USA > Wisconsin > Sauk County > A standard history of Sauk County, Wisconsin, Volume II > Part 66
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72
George Karstetter had few such school privileges in his boyhood as the young people of the present day enjoy. At that time boys were, prob- ably, just like the boys of the present, healthy, hearty little lads, full of animal spirits and each one with a touch of mischief, and then, as now, none were more devoted to their books than they were interested in their sports. Of the latter there was no lack, but just the difference that cir- cumstances inevitably bring about. Bears were plentiful in the heavy timber that surrounded Mr. Karstetter's boyhood home and he yet recalls his boyish anguish when he discovered Bruin eating his little pet pig.
In 1875 Mr. Karstetter was married and in 1876 he bought his farm from his father and began to operate it for himself, making use of oxen as motive power and never dreaming then of the day when the great farm tractor would under many conditions do the work of hundreds of oxen. Mr. Karstetter carried on general farming and raised good stock without making a specialty of that feature, and continues supervision although he has two sturdy, capable sons who now carry on the farm industries.
1076
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY
Mr. Karstetter was married in 1875 to Catherine Hendrickson, who was born in Ohio in 1846, a daughter of Thomas Hendrickson and wife, who came to Sauk County in 1856 and died here in the '60s. Mrs. Karstetter died in 1912, the beloved mother of four children, namely : Charles, who died at the age of twenty-eight years; Elvin, who married Margaret Formater, lives at Roscoe, Illinois, and they have one son, George Lewis; Harry and Ernest, both of whom are managers of the home farm, well educated young men, but neither have married. The farm has been well improved with commodious and substantial buildings, one of these being a barn with dimensions 30 by 54 feet.
Mr. Karstetter belongs to a long-lived family. His parents had the following children, all but two of whom are living, as follows: John, deceased ; George; Adaline, deceased; Amanda, Alfred, Jane, Thomas and Margaret. In his political views he has always been inclined toward independence of thought and action as far as consistent with good citizenship. He has been a school director and for forty years has served in the office of school clerk; was for fifteen years road overseer of Town of La Valle. With his family he attends and gives support to the Methodist Episcopal Church.
WILLIAM SUSSNER. In view of the nomadic spirit which dominates the American public and causes its citizens to wander restlessly about from one place to another, it is most gratifying to come in contact with a man who has passed practically his entire life in the place where he was born and reared. William Sussner, a native of Sauk County, was born in Washington Township, August 28, 1875, and he is a son of Rev. Andrew Sussner.
To the public schools of this county William Sussner is indebted for his early educational training, which has since been supplemented with extensive reading and association with men of affairs. As a young man he purchased a farm of eighty acres in the vicinity of Reedsburg, sub- sequently selling that tract of land. In 1915 he bought an estate of 133 acres, formerly a part of the Henry Miller farm. This place he has put into good condition in every respect and recently erected a new hog house and silo. He is a stock-raiser, making a specialty of high-grade Holstein cattle, and he has also met with marked success as a general farmer. He is a staunch republican in his political proclivities, has served for a number of years on the local school board, and at the present time, in 1917, is road overseer. His farm is located in section 36, LaValle Township.
June 26, 1897, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Sussner to Miss Anna Knipple, a native of Reedsburg, where she was born November 29, 1878, and who is a daughter of William and Mena (Steffen) Knipple, both of whom were born in Germany, the former November 26, 1845, and the latter July 4, 1850. The Knipple family came to Wisconsin in 1870 and settled in Dodge County, where their marriage took place in 1871. In 1874 they bought a farm in Sauk County, near Recdsburg, the same comprising eighty acres. Mrs. Knipple passed away October 7, 1887, and Mr. Knipple is now living retired on his farm, on which he has resided for thirty-eight years. The Knipple family consists of thrce
-
1077
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY
children : Emma, Mary and Anna, the last of whom is the wife of Mr. Sussner, as already noted. Mr. and Mrs. Sussner have one son, Paul, whose birth occurred October 6, 1898, and who has taken advantage of the splendid educational advantages offered in the Reedsburg schools. Mr. Sussner is a progressive farmer and representative citizen whose interest in public affairs has ever been of the most sincere order. He and his wife have many friends in this vicinity and they are held in high esteem by all with whom they have come in contact.
VILLARS G. FUNNELL. While one of the younger farmers and stock- men of La Valle Township, V. G. Funnell has shown a progressiveness and enterprise that caused his name to be spoken with respect, especially among cattle breeders.
Mr. Funnell's farm comprises eighty acres, and since attaining man- hood he has done a big work in clearing and improvement of the land. Two years ago he built a fine silo and he operates his farm with special emphasis on the dairy industry. He milks ten to twelve cows, of the best Holstein stock. Mr. Funnell owns a thoroughbred Holstein bull which took first prize in the Reedsburg show in 1915 as a nine-months old. The pedigree name of the bull is King Elza De Kol Korndyke No. 154950 H. F. H. B.
Mr. Funnell was born in La Valle Township of Sauk County, Novem- ber 25, 1880, a son of J. G. and Minerva Funnell. His father was born at Greenwich, England, and his mother in New York state. They were married at Lloyd, in Richmond County, Wisconsin, and after living there four years settled in La Valle Township in 1876. -
Villars G. Funnell was reared and educated in La Valle Township, and took up farming soon after reaching his majority. He is married and has five children : Floyd James, Averilla Minerva, Edward Charles, Irene and Ella. The daughter Irene was born June 8, 1912, and the daughter Ella on May 29, 1916. Politically Mr. Funnell is a republican.
FRANK W. APPLE. The Township of La Valle acknowledges one of its most capable and prosperous farmers in the person of Mr. Frank W. Apple, whose life from birth to the present time has been identified with Sauk County. Mr. Apple is a good business man and in the past has exhibited a strenuous performance and activity in the various lines of farming, and is now in a position to take things somewhat more leisurely.
He was born in Washington Township of this county on October 3, 1858, a son of Philip and Sarah Apple. His father was a native of Ger- many and of good old German stock, and his mother was born in Pennsyl- vania. In 1847 they settled among the pioneers in Washington Town- ship of Sauk County. Their labors helped to develop that section of the county and their lives were closely identified with the early history.
Frank W. Apple grew up in the county, acquired a common school education, and has found in farming a business suited to his talents and offering a good field for the exercise of his ambitious endeavors. He has been a resident of La Valle Township since 1899.
In 1885 Mr. Apple married for his first wife Anna Head. The chil- dren of that marriage are Alice and William, both deceased ; and Philip
-
1
1078
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY
and Marion. In 1899 Mr. Apple married Louise Eder, daughter of Adam Eder. In the year of this marriage Mr. and Mrs. Apple located on their present farm in La Valle Township. To the second marriage were born three children, Glenn Eder, Clarence Adam and Sylma Anna. Mr. Apple's older children were educated in the local district and high schools, and his younger children are all in school and giving good account of themselves as students. The son Glenn has taken the first year of the agricultural course at Madison, Wisconsin.
Mr. Apple's farm comprises a hundred and twenty-two acres. He has given much attention to the breeding of Holstein cattle and keeps an average number of about twenty-five head of this fine stock. He is also a director in the Farmers Warehouse Company and is vice president and director of the La Valle Creamery Company. In politics he is an independent, and is affiliated with the Modern Woodmen of America.
FRED A. HINRICHS is a man of unusual enterprise and initiative and has met with such marvelous good fortune in his various business projects that it would verily seem as though he possessed an "open sesame" to unlock the doors to success. As a result of his own well applied endeavors he has progressed steadily toward the goal of success until he is recognized today as one of the foremost farmers and citizens of La Valle Township, where he has resided during most of his active career.
A native of Sauk County, Fred A. Hinrichs was born in Reedsburg Township, May 27, 1870, son of Fred and Elizabeth (Ringelman) Hin- richs. His father was born in Germany in 1844, son of Henry Hinrichs and wife, both of whom died in Germany. Frederick came to Sauk County in January, 1867, and on May 3, 1868, he bought the homestead where his son Fred now lives. There he spent an active career as a pros- perous farmer until his death in 1904, at the age of sixty. He was a republican and a devout member of the Lutheran Church. He married in Sauk County in 1869 Elizabeth Ringelman, who was born in Ger- many, February 15, 1840. Her parents both died in Germany, their names being Casper and Katrina Ringelman. The Ringelman children were: Frederick, who died at Reedsburg in January, 1917, at the age of eighty-six; Dorothy and Henry; and Elizabeth, who is still living at the Village of Reedsburg. She was the mother of four children : Henry, deceased; Fred A .; Bertha; and Martha, at home with her widowed mother.
Fred A. Hinrichs passed his boyhood and youth on the farm now owned by him and his educational training was obtained in the local schools. After the death of his father he became heir to one hundred acres of finely improved land and subsequently he purchased an addi- tional tract of one hundred and eighty acres, making in all an estate of two hundred and eighty acres. He is engaged in general farming and stock-raising and in the latter connection is a breeder of thoroughbred Holstein cattle, of which he keeps about fifty-five head. The buildings on this farm are fine modern ones, the barn being an immense structure, 34 by 110 feet, and the silo 35 by 14 feet. Everything about this place is indicative of up-to-date methods and expert management.
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY 1079
In 1898 Mr. Hinrichs married Miss Anna Borth, who was born at Loganville, this county, August 22, 1881, and who is a daughter of William and Dorothy (Burmaster) Borth. Mr. Borth was born and reared in Minneapolis, where he learned the trade of blacksmith, which he plied with success after his arrival in Sauk County. For a number of years he had a shop at Loganville and eventually he turned his atten- tion to farming in Washington Township, where his devoted wife died in April, 1888, aged thirty-three years, and where he passed away in 1905, aged fifty-five years. The following children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Borth : Amelia, William; Mala, Anna, Charles (deceased), Mathilda, Emma and Alina. Eight children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Hinrichs : Albert, Fred, Arnieta and Warnieta, twins, Leona, Irvin, Herbert and Eleanora (died in infancy).
ALBERT STRUTZ. To the business of farming Albert Strutz has applied the best years of his life since he reached his majority and is now culti- vating and managing a fine farm in La Valle Township, which was redeemed from the wilderness largely through the efforts of his honored father.
Mr. Strutz was born in Winfield Township of this county October 23, 1886, a son of Herman and Wilhelmina (Jenwich) Strutz. His parents were born in Germany and came to Sauk County many years ago, first locating in Winfield Township. In 1899 the family removed to La Valle Township and located on the farm where Mr. Albert Strutz now resides. In the family were four children: Frederick, who married Minnie Wacholtz, a daughter of B. Wacholtz of Winfield Township; Charles, who married Annie Dravs; Ida, wife of Guy Tate, son of Robert Tate; and Albert.
Herman Strutz after many years of successful enterprise as a farmer died on the old homestead February 2, 1916, at the age of sixty-four. His widow is still living there, the farm being under the capable manage- ment of her son Albert, who is still unmarried. Mr. Albert Strutz is giving a good account of himself as a farmer on the 113 acres, has his fields well tilled, raises considerable stock, including about fifteen head of cattle, and milks ten cows. Mr. Albert Strutz was educated in Dis- trict School No. 4 of Winfield Township, and is everywhere recognized as one of the capable younger citizens of Lavalle Township. He is a republican, a member of the Lutheran Church.
MRS. OTTO STANDOW has been a resident of Sauk County and has occupied her present homestead in Lavalle Township for the past thirty- four years.
Mrs. Standow was born in Germany in 1858, her maiden name being Wilhelmina Hanka. She was a daughter of Manthey and Anstee Hanka. Her father died in the old country in 1871. Her mother came to Amer- ica in 1883 in company with Mrs. Standow and her two other children, Amelia and Albert.
Wilhelmina Hanka was married in Germany in 1879 to Mr. Otto Standow. Coming to America in 1883 the family located on the present Standow farm in Lavalle Township and Mrs. Standow has for years Vol. II-33
1
3
1080
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY
carefully looked after its management and cultivation in addition to the burdens and responsibilities of home making. She owns 120 acres of good land, and with the aid of her children has successfully farmed it and has raised much good stock.
Her children are: Frank, William, Mary, Eliza, Albert and Paul. Mary is deceased, and the son Paul is unmarried and lives at home with his mother. The son Frank married Ida Burmeister. William mar- ried Annie Gates. Eliza is the wife of Paul Middlestead. Albert mar- ried Elsie Ceich. These children were all given good advantages in the local public schools. Mrs. Standow and her family are active members of the Lutheran Church and her sons are independent in politics.
HERMAN C. W. LUCHT has been numbered among the enterprising farmers of Lavalle Township since his early youth. He was born in that township on the farm where he still lives, and his own exertions helped clear some of it from the woods.
Mr. Lucht was born June 11, 1875, and is a son of August and Wil- helmina Lucht, who were arrivals in this county from Germany in 1872. At that time they acquired the land now constituting the home of their son Herman. The father and mother were residents of Sauk County for nearly forty years, and the father died in 1911 and the mother in 1916. They had only two sons Albert, and Herman. The former is still unmarried.
Herman C. W. Lucht at an early age took his place as a worker on the home estate, and finally acquired it and has done much to develop the 198 acres under his ownership. He is a prosperous general farmer and stock raiser. He is thoroughly convinced of the value of silage as a means of economical feeding, and some years ago he built one of the best silos in the township. He properly takes pride in his farm, much of which represents his individual efforts at clearing the land and also the erection of most of its buildings.
Mr. Lucht is a democrat in politics and is an active member of St. Paul's Lutheran Church. He first married Bertha Zietlow, daughter of William Zietlow of Juneau County, Wisconsin. His children by his first wife are Ottilie, Wilhelmina, Franz, Christina, Arthur, Ella, Lydia, Victor. These children are still young and none of them married. On January 28, 1917, Mr. Lucht married Anna Prochnow, daughter of Julius and Amelia Prochnow, and they have one child, Clara, born December 17, 1917.
JOSEPH ABBOTT DOUGLASS, who is now living retired in the Village of La Valle, was identified with farming operations in the township of La Valle during the major portion of his active career. He has ever been on the alert to forward all measures and enterprises projected for the good of the general welfare and he has served his community in various official positions of trust and responsibility. He has been township supervisor, was a member of the board of trustees of La Valle for a num- ber of years and has also been village and township assessor.
A native of the fine old state of Rhode Island, Mr. Douglass was born November 16, 1852. He is a son of Benjamin Crandall and Abbie A.
1081
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY
(Salisbury) Douglass, the former of whom was born in Connecticut, October 25, 1826, and the latter in Augusta, Maine, December 1, 1832. Mr. Douglass was a volunteer in the Civil War with the Twenty-ninth Connecticut Regiment and served over a year, was wounded and mus- tered out. Mr. and Mrs. Douglass were married in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1847, and in 1867 they came to Wisconsin and settled on the farm in Sauk County, now owned by their grandson, Frank Douglass. This homestead originally consisted of eighty acres, which Mr. Douglass cleared and improved with good buildings. In 1879 he removed to the village of La Valle and thence settled in Wonewoc, in 1903.
He and his wife were residents of the latter place at the time of their death; he died September 17, 1907, and she passed away May 8, 1905. They celebrated their gold wedding in Wonewoc, in 1897. Following are the names of their children: Henry (deceased), Joseph Abbott, Rose A. (deceased), and Harvey. In politics Mr. Douglass was a repub- lican and he was chairman of the township board of trustees for a num- ber of years. He affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and was a Baptist in his religious devotion ; his wife was a member of the Advent Christian Church.
Joseph Abbott Douglass, subject of this review, was born in Rhode Island and kas fifteen years of age when he accompanied his parents to Sauk County. He attended school in Connecticut until his twelfth year, when he began to work in a cotton mill. After his arrival in Wisconsin he attended school again for a time and then turned his attention to.the great basis industry of agriculture. In 1882 he purchased his father's farm, the acreage of which he kept increasing until he had 192 acres of well cultivated and finely improved land. In addition to general farm- ing he was a breeder of Jersey cattle. In 1905 he assisted in the organi- zation of the LaValle Creamery Company, of which he was manager for three years and in which he is still a stockholder. He has lived in retire- ment in La Valle since 1904 but still retains interest in certain business matters, being a stockholder in and secretary of the LaValle Telephone Company. He sold the farm to his son Frank April 3, 1911. A repub- lican in politics, he has been township treasurer and supervisor and for several years past has served as village assessor.
May 7, 1876, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Douglass to Miss Susan Burdick, whose birth occurred in Connecticut, November 23, 1857, and who accompanied the Douglass family to Sauk County in 1867. Five children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Douglass and concerning them the following brief data are here incorporated: Clara May is the wife of Jerry Jackson, of Spokane, Washington, they have one child, Della May; Jane Gertrude married Delbert Marshall, of Clyman, Wis- consin : they have two children, Harry and Floyd; Benjamin Franklin lives on the old Douglass homestead, which he purchased from his father in 1911 : he married Nellie Jackson and they have two sons, Lorin and Russell; Joel is a farmer in Junean County : he married Lulu Darrow and they have four children, Jay, Lee, Benjamin and Nona; and Han- nah is the wife of Frank Darrow : they have two children, Roy and Fern.
OTTO BEHN is an honest and conscientious farmer in La Valle Town- ship, where he is the owner of an up-to-date farm of eighty acres, on
1082
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY
which he has achieved marked success as a general farmer and stock raiser. He was born on the parental estate in Reedsburg Township, Sauk County, Wisconsin, March 17, 1882, and is a son of Carl and Caro- line (Burmaster) Behn.
Reared to the life of a farmer on the old Behn estate, Otto Behn was educated in the neighboring country schools and after reaching his majority he worked for O. P. Morrill for a period of seven years. In 1906 he bought a forty-aere tract of land, formerly owned by Fred Hin- richs, and subsequently purchased an additional tract of forty. acres from the Jack Fisher farm. This land he has cultivated to a high degree and improved with fine, modern buildings, erecting a new silo in 1917. He breeds Holstein cattle and is engaged in general farming. In his political attitude he maintains an independent position, voting for the man rather than for party principles. His public service has been con- fined to membership on the school board.
In November, 1906, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Behn to Miss Bertha Hinrichs, a native of La Valle Township, where she was born July 17, 1874. Mrs. Behn is a daughter of Fred and Elizabeth (Ringel- man) Hinrichs and a sister of Fred A. Hinrichs. Mr. and Mrs. Behn are devout members of the St. John's Lutheran Church, to whose good. works they are liberal contributors. They are popular with their neigh- bors and are well known for their generous hospitality. They have no children.
HARRY P. APKER. There are few more intelligent and none more important in a community than the modern, progressive farmer, and to the credit of Sauk County it may be declared that few sections can show more proof of this. The county is one of the soundest in the state, its taxes are not burdensome when its improvements are taken into account, and it is a profitable section in which to do business and has no equal in advantages that add to comfortable living. A representative farmer of the county who belongs to the enterprising class above indicated, is Harry P. Apker, who is a representative of one of the old families of the county and is the owner of one of the best improved properties in La Valle Township.
Harry P. Apker was born in Woodland Township, Sauk County, Wis- consin, July 10, 1861, and is a son of Henry and Elizabeth (Parker) Apker. Henry Apker was born in 1825, near Williamsport, Pennsyl- vania, and was a son of Peter and Charlotte (Meyer) Apker. They were natives of Pennsylvania who came very early to Sauk County and settled in Woodland Township as pioneers, living in their wagon until they could build a log house in the wilderness. That took many days of stren- uous labor and when completed was a residence which offers, in retro- spect, a great contrast to the beautiful electrically lighted residence of his grandson, Harry P. Apker. The grandparents lived and died on their farm and were the parents of thirteen children, three of this large family still surviving, as follows: Tunis; Susan, who is the wife of John Sanborn ; and Cassie, who is the wife of Charles Norton, of Brooklyn, Wisconsin.
In 1852 Henry Apker went to Baraboo and worked in the Bassett
1083
HISTORY OF SAUK COUNTY
sawmills for a time and then followed farming in Woodland Township, buying a farm that adjoined his father's land, but later sold it and came to La Valle village. He worked in sawmills and in a carding mill and was an experienced mill man. His death occurred in 1897. At Baraboo, Wisconsin, he was married to Elizabeth Parker, who had come to La Valle from the East to teach school, her birth having taken place in 1836, in Oneida County, New York, and she still resides at La Valle. They were the parents of six children, namely : Everett Edward, who is a railroad conductor and resides at Baraboo; Mary, who is the wife of James Fitz- gerald, of Sauk County; Harry P .; Fannie, who is the wife of D. E. Wright, of Oneida County, New York; Ina, who is the widow of Philip Mihlbemer ; and Clinton A., who died in 1914, for twenty years was chief clerk in the Northwestern Railroad office at La Valle.
Harry P. Apker obtained his education in the village schools and for several years afterward was baggage master at La Valle for the Northwestern Railroad, and also worked as a freight brakeman for four years. When he left the railroad he went to Iowa and bought a farm of eighty acres and worked on the same for two years and then came back to La Valle, after selling his western property, and in 1894 bought a farm of 120 acres, forty acres of which lies within the corporation limits. He has sold five lots to the village but has retained the rest of the land, which is certain to become more valuable every year. Mr. Apker has been very enterprising in putting his property in good condition. He has put up handsome buildings and has both his residence and immense barn, the dimensions of which are 32 by 57 feet, lighted by electricity. All his surroundings indicate thrift and good management. In addition to general farming he does some dairying, keeping fourteen cows, is a breeder of high grade Holsteins and is a member of the Holstein Asso- ciation.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.