Biographical history of La Crosse, Trempealeau and Buffalo Counties, Wisconsin : containing portraits of all the presidents of the United States, with accompanying biographies of each; engravings of prominent citizens of the counties, with personal histories of many of the early settlers and leading families, Part 101

Author: Lewis Publishing Company. cn
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 938

USA > Wisconsin > Buffalo County > Biographical history of La Crosse, Trempealeau and Buffalo Counties, Wisconsin : containing portraits of all the presidents of the United States, with accompanying biographies of each; engravings of prominent citizens of the counties, with personal histories of many of the early settlers and leading families > Part 101
USA > Wisconsin > La Crosse County > Biographical history of La Crosse, Trempealeau and Buffalo Counties, Wisconsin : containing portraits of all the presidents of the United States, with accompanying biographies of each; engravings of prominent citizens of the counties, with personal histories of many of the early settlers and leading families > Part 101
USA > Wisconsin > Trempealeau County > Biographical history of La Crosse, Trempealeau and Buffalo Counties, Wisconsin : containing portraits of all the presidents of the United States, with accompanying biographies of each; engravings of prominent citizens of the counties, with personal histories of many of the early settlers and leading families > Part 101

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).

Father Babinski, the efficient and popular pastor of his church, is a native of Poland, and was educated in the German gymnasiums and universities, and received his theologi- cal education at the American College at Louvain, in Belgium. He came to the United States in 1886, and was first located at Humbird and Junction City, and then in oldest died, leaving families. August, the Independence. Father Babinski has a large . only surviving brother, is married, but has no

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children. Mr. Barnitz is one of the indus- trions and substantial farmers of the town of Gałe. He has 400 acres of land. He and wife have a pleasant home and are respected by their neighbors as kind and intelligent people.

ILLIAM DICK, who resides on ser- tion 36, in the town of Gale, is one of the pioneers of Trempealeau county, the time of his coming having been the fall of 1853. Mr. Dick was born in Ayr- shire, Scotland, in 1822. His father, Quin- ton Dick, was a native of the same part of Scotland, where he resided until his death. The mother of Mr. Dick was Jane McMur- try. Quinton Dick and wife were the parents of a large family of children, nearly all of whom have now passed away.

The subject of this sketeh was married in Scotland to Rosanna Neill. In 1851 Mr. Dick and wife emigrated to the State of Maryland. After residing in that State about two years, he, with others of his countrymen residing there, decided to go West and started for Wisconsin with their families, without any definite idea as to where they would settle. Mr. Dick and family were accompanied by the following men and their families, viz .: David Cook, John Irvine and John Ilunter. A single man named James Phillips also accompanied them. On arriv- ing in La Crosse the men left their families, while they explored the country for a loca- tion. After looking about for some time they decided to settle on what was known and is still known as Decora's Prairie, a beautiful valley in the south part of the town of Gale in Trempealeau county. Here they settled and made farms and here the families are still living, though Mr. Irvine and wife,

and Mr. Hunter and wife are now deceased. Mr. Phillips never made a permanent settle- ment but is now said to be living in Clark county. Mr. Dick settled on a quarter-sec- tion of this beautiful prairie land, which he afterwards inereased to 500 acres, and which is still owned by himself and family.

Mr. and Mrs. Dick have had eight chil- dren, two sons and six daughters: Elizabeth, the eldest, married Duncan Grant and died on June 6, 1883, leaving seven children, one of whom died soon after the death of the mother; the second child of Mr. and Mrs. Diek is Jane, who is the wife of Robert Grant; John is third in order of age; Mar- garet is the wife of Frank Bon; Agnes is the wife of James Irvine; Ellen is now Mrs. My- ron B. Gibson, and Mary married James W. Wilson; William, the youngest son, lives at the homestead.

Mr. William Dick and wife, as has been seen, are among the pioneers of Trempealeau county: coming here when the country was wild and new, they have witnessed the im- provements of nearly forty years, and are numbered among the well-known and esteemed citizens of Trempealeau county.

ENNIS LAWLER is one of the well- known citizens of Trempealean county. His home is on seetion 24, in the town of Unity. Mr. Lawler was born in the parish of Rathfarnam, near Dublin, Ireland, Sep- tember 25, 1823. His father, Martin Law- ler, was a native of the city of Kilkenny. His mother, Frances E. Green, was born in Dublin. Mr. Lawler is descended from an old, honorable and well-known Irish family, and is able to trace his ancestry back through the long space of 700 years.

The subject of this sketch was reared to the

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business of a cloth-dresser, his father being a cloth-weaver. For many generations the Lawlers were connected with the woolen manufacturing business. The repeal of the protective tariff on Irish manufactured goods, Mr. Lawler believes was the death blow to the vital interests of Ireland, woolen mann- facturing having ceased to become a paying business interest in Ireland. The Lawler fam- ily, in 1837, removed to Yorkshire, England, and re-engaged in their former occupation of manufacturing. In 1846, the subject of this sketch was married to Catherine Brown.

He had long entertained the thought of coming to America, and in February, 1850. attempted to carry this resolution into effect. He had not money sufficient to pay the pas- sage of his wife and only child, and so left them behind until he conld secure a home for them somewhere in the new world. Ile accordingly sailed from Liverpool in the American vessel Forest State, commanded by Captain Polaster; but the vessel was not des- tined to reach an American port in safety. The Forest State was wrecked off the coast of Newfoundland, and having lost all the masts was left to the mercy of the winds and the waters of the Gulf Stream. The latter started the disabled vessel back toward the European coast, before reaching which, how- ever, they were rescued by a pilot vessel; one of the pilots took command and carried the vessel safely back to Cork. On learning of his misfortune and of his return to Cork, his former employer sent him money to pay his way back to Yorkshire. Ile had at first been loth to let him go, and now increased his wages to twenty-two shillings per week : so he continued in Yorkshire nntil 1857, when he again started for the United States. His increased wages had enabled him to save some money, and he now took with him his wife and their two children, and was also accom- on by the South with the object of perpetu-

panied by his brother-in-law, Edward Brown.

They landed in New York on the 3d of September, having sailed on the good ship Manhattan from Liverpool, on Angust 2, The passage of himself and family had been paid to Chicago, to which place the party at once proceeded, via the Pittsburg & Fort Wayne Railroad. The party continued di- rectly to Beef River Station in Eau Claire county, where another brother-in-law, John E. Brown, was living, going to Prairie du Chien by railroad, thence up the Mississippi to La Crosse, by stage to Black River Falls. At the latter place Mr. Lawler met an Eng- lishman named Dukesbury, whom he hired for 86 to take him to Beef River Station, a distance of about thirty miles. His English friend also entertained him with a night's lodging, and Mr. Lawler finally reached his destination with himself and family in good condition. There they spent a hard winter, Mr. Lawler working for the food consumed by himself and family. In the spring of 1859 lie bought a claim of 160 acres of land (as he afterward said) of a man who did not own it. For this land he paid an English broadcloth coat. This was in the present town of Sum- ner, in Trempealeau county. On this claim that he had purchased he raised a fine crop of wheat in 1859, the average being twenty- six and a half bushels per acre. Ile pur- chased a yoke of oxen and chain for fifty bushels of his wheat, which placed him in better condition to continue the improvement of his claim. He remained there until 1863, when he removed to his present home, and has the honor of being the first settler in the town of Unity, and has also the greater honor of being the first soldier to enter the Union army from the town of Unity. Ever op- posed to oppression in all forms. and believ- ing that the war of the Rebellion was brought

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ating human slavery, he immediately on the beginning of the war espoused the cause of the Union with all his might and strength. He would at once have entered the army as a soldier, but it was thought by those in anthority that he could do more good by his influence at home, and he was therefore in- duced to resist his inclination to enter the service at once. But in March, 1865, he enlisted and took with him seven others, viz .: John Tracy, William Lindsay, Fred Copple, George Hicks, Russel Nelson, Jacob Todd and Jerome Harvey, all from the town of Unity. They became a part of Company D, Fifty-third Regiment Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry, and served in Missouri and Kansas until the close of the war. By exposure, starvation and bad water, Mr. Lawler lost his health in the service, which he has never re- covered.

Mr. and Mrs. Lawler have two sons and three daughters, viz .: Francis Richard, Ed- ward H., Mary, Kate and Frances Eleanor, all of whom were born in Trempealean county except Mary and Kate. They lost their first child, a boy. in England, and also an infant daughter in Trempealean county. The subject of this sketeh was the eldest of twelve children, the family consisting of six sons and six daughters. Only three of the family are living at this writing, 1891; Den- nis, his brother Edward, and a sister residing in Leeds, England, where Edward also lives. In 1865 the subject of this'sketeli sent for his parents, whom he furnished with money to pay their passage to his home in Trompealeau county, and cared for thein as long as they lived, the father dying at the age of ninety years, and the mother a year later, at the same age.

Mr. Dennis Lawler, as will be seen, is the only member of his father's family living in America. IIe is a man of culture and much

native ability. Few men are better informed than he on the prominent topics of the day, -political, moral and social. He excels as a conversationalist, which, together with his vast fund of information renders him a most valuable and instructive companion. In his political affiliations he is a Republican and an able advocate of the system of protec- tion which that party approves. Having been born and reared in the manufacturing districts of Ireland, and taking a leading part himself in that system of industry, and fully remembering the baleful effect that the tariff repeal exerted upon the manufacturing inter- ests of his native land, it is no wonder that he is so ardent an advocate of a protective tariff. He and his family are faithful, con- sistent members of the Catholic Church.

ALVIN CONANT BIGELOW, de- eeased, was born at Crown Point, New York, March 6, 1810, a son of Levi Bigelow. His parents both died when he was a boy, and after attaining manhood he was engaged for a considerable time in lum- bering. He was married in Windham county, Vermont, in June, 1840, to Clarissa Stacy, who was born in that county April 19, 1816, a daughter of John and Chloe (Smith) Stacy. Mr. and Mrs. Bigelow continued to reside in Vermont and New York until 1845, when they emigrated to Winnebago conuty, Wi consin, where they were among the early pioneers. In 1856 they removed to Trem- pealeau county, settling on a new farm in Caledonia township, which he and his sons improved, and on which he lived until his deatlı, November 12, 1881. Mr. Bigelow was a well-known citizen, was fond of hunt- ing, and in the early days in this county he found ample opportunity to indulge in his

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favorite sport. Ile was an industrions man, of the town two years. In polities he is a a kind husband and father, and a most Republican. worthy and esteemed citizen. The last six James B. Bigelow, who still resides at the old homestead, married Elva Rifelburg, and they have one daughter, Lila. Mr. Bigelow is the present Treasurer of Caledonia township. years of his life he was an invalid, and un- able to take any part in the active duties of life. Mr. and Mrs. Bigelow were the parents of ten children, six of whom are still living, viz .: Mary L., wife of John McKeeth; Janette, wife of C. R. McGilvray; William Pearl. the third surviving child; William EORGE SCHWOCHEL, of Fountain City, was born in Wald Michelbach, Germany, the son of Carl Wilhelm and Eva (Menier) Schwochel. The father, born in 1807, was a mason by trade, and had eight children: George, John, Elizabeth, Peter, Charles, Adam and Eliza, all of whom are living excepting Elizabeth and Charles. Their mother died in Germany, and after- ward their father died on the ocean, on his way to the United States, in 1865. Henry, a resident of Oregon; Hattie A., wife of Leslie MeKenney, of Platteville, Grant county; James B., who is still at the home- stead with his mother. The deceased mem- bers of the family were Levi, the eldest child, who was drowned in Wolf river when eight years of age; Newel, who died in infancy in Vermont; Orson was born in February, 1852, and died at the homestead in Trempealean county. September 4, 1870; Rosella, the youngest of the family, died at the age of one and a half years. The mother still lives at the homestead, where she has resided so many years.

William Pearl Bigelow, the eldest surviv- ing son. was born in Winnebago county. June 30, 1849, having been about seven years of age when he came to Trempealeau county with his parents, and just old enough to give a boy's assistance in driving the cat- tle on the overland journey from Eastern Wisconsin to their Trempealean county home. As he grew older he helped clear the farm, and often joined his father in the sport of hunting. A part of his farm belonged to the old homestead adjoining which he lived. Mr. Bigelow was married January 1. 1573, to Mary Walcot. a native of the State of New York, and they have four children: Rose, Florence, Arthur and Hazel D. Mr. Bige- low is one of the representative men of his township and has held the office of Town Treasurer for eight years, and was chairman

George, our subject, received his education at the German schools, and learned the trade of stone mason; but, finding himself too weak to follow it he abandoned it and turned to farming. lle emigrated to the United States in 1852, landing at New York, and arriving at Galena, Illinois, during the fol- lowing winter. The next spring he went to Black River Falls, Wisconsin, and engaged in lumbering, until 1856, when he moved to Buffalo county, purchasing a farm of eighty acres on section 7, Cross township. To this he added by future purchases until he had 300 aeres, one of the best farms in the county. Of late years he has made a spe- cialty of breeding short-horn cattle and Nor- man horses. In the fall of 1881 he sold his farm at a good price, and the next spring moved to Fountain City. Mr. Schwochel arrived in this pioneer country a poor mau, but by industry and economy he has earned a competence.

While living in the country he was Asses-

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sor for several ternis, Supervisor seven years, Justice of the Peace, Town Treasurer, etc. During the first year of his life in the vil- lage he was engaged mostly in clearing up his farm business. In 1883 he opened busi- ness in agricultural machinery. He was one of the organizers of the Fountain City Brew- ing Company, in which he has a large inter- est. He has stock also in the Fountain City Milling Company, and he is engaged in fire insurance. From 1884 to 1890 lie was Deputy Sheriff, and for the years 1889-'90 he was Supervisor for the First Ward of Fountain City.

He was married in 1855, at the town of Cross, Wisconsin, to Miss Elizabeth, daugh- ter of Christian and Elizabeth (Burkhalter) Bohri, of Bohri's valley, Wisconsin, and their children are: Mary, now Mrs. Schu- macher; Emma, who married Dr. W. C. Beardsley, of Dakota; George G .; Rosa E., now Mrs. Charles F. Smith, of Elyria, Ohio; Etta E .; Amanda J., now the wife of William E. Radtke, who is agent for the Chicago, Burlington & Northern Railroad. Mr. Schwochel is a member of Lodge No. 13, A. O. U. W., of FountainCity, and in politics is a Republican.

HARLES HOHMANN, one of the best known and most highly respected citizens of Wanmandee, Wisconsin, was born in Hessen-Darmstadt, Germany, Septem- ber 19, 1830. HIis parents were Leonhardt and Mary (Hein) Holimann. His paternal grandfather was Adam Hohmann. His father, by trade a rope manufacturer, died in 1849, his widow surviving him until 1860. They had eight ehildren, three of whom came to the United States: Charles, Frederick and August. August has been dead some years.

The subject of our sketch was raised at home until he reached the age of fourteen years, when he was sent to a place to learn the baker's trade. Here he remained for nine years, when in 1854 he emigrated to this country, landing in New York, where he remained for about five months. He then went to Bangor, Maine, where he engaged in tile-grinding for a file factory, remaining there for about a year, then removing to Waumandee, Wisconsin, in the spring of 1855. Here he pre-empted a piece of wild land of 120 acres, located in section 20, built a log cabin and began farming. There were three white settlers in that part of the county, Philip Runger, Theodore Miley, Nicholas Miley and Mr. Brinkhoff. There were quite a number of Indians in that part of the country when he went there, but they were friendly, and Mr. Hohmann enjoyed many a friendly game of cards with thein, and would have felt quite lonely had it not been for them. There were plenty of deer in this vicinity and quantities of fish in the Wau- mandee river. He remained here eight years, until he turned it over to his brother Fred, and himself removed to section 21, where he had two forty-acre tracts. He continued to increase liis acreage until he now possesses 520 acres, of which 250 acres are under good cultivation, largely devoted to grain. IIe also raises some stock, princi- pally Jerseys. In horses he is standing the Norman. His large brick residence, which is one of the finest houses in Buffalo county, he erected in 1886. Ile owns a fine mill near his place, which he erected about two years ago at a cost of $1,500.

Ile was Treasurer of the town, which then included Lincoln and Manitowoc counties, and was chairman of the board, and subse- quently was elected Supervisor. He is a member of the A. O. U. W., Lodge No. 13, of

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Fountain City. Ile is also a member of the Harmonia Society, of which he is president, which position he has filled for abont fifteen years.

In politics he is a Republican, and gener- ally acts with that party. He is a member of the Farmers' Alliance of Buffalo county.

He was married in Wanmandee, December 17, 1858, to Wilhelmina Kirchner, daughter of Charles Kirchner. They had twelve chil- dren: William, Otto, Adolph, Albert, Rob- ert, Henry, Clara, Edward, Lillie, Anna, August and Alvin, all but three still surviv- ing, viz .: Adolph, August and Anna.

ENRY GILBERT resides on section 6, town of Sumner, where he settled in the fall of 1867, when the land was entirely new. In fact he made a homestead of eighty acres of his place. He and sons now own several hundred acres. He was born in Portage county, Ohio, September 5, 1820. His grandfather Gilbert was a physician and pioneer in that part of Ohio, and a native of Vermont, but the maternal grandfather of Mr. Gilbert was still an earlier pioneer. ITis name was William Baeon and he was a native of Massachusetts. He was a Boston shoe- maker, and going West became one of the pio- neers of Ohio. The father of our subject, Josiah G. Gilbert, and wife, Nancy (Bacon) Gilbert, lived on their old homestead in Ohio until their death. The old home is still in pos- session of the family, being owned by Gusta- vus Bacon, a son of the original settler. The subject of this notice was one of six children; and what is somewhat remarkable, all are living (in 1891), but the youngest sister.

Henry Gilbert. the oldest of the family and the only one of the family living in this county, was a young man when he went to Huron

county, and later spent a year in Adrian, Michigan. Going back to Huron county he married Fidelia Darling, a native of Cattaran- gus county, New York. Later he settled on a farin near Bryant, Ohio, and later moved to the village of Bryan, where he lived for twelve years. He earnestly espoused the cause of his country in the war of the Rebellion, and in April, 1861, enlisted in Company C, Four- teenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. This was in the three monthis' call for troops, but he served about four months, and was then dis- charged. Ile served in West Virginia. He took part in the first battle of Philippi, which has gone into history as the first battle of the war. He was also in the battle of Cheat River, where General Garnet was killed, and saw him after he fell. At the expiration of the four months he returned. In July, 1862, he got a recruiting commission from Governor Tod and a full company and twenty men more, in about three months. This company became Company C, One Hun- dreth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Mr. Gilbert entered the service as Captain of this company and served until December of that year, when his health failing, he re- signed his eommission. His resignation was accepted on a surgeon's certificate. Mr. Gil- bert continued to reside in Bryan until he came to Trempealeau county, and here he has since lived. Eight years of that time he was a resident of the village of Osseo, during which time he served as collection agent and Justice of the Peace, for a number of years.

Mr. and Mrs. Gilbert have four children, three sons and one daughter Thomas J .. the oldest, is a hardware merchant at Perry, Dallas county, Iowa; the second is Jennie, wife of George W. Myers, of Bryan, Williams county. Ohio; William H. resides ou a farm near his father; James P., at the home-

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stead. The children are all married and have families.

Mr. Gilbert is one of the well-known citi- zens of Trempealeau county. In his political views he is a Republican. He cast his first vote for James K. Polk in 1844, which was his first and last Democratic vote. He is a strong Republican and a firm believer in the principles of that great national party. He is a member of John E. Perkins Post of Augusta.

OHN IRVINE is one of the well known residents of the town of Gale who claim "bonnie Scotland" as their native land. His residence is on seetion 30, township 19, range 7. Ile is a son of Jolin Irvine, who was born in the north of Ireland, in 1809. Mr. John Irvine went from the north of Ire- land to Scotland when nineteen years old. There he married Catherine Johnston, who was born in 1810. A number of years later they emigrated to Nova Scotia and there lived from 1837 to 1851, when they removed to Maryland. In 1853 they came to Wiscon- sin with the families of David Cook, William Dick and John Hunter, and were also accom- panied by a young man named James Phil- lips. Here Mr. Irvine settled on the beauti- ful Decora Prairie, and here lived until death. As a somewhat remarkable coincidence, Mr. and Mrs. Irvine passed from this life to the life beyond, on the same day and lie buried in the same grave in the cemetery on the prairie, aged respectively sixty-nine and sixty- eight years. The date of their death was Feb- ruary 6, 1878, the event being a sad be- reavement to their family and friends. They were both honored and respected by all who

knew them. They were the parents of seven children who grew to mature years, three sons and four daughters, six of whom are liv- ing in 1891: John is the eldest of the broth- ers; Walter is the next in order of age and lives near Fort Dodge, in Iowa; James is in Nebraska; Isabel, the oldest of the family, lives in Jackson county, Wisconsin; Mar- garet died at the age of twenty-seven years; Ellen is the wife of George Brown, of Gale township; Anna is the wife of Daniel Gor- don, of La Crosse county, as has been seen.

Mr. John Irvine is the only male represen - tative of his father's family living in Wis- consin. He was born in Scotland in 1830, being about seven years old when the family emigrated to Nova Scotia. He preceded the family to Maryland, where he went in April, 1851, the remainder of the family following later in the year. He came to Trempealeau county in 1854, the year after his father's family came. He purchased his present farm in 1855. Mr. Irvine's home farm contains 120 acres, and he has the same amount on section 5.

. Mr. Irvine is one of the well-known and intelligent citizens of the town of Gale, and a representative of an honored and respected family.

He was married in the State of Mary- land, to Ellen Walker, who was born in Ayrshire, Scotland, and with her parents emigrated to Nova Scotia, and thence to Mary- land. Mrs. Irvine died June 26, 1877. Mr. Irvine is the father of wine children. four boys and five daughters, viz .: John, James, Walter and William. The daughters are: Catherine, Margaret, Mary, Frances and Roseanna. IIe lost three children: Eliza- beth died at the age of eighteen years, and the others in childhood.

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Author: Lewis Publishing Company. cn Publication date: 1892 Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Lewis Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 938

Author: Lewis Publishing Company. cn
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 938