the Live Stock Commission of Idaho and is interested in many plans and projects which have to do with the welfare and progress of the state.

A. H. SUNDLES.

A. H. Sundles is now living retired in New Plymouth. For a long period he was connected with farming interests, which he carefully promoted and developed, winning thereby a measure of success that now enables him to rest from further labor. He was born in Dalton, Wayne county, Ohio, July 13, 1856, a son of Henry and Eliza Sundles, who were likewise natives of the Buckeye state, the former, however, of German lineage, while the latter was of American ancestry.

A. H. Sundles acquired his early education in the common schools of Ohio while living upon his father's farm and in vacation periods and after his school days were over assisted in the cultivation of the fields npon the home place. He also worked as a farm hoy for others until eighteen years of age, when he entered the employ of the Cleveland, Akron & Columbus Railroad Company, running the en- gine in the shop. He remained with that corporation for fifteen years, when, owing to the ill health of his wife, he came to the west on the advice of her physician.

It was on the 13th of March, 1896, that Mr. Sundles arrived in New Plymouth, at which time the town contained no business house and only five dwellings. There were but eight farmers between Payette and Falk's store on the south side of the river, a distance of twenty miles. Mr. Sundles purchased forty acres near where the town now stands and still owns the property, which at that time was a tract of raw land but which he bronght to a high state of cultivation. He raised hay and grain most successfully and is now renting the place to a tenant. On the 7th of June, 1913, while mowing with a hand scythe the grass that grew along the ditch in places where the mowing machine could not reach, he saw a wire which would obstruct his progress. He picked it up to remove it and to his horror found it a live wire. He was almost burned to death and was unconscious for over three hours. One arm was burned off just below the elbow, while the thumb, index and little fingers were burned off the other hand, making him a cripple for life. Since that time he has lived retired in a very good home on the avenue in New Plymouth. For many years he operated a dairy, milking eight cows.

On the 19th of September, 1888, Mr. Sundles was married to Miss Clara Masteller, a native of Ohio and a daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth (Benoy) Mas- teller, both now deceased. The father was a native of Pennsylvania and the mother of England. Mr. and Mrs. Sundles have become the parents of two chil- dren: Esther, who was born in Ohio and is a graduate of the New Plymouth high

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school; and Henry, seventeen years of age, who was born in New Plymouth and is attending high school.

There is no feature of pioneer life nor of later development in New Plymouth with which Mr. Sundles is not familiar. When he first located in this section of Idaho the settlers had to get all their mail and supplies from Payette and the residents would take turns, one each day, in making the trip and bringing the mail and supplies for the community. There was then but one covered wagon in the valley and the trip had to be made over a sagebrush trail with a two-horse wagon. The first church services were held here in a house fourteen by twenty feet, a shack which was weather-boarded on the outside and without windows. Nail kegs over which boards were laid were used for seats. In those days there were four denominations here and all were good Christian people. The first minis- ter was a Methodist, known as Father Burns, but he passed away many years ago. Following him came the Rev. Clemmens, a United Presbyterian, who is now liv- ing on a ranch near Caldwell. For the first three years there were no schools because there were no children. The first public hall built here is now used as the Baptist church but was formerly used for all public services, school purposes and church services. In winter they used sagebrush for fuel and for evening serv- ices they took the lamps from their homes to furnish light. Each resident took his turn as janitor and as supplier of wood. Father Burns and Rev. Clemmens preached alternately, so that there would be a service of different denominations each Sunday. Each Thanksgiving day the whole community took their dinner at the town hall, a splendid evidence of community friendship, which made them like one big family. When Mr. Sundles first came here the country was infested with Jack rabbits and coyotes, range horses and cattle by the hundreds. The latter would tear the fences down and destroy the crops. The rabbits, despite "rabbit proof" fences, destroyed the trees until a chemical was discovered that was proof against the pests. The first crop put in by Mr. Sundles was twenty acres of grain, all of which was lost, as the water would not defy the law of gravitation and run up hill. It was after this loss that he decided the farm must be developed, which he immediately proceeded to do. For several winters he and his family were actually cold from lack of fuel. Now that the dangers have been passed and a quiet harbor has been reached the memory of those days has become a pleasure. There has never been a saloon in New Plymouth, as that was one of the early restrictions, and the community on the whole has held to high ideals, making it a most desirable place in which to live. Mr. Sundles was one of the builders of the Noble canal and at all times has borne his part in the work of general progress and improvement. He enjoys in the fullest measure the respect and confidence of his fellowmen and is one of the honored and representative residents of New Plymouth.

JOHN FREDERICK BARNES.

John Frederick Barnes, in whose death Nampa lost one of its foremost citi- zens, was prominently connected with commercial interests of the state as the head of the Nampa Live Stock, Loan & Commission Company but also had to his credit a long and honorable railroad career, in which he rose to the position of general superintendent. A native of New York, Mr. Barnes was born at Plattsburg, October 18, 1866, but when two years of age was taken by his parents to Madison, Wisconsin. There he attended the graded schools up to the age of fourteen, when the family removed to South Dakota. There James W. Barnes, the father, en- gaged in farming, his efforts being crowned with varying success according to con- ditions, and the son there finished his education. Subsequently the father, while still retaining the management of his farms, his interests having grown to be quite extensive, removed to Chicago, Illinois, and there he passed away in 1905. He was favorably known in the different localities in which he resided not only

because of his personal worth, but also on account of his straightforward business dealings. He was a native of New York state, as was his wife, who in her maiden- hood was Sarah Rooney and who passed away in 1902.

John F. Barnes when about twenty years of age went to Montana and secured a position as conductor with the Northern Pacific Railroad. In 1894, in connec-

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tion with a strike, he gave up his position and returned to Chicago, Illinois, where two years later he was united in marriage to Jennie E. Frazier, of Medina, Ohio. During this period he was engaged in the butchering business for one year and also conducted a large laundry, but in 1898 he sold his laundry interests and returned to Montana, where he became a conductor in the service of the Great Northern Railroad, his family following him shortly afterward and taking up their residence at Glasgow, Montana. Six months later, however, Mr. Barnes removed to Pocatello, Idaho, and for eighteen months was a conductor with the Oregon Short Line Railroad, at the end of which period he was transferred to Boise, where his family lived, his run at that time being to Huntington, Oregon. One year later he entered the service of the Boise, Nampa & Oregon Railroad, which was at that time the property of Colonel W. H. Dewey, now deceased. In this connection, upon the death of the superintendent he was made his successor and later became general superintendent, a fact which stands as incontrovertible evidence of his ability, circumspection, fidelity and trustworthiness. He held this important position until the road was sold to the Oregon Short Line, when he was made assistant superintendent of the district. Two years later, however, he resigned, although he was offered a permanent position in Pocatello. Deciding, however, to strike out in the business field, he then organized the Nampa Live Stock, Loan & Commission Company, which became one of the important indus- trial enterprises of his city. He remained as the executive head until death claimed him August 17, 1917, his widow closing out the business shortly afterward.

To Mr. and Mrs. Barnes were horn three children: Marion J., a graduate of the Nampa high school and later a student at Moscow College; Burton S., who is in the marine service of the United States and was sent from Mare Island, Cali- fornia, to the Philippines; and John Frederick, attending school at Nampa. Mrs. Barnes has a large circle of friends in that city, where she and her children reside in a beautiful home which was left to them by the provident husband and father.

Mr. Barnes ever took a lively interest in political and public affairs and gave his support to valuable measures undertaken in the communities in which he resided. Along political lines he held the position of judicial clerk of the legis- lature at Boise but resigned in order to enter the service of Colonel Dewey in con- nection with the Boise, Nampa & Oregon Railroad. Fraternally he was connected with the Masons, the Odd Fellows and the Elks, and the honorable and helpful principles underlying those organizations always guided him in his conduct toward his fellowmen. His memory not only lives with his family but with many who learned to appreciate him in various walks of life through his career as a faith- ful official, an able business man and a true, loyal and public-spirited citizen.

MRS. L. M. SNYDER.

Mrs. L. M. Snyder is one of the pioneer women of Idaho deserving of more than passing notice in this volume. A native of Missouri, she bore the maiden name of Susan E. Thomas and on the 4th of July, 1876, she became the wife of Hercules Young, a native of Indiana, who had gone to Missouri with his parents in his early youth. Not long after their marriage the young couple started across the plains for the northwest with a wagon drawn by four mules, bringing with them their little daughter, Daisy. They left Putnam county, Missouri, on a trip which consumed six months. Ultimately they reached a point called Dry Creek, near Boise, in 1883, but after remaining there for a short time they homesteaded the place upon which Mrs. Snyder now resides. Although they met a number of In- dians while en route to Idaho, they found them all peaceable and were unmolested. They fished and hunted while en route, thus adding to their larder, but the trip was a long and wearisome one and they were happy when ultimately they reached their destination. There were only two houses anywhere in the vicinity of their homestead when they first located upon the farm, but in the following spring set- tlers began to come and building became brisk. Mr. Young cleared away the sage- brush and began the development of his property, becoming extensively interested in the raising of live stock. They homesteaded one hundred and twenty acres and the labor bestowed upon this place has transformed it into a very valuable and pro- ductive farm, which is now in the irrigated district, so that they have an abundance

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of water. Sixty acres of the original homestead has been sold, but ten acres of adjoining land was purchased, so that the place now comprises seventy acres.

The death of Mr. Young occurred February 24, 1891, and his widow after- ward became the wife of L. M. Snyder, who died on the 17th of November, 1913. Mrs. Snyder has three living children. Della May Young, who became the wife of Harry Tolleth, a merchant of Meridian, has two children, Dorothy Evelyn and Char- lotte Irene, both attending school. Dora Mabel Young is now the wife of Leslie Aker, of Ontario, Oregon, and the mother of one son, Harry Tompkins, two years of age. William A. Snyder, the son of Mrs. Snyder's second marriage, is twenty- three years of age. He operates the homestead farm for his mother and in addition to the cultivation of the crops best adapted to soil and climate he is engaged in dairying on a small scale and also raises hogs, having ninety-six head on his place at the present time. He is a graduate of the Meridian high school, having there completed the course when nineteen years of age. Mrs. Snyder has long been a witness of the development and upbuilding of this section of the state, where she has now made her home for thirty-six years. Great indeed have been the changes which have occurred in this period, for at the time of her arrival the greater part of the land was covered with sagebrush and there was little to indicate that the work of development and civilization would be carried forward speedily. The results achieved, however, have been most gratifying and this section of the state is today one of the most fertile and productive, the farming interests of the Snyder family having brought to them well deserved success as the years have gone by.

EUGENE PICKETT.

Eugene Pickett, farmer and sheepman living in Cassia county, makes his home upon the ranch where his birth occurred September 22, 1885, and where he has spent his entire life. He is a son of Moroni and Frances A. (Clegg) Pickett, the former a native of Berkshire, England, while the latter was born at Tooele, Utah. The father came to the new world with his parents when a youth of fourteen years. The family crossed the Atlantic on a sailing vessel which was six weeks in making the harbor of New Orleans, from which point they proceeded up the Mississippi river and thence journeyed across the plains, making the long trip westward with ox team and wagon. The father afterward located a farm near Tooele, Utah, obtaining government land, which he cultivated and improved until 1881, when he removed from Utah to Idaho and took up the ranch upon which his son Eugene now resides. He acquired one hun- dred and sixty acres of land and cultivated the place throughout his remaining days, his labors resulting in the conversion of a wild tract into rich and productive fields. He passed away in 1911, when sixty-three years of age. Tlie mother still survives and is now living with her son Eugene. Moroni Pickett was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and in his political views was a democrat.

Eugene Pickett spent his boyhood days upon the old home ranch and was early trained to the best methods of tilling the soil and caring for the crops. He has had no desire to change his occupation but has always followed that to which he was reared and as the years have passed he has prospered in his undertakings. The orig- inal farm comprised one hundred and forty acres, of which his mother owns sixty acres. He inherited the remainder, to which he has added until he is now the owner of an excellent tract of one hundred and sixty acres. Upon this he has erected new buildings and added many modern improvements, having today one of the highly devel- oped and attractive farms of Cassia county. He now has eleven hundred head of sheep and twenty-five head of cattle and his stock raising interests are constituting a most important source of revenue. He also raises hay and grain and his highly cultivated fields are producing good crops.

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History of Idaho, the gem of the mountains, Volume II, Part 113

Author: Hawley, James Henry, 1847-1929, ed Publication date: 1920 Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company Number of Pages: 1024

Author: Hawley, James Henry, 1847-1929, ed
Publication date: 1920
Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1024