Biography |
The reservation country shows some of the finest tilled farms in the county and among this number we should mention that owned by the subject of this article, whose labor and skill have been well manifested here in his achievements. George Mucken was born in Prussia, on the Rhine, on September 29, 1865, being the son of John P. and Susan Mucken, natives of the same country. Our subject was educated in the common schools, and at the age of twenty-one joined the regular army and served two years. In 1892 he started from Bremen to New York, leaving his parents and two brothers in the old country. He came on to Stearns county, Minnesota, and later to Whitman county, where he wrought for wages until the reservation opened. He was on hand and selected his present place, about three miles northwest from Nezperce and filed the nineteenth day of November, 1893. He had only five dollars in cash, but commenced the good work of improvement with a will and an empty pocket. He erected a small cabin and was soon at work for a salary, using the money to improve with until he got a start and then devoted himself entirely to the cultivation and handling of the estate. The result is that he has a good and valuable farm. In the fall of 1898, Mr. Mucken went back to Germany for a visit and had a very enjoyable time. He returned the following spring and went on with his farm improvements. On April 18, 1900, Mr. Mucken married Miss Mary E. Seubert, a native of Bavaria, Germany, who came with her parents to the United States when she was thirteen. They settled in Illinois, later went to South Dakota and thence to the reservation in the spring of 1902. Mrs. Mucken had come three years previous to that. One child has been born to this union, Louisa S. Mr. Mucken and his wife are devout members of the Catholic church and are of excellent standing in the community. George Mucken died in 1927, and his wife, Mary E. Seubert Mucken died in 1941. They are buried in Calvary Cemetery in Mount Angel, Marion Co., OR. |
Contributed by Natalie Huntley