USA > Washington > Lincoln County > An illustrated history of the Big Bend country, embracing Lincoln, Douglas, Adams, and Franklin counties, state of Washington, pt 1 > Part 58
USA > Washington > Adams County > An illustrated history of the Big Bend country, embracing Lincoln, Douglas, Adams, and Franklin counties, state of Washington, pt 1 > Part 58
USA > Washington > Douglas County > An illustrated history of the Big Bend country, embracing Lincoln, Douglas, Adams, and Franklin counties, state of Washington, pt 1 > Part 58
USA > Washington > Franklin County > An illustrated history of the Big Bend country, embracing Lincoln, Douglas, Adams, and Franklin counties, state of Washington, pt 1 > Part 58
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RUSSELL WARWICK is a farmer of Mohler, Washington. He is a native of An- derson county, Tennessee, born August 12, 1849, the son of Calaway and Mary ( Petree) Warwick. The father died in Linn county,
Oregon, in 1874, and the mother, who is an invalid, is now living at Dayton, Washington, in her seventy-seventh year.
Mr. Warwick grew to manhood on a farm in his native state, and was there married on April 5, 1869, to Nancy Foster, daughter of Levi and Rhoda Foster, both of whom are liv- ing in Tennessee, aged respectively, eighty-six and eighty-four years.
Our subject and his wife, with the family of his parents, came to Linn county, Oregon, by way of San Francisco and Portland, in the spring of 1874, during which year there was a colony of about sixty persons came to that county from Tennessee. They arrived in Linn county in June, and the father of our subject died during the following August. Mr. War-
wick settled on a farm, and during February of the following year he lost his wife by death. Mrs. Warwick left two motherless children, William Rufus and Elijah, the last named of whom died in Dayton, November, 1883. In the spring of 1881 Mr. Warwick came to Day- ton, Washington, where he worked for wages one year and farmed for the same length of time, then came to Lincoln county in the fall of 1883. Here he took a homestead three miles north from where Mohler is now situated. He came to his present home in 1899. When he took his homestead he was in debt two hundred dollars, and his personal property consisted of a team and wagon. He now has, free from all incumbrance, four hundred and eighty acres of choice land, and his son, Rufus has a quarter section, making in all six hundred and forty acres which they farm conjointly. The land adjoins the town of Mohler, is well improved in every respect, and is one of the choicest farms, both as regards quality of soil and location, there is to be found in the Big Bend.
The son Rufus, is married, his wife's maiden name having been Genevie White, and has two children, Roy L. and Alice.
Mr. Warwick was married a second time, on April 18, 1888, to Eliza White, which union has been blessed with three children, Moss Ever- ett, Madison Lovell, and Calaway Clifford.
The family belongs to the Baptist church.
The brothers and sisters of Mr. Warwick are James T., William G., Columbus C., Mrs. Serilda J. Dickson, Emerson E., deceased, and Judson, all residents of this state with one ex-
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ception, the last named, who resides in Cali- fornia. Besides those whose names are given, one brother. Barton, died in Linn county, Ore- gon, and one sister, Mrs. Louisa Magill, died near Harrington, leaving two little girls and two boys, Anna, Lindsay, Emory, and Ada. Mr. Warwick has taken the last named boy and is raising him, giving him the same care and advantages as he bestows upon his own chil- dren.
JOHN UNBEWUST has had one of the most busy and eventful lives of any of the many rugged pioneers of the Big Bend country. Born on January 1, 1858, in Luzerne county, Penn- sylvania, he is now a prominent and well-to- do farmer living four and one half miles south from Harrington. His father, Valentine Un- bewust, was born and reared in Germany, and died in Pennsylvania, in 1860, aged forty-four years. His mother was Catherine E. Unbe- wust, a native of Germany, who died in Penn- sylvania in 1875, being at the time of her death in her fifty-sixth year. The parents of our sub- ject had been parents of nine children, only two of whom are now living, our subject and a brother, Adam, near Moscow, Washington. Until arriving at the age of fifteen Mr. U'nbe- wust worked about the coal mines of his native state, then engaged to run an engine in a fac- tory. Afterwards he learned the trade of black- smith, which trade he has followed more or less during all the subsequent years of his life. In the spring of 1877 he went to Yolo county, Cali- fornia, where he did blacksmithing for some years, then went to San Francisco, where he engaged in the vocation of the bar-tender in a saloon. This latter business, however, he fol- lowed only five months when he became so thor- oughly disgusted with the entire traffic in liquor in all its details that he changed forever his occupation, and at the same time permanently eschewed all use of intoxicating drinks in any form and also the use of tobacco. From that time henceforth he has been a total abstainer. After leaving the barroom he returned to work at his trade in Yolo City, and in the spring of 1883 returned to his old home in Pennsylvania where he worked in the blacksmith shops of a railroad for a brief space of time.
On May 6, 1883, Mr. Unbewust was mar-
ried to Catherine Elizabeth Smith, born in Schuylkill county, Pennsylvania, December 4, 1858. She was the daughter of John and Eliza- beth Smith, whose deaths occurred respectively in 1862 and 1902. In June, following their wedding, Mr. and Mrs. Unbewust came to Yolo county, where both worked during the harvest season, he in the field and his wife as cook for a heading crew. In September, 1883, they came to Sprague, Washington, where Mr. Un- bewust worked as a blacksmith in the car shops. He also took a homestead at the time of coming here, and worked for a year and a half to earn money with which to make improvements on lis land. He built a small cabin, one half of which served as a living house and the other half as a shop wherein he did a considerable amount of work for his neighbors. Later, he again followed his trade in Sprague for a num- ber of months, after which he worked in the Walla Walla harvest fields and elsewhere in order to keep up the improvements of his home- stead. He then started in farming on a small scale, but, as he had never had any experience at that business, and since all the elements of nature seemed to militate against him, he suf- fered great hardships and met poor success until the year 1897, when he had a good crop, re- ceived a high price, and nearly succeeded in clearing himself of a seventeen hundred dollar (lebt. The following year he rented several hundred acres of land, which he farmed with success, in fact every year since that time has found him more prosperous and successful than. its predecessor. Since the year 1900 he has been cultivating two whole sections of land. He now owns four hundred and eighty acres of his own, all well improved, having a modern house, first class outbuildings, water system, orchard and so forth. He has also a large num- ber of live stock, and some especially well-bred horses.
Mr. Unbewust is a member of the Harring- ton lodge, Knights of Pythias, and is one of the leading citizens of his county.
The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Unbe- wust are Catherine E., deceased. Elizabeth 1) .. Anna Martha, Christine, Georgia .A., and Mary E.
Mr. Unbewust may well feel a pride in the fact of his signal success in Lincoln county against such overwhelming adversity as men-
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HISTORY OF THE BIG BEND COUNTRY.
aced him during his early years in the agricul- tural business, and which has been overcome only by his indomitable energy and determina- tion to make a success of the life he chose to follow. He was reared in the Lutheran faith and has worked for the advancement of all that tends to benefit mankind. Being progressive, he cast his first vote for the success of the Re- publican party. He is a deep thinker and now, as things progress, he is feeling bound to in- vestigate the claims of Socialismn.
THOMAS J. JOHNSON is a prosperous farmer residing three miles southeast from Har- rington. Born in Clark county, Missouri, Feb- ruary 15, 1855, he was the son of James and Ellen E. ( Butts) Johnson, both natives of Ken- tucky. The father was an early pioneer of Clark county, and in 1878 he removed to Santa Cruz county, California, where he made his home until his death in 1899, aged at the time eighty-three years. The mother lived to be fifty-three years, when she died in Clark county, Missouri, in 1877.
The brothers and sisters of our subject are, Robert, Jolin, Mrs. Margaret P. Crutcher, Mrs. Mary Hayes, Mrs. Martha Kenoyer, William H., Amanda F. Tinsley, and Andrew J. The family originally comprised thirteen children.
Mr. Johnson grew to maturity in the state of his birth, and in the spring of 1877 went to Illinois, whence the following year he went west by way of Cheyenne to the Black Hills country in South Dakota. Here he tried with poor success to farm until 1892, when he came to Davenport, Washington. So discouraging had been his success that he was compelled to borrow seventy-five dollars with which to get out of the country, only twenty cents of which he had upon his arrival at Davenport. After coming to this county Mr. Johnson, his wife and the children, who were old enough went to work for wages, and thus lived through the hard times. After two years, or to be exact, in 1894. Mr. Johnson purchased his present home of a quarter section of choice grain land. His cir- cumstances were so poor that he purchased the land all on time, giving a mortgage on the land as security. He farmed the place with poor success until 1897, since which year he has con-
tinued to gain, until he now has in his own name four hundred and eighty acres of as good land as the Big Bend has to offer. The land is all cultivated, well improved and is altogether a most desirable farm. Mr. Jolinson also owns three hundred and twenty acres of pasture land on Coal creek, all of which he has fenced and stocked with well bred cattle and horses.
On December 21, 1881, Mr. Johnson was married to Josie E. Northrup, a native of Sus- sex county, New Jersey, and daughter of Jo- seph and Ella ( Ward) Northrup, the former now a resident of Clark county, Missouri, the latter being dead.
To this union have been born twelve chil- dren; Ellen E., wife of Henry Gunning, of Reardan ; Samuel J., married to Viola Adams, at Reardan; Lawrence, deceased; Ethel G .. Edith F., William H., R. B. Franklin, Alonzo E., Lulu C., Gladys M., Estella M., and Bertha L.
Mrs. Johnson has one brother, Ellsworth M. Northrup, of California.
HARRY OCHS resides in the town of Harrington. He is a native of Prussia, born December 19, 1854, the son of Sebastian and Martha Ochs, and was reared for the most part in Frankfort, Germany. After receiving his education, he served for three years in the Ger- man army, finishing the same in the latter part of 1879. So well had he done his duty that he was qualified for an officer's position and had he remained, he would have been promoted.
In 1880 he came to the United States and direct to California, in which state he worked at various occupations until coming to Lincoln county, Washington, in 1884, where he took a homestead. He came to the country without means and was compelled to work for wages in order to make the improvements required by law upon his land. His claim lay two and one- half miles south of the present site of Mohler, which vicinity was very thinly peopled at that time. He went to Walla Walla two seasons to work in the harvest fields, and at other times worked for various farmers in the Big Bend.
During the spring of 1900 he was married to Mrs. Emma (McCallup) Owen, a native of Illinois, who came to Lincoln county twelve years since.
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HISTORY OF THE BIG BEND COUNTRY.
After his marriage he devoted his entire time to his personal farming operations, and in so doing endured many hardships to make the business pay. However, times with him soon improved, and by dint of relentless effort and energy he has succeeded in accumulating four sections of choice grain land, all of which is cultivated and improved according to the meth- ods of the best up-to-date farmers. He has good buildings on his farm, a first class water system and ten acres of orchard. In fact, it is one of the best improved farms in the country. He also has a handsome modern home in Har- rington, where he is now living. In addition to this home he owns several choice lots and three good tenament houses in the city.
Mr. Ochs has two step-cildren, Edith and Grace Owen ; and two others, issues of the mar- riage of Mr. and Mrs. Ochs; Martha E. and Harry L.
Mr. Ochs is a member of the Lutheran church, and considered to be one of the best citizens in the town of Harrington.
HARVE PATTY is engaged in the black- smith business in Harrington. He was born December 27, 1871, in Carroll county, Arkan- sas, and was the son of John and Mary ( Bal- lard) Patty. The father was born in Roane county, Tennessee, removed when young to Arkansas, and served in the Union army dur- ing the Rebellion for four years. He was en- gaged in many of the most severe battles of the war, and was always to be relied upon as a soldier brave and true. His father, our sub- ject's grandfather, was Jesse Patty, a captain during the Mexican War. Mr. Patty's mother was born in Cooper county, Missouri.
The parents of Mr. Patty, out of nine chil- dren born to them, reared a family of eight. In the spring of 1884 the family came to Union county, Oregon, and remained in the Grande Ronde valley until the spring of 1886, when they came to Lincoln county. Here the father took a pre-emption claim ten miles south from Harrington. Later the father sokl his land and removed to Kirkland, a small town of Puget Sound, where the mother died in the fall of 1902, whereupon the father returned to Lincoln county, where he now lives the greater portion of his time.
Up to the time of their coming to Lincoln county our subject remained with his parents. He engaged in riding the range as a cowboy and became known as one of the most expert riders of wild horses in the northwest. He followed the business of horse-breaking for two years, after which time he took a homestead in Douglas county, Washington. Later he sokl this claim and a quarter-section of land which he owned in Lincoln county, removed to Har- rington and engaged in the blacksmithing busi- ness, which he has since continued to follow with success. He is an expert mechanic and has the largest blacksmith business in the city, keeping between four and seven smiths con- stantly employed in turning out his orders for work. He does a general blacksmith and wagon repairing business. He also has a hand- some home, and several lots in the town of Har- rington.
On September 28, 1895, Mr. Patty was mar- ried to Kate Curtis, a native of Dakota and daughter of Reverend A. K. Curtis, who died at Kirkland, Washington, and Catherine ( Shoe- maker) Curtis, who is now living at Kirkland. Mr. and Mrs. Curtis reared a family of seven children, one of whom, Professor J. D. Curtis, is professor of mathematics in the Seattle high school. Mrs. Patty is a professional musician, and for several years preceding her marriage taught piano in a conservatory in Seattle.
To Mr. and Mrs. Patty have been born three children, Jesse Leon, Pearl, and Curtis Roy.
Mr. Patty is a member of the K. of P. lodge, and both he and his wife are members of the M. E. church.
HENRY STENDER came to Lincoln county in 1884 with scarcely a dollar to his name and filed a homestead claim on his pres- ent handsome farm, five miles southwest of Davenport. At that time the present site of Davenport was known as Cottonwood Springs, and consisted of a hamlet of only a few scat- tering houses. Mr. Stender experienced all the adversities and hardships of pioneer life before gaining a start through which he has become one of the leading and most prosperous farmers of his county. He now has five hundred and twenty acres of land, one hundred and eighty acres of which are fenced and under cultivation,
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improved by a fine residence, barn, and other out buildings, and an excellent well and wind- mill from which water is conveyed through the house and barn. He also raises stock to a con- siderable extent, having a herd of Durham cat- tle, and horses with which to carry on the busi- ness of farming.
The birthplace of Henry Stender is Hol- stein, Germany, and he was born to Yokam and Anna Stender, July 22, 1857. He has one brother, Clouse, and one sister, Catharine, both of Germany. He grew to manhood on a farm, attaining a fair common school education, and sailed from Hamburg to New York in June, 1881. From New York he removed to Daven- port, Iowa, where he worked on a farm for a brief time, then went to Winona, Minnesota, whence he came to San Francisco in 1882. From San Francisco he went to the vicinity of Stockton, California, which was his last home prior to his coming to Lincoln county, Wash- ington.
On May 14, 1896, Henry Stender was mar- ried to Olena Jensen, a native of Denmark, and daughter of Peter N. and Anna Jensen. Her father is now farming near Davenport.
Mrs. Stender came with her parents to the United States during girlhood, settled in Iro- quois county, Illinois, and from there came to Davenport in 1889. Her brothers and sisters are, Christian, Louie. James, Christina, and Mrs. Reka Turner. She has one half-brother, Anderson. To Mr. and Mrs. Stender, have been born three children, Warren H., Roy F., and Anna M.
The church home of the family is in the Lu- theran denomination.
RICHARD ASHTON HUTCHINSON, a pioneer of 1879. farmer, miner and dealer in realestate. 514 South Arthur street, is a native of Mississippi, born at Grand Gulf, February 14, 1853. His father was a cousin of Andrew Jackson, a veteran of the Mexican war and a strong anti-slavery man. He came north to assist John Brown and located in Kansas. Then resided in Colorado and again in Kansas. In 1863 Richard, before his tenth birthday, made his start in the world by being elected as page of the territorial house the last time the
legislature met in the Golden City. After the legislature adjourned, George Lane, the di- rector of the United States mint, appointed him a messenger in the Denver mint, which position he resigned to accept a place with W. H. Love- land, a merchant. He later went to Topeka, Kansas, and spent a year in school there. Leaving school, he proceeded to his father's place on the plains at Hays City. Here he entered the office of the Hays City Advance, a lively sheet. The editor being compelled to leave the town in a hurry, the paper suspended. Mr. Hutchinson then entered the service of th United States government as courier against the Cheyenne Indians and spent four years in that service and in hunting buffalo and in driv- ing Texas cattle. In 1872, the family located in Seattle where Richard A. was engaged in coal mining and attended night school. On May 20, 1879, he arrived in Spokane, accom- panied by his brother, William H., and on June 3, he and his brother located homesteads near Mondovi, Lincoln county, upon which they lived for seventeen years. When Spokane county was cut off from Stevens county he and Colonel L. B. Nash. of Spokane, and C. S. Toby of Spangle, met at Marshall's mill (now Mar- shall Junction ) and organized the Democratic party by appointing a central committee, of which Hon. J. J. Browne was elected chairman and Mr. Hutchinson secretary. Mr. Hutchin- son assisted in founding the town of Cheney. He was elected the first county assessor of Spo- kane county, running six hundred ahead of his ticket, but before his term of office expired Lincoln county was created from a portion of Spokane and his residence fell in Lincoln county, so he resigned the assessor's office in preference to leaving his homestead. He was then appointed first assessor of Lincoln county. In 1884, he was elected sheriff on the Republican ticket by a large majority, but on account of a hot county seat fight he was illegally counted out. In 1886 he was ap- pointed by the general government to take charge of the mills and general stores at Nes- pelem and manage Chief Joseph and his band of Nez Perces, then prisoners of war. He made an efficient official, remaining there until July I. 1889. In 1886, he with others grubstaked the prospectors that discovered and located the first quartz mines in Okanogan county and he has since been interested in mining. He had
RICHARD A. HUTCHINSON
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charge of the United States census in Lincoln county in 1890, and was elected on the Republi- can ticket that year a member of the house in the state legislature, running six hundred ahead of his ticket. While a member of the legis- lature, he took an active part in working for the reduction of freight rates, he being a men- ber of the railroad committee. In 1892, he was elected to the state senate on the Republican ticket, running one thousand ahead of his ticket and winning the distinction of being the only member of the preceding house promoted to the senate. He held the office until 1896, when he moved to Spokane. He is now en- gaged as a mining and real estate broker. Mr. Hutchinson has a wife and six children; Bes- sie, Ida, Marita, Dean, Rachel and Richard A., Jr. They are members of the Episcopal church. Mr. Hutchinson is a member of the K. of P., being first past chancellor of the old- est lodge in the state. He is also a member of the A. O. U. W. and W. of W.
ABRAM J. THOMAS was born October 8. 1859, in Washington county, Maryland, and now lives on a farm three miles south of Daven- port. His father was Josiah Thomas, and is mentioned in another portion of this work. The elder Thomas, in about the year 1860, removed to Keedysville, Maryland, where he was a prom- inent man, and held many city offices, among which was the office of mayor. He was en- gaged in the butchering business there. He died about seven years ago at the age of sixty- eight, and the mother Mary C. ( Deaner) Thomas, died in May. 1903, aged seventy years.
Mr. Thomas was born on a farm but grew to maturity in the town above mentioned, where he received a grammar school education and learned the trade of painter. He followed his trade about four years, and in the spring of 1882 came to Sacramento, California, and from that city to Woodland, where he worked for hire in a vineyard until the spring of 1887, when he came to Lincoln county, Washington, and purchased a half interest in the stock busi- ness of his brother George. He then returned to California and rented a vineyard, returned to Lincoln county in 1889, and in August of that
year he purchased his present home comprising eight hundred and fifty-nine acres of land. How- ever, he rented his farm and continued in the grape business until 1897. While in Califor- nia he was deputy assessor of Yolo county for seven years.
In June, 1901, he brought his family to Lin- coln county and assumed the management of his farm, since which time he has been engaged successfully in farming and raising stock. He has excellent farm buildings, including one of the best residence houses in the county, and his improvements are all modern and up-to-date in every particular. Besides his real estate here, he owns a first class house, a barn and three lots in the city of Woodland, California.
On November 11, 1891, Mr. Thomas was married to Alice Sharpnack, a native of Yolo county, California, born near Woodland, Sep- tember 25, 1863. She is the daughter of George M. and Sarah A. (Stocks) Sharpnack, natives respectively of Pennsylvania and Kentucky. Her father came to the state of California about the time of the first gold excitement, and was one of the earliest pioneers of Yolo county. He died in 1886, aged fifty-nine years. Mrs. Sharp- nack came to the state when a girl, and died there aged fifty-nine, in 1900. The bothers and sisters of Mrs. Thomas are, Mrs. Frances MI. Clousen, John, Mrs. Lenore Pearl, and Henry, all now living in California.
To Mr. and Mrs. Thomas have been born two children ; Olo Vane, on November 4. 1892; and Althe J., on October 22, 1894.
Mr. Thomas holds membership in the For- esters lodge, in Woodland, California.
WILLIAM H. BENDER is a prosperous farmer residing eight miles south from Har- rington. He is a native of Stark county, Ohio. born September 27, 1839, and was the son of John and Rachel ( Young ) Bender. The father who was of German ancestry, was born in Pennsylvania, and died in Indiana in the year 1884, aged eighty-three years. The mother was born in Dublin, Ireland, and died in Stark coun- ty. Ohio.
William H. Bender is the eldest of a family originally comprising eight children, seven of whom are still living, all with the exception of
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HISTORY OF THE BIG BEND COUNTRY.
himself, east of the Mississippi river. He grew to manhood on a farmi and received a medium common school education. On October 5. 1860, he was married in Canton, Ohio, to Re- becca Helsel, a native of Bedford county, Penn- sylvania, and daughter of Samuel and Lena ( Barnhart ) Helsel. The father was born in Pennsylvania and the mother in Maryland. Mrs. Bender is a member of a family of thirteen children, only five of whom are now living. She, too, has no relative west of the Mississippi river.
In 1862 Mr. and Mrs. Bender removed to Michigan, but soon returned to Ohio, remained a short time, when they again went to Michigan and spent one year, after which they went to Indiana. In 1879 they started for Spokane but stopped in Jasper county, Missouri, where they lived eight years, and in 1887 they came to Gilliam, King county, Washington, where they remained one year, then removed to Lewis coun- ty and engaged in farming. Mr. Bender sold his interests in Lewis county in 1901 and came to his present home. Here he has one hundred and sixty acres all of good quality and under cultivation, good improvements, live stock in plenty and a thriving young orchard. In all respects he is a well-to-do and contented farmer.
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