USA > Wisconsin > Fond du Lac County > Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, past and present, Volume II > Part 74
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The boyhood and youth of William B. Frank were passed on the farm where he was born, his education being acquired in district school No. 12 of Lamar- tine township. Assuming the heavier responsibilities of life at the age of four- teen years he laid aside his text-books, and thereafter gave his undivided atten- tion to agricultural pursuits. He remained at home and assisted his father until he was eighteen years of age, and then started out to make his own way in the world. For three years he worked out by the month, thus acquiring the money to enable him to engage in farming for himself as a renter. He began his independent agricultural career in this county, but four years later he removed to Minnesota. After six years' residence in the latter state he once more settled in Fond du Lac county, purchasing his present property in Lamar- tine township. He is a tireless worker and during the intervening years has diligently applied himself to the further improvement of his place, developing it into one of the attractive and valuable farms of the community. His well tilled fields are largely in such cereals as are best adapted to the feeding of stock as he keeps twenty head of cattle and four horses. In connection with general farming and stock-raising he also engages in dairying and is one of the stock- holders of the Lamartine Creamery Company. Mr. Frank is held in favorable
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regard in his community, as he is a man of honorable business methods, while in matters of citizenship he is public-spirited, taking an active interest in pro- moting the welfare of the community.
For his wife Mr. Frank chose Miss Anna Hartman, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Christian Hartman, well known farming people of this township, their marriage being celebrated at Lamartine, on the 10th of June, 1896. They are the parents of one daughter, Esther.
The family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and fraternally Mr. Frank is affiliated with the Modern Woodmen of America. His allegiance in political matters he accords to the republican party, and has served his com- munity in various public capacities. He has been for a long period clerk of the school board, while for six years he held the office of road supervisor. A man of high standards and principles, Mr. Frank enjoys the respect and esteem of his neighbors and fellow citizens, many of whom he has known from boyhood.
DAVID WHITTON.
David Whitton was born in Dundee, Scotland, August 4, 1836, and is a son of Charles B. and Mary (Stuart) Whitton, also natives of that country. The grandfather, John Whitton was a drover and butcher in Dundee and was twice married. Charles Whitton was the youngest child born to his second union and the twenty-fifth child born to John Whitton. He was a stone-cutter and mason by trade and followed this line of occupation in Scotland for a number of years. He came to America in 1842, landing in Boston on July 4th of that year. Four weeks later he went to Ontario, Canada, where for four years he superintended the building of the locks on the Welland canal. In August, 1846, he came to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and remained there until October, when he located in Ashippun, Dodge county, among the early settlers of that district. He was for many years a prominent and representative citizen, highly esteemed in business and social circles and active as a politician. He was elected to the first assembly district of Dodge county in 1850 and represented said district in the legislature of 1851. Five years later he removed to Fond du Lac county where he took up his residence in the village of Waupun, where he died in May, 1882.
David Whitton grew to manhood among the scenes of pioneer settlement in Wisconsin. He attended the parochial schools during the four years of his father's residence in Canada and after coming to Dodge county attended the country schools of that district for five winters. He studied at home and was always eager in the pursuit of learning. He broadened his culture and widened his horizon by constant reading. When his father came from the legislature he brought with him some statute books and David Whitton spent his evenings reading law before a fire in their log cabin home. He began the study of juris- prudence in 1852 and in 1856 he borrowed law books from an office in Waupun and continued his studies. In 1874 he was admitted to the bar and has been practicing continuously ever since. His residence in Brandon dates from 1867, and during the intervening years he has built up a flourishing general practice. He has been connected with all of the most important litigation of the courts of his district and has gained a position of prominence by reason of his great talent. He is an able and industrious student of the law and a sound thinker. He pos- sesses the coolness of judgment and alertness of mind which are the foundation of legal success, and his prosperity has been continuous during his forty-five years of residence in Brandon. In his youth he had learned the mason's trade with his father, who was a master mason, and worked upon the state prison at Waupun during the course of its erection. The elder Mr. Whitton helped to
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locate the institution in that city, and aided in the construction of the main build- ing of the prison. He encouraged his son in learning carpentering later but he has now entirely abandoned those occupations and is giving his entire attention to his law practice.
On January 1, 1862, Mr. Whitton was united in marriage to Miss Mary B. Turner, a daughter of Alexander and Agnes (Gowans) Turner. Her father was a native of Scotland and on coming to America settled in Dodge county, Wisconsin, on land adjoining that occupied by the father of our subject. He had just erected a log cabin upon his holdings when he died in 1850. His wife was afterward married to James Emery, who now lives in St. Croix county, and there she died in 1909. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Whitton have been born seven chil- dren : Mary, the wife of Charles Allen, a furniture dealer and undertaker of Woonsocket, South Dakota, by whom she has five children, Jesse, Edith, Leta, Gladys and Kenneth; Charles B., who married Miss Jennie Burtch, of Milwau- kee, by whom he has one child, Bessie; David, who married Jessie Farnsworth, of Denver, Colorado; Grace, who has now married her third husband, E. A. James, of Sheldon, Iowa, and who has one child, Eva Butts, by her first mar- riage; Nellie, who is Mrs. George Graham, of Roberts, Wisconsin, and the mother of two children, Malcolm and Grace; Alexander T., who married Miss Nellie Inglis, and now resides in Roberts, Wisconsin; and Susie E., who died in April, 1900, when in her twenty-second year. Mr. and Mrs. Whitton cele- brated, on January 1, 1912, their golden wedding anniversary at their home in Brandon. They spent a happy day surrounded by their children and grand- children. They are among the oldest residents of Fond du Lac county and have the respect and esteem of their friends by reason of their honorable and worthy qualities of heart and mind.
In official circles the name of David Whitton is widely and favorably known. He has served the democratic party and the people at large in many different public capacities and has always been actuated in this phase of his life by high ideals of his responsibility to the people whom he serves. As a resident of Waupun he was assessor and ward supervisor and in Brandon has held the office of justice of the peace, police justice, supervisor and president of the vil- lage in which capacity he is now serving his sixth term. In 1873 he was elected to represent the first assembly district, which is now the second, from Fond du Lac county, and served with his customary honor and uprightness. From 1891 to 1892 he did efficient work as sheriff of Fond du Lac county. In 1904 was elected to the office of mayor of Brandon, serving with conspicuous success for five successive terms. He was reelected in 1912, a proof of his acceptability with the people, which he is now serving.
Mr. Whitton holds an important and prominent place in fraternal circles of his city. He is a member of Waupun Lodge, No. 48, F. & A. M., at Waupun, and belongs to Ripon Chapter, No. 30, R. A. M., at Ripon. He is one of the best known figures in the affairs of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, joining Telulah Lodge, No. 33, of Waupun in 1864, and has belonged to the Waupun encampment, No. 9, since 1865. He has passed through all the chairs in both and has been a member of the Grand Encampment and the Grand Lodge of Wisconsin for many years. In 1872 he was elected grand patriarch of the Grand Encampment and appointed grand representative to the Sovereign Grand Lodge in 1874 at the session held in Atlanta, Georgia. He is now a member of the Metomen Lodge, No. 107, of Brandon, and Elliott Encampment, No. 80, of Ripon. He has been for twenty-five years president of the Scotch Picnic Asso- ciation and has been well known in the affairs of that body since its organiza- tion. He is a man of strict integrity and honor who exemplifies in both his pub- lic and legal life high ideals of personal service. His practice is based upon ethical principles and a knowledge of his profession, which, since it was gained through hardship and difficulty, has been retained in its fullness and expanded
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to meet the needs of modern activities. Mr. Whitton has always been a friend of the poor and when called upon to defend them has always done so whether they had anything to pay for his services or not.
FRED L. PUCKER.
The name of Fred L. Pucker is prominently connected with the history of farming development in Fond du Lac county where his energy and enterprise along progressive lines have resulted in the addition of two hundred and sixty fertile acres to the agricultural resources. Mr. Pucker is a native son of Wis- consin, having been born in Springvale on April 28, 1865. His father, Fred L. Pucker, Sr., was born in Germany, and at the age of thirty-five came to America and settled in Wisconsin. He was successful as a traveling salesman and later as an agriculturist. His wife, who in her maidenhood was Miss Agnes Scholl, was also born in the fatherland. Their marriage occurred in Wisconsin and they were the parents of four children : Fred L., the subject of this sketch; Matilda, who married Adolph Galle, of Fond du Lac, by whom she has four children; August, who married Antonia Skurbeck of Oshkosh, by whom he has three children; and Jacob, who married Anna Eitmar, of Fond du Lac.
Fred L. Pucker attended the public schools of Wisconsin until he was four- teen years of age. In his youth he assisted in the work upon his father's farm and obtained a complete and detailed knowledge of the best methods of agri- culture. He remained at home until he was twenty-eight years of age and gained valuable experience in the tilling and cultivation of the soil and in all the various activities connected with the operation of an agricultural property. When he was twenty-eight he started on an independent career, renting a farm of eighty acres near his father's homestead and bringing the knowledge which he had gained by practical experience and energy to bear upon the im- provement and cultivation of this land. After ten years, by thrift and industry, he was able to purchase two hundred and sixty acres on section 17 in Lamar- tine township and in 1907 began its operation. He is an energetic and ambi- tious man, eagerly interested in every new development of farm machinery and agricultural methods. He has completed a model barn. thirty-six by eighty feet with a capacity for housing sixteen head of cattle and six horses. He has been very successful in his pursuits and owns some of the finest stock in Fond du Lac county.
On April 27, 1893, Mr. Pucker was united in marriage to Miss Mary Rasske, a daughter of Carl and Bertha (Fritz) Rasske. Mrs. Pucker's parents were natives of Germany. Her father came to the United States in 1883 where he bought a farm in Fond du Lac township and became prosperous and success- ful in this line of activity until his retirement in 1903. He is now living in Fond du Lac and has many friends among its most representative citzens. Mr. and Mrs. Rasske were the parents of four children, Herman, William, Minnie and Mary. To Mr. and Mrs. Fred L. Pucker were born eight children: Hilda, on July 28, 1894; Fred, whose birth occurred on October 26, 1896; George, who is now in his fourteenth year; Albert, whose natal day is November 3. 1899; Edna, born on the 15th of October, 1903; Francis, whose birth occurred February 3, 1905; Margaret, who is now three years of age; and Elmer, born on the 26th of October, 191I.
In his political views Mr. Pucker is a republican and keeps himself thor- oughly informed upon national and local issues although he has never sought public office. He belongs to the Congregational church and is widely known in Fond du Lac county as a man of exemplary character. His farm, highly de-
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veloped and richly productive, his herd of cattle scientifically cared for and his model barns and outbuildings in the midst of his fertile acres, pay tribute to his agricultural care and skill and mark him as an individual force in the develop- ment of a great farming section.
MARTIN STRATZ, JR.
Martin Stratz, Jr., whose home is on section 15, Lamartine township, Fond du Lac county, where he is operating a well developed property of two hun- dred acres, was born in the section where he is now tilling the soil on May 23, 1857. His parents were Martin and Maria (Lehmann) Stratz, natives of Baden. Germany, in which country they were married. They left the fatherland when the elder Mr. Stratz was twenty-one years of age and settled in Lamartine township, where the father took up eighty acres of land. He spent his entire life in improving and developing his holdings, constantly added to his property and brought his land to a high state of cultivation. At the time of his retirement from active life, in 1897, he owned one hundred and sixty acres of the finest and most productive land in Wisconsin. He is now in the eightieth year of his age and makes his home in Woodhull with his son-in-law, J. L. Fisher. His wife passed away September 13, 1907. They were the parents of seven children : Joseph, who now resides in Oshkosh and who married Miss Mary Gau of the town of Forest, Fond du Lac county, by whom he has six children; John, who married Miss Emily Elmer, of Monticello, Wisconsin, by whom he has six children; Minnie, who became the wife of Stephen Lizowa, of Lamartine, and died in 1880, leaving two children; Martin; May, now Mrs. Jacob L. Fisher, of Woodhull; Emma, who married Michael Giebel, of Lamartine, by whom she has five children; and Louis, who married Maggie Smith, of Lamartine, by whom he has four children.
Martin Stratz attended the district schools of Lamartine, Wisconsin, at irregular intervals until he was fifteen years of age. His early childhood was spent upon his father's farm, where he gained a practical and thorough knowl- edge of scientific agriculture in all the details connected with the tilling of the soil and the caring for grain and stock. His ambition was at that time directed into this channel and he early determined to make agriculture his life's career. He assisted his father for many years. During his boyhood he was assigned the minor labors of the farm and as his strength and skill increased he was ini- tiated into all the various details of the life. He is now the owner of two hun- dred acres of land which he purchased in 1885 and which he has developed and improved since that time. He is one of the farmers of Lamartine township, whose success is founded upon his knowledge of the value of industry and con- centrated attention to minor details. He does not allow his agriculture to absorb his entire interests, however, and is known as a representative citizen of Lamartine township and an active supporter of many of its business institutions. He is a stockholder in the Woodhull Telephone Company and in this enterprise he holds the offices of secretary and general manager. He has been identified with this telephone company since its incorporation in 1907 and he brings to his business activities the same progressively efficient and systematic mind which makes his agricultural undertaking successful.
On January 9, 1883, Mr. Stratz was united in marriage in Lamartine town- ship to Miss Paulina Fischer, a daughter of Sebastian and Caroline Fischer, of Lamartine. The father is a native of Baden, Germany, and the mother was born in the province of Saxony in the same country. Mr. Fischer came to Wisconsin when he was eighteen years of age and settled in Lamartine. His wife has been in America since she was ten years of age. Their marriage
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occurred in Plymouth and the mother now resides in Fond du Lac, while the father died in 1897. They are the parents of four children: Paulina, the wife of Martin Stratz; Helen; Nona; and Minette. To Mr. and Mrs. Stratz four children have been born, Alma, Leo, Otto and Neva, of whom Leo and Neva are living with their parents on the home farm, Alma is deceased and Otto is an optician in Manitowoc.
Mr. Stratz is a democrat and has served his fellow citizens in various public capacities for many years. He was supervisor of Lamartine township for six years and was road superintendent for twelve years. He spent a similar period of time as school clerk for district No. 5 and his energies have always been directed along lines of advancement. He holds membership in St. John's Cath- olic church of Lamartine and his religion influences his life and character. He is prominent in the Catholic Knights of Wisconsin and in St. Michael's Bene- volent Society of Fond du Lac. His life has been spent in sincere and earnest effort in the field which he chose in his childhood and his career has been marked by constant advancement along agricultural lines and by gentleness and unassuming good-will in private life.
FRANK F. STILLMACHER.
Frank F. Stillmacher is the owner of one hundred and seventy-five acres in Ripon township, where his energies are largely devoted to the raising of high-grade stock and dairying, as well as diversified farming. He is a native of Germany, his birth having occurred on March 31, 1865, and a son of William and Bertha (Schail) Stillmacher. The parents emigrated to the United States with their family in 1868, coming direct to Ripon, where they had friends. Here the father subsequently purchased a house with four acres of land, thus providing a home for his wife and family, consisting of five sons and four daughters. He and his elder sons worked out by the month for various farmers in the neighborhood, the boys turning their wages over to the father, who care- fully saved as much as possible of their united earnings in order to accumulate sufficient means to purchase a larger farm. He sold his first property and bought a place with five acres of land, which he later disposed of, continuing to buy and sell, realizing a profit on each transaction, until with their accumulated earnings they were able to buy a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, located a few miles from Ripon. Here they continued their agricultural pursuits until 1894, when the father withdrew from active work and went to Ripon, where he now lives retired. The farm was sold at that time, the father and sons receiv- ing their respective shares from the proceeds. The mother passed away several years ago and the father now lives with a daughter.
Frank F. Stillmacher was only a child of three years when his parents emi- grated to the United States, so that practically his entire life has been passed in the immediate vicinity of his present residence. Being a member of a large family of limited means his educational advantages were meager, but he is a man of practical intelligence and sound judgment and these qualities united with his early training in habits of thrift and industry have enabled him to develop into a capable business man, as is evidenced by the success he has met with in promotion of his interests. With his portion realized from the sale of the homestead he purchased forty acres of land and engaged in farming for him- self. He met with very good success and subsequently sold this property to his brother and bought one hundred and twenty acres of land which formed the nucleus of his present farm. Some four years ago he still further in- creased his holdings by the purchase of an adjoining tract of forty acres. and he also owns fifteen acres just within the corporate limits of Ripon.
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all of which he is cultivating. In connection with general agricultural pursuits Mr. Stillmacher engages in dairying and stock-raising. He keeps high grade cattle and horses and fine sheep.
For his wife Mr. Stillmacher chose Miss Augusta Page, a daughter of one of Green Lake county's pioneer settlers, their marriage being celebrated on May 22, 1893. Three sons and one daughter have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Stillmacher in the following order: Robert W., Elmer H., Thomas D. and Flor- ence K.
The family are members of the Evangelical church in Ripon, and the politi- cal allegiance of Mr. Stillmacher is accorded to the republican party. He is most determined and persevering as well as a tireless worker, and while his career has not been extraordinary, his progress has been permanent, each year showing a decided advance over the one preceding, until he is now numbered among the substantial and prosperous citizens of his community.
JUDGE AUGUST E. RICHTER.
For nearly a quarter of a century Judge August E. Richter has occupied the very responsible position of county judge for Fond du Lac county, Wis- consin, and is among the best and most favorably known men of high standing throughout this section of the state. He is a native of Saxony, Germany, his birth having there occurred on the 8th of February, 1853. His parents, Au- gust and Ernestine Sophia (Klaebe) Richter, emigrated to Wisconsin when Judge Richter was but two years of age, settling first, only for a short time, in Milwaukee, from which city they removed to Cedarburg, at which place they established their home and continued to reside for a period of nearly ten suc- cessive years. In 1865 August Richter removed with his family to Fond du Lac and in that city they have since maintained their home. Here the mother of Judge Richter passed away, October 22, 1892.
August E. Richter was reared in his father's home and received a liberal education in the Fond du Lac public schools. After laying aside the text-books of his early studies he worked in the drug business in Fond du Lac, in which occupation he continued to be interested for the ten immediate following years. At the expiration of that time the republican party, believing in the ability and popularity of Mr. Richter, placed him in nomination for the office of clerk of the circuit court for Fond du Lac county and notwithstanding this. county had for years been one of the democratic strongholds of the state, the campaign ended in complete victory for Mr. Richter, he having overcome the dominant party of his county by a very flattering majority. Entering at once upon the duties of his office, he became a student of law for the double purpose of mak- ing himself a more efficient servant of the people and to provide for himself a career as an attorney at law. In the discharge of his duties as clerk of the circuit court, by unremitting application to studies, he was eventually prepared to take his final examination, which he successfully passed and was admitted to the bar in. January, 1885. He at once entered upon the practice of his chosen profession in Fond du Lac. He was not permitted, however, to long continue in the seclusion of his office as a private citizen engaged in the general practice of law. Mr. Richter had already become recognized by the people of this county as a young man reliable, efficient and faithful in the discharge of his duties in an office of public trust, and in 1889 the republican party selected him as its candidate for the office of county judge, believing that his acknowledged abilities and popularity throughout the county would result in his election notwithstand- ing the large democratic majority. His experience in this his first campaign for the office of county judge was but a repetition of his first campaign made for the Vol. II-32
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office of the clerk of the circuit court and he was elected by a most complimentary majority and since that time he has been reelected as successor to himself for five consecutive terms to this high office.
Judge Richter is one of the best known men in this county and his career as a servant of the people is in itself the highest possible indorsement of his abilities and character. His long term of service as county judge, reaching over a period of nearly a quarter of a century, is as unusual as it is complimentary to the man. . He is in the midst of his mature and the best working years of his life and has before him the pleasant prospect of devoting many more years of honored service to his fellow citizens.
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