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Emmet County, Iowa
Biographies
Q - R
Unless otherwise noted, these biographies were taken from the History of Emmet County and Dickinson County Iowa: A Record of Settlement, Organization, Progress and Achievement, The Pioneer Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois, 1917.
Q - R
Ravn, Jens J.
Reed, S. B.
Refsell, Ingval S.
Refsell, James
Refsell, Oliver O.
Reppien, Charles
Richmond, Grace Clark
Richmond, John James
Richmond, Matthew
Richmond, Wallace--(1)
Richmond, Wallace--(2)
Richmond, Walter Adam
Ridley, Robert
Riggs, Isaac
Riggs, James L. L.
Rokne, Bringel Knutson
Ruef, F. W.
Additional Emmet County Biographies: A-B, C-D,
E-F, G-H, I-J,
K-L, M-N, O-P,
S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z.
Return to Biography Index
The population of Denmark township consists chiefly of farmers and among them is numbered Jens J. Ravn, whose progressiveness and hard work have gained him a substantial competence. He was born in Denmark on the 29th of November, 1867, and is a son of Hans Jensen and Signe (Hansdatter) Ravn. The father was during his active days a maker of wooden shoes and was also know as a violinist. He is still living at the age of seventy-seven but the mother died when sixty-seven years old.
Jens J. Ravn, who is one of a family of four children, attended the common schools until he was fourteen years old, when he was confirmed. For the next three years he worked as a bricklayer, but when only seventeen years old, came alone to the United States and settled in Armstrong Grove township, Emmet county, Iowa. After working as a farm hand for several years he cultivated rented land in Denmark township for six years, during that time carefully saving his money, as it was his ambition to become a landowner. At length he bought the north half of the northwest quarter of section 15 and has since operated that place. He has made a number of improvements thereon, carefully conserves the fertility of the soil and keeps everything in excellent condition.
On the 22d of March, 1892, Mr. Ravn was married to Miss Helena Marie Gaarde, a daughter of A. N. and Anna Marie Gaarde, who were among the early settlers of Denmark township, living for a number of years upon the farm that is now the home of Mr. Ravn. They are both deceased and are buried in St. Paul's cemetery. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Ravn are nine in number, namely: Hans Martin, Myrtie Jensina, Ralph Peter, Adella Marie, Esther Martina, Arna Sievert, Lehmann Christian, Velinda Andrea and Brady Gordon.
Mr. Ravn does not consider himself bound by party ties but casts his ballot independently. He is identified with the Danish Brotherhood, thus keeping in touch with others of his race, and in religious faith is a Danish Lutheran, holding membership in St. John's church. His has been a life of hard work intelligently directed and the prosperity which is now his is well deserved.
S. B. Reed, of Dolliver, manifested marked enterprise and industry in the development of his fine farm in Lincoln township, Emmet county, and since his removal to Dolliver has been an important factor in insurance and banking circles here, being president of the Farmers Mutual Aid Insurance Company and being one of the organizers and also a director of the Dolliver Savings Bank. His birth occurred in Carroll county, Illinois, December 22, 1849, and his parents were William and Mary (Buckmaster) Reed, who removed from Ohio, their native state, to Illinois with an ox team in 1840. The father became the owner of a farm there and the primitive conditions of life in that locality are indicated by the fact that their first home there was a log cabin with a clapboard roof. In 1859 removal was made to Missouri, where they remained until 1861, when on account of the strong feeling engendered by the Civil war he left as the alternative to such a course was to join the rebel army: He returned to Mount Carroll, Illinois, where both he and his wife passed their last years. Five of their nine children still survive.
S. B. Reed attended the common schools of Carroll county, Illinois, in the acquirement of his education and remained at home until he became of age, when he purchased a farm in Carroll county, upon which he lived until 1888. In that year he sold the place and bought three hundred and twenty acres of raw prairie land in Lincoln township, Emmet county, which he brought under cultivation as soon as possible. As the years passed the place was transformed into a highly developed and well improved modern farm and he derived a gratifying annual income from the sale of his grain and stock. In 1901 he retired from farming and has since lived in Dolliver. He has not led a life of inactivity, however, as his duties as president of the Farmers Mutual Insurance Company demand a good part of his time and attention. He is also a director of the Dolliver Savings Bank, which he aided in organizing.
Mr. Reed was married in 1876 to Miss Sylvia E. Bailey, who was also born in Carroll county, Illinois, and is a daughter of Elijah and Elmira (Holman) Bailey. The parents removed from Vermont to Illinois at an early day in the development of that state and there both passed away. To Mr. and Mrs. Reed ten children have been born, namely: Walter B., now a resident of Minnesota; Ruth, the wife of S. B. Caylor; Mira, who married Ben Trimble, a resident of Wyoming; James, who is also living in Wyoming; Mima, the wife of Roy Wertz, a resident of South Dakota; Alice, who married A.L. Koenecke; Bessie, the wife of Fred R. Dowden, a banker of Gruver, Iowa; Olive, the wife of Emil Eckhart; Bruce M.; and Sarah, deceased.
Mr. Reed is a republican and has served as trustee of his township. His record of official service in connection with the schools is unusual and highly creditable to his interest in the cause of education as for twenty years he was president of the school board. He belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church and his wife is a member of the Baptist church.
Ingval S. Refsell is a representative of a prominent and well known family of Emmet county. He has practically been a lifelong resident here, for he was only two and one-half years of age when brought by his parents to Iowa. He was born in Norway, December 3, 1864, a son of Ole and Mary Refsell, who in 1867 came to the United States and established their home in Emmet county, casting in their lot with its early settlers. The family home was one of the pioneer farms of the district and thereon Ingval S. Refsell was reared, while his education was acquired in the district schools not far distant. When not busy with his textbooks he worked in the fields and his youth was a period of earnest labor in which he learned to correctly value industry and perseverance as factors in the attainment of success. He remained at home until he attained his majority and then purchased the farm upon which he now resides, comprising two hundred and twenty acres of land on section 21, High Lake township. In the intervening years he has wrought a marked transformation in the appearance of his place, to which he has added many modern improvements, including fine buildings that furnish ample shelter to grain and stock. His home is an attractive residence and is the abode of warm-hearted hospitality. In addition to tilling his fields he makes a specialty of raising stock and in that undertaking is meeting with deserved success.
On December 12, 1894, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Refsell and Miss Bertha Nestegaard, a native of Norway and a daughter of Lars and Bertha (Swenson) Nestegaard, who were also born in the same country. They came to America in early life and spent their remaining days in Emmet county. Mr. and Mrs. Refsell have become the parents of a son and three daughters: Ole L., Mabel S., Ina Bertha and Alice Irene.
Mr. Refsell supports the republican party and keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day. He has served as school director but has never been a politician in the usually accepted sense of seeking office. He and his wife are consistent members of the Lutheran church, loyal to its teachings and its purposes, and they have gained many warm friends by reason of the spirit of Christianity which they display in every relation of life. Mr. Refsell has proven himself an enterprising and progressive business man, utilizing his time and talents to good advantage, and he has ever keep abreast with the spirit of progress in the methods in which he carries on his farm work.
CC Note: Ingval (died 1930) and Bertha Nestegaard Refsell (died 1964) are both buried in the Wallingford/Riverside cemetery. Daughter Mabel S. (died 1986) is also buried in the Wallingford cemetery.
James Refsell occupies a fine home in Wallingford, where he is now living retired in the enjoyment of a rest which he has truly earned and richly deserved. He was long prominently connected with agricultural interests in Emmet county and is still the owner of valuable farming property. He was born in Norway, July 31, 1860, a son of Ole and Mary (Paulson) Refsell, who were likewise natives of that country, where they resided until 1866 and then came to the new world, establishing their home upon a farm in Emmet county, Iowa. Here their remaining days were passed, the father devoting his energies to the development and improvement of his land until his demise, which occurred March 2, 1895. His widow survived him for several years, passing away in October, 1900. In their family were four children, all of whom are yet living.
James Refsell was a little lad of but six years when brought by his family to the new world, so that he was largely reared and educated in Emmet county, attending its common schools. He remained at home until he attained his majority and through that period gained broad experience in the work of the fields, so that he was well qualified to begin farming on his own account when at the age of twenty-one he started out in business independently. He first rented a farm and made further arrangements for having a home of his own by his marriage in 1886 to Miss Annie Osher, who was born in Dane county, Wisconsin, a daughter of Nels and Ingeborg (Nordam) Osher, who were natives of Norway and in 1850 came to the United States, establishing their home in Wisconsin. Subsequently they removed to Emmet county, Iowa, and settled on a farm where they continued to reside until called to their final rest.
Subsequent to his marriage James Refsell purchased a farm in High Lake township on section 18, becoming owner of two hundred and forty acres of land which is now splendidly improved. With characteristic energy he began to develop that property and soon brought his fields to a high state of cultivation, receiving therefrom a substantial annual income. Year after year he gathered good crops and in time acquired a very substantial competence. He lived upon that first farm until 1900, when he sold the property and invested in two hundred and forty acres on section 16, Twelve Mile Lake township. This is also finely improved property and he occupied it for two years. He then bought another farm on section 1 of the same township, comprising one hundred and eighty seven acres of rich land which he still owns. His attention was given to its further development and improvement until 1915, when he retired and erected a fine residence in Wallingford, which he now owns and occupies, being there pleasantly situated. He was one of the organizers of the Farmer's Savings Bank, of which he is now the president, and his financial interest in that institution contributes to his success, as does the farm, from which he derives a gratifying annual income.
Mr. and Mrs. Refsell are the parents of two children: Emma, at home, and O. N. The son is a graduate of the Lutheran College at Red Wing, Minnesota, also of the University of Wisconsin and the University of Chicago ad is now a professor in Jewell, Iowa.
Mr. Refsell is a stanch supporter of the republican party and keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day. He has served as township trustee but otherwise has not sought nor desired office. He and his wife are members of the Lutheran church and take an active part in its work, doing all in their power to advance the moral progress as well as the material development of the community. Mr. Refsell is truly a self-made ma and has become one of the prosperous residents of Emmet county.
CC Note: James Refsell (died 1926) and Annie Osher Refsell (died 1939), are buried in the Wallingford/Riverside cemetery.
The sons of Norway in Iowa constitute a valuable asset in the citizenship of the state. Of this number Oliver O. Refsell is a representative. He was born in the land of the midnight sun October 8, 1854, and is a brother of James Refsell, who is mentioned elsewhere in this work. He was but twelve years of age when brought by his parents to the new world, the family home being established in Emmet county, Iowa, where he was reared and educated, pursuing his studies in the public schools. He worked with his father upon the home farm until he reached the age of thirty-five years and then purchased the old homestead property, comprising one hundred and sixty acres of land on section 28, High Lake township. He has since bent his energies to the further development and improvement of his farm, which he has brought to a high state of cultivation, the fields bringing forth bounteous harvests of those crops which are best adapted to soil and climatic conditions here. In addition to cultivating grain he is engaged quite extensively ad successfully in stock raising, both branches of his business proving profitable. He is a very progressive and enterprising business man and owns in addition to his farm property an excellent residence in Wallingford, Iowa. He is also one of the directors of the Farmers Savings Bank at Wallingford, is a stockholder of the elevator and is secretary of the creamery there. Whatever he undertakes he accomplishes, for in his vocabulary there is no such word as fail. He is determined and energetic and his plans are carefully thought out and then promptly executed.
On July 18, 1889, Mr. Refsell was married to Miss Betsy Olson, a native of Norway, and to them have been born five children: Conrad O.; Morris S., who has departed this life; Lloyd G.; Martin K.; and Olga Beatrice. The parents are consistent members of the Lutheran church, in the work of which they take an active and helpful part, and Mr. Refsell is serving now as one of the elders. He exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the republican party and in 1894 was elected to the officer of county treasurer, which position he has filled for four terms. He has held nearly all of the township offices and has made an excellent record as a public official, being at all loyal to the trust reposed in him, while his skill and efficiency in charging the duties of his positions have won for him high regard. During the long period of his residence in this part of the sate he has become widely and favorable known and everywhere is spoken in terms of admiration and respect.
CC Note: Oliver (died 1943) and Betsey Refsell (died 1926) are buried in Wallingford/Riverside cemetery.
Charles Reppien, manager and butter maker with the Farmers Creamery Company at Wallingford and thus well known in business circles of Emmet county, was born in Denmark, March 24, 1893. He is therefore yet a young man and in all that he undertakes is actually the spirit of enterprise and progress. He was reared and educated in his native country and learned the butter making trade in that which is famous as a butter producing center. He worked at the business there for four years before coming to America and in 1913 he bade goodbye to friends and native country and sailed for the new world, hoping to find more remunerative employment on this side of the Atlantic. Coming to the country to Wallingford, he soon obtained a position as butter maker in a creamery there and his ability won him promotion to the position of manager. He is now conducting a large business at the creamery and has made its output famous for its excellence. There is no phase of the butter making trade with which he is not familiar and he is considered an expert in his line.
Mr. Reppien holds membership with the Modern Woodmen of America at Wallingford and he gives his political allegiance to the republican party. He is esteemed as an enterprising, progressive young man and one where advancement has been the legitimate and logical outcome of his labors and ability.
She’s Traveled by Covered Wagon and Jets
Photo Caption: PIONEER SENIOR CITIZEN of the Armstrong area is Mrs. Grace Richmond. With her son, Wallace, she recently made a trip to Jacksonville, Fla., to visit Wally's son, Bob and family. They flew by jet airliner and returned to Minneapolis from the Florida city in 2 hours and 40 minutes, a considerable contrast to the days when Mrs. Richmond came to this community in a covered wagon. [Click on photo to enlarge]
From travel across the prairie in a covered wagon to travel across the country in a jet airliner is quite a contrast and an item to take note of in anyone’s life.
Mrs. Grace (Walter A.) Richmond, who will be 88 next month, has had that unique experience. With her son, Wally, she recently returned from Jacksonville, Fla., by jet airliner to Minneapolis in only 2 hours and 40 minutes flying time. She thinks that is a big improvement in travel, compared to her trips to Iowa from Wisconsin by covered wagon.
Mrs. Richmond came with her family to settle in the Iowa Lake township when she was only three years old. She relates that her father, B. P. Clark left Rock Falls, Wis., to come to Iowa with “only $10 in his pockets and his wife and four kids”. [See Contributor Note below]
She recalls herding cattle on horseback on the open prairie range northwest of what was later the site of Armstrong. She would drive the cattle three miles to Tuttle Lake for water.
The next year after the Clark family settled, their home was destroyed by fire and they went back to Wisconsin, but returned again in 1889. Except for this period of time Mrs. Richmond has made her home in the Armstrong community.
Both sides of the Richmond family have had more than their share of schoolteachers, but Mrs. Richmond’s mother had the distinction of starting the first school in the Iowa Lake district. She started the school in her own home with her own children, she took on a few more. In those days if there were at least five children in an area of school age, you could ask for a school, so the classes conducted at the Clark home soon were replaced by a country schoolhouse.
Mrs. Richmond would pick up some children on horseback and she once had to make a run for the river to escape a prairie fire.
She was married in 1897, only five years after the Town of Armstrong was incorporated, to Walter Richmond, son of Matthew Richmond, who had homesteaded southeast of town.
Mrs. Richmond now has 12 grandchildren and 22 great grandchildren. She chuckled when she related that her husband at one time was “afraid the Richmond name might die out for lack of grandsons.” Mrs. Richmond no longer has to worry, because six of her great-grandchildren are boys named Richmond.
[Contributor Note: This quote was used incorrectly here. It is correctly attributed to Matthew Richmond, father of her late husband, Walter Adam Richmond. Mrs. Richmond had only one sibling, Bert Lee Clark].
Contributed by: James Richmond. Source: Armstrong Journal, Vol. LXX, No.25, June, 20 1963, Armstrong Iowa.
CC Note: Please see Emmet County Obituary page for obituary of Grace Clark Richmond.
Photo caption:
Family of John James Richmond [4 Apr 1875 - 21 Nov. 1972] and his wife Martha Louise Hilmers. John was the youngest child of Matthew and Margaret [Cavers] Richmond, early Emmet County residents. On the back row are their children, left to right, Margaret, Miriam, John, Jr. and Rachel.
J. J. Richmond, shown above with his family, was one of the signers of a petition that was submitted to the District Court in the February term in the year 1900, asking for the incorporation of the town of Ringsted, Emmet County, Iowa. In January of that year he was proprietor of the Bravender & Gibbs business in Ringsted. In that year he was 25 years of age.
He was born, 17 years prior to the incorporation of the town of Armstrong, as John James Richmond on April 4, 1875. Like his older brother, Walter, he was born in a two-room log cabin on Section 36, Armstrong Grove Township, Emmet County, Iowa to Emmet County pioneers Matthew Richmond and Margaret [Cavers] Richmond. He was the last born and third son of their family of six children. He was likely named after his father’s two brothers John Moreville Richmond, D. D., a noted Presbyterian minister of the Shadyside Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh, PA and James Richmond, of Ontario, Canada.
His siblings were Jeanette Richmond [Mrs. William Gibbs], Anna Richmond [Mrs. John Dows], William Cavers Richmond [who married Mildred Fish], Robina Elizabeth Richmond, and Walter Adam Richmond [who married Grace Eleanor Clark].
His parents were among the first residents of Emmet County and had settled in Armstrong Grove Township seven years earlier in 1868. They were each born in Scotland, he in Mauchline Ayrshire, Scotland, home of Scottish poet Robert Burns, and she near Hobkirk, Roxburghshire, Scotland, in the Borders Region between Scotland and England. They had married in 1858 in Ayr, Ontario where they then farmed and started their family. In 1868 they moved directly from Ayr, Ontario, Canada, via Lansing, Michigan, with John’s four oldest siblings, stopping enroute at the small community of Village Creek, near Lansing, IA, to visit Adam Cavers and other siblings of Margaret Richmond.
John James Richmond married Martha Louise Hilmers, whose images are shown in the family photo above, taken about 1938. They were parents to Ronald H. Richmond [1908-1910], Margaret Richmond [b. 1910], Miriam Richmond [b. 1914], Rachel Richmond b. 1916] and John Richmond, Jr. [b. 1918].
From the Atlas of Emmet County, Iowa, January 1910, J. J. Richmond owned the NW quarter of Section 34, of Armstrong Grove Township, consisting of 160 acres. He also operated a clothing store in 1911 in Swea City, Iowa. And was manager of the general store, lumber yard, bank and was the postmaster at Maple Hill, Emmet County, Iowa.
By 1919, at the time of his mother's death, he was living in Waterloo, Iowa and by 1921, at the time of his father's death, he was living in Portland, Oregon. He died in Portland, Oregon in November of 1972 at the age of 97.
Contributed by: James Richmond. Taken from the collection of Grace [Clark] Richmond. The Photo is courtesy of Grace Eleanor [Richmond] {Plath} Tyler.
Matthew Richmond, now living retired at Armstrong, has been a resident of Iowa for forty-eight years. A native of Scotland, he was but five years of age when his parents crossed the Atlantic with their family to Canada, in which country he was reared upon a farm, having the usual experiences of the farm lad who at an early age begins work in the fields and when crops are harvested in the late autumn finds the opportunity to attend school. He has always made good use of his time, his talents and his opportunities and thus it is that he has advanced from a humble position until he ranks with the men of affluence in Armstrong.
As previously stated, Mr. Richmond came to Iowa in 1867 and purchased a section of land in Armstrong township, Emmet county. The following year he removed his family from Ontario, Canada, to this state, a portion of the journey being made by train, while the last few hundred miles were covered by wagon. The tract which he had secured was raw land, not a furrow having been turned nor an improvement made upon the place. When he arrived with his family he learned of a farm on the river where there was timber and where a log house had been built. The farm was for sale and Mr. Richmond purchased it, the family at once moving into the little log cabin. Later he improved that place, persistently and industriously carrying on the work of development year after year until the land was brought under a high state of cultivation, yielding to him golden harvests. He added many of the modern equipments and accessories of the model farm and thereon resided until 1898. In the meantime he added to his holdings until he owned considerable land. In the early days he had to go to Algona to do his trading, for the town of Armstrong was not established until 1892. He has lived to see great changes wrought and in the development of the state along agricultural lines he has borne his full share.
In 1858 in Ontario, Canada, Mr. Richmond was united in marriage to Miss Margaret Cavers, a native of Scotland. They became the parents of six children: Jeanett, the wife of William Gibbs, a resident of Armstrong; Anna, the wife of John Dows, also of Armstrong; William, a resident farmer of Armstrong Grove; Robina E., at home; Walter A., a farmer of Emmet county; and John J., living at Swea City, Iowa.
Mr. Richmond has always voted the republican ticket since becoming a naturalized citizen of the United States. He served for nine years on the board of supervisors and was its chairman for eight years, doing effective work during all that period for the benefit and improvement of the county along many lines. He has been justice of the peace and his decisions in that office have ever been strictly fair and impartial. He has acted as trustee and director of the schools, the cause of education finding in him a stalwart champion. Upon the organization of the Presbyterian church of Armstrong in 1881 he became a charter member and has since been one of its loyal adherents. His has been a well spent life, his fellow townsmen attesting their high regard, while the consensus of public opinion places him among the substantial and valued citizens of his adopted county. "
Contributed by: Jim Richmond. Source: Iowa: Its History and Its Foremost Citizens, Volume III, Biographical History, page 823, S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, Chicago, 1915.
Wallace Richmond is making preparations to leave Armstrong, after calling it home for all of his 75 years.
Having sold his home, which was built in 1903 by Dr. John Finlayson and his wife, the former Grace Robinson, he's in the process of sorting through the accumulated possessions of four generations of Richmonds, the prelude to an auction set for Sunday, June 30. After that, he'll be moving to an apartment he's rented in Forest City, where he'll be closer to his daughter, Mrs. Tom Bowen (Peggy).
Wally is a man who obviously loves his hometown and is proud that his ancestors helped get it started. His conversation is liberally sprinkled with tales of the old days; and even after a full three hours of them, the listener is eager to hear more.
Wallace's grandparents, Matthew and Margaret Richmond, arrived in Armstrong, October 27, 1868, and remained here until their deaths in 1921 and 1919, respectively.
Because Wallace was grown when his grandparents died, he feels fortunate to have known both of them well; he stayed with them part of the time when he was attending Armstrong High School.
His grandfather was fond of telling him about the early days and Wally regrets that he's not yet taken time to write down what he learned; but, "I remember it all; I carry it all right here in my head. The family tells me I should write a book--and maybe I will."
Matthew and Margaret Richmond left Ayr, Ontario, 75 miles west of Niagara Falls, in the early fall of 1868 with their four oldest children: Jeanette, Anna, William and Robina. They came by train to McGregor, Iowa, by way of Chicago, then stayed with relatives at Village Creek, Iowa, for three weeks to outfit a covered wagon and team. On October 15 they struck out, coming to Osage, Forest City and Buffalo Forks (Buffalo Center) to their farm five miles southeast of the present town of Armstrong.
"Grandfather told me", Wallace recalls, "'All the possessions I had when I came to Iowa, October 27, 1868, were a team and covered wagon, some furniture, my wife and four kiddies, my family Bible, and $10 in my pocket."
Wally still has three kitchen chairs that made that journey nearly 106 years ago.
The farm was purchased from Stephen P. Demmon, and that's another story. After the Civil War, each Union soldier had the right to 160 acres of land--free to him--to homestead. Wallace has the Land Grant Deed which gives the land to Demmon. It is signed by Ulysses S. Grant.
By the time the Richmonds bought the farm, the original 160 acres had expanded to 240.
A few families were already here when the Richmonds arrived: the Burt, Perry, Alcorn, Campbell, Dundas, Fish, Carroll, Mitchell, and James Thompson families among them.
In those early years of settlement, the nearest town was Algona; and Grandfather Richmond told of walking there with an old grain sack in which to carry home the groceries. The round trip took about three days.
Wallace's father, Walter A. Richmond was born on the farm in a log cabin in April, 1871. His cradle was made by Andy Burt's grandfather out of walnut from the Armstrong Grove. It was hand turned on a home made lathe during the winter of 1870-71. Three generations of Richmond babies were rocked in that cradle; so Wallace recently had it restored and then presented it to the Emmet County Historical Society.
On February 17, 1875, Matthew Richmond became a United States citizen at the age of 41. (He was born in Scotland in 1834.) In the naturalization paper, about which Wallace speculates, "I'll bet you won't see another one of these in Emmet County," Mr. Richmond renounced his loyalty to Queen Victoria. (Wallace was born May 12, 1889; and his grandfather was fond of reminding him that he was born on Queen Victoria's birthday.) [JMR: Matthew Wallace Richmond was born 12 May 1899.]
Matthew Richmond was one of the first supervisors of Emmet County, back when the county seat was at Swan Lake. And he and his wife organized the first Presbyterian congregation in Northwest Iowa.
In later years they moved to town, and the home they built is now the Presbyterian manse. For 16 years Matthew Richmond was postmaster here, during the McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, and Taft administrations.
Matthew's daughter, Anna, married John Dows who came here on Christmas Day, 1892, with the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. He was superintendent of all bridges built on the railroad between Cedar Rapids and Armstrong. A partner in starting the present bank, he also platted the town. And in about 1893, he gave the land for the Presbyterian Church to be built in town.
Walter Richmond, Wallace's father, was one of the first Armstrong merchants, operating Snyder's Grocery which opened in 1892.
Wallace's mother, Grace Clark Richmond, who passed away earlier this year, first came to this area from Meridean, Wisconsin, near Eau Claire, by covered wagon in 1879. Her family settled in Iowa Lake Township on what is now the Russell Love farm. In January, 1881, a prairie fire burned them out; and they returned to Wisconsin, coming back here in 1889. "Mother made three trips by wagon altogether," Wallace said.
Wallace taught school for 15 years; he taught shop and coached football and basketball. His first basketball team, at Holstein in 1921, posted a 19-4 record.
Later he worked 15 years for the Highway Commission.
And for a time he was a wrestling promoter "Bronko Nagurski wrestled for me at the old Opera House, " he said; and their friendship has continued.
Over the years Wallace has enjoyed nostalgic visits to the places his grandparents used to live. In late July he plans to attend a Richmond Reunion in conjunction with the 150th Anniversary of Ayr, Ontario, Canada, the town where his paternal grandparents were married. (The town is named for Ayr, Scotland, from which Wally's grandparents originally came, though several years apart.) He also plans to visit "The Richmond Place", the family home built by his great-grandfather of native stone, with the name right in the stone.
It would seem that a person "I have a lot of friends there, and my daughter is there; so I'm not exactly going to be alone." Then he added, "Of course, I've go a lot of friends here!" whose roots are so deep in Armstrong history would find difficulty in leaving, and Wally acknowledges it's true but says he plans to visit often. As for Forest City, Wallace Richmond's new address will be: Groh Apartments, Apt.#3, Forest City, Iowa.
[Caption below picture 1, page 1.]
This 1910 picture shows Mr. and Mrs. Walter A. Richmond and their son Bill, then about 4 years old, on the Richmond family farm. The farmhouse was built in the winter of 1903-04, to replace the original house which burned on October 16, 1903. The team of sorrels in the photo won many prizes for Walter Richmond at area fairs and horse shows. The original Armstrong Grove is located on this property, now occupied by Donald Hoien, on the Emmet-Kossuth County line five miles southeast of Armstrong.
[Caption below picture 2, page 1.]
ON THANKSGIVING DAY, 1907, Mr. and Mrs. Matthew Richmond posed with their family--three sons and three daughters and their spouses--by the staircase in the home of John Dows, now the John O'Neill residence. In the front, flanking Matthew Richmond are his wife Margaret, right, and his eldest daughter Jeanette, Mrs. Will Gibbs. Richmond was Armstrong's postmaster at the time. In the second row are Mrs. John Dows (Anna Richmond) and Grace and Walter A. Richmond. Those in the back row are John Dows, Armstrong banker; Miss Robina Richmond; William C. Richmond; his wife Mildred Fish Richmond; John J. Richmond; and William H. Gibbs, a longtime Emmet County Supervisor.
[Page 4, Illustration One.]
THE STATE OF IOWA, Emmet County,
BE IT REMEMBERED That a term of the District (Circuit) Court, holden in and for said County in Estherville therein, on the 17 day of February in the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hundred and Seventy Five was present the Honorable (JMR: unreadable signature) sole presiding Judge. Kruel-Espesel Sheriff of said County, and J. M. Barker Clerk of said Court, when the following, among other proceedings were had, to-wit: Mathew Richmond a native of Scotland and at present residing with said State appeared in open Court and made application to be admitted to become a CITIZEN OF THE UNITED STATES and it appearing to the satisfaction of the Court, that he had declared on or before the clerk of District Court Emmet Co Court of Record, having common law jurisdiction and using a seal, two years at least before his admission, that is was bonna fide his intention to become a Citizen of the United States, and to renounce forever all allegience to any foreign Prince, Potentate, State or Sovereignty, whatsoever, and particularly to the Queen of Great Briton of whom he was heretofore a Subject and said applicant having declared on oath, before this Court, that he will support the Constitution of the United States, and that he doth absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign Prince, Potenate, State or Soveriegnty whatsoever, and particularly to the Power above named. The Court being satisfied that said applicant has resided within the United States for the term of five years, next preceding his admission, without being at any time during the said five years out of the territory of the United States, and within this State one year at least; and it further appearing to the satisfaction of this Court, that during that time he has behaved as a man of good moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United States, and well disposed to the good order and happiness of the same; thereupon the Court admitted the said applicant to become a Citizen of the United States, and ordered all proceedings aforesaid to be entered of record, which was accordingly done by the Clerk of this Court.
In Testimony Whereof, I J. M. Barker , Clerk
of the Court aforesaid have hereto set my hand and affixed the seal of said
Court, at office in Estherville in said County, this, the
17 day of February in the year of our Lord one
thousand eight hundred and Seventy five.
[Page 4, Illustration Two.]
CERTIFICATE
No. 5303...... WHEREAS, Stephen P. Demmon of Emmett County Iowa
has deposited in the GENERAL LAND OFFICE of the United States a CERTIFICATE OF
THE REGISTER OF THE LAND OFFICE AT Fort Dodge whereby it appears that FULL
PAYMENT has been made by the said Stephen P. Demmon to the provisions of the Act
of Congress of the 24th of April, 1820, entitled "An Act making further
provision for the sale of the Public Lands," for the North East (JMR:
quarter (?)) of Section Thirty six, in Township ninety nine North, of Range
Thirty one West in the District of Land Subject to sale at Fort Dodge,
containing one hundred sixty acres.
according to the Official Plat of the Survey of the said lands, returned to the GENERAL LAND OFFICE by the Surveyor General, which said Tract has been purchased by the Stephen P. Demmon
Now, know ye, That the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, in consideration of the premises, and in conformity with the several Acts of Congress in (JMR: ????) provided, HAVE GIVEN AND GRANTED, and by these presents DO GIVE AND GRANT, unto the said Stephen P. Demmon and to his heirs, the said Tract about described: To Have and to Hold the same, together with all the rights, priviledges, immunities, and apportenants of whatever therunto belonging, unto the said Stephen P. Demmon and to his heirs.
In Testimony whereof, I, Ulysses S. Grant, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
have caused these letters to be made Patent, and the seal of the GENERAL LAND OFFICE to be hereto (JMR: ?)
Given under my hand, at the City of Washinton, the first day of May one thousand eight hundred and Sixty nine, and of the INDEPENDENCE OF THE UNITED STATES.
BY THE PRESIDENT: U.S. GRANT
RECORDED, Vol 9, Page 376
[Caption beneath Illustration:]
THIS LAND GRAND DEED (above) shows that Stephen P. Demmon a veteran of the Union Army, received 160 acres of land from the government, free of charge. Demmon sold the property to Matthew Richmond in 1868.
[Page 4. Illustration Three:]
Photo of Wallace "Wally" RICHMOND
Contributed by: Jim Richmond. Source: Armstrong, Iowa, Armstrong Journal, Volume LXXXI, No. 25, Page 1, 20 June 1974.
Wallace Richmond, eldest son of Walter A. Richmond [1871-1950] and Grace Clark Richmond [1875-1974], was born May 12, 1899 on the old Richmond farmstead located in Section 36, Armstrong Grove Township, Emmet County, Iowa. His early boyhood and youth was spent on the old family farm.
He attended the old Burt rural school, the High School in Armstrong and graduated from Estherville High School in 1919. He attended Iowa State University at Ames and Wisconsin State University, Menomonie, Wisconsin, preparing for a teaching career in Industrial Arts, Physical Education and athletic coaching. He played varsity football and basketball at Wisconsin State and participated in several extra curricular activities.
While teaching in the public schools at Lakota, North Dakota, Wallace met Frances Lorene Heston, born at Sac City, Iowa, October 9, 1898. She attended the public schools in Iowa and North Dakota, graduating from Wilton High School, Wilton, North Dakota in June 1918. She was a graduate of State Teachers College, Valley City, North Dakota, and taught in the public schools of North Dakota and Iowa for several years.
They were married on June 11, 1924 at her home in Wilton. Wallace and Lorene returned to Iowa and farmed for several years southeast of Armstrong. Three children were born to this union, Robert Heston Richmond, July 4, 1927, Grace Eleanor Richmond, April 5, 1929, and Margaret Jane Richmond, October 7, 1930. Mrs. Richmond passed away suddenly on January 15, 1932, while visiting at the home of her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Virgil D. Heston, in Wilton. An infant son, David, died prematurely at the time of his Mother's death.
Left with three small children to raise during the depression years of the thirties and forties, Wallace was assisted in the raising of his young family by his mother and father, a debt of gratitude that will never be forgotten by him or his children. The children all graduated from Armstrong High School under the guidance of our beloved friend and superintendent, the late William A. Ortmeyer, went on to college and established successful homes and families. Grace and Margaret [Peggy] taught for many years in the public schools of Iowa and Minnesota. After serving in the United States Navy during World War II, Robert attended Iowa State University at Ames for four years, was called back into service during the Korean War and is now nearing the end of a successful career of thirty years in the Navy. He was recently promoted to the rank of Lt. Commander, working his way up from Apprentice Seaman, through the various grades and ranks, a true "Mustang!"
After serving in the Army during World War II, Wallace resumed his career as a teacher in the Iowa public schools. He retired from teaching in 1955 and spent fifteen years with the Right of Way Department of the Iowa State Highway Commission. He retired in 1970 and now makes his home at Forest City, Iowa.
Always interested in community affairs, Wallace is a longtime member of Emmet Lodge No. 533, A. F. & A.M. and O. E. S. at Armstrong, Abu Bekr Shrine at Sioux City and the Scottish Rite Bodies at Des Moines. He served his home lodge at Armstrong as Worshipful Master in 1933 and again in 1967. He is also a longtime member of the B. P. O. E. at Estherville, the American Legion and the First Presbyterian Church at Armstrong.
After retirement, he served as the Armstrong representative on the Emmet County Council of Governments, as a Director of the Emmet County Historical Society, Chairman of the Emmet County Conservation Board and as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the First Presbyterian Church in Armstrong. Always active in athletics during high school and college, he served as a football, baseball and basketball official for the Iowa High School Athletic Association for many years after finishing his college education. He is also a member of the National Retired Teachers Association.
Wallace is the proud grandfather of six grandsons and four granddaughters, all of whom are successful in their chosen work. His son, Robert and wife, Virginia have three sons and two daughters and have their home in Charleston, South Carolina. Grace Eleanor is the wife of Dr. C. J. Plath. they have two sons and one daughter and live in Yankton, South Dakota. Margaret [Peggy] and her husband, Thomas D. Bowen, owner of a Super Market in Forest City, have a daughter and one son.
Contributed by: Jim Richmond. Source: "History of Emmet County, Iowa, VoL. III", Compiled by the Emmet County Historical Society as a Bicentennial Project., Inter-Collegiate Press, Inc., Shawnee Mission, Kansas, 1976, page 355.
Walter Adam Richmond [1871-1950], was born in a two room log cabin located in the SE 1/4 of Section 36, Armstrong Grove Township, Emmet County, Iowa. He was the second son of Matthew [1834-1921] and Margaret Cavers Richmond [1832-1919], who came to Eastern Ontario, Canada, from Scotland in the late 1830's and 1840's respectively. After their marriage in 1858, they farmed the old Richmond farmstead near Ayr, Ontario until late 1868. In October 1868, the grandparents and their four young children, Janet [Mrs. Wm. H. Gibbs], Anna [Mrs. John Dows], William C. and Robina [all deceased], left their Ontario home, traveled by train to McGregor, Iowa, and were met by grandmother's brothers, Adam, James and William Cavers of Village Creek, Allamakee County, Iowa. At Village Creek, they outfitted a prairie schooner and set for their new home in Emmet County, 200 miles westerly, on October 15, 1868. They arrived at their log cabin home, near the East Fork of the Des Moines River, on October 27, 1868 Grandfather often told that the only worldly things he possessed were "My wife and four small kiddies, my team and prairie schooner, some clothing and furniture, our family Bible and ten dollars in my pocket!" Uncle John was born in the log cabin, in April 1875, on the old farmstead southeast of Armstrong.
Walter received his early education in the old rural Hackerson school, then attended the old Normal School at Algona. He taught country school for one year. When Armstrong was founded in 1892, he became one of the first merchants and engaged in a general mercantile business until the spring of 1897. At that time Matthew moved to Armstrong, where he served as Postmaster during the William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft administrations. Walter was one of the original signers of the petition asking that Armstrong become incorporated in 1893, after the railroad had arrived on Christmas Day, 1892.
Walter disposed of his business and began farming the old family farm in March 1897. He and Grace Eleanor, only daughter of Bertine Pinckney Clark [1852-1940] and Eleanor Wallace Clark [1855-1916] were married at Estherville on March 31, 1897. Three sons were born to this union, Wallace, May 12, 1899, Wayne, June 13, 1901 and Wilbert, July 12, 1906. Most of their lives were spent on the farm until their retirement in 1948.
Grace was born July 16, 1875 near Meridean, Dunn County, Wisconsin and passed away at Armstrong on February 24, 1974. She came to Iowa Lake Township, Emmet County, Iowa in a covered wagon, after a ten day journey with her parents across the prairies of Southern Minnesota and Northern Iowa in the spring of 1879 to their home eight miles northwest of the present town of Armstrong. In January 1881, a raging prairie fire swept across the prairies between Iowa Lake and Tuttle Lake during the night and burned their home to the ground. They returned to Wisconsin and grandfather resumed his trade as a millwright in the lumber mills at Meridean. In the Spring of 1889, the grandparents, Grace and her young brother, Bert L. returned again to Iowa by covered wagon, driving their cattle and sheep with them to their home in Iowa Lake Township.
Grace received her early education in the public schools of Wisconsin and Iowa Lake Township, then attended Fairmont High School, Fairmont, Minn. and the Normal School at LeMars, Iowa. She taught in the rural schools of Iowa Lake Township and Martin County, Minn. for five years prior to her marriage.
She was a charter member of the Ladies League [now the P. W. O.] of the First Presbyterian Church in Armstrong, a longtime member of the church, always taking an active part in church, school and community affairs during her younger years. She and her lifelong friend, Ethel Burt Anderberg, were the co-organizers in 1914 of the Riverside Country Club southeast of Armstrong. It began with over thirty charter members and became a dominant influence in the social life of the community. It is one of the oldest Women's Club's in Iowa.
Walter was always active in community affairs. He was a regular sponsor of Redpath-Vawter Chautauqua during the many years it included Armstrong on it circuit, an organizer and director of the first Emmet County Farm Bureau, the Farmer's Co-operative Elevator at Armstrong, the Riverside Rural Telephone system and an organizer of the first free rural mail delivery routes out of Armstrong. He was a lifelong Presbyterian and member of the Republican Party.
Walter and Grace helped raise Wallace Richmond's young family after the death of his wife in January 1932, a truly great sacrifice for them at their age. Truly, they were of the old breed of pioneers, always willing to sacrifice for the good of others and the welfare of the community.
Contributed by: Jim Richmond. Source: "History of Emmet County, Iowa, VoL. III", Compiled by the Emmet County Historical Society as a Bicentennial Project., Inter-Collegiate Press, Inc., Shawnee Mission, Kansas, 1976, pp 355-356.
Robert E. Ridley, a well known resident of Estherville, was born in Litchfield, Maine, July 5, 1833, a fact which makes him a venerable citizen of Emmet county, for he has passed the eighty-third milestone on life's journey. His parents, Robert P. and Sophronia (Watson) Ridley, were also natives of Maine and in the year 1857 they removed to Emmet county, Iowa, establishing their home upon a farm here at a period when the work of improvement and development had scarcely been begun within the borders of the county. Both passed away in this county and the community thus lost two of its worthy pioneer settlers. Their original home was a log cabin, which they occupied for a number of years. In their family were ten children, four of whom yet survive.
R. E. Ridley was reared and educated in Maine. In 1856 he started west, going first to Michigan, where he spent one winter, and in the spring of 1857 he came to Emmet county, Iowa, which was then a frontier district in which few settlements had been made. Much of the land was still in the possession of the government and Mr. Ridley took up a claim in Estherville township on what is now the site of the city of Estherville. There he built a blockhouse and he has since erected more than one hundred dwellings in the city, which he has sold. He thus contributed much to the development of the city and he also built the first mill there.
At the time of the Civil war Mr. Ridley put aside all business and personal considerations to espouse the cause of the Union and became a member of Company C. Second Iowa Infantry, in which he enlisted in 1864. He was with Sherman on his march to the sea and participated in several hotly contested engagements. With the close of the war he was mustered out at Washington; D. C., and returned to his home with a most creditable military record. Through the intervening period he has remained continuously in Emmet county.
In 1855 Mr. Ridley was united in marriage to Miss Esther A. Allen, who was born in Maine in 1832 and is a daughter of John and Sarah (Bennett) Allen, who were also natives of the Pine Tree state, in which they spent their entire lives. They had six children but Mrs. Ridley is now the only survivor. By her marriage she became the mother of two daughters and a son: Annie J., who was the first white child born in Emmet county and who is now the wife of Milo Dana, of Wisconsin; Lucy E., deceased; and George E., a resident of Cheyenne, Wyoming.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Ridley are members of the Baptist church and he is serving as one of its deacons. In the work of the church he has taken most active and helpful interest, doing everything in his power to advance the cause of religion. In politics he is a republican and has been honored with the offices of both treasurer and recorder of Emmet county. He also served as justice of the peace and married the first couple in the county. It will thus be seen that he is closely associated with many events that have shaped the history of this section of the state. He and his wife are numbered among its honored pioneer people and have been witnesses of its growth and development through all the passing years since 1857, or for much more than a half century. Mr. Ridley has long been a moving spirit in promoting the upbuilding of the section in which he resides, and no history of Emmet county would be complete without the record of his life.
CC Note: Robert (died 1925) and wife Esther (died 1918) are buried in Oak Hill cemetery, Estherville, Emmet county, Iowa. Obituaries for Robert and Esther can be viewed at the Emmet County Obituary page.
The Isaac Hammon and Sarah (Conner) Riggs Family
Isaac Hammon Riggs was born on April 14, 1850, in Stueben County, New York State. In 1864 he moved with his parents, James L. L. and Minerva Riggs and his brother, William, to Emmet County, IA. There were only seven log cabins on the Estherville site at that time. The Indian scare had just gotten over and the military were leaving Fort Defiance, that had been built for the protection of the northwest Iowa settlers. Ike was fourteen and hired out to Eldridge Whitcomb to work on his farm north of the village square. Sarah Alice Conner was born on Aug. 14, 1853 in Sparta, Wisconsin. On July 4, 1869 Isaac and Sarah were married and ten children were born to them:
Lydia May b. May 14, 1871
Charles Hammon b. Nov. 22, 1872 d. April 22, 1874
James William b. Aug. 6, 1874 d. Oct 22, 1874
Mary Amelia b. Feb 17, 1876
Myrtle Alice b. Nov. 25, 1881
Isaac Edwin b. Aug. 25 1886
Albert Cecil b. April 13, 1889
Lucila Marie b. April 17, 1891
Clarence Arthur b. June 17, 1892 d. Sept. 7, 1893
Martha Mildred b. April 6, 1898
Isaac's occupation was farming, but he also did overland hauling to the nearest trading posts. He first had to haul to Cedar Rapids, but later Fort Dodge was the nearest point. It was a six day trip, one way, with a good team.
Sarah passed away on March 22, 1907, in Estherville, Iowa and Isaac died on Jan. 20, 1927, at the home of his son, Cecil. Isaac is buried at Oak Hill Cemetery in Estherville, Iowa.
Contributed by: Doreene Hansen
The James L. L. and Minerva (Metcalf) Riggs Family
James Lawerence Ludlow Riggs was born on May 19, 1819, in Ontario County, New York State. At some point the county boundaries were moved and/or James moved, as later he lived in Stueben County, New York. Minerva Lucile Metcalf Dowley was born Jan. 7, 1818 in Broome, New York State. James and Minerva were married on March 6, 1834 in Stueben County and lived in Troopsburgh town (township) near the village of Highup. Five children were born to them:
Russell F. Dowley b. March 23, 1835 Penn
Hestina Amelia b. Nov. 6, 1843 Penn
Amos C. b. Sept 29, 1845 NY
Isaac Hammon b. April 14, 1850 NY
William Ellsworth b. July 4, 1856 NY
The Troupsburgh 1860 census is the last one to list the James Riggs family in New York. In the spring of 1864 James, Minerva, Isaac and William arrived in Emmet County, IA, Estherville township. There were only seven log cabins and Fort Defiance, built for protection of the settlers, when the family came. In the History of Emmet County and Dickinson County, Iowa, vol. 1 (pg 129) it is stated the J. L. L. Riggs was one of the petitioners for incorporation of Estherville. The same year Hestina and her husband, Sylvanus, and two small sons, George and Lawerence, moved to Emmet County also. The families farmed and James was an expressman, hauling freight. James passed away on April 16, 1888 and Minerva on Feb 22, 1904. James is buried at East Side Cemetery in Estherville, IA
Contributed by:
Doreene Hansen
Bringel Knutsen Rokne, residing on a farm on section 10, High lake township, has always devoted his energies to general agricultural pursuits and for forty-one years has lived at his present place of residence. He is still active although he has now passed the eighty-fourth milestone on life's journey and such a career of usefulness might well put to shame many a man of less resolute spirit, grown weary of the struggles of business life, would relegate to others the burdens that he should bear.
Mr. Rokne was born in Voss, Norway, April 15, 1833, a son of Knut Erickson and Bertha Helgeson, who were farming people of that country. The son pursued a common school education to the age of fifteen years and afterward worked out as a farm hand by the year until he reached the age of twenty. He then determined to try his fortune in the new world and came to the United States. His sister Anna came to the United States in 1850 with her husband, Lars Larson, located in Woodstock an died the same year.
Bringel K. Rokne made his way to Chicago and spent the succeeding seven years in various kinds of work and in various places. In 1854 his brother Gilbert came to the United States and located in Wisconsin, where he afterward passed away as the result of an illness contracted during the Civil war. Two sisters, Inga and Dorothy, came in 1856 and both passed away in Wisconsin. The same year Barney Rokne arrived in America and is now a resident of High Lake township. The remaining brother, Erick, never left Norway.
It was in 1860 that Bringel K. Rokne took up his abode in Columbia county, Wisconsin, and there married Inga Johnson, a daughter of Lars and Martha Anderson, who have since passed away in Wisconsin. For six years after his marriage Mr. Rokne worked on his father-in-law's farm and on the 7th of July, 1866, came to Emmet county and purchased a farm from the railway company, investing in one hundred acres, which he cultivated for ten years. He afterward traded that property to George Osher for his present home and there he has lived for more than four decades. His labors have wrought a marked transformation in the appearance of the place, for he has converted it into a very valuable and productive farm equipped with modern improvements. He is still enjoying good health and is yet active at the age of eighty-four years.
In 1916 Mr. Rokne was called upon to mourn the loss of his wife, who passed away on the 1st of October after a year's illness and was laid to rest in High Lake cemetery. They were the parents of nine children: Knut, who died unmarried; Louis, who is married and follows farming in Kanabec county, Minnesota; Martha, now the wife of K. A. Traefald, also of Kanabec county; John, who died leaving a widow; Bertha, who became the wife of S. A. Traefald and died leaving two sons, Albert and Martin, who are living with Mr. Rokne; Anna, the deceased wife of T. Dahle, whose daughter, Luella, is living with her grandfather; Erick and Andrew, at home; and Emma, the wife of Louis Isaacson, a farmer of High Lake township.
Mr. Rokne has supported the republican party since age conferred upon him the right of franchise, casting his first presidential ballot for John C. Fremont. He has always been a stalwart champion of the principles of the party and has done everything in his power to promote its growth and ensure its success. He has held various township offices and for three years he was county supervisor, while for four years he filled the office of county recorder. In 1900 he became census enumerator for Twelve Mile Lake and High Lake townships. He is today one of the oldest pioneer settlers and one of the most venerable citizens of High Lake township, having reached the age of eighty-four years, although in appearance and interests he seems much younger.
CC Note: Bringel Rokne (died 1931) and wife Inga (died 1916) are buried in High Lake cemetery, Jack Creek township, Emmet county, Iowa.
F. W. Ruef, one of the proprietors and the general manager of the Maple Hill Mercantile Company, owning and conducting a general merchandise business, a grain elevator and an extensive lumberyard at Maple Hill, Emmet county, has in his life demonstrated the possibilities for the attainment of success even when one has to start out without the assistance of family or friends. Iowa claims him as a native son, his birth having occurred in Clermont, Fayette county, on the 2nd of January, his parents being Ferdinand and Margaret (Sutter) Ruef, the former a native of Germany and the latter of Switzerland. In young manhood and young womanhood they came to the new world, settling first in Fayette county, Iowa, where they were married and spent their remaining days. The father was a stone mason by trade and thus provided for the support of his family. He died in 1896, while his wife survived only until 1898.
F. W. Ruef was a lad of but thirteen years at the time of his father's death and was left on orphan when fifteen. Being an only son, at his father's death he became the breadwinner for the family and has not only made his own way in the world from that time forward, but also contributed to the support of his mother during her lifetime. He was first employed in a brickyard at Clermont, where he received a wage of three dollars per week. Following the death of his mother he made his home with an older sister in Armstrong, Iowa, and there found employment in a hardware store. During his three years' service in that connection he learned much of the plumbing business and in 1901 he went to the Pacific coast, where for eight years he was employed in a plumbing establishment, working throughout the state for a firm at Salem, Oregon. In 1910 he returned to Iowa and settled at Maple Hill, where he purchased the interest of Mr. Dows in the Maple Hill Mercantile Company, the present owners of the business being Mr. Ruef, Mrs. Grace Slessor and B. F. Robinson, the last named being also cashier of the First National Bank at Armstrong, Iowa. The firm conducts an extensive mercantile and lumber business and operates the Maple Hill elevator. In fact this firm is one of the most important in the business circles of Emmet county, controlling and directing large interests which contribute much to the commercial upbuilding and consequent prosperity of this section of the state.
In 1908 Mr. Ruef was united in marriage to Miss Edith Robinson, her father being B. F. Robinson, of Armstrong, senior member of the Maple Hill Mercantile Company. Mr. and Mrs. Ruef have two children, Elizabeth Margaret and Benjamin Edward. In his political views, Mr. Ruef is a Republican and has filled the office of postmaster at Maple Hill. He is also the treasurer of the Consolidated School of Maple Hill, one of the important educational institutions of the county, in which are employed five teachers. A new school building has been erected at a cost of twenty-one thousand dollars. Fraternally, Mr. Ruef is connected with Emmet Lodge, No. 565, F. & A. M., of Armstrong, and he and his wife are members of the Presbyterian church, guiding their lives according to its teachings. Mr. Ruef is a representative citizen and leading business man, and in the accomplishment of his purposes has followed honorable methods.
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