USA > Nebraska > Sarpy County > Biographical record : this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Saunders and Sarpy Counties, Nebraska > Part 24
USA > Nebraska > Saunders County > Biographical record : this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Saunders and Sarpy Counties, Nebraska > Part 24
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W. TRUMBLE is one of the old- est settlers of Sarpy county, Ne- braska, within whose borders he lo- cated in 1855, when the white settlers were very few. The present position which Sarpy county occupies among her sister counties is due to such sterling, enterprising and progres- sive farmers as the gentleman whose name ap- pears at the opening of these lines. He was born in Orleans county, New York, in 1830, and is a son of Abner Trumble.
A. W. Trumble was reared upon his father's farm, and the mental training he obtained in the district schools of his native place was sup- plemented by a course of study in Brockport Collegiate Institute. He taught school in the vicinity for four years, and, after visiting many places, he arrived at Belle-
vue, Nebraska, in 1885. That locality seemed to have a very promising future, and he accordingly decided to engage in agricultural pursuits there and to grow up with the West. He took up a claim in Fairview precinct, where Richard Kane now resides, and there he began to till the soil. In 1856 lie sold that farm and took up 320 acres of his present farm. He began to break the sod, and one of his first labors was to build a small house of cottonwood timber. He also set out shade trees, but, about two years later, his house was struck by lightning, and he was compelled to build another house, which he continued to live in until about the year 1866, when he changed his location to the present site. He built a large house and set out a row of maple trees, some of which have grown to be about three feet in diameter. He also planted a locust grove, with seed brought from the state of New York. Besides shade trees, he put out a fine orchard, which now bears abundantly, and by constant laboring, he soon had his farm in a good state of cultivation. Mr. Trumble has always been a hard worker, and his life has been worthy of imitation. He helped to establish a school in his district, in which he taught one term, and his early neigh- bors speak of him in the highest terms as a successful teacher. He owns 720 acres in Richland precinct, of which he disposed of 60 acres for railroad purposes, and for the town site of Chalco. He also owns the McLaugh- lin farm in La Platte precinct, which consists of 400 acres, of which 100 acres is a dense forest. He keeps about 25 horses, besides a
CHARLES REICHERT.
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large number of cattle and hogs. He deals extensively in live stock and also raises con- siderable grain. In some years he has raised 70 bushels of corn to the acre; 50 bushels of oats, and 20 bushels of wheat.
Mr. Trumble wedded Cordelia Kingman, of Orleans county, New York, and to them were born the following children: Fred, a farmer in Papillion precinct ; Elizabeth, who is the wife of J. M. Yates, of Bellevue; Edith, who was wedded to Samuel M. Gramlisch; Wil- liam; Jesse, a farmer of Gretna, Nebraska; Clarence, a railroad contractor and builder ; Maud, unmarried and living at home; and two sons and a daughter who died in infancy. Mr. Trumble has held many public offices of trust, having served as sheriff, in 1858-1859; county commissioner, assessor, and superintendent of roads. In 1862, 1866 and 1867, he was hon- ored with a seat in the legislature, during the closing days of Nebraska as a territory, and the beginning of her statehood. In 1866-1867, he served on the school board, and has offici- ated in that capacity for the past twenty years. The subject of this sketch is prominently known throughout the county as an up-to-date, honest and enterprising farmer, and few of the pioneers are more favorably regarded than Mr. Trumble.
HARLES REICHERT, a well-to-do farmer of Saunders county, Nebraska, was born in Bavaria, Germany, March 4, 1834. The family moved to the United States
when he was eight years of age, and settled in Pike county, Ohio. His father was a farmer, and Charles worked on the home farm until he was twenty-two years of age. His only school- ing was acquired during the winter months in the district school. At the age of twenty-two years he left home, going to Cass county, Ne- braska, where he took up a farm and worked it for a period of four years. In the fall of 1861 he went to Saunders county, Nebraska, being one of the earliest settlers in the county, where he has since continued. Lumber could not be procured in those days, so he built a log house, in which the family lived for several years before he built his present resi- dence. He owns the northwest quarter of the southwest quarter of section 22, fractional, comprising 140 and 85-100 acres, and also 45 acres in the northwest quarter of section 17. In common with the other settlers of that period, Mr. Reichert experienced great hardships, but could not be deterred from clinging to what, at times, notably during the grasshopper inva- sion, seemed a hopeless chance. He now owns one of the finest farms in the northern part of Saunders county.
In 1856 the subject of this sketch married Dora Stellar, and after her demise, in 1867, he married her sister, Mary Stellar, a daughter of George and Anne Elizabeth Stellar, of Jack- son county, Ohio. He is the father of ten children, as follows: Philip, born in 1859; Mary, born December 20, 1861; Kate, born May 29, 1868; Rose, born December 22, 1869; Annie, born December 25, 1871 ; Henry, born in October, 1874; Andrew, born in 1876;
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Charles, born in 1878; Ella, born June 10, 1882; and Daniel, born August 1, 1884. Phil- lip married Clara Whitten, and now lives in Madison county, Nebraska, with his family of seven children, as follows: Theodore, Agnes, Charles, Jessie, Ada, Joseph, and Philip. Kate married Peter Metz, and with their two chil- dren, Ella and Katy, they are living in Fre- mont, Dodge county, Nebraska. Annie married William Duhardt, and with their three chil- dren, Ella, Emma, and Charles, they are living in Madison county, Nebraska. The subject of this sketch, with J. Richardson, was the first road supervisor in the district. Politically he is a Populist. A portrait of Mr. Reichert ac- companies this sketch.
AUL BOOB is one of the most suc- cessful and influential farmers of Sarpy county, Nebraska, in which he owns about 1,200 acres of land. He is extens- ively engaged in raising and shipping cattle, and his farm is especially adapted to the pursuit of that occupation.
Mr. Boob was born near East St. Louis, in Clair county, Illinois, in 1837, and is a son of Fred and Catherine (Craemer ) Boob. He spent his early life on a farm in Illinois, and received his mental training in the district schools there. In the spring of 1859, at the time of the Pike's Peak excitement, he went west with the inten- tion of digging gold. However, instead of mining, he purchased a yoke of oxen and en-
gaged in freighting across the plains, making in all sixteen round trips from the Missouri River to Pike's Peak, and one trip to Salt Lake City. Having spent eight or nine years in this manner, he decided to settle down. In 1868 he located on his present farm of 160 acres in section 30, township 13, range II, in Sarpy county, which had been pre-empted by John Drexel, of Omaha, but was unimproved. He sold his oxen and purchased a span of mares and a colt, and this was practically all he had to start with. His first house was a small shanty, which has since been moved from its original location, and is now used as a repair house for the farm. His property is at the head of Buffalo Creek, along which there is considerable natural timber, and there he got the poles which formed the frame work of his first barn, covering these with straw. He planted a cottonwood grove, from which he had 18,000 feet of lumber sawed in 1898, to use in the construction of his corn cribs. He still has a heavy grove to the north and west of his buildings. The first ten or fifteen years of his life on the farm he worked very hard. As an example of his untiring energy, he was wont to start for Omaha, then the only market, in the evening, to return the following forenoon, and to devote the rest of the day to hard work. He put out a small orchard of 40 trees at first, but they did not do well, and three or four years later he set out an orchard of seven acres, which, with some replacing, has thrived and is now in excellent condition. His first house was 12 by 22 feet in dimensions, and consisted of two rooms, and in this he lived until about
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1880, when he built the first part of his present house, to which he has twice added. It is L shaped, the main part being 14 by 30 feet in dimensions, with an L of equal size. It is fur- nished throughout with modern conveniences, and has a dining room measuring 20 by 16 feet, and a kitchen with dimensions of 12 by 14 feet. The house is supplied with water throughout, and is provided with a bathroom. Mr. Boob's first frame barn was erected in 1887 at a cost of $1,100. It has a stone foundation and the basement is arranged for the stabling of horses. The dimensions of the barn are 38 by 40 feet, with 16-foot posts above the foundation. To this an addition was built, 40 feet wide, which is used as a machine shed. The next building to the east is a large granary and corn crib, with ample buggy shed in the middle. The granary, with a capacity of 1,800 bushels of small grain, and the double corn-crib, with a capacity of 3,000 bushels, are located on the west side, and on the other side of the building is a shed for calves and colts. This was built in 1888. An ice house of the size of 12 by 14 feet is located near by. Next is the hog house and calf shed, 100 feet long and 18 feet wide, opening on the east, and the corn-crib, built in 1893, 80 feet long, 16 feet wide, and 14 feet high. The cattle shed, built on the south, mak- ing it an L-shaped building, is 16 feet wide and 80 long. Near by are the scales and a tubular well 109 feet deep. The well is supplied with a windmill and a tank of 100-barrel capacity. from which the automatic watering trough is filled. Mr. Boob raises and ships cattle extens- ively, having on hand at all times from 100
to 150 cattle, and about 100 head of hogs. He raises mixed Norman and English Shire draft horses, and also has some standard-bred driv- ers. He has a pretty herd of white Angora goats, numbering about 100 head.
In 1868 Mr. Boob was united in marriage with Julia Hare, while in the west; owing to the fact that a minister was a rarity, Jacob Fackler, a justice of the peace, performed the ceremony. Mrs. Boob was born in Pennsyl- vania, and is a daughter of John and Elizabeth Hare, her father having located in Sarpy coun- ty, Nebraska, in 1859. She has a sister, Mrs. George Case, residing near Gretna, in that county, and also a brother within the county limits. Her union with Mr. Boob was prolific of ten children, as follows: Mary, who lives at home; Clara, wife of James McLean, who lives near Gretna; John, who is married and lives on one of his father's farms; Alfred, who lives at home ; Mary Jane, deceased, who was the wife of Frank Cunningham, who also lives on Mr. Boob's farm : Annie ( Sandy ), who lives near by; Thomas, who lives at home; George, Minnie, and Paul, an infant. Paul Boob is Democratic in politics, and served as school treasurer in district 29 for two years. He be- longed to the Grange before that order became extinct. His family are strict adherents of the Lutheran faith.
AMES E. JOHNSON carried on farm- ing in Sarpy county, Nebraska, for many years, being one of the old pioneer settlers there, and as a result of his untiring
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energy and persevering industry he has suc- ceeded in accumulating a handsome fortune which enables him to spend his latter days in quietude and peace. His birth occurred at Columbia, Pennsylvania, November 26, 1832, and he is a son of Bartus and Mary (Shubert) Johnson, to whom were born eleven children, of whom three are now living. Those living are Angeline, the wife of Oliver H. Kitchen, of Berwick, Pennsylvania, who has two children, -Frank R. and Jennie E. ; William, who came west in 1868, but being of a roving disposition and having no permanent abode, spent many years in the Dakotas, where he has served as state senator ; and the subject hereof. James E. Johnson's father died in Pennsylvania, while the mother passed from this life several years after she moved to Sarpy county, Nebraska.
Mr. Johnson remained under the parental roof until he became of age, during which time he worked on his father's farm, but on attain- ing his majority he began to learn the trade of what is known as keeper in the iron works at Danville, Pennsylvania, and remained there three years. He then followed his trade at Johnstown, Pennsylvania, for two years, but in the hope of bettering his condition he settled in Sarpy county in the spring of 1858. He took the train, which then ran as far west as Iowa City, Iowa, but from there he was obliged to continue his journey by stage, going by way of Des Moines. Four other men also took the stage at Iowa City, and after they had reached a point several miles on the other side of Des Moines the stage broke down several times, causing considerable delay. Mr. Johnson ar-
rived in Omaha, Nebraska, on April 26, 1858, and at once purchased a land warrant for $165, which he holds to this day, and on which are no signs of a transfer or mortgage. He walked from Omaha to Bellevue, and thence to his land on the Platte River, the tract being located on the north half of the northeast quarter of section 31, and the south half of the southeast quarter of section 30, both in township 13, range 12. To comply with the law in regard to making improvements, he bought a 12 by 14 foot house from a neighbor, who had once used it, and moved it on his farm. After remaining there the necessary time to establish his right, he returned to Iowa, where he worked two years around a saw mill for Peter A. Sarpy, after whom Sarpy county was named. Return- ing to Sarpy county, he brought with him a horse, but no money. During the first six months he worked out at $20 per month, and for Day he took a yoke of steers, which were then used to break the land. He turned under from 10 to 20 acres per year, and used hay stables, the frame work consisting of poles. He afterward built a log house in which he lived until 1882, the dimensions of the house being 14 by 16 feet. In the fall of 1882 he tore the old cabin down and built a frame house 24 feet square. In 1891 he put up a frame barn 24 by 18 feet in dimensions, and on the old barn site he erected a cattle and buggy shed 40 feet in length. As there was no natural timber on the place, he set out cottonwood trees along the north and east sides of the house, the slips being obtained from an island in the Platte River. Having no means to haul
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them to the house he carried them home, often carrying from 50 to 100 slips. He has lived to see these very slips grow into trees from one foot to four feet in diameter. He recently cut 50 cords of wood from them. Sometimes after setting out the slips he bought five acres of tim- ber land for $II per acre, the tract being an island. An abundance of water can be ob- tained at a depth of from 20 to 22 feet, and besides there are two fine springs on the prop- erty. Mr. Johnson has an orchard which has not proven very successful. In former years he devoted the most of his time to the raising of grain, but later put in potatoes, which often brought $3 and $3.50 per bushel. Still later he began to deal more extensively in live stock, raising mostly Shorthorn cattle. He has suc- cessfully raised Berkshire, Chester White, and Poland-China hogs, but he prefers the Chester Whites. Mr. Johnson now rents his farm, and since the spring of 1900 he has been residing in Springfield, where he bought three lots, upon which was a small house, which he has remod- eled and enlarged into a comfortable cottage. The subject of this sketch has been very suc- cessful at farming, and is a thoroughly self- made man. He enjoys a wide acquaintance throughout the county, and is an honest and upright citizen.
Politically, Mr. Johnson is a stanch Demo- crat, and he has served as road overseer for a score of years. His niece keeps house for him. He took two children to raise. They are: Mrs. McDonald, of Richfield, Sarpy county, who is the mother of one child, Katie, and Everett McMahon.
H. PETERS, who has been a resi- dent of Sarpy county, Nebraska, since 1856, is successfully engaged in agricultural pursuits on his farm in Spring- field precinct.
Mr. Peters was born in Trumbull county, Ohio, in 1836, and is a son of John and Esther (Walkly) Peters. Eight children blessed this union, as follows: Henrietta (Koch), who died in Sarpy county; Anna (Wright), also deceased. who is survived by two children, Mary and Annie; W. H., to whom this record pertains; John, who has always lived at Belle- vue, Sarpy county, since first locating there, and is the father of four children, Harry, Mary, Maggie, and John, the last named be- ing in a shoe store at Omaha ; Amos, deceased, who was a carpenter by trade, his family being in Omaha; Lucetta ( Bachelder), of La Platte, Nebraska; James, who was drowned in the Missouri River, near Kansas City, in July, 1899; and Charles, who is a miner in Idaho. Mrs. Peters died in August, 1856, and her husband died in October of the same year.
WV. H. Peters, when in his twentieth year, came to Sarpy county, Nebraska, with his pa- rents, in 1856, locating at Bellevue when there were only a few houses in the town. His father followed wagon and carriage making there until his death, and then the subject hereof, being the oldest son and also a me- chanic, was obliged to support the family. He followed the wagon-making business for a pe- riod of twenty-five years, with much success, and an effort was made to keep the family of nine children together, but they finally scat-
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tered, and John is the only one remaining in Bellevue. He owned 40 acres of land in Fair- view, and in 1879 or 1880 purchased 80 acres at $8 per acre,-it being his present home, near Springfield. He purchased it of Mr. Sex- on. who had begun to break the land, and he hired the remainder broken. He located upon this property in 1883, building his pres- ent house, the main part of which in dimen- sions is 22 by 30 feet. and one story high, with an L. 14 by 18 feet in size, and one and a half stories high. Springfield was then but one year old. Mr. Peters set out an ample or- chard west of the house, which has been bear- ing finely, also many small fruit trees, to which de has added from time to time. He has a very pretty house and grounds, located near the road, and box elders, elms, maples, and a few silver-leafed maples, ornament the yard. There is an excellent spring on the south side of the farm, which supplies water for the stock. Mr. Peters has a 30-acre pas- ture, in which there is also a spring. He got the supplies for his first shop at Glenwood and Council Bluffs, as there was nothing but gov- ernment buildings at Bellevue then. The lat- ter town was always filled with people, how- ever, and was a very lively place. Mr. Peters has often had deer hunts close to Bellevue.
The subject of this sketch was united in marriage at Xenia, Nebraska, with Ellen M. Bates, oldest daughter of J. A. Bates, an old settler of the county. He was the father of seven children : Ellen M., Mary C., deceased ; Nathalie; William; Henry; Louis, who runs a drug store at Springfield; and Eva, deceased.
Mr. and Mrs. Peters have five children, as follows: Mattie, who lives at home, and is engaged in school teaching; J. Arthur, who is studying medicine in the Omaha Medical Col- lege, and has two more years before gradua- tion; Joseph W., who travels out of Omaha for a shoe house; Etta, a music teacher of recognized ability; and Augustus, who is" living at home. Mr. Peters was for- merly a strong Democrat, but is now a Pro- hibitionist. He served as a member of the town council and as justice of the peace for two years at Bellevue. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
OYAL G. GLOVER located within the borders of Sarpy county, Nebraska, in 1856, where he has since continued to reside. He is now practically retired, as he has rented his farm and from choice lives in a small house in the woods in section 2, township 12, range 10. Throughout his adopted county he has hosts of friends, and he is regarded as a good neighbor and citizen. He was born Octo- ber 22, 1846, in Jasper county, Indiana, and is a son of John B. and Eliza (Child) Glover.
John B. Glover was born January 25, 1810, in Kentucky. He died in 1894, at Lincoln, Nebraska, and now lies buried at Tabor, Iowa. With his family he settled in Sarpy county in 1856, crossing the Missouri River April 17 of that year. His family consisted of a wife and six children. As each settler took what land he wanted, he "squatted" on 320 acres in sec-
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tion 2, township 12, range 10, and as he had disposed of his farm in Iowa for $1,600 in gold he was better equipped financially than the ma- jority of farmers at that early date. He im- mediately built a house of rough logs, in which the family lived until October, when it was turned into a stable, and he hewed out timber enough to build another house. The first year he broke 22 acres, which he planted in sod- corn and pumpkins, the latter being very ac- ceptable to eat during the following winter. After living in the old log house several years the father built a frame house measuring 16 by 32 feet, with an 8-foot shed along one side. The lumber for the house was obtained at a saw mill at Forest City. As he drove through from Iowa with four horses and twelve or fifteen head of cattle, his live stock began to increase quite rapidly, so the old hewed log house, which was 16 by 20 feet in extent, by 10 logs high, was turned into a barn. In those days he raised wheat, oats, corn and buckwheat, and, as he invested his earnings in farm land, be- fore he retired he owned several hundred acres. He retired in 1880 to Louisville, Nebraska, where he bought a neat little home on the Platte River, and there he spends his last days in quietude and comfort. His wife, Eliza Weld Child, was born November 22, 1812, in Vermont, and she died October 13, 1887, and is also buried in Iowa. The old homestead is now owned by other parties. They were the parents of the following children: Mary E., Ezra Child, Henry Clay, Lucy Helen, John V., Royal G., Eliza Ann, Sarah P., and Minerva Grace. Mary E., born December 27, 1832, is
the wife of Mr. Lefler of Gordon, Nebraska, and they had five sons: Henry C., William, Oliver P., and Millard and Charles, twins. Ezra Child is deceased. Henry Clay was of a roving disposition, and the last time he was heard from he was in Washington. Lucy Helen wedded a Mr. Tower, of Ashland, Ne- braska, and they had one child, Bertha. John V. was killed several years ago at Los Angeles, California ; he was a soldier in the Union army during the Civil war. Royal G., is the sub- ject of this record. Eliza Ann is the wife of a Mr. Woods, of Tabor, Iowa. Sarah P. was joined in marriage with Mr. Chessington, of Lincoln, Nebraska, and they have two children, Buel and Aura. Minerva Grace, the youngest, is now Mrs. Hilderbrand, of Clearwater, Ne- braska, and has two children, Carl and Edna. The Glovers formerly lived in Indiana, but in 1853 the father moved to Iowa, where he spent two and one-half years before he entered Nebraska.
Royal G. Glover had few school privileges, and remained at home until he became of age. He then purchased his present farm in section 5, township 12, range 11, and all the improve- ments upon it are the results of his own work. About the year 1880 he put up nearly all the present outbuildings, the barn and the house. He has a first-class orchard. For six years he kept a store across the road from his house. On account of sickness he has been compelled to abandon hard labor, and he is now living a comfortable life in the woods. He has always been very fond of the woods, and during the pioneer days he delighted in hunting, as the
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timberland was full of all kinds of game.
Mr. Glover was joined in marriage with Jane Kennedy, a daughter of James Kennedy, and they have had eight children, namely : Olive M., who is the wife of Frank E. Dow- ling, of Papillion, and has a daughter, Zella; Waldo William, who is deceased; Ralph Rol- lins, who owns a farm near where his father lives ; Kate L., who is deceased ; Birdie, who is at home; an infant son, who died when quite young, and Perry Clay and Nellie Alice, who are at home. In politics the subject hereof is a stanch Republican, and has served on the school boards in both districts in which he has lived. Religiously, he is a Methodist, and as he is a carpenter by trade he not only contrib- uted in money, but in labor also, for the erection of a church.
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