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Transcribed from "An Illustrated History of The Big Bend Country, embracing Lincoln, Douglas, Adams and Franklin counties, State of Washington",  published by Western Historical Publishing Co., 1904.


     FRED MAHRT is one of the wealthy agriculturists of Lincoln county.  His home place, which is a fine estate, lies four miles south west from Reardan and bears the marks of being handled with skill, thrift, and wisdom.
     Fred Mahrt was born in Wisconsin, on May 20, 1860, being the son of John and Margaret (Jaeger) Mahrt, natives of Germany.  They came to the United States when young and settled in Wisconsin, where they were married.  To them, eight children have been born, three boys and five girls.  The parents are both deceased.  Our subject was the third child and received his education from the public schools of Wisconsin.  When fourteen years of age, he quit the school room for the farm and labored three years in Wisconsin.  Then he journeyed to Sabula, Iowa, where he farmed for three years.  It was 1880, when he arrived in what is now Lincoln county and for one year was employed on the Northern Pacific railroad then took up a timber culture claim and a homestead later.  Very few settlers were in this section when Mr. Mahrt located and he is well acquainted with the life of the pioneer, its hardships and labors.  He has given his attention to grain and stock raising since coming here and has achieved a most excellent success.  In 1888 he went to Wisconsin and there married Miss Emma Steffen of Newburg, Washington county.  To them eight children have been born, Annie and Margaret, twins; William, August, George, Florence, Alice, and an infant unnamed.  Mr. Mahrt has improved his estate with first class buildings, fences, orchard and so forth.  About one hundred acres are devoted to pasture and the balance is all first class grain land.  He started in the Big Bend country with very little capital and he has been rewarded for his thrift and industry and has a large holding at the present time.  In addition to the other industries mentioned, Mr. Mahrt is handling a fifty cow dairy, probably the largest in the county.
 


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