History of Dakota Territory, volume V, Part 145

Author: Kingsbury, George Washington, 1837-; Smith, George Martin, 1847-1920
Publication date: 1915
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : S.J. Clarke Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1262

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The snow falls so deep in that locality that the ground seldom freezes and it lies on until spring. The nearness of the lake retards the blooming season until spring is fully estab- lished and there is thus little danger of the trees blooming and then freezing. The nearness of the lake supplies cheap shipping facilities and the property promises to be most profitable.

Mr. Whiting was first married in Kingsbury county on the 11th of July, 1884, to Miss Jennie S. Dewey, a native of Ohio and a daughter of David Dewey, who died in the Buckeye state before the birth of his daughter. To this marriage were born two children: Agnes, now the wife of P. L. Chase, who is engaged in the implement business in Sioux City with his brother; and Hittie, the wife of George Joslyn, of Yankton county. For his second wife Mr. Whiting chose Mrs. Eva E. Williams, the widow of George Williams and a daughter of George W. and Emma E. (Watson) Carpenter, both of whom were natives of Buffalo, New York. Mr. Carpenter removed to Codington county, South Dakota, in the spring of 1879. He became the first city engineer of Watertown and held that office until his death. Mr. Williams served Codington county as a surveyor for six years. Mrs. Whiting was the first teacher who taught school in a regular schoolhouse in Codington county. By her first marriage she had three children: Rolla G., who served as register of deeds at Watertown for two terms; Emma, the wife of Martin Lawton, of Minneapolis; and Eva, who is attend- ing school in Yankton.

In his political views Mr. Whiting is a republican and is a public-spirited citizen. He is identified with many horticultural societies and keeps in touch with the advancement made along the most scientific lines bearing upon fruit culture. He is now the vice president of the South Dakota Agricultural Association, a member of the Western Nurserymen's Asso- ciation, and of the South Dakota Horticultural Society, of which he served as the first president. He is likewise a member of the Minnesota Horticultural Association and the Wisconsin Horticultural Association, and he is a member of the executive board of the South Dakota conservation and development congress and has charge of the horticultural department. He served on the state board of agriculture for four years and on the local board of Yankton county when that association had charge of the state fairs. His memory compasses the pioneer period in the history of this state. When he settled on his claim in the early days he lived in a sod shanty and spent the first season in a shanty so hastily constructed that he could see through the cracks on all four sides. He remembers as one of the hard experiences of pioneer days, a drive from De Smet to Watertown after nine o'eloek at night when the mereury registered twenty degrees below zero. There were no fenees or roads and he drove across the snow covered cakes in a direct line and was in sight of the town directly ahead when the day broke, following a course absolutely true by means of the stars. He has lived to see remarkable changes and has borne his full share in the work of development and improvement, especially in advancing horticultural interests in South Dakota.

HON. MARK D. JOHNSON.

Ilon. Mark D. Johnson, living at Mission Hill, is representative from the third dis- triet in the South Dakota legislature. He was born in Yankton county, near the town in which he resides, a son of Halvor D. and Berthe H. Johnson. The father was born near Lillehammer, Norway, and came to the United States in 1858. The mother's birth occurred near Gjovik, Norway, and she made the voyage to the new world in 1867. Both arrived in Dakota territory in 1868, traveling with ox teams as members of a company of forty people. They were married in South Dakota and have since resided within its borders.

Spending his youthful days under the parental roof in Yankton county, Mark D. John- son there attended the public schools and afterward became a student in the commercial department of the State University at Vermillion. His attention has since been largely devoted to diversified farming and he is also connected with cooperative business inter- ests at Mission Hill, where he is serving as vice president of the Farmers Elevator Com- pany. The careful management of his business affairs constitutes the basic element of his growing success, his energy and determination finding expression in well defined plans which are carefully executed.

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On the Sth of June, 1895, Mr. Johnson was united in marriage to Miss Berthe Bruget, born on the 2d of March, 1868, her parents being Jorgen and Olive Bruget, who were born near Lillehammer, Norway. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have seven children, as follows: Hulda Agnes, whose natal day was March 19, 1897; Nora Otilia, whose birth occurred August 21, 1898; Ethel Mahel, born January 1, 1900; Julia Henrietta, August 11, 1902; Grace Edith, August 25, 1904; Merwin Burnham, April 15, 1905; and Ernest Alexander, born May 1, 1908.

The religious faith of the family is that of the Lutheran church, while the political belief of Mr. Johnson is that of the republican party. He has served as township assessor and as school officer in his district, and recognition of his ability and worth as a man and citizen came to him in his election to the state legislature for Yankton county. He took his seat in the general assembly during the session of 1915 and has manifested a public- spirited devotion to the general good in the performance of his duties.

SILAS THOMAS LASELL.

Silas Thomas Lasell is actively engaged in banking at Waubay and has other important business and financial connections, showing him to be resourceful, enterprising and progres- sive. He was born in Fillmore county, Minnesota, February 10, 1860, and is a son of Z. D. and Roxanna (Lund) Lasell. The father was born in Canada in 1831, a son of Thomas Lasell, a native of Vermont, who, however, died in Canada, where he had practiced medicine for many years, being an active physician and surgeon. The mother, a native of New York state, was born in 1833. Her father, Silas Lund, was a native of Vermont. He devoted his life to farming and died in Kansas.

Z. D. Lasell, the father of Silas T. Lasell, was married in Vermont to Miss Roxanna Lund, and in 1856 they removed westward to Minnesota, where he preempted land in Fill- more county. He was one of the pioneer residents of that district and aided in the work of development and improvement in frontier days. In fact, he continued his farming inter- ests there until 1892, when be removed to Wauhay, South Dakota. He homesteaded land in this state, where he continued to reside until be went to California on a visit and there passed away. He was a consistent Christian gentleman, holding membership in the Metho- dist Episcopal church and took an active part in all branches of its work. He departed this life May 28, 1912, and his wife died April 16, 1900. Their family numbered nine children, of whom eight are living: Loena, the wife of W. C. Paddock, a blacksmith of Eureka, Cali- fornia; Julia, the wife of George W. Dilley, a railroad man living at Portland, Oregon; Silas Thomas; Bertha, who married W. F. Oshorn, a farmer of Canada; Dana A., a retired farmer living in Wanbay; George G., who is proprietor of a store at Millerton, North Dakota; Hattie, deceased; M. C., an attorney of Aberdeen, South Dakota; and Mabel, living at Vona, Colorado.

Silas T. Lasell received his education in the schools of Spring Valley, Minnesota, com- pleting a high-school course by graduation with the class of 1878. His early business train- ing was that of the farm and he became thoroughly acquainted with every phase of farm work. Removing to South Dakota, he homesteaded land, which he still owns, having now a half section of the homestead place in addition to much other land in which he has invested. He started out in life on his own account when twenty-one years of age and as time has passed has prospered largely owing to his judicious investments. He is numbered among the prominent business men of Waubay, being president of the State Bank, which is capitalized for fifteen thousand dollars and which has a surplus of three thousand dollars and average deposits of one hundred and fifty thousand dollars. He also has important interests in ele- vator and in electric light plants and other business projects and devotes much of his time to his farming interests, which are extensive and important.

In 1898 Mr. Lasell wedded Miss Lena Matheson, who was horn in Mitchell, Iowa, and they had three children but only one is now living, Sylvan, who was born December 27, 1908; Ithiel and Nellie are deceased. Both Mr. and Mrs. Lasell adhere to the Christian faith. He is a member of the United Brethren church, while she is a Lutheran. He takes an advanced stand upon many questions of vital interest, being a stanch temperance worker and a sup- porter of the prohibition party. He has held some township offices and at all points in his career has heen loyal to the public welfare, while at the same time he has promoted his

SILAS T. LASELL

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individual interests. One of the important factors in his growing success is his ability to recognize and improve opportunities which others pass heedlessly by. Ile seems at once to become cognizant of the value of a business situation and his sound judgment and industry have constituted an impetus for the successful conduct of various important business concerns.

WILLIAM STEVEN GRAY.

William Steven Gray, an energetic and prosperous farmer of Yankton precinct, Yankton county, was born in Ivanhoe, Illinois, June 18, 1874, a son of William Bradford Dodge Gray, who was a son of William and Lucy Nelson (Dodge) Gray, natives of Massachusetts. They removed from their native state to New York, whence they emigrated westward and while on the journey William Bradford Dodge Gray was born, probably in Ohio. After his mother's death he was reared by his maternal grandparents, who resided in Lake county, Illinois, and there he grew to manhood. Subsequently he resided in Ivanhoe and Highland Park, that state, and had interests both as a farmer and as a merchant. Having sold his store, he came to South Dakota in the spring of 1880 and took up a homestead in Kings- bury county, between Lake Preston and De Smet. Later he secured a preemption and a timber claim and hauled lumber from Volga, a distance of thirty miles, to build his house. In the fall he went back for his family and following his return to this state continued to reside upon his land until 1890, when he removed to Yankton, where he lived for ten years. He then moved to Cheyenne, Wyoming, of which he is now a resident.

While still living in Illinois Mr. Gray was quite prominent in Sunday-school work and soon after arriving in this state he organized the Congregational church and Sunday-school, later becoming the minister of the Congregational church at Lake Henry and also serving several small mission churches nearby. In 1888 he became state superintendent of Sunday schools, which position he filled for several years after removing to Yankton. When Dr. D. K. Parsons gave fifty thousand dollars to the college at Yankton upon the condition that a stated amount be raised by the college Rev. Gray was sent east to secure the money from the Congregational churches in New York, New England and elsewhere and succeeded in getting the required amount. He served as treasurer of the college until removing to Cheyenne and has since been state organizer of Sunday schools in Wyoming, proving very efficient in that capacity. Although he has passed the age of three score years and ten he is still active and vigorous not only mentally but physically and in a wrestling match can throw any of his sons, who are all strong men. He was married in Lake county, Illinois, to Miss Julia Ann Payne, who died in Cheyenne in October, 1900. They were the parents of four sons: Burton Payne, a prominent attorney of Boston, Massachusetts; Edward D., a farmer residing near Yankton; William Steven; and Charles Nelson, of Minneapolis, Minnesota.

W. Steven Gray was six years old when he was brought by his parents to South Dakota territory and was reared upon the home farm. He early became familiar with agricultural work but his scholastic education was by no means neglected and after completing his course in the public schools he entered Yankton College, from which he was graduated in 1898. A few weeks before commencement he enlisted in Company C, First South Dakota Infantry, MeArthur's Brigade, for service in the Spanish-American war and his college diploma reached him in San Francisco en route to Manila. For three or four years before this he had been a member of the South Dakota National Guard and was a captain in that body at the time of his enlistment in the army. He served for eighteen months and participated in twenty- five battles and minor engagements in the Philippine islands, being for one hundred and twenty days on the firing line. The worst battle in which he participated was fought on the River Marabion. He sailed to the islands on the steamer Rio de Janeiro, which was later sunk in San Francisco harbor, and returned to America on the transport Sherman. On the way out he spent three days in Hawaii and upon his return was for a week in Japan, visiting Tokio, Nagasaki, Yokohama and other places of interest. On the voyage to San Francisco the transport encountered a two-days' storm which nearly engulfed the vessel, the waves setting trunks afloat in the officers' staterooms on the upper deck. Mr. Gray was

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mustered out at Sioux Falls in October, 1900. He then turned his attention to farming and has since been engaged in the cultivation of the land, owning a fine farm in Yankton precinct which yields him a good income each year. He understands the scientific principles that underlie agriculture, is energetic, prompt in his work and manages the business phase of farming in an efficient manner and as a result his resources are increasing steadily.

On the 1st of January, 1901, Mr. Gray was married in Yankton to Miss Belle Mooers, a native of Yankton and a daughter of Timothy and Martha (Ashard) Mooers, both of whom were born in New York but removed to Illinois when children. He was a carpenter by trade and was known as an expert workman. In 1871 he removed to Vermillion and three years later took up his residence in Yankton, where he followed his trade for many years. To Mr. and Mrs. Gray have been born five children, Weston, Ellen, Dudley, John and William S., Jr.

Mr. Gray is a republican in his political allegiance, while his church membership is held in the Protestant Episcopal church, of which his family are also members, and his fraternal connections are with the Modern Woodmen of America. He remembers vividly the first winter which he spent in South Dakota although he was then but a child. It has since been known as the winter of the deep snow, but the family did not suffer from the cold so much as from hunger. Although they had money there were no provisions to be had and neighbors shared with the family the six barrels of corn meal and two barrels of hams which our subject's grandfather sent him by the first train that reached the western terminus of the railroad. The father killed an antelope which, however, did not last long as the other families in the district were frequent visitors at the Gray home. At one time the family was reduced to the necessity of grinding corn in a coffee mill and subsisting on the meal and it was a rule that each one grind his own meal. On the courage and determination that enabled the pioneers to endure such hardships and many others is the state of South Dakota founded and faith in its continued growth is based upon the conviction that the same resolution and energy exists in its people today and that they will not only continue the development of the state materially but will also solve the problems of a political and social nature that confront the commonwealth. Mr. Gray has identified himself thoroughly with the interests of his adopted state, can always be counted upon to further its welfare in any way possible and is one of the most valued citizens of his county.

MAJOR JOHN ALFRED PICKLER.

The life record of Major John Alfred Piekler constitutes an important chapter in the history of South Dakota, the final word of which was written on the 13th of June, 1910. The sterling traits of his character were many and when one reviews his life work, noting the extent of his activities and the nobility of his purposes, one cannot but feel that such a spirit can never he lost to the world and must have stepped into a greater and more beautiful life when the door closed upon him and slut him from mortal vision. Major Pickler was born at or near Salem, Indiana, January 24, 1844, his parents being George and Emily (Martin) Piekler, who were natives of Indiana and Kentucky respectively. In carly life George Pickler engaged in merchandising in Indiana but in 1853 removed with his family to Monterey, Iowa, where he engaged in general merchandising. He continued at Monterey, which town was later removed to Coatsville, until about the close of the war, when he went to Kirksville, Missouri, where he again engaged in merchandising, continuing actively in business until his demise in 1870. His wife also passed away in Kirksville, Mis- souri, February 20, 1901, when eighty years of age. Major Piekler and his wife at one time visited the old town site of Monterey, where his father conducted a store, and by digging around they were able to find the foundation of the old brick building which he occupied. For many years the father was a member of the board of education and at all times way deeply interested in the welfare of the schools. Mr. and Mrs. George Pickler were members of the Christian church.

Major Pickler was the eldest in a family of ten children and was accorded liberal edu- rational advantages, supplementing his study in the public and high schools of Bloomfield by a course in the Iowa State University. When seventeen years of age he attempted to

MAJOR JOHN A. PICKLER

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enlist for service in the army but was persuaded by his father to remain at home until he was eighteen. He then joined Company D, Third Iowa Cavalry, as a reernit and he rose from the rank of sergeant to that of captain of his company. Near the elose of the war when colored troops were enlisted he was given command of the One Hundred and Thirty- eiglith Sonth Carolina Regiment and remained in command of that body of troops untit mustered out at the close of the war. On his first visit to Washington, D. C., some time afterward he was recognized by a member of his oid regiment. Following his return home Major Pickler, realizing the need and value of an education, entered npon a four years' literary course in the Iowa State University. Subsequently for one year he also attended the Chicago University Law school. He next entered the law department of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, where he was gradnated in 1872. He then went to Kirksville, Missonri, where he engaged in the practice of law with P. F. Greenwood, and the same year was elected states attorney of Adair county, Missouri, where he remained for about two years. On the expiration of that period he formed a partnership with a former classmate, William Hoffman, at Muscatine, lowa, under the firm name of Hoffman, Pickler & Brown, a connection that was continued until the spring of 1883, when Major Pickler removed to South Dakota. In the meantime he had taken a prominent part in public affairs in lowa and in 1882 represented his district in the state legislature, but resigned his position upon his removal to the west. He had been recognized as one of the republican leaders in Iowa and was chairman of the county central committee. He was also one of the Garfield electors in 1880 and at all times his word carried weight in the councils of his party. On removing to South Dakota he settled in what is now Faulkton. He came with the first four loads of lumber from Miller to be used in the building of the town and Mrs. Pickler now resides on his preemption claim adjoining the townsite. He at once embarked in the land business and was instrumental in locating a large part of the people in the county, made their final proofs on the preemption lands, obtained money for them and helped them to help them- selves. He also practiced law and was prominently connected with other business and pub- lie affairs. As opportunity offered he made judicious investments in real estate and became · an extensive property holder, his possessions including valuable farm lands. His atten- tion was largely concentrated upon his dealings in farm lands, stock-raising and his law practice. He possessed keen business sagacity and had the ability to readily and quickly discriminate between the essential and the nonessential. His enterprise and determina- tion carried him forward to the goal of success and his prosperity was evidenced in his beautiful home, which is the most commodious in Faulkton and was built to its present proportions in 1898.

It was while attending the Iowa State University that Major Pickler formed the acquaintance of Miss Alice Mary Alt, whom he wedded on the 16th of November, 1870. Mrs. Pickler was born near Towa City, November 17, 1848, a daughter of Joseph A. and Eliza (Kepford) Alt. The former was born near Harpers Ferry, Virginia, February 12, 1816, and the mother's birth occurred near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, December 6, 1825. Mrs. Alt's great-grandfather, Frederic Kepford, served in the Revolutionary war, but owing to the burning of the records at Harrisburg the family have been unable to verify the line further. Joseph Alt, the father of Mrs. Pickler, was a grandson of a Scotchman, Michel Drew, who came to America and enlisted in the Revolutionary army, being with General Washington at Valley Forge. At the close of the war he settled in Loudoun county, Vir- ginia, where his daughter, Mary Drew, was born. She became the wife of Jacob Alt at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, and there Joseph Alt was born February 12, 1816. Soon after- ward the family removed to the vicinity of Springfield, Ohio, where the children grew to manhood and womanhood. In 1840 a further removal was made to Iowa, the family settling at North Bend, now North Liberty, Johnson county, not far from Iowa City. The Kepford family came from Pennsylvania to Iowa in 1846 and following the marriage of Joseph A. Alt and Eliza Kepford, which was celebrated in Iowa, January 25, 1848. Mr. and Mrs. Alt preempted a claim on the Iowa river and there resided for more than sixty years, or until his death. The old family homestead is still owned and occupied by Mrs. Piekler's younger brother, R. H. Alt. The father was a well read man, Joyal and progressive in citizenship, and at various times was called to fill local offices. He died January 27, 1904, and his widow survived him for only ten days. Their daughter, Mrs. Pickler, the eldest of their seven children, was educated in the State University of Iowa, where she met Major

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Pickler, a handsome young officer, then twenty-two years of age, who had just returned from the war. Through the succeeding four years he studied in the State University and then on the 16th of November, 1870, they were married. Unto them were born four chil- dren. Lulu Alberta, the eldest, was born August 20, 1871, married William J. Frad, a general merchant of Faulkton, and they have three children: William Alfred, born April 5. 1909; Lulu Alice, October 10, 1911; and Lois Eliza, October 17, 1914. Madge Emily, the second daughter, born May 25, 1878, is the wife of Nathaniel E. Hoy, of Meadow, South Dakota, who is editor of the Grand Valley Herald and Chance Record, and is also exten- sively and successfully engaged in the land and live-stock business. Alfred Alt, the only son, born March 13, 1882, is a director and stockholder in the Northern Casualty Company of Aberdeen, in which city he makes his home. Dale Alice, born August 27, 1887, was mar- ried June 24, 1915, to Roy P. Conway, of Mission, Texas, who is connected with a land development and irrigation project of a most important character on the Rio Grande river. Mr. Conway is a native of Faulk county. The children of the family have been liberally educated, the daughters all being graduates of the Dakota Wesleyan University, while the son is a graduate of the University of Minnesota.

The family circle was broken by the hand of death when on the 13th of June, 1910, Major Pickler passed away at his home in Faulkton. He was a consistent and loyal mem- ber of the Metbodist Episcopal church and guided his life according to its teachings. When the church of that denomination was organized in Fanlkton he became its first male member and was the first and only regular teacher of the Bible class up to the time of his death, although in his later years because of illness he was obliged to discontinue teaching at intervals. In politics he was a republican and exerted a strong and beneficial influence for good along political lines. He served as a member of the territorial legislature from 1885 until 1887, representing a distriet composed of nine counties. At the time that South Dakota was admitted into the Union he had gone to Washington to be present at the inauguration of Benjamin Harrison as president of the United States. There he met Colonel John W. Noble, of the Third Iowa Cavalry, his old comrade, who was then secretary of the interior. Major Pickler called upon him and was appointed to the position of land inspector, his first duty being to go to Oklahoma and open up the territory for settlement. He had but thirty days in which to make the trip and build two land offices. He received his orders from Secretary of War Proctor, of Vermont, which was the first official order issued by Proctor. While acting in that capacity Major Pickler was chosen a representative to congress from South Dakota, being one of the first members sent to the national legislature from the newly created state. Four times he was nominated for that office, serving in all for eight years, at the end of which time he refused another nomination, withdrawing in order to become a candidate for United States senator. But the populist party had grown largely in strength in the state and the republican party did not have sufficient votes in the legislature to elect a senator. The republicans, however, stood by him until the close, when he withdrew in favor of Senator Kyle, a populist. Major Pickler's record is most creditable. He served on various important committees and was connected with much important legislation looking to the welfare of his district, his state and the country at large. He studied vital questions with great . thoroughness and his position in support of a measure was always the result of careful consideration.

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History of Dakota Territory, volume V, Part 145

Author: Kingsbury, George Washington, 1837-; Smith, George Martin, 1847-1920 Publication date: 1915 Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : S.J. Clarke Publishing Company Number of Pages: 1262

Author: Kingsbury, George Washington, 1837-; Smith, George Martin, 1847-1920
Publication date: 1915
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : S.J. Clarke Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1262