Biographical History of Pottawattmie Co., IA

Biographical History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa

lexander L. FRIZZELL is one of the well-known pioneers of Center Township, Pottawattamie County, Iowa. He came to his present location in 1870, when this country was in its wild estate, and has since continued his residence here. As an early settler and a worthy citizen of this part of the county, a sketch of his life will be found of interest to many. He was born in Vermont, May 6, 1833. His father, Michael Frizzell, a native of Essex, Massachusetts, was a son of Elijah Frizzell, a descendant of French ancestors and a soldier in the Revolutionary war. The mother of our subject was nee Orpha Cree, a native of Vermont. His parents were married in the Green Mountain State, and when he was eighteen months old they removed to Medina County, Ohio, where the mother died in 1837. In 1839 his father wedded Charlotte Deen. They removed to Bureau County, Illinois, in December, 1845, before there was any railroad there, making the journey in a wagon in the dead of winter, and were among the early settlers of that county. The father's second wife died in 1881. In 1883 he married Louisa Seely, and lived there until a short time before his death. He died at Firth, Lancaster County, Nebraska, at the age of eighty-three years. He had been a farmer all his life. In politics he was a Republican, and in religion a member of the Christian Church.

Alexander grew to manhood on his father's farm and received his education in the public schools of Bureau County. In 1860 he came to Iowa and for some time was variously employed in Mills County. He operated a threshing-machine, ran a sawmill and, being a natural mechanic, was never at a loss for work. It was in Mills County that he became acquainted with Miss Annie McNurlin, whom he married August 20, 1863. She was born in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, in 1836, the daughter of James and Rachel (Jeffrey) McNurlin, both natives of Pennsylvania, the former of Irish extraction and the latter of English. Mrs. Frizzell was an infant when her parents moved to Ohio. From there they went to Indiana and settled in Wabash County, where they lived some years and where Mrs. Frizzell was educated and reared. The family subsequently removed to Mills County, Iowa. The parents afterward went to Cass County, Nebraska, where they spent the rest of their lives, both dying at the age of seventy-five. The father was an active member of the Methodist Church and a class-leader in the same. Politically he was a Democrat.

In 1867 Mr. Frizzell moved to Cass County, Nebraska. Three years later, however, he returned to Iowa, and settled in Center Township, Pottawattamie County, on eighty acres of wild land, where he continues to reside. He bought a log house which had been by Mormons. The logs are oak, the best quality in the county. Mr. Frizzell moved this house to its present location, and here he has a home which for comfort and convenience is not surpassed by many a more pretentious looking structure. Here he and his good wife dispense hospitality in a generous way to friend and stranger, regardless of creed or doctrine. Mr. Frizzell has a fine orchard and grove, good stables, cribs, etc., and is engaged in general farming and stock-raising. His farm comprises 160 acres, all under a splendid state of cultivation.

The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Frizzell are as follows: Richard Ellsworth; Caroline, wife of Hugh Brown, of Center Township, has two children; Minnie, wife of Warren Newton, Mills County, Iowa, has one child; Rachel Charlotte, who makes the old home more pleasant by her presence.

Politically Mr. Frizzell is a Democrat. For four years he has served as Justice of the Peace, dealing out justice in an impartial manner to all who come before his court. He has also served the public as a member of the School Board. He is noted for his integrity, his cordiality and his hospitality.

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This page last updated: Friday, 01-Jan-1999 09:01:22 MST.