USA > Nebraska > Platte County > Past and present of Platte County, Nebraska : a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume II > Part 56
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ALBERT AERNI.
Albert Aerni is a representative of a prominent, old and well known family of Platte county. He makes his home on section 9, Columbus township, where he is engaged in general farming and stock-raising, his place being appropriately named the Valley View Farm. He was born in Canton Solothurn, Switzerland, September 16, 1875, his parents being Frank and Magdalena Aerni. The father is still living and is the owner of an excellent farm of three hundred and twenty acres on section 11, Columbus township. The history of his life is given at length on another page of this work.
Albert Aerni began his education in the public schools of his native country, where he remained until he reached the age of nine years and then accompanied his parents on their emigration to the new world. The journey was continued from the Atlantic coast across the country to Platte county, and here Albert Aerni became a public-school pupil. He started out to earn his own living by working as a farm hand by the month and was thus employed for five years. He afterward engaged in the cultivation of the home farm until 1904, when he began operating land on his own account and in 1912 purchased his present farm, which comprises one hundred and eighty-two acres worth one hundred and fifty dollars per acre. The Valley View Farm is one of the valuable properties of Columbus township, con- veniently located, well improved and highly cultivated. In addition to raising the cereals best adapted to soil and climate Mr. Aerni is also extensively engaged in raising cattle and hogs for the market.
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On the 16th of June, 1904, Mr. Aerni was united in marriage to Miss Louisa Mueller, a daughter of Fred and Magdalena (Karlin) Mueller. They now have two sons, Albert, Jr., and Frederick. The religious faith of the family is that of the German Evangelical Lutheran church, while in his political belief Mr. Aerni is a democrat. He does not seek nor desire office, however, for he feels that his business affairs make ample demand upon his time and energies. He was early trained to habits of industry and his diligence enables him to overcome all obstacles and diffi- culties in his path and work his way steadily upward to success. He is regarded as one of the representative agriculturists of his community and his sterling traits of character have gained him warm personal regard.
GEORGE J. LOUIS.
George J. Louis follows farming in Columbus township, which is the place of his nativity, his birth having occurred on the 3d of August, 1870. While spending his youthful days in the home of his father, Jacob Louis, he attended school in Columbus and when his textbooks were put aside he continued to devote his time and energies to the work of developing and improving the home farm, upon which he remained until he reached the age of thirty-two years. He then removed to section 24, Columbus township, and began farming on his own account, his father's estate being at that time divided and bringing to him two hundred and forty acres of rich and arable land. The tract was, however, but slightly improved and the work of development and cultivation has been practically carried forward by George J. Louis, who has wrought a marked transformation in the appearance of the place. He has erected thereon a fine farm residence and has a splendidly improved property which embraces two hundred and sixty-five acres. His farm is an expression of his own personality. It represents the spirit of industry, determination and progressiveness which he manifests in everything that he undertakes. It is now well improved ac- cording to the most modern methods and the most modern ideas and as time goes on he further develops the property and also raises stock of higher and higher grade. It was in 1902 that he took up his abode upon his present place and his efforts in the intervening years have resulted in the development of one of the fine farms of the county.
In 1901 Mr. Louis was united in marriage to Miss Isis Tripp, a native of Kansas and a daughter of O. L. and Rachael (Lee) Tripp, the former a native of Ohio and the latter of Iowa. Both survive and they now make their home in Nebraska. Her father was one of the pioneer settlers of Kansas, living near Council Grove for a time, after which he established his home near Fremont, Nebraska, where he re- mained for a year and then returned to Kansas. Still later he again came to Nebraska and engaged in farming and buying horses in Platte county. He became a resident of Columbus in 1897 and is now living in Fremont. He has never had political aspirations but is a devoted member of the Baptist church and his wife is a very faithful and consistent member of the same church, being highly regarded as an earnest, Christian woman. To Mr. and Mrs. Louis have been born the following children : Ruth; George, who was born December 24, 1904; Katherine, born in 1905; Edward H .. who was born September 8. 1908; Charles J .; Helen; and Lucile.
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The family attend the church over which the Rev. Neumaerker presides. They are well known residents of Columbus township, where they have an extensive circle of warm friends, who esteem them highly because of their many excellent traits of character and their principles, which find expression in upright living and in con- sideration for others.
SAMUEL CARVEL TERRY.
Samuel Carvel Terry, who is now living in Monroe, is the owner of valuable land, having extensive holdings in Platte and Merrick counties. He was born upon a farm in Cecil county, Maryland, September 13, 1853, a son of Thomas and Margaret (Cone) Terry. The father's birth occurred in the same county in 1809 and there he passed away in 1878. Through the years of his active business career he was en- gaged in farming and in woolen manufacturing. His wife, who was born in 1817, survived him for more than a quarter of a century, passing away in 1906.
Samuel C. Terry had such educational advantages as the district schools of his home locality afforded at that period. He remained upon his father's farm until seventeen years of age and then began working in his father's woolen factory, de- voting two years to the tasks of a cloth finisher. Later he returned to the farm, upon which he continued to reside for a year and a half, and at the end of that period he spent three months as an employe in a sheet iron rolling mill. The suc- ceeding two years were passed in the further cultivation of his father's farm and in 1877 he made his way to the middle west, locating in Harrison county, Iowa, where he remained for three months. He afterward spent a brief period in Platte county, Nebraska, and in March, 1878, he took up his abode on section 4, township 18, range 3, where he homesteaded eighty acres of land and also secured eighty acres as a tree claim and eighty acres of railroad land. In 1891 he purchased one hundred and ninety-two acres adjoining Monroe and still owns one hundred and twenty-five acres of that tract, while he later purchased one hundred and twenty-five acres additional. He likewise has four hundred and forty acres in Merrick county and is thus one of the extensive landowners of his locality, deriving from his property a very grati- fying annual income. For a long period he successfully carried on farming, but at length, having acquired a competence, he put aside business cares and took up his abode in Monroe.
On the 22d of February, 1879, Mr. Terry wedded Miss Mary Wiley, who died April 6, 1890, leaving three children: Charles T. and Clarence R., who are graduates of the Monroe high school and of the Fremont Business College and are now engaged in farming; and Albinus, deceased. On the 16th of July, 1891, Mr. Terry was again married, his second union being with Mrs. Sarah J. (Dack) Hall. They have become the parents of five children: John Edward and Raymond Carroll, who are graduates of the agricultural department of the State University; and Viola Mar- garet, Ellen Jane and Morris Edward, all attending the local school.
Mr. Terry belongs to the Modern Woodmen camp of Monroe, of which he is a trustee. His political allegiance is given to the democratic party and he is now president of the Monroe school board, of which he has been a member for twenty-one years. During his long residence in the county he has gained a wide acquaintance
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and is well and favorably known in Monroe and throughout the surrounding country. He is a progressive, enterprising farmer and the integrity as well as the enterprise of his business methods commend him to the confidence and goodwill of all.
GUSTAVUS G. BECHER.
Gustavus G. Becher, living retired at Columbus, is well known in the city because of his previous activity in the real-estate field and in political and military circles. He has made his life an asset in the development of Platte county and is one of its oldest and most honored residents. His birth occurred at Pilsen, Bohemia, August 11, 1844, his parents being Gustav and Josephine Becher. The father was born in Carlsbad, Germany, and came to the United States in 1844. After becom- ing convinced that he would have opportunity to provide for his family in the new world he sent for them and in 1847 was joined by his wife, with their four daugh- ters and two sons, at St. Louis. While residing in that city the mother passed away and in 1856 the father came to Nebraska, establishing his home in Platte county.
Two years later Gustavus G. Becher of this review joined his father in Platte county and attended school to a limited extent, but his textbooks were put aside when he reached the age of fourteen years and from that time forward he depended upon his own resources. He had an older brother in Columbus who owned a general store and Gustavus G. Becher was employed in that establishment for several years. He afterward spent eight years in a hardware store in Omaha, where he began working at a salary of ten dollars per month. That he was industrious, capable and loyal and that his employers appreciated his ability is indicated in the fact that when he left the company he was receiving a salary of one hundred and fifty dollars per month.
Upon his return to Columbus Mr. Becher entered the government service, becom- ing a lientenant in the Pawnee Scouts, with which he served for four seasons through the summer and fall months. He was captain of his company for one year. He has done important service in public connections. In 1870 he took the census of Platte and Madison counties for the United States government, and ten years later, or in 1880, he took the United States census for Columbus township. He has filled the office of assessor of Platte county and for two terms, or four years, was county treasurer. He also served for one term in the state legislature, and in that position as in the others that he had filled he proved most loyal to the best interests of the community, putting forth effective effort toward advancing the general good. In his business career he also became well known. In 1870 he entered the real-estate and insurance field and for twenty-six years was treasurer of the Columbus Land, Loan & Building Association, from which position he retired in 1912, turning over his private business to Gus G. Becher, Jr. He was accounted throughout the entire period as one of the foremost real-estate men of this sec- tion, and activity and enterprise characterized him in all of his dealings, while his thorough reliability won for him the confidence and goodwill of all.
On the 29th of November, 1869, in Bon Homme, South Dakota, Gustavus G. Becher was married to Miss LeAnna Bradford, who died February 21, 1913, and
GUSTAVUS G. BECHER
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was buried at Columbus. They lost their first born, Maud, at the age of eleven months, and a daughter, Blanch B., who died in 1880 at the age of six years. Their other children are: Jesse B., now a resident of Duluth, Minnesota; Lora Ann, the wife of Clarendon E. Adams, Jr., of Los Angeles, California; and Gustavus G. Jr. The religious faith of the family is that of the Episcopal church, to which they faithfully adhere.
Mr. Becher was formerly identified with the Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias but has demitted from both. He still holds membership with the Masonic fraternity, however, having taken the degrees of the Knights Templar and of the Mystic Shrine. His political allegiance has always been given to the republican party, and he is a firm believer in its principles. His life has been directed by a high and honorable purpose, and he has endeavored to bring into practical force the ideals which be has cherished.
IRA E. GATES.
Ira E. Gates, an energetic and prosperous farmer residing on section 21, Colum- bus township, is specializing in the raising of high grade shorthorn cattle. He was born in Hartford, New York, in 1865, a son of Isaac D. and Luna B. Gates, both natives of the Empire state. In 1881 the family migrated westward and located in Colfax county, Nebraska, where the father carried on general farming until his demise. The mother is also deceased.
Ira E. Gates remained with his parents as long as they lived and was of great assistance to his father in the cultivation of the home place. He has continued to follow agricultural pursuits and since 1891 has resided upon his present farm in Columbus township, which comprises two hundred acres of fertile land. He also owns four hundred acres in Colfax county and gives a great deal of attention to raising graded shorthorn cattle, deriving a good income from the sale of his stock.
Mr. Gates was married to Miss Delilah Davis, a native of Columbus, and they have five children, Clarence, Henry, Helen, Charles and Roy. Mr. Gates votes for the candidates and measures of the republican party but has confined his political activity to the exercise of his right of franchise. He is a successful farmer and stockraiser, a public-spirited citizen and a man of unquestioned integrity, and his sterling worth has gained him the warm regard of all who have come into contact with him.
JACOB LOUIS.
On the list of Platte county's honored dead appears the name of Jacob Louis, who was one of the pioneer settlers of this part of the state and contributed in large measure to the early development and later progress of the county. His life record spanned the years between 1832 and 1909. He was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, and when a young man came to the United States, making his way to Ohio. He
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worked as a farm hand in the vicinity of Cincinnati for a time and afterward jour- neyed by rail to Des Moines, Iowa, from which point he made his way on foot to Columbus, Nebraska. At the time of his arrival the government survey had not been made, although the town had been laid out. However, it was a most tiny hamlet and there was little indication of what the future would bring to Platte county in the way of development, progress and prosperity. There were no homestead laws in effect at that time and all around was the wild, undeveloped prairie offering good inducements to the hardy frontier settlers, and yet there were involved many difficul- ties and obstacles in the way of development. The land was covered with the native grasses through the summer seasons and was hidden by a dazzling and unbroken sheet of snow in the winter months.
Jacob Louis purchased government land on sections 20 and 29, Columbus town- ship, at a dollar and a quarter per acre, securing one hundred and sixty acres. He built thereon a log cabin and began farming, breaking the sod and cultivating his fields with ox teams. It was a difficult task to turn the first furrow and get the land in condition for cultivation, but Mr. Louis persevered in his work and soon wrought a marked change in the appearance of his place. After five years he returned to Ohio, spending a short time there, but again came to Columbus and continued to reside in Platte county until his death. His attention was given to general farming and he became the owner of over five hundred acres of good land, which he brought to a high state of cultivation, his fields becoming very productive and yielding golden harvests annually.
Mr. Louis was united in marriage to Miss Katherine Engle, who was born in Hessen, Germany, in 1842. They long traveled life's journey together, being sepa- rated by the hand of death when, in 1909, Mr. Louis passed away, his wife surviving him for five years, dying in 1914. In their death the county lost two of its well known pioneer settlers who had lived in the county before there were churches or schools or roads and who had seen much of the later development, bringing the county to its present prosperous condition.
AUSTIN MORRICE BENNETT.
Austin Morrice Bennett is manager of a lumberyard at Monroe, in which con- nection he is directing the interests of a good business, which under his management is steadily increasing. He is yet a young man but has already made for himself a creditable place in business circles. His birth occurred in Benton county, Arkansas, October 2, 1881, his parents being Jonathan and Mary A. (Pierce) Bennett, who now reside upon a farm in Caldwell county, Missouri. Austin M. Bennett acquired a good common-school education and then spent three and a half years as a student in the Kidder Institute at Kidder, Missouri, pursuing a business and teacher's course, which he completed in 1902. He then went to Genoa, Nebraska, and entered into business relations with the Fox & Flaherty Horse Company, which he repre- sented for a year. He afterward spent three and a half years with the Monroe Horse Company and then returned to the former firm, with which he continned for a year and a half. On the expiration of that period he became a representative of the Walworth & Sherwood Lumber Company and since 1915 has been manager of a
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lumberyard at Monroe, in which connection he has control of a growing business. He is always courteous and obliging to the patrons of the company and has at all times through his business integrity, energy and honesty enjoyed the confidence and good- will of those with whom he has come in contact.
Mr. Bennett was united in marriage to Miss Theresa L. Branson, of Genoa, Nebraska, and they have one child, Francis M. Fraternally Mr. Bennett is con- nected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, with the Modern Woodmen of America and with Genoa Lodge, No. 333, F. & A. M. He is loyal to the teach- ings of the craft and in his life exemplifies the beneficent spirit of these orders, which are based upon mutual helpfulness and brotherly kindness. In his political views he is a republican with independent tendencies. He does not feel hound to follow party ties, but votes according to the dictates of his judgment, which is formed after a thorough consideration of every phase of a question. Mr. Bennett is a western man by birth, training and preference and he possesses the spirit of enter- prise which has ever been the dominant quality in the upbuilding of this section of the country.
EDWARD ARNDT.
Edward Arndt, who is engaged in general farming on section 24, Lost Creek township, is the owner of an excellent tract of land of two hundred and twenty-five acres which he has brought to a high state of cultivation and to the further develop- ment and improvement of which he is directing all of his energy. He was born October 10, 1875, in the township where he still resides, a son of Frederick William and Henrietta (Rosenbeldt) Arndt, in whose family were four children: William, now a resident of Columbus; Ernest, a farmer of Grand Prairie township; Edward; and Mrs. Ferdinand Wachter, whose husband is farming in Madison county, Ne- braska. The father came direct to Columbus in 1870, after leaving his old home in Brandenburg, Germany, and after reaching Platte county purchased a homestead claim of eighty acres, for which he paid four hundred dollars or five dollars per acre. Later he added another eighty-acre tract for which he paid nineteen dollars per acre, and from time to time he kept on making purchases until his landed possessions in Lost Creek, Shell Creek and Columbus townships comprised seven hundred acres. The highest price which he paid for any of this was seventy-three dollars per acre. His business affairs were carefully managed and industry and energy carried him far toward the goal of success. In addition to his agricultural interests he engaged extensively in raising Poland China hogs and he was also a director of the Platte County Bank of Platte Center. He held membership in the German Lutheran church, of which he was a trustee, and he never neglected his public duties as a citizen and in every possible way contributed to the material, intellectual and moral progress of the community. He died in April, 1901, while his wife passed away in February, 1895, the county losing two of its valued citizens when they were called to their final rest.
Edward Arndt was born and rearcd on the old homestead farm and there re- mained until the death of his father in 1904, when the estate was equally divided among the four children, he receiving as his share the homestead property. His
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attention has since been given to its further cultivation and improvement and the results of his labors are seen in highly cultivated fields which annually produce ex- cellent crops. He has from twenty to forty acres planted to wheat each year, about forty acres in corn and forty acres in oats. He also makes a specialty of raising shorthorn cattle and at the death of his father took his place as a director of the Platte County Bank. He is likewise financially interested in the Monroe Inde- pendent Telephone Company.
On the 15th of March, 1904, Mr. Arndt was united in marriage to Miss Matilda Petersen, a daughter of Carsten Petersen, Sr., a sketch of whom appears on another page of this work. To them have been born six children, namely : Herbert; Raymond and Edmund, twins; Walter; Leona; and Reuben.
Mr. Arndt is independent in politics, considering the capability of a candidate rather than his party affiliations. He belongs to the Lutheran church and at all times seeks the welfare and upbuilding of the community in which he lives, cooperat- ing heartily in many plans and projects for the public good. At the same time he is recognized as a business man of marked ability, for this has been proven in his capable control of his farming and stock-raising interests. As the years have gone by he has studied the question of productiveness on his farm and employs modern methods to enhance the fertility of the soil and make his business one paying larger dividends. At the same time he is thoroughly reliable in all his dealings and enjoys to the full extent the confidence and high regard of those with whom he has been associated.
JOHN HELLEBERG.
Although one of the more recent acquisitions to the professional circles of Columbus, John Helleberg has already gained recognition as an architect and in this connection is doing a good business. He is an enterprising young man of foreign birth, the place of his nativity being Thisted, Denmark, and his natal day November 28, 1890. His parents were Neils and Lena (Christensen) Helleberg. The former passed away in 1903, having spent his entire life in Denmark, and the mother, who survives, has also always remained in that country. The Helleberg family is an old one in Denmark, the family records having been kept for four hundred years.
John Helleberg pursued his literary education in the public schools of Thisted and later took a course in architecture at The Technique in that place. When a youth of only eighteen years, realizing the larger possibilities offered in America as compared with the chances in the old world, Mr. Helleberg set sail for the United States, arriving here in May, 1909. He at once made his way to Grand Island, Nebraska, where he had friends living, and there in 1911 he pursued a special course in a college. Subsequently he came to Columbus and later formed a partnership with George Grabe, an architect, the business now being conducted under the name of Grabe & Helleberg. Many of the substantial buildings of this city stand as monu- ments to their ability and enterprise, their more recent accomplishment being the handsome Masonic Temple, which was completed in the spring of 1915; school build- ings at Cairo, Cody and Schuyler, and the Odd Fellows building at Polk, Nebraska.
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Mr. Helleberg gives his political support to the democratic party, while in re- ligious faith he is identified with the English Lutheran church. He is yet a young man but has readily adapted himself to circumstances and has taken advantage of opportunities that have been presented. If his present success is any criterion of what the future holds in store for him, no doubt he will become a prominent man in building circles.
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