An illustrated history of Klickitat, Yakima and Kittitas counties; with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington, Part 198

Author: Interstate publishing co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: [Chicago] Interstate publishing company
Number of Pages: 1146

USA > Washington > Kittitas County > An illustrated history of Klickitat, Yakima and Kittitas counties; with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington > Part 198
USA > Washington > Yakima County > An illustrated history of Klickitat, Yakima and Kittitas counties; with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington > Part 198
USA > Washington > Klickitat County > An illustrated history of Klickitat, Yakima and Kittitas counties; with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington > Part 198

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Mrs. Thomas has one sister and one brother, Josephine Smith, born in Illinois, October 19, 1868, now living at Portland, and Charles Cleveland, na- tive of Illinois, now living in North Yakima. She had six brothers and sisters, now deceased. Mr. Thomas' children are: Anna, born in North Caro-

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lina, now living in Tacoma; Tillie, deceased; Ger- trude, born in 1896; Wilburn, born in 1897; Emma, born in 1899; Harry, born in 1900; Teddy, born in 1902, and Veta, born in 1903; the latter six natives of Kittitas county. He is a member of the Masonic order, and for twelve years was a member of the Odd Fellows fraternity. He has always been an active Republican, but has ever re- fused to accept office at the hands of his party. He is one of the prosperous farmers of his county, having accumulated nine hundred and twenty acres of land, three hundred and twenty-five head of horses and cattle, a good house and commodious outbuildings, a carpenter shop, and holds shares in a co-operative creamery plant.

He is truly a self-made man. When but twelve years of age, subject's father died, and a little later the mother departed this life; the care of the entire family devolving upon him, which responsibility he met faithfully. By self-sacrifice and hard work lie has educated his younger sisters, and cared for all the needs of the family. He has from his earliest manhood been a public-spirited and energetic man, and has made a success of every undertaking.

E. B. WASSON lives on a farm southeast of Ellensburg. He was born in Vernon county, Mis- souri, April 7, 1871, the son of John and Amanda ( Blackwell) Wasson. His father was born in Bel- fast, Ireland, and died in 1874. The mother was a native of St. Louis, Missouri, and died when E. B., our subject, was but six months old. He attended school until he was sixteen, and then was forced to go to work at whatever he could find to do in order to earn a living. He came to this state from Missouri in 1889, and found employment among various mills and mines for a period of eight years, till he purchased his present farm in Kittitas valley. His sister and two brothers are: Lillian, Richard A. and R. Lee, all three born in Missouri. Besides these, two sisters, Mrs. Nancy (Wasson) Colin and Jennie Wasson, are dead.

On April 20, 1899, Mr. Wasson married Miss Clara D. Killmore, a native of Kittitas valley, born October 20, 1878. She is the daughter of William D. and Josephine (Rego) Killmore. The mother was born in Indiana, and the father in New York state. Her brother and sisters are: John S., Mrs. Ida Bull, Lettie, Effie and Kate. Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Wasson, Josephine, born February 7, 1900, and Delos J., born February 20, 1903. Fraternally, Mr. Wasson is associated with the Knights of Pythias and the Woodmen of the World orders, and in religious matters, though reared in the Presbyterian faith, he at present has no church connections. In politics, he is a stanch Republican. He owns one hundred and seventy acres of land, which is in a high state of cultiva- tion. The property is well stocked with all neces- sary farming implements and stock with which to

carry on agricultural pursuits. Left an orphan at an early age, and thrown upon liis own resources to make his way in life, he has faced all adversities with a courage that conquers, and is now counted one of the substantial citizens of the Kittitas valley.

JOHN S. KILLMORE is of the well-known pioneer family of Kittitas county headed by Wil- liam D. and Josephine (Rego) Killmore. He was born in the state of Missouri, February 3, 1873, and now lives some four miles southeast of Ellensburg. His father was born in New York state, and his mother in Indiana. Mr. Killmore came to the Kittitas valley during his infancy, and he has grown up here, receiving his education in the gram- mar schools of the county, and in the state normal school at Ellensburg. His original intent was to fit himself for the profession of teaching, but aban- doning that idea, he left school when twenty-four years of age and went to Alaska. For some four monthis there he operated a freighting outfit between Dyea and Sheepcamp, with headquarters at the former station. At first he was successful in this venture, but later on as business began to decrease, he sold his outfit and returned to the Kittitas val- ley, where he purchased one hundred and thirty acres of land, which has since furnished him a home and livelihood. He was married in the valley, April 20, 1899, to Catherine Younger, a native of Germany, born October 5, 1876. Her father, Peter Younger, is of German birth, born July 10, 1842. He is a machinist and farmer by occupation, and was a veteran of the German army. He now lives in Washington. The mother is Marie (Coleman) Younger, born in Germany, March 10, 1850, now living in this state. Mr. Killmore has five sisters, as follows: Mrs. Ida Bull, Lettie, Mrs. Clara Was- son, Katherine and Effie. Mrs. Bull and Mrs. Was- son are living in Kittitas valley, and the others with their parents. Mrs. Killmore's brother and sisters are: Marie, Jacob, Pauline and Bertha Younger, all of whom are living in Washington. Mr. and Mrs. Killmore have three children, William, born May 27, 1900; Marie and Margerite, twins, born October 10, 1901. Fraternally, Mr. Killmore is connected witli the Odd Fellows, the Brotherhood of American Yeomnen and the Masonic orders. In politics, he is a strong Roosevelt man. His farm is well stocked and improved, and is among the best in the valley. He bears a spotless reputation among his neighbors, and socially, as well as financially, he is ranked among the foremost men of his com- munity.

MARY S. RUGG. Mary S. Rugg, proprietress of the Moore lodging house, is one of the thriving business women of Ellensburg. She was born in Tuscumbia, Miller county, Missouri, in 1846, the daughter of Thomas and Mary (McCubbin) Elli-

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son. Her father was born in Kentucky, in 1815, and died in 1888. He was a pioneer of Missouri and Kansas, and for three years was a soldier in the latter named state. Crossing the Plains in the early fifties, he settled first in California, then in Oregon, and finally in the Kittitas valley, Washing- ton, in the year 1880. Mary (McCubbin) Ellison was born in Greer county, Kentucky, in 1818. She crossed the Plains and with her husband endured the hardships attending pioneer life, dying in Kit- titas county in 1887.

The first fifteen years of Mrs. Rugg's life were spent in the state of Missouri. In 1861 her par- ents emigrated to Kansas and settled in Law- rence, where, and at other points in Kan- sas, they lived a number of years. She was mar- ried in Kansas to Jesse Adams, in 1868. She re- moved to Washington in 1883, and, being at that time a widow with two small children, she experi- enced for a time great difficulty in supporting her- self and family. She engaged in the restaurant business first of all, and later, in 1890, she opened a lodging house in her present quarters. With the lodging house she conducted a dining room, only temporarily, however, as she found the work too heavy for the good of her health, and dispensed with the boarding house feature, confining her business exclusively to keeping roomers. Her first hus- band, Mr. Adams, was a native of Illinois, born in 1840. His father was a farmer. When Mrs. Rugg came to Ellensburg she was completely with- out means for the support of her children, but by dint of hard and persistent effort she suc- ceeded in not only raising her children in comfort, but bought and paid for the property in which she conducts her business, and has furnished her house in the most up-to-date style. Fortunately she lost nothing in the fire of 1889, although she was here at the time it occurred. In 1885 she was married to James Moore, being a widow at that time. Her brothers and sisters are : Lydia Parkinson, Indian Territory ; William Ellison, Lookout Moun- tain, near Cle-Elum; Delaine Ellison, and Henry Ellison, Oregon; Mattie Ripley, Idaho; Lewis F. Ellison, who lives on the old homestead, near Thorp, and owns a sawmill on Tanum creek ; George, California. Death robbed her of one brother and one daughter: John Ellison and Dora Green. John Ellison was once assessor of Kittitas county. Her daughter, Mrs. Icia Fullen. lives in Ellensburg.

In November, 1898, Mrs. Adams was married to Daniel D. Rugg, a printer and book-binder by trade, who was born in Vermont in 1849, and came to Ellensburg in 1890. His father was Daniel B. Rugg, a native of Vermont, and a veteran of the Civil war, being a member of the Fifty-third Massa- chusetts infantry, and died in the army. Amelia C. (Thompson) Rugg, mother of Daniel D., was a native of Massachusettts. Mr. Rugg grew to man- hood in his native state. Learning the printer's trade, he subsequently followed it as a means of

livelihood for the greater part of his life. He came west in 1878 and settled at Blue Hills, Nebraska. Later he went to Colorado, where he followed rail- roading for a time. He also followed railroad work to some extent after coming to Ellensburg in 1890. He tried ranching for a while, but that venture not proving a success, he again took up work in town. He was married to Mary S. Moore in 1898, and has since continued with her in the lodging house busi- ness. He has a brother, William W. Rugg, and a sister, Amelia A. Rugg. He is a member of the Odd Fellows fraternity, and in political matters gauges his standard by the man, irrespective of party. Mrs. Rugg belongs to the Christian church. She owns four lots in Ellensburg and eighty acres of timber land on Tanum creek, for which she has been offered twice the price she paid for it. She also loans money and holds some mortgages on town property. Her lodging house business has grown from comparatively nothing to one that pays one hundred and sixty dollars per month.

GEORGE DAVIS HOGUE, farmer and stock raiser, owns a fine one hundred and sixty acre farm about seven miles west of Ellensburg, where he resides. The farm can all be irrigated and is well set with fruit trees. Mr. Hogue was born in Knox county, Illinois, January 8, 1860, the son of George and Mary (Killen) Hogue. His father, a carpen- ter by trade, was born in Pennsylvania, June 23, 1813, and moved to Ohio in 1850. He went from Ohio to Illinois and from there to Nebraska, where he died in 1883. The mother was a native of Pennsylvania; she died in Illinois in 1860, at the age of thirty-three. They had seven children: Jen- nie D., wife of Jolin A. Wilson, Oakland, Cali- fornia ; Hester A., wife of H. A. Brown, Brock, Nebraska ; Emily, wife of T. F. Jacobs, Montezuma, Iowa; Matthew, who died in Oakland, California, in 1902, and Mary and Grace, who died in infancy. Mr. Hogue received his education in the com- mon schools of Nebraska and attended the state normal at Peru in 1878. Subsequently he engaged in farming near Peru, which pursuit he followed until the spring of 1881, when he came to Seattle, Washington, and the same fall walked over the Snoqualmie pass to the Kittitas valley. He returned to the east in 1889, but realizing that the west was preferable as a home, he came back the same year and settled on liis present place.

He was married at Ellensburg, Washington, October 25, 1885, to Sina C. Maxey, a daughter of Simon W. and Minerva T. (Whitenburg) Maxey. Her father was born in Jefferson county, Illinois, August 9. 1832, and is a well-known Kittitas farmer and fruit grower. He settled in Kittitas valley in 1882. Mr. Maxey served as one of the fruit com- missioners at the world's fair held in Chicago, and is now the county's fruit inspector. Mrs. Hogue's mother was born in Blount county, Tennessee,

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March 26, 1838, and died in Ellensburg in 1902. Mrs. Hogue was born in Jefferson county, Illinois, October 15, 1866, and was the youngest of six children, her brothers and sisters being: Brovahtas A., born January 17, 1859; Franceska D., born Jan- uary 18, 1862; Morton M., born July 4, 1860; Wil- liam C., born April 18, 1863; Alzora M., born January 12, 1857, died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Hogue are the parents of four children : Maxey G., born December 3, 1886; Letah G., born February 6, 1889; Glenn H., born October 21, 1891 ; and Rhea E., born December 8, 1896, all of whom are na- tives of Kittitas county. Mr. Hogne and family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. He is independent in his political views, a modest and successful man, and well liked in the com- munity in which he resides.

MRS. ANNA M. (STEVENS) PEASE, widow of the late John Merchant Pease, is engaged in farm- ing on the homestead three and one-half miles south- west of Ellensburg, Washington, where she and her husband settled in 1878. She is a worthy woman and commands the esteem of all who know her. She was born in Miama, Ohio, March 9, 1846. Her father, James H. Stevens, was born in Virginia, in 1815, of English parentage, and died Novem- ber 2, 1893. He was a contractor and builder. Her mother, Ann F. (Glass) Stevens, was born in Ohio in 1820 and is still living. Mrs. Pease crossed the Plains with her parents in an ox wagon in 1852. They left Miama in April and arrived at Santa Cruz, California, the following September. Later the family moved to Ione, Amador county, Cali- fornia, where Mrs. Pease received her early educa- tion.

Mrs. Pease was married April 6, 1864. J. M. Pease, her husband, was born in Maine, Septem- ber 20, 1830, and learned the cooper trade. When he was twenty-two years old he left home for the west and came to California by the water route, around the Horn. He was engaged in the butcher- ing business at Ione at the time of his marriage. In 1865, he moved to Gold Run, California, and en- gaged in mining there until 1878, when he moved to the present family home in Washington. Mrs. Pease has the following brothers and sisters: James B. Stevens, now engaged at the United States cus- tom house at San Francisco; Mrs. I. B. Leach, of Los Angeles, who died Angust 12, 1903 ; Mrs. C. H. Willard, of Santa Paula, California; Mrs. Hellen McPhail, of Reno, Nevada ; Mrs. Lizzie Doulton, of Santa Barbara, California, and Thomas C. Stevens, also of Santa Barbara. She is the mother of six children. The eldest, Edgar B., born January 4, 1865, is a native of Ione, California. The others were born in Gold Run, California. They are: Henry W., born October 28, 1868; William M., born January 28, 1871; Carmi R., born February

24, 1873; Sherwood O., born June 6, 1875, and Helen B., born January 20, 1878.

Mr. Pease, deceased, was a member of Ione lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in Cali- fornia. He was a stanchi Republican, but was not active in matters of politics. Both he and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal church. He passed away May 31, 1899, and is interred in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows cemetery at El- lensburg. Since his death Mrs. Pease, our subject, has continued to reside on the farm, and has mani- fested her ability as a manager and business woman. The place has been greatly improved and enhanced in value by her energy and business tact.

CLARENCE WILLIAM PEASE is a farmer, residing six miles and a half northwest of Ellens- burg, Washington. Farming has been his voca- tion since he attained his majority, and he makes a specialty of wheat and small grain. He was born in Parker Prairie, Ottertail county, Minne- sota, June 2, 1876. His father, Edgar Pease, was born in Iowa in 1853. The mother, Rebecca L. (Logan) Pease, was born in Wisconsin in 1855. Clarence W. attended the common schools of his native county until 1883, when his father moved to Kittitas county, Washington. There he was permitted to complete his education in the public schools. When he was twenty years old he left home, bought one hundred and sixty acres of land, and engaged in farming. He now lives on this place and has about ninety acres of it under plow. His two brothers are Ernest B. and Hugh L. Pease. He has one sister, Louisa L.

On March II, 1903, Mr. Pease married Miss Mabel Barker. Miss Barker's father died when she was an infant and she called her step-father, John Taylor, her father. Her mother, Hatty (Bridgham) Taylor, was a native of Minnesota. Mrs. Pease was born June 2, 1883, and has one brother, Frederick, born in 1888. Mr. Pease was a member of the Washington state militia from 1895 until he received an honorable discharge in 1898. He has been prosperous and now has three hundred and sixty acres of land. He is well thought of wherever known, and is of that type of men who make many friends and few enemies.

JAMES ANDERSON, engaged in the dairy business one mile south of Ellensburg, Washing- ton, is a native of Denmark. His father and mother were both natives of that country. Andrew Anderson, the father, was a farmer. Carrie (Olson) Anderson, the mother, was born in 1804. Mr. Anderson has been in the United States since 1879. He landed in New York and thence proceeded to Webster City, Iowa, where he secured farm work. This vocation he fol- lowed for nine years, but on April 5, 1888, started

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west and located on his present home. He owns seventeen acres of excellent land near Ellensburg and a herd of good dairy cows. His brothers and sisters are Matthew, Olie, Annie, Lena and Mary Anderson. Such education as is his he obtained in his native land before he came to this country. He took out his naturalization papers at Webster City, Iowa, in 1880. Mr. Anderson was married in Denmark, November 1, 1877, to Bertha M. Swanson, who was born in Helmstadt, September 21, 1847. Her father, Swenuhan J. Swanson, was a farmer and a native of Sweden. The mother, Ellen (Croft) Swanson, also a native of Sweden, was born in 1819, and is now living at Webster City, Iowa. She has two broth- ers, Charlie and Albert, and a sister named Anna. Mr. and Mrs. Anderson have three children. The eldest, Andros Edward Anderson, was born in Denmark, March 10, 1879, and is a locomotive fire:nan. The eldest daughter, Carlyn Sylvie, was born in Webster City, Iowa, December 29, 1880, and is teaching school in Okanogan county, Washington. The youngest child, Lillian El- freda Anderson, was born near Ellensburg, Washington, October 11, 1890. All of the family are members of the Lutheran church. The children are attentive to the well-regulated stand- ards under which they have been reared and now make complete a family circle of which their parents are justly proud. Wherever known Mr. and Mrs. Anderson are highly esteemed.

ERNEST THEODORE SANDMEYER is a successful farmer, living three miles and a half southeast of Ellensburg, Washington. He was born in Basel, Switzerland, March 5, 1874, and is the son of John H. Sandmeyer, also a native of that country, and a descendant of a family com- pelled to flee from Germany to Switzerland at the beginning of last century, for the sake of lib- erty and freedom of thought. The elder Sand- meyer invented the machine which is used for stamping out watch cases, for which he has a patent in the United States. He was a watch- maker and patented a number of other inven- tions, which the family now own. The mother of Ernest T. was Mary (Tschudy) Sandmeyer, a native of Switzerland.

Mr. Sandmeyer received his education in the public schools of Switzerland, which included a two years' course in a high school. He sailed from Havre, France, in August, 1887, and landed at New York, proceeding thence to Columbus, Nebraska, where he joined his uncle. There he engaged in farming until 1893, when he moved to The Dalles, Oregon, and made investments in the sheep business. Two years later he moved to his present home, the "Lowden" place.

Mr. Sandmeyer's brothers and sisters are: Mary, now Mrs. Graber, of Basel, Switzerland;

Matilda, now Mrs. J. O'Neil, of Chicago; Max, an electrical engineer in Chicago; Henry, a student at the Chicago university; Arthur, a machinist, and Olga, a student, both residents of Chicago. He was married in Prineville, Oregon, July 16, 1899, to Miss Emma Yaisli, who was born near Columbus, Nebraska, September II, 1878. Her father, John Yaisli, was born in Switzerland, of aristocratic parentage, and moved to Nebraska, there to engage in farming. The mother, Mary (Rickli) Yaisli, was also a native of Switzerland. Mrs. Sandmeyer's brothers and sisters are Ida, now Mrs. F. Souers, of Akron, Ohio; John, Otto, and Lena, now Mrs. Jacob Kesser; Peter and Benjamin, both sheep raisers. All of them reside in Oregon. Mrs. Kesser lives at Antelope, and the others at Cross Keys. Mr. and Mrs. Sandmeyer have two daughters and one son : Nellie Mary, born August 21, 1900; Isabella, born December 1, 1901, and Theodore Otto, born August 20, 1903. Both Mr. and Mrs. Sandmeyer are members of the Dutch Reformed church. They have a neat home, and a well tilled farm, which comprises one hundred and sixty acres of fertile land which is all under irrigation. The place is peculiarly well adapted to the growing of hay. The farm buildings are commodious and convenient. Property interests, good character, and industry have given to Mr. and Mrs. Sand- meyer a standing creditable in any community.

JOHN BULL, engaged in farming and the raising of stock on a fine two hundred and forty acre farm seven miles southeast of Ellensburg, Washington, has been a resident of Kittitas county all his life, having been born in that county May 12, 1873, of pioneer parents. His father, Wal- ter A. Bull, was born in Albany, New York, July 20, 1838, and was in the commissary department and Freedman bureau during the war. He later en- gaged in the construction of the Union Pacific, and subsequently was a pioneer resident and prominent citizen of Kittitas county up to the time of his death. Mr. Bull's mother was Jenny Olmstead, daughter of J. D. Olmstead, who came to Washington from Ottawa, Illinois, in 1871, and at one time was in the mercantile business.

Mr. Bull received his education in the com- mon schools of Kittitas county and remained with his father until the latter's death. He was one of a family of five children. His brothers and sisters are: Cora, now the wife of Charles S. Wright of Woodmeare, Long Island; Lewis. Charles and Grant Bull, the last two named being residents of Kittitas county. He was married November 1, 1899, to Miss Ida Killmore, daugh- ter of William D. and Josephine (Rego) Kill- more. Her brothers and sisters are: John S., Lettie V., Clara D., now Mrs. E. B. Wasson ; Katie M. and Effie R. Mrs. Killmore. mother of

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the above named, was born in Kittitas county, November 8, 1874. Mr. and Mrs. Bull have two children. M. J. Jessie, the eldest, was born Feb- ruary 2, 1901, and M. Lorine was born Novem- ber II, IÇ02.

MICHAEL T. SIMMONS is one of the most successful farmers of eastern Washington and lives about five and one-half miles southeast of Ellensburg, Washington. He was born in Mason county, Washington, October 8, 1862, and it was in that county he did his first farming. Thereby hangs a tale, which Mr. Simmons relates with considerable amusement. In planting his first vegetable garden he devoted some of the space to beans. Shortly after they had been planted Mr. Simmons was surprised to see the seed beans coming out of the ground on top of the stalk, and naturally decided they were growing upside down, and he promptly proceeded to put them in the ground again. But he has since learned more of the science of farming, in which calling he has been so successful that today he is considered one of the best agriculturists in the county. Within the past five years he has brought his present farm from a badly run-down condition to a high state of cultivation, well equipped with a fine house, barn and other buildings.

Mr. Simmons is the son of Michael T. and Elizabetlı (Kindred) Simmons. The father was born in Kentucky, August 14, 1814. He crossed the Plains by ox team in 1844 and was one of the first settlers in Oregon. At Deschutes falls he erected the first mill in the Northwest, and also established the town of Newmarket, now known as Tumwater. He took a prominent part in engagements against the Indians in pioneer days. His death occurred in 1866, and that of his wife, on March 23, 1891. She was born in Indiana, February 15, 1820.

Michael T. was educated in the pioneer schools of Mason county, and when nine years old began work in a logging camp. When seven- teen he learned the shoemaking trade. After- ward he was employed on the preliminary survey of the Northern Pacific and from 1881 to 1884 was engaged at various labors in Kittitas county. Then he engaged in logging on Puget Sound, until 1891, when he began farming on Oyster bay, Mason county. He moved to Kittitas county in 1896 and rented land until 1898, when he bought his present farm. His brother, Chris- topher C., was the first white child born in the western part of Washington. The other brothers and sisters are: George W., David K., Enos F., a physician; McDonald, Benjamin F., Charlotte E., Douglass W., Mary, Catherine and Charles Mason. Mr. Simmons was married in Lewis county, Washington, October II, 1885, to Miss Louise F. Gavitt, daughter of Peter and Eliza

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An illustrated history of Klickitat, Yakima and Kittitas counties; with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington, Part 198

Author: Interstate publishing co., Chicago, pub Publication date: 1904 Publisher: [Chicago] Interstate publishing company Number of Pages: 1146

Author: Interstate publishing co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: [Chicago] Interstate publishing company
Number of Pages: 1146