USA > Wisconsin > Fond du Lac County > Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, past and present, Volume II > Part 48
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On November 21, 1863, Mr. Norris was united in marriage to Miss Wilhel- mina Lockwood, a daughter of Benjamin F. and Mary Lockwood, natives of Connecticut, of New England ancestry. Her father was a carriage trimmer and followed this line of occupation in his native state until 1856 when he came with his family to Wisconsin and settled in Brandon. Here he established an undertaking business and also became prominent in local politics, serving as postmaster of the village and as township treasurer and collector. Mr. and Mrs. Norris became the parents of seven children: Grant, whose birth occurred May 27, 1865, and who is engaged in farming in Metomen township; Benjamin F., who was born September 29, 1867, and who passed away May 10, 1911 ; Robert S., born April 3, 1870, who is interested in gold mines and went to Alaska during the Klondike excitement and still has mining interests there; May I., whose birth occurred April 9, 1873, and who is the wife of Professor
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H. G. Paul, of Urbana, Illinois; Jennie Louise, who is in Berlin, Germany, studying music ; Fred T., who was born February 21, 1879, and who is the man- ager of the gas plant in Brandon; and Bessie, who is residing at home.
In his political views Mr. Norris was a republican but was never active as an office seeker, preferring to concentrate his attention upon the development of his farm, the excellent condition of which attests his success. He did useful and lasting work in the world and gained a high place in the honor and esteem of his many friends who still mourn his death as a personal deprivation and as a loss to development and progress in the section to which he came in pio- neer times.
EDWARD AND DAVID GRAHAM.
Among the well cultivated farms of Byron township must be mentioned that of the Graham brothers, which is comprised of one hundred and eighty acres and is located on section 8. Edward and David Graham have long been famil- iar with the agricultural conditions of Fond du Lac county, having been born and reared on a farm in Osceola township. They are of English and Irish extraction, the father, Allen Graham, being a native of the mother country, whence he emigrated to the United States in his early manhood. Here he met and married Bridget Connors, who was born in the Emerald isle. To them were born eight children, one of whom died three days after birth. The re- maining seven were reared to maturity and in order of birth are as follows: Catherine, who became the wife of James Dunn of Fond du Lac, and the mother of seven children; David; Mary, who passed away in 1910; Sarah, who resides in Byron; Allen, who married Rosie Seakings of Forest; Edward; and John, whose death occurred in 1911. The father, who vigorously championed the Union cause, volunteered his services to the land of his adoption during the days of the Civil war. He was killed on the battlefield of Petersburg on the 2d of April, 1865, leaving a widow and seven children practically dependent upon their own resources for support. Despite the hardships and worry the responsibility and duties of her position entailed, the mother lived to see her children mature men and women and useful members of society, her death occurring in 1898.
Left fatherless in childhood, the early advantages of the Graham brothers were very meager. The mother's limited income and the many needs it had to supply, compelled them to contribute toward the family support while still in their early youth. Few occupations were open to the inexperienced lad of that period, so they worked on the farms in the vicinity of their home during the summer months and in the lumber camps in the winter. The hours were long, from practically daylight to dark the year around, seven days a week, and physically the work was taxing. They were always in the open air, however, and were provided with an abundance of good, wholesome food, coarse but nourishing. Thus they developed into strong, vigorous men, self-reliant and independent, although in their youth they were denied many of the joys and pleasures which rightfully belong to the young. In the district schools of Os- ceola township, they acquired an essential knowledge of the common branches of English learning, and although their schooling was limited their early expe- riences and responsibilities enabled them to develop into men of practical in- telligence and sound judgment. They early resolved to accumulate sufficient money to engage in farming for themselves, and although this required many years of toil and untold self-denial it was ultimately realized. They lived in Osceola township until 1909, in which year they removed to Byron, where they now own a hundred and eighty acres of land. Their holding is substantially
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improved and well cultivated. Their fields are carefully and intelligently tilled and planted to such crops as are best adapted to the soil. The judgment here exercised is characteristic of them in all of their undertakings, and as a result they are prospering. Theirs has not been a remarkable achievement, but it is worthy and commendable, and every man deserves credit who through his individual effort and amid the most discouraging and adverse circumstances attains a position which numbers him among the independent members of so- ciety. They have seven head of horses and their farm is well stocked, and equipped with everything essential for its operation. Hard-working, reliable men, honest and upright in their transactions they are highly esteemed in their community and have many friends.
David Graham has never married. Edward, however, married Mary Galli- gan, a daughter of Judge and Emily Galligan, well known farming people of Osceola township, and to them have been born the following children: Della ; Katie; Edward, who died in 1907; David; Emily and Bridget, twins, who died in 1908; George and Mary, also twins; and Edward.
They are members of the Roman Catholic church, and both brothers are stanch supporters of the republican party. They have never actively partici- pated in the political life of their communities, although they are not remiss in matters of citizenship, but can be depended upon to discharge their civic obli- gations.
MICHAEL FREUND.
Michael Freund is one of the representative business men of Fond du Lac, engaged in the grocery business. His store is located at No. 258 North Main street and his residence at 124 West Arnolt street in this city. He is a native of Fond du Lac county, his birth occurring in Taycheedah township on Feb- ruary 18, 1872, and is a son of John and Elizabeth (Schneider) Freund. The paternal grandparents of Mr. Freund were Servatius and Anna Mary Freund, both of whom died many years ago in the township of Taycheedah. The ma- ternal grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Schneider, after having lived to a very old age, also long since passed away, their deaths occurring in the same township.
John Freund, the father of the subject of this review, was a native of Ger- many, from Rhein Preussen, as was also his wife, Elizabeth (Schneider) Fre- und. Mr. Freund emigrated to America in the year 1848, making the journey across the water with his parents when he was a child but six years of age. The family established their home in Taycheedah township where, under the parental roof, he grew to manhood and there he has since continued to reside. His wife came to America when but a child of three years, with her parents in 1852. Mr. Freund, some years ago, disposed of a portion of the old homestead farm, still retaining thirty acres for his home and to the cultivation of this he has given his attention in the declining years of his life. During his residence here he has served as treasurer of his township for two years.
Michael Freund was educated in the parochial and public schools of this county. He remained under the parental roof until twenty years of age, asso- ciated with his father in the cultivation of their home farm and, on leaving the parental roof, he followed the occupation of a carpenter for six years, after which he was engaged as a clerk for M. Washbusch in his grocery store in Fond du Lac, where he remained for ten years, later establishing himself inde- pendently in the grocery business. He has continued to give his attention to this enterprise for the past four years and has a prosperous and growing busi- ness, requiring the services of several efficient clerks.
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Mr. Freund was united in wedlock to Miss Anna Thome on the 14th of September, 1909. Mrs. Freund is the daughter of Mathias and Gertrude (Mer- ten) Thome. She is a native of Fond du Lac county, her birth having occurred in the town of Marshfield, her parents being numbered among the early settlers of that township. To them five children were born: Emma, Catharine, Stephen, Louisa and Anna. To Mr. and Mrs. Michael Freund one child has been born, Gertrude. They are members of the Catholic church of this city. Mr. Freund is a member of the Catholic Knights of Wisconsin and also a member of St. Joseph's Society of St. Mary's church.
Michael Freund is well known and highly respected throughout the county and city in which he resides and is numbered among the enterprising citizens of this community. He is a man of unblemished character, successful in his business undertakings and always to be relied upon to give his influence to any cause seeking the advancement of the moral and educational interests of the people.
JOSIAH BATSON.
Josiah Batson, who is spending the evening of life in honorable retirement at Fair Water, is a well known and highly respected citizen of Fond du Lac county and in former years was actively and successfully identified with general agricultural pursuits here. His birth occurred in Cherry Valley township, Os- wego county, New York, on the 21st of July, 1829, his parents being Josiah and Anna Maria (Gross) Batson, both of whom were natives of England, in which country their marriage was celebrated in September, 1828. The father was a parchment maker by trade. One year after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Batson emigrated to the United States, locating in Springfield, New York. They re- mained in the Empire state-living at Springfield, Cherry Valley and Westford -for a period of twenty-five years. At the end of that time they came to Fond du Lac county, Wisconsin, purchasing and locating on a farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Metomen township. A few years later they removed to Ripon, where Mrs. Batson passed away on the 28th of February, 1867. Mr. Batson then came to Fair Water and spent the remainder of his life in the home of our subject, his demise occurring on the 25th of April, 1874. The Batson family held a reunion at Lake Minnetonka, June 28, 1912, at which eighty-seven were present.
Josiah Batson remained under the parental roof until seventeen years of age, when he began working for others, though his wages went to his father until he attained his majority, and he then started out in life on his own account. He learned the shoemaker's trade and busied himself at that occupation through the winter months, while in the summer seasons he worked at any employment that offered itself. He had left his father's house with but eleven dollars in his pocket when twenty-one years old and had to depend entirely upon his own resources in making a start in the business world. Two years later, with two hundred dollars cash, he began the journey to Wisconsin, arriving in this state with one hundred and eighty-five dollars. In 1852 he located in Green Lake county, Wis- consin, and eighteen months later came to Fond du Lac county, purchasing a farm of eighty acres in Metomen township. He was married in Green Lake and commenced housekeeping in a log shanty, the furnishings of which included a table which he made with his own hands and an old stove which he borrowed. He also went in debt for seven dollars' worth of dishes. Later disposing of his eighty-acre tract, he bought one hundred and sixty acres near Fair Water and subsequently extended the boundaries of his farm by an additional purchase of eighty acres and also one of sixty acres. In 1857 he began raising sheep, his
MR. AND MRS. JOSIAH BATSON
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flock increasing until he had five hundred head on his farm here and three hun- dred and twenty head on a farm in Minnesota, which he had taken on a debt. At the time of his arrival in Fair Water, David Jones was the only man engaged in business in the town. In 1878 Mr. Batson suffered heavy losses through fire, which destroyed a large barn eighty-five feet long and a hay shed containing one hundred and fifty tons of hay, together with grain, wool and timothy seed valued at over four thousand dollars, with insurance of eighteen hundred and fifty dol- lars. He then built another large barn, one hundred feet long, which was blown to pieces by a hurricane seven years later. Subsequently he erected two large barns, a wagon house and a carriage house. In 1892 lightning struck one of the barns, incurring the loss of both barns, the wagon house, granary, wool, etc. Ten years ago fire destroyed two brick store buildings valued at thirty-two hundred dollars and only partly covered by insurance. A few years ago he sold his land, retaining only a few acres in town which he devotes to gardening. Though now eighty-three years of age, he is as active and as physically able as many men much younger and expects to reach the century mark. Though mis- fortune frequently came to him in the destruction of his property, he has re- trieved his losses by dint of industry, perseverance and good management and is now spending the evening of life in honorable retirement, enjoying many com- forts and even luxuries. Two years ago he and his wife went to the Gulf of Mexico to spend the winter with the latter's son. Mr. Batson is a stockholder in the Fair Water and Alto Telephone Company of Fair Water, this county.
For his first wife Mr. Batson chose Miss Arabella Wells, a daughter of Amaso Wells, a native of Pennsylvania, who came to Wisconsin in the early '40s, taking up his abode among the pioneer settlers of Clinton, Rock county, where he turned his attention to general agricultural pursuits. He remained on the same farm throughout the remainder of his life, passing away at the age of sixty-one years. His widow then went to Chicago and there spent the remainder of her life in the home of her son Warren, her demise occurring at the age of ninety-two years. Unto Josiah and Arabella (Wells) Batson were born six children, as follows: Mary Josephine, whose birth occurred on the 4th of February, 1855, and who is the wife of Joseph Lockin, a farmer living near Brandon, this county; Stella Adelaide, born February 21, 1858, who is deceased; Judson F., who was born on the 12th of January, 1860, and is also deceased; Warren A., born May 21, 1861, who is engaged in mining in Mexico; Fayette F., whose birth occurred on the 2d of September, 1865, and who follows farming in Metomen township; and Laura Belle, born December 25, 1870, who is the wife of Charles P. Tinkham, of Winnebago, Minnesota. The wife and mother was called to her final rest on the 15th of March, 1884, and on the 15th of November, 1888, Mr. Batson was again married, his second union being with Mrs. Harriett Stallard, who was born in England on the Ist of July, 1842. She was the widow of Edward Stal- lard of Ripon, Wisconsin, and a daughter of Joseph and Mary Ann (Groves) Kingsbury, both of whom were natives of England, in which country their mar- riage was celebrated on the 3Ist of August, 1839. A few years afterward Mr. Kingsbury, a mason by trade, came to the United States, locating in Ripon, Wisconsin. Two years later his wife and four children joined him in this coun- try. Joseph Kingsbury passed away at Ripon in 1904, while the demise of his wife occurred at the home of their daughter, Jane Edwards, in Omro, Wisconsin, in November, 1909. Unto Edward and Harriett (Kingsbury) Stallard were born two children, as follows: William H., whose birth occurred on the 12th of April, 1860, and who is a farmer of Palacios, Texas; and Florence Belle, who was born on the 2d of July, 1872, and is the wife of Frank Keso, of Ripon, Wisconsin.
Mr. Batson exercises his right of franchise in support of the prohibition party, believing that the liquor traffic is one of the worst evils with which the country has to contend. He has been a member of the Baptist church for sixty- Vol. II-21
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five years and has been one of its active and helpful workers. His wife is also a member of the same church. The period of his residence in Fond du Lac county covers almost six decades and he enjoys an enviable reputation within its borders, for his life has ever been such as to command and merit the regard and esteem of all.
FRANK E. JONES.
Frank E. Jones is a native of Fond du Lac county and is a son of an early settler in Metomen township. He is living in Brandon after an active career of more than a quarter of a century during which time he cultivated an excellent farm on section 34, bringing his enterprise to success by steadily pursuing a pro- gressive and straightforward policy and is interested in the business develop- ment of Brandon. He was born in Metomen township on June 27, 1860, a son of David and Lucy J. (Knapp) Jones. His father was born on the border line between England and Wales on January 5, 1828, and came to America with his parents when he was seventeen years of age. His residence in Metomen township dates from 1848 and he is now the oldest surviving settler in this sec- tion. He is one of the representative and enterprising farmers and stock-rais- ers operating a tract of two hundred and twenty acres of land, a portion of which he obtained from the government in early times, receiving his deed from President Polk. He and his wife had six children: William A., who was born October 9, 1857, and who died on the 17th of September, 1889; Frank E., the subject of this sketch; Ralph, who was born December 5, 1864, and who is now professor of pathology in the State University at Madison; Jessie E., whose birth occurred July 30, 1869, who married J. G. Seelig, and who passed away December 31, 1904; Fred Arthur, who was born January 10, 1873, and who is in the butter-making business in Ontario; and John Edwin, who was born June I, 1876, and who is associated with his father in the conduct of the homestead.
Frank E. Jones was educated in the district schools of his native section and assisted his father in the conduct of his agricultural enterprise until 1884. In that year he purchased eighty acres in Metomen township on section 34 and there remained until the fall of 1911. During that time he made improvements upon the property and brought his enterprise to a highly improved and devel- oped state by constantly following standards of progress. He based a distinct success upon early familiarity with agricultural details and methods and upon his personal efficiency and business integrity. For the past year he has been living in Brandon and giving his attention to the management of his important interests in the village.
On December 23, 1884, Mr. Jones was united in marriage to Miss Katie Robins, a daughter of Oscar and Charlotte (Boardman) Robins of Green Lake county. Her father was born in New York state on December 11, 1836, and is of English-Dutch descent. He came to Wisconsin in the spring of 1855 and located in Green Lake county, where he followed farming until a few years before his death. He then retired and moved to Brandon, where he passed away January 7, 19II. His wife was born near Burlington, Vermont, March 22, 1843, and is of French ancestry. Her father, Henry Boardman, was born near Burlington, Vermont, June 3, 1817, and her mother's birth occurred in Canada, November 28, 1818. They came to Kenosha county, Wisconsin, in the fall of 1843 and two years later located in Metomen township where Henry Boardman took up government land and became prominent in public affairs. He was the first postmaster of Fair Water and for several years did able and effective work as justice of the peace. He was one of the first to assist in the establishment of the old Baptist church of Fair Water, donating one hundred
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dollars to the cause. He died in Milford, Iowa, March 21, 1900, his wife hav- ing passed away in Fair Water, September 4, 1854. Mrs. Jones' mother is still surviving and makes her home with our subject. Mr. and Mrs. Jones have two children : Hazel, who was born November 25, 1893, in Metomen township, and who was graduated from the Brandon high school with the class of 19II; and Myrta, born March 2, 1899, who is a student in the Brandon high school. The family belong to the Congregational church of Brandon.
Mr. Jones is independent in his political views and votes for the man whom he considers best qualified for office, regardless of party affiliations. He never seeks public office but has served as assessor with conscientiousness and ability. He is president of the telephone company of Brandon and for eighteen years has been on the board of directors of the Farmers Insurance Company. He has retired from agricultural pursuits and is giving his time to the management of his interests in the village. Having been engaged as a general farmer for over twenty-five years his career has been an influence in promoting the agricultural development of the county and his present activities are factors in its expansion and welfare.
PETER J. LERCH.
Peter J. Lerch, who owns a farm of a hundred and forty acres on section 34 of Byron township, represents the third generation of one of Fond du Lac county's highly esteemed pioneer families. For more than fifty years his people have been identified with the agricultural interests of the county, toward the progress and development of which they have substantially contributed, and they have also figured prominently in the political life of their communities He was born on the farm he now owns in Byron township on the 16th of March, 1872, and is a son of Peter and Caroline (Meyer) Lerch. The father was born in Germany about 1843, and the mother was a native of Brownsville, Wisconsin. They became the parents of four children, of whom our subject is the second in order of birth, the others being Charles, Louis and Matilda The father, whose energies were always devoted to agricultural pursuits, emi- grated to the United States with his parents, Jacob and Katheryn (Kramer) Lerch. They were both natives of Germany, the former having been born in 1815 and the latter in 1818. They were reared in the old country and there they were married in 1838, and emigrated to the United States with their fam. ily in 1855. Upon their arrival in this country they first located in Milwaukee but the next year they came to Fond du Lac county, where the grandfather purchased forty acres of land. He later increased his holdings until he held the title of two hundred acres of good farming land. He passed away in 1894 and the grandmother in 1897. They had four children: Philip J., whose biography appears elsewhere in this work; Margaret; Peter, the father of our subject. who passed away in 1898; and Elizabeth, who died at the age of two years.
Peter J. Lerch lived on the farm until the fall of 1904, when he removed to Byron although he still manages his farm. His early years were very similar to those of other lads who are reared in the country. At the usual age he be- gan his education in the school in district No. 10 of Byron township, where he continued his studies until he was a youth of fourteen. Thereafter he devoted his energies to agricultural pursuits, which he has since followed with a meas- ure of success. His business career has been marked by a gradual but per- manent progress and he is now known as one of the substantial citizens of his community. He engages in diversified farming and stock-raising in connection with which he does dairying. He owns a cheese factory at Colby, this state, and
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he is a stockholder in the German Coach Horse Association of Brownsville, Dodge county, while for six years he has been engaged in the creamery business.
At Byron on the 23d of June, 1897, Mr. Lerch was united in marriage to Miss Edith Senser, a daughter of Frederick and Bertha Senser, prosperous pio- neer farming people of Fond du Lac township. Four children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Lerch, Mabel, Vernon, Harold and Sylvia.
The family are members of the Lutheran church, and fraternally he is iden- tified with the Modern Woodmen of America. His political support is given to the candidates of the republican party, and he served for six years as a mem- ber of the school board, justice of the peace and health officer, while for three years he was road supervisor. Mr. Lerch is interested in the progress and de- velopment of his community, and actively cooperates in forwarding its various public utilities.
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