NEXTBIOGRAPHIES:
SURNAMES BEGINNING WITH "S"
(To enlarge a Biography, highlight, cut & paste to a document
form. highlight & select font setting)
SANDERSON, Mark M., WI BIO - Pierce Co., History of Northern Wisconsin. Chicago: Western Historical, 1881, vol 2, Mark M. SANDERSON, of the firm of Sanderson & Campbell, merchants, Ellsworth [originally called Perry when organized 03 March 1857, name changed to Ellsworth in 1862, Ellsworth Township being Town 26, Range 17, Pierce County, Wisconsin], was born 11 April 1854 in Tioga County, Pennsylvania, where he lived until 1859, when he came West with his parents, first locating in Red Wing [Goodhue County], Minnesota. In 1869 he came to Ellsworth, and clerked for E. L. DAVIS. In the fall of 1875 he went to St. Paul [Ramsey County], Minnesota, and was engaged in the wholesale house of N. B. Harwood & Company. He continued in their employ until the winter of 1877. In June of 1878 he opened a store at Ellsworth in company with his present partner [CAMPBELL], and now does a business of $12,000 per annum, being also engaged in buying and shipping stocks. Mr. SANDERSON is at present Town Treasurer of Ellsworth. On 06 November 1879 Mark M. SANDERSON was married to Miss Annie M. SCHUMACHER, who was born in Indiana. [Mr. SANDERSON served as recording secretary, Ellsworth Lodge No. 150, Independent Order of Odd Fellows.] [The 1880 Census of Ellsworth, Pierce County, Wisconsin, has "M. M. SANDERSON," age twenty-six, general merchant, born Pennsylvania, father born in Massachusetts, mother born in New York State; married in that census year to his wife, "Anna M. SANDERSON," age twenty, keeping house, who was born in Indiana, her parents both born in Bavaria, Germany. They reside with Norris and Lucinda KINNE (name shortened from KINNEMANN?), who run a boarding house, there being twenty-five people in this household. M. M. and Anna are not listed as boarders.] [One person who is listed as a boarder in the same 1880 census entry, however, is a single man, "F. N. CAMPBELL," age twenty-three years, general merchant, the place of his birth and his parents not readable. This may be the Mr. CAMPELL with whom Mark M. SANDERSON was in business. Submitter questions though whether "F. N." in the census should be "F. D." Mr. "Frank D. CAMPBELL" was born 14 October 1856, married 26 November 1880 in Pierce County, Wisconsin (the same year as the census, where he is said to be single, but married after the date when it was enumerated), to Amelia B. HUBER, who was born 11 January 1865 and died 26 March 1940. Frank D. CAMPELL died 31 October 1924. Submitter, who is not researching SANDERSON or CAMPBELL, only speculates.] Submitted by Cathy Kubly .
SCHULTHESS, JOHN J., merchant, Plum City, Pierce county, was born in Zurich, Switzerland, April 30, 1851. His parents were John J. and Rachel (Ebensberger) Schulthess, the former of whom was born in Switzerland, April 1, 1810, and died September 27, 1888; the latter was a daughter of H. and E. Ebensberger, and is still living, aged sixty-eight years. They had two children, other than our subject: Julius, who died in 1870, and Elizabeth, now Mrs. Gautsche, who lives in Switzerland. On December 18, 1862, John J. started with his parents for America, and lived in Highland, Ill., until 1865, when the family came to Pierce county, Wis. After a course at the public schools our subject attended the university at Madison, Wis., for three years. In 1875 he was elected county surveyor, and held that office for fourteen years. In 1880 he started in the drug business in Plum City, and in 1889 bought out the firm of Hunn & Co., and since then under the name of Plath and Schulthess has been doing a general merchandise business. They have built up a large trade, and have a reputation far and wide of fair dealing. October 28, 1877, Mr. Schulthess married Anna, daughter of J. and A. Fisher, who has borne him two children, Adolph, who lives at home, and Rena G., who died in infancy. Mr. Schulthess is a member of the Lutheran church, a republican in politics, and belongs to the I. O. O. F. He has held many offices, and is now postmaster. --Taken from the "Historical and Biographical Album of the Chippewa Valley Wisconsin.
SEVERANCE,
Ephraim. In the year 1865 Ephraim Severance,
a native of Sanborntown, N. H., but then resideing at Bangor, Me.,
removed to Pierce County and purchased a farm in the town of Trim
Belle on what has been known as the Thurston Hill. Here he
commenced the arduous task of opening a farm in the dense forest.
He had while in Maine engaged in the lumbering business and was
accustomed to the hard labor incident to that calling. In the
home, which he built there, he resided until his death. December
9, 1895, at the ripe age of seventy-one years. An active
Republican and deeply interested in the Free Baptist church, of
which he was a consistent member and of which he long served as a
trustee, he nevertheless never sought the distinction of public
office. He married in early life Eliza Merriam, who survived him,
dying at her home at the age of about seventy-five years.
SEVERANCE, Fred A. is a son
of Ephraim and Eliza Severance and was born at Bangor, Me.,
December 23, 1850. When about eighteen years of age he removed to
Pennsylvania, where he resided for about two years, and then
emigrated to the town of Trimbelle, where he purchased a farm
near that of his father. To the first purchase he has added
others until now he owns one of the finest farms in the valley,
comprising about 320 acres, and where he makes his home. In 1890
he gave up the active work of farming and has since devoted his
time largely to mercantile pursuits. He has an excellent store in
the same town near the railroad station, where he has a large
custom trade. In 1897 he was appointed postmaster of the
Beldenville postoffice, a position which he still holds. He is an
active politician and is always in demand at meetings of the
Republican voters of his neighborhood. In 1890 he was chosen as
one of the presidential electors and in that capacity cast a vote
for William McKinley. His townsmen have long recognized his
unusual capacity for public business and have made him their
choice as chief officer of the town for several terms and have
called upon him to hold nearly all of the public offices. As a
clerk of the school district he has served for thirty years and
has had the pleasure of witnessing the development of his
district from a small country school to a graded school, which is
affording excellent facilities for the youth of the district. He
has been selected by the county board to serve in the responsible
position of chairman of the poor commissioners and to the work of
this office he has given an earnest and faithful service. Mr.
Severance enjoys companionship and is much sought after by his
friends as a boon companion, as is evidenced by the fact that he
is an active member of the Masonic Order, of the I. O. O. F., the
Modern Woodmen of America and the U C. T. In his business
enterprises he has reached out to a considerable extent and has
an interest in the Bank of Ellswoth and also in the Twin City
Fuel Company, of Minneapolis. Mr. Severance united in marriage
with Etiole Chappel, of Ellsworth, on December 25, 1875. Mrs.
Severance was born August 5, 1858, her parents being William H.
and Elizabeth (Phillips) Chappel. Her parents were pioneers in
the county, coming here as early as 1856 and settling in the
Beldenville valley, in the town of Ellsworth, where they remained
during the remainder of their lives. Mrs. Chappel died in 1882
and Mr. Chappel in 1893. Mr. and Mrs. Severance have had two
children-William, who has graduated from the University of
Minnesota, has chosen the law as his profession and now resides,
at St. Louis Park, in Minnesota. He recently married Marie
Thompson, of Minneaoplis, who was also a graduate of the same
university. The second son is Adelbert, not yet married, who is
engaged as a salesman for the Fleming Mill Company, of Hastings,
and makes his home in that city. He is also a graduate of the
Univeristy of the State of Minnesota. Taken from "History of
the St. Croix Valley", volume 2, published in 1909.
SHEPARD, , M.A., a
photographer, was born on a farm in Pierce county, Wis.,
September 13, 1881, and received his education in the State
Normal school, graduating from that institution in 1902, having
completed the full course. He is the son of A. D. and Eva F.
Shepard. His father was born in Illinois, but moved with his
family to the township of River Falls in the spring of 1856. He
was educated in the district schools and engaged in farming for
many years. He is now engaged as a beekeeper in the city of River
Falls, where he has resided since 1888. His mother is a member of
the Congregational church. There were four children born in the
order named: Alberta, married to George R. Frye, of Clear Lake,
Wis.; C. Edward, proprietor of the Grant House, at Rush City,
Minn.; Maurice Archibald, the subject of this biography, and
Merle. After graduating from the State Normal school, Mr. Shepard
taught school one season at St. Croix Falls, and then attended
the Oberlin Conservatory of Music at Oberlin, Ohio. He then
became the proprietor of the New City Hotel at River Falls, and
after running it one year took a course in photography in the
Illinois College of Photography at Effingham, then purchased the
Kellogg studio, the oldest in Pierce county, and has since been
engaged in that work. He is the organist, and a member of the
Congregational church, and is treasurer of the Sunday school. He
also belongs to the Masonic order. Mr. Shepard has always been
interested in music and has been active in musical circles. The
paternal grandparents of our subject were Charles M. and Nancy (Primm)
Shepard. They were very early settlers of Pierce county, coming
in 1856, and residing on a farm in River Falls Township, where
they lived and died. Reference: Taken from "History of the
St. Croix Valley", published in 1909
SHORT, Joseph A. was born in
Madison County, New York, April 16, 1806. He came west to
Milwaukee in 1842. In 1849 he moved to California, but returned
to Wisconsin, settling in River Falls in 1854, where he built a
saw and planing mill and in various ways promoted the interest of
the settlement. He died May 6, 1886. Reference: Taken from "History
of the St. Croix Valley", published in 1909
SMITH,
George T. was born in
Schleswig, Denmark, now Germany, January 31, 1864, and was
educated at the place of his birth. At the age of seventeen
years, in 1881, he moved to Denmark and two years later, at the
age of nineteen years, in 1883 he came to America, locating at
River Falls, Pierce County, Wis., where he learned the meat
business. He was a willing worker and cheerfully took up any sort
of employment which promised to help him on his way to
independence. For some time he was employed as a day laborer in a
sawmill and also in the woods. He established himself in
business, opening a meat market in River Falls, and there he
continued the business for twenty years. Retiring from it, he
went into the real estate and banking business. He is president
of the First National bank of River Falls, and has held that
office for two years. He is also a large stockholder in the River
Falls Brick Company, and has been identified with it for about
twelve years. He has built and sold a number of the better
business blocks of River Falls as well as dwellings. He owns
several large and well-improved farms in St. Croix County,
besides village and city property in Pierce and St. Croix
counties. He owns the building now occupied by the First National
bank, besides other business property of River Falls. Mr. Smith
is independent in politics and has served as alderman for two
terms. He is now (1908) holding the position of chief of the fire
department. He is a member of I. O. O. F. and Woodmen of the
World. He has been treasurer of the school for the last year. Mr.
Smith married Maggie Rosenberg, of River Falls. She was born in
Germany and came to the United States with her parents when a
child. She is a daughter of Frank and Anna (Johnson) Rosenberg,
both natives of Germany, now living at River Falls. Mr. and Mrs.
Smith have had ten children, all living and all born at River
Falls: Anna M., Gannie M., George T., Jr., Minnie C., Jefferson F.,
Margaret E., Emma R., Florence, Richard B. and Dorothy. Mr. Smith
is a gentleman of rare business ability, having attained success
through good judgment, ready decision and energetic determination.
Reference: Taken from "History of the St. Croix Valley",
published in 1909
SMITH, , IRA, J., farmer, P.
O. Farmhill, Pierce county, Wis. John Smith, the father of our
subject, was born in Massachusetts, and married Caroline Taylor,
who bore him three children, namely: Edwin T., who lives in Iola,
Waupaca county; George W., who lives at Tomahawk, and Ira J., who
was born April 19, 1838, at Rutland, Vt. Their grandfather,
Thomas, and great- grandfather, Israel Smith, both served in the
Revolutionary war, and the latter was in the battle of Bunker
Hill. Ira J. spent the first ten years of his life in his native
state, then came west with his parents and settled in Dodge
county, Wis., where he lived until twenty-nine years of age. At
the age of twenty he started out in life for himself and bought a
farm. In 1861 he married Harriet A., daughter of Daniel and Mercy
Lawrence, and they came to Pierce county as pioneers in 1868.
Seven children have been born to them, namely: Irene H., at home;
Ira E., living at Eau Galle; George E., at home; Charles F.,
living at St. Paul; Willis H., died aged thirteen; John L. and
Maud I., at home. Mr. Smith now has a fine farm of 320 acres,
well improved, and bids fair to live to an old age, as he comes
of a good old Puritan family, and is well preserved. His father
is now seventy-nine years of age, and can read without the use of
glasses. In politics Mr. Smith is a republican, and for the past
twenty years has almost continually held some town office. He is
one of the substantial men of the county, his word being as good
as his bond, and he has the respect and confidence of the entire
township. --Taken from the "Historical and Biographical
Album of the Chippewa Valley Wisconsin.
SPINNEY
Lafayette Griffen, was born in Dover, N. H., March 2,
1851, moving with his parents to Minnesota at the age of six
years. He received a good common school education and then worked
on the farm with his father. In 1877 he located at Ellsworth,
Pierce County, Wis., where he continued to reside for the
remainder of his life. On Christmas day, 1878, he was married at
Florence, Minn., to Belle Skinner, daughter of Luzon and Sarah (Plum)
Skinner, early pioneers who came originally from New York state.
Three sons blessed this union, Fred, Harry and Freeman, all of
whom are walking in the paths of honor and integrity as did their
father before them. Upon arriving in Ellsworth, Mr. Spinney at
once began to take an important part in the life of the village,
township and county. His position as storekeeper gave him a wide
acquaintance, while his affable manners and jovial disposition
endeared him to all of those with whom he came in contact. He
also took an active interest in politics and could call by name
practically every voter in the county. His military carriage and
commanding figure, especially when on horseback, made him in
great demand as a marshal of the day for all the village
processions and celebrations. At the time of his death he was
serving his fifth term as clerk of the circuit court, a position
which he filled with great credit. Mr. Spinney was a member of
the Masonic order, several local organizations and an attendant
of the Presbyterian Church. He died December 6, 1907, at the
Sanitorium at Hudson, Wis., after a month's heroic struggle with
disease. A particularly touching scene was when upon leaving home
for the last time he drew toward him his youngest son, and said:
"Freeman, take care of your mother," thus showing his
love as a husband, which ever deepened and broadened during his
thirty years of happy and felicitous married life. Mr. Spinney's
remains are now resting in Maple Grove cemetery in the village
which had been his home for so many years. It has been said of Mr.
Spinney, ""thirty years in a community usually brings
to light any defects or flaws in the character or morals of a
man's make-up". In his case the years only served to
emphasize his sterling qualities of mind and heart and to show
what manner of a man he really was. He was always ready to go out
of his way to do another a service and was a man of cheerfulness,
kindness and consideration. In addition to this he was a
competent, painstaking official, always obliging and courteous.
He was a true friend, a loving father, a devoted husband and an
upright citizen. (taken from "History of the St. Croix
Valley", published in 1909)
STEEN,
Ole, O., merchant at
the village of El Paso, Wis., was born in Norway, January 13,
1849, son of Ole O. and Annie Steen, natives of Norway, the
former dying at the age of ninety-four and the latter at the age
of seventy-four. The subject of this sketch attained his
education in the schools of his native country and in the common
schools of the United States. He settled in Pierce County in May
1871, and worked at various occupations, farming and working in
the sawmills and pineries. After ten years he removed to
Minnesota and took up a homestead in Traverse County, also
purchasing 160 acres adjoining in the same county. In 1891 he
made a visit to Norway for the purpose of seeing his parents, and
upon his return to this country he settled El Paso, starting his
present business. After three years he purchased a store building
and a fine dwelling in the village, where he now resides with his
family. He also owns seventy-five acres on section 5, El Paso
Township, which he rents out. His store business has constantly
increased and his trade covers quite a wide territory. Mr. Steen
is a Republican in politics and cast his first vote for Gen. U. S.
Grant for President of the United States. During his residence in
Minnesota he was county commissioner of Traverse county for six
years. He is now serving his sixth year as treasurer of El Paso
Township, and has been school clerk for eight years. He is
president of the Parochial Norwegian School of the district of El
Paso. Mr. Steen married for his first wife Gina Iverson, daughter
of I. B. and Annie Iverson. She died in August, 1891, leaving two
children, Anna and Oscar, the latter of whom died in infancy. Mr.
Steen then took for his wife Nettie Iverson, sister of his first
wife, and by this marriage five children were born-Irvin, Grace,
Olaf, Astrid and Grace. The latter was the first born and died at
the age of five months. (taken from "History of the St.
Croix Valley", published in 1909).
STRAHL,
Osborne was born in Belmont County, O., in
1818; come to Galena, Ill., in 1838, in 1845, to Mauston and
Stevens Point, Wis., and to Chippewa Falls in 1847. During these
years he followed lumbering. In 1850 he moved to the town of
Elizabeth, St. Croix County, which on subsequent division of
towns and counties left Mr. Strahl in Clifton, where he engaged
in farming. He was married in 1860 to Rebecca McDonald. Taken from
"History of the St. Croix Valley", volume 2, published
in 1909.
STRICKLAND,
Selah was born in Otis, Berkshire County,
Mass., June 8, 1829, and at the age of ten years removed with his
parents to the state of Ohio, where he attended the common
schools and received a good education. In 1856 he moved to
Wisconsin, in which state he continued to reside until the time
of his death, December 21, 1890, at the age of sixty-one years,
six months and thirteen days. In 1862 he was united in marriage
with Lizzie Woodworth, and resided for several years in the
vicinity of Bay City. In 1868 he located in Ellsworth, continuing
in this place for the remainder of his life. This union was
blessed with two children; William Willis is in the real estate
business in Superior, Wis., and one died in infancy. William W.
married Jennie Kimball,, and has one child, William Kimball, now
in his fourteenth year. The wife of Selah Strickland died in 1878,
at the age of thirty-three years. In 1881 he married Mrs. R. J.
McEwen, a sister of his first wife. She was born in Windham,
Portage county, Ohio, daughter of Williamand Luranch (Ensign)
Woodworth, and married for her first husband, R. J. McEwen, of
Newton Falls, Ohio. Previous to her marriage, she was a
schoolteacher in Ohio. She still survives. In the course of his
life, Mr. Strickland held many important offices and positions of
trust. He was registrar of deeds for Pierce County and at the
time of his decease was president of the Bank of Ellsworth. From
nearly the first organization of the county, he had dealt in real
estate and performed the functions, and considerable of the work
of a bank, before any bank was established in this section. In
all his dealings with his fellow men, while careful and exacting,
he was never known to oppress a poor man, and although his
business transactions were greater, perhaps, than those of any
other man in the county, he seldom troubled the courts with his
affairs. Many indeed are the early settlers who have reason to
remember his generous business dealings. Mr. Strickland was not a
member of any church, but held many well defined views regarding
the great problem of immortal life, and judging from his acts his
creed was the golden rule, to which creed his devotion was
unwavering. He was an honorable, upright man in every particular,
combining the duties of an active life with a keen sense of moral
obligations. So long as the business and industrial interests of
Ellsworth shall stand, that long will the life, deeds, character
and example of Selah Strickland be remembered and held in honored
regard. (taken from "History of the St. Croix Valley",
published in 1909)
NEXT
Home