PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD OF OKLAHOMA 1901
Biographies on this page:
Bolend, George C.
Bonnett, W. J.
Burns, J. E.
Caron, Joseph L.
Farquharson, W. L.
Fullum, J. S.
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GEORGE C. BOLEND.
This sterling pioneer of Kingfisher is a pioneer engineer as well, his experience covering about two-score years, from ante-bellum days on the Mississippi and Ohio rivers to the present, in the west. He has been in the front ranks of his calling since he arrived at maturity, and has commanded high salaries during the greater part of his career.
The paternal great-grandparents of George C. Bolend came to the United States from England and his maternal ancestors were of Scotch-Irish extraction. Grandfather Thomas Bolend was born in Raleigh, N. C., and owned a large plantation prior to his removal to Tennessee, thence to Illinois in its early days. He was a soldier in the war of 1812. His son, Jackson, father of George C., was born on the pioneer farm near Marion, Ill., but was reared in Tennessee, whither the family returned after a few years ot experience in the new state of Illinois. Of a mechanical turn of mind, Jackson Bolend concluded to devote his time and attention to the work of an engineer, and soon took a position on a steamboat plying the Mississippi. For a number of years he occupied the responsible position of chief engineer on the river boats, and during the Civil war rendered important service to the government as chief engineer on transports. For years his home was at Clarksville, Tenn. and at other river cities, but at length he retired from his old business and commenced managing a hotel in St. Louis, and later conducted a grocery there. Afterwards, he was engaged in running a railroad hotel at Sedalia, Mo., and his last years were passed in Milwaukee, Wis. In 1895, when in his sixty-eighth year, he died while making a visit to our subject. His wife, Alethe, who was born in the central part of Tennessee, died in Cherokee, Kan., and of their five children two are deceased. Her father, a Mr. Newton, was a gentleman of good education, and for vears he taught schools in Tennessee.
The birth of George C. Bolend occurred in Clarksville, Tenn., October 6, 1849. When he was ten years old he often accompanied his father on river trips, and from his fifteenth year he was employed regularly on the steamboats. In 1866 lie commenced his career as a competent engineer, and in 1870 became chief engineer on the steamboat "Armedia." For seven years he continued his river service, and then accepted a better position on the fine steamer "Northwest." running between Detroit and Cleveland, and one year more saw the termination of his marine life.
In 1872 Mr. Bolend went to Sedalia, and thence to points along the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad, thoroughly weighing the prospects of that section of the Union, and, incidentally, while at Parsons, Kans., he built one of the first houses erected there. At another time he became interested in the oil fields of Oil City, Pa., and devoted about eight months to the enterprise of pumping oil. In 1878 he located at Hot Springs, Ark., where he was the chief engineer of the water-works and of the fire department until October, 1882. Then for the ensuing seven years he acted in a similar capacity in the Milwaukee Harvesting Machine Company, in the meantime putting in place the large engines and machinery in the plant.
When Oklahoma was to be opened, Mr. Bolend resigned his position and was ready at the boundary to make the race for a claim, April 22nd. He came direct to Kingfisher, and located land on Kingfisher creek, four miles and a half northeast of the town. Under his masterlv skill and \vell-applied means the rich soil soon began yielding fine crops; a large orchard produces a great variety of excellent fruit, and commodious, well-built barns and a convenient house attest to his enterprise. He owns some real estate in Kingfisher, in addition to the homestead, and has built three good business houses on Main street, besides his own attractive residence on Sixth street. One of the most influential workers in the interest of the Opera-house Company, he was made chairman of the building committee, which erected a fine, large modern theater, of which Mr. Bolend is treasurer.
Eight years ago the Pabst Brewing Company constituted Mr. Bolend chief engineer and superintendent of its cold-storage plant at Kingfisher. He supervised the placing of the engines and machinery, and has continued ever since as practical manager of the concern. The ice machines have a capacity of twenty tons daily, and in this manufacture nine pumps and three engines (aggregating about two hundred horse power) are required.
In all local affairs relating to the welfare of Kingfisher Mr. Bolend takes patriotic interest, and is correspondingly esteemed by our citizens. Politically, he is a Republican, and became a warm friend to its policy during the stormy war period. For a wife he chose Miss Ethel McCor-mick, of Cowley county, Kans., and they have reason to be proud of their two manly sons, Floyd J. and Rex G. The elder, F. J., is a graduate of the Milwaukee high school and continued his education in the Kingfisher College and in the University of Oklahoma. He is pursuing a course of pharmacy and is a member of the class of 1901.
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HON. W. J. BONNETT.
Germany contributed a valuable citizen to the United States when the subject of this article bade adieu to his Fatherland, thenceforth to be numbered among the patriotic sons of America. Here he has taken an important place in the development of the nation's wealth and civilization, and when the Union was threatened he enlisted among its defenders and ardently fought for the land of his love and free choice.
It is not a matter of surprise to those who know him well that Mr. Bonnett is a descendant of the historic Piedmontese, of Italy, who, when so unmercifully persecuted on account of their religious faith, left their homes and possessions, determined to dwell in a land of the free. Settling in Wurtemberg, Germany, they found a measure of toleration and independence, and, at the time of the Reformation, joined the disciples and followers of the immortal Luther.
Paul, father of W. J. Bonnett, was born in Oelbronn, Wurtemberg, and fought in the German army during the war which terminated in the great battle of Waterloo, and for his meritorious conduct throughout the campaign was awarded a medal, expressive of his country's gratitude. He lived three-score years and ten in the Fatherland, and then, moved by a strong desire to see his son and this republic, he sailed for these shores, and two years later departed this life at Charlotte, Midi. His wife. Charlotte (Hummel) Bonnett, was born in 1810, in Knitlingen, Wurtemberg, and died in Charlotte, Mich., in 1891. Both were Lutherans in religion.
W. J. Bonnett, born in Oelbronn, Wurtemberg, August 20, 1838, is the only son of his father's third marriage. There was a daughter, Nina, who married Christian E. Haefner; she died in 1880. A half-brother, Christian, is a resident of Calhoun county, Mich. In his youth Mr. Bonnett learned the butcher's business with his father, but soon found that general farming was more to his taste. When seventeen years of age he sailed in the good ship "Bremen," bound from Havre to New York City, and at the end of a forty days' voyage he landed in the great metropolis of the western continent. Going to Marshall, Mich., he soon engaged in farming, but in the fall of 1856 he embarked on the ship "Van Fleet," bound for Bremen. After spending four months or more with his friends, he set forth again, bringing with him his parents, and the ship "New York" bore him to the city of the same name. For the next year he was connected with the agricultural interests of Marshall, Midi., and in the fall of 1857 he purchased a farm in Dowagiac, Cass county, same state. This land was heavily covered with oak timber, and, building a log cabin, the young man diligently set about the task of clearing a farm. At the end of two years he sold the place and removed to the vicinity of Charlotte, Eaton county, Midi., where he cleared another farm, this one being covered chiefly with beech and maple trees. In the spring of 1864, leaving his pioneer labors. Mr. Bonnett, so recently admitted to citizenship, offered his services to the Union, becoming a member of Company D, Sixty-sixth Illinois, known as the Western Sharpshooters. This company was mustered in at Jackson, Mich., in March, 1864, and was mustered out of the service at Springfield, Ill., in July, 1865. Sent to Pulaski, Tenn., our subject started with Sherman on the great Atlanta campaign, and participated in the battles of Resaca, Dallas, Snake Creek Gap, Peach Tree, Big Shanty, Kenesaw Mountain, siege of Atlanta (where, on July 22nd, he was wounded in the left cheek), Jonesboro, Lovejoy Station, Savannah, Bentonville, Columbia, Goldsboro and Raleigh. His regiment was one of the first to enter Savannah and Columbia after the conflict there, and after Lee's surrender Mr. Bonnett was unable to be present at the grand review in Washington, owing to the fact that he was a sergeant and was detailed, with about half of his company, to remain with the ambulance corps in the rear of the army. His record throughout that trying year and a half is of the best, and nobly did he earn his place among the honored sons of the nation—the nation thus cemented in life's-blood.
After returning to Michigan, Mr. Bonnett embarked in the bakery business at Ann Arbor, where he remained for three years. At the end of that time he became a resident of Charlotte, Mich., and from 1868 to 1889 was engaged in the grocery and bakery business there. He served as chief of the fire department for six years and was a member of the city council two years,
these offices bestowed upon him expressing the esteem in which he is held by the people of that place. He retains business interests there and his hosts of sincere friends deeply feel the loss of so good a citizen.
On that eventful 22nd of April, 1889, Mr. Bonnett came to the west, curious to behold the country about which so much was being said. Though he had no expectations of remaining, he saw a good opening for a lumber merchant, and. with customary enterprise, he embarked in the business. He also located a claim in Kingfisher township, two and a half miles from the city, and for six and a half years he dwelt there, in the meantime making good improvements. He still owns the "farm, though he has lived in Kingfisher since October, 1898. In 1890 he built a two-story building (since changed into the Central Hotel) for the use of the county and United States courts, and two years later erected the Bonnett Block. He also constructed the county jail, and has built some good residences.
In 1860 Mr. Bonnett married Christine F. Upright, a native of his own town in Germany, and daughter of John Upright, who was a pioneer farmer in the neighborhood of Charlotte, Midi. Mrs. Bonnett departed this life in Kingfisher, and her son, William C., died in Texas, December 26, 1897. The lady who now bears our subject's name was formerly Rosa Bay, and she too, was born in Wurtemberg. Ida L., Mr. Bonnett's only daughter, is the wife of Jay S. Wisner, of Muncie, Ind. George P., the only surviving son, was engaged in carrying on an abstract office here for eight years, and now is stationed in Iloilo, or Panay, in the Philippine Islands. He served as a bugler in the First Territorial Regiment of Oklahoma Volunteers during the Spanish-American war, and, after receiving an honorable discharge, enlisted in Company C, Sixth United States Infantry, and, as formerly, is the company bugler.
Mr. Bonnett was elected to serve on the first city council of Kingfisher, and acted in that honorable body for three terms, during all of this period being chairman of the committees on fire and water. His removal to his country home interrupted his official career, but in the spring of 1899, soon after his return, he was elected mayor, of the city, and is giving entire satisfaction to all regardless of party. In politics he is a Democrat, and in the fraternities he is a Knight of Pythias, a Mason of high standing and a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, identified with A. S. Williams Post No. 40, of Charlotte, Mich. Forty-one years ago he was initiated into Masonry in Dowagiac, Mich., and now is a charter member of Kingfisher Lodge No. 8, A. F. & A. M.; Kingfisher Chapter No. 12, R. A. M. and Cyrene Commandery No. 6, K. T., besides which he is connected with India Temple in Oklahoma City. A true friend to educational and religious enterprises, he is a liberal contributor to these elevating influences, and in the Kingfisher Congregational Church he is an active member and formerly was on its building committee.
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J. E. BURNS,
acting in the responsible office of clerk of Kingfisher county, is a hero of the Civil war. On the threshold of early manhood he devoted four years to his country, and faithfully stood at his post of duty, then, as now, relegating all personal interests to a secondary place. Needless to say he is as highly esteemed by the boys who wore the blue as he, in his turn, holds his old comrades, and honors have been bestowed upon him in all of the varied walks of life, but none beyond his merits.
The great-grandfather of our subject, on his father's side of the family, was a native of Scotland, who, leaving his old home in Ayrshire, brought his family to Pennsylvania at an early period. His son John, grandfather of J. E. Burns, was born in Scctknd also and was a pioneer of Columbiana county, Ohio. He was found dead on the highway, his horse returning home riderless. His son, P. R., father of our subject, was born on the pioneer homestead in the county just mentioned, and in his youth learned the carpenter's trade. Going to West Virginia he married Elizabeth Elliott, a native of Brooke county, that state, and of Scotch-Irish ancestry. In 1843 the couple located in Florence, Mo., and five years later Mr. Burns was honored by election to the office of assessor of the county. In 1850 he was elected sheriff and at the expiration of his term was favored with re-election. In 1856 he was chosen to act as representative of his district in the state legislature, and five years later was elected to the county clerkship- for a term of six years. In all of these responsible positions he gave the public entire satisfaction, and finally he was fiscal agent for the county for
ten years at the time that the county was engaged in the construction of the Boonville branch of the Missouri Pacific railroad, and thus he disbursed about $100,000. Death put an end to all of his labors in 1890, when he was in his seventy-third year. His wife, Elizabeth, died soon after their removal to the west in 1844.
J. E. Burns was born May 29, 1843, in Wellsburg, W. Va., and was reared in Morgan county. Mo., where he received excellent educational advantages, completing his studies in Versailles Academy. August 16, 1861, he enlisted in Company A, Thirty-ninth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and was mustered into the service at Indianapolis. Assigned to the army of the Cumberland, he served with that gallant body during the great campaigns which included many of the hardest fought battles of the war, among them Shiloh, Perryville, Stone River, Chickamauga and Missionary Ridge. At Stone River, for instance, fifty per cent of the Thirty-ninth Indiana regiment were numbered with the killed, wounded or captured. In 1864 Mr. Burns was appointed special military agent of the state of Indiana at Nashville, and among other affairs entrusted to his care issued eighteen thousand furloughs to troops desiring to attend the fall elections of 1864. Subsequently he was assigned to duty at the headquarters of Gen. J. F. Miller, post commandant at Nashville, and took part in the battle at that place. On the following Christmas day he started from New York to Savannah, where he joined his regiment, which had made the historic march to the sea through Georgia. During the ensuing weeks several hard fought battles occurred in which the regiment took an active part, including Bentonville and Averysboro, in the latter losing fully one-third of its men. Mr. Burns served in various capacities during this period of the war, as corporal, sergeant and hospital steward. He was retained in North Carolina in the trying days of the reconstruction, and finally started northward July 22, 1865, to be mustered out of the service in Indianapolis, August 8, his time in the army thus lacking only eight days of being four years.
Returning to Missouri Mr. Burns became a deputy in the office of his father, then county clerk, and within two years engaged in farming near Peru, Ind. From 1868 to 1870 he resided in Iola, Kans., and then pre-empted a farm in Wilson county, same state. In 1876 he embarked in the grocery business in lola, and two years later turned his attention to running a hardware and implement business in the same town. From 1880 to 1882 he acted in the capacity of county clerk, and in 1884 became a salesman for a large implement house. In 1886 he located in Harper, Kans., though still traveling in the same line of trade. In 1888 he was chosen to serve as deputy to the county register of deeds, but resigned in order to come to Oklahoma in the spring of 1889.
On that 22nd of April Mr. Burns arrived in Kingfisher and sixteen days later was appointed city clerk, an office which he retained only until the following November, when he went to live upon the claim which he had taken up in Cimarron township, five miles northeast of the city. In January, 1890, however, he was appointed contest clerk in the United States land office and served as such for eighteen months. For several years, or until 1896, he remained on his farm, and then accepted a position as salesman with the W. H. Mead Agricultural Implement Company. In 1898 he was nominated and elected to the county clerkship, receiving a majority of one hundred and forty-nine votes, though he defeated a fusion ticket, which, two years previously, had received a majority of three hundred and sixty-nine votes. He has always been a stalwart Republican, and was one of the organizers of that party in this territory. For four years he was the chairman of the Kingfisher County Republican Central committee, and his influence cannot be overestimated. In every official capacity he has given complete satisfaction, and as county clerk he is adding fresh laurels to those already won. He so thoroughly keeps up with his work that, far from being dilatory with his accounts, as men in a similar position frequently are, he has his tax rolls finished two months or more before the allotted time for their completion.
In Grand Army circles Mr. Burns is extremely popular. A charter member of Kingfisher Post No. 8, G. A. R., he is past commander of the same. In 1891 he was appointed to the post of assistant adjutant-general of the department of Oklahoma, in 1896 was appointed assistant to the adjutant-general, and in 1899 was raised to the position of adjutant-general with the rank of colonel, besides which he has acted on the staffs of two national commanders. He is also a Mason, first belonging to Versailles Lodge No. 117, in Missouri, and now being connected with Kingfisher Lodge No. 8, A. F. & A. M., of which he is now the secretary.
In 1865 the marriage of Mr. Burns and Miss Sarah A. Duff, a native of Miami county, Ind., was solemnized in Mexico, Ind. Their eldest child, Rhoda, is the wife of L. C. Gould, of Thomas, Okla., and P. R., the next in order of birth, is a farmer in that locality. Sarah E., who for several years was successfully engaged in teaching, is a deputy county clerk. James A. and Elgia L. complete the family. Mrs. Burns is actively associated with the Ladies of the G. A. R., is past president of the local circle, and past president of the department of Oklahoma.
She is also a valued worker and member of the Presbyterian Church of this city.
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JOSEPH L. CARON,
a prosperous farmer of Banner township, Kingfisher county, is a native of Canada, his birth having occurred near Montreal, in 1860. He is of French extraction, and for four generations his family lived in Canada. Some of them took part in the Canadian revolution, but for the most part they have led quiet, pe'aceful lives, leaving to others the conflict and strife of politics and warfare.
His father, Joseph, was born in the province of Quebec, and in his early manhood he qualified himself as a mechanic. Moving to Michigan in 1866, he followed his trade at Saginaw for about nine years, and then went to Pratt county, Kans., where he engaged in agricultural pursuits. For some years he operated three hundred and twenty acres of land, and raised large crops of grain, also keeping considerable live stock. He now resides in the vicinity of Garber, Garfield county, Okla., and is a much respected citizen of that community. His wife was Miss Philmena Doe in her girlhood, and of the eleven children born to them all but one survive. With the exception of David, who lives
in Montana, the sons are farmers of this territory, Albert being located at Osage, Frank near Garber, and John in Kingfisher county. Louisa is the wife of Moses Thyfault, Rose, wife of Napoleon Rabeau, and Delia, Mrs. Wilfred Lalone, dwell in Canada. Emma and Mary are yet with their parents on the homestead near Garber.
Though he was only six years of age at the time of his removal from Canada, his native place, the memories of our subject's early years were so pleasant that he visited the familiar scenes again in 1894, while making a trip to the east. His education was obtained in the public schools of Michigan and Kansas, and ere he reached maturity he had become a practical agriculturist. In 1877 he accompanied his parents to Kansas, and five years later took "up a claim in Pratt county. Improving the same, he engaged in its cultivation for three years, then locating upon another farm.
It was not until February, 1891, that Mr. Caron left Pratt county, Kans., where he had met with fair success in a business way. Then, coming to Oklahoma, he purchased a quarter section of section 33, B.anner township, and for several months his family lived in a small house, 12x14 feet in dimensions. Within the first year, however, he erected his present convenient residence, and from time to time made other improvements about the premises. In the fall of 1900 he erected a large barn, 40x44 feet, with twelve-foot posts and with room for thirty head of stock. Having reduced his land to a high state of cultivation and garnered several abundant harvests, he was enabled, in 1895, to buy another quarter section of land, this property being situated in section 3, Grant township. In January. 1900, he bought the quarter section adjoining his homestead, and cultivates his entire property, devoting about two hundred acres to wheat. He also is successful in the live stock business, and raises a good grade of short-horn cattle, horses and mules. His well-kept orchard is now productive, and the four hundred fruit trees, of different varieties, and a thriving vineyard, add considerably to the owner's income. He owns his own threshing machine, so he is able to thresh his grain without waiting on others.
Mr. Caron is a stockholder in the Farmers' Grain Elevator Company, of Kingfisher, and is a member of Kingfisher Lodge No. 4, I. O. O. F. Politically he supports the platform of the Populist party, and in 1896 was a delegate to the county convention. For two years he served as the treasurer of Banner township, and for five years, while he was a director of the school board, he acted as treasurer of that body.
February 28, 1888, occurred the marriage of Mr. Caron and Emma B. Jones, daughter of Jackson Jones, a leading farmer and active Republican of Tipton county, Ind. Two of Mrs. Caron's brothers, George W. and John E., were soldiers in the Union army during the Civil war. The former now resides in Pratt county, Kans., and the latter is deceased, Mary Alice, elder daughter of our subject and wife, was born in Pratt county in 1889, and the younger, Clara Marie, was born in this township in 1898. In 1893 Mr. and Mrs. Caron attended the World's Fair, in Chicago, and before returning to Oklahoma Mrs. Caron visited for two months at her old Indiana home.
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W. L. FARQUHARSON.
One of the most extensive grain dealers of Kingfisher county is the gentleman whose name heads this sketch, now a resident of the enterprising city of Hennessey. He has devoted his time and attention to this line of business for the past eleven years, and is thoroughly acquainted with the market and shipping facilities of the west. Gradually he has branched out in his undertaking until to-day he is reputed to be the most extensive shipper of grain in Oklahoma. In all of his transactions he has observed a scrupulous fairness and justice toward all concerned and his name is a synonym for rectitude.
The ancestors of our subject were Scotch and the family, with its connections, the Macintoshes and McKinleys, is well-known in the annals of Scotland. In fact, the line is traced back to l000 A. D:, when a relative, Duncan McDuff, killed Hamlet and restored Malcolm III to the throne. The parents of our subject, James and Mary (Puterbaugh) Farquharson, were natives respectively of Scotland and Canada. One of their eight children, A. O. Farquharson, of Guth-rie, is represented elsewhere in this volume, and in his sketch may be found a fuller account of the ancestral history.
The birth of W. L. Farquharson took place near Toronto, Ontario, Canada, August 16, 1862. He lived in Illinois from 1864 to 1867, when he was taken to Rails county, Mo., where for rive years he resided on a farm and in 1872 went to Sumner county, Kans. He received a good public-school education, and after attending the normal at Paola, Kans., commenced teaching in his home county. In 1886 he was-graduated from the Kansas normal at Fort Scott, Kans., and the following year was in charge of a school in Sumner county. Later he was employed as a teacher in the Wellington (Kans.) normal school for two years, at the end of which time he concluded to turn his energy in another direction.
In 1889 Mr. Farquharson embarked in the grain business at Corbin, Kans., on the Rock Island railroad, and also dealt in live stock, shipping to the city markets. In March, 1893, he came to Hennessey, where he has been similarly occupied, establishing branches at several stations, namely: Kingfisher, Dover, Waukomis, Xorth Enid and Pond Creek, and later others at
Cropper, Garber and Billings. In 1899 he built a substantial elevator at El Reno, its capacity being thirty-five thousand bushels. The elevator, which is situated on the Chicago & Rock Island railroad, is able to clear ten thousand bushels per day. The proprietor now handles enormous quantities of grain of various kinds, and one year he shipped from Hennessey fifty-three thousand bushels of Kaffir corn for the export trade. Recently he has handled in the neighborhood of one million bushels of grain during a season, and in addition to this he has dealt extensively in cotton for the past three years, two years operating a cotton-gin at Dover.
A few years ago Mr. Farquharson assisted in organizing the Oklahoma Grain Dealers' Association, of which he is a prominent member. He was initiated into Masonry in Coronado Lodge No. 9, A. F. & A. M., and still holds membership there. In May, 1900, he was made a thirty-second degree Mason in the Oklahoma Consistory at Guthrie, being a member of Temple class. In the Knights of Pythias he is past chancellor of Hennessey Lodge No. 12. In his political affiliations he is a stalwart Republican.
In Wellington, Kans., the marriage of Mr. Farquharson and Miss Gertrude Mitchell was solemnized in 1891. She was born in Sumner county, Kans., and received an excellent education, being graduated in the Wellington high school. To our subject and wife have been born two sons and one daughter, Chester, Lester and Thelma. Mrs. Farquharson is a member of the Congregational Church and takes great interest in all enterprises tending toward the uplifting of humanity.
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JOHN S. FULLUM,
who is a practical and prosperous farmer of section 9, Cimarron towpship, Kingfisher county, has been associated with the development of this region for over eleven years, and is highly esteemed by all who know him. A son of John and Jane Fullum, he was born in Ireland, and was brought to America in his infancy. For twelve years the family resided in Quebec, Canada, and then, in 1851, removed to Dubuque, Iowa. Seven years later, they settled in Fillmore county, Minn., where they prospered as agriculturists, but in 1877 another change of location was decided upon and they became residents of Bourbon county, Kans. The venerable father departed this life the year following, aged nearly eighty years, and was survived only a short period by his devoted wife.
As has been noted, John S. Fullum was reared in Quebec and Iowa, and had hardly passed his majority when the Civil war commenced. In 1862 he enlisted in the Minnesota State Militia (for in the meantime, he had become a resident of that commonwealth), as the Chippewa and Sioux Indians had risen in a threatening way against the white settlers, taking advantage of their comparatively unprotected condition, as the regular troops were engaged in civil warfare. At several points Mr. Fullum and his comrades fought battles with the red-skins, the severest ones being those of Wood Lake and New Elm. Subsequently he enlisted in Company K, Fourth Minnesota Infantry, and served until June, 1865. During this service he participated in the numerous engagements in Georgia, under command of General Sherman, in the famous march to the sea, and afterwards had the honor of taking part in the grand review at Washington, and received his honorable discharge from his country's service at Louisville, Ky., June 12, 1865. He had battled under the gallant Gen. John A. Logan at Savannah, Ga., and acted under the leadership of General Corse at Altoona, Ga.
For twelve years after the close of the war, Mr. Fullum carried on the duties of a farmer in Filimore county, Minn., and then took up his abode in Bourbon county, Kans. After his father's death, he went to Caldwell, Kans., where the mother died, and in 1887 the young man started for California with his family, driving a team to the coast, and visiting Oregon, also. They soon returned to Kansas, however, making the journey by train, and located in Cherokee county. In June, 1889, Mr. Fullum came to this county, and, finding that a claim in section 9, Cimarron township, was yet vacant, he 'lost no time in filing papers for the property. This wild prairie land has been wonderfully transformed by his arduous labors, and that very year
he managed to raise a small crop, late though it was in the season when he took up the work. For nine years his family were sheltered in a sod house, 14x28 feet in dimensions, and now they occupy a substantial house, thirty-four feet square. At present he has one hundred and twenty acres under cultivation, and in order to meet his requirements, he rents additional land. He raises a good grade of cattle and hogs, and finds a good market for all of the products pf the farm. A well-kept orchard and vineyard afford his family plenty of excellent fruit, and each member of the household takes pride in maintaining the fine appearance of the place.
In 1867 Mr. Fullum married Sarah Claypole, and the following children were born to the worthy couple: Mary is the wife of George Corcoran, of Caldwell, Kans., and Jane is the wife of Harrv Miller. John, Joseph,Thomas and William are yet at home. Born in England, Mrs. Fullum was brought to the United States in her infancy, and for eight years the family dwelt in the vicinity of Elmira, N. Y. The father, William Claypole, was engaged in farming in Minnesota for a score of years, and spent his last days in Caldwell county, Kans., dying in his seventy-seventh year. He was a stanch Republican and stood well in the regard of all who knew him. Religiously, both he and his wife were devout members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Her maiden name was Rebecca Ogden, and by her marriage she became the mother of ten children, only four of whom are living. She departed this life in 1898, in her seventy-fifth year.
From the time when he cast his first presidential ballot until the present, Mr. Fullum has been unwavering in his allegiance to the Republican party. He assisted in the organization of one of the first public schools erected in this territory, and has acted on the school board of his district, doing everything within his power to promote the interests of his community.