USA > Nebraska > Buffalo County > Buffalo County, Nebraska, and its people : a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume II > Part 4
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On the 10th of October, 1876, Dr. Bennett was united in marriage to Miss Clara A. Briggs, a native of Iowa and a former schoolmate. To them have been born four children, as follows: Clara L., who is engaged in the abstract busi- ness at Broken Bow, Nebraska; Ray B., the cashier of the State Bank at Bladen,
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DR. JOSEPH L. BENNETT
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Nebraska ; Ralph R., a resident of San Jose, California; and Isamore, at home, who is a student in the State Normal School.
In politics Dr. Bennett is a democrat and the only public offices he has filled have been in the line of his profession. For three terms he served as county coroner and is serving his tenth year as physician to the State Industrial School. He belongs to the State Eclectic Medical Society and he enjoys the high regard and confidence of his professional brethren as well as of the general public. He has substantial qualities of manhood and citizenship as well as marked profes- sional ability and his sterling traits have brought him the high regard of many. In 1875 he joined the Presbyterian church and has taken an active and prominent part in its work, serving as an elder for twenty-seven years.
WILLIAM D. LEIBEE.
William D. Leibee, who is living retired in Amherst, formerly engaged in stockraising and was very successful in that occupation. He owns five hun- dred and sixty acres of land, from which he receives a handsome income. His birth occurred on the 4th of March, 1840, in Middletown, Butler county, Ohio, and his parents were George and Marguerite (Deem) Leibee, natives of Penn- sylvania and Ohio respectively. While a resident of Ohio the father engaged in butchering but after removing to Henry county, Illinois, in 1855, he turned his attention to farming, acquiring title to three sections of land near Brown's Grove. He passed away in Henry county and his demise was deeply regretted by his many friends. To him and his wife were born twelve children, namely : John, who enlisted in an Illinois regiment for service in the Civil war and died while in the army; Alonzo, who died in Ohio; Melissa, the wife of Anderson Lytle : Sarah Elizabeth, who married William Wayne, of Orion, Illinois; Jane, the wife of James Noonan, of Henry county, Illinois; William D .; Joseph, who died in Geneseo, Illinois; Jacob, who resides in Geneseo; Daniel, a resident of Bakersfield, California; Ella, the widow of Alonzo Monesmith, of Geneseo; and two who died in infancy.
William D. Leibee was fifteen years of age when he accompanied his parents to Illinois and there grew to manhood. In 1861, when twenty-one years of age, he attempted to enlist as a soldier in the Civil war but was rejected on account of a crippled arm. He decided to devote his life to farming, to which occupation he had been reared,, and followed agricultural pursuits in Illinois until 1885, when he came to Buffalo county, Nebraska, where he rented land for nine years. By carefully saving his money he accumulated sufficient capital at the end of that time to enable him to purchase the Black ranch in Divide town- ship, which comprised two hundred and forty acres. He largely concentrated his energies upon stockraising and as he understood the business thoroughly and watched the market carefully he seldom failed to sell to advantage and as the years passed his resources increased. He purchased additional land and now owns five hundred and sixty acres in this county. In 1905 he retired and removed to Amherst, where he has since lived, enjoying the comforts of life.
Mr. Leibee was married in Henry county, Illinois, to Miss Sarah Eliza-
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beth Gibbs, who was born in New York on the 12th of September, 1844, and is a daughter of Asahel and Elizabeth Ann (Burpee) Gibbs, natives of Ver- mont. When Mrs. Leibee was twelve years of age the family removed to Henry county, Illinois, and there both of her parents passed away. Mr. and Mrs. Leibee have two living children. Grant, who was born in Illinois, married Miss Alice Murray and they have four children: Nellie, the wife of Clark Thomas, a traveling man living in Kearney and the mother of two sons, Robert Clark and Keith; William, who is farming in Grant township and is married and has a son, William Jr .; and Lloyd and Harry Frank, both at home. George, the younger son, married Miss Lizzie Murray, by whom he has a son, Frederick, and they reside in Colona, Illinois.
Mr. Leibee casts his ballot in support of the candidates and measures of the democratic party and discharges to the full all of the duties of citizenship but has never been an aspirant for office. He and his wife have resided in Buffalo county for over thirty years and during that time have seen much of its develop- ment from a pioneer region to the presperous and advanced farming district that it is today. They have done their part in bringing about this change and are justly held in high esteem by all who know them. Their success is the direct result of their hard work and good management and none begrudges them the leisure which they are now enjoying.
OWEN WILLIAMS.
For a considerable period Owen Williams was identified with farming inter- ests in Buffalo county, making his home in Center township, where his widow still resides. He was born in Wales on the 14th of February, 1846, a son of John and Mary (Owens) Williams, who were also natives of that country, where they spent their entire lives, rearing their family of four children, of whom only one is now living.
Owen Williams was reared and educated in Wales and came to America in 1869, at which time he established his home in Ohio. In that state he was married in 1876 to Miss Margaret J. Owens, a native of Wales and a daughter of Richard M. and Mary (Hughes) Owens, who were also natives of that country. They came to America, settling upon a farm in Ohio, where they spent their remaining days, their family numbering seven children, of whom four are yet living.
In the year 1871 Mr. Williams purchased the farm upon which his widow now resides on section 7, Center township, Buffalo county, and in the year fol- lowing his marriage-1877-he removed to the farm, upon which he lived at that time, however, for only three months. He then returned to Ohio, where he remained until the spring of 1880, when he again came to Nebraska, and here resided until his death, concentrating his energies upon the development of his place. He added many substantial improvements to the farm until it was supplied with all the accessories and conveniences of a model farm prop- erty. He converted the land into rich fields and annually gathered good crops.
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He also extended the boundaries of his place until it comprised three hundred and twenty acres, still in the possession of Mrs. Williams.
To Mr. and Mrs. Williams were born five children: Richard O., at home; Mary Belle, the wife of Dallas Henderson; Anna Selina, at home; Susan J., the wife of W. E. Storer; and Gertrude E., the wife of E. Beckler, now of Omaha, Nebraska. The death of the husband and father occurred January 12, 1914, and his remains were laid to rest in the Kearney cemetery. He was a self-made man who won his success entirely through his own efforts, gaining his advance- ment through persistent energy and indefatigable industry. Wherever known he was held in high esteem and most of all where he was best known. Mrs. Williams still makes her home in Center township and is a devoted member of the Methodist Episcopal church. Her long residence in the county has made her widely known and she has a circle of friends almost coextensive with the circle of her acquaintance.
CHARLES C. CARRIG.
Charles C. Carrig, who is filling the position of postmaster of Kearney, and who has been actively identified with farming and commercial interests as well as with the official life of the community, was born in the city of Free- port, Illinois, on the 7th of December, 1857, his parents being James and Ellen (Langan) Carrig, both of whom were natives of Ireland. They had five chil- dren, of whom but two are now living. The Carrig and Langan families both emigrated from Ireland to the United States as passengers on the same sailing vessel in 1850 and were three months in crossing the Atlantic. James Carrig, who was a farmer by occupation, was married at Urbana, Ohio, and afterward removed to Illinois but in August, 1859, came west to Nebraska, settling in Platte county. He lived there for a period of forty-one years, following agri- cultural pursuits and as one of the earliest settlers of the district witnessed many of those stirring scenes of pioneer life which have become almost a for- gotten dream of the past. He bore his part in the work of public progress and development and still remains an honored resident of Nebraska, having in 1900 removed to Kearney, where he now resides, at the advanced age of eighty-seven years. For a long period he has survived his wife, who passed away in 1900.
Charles C. Carrig was but two years of age when he became a resident of Nebraska. He was reared upon the home farm in Platte county, there remaining until 1883, during which time in his boyhood days he assisted in the work of the old home place and attended the district school. In 1876 he became a student in the Bryant & Stratton Business College at Davenport, Iowa, being graduated therefrom in 1878. For the succeeding two years he was deputy county clerk at Columbus, Nebraska, and then turned his attention to mercan- tile pursuits, establishing a general store in 1883 at Platte Center, there con- tinuing in business until 1890. At that time he became cashier of the Farmers & Merchants Bank of that place, occupying the position for five years. From 1895 until 1898 he operated a grain elevator at Platte Center for the Omaha
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Elevator Company, but in the latter year he removed to Buffalo, Nebraska, and became steward and bookkeeper of the State Industrial School under appoint- ment of Governor Poynter. After serving in that capacity for two years he came to Kearney and was made assistant deputy county treasurer, in which capacity he remained for two years. He next embarked in the real estate and insurance business in Kearney, continuing therein until May 21, 1914, when by appointment of President Wilson he was made postmaster of Kearney and is now filling that position.
On the 13th of May, 1894, Mr. Carrig was married to Miss Catherine Perkin- son, and to this union four sons have been born, Earl, Carl, Phillip and Paul. The religious faith of the family is that of the Roman Catholic church and in political belief Mr. Carrig has always been a democrat. He has attractive social qualities which render him popular and he has a wide and favorable acquaintance in the county in which he now makes his home.
HON. BRUNO O. HOSTETLER.
Hon. Bruno O. Hostetler is judge of the twelfth judicial district of Nebraska, comprising the counties of Buffalo, Sherman and Custer. In speaking of the history of the bar one is led to the reflection that the legal profession demands not only a high order of ability but a rare combination of talent, learning, tact, patience and industry. The successful lawyer and the competent judge must be a man of well balanced intellect, thoroughly familiar with the law and practice and of comprehensive general information, possessed of an analytical mind and a self-control that will enable him to lose his individuality, his per- sonal feelings, his prejudices and his peculiarities of disposition in the dignity, impartiality and equity of the office to which life, property, right and liberty must look for protection. Possessing these qualities, Judge Hostetler justly merits the high honor which is conferred upon him by his elevation to the bench.
A native of Iowa, the Judge was born upon a farm near Janesville, May 20, 1861, his parents being David and Elizabeth (Schafer) Hostetler, the former a native of Ohio and the latter of Silesia, Germany. The Hostetlers, however, are of Swiss descent. The father was a farmer by occupation and about the year 1860 removed to Iowa, later taking up his abode upon a farm between Waverly and Shell Rock. While there residing his wife died and he afterward removed to Kearney, Nebraska, where his last days were spent, his death occurring in 1903.
Bruno O. Hostetler was reared upon a farm and acquired his primary edu- cation in the district schools and in the public schools at Waverly. He after- ward matriculated in the Iowa State University at Iowa City and was grad- uated with the degree of Bachelor of Arts in the year 1885. He then continued his law studies there and in 1887 completed a course in the law department of that institution. He ranked second in a class of thirty-six when graduated from the collegiate course, and in 1888 he received his M. A. degree from the State University.
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On the 24th of November, 1887, Judge Hostetler was united in marriage to Miss Margaret B. Miller, and the same year located for the practice of law in Kearney, where he has since lived, during which period he has been identified with most of the important litigation that has been heard in the courts of the district. Along with those qualities indispensable to the lawyer-a keen, rapid, analytical mind, plus the business sense and a ready capacity for hard work-he brought to the starting point of his legal career certain rare gifts-eloquence of language and a strong personality. Moreover, he has ever displayed a thorough grasp of the law and the ability. to accurately apply its principles, which have been factors in his effectiveness as an advocate.
To Judge and Mrs. Hostetler has been born a daughter, Florence Maxine, who is a graduate of the Kearney high school, of the Iowa State University and the Nebraska State Normal School, and is now the wife of Annan Ray- mond, a lawyer of Omaha.
Judge Hostetler is identified with the Ancient Order of United Workmen and the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. In politics he has always been a republican and in 1898 was elected mayor of Kearney, which position he filled for three years, giving to the city a businesslike administration. In the fall of '1903 he was elected presiding judge of the twelfth judicial district and has since remained upon the bench, where his decisions indicate strong mentality, careful analysis, a thorough knowledge of the law and an unbiased judgment.
IRA A. KIRK.
Banking interests in Gibbon find a worthy representative in Ira A. Kirk, cashier of the Exchange Bank and a member of its board of directors. He was born in Ripley county, Indiana, on the IIth of October, 1869, a son of Thomas and Sarah (Blackwell) Kirk, who were natives of Kentucky and Indiana re- spectively. They were married in the latter state, to which the father had removed in his childhood days with his parents. He continued his residence there until 1885, when he brought his family to Gibbon, Nebraska, where he engaged in the coal business, with which he was prominently identified up to the time of his death. He also became one of the organizers of the Exchange Bank of Gibbon, of which he was made vice president. His activity, his sterling personal worth and his fidelity in matters of citizenship made him one of the foremost residents of Gibbon, where he passed away December 9, 1904, his wife surviving until January 27, 1910. He was a member of the Masonic lodge and became one of the organizers and charter members of Granite Lodge, No. 189, A. F. & A. M., of Gibbon. In politics he was a stanch republican and served in a number of the town offices. His wife was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and both were held in the highest esteem wherever they were known.
Ira A. Kirk was a youth of sixteen years when he became a resident of Gibbon and in the public schools he continued his education, supplemented by a course in the United Brethren College of this place, from which he was grad- uated with the class of 1889. Immediately following the completion of his
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studies he entered the Exchange Bank in the capacity of bookkeeper and in 1898 he was advanced to the position of assistant cashier, while in 1905 he became cashier of the institution, which important position he has since filled, largely directing the policy and activities of the bank. He has ever mani- fested a most progressive spirit in the conduct of business affairs and at the same time carefully safeguards the interests of those whom he represents.
In 1897 Mr. Kirk was united in marriage to Miss Clara Robb, of Gibbon, and they have one daughter, Esther Myrtle. In his political views Mr. Kirk is a republican and has served as township treasurer, while at the present time he is occupying the position of village treasurer. He has likewise been a mem- ber of the school board for fifteen years and the cause of education finds in him a stalwart champion. Fraternally he is connected with Granite Lodge, No. 189, A. F. & A. M., and has attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite in the Omaha consistory. His wife is a member of the Episcopal church and in the social circles of their part of the county they occupy an enviable position. In addition to his business interests Mr. Kirk has become the owner of valuable farm lands and from his property derives a gratifying annual income. He is a man of sterling worth whose life has been actuated by honorable principles and whose course has ever conformed to the highest stand- ards of manhood and citizenship.
THOMAS W. BOLAN.
Among the agriculturists of Buffalo county who, in the conduct of their farm work, have attained success that now enables them to live retired is Thomas W. Bolan, who makes his home in Kearney. He was born in County Waterford, Ireland, April 25, 1844, and was reared to farm life with the usual experiences of the farm bred boy in that section of the world. In 1861, when seventeen years of age, he bade adieu to friends and native country and sailed for the new world, landing at Boston, Massachusetts, where he had a sister living. He worked in a boat shop for a time and afterward followed different pursuits until 1871, when he made his way westward to Nebraska, settling first at Overton.
In the spring of 1872 Mr. Bolan secured a homestead claim on section 20, Elm Creek township, Buffalo county, where he was employed at railroad work a part of the time. He put up a small frame house upon his land and hired some breaking done. After about three years he purchased a team of oxen and devoted his time to the improvement of the homestead. In 1883 he sold the place and purchased one hundred and sixty acres just over the line in Dawson county. It was a tract of raw prairie and he turned his attention to the sheep business and to general farming, which he continued to follow until 1905, when he sold his stock and removed to Kearney. He had dealt quite extensively in sheep and also brought his farm under a high state of cultivation, converting much of the land into rich fields, from which he annually gathered good harvests.
On the 21st of February, 1884, Mr. Bolan was married to Miss Addie Gingrich, who was born October 15. 1863, and was reared in Madison, Indiana, but came to this county with her mother in 1883. Mr. and Mrs. Bolan had a family of
THOMAS W. BOLAN AND FAMILY
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seven children : Catherine A., who was born December 5, 1884, and is the wife of Joseph Pflaum, of Dawson county; John T., who was born March 22, 1886, and is now a machinist of North Platte, Nebraska; William M., who was born October 19, 1887, and is now upon a ranch in California; Flora A., who was born June 23, 1889, and is the wife of Albert Pflaum, of this county ; Frances M .. who was born June 25, 1892, and is the wife of Charles Sterling, of Kearney; Mamie, who was born April 27, 1896, and died August 27, 1897; and Charles Thomas, who was born July 31, 1898, and is now attending high school.
Mr. and Mrs. Bolan are members of the Catholic church and he gives his political allegiance to the democratic party. He has never sought nor desired office, preferring to concentrate his energies upon his business affairs, and along well defined lines of labor has wrought for success.
JOHN G. LOWE.
John G. Lowe, president of the Farmers Bank of Kearney, was born in Liverpool, England, October 19, 1865, and at the age of fifteen years came to America, making his way direct to Kearney, where he became an employe in the station department of the Union Pacific Railroad Company. Here he has since resided and has been closely identified with the material growth and wel- fare of the community. In 1897 he became president of the Farmers Bank of Kearney and has been a potent factor in financial affairs of the city since that time. Mr. Lowe is a Knight Templar Mason and Shriner, is married and ranks with the city's foremost residents.
SYDNEY E. SMITH.
Sydney E. Smith, cashier of the Commercial State Bank of Amherst, was born in Peoria county, Illinois, September 9, 1858. His father, Edson F. Smith, a native of Pennsylvania, went to Peoria with his parents in the early '40s and in that locality turned his attention to the occupation of farming. He there remained until some years after his marriage. When his son Sydney was a lad of ten years he removed with the family to Louisa county, Iowa, where he successfully engaged in farming. He there served as county treasurer and also held other public offices, taking an active part in the affairs of the community and in its material development. He married Sarah Hungerford, a native of New York, and in the year 1886 they removed to Kearney, Nebraska, where Mr. Smith lived retired until called to his final rest at the age of seventy-four years. His wife also passed away at Kearney in the faith of the Congregational church, of which they were devoted and loyal members.
Sydney E. Smith was a lad of ten years when he accompanied his parents to Louisa county, Iowa, where he was reared upon a farm. In 1882 he came to Buffalo county, Nebraska, and engaged in farming near Kearney, but afterward purchased land near Pleasanton, and there successfully carried on general agri- Vol. II-3
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cultural pursuits. Later he engaged in the grain business at Pleasanton and in 1895 he was elected to the office of county clerk of Buffalo county, entering upon the discharge of his duties in 1896, his term covering four years. He later engaged in the hardware business in Kearney for a few years and in 1913 became cashier of the Commercial State Bank of Amherst, in which connection he has since remained. Mr. Smith was married to Miss Irene Mckean, who was born in Pennsylvania, a daughter of J. S. McKean, and to them has been born one child, Sydney Jr., who is at home. The parents are members of the Congrega- tional church and Mr. Smith belongs to the Modern Woodmen Camp and to the Highlanders, while his political allegiance is given to the republican party.
LESTER W. BAYLEY.
Lester W. Bayley is well known throughout Buffalo county and is held in high esteem because of his ability and integrity. He owns five hundred acres of well improved land and resides on section 21, Shelton township. A native of Wayne county, Pennsylvania, he was born on the 13th of May, 1864, and is a son of John M. and Adaline A. (Adams) Bayley. The father was born in Clinton, that state, on the 28th of January, 1836, and is a son of William and Mary Ann (Morse) Bayley. He came to Nebraska in 1857 and located on a farm near Table Rock but a year later sold that place and returned to Pennsylvania, where he remained until 1871. He then again came to Buffalo county and from that year until 1905 engaged in farming on section 22, Shelton township. For the past ten years he has lived retired in the village of Gibbon. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Adaline A. Adams, was born in Wayne county, Pennsylvania, and is a daughter of Lester P. and Margaret T. (Cooper) Adams. By her mar- riage she has become the mother of five children, of whom four survive. The father served in the Civil war and in times of peace has also manifested a com- mendable interest in the public welfare.
Lester W. Bayley was reared under the parental roof and is indebted for his education to the public schools. On beginning his independent career he took up a homestead in Hitchcock county, Nebraska, but after proving up on the place sold it. He was married in 1889 and for the following three years operated his father's farm but in the fall of 1891 he purchased his present home place on section 21, Shelton township. He at once erected a residence and barn, and in the following spring he removed to that farm, where he has since resided. He owns five hundred acres of land in that township and engages in general farm- ing, which he finds both profitable and congenial.
On the 14th of March, 1889, occurred the marriage of Mr. Bayley and Miss Clara Stonebarger, a daughter of Daniel Stonebarger, who removed by wagon from Illinois to Buffalo county in the fall of 1871. He homesteaded a quarter section of land in Sharon township, which he improved and cultivated. Mr. and Mrs. Bayley have six children: Thaddeus E., who is operating his grandfather's farm in Shelton township; Harvey J. and Ray A., both of whom are farming in Shelton township; Bessie L., who is attending the State University at Lincoln ;
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