student at the seminary in Bennet, from which he expects to graduate in the class of '91. William, born in America, died at the age of nineteen years. Miss Margaret Dewey became the wife of Hiram Pound. a well-to-do farmer of Hendricks Precinct, and is now the mother of three daughters--Clara, Mary and Bertha. Miss Annie Dewey married Ora Woods, another farmer of Hendricks Precinct, and is the mother of one child, Charles Albert.

HOMAS H. ASHTON, of Syracuse Precinct, settled upon the land which he now occupies in the winter of 1870. It embraces 160 acres on section 33, and presents to the admiring eye of the passing traveler an admirably regulated homestead, indicating on all sides the supervision of a man of more than ordinary good taste and business capacities. As a tiller of the soil Mr. Ashton has long been recognized as a success, and now, while passing down the sunset hill of life, is in the enjoyment of those comforts and luxuries which are the legitimate reward of industry, perseverance and a well-ordered life. As a pioneer of the county, one who looked upon it in its primitive days, and whose labors have contributed in a large measure toward its present wealth and prosperity, he is regarded with that tacit reverence and respect which can only be accorded men of his worth and standing.
   The childhood home of our subject was in Menmouth County, N. J., where his birth took place Nov. 30, 1797. His father, Samuel, was a native of Pennsylvania, and his mother, Mrs. Hannah (Johnson) Ashton, was, like her son, born in New Jersey. Both the Ashtons and Johnsons are of English extraction. Thomas H. was but a year old when his parents removed from New Jersey to Fayette County, Pa., and the father was obliged to pay $7 per 100 pounds for the transportation of his family and goods over the mountains.
   In the spring of 1807 the Ashton family decided upon another removal, and this time took up their line of march to the vicinity of Marietta, Washington Co., Ohio, The mother only lived three years afterward, her death taking place in the fall of 1810, by which calamity eight children, six sons and two daughters, were deprived of her affectionate care. Of these Thomas H. is now the only survivor. The family after the death of the mother removed to Clermont County before its division, by which a part of it became Brown County.
   The subject of this sketch pursued his first studies at New Haven, Fayette Co., Pa., in 1806. He attained his majority in Brown County, Ohio, and soon afterward purchased a tract of land at $1.50 per acre, which he declared he would retain possession of until offered $20 per acre for it. The people around him made fun of this asseveration, but in the fall of 1851 he proudly disposed of his quarter section of land for the snug sum of $3,000, an amount very near his expectations, which would have been fully realized probably had he waited a year or two longer
   Mr. Ashton, now desirous of a change of occupation, repaired to the town of Fayetteville, Ohio, where he put up a large brick residence, purchased a stock of goods, and engaged in general merchandising. In 1854 he removed to the northern part of the State, settling on a farm in Defiance County, which he had purchased for $2,000, and where he lived until the full of 1870. Then, selling out for the snug advance of $5,000, he made his way across the Mississippi to this State, and invested a portion of his capital in the land which he now owns and occupies. This purchase, however, was for the most part accidental, as he came to this State simply to visit his son in Nebraska City, and was persuaded by the latter to this step. The 160 acres for which he paid $2,000 is now considered worth twice that sum. The money which Mr. Ashton at that time had left after paying for his land, he divided among his children, in true fatherly fashion.
   Our subject while a resident of the Buckeye State was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Cramer, Dec. 31, 1818. This lady, like her husband, was also a native of New Jersey, and was born in June, 1801. A kindly Providence smiled upon their union in the birth of nine children, but five of these were taken away before reaching mature years. Rachel, Mrs. Blue, is living with her son in Defiance County, Ohio; Benjamin D. is a practicing physician of Traverse City, Mich.; William died in this county, Jan. 5, 1886; Elizabeth F. is

the wife of George Brechbill, who operates the homestead. Mrs. Elizabeth Ashton departed this life at her home, Oct. 16, 1876.
   Mr. Ashton cast his first presidential vote for Monroe, when one of the political parties of the country was known by the name of old-line Whig. Upon its abandonment he allied himself with the Republicans. He has voted for every Republican President from the fall of 1818 until 1884, when he was unable to attend the polls. Since 1819 he has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in which he served as Class-Leader and Superintendent of the Sunday-school, and held various other positions of trust and responsibility in connection therewith for many years. In his prime he was strong and athletic, seldom knowing a day's illness. He reverts proudly to the fact that he never quarreled with a man in all his life, and never was a party to a suit in court. In 1883 he was stricken with paralysis, and has never fully recovered from the effects of this. He knows all about the difficulties and hardships of pioneer life. His land in Ohio was originally covered with timber, which he cleared and brought to a good state of cultivation. He had at first but fifty acres, and in the course of time added to it by 100. He was thrown upon his own resources at an early age, but this, instead of proving a detriment, only stirred him on to renewed labor, and was in fact probably that which contributed largely to his success. He is a self-made man in every sense of the word.
   George Brechbill, a son-in-law of our subject, was born in Westmoreland County, Penn., July 12, 1831, and is the son of Henry and Mary (Lose) Brechbill, who left the Keystone State about 1835, and took up their residence in Defiance County, Ohio. The father was a farmer by occupation, and both parents died while scarcely middle-aged, leaving four children, namely: Sarah, John, George and Abraham. George grew to manhood in Defiance County, Ohio, and at the same place, in 1856, was married to Miss Ashton; they came to Nebraska in 1871, and have since lived with our subject.
   Mr. Brechbill is an ex-soldier of the Union, having enlisted in the fall of 1863, in Company I, 9th Ohio Cavalry, which was assigned to the Army of the Cumberland, and went with Sherman on his famous march to the sea. Mr. B. was an active participant in some of the most important battles of the war, and after a brave and faithful service received his honorable discharge in North Carolina. He is a stanch Republican, politically, and a member in good standing of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Of his union with Miss Ashton there have been born five children, three of whom died young and Mary E. died when an interesting maiden of eighteen years. There is thus left them only one child, a daughter, Gertrude, who was born June 27, 1870. William Ashton, the sixth son of our subject, also served during the Civil War, in Company G, 38th Ohio Infantry, from 1861 until its close.

EORGE WRIGHT, one of the leading farmers and stock-raisers of Otoe County, residing in Otoe Precinct, was an early pioneer of this section of the country, and has witnessed almost its entire growth, of which he has been an important factor. While actively assisting in the development of the great agricultural resources of this region his labors have been well rewarded, as he is now the possessor of a handsome property, his farms comprising 700 acres.
   Mr. Wright was born in Germany in 1835, a son of Michael and Rosina (Atlee) Wright, natives of Germany. They were reared and married in their native country and resided there until 1843, when they came to America with their family, and located for awhile in Upper Canada. In 1844 they came to the "States" and settled in Nauvoo, Ill, where Mr. Wright invested in town property. He enlisted from there to take part in the Mexican War, and served until the close of the war. He did not return to Illinois, but went to California, and never went back to his home. The mother of our subject died in Nauvoo, leaving five children: George; John, who lives in Rockport, Mo.; Susan, who married Lewis Lewis, and lives in Otoe Precinct; Joseph and Mabel, who are now dead.
   The subject of this sketch was but eight years old when he came to America with his parents. He commenced attending school in his native land when he was six years old, and the remainder of

his education he secured in the American public schools. He was ten years old when he had the sad misfortune to lose a good mother, and his father going soon after to serve in the Mexican War, the children were separated, being taken by different friends, and our subject went to live for awhile with a man in Nauvoo. In a short time he was taken by another man, who soon after moved to Dallas, and later to Olson, where he engaged in the mercantile business. Our subject was a bright. active lad, ambitious to obtain an education, so he attended school in both of the towns mentioned, and when not engaged in studying he assisted in the store. In 1855 he concluded to come West to seek a home, and came directly to the Territory of Nebraska and to Nebraska City, arriving here on the 1st of October. He found this place then but a village, with only one brick building completed, and the greater part of the business was done in the part called Kearney. He soon secured a situation as clerk in a store at Stephens, Richardson County, which was then no village, only a trading-post for the Indians. In the following spring he gave up his clerkship and returned to Otoe County, where he found work on a farm at $20 a month, and he continued to work by the month or job until 1857. He then made claim to the northeast quarter of section 24, Otoe Precinct, and entered it from the Government in the land-office at Omaha. He first built a log cabin on his land, but as he was then single, he continued to work out until after his marriage in 1861, with Miss Susan Hanks. The year following his marriage he settled on his place, which has ever since been his home. By hard work, wise economy and judicious expenditure, he has acquired one of the largest and most valuable estates in Otoe County. He has increased the area of his land to 700 acres, all in Otoe Precinct, and nearly all improved. He engages in general farming and stock-raising with marked success, as is attested by his abundant harvests, and the fine, well-kept stock of good grades that roam over his rich pastures.
   Mrs. Wright has contributed her share in bringing about this prosperity, and their home is made cheerful and cozy by her skillful hands and ready tact. Three children complete the family circle: Laura received her education at Mt. St. Scholastica, at Atchison, Kan.; Mary is attending the common schools; Martha is now a student of the State Normal School at Peru, Neb.; all are single and at home.
   Mr. Wright is a stirring, energetic man, and that he has been very successful in life he owes to his indomitable persistence in overcoming obstacles, and to his habits of industry, for he is an entirely self-made man. That through all the conflicts of life he has not fought and wrought for self entirely is proved by his liberality and generosity to others. He is a Democrat in his political sentiments, and he takes a lively interest in all that pertains to his adopted country. Mrs. Wright and her eldest daughter are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church South.

 HORRUM, a leading hardware merchant of Talmage, carries a full stock of the merchandise pertaining to his line of trade, and has also added farm implements, wagons, buggies and other road vehicles. He is a man of means and standing, the owner of a handsome and comfortable home on Main street, and in all respects a prominent and well-to-do citizen.
   Mr. Horrum established his present business in Talmage in 1886, and is rapidly building up a controlling trade. Previous to this he had been identified with the brick manufactory of L. T. Spicknall, which was established in 1881 near the village limits, and of which the output was as many as 500,000 annually. From this factory came nearly all the brick used in the principal buildings built of this material in Talmage. In 1886 Mr. Horrum withdrew, disposing of his interests to his partner, and invested his capital in his present business.
   Our subject came to Nebraska in the spring of 1870, locating on a tract of land in the vicinity of the present village of Talmage, which, however, at that time had not been laid out. He engaged in farming, and became widely and favorably known to the people of this section. Previously he had been a resident of Cass County, Mo., to which he had removed from Dearborn County, Ind., landing on the other side of the Mississippi in 1869,

Dearborn County, Ind., was the early home of our subject, and where his birth took place July 6, 1853. His father, William Horrum, was also a native of that county, to which the parents of the latter had come in the pioneer days, settling not far from the present site of Lawrenceburg. Grandfather Daniel Horrum was a native of New Hampshire, where he was reared, and married to Miss Polly Blodgett, and after the birth of a part of their family they emigrated from the Old Granite State to Indiana, locating in Dearborn County, where they spent the remainder of their lives. Mrs. Polly Horrum passed away about twelve years before the decease of her husband, at the age of seventy-six, being ten years younger than he. The latter was eighty-six years old at the time of his death. During his early manhood, for three years, he did good service in the War of 1812, and participated in some of the most important battles of that war. He was a Universalist in religion, and a man careful and conscientious in his dealings with his neighbors, possessing a strict sense of justice, which insured him the esteem and confidence of all who knew him.
   William Horrum, the father of our subject, was reared and educated in his native county, and otherwise spent his time after the manner of most farmers' sons. His wife, the mother of our subject, was Miss Polly Huston, a native also of Dearborn County, Ind., her childhood home being not far from that of her husband. Her parents had emigrated to Indiana from one of the New England States, becoming residents of Dearborn County during its early settlement, and at a time when the country was inhabited principally by wild animals and Indians. The father of our subject, after his marriage, began the development of a farm from a tract of wild land, upon which he labored until the fall of 1869. He then crossed the Father of Waters, and secured a tract of land in LaFayette Precinct, Nemaha County, this State, upon which he lived a number of years, building up a good farm, but which he left in the spring of 1887, and, retiring from active labor, took up his residence in the village of Talmage, where, with his excellent wife, he is spending his declining years in ease and comfort. Both the parents have been members of the Christian Church for many years, and liberally contributed to its support. Mr. Horrum give the ground for the church edifice, which was built on a part of his farm. He was a charter member of the society, and it was largely through his encouragement and assistance that it was maintained during its first struggling years. Mr. H. in early life voted the old Whig ticket, but later identified himself with the Republicans.
   Leman Horrum was the eldest of the three children born to his parents, all sons, the other two being named Omer and Stephen W. His early education was conducted in the schools of Dearborn County, Ind., and later he was a student in the Normal at Peru, this State. He is a man of more than ordinary intelligence, and keeps himself well posted upon matters of general interest. Like his parents, he belongs to the Christian Church. and like his father, he is a stanch supporter of Republican principles. He has with one exception fulfilled all the obligations of a good citizen, but still remains a bachelor, having, it is supposed, so much business upon his hands that he has not yet found time to attend to this most important matter.

AMUEL SWANK. Longfellow has most truly remarked in one of his exquisitely realistic poems, that "Into each life some rain must fall, some days must be dark and dreary," but the problem that has stirred many hearts is, why so much more rain falls into some lives than into others. The subject of our sketch is one whose life has been constantly overshadowed by clouds of trouble and trial, and the sunlight and brightness have been fitful and intermittent, but at the same time his constant struggle and manful conflict have resulted in the building up of an exceptionally fine character, and beautifying a most appreciable spirit.
   The subject of our sketch is the son of Joseph and Littas (Van Metri) Swank, who were married to Kentucky, and from that State removed to Indiana.
   They were the parents of eleven children, and our subject, who was born on the 10th of January, 1827,

was their seventh child. The place of his nativity was Harrison County, Ind. When about eleven months old, his parents removed to Montgomery County, where the father died when our subject was about four and a half years old; being left thus early without paternal care and wealth, it is not surprising, that his education was limited by circumstances and for the same reason much curtailed. When twenty-one years of age, he went to Rock Island County, Ill.
   In 1847 Mr. Swank was united in marriage with Miss Sarah Walker, the daughter of Samuel A, and Nancy A. Walker, who was born in Madison County, Ill., in the year 1830. He became the owner of sixty acres of land at Rock Island, Ill., and there remained until 1858, when he removed with his wife and child to Marshall County, Kan., where he settled. Later they became pioneers of Richardson County, Neb., and were there throughout the Nebraska and Kansas troubles that necessarily aroused so much strong feeling among the advocates of either side of the question.
   Leaving Kansas, our subject removed to Missouri, and lived in that State at the time of the Civil War. July 3, 1863, he enlisted in the 13th Kansas Infantry, and served in the Southwestern Division of the army. His military career, while it did not bring him prominently before the people as a great soldier, was one of honor, devotion and patriotism, and, like so many others, he during that period performed every duty for home and native land in the best possible manner, and earned the reward that always comes to those who are swayed by high principles, and who faithfully follow the dictates thereof. At the conclusion of the war, with health impaired, Mr. Swank returned to Missouri and again took up the more ordinary avocations of life, remaining here with his family until 1868, when he came to this State and took up his present homestead of eighty acres, which he succeeded in bringing to a very high state of cultivation by the help and assistance of others. From the time of his military service, and as a result thereof, his sight had begun to fail and he became almost blind, but in that affliction has been supported and sustained by his own patient spirits, and the affection of his family.
   The home circle of our subject included four children, viz: William E., Cora J., Caroline A. and Arthur E. William E. is married to Miss Tucker, of Nebraska, and resides in California; they are the parents of one beautiful little daughter, Lena. Cora J. is the wife of L. H. Bertz, and resides at Bennet; they too have a daughter, who is named Hattie J. Caroline A. is happily married to James Malcomb, and has presented her husband with two children, who are named McCoy E. and George Samuel.
   Our subject is in political affairs a stanch Republican, but has been prevented taking the active part he would have desired by reason of his blindness. Religiously, he is connected with the Latter-Day Saints, and is one of the consistent and devout members of that community. He is one of the capable and much esteemed citizens of his district.

ATHAN D. FOSTER. The subject of this sketch, a very capable and intelligent man, is by occupation a general farmer, mechanic and millwright. In the knowledge of these industries he is practically independent, for though he should lose every cent of his property, he has that which money cannot buy. He occupies a finely improved farm of 120 acres on section 3, in McWilliams Precinct, and is pursuing the even tenor of his way as an honest man and a good citizen.
   Mr. Foster came to Nebraska on the 1st of April, 1880, from Davis County, Iowa, and soon afterward settled upon his present farm. He had been a resident of the Hawkeye State for a period of ten years, carrying on farming, and employing himself when opportunity presented as a mechanic. His early home lies on the other side of the Mississippi, in Washington County. Ill., where he was born Oct. 9, 1828. His father. Andrew Foster, a native of Campbell County, Ky., was a well-educated man, and for years engaged as a teacher. The paternal grandfather of our subject was an old Revolutionary soldier, who after the independence of the Colonists had been established, settled in the Blue Grass regions; and engaging in farming, there spent the remainder of his life, dying at a ripe old age. Andrew Foster was cut down in his prime, his death

taking place at the home of the family in Washington County, Ill., when Nathan D., our subject, was a little lad of seven years. The mother, Mrs. Nancy (Cox) Foster, subsequently became the wife of James Hall, of Alabama, and only lived to be middle-aged, her death taking place when she was forty-five years old.
   Young Foster continued to live with his mother until her death, when he was a youth of eighteen years. At the age of sixteen he had commenced an apprenticeship at the carpenter and millwright trades, at which he was employed until a man of thirty-two years, living mostly in the Middle States. In the spring of 1860 he started across the plains, and for two years thereafter hunted for gold in the Nevada Gulch mines. He met with moderate success, and thence migrated to Virginia City, Mont., during the opening of the mines there.
   At this period the country was over-run by what were termed "road agents," and it became necessary for the citizens to organize themselves for their protection. Mr. Foster was chosen Lieutenant of a company for the suppression of these outrages, and by his bravery and fidelity to duty was largely instrumental in effecting the desired result, not, however, until thirty-three desperate men had been executed by hanging. In the discharge of his duties he passed through many thrilling experiences and hairbreadth escapes, and has to this day a revolver captured from one of the most desperate of the outlaws, and one of the first to be hanged. It is a Colt's Navy, and Mr. Foster subsequently carried it for some time for the protection of his person. While in the mountains he became an expert hunter, having a reputation second to none in that region, and many were the buffalos, deer and antelopes which were brought down by his unerring rifle. He also occasionally successfully attacked a mountain lion. He thus employed his time two or three months during the winter season.
   Mr. Foster, in the spring of 1867, set his face eastward, crossing the Yellowstone River and the Missouri, and on his way back to his old haunts spent four years at Council Bluffs, Iowa. In this city occurred the death of his wife, Mrs. Marion (Cook) Foster, to whom he had been married at Council Bluffs in 1865. She was born in Grant County, Mich., and came to Nebraska with her parents when a young woman. She was a lady of many estimable qualities, and greatly mourned by our subject. There was one child born to them, Jennie, Nov. 1, 1867; she has married beneath her station, and our subject does not recognize her.
   In March, 1870, Mr. Foster was married a second time at Council Bluffs, Iowa, to Miss Jane Sober, who was born in Ontario County, N. Y., and reared on the Western Reserve in Ohio. She came to the farther West alone; her parents were the descendants of old New England families. She is the foster mother of one child, Christian Robert, a smart little lad of seven years. Mr. Foster, politically, is a reformer, and liberal in his religious views. He has endeavored to follow the precepts, of the Golden Rule, and, with his estimable wife, is a favorite in social circles.

OAH EMBREE purchased the land which he now owns in Russell Precinct during the period of its early settlement, and here he has since remained, watching the growth and development of one of the most prosperous States west of the Mississippi. His career has been one filled in with industry, as is evinced in his possession of one of the finest farms in this county. It includes 160 acres of land, which yields in abundance the choicest crops of Nebraska, and upon it are the buildings of modern style of architecture, amply adapted to the convenience of the proprietor, all the purposes of living, the shelter of stock and the storing of grain. Personally, the proprietor is one of the leading men of his county, one who enjoys in a marked degree the esteem and confidence of his fellow-citizens.
   Our subject is the offspring of excellent Quaker stock, and was born in Vermilion County, Ill., Feb. 22, 1833. His father, Jesse Embree, was a native of Preble County, Ohio, whence he emigrated early in life to Illinois, and in Vermilion County married Miss Mary Hollingsworth, also of Quaker parentage, and a native of that county. The paternal grandfather of our subject was of French descent, but his parents probably were na-