USA > Wisconsin > Sauk County > A standard history of Sauk County, Wisconsin, Volume II > Part 58
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Mr. Holtz was united in marriage, October 25, 1903, in Sauk County, to Miss Ida Schulze, who has passed her entire life in Reedsburg Town- ship, where she was born December 13, 1875, a daughter of Fred Schulze of Reedsburg, and a grand-daughter of Fred Schulze, Sr., one of the oldest citizens of this place, still living at the age of ninety-three years. Mr. and Mrs. Holtz are the parents of two children: Reuben, born December 19, 1904; and Lucille, born July 21, 1906.
JAMES HILL, now living retired at Baraboo, is himself an old timer and member of one of the old families of Sauk County. Within his own recollection much of what is now pioneer history was unfolded in this section of Wisconsin, and he is one of the few men whose memory goes back nearly seventy years.
Mr. Hill was born in Scotland, August 6, 1833, a son of W. and Elizabeth (Smith) Hill. His mother was a native of England and his father of Scotland. They were married in Seotland and about 1842 the father immigrated to America and soon afterward located in Sauk County, where his family joined him about 1850. He was a miller
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and millwright by trade, and had his pioneer milling enterprise in Honey Creek Township. He also established a number of other mills in this section of the state, including a mill at Baraboo. Most of his subsequent life was spent in Baraboo, though he also worked at Able- man and Lavalle. He also acquired a farm in Freedom Township, but subsequently sold that and bought other land in Excelsior Township. His son Captain W. Hill, who made a creditable record as an officer in the Civil war, also bought 160 acres in Excelsior Township and subse- quently for some years was editor of the Baraboo Republic and is now. living retired at the age of eighty-six in Neodesha, Kansas. Captain Hill is president of the Bank of Neodesha.
W. Hill, Sr., died at Baraboo at the home of his son Edward in 1891. His wife passed away in 1894. Their children were: Mathew, deceased; Elizabeth; William; James; Mary Ann; Edward; Janet, deceased; Seymour, deceased; and Douglas. The father of these chil- dren began voting in America as a whig, subsequently becoming a repub- lican, and his sons followed him in that party affiliation. He was active in the Presbyterian Church.
James Hill was about seventeen years of age when he came to Sauk County and had had a public school education in Ohio. His career here has been that of a farmer and for a number of years he owned 160 acres in Excelsior Township and participated in the hop growing industry when that business was at its prime in Sauk County. Later he sold his farm and removed to Baraboo and in 1887 acquired thirty-six acres of land adjoining the city, known as the Indian Ford Farm. He still owns this land, but it is rented and he is living retired.
Mr. Hill is a republican and served as chairman in Freedom, Excel- sior and Baraboo townships and for about four years was a member of the City Council of Baraboo. He regularly attends worship in the Pres- byterian Church, although he is not a member.
Mr. Hill was married October 30, 1867, to Miss Emma Barringer. . She was born in Pennsylvania September 5, 1847, a daughter of John F. and Margaret (Bergen) Barringer. Her parents removed to Sauk County in 1855, locating on a farm in Excelsior Township. Her father died there in 1868 and her mother passed away in Baraboo in 1886. The Barringer children were: Margaret, Frederick, John, Jacob, Mary, Wil- liam and Emma. Mr. and Mrs. James Hill have eight children : Nettie, wife of E. B. McCoy of North Freedom; Edward; William; Robert; Lorene, wife of H. C. Duncan, of Baraboo; Ernest ; Grace, wife of Ernest Edwards; and Max.
GEORGE HORKAN. Including his sons, who are now prosperous agri- culturists, George Horkan, living retired at Reedsburg, represents a family which for three generations has been identified with the improve- ment, development and cultivation of Sauk County lands. The family have proved industrious and valuable citizens in every sense of the word. More than seventy years have come and gone since the name was first introduced into Sauk County annals, and they especially figure in the early history of Dellona Township.
When the family moved to this region Mr. George Horkan was a
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child of about six years. He was born in Toronto, Canada, December 25, 1840, and was a Christmas gift to his parents, Peter and Bridget Horkan. His parents were both natives of Ireland and moved to Toronto, Canada, a short time before the birth of their son George. Peter Horkan kept a hotel in Toronto a couple of years and then moved to a farm near Port Hope, Ontario. From there he went to Illinois and had a farm in that state. In 1846 Peter Horkan, Patrick Mulligan and William Recliff all walked from their Illinois community to Sauk County, Wis- consin. After pursuing their investigations for some time they finally located upon land in Dellona Township near the north line of the county. Peter Horkan acquired a tract of Government land and it was one of the first tracts taken up by a permanent settler in that township. After bringing his family here he lived through all the hardships and changing conditions of the frontier settler. He saw the land which he had taken up gradually improved and developed into a fine farm and at the same time the region about him was opened up and gradually peopled with substantial settlers. Peter Horkan died at his home in Dellona Town- ship about thirty-eight years ago and his widow subsequently removed to Reedsburg and has now been deceased about twenty years. They were the parents of six children : George; Ellen; James, deceased ; Mary; W. Horkan, who lives in Duluth; and John, who occupies the old homestead.
George Horkan had limited opportunities to gain an education when a boy, since the early schools of Dellona Township were largely sup- ported on the subscription plan and their terms lasted for only a few months each winter. He found plenty of employment in the woods or in the fields of his father's farm and after reaching his majority he acquired part of the old homestead and his enterprise enabled him to add to his possessions there until he owned 160 acres. This farm is now a complete and model place and is occupied and managed by his son James. Mr. Horkan also cleared up and improved another tract of land and later bought the Riley farm of 163 acres in the same township, where his son Frank now lives.
After nearly fifty years of continuous work as a farmer Mr. Horkan came to Reedsburg in 1909 and has since lived retired at 446 North Park Street. He is the owner of considerable city property, including three houses and lots in Reedsburg. He began life with very little except his own industry and has accomplished a satisfying material independ- ence. For years he plowed his land with oxen and he bought and paid for his first yoke of oxen by cutting hoop poles. In politics Mr. Horkan is a republican. At one time he was chairman of the township board of Dellona Township. He and his family are active members of the Catho- lic Church.
In January, 1871, he married Miss Bridget Davenport, who was born in the State of Vermont May 18, 1850, a daughter of Stephen and Mary (MacNemara) Davenport. During the early fifties the Davenport family came out to Wisconsin and located in Juneau County, where her parents spent the rest of their worthy and useful lives. Her father died in 1882 and her mother in 1889, and both were about seventy-two years old when they passed away. Mrs. Horkan was the fifth in a family of six children,
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the others being: Patrick, of Baraboo; Mary, wife of John Scully, of Juneau County ; James and John, deceased; and Michael, deceased.
While Mr. Horkan's material achievements have been exceedingly creditable, he and his good wife deserve all added praise for the twelve children who came into their household and most of whom have grown to stalwart manhood and gentle womanhood. James W., the oldest, was born November 4, 1871, and is playing the part of an active and pro- gressive farmer on the old farm. By his marriage to Catherine Timlin he has six children, named Loretta, Annetta, Glenn, George T., Fern and Agnes. John Henry, the second son, was born March 25, 1873, and is a resident of the State of Nevada. Frank Edward, born May 18, 1874, has the farm where his father resided until he retired and moved to Reedsburg. His wife's maiden name was Catherine Welch. They have no children. Mary E., the oldest daughter, was born February 4, 1876, and by her marriage to Edward Donahue, of Dellona Township, is the mother of seven children, Mary Elizabeth, Charles, Ann, Grace, Helen and Edward and Eleanor, twins. Ellen Agnes, born February 23, 1877, is now deceased. By her marriage to Nels Winney she was the mother of two children, Helen, who lives with her grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Horkan, and Alice Thelma, deceased. Delia H., born October 27, 1878, is living in Kansas City, Missouri, unmarried. Stephen Joseph, whose home is in Baraboo, married Theresa Hayes, of Dellona Township, and their two sons are Edward and Donald. George Thomas, born October 27, 1881, is a merchant at Reedsburg, and by his marriage to Lena Welch has a child, Mary. Michael Austin was born June 14, 1883, and died when a child in 1890. Caroline, born August 7, 1885, is a milliner and is now located at Sterling, Illinois. Theresa, born March 24, 1888, is a teacher at Wonewoc, Wisconsin. Catherine, the youngest of the twelve children, was born May 27, 1889, and is still at home with her parents in Reedsburg.
JOHN QUINN. In the farming district of Washington Township are many prosperous and progressive men who believe that the happiest life as well as the most independent one is to be lived on the farm. Prominent among these is John Quinn. Mr. Quinn has been identified with Sauk County almost all his life, and his present home is a farm that was developed partly by his father and partly by himself, from the woods and wilderness which once held sway all over this section of Wisconsin.
Mr. Quinn was born in Dodge County, Wisconsin, May 21, 1853, but came with his parents to a farm in Washington Township on May 9, 1854. He is a son of James and Anna (Riley) Quinn, both natives of Ireland, his father a native of County Wexford and his mother of Queens County. His father was born November 1, 1816. James Quinn first married a Miss Laughlin, and there were two children of that union, Michael and Elizabeth. By his marriage to Anna Riley there was one child, John. Mrs. James Quinn was also' twice married, her first husband having been Thomas Cahill. Her two children by that union were James and Michael, both now deceased.
James Quinn came to America and settled in Dodge County in 1846, two years before Wisconsin became a state. After moving to Sauk Vol. II-29
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County he applied his industrious labors to the development and clearing of his land, and was a man of prominence in that locality. He was one of the organizers of his home school district, in which he held offices, and was also treasurer. His death occurred September 24, 1875, and he was buried in old St. Patrick's Cemetery in Bear Creek Township. His. wife, mother of John Quinn, died October 28, 1865, and was buried at Keysville, Wisconsin.
Mr. John Quinn grew up in the locality where he now lives and has witnessed the entire transformation of this district from woods and unproductive places into a smiling landscape of farms and comfortable homes.
Mr. Quinn married for his first wife Mary Ahern, daughter of Daniel and Hannah Ahern, of Washington Township. Mr. Quinn's children are all by his first wife, their names being James, Mark, Bessie, Lawrence, John, Edna and George. Of these two are now deceased, Mark and Bessie. For his second wife Mr. Quinn married Mary Gavin, daughter of Daniel and Bridget Gavin, of Bear Creek, Wisconsin. Mrs. Quinn has two brothers, William and Michael. William married Margaret Lee- and Michael married Johanna Anglium.
The John Quinn farm in Washington Township comprises 140 acres. His postoffice is Loganville. Mr. Quinn has carried out a program of farming here for more than forty years, and is one of the milk and cream producers of the section. He keeps on an average about twenty-four head of cattle, and at present his dairy herd consists of sixteen fine Holsteins. Mr. Quinn is a democrat in politics and an active member of the Catho- lic Church. He has given much of his time to public office, having been a member of the town board, and is present chairman of that board, and has been town assessor and town clerk. He has also been a trustee in his home church.
WILLIAM BRENNAN is one of the sturdy and thrifty men upon whom the agricultural burdens of Sauk County rest, and has given a good account of his energies and abilities in passing years.
He was born in Baraboo Township April 27, 1871, a son of Thomas and Alice (Terry) Brennan. His parents were both natives of Ireland, his father born in 1824 and his mother in 1834. They came to America before their marriage. In Connecticut they lived for several years and were married at Stamford, and in 1867 arrived in Sauk County, locating on the farm now owned by their son Walter. Thomas Brennan was a very industrious Irishman and after developing his first land he increased its acres until he had a complete half section and all in a high state of cultivation. He spent his years on the old homestead and died there in 1909. His wife passed away in 1895. Their children were: John, deceased ; Edward; Thomas, deceased; Alice and James, twins; Mary ; Walter; William; Bridget, deceased; Ella; and Peter.
Mr. William Brennan grew up on the old farm, attended public schools, and took up the vocation to which he had been trained from childhood. As a farmer he has the management and ownership of 142 acres close to the old homestead. He devotes it to general farming and stock raising and is a dairyman and a stockholder in the Excelsior Co-operative Creamery Company at Baraboo. Mr. Brennan is a demo-
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crat in politics but has never sought any official honors in the county. His parents were devout members of the Catholic Church and he and his own family are communicants of the church of that faith at Baraboo.
Mr. Brennan was married January 27, 1904, to Miss Mary Power. She was born in Sauk County January 17, 1876, daughter of Michael and Catherine (Donahue) Power, both of whom were natives of Ireland, her father born in 1828 and her mother in 1833. Michael Power came to Baraboo when a young man in pioneer times and his wife came to Baraboo at the age of fourteen. They were married at the county seat .and the good wife died in 1910. Mr. Power is now living on the old farm. Their nine children were named: William; Ellen, deceased ; John, deceased ; James ; Michael; Edward; Catherine; Mary ; and Agnes.
Mr. and Mrs. Brennan have three children : Lawrence, Francis and Mary Agnes.
WILLIAM H. TOWNSEND. It is not unusual to find men who after many years of successful agricultural effort turn to the city and its manifold business activities for the rounding out of their careers, but it is not a common thing to see the successful business man turning his attention to the farm. This latter, however, has been the case with William H. Townsend, of Reedsburg. During a long period of praise- worthy effort he became known as a successful business man of this city in the field of contracting and building, and a number of structures here and elsewhere testify to his skill and good workmanship. As a farmer, which vocation he adopted in 1913, he has been equally successful, and his fine property, located in Reedsburg Township, shows ample evidence of the presence of good management and system.
Mr. Townsend was born near Cedarburg, Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, July 9, 1862, and is a son of Joseph H. and Flavilla (Miller) Townsend. Joseph Townsend was born in Oneida County, New York, January 15, 1827, and was a youth when he accompanied his parents, Lewis and Sarah Ann Townsend, to Wisconsin, the family home for a number of years being in Ozaukee County. There were fifteen children in the grandparents' family, of whom several still survive, and a number of the sons wore the Union blue in the Civil war. Lewis and Sarah Ann Townsend moved from Ozaukee County to Sauk County, where they lived east of Sandusky for a time, but the closing years of their lives were passed at Waterville, Minnesota.
Joseph Townsend remained on the home farm in Ozaukee County until the early '50s, when, fired with the news of the fortunes that were being accumulated in the gold fields of California, he made the long and perilous journey to that state. On his return he resumed his resi- dence in Ozaukee County, but in 1868 moved to Sauk County, locating east of Sandusky, where he owned a farm of forty acres and also con- ducted a blacksmith shop. At various times he owned farms in several parts of the county, but finally retired and moved to Reedsburg, where he lived quietly for twenty-five years and died January 13, 1913, being buried on his eighty-sixth birthday. While living here he owned about six acres within the city limits, and, more to keep himself occupied than anything else, engaged to some extent in gardening. He was a member
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of the United Brethren Church, as was also Mrs. Townsend, whose death occurred in February, 1873. Her parents were early settlers of Sauk County, at Sandusky, although both died at Richland Center. Among their children were a number of sons who served in the Civil war. In fact, on the paternal and maternal sides William H. Townsend had four- teen uncles who fought at one time or another during the war between the states. Joseph and Flavilla Townsend were the parents of five children : Janie, who died young; William H., Adaline Elizabeth, Clark L. and Richard.
William H. Townsend was six years old when brought by his parents to Sauk County, and here his education was completed in the district schools of Sandusky. As a youth he learned the trade of carpenter, and in 1887, upon first coming to Reedsburg, he accepted employment in the lumber yard. Subsequently, with his brother, Clark L., he embarked in the building and contracting business, which they followed in partner- ship for about fourteen years, during which time they erected numerous structures which still stand as monuments to their enterprise and indus- try. One of their contracts was the building of the big brick church at Logansville. William H. Townsend built the main part of the Town- send-Metcalf Garage, and later he and his brother built a 3-story addition to the main building. While Mr. Townsend was more than ordinarily successful in his business operations, he had for some years desired to engage in agricultural pursuits, and this ambition reached fruition in 1913, when he purchased a farm of 200 acres located in Reedsburg Township, 1/2 mile from the city limits. Here he has developed a hand- some property and engages in general farming, in addition making a specialty of raising Holstein cattle, with which he has had much success. It has been his fortune' to secure prosperous results from all of his efforts, but these have not been attained without earnest and well-directed labor. Politically Mr. Townsend is a progressive, and on the ticket of that party he was elected alderman of Reedsburg for six years. His fraternal connections are with the local lodges of the Knights of Pythias and the Modern Woodmen of America, and he and his family belong to the Methodist Episcopal Church.
On December 31, 1891, Mr. Townsend was united in marriage with Miss Nellie Maud Randall, who was born November 1, 1872, in Reeds- burg Township, Sauk County, daughter of Byron and Frances M. (Flit- croft) Randall, of Reedsburg. To this union there have been born two children : Doris Lucerne, born September 27, 1893, a graduate of the Reedsburg High School, who spent two years at Lawrence University and attended the University of Wisconsin, and is now the wife of Maurice Deppe, of Baraboo; and Donald William, born August 5, 1910, and now attending the public schools. The pleasant and comfortable Townsend home is situated at No. 717 Main Street.
BYRON RANDALL. Of the citizens of Reedsburg who, while attaining individual success, have contributed to the material welfare and im- provement of the community one of the best known is Byron Randall. During the twelve years that he has been serving in the capacity of alder- man, nearly all of the civic improvements of Reedsburg have been
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installed, and a number of these have been brought about largely through his support and initiative. He was born in Reedsburg Township, Sauk County, December 8, 1850, and is a son of. George and Naamah (Thomp- son) Randall.
George Randall was born in 1810, in New York, and removed as a young man to Illinois, where he was married to Naamah Thompson, who was born in England, near the City of London, February 29, 1828. She came with her parents to the United States in 1841, and after a short stay at New York went to Illinois. Her parents later went to Columbus, Wisconsin, where her father died in 1874 and her mother some time later. After their marriage, in 1847, Mr. and Mrs. Randall removed to Columbus, Wisconsin, then going to Juneau County, and finally, in 1849, locating in Reedsburg Township. There they took up Government land and developed a good farm, on which both passed the rest of their lives, Mr. Randall dying in 1887. In politics he was a democrat, but never aspired to public office. He and his wife assisted in the establishment of the Methodist Episcopal Church on Narrow Prairie and later Mrs. Randall was a member of the church of that denomination at Reedsburg. They had nine children, all of whom are living: Alfred, Byron, Charles, King, Frank, William, James, Lester and Clara.
After securing his education in the public schools Byron Randall devoted himself to assisting his father in the cultivation of the home farm, and eventually went to work for his brother Alfred, who was the owner of a threshing outfit. He spent fourteen years in this kind of work, and in 1880, came to Reedsburg, where, with the same brother, he established a machine shop, an establishment which they conducted in partnership for nine years. Mr. Randall then became a clerk in a hard- ware store for a time, but now for a number of years has been in the employ of the Brithingham & Hixon Lumber Company as a carpenter. From the outset of his career he has been a democrat, but his prohibition leanings are strong and he has voted in favor of the representatives of prohibition since the time when there were only seven votes cast in that way at Reedsburg. He has long been a foremost figure in public move- ments here, and for the past twelve years has been elected alderman. During this time he has attended every meeting of the council except one, and every special meeting except one. He was a member of the building committee when the high school was built, and has been alder- man while the most of Reedsburg's other improvements were made, including the park. While he is progressive and always in favor of new innovations, he is of a sound, practical nature, and does not believe in fly-away policies. IIc and Mrs. Randall are members of the Christian Science Church.
On December 3, 1871, Mr. Randall was married to Miss Frances M. Flitcroft, who was born in Walworth County, Wisconsin, December 28, 1852, a daughter of John and Regina (Thomas) Flitcroft, the former born in Steuben County, New York, in 1826, and the latter in Canada, November 4, 1829. They were married in Walworth County, Wisconsin, in 1851, and came to Sauk County two years later, settling in Reedsburg Township, on the property adjoining the Randall Farm, a part of which Mr. Flitcroft secured from the Government. There the parents of Mrs.
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Randall rounded out their lives in industrious agricultural efforts, the father passing away August 24, 1888, and the mother in August, 1916. They were the parents of five children, all of whom are living: Frances, Charley, Lillie, Belle and Walter. Mr. and Mrs. Randall have one daughter : Nellie Maud, who is the wife of William H. Townsend, for- merly a business man of Reedsburg, and now a prosperous farmer in the Township of that name.
EDGAR A. WOOD, a resident of Sauk County nearly all his life, has applied himself successfully to the business of farming and in a public spirited manner to the affairs of his home community of Washington Township.
Mr. Wood was born at Necedah in Juneau County, Wisconsin, Octo- ber 31, 1874. He is a son of the late Albert Wood and Ida (Organ) Wood, who came to Wisconsin from Jefferson County, New York.
Albert Wood, who played a notable part in the affairs of Sauk County for many years, was born December 28, 1844. When he was twelve years of age in 1856 his parents came to Washington Township of Sauk County and joined the earliest pioneers of this section. Grand- father Wood was a pioneer physician and a man of great force, ability and learning.
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