USA > Nebraska > Lancaster County > Portrait and biographical album of Lancaster county, Nebraska > Part 55
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I. O. O. F., of which society he is also a member. With great credit to himself and pleasure and profit to the order. he has filled all the chairs of the lodge, receiving as a mark of the esteem and confidence in which he is held by his brethren, the position of Representative to the Grand Lodge of Odd Fellows.
OHN L. McCONNELL is one of the oldest business men of Lincoln, having been with the city through all its evolution, from set- tlement to hamlet, hamlet to village, village to town, town to city, and Western metropolitan center of commerce, finance. art and society. Our subject was born in Trivoli, Peoria Co., Ill., on the 27th of March, 1837. His father, Robert McCon- nell, was a native of Pennsylvania, but was reared from childhood in Scioto County, Ohio. There he was educated, and afterward engaged in business in Wheelersburg, Ohio. He removed to Illinois in 1835, and was among the first to settle in Peoria County. The journey was taken via the Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. He found Ft. Clark, which then occupied the site of the present city of Peoria, a very small collection of houses surrounded by a wild waste of prairie.
The father of our subject was not long there be- fore he had made arrangements by which an exten- sive tract of land became his property, upon which is now situated part of Trivoli. Ile quickly put up a log cabin, and the family went to housekeep- ing. It was in this dwelling that our subject was afterward born. His father went extensively into farming, erected the usual farm buildings, and sub- sequently a frame dwelling, which were among the best in the entire district. He was removed by death in the year 1865, having lived to see the country develop, become well settled, and the home of a wealthy community.
The wife of Robert McConnell, and the mother of John L., was Abiah Page Emery, who was born at Orford, Grafton Co., N. H., and was a daughter of Rev. Samuel Emery, who was a native of the same State, and a minister of the Methodist Epis- copal Church. He removed from New Hampshire to Scioto County, Ohio, about the year 1830, hav-
ing an interest in real estate there, and continued to make it his home until 1835, when he removed to Peoria County, Ill., and purchased large tracts of land in different parts there. Ile made his home at Trivoli, and superintended the improvement of his farm and the business of his real estate from that point. This continued to be his residence until his death, at the age of seventy-three years, about 1859. He was a man of enterprise, business ca- pacity, a financier and diligent worker. and several years before his death had acquired a large prop- erty. He was always an active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and did much to- ward the organization and establishment of the church in Trivoli. He was firmly and determin- edly opposed to slavery, and was one of the first citizens of that district to leave the Democratic party and espouse the cause of the Republicans.
The mother of our subject died in the year 1872, having seen her six children grow to years of maturity. Her family is recorded as follows: John L., our subject; Eliza, Thomas, Marcus, Frank and Mary. John L. received his early education in the little pioneer school-house not far from his father's property, and afterward attended three years at the Rock River Seminary, at Mt. Morris, III., from which institution he was graduated in due course. At the age of eighteen he commenced to learn the printer's trade in the office of the Canton Register, and continued in that office for about one year, then re- moved to Farmington and engaged as clerk in a general store, and there remained until 1858. Then he engaged as clerk in Peoria for a period of two years, supplemented by a like term at Princeton, after which he became attached to the United States Internal Revenue Department, and was stationed at Kewanee, Henry County, until the fall of 1863.
Upon leaving the revenue service our subject re- turned, in 1866, to Princeton, and engaged in the dry-goods business in that place, but after about eighteen months he sold out his business and went to Europe, and traveled quite extensively upon the continent, returning after an absence of a little over a year and taking up his residence at Henry, Ill., until the spring of 1868. In May of that year he came to Lincoln by way of the railroad to Kansas City, thence by river to Nebraska City, and by
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stage on to Lincoln, which was then an insignifi- cant town of small population, without railroad facility or much communication with the outside world. The larger proportion of the surrounding country was still waiting for settlers. There were two or three stone houses, but not one brick build- ing in the city.
Mr. McConnell engaged in banking upon his ar- rival at Lincoln with James Sweet and Nelson C. Brock, who owned the first and for a long time only bank in Lincoln. In this business he contin- ued for two years, and became gradually interested in real estate. In the winter of 1871-72 he opened a dry-goods store, continuing the same until 1884. He has been a resident of the city for a period of more than twenty years, and has been identified with all its material growth and development. In that time it has evolved from a very inferior town to a magnificent city of 45,000 inhabitants, with all the modern marks of improvement and signs of progress.
On the 29th of October, 1866, our subject be- came the husband of Matilda R. (Merriman) Reis- inger, who is the daughter of George Reisinger, of Farmington, Ill. Mrs. McConnell is a most earnest member of the Congregational Church, and is active in all right and proper enterprises of benevolent or social nature. She has been a member of the Lin- coln Library Association from its organization until the present, also both active member and President of several literary societies in the city. Our sub- ject was a member of the first City Council of Lin- coln, and Treasurer of the State University until that office was abolished. Politically, he is in heart- iest sympathy with and one of the active partisans of the Republican party, which always receives his vote.
R EV. JOIIN HUIZENGA, pastor of the Re- formed Church of America, Ilolland Village, Neb., is one of the leading divines of that denomination in the West. He is a talented man, of singular strength of character, and his fine education, which. supplemented by extensive traveling, has broadened his mind, makes him not only a great power in the church, but also an influ-
ence in social and public life. He is a native of Holland, Europe, born March 12, 1842, in the town of Kollum, in the Province of Friesland. His par- ents, Franz and Anna Gertrude Huizenga, were likewise natives of that town, where his father, who was a carpenter by trade, was engaged as a con- tractor. In 1848 he emigrated to America with his family, and settled in Ottawa County, Mich., among the pioneers. He continued to work there at his trade, and was an important factor in building up the country. His wife, a woman of good mental endowments and rare sweetness of character, died in Michigan when forty-two years old, her prema- ture death being a sad blow to her family and to the community. She was the mother of three chil- dren-John, Lena and Bernardus.
The father of our subject came to Nebraska to spend his declining years in the home of our subject, and died here at the age of seventy-four years. In his day he was a very capable man, gifted with shrewdness and forethought, and the course of his life was that of an honorable and incorruptible man.
Rev. John Huizenga was but six years of age when his parents brought him to America, and he has since grown to be one of her most loyal and patriotic citizens, as is shown by the record of his distinguished military career during the late Civil War, and the course that he has since pursued. When he left his native land he had just made a start at school, and in his new home in Ottawa County, Mich., near Indian Village, Black Lake, there being no schools for four or five years. the country being newly settled, he was taught at home. At the age of sixteen he entered Holland Academy, now llope College, Holland, Mich., and he there took a preparatory course and then the collegiate course. Ile was in the Sophomore class when the war broke out. He finally threw aside his studies and enlisted in Company 1, 25th Michigan Infantry, entering as a private for a term of three months. He then enlisted for three years or during the war, Aug. 23, 1862. His regiment drilled at Kalamazoo, and was then dispatched to Louisville, Ky., and first encountered the enemy at that place. The principal business of our subject and his comrades was to check Morgan and guard the bridge at Tibb's
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Bend on the Green River. Our subject was made Third Sergeant of his company at Kalamazoo, and was afterward appointed Orderly Sergeant, which position he held until the fall of 1864, when he was sent back to Michigan as Recruiting Sergeant. He was first put on duty at Camp Rendezvous, Grand Rapids, and thence he went to Jackson to take charge of Barracks No. 10. IIe was there presented with an elegant sword in recognition of his efficient services and of the high regard in which he was held. He was afterward transferred to the large barracks, where he had command of 500 men. He discharged his duties with such fidelity and zeal as to gain the confidence and commendation of his superior officers, and at the same time his kindness toward his subordinates won their affection and re- speet. He was honorably discharged from the serv- ice at Jackson, in June, 1865.
After the war Mr. Iluizenga visited his friends in Michigan for two weeks, and then went to Europe for an extended tour, to revisit his old home and sec many of the famous places in the Old World. He traveled through Ireland, Scotland, England, spend- ing a week in London, and journeyed through Ger- many and Holland. He greatly enjoyed his travels. which were in themselves a liberal education to one of his intelligence and thoughtfulness. After return- ing to the United States, he taught in the Union School at Holland City, Mich., and was made Justice of the Peace at the same time, being the first Justice in Holland after it was incorporated as a city. Dur- ing that time he made up his mind to enter the medi- cal profession, and had made all the necessary arrangements in company with two college friends to become a student at the Rush Medical College, Chicago, Ill. But his plans were thwarted by cer- tain circumstances that arose, and he was prevented from carrying out his desire of becoming a physi- cian. He then turned his attention to the ministry, and entering the Hope Theological Seminary, com- pleted his course, and was graduated with the class of '69, with a fine record as a scholar. He was or- dained as a pastor, and went to Virginia to take his first charge, and for six years he held a successful pastorate there. During that time he and his wife paid a very delightful visit to the Philadelphia Cen- tennial in 1876. In that year the Rev. IIuizenga
was sent to Nebraska to his present church. Since his residence here he has been instrumental in propa- gating his faith, and he is considered one of the bright lights of the Reformed Church. By his pleasant and genial manners he has gained many warm friends, not alone among his parishioners, but in the community at large.
To the amiable wife, who has cheered and sus- tained him in his sacred work during nearly the whole of his ministry, the Rev. John Huizenga was united in marriage Oct. 22, 1871. She was for- merly Miss Anna Boonstra, and was like himself a native of Holland, born in the Province of Friesland, in 1851. She was five years old when she came to America, where she grew to womanhood. Of the seven children that have blessed the union of her and her husband, the first three were born in Vir- ginia, and the names of the children are as follows: Frank, Maggie, Dick, Anna Gertrude, Jennie, Elizabeth and Anna. Frank is a student at the Northwestern Academy in Sioux County, Iowa.
Our subject is a man of wealth and owns consid- erable valuable property. He possesses a farm of 130 acres on section 11, South Pass, and he also owns a fine farm in Virginia of ninety acres, and a beautiful country seat. He takes a commendable interest in public affairs, and as School Director has done much to advance the educational interests of Holland. In his polities, he was a Republican un- til 1886, but considering the cause of temperance the most important question before the people, he joined the Prohibition ranks, a most welcome addi- tion to that party.
ONATHAN MYERS. This liberal-minded and public-spirited citizen, who is foremost in all enterprises calculated to further the interests of Cheney, is prominent among its merchants and stock-buyers, where his face and form have been familiar for a period of six years. He is the offspring of an excellent family, John D. and Mary J. (Kritzer) Myers, who were Pennsyl- vanians by birth, and the father a native of Lan- caster County. Their family consisted of three children only, two daughters besides our subject.
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They left Pennsylvania for Ohio about 1808, locat- ing first in Stark County. The mother died in Stark County about 1828, and the father in Summit County, in 1868.
The subject of this sketch was born in Union- town, Stark Co., Ohio, Feb. 9, 1833, and spent the most of his time upon a farm until reaching his majority. lIe followed farming for a time after- ward. and then for a period of nearly twenty years engaged in the manufacture of stoneware in Sum- mit County. In connection with this be also oper- ated a meat-market at Akron, the county seat, and there first engaged as a stock-dealer, buying and shipping in a limited manner.
Mr. Myers came to Nebraska in April, 1882, Io- cating at once in Grant Precinct and purchasing a farm on section 8. which he operated about six years. In the spring of 1888, coming to Cheney, he established himself in his present business as a general merehant and stock-dealer. He still retains possession of his farm, which affords him ample facilities for carrying on his other interests after the most approved methods. He is systematie in his manner of doing business, prompt to meet his obligations, and thus has a substantial foothold among the prosperous and honored men of his com- munity.
While a resident of Summit County, Ohio, Mr. Myers was united in marriage with Miss Fannie Breckenridge. the wedding taking place at the home of the bride in Springfield, Feb. 10, 1855. Mrs. Myers is the daughter of Lemuel Breckenridge, a near relative of the well-known Gen. Breckenridge, of the Buckeye State. The parents both died in Stark County, Ohio, the father when about seventy- two years old and the mother when seventy-six. In that county Mrs. Myers was born May 5, 1842. Her father was a shoemaker by occupation, and she continued under the parental roof until her mar- riage, acquiring a fair education in the common school and being taught by an excellent mother those household employments a knowledge of which has so much influence in the happiness of a home.
To our subject and his wife there have been born five children, two of whom, Alice and John, died in Summit County, in infancy. William, Estella and Joan are at home with their parents, the eldest be-
ing seventeen years of age and the youngest three. Mr. Myers is independent in politics, availing him- self of the right of the free-born American citizen to support the men whom he considers best qualified to serve the interests of the people. Both he and his excellent wife attend the United Brethren Church.
W .ILLIAM WALVOORD, a well-to-do and popular merchant of Holland, and senior partner of the firm, Walvoord & Co., deal- ers in general merchandise, has won his way to a position of eminence in the mercantile world of Lancaster County by his elear-sighted business policy, patient industry, and strictly honorable deal- ings. IIe is a native of Holland, over the sea. and is a son of G. J. and Berendina (Prinsen) Wal- voord, likewise natives of Holland, the father born in Lichtenvoorde and the mother in the town of Aalten. His father was a farmer in his native country until the latter part of 1870, when he and his wife and children came to this country to join our subject, who had preceded them a short time before, and they all settled in South Pass, took up land under the Homestead Act, and engaged in agricult- ural pursuits. The father and mother are now living in their pleasant home in Holland Village, pass- ing their declining years in the midst of well-earned comfort, presenting the spectaele of lives rounded by various experiences into a serene and active old age, he being now seventy-two years old and she seventy-one. Nine children have blessed the marriage of these worthy people, namely : William, Jane, Grace, Tunia, Henry, Tony, Girard J., Beren- dina and IIannah. All are living, and make their homes in Holland Township, with the exception of Tunia, who lives in Kansas.
William Walvoord, who forms the subject of this sketch, was born April 17, 1843, in the town of Aalten, Holland. He was six years old when his father returned with his family to his birthplace, the town of Lichtenvoorde, to again take up his abode there. Our subject attended school there, receiving instruction in the common branches and obtaining a thorough, practical education. At the
STORE AND RESIDENCE OF WM. WALVOORD, HOLLAND VILLAGE.
FEED LOTS SOUTH OF HOUSE
RESIDENCE OF HENRY BURCHAM, SEC. 4. SOUTH PASS PRECINCT.
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age of fourteen he was confirmed in the church of Lichtenvoorde. lle remained at home with his parents, giving his father valuable assistance on the farm until 1868, when, having heard much of America through relatives who had come here to locate. he desired to try life in this Western work, feeling assured that a young man with plenty of conrage. brain and muscle could not fail in time to win his way to success where labor was so eneour- aged and protected. Accordingly he embarked July 1 on a steamer at Rotterdam, bound for Quebec.
After landing on this continent, Mr. Walvoord made his way from that Canadian city to Chicago, and thence went by lake to Sheboygan, Wis., where his uncle owned a farm. His relative gave him a warm greeting and put him to work on his place. Our subject liked it so well in this country that he sent back word to the old country urging his parents to come here with the remaining members of the family. Consequently they all joined him the second year of his stay here, and after a short visit to their friends in Wisconsin, they all came to Nebraska, and, as before related, all who were old enough took up land in South Pass in the spring of 1870, and have since been very much prospered. Our subject established himself in his present mercantile business in Holland over sixteen years ago, and by strict attention to business he has met with unbounded success. and bas built up a good trade. Hle commands the respect of his many patrons, whom he has served strictly on a fair business basis for more than sixteen years. In March, 1886, his health being poor, and feeling the need of a capable partner who could assist bim in the management of his extensive business. be admitted Mr. T. Liesvelt into partnership, and they have since continued together at the old stand. Our subject has accumulated much valuable property since becoming a resident of Holland. He owns his store building, some fine village property, has erected a handsome and commodious house, and he also owns the following farms: One of 160 acres, one of eighty acres, one of forty acres, another of twenty acres, and some village property comprising fifteen acres of land. all his real estate amounting to 315 acres. Although all are worthy being pre-
sented to the reader by the artist, the view which accompanies this sketch, showing the home of Mr. Walvoord. will be of. perhaps, greatest interest.
Mr. Walvoord has been twice married. His first wife, whose maiden name was llendrikka Wubbles, died six weeks after the wedding, thus ending what had promised to be an exceedingly happy marriage. The present Mrs. Walvoord was formerly Miss Jane Kolstee. She was born in llol- land, came to America wben seventeen years old, and was married at the age of twenty-two. The pleas- ant married life of our subject and wife has been blessed to them by the birth of five children, namely : J. Hendrikka, Berendina, John C., Evedine and Garret .J.
Mr. Walvoord and his amiable wife are esteemed members of the Reformed Church of America, and take an active part in the Sunday-school, and in every other good work of the church. Our sub- ject is especially interested in all matters pertaining to education, and has helped the cause along in his district by his faithful discharge of his duties as a school officer, he having held every position on the board.
ENRY BURCHAM. The brave men who survived the war have as true sentiments of patriotism to-day as when they left the old home for the front of the battle-field. Wherever they are found, in all questions of Na- tional or State importance, their patriotism springs forth. It is not spasmodic in its action, blazing forth only as in a comet's erratic course, in times of public trial or danger, upon great occasions and influenced by great incentives, but it is as a rule of conduct constant, equable, incorruptible and en- during. Wealth cannot bribe it, power cannot reduce it, ambition cannot blind it, friendship can- not swerve it from justice, nor can fear intimi- date it.
Such are the qualifications of our subject that by right he is entitled to the highest encomium that can be passed upon patriotism and loyal devotion to his country ; upon prosperity, the result of per- sistent hard work and good management; upon the most admirable of social qualities, mental cultiva-
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tion and general public spirit. He is now engaged in the peaceful pursuits of farming, having his home on section 4, Sonth Pass Precinct. His great- grandfather Burcham came from England in Co- lonial times, and his ancestry on the maternal side is English also. Grandfather Burcham served in the War of 1812, being loyal to the new country in which he expected to make his home. The father of our subject, McCarty Burcham, was born in North Carolina, and the mother, Elizabeth (Owens) Burcham, in Tennessee.
McCarty Burcham was a mechanic and followed the cooper's trade. After his marriage in Tennessee he and his wife went to Indiana when there were but four or five log houses upon the spot where now stands the handsome city of Indianapolis. They settled near what is now known as Plainfield, and by industry and energy became very well-to- do. The mother died on the homestead in Indiana in 1870 at the age of seventy : the father survived her death but four years, having attained the ripe age of seventy-four years and five months. They had ten children, seven boys and three girls. Henry be- ing the seventh child.
Henry Burcham, our subject, was born on the 1st of August, 1844, in Hendricks County, Ind., where he grew up with the country, but like the first generation in any new State his educational advantages were quite limited. In those days the schools, such as they were, were supported by subscription, the master sometimes being a neigh- boring farmer whose education was sufficient to enable him to instruct the children of the commu- nity. Our subject matured early, and at the age of fifteen he had the physique of a large, strong man, blessed with good health, which the outdoor labor of farm life promoted. He engaged with Mr. Hornby for one year, and driving a team for his employer he accompanied him to Wapello County, Iowa, where he worked for one year and rather en- joyed his youthful pioneer experience.
In the spring of 1861, when the war broke out, young Burcham went back to his home in Indiana, and enlisted with Company F, 13th Indiana In- fantry, for three years. Like his father, imbued with the principles of the Whig party, he could not re- strain his patriotism, and willingly offered himself as
a sacrifice, if need be, for his country's defense, and with his strong, youthful arm determined to assist in protecting the stars and stripes. He was mustered into service at Indianapolis, Ind., and after being equipped for war he departed for West Virginia, where he for the first time encountered the South- ern army at Rich Mountain. He fought bravely in his first encounter, and at the close of the cn- gagement, on the 11th of July, he had the satisfac- tion of enjoying the victory with Rosecrans. When McClellan was appointed General-in-Chief he went boldly to the front, participating in the following battles in Virginia : Suffolk, Deserted Farm, Black- water, Manchester, Green River, Petersburg and Cold Harbor, while he was also present in South Carolina at the sieges of Ft. Wagoner, Ft. Sumter and Ft. Gregg. At the last-named place he was taken seriously ill and was taken to Hilton Head Hospital, where he improved, but in order to give him an opportunity to recover the strength that had been spent he was sent home on a sixty-days fur- lough, during which time he recovered, and then joined his regiment at Cold Harbor.
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