USA > Minnesota > Rock County > An illustrated history of the counties of Rock and Pipestone, Minnesota > Part 85
USA > Minnesota > Pipestone County > An illustrated history of the counties of Rock and Pipestone, Minnesota > Part 85
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ROCK COUNTY BIOGRAPHIES.
dren, of whom Henry, John, Charlie, Mrs. Ileekt and Nicholas are living. Peter, Jul- ius and Lena are deceased.
ADOLPH G. OESTERN (1892), of Rose Dell township, was born in Allamakee county, Towa, June 2, 1863, the third in a family of seven children born to Gulick and Carrie (Peterson) Oestern, natives of Norway and early day settlers of Alla- makee county. Other children of these par- ents are Caroline (Mrs. Ole Tweton), of Rose Dell township; llelga (Mrs. T. O. Holm), of Red Wing, Minnesota; Clara (Mrs. J. H. Swenson), of Manitoba, Can- ada; Otto, of North Dakota; Thorval, of Harpers Ferry, Iowa; and Josie (Mrs. E. Valley), of Minot, North Dakota.
The subject of this biography was edu- cated and spent the first twenty-nine years of his life in the lowa county of his birth. In 1892 Mr. Oestern commeneed his career in Rock county. Since then he has been employed on different farms and also as a groom. For three years following 1903 he was employed in such capacity by M. T. Jacobson, at Waterville, lowa. He now recides on the farm of his sister, Mrs. Ole Tweton, on the southwest quarter of sec- tion 4, Rose Dell township.
GEORGE THORP (1884), a master brick mason and plasterer of Luverne, is a na- tive Norwegian. Ile was born in the land of the midnight sun the seventeenth of February, 1857, and that continued to be his home for the first twenty-seven years of his life. He became proficient at the trade of sawyer and filer, at which he was employed until enlisting in the Norwegian standing army, at the age of twenty-two. At the time of his discharge after three years' military schooling he held the office of sergeant, which he had held for one year. In 1884 Mr. Thorp immigrated to the United States and at once located in Lu- verne, which has ever since been his home. He served a three years' apprentice- ship in the trade he now follows under N. P. Gillham and then launched into the con- tracting business on his own account.
Johannes and Anne Marie (Jorgensen) Ludvigsen were the parents of the subject
of this sketch. They came to this country from Norway in 1886 and made their home with Ole Foss until both were called by death. There were eight children in the family, of whom the only living ones are Mr. Thorp and Ole Foss.
George Thorp is a man of family. He was married in February, 1885, to Jose- phina Olson, also a native of Norway, who died on September 3, 1901. By this unlon there were the following five children: Mary, of Watertown, South Dakota; Otllda (Mrs. Harry Miller), of Watertown; Jen- nie S., a student at the Mankato Commer- cial college; Carl H., of Luverne; and Wal- ter J. A second time, in Luverne, in No- vember, 1903, our subject was joined in the bonds of matrimony to Annie Thomp- son, who came originally from Norway,
Mr. Thorp is a prominent member of . the Synod Norwegian Lutheran church and served as its treasurer for nine years. He is also an ex-member of the Carnegie library board of directors.
ARTHUR G. ZINN (1907) is the post- master of Kenneth and the proprietor of "Kenneth's Best Store." He was born in Dubuque, lowa, November 22, 1877, and in that city he received his education and grew to manhood. He early became interested in the dry goods business and for a number of years was employed as clerk in the big department store of James Levi & Co. Ile remained with that firm until 1905, when he went to Sioux Falls to as- sume a position with the New York Mer- cantile Co. Two years later he moved to Kenneth and established his present busi- ness, which has grown steadily from the start. The original stock was purchased from J. D. Cope. Ile conducts a first-class general merchandise store, dealing in dry goods, groceries, shoes, furnishings, etc. It was in March, 1907, during Mr. Zinn's first year of residence in Kenneth, that he was appointed postmaster, which office he still holds.
Arthur is the youngest of a family of five children, four of whom are living: Louis, of Dubuque, lowa: William, of Dubuque; Kate (Mrs. John Breithaupt), of Dubuque; and the subject of this sketch. He is the son of William Zinn, who died in 1892, and of
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ROCK COUNTY BIOGRAPHIES.
Martha Zinn, who still resides in Dubuque. William Zinn, the father, was a traveling representative of the firm of E. B. Pieken- brock & Sons, of Dubuque, his territory embracing the states of Iowa and South Da- kota. Mr. Zinn was a native of Germany and came to this country at the age of seventeen years. For three year previous to taking up his residence in Dubuque, he was located at East Troy, Wisconsin. He was fifty-five years old at the time of his decease. He was a veteran of the civil war, serving during the struggle with the Fifty-second Wisconsin infantry. His wife, Martha (Bechtel) Zinn, was also a native of Germany, coming to America when a girl of nine years.
Arthur Zinn was married in Luverne on January 10, 1906, to Lulu Engebretson, a native of Rock county. She was born Oc- toher 26, 1883, and is a daughter of Fred Engebretson. Mr. Zinn belongs to the In- dependent Order of Foresters in Dubuque
MATTH. KOLL (1894) has been a Rock county farmer for the past seventeen years, and his operations have been con- fined to two townships, Battle Plain and Denver. His nativity occurred in the ham- let of Fehmern, province of Schleswig-Hol- stein, Germany, on May 15, 1863. His father, Peter Koll, was a farmer and also conducted a flouring mill. The mother of our subject was Wilhelmina ( Ilofeldt) Koll.
Mr. Koll received a common school edu- cation in the country of his birth. At the age of fourteen years he crossed the Atlan- tic to seek a field for endeavor in the land of possibilities. He made Walcott, Iowa, his destination, and near that place was employed at farm labor for eight years. He then homesteaded land in Decatur county, Kansas, and lived there nine years. The country was altogether too dry and not suited to Mr. Koll's tastes, so in 1894 he left Kansas and made settlement in the garden spot of southwestern Minne- sota. He farmed in Battle Plain township three years, following wbich he farmed on section 20, Denver, for a like period. He has farmed the south baif of section 1 since 1901. Mr. Koll raises considerable stock. He was for fifteen years a school
director. He holds membership in the A. O. U. W. and D. of H. lodges.
Our subject was married in Kansas on New Year's day, 1889, to Nettie Baker. She was born in Ohio April 6, 1870, the daughter of Joseph and Abbie (Gudgeon) Baker, also natives of the Buckeye state. The following children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Koll: Wilhelmina, born Au- gust 3. 1890; Gertrude, born July 24, 1892; Laura, born February 8, 1895; George, horn March 6, 1897; Ella, born May 20, 1901; Carl, born April 17, 1905; and Rich- ard, born July 28, 1909.
S. W. ROSE (1888) has been a resident of Luverne since 1888, the year in which he attained his majority. In company with D. A. Hulett and S. B. Hulett he is interest- ed in the West Side Auto company, a thriv- ing concern which was organized in Sep- tember, 1910, and which recently moved into its new and substantial cement block home on Main street. The firm is actively engaged in the sale and repair of automo- biles and in the conduct of an up-to-the- minute auto livery. They are local agents for the well known E. M. F. and Flanders "20" cars.
The parents of our subject were Martin and Barbara Rose, both natives of Germany who came to this country before their mar- riage. It was in the early forties, before the railroads began to traverse the state to any extent, that Martin Rose settled in Henry county, Illinois. At that early day the hardy pioneers were at great disadvan- tages in the placing of the products of the farm. Hogs and produce were hauled by ox team a distance of nearly 200 miles to market at Chicago, then an unpretentious community. Mr. Rose lived continuously nearly sixty years on the land he filed claim to as a young man. He died in 1900 at the age of eighty-five years. His wife survived him six years and was seventy. eight years old at the time of her decease.
It was on the old farm in Henry county, illinois, on October 21, 1867, that S. W. Rose of this review was born. He grew to manhood on the home place, and it was from there that he moved direct to Luverne in the year already mentioned. For a num- her of years our subject was engaged as
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ROCK COUNTY BIOGRAPHIES.
local agent for several leading machinery and supply houses. At present he repre- sents the interests of the Avery Manufac- turing Co., manufacturers of threshing ma- chinery, in Rock county. Mr. Rose has achieved success in his chosen calling, en- tirely by his own unaided efforts, and has won for himself a respected position in the city which has long been the scene of his activities. Fraternally he is a Modern Woodman.
In Luverne, on December 23, 1896, S. W. Rose was united in marriage to Rachael Cripps. Mrs. Rose is a native of Michigan.
JAMES W. BONNETT (1886) has, with the exception of a few months, passed his entire life within the borders of Rock county. lle was born in Oshkosh, Wiscon- sin, July 4, 1886. In the fall of the same year he accompanied his parents, Thomas II. and Ellen ( Williams) Bonnett, both na- tives of Wisconsin, to their new home in Rock county. The father bought the north- west quarter of section 26, Magnolia town- ship, upon which James grew to manhood. lle attended the district schools, then as- sisted with the work on the home farm until he commenced farming for himself in the fall of 1909. At that time he rented the southwest quarter of section 32, Battle Plain township, upon which he has since resided. He raises Poland China hogs and Shorthorn cattle.
Mr. Bonnett was married at Luverne on September 14, 1909, to Irene N. Beaty, who was born in the county July 15, 1888. She is the danghter of James and Ella (Sorens) Beaty, of Luverne. The former parent is a native of Illinois and the mother is of Wisconsin birth. One daugh- ter. Mavis B., was born to Mr. and Mrs. Bonnett, on May 25, 1910. Our subject is a member of the Catholic church and of the Odd Fellows lodge.
JACOB E. BOGENREIF (1896), a farmer and breeder of Shorthorn cattle and Duroc- Jersey hogs in Springwater township, has been a resident of both Pipestone and Rock counties. He is the son of Benjamin and Martha (Fry) Bogenreif, natives of
Pennsylvania, who went to Illinois early in life and were married there.
It was in Stephenson county, Illinois, on May 8, 1872, that Jacob F. Bogenreif was born. At the age of twelve he moved with his parents to Plymouth county, Iowa, Where he received a schooling and as- sisted with the work on his father's farm. in the first year of his manhood he rented land and commenced farming for himself. Three years later, in the spring of 1896, he moved to Pipestone county, farmed there eleven years, and since then his home has been in Rock county. He is the owner of eighty acres of land, which, to- gether with a quarter .section he rents, makes a total farming area of 240 acres. While a resident of Pipestone county, Mr. Bogenreif served a term of four years on the board of county commissioners, was the chairman of the township board for a decade, and was a road overseer for three years.
At Merrill, Jowa, on January 10, 1892, Mr. Bogenreif was married to Mary C. Bonn, who was born February 5, 1874, lhe danghter of Stephen and Elizabeth (Cas- per) Bonn, natives of Wisconsin. Mr. and Mrs. Bogenreif are the parents of the fol- lowing named children: Lillie M., born April 16, 1893; Mary C., born September 28, 1894; Myrtle M., born July 22, 1896; Barbara M., born February 13, 1898; Laura C., born February 18, 1900; Clarence E., born April 11, 1902; Veronica H., born April 3, 1904; Ida M., born January 21, 1906; Lawrence J., born in 1908; Lenord S., born September 7, 1910. Our subject is a member of the Catholic church and of the M. W. A. lodge.
ANTON KOCH (1891) is a progressive farmer of Mound township who is firmly convinced that there is no place like Rock county. He has traveled widely over Min- nesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and the Dakotas in a vain search for a locality that might be more appropriately termed "the garden spot of the northwest."
The subject of this biography is a native of the fatherland, and his birth occur- red November 21, 1873, at Reichland, in the province of Alsace Lorraine. Both his father and mother, Nick and Annie
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ROCK COUNTY BIOGRAPHIES.
(Dick) Koch, are still living and reside at Alton, Iowa. Anton was reared ou a farm and lived in the land of his birth until after his eighteenth birthday. For four years previous to his coming to the United States in 1891, he was employed in a glass factory. His entire residence in the land of his adoption with the exception of three years has been passed in Rock county. For fourteen years he managed his father's Vi- enna township farm, then for three years he was engaged in farming in Willmont town- ship, Nobles county. Since 1907, he has rented and farmed his present land, which comprises 400 acres of section 13, Mound township. Mr. Koch is an enthusiastic stock raiser and is making good in that line. Lately he commenced the breeding of thor- oughbred Hereford cattle and owns other stock of good strain.
Mr. Koch is a man of family. He was married at St. Kilian, Nobles county, on September 22, 1898, to Annie Hassler, who was born in Davenport, lowa, May 16, 1882. To these parents the following six children have been born: Annie, horn January 31, 1900; Peter, horn December 30, 1902; Eliz- abeth, born December 25, 1904; Hilda, born February 3, 1907; Agnes, born April 17, 1908; and John Nick, born November 23, 1909. The family are members of the Cath- olic church of Luverne.
JAMES H. BARCLAY (1874), of Luverne, is the son of two early pioneers of Luverne township, G. S. and Sophia E. Barclay, na- tives of Pennsylvania and Germany, respec- tively. G. S. Barclay hauled freight over- land to Luverne for two years before the advent of a railroad to Rock county. He died February 21, 1909, a few months before the decease of his wife, which occurred on December 17, 1910.
Freeport, Illinois, is the native city of James H. Barclay of this review, his birth having occurred August 24, 1863. While yet an infant he moved with his parents to Blackhawk county, Iowa, and from there to Rock county in 1874. The Barclays re- sided in Luverne township for several years and then settled on land they had bought in Westside township, Nobles county. James assisted with the management of the home farm until his marriage in 1891 and then en-
gaged in farming on his own account until 1902, the year he located in the city of Luverne to engage in his present occupa- tion, that of carpenter and builder. Our subject is a member of the Knights of Pythias and Modern Woodmen orders.
Mr. Barclay was married on January 28, 1891, to Serelda M. Kienast, the daughter of William G. and Mary Kienast, now resi- dents of Aberdeen, South Dakota. Mrs. Barclay, who was a native of Neenah, Wis- consin, died in Luverne June 13, 1910, aged forty years. Two children were born to this union: a danghter, Florence M., and a son, Harold J., who died in infancy.
JOHN KAHLER (1892), for nineteen years a resident and farmer of Rose Dell township, first saw the light of day in Hol- stein, Germany, on December 12, 1866. His father, Paul Kahler, died in Germany in 1890, hut his mother, Cathrina (Dittmer) Kahler, still lives in the old country.
Up to his fourteenth year the life of John Kahler was not unlike that of the average German school boy. He journeyed alone to America at the age mentioned, going direct to Blairstown, Iowa, where he was employed at farm labor until 1892, the date of his settlement in Rock county. He has had but one home in the county, his present location, the northwest quarter of section 11, range 47, Rose Dell township. The place upon which he has lived for the past nineteen years is the property of his father- in-law, but he is the owner of the south- east quarter of section 2, range 47, land he purchased in 1900. He is a shareholder in the Farmers Elevator company of Jas- per. Mr. Kahler is one of the township supervisors, a director of school district No. 47, and a member of the German Lu- theran church.
At Newhall, Benton county, lowa, on Feb- ruary 24, 1892, John Kahler was married to Emma Seeman, whose birth occurred March 10, 1872. She is the daughter of John and Minna (Peters) Seeman, natives of Germany. As a result of this union the following three children have been born: Martha, born December 13, 1895; August, born November 16, 1897; and John, born May 27, 1902.
35
578
ROCK COUNTY BIOGRAPHIES.
EMIL F. KOHLSCHEEN (1890), now of Buchanan, North Dakota,
made Rock county his home from the time he was six- teen years of age. His parents, Henry and Emma (Falk) Kolscheen, are both buried in Germany, the native land of our sub- ject. His father was a butcher in the town of Petersdorf, Holstein, where Emil's birth occurred August 31, 1874. He was edu- cated in that town and at the age of six- teen undertook the long journey to Amer- ica alone. The first summer after his ar- rival he worked in Charter Oak, Jowa, and in the fall of the same year, 1890, he found his way to Rock county. He hired out at farm lahor for five years and then commenced farming on his own account. Hle lived on the northwest quarter of sec- tion 20, Springwater township, from the spring of 1889 until his recent removal to North Dakota. Mr. Kohlscheen served on the board of his school district for eight years, was clerk of the township board for four years and its chairman for three. He holds membership in the A. O. U. W. and M. W. A. lodges.
In Luverne, on October 21, 1895, Mr. Kohlscheen was married to Dorothy Hemine, who was born March 18, 1873, the daughter of Carl and Dora Hemme. Four children have been born to this union: Willie, born April 28, 1896; Walter, born November 26, 1897; liarry, born June 23, 1901; and Ray- mond, born May 18, 1904.
ANDREW A. ANDERSON (1886), the as. sistant cashier of the First National Bank of Hills, is one of three sons in a family of nine children who were born to one of Rock county's and Martin township's most honored pioneers, Goodman Anderson. Mr. Anderson, who settled in Martin township in 1871, was a prominent figure in the many activities that had to do with the early de- velopment of the county. He was one of the earliest of the county commissioners and also served for six years as county treasurer, to which office he was succeeded by P. O. Skyberg. Goodman Anderson is now a resident of Hills.
The subject of this biography was born October 8, 1486. on the old homestead in Martin township, located on the northeast quarter of section 27. On that farm he
grew to manhood. After completing the course offered by the district schools of the county Andrew attended Luther college, at Decorah, lowa, from which he was grad- uated. On completing his school career he returned to manage the home farm, which he successfully did for four years, or un- til the fall of 1909, when he entered the employ of the First National Bank. He was elected to the position of assistant cashier in January, 1910.
At Minneapolis, on June 25, 1910, An- drew A. Anderson was united in marriage to Marie Klugness, a native of the mill city. Mrs. Anderson was born March 6, 1889.
CHRIST WEBBER (1882) owns and farms the southeast quarter of 'section 6. Clin- ton township, and is one of the success- ful farmers of the precinct. He was born in Wurttemberg, Germany, January 18, 1844, the son of Michael and Eva (Waibel) Webber. Both his parents died in Ger- many, his father in 1885 and his mother in 1883.
Mr. Webber lived in the land of the kai- ser for thirty-eight years, or nntil 1882. He was brought up on a farm, engaged in var- ious forms of agricultural labor, and for eleven years was employed in a mill. It was on May 2, 1882, that our subject first set foot upon American soil, and in August of the same year his residence in Rock county began. For a short time he hired out to a farmer and in 1883 he bought his present farm, and has operated it without interruption to the present date. The land was raw and undeveloped when Mr. Web- her first located on it, but the substantial improvements found there today are visible evidences of the owner's successful career.
On August 16, 1883, in Luverne, Mr. Web- ber was united in marriage to Eve Deinen- ger, also a native of Germany. There are three children in the Webber family, John, Christina and William. They are members of the German Lutheran church of Steen.
PAUL RIEDEL (1898) established the first meat market in the village of Magnolia. At present he is engaged in farmning and lives on the southeast quarter of section 12, Magnolia township. Germany is his na-
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ROCK COUNTY BIOGRAPHIES.
tive land, and it was in Zechin on the tenth of February, 1867, that he was born. He is the son of William and Emelia (Zimmer- man) Riedel. The father was a prominent merchant and trader in his home town.
The first eighteen years of Paul Riedel's life were spent as a subject of the kaiser, and in the fatherland he secured bis educa- tion. In 1885 he crossed the Atlantic and made his first home in the new world at Mapleton, Minnesota, with an uncle. For a number of years he hired out on different farms in that vicinity, and in 1890 he en- tered the employ of a butcher, from whom he learned the trade. In 1892 he removed to St. Clair, Blue Earth county, where for two years he managed a shop for Charles Dumbeck. Abandoning the meat business for a while, he worked as a carpenter until 1898, the date of his arrival to Rock county. He made Magnolia his home, and there he conducted a meat market for the next four years. At the end of that time he disposed of his business and moved to the farm where he still resides.
At St. Clair, Minnesota, Mr. Riedel was united in marriage to Eda Kohler. Two sons and one daughter have blessed this union. The children were born as follows: Willie, on December 17, 1895 (died the fol- lowing September); Flossie M., on Septem- ber 27, 1897; and Otto W., on Independence day, 1898 (died at the age of eight years). Mr. Riedel is a member of the Modern Woodmen lodge.
EDWARD W. LYNCH (1890), proprietor of a Luverne harness sbop, is a native Min- nesotan, having been born in Houston coun- ty August 20, 1865. His parents, Michael and Mary (Murphy) Lynch, natives of ire- land, came to America in childhood. After their marriage they located in Boston, lived there a while, in New Hampshire a while, and then located in Houston county, Min- nesota. After living there fourteen years, they moved still farther west, taking a homestead in Brookings county, South Da- kota, where they both died. Our subject is the youngest of three living children, the others being John J. and Katie.
Edward attended the country schools of Houston county and at the age of fourteen years moved with his parents to Brookings
county, South Dakota. There he spent eight years working on the farm; then he began learning the harness maker's trade in a shop at Aurora, South Dakota. He worked at the trade until 1890 and then located in Luverne, where he has ever since resided. For ten years he worked in the harness shop of J. A. Kennicott; then he bought that gentleman's business, moved the stock to his present place of business, and has since been in business for himself. He carries a complete line of harness goods and has a nice store.
Mr. Lynch was married at Sioux Falls June 10, 1896, to Laura Trede. She is the daughter of the late John Trede and was born at Davenport, lowa, April 13, 1873. Mr. and Mrs. Lynch have two children: Marie C., born August 31, 1898; Edwin Leo, born July 16, 1903. The family are mem- hers of the Catholic church of Luverne. Mr. Lynch is a member of the A. O. U. W. lodge of Luverne and has held the office of financial secretary for the past six years. He is also a member of the Catholic Order of Foresters of Ellsworth and of the Knights of Columbus of Sioux Falls.
ARTHUR TESKEY (1886), who owns and farms the southwest quarter of section 16, Springwater township, is a native of Clin- ton county, lowa, to which place his parents came from the east in the late fifties. His father, John P. Teskey, a native of Ireland, passed away in Springwater township on June 29, 1910. The mother of our subject, Pauline (Maxwell) Teskey, was born in New York.
The birth of Arthur Teskey occurred February 9, 1861. He was reared on his fa- ther's Clinton county farm and received a district school education. He was twen- ty-five years of age when he came to Rock county and located on land he had bought, the southwest quarter of section 16, his home ever since. He has made improve- ments on the place until today it is one of the model farms of the precinct. Mr. Teskey raises considerable stock and has been very successful in the venture. For seventeen years he was a school director, for ten years the treasurer of the township, and for sev- en years the precinct's faithful assessor. By
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