Lester Sly. The commercial interests of Republic have been well looked after during the years of her existence and among the leading merchants of Ferry county today, stands the subject of this article. He also has the distinction of being one of the pioneer merchants of this part of the country. Lester Sly was born in Belleplaine, Scott county, Minnesota, on April 26, 1869, being the on of J.B. and Ann E. (Russell) Sly, native of New York and Pennsylvania, respectively. They settled in Minnesota in 1851, where the father died, aged sixty-four years, in 1892. The mother then came west to Washington, where she now resides with her daughter, Mrs. N.R. Robinson. She is the mother of six children, Lester, Samuel E., Carolina L., Josephine, James F., and Charles E. Oiur subject received a good education in Belleplaine, and when fourteen years of age began working for himself. He was at home at intervals until 1886, when he came to Spokane, and after a short time spent there in the employ of Brooke and Davies, went on to the Couer d'Alene country and was timekeeper and book-keeper for the narrow guage road, constructed by D.C. Corbin, this being the first railroad in that country. Later he went to the Colville valley and engaged in the Young American mine at Bossburg. Later, he went to Okanogan county and in 1887 started prospecting, which he followed until 1895, when he went to Slocan, British Columbia, and engaged as clerk in the Slocan Store Company. He continued in that capacity for two years, when he returned to Okanogan county, and finally settled in the Curlew valley in 1897, having brought with him a large load of general merchandise. He entered into partnership with Charles Hermann at Conconcully. They were about the first to establish themselves as merchants in this valley, and have continued in the merchandise business, increasing their stock until at the present time they are among the leading merchants of north Washington. Mr. Sly has various other property, such as a town residence, and mining and farming interests. He has a valuable quarter section partly in the city of Republic.
On June 8, 1898, Mr. Sly married Hannah E. Neilson, a native of Norway. Her father is dead and her mother now lives at Christiana, Norway. Mrs. Sly is one of four children, P.M., Seigel, Elsa, and Hannah. To Mr. and Mrs. Sly two children have been born, Gordon, April 8, 1899, and Helen, December 7, 1901. Mr. Sly, who is a good active Republican, was a member of the board of county commissioners, and has been very active in building up the town and county. He is a member of the Ferry Lodge, No. 111; A.F. & A.M., the Eastern Star, the I.O.O.F., the W.W., and the M.W.A. Mrs.Sly belongs to the Eastern Star, the Rebekahs, and the Methodist church.
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From "History of North Washington" Published 1904
Transcribed by: Candy Grubb ([email protected])
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The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in
1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967
Matt Schoenecker
Matt Schoenecker and Anna Maria Lochen came to Union Hill in 1854 from Waxweiler, Germany. They accompanied her brother back to this country who had returned to Germany after six years of work in this country. Matt bought 80 acres from his brother Nick, who was already in this country and engaged in farming. In 1861, he married Anna Maria and they made their home on his farm.
Matt's father, John, had died in Germany and this left Matt to support his mother, Katherine. His brothers had already left home and were on their own. Whether Katherine accompanied Matt to this country or if she came later is not known. She died in 1868 and was the first adult buried in St. John's cemetery at Union Hill.
Matt and Anna Maria lived to celebrate their golden wedding
anniversary. They had five sons and five daughters: Mrs. John Giesen (Mary),
Mrs. Joseph Barten (Louise), Mrs Jacob Pint (Elizabeth) and Anna and Thomas of
Union Hill; Henry of Eden Valley; William of St. Paul; Mrs. Caspar Walerius and
Joseph of Jordan; and John of Estacada, Oregon.
The following is a summarized account of each family based on information located by this writer. The first section will discuss the 22 families who lived and died in the Union Hill area and whose descendants are still living there. They will be discussed in alphabetical order.
Nicholas Schoenecker
Nicholas Schoenecker was one of the first if not the first to settle in the Union Hill area. One historical reference state of him arriving in 1852. His land was section 25 of Belle Plaine Township which is still in the Schoenecker name.
In 1860, Nicholas was selected the spokesman of a committee of Union Hill men who called on Bishop Grace in St. Paul. They came to request the assignment of a priest to the new church they had recently constructed. However, their request was no accepted due to the shortage of priests and the closeness of the church to St. Benedict's Church.
Nicholas was born near Waxweiler, Germany. Two of his brothers also came a couple of years later and settled nearby.
Nicholas was married to Katherina Lochen and they raised a family of six boys. They were Matt of Fargo, North Dakota; Bartel of Andale, Kansas; Henry of Fargo, North Dakota; Nick of Idaho; Peter of Jordan; and Hubert of Union Hill. In addition two girls died while at a young age. Katherina was not related closely related to the other Lochens in Union Hill if at all related. She died at the age of 46 in 1877. Mr. Schoenecker married again to Mrs. Lucia Schaefer Bovie, a widow. All three are buried in Union Hill.
The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in
1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967
Peter Solheid
Peter Solheid is considered the first lay teacher of the St. John's parish. He would teach the children of the parish their religious faith in his home. The Solheids arrived in the Union Hill area in 1867 shortly after the church was built. They settled on a farm two miles northeast of Union Hill and here made their home. They came to this area directly from Waxweiler Germany.
Peter was born in 1815 to Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Solheid. His wife Anna Walerius was born in 1821. It is not known how closely related she was to the Caspar Walerius who came several years earlier to Union Hill also from Waxweiler, Germany. The Solheids lived to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary on June 1, 1891.
Mr. and Mrs. Soldheid's family included Mrs. Catherine Link and Mrs. Mary Kraus of St. Leo and John, Carl and Peter of Union Hill. Descendants of the three sons are still living in the Union Hill area today.
The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in
1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967
John Henry Spaetgens
The Spaetgens and their six children came from Germany in 1864 to Shakopee. The next year they settled on a farm in Section 15 of Derrynane Township southwest of Union Hill. One source states that the Spaetgens came from near the Netherlands border in Germany for they could speak Dutch.
Mr. Spaetgens was married to Josephine Mufels who bore him two
children before she died. The children were Mrs. Theodore Heffele (Elizabeth) of
Heidelberg and Bartel of St. Joe. Mr. Spaetgen married again to Gertrude Heinen
and four more children were born into the family. They were Joseph of Le Center,
Mrs. Hentges of Jordan, Mrs. H. Carl Witt (Mathilda) of Union Hill and Katherine
of St. Paul.
The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in
1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967
Joseph Schneider
Shortly after their marriage in 1853 in Dollendorf, Germany, the Schneiders came to America. They made their home in Wisconsin and in the later 1850's came to Union Hill. Joseph bought a farm a mile north of Union Hill. Mrs. Schneider was a sister to Mrs. William Hoffman. The Hoffmans accompanied them on their trip to this country and settled on a neighboring farm.
Joseph was born in 1825. His wife, Anna was born in 1814 to Theodore and Anna Schmitz Klinkhammer. They had two sons; John of Turton, South Dakota and William of Browns Valley, Minn.
The committee selected to seek a proper location for the church in 1867 included Joseph. His membership in the new church was short lived, however, for less than two years later, he was dead. He died in 1869 and was one of the first to be buried in the new cemetery of St. John's.
The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in
1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967
Peter Schommer
Mr and Mrs. Peter Schommer and their daughter, Lena, came to the Union Hill area in the middle 1850's. Peter met Anna Schommer in Wisconsin and they later married. The story is told that since they both had the same name, Schommer, but not related the priest who married them asked Anna to spell her last name with only one "m". They settled on a farm two miles northeast of Union Hill and here raised their family. The family included Mrs. Lena Fritz of Wilmont, Minnesota; Emilia who died shortly after her wedding; Peter of St. Leo; Nick of St. Benedict; John of Union Hill; Mrs. Sophia Lambrecht of St. Benedict; and Mrs. Mary Lehn (Frank) of Anoka.
The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in
1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967
USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, material may be freely used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material, AND permission is obtained from the contributor of the file.
These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by other organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for non-commercial purposes, MUST obtain the written consent of the contributor, OR the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent.
Scherkenbach, August, born in 1847, is a native of Prussia. In 1870 he came to America and learned the marble cutters' trade at Belleville, Illinois. In company with W.A. Clark, he started in the marble and granite business which they continued with success at Belleville until 1878 when he sold his interest and moved to Shakopee and continued the same business here. In 1881 he erected his brick building 16x36 feet in size, where he now keeps a large stock of monuments and headstones of all designs. At Belleville, Illinois, February 26, 1878, he married Barbara Ackermann who has borne him three children: Mary and Anna, twins, and William. Mary is deceases.
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Sencerbox, Jarvis Washburn, was born December 20, 1820 in Dutchess county, New York. He was educated in a district school, in Putnam county, taught by the author of the Spencerian system of penmanship. Twenty years of his life were passed in merchandizing in his native state. In 1831 he went to Quincy, Illinois, where he was engaged in banking, mercantile, and milling business; afterwards followed banking at Warsaw, and was also interested in coal mines at Farmington, Iowa. In July, 1855, he went to St. Paul and that season ran a steamboat of which he was owner and captain. In November of that year his boat was frozen in about one mile above Carver, where part of the skeleton may yet be seen. Mr. Sencerbox moved his family to Louisville township in September, 1856 and in the fall of 1858 removed to Shakopee. He was a member of the first board of county commissioners in the state; has held the offices of register of deeds, county auditor, deputy, and clerk of the court; in 1871-'3-'5 he was member of the legislature, and in 1874 he and Judge Gilfllan were appointed special committee on taxes an tax laws. Harriet Lounsberry became his wife October 4, 1843. Anna, Jarvis E., John, George, William, Harriet and Ida are their children.
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Spencer, B.E. is a native of Indiana; born March 26, 1847, in Warrick county. His parents moved to Indiana in 1839. The family moved to the Minnesota valley in the spring of 1856, made a claim in Eagle Creek township, and worked at farming there until 1861, when they sold and came to Shakopee. Mr. Spencer's death occurred in this city April 1, 1875; his widow and son Barzilla are still residents of this place. The latter is employed as carpenter for the St. Paul and Sioux City railroad company. He married Maria Montgomery, of Shakopee, October 16, 1875. She was born in 1852, in the East Indies. They have on child; Nellie.
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Stevens, Charles A., Captain, of the Shakopee Courier, is a native of New York city. He studied law three years with his brother, the late J. Bancroft Stevens, and in the fall of 1854, went to Kansas. During the winter and spring of 1855 he was postmaster at Kansas City, and the following summer returned to New York. In August, 1856, he came to Shakopee, then went to Le Sueur county, and made one of the first claims in Montgomery; he taught the first school in that section, in a log shanty. In the winter of 1856-7, he recorded mortgages for John Kennedy, register of Dakota county, and in the fall of 1858, engaged in business at Fox Lake, Wisconsin, with his brother, the late Colonel George Stevens of the Second Wisconsin Volunteers. He joined company A, Second Wisconsin; afterward enlisted in company G, Berdan's sharpshooters; served three years and participated in twenty-nine actions in the army of the Potomac; was mustered out April, 1866. After leaving the army he was employed ten years by the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul, and the St. Paul & Sioux City Railroad Companies, as agent, superintendent of elevators and book-keeper. In August, 1877, he started the Courier at Shakopee. His marriage with Eliza E. Elliot of Sibley County, took place in 1872.
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Strait, George F. born March 22, 1832, is a native of Bradford county, Pennsylvania, where he lived with his parents, Isaac and Maria Strait. He was principally occupied in farming and lumbering in that state until November, 1856, when he came to Minnesota and pre-empted 160 acres of land in Scott county where he resided about eight years. In 1864, he in company with H.B. Strait and D.L. How embarked in the milling business at Jordan; eight years later this firm built a mill in Chaska which they sold about one year after and began their milling trade in Shakopee. Mr. Strait has since been one of the owners of the Shakopee City flouring mill.
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Strait, Horace Benton was born January 26, 1835, in Potter county, Pennsylvania. He received a common school education and in 1846 went to Indiana, thence in 1856 to Scott county, Minnesota. Entered the Union army in 1862 as captain of the Ninth Minnesota Infantry; was promoted to major of that regiment in 1864 and at the close of the war was serving as inspector-general of the staff of General McArthur. In 1870, he was elected mayor of Shakopee and re-elected in 1871-2-8. Since 1866 he has been one of the trustees of the Minnesota Hospital for insane and is now president of the board. He is engaged in farming and merchandising, and is president of the First National bank of Shakopee. Mr. Strait was elected to the forty-third and forty-fourth congress and re-elected to the forty-fifth.
The following are some of the bills introduced by him. To encourage the growth of timber on western prairies; allowing 160 acres of land to settlers within railroad limits; for the relief of settlers whose crops were destroyed by grasshoppers; to provide for the erection of military telegraph; for the relief of settlers on railroad lands; for the relief of citizens engaged in the suppression of the Indian war of 1862; for the survey of public lands lying within meridian lines in the state of Minnesota; to restore to the public domain the military reservation know as Fort Ripley; to legalize certain settlements upon swamp lands in Minnesota; to extend the time for payment of preemptors on certain public lands in Minnesota; to equalize the bounties of soldiers who served in the late war; to extend the provisions of an act approved June 22, 1874, entitled "An act for the relief of settlers on railroad lands," for the payment of arrears of pensions, and many other bills of a personal nature. Most of these have become laws.
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Strait, Samuel Burton, was born December 14, 1813, in Bradford county, Pennsylvania, where his parents had located in 1813. When nineteen years of age he went to Potter county, where for three years he had charge of his brother's mercantile business. At the expiration of that time the brothers entered into partnership, and built a flouring mill, saw-mill and pail factory. About three years after he sold his interest to his brother and returned to Bradford county, where he carried on farming and blacksmithing some years. In 1846 he went to Indiana and remained until 1855, when he came to Minnesota. He had 1,000 acres of land near Jordan and a very large stock. This immense farming business he carried on with success about twenty years. In 1857 he, in company with Stotard & Pearson, laid out the town site of St. Lawrence, erected a hotel and dwelling, and resided there several years. April 3, 1834, he married Emeline Benson, who died in 1846. Their living children were Horace B., Edgar A., William W. and Truman D. In 1847 he married Delight Kenicut. She has borne him five children: Dewit D., Helen (deceased), William F., Mary and Hiram H.
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Strunk, Harman H. was born May 14, 1818, in Germany. His father died, and in 1835 he accompanied his mother and family to America. From 1836 until 1854 he resided in St. Louis, then came to Shakopee. He made a claim and built the first brewery in the valley; he operated it about nine years, then sold it and build a distillery. In 1873 he removed to the city to take charge of the drug business which he had, in company with G.W. Gellenbeck, established here in 1871. The firm became Strunk & Sons, and in 1874, they bought the property on First street where they are doing a very large business. They are also agents for the American and United States express companies. Mr. Strunk has held the offices of county commissioner, school treasurer, justice of the peace, alderman and mayor. He married, September 20, 1845, Mary A. Bocklage. Charles J. and Arnold M are their children.
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