USA > South Dakota > History of South Dakota, Vol. II > Part 2
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Voll, William
1844
Voorhees, Samuel T.
1295
W
Wade, N. M., M. D. 1898
Wagner, Edward E.
1087
Wait, Levi D.
1081
Waldron, Charles W
1472
Waldron, George P
1440
Walker, Benjamin L.
1148
Walker, Delhert T 953
Wallis, S. R., M. D 1889
Walpole, William
1317
Waltner, Andrew J
1227
Walts, Cyrus
1231
Wangsness, Marcus H.
965
Wangsness, Thomas
964
Ward, F. B.
1548
Warren, C. P
1898
Warren, Rev. Henry K., M.
A., LL.D.
1066
Watkins, Samuel P
1651
Wattson, Bert G
1515
Weaver, Archie
959
Weaver, John R.
1757
Webb, Frank W 1428
Weddell, Charles
1239
Weedon, Charles K.
1272
Wegener, Joseph
1876
Welsh, Mahlon
1635
Wenke, John
1297
Wertherer. Joseph
1880
West, John E
1257
Westfall, John
1851
Wheeler, Foster F
1888
Wheelock, E. D.
1152
Whitheck, Almon
1462
White. Norman D.
.1042
Whiting, Charles
1595
Wickheim, P. F.
1091
Wickre, Hans O
1746
Wicks, Frederick D
1075
Williams, Andrew G.
1408
Williams, Morris M.
1762
Williams, Richard 1655
Williams, William H. 1817
Williamson, George N
1279
Williamson, John H.
1577
Williamson, Rev. John P 1702
Willrodt, Lawrence H. 1183
Willson, Mordecai, M. D 997 Wilmarth. Albert W 1696
Wilson, Edward H.
1324
Wilson, E. S.
1889
Wilson, John E. C.
1522
Wilson, James W
1627
Wise, Wilson
1528
Wipf, Andreas A., M. D. 1219
Wipf, Joseph W.
1220
Witte, August C.
1558
Wixson, Eli I
1720
Wolcott, W. B.
1679
Wood, Chauncey L
1557
Wood, George A.
1692
Wood, Lewis E.
1458
Wood, Willis R.
1194
Woods, James M.
1636
Woods, Richard J.
1830
Wyman, F. D.
1067
Y
Young, Sutton E.
1105
Z
Zietlow, John L. W.
.1752
Zitka, Joseph
1143
CHAPTER CIII-CONTINUED.
PERSONAL MENTION OF CITIZENS OF SOUTH DAKOTA.
OTTO C. BERG, who is now serving his second term as secretary of state of South Da- kota, is one of the prominent and influential citizens of the commonwealth and has here main- tained his home for more than a score of years, so that he is entitled to the distinction of being classed among the pioneers of this favored sec- tion of our great national domain. Mr. Berg comes of stanch Norseland lineage and is him- self a native of Norway, having been born in Brottum, Ringsager, on the Ioth of September, 1849, and being a son of Christian T. and Christence Berg, who are both now dead. The subject secured his educational training in the excellent national schools of his native land and instituted his independent career by securing a clerkship in a general store at Lillehammer, later becoming bookkeeper in a wholesale establish- ment at Drammen. In 1873 he came to America and located in Wisconsin, becoming one of the prominent citizens of Norwalk, Monroe county, where he served as postmaster and also held the office of county clerk. In 1883 he came to what is now the state of South Dakota and took up his abode in Northville, Spink county, where he en- gaged in the general merchandise business, build- ing up a prosperous enterprise in the line. For six years he served as clerk of the circuit and county courts, manifesting an active concern in public affairs and early becoming one of the lead- ers in the ranks of the Republican party of the state. In 1900 he was elected secretary of state and was chosen as his own successor in 1902, so
that he is incumbent of this responsible and exact- ing office at the time of this writing. He is a lead- ing Republican and takes a deep interest in the furtherance of the principles and policies of the party. His religious faith is that of the Lutheran church, while Mrs. Berg and family are devoted members of the Congregational church. Fra- ternally he is affiliated with Redfield Lodge, No. 34, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, at Red- field ; Redfield Chapter, No. 20, Royal Arch Ma- sons; South Dakota Consistory, Ancient Ac- cepted Scottish Rite Masons, in Aberdeen ; and Northville Lodge, No. 36, Ancient Order of United Workmen, at Northville.
On the Ist of May, 1879, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Berg to Miss Edith O. Rowe, who was born at Coldspring, Jefferson county, Wisconsin, being a daughter of David R. Rowe, an influential citizen of that place. Of this union have been born three children, Edna Mathea, who died January 8, 1904, at the age of twenty-three years ; Christine, who died in infancy, and Paul B., who is sixteen years of age at the time of this writing, in 1904.
DELBERT T. WALKER, superintendent of schools for Codington county and proprietor of the Watertown Commercial College, is a native of the Hawkeye state, having been born in Mount Auburn, Benton county, Iowa, on the 25th of July, 1867, and being a son of George H. and Julia S.
1-
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HISTORY OF SOUTH DAKOTA.
( Gillette) Walker, the former of whom was born in England and the latter in the state of Connecticut, while they were numbered among the pioneers of Benton county, Iowa, where they still maintain their home, the father of our sub- ject having been formerly engaged in farming and in mercantile pursuits, while for nearly a dec- ade and a half he has served as postmaster at Mount Auburn, being one of the honored and influential citizens of the county. He came to America in 1843, and was a resident of Iowa at the time of the outbreak of the war of the Re- bellion. He signalized his loyalty to the land of his adoption, since, in 1862, he enlisted as a pri- vate in Company G. Thirteenth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, with which he was in active service until the close of the war, when he received his honorable discharge. He participated in many of the most notable battles of the great conflict. having been a member of General Grant's forces at Chattanooga and Vicksburg, while later he took part in the Atlanta campaign and accompanied Sherman on the ever memorable march to the sea.
1
The subject, who is the only child of his par- ents, completed the curriculum of the public schools of his native town, being graduated in the Mount Auburn high school as a member of the class of 1887, while later he completed courses in the commercial and normal departments of the Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Business College, be- ing graduated in each. He also was for a time a student in the Iowa State University. at Iowa City, but did not complete a course. Mr. Walker began teaching at the age of eighteen years, and in 1800 came to Watertown, to accept the position of principal of the commercial college here, retaining the incumbency for a period of five years; after which he was for one year prin- cipal of the Curtis Business College, in St. Paul, Minnesota. He then returned to his native town. where he was principal of the public schools for one and one-half years, when he resigned and returned to Watertown, purchasing the Water- town Commercial College, which he has since conducted, having greatly amplified the functions and usefulness of the institution and brought it
up to the highest standard of excellence in all its departments. He was elected county super- intendent of schools in 1900, and that his course met with popular endorsement was shown in his re-election, in 1902, without opposition. He is enthusiastic in his work, a careful and conscien- tious executive, and has done much to further educational interests in the county. He is a mem- ber of the board of trustees of the public library of Watertown and took an active part in secur- ing the donation for the new Carnegie library. which is to he erected in the near future. at a cost of fifteen thousand dollars.
Professor Walker is a stanch advocate of the principles and policies of the Republican party. and fraternally is prominently identified with the Masonic order and the Knights of Pythias. In the former he has completed the round of the York Rite bodies, including the commandery of Knights Templar, while he has served as wor- shipful master of the blue lodge, and as recorder of Watertown Commandery. No. 7. Knights Templar, and keeper of records and seals of Trishocotyn Lodge, No. 17. Knights of Pythias, having held the latter office ever since he was constituted a Knight of Pythias with the excep- tion of an interval of six months, while in 1893 he represented the local Masonic lodge in the grand lodge of the state, at Deadwood, and has thrice been a delegate to the grand lodge of the Knights of Pythias in South Dakota.
On the 25th of July, 1892. Professor Walker was united in marriage to Miss May A. Slat- tery, who was born in Ohio, being a daughter of David A. and Margaret (Jones) Slattery. the former now deceased and the latter is now a resi- dent of Watertown, South Dakota. She had been a successful teacher in the public schools of South Dakota prior to her marriage. Profes- sor and Mrs. Walker have two children, Blaine E. and Hazel M.
Watertown Commercial College was estab- lished in 1887. The school enrolls from one hundred to one hundred and twenty-five pupils per year and is adding from fifteen to twenty per cent. increase each year. The courses are com- mercial, shorthand and typewriting, and normal.
955
HISTORY OF SOUTH DAKOTA.
JOHN B. HANTEN, an eminent attorney of Watertown, Codington county, is a native of Minnesota, having been born on a farm in Scott county, January 20, 1859. He is a son of Henry and Anna M. ( Leas) Hanten, who were born in Luxemburg, Germany. Henry Hanten was a man of erudition and sterling character, and was for a number of years engaged in teach- ing, in colleges and public schools, while finally he engaged in agricultural pursuits in Minne- sota, whence he came to Watertown, South Da- kota, shortly prior to his death, which here oc- curred on the 28th of March. 1882, at which time he was fifty-two years of age. He was graduated in the institute at Luxemburg and later completed a four years' course of study in the university at Charles LeRoy, France. He was a son of Jean and Susanna (Thobes) Hen- ten, the former having been a prosperous farmer in Luxemburg, Germany, where he passed his entire life, his son, the father of the subject, having come to America in 1854.
John B. Hanten accompanied his parents to Germany when seven years of age, and in the excellent schools of that land received his early education, having been graduated in the gym- nasium at Larochette as a member of the class of 1873, and thereafter taking a post-graduate course in Luxemburg, Germany, where he re- mained until 1874, when he returned to the United States and in 1878 located at Kranz- burg, Codington county, South Dakota, where he was conducting a hotel until 1884. when he engaged in the hardware business in that town. In 1886 he was appointed clerk of the district court, and thereupon disposed of his business in Kranzburg and took up his residence in Water- town. He held this incumbency for six years, within which interval he had devoted much time to the reading of law, and in the fall of 1892 he was admitted to the bar of the state, having thoroughly grounded himself in the science of jurisprudence. On the 23d of December. 1893, Mr. Hanten was appointed receiver of the United States land office in Watertown, remain- ing in tenure of this office until March 17, 1898, when he resumed the practice of his profession,
in which he has met with distinctive success. In the fall of the same year he was elected to represent his district in the state senate, serv- ing one term, while he was the candidate of his party for a second term, in 1900, but met de- feat which attended the party ticket in general throughout the state. He has ever been a stal- wart advocate of the principles of the Demo- cratic party, in whose cause he has been an active and effective worker. Mr. Hanten is at the present time president of the Business Men's Union, of Watertown, and likewise one of its directors. He served four years as a member of the National Guard of South Dakota, being raised to the rank of sergeant, while later he was assistant chief of supplies, with rank of major, on the staff of ex-Governor A. C. Mellette. He is identified with the Catholic Order of Forest- ers, in which he is state chief ranger at the time of this writing, having held the office from the time of the organization of the order in the state, in 1900. He and his wife are communi- cants of the Catholic church, being members of Immaculate Conception church, in whose work they take an active interest. Mr. Hanten was one of the organizers of the Watertown State Bank, of which he is president, and he ever shows a deep interest in all that makes for the progress and material prosperity of his home city and state. In 1878 his father purchased a large traet of railroad land in what is now South Dakota, and several of his sons, including the subject, came here to do their part in settling and developing the country, encountering the varied experiences and vicissitudes of pioneer life on the plains.
At Kranzburg, this state, on the 25th of January, 1881, Mr. Hanten was united in mar- riage to Miss Margaret A. Kranz, daughter of Matthew and Margaretha (Ludwig) Kranz, both of whom were born and reared in Germany, whence they emigrated to Minnesota, and then to South Dakota, being numbered among the first settlers of Codington county, while the town of Kranzburg was named in honor of Mr. Kranz. Mrs. Hanten was born at New Trier, Dakota county, Minnesota, on the 2d of July,
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HISTORY OF SOUTH DAKOTA.
1862. The subject and his wife are the parents of nine children, namely: Henry M., assistant cashier and bookkeeper in the State Bank ; Mar- garet ; Louisa ; John H. ; Mary ; Helen ; Matthew W .: Eleonora and Raphael E.
JOSEPH C. MILLER, the pioneer lumber dealer of the attractive city of Watertown, was born in the province of Ontario, Canada, on the 22d of July, 1847, being a son of Frederick and Catherine (Near) Miller, the former of whom was born in Germany and the latter in the state of Pennsylvania, his father having been a cler- gyman of the Lutheran church and a man of ex- alted character and marked ability. He died in 1881 and his devoted wife passed into eternal rest in 1845. The subject received his early ed- ucation in the common schools of Wisconsin, whither his father had removed in 1849. and he then supplemented this discipline by a course of study in a business college in the city of Mil- waukee, where he was graduated in 1865. There- after he was employed as clerk in connection with the great lumber industry in that state_ until 1867. when he removed to Minne- sota, where he continued to be identified with the lumber business until 1878, when he came to Watertown, Dakota territory, where he opened the first lumber yard in the village, which then had a population of about twenty inhabitants. He has shown distinctive energy and enterprise, and the scope of his business has increased with the growth and development of the city and county, and has now reached large proportions. his yards being well equipped with all kinds of lumber and building material, while his trade extends throughout a wide radius of country tributary to the city of Watertown, which is now a thriving town of five thousand population.
Mr. Miller has ever been found stanchly ar- rayed in support of the principles and policies of the Republican party, in whose work he has ta- ken an active part. He was elected to repre- sent his district in the state senate in 1893, and made an excellent record in the general assem- bly, serving for the regular term of two years
and to the satisfaction of his constituents and the public in general. He is at the present time a member of the board of education of Water- town. He and his wife are prominent and zealous members of the Lutheran church, and he is at the present time a member of its board of trus- tees, in which capacity he has served for six years.
On the 3d of September, 1873, at Winona, Minnesota, Mr. Miller was united in marriage to Miss Lena Kissling, who was born in that state, being a daughter of Jacob Kissling. Mr. and Mrs. Miller have six children, namely : Lot- tie, Walter, Joseph, Lena, Ella and Flora.
JAMES RILEY, one of the leading business men of Watertown and senior member of the firm of Riley & Cook, manufacturers and dealers in harness, saddlery, etc., is a native of Mon- mouth county, New Jersey, and the son of Ber- nard and Elsie (Keough) Riley, the father born in Ireland, the mother in New York, the latter a descendant of one of the old Dutch families of the Empire state. James Riley was born August I, 1848, and at the age of six years was taken to Missouri, where he lived until a youth of four- teen, the meanwhile receiving a common-school education, and on leaving home in 1862 entered upon a three-years apprenticeship in Jefferson City to learn harness-making. After serving his time and becoming a skillful workman, he ac- companied his parents to Omaha, Nebraska, and there followed his chosen calling until 1868, when he changed his location to Missouri Val- ley, Iowa, at which place he remained with his parents until their respective deaths. From Iowa Mr. Riley, in 1875, went to Yankton, South Dakota, and after working at his trade in that city for two years, came to Codington county in 1877 and settled on government land a short dis- tance north of the present site of Kampeska, where he in addition to filing on a homestead also took up a tree claim. In 1880 he engaged in the manufacture and sale of harness at Water- town, his establishment being the first of the kind in the place. To this line of business he has since
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HISTORY OF SOUTH DAKOTA.
devoted his attention, although for a few years he resided on a farm, of which he is still the pos- sessor, using it of recent years more as a summer resort than as a source of income. His business career has been eminently prosperous, he having secured an extensive patronage and his estab- lishment is now one of the leading business stands in the city.
When Mr. Riley filed on his first homestead in Codington county the nearest town was Canby. fifty miles away, and he was obliged to travel over the modest distance of twenty-four miles to com- municate with his closest neighbor, though C. C. Wiley and O. S. Jewell (now deceased) accom- panied him in May. 1877. and all took land on Lake Kampeska. When the county was organ- ized he was appointed sheriff, and it fell to him to make the first arrest, which was of the man who committed the first murder within his juris- diction.
Mr. Riley has been actively identified with public affairs ever since the county's organiza- tion and has done much to advertise the advan- tages of his part of the state to the world and induce a substantial and thrifty class of people to make it their permanent place of abode. In addition to his large and steadily growing busi- ness in Watertown he has extensive real-estate interests in the county, owning four hundred acres of fine farm and grazing land, much of which is under cultivation, the rest being devoted to live stock. He is a leading spirit in the Odd Fellows fraternity at Watertown, having held every office within the power of the local lodge to confer and in addition to the title of past noble grand, which he now bears, he is also past chief patriarch of the order. He is a Congregation- alist in religion, being a zealous member of the First church at Watertown and a trustee of the same.
Mr. Riley was married at Owatonna, Minne- sota, March 6. 1884. to Miss Helen Coggswell, who was born in 1857. near Owatonna. when Minnesota was still a territory. Mrs. Riley is the daughter of Amos and Harriet (Clark) Coggswell and a descendant of old colonial stock that figured in the early history of New
England and in the war of the Revolution. Her father was born September 29, 1825. in New Hampshire, was a lawyer by profession and for a number of years acted as attorney for the gen- eral land office at Washington, D. C. Subse- quently he migrated to Minnesota, with the early public affairs of which state he became prom- inently identified, having been one of the lead- ing members of the constitutional convention and in 1860 represented his county in the lower house of the general assembly. He served a number of years in that body, was speaker of the house from 1872 to 1875 inclusive, and later was elected to the senate, besides holding other offices, among which was that of probate judge of Steele county. He was a son of Francis Coggswell, also a law- ver, and the father of the latter was Col. Amos Coggswell, who held a commission in the Amer- ican army during the war of the Revolution and who at one time was presented with a beautiful sword by General Washington, in recognition of his bravery in battle. This weapon is now in possession of Mr. Rilev, who prizes it as a pre- cious heirloom. Mrs. Riley and her sister, Abby, now the wife of M. T. McCrady, of Owatonna. Minnesota, located homesteads on the edge of Kampeska Lake. ten miles north of Water- town. in 1878, and lived on their respective claims for a period of five years and six months, prov- ing up on the same and receiving patents from the government. They experienced many vicis- situdes and hardships during that time, suffered much from cold in winter seasons. but. deter- mined to hold their lands, they persevered in their purpose until, as stated above, deeds for the same were safely in their possession. Both Mr. and Mrs. Riley are descended from pioneer stock. their respective ancestors from the Revolutionary period to the present time having steadily moved westward and figured in the frontier history of many states and territories. They have had three children, only one of whom, a daughter by the name of Helen Trene, is living : the other two were Amos C., who departed this life at the age of six years, and James C., who died in infancy.
In politics Mr. Riley is a Republican and has long been one of the party's leaders in Coding-
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HISTORY OF SOUTH DAKOTA.
ton county. While zealous in upholding his principles and untiring in his efforts to promote the success of the ticket, he is not a partisan in the sense of seeking office, being too deeply absorbed in his business affairs to devote much time to his own political interests.
CHARLES T. CAMPBELL, born Cham- bersburg, Pennsylvania, 1823. Served in Mexi- can war and Rebellion ; was made brigadier gen- eral by President Lincoln for bravery in action. Came to Dakota in 1866. Prominent in Demo- cratic politics. Lived at Scotland, and died in 1895.
JOHN MICHAELS, one of the prominent citizens and honored pioneers of Codington county, is a native of Mecklenburg. Germany, where he was born on the 29th of March, 1843, being a son of John and Minnie ( Schroeder) Michaels, who passed their entire lives in the fatherland. the former having been there identified with agricultural pursuits during the major portion of his life. The subject received his educational training in the excellent schools of his native land, and thereafter followed farm- ing there until 1866, when he severed the ties which bound him to home and fatherland and set forth to seek his fortune in the new world. On July Ist of that year he was united in marriage to Miss Lena Dahl, who accompanied him to America, and who has proved to him a devoted wife and helpmeet. He located in Dodge county. Wisconsin, becoming the owner of a good farm, but meeting with such reverses during the financial panic of 1873-4 that he was finally com- pelled to dispose of his property at a great sac- rifice. In 1881. in the hope of recuperating his resources, he came with his family to what is now the state of South Dakota and located in Codington county, where he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of railroad land, twelve miles north of Watertown, which was then a mere hamlet of a few primitive houses. He was very successful in his efforts, in which he had the
assistance of his sons, and in time became the owner of one and one-quarter sections of land, while he made the best improvements on the property and in time became one of the most prosperous and influential farmers and stock growers of the county in which he had settled as a pioneer. He has retained in his possession four hundred acres of his land, the remainder being now in the possession of his sons. Mr. Michaels continued to reside on his ranch until 1897 when he removed to Watertown, where he has an attractive modern residence, at 220 Elm street. Upon coming to town he became as- sociated in the clothing business, as previously noted under the firm name of Nelson & Michaels, and they have a finely equipped estab- lishment at the corner of Kemp and Maple streets, carrying a large and complete stock of clothing, men's furnishing goods, etc., and cater- ing to an extensive and appreciative trade. The firm also have a branch store at Clark, in the county of the same name, and this also controls an excellent business.
Mr. Michaels is a man of sterling integrity, marked individuality and much business act- men, and he has ever shown a lively interest in the welfare of the county and state of his adop- tion. He served for six years as a member of the board of county commissioners, being an un- compromising Republican in his political pro- clivities, and in 1894 he was elected to represent Codington county in the state legislature, where he made an excellent record, being chosen as his own successor in 1896. Since that time he has been practically retired from public affairs, though he still manifests much interest in the questions and issues of the hour. He and his wife are prominent members of the German Lutheran church and take an active part in the various departments of its work.
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