USA > Minnesota > Otter Tail County > History of Otter Tail County, Minnesota: Its People, Industries and Institutions, Volume I > Part 39
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Vinje, Syver .- University of Minnesota, 1902; registered in Otter Tail county June 20, 1902; practiced in Henning for a time and then located at Hillsboro, North Dakota.
Wallace, Raymond A .- University of Michigan, 1902; registered in Otter Tuil county June 20, 1902; practiced only a short time in the county. removing to Chatta- nooga, Tennessee.
In addition to the physicians listed above there are a few who have either practiced only a short time in the county or else left the county and state without leaving any record. Among these may be mentioned Nathan Freeman, Herbert H. Leibold, William Davidson and Nicholaz W. Schu- macher. There are some in the list whose addresses are lacking and it was impossible to trace them after they left the county.
Practitioners of osteopathy have been recognized by the state Legislature since 1909, when an act was passed creating a state board of osteopathy com- posed of five osteopathic physicians appointed by the governor for a term of five years. The act creating the board defined osteopathy and specifies that only those physicians could be licensed who had attended a school of osteo- pathy for at least three entire sessions of eight months each. The license of an osteopath does not authorize the holder "to give or prescribe drugs for internal use or perform major surgery." Since this act has gone into opera- tion J. Floyd Curtis, who registered January 11, 1911, has been the only osteopath to register in Otter Tail county. The first osteopath to practice in Fergus Falls was a man by the name of Botenfield, who located in the city shortly after 1900. He was followed by Mr. and Mrs. C. W. King, who practiced here a few years, Mrs. King doing most of the work. At the present time Doctor Curtis is the only osteopath in the county.
The first practitioner of chiropractic in the county was Arthur Anger who located in Fergus Falls in 1909 and has practiced here continously since that day. He has added mechano-therapy to his regular work as a chiro- practor; in fact, he combines in his practice all of the latest methods in use by naturopaths. The only other chiropractor in the county is Gustav Henderson, of Fergus Falls, who devotes himself to pure chiropractic.
DENTISTRY.
The first dentist in Otter Tail county to locate permanently was R. H. Phalon. who came to Fergus Falls during the seventies. Before he came there was another dentist. Bell by name, who made occasional visits to Fergus Falls and there are people still living in the city who possess some of his handiwork. In those early days there were no dental schools in the west and the ranks of the profession were recruited from those who studied in the office of some dentist. J. E. Metcalf, the oldest practicing dentist in
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the county, learned his profession in the office of Phalon, and there were others who enjoyed the same privilege.
The first act of the state Legislature to provide for the registration of dentists was passed March 5, 1885. This act provided for a board of five practicing dentists whose duties were to pass upon the qualifications of those seeking to practice dentistry in this state. The act provided that all those who had been practicing prior to this time were to be allowed to continue without examination. Since that date the original act has been amended from time to time and the present board of dental examiners now consists of six members. When the act of 1885 went into operation there were four dentists practicing in the county : R. H. Phalon, A. C. Greenlee, J. E. Met- calf and William Ulvin, the latter being registered in 1885 as a non-resident. The present location of some has not been ascertained.
The following is a list of all the dentists registered in Otter Tail county since 1892, with date of registration and present location, where known: William C. Dunn, April 8, 1892; A. V. Williams. 1893; George W. Harris, July 5, 1894, Fergus Falls; F. N. Whittaker, July 24, 1893, Fergus Falls; T. T. McDonald, July 28, 1896; M. L. Hilton, October 6, 1897; L. C. Edison, June 18. 1898. deceased; H. S. Prichett, June 18, 1898, Perham; J. F. Knudson, June 17, 1900. Pelican Rapids; Ralph Lampere, June 16, 1900; H. J. Rice, June 14, 1901 ; H. J. Laffitte, June 23, 1903, Fergus Falls; Hans C. Hektner, June 23, 1903, Battle Lake; Albert H. Woolson. October 13, 1903, Spokane, Washington; John Schacht, Fergus Falls; Joseph A. Schacht, July 1, 1904, Wadena; George E. Bell, July 1, 1904, Fergus Falls; C. E. Parrot, July 30, 1904, deceased; W. O. Asseln, May 26, 1905, Wash- ington; Charles Nelson, June 5, 1905, Fergus Falls; Isador H. Walstrom, July 2, 1906; William R. Jung, October 4. 1906; Owen S. Barke, June 22, 1907, deceased; E. O. Wilson, November 11, 1909; B. H. Saunders, June 27, 1910; H. A. Proehl, November 29, 1910; G. A. Anderson, July 3, 1911, New York City; Roy Calvin Lang, June 22, 1912; Walter H. Dahl, March 15, 1913; H. E. Niebels, June 24, 1913, Fergus Falls; Benjamin J. Esser, June 24, 1913; Ingram S. Benson, June 24, 1913; Victor A. Bousquet, June 24. 1913; Harold Nelson, Fergus Falls.
OPTOMETRISTS.
The practice of optometry has been regulated by the state since 1901, when the Legislature passed an act providing for the registration of opto- metrists. The practice of optometry means the employment of subjective and objective mechanical means to determine the accommodative and refrac- tive states of the eye and the scope of its functions in general, and the adjustment, adaptation and prescribing of lenses and other instrumentalities in aid of vision. The first optometrists to register in Otter Tail county
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were A. M. Fargeman and Mary J. Fargeman, who registered on June II, 1901. Two others registered in 1901, F. H. Straub (October 16) and N. P. Moen (December 28) ; three others registered on March 30, 1915, viz. . Paul Miller, J. D. Leidal and J. M. Seifert.
GEORGE B. WRIGHT MEMORIAL HOSPITAL.
The George B. Wright Memorial hospital, located at the corner of Cas- cade street and Bismark avenue, was given to the city of Fergus Falls in 1905 by Vernon A. Wright in memory of his father. In giving this hospital to the people of the city it was the purpose of the donor to have the ill and injured cared for as nearly as possible at actual cost. The management of the hospital is vested in a board of fifteen directors, who hold annual meet- ings in May, at which time they re-elect officers. The present officers are as follow: M. T. Mahon, president; W. L. Parson, vice-president; E. E. Adams, treasurer; W. B. Windsor, secretary. The title to the hospital is in the name of the Wright Memorial Hospital Association, a voluntary organi- zation without capital, to which anyone may belong upon the payment of an annual fee of one dollar. Life membership may be secured for twenty-five dollars. It is this association which choses the board of directors; however, as a matter of fact, the management of the hospital has gradually fallen into the hands of the board, which may, therefore, be called a self-perpetuating body.
The board selects a superintendent to take direct charge of the hospital, the first being Eliza McLean. She was followed by Miss Braaten, now Mrs. G. M. Olmstead, of Fergus Falls. The present superintendent is Clara Perkins, who has been in charge for the past three years. From nine to twelve nurses are employed all the time. The hospital has a capacity of thirty beds, eight of which are in private wards, and during the past year the hospital has been filled practically all the time to its fullest capacity. In fact, so crowded has the building become that arrangements were made during the winter of 1915-16 to build an addition to the hospital to cost from eight to ten thousand dollars. It is the intention to begin work on this addition during the present year.
There is an organization of women of the city, known as the Wright Hospital Guild, which supports one bed for the benefit of those unable to pay. This group of women has been of great assistance to the hospital in various ways. At the present time they are making plans to erect a home for the nurses and have already collected a fund of two thousand five hun- dred dollars, which they have out on interest. They expect to be able to build a six-thousand dollar home within the next few years. It might be mentioned that the city is not taxed for the benefit the hospital.
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ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL.
In the spring of 1902, when Dr. O. Th. Sherping located in Fergus Falls, the city had no hospital, and patients needing hospital treatment were sent to the "Twin cities" or Chicago. Doctor Sherping at once started an agitation for the building of a hospital. As with all new enterprises, there were people in the city who were opposed to the proposition, most of the opposition arising from the fact that they did not see the necessity of such an institution. However, Doctor Sherping was soon joined by such zealous workers as Reverend Skyberg. Oliver Olson, Doctor Vigen, K. H. Bergerud, A. G. Anderson and others, with the result that within a short time the hospital was an assured thing.
The work of construction began in the spring of 1903 and in the fol- lowing October the building was ready for occupancy. It is located at No. 715 Mill street south, and is a handsome structure of brick and frame construction. Additions to the building have been made at intervals in order to meet the growing demands made upon it; a large fire-proof addi- tion is now in process of construction, which will bring the capacity of the institution up to fifty-five patients.
At the beginning the hospital received financial assistance from different societies of the Norwegian Lutheran church, but it is now altogether self- supporting. It is managed by a board of directors, elected annually by the hospital association, the association being composed of those who subscribed toward the building fund. Oliver Olson is the present manager, and Sister Margaret Tjelde is the superintendent. The hospital employs fifteen nurses. The medical directors are Dr. Olaf Th. Sherping and Dr. J. G. Vigen.
FERGUS FALLS STATE HOSPITAL. FOR THE INSANE.
In 1885 the Legislature established a commission to locate a third hos- pital for the insane in the northern part of the state. The commission received several propositions from important towns in the section designated and finally accepted the proposal of Fergus Falls. The state secured the title to six hundred and thirty-six acres of land and in 1887 the Legislature formally located the hospital and established the same at Fergus Falls. The first appropriation was for $94,280, of which $24.280 was for the land, $50,000 for a building and a detached ward, and $20,000 for boiler house and engine, laundry, shops, stables, sewerage and water connections. The appropriation for buildings contemplated the erection of a building large . enough to accommodate three hundred persons.
Work on the various buildings was begun as soon as the appropriation was available and was pushed as rapidly as possible. The hospital was first opened for the reception of patients on July 29, 1890. At that time eighty insane patients were transferred from the state hospital at St. Peter and
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three others from adjacent counties, showing a total population of eighty- three at the close of the first fiscal year. The number of buildings has been increased from year to year to accommodate the constantly increasing de- mands caused by an increase in the number of insane. At the present time eighteen hundred patients are cared for and it requires two hundred and fifty employees to look after their welfare. The present officers are as fol- low : G. O. Welch, superintendent ; O. C. Chase, steward; C. C. Burlingame, assistant superintendent; W. L. Patterson, assistant physician; M. S. Bring- man, assistant physician; W. L. Meng, assistant physician; Olive E. Smith, assistant physician.
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CHAPTER XXII.
CHURCHES OF OTTER TAIL COUNTY.
History has failed to preserve the name of the first minister in Otter Tail county; neither is there any record of the first religious service to be held within the limits of the county. While it is known that there were a number of people in the county between 1858 and 1862, yet there is no record of a church being organized during that period. There may have been an itinerant minister or a stray missionary to hold services, but if such is the case the record of such a meeting has long ago disappeared along with the settlers who may have attended them. Certain it is that between 1862 and 1865 there was no church in the county, but in the latter year the first religious organization made its appearance. It was a branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints and was established at the village of old Clitherall.
The history of churches is always more or less difficult to follow because of the fact that many of them do not keep permanent records. It is not the purpose of this brief summary of the churches of the county to attempt to trace them chronologically. However, it seems certain that the second defi- nite religious organization of the county was made by the Catholics in the summer of 1866. In that year Father Joseph M. Albrecht brought a colony of German Catholics from Mercer county, Ohio, to Otter Tail county and settled with them in Rush Lake township. For many years this was the only' Catholic church in the county, but as it has increased in population other parishes have been organized and today there are nine other Catholic congregations in the county.
In 1868 began the great influx of Scandinavians to Otter Tail county, and one of the first things that these good people did when they got settled was to provide a place of worship. As soon as a community numbered a dozen or more families a church was organized, invariably Lutheran in denomination. The result is that today there are at least a hundred Scan- dinavian churches in the county. They are by far the most numerous. with the largest membership, and naturally have had the greatest influence upon the life of the county.
In Fergus Falls the Swedish Baptists seem to have been the first to get definitely started although they were closely followed by the Methodists, Con- gregationalists, Presbyterians, Lutherans and other Protestant denominations. The history of the early church struggles in Fergus Falls has been graphi- cally told in another part of this volume in the reminiscences of Hon. J. W.
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Mason. Suffice it to say in this connection that the number of churches has always kept abreast with the population, and, so some of the people of the city think, the number of churches has grown faster than the population warrants. There are now eighteen congregations in Fergus Falls, a city of eight thousand, and a conservative estimate places the church-going portion of the city at about two thousand, an average of about one hundred and ten to a church. In other words, Fergus Falls has about six thousand people who do not feel the need of churches, or if they do, not of the kind which the city supports. It is not the purpose of the historian to attempt an explanation for such a state of affairs, but simply to chronicle them as actual facts and let the reader make his own deductions. In 1911 began a move- ment in the city which should be productive of good results in the future. This was the federation of the Congregational and Presbyterian churches, neither of which was sufficiently strong to employ a first-class minister, but which together constitute one of the strongest congregations in the city.
The question of federation or consolidation is beginning to be seriously considered by Evangelical bodies in all parts of the United States, and the day is not far distant when villages of three or four hundred will cease attempting to try to support three or four churches. Two rural communities in Otter Tail county have taken a step in this direction already; one at Dalton, where three Lutheran denominations combined to build a church ; the other in Scambler township, which was built solely through the efforts of a number of women of that section of the county who belonged to various Protestant denominations. The Lutherans are now working on a plan for amalgamation.
An effort has been made to include in this chapter the history of each church in Otter Tail county. There is found in the office of the register of deeds a list of all the churches of the county which have been incorporated. In many cases incorporation articles give the date of organization, and a number of the charter members of the church. In others very little informa- tion is set forth, little beyond the mere data of incorporation and the officers of the church. This list of churches has been compiled and a letter sent to each one in the county with a request for sufficient data to bring the history of the church down to the present time. Unfortunately, a 'number of the churches have failed to respond to this request for information and, since it is manifestly impossible to visit each church community in the county to get this data, nothing can be given in this chapter about these churches except such information as has been gleaned from the incorporation records. Another point should be mentioned in writing up the history of these churches. Prac- tically all of the replies have been written in longhand and in the case of names, such as charter members, pastors and church officers, no little diffi-
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culty has been experienced in trying to decipher them. Every effort has been made to verify names, but it is realized that with all this care many errors in the spelling of names have crept in. The same request for information was sent to all the churches in the county, but some failed to furnish sufficient data to make a connected history of their church. In such cases, although the church may be large and flourishing, its history may appear in a very abbreviated sketch.
An act of the Legislature passed April 11, 1901, provided that every minister in the state, irrespective of denomination, should be registered in some county. No minister could perform a legal marriage ceremony until he was so registered, although it was provided that he register in only one county. Since the passage of this act eighty-five ministers, representing eleven different denominations, have registered in Otter Tail county.' This does not include all the ministers who have preached in the county, since many have registered elsewhere in the state prior to their coming to this county.
The complete list of ministers registered in the office of the clerk of the district court of Otter Tail county, together with the date of their registra- tion and the denomination they represent, is set forth in the following table :
MINISTER.
DATE OF REGISTRATION. DENOMINATION.
Alexander H. Smith June 23. 1903
Latter Day Saints
Henry Olaus Shurson
July 15. 1903
Lutheran
H. R. McKee August 28. 1903 Baptist
Alonzo Whiting
November 3. 1903 Latter Day Saints
Paul Huick
November 9. 1903 Catholic
Sam Henry Ronka
November 10, 1903
Lutheran
William F. Bradley
January 30, 1904
Methodist Episcopal
Robert L. Vance
February 16. 1904
Presbyterian
George P. Walton
March 15. 1904
Methodist Episcopal
F. C. Harsh
October 3, 1904 Methodist Episcopal
Oscar V. Svelberg
March 14, 1905 Swedish Baptist
E. G. Minger April 12, 1905 Methodist Episcopal
H. P. Long June 2, 1905 Methodist Episcopal
Charles A. Jevne
June 9, 1905 Congregational
Hiram A. McCoy
June 13, 1905 Latter Day Saints Lutheran
Albert H. Bergford
July 7, 1905
Lutheran Free
J. G. Stille July 27. 1905
Evangelical
O. G. Colgrove
August 10, 1905
Universalist
Claus C. Morgen
September 4, 1905 theran Free
W. E. Wrapp
October 6. 1905
.Baptist
Joseph Hagel November 1. 1905 Catholic
Joseph Ambauen
January 15. 1906
Catholic
Charles L. Wilcot March 8. 1904
Methodist Episcopal
Carl Edward Wedholm June 7. 1904
Swedish Baptist
James Wroy April 19, 1904
Presbyterian
Julius A. Quello June 16, 1904
Lutheran
John S. Paulson July 18, 1905
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MINISTER. DATE OF REGISTRATION. DENOMINATION.
Ole I. Raoum August 1. 1906 Immanuel Lutheran
Jacob I .. Drage
August 31, 1906
Lutheran
Lauritz Nissen October 2, 1906 Evangelical Lutheran
II. II. Feiertag October 24. 1906 Evangelical Lutheran
C. M. Kennough
December 24. 1906 Methodist Episcopal
1 .. Radcliffe
March 8, 1907
Methodist Episcopal
J. S. Bixby
March 8, 1907
Methodist Episcopal
F. R. Reidel
March 22. 1907
Lutheran
1 .. Houghton April 3. 1907. Latter Day Saints
D. Ristad
June 19, 1907
Norwegian Lutheran
James G. Ward
January 27. 190S
Episcopal
Harry D. Green
April 10. 1908
Methodist Episcopal
Carl H. Ekblad May 26. 1908
Swedish Baptist
C. G. Chandler June 20, 1908
Baptist
O. E: Johnson
July 30. 1908
Seventh-day Adventist
K. Gjesfeld
August 19. 1908
Lutheran Free
Neils Morstad
October 3. 1908 Lutheran Free
C. M. Wilcox
May 11. 1909
Baptist
H. Awiszus
August 5. 1909
German Evangelical
Joseph J. Jacobson
October 26, 1909
Lutheran
C. J. Mason
November 4. 1909
Methodist
O. Euget
April 20, 1910
Baptist
Henry Yxermans
April 20, 1910
Catholic
William Van Dinter
April 20, 1910
Catholic
E. Hindorff July 27, 1910
John O. Larson
August 3, 1910
Swedish Baptist
J. Jank
August 22, 1910
Evangelical Lutheran
Warren E. Peak
August 27, 1910 Latter Day Saints
Olav G. Aasen
September 1, 1910
Lutheran
John Keyzers
October 29, 1910
Catholic
A. J. Harris. D. D.
May 4. 1911
Presbyterian
John A. Johnson June 2. 1911
A. G. Duenow
September 5. 1911
Evangelical Lutheran
Thomas Rorstad
September 27, 1911
.United Lutheran
Conrad Hauman
December 23, 1911
Lutheran
J. F. Schumacker
September 24, 1912
Evangelical Lutheran
Edward Swanson
December 10. 1912
Missionary Association
F. L. Holland
March 22, 1913
Baptist
William Anderson June 6, 1913
Presbyterian
O. P. Stavaas
June 23. 1913
United Lutheran
Carl J. Brun
July 15. 1913 Bethel Lutheran
Frank T. Erickson
July 18. 1913
Evangelical Lutheran
G. B. Sandager
July 28. 1913 Lutheran Free
John W. Wight
June 22, 1914 Latter Day Saints
G. A. Dahlquist
June 27. 1914 Baptist
William A. Quayle
August 15. 1914 Methodist Episcopal
O. E. Tucker
.August 26. 1914 Latter Day Saints
Thomas G. Baxter
September 5. 1915 Congregational
Rolla G. Gale
October 6. 1914 Methodist Episcopal
Filmer F. Shawl
October 20. 1914
Methodist Episcopal
John A. Johnson
December 23. 1914 Swedish Baptist
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MINISTER.
DATE OF REGISTRATION. DENOMINATION.
Julian E. Whiting April 17. 1915 Lutheran Free
James Fletcher April 20. 1915 Latter Day Saints
William M. Irwin
_May 28, 1915 Nazarene
O. Shefveland
June 17. 1915 Lutheran
A. A. Larson
June 22. 1915 Evangelical Lutheran
W. E. Erickson
July 13. 1915 Evangelical Lutheran
Herbert T. Sockett August 17. 1915 Presbyterian
The incorporation of religious bodies was first provided for in 1866, and this act was subsequently amended in 1873, 1878 and 1800. The first church in Otter Tail county to become incorporated under the laws of the state was the Latter Day Saints. The incorporation of this denomination was signed February 25, 1873, and filed with the clerk of the district court on February 26, 1872. The date of incorporation very rarely coincides with the organization of the church; for instance, the first church organized in Fergus Falls, the Swedish Baptist, was organized August 24, 1870, but was not incorporated until December 11, 1875. In other cases even a longer period elapsed between the dates of organization and incorporation. However, in many cases available information on the church must be taken from the incor- poration articles.
Another thing is to be noted in regard to the official records in the court house. It is frequently noticed that the church at the present time is not known by the same name under which it was incorporated; in fact, the incor- porated name is sometimes so misleading as to render it difficult to identify the history of the church under its name today. In many of the incorpora- tion articles it is impossible to tell where the church is located.
The remainder of the church chapter is divided into two general parts, the first part being devoted to the histories of those churches which have fur- nished sufficient data to make a historical sketch, and the second part briefly summarizing the remaining churches of the county whose histories have been compiled from the church records in the court house.
THE FEDERATED CHURCH OF FERGUS FALLS.
. The situation in Fergus Falls as to churches is somewhat peculiar, owing to the different nationalities here represented. The population being so largely foreign gives rather a limited field for American churches from which to draw. There are but four American churches out of eighteen in the city, namely: Presbyterian, Congregational, Methodist Episcopal and Episcopal. The German population is largely Catholic, while the Scandinavians are united with some of the numerous divisions of the Lutheran church. Each of the eighteen different denominations have pastors and most of them have church buildings.
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