Page:History of Goodhue County, Minnesota.djvu/246

 194 HISTOKY OF GOODHUE COUNTY Poe, J. A. Holm, H. M. Stranahan, 0. S. Urevig, John A. Holm, D. E. Berdan, 0. S. Urevig, John Lewis, O. S. Urevig, P. J. Peterson, Ed. Berdan, K. K. Hougo, J. Helm. The oldest church in the township is the Spring Garden Swedish Evangelical Lutheran church. The Urland congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church was organized in the winter of 1871. In 1859 the Rev. Mr. Barnes organized a Presbyterian church, and during the following year the Methodist people perfected an organization, but both of these attempts expired, owing to lack of support. George Wright Matchan, deceased, will long be remembered for his sterling worth and noble Christian character. One of a family of fourteen children, he was bom at Hilton. Yorkshire, England. August 8, 1830. in the house where his parents settled at their marriage, and where both died, after a continuous resi- dence of more than sixty years of happy life. Here was spent his boyhood and early manhood, and in April. 1850. he married Mary Ann Shields, daughter of William and Frances (Miller) Shields, also born a1 his native place. April, 1858, the family consisting of Mr. and .Mrs. Matchan and three young sons, George. Robert and William, emigrated to Canada, taking passage in a sailing vessel of the type of thai day. After a stormy, trying voyage of forty-nine days at sea, l hey landed at Quebec, from whence they went to Farmersville. Ontario, subsequently settling on a farm near the village of Green Bush, about twelve miles westerly from Brockville. on the St. Lawrence. Here were born to them two children. Alinira and Edward. April, 1864, the family ('migrated to the United States, living for a few months at Waukesha, Wis. During the summer of 1864 Mr. Matchan, leaving his family at Waukesha to follow later, started for Min- nesota in quest of a home, and in the fall of that year rented the farm of James Seofield, in the town of Roscoe, where his family joined him. remaining until the spring of 1866, and where was born to them another daughter, Laura. The summer and winter of 1866-7, they lived on the farm of T. D. Rowell, east of the village of Zumbrota, moving thence to the farm lying soiithwesterly from Zumbrota village, in the town of Roscoe, which Mr. Matchan had purchased in the fall of 1865 of Josiah Thompson, then living at Zumbrota. This farm consisted of 160 acres, for which he agreed to pay $800, paying $100 cash and $100 per annum, with interest at ten per cent. Here were born to them another daughter, Annie, and a son, "Wesley. Many were the trials and great the discouragements encoun- tered before the final victory over debt and necessary farm bet- terments, but the good old farm yielded not only a comfortable