USA > Kansas > Nemaha County > History of Nemaha County, Kansas > Part 91
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George Adriance purchased the "Courier-Democrat" in August of 1909. In January of 1912, the newspaper plant was sold to G. W. Willis of Marysville, and in December of the same year, it was re-purchased by George and Dora Adriance, forming the partnership of Adriance & Ad- riance. The "Courier-Democrat" is an eight page, all home-print paper devoted to Nemala county news, with particular attention given to the development of the city of Seneca, where it is published on Thursday of each week. George and Dora Adriance are not only publishing an ex-
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cellent newspaper, which is well patronized by the people and merchants of Seneca and Nemaha county, but they are valued and valuable citizens in the community where they labor for the common good.
F. J. Strathmann, photographer of Seneca, Kans., is fast making a name for himself as an artist and photographer of ability. His business is growing each year, and his work in a difficult line is commending itself to an ever increasing circle of patrons. The greater number of the photo- graphs used in making the half-tone plates of Nemaha pioneers and well known citizens which are found in this volume were made by Mr. Strath- mann. The work speaks for itself and is to be commended particularly and strongly as indicative of the painstaking care in making the excellent likenesses so necessary for the use of the engraving department of this work, bestowed upon the subjects by Mr. Strathmann.
F. J. Strathmann was born at Fayetteville, Ill., August 26, 1892, and is a son of F. B. and Ida (Fietzan) Strathmann, natives of Illinois. F. B. Strathmann, his father, is a son of George Strathmann, a German emi- grant, who was born at Nassau, Germany, and served as a government official in his home city in Germany. F. B. Strathmann learned the pro- fession of photographer when a young man, and came to Kansas August 27, 1908. He located at Axtell, Marshall county, Kansas, and has an excellent business in his profession as photographer in Axtell and the surrounding country. F. B. Strathmann was married in Illinois to Ida Fietzan, who was born April 15, 1871. To this marriage have been born nine children, as follows: Frank J., subject of this review ; Bertha, wife of Joseph Nolte, Hanover, Kans .; Joseph, Lydia, John, Edward Alma, Barbara and Albert.
Mr. Strathmann was educated in the public schools of Muscotah, Il1., and the Seneca, Kans., High School. He learned the art of photography under his father's tutelage, and in March, 1914, he purchased the Fowler photograph gallery in partnership with Joseph Nolte. October 1, 1914, Mr. Strathmann became sole owner of the establishment, and has since been conducting it very successfully.
He was married February 24, 1914, to Miss Anna Dultmeier of Tem- pleton, Iowa, a daughter of Henry Dultmeier, a native of Germany. To this marriage has been born a child, namely: Frank Jr., born March 4, 1915. Mr. Strathmann is an independent in politics, and is a member of the Catholic church, and is affiliated with the Knights of Columbus.
Willard M. Bostwick, farmer and capitalist of Bancroft, Kans., was born in Fayette county, Ohio, April 16, 1861, and is a son of Francis M. (born 1838, died 1898) and Sarah J. (Smith) Bostwick, born 1840, died -. Francis M. Bostwick, his father, was born in Fayette county, Ohio, and was a son of Oliver Bostwick, a native of New York and a descendant of old American stock. Francis M. served ninety days in an Ohio regiment during the Civil war, and followed farming in his native State until 1879, at which time he migrated to Jackson county, Kansas, and bought a tract of prairie land thirteen miles west of Holton, Kans. 14
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He improved a total of 320 acres of land and, in his old age, he retired to a home at Soldier, Kans., where he died. His widow resides at Hol- ton. Mr. and Mrs. Francis M. Bostwick were parents of six children, as follows: Mary, wife of Joseph Polock, living in Jackson county ; Sher- man, residing in Ellis county, Oklahoma; John, a farmer living nine miles west of Holton; Mrs. Sadie B. Newman, living on a farm three miles west of Holton. The mother of these children was a daughter of John Smith, of Ohio. Oliver Bostwick, grandfather of Willard M., mar- ried Malinda Thomas, whose family genealogy traces back to the year 1625. She was a member of one of the oldest American families. The founder of the Thomas family in America was Thomas Thomas, a native of Wales, who settled on a plantation in Maryland as early as 1625. Jeremiah Thomas, a direct descendant of this colonial ancestor, served in the Continental army during the American Revolution. His descend- ants settled near Mt. Sterling, Ohio, during the early settlement period of Ohio's history. Melinda Thomas Bostwick was born March 25, 1816, in Pickaway county, Ohio, and died at Mt. Sterling, Ohio, July 14, 1885.
Willard M. Bostwick, subject of this review, was educated in the schools of his native county in Ohio, and accompanied his father to Kan- sas in 1879. He began doing for himself at the age of twenty-three years and rented land for a year. He then bought an eighty acre tract on time. He improved his land and farmed it for seventeen years, and then moved to a farm two miles south of Bancroft in Nemaha county where he and Mrs. Bostwick own eighty acres, well improved. Two years later he and Mrs. Bostwick moved to a comfortable home at Bancroft.
Mr. Bostwick has been twice married. His first marriage took place in 1884 with Miss Cornelia Caroline Shackles, who was born in Illinois in 1861 and died October 10, 1894. His second marriage took place in 1806 with Mrs. Lizzie A. Dick, widow of Archibald Dick. Mrs. Bost- wicks maiden name was Lizzie A. Butts, and she was born in Casey county, Kentucky, August 17, 1858, and is a daughter of William Green Butts, a veteran of the Civil war who came to Kansas in 1877. She was married to Mr. Dick in 1878, and they resided on a farm in Nemaha county until Mr. Dick's death in 1893.
Mr. Bostwick is a director of the State Bank of Bancroft and a mem- ber of the discount board. He is a Republican in politics and served as trustee of his home township in Jackson county prior to his removal to Nemaha county. He is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows of Bancroft, and is one of the well liked and enterprising citizens of his home neighborhood.
Ernest N. Bailey, proprietor of the grain elevator at Baileyville, Kans., was born in York township, Carroll county, Illinois, June 15, 1857, and is a son of Monroe and Nancy J. (Melendy) Bailey, who were among the earliest of the pioneer settlers of Nemaha county, Kansas, coming to this county from Illinois in 1879 and settling in Marion town- ship. Monroe and Nancy Bailey were parents of four children. Ex-
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Governor Willis J. Bailey of Atchison is a son of this worthy couple, and Ernest N., subject of this review, is the third in order of birth.
Ernest N. Bailey attended the district schools of Carroll county, Illinois, and when he was seventeen years old, he attended the college at Fulton, Ill. He began teaching school in 1876 in his home county in Illinois and taught for three years. He then engaged in farming with his father and accompanied the family to Nemaha county, Kansas, in 1879. Upon the death of his parents he became heir to a quarter section of land which he owned until 1911, when he sold the tract for $125 an acre. This sale price was the highest amount per acre paid for land in Marion township up to that time. Mr. Bailey embarked in the grain business at Baileyville in 1893, in partnership with W. H. Connet. Previous to this time, he had been engaged in the buying and shipping of live stock. He remained in partnership with Mr. Connet for eighteen years. In 1900, he erected a grain elevator at Baileyville, and in 1910, the partnership existing with Mr. Connet was dissolved. Since 1910, Mr. Bailey has carried on the grain business very successfully on his own ac- count. He maintains another grain elevator at Home City in Marshall county, Kansas, and also owns 160 acres of land in Marshall county besides property in Baileyville.
Mr. Bailey was married in Carroll county, Illinois, November 27, 1880, to Gertrude L. French, who was born in Warren county, New York, May 10, 1850, and is a daughter of David and Ruth (Dunn) French who immigrated to Illinois in the sixties. Mr. and Mrs. Bailey have no children of their own, but have reared two boys and one girl to maturity.
Mr. Bailey is a Republican in politics, and has held various township offices. He is a member of the Baptist church.
Ralph Tennal, historian of this volume of Nemaha county historical annals and editor and proprietor of the "Sabetha Herald," was born at Leavenworth, Kans., February 7, 1872. He is a son of Randolph and Rebecca (Sperry) Tennal, who were southern born. 'Randolph Tennal lived in Goliad county, Texas, prior to his removal to Leavenworth, Kans., in 1860. Ralph Tennal's grandfather had received a large land grant for making or assisting in making a government survey of Texas in the early days. Mr. Tennal was employed as a mine superintendent at Leavenworth until his death in 1874. Mrs. Rebecca (Sperry) Tennal, mother of Ralph Tennal, was born in Kentucky in 1836, and died in 1892.
The childhood days of Ralph Tennal were mostly spent in a typical prairie "schooner" in which the family resided for some time after his birth in Kansas, and he was "moved around" considerably in this cov- ered wagon. He was forced to hustle for his own living when very young, and was employed for eight years as telegraph messenger boy. two years of which service were spent in Atchison, Kans., where he learned the trade of printer. He began as "printer's devil" when ten years old and proved to be an apt pupil. He spent his first two years in Hull's printing office at Atchison, after which he was employed on
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the Atchison "Globe," under the wise management of Ed Howe for seventeen years. Ralph Tennal proved to be an apt learner under one of the most capable and famous newspaper men of the Middle West, and made good with Ed Howe's great newspaper. After serving for seven- teen years on the staff of the "Globe," he bought a newspaper at Colfax, Iowa, the "Colfax Tribune," which he operated until his purchase of the "Herald" at Sabetha, Kans., in 1905. Four prosperous years were spent in editing and publishing the "Herald," and he then began to yearn for other fields. He sold the "Herald" in 1909, and for the next four years, ably filled the post of editor of the Kansas City "Weekly Star." After one year spent on the Pacific coast engaged in newspaper work, Mr. Ten- nal came to the conclusion that there was no town on earth as good as Sabetha, and no county which offered a better field for his labors than Nemaha county. Accordingly, he re-purchased the "Herald" in 1914, and made up his mind to remain in Sabetha for all time to come. The Sabetha "Herald" is known throughout the length and breadth of Kan- sas as a real, live newspaper, ably edited with a snap and tang to it which appeals to the average reader. The "Herald" is a loyal and consistent booster for Nemaha county and this section of Kansas, and Mr. Tennal has won his way through merit and sheer energy to a place in the front rank of Kansas journalists. This History of Nemaha County is the result of many weeks of painstaking labor and research on his part and that of his devoted and capable wife.
Mr. Tennal was married in 1898 to Miss Margie Webb, born at Menomonie, Wis., a daughter of Judge W. D. and Fannie (Perkins) Webb, natives of New York. The Webb family first located in Wiscon- sin and then came to Atchison, Kans., in 1877. Judge Webb practiced law in Atchison and served two terms as judge of the district court of Atchi- son county, Mrs. Tennal was employed as society reporter on the "Atchi- son Globe," and is a capable newspaper woman who has been a valuable assistant to her husband in his journalistic labors. Much of the research work and the writing of these historical annals of Nemaha county was done by Mrs. Tennal, and she should share equally with her husband the honors due them for recording for all time the story of Nemala county. Mr. and Mrs. Tennal have one child: William Webb, born in January, 1902.
Mr. Tennal espoused the cause of the Progressive party when this political organization came into being, and has consistently remained a progressive in every sense the word "progressive" implies. He has been one of the leaders of the Progressive party in Nemaha county and Kansas since 1912, and has consistently and continuously advocated progressive principles of government at all times.
Jesse K. Biles, retired capitalist and large land owner of Bern, Kans., was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, July 21, 1841. He was a son of Charles C. and Elizabeth C. (Jackson) Biles, natives of Pennsylvania. Charles C. Biles, his father, was born October 22, 1818,
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and died in 1893. Elizabeth C. (Jackson) Biles, his mother, was born in 1822, and died in 1860. They were parents of nine children, as follows : Jesse Kersey, Charles Edward, William J., Sarah L., Margaret E., and Anna Biles, living; and John Bailey Biles, born December 15, -, and died September 18, 1909; Mary Emma, born November 10, 1844, and died January 20, 1848; Phoebe Ann, born June 8, 1853, and died in De- cember, 1886. Job Jackson, uncle of Jesse K. Biles, was president and manager of Jackson and Sharp, manufacturers of Pullman cars at Wil- mington, Del. John Biles, his grandfather, was born at New London, Pa., in 1784, and died September 23, 1864. Mary Biles, grandmother of the subject, was born in Chester county, Pennsylvania, in 1784, and died March 23, 1861.
Charles C. Biles moved to Harford county, Maryland, when Jesse K. was quite young, and bought a farm adjoining Mill Green. He built a large mill on this farm and became well-to-do and prominent in the affairs of the community. He was a strong Republican, and served as postmaster for thirty years. Originally, Charles C. Biles was a plumber by trade. Jesse K. Biles remained on his father's farm until 1868, and was married to Miss Victorine L. Miles, October 22, 1867. Mr. and Mrs. Biles then came to Nebraska in the spring of 1868. They came from Macon, Mo., to Rulo, Neb., by boat on the Missouri river, then took a stage to Falls City, Neb., and remained there all night at the Jacob Good Hotel. Mr. Good then took the young couple to the Miles ranch in his carriage, which was the first carriage ever used in Richardson county, Nebraska, and the only one in the county at that time. S. B. Miles, fa- ther-in-law of Jesse K. Biles, came to the West in 1850, and carried mail by stage and horseback from Independence, Mo., to Salt Lake City, Utah, until 1860. He had many encounters with the Indians, and died in 1898, leaving a vast fortune of $6,000,000, which included 42,000 acres of land and four banks. After many years of traveling in the West, he settled on the Miles ranch in Nebraska. Mr. Biles rented a farm from S. B. Miles, and being poor in those days, he used chains for tugs, rope for lines, and a sack for the back part of the harness used in doing the farm work with his team. While living on the farm, two sons were born to Mr. and Mrs. Biles, namely: William C., born February 6, 1870, and died August 21, 1870; Warren C., born March 30, 1871, and died August 10, same year. Mr. and Mrs. Biles then adopted an infant daughter. Marion Kathrene Biles, born February 24, 1871. They also reared two orphan boys and gave them a start in life.
When Mr. Biles came to Nebraska there were very few settlers, only a few homesteaders and the nearest market was at St. Joseph, Mo. His first crop of corn was sold for nine cents per bushel. About once a week, a band of Indians going through the country would camp in the timber on the Miles ranch, and hold their pow-wow and war dances. The In- dians were generally peaceful and traveled with their ponies hitched to their tent poles, and the papooses also strapped to the ponies. The pro-
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cession of Indians and ponies sometimes being a mile long. The Indians would trade a good buffalo robe for a fat dog to eat, and many times begged tobacco of Mr. Biles. When the hot winds blew, Mr. Biles often wished he was back in Maryland, but after awhile, he got used to the winds and liked the country. He eventually bought 166 acres of land in Nemaha county and broke it for planting in 1874. He erected a small shack on his land, but prosperity and good times did not come for some time. He sold hogs for $1.50 per hundred weight, corn for ten and fifteen cents per bushel; and at one time his best cows would bring only from $8 to $10 per head. A good horse would only bring $40. When Mr. Biles bought his farm in Kansas, he paid $12.50 an acre for the land, but a few years afterward, the price of land dropped to $5 and $8 an acre. He worked very hard to get his corn paid for and often worked night and day to make ends meet. Many people left the country because they thought it was no good, but Mr. Biles stayed and got his place paid for at a time when it was just as hard to pay $12.50 an acre for land as it is to pay $100 an acre for it now. The average wages in those days were from thirty to fifty cents per day, whereas wages are now from twenty- five to forty cents per hour for the same work, and many people claim they can not make a living now-a-days. After a few years on the farm he moved back to the Miles ranch, leased the ranch for three years, and for the next five years, served as manager of the ranch at a salary of $125 per month. He then moved to Kansas and located on his own farm, and to the present day has accumulated 1,000 acres of land in Nebraska, Kan- sas, Missouri, and Colorado. Mrs. Biles departed this life July 29, 1896. Mr. Biles continued to live on his farm, and on April 7, 1899, was again united in marriage with Miss Emily Ethel Miller. To this union, a daughter has been born, namely: Pansy Lu Verna Biles, born June 14, 1900. Mrs. Emily Biles is a daughter of William Miller, born in Cole- grunth, Germany, October 13, 1833, came to America in 1856 in a sailing vessel, leaving Germany, April 15, and arriving at New York City, June 6. Mr. Miller enlisted in the Union army for service in the War of the Rebellion on August 20, 1862, and was a member of the One Hun- dred Fifty Illinois infantry. He enlisted at Camp Douglas, Chicago, and served two years and six months. He received his honorable dis- charge at Nashville, Tenn. He was married to Margaret Spach in 1867. She was born in Eurville, Alsace, German Empire, April 7, 1844, and came to America in 1867, and the Millers moved to Kansas in 1872. Seven children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Miller, as follows: Fred W .; A. H .; W. D .; Mary A .; Emily E .; Lucy B., and Christian, died in in- fancy. In 1901, Mr. Biles moved to Bern, Nemaha county, Kansas, and engaged in the real estate business, which he followed until 1913, when his health failed, and he retired from active business pursuits.
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