History of western Nebraska and its people, Vol. III, Part 32

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

USA > Nebraska > History of western Nebraska and its people, Vol. III > Part 32

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

In 1898 Mr. French married Miss Lowa Dickenson, the daughter of S. S. Dickenson, of

whom a record appears elsewhere in this his- tory. Six children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. French, three of whom survive: Doris, Warren, and Dorothy, all of whom are still at home.

Mr. French is independent in his political views, voting for the man he believes best qual- ified for office; his fraternal associations are with the Modern Woodmen and the Woodmen of the World.

GEORGE H. TURNBULL, a representa- tive citizen of Kimball county, where his well improved stock and grain farm is located, was born in Page county, Iowa, January 9, 1880. He is one of a family of eight sons and eight daughters born to Robert A. and Rebecca Turnbull, the latter of whom died in 1907. They were natives of Illi- nois, coming to Iowa, following their mar- riage, which took place after the father's honorable discharge from the Federal army. He served through the Civil War for three and a half years, in the Nineteenth Illinois volunteer infantry, participating in such important battles as Cickamaugua, Look- out Mountain and Stone Ridge. When he and wife went to Iowa they lived at first near Coin, in Page county, Clarinda is the county seat, much of the county being little settled. The father engaged in farming in Page coun- ty during his active years and is now de- ceased, dying February 8, 1920.

George H. Turnbull was reared on his fath- er's farm and attended the public schools in Page county. In 1908 he came to Kimball county, Nebraska, and homesteaded where he now lives, adding to his original purchase un- til he had one and a quarter sections, later selling three-quarters of a section to great advantage. He has placed excellent improve- ments on his land, pays close attention to his business, thrift and good management be- ing in evidence on every hand.

At Pawnee City, Nebraska, Mr. Turnbull was married to Miss Frances Lillian Correll, whose parents were Ohio people. Mr. and Mrs. Turnbull have an adopted son, William Gale, and a daughter, Erthel. He is a stock- holder in the Farmers Elevator at Dix and the Farmers Union store at the same place. He has never been particularly active in poli- .ics, has never desired public office, but he it one of the reliable, upstanding men of his community, whose good citizenship has never been questioned. He belongs to the order of Odd Fellows at Sidney and both he and wife attend the Presbyterian church. The mother

163

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES

of Mrs. Turnbull was born in York state and the father in New Jersey. They were the par- ents of eleven children, six boys and five girls.

JOHN W. ROBINSON, who for a number of years was a resident of Kimball county, was considered an able business man and good farmer and was highly esteemed for his sterling personal character. Mr. Robinson was born at Granville, in Putnam county, Illi- nois, in 1862, and died on his large estate in Kimball county, July 26, 1919.

Mr. Robinson had educational advantages in Illinois. From there, in early manhood, he went to Iowa, spent one year there as a farmer, then went to Gates county, Nebraska, where he rented land, moving from there to Chappel, in Deuel county, where he lived four and a half years. In 1913 he bought a quarter sec- tion of land there, for $38 an acre, which he sold for $62 an acre and then came to Kimball county, where he purchased two sections, which land is still in the possession of his family. At the time of his death Mr. Robinson had one hundred and fifty acres under the plow and sixty-five head of standard cattle. His death was occasioned by an apoplectic stroke.

In 1901 at Blue Springs, Gates county, Ne- braska, Mr. Robinson was united in marriage to Nannie Murgatroyd, a daughter of John and Elizabeth Murgatroyd, natives of Eng- land. The father of Mrs. Robinson came to the United States at the age of fourteen years, and the mother was two years old when her parents brought her across the Atlantic ocean. Both families settled in Racine county, Wis- consin. In the spring of 1867 the parents of Mrs. Robinson drove in a covered wagon from Wisconsin to Gates county, Nebraska, with their one son and five daughters, and one son and three daughters born to the father's first marriage. The father died in Gates county, April 19, 1891, and the mother, June 9, 1903. They were members of the Christian Science church. Two sons were born to Mr. and Mrs. Robinson, namely: Robartus S., who was born June 15, 1902 ; and Edward Lee, who was born February 13, 1904. They are fine young men and are very successfully carrying on the farm industries their father started so well.

JOHN R. MANNING. - To Nebraska's invigorating climate, one of Kimball county's enterprising and successful young farmers is indebted for restoration to health. He is Ar- thur Manning, owner of a half section of excellent land, a son of the late John R. Man- ning, who for many years was connected with

large business houses in St. Louis and Chi- cago.

John R. Manning was born and educated in New Jersey. He came as far west as St. Louis, Missouri, and in that city was united in marriage to Miss Mary Ebling, in 1890, in which city she was born, reared and educated. Two sons were born to Mr. and Mrs. Man- ning, namely: Arthur, born June 20, 1892; and John R., born July 18, 1897. For a num- ber of years John R. Manning was manager of the Famous Clothing Company, St. Louis af- terward becoming a salesman for the Spicer National Shirt Company of Chicago, and sub- sequently was agent for this large business house in both Chicago and St. Louis. He was widely know to the trade and was held in high esteem, was a member of the order of Knights of Pythias and belonged also to the Royal Ar- canum. Mr. Manning's death occurred in 1906.

In 1904 Mr. Manning had consented on ac- count of his son Arthur's delicate health, that the youth should accompany R. R. Barnes to Nebraska to prove what the climate might do for him. His improvement was so marked that in 1909 his mother and brother joined him and the family has lived in Kimball coun- ty ever since. After Arthur Manning had bought the half section that is the homestead, the former owner supplied lumber and Ar- thur and John erected the farm buildings. They have made improvements since then and now have everything comfortable around them. General farming and stockraising are the industries carried on and the young men have proved equal to all the responsibilities they have undertaken.

Arthur Manning was united in marriage to Miss Lulu Leverne Straub, daughter of Dan- iel and Phoebe Jane Straub, who came early to Nebraska, settling first near Fairfield but later moving to Kimball county. The father of Mrs. Manning is living but her mother died some twenty years ago. Mr. and Mrs. Man- ning have two sons: Glen Winfield Manning, who was born April 27, 1918; and Wayne Daniel, born October 25, 1919. Mr. Manning belongs to the Modern Woodmen and the Farmers Union.

JOHN F. BOGLE, who is a prosperous farmer and stockman of Kimball county, is also a keen and successful business man and is closely identified with many of the important interests at Bushnell. Mr. Bogle was born March 3, 1878, in Worth county, Missouri, a son of James W. Bogle, extended mention of whom will be found in this work.

164

HISTORY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA

John F. Bogle was reared on his father's farm and in boyhood alternated herding cattle with attending school. He was well trained in every agricultural industry and encouraged in every manly endeavor. In 1907 he came to Kimball county and homesteaded under the Kinkaid law six hundred and forty acres, six miles north of Bushnell, proved up and then sold advantageously. Mr. Bogle further dis- played business judgment in buying a quar- ter section north of Bushnell, a half section one mile east of Lodgepole creek, and ten acres adjoining the town of Bushnell, which, in the course of time will no doubt become a part of this thriving town. Mr. Bogle is en- gaged in general farming but gives a large part of his attention to his fine Holstein cat- tle and thoroughbred Poland China hogs, and additionally is doing a profitable land busi- ness.

In 1905 Mr. Bogle was married to Miss Rosa May Snider, a member of one of the promi- nent old pioneer families of the state, and they have three children, namely: James F., who is employed in the Farmers Union store at Bushnell; Merlyn Alva, a student in the Bush- nell schools, who is preparing to enter a com- mercial college at Grand Island ; and Ada May, who resides at home. Mr. Bogle is a man of high standing in his community and while not unduly active in politics, has opinions on public matters that he is not backward in mak- ing known when occasion calls for such ac- tion.

GEORGE A. ERNST, owner and proprie- tor of a fine estate in Kimball county known as the Pleasant View farm, has been a resident of Nebraska for thirty-five years. He was born near Hamilton, in Butler county, Ohio, December 10, 1862, a son of Jacob and Eliza- beth Ernst. They were both born in Bavaria, Germany and from there came to the United States in 1848, and after their marriage in Butler county remained there for many years. They were members of the Lutheran church.

George A. Ernst remained in Ohio until he was twenty years old, attending school in Miami county, south of Dayton, then went to Illinois, and from there, five years later, came to Nebraska in company with his broth- er John, on January 30, 1886, settling near Aurora in Hamilton county. In the spring of 1910 Mr. Ernst accepted a contract to break one thousand acres of land in Kimball county, for H. A. Clark of Columbus, and came with his tractor to accomplish what was a rather big undertaking. He was a pioneer in the sod-

breaking business here and continued in that line for about three years. In the meanwhile he had bought his present estate, a railroad section, and to its cultivation and improvement he has devoted much time and profitable ef- fort. He has about three hundred and sixty acres under cultivation, keeps some stock and takes pride and pleasure in his fine orchard. He set out seven hudred and fifty tree, some of which he lost during a severe hail storm, but his plum and cherry trees weathered it well. In addition to having an abundance of fruit for home use, he has had cherries to sell. His experiment has proved that' fruit will do well in Kimball county if proper pre- cautions are taken. Mr. Ernst has erected a fine modern residence and his barns, out-build- ings and fences are all substantial, the result being that Pleasant View farm justifies its name.

On December 22, 1887 Mr. Ernst was mar- ried to Miss Anna M. Donner, a daughter of Jacob and Veronica Doner, who came from Illinois to Hamilton county, Nebraska, in the spring of 1883. Mr. and Mrs. Ernst have had four children, namely: Ezra J., who was born April 25, 1893, is assisting his father and is a very reliable young man; Esther V., Mary E. and Ruth E., all of whom have been afford- ed educational advantages, Ezra J. being a graduate of the Aurora high school in the class of 1911 and the others from the Kim- ball high school.

Mr. Ernst and his family belong to the Christian Science church. He has never been particularly active in politics, but in the inter- est of law and order is careful when he casts his vote, believing that the privilege of citi- zenship carries with it a large amount of re- sponsibility. Mr. Ernst has been quite promi- nent in movements for advancing the welfare of the farming community, is a member of the Farmers Union, and is president of the Farm- ers Co-operative Company at Kimball. At a meeting of the board of directors Mr. Ernst was put in as manager on February 12, 1920, with the assistance of his daughter, Mary E., who had taken a course in state university commercial work and they soon restored the business in the confidence of the public, and from the time Mr. Ernst has taken charge, the affairs of the company have been much improved.

WOODFORD R. JONES, who is a large land owner and prosperous grain farmer in Kimball county, is a worthy representative of an old American family of many genera-

MR. AND MRS. ROBERT M. DE LA MATTER

165

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES

tions back, and he is justly proud to bear a Christian name that has been honored by fath- er, grandfather and great-grandfather.

Woodford R. Jones was born in Iowa, Janu- ary 10, 1882, a son of Woodford and Etta Jones, natives of Iowa, who came to Cheyenne county in 1885, homesteaded, then sold and bought a place near Dix, again selling seven years later. They now live retired. Extend- ed mention of the family will be found in this work.

After a happy boyhood on the home farm and a sufficient amount of school attendance for practical purposes, Mr. Jones invested in a section of land in Kimball county and is paying much attention to developing a grain farm, he has one and one-half sections. With three hundred and fifty acres in wheat and corn and with oats yielding ninety bushels to the acre, it probably is only a matter of time before he is one of the leading producers of "the golden food of the world," the bread that not only our own, but other lands are in such dire need of. He is a careful, intelligent, well informed farmer and good business man.

In 1903, Mr. Jones was united in marriage to Miss Charity Hammond, at Mason City, in Custer county, Nebraska. The parents of Mrs. Jones came from Harrison county, Indi- ana, to Custer county, Nebraska, thirty-five years ago. Mrs. Jones is one of a family of twelve children. Four children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Jones, namely : May, Fredy, Grace and Woodford, the son being the fifth in direct line of descent to bear the family name. Mr. Jones has no political aspirations but he is influential in business cir- cles as a member of the Farmers Union. He owns an interest in the Farmers Union store at Bushnell and also in the Farmers Elevator Company of the same place. The family at- tend church services and have pleasant social connections at Bushnell.

ROBERT M. DE LA MATTER. - Nearly forty years have passed since Robert De La Matter drove into Scottsbluff county in true pioneer style and settled on a homestead in township 22-57, section 36. This section of Nebraska at that time was mostly open prairie covered with the curly buffalo grass and prairie wild flowers ; habitations were few and far be- tween and civilization was still in its primitive form, so that today he belongs to that rapidly thinning coterie of men who blazed the way for the present great development of this favored section, and a worthy pioneer he has proved to be.

Mr. De La Matter was born in Illinois, July

29, 1852, being the son of Cyrus and Mary Ann (Rowe) De La Matter, a history of whose lives will be found in the biography of Judge De La Matter, of Gering.

Robert was reared in his native state by at- tending the common schools, living the life common to most farmers' sons, as he assumed many tasks around the home place, and thus became a practical farmer. When his school days were over he entered farming as an occu- pation compatible with his tastes and a voca- tion with which he already had an excellent working knowledge. His business life pro- gressed, but land in Illinois was high and as he was foot free, he decided to come west and on the high prairies take up enough land to make agriculture a paying business. After consider- ing various states west of the Mississippi where homesteads were yet to be had from the gov- ernment, Mr. De La Matter came to the Pan- handle and he must have been endowed with a far vision of what the future held for when he located in Scottsbluff county in 1888, he filed on a claim which has since come within the irrigat- ed district of the valley. Soon the prairie sod was broken, crops planted, a primitive bachelor establishment in running order and buildings erected for the stock and horses. Mr. De La Matter was a good manager, he was young, not afraid of hard work, and in the early days was willing to turn his hand to any honest occupa- tion that brought in a dollar and thus he was able to weather the hard years of the early nineties, when drought burned up his crops, blizzards killed some of his stock, and the grasshoppers took what was left, but he was not discouraged as were so many of the pio- neers and did not, like them return east, but stuck it out, and his faith in the Panhandle has been fully justified as is evidenced by the com- fortable fortune which the family today enjoy. With increased free capital from the sale of farm products Mr. De La Matter invested in other tracts of land adjacent to the homestead and today is the proprietor of a landed estate of 400 acres, all well improved with a part under ditch, which makes a fine combination for the general farm industries and stock-rais- ing which he conducts. From first locating in the county he has devoted much time to a good grade of cattle and horses and specializes to a considerable extent in breeding them. With the passing years new and better farm build- ings have been built on the place and a fine, convenient, modern home erected which is one of the most hospitable in the Morrill valley, where the De La Matter family is regarded with great esteem by the most recent settlers, who look to this old-timer as an example of

166

HISTORY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA

what industry, plus pluck and the modern methods he advocates and practices can accom- plish in this favored farming community. The home farm is one of the old school sections and is one of the well known places for miles around. It need not be stated that Mr. De La Matter has been a successful man and now that life's shadows are beginning to lengthen from the crimson west he can look back across the years and feel his to have been a life of achievement and it is this type of man to whom posterity owes a great debt as he helped in opening up what is today the very garden spot of the country.

On March 1, 1890, occurred the marriage of Mr. De La Matter to Miss Sophie Adair of Illinois ; she died March 22, 1899, and he mar- ried a second time in 1899, Mrs. Mary E. Blackburn. Mr. De La Matter is a Republican in politics, advocates all movements for civic and communal advancement, and is a citizen who stands high in the Morrill valley.

Mr. and Mrs. De La Matter are members of the M. E. church.

By former marriage he had two children : Jesse, on a claim in Wyoming ; William, has a claim in Wyoming. He has just returned from France where he saw service in the United States army during the World War. He en- listed September 22, 1917, and served until June 21, 1919.

THOMAS L. BOGLE, who owns and op- erates one of the big grain and stock farms of Kimball county, has developed this property from its original state, and in the process pass- ed through many hardships in earlier days. These are not forgotten but they have been overcome, and Mr. Bogle is now one of the county's substantial men.

Thomas L. Bogle was born in Gosper coun- ty, Nebraska, October 21, 1883, a son of James Bogle, extended mention of whom will be found in this work. Mr. Bogle obtained his education in the country schools, and made his first money by herding cattle. He was thoroughly trained in farm work and has never desired to enter into any other line of business. In 1907 he came to his present homestead, under the Kinkaid law being able to take up all of section thirty-two, the great- est hardship of living on the land at that time being the necessity of hauling all water used a distance of six miles. To this original home- stead he kept adding land until he owned twelve hundred acres, of which he later con- sented to sell two hundred and forty acres, when the transaction was very advantageous. At at the present time he has five hundred

acres in wheat, oats and corn, his 1918 harvest aggregating about two thousand bushels, the 1919 crop being considerably heavier. Mr. Bogle has over three thousand bushels of wheat this year and one hundred and seventy- five acres of fine oats, that are the best in this part of the county. He keeps quite a few good cows for cream and home use. While Mr. Bogle has not entirely eliminated horses for farm work, a large part is now done with farm tractors.

On February 15, 1905, Mr. Bogle was united in marriage to Miss Edith Hanes, who taught school for five years before her marriage, and is a daughter of Harvey and Sarah Hanes. Mrs. Bogle has one brother, Ellsworth. Her father was a wagonmaker by trade but the family lived on a farm and the father died near Des Moines, Iowa, in December, 1885. The mother of Mrs. Bogle, who was born in 1858, still survives. She has followed the profession of teaching since girlhood and is yet easily and satisfactorily going on with her educational duties, and resides near Stockville. She is a woman of culture, education and re- finement. Mr. and Mrs. Bogle have had the following children : Howard, Harold and Avis, and three who died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Bogle attend the Methodist Episcopal church. He is a member of the order of Modern Woodmen of Bushnell, and belongs to the Farmers Union at Bushnell, in which organ- ization he is interested as a stockholder. No family is more highly esteemed in this part of the county.

JOSEPH H. PHILLIPS, who is a promi- nent and representative citizen of Kimball county, has spent the greater part of a busy and useful life in Nebraska. He was nine years old when his people came to this state and there is much unwritten history that Mr. Phillips knows through experience.

Joseph H. Phillips was born in Wabash county, Indiana, March 18, 1878. His parents were Henry and Eliza Phillips, farming peo- ple who came from Indiana to Kimball coun- ty, Nebraska, in 1887, removing then to Kim- ball, in Cheyenne county. Of their eight chil- dren, there are four living, Joseph H. Phillips having one brother, O. C. who is a sheep man in Kimball county; and two sisters, Orpha, who is the wife of Louis Wayhouse; and Ruth, who is the wife of George Fast.

Mr. Phillips grew to manhood on the home farm and obtained a country school education, more practical than decorative, just what was needed for a young man starting out to find

167

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES

fortune as a farmer and stockraiser. Under the Kinkaid act he homesteaded and after- ward added two hundred and forty acres, this giving him eight hundred acres of fine land. He immediately began raising stock and has done remarkably well with cattle and horses, and at the same time has three hundred acres under fine cultivation, devoting it to general crop raising. Mr. Phillips is credited with be- ing an excellent farmer and a good judge of stock, but public affairs claim a part of his time. For six years he has been a county commissioner of Kimball county and has made a record of which he may be proud.

In .1900 Mr. Phillips was married to Miss Jennie Green, a daughter of Abel and Martha Green, who came to Nebraska from England, settling in the neighborhood of York. Mr. Green is deceased, but Mrs. Green survives and makes her home with her children. Mr. and Mrs. Phillips have had four children, namely: Mable, who is teaching school near her father's ranch; Bessie, who died Octo- ber 18, 1918, at the age of fifteen years, a victim of influenza ; Raymond, who is attend- ing school ; and Pearl, who is the youngest. Mr. Phillips and his family are members of the Presbyterian church, which they attend at Bushnell, where they have a wide acquaint- ance. At one time Mr. Phillips was active in the order of Modern Woodmen.

DAVID H. SONDAY, who is numbered with the substantial and representative men of Kimball county, an extensive land owner and for some years a business man of Bush- nell, is a native of Nebraska, born in Seward county, March 20, 1881, on his father's pio- neer homestead.

David H. Sonday was one of a family of seven children, four sons and three daughters, born to Edward and Elizabeth Sonday, who were born, reared and married in the state of Illinois. From there they came as early home- steaders to Seward county, Nebraska, where the family lived about thirteen years. The father died at Oberlin, Kansas. After his death the family moved to Brewster, Kansas. and the aged mother still resides there. Mr. Sonday has the following brothers and sisters : Nettie, who is the wife of Samuel Ayers, a retired citizen of Chappell; Amiel, who fol- lows the blacksmith trade at Brewster, Kan- sas : Joseph, who is a farmer at Brewster; Kate, who is the wife of Ernest Calkins, who is a farmer ; Louis, who is a farmer in Kan- sas; and Lucy, who is the wife of Walter Stair, a merchant at Brewster.

Until he was twelve years old David H. Sonday lived in Seward county, but afterward until 1900, at Brewster, Kansas, where he at- tended school. He had his own way to make in the world and after coming to Lodgepole, in the above year, was variously employed un- til 1903, when he went to Cheyenne and en- tered the railroad shops, working there as a machinist. In 1907 he was sent to Philadel- phia in the capacity of engine inspector for the Harriman system, and upon his return to Cheyenne, became shop foreman and con- tinued there until August, 1908. He came then to Kimball county and homesteaded un- der the Kinkaid law, and now owns two sec- tions of land. During 1916 and 1917, he en- gaged in the hardware trade at Bushnell, then returned to his ranch and since then has given close attention to his farm and stock. He has two hundred and fifty acres under cultiva- tion, a large acreage being in grain, and raises some of the finest stock that reaches the great markets from Kimball county. His improve- ments on the ranch include a comfortable ranch home, and he also has an attractive resi- dence at Bushnell. He has some important business interests here also, and is a stock- holder in the Bushnell State Bank.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of western Nebraska and its people, Vol. III, Part 32

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