Biographies from The History of Columbia County,
Wisconsin, 1880 


Contributed by Carol carolann612@charter.net
Copyright.  All rights reserved.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm


From The History of Columbia County, Wisconsin, 1880,
publ. by Western Historical Company, Chicago, Page
928-929

REINHART A. SPRECHER was born in Madison, Wis., Sept.
24, 1857; resided at Madison, until 1868, when he came
to Portage.  His father died in 1860, and his mother
in 1868, and being a nephew of Carl HAERTEL, who
became his guardian, he came here to live with him.
He owned the Sprecher Brewery at Madison until October
1879, when he sold it and engaged in banking since
March 1875, and has remained in it ever since, except
the summer of 1879, which he spent in Europe.  Mr.
SPRECHER received his education in the public school,
and the high school of Portage, Commercial College,
etc.  He was the son of Frederick Reinhart and
Margaretta (HOLLENBECK) SPRECHER; his father came to
Madison in 1847, and mother came in 1848, the year
they were married.  His father was one of the first
brewers of Madison; established his brewery in 1848;
put up the first permanent building in that year, and
continued the business up to the time of his death.
There were ten children in the family, and Reinhart is
the only one who survives.

Page 929

HON. ALVA STEWART is a native of Morrisville, Madison
Co., N.Y.; was born Oct. 24, 1821, and came to Ft.
Atkinson, Jefferson Co., in the fall of 1847, and came
to Portage in the summer of 1853; while in Jefferson
Co. he was a member of the Assembly in 1850; also a
member of the Senate, and member of the Court of
Impeachment which tried Judge HUBBELL.  Mr. STEWART
commenced to read law with Hon. Nathaniel FOOTE, of
Morrisville, afterward with J. C. CURTIS, of
Canastota, and finally with Whipple JENKINS, of
Vernon, Oneida Co., N.Y.; admitted to the bar in
Wisconsin in 1847.  The Judge practiced law until
February 1865, when he was appointed Circuit Judge and
has been elected several times since, never having any
opposition.  He is now serving his third term.  Was
married, at Munsville, Madison Co., N.Y., Aug. 24,
1845, to Miss Ann McPHERSON; she was born at
Munsville, N.Y.; they have three children - Ellen L.,
now Mrs. O. M. CLARK, of Winona, Minn.; Clara Belle,
now Mrs. A. W. WALTERS, of Denver, Colo.; Fannie, now
Mrs. C. A. GOODYEAR, of Tomah.

JOHN W. ST. JOHN was born in Utica, N.Y., April 13,
1841; son of William P. ST. JOHN; came with parents to
Portage May 18, 1855; was in office of Clerk of Court
one and a half years; several years engaged as a clerk
in the lumber business, and for eleven years took the
entire charge; was engaged in mercantile and lumber
business at Neillsville, Clark Co., for two years;
with a lumbering company on Chippewa River three
years, since which time he has resided in Portage.
Mr. ST. JOHN  was married in Portage, May 23, 1864, to
Martha E. HARRIMAN, a native of Clinton, Me.  William
P. ST. JOHN, father of J. W. was born in Madison Co.,
N.Y. in 1809, and was an extensive dealer in grain and
wool until 1868; died November 1876, leaving one child
- John W., the subject of this sketch.

Z. J. D. SWIFT was born in Delhi, Delaware Co., N.Y.,
Jan. 1, 1835; son of Joseph and Susan SWIFT; his
parents moved to Greene Co., N.Y., when he was but 1
year old, lived there until 5 years of age, when they
removed to West Point, N.Y.; remained there until
moving to Wisconsin in the year 1855, settling in
Wyocena; before coming West, Mr. SWIFT learned the
trade of painting, and served a partial apprenticeship
as carpenter in New York City.  Was married to Lydia
A. DOW, daughter of Benjamin DOW, a farmer of Wyocena,
who came there in an early day, Jan. 1, 1859; she was
born in Cattaraugus Co., N.Y.; they have three
children - Edwin J., born Jan. 1, 1860; Charles R.,
Dec. 25, 1863, and Edith G., Oct. 15, 1869.  Mr. S. is
a member of the A.F. & A.M., Secretary of the
Agricultural Society for the last three years, Coroner
of the county for a number of years, Justice of the
Peace, since 1860, with the exception of one or two
years Postmaster at Pacific since 1861, has been Town
Treasurer, and has been Town Clerk several times; he
has also kept the plank road toll gate since 1860.

ANDREW TARNUTZER was born in Switzerland Nov. 22,
1834; attended school there until 1846, when he came
to Sauk Co., Wis., among the first settlers; his
father and mother both died in Sauk Co., and were
buried at Little Prairie or Black Hawk, in the town of
Troy, in the Evangelical Cemetery, opposite the old
homestead which Mr. T. still owns; he is a self-made
man in every sense of the word.  Mr. T. entered the
ministry of the Evangelical Association in 1855, and
was on probation in the Cedar Rapids Mission,
traveling all the time; there one year; then in the
spring of 1856, the present conference was formed, of
which he was one of the founders; he is now Presiding
Elder.

JAMES B. TAYLOR is a native of Rupert, Bennington Co.,
Vt., born Aug. 15, 1840; was educated at Burr
Seminary, Manchester, Vt. and Union College, situated
at Schenectady, N.Y., where he took a four years'
course and graduated from that institution in June
1865; came to Portage the same year, and commenced the
study of law with his brother Emmons TAYLOR, who came
to Portage in 1857, and died here April 13, 1874;
after reading law with his brother for a year and a
half, he was admitted to the bar, and has been engaged
in practice here up to the present time, and has acted
as City Attorney the most of the time since.  Was
married at Portage, Sept. 16, 1873, to Miss Julia A.
DAVIDSON; they have one child, Emmons Haskell, born
April 7, 1875.

Submitted by Carol