"Compendium of History and Biography of Central and Northern Minnesota containing a History of the State of Minnesota." 1904 William Carl Maier (This sketch is about the oldest son of Amelia Foerster Ryf Maier and William Maier. Amelia was the mother of Minnie Ryf Fradenburg, one of four children by her first marriage to Jacob Ryf.) ******************** William C. Maier is an energetic and progressive young man who purposes making farming his life occupation. He is the eldest son of the late William Maier, who until his death, was a prominent and influential factor in the development of the farming interests in Kandiyohi county. Our subject manages the estate of his late father in the interest of his mother and her children. He is unmarried and resides on the home farm in Harrison township. William Maier, deceased, was born in Wuerttemberg, Germany, in 1838. His father was a farmer by occupation and both his parents spent their lives in Germany. He received his education in the Fatherland and at the age of fourteen years he took passage for America. After landing at New York he found employment and continued in various occupations until the breaking out of the Civil War. In 1861 he enlisted in Company D. First New York Battery Volunteers, and at the close of his term re-enlisted in the United States Veteran Volunteers. He fought for his adopted country until the close of the war and received an honorable discharge and subsequently a pension for his valued services. In 1866 he went to Minnesota and took up a homestead claim of eighty acres of land which he later abandoned and bought one hundred and sixty acres of land in section 23 of Harrison township, Kandiyohi county. He began his improvements by building a barn, and continued to steadily improve the place. In 1866 he won the heart and hand of Mrs. Amelia Reefe, nee Foster, who was then a widow , and the owner of a fine farm in the immediate neighborhood. They were happily married and became the parents of ten children, eight of whom are now living and socially and intellectually are classed among the best people in the county. The names of the children are here given in the order of birth: William C.; Anna, now the wife of William Gratz of Willmar; Henrietta, the wife of Fred Wolf, residing in Indianapolis, Indiana; Matilda and August, twins; Joseph, who is married and is engaged in farming in Harrison township; Albert and Bertha, who live at home. During Mr. Maier's active life he filled a number of township offices, including those of assessor, supervisor, and director on the school board, and was also county commissioner. In politics he was a staunch Republican. He was a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, and with his family a member of the German Lutheran church. Mr. Maier died June 18, 1891 and was buried in the cemetery of St. Johns. He was mourned by a large circle of relatives and friends and their loss was deeply felt. The home of the Maier family is a commodious two- story structure, pleasantly situated on section 14 of Harrison township. Groves of trees add beauty and shelter to the place and good substantial barns afford shelter for crops and stock, there being of the latter fifty head of cattle and fifteen horses. The farm consists of five hundred eighty-one acres of land, most of which is now under plow. Mrs. Maier is a pleasant sociable lady who thoroughly enjoys life surrounded by an affectionate and dutiful family. She was also a native of Germany. Her parents were Samuel and Rosa (Nelson) Foster, who emigrated to America in 1853, when Mrs. Maier was a child. She is the mother of four children by her former marriage, all of whom are still living. The following story is from Illustrated History and Descriptive and Biographical Review of Kandiyohi County, Minnesota published by Lawson and Nelson, publishers of the Willmar Tribune, Willmar, MN. Page 230 contained two pictures of the farm home of William Maier. There was a picture of his barn and windmill plus another picture of their home with Amelia, with six of their children, sitting in the front yard. There are two daughters and four sons in the picture. This picture was probably taken about the same time (1908) that the large picture of Amelia was taken. ********** Submitted by: Patricia McKee Bauer