North Dakota History and People
S. J. Clarke Publishing Company Chicago, Ill. 1917

WILLIAM H. ALEXANDER, city auditor of Grand Forks, was born at Wanstead, Ontario.  February 7, 1874. His father, Thomas Alexander, also a native of Ontario, was descended from a Canadian family of Scotch-Irish origin. Frank Alexander, the grandfather, became the founder of the family in Canada, where he took up his abode about 1830. His son, Thomas Alexander, was a farmer by occupation and became a pioneer settler of North Dakota, taking up his abode at Grand Forks in March 1877. A week later, however, he went to Minto, where he took up a tree claim and thereon resided until 1883. when he passed away. The family endured many hardships incident to life on the frontier and experienced all the difficulties and privations of pioneer life. They had to use their cows for plowing and other farm work, as they had no money with which to buy horses. After a year the father secured an ox team, which was a valuable asset in the farm work. During the first year five acres of the land was broken, on which was raised forty-live bushels of wheat to the acre, and for this he was paid a dollar and thirty-three cents per bushel. The first home of the family was a little sod house on the bank of the Forest river and within the present corporation limits of Minto. The father died when but thirty-nine years of age.  His wife, who bore the maiden name of Mary Carson, is a native of London, Ontario, and a daughter of Andrew Carson, one of the old-time settlers of North Dakota who for fifty years was connected with the Grand Trunk Railway Company, acting as foreman in road building. He lived to the notable old age of ninety-three years and passed away at Sarnia, Ontario. His daughter, Mrs. Alexander, survives and makes her home at St. Paul, Minnesota.

William H. Alexander, the eldest of her nine children, spent two winter seasons in attending district schools in Walsh county, North Dakota, walking a distance of three miles.  When but nine years of age he began to earn his own living, being first employed in the printing office of the Minto Journal. There he learned the printer’s trade and when sixteen years of age he had the opportunity to attend school for another year. He continued to engage in the printing business as a journeyman until 1906. when he became one of the founders of the Evening Times of Grand Forks. He was chosen for the position of secretary and circulation manager and was thus connected with the Times until its discontinuance six months later. Previously he had been connected with the Courier of Buffalo, New York, from 1894 until 1904, the company doing a large share of the printing in that city.  In the latter year he returned to Grand Forks, where he secured employment with the G. F.  Ice Company as general manager, and it was subsequent to this that he became one of the promoters of the Grand Forks Times. In 1908 and 1909 he filled the position of city auditor and was then made deputy county treasurer, which position he occupied until 1914. In the latter year he was reappointed city auditor and has since occupied that position. He has made an excellent record in public office by his fidelity and capability and Grand Forks recognizes in him one of its substantial and valued citizens.

At Buffalo, New York, on the 2nd of October 1899, Mr. Alexander was married to Miss Edith Rice McLean, a native of that city and a daughter of the late Rev. McLean. Mr. and Mrs. Alexander hold membership in the Episcopal church and he also belongs to the various Masonic bodies, having attained the Knights Templar degree in the York Rite. He is also identified with the Mystic Shrine and the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. The Commercial Club of Grand Forks finds in him a worthy representative and one who is deeply interested in the accomplishment of its purposes. In politics he is an active, earnest republican and since 1914 has been secretary of the republican central committee of Grand Forks county, to which position he was reelected in the summer of 1916. Mr. Alexander is indeed a self-made man and is as well self-educated. His opportunities in youth were extremely limited and from the age of nine years he has never had a chance to attend school save when he provided for his own expenses. His boyhood was a period of earnest, unremitting toil and his entire life has been an active one in which persistency of purpose has brought its reward.

HANS ANDERSON, filling the position of county auditor of Grand Forks county, was born in Fayette county, Iowa, July 2, 1867, a son of Thron and Martha (Buraas) Anderson, both of whom were natives of Norway. The father came to the United States in 1852 and established his home among the pioneer settlers of Fayette county, Iowa. There he took up the occupation of farming, which he successfully followed for many years, but is now living retired at the age of eighty-six years, his birth having occurred in 1830. He makes his home with his son, and is still hale and hearty. His wife came to the United States about 1862, and she, too, settled in Fayette county, Iowa, where she became the wife of Thron Anderson. She died on the old homestead farm in Fayette county, in 1898, at the age of sixty-eight years. By her marriage she became the mother of six children, two of whom are now deceased. Hans Anderson was the third in order of birth. The others are: Martin Johnson, a resident of Grand Forks; Andrew, living on the old homestead in Iowa; and Mrs. T. H. Bakke, of Grand Forks.

Hans Anderson is indebted to the public school system of Iowa for the educational opportunities which he received. His early life to the age of eighteen years was spent upon the home farm, and he soon became familiar with the duties and labors incident to the development of the fields. In 1885, however, he left the parental roof and came to North Dakota, settling in Fairfield township, Grand Forks county, where he took up the occupation of farming on his own account, devoting ten years to that task. He next entered the grain and elevator business, in which he engaged at Reynolds and at Thompson, Grand Forks county, for ten years. In 1894 he was elected commissioner of the first district on the democratic ticket and filled that office for three terms. He was appointed county auditor following the death of William Ackerman, who had been the incumbent in the office, and on the completion of the unexpired term, which he filled out, he was elected to that position and is now a candidate for reelection without opposition, this being the only case of the kind in the state. The fact that the opposing party has put no candidate in the field indicates most dearly and indisputably his fidelity, ability and trustworthiness. He has always given his political allegiance to the democratic party and is a strong supporter of the cause.

On the 7th of July 1887, Mr. Anderson was united in marriage at Grand Forks to Miss Bella Bakke, a native of Clayton county, Iowa, and a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Hans Bakke, who were pioneer settlers of that state, but have now passed away. To Mr. and Mrs.  Anderson have been born three daughters: Martha and Tilda, at home; and Mrs. Fred Fingarson, of Cummings, North Dakota.

The parents are members of the Lutheran church and Mr. Anderson holds membership with the Sons of Norway, the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, the Knights of Pythias and the Modern Woodmen of America. He is also a member of the Commercial Club and is much interested in its various projects for promoting the general welfare. His residence in North Dakota covers a period of more than three decades, and when he arrived in Thompson his cash capital consisted of but three dollars. Whatever success he has since achieved or enjoyed is attributable entirely to his own efforts, and he has gained not only a comfortable competency but also the high regard and goodwill of his fellowmen.

DAVID PROYER BATES, who is engaged in law practice in Larimore, was born in Polk county, Minnesota, March 21, 1884, and his birthplace was a little log cabin on the farm of his father, David Bates, four miles from Grand Forks. The father, a native of England, came with his wife to the new world about 1880 and first settled at Halifax, Canada, while later they became residents of Winnipeg. In the winter of 1883 they drove in a wagon from Winnipeg to a point near Fergus in quest of land and at length Mr. Bates located a homestead in Logan Center township, Grand Forks county. However, he had in the meantime resided for a brief period in Minnesota, where occurred the birth of his son, David Proyer. After securing his homestead Mr. Bates engaged in farming thereon until the fall of 1886, when through misfortune caused by fire he lost everything. He then removed to Larimore with his family and resided in that place until 1906, when he began farming in Grace township, Grand Forks county, where he still makes his home. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Harriet Oliver, is a native of England, and by their marriage they became the parents of two children, who are yet living, the younger being William Parnell, now a student in the State University of Grand Forks.

David P. Bates acquired his education in the public and high schools of Larimore, being there graduated with the class of 1903. He next entered the State University for the study of law and on the completion of the regular course was graduated in 1907 with the LL. B. degree. His life up to that point had been spent upon the home farm but following his graduation he entered upon the practice of law at McClusky and since 1911 he has lived continuously in Larimore. Here he is now active in the general practice of law and has obtained a very satisfactory clientage that connects him with much of the important litigation tried in the courts of his district. He prepares his cases with great thoroughness and presents his cause with strength, his deductions being at all times most logical.

In his political views Mr. Bates is an earnest republican and since 1913 he has occupied the position of city attorney, which he is now filling for the second term. His religious faith is that of the Episcopal church, while in his fraternal relations be is a Mason, having been initiated into the order at McClusky. He belongs to the Commercial Club and is much interested in its efforts to promote the public welfare and extend the business relations of his city. Nature has endowed him with keen intellectual force and his ability has been wisely directed along professional lines, wherein success has come to him by reason of the comprehensive knowledge of law which he has gained and as the result of his thorough preparation of his cases.

B. FRANK BROCKHOFF, The insurance interests which center in Grand Forks find a worthy and prominent representative in B. Frank Brockhoff, who is now the secretary of the Pioneer Insurance Company.  He was born at Reads Landing, Wabasha county, Minnesota, September 28, 1862, a son of George G. and Theresa (Brass) Brockhoff, both of whom were natives of Germany.  The father was born in Hanover and came to America in 1853, settling in Minnesota, where he engaged in business as a baker and freighter. He also served for one term as postmaster at Reads Landing. His wife came to the United States in 1851 and is still living at Reads Landing at the age of eighty years. By her marriage she became the mother of five children, of whom B. Frank Brockhoff is the eldest. The husband and father has passed away, his death occurring at Reads Landing, March 1, 1908, when he was seventy-six years of age.

Mr. Brockhoff of this review, after attending the high school of his native town, took up the study of telegraphy and was employed as an operator by the Milwaukee Railroad from 1879 until 1890. He removed to Grand Forks in 1890 and became cashier for the Northern Pacific Railway Company. He was engaged in newspaper work from 1895 until 1899, when he was elected to the office of city treasurer, which position he acceptably filled until 1906. He then entered insurance circles, in which he has since been active. He purchased an interest in the Pioneer Insurance Agency, which was established in 1883, and he is now its secretary, in which connection he is active in the control of one of the most important insurance interests of the state. He is also a director of the Microba Antiseptic Company and of the Security Real Estate & Loan Company.

On the 4th of September 1888, Mr. Brockhoff was married to Miss Katherine Durick, of Portage, Wisconsin, a daughter of James and Ellen Durick. The father is now deceased, but the mother is still living at the age of eighty-four years and is a well preserved woman. Mr. and Mrs. Brockhoff have a son, Frederick J., who was born at Reads Landing, Minnesota, November 21, 1889, and is now attorney for the Fidelity & Casualty Company of Chicago. Fraternally Mr. Brockhoff is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, the Ancient Order of United Workmen, the Knights of Columbus and the Order of Railway Telegraphers. In politics he is a democrat and in 1916 became the candidate of his party for the office of railroad commissioner in North Dakota.

HON. JEREMIAH R. CHURCH, police magistrate of Grand Forks, became a resident of the city when it had a population of but four hundred and throughout the intervening period has been closely associated with its interests and upbuilding. He was born in the township of Woolford, Grenville county, Ontario, October 18, 1835, and is a son of Oliver Church, a native of Vermont and a representative of an old family of that state of Scotch descent. The founder of the American branch of the family was George Church, an agriculturist of Scotland, who came to America in colonial days soon after the arrival of the Mayflower, after which he had to wage war with the Indians in order to assist in the establishment of the rights of the white men to the land on which they settled.  Six brothers of the mother of Oliver Church took part in the Revolutionary war and in the War of 1812 Oliver Church was a participant, as was his father. Oliver Church followed the occupation of farming and also became a veterinary surgeon and was recognized as one of the prosperous men of his community. He was born near Danville, Lake Champlain, and soon after the War of 1812 he removed to Canada, where he spent his remaining days.  He married Rhoda Smith, a native of New York and a daughter of Humphrey Smith, who was of Scotch descent, although the family was represented in the Empire state through several generations. To Mr. and Mrs. Oliver Church were born fourteen children. The father died in Canada in 1869, at the venerable age of eighty-six years, while the mother passed away in 1862, at the age of sixty-two years. All of the children reached adult age. At the time the family settled in Canada the section in which they located was an unimproved wilderness. Wild game of many kinds was abundant and there were many hardships and privations incident to frontier life to be endured. At times the women of the household spun the wool and flax and all of the clothing used by the family was made by the mother.

Jeremiah R. Church, who was ninth in point of age among the fourteen children, was educated in the little log schoolhouse near his father’s home and remained upon the farm until he reached the age of twenty-one years. He then took up the study of veterinary surgery and in 1862 came to the United States, settling in Jefferson county, New York, where he practiced his profession until 1879. That year witnessed his arrival in Grand Forks, then a tiny little village giving little promise of its future development. He began the practice of his profession at that point and continued in veterinary work until 1904, when he was elected to the office of police magistrate, in which capacity he has since continuously and satisfactorily served, covering a period of more than twelve years. He is fair and impartial in his rulings, basing his decisions upon the law and the equity in the case.  The 18^th of October 1916, was made the occasion of a notable celebration by his fellow workers in the city hall, when every official and clerk gathered about a mammoth cake decorated with eighty-one lighted candles in honor of the eighty-first birthday of Justice Church. The celebration was a total surprise to the magistrate, who was called in by the chief of police, as he supposed, to preside for litigation. It was an attractive time of merrymaking and a fitting expression of the regard in which he was held by his fellow workers, and on that occasion he was also presented with a fine cane.

Mr. Church has been married twice. In Canada, on the 8th of October 1865, he wedded Miss Lucy Ann Kilborn, a native of that country and a daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Trueman Kilborn, who were originally from New York. Mrs. Church passed away in Canada in 1886, leaving five children: Edwin, Henry, John, Ida and Richard.  The daughter is the wife of William Edwards, now a resident of New York city. In 1889 Mr. Church was married in Grand Forks to Miss Nora Elston, a native of Minnesota and a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Elston, pioneer settlers of that state. They reside at No. 901 North Third street.

Politically Mr. Church is a republican and has always taken an active part in politics, while in Canada he served for many years as a member of the county council. He proudly wears the little bronze button that proclaims him a member of the Grand Army of the Republic. He is a Civil war veteran, having served in Company C, Twentieth New York Cavalry, as a private from 1864 until the close of the war. He participated in a number of minor engagements and was on provost duty and at the close of hostilities was honorably discharged. He holds membership in the Church of God and is known as a very devoted Christian man, reading and studying his Bible daily and making every effort to conform his life to its teachings and to secure the adoption of its principles among his fellowmen.

ALVIN P. CLIFFORD, president of A. P. Clifford & Company, Incorporated, of Grand Forks, was born in Chelsea, Massachusetts. September 10, 1871, and was the youngest of five children born to Benjamin Barnard and Ruth Nourse (George) Clifford. The father was a native of New Hampshire and a representative of an old family of that state of English descent. The founder of the family in the new world arrived before the American Revolution and representatives of the family participated in the war for independence. Benjamin B.  Clifford became a cattle drover and was quite successful in his dealings in livestock.  Removing to Massachusetts, he spent the greater part of his life in that state, there passing away in 1873 at the age of fifty-six years. His wife was born in Vermont and represents an old Vermont family of English origin. She survives and is residing in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Alvin P. Clifford acquired his education in the public schools of Vermont and in Tilton Seminary at Tilton, New Hampshire, from which he was graduated in 1888. At the age of sixteen years he started out to earn his own livelihood and secured a clerkship in a mercantile establishment, there receiving his initial business training. In 1892 he arrived in Grand Forks, North Dakota, and entered manufacturing circles in connection with the manufacture of woolen goods, being one of the organizers of the Grand Forks Woolen Mills, the first and only business of the kind ever established in that city. He remained active along that line for twelve years, at the end of which time the business was discontinued.  Mr. Clifford then became connected with the firm of Nash Brothers, wholesale grocers, as credit man, remaining with that house for four years. He afterward entered the general insurance business by organizing the firm of A. P. Clifford & Company, Incorporated, of which he is the president. He has one of the most important agencies in the state, the volume of his business in the field of general insurance exceeding that of the great majority of insurance men in North Dakota. His offices are located in the Clifford block in Grand Forks.

On the 15th of June 1896, in St. Paul, Minnesota, Mr. Clifford was married to Miss Katherine Stewart, a native of Canada and a daughter of Donald and Mary Stewart, the latter now deceased. The family is of Scotch lineage. Five children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Clifford, of whom four are yet living: Stewart Hilton, born September 12, 1900; Benjamin Bailey, January 6, 1903; Katherine, November 26, 1905; and Arthur Farnsworth, on October 3, 1907. All were born in Grand Forks.  The family residence is now at No. 123 Reeves avenue, which property Mr. Clifford owns.  He and his wife are members of the First Presbyterian church, in which he holds the office of treasurer.

His political allegiance is given to the republican party and he is a member of the Commercial Club. He also belongs to the Golf and Curling Club—associations which indicate much the nature of his recreation. He has attained high rank in Masonry and is now a member of the Mystic Shrine and he also belongs to the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Ancient Order of United Workmen, the Yeomen and the Modern Woodmen of America. He has made good use of his time, talents and opportunities and has won the proud American title of a self-made man. As the architect of his fortunes he has built wisely and well and notwithstanding the fact that he has met with some discouragements and difficulties, he has maintained a ready courage and has won for himself a prominent and honored position in insurance circles.

DANIEL DOW, Business enterprise in Grand Forks finds a worthy representative in Daniel Dow, the president of the Grand Forks Foundry & Machine Company, which was established and incorporated in 1885. It came into existence through the enterprising efforts and initiative spirit of Mr. Dow and was the first establishment of the kind in the state. It was in that year that he removed to North Dakota from Canada, of which country he is a native, his birth having occurred in Ontario, December 20, 1861. He was the seventh in a family of ten children whose parents were Donald and Margaret (White) Dow, natives of Scotland, where they were reared and married. In an early day they became residents of Canada.  The father traveled three hundred miles by boat and on foot, enduring all kinds of hardships, to the place where he located near Ottawa, and while he became a pioneer resident of that district, he lived to become a successful farmer and representative citizen of his community, there passing away in 1894 at the venerable age of eighty-two years.  His wife, who had accompanied him to the new world, died in Grand Forks in 1910, at the age of eighty-three years.

Their son, Daniel Dow, was educated in the country schools of Canada and his youthful experiences were those of the farm bred boy. At the age of twenty years he started out to earn his own living and was apprenticed to the machinery trade, which he afterward followed as a journeyman for four years. He then came to North Dakota, settling in Grand Forks in 1885, at which time he entered the business circles of the city on his own account through the establishment of the Grand Forks Foundry & Machine Company.  He organized this business, which he began on a small scale with about six skilled workmen.  His plant was originally located at the corner of Dakota avenue and Eighth street, where he continued for about ten years and then removed the business to Second and International streets, where the company purchased a three acre tract of land and erected thereon a modern and thoroughly up-to-date machine shop where they now employ from thirty to thirty-five men, having the largest business of the kind in the state. Their trade covers the northern half of North Dakota and Minnesota and their output finds a ready sale on the market. The officers of the company are: Daniel Dow, president; J. B. Dow, vice president; and Christ Hanson, secretary and treasurer.

On the 20th of December 1890, at Grand Forks, Mr. Dow was married to Miss Nellie Bell, a native of Ontario and a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Bell. The father is now deceased but the mother is still living. Mr. and Mrs. Dow have become the parents of five children: Jennie B., who is the wife of Ralph Hulick, of Ada, Minnesota; Lillian W.; Donald W., who is associated with his father in business; Ruth H., and Margaret H.  The family are consistent members of the First Presbyterian church, of which Mr. Dow is a trustee.

He has attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite in Masonry and he belongs also to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Modern Woodmen of America and the Yeomen. He is likewise a member of the Commercial Club, which indicates his interest in all matters of civic welfare and betterment. His political allegiance is given to the republican party but the honors and emoluments of office have no attraction for him, as he prefers to concentrate his attention upon his business affairs. For thirty-one years he has now been actively connected with the industrial interests of Grand Forks and his is one of the most substantial business concerns of the city, while in business circles Mr. Dow sustains an unassailable reputation.

ST. MARY’S PARISH, at Grand Forks, of which the Rev. M. J. Driscoll is pastor, was created by the Rt. Rev. James O’Reilly, D. D., on the 23d of June 1914. It comprises all Catholic families residing south of De Mers avenue and the Great Northern Railroad as far as the half way line between Grand Forks and Thompson. Rev. Driscoll was appointed to take pastoral charge of the parish by the bishop and the first mass was said September 15, 1914, in the Knights of Columbus hall. Not long afterward the property on Belmont avenue opposite the Winship Triangle was purchased, the lot being one hundred by one hundred and forty feet. Already work has been begun on what when completed will be one of the most artistic of the small church edifices in the state of North Dakota. The work under the charge of Father Driscoll has been growing steadily and the parish is now well organized.

 The photo is of Rev. M. J. Driscoll

JOHN J. FITZGERALD, chief of the fire department of Grand Forks and thus occupying an important position in relation to the public welfare, was born June 9, 1870, in Wabasha county, Minnesota, a son of Garrett and Margaret (Costello) Fitzgerald, both of whom were natives of Ireland. The father was born in County Kerry and about 1856 came to America, settling in Wabasha county, Minnesota, where he took up the occupation of farming and continued to follow agricultural pursuits until his death, which occurred on the 11th of April, 1904. He was a democrat in his political views and while interested in the success of the party would never consent to hold any other than local township offices. In religious faith he was a devout Roman Catholic. He wedded Margaret Costello, who came from the Emerald isle to the new world with relatives in 1860 and settled in Wabasha county, Minnesota, where she formed the acquaintance of Garrett Fitzgerald, who sought her hand in marriage.  She died on the home farm in Minnesota in 1876 at the age of forty years. She was the mother of ten children, of whom John J. was the sixth in order of birth.

To the district school system of his native county John J. Fitzgerald is indebted for the educational opportunities which he enjoyed. His early life was spent upon the home farm and he was thoroughly trained in the work of the fields. At the age of eighteen years he started out to earn his livelihood independently and was first employed by railroad contracting on the construction of the Great Northern Railroad between Minot, North Dakota, and Great Falls, Montana. He worked as a freighter for a year and afterward was engaged in various lines of business, including farming and machinery repairing. In 1889 he became a resident of Grand Forks and in the early days of his connection with the city was employed by a local implement firm in the assembling and construction of farm machinery, becoming quite expert in that line. He displayed and operated machinery for the firm, thus giving demonstration of its worth. On the 20th of December 1892, he became connected with the city fire department, being appointed to the position of driver. Two and a half years later, or on the 1st of May 1896, he was advanced to the position of assistant chief and continued to occupy that office until appointed chief on the 1st of June 1913, With the exception of a period of eight months during 1903 he has been continuously with the fire department since first entering upon connection therewith. He is a most capable official in his present position, thoroughly understanding the needs and the work of the department and in the discharge of his duties ever found prompt, fearless, faithful and capable.

On the 19th of July, 1913, in Grand Forks, Mr. Fitzgerald wedded Miss Mary C. Morin, a native of Benson county, Minnesota, and a daughter of August Morin, an early settler of Red Lake Falls, Minnesota, who is of French descent. Her parents are still living and reside at Red Lake Falls.

Mr. Fitzgerald has a interesting military record through connection with the North Dakota National Guard as a member of Company F of the First North Dakota Regiment from 1898 until 1904. He takes no active part in politics aside from exercising his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the republican party. His religious faith is that of the Roman Catholic church and he belongs to the Knights of Columbus. He is also a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen and of the Commercial Club and is president of the Fire Department Relief Association of Grand Forks. He has the full confidence and respect of the men who serve under him as well as of his fellow townsmen in general and he has made an excellent record in office.

HON. LOUIS K. HASSELL, America has no more loyal citizen among the native born than Judge Hassell, of Grand Forks, a man of high character and ideals who has been a stalwart champion of state and national interests. At the same time he is fair and impartial in his rulings, while in manner he is modest and unassuming. The specific office of biography, however, is not to give a man’s modest estimate of himself and his accomplishments but to leave the record establishing his position by the consensus of opinion on the part of his fellowmen.  Judge Hassell was born in Biri, Norway, August 19, 1863. His father Christian Hassell, also a native of that country, born August 1, 1834, was a traveling man and farmer of Norway. He wedded Oline Fremstad who was of German parentage but was born in Norway in 1837. In the year 1881 Christian Hassell crossed the Atlantic to America with his family and settled in Walsh county, North Dakota, becoming a pioneer resident of that district, where he successfully engaged in farming for many years or until 1903. At that date he was stricken with blindness, after which he returned to Norway, where he passed away March 6, 1912. His wife had died in Walsh county, November 17, 1889, at the age of fifty-two years. They were the parents of five children, of whom three are yet living: Louis K.; Nettie, the wife of W. E. Lasham, a resident of Hollywood, a suburb of Los Angeles, California ; and Edwin, who occupies the old homestead in Walsh county.

Judge Hassell pursued his education in common and high schools and in the college of Hamar, Norway, being graduated from the last named institution in 1880 on the completion of a literary course. His early training and experiences were those of the farm bred boy and in 1881, when a youth of nineteen years, he started out to earn his own living. He was first employed in the law office of Major J. G. Hamilton, of Grand Forks, following the arrival of the family in the new world, and in the fall of that year he became editor of the Grand Forks Tidende, a Norwegian newspaper, which is now one of the largest Norwegian papers of the United States. It has been a daily for the past thirty years and is now published in Minneapolis. After three years’ connection with that paper Judge Hassell was made a deputy in the office of the city auditor and treasurer under Dr. W. T. Collins, a pioneer and Civil war veteran. From the fall of 1884 until January 1887, Judge Hassell served as clerk in the office of the register of deeds of Grand Forks county. The need of a Scandinavian paper in Grand Forks, following the removal of the Tidende to Minneapolis, led him to begin the publication of the Normanden, which he conducted until the summer of 1888, when he sold out. He afterward spent several months as an employee in the office of the county auditor and in the fall of 1889 was elected on the republican ticket to the position of clerk of the district court. Four times he was reelected to that office, making a most notable record for faithful, efficient and commendable service. After retiring from that position lie served for a time as deputy sheriff under James Collins and was then elected to his present position, that of county judge of Grand Forks county. He has been elected to the bench eight times, his service covering sixteen years to the 1st of January 1917, and in the fall of 1916 he was renominated without opposition—a record perhaps unequalled in the history of the state.

On the 9th of August 1885, Judge Hassell was married to Miss Sophia A. Anderson, a native of Norway and a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Anderson, who were early settlers of Grand Forks county and are now deceased. Judge and Mrs. Hassell have five children: Selma L., born July 7, 1886; Olga O., May 10, 1888; Clarence L., born August 4, 1892; Agnes F., November 14, 1894; and Dagny M., July 10, 1902.

The family residence is at No. 413 South Fifth street, where Judge Hassell owns a pleasant home. He and his wife hold membership in the Lutheran church and he belongs to various fraternal organizations, including the Masons, the Elks, the United Workmen and the Knights of Pythias. He is also identified with the Commercial Club and is in hearty sympathy with all projects for the public good. In politics he is a republican and cooperates in every movement that tends to advance civic ideals and raise the standards of citizenship.  In manner modest and unassuming, the worth of his character is acknowledged by all. He is charitable in his opinions of the individual and upon the bench is thoroughly just, recognizing, however, that justice should often be tempered with mercy. The official record of few county judges in the state has extended over a longer period and none has been more faultless in honor, fearless in conduct or stainless in reputation.

DAVID M. HOLMES, actively engaged in the insurance business in Grand Forks, in which connection he has gained a large clientage, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 29, 1851. a son of Hugh and Jane (Love) Holmes. In the paternal line he represents one of the old American families, the original progenitor coming to the new world in 1640, at which time he settled in Massachusetts, while later a removal was made to Pennsylvania, which has long been the ancestral home. The Love family came from the north of Ireland, representatives arriving in America in 1708, when settlement was made in Pennsylvania. On leaving the Keystone state Hugh Holmes removed to North Dakota in 1881. In early life he engaged in railroad contracting and in blacksmithing but after coming to the northwest retired from active business. He was born in 1807 and passed away in Grand Forks in 1883, while his wife, who was born, reared, educated and married in Pennsylvania, died in Philadelphia in 1865, at the age of fifty-one years.

David M. Holmes is the last survivor of a family of five children, two sons and three daughters, and was the youngest of the number. He attended school in Philadelphia and in 1865 went to Caledonia, Elk county, Pennsylvania, where he was connected with the lumber business. He was only nineteen years of age when in 1871 he arrived in North Dakota and took up the work of flat boating on the Red river. After a brief period he engaged in government work with a surveying crew, laying out the township and subdivision lines, spending two years in that service. He next went to work for the Hudson’s Bay Company, with which he continued for a year, at the end of which time he was appointed manager at Grand Forks for the Western Union Telegraph Company. In 1870 he went to the Black Hills and while on that trip became involved in a combat with a band of Indians. He engaged in prospecting all through the Black Hills from February until August 1876, and then again went to Grand Forks, where he was once more made manager for the Western Union Telegraph Company. The city was at that time a tiny hamlet on the western frontier and in 1877 he established the first drug store of Grand Forks, continually developing the business until 1900, when he sold out. He was one of the earliest merchants of the city and for many years has figured as one of the leading business men. After retiring from the drug trade he was elected county treasurer, which position he filled for four years, and in 1904 he was the candidate for governor on the democratic ticket but was defeated for that office. He next entered the field of insurance, in which he has since operated, and his success has grown with the passing of the years.

Again and again Mr. Holmes has been called to positions of public honor and trust and in all such has proved his loyalty to the best interests and development of city and state. For two terms he was mayor of Grand Forks and gave to the city a most businesslike and progressive administration. He was the first county surveyor of Grand Forks county and the second county superintendent of schools. He also was made register of deeds and filled all three offices at the same period. He served as deputy postmaster of Grand Forks and from the earliest period of development he has been closely associated with the upbuilding and progress of the city.

On the 10th of March 1879, Mr. Holmes was united in marriage to Miss Rebecca Schlaberg, of Grand Forks, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Schlaberg, of Iowa. They became the parents of three children: Mrs. Jessie Fulton, of Great Falls, Montana, who has one child, Holmes Montgomery Fulton, of Great Falls; Frank, who was born in Grand Forks and is now married and makes his home in Des Moines, Iowa, where he is connected with the Bitulithic Paving Company; and Mrs. Vivian Hunter, of Grand Forks, who has two children, David Kenneth Hunter and Ralph Hunter.

Mr. Holmes is a very prominent Mason and has been master of perfection of Carmel Lodge of Perfection, A. & A. S. R., for the past twenty-eight years. The honorary thirty-third degree has been conferred upon him and he enjoys in highest measure the confidence and regard of his fellow members of the craft. His acquaintance in the state is wide and honors have come to him in recognition of his ability and patriotic loyalty to the best interests of the state. He is familiar with every phase of North Dakota’s development and progress and has left the stamp of his individuality upon its upbuilding. No history of the state would be complete without extended reference to this man, who was a pioneer of Grand Forks and of the Black Hills country and was closely associated with all of those activities which marked the early development of the district in which he yet resides.

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