Part 11 (1/2)

WILLIAM AMERY was born in London, England, in 1831 He learned the carpenter's trade in London and ca at first in Stillwater, but the ensuing year re to St Croix Falls

He pre-empted the southeast quarter of the southwest quarter of section 31, townshi+p 34, range 18, and adjoining lands in 1853, and this has been his continuous home since He has served as county treasurer four years and held many town offices He was married to Sarah Hackett in 1855 The town of Amery is named in honor of this respecteda o sons and three daughters

LEWIS BARLOW--Arants to St Croix Falls was Lewis Barlow, an eccentric, sensitiveof an unhappy disposition, led a troubled life He was the first man married at the Falls In 1847 he moved to the Minnesota side, where he owned considerable land He lived here until 1852 when his family left him He sold his interests and followed and reunited them at Rock Island, Illinois Here he suffered much and became blind He traveled with a panorama and so earned a scanty livelihood In later life he revisited his old home at the Falls, but broken and dejected in spirit He died at Rock Island in 1872

LEVI W STRATTON--Mr Stratton was one of the passengers of the Palmyra in 1838 He worked for the St Croix Coed his residence several times, and finally settled at Excelsior, Hennepin county, Minnesota, where he died in 1884 Mr Stratton wrote for the Minneapolis papersreminiscences of pioneer life on the St Croix

ELMA M BLANDING--Mr Blanding was born in Harford, Susquehanna county, New York, Feb 14, 1800 He was married to Eliza Tuttle in 1826 He settled on a farm near St Croix Falls in 1856, where he died, Sept 16, 1871 Father Blanding, as he was affectionately called in the later years of his life, was a ious convictions, and a consistent member of the Presbyterian church He left a , five sons and three daughters

Mrs Eliza Blanding died Jan 18, 1887 W, the oldest son, owns a fine farm near the Falls, formerly known as ”Jerusalem”

He is a surveyor, lumberman and farmer, and a prominent citizen He was rown up around him In 1887 he was appointed receiver in the St Croix land office John, the second son, is also a farhter of Edward and Mary C Worth Eugene E

is engaged in the drug business at Taylors Falls, and is also surveyor and express agent He , of Taylors Falls, in 1871

Fred, the fourth son, was married in 1885 to Emma Sly He was appointed United States land receiver at St Croix Falls in 1887 He died in California, Jan 30, 1888 Frank, the youngest son, was married to Annie McCourt, and lives on the hohter, is the wife of Wfellow, and resides in Machias, Maine Flavilla, theof Charles B Whiting, lives at St Paul, Minnesota Her husband died in 1868 Mrs Whiting was executrix of the will of Dr E D Whiting, and successfully controlled a property valued at about 80,000 Mary, wife of Wm

McCourt, died in 1880

[Illustration: WILLIAM M BLANDING]

FREDERICK K BARTLETT was a native of New England He caent for Caleb Cushi+ng He was candidate for judge of the district court in 1850, but was defeated He subsequently settled in Stillwater, and later in Hudson, where he died in 1857, leaving a wife and one son, who becahter, Helen, who achieved some reputation as a writer for periodicals

MICHAEL FIELD was born June 8, 1806 He ca resided in Connecticut In early life he reed principally in transportation business The earliest work he ever did was on the Erie canal He was married in 1833 to Miss Reynolds, who died in 1874 His children are Capt Silas Wright Field (mortally wounded at shi+loh), Norton, a resident of Racine, Wisconsin, Mrs fanny Nason, wife of Hon Joel F Nason, Phebe and Mary, unmarried and resident in Brooklyn Mr Field was married to his second wife, Mrs Harriet Lee Bracken, in 1882 He was appointed register of the land office at St Croix Falls by President Lincoln in 1861, and served twenty-six years Though over eighty years of age he retains his faculties and general health, and his mind is a store house of the early history of the country

ALDEN

The town of Alden ee 17, and twenty-four sections of range 18 It has both prairie and timber land, and is abundantly supplied ater Apple river traverses it from northeast to southwest There are e nuest This lies only partially in Alden The surface is gently undulating

The town of Alden was organized in 1857 The first board of supervisors were Stephen Williams, William Folsoon Landing in 1862, V M

Babcock, postmaster The first settlers were Wman, Charles Vassau, Jr, and Hue was C Vassau to Alma Kittel, in 1858, by Rev A

Burton Peabody The first white child born in Alden was P B Peabody, July 28, 1856 The first death was that of a child, Nicholas W

Gordon, June 10, 1857 Alden has two post towns, Little Falls and Alden

REV A BURTON PEABODY was born May 22, 1823, in Andover, Windsor county, Verest of four e, and lish education in the common schools, and at Chester and Black River acade In 1844 he came to Janesville, Wisconsin, where he spent two years, partly on a farm and partly in a law office, as a student and clerk In 1847 he went to Iowa county, and taught school through the winter at Mineral Point The next year he went to Clarence, Green county, Wisconsin, where he spent four years in teaching In 1852 he entered the Nashotah Theological Seminary, where he completed the course, and was ordained deacon in the Protestant Episcopal church, June 3, 1855, by the Rev Bishop Kean He was married to Charity Esther Kittel, Sept 22, 1855, at Clarence, by the Rev Wer In Nove the winter at Jackson

In February he went to Middleton, Mississippi, to take charge of aseveral appoint, to Polk county, Wisconsin, and spent the su, on Apple river, where his wife's friends had made a settlement, but in the winter returned to his mission work in the South, and there re to the troubled political condition of the South, he did not deem it advisable to re and obtainedat intervals Foster's Mills, no Richton, Cedar Valley, and St Croix Falls The intervening country was, ed to make his journeys not infrequently on foot, to cross the swollen streams and dare all the perils of the winter storm In 1859 Mr Peabody accepted a call to the rectorshi+p of St Paul's church, Plyan county, but in 1862 returned to the valley of the St Croix, and settled on a far meanwhile ministerial work at Prescott and other points, in a line extending as far north as St

Croix Falls Three years later Prescott and River Falls were e In 1879 Mr Peabody undertook additional work on the North Wisconsin railroad, including a large number of places, to be visited monthly In 1882 his railroad as lie, as rector, of Star Prairie and Wagon Landing Few men have ledHe has witnessed the erection of eight churches on the field in which he labored, though concerned directly in the building of only four Mr Peabody's fahters One of the latter died in infancy

V M BABcock settled at Wagon Landing, town of Alden, in 1856 He was born in Rensselaer county, New York; married his first wife in New York and his second wife at Somerset, St Croix county, Wisconsin

They have four children He has held town offices ever since the organization of the town He has been sheriff, and was county superintendent of schools for seven years

APPLE RIVER

The town of Apple River includes townshi+p 34, range 16, and derives its name from its principal river The town is atered by Apple river and its tributaries, and it also has numerous lakes, the most considerable of which is White Ash lake The surface of the town is gently undulating, and was originally covered with pine, interspersed with hardwood groves There is good wheat soil, and natural anized Jan 22, 1876, having been set off from Balsam Lake There are two post offices, Apple River on the west, and shi+loh on the east town line

BALSAM LAKE

The town of Balsae 17, and takes its na surface, covered with heavy oak, pine, and maple timber principally Balsah it in a southerly direction, affording fine water powers About one-sixth of the surface is covered with lakes The largest of these, Balsareen place, gives na, Wild Goose, and Mud lakes are fine bodies of water with bold, timbered shores, and abundance of fish The town is near the geographical centre of the county The first white anization of the town, to locate within its present bounds was a disreputable trader named Miller, who in 1848 built a shanty on Balsam lake, from which he dispensed whisky to the Indians Thisafterward driven out of the country (See history of St