Sedgwick County KSGenWeb

Portrait And Biographical Album of Sedgwick County, Kan.

Chapman Brothers 1888

Pages 273 - 274  

RALPH ROLL, a reliable and intelligent young agriculturist of Ohio Township, residing on section 23, first drew the breath of life April 4, 1859, in Sheboygan County, Wis. He is a son of Henry and Frederika (Plaetz) Roll, both of whom were natives of the German Empire, who came to America in the year 1856, and made settlement in the Badger State. 

     In 1872 the subject of this sketch came to Sedgwick County with his parents, where his father pre-empted a quarter-section of land on section 24, in Ohio Township, where he lived until his death, which occurred Dec. 29, 1879. Henry Roll was one of the pioneers of that portion of the county, and when he settled upon his farm it was a wild waste of grass and weeds with not a furrow turned upon it, or a particle of improvements having been made. Like all who are among the first to break the way for civilization into a new country, he and his family were compelled to endure all the hardships and privations incident to pioneer life, which they did with a courage and endurance that were commendable. In his death the county lost one of the original pioneers, and one of its most esteemed citizens. He was a member of the Lutheran Church, and a good and sincere Christian gentleman. In his political faith he was attached to the Republican party, and warmly in favor of any measure that was calculated to benefit the community. He was the father of six children - Henry, Gustave, Charles, Ralph, William and Annie. 

     The subject of our sketch has been a resident of Ohio Township since 1872, and has always been engaged in farming. He received the rudiments of his education in the district schools of his native state and of Kansas, which he has supplemented by considerable reading, and is well posted on the current topics of the day. He was united in marriage, Oct. 9, 1882, with Cedelia McGaha, a native of Douglas County, Ill., born Jan. 22, 1863, and a daughter of Joseph and Sarah (Thornton) McGaha, who are at present residing in Salem Township, this county. 

     Mr. Roll is the owner of a fine farm of 160 acres of highly productive and fertile land, on section 14, Ohio Township, which he has by industry and good management, with its attendant hard labor, brought to a high state of cultivation. The buildings which he has erected are of a neat and substantial character, and all the improvements are made with a view to convenience in his business. In his politics he is entirely free from party lines, casting his ballot for the man who seems to him the most fit for the office, and paying little attention to platforms or partisan measures. As a member of the Lutheran Church he gives much attention to religious work, and is a true and sincere Christian. His uprightness, integrity and public-spiritedness, have won him the confidence and esteem of his neighbors, and he is classed among the most respected representative citizens of Sedgwick County.

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