USA > Kansas > Jackson County > Portrait and biographical album of Jackson, Jefferson and Pottawatomie Counties, Kansas : containing full page portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens > Part 63
USA > Kansas > Jefferson County > Portrait and biographical album of Jackson, Jefferson and Pottawatomie Counties, Kansas : containing full page portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens > Part 63
USA > Kansas > Pottawatomie County > Portrait and biographical album of Jackson, Jefferson and Pottawatomie Counties, Kansas : containing full page portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens > Part 63
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Mr. Lewis has a sister, Mrs. Anna E, Merrill,
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living in Philadelphia, Pa .; a half-brother, James Lewis, in San Diego, Cal .; a half-sister, Mrs. Betsy P. Benton, in Oberlin, Kan., and these constitute all the children now living, of the ten who were born to his father. Mr. Lewis has been Township Treasurer, filling the office in a creditable manner. Ile gives his suffrage to the Republican party, be- lieving that its principles are best adapted to the needs of the Nation. An enterprising and progress- ive farmer, a reliable citizen, possessing a compan- ionable nature, and good principles, Mr. Lewis is highly respected by all with whom he comes in contaet, and the energy, intelligence, and womanly virtues of Mrs. Lewis proeure her also many friends. Mr. Lewis has in his possession a Bible 250 years old, which belonged to his grandfather, and which is a highly prized heirloom.
OHN P. KOENTZ, M. D. In the career of the subject of this sketch we have that of one of the earliest pioneers of the Sunflower State, who set foot upon the soil of Kansas in 1856, while it was yet a Territory. He settled first in what was then the hamlet of Leavenworth, and during the years which have intervened he has been prominent in the political, military and civil history of this now great commonwealth. Active, liberal and public spirited, he has always been found on the side of those enterprises caleulated to benefit the people and is tacitly acknowledged as one of the benefactors of his community. After pursuing the practice of medicine for a period of thirty-one years, he retired from its arduous duties and now surrounded by all the comforts of life is situated in a pleasant home at Onaga, Pottawato- mie County, where he is respected by the people around him and is passing his life's deeline full of years and honors.
Practicing first three years in Leavenworth, Dr. Koentz coneluded to try farming and accompanied by others, went into the Shawnee Nation and se- cured a claim. Finding the people in that vieinity unfriendly to a Free State man, he abandoned his claim and returned to Leavenworth. Ten months later he came to Pottawatomie County and seeured
land along Mill Creek in the spring of 1859, and since that time he has been a resident of Mill Creek Township. He was one of the pioneer physicians of this region and had a practice which took in a cireuit of many miles. Frequently when belated he would lose his way over the untraveled prairie and be obliged to lie upon the bare ground until morning, attaching himself to his horse with a rope tied around his foot.
Although quite well advaneed in years, Dr. Koentz possesses a clear remembrance of many in- teresting events which transpired during the period of his pioneership in Kansas, and could he write out his experiences they would make a good sized volume and one of great interest. When taking up his residence on Mill Creek the nearest depot for supplies was Leavenworth, eighty-five miles away. and St. Mary's was the nearest post-office. To this point one of the settlers would repair each week to obtain the mail. The drouth of 1860 en- tailed great hardships upon the settlers, destroying their erops, and in the winter of that year a num- ber of them repaired to Atebison for aid, making their way through two feet of snow the entire dis- tanee. After the town of Onaga was established, Dr. Koentz left his fine farm of 280 acres which he had improved and established himself in the new town as one of its leading physicians. After a few years he was enabled to retire but since that time he has been largely interested in the various enter- prises caleulated for the growth and development of the city.
A native of the Kingdom of Holland, Dr. Koentz was born in Colderand Province, Jan. 27, 1823, and comes of substantial ancestry. His father was Mayor of the town of Wychen, which position he held nearly all the years of his active life. When leaving it he was succeeded by his son, Mathias, brother of our subjeet, who held the office until his death in January, 1840.
The maiden name of the mother of Dr. Koentz was Maria Louisa VanDieren. This lady deseended from an illustrious ancestry, being the niece of" Emperor William I, and daughter of G. M. Van Dieren, who was a Colonel in the National Ma- rines. The mother and the maternal grandmother both died in their native town of Wychen. John
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P. was the youngest but one of seven sons, the most of whom have been in the employ of the Gov- ernment. Two of them were soldiers and mayors of cities and one was a Secretary of State in the East Indies, on the Island of Java. Another died in the army when about twenty-four years old. Two of the sons died in their boyhood.
The subject of this sketch was well educated in his native city and later attended the medical school at Amsterdam, In 1849, while still unmar- ried, he emigrated to the United States on the sailing vessel "Rose Standish" which after a six week's voyage landed him safely in New York City. The vessel, however, had encountered severe storms and came very near being wrecked, the masts having been torn from their fastenings. After a short time spent in Dunkirk, young Koentz made his way to Wisconsin and settled near She- boygan Falls. He there followed the practice of his profession for two and one-half years, spending his time mostly in the woods as a member of the Winnebago tribe of Indians, living in their tents and being treated by them as a friend and brother. Upon one occasion he cured the illness of the Chief's daughter and was not only offered her for a wife. but was promised a Chieftainship himself. He declined these honors with the best grace pos- sible and when leaving them received many proofs of their attachment and appreciation. He considers that his experience with the Indians was a great benefit to him, teaching him courage and hardihood and also the art of hunting.
From Wisconsin Dr. Koentz repaired to St. Clair County, Ill., and in 1819 having become seized with an attack of the gold fever he resolved to seek the Pacific Slope. He was to join a train at Leavenworth, Kan., but on his arrival there he found the train had gone and he also found that it was a very fortunate thing for himself, as it proved the ill-fated caravan which was put to death by the Mormons in the never-to-be-forgotten "Mountain Meadow massacre" which has become a part of his- tory. Ilis subsequent movements we have already indicated.
In September, 1862, during the progress of the Civil War, Dr. Koentz enlisted as a surgeon in Company K, 11th Kansas Infantry, which was soon
ordered to the front. The Doctor was promoted to be Hospital Steward and thereafter was mostly on detached duty, acting as surgeon at different posts. He was with his regiment at the battle of Old Ft. Wayne, Cherokee Nation, and Prairie Grove, Ark., being at the latter place wounded in the right arm and disabled for duty for some months. Ile also engaged in the battles of Price's raid, Lexington, Independence, Little Blue and Westport, Mo. During his army life he did a large amount of sur- gical work, upon one occasion removing the limbs from eighty persons in one half day. After a faith- ful service of three years he received his honorable discharge with a military record, of which he is justly proud.
Repairing to Missouri after the war, Dr. Koentz was married Sept. 23, 1865, to Miss Sarah M. White. This lady was born in Illinois Jan. 16. 1846, where she spent her youthful years and re- ceived her education. She went to Missouri with her father, Benjamin White, now deceased, abont 1858. Mr. White was a farmer by occupation and while striving to prosecute his calling in Missouri suffered great loss of property on account of bush- whackers, he being a Union man. Mr. and Mrs. White spent their last years in Lynn County, Kan. The Doctor and his estimable wife became the pa- rents of eight children, five of whom are deceased. The survivors are Walter W., Charles E., and Christian H., all at home with their parents. Mrs. Koontz, religiously, is a member of the Baptist Church and the Doctor, politically, is a sound Re- publican.
B ARNEY P. FUNCHESS, M. D., is a well- known and popular resident of Netawaka. Jackson County, and a skilled and experi- enced physician, with a fine practice in the country contiguous to his home. His parental an- cestry were from Holland, and the maternal from England, and for a few generations both families belonged to the Southern States. Dr. Funchess has the fine education which the better class of whites in the South before the war gave their
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children, and the good breeding of the real South- ern gentleman. He is a son of George and Dorcas (Berry) Funchess, and his paternal grandfather bore the name of Daniel. His father served during the War of 1812, winning an honorable record. Ilis mother was a daughter of John Berry, and her family were of Orangeburg District, S. C.
Dr. Funchess was born near Jackson, Hines Co., Miss., his natal day being Dec. 4, 1828, and forty-two years of his life were spent in his native State. His early education was obtained in the county of his birth, and he took up the higher branches in the Academy in Simpson County, where, after finishing his other studies, he began to read medicine with his elder brother, a leading physician there. This was in 1849, and two years later he began practice with his brother, with whom he continued his professional labors until 1853, when he "hung out his shingle" in Westville, the county seat. There he remained three years, thence moving to Good Hope. where he practiced four years, thence going to Crystal Springs. where he remained during the war, his health not being suf- fieiently good for army service.
At the close of the war Dr. Funchess was penni- less, but during the next few years he recovered somewhat from his financial disability, and in 1869 he came to Kansas to look at the country, having determined to depart from his native State and seek home and friends elsewhere. Ile brought his family to Netawaka, and put up a fine residence just east of the village, which he afterward sold, removing to Oskaloosa on account of the better facilities afforded there for the education of his children. Three and a half years later the family journeved to Dallas, Tex., where Dr. Funchess worked up a very large practice, during a sojourn of eighteen months, but as the climate did not agree either with himself or wife, they returned to Ne- tawaka. Since that time (1884) Dr. Funchess has continued his professional labors here, and become thoroughly identified with the interests of this place.
In 1853 Dr. Funchess was married to Grace Catherine Rutherford, a cultured and refined young lady, belonging to an honorable Tennessee family. Her parents were James and Kate ( Hart- grove) Rutherford, and her father was a son of
John Rutherford, all of the Turpentine State. Four children have been born to our subject and his wife, and all have acquired excellent educa- cations, the Doctor having spent much of his means upon them, and he and his wife having endeav- ored to add to the cultivation of their minds the manners and morals of Christian manhood and womanhood. The first-born, M. A., was educated as a pharmacist, after finishing his education at Highland College. He has been engaged in the drug business for the past ten years, and his busi- ness and home are in Netawaka. His family con- sists of a wife and four sons. Zoulie Z. is the wife of Prof. G. T. Nunn, formerly Professor of Lan- guages in the college at Dallas, Tex., and now President of the Crockett Academy, at Crockett, Tex .; they have two children. Bertha is the wife of R. M. Atkinson, a dealer in general merchan- dise in Crockett, Tex. May J., the youngest child, is now a young lady, and has charge of the type- writing class in Crockett Academy, and has also made music a study.
Dr. Funchess belongs to Polar Star Lodge, No. 130, A. F. & A. M., at Netawaka. In politics he is a Democrat, and earnestly supports the princi- ples in which he believes. The entire family be- long to the Methodist Church.
F6 REDERICK DACHENHAUSEN, late a res- dent of Liberty Township, and a citizen held in high esteem, departed this life at his homestead on section 29, Aug. 6, 1881. He was born in the Province of Hanover, Germany, Feb. 23. 1820, and in accordance with the laws and cus- toms of his native land, acquired a practical educa- tion in the common schools, attending from the age of six until fourteen. After leaving school he learned the trade of a brickmason and emigrated to America about 1848. On the 7th of June, 1855, he was united in marriage, in Chicago, III., to Miss Sophia Segebrock, and they continued to live in Chicago until the summer of 1870.
At the expiration of this time Mr. and Mrs. Dachenhausen decided upon settling in the farther West, and coming to Kansas located in Holton,
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Jackson County, where they sojourned eight years. and where the husband and father followed his trade and secured the means with which to pur- chase a farm. Then, selecting a quarter section of land in Liberty Township, the family removed to this, and during the ten years which followed ef- fected the improvements which has made of it one of the desirable homesteads in this region. Since the death of the proprietor his widow has carried on the farm with excellent good judgment, assisted by her children. who have grown up to be an honor to their parents. Of these there are five living, namely, Henry, Frederick, Bertha, August and Ed- ward. The eldest son is married and resides in Jefferson Township. The others remain at home with their mother.
Mrs. Dachenhausen was born in the Province of Hesse, Germany, Nov. 17, 1833, and lived there with her parents until she was over eighteen years old. She received hier education in the common schools, and was trained by an excellent mother in those housewifely duties, a knowledge of which has so much to do with the happiness and comfort of a home. She was accompanied by friends to America, and landing in New York City proceeded at once to Chicago, where she remained about four years and was then married. She has many friends in ber adopted township and has been in all respects a devoted wife and mother, a kind neighbor and a hospitable friend. She has a pleasant home where it is hoped her declining years will be spent in the ease and comfort which she so justly deserves.
RCHIBALD D. ABEL has been a sojourner among the people of Jefferson Township, Jackson County, for a period of twenty- four years, and has become widely and favorably known to the citizens of this region. He came with his parents to Kansas in 1864, during the third year of its dignity as a State, and has en- dured all the hardships and privations of life on the frontier. He is of Southern parentage, his father. Thomas Abel, having been a native of North Carolina, and his mother being born in Kentucky. The paternal grandfather, James Abel, was likewise
a native of North Carolina and a farmer by occu- pation ; he spent his last years in Kentucky.
Thomas Abel went to Pulaski County, Ky., and lived there until 1850. There also he was married, and with the exception of one year lived in that county until coming to Missouri, in 1850. In 1864 he came to Kansas. In this State he settled on section 27, Jefferson Township, taking posses- sion of a tract of wild land, from which he im- proved a farm, and made it his home until his death, which occurred in 1880, at the age of fifty- seven years. The mother survived her husband a number of years, dying Dec. 24, 1887, aged sixty- seven. Both were members of the Baptist Church, and took an active part in church work. They contributed liberally to its support, and carefully reared their children in its doctrines. The father served in the State Militia in Missouri during the Civil War. He took an active part in politics and voted the Republican ticket. A man of decided views and strong convictions, he was likewise gen- erous to a fault, liberal to the poor, and one who sought to do good as he had opportunity. He held the office of Township Treasurer and other positions of trust and responsibility, always taking an active part in politics.
Twelve children, six of whom lived to maturity, were born to Thomas and Mary Abel, the subject of this sketch being the eldest: Rebecca became the wife of William Sharp, and died in Blue Rapids, this State; Samuel L. is a farmer of Jefferson Township; Nancy Jane is the wife of Solomon Reutter, of Circleville; Alvin is farming in Jeffer- son Township; Jerusha married James Fisher, and died at her home in this township in 1886. The parents became well-to-do, the father leaving at the time of his death a good farm of 268 acres of land, besides valuable personal property.
The subject of this sketch was born in Pulaski County, Ky., March 31, 1844, but was reared in Missouri. He acquired a very good education in the common schools, and during the second year of the Civil War, when a youth of eighteen years, enlisted in the 18th Missouri Infantry, Company K., and served until its close. He participated in the battle of Pittsburg Landing and in all the battles of the Atlanta campaign. He also accompanied
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Sherman on the famous march to the sea, and later was at the Grand Review in Washington, after which he received his honorable discharge, July 18, 1865, being mustered out with the rank of Cor- poral.
Not long after leaving the army, Mr. Abel set out for Kansas, and for two years thereafter was employed as a farm laborer in Jefferson Township. In the meantime he formed the acquaintance of Miss Cynthia H. McComas, and their mutual at- tachment resulted in a marriage, which was cele- brated Oct. 24, 1867. Mrs. Abel is the daughter of S. W. McComas, one of the pioneers of Jackson County. Immediately after the wedding the young people removed to a farm, which they have since owned and occupied. They labored with a mutual purpose of building up a comfortable home, and were prospered. The farm property of Mr. Abel now embraces 234 acres in .Jefferson Township, be- sides 160 acres in Gove County. Eight children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Abel, the eldest of whom, a daughter, Lonarie, remains at home with her parents; Ella, who became a proficient music-teacher, is now the wife of Henry Elliott, of Jefferson Township; Thomas is preparing himself for the profession of a school-teacher; Sanders L., Millie, Nannie and Jesse are at home; David S., the second child, died when two years and ten months old. Mr. and Mrs. Abel are prominently connected with the First Baptist Church at Holton, in which Mr. Abel officiates as a Trustee and takes an active part in church work. In his political views he affiliates with the Republican party, and has served as Township Trustee two years. His farming op- erations are carried on in that systematic manner which seldom fails of success.
OSEPII N. BROWN, Justice of the Peace of Kentucky Township, Jefferson County, is a popular citizen and a prosperous, intel- ligent and progressive farmer. He owns and operates an estate comprising 250 acres on sections 21 and 16, which has been his home since the year 1876, when he broke ground upon it and began his life as a Kansas farmer. He brought to
his new location a practical knowledge of the work of agriculture and an intelligent comprehen- sion of the needs of the time, and has been enabled to carry on his labors in such a manner as to secure a fair degree of this world's goods and the hearty respect of his neighbors.
Going back four generations in the paternal line, we find John Brown who was a soldier in the war of 1812, and an early settler in Hamilton County, Ohio, to which he removed from Susquehanna County, Pa. He was of Scotch-Irish descent. His son Matthew was a young man when the family moved to the Buckeye State, and there he became a prosperous farmer and stockman, and there a son was born to him on Sept. 15, 1824, who was christened Joseph and who became the father of our subject.
Joseph Brown followed in the footsteps of his predecessors and engaged in farming and stock- raising, improving a valuable estate. He was a sturdy Republican, after the birth of that party. His death occurred Feb. 14, 1861. His wife, De- borah Brown, was born in Butler County, Ohio, on the day before Christmas, 1825, and was a daughter of Daniel Brown who in 1805 came from his native state-Virginia, to that county, and in manhood engaged in the pursuit of agriculture. Mrs. Deborah Brown departed this life Dec. 4, 1862, after years of consistent faith and practice, having been a member of the Presbyterian Church. To this couple seven children were born, our subject being the second in order of birth. Matthew died when twenty-one years old; Millie died in child- hood; A. B. is a farmer in this county, his land adjoining the town of Perry; Aurilla, Mary and Augusta died in childhood.
He whose name initiates this notice was born in Butler County, Ohio, March 10, 1848, and passed his early years on the parental homestead receiv- ing such educational advantages as accrue to the lot of a farmer's son in a well-settled locality. He was thirteen years old when his father died and he remained at home with his widowed mother until her death, nearly two years later. He attended the High School at Venice and worked on a farm for his grandfather and his uncle, Val. Brown, until twenty-one, when he took charge of the home
Jours Giuly G. J. Watkins
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farm, his share of which was eighty-seven acres, and carried it on until he determined to come to the West, when he sold and eame at once to Me- dina, Kan.
Mr. Brown is engaged in raising wheat, corn and hogs, keeping a good grade of the latter, and shipping his own stock. His estate bears excellent improvements and all have been made by himself, as the ground was void of any when he took pos- session of it. There are now upon it a well-built and sufficiently commodious dwelling and barn, and other needed outbuildings, and the lands are enclosed and divided by neat wire and hedge fences. The estate is watered by the Delaware River and is a valuable and productive piece of property.
The marriage of our subject took place in Butler County, Ohio, Jan. 28, 1869, and the lady whom he chose as his companion in life was Miss Lizzie Morton, a native of that county and a daughter of George Morton. The father was born in Delaware and is now a prosperous and prominent farmer near Liberty, Ind. Mrs. Brown has borne her husband two children, Nannie and Jessie, in whose training and development both parents take great delight, and who have already been taught useful habits by their estimable mother.
Mr. Brown is a true-blue Republican. He has been Justice of the Peace three years and has served as School Clerk, holding the office of Di- rector at the present time. His ready intelligence, his genial manners, and his upright character, com- bine to ensure his popularity and give him a high place in the respect of the citizens of the township and of others by whom he is known.
G EORGE T. WATKINS. Among the resi- dents of Jackson County, an honored place is held by this gentleman, who belongs to that class which has furnished so many of the ablest men of our land-the dwellers upon the farm lands of our Nation. He has a beautiful estate comprising 560 acres, and is one of the prominent cattle-men of this section, devoting much of his land to pastures for the immense herd of Short-horns which he keeps. Ilis residence, a
fine structure in the village of Whiting, was erected in the spring of 1876, when he and his wife retired from active participation in the management of their estate, which is now ably superintended by their two sons, James and George.
Mr. Watkins was born in Warner, Merrimac Co., N. H., Nov. 4, 1820, and accompanied his parents to Lowell, Mass., when he was five years old. In that city he obtained his education, graduating from the lligh School at the age of fifteen. Among the members of his class, were several who after- ward became well known in the Nation. Among them were Benjamin F. Butler, G. V. Fox, Assist- ant Secretary of the United States Navy during the late war; E. A. Straw, Governor of New Hamp- shire, and an own cousin to our subject; George Balcom, who became famous in the ministry of the Episcopal Church; John C. Dalton, publisher of the Dalton Physiology, and Abner Brown, who subsequently became Principal of the school.
The parents of young Watkins had returned to their former home prior to his gradnation, and upon leaving school, he entered the publishing and book house of his brother-in-law, A. Watson, where he remained nearly seven years. At the age of twenty-one he returned to his home in New Hampshire and accepted a clerkship in a general store, leaving that employment at the death of his father in 1843, to take charge of the home place, which he carried on for ten years. He then pur- chased the stock of merchandise belonging to his brother-in-law, Ira Harvey, in Warner, and for six years was engaged in mercantile pursuits there. The Western fever having attacked him in the fall of 1858, he made a trip West, going as far north as St. Anthony's Falls, now a part of Minneapolis, Minn., where his cousins, John S. Pillsbury and Woodbury Fisk, who were then in the hardware business, urged him to remain. He, however, went on toward the South, passing through Illinois and Missouri, and finally purchasing about 5,000 acres of land in Iron, Texas, Shannon, and Dent Counties, Mo .; during the following spring with his wife and five children he settled in Madison County, Mo., on land which he had purchased there.
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