History of Dakota Territory, volume V, Part 95

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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Mr. Sellers is a republican and is loyal in his support of the platform and candidates of that party. His religious faith is in accordance with the teachings of the Congregational church, of which he is a member. He is also identified with the Masonic blue lodge and the Knights of Pythias, in which he is outgoing chancellor commander. Mr. Sellers has already accomplished much and his youth, ability and energy give promise of greater achievement in the years to comc.

REV. JOSEPH C. ZIMMERMANN.

Rev. Joseph C. Zimmermann is the zealous and beloved pastor of Holy Rosary parish of Kranzburg, which is one of the largest parishes in the country districts of the diocese. He was born in Bavaria on the 19th of March, 1876, and educated in the schools of his native country. For three years he attended the State College at Amberg-ober-Pfalz, Bavaria, and in 1893 came to the United States, completing his classical studies at Mount Calvary College, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. He took his theological and philosophical studies at Milwaukee and on the 2d of February, 1901. was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop Katzer. He was subsequently stationed at St. Francis church in Milwaukee and later was placed in charge of St. Joseph's church at Appleton, Wisconsin.

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Father Zimmermann remained there until November, 1910, when he moved to South Dakota on account of his health. The change of location placed him under the jurisdiction of Bishop O'Gorman of Sioux Falls. For three years .he held charges at Ipswich, Roscoe and Onaka. In September, 1913, he was appointed pastor of Holy Rosary parish at Kranzbnrg. which is one of the important congregations of this section of the state, numbering some one hundred and fifty families. There is an excellent parochial school with one hundred and fifty children in attendance and all phases of church work are flourishing. Since assuming the duties of this parish Father Zimmermann has made improvements of a total value of sixteen thousand dollars, practically all of which had been paid. He has built a brick paro- chial residence at the cost of nine thousand dollars and remodeled the parochial school build- ing, moving and placing it on an entirely new foundation and equipping it with a modern heating plant and otherwise improving it. He is a faithful pastor, looking well after the spiritual life of those committed to his care, and he is energetic in his efforts to advance the cause of Catholicism. In handling the business phase of the work he has proved capable and efficient, and the financial interests of the church of Kranzburg are in able hands. He has greatly endeared himself to those of his congregation and has won the sincere respect of people of all denominations and of no religious affiliation.

ALLEN HILDAHL.

Allen Hildahl is a factor in financial circles of Lyons, South Dakota, as cashier of the Farmers State Bank, which position he has ably filled for the past six years. His birth occurred in Dickinson county, Iowa, on the 23d of November, 1871, his parents being Knudt and Sigri Hildahl, who came to this state and preempted land in 1876. They have remained on the old home farm throughout the intervening thirty-nine years and are well and favor- ably known in the community. They have three living children: Allen; Ole, who resides on the home farm; and Anna, who is teaching in Minnehaha county.

Allen Hildahl supplemented his early education, obtained in the public schools, by a course of study in the Lutheran Normal School of Sioux Falls and in the Madison State Normal School. Subsequently he followed the profession of teaching for eleven years and on the expiration of that period entered the Farmers State Bank of Lyons as cashier, in which capacity he has continued during the past seven years. He is also a stoekholder of the institution and has proven himself a highly competent, courteous and obliging official.

In politics Mr. Hildahl is a republican and for some years has held the office of town clerk. He is widely recognized as a progressive and public-spirited citizen who takes a deep and helpful interest in all matters pertaining to the general welfare and tending to advance the interests of his state. In religious faith he is a Lutheran. His many sterling traits have been the means of winning for him the respect and regard of all with whom he has come in contact, and therefore the circle of his friends is almost coextensive with the circle of his acquaintances.

CHARLES E. ARNESON.

Charles E. Arneson, a farmer and stock-raiser residing on section 34, Valley Springs township, is thoroughly identified with the interests of South Dakota. He is a native of the state, born on the place where he now resides. his parents, A. T. and H. M. Arneson, being pioneers of Minnehaha county. The father came from Norway in 1873 and upon arriving in Minnehaha county took up a tree claim of three hundred and twenty acres. The mother homesteaded a separate claim and the family eventually held title to a large traet of land. The father passed away November 13, 1893, but the mother who is a native of Michigan. sur- vives and makes her home at Montrose.

Charles E. Arneson was given the usual opportunities of the country boy and attended the schools of the neighborhood in his acquirement of an education. He determined to devote his life to agriculture and as he wished to thoroughly prepare himself to be a successful

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farmer, he attended the Agricultural College at Brookings for a short time. He is progress- ive and up-to-date in his work and uses all of the modern farming implements, which fact, together with his knowledge of scientific methods of agriculture, insures a good yield an- nually. He also raises cattle and hogs quite extensively and engages in the buying and selling of sheep. He operates one hundred and sixty acres, renting the other quarter section of the homestead.

Mr. Arneson was united in marriage on the 30th of June, 1910, to Miss Fanny Staples, a daughter of Fred and Ellen Staples, both of whom are deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Arneson have one child, Allen Engene. They are members of the Methodist church and take an active part in its work. Mr. Arneson gives his political allegiance to the republican party and fraternally belongs to Crystal Lodge, K. P., of Valley Springs. His parents were among those who performed the arduous labor necessary in transforming the state from a wild region to a prosperous agricultural section. He and his sister, Mrs. H. A. Dickenson, of Montrose, remember muel of interest concerning the days when South Dakota was on the frontier. Every movement that is inaugurated for the purpose of advancing the interests and welfare of his community and state finds in him an enthusiastic worker for its success, and this public spirit has commended him to the respect and esteem of all who knew him.

COE ISAAC CRAWFORD.

A predominant characteristic of Coe Isaac Crawford is his loyalty to his honest convic- tions, which he will defend to the point of sacrificing any personal ambition. He stands at all times in stalwart defense of what he believes to be right and none question the integrity of his opinions; they may differ from him in matters of belief or of policy but none doubt his sincerity. These qualities have been again and again manifest in his career-the tangible evidences of his public spirit-and today as representative of South Dakota in the United States senate, he is displaying the same qualities which marked his efforts to defeat machine rule in state politics.

C. I. Crawford is a typical resident of the west, alert and enterprising. He was born at Volney, Allamakee county, Iowa, January 14, 1858, his parents being Robert and Sarah (Shannon) Crawford. The family is of Irish lineage and was founded in the new world by James Crawford who, leaving his home in County Tyrone, Ireland, became a resident of Coshocton county, Ohio, in 1816. He was the father of Robert Crawford, who removed from Bloomfield, Ohio, to Allamakee county, Iowa, in 1851, and there amid the hills which border the Mississippi valley, established his home and reared his family of twelve children, includ- ing Coe I., who was the fourth son. When in the battle of life the city boy crosses swords with the country lad the odds are against him. The early rising, the daily tasks, the eco- nomical habits of the country boy prepare him for the struggle that must precede ascendency. The early training of C. I. Crawford was that of the farm and the habits of industry and close application which he early developed have constituted the foundation not only of his professional success but also of his personal prominence. The effort required to live in ungenerous surroundings such as those of a pioneer community, the necessity to make every blow tell and to exercise every inventive faculty develop powers of mind and habit which have established distinguished names within South Dakota's borders. The usual experiences of the farm lad fell to the lot of C. I. Crawford. He attended the public schools in the winter months and assisted in clearing the farm through the summer seasons, having the necessities of life and some of its comforts but none of its luxuries. When a youth of fifteen he had the opportunity of attending a graded school, working, however, for his board in the family of a physician who was a man of broad culture and felt a personal interest in the lad who thus early was manifesting a laudable ambition for intellectual advancement. This physi- cian instructed Mr. Crawford in Latin, geometry and English literature and after two years' further study he was granted a teacher's certificate and became a law student in the Iowa State University, in which he completed his course in the class of 1882, winning the LL. B. degree.

Mr. Crawford located for practice in Pierre, Dakota territory, in 1883, and his ability as a lawyer soon gained for him a very desirable clientage and led to his election to the office

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of states attorney for Hughes county in 1886. Two years afterward he became a member of the legislative council of Dakota territory and was a member of the first state legislature, which convened in 1889-1890. He was appointed chairman of the committee on revenue and made the original drafts of nearly all the bills of importance that were introduced during that session. his influence constituting a potent force in securing their enactment. In 1896 the party nominated him for congress and following his defeat by a small majority he tem- porarily withdrew from politics and concentrated his efforts upon his profession. The Chi- cago & Northwestern Railway Company made him its attorney for South Dakota and he removed from Pierre to Huron, remaining as the legal representative of that railroad in this state until he resigned in order to be free to make an independent decisive fight for progressive republicanism. In that year he was made the nominee of his party for gov- ernor but was again defeated. However, he was studying the political situation with thor- ougliness and recognized the fact that the party in South Dakota was under the domination of the political machine. Once more be became his party's candidate for gubernatorial honors and after a most bitterly contested campaign was elected in November, 1906. His administration was characterized by needed reforms and improvements in matters relating to the commonwealth. While he occupied the chair of chief executive, many laws of public benefit were added to the statute books: the primary election law, the anti-lobby law, the anti-pass law, the fellow servant law, the law limiting the hours of labor for the employes of common carriers and a law requiring the publicity of election campaign funds. Under the primary election law he became the republican candidate to represent South Dakota in the United States senate during the term beginning March 4, 1909, and at the election received a most gratifying majority. As in the state legislature, his individuality is mak- ing itself felt and he is regarded as the peer of many of the ablest members of the senate.

Mr. Crawford was married to Miss May Robinson, whose father, Levi Robinson, was a prominent attorney of Iowa City, Iowa. She died in 1894 leaving two children, Miriam and Irving, and on the 27th of November, 1896, Senator Crawford married her sister Lavinia. The children of this union are two sons and a daughter, Robert, Curtis and Jeannette. The family residence is maintained at Huron, South Dakota, although of necessity they have in recent years spent much time in the national capital.

Senator Crawford is a Presbyterian in religious faith. His standing in professional cir- cles is indicated by the fact that he was honored with the presidency of the South Dakota Bar Association in 1899 and in 1904 and 1905 he was a member of the general council of the American Bar Association, with both of which organizations he is still actively connected. He is prominent as a man, bis constantly expanding powers having taken him from humble surroundings to the field of large enterprises and continually broadening opportunities. His personal characteristics and social qualities are pronounced and he is an acceptable companion in any society in which intelligence is a necessary attribute to agreeableness. He has occu- pied a central place on the stage of political action almost from the time when his initial effort was made. He has pursued his course without allowing personal interest or ambition to dwarf his public spirit or activities and the high ideals which he has cherished have found embodiment in practical effort for their adoption. His breadth of view enables him to grasp the possibilities of a situation and the highest type of American manhood finds in him an exponent.

AMUND GUNDERSON.

Amund Gunderson, one of the representative citizens and well known agriculturists of Lyons township, Minnehaha county, owns a farm on section 27 which has been in his pos- session for the past four decades. His birth occurred in Norway on the 27th of May, 1849, his parents being Gunder and Ingeborg Simonson, who came to the United States some years after the emigration of our subject. Following their arrival in South Dakota they made their home with their oldest son, Gunder Gunderson, of Lyons township, Minnehaha county, who had sailed for the United States in 1869 or three years prior to the emigration of his brother Amund. Both the parents have passed away.

Amund Gunderson grew to manhood in his native land and attended the common

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schools in the acquirement of an education. In 1872 he crossed the Atlantic to the new world. locating in Union county, South Dakota, where he worked as a farm hand. In 1873 he took a preemption on his present home farm in Lyons township, Minnehaha county, but prior to proving up on it he changed it to a homestead. While proving up on this homestead he continued to work for wages in Union county as a means of subsistence, for he came to this country without funds. About 1877 he made his permanent location on his homestead and started out as an agriculturist on his own account, successfully carrying on farming in Lyons township until the farm was put in the hands of Erick Anderson. As the years have passed, prosperity has attended his efforts and Mr. Gunderson has long been numbered among the substantial and successful citizens of his community. He is a stockholder in the Crooks Lumber Company, the New Hope Grain Company of Crooks, the Lyons State Bank and the Baltic & New Hope Telephone Company. He was likewise one of the organizers and is a stockholder of the Farmers Mutual Insurance Company of Minnehaha county.

In 1884 Mr. Gunderson was united in marriage to Mrs. Olson, formerly Miss Carrie Erickson, who is a native of Norway. By her marriage to Andrew Olson, Mrs. Gunderson had a son. Erick Anderson, who operates our subject's farm. In politics Mr. Gunderson is a republican, believing firmly in the principles of that party and upholding its men and measures at the polls. Both he and his wife are devoted and consistent members of the Lutheran synod. The hope that led him to leave his native land and seek a home in Amer- ica has been more than realized. He found the opportunities he sought-which, by the way, are always open to the ambitious, energetic man-and making the best of these he worked his way steadily upward. His record cannot fail to prove of interest to many of our readers, for he has an extensive circle of friends and acquaintances throughout the community in which he has so long resided.

ROLLUF ANDERSON.

Rolluf Anderson', who passed away on the 6th of October, 1898, was one of the first settlers of Dell Rapids township, Minnehaha county, and at the time of his demise owned five hundred and sixty acres of valuable land in that township. His birth occurred in Norway on the 20th of May, 1842, his parents being Andrew and Ingeberg. Anderson, the former a farmer by occupation.

Rolluf Anderson acquired his early education in the schools of Norway and spent the first twenty-four years of his life in the land of his nativity. In August, 1866, he crossed the Atlantic to the United States, locating with his brother in Wisconsin, where he attended the Albion Academy for four years. In 1869 he came to Minnehaha county, South Dakota, and preempted a tract of land on section 17, Dell Rapids township, also taking up a homestead claim on section 28 of that township. He made all the improvements on the property and continued farming successfully throughout the remainder of his life, owning at one time six hundred and forty acres and after giving a part of this to his daughter still had at the time of his death five hundred and sixty acres of rich and productive land Mr. Anderson was among the first settlers of Dell Rapids township and the first man to pay taxes, holding the first tax receipt. He underwent all of the hardships and priva- tions of the carly pioneer, experiencing the grasshopper plague, the drought and the severe winters. He and his wife began housekeeping in a stone house of but two rooms situated at the edge of the bank, and they experienced all of the hardships and trials of frontier life. As there was no coal to be had, they used hay and wood for fuel. He was chosen the first assessor of his township and ably discharged the duties devolving upon him in that connection.

On the 20th of September, 1871, Mr. Anderson was united in marriage to Miss Anna Forton, who came to this state with her parents, Ole and Anna Forton. To them were born the following children: Ida, deceased; Annie, the wife of A. J. Mortvedt; Lena, the deceased wife of J. J. Mortvedt; Robert, who is a medical missionary of the Lutheran church and has been stationed in China since 1907; Olai, deceased, who was a Lutheran minister and pastor of the home church in Dell Rapids; John Edward, who follows farming in Dell Rapids township; Edwin, also an agriculturist by occupation; Jessie, at home;

ROLLUF ANDERSON

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and Elmer and Louis N., twins, who operate the home farm for their widowed mother, who resides there. All of the children are natives of South Dakota.

In politics Mr. Anderson was a populist. He held the office of township clerk for a number of years and also served on the school board, ever proving a most capable and trustworthy publie official. He was appointed the first county superintendent of Min- nehaha county but would not accept the office. His religious faith was that of the Lutheran church, to which his widow and children also belong. His life was upright and honorable in every relation, and his memory is still cherished in the hearts of those who knew and loved him.

ALBERT I. OYEN.

One of the more successful among the younger representatives of agricultural interests in Minnehaha county is Albert I. Oyen, who owns and operates a valuable farm of one hundred and sixty acres on section 4, Benton township. The place which is now in his possession has remained his home from his birth to the present time, his natal day being January 26, 1888. His parents, Anton and Olena Oyen, were hoth natives of Norway. In 1876 Anton Oyen emigrated to the United States with his parents, who made their way to Minnehaha county, South Dakota, Ingebregt Oyen, the grandfather of our subject, home- steading one hundred and sixty acres of land on section 4, Benton township, which is now owned by Mr. Oyen of this review. Thereon the grandfather spent the remainder of his life, while Anton Oyen made it his home until 1900, when he, too, passed away. He had been a resident of the community for almost a quarter of a century and enjoyed an enviable reputation as a substantial agriculturist and esteemed citizen.

In the acquirement of an education Albert I. Oyen attended the public schools. In 1908, when not yet twenty-one years of age, he took charge of the operation of the liome farm, and when the other heirs became of age he purchased their interests in the property. It has since remained in his possession and is a valuable and productive farm, the careful cultivation of which brings him a gratifying annual income. He is likewise a stockholder in the Crooks Lumber Company and the New Hope Grain Company of Crooks.

On the 22d of November, 1913, Mr. Oyen was united in marriage to Miss Gertie Nelson, her father being Iver Nelson, a prominent agriculturist of Mapleton township, Minnehaha county. Mr. Oyen gives his political allegiance to the republican party and is identified fraternally with the Modern Woodmen of America, while his religious faith is indicated by his membership in the Norwegian Lutheran synod, to which his wife also belongs. The young couple are popular socially and have an extensive circle of friends and acquaintances in the community where they reside.

REV. WALTER J. EDGAR.

Rev. Walter J. Edgar has for over three decades been an ordained minister of the Wesleyan Methodist church and since 1904 has been president of the Wesleyan Methodist conference. He was born in Brighton, Michigan, November 20, 1852, a son of Robert and Nancy (Whalen) Edgar. The Edgar family is of Scotch-Irish origin and Robert Edgar was a native of Ireland. His wife was born in Canada but reared in Vermont. He hecame a pioneer of Michigan, arriving in that state in 1832. He lived to an advanced age, dying in 1880. when eighty-one years of age, and was buried in the Baptist cemetery, in Brighton township, Livingston county, Michigan. After his death his widow brought the family to South Dakota and she passed away in this state in 1892, at the age of eighty-four years, interment being made at Webster.

Walter J. Edgar received his education in Brighton, Michigan, and then taught for a number of years in the public schools of that state and South Dakota. He desired to become a minister of the gospel, however, and in 1883 was ordained pastor of the Wesleyan Methodist church. For over three decades he has been a faithful servant of the cause of Christ and his Vol. V-35

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labors have been productive of much good in the communities where he has preached. For fourteen years he was stationed in Brookings county, his length of service there being an indication of the hold which he had upon the hearts of his people. Although an effective pulpit speaker much of his influence has been due to his truly Christian life, which has preached more effectively than it is possible for mere words to do.

In addition to his work as a minister Rev. Edgar has devoted some time to the manage- ment of his farms. In 1881 he took up a homestead three and one-half miles northeast of Mellette and also entered a tree claim. He broke the land, which was wild, and brought it to a high state of cultivation but eventually leased the homestead and sold the tree elaim. He then honght three hundred and twenty acres in Brookings county, which he held until 1913, when he sold it and bought another three hundred and twenty acres north of Cres- bard. He rents this farm, which is in a high state of enltivation and well improved. He is at present building a residence thereon and making other improvements.

Rev. Edgar has been married twice, his first union being with Miss Sarah King, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Richard King, both of whom are deceased and are buried near Benton Harbor, Michigan. The marriage was solemnized in the Wolverine state. Mrs. Edgar passed away in Bushnell, Brookings county, Sonth Dakota, and was buried in the Brookings cemetery. She was the mother of four children, namely: Margery, the wife of Lawrence Phillbrook, who resides near Webster, this state; Elmer J., a farmer living in the same locality; Bessie, who is a graduate of the high school and has taught for eleven years, her home being with her parents; and Edith, the wife of Blanchard Smith, a resident of Brookings. On the 15th of September, 1909, Rev. Edgar was married, in Northville, to Mrs. Mary Martin, a daughter of Thomas J. and Hannah (Tucker) Thompson, pioneers of that part of South Dakota. Mrs. Edgar has six children by her first marriage: Earl L., who is engaged in farming near Northville; Glen R., a resident of Aberdeen; Fern, the wife of William R. Hall, of Northville; Frank T., also of Northville; and Floyd W. and Pearl A., both at home.

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History of Dakota Territory, volume V, Part 95

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