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Compendium of History Reminiscence & Biography of Western Nebraska

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personality which makes and keeps him friends in all walks of life.

     Mr. Standt was married in 1901 to Miss Anna K. Standt and they have one child, John N. Standt, Jr.

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John L. Roseberry

     John L. Roseberry, residing on section 25, township 28, range 35, Cherry county, was born in Green county, Pennsylvania, January 18, 1866. His father was a farmer and a veteran of the Civil war, who died in 1865 from the effects of his service during his career as a soldier. The mother's maiden name was Julia A. Stewart, and both parents were American-born, descendants of old American stock.

     Mr. Roseberry was reared in Pennsylvania on a farm, living at home until he was twenty-one years of age, then started for himself, coming west and locating in Clay county, Nebraska, where he spent two years farming. He then came to the western part of the state and took a tree claim on Dismal river, returned to Pennsylvania and spent a year, then back to Nebraska, this time settling in Cherry county, taking a homestead here in 1890, which he has occupied ever since. He was the first white settler to begin improving land in the Dismal country and put up some of the first buildings, making the first fence in the locality. His buildings were all of sod, and his teams were oxen, which did all his farm work for a number of years. He got together quite a herd of cattle and other stock, and during the severe storms which swept the country in 1892 lost one hundred and forty-five head of stock, and for a few years went through very hard times, losing crops, stock, etc. He used his old tree claim as a summer pasture for his cattle, farming a small portion of his homestead, and about 1895 sold the former and afterwards leased land and ran stock for others, forging ahead slowly and bettering himself as he was able. He gradually added land to his original claim and is now possessor of three thousand three hundred and sixty acres of deeded land, besides leasing four sections all of which is used for a stock ranch, having plenty of pasture and hay land.

     Mr. Roseberry has a fine ranch house 36x40 feet, two stories, and water piped throughout the residence, a good barn, workshop and other buildings, wells, wind mills, three flowing wells, and has built sixty miles of fence. He also has a fine fruit orchard, has seven hundred apple trees bearing the finest fruit, also plums, cherries and small fruits. He has eighty acres of alfalfa, and cultivates one hundred acres, raising small grain of all kinds. Mr. Roseberry has done considerable experimenting with grasses and different grains, in order to ascertain which is the best adapted to the soil and climate, and the past year has tried raising Mexican peas, and shipped a crop of five hundred pounds. He has also given much time to the patenting of a hay stacker, which proved to be a success, and on which he took out a patent on February 21, 1905, called the Roseberry Stacker, which is in quite common use in the western states, claimed to be one of the best on the market, and has made a nice income for the inventor. Mr. Roseberry deals heavily in cattle and horses, running annually from twelve hundred to fifteen hundred of the former, and at present has eighty horses. His ranch is one of the best equipped and finest in the west, he devotes his entire attention to its management, and deserves the success which has come to him.

     Mr. Roseberry was married in 1893 to Miss Oscee G. Garrett, daughter of James H. and Alice (Hamm) Garrett, well known in Nebraska as one of the pioneer families here. They have the following children: Ira L., Ray, Paul T., Alice, Mabel, Oscar, Irena and a baby, Garrett. Our subject has always taken an active part in local affairs, serving as justice of the peace at different times, and was county commissioner for one term. He is president of the Hooker and Cherry County Telephone Company, organizer of that company and was active in getting the line established through the section.

Contributed by: Nina Clark <ninalou@eudoramail.com>

 

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OSCAR E. FORSLING

     The office of sheriff of Kimball county has been bestowed upon this gentleman, and he is discharging the duties of the position with rare ability and increasing popularity. He was elected in 1907, and prior to that time had served as deputy sheriff for four years, in that time becoming thoroughly familiar with the work, and he is deservedly honored and esteemed by his fellow-men.

     Mr. Forsling was born near the city of Gothenberg, Sweden on July 19, 1873. His father was a native of that country and followed farming as an occupation, also was for eighteen or twenty years a government officer, being well and prominently known in this part


Compendium of History Reminiscence & Biography of Western Nebraska

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of the country. He was a very wealthy man, owner of two extensive estates, and a very influential citizen. In 1883 he came to America with his family, locating in Kimball county, Nebraska, in 1885. He took a homestead and built up a comfortable home and became one of the prominent residents of that locality, known all over the section as one of the very old-timers and successful stockmen in that part of the state. A sketch of Mr. Forsling appears in this volume on another page.

     Our subject left home and started for himself at the age of thirteen years, beginning as a cowboy and at a very tender age rode the range all over the western part of Nebraska and the adjoining states, "punching" cows during the summer months and hunting and trapping through the winters. A considerable portion of his time was spent in Wyoming, Dakota, Montana and Colorado, and he roughed it during summer and winter, camping out on the ground wherever he happened to stop in his travels. He finally settled permanently in Kimball county, and is now living in the town of Kimball, where he has a good home and is one of the leading citizens.

     On November 25, 1900, Mr. Forsling was married to Miss Ethel Whitman, who is a daughter of F. M. Whitman, proprietor of the leading hotel in Kimball. Mrs. Forsling is a very charming and estimable lady, and their home is one of the most hospitable in town.

 

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EARL R. BATTY, D. D. S.

     The gentleman above named is among the rising professional men of Alma, Nebraska. He has gained an enviable reputation in his line during the comparatively short space of time in which he has practiced, and is regarded as a man of sterling qualities, well qualified for the work he has undertaken, and has the support of a large patronage.

     Dr. Batty is a native of Illinois, and is of English descent. He is a son of E. H. Batty, who settled in Alma in 1887, who was engaged in the real estate, and later the flour, feed and grocery trade, and now resides at Hastings. He invested largely in farming land, which he sold at a good round figure, and now owns considerable business house property in different towns in this section. He was for a time owner and publisher of the Alma Record, which was the Republican organ of the county, and still owns this paper, but leases it to other parties. He came to Nebraska from Jo Daviess county, Illinois, in 1886, with his family, locating in Alma, where our subject was reared, graduating from the Alma high school in 1896. After finishing high school he worked under Dr. Hill of this place and later studied dentistry at the Kansas City Dental School, and graduated from that institution with the class of 1901. He at once established an office at Alma, and is the oldest dentist in length of time practicing in Alma at the present time. His clientage (sic) extends all over Harlan and the adjoining counties, and has made an immense success in his profession. One brother, Dr. A. J. Batty, is in the same profession, with office at Wilcox, Nebraska.

     Dr. Batty was married in 1905 to Miss Anna Stewart, daughter of C. W. Stewart, a merchant of Alma.

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EVERETT M. ELDRED

     Among the old-timers in western Nebraska who have watched the development and growth of this part of the country from the time of the organization of the counties, and who has been an important factor in the upbuilding of this section, the gentleman above named holds a prominent place. He resides on section 9, township 21, range 34, Deuel county, where he has a fine ranch and valuable estate.

     Mr. Eldred was born in Jones county, Iowa, in 1864, and raised in that locality. He is a son of E. J. Eldred, a native of New York state, who was among the first settlers in Jones county, where he settled on a farm. Our subject is the second member of a family of four children, all boys. At the age of sixteen years he left the home of his uncle with whom he was then living and came to Saline county, Nebraska, where he followed farming, working out on ranches in that vicinity, and afterwards was engaged in the livery business for some years. He remained there up to 1888, when he moved to Deuel county, taking a homestead, which is the farm he now occupies. When he struck here he had very little capital, but he went to work building a set of sod buildings and began to start his farm. His brother Edgar came with him, and they had brought about one hundred and fifty cattle, and from that start gradually worked into the stock business, and have been engaged in this ever since. He batched it on his claim for ten years, constantly adding to his land, until he now owns a ranch of six thousand acres, on which he runs three thousand head of cattle and about two hundred horses. A large number of the horses are used in handling the cattle, as he requires five men

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