History of Custer County, Nebraska; a narrative of the past, with special emphasis upon the pioneer period of the county's history, its social, commercial, educational, religous, and civic developement from the early days to the present time, Part 68

Author: Gaston, William Levi, 1865- [from old catalog]; Humphrey, Augustin R., 1859- [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1919
Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., Western publishing and engraving company
Number of Pages: 1180

USA > Nebraska > Custer County > History of Custer County, Nebraska; a narrative of the past, with special emphasis upon the pioneer period of the county's history, its social, commercial, educational, religous, and civic developement from the early days to the present time > Part 68

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On the 29th of May. 1861, Mr. Bellis wed- dled Miss Hattie Cornelia Sweezey, who was born in Illinois, and after their marriage they located on a farm near Winnebago, Illinois. where Mr. Bellis continued his active associ- ation with farm enterprise for the ensuing sixteen years. Mrs. Bellis passed to the life eternal in January, 1877. secure in the faith of the Church of God. Of the three children of this union only one is living - May, who is the wife of Frank McFarland, a farmer in the vicinity of Newell. Iowa.

In 1881 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Bellis to Mrs. Nancy J. ( Stark) Stine. widow of John Stine, who had served as a soldier in the Civil war, the three children of this union being Tillie J., Ellen May, and La Nora Ann Stine. Mrs. Bellis claims In- diana as the place of her nativity; she is a representative of a sterling pioneer family of the Hoosier state, and is seventy-one years of age.

In 1892 Mr. Bellis was ordained as minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. by the Nebraska eldership of the Churches of God in Nebraska. .At the time of the present writing he has charge of the Church of God at Berwyn. Cus- ter county. It is interesting to record that Mr. Bellis personally revised this sketch. and that without the aid of glasses. For twenty- six years he has preached locally. having srent eleven years of that time at Weissert. without interruption, and at times during his .career of spreading the Gospel he has traveled many miles by team to address the people. The life of Mr. Bellis has been a long. useful

HISTORY OF CUSTER COUNTY, NEBRASKA

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MR. AND MRS. RICHARD BELLIS

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HISTORY OF CUSTER COUNTY, NEBRASKA

and inspiring one, and furnishes a lesson which cannot fail to have a good effect upon the minds of the young - those who are start- ing life without friends or helpful influences, just as Mr. Bellis did many years ago. His achievements make him deserving of the rev- erence and esteem in which he is uniformly held in his part of Custer county.

ROBERT Mc CARTY. - Born and reared on the farm which is now his home, Robert McCarty represents one of the pioneer fami- lies of Custer county. September 3. 1890, was the date of his birth and he is a son of Robert D. MeCarty, who is a retired farmer residing in Merna and whose life story, as a pioneer in Custer county, will be found elsewhere in this volume.

Robert McCarty married Miss Dora Ellen Thomas, who was likewise born in Custer county. She is a daughter of Charles Thomas, who was only a boy when he came to Custer county and who, when old enough, secured a homestead, his life record being given else- where in this history.

Robert McCarty is successfully engaged in farming operations on the old homestead. He and his wife are members of the Catholic church and are prominent in the younger social circles of the community. They have one child, Lucille M., born February 19, 1918.

OLIVER H. MEVIS. - Broken Bow counts on her role of honored and departed citizens none who left behind more numerous or substantial evidences of association with its affairs than did the late Oliver H. Mevis £

As a soldier, business man, investor and public- spirited citizen, he came and went among the people of his town from his arrival in 1890 until his death, August 5, 1913, and there re- mains in his wake an impression of practical usefulness, and of genuine, dependable char- acter - due in part to his sturdy ancestry, but more directly traceable to his untiring zeal and ready recognition of opportunity.

Mr. Mevis was born at Syracuse New York. January 22, 1836, a son of Hiram Mevis. His father was born in one of the eastern states and his mother in Holland. At an early date the family located at Lansing, Michigan, where Oliver HI. Mevis secured the advantages to be obtained by attendance in the public schools. He was still a young man when he left Michigan and removed to St. Paul, Minne- sota, where he was located at the outbreak of the Civil war. With youthful enthusiasm and

patriotism he offered his services to his coun- try, and during the following three years he fought gallantly as a member of Company D. Second Minnesota Volunteer Infantry. His service was crowded with experience, including wounds and capture by the enemy, and was characterized not only by the utmost courage in the face of danger but also by unremitting fidelity to duty. When he received his hon- orable discharge, Mr. Mevis went to Chicago. where he was united in marriage with Miss Anna Kernan, who was born near Three Rivers, Canada. Mrs. Mevis died, without issue, in 1896. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Mevis went to Galesburg, Illinois, where Mr. Mevis founded a dry-goods business, with a small stock of goods. Later he dis- posed of his interests there and went to Hills- boro, where. with a little larger stock, he en- gaged in a similar venture and carried on a successful business for a number of years. His advent in Nebraska occurred in 1879, in which year he settled at Fremont, where his business activities continued for eleven years. During all this time he had been constantly pushing further and further ahead on the road to success, and in 1890 he came to Broken Bow and opened a pretentious estab- lishment, which immediately attracted the patronage of the citizens of the community. This was the leading store of its kind and continued to be under Mr. Mevis' capable management and wise and far-sighted direc- tion right up to the time of his death,- and this in spite of the fact that he was an in- valid for three or four years preceding his (lemise. His guiding hand and alert mind were always felt in the conduct of the busi- ness which he had founded and which was still growing and expanding when death called him to his final rest. Mr. Mevis started his career with practically nothing, and he worked his way steadily upward until he was one of the substantial men of a community in which there were numerous citizens of inde- pendent means. In doing so he never found it necessary to take an unfair advantage of others, and his life record contains no dark pages in regard to disabling others that he might himself go unscathed in the battle for commercial supremacy. He made numerous wise investments, exercising his excellent business judgment and his faith in his com- munity at one and the same time, and among his purchases was a large block at the south- cast corner of the Public Square, a property which is still owned by his widow. Mr. Mevis was a faithful member of the Catholic church, to which Mrs. Mevis also belongs.

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He was a member of the Knights of Colum- bus and was a Republican in his political views.

October 27, 1897, was solemnized the mar- riage of Mr. Mevis to Mary Elizabeth Boures, who was born at St. Paul, Minnesota, a daughter of Thomas and Amelia ( Kernan) Boures, who were united in marriage at St. Paul, Minnesota, the father having been born at Three Rivers, Canada, and the mother at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

CANUTE LEE, who is industriously and successfully engaged in farming in the vicin- ity of Mason City, and whose specialty is the raising of cattle, hogs, and horses, is one of the sons of Norway who have found pros- perity in Custer county through the exercise of natural ability, good management, and per- sistent industry. His entire career has been devoted to the pursuits of agriculture, for from the time of his arrival in this country, as a child of three years, he has always lived on a farm and his interests have always been centered in the pursuits of the soil.

Mr. Lee was born in Norway, July 14, 1852, and is a son of Stephen B. and Ellen Lee, also natives of that country. He was the third in order of birth, the others of the children being: Bruns, who is now retired from active pursuits and makes his home at Los Angeles, California ; Nels, who died and is buried at Broken Bow ; Martha, who makes her home with her brother at Los Angeles ; Andrew and Margaret, who are deceased ; and Louis, who met his death at Los Angeles, California.

Canute Lee was about three years old when his parents came to the United States, in 1855, the first residence being in Henry county, Illi- nois, where the father was engaged in farm- ing for five years. From the Prairie state the family moved to Crawford county, Wis- consin, in 1860, and there the son Canute at- tended the public schools during and after the period of the Civil war. He was brought up as a farmer, and after a career of only or- dinary success in Wisconsin he came to Cus- ter county, Nebraska, and here, in 1889, he purchased his present property. The home of his parents was three miles north of Anslev. where they rounded out long and honorable lives, but Mr. Lee's property is situated near Mason City, being in section 15, township 13, range 18, where he has 160 acres in a good state of cultivation. Mr. Lee has had much success in his experiments in raising cattle, hogs, and horses, and his reputation in this direction has led him to be accounted some-

what of an authority upon the subject. Just as he is progressive in his private affairs, so he is likewise public-spirited and constructive' in his citizenship, and his support is never withheld from any worthy measure, whether religious, civic, or educational. His integ- rity in business dealings has never been ques- tioned, and, all in all, he is a very desirable citizen.

Mr. Lee married Miss Mary C. Nelson, a member of a Custer county agricultural fam- ily, and to this union there have been born five children: Ida, who is the wife of Ber- nard Schrader, a farmer of Custer county ; Edward, who married Miss Laura Dewey, of Ansley, and who carries on agricultural op- erations not far from the home place; An- drew, who married Miss Hulda Porath and who is his father's assistant in operating the farm; Amy, who is deceased; and Eunice, who lives with her parents on their home farm, on Elk creek.

JACOB B. KLUMP. - Among the men who came to Custer county during the early '80s were found a number of men who were veterans of the Civil war and who had also had experience in farming. They were men who were destined to assist in the development and upbuilding of this section. One of these was Jacob B. Klump, who, after many years spent in successful farming operations, is now living in comfortable retirement at Broken Bow.

Mr. Khuimp was born December 24, 1834, in the kingdom of Wurtemberg, Germany, and he is a son of John M. and Fredericka ( Wolf) Khump, who passed their entire lives in that country. There were seventeen chil- (ren in the family, of whom thirteen grew to maturity, and Jacob B. was the fifth in order of birth. In his native land he had the bene- fit of eight years of training in the public schools, and during his boyhood and early youth he was employed in his father's mill. In March, 1853, his mother took him before the district court of his home community in order that he might relinquish his citizenship to Germany, and not long thereafter he and his two sisters, Katie and Sophie, came to the United States and joined their uncle, Francis Klump, a farmer of Lake county. Illinois. Jacob B. Klump worked at whatever honor- able employment presented itself, and was variously engaged until the Civil war came on, when, in 1861, he joined Company G. Thirty-ninth Illinois Veteran Volunteers. under Colonel Light. He served his term of enlistment, three years, and then re-enlisted

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for a like period "or for the duration of the war." at Hilton Head, South Carolina, in the same company and regiment. While he par- ticipated in every engagement in which his regiment took part, he was of sturdy physique and glowing health, and was incapacitated only twice, when he received slight wounds. His big engagements numbered thirteen or fourteen, and at all times he proved a brave and faithful soldier. Mr. Klump's brother William, who had come later to this country, was a member of the same company and regiment and died at Morris Island, South Carolina, after serving nearly three years. In the Union army, he also had six brothers- in-law, three of whom died of wounds during their first year of service. In January, 1864. Mr. Klump secured a furlough and returned to Jo Daviess county, Illinois, where. on Feb- ruary 29th, he married Miss Jane Parkinson. a daughter of James and Christina (Hoy) Parkinson. He returned to his regiment and continued to serve gallantly, being advanced to sergeant and then to regimental color- bearer, and receiving two honorable discharges from the service, the last one in 1865. At that time he returned to his home in Illinois and purchased eighty acres of land, on which he continued to carry on operations with suc- cess until 1883. I-le then came to Custer county, Nebraska, and located near Cliff postoffice, where his wise management and industrious labor combined to bring him suc- cess and enabled him to accumulate a large tract of land. He made numerous improve- ments on his property, including the sinking of a cistern that held 1.000 barrels of water. and in 1888 he sunk a well 400 feet deep. at a cost of $600. When he reached advanced years he retired from active pursuits and re- moved to his present home, at Broken Bow. but he is still active and alert, and much of his time is spent in his repair shop, where his natural bent toward mechanics finds expres- sion.

Mr. Klump has been frequently called upon to serve in public positions and his record as an official is an excellent one. Before leaving Illinois, he served sixteen years as justice of the peace, being commissioned by four differ- ent governors, and since coming to Custer county he has been justice of the peace eight years and supervisor two years. Mrs. Klump died in 1906, having been the mother of eleven children, of whom nine are living: Sophia is the wife of Fred Bertram, a farmer near King City, Missouri, and she is the mother of six children ; Herman R., who is a resident of MePherson county, became the father of

six children, of whom three are living; Julia is the wife of James Molliwell, a farmer at Merna, and they have two children: Fred- erick W., who is a ranchman at Ringgold, McPherson county, married Ethel Butler : Miss Mary is engaged in teaching school at Lincoln ; Ruby is the wife of Fred Hackbarth. engaged in farming near Hershey, Lincoln county, and they have four children ; Hardy B., who served as a soldier in the Spanish- American war, is now a farmer near Arnold, Custer county : Miss Olive is engaged in teach- ing in the state of Washington ; August E., a farmer in Garfield county, married Lulu Martin and they have three children.

In 1907, at Broken Bow, Mr. Klump was again married, being united with Mrs. Mary Koch, concerning whose four children by a former marriage the following brief record may consistently be entered : Andy married Miss Clara Dale and they have two children ; Jacob wedded Miss Lizzie Harpley and they have four children: Oscar enlisted in the government airship service in connection with the nation's participation in the world war and at the time of this writing he is assigned to duty as clerk in the office of the major in government barracks in the state of New York: and Carrie is the wife of Clayton Yohn, their children being four in number.

Mr. Klump is one of the valued and appre- ciated members of the Broken Bow post of the Grand Army of the Republic, his wife holding membership in the Woman's Relief Corps, and both are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

FRANK J. MCCARTY is one of the younger generation in his native county and has had the good judgment to remain within its borders. Here he owns and operates a farm of 160 acres. Mr. MeCarty was born in his present home township, on the 11th of March, 1885, and is a son of Robert D. McCarty, of whom extended mention is made elsewhere in this volume.

While yet a young man at home. Frank J. McCarty began farming independently, by renting land. In 1912 he purchased his pres- ent farm, and he has brought his fields to a high state of cultivation, the while he has erected a substantial set of buildings and suc- cessfully carries on general farming.

Mr. MeCarty married Miss Mary Teahon. who, like her husband, was born in Custer county, and who is a daughter of Patrick Tea- hon, now deceased. The home of Mr. and Mrs. McCarty has been blessed with two chil-

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dren - Bernadette and Richard. The family are members of the Catholic church and in politics Mr. McCarty is a Democrat.

DANIEL R. ROCKWELL. - The career of Daniel R. Rockwell is an illustration of active and diversified energy, and in its work- ing out it has invaded the fields of agriculture. commerce, and public service. It has been the fortune and privilege of this prominent citi- zen of Broken Bow to have attained well merited success in each of the avenues of per- sonal endeavor into which his industry has taken him, and at the time of this writing he is giving his country exceptionally efficient service in discharging the responsibilities con- nected with the office of federal food admin- istrator for Custer county.

Mr. Rockwell was born in Chautauqua county, New York, November 5, 1866. His father, William H. Rockwell, was born in Bradford, Pennsylvania, the family having come from Germany, and settled at Bradford, Pennsylvania, where the grandfather was en- gaged in business. William H. Rockwell re- moved from the Pennsylvania home to Chau- tauqua county, New York, where he was re- siding at the outbreak of the Civil war. He was a volunteer for the Union service, and for three years fought gallantly with a New York infantry regiment. When he received his honorable discharge he returned to his home, resumed his civilian duties, and made as good a record in the paths of peace as he had in the strenuous energies of the great struggle between the north and south. His political support was given to the Democratic party, and he and his wife, whose maiden name was „Adaline Remington, and who was a daughter of Ransom Remington, were consistent mem- bers of the Congregational church.

Daniel R. Rockwell entered upon his ca- reer at a time when the usual run of boys are still enjoying the advantages of the public schools. He had opportunities for the train- ing of his mind in the district institutions of his neighborhood during the winter months, but he was a lad of only thirteen years when he left the parental roof and went to Benton county, lowa, where he found employment on the farm of his cousin, W. H. Rockwell. During the next eleven years he remained in that county, his industrious and energetic services always being found available by the farmers there, and careful saving of his earn- ings enabled him, in 1889, to come to Custer county, Nebraska, and buy a relinquishment claim on timber land near Sargent. Thirteen years of development work brought this land

to a high state of cultivation, and during this period Mr. Rockwell added to his holdings from time to time, so that to-day he is the owner of 960 acres of fertile Custer county land, in addition to which he has properties in other counties in Nebraska and in other states. His work at the start was of the hardest kind, but his ability, perseverance and ambition were able to stand any kind of strain, and he had the final satisfaction that comes only to a man who has accomplished some- thing worth while, by himself and for him- self. Mr. Rockwell took up his residence at Broken Bow in 1902. He had shown to him- self that he was possessed of business ability. and he proceeded during the next five years to demonstrate this same fact to the old Plano Company, for which concern he traveled throughout the surrounding territory, as a salesman of machinery and as a collector. When he resigned his position with that con- cern, he embarked in a business venture of his own, his line being hardware and furni- ture, and he brought this business to a point where it was paying large dividends. He has since disposed of his interests in this en- terprise. having accepted a very satisfactory offer. When he gave up his business cares, he did so with an absolutely clean slate, his reputation in commercial circles being one of the kind that will stand an acid test.

Mr. Rockwell's business record is not the only thing that gives him the right to be named as one of Broken Bow's first citizens. His public service also has been something far from the ordinary. He was early recog- nized as a man of ability, stability and worth, and after acting three terms as councilman he was elected mayor of the city. During the two terms that he served as chief munic- ipal executive, the community was given the benefit of splendid administrations ; numerous movements of a progressive nature in the way of civic betterment were started, and Broken Bow was the beneficiary in a number of other ways. That his record was clear was evi- denced in his appointment to his present posi- tion as federal food administrator for Custer county. Mr. Rockwell is a thirty-second de- gree Mason, and the family attend the Presby- terian church.

November 18. 1884. at Belle Plaine, Iowa. Mr. Rockwell married Miss Almeda Vadike, daughter of J. P. and Mary Jane (Drake) Vadike, well known and honored farming peo- ple of this community. Four children were born to this union: Edna I., who is the wife of Edgar B. Osborne, a prosperous farmer of Superior, Wisconsin, with one daughter. Robetta ; Ethel I., who is the wife of Thomas

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Rector, a railroad man of Superior, Wiscon- sin, with a daughter, Margarie: Miss Hazel, who resides with her parents at Broken Bow, and is a well known teacher in the public schools ; and Melvin, who is still a public- school student.

HARRY R. KNAPP. - So to direct one's affairs that it is possible to retire from the strenuous activities of life while still there are the best years of existence coming, is a reward that comes to but a favored few. Among these may be mentioned the present county clerk of Custer county, Harry R. Knapp, of Broken Bow. He has been a ranchman and business man, has made good in both directions, and now, while in retire- ment as to business affairs, he is still active and energetic in his community, and has so impressed himself upon the minds of his fel- low citizens that it has been recognized that he is of the timber of which good public of- ficials are made. He was elected to the office of county clerk in November. 1918, on the Republican ticket, and he assumed office Janu- ary 1, 1919.

Mr. Knapp is a Nebraskan by birth, train- ing, education, experience, and inclination. He was born at Wahoo, Saunders county, in No- vember, 1874, a son of John W. and Nancy I. (Tull) Knapp, natives of Hancock county, Illinois. John W. Knapp is a Saunders county farmer whose qualities of character have made his name in his locality synonymous with integrity and stability. He is an Odd Fellow. votes the Republican ticket, and at- tends the Methodist Episcopal church, in the faith of which he and Mrs. Knapp reared their five children. Three of these children survive: Harry R. is the subject of this re- view : Wirt E .. a well known grain dealer of Saint Louis, Missouri, who married Fay Har- ris, now deceased, is the father of two chil- dren, - Wirt E., Jr., and Laura ; and Roy C .. a farmer of Kearney, Nebraska, is married and has four children.

Alternating with his work on the home farm. Harry R. Knapp passed his boyhood in attending the local public schools. He had the further advantage of being sent to the high school at Wahoo and a business college at Fremont, but he was no sluggard in his youth, as his industry kept him energetically working and his first money was secured by strenuous labor on a neighboring farm in Saunders county, his emolument being fifty cents a day. He remained on the homestead until he had attained to his majority, at which time he struck out for himself, and his good

judgment in business affairs placed him in a position where, in 1907, when he came to Cus- ter county, he was able to purchase 1,000 acres of land, on Ash creek. After eleven years he retired from active participation in business affairs and took up his residence at Broken Bow.

As an intelligent and well informed man, co-ordinating his community's interests with his personal feeling, Mr. Knapp has been a constant observer of what is going on about him. He has been a constructive worker in assisting local movements, and his prominence in this direction led his party to give him the candidacy for the county clerkship. His per- sonal record is one that assures him of good support, and his business carêer is one of the kind that stands for an A-No. 1 rating. Fra- ternally, Mr. Knapp belongs to the Masons, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Woodmen. With his family, he holds membership in the Methodist Episcopal church.

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History of Custer County, Nebraska; a narrative of the past, with special emphasis upon the pioneer period of the county's history, its social, commercial, educational, religous, and civic developement from the early days to the present time, Part 68

Author: Gaston, William Levi, 1865- [from old catalog]; Humphrey, Augustin R., 1859- [from old catalog] Publication date: 1919 Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., Western publishing and engraving company Number of Pages: 1180

Author: Gaston, William Levi, 1865- [from old catalog]; Humphrey, Augustin R., 1859- [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1919
Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., Western publishing and engraving company
Number of Pages: 1180