USA > Nebraska > A Biographical and genealogical history of southeastern Nebraska, Vol. II > Part 17
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ward in the battle of Hopewell church, Lovejoy Station, Pulaski, Columbia and with General Hood's army at Franklin. At different times he was under the command of General Wood, General Howard and General McCook. Returning to Nashville he was engaged in picket duty there, and took part in the battle of Nashville, where General Hardee was killed. He afterward went to Columbia and on to Hunts- ville, Alabama, after which the regiment returned to Nashville, and was then ordered to Texas under General Willick. They crossed the gulf to Indianola, Texas, and marched to Green Lake and on to Gonzales. Mr. Frankforter was honorably discharged in the Lone Star state on the 30th of December, 1865. He had done a soldier's full duty, never faltering in his allegiance to the old flag and the cause it represented, and for nearly four years he remained at the front in defense of the Union cause.
When the war was over Mr. Frankforter returned to farm life in Ohio. He was married in 1868 to Miss Martha Caroline Bower, who was born in Ohio and died in Saline county, Nebraska, in 1887. She had been a devoted companion and helpmate to her husband for nine- teen years, and her loss was deeply regretted by her family and many friends. She left eight children : William, Ellen, Lewis, Loren, Dora, Lydia, John and Clarence. In 1893 Mr. Frankforter was again mar- ried, the second union being with Mrs. Amanda Nuttingham, the widow of George M. Nuttingham, who was a member of Company I, of the Fifty-sixth Ohio Regiment of Volunteers, in the Civil war. He was wounded in battle and died at Fort Gibson as the result of the ampu- tation of his leg. He left a widow and three sons of whom two are living-James and John. The other son, Reginald, died at the age of twenty-seven years. Mrs. Frankforter was born in Mercer county, Ohio, a daughter of Benjamin and Julia A. (Corkle) Nichols,
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both of whom are deceased. The father, a soldier of the Union army, died at Shiloh when fifty-two years of age, and the mother passed away in Mercer county at the advanced age of eighty-four years.
One third of a century has passed since David Frankforter be- came a resident of Saline county, and that he has led a very busy use- ful and active life is indicated by the splendid appearance of his farm, comprising one hundred and sixty acres. There is a substantial house upon the place, and a large barn, twenty-four by thirty-two feet. There are also good corn cribs, a windmill, the latest improved machinery and good fences. Mr. Frankforter is interested in all that pertains to general progress and improvement in his adopted county. He belongs to the Grand Army post at Tobias and his wife is a member of the Methodist church. He is a splendid type of the self-made man, one who has so carefully directed his endeavors that they have proved a strong element in a successful and honorable career.
NOAH FRANKFORTER.
Noah Frankforter is proprietor of the Orchard Hill farm and one of the thrifty and enterprising agriculturists of Saline county, dating his residence here since 1871. A native of Ohio, he was born on the 24th of January, 1849, upon his father's farm near Lima in Allen county, and is a son of Andrew and Elizabeth (Swartz) Frankforter. His paternal grandfather was Philip Frankforter, a representative of an old German family. In the maternal line he is also descended from German ancestry, for the Swartz family was established in Pennsyl- vania by German emigrants at an early day, and there Mrs. Andrew Frankforter was born. She proved to her husband a good wife, to
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her children a loving mother and to her neighbors a kind and helpful friend. She died in Ohio at the age of forty-five years and the father afterward married again. There were eight children by the first union and five of the sons, Henry, Andrew, Samuel, Jacob and David, espoused the Union cause and followed the stars and stripes upon the battle- field of the south. There were three children by the second marriage. The father died at the age of eighty-six years in the faith of the Lutheran church, to which the mother of our subject had also belonged. He was a good citizen, a reliable and industrious business man, and he trained his sons to habits of industry and economy.
Noah Frankforter was but five years of age when the family re- moved to Wood county, Ohio, and there he began his education in the public schools, continuing his studies through the winter months for a number of years. His training at farm labor was not meager, for he was early instructed in the best methods of cultivating the fields and caring for the stock. He continued with his father until he had attained his majority and was then married and started out in life on his own account. He wedded Miss Sallie A. Paulin, an intelligent and estimable lady, who has done her full share toward making theirs a successful as well as happy married life. She was born in Wyandot county, Ohio, and is a daughter of Peter and Lydia Paulin, both of whom were natives of that state and there spent their entire lives. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Frankforter has been blessed with the fol- lowing children who are yet living: Harry, Eliza, Hogue, Lennie, Archie and George. They also lost four children in infancy and early childhood.
In 1871 Mr. Frankforter removed to Saline county, Nebraska, journeying westward by rail to where the line ended at Lincoln, and thence proceeding by team to Saline county. He secured a tract of
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land under the homestead law and built thereon a sod house, twelve by sixteen feet. They also bought a cow and a calf, raised chickens and in the early days sold butter and eggs. Later he purchased and raised a steer team. He had been a resident of the county for only a brief period when grasshoppers destroyed his crops. Again, that which he planted was killed by droughts and the hot winds. In the winter great blizzards occurred, the storms sweeping over the prairie with nothing to break their force, but though hardships were to be faced and trials and diffi- culties were to be met Mr. and Mrs. Frankforter possessed the deter- mination to overcome this, and are now in comfortable circumstances as the result of their perseverance and untiring labor. They now have a very attractive home, which was erected at a cost of twelve hundred dollars. Flowers and shrubs adorn the lawn together with beautiful shade trees. In the rear of the house is a large barn twenty-four by thirty feet, and there is a windmill upon the place and good improved machinery. The farm comprises two hundred and eighty acres of rich land and yields a good tribute for the care and labor bestowed upon it. The property is now worth fifteen thousand dollars and constitutes one of the best farms of the county. It is well known as the Orchard Hill farm, and is one of the attractive features of the landscape and the visible evidence of the life of thrift and industry which the owner has led. He exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the Democracy, and in religious faith he and his wife are Lutherans. Tireless energy, industry and ability have made his a suc- cessful career, and he is well entitled to mention among the representa- tive men of Saline county.
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HENRY BINGER.
Among those who have come from foreign lands to become promi- nent in business circles of Wilber is Henry Binger, the well known lumber merchant. His success in all his undertakings has been so marked that his methods are of interest to the commercial world. He has based his business principles and actions upon strict adherence to the rules which govern industry, economy and strict, unswerving integrity. His enterprise and progressive spirit have made him a typical American in every sense of the word, and he well deserves mention in this history. What he is to-day he has made himself, for he began in the world with nothing but his own energy and willing hands to aid him. By constant exertion, associated with good judgment, he has raised him- self to the prominent position which he now holds, having the friend- ship of many and the respect of all who know him. He is now engaged in dealing in lumber and coal and all kinds of building materials at Wil- ber, Nebraska, and has secured a very gratifying trade.
Mr. Binger is one of the early settlers of this portion of the state, having arrived here on the 3d of July. 1862. He came from Meck- lenburg, Germany, which was the place of his nativity, his birth having there occurred on the 25th of December, 1856. His father, John Bin- ger, was born in the same locality on the 20th of February, 1826, and having arrived at years of maturity he wedded Mary Runcler, of Meck- lenburg, born about 1832. Their marriage occurred in 1849, and they became the parents of thirteen children, among them the following who reached adult age: Nettie, the wife of William Klinger, of Diller, Ne- braska; Sophia, the wife of Louis Smith, of Lincoln, Nebraska, by whom she has six children, three sons and three daughters; John, a farmer of Rokebe, Nebraska, who has four children; Mary, the wife of Fred Johnson, of East Lincoln, by whom she has two daughters; William,
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of Lincoln, who has one son and two daughters; Mrs. Lena Johnson, who died in Lincoln in 1900, leaving two daughters; and Minnie, the wife of Henry Gerdies, of Lincoln, by whom she has two sons and three daughters. The mother, Mrs. Mary (Runcler) Binger, died in 1877, but the father is still living and makes his home with his children.
Henry Binger was reared to farm life, but at the very early age of seven years he left home and began earning his own living. He worked for two years for his board and clothing and the third year he re- ceived his board, clothing and a cow. The fourth year he was paid six dollars per month and his clothing, and afterward he re- ceived twelve dollars a month and his board and clothing. His wages, however, went to his father until he was twenty years of age. In 1876 he began farming on his own account, securing eighty acres of land. He kept bachelor's hall during that year and then sold out at a good profit of four hundred dollars. In the spring of 1877 he went to Steven's Point, Wisconsin, where he worked in connection with the lum- ber trade.
While at that place Mr. Binger was married to Miss Eliza A. Beers, of Portage county, Wisconsin, the wedding being celebrated on the 20th of March, 1877. Mrs. Binger is a daughter of Elisha B. and Mary (Hynek) Beers. To Mr. and Mrs. Binger have been born eight chil- dren : Clarence, who died at the age of eleven months; William F., who is engaged in the flour, feed and produce business at Nelson, Ne- braska, and is married and has one son and one daughter; B. E., who is a partner of his brother William in Nelson, Nebraska, under the firm name of Binger Brothers; Gardner R., who is in his father's employ; Harry, who at the age of twelve years is attending school; Mabel, nine years of age; Jessie, four years of age; and Minnie, who died in in- fancy. The children were all provided with good educational privileges,
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and Gardner was educated in the Lincoln Business College after attend- ing the public schools.
Mr. Binger was a resident of Wisconsin until 1883, when he came to Wilber and accepted the position of yardman with the firm of Foster & Edwards. He was afterward manager of the lumber yard for the National Lumber Company for four years and subsequently spent a year and a half in the same capacity, with the Wilber Luniber Company. In 1890 he purchased an interest in the business conducted under the name of C. C. Funnell & Company, and three years later the firm be- came Crumb & Binger. A subsequent change in partnership led to the name of H. Binger & Company being adopted, and under this style the business is now carried on. The stock is valued at from six to eight thousand dollars and they do an annual business of from forty-five to fifty thousand dollars. By straightforward business methods, unfaltering enterprise and strong determination Mr. Binger has gained success in the business world and is now the owner of an excellent lumber yard and in addition has a pleasant residence in Wilber.
Fraternally Mr. Binger is a chapter Mason, is also connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and with the Modern Wood- men of America. In politics he is a Republican and has served on the town board for four terms. Both he and his wife were members of the First Baptist church of Lincoln, there being no church in Wilber of the Baptist denomination. He is thoroughly in sympathy with the interests and institutions of his adopted land, is patriotic and progressive in cit- izenship, reliable in business, and among those who know him his word is as good as his bond.
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BERNARD L. CASTOR.
Not to know Bernard L. Castor in Saline county is to argue one- self unknown, for almost from the beginning of the county's develop- ment he has here resided and has borne an active and helpful part in the work of progress and improvement. He has assisted in promoting many measures which have had for their object the public good, and his business interests, toc, have been of a character that have proved of value to the community. He has become one of the wealthy citizens of the county and his career cxcites the admiration and has won the re- spect of his contemporaries, and at all times his history is such as will bear the closest investigation and scrutiny.
Bernard L. Castor was born in Vinton, Iowa, October 14, 1859, and is a representative of one of the old families of Ashland county, Ohio, his great-grandfather having settled there during early pioneer times. He followed the occupation of farming in that locality and there reared -his family. The family was of English lineage and was established in America at an early period in the colonization of the new world. Tobias Castor, grandfather of Bernard L. Castor, was reared to farm life in Aslıland county, Ohio, followed that occupation for many years and died there in 1897 at the age of eighty-four years. He married a Miss Miller, who also belonged to one of the old families of that locality, and they became the parents of five children, three daughters and two sons, all of whom reached years of maturity, were married and had families of their own.
Tobias Castor, Jr., the father of Bernard L. Castor, was born in Ashland county, Ohio, October 22, 1839. He married Miss Catherine Hunt, who was born in Coshocton, Ohio, June 2, 1843, a daughter of Jacob F. Hunt, of Pennsylvania. This marriage was celebrated October 22, 1858, at Vinton, Iowa, on the anniversary of the birth of Tobias Cas-
Bernard Elasty.
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tor. Four children were born to them, of whom Bernard L. is the eldest. Rosamond Bertie, who was the first white girl born in Saline county, is now the wife of E. M. Westervelt, of Lincoln, Nebraska, and has one daughter and one son. Carrie is the wife of C. L. Talmage, of Chicago, and has one son. George T. Castor, of Wilber, is married and is con- nected with business interests in this city. The parents came to the old Castor homestead a mile and a half south of Wilber on the 3d of Novem- ber, 1862. There Mr. Tobias Castor secured a squatter's claim, consti- tuting a quarter section of land. This was a year before the homestead act was passed, whereby the land was placed on the market. The jour- ney to Nebraska was made in a covered wagon drawn by a team of horses. They brought with them all their earthly possessions and the sum of nineteen dollars in money. They began life here in a dugout, which was near the site of the present cottage. This was twenty by sixteen feet, with a log siding and was covered with a clapboard roof. It had a dirt floor and remained their residence for about six years. Tobias Castor broke land here and planted his field and set out an or- chard. During the first winter he trapped both otter and mink, and the hides brought him between three and four hundred dollars for his win- ter's work. In his business affairs he prospered, and in course of time developed an excellent farm, to which he added until he was the owner of four hundred acres, so that he left his family in comfortable circum- stances at the time of his death on the 12th of December, 1891.
In his political views he was a Democrat, active in local political circles and having much influence. He was a national committeeman from Nebraska during the Cleveland campaign, and was a great ad- mirer and a stanch supporter of that president. He served as the first county treasurer of Saline county and was the first postmaster. He often carried the mail on his back, and hence was the first rural deliverer.
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The first postoffice was near Blue Island. He had charge of the right of way of the Burlington Railroad for twenty-eight years, and he was closely associated with many business measures and public improvements that have contributed to the progress and upbuilding of this portion of the state. His life was so closely interwoven with the history of the county that no record of this part of Nebraska would be complete with- ont mention of him and acknowledgment of his value here as a citizen. A self-made man, he deserved great credit for what he accomplished, as he started out in life empty-handed and at his death was worth about one hundred thousand dollars. The last resting place of Tobias Cas- tor is marked by a unique yet modest monument on the old homestead, and it is one of the landmarks of this part of the state, often pointed out to the traveler who journeys by rail or on the highway. The maternal grandfather of Bernard L. Castor-Jacob F. Hunt-was the first white settler here within a radius of five miles, Abraham Cox at that time liv- ing five miles to the west. Mr. Hunt built a large two-room dug-out just back of the present barn on the old home place, and took a helpful part in the early work of development here.
Bernard L. Castor received very limited school privileges, for the schools of Nebraska were in very primitive condition during the period of his boyhood. He was only three years of age when brought to Saline county. He studied in a little dug-out which stood on the present town- site of Wilber. His training at farm labor, however, was not meager, and he worked earnestly and persistenly, assisting his father in many ways. At the age of nineteen years he left school and became a sales- man in a store which his father had taken in payment of a debt. In 1883, however, Bernard L. Castor turned his attention to the insurance business, which he followed continuously until 1903. He also extended his effort to real estate operations and to mining, and in 1900 he en-
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gaged in gold mining in Cripple Creek, Colorado. He also bought coal interests in Colorado the same year, and his property there comprises a large tract of valuable coal lands in which are heavy veins of the best an- thracite and bituminous coal. He owns other real estate, including valua- ble property in Nebraska. He is a two-thirds owner of the National Bank building, the best brick building in Wilber. He has farm lands in this state and Kansas.
On the 14th of October, 1880, Mr. Castor was united in marriage to Miss Kate A. Grimes, of Scioto county, a daughter of John and Mary E. (Hartman) Grimes, both of whom are still living. Mr. Grimes be- ing now in Saline county, while Mrs. Grimes is with her son in Cali- fornia. Mr. and Mrs. Castor have lost two children, but have three who are yet living. Ada M., living with her parents, is pursuing the study of vocal and piano music and has a fine soprano voice. Markella died at the age of three months, and the third child died in infancy. Gay- lord C., born July 11, 1891, is now a student in the public schools, and Bernard, born January 26, 1894, completes the family.
Mr. Castor is a stalwart Democrat, but has never sought or desired office, preferring to give his entire attention to his extensive and import- ant business interests and to the enjoyments of home. He has a pleasant residence near the court house, and it is noted for its generous and warm- hearted hospitality. Mr. Castor certainly deserves mention in this vol- ume, for the entire history of Saline county is familiar to him, and with the work of upbuilding he has been closely associated. When about fourteen years of age he helped to survey Wilber, assisting his father, who was the surveyor, and he surveyed the second addition alone. He is deeply interested in all that pertains to the moral and intellectual de- velopment of his community.
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JOHN F. SPIRK.
John F. Spirk, president of the National Bank of Wilber, also en- gaged in business there as a dealer in real estate, dates his residence in the town from May, 1876, and throughout the intervening period has taken a deep and commendable interest in community affairs, his labors proving a factor in the development and progress of the locality. He was born in Bohemia on the 27th of July, 1858, and came to America in 1871. His father, Joseph Spirk, crossed the Atlantic a few years later. He was a merchant, carrying on business along that line for a number of years. His birth occurred in 1812, and in 1845, when he was about thirty-three years of age, he was united in marriage to Miss Bar- bara Brabec, who was also a native of Bohemia, born in 1825. Her father came to America at a very early day, and was nineteen weeks upon a sailing vessel in making the voyage to the new world. The ship en- countered severe storms, and it was thought by all on board that they could never reach harbor. Many died of hunger and exposure, but Mr. Joseph Spirk was one of the few survivors. He became a resident of Dayton, Ohio, about 1840, and there he followed the shoemaker's trade, which he had followed in Bohemia. His death occurred in Dayton, when he was sixty-five years of age. To Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Spirk were born eleven children, of whom three daughters and four sons reached adult age, but only five are now living. Those who grew to maturity are Joseph, who is foreman painter in the car shops at Daven- port, Iowa, and is married and has three living children; Mary, who became the wife of C. Duras and died in Wilber, Nebraska, in the spring of 1904, leaving four children; John F. and E. J., who are living in Wilber; V. C., who is assistant cashier in the National Bank at Wilber ; Bertha, the wife of Frank Stepanek, of Crete, Nebraska, by whom she has four children; and Anna, who died in Crete at the age of nineteen
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years. The father's death occurred in Crete in 1900 and the mother is now living in Wilber at the age of seventy-nine years, active in mind and body.
John F. Spirk was educated in the common schools of Bohemia, which he attended until thirteen years of age, when he completed the common branches. His studies were also pursued in the public schools of Dayton, Ohio, and Chicago, Illinois, and subsequently he learned the printer's trade in Chicago. Later he went to Omaha, Nebraska, where he secured a position as compositor in connection with a Bohemian paper and also publications of city and county. At nineteen years of age he entered the Davenport Business College and was graduated in the spring of 1878. For four years he filled the position of deputy county treas- urer of Saline county, and in the fall of 1881, having demonstrated his capability and his loyal citizenship he was elected county treasurer. He served for one term of two years and was unanimously re-nominated by the Republicans, but declined to serve longer on account of ill health. In 1884 he turned his attention to his present business, that of real estate dealing, in which he has been successfully engaged in the past twenty years. The real estate dealer of the present time must be alert, enter- prising and progressive, and to no one man is due in greater degree the improvement and substantial progress of a community. While conduct- ing his business affairs with profit to himself, Mr. Spirk has at the same time contributed to the substantial development of Wilber and has done much for its best interests.
On the 26th of July, 1879, in Wilber, Mr Spirk was married to Miss Anna Schuessler, who was born in Bohemia and was brought to America when two years of age, being a daughter of Joseph K. and Aloisie Schuessler, nec Anderle. Her father was a professor of music and a stage manager and gave her good educational opportunities. Mrs.
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Spirk has one sister, Mrs. Bohumila Herman, the wife of Fred Herman, a member of the firm of Herman Brothers, of Lincoln, Nebraska. The mother died in Racine, Wisconsin, when Mrs. Spirk was but nine years of age, and the father died at the home of his daughter in Wilber, on the 26th of September, 1903, when about seventy years of age, his birth having occurred in 1833. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Spirk has been blessed with three children, but they lost their first born, Lillie, who died at the age of nine years from diphtheria. Irene was graduated from the high school of Wilber when eighteen years of age, spent one year as a student in the Lincoln University and is now devoting her time to the study of the piano. Felix J., a youth of eleven years, is now a student in the sixth grade of the public schools.
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