History of western Nebraska and its people, Vol. III, Part 13

Author: Shumway, Grant Lee, 1865-
Publication date: 1921
Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., The Western publishing & engraving co.
Number of Pages: 1056

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Elijah McClenahan was born in Keokuk county, Iowa. October 26, 1866, the son of Elijah and Elizabeth (Wilson) McClenahan, the former a native of the famous state of Kentucky, who settled in Illinois at a very early date at the time when the government was having difficulties with the Indians over their refusal to give up the lands they had ceded to the United States under a promise of removing west of the Mississippi river. Mr. McClenahan (senior ) was one of the men who helped build a log fort in Stark county when Black Hawk and his band went on the war- path with the idea of driving the whites out of their territory, and forts were necessary in various localities where the whites could gather for protection against their Indian foes, who crept stealthily upon the outlying settlements and murdered the unsuspecting women and children when the men were away or out in the fields. After remaining in Illinois for some years, Mr. McClenahan removed still farther toward the frontier and settled in Keokuk county, Iowa, where he engaged in agricultural pursuits, passing away there in his seventy- fifth year. Elizabeth Wilson McClenahan was born in Ohio, where she spent her early child- hood, receiving an excellent practical education in the public schools of that state; when a young girl her parents removed to Iowa and

HISTORY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA

she accompanied them to the new home in the west. In 1887, accompanied by her children, she became a pioneer settler of the Panhandle, settling on a homestead where the city of Scottsbluff now stands. She was a hale, hearty woman, enured to the hardships and privations through which she passed during the hard and trying years of frontier life, but was thrifty, willing to work, and of many good deeds, that stood in number as the years of her life count- ed by days. She was a devoted mother and it was for the advantages that her children might have that she located in this section at a time when habitations were few, civilization in its dawn on the high prairies, and privations many, but she lived to see that her faith in this section was justified, as she was over eighty years of age before summoned to her last long rest. She was a member of the Christian church. Elijah was the second child in the family and one of the seven who accompanied his mother to western Nebraska. Andy J., who lives in Utah, was the oldest but Elijah and Mrs. John Emery are the only members of the family in Scottsbluff.

Elijah McClenahan spent his youthful years in Iowa, where he received the educational ad- vantages afforded by the excellent school sys- tem of that state. He helped his parents on the farm, thus at an early age becoming well acquainted with the practical side of farm in- dustry, as he early assumed what duties he was capable of carrying on a pair of young shoul- ders and what his growing strength permitted, for there is always plenty for a boy to do on a farm, from herding cattle to feeding stock and driving team and plow. When his mother came west Elijah was a young man just past his twenty-first birthday and he determined to establish himself independently and took up a homestead two miles west of the present site of Scottsbluff. He proved up on the land, broke the sod of the prairie for his early crops, and when his capital allowed, made good and per- manent improvements on the place in the way of a house and farm buildings. He engaged in diversified farming and stock-raising and during slack periods of farm work or when he could get some other member of the family to care for his stock, rode the range as a cowboy, as that was the period when the great cattle companies had vast herds on the plains and required great cattle camps for their many men who guarded and directed the manner in which the cattle ranged in feeding. It was in this way that he materially aided his financial re- sources and at the same time gained an invalu- able knowledge of the cattle business which was of great use to him in his own business

enterprises when the cattle barons and their monopolies were a thing of the past in the Pan- handle and where once was range is now a smiling countryside where the green crops wave in the breeze with many a flourishing village and town which are fine indications of the prosperity of this section once known and called the "Great American Desert." Mr. Mc- Clenahan from his first coming to this section had great faith in its agricultural possibilities ; he was determined that not only himself but others should have the most that their lands could produce. He was a man who kept abreast of the times, the improvements in farm methods and any project that would give a great yield from the soil, so that it is not sur- prising that he was one of the first to believe in and advocate irrigation for the Platte valley. The soil was fertile, the sunshine unfailing in the high prairie country, all that was needed to make this a garden spot was assured water, and there was plenty of it in the river. The problem lay in getting a sufficient quantity onto the land. He was one of the projectors and the first superintendent of the Winter Creek irrigation ditch, the pioneer project in this sec- tion. He helped not only materially but finan- cially in the building of the ditch, being the man who removed the first shovel of earth on the construction work, it might be said he laid the foundation stone for it. For fourteen years he devoted a large part of his time and much of his energy to the great and paramount ques- tion of the Platte valley, will irrigation pay? He kept a careful record of the amount of water used in the Winter Creek district, the number of acres it watered and the greater yield per acre under ditch, and it was from his careful and painstaking work, a report of which was filed with the government that the Reclamation Service decided to place Scotts- bluff county under government reclamation, which has been the making of the small land- holder along the Platte. Later, Mr. McClen- ahan was instrumental in the work of building the Mitchell ditch and the Enterprise project, which have so materially changed conditions of farming and settlement in this vicinity, and have developed a semi-arid region into one of the most beautiful and productive regions of the great commonwealth of Nebraska. In truth, "the desert now blossoms like the rose."

Inherited from his Blue Grass father, Mr. McClenahan has had a fine taste for horses all his life and when his capital permitted he in- vested in some fine blooded stock, raising polo ponies for the eastern market and high grade riding horses. He also owned one of the fast- est quarter milers of western Nebraska, "Ten-

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES

pins," who won many a race and was a source of pride to his owner. However, this was but a side-line of the extensive business in which Mr. McClenahan engaged, for, after the rail- roads were built through Scottsbluff county, he began to be one of the heavy and extensive cattle feeders of this section. Buying in the west he shipped here, fattened his stock and then shipped to the big packing centers of east- ern Nebraska and Kansas, a business which proved most successful, due to his early ex- periences in range cattle and his keen ability as a buyer. Up to the time of Mrs. McClenahan's death, Elijah lived with her, managing her landed interests. He is now a partner with Charles Beatty in a four hundred acre ranch southeast of Minatare, which they are devoting to diversified farming. Both men are progres- sive in their ideas, have introduced modern methods and use modern machinery and are reaping the reward which justly comes to men who devote time, brains and effort to the busi- ness in hand. Mr. Clenahan owns ten acres of land in the southeastern part of Scottsbluff which he is arranging for an extensive cattle- feeding yard, a project which has long been needed in this section, of which Scottsbluff is the center. In politics Mr. McClenahan is a member of the Republican party, and though he takes no active interest in the politics of the state, is intensely interested in the men who run for local office, believing that only good, conscientious men should fill public positions. On December 26, 1912, Mr. McClenahan mar- ried Miss Nellie Boone, a Hoosier by birth, be- ing reared and educated in her native state of Indiana. She was the daughter of John and Martha (Southerlin) Boone, both of whom were born and reared on the Wabash river. Mr. and Mrs. McClenahan have five children : Pearl A., Merle E., Joseph A., and twins, Nellie and Ellen, who have a bright future, as their parents are determined that they all shall have every social and educational advantage afforded by the schools of the town and state for the equipment of life's battle, which is strenuous at best. Mr. and Mrs. McClenahan are estimable people, who believe, advocate and support every movement for the better- ment of civic and communal life, and are held in high esteem by their neighbors, fellow- townsmen, and a large circle of friends.

WILLIAM P. HODNETT, M. D., who has been engaged in medical practice at Scotts- bluff for some years, is highly esteemed pro- fessionally and is equally valued personally. Dr. Hodnett was born at Danville, Virginia, September 2, 1883. His parents, William P.

and Belle (Price) Hodnett, are natives of Virginia and still live in the old home at Dan- ville. The father of Dr. Hodnett is a man of ample fortune, now practically retired. When the Civil War closed he, like many other resi- dents of the South, found it necessary to en- tirely rebuild his fortunes and was entirely successful. He owns valuable business prop- erty at Danville. He is of high personal standing there, has served in the city council for many years, is a sturdy supporter of the Democratic party and is a constistory Mason and a Knight of Pythias. Both parents of Dr. Hodnett are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. He is the only one of their seven children to establish a home in Nebras- ka.

Dr. Hodnett was liberally educated. After attending private schools he spent one year in Randolph-Macon college, Ashland, Vir- ginia ; two years in the Virginia State Univer- sity, and in 1912 was graduated from the medical department of the University of Colo- rado. After graduation he practiced for one year in St. Luke's and Mercy hospitals, Den- ver, then in the city of Denver and the mining camps near Telluride, in San Miguel county, Colorado. In the fall of 1916 Dr. Hodnett came to Scottsbluff, finding a ready welcome for a man of his professional ability, and con- tinued alone until March, 1918, when he form- ed a partnership with Dr. F. W. Plehn, the firm being recognized as one of the ablest in the city.

In 1912 Dr. Hodnett was united in mar- riage to Miss Eleanor Finley, of Denver, Colo- rado, and they have two children; William Finley and Virginia Belle. Dr. Hodnett and wife are members of the Presbyterian church and take active part in social affairs. In poli- tics he is a sound Democrat and for many years he has been identified with the Masonic fraternity. Dr. Hodnett belongs also to repre- sentative medical organizations and occasion- ally contributes to their literature.

D. J. POLLOCK, who is well-known through the Platte Valley as a cattleman and judge of stock, has been a resident of Scotts- bluff for some years and is interested in dealing in stock and also real estate. Mr. Pollock was born in Union county, Iowa, December 29, 1860, and is a son of James P. and Eliza (McVay) Pollock.

Mr. Pollock's father was born in Knox county, Ohio, a son of Samuel Pollock, a na- tive of Scotland, and the mother in Greene county, Pennsylvania, a daughter of Vincent

HISTORY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA

McVay, who was also born in Scotland and came in early manhood to the United States. Both parents died in Iowa, the father when aged eighty-seven and the mother sixty-eight years. They had children as follows: W. V., who resides at Gering, Nebraska, is a retired farmer; D. J., who resides at Scottsbluff; J. L., a resident and officeholder at Des Moines, Iowa; R. M., of Larned, Kansas, is a travel- ing salesman; and one deceased. The father was a farmer all his life. Both parents were members of the Scotch Presbyterian church.

After his school period ended, Mr. Pollock began to assist his father on the farm and has been identified more or less with farm activi- ties all his life. In 1916 he came to Scotts- bluff county and settled on land near Scotts- bluff that he had previously bought, and has made raising thoroughbred stock the main feature of his business since coming to the upper valley. He raises Duroc hogs exten- sively and has paid as high as $400 for a thoroughbred boar.

On October 21, 1891, Mr. Pollock married Miss Lillie B. Stalcup, who was born in Iowa and died in that state February 26, 1913, the mother of four children : Etha, connected with a business house at Scottsbluff; Zaida, at home; Dorothy, a student in Doane college, Crete, Nebraska ; and Howe, a mechanic for the Page Motor Company. The family be- longs to the Presbyterian church. In politics Mr. Pollock is a Democrat, and while living in Iowa, was the first of his political party to be elected to the office of assessor of his district. Mr. Pollock is held in high esteem as a man of sterling character.

MATHEW J. HIGGINS, general merchant at Scottsbluff, and an active, interested, public spirited citizen, is a business man of long ex- perience. He came to this city in 1913 and founded the Golden Rule store, through hon- orable methods and business integrity making the name significant. He was born at Camden New Jersey, November 4, 1879.

The parents of Mr. Higgins were M. J. and Esther (Rodgers) Higgins, the latter of whom was born and married in the city of Phila- delphia, and now resides in Iowa. The father of Mr. Higgins was born in Wilmington, Dela- ware, and from that state enlisted for serv- ice in the Civil War, entering company C, Fifty-first Delaware infantry, in which he served during the closing months of the war, during that time contracting disease which finally caused his death. After his marriage he engaged in the hotel business at Phila-

delphia, in 1876 removing to Iowa, where he was a merchant. He was a Republican in politics and was a member of the Presbyterian church. Of his seven children M. J. was the third in order of birth, the others being: Frank, in the grocery business at Malvern, Iowa ; William, in the employ of the Standard Oil Company, at Malvern ; John, a commercial traveler for a San Francisco business house ; Edward C., manager of the Penny store, at Blackwell, Oklahoma; and Charles, in the grocery business at Malvern. The mother of the above family is a member of the Episco- pal church.

Mr. Higgins attended the public schools in his native state and later the Chicago Univer- sity. He began business life as clerk in a store and had fine training as an employe of the great house of Marshall Field & Co., first in the Chicago establishment and later as one of the firm's highly regarded traveling salesmen. He then embarked in business for himself at Las Animas, Bent county, Colorado, where he confined himself to handling dry goods and shoes, and remained in business there for sev- en years. In 1913 he came to Scottsbluff, in- vested in property and started the Golden Rule store which has proved an exceedingly success- ful enterprise, his amount of business having doubled each year. He has been obliged to en- large his quarters to accomodate his large stock of dry goods, shoes and clothing. As a merchant here he stands in the first rank.

In September, 1904, Mr. Higgins was united in marriage to Miss Eva K. Knox, who was born at Grand Island, Nebraska, and is a member of the Christian church. They have an interesting family of four children, name- ly: Frank, Harold, Chester and Paul. Mr. Higgins is interested in all that concerns Scottsbluff, its schools, its business, its social advantages, and as a member of the city coun- cil, in which he is serving his second term, he carefully considers such matters and lends his influence accordingly. In the political field, Republican principles and candidates have al- ways been his choice. He has long been identi- fied with the Odd Fellows.

FRANK R. BECKER, who is well-known in business circles at Scottsbluff, is part owner and general manager of Diers Bros. & Com- pany store, with which important commercial house he has been identified for a period ap- proaching twenty-one years. He was born in Dearborn county, Indiana, in 1878.

The parents of Mr. Becker, J. P. and Mary T. (McCracken) Becker are deceased. The

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES

father was born in one of the Rhine provinces, Germany, and the mother in a New England state. The father came to Indiana when young and was married in that state and followed the carpenter trade and was an auctioneer. He came with his family to Butler county, Ne- braska, in 1883, and during his later years en- gaged in market gardening. His family con- sisted of four sons and two daughters. He was a Democrat in politics, a member of the order of Odd Fellows and he belonged to the German Lutheran church.

Frank R. Becker attended school at David City, Nebraska, but left when he reached the eighth grade, in order to become self support- ing. For eight years he was a clerk with the Diers Bros. firm at Fullerton, Nebraska. In the spring of 1905 he came to Scottsbluff and went to work for the same people, operating here under the firm name of Luft & Diers Bros. After the death of Mr. Luft, Mr. Becker continued with the other partners for three years and then resigned and went to the Mitchell Mercantile Company, where he had charge of the clothing department for three years. He then homesteaded six miles from Mitchell, on Dutch Flats, where he now owns eighty acres of irrigated land. On January 1, 1913, he came back to Scottsbluff to become manager of Diers Bros. Company store, in which he purchased stock, which he increased to a one-third interest on June S, 1914. Mr. Becker has demonstrated great business ca- pacity, having built up a comfortable fortune entirely through his own efforts.

On August 28, 1912, Mr. Becker was united in marriage to Miss Lacy Bryan, and they have one son, Frank M., who was born August 23, 1916. Mrs. Becker is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, to which Mr. Becker's mother also belonged. In politics he is a Democrat but no seeker for office. He is identified with the Knights of Pythias and the Scottsbluff Country Club.

JOHN R. KELLY, who is one of Banner county's progressive agriculturists and leading citizens, has lived in this county many years, homesteading in 1888 and never parting with his original purchase, which now comprises some of the most valuable land in the county. He was born in Worth county, Missouri, De- cember 7, 1867.

The parents of Mr. Kelly were John and Jerusha ( Millican) Kelly, the former of whom was born in Ohio in 1838, and the latter in Illinois, March 17, 1841. Her death occurred in January, 1907. She was a faithful member

of the Baptist church from girlhood. Of their six children, the two sons in Nebraska are John R. and Samuel. In boyhood the father of Mr. Kelley went to Illinois and lived there seven years as a farmer, married there, and then moved to Missouri, where he died in 1872.

John R. Kelley was only five years old when his father died. He started to go to school in Missouri, later went to school for a short time in Page county, Iowa, and when ten years old went to work on a farm in Kansas. He re- mained one year and then went back to Mis- souri, where he followed farm life for six years and then went again to Iowa for two years. After another year in Missouri, on March 23, 1887, he came to old Cheyenne county, now Banner, and in July following secured his homestead. At that time $100 would purchase 160 acres of land that now would bring $50 an acre. Mr. Kelly had to depend entirely on his own efforts, and after securing his claim, found it a serious undertaking to make enough money to make his payments. In those days real money was scarce in Nebraska and remuneration for any kind of labor was small, while farm produce brought but inade- quate returns in the market. Mr. Kelly relates that in 1892 he and his brother raised wheat and hauled it a distance of twenty-five miles to Kimball and sold it for twenty-four cents a bushel, and pork, at the present time one of the world's luxuries, commanded so small a price that it became a question whether the raising of hogs was worth while. The interest on money at that time had risen to thirty-nine per cent. In the fall of 1889 Mr. Kelly went to Hall county and husked corn in the vicinity of Wood river for a cent and a half a bushel, working for Fremont Dodge. The latter ad- vised Mr. Kelly to keep his Banner county land at all hazards, and the taking of this advice proved very advantageous to Mr. Kelly, al- though it necessitated much hard work to fol- low it. During those early years he worked for $1 a day, then acceptable by workers and employers alike, and to secure this had to travel as far as Greely, Colorado, and Chey- enne, Wyoming.

However, those times have long since passed away. Starting with 160 acres, Mr. Kelly ac- quired more land as his improving circum- stances permitted until at present he is the owner of 3,200 acres. It is mainly ranch land and his stock interests are very important. He believes Hereford cattle and Percheron horses the most profitable and feeds about ten head of horses a year and about 200 head of cattle, and raises annually sixty fine cows for breed- ing purposes. It was on Mr. Kelly's land that

HISTORY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA

the Prairie Oil & Gas Company sunk a shaft that struck an extra good grade of oil but at that time and with the company's facilities, did not seem to indicate oil in paying quantity. Further investigation has convinced Mr. Kelly, however, that some day he will have a well here with a profitable flow of oil.

On December 25, 1900, Mr. Kelly was united in marriage to Miss Anna Mckinnon, the ceremony taking place at Harrisburg, Ne- braska. She is a daughter of Hugh and Eliza- beth ( Mickle) Mckinnon, natives of Scotland, who settled in Banner county in 1889. They died in Harrisburg, the father in 1904 and the mother in Scottsbluff, May 3, 1918. Three of their children live in Scottsbluff county, Ne- braska, and two others, Mrs. Kelly and Ed- ward Mckinnon, in Banner county. Mr. and Mrs. Kelly have had two children, the one sur- vivor, Allison, living at home.

Since early manhood Mr. Kelly has taken an active part in public matters that he has be- lieved come within the scope of good citizen- ship. Politically he is a Democrat and has wide influence in county politics but has never accepted any public office except that of sheriff, serving one year (1896) by appointment, and two years by election, his term expiring in Jan- uary, 1899. He is a member of the Farmers Union, and is financially interested in the Scottsbluff Creamery and the Independent Lumber Company of Scottsbluff.

ERNEST H. KLINGMAN, a representa- tive business man of Scottsbluff, proprietor of a grocery house and a storage business, was born in Clayton county, Iowa, September 6, 1864, the son of Lewis and Elizabeth (Lowe) Klingman, the former born in Germany and the latter in Connecticut. The father was a blacksmith by trade and owned his own shop in Iowa, in which state he married and both he and wife died in Iowa. Of their seven chil- dren Ernest H. is the only one who lives in Nebraska.

Ernest Klingman had only country school advantages, and after his school days ended he remained at home and worked as a farmer until twenty-one years old. In 1888 he came to Nebraska and settled on the Middle Loup river in Custer county, where he remained two years, then lived one year in Holt county, be- ing a farmer in both places. Mr. Klingman then went to Oklahoma and from there to Kansas, in which latter state he remained six years working for farmers, then came back to Nebraska and accepted employment with Charles Richardson, who conducted a livery business at Broken Bow. In 1901 he came

to Scottsbluff county and engaged in a dray- ing business after which he invested in proper- ty at Scottsbluff and opened a confectionery store. In 1917 he erected a fine store building on his home lot and put in a stock of fancy and staple groceries from which he has re- ceived gratifying remuneration for the money invested as well as the thought and labor he has expended. His storage business is also a profitable source of income. This is but the merest outline of Mr. Klingman's ca- reer but it gives convincing proof that per- sistent industry and honest effort, will bring reward.

In 1889 Mr. Klingman married Miss Ma- tilda Predmore, who was born in Hardin county, Iowa, a daughter of John and Nancy Jane (Peters) Predmore, natives of Ohio. Mrs. Klingman was the fourth born in her parent's family of fourteen children, twelve of whom are living. Mr. and Mrs. Klingman have four children : Charles, Roy, May and Lloyd. The one daughter is the wife of John Montz of Scottsbluff. All three sons of Mr. Klingman have been in military service and attached to the heavy artillery and all are safe at home again after overseas service. Mrs. Klingman is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. In politics Mr. Klingman is a Re- publican.

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History of western Nebraska and its people, Vol. III, Part 13

Author: Shumway, Grant Lee, 1865- Publication date: 1921 Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., The Western publishing & engraving co. Number of Pages: 1056

Author: Shumway, Grant Lee, 1865-
Publication date: 1921
Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., The Western publishing & engraving co.
Number of Pages: 1056