 CHARLES H. SIMMONS AND FAMILY. |
sin, where she was reared and educated. To them ten children were born: seven of whom survive: Frank, deceased; Homer, deceased; Harlie, at home; Hattie, a school teacher of foreign languages in the high school at Columbus; Chester, who has charge of the management of the home farm; Beatrice, a trained nurse in Seattle, Washington; Rush D., a mechanician (sic) in a garage; Royal, at home and Florence M., who lives in Seattle. Mr. Brown has lived through many experiences in the Panhandle, from sod houses and prairie fires to the present day prosperity and now that the sunset years have come and the shadows are lengthening from the west, he has given up active participation in business, leaving such affairs to the capable hands of his sons, to whom he has handed the torch or (sic) progress, which he with the other early settlers, carried forward for so many years, and today in looking back across more than three decades in Nebraska, can feel with pride that he played no unimportant part in the growth of this favored section. CHARLES H. SIMMONS. --To facilitate the important work of presenting to her citizens a reliable history of Scottsbluff county, it is helpful indeed to be favored with the reminiscences of such men as Charles H. Simmons, an honored, retired resident of Scottsbluff. An early settler in the county, and one of the first residents and business men of Scottsbluff, for years he was prominent in the development of the town, served a decade as postmaster, and gave encouragement and substantial aid to business, educational and religious enterprises. The first Sunday school in Scottsbluff county was organized in Mr. Simmons's home. Charles H. Simmons was born March 28, 1858, at Hamilton, in Madison county, New York, being the son of G. M. L. and Mary Ann Jane (Plumbly) Simmons, who were married at Hamilton, New York. Mr. Simmons father was born in Madison County, May 22, 1825, and died in Nebraska, June 6, 1915. He was a son of Otis Simmons, born at Little Compton, Rhode Island, January 13, 1796 and served several months as a soldier during the war of 1812. The mother was born in England, in October, 1832, and resides at Scottsbluff, one of the city's most. venerable residents. Her father, Charles H. Plumly, a shoemaker by trade, brought his family to the United States in 1832 and settled at Hamilton, New York. There were three sons in the Simmons family: William L., who died at Buffalo, New York, at the age of thirty-six years; Otis Thomas, a train inspector for the Santa Fe railroad at Los Angeles, and Charles H., who was born March 28, 1858. The father of the above family was a carpenter by trade. In 1891 he came to Nebraska and settled in Dodge county, purchasing a tract of land on which he lived four years, in 1886 bringing his family to Cheyenne county, where he proved up on a pre-emption claim in one year. The parents returned then to Buffalo, New York, where they resided until 1896, and then came to Scottsbluff county, where they lived two years, removing then to Dodge county. In 1907 they returned to Scottsbluff and here the father died. In many ways he was a remarkable man. When over eighty-five years of age he assisted in the building of three houses. In early manhood he was a strong Whig and later became active in the Republican party. He was a man of sterling integrity and a member of the Congregational church. Charles H. Simmons attended school at Hamilton, New York, then went to work on a farm, afterward employed in an insurance office for two years, following which he was a clerk in a store for four years. Mr. Simmons came to Scottsbluff county in 1886 and located land and has been a permanent resident since 1887. Until 1898 he lived on his farm but in that year moved to Gering and conducted a grocery store there for two years. In 1900 he came to Scottsbluff and went into the grocery business, moving two log houses from Gering across the river and setting them up in a cornfield on the present site of the town, Mrs. Simmons being the first woman to have her home on this town site. On March 28, 1900, Mr. Simmons was appointed postmaster of Scottsbluff, an office he continuously filled until July 1, 1910. For some years Mr. Simmons was also a justice of the peace. At Hamilton, New York, in 1880, Mr. Simmons was united in marriage to Miss Alice M. Sheldon, who was born in Madison county, and died at Scottsbluff, Nebraska, March 1, 1918. Her parents were William P. and Mary A. (Beebe) Sheldon, who died on their farm in Madison county, New York. To this marriage the following children were born: William Lafayette, a carpenter-contractor at Scottsbluff; Otis William, a contractor, with other interests; Charles Sheldon, a sign painter at Scottsbluff; Edith J., the wife of Elmo L. Harrison, a carpenter at Scottsbluff; Robert G., whose individual sketch appears in this work, who was the first baby under a year old to live in this town; Adah May and Ida Alice, both of the unmarried daughters reside at |
home. In politics Mr. Simmons is a Republican. Fraternally he is identified with the Modern Woodmen of America. He has not been very active in business since retiring as postmaster, and mainly occupies himself looking after his Scottsbluff property and investments. Shortly after locating in Scottsbluff, the late Mrs. Simmons began to concern herself in the building of a church. She was of deeply religious nature and felt a great sense of responsibility in this matter. With Mr. Simmons and six others, a few rough boards were secured and a shack built that served for a Presbyterian church for a time, and as long as she lived she continued active in promoting church work. In every relation of life she was an admirable woman and when she was called away the loss was not to her family alone. In 1910 Mr. and Mrs. Simmons made a most enjoyable visit to New York and their friends in Madison county. EDWARD STEWART. -- One of the younger generation of farmers and stockmen carrying on operations in Sioux county, is today a representative of what new, young blood can accomplish. He comes of an old, well known and honored family of this county, being the son of H. G. and Marie (Clites) Stewart. Edward Stewart is a native of the Sunflower state, born in Pawnee county, Kansas in 1878. He accompanied his parents to Nebraska upon their removal from the south to this section of the Panhandle and received his educational advantages in the common schools of Sioux County, thus laying the foundation for his subsequent business career. After Edward Stewart's school days were over he remained on his father's farm, working for him and at the same time learning the practical side of farm industries and assumed many of the responsibilities until he was twenty-four years old. Mr. Stewart began his life as a cattle man while living at home as he worked for Wallace Merchant, a man of extensive cattle interests in this section. During the winter season the men Mr. Merchant employed were engaged in feeding but with warm weather they were out on the range branding and attending the various round ups, where the cattle of the wide feeding grounds were gathered, for the sorting of the calves and their branding. Mr. Stewart was one of the men who early realized that the day of the open range was over and he determined to settle down and have a farm of his own. With this end in view he filed on a homestead near Mitchell in 1900, proved up on the eighty acre tract and was able to dispose of it to advantage, so sold out and then came to Sioux county where he filed on five hundred and sixty acres near Sheep creek. On this tract Mr. Stewart made the required improvements, built a comfortable house for his family and when the ground was broken engaged in general farming and stock-raising, handling only a good grade of animals. As returns began to come in from the ranch he invested his extra capital in other tracts of land adjoining the homestead until today he is one of the largest landholders in the southern part of the county, holding five sections and an additional forty acres. The range riding of his early days has given him a fine constitution and Mr. Stewart is a man who can turn out an astounding amount of work in the busy season, and personally supervises all the work of the ranch also riding over his wide range. Mr. Stewart is progressive in methods and uses modern machinery to carry on all the farm work and today is accounted one of the best managers of farm property in the valley. In 1904, Mr. Stewart married Miss Daisy Tvariegek, the daughter of James Tvariegek, of England, where Mrs. Stewart was born, Her parents were early settlers of the Panhandle both of them passing away in 1919. Mr. and Mrs. Stewart have two children: Gordon and Agnes, both at home. Mr. Stewart is an independent in his political views, voting for the man he believes will best serve the people, whether it be in county, state or national office. His fraternal affiliations are with the Modern Woodmen. A. J. HAMPTON. -- As the final test of every man lies in performance rather than promise, there is full justification in the scriptural statement that, "by their works ye shall know them." In this publication the various sketches that are presented offer a gallant record of worthy performance--of achievement that means character and ability. He whose name introduces this paragrpb (sic) is not only a representative of one of the prominent pioneer families of what is now Scottsbluff county but he has also made for himself a secure place as a man who gained substantial success through his well ordered operations as an agriculturist and stock-grower. He developed one of the excellent farms of the county and since disposing of the same he has lived practically retired, at Gering. In the very prime of life, he is able to enjoy fully the rewards of his former years of earnest |
endeavor, and he is a citizen whose course has been so directed as to commend him to the fullest measure of popular esteem. Mr. Hampton was born in Jasper county, Iowa, in 1872, and is a son of Wililam (sic) R. and Sarah M. (Deeter) Hampton. William R. Hampton was for some time engaged in the practice of law in Iowa, where also he became identified with the development of a coal mine. He encountered an appreciable financial loss in this connection, as water made it impossible to operate the mine successfully. Under these conditions he sought a new field of activity, and in 1886, he came with his family to the present Scottsbluff county, which was then a part of Cheyenne county. He became a pioneer member of the bar of this section of the state and wielded much influence in public affairs here. He built up a good law practice, served one time as county attorney of Banner county, and was prominently identified with the movement which brought about the division of Cheyenne county and the creation of Banner and Scottsbluff counties, besides which he filed entry and duly perfected his title to a homestead and a timber claim in Scottsbluff county. He was a supporter of the cause of the Greenback party during the period of its maximum potency, and after its decadence he was found aligned with the Democratic party. Both he and his wife held membership in the Methodist Episcopal church. Of their fine family of eleven children the subject of the review is the youngest, and concerning the other the following brief record may consistently be entered: Theodore is a resident of Hastings, this state; Cornelia lives in Banner county; Caroline and Dora are deceased; Ida is a resident of Iowa; Huldah, is deceased; Jennie L. maintains her home in Oklahoma; Commodore and William live in Scottsbluff county; and Russell is a resident of Iowa. A. J. Hampton gained his early education in the public school of Iowa and was fourteen years old when the family home was established in old Cheyenne county, Nebraska, where he continued his studies in the public schools, besides which he had the advantages of a home of superior culture. In Scottsbluff county he finally took up a homestead of a hundred and sixty acre, and eventually he here became the owner of considerable property, upon which he made good improvements and which he made the stage of successful agricultural and live-stock enterprise. He sold the property some years ago, and since that time has lived retired at Gering. His political allegiance is given to the Democratic party and while he is liberal and public-spirited he has had no desire for the honors or emoluments of political office, February 22, 1901, recorded the marriage of Mr. Hampton to Miss Edna Smith, who was born in the state of Illinois, and the supreme loss and bereavement came when this devoted wife and mother died in March, 1918. She is survived by four children, all of whom remain with their father: Jefferson, Raymond D., Inda and Audrey. L. P. WELLS is a venerable and honored citizen who had the will to dare and to do as a pioneer, his experiences have been wide and varied, as he has been a resident of Nebraska for forty years, and in 1900, came to Scottsbluff county, where he purchased half a section of land, as did also his son. There he has since given active attention to the improvement and general supervision of this valuable property, comprising section thirteen of township 16 and lying near Gering, the county seat, which is his postoffice address. Mr. Wells was born in Madison county, New York, in 1848, and is a son of Harrison and Lavina (Stone) Wells, both likewise natives of the old Empire state and representatives of families established there many generations ago. Harrison Wells was a blacksmith by trade and was a specially skillful mechanic For six years he was chief agent for the celebrated Walter Wood farm machinery in Europe, and he was manager of the concern's exhibit which took first premium at the Paris exposition. He eventually came to the west and engaged in farm enterprise in Sac county, Iowa, whence he and his wife later came, to Elm Creek, Buffalo county, Nebraska, where they passed the remainder of their lives. They became the parents of six children: George and Estes are deceased; L P., of this review, was the next in order of birth; D. H., resides at Mitchell, Nebraska: H. L. is deceased, and Florence E. became the wife of Munson Brown, both being now deceased. L. P. Wells acquired his early education in the schools of his native state, where he continued to reside until 1879. He then came to Nebraska and established his residence at Kearney, where he taught school and also worked as his trade, that of carpenter. Finally he took a homestead claim north of Elm creek, Buffalo county, and later he obtained land on Buffalo creek, that county, where he developed a good farm, upon which he made the best of improvements and engaged in rais- |
ing cattle and hogs upon a somewhat extensive scale. On this place he erected what was at that time the largest barn in the state, and he continued to reside on the homestead until 1900, when he sold the property and came to Scottsbluff county, where he made investment in land, as noted in the opening paragraph of this article. His years rest lightly upon him, for he has lived a sane and useful life, and he takes great satisfaction in the fact that he is still hale and hearty, able to apply himself vigorously when need be, and well equipped for the management of his fine farm property, upon which he has erected building of superior grade, besides making many other improvements of permanent order. Mr. Wells is a man of fine intellectual keen and a, citizen of broad views and progressive policies; he has contributed his full quota to civic and industrial advancement in the state of his adoption. He is well fortified in his views concerning governmental and economic affairs and his political convictions have led him to ally himself with the Socialist party. He has long held membership in the Methodist Episcopal church, of which his wife likewise was a devoted adherent, her death having occurred in 1910, and her memory being revered by all who came within the sphere of her gentle and gracious influence. On November 3, 1869, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Wells to Miss Jennie M. Russell,, who likewise was born and reared in New York, and their devoted companionship continued for more than forty years--until her death severed the gracious association. In conclusion is given brief record concerning their children: Floy D. is one of the representative agriculturists and stock-growers of Scottsbluff county; Jessie, Irma and Dallas are deceased. In 1891, Mr. and Mrs. Wells adpoted (sic) twins, Jesse and Tessa Gilespie, whom they reared to maturity and both of whom are in the employ of the government, in New York City, at the time of this writing, in 1919. JOHN HEINZ, a broad minded Sioux county ranchman, who represents the best element in the farming industries of the valley, is a man whose record should become a part of this history of the Panhandle for the benefit of his children. John Heinz was born in Germany in 1876, the son of Matthew and Catharine (Mick) Heinz both of whom were born, reared and educated within the confines of the German Empire. The father in his youth learned the trade of blacksmith, a vocation which he followed all the years of his business life. There were seven children in the family, of these two live in the United State: Rose, now the wife of Louis Ganzer, lives in Sioux county, and John of this review, who was an ambitious youth and while he studied diligently in the fine publc (sic) school of his native land, learned of the great new country across the sea, where land could be had for the mere taking, and like so many of the European people, believed that land of his own would be the height of his desire. He began to ask question about America, to learn how to go and what he could do so that when only fourteen years of age he severed all ties to sail for our shores, landing in 1890. Within a short time he came to Nebraska, where he knew many of his countrymen had settled, locating near Schuyler, Nebraska. He soon obtained work on the great ranch owned by Marshall Field. At first he could not understand much of the English language but he began to study and made such progress that better positions were found for him as he was not afraid of work, had a good head and used it to the advantage of himself and his employer, thus rising from one place of responsibility to another and spent fifteen years, on the ranch in Stanton county. But the longing for a farm of his own had never ceased and now that he had capital, Mr. Heinz looked around for the place which would be nearest to that he had dreamed about since the old days in Germany and in 1907, believed he had found it, for he took up a homestead of eighty acres in Sioux county. Having had wide and varied experience in American farming methods on the Field place he knew just what improvements to put on the farm, the kind of buildings for the farm industries as well as a good comfortable home. Coming here late the Heinz family did not have to suffer the hardships and privations of the early settlers and before long were well established. With his native German thrift as a foundation., Mr. Heinz was soon enjoying a good income from his land. When he had accumulated sufficient capital he bought more land adjoining the homestead. This plan he has carried out until today he owns some six thousand acres, a rather surprising record for a boy who had no equipment when he landed in the United States but his bare hands and a determination to succeer (sic). Three hundred acres of the ranch are under water rights, much of the remainder is fine grazing land, a combination excellent for general farming and stockraising, two lines of endeavor which Mr. Heinz carries on. |
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