Nobles-Murray County MN Archives Biographies.....Woolstencroft, Benjamin W. 1846 - 1908 ************************************************ 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 21, 2006, 7:33 pm Author: Arthur P. Rose (1908) BENJAMIN W. WOOLSTENCROFT, is judge of probate of Murray county and resides at Slayton. Although Judge Woolstencroft has not been a resident of Nobles county for nearly thirty; years, no man living is more entitled to recognition in a work of this kind than he. Without fear of contradiction, we will state that Mr. Woolstencroft took a more prominent part in the early history making of Nobles county than any other man. He came to the county on July 4, 1867, when there were only two other settlers in the whole county—a county which now boasts a population of over 15,000 people. From the date of his arrival he took a prominent part in the affairs of the settlement, and more than anyone else, he was responsible for the organization of the county government in the fall of 1870, being designated by Governor Austin as one of the three commissioners to perfect the organization. A complete sketch of the life of Judge Woolstencroft would fill a volume, and we regret that only a brief outline can be here given. The reader is referred to the history part of this work for many items of interest in the life of Mr. Woolstencroft. Benjamin W. Woolstencroft was born February 22, 1846, in Jefferson Barracks, Mo., the son of Benjamin and Mary A. (Keer) Woolstencroft. Benjamin Woolstencroft, Sr., was a soldier in the regular army, being a sergeant in company K, First U. S. infantry. Soon after the birth of his son he started with his regiment for Mexico to take part in the Mexican war, and Mrs. Woolstencroft moved with her children to their farm in Clayton county, Iowa, where our subject was raised and received his education. Although only a boy 16 years old at the time of the outbreak of the civil war Mr. Woolstencroft enlisted, as a private in company L, of the Sixth Iowa cavalry, and served from 1862 to 1864. On Dec. 18, 1866, Mr. Woolstencroft was married to Susan D. Anscomb, and to them have been born seven children, as follows: Minnie M., Arthur A. (deceased), James W., Mark, Belle, John and Lulu. The newly married couple decided *to seek a new home in the west, and it was while out looking for a new location that Mr. Woolstencroft learned of the beautiful country around Graham lakes, and as it was en his route west he decided to take a look at it. Arriving there with a party of friends who were on the same mission he was so delighted with the appearance of the country that he and his friends immediately took claims there. This was on the fourth day of July. 1867, and Joseph and Stephen Muck were then the only settlers in the whole county. The lands were as yet unsurveyed, and these early settlers held their claims by "squatters'" rights. For several years Mr. Woolstencroft and his neighbors engaged in trapping for a living, there being no mills or market for any grain they might attempt to raise, but there was a good market for their furs, and fur bearing animals were then plentiful in Nobles county. After a few years when settlers began to come in numbers Mr. Woolstencroft engaged in farming and civil engineering, and resided in the county until 1879, when he took up his residence in Murray county. That county has since been his home. In 1882 he bought the Fulda Farmer, changed the name to Murray County Republican, and published that for eight years. Few men of his age can show a longer service as a public official than Mr. Woolstencroft. He served as county commissioner of Nobles county from the time of the county's organization in October, 1870, till the election in the fall of 1871. Then he was elected county surveyor and served six years. After his removal to Murray county he served 18 years as county surveyor there. He- was president of the Fulda school board ten years, president of the Fulda village council two years, served a time as recorder, was chairman of the republican county central committee, was secretary of the same organization, served twelve years as justice of the peace, has been assessor a number of years, and was elected to his present office, judge of probate of Murray county, in 1894 and served continuously since, his present term expiring January, 1909. He was a charter member of Zach. Taylor Post No. 42, G. A. R., Fulda, and was its commander and adjutant for a number of years. He is now a member of Logan Post No. 162, Slayton. [Since the above biography was put in type Judge Woolstencroft has died, having passed away at his home in Slayton on Saturday, Oct. 17, 1908.] 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/woolsten62gbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/mnfiles/ File size: 5.2 Kb