History of Gage County, Nebraska; a narrative of the past, with special emphasis upon the pioneer period of the county's history, its social, commercial, educational, religious, and civic development from the early days to the present time, Part 138

Author: Dobbs, Hugh Jackson, 1849-
Publication date: 1918
Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., Western Publishing and Engraving Company
Number of Pages: 1120

USA > Nebraska > Gage County > History of Gage County, Nebraska; a narrative of the past, with special emphasis upon the pioneer period of the county's history, its social, commercial, educational, religious, and civic development from the early days to the present time > Part 138

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homestead farm; Lloyd is individually men- tioned in an article immediately following this ; and Dr. Dorr Crocker is a representative physician and surgeon at Centralia, Wash- ington.

LLOYD CROCKER. - In the foregoing context has been given a succinct review of the career of Hiram P. Crocker, father of him whose name introduces this article, and thus it is unnecessary to give further recapitula- tion of the family history. Lloyd Crocker has been a resident of Gage county from the time of his birth and in addition to having the distinction of being a scion of one of the honored pioneer families of this favored sec- tion of the state he has also made for himself secure vantage-ground as one of the repre- sentative members of the bar of his native county, with a large and important practice, and with residence and professional head- quarters in the city of Beatrice, the attractive capital and metropolis of the county.

On the old homestead farm in Filley town- ship, this county, Mr. Crocker was born on the 3d of December, 1879, and his boyhood and early youth were compassed by the in- vigorating influences of the home farm, the while he continued his studies in the public schools until he had completed the curriculum of the high school in the village of Filley. In pursuance of higher academic discipline he then entered Wesleyan University, at Lincoln, Nebraska, and in this institution he was graduated in 1902, with the degree of Bach- elor of Arts. In preparation for his chosen profession he then was matriculated in the law department of the University of Nebraska, and in 1906 he received from this university the degree of Bachelor of Laws, with virtually concomitant admission to the bar of his native state. In July of the following year Mr. Crocker formed a partnership with Samuel Killen, with whom he was associated in prac- tice at Beatrice for the ensuing year. Since that time he has conducted an individual law practice, and has been concerned with much important litigation in the courts of this sec- tion of the state, with a record that marks him

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as one of the resourceful trial lawyers and able counselors at the bar of Gage county. As a staunch supporter of the cause of the Republican party Mr. Crocker was with the minority organization in Gage county the year he ran for county attorney, and thus normal political exigency compassed his defeat, as it did also on the two occasions when he was its candidate for county judge.

In 1906 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Crocker to Miss Maude Bowen, who was born in Pottawattamie county, Iowa, her father, Richard Bowen, a native of Wales, having become a prosperous farmer in Iowa, whence he eventually came to Gage county, Nebraska, where he was associated with the same fundamental industry until his death. Mr. and Mrs. Crocker have three children - Rachel, Arlo, and Eloise. The family is one of prominence and distinctive popularity in the social activities of Gage county and its attractive judicial center.

EILERT HARMS has, after years of tilling the soil and undergoing the privations necessary to own and operate the number of acres of land that he does, removed to Firth, Nebraska, and is successfully conducting a leading lumber business in this thriving town. The early years of Mr. Harms' life were spent in the crudest of surroundings and under the most simple conditions. A life of this kind always makes strong minds and bodies that are able to cope with the problems that con- front men. Eilert Harms' parents were Ger- man immigrants who came to this land of opportunity in 1856. They settled in Peters- burg, Menard county, Illinois, remained there a few years and then started for the fertile lands of Missouri. They homesteaded land in Atchison county, where they remained the rest of their lives. Ten children were born to them. Eilert, with whom this sketch directly deals, and Mrs. Fannie Johnson, living in Franklin county, Nebraska, are the only ones who survive. The parents, John O. and Ma- tilda (Rodemaker) Harms, were born in Ger- many. John O. was born in 1825 and died in 1907 : his wife was born in 1826 and died in

1906. They were industrious people, they reared a large family of children, and they labored to forward the march of civilization in Missouri.

Eilert Harms was born in Menard county, Illinois, shortly after his parents' arrival in this land of opportunity. As a lad he went with his parents to Atchison county, Missouri. There was very little opportunity for educa- tion in those early days. There were no schools in these new districts and even where one was built, the boys were given very little opportunity to attend. Mr. Harms thus re- ceived little education of the kind learned from books. He remained with his parents, learn- ing the art of farming at his own father's home, and when he decided on a vocation for himself he was equipped with the knowledge necessary to become a successful farmer.

In 1881 Mr. Harms purchased land in Sec- tion 6, Adams township, Gage county, al- though he did not come to live on and improve his land until 1885. With a good, strong team of mules he made the journey and upon his arrival he built his shanty and bought the necessary implements for farming. When all this was done he had not money left to do any more. But his heart was young, his young wife was at his side to share his hardships and his joys, and they bravely set to work to win the wild lands to productivity. During all of the intervening years Mr. Harms has continued to increase his land holdings, until to-day he owns six hundred and forty acres of land, in Gage and Lancaster counties.

Eilert Harms was married in August, 1884, to Anna Hackman, who was born December 12, 1864, in Nemaha county, Nebraska. Her parents, who were of German birth, settled in Nemaha county when land values were low and when hard labor was required to gain the necessities of life. Mrs. Harms' father, Charles Hackman, was born in Germany and died in 1865, in Nemaha county, Nebraska. His widow, Louisa Hackman, lives near Fil- ley, Gage county.

Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Harms: Lulu is the wife of A. Krue- ger, on the old home place in Adams town-

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ship; John E., who is in the lumber business at Firth, Lancaster county, married Miss Fannie Graff; Harry H., who resides in Lan- caster county, married Miss Goldie Burch- man.

These children have all received good edu- cational advantages. Mr. and Mrs. Harms wanted their children to have the opportunities of education which they were not able to get in their own youth. After finishing their work in the district schools the sons and daugh- ter were allowed to go to the high school. To do this properly and with the proper surround- ings Mr. Harms moved to Firth, in 1907, and gave his children every chance for advance- ment. When he first came to Firth he did not devote himself to any work outside of the supervision of his farms until 1911, when he purchased the business of the Farmers' Lum- ber Company, which he is now successfully conducting with his son, John E. Mr. and Mrs. Harms are members of the Lutheran church, which receives liberally of their sup- port. The principles of the Democratic party are upheld by the vote of Mr. Harms.

JOHN G. WIEBE. - Among the pioneer business men of Beatrice who have been called from earthly activities mention should be made of John G. Wiebe. He was born in Germany, January 16, 1835. He came to America in August, 1876, and after a short stay at Mount Pleasant, Iowa, he came to Be- atrice, in 1877, and established himself in the lumber business. He conducted this enter- prise until his death, which occurred January 20, 1911. The firm still retains the name of its founder.

In April, 1864, Mr. Wiebe was united in marriage to Miss Lisette Penner, a native of Germany, and a daughter of Andreas Pen- ner, the Penner family coming to America at the same time Mr. Wiebe did : they were mem- bers of the Mennonite colony which came to this country on account of religious persecu- tion.

To Mr. and Mrs. Wiebe were born seven children, four of whom are still living: Mrs.

Henry Wiebe, of Blakely township; Henry; Anna ; and Mrs. J. H. Penner, of Beatrice.

John G. Wiebe was a good business man and a good citizen. His passing was a loss to his family and to the community. He was a devoted member of the Mennonite church and in politics was a Republican. His son Henry was born in Danzig, Germany, January 6, 1871. He was educated in the Beatrice pub- lic schools and entered the lumber business with his father. He and William Hamm are now the owners of the business conducted under the title of the J. G. Wiebe Lumber Company.

JOHN L. DAWSON. - When we hear the name of a famous general or a titled sol- dier our thoughts instantly revert to the in- spiring scenes of the particular battlefield on which he distinguished himself as a com- mander ; but the honored title expresses still more than the military prowess and skill of the bearer -it is a still broader term and marks the loyal devotion and dauntless cour- age of thousands of brave men without whose daring deeds the title could never have been won. A general may possess military genius, but if his commands do not fall on the ears of tried and true men, men of intrepid daring and unconquerable zeal, of devotion to cause and utter disregard of self, then his genius avails him naught. One of the bravest of the brave soldiers who helped maintain the honor of the famous generals during the Civil war, and forever placed a grateful country under obligations to him because of his zeal in her behalf, is the gentleman in whose honor we write this sketch. He has distinguished him- self not only by his honorable and ardent career as a soldier but he has also proved himself in every sense a noble, patriotic, in- dustrious, intelligent, and progressive citi- zen - one whose name deserves to be handed down in history.

Mr. Dawson was born on a farm in Stark county, Illinois, September 9, 1840. His par- ents were William and Amelia (Dorman) Dawson, the former of Irish descent and the latter a native of Maryland. They accompan-

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HISTORY OF GAGE COUNTY, NEBRASKA

MR. AND MRS. JOHN L. DAWSON

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ied their respective parents to Ohio and there met and married. In 1836 they became pio- neer settlers of Henry county, Illinois, and later moved to Stark county, where they spent the remainder of their lives. They crossed the Illinois river at Peoria when that place contained but one store, a blacksmith shop, and a few shanties. Here John L. Dawson was reared and when a young man he responded to his country's call and enlisted, July 6, 1862, as a private in Company E, One Hundred and Twelfth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. For three years he served with this regiment and he was mustered out of service at the expira- tion of his term of enlistment, at Greensboro, North Carolina, June 30, 1865. Some of the important conflicts in which he participated were the siege of Knoxville and the engage- ments at Camp Arthur, Resaca, Utah Charge, Franklin, and Nashville. After the last named engagement his regiment was sent to Alexandria, near Washington, where they camped until they were transferred to Fort Fisher. There they remained until the close of the war. He was a good soldier, always found at his post of duty, and when the war was over he returned to his father's home in Stark county, Illinois. In that county he en- gaged in farming and became the owner of one hundred and forty acres of land.

In 1888 Mr. Dawson came to Gage county, Nebraska, and purchased four hundred acres of land, in Wymore and Sicily townships. An orchard and a little shanty were the only im- provements, but he set himself to building and improving, and for twenty-eight years he suc- cessfully carried on his agricultural pursuits. He then retired to Wymore, where he now re- sides in a beautiful home, surrounded by the necessities and luxuries which he justly de- serves.

In Stark county, Illinois, on the 2d of Feb- ruary, 1871, Mr. Dawson was united in mar- riage to Miss Elizabeth Taylor, a native of England. She is a daughter of Jacob Taylor, whose record appears elsewhere in this vol- ume. Mr. and Mrs. Dawson have become the parents of three children: William A., a furniture dealer of Wymore; Jacob S., a far-

mer of Sicily township; and Ethel, wife of Charles Rossiter, of Wymore.

The family attend the Methodist church, of which Mrs. Dawson is a member. In politics Mr. Dawson votes with the Republican party, which he considers to have always been the party of progress and reform. The lapel of his coat is adorned with the bronze emblem which signifies that the wearer not only served his country as a soldier but maintains associa- tion with his army comrades as a member of the Grand Army of the Republic. He be- longs to Coleman Post, No. 115, of Wymore. Like many other defenders of the nation in the Civil war, Mr. Dawson has felt the ef- fects of service. In his own words: "Six months at a stretch living on fat pork and hard tack did not do me any good." To those brave boys of 1861-1865 the nation owes a debt of gratitude that never can be paid. Mr. Dawson has been as loyal to duty and citizen- ship in days of peace as when he followed the stars and stripes on the battlefields of the South.

THOMAS VASEY, a successful farmer of Sicily township, is a native of England, who immigrated to this country with his par- ents in 1883 and he has since become one of the influential farmers and citizens of Gage county.

Thomas Vasey was born in Scarborough, England, January 9, 1857, and is a son of Thomas and Hannah (Dowsland) Vasey. Thomas Vasey, Sr., was born in England, No- vember 23, 1822, and his wife, Hannah (Dowsland) Vasey, was likewise a native of England, where she was born October 17, 1822. They had become the parents of eight children ere they left their native land to cast in their fortunes with the people of the United States. In the spring of 1883 they took pass- age for our shores, and after their arrival they remained in Illinois for the summer months: in the fall they located in Gage county, Nebraska, where Thomas Vasey, Sr., rented land. September 13, 1888, the loved wife and mother passed to the life eternal, and July 11, 1894, Thomas Vasey, Sr., was

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laid to rest. Concerning their children the following brief record is consistently entered : William died in England; Jane died in Okla- homa ; George is a farmer of Alma, Nebraska ; Frank is a retired farmer residing in Beatrice, Gage county, Dowsland is a farmer in Liberty township, this county ; Mary is the widow of David Akers and resides in Illinois; John is in the dairy business at Beatrice; Elizabeth is the wife of James Langdale, an employe of the Union Pacific Railroad, at Beatrice, and he has three sons in the war service in which the United States is taking prominent part ; and Thomas is the immediate subject of this sketch.

Thomas Vasey received his education in the schools of England and attended the rural school of Holmesville for three months after his arrival in Gage county. April 6, 1897, he married Miss Cordelia Jones, who was born in Wales and who is a daughter of George U. and Anna (Cooper) Jones. Mr. Jones was born in the Cymrian district of Wales, July 13, 1842, and his wife was born in Flint, Wales, the place of her nativity having been in Hope parish and the date of her birth July 29, 1842. Their marriage was solemnized at Chester, Wales, September 10, 1865, and in 1871 they came to the United States. Mr. Jones first located at Shenandoah, Schuylkill county, Pennsylvania, where he remained ten years. He then removed to Racine, Wiscon- sin, but about six months later he located in Ohio, where, as a carpenter and builder he found employment in connection with work on the state capitol, in the city of Columbus. He continued his activities as a contractor and builder until he came to Gage county, Ne- braska, where he purchased land. He gradu- ally added to his landed estate, by buying land near Wymore, and in this part of the county he passed the remainder of his life, his death having occurred November 13, 1906. Mr. Jones was a very well educated man and never ceased adding to his fund of knowledge by wide reading and keeping abreast of the times. In Wales, before he sailed for this country, he was contributing some of his original poetry and other writings to a local paper.

He served Gage county in the legislature from 1897 to 1901. His parents, Ellis and Jane Jones, were born in the town of Flint, Hope parish, and spent all of their lives in their native land. His wife, Anna (Cooper) Jones, is a daughter of Captain William Cooper, an Englishman, and Elizabeth (Davis) Cooper, who was of Welsh parentage. Mrs. Jones is still living and resides in the home of Mrs. Vasey.

No children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Vasey. Giving close attention to his farming interests, Mr. Vasey does a general farming business on eighty acres, which he purchased in 1909 the same being in Section 13, Sicily township. Mr. Vasey has served for the past six years as road overseer. His po- litical views are in harmony with the tenets of the Republican party, which receives his vote. He is a member of the United Brethren church, while his wife is a member of the Presbyterian church.

ARTHUR T. TART. - The business suc- cess achieved by Arthur T. Tart, proprietor of the "All Night and All Day Garage," 112-14- 16-18 North Seventh street, Beatrice, is an illustration of what can be accomplished by the individual who grasps the opportunities of his day.

Mr. Tart was born August 9, 1873, in Kan- kakee, Illinois, and is a son of Stephen and Nettie (Hughes) Tart, of whose two children he is the firstborn ; the younger, Belle A., was born in 1874 and died in 1893.

Stephen Tart, father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Alburg, Vermont, Decem- ber 6, 1839. He was a son of Peter and Ros- lia (Terrien) Tart. Peter Tart was descend- ed from French ancestors who, in the early history of the New World, when both religious and economic oppression in the Old World forced so many to leave, came to Canada to live. After he had participated in the Revo- lutionary war in Canada Peter Tart came over into the United States. Suffering from a wound which he had received, he was cap- tured, but later he made his escape. For years after the war he farmed in Vermont.

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The latter part of his life was spent in Kan- kakee, Illinois, where, just before rounding out a century of years, he passed to his re- ward. He was ninety-nine years of age and his wife ninety-eight at the time of their death.

Stephen Tart, the father of Arthur T. Tart, received his early education in Bourbon- nais, Illinois, a French settlement two miles north of Kankakee. In 1861, when Civil war rent our nation in twain, he responded to the call to arms. He was a member of Battery I, First Illinois Light Artillery, having enlisted at Chicago. In the battle of Shiloh he was wounded, but later he was able to again ren- der active service in the preservation of the integrity of the nation.

After the war Stephen Tart engaged in the hotel business, which he successfully con- ducted. Politics soon absorbed a good deal of his time and attention. In 1889 he was elected county assessor and collector in Kan- kakee county, Illinois. He was a staunch Re- publican, faithfully voting that ticket. De- cember 6, 1870, he married Miss Nettie Hughes, a daughter of Henry Hughes, at Joliet, Illinois. Mrs. Tart was born in New York city, in 1852. In 1901 Mr. Tart re- moved with his family to Beatrice, Nebraska, and here his death occurred in 1906. His wife survives him and is living with her son Arthur. Mrs. Tart is a member of the Episcopal church. She is a sister of Charles Hughes, in whose biography, on other pages, is given a full account of the Hughes family.

Arthur T. Tart was reared in Kankakee, Ill- inois, where he received his early education in the parochial schools. Later he supplemented this discipline by attending a private college in Bourbonnais, Illinois. When he was twenty years old he was a traveling salesman for a wholesale merchandise firm of Lynn, Massa- chusetts: this was in 1893. From 1898 to 1901 he was employed by the government, in the forest-reserve department.

As early as 1883 Mr. Tart had been to Beatrice, Nebraska, to visit his uncles, Charles and Edward Hughes. In 1901, when contem- plating a change in his business life, he lo-

cated at Beatrice, with his parents. At this time he was employed as a salesman for a firm in Kansas City, Missouri.

June 30, 1904, recorded the marriage of Arthur Tart to Miss Emily E. Floyd, of Good- land, Kansas. She was the mother of two children, Arthur F. H. and Henry S., who are at home with their father. Mrs. Tart's death occurred in 1910. Louise Floyd, the sister of Emily Floyd, both daughters of H. H. and Amanda (Mahan) Floyd, became the wife of Mr. Tart in 1915. She was born at Abilene, Kansas. One child, Emily Isabelle, has come to bless this union.

Arthur T. Tart has had long years of ex- perience as a salesman, having traveled and sold goods in every state in the Union. His experience along this line made him see the possibilities of an all-night and all-day garage, and in August, 1916, he opened the first all-night garage in Beatrice, where his dream of success in this line of enterprise has been realized. He installed an all-night force and soon demonstrated the fact that night work was as important as day work. He has a large building, one hundred by one hundred and forty feet, fronting on North Seventh street. In this he is able to meet all the needs of his patrons as to storage, repairs, gasoline, accessories, etc. He carries a well stocked line of accessories and electrical goods.

Mr. Tart is an independent voter, exercising his franchise in support of the man and not the party. He is affiliated with the Modern Woodmen of America, the Elks, and United Commercial Travelers. Ile is a member of the Episcopalian church.

Mr. Tart is well known for his many ex- cellent qualities, his genial disposition, and sound business principles. He saw the oppor- tunity and grasped it, and he now has a well established business that is worthy of his time and talent.

JOSEPH LEGGETT. - The late Joseph Leggett was one of the gallant soldiers of the Union in the Civil war, was an early trans- continental freighter, was a successful far- mer in Gage county, and was a valued citizen

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MRS. JOSEPH LEGGETT

JOSEPH LEGGETT

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of his community. The story of the pioneers of the west is an interesting one, full of thrills, and marked by as many blood-curdling scenes as those depicted in any moving-picture play, so dear to the hearts of the "movie fans."

Mr. Leggett, in his work as a freighter from Omaha to Salt Lake City, Utah, drove a good, sturdy team of oxen. Most of the time on his journeys to and from Salt Lake City he had only the elements to contend with - the op- pressive heat in summer and the severe cold and the snow storms in winter. But occa- sionally the Indians interfered with the white man's trespassing on their happy hunting grounds. It was a band of this sort of In- dians that surprised and captured Mr. Leg- gett on one of his journeys, just as he was reaching the top of the mountains. He made his escape from them in a very novel manner. They were taking him, on foot back to their camp, and when they came to a ravine he pretended that he did not know how to cross, motioning them that they should go first. This they did, without any questions, and ere they knew what had happened he had shot three of them. The other two raced for their lives, and Mr. Leggett was left to find his way back to his wagon and oxen. Again, on an- other occasion, an Indian furtively stole upon him while he was feeding his oxen in a grassy meadow. They looked into each other's eyes at the same moment. The Indian wounded Mr. Leggett in the arm before he could reach for his firearm, but, nevertheless, the life of the Indian was the forfeit, as Mr. Leggett's aim was true and deadly. Such experiences as these were of common occurrence in the early days, and Mr. Leggett loved to recount them.

Joseph Leggett was born in Ohio, February 20, 1841. His parents, Joseph and Mahala (Puffunbarger) Leggett, had crossed the mountains from Maryland to farm the fertile lands of Ohio, where they reared seven chil- dren in their pioneer home. Joseph Leggett was the third child and was reared with his brothers and sisters in the old Buckeye state,

where he acquired his youthful education in the common schools of the period.

When the Civil war rent our nation asunder Mr. Leggett responded to the call of patriot- ism and fought throughout the conflict that preserved the Union. After the war he es- tablished his residence in Illinois.

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History of Gage County, Nebraska; a narrative of the past, with special emphasis upon the pioneer period of the county's history, its social, commercial, educational, religious, and civic development from the early days to the present time, Part 138

Author: Dobbs, Hugh Jackson, 1849- Publication date: 1918 Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., Western Publishing and Engraving Company Number of Pages: 1120

Author: Dobbs, Hugh Jackson, 1849-
Publication date: 1918
Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., Western Publishing and Engraving Company
Number of Pages: 1120