1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa
Page Index:
Poldberg |
Hale |
Shepherd |
Sunderland |
Ryan |
Pomeroy |
Miller |
Escher |
Bisgard |
Ruffcorn |
Jensen
The many Danish people who have made Shelby county their permanent home have given the same loyal support to their adopted country that they did to their native land. The desire to give their children better opportunities is the underlying reason why all of these people have come to America and the success which has been theirs since coming here fully justifies their decision to leave their native land. Of the many excellent citizens of Danish birth who have honored this county with their residence there is no one more worthy of mention in this volume than Chris Poldberg, a substantial farmer of Jackson township.
Chris Poldberg, the son of Andrew C. and Karen (Christensen) Poldberg, was born July 1, 1862, in Denmark. Andrew C. Poldberg was born in Denmark in 1821 and his wife in 1823. He lived the simple life of a farmer all of his days and died in his native land in 1876 without ever seeing this country. His widow came to this country and spent her declining years with her son, Chris, and died in 1888, being buried at Bowman's Grove cemetery.
Chris Poldberg received a good education in the excellent schools of his native country, but his father dying when he was only sixteen years of age, he had to leave school, having attended high school one season, and work upon a neighboring farm. In 1885 he decided to come to America, where many of his countrymen had already settled. He came alone and at once went to Shelby county, Iowa, and located in Elk Horn. Five years later his mother joined him. He found work as a farm hand for the first three years and then married and began farming on his wife's farm in Jackson township. He was a successful farmer from the beginning and now owns a fine farm of two hundred and eighty acres of land in this township. He carries on a general system of farming, giving due attention to the raising of live stock, in which he has been very successful.
Mr. Poldberg was married December 14, 1888, to Mrs. Mary (Hoodgenson) Smith, the widow of Fred H. Smith. By her first marriage she had two children, Hans, whose history is found elsewhere in this volume, and Mrs. Katherine Lamer, of Clay township. To Mr. and Mrs. Poldberg have been born four children, Andrew, Niels, Chris and Henry. Andrew is now farming for himself while all the other children are still living with their parents.
In politics, Mr. Poldberg has taken an active part in Democratic affairs since coming to this county and has frequently been honored by his party with positions of trust and responsibility. In 1899 he was elected trustee of Jackson township and held the office for two years. He was elected to the same office in 1912 and is still filling this important position. He has also served as school director of his township and in this capacity gave his hearty support to all measures which might help the schools of the township in any way.
Before coming to this country Mr. Poldberg served two years in the Danish army. In 1883 he was mustered in with the Second Regiment of Infantry and was made a corporal. The training he received while in the army has been of great benefit to him in his later life. Mr. Poldberg is a stanch member of the Danish Lutheran church and has served as the president of the church at Bowman's Grove. The career of Mr. Poldberg since coming to Shelby county is eminently to his credit in every way and no native born citizen takes a more active part in the affairs of his township and county. He has measured up to the highest ideals of American citizenship and is a true representative of his county.
Source: 1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa, pp. 661-662.
Contributed by: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs
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Shelby county, Iowa, is essentially a farming community and one of the main industries of the county is the buying and selling of grain. Every town has an elevator, some of which are independent concerns and others belong to companies which operate elevators in a number of counties. One of the prominent grain buyers of Shelby county, Iowa, is Harry C. Hale, who is now the manager of the elevator at Shelby, owned by J. F. Dowe & Company, of Davenport, Iowa. He has been engaged in the elevator business since he reached his majority, and with this fine experience he is thoroughly acquainted with every phase of the grain business.
Harry C. Hale, the son of George and Anna C. (Canfield) Hale, was born in Washington county, Iowa, in 1879. His father was born in Chelsea, Vermont; in 1835, and his mother was born in Connecticut in 1853. George Hale came from Vermont to Washington county, Iowa, with his parents when he was a child, and was living there when the Civil War opened. He enlisted in 1862 in Company A, Twenty-fifth Regiment Iowa Volunteer Infantry, and was in continuous service until the close of the Civil War. After he was mustered out he returned to Washington, Iowa, and became a railroad contractor, following this business for several years. He then bought grain in Washington, Iowa, for thirty years, after which he retired to Des Moines, Iowa, where he lived for one year. He is now living at McClelland, Iowa. His wife died in 1893. There were four children born to George Hale and wife, three of whom are still living.
Harry C. Hale received his education in the public schools of Washington, Iowa, graduating from the high school at that place. He remained at home until he was twenty-one years of age and then started in business for himself by buying an elevator at Washington. He bought and sold grain and also handled coal. After he had been in business about eighteen months, a fire destroyed his elevator and he then came to Shelby, Iowa, where he became connected with the Des Moines Elevator Company, with which he remained for two years, and then became the manager of the J. F. Dowe & Company's elevator at Shelby. During the time that he has been connected with this company he has built up a large business for them in the farming community around Shelby, and such has been his success that he is regarded as one of the most competent grain experts in the county.
Mr. Hale was married October 14, 1902, to Ethel Dillon, who was born in Washington county, Iowa, in 1879, and to this union one son, Hugh Dillon, has been born.
Mr. Hale is progressive in his political belief and should be classed with the independent voters. He believes in voting for the best men, especially in local elections, feeling that in so doing he is best serving the interests of his community. He has a beautiful modern home in the eastern part of the city and takes an active interest in everything pertaining to the welfare of Shelby. Fraternally, he is a member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Mr. Hale is a wide-awake business man and is the kind of a man who lends stability to the community in which he lives. All public-spirited enterprises receive his hearty support and his influence is always cast on the right side of every worthy measure.
Source: 1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa, pp. 663-664.
Contributed by: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs
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There is a lumber yard in every town of any size in the United States and the size of the yard and the amount of business transacted in which this commodity is involved are sure indications of the prosperity of the community served by it. It has been predicted that the growing cement industry was going to revolutionize the building industry of the country; that houses would soon all be constructed of cement and concrete and that the demand for lumber would soon be curtailed in consequence. Whether this will ever be brought about can not definitely be foretold, but there has certainly been no diminution in the sale of lumber thus far. The northwestern part of Iowa is very scantily timbered and practically all of the lumber used has to be shipped in. One of the large and prosperous industries of Harlan is the lumber business and one of the men who have been closely identified with this important industry for several years is William Thomas Shepherd, the efficient auditor of the Green Bay Lumber Company, of Harlan.
William Thomas Shepherd was born May 16, 1863, near West Liberty, Iowa, the son of James Farquhar and Elizabeth AIm (Stouffer) Shepherd. His father was a descendant of a Scotch-Irish family which came to Pennsylvania with the Quakers in about the year 1700. The Shepherd family migrated to western Maryland in the year 1735. The ancestors of Elizabeth Ann (Stouffer) Shepherd came into Pennsylvania from Switzerland in 1709 and moved thence to western Maryland in 1734. In the early sixties or the late fifties, the family migrated to Iowa and located on a farm near West Liberty, Iowa. At the close of the Civil War, the family returned to the old home in Maryland where they resided for about six years and then made a permanent residence on the Iowa farm which had been previously improved. In 1876 the Shepherds removed to Iowa City. James Farquhar Shepherd died in 1903, his wife having preceded him to the Great Beyond three years previously.
William T. Shepherd was educated in the schools of Iowa City and the State University, graduating from the latter institution in 1883.He immediately entered the service of the Green Bay Lumber Company, serving as yard manager at Irwin, Stuart and Harlan until 1900, since which time he has been in charge of a system of twelve of the company's yards in the Botna Valley. He has been a stockholder in this corporation for several years as well as a director in the Finkbine Lumber Company of Wiggins, Mississippi; a sawmill concern owned by the Green Bay Lumber Company. For a number of years he has served as a director of the Shelby County State Bank, of Harlan.
Mr. Shepherd was married in 1890 to Cora S. Ramsey of Harlan. Mr. and Mrs. Shepherd have one son, Allan Ramsey Shepherd, who is now, a student at Columbia University.
Fraternally, Mr. Shepherd is connected with the Free Masons and is a member of the Commandery and Mystic Shrine. He has passed through all the chairs of the Masonic lodge as well as having filled all the chairs in the Odd Fellows in both the subordinate lodge and the encampment. He and the members of his family are members of the Episcopal church and have always taken an active interest in its welfare.
Mr. Shepherd is politically allied with the Democratic party and served as a Democratic member on the Iowa Commission at the World's Fair in St. Louis. He has never been a seeker after political preferment and has never been an active candidate for office. He has served his home city in practically all of the municipal, school and, other minor offices of the community. He has been reasonably diligent and reasonably successful in business and is recognized as one of the men of affairs in Harlan. He has taken an active part in the affairs of the community and has usually been found at the forefront of those seeking to better conditions in the city and to push Harlan to the front. He has long been identified with the enterprising citizens who have been pushing Harlan to the front rank. He has supported his contentions and progressive ideas with both his time and his means. He is likewise blessed with a fair share of friends and enemies, to both of whom he tries to give due appreciation. In this respect he is like all men who have achieved success and have had the courage and determination to stand firm in support of their honest convictions. Such citizens are a distinct benefit to any community.
Source: 1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa, pp. 664-665.
Contributed by: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs
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One of the first settlers to locate in Shelby county, Iowa, was the late Lorenzo D. Sunderland, who came to the county in 1852. The career of this interesting old settler and pioneer is full of the wild life of the West and there was crowded into his career more experiences than falls to the lot of the average man. During the course of a long and eventful life he traveled thousands of miles, went overland from his native state, Ohio, to California, and then made the return trip by way of the Isthmus of Panama and New York city. He was the first man to bring Gold dust from California to New York and the first gold coins made from California gold were made from the dust he brought back with him.
This sturdy pioneer was born in Fayette county, in the state of Ohio, on June 24, 1825, and after a long career of usefulness, and honor, died in
Shelby county, Iowa, in April, 1904. His parents were Francis D. and Permelia (Knight) Sunderland, natives of Virginia and early settlers in Fayette county, Ohio. Shortly after his birth his father died and, when six years of age, Lorenzo was adopted by Nathan Coffman, who reared him to
manhood.
When Lorenzo D. Sunderland reached the age of twenty-four he joined a party of several friends who were going to make the long overland journey to California in search of gold. The start was made March 12, 1849, and the entire trip occupied one hundred and four days, during which time innumerable hardships were endured. The first stop was made at St. Joseph, Missouri, where they organized, laid in their supplies for the trip across the plains and left the frontiers of civilization. They left St. Joseph on May 1, 1849, with one hundred and four men and owing to deaths and various other causes were compelled to reorganize twice before reaching their destination. They met with terrible storms, encountered the Indians on several occasions and were on the verge of total annihilation at times. They finally reached Auburn, California, with four mule teams and at once started in to prospect for the precious metal which had led them to make a perilous journey more than half way across the continent. By June of the following year, Mr. Sunderland had laid away considerable gold dust and was ready to return home. He went by steamer to the Isthmus of Panama, crossed the Isthmus on foot and embarked on a sailing vessel for New York. As has been before mentioned he brought hack the first gold from California which the government coined. He finally reached his home in Fayette county, Ohio, where he remained until after his marriage in 1851.
Shortly after his marriage, he and his young bride went to Howard county, Indiana, where he bought a farm of one hundred and sixty acres.
He lived on the farm only a short time and then, together with his father-in-law's family, removed to Champaign county, Illinois. Here he bought a
farm of eighty acres. but remained on it only one year. In February, 1852, he went to Kanesville (now Council Bluffs), Iowa, and shortly afterward
went on west and located in Shelby county. He made this prospecting trip alone, wishing to ascertain the most favorable land for settlement, ~before bringing his wife away from her parents. He finally decided to locate in Shelby county and accordingly entered eighty acres of government land on which he at once erected a rude cabin. In the spring of 1854 he brought his family to the new home and here he lived for the next half century. He at once entered two hundred and forty more acres of land and to this he added from year to year until at the time of his death in 1904 he owned seven hundred and eighty acres of well-improved land in the county.
During the half century that Mr. Sunderland was identified with the history of Shelby county he was foremost in everything which would in any
way benefit the county. He was the first school director in the county and was elected sheriff of the county in 1864. After the expiration of his term
as sheriff, he served for several years as deputy sheriff and was a man who always stood for law enforcement. He was deeply interested in the agricultural life of his county and was the first man in the county to make a speciaity of live stock breeding. He was a member of the Angus Breeders' Association and brought the first Aberdeen Angus cattle to the county in 1887. At the time of his death his herd was one of the finest in the state and consisted of the Pride and Blackbird families. He was one of the chief promoters of the first agricultural society in the county and was a charter member and director, as well as first vice-president, of the Farmers Alliance in Shelby county. He was a lifelong Democrat and was one of his party's leaders, although he was never a seeker after political preferment.
Mr. Sunderland was married June 29, 1851, to Mary E. Lucas, the daughter of Rev. Richard and Mary E. (Kirkendall) Lucas, and a native of
Ross county, Ohio. To this union were born ten children: Nevada, the wife of William H. Errett; Leroy and Leora, both deceased; Nancy Jane, the wife of Z. T. Errett; Julietta, the wife of Abner Bates; William, single; Lucy, the wife of Frank Firebaugh; Belle, the wife of O. D. Westrope; Charles D., whose history is represented elsewhere in this volume; Ida May. Mr. Sunderland was devoted to his family and assisted each of his children
to secure farms of their own.
The whole life of Mr. Sunderland was devoted to the service of his fellow men; no enterprise in Shelby county which was worthy failed to receive his hearty support; no unfortunate person was ever turned from his door. Fraternally, he was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, holding his membership at Harlan. With his death there passed from the history of Shelby county one of its most distinguished pioneers and a
man whose life was an inspiration to everyone who came in contact with him. Of such men there are only too few and it is eminently fitting that his life
be recorded within the history of his county.
Source: 1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa, pp. 666-668.
Contributed by: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs
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A life of thirty-five years in Shelby county, Iowa, has identified Thomas J. Ryan with most of the history which this county has made. Coming here
in the year 1879, he has played an important part in bringing about the present prosperity of the county. During his active life on the farm, he was
a leader in agricultural affairs. When he came to this county, the nearest town was eighteen miles away. The present prosperous town of Harlan,
which was his post office, was then but a mere village scattered out over the broad prairie. He was the first man to farm any of his land in Greeley
township, and the first man to surround his farm with fencing. In fact, he was the first man to erect a building in Greeley township.
Thomas J. Ryan, the son of Jeffrey and Sarah (Clark) Ryan, was born February 15, 1852, near Rochester, New York. His parents were both
natives of Ireland, but were brought to this country when they were very small by their parents. Jeffrey Ryan was the son of Thomas Ryan, a lifelong farmer of Ireland. Jeffrey Ryan and his family moved to Ogle county, Illinois, in 1858, and there they lived the remainder of their days.
Thomas J. Ryan was educated in the schools of Ogle county, Illinois, going to school during the winter and working on his father's farm during
the summer. In 1870 he went to Sonoma City, Sonoma county, California, where he worked for his uncle, Mortimer Ryan, on a large fruit ranch. His uncle went around Cape Horn to San Francisco in an early day and was the first man to raise garden truck in that city. Thomas J. remained with his uncle, one year, and then returned to Iowa and located near Victor, where he bought a farm. While living there he was married at the age of twenty-two years, and began his farming career, which has since made him one of the most substantial men of Shelby county. His first appearance in Shelby county was in 1879, when he came here with two car loads of cattle which he intended to graze on the prairies. While herding them from day to day in Greeley township he became convinced that the land was valuable farming soil land and bought eighty acres in section 34 in Greeley township. In the spring of 1882 he sold his farm in Poweshiek county in this state, and moved with his family to his farm in Shelby county. That he prospered is shown by his future career in this county. Early and late he was found in the fields and the result of his patient labor made him one of the largest land owners in the county, owning five hundred and twenty acres of land at one time. His farm in Greeley township is now known as the. "Pleasant View Stock Farm," and consists of thirteen hundred and fifty acres, owned by the firm of Escher & Ryan, his son-in-law and son. Messrs. Escher & Ryan are the famous breeders of Aberdeen-Angus cattle.
In the fall of 1902 Mr. Ryan retired from active farm life and moved to Irwin, where he had previously purchased property. He moved to the
town in order to give his children the benefit of the town schools. Since moving to Irwin he has taken a prominent part in Democratic politics, having been upon the town council of the city ever since moving there. At the present time he is serving his second term as mayor of the city, a position of honor and responsibility. Although he disposed of his large farm, now a part of the "Pleasant View Stock Farm," he also owned eighty acres of land in section 10, forty acres in section 9, and one hundred and twenty acres in section 21, of Greeley township. He still owns eighty acres within the corporation of Irwin.
Mr. Ryan was married October 28, 1874, to Mary A. Grant, who was born October 18, 1855, in Victor, Iowa, the daughter of Henry and Helen
(Haggard) Grant. Henry Grant was a native of Glasgow, Scotland, and came to the United States when he was twenty-one years of age. He was
a stone mason by trade in his native land, but never followed this vocation after coming to Iowa. He bought a farm and eventually became a large
land owner in this state. Mr. and Mrs. Ryan are the parents of five children: Myrtle, Herbert, Earl G., Sarah E. and Mary Grace. Myrtle was born August 2, 1875, and married Charles Escher, Jr., of Jefferson township. Herbert R., born February 3, 1878, married Mabel Cobb, and lives in Sioux City, Iowa, and has four children: Mildred, born July 26, 1902; Margery, born May 5, 1904; Herbert C., born June 28, 1906; Roberta, born February 15, 1914. Earl G., the third child of Mr. Ryan, was born August 23, 1884, married Bertha Sessions, and has two children, Charles T., born October 17, 1907, and Myrtle Grace, born January 12, 1910. Sarah E., born January 31, 1889, is still living with her parents and is teaching school. She is a graduate of Drake University. Mary Grace, the youngest child of Mr. and Mrs. Ryan, was born October 20, 1891, graduated from the musical department of Drake University and is now teaching music.
Mr. Ryan is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, as is his son, Earl. He is a charter member of the Irwin lodge, and has
always been actively interested in the affairs of his local lodge. Politically, he has always been a Democrat, and for twenty-five years was a member
of the school board of his township. His party has pressed honors upon him since coming to Irwin, and he has faithfully discharged every duty
which has been imposed upon him. Mr. Ryan is a typical self-made man and one of the most representative citizens of a county which has produced many exceptional men.
Source: 1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa, pp. 668-670.
Contributed by: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs
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Forty years have elapsed since Robert M. Pomeroy and his young wife came to Shelby county, Iowa, and during this time he has so managed his
affairs as to become one of the wealthiest men of Shelby. He has, during the course of a long and busy life, engaged in the mercantile business, has
served as a civil engineer, while for a quarter of a century, he was one of the largest farmers and most successful stock dealers of Shelby county. Since September 1, 1914, he has been in charge of the Farmers Savings Bank at Shelby, and in this capacity has demonstrated peculiar ability for this line of business. He has been prominently identified with every phase of his county's history during the time he has lived in it and has been in hearty sympathy with all public movements. He has served as township trustee, school director and county treasurer and in every official position he has demonstrated that he has the interest of his fellow-citizens at heart.
Robert M. Pomeroy, the son of William R. and Elizabeth (Maclay) Pomeroy, was born March 24, 1849, in Franklin county, Pennsylvania. His
father was born in the same county in 1811 and his mother was born in Concord, Pennsylvania, in 1822. His parents were married in 1845 and reared a family of six children, Mrs. Arabella Deihl, Henry, Robert M., John, Elizabeth and William R. Of these six children, Arabella and Henry are deceased, the former being buried in Adams county, Pennsylvania. John and William R. are living a retired life in Shelby, Iowa, while Elizabeth makes her home in Concord, Pennsylvania. William R. Pomeroy conducted a general merchandise store in Concord, Pennsylvania, for fifty years and also had a large tannery in connection with his general merchandise business. He died in 1889 and his wife died in 1875.
Robert M. Pomeroy received his elementary and high school education at Waterloo, Pennsylvania, and later attended the academy at that place until he was twenty years of age. After leaving school he clerked in a general merchandise store for three years in Parksburg, Pennsylvania, and then was connected with a civil engineer corps for one year. In 1872 he went west and settled in Louis county, Iowa, where he managed a store until 1875. He then sold out, married and came to Shelby, Iowa, where he has since lived. He went into partnership with Dr. Campbell in the general mer-
chandise business and three years later sold his share and built a frame building, twenty-two by eighty feet. In this building he conducted his store until 1895, when he sold out and moved to his farm of two hundred and sixty acres which he had purchased in Shelby township in 1891. He farmed this for twenty-two years and made extensive improvements upon it, so that he had one of the most valuable farms in the township. He was an extensive breeder of Clydesdale horses, Poland-China hogs and Aberdeen Polled Angus cattle. He made many exhibits at county fairs and won several premiums on his cattle, horses and hogs: He gave special attention to the raising of cattle and averaged one hundred head every year. In 1912 Mr. Pomeroy sold out his farming interest, moved back to Shelby, Iowa, and took full possession of the Farmers Savings Bank. He owns twenty acres of land inside the corporate limits in addition to his beautiful city home.
Mr. Pomeroy was married November 2, 1876, to Mary McClurkin, who was born at Morning Sun, Iowa, in 1851, the daughter of Henry and Nancy Jane McClurkin was born in Indiana. To this union four children have been born: Elizabeth, a graduate of Grinnell College; William H., of Tulsa, Oklahoma, married Norine Wilson and has one child, William Henry, Jr.; Loren, a graduate of the Dental College of Chicago, a dentist at Avoca,
who married Mary Ethel Goodwin; Mrs. Alice Frum, of Dakota City, Nebraska.
Politically, Mr. Pomeroy is a member of the Republican party and has been one of his party's leaders for many years. As township trustee, as
school director and as county treasurer (1882-86), he has served his fellow citizens in a very efficient manner. The family are members of the Presbyterian church and have always taken an active part in all church work.
Source: 1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa, pp. 670-672.
Contributed by: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs
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There need be no introduction to the readers of this volume of the gentleman whose name heads this review. He was born in Shelby county;
he has lived his entire life of fifty-six years within the borders of the county; he has been successful as an agriculturist and is one of the best
known citizens of the county; he has received high honors from his fellow citizens and has been elevated to a high position of trust and responsibility in recognition of his ability and integrity. Few lives are more successful when we endeavor to measure the success of the individual by grouping the men of any community for the purpose of writing the individual life history of each as an adjunct to the history of the community in which they live.
George H. Miller, treasurer of Shelby county, and the son of Jacob J. Miller, a pioneer settler of the county, was born on October 10, 1858, on
a farm in section thirteen of Center township, six miles east of Harlan. He first saw the light of day in a log cabin erected by his father in 1857.
Jacob J. Miller was born in Germany, March 8, 1827, and died in this county in February, 1910. He emigrated to America with his father when a boy and the family settled in Indiana when that state was still in the pioneer era of development. Jacob J. was the son of Jacob and Catharine Miller, natives of the province of Alsace, Germany. They came to this country to found a home for themselves and their children as early as 1828. They
landed at Baltimore from a sailing vessel and lived there for one year. For six years following their brief residence in Baltimore they resided on a farm near Hagerstown, Maryland, and in the year 1834 the family removed to Butler county, Ohio. In January, 1845, they again migrated westward and settled in Elkhart county, Indiana, where Jacob, Sr., bought eighty acres of timber land which he cleared with incredible labor and created therefrom a fine farm which remained his home until his death at the age of sixty years. His worthy wife died in June, 1855. They were the parents of ten children.
Jacob J. was seventeen years of age when the family settled in Indiana. He remained under the parental roof for five years longer and was then
married on May 30, 1850, to Jane McConnell, a native of the old Buckeye state and daughter of James McConnell. The couple cleared a timber tract in Indiana and created a farm upon which they resided until 1857 when they moved to Iowa. It required twenty days for the family to make
the trip overland with a team of horses. On his arrival in Shelby county, he bought a farm of two hundred and twenty acres in Center township. Eleven acres of this land were cleared of brush and trees and a small log cabin erected, fourteen by sixteen feet in size. It was in this cabin that George H. was born not many months after the arrival of the family in Iowa. A part of the Miller farm had been previously entered or filed upon by a man named Dalton and forty acres of the Miller tract in section twelve had been filed upon by Dwight Terrill. Jacob J. was a large stock raiser and became very wealthy, at one time owning over one thousand acres of land. A considerable part of his extensive acreage was divided among his children, each child receiving eighty acres of land. He was a prominent figure in Shelby county for over fifty years and resided on his farm during all this period. In the years from 1862 to 1864 he served as a member of the board of county supervisors. He was a Democrat in politics. In February, 1910, this eminent pioneer citizen died. A few months later, in June, his faithful wife passed away. They were the parents of the following children: Mrs. Mary Catharine Philson, of Jackson township; Charles C., who died at the age of twenty-one years, May 7, 1874; Mrs. Susan P. Philson, deceased; George H.; Samuel L., deceased; Demiris J. Littleton, of Center township; John C., a well-known stock breeder of Jackson township.
George H. Miller received his primary education in the neighborhood school which was a small affair erected jointly by the heads of families who desired to educate their children. Even the seats in this primitive school house were furnished by the parents of the children. Mr. Miller attended
this school with O. P. Wyland and his brother John. He went to school during the winter months and assisted with the farm work during the spring and summer. At the age of twenty years (1878) he began farming for himself on his own farm of eighty acres received as a gift from his father. He broke up this tract of prairie land and placed it under cultivation. He soon afterward built a house and married when twenty-four years of age. In the year 1880 he bought a farm in Jefferson township which he later sold and bought an additional eighty acres in Center township in 1882 at a cost of thirty-one dollars an acre. In 1883 he added forty acres more at a cost of twenty dollars an acre and in 1891 he added one hundred acres which cost him thirty-two dollars an acre. Mr. Miller's holdings total four hundred and forty acres of fine land. He was a breeder of Shorthorn cattle for a number of years. He resided on his large farm until December of 1911, at which time he moved to Harlan for the purpose of taking up his duties of county treasurer. There are two good sets of farm buildings on his land which are kept in a good state of repair. He also owns a farm of one hundred and sixty acres near Defiance, which he bought in 1910.
Mr. Miller was united in marriage on February 22, 1882, to Mattie E. Carter, who was born in Jones county, and is a daughter of James Carter.
Mr. and Mrs. Miller have eight children: Charles J., a farmer in South Dakota, married and has a family of six children; Mrs. Lena Kemp, of
Douglas township, who is the mother of three children; Ralph, who is tilling the home farm in Center township and is the father of two children;
Ira, the telephone manager in Harlan; Glenn, a student in the medical department of the Nebraska State University at Lincoln, and who is pursuing
a six-years' course to be finished in 1917; Myrtle, a milliner, and residing at home; Verda, a student in Harlan high school, class of 1915; Walter,
also in high school, class of 1917.
Mr. Miller belongs to no lodges or fraternal organizations but is a staunch member of the Christian church, in which denomination he takes
considerable interest and lends it his moral and financial support. Politically, he has always been allied with the Republican party which became
his choice on the attainment of his majority. He has held many local offices and positions of trust and responsibility, having been administrator
of several large estates, among them being the Westrope estate, which was at the time of Mr. Westrope's demise the largest in Shelby county. He has filled various township offices, having served as assessor of Center township. He was elected county treasurer in 1910 by the narrow margin of
twelve votes and was again elected in the fall of 1912. The fact that his second election to this important office came without any opposition whatever from either of the political parties is evidence of the high esteem in which Mr. Miller is universally held throughout the county.
The influence of such a life as that of George H. Miller can not be properly estimated by earthly standards. His friends and associates know him in his outward life as a man of sterling worth, whose deeds have generally been actuated by the highest and best motives and whose successful
career is blameless.
Source: 1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa, pp. 672-675.
Contributed by: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs
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Prominent in the affairs of Shelby county and distinguished as a citizen whose influence is extended far beyond the limits of the community honored
by his residence, the name of Charles Escher, Jr., stands out a conspicuous figure among the successful farmers and live stock breeders of the locality of which this volume treats. All of his undertakings have been actuated by noble motives and high resolves and characterized by breadth of wisdom and strong individuality. His success and achievements but represent the result of fit utilization of innate talent in directing his efforts along those lines where mature judgment and rare discrimination lead the way.
Charles Escher, Jr., a prominent farmer and live stock breeder of Jefferson township, Shelby county, Iowa, was born September 4, 1872, in Iowa
county, Iowa. He is the son of Charles and Louise (Reisland) Esther, both of whom were natives of Germany. Charles Escher, Sr., came to this
country with his parents, John Escher and wife, when he was twelve years of age. Mr. and Mrs. John Escher and their family first settled in Berks
county, Pennsylvania. Here Charles Escher, Sr., lived until after he was married and in 1867 he moved to Linn county, Iowa, where he lived for a
time. He then moved to Jones county and later to Iowa county, where his son, Charles, whose history is here given, was born. He first owned
eighty acres of land in Iowa county, which he sold later; moving to Shelby county in 1876 when Charles, Jr., was four years old. He then purchased
two hundred and forty acres of land six miles west of Harlan. He kept adding to his land in Shelby and Audubon counties, until he owned about one
thousand one hundred and twenty acres of land by the fall of 1906. In January, 1884, the wife of Charles Escher, Sr., died, after which he moved
with his family to Harlan, where he lived until the spring of 1891. He then moved to the "Longbranch Farm," near Botna, where he lived until 1906.
He next went to Manning in Carroll county, where he lived for four years, and thence to Des Moines, where he is now living. Charles, Sr., was the
father of six children, Edwin F., Mrs. Emma Derr, Mrs. Clara McLaughlin, George W., Charles, Jr. (whose history is here set forth) and Samuel C.
Charles Escher, Jr., remained with his parents until he was married. He was given a good education in the common schools and later attended
the Harlan high school, after which he entered Cornell College, where he remained for one and one-half years. The father then desiring him to become
actively engaged with him in his extensive farming interests, he gave up his college career and in 1892 became his father's partner when he was twenty years of age. That year they began raising high grade live stock. In 1892 Mr. Escher moved to Irwin, in Jefferson township, where he lived until 1908. He had five farms, containing about fourteen hundred acres of land, under his charge near this town. He improved these farms and put them in good shape and bought his father's old home farm of four hundred acres, known as the "Long Branch Farm." He has acquired eighteen hundred acres of land paying from forty to one hundred and forty-six dollars and a half an acre for his land and now owns more land than any young man in the county. He has made all of this himself and deserves a great deal of credit for the remarkable career which he has made since becoming identified with the agricultural and stock raising interests of this county. He carries more insurance on farm buildings than any other one man in Shelby county. He has made a specialty of Aberdeen-Angus cattle and is the foremost breeder of this class in the United States, and is known throughout the world as an Aberdeen-Angus breeder of cattle. The following quotation from a souvenir issued by Mr. Escher is here given:
"We began breeding Aberdeen-Angus in 1892, and in the period that has intervened we have bred, bought and sold a great many cattle-probably more than any other breeder or firm in the Aberdeen-Angus cattle breeding business in America today. Our foundation herd numbered close to one
hundred head and when you consider from that time on we have made Aberdeen-Angus cattle breeding and steer feeding a practical farm work you
will better understand how, by honest dealing and never tiring effort, we have attained our present station. We have endeavored to keep step with
the march of progress, and the degree with which we have succeeded is best evidenced by the work we have performed. Our transactions reveal a large volume of business but our record is untainted and our cattle have been making good. Our customers remain our warmest friends. We have made four importations from Scotland in the past ten years and these importations aggregate one hundred and fifty head and in the judgment of Britain's great authorities, 'She gave up her best.' Our record as purchasers of 'tops' at America's leading sales in the past twenty years stands without a peer in Aberdeen-Angus history today. Our continued purchases at home and abroad, along with the natural increase gives us the largest herd of strictly high-class cattle in this country. If we were making a grand parade we could pass the judge's stand with a string of Doddies one and one-half miles long by allowing each of the cattle a space of ten feet. There have been fourteen international shows and we have shown at seven of them and have never been lower than second place. We have won more championships than any other exhibitor and are the only exhibitors who have produced a grand champion car load and held the reserve champion load at the same show and this we did twice in succession, in 1911 and 1913."
Mr. Escher has an annual sale, usually in the spring, which is attended by buyers from all over the United States. In the spring of 1914 the sale was held on Wednesday and Thursday, April first and second.
Mr. Escher has sold animals singly or in car load lots to the following states: Washington, Oregon, Utah, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina; South Carolina, Pennsylvania, New York, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Maine and Canada. The Aberdeen-Angus Association records reveal the
facts that Mr. Escher and his father have raised, recorded, bought and sold more registered Aberdeen-Angus cattle than any breeder or firm in the business today. They have made four importations from Scotland as follows: 1900, 1902, 1906 and 1909, and during those years have imported a grand total of one hundred and fifty head of cattle and in the words of Great Britain's authorities along this line, "We purchased their best at prices as high as one thousand to one thousand five hundred dollars each for prize winning animals." Mr. Escher has twice been director of the National Aberdeen-Angus Breeders' Association.
Mr. Escher is a Democrat in politics and is a man of great influence in his party in county and state affairs. He was county supervisor for one
term and was a member of the state legislature of Iowa at the thirty-fourth general assembly. While in the legislature, he introduced a bill creating an
appropriation for the encouragement of the beef cattle industry in Iowa. He succeeded in getting the bill passed. Subsequently, he was elected president of the Iowa Beef Producers' Association, an organization which he helped to establish. He has been elected president of this association at each annual session since its organization and has always taken an active interest in everything pertaining to its welfare. He has served as judge on numerous occasions at the Chicago International, Des Moines, Lincoln, Denver, Fort Worth, St. Paul and Huron, South Dakota, stock shows. He was appointed a delegate by Governor Shaw to represent Iowa at the National Live Stock Association's meeting at Fort Worth in 1901. In 1905 he was reappointed by Governor Albert Cummings to represent Iowa at the same association's annual meeting in Denver.
Mr. Escher was married November 21, 1894, to Myrtle Ryan. She was born August 2, 1875, in Poweshiek county, Iowa, and is the daughter
of Thomas and Mary (Grant) Ryan, natives of New York and Iowa, respectively. Mary Grant was the daughter of Henry Grant, a native of Glasgow, Scotland, and an early settler of Iowa. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Ryan are the parents of five children Myrtle (the wife of Mr. Escher) Robert R., Earl C., Voda and Grace.
Mr. Escher and his wife are loyal supporters of the Methodist Episcopal church and one of his brothers, George W., is a minister of that denomination. Mr. Escher is a man of genial personality and one of the best known men, not only in his own home county but throughout the state of Iowa. He has a beautiful residence site and is planning the erection of a handsome home in the near future.
Source: 1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa, pp. 675-678.
Contributed by: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs
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It is generally considered by those in the habit of superficial thinking that the history of so-called great men only is worthy of preservation, and
that little merit exists among the masses to call forth the praises of the historian or the cheers and the appreciation of mankind. A greater mistake
was never made. No man is great in all things. Many, by a lucky stroke, achieve lasting fame who before that had no reputation beyond the limits
of their immediate neighborhoods. It is not a history of the lucky stroke which benefits humanity most, but the long study and effort which made the
lucky stroke possible. It is the preliminary work, the method, that serves as a guide for the success of others. Among those in Shelby county who
have achieved success along steady lines of action is Nels Bisgard, of Harlan.
Among the hundreds of Danish emigrants who have attained to a definite prosperity in this county there is no one more worthy of mention in this
volume than Nels Bisgard, who was born in the little peninsula of Jutland in 1888. His parents, Christ and Mary (Justisen) Bisgard, were born in
Denmark in 1835 and 1843, respectively, and lived in the land of their birth until 1890. Christ Bisgard was a farmer in his own country, and the glowing reports which he received from his countrymen in the United States regarding the fortunes which were to be made here, induced him to bring
his family to this country and settle in Shelby county, Iowa. Upon coming here he commenced farming in Monroe township, and later purchased land
in Lincoln township. During the years that he managed his farming interests in this county he proved to be very successful, and in 1910 he retired
from active farm life and moved to Harlan, where he is now living. Christ Bisgard and wife are the parents of eleven children, six of whom are still
living.
Nels Bisgard was only two years of age when his parents left Denmark and came to the United States, and consequently has but very little remembrance of his native land. He also has the distinctive advantage of being brought up in this country and thereby acquiring a knowledge of the English language and American customs. His parents gave him an excellent education and after graduating from the high school at Harlan he went to the State University at Iowa City, Iowa, where he took a course in liberal arts. When twenty-three years of age he embarked in the grocery and queensware business in Harlan, and although engaged in this business only three years, yet he has demonstrated that he has peculiar fitness for a business career. He has a modern store, equipped with all the latest fixtures for the display of his goods in an effective manner. He carries a large stock of all goods which are usually found in an establishment of this character, and by his deferential treatment of his customers and his strict business integrity, he has built up a large and lucrative trade. Starting in with a small stock he has gradually increased it until he now carries about six thousand dollars' worth of stock on hand at all times.
Mr. Bisgard was married in 1913 to Lillie Mae Sorensen, who was born in 1890 in Nebraska, the daughter of James G. Sorensen. Mr. Bisgard
and wife are both loyal and earnest members of the Baptist church at Harlan, and are in hearty sympathy with the good work done by this denomination and help it in every way possible.
In politics, Mr. Bisgard identifies himself with the Republican party, but owing to his heavy business interests, he is not enabled to take an active
part in political affairs. He is still a young man with a bright future before him, and the energy and ability which he has displayed since engaging in
business for himself, shows that he has a long and prosperous career before him. No young man of the city is more interested in the growth and development of his community and every enterprise which he feels will benefit in any way receives his hearty endorsement.
Source: 1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa, pp. 678-680.
Contributed by: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs
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The Ruffcorn family have been prominent members of the various communities in which they have lived in the United States from Colonial
times. Pressley H. Ruffcorn, whose history is here presented, was a distinguished soldier of the Civil war. His grandfather, Lewis Ruffcorn, was
a member of a Pennsylvania regiment in the War of 1812, while his great-grandfather, Simon, fought throughout the Revolutionary war. It is no
small honor to be a member of such a distinguished family and Pressley H. Ruffcorn is a worthy scion of a family which has performed such a prominent part in the history of his country from the time of its organization. As a resident of this county for the past thirty years he has given the community in which he lives the benefit of his talents, not only in the way of adding to its material prosperity, but as a member of the body of officials
which has administered its civic duties.
Pressley H. Ruffcorn was born in Fayette county, Pennsylvania, March 26, 1844 and is the son of John and Eunice (Smith) Ruffcorn. John
Ruffcorn, the son of Lewis Ruffcorn, the son of Simon Ruffcorn, was born in Pennsylvania in the latter part of the eighteenth century and was reared
to manhood in his native state. He was married December 6, 1832, to Eunice Smith, a native of Maryland. He lived in Pennsylvania until 1867, when he moved to Adams county, Illinois, where he died in 1883. The first wife of John Ruffcorn died February 13, 1858, and he then married
Susan Dawson, but there were no children by his second marriage. By his first marriage John Ruffcorn became the father of fourteen children: Simon,
Elizabeth, George W., Henry, Catherine, James, Pressley, Mary, Lewis, Leander, Susan, Nancy, Ellen and John. All of these children are deceased with the exception of Lewis, Leander, John, Pressley and Ellen.
Pressley H. Ruffcorn was educated in the schools of his native state and remained at home until the opening of the Civil war, when he enlisted
September 21, 1861, as a member of Company B, Eighty-fifth Regiment Pennsylvania Infantry, and served for three years. He was mustered out
November 22, 1864, at Petersburg, Virginia, after having participated in many of the bloodiest battles of that memorable conflict. After being mustered out he was sent to Savannah as a detail from Portsmouth, Virginia, guarding provisions and did not get home until December. His record in the war may be briefly summed up as follows: He left home in December, 1861, and camped in winter of 1861 at Washington, D. C. In March, 1862, he marched to Alexandria, and embarked for Old Point Comfort, landing April 1, 1862. He then marched to Yorktown and got his first introduction to warfare; fought at Williamsburg in General McClellan's Peninsular Campaign of 1862 and fell back to Fair Oaks or Seven Pines and fought a battle May 30, 1862. He participated in the Seven Days' battle and retired to Malvern Hill, Harrison's Landing, where his division lay behind fortifications until August 16. Then he marched against Fortress Monroe. In October, 1862, he went to Suffolk on Hampton Roads, fighting many skirmishes on the way.
December 5, 1862, he marched to Chowan River and took transports to Newborn, South Carolina. He went on an eighteen-day expedition across North Carolina and fought battles at Kentstown and Goldsboro Bridge across Neuse River. In February, 1863, he was transported to Fort Royal, St. Helena Island, South Carolina. In March he was taken to Folly Island, south of Charleston, a fortified island, and on July 16, 1863, took possession of the south end of Manis Island. July 18, 1863, his regiment was badly repulsed at Ft. Wayne. Until April, 1864, he guarded islands and was then returned to Fortress Monroe. They landed on transports and run up James River to Bermuda Hundred, arriving there May 6, 1864. Under General Q. A. Gilmore, they began siege of fortifications and were attacked by Generals Beauregard and Longstreet and driven back. Gilmore's army remained there during May and June, fighting many battles. They spent the rest of the summer in Petersburg campaign. He enlisted when seventeen years of age. He was never sick for a day, always with his company and on duty and on the firing line. Immediately after the close of his enlistment he returned to his home in Pennsylvania and remained there until February, 1866. At that time he went to Illinois and worked as a farm hand for one man until 1870. He saved his money and with the small amount which he had accumulated during his four years as a farm hand he went to Iowa and located in Dubuque county. He married while living in the latter county and lived there until 1884, when he came to Shelby county, Iowa, and located in Union township. He first bought one hundred and sixty acres of land and has since increased his land holdings to two hundred and eighty acres, all of which is well improved and in a high state of cultivation. He continued to work upon the farm until 1912, when he retired from active farm life and moved to Defiance, where he and his family are now living, surrounded by all the comforts and conveniences of modern life.
Mr. Ruffcorn has been twice married, his first marriage occurring May 8, 1873, to Josephine Hooper, the daughter of James and Sarah Hooper,
and to this first union four children were born: Frank, Mary, William and Elmer. Frank is single; Mary is the wife of Henry Davis; William married
Laura Scott, and they have one daughter, Vera; Elmer married Fossie Cox, and has one daughter, Elsie. The mother of these four children died in October, 1880, and a few years later Mr. Ruffcorn married Flora Batchelder, the daughter of Daniel Webster and Myra (Wooster) Batchelder, and to this
second union five children were born: Olin, Albert, Everett, Wayne and Alice. Olin married Floy Wickersham; Albert married May Hunter, and
has one son, Howard Gayle. The history of Albert is given elsewhere in this volume. Everett, Wayne and Alice are still single.
Mrs. Ruffcorn's parents were natives of New Hampshire and early settlers in Jones county, Iowa. Her father was a stone mason by trade and
was working in the gold mines of Colorado when he was killed by falling timbers in the mine. His widow and her children then moved to Dubuque
county, Iowa, and lived there for several years. Mrs. Batchelder is now living in Sacramento, California. Eight children were born to Daniel W.
Batchelder and wife: Narcissus, Flora, Caroline, Mary, Francis, Eunice, Webster, Albert and Emery.
Mr. Ruffcorn has always been identified with the interests of the Republican party, and has given it his unswerving support since he cast his
first vote in 1865. Since coming to this county he has served four years on the board of supervisors, and previously filled the important office of trustee of Union township for six years. He has always been interested in every movement which promises to benefit his community, and has taken a leading part in the various activities connected with the growth of his township and county. He is a man of sterling integrity and rugged honesty,
and is well deserving of the high esteem in which he is universally held throughout the county.
Source: 1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa, pp. 680-682.
Contributed by: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs
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Among the representative farmers of Shelby county is the subject of this sketch, who is the owner of a fine tract of land in Polk township and who is
winning well merited success in his chosen field of endeavor. Mr. Jensen always has been a hard worker, a good manager and a man of economical
habits and while in the course of his career he has met with such reverses as might well discourage a man of less determination, it only has served to urge him forward with renewed zeal toward the goal he had set for himself.
John P. Jensen is of that class of worthy citizens which traces its origin to the land of Denmark In that country he was born on March 14, 1863,
being a son of Jens and Inger Marie (Kjerr) Christensen. There were originally eleven children in the family, eight of whom are still living, namely -
Chris and Anna (Mrs. Madison) who live in the state of Illinois; Carl, of Audubon county, this state, and Christena (Mrs. Jensen), who lives in Harlan; Andras, Cillius and Stena (Mrs. Larson) have remained in their native country, where both the parents died and lie buried. They were of the farmer class and in that calling the subject received his earliest training. Consequently, it was but natural that he should turn to the soil for means of subsistence when he came to this country at the age of twenty years. He first located in Illinois, near Clifton, where for five years he hired out by the
month to the farmers of the locality. Not being fully satisfied with the opportunities offered in that state, he came to Shelby county in 1888, locating
near Harlan, and here for two more years he labored as he had done in Illinois. In 1890 he rented a tract of one hundred acres in Center township,
which he tilled for one year and succeeded so admirably that by that time he felt justified in making the purchase of one hundred and sixty acres in Lincoln county, Nebraska. However, he was most unfortunate in this purchase, for the immediately succeeding seasons were so dry his crops were an entire failure and he lost practically all he possessed. In spite of loss and disappointment, he returned to this locality and with grim determination set about securing a tract of land for rent. He found something to his liking and for nine more years was a renter. Prospering in his undertaking he then made the purchase of one hundred and twenty acres in section II of Polk township. In 1909 he purchased eighty additional acres adjoining in section 10 of the same township. He engages in general farming and applies himself with intelligence to the, raising of live stock. He feeds about ninety hogs annually, has forty-six head of high grade Shorthorn cattle and eleven head of good horses which he employs in the work about the farm. He also sells considerable cream, the same being produced by his fourteen excellent much cows. Altogether, Mr. Jensen is winning success in a manner most gratifying to himself and his warm circle of friends.
On August 5, 1895, Mr. Jensen was united in marriage with Mary Bisgard, also a native of Denmark, born on August 6, 1876, a daughter of Chris
and Maren Bisgard. The entire family emigrated to this country in 1890, when Mrs. Jensen was about twelve years old. She is one of a family of six
surviving children, the others being James, Soren, Chris, Peter and Nels. To Mr. and Mrs. Jensen have been born an interesting family of five children,
all of whom remain with the parents. Edna was born on March 27, 1896; Bertha, September 12, 1898; Clifford, July 13, 1899; Emma, August 6,
1901, and Edward, August 5, 1903. It is the ambition of the parents that these children shall be well educated and trained in such manner as to fit them for useful places in the world. Edna, the eldest daughter, was a student at the college at Harlan for one term.
Mr. Jensen and his family are members of the Danish Baptist church and are among those most actively interested in the work of the local society, being held in high esteem as among the most worthy families of their district. Mr. Jensen's political affiliation is with the Republican party, in the affairs of which he has taken more than a passing interest. He was treasurer of the school board, having served efficiently in that capacity for seven years, to the satisfaction of all concerned.
The story of Mr. Jensen's struggles is not an uncommon one in the history of our western states and may well serve as an object lesson to those who would mount the ladder of success, for it is only through honest endeavor and unfailing perseverance in any field of endeavor that the goal
of success can be attained. While Mr. Jensen has been busy with his private affairs, he has sought also to bear in mind his duty as a citizen and, as the father of a growing family, has endeavored in all possible ways to elevate the general tone of the community in which he found his lot cast, and in which he expects his children to do their full part in due time. He has done this so consistently that he is eminently deserving of the high regard in which he is held by all who know him.
Source: 1915 Past and Present of Shelby County, Iowa, pp. 1398-1400.
Contributed by: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs
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