Compendium of history, reminiscence, and biography of Nebraska : containing a history of the state of Nebraska also a compendium of reminiscence and biography containing biographical sketches of hundreds of prominent old settlers and representative citizens of Nebraska, Part 236

Author: Alden Publishing Company
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Chicago : Alden Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1402

USA > Nebraska > Compendium of history, reminiscence, and biography of Nebraska : containing a history of the state of Nebraska also a compendium of reminiscence and biography containing biographical sketches of hundreds of prominent old settlers and representative citizens of Nebraska > Part 236

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Among the pests of the early days, few were

afflicted with the pest of fleas, as were the settlers of the neighborhood where Mr. Fisher had made his home. They swarmed in the barn, the sheds and the house, until life was a burden, and for the first time they contemplated moving out. But Mr. Fisher's ingenuity in finding their breeding place and applying a remedy soon rid their ranch of the little torments. They also had trouble with prairie fires, though none in the west equalled! one witnessed by Mr. Fisher when a boy, living in South Prairie, when the swamps southwest of town, with grasses ten and twelve feet high, burned, the flames reaching higher than a house.

Mr. Fisher has prospered, and added another half section to his holdings He remained on the farm until 1902, when he rented the place and came to Plainview and purchased a block in Peed's addition, where he has a commodious home, comfortable and well furnished, in strong contrast to their household equipment when they began life in the west in a "soddy."

On coming to Plainview, Mr. Fisher, being an expert machinist, engaged in handling farm imple- ments, wind mills, traction engines, etc. In May, 1909, he was appointed chief of police of Plain- view, and is efficiently filling his office.

Mr. Fisher was married in Bedford, Iowa, Sep- tember 5, 1877, to Miss Mary E. Hook, a native of Jefferson county, Iowa. Her parents, Stephen and Sarah (Clark) Ilook, were natives of Ohio, the former of Carroll county, and the latter of Vinton county. The mother came to Nebraska in 1881 to join a son living here, and died Decem- her 20, 1895.

Mr. and'Mrs. Fisher are the parents of eight children : Lottie Elva, wife of George Kirk, who has a homestead in South Dakota; Gertrude, mar- ried George Seabury, who farms six miles south- west of Plainview ; Claude G., who has completed a course in the Lebanon, Ohio University, and has filed on a homestead in Perkins county, South Dakota; and Frank S. married Miss Hortense Stimpson has a homestead in Perkins county. South Dakota. The four youngest, Glenn, Fern L., Clyde and Mary Gladys, are in the public schools.

In polities Mr. Fisher is an independet demo- crat, and he is a member of the Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodmen. Mrs. Fisher is a member of the Rebekahs, and of the Methodist church.

Times were hard in Nebraska in the early days, as they were in other states, but those who remained and had confidence in her fecundity have reaped a rich reward. Few localities have prospered as this has done, and no one who is of unbiased mind can cast aspersions on this state of many varied and profitable industries.

1085

COMPENDIUM OF HISTORY, REMINISCENCE AND BIOGRAPHY.

SOREN M. SONDERUP.

Soren M. Sonderup was born in Denmark De- cember 16, 1852, and came to America the latter part of May, 1872. He first located at De Witt, Illinois, and lived there and at various other places in Illinois and adjoining states until 1876. January 31, 1876, he was married to Mary Jen- sen, who was born in Denmark and came to America in infancy with her parents. After his marriage, Mr. Sonderup started farming, and con- tinned until he concluded to come west.

In the spring of 1885, together with his wife and four sons, Mr. Sonderup came into Howard county and purchased the southeast quarter of section two, township fifteen, range ten. This one hundred and sixty acres was the first original homestead taken up north of the river, and was purchased by Mr. Sonderup for two thousand dollars, a high price at that time. He engaged in. farming and extensive stock raising, and has made a marked success, now owning over seven hundred acres of fine land. His three sons own over a section of adjoining land, and are all en- gaged in farming and stock raising. This entire farm is known as the Oak Grove Stock and Grain farm.

Two brothers and one sister of Mr. Sonderup joined him in Howard county, where one brother still resides; the other brother and sister are de- ceased. The parents of both Mr. and Mrs. Son- derup are deceased.

Mr. and Mrs. Sonderup have had four sons: Fred J., married and has two children, lives on a farm adjoining his father's land on the north ; Walter P., at home; Hans L., married and has two children, lives on the farm to the south of his father's, and Carl O., who was accidentally killed by a fall from a horse in 1903.

Mr. Sonderup was county commissioner cf Howard county in 1903, 1904 and 1905, and has heen a member of the school board in district num- her forty-two for twenty years. He and his family are widely known and are acknowledged leaders i !! the community.

JOSEPH KILPARTICK.

Joseph Kilpatrick was born in County Ar- madh, Ireland, December 25, 1843, and was the third child in the family of Mathew and Sarah Kilpatrick, who had ten children. Of this fam- ily, Joseph Kilpatrick, the subject of this sketch, resides in Madison, Madison county, Nebraska, David lives in Iowa, William in Colorado, and Martha, married to William Antrem, lives in Iowa, they being the surviving members of the family.

Robert and Joseph Kilpatrick emigrated to Canada in June, 1864, and Joseph came to the United States in March, 1865, locating in Illinois and going to work for an uncle on his stock farms

in Christian and adjoining counties. In the spring of 1868 he movel from Illinois to Iowa, go- ing on a farm.

In February, 1879, Mr. Kilpatrick was united in marriage to Miss Addie Bixley, in Mills coun- ty, Iowa.

Mr. Kilpatrick first came to Madison county, Nebraska, in December, 1881, and purchased a farm, returning to Iowa the latter part of De- cember. In February, 1882, he returned, bring- ing his wife to Madison county for permanent residence, and this county has been his home since that time.

Some years ago the took up his residence in Madison, Nebraska. He started out in life with but a few dollars, and now has over one thousand acres of choice land in Madison county, and also land in adjoining counties. He is a forceful man, always assisting to uphold the law, and standing for advancement along educational, moral and religious lines, and is one of the solid men of Madison county.

Mr. and Mrs. Kilpatrick have one child, a daughter now attending college at Bellevue, Ne- braska, a Presbyterian institution.

JAMES McHENRY.

James McHenry, proprietor of the Plainview Roller Mills, has been familiar with Nebraska and the west for a period of upwards of fifty years. Few living today can go so far back into the past, when the west was an unbroken wilder- nes. Coming to Sioux City in the spring of 1857, when it was but a collection of a few small log huts, he entered the employ of Frost, Stoddard & Company, fur traders to the Dakotas, at a time when the country was closed to all not having a government permit to enter the region. While in their employ he traveled by river and overland as far as Fort Benton, buying furs from the In- dians, taking supplies to their depot at Fort Ran- dall, and bringing back furs purchased from the Indians, principally the Yankton Sioux. The treaty with the Indians permitting whites in the county was signed April 13, 1858, by the Yankton Sionx. The southwest corner of the state was sur- veyed preparatory to settlement in 1859, Dakota and Dixons counties, Nebraska, having been sur- veyed by Dr. John K. Cook two years before.

Mr. McHenry remained in Nebraska until 1861, when, on November 28 of that year, he was appointed chief wagon master under General John A. Logan, in the Third Division of the Thirteenth Army Corps, and later served in the Sixth division under General McArthur, of Chi- cago. Receiving his discharge in April, 1865, le returned to the west, and in 1868 learned milling at Vermillion, South Dakota, remaining there un- til 1876. In 1877 he came to Nebraska and built a sawmill near Jackson, Dakota county, which he

1086

COMPENDIUM OF HISTORY, REMINISCENCE AND BIOGRAPHY.

operated three years, and then moved to Wake- field, building a grist mill, which he ran until 1884.

Having purchased a farm near Emerson, Mr. McHenry enltivated the soil until 1900, when he sold his farm and moved to Plainview, building the mill and elevator which, with his son Thomas. he has been successfully running since that time. He has lately purchased a traet of land in South Dakota, and contemplates again adopting coun- try life.

Mr. MeHenry was born in St. Louis county, Mis- souri, in September, 1839, the son of Mr. and Mrs. James McHenry, Sr., who were both natives of the "Ould Sod." Our subject was reared near St. Louis, remaining there until coming into the west in 1857. He was familiar with Missonri during slavery days, and of southern Illinois when old Cahokia was a place of some importance, and its inhabitants still clung to their quaint old customs of the early French habitat.

Mr. McHenry was married at Jackson, Ne- braska, in May, 1865, to Mary Francis Jones, who was born in Cataraugus county, New York, a daughter of James of Ellen (Lynch) Jones, both natives of Ireland. To Mr. and Mrs. McHenry eight children were born, five of whom are living. They are: Ella; Kate, who married P. T. Flynn, of Anderson, Towa; Thomas, who is his father's mainstay in the mill; Rose; and Edward, who is engaged in farming in South Dakota.

Mr. McHenry has always adhered to the prin- ciples of democracy, being a great admirer of the peerless leader of the party. He is, with all his family, a member of the Catholic church.

Few living men have seen so much of the prim- itive west as Mr. McHenry, his knowledge of it extending back to the days when the Indians had full possession of the plains, before the settlers' wagons had pressed a track into the virgin prai- rie. He has passed through dangers of fire and flood, and has weathered many a wintry storm, at times being cut off from supplies and food for three days at a time. He has known the solitude of the wilderness when one might travel for weeks and months without seeing the face of a white man or hearing a word of his mother tongne. He became proficient in the language of the Sioux, and could parley with them without the aid of an interpreter. He has endured his share of hardships, and has well earned the com- petency he enjoys. He is seemingly as rugged as when he first braved the wildernes in his youth.

MICHAEL SHONSEY.

Michael Shonsey, the subject of this sketch, was born in Montreal, Canada, September 6, 1866, the second of six children. In 1869 the Shonsey family, consisting of the father and mother, two sons and one daughter, moved to Marion county, Ohio.

Mr. Shonsey lived in Marion county, Ohio, un- til the spring of 1880, when he went to Wyoming and located on the La Bonte, twenty-five miles south of Fort Fetterman. He was foreman for the Guthrie, Herd and Company cow outfit in Wyoming from 1880 until the spring of 1888. Mr. Shonsey first came to Nebraska in 1884 for the Guthrie, Hord and Company interests. In 1888 Mr. Shonsey left the Guthrie, Hord and Company Wyoming outfit. and went across the Platte river to the north side, and became foreman of the Lance Creek Cattle Company, going to the Carey C. Y. ontfit at Caspar, Wyoming, as foreman, until the spring of 1891. He then went to Powder river, Johnston county, Wyoming, taking charge of the E. K. ontfit of the Western Union Beef Company. located at the "Hole in the Wall." (the Ex-gover- nor Baxter outfit,) and was in charge of the E. K. outfit until the spring of 1893.

In the spring of 1893, Mr. Shonsey came to Central City, Nebraska, becoming connected with the T. B. Hord Cattle and Grain Company. About 1895. in connection with T. B. HFord, he purchased the Howard Crill ranch, more commonly known as the old Guthrie ranch, and since 1898, Mr. Shonsev has resided on this ranch. The ranch was known as the Wells and Hord Cattle Com- pany until October, 1906, and since that time has been known as the Hord and Shonsey Cattle Com- pany. There are seventeen hundred acres of deeded land in this ranch, which is located near Clarks, Nebraska, and they maintain an elevator at Clarks. They engage in the farming and grain business, and feed about two thousand head of cattle a year. Mr. Shonsey has been in various ways connected with T. B. Hord in 1876, having come to Wyoming with Mr. Hord in 1880 and en- gaged in the cattle business. He is a western man of wide experience in cattle, and the old range days.

Mr. Shonsey was married to Miss Olive Sisler in O'Neil, Holt county. Nebraska, January 14, 1900, and four children have been born to them: John Harold. Michael Jerrald. Thomas Benton and Mary Edna Margaret. Mrs. Shonsey died November 11, 1906. November 14, 1907, Mr. Shonsey was married to Hannah L. Harris, at Columbus, Nebraska.

J. T. GREEN.

Prominent among the leading old settlers of Madison county, Nebraska, the gentleman whose name heads this personal history is entitled to a foremost place. His home 'is on section twenty- three, township twenty-three, range four. Mr. Green was born in Michigan in 1875. His father, E. B. Green, was born in Ohio, and his mother, Elizabeth Green, was born in New York.

In 1879 our subject with his parents came to Madison county, Nebraska. where they bought railroad land and built a frame house. In 1894

1087

COMPENDIUM OF HISTORY, REMINISCENCE AND BIOGRAPHIY.

Mr. Green lost all his crops by the hot winds which made it hard for a young man starting to farm for himself. In 1897 Mr. Green was united in marriage to Miss Emma Denson ; they are the parents of three children, Charles, Alfred and Ernest.

CHARLES ROBINSON.

Charles Robinson, retired farmer, is the old- est of eight children born to Thomas and Sarah Robinson, his birth occurring in Pennsylvania December 15, 1849. Two years later his parents moved to Rock Falls, Illinois, and our subject re- sided there until he was twenty-one years of age, receiving his education in Illinois, and later be- coming interested in farming.

In the spring of 1870 Mr. Robinson came to Fremont, Nebraska, purchasing one hundred and sixty acres of land, and engaged in farming and stock raising. In the spring of 1872 he located in Boone county, Nebraska, farming and buying and selling stock. He also loaned money.

On March 4, 1872, Mr. Robinson was united in marriage with Sarah Casell, of Scotland. Six children wer born of this marriage, five of whom are living: Thomas Edward, married and living in Boone county, has one son; Fanny, who mar- ried Eck Burnside and has four children lives in Canada; Mary, who married Earnest Dufoe, lives in Boone county ; Alice, deceased; William, who is married and has one son, lives in Boone coun- ty ; Ethel, who married George De Lancey and has one daughter, lives at Fort Morgan, Colo- rado. Mrs. Robinson died February 18, 1895.

On March 5, 1900 Mr. Robinson was married to Mrs. Mary De Lancy, of Iowa, who had seven children by her first marriage; Charles, deceased ; Frederick, who is married and has five children, lives in Boone county ; Raymond, at home; Edith, who married Fred Kayes and has three children, lives in Nance county ; Ethel, who married Carl Babbitt and has four children, lives in Alliance, Nebraska ; James E., who is married and lives in Albion, Boone county, Nebraska; George, who is married and has one child, lives in Colorado.

Mr. Robinson has one brother living in Gree. ley county, Nebraska, two brothers in California, one sister in Belgrade, Nebraska, and one broth- er and one sister deceased. His father died in 1901 at the advanced age of one hundred years, and his mother in 1898. The father was one of the King of England's soldiers, entering the army in March, 1842, and receiving his honorable dis- charge in March, 1843. He had the distinction of bringing water from the River Jordan which was used for the baptism of Queen Victoria in her infancy.

Mr. Robinson is a republican in politics, and in early days served as assesor, and for four years as county commissioner. He was also city clerk at Cedar Rapids. He has been very prosperous and

successful, and owned at one time fourteen hun- dred acres of land, mostly in Boone county, and the greater part of it under cultivation. He also owns splendid town property. In the spring of 1906 he retired from active business life and moved to Belgrade, where he bought a good home and where he now lives. He is widely known and highly respected and is always interested in the welfare of his state and county.

MARTIN BRUBAKER.

In compiling a list of the representative farm- ers of Madison county, Nebraska, a prominent place is accorded the name of Martin Brubaker. For many years past he has been engaged in ag- ricultural pursuits in Norfolk precinct, and has done his full share as 'an old settler toward the development of the better interests of his com- munity, enjoying the respect and esteem of all who know him.

Mr. Brubaker is a native of Pennsylvania, and was born in 1849, a son of Daniel and Amy (Myers) Brubaker. His great-grandfather came from Germany, and his grandfather lived in Pennsylvania. They came west from Pennsyl- vania. to Illinois, living there four years, then drove to Fayette county, Iowa, where they lived two years. In 1870 Mr. Brubaker came to Madi- son county, Nebraska, with an ox team, and took up a homestead in Valley township. They first lived in a dugout with one side of logs; two years later they put shingles on the roof, and later built a good frame house. Mr. Brubaker also took up a timber claim. Fremont, Columbus and Sioux City were the market places at that time. In 1872 and 1873, grasshoppers took all the crops, and they were obliged many times to fight prairie fires. Deer an antelope were plentiful in those early days.

In 1870 Mr. Brubaker was united in marriage to Miss Anna Duel, and they are the parents of four children : Charles, Lee, Ora and Authur.

WM. KUMM.

Mr. Kumm, the subject of this sketch, lives on section three, township twenty-eight, range three, Pierce county, Nebraska. He was born in 1853 in Germany, where he was engaged in farming. He came to Westpoint, Nebraska, in 1889 and settled in Pierce county, Nebraska, in 1900, where he bought a section of land, and lost his crops in the same year by hail. He has received a com- mon school education.

Mr. Kumm was married in 1872 to Miss A. Gronouf; they are the parents of the following named children : Willie, Frank, Otto, Paul, Gus- tave, Amel, August, Anna, Emma and Ida. He is a member of the German Lutheran church and votes the democratic ticket.

1088

COMPENDIUM OF HISTORY, REMINISCENCE AND BIOGRAPHY.

HERMAN W. WINTER.

Herman W. Winter was born in Wisconsin on Deeember 9, 1860, and was the fifth of eleven chil- dren in the family of William and Wilhelmia Winter, who had seven sons and four daughters. William Winter, with his wife and three children !. left Germany about 1852, coming to America. One son, Carl, died on the vessel coming over. Mr. Winter and family and his father, Gottfried Winter, and wife, settled in Wisconsin, following lumbering and farming. William Winter served his adopted country during the civil war, and after the close of the war returned to Wisconsin.

In July, 1866, with his wife and five children and his father and mother, Mr. Winter came to Madison county with a German colony. In this colony there were forty families, and they were the original pioneer settlers of Madison county. They came overland by ox train, there being but two horse teams in this train. Mr. Winter en- gaged in farming, and was a resident of this county until his death, December 22, 1900. Ili widow is still living, with her sons, Herman, Carl and Frank, in Madison county. One son and one daughter live in Hayward, Wisconsin. The Win- ter family is widely and favorably known, and enjoys the esteem of many friends.

Herman W. Winter, the principal subject of this sketch, was reared in Madison county from his fifth year, and lived on the farm until his twenty-first year, receiving the usual local school- ing. In his twenty-first year he went into the harness shop of H. P. Freeland to learn the trade, and in November, 1881, he became a partner in the business. He is still engaged in the same busi- ness, and now has two complete and well equippe l harness and saddlery stores in Norfolk, enjoying a large trade.

Mr. Winter was married to Miss Matilda Zue- low, March 17, 1885. The Znelow family eame to Madison county in 1880. Mr. and Mrs. Winter have had nine children, seven of whom are liv- ing : Edmund, a teacher, is married and lives in Michigan ; Linda is a teacher in the public schools in Hoskins, Nebraska; Martha, Alma, Ruth, Max and Hertha, all at home and attending school. Mr. and Mrs. Winter and family have enjoyed good educational advantages, and are prominent socially in their community.

From 1890 to 1894, Mr. Winter was a member of the city council of Norfolk, from the first ward. On July 18, 1894, he was appointed county com- missioner to fill a vacancy, and in the fall of the same year was elected for three years, and re- elected for two succeeding terms, serving, in all, nine years. In 1894 he was also the chief of the Norfolk fire department. In 1908 he was elected to the city council for a two-year term, and erved as president of the council, and in 1910 was state treasurer of the Volunteer Fireman's Asso- ciation. He is president of the German church

choir, and has been a member of this choir for twenty-six years.

Mr. Winter began life in a business way prac- tically on his own resources, and has builded up a successful business, being one of Norfolk's most prominent business men.

F. SPLITTGERBER.

Among the leading old settlers of Pierce county, Nebraska, the gentleman whose name heads this personal history is entitled to a fore- most place. Mr. Splittgerber is a man of active public spirit, always lending his aid and influence for the bettering of conditions in his community. He was born in 1857, and is a native of Pomer- ania province, Bridenfeldte village, Germany. His father spent three years in the German army in 1848, in the war with Russia. In 1866, when Mr. Splittgerber was but nine years old, he suf- fered the loss of his father, mother, three sisters and one brother within five days, with the chol- era. He has two sisters still in Germany, but has not seen them for years.

Our subject remained in his native country until 1881, when he came to America. After land- ing in New York he came across the country, lo- cating in Pierce county, where he now lives. He worked on a section for several years after com- ing to Nebraska, earning enough money to help buy a farm. He now owns three hundred and twenty acres of good land in section twenty-nine, township twenty-seven, range one, on which are five acres of good trees. He suffered a loss from hail in 1905, but has prospered, nevertheless, and has a well improved place.

In 1879 Mr. Splittgerber was united in mar- riage to Miss E. Strelow, and fourteen children were born to them, nine of whom are still living; Herman, married Miss Winter, and has two chil- dren, Victor and Elda ; Frank, married Miss Sog- hom and has ore child; Paul, married Miss Kes- ting; Julius, Ether, Martha, Emma, Martin and Harvey.

Mr. Splitgerber is a member of the German Lutheran church.

FREDERICK BRUNS. (Deceased.)

Few of the pioneers of the west have filled so wide a space in the development of the region as has the late Frederick Bruns. In public life, as well as in the hearts of his fellow men, Fred Bruns, as he was familiarly known, has left an impress that will not soon be forgotten, although he has been gathered to his fathers. His span of life extended from the fifteenth day of August, 1826, when he was born in the kingdom of Hano- ver, Germany, to the sixteenth of November, 1908, when he passed away at his home in Nio- brara.

1089

COMPENDIUM OF HISTORY, REMINISCENCE AND BIOGRAPHIY.

Mr. Bruns spent the first thirty years of his life in his native land, then, in 1856, came to America. the voyage in an old sailship lasting seventy-five days. For two years he was interes- ted in a store in Chicago, with his kinsman, Mr. Woesterman, until the latter, in 1858, came to the west. and establishing a trading post at Nio- brara, Mr. Bruns joining a brother at St. Louis, with whom he was engaged in business until 1861. at the time of the outbreak of the Civil war. Mr. Woesterman, holding out such glowing accounts of the opportunities of the northwest, Mr. Bruns sold out his interests, and came to Niobrara. where the two developed an extensive business in trade with the Indians. having a trading post at Niobrara and a branch at Deadman's Bottoms, above Fort Randall. This partnership lasted ten years, when they divided their holdings of real estate and goods, each conducting the business for himself. Mr. Bruns early fitted himself for business success in the west, acquiring a fluent knowledge of the Sioux and Ponca languages, besides speaking English, German and some French.

After the flood of 1881, and the town was all moved to the new location to the west, Mr. Bruns discontinued his store, heing the only man remain- ing in the old townsite. His customers had all removed, leaving none from whom to draw pat- ronage. Having built a substantial brick store, with a dwelling above, the building could not be moved by the primitive methods and equipment attainable in the new country, so he remained, the last left in the deserted village. After dis- posing of his mercantile establishment, Mr. Bruns gave his entire attention to his cattle interests, which he had established some years before, and in this he continued in active work until within a few years of his death. He was a man of wonder- ful vitality, and retained his physical and mental powers to an advanced age, suffering bodily ail- ments only during the last three years of his life.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

Compendium of history, reminiscence, and biography of Nebraska : containing a history of the state of Nebraska also a compendium of reminiscence and biography containing biographical sketches of hundreds of prominent old settlers and representative citizens of Nebraska, Part 236

Author: Alden Publishing Company Publication date: 1912 Publisher: Chicago : Alden Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1402

Author: Alden Publishing Company
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Chicago : Alden Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1402