USA > Minnesota > Wright County > History of Wright County, Minnesota > Part 34
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Peter Larson, one of the early settlers who assisted in the general development of the county, was born in Warmland, Sweden, February 7, 1841, son of Lars Anderson. The other children were Lars, Andrew and Annie. In 1870, the brothers, Peter and Andrew, came to America, and in time reached St. Paul. From there, with three or four others, they walked to Duluth, where they seeured employment on the railroad. In a few months, Peter Larson was made seetion foreman on the line between Duluth and Rice's Point. By industry and frugality, he was enabled in two years to send to the old country for his father and brothers and sisters. His mother had died many years before. Having thus provided for his family, Peter Larson shortly afterward married, and took 120 aeres of timbered land in Marysville township. He erected a log eabin, and with a yoke of oxen started to prepare the land for farming. As the years passed he prospered, and from the wilderness he wrested a comfortable home and a profitable farm. About 1900 he retired and moved to the village of Buffalo, where he died December 19. 1905. He had been a prominent man in his vicinity, and his death was sincerely mourned. A devout man in religious faith, he had helped to build the old Lutheran church in Marysville township and had attended it for many years. During the last two decades of his life he attended worship at the Swedish Mis- sion church, at Buffalo. He was interested in the development of the township, and his serviees as supervisor of Marysville were greatly valued by the citizens. Mr. Larson was married at Duluth, to Betsey Bloom, who was born in Sweden, November 21, 1851, and died in Minnesota January 21, 1877. She was the daughter of John Frederick Bloom, who came to Duluth from Sweden, and took up life in the woods. Mr. and Mrs. Larson had three children, Andrew G., Anna and Charles.
JOHN L. BURKLAND
295
HISTORY OF WRIGHT COUNTY
Andrew G. Larson, carpenter and contractor, now living in Buffalo, was born in Duluth, July 8, 1872, son of Peter and Betsey (Bloom) Larson. Ile came to Wright county with his parents, attended the district schools, was reared to manhood on the farm, and after his marriage continued to live thereon for six years. In 1898 they moved to Minneapolis, but after nearly a year there went to Kandiyohi county, where they spent about one and a half years farming. In 1902 they came to Buffalo, where they have since resided, and where he has followed his trade as a carpenter and contractor. He owns, in addition to his village property, eighty acres of land in Silver Creek township, which he rents. The family faith is that of the Swedish Mission church of Buf- falo. Mr. Larson was married, April 8, 1893, to Mary Olson, of Kandiyohi county, daughter of Aaron Olson. They have six children, Rudolph, Florence, Winnifred, Dewey, Gustave and Francis.
John L. Burkland, whose establishment at Buffalo is one of the leading mercantile stores in the county, was born in Sweden, May 13, 1870, son of John and Anna (Swenson) Burkland. The other children in the family were Jennie and Hannah. John L. was reared in his native country, and there received his early education. In 1887 he came to America and located in Kansas, where he remained from April to November. Then he joined his uncle, Charles Burkland, in Missouri. In March, 1888, he moved to Ottumwa, Iowa, where his parents and sisters joined him. He took a business course in the Ottumwa Business College, after which he secured a position with the Globe Tea Company, with whom he remained until 1901. That year he came to Buffalo and bought out G. G. Friberg, a general merchant. The store was at that time a small one, and carried a stock valued at about $3,000. The stock has now been increased to a value of $25,000. By hard work, courtesy, absolute honesty and good commercial ability, he has built up a large trade. He enjoys the confidence of the people of the city and country, and is a successful man in every way. He carries a splendid stock of dry goods, groceries, hardware, household utensils, clothing, shoes, and in fact every- thing usually carried in a first-class department store. A believer in progress, he became one of the first members of the Buffalo Commercial Club. Ile has served on the school board for several terms. For the past twelve years he has been secretary of the Swedish Mission church, of which body he and his family are members. Mr. Burkland was married, June 12, 1900, to Frida Risberg, who was born in Sweden November 23, 1870. To Mr. and Mrs. Burkland six children have been born: Ruth, born August 12, 1901 ; Paul, born July 13, 1904; Evelyn and Evangeline, twins, born February 4, 1907; Carl, born July 17, 1908; and Gordon, born January 17, 1913.
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HISTORY OF WRIGHT COUNTY
Henry T. Walker, whose pioneer experiences in developing the Northwest have been many and varied, was born in Ontario, Canada, September 14, 1831, a son of William and Agnes (Cun- ningham) Walker, grandson of John and Mary (Stewart) Walker, the landowners, and a descendant of John Walker, Bishop of Derry. The family came from County Down in the Ulster region, in Ireland. William Walker, with his wife, Agnes, and one son, John, landed in Quebec, Canada, in 1819. His good qualities attracted the attention of a lumber dealer, who made him the manager of some extensive lumbering operations on the Ottawa and Sault Ste. Marie rivers, a capacity in which he was engaged for some thirty-four years. He died at the age of eighty-two and his wife at the age of eighty-one. Their children were : John (deceased), James, John, Henry T., William, Stewart, Robert (deceased), Robert, Mary Jane, Charity and Naney. Henry T. Walker, now retired, was educated in Canada, there served seven years as apprentice and thoroughly mastered the trade of mill- wright. On September 15, 1855, he landed in St. Paul, prepared to win his way to snecess. As a earpenter he assisted in ereeting many important buildings. He was prominently identified with the erecting of the earlier Washburn mills at Minneapolis. He helped to drive the first stake for the first Washburn mill, and assisted in the construction of the "A", "C" and Humbolt mills. He worked on the historie old Methodist Episcopal church on Jackson street, St. Paul. He also had charge of a carpenter erew on the St. Paul, Sioux City and Omaha Railroad. In 1878 he made an historie trip to the Black Hills in charge of an outfit for the purpose of delivering a mill at Deadwood. The mill had been shipped by rail to Breckenridge. Starting there with his crew and four yoke of oxen, Mr. Walker made his way to Moore- head, on through Bismarek, aeross the Missouri river at Fort Abererombie, on to Crook City, and then to Deadwood. Mr. Walker put up the mill, operated it until the autumn, and then with his oxen returned to Meeker county. After his return he managed a flour mill and saw mill at Manannah, Minn. In 1882 he came to Buffalo and followed his trade of millwright and ear- penter for several years. Mr. Walker was married January 1, 1858, to Betsy Ann Bryant, daughter of Ambrose and Nareissa (Merrill) Bryant, natives of Maine. Ambrose Bryant eame to Minnesota in 1855 and in 1856 brought his family. His children were: Phoebe, Betsy Ann, Malissa, Helen, Flora, Oveldo, Adel- bert, Alonzo, Clara, Freemont, Herbert and Eugene. Eugene died in the East. Mr. and Mrs. Walker have eight children, all living. They are: Agnes, Malissa, Charity, Nareissa, Adelaide, Ambrose, William and Stuart. Mrs. Walker died March 7, 1913, at the age of seventy-eight.
MR. AND MRS. GEORGE R. COVART
297
HISTORY OF WRIGHT COUNTY
Edward G. Baslough, a Buffalo business man, was born in Mendota, Ill., April 1, 1875, son of Jesse and Sarah (Otto) Bas- lough. Jesse Baslough was born in Pennsylvania. He married Sarah Otto, a native of that state but of French aneestry. Their oldest child, Jennie, was born in Pennsylvania. From Pennsyl- vania they came to Illinois, and there the other children were born, Mary, Samuel, Harry, Minnie, Edward G., Theadore, Ida, Cora and Bertha. Jesse Baslough has always been a farmer. He is still living and is nearly ninety years of age. His wife died in 1900 at the age of sixty-four. Edward G. was reared on a farm in Illinois, and attended the graded and distriet sehools. At the age of nineteen he went to Iowa, where he learned general wood- working, including the earpenter and carriage-making trades. From Iowa he went to Portland, Me., where he worked as a ear- penter for eight years. Then he returned to Mendota, Ill., his home town, and with his brother, Harry, operated a livery stable for about four years. Subsequently he eame to Minneapolis, and in a short time to Wright county. He seeured a farm in Maple Lake township and engaged in stoek raising. In 1909 he eame to Buffalo and opened a livery stable. He has some splendid horses, and suitable vehieles, and his establishment enjoys a large patronage. In connection with his place, he operates an auto- mobile livery, which also enjoys a liberal patronage.
George R. Covart, now deceased, for many years one of the most honored and respected residents of Wright county, was born in Sullivan county, New York, September 26, 1837, son of William and Anna Covart, natives of New York, and grandson of that Covart who fought in the Revolutionary war. The ehil- dren in the family of William Covart were James, Joseph, Will- iam, Andrew, Harriett, Jane, Margaret and George R. George R. was the youngest in the family. He was edueated in his native state and grew to manhood on the farm. As young men he and his brother, William, eame to Wisconsin and took up farming. George was there married, and there lived until 1861, when he eame to Wright county and located on 160 aeres of land in Buf- falo township, four miles north of Buffalo. A small building had been erected and the place partially improved. The progress of developing this farm was interrupted for a short time toward the elose of the Civil war, when he was serving in Co. B, Eleventh Minnesota Volunteer Infantry. But when he returned he again took up his farm work. A man of mueh strength and ability, very industrious, and honest and straightforward in all his deal- ings, he achieved a large measure of success. As time passed he added to his original boldings, until he owned a fertile, well- developed traet of 316 aeres, a valuable place still owned by the widow. Throughout the farm, Mr. Covart's thrift, energy and taste are everywhere apparent. Mr. Covart was a member of
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HISTORY OF WRIGHT COUNTY
the G. A. R. post at Monticello. He was for some years one of the supervisors of Buffalo township, and also a member of the school board of his district. He died March 6, 1908, and his death was sincerely mourned throughout the community. Mr. Covart was married in Wisconsin, July 3, 1857, to Eliza Leonard, born in New York, December 5, 1838, a daughter of Hiram and Elizabeth (Sprague) Leonard, also natives of New York. Eliza was the youngest in the family. The others were William, War- ren, Walter, Webster, Mary, Olive and Jane, all now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Covart have had six children : George, born April 18, 1858; Adelaid, born October 4, 1859; Ella, born October 20, 1860, died September 26, 1899; Ernest, born June 29, 1862, died in 1912; Smith, born Mareh 23, 1867; and Bertha, born November 3, 1868, died April 27, 1893. Mrs. Covart was the first president of the Women's Relief Corps and a charter member of the local Eastern Star. She is an active member of the Methodist Epis- copal church and of the Ladies' Aid Society of that body.
William H. Covart, a pioncer, was born in New York state. son of William Covart, a New York state farmer, and grandson of Andrew Covart, a soldier in the Revolutionary war. William H. Covart was reared in New York state, and was there educated. He married Isabella Clark, who was born in Scotland and brought to this country by her parents when she was two years old. In 1857 the family, at that time consisting of William H. Covart, his wife, and two children, Sylvester .J. and William, left New York state and located in Dodge county, Wisconsin. There, another child, Annie B., was born. About 1860 the family came to Wright eounty and located on 160 acres of land in Monticello township, on Monticello prairie, two miles south of the village of Monti- cello. There their youngest child, Florenee, was born. In a few years they moved to the village, bought a hotel, remodeled it, and gave it the name of the Covart House. A year later it burned. Mr. Covart then retired and resided in Monticello, until he died in 1891, at the age of sixty-cight. Mrs. Covart died in 1913, at the age of eighty-five. Sylvester J. died in Monticello at about nineteen years of age. Florence died in Monticello township at three years of age.
William Covart, merchant, finaneier and man of affairs, was born in Sullivan county, New York, March 11, 1854, son of Will- iam II. and Isabella (Clark) Covart. In 1857 he was taken by his parents to Dodge county, Wiseonsin, and about 1860 he was brought to Monticello township. Ile was educated in the district school, and early in life took up farming as an occupation. Since he was fourteen the speculative feature of agricultural operation has appealed strongly to him, and while he has never farmed extensively, he has owned many farms in succession, and has prospered exceedingly by every exchange that he has made. In
299
HISTORY OF WRIGHT COUNTY
1893 he engaged with a partner in the hardware business at Buffalo, under the firm name of Covart & Wiekly. The same firm also has extensive sawmill and lumber interests in Carleton county, Minnesota, not far from Duluth. Mr. Covart was mar- ried, October 22, 1896, to Sarah Boerner, and they have two ehil- dren, Helen and Marion. Both are students of the Buffalo Iligh School.
Aaron F. Ames, who, after a life filled with varied experi- enees, is now living in retirement in Buffalo, was born in Chitten- den county, Vermont, December 30, 1827, son of William and Polly (Brownell) Ames. William Ames was born and reared in Vermont and there spent a number of years in farming. After coming west he located in Boone county, Illinois, and kept a stage- line tavern at Amesville, now known as Garden Prairie. At one time General Winfield Seott was a guest at the hotel, and the two men became fast friends. William Ames had twelve children, as follows: Eliza, Caroline, Adaline, Harriett, Adelia, Emily, Sereno, George, Alson, William, Aaron F. and Eben. Of this family, George was the first to come to Minnesota. He first secured twenty aeres near the present site of the Hennepin county courthouse in Minneapolis. He considered the traet of little valne, and abandoned it to locate in Roekford township, in Wright county. Aaron F. Ames received his early education in Illinois. In May, 1852, before the gold craze of 1849 had subsided, he started out in an ox team for California, accompanied by his brothers, Alson and Eben, and by another man named J. R. Ames, but not a relative. It was the intention of the party to reach Sacramento, but in September it was decided to stop at the Yaba river, ninety miles east of that eity. Aaron F. at first seeured work at $5.00 a day, but soon discovered that it took more than that to live, so he went prospecting. For three years he fol- lowed mining in various places, and then started home, making the trip by way of New Mexico, on the line of the pony express from Sacramento to St. Cloud. He farmed for a while in Garden Prairie, Ill., and then went to McGregor, Iowa. At the outbreak of the Civil war, he recruited Co. L, Sixth Iowa Cavalry, and was mustered in as its captain, at Davenport. He served two years and nine months, and saw much active service on the North- western frontier against the Indians. In one engagement he was thrown from his horse, causing a rupture from which he has never fully recovered. He was mustered out at Sioux City, and returned to his home in Illinois, but shortly afterward he again came to MeGregor and again engaged in the mercantile business. From McGregor he went to Cresco, Iowa. From there, in 1872, he came to Wright eounty and located on a place of 130 acres, one half mile north of the village of Rockford. This was wild land, and no improvements had been made thereon. Mr. Ames
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HISTORY OF WRIGHT COUNTY
broke the land, erected modern buildings and successfully farmed until 1901, when he retired and moved to Buffalo. He is a mem- ber of the G. A. R. Post, and while in the township served as town clerk and town assessor. The family faith is that of the Episcopal church. Mr. Ames was married at McGregor, Iowa, in 1866, to Sarah Forsythe, born in Waddington, N. Y., May 29, 1843, daugh- ter of John and Mary (Mathews) Forsythe. Mr. and Mrs. Ames have four children. Rose and Frank were born in lowa, and Polly and Edith in Minnesota. Rose lives in Buffalo. Frank died in 1876. Polly is now Mrs. Charles W. Lynd, of Medicine Lake, Mont. They have seven children, Edith, Ames, Milo, Lloyd, Roy, Vernon and Cleon. Edith is now Mrs. Irvin L. O'Meara, of Hennepin county, Minnesota. They have three children, Irvin, Edna and Lois. John Forsythe was a tailor by trade. He was born in Scotland, came to New York at the age of sixteen, and married Mary Mathews, who was born in Montreal, Canada, of Scottish parents. From New York they went to Wisconsin, and lived for a time near Watertown. Later they went to McGregor, Iowa, where they spent the remainder of their lives. John For- sythe enlisted at the first call for three months' men, and served throughout the Civil war. His son, William, served in the Sixth Wisconsin Cavalry, his son Robert in the First Wisconsin Cav- alry, and his son George in the Sixth Wisconsin Infantry. The other children were: Samuel, James, Eben, Margaret, Jane, Sarah and Emma.
Robert Bredt, a successful farmer of Buffalo township, was born in Cologne-on-the-Rhine, Germany, January 23, 1860, son of Titus and Agnes (Muller) Bredt. Titus Bredt was a man of considerable importance in his native city. A sugar refiner who had attained success in life, he was president of the local court of trade, and occupied other positions of trust and responsibility. He was born January 28, 1813, and died June 30, 1885. His wife was born April 19, 1819, and died November 1, 1895. In their family there were nine children: Agnes, Titus, Marie, Henrietta, Caroline, Emil, Rudolph, Helena and Robert. Of this family, Robert, the subject of this mention, was the only one who came to the United States. He had received a good education, had served the usual term in the army, and had worked in his father's office. But desiring wider opportunities, he came to the United States in 1885, and upon reaching Wright county secured em- ployment at Maple Lake with Herman Blume, an early settler, whose wife was Matilda Genbeck. On December 27, 1886, Mr. Bredt married their daughter, Matilda Helen. They lived on the home place for several years and to them were born four chil- dren, Titus Ilerman, George Paul and Maria Matilda and IIelen Agnes, twins. Titus Herman was born November 16, 1887, mar- ried Dorothy Reynolds, and lives on his father's farm in Buffalo
ROBERT BREDT AND FAMILY
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HISTORY OF WRIGIIT COUNTY
township. George Paul was born July 10, 1890, married Eliza- beth Wegen, and lives in Minneapolis. The twins were born June 26, 1892. Maria Matilda married Henry Arnold. They live in Monticello township, and have four children : Evan, Helen, Clyde and Viola. IIelen Agnes lives at home. Mrs. Matilda (Blume) Bredt was born in St. Louis, Mo., November 10, 1868, and died February 2, 1900. On June 5, 1901, Mr. Bredt married Anna Baker, born in Wright county, April 25, 1876, daughter of Joseph and Christina (Elsenpeter) Baker, the pioneers. She has proven an able helpmate through all their married life, and has borne her husband two sons, Robert Rudolph, born March 23, 1904, and Carl Frederick, January 22, 1909. In 1896, Mr. Bredt purchased a farm of 161 aeres in section 5, Buffalo township, and there successfully farmed until June 15, 1914, when he and his family moved to the village of Buffalo. The farm is now occupied and operated by the son, Titus Herman Bredt.
Norman Dyer is a name that is held in loving respect and regard by all the early settlers in the vicinity of Buffalo. One of Nature's own noblemen, he was endowed with a kindly, gen- erons disposition, and without his philanthropy many of the pioneers would have failed and left the county. The world is truly the better for his having lived in it, and his memory will be cherished by the sons and grandsons of those whom he be- friended. Norman Dyer was born in Trumbull county, Ohio, February 12, 1824, and was there reared and educated. In 1859 he and his good wife eame to Wright county and settled on a farm. The country was then wild. They made a small elearing, erected a log cabin, and established their home in the wilderness. Gradually the land was eleared and developed, suitable buildings were erected, and they were soon numbered as among the most prosperous people in the community. From the very first they were noted for their hospitality and liberality. No one ever went hungry from their door, and many a side of bacon or beef, many a pound of butter and tea, or saek of corn or wheat were sent to some less fortunate settler. Throughout his long life, Mr. Dyer delighted in aiding the neighbors. He extended eredit to those who had recently arrived, and especially during the grasshopper ravages did he make it possible for many of the pioneers to stay here, by giving some work, by standing good for their accounts at the stores, and by furnishing them with seed. Aside from such material aid, he was always ready with a word of cheer and encouragement, and no one ever met him without feeling the better for having met him. He served in a number of offices, but his greatest pride was in his farm, and he did not seek political life. He died April 15, 1890, ripe in good deeds, wisdom and honor, and the influence of his noble nature still remains. His wife, who ably seconded him in all his efforts,
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HISTORY OF WRIGHT COUNTY
was Keziah Leeper, to whom he was married in La Grange county, Indiana, April 14, 1851. She was born in that county, August 12, 1830, and died April 21, 1879.
George W. Burrows, Buffalo lumberman, now deceased, had a most important part in the upbuilding of the commercial pros- perity, and in dying left the community the rich heritage of an unsullied name. He was born at Wyocena, Columbia county, Wiseonsin, June 9, 1855, son of Henry D. and Emily H. (Britt) Burrows. This worthy couple were born in New York state and were there married, in 1853. Shortly afterward they came west and settled in Wyocena, Columbia county, where they seeured 280 acres of land. Henry D. Burrows became a prominent man, served on the official board of his township, and was a village officer of Wyocena. He died in Buffalo, Minn., in 1900, at the age of sixty-eight. His wife is still living in Buffalo, having attained the good old age of eighty-two years. In the family there were four children, George W., Homer, John and Edith (deceased). George W. Burrows was educated in the schools of his native county, and devoted his early life to farming. He began his eommereial eareer in 1880 by loeating in Wadena, Minn., where for some two or three years he devoted his atten- tion to grain buying. Mr. Burrows was married December 11, 1883, to Lillian M. Morrison, at Wadena, Minn. Mrs. Burrows is the daughter of D. R. Morrison, one of Minnesota's pioneer settlers, who came from New York state and located near Owa- tonna, Minn., in the early fifties. He was a veteran of the Civil war, and a prominent man in his township. After their mar- riage, Mr. and Mrs. Burrows resided in Wyocena, Wis., for three years. In the fall of 1886, they came to Buffalo, and in partner- ship with George C. Carpenter, Mr. Burrows established the Burrows & Carpenter Lumber Company. They received the first two ear loads of freight shipped into Buffalo, over the Sault Ste. Marie, and still retain as a memento, way freight bills Nos. 1 and 2. In 1896, the firm dissolved partnership, Mr. Carpenter going into polities and becoming state senator, and Mr. Burrows re- maining as sole proprietor. He established and carried on a large and snecessful business, having Inmber interests not only in Buf- falo, but also in Wisconsin for over twenty years. Mr. and Mrs. Burrows have two children, Myrtle Maude and Byron Channe. Their daughter, Miss Burrows, is a graduate of the Johnson Con- servatory of Musie at Minneapolis, and is an accomplished musi- eian. She has been a very successful teacher for the past three years. Byron C. is one of the leading young business men of Buffalo. He was manager of his father's lumber business two years previous to his death, and has sinee eondueted it in a most able manner. After passing through the graded sehools, he at- tended the Buffalo High School one year and St. John's Univer-
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