K. S. RAMSETT, junior member of the firm of Peterson & Ramsett, well-known merchants of Fingal, Barnes county, is a man of more than ordinary prominence in the business work and is deservedly popular among his fellow citizens. He first saw the light of day on a farm near Madison, Dane county, Wisconsin, April 29, 1854, and is a son of Sever K. and Britha (Johnson) Ramsett, both natives of Norway. At an early day the father crossed the Atlantic and took up his residence in Wisconsin, where he has followed the occupation of farming with good success for many years. He now makes his home in Vernon county, that state. The wife and mother died in 1874. In their family were eight children, our subject being the second in order of birth.

During his childhood Mr. Ramsett, of this sketch, accompanied his parents on their removal to Vernon county, Wisconsin, where his primary education was secured in the district schools. He then entered the Viroqua high school and after graduation from that institution was a student in the State University of Wisconsin for one year. He then came west and worked for the Great Northern Railroad Company in the Red river country for a short time. Returning to St. Paul, Minnesota, he entered the Curtis Commercial College, where he completed his education in 1882. The same year he same to Bismarck, North Dakota, and secured a position as clerk with the firm of Yerxa & Emerson, grocery merchants at that place, with whom he remained for two years. He then moved a short distance north of Bismarck and in partnership with his brother, Edward, under the firm name of Ramsett Brothers, opened a store at Washburn, where on a small scale they engaged in the mercantile business until 1892,since which time our subject has been a resident of Fingal and carried on his present business, first as a member of the firm of Peterson & Ramsett and on January i, 1900, Mr. Ramsett became the sole proprietor. He has a large and well-selected stock of general merchandise-one of the largest in the county-and by fair and honorable dealing has built up an excellent trade, which is constantly increasing. In 1897 Mr. Ramsett purchased one-half of the town site of Fingal from the Soo Railroad Company.

Mr. Ramsett was married, in Washburn, North Dakota, in 1888, to Miss Bertha M. Cumberland, a native of Pennsylvania, born in 1860, and they have one child, Maurice L. Politically, he is an ardent Republican and socially is quite a prominent member of the Masonic order, the Ancient Order of United Workmen and American Yeomen. He started out in life with nothing but his own indomitable energy and his accumulation of this world's goods is attributable to his perseverance, industry and sound judgment in business affairs. Through his persistent efforts he succeeded in getting enough money to complete his education and the same energy and perseverance have marked his entire business career, enabling him to overcome all the difficulties and obstacles in the path to success. He is well known. among his fellow townsmen for his reliability in all trade transactions and justly merits their confidence and regard.

HERBERT ROOT, deceased, was for almost twenty years prominently identified with the interests of Valley City, Barnes County. North Dakota, as one of its leading attorneys and business men.

He early learned that knowledge is the key with which the poor boy could open the store house of the world and cull its choicest fruits. The result is he became one of the most successful men of this city, and essentially the architect of his own fortune.  Mr. Root was born on a farm in county Holdimond, Ontario, Canada, August 12, 1848, a son of Isaac and Sarah (Dobie) Root, also natives of Canada. He was a direct descendant of Henry Rott, of Pennsylvania, the name having been changed in his father's time. Isaac Root was born in Lincoln County, Ontario, in 1808, followed the occupation of a farmer throughout life, and died in 1891. The mother of our subject, who was born in 1811, departed this life in 1858, and two years later the father married Calista Barrett, who still survives him and resides in Canada.

The early education of Herbert Root was acquired in the district schools of his native province.  Coming to the United States at the age of twelve years, he located at Quincy, Illinois, and accepted a position as clerk with his uncle, Henry Root, then conducting one of the largest dry goods stores in that city. Our subject remained in his employ until 1869, when he entered the Methodist Episcopal College at Quincy, where he pursued a general course of study for one year. The following year he engaged in teaching a country school near Racine, Wisconsin, and in 1870 became a student at Racine College, where he took the classical course and graduated with high honors in 1872, standing at the head of his class and receiving the degrees of A. B. and A. M.. He also won five gold medals at that school.  It was by his own unaided efforts that he secured his collegiate education. He was next a student at the Nashotah Theological Seminary of Waukesha County. Wisconsin, and from that institution he was graduated in August. 1874.

Mr. Root was then ordained a deacon in the Episcopal church of St. Peter and St. Paul, Washington boulevard and Peoria street, Chicago, and as such was in charge of Grace church at Sterling, Illinois, for a time. He was next sent to Milwaukee.  Wisconsin, where he was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Wells, and subsequently became assistant to Dr. John Fulton, dean of the Cathedral at Indianapolis, Indiana, where he remained a year.   He was then rector at Grace church, Muncie, Indiana, until March, 1877, when he came west and for three years was rector of St. Paul's church at Brainard, Minnesota.

In March, 1880, Mr. Root became a resident of Valley City, North Dakota. His first venture here was in the private banking business, but in 1881 he assisted in organizing the First National Bank, of which he was cashier until January, 1882, when he resigned and organized the Farmers & Merchants Bank. He was president of that corporation until it went into voluntary liquidation in 1890, paying one hundred cents on the dollar. He then successfully engaged in farming and the practice of law, and while he maintained an office in the city, his home was in the country north of the place. He was prominent in business circles and occupied an enviable position in the esteem of his fellow citizens.  On the 13th of March, 1875, Mr. Root was united in marriage with Miss Harriet C. Warner, of Racine, Wisconsin, daughter of Eli W. and Hannah Warner. Her parents were from Hartford, Connecticut, and were among the early settlers of Racine county, Wisconsin.

Mr. Root died January 5, 1900, at St. Luke's hospital, St. Paul, Minnesota, whither he had gone, accompanied by his wife, for medical advice. His death was due to disease of the heart, and was a terrible shock to a large circle of friends. His best obituary is found in the general epistle of St. James, first chapter, twenty-seventh verse. His mortal part lies in Mound cemetery, Racine, Wisconsin.

FRANK SANFORD. Barnes County's well-known and popular register of deeds has an interesting record, and from the study of his life history one can learn valuable lessons. The spirit of self-help is the source of all genuine worth in the individual and is the means of bringing to man success which has no advantages of wealth or influence to aid him. It illustrates in no uncertain manner what it is possible to accomplish when perseverance and determination form the keynote to a man's life.  Depending on his own resources, looking for no outside aid or support, Mr. Sanford has become one of the most prosperous and influential citizens of Valley City.

He was born in Liberty township, Jackson County, Michigan, September 25, 1860, a son of James P. and Cornelia (Nutten) Sanford. The mother, who was a native of Pan Yan, New York, died in Michigan, at the early age of thirty-two years, and for his second wife the father married Alice McCormick, of Rochester, New York. He was born in the Empire state in 1830, but since a boy of four years has made his home in Michigan, and is now living on the farm which his father, Abraham Sanford, took up from the government. The latter removed to that state when it was still a territory, and helped construct the old state road from Detroit to Chicago. He died in Jackson County, Michigan, in 1880, at the age of seventy-seven years and five months.

Frank Sanford attended the district schools near his boyhood home and later was a student in the high school at Hillsdale, Michigan. On leaving that institution he went to Logansport, Indiana, where he took a course of study in higher mathematics at the Smithson College and remained there until the school was abandoned. On his return to Michigan he taught school for a number of terms in that state and also for one term at Momence, Kankakee County, Illinois.

On the 18th of March, 1882, Mr. Sanford first set foot in Valley City, North Dakota, and at once located land on section 20, township 142, range 59 west, as a homestead. He also took up a tree claim and pre-empted other land. Industrious, enterprising and persevering, he has met with well deserved success during his residence in this state, and is now the owner of a two and three-quarter sections of land in one body, while his wife has a section of very fine land in Griggs county, North Dakota. He was first married, November 20, 1879, to Miss Esther Rhoades a native of Jackson County, Michigan, who died on the homestead in Barnes County, North Dakota, June 26, 1882, and on the 13th of October, 1886, he led to the marriage altar Miss Helen S. Kingsley, a native of New York state.

Mr. Sanford has always taken an active part in political affairs and is a stanch supporter of the Independent party. He has represented his district on the board of county commissioners, being elected in 1891, and in 1894 was first elected register of deeds, in which office he is now serving his third term with credit to himself and to the entire satisfaction of all concerned. He is a prominent Mason, a member of the Mystic Shrine which meets at El Zagal temple, Fargo. For the success that he has achieved in life he deserves great credit, for it is due entirely to his own well-directed efforts and good management. During his early residence in this state he would return to Michigan during the winter and teach school in order to defray the expenses of improving his land.

DANIEL F. SIEGFRIED,  is a well-known and popular druggist of Sanborn, North Dakota, whose patronage comes from a territory many miles in extent. The business policy he has maintained has brought him prosperity. He is methodical and systematic and the plans which he has pursued commend themselves to the judgment and respect of all.

Mr. Siegfried was born in the village of Catasauqua, Lehigh county, Pennsylvania, November 31, 1844, and is a worthy representative of one of the oldest and most honored families of that state. The first of the name to come to America was a native of Switzerland. He braved the early dangers of an ocean voyage in 1643 and settled in the Lehigh valley. Our subject's great-grandfather, John Siegfried, served with distinction as a colonel in the Revolutionary war and had charge of the supply train which carried provisions to the troops at Valley Forge. Daniel M. Siegfried, father of our subject, was born in Pennsylvania in 1822, and is still living, his home being in Warren county, that state. By trade he is a cabinetmaker. The mother, whose maiden name was Violette Peters, died when our subject was but two years old. She was descended from Mayflower stock.

During his childhood Daniel F. Siegfried accompanied the family on their removal to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and was a student in the schools of that place until 1861, when he joined the boys in blue as a member of Company C, Forty-fifth Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, which was assigned to the Army of the Potomac. During the early part of his service he took part in all the important battles in which that command was engaged, but after the battle of Gettysburg was transferred to the Army of the Cumberland, with which he remained until honorably discharged at Washington, D. C, in 1865. After a short visit at home Mr. Siegfried entered Crittenden Commercial College at Philadelphia, and later attended LaFayette College at Easton, Pennsylvania. On the completion of his education he engaged in the oil business, traveling through the oil districts of Pennsylvania for a number of years. In 1881 he decided to try his fortune in the west and accordingly came to Barnes county. North Dakota. The following spring he opened a drug store in Sanborn and has since engaged in business there with flattering success.

In the fall of 1869, in Greenville, Mercer county, Pennsylvania, Mr. Siegfried was united in marriage with Miss Mary J. Kamerer, a native of that state, and a daughter of Daniel Kamerer, who was a farmer by occupation and a direct descendant of one of the passengers of the Mayflower who landed on the shores of this country in 1620. Our subject and his wife have two sons: Harry E., who completed his education in the State Normal at Valley City, and William A., who was a student in the schools of Fargo.

For many years Mr. Siegfried was a supporter of the Republican party, but at present is a Populist and was an elector of the state of North Dakota for that party in 1896, when William J. Bryan was nominated for the presidency. He is a Scottish Rite Mason and a member of the Blue lodge of Sanborn. His genial, pleasant manner has made him quite popular in both business and social circles, and as a public-spirited, enterprising man he is recognized as a valued citizen of the community.

JOHN SIMONS. There are in every community men of great force of character and exceptional ability, who by reason of their capacity for leadership become recognized as foremost citizens, and bear a most important part in the development and progress of the locality with which they are connected. Such a man is Mr. Simons, who is prominently identified with the business interests of Valley City, and is also serving as chairman of the North Dakota Railway Commission.

He was born in Walworth county, Wisconsin, April 27, 1858, a son of Simon O. and Line Olive Simons, both natives of Norway. The father was born in 1816 and died in Wisconsin in 1861. but the mother is still living and finds a pleasant home with our subject. When a child of six years he accompanied the family on their removal to Dakota county, Minnesota, where he grew to manhood upon a farm. During his youth he clerked in a store for a time.

In 1878 Mr. Simons came to Fargo, North Dakota, and the following year took up his residence in Valley City, where he at once embarked in the farm machinery business. Here he has since continued to carry on operations with the exception of four years spent in Superior, Wisconsin, to which place he removed in 1890. There he engaged in the hardware business, and in 1892 and 1893 served as chief of police in that city, having at times forty or fifty officers under him. He creditably filled that position during the most stirring times in the history of that place. In December, 1893, he returned to Valley City and resumed his former business, in which he has met with marked success.

In 1885 Mr. Simons led to the marriage altar Miss Annie Omnes, of Minnesota, and they now have four children, Elsie, Walter H., Cora and Norman, all born in Valley City.

Mr. Simons has been honored with a number of public positions of trust and responsibility. He served as sheriff of Barnes county from 1884 until 1890, and held the office of United States deputy marshal here in early days. He has been a member of the penitentiary committee for one term, and in 1898 was elected to his present office, that of chairman of the railway committee, which he is now filling in a most commendable and satisfactory manner.

MARTIN SOMDAHL, one of the self-made men and a leading furniture dealer of Valley City, North Dakota, first saw the light of day in the village of Honefoss, Norway, April 25, 1853. and there he attended school until twelve years of age, at the same time acting as messenger boy for Dr. Shjong, one of the foremost physicians of Norway, whose country seat was near Honefoss. Later our subject clerked in a general store and then worked with his step-father at the mason's trade. In the fall of 1869 he commenced painting and followed that pursuit for one year, after which he was in the employ of the Humbledahl & Ringercket Stage Line for a year. In 1870 Mr. Somdahl drifted to Christiania, the chief city of Norway, where he drove a cab for one year, and then accepted a position as driver with the leading liveryman of that place, remaining with him for three years. The following year he was in the employ of the German consul at Christiania, and then went as second waiter on the steamship Olof Kyrre, making two trips to Dronthaim and one to Bergen, after which the boat was laid up. After a short time spent in idleness he secured the position of head waiter on the steamer King Sverre, and the following five years were spent upon steamers. For a short time he was a waiter in the Victoria Hotel, one of the finest on the continent, and next secured a position on the boat King Sigvurd, which plied between Hamburg and Havre. During the winter of 1882 he was head waiter in the St. Olof Club, at Drammen, and from there went to Gottenberg, Sweden, where he worked as waiter for the Thrurgaard Society for a time. On his return to Christiania he was engaged in the cafe business for a short season.

On the 29th of May, 1883, Mr. Somdahl wedded Miss Mary Ajuldlin, a native of Christiania, and on their wedding trip they went to Gottenberg, Sweden, returning to Norway in the fall of that year. For three months he was again engaged in the cafe business at 26-B,Princess street, Christiania, and the following two years was head waiter at Victoria Hotel, Christiania.

On the 16th of April, 1885, Mr. Somdahl and his family sailed for New York, and on landing in this country proceeded at once to Valley City, North Dakota. Here he first engaged in farming and carpentering and in the fall of 1886 became clerk in the general store of Parkhouse & Sales, where his knowledge of the German language was called into service. He remained with that firm for seven years and then embarked in his present business as a furniture dealer. To his own unaided efforts and excellent management may be attributed his success in life for he started out for himself in limited circumstances. Socially, he is a member of the Knights of Pythias, the Ancient Order of United Workmen and the Knights of the Maccabees.

THOMAS SMITH, a gentleman, although young in years, is one of the most energetic and enterprising agriculturists of Hobart township, Barnes county, where he operates a good farm on section 27. He is a native of Scotland, born in Glasgow, December 25, 1871, and has inherited many of the admirable characteristics of that brave and sturdy race. His father, James Smith, was also a native of that country, where he spent almost his entire life, for he died soon after his emigration to the United States, passing away in Barnes county, North Dakota, in 1883, at the age of forty-four years. His business was that of a grain merchant. The wife and mother, whose maiden name was Margaret Mclntyre, is still living and makes her home in Valley City.

Our subject lived in his native city until 1883, when he crossed the Atlantic and became a resident of Barnes county. North Dakota. He completed his education in the schools of Valley City, which he attended until seventeen years of age. In the spring of 1890 he accepted a position with the surveying corps of the Soo Railroad and worked on the construction of the main line in North Dakota and Canada. Later he was made a fireman on the road and held that position for two years and in the same capacity was with the Northern Pacific Railroad Company from 1895 to 1897, running between Jamestown and Fargo. He resigned that position to take charge of his mother's farm in Hobart township, which he has since successfully operated. As he is unmarried, his sister Mary acts a housekeeper for him.

Mr. Smith is one of the most popular and highly respected young men of his community and is an honored member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He held the rank of sergeant in the Valley City Guard, North Dakota State Militia, and was a member of that organization for nine years. He also served as game warden for two years during the administration of Ely D. Shortage.