August J. Vaughn

August J. Vaughn (born August Johnson)
Born	February 8, 1854(1854-02-08) Vestergatland or Smaland, Sweden (Source Conflict)
Died	January 7, 1947 (aged 92)
Resting place	Platte Valley Cemetery in Phelps County, Nebraska
Residence	Sweden (1854–1868) «Did not recognize date. Try slightly modifying the date in the first parameter.–Did not recognize date. Try slightly modifying the date in the first parameter.»"Marriage: Sweden to August J. Vaughn" Location: (linkback:http://jimlindstrom.com/mediawiki/index.php/August_J._Vaughn) Illinois, USA (1868–1878) «Did not recognize date. Try slightly modifying the date in the first parameter.–Did not recognize date. Try slightly modifying the date in the first parameter.»"Marriage: Illinois, USA to August J. Vaughn" Location: (linkback:http://jimlindstrom.com/mediawiki/index.php/August_J._Vaughn) Phelps County, Nebraska, USA (1878–1947) «Did not recognize date. Try slightly modifying the date in the first parameter.–Did not recognize date. Try slightly modifying the date in the first parameter.»"Marriage: Phelps County, Nebraska, USA to August J. Vaughn" Location: (linkback:http://jimlindstrom.com/mediawiki/index.php/August_J._Vaughn)
Spouse	Matilda Swan Peterson (m. 1877) «Did not recognize date. Try slightly modifying the date in the first parameter.»"Marriage: Matilda Swan Peterson to August J. Vaughn" Location: (linkback:http://jimlindstrom.com/mediawiki/index.php/August_J._Vaughn), Illinois
Children	Oscar Albion Vaughn (1878-) Ira Clarance Vaughn (1882-1969) Alice Irene Vaughn (1884-1925) Edward Phillip Vaughn (1886-1975) Henry Carroll Vaughn (1888-1974) Fred Walter Vaughn (1890-1955) Alvin August Vaughn (1893-1986) Ernest Harold Vaughn (1896=1983) Togue Thedford Vaughn (1898-1976)
Parents	John G. Johnson Johanna Johnson

Biography of August J. Vaughn

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August J. Vaughan [sic], a successful farmer and stock-raiser of Williamsburg township, Phelps County, was born in Sweden, February 8, 1854. He was reared on a farm and attended school for about seven years. He landed in New York City, after a somewhat stormy voyage, on August 3, 1868, and came west as far as Oneinda, Knox County, Ill., where he remained for 10 years, working out by the month on a farm.

Mr. Vaughan came to Phelps County, Nebr., in July 1878, homesteading the southeast quarter of Section 32. There was plenty of antelope and other wild game, but very few actual settlers in that locality then. Mr. Vaughan was a young man and came here with a very limited means, having only three horses and about $50 in money. He built a sod house and at once set about laying the foundation for his future home. He underwent all of the hardships of frontier life, was compelled to haul water three miles for his stock, being unable to have a well dug, and was subjected to many other inconveniences. He has worked hard, early and late, however, until the once wild and desolate prairie homestead has been transformed into a productive and beautiful farm.

Mr. Vaughan was married to Miss Matilda S. Peterson on December 31, 1877. She was born in Sweden in 1856 and came to America in 1868. This union has resulted in the birth of five children, namely -- Oscar, Ira (deceased), Alice, Eddie, and Carroll. Mr. Vaughan has 320 acres of improved land, all fenced and under a good state of cultivation. He is a progressive man and believes in keeping well-bred stock of all kinds. He has some as fine standard-bred Hambletonian horses as anyone would wish to see, and his Short-horn cattle and Poland-china hogs are among the best to be found in Phelps County. He is regarded as one of the most successful stock-raisers in the county, and his example is well worthy of emulation.

Both Mr. Vaughn and his estimable wife are members of the Christian Mission church. In politics he is a republican, and a man who stands high in the estimation of his fellow men.

(Note: This was published in 1890, at which point A.J. and Matilda did only have 5 children. Children 6-9 were born after this book, in the 1890s. -- Jim.lindstrom)

(Note: Based on the details above, it may be possible to determine the ship that A.J. took from Sweden to New York... -- Jim.lindstrom)

Account of A.J. Vaughn's Emmigration by Dean Randall Lindstrom

This is the story that my mother, Aline, and my uncle, Lee Vaughn, have told me about the origin of the Vaughn name taken by their grandpa, August J. Vaughn, sometime in the 1880's when he came from Illinois to Phelps County, Nebr.: At age, 18, my great grandfather, August Johnson came from Sweden in the early 1880's and worked for a few years for a Swedish farmer in Illinois with a last name of Vaughn. He appreciated the job opportunity in Illinois and admired his employer, Mr. Vaughn. August Johnson was later convinced by someone to move to Phelps County, Nebraska and homestead 160 acres about 2 miles south of the pioneer cemetery, which we now call Platte Valley Cemetery. Upon arriving in Phelps County and doing the homestead claim he discovered that the county had many families with the name of Johnson who were not related to him and made it confusing. (or maybe there was another reason or two) I have not examined the real estate title or homestead document at the Phelps County Clerk's office to see how the name is recorded, but, at some time during the 1880's when he first came to Phelps County, he assumed the name of A. J. Vaughn. His wife, 8 sons, and all of male offspring have used the Vaughn name ever since. A.J. and his wife, Matilda, and 4 of their sons, Togue, Fred, Ernest, and Carroll, are buried at the Platte Valley Cemetery. A.J. & Matilda had 4 other sons and a daughter who were married were buried with their families in Holdrege & Overton, Nebr. and near Akron, Colo. My grandfather, Edward P. and wife, Ethel A. are buried in Moses Hill Cemetery northwest of Holdrege where my parents are buried.

Timeline

1854	August was born
1868	August came to Oneida, Illinois, at age 14
1877	August married Matilda Swan Peterson, in Galesberg Illinois, on Dec. 31, 1877.
1878	1st child, Oscar Albion Vaughn was born
July 1878	August and Matilda moved to Phelps County, Nebraska (possibly accompanied (or later followed) by Matilda's parents, Carl J. Peterson and Maria Sophia Peterson)
1882	2nd child, Ira Clarance Vaughn was born
1884	3rd child, Alice Irene Vaughn was born
1886	4th child, Edward Phillip Vaughn was born, in Westmark, Nebraska
1888-1898	5th through 9th children are born, in Nebraska
1915	Matilda dies (buried in Platte Valley Cemetery)
1947	August dies (buried in Platte Valley Cemetery)

A.J.'s Phelps County Farm

In an email, Dean Randall Lindstrom writes:

Great grandpa homesteaded in northern Phelps county. [...] The land that he homesteaded is about 16 miles northwest of Holdrege in Westside Township with a legal description as follows: The Southeast quarter of Section 32, Township 8, Range 19 West of Principal Meridian, Phelps County, Nebraska. The county recorder's office doesn't have the old real estate deeds inserted on their computerized database, so I will have to go to Holdrege sometime and walk in the Phelps County Recorders Office and find the original or microfilmed recorded deed from United States of America to A.J. Vaughn, August J.Vaughn, August Johnson, or whatever name he used back in the 1880's when he first homesteaded it. The landowner now on that place is Ryan C. Vaughn, who is my cousin, Stanley Vaughn's son, who now owns and farms the land which is identified as parcel ID # [004357.00] by the Phelps County Assessor, and, contains 165.44 acres more or less. You can see the parcel description on the Phelps County Assessor's records, and, view the parcel map on Google Earth if you wish. There is no house or farm buildings on the farm now. and, it is used only for farmland for corn and soybeans.

I can remember when A. J. Vaughn raised registered Hereford cattle on the farm. My uncle Lee says that in the early 1900's A.J. Vaughn (his grandpa) sold high quality registered Hereford (red & white) bulls and bred cows to other ranchers and producers at auction at the farmstead on an annual basis. My mother, Aline, when she was a young girl, used to help her grandparents by helping to cook meals at harvest time or on special occasions when they needed to feed extra farm workers. A.J. Vaughn and his wife, Matilda raised 8 sons and 1 daughter. Great Grandpa Vaughn loved his trotting horses and had a race track behind his horse barn where he trained the "trotting gait" to his horses. My uncle Lee says that he remembers the horses in training wore a harsh metal appliance on the horse shoulders and legs which would cause them to bleed until they learned the special gait to make them a trotter. Then they were used to race with a two wheel cart which had bicycle-like tires.

The address of the above map is "H Rd & 744 Rd, Loomis, Phelps, Nebraska 68958".

Other Historical Records

The 1870 Illinois Census lists A.J. in Ontario Township, Illinois, just north of Galesburg:

 Johnson, August.  18 M.  White.  Sweden.  Knox County.  Ontario Township.  

This Directory Listing, 1889 Phelps County Map (Phelps County Museum) lists A.J. in Nebraska in 1889:

 VAUGHAN, A. J. Occupation: FARMER.  Post Office: WESTMARK.  WILLIAMSBURG TOWNSHIP, PHELPS COUNTY, NE.

The 1910 Nebraska Census lists A.J. in Phelps County:

 VAUGHN, August J.  56, male, white.  Birth Place: Sweden.  Phelps County.  Williamsburg Township.

Ongoing Research

(From Jim Lindstrom) A trip to the New York Public Library on 11/6 turned up three interesting census records:

1870 Census

I'm pretty sure that this August Johnson is A.J. Vaughn, at age 16, in Geneseo. He's in a household headed by John G Johnson, who also shows up in a 1900 Illinois Census, still in Geneseo. What makes this likely to be accurate is that August is the right age, he's listed as a day laborer (could fit Dean's story of August working for a Vaughn), it's in the area where we know he married Matilda, and his (presumptive) father's immigration year is listed as 1868, which matches the immigration date for August, given in that biography (Aug 3, 1868). I ran out of time at the library, so I haven't yet done any digging on this John G, or any of the other members of his household.

1870 Census

Name: John G Johnson
Born: abt 1817
Age in 1870: 53
Birthplace Sweden
Home in 1870: Geneseo, Henry, Illinois
Race: White
Gender: Male
Value of real eastate: ?
Post Office: Geneseo
Household Members:
	Name			Age
	John G Johnson		53
	Johannah Johnson	31
	August Johnson		16
	Eda M Johnson		 1

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The above image contains the following information:

Name	Age	Gender	Race	Occupation	Birth Place
Johnson, John G	53	M	W	Day Laborer	Sweden
Johnson, Johanna	13	F	W	Keeps House	Sweden
Johnson, August	16	M	W	Day Laborer	Sweden
Johnson, Eda M	1	F	W		Illinois

1900 Census

1900 Census

Name:	John G Johnson
Home in 1900: Geneseo, Henry, Illinois
Age: 81
Birth Date:Nov 1818
Birthplace: Sweden
Race: White
Gender: Male
Immigration Year: 1868
Relationship to Head of House: Father
Father's Birthplace: Sweden
Mother's Birthplace: Sweden
Spouse's name Johanna Johnsen
Marriage Year: 1852
Marital Status: Married
Years Married: 48
Household Members
	Name			Age
	Charles A Johnsen	45
	John G Johnsen		81
	Johanna Johnsen		70
	Emanuel Johnsen		25

• 

The above image contains the following information:

Name	Relation to Head	Race	Sex	Birthdate	Age	Single or Married	Years Married	# Children	# Children Living	Birth Place	Father's Birth Place	Mother's Birth Place	Year of Immigration	Years in US	Naturalization	Occupation	Months not employed	Can read	Can write	Can speak English	Own or Rent	Own freely or mortgaged	Farm or House
Johnson, Charles	Head	W	M	July? 1855	45	S				Sweden	Sweden	Sweden	1868	32	Na	Brick Maker?	4	yes	yes	yes	1	F	H
Johnson,John	Father	W	M	Nov 1818	81	M	48			Sweden	Sweden	Sweden	1868	32	Al			yes	no	yes
Johnson, Johanna	Mother	W	F	Nov 1827	70	M	48	6	3	Sweden	Sweden	Sweden	1868	32				yes	no	yes
Johnson, Emmanuel	Brother	W	M	Nov 1874	25	S				Illinois	Sweden	Sweden				Day Laborer	4	yes	yes	yes

A.J.'s emmigration

I tried finding which ships came into New York on Aug 3, 1868 and found the following:

• Caledonia
• Carrie Douglass
• City of London
• Davis
• Holsatia
• Louisiana
• Rosalia
• Udola

Ancestry.com has passenger lists for most of these. The handwriting is extremely difficult to decipher, but I was unable to positively identify any Johnsons of the right age to be A.J. Several ships did include a lot of Swedish immigrants, though. Most/all passed through the UK, and none come directly from Scandanavia.

Other

The 1877 book The History of Henry County, Illinois (p201) lists August, Charles, and John, but has enough other Johsons that it's difficult to know if these are matches.