which may now justly be ranked among the model farms of Cass County.
   Of the happy marriage of our subject and his wife five children have been born, as follows: Hiram Reed, Henry L., Elizabeth M., John M. and Grace.
   Mr. Lloyd is a young man of high standing in the farming community of Cass County, his enterprise, independence and capacity for work making him a valued citizen. He is a close and intelligent observer of the political aspects of the day, and gives his hearty support to the Republican party.

ILLIAM A. JOHNSON is a popular, highly respected citizen residing in Salt Creek Precinct, where he owns and operates a valuable farm of 400 acres on section 15. He is the son of Abraham and Nancy (Carney) Johnson. Both of his parents were natives of New York State. His father was a laboring man, and leaving his native State he moved westward and settled in Ohio, where he lived a consistent life, displaying a marked individuality and morality. He died in 1876, seventy-seven years old. The Carneys were among the celebrated Knickerbocker families of New York, so graphically described by the famed author, Washington Irving. The mother died at their home in Ohio in October, 1868, aged fifty years, leaving a family of six children, named: Margaret A., Mary, William A. (our subject), Georgiana, Eliza J. and Cornelius. After the death of the mother, the father contracted a second marriage, and was the father of one child, Sadie.
   The subject of this sketch was born in Tompkins County, N. Y., in 1841. His earliest recollections of life extend back to the journey westward to Ohio, during which his father had a violent quarrel with a dishonest boatman. Their home was in the heavily timbered district of Ohio, and at an early age he was taught to swing an ax. At the age of fourteen our subject made his father an offer as follows: That if he would give him his time until he was twenty-one, he would give the father in return one-half of his earnings, to which the parent consented. He then worked out on a farm by the month for six years. He did not attend school six months altogether in his life, and the great store of practical knowledge which the gentleman possesses at this time is the direct result of the study and close observation of events as they transpired about him.
   Our subject enlisted as a soldier in Company H, 80th Ohio Infantry. He accompanied his regiment to the seat of war in the South, and participated with them in many skirmishes and engagements. In looking over a list of the battles in which he took part, the names are found of Farmington, Ky.; Corinth, where, in 1862, he received a wound in the knee; Coldwater, Holly Springs, Tallahatchie, Memphis, Helena, siege of Vicksburg, Raymond and Jackson. In the latter engagement he was severely wounded in the left side. Here the rebels came up and captured him. One of them tapped him on his shoulder and said: "What do you think of Vallandigham? He is in our lines now, and is going to be Governor of the State of Ohio. He thought that if such feelings and sentiments were expressed by the rebels, he could no longer be a Democrat, and it was at Jackson, Miss., that he was converted to the Republican faith, which he has to this time steadfastly maintained.
   Our subject pursued the following line of reasoning: Here is a man who has been tried for treason, given every advantage and technicality under the law of the land he has sought to betray, has been found guilty, and banished to the side that held his sympathy, yet in the face of all this he was taken up by the Democratic party, and put forward as one of its principal leaders. I can never swallow that dose, and reclining backward, the wound that was made by the rebel sharpshooter allowed the escape of the last drop of Democratic blood in his organism. From this battlefield he was taken to Libby Prison, where he remained until he was paroled, and he was finally exchanged at Columbus, Ohio, in October, 1863. He then rejoined his regiment at Stevenson, Ala., and took part in the battles of Mission Ridge and Huntsville, Ala. At Paint Rock River his right leg was broken while assisting in building a stockade. He was sent to the hospital at Chattanooga. Tenn., where he was examined, and then sent back to Knoxville marked

discharged," and sent to the Louisville Hospital, thence to New Albany, Ind., from where he went to the soldier's home at Indianapolis. Desiring to obtain a furlough he applied to Gov. Morton, of Indiana, who at all times and in all things was the soldiers' friend, and he procured it for him.
   At the expiration of the furlough our subject was appointed on the Secret Police by Gov. Morton, and rendered the State valuable service in that capacity assisting in the detection and capture of several desperate characters, who were opposed to the Union cause. He was instrumental in ridding the city of Indianapolis of the notorious "Knights of the Golden Circle." From his earliest boyhood days he was a true patriot, and his heart was imbued with an intense love of his country, While a young man he was called upon to climb to the top of a liberty pole in West Bedford, Ohio, to arrange the rope for hoisting a flag. His father was strenuously opposed to his enlistment in the service, as he was a Democrat of the old school. After his enlistment members of the Democratic party tried to bribe him to desert and fly to Canada, but his honor as a man and a soldier would not permit him to so disgrace himself. He is now proud of the record he made in the army, and of the assistance he gave his country in her time of need, and he is certainly justified in all he feels.
   While at home on his furlough our subject was married to Miss Rachel Loder, July 7, 1863. This lady is the daughter of James and Ann (Polick) Loder. She was born in Coshocton County, Ohio, where they made their home for the six years following the close of the war, when he removed to Hancock County, Ill., where he resided on a farm until 1881, when he moved to Nebraska and purchased eighty acres of land. He was prospered, and has at various times added to his original purchase, until he now owns 400 acres of choice, eligibly located farm land, which he devotes largely to raising cattle and hogs for the general market. He has now 280 head of cattle and 140 head of hogs. The buildings on his farm are of the most substantial and extensive character, conveniently located, and complete in all their appointments for the purposes for which they were designed. The divided into fields of convenient size by substantial hedge and wire fences; an orchard of choice varieties of fruit and a large number of ornamental trees add to the beauty and value of his property. His home is nicely located, is neatly and tastefully arranged, and well furnished throughout, and his wife takes especial pride in maintaining her home as one of the nicest of the many in the precinct. They have become the parents of nine children, of whom the following are living: John Thomas, Richard, James, Louis and Minnie.
   Mr. Johnson has been an active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church since he was fifteen years of age. He has been Superintendent of the Union Sunday-school in Stilt Creek Precinct, Neb. He is a member of Greenwood Post, G. A. R., and also holds a membership in the Odd Fellows' Lodge at Ashland, and is a leading member of the Knights of Pythias. In politics he is now and forever a Republican. He is a progressive, wide-awake citizen, a hard worker, popular among his fellowmen, deserving and holding the respect of all who know him. He is an earnest and hearty supporter of every plan devised to further the best interests of the community in which he lives.

OHN KRAEGER is one of those earnest, hard-working German-American citizens who have contributed so largely by their perseverance and skill to make the State of Nebraska the fruitful garden it is to-day. He resides on his fine farm of 320 acres located on section 2 of Mt. Pleasant Precinct. He is a native of Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, where he was born April 5, 1854. There he lived with his parents, John and Eve Krueger, attending school until he reached the age of fifteen years, when he began learning the trade of stonemason, which trade he followed for six years. His life from that time to the present has been passed in farming. In the fall of 1864 he took passage for America in a sailing-vessel from the port of Bremen, and after a voyage of thirty-one days landed at New York City.
   After he had reached that city our subject went direct to Tazewell County, Ill., where he lived until 1878, in which year he came to Cass County, Neb.,

where he has since lived. He was married to Sophia Orth, Nov. 15, 1870, in Illinois. The lady was born in Germany, June 16, 1848, and is the daughter of Peter and Elizabeth Orth. She came to America with her parents when she was five years old, and settled with them in Canada, where the parents still reside. In 1867 she came alone to Illinois. They have become the parents of nine children: Elizabeth was born Aug. 27, 1871; George, Jan. 12, 1873; Adam, June 8, 1875; John, Jan. 9, 1877; Annie, Jan. 9, 1879; Louisa, Nov. 8, 1882; Jacob, Dec. 28, 1884; Mary, Nov. 6, 1886, and Henry, in 1887.
   Mr. Kraeger emigrated with his family to Cass County, Neb., in the spring of 1878, and settled on the farm where he now lives, to the improvement of which he has from that time to the present devoted his every energy. His buildings, provided for general farm purposes, barns, sheds, etc., are among the best in the precinct; his residence is large and tastefully designed and handsomely furnished. The grounds about the house are ornamented with evergreens and shrubbery. A thriving orchard of choice varieties of fruits, and both natural and planted groves, add value to the premises.
   When our subject arrived in America he had no means with which to help himself. He contracted a debt of $20 to tide him over his necessities until he could settle down to work at something. He is truly a self-made man, and in gathering the fine property together which now surrounds him, he has shown an immense amount of energy and perseverance. In all things he has been ably assisted by his wife, who has at no time ever hesitated to assume any responsibility or enter upon the discharge of any duty, however hard or unpleasant it might be, that would forward the interests and welfare of husband and family, and now having attained the fulfillment of their hopes and desires, they are enjoying a full competency, which they have striven so long and hard to reach, and have been so richly rewarded.
   The friends and neighbors of the subject of this sketch have frequently solicited him to accept official positions at their hands, which he has invariably refused, except the office of School Director, in which position he felt that he could accomplish the greatest amount of good, and the duties of which office he has filled in a highly acceptable manner. Himself and wife are valued and honored members of the Lutheran Church. He is a Republican in politics, and is an earnest worker in behalf of that party. He is one of the leaders in the social life of the precinct.

SA COLMAN, of Liberty Precinct, his been one of its solid institutions for many years, and occupies his father's old homestead, which comprises 220 acres of valuable land, pleasantly located on section 6. The elder Colman homesteaded this during the pioneer days of this county, and was numbered among its most valued citizens. The modern improvements, however, have been effected mostly by the present occupant. A stream of living water runs through the farm, adding greatly to its natural fertility, and aiding in producing some of the finest crops in Southern Nebraska.
   Mr. Colman has been a resident of this county since November, 1858, having come here at that time with his father's family when a youth of nineteen years. He has since also continuously resided in Liberty Precinct on the old farm. He was born in Noble County, Ind., Oct. 10, 1839, and is the son of Hartwell and Elizabeth (Engle) Colman, who were natives respectively of New York and Ohio. Both the parents became residents of Noble County, Ind., in their youth; they were married in Ohio, and began life together on a farm in Noble County. Both the maternal and paternal grandparents of our subject were among the pioneer settlers of Noble County. The brothers and sisters of our subject were mostly born in that county. The family in the fall of 1851, leaving Indiana, moved across the Mississippi into Jones County, Iowa, settling on a tract of new land. The father effected considerable improvement, with the aid of his sons, then sold out once more and resolved to cast his lot with the pioneers of Nebraska. Coming to this county he selected land on section 6, Liberty Precinct, which he took up from the Government, and here with his estimable wife spent the remainder of

his days. He was born in 1800, and died in December, 1864, being sixty-four years of age. The wife and mother continued to live a few years at the homestead here, but finally returned to Indiana, and spent her last days at the home of her daughter in Tippecanoe County, where her death took place about 1878, after she had reached her three-score years. She was a good woman, and a member of the Methodist Church.
   The subject of this sketch spent his boyhood and youth upon the pioneer farm in Noble County, Ind., and accompanied his parents in their subsequent removals, first to Iowa and then to Nebraska. In due time he made the acquaintance of Miss Eliza Copple, of Rock Bluff Precinct, to whom he was married at her home there in January, 1865. Mrs. Colman was born in Barry County, Mo., Sept. 10, 1849, and came with her patents to Nebraska during the progress of the Civil War. They settled first in Rock Bluff Precinct, but later sold out and moved to Weeping Water, where the parents are now living, retired from active labor.
   Mrs. Colman was reared under the home roof, and educated in the common schools. Of her marriage with our subject there were five children, am follows: Ida M. is the wife of Oliver Murdoch, and they live on a farm in Gosper County; Delmer S., Varrow H., Grace E. and Ray are at home with their parents. Mrs. Colman adheres to the religious faith of her excellent mother, being a member of the Methodist Church. Mr. Colman, politically, is a sound Republican.

RS. LOUISA MATHEWS, an accomplished, intelligent, self-reliant woman, of rare executive ability, is the owner of 240 acres of land on section 30, Stove Creek Precinct, where she has resided for a score of years, and which she has managed with unusual skill since the death of her husband, showing excellent judgment in all her business transactions, and a thorough knowledge of the duties devolving upon her. She was born in Freedom, Beaver Co., Pa., Nov. 10, 1841, and is of mingled Scotch and German descent, her paternal grandfather, William Graham, who was a farmer of Pennsylvania, having been of Scotch origin, though a native of the Keystone State. He was a strong Presbyterian, and adhered tenaciously to the faith of that church. His son Joseph, father of Mrs. Mathews, was born in Butler County, Pa., where he married Henrietta Ghost, a native of the same county. Her father, the maternal grandfather of our subject, was born in Germany, but emigrated to America and settled on a Pennsylvania farm. Mrs. Mathews' father was a gunmaker by trade, and erected a gun factory in Freedom, Pa., and carried on his business there on a small scale. In 1855 he sold his factory and moved to Iowa, becoming one of the pioneers of Scott County. He located twenty miles east of Davenport, taking up 160 acres of land, which he improved, and to which he has since added by purchase, until he now has one of the largest farms in Scott County, where he still resides at the advanced age of seventy-three years. His wife died in 1849, at the early age of thirty-five years. They were the parents of three children, namely: Louisa; Catherine, of Moline, Ill., and Susan, deceased.
   Our subject received a good education in her native town, remaining there until fourteen years of age, when she removed with her father to Iowa, and remained under the parental roof until her marriage, Sept. 1, 1862, to Mr. J. M. Mathews. He was born in Washington County, Ohio, Aug. 8, 1833, and was a son of William and Mary Ann Mathews, early settlers of Ohio, born in 1808 and May 2, 1812, respectively. His father was a stonecutter by trade, and also carried on a small farm, continuing thus employed until his death, Dec. 12, 1863, at the age of fifty-five years. His mother is still living in Ohio. Of the children born to them two are still living, Charles W. and Alpha C., both in Ohio. J. M. Mathews, husband of our subject, was a diligent scholar, who, improving every opportunity for study, acquired a very good education in early life. When fourteen years of age he was put in sole charge of the farm, his father having work at his trade, and he remained thus engaged for four years. In 1861 he went to Scott County, Iowa, and worked on a farm until the time of his marriage with our subject. Two weeks later, filled with patriotic enthusiasm, and inspired by

the loyal courage of his bride, he enlisted in the defense of his country in the 20th Iowa Infantry, and was mustered into service at Clinton. In the fall of that year he was sent into Missouri, and afterward took an active part in the battle of Prairie Grove, Ark., where he was shot in the breast, the ball coming out below his arm, and was obliged to spend the winter in the hospital, not being able to join his regiment again until the following March. Mrs. Mathews was sick at the time and was unable to care for him. He afterward participated in the siege of Vicksburg and the battle of New Orleans, subsequently joining Farragut's expedition to Mobile and Ft. Fisher, and at the close of the war was mustered out of the service at Clinton, Iowa, receiving an honorable discharge in July, 1865, having served two years and eleven months. After resuming his duties as a private citizen Mr. Mathews rented land for three years, and in the fall of 1868 he removed with his family to Cass County, Neb., and located on the present homestead owned by his widow, taking up only eighty acres at first. The land was entirely uncultivated, and he set out trees, planted an orchard, and put up a dwelling, 15x12 feet, at a cost of $200, the lumber for which he hauled from Nebraska City. He met with the usual luck of settlers in a now country, suffering at times from the wind or drouth, and during the grasshopper raid met with severe losses. By his energetic labors and perseverance, coupled with wisdom and thrift in management, he succeeded in evolving a fine farm from the raw prairie land, to which he afterward added 160 acres on section 31, which he bought of the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad Company. The farm is all improved, and surrounded by hedge or wire fence, and has a 10-acre orchard containing 600 trees of various kinds. It is all well watered, has a windmill, tanks, and various other improvements. The original house has given way to one of a more modern construction, and new barns and out-buildings have been erected. In all of these improvements Mr. Mathews took great pride, and since his death, which occurred Feb. 10, 1886, our subject has paid equally good attention to its management. In politics he was a good, honest Republican, firmly adhering to the principles of that party. He was a member of the United Brethren Church. The union of Mr. and Mrs. Mathews was blessed by the birth of eight children, namely: Charles W.; Ella B., wife of A. B. Lewton; Amelia M., wife of George Whisleman, of Stove Creek Precinct; Ross, E., Laura B., George W., Mamie A. and Jessie.
   Our subject, though still living on her farm, expects soon to retire from active life and locate in the beautiful residence that she has built in Elmwood. She is a large-hearted woman, of genuine by her surroundings. She is a kind neighbor, sincere friend, and true Christian, exemplifying in her daily walk the teachings of the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which she is a member.
   Mr. Mathews' uncle, Daniel Mathews, was a minister of the Methodist Episcopal Church for many years, and was the first white child born in Washington County, Ohio.

OBERT McGILL, a pre-emptor of 1857, and a resident of Avoca Precinct for a period of thirty-one years, is now living with his son-in-law, William Case, on section 2, where they own together 160 acres of land. This constitutes one of the finest farms in this part of the county, with excellent improvements, more than ordinarily good farm buildings, and a fair assortment of live stock. The farm is watered by a living stream from Spring Creek, and yields to its owners annually a handsome income.
   County Down, Ireland, was the native place of our subject, and he was born May 24, 1819. He has consequently attained nearly his threescore years and ten. The family is of Scotch ancestry, being among those who fled from their native land to the North of Ireland during the religious wars. His grandparents on both sides of the house were of pure Scotch blood. His father, Robert McGill, Sr., a well-to-do farmer of County Down, married Miss Mary McKnight, spent his entire life in his native Ireland, and attained to the advanced age of over eighty years. He was a lifelong Presbyterian, and

had been a prominent man in his community, occupying many positions of trust and responsibility.
   The mother of our subject, after the death of her husband, came to America with her son Robert, in 1848, and died in Akron, Summit Co., Ohio, when over seventy years of age. Robert, Jr., attained to his majority in his native county, learning the trade of weaver, an industry which was very generally prosecuted in that region. He was married there to Miss Isabelle Young, who was also born and reared in County Down, and was of Irish ancestry. Mr. McGill preceded his wife and little daughter to America, they joining him in Summit County, Ohio, in 1849, when little Mary was four years old. Mr. McGill upon coming to the United States secured employment in a stove foundry at Akron, Ohio, where he continued until coming to the farther West, in the spring of 1857. In the meantime Mrs. Isabelle McGill, his wife, had died in Akron, Ohio, about 1854. Our subject was thus left with two young children, one of whom he took care of as best he could, and the other was taken into the home of a Mr. Walton, of Tallmadge Centre, Summit Co., Ohio, who gave her a college education. She was treated as their own child, and is now the wife of a gentleman formerly living in Summit County, but now a successful nurseryman of Washington Territory.
   Miss Mary McGill remained with her father until her marriage with William Case, a native of Ohio, who later removed to Iowa, and finally to Nebraska with his father, Augustus Case, one of the earliest settlers of Rock Bluff Precinct, this county. Here William Case was reared to manhood, and is now the owner of eighty acres of land adjoining that of his father-in-law, our subject, which they have constructed into one farm, and which they operate with a mutual interest. Mr. Case is securing by homestead claim 160 acres in Lincoln County, he having been a soldier of the Union Army during the late war, belonging to the 1st Nebraska Cavalry. He was in several skirmishes with the Indians, and upon one occasion seriously injured by the falling of the horse upon him, and in consequence was confined in the hospital at Cottonwood Springs for some time. Both Mr. McGill and his son-in-law are stanch Republicans, politically, and Mr. Case is a gentleman highly esteemed in his community, holding some of the local offices, and otherwise identified with its interests.
   To Mr. and Mrs. Case there have been born eight children, one of whom, a son, Bertie, died when a little over three years of age. Those surviving form a most interesting and intelligent group. The eldest daughter, Bessie, is an interesting young lady of twenty years; Robert is a promising youth of eighteen; Leora is aged sixteen; Fannie thirteen; Guy ten; Roy seven, and the baby, Maude.

ZRA MURPHY has one of the finest stock farms in Cass County, which he is managing with great skill and with satisfactory pecuniary results. It has a very fortunate location on section 7 of the fractional part of Liberty Precinct, and embraces 210 acres of land especially adapted to stock purposes, as it has good living water on two "eighties" and has excellent facilities for pasturage; and it is also well fitted for other purposes, Mr. Murphy also paying considerable attention to other branches of agriculture besides stock feeding.
   Our subject is descended from one of the old pioneer families of Indiana, and is a native of that State, having been born in Madison Township, Washington County, July 1, 1852. His father, George Murphy, likewise a native of the Hoosier State, was born, reared and married in Washington County. He was the son of David Murphy, who was born and reared in Virginia. He was married in his native State to Mary Hinton, and in the vigor of early life they sought a home in the wilds of Indiana during Territorial days, going there about 1812, and as pioneers doing their share in developing it and promoting its growth. They settled in Washington County, and there spent the remainder of their wedded life, rounding it out to a lengthy period, both dying well advanced in years. They were typical pioneers, of hardy, resolute natures, with strong powers of endurance, and capable of any sacrifice that they might build up a comfortable home for their children, and they were also