In the book's own words, not ours, with obvious scanning errors fixed. Families often supplied these stories to the publisher, so check key dates.
Born 1844
From An illustrated history of Jackson County, Minnesota (1910)
NEWTON FREER (1874), Alba township farmer, was born in Ulster county. New York, October 20, 1844, the son of J. D. and Anna L. (Hasbrook) Freer, both natives of the Empire state. They came west in 1851 and located in Winneshiek county, Iowa, moved to Jackson county in 1874, and died in Heron Lake. Newton is one of a family of six children born to these parents.
The subject of this biography moved from Ulster county. New York, with his parents when a child and grew to manhood in ' neshiek county, Iowa. He spent his early years with his parents on the farm with the exception of five years when he was employed in a flouring mill at Frankville, Iowa. He spent three years in the Black Hills country, and then, in 1874, became a resident of Jackson county. He took as a homestead claim the east half of the southwest quarter of section 24, Alba township, and upon that place he has ever since resided, being one of the pioneer settlers of the precinct.
Mr. Freer was married in Winneshiek county, Iowa, February 6, 1874, to Rosa Rathburn, a native of the county in which she was married, having been bora September 16, 1854 She is the daughter of Walter and Welthy (Lummis) Rathburn. One child was born to this union, Lloyd, born in April, 1886, and died in September, 1894. They have an adopted son, Emmet, aged fourteen years. Mr. and Mrs. Freer are members of the Methodist church. He has served as a member of the Alba township board and now holds the office of treasurer of school district No. 85.
As printed in An illustrated history of Jackson County, Minnesota (1910). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.
The printed record stops around 1910. We trace your line from there down to you, with every source cited.