89her, grain and live stock business at Davey, Nebraska, twelve miles north of Lincoln. He continued in that connection for four years, or until 1891, after which he purchased a grain and live stock business at Marquette, Nebraska, where he operated until the spring of 1906. He then moved to Kearney, Buffalo county, and sold his business at Marquette. The money from this sale was invested in four hundred acres of land in Hamilton and Dawson counties and he is now superintending the raising, shipping and feeding of stock upon that ranch, although he makes his home in Kearney. He specializes in the raising of Duroc Jersey hogs and is one of the prominent representatives of the business in this part of the state, carefully and wisely directing his interests, so that excellent results accrue.
On the 20th of February, 1890, in Fremont, Nebraska, Mr. Tarbell was united in marriage to Miss Sue Roseman, a daughter of Edward D. and Mary T. Roseman. Mrs. Tarbell is a member of the Methodist church. Mr. Tarbell is serving on the board of the Carnegie library of Kearney and is always interested in public affairs relating to the welfare and improvement of the community. He usually votes the republican ticket but considers the capability and character of the candidate and he always favors the temperance cause, doing everything in his power to promote temperance principles. His life has been honorable and upright. Manly and sincere at all times, he has enjoyed the respect, confidence and good will of his fellowmen and by well directed activity in business affairs he has attained creditable and desirable success, ultimately winning a place among the substantial citizens of his adopted county.
RAYMOND L. HART, M. D.
Dr. Raymond L. Hart, actively engaged in the general practice of medicine in Amherst and also figuring prominently in business circles as the vice president of the First National Bank there, was born in Meigs county, Ohio, August 6, 1872, his parents being James and Elizabeth J. (Hayes) Hart, the former a native of New Jersey and the latter of Ohio, in which state they were married. Having removed to Ohio, James Hart there enlisted for service in the Civil war as a member of the Eighteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He lost his eyesight while with the army, although he later recovered it. When his son Raymond was ten years of age he removed with the family to Nebraska, settling in Fairfield, Clay county, where his remaining days were passed, his death there occurring three years ago.
Dr. Hart was reared upon the old homestead farm in Clay county until he was fifteen years of age, but, not wishing to follow the occupation of farming, he determined upon a professional career, and with that end in view, after having been employed in a drug store for some time, he entered the medical department of the State University of Iowa, in which he completed a course by graduation on the 1st of March, 1897. On the 22d of October of the same year he located for practice in Amherst, where he has since remained, and during the nineteen years which have since elapsed his professional progress and advancement have been continuous, as wide reading and study have kept him in touch with the
90HISTORY OF BUFFALO COUNTY general trend of improvement in methods of medical and surgical practice. He is a member of the Buffalo County, the Nebraska State and the American Medical Associations. Aside from his practice his business interests connect him with the First National Bank of Amherst, of which he is the vice president.
Dr. Hart was united in marriage to Miss Lottie Crable, a native of Nebraska and a daughter of David Crable. They have one child, Helen Dorothea. Dr. Hart belongs to the Modern Woodmen Camp of Amherst, and in Masonic circles has attained high rank. He holds membership with the lodge at Miller and with the chapter and commandery at Kearney, and he exemplifies in his life the beneficent spirit of the craft, which is based upon a recognition of the brotherhood of mankind and of the obligations thereby imposed.
HON. FRANCIS GREGG HAMER.
PortraitHon. Francis Gregg Hamer of Kearney is serving as a judge eof the supreme court of the state, and is regarded as one of the most capable jurists who has ever graced the court of last resort, the profession acknowledging him the peer of any member of the appellate court. His decisions indicate strong mentality. a careful analysis, a thorough knowledge of the law, patient examination of the case and an unbiased judgment. His has been a life of usefulness stretching out from the pioneer period in Nebraska's history to the present era of advancement and progress. Throughout the years his influence has been a potent force in advancing material, intellectual and moral progress.
A native of Ohio, Judge Hamer was born in Seneca county on the 20th of February, 1843, and is the eldest of a family of four children whose parents were Francis and Mary (Mahan) Hamer, both of whom were born near Canton, Ohio. The father was a farmer by occupation and in following agricultural pursuits provided for the support of his family. His first wife died about 1852. Shortly afterward he removed to Indiana and settled in Carroll county near the place where the village of Flora was afterward built. After the lapse of two years he married Mrs. Rebecca Stoops and they became the parents of three children. He was a man of marked diligence and unusual industry, which qualities enabled him to accumulate a competence. He gave each of his children a small farm or its equivalent in other property. He enjoyed but ordinary educational privileges but being a wide reader he became unusually well informed and was a man of liberal and progressive views. He and his two brothers, David and Daniel, were active in the affairs of the neighborhood and particularly in all matters of public interest. They led at the neighborhood debates of whatever character they might be, and Indiana is a state where public discussion is common. He died in his eighty-third year, known to all in his locality for his broad and kindly spirit and his desire to help those who were unable to help themselves.
Francis G. Hamer obtained something of the rudiments of an education in his native state. He was quite a speller and reader although at the time of the removal he was a little less than ten years of age. Since he was large enough he began to work with his father and uncles in clearing the little farms which they owned. He could soon cut down trees and pick brush. He also helped to
93HISTORY OF BUFFALO COUNTY pile up the logs and to burn them off the ground. He assisted in planting and harvesting the crops. The first year after arriving at the Indiana home he followed his father who cut the wheat with a cradle. He raked the wheat up in bundles and one of the uncles bound it. A few years later the father and the uncles had cleared enough of the land so as to give employment in cutting the wheat crop to seven or eight cradlers. At the age of sixteen he attended school at Delphi, the county seat. There were fifty young men and young women in the advanced grade. Subsequently he attended school near Springfield, Illinois, for the period of eighteen months. He there frequently saw Abraham Lincoln in the streets of Springfield. At the end of this time he returned home and was employed as a district school teacher within three miles of where his father lived. He taught during a period covering three winters. In this he was reasonably successful and took great pride in it. When he returns now to the old neighborhood where he was reared he still visits the pupils of the old district school where he taught. When he was twenty years old he went to Indianapolis and became a student in the law office of George K. Perrin and William R. Manlove. Later he continued his legal education in the law school at Indianapolis. He was one of forty-five students, some of whom have become quite distinguished in their profession.
Judge Hamer attributes much of his success to the fact that he became a member of a literary and debating society when he was at the age of eighteen years. He continued in that society until he reached the age of twenty-six. There were several men in the society who were then prominent, and others who afterward became successful. There was one general, one colonel, one lecturer, two editors, several lawyers and a group of young men who became successful politicians and preachers. It was the habit in that society to investigate and talk about the questions which were then of interest to the public. Often these debates were very spirited. Judge Hamer became a debater early in life and is of the opinion that his experience in the debating society has very much assisted him in his efforts as a trial lawyer.
Judge Hamer came to Nebraska in December, 1869. He was in Omaha a short time and then went to Lincoln. It was January 7, 1870, when he arrived at Lincoln. There he at once entered upon the active work of his profession. It only took him about six months to acquire a business which enabled him to live in a modest way. He continued to live at Lincoln until the 29th of June, 1872, when he came to Kearney, which at that time had no existence except on the map. It was a place yet to be. On December 6, 1869, Judge Hamer was married to Miss Rebecca A. McCord of Delphi, Indiana. Up to the time that Judge Hamer went on the supreme bench he gave a great deal of his time to building up the city of Kearney. He was the first lawyer to locate here, and he immediately began to work industriously for the town. He was soon a very busy lawyer. He was employed in nearly all the important cases in the western part of the state. Much of his business came from other lawyers who secured him to assist in the trial of their cases. He was diligent to study the evidence before the case was tried. He saw the witnesses, if possible, and ascertained what they were likely to swear to. If their testimony was probably unfriendly he did all that he could to anticipate it. He saw the witnesses on the other side. He also studied the law of the case with great energy. However forcible others might
94HISTORY OF BUFFALO COUNTY be there were none more forcible than he. Every contest was like a boxing match. If the case was a close one and only an application of the law might win it he was full of research and ingenuity. He has always displayed remarkable clearness of expression and an adequate and precise diction which enabled him to make the courts and the juries understand the salient points of his argument. He was full of a fine gradation of meaning and was generally able to make dictinction [sic] between the case which he represented and the one which was cited against him. He has been engaged in the trial of all kinds of cases. He was first famous in the trial of criminal cases where he appeared for the defense, but subsequently he tried many civil cases and in these civil cases, often to be won by the application of some legal principle not clearly understood, he was almost universally successful. He would find a new application of the law for which he would never cease to contend. He was nearly always, capable of reversing the judgment of the district court when that court was against him. He would find some sort of substantial error that entitled him to a new trial. He could work agreeably with almost any lawyer. While he had plenty of self-respect he did not appear to be vain. If the other lawyer was against him he tried to beat him and then made friends with him. He was not always successful in the case, but he nearly always made a friend of the lawyer.
In December, 1883, he was appointed judge of the district court of the tenth judicial district of Nebraska to fill a vacancy caused by the death of the Hon. Samuel L. Savidge. He immediately plunged into the work of this district. It was about three hundred miles long by one hundred and fifty miles wide. In 1884 he was elected to fill out the unexpired term and was afterward reelected in 1888.. He served as district judge a little more than eight years. Prior to this he had been a candidate for the nomination for supreme judge of the state. He was the high man in the contest until the last ballot gave a narrow majority to the Hon. Manoah B. Reese, who has since been chief justice and who served two terms on the supreme bench. In the fall of 1891 he was defeated by Silas A. Holcomb by an official vote of thirteen, Mr. Holcomb serving as judge three vears, and then becoming governor of the state. Judge Hamer then resumed his practice as a lawyer and immediately built up a splendid business. He went all over the state and tried contested cases in very many of the important county seats. In the fall of 1911 he was elected as a member of the supreme bench, and in January, 1912, entered upon his present term of office. He is devotedly attached to the profession of the law. He is systematic and methodical in his habits. He is always a sober man and conscientious in the discharge of his duty as a judge. While he is inflexibly just and is ready to punish the guilty, he is never inclined to be severe against those who have not been properly convicted. In such cases his tendency is to reverse the judgment of the district court so that the man who has been mistreated may get a fair trial. His reported opinions show a careful study of the evidence and the law applicable to the case, together with profound legal learning, superior ability and impartial judgment.
Judge and Mrs. Hamer have become parents of a son and daughter: Thomas Francis, a prominent member of the Kearney bar and a busy trial lawyer; and Grace Julia, the wife of Jacob Kanzler, a lawyer of Portland, Oregon. In politics Judge Hamer has always been a republican. He formerly loved hunting and was an expert rifle shot, but in his later years he has given this up because
95HISTORY OF BUFFALO COUNTY of his growing dislike to deprive any living thing of life. He is inclined to make friends of the younger members of the bar and ready to lend a helping hand where he may properly do so.
MRS. REBECCA A. HAMER.
PortraitMrs. Rebecca A. Hamer, wife of Francis G. Hamer, has had much of the life of a pioneer. She was born and reared at Delphi, Indiana, where she became a teacher and was so engaged up to the time of her marriage. Her father was a successful farmer and one of the substantial men of the neighborhood in which he lived. His name was William McCord. He was the father of two sons and six daughters.
Mrs. Hamer was a homesteader with her husband. It was not properly a homestead but a preemption. It consisted of one hundred and sixty acres northwest of Kearney and extending down to within a mile and a half of the postoffice. It was a small house that was built on this land. At the end of nineteen months Mrs. Hamer and her husband left the claim and moved to the new home they had built in Kearney.
Mrs. Hamer has given considerable time to the care of her two children, Thomas Francis and Grace Julia. She had a mother's anxiety for their success and to that end she instructed and advised them. She was full of entertainment and talked to them in such a way as to claim their attention and win their confidence. They still rely upon her as the good mother whom they may always trust. In all the years they have lived together she has been a loyal and competent assistant to her husband. By her sterling qualities she has won the confidence and goodwill of her neighbors.
WILLIAM SHRADER
William Shrader, an alert and enterprising farmer of Garfield township, living on section 24, was born in Wayne county, Iowa, June 6, 1870, a son of Casper and Anna (Gereke) Shrader, both of whom were natives of Germany, whence they came to America in childhood days with their respective parent. They were residents of Iowa and were married in that state, where they continued to reside until 1877, when they removed to Kansas, spending a number of years in that locality. In 1890 they arrived in Buffalo county and the father purchased the north half of section 24, Garfield township. Upon that farm the mother passed away the following year and ten years afterward Mr. Shrader moved to Ravenna, where he has since made his home with a daughter.
William Shrader acquired a common school education in Kansas and was twenty years of age when the family removed to Buffalo county. The following year he began farming on his own account, cultivating rented land for three years, after which he spent six years as superintendent for H. J. Robinson of Shelton, Nebraska, who controls extensive ranching interests. In that connec-
96HISTORY OF BUFFALO COUNTY tion Mr. Shrader fed eighteen thousand head of sheep. The position was an excellent one, but he desired to engage in business on his own account that his labors might more directly benefit himself, and in 1901 he bought eighty acres of land in Cherry Creek township, upon which he resided for five years. In 1906 he invested in his present farm, comprising two hundred and forty acres of land, and in 1911 he also added to his property holdings by the purchase of one hundred and sixty acres adjoining Paola, Kansas. Upon that place there is a gas well, which furnishes a portion of the gas for Paola. He has displayed sound judgment in making his investments, and keen sagacity characterizes his management of all his business interests. In addition to his agricultural interests he is a stockholder in the local telephone company at Ravenna and in the telephone company at Paola, Kansas.
Mr. Shrader has been married twice. His first wife, whom he wedded in 1892, died in 1908, and in September, 19141 he married Miss Daisy Woodward of Lincoln, Nebraska. To his first marriage there were born two children, one of whom, Walter, is now living.
In politics Mr. Shrader is a republican, keenly interested in the party and its success but never seeking public office. His religious faith is evidenced by his membership in the Methodist church, to the teachings of which he is most loyal. All who know him esteem him highly. He has lived in this county throughout the entire period of his majority and the sterling traits of his manhood have endeared him to those with whom he has come in contact, his fellow townsmen recognizing him as a representative business man and a public-spirited citizen.
GEORGE L. GARDNER.
George L. Gardner, who was the first settler of Gardner township, still owns four hundred and eighty acres of land in that township but makes his home in Shelton. He is enjoying a period of rest and leisure to which his labor in former years justly entitles him. His birth occurred in New York state, July 22, 1843, and his parents were William T. and Eunice B. (Roushey) Gardner, also natives of the Empire state. They were married there but subsequently removed to Pennsylvania, and in 1878 they came to Buffalo county, Nebraska. While living in New York the father followed the tanner's trade but engaged in farming in Pennsylvania and in this state.
George L. Gardner is one of a family of six children, four of whom are still living. He was given excellent educational advantages, as after completing the course offered in the common schools he attended the Smithfield Academy and the Waverly Institute at Waverly, New York. He remained at home until 1861, when, as a youth of eighteen years, he enlisted in Company F, Sixth Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, with which he served at the front for three years and two months. He enlisted as a private but was promoted to the rank of sergeant, and his record is one of which he has every right to be proud. He was engaged in forty-two battles, including the seven days' fight before Richmond; Bull Run, which continued for three days; and Antietam, in which he was shot through the right lung. This wound incapacitated him for military
97HISTORY OF BUFFALO COUNTY service for three months, but as soon as he had recovered he returned to the firing line and fought in the three days' battle of Gettysburg; in the battle of the Wilderness, which also lasted for three days; in the battle of Spottsylvania Courthouse, a six days' engagement; in the four days' battle at North Anna river; and in the last battle of Cold Harbor. He was mustered out at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, June 1l, 1864, and returned home, where he remained until the spring of 1875. In that year he came to Buffalo county, Nebraska, and took up land in what is now Gardner township. He was the first settler within the limits of that township, which was named for him, and he had to face all of the obstacles that usually confront the pioneer. However, he had faith in the future of the county and persevered in his work of developing a farm from the wilderness, and brought his land to a high state of cultivation. As the years passcd the township increased in population and the inconveniences and hardships of pioneer life gave way to the advantages of an advanced civilization. He still owns four hundred and eighty acres of land, but since 1895 has lived retired in Shelton, where he owns a fine residence.
Mr. Gardner was married in 1883 to Miss Anna L. Walters, by whom he had five children: Edna N., the wife of G. L. Bastian; Clara, the deceased wife of Ralph R. Bennett; Lois E, who was principal of the local schools for four years but is now teaching in the high school at Scotts Bluff; Mary E., who is principal of the Morrill high school; and Elma, who died in infancy. The wife and mother passed away in May, 1899, and was buried in helton cemetery. In June, 1915, Mr. Gardner was again married, Mrs. Laura Wickwire becoming his wife.
Mr. Gardner casts his ballot in support of the candidates and measures of the republican party and served for two terms as supervisor of Buffalo county. Fraternally he is identified with Shelton Lodge, No. 99, A. F. & A. M, in which he has filled the position of master for four years, and he is also a member of Joe Hooker Post, No. 28, G. A. R, thus keeping in touch with his army comrades of former days. His wife is a member of the Presbyterian church. The same public spirit which prompted him to offer his life if need be to preserve the union has manifested itself in times of peace in a willingness to subordinate private interests to the general welfare and a readiness to cooperate in movements seeking the advancement of his community.
MENTOR A. BROWN.
Mentor A. Brown, publisher of the daily and semi-weekly Hub at Kearney and well known as a representative of journalistic interests in western Nebraska, was born at Janesville, Wisconsin, on the 19th of February, 1853. He is a son of Jeremiah and Ann (Pound) Brown, both of whom were graduates of Milton College, famous in the early educational annals of the Badger state. The mother died in Grant county, Wisconsin, during the infancy of their son Mentor, and the father afterward married again. He died while serving the Union cause during the Civil war when with Sherman on his famous march to the sea.
In 1866 Mentor A. Brown went to Jefferson, Iowa, and there when thirteen years of age began his career in the "art preservative" as printer's devil on the
98HISTORY OF BUFFALO COUNTY Jefferson New Era. He started westward in 1870 and for a time worked as journeyman printer at Council Bluffs, at Omaha and at Nebraska City. In 1871 he was employed on the Beatrice Express, and subsequently acquired a financial interest in that paper. In 1888 he came to Kearney and on the 22d of October of that year established the daily Hub and continued the publication of the semi-weekly Hub as a continuation of the Central Nebraska Press. He has since issued both papers and through their columns has become a potent factor in the upbuilding of Kearney and the substantial development of Buffalo county. He stanchly champions every measure and movement for the general good and as the years have gone on has exerted his efforts and his influence along lines which have been far-reaching and beneficial.
Mr. Brown has been twice married and is the father of five living children, namely: Mabel L., who is the wife of C. E. Eustice, of Auburn, Nebraska; Olive, who is Mrs. George H. Connell, of Galt, California; Ulysses A. and Oliver F, who are connected with the Hub; and Hugh R.
In his political views Mr. Brown is a republican, well informed on the questions and issues of the day and able to support his position by intelligent argument or terse, well written editorials. In religious faith he is an Episcopalian, and fraternally is identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He belongs also to the Commercial Club and heartily cooperates in its various plans and measures to further the welfare and progress of Kearney and the county. In 1904 he was appointed postmaster of Kearney and ably served in that capacity for eight years.
WALTER WARREN BARNEY.
PortraitIt has often been said that death loves a shining mark, and .this statement seemed to find verification when Walter Warren Barney, of Kearney, was called to the home beyond. He was a most popular citizen who deserved the high esteem and honor in which he was held. He was born at Roanoke, Illinois, October 23, 1862, a son of Calvin E. and Eliza (Morrison) Barney. The father was of English lineage, the family having been established in Vermont during colonial days, while the mother was of English nativity. W. W. Barney was reared in Roanoke and there attended school to the age of fifteen years, after which he removed to Pekin. About the year 1880 the family became residents of Nebraska and there Calvin E. Barney resumed the practice of law in a small way, while W. W. Barney secured a clerkship in the store of George Kramer, with whom he remained for a time. Later he was appointed to the position of deputy under Mr. Scott and later served under Homer J. Allen, who was then county treasurer, and subsequently, under the firm name of Allen & Barney, he wrote up a set of abstract of titles to Buffalo county lands and in connection therewith embarked in the real estate business, that partnership continuing until the death of Mr. Allen. Mr. Barney then succeeded to the business and later his sons became identified with him. He remained in the business until his demise and made steady progress along that line. While he had had but limited educational oppor-
101HISTORY OF BUFFALO COUNTY tunities in youth, he read extensively, was a close observer and in that way became recognized as a man of superior learning and wide information.
In April, 1885, Mr. Barney was united in marriage to Miss Anna Thornton. There are four children to mourn the loss of the father; Arthur L., Ralph M, Howard and Mildred. All of the children live in Kearney.
In his political views Mr. Barney was an earnest republican, recognized as one of the party leaders in Buffalo county. He served as chairman of the county central committee and for eight years was city treasurer. He was also a Knight Templar Mason and a member of the Modern Woodmen of the World. His religious belief was manifest in his activity as a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and his interest in community affairs was evidenced in the fact that he was one of the organizers of the Commercial Club and was one of its first presidents. Few men receive the love, confidence and goodwill which were accorded him. On the 23d of February, 1915, there appeared in the Kearney Morning Times the following editorial, which is a splendid characterization of a citizen whom every one mourned: "It seems to the writer that the hardest task which has confronted him since coming to Kearney is the one which has just been completed--the writing of the story of W. W. Barney's death. The shock to the community which came, as the quickly moving news passed from man to man, on Monday was made the more intense because of the love and respect which those who met him in their everyday life had learned to have for him. It is a powerful tribute to the qualities of a man when the eyes of big strong men fill with tears as they mention his name. It has been an unselfish and remarkable life when its passing grips the heartstrings of a city; when the business men will go about their work almost dazed by the bigness of their loss. What represented the material place of Mr. Barney will now be vacant. There will be no one to fill this place, but what could be more inspiring to the gatherings of those with whom it was his custom to meet, than the memory of this man. Broad, honest, straightforward, keen and square, his memory should prove a benediction in the council halls of the city's active work--a vision of his bigness should ever guide the acts and thoughts of his old associates and lead them with the moral strength Mr. Barney had. Kearney has lost a wise counsellor [sic] but she has a precious memory."
WILLIAM CHARLES OGILVIE.
One of the strong and substantial financial institutions of Buffalo county is the Exchange Bank of Gibbon, of which William Charles Ogilvie is assistant cashier. His fellow townsmen speak of him as a business man of marked capability and enterprise and one who is ever ready to meet any emergency and who at all times can be counted upon for straightforward dealing. He was born July 8, 1873, in the town in which he still makes his home, his parents being James and Margaret (Key) Ogilvie, both of whom were natives of Scotland. They came to the United States in early manhood and womanhood and were married in New York. The year 1871 witnessed their arrival in Nebraska, whither they came subsequent to the arrival of the soldiers' free homestead colony, which
102HISTORY OF BUFFALO COUNTY had reached here three or four days before. Settling at Gibbon, Mr. Ogilvie was made station agent, in which capacity he continued up to the time of his death, which occurred in 1881. His widow survives and yet makes her home in Gibbon.
William Charles Ogilvie was reared under the parental roof and the public schools of his native town afforded him his educational privileges. When a youth of but fourteen he became a wage earner, securing a clerkship in a grocery store, where he was employed for two years. The succeeding two years he devoted to the improvement of his education, following which he visited with his mother and sister in Scotland for a year. He then returned to Gibbon and for some time occupied clerkships in various stores, but in 1895 went to Chicago where he entered the employ of Swift & Company, with whom he remained for eight years. He spent two years of that time in Chicago, five years in England, and one year in Kansas City. He then returned to Gibbon and for a time was associated with his brother-in-law, G. W. Linger, on his ranch south of the town. In 1905 he entered the Exchange Bank of Gibbon as assistant cashier, in which capacity he has since served. He is most thorough in all of his work, systematic and faithful in the discharge of his duties, and at the same time is a courteous and obliging official. He is associated with I. A. Kirk and W. M. Ross in owning and operating the Hershey ranch, and is working his way steadily upward in business circles, already being regarded as one of the substantial and representative men of the community.
On the 20th of December, 1910, Mr. Ogilvie was married to Miss Mary O. Robb, of Gibbon, and to them have been born two children, Margaret and Mary Caroline. In his political views Mr. Ogilvie is a republican and has served as a member of the town board, as clerk of the board and in other local offices. He is most loyal to public interests and cooperates in all well defined plans for the benefit and improvement of the district. At the present writing he is secretary of the library board of Gibbon. He belongs to Granite Lodge, No. 189, A. F. & A. M., and to the Woodmen of the World, and the Ancient Order of United Workmen, while he and his wife are members of the Presbyterian church, contributing generously to its support and adhering loyally to its principles. He is a self-made man, having been dependent upon his own resources from the age of fourteen years, and step by step he has worked his way upward, his ability and determination winning him the success which is his.
NATHAN P. McDONALD.
Nathan P. McDonald, ex-county attorney of Buffalo county and one of the strong and able representatives of the Kearney bar, has practiced here continuously since January, 1894, and throughout that period has made steady progress in a profession to which right, property, life and liberty must look for protection. He was born upon a farm near Columbus, Pennsylvania, on the 6th of November, 1862, and is one of two children born of the marriage of Donald and Arcelia (Calkins) Badgly McDonald, the former a native of Scotland, while the latter was born in this country of Scotch parentage. By a previous marriage Mrs. McDonald had two children.
103HISTORY OF BUFFALO COUNTY
Nathan P. McDonald was reared to manhood in his native state and after completing a common school education pursued a course in an academy at Sugar Grove and for two years was a student in the Otterbein (Ohio) College. In 1886 he made his way westward to Kansas and during the ensuing winter taught school al Louisville. In the spring of 1887 he arrived in Buffalo county, Nebraska, and accepted the position of principal of the schools at Elm Creek, there remaining until December, 1889, when he came to Kearney to fill the office of county superintendent of schools, to which position he had been elected in the fall of that year. For four years he served in that capacity. For a number of years he has been reading law under the direction of Hon. Thomas H. Cornett and Hon. H. M. Sinclair, of Kearney, and in 1893 was admitted to the bar. He entered upon active practice in January, 1894, and has since followed his profession in this city, covering a period of more than twenty-two years. In 1900 he was elected county attorney and served in that capacity for four years.
On the 1st of January, 1888, Mr. McDonald was united in marriage to Miss Ella Upton, a daughter of I. C. Upton, of Roanoke, Illinois. They have one son, Archie L.
Mr. McDonald gives his political allegiance to the republican party and fraternally is identified with the Masonic organization, in which he has attained the orders of Christian knighthood. His life conforms to the teachings of the craft and his sterling traits commend him at all times to the confidence and goodwill of the general public.
FRED A TURNER.
The excellent condition of Fred A. Turner's farm on section 3, Gibbon township, indicates his energy and good management and he derives a gratifying financial return from his land. He is a native of Thornton township, Buffalo county, and was born on the 6th of July, 1876. His parents, Bartlett and Mary (Standard) Turner, were both born in Missouri, where they grew to maturity and were married, but in 1873 or 1874 they came to Buffalo county, Nebraska, and the father took up a homestead in Thornton township, on which he resided until 1911. In that year he sold his property and removed to Kearney, where he has since lived retired.
Fred A. Turner was educated in the public schools and during his boyhood and youth helped his father with the farm work. By the time that he reached maturity he was an efficient agriculturist and when twenty-one years of age began farming for himself. For eighteen years he rented land but in March, 1915, he purchased his present farm on section 3, Gibbon township, which cornprises eighty acres of rich and well improved land. He follows up-to-date methods and uses modern machinery and seldom fails to harvest good crops. He also owns stock in the Gibbon Farmers Elevator.
In 1808 Mr. Turner was united in marriage to Miss Blanche Ross, a daughter of W. B. Ross, who in 1883 became a resident of Buffalo county. He is now, however, living in La Cygne, Kansas. Mr. and Mrs. Turner have three children, Jay R, Donald F. and Dorothy A.
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Mr. Turner is independent in politics, casting his ballot in acordance with his best judgment rather than in obedience to the dictates of party leaders. Fraternally he is connected with Gibbon Lodge, No. 37, I. P. O. F., and both he and his wife attend services at the Baptist church.
ARTHUR R. NICHOLS.
PortraitArthur R. Nichols, superintendent of schools of Buffalo county, occupies a prominent position in educational circles in Nebraska and by reason of his ability in leaving his impress upon the development of the school system in this section of the state. A native son of Nebraska, he was born in a sod house near Doniphan, in Hall county, December 17, 1883. His father, Andrew J. Nichols, is a native of Wisconsin, but during his boyhood days accompanied his parents on their removal to Winterset, Iowa, where he was reared to manhood. He married Emma J. Garrett and followed farming in Iowa until 1876, when in a prairie schooner he made his way to Nebraska and traded his team of horses and wagon for a homestead in Hall county. Thereafter he broke his land with a yoke of oxen and experienced all of the hardships, difficulties and privations incident to pioneer life, but with the course of years he converted the wild prairie into productive fields and remained thereon until his later life, when he removed to Fremont, where he and his wife now reside. They became the parents of seven children, all of whom are yet living.
Arthur R. Nichols is one of twin brothers and upon the home farm he was reared, having the usual experiences of the farm bred boy who assists in the development of the fields through the summer seasons, while in the winter months he devotes his time to the mastery of such branches of learning as are taught in the country schools. His academic training was received in the Fremont Normal College and later he engaged in teaching school for three years, spending one year in a rural school and two years as principal of the Prosser schools. Later he attended the Fremont and Kearney Normal Schools until 1909, when he was graduated from the Fremont Normal. It was during this period, or through the winter season of 1907-8, that he served as principal of the schools at Miller, which was his initial step in connection with the work of teaching in Buffalo county. His capability being manifest to those who made it a point to acquaint themselves with school work, he was elected superintendent of the schools of Elm Creek in 1909, there remaining until the fall of 1912, when he went to Gibbon to become superintendent of the schools of that place. He was then elected county superintendent by the county commissioners in 1915 to fill out the unexpired term of J. S. Elliott, who had resigned in order to accept an appointment on the faculty of the State Normal Board. Professor Nichols is therefore at the head of the educational system of Buffalo county and as such is putting forth effective and earnest effort for the benefit and development of the schools. His plans are progressive, his efforts resultant and under his guidance higher standards will be reached.
On the 28th of May, 1913, Mr. Nichols was united in marriage to Miss Laura Cox, of Fairbury, Nebraska, by whom he has a son, Andrew Robert, whose birth
