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 93

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 93

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In politics Mr. Leininger is a Democrat and has always been more or less active in party affairs. For two years he was a member of the city council of Sargent and in every way is a man of reliability. He belongs to the order of Royal Highlanders.

HAROLD I. PERRIN, who is a prosperous business man and thoroughly respected citizen of Sargent, Nebraska, may lay claim to pio- neer ancestry, as his father came among the earliest settlers to Custer county. Mr. Per- rin was born at Sargent, this county, October 3, 1886, and has spent practically his entire life here. His parents are Similien L. and Sophia (Tobias) Perrin.

Similien L. Perrin was born in Louisiana. Forty-one years ago he came from Iowa to Custer county. Nebraska, and settled near the present site of the busy little city of Sargent. He actually broke the land on which Sargent now stands. He simultaneously secured a tree claim near Sargent and he continued to live on his land until 1899, when he moved into the town. For several years thereafter he was interested in the Beatrice Creamery Companv. An ardent Republican, he was frequently mentioned for political preferment, and finally he was appointed postmaster at Sargent. In this position he served seven years and then retired. Both he and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mrs. Perrin is a native of Illinois. Of their four children three survive, namely: Harold I .; Louis E., who is manager at Arnold, Nebraska, for the Dierks Lumber Company, married Lorene Rassmussen ; and Watt W., who is a farmer near Sargent, married Gladys Ruse.

Harold I. Perrin was educated in the Sar- gent schools and at Bradley Polytechnic, Peoria, Illinois, spending thirteen months in that institution, after which he went to Chey- enne, Wyoming, and passed a year there. In the fall of 1907 he engaged in the jewelry business at Sargent, and he has built up a large business in this line - probably the largest in Custer county. He carries a care-

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fully selected stock of all goods pertaining to this trade and is so favorably known in large centers that he can expeditiously fill any order for special goods or designs for suitable gifts for any occasion. Notwithstanding some busi- ness depression occasioned by the world war, he has continued to do a normal business.

Mr. Perrin was married January 5, 1910, to Miss Allona Wood. Her mother, Mrs. Mi- nerva Wood, survives and lives at Sargent. Mr. and Mrs. Perrin have two children - Virginia L., who was born May 28, 1916; and Robert H., who was born August 19, 1917.

In political opinion, Mr. Perrin is a Repub- lican, a thorough believer in the basic prin- ciples of this party. For some years he has been a Mason and is identified with the blue lodge at Sargent. He and his wife are mem- bers of the Methodist Episcopal church.

FRANK L. HICKS, who is a substantial retired business man of Sargent, came to Ne- braska in early manhood and for over forty years was identified with the drug trade. Before his retirement he was the leading drug- gist in this section of the country. The old settlers' organizations include him in their membership and few men are more widely known in Custer and Cedar counties, while none is more highly esteemed. Mr. Hicks has always done his part in the upbuilding of permanent enterprises of general value, and has willingly co-operated with other trust- worthy men in furthering movements for the benefit of state and county. He was born September 27, 1850, in Jones county, Iowa, and is the eldest of the ten children born to Frank M. and Frances A. (Little) Hicks, both of whom were born in New York.

In 1848 Frank M. Hicks removed with his family to Iowa, and that state continued to be the family home until his death. In the meanwhile he had served in the Civil war, as a member of Company H, Thirty-first Iowa Volunteer Infantry, and was honorably dis- charged June 11, 1865. In the first year of the war, on June 7, 1861, he was appointed a captain in the lowa State militia. For a num- ber of years he was largely interested in the Monticello (Iowa) National Bank. In politics a Republican, he served in public capacities and for several years was sheriff of Jones county. Both he and wife were members of the Congregational church. Their children were as follows: Frank L. is the subject of this review: Ophelia is the wife of Fred Penneman and they live in Louisiana ; Harry T. is a farmer in Alamosa county, Colorado ; Eben G., who is a retired farmer of Monti-

cello, Iowa, married Ella Jewett ; Elmer E. is a retired merchant of Monticello; Grant is a physician at Tacoma, Washington; Ernest, who is a lawyer and is practicing his profes- sion in Chicago, Illinois, married Cora Far- well ; Laura, who is the widow of Fred Koop, resides at Monticello, Iowa; Archibald G. is a dentist and is practicing in Tacoma, Wash- ington ; and Charles was accidentally killed when a boy.

Frank L. Hicks attended the public schools of Monticello and, as the eldest son of the family, assisted his father in his various en- terprises. In the meanwhile he studied phar- macy and, after some experience, he engaged in business as a druggist, in 1872. With the exception of two years spent on farms in eastern lowa, he continued in the same line without change until 1914, when he retired. Twenty years of this time were passed at Coleridge, in Cedar county, Nebraska, and the remaining years at Sargent, Custer county. Honorable and upright in all his business re- lations, and careful and conscientious in his particular line, Mr. Hicks built up a reputa- tion creditable in the extreme.

Mr. Hicks was married June 6, 1876, in New York, to Miss Vina E. Weller, and four children were born to them, two of whom sur- vive: Roy W., who is a druggist at Sargent, married Lulu Livermore ; and F. Ray, who is the government mail carrier between Ansley and Sargent, married Mate Livermore and they live near Sargent. Mr. Hicks and his sons are Republicans and take part in impor- tant campaigns. Mr. Hicks is past master of the Masonic lodge at Sargent and at the present time is secretary of the lodge. He has had business and personal relations with many of the men who have become distin- guished in Nebraska history and his remi- niscences are exceedingly interesting.

IVAN L. LEECH, who is one of the enter- prising young agriculturists of Custer county, operating a fine farm near Ansley, in section 32. township 35, is universally respected in his community, as are all other members of his family. He comes of county pioneer stock. his parents having settled in old Custer over thirty years ago. He was born near Wester- ville, this county, Nebraska, April 6, 1892. and is the youngest child of Corydon T. and Anna D. (Risley) Leech.

The father of Mr. Leech has long been a leading man in Custer county, a substantial farmer and stock-raiser, and many times a public official. He was born in Mercer county. Illinois, and from there came to Nebraska in

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1874, shortly after his marriage to Anna D. Risley, who was born at Aledo, Illinois. They still reside in Custer county and have the fol - lowing children: Cora, Floy, Nellie, Nina, Don R., Ralph R., Elsie, and Ivan L.

Ivan L. Leech completed the common-school course in Custer county and then spent two years of study in the Nebraska Wesleyan University at Lincoln, following which he was for one year with the Davey Tree Expert Company, at Kent, Ohio. In addition to his general agricultural activities, Mr. Leech con- tinues to some extent his special line of scien- tific study, being greatly interested in and na- turally well qualified for this work.

At Wayne, Nebraska, August 23, 1916, Mr. Leech was united in marriage to Miss Gladys Gaston, who is a daughter of Rev. William L. and Eleanor (Taliaferro) Gaston. Mrs. Leech has one sister and one brother: Elea- nor, who is the wife of Joseph Kern, assist- ant cashier in a bank at Vallejo, California, and Orvin B., who lives with his parents. The father of Mrs. Leech is pastor of the Baptist church at Broken Bow, Nebraska. Mr. and Mrs. Leech have one child, a son, Wayne Hillard, who was born in Custer county, October 28, 1917. Mr. and Mrs. Leech at- tend the Methodist Episcopal church at West- erville. In politics Mr. Leech, like his hon . ored father, is a Republican. He has never accepted political recognition of any kind, but is ever ready to co-operate with his fellow citizens when matters of moment to county. state, or nation are under consideration.

CORYDON T. LEECH .- One of the representative men of Custer county who has honorably and usefully filled numerous public offices in his township and community during the thirty-two years he has been here, is Corydon T. Leech, who still resides on the homestead he acquired in 1886. A pioneer in the county, he, like others in the early times, encountered adventures, accidents, depriva- tions, and hardships. In looking backward to those days, Mr. Leech feels that not all the heroes the country has known have fallen in battle, for the title of hero ought to be given to the early Nebraska settlers who with quiet courage lived through grasshopper scourges and water famines that meant blasted hopes of crops and that threatened starvation for wife and children on the devastated prairies. It is but simple justice to strive to preserve the names and histories of these "pathfinders" in the annals of the state and county for which they have done a great work.

Corydon T. Leech was born March 30,

1848, in Mercer county, Illinois, to which sec- tion his father, John H. Leech, had gone, as a pioneer farmer and cabinetmaker, from his birthplace, in what is now West Virginia. John H. Leech married Eleanor Robinson, who was born in Maryland, and they had eight children, four of whom are living - Adolphus M., Leonidas M., Corydon T., and Virginia Caroline. The parents were people of real worth and from the naming of their children it might be justly inferred they were intellectual and well read. To this fact, per- haps, may be attributed the academic educa- tion afforded Corydon T. Leech, who sup- plemented his common-school training with a course in Aledo ( Illinois) Academy. After his marriage, in 1874, Mr. Leech came to Ne- braska and located in Nemaha county, where he lived for eight difficult years, coming then to Custer county. He brought enough capital to enable him to buy a homestead right and he acquired also a tree claim. He gradually brought his land under cultivation and greatly improved it, and for many years he continued to farm and raise stock. He finally sold the old homestead and bought his present farm. With the exception of about four years passed in California, Mr. Leech has lived continu- ously in Custer county.

Mr. Leech was married at Aledo, Illinois, September 3, 1874, to Miss Anna D. Risley, a daughter of Thomas T. and Jane ( Hollowell) Risley, and they have eight children - Cora, Floy, Nellie, Mina, Don R., Ralph R., Elsie, and Ivan L.

A Republican in politics, Mr. Leech has always been a loyal party man, but in local matters he has never permitted political bias to sway him in the administration of the various public offices he has held. For many years he has been a school director and town- ship trustee, and he has served in other capacities also. He is a strong advocate of good roads and remembers how all the opera- tions of the settlers in early days were ham- pered by lack of the same, when commodities of every kind had to be transported from Grand Island and Kearney. Mr. Leech and his family belong to the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he is a trustee.

JAMES E. WERBER. - Among the many pleasant and progressive towns that have been developed in Custer county, Sargent is one that has taken the lead in many ways - part- ly, perhaps, because of the solid character of its foremost business men, among whom may be mentioned James E. Werber. Mr. Werber has spent many years in Custer county, is

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MR. AND MRS. RICHARD E. BREGA

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widely known, and perhaps no citizen is con- sidered more trustworthy. He was born De- cember 11, 1869, at East Peoria, Illinois, a son of John C. and Mary E. (Hoctor) Werber.

John C. Werber was born in the city of Hamburg, Germany. When eighteen years of age he came to the United States and set- tled first in Bureau county, Illinois. He thence removed to Iowa, where he worked at the trade of baker. Later he returned to Illinois, and there he was employed in the railroad shops at Bureau Junction until 1883. In the meanwhile he had married Mary E. Hoctor, who was born in Ireland and who died in Illinois, in 1880. They had five child- ren - Nellie is the wife of William Cramer, a farmer near Edwards, Illinois; John S., who is a farmer near Burwell, Nebraska, mar- ried Sophia Guggenmos ; James E. is the sub- ject of this sketch; Rudolph G., who lives at Allis, Colorado, married Lillian Nightengale ; and Mary D. is the wife of John Cramer, a farmer near Hanna City, Illinois. After the death of his first wife, John C. Werber mar- ried Maggie Hendrickson, and two children were born of that marriage - Harry, who lives in Ohio, married Rena Brannon : and Carl is a soldier in France at the time of this writing. John C. Werber died in 1897. In 1883 he had come to Custer county and se- cured a homestead north of Sargent.

James E. Werber attended the district schools and assisted his father on the pioneer farm after coming to Custer county. There were few of the settlers of that date who es- caped hardship and privation for a time, not because of their lack of foresight and good judgment, but because of unpreventable na- tural causes, and, with the others, the Wer- bers saw some hard times. Courage, industry, and never-failing hope finally had their re- ward and a fine farm was developed - one that has been listed with the most productive in this section. James E. Werber continued his farm industries until 1902, when he canie to Sargent and engaged in the grain business. handling a commodity that he had successfully grown for many years. In 1914 he added deal- ing in live stock to his grain business and in both lines he has made a business record.

Mr. Werber was married June 15, 1895, to Miss Nellie Laughlin, the adopted daughter of William and Harriet (Brown) Laughlin, and they have one son, Fern L., who was born January 3, 1896. He is an accomplished and reliable young man and at present holds a po- sition with the United States Shipbuilding Company, at Pascagoula, Mississippi.

In politics Mr. Werber is a Republican and

works intelligently and conscientiously for his party, but no political bias influences him in his services to the public as a member of the Sargent town council, an office he has held for two years. He is prominent in several fraternities, being a thirty-second-degree Ma- son and a Shriner. He has passed all the chairs in the local lodge of Odd Fellows and belongs also to the Ancient Order of United Workmen.

RICHARD E. BREGA, who is one of the representative citizens of Custer county, where he has lived since he was seventeen years of age, is one of the county's largest land-owners and heaviest taxpayers. He is prominent in business circles at Callaway, in the line of real estate and farm loans, and for many years has been one of the county's ablest lawyers. His many interests have given him a wide acquaintance, and his personal integrity has brought him esteem and general confidence.

Richard E. Brega was born at Brampton, Dominion of Canada, October 1, 1861. His parents were Frank B. and Charlotte (Bird- sall) Brega, and his maternal grandfather was Richard Birdsall, who was a government sur- veyor and acquired large holdings of Canada land, which he purchased when the price was but fifty cents an acre. The same land now sells for $100 an acre. The father of Mr. Brega was born in West Virginia and the mother at Peterboro, Canada. Of their family of children, the following survive : Richard E .. whose name introduces this sketch; William P., who is a foreman in the Cudahy packing plant at Kansas City; Charlotte, who is the wife of Frantz S. Dolph, a ranchman and stockman of Louth, Kansas; and Fannie L., a popular and talented actress, who for ten years has appeared on the stage under the name of Hope Latham.

In 1878 Frank B. Brega came with his family to Nebraska, and he located on jndi- ciously selected land which lies twelve miles northwest of Callaway. This land, which has undergone thorough development and im- provement, has remained in the family for forty years and now belongs to Richard E. Brega. Through wise investments Mr. Brega has acquired hundreds of other acres and is counted one of the most extensive land-own- ers in Custer county. His early education was completed before coming to Nebraska. but his law studies were prosecuted here and in 1892 he was admitted to the Nebraska bar. His professional career has been one of great

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success and one creditable in every way. He has secured a place as a representative men- ber of the bar of this section of the state.

Richard F. Brega was married December 4, 1884, at Westerville, Nebraska, to Miss Milly Varney, who is a daughter of Edgar and Amelia ( Tiffany ) Varney. The Varneys were among the very earliest settlers in Cuis- ter county and Edgar Varney was one of the first merchants. Mr. and Mrs. Brega have four chiklren - Emily M., Irene V., Valair, and Richard E., Jr. The eldest daughter, Emily M., is the wife of Ray B. Bennett, who is in the banking and life insurance business at Kearney, Nebraska, and who belongs to the Masons and Odd Fellows. Mr. and Mrs. Bennett have five children. Irene \'., the second daughter. is the wife of Jobn Balliet and they have four children. Mr. Balliet is a banker at Appleton. Wisconsin, and is also in the insurance business. He is identified with both the Masonic fraternity and the Odd Fellows. Valair, the third daughter. is the wife of Henry C. Johnston, who is a merchant in David City, Nebraska, and they have one child. Richard E., Jr., the only son of the subject of this review, is an appointee of Con- gressman Hitchcock to the United States Naval Academy, at Annapolis, Maryland.

In politics Mr. Brega is a Democrat and a very loyal party man, but he has never accepted political office for himself. He was reared in the faith of the Episcopal church and this church has often been the medium through which he has dispensed his charities. He is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodman of America.

CLARENCE METCALF, who since 1911 has been the proprietor of a thriving and con- stantly growing implement business at Sar- gent, has been a resident of Custer county since 1883. Mr. Metcalf is one of those who, having their early training on the farm, de- serted the soil to enter commercial pursuits, and have found success and prosperity there- in. It is not alone in business circles, how- ever, that Mr. Metcalf has been prominent, for his services to his community in public offices have been of a decidedly efficient and helpful character.

Mr. Metcalf was born in Wyoming county, New York, October 17, 1870, and is a brother of Plin L. Metcalf, a sketch of whose career will be found elsewhere in this work. As a lad he was taken by his parents to Ohio, where the death of the father occurred. The

mother, left with a family to support, came in 1883 to Custer county and located on a homestead, and in this community Clarence Metcalf supplemented, in the public schools. the education that he had commenced in Ohio. Mr. Metcalf remained on the homestead place until 1911, in which year, seeing an oppor- tunity, he removed to Sargent and established himself in the implement business, a venture that has since grown to large and important proportions under his capable management and untiring industry. He carries a full and up- to-date stock of all articles connected with an establishment of this kind, and courteous treatment, absolute fidelity to engagements, reasonable prices and expeditious service have combined to attract to his store a trade that extends over a wide stretch of the surround- ing countryside. His standing in business circles is an excellent one, and rests upon seven years of honorable and straightforward dealing.

Mr. Metcalf is a progressive citizen, and as such has always taken a keen and active inter- est in public affairs. His fellow citizens long ago realized his fitness for office, and as a re- sult he has been called upon to act in a num- ber of official capacities. For nine years he has served as township clerk, for a like period was a member of the school board of district No. 70, and he has also served three years on the Sargent school board. His service has al- ways been satisfactory and constructive and his official record is an excellent one.

Mr. Metcalf was married August 19, 1914, to Miss Abbie Fenstermacher, daughter of C. A. and Margaret (Hill) Fenstermacher, and a member of a family which is reviewed else- where in this work, in the sketch of Dr. C. H. Fenstermacher. Mr. and Mrs. Metcalf be- came the parents of one child: Verne H., who was born January 16, 1918, and who passed away November 29, 1918. Mr. Met- calf is a stalwart Republican in politics, and he and his wife are consistent members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

J. M. KNOX. - The story of J. M. Knox reveals the fact that he has lived in many parts of the country, that in moving from one place to another he has found no better place than Custer county and that with all his migrations he managed to have all his children, with one exception, born in Custer county. Mr. Knox is a native of Iowa and is a son of James and Anna ( Mason) Knox, both of whom were born in Ireland and both of whom lived to ripe old age, the father being eighty-three and the mother ninety-two years of age at the time of

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death. They were the parents of four chil- dren, J. M. being the eldest. The others are : Mrs. Emma Van Nortwick, whose husband is a retired farmer ; Mrs. Anna Reed, of Aurora. whose husband, likewise is a retired farmer ; and William, who is engaged in general farm- ing near White Sulphur Springs, Montana.

J. M. Knox was an infant when his parents came to Nebraska, and he lived for a time in Nebraska City, where he knew J. Sterling Morton. In fact, he helped to put up hay on the J. Sterling Morton place, and hence be- came well acquainted with the author of the Nebraska history contained in the first volume of this historical set. In 1870 he went to Thayer county, where he lived for twenty- seven years. From there he moved to Daw- son county, locating in the western part of the county and making it his home for six years. Then he went to Idaho, where he lived two years ; then, in 1902, to Custer county, Ne- braska, where he lived five years ; then to New Mexico, where he remained two years ; then back to Custer county, remaining six years ; then to Dawson county, where he still resides.

Mr. Knox married Miss Clara Marquiss, and to them have been born seven children : Ray is married and lives in New Mexico, where he is employed by an irrigation com- pany ; Paul lives on part of the old Black ranch in Custer county ; Wayne also has part of the Black ranch ; Mark lives in Round Val- ley, Custer county ; Laura Richards lives at home; Anna Marsh lives in Custer county ; Hazel is at home and is a school girl in the country schools, she being the only one of the children not born in Nebraska, as she was born in Idaho. Mr. and Mrs. Knox own city prop- erty, make their home in Sumner and are rated among the prominent and influential people of the place. They are members of the Methodist church. He affiliates with the Re- publican party, and has filled, with great ac- ceptability, such local offices as school trustee and road overseer in the communities where he has lived.

JOHN A. KENYON. - One of the repre- sentative business houses of Sargent which has been built up to appreciable proportions through the honorable conduct and honest in- dustry of its proprietor, is the furniture and undertaking establishment of John A. Ken- yon. A Custer county homesteader of 1885. Mr. Kenyon was for more than a quarter of a century identified with agricultural inter- ests, and the prosperity which attended his ef- forts as a tiller of the soil has been equalled

by the success which he has gained in his present business since its founding, in 1912.

Mr. Kenyon was born near the present lo- cation of St. Paul, Minnesota, April 14, 1855. and is a son of Ralph A. and Emerette (Nut- ting) Kenyon, natives of Rutland, Vermont The father took his family to Illinois about 1850, and in 1852 moved to Minnesota, where he homesteaded on 400 acres of land. Sub- sequently he traded his farm for a saw mill at Bradford, Iowa, that industry being in a flourishing condition at that time, but this proved an unfortunate move, as the saw mill was destroyed by fire and Mr. Kenyon lost his all. About this time the Civil war came on, and Mr. Kenyon enlisted, in April, 1861, in the Fourth lowa Cavalry. During his service, under General Grant and other noted officers, he was never wounded, but at one time he was captured by the enemy. He came through the war safely and established a splendid record. Always a man of great industry and energy, and quick to take advantage of opportunities, while in the service he began making pies, cakes and other delicacies for the soldiers, and this venture proved so profitable that when he received his honorable discharge, in October, 1865, and returned to his family at Bradford, lowa, he had saved enough to buy the best house there and to establish himself as pro- prietor of a farm. Later he sold this prop- erty and came to Gage county, Nebraska, where he homesteaded a tract near Adams. He continued to opearte this until his retire- ment, when he disposed of his interests and moved to Red Cloud, Kansas, where his death occurred in 1905. Originally a Whig, Mr. Kenyon later affiliated himself with the Re- publican party. He was a Mason, and he and his wife were members of the Christian church. They were the parents of six chil- dren, of whom five are living: George, who is now retired, was identified with the Swift Packing Company at St. Joseph, Missouri, for twenty-five years; John A. of this sketch, was next in order of birth ; Wallace B. is en- gaged in farming near Sargent; Helen is the wife of Val Johnson, a farmer near Enid, Oklahoma; and Rest is the widow of Mr. Sides, formerly a retired farmer of Hastings, Nebraska.

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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 93

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