FRIER & FRUITS FAMILIES.

William Frier.

D. M. Fruits.

Note by RKW: William Frier is written about in the 1901 Biographical Sketches of Cowley County. He came in 1871. He sold his farm on May 10, 1873, to D. M. Fruits.

See below. MAW

[1871/1873] PAGE 188. [FRUITS/FRIER.]

D. M. FRUITS resided on the north half of the northwest quarter of section 15, Ninnescah Township. He was born in Montgomery County, Indiana, on October 17, 1836, a son of Sebastian and Matilda (Ray) Fruits.

Sebastian Fruits, his father, was born in Ohio, as was also his wife, and there he resided until he moved to Indiana. In 1845 he located in Page County, Iowa, where he took up 160 acres of land, which he cultivated up to the time of his death. They were the parents of the following children: D. M., Samuel, Sebastian, George William, Jane, Matilda A., Mary, Sarah, Martha C., and Julia. All of the children received a good schooling, and D. M. Fruits lived at home until he was 22 years of age. He then engaged in farming on his own account, and remained in Page County, Iowa, until he settled in the Sunflower State.

On July 14, 1863, D. M. Fruits enlisted as a private in Company A, 8th Reg., Ia. Vol. Cav., under Capt. G. W. Burns, and Col. J. B. Door, whose regiment was assigned to the Army of the Cumberland. Mr. Fruits served under General Sherman, and during two years and three days spent in the army took part in many battles. He was honorably discharged July 17, 1865, at Clinton, Iowa.

Mr. D. M. Fruits bought his farm May 10, 1873, from William Frier, who took up the tract in the spring of 1871. A rude house then stood on the place, and but slight improvements were made on the property. Its owner raised grain and cattle to a considerable extent, and his farm contained nothing but first class buildings.

Mr. Fruits was married May 8, 1849, in Page County, Iowa, to Mary Ann Frier, who was born in Montgomery County, Indiana, in 1837, a daughter of William and Mary (Ray) Frier. Her parents, also natives of Montgomery County, Indiana, moved in 1855 to Page County, Iowa, where they lived until the spring of 1871, when they preempted Mr. Fruits’ farm. Both were deceased by 1901. Ten children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Frier, of whom three were still living in 1901: Benjamin, a farmer in Ninnescah Township; Isaac, a farmer in the southwestern part of Cowley County; and Mary Ann, our subject’s wife.

Mr. and Mrs. Fruits had seven children.

1. Josephine, who lived in Shawnee, Oklahoma.

2 and 3. David and William H., who were drowned August 5, 1885.

4. Maggie A., wife of Jake Tims, of Oklahoma.

5. George, who was living at home in 1901.

6. Abbie, who was the wife of Baxter Martin.

7. John Sebastian.

8. Delilah A., who died in infancy.

[NOTE: I COUNTED EIGHT CHILDREN; NOT SEVEN.]

Mr. Fruits, a Republican, was not an office seeker.

FRIER.

Nothing was found in early census.

Fairview Township 1882.

Frier, B. M., 36. No spouse listed. Post Office address: Seeley.

Ninnescah Township 1872.

Frier, B. M., 26. No spouse listed.

Frier, Isaac, 21.

Frier, Wm., 66.

Ninnescah Township 1874.

Frier, B. M., 28. No spouse listed.

Fruits, David M., 38; spouse, Fruits, Mary A., 36.

Fruits, Marilla, 14; Fruits, David M., Jr., 12; Fruits, Wm. H., 10; Fruits, C. A., 5; Fruits, George, 2.

FROM THE NEWSPAPERS.

Winfield Messenger, August 16, 1872.

Commissioners Proceedings.

The following bills were allowed for jurors.

W. Frier, $5.00.

Winfield Courier, January 24, 1878.

Real Estate Transfers.

Isaac P. Frier to W. Pennington, s. w. 10, 31, 3, 160 acres, $850.

Cowley County Courant, December 29, 1881.

The claim of Jno. Miller, for $110, against the estate of Wm. Frier, deceased, was partially heard Monday and continued until January 3, 1882.

Cowley County Courant, March 30, 1882.

An order has been issued by the Probate Judge for the sale of real estate belonging to Wm. Frier, deceased.

FRUITS.

[COURT HOUSE NOTES.]

Winfield Courier, May 1, 1879.

MARRIAGE LICENSES. Hiram P. Sinkle and Josephine C. Fruits.

[Note to file: Checked through 1883. Could not find any other entries re Fruits.]