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Show Successful Men of Utah Mlllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 1 FTi J.".'!:'."!'.!'.!;!.'.;'!!-..''''.!! ,Vi: .!n, :,!!!',ll.i II"l'I .,-li 'ih.l: !l! ::i I '! llli:,lllil.TI: lilLlMllil.l.l I'.'l,1!:'!!.!!.-!.,1 Ill:."l!:l',::l,l :i' '.ff M HE life of Frederick John Kiesel is the story of a builder, the history of a man who over-d over-d (T came the difficulties of pioneer days, and by great labor and wonderful financial genius J founded the basis of success and built for himself and his family large fortunes. It is a story of the type of man, who, through long struggle and unfaltering courage, transformed trans-formed the West from a wilderness to a great industrial empire. Frederick John Kiesel was born May 19, 1841 in Ludwigsburg, Wurtemberg, Germany. When only sixteen years of age he emigrated to the United States, arriving in the spring of 1857. The lure of the west was strong, the gold craze in California was at its height, railroads were being pushed west of the Mississippi, and ox carts carried the more hardy of the adventurers across the Rockies and into the great country beyond. Mr. Kiesel cast his fortunes with these sturdy pioneers, arriving in Utah in July, 18G3, intending to proceed to Montana. He was induced, however, to remain in Salt Lake City, by the firm of Gilbert & Sons, who, at the instance of General Connor sent him that fall to Soda Springs to act in the ca-acity ca-acity of sutler for Company H of the California volunteers, and to conduct a general store near the settlement. This was his first venture in the mercantile world. The following spring he returned to Salt Lake and again took up his work with Gilbert & Sons. But in the fall of 1864, seeing the (Continued on page 14.) FREDERICK JOHN KIESEL (Continued from Page 1.) industrial opportunities that abounded in the West he associated himself with Fielding H. Lewis, and established a general store at Manti, in Sanpete valley, in addition acting In the capacity capac-ity of sub agent under Colonel Irish, superintendent superintend-ent of Indian affairs for Utah. Those were the days of unrest among the Indian tribes in this district. Early in that spring the Black Hawk Indian war developed, and young Kiesel was one of the first volunteers to protect the lives of the settlers and was one of the party to bring in the first victim of that war. In 1865 Kiesel and Lewis disposed of their business in Sanpete and returned to Salt Lake City, later opening a store at Wellsville, in Cache county, remaining there until the spring of 18G6. That early in life young Kiesel had begun to develop the business acumen that in the years that followed steadily built up, his great financial success. He sold this business to Sadler, Robbins and Benson, and purchased a general merchandise store from Wesley Browning, now deceased, at Ogden. The former location of this store is now occupied by the Pingree National bank. Incidentally Incident-ally Mr. Kiesel bought this property for twelve hundred dollars, and shortly afterwards sold It for the same amount. In later years Mr. Pingree paid $45,000 for the tract of land. In the spring of '67 receiving a lucrative offer from the organizers of the first co-operative store started in Utah he sold out his business and opened open-ed other mercantile stores in Paris and Mont-pelier, Mont-pelier, Idaho, where he remained two years. The object of these country stores was to collect col-lect grain and flour, but this did not meet with general approval and he closed out this business. His many moves were made to escape various troubles incident to those times. Finally, during the winter of '68, Mr. Kiesel went to the front of the Union Pacific, at Green River and Echo. He returned to Ogden in 71, and found trade there prostrate in consequence of a smallpox epidemic and moved his stock of goods to Ophir, and subsequently sub-sequently bought out Isador Morris at Bingham $, canyon, doing a successful business in both these mining camps. In the fall of 1872 ho sold back again to Isador Morris, and went on a trip to Germany, where, in 1873, he married. Forty-three years ago this month, Mr. Kiesel , brought his bride to Utah and settled at Corinne, where with Gumport Goldberg he bought out the stock of Lebenbaum & Co., and started and conducted con-ducted a general forwarding business and forwarded for-warded everything by wftgon and by road to all points in Idaho and Montana, building up an im-melise im-melise banking and forwarding business. Because of Mr. Goldberg's failing health, the firm sold out to Sebree, Ferris & Holt. $ For the third time Mr. Kiesel came back to Ogden. That place had drawn him to from the first. This time he opened a wholesale grocery store, the first one ever established in the state. It grew rapidly from the first; partly in self-defense it invaded Idaho, Wyoming and Montana , and when finally disposed of Its sales bad reached $200,000 per annum. Mr. Kiesel was one of the foremost men In the convention that framed the constitution of the state; he has been a state senator and mayor of Ogden. The foregoing gives but a poor Idea of the real man. His first great characteristic is his Invincible Invin-cible energy; then his stainless integrity, then his business sagacity. An inexperienced German boy, he was suddenly sudden-ly cast here when this was the frontier. From the first day he was bound to win because his ideas were clearer than those around him and because if he could not win by working all day he worked all night also. Then he has had that faculty which made him while prospering want every one around him to prosper. And while he has pursued his business with all faithfulness, he has been the close friend and adviser of those around him, and his voice has always rung true for his adopted country. No man in the state is more respected than he; to the people of Ogden who know him best, no man is more loved. When Mr. Kiesel opened his first little store in Utah, he began a new education. He knew nothing of the United States or its people. He was first with the soldiers, noted their reckless ways, but that a bugle call was enough to make them indifferent alike to hardship hard-ship or to danger. He saw the miner living on half food but confident that he would "strike it" jjp. in a few days, and at last it came to him that it was unAmerican for a man to repine or to doubt about results and sometimes he was led to wonder won-der how much he himself had changed under the friction of the strange new land into which he had been flung. His character rapidly expanded and finally it dawned upon him that all the land's opportunities opportuni-ties were open to him and it would be his own fault if he did not go to the front. That day he became a real American and ever since he has been striving to be a better citizen of the land of his adoption. j- He has given up active business, but his mind is alert as ever, his sense of right is sensitive as ever; if he had his way there would never be an injustice done or a tear shed. When the foundations of a state are laid by such men as he, that state has an inheritance for. all its children to hold as sacred. |
