History of Idaho, the gem of the mountains, Volume II, Part 40

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


USA > Idaho > History of Idaho, the gem of the mountains, Volume II > Part 40


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Although his business duties are exacting Mr. Sweet has never lost his love for outdoor sports and has in late years particularly interested himself in baseball. At the request of the Boise Commercial Club, of which he is a valued member and one of the board of directors, he organized the Western Tri-State Baseball League in 1912 and was elected president. He piloted the league through two tempestuous years, in which were crowded more abuse, trouble and grief than most men have to endure in a lifetime. Mr. Sweet, however, performed his duties to the best of his ability and gave much of his time to the league although there was not a penny of pecuniary remuneration attached to the position. Fraternally he is a member of Boise Lodge, No. 310, B. P. O. E., having joined Boulder Lodge, No. 566, in 1900. He was a member of the lower house of the state legislature in 1915. He is a director of the State Fair and until recently has very efficiently served as president of the Idaho Defense League of Ada County. In fact it


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may be said that there has been nothing undertaken which has proven of value to the development and growth of the city with which Mr. Sweet has not been connected since he became a resident of Boise. The beauty of the city that appeals to anyone who has lived here for even a few years and a love for the state have grown upon him and, as he says: "The beauties of nature and the mildness of the elements here surely have conspired to make Idaho a most desirable place in which to live."


Miss Marion Louise Sweet, now a young lady of fourteen years, is a great comfort to her father, having through her mother's close companionship and loving care and teachings become a fine girl. A rare understanding of each other and generous disposi- tions have made their life a happy and contented one.


ANDREW J. MYERS.


Andrew J. Myers, successfully engaged in the practice of law at Twin Falls, was born in Mason City, Iowa, on the 3d of February, 1888. He is therefore yet a comparatively young man but in his profession has won a position that many an older lawyer might well envy. He is a son of Nelson and Emma R. (Crout) Myers and while spending his youthful days under the parental roof he acquired his early education in the public schools. He afterward attended the Illinois Wesleyan University at Bloomington, Illinois, and was graduated from that institution with the class of 1915.


Later Mr. Myers came to the west in search of a location and decided upon Twin Falls. Here he took up the practice of law, for which he had qualified, be- coming a partner in the firm of Myers & Kinney. At a later period, however, the partnership was dissolved and Mr. Myers is now practicing alone. He has well equipped offices at No. 13512 Shoshone street and possesses a good law library, with the contents of which he is largely familiar. He prepares his cases with great thoroughness and care, preparing for defense as well as for attack, and his ability has brought him prominently to the front, winning for him a large clientage. Fra- ternally he is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and with the Masons and is a loyal follower of the craft, exemplifying in his life the beneficent spirit upon which the order is based.


SAMUEL D. RIGGS.


Samuel D. Riggs, postmaster of Emmett, where he was formerly engaged in merchandising, is one of the native sons of the state and a representative of an honored and prominent pioneer family. He was born in Boise, March 31, 1875, and is the youngest son of the late Henry C. Riggs, who came to the territory of Idaho from Oregon in 1863 and set up the first tent on the present site of Boise. His life record is given at length on another page of this work.


During the early boyhood of Samuel D. Riggs the family home was established upon a farm in the Payette valley eight miles below Emmett, the father there con- ducting a horse and cattle ranch. It was upon that place that Samuel D. Riggs was largely reared. He attended the country schools of Idaho for about three months out of the year and when nineteen years of age he became a pupil in the town schools of Emmett, there pursuing his studies for two years. For several years during his early manhood he gave his attention to mining as an employe in Idaho, Washington, Oregon and Montana. Later he became identified with mercantile pursuits in Emmett in the capacity of salesman and was thus engaged until ap- pointed postmaster In February, 1916. He was at that time head salesman in the Emmett Cash Grocery, owned by Will C. Langroise, his brother-in-law, and had for six years occupied the position. He has been a very active factor in local dem- ocratic circles for some time and his good work in behalf of the party led to his appointment as postmaster on the 6th of January, 1916, by President Woodrow Wilson. He has since held the office and has proven most competent and efficient in the position.


On the 20th of September, 1911, Mr. Riggs was married in Payette to Miss Margaret E. Trevey, who was born in Missouri, February 1, 1882, a daughter of


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Hiram C. and Mary Ellen (Taylor) Trevey, who were also natives of Missouri. In that state Mrs. Riggs was reared, completing her education in Buchanan College at Troy, Missouri. She came to Idaho in 1901, joining her elder sister, Mrs. Bettie Giesler, of Payette, who is still living there. In the Trevey family were four pairs of twins, Mrs. Riggs having a twin brother, Wheeler Trevey, of Missouri. Three of the four pairs of twins are living and of the thirteen children in the Trevey family ten still survive. Mr. and Mrs. Riggs have no children.


In his fraternal relations Mr. Riggs is an Odd Fellow and his religious faith is that of the Methodist church. He is fond of hunting, to which he turns for recreation. He is well known in this section of Idaho, where he has spent his entire life, and the sterling worth of his character has gained for him the high regard, confidence and goodwill of all with whom he has been brought in contact.


ALFRED A. NEWBERRY, M. D.


Dr. Alfred A. Newberry, engaged in the practice of medicine and surgery at Filer, in Twin Falls county, was born near Lockport, Will county, Illinois, October 22, 1881, a son of Stephen and Lucile (Bolin) Newberry. His boyhood days were largely passed in Cook county, Illinois, where he pursued his education. It was in 1898, when he was about seventeen years of age, that he removed to Denver, Colo- rado, and there, having determined upon the practice of medicine as a life work, he prepared for his chosen calling as a student in the Denver Gross Medical Col- lege. He was graduated therefrom and in the fall of 1907 removed to Filer, Idaho. The town had just been started. It was a tiny hamlet in the midst of a wild country covered with sagebrush and he built one of the first residences of the town, having his office in his residence for a time. He was the first physician of the locality and he has seen the town grow from a small village to a thriving place of twelve hundred population. He now has a splendidly equipped office in the First National Bank building and his practice is extensive and of an important char- acter. His professional interests make continuous demands upon his time and energies and he is always careful to conform his practice to the highest standards and ethics of the profession. Reading and study keep him in touch with the advanced thought and researches of the medical fraternity and his professional worth is widely acknowledged.


In 1909 Dr. Newberry was married to Miss Frieda Berger, a native of the state of Washington, and they have one child, Wilmer. The family occupies an attractive residence at Filer and they are people of social prominence in their sec- tion of Twin Falls county. Dr. Newberry votes with the republican party, which he has supported since reaching adult age. Fraternally he is connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and also with the Masons and he holds closely to the high standards of manhood and citizenship inculcated by those organizations.


GUS S. WENNSTROM.


Gus S. Wennstrom is the cashier of the First National Bank of American Falls, Idaho. He was born at Alfta, Sweden, on the 26th of December, 1885, and is a son of Peter and Karen (Olson) Wennstrom, who are also natives of the same country. The father is a tailor by trade and followed that pursuit, in Sweden until 1888, when he came to America, making his way to Chicago. There he worked at his trade until 1910, when he came to Idaho, settling at Gooding, where he resumed the tailoring business and has since remained an active factor in the commercial . circles of that city. His wife is also living.


Gus S. Wennstrom was but three years of age when the family came to the United States. They remained in Chicago for four years and then removed to Avon, Illinois. In the acquirement of his education Gus S. Wennstrom supplemented his public school training by study in Lombard College at Galesburg, Illinois, and made his initial step in the business world as a shipping clerk for the Detroit Stove Works in Chicago, where he remained for two years. Attracted by the opportunities of


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the west and recognizing the chances offered by its steady growth, he made his way to North Dakota, where he lived for a year and then returned to Illinois.


In 1909 Mr. Wennstrom arrived in Idaho, taking up his abode at Gooding, where he secured land under the Carey act. This he at once began to cultivate and improve and for a year he gave his attention to agricultural interests. He then engaged in the real estate and insurance business and eventually became connected with banking, entering the First National Bank at Gooding in the capacity of book- keeper. There he continued until 1915, when he came to American Falls, being employed as bookkeeper in the First National Bank. From that position he has worked his way steadily upward until he is now cashier and has the entire man- agement of the bank, having been made acting cashier on the 1st of March, 1919. This bank was organized by Governor D. W. Davis in 1907 and has enjoyed a steady growth. It was originally capitalized for twenty-five thousand dollars and now has a capital of fifty thousand dollars, while its surplus amounts to eight thousand dollars, and its deposits have increased from twenty-five thousand dollars the first year to four hundred and fifty thousand dollars hy the 1st of December, 1918. Governor D. W. Davis is now president, while the vice president of the institution is W. S. Sparks, a stock raiser of American Falls.


On the 18th of September, 1915, Mr. Wennstrom was married to Miss Bernice Hughes, and they now have three children, Harold Elbert, Elmer and Donald.


Mr. Wennstrom has some farming interests adjoining the town of Gooding. In community affairs he is actively and progressively interested. He is now treas- urer of the Independent School District, No. 1, and is treasurer of the Power County Chapter of the Red Cross. He was active in all Liberty Loan campaigns and in the drives for the Red Cross and the Salvation Army. He belongs to the Sigma Nu fraternity of Lombard College and is an exemplary representative of the Masonic fraternity. His political allegiance is given to the republican party and his religious faith is that of the Universalist church. In manner he is pleasant and genial, in business reliable and enterprising, and in citizenship he is thoroughly loyal. Any community might be glad to name Gus S. Wennstrom as one of its citizens.


HON. GEORGE A. DAY.


The history of Idaho's development would be incomplete were there failure to make prominent reference to the Hon. George A. Day, who was most active in creating the land department of the state, serving for twelve years, under the administration of five governors, in connection with this department of the state service. Moreover, he is a recognized leader in republican circles, while as a business man his position is one of prominence owing to the extent and importance of his activities as a farmer and stockman. He today owns and occupies a beautiful home at Oakley, while his first residence there was a little log cabin with a dirt roof. The contrast between that and his present palatial abode is also indicative of the progress that he has made along every line in which he has directed his labors.


Mr. Day was born at Draper, Utah, May 23, 1867, and is a son of Henry E. and Mary Elizabeth (Cotrell) Day, pioneers of Utah. His boyhood was largely passed upon the home farm in Salt Lake county and his early education, acquired in the public schools, was supplemented by study in the Brigham Young University at Provo, Utah, and he belongs to the alumni of that institution. He came to Idaho in 1889 as the first principal of the Cassia Stake Academy and acted in that capacity for two years. During the last year of his teaching he began to extend his efforts more and more largely into the stock raising business and from time to time purchased land as his financial resources permitted until he is today the owner of several hundred acres. He has given his attention largely to the raising of cattle and sheep. His first home at Oakley, as previously indicated, was a little log structure with a dirt roof, indicative of the humble start which he made in business; but he used every opportunity wisely and well, made judicious investment in property and in live stock and is today one of the most substantial and prosperous citizens of his part of the state.


The recognition of his ability on the part of his fellow townsmen came to him when in 1903 he was elected to the state senate and he again served in 1905 and in 1907, being thus for three terms a member of the upper house of the Idaho general assembly. He gave the most thoughtful and earnest consideration to all the vital ques-


A host Gay


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tions which came up for settlement, standing for all those forces which he believed to be of real worth in the upbuilding of the commonwealth. In 1895 he was requested by Governor Gooding to assist in organizing a land department, and when Governor Gooding was succeeded by Governor Brady, the latter appointed him state land com- missioner, in which capacity he served for about eight years. He saw the office grow until it became one of the great departments of the state. Land grants were filled; isolated sections 16 and 36 were exchanged to the government for consolidated tracts amounting to a half million acres; and through his foresight in consummating these transactions millions of dollars were made for the public institutions of Idaho. During his administration he encouraged the leasing of all grazing lands as well as agricultural lands belonging to the state and the result of this system swelled the fund materially for the educational and penal institutions. The important work which he did in this connection is recognized by all and its value as a factor in the development of the state and the utilization of its natural resources is widely appreciated. Mr. Day is well known as a leader in republican circles and for two terms served as chairman of the republican state central committee, leading his party successfully through two strenuous campaigns. His opinions carry great weight in the councils of his party and his influence has been a potent force on the side of progress and successful achievement.


In June, 1890, Mr. Day was married to Miss Florence G. Whittle, a native of Grants- ville, Utah, and a daughter of George and Ann (Severe) Whittle. Her parents were pioneers and highly respected citizens of Oakley. To Mr. and Mrs. Day have been born seven children: George, Cloie, Zella, Elva, Leroy, Maeser and Dorcas.


The family is most widely and favorably known in Oakley, occupying a prominent position in the social circles of the city. Mr. Day is now serving as mayor of the town, giving to it a business-like administration, characterized by various needed reforms and improvements. His ideals in regard to municipal affairs are high, and while he is never willing to lower his ideals in the least, he utilizes the most practical methods in their achievement. There is nothing of the visionary theorist in his make-up. He studies all questions, especially those of public concern, from the standpoint of a prac- tical business man and patriotic citizen and he works intelligently in the direction of his purpose, knowing that ultimately the right will triumph and that progress will be conserved. He has had much to do in the development of Idaho's natural resources with shaping public thought and action, and in many ways he has left the impress of his individuality and his ability upon the history of his adopted state.


DOUGLAS KNOX.


Douglas Knox, of Emmett, is one of the oldest of Idaho's living pioneers. He is now in his seventy-eighth year and fifty-six years of this period have been spent in Idaho, which he has seen emerge from territorial form to take on the graces and opportunities of statehood. He was a young man of about twenty-two years when he came to Idaho from Nebraska City, Nebraska, arriving in the year 1864. He was born in Belmont county, Ohio, January 27, 1843, his parents being James and Agnes (Douglas) Knox. He was largely reared at Liberty, Guernsey county, Ohio, where his father followed the cabinet-making trade. In 1853 the parents removed to a farm in Appanoose county, Iowa, and in 1856 Douglas Knox left that state to become a resident of Nebraska City, Nebraska. There he resided until 1864, when he made the trip across the country with a wagon train that numbered from twenty to thirty wagons, all drawn by oxen. A part of the luggage and freight which was transported over the plains by this train was a quartz mill, its Idaho destination being Rocky Bar. Mr. Knox remained with the outfit until they reached Rocky Bar, where he assisted in unloading the quartz mill, after which he pro- ceeded to Boise, then a mere military post and emigrant camp on the frontier. He spent the winter of 1864-5 in Idaho's future capital and then removed to Idaho City, where he resided for about two years.


On the 10th of May, 1867, Mr. Knox was married on what is now known as Dry creek, about ten miles west of Boise. The lady whom he wedded was a young widow, Mrs. Margaret Davies by name. In her maidenhood she was Miss Margaret Williams, a native of Wisconsin. Her first husband, Thomas Davies, had died, leaving her with two small children, a son and a daughter, John B. and Ida Davies, but the latter died at the age of twelve years. The son, however, still survives,


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making his home in Emmett. The daughter was born while her parents were en route from Wisconsin to Idaho. The Davies family became prominently connected with the pioneer development of this section of the state and the son, John B. Davies, is now a prosperous citizen of Gem county, being widely and favorably known In Emmett. He is married and his only son and child, who was also named John Davies, was mortally wounded in battle in France in the fall of 1918 and died later in a hospital there, being buried on French soil, when a young man of twenty-six years.


While Mr. Knox became a resident of Idaho in 1864, he has lived continuously in or near Emmett since 1870 and for many years occupied a ranch a mile below the town. About thirteen years ago he sold that property and has since lived in Emmett. In 1885 he was called upon to mourn the loss of his wife, Mrs. Margaret (Davies) Knox, who was most devoted to her home and family and whose death was the occasion of deep and widespread regret throughout the community as well as to the members of her own household. To Mr. and Mrs. Knox were born four sons and four daughters, all of whom survive. These are: Mrs. Ella Parrish, now living near Emmett; Clayton B., a resident of Emmett; De Loss D., Walter and Frank, all of whom reside in Emmett; Mrs., Lottie Little, whose home is in Wallace, Idaho; Mrs. Margaret Wells, of Oregon; and Mrs. Minnie Murray, of Bigtimber, Montana. All of the eight children are married and all of the sons-in-law and the daughters-in-law as well as their respective wives and husbands are living. Mr. Knox has about forty grandchildren and great-grandchildren who survive, there being seven of the latter. All four of the sons reside in Emmett and are prosperous and substantial citizens. Having lost his first wife, Mr. Knox was again married. It was eighteen years after her, death that he wedded Mrs. Samantha Lewis, the widow of James Lewis, of Emmett, and they are now pleasantly and happily located in one of the cosy homes of Emmett.


Mr. Knox is an exemplary representative of the Masonic fraternity and in his political views is a democrat. Since taking up his abode in Emmett he has re- sided in five different counties, Ada, Washington, Payette, Canyon and Gem, as the different subdivisions of the state have been named. When he took up his abode in Emmett in 1870 it was a part of Ada county, while a later division placed it in Canyon, Washington and Payette counties and finally in Gem county. He served for four years as assessor of Ada county when it was about three times its present size, his incumbency in the office continuing from 1877 to 1881. He served for two years as a commissioner of Canyon county and has been almost continuously a member of the school board of Emmett since 1871, filling the position at the pres- ent time. For only three years was he off the board, which has in charge the educa- tional interests of what is known as the independent school district of Emmetts- ville. This was created by the territorial legislature in 1885. Previous to this time Mr. Knox had served as school trustee and furthermore during all these years of service on the board he has been its chairman and the cause of education has always found in him a stalwart champion. He was made a Mason in Boise Lodge No. 2, A. F. & A. M., in 1878, became a charter member of Butte Lodge No. 37. A. F. & A. M., at Emmett and from the beginning has constantly served as its treasurer. Throughout his life he has followed the teachings of the order concern- ing the brotherhood of mankind and the obligations thereby imposed.


ALMA HANSON.


Alma Hanson is filling the position of county treasurer of Teton county, with office at Driggs, where he also makes his home. He was born in Hyrum, Utah, October 3, 1874, and is a son of H. P. and Bertha (Carlson) Hanson, who are natives of Denmark and came to America in 1864, settling in Utah. They made the journey across the plains with ox teams and located at Brigham, while subse- quently they removed to Bear River City. Later the father went to Hyrum, Cache county, Utah, where he purchased land, which he improved and continued its culti- vation until a recent date. He is now living retired and resides in Hyrum at the age of seventy-six years, while the mother has reached the age of seventy-one yesrs.


Alma Hanson spent his youthful days largely in Hyrum and in Logan and


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supplemented his public school education by study in the Brigham Young College. He then turned his attention to sheep raising in partnership with his father and they owned from three to seven thousand head of sheep for six or seven years. Alma Hanson was then called to fill a mission to Germany for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This was in 1902 and he returned in 1905. At the close of his missionary service he traveled all over Europe for more than a month. Following his return home he took up the insurance business, in which he engaged for a few months, or until November, 1905, when he removed to Darby. He taught school for eight years in Teton county and filed on land at Bates, that county, and removed to his farm on which he located in the summer of 1906. He bought more land from time to time and is now the owner of four hundred acres, constituting a finely improved farm, all of which is under cultivation, He continued to till the soil until the spring of 1919, when he removed to Driggs, and through the inter- vening period he has rented his land, deriving therefrom a good annual income.


On the 8th of November, 1905, Mr. Hanson was married to Miss Marie Aslogsen and they have become the parents of six children, namely: Alma, who was born August 11, 1906; Lincoln, who was born April 21, 1908, and died September 25, 1914; Irene V., born December 21, 1909; Carl E., September 17, 1911; Gladys, whose birth occurred in November, 1915; and June, born in June, 1918.


Mr. Hanson has remained an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and on the 12th of August, 1908, was made bishop of the Bates ward and held that office for nearly eleven years. He is a member of the high council to the stake president of the Teton stake and is first counselor to the presi- dent of the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association. During his term as bishop he instituted many improvements, such as a new meetinghouse and a new schoolhouse. Politically Mr. Hanson is a republican and is a recognized leader in the local ranks of his party. In 1916 he was elected to the office of county treasurer of Teton county and has since served in that capacity. He was justice of the peace at Bates for two years and is now a member of the city council and a trustee of the high school at Driggs. During the World war he was a member of the County Council of Defense and director of the sale of War Savings stamps. He stood loyally for every interest which he believed would further the welfare of the nation or advance the interests of the soldiers in camp and field.




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