Sedgwick County KSGenWeb

Portrait And Biographical Album of Sedgwick County, Kan.

Chapman Brothers 1888

Pages 857 - 858

HENRY STEIN, one of the oldest settlers of Sedgwick County and a resident of Rockford Township, and whose portrait is given on the opposite page, is a fine representative of the men whose shrewd foresight and determined energy opened the way for the settlement of this county, and who have since been active in developing its varied resources. He came to Kansas in 1869, and being thus early in the field it has been his privilege to watch from the very beginning the settlement of this part of Kansas and the growth of the towns around him, and he has played an important part in town and county affairs. He was one of the Commissioners who organized Sedgwick County in 1870, and to him belongs the honor of naming his adopted township Rockford, from a rock found in the Arkansas River below his home and opposite the village of Derby.

            Our subject was born in Mecklenburg, Germany, Jan. 17, 1833, and left the Fatherland in 1858, taking passage on the steamer "Brussia" for America, landing at New York City. From there he went to Wisconsin to try his fortune, and later to Missouri. While in the latter State he entered the army in 1862, desiring to assist his adopted country in her hour of need. He served for a short time in the State Militia, and then volunteered as a member of the 49th Missouri, Col. Dye Commander. For his bravery and faithful service he was promoted First Corporal, took part in a number of important battles, and was finally honorably discharged Nov. 21, 1865, at Montgomery, Ala.

            In 1869, as before mentioned, Mr. Stein came to this State and pre-empted a quarter-section on sections 1 and 2, township 29 (Rockford), range 1 east, and has ever since made his home here. His farm lies on the rich bottom lands of the Arkansas River; the fertility of the soil is unsurpassed, and the yield of crops immense. He has since increased the acreage of his land by the purchase of twenty additional acres, and has it all under a high state of improvement, with the exception of a tract of fine timber land. He makes a specialty of raising Jersey and Durham cattle, and his fine, well-kept animals are among the best in this part of the county; his handsome blooded horses command a ready sale at high prices.

            Mr. Stein is now on the shady side of the hill of life, and in the years to come can live in the enjoyment of the wealth he has gathered together by his persistent labors, his careful management and the exercise of a sound judgment. He has never married, choosing a life of "single blessedness" as his portion, but the hospitalities of his pleasant home on the edge of the forest are shared daily by some relative; the latch-string is always on the outside, and is pulled by many of his friends, who often visit him to enjoy his genial and interesting conversation of his experiences, or to listen to his reminiscences of his pioneer life when this part of the country had not been redeemed from the hand of nature. Our subject is a man of strong and earnest convictions, and his life record has thus far been an honorable one. He votes with the Republican party, and is an active advocate of its principles, which he believes to be the true ones for the government of this great Republic.

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