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 140

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 140

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HISTORY OF GAGE COUNTY, NEBRASKA

lenburg manifested his stewardship in liberal- ity and progressiveness, supported generously educational and religious activities and took loyal interest in public affairs of a local order. He was a zealous communicant of the Lu- theran church, as is also his widow, and he aided generously in the erection of two churches of this denomination in Blakely township. That distinctive success attended his well ordered endeavors is shown in the fact that at his death he was the owner of a landed estate of six hundred and forty acres, a portion of which is in Jefferson county. He was a specially progressive farmer, a leader in community affairs, and upon retiring from his farm, in 1909, he removed with his wife to Plymouth, Jefferson county, where he had purchased an attractive residence property and where he became a substantial stockholder in the Plymouth State Bank. There he remained until his death, after which his widow returned to Gage county and established her home on her present fine farm.

In the year 1874 was solemnized the mar- riage of Mr. Wollenburg to Miss Wilhelmina Mayer, who was born in Wurtemburg, Ger- many, October 18, 1848, a daughter of Jacob and Katherine (Schmidt) Meyer. She came with her parents to the United States in 1860 and the family home was established in Dodge county, Wisconsin, where the parents passed the remainder of their lives. Mrs. Wollen- burg is the youngest of the three children, her brother, Charles, being now a resident of Kay county, Oklahoma, and her sister, Reicka, be- ing the wife of Philip Boller, of Dodge county, Wisconsin. Jacob Meyer was born July 18, 1788, and his death occurred in 1875. By his first marriage he became the father of three children, - Jacob, Louis and Katherine, all of whom are deceased and the last named of whom was the wife of Frank Kuhn. The second wife, Katherine, mother of Mrs. Wol- lenburg, was born in 1805, and passed to the life eternal in 1867. In conclusion of this brief memoir is given the following record concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. Wol- lenburg: Helena is the wife of Michael Esch. a farmer near McCook, Redwillow county,

Nebraska ; William is a representative farmer of Jefferson county; Minnie is the wife of Daniel Esch, a prosperous farmer near Hoag, Gage county ; Carl is conducting successful farm enterprise in Blakely township; Clara remains with her widowed mother; Mary is the wife of Joseph Scheve, who is mentioned elsewhere in this volume; and Henry has the active charge of the old home farm, where he resides with his mother and his sister Clara, all being active members of the Luth- eran church and all popular in the social life of the community.

GEORGE F. HARPSTER. - The state of Pennsylvania includes the land deeded to Wil- liam Penn when King Charles of England owed him such a large debt he could pay it no other way. This transaction also afforded a means of getting rid of a bothersome sect, the Quakers, or members of the Society of Friends, who were getting altogether too powerful in England. King Charles believed he was sending away only the scum of his em- pire to the New World, but no better blood and better citizens have come to people our shores than the Quakers who settled in Penn- sylvania. From this line of sturdy folk came the forbears of George Harpster, who was born in Knoxville, Marion county, Iowa, October 14, 1858. His parents, Frederick and Mary A. (Yarger) Harpster, were both na- tives of Pennsylvania and their parents in turn were born in Pennsylvania. Frederick Harpster was the son of George Harpster, whose birthplace was the forenamed state and who eventually secured and farmed gov- ernment land in Seneca county, Ohio. The perilous journey to the Buckeye state was made on foot, and the family drove their cattle ahead of them. They started with a number of milch cows, but ere they arrived they had only one cow as an adjunct in starting their farming operations. We can see from this incident what a perilous journey it was. George Harpster and his good wife spent the rest of their lives on their land in Seneca county, Ohio, where they were laid to rest.

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Frederick Harpster, the father of George F. Harpster, was born in the Keystone state and endured the hardships of pioneer life in Ohio. It was in that state that he married Mary A. Yarger, who was born in Pennsylvania, a daughter of G. F. and Benivel Yarger, whose migrations were from their birthplace in Pennsylvania to Ohio and thence to Indiana, where they passed the remainder of their lives. Mr. Yarger was a tailor, and plied his trade at Carey, Ohio, but farmed after his re- moval to Indiana.

In 1857 Mr. and Mrs. Frederick Harpster moved to Knoxville, Iowa, where he followed his trade, that of tinner, and later he moved to Glasgow, Iowa, where he was employed in the same way. It was here, in 1862, that he died. Two children, Mrs. George Harris, and George F., the subject of this sketch, were his only children. The second marriage of Mrs. Harpster was to Casper Zerman and the two surviving children of this marriage are Frank, who is employed by a publishing firm in To- ledo, Ohio; and Flora, wife of A. L. Taylor, a harnessmaker living in New York. Their mother is making her home with them.

After the death of his father George F. Harpster lived with his mother and stepfather until 1871, when he came to Blue Springs, Nebraska. From Marysville, Kansas, the journey was made in the old-fashioned double- teamed stage. Mr. Harpster remained two years on the farm in Gage county and then went to Ohio, where he remained until 1880, when he again came to Blue Springs, where for fourteen years he was employed by the Roderick Brothers in their general merchan- dise store. He then engaged in business for himself, for five years, being thus established at Glenwood, Iowa. With three hundred dol- lars to start on in the way of money, but with a good deal of energy and self-reliance, Mr. Harpster purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land near Blue Springs in 1890, and to this he has added from time to time until he now has two hundred and eighty-five acres. He has continued to prosper and has now a nice home, with commodious buildings on his farm, close to the city of Blue Springs.

In 1881 the marriage of Mr. George Harp- ster and Ida Miller was solemnized. She is a daughter of John and Electa (Shattuck) Mil- ler, natives respectively of Germany and Ver- mont : they were married in Waukon, Iowa, and in 1882 homesteaded in South Dakota, where they remained until their death and where they are both laid to rest. Mrs. Harp- ster was born in Waukon, Allamakee county, Iowa, July 6, 1863. Mr. and Mrs. Harpster have three children: Myrtle is at home with her parents; Bert is living at Dawson, Ne- braska; and Leafy is the wife of Perry Schoenholz, of St. Paul, Minnesota, where he formerly was employed as superintendent of a bakery, but is now the manager of the Puri- tan Milk Company.

Mr. Harpster is affiliated with the Ancient Free & Accepted Masons, while he and his wife are both members of the Order of the Eastern Star and members of the Presbyterian church. His political views are in harmony with the principles of the Republican party, he is a valued citizen and is definitely worthy of the title of self-made man.

WENDEL KNOCHEL is a prosperous farmer of Lincoln township, where he is farming three hundred and twenty acres of land, in Sections 23 and 24. Mr. Knochel was born November 21, 1859, in Erie county, Pennsylvania, and is a son of Michael and Mary (Bage) Knochel. They were both born in Germany and they both came to this coun- try two or three years before their marriage. They were married in Erie county, Pennsyl- vania, where they lived, tilling the soil, until 1871, when they removed to Logan county, Illinois. The rich, fertile lands of Nebraska attracted them, and in 1880 they purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land in Lin- coln township, Gage county. Michael Knochel spent the remainder of his days at this home, and his death occurred June 11, 1912. His wife, who was born in 1831, survives him, be- ing now eighty-seven years old. She resides at Beatrice, and is a member of the Catholic church, as was also her husband.

The year 1880, when Mr. and Mrs. Michael

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HISTORY OF GAGE COUNTY, NEBRASKA

Knochel came to Gage county, their oldest son, Wendel, had just passed his majority. He helped his parents on the farm until his mar- riage to Elizabeth Eckstein, which occurred September 23, 1896. She was born in Rulo, Richardson county, Nebraska, June 24, 1866. Her parents, Henry and Christina (Rieff) Eckstein, were natives of Germany. Henry Eckstein was seventeen and his future wife, Christina Rieff, was eight years old when they left Germany. They were married in Indiana, and came to Rulo, Richardson county, Nebraska, in 1865. Mr. Eckstein plied his trade as a carpenter until his death. Three children were born to this union - Henry, Jacob, and Elizabeth, and Jacob is now a suc- cessful farmer in Elm township, Gage county. After the death of Mr. Eckstein, which oc- curred in 1866, his widow returned to Indiana, where she married Theophilus Van Hessche, a widower with two daughters. To this union seven children were born. Mrs. Eckstein-Van Hessche died July 18, 1911.

Mr. Knochel devotes his entire time to his farming and is ever ready for the newest and best ways of doing things. By his marriage two children, Grace and Clement, have come to bless his home. Mr. Knochel and his fam- ily are members of the Catholic church. In politics he votes the Democratic ticket.

ANTON BEZA. - There seems to be a law of continuity of events that brings mem- bers of the same foreign nation to certain por- tions of a state or county in America. There is a continuity of relationships that brings these people to one spot. The people from Bohemia have settled in great numbers near and in Odell, Nebraska, and it is to be sup- posed that the law forenamed has had much to do to draw one after the other of the same nationality to this favored portion of Gage county.

Anton Beza, a general merchant of Odell, Nebraska, is a son of Bohemian parents. He was born May 27, 1891, in Ashton, Sherman county, Nebraska. His parents, Vincent and Mary (Suchanek) Beza, have lived in Ne- braska for nearly forty years, having emi-

grated from their birthplace in Bohemia. Vin- cent Beza was born in 1857 and all of these years has plied his trade of wagonmaker, learned in the homeland. His wife was born in 1867 and thus on the date of her marriage, in 1883, she was only sixteen years of age. They were married in St. Paul, Nebraska, and five children have been born of this union. The children have all received liberal educa- tional advantages, in the city of Ashton, Ne- braska. Two of the sons entered the service of the United States, ready to give of their life blood, if need be, to protect the land and principles of their adoption, in connection with the great world war. Vincent F. is a merchant in Bellwood, Nebraska; Marie L. is clerking in a department store at Fullerton, Nebraska ; Leon R., of the United States medi- cal corps at Camp Funston, Kansas, was re- cently discharged on account of physical dis- ability; Anton is the subject of this sketch; Alphonso is on the United States dreadnought "North Dakota," now located "somewhere across the seas."

Anton Beza received his education in the Ashton public schools and was graduated from the high school in 1904. He has since lived the life of the average American youth. First he clerked for two years in Ashton; then he went from place to place, clerking in different stores. The little city of Filley, where he worked for Mr. E. W. Starlin, was one of the places he was thus employed previously to his finding the place and the conditions that so pleased him as to lead him to make a perma- nent location and establish himself in business. He first opened a grocery store in Odell, but he has added to his store until now he includes general merchandise.

The marriage of Mr. Beza to Eleanor (Singleton) Porter was solemnized Septem- ber 29, 1913. One daughter, Velma M., aged three years and six months (1918), has come to bless their home. Mrs. Beza was born July 5, 1882, in Glenwood township, this county, and is a daughter of John W. and Sarah F. Singleton. (See history of this family in an- other portion of this volume.) Her first marriage, to Porter Collins, was in 1903, and

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HISTORY OF GAGE COUNTY, NEBRASKA

two children were born to them - Esther, aged thirteen years, and Dorothy, aged eleven years. These two little girls are in the home of their stepfather and are receiving their education at Odell.

Mr. and Mrs. Beza attend the Methodist church. Mr. Beza is a member of a Western Brotherhood Association of Bohemians, known as the Z. C. B. J. He is a Democrat in poli- tics.

WILLIAM T. DAY has proved himself one of the resolute and self-reliant men who can master opposing forces in life and wrest from the hands of fate a goodly measure of success and prosperity, the while, ordering a course in such a way as to merit and receive the confidence and good will of men. Mr. Day has been a resident of Gage county since the year 1887 and has here' accumulated through his own ability and efforts one of the fine farm properties of the county. He was left an orphan when he was only three years of age and has made his own way in life since he was a lad of ten years. It may well be understood that under such conditions his early educational advantages were limited, but his alert mind and determined purpose have enabled him to overcome largely this youthful handicap, for he has profited greatly from the lessons learned in the stern school of exper- ience. He is one of the representative ex- ponents of farm industry in Barnston town- ship and is a citizen who fully merits recog- nition in this history.

William T. Day was born near Fredericks- town, Missouri, on the 1st of March, 1863, and is a son of Charles and Sarah Ann ( Mc- Crary) Day. Charles Day was a native of the state of Pennsylvania and became a resi- dent of Missouri prior to the Civil war. He was a farmer in Missouri and had previously owned land and been engaged in agricultural pursuits in Tennessee, where he resided a number of years and where he became the owner of a number of slaves. He was a Democrat in politics and he and his wife held membership in the Baptist church, he having passed the closing year of his life in Mis-

souri and his wife having died in Tennessee. They became the parents of six children and of the number the subject of the review is the only one living in Nebraska.

William T. Day was taken as a child from Missouri to Tennessee, the former home of his parents, and there he was reared to adult age, his educational advantages, as previously stated, having been somewhat meager. He early learned the dignity and value of honest toil and became one of the world's productive workers while he was still a youth. In 1887 Mr. Day came to Gage county, Nebraska, and at the time of his arrival in this state his capitalistic resources were represented in the sum of only one hundred dollars. There is a generous measure of lesson and incentive in the record of his achievement since that time, `for he has pressed steadily forward and has reached the goal of independence and sub- stantial prosperity. In Barnston township he is now the owner of the fine Riverside Ranch, which comprises two hundred and fifty-three acres and is one of the splendidly improved and valuable farm properties of Gage county, the place being devoted to diversified agricul- ture and to the raising and feeding of cattle and hogs, of which Mr. Day makes appreci- able market shipments each year. The beau- tiful family home is a throughly modern house that was erected by Mr. Day in the year 1915. on the banks of the Blue river, and the other farm buildings are of excellent order, the home farm being in Section 12 of the town- ship mentioned.

In furthering his individual advancement and success Mr. Day has also been mindful of his civic responsibilities and has given his co- operation in the advancing of measures and enterprises projected for the general good of the community. His political allegiance is given to the Republican party but he has not been a seeker of public office of any kind. He is a member of the Baptist church and his wife is a member of the Methodist church but as there are no churches of these denomin- ations in their home district they attend and support the Presbyterian church.

In May, 1884, was solemnized the marriage

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WILLIAM T. DAY AND FAMILY

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HISTORY OF GAGE COUNTY, NEBRASKA

of Mr. Day to Miss Sarah Harman, who was born in Claiborne county, Tennessee, on the 9th of January, 1868. Of this union have been born fourteen children, and of the num- ber all are living except three: Lulu is a popular teacher in the village schools at Adams; Julia is the wife of Byron Saylors, of Rosalie, Thurston county; Charles is a successful farmer in Gage county ; William L. was residing at University Place, this state, at the time when he entered the United States navy, for service in the great European war; Jesse was a student at Iowa College, Grin- nell, Iowa, but in the spring of 1918 he too became a member of the United States navy, he being stationed at the time of this writing at the training quarters at Charleston, South Carolina; John, Silas and Roy and Ray (twins) are at the parental home ; Leona died at the age of thirteen years; Darline and Es- telle are at home and are attending school; Henry E. died at the age of fourteen months ; and one child died in infancy.

J. W. BRIDENTHAL. - When Gage county land was fast being peopled by the farmers coming from Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and various other eastern states, as well as foreign countries, a family by the name of Bridenthal came and set up their home in our midst. Of J. W. Bridenthal, the head of this family, it was said: "Of the countless num- bers who have gone to settle up the new west few have been more enthusiastic, more thor- oughly absorbed with the thought that they were working for the future as well as for their own interests than has the gentleman of whom mention is here made." As the years have progressed it would seem that this were a prophecy of a life purpose fulfilled - a life which has so lately been drawn to a close.

J. W. Bridenthal was born at Chambers- burg, Pennsylvania, April 28, 1836, and died December 7, 1917. In 1845 the parents of Mr. Bridenthal left their farming interests in Pennsylvania and removed to Wayne county, Ohio, where he received the education the locality and period afforded. In comparison with the opportunities of to-day, these were

meager indeed. In his early manhood he started a slow process of getting farther and farther west, being located in different coun- ties of Indiana and Illinois, and in 1884 he made his last removal, arriving in Gage county on the 4th of April that year.

In Warren county, Illinois, where he had lived from 1860 until his coming to Gage county in 1884, he met the companion of his many useful and happy years. This compan- ion, who was Miss Eleanor Butler, was born in Plymouth, Marshall county, Indiana. Her parents, Isaac and Ann L. (Jones) Butler, were natives of Virginia and Pennsylvania respectively. Their married life commenced in Ohio, and after there continuing to make their home for some time, they moved to In- diana. Later, in 1864, they removed to War- ren county, Illinois. In this county they passed the remainder of their lives and there both were laid to rest.

The marriage of J. W. Bridenthal and Miss Eleanor Butler was solemnized at Plymouth, Marshall county, Indiana, on the 26th of October, 1860, and for over fifty-seven years their lives were spent in happy companion- ship. Six children were born to them, four of whom are living, as follows: Lake, a farmer residing in Wymore, was for some years a banker in the city of Wymore, one of the most attractive in Gage county ; Mae, the wife of C. W. Robertson, who for twenty-five years operated a dry-goods and grocery store in Wymore, is now living at Lincoln, this state ; Charles, a traveling salesman for the great wholesale house of Sprague, Warner & Company, of Chicago, resides in Minneapolis, Minnesota; Richard, for many years an em- ploye of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railway Company, married Mary Owens and resides in Wymore, their one child being Ken- neth D.

When Mr. and Mrs. J. W. Bridenthal arrived in Gage county they purchased land in Sicily township and there they continued their farming operations until 1904, when they moved to Wymore, where Mrs. Bridenthal still makes her home. Mr. Bridenthal voted the Democratic ticket and for a number of

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years served his community as county super- visor, he having been for some time the chair- man of the county board of supervisors. His life was an exceptionally unselfish one, and its greatest distinction was that he was always thinking of others and not how much he could get by giving the minimum in return. Such a life leaves its benignant impress upon many loving friends and relatives, as well as upon the community in general.

NORTON S. CALLAND - War is some- times inevitable, and cruel and heartless as its ravages are known to be, it is sometimes the only resort by which the rights of a people can be protected and maintained. When the cause is in and for the right, then to partici- pate in it becomes most honorable and praise- worthy. We have always taken great pleasure in giving credit where credit is due, and we never fail to recognize and appreciate the im- measureable honor due to those whose valor gained for us the national integrity which we now enjoy. In the gentleman whose name introduces this record we find another one of those brave and valiant men who went forth in defense of the Union in the climacteric period of the Civil war and whom it is our delight to honor.

Mr. Calland is a native of the Buckeye state, his birth having occurred in Noble county, Ohio, May 7, 1845. His parents were Robert and Nancy (Caple) Calland, the for- mer of whom was born in Scotland and the latter in Ireland. They were among the early settlers of Noble county, Ohio, where the father took up a homestead and where he and his wife spent the remainder of their lives. Robert Calland was twice married and became the father of fourteen children - ten by the first marriage and four by the second. Ile was a local preacher in the Wesleyan church, but after the war he became identi- fied with the Methodist Episcopal church. He was a Republican in politics and served as justice of the peace for twenty years. He was a successful man and owned four hun- dred acres of land. The paternal grandpar- ents of Norton S. Calland died in Ohio and

the maternal grandfather, Nathaniel Caple, also passed away in Noble county, Ohio.

Norton S. Calland spent the days of his boyhood on a farm in his native county and acquired his education in the schools of Sum- merfield. He was only a boy when the dark cloud gathered and the Civil war broke upon the nation. Watching the course of events, his patriotic spirit was aroused, and in Au- gust, 1862, though not yet eighteen years of age, he enlisted in Company D, Ninety-second Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and for two years and ten months he followed the flag in defense of the Union. Among the many engagements in which this regiment participated, some of the more important ones were those of Chicka- mauga and Missionary Ridge. Mr. Calland was with Sherman when the famous "march to the sea" was inaugurated. After leaving Atlanta Mr. Calland was detailed on a forag- ing campaign, and while thus engaged and detached from the Union army, he was cap- tured by the enemy, March 3, 1864. He was held a prisoner until the 2d of the following April. He spent twenty-one days in Salisbury Prison and seven days in Libby Prison. The horrors of those pens have never been ex- aggerated. The suffering was awful, unmiti- gated by a gleam of humanity on the part of their captors, and made the lives of the weary victims a wretched mockery. Nauseous food, impure water, crowded and vermin-infested quarters, contributed to disease and death, which took away many a valiant Union sol- dier. Mr. Calland was fortunate enough to be held but a short time. After serving his country two years and ten months he returned to his native county and took up the peaceful pursuit of farming.

In March, 1870, was solemnized the mar- riage of Mr. Calland and Miss Sarah M. Houston, a native of New York state. Their home has been blessed by the birth of seven children, six of whom are living - Cora, a widow, residing in Spokane, Washington ; Charles, a railroad employe at San Francisco, California; Kirby, a large land-owner in South Dakota; Edward, a farmer of Gage county ; Alma, the wife of Perry Black, of

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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 140

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