USA > Washington > Douglas County > An illustrated history of the Big Bend country, embracing Lincoln, Douglas, Adams, and Franklin counties, state of Washington, pt 2 > 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 2 > 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 2 > Part 58
USA > Washington > Lincoln County > An illustrated history of the Big Bend country, embracing Lincoln, Douglas, Adams, and Franklin counties, state of Washington, pt 2 > Part 58
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In politics Mr. Ashcraft is liberal in his views, voting for the men of his particular choice rather than with any party. He is con- ducting a good business in a business-like manner, and is rapidly gaining a wide repu- tation for his excellent service, courtesy and his willingness to oblige his patrons.
ALLEN O. RICKERT is the proprietor of the only first class hotel in Lind, Washing- ton. Born in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, July 21, 1861, he was the son of Josiah and Eliza (Bitting) Rickert, natives of Pennsylvania, in which state the mother died when Allen was a lad of eight years, and where the father is still living. Mrs. Arminta Scholl, Frank and the subject of this sketch are the only surviving members of the family originally comprising five children; the other two, Charles and Thomas, being dead.
Mr. Rickert's father is a carpenter by trade, and has followed that business all his. life. He is descended from an old and wealthy Holland family, his mother's father being John Eckert, a noted Holland physician, who- came to America and fought under General Washington during the Revolutionary War. He died in Berks county, Pennsylvania, leav- ing a large fortune in Holland. Mrs. Rickert's
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father was for a number of years engaged in the tailoring business at Reading, Pennsylva- nia, and later removed to Emans, in the same state, where he died in 1877.
The first thirteen years of Mr. Rickert's life were spent at the place of his birth, where he attended school. At this age he entered an iron works where he labored three years, when he took up railroad work. He was thus engaged in his native state until arriving at the age of nineteen, when he went to Ohio in the employ of a railroad in which he remained until starting for the West in 1884. He came as far as Montana, where he was engaged in mining and in the sawmill business, and from that state he came to Idaho, then on to Oaks- dale, Washington, in 1892. Here he was en- gaged for one year in the hotel business. He was thus engaged, after leaving Oaksdale, in Montana, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, at Spokane, Cheney, and Ritzville until 1903, when he came to Lind and purchased the Lind hotel which he at once proceeded to fit up in first class condition. His house has the reputation, especially among traveling men, of being one of the finest and most ably managed hostelries in the Big Bend. Besides the hotel. Mr. Rickert owns city property in Ritzville and a farm in Douglas county.
In 1890 Mr. Rickert was married to Flora Jahn, daughter of Joseph and Johanna (Preuszler) Jahn, natives of Austria, who came to America in 1857. The parents now live at Alma, Wisconsin, and have been par- ents of six children, of whom only three are living; Emma, married to Joseph Hoefling ; Julia, married to J. C. Hammond; and Mrs. Rickert. Mrs. Rickert is an able assistant and partner to her husband in his business, and is regarded as being an exceptionally competent and successful hostess. Her father served eleven years in the Austrian army, and when retired was a field marshal. He also taught school a number of years in his native country. Mr. and Mrs. Rickert have one child, Ed- ward W.
In matters of politics, Mr. Rickert is a Democrat, and at the hands of his party has held office both in this state and Montana. He has always been an active party worker. He is at the present writing a member of his city council, to which position he was appointed to fill a vacancy.
Socially, he is a member of the K. of P. order, and has been a member of the Odd Fel- lows, from which society he had taken a with- drawal card. Mrs. Rickert is a member of the Rebekahs, and both are affiliated with the Lutheran Church.
MARTIN L. SCHERMERHORN is a real estate dealer and the land commissioner at Lind. He is a native of Lewis county, New York, born October 13, 1842, the son of Luther and Jane (Simpson) Schermerhorn, natives of Dutchess county, New York. They removed to Wisconsin in 1855, located at Watertown where Mr. Schermerhorn followed blacksmithing, and where both died later. Some of the brothers of the father served in the war of 1812. The father was born in 1797 and died in 1881.
Martin L. Schermerhorn, was a member of a family of ten children, nine of whom grew to maturity, received a high school education, and at the age of seventeen was thrown upon his own responsibility. He served three years at Hartford, Connecticut, as apprentice to the trade of carpentering, then left his work to ally himself, September, 1862, with Company B, Second Artillery, under Colonel Green. He served in all two years and three months, be- ing discharged on account of illness, in May, 1864.
After the war he returned to Connecticut where he finished his trade, then went to Wis- consin and worked as a millwright, and also followed bridge building to a considerable ex- tent. In 1872 he left Wisconsin for Luding- ton, Michigan, lived there four years, then ten years in Nelson, Nebraska, and came west to Fresno, California, in 1886. He lived there until coming to Lind in 1900, during a portion of which time he was city marshal of Fresno. Previously he had been justice of the peace in the state of Wisconsin. Upon coming to Lind, Mr. Schermerhorn worked for a time at his trade, then entered the real estate busi- ness, at which he has practiced with signal success ever since. He has accumulated a con- siderable amount of property, and has a fine home in town. He has a quarter section of well improved grain land one mile from Lind, raises some stock, and a great amount of fruit
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is produced by his orchard of several hundred . trees.
Mr. Schermerhorn was married in 1886 to Annie Brayman, daughter of John and Hannah Brayman, of Horicon, Wisconsin. Her pa- rents were natives of New York, and pioneers in Wisconsin. Mrs. Schermerhorn in her youth was a school teacher, later took a med- ical course in Hahnemann college, Chicago, be- came a graduate and practiced her profession for twenty-four years with great success in Nebraska and California. She retired, how- ever, when she came to this state.
Politically, Mr. Schermerhorn is a Repub- lican, and active; he is at present serving as United States land commissioner, to which position he was appointed in 1902. He is a royal arch and knight templar Mason, having joined the order in 1871, and the royal arch in 1873. He also belongs to the A. O. U. W., and Mrs. Schermerhorn holds membership in the Eastern Star, and the Degree of Honor.
GUSTAVE PLIGER was born in Det- mold, Germany, November 16, 1855, was a member of a family of six children, and at the age of fourteen was thrown upon his own re- sources for a livelihood. Prior to that time he had acquired some education in the common schools and immediately after learned the shoe- maker's trade, which had been the vocation of his father. He followed his trade in Germany until coming to America in 1883, when he lo- cated first in Chicago and later in southern Illinois, where he made shoes and farmed until removing to Iowa in 1885. In that state he located first at Rockwill City where he fol- lowed shoemaking, and also operated a farm near by. In 1889 he came to his present lo- cation one mile east of Paha and filed a home- stead. Owing to times being hard he was compelled to do some outside work in order to support his family and improve his claim, so he spent the following seven years employed most of the time by the Northern Pacific rail- road. He has continued since coming here to acquire land as he became able to do so, so that now he has three thousand acres, two thou- sand of which are in wheat and the balance he uses for pasture for his stock, of which he has one hundred and fifty horses and twenty-five
cattle. All of his land is under fence and his buildings are among the best to be found on any Big Bend farm.
Mr. Pliger is the son of Adolph and Lena (Erkman) Pliger, both of whom were born and both died in Germany.
In 1882 Gustave Pliger was married to Pauline Busser, daughter of Henry and Caro- line (Coffer) Busser, native Germans. Her father was a surveyor for the German govern- ment, and her grandfather was a soldier in the Russian war of 1806. Her family numbered four children. To this union have been born six children, Lena, Freda, Gustave, Mary, Rudolph and Paul.
Mr. and Mrs. Pliger are members of the Lutheran church. In politics Mr. Pliger is an independent voter, casting his ballot for the man of his choice regardless of the candidate's political creed. He has repeatedly held office on his local school board.
In November, 1902, in company with his daughter Mary, Mr. Pliger went on a pro- longed visit to his old German home, returning the following year, leaving the daughter in the old country to return later.
FRANK L. FROST is business manager of the Farmers' Warehouse Company at Lind, though his family resides at Ritzville. He was born in Kennebeck county, Maine, December 5, 1857, son of Charles E. and Mary A. (Hig- gins) Frost, also natives of Maine, where the father still lives engaged in farming and stock raising, and where the mother died in 1902. Charles E. Frost and wife were parents of four children, three of whom grew to ma- turity. Their names are, omitting the subject of this sketch, Flora B., and Fannie M., the latter of whom is married. The family is of English ancestry, members of which were among the earliest settlers in America.
Frank L. Frost received a good grammar school education, and later took a course in the Monmouth academy. Litchfield academy, and in the preparatory school of Bates College at Lewiston. Maine. After completing his edu- cation he devoted his summer months in as- sisting his father on the farm and his winters in teaching school for five years. He then worked for two years in a woolen mill, then
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HISTORY OF THE BIG BEND COUNTRY.
came to California in 1886. He traveled gen- erally over the state and in 1889 he came to Salem, Oregon, thence to Portland, Oregon, where he worked for two years in the Port- land flour mill, in the capacity of wheat buyer for the company. Thus he traveled all over the state in buying wheat, and in 1901 he located in Ritzville in the employ of the Puget Sound Wheat Company of Tacoma, remained two years, then came to Lind, since which time he has represented the Farmers' Warehouse Company, which concern handles the major portion of the wheat har- vested tributary to Lind. Its warehouse is the largest in the city.
Frank L. Frost was married to Flora B. Ham, daughter of John Ham, of Androscoggin county, Maine, in the year of 1883. She died in January, 1885, leaving one child, Edna E., who is living with Mr. Frost's father and other relatives in Maine.
In 1888 Mr. Frost was married to Emma J. Howland, also a native of Androscoggin county.
Politically, Mr. Frost is independent of any party, and is decidedly liberal in his ideas.
SYLVESTER L. VAN MARTER is a truck and drayman of Lind, Washington. He was born in St. Clair county, Michigan, March 24, 1863, the son of George W. and Jane (Hitchcock) Van Marter, natives of Pennsyl- vania, and Holland, respectively, and of Scotch-Irish and Dutch descent. They re- moved to Michigan in an early day when the state was new, and the mother died there. The father is now living in Grinnell, Gove county, Kansas. They were parents of eleven chil- dren, seven of whom now live, Mrs. Mary Cut- ler, Mrs. Alvy Colman, Mrs. Sarah Mullhol- land, Mrs. Jane Moore, Henry, Mrs. Elvira Solein, and the subject of our sketch.
Sylvester L. remained at home and attended school until sixteen years of age, when he took his destiny into his own hands. He first pro- cured work on farms both in his native and Oakland counties, then entered the lumber, woods in Roscommon county. Here he re- mained until coming to Adams county in 1886. He located at Lind and took employment with the Northern Pacific, with which company he
remained one year, when he took a homestead, purchased a section of land seventeen miles west of Lind and farmed until 1899. He also engaged quite extensively in the stock busi- ness. His homestead corners with the town of Lind, and a portion of it he has platted and has sold fourteen blocks of town lots. He makes his home on this tract, and lives in a handsome stone house.
Mr. Van Marter belongs to no political party. He is a member and officer of the I. O. O. F. fraternity, and belongs to the Modern Woodmen of America. During the year of 1902 he was a member of the city coun- cil, and has been a member of the school board of his city.
When Mr. Van Marter first came to Adams county, in fact for seven years after coming, he found extreme difficulty in gaining a start. He now, however, is well-to-do and is doing a good business, the results of his pluck and determination to win.
CARL A. KOEPLIN is a stockman and farmer residing five miles east of Ritzville, born in Bucholz, Germany, September 29, 1860. He is the son of Fred and Augusta (Reitz) Koeplin, of Germany, where the principal part of their lives was spent. The father died in 1884, whereupon the mother came to the United States. The sisters of Mr. Koeplin are: Minnie, married to John Wilson, Ritz- ville; Augusta, married to William Biermann, Ritzville.
Mr. Koeplin received his early training in the common schools of Germany, but his edu- cation was greatly retarded by his being com- pelled to leave school at the early age of ten years to go to work on a farm. He came to America in 1883, located in Nebraska, and two years later came to Walla Walla, Wash- ington, near which city he located a homestead. In 1897 he disposed of his interests in Walla Walla county and came to Ritzville and to his present locality. He has here three quarter section of agricultural land, two-thirds of which are under cultivation, and well improved. He has good buildings, a large orchard, and raises some cattle each year besides his farm crops.
In 1893 occurred the marriage of Carl A.
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Koeplin to Augusta Pauers, daughter of Ernest and Minnie (Meifert) Pauers, native Germans. Mrs. Koeplin's mother died in Ger- many, and her father is now living with his second wife. Mrs. Koeplin is a member of a family of five children, three of whom are liv- ing. They are, besides herself; Carl and Ernest. Her father has six children by his second marriage. To Mr. and Mrs. Carl A. Koeplin have been born seven children, named as follows, Bertha, Albert, Carl, William, Amelia, Henry, and Amel.
Politically, Mr. Koeplin is a Republican, and active in the affairs of his county. He has held the office of school trustee, and school clerk. He was one of the signers of the peti- tion of statehood in 1889. Both Mr. and Mrs. Koeplin are prominent members of the Luth- eran church, in which denomination our sub- ject holds the office of treasurer. Mr. Koeplin is a farmer of mmusual thrift and intelligence. He came to the county in indifferent circum- stances, but by his good business judgment and enterprise has succeeded in placing himself on a footing with the most wealthy farmers of the county.
RADFORD M. ANGELL was born in Boone county, Missouri on January 2, 1832, the son of Willis H. and Mary R. ( McCargo) Angell, natives of Kentucky, where they were proprietors of a fine plantation. Later, the family moved to Missouri, where our subject was born. He was educated in the common schools and remained with his parents until twenty-six years of age, then began farming for himself. He continued this occupation in Missouri, until 1865, in which year he crossed the plains to Oregon, locating in Yamhill county, and taking up the stock business. This was continued until 1878, when he came to Whitman county, Washington, locating two miles south of Palouse. There he followed the dual occupations of farming and stock raising, continuing the same until his death, which oc- curred in Ritzville July, 18, 1902, while he was on a visit to his children. No man of the coun- try was more universally beloved and respected than Mr. Angell. His death was sincerely and deeply mourned and was wide spread. He was a devoted member of the Christian church, while in fraternal affiliations, he was identified
with the A. F. & A. M. In political matters, Mr. Angell was a stanch Democrat.
On November 15, 1857, Mr. Angell was married to Sarah M. Nye, the daughter of Dr. J. M. and Nancy (Callaway) Nye, natives of Virginia and North Carolina, respectively. To Mr. and Mrs. Angell eight children were born, Willis H., Mrs. Joella Risley, John M., Adam IV., Otis, deceased, Mrs. Sidney Jeffries, Mrs. Mary J. Ringer and Mrs. Lucy R. Gebert. Mrs. Angell is at present residing in Ritzville and is enjoying her remaining years in the midst of her children. Her father was a prac- ticing physician and surgeon of Missouri and a man possessed of a high sense of honor.
PHILIPP A. GRUB is a grain buyer and land owner, with his home at Medical Lake, and with business headquarters at Ritzville. Born in Mommenheim, Germany, February 6, 1842. he is the son of Jacob and Elizabeth (Elbing) Grub, native Germans. Both his grandfathers were soldiers under Napoleon I for years, having passed through many of the great campaigns that made such fame for that great French general. His maternal grand- father was an officer in the French cavalry and was with Napoleon at the burning of Moscow and on the historic retreat from that Russian city. He received a pension from the French government until his death. His paternal grandfather was a member of the French gnard at the great battles of Leipzig, Dresden, Hanau, Bauzen and Lowenburg, and was intimately associated with Napoleon through many hard campaigns. His death occurred in Germany, 1870. Our subject's father left Germany in 1843, coming to Waukesha county, Wisconsin, where he lived until his death in 1895. The subject's mother died in 1847, in Waukesha county, Wisconsin. The father married a sec- ond time, and upon his death left one issue of his first marriage, the subject of this biography, and five by his second. Dorothy, Adam, Jacob, John and Magdalena.
In his native country Mr. Grub received a common school education, but was compelled to leave school at the age of sixteen and clerk in a store, which occupation he followed ten years, when he came to America in January, 1866. He remained with his father a short
MR. AND MRS. RADFORD M. ANGELL AND DAUGHTER
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HISTORY OF THE BIG BEND COUNTRY.
time, then went to Minnesota, where he learned the brewer's trade. He again accepted a clerk- ship in a store, followed the vocation two years, then engaged in business at Wabasha, Minne- sota, for four years. He then came to Wash- ington, and passed through Ritzville, Sunday, October 19, 1881. He went on to Spokane Falls. remained a brief time, after which he returned to Medical Lake, where he was truly a pioneer. He purchased a homestead right to a tract of land eighteen miles west of Medi- cal Lake. On account of his knowing noth- ing about the business of farming, he was pre- vented from moving upon the place by Mrs. Grub, so he settled in Medical Lake and formed a business partnership with Messrs. Theilman and Sawer. Mr. Grub, after one year, sold his interest in the business and entered that of wheat buying. first in Cheney, then for the old Northern Pacific Elevator Company. He is now engaged in the business at Ritzville with the Tacoma Grain Company.
Mr. Grub was married in 1870 to Clara E. Dreyer, daughter of Fred and Elizabeth (Dech) Dreyer, who were natives of Germany, and parents of twelve children, of whom only five are living.
Mr. and Mrs. Grub have been parents of nine children, eight of whom are living, Philipp H., Milligan F., Eva, Margret, Frederick, Harry, Viola, and Carl Dreyer.
Philipp A. Grub is an active Republican, a Mason, and a member of the Congregational church.
Mr. Grub owns two hundred and eighty, acres of nice land on the banks of Medical Lake and on the estate are two small lakes which he has, stocked with black bass. He sup- plies the Spokane markets in the season and receives a good revenue from this enterprise. His standing in the community is of the best and his friends are many.
CHARLES D. OLSON is a prosperous and highly respected tiller of the soil residing six miles north of. Ritzville, and was born in Sodermanland, Sweden, August 8, 1866, the son of Olof and Johannah ( Peterson) Olson, natives of Sweden, in which country they now live. Besides the subject, they are parents of Erick, Sophia, William and Josie Olson; the
only ones of whom are in America are the sub- ject of this sketch, William, who lives near Ritzville, and Josie, in Illinois.
Until arriving at the age of fifteen, Mr. Olson attended the common schools in his native land. He then left school to engage in farm work, and he also learned the carpenter's trade, at which he worked over two years be- fore coming to America in 1886. After com- ing to this country he lived three years in Illi- nois, then came to Spokane in 1889, worked at his trade for a time, coming to Adams county with his brother to file on land. Each of the brothers took a homestead near Lind, which they at once proceeded to cultivate and improve .. Our subject later sold his land and came to his present locality, where he purchased a half section of raw land, which he now has in an excellent state of cutlivation and improvement. In 1901 he bought another half section adjoin- ing his first, since which time he has grown between three and four thousand sacks of wheat annually.
In 1902 Mr. Olson was married to Annie M. Nelson, also a native of Sweden, and daugh- ter of Nels and Sarah ( Anderson) Nelson, who came to America from Sweden in 1868, locat- ing in Page county, Iowa. They came to this state in 1899, since which time they have made their home near Ritzville. They have been . parents of seven children, all of whom are liv- ing, namely: Sarah, Andrew, Carrie, Emma, Augusta, Sophia, and Anna M.
Charles D. Olson is a sound Democrat in politics, and a devout member of the Lutheran church.
PETER WAGENAAR, a prosperous farmer living seven miles northeast of Ritz- ville, was born in Ostfrisland, Germany, May 24. 1852, the son of Albert and Anna ( Weber) Wagenaar, natives also of Germany. The parents came to America in 1871 and located in Peoria, Illinois, where they lived the re- mainder of their lives. They were the parents of nine children, seven of whom are living, Paul, Edward, Henry, Katharine, Peter, Al- fred and Albert.
At the age of fourteen, having received a common school education. he learned the black- smith's trade, and entered life upon his own responsibility. Three years later he came to
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Peoria. Illinois, from Germany, and com- menced work as a blacksmith in the coal mines. He also farmed to a limited extent in Illinois, but worked principally at his trade until 1888, when he came to Washington and located a homestead in Adams county. Being a poor man with six children at the time of coming here, he experienced many hardships and incon- veniences before getting fairly started in the country, which at that time was quit new. In 1895 he found it necessary to take a position as lineman on the construction of the Northern Pacific telegraph line, which he followed all through the states of Montana; Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Since coming here he has continued to acquire land as he became able to buy until now he has two sections of agricul- tural land, one thousand acres of which are under cultivation, which he farms himself. He has his home well improved with good build- ings and all modern conveniences, also an ex- cellent orchard. He harvests annually an aver- age of ten thousand bushels of wheat.
On September 25. 1875, occurred the mar- riage of Peter Wagenaar to Gretja Herrenga, daughter of John and Hanke Herrenga, natives of Ostfrisland, Germany, where they lived and died. They were parents of five children, Her- man. Gretja, Martha, Dietrich, and Hartjen. Mr. and Mrs. Wagenaar have been parents of nine children, Lena, Albert, Annie, Martha, Katie, Harry, Paul, John and Mabel.
Politically Mr. Wagenaar is a Democrat and an active party man. He has been school director in his district four years, and road supervisor two years. He is a well-to-do and scrupulously honest farmer, wide-awake and up-to-date in all his methods.
CARL M. OLSON was born in College Springs, Iowa, March 13, 1878. He accom- panied his parents to Ritzville in 1884, at which place he attended the public schools until ar- riving at the age of twenty, assisting in the meantime, his father in the management of a farm near town. In 1903 he, with his brother, Abner A., purchased a half-section of land two miles north and one and one-half miles east of Ritzville, where he now lives, and where he last year produced five thousand bushels of wheat, and all their land is in a high state of cultivation.
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