USA > Kansas > Marshall County > History of Marshall County, Kansas : its people, industries, and institutions > Part 59
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many hardships and lost a large part of a crop of corn by prairie fire. Dur- ing those early days he boarded with a Mr. Thomas and that was his best le me until after he was married.
In the fall of 1885 Mr. Green returned to his native land and there married Elizabeth Williams, and in the spring of 1886 they came to the home farm in Cottage Hill township. Here three children were born, two of whom died in infancy. The family remained on the home farm, where Mr. Green engaged successfully in general farming and stock raising. Dur- ing that time he thoroughly developed his farm and made many valuable improvements. In 1893. owing to his health failing, he moved to Water- ville, where he engaged in the buying and the shipping of stock, in which he continued until the death of his wife in 1899. He then retired from the grain and stock business and sold his farm, which he had greatly improved. and purchased a farm of two hundred and forty acres two miles east of Waterville. In 1900 he and his daughter visited England and again viewed the scenes of his early life, and after eighteen months they returned to this country. In January, 1902, Mr. Green was united in marriage to Nellie Gilbert. of the state of New York, and to this union two children were born, one of whom died in infancy.
In 1904 Mr. Green purchased three hundred and twenty acres of land in Washington county, Kansas, and became known as one of the prominent and substantial men of the district. In 1911 he moved to his present home in Waterville, where he has a splendid modern house and one of the beau- tiful homes of the city. His first wife. Elizabeth ( William) Green, was born in England in 1848. The only living chill by this marriage is Alice Steel, who is a resident of Washington county, where Mr. Steel is success- fully engaged in general farming and stock raising on his splendid farm. six miles southwest of Waterville. Mr. and Mrs. Steel are the parents of four beys, all of whom are at home with their parents.
Nellie (Gilbert ) Green, the second wife of Mr. Green, is the daughter of Henry and Martha ( Gardiner ) Gilbert, both of whom were natives of England, where they received their education and as children came to the United States, and with their parents located in the state of New York. where they lived to the end of their lives. Mr. and Mrs. Green are the parents of one child, Arthur. a lad of twelve years and now attending the home school.
Joseph Green is identified with the Republican party and has ever taken an active interest in local affairs and is one of the prominent members of
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the local lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Waterville. He and his wife are among the prominent members of the local social circles of their home town, where they are held in the highest regard.
GEORGE BANCROFT.
George Bancroft, deceased, for many years one of the well-known and highly respected citizens of Marshall county, was born in Springfield, Vermont, in 1814, and was the son of James and Fannie Bancroft, who were also natives of Vermont and came of old New England families. John and Jane Bancroft, early representatives of the family in America, canie to this country on the ship "James," in 1632. They were the parents of two sons, from whom many of the Bancroft family have sprung. The family settled at Lynn, Massachu- setts, where John Bancroft died in 1637. George Bancroft, the great Ameri- can historian, was a member of the family.
James Bancroft, the father of George Bancroft, the subject of this sketch, settled at Rockingham, Vermont, where he lived for a number of years. The son, George, received his education in the state of his nativity, and there he grew to manhood and married Merril Brown, also a member of an old New England family. They established their home in their native state, where they lived for a time, after which they moved to the state of New York, and settled on a farm near the city of Buffalo, where Mrs. Merril Bancroft died in 1850. Here he remained until 1857, when he moved to Wisconsin, where he lived for some years. In 1871 he left Wisconsin and came to Marshall county, and here Mr. Bancroft engaged in the mercantile business at Water- ville, the building in which he conducted his store being still standing. Asso- ciated with him in the business was his son-in-law, Spencer Hurlbut. now deceased. For twelve years Mr. Bancroft was successfully engaged in the business, when he sold to Hurlbut & Clark, and purchased a large farm north of Waterville, which he managed with much success until the time of his death in 1884.
Mr. Bancroft was a prominent member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons and of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He took much interest in the work of both orders, and had much to do with their success in the district. Politically, he was identified with the Republican party, and always took a keen interest in the affairs of his home township as well as the county. Though he was not an office seeker, he felt it his duty to see that
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the best men were elected to public office. He was a most energetic business man, possessed of much business acumen, and he was for many years recog- nied as one of the foremost and successful residents of the county. His wife. Merril Bancroft, was born in 1817 and was a woman of unusual attainments.
To George and Merril Bancroft were born the following children: For- rest Henry. Frances S. and Harriet Ellen. Forrest Henry received his educa- tion in the local schools and as a lad learned the miller's trade, and later went to Trinidad, Colorado, where he died ; Harriet Ellen is the widow of Spencer Hurlbut and is now living with her son-in-law. George Delaney, at Axtell, Kansas. Frances S. Bancroft received her education in the schools of Wis- consin and came with her parents to Waterville, as a girl. She is a great reader and has added to her store of learning by reading the best literature. She is a member of the Lutheran church and is one of the active religious workers of her home city. She is also a member of the Woman's Relief Corps and was the acting secretary for a period of thirteen years. She takes great interest in missionary work and is a member of the Missionary Society and the ladies' Aid Society of the Lutheran church. She is a woman who is admired by all who know her, and her life has been filled with noble deeds and work well done.
Some years after the death of his first wife, Mr. Bancroft was united in marriage to Adelia C. Eggleson, an excellent woman, who died in 1885.
FRED GERMER.
Fred Germer. a well-known and prominent retired farmer of Logan township. Marshall county, was born in Cook county, Illinois, on October 17. 1868. the son of Fred and Mary ( Breneka ) Germer, who were natives of Hanover, Germany.
The elder Fred Germer was born in 1827 and his wife in 1832. They received their education in the village schools and there grew to manhood and womanhood. After their marriage they continued to reside in the fatherland until 1866, when they came to the United States. During his residence in Germany. Mr. Germer worked as a farm hand for twenty- seven dollars per year. After locating in Cook county, Illinois, he worked as a farm hand and as a section hand on the railroad for four years, after which he came to Marshall county and purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land in Logan township. This he developed and improved and
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FRED GERMER AND FAMILY.
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here he engaged in general farming until the time of his death in 1889 and here his widow died in 1898. They were hard-working and honest people, who had the confidence and respect of all who knew them. When a girl in Germany, Mrs. Germer worked for others and assisted in supporting herself and the other members of the family. By hard work and wise advice she assisted her husband in the life on the farm and in the home.
Fred and Mary Germer were the parents of the following children : Mary, Carrie, Minnie, Sophia, Fred, Alvina and the first born, who died in infancy. Mary Meyn resides with her husband on a farm in Washing- ton county, Kansas, where they are meeting with much success in their chosen work; Carrie Geishler and Minnie Riggert are both residents of Herkimer township, where their husbands are successful farmers and stock- men; Sophia Lauterbach lives in Logan township, where her husband is one of the successful agriculturists of that section and Alvina Petsch and husband are among the successful farmers of Gage county, Nebraska.
Fred Germer, the subject of this sketch, received his education in the schools of Marshall county, and attended the Western Business College at Wichita, Kansas. When not in school he assisted his father with the work on the home farm until he was twenty-one years of age. He then rented the farm for four years, after which he purchased the place and here he engaged successfully in general farming and stock raising until 1908, when he retired to Bremen, where he has a substantial home. During his active life he took much interest in the affairs of the township and had much to do with its growth and development. He has long been identified with the Republican party, and is recognized as a man of influence, not only in the party but in the affairs of the township. For the past two years he has served as justice of the peace.
On November 21. 1890, Fred Germer was united in marriage to Ger- trude Lemke, the daughter of Theodore and Louisa (Stoks) Lemke, both of whom were born in Germany, the father in 1842 and the mother in 1844. After their marriage they continued to reside in their native land until 1860, when they came to the United States, locating in Herkimer township, Marshall county, where Mr. Lemke homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres of land, which he developed and improved, engaging in general farming and stock raising until 1911, when he retired and moved to Bremen, where he now resides, the wife and mother having died in 1877. They were the parents of four children as follow: Gertrude. Mary, Augusta and Emil. Mary Crome resides in Marshall county, where her husband is a successful farmer: Augusta Feil is the wife of a well-to-do
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farmer in Oklahoma, where her brother, Emil, also resides. Gertrude was born in Marshall county on January 25, 1870, and was educated in the common schools and grew to womanhood on the home farm, where she resided until her marriage.
Fred and Gertrude Germer are the parents of the following children : Gertrude, Martin, Carrie, Louisa, Frieda, Fred, Theodore, and Anna. Gertrude died at the age of two years; Martin was born on January 29. 1896; Carrie, April 20, 1898; Louisa, September 7, 1900; Frieda, July 18, 1903: Fred. November 16, 1905: Theodore. May 9, 1909, and Erna on October 30, 1912.
WILLIAM S. BOYD.
William S. Boyd, one of the well-known and prominent retired farmers and old-time freighters of Irving, Marshall county, was born in Bath county. Kentucky, on September 8, 1840, the son of Samuel G. and Roxlina (Mark- well) Boyd. The parents were natives of Virginia and were early settlers in Kentucky, where the mother died in 1862.
William S. Boyd received his education in the schools of his native state, where he grew to manhood. He and his father's family experienced many of the hardships of the Civil War, but their sympathies were with the Union. In 1863 William S. Boyd enlisted in Company A, Seventh Kentucky Cavalry and gave nineteen months of active service to the cause of the Union. Much of his service was rendered in scout duty, and when near Springfield, Tenn- essee, he was captured and served a time in Libby prison. After receiving an honorable discharge, he returned to his home in Kentucky, where he remained until February, 1865, when he came to Kansas. He made the trip by way of Quincy, Illinois, and was accompanied by his sister and her hus- band, William Fenwick, both of whom are now deceased. They came to Marshall county, where Mr. Boyd worked at grubbing for John Wells for six weeks. He then engaged as a freighter and made seven trips across the plains, his last trip being to Cheyenne. Ft. Mitchell and Julesburg, and he acted as a collector, in which he was most successful. He went as a hand under Bob Smith and William Wells, and on, his first trip he acted as one of the bull whackers. He drove five yoke of good oxen, and was backed in the enterprise by John Wells. After several trips, Mr. Wells had over ten thousand pounds of freight, which brought him twenty-two dollars per one hundred weight for transporting to Ft. Laramie. In June, 1866, with
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George Martin and Ed Stenniff, Mr. Boyd started for Ft. Laramie with a train of freight, and were forty-seven days on the road. The freight bill realized two thousand dollars, less the expense. The life proved a hard one and was accompanied with many dangers.
In 1868 Mr. Boyd retired from the work and settled on a farm in Wells township, Marshall county. In 1870 he homesteaded eighty acres in Wells township in section 3. Here he built a frame house, sixteen by sixteen feet, which at that time was considered a splendid home. He developed his farm and engaged in general farming and stock raising with much success. He added to his farm and is now the owner of five hundred and fifty-six acres of excellent land, after selling one hundred and sixty acres that he at one time owned in Riley county. He continued the active life of a farmer until 1910, when he moved to Irving, where he now resides and where he has a splendid home. with all the conveniences to which his active life has entitled him. During his active life on the farm, in addition to his general farm work, he handled some eighty head of cattle and many hogs, each year, which he placed on the market at the best prices.
In May, 1874. Mr. Boyd was married to Laura B. Pollitt, a native of Kentucky, where she was born on March 21, 1855. She was the daughter of Thomas Alexander and Eliza (Deatley) Pollitt, who were natives of Vir- ginia and later located in the Blue Grass state. Mrs. Boyd was reared in her native state and there received her education in the local schools. Mr. Boyd had located in Marshall county and he returned to the old Kentucky home to claim his bride. To Mr. and Mrs. Boyd have been born the following chil- dren : Lillie Belle, John A., George L., Omer S., Charles A., Ella May, Lena, Frank, Emma, Lawrence J. and Thomas A. Lillie Belle Stoneman is a resident of Blue Rapids township, where her husband is a farmer; John A. is the owner of eighty acres of land in Wells township, and is now engaged as rural mail carrier out of Irving; George L. is on the old home place in Wells township, and is engaged in general farming and stock raising: Omer S. is the proprietor of a meat market at Irving; Charles A. is engaged in farming in Bigelow township: Ella May Abrant resides in Colorado, where she and her husband have homesteaded at Ordway; Lena is the wife of Roscoe C. Denton of Irving: Frank is also a resident of Irving; Emma Big- low lives in Bigelow township, where her husband is a farmer: Lawrence J. resides in Colorado, and Thomas A. lives at Irving. Mr. and Mrs. Boyd are active members of the Methodist Episcopal church and have long been prominent in the social and the religious life of the township, where they have a beautiful home. Their lives have been most active, and there are few
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residents of the county who are entitled to more praise and honor for their good work. Coming to the county, much of it then an undeveloped prairie, they had their share in the work of making Marshall county one of the great farming and stock counties of the state. During their lives, they have seen much of the territory developed from the home of wild animals to well culti- vated fields. Journeys are now made on steel trains or in the automobile. over splendid roads. How different now is the transportation of the com- modities of life across the plains, to the days of Mr. Boyd and his ox team. Mr. Boyd came to Kansas in 1865, one of the first settlers.
Politically, Mr. Boyd is identified with the Democratic party and has always taken a keen interest in civic life of the township and county. He was the first treasurer of Wells township and had much to do with the organ- ization of the district. He and his wife always took the deepest interest in the educational development of the community and had much to do with the moral standard of the territory in those early days. Their lives have been spent in useful work, and now they are enjoying the evening of their lives in peace and contentment, honored and loved by all who know them.
ROBERT J. LEWIS.
Robert J. Lewis, a well-known and prominent grain dealer of Home City, Marshall county, was born in Yorkshire, England, on December 12. 1864, the son of William and Maria ( Brewitt) Lewis. When the son, Rob- ert J., was five and a half years old the parents left their home in England and came to the United States. They had up to that time lived in England and were there educated in the public schools and grew to maturity. On their arrival in this country they came to Kansas and established their home on a farm in Franklin township, Marshall county. Here Robert J. Lewis engaged in general farming and stock raising, in which he met with much success. In 1903 he left the farm and moved to Home City, where he took charge of the farmers elevator. He conducted the business for the company until 1906, when he purchased it and enlarged the elevator to a capacity of fourteen thousand bushels of grain. He also established a jewelry shop, which he conducted with success.
As a boy and young man Robert J. Lewis spent his life on the home farm two miles northeast of Home City. In addition to his many duties con- nected with the farm work, he was required to herd cattle on the plains, where
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for miles there was naught but the unbroken prairie, where the animals native to that section roamed. As late as 1875 he saw a herd of nine wild deer feeding on the plains where he was wont to herd his cattle. He also assisted in the breaking of the prairie land and many a day he trailed behind the plow, drawn through the tough sod by a yoke of oxen. Thus, in early life, he experienced many of the hardships and privations of the early settler in Marshall county. His father was a man of much ability and a thorough farmer and in him the son had an excellent teacher. The father was well and favorably known throughout the entire county, and was held in the high- est regard by all.
Robert J. Lewis is the owner of four hundred acres of excellent land in Franklin township, which is in a high state of cultivation and well improved. During his residence on the farm he was interested in breeding and raising of Durham cattle and Poland China hogs, in which he was successful. In addition to his other extensive interests he is a director of the Citizens State Bank at Home City. He is identified with the Democratic party and has served his township as clerk and trustee and is now a justice of the peace.
In 1892 Robert J. Lewis was united in marriage to Amy Kniesteadt, who was born on March 2, 1872, at Pawnee, Nebraska, where she received much of her education in the public schools and spent her early life. Mrs. Lewis is the daughter of Lewis D. and Sarah J. (Brenester) Kniesteadt, both of whom were natives of Germany, where they were educated in the public schools and grew to maturity. They came to Meadow township, Marshall county, in 1884, where they established themselves on a farm and were soon prominent in the social and business life of the community. They were the parents of six children, one of whom is now deceased. The mother died some years ago and the father is now living a retired life at Home City. Mr. and Mrs. Kniesteadt were active members of the Methodist Episcopal church and took much interest in all church work, and were among the highly esteemed people of the district where they lived and where they had so much to do with the development of the community.
To Robert and Amy ( Kniesteadt) Lewis have been born two children, Walter LeRoy and Frederick G. Walter LeRoy was born on August 20, 1894, and received his education in the public schools and is a graduate of the Atchison Business College and is now a partner with his father in the grain business. He was married on February 27, 1914, to Nellie Dryer and they are the parents of one child, Maxine. Frederick G. was born on June 3, 1896, and received his education in the local schools and is now at
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home with his parents. Mr. and Mrs. Lewis are prominent members of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which Mr. Lewis is one of the trustees. He is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America and takes much interest in the work of the order.
JACOB MEYBRUNN.
Jacob Meybrunn, one of the old settlers of Marshall county, and now a prominent retired farmer at Summerfield, was born in Baden, Germany, on March 1, 1831, near the town of Freiburg, and is the son of Joseph and Fran- ces (Firschen) Meybrunn, both of whom spent their lives in Germany, where the father was a farmer.
Jacob Meybrunn received his education in the schools of his native land and there grew to manhood. At the age of twenty-three, in 1854, he decided to come to America. After a voyage of forty-two days from Havre, France, he landed at the port of New York. He had but a few dollars, and it was necessary for him to find work. He at once proceeded to western Pennsyl- vania, where he worked in the coal mines and did some farming, and also engaged in the making of charcoal from the timber in the vicinity of his home. While living in the state of Pennsylvania he was united in marriage in 1865 to Regina Winkler, who was born in Bavaria, Germany, in 1845. the daughter of George and Otilia ( Schlitzer) Winkler. Her parents were also natives of that country, where they lived until 1852, when they came to the United States and located in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, and there the parents died some years later.
At the time of his marriage, Mr. Meybrunn was engaged in teaming in the oil regions of Pennsylvania, but in this he was not successful, and met with many reverses. He then engaged in farming, working for an old employer. Here he met with more success and in 1868 visited his old home in Germany. On his return to this country after an absence of six months, he came to Kansas, where he homesteaded eighty acres of land in Balderson township, Marshall county. He purchased an old house in St. Bridget town- ship. which he hauled to his farm, and in this he and his family lived for some time. He at once began the task of developing his land and preparing it for the planting of crops. As he began to prosper he pre-empted eighty acres and then he purchased another eighty acres, all excellent land, but it required mtich labor to bring it under cultivation. He engaged in general farming
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and stock raising and was successful. After a residence of fourteen years on the place, he built a beautiful and substantial house. His barn and other out- buildings were in keeping with the other extensive improvements. After a residence of thirty-five years of active life on the farm, he retired in 1903 from farm work and moved to Summerfield, where he now lives, a well- respected citizen.
To Mr. and Mrs. Meybrunn were born the following children: George Joseph, deceased ; Jacob, John, Frances, Nancy, Mary, Paulina and Regina. Jacob married Mary Wendel and since 1886 has resided at Portland, Oregon; John lives on the old home place and is married to Maggie Steig, and to this union three children have been born, Frank, George and Edward; Frances is the wife of Joseph Wagner, of Idaho, and they are the parents of five chil- dren, Jacob, Joseph, Isaac, Josephine and Abelina; Nancy is the wife of James Gallagher, of Holloway, Kansas, and is the mother of thirteen children, Rosa, Katie, Andrew, Peter, Mabel, Bertha, Theodore, Fred, Regina, George, William, Leo and Francis; Mary married Lawrence Gallagher a railroad man of Dubois, Idaho, and they' are the parents of three children, Cecelia, Blanche and Edmond; Paulina Smith resides in Nebraska and she and her husband are the parents of three children. Henry, Lawrence and Reginald, and Regina Keck resides in Balderson township, where her husband is engaged in farming.
Mr. Meybrunn is identified with the Democratic party and has for many years taken an active interest in local affairs. During his many years of resi- dence in the county he has had much to do with its growth and development. He and his wife are earnest members of the Catholic church and are promin- nent members of the community in which they live and where they are held in the highest regard.
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