USA > Wisconsin > Trempealeau County > History of Trempealeau County, Wisconsin > Part 40
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100 | Part 101 | Part 102 | Part 103 | Part 104 | Part 105 | Part 106 | Part 107 | Part 108 | Part 109 | Part 110 | Part 111 | Part 112 | Part 113 | Part 114 | Part 115 | Part 116 | Part 117 | Part 118 | Part 119 | Part 120 | Part 121
293
HISTORY OF TREMPEALEAU COUNTY
County, but a steadily growing practice demanded most of his time, and in the active years of his life he found little time for political office. In the earliest years of his life he was a Whig. He voted for Lincoln in 1864 and Grant in 1868, but after that time he was affiliated with the Democratic party. He was once the candidate of his party for congressman in this district, and later was named for state senator against the late Senator Withee. The district was then comprised of Trempealeau and La Crosse Counties. Mr. Freeman carried La Crosse County, but the overwhelming Republican majority in Trempealeau County elected Mr. Withee. In 1888 President Cleveland called Mr. Freeman to Washington as principal exam- iner of land claims and contests. Of the dozen lawyers employed in this branch of the Department of the Interior, Mr. Freeman was recognized as an authority. It was during his service at Washington that the famous Oklahoma decision was handed down. The findings in this case were written by him, although the document necessarily appeared over the sig- nature of the head of the department.
Mr. Freeman remained in Washington under President Harrison a year after the Democratic administration was retired. A few years later he sold his office and equipment. Later he associated with him his son Robert, and the firm of Freeman & Freeman continued until 1898. Mrs. Freeman died in 1896, and from that time Mr. Freeman gradually lost interest in business affairs. Mr. Freeman was ever a man of affairs, and he had much to do with the making of Galesville. When the Trempealeau County Agricultural Society was founded in 1859 he was the first in the movement and piloted it through its infancy. As the first secretary of the society the record books show the interest he took in the organization. His penmanship in the old secretary's book is like copperplate engraving. He was a power in the building of the railroad from Trempealeau to Gales- ville, and was secretary of the company that promoted the road. In this movement he was tireless in his efforts. When Galesville was incorporated Mr. Freeman was its first mayor. Along in the nineties he served in this capacity a second time, when he was elected to fill the vacancy caused by the death of W. B. Thompson. That was a year when Galesville was a dry town, and in after years when he thought the generation that followed him extravagant in city affairs he delighted in saying that when he was mayor he ran the town on nothing but the poll and dog tax. Not the least of Mr. Freeman's exploits was the development of the Arctic Springs, which property passed into the hands of a syndicate a few years ago. While he spent considerable money on the springs and in getting the water before the public, his peculiarities prevented his interesting capital or winning the co-operation of the public in marketing the product. In the early days of Galesville University he was prominent in its affairs. He was also one of the first to organize a Burns Club here. In fact, in all things for the betterment of the community in his active years he was a conspicuous figure. Mr. Freeman was a man of fine personal appearance, well groomed, polished in his speech, and when in the mood, had the politeness of a cavalier. While never a member of any church, he was one of the few men in Gales- ville in his time who regularly attended church, and all his life he was a
294
HISTORY OF TREMPEALEAU COUNTY
liberal contributor to the Presbyterian society. He was a charter mem- ber of Decora Lodge, F. & A. M., but he had not been affiliated with the lodge for twenty-five years. Mr. Freeman is survived by his three sons: Edwin W., a prominent attorney and promoter, living at Los Angeles, Cal .; Robert, also a lawyer and man of public affairs, residing at Corona, that state, and Rev. Charles E. Freeman of Galesville, who temporarily retired from the ministry some years ago that he might care for his father in his helpless condition.
Joseph Barnes Beach, for some 35 years a distinguished figure in West- ern Wisconsin journalism, was born in Charlotte, Chittenden County, Vt., May 12, 1853, son of Charles G. and Caroline (Barnes) Beach. He spent his early boyhood in his native state, came to Trempealeau County with the rest of the family at the age of 13, and was reared to farm pursuits in Ettrick Township. At the age of 21 he entered the office of the Gales- ville Journal, then conducted by George Luce, and spent two years learn- ing the printers' trade. When Mr. Luce sold to B. E. Clark in 1876 Mr. Beach established the Galesville Independent, under the auspices of the Galesville Printing Association. In 1877 he and E. H. Lowe established the North La Crosse Star. Selling this a short time later he returned to his father's farm. Frederick E. Beach, a brother, established the Whitehall Times in January, 1880, and in December, of the same year, Joseph B. Beach bought a half interest, buying the other half and assuming full ownership and control five years later. He conducted this paper until March 20, 1915, when, owing to failing health, he leased the plant to his brothers, Frederick E. and Zachary T., and retired. He died May 3, 1916. Entering political life as a young man, he took a deep interest in public affairs. For 14 years he was chairman of the Republican County Committee. He also served on numerous other committees and delegations, and was a member of many political conventions. In 1897 he did his district good service as a member of the assembly. A Republican of the old type for many years, he later espoused the cause of the progressive wing of that party, and labored zealously in its ranks. His great joy was in his newspaper work. At the time of his death it was written of him: "His was a busy life. Possibly he thus overtaxed himself, for it was his delight to be constantly accom- plishing some worthy object. Where others found enjoyment in society and travel, work at his desk, or at the case, afforded him all the pleasure his nature seemed to crave. When the day's labor was over he found recreation, in the summer months, in his well-tilled garden, in which he took great pride; during the winter months he found life's greatest joy with his family, in his comfortable home. He was pre-eminently a home man, a devoted husband, a sympathetic and loving father, and the training of his children was one of the vital things in his life. Mr. Beach was married Sept. 5, 1889, to Hattie M. Olds, born in Pigeon Township, March 27, 1869, daughter of George H. and Nancy J. (Oliver) Olds, the pioneers. This union has been blessed with four children: Kathryn Florence, Joseph Barnes, Jr. (first), Joseph Barnes, Jr., and George Harrison. K. Florence was born Nov. 9, 1893, and is now a high school English teacher. She graduated from the Whitehall high school in 1911 and received the degree
J. B. BEACH
295
HISTORY OF TREMPEALEAU COUNTY
of B. A. from Lawrence College at Appleton, Wis., in 1915. While at that institution her scholarship won for her the honor of membership in the Phi Beta Kappa. Joseph Barnes, Jr. (first), was born May 3, 1895, and died April 29, 1896. Joseph Barnes, Jr., was born Nov. 10, 1897, was gradu- ated from the Whitehall high school in 1915 and is now a student at the University of Wisconsin. George Harrison was born July 27, 1901, and is a junior in the Whitehall high school.
Charles Grant Beach, an early settler, was born in Vermont, Aug. 15, 1815, son of Aaron L. Beach and descended on both sides of his house from a long line of Colonial ancestry. He was reared on a farm and in his adult years became interested in railroad work. As a young man he married Caroline Barnes, who was born in Vermont March 24, 1817, and was like- wise descended from the colonists of that state. In Vermont eight children were born, of whom one, a girl four years of age, died there. In 1866 the family came to Trempealeau County and settled on a farm in Ettrick. There the mother died in 1887, and the father, two years later, moved to Whitehall, and took up his home with his daughter, Mrs. John O. Melby, with whom he remained until his death, May 13, 1906. Of the seven chil- dren who came to this county with their parents, Charles, who became a railroad man, remained in Vermont, where he died in 1903; Edgar S., who came west some years before the others, died in Mankato in 1874; Henry, a railroad man, died in Whitehall in 1904; Jennie L. is now Mrs. J. O. Melby of Whitehall ; Zachary T. and Frederick E. are newspaper men in Whitehall; Joseph B., who died May 3, 1916, was also a newspaper man for many years.
George H. Olds, pioneer, was born in Chenango County, New York, Jan. 8, 1834, son of William and Marietta (Jackson) Olds. William Olds was born in Hillsdale, N. Y., March 1, 1799, and in that state grew to man- hood and was married. In 1853 he came to Wisconsin and located in Cale- donia Township, where he purchased 40 acres of land from William Cram. Later he secured a homestead from the government, and from time to time added more land until he owned in all some 520 acres. His wife died in Caledonia Township. He died at Rice Lake, Wis., when more than 98 years old. George H. Olds came west with his parents and remained with them several years. In 1857, with his brother, James D .- who had come west in 1851, located in Chippewa Falls, Wis., and there remained until joining the family in 1853-he opened a mercantile establishment at Caledonia. In 1861 he served for a short time in the Civil War, being discharged on account of ill health. He moved to Pigeon Creek in 1863 and in 1874 came to Whitehall and secured the first lot sold in the townsite. The same year he was made postmaster, a position he held until May, 1889, when he retired. He died Sept. 13, 1905. Mr. Olds was married in Pigeon Township, June 26, 1864, to Nancy J. Oliver, their only child being Hattie M., who was born March 27, 1869, and was married Sept. 5, 1889, to Joseph B. Beach, now deceased.
George Gale, jurist and pioneer, founder of Galesville, founder of Gale College, one of the framers of the Wisconsin constitution, and one of the organizers of Trempealeau County, was born on the banks of Lake Champlain, at Burlington, Vermont, Nov. 30, 1816. His grandfather,
296
HISTORY OF TREMPEALEAU COUNTY
Peter Gale, was a native of Vermont, and served in the Continental army; his father, whose name was also Peter, was one of the "Minute Men" of Barre, Vermont, in the War of 1812; his mother, whose name was Hannah Tottingham, was of genuine Puritan stock. George Gale lived on a farm during his boyhood, and divided his time in working on a farm and attend- ing school. His schooling was thorough, and although he was not a graduate of any college, he acquired an excellent knowledge of the higher branches of mathematics and the sciences. In March, 1839, he com- menced reading law at Waterbury Center, Vermont, and was admitted to the bar in 1841, having in the meantime served his village as postmaster. Soon after becoming a lawyer, he came to the then territory of Wisconsin, and located at Elkhorn, in what is now Walworth County, where he prac- ticed law, and at the same time continued his studies with great diligence. In addition to his professional labors, he was for one year the editor of the Western Star, published in Elkhorn, to which he contributed many able articles. The Wisconsin Farm Book he first published in 1846, issuing revised editions in 1848, 1850 and 1856. Soon after his arrival at Elk- horn, he entered public life, and was elected to various town and school offices, serving one term as chairman of the county board of supervisors. In 1847 the scope of his services broadened, and he was sent to the Con- stitutional Convention, in which body he was a prominent and hard work- ing member, winning distinction for his labors on the judiciary committee. The same year he was elected district attorney for his county. In 1850 and 1851, he served in the state senate, being chairman of committee on privileges and elections in the first session, and chairman of the committee on industry the second session. July 4, 1851, he received from the governor of the state, the appointment as brigadier-general in the militia. In the fall of that year he moved to La Crosse, and shortly after his arrival was elected county judge of La Crosse County, having both common law and probate jurisdiction not only of La Crosse County, which then embraced a large area, but also over Chippewa County, which had been attached to La Crosse County for judicial purposes. Jan. 1, 1854, he resigned, and in April, 1856, he was elected judge of the Sixth Judicial District, composed of the counties of Buffalo, Clark, Jackson, Monroe, Trempealeau, La Crosse, Vernon and Crawford, for the judicial term of six years, commencing Jan. 1, 1857. The duties of this office he discharged with much dignity and ability. During Judge Gale's residence at La Crosse, he urged very strongly upon the prominent citizens of that place the importance of their estab- lishing a college or an institution of learning of a higher order, but the country being new, the project did not find favor with the people, and nothing was done to carry out this worthy project. He shortly afterward decided to found a college and town on his own responsibility. Accord- ingly in 1853, he purchased about 2,000 acres of land, including the present location of Galesville, with the water power on Beaver Creek, and in January, 1854, he procured from the state legislature the organization of the new county of Trempealeau, with the location of the county seat at Galesville. At the same time he obtained a charter for a university to be located at that place. The board of trustees was organized in 1855, and
GEORGE GALE, SR.
GEORGE GALE, JR.
297
HISTORY OF TREMPEALEAU COUNTY
the first edifice commenced in 1858. In June, 1854, the village plot of Galesville was laid out. Even through the financial crisis, Judge Gale carried the university to success, and had the great joy of seeing the first class graduated in July, 1865. After eleven years as president of the board of trustees and of the faculty, he resigned, and left the work in other hands, although he never lost his active interest. In 1863 the insti- tution conferred upon him the degree of LL.D., the University of Vermont having paved the way by granting him the degree of M.A. in 1857. As an historical writer, Judge Gale took a high rank. For the Wisconsin State Historical Society, of which he was at one time vice-president and later an honorary member, he prepared an elaborate paper entitled, "His- tory of the Chippewa Nation of Indians," which is included in the pub- lished "Collections" of the society. In 1866 he published at Galesville a "Genealogical History of the Gale Family in England and in the United States, With an Account of the Tottingham Family, of New England, and of the Bogardus, Waldron and Young Families, of New York," a volume requiring a large amount of patience and persevering investigation. His last work, to the preparation of which he devoted many years, was pub- lished in 1867 and was entitled, "The Upper Mississippi, or Historical Sketches of the Introduction of Civilization in the Northwest," a work which was well received and widely circulated. Judge Gale's health par- tially failed him in the summer of 1862, and the three following winters he spent in the South and West, most of the time in the service of the Sanitary and Christian Commissions. During February and March, 1863, he had charge of the United States Sanitary Commission Depot, on Morris Island, during the siege of Charleston. He departed this life with all the consolations of the Christian religion, at Galesville, April 1, 1868. In all the relations of life, in which he had been called to take a part, Judge Gale was always faithful, honest and persevering, with habits of industry and close application. Those who knew him the best esteemed him the most. In all respects he was an estimable man, discharging every duty to the best of his ability. He retained his mental faculties to the last. his faith was strong, and his last days were full of peace.
December, 1844, Judge Gale married Gertrude Young, born at Schen- ectady, N. Y., in 1810, daughter of George and Anna (Waldron) Young. She died March 3, 1902. In the family there were three children: George, a leading attorney of Galesville; William, a prominent attorney of Winona, who died Aug. 13, 1903; and Helen, wife of H. J. Arnold, who is engaged in the drug business at Kansas City.
George Gale, Jr., a distinguished attorney of Galesville, was born in Elkhorn, Walworth County, Wisconsin, Sept. 14, 1845, son of George and Gertrude (Young) Gale. He was taken to La Crosse as a small boy, and was but 12 years of age when his parents brought him to Galesville. Here he attended the public schools, and in due time entered Gale College, from which he was graduated in June, 1866. Then he studied law in his father's office. In 1868 he was admitted to the bar of Wisconsin and Minnesota, and the following year moved with his mother, brother and sister to Winona, where he spent one year in the office of Judge Thomas Simpson.
298
HISTORY OF TREMPEALEAU COUNTY
In 1870 he and his brother, William, engaged in the practice of law at Winona, under the firm name of G. & W. Gale. In 1880, the partnership was dissolved, and George Gale moved to Fairmont, Minn., where he con- tinued his practice. He subsequently practiced at Berlin, Wis., and later engaged in the lumber and supply business at Merrill, Wis. Because of his wife's failing health, he returned to Trempealeau County in 1885, and moved onto the old Gale farm. In 1894 he moved to Galesville village, where he has since resided. He devotes his time to the practice of his profession, and to looking after his farm and village holdings. He is the justice of the peace for the village, has been city judge of Berlin, Wis., and was county attorney of Martin County, Minn. His fraternal relations are with the Knights of Pythias, in the local lodge of which he was an officer for a number of years, and in the state lodge of which he has sat as a delegate. Mr. Gale was married in 1874, to Myra Johnson, who was born in Elkhorn, Wis., daughter of D. R. and Katherine (Pike) Johnson, of old Huguenot stock, early settlers of Wisconsin, and natives of New York. The father engaged in the furniture business in Elkhorn, Wis., and at Berlin, Wis., established a casket factory, which is now the Milwaukee Casket Co. By this marriage Mr. Gale had two children, Mamie, who died at the age of eight years, and George, who died in infancy. Mr. Gale was married Dec. 31, 1903, to Mrs. Elizabeth (Glennie) Stewart, daughter of John and Elizabeth Glennie, and widow of Duncan Stewart. She was born in Scotland, came to America as a child, was married at Northbend, later moved to West Salem, and there lived for some years. She has a daughter, Margaret. Mr. and Mrs. Gale have two sons, George Glennie, born Feb. 14, 1905, and William John, born May 13, 1912.
Peter J. Enghagen, president of the Hammer-Enghagen Co., Inc., gen- eral merchants, of Galesville, was born in Ettrick township, Trempealeau County, June 16, 1867, son of Iver and Ingaborg (Jacobsen) Enghagen. He attended the common school at French Creek and was subsequently a student for two years at Gale University. Residing at home until he was 21 years old, he then entered the employ of Jordan & Hammer as clerk in their general store. After two years in their employ, he worked four years for Gilbertson & Myhre. He then purchased the interest of Mr. Jordan in the Jordan & Hammer concern and the business was conducted under the name of Hammer & Enghagen Mercantile Company, until Feb. 15, 1917, when they incorporated and Mr. Enghagen became president. He devotes all his active hours to the store and is also stockholder in the Bank of Galesville. As a public spirited citizen, interested and willing to aid in local progress, he has served a number of times as a member of the city council. In politics he is independent.
Mr. Enghagen was married May 22, 1895, to Lena Johnson, who was born at Half-way Creek, near Holman, in the township of Holland, La Crosse County, Wis., daughter of Louis and Marie (Brudlas) Johnson. Both her parents were born in Norway, the father in Laud and the mother in Vordal. Her father, who came to the United States during the Civil War, enlisted and served in the Union army. At the close of the war he engaged in farming, residing in La Crosse County, Wis., until the fall of
.
.
O. P. Larson
299
HISTORY OF TREMPEALEAU COUNTY
1915, when he retired and took up his residence in Galesville. Mr. and Mrs. Enghagen have two children: Inez Minerva, who is a student at St. Olof College, Northfield, Minn., and Marie Lucile, who is attending the public schools of Galesville. The family are members of the Lutheran church. As a business man Mr. Enghagen has been successful, and as a man and citizen he is held in high esteem by his neighbors.
O. P. Larson, for many years a resident of Whitehall, was one of the most successful men in Trempealeau County. Coming here as a poor boy, and working for many years under the handicap of poor health, he gradu- ally built up a series of establishments which formed a chain of successful houses throughout the states of Wisconsin, Minnesota and North Dakota. In building his own fortunes, he also aided many another man to achieve prosperity, and more than this, his stores and banks have had a part in the development of many a rural community. O. P. Larson was born on the estate of Eastern Piltingsrud, Begnadalen, Valders, Norway, April 15, 1849, and there received such education as his neighborhood and circum- stances permitted. In 1866 he came to the United States and found his way to Trempealeau County, where he secured employment as a farm hand. His inclinations, however, turned to mercantile pursuits, and before long he was working in a store. His shrewdness, ability and courtesy won recognition, and it was not many years before he was at the head of an establishment of his own. The first store he owned was at Independence. After a while he looked to other fields, and gradually extended the scope of his activities. At the height of his career, he owned an interest in some twenty establishments, the most notable of which were the Bank of Eleva, Wis .; the Bank of Melrose, Wis .; the Churches Ferry State Bank, Churches Ferry, N. D., and the J. O. Melby & Co. Bank, Whitehall, as well as the mercantile stores of Larson, Melby & Co., Eleva, Wis .; Larson, Stevning & Co., Stephen, Minn .; Larson, Ringlie & Co., Binford, N. D., and Aneta. N. D .; Larson, Gravlie & Co., Adams, N. D .; Larson, Lander & Co., Fairdal, N. D .; Larson, Dokken & Co., Knox, N. D., and several others. To all of these concerns he gave considerable personal attention. His health, never robust, continued to fail, and in 1912 he went to Norway, in hopes that the land of his birth might bring to him restored vigor. But these hopes were not realized, and on Aug. 30, of that year, he died at Christiania. Norway. His body was brought back to Whitehall for burial. An obituary notice said of him: "Among the many hardy Northmen who have come to this country to share the blessings of our prosperous land, few have availed themselves of its privileges and opportunities more successfully than O. P. Larson. No one could spend an hour with Mr. Larson without realizing the intense energy of his mind, and his keen and almost intuitive analysis of any question or situation presented. For more than thirty years, always in delicate health, he wrestled with business problems, and the question of making his physical strength respond to his ever active mind, and as a sedative to his restless mental faculties and a stimulus to his lagging physical abilities, he traveled almost constantly. In pursuance of health and business he visited nearly every state in our Union. He crossed the Atlantic Ocean at least 24 times. He exemplified in the highest degree
300
HISTORY OF TREMPEALEAU COUNTY
the power of mind over matter. He has left behind him sons and daughters eminently fitted to successfully carry on the many business enterprises which he established." Mr. Larson married Lina Waller, June 26, 1878. She was born in Snartingsdalen, Norway, Aug. 14, 1856, daughter of Ole Jacob Johansen and Martha Waller. Mr. and Mrs. Larson have had six children: Martha, Oliver, Lewis, Clarence, Julia and Manda. Martha married Bent Lander, a merchant of Fairdale, N. D., and they have two sons, twins, Bernhart and Reinhart. Oliver died March 27, 1900. Lewis is a merchant at Binford, N. D. He married Florence Ringlie, and they have one child, Lucille. Clarence is a banker at Eleva. Julia married Christian F. Zoylner, a business man of New York, where they reside. Manda resides at home. Mrs. Larson was the help, encouragement and inspiration of Mr. Larson in all his undertakings. A lover of her home, and taking the greatest delight in domestic duties and the rearing of her children, she has nevertheless found time for much church and charitable work, and has taken an especially important and active part in the affairs of the Ladies' Aid Society. Few ladies have traveled more than she, her journeys with her husband for the benefit of his health having taken her to Norway half a dozen times, and to Colorado, the Pacific Coast states, and the gulf states. When but a mere child she lost her father in 1876, and was reared by her mother, receiving a good education, which her travels and experience has since deepened and broadened. In 1877 she came to America with her brother, Oliver Waller, and her sister, Kristina Waller, who became Mrs. Martin Nelson. She took up her home near Independence, with another sister, Ingeborg (Mrs. Sever Amundson), who had come to America some years previous, and there lived until her marriage to Mr. Larson.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.