Wilbur Golden Jubilee
June 22, 1939
Submitted by Marge Womach
(The
Golden Jubilee Edition contains more than the biographical items selected
herein.)
Page F through H
Farnsworth: “There is
so much one wishes to say about Mr and Mrs E L Farnsworth that it is
difficult to choose what shall be put in the limited space of a newspaper. They
came to the village about the time it became a municipality, Mr Farnsworth
having bought the then brand new
bank of the founders, Dougherty & Putmann. He continued to operate it as a
private bank a few years, when he and D K McPherson, pioneer of Sprague and
father of J McPherson, converted the bank into the State Bank of Wilbur.
The Farnsworth’s were leaders in cultural and social life from the
first until they moved to Olympia about 20 years ago. He was a school director
during a serious financial period and piloted the district safely through. He
was Lincoln County’s representative in the state legislature in 1909, 1911,
1913, 1915 and 1917. Mrs Farnsworth
was a Sunday school superintendent, Sunday school teacher and choir director in
the early days. She it was who started the movement for improving the Wilbur
cemetery. Her untiring leadership caused a water system to be installed there
and grass and trees planted. Another movement started by Mrs Farnsworth still
does credit to the town—the Women’s Civic Improvement Club. It was her
inspiration and for several years she was unanimously elected president. The
beautiful and substantial bridge on Wilson street over Goose Creek at the west
of Civic Park was given to the town by this estimable couple—a monument to
their memory for decades to come, combined with splendid service to the town.
Mr Farnsworth has for years been recognized as one of the leading bankers
of the state. He retains his stock in the Wilbur State Bank and serves as its
vice president. These are but a few of the many splendid achievements of Mr and
Mrs Farnsworth. But the personal friendships, and their wholesome influence over
the pioneer youths of the community, can not be told. We must mention it because
it was so great, so inspiring and so enduring. They have one daughter, Mrs Grace
Fisk, a brilliant woman and a world traveler, who did considerable
‘settlement’ work in New York City at one time. She was born in Wilbur in
the house that is now occupied by Mr and Mrs Ed Rux.
The family later built the large residence on South Hill that is now
known as the McKay Apartments.”
Felder:
“B W Felder
established the first jewelry store in Wilbur in 1890. He also homesteaded near
here. His wife was one of the most brilliant women to have lived in Wilbur. They
both died several years ago after a long-time residence at Toppenish. Their son,
Herman, who graduated from Wilbur High School, is a prominent business man at
Everett.” (Edit: B W Felder was a
stock holder in the Wilbur corporation, Tom Hal Gold Mining company.)
Fletcher: “Mr
and Mrs Harry Fletcher, parents of Clarence Fletcher, local farmer, came
to the Sherman region in 1883 and were in the group of ten charter members of
the first church organized there. They were factors in the religious and
intellectual advancement of that community. They have been dead many years.”
(Edit: The grave of Clarence Fletcher is in the Wilbur Cemetery, born
March 29, 1883 and died June 27, 1957. The grave at Sherman Cemetery of Florence
Fletcher Johnson shows her date of death as Oct 5, 1900 at age 18 years.)
Foley: “The
stench of smoke had scarcely cleared from the ashes of Spokane Falls when the John
W Foley family arrived in Washington, in the fall of 1889. The parents
located in Wilbur and the two oldest sons, John and Will, (deceased), farmed
near here. One son, Jacob, died in his youth. Another son, Ward, latterly
deceased, was one-time mayor of Wilbur and later a prominent citizen of
Davenport. Ernest, now employed at the Holmes store, formerly clerked in the Hay
store and for the Wilbur Grocery and Hardware.
Walter, now of New York City, was a printer for the Wilbur Register and
for many years assistant agent for the Northern Pacific at this place. Walter
also was postmaster pro-tem while his brother, Arthur, served in the World War.
Their sister, Mabel, deceased, married a pioneer barber, Arthur Walker.
Arthur, or ‘Dude’ as he is better known, now operates a variety
store. John W Foley was an active
member of R L McCook Post of the GAR. His
wife devoted herself to her family and to being a good neighbor and friend. They
have both been dead many years.” (Edit:
The grave of J W Foley, Civil War veteran, is in the Wilbur Cemetery with a
dozen other Foley graves.)
Forrey:
“Miss Edna Forrey,
one of our pioneer school teachers, is still a resident of Wilbur. Her mother
was Mrs Abigail Forrey, who came from Iowa to Wilbur
in 1880 with her small son and daughter.
They journeyed by rail to San Francisco, by steamer from Frisco to
Astoria, and on to Yakima by wagon. At the time of their arrival in Yakima there
was no school or church there and the Indians were still a source of worry and
fear to the white residents. Miss Forrey’s first teaching experience was in
the Egypt district north of Davenport in 1884. She cashed her warrants at Cheney
as there was no bank in Davenport, then a village called Cottonwood. Her mother
moved to Spokane Falls for a time and Miss Forrey and her brother attended the
Methodist Academy. In 1888 she taught the first school in Kellogg, Idaho. In
1891 she returned to Wilbur to teach when W D Burton was principal Her mother
homesteaded in the Sherman region and after a few years bought residence
property in Wilbur and retired from the farm.
Miss Forrey’s brother, Paul, now a resident of Soap Lake, married Miss
Eva Slaten, a member of another pioneer Wilbur family. Edna Forrey has been an
active member of the WCTU and served many years as city librarian.”
(Edit: The Wilbur Cemetery shows four Forrey graves, including Edna
Forrey’s grave. Her mother, Abigail Jane Forrey was born June 2, 1834 and died
in Jan 1923, wife of Sam, with her burial in Wilbur also. Otas Forrey was an
older brother to Edna. Edna was age 1 and Otas age 3 on the 1870 census at
Center, Decatur Co, Iowa.
Friedlander:
“Joseph H
Friedlander was mentioned in the letter written by Lieut. Thomas Symons
narrating his perilous navigation by barge down the Columbia River in 1881 to
Snake River. The letter states that they landed at a small trading post operated
near Whitestone Bluff by J H
Friedlander. Mr Friedlander married one of Chief Moses’ tribeswomen, but later
divorced her and wed Miss Bertha Wainright, daughter of Mr and Mrs Wm Wainright.
He died within a few year after this marriage and left his widow and one
daughter, Josephine. Several of his children by his first marriage are now
prominent on the Colville reservation. His widow later married Walter Leonard,
an accountant. They moved to Walla Walla to educate Josephine and the two boys
and one girl of the Leonard union. Mr
Friedlander was the Northern Pacific lieu land agent in Wilbur many years.”
(Edit: Joseph H Friedlander
was born Nov 27, 1855 and died Oct 21, 1899. His burial was in the Wilbur
Cemetery. J H Friedlander played
the baritone horn in the Wilbur Brass Band. He had a keen wit, was a good
musician, good business man and highly educated.)
Geib:
“Et Geib came from
Luxemburg when he was 25 years old and first took work in shops at Pittsburg,
Penn., but within a few months left for Chicago to work for a time in the
Dearing manufacturing plant. From there he journeyed to Washington and reached
here the year that Washington Territory became a state—fifty years ago. He had
only $16 when he reached the Big Bend. He recalls that this region looked like
anything else than the promised land and tried even to sell his clothing for
money to buy a ticket back to Chicago. But the homesteaders had no cash for
other than the most meager necessities and circumstances compelled Mr Geib to
remain on the desolate prairies. His
first home, a shack, was so open that he had to put his clothes, even his shoes,
under cover in the winter time else they would be under a drift should a
snowstorm start in the night, as the blizzards whipped great piles of snow
through the large cracks of his house. His hardest winter was that of 1889-90.
He had to haul firewood a distance of 20 miles, making his cutting in the Rocky
Canyon. This mad him leave his
ranch at four in the morning, so cold that his breath made icicles on his
eyelashes. His lunch would freeze solid and when he would reach the shack at
night he was often so tired he went to bed with his stomach quite empty, too
filled with aches and pains to care much about the gnawing void in his tummy. At
the end of his first year he was able to make the first installment on his lieu
land. He then rented 240 acres of school land and continued to increase his
holdings until he had acquired 3,800 of the most desirable acres in this
territory. He estimates his average wheat yield ahs been from 18 to 20 bushels
per acre and has sold for the price of 20 cents per bushel up to $3.15 per
bushel. The Rinker & Haus
thresher harvested his first crop. His 1935 crop of 1800 acres yielded an
average of 45 bushels, the stubble being plowed under to prevent erosion.
Mr Geib has not actively farmed for several years, though he still lives
on one of his several farms and has a fine garden, some hogs and chickens. Three
of his sons made farmers—Rudolph, Clemmens (deceased) and Albert—and one
daughter, Mrs Earl Akers, is a farmer’s wife. The youngest son, Paul, is a
pharmacist at Harrington and the youngest daughter is Mrs Hilmer Olson, wife of
a mechanic in Idaho. Each child was well educated. Mr Geib married Miss Mary Falter in 1899, a member of a
well-known very early pioneer family of the Cheney region. This couple is well
informed on many subjects and both are keenly interested in business and in
current events at large.” (Edit:
Etienne Geib was born in 1863 and died in 1953. His wife Mary was born in
1875 and died in 1954. Albert Geib
was born Oct 31, 1906 and died May 29, 1988. Clemens was born in 1903 and died
in 1938. These burials and three others of the Geib surname are located in the
Wilbur Cemetery.)
Gemmil:
“William Gemmil
took a pre-emption 12 miles southwest of here in 1884 and was a leader of that
day. He is well remembered by our older residents.”
Gibson:
“Mr and Mrs Geo
Gibson are both in the list of early-day Lincoln County teachers. George’s
parents came to Washington Territory in 1882 and homesteaded near Davenport.
George attended the first district school at Davenport in 1884.
Later he made a success of gardening at Crystal Cove.
Mrs Gibson did not teach after her marriage but George taught 27 years
while farming. They have lived in Wilbur several years and operate an auto camp
here. Their daughters, Mrs J C Altizer and Mrs Paul Bergman, were
also teachers; their sons, Steve and Roger, live in Wilbur; Marvin is employed
in Spokane; and Miss Laurel is in nurses training at Seattle. Myrtle and Teddy
are at home with the parents.”
Gollaher:
Emery
D Gollaher, a native of Indiana, journeyed to California in 1870, thence to
Washington in 1889, and to Lincoln County in 1894. In later years of his life he
spent much time in reading and study and was recognized as one of the most
intelligent men in his community.” (Wilbur
Register: Golden Jubilee) Emary D Gollaher was born in Indiana in 1860, the son
of Allen and Eunice (Daggett) Gollaher. His father was a Civil War veteran.
His mother died when he was a young child, and the father came to
Washington in 1894. Emary came to Lincoln County first in 1880 in company with
Peter Cuddeback. In 1886 he was married to Miss Nettie Harsin. Two children were
born, Frankie and Raymond. (details from 1904 History of Big Bend-p. 306)
Gray:
“This is not the story
of a homesteader nor of one of our earliest pioneers. He is yet too active to be
even thought of as a pioneer, yet he has been a resident of Wilbur for two score
years and has been in business for himself for 31 years. We refer to Mayor W
P Gray. In his younger
days he was noted for his abilities as a base ball player and his ‘umph’
behind the bat and his ‘punch’ at the plate are well remembered throughout
the country. He refused numerous offers to play the game professionally. His
first venture into business was in 1908 with a small newsstand and stationery
shop in the building now occupied by the Smart Shop.
Throughout the years he has enlarged his stock and extended his services
until he now operates the most up-to-date drug store in Lincoln County. Of
course, he has had Mrs Gray all of these years to keep him in line.
He served eight years in the state legislature, two years as
representative and six years as senator. He remains an ardent Republican and is
recognized as a party leader. He
has interested himself in more civic affairs than perhaps any other person in
the community. He has donated
liberally of his time and ability to more worthwhile causes than any other
person we might think of. Of course, there are those who disagree with him on
many things, but everyone must admit that he gets things done when he sets out
to do them. Such a man is invaluable in any community. His business ability is
recognized in the healthy condition of the town’s finances, and yet during his
administration as mayor, there have been many municipal improvements.”
(William P Gray was born in 1878 and died in 1957. Della W Gray was born
in 1873 and died in 1957. In addition to this couple, there are another 15
graves of the Gray surname in the Wilbur Cemetery.)
Greenwood: “Raphael
Greenwood was born in Three Rivers, Canada, in 1841. The father’s
ancestors were among the earliest settlers of Canada, coming from France. They
participated in the earliest wars and were in the country long before the
Arcadian exile. In 1862 Raphael
went to Illinois where he farmed until 1893 when he came to Lincoln County. In
1868 he married Miss Celina Raboin. He enlisted in Company L, First Washington
volunteers, in 1898. He was discharged from this service and immediately entered
the engineer force at Manila and served until 1903, when he was discharged on
account of sickness. Coming back to
the Big Bend country when the great depressions swept the entire United States
and when a winter of unexpected severity fell upon them, Mr Greenwood had a most
trying time, both for himself and his family. However, they were of sturdy stock
and faced their hardships cheerfully and overcame them, thus winning their way
to the best of success.” (Edit: Raphael Greenwood was born in 1841 and died in 1928;
his wife Celina was born in 1843 and died in 1913; both burials occurred in the
Creston Cemetery.)
Grinstead:
“Thomas Grinstead was scarcely out of his teens when he came to
Wilbur in 1881 and consequently his first claim was a pre-emption which he sold
and took a homestead when he became 21. He left his home in Virginia when only
17 years old and worked in Oregon about three years. He died in Wilbur a few
years ago. There were a few years that he spent at Bend, Oregon, after he sold
his farm here, but he returned and bought the residence at the west end of Main
street, known as one of the Harms houses. His widow is now Mrs Thomas White and
she still lives in that residence. Mr Grinstead was an elder in the Christian
church for many years.” (Edit:
Thomas O Grinstead was born in 1860 and died in 1934. His wife Nola was
born in 1869. Thomas was buried in Wilbur Cemetery.)
Haden:
“Dewire (Wiley)
Haden was the first of that family to come to the state of Washington,
arriving in 1891. He acquired lieu land about two miles south of here. He also
owns property in town and he and his son, Dewire Jr (Bud), commute to the farm
while operating it. Mr Haden was one of those who sold wheat for 25 cents a
bushel. He married Mrs Lewis, nee
Clara Wiseman, who came here in the 80’s with her aunt, Mrs Brown, now Mrs
James Belcher. Mrs Haden is a
worker in the Christian church, the Neighbors of Woodcraft and the Rebekah
lodge. Her brothers, the late John Wiseman and ‘Tip’ Wiseman, now of Seattle
attended school here in the latter 80’s.
In 1897 relatives of Mr Haden were attracted here, among them his
parents, the late Mr and Mrs Tom Haden; his brother, the late H E Haden and
family; and his brother-in-law and sister, Mr and Mrs J T Stonerook. With them
was the youngest Haden girl, now Mrs R Bean, of Chewelah, mother of Mrs E C
Rettkowski. Tim and John Haden and their estimable families came to this country
at a slightly later period.” (Edit:
The Wilbur Cemetery has more than 25 Haden burials. Father, Thomas Haden was
born May 15, 1835 and died March 8, 1912. Anne E Haden was born Jan 12, 1842 and
died July 25, 1913. Dewire was born in 1869 and died in 1958. His son, Wiley,
was born in 1920 and died in 1975. Brother
H E Haden was born June 24, 1859 and died June 28, 1936. Clara Wiseman Lewis
Haden was born in 1879 and died in 1952.)
Hagen:
“Mrs Nels Hagen, mother of Herman Hagen, has spent fifty-one of
her ninety years in Wilbur, having crossed the Atlantic from her native land,
Norway, to make the United States her home. Several years were spent in
Wisconsin before she came to Wilbur with her husband in 1888 to locate on a farm
northeast of town, now operated by her only son, Herman Hagen. While this has
been her home most of the five decades, when her husband retired from farming
and his trade as a carpenter, they moved to Spokane to make their home until Mr
Hagen’s death in 1916. Mrs
Hagen is 90 years old, maintains her own home and garden, and is keenly
interested in the people and affairs in Wilbur.”
(Edit: Nels Hagen was born in 1849 and died in 1927; his wife
Martha was born in 1848 and died in 1946. Their son Herman was born in 1881 and
died in 1944. These burials occurred in the Wilbur Cemetery.)
Hankel:
“Mr and Mrs Carl Hankel. One
of the most courageous pioneer mothers of this region was Mrs Carl Hankel
(deceased) who came with her husband to settle south of Wild Goose Bill’s
ranch in 1888. Her husband died in 1894 and she and her young sons carried on.
Of the family of several children surviving her, two live in this region. R H
Hankel, who has an auto freight system, and Mrs George Wagner, wife of a farmer
and prominent in local lodge and club activities.” (Edit: Carl F Hankel was
born in 1846 and died in 1894. His wife, Charlotte (nee Fryer) was born Oct 6,
1850 and died April 4, 1919. Their son, Robert H Hankel was born in 1879 and
died in 1954. These burials were in the Wilbur Cemetery.)
Hansen:
“The late H M
Hansen arrived in this region in 1889 and became a leader in the activities
of the community. He was employed
as section ‘boss’ on the Central Washington branch of the Northern Pacific,
and shortly after coming to Wilbur he began to buy wheat. He also established a
lumber yard and was in the mercantile business with Pete Lyse for some time, and
did a vast amount of real estate business in the early days. Of more recent
years he devoted his time and business ability to the establishing and
developing of a modern dairy plant that he started with two cows. The present
plant is one of the best in a town of this class in the state and its payroll
gives a living to several families. Mr Hansen married Miss Dorothea Bruhn, who
like himself, came from Denmark. Her brothers, John Bruhn and Pete Bruhn, are
well-remembered pioneers of this section. Mr and Mrs Hansen were married in
December of 1889, and may have been the first bridal couple of the town. Inquiry
failed to settle whether or not Miss Mollie Cole became the bride of Depot Agent
McCoy in 1889 or in 1890, so the honor of being the first Wilbur brides rests
between these women. Mr and Mrs
Hansen reared and educated a family of seven children including a set of twins.
Each of their children has made an outstanding citizen. Mr Hansen was also a
pillar in the Danish Lutheran church and was active in the Danish Brotherhood.
He was ever responsive to any progressive program launched by his community.”
(Edit: Hans Marius Hansen
was born in 1863 and died in 1939. Dorothea Bruhn Hansen was born in 1867 and
died in 1955. These burials and other Hansen burials occurred in the Wilbur
Cemetery.)
Harms:
“Mr and Mrs Egbert
Harms came to Wilbur in 1886 and took a homestead south of town a few miles.
Mr Harms helped to build the road connecting Wilbur with Odessa, now important
to tourists and local people alike. Many years ago Mr and Mrs Harms retired from
the farm and built the house at the west end of Main street where Mrs Harms
lives with their son Walter. Mr Harms died some time ago. They operated a
popular dairy and had a wonderful orchard and garden for many years. They had
seven daughters and two sons, but only three remain here—Mrs H E Brock, Walter
and Harris Harms. The other children are widely scattered and one lives in
Alaska.” (Edit: Egbert Harms was
born in 1860 and died in 1936; his wife, Anna was born in 1860 and died in 1941.
Walter Harms was born in 1890 and died in 1947. Harris was born in 1901 and died
in 1990. These burials and others
are in the Wilbur Cemetery.)
Harris:
“The late Phil
Harris was of a pioneer family. He came here when a young man to work as a
printer in The Register office and held that positions many years. He was gifted
as a musician and popular as an old-time fiddler. He was also a member of
Wilbur’s brass band. His widow,
who was Miss Mae Jerrad, now lives in Keller.”
Hart:
“Dell Hart was
a merchant here more than 50 years ago. He married Miss Linnie Kitching who was
the first music teacher in Wilbur, having a class in 1889. They moved to the
mining region of Okanogan county in the 90’s.”
Holmes:
“C H Holmes reached
Spokane Falls in 1888 but did not tarry long there and came at once to Wilbur.
He engaged in various enterprises, including farming, before he established his
store in 1897. He also sold real estate and insurance. He married Miss Emma
Waltman, daughter of Mr and Mrs J S Waltman, early pioneers of this community.
Mr and Mrs Holmes were parents of twelve children and the widow and eleven
children survive him. Mrs Holmes
and five sons live here, and the sons carry on the business founded by their
father. Mr Holmes was one of the cheerful pioneers. Old-timers recall that the
two or three times when fire took a heavy toll of his stock and once razed his
store building that he went immediately about setting up again, never once
showing discouragement nor self pity. Mrs Holmes is prominent in church and WCTU
work. Her brother, George Waltman, makes his home with her.”
Hopkins:
“Frank A Hopkins,
father of the well-known Sherman farmer, Bill Hopkins, was a printer until he
left Nebraska for Washington Territory in 1877. Mr Hopkins was a freighter of
military supplies from Walla Walla through the Bannock and Nez Pearce Indian
war. In 1878 he took a pre-emption in the Palouse region and in 1880 came to the
Sherman district to settle on a homestead in that fertile spot. Within a few
years he had not only improved his homestead but had bought many hundred
additional acres.”
Hoss:
“Mr and Mrs John
Hoss, parents of Mrs A E Diedesch, came here in 1883, having been attracted
to the Big Bend through information given them by Mrs Hoss’s brother, Nick Ney,
a prior homesteader. In 1900 they retired to made their home in Spokane. Mr Hoss
died in 1910 and Mrs Hoss in 1927. Their daughter lives in a modern home near
Wilbur, and Frank Hall resides on the original Hoss homestead. Mr Hoss and his
neighbor, Samuel C Rinker, bought perhaps the first threshing outfit to operate
in this vicinity.”
Houston:
“Walter Houston
and his brother, Thorne Houston, with their widowed mother came from
Virginia to the Sherman region in 1885. The mother later married another
pioneer, James Galloway. The boys took homesteads as soon as they were old
enough and both prospered. Walter Houston’s home, a short distance east of
Sherman, is one of the nicest farm residences of west Lincoln County.
He died a few years ago and his widow still lives on the farm and her son
Robert operates the land for her. She is a leader in her church and active in
her club work. Their other children in this region are Mrs Rudolph Geib, Mrs
Alex McKay, Almira; Mrs Clemmens Geib, Mrs Emmett Phillips, Harrington.
Another daughter, Mrs R O Hall, lives at Pasco and the other daughter,
Mrs George Gebo, is a resident of Walla Walla. Thorne Houston did not marry. He
lives at Opportunity.”
Howell:
“W W (Whit) Howell,
a Kentuckian by birth, was one to cross the plains by ox team in 1863 to Oregon.
That was his home until 1872 when he returned to his former home in Illinois. In
1886 he came to Washington Territory and homesteaded five miles southeast of the
Wild Goose Bill ranch. His wife died in 1888 and he reared their three children.
He and his tow sons, Orlando and Vilasco, all excellent wheat farmers, are now
decesased. The daughter, Mrs Irwin Parker, lives on the coast.”
Hubler:
“Urged by a pioneering
spirit, Henry J Hubler came to Washington Territory from his native state
of Ohio in 1888. He first came to Davenport where friends already resided and
took up his newspaper work on the Davenport paper. From there he went to Sprague
to work on the Sprague Herald in that bustling Northern Pacific division point.
Desirous of starting a paper of his own he came to Wilbur where the imminence of
the arrival of the railroad was causing a great boom and a demand among the
townsfolk for a newspaper. Finding that others had the same idea he came to an
agreement with H L Frost and H J Hubler & Co was formed to publish The
Register. The Sprague Herald of March 7, 1889 says of the move: ‘Harry J
Hubler, who has been connected with the Herald for the past six months, during
which time he ahs acceptably filled every branch of the business, will sever his
connections with the Herald tomorrow to establish the Register in Wilbur, in the
northwestern part of the county, in partnership with H L Frost. The Herald hates
to lose Mr Hubler’s services. We bespeak for him the generous treatment at the
hands of his Wilbur constituency.’ In
July of the same year he sold his interest in the Register and moved to Almira
and Coulee City where he began the publication of papers for those communities.
It was during this time that he met and married Miss Jessie Huson, daughter of C
E Huson, Northern Pacific Land Agent who had charge of the sale of lots in the
new townsites. Soon after his
marriage he moved to South Bend, Wash., where he was instrumental in starting
the South Bend Journal. He was also connected with a
paper in Ilwaco. Still
imbued with that urge of adventure that seems always to have been with him, he
went to Alaska on a windjammer with a cargo of lumber, lured by a ten dollar a
day wage which was a most fabulous inducement in those times of low wages. Forsaking the newspaper field he had much to do with the
infant oyster industry in and about Willapa Harbor and then he entered politics
in Pacific County. Changing from
the treasurer’s office to the auditor’s, etc for several terms. In 1910 he
returned to Almira and soon took up a homestead near the mouth of Spring Canyon.
He remained here for about ten years then returned to the coast and his old home
at South Bend where he died in 1924. Mr Hubler’s daughter, Mrs P T Garber is
now a resident of Wilbur and Mr Garber is employed by the Register.”
Hudkins:
“Mr and Mrs Walker
Hudkins came from Illinois to Oregon in 1885 and from Oregon to the Sherman
community in 1887. After renting land a short time he took a pre-emption and
became at once a representative Big Bender. He soon bought a half section near
his pre-emption on which stand the historical, long-since depopulated village of
Brents. It was in 1903 that he and his wife decided to retire and bought
property in Spokane. They have been dead several years.
Floyd Hudkins, Sr, and his wife came here in 1898. He went into
debt for his first half section of land but the
first year produced enough wheat to pay the full price of $2,875. In
about 1904 Mr and Mrs Hudkins invested in several pieces of property in Wilbur
and retired from farming. They built the bungalow that is now the property of Mr
and Mrs C A Aten, and also built the large house now occupied by their daughter,
Mrs Elmer Jones. One of their sons, Charles, now of Salem, Oregon, was
cashier at Wilbur State Bank many years. The eldest son, Frank A, of
Wilbur has served as county commissioner. Another son, Bert, was with the
Farmers State Bank here several years before he took up farming. He is now in
the Spokane Valley. The youngest son, Dan, is a prosperous farmer near Reardan.
Harry, their fifth son, was a farmer, and is now deceased. Mr and Mrs Hudkins
have both passed away. Mr Hudkins was deprived of his sight for several years
but he managed to keep well posted and was keenly interested in national and
local evens all his life.” (Edit:
Floyd Hudkins was born in 1848 and died in 1934; His wife Margaret M Hudkins was
born in 1854 and died in 1925. Charles R Hudkins was born in 1881 and died in
1964; and Harry H Hudkins was born in 1887 and died in 1916. These burials
occurred in the Wilbur Cemetery. D Floyd Hudkins, son of Daniel Walker Hudkins,
died Oct 19, 2002, with burial in Riverside Memorial Cemetery in Spokane.
Alice Hudkins married Elmer E Jones on Oct 14, 1908.)
==================================================================
Wilbur Golden Jubilee Biographies, Wilbur, Lincoln Co., Washington,
submitted to the WAGenWeb by Marge Womach, April 21, 2008.
==================================================================
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