Compendium history and biography of North Dakota; a history of early settlement, political history, and biography; reminiscences of pioneer life, Part 105

Author:
Publication date: 1900
Publisher: Chicago, G.A.Ogle
Number of Pages: 1432

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HARRY F. NUTTING. The business inter- ests of Erie, Cass county, have a worthy representa- tive in the person above named. Mr. Nutting is a member of the firm of Mosher & Nutting, and the firm conducts general merchandising in Erie and en- joys a liberal patronage. Mr. Nutting was a pio- neer settler of Erie township, and was engaged in farming for many years there.

Our subject is a native of Bremer county, Iowa, and was born November 31, 1865. His parents, Anson and Abagail (Sherwin) Nutting, were na- tives of New York and Vermont, and his father was a farmer, and moved to Iowa in an early day, and passed his life there. Our subject has one sister who now resides in North Dakota.

Mr. Nutting was reared and educated in Iowa, and followed farming there until 1880, and then went with his mother to Cass county, North Dakota, and located at Wheatland, and in 1887 took a home- stead in Erie township, Cass county. He remained there until May, 1899, when the firm of Mosher & Nutting was established, and he has since followed mercantile pursuits.

Our subject was married, in 1886, to Miss Luella Mosher, a native of Wisconsin. Mr. Nutting served three years as assessor of Erie township, and is active in local affairs, but takes no part in politi- cal matters, and has never sought public office. He is a member of the Ancient Order of United Work- men and Brotherhood of American Yeomen. He is well and favorably known and enjoys well- merited success in his business.

HON. HENRY FERRIS, residino in the town of Ardoch, Walsh county, is proprietor of a farm of two hundred acres, and has gained an assured posi- tion as a citizen and agriculturist. He has gained his property and good name by the exercise of in- dustry and the strictest integrity, and liis active ser- vices for the public good. His entire tract is well improved and tillable, and altogether makes up an estate whereon a remunerative business may be done by one who devotes himself to his work and intelligently looks after the details of farm life.

Our subject was born in the county of Fronte- nac, Ontario, February 4, 1865. He resided in his native place until the fall of 1879, and received a

good education in the common schools. He went to Walsh county, in 1879, where he has since made his home, and has aided materially in enhancing the value of the properties of Ardoch township, and now has one of the thoroughly cultivated tracts of his community.

Our subject was married in Grand Forks county, North Dakota, to Miss Jane A. Stead, a native of Ontario. Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Ferris, named in order of birth as follows: Lottie, Fred and Clarence. Mr. Ferris was elected to the Dakota legislature on the Fusion ticket in the fall of 1897, and served one term in that capacity and proved his efficiency as a public official. He has also been called upon to serve in various local offices, and has been a member of the township board of supervisors, justice of the peace, and con- stable, and in every instance has administered the duties of his position with fidelity and increasing popularity. He is a man of good principles, and ad- heres strictly to justice and the upbuilding of the better interests of those among whom he makes his home. He is active in his farm life, and enjoys well-merited success financially.

LEONARD DELAMATER, an honored resi- dent of Erie township, of which he is an old settler, is successfully pursuing farming, and has gained a comfortable home and pleasant surroundings.

Our subject was born in Crawford county, Penn- sylvania, October 1, 1836. His parents, Abel and Celinda (Wilcox) Delamater, were natives respect- ively of New York and Vermont. His father was a blacksmith by trade, and passed his life in New York and Pennsylvania, his death occurring in the latter state. The mother of our subject survives, and is now aged eighty-nine years. Our subject had three brothers and two sisters, all of whom are deceased.

Mr. Delamater was reared in Pennsylvania and educated there, and then followed the carpenter's trade until 1861, when he enlisted in Company F, Eighty-third Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, and served sixteen months. He participated in the siege of Yorktown and Hanover Court House, and Gain's Mills, West Virginia, where he was wounded and taken prisoner, and was confined in Libbey prison three months, when he was exchanged and later discharged. He was also held a prisoner in Belle Isle prison. He returned to Pennsylvania after his discharge, and continued his residence there until 1884, and then went to North Dakota, going direct to Erie, Cass county. He purchased land and worked also at his trade, and he now has a half- section of good land, and is also engaged in handling farming implements.

Our subject was married in Pennsylvania, No- vember 8, 1855, to Mary E. Smith, who was a na- tive of the same county as Mr. Delamater. Her parents, Lemuel and Janette (Thurston ) Smith, were natives of New Hampshire and Pennsylvania respectively. Seven children have been born to

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bless the home of Mr. and Mrs. Delamater, as fol- lows: William M., Homer L., Jennie M., Amelia U., Frank W., Sarah A. and Alfred E. Mr. Dela- mater has served as a member of the town board for several years, and also as town treasurer and a mem- ber of the school board. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and Knights of Honor. He is a Republican politically and has served on the county committee and in other important offices of the party. He holds membership in the Knights of Honor in Pennsylvania. He is a gentleman of good citizenship and deservedly popular with the people.

HON. ALMON C. SANFORD. The farming and stock dealing interests have a worthy repre- sentative in the person of Mr. Sanford, who has en- gaged extensively in this vocation since the early settlement of Wells county, and has one of the best estates in the county. His farm is in township 148, ranges 69 and 70, and is one of the pleasant homes of the locality. Mr. Sanford has a residence in Cathay where he resides during the winter months, but spends his summer seasons on the farm and per- sonally superintends the operation of the same.

Our subject was born in Tecumseh, Michigan, in 1855. His father, William Sanford, was of American birth, and was a farmer by occupation, and his ancestors of the name of Chamberlain were in the early American wars, and Joe Chamberlain, of this family, killed a famous Indian chief. Twc brothers of the family who came to America prior to Revolutionary times, stood for colonial govern- ment and one was opposed to this government. The mother of our subject bore the maiden name of Mary Parsons, and was born on a farm in Michigan and was of English-Irish parentage.

Mr. Sanford was the third in a family of eight children, and when four years of age moved with the family to a farm and was there reared. He at- tended the country schools, and the high school at Ann Arbor, Michigan, and at the age of-eighteen years left home and went to St. Louis, where he en- gaged in clerking, and also farmed and traded in stock. He returned to Michigan later where he engaged in farming. He went to Wells county, North Dakota, in 1882, and settled on land and dur- ing 1882-83 farmed near Jamestown. He built a claim shanty on his farm in 1884 and a barn, and his parents went to Dakota in 1882 and resided with our subject, who had experienced bachelor life pre- vious to that. He hauled all supplies from James- town and vicinity, and his first crop in Wells county was six hundred and twenty-eight bushels of wheat and four hundred bushels of oats. In the fall of 1884 he lost his granary and one thousand bushels of oats, and one thousand two hundred bushels of wheat, and five to six hundred bushels of wheat in shock, by fire, entailing a total loss of one thousand five hundred dollars. . He began stock raising in 1884, and was the first to attempt this line in Wells

county, and he has continued the same since with success. He raises Durham and Hereford cattle and Shropshire sheep, and has at present one hundred and forty-five head of the former and nine hundred sheep. He followed threshing from 1883-86, and in 1884, while taking his outfit from Jamestown the bridge gave way over the James river, with the en- gine and tank, and they went into the river with the engine steamed up. Ten days' time and six hundred dollars in money, and a large crew of men were required to get them out of the stream, but during the season he did an extensive business in threshing. He again began threshing in 1895, in partnership with William Snure, Richard Wikey and David Pros, and they have a steam rig of eighteen-horse power. Mr. Sanford owns one thousand one hundred and twenty acres of land, with eight hundred acres under cultivation, and has a complete set of farm buildings, and all farm ma- chinery for garnering and disposing of the crops. He has the best grove of forest trees in Wells county, and with four hundred and eighty acres of land owned by his father, has one of the largest es- tates in the county. The farm is named "Willow- dale," and during the spring and summer is one of the most beautiful places in Wells county. He moved his family to Cathay in 1894, where he owns a lot and residence.

Our subject was married, in 1885, to Miss Hat- tie Teeple. Mrs. Sanford was born on a farm in Michigan, near Grand Rapids, and was a daughter of George Teeple, a farmer by occupation. Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Sanford, named Roy and Leland. Mr. Sanford was elected to the state legislature, in 1892, and served one term. He is actively interested in the general welfare of his community, and is a member of the Democratic party politically, and has served as chairman of the county central committee six years, and as a mem- ber of the state central committee a number of years, and has attended as a delegate numerous county and state conventions. He holds membership in the Ancient Order of United Workmen.

JOEL FRANKLIN is one of the old settlers of Dows township, Cass county, and is well known and highly esteemed as a farmer and citizen. He has a pleasant farm, well improved, and has gath- ered around him the comforts of country life by his own efforts.

Our subject was born in St. Lawrence county, New York. August 27, 1844. His parents, Abel, Jr., and Jane A. (Pickett) Franklin, were natives respectively of Massachusetts and New York, and his father was a farmer by occupation, and moved to New York when a young man, and in 1862 went to Wisconsin, and located in Walworth county. He removed later to Olmstead county, Minnesota, where he died in 1894. The mother survives, and is now living in South Dakota. The grandfather of our subject, Abel Franklin, was a native of Massachu-

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setts, and moved to St. Lawrence county, New York, where his death occurred. Our subject has one brother and one sister living, but is the only member of the family in North Dakota.

Mr. Franklin was reared and educated in New York, and moved with his parents to Wisconsin in 1862. He enlisted in the Second Wisconsin Cav- alry in August, 1864, and served eleven months. He was with the western army, and served in Tennes- see, Mississippi and Missouri, and was discharged from the service in July, 1865. He then returned to Wisconsin, and later went to New York, and from there to Minnesota, and then returned to Wis- consin. He went to Cass county, North Dakota, in 1880, and entered a homestead claim on section 32, in Dows township, and was among the first set- tlers of the township. He now owns three quarter- sections of land, which he cultivates profitably and gains a good income from his farm.

Our subject was married in New York, in 1872, to Esther A. Abbott, a native of Jefferson county, New York. Mrs. Franklin's parents, Nelson and Sally ( Bideman) Abbott, were residents of Ver- mont. Mr. Franklin assisted in the organization of his township, and has served as assessor, justice of the peace, and a member of the school board. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, of Hunter, and in political sentiment is a Republican, and is a member of the Cass county central com- mittee.

JAMES J. HAYES. The name of this gentle- man is familiar to the readers of this work, as he has been identified with the financial and social growth of Dawson and vicinity for many years. He conducts the largest general merchandise estab- lishment in the city, and is also interested largely in farming near there and also stock raising.

Our subject was born in New Orleans, Louisi- ana, June 16, 1858. His father, Phillip Hayes, was born in Ireland, and was the foreman of a cotton press eighteen years, and in his early life was a sailor. The grandfather of our subject, Thomas Hayes, was born in Ireland, and lived in Liverpool, England. The mother of our subject, whose maiden name was Catherine McKartney, was born and raised in England, and the parents of our subject were married in New Orleans in 1848. They raised a family of eight children, our subject being the fifth in order of birth. The family went to Wis- consin when he was two years of age, and settled in Adams county on a farm, in 1860, and soon af- terward the father returned to New Orleans to work and was held in the Confederate lines three years during the Civil war.

Our subject was raised on a farm in Wisconsin, and attended the country schools, and at the age of eighteen years left home and went to Minnesota, where he worked for some time and aided the family at home. He went to the woods of northern Wis- consin, in 1879, and worked at lumbering until the

spring of 1882, spending his winter months in the woods and the spring in the log drives, and during the summer rafted, going as far south as St. Louis. He went to Eldridge, Stutsman county, North Da- kota. in the spring of 1882, and worked on the Northern Pacific Railroad eleven years, and served most of the time as foreman of the section. He also took government land which he proved claim to and during the eleven years worked on the line from Jamestown to Bismarck and made headquarters at Steele. Mr. Haves located at Dawson in 1893, and in April of the next year established a grocery store in the Sibley house block, and with a small stock began his business career. He purchased the busi- ness of F. J. Kilmer & Company, general merchants, in the fall of 1898, and continued the business in their old location, and now carries a general line, in- cluding hardware, and conducts the largest store in. Dawson. He began farming in 1895, and now fol- lows that line of work to a small extent.

Our subject was married, in 1889, to Margaret McCurrey, a native of Clenco, Minnesota. Mrs. Hayes is a daughter of Hugh McCurrey, a former agriculturist, of Minnesota, and now well known as an early settler of Dakota. He was born in Ire- land, and served six months in the Civil war and was wounded at the battle of Stone River. One child has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Hayes, who bears the name of Mary G. Mr. Hayes has served as a member of the school board four years, and he assisted in the organization of Kidder county. He is a member of the Independent Order of Foresters and Brotherhood of American Yeomen. Politically Mr. Hayes is a Democrat.

HORACE S. GATES, a prosperous and enter- prising farmer and dairyman, residing on section 34 of township 134, range 55, is one of the earliest settlers of Ransom county, and has gained his prom- inent position by dint of honest industry. He has gained a comfortable competence, and soon will re- tire from active labors to spend his declining years in quiet, a fitting reward for a life well spent. He has engaged in farming in Ransom county many years, and is now contemplating renting his estate.

Our subject was born in Windham county, Ver- mont, September 15, 1833, and is of English descent. He was the only son and eldest child in a family of three children born to Arad and Louisa (Eames) Gates. He was reared on a farm and assisted with the labor, and at the age of twenty-one went with his father to Nicollett county, Minnesota. At that early day there were but two white families in the township, and the Indians were numerous. They later settled in Redwood county, and soon despaired of getting a start there, and then loaded their effects into wagons, and located on the Dakota land. Our subject was one of the first residents in the town- ship, and one of the earliest pioneers of Ransom county. His first abode in Dakota was 16x20 feet and was dug on the bank of the Sheyenne river,

HORACE S. GATES AND WIFE.

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with logs built above. The roof was of poles, with a thick covering of clay, and the ground was the only floor. This was the home of our subject and wife for two years, and although a humble abode they were furnished with plenty of food, trapping and hunting bringing in an abundance of game to their board. He had about fifteen head of stock when he started in Dakota, and devoted himself to general farming. He became a patron of a creamery in 1887, and the following year began the operation of a home dairy, with success, proving the feasi- bility of the dairy business in Dakota. He now has about twenty-five cows, and devotes his attention to the dairy business mostly. His arrangements are simple and inexpensive, and a separator run by hand or horse-power is the only machinery in connection with the dairy. He sells most of the butter to pri- vate customers in Lisbon, and the surplus he ships to Duluth, his sales averaging about twenty cents per pound, the year around. On account of failing health and his advanced age he is completing ar- rangements to rent the farm, and will probably make his home in Lisbon. His son is now inter- ested with him in the work, and together they own four hundred and eighty acres of valley land, alto- gether a fine estate. They have raised horses quite extensively on the farm.

Mr. Gates was married, in 1858, to Miss Olive Dean, a native of Vermont. Seven children have been born to them, as follows: George, engaged in farming in Ransom county; Alice, now Mrs. Dye; Jesse D., farming with our subject; Hattie, now Mrs. Daniels, of Montana ; Abbie, now Mrs. A. L. Murray ; Cora, now Mrs. M. E. Murray ; and Mabel. who was born in Dakota Territory. In political faith Mr. Gates is a Republican. Friends of Mr. and Mrs. Gates will be pleased to find their portrait in connection with this sketch.

PETER ERB, deceased, was for many years identified with the farming interests of Dows township, Cass county, and was a pioneer settler of that locality. He was born in Pennsylvania, April 6, 1815, and passed away in July, 1887. His par- ents, Peter and Elizabeth Erb, were also natives of Pennsylvania, and the father was a farmer and died there. The grandparents came from Germany.

Our subject was one of a family of seven chil- dren, four sons and three daughters, and was reared and educated in his native state. He went to Ore- gon in 1848, across the plains by ox team, and was six months making the trip. He went to the gold fields of California the following year and spent some time and then returned to Ohio, and later located in Winona county, Minnesota, and there took land, but later moved to Waseca county, and in 1881 went to Cass county, North Dakota. He en- tered a homestead claim in Dows township, and re- mained there engaged in farming until his death. He owned three quarter-sections of land, which is now operated by his son.

Our subject was married in Ohio, to Catherine Tericot, a native of New York. Eleven children, eight sons and three daughters, were born to Mr. and Mrs. Erb, as follows: George W., John A. Martin V., William M., Elizabeth, now Mrs. Carl Crumb; Edna M., now Mrs. A. Pratt; Enoch J., Peter F., Elias C., Jacob E. and Emma L.

VALMER P. HORN, an energetic and prosper- ous farmer of township 146, range 62, was one of the earliest settlers of that locality, and has experienced pioneer life in all its discouragements, and has suc- ceeded despite failure of crops and other losses, and is one of the well-to-do men of his community.

Our subject was born in Wilmington, Delaware, June 29, 1861. His father, John Horn, was a ship carpenter by trade and followed it during most of his career, but since 1895 has lived with our subject. The Horn family are of German descent, but have been in America many generations. The mother of onr subject bore the maiden name of Emma Paul, and was a daughter of John Paul, a Quaker and a shipwright by trade. The Paul family were Quak- ers in Pennsylvania.

Mr. Horn was the second in a family of eight children and lived in Wilmington until five years of age, when the family moved to Philadelphia, and there our subject was reared. He attended the city schools and after reaching his ninth year began earn- ing his livelihood. He has worked at many dif- ferent things. He started to learn a trade at math- ematical instrument making with William Young & Sons, No. 43 North Seventh street, Philadelphia. He served four years at it, but became dissatisfied and went to work on a farm in Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, at thirteen years of age, worked one year and then went to peddling summer dry goods in the winter. He failed, and then worked on a farm for a little while and at the age of fourteen years went into the butter business with a partner. They peddled butter and made a success of it, but his partner sold the stock and never returned with the cash. Mr. Horn hired to a Quaker when sixteen years of age and lived with him until attaining his majority, during which time he saved five hundred dollars. He went to Fargo, North Dakota, ir 1885. and hired out on a farm through seeding and failed to collect his wages. He purchased a team and went to Foster county, and took a tree claim and pre-emption in township 146, range 62, and later, in 1892, entered a homestead claim. He built a sod shanty on his pre-emption and began breaking the land, but crops were poor for several years or de- stroyed by hail or storms, and sickness also visited him during the winter of 1888-89 and he had no means. The following season he rented his land and worked for others and his share of the crop was thirty-five bushels, and in 1891 he also worked out and received six hundred bushels as his share the same year, and in 1891 he bought out a man whose place had been visited by fire. the purchase price

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being one thousand dollars, and from the grain he sold from the place he immediately realized the cost price. He was successful in 1893, and was enabled to straighten up his debts, and he now has a farm of three hundred and twenty acres, all of which is under cultivation. He purchased a threshing outfit in 1892, and has followed this line of work each sea- son since with good success, and now has a twenty- horse-power rig, with a steam engine and a large separator.

Our subject was married, in the spring of 1887, to Miss Emma Craig. Mrs. Horn was born in Pennsylvania, and was a daughter of George Craig, who was a carpenter by trade. Mr. and Mrs. Horn are the parents of four children, as follows: John, George, Laura and Thomas. Mr. Horn is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and po- iltically is a Republican. He has held school offices in his township, and is active in local affairs, and commands the highest respect of all with whom he has to do.

DANIEL J. LAXDAL, attorney at law, and land commissioner for North Dakota, is a represent- ative member of his profession, and has gained a high position in his locality, and enjoys a good prac- tice in Cavalier, Pembina county.

Our subject was born in Iceland, April 9, 1866, and he and an elder sister constituted the family born to Grimur and Aldis (Jonasdottir or Berg- mann ) Laxdal. By a former marriage of the fa- ther five children were born. The father died in Iceland, and when our subject was ten years of age the mother came to America with her children and step-children, and was one of a colony of one thou- sand persons who emigrated from Iceland, with Lake Winnipeg as their objective point. The mother of our subject and the children went to Pembina county, North Dakota, in the spring of 1879, and there took land in section 27 in Gardar township. Our subject attended school in Winnipeg two months, but his English education was obtained in the common schools of Pembina county. When thirteen years of age he obtained a position at eight dollars per month, 'caring for officers' children at Fort Pembina, and in 1880-81 he worked in a biscuit factory in Winnipeg. He entered the Lutheran College in Iowa, in 1883, and by working hard re- mained five years, and then when in his senior year accepted a position in the law office of W. J. Knee- shaw, at Pembina, with whom he read law, and two years later in March, 1890, was admitted to the bar. In the fall of that year, in partnership with Magnus Brynjolfson, he established an office in Cavalier, and this became the pioneer law firm of that city. He began alone in 1892 and has since conducted a general law practice, and also deals in real estate, loans and insurance.

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Compendium history and biography of North Dakota; a history of early settlement, political history, and biography; reminiscences of pioneer life, Part 105

Author: Publication date: 1900 Publisher: Chicago, G.A.Ogle Number of Pages: 1432

Author:
Publication date: 1900
Publisher: Chicago, G.A.Ogle
Number of Pages: 1432