An illustrated history of the counties of Rock and Pipestone, Minnesota, Part 90

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Luverne, Minn. : Northern History Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 924

USA > Minnesota > Rock County > An illustrated history of the counties of Rock and Pipestone, Minnesota > Part 90
USA > Minnesota > Pipestone County > An illustrated history of the counties of Rock and Pipestone, Minnesota > Part 90

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Theodore supplemented the carly educa. tion he received in the district schools with a course in the South Dakota state agri- cultural college, at Brookings. He assisted with the management of the home farm un- til 1907, when he commenced farming on his own account in Vienna township. In the spring of 1910 he rented and moved to his present place, the southwest quarter of sec- tion 34, Battle Plain township.

Our subject was united in marriage at Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on June 10, 1905, to Ida Mork, a native of Minnehaha county, South Dakota. Mr. and Mrs. Remme have three children, named as follows: Harold,

born December 28, 1906; Ila, born May 1. 1908; and Lillian, born March 17, 1910.

ANDREW HELLING (1900), of Rose Dell township, is a native Norwegian and was born in the province of Hollingdal May 16, 1872. He is the son of Ole and Aagodt (Mykeng) Helling, who owned a small farm, upon which our subjeet was reared and grew to manhood.

Arriving at his majority, Andrew enlisted in the standing army of Norway and served for two years. He came to America alone in 1900 and journeyed direct to Roek coun- ty. Ile was employed at farm labor for three years, then rented land and commene- ed farming on his own account. He has rented and lived on his present place, the east half of the southeast quarter of sec- tion 24, since 1908. He was about thirty- five head of cattle, eight horses, and raises some hogs. With his family Mr. Helling is a member of the United Norwegian Luther- an church.

At Kenneth, on May 30, 1902, our subject was married to Mary E. Remme, the daugh- ter of Ever and Marit Remme, who reside near Kenneth. They came to this country from Norway in 1904. Mrs. Helling was born in Valders, Norway, March 4, 1882, and has lived in the United States sinee 1901. Mr. and Mrs. Helling have three chil- dren: Mabel A., born April 8, 1904; Anna M., born April 7, 1906; and Emmet E., born December 7, 1908.

JOIN NELSON, JR. (1877) is the son of those old and highly respected Martin town ship pioneers, John and Annie (Christian- son) Nelson, whose early wedded life was passed amid the stirring seenes of an event- ful epoch. They were the sharers with other fearless precursors in the hardships incident to the primitive days of a country, which then but faintly gave evidence of a future prosperity. Mr. Nelson came to the county in 1872.

On his father's old homestead, and at a time when it yet retained much of its orig- inal crudeness, on September 6, 1877, the namesake of the pioneer, John Nelson, Jr., of this biography, was born. After receiv- ing all the education that could be afforded

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by the schools in the immediate vicinity, he was for two years a student in Augsburg seminary, Minneapolis. He then returned to the home farm and assisted in its con- duct until 1904, when Mr. Nelson rented the west half of section 24 from his father and has since made that his home. He is a member of Trinity church at Hills.

In the township of his birth, in March, 1904, our subject was united in marriage to Christina Moe, who was born January 21, 1880, the daughter of Christ and Andrine (Skyberg) Moe. The former parent has been deceased for some time; the mother resides with her daughter. Mr. and Mrs. Nelson are the parents of three daughters and one son, named as follows: Margie, born July 30, 1905; Joseph C., born Decem- ber 15, 1906; Olivia C., horn July 15, 1907; and Agnes C., born December 30, 1908.

LIZZIE (KNIGHT) PERCIVAL (1876) with her family is a Martin township resi dent of thirty-five years standing. A native of Houston county, Minnesota, she was born March 26, 1858, the daughter of Anthony and Elizabeth (Babst) Knight, both na- tives of Germany. She was married in Wa- seca county, Minnesota, on March 1, 1876, to Jerome W. Percival, who the same year brought his bride to Rock county and home- steaded the northwest quarter of section 1 range 47, Martin township. That was his home to the time of his death, which occur- red September 2, 1907. Since that time Mrs. Percival, with the aid of her sons, has continued to conduct the old home place.

Six children, four sons and two daughters, were horn to Mr. and Mrs. Percival. The eldest son, Homer, born September 22, 1880, died September 24, 1882. The names of the other children follow: Cora A., born Feb- ruary 9, 1878; Ida, born February 24, 1884; Wesley, born October 17, 1888; Orr, born January 28, 1890; and Frederick, born May 28, 1893.

JOHN R. MAXEDON (1895), formerly of Luverne, is a native of Moultrie county, Il- linois, and was born April 24, 1862. His father, William Maxedon, a native of In- diana and of Scotch-lrish descent, married Adaline Mull, also a Hoosier, who came

from Pennsylvania German stock. The mother of John Maxedon died when he was in his sixth year and his father passed away a few years later. There were nine children in the family, only two of whom are now living, the subject of this sketch and a sis- ter, Adaline (Mrs. Isadore Temperman), of Louisville, Kentucky.

John lived in his home county until 1895. For seven years he was employed in a brick and tile factory, then became a bridge car- penter on the railroad, an occupation he followed for about five years. For a short period he worked as a fireman on the Mich- igan Central railroad on a run between Michigan City, Indiana, and Chicago. In 1895 Mr. Maxedon became a resident of Luverne. For the first seven years after locating there he was engaged in thresh- ing and then established the Luverne steam laundry, which he conducted until early in 1910, when he disposed of the business to Herbert C. Tibbetts. The plant as equipped with up-to-date appliances and modern ma- chinery at a cost of $5000 by Mr. Maxedon is now one of the most complete in southern Minnesota and enjoys a wide patronage.

Our subject was married in Luverne on January 26, 1895, to Ruth Bailey, who was born January 3, 1871, in Missouri. She is the daughter of Joseph H. and Katherine (Strong) Bailey, natives of New York state and Switzerland, respectively. They have an adopted son, Arthur, who was horn Feb- ruary 2, 1900. Mr. Maxedon and family are members of the Baptist church.

WILMER T. MURRAY (1884) is a valued resident of Hardwick, and to a greater ex- tent than any other citizen the safety and protection of life and property in the thriv- ing Rock county village is entrusted to his hands, inasmuch as in his official capacity Mr. Murray is the marshal, the chief of the fire department and superintendent of the water works system. He has been a resi- dent of the county for all except the first two years of his life. Born at Humboldt, Iowa, April 3, 1882, he is the second son of Andrew and Mary (Key) Murray, the for- mer a native of Canada and the mother of England. They settled in lowa at an early date and came to Rock county in 1884. Be-

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sides Wilmer, they were the parents of four other sons: James E., Jesse (deceased ), Albert K. and Floyd.

Wilmer's father was a butcher and locat- ed in Lnverne. Since a boy of eight years our subject has been hustling for himself. While attending the public schools he took care of himself to a great extent by black- ing shoes. Leaving school at the age of thirteen, he worked for a year on a farm and then entered the employ of Kennedy Bros., at Hardwick, remaining with them until June, 1899. The next few years were spent in argicultural pursuits. Then for a time he managed the pool hall of Fred Pans- tian, worked on the section, worked as sec- ond man for the Davenport Grain company, and at various other occupations until 1905, when he was appointed village marshal, a position he has held continuonsly since. in September, 1909, he was made the fire chief and superintendent of the pumping station. lte also devotes some time to barbering, having recently purchased the shop at Hardwick.

Mr. Murray was married in Luverne on December 23, 1904, to Clara Peterson. Mrs. Murray was born August 26, 1884 in the old sod shanty on her mother's (Johanna Peter- son) claim, the first structure erected on the present site of the village of Hardwick, Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Murray: Floyd, on March 29, 1906; Margaret, on June 9, 1908; Bernice, on May 4, 1910.

FERDINAND IL. MOELLER (1901), who ranks as one of the successful and progres- sive agriculturists of the township of Kan- aranzi, is a native of Holstein, Germany, where he was born the sixth of January, 1xGl. His parents, John and Christina (Behrman) Moeller, are still living in the fatherland at good old ages.

Ferdinand attended the German public schools until attaining the age of fifteen. Then he learned the shoemaker's trade and followed that line of work five years. His immigration to America took place in 1SS1. Going to Davenport, Iowa, he made his home in that vicinity for twenty years. Dnr- ing the first seven of those years he worked out on different farms, and during the bal- ance of the time he farmed rented land. His

residence in Rock county dates from 1901. He owns the east half of the northwest quarter of section 14 and the west half of the northwest quarter of section 13 and to- day has one of the finest improved farms in Kanaranzi township. He is a stockholder in the Farmers Telephone company and the Farmers Elevator company of Kanaranzi. He is treasurer of school district No. 62.

On September 13, 1889, at Davenport, Mr. Moeller was married to Helena Kuentzel, whose parents both died in Germany, Mr. and Mrs. Moeller are the parents of the following six children : Louis J., born Au- gust 5, 1890; Emil H., born August 12, 1892; Alvina C., born November 22, 1895; Emmy A., born June 12, 1899; Walter A., born Oc- tober 27, 1901; and Hilda A., born March 13, 1903.

MARION WYNN (1902), of Denver town. ship, takes his given name from the town of his birth, Marion, Ohio. His nativity occurred January 3, 1878. Both his parents, Joseph Wynn and Angeline (Thomas) Wynn, were also natives of Ohio. The fa- ther still resides in the Buckeye state and is a farmer at Mt. Victory. The mother of our subject died at Castalia, Ohio, October 14, 1886. The paternal grandparents of Mr. Wynn were natives of Wales and Ireland, while the grandfather on his mother's side was born in the United States of German descent and his grandmother was of Eng. lish birth.

Until he was fifteen years of age Marion Wynn lived on the farm of his patents near Marion and attended the district schools. He left home in 1893, accompanying a cous- in who had been visiting in Ohio, to Wood- bine, Iowa, where relatives resided. Ile was a student for one year in the Woodbine high school, then worked at farm labor un, til 1895. He left that locality to go to Glen- coe, lowa, where he remained until 1902, and was for the most part engaged in farm- ing. He came to Rock county in 1902 and for three years was employed alternately on a bus line in Luverne and at farm work. In 1905 Mr. Wynn headed west. For nine months he worked in Seattle, Washington, and in British Columbia. The winter of 1906-07 was spent in Kalispell, Montana, and from there our subject went to Stanley

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county, South Dakota, where he homestead- ed land and lived from August 3, 1907, to May 25, 1909. Having proved up on the claim, he returned to Rock county, managed the Palmer company's elevator at Warner during the 1909 season, and then in Novem- ber located on the Denver township farm he has since rented and worked, located on section 22.

At Luverne, on December 2, 1908, Marion Wynn was joined in wedlock to Mae Brew- er, who was born at Darlington, Wiscon. sin, January 25, 1882. One daughter, Alice, was born to these parents, on March 24, 1910. Mr. Wynn holds membership in the Modern Woodman lodge of llardwick.

CHARLEY C. LOWE (1909) was until re- cently the editor and proprietor of the Lu- verne Journal, which developed under his management from a paper of little standing to an influential factor in the affairs of Rock county. Mr. Lowe sold the Journal in the fall of 1910 and now conducts a pa- per at LaMoure, North Dakota.

Mr. Lowe is a native of Manchester, Iowa, and was born July 16, 1870. When an in- fant he accompanied his parents to Vermil- ion, South Dakota, lived there two years, in Yankton two years, and then moved to Brule county, South Dakota, where he lived until nineteen years of age. Until he was fourteen years old Charley Lowe received absolutely no schooling and thereafter he received only a common school training. While living in Brule county he entered his father's printing office and learned the printer's trade, which he has ever since fol- lowed.

At the age of nineteen Mr. Lowe moved to Huron, worked in his father's printing office there six months, and then went to Mitchell, South Dakota, where he entered what was then known as the Wesleyan uni- versity. Later he moved to Alexandria, where he took the management of the Journal. A little later he bought the lease to the plant and conducted the paper to his own account two years. Disposing of his lease to the Journal, Mr. Lowe bought a half interest in the Union Labor Gazette and was connected with that paper seven months. We next find our subject in the city of Salem, South Dakota, where for

nine years he was the editor and proprietor of the Pioneer-Register. lle sold out at Salem and bought the Times at Watertown, which he conducted two years. He then bought the Independent at Henry, South Dakota, was at the head of that journal two years, and then, in February, 1909, located in Luverne and bought the Luverne Jour- ual, which he conducted until the fall of 1910, bringing that publication up to a high standard. Mr. Lowe also owned the Hard- wick Star, which he established in 1909.

The parents of our subject are John R. and Amelia M. (Stimson) Lowe, natives of Ohio and Michigan, respectively. They were married in Michigan and thereafter lived, respectively, in Huron county, Ohio; Cairo, Illinois; Delaware county, Iowa; Waterloo, lowa; and in several different towns in South Dakota. During his residence in the first places named Mr. Lowe was engaged in farming; in Waterloo he was engaged in the sewing machine business; in South Dakota he was engaged in newspaper work and in the mercantile business. He took a homestead claim in Brule county and platted the town of Bijou Hills on his farm. He was quite prominent in politics, and when the populist party was in the ascendency in South Dakota he was nominated by that party for state auditor. He now resides at Centuria, Wisconsin, engaged in lecture work from the temperance platform and in organizing co-operative stores. There are four children in the family: John G., Char- ley C., Greta A., Arnold and Alpha H.

The subject of this biography was mar- ried in Mitchell, South Dakota, April 5 1893, to Fulvia D. Palmer. She is the daugh ter of Charles H. and Mand (Raymond) Palmer and was born at Milton Junction, Wisconsin, October 27, 1874. Three chil- dren have been born to this union, as fol- lows: Susie L., born April 15, 1894; Leta G., born November 19, 1895, Olga L., born October 21, 1904.

Mr. Lowe holds membership in the A. F. & A. M., K. P., B. P. O. E. and M. W. A. lodges.

HOLDEN TVEDT (1887) has known no other home but Rock county. He is the son of Halsten and Segerud (Maage) Tvedt and was born on his father's Springwater

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township farm January 26, 1887. Both parents were natives of Norway. Halsten Tvedt died November 25, 1909; his wife, the mother of our subject, still enjoys life as a resident of Springwater.

Holden attended the district schools of his native precinct and until 1909 assisted his father in the management of the home farm. In that year he established himself as an independent farmer and has since farmed the southeast quarter of section 23, range 47, Springwater. He is a member of the Norwegian Lutheran church.

The marriage of Holden Tvedt to Ella Brower was solemnized on Mr. Tvedt's birthday, January 26, 1910, in Luverne. Mrs. Tvedt is the second in a family of one son and two daughters, whose parents are Char- les and Hitda Brower, who moved to Spring- water township from Sunbury, Iowa, in 1907.

JOHN P. COFFEY (1899) has for twelve years been a well-known citizen of Luverne, where he is extensively engaged in the wholesale and retail grain, coal, flour and feed business. He owns and operates the Luverne flour milt and from his headquart- ers in the county seat he conducts a line of seven elevators, located on the Omaha and Rock Island railroads in this territory.

A self-made man in every particular, Mr. Coffey's successful career is an example of what a poor orphan boy may accomplish hy perseverance, honesty and determined zeal. His parents, Patrick and Hannah (Cotter) Coffey, both natives of Ireland, came to this country early in life, were married and lo- cated in the state of New York. In the city of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, our sub- ject was born December 15, 1864. The fam- ily moved west in 1877 after the death of Hannah (Cotter) Coffey, which occurred during the month of May of that year. In December of the same year, while located in Minnesota, Jolin was left a double orphan by the decease of his father. He was only twelve years of age at the time of this mis- fortune.

Friendless and alone in the world, our subject commenced the struggle for exist- ence as a newsboy on the streets of St. Paul. Then it was that kindly Fate in the person of a Catholic priest came to minister

to him. The good father had become in- terested in the orphan, had learned of the circumstances in the case, and through his influence John was admitted to the Catholic Training school for boys, an institution which later developed into St. Thomas col- lege, located at Merriam Park. The oppor- tunity was eagerly accepted hy the home- less boy and he remained in the school for two years, receiving priceless benefits from the instructions and the influences offered by the surroundings.

On leaving the St. Paul institution young Coffey went to Fillmore county, in the southeastern part of the state, where he in earnest commenced to shape his destiny. In summers he worked at farm lahor and by sacrifice was enabled to attend the dis- trict schools during the winter months. For two years he taught in the schools of Fill- more county, and then moved to Madison, South Dakota, where he acquired his first experience in the grain business. For four years he was employed in various capacities in the elevators of that city, and there, in 1889, be established himself as a hardware merchant. He so continued for five years, then was similarly engaged until 1896 in the city of Freeport, Illinois. He moved to Whitewater, Wisconsin, which was his home prior to establishing his present residence and extensive business in Luverne. Mr. Coffey is a director of the Rock County Bank and is a member of the order of the Knights of Columbus.

Our subject is a man of family. He was married at Madison, South Dakota, on April 27, 1892, to Mary Carr, of Sparta, Wiscon- sin. Mrs. Coffey died October 30, 1905. To this union two sons and three daughters were born: Bernard, a student at St. Thomas college; Bernice, Margaret, John P., Jr., and Ellen. On September 18, 1907, Mr. Coffey was married to Mildred Ryan, a native of Luverne and a daughter of two of the county's pioneer settlers, Martin and Ellen Ryan. Mr. and Mrs. Coffey have two children, Catherine and Mildred.

HERMAN FITZER (1903) has lived on his present farm, the northwest quarter of section 15, Luverne township, since 1903. He engages extensively in buying, breeding and shipping fine stock and also does a

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considerable business in the real estate line. He is the president of the Mutual Fire Insurance company of Beaver Creek.

Our subject is a native of Scott county, Iowa, where he was born July 30, 1866. His parents, Christian and Magdalena (Horn) Fitzer, are natives of Germany and were married there. Landing in the United States in 1857, they went direct to Daven- port, Iowa. Soon after, the father bought land in Cedar county, the same state, and it was on the farm there that Herman spent his youth and received an education in the district schools. He left home at the age of twenty-two, beginning in the same business in which he is now engag- ed, that of farming and dealing in stock.

Mr. Fitzer was married while a resident of Cedar county, on February 7, 1894, to Matic Arp, the daughter of Peter and Lena Arp, both of whom are natives of Germany. Mrs. Fitzer's birth occurred April 2, 1870. To them four children have been born.

AANEN T. AANENSON (1888) has pas- sed his whole life within the borders of Rock county. He was born on his father's farm in Luverne township on the twen- tieth of March, 1888. He is the son of Thor and Johanna (Holand) Aanenson, who came from their native land of Norway to America in 1884. Aanen was educated in the district schools and assisted his father in the conduct of the home farm, renting some little land besides. In the spring of 1910 he commenced farming for himself on his present location, the northeast quar- ter of section 14, range 47, Beaver Creek township.

Mr. Aanenson was married in Beaver Creek township January 15, 1910, to Tilda E. Tokheim. Mrs. Aanenson was born Oc- tober 16, 1890, and is the daughter of Tos- ten and Engeborg (Wastun) Tokheim, of Minnehaha county, South Dakota.

MARION J. ELLSWORTH (1903), of Magnolia, is the son of the late John A. and Laura (Fish) Ellsworth, pioneers of southwestern Minnesota. John A. Ells- worth was born in Utica, New York, Octo- ber 14, 1828, and when a young man moved to Saranac, Tonia county, Michigan, where

he lived until 1865, engaged in farming, school teaching and in the mercantile busi- ness. He became a resident of Minnesota in the year mentioned and until 1872 re- sided in Blue Earth county. He then went to Nobles county and was the first person to file soldier's homestead claim in Westside township, selecting as his allot- ment the northeast quarter of section 18. At that time there were only two houses on the road between Luverne and Wor- thington. Mr. Ellsworth retired from ac- tive work on the farm in 1896 and moved to Adrian, where his death occurred July 17, 1901. Laura Ellsworth, the mother of our subject, is a native of Whitehall, New York, and still resides at Adrian at the age of seventy-six.

During the residence of the family in Saranac, Michigan, Marion J. Ellsworth was born September 26, 1862. Three years lat- er he moved with his parents to Blue Earth county, Minnesota, and then in May, 1872, to Nobles county. He attended the district schools of Westside township and lived on the old homestead of his father until twenty years of age. Then he set his eyes toward the west. He pre-empted land in South Dakota, remained there five years, and then went to the state of Wash- ington. In 1889 Marion returned to Nobles county and farmed for the next three years. When the Sisseton Indian reservation in South Dakota was opened for settlement on April 15, 1892, he was fortunate to secure his pick of the land and on the claim he remained for ten years, In 1903 he located in Magnolia, which has since been his home and where he is engaged in the butcher and retail meat business.

At the call for volunteers on the declara- tion of war with Spain, Marion Ellsworth enlisted at Browns Valley, Minnesota, on July 2, 1898, in company E, Fifteenth Min- nesota regiment. His company was sta- tioned at Fort Snelling, Camp Meade, Penn- sylvania, and at Augusta, Georgia, heing mustered out at the latter place in March, 1899.

Mr. Ellsworth was married at Adrian February 4, 1891, to Katherine McGee, a native of Illinois and a daughter of Wil- liam and Katherine McGee, now residents of Magnolia. To these parents have been horn the following three children: Kather-

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ine L., born November 25, 1891; William, born May 2, 1894; and Ruth, born August 4, 1896.

VICTOR C. LINNELL (1885), a livery- man of Luverne, was born in Geneseo. Henry county, Illinois, January 25, 1868. He is the son of Charles R. and Mary I (Lenhart) Linnell, natives of New York and Ohio, respectively. Charles R. Lin- nell located in Henry county, Illinois, in the early forties, making the trip from his native state to that point in true pioneer style, by means of an ox cart. In that county he was married and continued to live until moving to Rock county in 1885. He bought land in Clinton township, where he died in 1889 at the age of sixty years. flis wife died four years later and at the time was in her forty-sixth year. Victor, who was the second child in the family, had four brothers: Charles R., Philip R. (deceased ), Henry E. and Chester 11.

Victor C. Linnell of this biography was seventeen years of age when he left Illi- nois and removed with his parents to Rock county, After the death of the father, the four sons of Charles R. Linnell conducted the home farm on section 10, Clinton town- ship, until 1894. That year Victor and his brother Chester moved on a farm which they had bought from their father on sec- tion 3 in the same township and lived there until 1904. For the next five years he farmed the southeast quarter of section 14, land which he still owns.

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An illustrated history of the counties of Rock and Pipestone, Minnesota, Part 90

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970 Publication date: 1911 Publisher: Luverne, Minn. : Northern History Publishing Company Number of Pages: 924

Author: Rose, Arthur P., 1875-1970
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Luverne, Minn. : Northern History Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 924