History of Barron County Wisconsin, Part 37

Author: Franklyn Curtiss-Wedge
Publication date: 1922
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1767

USA > Wisconsin > Barron County > History of Barron County Wisconsin > Part 37

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1893. Undaunted, the widow, who had proved in the hotel business that she was a woman of commercial ability as well as of refinement and education, took up the millinery business, at which she was most successful. On July 11, 1897, she married Alfonso Winchester, a prominent farmer of Sumner Town- ship, this county, a former resident of Reedsburg, Wis., and born in Pennsyl- vania, Jan. 7, 1851. After their marriage they lived on the farm for a year, and then sold out and purchased their present property at 21 West Gates Street. For ten years thereafter they were successfully engaged in the mer- cantile business on the South Side. Then they sold out, and practically re- tired. Mr. Winchester still devotes a part of his time to working in the Rice Lake. Excelsior Co. plant, and Mrs. Winchester continues the work she has done for so many years as a news writer for the Rice Lake Chronotype, the old- est newspaper in Barron County. She is a member of various organizations, and has served on various delegations and committees. She has been an active member of the Woman's Relief Corps since 1894. The family faith is that of the Presbyterian Church.

Dwight J. Chandler, now living retired at Rice Lake, and for many years interested in the sawmill business in this part of Wisconsin, was born in New York State, and came to Wisconsin in 1853, with the early pioneers. He farmed for many years and in 1875 engaged in the hotel business in Eau Claire, this state. With the capital thus acquired, he took up the sawmill business, and was engaged in this line for a quarter of a century in and near the Chippewa Valley. In 1910, after a busy career filled with hard work, he retired and took up his home in Rice Lake. His wife, Emma Leachman, is a native of this state.

Roy Cleveland Chandler, secretary and treasurer of the New Idea Potato Machinery Co., Rice Lake, is a well-known business man of the city, and his hard work and ability as well as his appreciation of manufacturing and farm- ing conditions are important factors in the success with which his company is meeting. He was born July 30, 1885, at Eau Claire, Wis., the son of Dwight J. and Emma (Leahman) Chandler. He passed through the graded schools of his home town and was graduated from the high school there in the class of 1904. For the two years following he was in the lumber business at Frederic, Wis., and then entered the employ of Stevens & Jarves, of Eau Claire, Wis., selling hardwood lumber. In 1909 he and his father-in-law, E. S. Hammond, organ- ized the Hammond & Chandler Lumber Co. for the manufacture of hemlock and hardwood lumber, and opened a retail yard at Rice Lake. In 1918, Mr. Chandler withdrew from the company and assisted in organizing the company with which he is now connected. The concern occupies a new brick building, 50 by 200 feet, and is manufacturing a modern potato grading machine for which there is a wide demand. Mr. Chandler was married May 8, 1907, to Ruth Adaline Hammond, daughter of Eleazer S. and Sarah Adaline (Hower) Ham- mond, the former of whom is a prominent logger and lumberman. Mr. and Mrs. Chandler have four bright children: Lee Hammond, born Feb. 4, 1909; Dorris Elizabeth, born Oct. 22, 1914; and Dwight Jefferson and Phyllis Adaline (twins), born Jan. 15, 1917.

Mrs. Loella V. Williams, chiropractic practitioner, with office and home at Rice Lake, and a branch office at Spooner, was the first person of her pro- fession to locate in this county, and is still its leading representative here. In addition to her work with her patients, she deals considerably in real estate, and at present owns no less than three good farms in the county, her favorite place being the Long Lake Road Farm, in Sections 10 and 15, Oak Grove Town- ship, which is stocked with a fine herd of over thirty Guernsey cattle, includ- ing a full-blooded sire. Loella Vunk. as she was then called, was born at Marathon, New York, Oct. 31, 1889, daughter of Jerome and Martha (Harring- ton) Vunk, natives of New York State, the former of whom died when the daughter was less than three years old, and the latter of whom lives with her daughter, the subject of this sketch. Miss Vunk received a high school edu-

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DR. LOELLA V. WILLIAMS

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cation in her native town, and then took up nursing. She was married July 7, 1907, to Fred Williams, a carpenter and woodworker, at Frankfort, New York, who died June 20, 1910. After his death, Mrs. Williams resumed her nursing for a while. In 1911 she entered the Universal Chiropractic College, at Daven- port, Iowa, and was graduated in 1912. Later in that year she came to Rice Lake and opened an office here. In 1916 she established offices at Spooner, Wis., where she goes on Tuesdays and Fridays of each week. A few years ago, Mrs. Williams erected a pleasant, modern home of nine rooms on 20 East Douglas Street, Rice Lake. She is a member of the Rebekah Degree, I. O. O. F., and also of the Fortnightly Literary Club. Her religious affiliation is with the Presbyterian Church.

W. H. Dunn, D. D. S., formerly successful practitioner at Rice Lake and New Richmond, and now the genial and efficient postmaster at Rice Lake, was born in Northfield, Minn., Aug. 24, 1867, son of Fred and Clara (Knowlton) Dunn, natives respectively of Canada and Vermont, who were married in North- field, Minn., where the father, who has devoted his life to blacksmithing, still lives and where the mother died in the prime of life in 1869. W. H. Dunn pur- sued the usual graded studies as a boy, and in 1884 graduated from the Fergus Falls, (Minn.) High School, later entering the dental department of the Uni- versity of Minnesota, from which he was graduated in 1890. In that year he came to Rice Lake, and opened dental offices here and at New Richmond, spend- ing alternate half months in each city. The next year he gave up the New Richmond office, and from then until 1916 devoted his time entirely to his Rice Lake office. He practiced dental and oral surgery in all its branches, had a well-equipped office, and built up a large practice. During that period he actively identified himself with public affairs, and his appointment by Presi- dent Woodrow Wilson as postmaster in 1916, met with general approval. He was reappointed for another term of four years, in June, 1920. In this posi- tion he has given general satisfaction, and the office has flourished under his management. The office does a large business, and is the center of six rural routes with one daily delivery, and of four city routes, three of which have semi-daily deliveries and one three deliveries daily. Mr. Dunn owns a good farm of 80 acres in Sumner Township, this county, and a good tract of wild land in Sawyer County, this state. Fraternally, he associates with the Knights of Pythias and the Modern Woodmen. For three years he did efficient service as city clerk, and he is still serving as a member of the Library Board. In politics he is a Democrat, and in religion he adheres to the Presbyterian Church. He enjoys out-of-door life and takes especial delight in his autumnal deer hunts. Mr. Dunn was married June 3, 1896, to Grace Rogers, of Rice Lake, and this union was blessed with four children: Roger F., Marjorie K., William H., Jr., and Florence Elizabeth. Roger F. was born Feb. 20, 1902, graduated from the Rice Lake High School in the class of 1919, and is now a student in Carleton College, Northfield, Minn. Marjorie K. was born April 12, 1905; William H., Jr., was born May 24, 1910; and Florence Elizabeth was born July 9, 1913. Mrs. Dunn was born in Rock Island, Ill., June 3, 1873, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James W. Rogers, who brought her to this county as a young girl and settled in Shell Lake Township, coming to the city in 1888. In 1892 she graduated from the Rice Lake High School, and became a proficient teacher, first in the Meadow Creek School and then in the South Side School. After her marriage she continued her activities in educational and social lines. She belonged to the Eastern Star, the W. C. T. U., and the Royal Neighbors. Dur- ing the war she was one of the leaders in Red Cross work. The Fortnightly Club found her a valued worker, and at one time she was its president. In the Presbyterian Church she was a devout and active member. She worked for years in the Ladies' Aid Society, and at one time was its president. In the Sunday School she taught a class of growing boys, who owe much to her kindly influence. She was an ideal mother, and a loving and faithful wife, and her death will long be sincerely mourned by her family, by her friends and by

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the community. She died Feb. 15, 1921, leaving a family who will never cease to mourn her loss.

N. Adolph Anderson, produce dealer of Rice Lake and Brill, specializing in potatoes and hay, was born in Sweden, Nov. 4, 1869, son of Peter and Alsie Anderson, who spent the span of their years as farmers in their native land. In the family there were three children: Anna is the wife of August Winne- berg, of Stillwater, Minn. Caroline is the wife of Olaf Kulldorf, and still lives in Sweden. The subject of this sketch was reared in his native land, and there became a farmer. In 1890 he came to the United States, and located in Still- water, Minn., where he was a store clerk for a while. In 1902 he opened a gen- eral store at Shafer, in Chisago County, Minn. He sold out in 1911, and for the next three years was a traveling salesman with headquarters at St. Paul. He came to Rice Lake in 1913, and engaged in the potato business for a year. In 1914 he entered the employ of the Rice Lake Consumers' Store as a clerk. Two years later he established his present business. He is well liked throughout the county, and has the confidence of all with whom he has business dealings. Fraternally, he is a member of the Beavers. Mr. Anderson was married at Stillwater, Minn., Sept. 30, 1899, to Alvina Magner, daughter of John A. and Charlotte Magner, natives of Sweden, who came to America and settled on a farm in Chisago County, Minnesota, with the early pioneers. The mother died many years ago but the father is still living on the home farm. Mr. and Mrs. Anderson have one daughter, Adella Elsie Charlotte, who was born March 27, 1909, and is attending the Rice Lake High School.

August Benson, a retired farmer living in Rice Lake, for nearly two dec- ades the owner of a good place in Section 7, Stanley Township, was born on a farm in Sweden, Feb. 15, 1865, the son of Bengt and Anna Anderson, who are still living in their native land. Of their nine children, August was the sec- ond. He was reared on the home farm, grew to manhood, married and had one child. In 1891, leaving his family in Sweden, he came to this country. After landing at New York, he went to Batavia, in that state, and from there to Minneapolis, where he secured employment in the mills. The next year his family joined him, and they established their home in Minneapolis. But he and his wife had both come of a long line of sturdy farming people, and they believed that rural conditions were best for their children. So in April, 1900, they came to Barron County, and secured eighty acres of wild land in Section 7, Stanley Township. On this tract they erected a small frame house and a log barn. Their domestic animals consisted of a cow and a horse. The family treasury contained just $10. But they had health and courage and a determi- nation to succeed. For a while they had many hardships to endure. The near- est stores were at Cameron, and there they had to walk for their groceries and other supplies. The neighborhood was just developing and there was no schoolhouse, so school was held in their little house. As the years passed, their hard work met with success. They bought another 40 acres, they erected a modern home, a good barn, 36 by 80 feet, and other buildings, and cleared and cultivated the land. Mr. Benson took an active interest in everything that was for the good of the community. In public life he served as a director of the school board. In business life he was a director of the Farmers' Telephone Co. and a stockholder in the famous Barron Creamery Co. After a long and useful career, he sold the place in 1917 to his sons, Axel and Victor, and moved to Rice Lake, where he and his wife have a pleasant home, at 202 Phips Street, and where they now reside. Both are prominent in the Swedish Lutheran Church there. Mr. Benson has been a church official and superintendent of the Sunday School, while his wife has been interested in the women's activi- ties. Mr. Benson was married in Sweden, Dec. 27, 1889, to Hilma Bergeson, who was born there Jan. 1, 1868, youngest of the three children of Berger Carlson and Sophia (Hanson) Bergeson, worthy people who spent the span of their years in that country. Mr. and Mrs. Benson have had eight children. John S. was born in Sweden. Axel, Olga, Victor and Vanard were born in Minne-

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apolis. Gladys and Lillie (twins) and Clara were born on the farm in Stan- ley Township. Axel, who was born March 22, 1893, and Victor, who was born Sept. 10, 1897, now own and operate the home place. They are numbered among the active and progressive young men of the township. They carry on general farming and dairying and raise a good grade of Guernsey cattle. They have continued the improvements started by the father, and have put in an electric light plant and installed a milking machine.

Julius S. Johnson, senior member of the partnership of J. S. Johnson & Son, proprietors of Sunny Plat Farm of 75 acres of fertile and highly pro- ductive land within the city limits of Rice Lake, is one of the highly respected residents of the city and county. He is a progressive man as a farmer and as a citizen, he is an excellent type of the modern farmer, and he stands high with all who know him. He has been successful in general farming and dairying, and his results in raising potatoes for the fancy trade have been especially notable. His son, Raymond O., who is associated with him, is a progressive, active young man, and a hard worker, one whose ideas have weight, and one who is well liked by his friends and acquaintances. Julius S. Johnson was born in Norway, Oct. 13, 1864, son of John and Hannah (Anderson) Johnson, who brought him to America in 1869 and located in Jackson County, this state. He attended the public schools of that county and was reared to farm pur- suits by his parents, with whom he remained well into the years of maturity. He first began on the home farm in Jackson County, Wis., a tract of 240 acres, where he carried on general farming. Then he sold that property and, coming to Rice Lake, opened a butcher shop there, which he conducted for five years. Then in 1913 he purchased his present place in Section 28. Mr. Johnson was married Oct. 20, 1898, to Emma Halvorson, who was born in Osseo, Trempealeau County, Wisconsin, June 1, 1878, daughter of Gilbert and Isabelle (Olson) Halvorson, who are still living in that place. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have one son, Raymond O., already mentioned as his father's partner. He was born Feb. 12, 1900, studied in the district school and attended high school two years. The family faith is that of the Norwegian Lutheran Church.

Peter Ahern, Sr., one of the earliest pioneers of Rice Lake Township, was born in Canada, and there was reared. He married Sarah McDonald, who was born in Scotland. In 1870 they brought their family to the United States, and located in Menomonie, Dunn County, Wis. From there, in 1871, they drove to Rice Lake, with a team of mules and took a homestead of 160 acres in section 28, in what is now Rice Lake Township. The Knapp, Stout & Co. lumber camps were then flourishing, there was a French settlement along the northern line of what is now Rice Lake Township, and an Irish settlement north of that, but within the present limits of the town almost no homesteads had then been taken. Mr. Ahern built a set of log buildings, cleared 80 acres of his land, and started a good farm. He was a man of sterling character, and stood well with all who knew him. After a useful life he died March 23, 1881. His wife died July 13, 1879. In the family there were eleven children: Donald, Mary, Florane, Sarah, Isabell, Joseph, Peter, Katherine, Margaret, Ellen and Mary J. All are dead except Ellen and Mary J. Ellen was born Sept. 25, 1855, and was married on Oct. 22, 1871, at Menomonie, Wis., to Duncan Monroe. Mary J. was born Oct. 8, 1838, and married Andrew Martin. She resides with a daughter at Duluth.

Peter Ahern, Jr., for many years a solid and substantial citizen, now deceased, had a career which was inseparably interwoven in the history of the lumber industry in this region. He was born in Canada, Aug. 21, 1850, the son of Peter and Sarah (McDonald) Ahern. He was educated in his native country, and early took up lumbering. He came to Wisconsin in 1869, a year before his parents came, and found his way directly to Rice Lake. With head- quarters here, he was foreman for Knapp, Stout & Co. for eighteen years. For six winters he engaged in logging for himself as a contractor. From 1892 to 1908 he was again in the lumber business in the employ of Knapp, Stout & Co.

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until his death, which occurred May 24, 1911, and was an event widely and sincerely mourned. He was married Aug. 17, 1874, to Bridget K. Lally, the daughter of Owen and Mary (Dooher) Lally.

Owen Lally, one of the earliest homesteaders in Oak Grove Township, now deceased, was born in County Sligo, Ireland, and was there reared. He came to Canada in the forties, and there married Mary Dooher, a native of County Mayo, Ireland. In Canada, he followed the lumber industry. From there, in 1865, he came to the United States. The railroad then ended at Sparta, and from there he drove to Chippewa Falls with a team of cows. Upon arriving there, Mr. Lally entered the employment of the Gilbert Brothers Lumber Co., with headquarters along the Yellow River. With this company and others he continued, during the winter seasons, for many years. In. 1868 he and his three sons, Mike, John and Anthony, each took a homestead of 160 acres in Oak Grove Township. In 1872 they were joined by the rest of the family, and after erecting a set of log buildings, they proceeded to cut off the timber and clear the land. Many thousand feet of the hardwood thus cut off was sold to the wood-working factories for staves, hubs and spokes. Mr. Lally farmed on this place summers and worked in the woods winters until 1898, when he retired and moved to Rice Lake, where he died Feb. 14, 1899. His good wife died March 22, 1901. In the family there were eleven children: Patrick, Michael, John, James, Edward, Mary, Anna, Anthony, Thomas P., Bridget Kathleen and Andrew. Of these children, Patrick, Michael, John, James, Ed- ward, Mary and Anna are now deceased. Anthony and Andrew live in Superior, and Thomas P. and Bridget Kathleen at Rice Lake.

Thomas P. Lally, for many years connected with the lumbering industry in Rice Lake, was born in the Province of Ontario, Canada, Nov. 22, 1856, the son of Owen and Mary (Dooher) Lally, natives of Ireland. He was nine years old when his parents came to Wisconsin, and twelve when they settled in Oak Grove Township. He attended school for a time in Oak Grove Township, and assisted his father and brothers in clearing land. In 1872 he went to Rice Lake. There for nearly fifty years he was employed by various lumber companies. When the Lampert Lumber Co. opened a yard here, he started work for them, and remained with them until 1920. Then he took up his home with his sister, Mrs. Peter Ahern of Rice Lake. He has been a hard working man all his life, he knows the lumber business in all its branches, he has always had the confidence of those by whom he has been employed. He is a genial, kindly soul, he enjoys a good joke, and has a fine sense of humor. He is respected by the older folk and beloved by the children, and enjoys an excellent standing in the community.

James C. Barbee, D. V. S., skilled and efficient veterinarian practitioner at Rice Lake, was born in Effingham, Ill., June 13, 1890, and received his early education in the primary, grammar and high schools of Chicago. In 1909 he entered the Chicago Veterinary College, and was graduated in 1912, after three years hard study. For a while he practiced successfully at Sidney, Ill., and from there went to Hinkley, Ill. While there he enrolled in the Veterinary Reserve Corps, and in March, 1918, was called to active duty with the United States forces. He trained at Camp Wheeler in Georgia, went to France with the 117th Field Artillery in October, 1918, was transferred to Section 7, Veterinary Evacuation Service, in January, 1919, and was returned to the States in June, 1919, and discharged. The following month he located in Rice Lake. Here he bought out I. L. James, and has since continued in practice. He has a growing practice, and gives his attention to all branches of his pro- fession, the valuable cattle of this rich dairy community making his services especially in demand. Dr. Barbee is a member of Edgar Eubanks Post, American Legion. In politics he is an independent voter, studying the men and issues of each campaign, rather than blindly following the dictates of party leaders.

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MR. AND MRS. OWEN LALLY

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Bertrand I. Bliss, Rice Lake real estate dealer, insurance agent, lumber- man and public official, was born in Evansville, Ind., son of George I. and Jane C. (Taylor) Bliss, natives of Geneseo, New York, who returned to their native town when their son, Bertrand I. was five years old. He passed through the graded schools and took a one-year course in the High School. As a youth he farmed for a while, and then for several years worked in a grocery store at Geneseo. He came to Rice Lake in 1891, and for a while was employed in the lumber yard of the Rice Lake Lumber Co. Then he entered the Bank of Rice Lake, now the First National Bank, as clerk, was in time promoted to assistant cashier, and remained with the institution in all some ten years. In 1903 he took up the land business in which he has since continued, dealing in city and rural property. In his insurance department he specializes in automobile in- surance as agent for the Mutual Company of Monroe County, Wis. His loan business is largely confined to farm lands. During the winter season he is interested in logging, buying, stumping and selling logs. In public life he has been supervisor of the first ward, school commissioner, secretary of the board of education, member of the park board, member of the board of public works, and member of the county tax income board. Fraternally he is a member of the Blue Lodge and of the Eastern Star. The pleasant family home, all modern in convenience, is located at 625 North Main street. Mr. Bliss was married in 1894 to Amanda Brown, of Eau Claire county, this state, who died in Decem- ber, 1909, leaving two daughters, Dorothy L. a stenographer at Appleton, Wis., and Portia C., a stenographer at Clintonville, Wis. In 1911 Mr. Bliss married Barbara S. Kaiser, of Hudson, Wis., and they have one daughter, Florence I., born Feb. 21, 1915.

Albert Belland, connected with the Park Falls Lumber Co., Rice Lake, was born in Victoriaville, Dominion of Canada, Nov. 16, 1865, son of Charles and Mary (Cornwell) Belland, who brought him to the States when he was a child. He received his early education in Chippewa and Barron counties, sometimes having to walk three miles to a log school house in the forest. He left school at the age of fourteen and was thereafter employed in the woods during the winter, continuing to assist his parents on the home place during the farming season. In 1893 he bought eighty acres of the old homestead in Rice Lake Township and operated it for seven years, but in 1900 sold out, moved to Rice Lake, and entered his present employ. He understands lumber thoroughly and is in high favor with his company and with the patrons whom he serves. He is a union man and belongs to a local of the American Federation of Labor. Mr. Belland married Louise Burton, daughter of S. Burton and Ellen (Demers) Burton, the former of whom died May 12, 1916, and the latter of whom makes her home with her daughter. Mr. and Mrs. Belland are the parents of nine children. Lena, Bert J. (deceased), Andy G., who in March, 1911, enlisted in the regular United States Army, being now first sergeant in a company of the 14th U. S. Cavalry; Emily M., Roy G., a machinist in Minneapolis; Dorris J., a clerk in Rice Lake; Evilda D., Louis, who died in infancy; and Wallace J.

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History of Barron County Wisconsin, Part 37

Author: Franklyn Curtiss-Wedge Publication date: 1922 Publisher: Number of Pages: 1767

Author: Franklyn Curtiss-Wedge
Publication date: 1922
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1767