The history of Mower County, Minnesota : illustrated, Part 72

Author: Curtiss-Wedge, Franklyn
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Chicago : H. C. Cooper, Jr. & Co.
Number of Pages: 1246

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Joseph Mayer, an estimable eitizen living in Austin, was born in Germany, Kingdom of Wertenberg, in 1835, son of Florian and Magdaline Mayer, both natives of Germany. The subject of this sketch came to America in 1869, landing at Castle Garden, New York, August 26, of that year. He came directly to Austin with his family and has since been a resident of this city, working for the railroad seven years, and being engaged in various labor the remainder of the time. He married Magdaline, daughter of Michael and Magdaline (Shaub) Effinger, and to this union have been born six children: Michael, John, Mary, Theresa, Susan and Jo- seph. Michael, Theresa, Joseph and Susan, the latter of whom is now Mrs. Adolph Glassel, live in Austin. John lives in Kansas City, Mo., and Mary, who is now Mrs. Fred Bradbury, lives in Oakland, Cal. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer and their daughter Theresa make their home at 1405 East Water street, where they have lived sinee 1888.

August Mulbrad, a retired farmer now living in Austin, was born in Germany, and came to this eountry in 1859, settling in Dodge county, Wiseonsin. In' 1864 he went to Geneva, in Free- born eounty, and after about three years there returned to Dodge eounty, Wisconsin. In 1871 he came to Mower county, and set- tled in Windom township. He there became a substantial resi- dent and served a number of years on the school board of his district. In 1897 he retired and moved to Austin, where he has sinee resided. Mr. Mulbrad married Mary Jane Williams, a na- tive of Connectient, and to this union have been born four chil- dren : Aliee A., Jay E., George A. and Herbert V. Alice A. married Lee Lewis and they have one child, Marion. Jay E. married Anrelia Stern and has four children, Ethel M. Helen A., Everette Jay and Herbert W. George married Franees Newton and has two children, Genevieve A. and Myrtle R. Herbert V. married Maude J. Beekwith.

Frank Howell McCulloch, commercial printer, born at Shab- bona, Ill., August 5, 1862, son of Harrison G. and Mary P. (Ketcham) McCulloch ; educated in De Kalb, Ill., high school until fourteen years of age. Learned printing trade at Rochelle, III., and worked at it in different parts of Iowa; editor of Scranton (Iowa) Journal, 1881; established a commercial printing house in Albert Lea, Minn., 1890; located in Austin, 1892, and estab- lished the F. H. McCulloch Printing Company, contraeting print- ers and publishers, which company was incorporated November 1, 1908, and of which he is president and manager. Member of Austin Commereial Club, Woodmen, Court of Honor and Odd Fellows. Married in Seranton, Iowa, to Miss Luella Goodyear in 1882.

Andrew Moonan, the genial and courteous proprietor of the

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HISTORY OF MOWER COUNTY

American House, Austin, was born in Drogheda, County Loud, Ireland, in 1840. He came to America in 1862, and after staying four months in New York city he moved to Providence, R. I., where he conducted a livery and sales stable. In 1865 he came West and purchased a claim at Sauk Rapids, Minn., which he still retains. He also purchased a farm at Waseca county, which he conducted for two years, after which he sold out, came to Austin and for four years was engaged with Colonel Mansfield. Then he purchased the American House, where he still resides. The sub- ject of this sketch was married to Bridget Twill, February 2, 1875, at Chatfield, Minn. To them were born ten children, seven of whom are living.

Hugh R. Mills, chairman of the town board of Windom, is a progressive farmer of the township, and cultivates 128 acres of good land in section thirty, where he has a pleasant home and suitable outbuildings. The subject of this sketch was born July 6, 1864, in the township where he now resides, son of Hugh D. and Abbie (Sargent) Mills, the pioneers. He was reared on the home farm and there lived until February, 1887, when he moved to Wallace county, Kansas, and homesteaded a claim, remaining there nine years, and experiencing something of pioneer life, as did his parents before him. In 1896 he returned to Mower county and has since farmed in Windom. He is an independent voter, a member of the United Workmen at Rose Creek. Mr. Mills was married March 2, 1897, to Julia Bunker, daughter of Albert and Serena (Thompson) Bunker, and their only child died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Mills are noted for their hospitality and good cheer, and delight in keeping open house for their friends.

Hugh D. Mills, pioneer, was born in Delaware county, New York, February 12, 1831, and was reared to manhood in his na- tive state, attending school and working for his parents. At the age of seventeen he purchased his time and left home, but re- turned to the parental roof in 1851, at the request of his mother after the death of his sister. In the fall of that year he started west, and after farming in Defiance, Ohio, for a while, worked in Fayette county, Iowa. He visited Mower county in 1855, went back to Iowa and clerked in a hotel in West Union that winter, and in March, 1856, came to Mower county and pre-empted the northwest quarter of section twenty-nine, in Windom township. He proved up his claim, worked about for a time, and in March, 1860, married Abbie A. Sargent, born in Marshfield, Washington county, Vermont. At the time of his marriage he located in sec- tion sixteen, Lansing township, but about four years later took up his residence on his claim in Windom. He built a log cabin, and therein resided until 1882, when he erected a brick veneer house, at that time the only one of its kind in the township. This was

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his home at the time of his death, in June, 1884. His wife is now living in Austin. They had eight children, three of whom are dead. Edwin G. lives in Austin; Eliza A. married Elijah Bosser- man, of Wallace county, Kansas; Hugh R. lives in Windom town- ship ; Jenette is the wife of T. G. Bailey, of Seattle, Wash. Charles farms in Windom township. The members of the family are well regarded in the various communities wherein they have taken up their residences.

Lynds S. Mitchell, for many years a blacksmith in Austin, came here'after the war, and was married in 1870 to Minnie Fitz- simmons, daughter of Patrick and Huldy (Hoffman) Fitzsimmons, and to this union were born three children: Elizabeth, Ida and Lulu. Elizabeth is now Mrs. Aultfather, and they have one child, David H. Ida is the widow of T. Myatt and has one child, Lela D. Lulu is now Mrs. Walter Hill. Mr. Mitchell died in Decem- ber, 1901. It is worthy of note that Mrs. Mitchell has lived in the same pleasant home where she now resides for forty-one years.

Patrick Fitzsimmons was born in Ireland, and after coming to this country married Huldy Hoffman, who was born in Utica, N. Y. He farmed for many years in Woodstock, Ill., and then came to Freeborn county, where he took up a claim and remained until his death in 1863. He and his wife had six children : Charles (deceased), Lorilla, Katherine, Richard (deceased), Helen and Minnie. The latter, who is now Mrs. Lynds S. Mitchell, of Austin, was born in Woodstock, Ill., came with her parents to Freeborn county when six years of age, and was married in 1870.

J. A. Mitchell, merchant of Taopi, is one of the most enthu- siastie workers in the upbuilding of the village, and has shown his faith in the future of the place by his business and real estate investments. He was born in Marion, Marion county, Ohio, December 11, 1857, son of John and Mary A. (Hammond) Mitchell, going with them at the age of one year, in 1858, to Clinton, Ill., where he received his edueation and grew to man- hood, after which he took up farming in DeWitt county, Illinois. There he followed agricultural pursuits until 1900, when he moved to Eagle Grove, Iowa, where he followed farming for five years, after which he came to Taopi, and continued farming. In 1907 he erected a modern store bloek in the village of Taopi, which he rented for two years. Then he bought the stock and goods, and became proprietor of the store which he now sue- cessfully conduets, carrying a large stoek of the goods usually found in a general store of this kind. While in Illinois, Mr. Mitchell served as assessor of his town, and also held several minor offices. He is a member of the Christian church, of which he has served as elerk and elder for many years, and of which he

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has served as Sunday school superintendent constantly for fifteen years. He is a Democrat in politics, and affiliates with the M. W. A. Mr. Mitchell was married October 26, 1880, to Mary B. Butter- worth, and seven children have blessed this union: Ezra, Irvin, Charles, Bessie, John, William Ray and Ina.

James D. McCormick, a courteous and highly efficient con- ductor on the Iowa & Minnesota division of the Chicago, Mil- waukee & St. Paul, was born in Edgerton, Rock county, Wis- consin, in 1856, son of Thomas and Mary (Malley) McCormick, the father and mother both being natives of Ireland. James D. passed his early life at home, and in 1873 came to Austin, and clerked in the old American house for a time. Then he took up railroading. His attention to work, his honesty and his efficiency won him gradual promotion through the various grades of service until he attained his present honorable position. He is a member of the Knights of Columbus and of the Brotherhood of Railway Conductors. The subject of this sketch was married in 1880 to Sarah M. Smith, daughter of Matthew and Sarah (O'Brien) Smith, early settlers of Rock county, Wisconsin, who had five children : Mary, now Mrs. Edward Ford; Matthew, living in Dakota ; Patrick, deceased; Catherine, now Mrs. Andrew Cullen, and Sarah, now Mrs. J. D. McCormick.

D. A. McKee, manager of the South elevator at Racine village, was born in Pleasant Valley township, June 4, 1867, son of James and Frances A. Hall McKee. After finishing school he pursued the occupation of well driller for seven years, after which he assumed his present position. He has worked in this capacity thirteen years, and is a shrewd business man and an excellent judge not only of harvested grain, but also of crop conditions. During the Spanish-American war Mr. McKee served in Co. F, 12th Regiment, Minn. Vol. Inf. He is well thought of in the village, and being of a sociable nature he has allied himself with the A. F. & A. M., the B. A. Y. and the I. O. O. F. The subject of this sketch married Sarah Schwartz, and they have one child, Melda.

James McKee, an estimable citizen of Pleasant Valley, in which township he lived from the close of the Civil war until 1884, when he moved to Spring Valley, Fillmore county, Minne- sota, where he lived until his death, in November, 1910. He was born in Ireland, came to America, lived in New York city three years, and then settled in Dane county, Wisconsin, from which locality he enlisted in the Civil war, serving three years, and accompanying Sherman on his famous march to the sea.

Edgar J. Markham, president of the village council of Wal- tham, was born in Beaver Dam, Wis., December 1, 1857, son of Walter and Lucelia (Buck) Markham, the former of whom was

MR. AND MRS. LORENZO MOTT.

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born in Onondaga, N. Y .; came west about 1840, and lived near Chicago a time before settling in Beaver Dam, Wis .; raised his family in Wisconsin, returned to New York for four years, and then took up his residence in Waltham, this county, where he died in 1885. Edgar worked on the home farm until 1885, when he went into business for himself selling farm machinery, in which vocation he continued some three or four years, afterward selling harvester machinery on the road for a similar period. Still later he bought grain for a line of elevators, and subsequently pur- chased and rebuilt the elevator at Waltham village, which he now conducts. He is a member of the Masonic order and also affiliates with the Modern Woodmen. Before becoming mayor of Waltham, he was chairman of the township and also a justice of the peace. The subject of this sketch married Harriet Soules, daughter of Martin W. Soules, and this union has been blessed with three children : William F., Clarence E. and Carrie E.

Lorenzo Mott, farmer of Red Rock township, was born in Vergil, Courtland county, New York, December 5, 1841, son of Henry and Sarah (Overton) Mott, both of English descent. In 1856 the family located in Green Lake county, Wisconsin, and six years later in Olmstead county, Minnesota, where Henry Mott . died in 1867. Lorenzo then continued to manage the home farm, which in the meantime he had purchased, until 1875, when he took his family and household goods and went to Oregon and California, with the intention of locating permanently in the west. That following year, however, he returned and settled on sections 20, 21 and 29, where he still resides, and where he has taken an important part in the life of the community, serving at different times in various public offices. He married Sarah D., born in Elmira, Chenango county, New York, daughter of Timothy and Deborah (Wisner) Brockway, of English descent. The children of this union are Grant, Lyman A., Edwin, Orren, Clara A., Bertha E. and Minnie. Clara A. married William Rugg, and they have three children : Albert, Donald and Everett. Grant married Gertrude Trump and they have three children: Clara F., Eunice F. and R. Galen. Henry and Sarah (Overton) Mott joined the Methodist Episcopal church in early life and continued earnest workers in that denomination until their death.

Mr. Mott served on the town board several years, and on the school board for over a quarter of a century. He owned at one time over 800 acres in Mower county, twenty-four acres being a fine fruit orchard. His farm now consists of 280 acres. In 1893 he erected one of the largest barns in his township, its ground measurements being 100 x 34 feet. He is a breeder of Red Poll and Durham cattle and his sheep are Shropshire and Oxford. He has also given a great deal of attention to the breeding of fine

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draft horses of the full blooded registered Belgium breed, now owning some twenty of these animals. In addition to his Mower county land, he owns city property on the Gulf of Mexico at Corpus Christi, Texas.

Philip Martin, retired farmer of Waltham, came to Mower county in 1882. He was born in Prussia, Germany, December 26, 1834, son of Frank and Mary (Fuchs) Martin, who came to America in 1849 and located in Washington county, Wisconsin, where they farmed until 1864, when they came to Olmsted county and continued farming, the father dying in 1874 and the mother one year later. Philip received his earlier education in Prussia, Germany, and in 1849 came to America with his parents, locating with them in Wisconsin, and moving with them to Minnesota. In 1864 he purchased a small farm in Olmsted county, and there remained until 1882, when he came to Mower county and located on 240 acres which he purchased in section 16, Sargent township. This he improved and increased until he owned 480 acres of rich, well-cultivated land. In 1901 he retired, purchased lots in Waltham village, erected a comfortable home and has since resided here, enjoying a well deserved rest after a life filled with busy toil. He was married February 14, 1856, to Christina Fuchs, and to this union seven children have been born: Margaret is now Mrs. Thomas Graham, of Rochester, Minn .; Carolina is now Mrs. Henry Grimm, or Sargent ; Louisa is now Mrs. Joseph Graham, of Rochester, Minn .; Mary lives at home; Emma is now Mrs. George Boliou, of Waltham village; Frank and Jacob live in Sargent township. Mr. Martin is a Democrat in politics and a member of the Lutheran church.

Ralph S. Mitchell, M. D., chairman of the board of health of Grand Meadow, is well known in both village and township, and enjoys a large practice. He was born in Eden Prairie, Hennepin county, Minnesota, April 28, 1874, son of Alexander and Saralı J. (Dean) Mitchell. He was reared in his native village, there attended school, and later entered Hamline University, graduat- ing from the medical department with the degree of M. D. in 1903. The following year he was employed as house surgeon at Asbury hospital, Minneapolis, and thus equipped with training and skill, came to Mower county the following year and opened his present office in Grand Meadow. Being thoroughly ethical in his practice, he has allied himself with the American, Minnesota State and Mower County medical associations, and he also belongs to the B. A. Y. and the M. W. A. Dr. Mitchell was married January 25, 1905, to Mabel H. Lucas, a sister of the well-known lumber dealer and daughter of John and Margaret (Hill) Lucas, of Eden Prairie, Minn. This union has been blessed with one daughter, Barbara F., born February 23, 1906. Alexander and Sarah J. (Dean)

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Mitchell, parents of Dr. R. S. Mitchell, are of Scotch-Irish extrac- tion. They were married in Shakopee, Scott county, Minnesota, and engaged in farming in Hennepin county for many years. Alexander Mitchell died December 25, 1899, and his wife is still on the old homestead.

Milton A. Morse, of the firm of Morse Brothers, grocers, of LeRoy, was born on the old homestead in LeRoy township, Jan- uary 4, 1880, son of Samuel and Julia A. (Bacon) Morse, the pioneers, and grandson of Elihu and Mary (Stoddard) Morse, the first settlers in the northern part of LeRoy township. Milton A. received his education in the district schools of LeRoy township, and farmed with his parents until June 17, 1909, at which time he came to LeRoy village, and with his brother, Melvin, purchased the grocery business of Roy Smart. In this business the brothers are still engaged, carrying a large stock of staple groceries and crockery. Milton A. was married April 10, 1910, to Nannie Blackmer, daughter of J. R. Blackmer, of LeRoy. Mr. Morse is a member of the Masonic order.

Joseph L. Mitchell, a prominent banker of Austin, is actively identified with a number of the city's leading enterprises and organizations. He was born in Aurora township, Steele county, June 21, 1865; received his education in the public schools of Aurora township, and graduated from the Owatonna high school in 1882. As a youth he worked in his father's furniture store a year, and later entered the First National Bank of Owatonna as clerk and bookkeeper for a period of four years. Then he was bookkeeper for the National Bank of Commerce, at Minneapolis, for nearly three years. In 1890 he came to Austin, and was made director and assistant cashier of the Austin National Bank. He continued in this position with much efficiency for a short time, and was then promoted to cashier. In this capacity he proved no less capable, and in January, 1909, he was chosen to his present position as vice president of the institution. Mr. Mitehell is a Republican in politics; treasurer of city of Austin; director and treasurer of the Austin Weed Exterminator Manufacturing Com- pany ; secretary of the Austin Cement Stone & Tile Company ; treasurer of the Mower County Abstract Company; director in the Waltham State Bank, of Waltham, Minn .; secretary of the Austin and Mower County Automobile Club; member of the Austin Commercial Club, of the Maccabees and the A. O. U. W., and a thirty-second degree Mason. The subject of this sketch was married September 15, 1891, at Austin, to Ethel M. Davidson, daughter of Charles H. Davidson, of this place. This union has been blessed with one daughter, Margaret, born September 8, 1893, and now a student in the Austin high school. The family religion is that of the Methodist church. Henry H. and Mary L.

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(Goodnow) Mitchell, parents of Joseph L. Mitchell, were natives respectively of Indiana and Ohio. They located in Aurora town- ship, Steele county, this state, about 1863, and engaged in farming until 1873, when they moved to Owatonna, where Henry H. opened a furniture store. Later he removed to Aldrich, Mo., where he still lives, engaged in farming.

W. J. McEldoon, who has lived in Udolpho township for over thirty-five years, was born in Dane county, Wisconsin, May +, 1856, son of Nicholas and Isabell (Orr) McEldoon, the former of whom was in early life a sailor and in later life owned a farm on which the state capitol at Madison now stands. W. J. came to Mason City, Iowa, in 1869, and worked on the railroad for several years. He dates his residence in Udolpho from 1874. Mr. Me- Eldoon married Ella Manchester, daughter of Carlos and Lydia (Gleason) Manchester, the former of whom was a native of New York. The McEldoon home has been gladdened by the arrival of six children : John C., Robert E., Earle L., Lloyd R., Eugene C. and May H.

Nicholas Nicholsen, the plucky and faithful sheriff of Mower county, was born in New York city, February 25, 1868, son of. Nicholas and Johanna M. (Olson) Nicholsen. He was brought to Austin by his parents in 1870, and here received his education. After leaving school he farmed for a while, clerked in a store, and then was appointed deputy sheriff, serving seven years. In 1904 he was elected sheriff, and has since been successively re- elected. He also has the honor of being the senior major in the Second Regiment, Minnesota National Guards, and has won for himself the praise of the business men of Austin for his work as chairman of the membership committee of the Austin Commercial Club. The Germania-Harmonica Society claims him as an ener- getie member and he is as well a high degree Mason and Odd Fellow, in addition to being a member of the B. P. O. E., the K. of P., the F. O. E., the M. W. A. and the Sons of Norway. He is a past president of the State National Guard Association and member of the Spanish-American War Veterans. Nicholas Nich- olsen, Sr., and Johanna M. Olson, his wife, parents of Sheriff Nicholas Nicholsen, were natives of Norway. They came to America in 1866, lived in New York until 1870, and then came to Austin, where Nicholas, Sr., was for many years a furniture dealer. He died in 1876, and his widow passed away many years afterward, in 1908.

Theodore E. Nelson, the modern and progressive merchant of Corning village, was born in Austin township, March 1, 1868, on the farm known as the old Wallace place. Theodore E. was three years old when his family moved to Lansing township. He attended school in district 72, and remained at home until twenty-

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four years of age, at which time he went to North Dakota, spent a time on a farm, and one winter in the woods. He then moved to South Dakota, and was there nine years. In 1892 he came baek to Lansing, and opened a store in the village of Corning, which he is now successfully conducting. Mr. Nelson is a Republican in politics, and at the time of leaving Blooming Valley, S. D., had served four years as township treasurer. He is a member of the Evangelieal Lutheran church. The subject of this sketch married Irene Egtvet, and they have one bright son, Elester, now seven years of age.

Mike Neus, farmer of Marshall township, was born in Adams township, Mower county, January 8, 1876, son of Andrew Neus, who came to America in 1866 and took an 80-acre homestead in Mower county. Mike Neus was educated in the Mower county public schools and at the age of twenty-four started in life for himself. He rented land near Lyle and then for three years eon- ducted the old homestead which he inherited. In the winter of 1910 he sold his farm, and now leases the Sam. Lepley farm of 120 acres, awaiting an advantageous opportunity to purchase a farm of his own. He is a member of the Lutheran church, votes the Republican ticket and belongs to the Modern Woodmen. In 1900 he married Jennie Show, daughter of H. J. Show, and they have six children : Burnie, Harriett, Fernie, Elmer, Ina and Vida, the three oldest being pupils in the public schools.

Robert Sabin Noyes was born July 11, 1873, in Hamilton county, Iowa, son of Sabin and Calista (Riley) Noyes, the former of whom died in 1875 and the latter in 1897, in Webster City, Iowa, to which place they came from Wisconsin. Robert S. was married November 22, 1899, to Ida Oslund, whose parents were natives of Sweden. Mrs. R. S. Noyes was born February 8, 1878, and her childhood was spent on a farm near Stratford, Iowa. She has borne Robert Sabin Noyes five children : Zola C., Erma A., Helen C., Darwin R. and Carl A. The family moved to Dexter m this county in 1906 on a farm, and in 1909 Mr. Noyes engaged in the hardware, harness and furniture business. In 1910 he sold out and purchased a 120-acre farm west of Dexter.

John Olsen, foreman for the Lyle Corrugated Culvert Com- pany, of Lyle, was born in Norway, January 30, 1870, son of John and Marie Olsen, who came to America in 1873, and located in Chieago for four years. Then they came to Mower county and here the father engaged as a carpenter and contractor, a business he followed until his death, in 1876, his wife being still alive and making her home with her son. At the age of eleven years John Olson, the subject of this sketch, left home, and worked on a farm. This he continued until he was sixteen, and then worked four years on the railroad. In 1898 he engaged in the restaurant

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The history of Mower County, Minnesota : illustrated, Part 72

Author: Curtiss-Wedge, Franklyn Publication date: 1911 Publisher: Chicago : H. C. Cooper, Jr. & Co. Number of Pages: 1246

Author: Curtiss-Wedge, Franklyn
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Chicago : H. C. Cooper, Jr. & Co.
Number of Pages: 1246