Portrait and biographical album of Lancaster county, Nebraska, Part 28

Author:
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman brothers
Number of Pages: 812

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During the seven years' residence of the father of our subject in this county his rare stability of character and trustworthiness as a man and a citi- zen did not fail to impress those about him, who accorded him due honor and respect. His estima- ble wife, who had been to him a true friend, helper and counselor, survived him only a fortnight, dy- ing in the same month, at the age of sixty-six years. Thus they who had been so faithful and devoted to each other in life were scarcely divided in death. They were the parents of seventeen children, nine of whom are living, namely : Eliza- beth, Mrs. Martin; Adam; Catherine, Mrs. Martin ; Henry ; Sarah, Mrs. Call; Mollie, Mrs. Hillier; John ; George and Chauncey.

The subject of this sketch was born Ang. 3, 1861, in Alleghany County, Md., and he was four years old when his parents removed to Illinois, where the remaining years of his boyhood and youth were passed. He received a substantial edu- cation in the public schools of Shipman, and a prac- tical training on his father's farm. He was eighteen years old when his father's family came to Nebraska, and he remained an inmate of the parental home until the death of his father and mother. In 1886 he bought land of his father, intending to establish a home for himself and his young wife. In 1887 he sold sixty acres of it, clearing quite a sum of money. His farm now comprises 100 acres of very productive land, and he is fast bringing it to a highly cultivated condition, and with the valuable improvements that he is continually making it bids fair to become one of the finest farms in the vicinity. Mr. Deahl makes a specialty of dairying, and has already won an enviable reputation in that line, sup- plying a good class of customers in Lincoln.

To the charming young wife who presides over his home Mr. Deahl was married Feb. 12, 1885. She is a type of womanly grace, has a sweet and

affectionate disposition, and makes their home a true paradise, a retreat from the cares and worries of business. Mrs. Deahl was formerly Miss Hallie May Mitchell, daughter of William and Margaret (Ilooper) Mitchell, natives respectively of North Carolina and Missouri. Her father is a wheel- wright by trade, and removed to Illinois in 1866. He still resides in the town of Medora, and is now sixty-eight years old. His estimable wife departed this life in 1874, aged forty-two years, Seven chil- dren were born of their union. namely : Mollie, Willie, Otis, Maggie, Hallie, Katie and Arthur. Mrs. Deahl was the fifth child in order of birthi, and was born in Macoupin County, Ill., Dee. 12, 1866. She was educated in the schools of Medora, and only left her father's home to take up the duties devolving upon her as a wife in her new home in Nebraska. Mr. Deahl is a young man of sound principles and excellent business habits, and an active member of the Lutheran Church, of Roca. In his political affiliations he is a Democrat, earn- estly believing that the policy of that party is the true one for the guidance of the country. The view of his homestead, which appears in this con- nection, will be looked upon with interest as that of a rising citizen who will make his mark in his com- munity.

EV. PETER S. SCHAMP, an honored resi- dent of Lincoln, is one of the earliest pioneers of Lancaster County, and many years of his life have been devoted to its moral and ma- terial elevation. When he first visited Nebraska, in 1861, it was a Territory, the greater part of it in a wild, uncultivated condition, with elk, ante- lope, and other wild game abounding, and Indians passing to and fro to their hunting-grounds or res- ervations. At that time there was not a house on the present site of Lincoln, the land then being owned by the Government, and for sale at $1.25 an acre. He selected a tract of land on section 23 of what is now Yankee Hill Precinct, and filed his claim at the land-office in Nebraska City, July 25, 1861. He then returned to his home in Iowa, and in the spring of 1862 came back with his family,

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making the journey with a pair of oxen and a team of horses and two wagons. During that year he erected the first frame house ever built in the county, it being located in the northern part of the Salt Basin. Nebraska City was the nearest market and depot for supplies, and the nearest mill was at Weeping Water Falls, thirty-five miles distant.

Mr. Schamp was born Nov. 7. 1816, in Union County. Pa., a son of Nicholas and Charity (Van Ilorn) Schamp. llis father was a native of New Jersey, and his father was a soldier in the Revolu- tionary War, and died of fever while in service. His wife, the grandmother of our subject, was born in Sussex County, N. J., and was a daughter of John Waldron. Nicholas Schamp was an infant when his parents died, and he was then taken to Genesee County, N. Y., to the home of his uncle John, who reared him to a useful and industrious life. When he became a man he went to Pennsyl- vania and there married, his wife being a native of New Jersey and a daughter of Abraham Van Ilorn. Her father was also, it is supposed, a native of New Jersey, but spent his last years in Union County, Pa. The maiden name of his wife was Eva Pickel, a native of New Jersey. The mother of our sub- ject died in Union County, Pa., at the age of forty- four years. After this sad event, whereby he lost a faithful helpmate, and his children a devoted mother, Mr. Schamp continued to reside in Union County until 1848, when he removed to Illinois and settled near Freeport. Ile lived there eight years, and then crossed the Mississippi River and located in Hamilton County, Iowa, being one of its earliest settlers. He spent his last years in that county, in the home of his youngest daughter, dying at an advanced age, having throughout an upright life won and retained the respect and esteem of all with whom he came in contact. He was the father of eight children, all of whom grew to maturity, namely : Abraham, Peter S. and Aaron (twins), N. B. Thompson, Mary, Margaret; Catherine and Robert were also twins. Abraham, Peter (the subject of this sketch) and Catherine are the three surviving mem- bers of the family.

The Rev. Peter S. Schamp was reared in his na- tive county until he was eighteen years old, when he started out in life for himself. He went to

Clearfield County with his two oldest brothers, and there chopped wood and hewed timber one winter. Then, being ambitious to secure a more complete education. he entered Ferry Street College, and was a hard student there most of the time for two years. After leaving college he commenced to work at the carpenter's trade in Pittsburgh and Eastern Ohio, continuing thus employed for four- teen years. Ile then went to Stephenson County, Ill., and followed his trade in Freeport and vicin- ity until 1854. In that year he went to Iowa and located at Floyd Center. He had always been an earnest student of the Bible, and a great worker in the church, and be entered upon his career as a preacher of the Gospel in that place, being the first minister who was ever located there, and the only one at that time within thirty miles. There were then but three buildings on the present site of Charles City, and they were constructed of poplar poles. Ile entered 200 acres of Government land near Floyd Center, and built a log house thereon for. the shelter of his family. The years that fol- lowed were devoted to hard work in improving his land and plying his trade, and to his beloved call- ing, as he was employed as a missionary during the whole of his residence in Iowa. In his ministerial office he was a great power for good, carrying re- ligious consolation and hope to many a household out on the lone prairies, whose inmates would else have seldom heard the Gospel preached or explained, owing to their great distance from churches. Nor were his zealous labors without reward, as he was instrumental in organizing churches at Osage, in Mitchell County, and Floyd Center, in Floyd County, and other places in Harden, Marshall and Story Counties. There was no railway then west of the Mississippi River, and Dubuque and Mc Gregor's Landing were the nearest markets and depot for supplies, and he occasionally took trips to those places with his team for the purpose of drawing goods for the merchants. At one time he had been to McGregor's Landing for a load of goods, and he traveled a part of the way on Sunday to at- tend a meeting, When he arrived at the appointed place he found the congregation waiting, but no minister, and as the preacher failed to put in an appearance, our subject doffed his overalls, mounted

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a stump, and preached to the assembled crowd very acceptably. In 1857 Mr. Schamp sold his place in Floyd Center, and moved to Harden County, where he bought a tract of land in Point Pleasant. After living there a year he went to Steamboat Rock, in the same county, and bought a tract of land, on which he resided the two succeeding years. From there he went to Marshall County, whence he went at the end of a year to Story County. In 1861 he visited the Territory of Nebraska with a pair of horses and a wagon, viewing the country around Salt Basin and the present site of Lincoln, and he was so favorably impressed with the beautiful cli- mate and scenery, and the wonderful fertility of the soil, that he determined to locate here, and as we have seen, removed to Lancaster County the fol- lowing spring with his family. Of course, the coun- try roundabout being so recently settled, he had no shelter for his wife and children, but there was a house near by whose inmates kindly invited them to share its hospitality with them until Mr. Schamp could build an abode of his own. Ile resumed his ministerial work here and preached for nearly twelve years, devoting a part of his leisure time during the week to improving his farm and in work- ing at carpentering. After the death of his wife he moved to Yankee Ilill, but at the end of a year he moved again, taking up his residence in Seward County. He next returned to the home farm' and lived there until 1885, when he came to Lincoln and has resided here ever since.

The Rev. Peter Schamp has been three times mar- ried. His first wife was Mary, daughter of Lewis and Catherine Deter. She died in 1851, and of the three children born to her and her husband-Lewis D., William A. and Catherine Matilda-but two survive, Catherine having died. The second mar- riage of our subject was in 1853 to Margaret Ann, daughter of John Wilson, and a native of Steuben- ville, Ohio. She died in 1874. leaving six children, namely : Casander W., John II., Asa P., Susan R .. Ida A. and George W. L. Mr. Schamp's third mar- riage, which took place in 1878, was to Mrs. Fran- ces (Holcomb) Sehamp, daughter of John and Emily S. (Jewell) Holeomb, and widow of Robert B. Schamp.

Notwithstanding his arduous labors in his eapac-

ity as missionary and a preacher-he was formerly a Methodist, but now a member of the Baptist Church-and in looking after his private interests. our subject has found time to serve the public in various offices. He was County Surveyor for two terms, and has held the office of County Coroner for one term. He has always taken a marked inter- est in school affairs, and has often been called upon to give the benefit of his experience and wis- dom in educational matters. He was School In- spector under Territorial laws, and has served since on the State Board and District Boards, being at one time Treasurer of the School Board in his dis- trict in Seward County. Politically, Mr. Schamp was a Democrat until 1848, he then became a Free- Soiler, and subsequently assisted in the organiza- tion of the Republican party, but he is now a strong Prohibitionist.

G EORGE KLING. It has been stated that "Self-reliance is the master key that unlocks all the difficulties arising along one's path, but, like the locks of private mail boxes, the intric- acies of each forbid the entrance to all keys but one." To a certain extent the experiences of two men if carefully compared may seem to be similar, but there will here and there arise occasions or inci- dents without similarity or precedent, and just at such a time will a man's self-reliance be the only thing that can aid him. He may find some way, if it be not always the best way, to solve the difficulty. and then if the same obstacle should a second time arise, his own experience will enable him to com- bat it.

Our subject belongs to that class of refined and cultured Germans who have come to America in the prime of life, and through honest efforts have entered successfully into business. He is a careful, frugal and enterprising man, and it is only in justice to his real worth that he should be enumerated among the best citizens of Hickman. He is a dealer in boots and shoes, and is devoted to his business, but without negleeting it he still has time to devote to other affairs, being a leader in relig- ious spheres, and taking an active part in the

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jurisprudence necessary for the due administration of justice.

The parents of Mr. Kling were born in Hesse- Darmstadt, Germany, the father named John and the mother, Elizabeth (Roth) Kling. The father was a shoemaker by trade, and had also a farm of twenty-five acres, which he tended in connection with his other business. He became the father of twelve children, eight boys and four girls, ten of whom. seven boys and three girls, are now living, and all have come to America. Our subject was the fourth of the family of children, his birth occur- ring on the 19th of December, 1848, at Gross Bie- beran, Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany. Like all indus- trious Germans, his father early taught him to work, having him to help on the farm and to do odd pieces of work such as he was capable of. All the children of this family were given as thor- ough an education as the father's circumstances would admit of, and they also received of their parents a good religious training, so that they were well equipped to make their own ways in life after leaving the paternal roof.

Our subject, having received the careful train- ing of his parents, received his religious confirma- tion at the age of thirteen years and six months, after which he began to learn the trade of shoemak- ing. During his studies in school he had read and heard much of the new country, America, and his earliest ambition had been to visit the land of free- dom, and to become one of its citizens. ITe recalls many incidents that occurred during his boyhood days, which only served to fan the flame of his ambition, so thatat the age of fifteen the desire had become so strong that he begged of his father to send him to America. Ilis request, however, was not granted, and still determined to come, he con- tinued to work for his father until he reached the age of seventeen, at which time his father aided him with money to proeure a passage across the water. Starting out a young boy of seventeen on such a perilous voyage, he did not stop to think of the dangers and trials incident to a life in a strange country.

Bidding farewell to his home and friends and Fatherland, our subject sailed from Hamburg on the 1st of April, 1866. Not until he was out on the

ocean fully under way, did he realize the impor- tance of the step he had taken, but then, sick and homesick, it all thrust itself forcibly upon his mind that now or never he must take care of him- self and depend upon himself alone, trusting to the guidance of the Heavenly Father, whom he had learned to depend upon. The steamer "Teutonia" put an end to his melancholy by landing him safely in the harbor of New York on the 22d of April, 1866. Ilis destination was St. Louis, so he at once went to that place, where he remained at work, en- gaged in shoemaking for nine years.

In 1870 our subject, with thoughts still clinging to those he had left years before in the Fatherland, made a visit to them in their home, remaining for about three months on account of the Franco-Ger- man War. In the time of his stay he gave such glowing descriptions of his adopted country that he persuaded his parents to return with him, for which purpose the father sold his possessions and all

come across to America, settling at St. Louis. At that place they remained for a time, when they moved to Iowa, where our subject and his father bought a farm in Jasper County. The father still resides there, being seventy-seven years old, but the mother died in 1876, at the age of fifty-seven years.

While in St. Louis our subject, in the endeavor to still better prepare himself for a successful business career, attended the business college, from which he was graduated in 1873. Remaining on the farm in lowa one season, he then went back to St. Louis, where he worked at his trade until 1879. In the year 1875 he was married to Miss Katherine W. Offer, a daughter of Fred and Hannah Offer, also of Ger- many. Mrs. Kling was born in Franklin County, Mo., where she enjoyed the advantages of the common schools, and received from her parents a good religious training, which so eminently fitted her to fulfill the responsibilities of her position in the family toward her own children. Our subject and his wife are the parents of nine children, and their names are as follows: Willie, George, Lydia W., Matilda M., John F. T., Paul, Amanda S., Emile L. and George Benjamin Harrison. The father located in his shop at Hickman in 1879, and since then has enjoyed a very good trade. Ile also owns eighty acres of land in Saltillo Precinct.

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Mr. and Mrs. Kling are members of the German Presbyterian Church, of which the former is now an Elder, having joined the denomination in 1868 at St. Louis. For eight years he has been the Superin- tendent of a Sunday-school having between fifty and sixty members, and is one of the leading men in the Y. M. C. A., of Hickman. Continuing his interest in educational matters, he was appointed librarian of the public library in his town. He is a member of the Republican party, and has served as Justice of the Peace for four years, at present holding that honorable office. His strict business integrity, his social, religious and educational stand- ing, have won for him a prominent place in the rank of good citizens.

OHN H. LAHMEIER. The brave men who yet survive the sanguinary struggle through which this country was called upon to pass, have as true sentiments of patriotism to-day as when they left their homes for the front. Wher- ever they are found, in all questions of National or State import, it springs forth and blazes with a clear and unquenchable light. Wealth cannot bribe it, nor ambition blind it; fear cannot intimidate it, friendship cannot swerve it from justice, or lux- ury corrupt or enervate it. We cannot in this brief sketch rehearse the daring deeds of those who volunteered from the inspiration of patriotism, as did the subject of this present sketch, but all the experiences of war were theirs. Could they be told, they would speak of early reverses, sad disappoint- ments, gloomy forebodings for the future, of sick- ness In camp and hospital, fearful suspense, of midnight marches and deadly ambuscades; of nar- row escapes, of wounds, of imprisonment in foul dens, and of death-of all the horrors of fratricidal war. But they would speak, too, of privations willingly endured, dangers voluntarily incurred, ceaseless labor gladly undergone, and death most chivalrously encountered; of dashing assaults, of well contested fields, and of countless victories. They would speak of disaster, but also of success ; of doubt, but not of despair; of transient defeats, and of a final and enduring victory. Among these

beroes would be classed the gentleman whose name stands at the head of this sketch, and who, though foreign born, possesses all the love for our Union, and the ardent desire for its preservation, that characterize the best of its citizens by birth. The main points in the history of our subject are as follows :

John IT. Lahmeier was born in Hanover, Ger- many, Aug. 18, 1831, and is the son of William Lahmeier, who was born and spent his life in the same kingdom. Our subject and his sister Sophia were the only members of the family who came to this country. John H. spent his early life in his native land, receiving at the compulsory schools, for which that country is noted, a good, practical education, and at the age of thirteen engaged to learn the trade of a key maker. He followed this calling until he was nineteen years of age, and then engaged in blacksmithing, which he followed until his removal to America in 1859. The ocean voy- age accomplished, that placed thousands of miles between him and his home and friends, yonng Lah- meier found himself in New York with a few cents in his pocket, a stranger in a strange land, with the language and customs of which he was entirely unacquainted. lle found his first employment in a tile-yard in York State, and, a footing once secured, the future success of such a man as our subject was assured. After a few months he removed to New Jersey and ran an engine in a tile-yard in that State, after which he was employed in a nail factory in Pittsburgh, Pa., and subsequently removed to Cin- cinnati.

Soon after his arrival in Cincinnati, Mr. Lah- meier enlisted in Company C, 28th Ohio Infantry, for three years, and went forth to do battle for his adopted country. He was ordered to West Vir- ginia, and served with the regiment until the time of his discharge in 1864. Returning to Cincinnati, he rested for a few days, and then going to Roches- ter, N. Y., re-enlisted in July, 1864, in Company B, 94th New York Infantry. He served with that regiment until after the close of the war, seeing much hard service, and was honorably discharged with a good war record. He participated in the engagement at Crawford's Ferry, also at Thomp- son's Farm, Gawlic Bridge, Huntersville, and skir-

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mishes with guerrillas. At the battle of Five Forks our subject was wounded in the fingers of the right hand, and, although quite badly injured, did not go to the hospital, but remained with his regiment all the time.

Upon the cessation of hostilities our subject re- turned to Indiana, and engaged in the peaceful vocation of farming near Decatur. Three years later, however, in 1868, he came to this State, and settled in Mill Creek Precinct, Lancaster County, among the very earliest settlers. Hle purchased a claim of eighty acres on section 30, pre-empted a tract of the same size, and then homesteaded an- other eighty aeres adjoining, and has since been a continuous resident of this place. As the result of industry and good judgment, he now owns one of the finest farms in the precinct, adorned with a beautiful stone residence, and good frame out- buildings, together with numerous shade and fruit trees. He has since purchased another quarter- section of land adjoining his first eighty acres.

Mr. Lamineier was united in marriage with Mrs. Caroline Paner, a native of Germany, but she died five years later, and he married for his second wife, Mena Pining, a native of Germany. Of our sub- jeet's first union there were born two children, Henry and John, while of the second union there have been born seven children-Fred, Christina, Sophia, August, Mena, Dora and Anna. Mr. and Mrs. Lahmeier are members in good standing of the Episcopal Church, while in politics, Mr. L. is found in the ranks of the Republican party.

E RASTUS W. RHYKERT is distinguished not only as one of the early pioneers of Buda Precinct, but as one who gave very much toward the succor of his country when she was in distress and needed strong and able men. His military career has perhaps turned the course of his life into a channel different from what it might otherwise have been, but he has a share of the honor and glory that are the right of every brave soldier. lle was born on the 25th of October, 1832, in Wayne County, N. Y., and is a son of Joseph and Catherine Rhykert, who were both natives of Wayne

County, N. Y. His parents were of German ancestry, both having early left their native State and moved to Illinois, where they were among the early settlers. The mother died in the year 1863, the death of the father having occurred a few years previous to that time. Of the thirteen children comprising their family, the following are now known to survive: William, living in Rochester, N. Y .; Charles, in Warren County, III .; Jacob; Adelia, the wife of W. H. Tirpening, living near Sedalia, Mo .; and Erastus W.

Our subject grew to man's estate in Illinois, and at that early day the educational advantages being so few and limited, he was unable to enjoy the bene- fits of a long attendance at school, but was obliged to acquire his education under many disadvantages. On the Ist of January, 1854, he was married to Deborah A. Boone, a native of New York State, who had moved to Illinois with her parents when she was quite young. Our subject and his wife have adopted two children, Jennie and John, for whom they have provided and cared as if they were their own.

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Portrait and biographical album of Lancaster county, Nebraska, Part 28

Author: Publication date: 1888 Publisher: Chicago, Chapman brothers Number of Pages: 812

Author:
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman brothers
Number of Pages: 812