A History of Bird Island/Olivia, Renville Co., MN Bios Included ========================================================================= USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, material may be freely used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material, AND permission is obtained from the contributor of the file. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by other organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for non-commercial purposes, MUST obtain the written consent of the contributor, OR the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. If you have found this file through a source other than the MNArchives Table Of Contents you can find other Minnesota related Archives at: http://www.usgwarchives.net/mn/mnfiles.htm Please note the county and type of file at the top of this page to find the submitter information or other files for this county. FileFormat by Terri--MNArchives Made available to The USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher Submitted: Janusry 2005 ========================================================================= Excerpted from: "HISTORY OF THE MINNESOTA VALLEY, INCLUDING THE EXPLORERS AND PIONEERS OF MINNESOTA" BY REV. EDWARD D. NEILL, -AND — "HISTORY OF THE SIOUX MASSACRE" BY CHARLES S. BRYANT. MINNEAPOLIS: NORTH STAR PUBLISHING COMPANY, 1882. RENVILLE COUNTY. CHAPTER LXXXV BIRD ISLAND The town of Bird Island was set apart for organization October 2. 1876, and included all of towns 115 and 116, range 34. Election was held Saturday, October 21, 1876, at Joseph Feeter's house in section 14, at which seven votes wire cast and the following officers elected: Charles Humboldt, chairman, J. H. Feeter and J. Balsley, supervisors; J. S. Bowler, clerk; Benjamin Feeder, assessor; N. Painter, treasurer; E. Bowler and R. S. Harter, justices; George Miller and J. Engstrom, constables. The town was named Bird Island from the fact of there being an island in a lake west of the village of Bird Island, where in early days a great many birds congregated. November 3, 1871, the following filed claims: Rev. N. Tainter, section 24; J. S. Bowler, section 26; J. M. Bowler, section 24; Marion and Calvin Boyer, section 28; Nic O'Brien, section 26, and John A. Johnson, section 34; they all moved on the next spring. Rev. N. Tainter, Methodist, conducted religious services at his house in 1873, and in 1879 an organization was effected. Services are now held at the school-house in the village every Sabbath, conducted by Rev. H. Irvine. The Baptists held religious services at the school-house in the village in 1879, conducted by Rev. S. Adams. The same year a society was organized, and in 1880 they erected a frame church in Bird Island at a cost of about $1,100. Meetings are conducted semimonthly by Rev. F. E. Bostwick. The Catholics have held services in the school building, but have no regular priest at present. The society has purchased a building site in the village, erected a pasonage and will soon build a church. The first school was taught in the summer of 1878, in a building erected for that purpose on section 24, by Miss Sadie Tillotson. At present there are only two schools in the town, one in Bird Island, a fine building, and one in Olivia. The first child born in the town was Kate C., a daughter of J. M. and L. S. Bowler, born September 26, 1873. The village of Bird Island was surveyed in July, 1878, on land owned by the Bird Island Town Site company, in the east half, southeast quarter of section 14; two additions have been added. The boundaries are as follows: the south half of sections 11 and 12, sections 13, 14. 23 and 24, and the north-east quarter of the northeast quarter of section 26, all in town 115-34, comprising 3,240 acres. The village was incorporated under a special act approved March 4, 1881, and the following officers appointed to hold until their successors were elected the first Tuesday in April following, and they qualified: M. Donohue. president, W. M. Holbrook, J. W. Ladd, Charles C. Ladd, J. W. Barnard, and E. H. Keenan, councillors; D. D. Williams, recorder; T. M. Paine, treasurer; Wesley Moran and Fred. Hodgdon, justices; H. Feeter, street commissioner; W. H. Lewis, marshal, G. H. Megquier, attorney. The village of Bird Island is the largest in Renville county, containing a population of about 500, and the following business houses: Three general stores, one grocery, two hardware, two drug stores, two millineries, and one furniture store, one harness, one wagon, three blacksmith, one shoe, one paint and one barber shops; three hotels, two meat markets, two saloons, two lumber dealers, three physicians, two lawyers, one bank, established in 1880, capital, $50,000, and two elevators, capacity about 70,000 bushels. The Bird Island Post was established by Wesley Moran, in August, 1879, and is published weekly, circulation about 500 copies. A general job office is run in connection. The Bird Island Blizzard was established; in April, 1881, and is published weekly, by J. M. Bowler, editor, and J. W. Ladd, publisher; circulation, 500 copies. Bird Island post-office was established in the spring of 1878, and the office located at J. F. Bowler's house, section 26; he was appointed postmaster. The same fall it was removed to the village and located at J. W. Ladd's store; J. W. Ladd is the postmaster. In May, 1881, a lodge of A. F. & A. M. organized with about fifteen members, now numbers about twenty members. J. S. Bowler, W. M.; Albert Brown, S. The I. O. G. T. was organized in December, 1879, with about twenty members. N. Tainter, W. C. T., and Mrs. Mary Millard, W. R. G. The village of Olivia was surveyed in September, 1878, on land owned by the Hastings and Dakota Railway Company, and J. M. McKinlay in the south-west quarter of section 7. It was incorporated under the general law and an election held March 16, 1881, with the following result: W. P. Christensen, president, I. Lincoln, L. White and William Windhorst, trustees; P. W. Heins, recorder, but he did not qualify and A. D. Simpkins was appointed. N. Stone, treasurer; A. D. Simpkins, justice; O. J. Everson, marshal. The town was named Olivia, for the wife of Russell Sage Sr., he having an interest in the town site. The village has a population of about 80 people and the following business houses: four general stores, one each hardware and drug stores; one each blacksmith, wagon, shoe and tailor shops; one hotel, one saloon, one lumber yard, three dealers in agricultural machinery; two elevators, capacity about 60,000 bushels. A steam grist-mill, four run, with a capacity of 85 barrels per day; was built by Lincoln Bros., in 1879, and is still in operation. Olivia P. O. was established in 1878, and the office located at the elevator of I. Lincoln, Sr., who was appointed postmaster. In January, 1880, W. P. Christensen was appointed postmaster and removed the office to his general store. In December, 1880, the A. F. & A. M. organized a lodge, with about ten members; has been augmented slightly. The officers are D. W. Guptill, M. and I. Lincoln, Sr., secretary. BOWLER J. M. Bowler, born in 1838, in Maine, attended the public schools of Portland. Taught school in Wisconsin one year previous to going, in 1858, to Minneapolis, where he worked at printing until 1861, the date of his enlistment. He was in the 1st Minnesota, afterward in the 3d and later the 113th United States Colored infantry; was mustered out as major. Worked in a planing mill at Minneapolis, then removed to Dakota county. In 1871 he settled in Bird Island when there was but one building in the town. He was elected to the state legislature in 1878. Mr. Bowler is editor of the Bird Island Blizzard, which he and J. W. Ladd established in 1881. Married in 1862, Lizzie Califf. The first child born in town was their daughter, Kittie. BOWLER J. S. Bowler, native of Maine, was born in 1841, and engaged in teaching after gaining an academical education. In 1862, he entered the 22d Maine infantry; re-enlisted and served through the entire war. From 1869 till 1871 his home was in Dakota county, Minnesota; then he removed to Bird Island, where he was one of the first settlers. He was the first clerk of the town; filled the office three years; was one of the charter members of the masonic lodge and is their present master. Miss Sarah F. Ricker became his wife in 1864: they have five children. CHRISTENSEN William P. Christensen was born in 1844 in Denmark. Upon immigrating to America in 1869 he was employed at Minneapolis as clerk, and served two years on the police force. In 1879 he began a general mercantile business at Olivia and has also been postmaster since living here. Mr. Christensen was the first president of the village board: he is still filling that position. Mary Thorson was married to him in 1875; George F., Snudorff W. and Harry E. are the children. CROULEY George Crouley, a native of Pennsylvania, was born in 1853, in Bradford county. He migrated in 1875 to Redwood Falls, Minnesota; was engaged in grocery trade there until 1879, the date of his coming to Bird Island, where he is carrying on a grocery business in company with his brother. Mr. Crouley was married in December, 1881 to Miss Olive E. Cammie. DEPUE G. J. DePue was born in 1852, but left Ohio, his native state, in 1857, and accompanied his parents to Minneapolis. Removed to Scott county two years later; lived in Jordan and Shakopee until coming to Olivia in 1878; he built the DePue House, the first in the village; was proprietor of this hotel until 1881, when he rented it. He also built a blacksmith shop and continued working at his trade. Miss Sophia Peterson was married to him in 1872. DINON W. P. Dinon, born in Canada in 1845, removed when eighteen years of age to Hamilton. Minnesota; he did carpenter work and was in the grocery and liquor trade till 1875, at which date he went to Shakopee, where he kept the Farmer's Home four years; since 1879 he has been proprietor of the Bird Island House in this place. Mr. Dinon is a member of the village council. Married in 1871, Miss M. J. Carr; two children, Mary and Emma. FEWER J. W. Fewer, native of Ireland, was born in 1858. From the year 1861 until twelve years of age his home was in St. Paul, after which he lived in Minneapolis four years. His father was a blacksmith and when a young man he commenced learning the trade; worked in Minneapolis, also in Scott and Dakota counties; in 1881 he engaged in business at Bird Island. In 1872 Mary Thorton became his wife; Katie is their only child. HAGADON A. W. Hagadon, who was born in 1862, is a native of Minnesota. Mr. Hagadon's home was in the town of Winfield, Renville county, four years previous to the autumn of 1881, the time at which he came to Bird Island and started a meat market in company with Mr. Reynolds. HEINS P. W. Heins was born in 1846 in England. In 1850 the family immigrated to Iowa. In 1868 he came to Minnesota; has been in the mercantile business since locating at Beaver Falls in 1870: subsequently he opened a branch store at Renville, and in 1878, another at Olivia. Married in 1872, Jennie Patton. HODGDON Frank Hodgdon, born in 1859, is a native of Maine, but has been a resident of Minnesota since 1869. He lived at Beaver Falls, where his father was engaged in real estate business. In 1878 Mr. Hodgdon, in company with his brother Fred, began mercantile trade just below Bird Island and when the village was started they removed their business here; theirs was one of the first stores in the place. Miss Mary Donohue was married to him in 1880. KEENAN E. H. Keenan, native of New York, was born in 1854 in Troy. When a child the family went to Wisconsin, from there to Iowa, and in 1858 to Henderson, Minnesota. In 1873 he entered St. John's College; graduated in 1875, after which he taught in Henderson, also clerked and kept books. He worked two years for M. Mullen, of New Ulm, previous to embarking in hardware and machinery business at Bird Island. He married in 1878 Emma E. Donahue. LADD Charles C. Ladd was born in 1835 in East Greenwich, Rhode Island. He was apprenticed to learn the jeweler's trade, and worked at that until 1867, when he went to Minneapolis, but soon removed to Ellsworth, Wisconsin, where he was in a stave factory two years with a brother. He worked seven years as foreman of Farnham & Lovejoy's lumber-yard; passed one year in the East, two years in La Crosse, and since 1879 has been, in the lumber trade at Bird Island. Mr. Ladd served one year in the First Rhode Island infantry. LADD J. W. Ladd, born in 1841 in Phoenix, Rhode Island, moved in 1860 to St. Anthony, Minnesota. He was employed as clerk until 1866; after engaging a short time in insurance business, he removed to Ellsworth, Wisconsin, where until 1868 he and a brother owned and operated a stave mill. In 1869 he bought a flour-mill at Clearwater, which was burned in 1871: he then went to Chicago, where he was a member of the board of trade five years; while living in that city he was in different lines of business. From 1876 to 1878 his home was in Minneapolis, then came to Bird Island: built the first elevator in the place; also owns a store and a farm of $1,000 acres. Mr. Ladd was a member of the first village council, been postmaster since 1879, and is publisher of The Bird Island Blizzard. In 1862 he was one of a company that went from Minneapolis to the defense of Fort Ridgely. Married in 1863 Emma G. Lovejoy. LIBBY Thomas Libby, native of Maine, was born in 1821, and attained a high school education. In 1842 he went to Illinois and followed teaching twelve years; he then lived eight years on a farm in Dodge county, Minnesota, where he had located in 1854. Mr. Libby has been a local minister in the Methodist church for thirty-five years; he removed to Kandiyohi county and preached the first Methodist sermon in Willmar village; his church a railroad car; he lived in Willmar fifteen years. Since 1881 he has lived at Bird Island; he owns the Merchants Hotel. His wife, who was Olive E. Simmons, has borne him seven children: Eveline, Celia, Lorenzo, William and Albert are living. LINCOLN E. B. Lincoln was born in 1851 in Cleveland, Ohio, and in 1859 accompanied his parents to Shakopee. Minnesota. In 1866 he entered the military school at Faribault, from which he graduated in 1870. He was employed as baggageman, and afterward conductor, on the Sioux City railroad; subsequently kept books in a bank in Shakopee until 1878, when he became cashier in G. K. Gilbert's bank at Glencoe; since 1881 he has been cashier of the First National Bank at that place: is also a member of the firm Lincoln Brothers, of Olivia. LINCOLN Isaac Lincoln, Jr., was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1855. The family located at Shakopee in 1859, where he attended public schools until 1870, at which date he entered the Faribault military school. After graduating in 1874 he visited Colorado; one year later went to New Richland, but soon returned to Shakopee, where he was city engineer eighteen months; until 1878 he was in the draughting department of the Sioux City railroad office, then erected an elevator at Olivia, which was the first building there; at the same time he started a lumber-yard: is now proprietor of the Lincoln mill, built by him and a brother. Mr. Lincoln was the first postmaster of Olivia. In 1880 he married Cora Straight. LITTLE N. C. Little, native of Pennsylvania, was born in 1846 in Somerset county. The family migrated in 1856 to Glencoe, Minnesota, where he attended the common schools and worked at farming until 1877; began the flour and feed business at Glencoe, but removed two years after to Bird Island; engaged in lumber business. From February until October, 1865, he served in the First Minnesota heavy artillery. Married in 1878, Emma Cale. MEGQUIER Hon. George H. Megquier was born September 20, 1844, in Maine, and when eight years old moved with his parents to Bangor. In 1855 they migrated to Eureka, Illinois: after graduating in 1862, from the college of that place he enlisted in Company D, 108th infantry: he was promoted to lieutenant; afterward served on the staff of Generals Baird and A. J. Smith, until the war closed. In the fall of 1865 he entered the Cleveland Law University; graduating in 1866 and the next year came to Minnesota. He married Laura Tillotson in 1869, and commenced the practice of law at Beaver Falls; was elected judge of probate in 1873, and the following year was chosen county attorney and superintendent of schools: since 1878 he has lived at Bird Island. MORAN Wesley Moran, native of Wisconsin, was born in November, 1848, in Grant county. Accompanied his parents to West Virginia, from there to Ohio, and thence to Iowa. At sixteen years of age he left school and began to learn printing; after working in different places he went, in 1873, to Chicago and was employed three years on the Tribune of that city. For two and one-half years he published a weekly paper at Kilbourn City, Wisconsin, but removed in 1879 to Minnesota, and established the Bird Island Post. His wife was Sophia Coffman, married in 1871: their children are Nora E., D. W., Lena M. and George E. MORGAN John Morgan was born in 1847, in Wyoming county, New York; in 1865 he migrated to Le Sueur county, Minnesota; in 1871 he removed to Renville county: continued farming until he began the saloon business in Olivia. Miss Eliza Delanie became his wife in 1876 and has three children; Patrick W., Mary E. and Catharine F. PUFFER Dr. F. L. Puffer was born in 1852 in St. Lawrence county, New York. He attended the St. Lawrence University and in 1872 graduated from Columbia College: the next year he entered the university at Ann Arbor. Soon after graduating in 1877, from the College of Physicians and Surgeons, of New York city, he began practice at Taylor's Falls. Minnesota, with Dr. A. J. Murdock. From 1878 till 1881 he was at Beaver Falls, then came to Bird Island. He has been coroner of Renville county since 1878 and was county physician two years, Dr. Puffer married Anna L. Ellison in 1879. Florence E. is their only child. SPENCER C. H. Spencer is a native of Minnesota; born in 1858 at Shakopee. From 1873 until removing in 1881 to Olivia, he was telegraph operator in the Sioux City railroad office at Shakopee. He is now station agent at Olivia. STONE A. W. Stone, born in the state of New York in 1855, went when eight years old to Dodge county, Minnesota, with his parents: he learned blacksmithing, and has been engaged in that business at Bird Island since June 1879. His marriage with Lottie A. Sherwood occurred in 1879; Arthur is their only child. STROM O. A. Strom, born in 1858, was the first white child born in Butternut Valley, Blue Earth county, Minnesota. After leaving the Normal school at Mankato, he entered a drug store at Beaver Falls; worked there and in Redwood Falls until 1879 when he opened a store at Renville, but in the autumn of 1881, removed his business to Bird Island. TAINTER Rev. Nahum Tainter, born in 1821, is a native of Massachusetts. He is a member of the Methodist church, and after leaving school entered the ministry. In 1856 he settled near Chatfield, Olmsted county, Minnesota, but in 1871 selected the homestead where he now resides, near the village of Bird Island; his claim was the first in town that resulted in settlement. Rev. Tainter preached at his house in 1874, the first sermon delivered in this town. Married in 1845, Miss A. E. Peirce, one child living: Laurilla A. WILLIAMS D. D.Williams was born in 1853 in Kane county, Illinois, and when two years old accompanied his parents to Judson, Blue Earth county, Minnesota. After leaving school he in 1877 began to read law at Madelia; taught school one year, and then resumed the study of law until 1879, when he was admitted to the bar. Since the spring of 1880 he has practiced at Bird Island.