USA > Kansas > Leavenworth County > History of Leavenworth County Kansas > Part 54
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In Leavenworth, Kansas, Anton Haag and Agnes Everhardy were united in marriage. She was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1845, and still resides at Thorne Hill, Leavenworth County. Nine children were born to this union, as follows: Jacob F., Seattle, Washington; Peter W., the sub- ject of this review; Mary, a widow, living with her mother; Joseph, now lives with his mother; and Irma, Matthias, Anna and Agnes, deceased.
Peter Haag received his education in German Catholic parochial school and remained at home with his parents until he was twenty-seven years old.
November 10, 1896, Peter Haag and Anna Ochs were united in mar- riage. She is the daughter of Adam and Margaret Isabelle Ochs, both natives of Germany, who are deceased.
Seven children have been born to this union, as follows: Raymond, at Niagara Falls; William, Leavenworth; Edward, Leavenworth, and Mary at home; two died in infancy.
Peter Haag remained on the farm one year after his marriage and then moved to Leavenworth where he was employed in a grocery store for a year. He was then employed by William Becher in the soda water works. In this work he remained for six years, leaving it for three years to serve on the police force. He was captain of police. He then bought one-half interest in the soda water works of William Becher and has con- tinued as partner with him to the present time.
Mr. Haag is a member of the Catholic Church, the Knights of Colum- bus, and is a democrat.
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Kirby McRill, a well-known farmer and stockman of Reno Township, who has won a nationwide reputation for long distance walking. Mr. Mc- Rill has always loved to walk and among his first efforts at long distance walking, he would make the round trip from Kansas City, Missouri to Topeka, Kansas and return in one day. Later Mr. McRill mapped out longer walking trips. In this way he has walked all over the state of Kansas and the neighboring states. In May, 1920, Kirby McRill walked from Topeka, Kansas, to Chicago, Illinois. He left Topeka at four a. m., May 1, 1920, and arrived in Chicago, May 8, 1920, at four-twenty p. m., averaging seventy miles per day. This trip followed the Santa Fe railroad tracks. He walked from Chicago, Illinois, to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a distance of eighty-five miles, in twenty-one hours and fifty-five minutes, without a stop. For sixty days, Mr. McRill walked, arriving at Chillicothe, Missouri, having walked 3,000 miles. He contemplates a trip to Los An- geles, California, in 1921.
Kirby McRill was born in Willowwand, Nebraska, December 5, 1875, the son of Samuel and Lucy (Cutter) McRill. Samuel McRill was born in Peoria County, Illinois, February 18, 1846. Before coming to Leavenworth County, in 1876, Samuel McRill spent a short while in Nebraska. He pur- chased 120 acres of land in Reno Township and added to the original acreage until he had 250 acres at his death. He was a Civil War veteran, having served in Company I, Seventy-seventh Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, as a private. He died at his home in Reno Township, Novem- ber 17, 1903.
Lucy (Cutter) McRill was born in Peoria County, Illinois, July 30, 1842, and was married to Samuel McRill in their native state. To this union, two children were born: Frank Amos, born May 6, 1872, resides in Tonganoxie; and Kirby, the subject of this sketch. Lucy (Cutter) McRill was the daughter of Isaac and Sarah (Metcalf) Cutter. The former was born in 1810 in New York state and came to Ohio as a salesman. He was married here to Sarah Metcalf, who was born December 5, 1809, in Ohio. They moved to Peoria County, Illinois, where they were engaged in farming on eighty acres owned by them. They died at their home, here. Mrs. Sarah (Metcalf) Cutter died July 25, 1863.
Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Cutter were the parents of seven children, as fol- lows: Mary Ann, born July 29, 1829, died March. 15, 1894; Rachel, born 1831 and died 1915; Isaac, born May 10, 1863, deceased ; William, deceased ; Job, born 1836, Idaho Falls; Lemuel, born 1840, died 1863, during service in the Civil War; Lucy, the mother of subject.
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Kirby McRill was reared and educated in Reno Township, attending the Pony Creek School, district No. 37. He remained in the employ of his father until the latter's death. In 1906, he took charge of the farm and has since discharged all of the duties of full manager and owner. This farm originally was owned by Chief Nine Mile, and the Nine Mile Creek named after the Indian chief passes through the farm.
Mr. McRill, in addition to his farming, has two threshing outfits, with which he threshes his own as well as many other farmers' grain. He has invented a double spike cylinder for a separator, which is an important improvement over the old method.
Mr. McRill is a stockholder in the Red River Special Double Spike Company and is a thoroughly up-to-date manager of his threshing outfits.
Kirby McRill is a Scottish Rite Mason and a member of the Shrine and also a member of Grange No. 1443. In politice he is independent.
Samuel H. Ward, an extensive landowner and a successful farmer and stockman of Stranger Township, is a native of Arkansas. He was born October 31, 1862, in Benton County, Arkansas, the son of Chesley and Malinda (Dicken) Ward.
Chesley Ward was a native of Virginia, where he was reared and married to Malinda Dicken, who was born in North Carolina. Shortly after their marriage they came to Kansas and rented land for awhile and in 1863 came to Douglas County, Kansas, settling south of Lawrence, remaining there for two years, then moved to Tecumseh, Kansas, and farmed for four years. They then moved to a farm near Coffeyville, Kan- sas, where they remained until September, 1874, when they moved to Leavenworth County, settling on a farm of 160 acres in Sherman Town- ship. They remained on this land the remainder of their lives and are now deceased.
Nine children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Chesley Ward, as follows: Wiley, Edward, Allie, Samuel, the subject of this sketch, Haley, Charles, Pearl, and Robert E., living in Tonganoxie Township. They are all de- ceased but Samuel and Robert E. Ward.
Samuel Ward, after coming to Sherman Township, attended the Eu- reka school and worked on the farm until he was twenty-three years of age. He was married at this time, 1885, to Eva Higgens, in Mercer County, Illinois. She died in 1890, leaving two children, Albert, who died in in-
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fancy, and Laura, Mrs. John Fox, of Sherman Township. After this mar- riage Mr. Ward rented land in Sherman Township for a year and then purchased the nucleus of his large acreage, this was a tract of 102 acres. He now owns 1,000 acres of land in Leavenworth County. He is also the owner of 1,900 acres of land in southwestern Kansas.
Samuel H. Ward was married the second time in 1896 to Miss Lou Harness and one child, Madge, now Mrs. Louis Seufert, of Tonganoxie Township. Mrs. Ward died in 1897. In March, 1899, Mr. Ward was mar- ried to Mary Allison, who died in 1909, leaving three children, as follows: Ola, married Lola Oakson, lives in Stranger Township; Earl, married Bess Peters, in Stranger Township; and Mildred, deceased. The fourth time Samuel Ward and Mrs. Ida Edison were united in marriage, March 22, 1911, they have one child, Samuel H., Jr., born January 14, 1913.
Mr. Ward is an extensive cattle and hog feeder. He has been in this business for the past thirty-five years and is well known in the larger mar- kets as well as the local ones. He has been breeding the Hereford cattle for three years and also Percheron horses. He has every modern con- venience in his barns and feeding lots to do his work successfully and with the least work and expense.
In 1910, Mr . Ward was elected county commissioner, which office he held for six years and forty-four days. He has also been township trustee of Stranger Township. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and is a Scottish Rite Mason and a member of a Shrine, the Knights of Pythias, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He and his wife are members of the Methodist Church and both are members of the Eastern Star.
Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Ward live in an all-modern residence, which contains fourteen rooms and is electrically lighted, and furnace heated, and is one of the fine homes of this section. He owns the elevator at Edminister, which has a capacity of 11,000 bushels. He raises 1,500 acres of wheat each year.
Mr. Ward is a republican and one of the progressive and public spirited men of affairs of Leavenworth County.
Lemuel Franklin Evans, Jr., a capable and successful farmer of Silicia, Montana, who is a native of Leavenworth County, was born April 27, 1882, in Tonganoxie Township, a son of Lemuel and Ellen (Lash) Evans.
Lemuel Evans, Sr., was born in Illinois in 1841. During the Civil
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War he was in Company D, First Regiment Kansas Infantry, enlisting as a private at Leavenworth, Kansas, June 3, 1861. In the battle of Wilson Creek, he sustained injuries to the eye which caused blindness. He re- turned to Lawrence, Kansas, where he was married April 24, 1864, to Ellen Lash.
After his marriage, Lemuel Evans lived for a year on a farm near Lawrence, Kansas, and in 1865 came to Tonganoxie Township and pur- chased land. He built a log cabin and in this cabin all of his children were born. The first year he had to rent a yoke of oxen from his brother to do the work on the farm. The following year he purchased a mule to help with the work. For three years he kept government horses and cat- tle in a corral on Pony Creek. He purchased from the government a young colt called "Nellie," and later he bought two cows from the government. From these small beginnings Mr. Evans worked and labored and at the time of his retirement to Tonganoxie in 1905, was the owner of 640 acres of land.
Lemuel Evans was engaged in the real estate business in Tonganoxie from 1905 until his death, January 20, 1921. He was buried in the Tonga- noxie Cemetery and the services were conducted by the local Masons. He was the oldest Mason in Tonganoxie.
Ellen (Lash) Evans was born March 5, 1843, in DeWitt County, Illi- nois, the daughter of John and Elizabeth (Bixler) Lash, who came to Douglas County, Kansas, shortly after her birth. It was during the peril- ous times of Kansas when the Territory of Kansas was rent by the con- flict between the pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions. Lawrence, Kansas, was the scene of many a clash between these factions and when Ellen Nash was a young girl in her teens, she and her parents went into Law- rence and witnessed the devastation wrought by the sacking of Lawrence.
John and Elizabeth (Bixler) Lash were natives of Ohio, where they were married and came to Douglas County, Kansas, in 1845. They farmed one mile from Lawrence, Kansas, where they died. They were buried on the old Martin Adams place, John Lash being the first person to be buried in this graveyard.
John and Elizabeth Lash were the parents of fourteen children, as follows: Jacob, Mary Ann, Lavina, Anna, John, Elizabeth, Amanda, George, Abraham, William, Ellen Jane, Mrs. Lemuel Evans; Alexander, of Tonganoxie; and Caroline, all deceased except Mrs. Evans and Alexander.
Lemuel and Ellen (Lash) Evans were the parents of six children, as
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follows: Oscar, deceased; Samuel A., Bethany, Missouri; John W., whose sketch appears in this volume; Nettie; Ducy, deceased, and Lemuel F. Jr., of this sketch. Mrs. Ellen Evans lives at Tonganoxie. She is a member of the Baptist Church.
Lemuel Franklin Evans was reared and educated in Tonganoxie Town- ship. He attended the district school and the Friends Academy. The lumber from the latter building was used in building the Evans home on the farm.
October 27, 1909, Lemuel F. Evans and Geniveve Schaffenberg were married at Omaha, Nebraska, by the Methodist pastor, Rev. Lovling. Mr. and Mrs. Evans are located in Montana, where Mr. Evans has a large cat- tle ranch. They are members of the Methodist Church and are successful and substantial citizens of their adopted state.
Felix Donnelly, now deceased, was a pioneer farmer of Stranger Town- ship, who, during his lifetime was among the successful and substantial citizens of Leavenworth County. He was born in County Limerick, Ire- land, August 12, 1832, and when a child came to the United States with his mother and brother and sisters. They settled in Providence, Rhode Island. Mr. Donnelly was employed for a number of years as a teamster for the Phillips Allen Print Works of that city. After his marriage he came to St. Louis, Missouri, and later to Liberty, Missouri, where he was employed as a laborer. He traded his property at Liberty, for farm land in Missouri, and owned various farms before establishing his home in Stranger Town- ship in 1860.
He bought 160 acres of land from the Union Pacific Railroad Com- pany and built a three-room log cabin which remained the family home until the present home was built in 1896. Mr. Donnelly was not actively engaged as a soldier in the Civil War, because of disability for military service. He was an extensive stock feeder and buyer, following this work until his death. He died in Texas, February 12, 1912.
February 2, 1852, Mr. Donnelly and Mary Jane Petit were married in Providence, Rhode Island. She was born March 8, 1838, in Bridgetown, Canada, and when fourteen years old came to Providence, Rhode Island, with the McNamara family. She stayed with them for a short time and then was employed by the Weldon family. It was while here that she was married to Mr. Donnelly. She lives on the home farm at the advanced age of eighty-two years.
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Ten children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Donnelly, as follows: James, deceased; Elizabeth, died in infancy; Jane, now Mrs. Thomas Hammond, of Leavenworth, Kansas; Anna, died in infancy; Emma, deceased; John, deceased ; William, deceased; Agnes, now Mrs. Louis Commens, of Stranger Township; Edward, deceased; and Margaret C., who is at home with her mother.
Margaret C. Donnelly was born December 4, on the present home place. She was reared on the farm and attended the Timber Ridge District school No. 22. For a number of years, Miss Donnelly was employed as a type setter in a publishing house. She is now at home with her mother and manages the farm. Miss Donnelly, besides looking after the present 160 acres, also owns a farm of 118 acres two and one-half miles northeast of Tonganoxie.
Miss Donnelly and her mother are members of the St. Patricks Catho- lic Church.
Robert W. Freeman, a highly respected and public spirited farmer and stockman of Tonganoxie Township, has been a resident of Leavenworth County since 1864. He was born near St. Joseph, in Buchanan County, Missouri, December 13, 1863. He is one of eleven children born to his parents, Edward W. and Ann (Harness) Freeman, who are Emiline, born December 17, 1860, married James Lance, Clay County, Missouri; Ninnie, born August 28, 1862, married Z. Mills, and is now deceased; Robert, the subject of this sketch; Edward, born April 12, 1865, deceased; Rachel, born December 8, 1866, married John Keller, now living in Tonganoxie, Kansas; Lewis, born November 22, 1868, resides in Stranger Township; Ida, born October 22, 1870, married William Wilson, and died December 10, 1918; Theodosia, born November 2, 1872, married Ernest Bowman, died February 3, 1900; Ezra, born November 25, 1874, now living on the home place, which he owns; Eva M., born March 29, 1876, died July 26, 1910; and David, born June 8, 1878, died November 11, 1909.
Edward W. Freeman was born March 17, 1818, in Virginia, and in 1840 came to St. Joseph, Missouri, where he was employed as a carpenter. In 1849, during the gold rush to California, Mr. Freeman crossed the plains. He traveled by ox team and it took him six months to make the long and perilous journey. On his return he came by water. He again established his home in St. Joseph, Missouri, where he remained until coming to Leav- enworth County in 1864.
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Edward Freeman was a veteran of the Mexican War and Civil War. In the latter, he served as second lieutenant in the Union army.
Edward Freeman and Ann Harness were married at St. Joseph, Mis- souri, March 8, 1855. She was a native of Buchanan County, Missouri, born February 3, 1837. When Mr. and Mrs. Edward Freeman came to Leavenworth County they settled on a farm of eighty acres in Tonganoxie Township. Edward Freeman died September 9, 1886, and his wife died April 3, 1911. They are both buried in the Tonganoxie Cemetery.
Robert Freeman was reared in Tonganoxie Township and remained with his parents until he was twenty years of age. He then came to Ton- ganoxie where he was employed as a brick mason. He worked at his trade for fifteen years and then purchased eighty-seven acres of land and started farming for himself. He has added to this and now owns 138 acres of well-improved land. He does general farming and some dairying.
Mr. Freeman has always taken an active interest in local affairs and served as township clerk for a number of years and in 1914 was elected a trustee of Tonganoxie Township and is now serving his fourth term.
Robert W. Freeman and Emma Lee were married July 30, 1890. To this union eight children have been born, as follows: Edna May, born July 27, 1891, married July 27, 1919, to Dean Nilson, of Haskell County, Kansas; Raymond E., born July 24, 1892, in Edwards County, Kansas, was married at Maxwell, Kansas, April 24, 1915, to Bessie Hargadine; Ches- ter Andrew, born December 27, 1893, entered the United States army, September 18, 1917, was sent to Camp Funston, where he was assigned to Company K, 140th Infantry, 35th Division, and in April, 1918, he went overseas and served one year and three days from the time he left New York harbor until his return and from July 16, 1918, to September 1, 1918, he was in the French trenches and from September 26, to October 1, was on the Meuse-Argonne offensive, and was discharged April 14, 1919, and is now at home; Robert Lee, born October 3, 1895, married Icle Lena Ellis, June 20, 1917, and they live at Tonganoxie and have one child; Louzell, born November 15, 1900, was a teacher in Haskell County, Kansas, and is now the wife of Charles L. Giles of Haskell County; Edward, born Novem- ber 28, 1903, in high school at Tonganoxie; Glenn, born March 27, 1906, in high school at Tonganoxie; and Dean, born January 5, 1908, in the grade school at Tonganoxie.
Robert W. Freeman is a member of the Royal Neighbors, the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and the Modern Woodmen of America. His
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wife is a member of the Royal Neighbors, the Eastern Star, and they are both members of the Friends Church. Mr. Freeman is a republican and was treasurer of the Friends Church for twenty years.
John C. Sedgwick, a substantial farmer of Stranger Township, is a native of Leavenworth County. He was born on the farm where he now lives, September 28, 1878. He is the son of John and Emma (Penfold) Sedgwick, whose sketch appears at length in this volume.
John C. Sedgwick was reared and educated in Stranger Township and attended the district school No. 69. He labored on the farm with his parents until he was twenty-six years old, and after his marriage he rented the land from his mother. He has a tract of 220 acres on which he does general farming and stock raising.
At the home of Charles and Sarah (Carter) Fisher in Tonganoxie Township, August 16, 1904, John Sedgwick and Rosa Fisher were united in marriage. To this union eight children have been born, as follows: John R .; Charles R .; Morgan E .; Rosa M .; Gladys R .; Sarah E .; Claude; and Everett, all at home with parents.
John Sedgwick is one of the substantial and successful farmers of Stranger Township and is always interested in the growth of his com- munity. The Sedgwick family stands high in Leavenworth County.
A. M. Dickenson, a well-known farmer and stockman of Tonganoxie Township, is a native of New Jersey and a Civil War veteran. He was born February 8, 1846, in Salem County, New Jersey, the son of Joseph and Rachel (Peterson) Dickenson, both natives of New Jersey and both now deceased. A. M. Dickenson is one of eight children born to his par- ents, as follows: Samuel, deceased; Elizabeth, deceased; Sarah, deceased; A. M., the subject of this sketch; Joseph, lives in New Jersey; Owen, deceased; Isaiah, of New Jersey; and an infant, deceased.
A. M. Dickenson remained with his parents until the Civil War, when he enlisted in the Ninth New Jersey Infantry in 1864, under Colonel Brische and General Grant in the Army of the Potomac. Mr. Dickenson saw most of his war service on the Potomac River in the latter part of 1865. He participated in several skirmishes, such as White Oak Swamp and Dewey's Bluff. He was discharged at Trenton, New Jersey, in Au- gust, 1866.
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In 1868, Mr. Dickenson came to Douglas County, Kansas, where he was employed as a day laborer for ten years. For three years previous to coming to Leavenworth County he rented land in Jefferson County, and then came to his present place, which he rented for a few years, pur- chasing the same in 1883. The original farm was 120 acres to which he added forty acres in 1900. He has made all of the improvements since that time. In 1915, a sixty-five ton silo was built.
A. M. Dickenson and Belle Bebout were married in Leavenworth, Kansas. She is the daughter of Israel and Margaret (Vanemon) Bebout, natives of Pennsylvania. They were farmers in Leavenworth County for a number of years, establishing their home here in 1870. They returned to Pennsylvania, where they both died. Mrs. A. M. Dickenson is one of the seven children born to her parents, as follows: Cornie, deceased; Joseph, in Kansas; Eugene, deceased; Belle, Mrs. A. M. Dickerson, of this sketch; Rebecca, resides in Pennsylvania; John, in Pennsylvania.
To A. M. Dickenson and wife have been born the following children: Ferbus, born February 20, 1883, renting his father's farm; May Francis, born April 5, 1881, at home; Bertha, Mrs. Fred Harmon, Douglas County, Kansas.
Mr. Dickenson has always taken a commendable interest in local affairs, especially in education, and has served on the school board of district forty-three, Tonganoxie Township, for a number of terms. He is a democrat and a highly respected citizen of Leavenworth County.
Daniel Read Anthony, Jr., lawyer, journalist and member of Congress from the First district of Kansas, was born at Leavenworth, Aug. 22, 1870, a son of Col. Daniel R. and Annie (Osborn) Anthony. Mr. Anthony has inherited many of the strong characteristics of his father and is recognized as a journalist of marked ability. He was educated in the public schools of his native city; at the Michigan Military Academy, Orchard Lake, Michigan, and then entered the law department of the University of Michigan, where he graduated with the degree of LL. B. in 1891, and was admitted to the bar. On his return to Leavenworth he became connected wth the Leavenworth Times and soon assumed the management of the paper. He entered actively into political life, being elected mayor of the city, and serving in that capacity from 1903 to 1905. Reared in the Republican party, Mr. Anthony has
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always taken an active part at its councils. He has been a delegate to county and state conventions and in 1900 was state committeeman for his district. He is one of the active ones in all civic affairs and mat- ters that tend to the growth and development of Leavenworth. When Colonel Anthony died in November, 1904, Mr. Anthony assumed entire control of the Times. On March 29, 1907, he was unanimously nom- inated for Congress by the Republicans of the First district and was elected to the Sixtieth Congress to fill a vacancy caused by the election of Charles Curtis to be United States senator, and was re-elected to the Sixth-first Congress, receiving 27,796 votes to 19,842 for F. M. Pearl, the Democratic candidate, and 650 for J. F. Villetts, who ran on the Social- istic ticket. In 1910 he again became a candidate for the nomination, making his campaign as a "regular" Republican against T. A. McNeal, the "progressive" candidate. In the primary election he was successful by a substantial majority, and later at the November election he de- feated J. W. Chapman the "Independent Democratic" candidate by an overwhelming majority, being thus again returned to Congress with the unqualified indorsement of his constituents. Mr. Anthony has served con- tinuously in Congress from this district to the present time. His career as a representative in Congress has been consistent, his political methods clean, and his endeavor always has been to procure the best legislative results for the district he represents. He has advocated the building of a military road from Fort Leavenworth to Fort Riley by the use of Fed- eral convict labor, has always interested himself in behalf of the old soldiers, and has proposed generous appropriations for the state and na- tional homes. He is one of the leading newspaper men of Kansas and of the day, and his paper advocates every policy for the moral and material uplift of the people of Kansas and the nation. In June, 1897, Mr. Anthony married Bessie Havens, the daughter of Paul Havens, of Leavenworth. They have two children, Eleanor and Daniel.
Charles F. W. Dassler, lawyer, is well known, not only in Leaven- worth where he resides, but also all over the country, as one of the ablest and most accurate law writers of the present day. The list of his books at the end of this biography shows that his life has been a busy one, helpful to his profession and casts upon him great credit and honor. Mr. Dassler was born in St. Louis, Mo., Feb. 3, 1852, a son of
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John G. and Mary (Hintze) Dassler, natives of Germany, who immi- grated from the Fatherland about 1849. Seven children were born to them, three of whom are living. The mother died in 1866 and the father carried on his mercantile business until his death at St. Louis in 1889.
Charles F. W. Dassler received his academic education in the public and private schools of his native city. In 1868 he came to Kansas and located at Salina, but returned to St. Louis to fit himself for the profes- sion of law. He entered the law department of Washington University, in which he graduated in 1873 with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. He was admitted to practice in Missouri, but at once came to Leaven- worth and was admitted to the Kansas bar. Since that time he has devoted his entire life to the various branches of his profession and the compilation and editing of the various law books which have made his name so well known throughout the state and country. He takes an active interest in local and national affairs. He has been twice elected city attorney, twice elected councilman and has served on the board of eduation and acted as its president. He is a Democrat in politics. In 1880 he was candidate for the state senate and, although the dis- trict was largely Republican, he was defeated by only thirty votes. Upon several occasions he has acted as judge pro tem of the dstrict court and, in 1910, was the Democratic candidate for judge of the supreme court.
In 1880 Mr. Dassler married Mrs. Lee L. Marsh, a native of Ohio. They have one son, John Carl.
The list of Mr. Dassler's books, referred to above, is as follows: 1874, Dassler's Kansas Digest, 1 vol .; 1876, Dassler's Kansas Statutes, 2 vols .; 1879, Compiled Laws of Kansas, 1 vol .; 1880, Dassler's Kansas Digest, 1 vol .; 1881, Complied Laws of Kansas, 1 vol .; 1881, Kansas Addendum, Green's Pleading and Practice, 1 vol .; 1881, reprint of McCahon's Re- ports, and vol. 1, Kansas Reports with notes and additional cases, 1 vol .; 1882, reprint of vols. 2 and 3, Kansas Reports, with notes, 2 vols .; 1883, reprint of vol. 4, Kansas Reports, with notes, 1 vol .; 1883, Leavenworth City Ordinances, 1 vol .; 1884, reprint vols. 5, 6 and 7 Kansas Reports, with notes, 3 vols .; 1885, Kansas Digest, vol. II, 1 vol .; 1885, Compiled Laws of Kansas, 1 vol .; 1885, reprints of vols. 8, 9, 10 and 11, Kansas Re- ports with notes, 4 vols .; 1886, Kansas Addendum, Green's Pleading and Practice, Second Edition, 1 vol .; 1886, reprint vols. 12, 13, 14, 15, 21 and
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22, Kansas Reports, with notes, 6 vols .; 1887, reprint vols. 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28 and 29, Kansas Reports, with notes, 7 vols .; 1893, Kansas Form Book, 1 vol .; 1894, Kansas Digest, new vol. II; 1899, General Statutes of Kansas; 1902, Kansas Digest, Reports; 1901, General Statutes of Kansas ; 1905, General Statutes of Kansas; 1907, Supplement of Kansas Digest; 1909, Second Supplement Kansas Digest; 1909, General Statutes of Kan- sas and several other legal works. At this writing he is engaged on a work on the subject of taxation, and also in the preparation of a book on legal forms. From Blackmar's Cyclopedia of Kansas History (1912).
Otto F. Schmekel, a retired grocer and substantial citizen of Leaven- worth, Kansas, was born in Germany, and is one of twin sons born to Frederick Wilhelm and Caroline (Kukuk) Schmekel.
Frederick Schmekel was born July 3, 1819, in Bergenthal, Germany, and held a government position all of his life. He was married in 1842 to Caroline Kukuk, who was born January 13, 1823 in Bromberg, Germany. They were the' parents of six children. Frederick Wilhelm Schmekel died February 8, 1861 in Snyderville, Germany, one year after his twin sons, Otto F. and Paul Emil were born. The children are as follows: Gus, born in 1850; Hugo, born April 28, 1853; Moxe, born November 23, 1854; Emma Clara, born April 16, 1857, died April 26, 1860; and Otto F., the subject of this sketch and his twin brother, Paul Emil, who were born . February 12, 1860 and the latter died April 22, 1860.
Otto Schmekel received his education in his native country and with his widowed mother and family, came to Leavenworth, Kansas in 1871. In 1873, he began work in the book store of John Brinck, located on North Fifth Street, and remained there until 1874, when he was em- ployed by his brother in a grocery store. In 1873, Mr. Schmekel opened- up his grocery business on the corner of Fifth Avenue and Ohio Street where he remained until 1882, when he built a two-story brick building. Here he successfuly conducted a growing grocery business until his re- tirement in 1919.
In 1900, Otto Schmekel purchased 107 acres of land near Leavenworth, which he has rented his son, and he also owns twenty-seven acres of land at the end of Ohio street, Leavenworth. On this plot Mr. Schmekel raises a bountiful harvest of vegetables each year.
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HISTORY OF LEAVENWORTH COUNTY
September 9, 1883, in Leavenworth, Kansas, Otto Schmekel and Anna Rodenhaus were united in marriage. She was born December 29, 1864, in Leavenworth, Kansas. To this union three children have been born, as follows: Gertrude Frances, born December 24, 1884, married to Conrad Wulfekuhler, a traveling saleman for Rohling & Company, October 25, 1916, and they have two children, August Frederick, born July 29, 1918, and Anna Louise, born November 29, 1919; Caroline Schmekel, born "December 19, 1887, died May 25, 1904; and Jacob Otto, born October 4, 1889, married Geneva Lambert, November 5, 1919. He was in the ser- vice of the United States during the World War, from 1917 to 1918. He enlisted in the truck driving service and was sent to Lawrence University for training. The armistice was signed before he was sent overseas. He is now located on his father's farm.
Mr. Schmekel is a member of the Court of Honor lodge and the Lutheran Church. He is a democrat and one of the substantial citizens of Leaven- worth County.
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