USA > Minnesota > Lyon County > An illustrated history of Lyon County, Minnesota > Part 73
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July 4, 1903, occurred the wedding of Thomas 1. Castle and Leora Dickerman. To this union have been born three children: Florence I., born April 5, 1904; Morris, born August 27, 1905; and Mildred, born January 30, 1907. Mrs. Castle was born January 6, 1877, in Olmsted county, Minnesota, and is a daughter of Eugene and Maribah (Temple- ton) Dickerman, natives of Vermont.
The Castles are members of the Presby- terian church and Mr. Castle is clerk of school district No. 50.
LEWIS A. WEWETZER (1889) is one of the comparatively young farmers of Island Lake township and owns the northeast quar- ter of section 13, where he has farmed since 1898.
Mr. Wewetzer was born in Lake county, Illinois, May 8, 1871, and is a son of Gustav and Malvina (Boettcher) Wewetzer, natives of Germany. The parents came to this coun- try in 1869 and 1870, settled in Illinois, where Lewis was born, and in 1889 the fam- ily moved to Lyon county. The father had purchased the northeast quarter of section 1, Island Lake township, the previous year, and upon their arrival in the county the Wewet- zers took up their residence on that land.
The subject of this sketch had received his education in Illinois, and after the fam- ily's arrival in Lyon county the boy helped his father with the farm work until 1896,
when his mother died. Then Lewis, in com- pany with his brothers, G. C. and F. C. Wewetzer, took charge of the home farm and managed it until 1898, when Lewis moved to the farm on which he now lives and which he had bought the year before. On that place he has since made his home and has done very well and prospered from his farming and from his stock raising. Mr. Wewetzer every year ships blooded Duroc- Jersey hogs to market.
Lewis Wewetzer and Rosie Clark were married at Marshall July 27, 1898. His wife was born in Lake Marshall township Octo- ber 16, 1873, and is a daughter of Josiah and Charlotte (Currier) Clark, natives of Maine and now deceased. The Wewetzers have three children: Lewis J., born Janu- ary 30, 1901; Millicent A., born March 20, 1903; and Harold C., born April 18, 1905.
Mr. Wewetzer is treasurer of school dis- trict No. 62 and has served fourteen years in that capacity. He has served as chairman of the township board six years, was assessor two years, and one year was clerk of the. board. His fraternal associations are with the Modern Brotherhood of America.
A. BLANCHARD (1893) is secretary of the Marshall Milling Company and the superin- tendent of that company's mill at Marshall. He has been a resident of Marshall nineteen years.
Mr. Blanchard was born in Green Lake county, Wisconsin, April 17, 1856. His par- ents were N. H. Blanchard and Mary Jane (Ellsworth) Blanchard, both natives of Maine. The family moved to a farm in Wi- nona county, Minnesota, in 1860, and there the subject of this review grew to young manhood. In 1876 he took employment in a flour mill at Minnesota City and in 1881 he moved to Sleepy Eye, where he was engaged in the grain business until moving to Mar- shall in 1893. Mr. Blanchard was one of the incorporators of the Marshall Milling Com- pany, one of the big institutions of Lyon county, and was the first treasurer of the company. For the past five years he has been secretary and superintendent.
Grace F. Kennedy became the wife of Mr. Blanchard at Minnesota City on April 22, 1880. They have two boys, Guy and Cliff.
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IVER O. SATHER (1890) is a farmer in Lucas township and has been a continuous resident of that precinct since 1890. He was born in Gubrandsdalen, Norway, January 31, 1862, a son of Ole and Mary (Erlandson) Sather. The former is deceased; the mother is still living in the Fatherland at an ad- vanced age.
Iver received the customary bringing up of the farmer boy of his time and attended the common schools of his country until fifteen years of age. After completing his educa- tion, farm labor claimed his attention until 1884, in the spring of which year the young fellow set out for America. Upon his arrival in the United States Mr. Sather went to Otter Tail county, Minnesota, and for the next five years he found employment there as a farm laborer, afterward going to Richland county, North Dakota, and working there sev- eral months.
The spring of 1890 found Mr. Sather in Lyon county. For two years he worked on farms and then purchased the land in Lucas township which he now operates, the south- east quarter of section 21. He has a well- improved farm and a comfortable home. In addition to his general farming he is en- gaging to some extent in stock raising.
The subject of this sketch was married to Carrie Slette in 1890, and to this union two children have been born: Peter, born November 27, 1894, and Olaf, born January 30, 1899, both residing at home. Mrs. Sather is a native of Norway. She and her husband are members of Silo Norwegian Lutheran Church. Mr. Sather was a trustee of the church for six years.
JOHN LINDHOLM (1892) is a farmer and land owner of Coon Creek township, where he has resided twenty years. He was born in Sweden March 1, 1870. His parents are Carl and Johannah (Johnson) Larson. John received his schooling and grew to manhood in the land of his nativity.
In 1892 John Lindholm came to America and located in Lyon county: He purchased forty acres of land in Coon Creek township, which he later sold and bought the land he now owns and operates, 160 acres on section 27, Coon Creek township. He worked out for several years as a farm hand after com- ing to Lyon county and then engaged in
farming for himself. The land which he now owns was all prairie when he purchased it. He has improved the place and has a very fine home. He raises considerable stock in addition to his general farming. He is a member of the Swedish Mission church and owns stock in the Farmers Ele- vator Company of Russell.
Mr. Lindholm was married in Coon Creek township April 3, 1903, to Olive Anderson, a native of Sweden. She was a daughter of Andrew and Elna Anderson. To Mr. and Mrs. Lindholm were born three children: Reuben, Melvin and Alvira. Mrs. Lindholm died March 5, 1904. Mr. Lindholm was mar- ried a second time, to Betty Nelson, a native of Pullman, Illinois. She is a daughter of Andrew F. and Carolina Nelson, of Coon Creek township. Mr. and Mrs. Lindholm were married November 11, 1905.
R. A. BIGHAM (1896) is manager of the Ross Lumber Company at Russell and a man who has taken much interest in the affairs of his village. While his residence in Lyon county does not date back to pioneer times, he was one of the early settlers of Lincoln county and a prominent man of affairs there. He was one of the early settlers of the old town of Marshfield, which is now in exist- ence only in the memory of the older set- tlers.
The gentleman whose name heads this re- view was born in Huntingdon county, Penn- sylvania, September 22, 1853. His parents, both deceased, were natives of Northern Ire- land. They were John C. and Mary (Han- nah) Bigham. When two years of age R. A. Bigham accompanied his parents to Illinois, lived there one year, and then in 1857, when Minnesota was yet a territory, the family settled in Wabasha county. There young Bigham lived on his father's homestead un- til twenty-three years of age, and then, in 1876, he set out in life for himself.
That year he settled in the little village of Marshfield, near the present site of Lake Benton, and a few months later he was ap- pointed county treasurer to complete an un- expired term and at the next election was chosen by the electors. He resigned the office in the spring of 1881, moved to Le Bean, Walworth county, South Dakota, and
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was appointed clerk of the district court, holding the office three years.
Returning to Minnesota, Mr. Bigham began work for a grain company and for several years was so employed, being stationed at Burchard, Verdi and Florence. At the last named place he was manager of a lumber yard for a few years. He then took a posi- tion as manager of the W. H. Curren yard at Tyler and was so engaged until he lo- cated at Russell on April 1, 1896, to take the position he has ever since held.
The Ross Lumber Company is the succes- sor at Russell of F. S. Purdy, who was the first to engage in the lumber business in the village and who sold to the Ross com- pany in 1893. The yard at Russell has been built up to one of the large concerns of the county. It carries in stock a complete stock of lumber, coal, lime, cement and build- ing material. The company maintains yards in Minnesota and South Dakota. The gen- eral offices are in Minneapolis, but it is a South Dakota concern, organized under the laws of that state. C. H. Ross is the presi- dent and treasurer, and H. E. Ross is vice president and secretary.
During his residence in Russell Mr. Big- ham has held several local offices. He has been president of the Village Council and village recorder, holding the last named of- fice at the present time. He is also treas- urer of his school district. The Masonic, Workmen and Degree of Honor lodges have admitted Mr. Bigham to membership.
The marriage of our subject to Lucinda Hughes occurred at Marshfield on Septem- ber 23, 1880. Mrs. Bigham was born in Mis- souri but just before the breaking out of the Civil War, when she was a child, the family moved to Wisconsin, and in 1878 they lo- cated in Lincoln county. Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Bigham: Joseph E., manager of the Ross Lumber Company's yard at Bancroft, South Dakota; and Harold R., who is employed as teller in the Sioux Falls Savings Bank.
JAMES J. HENNEN (1888) is a farmer and land owner of Lake Marshall township who has lived in Lyon county many years. He is a native of Holland and was born April 8, 1871. His parents were Peter A. and Helena (Beckers) Hennen. The first
eleven years of his life were spent in the land of his nativity, coming to America with his parents when he was that age. On their arrival in this country the family went to Ghent, where they stayed about a month and then moved to Brown county, Wisconsin. There they resided until 1888, when they re- turned to Lyon county and purchased land near Ghent. The father of our subject still resides on that place; the mother died in 1907.
In 1901 Mr. Hennen bought two hundred forty acres of land on section 22, Lake Marshall township, and took up his resi- dence there. In the spring of 1911 he pur- chased eighty acres more in the same sec- tion, so that he is now the owner of the north half of section 22. His land is finely improved. He raises a great deal of stock. He is treasurer of school district No. 6 and is a member of the Catholic church and of the Modern Woodmen lodge.
At Ghent, Lyon county, on March 25, 1897, Mr. Hennen was united in marriage to Annie Vanuden, a native of Holland and a daugh- ter of John and Anne (Hermsen) Vanuden. To this union have been born the following named ten children: Arnold, John, Theo- dore, Herbert, Hellen, Annie, Christina, George, Joe and Henry.
WILLIAM H. BOT (1886) is a successful young business man of Ghent. He is the proprietor of a pool hall and handles con- fectionery, cigars and soft drinks in connec- tion. He owns 240 acres of land two miles east of Ghent and 160 acres on the White Earth Reservation, in Northern Minnesota. Mr. Bot is also a shareholder of the Farmers Elevator Company of Ghent.
Mr. Bot's parents, William H. and Debora (Schrueder) Bot, were Hollanders, and Wil- liam was born in Holland December 23, 1880. His father died in 1908; the mother lives in Ghent. William went to school for several years in his native land and accom- panied his parents to America in 1886. The father bought 480 acres of land one mile east of Ghent and the family made their home on the farm. The lad worked on the farm with the father until twenty-eight years of age. In July, 1909, he moved to Ghent and purchased his present business from
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Theodore Sanders, which he has since con- ducted with success.
November 11, 1908, occurred the ceremony which united William H. Bot and Mary Stassen in the holy bonds of matrimony. Mary Stassen's parents were natives of Bel- gium, and she was born there. Mr. and Mrs. Bot are the parents of two children, Louis and Debora Elizabeth. The Bots are members of the Catholic church and Mr. Bot is a member of the Catholic Order of Foresters.
JOHN MATTSON (1883) is one of the older residents of Eidsvold township, hav- ing lived on the farm he now conducts nearly thirty years. He is a successful farmer and one of the respected men of his precinct.
The birth of Mr. Mattson occurred in Sweden October 9, 1849, and in that country he lived until twenty-three years of age. He canie to America in 1874, worked on a farm in Illinois one year, and then went to Red- wood City, San Mateo county, California. There he and a brother, Isaac Mattson, and M. M. Stram engaged in the wood business three years.
Returning to the old country at the end of that time, Mr. Mattson was married and spent six months in the land of his birth. He came again to the United States, lived three years in Denver, Colorado, a few months in Minneapolis, and in 1883 became a resident of Lyon county. At that time he bought the east half of the southwest quar- ter of section 3. Eidsvold township, and began its cultivation. He set out the grove on the place, erected the buildings, fenced the land, and has made all the improvements on the farm. In 1891 Mr. Mattson purchased the north half of the northwest quarter of his home section and in 1912 he bought the west half of the southwest quarter of the same section, making him the owner of a 240-acre farm in one piece. With the help of his sons, Alfred, Albert and David, Mr. Mattson farms his entire acreage.
The parents of our subject were Magnus and Lena M. (Watterstrom) Isaacson. Both died in 1880, the mother on February 29, the father in March. There were ten chil- dren in the family, of whom the following named eight are living: Anne Stina Wal-
mon, Isaac, John, Anders, Maria, Magnus, Inga Pearson and Peter U.
John Mattson was married in Sweden May 30, 1879, and his bride was Annie S. Ber- gerson. Their children are Ernest, who is married and lives in Minneota; Alfred, Al- bert, David and Bertha, who live at home. All have been well educated.
EDGAR T. MAXSON (1873) is engaged in the insurance business in Marshall, where he represents the Pacific Mutual Life of Los Angeles, California, the State Farmers Mutual of Waseca, and the Indiana & Ohio Live Stock Insurance Company of Crawfords- ville, Indiana.
Our subject was born in Winnebago City, Minnesota, April 7, 1868, and is a son of William T. and Adelia (Woodruff) Maxson, the former of whom died in 1904 and the latter being still a resident of Marshall. Willianı T. Maxson was a soldier in the Civil War, enlisting from Mankato in Com- pany D, Ninth Minnesota Volunteers, in 1861 and serving throughout the war, being honorably discharged. He was a charter member of D. F. Markham Post, G. A. R., of Marshall. He and his wife, natives of New York and Vermont, took as a homestead in 1873 the southeast quarter of section 19, Grandview township, Lyon county. They moved to Marshall when Edgar was twenty- one years old.
Edgar worked on his father's farm in his youth, and when the family moved to Mar- shall father and son went into the dray and transfer business together. Edgar ran the first street sprinkler through Marshall's business streets, getting the water from the river. In 1903 the father sold his interest to his son and retired from active work, Ed- gar carrying on the business three years longer. He then sold out and with his brother William started the Maxson Brothers Bottling Works and put in the deep well which has made the "Silver Springs" soft water so well known. After a few months our subject bought his brother's interest and conducted the plant for two years, after which he sold to A. C. Porter, and has since been engaged in the insurance business.
Edgar Maxson was married at Rose Hill on November 12, 1896, to Dora L. Buchert, a native of Wisconsin. They have four chil-
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dren, Inez, Verne, Marvel and Violet. Guy Edgar, a son by Mr. Maxson's first wife, is agent for the Great Northern railway at Cor- son, South Dakota. Edgar Maxson has two sisters, Mary H. (Mrs. R. F. Laythe), of Hanley, Canada, and Maud (Mrs. W. G. Wel- don ), of Redwood Falls, and a brother, Wil- liam, of Marshall.
EDWARD MILLER (1887) rents and farms the northeast quarter of section 3, Rock Lake township. He was born in Outa- gamie county, Wisconsin, July 25, 1866, and is a son of Frederick and Dora (Schroeder) Miller, the former of whom is deceased and the mother being a resident of Marshall. Mr. and Mrs. Fred Miller became Lyon county residents in the nineties and farmed one year, afterward moving to Marshall.
Edward- received his education in Wis- consin, where he went to country school un- til the age of fifteen, after which he worked for his father on the farm until he was twenty-one. Coming to Lyon county in the spring of 1887, he worked on a farm near Marshall one year and the next year, in company with his brother, Will, rented land near Marshall and farmed four years. He then purchased land in Lake Marshall town- ship and farmed four years for himself. Selling his Lyon county property, Edward moved to the northern part of the state and bought land near Brainerd. He and his wife were postmaster and assistant post- master at Neutral, near Brainerd, three years, and after six years they returned to Marshall, where he worked as teamster two years, after which he resumed farming near the town four years.
In 1906 Mr. Miller moved to the Forbes farm near Lynd and farmed one year. The succeeding four years he spent on the Schroeder farm in Lyons township, and in the fall of 1911 our subject moved to the place where he now resides. Mr. Miller was married November 25, 1889, to Ella Wunder- lich, at Watertown, South Dakota. His wife was born August 6, 1867, in Wisconsin, and her parents, Wolf and Emma (Graetz) Wun- derlich, were for twenty years residents of Lynd township, Lyon county, later moving to Brainerd, where the father still is living. The Millers are members of the Presbyterian church. They are the parents of seven chil-
dren, as follows:
Fern (Mrs. Wilmar Sowl), of Custer township; Iva, Frances, Elva, Roy, Erna and Eugene.
JOHN SNIDAL (1882), who owns and farms the southeast quarter of section 1, Westerheim township, has lived in Lyon county many years. He was born in Iceland October 27, 1848, the son of Sever and Inga Snidal. His mother died in Iceland and his father in Lyon county in 1910 at the age of ninety-nine years. For twenty-seven years before his death he had made his home with his son.
At the age of thirty-one years, in 1879, John Snidal left his native land and settled in a colony of his countrymen in Canada. Three years later he joined the Lyon county colony and he has ever since been a resident of the county. The first year he worked for Bjorn Gislason, the next two years he farmed school land in Westerheim township, the next year he resided in Marshall. After having farmed rented land several years, in 1890 he bought his present land. He has made all the improvements on it and has ever since resided on the place.
Mr. Snidal was married in Westerheim township November 6, 1884, to Christine Gislason, also a native of Iceland. Their children are Sarah, Mary, Alfred, Bjorn, Carl, Engie, Oluf, Dena and Lilly. Bjorn, Carl and Alfred assist their father in the management of the farm. The family are members of the Icelandic Lutheran church.
THOMAS U. JOHNSON (1886), a farmer of Amiret township, is the owner of the south half of the northeast quarter of section 24.
He was born and brought up in England, having been born in 1845. He is the son of Robert and Jane Johnson, who were farm- ers, and they gave their son his bringing up and his education in the country schools in England. At the early age of fifteen Thomas began to learn the stone mason's trade. and he was employed at that work most of the time until coming to the United States in IS82.
That year Mr. Johnson came to this coun- try and found employment at his trade in Pennsylvania, where he remained four years. He then moved to Lyon county and decided to farm. Accordingly he bought a tree
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BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY.
claim right to the south half of the north- east quarter of section 24, Amiret township, which he later changed to a homestead. On that place he has since resided, with the exception of a few years spent in Tracy and other parts of the county, working at his former trade.
Thomas U. Johnson was married in Eng- land to Margrette Charlton. To this union five children have been born, named Rob- ert, Annie, Thomas, Margretti and Rachel.
KNUTE RONNING (1872), son of early settlers of Lyon county, is the owner of one of Shelburne township's well improved quar- ter sections. He lives on the southeast quar- ter of section 19.
Knute Ronning was born March 10, 1870, in Fillmore county, this state. His parents, Mr. and Mrs. Erick Ronning, were natives of Norway and came to this country in 1869. Knute has since 1872 lived in Lyon county. He attended school in Tyler during his youth and from the time he was sixteen until he became of age worked on his father's farm. Later he bought grain for a few years at Florence and continued to help with the work on the home farm for several years, working with a threshing outfit during the falls. After his marriage in 1903 Mr. Ronning worked at the carpen- ter's trade. A few years ago our subject purchased the quarter upon which he now resides and engaged in farming.
Mr. Ronning was married June 13, 1903, to Olava Olsen, a native of Fillmore county. Mrs. Ronning was born in 1879 and is a daughter of Ole and Mary Olsen. Mr. and Mrs. Ronning are the parents of the follow- ing children: Edgar, Paul and Carl. One child, Clifford, died.
Knute Ronning is a member of the Mod- ern Woodmen lodge. For fifteen years he has been township clerk, was justice of the peace six years, and constable four years. He is an ardent sportsman, and every fall when the hunting season opens he takes a "hike" to Northern Minnesota or Wisconsin to spend a week deer and moose hunting.
HUGH L. EDWARDS (1899) is a farmer of Sodus township who has resided in Lyon county for the past thirteen years. He is
the owner of 120 acres of land on section 23. Hugh is a native of the Gopher State and was born in Blue Earth county January 29, 1875, a son of William and Elizabeth (Mor- gan) Edwards.
The subject of this sketch received his early education in the county in which he was born and later attended the Tracy High School two years. He assisted his father on the farm until 1899, when he came to Lyon county, where his father bought land. With his father Hugh made his home until 1905, when he bought the farm which he still owns and operates, 120 acres on section 23, Sodus township. In addition to farming, Mr. Edwards raises stock, includ- ing Duroc-Jersey hogs and Buff Wyandotte chickens. He is a member of the M. W. A. lodge and a stockholder of the Current Lake Telephone Company.
Lillie B. Williamson became the wife of our subject in Tracy on June 16, 1902. Mrs. Edwards is a native of Wisconsin and was born in Trempealeau county December 23, 1871. They have one child, Clifford L., born May 19, 1903.
REV. B. B. JONSSON (1894) is the pastor of the Icelandic Lutheran church of Min- neota. He is a native of Iceland and was born June 19, 1870, a son of Bjorn and Thorbjorg (Bjornsdottor) Jonsson. The father died some years ago and the mother resides with the subject of this review.
Our subject immigrated with his parents to Canada in 1876 and attended the schools in the Province of Manitoba until fifteen years of age. He then took a course in the Winnipeg Business College, from which he was graduated. Later he attended Gustavus Adolphus College, at St. Peter, Minnesota, taking a classical course. He attended the English Lutheran Theological Seminary at Chicago, where he matriculated in the clas- sics and was graduated in theology in May, 1893.
Rev. Jonsson was ordained the following June, but later took post-graduate work at the same school. He spent one year as trav- eling missionary for the Icelandic Evangeli- cal Lutheran Synod of America, in Canada, visiting congregations already established and organizing new ones. His work was in Western Canada.
HUGH L. EDWARDS AND FAMILY. Mr. Edwards is a Farmer of Sodus Township and a Native of Minnesota.
MR. AND MRS. KNUTE E. RONNING Mr. Ronning is a Farmer of Shelburne Township and Has Lived in That Precinct Forty Years.
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BIOGRAPHICAL IHISTORY.
In 1894 Rev. Jonsson came to Lyon county and located at Minneota, where he has since served as pastor of the Icelandic Lutheran church and more recently of the English Lu- theran church, also. He served as secretary of the Icelandic Evangelical Lutheran Synod of America eight years and was elected to the presidency in June, 1908. He served as chaplain of the State Senate of Minnesota in 1909. Rev. Jonsson has also served as editor and assistant editor of several pub- lications and is still engaged in this work.
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