An Illustrated History of Central Oregon, Western Historical Publishing Company,
Spokane, WA. 1905, pages 411-412.

DOCTOR S. KIMSEY resides eighty miles southwest from Antelope where he owns a
section of land and devotes his attention to stock raising. He was born in Polk
county, Oregon, on September 6, 1848. His father, Duff Kimsey, was born in
Howard county, Missouri and his parents, the paternal grandparents of our
subject, were born in Virginia and Kentucky. They were descended from an old
American family that dwelt in the colonies about the time of the Revolution and
participated in the struggles to bring forth this great nation and also suffered
much from Indian depredations during the War of 1812. They were pioneers to
Missouri and were substantial people. The father of our subject married Mandana
Smith, born in the same place as her husband and her father was born in North
Carolina and her mother in Virginia. Our subject's parents crossed the plains
with ox teams in 1847 and settled in Polk county. Two years later, they
journeyed thence to Marion county and took a donation claim where they remained
until our subject was eleven years old. Then he went with his mother to Thurston
county, Washington, his father having died the year before. Then the mother
married W.O. Bush and our subject remained with them off and on until 1871, when
he went to Salem and in the spring worked on his uncle's farm near by. In the
spring of 1872, he came to the vicinity of Antelope and after renting for four
or five years bought a man's right to a piece of lieu land where he now resides.
He took a homestead and pre-emption, then bought a half section of land and
since that time he has given his attention to cultivating this and raising
stock. He winters about one hundred and fifty head of cattle and utilizes the
alfalfa and rye, which he raises, for hay, not threshing any grain. In
September, 1874, in the Antelope valley, Mr. Kimsey married Catherine Ashby, who
was born in Illinois, the daughter of Joseph and Mary (Savage) Ashby. The father
was a native of Canada and came to California in the fifties, where he mined for
some time. He returned east in 1853 and in 1865 crossed the plains to the
Willamette valley. He came east of the mountains in 1872, and died in 1894. His
wife was born in Vermont, and died in 1894. Mr. Kimsey has two brothers, James
D., near Olympia, Washington and Franklin P., a farmer near Antelope. He also
has a half brother, John S. Bush, living near Olympia, Washington, and two
sisters, Hannah J., single, living near Olympia and Viola, wife of David L.
Burntrager, who lives nine miles southeast of Olympia. He also has one half
sister, Isabel, wife of George Gaston, dwelling near Olympia. Mrs. Kimsey has
four brothers: William J., near Cottonwood, California; Joseph B., in the
vicinity of Salem, Oregon; Grant, living near Oregon City; and George W. at
Weiser, Idaho. She also has three sisters; Mary, wife of Henry Steers, a retired
stockman at The Dalles; Hattie R., wife of William Humphrey, near Salem; and
Grace, wife of Orange D. Glover, a bookkeeper in Portland. Mr. and Mrs. Kimsey
have three children: Ernest J., on a farm which his mother inherited from her
father's estate; Ray U., a tenant on Indian creek; Grace E., single, and living
at home.      

Mr. Kinisey is a good active Republican and is frequently at the conventions. He
served four years as county commissioner from 1896, to 1900 and was justice of
the peace in the eighties. He has been twelve years school director and has
served as road supervisor. Mr. and Mrs. Kimsey are enterprising and substantial
people and have labored long and faithfully for the upbuilding of this portion
of Wasco county.

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Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in January 2005 by Jeffrey L. Elmer. 
Submitter has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned
above.