An illustrated history of Skagit and Snohomish Counties; their people, their commerce and their resources, with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington, Part 109

Author: Inter-state Publishing Company (Chicago, Ill.)
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: [Chicago] Interstate Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1172

USA > Washington > Skagit County > An illustrated history of Skagit and Snohomish Counties; their people, their commerce and their resources, with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington > Part 109
USA > Washington > Snohomish County > An illustrated history of Skagit and Snohomish Counties; their people, their commerce and their resources, with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington > Part 109

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GUSTAF W. JOHNSON (deceased), one of the thrifty and industrious sons of Sweden whose brain and brawn have contributed so materially to the subjugation of Skagit county and the develop- ment of its resources, was, until 1900, when he died front wounds received from the horns of an angry bull, numbered among the leading farmers of the region west of Mount Vernon. He received his educational training in the schools of his native land, which, however, he left at the age of seventeen to engage in a seafaring life. But he soon found that the sailor's lot was not what his fancy had pic- tured and after six monthis' experience before the mast he returned to his native land where he re- mained contentedly for ten years. He was, how-

ever, ambitious for larger opportunities than were to be found in any of the old communities of Eu- rope so while still in the twenties he came to the United States, determined to conquer the difficul- ties which might lie in his way and win the largest possible measure of success. His first employment on this side of the ocean was in one of the marble quarries of Vermont, but after a short residence in that state he crossed the continent to California, where, for nine years, he worked continuously in the logging camps of the red wood forests. He then came north and spent some time in Portland and Seattle, neither of which cities appealed very powerfully to him or offered the opening he was seeking. Very early in the eighties he wisely de- termined to try his hand at farming in the Skagit valley, so bought a farm of one hundred and sixty acres five and a half miles west of Mount Vernon, to the clearing and cultivation of which he devoted himself energetically and continuously until the day of his untimely taking off. At the time of the pur- chase the land had been diked, but the timber was still on it and there was the prospect of a long hard battle with stumps, but Mr. Johnson was undis- mayed. He went to work with vigor and in due time had converted an uninviting place into one of the fine farms of western Skagit county. He in- creased his realty holdings from time to time as he was able until he became the owner of four hundred acres ; and no higher tribute to his untiring indus- try can be paid than to state the simple fact that all this land was in cultivation when he died. He de- voted considerable attention to the raising of cattle, keeping always a goodly herd, and it was one of his own animals which, suddenly developing an ugly temper, inflicted the injury which resulted in his deatlı.

In the city of Seattle, in 1882, Mr. Johnson mar- ried Miss Rosna C. Erickson, whose father, a native of Sweden, is still living in the La Conner country. Her mother, Carrie M., was also born in Sweden, but she died in that land when Mrs. Johnson was a child of four years. Upon completing her educa- tion in the Swedish schools, Mrs. Johnson accom- panied an older sister to Iowa, where she grew to womanhood, coming thence to the Pacific coast a short time before her marriage. She has three children, Morris, born in 1882 and educated in the La Conner school ; Francis, born in 1884, also edu- cated there, and Alice E .. born in 1891. The fam- ily is one of culture and public spirit, well and fay- orably known in the western part of Skagit county, where they reside. It should be mentioned that, during his lifetime, Mr. Johnson was a member of the Lutheran church and in fraternal connection a United Workman, while in political faith he was a Republican.

HENRY A. DANNENMILLER, a prosperous hop grower residing three and one-half miles northi-

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BIOGRAPHICAL

west of Mount Vernon, was born in Summit Coun- ty, Ohio, July 31, 1859, the son of Ilenry and Mary (Gross) Dannemmiller. The father. a farmer, was born in Germany, and died in Seneca County, Ohio. Also a native of Germany, the mother grew to wom- anhood in Canton, Ohio, which state is still her home. She is the mother of nine children, six of whom are now living, and are as follows: Joseph and William, living near Mount Vernon, Andrew, near Seattle: Elizabeth and Frank, in Ohio, and Henry A., whose name initiates this biography. Having spent the early years of his life on the farm and in the schools of his native state, Mr. Dannen- miller learned the carpenter and cabinet making trade, beginning at the carly age of fifteen to assist his father in the support of the family. In April, 1883, he decided to seek his fortune in the great Northwest of which he had read so much, locating in Seattle where he followed his trade until 1887, at which time he removed to Mount Vernon. Here he purchased his present place, together with the adjoining one, the latter purchase being made for a brother. The country was very wild at that time, bears being frequently seen on his farm, and occa- sioning much annoyance by carrying off pigs and chickens. Those were years full of hardships and dangers that would have brought dismay to one less courageous than Mr. Dannenmiller. The flood of 1894, so well remembered by those who were at that time living near the Skagit river, carried off much of his property, destroyed part of his orchard, and rendered it necessary to move his house to an- other part of the place in order to save it, the for- mer site being now some seventy-five feet out in the river. He and his brother Andrew worked the two places together for two years, at the end of which time they made a division, each farming sep- arately since that time. The culture of hops claimed his attention very soon after coming to this locality, and having built a hop house for his neighbor, Mr. Wilds, he used that for drying his product until he was in position to build one for himself. Increasing his hop arca from year to year he has now seven- teen acres devoted to that business, and will add five acres this fall. With an annual yield of about one ton to the acre, he has been successfull, though he was at one time forced to sell his product at three and one-half cents a pound when the actual cost of production was eight cents a pound. Selling his sheep and cows that year to make good the loss he resolutely continued growing hops, reaping the re- ward in later years when the price advanced to twenty-six cents a pound.

Mr. Dannenmiller was married June 2, 1891, to Clara Riplinger, born near St. Paul, Minnesota, March 22, 18:1, the daughter of Nicholas and Kate ( Einswiler) Riplinger. The father was born in France, July 12, 1832, and died at La Conner, June ", 1895. The mother, a native of Germany, died in 1877. Seven children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Dannenmiller as follows: Alphoncius, who

was accidentally killed in August, 1892, by a fall- ing stump that had burned off at the root ; Paul, attending school at home; Hilda E., Leo, Howard, Herbert and Francis, all still at home. Mr. Dan- nenmiller is a prominent member of the Catholic church at Mount Vernon. An enthusiastic member of the Democratic party, hic was a candidate for county commissioner in 1896, but owing to the Re- publican landslide that occurred that year, the entire ticket was defeated. Realizing the vast importance of maintaining good schools, he has advocated every measure that promised better advantages, serving for some time on the school board. Mr. Dannenmiller has recently built a fine new house, equipped with all the modern conveniences, a con- vincing proof both of his prosperity and excellent taste. Thrifty, industrious, and a man of sterling character, he enjoys the confidence and esteem of his wide circle of acquaintances.

CHARLES TOLLBER, a pioncer of 1869, and one of the large grain and stock farmers of the Skagit valley, illustrates in his career what may be accomplished by an energetic and thrifty citizen in the Puget sound country. He was born in Finland December 8, 1842, the son of August and Anna Tollber. Educational advantages were not of the best in Finland in those days, a matter which worked to his detriment, and which is a source of deep re- gret to Mr. Tollber in his later days. When eight- cen years of age he went to London, England, and on obtaining a berth as sailor, followed the sea until 1868, when he crossed the main to the United States and secured employment as carpenter in the Port Blakely shipyard. A year later he came to Skagit county and filed on a homestead. While proving up, Mr. Tollber put in considerable time at scasons of the year at his trade of ship carpenter at various points on the sound. Disposing of his orig- inal homestead he purchased in 1822 one of the farms he now owns on the Skagit delta, and cleared it of timber and stumps, a herculean task. In the carly nineties he bought the tract on which he now resides, which with the lower farm, consti- tutes his chief land holdings at the present time. This land is bottom soil protected by dikes, and constitutes very rich oat land.

Mr. Tollber married Miss Hannah Anderson in 1812 and five children have been born of this union : Carl, Albert, Ernest, Amanda and Mrs. Annie Han- son. Little is known of Mrs. Tollber's people. she having separated from them years ago. The Toll- ber home is a fine modern structure, containing nine rooms, furnished in keeping with the success and position of the progressive owner ; with evidences on every hand, not only in the household affairs, but in the large, commodions and convenient barns, of the up-to-date ideas that prevail; all of which is greatly in contrast with the conditions which Mr. Toliber met on his first introduction into the sound

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country in 1869. Among the very first settlers in what is now Skagit county, when its vast forests and wild waste of overflow lands had not been marked by the hand of civilization, he faced a com- bination of conditions seemingly sufficient to ter- rorize the bravest heart. But the thing that rises greater than all obstacles and that will not be stilled, is that inborn longing in the heart of man for "a home," and in this instance, as in thousands of others, that longing conquered all obstacles and wrested from that wild and tangled waste of almost impenetrable forest the home, the heart desire, and to-day, Mr. Tollber is enjoying as a reward of that perseverance and indomitable courage which never accepts defeat, an unfailing competency in his rich, well tilled bottom lands, with well appointed home, devoted family and wide circle of friends, whose re- spect and esteem he holds. Politically Mr. Tollber is a staunch Republican and interested in the faithful administration of the laws, and a progressive policy in public affairs ; while religiously he is a communi- cant of the Lutheran church.

NATHAN OSTRANDER is one of the large grain, dairy and stock farmers of the southwestern section of Skagit county, and though his early days in the Puget sound country were those of hardship and difficulties in carrying out plans, he is to-day in an enviable position as regards present accumula- tions and future prospects. Mr. Ostrander springs from the Canadian branch of the Ostranders, and was born near Toronto, Ontario. Oc- tober 5, 1870. His father, Urr Ostrander, a native Canadian, has retired

from active farming, and is now living near Toronto. Mrs. Sarah (Graham) Ostrander was born in Ireland and shares her husband's retirement from the ac- tivities of life. She is the mother of six children : Margaret Jane, James, Elizabeth, Nathan, Nelson and Agnes. Young Ostrander remained with his parents until eighteen years of age, when having completed the school course prescribed by the On- tario system, started out for himself. coming to Skagit county in 1889. 1Ie remained here, how- ever, but three months, when he went to California and put in five years as railroad fireman and grip man. He left San Francisco and took up his per- manent residence in the Skagit valley in 1894. In that year Mr. Ostrander started a butcher shop at McMurray and continued to sell meat and deal in live stock up to about six years ago. This was the period of Mr. Ostrander's difficulties and disap- pointments. The country had not been built up with roads and he encountered many obstacles in moving his stock, suffering many losses owing to lack of good transportation facilities : all of which obstacles he overcame and won success.

On January 18, 1899, Mr. Ostrander married Miss Minnie M. Stackpole, a native of Boston, where she was born February 4, 18:1. Mrs. Os- 1

trander's father was Greenleaf William Stackpole, born in the famous old town of Berwick, Maine, March 5, 1834. Hle was a jeweler by occupation and came to Skagit county in 1874, dying here twenty years later, respected and esteemed as a pio- neer and worthy citizen. Mrs. Mary J. (Abbott) Stackpole was born in Albion, Maine, in 1834, and preceded her husband several years in the pioneer work of the Skagit country. Her carly experi- ences here were full of excitement and danger, in contact with floods and freshets and the meeting of deprivations and hardships alone and unaided. She is still living, at her old home with the Ostranders, owning part of the magnificent property in the del- ta of the Skagit, a mile and a half west of Fir. Dur- ing her many years' residence here she has endear- ed herself to all by her many acts of kindness and hospitality. Mrs. Ostrander commenced her edu- cation in the common schools of Skagit county, where she completed her preparation for entry to the University of Washington, where she completed her education in 1892, continuing to live at home with her mother until marriage. Five children have been born to this union: Merwin Stackpole, Mary Ruth, Theodore, Elvian, Nathan and Minnie A. The Ostrander home is a fine, commodious house of twelve rooms, furnished with care and richness and equipped with modern utilities and comforts. It is situated on a farm of three hundred and sixty-seven acres, of fertile bottom land, be- tween the sound and the Skagit river. Mrs. Stackpole is part owner of the land, but Mr. Os- trander operates all of it under a life lease. His chief crop is oats, of which he plans to produce at least three thousand sacks per year. A selected part of the farm. consisting of seven acres, has vielded as high as five hundred sacks of oats. On the place are seventy head of sheep, sixty-five of swine and fifty of young cattle, while twenty milch cows furnish their product to the dairy. In man- aging this large property Mr. Ostrander has shown a high degree of executive ability and business acu- men. In politics he is a Republican. The family attend the Baptist church. A model home and a happy family is that of the Ostranders.

OLE LONKE is one of the pioneer settlers of Skagit county, having preempted in 1877 what is now a part of the Stackpole farm near Fir. In 1879 he homesteaded his present place near Fir and has remained on it ever since, operating it success- fully as a dairy and oat farm. Mr. Lonke was born in Norway in 1851, the son of Andre and Ingeberg Lonke, both of whom passed away in the old coun- try, the former in 1863, at the age of sixty, and the latter in 1858, aged forty-eight. Mr. Lonke has one sister, Mrs. Manguild Rockenes. Young Lonke attended school and assisted on his parents' farm until twenty years of age, coming to the Unit- ed States in 18:1. He first settled in Wisconsin and

GREENLEAF WILLIAM STACKPOLE

MRS. MARY J. STACKPOLE

JiWLIL.

RESIDENCE OF MRS. MARY J. STACKPOLE, NEAR FIR, WASHINGTON

THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY

ASTOR, LENOX TILDEN FOUNDATIONS

THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY

ASTOR; LENOX TILDEN .FOUNDATIONS

SWAN PETER OLSON

MRS. SWAN PETER OLSON

THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY

LSTOR, SENOT .. UND>TIONS

589

BIOGRAPHICAL

followed lumbering there until he came to Wash- ington and Skagit county in 18:2. The Lonke farm, near Fir, consists of forty-three acres of well tilled land, devoted to dairying, growing oats and hay, and to the poultry industry. The dairy is sup- ported by seventeen head of cows, while forty-five head of young cattle form the live stock division of the farm. Mr. Lonke also owns one hundred and twenty acres of tide lands near the mouth of the Skagit.

In 1881 Mr. Lonke married Miss Rosy Johnson at Seattle. She is the daughter of John and Eliza- beth Skromdal, natives of Norway who never left their native land. Born in 1859, Mrs. Lonke came to this country in 1815, traveling alone to San Fran- cisco. Later she came to Seattle and was support- ing herself when she was married. Of the union have been born seven children : Ella, Edward, Olga, Lillian, Gertrude, Ralph and Elizabeth, the last named having died in recent years. In politics Mr. Lonke is a Republican. He is especially interested in the development of the schools and the highways of his community and is one of the first to take hold in matters pertaining to them. Ile has served as director of schools and also as road commissioner. and in both has given the most capable service. He is a member of the Lutheran church. As a pioneer and active citizen, Mr. Lonke has made his impress in an indelible form upon the community where he has lived so long and wrought so well, and is rec- ognized as one of the substantial and upright men, dependable in all respects, and highly esteemed as a" good neighbor.

SWAN PETER OLSON has, during the thir- ty years of his residence in Skagit county, built up an independent fortune out of the rich soil of the Skagit valley. A native of Sweden, he lived there until twenty-one. and with no experience in his adopted country except what could be gained in a residence of two years in the state of Iowa, Mr. Ol- son came to Skagit county in 1815 with no wealth but his hands and a determination to win, and has builded himself a fortune out of ceaseless labor and the bounties of nature. He was born in Sweden on New Year's day of 1849, the son of Olaf Pol- son and Johanna Pearson, neither of whom ever left their native land, and where they have since passed away. On attaining to his majority young Olson, unaccompanied by relative or friend, crossed the Atlantic and in 1811 was working for a railroad at Ottumwa, Iowa. He remained there for two years and came to Skagit county, where for three years he worked for others, all the time planning for a home of his own. The opportunity came in 1875, and he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land covered with stumps and timber, eight miles southwest of Mount Vernon. Much of the land was subject to overflow at seasons; but he built dikes and reclaimed it. He pulled stumps and

felled timber, and to-day has every acre of his old time purchase under cultivation, the land proving to be unusually fertile and productive. He has watched opportunities and has added first sixty, then one hundred and twenty, and more lately ninety acres. Offered a good price, he disposed of a forty-acre tract some years ago. Mr. Olson's real estate holdings now consist of three hundred acres, all cultivated and all of excellent producing quality.

In 1880 at Seattle Mr. Olson was married to Miss Lena Johnson, a native of Sweden, who had come to this country with a nephew and was work- ing at dressmaking. Mrs. Olson's parents, John S. and Hannah (Carlson) Johnson, are deceased, dy- ing in the old country. They were the parents of five children. There have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Olson eleven children. Their names and dates of birth are: George A., September 29, 1880; Swan L., April 22, 1882; Adolph W., October 3, 1884; Charles E. T., October 11, 1886; Jennie W., Oc- tober 6, 1888; Caroline E., September 15, 1889; Almeda C., August 27, 1891 ; Edith A., January 8, 1894 ; Lillie E., July 8, 1897 ; Mable F., July 27. 1899; Austin E., June 11, 1901. All were born in Skagit Co. In politics Mr. Olson is an independent voter, selecting those for whom he casts his ballot from the various parties. He has no lodge affilia- tions and attends the Lutheran church. The Ol- son home is commodious and modern in all of its appointments, and is furnished with the conveni- ences, expressive of the ideas of an up-to-date man of means. Mr. Olson divides his attention between dairying, stock raising and grain growing, having sixteen head of horses for working the place. He has sixty, head of cattle, eighteen ot which are milch cows, supplying their product to the dairy, and also turns off a number of hogs each year. A hard work- er, using business acumen in all his transactions, liberal in thought and quick to comprehend a situa- tion, Mr. Olson is a man who has been eminently successful in all his undertakings in life and is to- day recognized as one of the solid citizens of Skagit county, as well as one of the earliest pioneers.

ISAAC DUNLAP. during the years of his life when he was more actively engaged than at present in the management of his large farm, was recognized as a man of great energy and of wide accomplish- ment, and since retiring has lost none of the respect he had gained by his industry and business sagacity. Ile is a native of Philadelphia, born in November of 1832, the son of James Dunlap, who came from Ireland and embarked in a transfer business in the Quaker city soon after his arrival in this country. In 1852 he removed to Iowa where he died about a year later. Isaac's mother, Mrs. Mary ( Moore) Dunlap, was also a native of Ireland. She survived her husband but a few years and now rests beside him in Iowa. Isaac Dunlap received his early edu- cation in the schools of Pennsylvania and at the age

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SKAGIT COUNTY

of fifteen years was apprenticed to the trade of brass finishing and chandelier making. He continu- ed at this work for six years, then, on the removal of his parents to an Iowa farm, commenced his ca- reer as an agriculturist. He continued to manage the old Iowa farm for a number of years after the demise of his father, but in 1863 went to California by mule team, consuming three and a half months on the trip. He continued at the work of a farmer in California until 1821, then came to Washington and located on Pleasant Ridge, where he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of farm land. He con- ducted this farm with much success for five years, then bought the old Calhoun place, two and a half miles north of La Conner. This farm, which con- sists of three hundred and sixteen acres, was in good shape when he acquired it, but he has made many improvements, among them being the dikes. The soil is very fertile, a crop of one hundred bush- els of oats to the acre being by no means un- usual. A portion of this land has been pro- ducing oats for thirty years, yet it shows no signs of deteriorating in soil values. The rea- son for this is revealed by two wells which have been bored for Mr. Dunlap, each of them be- ing sunk to a depth of ninety-three feet, of which ninety were shown to be of exactly the same char- acter as the surface soil. The farm is now under the management of William Dunlap, one of his sons. In addition to his vested interest in the home farm Mr. Dunlap owns stock in the Polson Hard- ware Company, which operates successful stores at La Conner, Seattle and Wenatchee. In politics Mr. Dunlap is a Republican. IIe is especially interested in local affairs, having been a delegate frequently to the county and state conventions of his party. He served as county commissioner of Whatcom county before the division, and was one of the first board for Skagit county, later serving another term. He has also been road supervisor of his district and has done much to improve the county roads.

On Christmas eve, 1859, Mr. Dunlap married Miss Susan Maxwell, daughter of Thomas Max- well, an Iowa farmer of Scotch descent. Seven children are the result of this union : James, farmer, near La Conner : Alexander I., manager and stock- holder in the Polson Hardware Company ; William, Samnel, Mrs. Mary Mc Farland; Mrs. Rosanne Flagg and Mrs. Rowena Best. Mr. and Mrs. Dun- lap have twenty grandchildren. In fraternal circles Mr. Dunlap is an Odd Fellow. One of the foremost citizens of Skagit county in public spirit, and one whose services to the county have extended over a large period of years and been at all times of the most worthy character, he has achieved a highly enviable standing in the section which knows hin best. He enjoys in abundant measure the esteem and regard of all. Though nearly seventy-three years old, he is still hale, active and keenly interest- ed in all the affairs of life.

WILLIAM DUNLAP is one of the successful young farmers of Skagit county and during the sev- enteen years he has operated the large farm of his father has gained a reputation for energetic man- agement and executive ability. He was born in San Joaquin County, California, in August of 1866, one of the seven children of Isaac and Susan ( Maxwell) Dunlap, both of whom are well known and esteemed in Skagit county. The elder Dunlap is a native of Pennsylvania, who moved to California in 1863 but was for many years one of the prominent stock- men and farmers of western Skagit county. He is living as a retired farmer, his place being under the operation and management of his son, the subject of this sketch. William Dunlap received his edu- cation in the schools of California and completed his courses of study on coming to Washington when eleven years old. He received a careful training in farm matters under the broad instruction of his father, and when he attained the age of twenty-two years assumed the management of the property. consisting of three hundred and sixteen acres of fertile land and considerable live stock.

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An illustrated history of Skagit and Snohomish Counties; their people, their commerce and their resources, with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington, Part 109

Author: Inter-state Publishing Company (Chicago, Ill.) Publication date: 1906 Publisher: [Chicago] Interstate Publishing Company Number of Pages: 1172

Author: Inter-state Publishing Company (Chicago, Ill.)
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: [Chicago] Interstate Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1172