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where he has a fine home and valuable estate.
Mr. Broadhurst was born in Lancashire county, England, in 1858. His father, Samuel Broadhurst, was a nut and bolt manufacturer, and spent his whole life in his native country, having died there in 1886. Our subject grew up in England, learning the blacksmith's trade, and followed that work up to 1884. He came to America in 1883, landing in New York city in June of that year, and came to Kane county, Illinois, where he located on a farm, running a dairy business for two years, and renting land for three years, which he farmed, then in 1888 came to Dawes county, arriving here in February. Here he located on a homestead in section 23, township 32, range 51, and the first summer he lived in a cellar, and had a hard time getting started. He stuck to the work, however, and kept adding improvements, building a comfortable farm house and got along fairly well. In 1891 he left Nebraska and went to Cambria, Wyoming, where he worked out at mining, blacksmithing or anything he could get to do to make a living. He remained for about seven years, in the meantime going back to his farm occasionally, part of the time having charge of the blacksmith department for a mining company in Cambria, and during those years he did not have much success with his farming operations, two years having entire failures of crops during the drouth periods. Mr. Broadhurst bought his present place in 1892, moving on the place the following year, and constantly improved the farm, putting up good buildings, barns, sheep sheds, also has a complete blacksmith shop. His farm is all fenced with woven wire fencing, and has room for sheltering two thousand sheep, having been engaged in the sheep business for the past four or five years, feeding each year from fifteen hundred to two thousand sheep for market, and this has been his principal business. He has four hundred acres of irrigated land, and altogether owns one of the finest ranches in the county, and is one of the successful men in his locality, his ranch consisting of nine hundred acres.
Mr. Broadhurst was married in England in 1881, to Miss Agnes Jane Holding, and they are the parents of three children, namely: Herbert, who was married on March 20, 1907, to Miss Edna Hoevet, and two daughters, Jennie and Pearl. Our subject has rented his son four hundred acres of land, on which he has erected fine buildings, and has a comfortable home. Pearl was married the 23d day of October, 1907, to Grant Spearman, born in eastern Nebraska, of American stock.
In 1898 Mr. Broadhurst, together with his wife and three children, took a trip to England, where he visited his birthplace and also that of his wife, and spent nearly four months on the trip, visiting many points of interest and enjoying their vacation hugely. In 1904 the daughter, Pearl, again visited England alone, remaining for nine months.
Mr. Row is a native of Washington county, Maryland, born in 1856 on a farm, being the sixth of a family of ten children. His father, Abraham Row, was a farmer, and lives in Maryland and is quite active for his advanced age. The mother died about twelve years ago. Albert grew up in Maryland and when seventeen years of age left home and came west to LaSalle county, Illinois, where he followed farming for about twelve years, spending six years on one farm in that vicinity. In 1885 Mr. Row came to Dawes county, Nebraska, driving from Valentine by team and covered wagon containing his personal belongings, and selected his present homestead as a spot to start a home. This is located in section 34, township 31, range 48, and was well situated and all good land. Here he built a board shanty and "batched" for two years, breaking up his first land and doing all his work with a team of oxen, which he used altogether for the first four or five years. He got along very well for a time, then was overtaken by the drouths, and had a hard time to make a living, for three years being unable to raise anything, and also suffering from hailstorms throughout the section which destroyed property and crops. He nearly became discouraged and went through hard times, having to do all sorts of work to keep his family from want and privation, glad to secure even the necessaries of life. He then tried the stock business, and from the first was very successful, and has continued in that line of work ever since. He is now owner of a fine ranch of seventeen hundred and fifty acres, one hundred and thirty of which is under cultivation, and the balance in hay and pasture land. The whole place is fenced, and he runs one hundred and fifty head of stock. He has built two good houses on his ranch, with substantial barns and other outbuildings, plenty of
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fine water and windmills for his stock. Mr. Row has a very fine young orchard, garden, small fruits, etc.
On another page of this work will
be found a picture of Mr. Row's residence.
Mr. Row was united in marriage in 1887 to Miss Elsie Jane Huss, daughter of Samuel Huss, a farmer and early settler in Illinois, where she was raised and educated. Mr. and Mrs. Row are the parents of the following children: Samuel H., Nora, Abraham and Bertha, all bright and intelligent and dutiful children to worthy parents. The family enjoy a happy and comfortable home and have a host of warm friends and good neighbors.
Mr. Calver was born in Australia, in 1847, of English descent, his father, Daniel Calver, having emigrated to that country when a young man. His mother was also of English birth. There were five children in his parents' family, of whom he was the third member. When he was ten years of age the whole family returned to England, locating in Stanton, Suffolk county, and here our subject remained for four years, then with his parents came to Canada. They landed at New York in 1861 and lived at Kingston for a short time, and in the latter part of that year he located at Cape Vincent, Jefferson county, New York, where he remained for three years, following farming and teaming. He next moved to Michigan and worked on a farm for about twelve years, and then wandered west, obtaining employment on the Iron Mountain Railroad in southeast Missouri. He went to Illinois in 1877, locating seventy miles west of Chicago.
In 1880 he came to Adams county, Nebraska, which was then a new country and very sparsely settled, and there he bought a farm and remained for four years, then came on to Brown county, where he took up a homestead in section 27, township 31, range 22, and went to work establishing a farm. His first building was a barn sixteen by twenty-four, and the family made this their home, living in the hay mow during the first three months of their residence on this place. He afterwards erected a frame building, and this was the first house of the kind in the whole neighborhood, all the pioneers living in dugouts or sod shanties. They began to build up their home, and at first met with many discouragements and privations. Went through the drouth periods and other hardships, and had a hard time to support the family, being obliged to work at anything that came along in order to pull through. The better times came along and they were able to raise better crops and get a little ahead, and he gradually improved his farm and put up good buildings, adding to his acreage, until he is now proprietor of a farm of eight hundred and eighty acres of good land, all in good shape and part of it cultivated. He has the best corn crib in the neighborhood or county, and a large, comfortable house, size sixteen by twenty-four, fitted up in modern style, with all conveniences for comfort. He engages principally in stock raising, dealing largely in hogs, and raises large crops of corn..
The first school in the locality was held in a log house, and his children attended this school after a sod school house had been erected.
Mr. Calver was married at Ottawa, Illinois, in 1877, the event occurring on Thanksgiving day. His bride was Miss Alice Spicer, a native of LaSalle county, daughter of S. B. and Elmira A. Spicer, of old Yankee stock. She died in 1892 at Ainsworth, Nebraska, leaving a family of six children, namely: Nellie, Jessie, Mabel, John, Cora and Bennie. Mr. Calver was married again in 1892 to Minerva Spicer, and on December 4, 1903, his second wife died. His third wife was Miss Elizabeth Julia Spicer, a sister of his first two wives.
In October, 1905, Mr. Calver moved to Ainsworth, leaving his two sons, John and Bennie, on the farm, and has since made this his residence. Mr. Calver deserves a first place among the old settlers of this section. He has always done his share in the building up of the community in which he chose his home, and the family are well known and highly respected by all, all over the county.
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active part in its development, and is possessed of a wide knowledge of the western country and a character of the highest integrity.
Mr. Planck was born in Tioga county, Pennsylvania, on December 2, 1862, where he grew to manhood. His father died in that state, and his mother still lives there. They were the parents of ten children, Emory being the ninth in order of birth. He left his native state when about fourteen years of age, and came west to Buffalo county, Nebraska, in the spring of the year 1885, where he remained for one year and then came on to Cheyenne county, where he filed on a homestead in section 26, township 15, range 48. He came through the country in a "prairie schooner" drawn by a pair of Texas steers, which was a familiar mode of travel in those days, camping out along the way and encountering many adventures, suffering from exposure, etc.
Mr. Planck proved up on his original homestead and took up additional land later, and is now proprietor of a good estate of three hundred and twenty acres, all well improved with about seventy acres under cultivation.
He has considerable stock of all classes, running at present about fifty cattle and a small bunch of horses.
Mr. Planck was married in Cheyenne county, on December 12, 1897, to Miss Jessie Mann. Mrs. Planck is a native of McLain county, Illinois, where she lived until ten years of age. Her parents, Dr. D. R. and Alice (Merril) Mann, the former a native of Kentucky, the latter of New York, were among the pioneers of Cheyenne county. Mr. and Mrs. Planck have a family of three children, named as follows: Benjamin E., Ferd R., and Alice C.
They have a pleasant home, and enjoy all the comforts of ranch life. Our subject has always been a leader in local affairs, and has helped in no small degree to build up the schools in his locality. At present he is serving as a moderator of district No. 17. In political views he is a stanch Republican, and is prominent in state and county politics.
In 1854, the family came to America, settling in Pennsylvania, where the father found work in the mines, and Thomas also worked in the mines until he was twenty-five years of age. Here, in Pennsylvania, our subject was married to Miss Mary Lewis in the year 1862, her father being William Lewis, a native of Wales, where she was born. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Williams have had nine children, six of whom are now living.
In 1861, our subject enlisted in answer to the first call for volunteers to serve in the war of the Rebellion, his first enlistment being in the Sixth Pennsylvania Infantry. Later he enlisted in the Thirty-ninth Pennsylvania Infantry, and later in the Sixteenth Pennsylvania Cavalry. He saw much service and after the war was over, in 1865, he went to Missouri, where he lived for nine years. In 1874 he came to Nebraska, spending about two years in York and Hamilton counties, and in 1876 drove in a covered wagon to Loup county, settling on his present farm on section 26, township 21, range 18. He had all the hardships that came to the average pioneer, lived in a dug-out for the first year, then built him a log house of cedar, which now stands in good shape and more highly prized than any fine building on his farm. His first barn was built of logs. He also drove steers, cows and bulls for teams and had many a weary, long trip for supplies to Carney, which was the nearest railroad point, seventy or eighty miles distant.
Our subject remained on his farm actively improving it and engaged in making a good home for his family. The only time he was gone for any length of time was in 1876, during the Indian raids, when Custer was killed. At this time all the settlers were ordered to the Alger ranch by the government troops, who could not protect the people if they were scattered on their farms.
Thomas W. Williams has built up a good home and has a fine farm of two hundred and thirty-seven acres well improved and equipped with machinery. He has been one of the leading pioneers of the county and has always been prominent in public affairs.
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