History of Atchison County, Kansas

by Sheffield Ingalls

Fred Sutter’s Residence.

Fred Sutter was born July 20, 1869, on a pioneer farm in Walnut township, and is a son of Fred Sutter, who was born in Bath, Germany, in 1827, and immigrated to America about 1844, and died in Atchison county in September of 1887. Fred Sutter, Sr., landed at New York City and made his way from there to St. Louis, Mo., where he married Fredericka Miller, who was born at Bath, Germany, September 23, 1837. She died in Atchison county September 10, 1914. The elder Sutter had learned the trade of carpenter in his youth and he plied his trade in St. Louis until 1857, when he came up the Missouri river by steamer to old Sumner, then in the heyday of its brief glory and prosperity. He found plenty to occupy his talents at Sumner and helped to build a great many of the first houses there. It might be well to add here, however, that the first home of the family in Kansas was at old Port William, where one or two of the children were born. From Port William the family removed to Sumner, and in the course of time Fred Sutter, Sr., made his home on a farm in the northwestern part of Walnut township, near the Mt. Pleasant and Walnut line. The family lived there until the spring of 1880, during which time he worked at his trade. In 1880 he moved to Benton township, and for the first seven years of his residence there he rented the A. G. Otis farm, about two miles west of Effingham and then purchased the farm. The next investment was made by his sons in the Osborn tract of 480 acres of school land. Two years after buying this an additional quarter section was added, making 640 acres in all, which was owned by this enterprising family. During all these years in which he was accumulating valuable farm lands, the elder Sutter had the assistance of his sons, and the greater part of the estate is still tilled and owned by the children of this pioneer. Fred Sutter, Sr., came to this country a poor man and worked in a planing mill and furniture factory at St. Louis until he heard of the opening of the Kansas territory, when he determined to be one of the first to settle in the new State. He was farseeing, and by the practice of rigid economy and the better plan of holding his family together, was able to leave a considerable estate at his demise. He was an honored and respected member of the community and was well known throughout the county. The children born to Frederick and Fredericka Sutter were as follows: Kate, deceased wife of H. W. Barkow, of the Kessler-Barkow Saddlery Company, of Atchison; Mrs. Augusta McAdam, of Effingham; Fannie, housekeeper for her brother, William, who resides on the old home place; Mrs. Anna Shannon, of Effingham; Carl F., of Kipp, Kan.; William and Fred, and Frank, on a farm one-half mile west of Effingham.

Fred Sutter, with whom this review is directly concerned, received his education in the district schools, and for three years after his father’s death lived on the home place, or until 1890. He settled on part of the family estate, consisting of 640 acres held jointly by the Sutter sons, improving the property until his removal to Effingham, where he resided for three years, and then purchased his present farm, which is just at the edge of Effingham. He has 160 acres of fine land within sight of the town upon which he has erected (in 1909) one of the handsomest, modern ten-room farm houses in the county. He also built a new barn, 40×40 feet, which is in keeping with the rest of his farm property.

Mr. Sutter was married May 20, 1908, to Sarah, daughter of Robert McPhilimy, and to this union have been born the following children: Mabel, aged five years, and Geneva, aged three years. He has been connected with the Farmers and Merchants State Bank since 1905 and was elected president of this thriving financial institution in 1906. Mr. Sutter is a Republican and is one of the wheel horses of the party in Atchison county. He was appointed a member of the Atchison County High School board in September of 1913, reëlected to the office in the fall of 1914 and is now serving as treasurer of this board. He is a member and trustee of the Presbyterian church of Effingham and is a liberal contributor to the support of this religious denomination. He is affiliated fraternally with the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, the Benevolent and Protected Order of Elks of Atchison, and the Central Protective Association, being one of the original members of Effingham Lodge, No. 158, Central Protective Association, and has been its treasurer for the past four years.

While Mr. Sutter is connected with the Presbyterian church of Effingham, his ideal of a church for a small town is the community church which can be used by the entire population of the town for public and social purposes. To this end he was the prime mover in the erection of the handsome Presbyterian church building in Effingham, at a cost of $14,000, which was dedicated in June, 1913. This church building is used for many public purposes and has been a decided benefit to Effingham in many ways. Mr. Sutter started the movement for the building of this church and headed the subscription list, never desisting in his work until the church was erected and dedicated. Another monument to his enterprise is the farmers’ institute, with which he was connected for five years and assisted materially in organizing. His energy and influence kept the institute going in fine shape for the five years with which he was connected with the movement. Mr. Sutter has a likable personality and is one of the forceful and influential men of Atchison county.

EDMOND W. ALLEN.

Edmond W. Allen, merchant, of Muscotah, Kan., is a leading and successful retailer of his city, and one of the hustling citizens of Muscotah. The grocery and meat market of which Mr. Allen is proprietor was first established by Jacob P. Sprang, with whom Mr. Allen became a partner in 1902. He became the sole owner of the business in 1910. Allen’s store is nicely located in one of the large business rooms, 80×25 feet in extent, on the main street of Muscotah, supplemented with an ice house and a ware house for feed and flour. In addition to conducting the grocery and meat market, Mr. Allen is a retailer of ice and conducts a produce exchange, which enabled him to ship eggs and poultry in considerable quantity to distant markets.

Edmond W. Allen was born January 29, 1868, on a farm adjoining the present county farm on the northwest corner, consisting of eighty acres, in Mt. Pleasant township, Atchison county. He was the son of M. L. Dunlap and Amanda (Walker) Allen, natives of Kentucky. Amanda (Walker) Allen was the daughter of Philip Walker, who immigrated to Kansas from Kentucky, settled on the prairies of Atchison county, but later moved to Missouri. M. L. Dunlap Allen moved from Kentucky to Missouri, and came from that State to Atchison county, Kansas, in 1863. He purchased the farm of 130 acres on which he erected a small house, built out of native sawed lumber. In this house of two rooms several of his children were born, and as the family increased in size, he added four rooms to the residence. He was born in 1830, and died in March, 1886. He was the father of eight children, as follows: Mrs. Francis J. Bucknum, of Oklahoma City; Emily, deceased; William H., living at Saugatuck, Mich.; Robert M., former traveling salesman, who died at Holdredge, Neb., in 1913; Edmond W., the subject of this review; Mrs. Etta M. Hubbard, living in Michigan; Mrs. Addie Myrtle Latta, of Oklahoma City, and Dudley M., deceased. The mother of these children died in 1881. The senior Allen was again married in 1883 to Ruth Robinson, who now resides in Wyandotte county, near the town of Piper. One child, Ethel, was born of this marriage.

Edmond W. Allen was reared on the pioneer farm of his father’s, near Atchison, Kan., and received his primary education in the district schools of his neighborhood, and completed his schooling at Beloit, Kan. When his father died, in 1886, William H. Allen, the oldest son, was appointed administrator of the estate, and guardian of the minor children. He removed all of them to his home at Beloit, where he was engaged in the implement business. This was done in order that William might properly care for the younger children and look after their education. Edmond W., after finishing his schooling, was employed for two years in his brother’s store at Beloit, following which he worked for one year in a grocery store and meat market in Kansas City, Kan., owned by Robert Robinson. His brother, William H., in the meantime, sold out his stock in Beloit and removed to Hoxie, Kan., and was employed in a bank for a year and one-half. Financial disaster overtook the bank, and he then spent one year in Kansas City, Kan., after which, in 1891, he went to western Nebraska and entered the employ of Harris Bros., a firm of grain dealers with headquarters in Lincoln, Neb. Mr. Allen was located in the town of Stamford, Lebanon, and Republican City, Neb., in the employ of Harris Bros. and was then transferred to the main office of the firm of Lincoln, Neb., where he remained until 1893. From 1893 to 1895, he was in the employ of Hathaway & Williams, fire insurance agents, of Lincoln, and when this firm sold out he traveled for a period of six months in the interests of an Omaha fire insurance company. After his marriage, in 1895, he resided in Michigan for one year, and in 1896 he again entered the employ of the Harris Bros. Grain Company, which firm was later incorporated as the Central Granaries, a very rich corporation. He remained with this concern until 1898, when he entered the employ of the McCormick Harvester Company as bookkeeper, with headquarters at Lincoln, Neb. He was in the employ of the McCormick people until 1903. In the meantime he had formed a partnership with his father-in-law, Jacob P. Sprang, in the grocery and meat market business in Muscotah, where Mr. Allen has resided permanently since 1903.