Art 92-120, Wray Gazette, May 12, 1904, Wray, Yuma County, Colorado
http://files.usgwarchives.net/co/yuma/newspapers/wg1904e.txt

Special Edition, Wray Gazette, Wray, Colorado
Published May 12, 1904

Transcribed by Lee Zion

Notes: 

1)  This "land promotion" edition of The Gazette was widely distributed
in an effort to attract settlers to Yuma County.  In 1904 about two-
thirds of the public lands in the county were still open for homestead
claims. 

2)  1904 prices - I didn't find a comparison to the 1900-1905 dollar but
according to the Treasury Department's CPI a 1913 $1.00 purchase would
cost about $18.00 in today's dollars.

3)  This edition was published two years after Wray wrested the county
seat honors from Yuma after a thirteen year, sometimes bitter, campaign.
You will note a bit of gloating and references to the town of Yuma,
which incorporated two years prior to Wray, as: "Yuma station" and the
"village of Yuma."  The Wray and Yuma newspapers carried the grudge
match into at least the 1940s.

4)  The publishing and distribution costs for this special edition were
underwritten by the individuals and businesses whose "career sketches"
appear in the paper.  This was a common funding practice of the period.

5)  I don't have a useable copy of the photographs used to engrave the
plates for this paper.  The scanned copy of the paper I transcribed is
at least second generation and the illustrations are "black and white
blobs."  A very few of the original prints and negatives survived the
W.B. Coston studio fire of the 1920s.

6)  The [num] are my added article numbers for the index of names in the
edition not the original page numbers.

[92]=======================================

The Wray Rattler

A Flourishing Newspaper Established in the Infancy of Wray

     The Wray Rattler, which is the organ of the Republican party in
Yuma county, was founded by B.E. Condon in 1886.  Since then it passed
through the hands of several owners, in succession, until about one year
ago it was purchased by C.L. Will, publisher of a paper at Benkelman,
Neb., and Frank E. LaSchelle, a young newspaper man from Kansas.  As
resident partner of the firm Mr. LaSchelle has had full editorial charge
and business management of the Rattler during the past year, and he has
added materially to the prosperity and influence of the paper since he
assumed charge.  The young gentleman is a native of Clay Center, Kan.,
and he finished his education at the Kansas Agricultural college, at
Manhattan.  Subsequently he engaged in the newspaper business at
Junction City, Kan., where he remained until he came to Wray.  Mr.
LaShelle is not only possessed of fine newspaper ability, but he is a
genial, whole-souled gentleman of honorable principles.  Since he came
to Wray, the gentleman's sunny disposition and excellent traits of
character have won him the esteem of our citizens generally.  He is an
untiring worker and he renders loyal and valuable services to the city
and his party.  Under his good management the Rattler has become an
influential representative of Wray, and it merits the well earned
prosperity it is enjoying.

[93]=======================================

Ira Edwards

The Creditable Career of an Old and Honored County Official.

     Perhaps there is not in Yuma county a man who is more generally and
favorably known than the gentleman whose name heads this article.

     Mr. Edwards is a native of New York, in which state he was born on
a farm near Utica in 1833.  He received a liberal education and after he
grew to manhood he taught school in winter and farmed in summer. In 1861
he engaged in the mercantile business, which he continued until 1884, in
the mean time having thoroughly familiarized himself with surveying.

     In 1885 Mr. Edwards came to Colorado and located one mile east of
Yuma station, where he filed on a pre-emption claim and a homestead; at
the same time he entered a timber claim six miles northeast.  At the
same time a sister of Mr. Edwards entered a pre-emption claim adjoining
his homestead and pre-emption, but the lady died several years ago and
he became heir to the property.  Thus the gentleman owns 480 acres of
choice land on which there is a comfortable residence and other
improvements, situated one mile from the village of Yuma.

     While Mr. Edwards devoted considerable attention to farming and the
cattle business in a small way, surveying has been his chief labor in
this county.  He made his farming and stock industry a financial
success, however, but of late years he leases a portion of his land and
devotes the remainder to the grazing of stock, giving almost his entire
attention to surveying.  The gentleman has been county surveyor for
nearly all the years since 1889, and he holds that office at the present
time.  As a county official of unimpeachable integrity and remarkable
accuracy Mr. Edwards enjoys full public confidence, while his superior
qualities as a courteous gentleman in every relation of life command
wide recognition.

     When not engaged in surveying, Mr. Edwards buys produce in his
section of the county, making shipments to Denver.

     The gentleman has four children - two sons and two daughters.  One
of his sons, Lester M. Edwards, is now a clerk in the railway mail
service running from Denver to Grand Junction, with headquarters at the
former city.

     Mr. Edwards has been deputy county treasurer and commissioner of
highways, and he laid out the first public roads established in the
western part of the county.  He was one of the leading spirits in
establishing the first public school in Yuma, and was the first
president of the school board.  He was superintendent of the first
(union) Sunday school organized in Yuma and, subsequently for many years
superintendent of the Methodist Sunday school.

     In both his public and private capacities Mr. Edwards is esteemed
as a high-toned honorable gentleman, and there are few, if any who enjoy
a wider measure of public regard.

[94]=======================================

Wray Telephone Company

A Most Enterprising and Progressive Public Utility.

Extending its Lines East, West and South With Push and Energy.

     The rapid growth and development of the Wray Telephone Co. are only
harmonious features of the energy and progressive spirit which
characterize the county seat of Yuma county in all its undertakings.

     In the fall of 1900 J.W. Cloyd and Henry Lepper established the
first telephone system in Wray, which was then a much smaller town than
it is a present.  It was a purely local system, embracing thirty 'phones
in the city, but its great utility was soon recognized and on April 1,
1902, the Wray Telephone Co. was organized with W.W. Cunningham,
president; T.B. Groves, treasurer, and J.W. Cloyd, secretary and general
manager.  The capital stock was fixed at $3,000 and the company extended
its lines from this city to Vernon, 12 miles southwest, and Haigler,
Neb., twenty miles east.

     It requires time to interest a community in the usefulness, as well
as the advantages, of a telephone system, after which effort, push and
tenacity are generally crowned with success.  On September 1, 1903, Mr.
Cloyd sold a controlling interest in the Wray Telephone Co. to M.H.
Spere and L.C. Blust and resigned his position as general manager.  Next
day the company was reorganized, with Mr. Spere as general manager, and
the capital stock was increased to $52,100.  Mr. Spere had a long
telephone experience, which in connection with his untiring energy,
rendered his services peculiarly valuable to the company.  The necessary
improvements, including new long distance 'phones, were made in the city
and along the lines already in operation, and the work of extension was
carried on with a wonderful vigor and rapidity.  Since October 10, last,
Mr. Spere constructed a line from Haigler, Neb., to St. Francis, Kan., a
distance of thirty-five miles; another line from St. Francis to Atwood,
Kan., forty miles; another from St. Francis to Jaqua, eighteen miles,
and another line from Haigler, Neb., to Idalia, Colo., a distance of
forty miles.  This makes 140 miles of new telephone lines the
construction of which the gentleman superintended, and in addition he
sold $10,000 worth of stock, all within a period of three months.

     The system, which is supplied with the latest improved appliances,
nothing being used but the Strongberg & Carlson switchboards and
'phones, covers four important counties, and connects with the great
majority of the ranches along the routes.

     At Atwood, Kan., the Wray Telephone Co.'s lines connect with the
long distance 'phone to Kansas City and other eastern points.  The
company is now preparing to extend its lines west to Brush, Colo., where
it will connect with the Bell Telephone Co.'s lines to Denver and other
points in Colorado.  The company has already concluded a ten years'
contract with the Bell people, whereby a satisfactory arrangement is
assured, and the line to Brush will be completed at an early date.  An
important feature of the Wray Telephone Co. lines is substantial
construction and excellence of equipment, assuring perfect ease in
conversing over the lines.  In this respect it is equaled by few and
surpassed by none.

     In his management of the company's affairs Mr. Spere has made a
record which would be hard to duplicate.  Young and vigorous, he is
untiring in his devotion to the interests of the company, and his
perfect knowledge of the telephone industry enables him to avoid
mistakes.  In business matters, as well as in social life, he displays
the attributes of a polished gentleman, and his pleasing personality is
a strong factor in his pronounced success.  Personally the gentleman is
very popular in Wray and his wonderful activity and progressive energy
in business affairs command general appreciation.

     The officers of the company are:  J.C. McPherson, president; J.W.
Zepp, vice president; N.D. Beaver, secretary; C.F. Hendrie, treasurer;
M.H. Spere, general manager.

     The above gentleman and J. Crosby constitute the board of
directors, and as they are well and favorably known to be able business
men of pronounced integrity, the company enjoys the fullest public
confidence.

[95]=======================================

Franklin Lewis

A Young Man Who Spent a Few Profitable Years Here.

     Franklin Lewis, who is a native of Ohio, was born in 1873.  When
twelve years of age he went to Missouri, where he remained twelve years.
He became dissatisfied with the prospects in Missouri, and in 1897, he
came to Colorado, locating in Yuma county.  When he landed here he had
only fifteen cents in money, but his industrious spirit proved a good
substitute.  After two years he purchased 320 aces of land three miles
east of Wray on which he engaged in general farming and stock raising in
a small way.  He raised good crops of wheat, corn, cane, vegetables,
etc., and prospered greatly.  But, after a few years his venerable
mother, who was keeping house for him and to whom he ever proved a
dutiful son, died, and this changed his purpose in life.  The farm, on
which the best friend a man ever knows died, became distasteful to him
and he sold it last fall.  He sold all his implements, stock, etc., only
a team of very valuable horses, with new wagon and harness, which he
retained.  In addition to this his few years in Yuma county netted him
more than $1,000 in cash.  Mr. Lewis is a pleasant and industrious
gentleman who has many friends.  He is a member of the Woodmen of the
World.

[96]=======================================

Owns A Fine Ranch

What Harry Strangways is Accomplishing in Yuma County.

(Photo - Residence of Harry Strangways)

     Among the popular and well known citizens of Yuma county is Harry
Strangways, who owns a valuable ranch sixteen miles south of Wray, on
the Arickaree river.

     Mr. Strangways is a native of British India, in which distant
country he was born thirty-nine years ago.  He is a son of Gen. [George]
Strangways, a gallant and distinguished British officer, now on the
retired list because of his venerable age.

     In 1872, when he was eight years of age, the subject of this brief
sketch was taken to England, where he received a liberal education.  In
1882 he made a trip to Australia, via the Cape of Good Hope.  After
spending nearly two years familiarizing himself with that portion of the
British empire, the young gentleman came to the United States, landing
at San Francisco in 1884.  After spending some time on the Pacific
coast, Mr. Strangways came to Colorado, where he decided to abandon the
ease and luxury of his wealthy and distinguished English home for a
free, exhilarating and independent life on the boundless plains of the
West.  He found ready employment on the range and in a short time he
became an expert cowboy whose services were in demand.  After a few
years he purchased the valuable ranch he owns on the Arickaree in this
county.  He owns 480 acres of deeded land which is peculiarly adapted
for the stock industry.  Nearly one-half of this tract of land is
composed of a fertile valley bordering the Arickaree river on one side,
and with an excellent irrigation ditch running along the base of the
hills on the other side.  Mr. Strangways owns this valuable ditch and
the prior rights to the waters of the Arickaree which furnishes him an
abundance of water to irrigate all the entire valley land on is ranch.
On these valley lands he grows large crops of corn, alfalfa and native
hay, from which he derives handsome financial returns feeding cattle in
the severe winter months.  The rest of his ranch is valuable grazing
land.  In addition to the 480 acres of deeded land, the gentleman has
500 acres of adjoining land leased and controls an additional open range
of more than 1,000 acres.  All the properties are very valuable for the
cattle industry, because of the never failing stream of water which runs
through them, or alongside.

     Mr. Strangways owns a comfortable residence beautifully situated on
an elevated plateau on the side of a range of hills which form a rugged,
but picturesque background, while in front can be seen a broad expanse
of fertile valley with its rich harvest of corn and alfalfa being
garnered, the sparkling waters of the winding Arickaree glistening in
the distant sunbeams.  It is a beautifully situated home and is
furnished with every convenience and comfort.  The value of this cattle
ranch may be judged from the fact that there are seventy-five acres of
alfalfa on it, from which he harvests three crops each year, amounting
to about five tons from each acre.

     In 1894, Mr. Strangways married Miss Mildred Thompson, an estimable
Michigan lady, whose sunny disposition and industry are doing so much to
cheer him in exercising the laudable ambition of life.

     There are few, if any, men in this county who are more widely known
than the genial, whole-souled Harry Strangways, and none enjoy a greater
measure of esteem than he, because of the bright reputation he has
earned as an honorable gentleman and an industrious citizen.

[97]=======================================

The Idalia House

Carl Zick Keeps an Excellent Hotel at Idalia

     It is seldom a traveler finds such a well conducted hotel in a
small village as that of which Idalia can boast.  While the building is
modest in its proportions, Carl W. Zick, the genial proprietor, makes it
an inviting home for guests.

     Mr. Zick is a native of New Stettin, Germany, where he was born in
1868.  In 1872 he came to the United States with his parents, and the
family located on an Illinois farm, south of Chicago.  In 1885 they
moved to Nebraska, where they remained one year and went to Goodland,
Kan.  After two years there they came to Colorado.  The subject of this
brief sketch then filed on a pre-emption claim on Lost Man's creek,
twelve miles south-east of Idalia on which he has made great
improvements.  He cultivates fifty acres, corn and cane for his stock
being his chief crops.  He owns twelve horses and forty cattle, his farm
being well supplied with buildings, agricultural implements, etc.

     Mr. Zick is a carpenter, too, and his services in that capacity are
always in demand.  Nearly one year ago he purchased some lots in Idalia,
on which he erected his hotel and barn.  He believed that a hotel would
prove a profitable investment and the result has more than justified his
expectations.  Mrs. Zick gives the kitchen her personal supervision and
the dining room is well supplied with the substantials of life and the
delicacies of the season.  Certainly this hotel is a great convenience
to travelers who visit Idalia and it well merits the generous support it
is receiving.

     In 1898 Mr. Zick married Miss Lena Homm, of that part of the
county, and they have three interesting children.  They are a cheerful,
energetic and industrious couple who work hard to overcome the obstacles
in life's journey, and the success they are achieving is well merited.
Travelers who stop at the Idalia House are assured of good food,
deliciously prepared.

[98]=======================================

A Desirable Ranch

The Results of Seventeen Years of Industry and Prudence on Yuma County
Soil.

From Comparative Poverty to Affluence.

The Pleasing Success Fred Loffel Accomplished in this County.

     From poverty to affluence; from a struggle for existence to a life
surrounded with every desirable comfort and increasing prosperity day by
day - all achieved within a period of seventeen years by honest toil!
Such has been the career of Fred Loffel, one of our leading ranchmen,
who gives us another illustration of the fact that Yuma county offers
surpassing possibilities to a poor man who wants to engage in farming
pursuits.

     Mr. Loffel is a native of Switzerland, where he was born twelve
miles from the city of Berne in 1856.  His energetic nature and laudable
ambition could find no encouragement in his native land, where it is so
hard for a poor man to earn more than a bare competence, and in 1880 he
came to the United States when twenty-four years of age.  Immediately
after landing from the steamer he went to Illinois, where he worked on a
farm for five months.  Then he moved to Nebraska, where he leased a
tract of land and commenced farming.  He worked hard and displayed both
perseverance and prudence in Nebraska, but met with only indifferent
success.  As a result, he became discouraged there and in 1887, he came
to Colorado, locating in that portion of Arapahoe county which is now a
part of Yuma county.  He had comparatively nothing in the way of
capital, outside of a spirit of untiring energy and a determination to
succeed in his new home.  He entered pre-emption, timber and homestead
claims - 480 acres in all - and then prepared to face the stern
realities of pioneer life in Colorado.  He commenced general farming
with all the extensive vigor his limited means would permit, and engaged
in raising cattle and hogs in a small way.  Like nearly all the pioneers
in the West, he met decided hardships, which tested his courage and
endurance; but he persevered, surmounting obstacles that seemed hard to
overcome, and his progress up to the drouth of 1893 and 1894 was most
pleasing and encouraging under the circumstances.  He raised good crops
and had accumulated considerable property, with a large area of
productive land under cultivation when the two years of drouth covered
this portion of Colorado with a mantle of dark despair.  Hundreds left
the county and sought homes elsewhere, but Mr. Loffel retained his
Spartan spirit and refused to abandon his western hope and Swiss
courage.  He weathered the storm of adversity and his future prosperity
has justified his judgment most amply.

     Mr. Loffel now owns 1,120 acres of deeded land, besides having a
lease for a long term of years on 800 acres, and his free range, in
addition to all this, embraces many thousands of acres more.  His deeded
land, as well as that under lease, is under a good wire fence.  The
ranch is composed of level prairie, and the soil is exceedingly fertile,
producing abundant crops of all kinds.  It has an ample supply of wells
from which windmills pump all requisite water supplies for stock.  The
gentleman shipped several carloads of cattle and hogs to the Eastern
markets last fall, but he still owns 210 cattle, seventy hogs and a herd
of fine horses.  He cultivates 300 acres of his ranch, on which he grows
fine crops of wheat, corn, barley, cane, millet and vegetables, which
yield him a handsome revenue.  He has a comfortable residence on his
ranch as well as all necessary barns, sheds, corrals, etc., for his
stock.  Indeed, his ranch bears every appearance of prosperity and good
management.  Then gentleman has a wife and six industrious children.

     Since coming to Yuma county, Mr. Loffel has displayed the
attributes of a good citizen.  His industry, prudence and sound judgment
are freely conceded to be of a high order of merit and his integrity is
above reproach, indeed, of him it can be said truly, that his word is as
good as his bond, and both are gilt-edged.  He has been elected a member
of the school board several terms and served as postmaster at Logan for
a long time.

His Ranch for Sale.

     As Mr. Loffel has accumulated enough to enable him to pass the
remainder of his days with less hard labor than he endured for the past
seventeen years, he has decided to sell his ranch, stock, implements,
etc., and retire from the cares and anxieties which he has managed with
such consummate skill and financial success.  This offers a grand
opportunity for anyone who desires to invest in one of the best ranch
properties in Colorado.  It can be purchased on reasonable terms, and
what Mr. Loffel accomplished on it is an index of its pronounced value
to a home-seeker in the West.  For particulars address Fred Loffel,
Lansing, Colorado.

[99]=======================================

A Popular Mechanic

William Heindel the Leading Contractor and Builder in Wray.

     Among the prominent factors in the growth and progress of Wray,
William Heindel, the popular builder and contractor, occupies a front
rank.  During his career he has erected many of the best residences and
business buildings in the city, and it would be hard to find a man who
stands higher in public estimation as a first-class mechanic and an
honorable business man.

     Mr. Heindel is a native of Illinois, where he was born thirty-three
years ago, on a farm.  In his infancy is parents moved to Morning Sun,
Iowa, where he spent his boyhood days.  At an early age he devoted his
attention to the carpenter trade, although after he came to Wray, in
1887, he clerked in a hardware store for two years.  For the past ten
years, or more, however, Mr. Heindel has devoted his entire attention to
the building trade, and he has made a record of which he may well feel
proud.  He did the carpenter work of Zepp's brick store, Davenport's
hotel and a number of other business buildings.  Among the elegant
private residences he erected are those of Joseph Campbell, Mr. Blust,
Dr. Johnson, Mr. Shumaker and many others.  He has just completed a
beautiful new home for Dr. Barr, in the western part of the city, and he
recently finished the new Yuma county court house in this city.

     He owns a large carpenter shop in the city, well supplied with
wood-working machinery of all kinds, operated by steam power, and this
enables him to complete contracts to better advantage and on more
reasonable terms than those who are not aided by modern wood-working
appliances.

     Mr. Heindel is not only honorable in his dealings, but he enjoys a
well merited reputation for honest work on all his contracts.  Indeed,
his fame in this respect is most enviable and, in connection with his
pronounced skill as an up-to-date mechanic, this is the foundation of
his most successful business career.

     In addition to an attractive home in this city, Mr. Heindel owns
160 acres of choice land six miles southwest of Wray, from which he
derives a handsome revenue.

     In 1895 the gentleman married Miss Sophie Renzelmann, an estimable
young lady of this county, and the happy union resulted in four
interesting children.

[100]=======================================

J.O. Graham

Conducts the Leading Jewelry Establishment in City of Wray.

     One of the prosperous business industries of Wray is the jewelry
establishment of J.O. Graham, occupying a portion of Dr. Barr's drug
store, on Chief street.  The gentleman carries a fine stock of gold and
silver watches, chains, clocks, rings and, in fact, anything and
everything required in his line.  He keeps the finest quality of goods,
as well as those less costly, and his prices will be found exceedingly
reasonable.  In addition, Mr. Graham thoroughly understands the jewelry
business and he enjoys a large repairs patronage, as he is recognized as
the leading jeweler in this section of the state.

     Mr. Graham is a native of Moultrie county, Illinois, where he was
born in 1872.  In 1874 his parents moved to Montgomery county, Iowa,
but, after eleven years they located in Butler county, Nebraska.  In
1888 the family came to Colorado and entered a homestead of 160 acres
seven and one-half miles south-west of Wray, Yuma county.  There they
engaged in general farming pursuits, but the subject of this brief
sketch devoted much of his attention to acquiring a thorough knowledge
of the jeweler's trade.  After giving it his chief thought and study for
many years, Mr. Graham commenced business in his present quarters in
1901.  His genial attributes and the uniform courtesy with which he
treats his customers, coupled with his well known integrity and skill in
his trade have won for him a large and constantly increasing business.
Mr. Graham is enterprising and public spirited, giving a cordial support
to every movement calculated to enhance the moral or material welfare of
city and county.  The gentleman is an honored member of the local camp
of the Woodmen of the World.

     In 1895 Mr. Graham married Miss Rosa B. Byers, an estimable young
lady, who lived near Wray, and two children have blessed the happy
union.  They own a pleasant home and two lots beautifully situated in
the southern part of the city.  The admirable qualities of Mr. and Mrs.
Graham as kind-hearted neighbors and useful citizens, obtain wide
recognition and they enjoy the cordial esteem of a large circle of warm
friends.

[101]=======================================

A $6,000 Ranch

After a Prosperous Career Joseph Brower Wants to Retire and Take Life
Easier.

(Photo - Harvest Scene on the Joseph Brower Ranch)

     One of the many money making ranches of the county is that owned by
Joseph Brower, twenty miles northeast of Yuma.

     Mr. Brower is a native of Indiana, where he was born fifty-three
years ago.  After he grew to manhood he farmed in the Hoosier State,
Iowa and Nebraska, but he came to Colorado in May, 1887, and settled on
a government claim which is now a part of his ranch.  He commenced
general farming and prosperity smiled upon him.  His crops were
abundant, his yield of wheat going as high as thirty bushels and acre,
oats forty bushels, and he has harvested fifty bushels of corn per acre,
with other crops equally good in proportion.  He generally grows a large
quantity of cane and millet for winter feed for his stock.

     Mr. Brower owns 320 acres on which his home is situated, and 100
acres only twelve miles from Yuma station.  He has a comfortable
residence, good barns, sheds, etc., and his farm is generously supplied
with the necessary agricultural implements, including a first-class
binder.  His ranch is amply protected with seven miles of good wire
fence, and adjacent to it is a vast area of free range on which buffalo
and other native grades grow luxuriously.  He owns two inexhaustible
wells of pure water, with pumps operated by windmills and necessary
drinking tanks for stock.  The land is a level prairie and the soil is
very productive.

     In addition to general farming, Mr. Bower is in the cattle
business.  He owns four horses and 100 cattle, the stock being well bred
and desirable.

     Mr. Brower has been county commissioner for six years, his last
term having expired about one year ago.  He made an enviable record as a
county officer.  He has been a school director of his district almost
continuously since he came to the county.

     In February, 1894, Mr. Brower married Miss Adelia Moore, an
estimable Yuma county lady, and the couple are highly esteemed by all
who know them.

Wants to Sell Ranch

     Mr. Brower has made money on his Yuma county ranch and he wants to
retire from the cares, anxieties and hard work of farm life.  For that
reason, he offers his entire ranch, including his horses, cattle,
agricultural implements and every other farm adjunct for only $6,000.
This offers a special opportunity to secure a profitable ranch, well
stocked, at a very reasonable figure.  Mr. Brower's address is Yuma,
Colo.

[102]=======================================

Henry Vogel

An Extensive Ranchman and an Enterprising Business Man 

What the Energy and Industry of a German Born American Citizen
Accomplished in Yuma

     Among the most prosperous farmers and cattle men in Yuma county are
those of our citizens who were born in foreign lands and came here to
seek a new home under brighter skies and more favorable conditions.
While as a rule they all prospered here, perhaps none achieved a more
generous measure of success than Henry Vogel of Idalia.

     Mr. Vogel is a native of Germany, where he was born in 1855.  There
he spent his boyhood days but when he grew to manhood the conditions and
opportunities for success did not seem enticing to him.  As a result, in
1876, when he was twenty-one years of age, he came to the United States
to carve out for himself a new home in the Western Hemisphere.  He
located in Kansas first, where he worked on a farm for five years after
which in 1881 he came to Colorado and found employment on a ranch in
Arapahoe county fifty-five miles east of Denver.  Subsequently he came
to Yuma county and was foreman for the -11 (Bar Eleven) ranch for a
number of years.  In 189x (last digit blurred) he went to Idalia and
engaged in the stock industry near that town.  The gentleman had a
thorough knowledge of the cattle business which was surpassed by few, if
any, and he prospered greatly.  At present he owns 1,200 acres of land
which is exceedingly valuable for ranch purposes.  His land extends to
the breaks of the Arickaree, or the Middle Fork of the Republican river,
where cattle and horses find complete shelter from the storms of winter
in the ravines and under the bluffs which abound among and near that
stream.  His ranch is composed of rich farming and grazing lands that
will compare with any in the county and he controls an almost unlimited
area of free range.  The soil of which the most of the ranch is composed
will grow any kind of farm produce, but he cultivates only about 160
acres on which he grows winter feed for his stock.  He owns forty-five
horses and 230 well breed cattle.  Owing to the fine grazing lands he
owns and controls, he winters hundreds of cattle for other stockmen who
are less favorably situated in addition to giving his own herds ample
care. The gentleman is a good manager, an excellent financier and he
gives his stock interest the benefit of his close attention and rare
good judgment, which have much to do with the marked success which is
rewarding his laudable ambition.  He has excellent buildings on his
ranch, with and adequate supply of wells, windmills and watering tanks,
as well as every convenience for carrying on the stock industry
profitably.

     Mr. Vogel is one of the principal partners in the mercantile firm
of Payne Bros. & Vogel at Idalia, and while he does not give the details
of the business his active supervision, doubtless his ripe judgment and
mature thoughts are prime factors in the prosperity which characterizes
the firm.

     Personally Mr. Vogel is an affable gentleman and his qualities as a
firm friend and kind neighbor are most pronounced.  In public matters he
is both enterprising and progressive, and in every measure calculated to
benefit his community or the county he takes and active and generous
part.  His warm friends are numerous and they are as extensive as the
bounds of his acquaintance.

[103]=======================================

C.W. Hudgel

The Popular Station Agent of the Burlington Road at Wray.

     It would be hard to find on any railway line, in any state, a
gentleman who has so thoroughly ingratiated himself into public life as
has C.W. Hudgel, the popular Burlington agent at the Wray station.
While it may be gratifying to the gentleman to have won such a generous
measure of public regard, it is more gratifying to the patrons of the
railway to do business at Wray with a representative of the company in
whom they place implicit confidence and for whom they entertain the
highest esteem.

     Mr. Hudgel is a native of Ohio and when fifteen years of age he
entered the services of a railway company to learn telegraphing.  In
1885, he went to Kansas and was one of the first railway men at
Norcatur.  In 1886 he was promoted to the position of assistant agent at
Norton, Kan., and in 1887 he was appointed agent at Woodruff, in the
same state.  In 1888 he was appointed agent at Wray, which is now the
most important station between McCook, Neb., and Denver.

     From the day Mr. Hudgel took charge of the Wray station until the
present time, his career has been that of an obliging and courteous
gentleman.  While he is loyal and true to the interests of his company,
he is never too busy to treat the public with that civility and
consideration which are the characteristics of a refined gentleman.  As
a result, his popularity with all classes and conditions in Yuma county,
who know him, is most pronounced and his friends are legion.

     In 1890, Mr. Hudgel married Miss Rose McLaughlin, an estimable
Columbus, Ohio, lady, and a charming little daughter has blessed the
happy union.  They own a cozy home in this city and they well merit the
genuine regard entertained for them in the community.

[104]=======================================

W.E. Wolf & Co.

One of the Leading General Merchandise Firms of Wray.

     While the above firm is one of the youngest general merchandise
institutions in Wray, its enterprise and correct business principles
have obtained a wide recognition in the city and county.  The store is
favorably situated on the corner of Chief and Pawnee streets, and the
firm carries a large and well selected stock of dry goods, groceries,
etc., which are offered at prices that command a generous patronage.

     Mr. Wolf is a native of Hancock county, Ill., where he spent his
childhood and boyhood days on a farm.  He received a liberal education
and when only eighteen years of age he commenced teaching school in
southern Nebraska, which he continued for three years.  In 1886, when he
attained his majority, he came to Colorado and locate on a homestead in
Yuma county, nine miles from Wray.  In 1889 he went to Denver and
acquired a proficient knowledge of shorthand, after which he obtained a
position as stenographer with a Pueblo smelting company.  In a short
time the ability and fidelity of Mr. Wolf received substantial
recognition from the company by his promotion to the position of
settlement clerk, the purchase of ores being among his chief duties.  In
a couple of years the gentleman received another promotion by being sent
to Monterey, Mexico, to take charge of a part of the company's interests
at that important point, and there he remained for five years.  In 1896
he returned to Denver and, after seven years in the employ of the one
firm, he resigned, to accept a more lucrative position with another
Pueblo smelting company.  In the fall of 1900 he left Pueblo and went to
Florence, Colo., where he filled an important position in the employ of
the Rocky Mountain Smelting Co.  In 1902 he resigned and came to Wray,
where he purchased the general merchandise stock of J.W. Cloyd, and
commenced business at his present location.

     In July, 1899, Mr. Wolf married Miss Sadie Bullard, an accomplished
and estimable daughter of the late A.M. Bullard, who was a prominent and
honored farmer of this county.  From his energetic and popular wife Mr.
Wolf receives invaluable assistance in the business, her good taste and
correct judgment making the millinery, dress goods and notions
departments especially popular with the ladies of Yuma county.

     Mr. Wolf is an affable gentleman, whose business transactions are
governed by a keen sense of integrity, and he enjoys the full confidence
of the people of the county.  As a result of this and the well selected
stock he carries, he has done a large and increasing business.  The
gentleman takes a lively interest in the city and county, and he is
generous in his support of any movement calculated to promote their
material or moral welfare.  In addition to two valuable lots in Wray, he
owns a beautiful residence property in Pueblo, also considerable live
stock in registered W.W. Brand.  Note their advertisement in this
edition of the Gazette.

[105]=======================================

$1,000 From Eight Acres

What John Hultquist Has Accomplished on a Yuma County Ranch.

     In the career of John Hultquist, who lives seven miles east of
Wray, can be found a pleasing illustration of what persevering industry
and good management can accomplish on Yuma county land.

     Mr. Hultquist is a native of Sweden, where he was born in 1860.  In
1882 he came to America and commenced his career in the New World by
engaging as a farm employee near Boulder, Colo., in May of that year.
For three years he worked by the month for one farmer, when he was
offered and accepted the management of the famous Windsor farm, six
miles from Denver.  He held this important position for six years, when
he resigned to accept a more lucrative offer as manager of the Excelsior
farm of 6,000 acres in the San Luis Valley.  After one year he resigned
this position to assume the management of the See Bar See ranch of 4,000
acres adjoining Wray, this county.  In his capacity he served three
years, with credit to himself and his employers, when he resigned and
commenced farming for himself.  He bought 160 acres of land near the
village of Laird, which constitutes a part of his present ranch.  He had
made considerable money since coming to Colorado, but it was all swept
away by the panic of 1893, and when he purchased his farm he was almost
penniless.  His chief capital was composed of persevering energy,
untiring industry and a thorough knowledge of farming pursuits, which he
utilized to the best advantage possible.  In a short time he homesteaded
160 acres adjoining his farm and his enlarged efforts were rewarded by
generous success.  Subsequently he bought 160 acres more, making a ranch
of 480 acres in all.  He has 137 acres of irrigated land under
cultivation, and he grows a fine crop of corn, oats, potatoes and
alfalfa.  He has harvested sixty bushels of corn, 100 bushels of oats
and 250 bushels of potatoes an acre, while he cuts three heavy crops of
alfalfa each season.  In growing potatoes, especially, Mr. Hultquist has
achieved remarkable success, indicated by the fact that last season
eight acres of potatoes yielded him $1,000 clear of all expenses.

     In addition to his farming operations, Mr. Hultquist keeps a small
herd of cattle, of which he has thirty at present.  He raises fine hogs,
also, and ships a car load of these to the eastern markets every year,
netting him a handsome revenue.  The gentleman is famous for the
superior quality of horses he keeps.  At present he owns eight horses
which would be hard to surpass in size, symmetry and other valuable
properties. He always gets fancy prices for his horses.

     Mr. Hultquist has a fine brick residence on his ranch, as well as
comfortable sheds and stables for his stock and he is making
preparations for the erection of a large frame barn.  Indeed the farm is
well supplied with everything requisite to make it an inviting home,
which reflects the enterprise and prosperity of its industrious owner.
Adjacent to the residence is an extensive orchard, composed of peach,
pear, apple and cherry trees, which yield abundant crops of delicious
fruit, and to this array of pleasing farm delicacies he will add
strawberries, raspberries, currants and other small fruits next season.

     While the gentleman has had to work hard to overcome obstacles, he
is now reaping generous returns from his perseverance in well doing.
For several years his ranch has yielded him from $1,200 to $2,000 a
year, clear of all expenses, and to-day Mr. Hultquist is worth upwards
of ten thousand dollars, all of which he accumulated in eight years on a
Yuma county farm.

     In Denver, in July, 1891, Mr. Hultquist married Miss Jennie Cecilia
Swenson, an estimable and industrious lady, and they have a family of
three sons and twin daughters.

     In addition to being one of the most successful farmers in Eastern
Colorado, Mr. Hultquist is a kind neighbor and a good, useful citizen,
who enjoys the esteem of all who know him.  Fraternally the gentleman is
a member of the local hive of Maccabees.

[106]=======================================

A Successful Physician.

Dr. A.L. Howe is Enjoying a Large and Increasing Practice.

(Photo - Residence of Dr. A.L. Howe)

     Among the Yuma county physicians Dr. A.L. Howe, of this city, is
making gratifying progress into public confidence.  It is only about
eighteen months since the gentleman located in Wray, but his pleasing
manner and pronounced skill have won for him a very satisfactory
practice, which is growing steadily.

     Dr. Howe is a native of Western Pennsylvania where he took a
medical course in the Western University and commenced the practice of
medicine in 1894.  For eight years he practiced his profession in the
Keystone State, and he received wide recognition as a skilled and
eminently successful physician.

     In August, 1902, he came to Wray and early in the following year,
during the absence of Dr. McGill, health officer, at his legislative
duties in Denver, an epidemic of smallpox in a mild form visited this
city.  Dr. Howe was appointed health officer and he vigorously applied
himself to his official duties until the disease was suppressed, after
which he resigned the health officer position.

     Dr. Howe has purchased property in Wray and he is proving a
progressive, useful citizen who is ever ready to aid in every good work
for the advancement of the town and county.  He erected a cozy office on
Pawnee street which is well provided with the instruments and appliances
requisite in the modern practice of medicine and surgery.

     In June, 1894, Dr. Howe married Miss Martha S. Dunkle, a refined
and accomplished Pennsylvania lady, and they own a comfortable home in
the eastern residence portion of this city.  Personally Dr. Howe is one
of the most genial and companionable of gentleman, and this, in
connection with his modest and unassuming demeanor, has won for him a
large circle of warm friends.

[107]=======================================

Henry J. Wells

A Popular Official and a Prosperous Farmer and Stockman.

Conceded to be One of the Most Successful of Yuma County Ranchmen.

     There are few, if any, gentlemen in Yuma county who are more widely
known and more highly esteemed than Henry J. Wells, the popular county
commissioner and extensive ranchman.

     Mr. Wells is a native of Wisconsin, but, when a boy, he moved to
Nebraska with his parents.  When he grew to manhood he engaged in
farming in Nebraska and, subsequently, in Kansas, remaining three years
in the latter state.  In the spring of 1886 the gentleman came to
Colorado and located on a homestead five miles south of Wray, where he
engaged in general farming and the stock industry.  The energy and
industry of Mr. Wells were rewarded with most profitable returns from
his labor, and ere long, he added more land to his ranch.  He now owns
480 acres, in addition to which he has one-half section leased, all
being very fertile farming land.  He has a big ranch leased west of
Idalia, too, and on this he grazes his large herd of cattle.

     The gentleman cultivates from 600 to 700 acres each year, on which
he grows very profitable crops of wheat, corn, oats, barley, cane, etc.,
and he has harvested as high as 8,000 bushels of wheat in one season,
with other crops yielding in proportion.  He owns a fine herd of fine
horses and 350 well bred cattle.

     The ranch is supplied with a cozy home, furnished with every
comfort and convenience, as well as good barns, sheds and everything
requisite on a modern farm conducted on progressive principles.

     Mr. Wells married an estimable Nebraska lady in 1879, and five
children have blessed the happy union.  Mrs. Wells had been seriously
ill in Nebraska and Kansas for years, and she weighed only 110 pounds
when she came to Yuma county.  Since coming here the climate restored
her to perfect health and she weighs 175 pounds now.

     Mr. Wells' qualities as a progressive farmer and a useful citizen
soon received general recognition in Yuma county, and in 1897 he was
elected as one of the county commissioners.  He discharged his duties
with such marked ability and fidelity to the interests of his
constituents that he was reelected for a second term in the campaign of
1899.  Mr. Wells is not only a shrewd business man of excellent
judgment, but he is imbued with sterling principles of integrity, and
his labors in behalf of the county were earnest and diligent.  When the
gentleman was elected, the county was nearly $19,000 in debt, and now, -
to his credit, and that of his colleagues be it said - after erecting
and paying for a $12,000 court house last year, the county is only in
debt $5,600, with ample money in the treasury to pay it when it matures.

     Fraternally, Mr. Wells is an Odd Fellow and a Woodman of the World,
and he is a genial, whole-souled gentleman who well merits the
popularity he enjoys in Yuma county.

[108]=======================================

W.F. Nash, V.S.

The Leading Veterinary Surgeon in Eastern Colorado.

     There are very few men, if any, in Yuma county who are more widely
known and esteemed than the gentleman who heads this article.

     Mr. Nash is a native of Nodaway county, Missouri, where he was born
fifty-two years ago.  When quite young Mr. Nash moved with his parents
to Taylor county, Iowa, where he received his education.  On the farm in
his early manhood he commenced studying the diseases of horses and
devoted much of his time to mastering scientific investigations on the
subject.  He commenced the veterinary practice in Taylor county and in a
very short time demonstrated that he was an adept at his chosen
profession.  His practice grew to large proportions and it gradually
extended day by day, as his success became more widely known.  In 1889
Mr. Nash came to Colorado and settled in that portion of Arapahoe county
which is now a part of Yuma county, where he engaged in farming and the
practice of his profession.  He owns 480 acres of choice land which he
has utilized to the best advantage.  He has made a great success of
growing wheat, corn, oats and other cereals, from which he derived
handsome profits.  In addition he engaged in the cattle business,
growing large quantities of winter feed for his stock, and in this
industry he has been imminently successful.

     During all these years, however, the gentleman has practiced his
profession of veterinary surgeon, making periodical trips to all this
section of Eastern Colorado.  For instance he visits Wray the last
Friday and Saturday of each month, and he has built a large practice
among the prosperous farmers of that section of the county.  On his
ranch the gentleman has a cozy home and good barns, sheds, etc., while
he is surrounded by every comfort.

     Mr. Nash has an estimable wife and seven promising children.  He
has given the latter every educational advantage possible and three of
them have taught school with pronounced success.  One son is now
finishing his education in a commercial college.  Mr. Nash is one of the
most genial gentlemen and his popularity is based on his well merited
qualities as a kind neighbor, good citizen and honorable professional
man.

[109]=======================================

Major William R. Hays

The Successful Career of a Gallant Veteran and Pioneer Citizen.

(Photo - View of Hays' Park)

     Among the early pioneers of Yuma county who rendered valuable
service in developing the resources of the county and promoting its
welfare, the above gentleman occupies a most conspicuous and honorable
position.  In the early history of Wray, especially, he was not only an
active business factor but, perhaps, did more than any other individual
towards the growth of the town.  He had faith in the future of the then
hamlet and subsequent years established the wisdom of his judgment.

     Major Hays is a native of McDonough county, Illinois, where he was
born on a farm on September 27, 1834.  He received a liberal education
and spent the early years of his manhood teaching school and acting as
clerk and bookkeeper in his father's mercantile establishment.  On
August 20, 1861, he enlisted in Company I, Eleventh Illinois Cavalry, of
which he was elected second lieutenant.  His first experience in battle
was gained at Shiloh, in which desperate struggle on April 6 and 7,
1862, his regiment took a heroic part.  His gallantry in the battle won
for Lieutenant Hays promotion to first lieutenant and in the following
September, his work and fidelity as a brave soldier was further
recognized by being awarded a commission as captain of his company.  In
January, 1863, Captain Hays and a detachment of his command were
captured by the troops of Gen. Forrest, and he was sent to Libby prison,
where he endured four months of the utmost hardship, which greatly
affected his health.  Then he was exchanged and returned to his command
with which he fought in the army of Tennessee until the close of the
war.  On July 1, 1865, the gallant gentleman was mustered out of the
service with a rank of major, a well merited recognition of his
distinguished services in behalf of his country.  While on a furlough to
his home, on December 30, 1863, Major Hays married Miss Lucy E. Kirk, an
estimable and accomplished lady, the union being blessed with five
children, of whom one son and three daughters survive.  The faithful
wife and devoted mother was called to the spirit world in April, 1903.

     After returning from the army Major Hays and his wife went to
northwestern Missouri, to which place his father and other relatives had
moved.  There the major engaged in farming pursuits which he continued
until 1871, when he engaged in the grocery business at Maryville, the
firm name being Evans & Hays and, later, Hays, Craynor & Co.  After a
few years Major Hays sold his interest in the business to Mr. Craynor,
and was elected marshal of the city.  Subsequently he returned to the
farm and engaged in the cattle business for five years meeting with
gratifying success.  In 1885 he came to Yuma county and located at Wray,
then composed of the depot, a sod hotel, the section house and a small
store building in course of erection.  Major Hays and his son took up a
pre-emption and timber claim, each, amounting to 640 acres, within one-
half mile of Wray, which the gentleman still owns.  Major Hays erected a
livery stable and engaged in the business and, also, locating land for
settlers.  Subsequently he engaged in the hotel business, first in the
old Wray House, north of the railway tracks.  In February, 1888, he
completed the erection of the Commercial Hotel and moved into that,
which he conducted for four years.  In the mean time, he was appointed
justice of the peace to fill a vacancy, and he discharged the duties so
admirably that he was elected for another term to succeed himself.  At
the beginning of President Harrison's administration Major Hays was
appointed postmaster of Wray, and he discharged the duties with marked
ability and to the entire satisfaction of the public for more than four
years, when he was relieved by an appointee of President Cleveland's
second administration.

Hays Park Ranch

     In 1892 Major Hays sold his hotel and livery stable, after which he
moved on a section of land situated on Black Wolf Creek, thirteen miles
south of Wray, which he and his wife homesteaded.  In addition to the
625 acres of deeded homestead land the major has 320 acres of leased
land adjoining, all being enclosed by a good wire fence.  This ranch
which is known as the "Hays Park Ranch," extends down Black Wolf creek
for three miles, with a fine belt of large trees on each bank of the
stream the entire length.  Buffalo and gramma grass furnish grazing for
the stock during the entire year.  This ranch includes the valley, water
and timber of Black Wolf creek, which obtains its supply from living
springs.  This is a very desirable ranch and offers a fine opportunity
to secure one of the best natural cattle ranches in the county.  Owing
to his advancing years Major Hays would sell this ranch for a reasonable
figure as he is desirous of freeing himself from so many business cares.

     Major Hays engaged in the cattle business on this ranch in 1893 and
met with fine success.  In 1899, however, he decided to lead a less
strenuous life and after leasing the ranch he and his family moved to
Denver, where they now live.  The gentleman is a charter member of the
Wray Masonic lodge and, also, of the Wray Grand Army Post, having held
several offices in each when he lived here.

     While Major Hays is modest and unassuming, his brilliant and well
stored intellect, which is unimpaired by age, renders him one of the
most genial and companionable of gentlemen.  He keeps well posted on the
current affairs of life, and he displays more activity than the average
man does at sixty.  While his career presents wonderful energy in the
various pursuits of life, the laudable ambition of the gallant gentleman
has ever been governed by sterling integrity.  Enjoying the confidence
and esteem of this community, in which he was such a useful and honored
factor, Major Hays retired to Denver, where he can spend the evening of
earth's pilgrimage in that ease and comfort which his life of activity
and rectitude so richly merit.

[110]=======================================

A Prosperous Industry

The Blacksmith and Machine Shops of Lynams and Houck.

     Among the progressive and useful industries of Wray the blacksmith
and machine shops of Lynams & Houck occupy a most prominent position.
The firm is composed of Robert Lynam, E.P. Houck and N.M. Lynam, the
latter being a son of the senior member.  The business was established
in 1898, and from a small beginning the industry expanded steadily until
it has become one of the important factors in Wray's industrial circles.
The shops, which are situated on Kiowa street, are well supplied with
modern machinery requisite in general blacksmithing and machine work,
including steam power.  The members of the firm are practical mechanics,
who thoroughly understand every detail of their business, as well as
competent engineers, and they give their growing patronage their
personal attention.  No feature of their work is slighted, and this, in
conjunction with the honorable principles on which their business is
conducted, is the secret of their pronounced success.

     Robert Lynam, the senior member of the firm, is a native of Ohio,
but he moved with his parents to Indiana when he was yet a boy, and
spent his early years on a farm.  In August 1862, when only sixteen
years of age, he enlisted in Battery M, First Indiana Heavy Artillery,
in which he gallantly served his country until mustered out after the
close of the war.  On his return home he spent one year on a farm and
then learned the blacksmith trade in a first-class shop.  In 1877 he
moved to Crawford county, Kansas, where he resumed farming operations
for a time.  In 1882 he came to Colorado and located at Silver Cliff,
where he engaged in mining pursuits.  After spending seven years there
and a Leadville he and his family moved to Denver where they remained
five years.  Nine years ago Mr. Lynam came to Yuma county and engaged in
farming until 1898, when he and his son in law, E.P. Houck started the
business which they have made a signal success.  Mr. Lynam owns a cozy
home and other property in the city.

     Mr. Houck is a native of Missouri, from which state he moved to
Kansas, where he lived for some time.  He is a stationary engineer of
marked ability, and when he came to Colorado in 1880 he had no
difficulty in obtaining lucrative positions, which he filled most
satisfactorily until he entered into partnership with Mr. Lynam.

     N.M. Lynam, who is a practical mechanic of recognized ability and a
young gentleman of sterling worth, was admitted into the firm as a
partner two years ago.

     The members of this firm are industrious, genial gentleman, whose
admirable qualities as enterprising business men and good citizens have
won general esteem in the community.  They well merit the generous
measure of success they are achieving.  Note their advertisement on
another page.

[111]=======================================

(One ad this page)

A.F. Peck,
Dealer In
Ranches and Western Lands,
Tax Claims and Delinquent Loans
Adjusted and Titles Perfected . . . .

Taxes Paid and Business Attended
To for Non-Residents . . . . 

Eighteen Years a Resident of Yuma County.
Write for Information,
A.F. PECK
Wray, Colorado.

[112]=======================================

Myron W. Haver

Combines Teaching Public Schools With Extensive Ranch Operations.

The Prosperity Achieved by a Gallant Union Soldier in Yuma County.

     The eastern home-seeker will find the career of Myron W. Haver of
much interest.

     On November 28, 1844, Mr. Haver was born on a farm in the Genessee
Valley, New York, where he spent his boyhood days and received a very
liberal education.  Evidently the gentleman was one of a family of
patriots, because when the Civil War commenced his three elder brothers
enlisted in the Union army.  At that time, he too, was anxious to enlist
but his father prevailed upon the lad to remain home to help on the
farm.  Next year, however, when eighteen years of age, he enlisted in
the 130th New York infantry, in which he served with heroic valor until
the close of the war.  He was mustered out of the service after the
grand parade of the Union armies at Washington, and returned to his
boyhood home in the Genessee Valley.  It seemed to be the irony of fate
that one year later - after spending three years in the army and passing
unscathed through storms of bullets on the fields of battle - he lost
his right arm accidentally in broom corn machinery.  Since his recovery
from that unfortunate accident he has devoted his attention to school
teaching, in which he has been wonderfully successful.

     In 1874 he moved to Dexter, Iowa, where he remained fourteen years.
For six years he taught school there and for eight years he filled the
position of county superintendent of schools. In 1888 he came to
Colorado and located on a homestead near Eckley, the second station west
of Wray.  While the gentleman engaged in teaching again, he devoted the
attention of his spare time to ranch pursuits.  He went into the stock
business under very favorable circumstances as he controls a vast are of
free range which furnishes excellent grazing.

     Since he came to Yuma county Mr. Haver has been elected county
superintendent of schools two terms, and he discharged the duties of the
position with consummate ability and fidelity to the trust reposed in
him.

     He cultivates eighty acres of his ranch on which he grows winter
feed for his stock.  Although he sold two car-loads of cattle in the
eastern markets last fall, he still owns 300 cattle and thirty horses.

     The gentleman takes a lively interest in public affairs and
politically he is a stanch Republican, being chairman of the Yuma county
Republican central committee.  He has been elected justice of the peace
and school director and in each of these offices he discharged his
duties faithfully and well, giving entire satisfaction.

     At Portage, N.Y., on June 5, 1873, Mr. Haver married Miss Clara A.
Arnold, an estimable New York lady, and four children - two sons and two
daughters - have blessed the happy union.  The children who are bright,
intelligent and ambitious are a credit, as well as a comfort, to their
faithful parents.

     Mr. Haver is delighted with Yuma county, and like hundreds of other
settlers, he feels assured that there is no other part of the United
States offering such splendid possibilities to home-seekers.  Here the
poor man, especially, if he be endowed with persevering industry and
ambition, can find the summit of his hopes and the altitude of his
desires.

     Mr. Haver's genial disposition and his well stored mind render him
a most companionable gentleman.  He takes deep interest in everything
calculated to benefit his community and county and he has earned the
reputation of a splendid citizen.  He and his estimable family well
merit the esteem in which they are held.

[113]=======================================

M.C. Blust

One of the Honored Pioneers Whose Industry Achieved Success.

(Photo - Residence of M.C. Blust)

     Among those early pioneers who did much for the progress of Wray
and ever maintained a strong faith in the future of the town, the above
gentleman is entitled to special mention.  He came to Wray when it was
but a hamlet of a few houses, and he well merits the marked success
which his energy and untiring industry have achieved.

     Mr. Blust is a native of Ohio, where he was born forty-nine years
ago.  At an early age his parents went to Wisconsin, where he spent his
boyhood days on a farm.  Subsequently the family moved to the vicinity
of Schuyler, Neb., where the engaged in farming.  Mr. Blust remained in
Nebraska eighteen years, during three of which he was in the livery
business at Schuyler, in which he met with a fair measure of success.
During that time, he married Miss Rosa A. Fox, a popular and highly
esteemed resident of Schuyler.  In October, 1887, they came to Colorado
and located at Wray, where they engaged in the hotel business for seven
years.  Then he ran a barber shop four years and erected the two-story
business building in which he is now doing business.  He keeps a fine
stock of confectionery, fruit, cigars, etc., and has a fine soda
fountain.  In connection he has an attractive refreshment parlor in
which he serves delicious ice cream and oysters in any style, in season.
Everything in and about the place is kept scrupulously clean and neat,
the refreshments being served in a most inviting manner, all of which
renders the establishment very popular.

     During the past year Mr. Blust erected a beautiful home in the
western part of the city.  It is not only elegant in its exterior
appearance, but it is fitted with all modern improvements and furnished
with every comfort that conduces to the attractions of a home.  The
estimable couple well merit the success which has crowned their efforts.

[114]=======================================

W.C. Boggs

Now Serving His Second Term as Assessor of Yuma County.

A Popular Official and a Prosperous and Progressive Ranchman.

     Among those who have taken a very prominent part in developing the
resources of Yuma county the gentleman whose name heads this article has
been an active, progressive factor.  He has carried on his ranch
operations with an intelligence and energy that have been rewarded with
a generous measure of financial success and he is conceded to be one of
the most prosperous ranchmen in Yuma county.

     Mr. Boggs is a native of Clarinda, Page county, Iowa, where he was
born forty-two years ago.  He received his education at Clarinda and
after his boyhood days he devoted his attention to acquiring a knowledge
of engineering.  For eight years he was employed as a locomotive
engineer in Iowa and spent a short time on the Rio Grande road in this
state.  In 1888 he settled on a pre-emption claim of 160 acres in Kiowa
county, Colorado, where he engaged in farming and stock-raising.  After
two successful years he moved to Yuma county in 1890 and bought 480
acres of excellent land thirteen miles west of Wray, on which he is
located.  Again he engaged in the stock industry and farming with his
well known energy and perseverance, his efforts being rewarded by the
most gratifying success.  In addition to his deeded land, he has the use
of a vast area of free range on the east, which makes his ranch an ideal
one for extensive stock operations.  He cultivates 100 acres of land, on
which he grows crops of corn, cane, millet and vegetables.  As he makes
cattle and horses his chief source of revenue, he confines his farming
operations to raising sufficient feed for his stock during the months
when more or less hand feeding is not only prudent, but profitable.  He
owns 100 cattle, as well as a herd of fine horses, all of which he
handles to the very best advantage.  His cattle are of a superior grade
and he cares for them in such a manner as to assure for him the very
highest prices on the market.

     Mr. Boggs has erected a beautiful home on his ranch, and he has
ample barns, sheds, etc., for his stock.

     The gentleman has always been a conscientious, loyal Republican,
with the courage of his convictions and ever ready to give sound reasons
for the faith he entertains. Since coming to the county, his intelligent
comprehension of public men and measures, combined with his active and
genial personality, has been a potent factor in the councils and
contests of his party, which received public recognition when the
Republican convention nominated him for assessor in the campaign of
1899.  A determined effort was made to defeat him, but in addition to
winning his own election, his candidacy added strength to the entire
Republican ticket.  Mr. Boggs discharged his official duties so
satisfactorily and with such fidelity to the trust reposed in him, that
he was nominated to be his own successor in 1901.  In this contest his
majority was more than 300, illustrating his growing popularity in the
county.  It is generally conceded that Yuma county never had an assessor
who discharged his duties with more gentlemanly courtesy and rectitude
than Mr. Boggs, and he is making a record as a faithful and efficient
county officer of which he may well feel proud.  The gentleman takes a
deep interest in educational advancement and he has been school director
of his district for several terms.  Fraternally he is a member of the
Woodmen of the World.  In his capacity as a useful and enterprising
citizen, the generosity with which Mr. Boggs aids every movement
calculated to promote the best interests of the county is well known and
appreciated.

     In April 1882 Mr. Boggs married Miss May Quinn, an estimable Iowa
lady whose pleasing personality and musical accomplishments add such
charms to their happy home.  The congenial union has been blessed by
three interesting children, all boys.  Mr. and Mrs. Boggs are noted for
the sunny hospitality they dispense at the cozy home, as well as for
their admirable qualities as kind-hearted neighbors, and they well merit
the general and cordial esteem in which they are held by all that know
them.

[115]=======================================

Dr. Thos. Barr

A Most Popular Citizen and an Enterprising Business Man.

(Photo - Residence of Dr. Thos. Barr)

     Among those who are contributing generously towards the material
progress and prosperity of Wray, the above gentleman occupies a most
prominent position.

     Dr. Barr is a native of Virginia, where he studied for the medical
profession.  He began the practice of medicine in West Virginia in 1871
and after thirteen successful years he moved to Nebraska, where he
engaged in his profession for many years.  Having concluded to abandon
the active practice of medicine, the gentleman moved to Wray in 1902 and
bought an interest in the business then conducted by Dr. McGill.  A few
months later he purchased the interest of Dr. McGill and has been sole
proprietor of the store since then.  He keeps everything in the line of
toilet articles, stationary, paints, oils, wall paper, etc., and he has
one of the most attractive stores in Eastern Colorado.

     In 1867 Dr. Barr married Miss Allie F. Kincaid, an accomplished
West Virginia lady, and six children - four sons and two daughters -
have blessed the happy union.  The four sons are now successful business
men.  A few months ago Dr. Barr completed the erection of one of the
most beautiful residences in Wray, furnished with every modern
convenience and comfort requisite in a charming home.

     Dr. Barr is a genial dignified gentleman of the old school, with a
keen sense of honor underlying his nature, and his well stored mind
renders him a most companionable gentleman.  In public matters he is
enterprising and progressive, contributing generously to every movement
calculated to enhance the material and moral welfare of the city.  His
admirable qualities have won for the gentleman the cordial regard of the
community.

[116]=======================================

D.B. McGinnis

What D.B. McGinnis Accomplished on a Yuma County Farm.

     Among those pioneers who have taken a prominent part in developing
the resources of Yuma county and promoting its prosperity, the subject
of this brief sketch occupies a prominent position.

     Mr. McGinnis is a native of Fayette county, Pennsylvania, where he
spent his boyhood days on a farm.  In June 1867, he married Miss Sarah
J. McLaughlin, an estimable lady who has made his home one of sunshine
and happiness.  On the following month the young couple left for Iowa,
in which new state they decided to commence the battle of life.  They
engaged in farming pursuits in the Hawkeye State with gratifying success
until 1885, when they sold their farm and moved to Nebraska, where they
remained for three years.  In 1888 Mr. McGinnis and family came to
Colorado and located in Yuma county, where he filed on a homestead
eleven miles from Wray.  The land was good and under the energetic
management of Mr. McGinnis it produced abundant crops of wheat, corn and
other farm produce, yielding generous returns for the labor invested.
After twelve years of unvarying success, reaping rich harvests year
after year, the gentleman rented his farm and moved to Wray, having
purchased twenty acres of valuable land immediately adjoining the
eastern limits of the city.  On this property he erected a most
comfortable home, where he is enjoying the well earned rewards of an
industrious and well spent life.

     But the active disposition of Mr. McGinnis would not brook
idleness, and as a result of this industrious spirit he purchased the
Valley Barn on Chief street, shortly after his arrival in Wray, three
years ago.  He conducted the livery business with marked success until
last spring, when he sold the stock and leased the barn to Mr. Aten.
Last year he sold his farm and it is intention to plat his land adjacent
to Wray, as an addition to the city.

     Mr. McGinnis has two sons - W.D. and B.M. McGinnis - who, yet in
the morning of manhood, are generously endowed with those industrious
and energetic qualities which distinguish their respected father.  W.D.
McGinnis the elder of the sons, is now the efficient and popular clerk
of Yuma county.

     Mr. McGinnis has great faith in the future of Wray and Yuma county
and he contributes generously towards every movement calculated to
promote their prosperity.  The gentleman is well known in the county and
he and his estimable wife and family well merit the general esteem in
which they are held.  Fraternally, the gentleman is an Odd Fellow, of
which excellent order he has been a worthy member for fourteen years.

[117]=======================================

The Emigrant Barn

One of the Largest and Best Stocked of the Wray Liveries.

(Photo - L.C. Blust's Emigrant Barn)

     One of the best livery barns in Yuma county, and indeed, in Eastern
Colorado, is the one conducted by L.C. Blust on Kiowa street, in Wray.
The barn is 60x80 feet in size and it is well stocked with fine horses
and elegant conveyances.  If you want to make a trip into the country on
business, or take a drive for pleasure, Mr. Blust will fit you out to
suit the occasion, furnishing you a team on which you can depend in the
former case and a most stylish turnout in the latter.  His barn is
characterized by promptness and efficiency, his charges being reasonable
and his treatment of patrons honorable in every respect.

     Mr. Blust is a native of Winnebago county, Wisconsin, where he was
born about forty-three years ago.  In 1870 he moved with his parents to
Nebraska, and after his boyhood days engaged in the livery business and
mercantile pursuits for several years at Schuyler, in that state.  In
1887 he came to Colorado and located at Wray, then a little hamlet of
half-a-dozen houses, where he clerked for his father, who engaged in
mercantile pursuits here.  Mr. Blust devoted his attention to
merchandise and kindred business until about eight months ago, when he
purchased the Emigrant Barn, in which he is meeting with generous
success.  He gives his business his untiring personal attention and
leaves nothing undone to meet the reasonable expectations of patrons.
He is a genial, unassuming gentleman, who brings a keen sense of
integrity to bear on his business pursuits.  Mr. Blust is an
enterprising, public-spirited gentleman, who contributes generously
towards every movement calculated to promote the welfare of Wray and
Yuma county.  He and his estimable wife and interesting children own a
cozy home in the city, and they well merit the general esteem in which
they are held.

[118]=======================================

Dr. W.W. Johnston

The Gentleman Enjoys an Extensive and Lucrative Practice Here.

     Among the Yuma county physicians who have acquired a wide measure
of genuine popularity purely on their merits, the above gentleman
occupies a front rank.

     Dr. Johnston is a native of Terre Haute, Ind., where he was born in
1872. He received a classical education at Park College, Parksville,
Mo., and studied for the medical profession and graduated at Barnes
Medical College at St. Louis, Mo., in 1897, after which he was appointed
associate surgeon and, later, surgeon in charge of the Illinois Steel
Company's hospital, where he obtained an extensive experience in
treating nearly all the diseases and physical misfortunes to which
humanity is heir.  His health declining owing to close application to
his profession, in 1902 he started for the West, and after a short stay
at La Grange, Ill., he came to Colorado and located in Wray.

     Since he commenced practicing medicine in this city Dr. Johnston's
career has been characterized by remarkable success.  The gentleman has
displayed more than ordinary skill in his profession, and his, in
connection with his genial and magnetic personal qualities, enabled him
to secure a most lucrative practice in a very short time.  In his office
he has all the best medical and surgical appliances known to science,
including a Morton-Winishurst-Holtz Influence Machine for therapeutical
and X-ray purposes.  This machine gives transparency to any part of the
human system and is simply invaluable in cases of fractured bones and
many other ailments of the body, and in the application of electricity,
which is now conceded by medical science to be a most efficacious factor
in the treatment of many diseases.  It is claimed to be superior to any
other machine.

     In addition to his growing practice throughout the county, Dr.
Johnston is assistant surgeon of the Burlington railway, and his
professional future seems indeed promising.

     Dr. Johnston is a member of the National Auxiliary congressional
and legislative committee of the American Medical Association and a
member of the Colorado Medical Legislative League.

     In 1900 the gentleman married Miss Laura B. Briggs, a charming La
Grange, Ill., lady, and they have two interesting children.

     As a useful private citizen, as well as a skilled physician, Dr.
Johnston has won a pronounced degree of popularity in this county, and
he and his estimable wife well merit the general esteem in which they
are held.

[119]=======================================

Fred D. Johnson

A Prominent Ranchman and a Leading Business Man.

(Photo - Cattle Scene on Fred D. Johnson's Ranch)

     The above gentleman, who is a native of New Hampshire, came to Yuma
county eighteen years ago, and since then he has been a most prominent
and potent factor in developing the resources of both city and county.

     In the city Mr. Johnson owns a very extensive lumber yard, which is
well stocked with lumber and other building materials of all kinds,
posts, barbed wire, etc.  He keeps also, a full stock of all kinds of
agricultural implements which he offers at very low prices.  He supplies
coal in any quantities desired, delivered promptly on the most
reasonable terms.

     In addition to his business in the city, the gentleman is one of
the most extensive and successful ranchmen in the county.  He owns 1,500
acres of choice grazing and farming lands, which are peculiarly well
adapted for the cattle industry.  In addition to this he controls many
thousands of acres of free range, on which buffalo, gramma and other
nutritious native grasses grow luxuriantly.  On an average Mr. Johnson
keeps about 800 cattle, a large herd, each, of horses and hogs.  As the
accompanying engraving indicates, his cattle are well bred and unusually
valuable, and he has become noted for the excellence of his horses.  His
ranch situated adjacent to the northern boundary of Wray, is very
valuable, as much of it is situated in the valley of the Republican
river, the stream flowing through it.  Mr. Johnson is untiring in his
industry and his energy is unceasing.  The vigilant and vigorous
personal attention he bestows on his business is one of the chief
secrets of his remarkable success and the reputation he has acquired as
a shrewd and progressive business man.

     The gentleman owns one of the most beautiful homes in Wray, where
he is recognized as an honorable business man and a most useful citizen.

[120]=======================================

Hon. J.S. Gardner

A Most Successful Ranchman and Popular Official.

The Creditable Career of One of Yuma County's Pioneers.

     It is conceded by all who are conversant with the facts, that in
every trait that conduces to the moral welfare and material prosperity
of a community, the citizenship of Yuma county occupies a front rank,
and among those who have contributed generously to the advancement of
this favored portion of Colorado there are few, if any, who are entitled
to a more marked degree of credit than that genial gentleman and prince
of "good fellows," Hon. John S. Gardner.

     Mr. Gardner is a native of Ohio, where he was born on a farm in
March, 1856.  When of age he went to Wisconsin for a few years and
engaged in farming.  After three years in the latter occupation he moved
to Iowa, where he remained one year.  Then he went to Seward county,
Nebraska, where he devoted his attention to farming, cattle and hogs, in
which he continued for thirteen years with marked success.  In 1887 he
sold his Nebraska property and came to Colorado, locating within five
miles of Yuma, at that time the chief town of what is now Yuma county.
He bought 160 acres of fine land and again engaged in the stock
business, as well as general farming.  Of course, to a gentleman of Mr.
Gardner's energy and progressive ideas 160 acres of land constituted
only a "garden patch," and soon he commenced adding to his possessions
from time to time, as the opportunity presented.  Now he owns 2,000
acres of as desirable land as can be founding his section of the
country, and like Oliver Twist, he is yet "crying for more."  Mr.
Gardner understands his business thoroughly, and, with the gentleman's
untiring energy and persevering industry, it may be needless to say that
his seventeen years in Yuma county have been crowned with the most
gratifying success in the best sense of the term.  He has had as high as
450 cattle, but his intelligent comprehension of the "eternal fitness of
things" impelled him to sell freely when prices were high, and now, when
the market is much depressed, he owns only 250, but a herd of fine
graded animals they are.  He cultivates 250 acres of land, for which
purpose he owns twelve horses.  Almost invariably he has garnered good
crops, the yield running as high as 25 bushels and acre for wheat, 20
bushels for corn and three tons for cane and millet per acre.  While
many others in that section of the county insist that general farming
will not pay, it has been the foundation, in a great measure of Mr.
Gardner's remarkable success.  He has unlimited faith in stirring the
soil in connection with large herds of well bred cattle and his
gratifying career justifies his confidence.

     In public matters Mr. Gardner has taken a leading part since his
arrival in the county.  He organized the school district in which he
lives, and has been its treasurer since its organization.  In 1901, he
was nominated county commissioner on the Republican ticket, and although
the general result was decidedly "mixed" he was elected by a handsome
majority.  As county commissioner he has discharged his official duties
with an honesty of purpose and fidelity to the trust imposed in him,
that challenge the admiration of even his political opponents.  He has
displayed no partiality or sectionalism, and we feel assured that in the
coming campaign of 1904 he will receive that renomination for a second
term, which his eminent services so richly merit, and while his election
may not be quite unanimous, it ought to be nearly so.

     Mr. Gardner owns a cozy home on his ranch, which is supplied
generously with the luxuries, as well as the comforts of life, in
addition to which he owns a desirable house and lot in the town of Yuma.

     In 1878 Mr. Gardner married Miss Clara Penn an accomplished
Wisconsin lady, whose estimable qualities of mind and heart have
surrounded their home with the sunshine of happiness.  The grandfather
of Mrs. Gardner was one of the signers of the Declaration of
Independence, and she is a worthy scion of a noble stock.  Her father
was a veteran of the civil war.  The union of this couple has been
blessed by four children - one son and three daughters.  Burr, now in
the morning of manhood, is aiding his father to manage the ranch, and
the future of the genial young man is certainly promising.  Miss Pearl
Gardner, the eldest daughter, who is a charming young lady, is a popular
school teacher in the county.  Miss Ada is attending the state normal
school at Greeley, and Miss Myrtle is at home with her mother.  Mr. and
Mrs. Gardner have bestowed a liberal education on all their children.
The hospitality dispensed in this happy home is widely known because of
its generous and genuine character.

     While Mr. Gardner is modest and unassuming, he is one of the most
genial and companionable of gentleman.  In public matters he is
enterprising and progressive, and in every movement calculated to
advance the moral and material interests of the county he takes a
generous part.  He and his admirable wife and family well merit the
popularity and prosperity they are enjoying.

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