Nobles County MN Archives Biographies.....Smith, Esler Kent 1867 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/mn/mnfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com October 24, 2006, 10:32 pm Author: Arthur P. Rose (1908) ESLER KENT SMITH, treasurer of Nobles county, resides at Worthington, and that city has been his home since he was a boy seven years old. His birthplace was Williamsfield, Ohio, and the date of his birth was March 3, 1867. His father, Samuel M. Smith, and his mother, Harriet O. (Kent) Smith, both natives of Ohio, are still living and reside at Omaha, Neb. The geneology of both of the Smith and Kent families can be traced back to colonial times. The great grandfather of our subject on the maternal side was a veteran of the Revolutionary war. Until he was five years of age Esler lived with his parents in the town of his birth and other villages in eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania. His father was a minister of the United Brethren church and changes in assignment to different pulpits caused the family to change their place of abode frequently. Early in 1872 the family joined the National colony, which was then engaged in bringing settlers to Nobles county, and in May of that year arrived in Worthington. Arriving here, Mr. Smith was dissatisfied with the prospects, or rather, believed that he could do better elsewhere, and was induced to locate at Mountain Lake and removed to that place almost immediately after his arrival in Minnesota. There he took a homestead, but in March, 1874, returned to Worthington. Esler received his education in the public schools of that city, going through the graded and high school and finishing the course about 1883. But before he had quitted school he had started to learn the printer's trade. On the first day of April, 1880, he made the type click for the first time. This was in the office of the Worthington Journal, then published by Geo. Ogle. After five months' employment on that paper, he entered the employ of A. P. Miller, then the publisher of the Advance, with whom he remained until June 18, 1881. On the last named date he was taken seriously sick, and for a long time was unable to engage in any kind of work. Recovering from his long illness, he again entered school. After quitting school in 1883, he worked at the printer's trade and for a short time was engaged with a surveying party. He continued to be a journeyman printer, working on various papers until 1893. On September 1 of that year, in company with Ernest Perry, he leased the Worthington Globe from Peter Thompson. Mr. Perry withdrew from the firm on the first day of the next year on account of ill health and died a few months later. Mr. Smith then took over the lease and continued to publish the paper until July 1, 1895. On November 1, of the same year, he purchased a one-half interest in the Worthington Herald from T. G. Nicholson and assumed the editorial management. In July of the next year he purchased the remaining interest and became the sole publisher. He continued to own and publish the Herald until November, 1904, when he sold to N. Weinandt and entered upon his duties of county treasurer, to which office he had just been elected. Mr. Smith was elected village recorder in 1897 and the following year was elected member of the city council. He was elected county treasurer in November, 1904, and was reelected two years later, and is now serving on his second term. He is a republican and has always taken an active interest in Nobles county politics. Additional Comments: Extracted from: AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF NOBLES COUNTY MINNESOTA BY ARTHUR P. ROSE NORTHERN HISTORY PUBLISHING COMPANY WORTHINGTON, MINNESOTA PUBLISHERS 1908 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/mn/nobles/bios/smith172gbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/mnfiles/ File size: 4.1 Kb