History of Clark County, Wisconsin (1918)

GEORGE HOESER, a prosperous farmer of section 8, York Township, was born in Bavaria, Germany, Oct. 4, 1857. His parents were John and Madeline (Cole) Hoeser. The father was born, reared and educated in Bavaria, getting a good schooling, and afterwards following the occupation of a farmer, working for his father until he was about 27 years old, which was in 1851. He was then married to Madeline Cole, who was born in Bavaria in 1829, daughter of Gustav Cole, a farmer. After their marriage he and his wife settled on their own farm of eighty acres and four children born. Annie, Mary and Mary, second, and George and Madeline Hoeser never came to the United States. George 7 remained at home working on the farm until he was 26 years old, then came alone to America, settling in Jefferson County, Wis., where he worked out for about seven months. At the end of that time he bought forty acres of land in York Township, section 8, the tract being all wild land. On it he built a frame house of six rooms and for ten years thereafter worked in Heine's sawmill, which stood just across the road, where a settlement had sprung up known as Heineville. For a part of each year he worked on his farm, gradually clearing and improving it. In 1888 he married Barbara Gates, a native of Bavaria who had come to Clark County with her father and mother and four other children, Annie, John, Joe and Teris, in 1886. Mr. Gates was a farmer who had settled first in Jefferson County, staying there two years. On arriving in Clark County he bought forty acres in York Township, where he settled, subsequently buying forty acres more.

After their marriage Mr. Hoeser and wife located on his farm in York Township, and continued the work of clearing it. At that time he had one team of horses but no other stock or implements. He has since increased the size of his farm by buying forty acres more, and has built a barn, 35 by 80 feet in size, besides making other improvements, and now has a well-equipped and profitable farm. He and his wife have reared eleven children: Rose, Bertha, Otto, Annie, Mary, Frank, Sophia, Theresa, Kate, Joseph and Lena.