Nobles County MN Archives Biographies.....Bofencamp, William 1866 - 
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Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com November 3, 2006, 11:24 am

Author: Arthur P. Rose (1908)

  WILLIAM BOFENKAMP, proprietor of the leading Ellsworth hardware store, has

made his home in that village almost from the time of the founding of the town,

and has been in the hardware and implement business during the last eight years.



  Mr. Bofenkamp was born in Burlington, Wis., Oct. 6, 1866, the son of Lambert

and Anna (Lindermann) Bofenkamp. His father was born in Germany and came to

America when a young man. He died at Valley Plain, Minn., in 1895, aged 84

years. His mother was born in Wisconsin and is living at the age of 66 years.



  The Bofenkamp family moved from Wisconsin to Belleplaine, Minn., when the

subject of this sketch was two years old, and that was the home five years. Then

a residence was made at Seneca, Kansas, and our subject lived there four years.

Coming back to Minnesota by the overland route, the family located at Union

Hill. There William completed his education which had been begun in Kansas, and

lived on his father's farm until he was seventeen. After that he worked at

carpentering for a few years.



  It was in June, 1885, that Mr. Bofenkamp came to the recently founded town of

Ellsworth, since which time he has resided there. For the first three years he

engaged in carpenter work and with a crew of bridge carpenters. The next two

years he tended bar for Michael Fahey, and then in partnership with Henry

Fischenich he engaged in the livery business, with which he was identified only

eight months. He then bought a half interest in the saloon business from his

brother, Theodore, and in partnership with Henry Whalen conducted the business

two years. At the end of that time he bought his partner's interest and

conducted the saloon alone for six years. During the next two years he engaged

in the feed business, buying the feed store of T. A. Towsley. In 1900 he

purchased the hardware store and has since conducted the business. In addition

to the hardware store and implement building, Mr. Bofenkamp owns two residences

in the village and a quarter section farm in Westside township.



  At Adrian on Sept. 16, 1890, Mr. Bofenkamp was married to Miss Mary J. Lenz,

daughter of the late Peter Lenz. To them have been born the following children:

Raymond, born Sept. 13, 1891; Celia, born Jan. 13, 1894; Ferdinand, born Oct,

28, 1898; Regina, born April 18, 1901; Mary, born Dec. 14, 1902; Lambert, born

June 6, 1905.



  During his long residence in Ellsworth Mr. Bofenkamp has taken a prominent

part in local affairs. In 1898 he was elected a member of the village council,

which office he held seven years. He was then elected president of the council,

in which capacity he served until the spring of 1908. During his administration

the city hall, water works, opera house and jail were erected and four steel

bridges were put in. He served on the board of education during the same length

of time, during which was erected the handsome public school building. Mr.

Bofenkamp is a member of the Catholic church and of the C. O. F. and Knights of

Columbus lodges.



Additional Comments:
Extracted from:



AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF NOBLES COUNTY

MINNESOTA

BY

ARTHUR P. ROSE



NORTHERN HISTORY PUBLISHING COMPANY 



WORTHINGTON, MINNESOTA 

PUBLISHERS

1908

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